January 07, 2015

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Buhari: Jonathan must go MEND backs APC candidate Supporters shot on way to rally From Bisi Olaniyi, Port Harcourt

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EFORE thousands of cheering party faithful and ordinary folks, All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate Muhammadu Buhari yesterday opened his campaign, with a promise to tackle corruption, fight insecurity and revive the economy.

The former Head of State declared the level of corruption as “intolerable”, adding that the President Goodluck Jonathan administration must go.

Also yesterday in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital, Gen. Buhari said: “We have reached a stage where change has to come.

PDP must go. Enough is enough.”

The campaign took off at the 40,000-seating capacity Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium in Igwuruta, near the Port Harcourt International Airport in Rivers State. It was attended by over 100,000 people, who defied the scorching sun to join the singing, drumming and dancing.

Bu the ceremony has a tinge of tragedy.

As Gen. Buhari’s supporters were moving to the stadium from Asari-Toru (Kalabari) and Khana (Ogoni) Local Government Areas of Rivers State, thugs believed to be Continued on page 4

•Cross section of the crowd at the rally...yesterday

INEC closes presidential nomination

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HE Independent National Electoral Commission( INEC) yesterday closed submission of nomination forms for the presidential race.

No party can replace its presidential candidate again, unless in case of death or withdrawal from the race.

As at 6pm yesterday, only 11 candidates had returned their forms.

Among them are President Goodluck Jonathan of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Gen. Muhammadu

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WILL THE CHIBOK GIRLS KIDNAPPED ON APRIL 15 EVER RETURN?

From Yusuf Alli, Abuja

Buhari of the All Progressives Congress ( APC)— the top contenders.

The two leading candidates will face nine others at the poll on February 14.

The other candidates are: Ambrose Albert (Hope Democratic Party); Ganiyu Galadima( Allied Congress Party of Nigeria); Rafiu Salau ( Alliance for Democracy); Godson Okoye( United Democratic Party); Continued on page 4

•Gen. Buhari speaking at the rally...yesterday. With him are Prof. Osinbajo (left), Senator Ngige (second right) and Chief Odigie-Oyegun

Boko Haram: Northeast governors seek more troops STORY ON PAGE 3

Insurgency’ll soon be over, says Shettima Elections ‘must hold’

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THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

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NEWS OUTLOOK 2015

Smooth, rough

•Senator Oluremi Tinubu, flanked by the Director-General of her re-election Campaign Committee, Alhaji Mutiu Are (left) and Mr. Wale Edun at the inaugural meeting of Restoration 2015: Re-Elect Senator Oluremi Tinubu for Lagos Central Senatorial District, at the senator’s Constituency Office at Yaba, Lagos...yesterday.

Stakeholders in the oil and gas sector industry are to brace for positive and negative changes this year.

AKINOLA AJIBADE writes on what will shape the energy sector.

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•From left: Anambra State ex-Governor, Mr. Peter Obi, Governors Idris Wada (Kogi); Gabriel Suswan (Benue); Emmanuel Oduhaga (Delta) and Lyel Imoke (Cross River) at the inauguration of the Presidential Campaign Organisation for Dr. Goodluct Jonathan in Abuja...yesterday.

PHOTO AKIN OLADOKUN.

•From left: President, Civil Right Congress, Mr Shehu Sani, ex-Chairman, Kaduna North Local Government Area, Alhaji Rabiu Khalid and Secretary-General, Jama'atu Nasir Islam, Sheikh Khalid Aliyu afer their visit to the Jama'atu Nasir Islam Headquarters in Kaduna, Kaduna State...yesterday.

HE oil and gas sector is replete with good and bad; gains and pains. In recent times, so many issues have dominated the industry. They include: the global prices of crude oil, the fixing of the budget below the oil benchmark of $65 per barrel, the fear that the Federal Government may cut the benchmark further in the event that oil price continue to fall, the introduction of austerity measures to mitigate the effects of falling oil prices, refineries maintenance, dwindling crude oil production and oil theft. They all have the capacity to determine the tempo of activities this.

The divestment of shares in the nation’s oil industry by the multinational oil companies, government’s decision to increase the domestic price of gas to encourage power sector’s growth, approval of N231billion power intervention fund by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), increase in tarrifs for the industrial concerns and the plans to extend it to household consumers of electricity, planned take-off of the Transitional Electricity Market (TEM) and rolling out of pre-paid metres by the power distribution companies (DISCOs) before the end of the first quarter would also determine where the pendulum will swing.

Industry observers said the issues are not only germane but capable of influencing the direction which the sector would move this year. They said these issues would directly or indirectly affect the growth of the industry. Of note is the noticeable decline in the global prices of crude oil, a development partly attributed to the rising profile and growing acceptability of the United States’ Shale oil in the global market, crisis in the Middleeast among others.

Below are the synopsis of the issues, and how they can shape events in the industry.

Falling crude oil price

•Lagos State All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode flanked by Nollywood actors Mr. Yinka Quadri (left) and Mr. Adebayo Salami when the actors visited Ambode’s campaign office at Gbagada, Lagos.

The prices of oil in the global market will be one major factor that would determine the economy outlook. With the oil market experiencing a sharp fall in prices from over $120 per barrel in August to $57 per barrel in the last quarter of 2014, coupled with the likelihod that prices may slide further, observers said the issue will affect Nigeria because it depends on oil for sustenance.

A professor of Petroleum Economics and Policy Research, University of Port Harcourt, Wunmi Iledare, said the government derives between 70 to 80 per cent of its revenue from crude oil transactions, arguing that the crash in oil prices would stall the implementation of many critical infrastructural projects.

He noted that Nigeria, being a mono-economy nation, which depends grealty on oil for growth, will be affected by the slide in the price of oil and rub off on the operations of

•Mrs. Alison-Madueke

the federal, state and local governments.

He said: ‘’The country is experiencing the harsh-effects of the falling crude oil prices, going by the various adjustments made in the 2015 budgetary allocations. The government has introduced austerity programmes to cut spendings. What this means is that some fiscal projects would suffer in the light of unsavoury developments in the global oil market. In the event that the price falls further, the government may have to review its fiscal activities for growth.’’

Iledare, who is the President, International Association of Energy Economics (IAEE), however, said the country will make up for the loss incurred from dwindling oil prices, if things change.

His words: ‘’From my own assesment of the happenings in the international crude oil market vis-a-vis Nigeria’s macro-economic environment, I think at $57 per barrel, the country is still in a safety zone. The market dynamism is there, which means that the market reacts to the forces of demand and supply.

“Price volatilities could change anytime from now. Nobody can say exactly when the price would change.

Whether now or in the future, what I know is that Ngeria would benefit once the oil price improves.’’

But the Chief Executive officer, Financial Derivates, Bismarck Rewane, said the austerity measures might not absorb all the impacts of the price decline.

According to him, the government unveiled austerity measures as its immediately response to the falling oil prices.

Rewane said the austerity programmes as introduced to guide the fiscal activities, though good, was not enough. He urged government to come up with other measures cushion the effects of the price fall.

Rewane said: ‘’ What we are seeing now is not a short-term phenomenon.

Whether the theraphy is adequate is another issue. But I think it is a good move and the government has not ruled out other moves.

Power to Gas The approval of an increase in the price of gas to the power plants from $1.5 to $2.5, excluding $0.8 transportation cost, making a total of $3.3 per million British thermal unit is a welcome development in the power sector. According to the operators, the idea will help in improving electricity generation and further impact on the larger economy positively.

Power Minster Prof Chinedu Nebo described the increase in gas price signals as a good omen for the sector as it

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

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NEWS OUTLOOK 2015

h roads for oil and gas operators production. If Nigeria decides to increase crude oil production, it is not likely going to get real value on investments considering the fact that the international oil prices are crashing.‘’

Refineries maintenance

•Prof Nebo

would improve electrcity generation and distribution. Nebo, told reporters in Lagos that the price increase would benefit gas suppliers and power plants.

The minister argued the idea will have multiplier effects on the sector.

He said power would improve, once problems such as gas shortage, distribution network and transmission challenges are tackled.

Also speaking, the Chairman of the , Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), Dr. Sam Amadi, said the increase in the gas price will not onle attract investors into the oil and gas sector but also ensure adequate power supply to industries.

He said: ‘’ With the new gas price, we expect some increase in power production. Already, some of the gas suppliers have made some commtiments but we are certain that this new gas price will help in the longer term, be-

•A section of the Kaduna Refinery

•Amadi

cause people will on that basis begin to make investments in gas infrastructure, knowing that the price is good and will be indexed. ‘’ It has the potential of enhancing the capacity of gas to power going forward.

It will unlock the sector for more investments and in the interim, it will ensure that we have more gas to power our generators.’’

He urged the ministry of power to hands off the transmission company and allowing it to have a board with clear directives.

Amadi said such step will encourage private investment in transmission, saying the industry would be the better for it.

Legacy debt payment Before the end of last year, the Central Bank of Nigeria(CBN) approved N213 billion as power sector intervention fund, out of which it paid N36.9

billion as legacy debt owed gas suppliers.

According to operators, the development has not only eased the problems of gas suppliers but stimulate their operations.

The Chief Executive Officer, Seven Energy International Limited, Philip Ihenacho, said any attempt to reslove the problems facing stakeholders would lead to the growth of the sector.

According to him, what operators such as gas suppliers, pipeline contractors, power plants and others in the electricity value chain want is the enhancement of their operations.

He said that any intervention geared toward the improvement of their operations would bring about a corresponding increase in power generation and supply.

Crude oil production

For sometime, Nigeria has been battling to increase its crude production above 2,500 million barrels per day and it is not likely that production would increase soon.

Iledare blamed the the low crude oil produc on internal and external factors, arguing that the inability of the government to tackle the problems headlong would further affect production.

He listed probelms such as crude oil theft, pipeline vandalism and other untoward practices as thsoe affecting oil production and exploration activities, as well as eroding confidence in the industry.

He said: ‘’ With the country struggling to produce above 2.5 million barrels per day, it is not likely that there would be increase crude production this year. Giving the fact that there are many problems in the industry. It is somewhat difficult to prop up crude

The four refineries namely: Warri, Kaduna, Port Hardourt 1 &2) are performing below installed capacity because of decades of neglect by successive governments. The Turn Around Maintenace echanism (TAM), introduced by the government to ensure that refineries resume full production has yielded little or no results.

A lecturer in Petroleum Economics, University of Ibadan, Prof Adeola Akinnisiju, said the operation of the refineries might not improve, unless the government take urgent steps to address the problems. Akinnisju said lower output from the refineries would continue since the government is not ready to repair them.

Spokesman fof the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), Babatunde Oke, said governemnt’s inability to repair the refineries would further affect their operations in 2015.

Power sector training The Director-General, National Power Training Institute of Nigeria (NAPTIN), Rueben Okeke, has foreseen a bright future for operators in the sector, following government’s decision to establish the institute.

According to him, a competent and dedicated workforce will emerge this year because the agency has trained thousands of workers in the previous year. Rueben, an engineer, said the institute had in December last year, trained workers that would work in the 10 National Independent Power Plants (NIPPs), from where the government hope to inject additional 5,000 megawatts of electrcity to the national grid to improve electricity supply.

Boko Haram: Northeast governors seek more troops, equipment •Insist on 2015 election in peaceful atmosphere •Jonathan, governors, security chiefs meet

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OVERNORS in the Northeast yesterday met with President Goodluck Jonathan and the service chiefs at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

It was all about security ahead of next month’s elections.

Governors Kashim Shettima (Borno) , Ibrahim Geidam (Yobe), Bala Ngilari (Adamawa) and Geidam’s predecessor, Bukar Abba Ibrahim, attended the meeting. The three states are under a state of emergency.

The governors insisted on deployment of more troops and equipment to stop the Boko Haram insurgency.

They insisted on the elections holding in the area under a peaceful arena.

Geidam said: “We have come to brief the President on the security features of our various states. We have come to greet him and we told him of the challenges we have been facing. We are appealing to the Federal Government to deploy more troops, in addition to what we have on ground to arrest the situation in our various states.

“We need more troops, the troops on ground we have in our various states are not enough to contain the situation, so we are appealing to the Federal Government to deploy additional troops with full equipment to tame the situation. We don’t have any state of emergency now, so you are not correct.” he said “ Elections will hold, that is the position of the Electoral Commission and definitely in all those areas where the insurgency exist, elections will hold.”

Shettima said the security agencies were rising up to the task.

“Well, we had very fruitful deliberations and pollination of ideas on how to find lasting

From Augustine Ehikioya, Abuja

solution to the insurgency bedeviling us in that part of the world. I’m an eternal optimist - and I am passionate too for that matter - that we shall have enduring peace very soon, with the very robust framework on ground. We don’t want to mention a date or anything but I believe our military is rising to the challenges of the time.

“Our military will robustly respond to the challenges I believe. Like I said earlier, I’m an eternal optimist. We have to hope for the best against whatever odds.”

Speaking on how many local government areas are held by the insurgents, he said: “Well, there are some local government areas that are partially under the control of the insurgents and there are some that are largely under our control.

“I really don’t want to bolster Boko Haram by quoting numbers and figures because these lunatics feast on the oxygen of publicity. The more publicity they get, the happier they become. I don’t want to give them that luxury.

“But I want to assure you that with 1,000 years of recorded history, Borno shall rise again, in spite of all the challenges, believe me Inshallah.”

On whether the military are getting more motivated than before, Shettima said: “They are making efforts. I want to leave it at that. I don’t want to pass any negative comment. They are people with blood running in their veins, facing the insurgents and so I have to be respectful of the institution.”

He also said that Nigeria does not have any option than to win the war against insurgency.

The governor said: “We must win, we have

no option. Elections will be held - by the grace of God. We are facing real extinction threat to our culture, to our people and to our civilisation. It is amazing when people dwell so much on the elections. Elections are for the living, but elections are being conducted in war-torn Afghanistan, election was conducted recently in Iraq, in Syria and so many other places. So, it is not an issue in contention; the most important issue is how to safeguard the lives and property of our people, how to recover our lost territories, the Chibok girls.

“You have daughters; you have sons; how will you feel if your daughter is forcibly taken away from you for the past 267 days. So, I want to dwell more on how to safeguard the lives and properties of our people, how to get back the Chibok girls, how to recover our lost territories.

“Two days ago (Sunday) it clocked exactly five months since Gwoza fell to the insurgents, Bama is now firmly under their control. M Muba, Abadam, Kukawa - all tales of woes, of devastations, of destruction, of killings. This is the sad tale that is coming out of Borno.”

The governor went on: “We are titled chief security officers of our states. But our most important task is to offer whatever support be it logistics, financial to the military to carry out on their operations. Honestly, I don’t want to dwell on the politics behind the counterinsurgency operations because we are one people with a common destiny. And this is the time for all of us, irrespective of differences in political affiliations, religious persuasions, tribal or sectional background to collapse into a single course and bring about this madness to an end.”

“Elections can be held in the IDP camps, it is human beings that conduct elections not spirit or anything. My take on this is that, are we giving in to Boko Haram? Are we giving in to their antics by not holding elections? We have

to tell them to their face that you can kill as Malala said but you cannot kill our spirit.” he stated With Shekau claiming that the Chibok girls have been married out, he said: “Shekau is a lunatic. He is a deranged element; he is not somebody anybody should give any molecule of respect. His actions are beneath the act of even an animal, believe me.

“But, as I said, we are not resting on our oars; we will continue to support the military by providing them with quality information when it becomes available. We believe in spite of people’s pessimism that in the fullness of time and not in a distance far off, we are going to get back the girls; we hope to,” he said Also speaking yesterday, the Chief of Defence Statff (CDS), Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh, promised that security will this year.

On whether Chad and Niger forces had pulled out of the Multinational force, he said: “No. They have not pulled out of Multinational force because we have held several meetings; they are still part of the Multinational force.”

“What has been happening is that they have not contributed troops to the point of Baga. Chad has people on their own side but I believe they have withdrawn. Niger had people with us they too withdrew and left Nigeria only at the multinational force headquarters.”

On the suggestion that the borders between Nigeria and Chad, Nigeria and Niger should be closed, he said: “I wish it could be closed but how do you close such a very large border? And it is not for military to close border any way or is it?”

On the attack on the military base in Baga, A Chief Marshal Badeh said: “Of course, there was an attack. Don’t worry we are at work.”

On whether Baga can be reclaimed, he said:”Why not? I can’t give you exactly what is going to happen.”

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THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

NEWS ‘Seven being treated for gunshot injuries’

INEC closes presidential nomination Continued from page 1

Dr. Nani Ibrahim Ahmad( African Democratic Congress); Martin Onovo (National Conscience Party); Prof. Comfort Oluremi Sonaiya( Kowa Party); Tunde Anifowoshe-Kelani ( Action Alliance); Chekwas Okorie( United Progressive Party).

The vice-presidential candidates are Vice-President Namadi Sambo( PDP); Prof.

Yemi Osinbajo (APC); Haruna Shaba( Hope Democratic Paty); Balarabe Ahmed( ACPN); Prof. Clinton Cliff Akuchie( AD); Haruna Adamu(United Democratic Party); Obianuju MurphyUzohue( African Democratic Congress); Ibrahim Mohammed(NCP); Saidu Bobboi(Kowa Party); Comrade Paul Ishaka Ofomile( Action Alliance); and Bello Umar( United Progressive Party).

According to a source in INEC, the list of presidential candidates has not changed from what was pasted by the commission about two weeks ago.

The source said: “In line with Sections 32, 33, 34, 37, 38 and 39 of the Electoral Act 2010(as amended), we have

officially closed the nomination and submission of forms for presidential candidates.

“By implication, none of the parties fielding candidates can effect a change of nominee for presidential race unless by reasons of death or withdrawal from the race by a candidate.

“There was no addition to the list of 11 candidates as at 6pm on Tuesday, although parties have up to midnight to tidy up the nomination process.

“The electoral commission is expected to verify the nomination process of all these candidates to ensure that it is in compliance with Section 32 of the Electoral Act. If there is any defect, INEC will invoke the necessary sanction but it cannot invalidate any nomination.

“We will publish the list of the candidates that will participate in the race on January 13, in accordance with Section 34 of the Electoral Act.” Responding to a question, the INEC top official said: “This commission has no right to disqualify any candidate. If any Nigerian has reservations about any can-

didate, he or she should go to court.”

“Section 8 of the Electoral Act says a political party which presents to the commission the name of a candidate who does not meet the qualifications stipulated in this section commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a maximum fine of N500,000.

“Also, Section 32 reads in part: “A candidate for an election shall be nominated in writing by such number of persons whose names appear on the register of voters in the constituency as the commission may prescribe.

“A person shall not nominate more than one person for election to the same office. A person who contravenes subsection(2) of this commits an offence and is liable on conviction to maximum fine of N100,000 or imprisonment for three months or both but his action shall not invalidate the nomination.”

Another official of INEC said with the closure of nomination, parties cannot change their presidential candidates again in accordance with Section 33 and 35 of the Electoral Act unless in case of death or

•From left: Fayemi, Fashola and Amosun...yesterday

voluntary withdrawal from the race by a candidate.

The section says “A political party shall not be allowed to change or substitute its candidate whose name has been submitted pursuant to Section 31 of this act, except in the case of death or withdrawal by the candidate.”

Section 35 however says: “A candidate may withdraw his candidature by notice in writing signed by him and delivered by himself to the political party that nominated him for the election and the political party shall convey such withdrawal to the commission not later than 45 days to the election.”

The source also said the final list of those who will vie for the presidential seat on February 14 will also be published on January 13 - in line with Section 34.

The section reads : “The commission shall at least 30 days before the day of the election publish by displaying or causing to be displayed at the relevant office or offices of the commission and on the commission’s website a statement of the full names and addresses of all candidates.”

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IVERS State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Sampson Parker, said seven persons with gunshot injuries were receiving treatment in a Port Harcourt hospital. Some of the victims he said, are in critical condition.

Parker said: “We are sad to announce that some people were ambushed and shot at by unknown gunmen on their way to the APC campaign rally. Rivers people are peace loving and God fearing. This kind of political violence should be condemned in its entirety. The

perpetrators intend on taking us back to the dark days.

“I make this announcement with a heavy heart. Seven people are receiving treatment in the hospital, due to varying degrees of gunshot injuries. As Commissioner of Health in Rivers State, the health of every resident of the state is my concern. I urge you in the name of God to desist from turning the 2015 election exercise into an orgy of violence.

Let today (yesterday) be a bad dream we shall wake up from.”

MEND endorses APC candidate

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HE Presidential candidate of the All Progressives’ Congress (APC), Gen. Muhammadu Buhari yesterday gained an unusual support as the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) endorsed him.

MEND, in a statement circulated by its spokesperson, Jomo Gbomo, anchored its decision on the need to deliver Nigeria, especially the Niger Delta, from the crunching effects of the reign of corruption that has become the most prevalent sign of governance in Nigeria.

•Amaechi speaking..yesterday. With him are Peterside (middle) and Asita

From Bolaji Ogundele, Warri

The group hailed Gen. Buhari for proposing to scrap the office of the First Lady, which it considered a drain on the commonwealth.

“The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) has, upon careful consideration of the state of the nation, endorsed and fully support the Presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Gen. Muhammadu Buhari.

“Our decision to throw our full support behind Gen. Mohammadu Buhari stems from the pathetic state in which the country has been put by the government of Goodluck Jonathan and our strong belief in Gen. Buhari as the man and change the country needs.

“President Goodluck Jonathan does not deserve a second more in the Presidency as soon as his tenure expires as he has continuously and blatantly disregarded the very people who voted him into office.

“A President that told Nigerian to their faces that he does not “give a damn” when asked to declare his assets. A requirement that is constitutional on assuming the office of the President.

Continued on page 60

Jonathan must go, says Buhari as campaign opens in Port Harcourt, Uyo ‘PDP has ruined Nigeria’

Continued from page 1

working for the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) shot at them. One person was critically injured and hospitalised. Police spokesperson Muhammad Kidaya Ahmad, who confirmed the incident, said the command was investigating the attack.

House of Representatives Speaker Aminu Tambuwal, who is also the party’s governorship candidate in Sokoto State, said Nigerians did not deserve President Goodluck Jonathan, but a better leadership in Gen. Buhari.

The Director-General of the Buhari Campaign Organisation, Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi, said members PDP believe in guns, but he and other APC members believe in God and man.

Jonathan’s administration, he said, would not be able to protect Nigerians.

APC National Chairman Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, who received PDP members, who defected to the APC at the event, after presenting the party’s flag to the Rivers governorship candidate, Dr. Dakuku Adol Peterside, assured all that when elected as president, Gen. Buhari would tackle the Boko Haram insurgency, ensure discipline and regular electricity supply, provide secu-

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LL Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, APC’s National Chairman Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi and other party bigwigs yesterday said they are confident of victory in the February 14 Presidential election and the February 28 governorship election in Akwa Ibom State.

They told thousands of party faithful at the Uyo Township Stadium during the APC Presidential Campaign Rally and the presentation of APC’s flag to a former Secretary to the State Government, Umana Okon Umana, as the party’s governorship candidate.

The party’s flag was presented to Umana by Odigie-Oyegun.

Gen. Buhari lamented that the Peoples

rity and wipe out corruption.

Immediately after the rally, which was transmitted live on major television networks Gen. Buhari and members of his campaign team moved to Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital.

The Port Harcourt rally was attended by Gen. Buhari’s running mate, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, SAN; the party’s Deputy Chairman Chief Segun Oni; Rivers Chairman Chief Davies Ibiamu Ikanya; Amaechi’s wife Dame Judith; Peterside’s running mate, Honourable Asita and wife, Elima.

Other dignitaries included

From Kazeem Ibrahym and Uyoatta Eshiet, Uyo

Democratic Party (PDP) had succeeded in ruining Nigeria in the last 16 years.

He said: “We have reached a stage where change has to come. PDP must go.

Enough is enough.”

Gen. Buhari also sounded a note of warning to corrupt leaders, saying they risk going to jail if they are caught stealing the country’s money.

“From the day we come into power, anybody who steals Nigeria’s money will find himself in Kirikiri Maximum Prison. With the coming of APC, nobody will give them the opportunity to steal our money and invest it in another country.

“This country needs to be secured.

Imagine the abduction of 220 children

Governors Babatunde Fashola (Lagos); Ibikunle Amosun (Ogun); Rochas Okorocha (Imo); and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso (Kano); former Ekiti Governor Dr. Kayode Fayemi and Mr. Audu Ogbeh.

Also there were Senators Chris Ngige and Olorunnimbe Mamora; APC’s governorship candidate in Kaduna State Nasir El-Rufai; former Ekiti Governor Niyi Adebayo, House of Representatives Committee on Diaspora Abike Dabiri-Erewa, who later joined the Masters of Ceremonies (MCs); and an ex-Governor of Osun State,

eight months ago. I tried to find out how much we have lost in the last 16 years.

The number of factories closed.

“The number of jobs lost. This party, the PDP, has succeeded in ruining this country. We have a lot of work to do. Providing jobs and making sure a lot of infrastructure is put in place.

“Also, imagine the number of troops deployed by the Federal government for Ekiti and Osun governorship elections.

This shows the priority of the Federal Government. They want to acquire and maintain power by all means and denying the rest of us.”

Amaechi, who was referred to as the lion of the Southsouth, opened his speech with worship songs, praising God, saying the forthcoming victory is all about

Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, among other eminent personalities.

Gen. Buhari said: “We congratulate the Governor of Rivers State (Amaechi) profusely for being the DirectorGeneral of the Presidential Campaign Organisation. I thank you very much for accepting the responsibility to work with our great party.

“Amaechi has made enormous sacrifice. He earned it.

He worked for it and I thank him for accepting it. He got it through a lot of hard work.

The way Amaechi mobilises people shows that he is the right choice.

Continued on page 60

“Let us make sure that our votes count. The problem we are facing today is the problem of security and economy.

We have gathered competent hands to manage the economy and tackle insecurity. The level of corruption in Nigeria is intolerable and we will make sure we succeed in fighting corruption when we get there. I wish Nigerians the best of luck and we believe in one indivisible Nigeria. I appeal to you to mobilise yourselves to ensure that the end justifies the means. I also urge you to collect your PVCs (Permanent Voter Cards) to enable you to vote

in order to bring in the change we have been talking about.”

Amaechi was unsparing of President Jonathan, First Lady, Dame Patience, who is an indigene of Okrika in Rivers State and the PDP governorship candidate, Chief Nyesom Wike, who is the immediate past Minister of State for Education.

Amaechi said: “I thank God for this opportunity. I never knew I would be governor.

Today, I am governor by the grace of God. I have stayed in office till 2015. By this time last year, the men who thought they were God thought I would have been out of office. By this time last year, men had collected money to remove us from office, but the God we worship never allowed it to happen. Now, they are the people struggling. We told them there will be this time, when they will be looking for our votes.

“I want to thank all of you and thank Rivers people, for accepting to make me your governor. I may not have been the best governor you have ever seen. I am not a Continued on page 60

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THE NATION WEDNESDAY JANUARY 7, 2015

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NEWS NOA to Nigerians: apply wisdom on national issues

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THE National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Adamau Mu’azu, has identified injustice as a major factor responsible for the defection of five state governors and others from the PDP to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Governors Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers), Rabiu Kwankwaso (Kano), Aliyu Wamakko (Sokoto), Abdulfatah Ahmed (Kwara) and ex- Governor Murtala Nyako (Adamawa), in November 2012, defected from the PDP to the APC. Similarly, a number of prominent party chieftains, including senators and members of the House of Representatives, left the PDP for the APC. Mu’azu, who spoke in Abuja at the inauguration of the PDP’s Presidential Campaign Organisation, urged President Goodluck Jonathan to consider the governors’ defection as a challenge ahead of the general election.Decrying what he described as politics of use and dump, which he said was pervasive in the ruling party, the party chair said the trend, if not stemmed, could spell catastrophic consequences for the democratic process.His words: “I appeal to President Jonathan to consider it a challenge to discuss with your governors, senators and all other elected officials of the PDP that members of the PDP said we should not be used and dumped.”Adhere to equity, fairness and justice; substantial membership of the APC, APGA and others are members of our party.”A lot of our party members have left because they have been used and dumped.

It should not happen again.”

Speaking at the event, Jonathan said the performance of his administration would be his selling point during the electioneering campaign and urged his campaign team to be civil in the use of language.

Reiterating his promise for free, fair and credible elections, the president said next month’s

From Bukola Amusan, Abuja

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Mu’azu: injustice forced Amaechi, others out of PDP •Jonathan’s campaign begins in Lagos tomorrow •Front left: Senate President Senator David Mark; Anenih; Vice President Namadi Sambo; Mu’azu and Jonathan at the inauguration PHOTO AKIN OLADOKUN. of PDP presidential campaign organisation in Abuja...yesterday.

From Gbade Ogunwale, Abuja

elections would mark a critical point in the nation’s history. Apparently referring to his major challenger, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, he challenged his critics to tell Nigerians how many women served in their administration.

Jonathan said: “I am not campaigning to you; I have no doubt you are already familiar with the achievements of this administration. ”We will see those who said they would form a parallel government. Do not join them in violence; every Nigerian is free to campaign in every part of Nigeria”.Chairman of PDP Board of Trustees, Chief Tony Anenih, who was appointed national campaign adviser, emphasised that the presidential candidates of other parties cannot boast of any achievements in the nation’s democratic journey.

According to him, they have not got the requisite experience to govern the country.

He said: “I expect that Nigerians will prefer continuity of this administration’s robust national transformation agenda to the so-called ‘change’, just to satisfy some personal and narrow interests.

“The presidential election is the first in the series of elections scheduled by the INEC to hold on February 14, with the National Assembly elections.

What this means is that we must work assiduously to win the best prize, which is the presidential election. ”Once we do that, the victory will expectedly have a bandwagon effect on the February 28 governorship and assembly elections.

“We have travelled through this familiar path before, specifically in 1999, 2003, 2007 and 2011.

“In the last three elections, our candidates had defeated the leading opposition candidates.

Therefore, as we do the needful, I am confident that we will defeat them again”.

Chairman, PDP Governors Forum and Akwa Ibom State Governor Goodswill Akpabio described the campaign by the opposition as mere propaganda. ”The 2015 election is about darkness and light. The contest is between darkness and light; Nigeria cannot go back to darkness. ”We don’t want the fate of Nigeria to be handed over to people we cannot trust. This nation will give you valentine love on February 14", he said.

Director general of the organisation, Dr. Ahmadu Ali, assured that his team would meet set targets.

He said it’s ironic that in the 21st century the opposition was presenting a septuagenarian as presidential candidate.

The PDP is expected to begin its campaign in Lagos tomorrow.

Jonathan said the party’s gov-

ernorship candidates would be presented with the party’s flags.

He said unlike in the past, the PCO would now oversee all the elections “We have inaugurated that body. The body should oversee all our elections. It is like a Board of Directors that oversees the management team that manages a company. We have the PDP national campaign council, not just the presidential campaign council,” he said.

The president urged the PDP governors to deliver their states during the polls, saying they would be held responsible if they failed to do so.

He said: “All the states we have governors, the governors are the coordinators. They must make sure that we win those states. If we lose, you know you have failed us. The governors will be completely in charge.

Some of them will be zonal coordinators and some of them will be state coordinators.”

FRSC vows strict enforcement of traffic rules

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HE Corps Marshall and Chief Executive of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Boboye Oyeyemi, has promised aggressive enforcement of traffic rules and regulations this year.

Oyeyemi said appropriate sanctions would be meted out to traffic violators to deter them.

He spoke in Asaba, Delta State, during an assessment of

From Bukola Amusan, Abuja

operations in parts of the Southsouth and Southeast geo-political zones, as travellers are returning to their places of work and business after the Christmas and the New Year festivities.

The corps marshal launched the 2014 ember months’ special patrol in Kaduna on December, 19, 2014, code-

named:”Operations Zero Tolerance for Road Traffic Crashes”.

He also embarked on aerial surveillance through air support provided by the Nigerian Air Force (NAF).

His Special Assistant on Media, Sani Abdullahi, in a statement, said Oyeyemi took off from Abuja with his monitoring team yesterday, as part of the second stage of the oper-

ation.

Abdullahi said the team monitored traffic on the Abuja-Lokoja and Okene-Auchi road in Edo State before proceeding to Asaba in Delta State.

He said the corps marshal received situation reports from relevant commanding officers along the corridors.

After the exercise, Oyeyemi expressed satisfaction with the level of commitment shown by

the FRSC operatives while carrying out traffic operations.

He urged them to sustain the tempo of patrols in the New Year.

His words: “While I acknowledge the commitment shown by the FRSC personnel and support received from other agencies, it is pertinent to restate that we would sustain the tempo of enforcement this year.”

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By Nneka Nwaneri

ly accessible at preferential rates,” Osinbajo said.

He also promised that power supply would be given the required attention.

“We need to find a more innovative solution to this through decentralisation and diversification. We also need to rewrite some of the regulation,” the APC vice presidential candidate said.

On education, Osinbajo noted that curriculum would be redesigned to suit national needs.

His words: “There will be free education geared toward the enabling primary school pupils to be able to read and write. This will set them on a path that they cannot be stopped. Science and technology will be greatly encouraged.

“We shall provide adequate

security in the nation. The issue of insurgency will be a thing of the past. The military will be adequately equipped, funded and encouraged.

“Nigeria needs a commander-in-chief, who understands the situation very well, to bring about peace and security. Insurgents will either surrender or negotiate. Social security shall be addressed and good healthcare system provided. Cheap and affordable houses shall be provided through modified mortgage financing.

“Even in the face of dwindling economy, we shall do all these since Nigeria’s problem is not money, but management.

Corruption will be tackled. Leakages will be blocked. Impunity will not be encouraged. There will be consequences for corruption and the rule of law will be

Kila to deliver J9C lecture

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GROUP, January 9 Collective (J9C), has announced that Prof. Anthony Kila will be the keynote speaker at the third edition of its yearly anniversary lecture scheduled for Agip Recital Hall, MUSON Centre, Onikan, on Friday.

Kila is a professor of Political Anthropology and International Director of Studies at the European Centre of Advanced and Professional Studies (ECAPS) in Cambridge.

In a statement by its Publicity Secretary, Mr. Michael Effiong, the group said this year’s event will deliberate on the theme: “2015 Polls: Beyond The Rhetorics of Credible Elections”.

NCAA blames weather for domestic flight cancellations

Our plan for the youth, by Osinbajo HE All Progressives Congress vice presidential candidate, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo (SAN), said the party will tackle youth unemployment, if elected.

The former Lagos State attorney general spoke at the weekend in Lagos when he was hosted by First Friday Group, an organisation comprising young entrepreneurs led by Mr. Lolu Adubifa.

Answering questions from the youth about his plans for Nigeria and why people should vote for APC, he said unemployment would be tackled by creating an environment for business to thrive, stressing that this would create jobs.

“The manufacturing sector and Small and Medium Enterprises will be adequately taken care of and loans would be easi-

HE National Orientation Agency (NOA) has urged influential Nigerians to apply patriotic wisdom and courage when addressing national issues.

NOA Director General Mr. Mike Omeri, who said this in a statement in Abuja yesterday, asked the youth to reject the temptation to be swayed by inciting statements and halftruths that have no historical basis or progressive intention.

Reacting to recent comments by influential Nigerians, including politicians, Omeri said the country was passing through a necessary and empirical phase towards achieving its full democratic aspiration.

He noted that it would, therefore, require all hands on the deck, irrespective of political persuasions, religious beliefs or ideological positions.

He warned that Nigerians should not be misled by incomplete stories told by elders.

In his words: “The unity of Nigerians creates greatness and a realistic feeling of strength, which is helping to unite citizens to confront our challenges, and this must be sustained to reduce perceived tension and generate goodwill and hope among Nigerians.”

He advised aggrieved citizens to take time to reflect on “the labours of our heroes past and energising flavour of our country’s colours of green, white and green”.

By Kelvin Osa Okunbor

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HE Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has attributed the spate of flight cancellations and delays being experienced by passengers at the nations’ airports to adverse weather condi-

•Prof. Osinbajo

adhered to.

“To generate more revenue, agriculture will be encouraged and farmers shall be paid for crops produced so that they will produce surplus for export and local consumption. The entertainment industry will be encouraged both for local revenue and foreign revenue. Nollywood shall be encouraged to yield foreign revenue and propagate our culture worldwide.”

tions.

Director General of NCAA, Captain Usman Muktar, who said this yesterday, advised passengers to show understanding and exercise caution when airlines are rescheduling and cancelling flights.

The airline operators, the NCAA boss said, were strictly adhering to the regulatory guidelines enshrined by the authority to conduct their operations in the interest of safety.

The NCAA, last month, issued a weather alert to sensitise pilots on the hazards associated with the harmattan dust haze in flight operations.

He said: “The alert also served as a warning to aircraft captains to be aware of the obvious threat harmattan dust haze pose to aircraft, particularly in the areas of low visibility.”

Harmattan, which is prevalent at the cessation of rainy season, leads to heavy fog and hence, air-to-ground visibility is considerably reduced. This makes airline operations unsafe and dangerous.

Following the situation, pilots are expected to obtain adequate departure, en route and destination weather information and briefing from Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET).

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THE NATION WEDNESDAY JANUARY 7, 2015

NEWS

APC: PDP is paranoid over opinion poll

•Alhaji Mohammed

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HE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is a victim of self-inflicted paranoia following its panic reaction to a yet-to-be conducted opinion poll, the All Progressives Congress (APC) said yesterday.

APC’s National Publicity Secretary Alhaji Lai Moham-

med, who said this in a statement in Abuja, added that the PDP had only succeeded in committing an unforced error by its alleged frenzied reaction.

The statement, however, noted that the PDP’s reaction was understandable, “considering the fact that the party is being pounded from all sides by both seen and unseen forces.”

“The PDP”, according to the statement, “is behaving like a punch-drunk boxer, who started flailing at everything and everyone, but his opponent, having been disoriented by a staccato of body blows.”

“Had it not been so, a party that is urging a focus on serious campaign issues would not have picked on the imaginary outcome of a public opinion

poll,” the party added.

APC said the PDP was not in a position to advise anyone on the conduct of opinion polls, when all it engaged in over the years had been doctored and incestuous opinion polls.

The statement also reads: “It is said that he who must come to equity must come with clean hands. It is apparent that this dictum is lost on the petrified PDP. This is a party that has been celebrating the outcome of the regular polls by the NOI Polls, when it is glaring that the brain behind this poll is a key minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. NOI stands for the initials of this minister, and discerning Nigerians are aware of this. ‘’Because the NOI polls have

been doctored to achieve a predetermined end, the PDP made itself to believe it was doing well all along; when indeed it was leading Nigeria to a dark alley of economic and infrastructural collapse, massive unemployment as well as pervasive and unprecedented insecurity. ‘’Now that the die is cast and even the most ardent supporters of the PDP have realised that the game is up and are jumping off its sinking ship, the party has come to realise its folly. How then can such a party advise another party on how to conduct a public opinion poll?

“Even without any poll, Nigerians have come to realise that the presidential candidate of the APC, Gen. Muhammadu

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CONTINENTAL body, The Niara Institute, has announced plans to transform Africa by inspired innovations.

The institute said it aims to develop change leaders, integrate collaborative initiatives as well as implement solutions towards the acceleration of Africa’s socio-economic development.

Carlton Williams, provost of the institute, organisers of the Niara-Inspire Africa Conference, made this announcement in Lagos.

While elaborating on plans by the institute, Williams said it “is a platform for inspired innovations as solutions to the problems that face Africa”.

He added that the programmes of the institute would kick off with a conference which will be held from January 22 to 25, at The Landmark Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos.

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‘Small arms threaten polls’ From Chris Oji, Enugu •An official of the Lagos State Chapter of JUSUN Comrade Adebayo (left) speaking to reporters...yesterday. With him is Comrade Oseye Folorunso.

PHOTO: RAHMAN SANUSI

holders all the necessary space for them to see that they implemented what the court has said, but nobody appealed,” said the union leader.

Bello said JUSUN had obtained judgment on the inter-

pretation of Section 83, sub-section 3, as well as on Section 121, sub-section 3, which declared that judiciary must be financially independent.

He stated that the strike was not based on issues of welfare,

but on absolute financial autonomy for the system.

Bello added that JUSUN wanted the system to be free from interference to enable the judiciary perform its function fearlessly.

CNPP, Momoh, others fault call for transition govt

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HE National Publicity Secretary of the Conference of Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP), Osita Okechukwu, former Minister of Information Prince Tony Momoh and President of Nigeria Voters Assembly, Mashood Erubami, led some influential Nigerians yesterday to fault the call for the postponement of next month’s elections.

The Convener of the Save Nigeria Group (SNG), Pastor Tunde Bakare, who is also the general overseer of the Latter Rain Assembly Church, last weekend called for the postponement of the elections, saying the nation was not ready.

Bakare called for the constitution of an interim government that would in turn organise future elections, saying such steps would help prevent the danger ahead.

But, Momoh said the Federal Government must conduct the general election because the constitution did not provide for a transition government.

According to the former minister, any suggestion that did not support the provision of the constitution cannot be used to prevent elections.

Momoh said: “Anybody, who suggests what the constitution does not support is on his own. The constitution has provided guidelines to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on the

ing, undeservedly. If the media was so easy to compromise, it would have been compromised a long time ago and perhaps Nigeria would not have benefited from its selfless battle against military dictatorship.

“This lesson is lost on the trifling PDP; hence it has continued to hold the media in disdain - the latest instance of which is the unnecessary accusation of its being compromised. Our honest advice to those who did nothing when the epic battle to install this democracy was going on, but are now pretending to be its custodians, is that they should not crash it on the altar of careless, inciting and offensive statements,” APC said.

Institute to transform Africa

JUSUN insists on sustained strike HE Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) has urged its members to sustain the strike until their demands for financial autonomy are granted by government.

Its National Vice President (Northeast Zone), Mr. Ahmed Bello, who spoke with reporters in Gombe, said this would help the union to uphold the financial autonomy of the judicial system, as declared by the court.

“This judgment was obtained January 2014. All efforts had being put in place to see that this strike does not take place and there is nothing we can do.

“At least we gave the stake-

Buhari, stands head and shoulders above his PDP counterpart.

Not only physically, but in terms of integrity, capability, vision, achievements and antecedents. Since these are the issues that will count during the forthcoming polls, the PDP can as well start learning how to be in opposition.”

It flayed the PDP for casting aspersions on the integrity of the media by saying the APC is “intensifying efforts to compromise some section of the media.”

“The PDP has consistently shown nothing, but disdain for the media, which was at the forefront of the fight for the democracy that the do-nothing folks at the PDP are now enjoy-

From Bisi Oladele, Ibadan, Musa Odoshimokhe, Lagos and Sanni Onogu, Abuja

conduct of election.

“The guideline is a very tight one. It is in view of that guideline that the All Progressives Congress (APC) started its campaign yesterday in Port Harcourt. And in fact, we are covering Akwa Ibom and by the end of the week, we would have covered the whole of Southsouth and Southeast.”

The APC chieftain said the party is ready for the coming election, adding: “The only thing is to appeal to INEC to ensure those who are qualified to vote are not disenfranchised because that is the beginning of rigging.

“It also boils to the fact that every institution in the land should do its work properly.

INEC should do its work, the police must do their work and other security agents must do their work without fear or favour and in accordance with the law that established them.

If this is done, the election will be free and fair.”

Okechukwu, who spoke during a telephone interview with The Nation in Abuja, said the reasons advanced by Bakare for the postponement could not outweigh Nigerians’ readiness for the elections.

He said: “Pastor Bakare got it wrong this time. All the indicators he cited as reasons for

the postponement cannot outweigh Nigerians’ readiness for the general elections.

“The core ingredient of democracy is passing of referendum on the performance of the incumbent and the character of the challenger.

“Nigerians are eager to vote out or vote back president, governors, legislators depending on their performance. Nigerians will frown at any shift of the election.”

He said it was dangerous to call for the postponement and establishment of an interim government on the basis that INEC was not ready.

The CNPP spokesman and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) said: “Only God knows when INEC will be ready as envisaged by the man of God. Therefore, his reason cannot be sustained.

“The beauty in our democracy is that it has reached the zenith of liberal democracy, where two parties dominate in a multi-party system, which means that there is mutual assured destruction. Neither PDP nor APC will rig at will.

“The constitution he is talking about is a rigid constitution. He knows that four attempts have been made in the past to amend it without success. He also knows that his six months time-frame is not enough to amend the constitution.”

To Erubami, the call was “a veiled attempt by its protagonist to create confusion

and run away from fixing the identified national emergencies we are inundated with.”

Erubami, who is also the former president of the Transition Monitoring Group (TMG), said those calling for a transition government only a few weeks before a general election were “stylishly calling for tenure elongation of the President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration.”

The statement reads in part: “Democratic consolidation cannot be easily achieved by the preference of politicians who are inconsistent in their vision for deliberative politics and participatory democracy, believing that democracy can be achieved anyhow, as if towing democratic path does not matter.

“Whereas, we cannot close our eyes to a change process that would bring into political office another set of unserious politicians in the name of national unity, who are not concerned with bad shape in which the Nigeria economy is and the deteriorating conditions under which the citizens sleep and wake up daily, as a result of lack of foresight of ruling PDP government.

“Calls for transitional government a few weeks to conducting elections into various elective offices is a veiled attempt by its protagonist to create confusion and run away from fixing the identified national emergencies we are inundated with.”

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HE proliferation of small arms and light weapons (SALWs) has been identified as one of the major threats to next month’s general elections.

Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Small Arms and Light Weapons (PRESCOM), Emmanuel Imohe, said this yesterday at a sensitisation forum for the Southeast zone in Enugu.

Describing small arms and light weapons as “weapons of mass destruction” that continue to fuel conflicts and violence all over the world, Imohe noted that the situation needed urgent and concerted efforts of the citizenry to tackle.

He said the commission decided to embark on the sensitisation programme with the theme: “Ballot without bullets,” to enlighten the people about the menace and to get them involved in the war against electoral violence that could be fueled by the weapons.

The PRESCOM Chairman, who was represented by the Director of Public Affairs, Mr. Simon Egede, said the sensitisation programme would also help the commission collate ideas and contributions from the people for the formulation of strong policies to tackle the influence of SALWs on the country’s elections and security.

PDP support group set to dump Jonathan for Buhari From Vincent Ikuomola, Abuja

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SUPPORT group of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the PDP Reloaded Project, is contemplating working for the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate Gen. Muhammadu Buhari.

The former Deputy Senate President, Alhaji Ibrahim Mantu, is chairman of the group, which also has Chief Richard Lamai, chief of staff to the First Republic Minister of Information, Chief Edwin Clark, as its national coordinator.

Speaking in Abuja yesterday, Lamai said he would be consulting with the group’s National Executive Council in the next few days on the next line of action.

He noted that the group stands for sanctity of lives, good governance and development, stressing that the nation “is in dire need of a credible leader, who will usher in the desired change”.

The leader of the group with over five million members in the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) added that the change the country is yearning for must come now.

Lamai, who spoke in the company of Mr. Dino Melaye, a chieftain of APC, told reporters that there was need to rescue the country from sliding further.

Lamai said: “For us in PDP Reloaded, what concerns us the sanctity of life. Insurgency in the Northeast has raised a lot of issues in the hearts of all. The insurgency doesn’t know any party, whether PDP or APC. We need to put a stop to hunger, insurgency and unemployment.

“As for your call on us to join APC to effect a positive change that is required to rescue Nigeria, PDP Reloaded is not a one-man group. But I believe that they will listen to me. I will take your gospel for effective democracy to them.

“Give my regards to Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun (APC national chairman) and the people of Kogi West. I will call an urgent meeting of all state coordinators. We require a change. I will bring back an answer to you in a few days time.”

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

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NEWS

Ekiti Speaker escapes assassination

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HE Speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly, Dr. Adewale Omirin, has said there was an assassination attempt on his life by unidentified persons, who visited his Ado-Ekiti home late on Monday.

Speaking with reporters in a telephone interview yesterday evening, Omirin said some neighbours phoned to alert him to the presence of strange men who laid siege to the vicinity.

The Speaker said he called the Commissioner of Police, Taiwo Lakanu, who led a team of Special AntiRobbery Squad (SARS) operatives to “rescue” him.

He said the unknown persons came in two black unmarked Sport Utility Vehicles (SUVs) and parked close to his house.

According to him, the suspected assassins fled immediately they sighted the police convoy.

•APC condemns attempt on Omirin’s life From Odunayo Ogunmola, Ado-Ekiti

The Speaker also debunked the report that he said no attempt was made on his life shortly after meeting with Lakanu yesterday morning.

His words: “Why would I say there was nothing like that when the commissioner of police came to pick me?

“I was at a private house when a neighbour phoned me to inform me that some people had laid siege to the place.

“I called the commissioner of police who acted professionally and personally led a team of police to rescue me. I only said I did not see those people.

“I never said the incident didn’t take place. If it didn’t happen, why did the CP lead a police team to rescue me and kept me in a safe place?

“I never spoke with any

reporter that there was no attempt to attack me. What happened yesterday was a clear case of an assassination attempt.

“Even though the attackers never got to my room before the police arrived to save me, not attacking me directly is not the same as no attempt to kill me.”

The Speaker said there was no way he could have said there was no attempt to attack him “when it was the police who took me from the place and provided me with security throughout the night till daybreak after I made the distress call”.

Omirin’s media aide Wole Olujobi, in a statement, alleged that the plan was to kill Omirin and make it to look like a robbery.

The statement reads: “The caller hinted that the house was the only apartment in the area with a generator

supplying light and two dogs let loose.

“He said the plan was to start robbing two houses away and then storm the house to kill Omirin. He overheard the planners when they were about to carry out their operation.”

The state chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) said the attempt on Omirin’s life confirmed the alarm it raised on alleged plans to attack the 19 lawmakers.

The Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatubosun, said the incident also substantiated the party’s claim that strange faces in unmarked SUVs had been visiting the homes of APC lawmakers.

He urged the police and the Department of State Security (DSS) to investigate the matter, saying “Governor Fayose should be held responsible for any untoward incident against them”.

‘Oyo Assembly independent’ From Tayo Johnson, Ibadan

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HE Minority Leader of the Oyo State House of Assembly, Adekunle Tunji Rafiu, has said the Assembly does not rubber stamp any request from Governor Abiola Ajimobi.

Rafiu (Saki-West) said several requests by the executive had been turned down in the last three years.

His words: “When the governor asked for the House’s approval for the $200 million for flooded areas in Ibadan, I objected to it because it was only targeted at Ibadan and not all the other zones.

“There is a request from the governor that we should approve a revenue consultant in the collection of revenue, but after due deliberation, we turned it down because a consultant from Lagos State was to be collecting the revenue when we have our own internal revenue board.

“Even if Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members want to object to any bill, it is a little bit hard because All Progressives Congress (APC) has the majority with 17 members, Accord has five, PDP has nine members.

“To oppose a bill, we need two-third majority. I can say boldly that we have only had a meeting with the governor four times and we have never been bought over by him.”

One-to-One group for Buhari •20,000 join in Ogun

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GROUP, One-to-One for Buhari, was launched yesterday in Akure, the Ondo State capital.

Its Coordinator, Kolapo Ojo, said the group was determined to move from house-to-house and meet people one-on-one in the 18 local government areas to vote for the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate Gen. Muhammadu Buhari and his running mate, Prof Yemi Osinbajo.

He said: “We are carrying APC banner to sustain the legacy of discipline, integrity and probity of the former Head of State.

“Buhari and Osinbajo are the best materials Nigerians are waiting for to bring the desired positive change to a depressed nation.”

Ojo said although Buhari has

From Damisi Ojo, Akure and Ernest Nwokolo, Abeokuta

no money to offer the electorate to secure their votes, but the APC candidate had the virtues of any rational human being.

In Ogun State, more than 20,000 people have joined the group. The group, which is involved in the door-to-door campaign for Governor Ibikunle Amosun’s re-election bid, said it was targeting 100,000 more people.

The group’s National President, Clement Olusegun, said 15 One-On One groups were in the 20 local governments to educate and enlighten the rural dwellers.

He called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to ensure that it conducted fair and credible elections.

Vote credible people, says Awujale

T •Aregbesola (second right); Deputy Governor Mrs. Titi Laoye-Tomori; Secretary to the State Government Moshood Adeoti (second left); Senator Bayo Salami (third left); Col Samotu (right) and Commandant, Engineering Construction Company, Ede, Brigadier-General, Adeyemi Gbenga...yesterday.

Aregbesola: let’s stand against misuse of military

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SUN State Governor Rauf Aregbesola has called on Nigerians to stand against misuse of the military and abuse of governmental authority during next month’s general elections.

The governor said this yesterday when he delivered his address: “A toast to our men and women of valour at the launching of the Armed Forces remembrance emblem at the Government House, Osogbo.

Aregbesola said Nigerians must ensure that the military and other security agents were not used to intimidate civilians during the elections as it was done in Osun during the last August 9 governorship

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•Launches Army Remembrance emblem election.

He launched the emblem with N2.5million, saying the government could have launched the emblem with more than the N10 million it donated last year, but for the cash crunch the state was facing.

The governor said for a better Nigeria and change, citizens must come out in large numbers to vote out the leadership and vote in a progressive government.

He said: “It is a great misnomer and misuse of the military and society’s resources for soldiers to be deployed as instruments in

abridging the citizens’ freedom and liberty, and to intimidate and bully them for the sinister purpose of gaining electoral advantage.

“This we have witnessed on several occasions when the Federal Government unleashed combat-ready soldiers on the populace in a purely civil matter of vote casting by law-abiding citizens.

“More alarming is the fact that this happened at a time when a part of the country had been taken over by a terrorist group, whose dislodgement should have been a matter of high national security priority.

“Such inexcusable abuse of

authority and citizens’ trust ought to trigger in any rightthinking citizen a deep sense of patriotic indignation.”

The Deputy CommandantGeneral and state Chairman, Nigerian Legion, Col. Alimi Samotu, called on the Federal Government to pay the 20 per cent balance of the pension arrears to avoid a protest.

He said: “The fallen heroes being remembered today deserve the honour because of the supreme sacrifice they made, particularly during the Civil War. “The gallant fighters lost their lives on the battle field without a farewell to their parents, wives, children and other relations.”

Lagos civil servants hail APC candidate Ambode

HE Lagos State Secretariat, Alausa, literarily stood still on Monday as workers trooped out to welcome the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Akinwunmi Ambode.

Ambode, who was the special guest at the swearing-in of the executive secretaries of the 20 local governments and the 37 local council development authorities, was “mobbed” by the workers as he attempted to move through the Ministry of Finance, where he held sway for six years as accountant general.

They trooped out in their numbers to welcome him, shouting “Ambo, Ambo, Ambo the next governor of Lagos.”

They also sang joyously: “Winner Oh Oh Oh, winner, Winner Oh Oh Oh winner, Ambode you don win O winner.”

It took Ambode about 90 minutes to get to the Adeyemi Bero Hall, the venue of the ceremony a distance of five minutes. And it took an extraordinary maneuvering of the security agents to ward off the crowd to enable him take his seat at the high table.

The audience also went agog, shouting

“Ambo, Ambo the next governor of Lagos”. It took the Master of Ceremonies some time to calm them down before the arrival of Governor Babatunde Fashola.

The governor described Ambode as the financial surgeon needed at this time to take Lagos to the next level.

He urged Lagosians to vote for experience rather than experiment; for continuity of excellence rather than for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which has proven incompetent and made a disaster of the nation.

HE Awujale of Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Kayode Adetona, has called on the electorate to vote for credible candidates in next month’s elections.

He decried the high level of corruption in the country, saying people were ready to issue receipt for bribes taken.

Oba Adetona spoke to Christians, who converged on his palace to pray for him and the Ijebu nation.

He said Nigeria had gone from bad to worse and that there was a high level of insecurity, corruption, nepotism, oppression permeating the country.

The monarch told the gathering that 2015 was another opportunity for Nigerians to correct and re-write every wrong in the country.

By Jeremiah Oke, Abeokuta

The Awujale said: “People can do themselves good by ensuring that they elect men of honour and credible people who will serve the nation and not just themselves and their stomachs.

“It is on this note that I am blowing the trumpet that this is a period of repentance for us all to turn back from our evil ways and return to God. “Corruption is everywhere in the country and has even gone worse to become part of our daily life.

“Let us return to God and seek forgiveness for our sins and pray to Him to give us people who will serve our interest and purpose, not those who will continue to deceive us.”

Voters lament over PVCs in Lagos

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OME eligible voters have expressed concern about their inability to obtain the Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) in Lagos.

They spoke yesterday in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.

Tekena Wakama, a lawyer, told NAN that many of the eligible voters in his area were unable to obtain the PVC. Wakama said although he had been fully registered in Surulere Local Government, he was unable to get his card.

“When they said the PVCs are out, Surulere’s own didn’t come out. It’s among the local government areas in Lagos State that was delayed.

“And behold when they (PVCs) came out and we went to check, they said it didn’t come out. It means I’m going to be disenfranchised.

“I won’t have the opportunity and privilege to vote for a candidate of my choice. Definitely, there is no election that is perfect in any part of the world.

“We have challenges here but I pray that INEC should be able to do what is right so that people would be able to vote candidates of their choice so as to have a credible election. ‘’I registered duly; I have my temporary voter card but due to the fault of INEC not mine; I am not going to be able to vote.’’

Malik Ogunde, an automobile mechanic, also complained about not being able to obtain his PVC, saying that INEC did not organise the distribution of the cards well.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

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NEWS Fire razes two-storey building in Lagos •N1m recovered

By Precious Igbonwelundu

F

IREMEN of the Lagos State Fire Service recovered N1million yesterday at 52, Owolabi Street, Abule Odu, Egbeda.

The money, which was said to have been partially burnt, was discovered in the victim’s, Ikechukwu Eze ‘s wardrobe while rescuers battled to contain a fire in his apartment.

Eze was said to have been out with his wife when the fire started.

It was gathered that the couple’s five children were at home.

Residents said there has been a blackout in the neighbourhood for several days.

Sources claimed that the fire starting from the wardrobe was strange.

It was gathered that Eze refused to present his children for questioning, insisting that all questions be directed at him.

Firemen said the money was badly damaged, adding that they had to force him to collect his money in the presence of the police.

“He did not even want to involve the police. He told us to leave it that he will handle it his way but we had to insist for record purpose.

“I cannot really say the cause of the fire. We learnt that the area has not had light for some days now and there was no generator on.

“The fire did not also happen in the night, else, I would have suspected candle. Since the man refused to present his children for questioning, we could not establish a possible cause.”

Confirming the incident, the agency’s director , Rasaq Fadipe decried the incessant outbreaks.

Bankole has no electoral value, says Ogun PDP

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HE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ogun State has said it is not bothered by the defection of former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole, to the Social Democratic Party (SDP).

It said the decision posed no threat to its electoral fortunes in next month’s general elections.

The party added that Bankole no longer commands electoral values that could ensure victory for anybody or party at the polls.

The state Chairman, Bayo Dayo, who said this in Abeokuta at the inauguration of the state’s 35-man governorship campaign committee, dismissed the former Speaker as a paper weight politician.

Dayo said the ex-Speaker was not useful to himself electorally in his re-election bid into the House of Representatives in 2011 and could not win his constituency.

He wondered how Bankole could have added any advantage to the PDP’s electoral fortunes, if he had been picked as its flagbearer.

His words: “I always say the

•Party: we are not bothered by his defection truth. I heard it (Bankole’s defection) last night and I can tell you as I have said earlier, it’s a free world; everybody has the right to be associated with any group that he wishes.

“But if that is done, you will then know and the people in Abuja will know who is on ground. Somebody who contested when he was Speaker and lost. Let him now contest in 20 local governments and let us see the outcome.

“I challenge them to the fact that come February 14, you will all see the results of whatever arrangement that is going on.

“Some people live in glass houses and they will not know that there are other people looking at them.

“Let him contest under any platform and people in Abuja will know if he is on ground or not.

That is all I have to say. We cannot force everybody to stay in PDP. “Our prayer is that the more people are going out, more people

‘Let him contest under any platform and people in Abuja will know whether he is on ground or not. That is all I have to say. We cannot force everybody to stay in PDP’ are coming to the party. And with that, we are going to win the election come February 14 by the grace of God.” The state chairman, however,

Church celebrates anniversary

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Fayose pledges support for military cantonment

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HE Ekiti State government has assured that it would ensure the early and smooth take-off of the proposed military cantonment for the state.

Governor Ayodele Fayose gave the assurance at the launch of the 2015 Armed Forces and Remembrance Day Emblem held at Lady Jibowu Hall, Government House, Ado-Ekiti.

The governor, who was represented by Deputy Governor Kolapo Olusola, said the eventual take-off of the cantonment would boost the number of security personnel.

Commending the efforts of military heroes and heroines for the sacrifices made to keep Nigeria as one, Fayose said their valiant deeds of selfless service would not go unrewarded.

He said their immense contribution to peace-keeping operations across the globe and their brave and patriotic resistance against insurgency call for celebration and reward.

The governor, who promised to extend the “stomach infrastructure” largesse to the legion, advised the people to support their families.

He, thereafter, launched the emblem with the N1million on behalf of the government and urged other philanthropic individuals to donate generously.

The Chairman of the Nigerian Legion, Ekiti State, Col. Kolawole Adu, appealed to the government and other well meaning individuals to come to the aid of the heroes and heroines.

assured that former Governor Gbenga Daniel still remains a PDP member and has continued to show his commitment to the victory of the party.

Dayo appealed to all aggrieved aspirants to put their loss at the primaries behind them and work for the party’s success.

He said: “I will only use this media to appeal to our aggrieved aspirants that they should allow us to work together and win the election that can make them relevant.

“So, first things first; we must work together and win the election. And when that is done, everybody that you are seeing here you will be filling forms to go and see them in their offices.”

Also, the Director-General of the Ogun PDP Governorship Campaign Organisation, Yomi Majekodunmi, said the state deserved better.

Majekodunmi assured that the PDP would carry out a “real rescue” of the state.

• Oyeku

flanked by Awode (right) and the Church Secretary, Special Apostle Samuel Akinsanya.

Lagos Assembly passes N489.69b budget

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HE Lagos State House of Assembly yesterday passed the 2015 budget proposal of N489.690billion for the state.

The Capital Expenditure stood at N247.713billion and Recurrent Expenditure N241.713billion.

The Ministry of Works had the highest allocation of N72.250billion, followed by the Ministry of Education with N52.09billion; health ministry got the third highest allocation of N32.4billion.

Although the budget figure passed was the same with what Governor Babatunde Fashola presented to the House on November 24, last year, the House, however, increased the allocation for some Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), whose allocation were considered inadequate and reduced allocation for some.

Speaker Adeyemi Ikuforiji said the budget would have been passed before the end of last month but for the failure of some ministries and government agencies to appear before the House Appropriation committee to defend their proposals.

He appealed to the executive arm to be diligent and judicious in executing the budget, promising that the legislature will continue to work together with the executive to take Lagos higher.

“If this budget is executed judiciously, no section of the state

•Works, education, health get highest allocation

By Oziegbe Okoeki

will be left untouched. We will not rest until we attain the Lagos of our dreams.

“This is actually the 10th budget of the state that I have presided over as the Speaker of this House and by the grace of God will be the last one I will be presiding over its passage today as the Speaker.

“It has always being our admonition to the Executive to be judicious and implement the budget well. Nothing is as good and fair as proper and effective implementation of laws passed by the legislature.

“On the other hand, nothing is as criminal as being contemptuous of the provisions of laws, especially the budget passed by the Assembly.

“This House, therefore, directs the Executive to diligently and conscientiously implement provisions of this budget as passed by this Assembly. We remain a veritable partner of the Executive in managing the affairs of the state. We will always work together to take Lagos to the Promised Land.

“No section or area of Lagos State should suffer social amenities and infrastructural development if this budget is religiously executed. We have always tried to satisfy the yearnings of Lagosians in the provision of adequate security and

life-changing amenities, we will continue unabated to do this, especially as we enter into an election year.

“As we enter this New Year in peace, I want to assure Lagosians that we will make life abundant for you all. We will not rest until we achieve the Lagos of our dream. We thank you and commend you for your prayers and support. But we still need more of your support and prayers so that we can record more successes, progress and growth,” Ikuforiji said.

HE Cherubim and Seraphim Movement Church (Ayo Ni O), Chapel of Divine Blessing, Victory District, 2, Olabode Olubu Crescent, Off Joke Ayo Bus Stop, AIT Road, Alagbado, Lagos, on Monday celebrated its fifth anniversary.

The week-long activities, which were flagged off with an awareness rally, will end on Sunday with a thanksgiving service.

A statement by the church’s leader, Special Apostle John Adegboyega Oyeku, said there would be a lecture: “Indiscipline in Churches” today.

Tommorrow, members will visit Ijamido Motherless Home, Ota, Ogun State and a film show later in the evening.

There will be a praise night (church choir and guest artistes)on Friday.

On Saturday, there will be a N500 million fundraising for the new church cathedral under the Chairmanship of Chief Babatunde Orija/Commissioning of church projects – Mission House and Bible College and Drama – The Journey So Far, by the Church Drama Group.

The anniversary thanksgiving service holds on Sunday.

Oyeku urged Nigerians to be united, irrespective of religion, culture or tribe.

He said it was through this that we could all live together and take the country to its pride of place in the comity of nations.

Oyeku thanked Special Apostle Remi Awode, Chairman/Executive Director of Chemstar Paints Industry (Nig.) Limited, manufacturers of Finecoat and Shield Paints, for his support and contributions to the development of the church.

Walk for Change in Osun today

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HE vice-presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Prof Yemi Osinbajo and Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola are to lead party members today in a road procession tagged “Nigerians Walk for Change”.

The party in a statement in Osogbo said the Osogbo, the state capital, will be agog tomorrow, when tens of thousands of people take to designated streets in a marathon walk from the Government House through Oke-fia/ Olaiya- OdiOlowo/Isale Aro through Gbemu Junction, Oluode Market, Boorepo- Aiyetoro and terminating at Osogbo City Stadium.

The party said the exercise is a clarion call for the people to get involved in rescuing Nigeria from the shame of corruption and poverty, which the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)-led government has imposed on Nigerians since 1999.

The statement reads: “This walk for change by Nigerians is designed to awaken consciousness in our people that “unless we show the PDP the way out, the ship of our nation could be wrecked, and we would all drown”.

“We call on all lovers of democracy to join in this great walk for change that will be sweeping across cities in Nigeria. The exercise will move from Osun to Ondo State on Friday, where citizens are gearing up to also “walk for change”.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

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NEWS

Firm loses seven luxury buses in inferno •Property worth billions of naira destroyed

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EVEN luxury buses and six mini-buses were lost

by G.U.O. Transport Company Ltd during an inferno in Onitsha, Anambra State, on Monday.

It was also learnt that other property worth about one billion naira were destroyed.

The incident occurred at the headquarters of the company near the former toll gate, at the Ogbunike axis of OnitshaEnugu Expressway.

Although the Chairman of the company, Chief Godwin Okeke, could not be reached, G.U.O.'s spokesman Augustine Okigbo described the incident as unfortunate.

Conducting reporters round the company, he said the fire started about 5pm and was caused by an explosion,

From Nwanosike Onu, Awka

which occurred when a tanker was discharging diesel into an underground tank.

Okigbo said workers and sympathisers attempted to put the fire out before men of the Anambra State Fire Service from Okpoko and Onitsha Main Market arrived.

He said although they tried to stop the fire, they had no equipment.

Okigbo urged the government to equip G.U.O. and other companies with fire-fighting equipment.

He confirmed that the company incurred losses and appealed to customers not to panic, as the company would render quality services as usual.

•Some of the burnt vehicles

‘We’ve not endorsed any candidate’

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GROUP, Ndigbo Youth Organisation (NYO), has said it has not endorsed any candidate for the general elections.

It decried the political atmosphere, saying it was perceived as a battle ground and youths were being positioned as the principal combatants.

The group spoke in a communiqué by its National President and National Publicity Secretary, Comrades Uzoh Ifeanyi and Igwe Ude-Umanta, after a one-

day stakeholders’ meeting of leaders of the Igbo youth organisations.

NYO, in a statement yesterday in Abuja, said it was disturbed.

It urged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to organise town hall meetings on youth electoral engagement processes, adding that vote protection mechanism and violence prevention must be prioritised.

Funeral for woman

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HE funeral programme for the late Mrs. Christiana Aduke Idowu (nee Daniel) will start today and end on Friday. She was 83.

The family said service of songs would hold today in her home, 24B, Kings Avenue, near Bemil Church, Ojodu Berger, Lagos.

Christian wake takes place tomorrow at the same venue, from 5pm.

Ex-REC booed out of office

From Bukola Amusan, Abuja

The deceased will be buried on Friday at Atan Cemetery, Yaba, Lagos, after a funeral service at First Baptist Church, Ikeja, Lagos.

Entertainment of guests follows at Time Square, Ajao Road, Ikeja.

She is survived by children, grandchildren and great grandchildren.

Otti is APGA’s candidate AFTER INITIAL anxiety, Dr. Alex Otti has been listed as the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) governorship candidate in Abia State.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) yesterday pasted another list containing Otti’s name.

The list, which was pasted at INEC’s office in Umuahia, was authenticated by the legal office of the electoral body in Abuja, showing that Otti would run with Mrs. Uche Eme-Uche as his running mate.

•New INEC chief visits police, DSS

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HE newly-posted Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) for Anambra State, Mr. Edwin Nwatalari, has assumed duty, with a visit to the police command and the Department of State Security (DSS).

But his predecessor, Prof.

C h u k w u e m e k a Onukaogu, who has been posted to Enugu State, was yesterday booed out of office by workers of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Awka.

They alleged that he committed a lot of atrocities when in office.

A senior worker, who preferred anonymity, told The Nation that their action followed Onukaogu’s attitude to workers.

She said: “This is a man, who pretends to be a cleric, yet he does not like the freedom of any person and you cannot benefit anything from him.

Poor response to PVCs’ distribution worries REC

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HE Enugu State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Prof.

Chukwuemeka Onukogu, has decried poor response in the collection of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs).

He addressed reporters yesterday in Enugu after taking over as the new REC. Onukogu said records showed that only 65 per cent of the PVCs had been distributed.

He added: “I’m a little bit disillusioned that the distribution of PVCs in this state is low.

Voter apathy is a precursor to bad leadership.

“My concern now is for people to collect their cards because all of us must stop voter apathy.”

The REC said the commission would devise means to distribute PVCs to enable people vote.

“It will be difficult for credible leaders to emerge in the midst of voter apathy.

“We in INEC have to re-strategise, even if From Nwanosike Onu, Awka

“The people of Enugu State, including politicians, have rejected his posting. They said they did not want such a person, considering his record in Anambra.”

it means taking the collection centres closer to the people.

“We are targeting 85 per cent PVCs distribution. After we have done our best and the people refuse, there is nothing we can do,” he said.

Prof. Onukogu said the elections would no longer be business as usual for those, who perverted the system through multiple voting.

“Those who have broken our stores to steal our PVCs are just wasting their time, because they cannot use the cards.”

He said card readers would be used to detect fraud.

Onukogu urged those who had not collected their PVCs to do so.

The outgoing REC, Dr. Lawrence Azubuike, said although the distribution of the PVCs was a continuous exercise, eligible voters should collect theirs before the end of the month.

He said INEC office had started receiving non-sensitive materials for the elections.

Nwatalari assured the people that INEC would conduct free, fair and credible elections.

He spoke with Police Commissioner Hassan Hosea Karma and the Director of DSS, Mr. Alex Okeiyi, when he visited them yesterday.

The REC solicited the cooperation of security chiefs to ensure the success of the elections.

They assured him that there would not be ballot box snatching and disturbances during the poll.

Falana to Babangida: you entrenched corruption in Nigeria

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UMAN rights lawyer Mr Femi Falana (SAN) criticized yesterday former Head of State, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida’s claim that he was not corrupt and that the $12.4billion Gulf Oil War windfall was not stolen.

Babangida had claimed in an interview with the Zero Tolerance magazine of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), which was widely reported, that he was wrongly “perceived” as being corrupt.

“Every government that came after me investigated me because of that perception as they wanted to retrieve the billions I stole,” Babangida was quoted as saying.

But Falana, in a chat with our correspondent, said the former ‘military president’ has not accounted for the $12.4billion till date.

Falana referred to the Pius Okigbo report which accused Babangida of misappropriation of public funds.

According to the report, neither the huge funds in the Dedication Account nor the

By Joseph Jibueze

one in the Stabilisation Account, which Babangida’s administration ran with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), were applied for the purpose they were originally designed to serve.

The report said the money in the Dedication Account was used for “non-priority” projects, such as documentary film on Nigeria ($2.92m), purchase of TV/Video for the presidency ($18.30m), ceremonial uniform for the army ($3.85m), staff welfare ($23.98m), travels of the first lady abroad ($.99m), medical ($27.25m), president’s travel abroad ($8.95m) and gifts to Liberia and Ghana ($1.50m).

The report also said millions of dollars were spent on embassies in London, Riyadh, Teheran, Niamey, Pakistan, Isreal ($61.37m), TV equipment for “ABU” ($17.90m), Ministry of Defence ($323.35m), security ($59.72m), defence attaches ($25.49m) and “GHQ” ($1.04m).

The Okigbo report stated: “After a short delay, the monies in the accounts were spent virtually as fast as they accumulated. By June 1994, almost all the money in the Dedication and Special Accounts had been spent.

“The operation of such accounts was not subject to the normal budgetary processes, and therefore lacked transparency.

“By limiting the authorisation process for its operation to the approval of the President or Head of State, which was communicated directly and only to the CBN governor, it created considerable room for abuse of procedures, abuse of application and reduced accountability.”

Falana said going by the Okigbo report, Babangida was not only corrupt, but “dangerously corrupt.”

Besides, he said if Babangida was not corrupt, how could he afford to own majority shares in a bank?

“Did he buy those shares with his pension? To be a major shareholder in a bank

in Nigeria, you’re likely to be a billionaire. Did he buy the shares from his salary and allowances while he was in office?” Falana queried.

He recalled that the Okigbo panel found as a fact that the sum $12.2billion out of 12.4billion dollars could not be accounted for by the Babangida military junta.

Falana said: “Contrary to his misleading account, the money was not made during the Gulf War alone. That money was saved by the government headed by him. Between 1988 and 1992, he illegally opened two dedicated accounts.

“The two signatories were himself and the then CBN governor. The two of them alone withdrew the entire sum, that is $12.2billion out of $12.4billion in those two accounts. Up till now, he has never accounted for the huge money.”

Falana also recalled that contrary to Babangida’s claim, the Okigbo panel discovered that the Gulf Oil money was not spent in building the Federal Capital Territory or the Third Main-

land Bridge.

This, Falana said, is because the Oil windfall money was not captured in the budget between 1988 and 1994.

“All the projects he mentioned were captured in the budget. The money for building Third Mainland Bridge and Abuja were in the budget.

“The Okigbo panel found that the huge funds could not be located in the budget of the country, and that, therefore, the money was diverted and wasted on things like purchase of TV/Video for the presidency, travels of the first lady abroad, gifts to Liberia, Ghana and others. All that was accounted for is not up to $100million,” Falana said.

Falana also recalled that when a Financial Times reporter, Williams Killen, alerted Nigerians of the monumental fraud being perpetrated in those CBN accounts, Babangida deported him “in order to cover up the fraud.”

“He may be right that corruption has assumed a dangerous dimension in Nigeria

today, but he’s not denying that there was corruption during his own time.

“All he was saying was that compared with the corruption during his own time, that he and his colleagues were angels, by his own logic. He’s saying: ‘Having regard to the level of corruption now, ours is a tip of the iceberg.’

“It is not just a perception that he is corrupt; in actuality he is very corrupt. The danger constituted by his regime was that before him, corruption was a serious criminal offence in Nigeria that was punished.

“Any government official that was alleged to be corrupt was forced to resign from government, because the media feasted on such reports if they got information that anybody was corrupt.

“We didn’t have EFCC and ICPC then. The media and the civil society ensured that anybody who was alleged to be corrupt in government was chased out of office. You could talk of ‘if you taka me, I dabo you.”

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THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

CITYBEATS

CITYBEATS LINE: 08023247888

We’ll remove wrongly pasted posters, LASAA insists

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HE Lagos State Signage and Advertisement Agency (LASAA) said yesterday it won’t stop discharging its statutory responsibility of removing campaign posters from unauthorised places.

Its Managing Director, Mr. George Noah, said the agency’s stand known while reacting to Lagos State Commissioner of Police Kayode Aderanti threat’s to arrest LASAA workers, who remove campaign billboards or posters, even if illegally deployed.

According to Noah, the removal of posters that deface the environment is a statutory obligation of LASAA. He said it would be unlawful for the police to arrest LASAA officials for carrying out their duty.

The agency, Noah said, had published guidelines for deploying electoral materials in four newspapers, adding that the guidelines were spelt out to parties at a town hall meeting.

He accused the police of an attempt to intimidate LASAA workers, saying election materials not deployed under the agency’s guidelines would be removed regardless of any threat.

The LASAA chief said on Monday he met with the police chief for about 15 minutes adding that despite their peaceful talk, he still went ahead to threaten to arrest the agency’s officials.

Noah said politicians must be creative on how to create awareness, adding that it will be surprising that in the course of doing their job the police will arrest LASAA officials.

He said over 100,000 political posters were illegally deployed in the state daily, adding that the removal of these materials has been based on fairness and equality among all stakeholders.

“Our guidelines have been issued without prejudice to any individual, political party, association or aspirant and our intention is to ensure fairness and equality amongst all concerned stakeholders while judiciously preserving

•APC flays police chief over threat

By Miriam Ekene-Okoro and Precious Igbonwelundu

the integrity of our environment and applying the rules without sentiment or bias,” he said.

Noah, who said LASAA approved 727 billboards out of which 26 are for creating awareness for government programmes, urged parties and their candidates to approach the outdoor owners for space for their campaigns.

He insisted that there is zero tolerance for pasting of posters in the state, adding that agencies from Kenya and Cameroon have approached LASAA to help with similar project in their countries.

Also yesterday, the All Progressives Congress (APC) described as unbecoming and condemnable, the police chief’s threat.

The party’s spokesman in Lagos, Joe Igbokwe, told reporters in his office yesterday that the commissioner’s statement was in bad faith.

He said Aderanti had a meeting with the LASAA chief before his press briefing, adding: “There is an existing law regulating placement of adverts. You need not pick up an advert or posters and start placing on the road, especially the highways. I do not want to say that the Commissioner of Police is becoming partisan, but he should realise that this is Lagos. He should tell other parties to seek permit before placing adverts or posters as we will not tolerate a situation where people will take laws into their hands because the police have spoken.

“If we take seriously what the commissioner of Police is saying, we may have chaos because most of the billboards on the major roads are owned by private individuals and organisations. If you paste anything on them without their permission, they may react and take laws in their hands.

“Lagos is not a state of lawlessness. It has agencies that regulate everything and people must seek permission from them. I am angry because everything the Com-

missioner of Police needed to know had been given to him by the MD of LASAA. We are surprised that few hours after he left the meeting with LASAA, he went ahead to address a press conference. If the Commissioner of Police is arguing that the Electoral Act permits everyone to paste posters and billboards, does the Act say regulatory agencies should not do their jobs?

The agencies must do their jobs because most of these billboards are bought by advertising agencies that pay for them annually.

“What the Commissioner of Police failed to tell them is that posters can be placed on the streets but not on major roads because they deface the aesthetic nature of our roads.

Even APC does not place adverts on major roads. The CP did not handle the issue well.

He would have called a stakeholders’ meeting. Threats and intimidations will not work because there are existing laws in Lagos guiding activities. I have even seen LASAA remove APC posters on major roads. People go in the night to paste these posters, but the agency ensures they are taken off.”

Police rearrest ex-convict

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N ex-convict, Kazeem Kosemani (37), has been arrested by operatives of the Lagos State Special Anti-Robbery Squard (SARS).

Sources said the suspect was arrested around Oshodi, Lagos while trying to buy an AK47 rifle in preparation for a robbery.

The suspect, who described himself as an exconvict, said: “I went to Kirikiri Prison in Lagos in 2014 because of motorsnatching crime. It was one boy called Ayeke that deceived me by telling me to go and carry a car for him, saying that he wanted to sell it. When I went to collect the car, I discovered that it was a stolen Sienna car. Ayeke said it was his mother that gave him the car to use in school. He told me to go and bring the car and that one Alhaji would give me money for my sweat.

“I was arrested and eventually sent to Kirikiri prison. I have also stolen Mazda car. I stayed eight months in prison before my brother perfected my bail. I was arrested on January 14, 2014. It was one boy called Ebuka that taught me how to snatch cars with a filed key. He sells motor parts in Lagos.

He did the key for me and I used it to be carrying cars

•Kosemani

By Ebele Boniface

from parks. During the day, I patrol the streets and when I see a car, I test it with my key. If it works, I come

back in the morning to carry it.”

Kosemani, said he intended to use the AK47 rifle to defend himself during an operation.

My wife is a sex addict, says husband

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54-year-old civil servant, Francis Osisioma, has taken his wife, Ebere, before the Alakuko Customary Court in Lagos, seeking the dissolution of their 21-year old marriage. He is alleging that she is adulterous and diabolical.

Osisioma said: “I lost my dark-skinned wife six years ago to bleaching cream. When she agreed to stay in Lagos with our children after I was transferred to another state in 2008, thinking it was the best decision, I never knew it was an avenue to adultery. I got to know my wife was fond of visiting night clubs with married men. She mingles with single ladies and divorcees who control her life. Even when I complained about her friends, she said she would rather leave me. She once dated a herbal-

•‘You slept with my sisters’

By Basirat Braimah

ist. In fact, I have lost count of the number of men my wife has dated. When I asked her to monitor a project in my home town, she took to prostitution.

“My wife didn’t listen to me after I had warned her against selling alcoholic drinks. Each time I went to her shop, she asked me to leave that my presence drives away her customers. The day my wife hit me with a bottle which landed me in a hospital, her friends congratulated her. Whenever there is an argument, she leaves home for 10 days; she once asked her brother to beat me mercilessly. Recently, she told our children we were not married anymore.”

Osisioma added: “I thought my wife loved me; I never

knew I was being deceived because she would call me on phone at 1 am, ‘to hear my voice.’ I felt she was missing me, but she was only monitoring my movements. My wife is a popular figure on our street. She is not a good example of motherhood. I don’t love her anymore.”

But, Mrs Osisioma, 38, denied the allegations, saying: “All he is saying is not true. I was 17 when I got married to him. I grew to love him. My husband womanises a lot. He is also a drunkard. Even when he slept with my sisters, I still stood by him. When he was earning N4,800 as salary, I managed with him. He and his relations are planning to throw me out because he is retiring soon. He wants our children whom I single hand-

edly trained in his custody.

They barely know their father because he was transferred from one sate to the other. He once burnt all my things after he accused me of dating men who patronised me.

“I have always endured because of our children. I dropped out of school in form II. I have nothing. I still love my husband. If he wants me out of his life, he should provide accommodation for us.

Our children agreed to come along when I received the summons.”

The marriage was sealed under Native and Customary law and has produced four children.

The court’s President, Chief Awos Awosola, fixed a chamber discussion and advised the parties to maintain peace and obey the law. The matter was adjourned till January 29.

•Three of the Executive Secretaries for Local Government Areas (LGA) and Local Council Development Areas (LCDA) installed in Lagos...on Monday. From right; Princess Opeyemi Akindele (MosanOkunola LCDA); Deaconess Dupe Ojodu (Amuwo Odofin LGA) and former Deputy Speaker, Lagos State House of Assembly, Hon. Bola BadmusOlujobi (Oriade LCDA).

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NEWS

Edo evicts UNIBEN workers •Students protest •Govt: we only took possession

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OME University of Benin (UNIBEN) workers were evicted from their homes yesterday. Their homes in the high brow Government Reservation Area (GRA) in Benin, the state capital, were demolished by the Edo State Government.

The buildings were said to have been built by the Samuel Ogbemudia military regime several years back.

The workers were packing out of the buildings yesterday.

Some of them said they were not at home when bulldozers pulled down the perimeter fences and parts of their homes.

The workers included former Vice Chancellor, Prof.

Osayuki Oshodin; Western Delta University Vice Chancellor, Prof. Austin Asagba; Prof. Christy Omoifo of the Faculty of Science Education and Dr. Osuya Obianenue, both of UNIBEN. Many of them said they lost valuable documents, including primary six leaving certificates.

Oshodin said the demolished building in his official quarters housed his credentials and private library.

He said: “People are abusing power. This is the most lawless thing I have ever seen in my life. There are cases in court and they have not been finalised. Yet, somebody is taking the law into his hands.

“There were 2,000 thugs brought here. The painful aspect was that they were escorted by the police. The governor himself came here twice. He showed them the houses and after the demolition, he came to make sure that the demolition took place.

“There was an appeal against the judgment delivered by the court. Dr Ogbemudia gave us these houses and he testified that he gave us these houses.

There are documents to the whole process. If they had

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HE Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) has said the political marginalisation of the Ogoni is indeed troubling, dehumanising and despicable.

MOSOP President Legborsi Saro Pyagbara spoke at the 22nd Ogoni Day at the playground of Birabi Memorial Grammar School in Bori, the traditional headquarters of Ogoniland and the seat of Khana Local Government Area of Rivers State.

The Ogoni leader noted that MOSOP decided, under the Ogoni Project 2015, to launch a political justice campaign, anchored on the political representation of the Ogoni in 2015.

Ogoni Day started in 1993.

From Bisi Olaniyi, Port Harcourt

Pyagbara hailed the Ogoni, who responded to MOSOP’s campaign.

The MOSOP leader said his people had the capacity to lead Rivers State as governor.

He listed some eminent Ogoni sons, including a former Vice Chancellor of the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT), Prof. Don Baridam, senators Lee Maeba and Magnus Abe, Sir Gabriel Pidomson, Bernard Miikor and Dumbari Ben Dimkpa, as those who could lead the state.

Pyagbara stressed that no matter the outcome of the process, they enriched the campaign of the neglected people.

Edo: PDP’s allegation is nonsense

E •One of the demolished homes ... yesterday From Osagie Otabor, Benin

told us to leave, I would have packed out.”

Obianenue, who had a Plaster of Paris on his neck after the demolition, said some policemen aided the thugs to beat him up.

Omoifo said she was not at home when part of the building was pulled down.

UNIBEN students took to the Benin-Lagos express road to protest the demolition.

They deflated the tyres of one of the “Comrade buses” plying the route and discharged the passengers.

UNIBEN’s Students ‘Union Government (SUG) President John Ifidon said more students would be mobilised for a protest, if the government failed to apologise for its action.

They said the demolition of the homes of their lecturers was illegal.

The Bureau Chief of Daily Independent, Mr Francis Onoiribholo, was beaten up by those demolishing the bungalows. His camera, tape recorder and mobile phone were collected from him.

Prof.

Oshodin was speechless as he watched the bulldozers demolish his official home at the GRA in Benin.

The protesters blocked the Lagos-Benin Road for over two hours.

ASUU Chairman at UNIBEN, Dr Anthony Monye-Emina, who led the protest, regretted that despite the suit pending at the Appeal Court, “the state government still destroyed the university’s property, making our workers and lecturers homeless”.

Commissioner for Justice and Attorney-General Henry Idahagbon said the government acted in accordance

with the law, following a court judgment delivered on December 16, last year.

The commissioner said the government only took possession of its property, which he said were illegally occupied by UNIBEN workers.

He said: “We didn’t demolish their property. What we did was to take possession.

Their case was that the place was given to them by General Ogbemudia when he was a military governor.

“They did not have any document to back up their claims. They canvassed five issues before the court and they lost on all five issues.

The court said they should deliver forthwith. After three weeks, it was clear they were not prepared to give up the possession.

“I challenge them to show evidence of an appeal and proof of service. They did not serve us any court process.”

Police rescue nonagenarian, cleric from kidnappers in Delta T HE Delta State Police Command has said it rescued a 90-year old woman, Madam Agiri Yard, and a cleric attached to Winners’ Chapel at Agbarho, Ughelli North Local Government Area, Adebusola Olurotimi, from abductors.

Two other victims were said to have been rescued from hoodlums in separate incidents.

Police sources said the nonagenarian was abducted from her home in Umeh, Isoko South Local Government Area.

Police spokesperson, Tina Kalu, a deputy superintendent of Police (DSP), confirmed the incidents.

She said the Oleh Police Division, acting on a tip-off in collaboration with a local vigilance group, trailed the kidnappers to their hideout and rescued the nonagenarian.

Kalu said Olurotimi was riding with his wife and two other female occupants in his Honda Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) to the church when they were blocked by gunmen on motorcycles.

The police spokesperson said

MOSOP alleges Ogoni marginalisation

From Okungbowa Aiwerie, Asaba

the hoodlums sped off with the occupants of the vehicle.

She named the two female victims as Damilola Olarinde and Rukevwe Akporhona.

Kalu said: “On December 21, 2014 at about o8oohours (8am), the DPO at Agbarho Division received information that on same date at about 0630hours (6.30am) while a woman, Adebusola Olubisi and her husband, Pastor Adebusola Olurotimi of Winners’ Chapel at Agbarho were on their way to

the church, riding in their Honda Pilot SUV, with registration number (Lagos) EPE 519 BG; engine number J35A42617898 and chassis number 2HKYF18513513H606938.

“On entering Ughelli Road at Agbarho, three armed men on a motorcycle blocked their vehicle and ordered them to come down. The hoodlums ordered the pastor and the two girls Olarinde and Akporhona, who were with them, back into the vehicle and they drove away to an unknown destination.”

The spokesperson said the

police, with soldiers and local vigilance group members, chased the kidnappers and rescued the victims.

She said: “On the strength of the report, operatives in Agbarho Division, in synergy with soldiers and vigilantes, went after the hoodlums and successfully rescued the Pastor and the two girls, who were abandoned by their captors, following the pursuit by the security team.”

Kalu said the Honda SUV was driven away to an unknown destination.

She said the police were making efforts to recover the vehicle and arrest the fleeing hoodlums.

DO State Deputy Governor Pius Odubu has said the allegation by the state chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that Governor Adams Oshiomhole spent N142 million to inaugurate some projects executed by the state government is arrant nonsense.

Odubu was reacting to the allegation by PDP State Chairman Dan Orbih.

The deputy governor spoke during the celebration of the annual Ikaba Festival at his Urhomehe country home in

From Osemwengie Ben Ogbemudia, Benin

Orhiomwon Local Government Area.

He said: “That allegation is arrant nonsense. The Adams Oshiomhole we all know will not spend more than one or two million on such an occasion.

“You also know that because of his nature, we did not commission the projects that we executed. That’s because he feels that he has done them.

So, he said the people using them have inaugurated them, to avoid wastages.”

Dickson to civil servants: no politics

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AYELSA State Governor Seriake Dickson has warned civil servants to stay away from partisan politics.

The governor spoke on Monday in Yenagoa, the state capital, when he swore in the new Head of Service (HOS) at the Executive Council Chambers of the Government House.

Igodo took over from Sir Fraser Okuoru, following the retirement of the latter from the service.

Dickson urged Igodo to instil discipline, hard work and ensure that public servants steer clear of partisan politics, particularly as the general elections drew near.

The governor said her appointment as the new head of

From Mike Odiegwu, Yenagoa

service was coming at the height of political activities in the state and the nation.

He said: “The public service must sit up. As the head of the government, I take decisions without political considerations to insulate the public service from the pressures and travails of those of us who are in the political life.

“The new Head of Service has a duty to our state - to inculcate this principle of insulation. Tell civil servants, who are interested in politics, to know what to do. Continue to tell them not to constitute themselves into an arm of the opposition. The public service is for disciplined people.”

Gunmen abduct soldier in Rivers •Steal arms after gun duel

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OME gunmen have attacked the houseboat of the Joint Task Force (JTF), code-named: Operation Pulo Shield, in Rivers State.

It was gathered that a soldier, identified as a sergeant, had his arms, including a General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG), stolen by the hoodlums.

A security source said the attack took place at Kula community in Akuku Toru.

The source, who spoke in

From Mike Odiegwu, Yenagoa

confidence, said the gunmen arrived in the area yesterday on a speedboat at 2am.

“They arrived the houseboat of the JTF at an odd time and opened fire on the speedboat and on the soldiers. They almost caught the soldiers off-guard but the soldiers engaged the hoodlums in a gun battle that lasted some hours,” the source said.

Emerhor assures Urhobo monarchs of good representation

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HE Delta State All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Chief O’tega Emerhor, has assured Urhobo monarchs of full representation, if he wins the February election.

The governorship candidate said President Goodluck Jonathan had no interest in Urhobo affairs.

He said arrangements were

•‘Jonathan has no interest in Urhobo’ From Polycarp Orosevwotu, Ughelli

on for APC national leadership to meet with the Urhobo Progress Union (UPU) to ensure a common front in the 2015 general elections.

Emerhor spoke yesterday at a meeting with Urhobo traditional rulers at the palace of

the Ovie of Ughelli Kingdom, Oharii III. The APC candidate explained that his party had accepted the Urhobo, which he said had been rejected by the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

He said: “If the President had the interest of Urhobo at

heart, he would have ensured that an Urhobo emerged as the governorship candidate of the PDP in the state.”

Emerhor said the APC was the only party that could withstand the PDP in the forthcoming elections.

The APC candidate advised the Urhobo to desist from

supporting “mushroom” parties, as they did in time past.

He said: “I have been working for the interest of the Urhobo for a long time. I supported Chief Great Ogboru in previous elections, not because of him but because of the interest of the Urhobo. We failed then because we were in a small party. We cannot afford to repeat that mistake this time round.”

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WEDNESDAY JANUARY 7, 2015

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POLITICS THE NATION

E-mail:- politics@thenationonlineng.net

Unlike in 2011, when the senatorial race across the three districts in Oyo State was among three political parties-the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Accord Party (AP), four parties - All Progressives Congress (APC), Labour Party (LP), PDP and AP - are fielding candidates for the parliamentary elections. BISI OLADELE examines the strengths and weaknesses of the flag bearers and their chances at the polls.

APC, PDP, LP, AP battle for Senate in Oyo F

OUR parties-the All Progressives Congress (APC), the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the Labour Party (LP) and the Accord Party (AP)-are warming up for senatorial elections in Oyo State.

In Oyo North, Oyo Central and Oyo South districts, there is enthusiasm among the stakeholders. The only obstacle to a successful poll now is the lack of Permanent Voter’s Cards. The distributions of the cards was not successful in Oyo State.

The senatorial election will be very interesting because of the defections across platforms. Those who contested on the platform of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in 2011 are now flag bearers in the AP and the PDP. Those who fell out with the PDP and the APC are now vying on the platform of the AP and LP. There are three serving senators in the race.

They are experienced politicians. But, they will work hard to retain their seats because new entrants are also working to dislodge them.

The three senators are Olufemi Lanlehin (Accord), Ayoola Agboola (PDP) and Ayoade Adeseun (PDP). Lanlehin and Adeseun defected from the APC to their new parties.

Oyo Central

This struggle for the Senate is expected to be tough in this district. This is because the district cuts across three major towns of Ibadan, Oyo and Ogbomoso. Adeseun, who hails from Ogbomoso, currently occupies the seat.

But, the Speaker of the Oyo State House of Assembly, Hon. Monsurat Sunmonu, has picked the APC ticket to contest the position. She will face Adeseun and Chief Oyebisi ilaka, the Ladilu of Oyo, at the poll. Ilaka is the Accord Party flag bearer. Sunmonu and Ilaka hail from Oyo town.

In the LP, where former Governor Adebayo Alao-Akala calls the shots, Comrade Olu Abiala is the flag bearer.

slug it out with the three. Abiala, a renowned labour unionist ,is in partisan politics for the first time. The election will be an uphill task for the former Secretary o the Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT), Oyo State chapter. He hails from Ibadan.

Oyo South Lanlehin The senator joined Accord earlier this year. He is a well-known politician. He hopes to coast into victory with his power of incumbency and popularity. He may also enjoy some goodwill in Ibadan because of Ladoja.

But, Lanlehin, who rode to victory,on the crest of the ACN, may not find it smooth this time. The political space is more polarised today while the APC is working harder daily to win more voters.

Besides, some APC members and other stakeholders believe that Lanlehin should have waited in the party to pick the governorship ticket after Governor Abiola Ajimobi leaves office. This may also work against him. His major huddle is the APC. Besides, there are some people who are not happy over his defection.

Soji Akanbi

• Lanlehin

• Agboola

Adedeji Otiti

The PDP candidate relies mostly on her party and gender appeal to win the election. The PDP candidate in the 2011 election, Kamorudeen Adedibu, was defeated by the incumbent.

Otiti is only relatively known in the political circle. Her political experience is doubtful. But, she may be a candidate of the future.

Sunmonu

Sunmonu is an astute lawmaker. A former employee of the British Immigration Service, she returned to Nigeria in 2010 to join politics.

She is representing Oyo East/Oyo West Constituency in the House of Assembly.

Her tenure witnessed unprecedented peace in the House, judging by the vices that have assailed the parliament since 1999. This has shored up her popularity in the district and the entire state.

The APC and Accord zoned the senatorial slot to Oyo because it is the only town in the district that has not produced a senator since 1999.

Besides, the APC is waxing stronger in two local governments in Ibadan among the five that make up the district in the capital city. They are Lagelu and Akinyele.

With her grassroots style and gender appeal, Sunmonu stands a better chance in the race.

Yet, she faces a hurdle in Oyo, her home town, where Ilaka is also a major contender.

Ilaka

A United Kingdom-trained tax consultant, Ilaka contested and lost to Adeseun in 2011. But, the fortune of Accord has risen in the last two years in Oyo, making him a strong contender once again.

The candidates fielded by Accord are mostly riding on the fame of Senator Rashidi Ladoja, who is well known in the state. With the possibility of getting reasonable votes in Oyo, Ilaka is also likely to enjoy Ladoja’s goodwill is some parts of Ibadan.

But, it is doubtful if the Oyo chief will garner enough votes to emerge as the winner.

Adeseun

Adeseun was a member of the House of Representatives. In 1999, he was a member of the Alliance for Democracy. In 2003, he defected to the PDP. In 2011, he was a Chieftain of the ACN. Until recently, he was an APC leader in the district.

The APC candidate, Soji Akanbi, is an experienced politician. He was a governorship aspirant in 2011. Since he picked the APAC ticket, Akanbi has been working to entrench himself within and outside the party across the senatorial district. A follower of the late Alhaji Lam Adesina, the former governor of the state, Akanbi is close to key players in the Lam Adesina political family.

His party is an added advantage because it is popular in the district.

But, Akanbi must work very hard to defeat Lanlehin. He will need to warm himself into the hearts of voters outside the camp because they will ultimately decide who emerges the senator.

Akinyo

Nurudeen Akinyo, who recently defected to the LP, is new in Oyo politics. He was a Special Adviser to Governor Abiola Ajimobi. Although he hails from Ibadan, Akinyo will have to cover several miles in popularity to win the election, • Adeseun

The senator is back in the race after losing the governorship ticket to Senator Teslim Folarin.

He is popular across the district. He is an experienced politician. Adeseun has been reaching out to his constituents through constituency projects.

As an experienced politician, the senator is counting on his goodwill among constituents.

The PDP is also depending on the federal might. Folarin’s strength in some parts of Ibadan is also an advantage.

Yet, Adeseun may find it tougher this time.

The PDP’s popularity has declined in the state.

The dwindling fortune has reflected in the way it was defeated in the 2011 general elections, in spite of power of incumbency. The crisis generated by its primaries this year has not been resolved.

• Mrs Sunmonu

In Ogbomoso, his home town, three people are vying for both governorship and senatorial seats on the platforms of different parties.

While Alao-Akala is vying under the Labour Party, Hon. Fatai Buhari is the APC’s senatorial candidate for Oyo North. He is the third candidate from the town. Obviously, votes in the town will be divided across the three lines. Adeseun is not likely to pull any meaningful votes in Oyo and two other local governments in Ibadan.

He will count on the PDP’s strength in Ona-Ara, Oluyole and perhaps, Egeda local governments to get votes. With the odds against him, it is believed that the senator faces a huge hurdle to retain his seat.

Oyo North Agboola

The candidate of the PDP, Senator Ayoola Agboola, is the candidate to beat in this district.

He is a grassroots politician and he is entrenched in the district. The power of incumbency may also count for him.

But, Agboola faces a huge hurdle in his OkeOgun Constituency because the LP candidate, Hon. Tajudeen Abisodun Kareem, who is representing Atibo/Saki East/West in the House of Representatives, is also a grassroots mobiliser. Both of them were with Alao-Akala, but Kareem followed his boss to LP. Agboola faces a tough time in the three local governments in Ogbomoso where Alao-Akala delivered for him in 2011.

Buhari

Hon. Fatai Buhari is a former member of the The LP candidate, Comrade Olu Abiala, will House of Representatives. He is the Commissioner for Local Governments and Chieftaincy Affairs.

He relies on his popularity and that of his party, APC, in Oke-Ogun and Ogbomoso to win the ‘In Oyo North, Oyo Central and Oyo South districts, there the election. Besides, the party, zoned the position to is enthusiasm among the stakeholders. The only obsta- Ogbomoso.

But, Buhari will need to work extremely hard to cle to a successful poll now is the lack of Permanent Vot- win the three councils in Ogbomoso where Alaoalso hails from. He also needs to work very er’s Cards. The distributions of the cards was not suc- Akala hard to garner enough votes in Oke-Ogun to win cessful in Oyo State’ the election.

Abiala

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‘

I helped to build this party, giving no thought to seeking an elected office because of it. My contribution to the party was never based on the expectation of a later political handout. Nigeria is in trouble and we are well past the moment for such narrow, selfish games

‘

From all indications, the year 2015 will go down in history as a decisive year for Nigeria. The general elections scheduled for the first quarter of the year will, to a large extent, decide the country’s fate. Assistant Editor LEKE SALAUDEEN profiles the major personalities, whose actions will shape the year.

• Dr Jonathan

• Gen. Buhari

• Mark

• Tambuwal

• Asiwaju Tinubu

• Jega

• Amaechi

Gladiators and their 2015 calculations N

IGERIANS have associated the year 2015 with so many things. For instance, it is the year following the centenary of the amalgamation of the country, which will witness, according to some scholars’ prediction, the break-up of the country. It is also the year of the much-talked about general elections that may make or mar the country’s future. The elections will hold between February 14 and 28, based on the time-table released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Nigerians are looking forward to the elections, very optimistic of the opportunity they offer for democratic consolidation. There are also calls for postponement of the polls by some prominent Nigerians - a suggestion that was been widely condemned as a coup against the constitution.

The elections promise to be historic for many reasons: They will be the fifth since the return to civil rule in 1999; they will offer another opportunity for transfer of power in many states and at the centre; and an opportunity for a remarkable improvement over the 2011 elections, deservedly considered as the most credible Nigeria has ever had.

This year’s election is particularly significant because it will be the first keenly-contested poll featuring a viable opposition. It will be a straight fight between the ruling Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) and All Progressives Congress (APC).

Below are some major actors who will help to shape political events during the year.

Goodluck Jonathan

President Goodluck Jonathan has been a very lucky man. He has held several positions since the return to civilian rule in 1999, but has never contested an election except the 2011 presidential election. He started as deputy governor and became governor when his principal Diepreye Alamieyesigha was impeached. He was Vice President to late President Umaru Yar’Adua, but was elevated to the position of substantive president, following the death of Yar’Adua on May 5, 2010.

Jonathan stood for election for the first time, after he emerged unopposed as the PDP presidential candidate at a national convention held in Abuja. Even though critics argue that he has not done well enough to deserve a second term, his supporters and loyalists think otherwise. His declaration for second term has been embroiled in controversy. Some argue that it has been stated explicitly in Section 137 that the maximum years anybody can serve as the President of Nigeria is eight years. Jonathan’s critics argue that if he is returned in the February 14 presidential election, he would have spent nine years by the time he completes his tenure in 2019.

The President is less popular now than when he was in 2011, when he received a massive endorsement from all parts of the country. This is perhaps due to his perceived failure to deliver significantly on his election promises. His performance approval rating stood at an average 42 per cent in 2013 and it is believed to have reduced drastically to about 35 per cent in 2014.

A number of interest groups from Ijaw nation, his ethnic group, have come out to declare their support for him for a second term. A former militant leader, Asari Dokubo has threatened that if Jonathan was not re-elected this year, there will be war in the country. It is curious that the President has not come out categorically to distance himself from the former militant’s utterances and similar ones from his other supporters. He has however promised a violent-free election at several occasions. But, his promise to deal decisively with trouble-makers has been interpreted as a euphemism to use the security forces to harass and intimidate members of the opposition parties before, during and after elections.

Mohammadu Buhari Gen. Mohammadu Buhari is the flag bearer of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the February 14 presidential election. While his opponent in the election, President Jonathan, was the sole candidate of his party, Buhari slugged it out at the APC primary with four other aspirants.

Buhari’s victory was overwhelming as he garnered a whopping 3, 430 to emerge as the candidate of the party.

Both the critics and opponents of Buhari agree that the former Head of State ranks one of the best among the elites, in terms of integrity. Analysts believe Buhari is one man who has sustained an unblemished character in Nigeria, because of his ability to say no to corruption. There is no gainsaying the fact that his anti-corruption stance is his unique selling point in this year’s election. As military Head of State, he justified the seizure of power in 1983, by reprimanding the civilian administration headed by former President Alhaji Shehu Shagari, which he described as exceedingly corrupt. As a corrective measure, the Buhari regime launched “War Against Indiscipline (WAI) campaign, through which it attempted to set a new roadmap for the country’s politics. It also introduced strict economic and political policies that have been described by some intellectuals as “Buharism”.

Though Buhari does not have the financial wherewithal to fund his campaign, his supporters across the country have been contributing to ensure that his quest to rule the country this time around is not marred by lack of funds.

David Mark Senate President David Mark is a fourth term senator. He has picked the ticket to contest for the Benue East seat again this year on the platform of his party, the PDP. He is a confidant of President Goodluck and a strategist in President Jonathan’s bid to secure a second term mandate. Mark incurred the wrath of some PDP senators who lost

their tickets to vie for a return to the upper legislative chamber. The aggrieved senators are insisting on the removal of Mark for not doing enough to protect them against their party’s leadership in the run up to the December 8 primaries across the nation. He was the head of the panel mandated to integrate contending groups in the Southwest PDP to ensure cohesion in the party and its success at the poll in February.

Aminu Tambuwal

The defection of the Speaker, House of Representatives, Alhaji Aminu Tambuwal from the PDP to the APC has diminished the ruling party’s fortunes in Sokoto State and to a certain extent, in the Northwest. Tambuwal is seen as a team player by his colleagues in the House. He was drafted into the APC presidential race by his associates that cut across party lines in the House.

Out of sheer love and respect they obtained nomination form for him. He was prevailed upon to withdraw from the presidential race. Subsequently, Tambuwal picked the Sokoto APC governorship nomination form in less than a month to the governorship primary and defeated seven other aspirants with wide margin of votes.

Many believe that Tambuwal has what it takes to battle the PDP in the governorship election in the Northwest in particular and the country in general. According to political observers, he is endowed with good leadership qualities, charisma, humility and the war chest to prosecute the elections.

Bola Tinubu

Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu has remained the arrow head of the opposition since 2003. He was the only governor of the Alliance for Democracy (AD) that survived the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) take-over of the Southwest in 2003. He played a prominent role in the merger of the opposition parties that culminated in the formation of the APC. Before the arrival of the APC, he felt that the opposition parties were too weak to wrest power from the ruling party at the centre on individual basis.

Upon realisation that Tinubu commands powerful political followership, the Presidency and the PDP had embarked on “smear campaign” against his emergence as the running mate to Gen. Buhari. For instance, the PDP stoked the fear of a Muslim-Muslim ticket within the APC. Tinubu said he turned down an invitation to be the party’s vice presidential candidate in order to maintain his position as the leader of the party.

He stressed that as a leader, he would be able to act as a bridge builder across all divides, as well as further the party’s interests and campaign ahead of the general elections. More so, he declared at

‘The argument is that if INEC failed to deliver PVCs to the electorate, after three and half years of preparation, how would it cope with other logistics on the day of election. Jega has no reason to compromise the integrity he has built over the years. Observers say Prof. Jega and his team should work round the clock to improve on the 2011 election, which was adjudged to be the first fairest and credible election in the history of the country’

the formative stage of the APC that the leaders of the legacy parties have sacrificed whatever personal ambition or interest they may have to save Nigeria.

“I helped to build this party, giving no thought to seeking an elected office because of it. My contribution to the party was never based on the expectation of a later political handout. Nigeria is in trouble and we are well past the moment for such narrow, selfish games,” the APC leader stated.

Attahiru Jega

Prof. Attahiru Jega is the one saddled with the responsibility of conducting free and fair elections this year, as the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The confidence rating of the commission and its chairman was probably at its lowest after the November 16, 2013 governorship election in Anambra State. Prof. Jega’s readiness to organise free and fair general elections this year was called to question, following the lapses observed during the Anambra election. But, the INEC chairman was humble enough to admit that there were irregularities and malpractices in certain constituencies.

This led to the conduct of supplementary polls in several local government areas. But, INEC was able to redeem its image through the subsequent governorship elections held in Ekiti and Osun in 2014, which were considered credible by several observers.

The commission has requested N93 billion to conduct this year’s elections. The figure is 10 per cent less than the amount expended by the commission during the last general elections in 2011.

But, there is a possibility this figure might be further increased by the legislature in a bid to ensure that the commission has adequate resources to conduct the polls. Owing to the lapses with the distribution of permanent voters’ cards (PVC), many Nigerians are becoming apprehensive over INEC’s preparation to conduct hitchfree general elections this year. Millions of eligible voters across the country are yet to collect their PVCs. The commission has said categorically that people who do not have their PVC would not be allowed to vote.

Will the Jega-led INEC disenfranchise millions of voters because the commission failed to deliver the cards to them? The argument is that if INEC failed to deliver PVCs to the electorate, after three and half years of preparation, how would it cope with other logistics on the day of election. Jega has no reason to compromise the integrity he has built over the years. Observers say Prof. Jega and his team should work round the clock to improve on the 2011 election, which was adjudged to be the first fairest and credible election in the history of the country. They have enjoined Jega to make the 2015 general elections a parting gift since it will be the last he would conduct during his tenure.

Rotimi Amaechi

Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State is one of the five former PDP governors that •Continued on page 17

THE NATION WEDNESDAY JANUARY 7, 2015

17

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The country will be dangerously exposed to external aggressors if nothing is done to rebuild, reconstruct and rehabilitate the Army of Nigeria

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OPEN LETTER TO ARMY AND POLICE Lagos State All Progressives Congress (APC) Publicity Secretary Joe Igbokwe warns about the danger of deploying troops and police for electoral duty, with the goal of oppressing and repressing opposition figures in their strongholds.

‘Army, police should not be willing tools in elections’

“I

N the speech of Mr. Ayo Fayose, he said propaganda would only waste time and that attack is the best form of defence.

He maintained that the party in general and the Southwest PDP needed to be valiant to face the Tinubus anywhere they are. He further said we have control of the police and the army and I cannot afford to lose my control on police and the army and, without Jonathan being the President, we will lose the control. Further, he said the presidential election is a do or die affair, but Governor Mimiko quickly countered that it should not be a do or die affair but rather a do-and-win affair” – Sahara Reporters The above statement was culled from the report of the inaugural meeting of the Southwest PDP held on Saturday December 27, 2014 at Government House, Akure, Ondo State capital. It was lifted from Sahara Reporters (SR). I was moved to write this open letter to the military and the police because of the weight of the statement above and the danger it poses to our renascent democracy. I write as a concerned Nigerian who wants the best for my country at this critical point in the nation’s history. I write to appeal to the conscience of the Army and the police to take a deep and honest look at the above statements and rise up to defend democracy and Nigeria. I write to ask the Army and the police to issue a warning to Governor Fayose and his forty thieves before they destroy further the already battered image of these vital institutions.

•Continued from page 16

deBefore then, the Presidency, the First Lady Dame Patience Jonathan and former Minister of State for Education Nyesom Wike had engaged him in battle of supremacy for the control of the party structure in the state. The crisis was rooted in the ambition of President Jonathan for a second term. After spirited efforts to patch up the relationship between him and the First family ended abysmally, they parted ways when Amaechi defected to the APC, alongside four other colleagues.

Today, Governor Amaechi is a key member of the APC. Indeed, he is the Director-General of Gen. Buhari Presidential Campaign. He has the responsibility to deliver states across the country for his principal. But, particularly, the party would be looking up to him to break the perceived solidarity for the President in the Southsouth. In 2011, the PDP candidate polled 1.8 million votes from the region. Amaechi has promised to perform the same feat this year when he declared after the APC governorship primary in Rivers that: “We showed that there could be another party in Rivers State. Last time they (President Goodluck Jonathan and his PDP) had 1.8 million votes in Rivers State. They should come and have it now. Those who make legitimate change impossible will make illegitimate change inevitable.”

Rochas Okorocha

The Governor of Imo State, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, was a pioneer member of the APC. He was elected governor in 2011 on the platform of the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA). He has endeared himself to the people of Imo through the transformation in the state last four years. His free education policy and pocket money for primary school pupils have relieved parents

The Nigerian police have been battling with credibility crisis for years now and today most Nigerians see that very important and strategic institution as a government parastatal at the centre. For almost 16years since 1999, a vast preponderance of both the senior and junior officers have abused, rubbished and disgraced that very important institution to the extent that there is no trust again that they can get it right. The Nigeria’s police duty is to protect the 150 million Nigerian irrespective of tribe, tongue, religion, and culture but they have abandoned their primary duty in order to serve whoever is in power in Abuja. They help to rig elections, they help to oppress, repress and suppress the opposition, they intimidate, abuse, hound and physically assault the populace. Police are used to settle scores, they are used to retrieve debts, they sometimes encourage armed robbers, they beat up Nigerians at the drop of a hat. I can go on and on but time has come for the Nigerian police to take stock and try to redeem its battered image to face the challenges of the days ahead.

The Nigerian Army I knew then was one of the best in Africa. They have given good accounts of themselves in peace keeping missions abroad and they are rated very high even outside Africa. But the emergence of Boko Haram few years back and the news from the Army formations across the country have become worrisome. Today we hear of mutiny in the Army, we hear of junior officers refusing orders from superiors, we hear of our once strong soldiers running away from Boko Haram rag-tagged shooters,

• Fayose

• Igbokwe

we hear of Boko Haram seizing Army Barracks and carting weapons away, we hear about funds meant for junior soldiers being diverted, we hear about our soldiers being arrested by Cameroon Army and today we hear that there are Boko Haram sympathizers in the nations security agencies and even in Ministries, Parastatals and agencies of government. This is unbelievable and unpleasant story to believe in the 21st century and even at peace times in Nigeria. We can ignore the antics and rude shock from the Nigeria police but allowing the famous Nigeria Army to degenerate further is like committing suicide. The country will be dangerously exposed to exter-

nal aggressors if nothing is done to rebuild, reconstruct and rehabilitate the Army of Nigeria. Nigerians will go the polls on February 14 2015 to make an important statement that will determine the road to travel in the years ahead.

Nigerians are expected to rebuke those that have stunted our growth and made Nigeria to move at 5metre per hour instead of moving at 50 kilometers per hour. Nigerians will take a very important decision that will bring respect and honor to our country.

This decision will change the way we do things, the way we think, the way we reason, the way we work and the way we relate with others. Nigerians will by that very important decision stop

Those who will shape 2015 from the burden of educating their wards. Being the lone voice from the Southeast in the progressives fold, Okorocha has vowed to make record by ensuring that he delivers his state for the APC this year. He was a presidential aspirant, but he lost gallantly.

He explained that he contested the APC presidential primary to give a sense of belonging to the Igbo people.

failed to take the leap, when his five other colleagues defected. He returned to the fold with Aliyu unexpectedly.

He is loved by his constituents because of his people-oriented projects.

Aliyu Wamakko

Rabiu Kwankwaso

Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso of Kano State is an experienced politician whose influence transcends his home state. He was the arrow head of the PDP governors that were opposed to Jonathan’s re-election. Since his defection to the APC, Kwankwaso has vowed to work assiduously to ensure the defeat of Jonathan at the poll this year. He came second in the APC presidential primary.

Kwankwaso has pledged his unalloyed support for Gen. Buhari, the party’s standard bearer. He has picked the Kano Central senatorial ticket of the APC.

Babangida Aliyu

Ebullient Niger State Governor, Babangida Aliyu, is a controversial politician. He had in 2013 declared his ambition to contest this year’s presidential election. He was in the forefront of the campaign for power shift to the North. It was he that disclosed that President Jonathan signed an agreement with the PDP governors from the North that he would serve one term as a condition for endorsing his candidacy for the 2011 contest. Aliyu was among the seven PDP governors that were expected to defect to the APC. But, while Amaechi, Kwankwaso, Aliyu

• Prof. Osinbajo

Wamakko, AbdulFattah Ahmed, Murtala Nyako eventually defected to the APC, Aliyu and Sule Lamido of Jigawa state made a u-turn and returned to the PDP. He will complete his second term as governor in May. He has already secured the ticket to contest Niger East senatorial seat.

Sule Lamido

Governor Sule Lamido is an experienced politician. He would be completing his second term as governor of Jigawa State in May. He drew the ire of President Jonathan over his unannounced presidential ambition. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo had tactically thrown his weight behind Lamido’s ambition. He was among the PDP governors that staged a walkout from the party’s convention in 2013, for what they described as lack of internal democracy in the party. But, he

Sokoto State Governor Aliyu Wamakko is a key member of the APC in the northwest. He was among the five PDP governors that pushed for reforms in the party. The governor is popular in the Northwest zone. When the PDP suspended him for anti-party activities, the entire zone rejected the punitive measure meted out to him.

The suspension was a sort of popularity test for the governor. Former PDP Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur and President Jonathan saw the handwriting on the wall and retraced their steps.

The suspension was lifted without delay.

Nasir El-Rufai

Nasir El_Rufai is a fiery politician and a thorn in the flesh of the Jonathan administration and the ruling PDP. He is the APC governorship flag bearer in Kaduna State, the home state of the Vice President Namadi Sambo. At his declaration of interest for governorship ticket, Gen. Buhari said the people of Kaduna State need El_Rufai to rescue the state from bad leadership and decay. Buhari said: “I am here to ask deliberately for your support for El_Rufai; he is the right man to fix Kaduna State.

He is courageous and has what it takes to perform. He is the solution to your problems; you need sincere and competent leaders like him.”

El-Rufai said he consulted widely with people -- from traditional rulers,

impunity, corruption, insecurity, indiscipline, brigandage, mediocrity, thuggery and abuse of democratic institutions like the Security Agencies, INEC, NYSC, Civil Defense, the Judiciary and others. These institutions must work effectively for us to get what we want. Like my friend Sonala Olumhense says, nobody is expected to sit on the fence this time around. It is either you are for change or for the maintenance of status quo. The choice is yours. Nobody is interested in mantra that PDP and APC are the same. It is either you are in APC or PDP. If out of omission or commission, the agents of change lose again next months, Nigeria may go down in history. We must all join hands in one accord, in amity, in agreement, in unity, and in tandem chase away PDP for Nigeria to breathe fresh air.

I am therefore appealing to the Army, Navy, Air force, Police, INEC, NYSC, Civil Defense, Judiciary, Road Safety, DSS, SSS, etc to gear up for democracy. These vital institutions of democracy must do their work this time around. We expect impartiality, we expect cooperation, we expect full protection of all and sundry, we expect team work, organisation, networking and understanding. We must all prove that Nigeria is not a basket case.

Now I want the Nigeria Army and the police to call Governor Ayo Fayose and his gang to order. This impunity and abuse of power and office must stop. A lot was revealed in that Akure Meeting and APC leaders should open their eyes wide now. respected elders and public officials, as well as ordinary people who have no voice, but rely on someone to speak for them. “I was shocked by the level of neglect by the state government. Poverty has become worse; unemployment has become more pervasive, agricultural productivity has declined; internally generated revenues are too low to pay salaries. The picture is indeed very bleak.”

The former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory is critical of the Jonathan Presidency’s handling of the economy, and the deliberate infusion of religion and ethnicity into Nigerian politics. According to him, Nigeria under Jonathan has earned the highest revenue, but has converted this oil revenue to personal wealth when the country’s educational system is collapsing, its hospitals not functioning and basic infrastructure are in total disrepair.

Yemi Osinbajo

Professor Yemi Osinbajo might not have been a household name in Nigeria prior to his nomination as vice presidential candidate of the APC, but he is not a new comer to Nigerian political scene, having been actively involved in strategic thinking, policy formulation and implementation for the past 25 years. Between 1992 and 1999, he was a constant face in the movement for accountability and good governance. As corruption was getting further endemic in the mid-1990s, Osinbajo and others strategized and established counter measures. They created and positioned integrity as a platform to demand accountability in public spaces and sought the elimination of corruption in the private sector. As Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in Lagos State between 1999 and 2007, the Lagos State Ministry of Justice emerged as a champion for the peoples’ rights.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY JANUARY 7, 2015

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Apart from the obvious jilters and confusion in the ruling party, people raised their voices in agony and pains, calling for a divine intervention, which God in this infinity mercy has answered and will manifest through the election in February

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‘UPN won’t contest presidency’

In this piece, Gbenga Abdulai, contends that Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun’s running mate, Mrs Yetunde Onanuga, will be a willing partner in progress, if the governor is re-elected at the general elections.

By Leke Salaudeen

T

Onanuga: Round peg in round hole I T is generally acknowledged that Ogun State has been at the forefront of delivering the dividends of democracy to the people, since Senator Ibikunle Amosun became the governor four years ago.

There is no disputing the fact that the government of Senator Amosun , like that of his counterpart in the neighbouring Lagos State, has been redefining governance, not just in the state but in the country.

Keen observers of political developments believe that this would not have been possible but for the array of professionals and diligent people appointed to key positions. For Amosun, appointments into governance should be on merit in order not to sacrifice performance on the altar of political expediency and patronage.

Amosun has been putting square pegs in square holes. The appointees are people who shared the vision of Ogun State as exemplified in its anthem, “Omo Ogun, Ise ti ya…” Mrs Yetunde Onanuga, a chief of Awujale of Ijebuland, belongs to this class of people. This, no doubt, accounted for the numerous achievements recorded by Ibikunle Amosun’s Administration in many areas of human endeavour to date.

It can well be said against this background that Ogun State has never had it so good, not with the combination of Governor Ibikunle Amosun and his running mate, Chief Yetunde Onanuga, coming together and joining forces to seek the mandate of the people on the platform of All Nigeria People’s Party (APC) in order to grow the state to enviable heights.

Until her adoption as the runnning mate, Onanuga was a public servant in Lagos State, with enviable records of achievements. She is humble, loyal, diligent, dutiful and exudes other qualities that served as the platform for her ascendancy, through the ranks to become a Director in the public service of the state.

No doubt, she would bring her experience in the Lagos public service to bear in the running of the affairs of Ogun and complementing that of the governor.

As a Director of Finance & Administration, she had had the privilege of contributing to the formulation of policies of the state government, organizsing management meetings and performing all administrative duties in the Ministry and Agency of Government assigned to. She also had the opportunity of working with Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, when he was the Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure for four years before her redeployment to other Ministries.

Unknown to many, Onanuga is not a green horn in the politics of Ogun State. She once took a shot at this same position in 2011, but narrowly missed it.

She was the Chairperson of Labour Relations Transition Policy Work Group when Amosun assumed the reins in May, 2011. Her group worked assiduously to identify various challenges confronting industrial harmony and productivity in Ogun State and also gave useful recommendations which fostered peace and also gave the workers renewed confidence in the present administration.

The state has been enjoying a peaceful and harmonious industrial atmosphere since Governor Amosun mounted the saddle of the state in 2011.

She was one of the privileged ones to make the presentation of the Labour Relations Work Group to the State Executive Council during one of its sessions.

Onanuga loves children and she is always ready to champion their cause and that of the women. Her passion is better exemplified in her membership of the ‘Sisters Unite for Children now called Child Upliftment Association, a Non-Governmental Organisation catering for abandoned and street children in the society. This organization has been able to open a Resource Centre for the upliftment of the girl child abandoned or found on the street.

Her love for the welfare of the children was the reason why she was conferred with a honorary chieftaincy title along with her better half, Otunba (Giwa) Abiodun Onanuga by His Royal Highness, Oba Kamoru Sansi, the Obelu of Esure as the Yeye Ewe of Esure in December 1995. This honour bestowed on her, had further encouraged and awakened her desire to assist the youth and the less privileged children in the society.

Fondly called “Yeye” at home, she is a dutiful wife to her husband, the extended family and a responsible mother who doted on her children.

She is very respectful, humble and loved by all members of the Onanuga family. When the little ones in the family are not shouting, “big mummy”, it is the grown ups shouting “Yeye”.

Onanuga was born on Sunday, September 11, 1960 at the Adeoyo Hospital, Ibadan to the family of the late Pa F.T. Fabamwo and Mrs L.A. Fabamwo.

Her paternal grandparents, the late Pa and Madam Tusen Fabamwo originated from Aparaki in Ijebu-Igbo in Ijebu-North Local Government Area of Ogun State while her maternal grandparents, thelate Oba and Olori Ezekiel Oye Sofodu, (the Alakaka of Akaka) originated from Akaka and Ode-Remo in Remo North Local Government of Ogun State.

For her primary education, she attended Wesley School, Ode –Remo, Ogun State between 1965 and 1967 and later completed her primary education at St. Paul’s Anglican School, Idi-Oro, Mushin, Lagos between 1968 and 1971.

She was admitted into Reagan Memorial Baptist Girls’ Secondary School, Yaba, Lagos , 1972- 1978.

She studied Business Administration

‘Onanuga loves children and she is always ready to champion their cause and that of the women. Her passion is better exemplified in her membership of the ‘Sisters Unite for Children now called Child Upliftment Association, a Non-Governmental Organisation catering for abandoned and street children in the society’

• Mrs Onanuga

at the Lagos State College of Science and Technology, Isolo, Lagos between 1978 and 1982 , earning a Higher National Diploma (HND Upper Credit) Onanuga later proceeded to Federal College of Education (Technical) Akoka, Lagos between 1989 and 1990 and obtained Technical Teachers’ Certificate (TTC, Business Education) Upper Credit. In her quest for more knowledge, she was admitted into Ogun State University, Ago-Iwoye, where she obtained Master of Business Administration in Technology Management (MBA in Technology Management) between 1998 and 2000.

For her National Youth Service Corps, she served at United Bank of Africa, Breadfruit House, Lagos between 1982 and 1983.

Onanuga started her public service career with the Lagos State Government on November 1, 1983 at Eletu Odibo High School, Abule-Ijesha, Yaba (1983 and 1991), Post Primary Teaching Service Commission (PPTESCOM, Old Secretariat, Ikeja) Monitoring and Evaluation Department 1991-1996; Disciplinary Unit of the Personnel Department of PPTESCOM 1996-1999; Ministry of the Environment & Physical Planning, Alausa, Ikeja 1999-2001; Lagos State Civil Service Commission, Alausa, Ikeja 2001-2003; Ministry of Works and Infrastructure, Alausa, Ikeja 20032007 Parastatals Monitoring Office, Alausa, Ikeja - Director, Finance & Administration 2007-2012; Ministry of the Environment, Block 16, Alausa, Ikeja Director, Finance & Administration 2012- 2014.

Onanuga is a member of many professional bodies, including the Nigerian Institute of Management since 2003; the Institute of Management, where she was privileged to attend so many conferences and seminars in Lagos, Abuja and other places. Some of the seminars include: “Total quality management; Problem analysis and decision making strategies; Liberating leadership; Women and development; Developing skills in Accounting; Functions in Government Establishment; Monumental Possibility:Capitalizing on Collaboration among the tree organs government, the political parties and the pressure groups for effective electoral process in 2010 and beyond and Entrepreneurship Training Workshop among others.

She is a member of the Committee of Wives of Lagos State Officials (COWLSO). As a member of the group, she has participated in most of the women conferences organised by the body since its inception in 2000.

Some of the conferences attended are: ‘Rethink, Renew and Resolve your challenges’; ‘Woman who are you’; ‘See beyond today: enhance the quality of life’ and ‘Embracing and Managing change’ among others.

HE National Leader of the Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN), Dr Frederick Fasehun, has said that the party will not field a candidate for the presiden tial election.

Fasehun told reporters in Lagos that the party would adopt one of the presidential candidates from another party. His submissiion has confirmed the allegation by critics that the party is fronting for President Goodluck Jonathan, who is running on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

He said: “For now, we don’t know whom to vote for, but we know those we will not vote for on February I4.”

Fasehun disagreed that the UPN is an offshoot of the PDP, pointing out that the PDP had been in existence for 16 years.

The UPN leader said the party will be fielding candidates for the governorship and parliamentary elections. He added: “This year is an election year in Nigeria. The next one or two months will be crucial to the progress and health of the nation. It will decide whether Nigeria will continue as one nation or smash into smithereens, as prophesised by the super powers.

“For many Nigerians, the elections loom with fear and trepidation. Politicians have so heated up the polity that, where we should be looking upon the polls as a routine chore, we have been psyched up into viewing them as a looming landmine capable of triggering a national implosion. This is why the UPN, a major stakeholder in the elections, has deemed it expedient to offer direction.

“One of the unfortunate attributes pinned to Nigerians is our collective amnesia. Nigerians have short memories. Erected on the tombstone of our untimely deceased memories are sculptured tombstones, etched with annoying words, forgive and forget. It is said that a nation that turns its back on its history will never embrace development. Even if we forgive, must we forget? Must we forgive people who deliberately script the misfortune of their own nation?”

“Nigeria is not the patrimony of any single individual, and no single person can hold the entire nation to ransom.”

Why Ondo should vote Buhari,

by APC chieftain Adefarati From Damisi Ojo, Akure

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CHIEFTAIN of the All Progressives Congress(APC) in Ondo State, Otunba Adegboyega Adefarati has urged the people of Akokoland to vote for Gen.Muhammadu Buhari and his running mate, Prof Yemi Osinbajo, in the interest of genuine transformation.

He spoke in Akungba-Akoko, where he hosted party leaders and other chieftains from Akoko Southwest Constituency 11.

According to him,the duo of Buhari and Osinbajo would give Nigerians the desired positive change if voted into offices.

The former House of Representatives aspirant in Akoko Southwest/East Constituency thanked the people for the supporting his parliamentary bid.

He urged the delegates, who alleged that they were prevented from voting at the primaries to forget their ordeal and vote for the victory of the party.

Adefarati, the son of the former governor, the late Chief Adebayo Adefarati, said: ”I abhor politics of bitterness and wickedness exhibited by a leader of the party in the local government.”

Drumming support for Buhari, he said the former military Head of State is the best presidential candidate in the race.

He praised the National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun and the National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, for their exemplary leadership.

The politician also hailed the choice of Prof. Yemi Osinbajo (SAN) as the vice presidential candidate, describing him as a round peg in a round hole.

At the meeting various committees were set up to ensure victory for the House of Assembly candidate in the constituency.

Odunmbaku: power shift imminent

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POLITICIAN and cleric, Cardinal James Odunmbaku has said that power shift is imminent, urging Nigerians to expect a new dawn.

He said the crises rocking the country will disappear when there is change of government through democratic means.

Odunmbaku, who is the All Progressives Congress (APC) Deputy Chairman in Lagos State, the Deputy Chairman of All Progressive Congress, APC in Lagos State, said Nigerians will heave a sigh of relief after the general elections.

He added: “Apart from the obvious jilters and confusion in the ruling party, people raised their voices in agony and pains, calling for a divine intervention, which God in this infinity mercy has answered and will manifest through the election in February.”

The politician spoke at a ceremony marking the distribution of 57 campaign buses to 57 local government chapters. At the ceremony were Governor Babatunde Fashola (SAN), the governorship candidate, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, the Chairman, Otunba Henry Ajomale and other party leaders.

• Odunmbaku

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

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COMMENTARY EDITORIALS

LETTER

A salutary decision • General Bali, others bring new dimension to quest for PVCs FORMER Minister of Defence, Gen. Domkat Bali, and some political and traditional leaders in Plateau State have introduced a new but salutary dimension into the controversy surrounding the Permanent Voter’s Card (PVC) issued by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for next year’s and subsequent elections.

Bali, the Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Mr. Titus Alams; the state’s Attorney General; the Gbong Gwom Jos, Jacob Buba, as well as the chairmen of the 17 local governments in the state have sued the commission over its insistence that only people with the PVCs would be allowed to vote next year. They want the Federal High Court in Abuja to stop the commission from using the recently updated voters register for the 2015 election on the ground that it would disenfranchise many voters in the state. They also want the court to compel INEC to use the national voters register used for the 2011 election for all the states in the federation, and the FCT. This is the latest challenge that INEC would face over the PVC, the issuance of which has been dogged by controversies since it began last year. Hardly is there any state where its distribution is hitchfree. Yet, many state governments are keen on it because of the political implications. As a matter of fact, some state governments declared some days as public holiday to enable their workers collect the cards. Niger State, for instance,

A

declared two days as public holiday for the purpose.

To underscore the fact that all is not well with INEC’s arrangement for the exercise, the commission changed its mind not to commence the exercise simultaneously in Lagos State as earlier announced last year. This had profound effect on the state government which had declared November 7 as public holiday, based on INEC’s initial timetable, to enable its workers collect their cards. Up till now, millions of people in the state are yet to collect the PVCs due to one hiccup or the other.

As we have always argued, rigging does not occur only on election days. Rigging starts right at the point of voter registration. We wonder why it is becoming fashionable to make Nigerians go through the torture of having temporary cards when elsewhere, the same cards that Nigerians visit the issuing agencies several times to collect are issued at the point of registration. People applying for driver’s license in the country, for example, are first issued temporary license while the permanent ones may never come until the expiration of the temporary license.

It is an inalienable right of Nigerians who are 18 years and above to vote. But when either due to incompetence or bad faith on the part of INEC this right is about being denied, such an action should be challenged in the law courts.

It is in this light that we welcome the decision of eminent Nigerians like Gen-

eral Bali and the others to test INEC’s resolve not to allow people without the PVCs to vote, in spite of the obvious lapses that have trailed the issuance of the all-important cards, in the law court.

It is a move that would help deepen the democratic process. Public institutions just as individual Nigerians should know their limits on issues and the best way this can be done is to test some of these matters in court.

We commend the plaintiffs for this singular action that shows that Nigerians are becoming more politically conscious. It is an expression of preference for peaceful resolution of conflict and we hope the courts would live up to expectations as the last hope of the common man.

‘We commend the plaintiffs for this singular action that shows that Nigerians are becoming more politically conscious. It is an expression of preference for peaceful resolution of conflict and we hope the courts would live up to expectations as the last hope of the common man’

Frequent court-martials •It’s high time the nation waded into reasons for the alleged mutinies

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OMING barely a week after 54 Nigerian soldiers were sentenced to death by firing squad for refusing to fight the Boko Haram terrorist group, the news that about 111 more soldiers will soon be court-martialed for various offences relating to the counter-terrorism operation in the country’s north-east is troubling.

Reports said the soldiers had been transported from Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, to Abuja, to face charges.

The 54 soldiers sentenced to death are of the 111 Special Forces Battalion attached to the 7 Division of the army in Maiduguri.

They were convicted for conspiracy to commit mutiny; more specifically, for disobeying a direct order from their commanding officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Timothy Opurum, to take part in an operation to recapture Delwa, Bulabulin and Damboa in Borno State from Boko Haram terrorists on August 4 and consequently sentenced to death.

Mutiny, no doubt, is a serious offence in the military. A soldier, having signed to fight and die for his country if need be is

‘We want to believe the issue is much more than parading soldiers in military courts; it could be deeper. We therefore suggest that an independent inquiry be set up to investigate the unsavoury developments’

not expected to run when duty calls; he is supposed to be valiant in battle and if he dies in the process, so be it. But that presupposes that he has the necessary combat and support equipment needed for operations. In the case of the convicted soldiers, they claimed not to have the requisite arms and ammunition to confront the terrorists. The military authorities have not been able to come up with any satisfactory explanation on whether this is true or not. Many Nigerians have however corroborated the convicted soldiers’ claim because it is one of the few reasons that could make absconding rampant in the military as it is with our soldiers. It is unusual for soldiers to abandon their weapons and run for dear lives on sighting an enemy.

Those who initiated the concept of trying soldiers for mutiny and convicting them if found guilty, could not have contemplated a situation where soldiers would be sent to the war front literally with bare hands. It is not enough to say soldiers are well armed when the weapons they are carrying are like toys compared with what the enemy has. A country’s soldiers are as good as its armoury. Nigerian policemen are having the same issue with weapons. Whereas they are still parading the AK47 rifles, the criminals have gone several miles ahead, armed with some of the most sophisticated weapons.

In the specific instance of the 111 soldiers that are now to face court-martial, their offences appear minor - loss or misplacement of rifles during operations against Boko Haram - the point is that these charges could also be a mere symptom of the larger malaise afflicting our military.

This theory becomes the more plausible

considering that in September 2014, 12 soldiers were sentenced to death by firing squad for shooting at a car conveying Major-General Ahmed Mohammed, their commanding officer. The attack occurred on May 14 at the army’s 7 Division, Maimalari Barracks, Maiduguri, headed at the time by Mohammed. Some of them were also sentenced to life in jail for criminal conspiracy and attempt to commit murder. The soldiers revolted because they felt General Mohammed was responsible for the death of their colleagues who were ambushed and killed by Boko Haram extremists.

It speaks volumes that barely a week after some 54 soldiers were sentenced to death for mutiny, another batch of about 111 is also to be tried with offences connected with the same Boko Haram terrorists. Although the military authorities said Nigerians should not be bothered because court-martial is a regular occurrence in the military, as a tool for discipline, the frequency is too cold for comfort. A few months ago, soldiers’ wives protested publicly on behalf of their husbands who they felt were being sent to war to commit suicide.

We want to believe the issue is much more than parading soldiers in military courts; it could be deeper. We therefore suggest that an independent inquiry be set up to investigate the unsavoury developments. We are not averse to enforcement of discipline, especially in the military because of the consequences of indiscipline on the polity, but at the same time we cannot afford to return to the past when soldiers trained with huge public funds were executed, sometimes over doubtful charges like phantom coup attempts.

Oyo ‘guber’: Ibarapa, Oke-Ogun hold the ace

S

IR: The Oyo state governorship elections have always been full of surprises.

Obviously, the forthcoming one will not deviate from the status of its predecessors as it is now very clear that the second term jinx is about to be broken and the slogan of “Ibadan e sin omo leemeji” (Ibadan does not support one person at two times) is about to be given an extinct status.

The election has five major candidates; Ajimobi of APC (incumbent governor), Ladoja of Accord party (former governor), Alao Akala of LP (another former governor), Teslim Folarin of PDP (former senate leader) and Seyi Makinde of SDP (a billionaire businessman). Everyone is eager to know the person that will eventually get a goal among these five players. With the high reputation of these ‘gentlemen’, people may think that all of them have a high chance of winning the election but I believe that such thought have no reality within it.

My perspective is that if the election is free and fair, then, it is going to be a two man show with Ladoja slugging it out with Ajimobi.

Why? My opinion is anchored on one major reason which is the fact that the PDP has split into three namely; SDP, LP and PDP itself. Whereas, everybody will agree with me that even if PDP is united, the party is not sure of victory. Now that the party is divided, how possible will it be for any of its factions (PDP, SDP and LP) to win the election? In fact, the probability of such happening is probably zero.

During the 2011 election, the PDP in the state can be said to be a united party, at least to some extent. But despite that, its candidate, Alao-Akala, who at that time had the power of incumbency to his favour lost the election. Now that the party is divided and no longer enjoys the power of incumbency, how will it emerge victorious?

Although it is not impossible to build a party within two months and win election; I don’t see any of SDP and LP getting close to winning the election. So, the contest is strictly between Ladoja and Ajimobi. Apart from the fact that the second term jinx will be broken, another interesting thing is that Ibadan will not be a major determinant of who wins the forthcoming gubernatorial election as it used to be. Four of the five major contenders are from Ibadan which means they will share the votes in Ibadan and Ogbomoso is obviously for Akala. So, whoever will win the election must get enough support from Ibarapa, Oke-ogun and Oyo town.

• Jamiu Idowu Esho (IDJ) Eruwa, Oyo State.

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THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

20

CARTOON & LETTERS

IR: I am not aware of any provision in the Electoral Act that is against the adoption of a candidate of another political party by rival parties or individuals, especially if doing so is in the public interest. There is no even a law insisting that a party must present candidates for all elective posts.

Former US Secretary of State, Colin Powell, a Republican, threw his weight behind Barack Obama, a Democratic candidate in the 2008 presidential poll. And just 12 days to the 2012 presidential election, Powell publicly endorsed President Obama: “I voted for him in 2008 and I plan to stick with him in 2012.”

Despite the criticisms from some Republicans, Powell justified his endorsement: “I think we ought to keep on the track that we are on.

When he took over, the country was in very, very difficult straits, we were in one of the worst recessions we had seen in recent times, close to a depression. We were in real trouble... I think generally we’ve come out of the dive and starting to gain altitude. I see that we are starting to rise up.”

If Powell were an indigene of Ogun State, his words at this time

S

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Ogun 2015: PDP can endorse Amosun would be exactly as reported above.

Amosun took over a state that was in a coma in 2011. Ogun was in a state of siege. Investors avoided it like a plague due to insecurity.

The World Bank Report, Doing Business in Nigeria, for 2008 and 2010 acknowledged the state of anomie, listing Ogun among the least states friendly to investment.

All those have changed within three and half years of the election of Senator Ibikunle Amosun as Governor of Ogun State. And I see millions of Ogun residents echoing the same words of Colin Powell as another election draw near: “I think we ought to keep on the track that we are on... I think generally we’ve come out of the dive and starting to gain altitude. I see that we are starting to rise up.”

So, why will any rational person

wants to change a winning team, leave certainty for uncertainty?

Clearly such goes against the grain.

And I think this is a major reason why the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is having problems with its choice of governorship candidate.

“This man Amosun is riding the crest of a wave of popular support in towns, cities, villages and hamlets across Ogun State. What card can we play to unseat him?” goes the ‘head-ace’ of PDP and its coalition.

“First,” the PDP dilemma continues, “we have a terrible past that has become a real albatross around our neck. The man Amosun has won the hearts of our people with his free education policy and free supply of textbooks. Even if we pretend, our people can see the excel-

Why the right to vote is important

S

IR: Voting is not just a right; it is a sacred civic responsibility. Few days from now, Nigerians above 18 will have the opportunity to exercise their rights as citizens in casting their votes for the person(s) they think will best represent and guide them through the next four years.

Beyond its sheer political importance, voting matters to the governance of any society as well as the well-being of its citizenry. If well managed, it is the most peaceful transition tool for power in any society. It lays the foundation for citizens’ involvement in political activities and their engagement in relevant projects, policies and programmes. It creates the most open opportunity for eligible citizens to get involved in the democratic process.

It matters both to the health of the Nigerian political system and to the people who participate in it.

Voting cum election reflects the

ups and downs of any society and government.

Voting is our society’s prime equalizer. No matter one’s stage in life, income power, religious persuasions, ethnic heritage or social status, every citizen over the age of 18 has the same power of one vote. Campaigns, pollsters do not determine who wins elections; voters do. Predicting the outcome of elections, especially close ones, is at best an inexact science. Pollsters, social and media analysts, political pundits have their roles, but like each of us, they only have one vote.

Votes count. While how we vote is confidential, the fact that we have voted, or failed to vote, is public record. Elected officials know which individuals and demographic groups voted, and we who do vote are more likely to be influential in policy debates. Nonvoters are voiceless and by not participating can become victims of

their own neglect.

Regret is preventable. February is one month too late. Have a “no excuses” attitude by committing to vote, ask others to join us in voting and promote a positive approach to making a difference among family, friends and colleagues.

Join in the making of history.

Every indicator points to the prospect that this election will have impact for years, every vote is even more important. Being a participant in affecting history gives each of us a sense of pride in participation and the power to touch the future. After all the words are said, charges levelled and millions of naira spent, it is we, the voters, who hold the power to decide who will lead our nation, our states and communities into the future.

• Tayo Elegbede JET, Lagos

lent road network all over the places. The only option we have left is to insist it is the turn of Ogun West to produce the next governor of the state.”

Even that option, to keen political observers, will not fly because of the wonders Amosun performed on Ota roads, the Ilara-Ijoun road, Aiyetoro, among others, which have endeared him to the people of Ogun West. Besides, it is widely believed Amosun will support the senatorial district clinching the ticket in 2019.

But of greatest concern to the people of Ogun West, Central and East is the fear of the PDP. Has the party truly changed its ways? Do we have evidence? So, for the people of Ogun West, indeed the entire state,

the re-election of Amosun has become a categorical imperative. The need for Amosun to continue in office has gone beyond the issue of political parties. It has become a major imperative of our times in Ogun.

For the reasons discussed above, I think the best bet for the PDP is to support the candidature of Amosun - since they do not stand any chance anyway if they do otherwise. This may sit well with the electorate for two reasons. People are not ready for any sudden interruption or abortion of the current development strides and new lease of life. Two, it will show, in a way, that the PDP may have truly changed, placing public interest above personal, parochial or party interest. 2019 may then be an interesting year for the party as the electorate would have heard sufficient time to assess it.

At present, the word PDP evokes horror and fear among Ogun residents - the possibility of a throwback to the inglorious past, which they never pray to experience again.

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• Soyombo Opeyemi Abeokuta

President -in- grief

S

IR: I join fellow Nigerians (while calling on others) to express sympathy and share the grief presently weighing down our president following the death of his sister. May her soul find peace and may he find comfort in the Lord.

Our president is perhaps so grieved by the untimely death of his sister, and I guess, also out of respect for her, he has chosen to postpone the inauguration of the campaign committee for his re-election bid. How humane, and a very honorable thing to do.

Death does not discriminate; it comes to all and with its visit, brings great grief. My thinking though is about our president and the nature of the man who seeks my vote and yours come February. His sister dies, and he postpones the very important occasion of the inauguration of a committee that today means the most to him or perhaps his re-election bid.

Remember though, not too long ago, about 40 school children, according to various news reports

were blown to pieces in their prime and this our now very grieved President was in Abuja the next day celebrating the announcement of his intention to rule Nigeria for the next four years.

Remember his rally and dance following another national disaster where innocent lives were lost to Boko Haram terrorists. What of his attitude to the incident of the Chibok girls? How many lives lost, how much grief and sorrow have plagued this land and in all these instances what has been the attitude of our President?

Dr. Jonathan, my advice to you and contribution to your re-election bid is that you should and must realise “that all are created equal” and what’s sauce for the gander is equally sauce for the goose. I extend my heartfelt sympathy to you and your family as you mourn and grieve over the loss of your sister.

• Chukwuma Michael Osagie Aneziokoro Port Harcourt

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

21

COMMENTS

‘Our Girls, Boys, People’; Manifesto issues; ‘Destroyers of the Naira and Nigeria Awards-1981-2014’.

B Tony Marinho

OKO Haram has welcomed us to 2015 with non-release of ‘Our Girls’ and adding 40 of ‘Our Boys’ and ‘Our People’. Can good Nigerians fight on three fronts- the violence of elections, Boko Haram and the Fulani herds-

men?

Elsewhere visionary politicians are constantly ‘strategically thinking’, planning, funding and backing their well-funded scientists and businesses in ‘Vision 2030’ and ‘Vision 2050’ with space excursions to Meteors, Mars and the Moon. On earth their vision encompasses energy breakthroughs and strategies even as Nigeria still struggles to set up ‘common’ refineries and engages in another heated argument about ‘fuel subsidy’. This subsidy must have been great if after cutting the price of oil by 50% worldwide we still have a subsidy to pay and the subsidy scam still lingers. We have seen the result of ‘international strategic thinking’ in two such strategies related to world energy. Oversupply, reduced demand, alternative sources including new nearer suppliers, fracking of shale oil and manipulation of the markets have crashed the oil prices to nearly $50/barrel. Secondly the massive increasing use of solar energy internationally is giving a larger share of the power supply to the sun. Nigeria remains nearly solar blind, though in its favour, it has just completed a national solar survey. Give us a solar powered Nigeria! Nigeria does have many visions, some say hallucinations and delusions of grandeur. Such visions fill the airways, conference reports and press articles daily and on screaming social media platforms like blogs. I myself have had Nigeria visions. In 1981, I and thousands of other bright young men and women trained here but with international and local experience turned down lucrative jobs to rush home to the motherland. We know where we are compared to those abroad. They can buy us 20 times over.

I have not failed my country and indeed my country has not failed me. It is actually a very beautiful country filled with

A

T last, year 2015 is here. It is obvious that partisan politics will dominate the affairs of the country for the better part of the year. Trust the politicians and their supporters, they have already started crisscrossing the entire landscape of the country with their sugar-coated mouths lined with palatable lies, trying to woo, cajole, brainwash, intimidate or even blackmail the electorate to line up behind them.

For some Nigerians, especially many who are mere charlatans masquerading as politicians all over the place, this is business time, big business for them. I am referring to those who are just out to make money and more money from candidates who are seeking elective posts. The Yorubas of the Southwest classify the real politicians particularly those contesting for various offices as “Oselu”, that is, those who want to govern the country, while the charlatans among them and they are many, are referred to as “Ojelu”, meaning, a bunch of human parasites feeding fat on the people. They are like bloodsuckers that will not give a hoot even if they drain a person’s blood to the point of the person suddenly dropping dead.

It is quite unfortunate that majority of those parading themselves as politicians in Nigeria today belong to the “Ojelu” category. In this electioneering season, they are ubiquitous, plying their trade - which is mostly hinged on deceit and tomfoolery - to make money from unsuspecting politicians. It is a sad irony that these are the very people that the politicians rely on as foot-soldiers to sell their programmes, if any, all over the place.

In most cases, these charlatans obtain huge amount of money from

mostly very hard working people. See the ‘wheat’ keeping Nigeria going as ‘Good people of Nigeria’ including those desperately seeking a few naira selling to you at every traffic jam and Nigerian market. Of course many ‘weeds’ have failed Nigeria and strangle her by taking bribes, even from tourists, and obstructing just delivery of services. Politics as practiced by our greed-ridden politicians has failed all of us.

Once again, my naira collapses before my very eyes. When I started work, the naira was more powerful than the dollar but today as the naira plummets towards N200:$1 our bankers and politicians have succeeded in making it toilet paper.

The bankers and politicians who through connivance, negligence, malicious Machiavellian government economic and monetary policies condemned the naira to death, perhaps guided by the World Bank and the IMF, collectively deserve the lifetime achievers ‘Destroyers of the Naira and Nigeria Award-1981-2014’.

Politicians looking for serious issues, not personalities, for their election campaign should look at these issues as manifesto issues. Think about the economics and costs of the following against the backdrop of the falling naira: In the world, Nigeria has the highest paid politicians; the greatest number of over-paid and still corrupt politicians; the most expensive road contracts per kilometre; the most expensive public construction contracts; the highest demands from contractors of 50-70% of contract sums and consultancy fees for politicians and ‘the party’-any party; the most expensive severance packages for politicians, the most ridiculous life salaries for political office holders; the most secret politicians ‘Salaries And Perks’ packages - Sapping Nigeria dry; among the highest corruption indices in all spheres; the highest unemployment rates; the highest WAEC failure rates and illiteracy rates in West Africa; very high maternal and infant mortality rates; the highest interest rates and highest degree of difficulty to get loans-in the world; the worst and most unfriendly banking institutions; the most expensive bank buildings for the worst service; the highest political violence rates.

We also have some serious moral lows like the lowest power supply- still at 3000Mw since 1999 - the lowest pass rates in vital secondary school-leaving exams, the lowest life expectancy at 47 years and the ‘s-lowest’ passage of political

bills, e.g Petroleum Industry Bill, and execution of projects, e.g Lagos-Ibadan road, worldwide. These ‘traumatic destabilising situations’ have caused deep damage which we still expect NISER and independent ‘Think Tanks’ to analyse and publish data on.

What physical, mental and ‘inability to achieve’ trauma has been inflicted on this ‘Generator Generation’ of underperforming Nigerians without electricity while their counterparts in Ghana and the UK are powered by uninterrupted power? How many homes have been broken by inability to fund alternative ‘I-fine-pass-my-neighbour generators’? How many Nigerian men steal in order to ‘save face’ to fund their family generator habit? How many have died in potholes that should never have been allowed to grow? How many have been killed by the Okada Epidemic, a 100,000 times worse than Ebola and disguised as a Youth Empowerment Programme’ but killing, maiming orphaning and widowing Nigerians nationwide. Personally I know two friends who lost a wife and a mother to okada murder and have witnessed and treated countless victims and families of okada violence.

Ebola done die, Okada remain! Everyone has seen a serious okada attack at 70kph.

As usual, we shamelessly force our IDPs, Internally Displaced Persons, victims of Boko Haram and Fulani herdsmen to beg in the media. The Victims Foundation must rehabilitate them urgently.

‘How many have died in potholes that should never have been allowed to grow? How many have been killed by the Okada Epidemic, a 100,000 times worse than Ebola and disguised as a Youth Empowerment Programme’ but killing, maiming orphaning and widowing Nigerians nationwide’

Politicians must save Nigeria politicians under the pretext of using the money for mobilization and others, only for the money to end up in their pockets. Some others will boldly tell the politicians that they want their own share of the cake in cash. They are less concerned about the projects the politicians are planning to do as long as they are paid handsomely in cash. To them, it is mere blabbing to talk about public infrastructure and all that. They are simply not interested. The only language they understand is money and nothing more.

This is the tragedy of our political process in Nigeria as the process has become so monetised that a candidate seeking elective position in the polity may need to sell all his property and in addition, borrow huge amount of money to contest election. This is why we should not be surprised that what our politicians do as soon as they come into office is to start stealing from the public till in order to recoup the huge investment sunk into the race.

The result is that corruption, which we all profess to abhor, but which we all condone or sustain either wittingly or unwittingly, will continue to fester as a hydra-headed monster ravaging our land. In actual fact, there is no greater time or greater opportunity for corruption to thrive in Nigeria than in the electioneering season. As it is, the game of politics in Nigeria seems to be particularly reserved for moneybags only. Little wonder that, at times like this, there is always a do-or-die spirit in our politicians, thereby giving rise to thug-

‘Crushing Boko Haram and stamping it out should not be subjected to the vagaries of politicking by our politicians as they engage in war of words instead of concerted action to free the country from the evil machinations of these lunatics and devil incarnates’

gery and other forms of intimidation and violence.

Politicians or their sympathisers who are mostly ‘commercial sympathisers’, stockpile arms and other dangerous weapons at electioneering periods purposely to intimidate or harass opponents and make them cower into some sort of submission, retreat or surrender. Mind you, most of the problems the nation now grapples with like militancy, fundamentalism and terrorism, kidnapping and other forms of violent crimes, escalated from the actions and inactions of our politicians. In the South-south, politicians who participated in both the 1999 and 2003 elections are known to have recruited and armed some dangerous boys to terrorise perceived opponents and imaginary enemies who could pose a stumbling block to their ambitions. After the elections, some of the boys who were lucky were taken care of while others were simply abandoned to their fate. Furthermore, the paymasters never bothered to disarm them. As a result, rather than watching and starve to death, the bad boys simply converted the arms and ammunition in their possession to instruments of terror.

The whole thing soon metamorphosed into one big militancy affair that almost brought the economy of the region, nay the country, to its knees. This was so because there was a convergence of terror as the various groups were united in their demands for better living conditions. Today, only those who dared to carry arms or organise these bad boys into militant groups, are apparently living a better life as some of them have become stupendously rich, while majority of the people they claim to have fought for, are still living in abject poverty, bondage, disease and squalor. To the man on the street, nothing has changed except some miserable pittance they receive from their new Lords of the Manor.

A similar narrative applies in the case of the Boko Haram terrorists that are now trying to wipe out a section of the country from the face of the earth. Boko Haram is an offshoot of the extinct Maitatsine sect.

Founded in 1981 by one Mohammed Marwa alias Maitatsine, it was a vicious Islamic sect that seized Kano by the jugular. The sect wanted the conversion of everybody to Islam as well as condemning Western education. In their bid to forcefully propagate their doctrine, they resorted to violence – killing and maiming those they referred to as infidels or unbelievers. Police action against them did not yield any good result. It was later confronted by a huge military force. After one week of intense military assault by the combined forces of the Army and the Air Force, the sect was subdued and wiped out. Their remnants fled the city of Kano and regrouped in Bulunkutu Quarters of Maiduguri, Borno State. They were equally smashed. After this, they attempted to regroup again in Yola in the present day Adamawa State. They were quickly routed. That offensive was the last straw that terminated the rampaging Maitatsine sect.

Today, the similarity in its mode of preaching, indoctrination and perpetual violent stance, has easily given away the group, ‘Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’Awati Wal-Jihad (JASDJ)’, popularly known as Boko Haram, as an offshoot of the dangerous Maitatsine sect. Besides, Mohammed Yusuf, the late leader of Boko Haram was a grandchild of Mohammed Marwa, the Maitatsine leader. Before 2009, they had remained quiescent in their activities, organizing their enclaves even working in cohort with politicians by helping them mobilise for votes and dealing with perceived political enemies especially in Borno State, the state from where Boko Haram originated. It was the fallout with the government in power, led by

Dele Agekameh Ali Modu Sherrif, then governor of Borno and later clashes with the police that brought their operations into limelight. The military was later called in to quell the tensions, and their leader Mohammed Yusuf was killed after he was delivered to the police alive by the army in 2009. Since then, peace has taken flight from Borno State in particular and the Northeast geo-political zone of the country in general.

Crushing Boko Haram and stamping it out should not be subjected to the vagaries of politicking by our politicians as they engage in war of words instead of concerted action to free the country from the evil machinations of these lunatics and devil incarnates.

We should bear it in mind that this is the year that has been predicted to be the year of Armageddon, a year when the centrifugal forces may no longer hold the periphery and may lead the various ethnic nationalities in Nigeria to say: “To thy tent, oh Israel!” We should not pander to the wishes of those who don’t wish this great nation well.

That is why our politicians must eschew bitterness and acrimony as they embark on their campaigns.

They must avoid violence during and after the elections.

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THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

22

COMMENTS ‘Our politicians are now like the proverbial hen in a strange land, which raised one of its legs trying to study the situation on ground. If those vultures calling for subsidy removal had meant well for the country, why keeping quiet now that the election is very close? It is very unfortunate that our leaders have chosen deceit instead of the truth. Those in authority are not leading by example and you expect their subjects to do otherwise?

Our leaders should be mindful of their actions when taking decisions. From Hamza Ozi Momoh, Apapa, Lagos’ • Buhari For Segun Gbadegesin We are not talking of paper qualification; we have decided to vote for the best as one who has competence integrity. That is why Nigerians prefer Buhari. Thanks. From Ademola Omoboye Segun, what Nigeria needs is good welfare and security not PhD degree.

President Goodluck Jonathan has failed Nigerians. From C .Uchenwa, Ejigbo Lagos.

Sir, thank you for your calm and objective column today. As you rightly advised, APC must move the campaign dialogue to an issues-based one. There must be cerebral and honest discussions by APC on how it will address the insecurity, poverty and state impunity that are ruining our nation under the current Federal Government. As the Jukun people say: “A shameless loud mouth uses abuse to cover the nakedness (i.e. badness) of his argument.” I wish you and your beloved family a happy, healthy and prosperous year. Anonymous The fear of Buhari/Osinbajo is the beginning of their wisdom. The ruling party should start preparing their handover note, because Nigerians would not continue looking as the nation sinks with corruption and insecurity. We have to take our destiny in own hands in 2015 polls. From Chika Nnorom.

Re: “Will negative attack work?” When we attack our enemies or opponents negatively, our aims are geared towards achieving two things. One, is to intimidate and inject fear and make him or her an object of ridicule and hatred. Second, is to render our opponents weak emotionally and put them off balance so that people will see such opponents as persons who cannot be reckoned with or relied upon as leaders, more especially, in a politically stiff contest. The Yoruba say: “Ota eni kii pa odu oya.” That is, our enemy cannot do a praiseworthy thing. The way we play our politics is always in a dirty way and manner. We don’t always have a political campaign devoid of irrationality, negativity and assassination of characters from a ruling party in Nigeria towards the oppositions, such that we have witnessed recently from the PDP government. My belief is that, the voters are no fools. They are wise. They also know what is at stake.

They are politically educated and can decipher truth from falsehood so; no amount of negative attacks of opponents can change their mindset from voting for candidates of their choice. Surely, I do agree that the offspring of a cobra cannot be anything but poison. We should be careful.

From Prince Adewumi Oyeromade Agunloye The greatest worry supporters of Buhari have now is the lack of creativity in the APC campaign. Why no documentaries on television channels on Buhari for example? Anonymous The basic study of zoology is the basic instinct of survival in the animal kingdom where the strongest survive while the vulnerable are had for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The present situation in Nigeria is not different from this. We were fed with lies and the masses are worse of if today.

The President and his cronies control the economy while the majority poor are wondering what hits them. That is an attribute of a PhD holder in Zoology. It is unfortunate we voted for a zoologist instead of a seasoned administrator. Once

bitten twice shy. Nigerians should vote wisely in the next election. From Oseni Abu. Thank you for the entire Santa gift to our indifferent leaders. All the gifts fit them.

What gift do ordinary Nigerians have?

From Mike, Makurdi.

Some of the best rulers were self educated.

Witness George Washington and Winston Churchill. Anonymous Good morning. Your back page analysis on negative attack by the PDP on the APC flag bearer was partial. As someone who is current on national issues, I know that it is APC that uses that crude method mostin fact, since its formation. It is using all sorts of trick to woo the public to believe that it is the messiah. Anonymous Sir, with respect to your article on ‘will negative attack work?’ I would say without doubt that we are readyfor it. It’s General Muhammadu Buhari all the way. From Joshua Ogbonna Abia State The average Nigerian is more interested in a better Nigerian society where security of lives is certain, employments, sure electricity and clean drinkable water supply, motorable roads and good healthcare provision. To them once they can be provided with these basic necessities and our economy qualitatively improved, whosoever rules becomes an irrelevant matter. Like King Agrippa after listening to Paul’s powerful defence exclaimed that he was almost turned a Christian by his speech, I almost become a diehard Buhari supporter instantly after going through your write-up on the APC Presidential candidate. Yet, there, we have the much criticised President Jonathan now on his feet, assuring us with certainty how he has learnt his lesson and was going to become the best thing that ever happened to the country if only he can be voted in the second time. Surely the die is cast but then let Nigerians decide. From Emmanuel Egwu Sir, I love your comment and debate in The Nation of Friday, January 2, but your grammar and vocabularies were too high for readers (Masses) whose interest is in focus. Moreso, majority of your posers and answers could only be understood by highly educated people majored in English Language/Literature or Humanities.

Please, come down to the level of the most concerned. From Barr.Posi Omisakin,Ile-Ife, State of Osun.

For Olatunji Dare Sir, crime has existed in all ages and all attempts at eradication have hitherto proved useless. The National Assembly should review the capital punishment law in the constitution. The solution to high crime rate is good governance. No people would ever be other than what it was made by the nature of its government. Too many people have died indeed. The ‘offending’ military men should be pardoned. From Adegoke O, O. Ikhin, Edo State.

Re- condemned soldiers. I served briefly in the army from 1968 to 1973 during the civil war. The rules and regulations are there for every soldier to abide with. In the military, it’s obey first and then complain.

Obeying the last order is a must. Anything contrary to that order is an offence. I personally don’t support killing of those offenders because we are tired of blood lettnig. Does the authority fulfil their own obligations to the soldiers? Are they adequately taken care of? The welfare of all the combatants at the war front must be extra ordinary. Motivation is what the

soldiers at the war front need. Kill them for what? Training upon training is the tonic. From Ajayi Yakubu.

The judgement for the 54 condemned soldiers is too harsh, when 54 are killed who will then stand in the gap? While not look for another punishment, killing them will be more leading score line for Boko Haram. From C John.

These group of soldiers are young men.

No adequate knowledge of war. Some of them don’t know the implications of mutiny. Anonymous Military authority should turn the death sentence to life imprisonment, if the acts of military officers were against the military law. l need mercy. From Chika Nnorom President Jonathan’s administration is full of corruption. He is confused and not capable as a result of any experience. He should vacate the sit before he will be disgraced. From Dr Onyeka, Imo State.

President Jonathan’s government is the worst in Nigeria annals in all its ramifications. Not even Abacha era. Is it the same Nigerian army that has excelled severally outside our shores? Methinks that what matters to President Jonathan most is re-election. The obsession and desperation is at its peak in that breaching rules matters not. Or how else, in a situation where trillions of our commonwealth has gone into security and nothing to show for it? Rather, the rag-tag insurgence has superior weapons than Nigerian military. Shame! A leader who knows his onus would have thoroughly investigated defence ministry to have firsthand information on why the soldiers deployed to the war zone could not excel. Instead, he ran to the National Assembly for the approval of $1bn to acquire weapons. We should not forget so soon that three years civil war was fought in this country without borrowing a dime. All bothers on bad leadership, corruption, incompetence and demoralisation. The government has no alibi to execute the 54 soldiers because of its failure to do the needful. Anonymous The ethics of Nigerian security has been thrown to the wind. Insecurity, insincerity, greed and corruption being promoted. From Comrade:Ewa Ken. I am appealing to the military authority, please consider life imprisonment because Nigeria face a lot of causality this year.

From Uche Ref.: Too many people have died. I like reading your write up often. I have been following this story of these young men who are doing everything to keep this country as one. They have been found guilty of mutiny. Good, but for what reasons. Let the so-called government or the military look deep and have a rethink in this action they want to take. These guys have not done anything wrong let them have it in mind that people join Boko Haram because of this kind of ill treatment they see in this country. Let them i.e. the federal government and the military reconsider these guys and address the cause. These boys are good enough not to be killed by the government or the military that employed them. Anonymous No doubt, killing those Soldiers can make the Armed Forces a divided house then create possibilities for war. From Comrade Mahmoud Alhassan.

A very good message to all and I pray to the Almighty God to touch the heart of the

•Jonathan

power that be in the military to see reasons why these dynamic and young officers should not be killed but woe unto this nation for wasting the lives of innocent souls as a result of failure of the authority. From Dare “Too many people have died” Perfect assessment. Unfortunate to be born in Nigeria. From Elder Bola Adeoye.

It is unfortunate that the soldiers requested for better arms, ammunitions and better conditions to serve better BUT got DEATH sentence as reward for their efforts and services. Anonymous For Tunji Adegboyega Re: Hypocrites in power. I have said it several times that these politicians, 85 per cent of them do not have the interest of the citizens at heart. It is business as usual. It is politics-business and not political governance. They know it should be reduced pump prices but none of them dare say that – league of commissioners, state governors, all legislators and Diezani, because they are for themselves! I agree totally that those we have in power, states and federal are hypocrites in power. From Lanre Oseni.

My dear Tunji, why does Jonathan respect Asari Dokubo, Edwin Clark and FaniKayode with all snake spitting?

Anonymous.

It is very unfortunate and sad that Nigerians’ expectations from this government are not forthcoming in spite of the massive votes the president got from them to move the nation forward … All our leaders want to enrich themselves with oil subsidy funds and leave the masses with their plight with the happenings in the centre. The voters should take their destiny in their hands by electing leaders that would care for the well-being of the citizens. From Gordon Chika Nnorom, Umukabia, Abia State.

The PDP has proved beyond every iota of doubt that it lacked integrity and credibility to be trusted on any issue. When it took over the running of this country in 1999, a litre of petrol sold for N18. Today, a litre goes for N97. When Jonathan was asked what his view was on fuel subsidy in 2011, he declared that he did not have the intension to remove it anytime soon, if elected. One of his major tasks was to assemble a team of ‘experts’ who regaled us with stories of how our lives would end if subsidy was not removed. January1, 2012, New Year gift: A litre of petrol moved to N145 before protests brought it down to N97. From Simon Oladapo, Ogbomoso.

Our politicians are now like the proverbial hen in a strange land, which raised one of its legs trying to study the situation on ground. If those vultures calling for subsidy removal had meant well for the country, why keeping quiet now that the election is very close? It is very unfortunate that our leaders have chosen deceit instead of the truth. Those in authority are not leading by example and you expect their subjects to do otherwise? Our leaders should be mindful of their actions when taking decisions. From Hamza Ozi Momoh, Apapa, Lagos.

Hypocrites in power indeed! Thank you, Tunji, you have just exposed the other side of the insensitivity and wickedness of our political dealers (sorry, leaders). But, can you provide us with armoured vehicles in order to protect our votes? From Sylvester, Aba.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

23

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

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

-Minister of Trade and Investment, Dr Olusegun Aganga

BUSINESS THE NATION

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

AfDB gives $22m loan to Zambia

By Collins Nweze

T

HE Board of Directors of the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group has approved a $22.49 million loan to Zambia for the development of Lake Tanganyika.

This project has been formulated as part of the long-term vision for Zambia (Vision 2030) by which it intends to become “a prosperous middle-income country by 2030”.

Its aim is help implement the amended Sixth National Development Plan, which covers 2013-2016 and to facilitate and accelerate “economic growth and development in the service of the people”.

Accordingly, it aims to stimulate job creation and rural development, in this way boosting inclusive growth.

The project will be implemented over a five-year period in two districts, Mpulungu and Nsama, which surround the drainage basin of the lake and which have 157,830 inhabitants. The incidence of poverty is much higher in these districts than in other districts of Zambia.

Specifically, the project will promote sustainable and equitable management and use of the lake’s natural resources, and it will help improve the livelihoods of local communities (in the drainage basin of the lake), by encouraging the development of economic infrastructure and human resources, and by strengthening market linkages and the development of value chains for the products of natural resources.

The project should improve the fish supply (catches) by 20 to 25 per cent. In addition, it will help members of the local population adopt sustainable practices and technologies for the management of land, forests and water, with the goal of limiting land degradation and deforestation, and boosting agricultural production.

Furthermore, the project should have a positive, virtuous impact on the conservation and preservation of the area’s wildlife and heritage and on specific resources – particularly the national park – which can play a role in local economic development.

Unleashing the full potential of the lake’s resources will increase the incomes of rural households.

Project implementation will be participative, so that local people take ownership of it and ensure its sustainability.

The total estimated cost of the project is $29.62 million.

In addition to AfDB, the Global Environment Facility (GEF) is making a contribution with a $7 million donation and the Zambian government is committing $190,000.

Fed Govt may extend SEC DG’s tenure ARRING any last minute change, President Goodluck Jonathan may today announce the extension of the tenure of the Director-General (DG) of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Ms. Arunma Oteh.

Oteh’s five-year tenure expires today. The Federal Government will either appoint a successor or extend her tenure.

There are strong indications that President Jonathan, who had resisted earlier attempt by the National Assembly to remove her, has opted for the tenure extension.

Sources told The Nation that the President and Ms. Oteh met on Monday on final talks on the extension. The President will, however, wait until the last hours of her first term to announce the extension.

The Investments and Securities Act (ISA) 2007, the main body of laws regulating the Capital Market, provides for a five-year tenure for the Director-General of SEC in the first instance, renewable for similar term of five years only.

Section 5, subsection 1 of the

B

•President, Oteh in last-minute talk

By Taofik Salako

Act stipulates that the DirectorGeneral and the three full time Commissioners shall be appointed by the President upon the recommendation of the Minister and confirmation by the Senate.

Section 5, subsection 2 states that “the Director-General shall hold office for a period of five years in the first instance and may be reappointed for a further period of five years and no more”.

However, subsection 5, states that “Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (1) and (2) of this section, the President may extend the tenure of office of the Director-General and any of the Commissioners whose term of office has expired until a successor to such Director-General, or Commissioner is appointed.”

In the alternative, the Director-General may be requested to appoint one of the Commissioners to supervise activities in her absence. Subsection 7

stipulates that “the Director--General or, in his absence, one of the Commissioners nominated by the Director-General shall be responsible for the management and administration of the Commission and shall be answerable to the Board of the Commission”.

Sources said the President was bidding for time with the extension. President Jonathan faces a crucial re-election on February 14 and it may not be politically appropriate to reopen the vexatious contest between the Presidency and National Assembly over Ms.Oteh.

The DG has major obstacles in the National Assembly, which has subsisting orders against her and had blocked subvention to SEC. The Executive arm has ignored the Legislative resolutions but it will have to return to the National Assembly to get approval for any appointment into the office of SEC’s Director General.

Ms.Oteh had a public spat with the lawmakers over inquiry

•Ms Oteh

into her propriety as DirectorGeneral, arguing that the public inquiry was driven by greed.

In the midst of all bruhaha, she was suspended briefly, had a running battle with protesting staff of the Commission, before she was recalled by President Jonathan.

Extension of tenure will enable her to wait out the tenure of the legislature, with members of the upper and lower chambers facing election on February 14.

In the capital market, opin-

•From left: Acting Chief Enterprise Solutions Officer, MTN Business, Onyinye Ikenna-Emeka; Country Manager, Microsoft Nigeria, Kabelo Makwane; Lagos State Commissioner for Science & Technology, Adebiyi Mabadeje and Chief Executive Officer, MTN Nigeria, Mike Ikpoki, during MTN SME Forum in Lagos.

Govt commits to developing cotton

T

HE Federal Government has said it will develop the cotton value chain under its Agricultural Transformation Agenda.

According to a document obtained by The Nation from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in Abuja, the government said it has developed four improved varieties of cotton seeds, which included, Samcot eight, Samcot nine,

CBN: bailout loans fell from N130.8b in one month

- P26

From Frank Ikpefan, Abuja

Samcot 10 and Samcot 11 in 2012.

Last year, six varieties of cotton seeds were also developed by the Institute for Agricultural Research (IAR), Ahamadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria.

It included Samcot eight and 13 for Northeast, Samcot nine and 12 for Northwest, Samcot 10 for Northcentral, Samcot 11 for

Southwest.

Last year, about 2,385.38 metric tonnes of certified seeds were distributed to 110,370 farmers in Northeast, Northeest, and Northcentral under the Growth Enhancement Support Scheme (GES).

The document noted that the ministry entered into an agreement with the West African Cotton Company Ltd (WACOT) on the development of expensive, pro-

Contributors under CPS up by 106,655 - P28

duction, processing and marketing of cottons in the country.

According to the document, the agreement ensured the establishment of Seed Multiplication Scheme covering 15,625 hectares in 2012, which will be increased to 25,000 hectares in 2015.

The document added that about 38 companies have been fully re-positioned in other to achieve better results.

ions were divided on Oteh’s continuity and otherwise, although she had appeased a large segment of aggrieved operators with the extension of the December 31, 2014 deadline for new capital requirements for capital market operators till this September.

Market operators said the downtrend has undermined one of the strongest points of the incumbent directorgeneral, who came on the heels of the grueling 2007-2009 recession and saw a rebound that took the market back to a new high. Now, the stock market has been on a losing spree.

Average return was -16.14 per cent in 2014 while equities lost N241 billion on the first day of 2015.

Some operators said the claim to a reform-driven recovery had been vitiated by the sustained downtrend, arguing that the recovery was natural as the market had bottomed out after the panicky recession and stocks were becoming most attractive given the fundamentals of the quoted companies.

They claimed that external factors, rather than internal reforms, played the major roles in the uptrend, citing that the decline has also strong link with the global crude oil crisis, activities by foreign investors and monetary management.

A market operator said the capital market needs a new face that will help to build bridges across all arms of the government to push the agenda of capital market as the main platform for government’s activities.

But many stakeholders said the director-general’s performance stands her in good chance for a renewal. Oteh led several reforms in rules, regulations, institutional capacity, market structure, products, disclosures, compliance and enforcements among others.

Under her watch, SEC reviewed and published a new corporate governance code, which became mandatory rather than the voluntary as was the case before the review.

The apex capital market regulator has also demonstrated strong determinations toward stringent enforcement regime. It has not only taken various enforcement actions on inadequate filing of periodic returns and other market infractions, it has taken the cleanup fights to the operational base of illegal fund managers which hide under amorphous names to dupe unsuspecting investors.

Notably, Oteh’s SEC stood her ground to enforce corporate governance changes in a multinational, Africa-originated bankholding group, which had sacked a whistleblowing director.

The director was reinstated and the group made some changes to its board and governance structure.

Here comes the charcoal merchant - P39

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

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THE NATION

BUSINESS MONEY

e-mail: money@thenationonlineng.net

CBN: bailout loans fell from N130.6b to N23.8b in one month T HE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) bailout loans to banks dropped in October to N23.86 billion from N130.69 billion in September.

The decline, CBN said, reflected the liquidity condition in the market during the review month. The fund, which came as Standing Lending Facilities (SLFs), showed that average daily request stood at N4.77 billion compared with the N7.69 billion in September. The interest received during the period was N9.15 million, compared with N67.53 million in September.

The SLF is an overnight CBN credit available on banking days between 2 pm and 3.30 pm, with settlement done on same day value. Funds were sourced mainly from time, savings and foreign currency deposits, as well as accretion to unclassified assets.The funds were used, largely, to extend credit to the private sector and payment of claims on demand deposit.

According to the CBN, daily aggregate request for Standing Deposit Facility ranged from N115.59

Stories by Collins Nweze

billion to N524.78 billion. The total deposits stood at N5.75 trillion compared with N6.75 trillion in the preceding month.

This culminated in a daily average of N338.49 billion for the 17 business days in the period. Total interest paid during the review period amounted to N2.40 billion, compared with N2.60 billion interests paid in September, it said.

Further data from the apex bank showed that lenders’total assets and liabilities amounted to N26.3 trillion, representing a 1.5 per cent increase above the level at the end of the preceding month.

The regulator explained that funds were sourced, mainly, from increased mobilisation of central government deposit, increase in unclassified and foreign liabilities, and reduction in foreign assets. The funds were used, largely, to increase claims on central govern-

ment, claims on central bank and reduce time, savings and foreign currency deposits, and demand deposits.

It said banks’ credit to the domestic economy fell marginally by 0.7 per cent to N13.8 trillion, compared with the level at the end of the preceding month. The development was attributed to the 3.9 per cent and 0.5 per cent decline in credit to the Federal Government and credit to the private sector, during the review month.

Total specified liquid assets of the banks stood at N6.4 trillion, representing 37.0 per cent of their current liabilities. At that level, the liquidity ratio declined by 0.8 percentage point below the level in the preceding month,and was seven percentage points above the stipulated minimum ratio of 30 per cent.

The loans-to-deposit ratio, at 62.8 per cent, was 2.9 percentage points above the level at the end of the

• Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele and Chief Executive Officer, Enhancing Financial Innovation & Access (EFInA), Ms. Modupe Ladipo, during a financial inclusion conference in Lagos.

e-transfers hit N10tr mark

O

NLINE transfers via the Nigeria Interbank Settlement System (NIBSS) Instant Payments have reached an all-time record of N10.85 trillion, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has said.

CBN Director, Banking and Payment Systems, ‘Dipo Fatokun, who spoke at the Finance Correspondents Association of Nigeria (FICAN) yearly conference in Lagos, said that the expansion of the electronic payments channels enabled NIBSS to achieve the result.

He explained that the figure, which was for 2013, was enhanced by transfers done through online web payments, electronic funds transfer, various forms of cards, Point of Sale (POS) terminals and Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) non-cash transactions.

“As an instance, the NIBSS Instant Payments used for online transfers has grown at an annual growth rate of 199 per cent and 190 per cent in volume and value with total transfers on the platform grossing N10.85 trillion,” he said.

Fatokun, who spoke on the theme: E-Payment: Past, present and future, said the operations of local and international “electronic payments companies have had positive impact on investment and employment.

He highlighted the role of pay-

ments system which include effective monetary policy, stable and sound financial system as well as economic growth and development.

The CBN director said sustainable economic growth requires a wellfunctioning, efficient and reliable clearing and payments system which would enhance local and international business transactions by providing liquidity in the financial system.

He said the payment system had been significantly transformed in recent years. “As you may recall, time was in this country when upcountry cheques, by this I mean cheques presented for clearing in a different state from where the issuing account is domiciled, took 21 working days to clear. Today, cheques clear nationwide, next day and soon to become same day. You may bear witness with me that approaching the millennium, we were counting the total number of ATMs in the country in 10s; today, they are in their thousands. Just three years ago, we barely have 5,000 active POS but today, there are over 100,000 installed in various merchants across Nigeria. The last decade, indeed, has been revolutionary for the national payments system,” he said.

He said since the establishment of

the NIBSS in 1994, cheque clearing cycle has improved, adding that the CBN issued the first guidelines on electronic banking in 2003, which covers a whole spectrum of electronic payments.

“Following the realisation by the Central Bank of Nigeria that the payments system, especially through the settlement process usually indicates the initial distress signals among banks and the potential impact on the bank’s role as lender of last resort and by extension monetary policy implementation, deliberate attention were given to the need to effectively manage payments system risks,” he said.

He said the apex bank introduced the settlement framework for cheque clearing in 2004 and implemented the Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) system in 2006.

The RTGS is a critical infrastructure, which addressed credit and settlement risk in the payments system. Large value payments were, therefore, transited from the cheque clearing system into the RTGS, which settles the transactions on gross basis instantaneously.

This eliminated substantial risk from the payments and maximum transaction limit of N10 million was imposed on cheque transactions with the cheque standard of 2006.

preceding month, but was 17.2 percentage points below the prescribed maximum ratio of 80 per cent.

“Provisional data indicated that total assets and liabilities of the discount houses stood at N187.0 billion at last October, showing an increase of 20.4 per cent above the level at last September. The development was accounted for, largely, by the 43.5 per cent and 24.9 per cent rise in claims on banks and claims on the Federal Government.

Correspondingly, the increase in total liabilities was attributed, largely, to the 66.4 per cent and 29.5

per cent rise in borrowings and money-at-call,” it said.

Also, discount houses’investment in Federal Government’s securities of less than 91-day maturity rose to N69.0 billion and accounted for 45.7 per cent of their total liabilities.

At that level, discount houses’ investment in Nigeria Treasury Bills rose by 31.1 per cent above the level at the end of the preceding month.

Thus, investment in Federal Government securities was 14.3 percentage points below the prescribed minimum level of 60.0 per cent. Total borrowing and amount owed by the discount houses was N58.4 billion, while their capital and reserves amounted to N28.6 billion.

NDIC’s premium reduction begins

T

HE Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) plan to reduce premium banks’pay to it from 0.4 per cent to 0.35 per cent is expected to begin this year.

NDIC’s Chief Executive Officer, Umaru Ibrahim, who made this known in a statement, explained that the premium reduction was meant to reduce premium burden on banks and ensure that the deposit insurance is fairly priced.

He said the corporation had in 2010 reviewed the premium templates from 0.5 to 0.4; it ended in 2014.

That premium review, he added, led to a reduction of N53 billion in premium revenue.

He said banks are fairly stable as some of them are playing the role of financial intermediation outside the country.

“There are improvements in terms of governance and banks are safe in terms of deposit savings and non-performing loans,” he said.

Ibrahim added: “There is continuous concern that banks should lend more to the real sector particularly in the area of lending to agriculture. The banks are doing a lot in lending to oil and gas. There is the concern of banks’ inability to mobilise long term funds outside the banking system but the NDIC will ensure that banks mobilise long term finances in realisation of the short coming.”

The corporation said it had paid N6.825 billion to 528,277 insured depositors of the 48 Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) in-liquidation as at

August 31, 2014 and N2.756 billion to 80,059 verified depositors of the 186 closed Microfinance Banks (MFBs,) within same period.

The NDIC boss said there had been a reduction in the examination cycles of banks over the years facilitated by proactive measures taken by the corporation to address detected aberrations in the system with minimal disruption to the payment system as well as minimal material and resource losses.

One of such proactive measures he said is the development of software called Financial Institution Liquidation Management Software (FILMS) to enhance the NDIC’s liquidation process.

The software, he said, was being enhanced to make it web enabled.

The most profound success of the corporation in this area, he said, “included the introduction of riskbased supervision framework in the supervisory process, development of framework for Early Warning Signals to detect problem banks, development of framework for the identification and measurement of Systemically Important Banks (SIBs) and the institution of a framework for the provision of financial and technical assistance to deserving insured institutions to alleviate the constraints of funding faced by MFBs and PMBs, amongst others.”

The corporation, he said, partners the CBN in the development of framework for consolidated supervision and other frameworks, guidelines and code that help in strengthening supervisory process in the financial system.

Bank gets crime control panel

S

TANDARD Chartered PLC (the Group) has formed a Board Financial Crime Risk Committee (BFCRC) to oversee its financial crime compliance programme.

The committee is aimed at combating financial crime and improving conduct.

In a report, the bank said the committee is responsible for oversight of the Group’s policies, procedures, systems, controls and assurance for anti-money laundering, sanctions compliance, and prevention of bribery, corruption and tax crime.

It will also have oversight of the Group’s financial crime compliance programme, including the financial crime risk mitigation programme and its commitments under the 2012 and 2014 Orders.

The BFCRC took off on January 1.

The BFCRC, it said, builds and replaces the Board Regulatory Oversight Committee (BROC), which has been in place since the begin-

ning of 2013.

Chairman, Standard Chartered Plc, Sir John Peace, said: “Over the past two years we have dedicated an enormous amount of resources, investment, training and management attention to our financial crime compliance programmes. The formation of this committee, together with the substantial build out of our financial crime compliance function, demonstrates our commitment to strong conduct and compliance at all levels of the organisation.”

Last year, Standard Chartered made some significant enhancements. The lender said it is committed to investing in compliance, conduct and remediation improvements.

The investments include systems upgrades, policy development, process improvements, capability building in sanctions compliance and anti-money laundering controls, and combating bribery and corruption.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

27

MONEY

Mobile money: The new face of banking A

S 45-year -old lawyer Michael Obi waited outside the courtroom for his colleagues, his smartphone beeped with a familiar SMS message alert. It was another reminder for him to pay his public power supply bills.

In three minutes, he opened his mobile money platform on his phone and the payment was done.

A few years ago, he could only have imagined been able to make such payment with such ease without going to the bank.

This is the new face of banking via mobile money. The dream of getting financial services to all nooks and crannies of the country is being jointly pursued by both the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC).

That vision, many analysts, said would be largely driven by mobile money, which refers to payment services operated under financial regulation and performed via a mobile device.

With mobile money, instead of paying with cash, cheque, or credit cards, a consumer can use a mobile phone to pay for a wide range of goods and services.

In 2008, the global market for all types of mobile payments was projected to reach more than $600 billion by 2013. In developing countries, including Nigeria, mobile payment solutions are deployed as a means of extending financial services to the unbanked or under-banked. This group constitute about 50 per cent of the world’s population, according to Financial Access’ Report.

Why financial exclusion persists A key reason for financial exclusion is typically the inaccessibility of the unbanked mostly people in the lower strata of the economy, by the financial services providers. The unbanked are often far removed from the centre of commerce, which tends to lower their participation in economic transactions.

Thus, a combination of low demand for financial services and prohibitive costs without commensurate returns dissuades financial services providers, such as banks, insurance, and pension administrators from establishing physical presence in these locations.

However, mobile technology and innovations in the financial services industry, coupled with the phenomenal growth in telecoms’ subscriber numbers, have altered this situation.

Financial services providers continue to leverage the reach of telecoms networks to provide mobile money services to otherwise inaccessible locations.

The recent spate of agreements on mobile money services between financial institutions and telecoms networks, MTN and Diamond Bank, UBA and Airtel, Stanbic IBTC Bank, First Bank, Ecobank and Globacom, will doubtless ramp up the synergy that should lead to further growth in mobile money.

The poster boy of the successful integration of the rural/informal populace into formal banking system via mobile money services is usually Kenya. And rightly so. M-PESA, Kenya’s mobile money system, has been hugely popular and successful in that country. Today, M-PESA has over

Gone are the days when depositors must visit the bank for all transactions. With mobile money, banking has become easier. This payment module, which has grown beyond its original concept, has a lot of prospect, writes COLLINS NWEZE.

also expected not be shy to adapt and replicate what works in other places but continue to innovate and develop bespoke products and services to excite consumers and boost conversion rate.

Benefits to consumers Some of the benefits to the consumer include security, convenience, accessibility, speed and ease of transaction, competitive charges, access to quality advisory services, and integrity of transactions; the customer literally carries his bank in his pocket or bag wherever he goes.

Other not-so-obvious benefits, which are nonetheless important, are better cash flow management, enhanced financial planning, and inculcation of sustainable savings habit, which boost financial security and comfort in retirement.

“Mobile payments, which I perform on my phone, help to reduce my travelling costs,” a farmer in rural Nigeria who uses mobile payment services said.

Mobile money also has the potential to galvanise economic activities, leading to higher socioeconomic development, lower cost of transactions and reduction of cash handling costs, among other benefits.

Role of regulators

• Ikpoki

40,000 agents and 17 million users (“equivalent to more than two-thirds of the country’s adult population, conducting more than two million transactions daily.

In 2010, Kenya had just 840 bank branches and 1,510 ATMs to serve a population of 47 million people. M-PESA, with its 40,000 agents, helped to plug the supply hole and provide access to financial services to ordinary Kenyans.

Micro finance institutions piggybacked on M-PESA to penetrate remote areas very quickly without substantial increase in costs.

In other countries, some financial institutions seemed to have found the right mix to ensure successful deployment of mobile money. Standard Bank (parent bank of Nigeria’s Stanbic IBTC Bank), for instance, has been successful with mobile money in Uganda, Tanzania, and South Africa.

Bank-led model The bank-led mobile money model adopted by Nigeria may

• Fatokun

be slightly different from Kenya’s telecoms-driven model but the underlying peculiarities are broadly similar.

Access, costs, lower economic activities, and partnerships are common threads. The lessons of M-PESA are not lost though as mobile operators like MTN Nigeria is beginning to play more significant roles in mobile money.

One of the mobile money pacesetters is the Diamond Y’ello Account, a mobile money product developed by Diamond Bank in partnership with MTN. For instance, since the introduction of the product four months ago, the bank has grown its mobile banking customer base by more than 600,000. The bank projects that it would have five million mobile banking customers, double the current size, a year from now.

Among the partnerships positioning to offer mobile banking services in Nigeria, the Diamond Bank/MTN deal perhaps has the greatest advantage due to MTN’s experience in the sector in countries, such as South Africa, Ghana, and Kenya.

Even better is the telecoms giant’s Nigerian footprint. MTN’s reach covers 223 cities and towns, more than 10,000 villages and communities and across many highways in the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory. Its fibre optic transmission backbone traverses over 10,000 kilometres.

Chief Executive Officer (CEO), MTN Nigeria, Michael Ikpoki, said the network would focus on meeting the significant market demand for financial services and mobile content with an expected positive impact on data revenue.

“The success of Diamond Y’ello Account and other basic mobile money services is expected to lead to the adoption of more sophisticated mobile payment solutions such as bulk mobile payment designed for corporate organisations. This service makes it easier for organisations to send money in bulk to their suppliers, employees or other business partners without the beneficiaries necessarily having to own a bank account,” he said.

Mobile money providers are

‘With mobile money, instead of paying with cash, cheque, or credit cards, a consumer can use a mobile phone to pay for a wide range of goods and services. In 2008, the global market for all types of mobile payments was projected to reach more than $600 billion by 2013’

Nigeria’s telecoms subscriber base, put at 131 million as of last September by the NCC, should play a major role in bringing the unbanked into the formal banking system.

With over 50 per cent of Nigeria’s adult population unbanked, mobile banking could be the catalyst that will help quicken the adoption of banking services by this critical segment of the population.

CBN Director, Payment Systems Unit, ‘Dipo Fatokun, said apex bank believes that mobile money and agent framework is the frontier of cashless boom.

“Mobile money is the next thing expected to transform CBN’s cashless policy. The apex bank believes that such initiative will aid both telecommunications and banking industries to further serve Nigerians better,” he said.

Offshore portfolio managers appear to be similarly persuaded and they are already positioning to take advantage of the expected growth in mobile money.

For instance, Carlyle Group, a United States-based global alternative asset manager with $203 billion of assets under management across 129 funds and 141 fund of funds vehicles, recently acquired a $147 million (about N27 billion) minority stake in Diamond Bank, partly on the strength that the bank’s new mobile banking service “will help rapidly boost the lender’s customers and profits.”

Also strengthening mobile money is the Nigerian Deposit Insurance Commission’s (NDIC’s) extension of deposit insurance cover of up to N500, 000 to mobile money account holders.

That, analysts said, implies that with NDIC’s Pass-Through Insurance, a mobile money account holder is indemnified to the tune of N500, 000 if a mobile money service provider becomes insolvent.

They insist that many such consumer-centric regulations are needed to excite stakeholders and engender further uptake.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

28

THE NATION INVESTORS

The good and bad stocks of 2014 T

HE immediate past year saw a major reversal for the stock market. With average return of -16.14 per cent, quoted equities loss a whooping N1.75 trillion during the year. Aggregate market value of all quoted equities closed 2014 at N13.226 trillion as against its opening value of N11.477 trillion for the year.

The All Share Index (ASI), the value-based common index that tracks prices of all quoted equities on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), indicated average full-year return of -16.14 per cent, implying that an average investor lost some 16 per cent of the opening value of his portfolio.

Sectoral review indicated that most investors recorded higher losses than the average benchmark.

All the major group indices at the Exchange, with the exception of the NSE Oil and Gas Index, closed on the negative. The NSE 30 Index, which tracks the 30 most capitalised companies, recorded a full-year return of -18.03 per cent. The NSE Banking Index, which tracks the most active sector, recorded average loss of 21.53 per cent. The NSE Consumer Goods Index, which tracks large manufacturers of fast moving consuming goods, recorded above-average return of 17.88 per cent.

The NSE Lotus Islamic Index, which tracks Islamic compliant ethical stocks, recorded average loss of 21.63 per cent. Meanwhile, NSE Insurance Index recorded the lowest loss of -2.11 per cent while the NSE Industrial Goods Index posted average return of -15.98 per cent. The Oil and Gas Index rode on the back of gains by Forte Oil and Seplat Petroleum Development Company to retain a positive average return of 11.84 per cent.

The performance in 2014 contrasted sharply against the exceedingly bullish performance in 2013.

Investors pocketed some N4.25 trillion in capital gains in 2013. The 2013 business year set the stock market on a new high with average full-year return of 47.19 per cent, its best performance since 2007.

Aggregate market capitalisation of all quoted equities on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) closed 2013 at N13.226 trillion as against its opening value of N8.974 trillion for the year. This represented a whooping increase of N4.252 trillion.

The main index at the NSE, the ASI recorded full-year return of 47.19 per cent rising from its opening index for the year of 28,078.81 points to close the year at 41,329.19 points. The performance in 2013 significantly surpassed the much applauded return in 2012 when equities posted average return of 35.45 per cent, equivalent to capital gains of N2.44 trillion.

Stock-by-stock analysis of the 2014 pricing trend showed that Caverton Offshore Support Group, upstream oil and gas services company that was listed during the year, recorded the highest loss of 63.26 per cent. Champion Brewer-

Okomu Presco Livestock Feeds AG Leventis Transcorp UACN Roads UPDC Champion Brewries Guiness International Breweries Jos Int Brew Dangote Flour Dangote Sugar Flour Mills NNFM NASCON UTC Vono Vitafoam PZ Cussons

ies followed with a loss of 58.7 per cent while National Salt Company of Nigeria placed third with a loss of 58.51 per cent.

Other top losers included UACN Property Development Company, with a loss of 50 per cent; Jos International Breweries, -53.91 per cent; Dangote Flour Mills, -55.61 per cent; Flour Mills of Nigeria, -54.94 per cent; United Bank for Africa, -51.69 per cent, Academy Press, -53.73 per cent and UAC of Nigeria, which recorded full-year return of -49.25 per cent.

The Nation’s check indicated there were 61 stocks with above-average loss. Meanwhile, 18 stocks recorded double-digit positive return during the period. Premier Breweries recorded the highest capital appreciation of 392.2 per cent. It was followed by Ikeja Hotel with a gain of 374.36 per cent. Forte Oil placed third with a gain of 133.15 per cent.

Seven-Up Bottling Company trailed with full-year return of 131.65 per cent while Beta Glass recorded a gain of 92.52 per cent.

With the New Year starting with a loss of N241 billion on Monday, the market is still suffering from the hangover of the previous year.

Analysts were less optimistic about the prospects of the stock market in 2015. Analysts said equities will remain on the downtrend in the months ahead as quoted companies grapple with macroeconomic challenges and investors gauge the continuing impact of the declining crude oil price and political transition on the economic outlook.

Investment pundits said quoted equities would in the immediate months continue on the downward trend, although share prices may recover in the latter months of the year.

Analysts at Bismarck Rewane’s Financial Derivatives Company (FDC) in their latest review stated that quoted equities would struggle with local and global challenges this year, leaving the market mostly on the negative in the first half.

“The stock market may be in for a prolonged stay in the bear territory due to mounting global and domestic uncertainties. In 2015, a lower return trajectory is anticipated since the market is in for a bumpy ride and some companies would be left behind,” FDC stated.

According to analysts, the stock market is expected to dwindle further all through the first half and subsequently bounce back in the second half of the year.

Analysts noted that the likely increases in the United States and euro zone interest rates raises the threats of capital flow reversal and erosion of funds from the equity markets, which, in addition to growing mac-

-42.39 -36.6 -46.98 -22.94 -25.29 -49.25 -25.65 -50 -58.7 -28.75 -18.57 -53.91 -55.61 -45.73 -54.94 -22.06 -58.51 -28.57 -35.26 -17.76 -35.68

Top losers 2014 Unilever Acess Bank Diamond Fidelity Skye Bank UBA Wema Zenith Wapic Deep FBN Holdings FCMB Group Evans Medical GSK May & Baker Neimeth Courteville CWG NCR CAP DN Meyer

-33.46 -31.25 -24.08 -39.78 -39.55 -51.69 -21.31 -32.81 -40.74 -29.29 -46.01 -32.52 -40.78 -26.47 -35.31 -38.1 -25.37 -29.4 -23.77 -22.6 -38.3

IPWA Lafarge Africa Paints and Laftings Portland Paints Cutix BOC Gases Thomas Wyatt Oando Conoil Eterna NSE ASI ASL NAHCO Caverton Secure Electronic Total RT Briscoe Academy Leam Africa ABC

Top gainer 2014 Golden Guinea Brewries 35.29 Premier Breweries 392.2 7UP 33.49 Union Dicon 30.61 Mansard 74.04 Custodian 26.46 Stanbic 39.78 Fidson 15.68 Pharma Deko 32.42 roeconomic risks, may result in a series of adjustments and prompt a cohesive movement of sectors and stocks prices.

“The year 2015 is expected to be a mixed year for the equities market as the outcome of a plethora of external and internal events unfold. A possible interest rate hike in the United States and the possibility of a sustained period of low oil prices are significant risks. The outcome of the 2015 elections would also determine investors’ participation and sentiments. The anticipated loosening monetary stance of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) post elections will also have its impact on price and currency stability,” FDC stated.

They pointed out that returns in 2015 will depend on selecting the right companies in the right sectors, rather than relying on a broad-based approach that depends on the gathering momentum of the overall market position.

They said the performance of the market might be coloured by the general elections starting on February 14.

According to analysts, in addition to the global oil market dynamics, the prospects of the Nigerian economy in 2015 hinges on the electoral calendar, and this will mainly determine the macroeconomic outlook during the year.

“With stocks currently trading at their multi-year lows, we expect an upward trend in the beginning of the year. The anticipated loose monetary stance will be expected to channel additional liquidity to the stock market. However, Investors sentiment

E- Tranzact 40.74 IHS 12.5 Berger paints 92.52 Beta Glass 63.01 Seplat 133.15 Forte 33.22 Mobil 374.36 Ikeja Hotel 19.05 Anino 16.14

will be weighed down by political tensions leading to the 2015 general elections. The tension between the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its major opposition All Progressive Congress (APC) is expected to lead to a lull in the equities market as investors, mostly foreign evaluate the electoral process and outcome whilst fearing post-election violence. Foreign portfolio investors are expected to remain wary of the local bourse until the elections are concluded and possible violent fallouts curbed,” analysts pointed out.

They noted that with oil prices projected to trend between $50-$70, the global crude price will be negative for the Nigerian economy and in turn the capital market, with the oil stocks expected to bear the brunt of declining oil prices given the thinning out of the sectors profitability.

Besides, analysts noted that as the US economy gains traction, there could be an increase in interest rates in 2015, which is expected to have a negative effect on emerging and frontier economies. This will lead to heavy portfolio reversals, as investors will opt for safety and security in a much developed market. This may lead to a selloff in local equities as foreign investors exit. However, this may be cushioned by increased participation of local investors as stocks become increasingly attractive.

“The state of security in the country especially in the north eastern part of Nigeria continues to be worrying. Its effect continues to weigh

‘With the New Year starting with a loss of N241 billion on Monday, the market is still suffering from the hangover of the previous year’

-31.51 -30 -18.95 -29.09 -26.97 -17.72 -16.09 -33.57 -43.9 -33.92 -16.14 -46.88 -20 -63.26 -24.24 -16.18 -47.62 -53.73 -31.47 -32.93

on the profitability of consumer goods companies as consumer spending in these areas remains weak. It has also in-creased the cost of doing business in these areas. Profits that will be declared, if any, in the financial year 2014 by most companies are likely to be below investors expectation. Most sectors; banking, consumers, oil and gas, conglomerates will not be insulated,” analysts said.

Analysts said the macroeconomic outlook will likely change significantly depending on the outcome of the general elections pointing out that 2015 will be distinctly divided into different phases including preelection phase, handover phase and post-election phase.

In the pre-election phase, policymaking will be overshadowed by political campaigns and the elections in this period. As a result, most macroeconomic indicators are likely to be influenced by speculative market activities to hedge any unfavourable outcome. The intensity of political activities towards the election could increase security concerns and result in the hike of consumer prices, dampen economic output as well as growth. This is likely to have negative impact on investors’ confidence and increase dollar demand pressure.

Analysts noted that the immediate period after the elections would still be overshadowed by concerns as parties debate the election results. These challenges will likely affect the macro environment and policies options while the level and intensity of uncertainties will heighten the level of insecurity in most part of the country. Hence, movement and transport of goods and services become difficult leading to an uptick in the inflation rate to above 10 per cent and poor economic output. Investors’ confidence is likely to also decline and lead to an increase in currency pressures as the naira slides to N190195/$ at the interbank market.

“In general, the Nigerian macroeconomic environment is expected to be mixed and highly influenced by developments in the global oil and financial markets. However, the medium and long term prospects of the Nigerian economy depend on developments in the oil section, political events as well as enforcement of tax compliance to boost revenue,” analysts stated.

One of the positives apart from the obvious that the Nigerian economy has to be less dependent on oil is that prices in the stock market may have hit rock bottom. Current stock prices appear attractive at the moment, but we advise cautious investing with a focus on long term value as opposed to speculating and searching for short term gains. We also expect some volatility over the coming months until after elections. A return to normalcy, the stability in oil prices and the Naira will return some calm to the markets.

Newspaper of the Year

AN SIX-PAGE PULLOUT ON THE SOUTHWEST STATES

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

PAGE 29

•The Aboru canal

R

Save us from canal of death, residents cry out

INSIDE

ESIDENTS of Abule-Oki and eight other adjoining communities in Agbado Oke-Odo Local Council Development Area (LCDA) of Lagos State have appealed to the state government to complete the dredging and the concrete lining of the Aboru canal.

According to them, the noncompletion of the walls of Arigbanla canal have exposed them to and put them at the mercy of a deluge of flood, which at its peak often rises up to nine feet, submerging everything and destroying lives and property.

Rising from a meeting last Thursday, the residents urged Governor Babatunde Fashola to;

‘Nigeria still suffering effects of civil war’ PAGE 30

By Adeyinka Aderibigbe

“save them and their properties from the ‘confluence of fury’ of the flood in their neighbourhood.”

They argued that they had continued to suffer environmental degradation as a result of government’s effort to de-flood some parts of the state.

According to them, their communities, which has been laid waste by flood had never experienced such and had been immune to the sav-

agery of the floods until the area became a melting point for about eight separate flood water paths. Abule Oki, they specifically claimed, now receives waste water from Ahmaddiya, Agbelekale/Ekoro, Papa Ashafa/Mulero, Orile Agege/ Dopemu, Oke Shagun, Akinola and Oke-Odo/Abule Egba.

“Many more canals have been channeled into this area, leaving Abule Oki, Akinola, Raji Rasaki and adjoining communities more devastated by the flood abatement ac-

Monarch sets up free school for the poor

PAGES 36

tivities of the government,” a resident said.

The Chairman of the Committee on Canal Dredging of the communities, Alhaji Kamarudeen Bamidele, said Abule Oki which is the confluence point for all the flood water channeled to the area, is worse hit as the contractor - Messrs Dully Dredging and Construction Company have abandoned the work.

The chairman expressed the residents’ displeasure that the project which was awarded since February

2012 with a 12-month completion has been abandoned, with dire consequences to the people. According to him, the project ought to have been completed since January 2013.

Bamidele, a Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) retiree, alleged the loss of several lives and properties to the perennial flooding as a result of the neglect of the canal dredging.

He said: “Personally, I lost over N14 million in a fish pond investment in 2011, when we experienced the worst devastating flood that necessitated this canal dredging. Several landlords lost their

How Ondo doctor died in own hospital, by NMA PAGE 34

•Continued on page 30

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

30

THE SOUTHWEST REPORT

Save us from canal of death, residents cry out •Continued from page 29 homes to the flood and many tenants relocated because the entire area became submerged. So many houses sunk and several houses were abandoned and were overgrown with weeds as if they were virgin lands.”

But the area was never prone to flood. In fact, flood, according to Superior Evangelist Stephen Oduntan of the Celestial Church of Christ, who is also the Vice Chairman of the Canal Dredging Committee, was a rarity.

“This area was never prone to flood when I moved into this area in the 70s,” he recalled.

Continuing, he said: “We were never troubled by flood. In, fact, this same river that is now heavily polluted, was where we baptized new converts. Everything changed a little over a decade ago and since then, things have never been the same again.”

Bamidele claimed that everybody in the government, including the governor and the two concerned government agencies – the Ministries of the Environment and Information & Strategy, knew about the plight of his people in the hands of the confluence of fury. He wondered why the government would fold its arms while a contractor who claimed (at a stakeholders meeting while the project was about to start)

would walk from without any repercussion.

He said: “Sequel to the flood disaster of 2011, government decided to dredge all canals around the state and Arigbanla was dredged and the concrete lining was done, since then, they never experienced flooding in those areas again.

“When they met with us, we were assured that our canal would be dredged and a concrete lining carried out at three different locations.

We were told a ‘gang’ would work from Ahmaddiya Area at Oke-Odo down to Agbelekale, the second ‘gang’ shall work from Pleasure Bus Stop along the Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway to link up with Arigbanla, from where waste water from Abbatoir and other canals have been channeled, into Abule Oki and the third gang would work from Akinola Area towards Command.

“While work started at a slow pace at the Ahmaddiya/Agbelekale axis, nothing was done at the Abule Oki/Akinola end, and this axis, especially Abule Oki is where you have this heavy flood confluence.

“One of the assurances we were given then, was that a concrete median lining would be constructed along this confluence to channel the flood water, but nothing of such has been done.”

The chairman wondered why the contractor would fail to address the dredging and concrete lining of the

•Bamidele flanked by Oduntan (left) and Rasak

Aboru canal from Abeokuta Expressway (Arigbanla end), where the flood hit hardest and nothing had been done till date.

He said the two culverts constructed on Jimoh Street and Ige Street should be removed and replaced by bridges as the former have continued to worsen the people’s plights and pains because they are usually silted, leading to heavy flooding.

He listed the demands of the communities to include the immediate dredging of the Aboru canal to reduce the pains of residents of the about 10 communities affected by the flood the population of which he put at over eight million.

Every month, he said, residents spend between N18, 000 and N25, 000 to clear the canal and the culverts of debris which has resulted into a reduction in incidences of flooding anytime it rains.

“We do not know our fate anymore. We have lived with this neglect for over two years now and that is why we are appealing to the government to come to our aid before the next rainy season,” he said.

Another community leader, Mr. Solomon Agboghoroma, who have been living in Abule Oki since 1979, said the incidences of flooding was alien to the community until the last decade when government’s activities became more pronounced.

He said: “Now, I spend between N300,000 –N400,000 yearly to reinforce my fence and protect my house from flood, yet, water usually submerge my house every time it rained heavily in the area. I no longer have tenants because the entire ground floor has been taken over by flood.”

Agboghoroma said government should come to the aid of the residents to prevent grave loss of lives and property.

Bamidele, who presented series of letters sent to the state governor on the aborted canal dredging, the latest of which was sent to the governor on September 29, 2014, pleaded with the government to

Chief Adebayo Makinde is the Sagua of Alaafin of Oyo. He was born in Lagos on January 14, 1935. He had his primary and second the only one to make a Grade I in December 1955. He enrolled at the School of Pharmacy, Yaba, where he qualified as a pharmacis the UAC in Lagos, Aba and Kano. He resigned to establish his own business in 1964. He formed a company called Jolitas Chemist interview with JOSEPH JIBUEZE on his forthcoming 80th birthday, Chief Makinde recalls fond memories of his childhood, traditionalist with his Christian beliefs, as well as the secret of his good health.

‘Nigeria’s still suffering effects of civil war’

D

O you still practice your profession?

You will be surprised that up till now, I still practice my profession because I’m still healthy, and all the organs of my body are working perfectly well.

Not many people are as active at 80 as you are. What is the secret?

First of all, I give glory to God. It’s not by the amount of medical treatment you receive. It’s God who gives good health. I live a simple life apart from being a strong believer in God through Christ. I eat twice a day – breakfast and dinner. I take dinner at about 5pm. I don’t usually eat after 6pm, and I sleep early. Many friends know that when they come to my home at about 7.30pm, I am already in bed. I make sure that I wake up as early as 3am to do my personal devotion. From around 4am, I watch the news on the television. Between 5.30 and 6am, I call members of my family for prayers. After that I have my breakfast. I also take a walk. Some days when I don’t feel like going to the office, I stay at home. I drink sparingly – a little wine, otherwise I take mostly water.

How do you keep fit?

When I wake up, I ride a cycle and walk within my premises six to 10 times in a day. I don’t do strenuous exercises but at the same time they have to be relaxing. I also stretch while lying on my back. I swing my hands and legs. I do it religiously everyday.

I have been advised to tone my muscles. The exercise tones and relaxes my muscle.

What does your title represent?

The Sagua of Alaafin is a traditional title. In the make-up of the government of the Alaafin, we have the ‘military’ title and ‘civilian’ title. The Oyo Mesis are civilian titles. They’re advisers of the Alaafin. At the same time,

we have the ‘military’ set-up. The two of them are parallel. They never meet.

The military arm is headed by the Aare Onakakanfo, which is usually somebody outside Oyo town. These are part of the measures the Alaafin takes to ensure there is no coup in his kingdom. Under the Aare, you have ‘military’ officers, of which the Sagua is a senior member or officer. I want to say with all sense of humility that in this century, I have been the first Sagua of Alaafin since 1982. That’s why many people call me Sagua of the century.

How was your growing up like?

I grew up in Lagos when life was simple. At that time, in the early 30s and 40s, there were few people in Lagos. That’s why people would say you would build a house before you buy a car, because there were not many cars. At that time, the tarred road ended at Yaba. After Yaba, there was no tarred road anymore. Night life was good. We did not go to night clubs until about 12 midnight or 1am.

Life was safe. There were no burglar proofs in our houses. When it was hot, we slept outside in the verandah.

How do you feel to see so much insecurity and crime?

Naturally I feel so bad that things have deteriorated and life is not safe.

It’s a matter of concern.

At what point did things change?

I think things took a turn for the worse during the Nigerian civil war.

That was when things started going bad. The war disrupted the normal life system. We have not recovered fully from it till now.

Do you think there is hope for Nigeria?

I am always optimistic. I believe that if we have an opportunity to choose good leaders, things can start going well. If you look at it again, what Chief Obafemi Awolowo inher-

ited from colonial masters was not huge. But because it was properly managed, he could give free education throughout his administration.

Sometimes when I travel, I discover that some of the structures built during his time are still what some schools in Oyo, Ogun, Ekiti, Edo and Delta use.

Do you have any fond memories from childhood?

I was into boxing while in secondary school. After school hours, we would return to study till about 8pm.

Life was simple. We didn’t mess up with ourselves. Schools were strictly for the boys or for the girls. You could count them: Queens College, Baptist Academy, Methodist Boys/Girls High School, CMS Grammar School, Holy Child College. There was healthy competition. We did not exceed 35 in a class. About 300 students would sit for entrance exam, and only 60 or 70 would be admitted. There was no godfather. Admission was strictly on merit. No cutting of corners in those days.

How did UAC come to sponsor and eventually employ you?

UAC was like a small government at that time. It got whatever it wanted because we had no independence. The school reserved positions for UAC students. We were very serious students. There were no distractions.

There was nothing like television.

What we had was radio-vision, a box through which you heard news. It operated from about 6am in the morning till about 8pm.

Were you a prankster as a child?

The influence of a parent can be very high on children. Parents can dictate to you what they want in most cases. There were not many choices for the child, unlike children of these days who would disagree with their father. Sometimes if you ask children

•Chief Adebayo Makinde

today to prostrate to elders, they would say: ‘No, I don’t feel like prostrating.’ He would tell you straight away and you can’t do anything to the child. In my time, if you’re asked to prostrate, you must obey. We were in most cases obedient. If you don’t obey, there will be punishment, unless you’re lucky not to have been caught. In those days, if a child goes away to see a masquerade, he will be

PHOTO: DAVID ADEJO

lucky if the parents did not look for him while he was away. We could join friends and go away with a masquerade, but when you return, the first thing you would ask is: ‘Did Baba ask about me?’ If they say no, then you will escape punishment. My father was a disciplinarian. He never spared the rod.

Who were your role models?

Two people influenced my life: my

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

31

THE SOUTHWEST REPORT Graduate bags institute’s proficiency award

By Nneka Nwaneri

A

•The canal

revisit the Aboru canal dredging as further delay would further threaten integrity of the culverts, the base of which has been exposed and weakened by the volume of water passing underneath.

All attempts to get any response from the supervising engineer, Mr Ajadi proved abortive as he neither picked his calls nor responded to the SMS sent to his mobile telephone devise.

He said what the communities needed was not palliative measures such as the similar measures carried in August last year never solved the problem.

He said the communities should be looking forward to steps being

PHOTOS: SOLOMON ADEOLA

taken that would assure a lasting solution and save the residents from the yearly flooding that has put their existence in the area perpetual threat.

But, the state government said: “Dredging of Akinola River is an ongoing project with the dredging work along the downstream of the channel to the discharge point at Aiyetoro Bridge in Ogun State completed.

“The contractor was advised to concentrate on the dredging of the downstream in order to create adequate capacity for the channel and for effective discharge of other channels/drains (collectors and tributaries) that are contributing to the chan-

nel. It should be mentioned that one of the tributaries to the channel is Ilo-Awela River of which its dredging is at advance stage.

“With the dredging of the downstream completed (from Ige Street in Akboru to Aiyetoro Bridge in Ogun State), the catchment of Aboru and Command are now flood free.

“The Ministry has concentrated on the need to ensure that the entire catchment area of the channel is flood free.

“What is uppermost to the State Government is the functionality of the canal and the need to reduce / eliminate the incidence of flooding in the areas.”

N Accounting graduate of Covenant University, Otta, Andikan Ibanga, has bagged the Nigerian Institute of Management (NIM)NYSC proficiency award.

He emerged best candidate in the examination which held last year in various states of the federation.

Penultimate week, in Lagos, he was rewarded in the presence of hundreds of ex-corps members, who at a programme were inducted as graduate members of the institute.

He, like others, studied hard for the examination without inkling that there was a reward for hard work.

“All I did was to put in my best and almost a year after the examination; I got to know I was the best. I wasn’t sceptical about serving in the north, though initially I never wanted to serve in Jalingo, the Taraba State capital. But on getting there, I was willing to stay back because then, I discovered that the state is peaceful.

“It was fun living there for a year. Though it was very far from home, it helped me to learn to be independent,” the Akwa-Ibom-born graduate said.

President and Chairman of Council of NIM, Dr Nelson Uwaga took the inductees through an interactive session where he counselled them on the values shared in the institute, after which he inducted them as graduate members and as NIM ambassadors having met all the criteria set for the admission.

There was a motivational talk entitled “Youth Employment and Livelihood Strategies: A Successful Journey to Self-actualisation”, by Mr Bamidele Ayemibo. They were urged to have other values such as credibility; character and consistency of conduct; competence and relationship.

mary and secondary school education at the Baptist Academy, Lagos, where he was as a pharmacist in 1959 under UAC sponsorship. On graduation, he worked with Jolitas Chemists, which metamorphosed into the defunct Jolitas Industries. In this his childhood, the day he lost his father, and shares how he balances life as a father, John Ojo Makinde, at the early age, and my late brother, Chief Moses Ajibade Makinde, at a later age. He died on April 1, 2014. The two of them were hard-working. My brother rose to become the first African Managing Director of the Nigerian Breweries. He was trained as an accountant.

UAC sent him to Havard University to do his MBA programme. I imbibed that spirit – that to get to the top of the ladder, you must work hard. My father laid the foundation. I stayed with my brother, who also attended the Baptist Academy.

What has life taught you?

Life has taught me that the only way to succeed and be happy at the end of the day is to work hard. If you work hard and put God first in all you do, you will be ahead of the game. That’s why I feel very happy. I worked hard. I was able to train my 12 children and they cherish the education I gave them. Eight of them, from Europe, America and Canada are expected to attend my birthday event.

Any regrets in life?

No, I have no regrets. If God calls me now, I’ll happily say I’ve done my bit. I say with a sense of humility that I have a personal relationship with God. If about 10 years ago, God had called me, I would have fretted.

Now I talk to God like I would talk to my father, and when I ask him to do a thing for me, He does it.

At what point did you become a traditionalist?

My installation was done in March 1982.

How are you able to combine your role as a traditionalist with being a Christian?

You’re right. But remember, I said I was not so confident about 10 or 15 years ago. I underwent various things.

I cannot tell you all that happened during my initiation in the palace.

Those are in the past. Kabiyesi does not insist that you do those things anymore. During my initiation, there were certain kinds of incisions done

on the body, called Gbere. I could not do a thing like that. I paid for my own in cash for not doing it; they took care of the rest.

What was your happiest moment?

My happiest moment was when my first child was born. I felt very happy to be a father. I was proud.

And your saddest moment…?

My saddest moment was when my father died. I was very sad because we communicated a lot. I was going to Oyo to see him, and 30 minutes before I arrived, he passed on. If I had left Lagos one hour earlier, I would have seen him alive. Maybe he would have died on my laps. That was my saddest moment.

How did you meet your wife?

In any case, I have two wives. I met the first when I was working in Kano with Kingsway Chemists, UAC. She was working at Barclays Bank. Incidentally, I met her in the Church. She was a good chorister. She was slim, with good facial marks. She was elegant, and had a good job. Of course if you worked in a bank at that time, you must be sound. For my second wife, I met her in Oyo in 1980. We’re from the same area. My first wife is from Ogbomoso. The children interact very well. They even make conference calls in organising my forthcoming birthday ceremony. They’re united even though they’re not from the same mother. I even took part in the teleconference and found it interesting.

How have you given back to the society?

I was the President of the Rotary Club, Ogba District, in 1984. Former Supreme Court justice, Justice George Oguntade (rtd), was my vice-president at that time. I furnished the laboratory of the Ogba Grammar School and gave them water. I was Parents-Teachers’ Association (PTA) chairman of Maryland Comprehensive School for 10 years. I fenced the school and gave them modern toilets, as well as built a block of classrooms. On the religious side, I took a church as my project –

the Ebenezer Baptist Church at Awe, Oyo. I gave them musical instruments, modern pews, a modern vestry. I was paying part of the pastor’s salaries. I expect my children to set up a foundation in my honour. I will give them my support.

What advice do you have for the government on the fight against insurgency?

The problem of Nigeria aside insecurity is also political, apart from the fact it has a religious undertone. The only way Nigeria can move forward is to de-emphasise religion. If we deemphasise our religious differences, things will be much better for us. To tackle insecurity, the economic level is so low for quite a number of people, particularly where there is high level of insecurity. We have to agree to reduce poverty in such areas by empowering the jobless youths. Those places also need modern amenities. I worked in Kano and I know quite a number of places in the North. If we educate people, there will be development. The late Chief Obafemi Awolowo tried to educate his own people, and you can see the result today in the seven states that make up the old Western Region. They have a lot of professionals. If other regions had made education a priority, we won’t have much problem today, because anybody that is well educated is more likely to value life. But if one is not educated, he is just a little better than an animal. Your level of education also determines your way of life. Therefore, Nigeria must really make the extra effort to ensure that people are educated in places ravaged by insurgency.

What will you like to be remembered for?

I want to be remembered as someone who served humanity to the best of his ability and who ensured that all his children were properly brought up, so that they can help the nation through their various endeavours.

Ibanga (left) receiving the award from Dr Uwaga. With them is the Registrar of the institute, Mr Mohammed Sulaiman

‘Road safety is shared responsibility’

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OTORISTS in the Idiroko Border have been advised to be safety conscious while driving.

The Idiroko Unit Commander, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Assistant Corps Commander David A. Irunoje, who gave the advice during a safety campaign exercise organised by the command at Iyana Ago Motor Park, Idiroko, Ogun State, said conscious driving will go a long way in ending incessant crashes on the roads.

The theme of the campaign was “Road safety is a Shared Responsibility, it Depends on You and Me” He said safety on the road should be everybody’s business and should not be left for the agency alone, adding that road users should be observe road signs.

He said accidents don’t just happen, they are caused; it is not bad luck, but bad driving habits that lead to the road crashes.

He appealed to all road users to always observe safe driving measures and should not violate traffic rules and regulations.

He warned road users against over-speeding, wrongful overtaken, driving under the influence of alcohol/drug, indiscriminate parking, poor vehicle maintenance and contending with smugglers, especially this

•Irunoje

Idiroko-Owode-Sango-Ota route or axis He urged drivers to always concentrate while on driving, noting that some drivers often engage in acts that distract their attention such as discussions with passengers, answering phone calls, eating, gesticulating, changing of radio station or cassette.

The Ogun State Sector Commander, Corps Commander Adegoke Adetunji, implored all road users to heed the advice concerning culture on the use of the roads.

He said accident happens on the road due to what we do or failed to do while driving.

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THE SOUTHWEST REPORT Bursary for students at anniversary

How Ondo doctor died in own hospital,

by NMA

By Oziegbe Okoeki

I

dant cultural and tourism treasures in the state to create job opportunities for the teeming youths.

In view of the various benefits derivable from culture and tourism, the government has mapped out strategies aimed at overhauling the sector in order to enhance revenue generation and to reduce the state’s seeming dependence on allocation from the Federation Account.”

According to him, the state has to diversify its economic base, even as the country is currently battling with the economic uncertainty arising from global drop in oil prices.

He noted that the tourism industry has additional potential of providing jobs for the youth and generating additional revenue necessary for the provision of infrastructure and economic growth, thus enhanc-

T was a week-long celebration marked with different activities penultimate week when Epe Club marked its 40th anniversary.

One of the highlights of the celebration was a lecture delivered by the Vice-Chancellor of Lagos State University (LASU), Prof. John Obafunwa and a bursary award to 53 Epe students studying in different tertiary institutions across the country.

Delivering a lecture entitled, “The Economic Status and Viability of Epe”, Prof. Obafunwa said Epe, which is majorly an agrarian community, has a lot of potential that should be harnessed to better the lot of the people.

According to him, with a landmass of about 641 square kilometres and body of water measuring about 324 square kilometres, Epe remains an economically-viable division which is currently commercially underdeveloped because of some factors; especially the absence of electricity.

He said Epe has great tourism sites and would be tourists’ destination if the proper infrastructure such as electricity, transportation, markets, hotels and waterfronts are provided by the government and “this will boost the economic status of Epe”.

Obafunwa pointed out that there is urgent need for these now with the dwindling income from oil.

“When the tourism potential is fully exploited and developed, they will create job opportunities for so many people in Epe and enhance the economy,” he said.

On the Lekki Free Trade Zone, Obafunwa said by the time it is fully developed, it will boost economic activities in Epe division, adding that Dangote, who is planning to establish a refinery in the zone has promised that 70 per cent of the workforce will be recruited from the community and this will cut across both skilled and unskilled labour.

He said: “With full development of Epe free trade zone, transportation, plans to have coastal roads, widening of roads coming to Epe and expansion of ferry services linking Apapa with Epe will increase the tempo of economic activities and employment generation, housing and industries might witness a boom. This calls for provision of more schools, hospitals and road network.”

Obafunwa further said two fundamental factors must be in place for the division to actualise its full economic potential. These, he said, are peace and electricity.

He decried the lack of electricity in Epe, which he said falls within the purview of the Federal Government.

He noted that for more than one year now, Epe has not had electricity, a situation, he said, is slowing down a lot of economic activities.

“We must solve the problem of electricity; it is the biggest problem confronting development in Epe. An alternative will be Independent Power Project which will supply power to the division so that economic activities can pick up.

“Once power problem is solved, every other thing falls into place, as they all depend on power supply. This will unleash the full economic potential of Epe. To achieve this, all hands must be on deck.

“The landscape, scenery and waterfront are very beautiful. Add cultural festivals to these, it will attract tourists, but there is need for peace.

There are countries whose mainstay is tourism and we have the potential in Epe. All these will increase economic activities in Epe,” Prof.

Obafunwa said.

In an address earlier, President of Epe Club, Chief Lanre Razak said the club is “renowned for championing community development, creating platform for peaceful co-existence and harnessing the collective resources and potential of Epe divi-

•Continued on page 36

•Continued on page 36

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HE local chapter of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) in Ondo State has raised the alarm over the death of one of its members, Dr. David Oguntuase.

Oguntuase died in an inferno which ravaged his hospital - Universal Medical Clinic (UMC) in Akure, the state capital on last Christmas Day. A body, which was burnt beyond recognition, found in one of the rooms in the hospital, was identifies as that of the doctor.

Addresing reporters at a news conference, the chairman of NMA in the state, Dr. Betiku Bamidele, described as suspicious, the circumstances surrounding the death of the medical doctor.

According to him, the scene of the incident was initially free for all to come in and out of the premises before concerted efforts were made by the NMA for the police to cordon off the environment.

The NMA chairman said the action became imperative to pave the way for the utilization of the abundance of evidence.

He alleged there was a circumscribed area on the roof burnt almost all round the building with the roof itself caving in.

Bamidele said: “The silhouette of the burnt body (face down) was noted to be in keeping with that identified before it was taken to the mortuary of the state specialist Hospital Akure.

“The body was dismembered on the upper and lower limbs and the area of the silhouette was still somewhat wet and one of the small bones of the foot was found on the floor.”

He also said the room where the body was had the burglar proof of its window destroyed, noting that it was the only one so identified.

The NMA chief explained that there

The burnt hospital From Leke Akeredolu and Ojo Damisi, Akure

were two empty gas cylinders which were intact, adding that he was also reliably informed that there was no power supply throughout the night of the incident and the generator was intact.

He described the late doctor as a very meticulous and highly intelligent person.

Narrating the event that preceded the doctor’s demise, Dr. Bamidele informed that few days before the incidence, the late doctor was said to have lost his handset in a rather queer circumstance, following which he had to buy another SIM card and started retrieving lost phone numbers.

According to Bamitale, the late Oguntuase called his wife to ask her to prepare food and that he would be at home for dinner.

According to him, the late doctor had permitted the nurse on night duty to go home since it was the Christmas Day and there were no patients on the ward.

The NMA wondered what happened between 8pm when the nurses left and 12:30am when the inferno was noticed as reported by the neighbor-

hood.

Bamidele reminded the Ondo Police Command that the late Dr. Oguntuase was arrested in Owo for an Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)-related case on November 11, 2014 and arraigned at a High Court the subsequent day.

He added that the late medical practitioner was arrested by the state Criminal Investigation Department(CID) section of the police command after he received a letter from the police through the management of the Federal; Medical Centre (FMC), Owo, where the late doctor worked as a Consultant Paediatrician.

The letter had requested him to present himself for interrogation at the CID on an alleged threat to life and property of the FMC Medical Director, Dr.Olufemi Omotoso.

The NMA chair alleged that the manner of evacuation of the burnt body from the scene was to say the least unscrupulous with a considerable likelihood to compromise the result of investigation.

He said: “The press release by the PPRO (Police Public Relations Officer) of the Ondo State Command, Mr. Wole Ogodo, narrowed the incidence to electricity surge when the neighbours con-

The late Dr. Oguntuase

firmed that there was no electricity supply at the time of the incidence.

“This indeed is very suspicious. One could have expected the police to have conducted a preliminary investigation before the PPRO issued a statement on the cause of death of the deceased.”

The NMA, however, said it shall resist any attempt to sweep the case under the carpet, saying the report of the police on allegation of threat to life and property must be produced.

‘Tourism as catalyst for economic development’

I

N an effort to enhance the revenue profile of the state, the Ondo State Government embarked on diversification of all sectors of its economy. One of the sectors that had received the Olusegun Mimiko-led administration is tourism.

In the circumstances, various tourists’ sites have either been upgraded or developed.

For instance, realising the importance of tourism in the development of any country’s economy, Governor Mimiko instituted the Mare Festival six years ago. While inaugurating the fiesta, he said a well developed tourism sector has the potential for driving and sustaining economic development of the state. He added that tourism and culture play significant roles in modern economy.

Recently, the government inaugurated the Idanre Hills Resort, Habitat 1 and Tourism Zone for which the Federal Government praised its efforts in ensuring that the state is recognised as one of the world-class tourists’ destinations.

The formal opening ceremony and launch of Idanre Hills Resort, Habitat 1 and Tourism Zone, held at Odode-Idanre in Idanre Local Government Area of Ondo State.

The Director- General of the Nigerian Tourism Development Corpo-

•Mimiko (second right), his wife and others at the Mare Festival From Damisi Ojo, Akure

ration (NTDC), Mrs Sally NwechueMbanefo described the state’s initiative in tourism development as a significant contribution to the overall development of the Nigerian tourism industry.

Nwechue-Mbanefo, who described culture and tourism as very vital to the nation’s development, praised the state government for paying necessary attention to the advancement of tourism in the state.

While expressing her delight with the spate of development at Idanre Hills Resort within a short period of one year after her last visit to the state, Nwechue-Mbanefo said she was marvelled at the huge transformation recorded at the resort.

She noted that her job was to promote tourism in the country, prom-

ising to project Ondo State as a worldclass tourists’ destination.

According to her, Ondo is her favourite in terms of tourism attraction, stressing that the development would not only generate employment for the teeming population, but will also eradicate poverty among the people. According to her, the initiative will attract people from all over the world, even as she assured the state of Federal Government’s support.

While declaring the Idanre Hills Resort open, Governor Olusegun Mimiko reiterated the resolve of his administration to create jobs through the development of culture and tourism.

Represented by his Chief of Staff, Dr Kola Ademujimi, Governor Mimiko said “the government is committed to harnessing the abun-

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THE SOUTHWEST REPORT 2015: Cleric calls for violence–free elections From Damisi Ojo, Akure

T

•Some of the participants on the skill acquisition workshop

•Obilomo

NGO’s empowerment programme lifts 30

A

THREE-DAY empowerment programme organised by the Caring Hands International (CHI), a non-governmental organisation (NGO), in conjunction with the National Directorate of Employment (NDE), in Osogbo, the Osun State capital, was a dream come true for about 30 unemployed youths.

As graduates of various tertiary institutions, some, if not all of them, have similar experiences. They have not had jobs since they graduated.

For some of the beneficiaries, including Afolayan Adefunke, a graduate of Federal College of Agriculture Ibadan, Oyo State; Adewumi Adedokun who graduated from the School of Heath Technology, Ilesa, Osun State; Olukoga Solomon who graduated from the Federal Polytechnic, Ede, Osun State and Bello Lateefat who graduated from the College of Education, IlaOrangun Osun State, the programme was a realised dream.

They sought for jobs to; at least,

Gbenga Aderanti

practice what they studied in school.

But their orientation changed after they had participated in the threeday vocational/skill acquisition programme which, they said, will enable them to set up their own businesses as well as make them employers of labour.

While praising the organisers of the programme, the participants said the knowledge they acquired would enable them to become self-reliant.

Skills learnt during the training included events management, baking, bead-making and decorations.

The Executive Director of the NGO, Mrs Fehintola Obilomo Toyin said she decided to organise the skill acquisition programme to complement the state government’s efforts in providing employment for the youth in the state.

“The level of unemployment among Nigerian youths motivated the Caring Hands International to put up this programme, with the expectation that some will become self-

reliant and prosperous,” she said, adding that the free programme was funded by the Trustees of Caring Hands International.

Lamenting the huge number of graduates tertiary institutions churn out every year, and who have no hope of getting employed, she said the issue of youth unemployment has become a threat to socio-economic stability. She noted that her organisation is willing to encourage youths to develop their full potential and earn a living by doing some legitimate businesses.

Toyin praised various efforts of the Federal Government who target are to empower the youth. These, she said, include the Youth with Initiative in Nigeria, (YouWIN), Graduate Internship Scheme (GIS), Graduate Empowerment Scheme (GEMS) and the Osun Youth Empowerment Scheme which is the brainchild of Governor Rauf Aregbesola-led administration that aims at addressing unemployment among youths.

She, however, frowned at a situa-

tion in which, despite government’s efforts, not much impact has been made as more graduates join the labour market every year.

Toyin said her NGO intends to monitor beneficiaries of the skill acquisition programme to ensure that the objectives for which it was organised are realised.

The NDE Coordinator in Osun State, Mr Sola Daramola who was represented by Head, Department of Small Scales Enterprises Mr. Olusegun Odebiyi praised the NGO for organising the skill acquisition programme for the youth. He urged the beneficiaries to make good use of the opportunity in order to begin their own businesses.

Special Adviser to Governor Rauf Aregbesola on Youths, Sports and Special Needs, Mr Biyi Odunlade, who declared the skill acquisition workshop open advised the youth to be focused and enterprising rather than complaining of lack of jobs, as government alone cannot employ everybody.

Lawmaker donates bus to market association

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HE member representing Ikorodu Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Abike Dabiri-Erewa has met with the Ikorodu Local Government Education Authority (LGEA) branch of the Nigeria Union of Pensioners (teaching and non-teaching staff). The event was this year’s second pensioners’ day celebration.

The celebration took place at Ayangburen Primary School Ikorodu, had in attendance veteran teachers who wore their best attires.

The Chairman of the group, Mrs. Elizabeth Jayeola in her remark urged her colleagues not to despair.

The Lagos State chairman of NUP, Mr James Owoyemi praised the state government for its prompt payment of pensions. He, however, appealed to the government to increase their allowances.

“Some of us have children in schools that we take care of. Some of us earn as little as N1, 000 per month.

We plead with you to prevail on the governor to pay our outstanding arrears and gratuities,” Owoyemi said.

Responding, Hon. Dabiri-Erewa promised to take their request to the governor.

“I know that the governor has done very much in paying pensioners in Lagos State. The only challenge is at the federal level,” DabiriErewa said.

She urged them to collect their permanent voter’s card (PVC) as it is their power to change bad and corrupt leaders. The lawmaker asked the pensioners to always eat well and keep fit, adding that she also is a pensioner.

Hon. Dabiri-Erewa later visited pupils of Aynabguren Primary School where she advised them to be useful

•Babaloja of Ikorodu Central, Chief Moshood Laketu, Iyelaja General of Ikorodu Division, Alhaja Taufkat Alison receiving keys and documents of a Toyota Haice bus donated by Abike Dabiri-Erewa at Ikorodu. PHOTO: ADEJO DAVID

By Adejo David

to themselves and the society, even as she urged them to work hard, obey their teachers and parent.

She also visited the association of market men and women in Ikorodu division. The Baba Oloja of Ikorodu central, Chief Moshood Laketu thanked Dabiri-Erewa for identifying with them.

“We are aware of all your activities in the House and we are proud of you. We will stand by you and support you in whatever position you decide to vie for in future.” The Secretary-General of the association, Chief Grace Fayehun reminded the lawmaker of her promise to donate a vehicle to the association.

“We know you as a woman of substance and your word, even though you have not fulfilled your promise to donate a vehicle to the association. We go to state meetings and other functions on our own.

Please, our daughter, try and purchase a bus for us,” Mrs. Fayehun said.

Responding, Dabiri-Erewa presented key to a light blue colour Toyota Haice bus. She said: “This is the bus I promised you my mothers, some time ago.” The bus has an inscription “Ikorodu Market Women and Men Association. Courtesy: Abike Dabiri-Erewa.”

I believe with your support, our party, APC, will be at the helm of affairs come 2015. This is just the be-

ginning of new things to come. I started with you, you stood by me, I represented you and you asked me to go again that you will stand by me. Why can’t I play my part?’ the lawmaker said.

She also met with some executive members of community development committee (CDC) zone five which comprises 35 community development areas (CDAs) in Igbogbo-Bayeku.

The first Vice-Chairman of CDC Igbogbo-Bayeku, Abdulwahab Dauda decried the poor state of Igbogbo-Bayeku, Ofin and other roads and drainage.

Hon. Dabiri-Erewa promised to talk to the state and local governments on the condition of the roads.

HE expansive auditorium of the Christ Apostolic Church (CAC) Babalola Memorial International Miracle Camp, Ikeji Arakeji, was filled to capacity penultimate week as over 1, 000 pastors were ordained by the President of the ministry, Pastor Abraham Akinosun.

Clerics from different parts of the country converged on the CAC camp at Ikeji to witness the event.

It was a joyful occasion as the ordination was coming after years of embargo placed on such activities in the CAC fold.

With joy and happiness radiating on the faces of the pastors, they danced to the melodious renditions of the choir.

While lending his voice on the 2015 general elections, Pastor Akinosun said Nigerians should look on to God in order to be saved.

He said: “If our country and those we are going to vote for should look unto the Lord, the country and its citizens shall be saved.

“But if we continue to go the way that is not biblical, like killing and maiming because some people’s desperation to rule, it is against God and the Scripture.”

He advised politicians to learn from other countries where the interests of the citizens are the priority of the government.

Pastor Akinosun berated some politicians who are preparing for the coming elections as if they are going to the war front.

“We are going to vote and we are hearing of people stock-piling arms.

We are not preparing for war; we are preparing to vote for credible people to be at the helm of affair. So, why should they be stock-piling arms?

“Our politicians should have a rethink and have the fear of God. Elections should not be do-or-die affair.

If someone fails now, another time, he may be called upon to rule. So, people should take it easy and play the game according to the rules” Pastor Akinosun said.

Speaking on the role of the newly ordained pastors in ensuring a better society, the CAC leader said embargo has been placed on ordinations for a very long time because of the understanding that a lot have to be put into the training of pastors so as to contribute meaningfully to the growth and stability of the society.

“Many of those you see here have been working on churches without ordination; many of them have acquired knowledge, but we really want to train them as pastors, so that, if the Church of God improves, the society will be better for it,” he said.

Just as people across the world prepare to witness another year, the cleric said the coming year may be a bad experience for the ungodly.

He said for those who look unto the Lord, the coming year will be filled with blessings and uniqueness.

“For those who look unto God, they don’t need to fear any tribulation. Though we don’t know tomorrow, if we know the God who knows tomorrow, then we will be assured that tomorrow will be good,” he said.

Earlier in his message entitled “the New Beginning” Pastor Akinosun urged the newly ordained pastors to start living a new life.

He said as they have received a new training, they must be filled with the Holy Spirit in order to do the work always.

He condemned some pastors who materialistic to the detriment of their ministries and obedience to the Lord.

While congratulating them, he described the ordination as a welcome development.

The CAC President said even though there has been some in the past, this year’s ordination was unique because embargo had been lifted on it.

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THE SOUTHWEST REPORT ‘Tourism as catalyst for economic development’ •Continued from page 34 ing the well-being of the people.

Governor Mimiko further explained that the journey to genuine tourism development for sustainable economic growth began with the institution of Mare Festival six years ago, adding that this was in recognition of the strategic role tourism plays in any country’s economy, even as he also added that culture is a catalyst for a sustainable tourism development and promotion.

According to him, since the inception in 2009, the festival had recorded remarkable successes, as it has attracted national and international patronage while boosting the economic wellbeing of the host community.

He said the Mare Festival has put Idanre, and indeed, Ondo State on the World Tourism map, pointing out that the significant achievement was attained not because the concept and contents of the festival were carefully drawn up to make it appealing to tourists, but as a result of provision of environment that is conducive to economic development.

Governor Mimiko revealed that his administration has identified and elevated some notable community festivals to the status of state festivals to prevent them from going into extinction and to promote tourism that will facilitate economic growth.

In his welcome address, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Tourism, Dr Wanle Akinboboye, commended Governor Mimiko for his passion for the development of tourism in the state.

He urged the people to support the state government in its bid to develop the tourism sector.

•Oba Abolarin in the midst of the pupils

Monarch sets up free school for the poor

M

OTIVATED by the urgent need to revive the waning fortunes of the education sector as well as to provide opportunities for quality education for indigent but brilliant children in Osun State, the Oragun of Oke-Ila, Oba Dokun Abolarin, established the Abolarin College, Ila-Orangun.

As a private initiative, the founder, who recently marked his eight year anniversary as Oragun of Oke-Ila, expressed joy for his dream to “help my rural poor people” became a reality.

The school currently operates from a private residence of the Oragun of Oke-Ila located at Sapakin area of the community.ý The monarch originally built four modern buildings on about one acre of land for his personal comfort but resolved to convert them to temporary site for use of the students carefully selected after an examination that proved their extraordinary brilliance verification about their social backgrounds.

Last month, 35 students; made up of 18 female and 17 male students began academic work in the model school founded on September 24, 2014.

Five best performing students from each public school in Ifedayo, Ila, Boluwaduro and Odo-Otin local government areas participated in the examination conducted

by Babcock University High School in Ilesa and Osun State Education District Office in Ila-Oragun.

After securing admission into the school, the successful students left their homes without any of their personal belongings, except boxes containing their personal dresses.

On resumption, they were lodged into two buildings in the premises that serve as hostels and were given two sets of uniforms, shoes, bed sheets and other items by the proprietor of the school to support their education.

The largest building in the school serves as classrooms, administrative offices and staff rooms. The small building in the far end of the premises is the kitchen where food is prepared for the students and a makeshift dining hall set up with a canopy is on the open space beside the kitchen.

Bursary for students at anniversary •Continued from page 34

•The Abolarin College, Oke-Ila, Osun State.

From Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo

There are two new big power generating sets to serve as alternative power supply in case there is power failure.

For the founder, the Oragun of Oke-Ila had explained that establishment of the Abolarin school was borne out of his passion for education as a tool that liberates families from poverty.

He said: “My vision for establishing the school is to ensure that the rights of a child to education are met, irrespective of his parents’ social status. A child’s future should not be determined by where he is born but his ability ýto put into maximum use the talents that God has given him. Therefore, every child born into this world should be empowered through effective, functional and quality education.”

Oba Abolarin maintained that the school was designed to bridge the alarming gap between the quality education being provided for the children of the rich and the poor.

The monarch further said the school, no doubt, will promote peace in the rural communities, love and stability in Nigeria. Oba Abolarin, who said; “white pap is made from the black pot,” revealed that the school’s core values are respect, responsibility, kindness and honesty.

Continuing, Oba Abolarin said: “I set up the school not for personal aggrandisement but to help my poor subjects whose children are brilliant. I was inspired by the

Owaloko, Oba Oladele Olasore. I also saw an educational institution in Ngomoto near Arusa in Tanzaniaý.

All these inspired me to replicate the idea in my domain.

“All my life, even before I became king, I lived in cities like Ibadan, Ife, Lagos and Abuja; but I kept reminding myself that I am in Oke-Ila, a rural community, not for myself but to help the poor people there.

“For the eight years that I have been on the throne, I have passion for the well-being of the poor but my resources are very limited. I am always looking and appealing to public-spirited individuals, who share my vision for the rural and poor people, to support me. My people and the community are yearning for development but there is no synergy between the elite and the rural poor.

“The poor people have been abandoned for far too long. So, I always seek how to help my rural poor. I wonder when people spend money freely on frivolous things.

I always wish they could spare some of the money to help my poor people.

“My generation owe this nation so much. So, I don’t like hearing people say, in our time, we had this and that but what are we giving back to the society? I got students loan which some people did not refund. We got bursary. But now is the time to pay back. My generation and the first generation of students of the University College, Ibadaný must pay back. It is in our

PHOTO: ADESOJI ADENIYI

interest to take care of the poor because if we fail to so do, they won’t allow our children to enjoy peace.

“So, we have sustenance through God and the people around. In this school, we are teaching the kids how to be responsible and how to make use of the opportunity they now have. We also teach them to do same for those coming behind them. It is God’s project. This is the greatest thing happening to me lately. As a teacher, I have made people. At the defunct Oyo School of Arts and Science, Ife and St. Andrew College, Oyo, I had demonstrated passion for developing people, particularly youths.”

The Principal of the school, Chief Adeniyi Fawole, who is the Obale of Oke-Ila, said one of the strengths of the institution was that students are encouraged to practise their various religions but in a liberal manner. Fawole, who retired as a school principal, was engaged to provide quality leadership for the model school. He said: “To make them self-reliant, they would soon start producing their own food. In the anthem and prayer, they are taught to be kind and serve others.”

The English language teacher/ House Mistressy of the school, Miss Nwandieze Victoria from Abia State, did her National Youths Service in Oke-Ila last year but said she saw a lot of things in Oba Abolarinwa that made her decide to stay and support the children in the community.

sion”.

The primary concern of the club which was founded in 1974, according to the president of the club, is to foster peace, unity, progress and development of the collective heritage of Epe division.

Razak called on well-meaning individuals and “illustrious sons and daughters of Epe” to partner with the club in confronting the hydraheaded challenges of Epe division which include lack of power supply; need for economic empowerment of the teeming youths; establishment of companies and factories; creation of job opportunities and provision of vocational training.

“I also appeal to all political leaders, your royal majesties and the government of Lagos State to put in place all necessary machinery that will enable Epe division to access and enjoy its rightful place and opportunities like every other division in the state,” Razak said.

He revealed that the club has attained so many achievements in the last 40 years of its existence. These, he said, include construction of club house; construction of club restaurant; acquisition of two plots of land; award of bursary to indigent students of Epe division in tertiary institutions in the last 20 years; intervention in the resolution of communal disputes within Epe; creation of an advocacy front for government intervention and political office holders’ contributions towards the growth of Epe division, among others.

The club gave 53 students of Epe origin in different tertiary institutions bursary award of N25, 000 each as part of its activities to mark the 40th anniversary.

37

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

THE NATION INVESTORS

Bearish market upsets companies’ capital raising plans

T

HE downtrend at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) is holding up activities at the primary market as many companies that had planned to float new offer and raise new funds fear the continuing decline might undermine the attractiveness of their offers.

The stock market opened this year, on Monday, with a loss of N241 billion, representing average decline of 2.1 per cent on the first trading day of the year. Equities had lost an average of 16.14 per cent in 2014, with several equities posting substantially higher losses.

Market sources in know of ongoing supplementary issuance plans said the downtrend has forced many companies to review their capital raising programmes.

Analysts at FBN Capital also said the bearishness at the secondary market might have adverse effect on the primary market as companies may delay their impending offers.

Market sources said some companies were favourably disposed to delaying their new issues because of the significant undervaluation of their fundamentals by the losing spree.

They cited a leading energy group that had opened its application for a rights issue but now trading substantially below its rights price.

Companies that had indicated in-

Stories by Taofik Salako

terests in raising new equity funds included Access Bank Plc, Sterling Bank, Presco, Vitafoam, RT Briscoe and Cement Company of Northern Nigeria. Access Bank has already filed its offer documents with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for statutory review and approval.

UBA has launched a rights issue of N13 billion at N4 per share, marginally above its opening price of N4.32 yesterday. Access Bank’s share price dropped by 3.33 per cent to N6.38 on the first day of trading at the NSE. Sterling Bank, which had recently held an extraordinary general meeting on a planned new issue, also dropped by 4.72 per cent to close the first trading day at N2.42 per share. Sterling Bank plans to raise about N50 billion in a new round of capital raising. It plans to raise about N20 billion through a special placement to identified strategic investors and more than N30 billion in another yet-to-be-specified instrument.

According to the resolution at the extraordinary general meeting, the bank plans to issue about 7.472 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at N2.65 per share to Messrs.

Silverlake Investments Limited or such other identified strategic inves-

tor.

In another resolution, the board of the bank sought to raise additional capital up to $200 million or its equivalent in Naira. The fund could be raised through any or a combination equity, global depository receipts, quasi equity, convertible loans, medium term notes, bonds and any other debt instrument.

Presco Plc, which had initially indicated it planned to raise some N3 billion at a price of N35 per share opened yesterday at the NSE at N24.50 per share, significantly lower than its proposed offer price.

Several analysts’ reviews on the Nigerian banking sector have outlined capital raising as a major theme for the Nigerian banking sector, citing new regulations and emerging business opportunities.

The Nation had earlier reported that banks might raise some N400 billion in the current capital raising phase to strengthen their capital base in view of the impending implementation of the Basel II. The Basel II is the second global standards of capital adequacy issued by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision under the auspices

of the Basel, Switzerland-based Bank for International Settlements (BIS), the oldest international financial organisation that coordinates central banks and standards for the international financial markets.

The Basel Committee has issued three sets of the global standards including Basel I, Basel II and Basel III, which increased and stricter capital risks and exposure management requirements from one level to another.

Basel II seeks to strengthen banks’ risk and capital management through three main areas, otherwise known as pillars. The first pillar deals with minimum capital requirements, the second pillar deals with supervisory review process while the third pillar deals with processes relating to market discipline.

The pillars ensure that the greater the risk to which a bank is exposed, the greater the amount of capital and required supervisory framework.

After initial delay, Nigeria has set October 2015 as the cut-over date for the implementation of Basel II. Investment banking sources had indicated that many banks have started the process of raising funds, a new level of activities that is ex-

pected to increase the momentum of the phase of fund raising, which gathered pace in 2013.

Several pundits in the know of undercurrents in the capital market indicated that banks might raise some N400 billion to boost their capital base and strengthen their compliance level in view of the stricter requirements under Basel II. According to the sources, although the average capital adequacy ratio in the banking industry is high and most banks are above regulatory benchmark, banks might need to, support their adequacy ratios, which are expected to fall after the cut-over.

The sources indicated that banks might combine debt and quasi-equity instruments with outright equity issues with focus on both tier I and tier II capital.

Head, Research and Investment Advisory, Sterling Capital Markets, Mr. Sewa Wusu, however, said in as much as the changing price dynamics at the NSE will affect pricing of new issues, some offers may come at premium to the market prices since the prices were based on fundamental valuation.

Investors wait for Vitafoam’s VITAFOAM Nigeria Plc will dividend soon announce its dividend for cent to N4.34 billion as against N3.95

V

the immediate past year, according to the company’s traditional payment pattern.

Directors of the foam-manufacturing company had met late last month to consider the financial and operational reports of the foam-manufacturing company. One of the top agenda for the meeting was consideration of the appropriate dividend to be recommended for payment to shareholders.

At the meeting, the board was scheduled to consider and approve the audited financial statements of the company for the year ended September 30, 2014.

Vitafoam had announced its dividend for the year ended September 30, 2013 in January 2014, sustaining a cycle of regular payment and general meeting.

The meeting had also considered the date, time and venue for the annual general meeting as well as closure and payment dates for the dividend recommendation.

Vitafoam Nigeria has almost predictable pattern. It has been holding its annual general meeting around Ikeja, within the vicinity of its head office. It has also retained its dividend payment rate, in spite of stunted earnings.

While the details of the earnings are still not available, there are strong indications that the company will sustain its unbroken dividend payment record.

For the past four consecutive years, the company has distributed annually N246 million as cash dividends to shareholders. Usually, shareholders would receive a dividend per share of 30 kobo for the business year.

Audited report and accounts of Vitafoam Nigeria for the year ended September 30, 2013 had indicated that sales rose by 12.8 per cent but pre and post tax profits dropped by 22.5 per cent and 18.2 per cent respectively. The largest growth on the profit and loss accounts remains finance expenses, which rose by about 40 per cent. With basic earnings per share dropping from 61 kobo to 50 kobo, the retention of the 30 kobo dividend payout cut dividend cover from 2.03 times to 1.67 times. This downtrend is also evident in the underlying returns and profitability of the company.

Group’s total sales closed 2013 at N16.34 billion compared with N14.48 billion recorded in 2012. Cost of sales however rose by 16.4 per cent from N9.34 billion to N10.87 billion. Gross profit thus inched up by 6.3 per cent from N5.14 billion to N5.47 billion. Total operating expenses rose by 9.8 per

billion in previous year. Distribution cost had increased from N945.19 million in 2012 to N955.83 million in 2013 while administrative expenses rose from N3.0 billion to N3.38 billion. Noncore business income increased by 13 per cent from N146 million to N165 million. However, finance expenses jumped by 39.7 per cent to N661 million as against N473 million in previous year. With these, profit before tax dropped by 22.5 per cent from N813 million to N630 million. After taxes, net profit dropped by 18.2 per cent to N410 million in 2013 compared with N502 million in 2012.

Underlying ratios showed similar outlook. Gross profit margin dropped to 33.5 per cent as against 35.5 per cent in 2012. Profit before tax margin also dipped to 3.9 per cent compared with 5.6 per cent in previous year. Average return on total assets declined from 7.9 per cent to 6.3 per cent while average return on equity dropped from 17.2 per cent to 13.2 per cent.

U

•From left: Mr Haruna Jalo- Waziri, Executive Director, Business Development, Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE); Sidney Onoriode Esiri (Dr Sid), Recording Artist, Mavin Records, Ms Tinuade Awe, Head, Legal and Regulation Division, NSE at the NSE's year-end closing gong ceremony in Lagos.

Why we are raising new equity funds, by UBA

NITED Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc would use the net proceeds of its ongoing rights issue to finance its business development plan aimed at further entrenching the bank as the leading bank in Africa.

UBA is raising funds from existing shareholders through a rights issue of one for 10 ordinary shares held as at October 15, 2014. The offer price is N4, a discount of 7.0 per cent to the bank’s opening share price of N4.30 at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) on Monday. Application for the rights issue, which opened on December 29, 2014, will close on February 5, 2015.

Regulatory filing on the rights issue indicated that the bank would use the net proceeds of the N13b rights issue to strengthen its business units across Africa.

UBA had in 2013 launched a new business development plan aimed at consolidating the bank’s position as a leading pan-African global financial services group. The threeyear business development plan codenamed Project Alpha was designed as the group’s next focus of strategic transformation and it contained key transformation initia-

tives.

Group managing director, United Bank for Africa (UBA), Mr. Phillips Oduoza, said the new business plan was designed to consolidate the group’s strategic positioning and fully capture the opportunities from Africa’s economic renaissance.

According to him, Project Alpha is focused on leveraging all aspects of the group’s footprint, product offerings and operational capability, allowing a commitment to customer service transformation, market share growth, the implementation of key e-banking initiatives across all segments, the growth of corporate and trade finance capabilities.

He outlined that a critical aspect of the Project Alpha initiative is the focus on UBA Africa, which is projected to contribute about 50 per cent to the group by 2016.

He pointed out that Project Alpha will allow the bank to build on the existing strengths of its franchise as well as continue to reinvent ourselves, ensuring it captures and delivers the maximum of value for all stakeholders.

UBA has shown resilience in spite

of the regulatory headwinds in the banking sector. It grew its top-line by 12 per cent to about N211 billion in third quarter 2014 as the bank’s core banking operations further stimulated overall performance.

Key extracts of the interim report and accounts of the bank for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2014 showed that interest income grew by 12.5 per cent, nudging the bank’s gross earnings by 12 per cent to N210.7 billion.

The bank had recorded gross earnings of N188.02 billion in the comparable period ended September 2013.

Interest income had risen from N132.76 billion recorded in third quarter 2013 to N149.41 billion in 2014. Net interest income also rose from N78.16 billion to N81.96 billion. Operating income increased to N138.39 billion in 2014 as against N129.87 billion.

Oduoza said the growth in gross earnings reflected the increasing business activity across the bank’s operations.

According to him, the bank has been supporting businesses and

institutions with the finance they need to exploit emerging opportunities on the continent.

He noted that the operating income of N138 billion for the ninemonth period to 30 September, 2014 represented a 6.6 per cent increase over the corresponding period of last year, showing the strong underlying operating efficiency of UBA business globally, and the capacity of the business to remain profitable. The bank made a profit before tax of N42.54 billion and a profit after tax of N33.6 billion for the period.

According to him, as a proactive bank, UBA has adequately resourced and re- aligned its structures to optimise emerging opportunities arising across all the regional blocs, while also adopting appropriate risk management frameworks to mitigate likely exposures in its operations both within the local and global environment.

“We will adopt a very aggressive approach to market and ensure focused implementation of our strategic priorities, to drive achievement of our corporate targets,” Oduoza added.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

38

THE NATION

BUSINESS P ENSION

CPS contributors hit 6.196m C

ONTRIBUTORS under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) increased from 6,090,301 in the first quarter of 2013 to 6,196,956 in the second quarter of last year,National Pension Commission (PenCom) has said.

This is an increase of 1.75 percent.

In a survey, it said at the end of the second quarter, the total value of pension assets stood at N4.49 trillion from N4.2 trillion recorded in the first quarter, an increase of N281.5 billion or 6.69 percent.

The increase in scheme memberships, according to the statistics, was explained by Retirement Saving Account (RSA) holders; it accounted for a proportional contribution of 98.94 percent of total pension scheme memberships during the second quarter.

Approved Existing Schemes (AES) and Closed Pension Fund Administrators (CPFA) accounted for the balances of 0.66 and 0.40 percent. The total memberships of CPFA and AES were 24,622 and 44,351.

•PenCom ranks PFAs on market share, others Stories by Omobola Tolu-Kusimo

Analysis of total RSA registrations for both public and private sectors shows that total RSA registrations increased by 1.77 percent from 6,024,599 in the first quarter.

The private sector recorded highest number of RSA registrations at 3,121,262, accounting for 50.91 percent of registrations.

The public sector also witnessed an increase in RSA membership as registrations marginally increased from 2,994,562 in the first quarter to 3,010,106, representing an increase of 0.52 percent.

In all, the public sector accounted for 49.09 percent of total RSA registrations at the end of the quarter under review.

Analysis of the age distribution of RSA holders shows that RSA holders ranging from 30 to 39 accounted for the highest proportion of registrations in the second quar-

ter at 39.39 percent. The age category 49 and below accounted for 77.96 percent of RSA contributors.

The report further showed RSA registrations by Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) market share.

It showed that PenCom categorised performance of PFAs into top three, five and 10 PFAs; there are also bottom three, five and 10.

The ranking of PFAs by some registered contributors shows increases in the shares of the top three, five and 10 PFAs as the shares increased from 45.44, 62.39 and 87.30 percent in the second quarter to 46.68, 63.78 and 87.77 percent.

However, while the share of the bottom three and five PFAs decreased marginally by 0.01 percent, those of bottom 10 PFAs decreased by 0.47 per cent.

A review of the range of market share of RSA registrations by

some PFAs shows that 75 percent of the PFAs have less than 500,000 RSAs in their portfolio.

Four PFAs had between 500,000 and one million RSAs under them.

One PFA, however, has over one million RSAs under it.

The ranking of PFAs by total contributions shows that the top three PFAs accounted for 47 percent of contributions. Similarly, the top five PFAs accounted for 62.77 percent of all contributions received in the same period.

The analysis further shows that while the bottom three PFAs accounted for 0.26 percent of all contributions, the bottom five PFAs accounted for 1.20 percent of total contributions.

Similarly, a review of PFAs’ rank by size of RSA assets shows that the top three, five, and 10 PFAs accounted for 45.37, 62.23 and 87.07 percent of total RSA assets.

The bottom five and 10 PFAs, showed some improvements in the

•PenCom DG, Mrs. Chinelo Anohu-Amazu

proportional share of pension assets under their management as the share for the bottom five PFAs increased by 2.18 percent, while that of the bottom 10 increased to 12.93 percent.

Japan pension fund enters new era

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•From left: Executive Director, Technical, Lagos State Pension Commission, Mrs. Folashade Onanuga; Chairman, Mr. Wahab Dabiri; Hussain and Executive Director, Finance and Investment, Dr. Adekunle Wright, during the 15th Retirement Bond Certificate presentation in Lagos.

Lagos to implement 18% pension increment

L

AGOS State Government has assured its workers that it will soon implement the increment in monthly contributions of both employers and employees from 15 per cent to 18 per cent.

The Pension Reform Act 2014 mandates employers under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) to contribute 10 per cent of emoluments monthly while employees contribute eight per cent.

Director-General, Lagos State Pension Commission (LASPEC), Rotimi Adekunle Hussain, spoke at the 15th Bond presentation.

He said the Commission paid 243 retirees N1.54 billion before the CPS took off the state in 2007.

He said so far, the government had paid into the Retirement Savings Accounts (RSA) of 5, 773 retirees under the CPS a total N30.48 billion.

On the increment, Hussein explained that LASPEC was studying the new law to propose some amendments to the Lagos State Pension Reform Law 2007.

•Pays retirees N1.54b benefits He said this would be sent to the state House of Assembly.

To further underscore the government’s commitment to the scheme, he said the monthly deduction of 7.5 per cent from the salary of every employee and the counterpart 7.5 per cent contribution by the state government had been paid.

He said: “The joint contribution has grown to the tune of N55.58 billion. It is thus a thing of joy that the present administration is leaving behind a legacy worthy of emulation by subsequent administrations in the state.

“In a clear departure from what obtained in the old scheme, the beneficiaries are enjoying their retirement benefits under the CPS without any rancour or stress.

The feedback we get regularly about the well-being of our retirees show that they are enjoying their retirement peacefully as all the Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) and insurance companies usually remit pension en-

titlements into their respective accounts at least by the 25th day of each month.’’

He continued: “The CPS, which is being operated at both federal and state levels, is aimed at righting the wrongs associated with the Pay-As-You-Go Scheme. It is interesting that for the past 10 years of the existence of the new scheme, there has not been any case of fraud, embezzlement or misappropriation of funds. The Pension Reform Act 2004 which was recently amended with the Pension Reform Act 2014 comes along with a lot of improved benefits for workers and assurances of better future in retirement.”

Hussain urged its workers and residents of voting age to vote for the right candidate at the next general election.

He noted that the state has continued to be the leading light not only in the administration of pension benefits but in good and credible governance.

HEN Takahiro Mitani’s term as head of the world’s largest retirement fund finishes in March, so too will the old era of Japanese pension management.

The former Bank of Japan official saw his power ebb during a five-year reign at the $1.1 trillion Government Pension Investment Fund, as Prime Minister Shinzo Abe took office with the goal of overcoming deflation. Mitani, 65, will be the last person to wield sole control of a bond-heavy GPIF after the biggest overhaul in the fund’s history.

Abe, 60, has reshaped government by putting his own people in positions of power at institutions across the nation. Mitani, who watched Masaaki Shirakawa get replaced at the BOJ and proponents of Abenomics surround him at the fund, acquiesced to the new order after months of resistance. The GPIF he leaves has less reliance on domestic debt, a broader asset mix and plans to revamp governance.

“The wind has blown in a certain direction, and Mr. Mitani belongs to an era that has probably passed,” Jonathan Allum, a London-based strategist at SMBC Nikko Capital Markets Ltd., said by phone Dec. 10. “His background is at the BOJ, from an earlier period of its history,” he said “It was time to change.”

Mitani became the public face of that shift at an Oct. 31 press conference. As cameras rolled and flashed in a rented conference room

in Tokyo’s Roppongi area, he bowed, introduced himself, and spoke into seven microphones. Finally, Japan is heading for “appropriate inflation,” he said, explaining why the fund would put half its assets into equities and slash local debt to 35 percent of holdings from 60 percent.

Govt Push

Mitani took over GPIF in 2010 with no experience in the asset management industry, a staff of about 70 people and a pay packet worth 17.46 million yen ($145,330) for his first year.

With prices in Japan decreasing for more than a decade, holding 68 percent of assets in local debt fit with the pledge he made to gain the public’s trust through safe and efficient investment.

That changed soon after Abe came to power. In April 2013, Haruhiko Kuroda announced record stimulus just weeks after Abe put him in charge of the central bank. Stocks soared, the yen slumped and in May consumer prices stopped falling.

By November, the BOJ’s preferred measure of inflation was climbing at an annual pace of 1.2 percent. Mitani faced a public attack on his investment strategy, with a report commissioned by Abe painting a picture of a badly run fund that was out of step with the times.

•Culled from Bloomberg

Steve Webb threatens law to end pension’s rip-off

S

TEVE Webb, the Pensions Min ister, has told The Telegraph he is ready to change the law to force pension firms to end rip-off fees if they fail to scrap “jaw dropping” charges of up to three per cent yearly.

Pensions companies have been told they must draw up urgent plans to end “jaw dropping” charges to more than a million customers, after a major report found £26 billion worth of savings is at risk from rip-off fees.

Webb, the Pensions Minister,

said he was ready to change the law to stamp out high charges if companies responsible fail to take action as he was not prepared to wait for them to give customers a better deal.

He will be calling representatives from the major pension companies to urgent talks in the New Year in an attempt to reach a voluntary solution.

But firms that refuse to end the charges will be named and shamed and will face new laws to protect customers’ retirement savings from the “shocking” fees, he warned.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

39

SMALL BUSINESS AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP Essiet_daniel@yahoo.com 08180714151 This is the story of a young entrepreneur, who is making it big because of his courage and determination, DANIEL ESSIET reports.

Here comes the charcoal merchant C

HIEF Executive, The Thy Global Investment Limited, Ismail AbdulAzeez, owns a thriving agro export business in Sango Ota in Ogun State. The business started in 1999.

About 15 years later, it has become a multi-million naira enterprise, employing no fewer than 50 Nigerians working as pickers, quality controllers and helpers.

The story of AbdulAzeez is that of a man that rose from ragsto-riches story.

An accountant by training, life was indeed difficult for him when he first started. He began by strutting the streets of Lagos in search of a job.

When his efforts did not pay off, he, resorted to picking snails on the roads to eke out a living.

He never had a dream of starting a business that would grow in a short time.

From picking snails, he started a new business changed the course of his life. The demand for snails helped him to tap into a market capable of generating high profit even with little financial outlay.

With market insight, AbdulAzeez reared giant African snails, which could grow up to 20 cm (7.9 inches). At harvest, he sold to a number of luxury hotels and high-class restaurants making good money.

Gradually, the business of snails farming appeared to him a venture that could help young entrepreneurs climb their way out of poverty. From snails, his dream of becoming a successful businessman was realised.

At the small business grew, he sought and found additional training on different sustainable

•Charcoal

small and medium enterprises, this time in grass cutter farming.

This became his next destination. He eventually moved into beekeeping and then food stuff exports.

So far, it has been a very long journey, working on different business ventures. But in all, the success of his agro exports business has helped him to address the big hurdle of securing capital. His story of success is unusual. But his struggle is common to many of Nigeria’s entrepreneurs. Chiefly, agro exports has given him a giant leap.

Thanks to trade liberalisation and the spiralling

•AbdulAzeez

demand for agro exports which are sourced from most parts of the country.

As his business empire grew, he was attracted to the lucrative business of charcoal export.

According to him, the huge demand for charcoal is informed by its used in food grilling and bakery.

Europeans and Americans, he explained, generally look forward to having family picnics and on-site barbeques adding that this trend has contributed to the demand for charcoal.

As a result, he takes advantage of this to export to meet the needs of the coming spring and summer seasons.

Today, the venture is his biggest money spinner and he is

one of the country’s leading exporters of charcoal.

Within the last few months, foreign buyers have come to trust the quality of his products, convinced that he offers them nothing but the best. He advises Nigerians to use the opportunity of increasing charcoal import to make money. For him, charcoal is not a business that requires more time to make profit.With an investment of N800, 000, one could make a profit of N300,000 within 40 days.

The initial challenge for new exporters is how to source charcoal because supplies come from as far as Mokwa in Niger State.

Using his own resources, AbdulAzeez has established a central depot at Sango Otta where suppliers bring in charcoal in large quantities. There, the raw charcoal are separated, graded and packaged for export.

That takes a big burden for those who don’t have time to travel to as far as Kogi State to source for the commodity.

He has taken his business to the next level by engaging farmers and other Nigerians to produce charcoal at various forests, one initiative to help to increase and enhance economic growth within the forest zones.

While he has resorted to training more Nigerians to become charcoal exporters, AbdulAzeez is happy to see the business blossom.

He said the project with a vision of improving the livelihood of Nigerians has come this far, increasing hope for young people seeking empowerment through business opportunities.

Against all odds a woman entrepreur’s venture is growing in leapt and bounds reports DANIEL ESSIET.

A

FFIONG Williams, 28-year old Chief Executive/ Founder, Reel Fruit, Lagos, has demonstrated the power of grit and determination to succeed in business. Despite the many hurdles encountered, she has been able to build a food processing business in Nigeria.

She started Reel Fruit three years ago as a snack and beverage company that focuses on locally made and packaged products.

She said: ”My decision to launch Reel Fruit in 2012 was borne out of my decision to venture into the agribusiness sector. I believe that agriculture has huge untapped potential both in wealth and job creation. I am motivated by the possibility that I can change lives and create employment and wealth for myself and others.”

Today, she is one of the nation’s entrepreneurial success stories and the owner of a thriving fruit juice processing business.

However, her entrepreneurial journey was not an easy one.

She obtained a BSc degree in Physiology and Psychology in South Africa, and followed up with a diploma in business management. While South Africa, her thoughts were exploring the huge potential in the nation’s agriculture sector which has not been explored.

Consequently, she decided to quit her job in South Africa and return to Nigeria to start a business full time.

On her return, she did a research and found that she could start a fruit juice processing company and

Her road to success

•Williams

make it big time.

However, the venture was capital-intensive and would require more funds than she could raise at the time.

Having realised this, she decided to start small, though still having her mind on the big dream by providing dried fruit snacks as a healthy option to unhealthy snacks; this was the beginning of producing the Reel Fruit product.

Her home kitchen became the launch pad. “I decided to start with my savings. My first cost was applying for registration from the relevant authorities for my products and doing market testing which was around N600, 000. I later invested more money to buy packaging and started sales,” she said.

She targeted her product at health conscious consumers interested in healthier lifestyles and wants to consume healthier products.

Before she knew it, she found a hole in the market and launched the product.

Having a business background, Miss Williams deployed her expertise to build the brand.

Initially, she faced several chal-

lenges, which she considered ‘the many percularities of doing business in Nigeria.’ She discovered that projects such as hers take a longer time before they can be executed, too many expenses, poor infrastructure and the challenge of getting the right human capital.

To survive, she became more patient and opened to ideas on how to achieve success. She has also learned to be more confident. “Everything takes more time and more work than expected. I have also learned to expect a little and big miracles and luck along the way, “she added. However, despite these early challenges, the local market responded positively to her product and she could see her dream being realised.

Since then, the business has been growing. Over time, she has become very savvy as a business woman and determined to improve on her efforts to maximise profit.

But how much is the business worth now? She wouldn’t reveal it. She said: “I cannot reveal our business’ value as we are currently

‘I decided to start with my savings. My first cost was applying for registration from the relevant authorities for my products and doing market testing which was around N600, 000. I later invested more money to buy packaging and started sales’

raising funds to expand, but I will say that our growth in the last year has been 400 per cent of our previous year. We have seen quite good growth, launched new products in the market, and we have acquired some large customers. I am hoping that we would continue to drive growth.”

She said the corporate values that drive the business are rooted in a long term vision to change lives by making Nigerian products appeal to global standards that could be sold anywhere in the world.

Currently, the company has 10 employees. However, by the end of this year, she hopes to grow the number to 30 when her expansion programme might have been completed.

She has been able to secure grants from friends and family. She has also won two grants. “That money has allowed us to expand our product range, get office space, expand our sales team and grow our company,” she said.

With success, her life has changed.

“I will say that my life has much more meaning. I have realized that building a large, profitable agribusiness is my life’s purpose, and I wake up every morning intended on achieving that goal. I can withstand many challenges because I am certain of my life’s path.”

Chief Executive, Reel fruit was a winner of Women in Business Challenge in 2014. She used the money of the competition to develop new products; one is a fruit drink, while the other is a cashew product called snack-pack.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

40

BUSINESS INTERNATIONAL

Analysts cautious as Euro shows early dive

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HE euro is starting 2015 with a tumble against the dollar, raising the prospect that for a second year analysts weren’t bearish enough in their forecasts.

In only its third trading day, the single currency has slumped below the median of more than 50 strategist estimates in a Bloomberg survey for both the first and second quarters. Falling as much as 1.2 per cent today and grazing $1.18, their target for yearend, the euro touched its weakest since March 2006. Should it close below that level this week, trading patterns suggest the euro-dollar pair, the world’s most-traded, could reach the 2005 low of $1.1640.

The moves add to the euro’s biggest annual decline since 2005 amid speculation the European Central Bank is closer to starting large-scale government bond purchases, while the Federal Reserve

prepares to raise interest rates from a record low near zero.

ECB President Mario Draghi last week gave his strongest hint yet that quantitative easing could be imminent, saying policy makers must act against the risk of deflation.

“We’re basically plumbing closeto-decade lows now, and I think the likelihood is that we see a continued breakdown,” a strategist at Citigroup Inc. in Singapore, Todd Elmer, said by phone today. “When you look at consensus forecasts for the euro, they likely are underestimating the downside.”

Elmer sees United States dollar strength contributing more to the depreciation in the exchange rate this year than last year. Intercontinental Exchange Inc.’s Dollar Index, which measures the U.S. currency against major peers, rose to its strongest level since December 2005 today.

Citigroup joined Barclays Plc as

the most bearish forecaster of the euro for end-2015, predicting a drop to $1.07, a level unseen since April 2003.

Strategists were too timid with their call for a decline in 2014 to $1.28. The single currency was at $1.1934 at 10:28 a.m. in New York and touched as low as $1.1864. It slid 12 percent last year to $1.2098.

“The euro was so close to such a keenly watched round number as $1.20 that we didn’t need any fresh news to tip us over the cliff today, it just needed a little bit of a nudge,” Sean Callow, a currency strategist at Westpac Banking Corp. in Sydney, said by phone.

“Even so, the scale of the move was still surprising. It was pretty wild.”

The euro-dollar pair accounts for almost a quarter of all trades in the $5.3 trillion a day currency market, according to the latest triennial survey by the Bank for International Settlements in Basel, Swit-

zerland.

Today’s Economic data forecast is expected to show euro-area consumer prices dropped 0.1 percent in December from a year earlier, the first decline since 2009, while the U.S. unemployment rate fell to 5.7 percent, the lowest since June 2008.

“There’s a triple whammy of events that look set to trip up the single currency,” Steve Barrow, head of Group of 10 strategy at Standard Bank Plc in London, wrote in a client note today, referring to the inflation report, possible asset purchases by the ECB and a snap election in Greece. The euro will drop to $1.10 in the next 12 months, and much of that decline could come in early 2015, Barrow said.

Adding additional uncertainty to the euro-area outlook, Greece began an election campaign that polls indicate may see victory for the

anti-austerity Syriza party this month, potentially jeopardizing the country’s place in the currency union.

If the euro closes under $1.18 this week, that would take it below a descending trend channel stretching back to July, and would herald a drop to as low $1.1640, according to Yusuke Fujishima, a senior manager for currency and financial product trading at Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corp.

The euro last week formed a bearish pattern on its weekly candlestick chart called a black closing marubozu — meaning shaven-headed monk in Japanese — which has a long colored bar with an upper shadow but no lower one.

“This is an extremely strong sign of further euro weakness,” Fujishima said today by phone from Osaka. “We need to watch the battle for $1.18 very carefully this week.”

Zimbabwe to invest in livestock

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USSIA and Zimbabwe look set to forge ties in the livestock in dustry as a delegation from the Eastern European nation is expected in Harare in the coming weeks to discuss opportunities.

Zimbabwe’s Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Minister, Dr Joseph Made, said: “Very soon we will have a delegation from Russia, exclusively for the livestock sector and it is going to be wide ranging.”

It is thought that the two countries will explore areas including vaccine manufacturing, infrastructure and new technology.

Livestock production in the African

nation is centred on beef, pork and poultry, with its cattle herd increasing by 2.3 per cent to 5.36 million in the 2013/14 season. The poultry sector is also growing, up by 400,000 tonnes in the 2012/13 season.

However, milk production remains below the national demand by a factor of half after several years of hardship in the industry.

Dr Made said Russian investment could be with state-owned companies, such as Cold Storage Company or private arrangements, and looked at how Russia has been instrumental in developing and mechanising the Chinese livestock industry.

Canoe detergent campaign kicks off

P •From left: General Secretary, Golden Club of Ilawe Ekiti, Lucas Owolade; Vice President, Tope Akindele Omoboriowo (turning the sod), Olufemi, Samuel Ojuko, Patrick Orekunrin and Soji Okuwasuyi, and Omotehinse, during the sod turning of the park infrastructure at Ilawe Ekiti.

Group partners RTEAN on park infrastructure

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SOCIO-CULTURAL group, the Golden Club of Ilawe-Ekiti, has partnered the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) to provide park infrastructure at Ilawe Motor Park, in Ekiti Southwest Local Government Area of Ekiti State.

Speaking during the sod turning of the project designed to mark the silver jubilee anniversary of the club, its President, Mr Kolawole Dauda Olufemi, said the project was aimed at bringing succour to travellers that make use of the park. It is also designed to help develop the community.

He said: “We are grateful to God for the opportunity He has given to the members of the club to be alive to mark this 25 years anniversary. Our silver jubilee anniversary celebration seemed to have altered the saying that 20 children cannot play together for 20 years. For us, we have played

By Lucas Ajanaku

together, lived together and passed through the thorns of life unscathed.

Those who defected from the club are all still alive and kicking. We are indeed grateful to God.” He continued: “This project will cost the club hundreds of thousands of naira. We are raising the money from within our individual members. What we have done today is just the sod turning ceremony to herald the project proper. We hope to complete the project first quarter of this year and it will be commissioned by the Alawe of Ilawe, Oba Adebanji Ajibade Alabi.”

RETAN’s General Chairman, Idowu Omotehinse, praised the club for the initiative, adding that it is unique because the club had deemed it fitting to give back to their community.

He said RETAN would continue to support every initiative aimed

at bringing development to the community.

“We are excited at this gesture. It is not about the total cost of the project but the vision behind it. For so long, the drivers and passengers have suffered, standing under the elements (sun and rain) waiting for buses each time they are traveling.

When it rains, there is no shelter for them, same thing happens when there sun. So, for us, this something commendable,” he said.

Branch Chairman of RETAN, Tunde Omoboriowo, also praised the club for what he described as ‘their thoughtfulness,’ adding that it is the harbinger of good things to come.

He said: “We are highly indebted to the club. It is significant to us in the community. We are hopeful that one day, this club will donate buses to us to boost transportation and ease the problems associated with it in the state. We are glad and pray to God to give the group the strength to carry on.”

Z Cussons’ Canoe Detergent brand has begun a regional consumer engagement campaign tagged “Alive with Colour Campaign” to promote the uniqueness of the brand, and demonstrate how it washes coloured clothing and yet preserve the colours.

Speaking at the Ikeja Mall, Lagos, venue of consumer activation, Head of Fabric Care, PZ Cussons Africa Roy C. Ekekwe, emphasised that the purpose of the detergent is to enable consumers live colourful lives.

He said: “The brand is always there to help resolve the constant tension our consumers have to deal with each time they wash and clean

their coloured fabrics.”

The Brand Manager, Canoe Detergent, Gloria Jacobs, explained further that colours are at the heart of what Canoe stands for.

According to her, the brand enjoys quality advantage over other competing brands in the market being the only Nigerian colour care detergent, specially formulated to clean and care for colored clothes.

“Its mild formulation, with soap flakes and Aloe Vera tipping make this possible. Steadily, canoe detergent has enjoyed dramatic patronage from consumers and trade alike,”she explained.

Techno-Quip chief gets award

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MACHINE manufacturer Dr. Samson Makinwa has received the Golden Icon Ambassador Ghana award.

According to the awards orgainiser, Mr Seg Destiny, he was conferred with the award for his contribution to African industrial development.

An engineer, Makinwa is the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Techo-Quip Ltd, an agro allied equip-

ment manufacturer. He has won the best agro processing equipment in Nigeria for 10 years.

His firm produces equipment such as cassava processing machine, yam powder machine, plaintain powder machine, bakery machine, among others.

He is also President, Kingdom of Light Ministries, Lagos.

Egypt pays BG $350m outstanding debt

B

G Group Plc (BG/) received $350 million from the Egyptian government as part of the country’s commitment to pay back outstanding debt to the energy industry.

The payment reduces BG’s domestic receivables balance to about $920 million, the company said in a statement.

Egypt said in last October it would repay $1.5 billion of debt

owed to foreign energy companies with savings from a recent reduction in fuel subsidies and proceeds from a planned bond sale. The country ran up debts to companies including BG and Dana Gas PJSC (DANA) as public finances deteriorated amid the political turmoil following the Arab Spring uprising of 2011.

BG has been impacted by the reduction of LNG exports from Egypt, it said. The Reading, England-based

company lifted only one LNG cargo in the country in 2014. It is investigating options to increase the supply of gas and is working with the government on resolving the outstanding receivable balance.

BG loaded its first LNG cargo at its Queensland Curtis facility in Australia this week. The company expects limited LNG throughput from Egypt in the near term, it said in its third-quarter results.

• Dr Makinwa (left) receiving the award from Destiny.

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THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

Life

43

The Midweek Magazine E-mail:- ozoluauhakheme@yahoo.com

Text only: 08023058761

Save Nigerian languages from extinction – Page 45

Foundation backs corrective surgery

– Page 46

• Adu

Okonkwo pledges support for Ikorodu awards – Page 47

‘At 82, I’m still chasing my dream’ – SEE STORY ON PAGE 44

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

44

The Midweek Magazine

E-mail:- ozoluauhakheme@yahoo.com

‘At 82, I’m still chasing my dream’ Remember Bassey Okon of the popular television drama series, The Village Headmaster? He played pharmacist and dispenser. At 82, Mr Joseph Abiodun Babatunde Adu (JAB Adu) is not retired from acting; he is still chasing his dream production.Adu, who left the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for the stage, says he is still not fulfilled as an actor. He shares his experience as a banker and dramatist with MORIN ADETAYO.

A

T 82, his gait and composure are regal. In fact, there is no missing his identity. Mr. Joseph Abiodun Babatunde Adu, (JAB Adu), popularly known as Bassey Okon of the famous television drama series, The Village Headmaster is an embodiment of a gentleman unlike that hard and serious man at the grocery store at Oja Village.

The man who acted in the television drama as the doctor, dispenser and pharmacist of Oja Village with his impeccable Efik tonguetwisted English-”chei, cheii, cheiii” was also the master of Bonnyface.

At Abeokuta, Ogun State capital, where he resides, meeting him reveals some of the habits of JAB Adu, neatly dressed in shirt and a trousers with three biros in his shirt pocket. When asked about the biros, he simply said in that Queen’s English, “that, oh, one of those things.” He waved his hands the usual way, which brought memories of the past back immediately.

In his usual way, he did not waste time as he settled down for the interview saying, ‘I hope we won’t spend much time.’

JAB Adu started his educational career at the primary section of Baptist Academy, then situated at Oil Mill Street, Lagos when his father, a lawyer clerk relocated from Calabar where he was born. He returned to Popo Aguda, Brazilian Quarters of Lagos. In his words, ‘Brazilian Quarters then was where returnees from Brazil settled’.

He attended St. Gregory’s College, Obalende, Lagos from 1946 to 1951. He noted that his activities at the college were almost nil.

He worked at the British Bank for West Africa (BBWA) now First Bank, Plc. He later travelled to Britain where he studied Banking at the Westminster City College, London and graduated as an Associate of the Institute of Bankers (A.I.B) UK. His passion for drama made him to enrol at Morley College of Drama, South London. He said, ‘I’d always wanted to do drama. In fact, before I left Lagos, I belonged to a theatre group.

The acting bug has already been there and because I didn’t want to disappoint my parents, I did the first thing, read and work as a banker. While working in the bank, I was sent abroad to read banking. I completed the banking, and I did what I wanted to do. I spent the extra years attending a drama college.’

On his return to Nigeria, he worked with the Central Bank of Nigeria. “When I came back, I worked with CBN. It was the period when pioneering activities started in television. NTA was just starting, that was around 1964, NTA was NBC and people like the late Segun Olusola, Christopher Kolade pioneered it,” he added.

On the popular television drama- The Village Headmaster, he recalled that ‘Segun Olusola conceptualised the Village Headmaster and it was an instant hit because it was the first of its kind. Sanya Dosunmu brought the concept into fruition. Sanya was a producer in the Drama Department of NBC Television. I was fortunate to be part of it. I played the role of Bassey Okon, the doctor, dispenser and pharmacist of Oja Village. I was the Efik man at the junction town of Oja. While acting in Village Headmaster, I was also working at CBN. Eventually, the drama aspect of me took an upper hand. I left CBN to go into full time acting.

He disclosed that he was not given the role of an Efik man in Village Headmaster because of his background. He said, “I did not decide the role I was going to play. There were many characters and we were auditioned. I

INTERVIEW was challenged if I could take that role, and I accepted. It was something contrary to expectation, so I was very happy to accept it because it gives me the opportunity to be creative.”

Reflecting on the challenge he faced acting Bassey Okon, he said: “I know as at that time my manner of speaking English was very smooth and it was like, can he speak pidgin English? Would it be easy for me to do so, I accepted it, and I think I did my best. ”I had to leave Central Bank of Nigeria because I had to follow my destiny. My love was drama and that was the major reason for leaving CBN. Though it wasn’t paying much, but I managed to survive. After acting in Village Headmaster for many years, almost 10 years, I think, I decided that I needed to do something of my own. That was what gave birth to the programme - Adio Family in 1978. I conceptualised it and the sponsorship at that time was not an easy task, yet I was able to get sponsor for it.”

Apart from that, JAB Adu wrote and produced - Bisi daughter of the river which he described as a pioneering thing. “In those years, film production was about starting. We have the pioneers such as Francis Oladele, who did Kongi’s Harvest which was the first film that was produced in celluloid in the country. After that, he did another one called Frog in the sun. I know that Sanya Dosunmu also did a film called A dinner with the devil and I decided then that I was going to try my hand at it. I wrote a script and I was lucky to found somebody who believed in the project and financed it,” he recalled.

He noted that the film was not a commercial success because in those days, those who own the cinema houses made most of the money and they ‘gave you about 40 per cent.’

According to him, Bisi daughter of the river may not have been a financially successful film because ‘we didn’t recover the money invested in it but it was very popular.’ It was screened at Metro Cinema, Lagos for over a month and it was a crowd puller. “The cost of producing film on celluloid is prohibitive. Luckily for me, it was M. K. O. Abiola that put the money down for the production and it wasn’t a big sweat for him,” he noted.

He disclosed that he also did some stage drama and worked with JP Clark, and acted in the play The Boat by JP Clark. “I was one of the people directing plays on the stage then and we did skit for BBC called Squandering of riches. Our plays then were at PEC Repertory Theatre at JK Randle Hall, Onikan, Lagos,” he added.

JAB Adu agreed that Nollywood has taken over but said, ‘for me, I’m not totally retired because I’m still chasing my dream.’

When asked what that dream is, JAB replied with a broad smile, “I’m yet to attain

• Adu what I will call my perfect production. You know, I’ve not achieved that yet. There is a word I want to use for that, yes, my master piece. Yes, I’m still pursuing my master piece! I haven’t done that yet.

When prodded what the master piece he is talking about? He replied, “I don’t know.

I can’t give you an insight to it. When I get it, I’ll know. Yes, my master piece, I’m still chasing it. I’ve not got my master piece yet, let’s put it that way.

Though he is more renowned in acting, but his creative pedigree transcends not just acting that he is very well known for. He is a film producer whose production credits include Bisi, Daughter of the River and Adio’s Family which he co-produced with NTA. Based on the Yoruba legend of Olurombi and shot on 35mm on celluloid on location both in Lagos and Badagry, the film threw a challenge to the American and Indian films in the Nigerian cinema circuit because of its production quality and Nigerians’ thirst to see their own people on the cinema screens at the theatres.

One of the lessons of Bisi... was that like Kongi’s Harvest and Things Fall Apart, the crew were both Nigerian and foreign film technicians— an avenue for learning by the local crew members. Bisi, Daughter of the River had a success story in the cinema theatres.

His Adio Family, which dealt with family life, focuses on the efforts of a typical middle-class family in coping with and maintaining a value-oriented upbringing for

‘I had to leave Central Bank of Nigeria because I had to follow my destiny. My love was drama and that was the major reason for leaving CBN. Though it wasn’t paying much, but I managed to survive. After acting in Village Headmaster for many years, almost 10 years, I think, I decided that I needed to do something of my own. That was what gave birth to the programme - Adio Family in 1978. I conceptualised it and the sponsorship at that time was not an easy task, yet I was able to get sponsor for it’

their children and striving for a happy married life between husband and wife.

After acting in the first production of the play The Boat by J.P. Clark, JAB Adu was invited by Prof J. P. Clark and Ebun Clark to be the Director of Plays at the Pec Repertory Theatre at the J.K. Randle Hall, Onikan, Lagos.

He kept the Pec Repertory productive with Our Dear Native Lord, Parcel Post, The Opportunity, Schools Out and the maiden public performance of Clark’s ‘Wives Revolt. When the BBC, TV/NTA co-production of Nigeria: A Squandering of Riches was shot on location in Nigeria, all the sketches were written by JAB Adu and performed at the PEC Repertory.

His acting credits are enormous, particularly with the advent of Nollywood and the Yoruba movies. He adapted late Bode Osanyin’s play Aiyetale directed and produced for UNFPA/Federal Ministry of Health.

He is one of the script writers of the African Radio Drama Association (ARDA) that wrote the radio series titled Rainbow City, which deals with issues of good governance and democracy, accountability and transparency, reproductive health issues and HIV/AIDS. His international radio contribution was with the BBC World Service as a script-writer and actor on their award winning radio drama series — Story Story– Voices from the Market. This programme is popular in Nigeria and many English speaking African countries.

JAB Adu served on a Ministerial Committee to harmonise the functions of the Nigerian Film Corporation and the Nigeria Films and Video Censors Board. He also participated in the development and writing of a BBC WST TV drama series Wetin dey and also acted in it.

The Zuma Film Festival, in 2008 gave the Lifetime Achievement Award to JAB Adu for his contributions to acting, film production and leadership in the creative world of the country.

In 1978, he was awarded the Member of the Order of Niger (M.O.N.), for his contributions to the arts and creativity.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

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The Midweek Magazine

E-mail:- ozoluauhakheme@yahoo.com

Save Nigerian languages from extinction

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On the belief that children will not do well if they learn their mother tongue language, she said. “It’s a myth and a misconception that children will not be able to do well in school if they learn their mother tongue language.

And this is proved in places such as UK. London for example is very multicultural and there are lots of AsiansChinese and Koreans and the children speak three, four and five languages all at the same time. And they are very good at the English and in education as well. It is actually a wrong conception that children will get confused. It’s about teaching them at young age. In fact, in some homes, they don’t teach the children English until they are about two or three years old and then they pick English in school. So, there is a process of doing it that will not confuse a child.”

Already, her book; ÊzÍìn Fie (Audio Book CD), textbook 1 and workbook 1 for children, is among 47 books on Ijaw language that Bayelsa State has launched as part of Ijaw Bebe Tolumo, (Learn Ijaw Languages) programme.

Prior to this time, Ijaw languages were not taught in Bayelsa State.

ANAGING Director Niger Delta Books Limited Mrs Oyintarela Umeri has described language as a vital store of people’s culture and heritage, which must

be preserved and promoted.

She said the task of unlocking languages facing extinction is not that of the government alone, noting that to unlock such languages is for the good of all.

Umeri, who is the founder of Niger Delta Books Limited said ‘unlock these languages is not just for the people who have their heritage in them, but for everybody who is interested in them to foster communication, mutual understanding and respect.’

She spoke on a television programme on Saving Nigerian languages.

“We do not want them to die. But, a lot of our culture and heritage is rooted in the language. If you don’t understand the language, you would not have a clue to the meaning of some of the proverbs. Some of the traditional things and scientific concepts are rooted in the language. Some of them cannot be translated directly into English. Sometimes, if it is translated into English, it loses half the meaning.”

She recalled that time was when Latin was widely spoken by scholars worldwide, but that it has almost disappeared. The same situation, she said, is affecting many languages in Africa and in Latin America countries.

According to her, the publishing initiative was borne out of the realisation that the government cannot do everything alone because the burden is a huge task of saving the languages. She said the focus is not on the Niger Delta languages as over 29 endangered languages listed by United Nations are mainly in the northern part of the country.

“The 29 endangered languages on the UN list are mainly in Bauchi, Taraba and Plateau states. Only a few are in the Niger Delta region. Kiong near Calabar and Defaka in Rivers State are most endangered. So, it’s a national problem that cannot be solved by government alone,” she added.

She dismissed as myth and a misconception that teaching a child many languages will make such a child confused on which to learn. She said that what matters is teaching such a child at young age, citing instances where some homes don’t teach their children English

Group visits the blind

By Nneka Nwaneri

T • Umeri

By Ozolua Uhakheme, Assistant Editor (Arts)

ADVOCACY until they are about two or three years old.

She lamented the lost opportunity to learn her mother tongue-Ijaw at a young age because she grew up in Port Harcourt, Rivers State where speaking refined English or Pidgin was the norm at the detriment of Niger Delta languages.

“I grew up in Port Harcourt up to age 12. I later went abroad for my education. I was in London 21 years. But growing up in Port Harcourt, it was English or Pidgin English spoken on the streets by families most of the time… So, it was a norm in those days. In fact, growing up in the 1980s, we looked down on our mother tongue language, ÊzÍìn. We were considered better if we spoke more refined English than the “vernacular thing.”

HE management and staff of Multimix Academy, led by its Chief Executive Officer, Dr Obiorah Madu has donated noodles, rice, oil and toiletries to the Bethesda Home for the blind and partially impaired in Surulere, Lagos.

The home with about 53 inmates, needsa Brail Machine. The inavailability of the machine affected the result of the students at the last Unified Testiary Matriculation Examination (UTME).

Dr Obiorah said the visit was part of the Academy’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). It was also to expose the plight of the students to their friends and the public to secure help for them.

The academy put smiles on the students’ faces last Christmas. There was wining and dining, a singing and dancing, with entertainment by a band which rendered carol songs.

The management of the home thanked the Academy.

Dr Obiorah encouraged the students to see ability in their disability, citing the blind Nigerian songwriter and muscian, Cobhams Asuquo as a good example, while assuring them that their situation is for a reason ordained by God. “Those who are blind are those who are visionless. Blindness gives focus without distraction.”

He urged the public to help them. according to capacity. No amounts, he said is too small in the bid to buy the Brail machine for them.

Wind of restoration launched

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59-minutes, 9 seconds album, the Wind of Restoration, has been launched in Lagos. The 10 track album, is from the stable of the Holy Ghost Fellowship, Okota, Lagos.

The fellowship Founder, Pastor Tony Mbamali, who is the lead singer described praise and worship as ways of bringing down the presence of God. When His presence is brought down, a lot of good things happen, he said.

Mbamali said the 10 tracks were not ordinary songs, as those who sang it have been given testimonies. He said anywhere the songs are played, the same anointing would flow. The essence of the album is to celebrate Christ noting that though Christians celebrate, the celebration of most does not have eternal value.

He, however, said he should not be seen as a musician but a worshiper because the songs in the album were products of getting caught up in heavenly worships.

The songs, he said, were given to him for a purpose adding that he put them in an album to reach many, including those outside his fellowship.

The first, Mbamali said, celebrates Jesus, adding that, he got the inspiration for the songs while watching a football match. According to him, he was wondering if the same passion

•From left, Pastor Success Ezeokeke, Matthew Olorunnaiye, Pastor Mbamali, and his wife, Angela, during the dedication of the album in Lagos.

BY Toyin Olasinde

MUSIC poured into football is being poured into praising and worshipping God. Mbamali said the third track, which is

the title: Wind of Restoration, came at the time everything seems to be collapsing.

He, noted that despite the challenges, he got an assurance from God that there will be light at the end of the tunnel.

Celebrating Jesus and proclamation of

restoration, he said were the central theme in the album.

Mbamali said each track comes with a peculiar message; so none supersedes the other, though he prefers Halleluiah track.

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THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

The Midweek Magazine

E-mail:- ozoluauhakheme@yahoo.com

Twenty children, who are less than a year old, have udergone cleft palate surgery at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Ikeja. The surgery was sponsored by the Health, Education, Work and Shelter (HEWS) Foundation. OYEYEMI GBENGA-MUSTAPHA reports. explain. The Doctor later told me it was a

forth with the deformity that I felt like running away immediately I set eyes on him. It was the first time I was seeing such a thing as no one has such deformity in my family or his father’s and the doctor at the private hospital where I was delivered at Ijegun, Isheri, asked if I took drugs that were not prescribed for me while the baby was growing; as far as I can recall, I never took any herbs or drugs that was not prescribed.”

For 35-year-old Chioma Okoro, mother of seven-month-old Osinachi, the birth of her son in April was with high hopes.

She said: “I was actually hoping for a daughter since I already have two boys. But when my delivery was over after a normal period of labour at the Ogudu Health Centre in Kosofe Local Government Area of Lagos State, I was not expecting what I behold.

I was shocked when I saw my son after delivery and asked the matron what was wrong with him? She told me it was not something to worry about that the doctor would

problem from the womb; that was all. After two weeks, we were referred to the teaching hospital where it was registered and put on a waiting list for surgery, which we were told would be done anytime.”

Explaining what could have caused the cleft lip palate, a plastic surgeon with LASUTH, Dr. Taiwo Omosebi said: “Cleft lip and cleft palate are birth defects that occur when a baby’s lip or mouth do not form properly. The deformity happens in early pregnancy and a baby can have either a cleft lip or a cleft palate, or both.

“A cleft lip happens if the tissue that makes up the lip does not join completely before birth. This causes an opening in the upper lip. The opening can be a small slit or a large opening that goes through the lip into the nose. It can be on one or both sides of the lip or, rarely, in the middle of the lip. The condition affects both male and female children alike; and it could cause social stigma and psychological problems for the affected child and the family if the condition is not treated.”

Dr Omosebi said: “Scientists believe that clefts are due to a combination of genetic and environmental factors. “There appears to be a greater chance of clefting in a newborn if a sibling, parent, or relative has had the problem. A medication that a mother may have taken during her pregnancy may cause cleft lip and cleft palate. Among them are anti-seizure/anticonvulsant drugs, acne drugs containing Accutane and methotrexate, a drug commonly used for treating cancer, arthritis, and psoriasis.”

Explaining why SPDC lend a helping hand, the representative of the Managing Director of the SPDC, Mrs. Olubunmi Lawson said the multinational company chose to support HEWS because it saw “a partner committed to contributing to the socio-economic development of Nigeria by improving the quality of life of children, young persons, adults and their families.”

The Chief Medical Director of LASUTH, Prof. Wale Oke, who was represented by Dr. Victor Adekunle, said the tertiary hospital has been working with HEWS since 2012 when the foundation came to the rescue of three children who needed extensive hospital care and corrective surgery.

•Aliyu

•Igbinedion

Tourism, Mrs Suzan Gana, said the country’s cultural values encourage hardwork, hence the need for deliberate effort to promote the sector.

Earlier, Mrs Dayo Keshi, the DirectorGeneral, said one of the objectives of the awards was to celebrate Nigerians who had distinguished themselves and contributed to the development of the country’s arts and culture sector.

She said the platform had recognised many eminent Nigerians for their various contributions to the growth of the sector.

According to Keshi, the NCAC Honours Lecture/Awards is tied to the council staff excellence and productivity

award, which aims to encourage and reward members of staff who distinguished themselves in their respective assignments.

Former Minister of Defence, Mr Adetokumbo Kayode said: “The award is a call on us to work harder to develop the sector as a substitute to oil.’’

Kayode, who received the NCAC award for outstanding promoter of culture, solicited the creation of culture industries in all the 774 local government areas in the country.

He said the industries should be such that would assist in reducing the rate of unemployment in the country, thereby boosting the nations economy.

Other recipients include Senator Haliru Dantoro, the Emir of Borgu, for promoting Nigerian culture through festivals; Alhaji Adedayo Salami for promoting culture through Nollywood.

Mr Dayo Adedayo also got an award for promoting culture through photography.

Foundation backs corrective surgery

I

T is an agony for many mothers, who gave birth to babies with deformed faces.

Some parents resign to fate, some

see it as a curse child; and some are troubled by the financial cost of the corrective surgery. Many of such parents with their children have been identified at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Ikeja. And help has come their way, through a philanthropic organisation.

Founder/President of the Health, Education, Work and Shelter (HEWS) Foundation, Mr Remi Adeseun said his organisation came to the parents because they could not afford the costs of the surgery.

Though 29 parents applied on behalf of their children, for the free surgical intervention, 20 were picked.

Aderemi explained the reason for this: “We commenced operation in 2010 and has so far held nine free cleft lip/palate surgery missions. We have learnt some useful lessons over time, so the children were selected on the basis of physical fitness of the babies, and the financial need of their parents. This surgery is carried out in collaboration with the hospital and the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria.”

Sharing her experiences, 28-year-old Olufunmilayo Balogun, the mother of threemonth-old Obaloluwa who was born with upper cleft lip, said: “Although it was not the first time I was seeing such a deformity, I had seen pictures of children born with cleft lip palate in the newspapers and on television but I never thought for one day, it could

•

ADVOCACY happen to me.

“When my son, who happens to be my first, was born and I saw him, I was stunned for words; I cried because I was not expecting it and the doctors had to calm me down, telling me it has remedy. I did not feel too bad afterwards, because I know the problem has a solution. I was just concerned about what people around me would say on seeing the baby. Not many people have seen such a condition, not even my husband; he was seeing it for the first time in our baby and being very supportive himself, he had to search online for the condition and got more information which helped us to overcome the initial emotional stress and gave us hope for a good corrective surgery.”

Fatimah Niniola, 29, is mother to fivemonth-old Awwal Niniola, who is her third child. Sharing her experience she said: “I was really sad and devastated when my son came

Council honours Aliyu, Igbinedion, others

T

HE National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC) has honoured Niger State Governor Babangida Aliyu, a philan-

thropist, Dr Gabriel Igbinedion and five others for their contributions to arts and culture.

Presenting the awards at the 11th NCAC Honours Lecture/Awards Series, the Minister of Tourism, Culture and National Orientation, Chief Edem Duke said the sector was fast becoming the new frontier for the country’s development.

He said: “All over the world, the sector is becoming a preferred sector that has great economic prospect and when fully developed, it can be rated as one of the greatest contributors to national economy.

“Hence, all hands must be on deck to grow the sector into the oil substitute that the country eagerly awaits.’’

Duke said the award was a platform for rewarding hardwork.

He urged the award recipients to use their creativity, talent and expertise to advance the culture industry to meet the transformation agenda of President Goodluck Jonathan.

The minister said the NCAC staff award was a motivational mechanism that could result in improved staff productivity and work place integrity.

“I urge the council to not only keep it up, as a form of encouragement for growth, but to expand it further to cover

From Bukola Amusan, Abuja

AWARD most of the achievers and practitioners in the industry,’’ he said.

Chief Igbinedion, the Esama of Benin, urged Nigerians to think of ways to develop culture and groom the next generation of Nigerians to remain apostles of the country’s culture.

He stressed the need to focus on inspiring the youths and to give them opportunity to discover and develop stronger desire for cultural themes and cultivate the right mindsets and attitudes toward learning.

Igbinedion said the portrayal of ritualism, diabolism in Nigerian movie was erroneous reflection of the culture.

“I want to urge producers of such movies to portray our rich culture instead of the negative aspects,’’ he said.

Governor Aliyu decried the loss of cultural values among youths, calling for a resuscitation of the country’s good cultural values.

Aliyu, who was represented by the state’s Commissioner for Culture and

‘I urge the council to not only keep it up, as a form of encouragement for growth, but to expand it further to cover most of the achievers and practitioners in the industry’

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

47

The Midweek Magazine

E-mail:- ozoluauhakheme@yahoo.com

Ex-UNIBEN bursar wins ANA/Chevron prize

F

ORMER Bursar of the University of Benin (UNIBEN) Prof May Ifeoma Nwoye, has won the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA)/Chevron Prose Prize on the Environment.

Her novel, Oil Cemetery, got $2,000 prize money.

Mrs Nwoye’s works have won and received diverse nominations. In 2004, she was one of the nominees for the NLNG prize for Literature.

The novel highlights people in the Niger Delta region cope with the environmental degradation that has complemented the unearthing of oil wealth in their communities. Published last year by Strategic Book Publishing and Rights Agency, Houston Texas, United States, the story is woven around young girl, Rita and her family. Interestingly, it is the young girl Rita who leads a subtle revolution that would later shock her entire community.

Winning the prize, she said, is a major boost in her writing career. “I feel good that my work was appreciated. As you know, I feel very concerned about the condition of the voiceless people, their feelings and expectations. Human beings are the raw materials with which and about whom I write. so by winning this award, I feel as if I am being listened

By Evelyn Osagie

AWARDS to.For all these, I thank God for his kindness to me,” she said Beyond being an academic and administrator, Nwoye is an advocate that is passionate about children, women, environment and family values. She has become a proactive influence in the crusade for women economic emancipation and empowerment. She is the President of Intervention Council for Women in Africa, a non-profit organisation, and a member of Board of Trustee of the Centre for Population and Environmental Development (CPED).

Her passions are seen in her literary works that spans two decades. Since her first novel, Endless Search (1994), Nwoye has brought forth an impressive collection of 11 novels and short stories. That includes Tides Of Life (a collection of short stories), 1995; MIRAGE in Breaking the Silence (1996); Edible Pet (1995); Blind Expectations (a collection of Stories, 1997); Death By Installments, 1999; A Child Of Destiny, 2000; Fetters And Choices (2003); Ancient Tales From Africa (The Broken Promise), 2009 and Broken Melodies (an international version of Fetters and Choices, 2014).

•From left: Prof Femi Osofisan, Prof Nwoye and Prof Remi Raji

Okonkwo pledges support for Ikorodu Awards

By Toyin Olasinde

AWARDS

•Okonkwo (centre) flanked by members

T

HE 2014 edition of Ikorodu Community Development Awards (ICDA) has received a boost. The Bishop of The Redeemed Evangelical Mission (TREM), Bishop Mike Okonkwo has pledged support to it.

He promised financial assistance to the award.

Okonkwo, who initiated the National Transformation Department (NTD), as a statutory unit of TREM worldwide, made the promise when a team of ICDA visted him.

It was encomiums galore at the meeting, which was called at the instance of the ICDA team from TREM Liberty Centre, Ikorodu to brief him on the progress and successes so far recorded by organisers of the yearly community award.

He praised the efforts of Pastor, Mike Egwu and members of the NTD for blazing the trail among TREM branches worldwide, through the annual award event meant to celebrate deserving individuals, organisations and institutions in Ikorodu community, whose positive impact are visible within and outside the community.

The Bishop said he was impressed that the ICDA award has been organised as a credible platform for the rejuvenation of our eroding societal values and virtues, rather than being used as a platform for generating funds, as being done by many other award organisers.

He reiterated that churches should do more than preaching to their community, but should strive to make indelible impact on the community where they are located. He stressed that a church without visible impact on their immediate environment has done

nothing. He congratulated the ICDA team for the progress they have recorded.

In his remarks, Pastor Mike Egwu, Senior Pastor of TREM Liberty Centre, Ikorodu, appreciated Bishop Okonkwo for his support to the branch.

Earlier, the Director, National Transformation Department, Liberty Centre, intimated Bishop Okonkwo of the efforts of the church in raising the bar of excellence in the society through the Awards. He disclosed that the effort has been yielding positive results by the disposition of residents in the community to the church since the award was first held.

He solicites for the support of Bishop Okonkwo towards the success and sustenance of the laudable community development initiative.

The delegation which was led by Pastor Mike Egwu, included other members of the directorate. Publisher of Owambe magazine and chairman, ICDA Circuit Screening Committee, Mr. Peju Akinyemi represented the screening committee, Dr Idowu Adeyemi and Mr Rotimi Erogbogbo, who are members of the ICDA board of trustees were also there.

Veteran actress, Mrs Sola Onayiga (popularly known as Ireti, in Fuji House of Commotion, won the Art category in the maiden edition of the awards.

No documentary award as In-Short Film Festival ends

T

HE jury for this year’s In-Short International Film Festival has written off entries in the documentary category. It did not award any prize in that category. Eighty-four films from different genres were selected for this year’s festival and 25 were presented for adjudication. It added that the films were proof of the enthusiasm that short films are generating in Africa. The 2014 In-Short International Film Festival (solely dedicated to the promotion of short films), was held at the Oriental Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos.

The three-day event, which was sponsored by Access Bank Plc, was attended by the Director-General Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation, Mrs. Sally Mbanefo, who urged the audience, mainly made up of creative young people, to continue nurturing their talents as they will go very far in life by so doing.

She recalled that as a young girl, she released an album titled: Fine Girl and was part of a band called Brakes. Mrs Mbanefo added that she would be unveiling her paintings, which are more than 170, when

By Ozolua Uhakheme, Assistant Editor (Arts)

FESTIVAL she clocks 50 in 2015. She assured the organisers and participants of her support for the festival.

Founder/Festival Director of In-Short, Victor Okhai, described the film festival as platform for encouraging up-and-coming film-makers, who go ahead to produce and direct sublime films that make waves on MTV Base, Africa Magic, Channel O, Two special awards were conferred on Access Bank Plc for its CSR programmes and on Mr. Shaibu Husseni, a film journalist, for his unflinching support for African cinema.

Best Sound The Strangers Best Cinematography The Strangers Best Screenplay Alpha Mum

Best Editing Leeway Best Visual Effects Leeway Best Actor Samuel Ajibola (To Bleed) Best Actress Judith Audu (Alpha Mum) Best International Film Bon Sai Best Music Video Omo Tosan – Lace: artiste (Directed by Seun Afolabi) Best Directing Strangers Best Film (Overall) Alpha Mum •Mbanefo and Okhai

POEM

The Elected Select From Oyewole Abidemi

Ballot papers and innocent thumbs.

Stampede of the politically lost.

Sage as the wise old tortoise.

Nothing democracy has taught us.

Flambouyant legislatures and erratic constitutions The wolf and the sheep spur conversations.

Blessings upon the just and transparent.

The light is yet to descend on the apparel.

Laurels for the well connected.

Whilst the nation,s circuit remains well disconnected.

On the podium churning soaring speeches.

To a populace guilty of only being hopefull.

Such is the plight that leads to conservatism.

We shall forbid this republic from persecution.

The elected select is the chimney in the living room.

From the curtains, we await the dividends or the doom.

48

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

The Midweek Magazine Old boys honour NBA chief, others

T

HE Edo College Old Boys Association, ECOBA, Lagos Branch, has honoured some of its members at its Yearly Dinner and Dance at Ruby Gardens in Lekki, Lagos.

The recipients included the Chairman of Grenigas Limited, Emmanuel Aguele, President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Mr. Augustine Alegeh (SAN), Country Senior Partner for PwC Nigeria, Mr. Uyi Akpata and Executive Director with Zenith Bank Mr. Kingsley Aigbonkhaevbo.

Aguele, the recipient of the Life Time Achievement Award, left Edo College in 1954. He sat for Cambridge School Certificate in 1954 and passed in grade one. He obtained First class Honours Degree in Civil Engineering at the University of Calcutta. He then moved to the United Kingdom (UK) to study for his Postgraduate diploma at Imperial College. He also did his internship in Civil Engineering Construction with Earnest Ireland Ltd. In 1963, he moved to Bristol, attending courses at Bristol University and continued internship in a Consulting Firm Underwood &Partners. He returned to Nigeria in 1965 with a Masters Degree in Structures at the Imperial College London and Memberships of the British Civil and Structural Engineering Societies.

Aguele held many important positions in the public service including the Director Development and Engineering with the Federal Capital Authority. He headed a team of Top Engineers to supervise the final Design of Phase 1&2 and thereby commence construction of the infrastructure, including Road Network, Water supply, Electrification, Solid waste disposal mechanism, Urban Planning and Implementation of neighborhood Facilities.

On effectively leaving public service, Chief Emmanuel went on to develop further a family business GRENIGAS LIMITED and as well as HENDRICKS HOLDING, with primary interests in Liquefied Petroleum Gas(LPG) and Agriculture.

Mr. Augustine Alegeh (SAN), who was in Edo College from 1975 – 1980, was honoured for his outstanding performance in the legal profession. He was called to bar in 1986 after studying Law at the University of Benin.

In recognition of his modest contribution to the de-

velopment of the law in Nigeria, The Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee elevated him to the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria in 2007.

On July 15, 2014, Mr. Augustine O. Alegeh was elected the 27th President of the Nigerian Bar Association, the umbrella professional association of all lawyers admitted to the Bar in Nigeria where he has continued to champion positive reforms.

He is a member of the Board of Directors in a host of companies with vast interests in Construction, Information Technology, Engineering, Real Estate and Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG).

Kingsley Aigbokhaevbo, who was in Edo College, Benin City for his secondary education between 1977 and 1982, was honoured for his sterling performance in the banking industry. After leaving Edo College, he gained admission into the University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Oyo State in 1983. He graduated from the school with B.sc Hons (Agric. Economics) Second Class Upper Division in 1988.

After a stint in Audit at D.O Dafinone & Co. he later joined Zenith Bank Plc. in 1993 as an Assistant Banking Officer and was there till 2007 when he left as a General Manager. He joined UBA in 2007 as a General Manager and left in 2011 before joining Ecobank Nig Ltd. He is in the bank to date as Executive Director overseeing Lagos and Southwest directorate.

Uyi Akpata, who was honoured for his excellent performance in the Audit, Oil and Gas sectors, is the Country Senior Partner for PwC Nigeria and Regional Senior Partner for the West Market Area. He is also PwC’s Africa Oil and Gas leader. 1984 graduate of Accounting from the University of Lagos, Uyi became a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) in November 1986 and is currently a Fellow of the Institute. He gained entrance into Edo College in 1974 and left after completing his O levels in 1979.

Uyi has extensive knowledge and experience leading the audit of companies in various sectors of the Nigerian economy. He has particular interest in the Energy and Utilities industries and for over fifteen years, led various Assurance engagement teams serving large multinationals including ExxonMobil, Chevron and ENI and of integrated and emerging regional Oil& amp; Gas companies, such as Oando and SaharaGroup.

PHOTO OF THE WEEK

• NEW YEAR GIFT: Barbeque. PHOTO: AYODELE ISAAC

E-mail:- ozoluauhakheme@yahoo.com

Arik Explorer for travellers TRAVELS

T

OP 500 hotels in Nigeria are among leading hotels across the globe selected as partners in the recently launched Arik Explorer ‘travel package’ product. The new product, which is a subsidiary of Arik Air, West and Central Africa’s largest carrier, is designed to incorporate airline seats with hotel and other ancillary options such as car hire and travel insurance. It also offers travel package at two levels: ‘Premium’ and Affordable.’

The offering will be for both outbound and inbound travel in Lagos and other destination serviced by Arik Air varieties of package can be tailored to suit the needs of the airline guests.

Managing Director of Arik Eplorer, Kencho Omojafor, said the business strategy of the company will resolve around the need to provide quality service to the various target customers with a view to fully satisfy their needs.

HE said this will be undertaken through the recruitment of a professional team and the provision of good quality custom-designed travel packages, catering to the guest’s particular needs.

“We will continuously provide enjoying quality excursions/trips/hotels on time and on budget, develop enthusiastically satisfied customers all of the time, and establish a market presence that assures short-term and long-term profitability, growth and success,’’ he added.

According to him, Arik Eplorer product will be segmented into; premium market searching for luxury and convenience, affordable weekend packages and short breaks during the week, special interest packages including group bookings, company retreats as well as business and leisure travelers to Arik Air destinations.

“Arik Explorer will establish a reputation as a differentiated, specialty provider of city/adventure travel and excursions. We will also provide unparalleled service to our local and international tourist, to Nigeria, The west coast and beyond,’’ Omojafor stressed.

He assured that Arik Explorer’s internet booking functionally will enables its hotel partners to upload rooms and vehicles on the company’s website in real time. ‘Customer will also have the option of using the company’s mobile application software to book rooms with their mobile phones and tablets.’

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

49

The Midweek Magazine

T

Contra-interpolations postulations in Oduduwa’s ancestry

HE heated controversies surrounding the ancestry of Oduduwa and the Bini-Yoruba divergent postures may have derived a realistic panacea in the fictive amassing of Jude Idada. It’s been said afterall, that what every human owes the universe is either to protect it in its pristine state or add unadulterated colourations to it. These alternatives could well describe the attempt by this young Nigerian-Canadian, to re-face a perhaps, near-defaced issue, in a bid to salvage the very important history of these proud races, using the channel of creative writing to ostracise the demons of historical distortions.

Employing the imperialist bequest- English Language in its dialogue, the author immersed himself in shark-infested waters of tradition and historical mythology ensuring a balance is attempted with the use of Bini and Yoruba dialects to course through the rhythmic invocations of music and somber dirges, lighting up the embers of tradition in its unalloyed form. It must be noted, that referring to Oduduwa as Ekaladerhan; Owomika as Eweka and Ogiso as Oba and a fews others should make for better appreciation as same.

Oduduwa, King of the Edos can best be described the Microcosm of our current geopolitical entity; complete in intrigues, distrusts, treachery, foibles and scarce integrity; vices and virtue which may not elude any civilization, even if such a sphere wields the toga of civility and sanctimoniousness, it no doubt has evolved overtime from the dregs of bloodshed and ugly inhuman cultivations.

An unforgettable savageness is the Seventh Century Greek theatre- where Dionysus, god of wine and fertility basked in the wanton revelry of those thespians. One from the current civilisation was the American civil war in the 17th Century, characterised by ideological loggerheads and consequent decimation of fellow American rebels, as that’s what they are, having crossed the Atlantic to the Americas from the United Kingdom. A more contemporary allusion is the Umbrella Revolution in the former British Colony of Hong Kong, where people clamour for what is theirs and the authorities in Beijing are dung-faced about it.

The work opens with introduction of the treacherous and tempestuous warrior Uwafiokun, leading fellow fighters against Evian and Ogianmen, a regent of Igodomigodo and his son, whose heads eventually leave their bodies to his sword. Shameful and deserved, Uwafiokun’s retributive imbecility comes to the fore as one journeys through the work and definitely attest to fate’s punitive measure against hypocrisy and greater iniquity. A plunge from an initial exalted position, where war fought was for his pernicious intents than the preservation of the revered culture and heritage of Ogisos, and the Edo people.

Hear him in Act One, Scene One: “Let the hunger of the greedy consume the

I

E-mail:- ozoluauhakheme@yahoo.com

YKE Kanu is an ardent believer in the wonderworking grace of the divine.

For him, along with salvation, a Christian is presented with the grace to succeed in all things, such as in business and career.

He is not one to take the grace of God for granted. He emphasises on the need for the Christian to put his/her purpose-driven faith in action. He posits that believers can succeed in any from business to career if they leverage on the grace of the divine.

In his book, Harnessing God’s Grace For Business Success, Kanu focus is on how business-oriented folks can draw from the power of success embedded in God’s grace.

“You can harness God’s grace only through personal development. Unlike in the real world where you are asked to concentrate on your areas of strength, in the spiritual world it is the opposite. Apart from being born-again, you have to identify your personal strengths and weaknesses. You have to work on your areas of weaknesses to improve yourself spiritually…to

BOOK REVIEW Title: Author: Reviewer: Pages:

Oduduwa, King of the Edos Jude Idada Adeniyi Taiwo Kunnu 233

usurper of the crown of the Ogisos…Ogiamen!”

If anyone ever predicted his own end, then Uwafiokun just did. Expressing to the ears of all within earshot and impressing on the justification for beheading some usurpers. It is no doubt an auto-prophecy for the same crime he accuses Evian and Ogiamen of. He shares similarity with Odewale in Ola Rotimi’s The gods are not to Blame, who unknowing predicts his own end on the knowledge that Oba Adetusa has been killed by none other than himself.

This opening foreshadows unveiled chains of plots by power mongers and power brokers who jostle with wisdom, practical steps and at times deviousness in order to stem the tide of what causes man to be left in delirium.

This disorientation can be adduced to the overriding influence of the gods; seeming insatiable cum conflicting tendencies of man and certain inexplicable phenomena. These descriptions definitely chart its course through different levels of conflicts in the work

Evian the beheaded regent says in Act One, Scene two: “Culture is silent; it needs a man of wisdom, foresight and courage to speak on its behalf….”

Crave for wisdom, foresight and courage results in the need for an Ogiso to occupy the throne of his ancestors. How then can Igodomido have her “Ruler from the sky”?

Banished, hasn’t he been? Majority of Ovbiedo believes he is long dead in the forest of Igo, following his fate occasioned by the treacherous Queen Esagho and subsequent verdict by Ogiso OwodoEkaladerhan’s father. Conversely, a handful knows Oduduwa lives. The accomplices include, Ezomo- a highly respected member of the Edion’isen and Odionmwan- chief of the palace executioners- whose acts of omission eventually guarantees a royal lineage.

In Ola Rotimi’s The gods are not Blame, King Adetusa’s and Queen Ojuola’s joy become shortlived, when it gets predicted that their source of fulfillment-Odewale- will become their eventual failings. It is in similar vein that Oduduwa is sentenced to die, so as to make way for other sons to be sired from the loins of Ogiso Owodo. Situating both works side by side, one finds the gods’ intervention in man’s affairs, with an instruction to tow a line so as to address an immediate concern or avert an impending doom. While Ekaladerhan was not killed by Odionmwan, Odewale was himself spared by Gbonka, leading up to the fates of these core personas, who at best are reflections of an artist impression.

A contrast however surfaces. It is gullibility, cowardice cum stupid verdict from Ogiso Owodo, who prefers to cast out the strength of his youth-Ekaladerhan- as that appeared to placate his inability to bear more sons. It however happens to be a bull’s eyes prophecy in Ola Rotimi’s work, where the prophecy comes to pass, but also enabled by man’s inability to adhere to instructions-Gbonka.

An important precedent in the work is that, only blue bloods who are eldest males become Ogisos, so the revelation about Oduduwa bearing rule over Yorubas in Ile Ife is received with mixed emotions. Ezomo reveals the veracity of Ekaladerhan’s existence, but since patience is alien to Uwafiokun and treachery pitches a concrete tent at his domain, such stories are best left as myths from Europe’s dark ages.

Hear him again in Act One, Scene Two: “I stand here ready to go to war with anyone who tries to use guile and flowery words to usurp the throne” Uwafiokun appears to breathe on war. His every existence is in making another life go down lifeless, should any situation not find an immediate comprehension in his cerebrum. He even refuses to make peace with

his fellow chiefs because to him, war alone resolves knotty issues. Power indeed has its stuporous tendencies.

Priority for the Edo is seeing Ekaladerhan return to his homeland, so that an unoccupied throne will be ascended. Oliha, a member of the Edion’isen carries this burden of destiny. His childhood fondness and friendship with Oduduwa is leveraged to accomplish this daunting task of salvaging the throne. This quest however has its thorny sides, because a trap set is often forgotten, but he who gets entrapped and wrenches out with bruises never forgets. This dialogue between Oliha and Oduduwa in Act Two , Scene Three spells it aptly.

ODUDUWA: “The Edos are not my people” OLIHA: “The land of the Edos has wronged you. Your father, Ogiso Owodo, dictated your death, believing at the time that it was the will of the gods and in silence, we supported him”.

Faith is a virtue of survival, but fate is its parallel which charts its own course. This expression best describes the departure of Oduduwa to Ile Ife. He met a people with open arms and with exceptional dexterity, strengthened the land, which afforded him love and life; together with them becoming the Oba of an economically viable and militarily structured land. Love has never been attained or enjoyed in isolation.

Oduduwa added value to the land that embraced him with peace and plenty, even when his land almost snuffed Olodumare’s life out of him. He showed qualities and powers only gods wield, warming his way through their hearts and enjoying the delightful bossom of a wise daughter of the Ile Ife – Okanbi, the mother of his son, Oranmiyan. It was recorded in the book titled: Ekaladerhan by Ovbia Edu Akenzua that His Royal Highness Omo N’Oba N’Edo Uku Akpolokpolo Erediauwa I said to His Imperial Majesty Alayeluwa Oba Okunade Sijuade Olubuse II Ooni of Ife “If the Ooni calls the Oba his son and the Oba of Benin calls the Ooni of Ife his son, they are both right” It is evident that the author sharpens his horns with research, so as to engage in this realistic rumble with those who would not rather enjoy fiction than pick holes in sealed planes. I dare say he may well have rested the heated claims and counter claims over whose progenitor charted the course of life ahead of the other or for the other.

Jude Idada adventured through themes of culture, ancestry, authority, power, politics, providence, indiscretion, wisdom, patience, endurance, death, treachery, love, women and procreation.

He employed the core elements of drama in dialogue, songs and dance; creating very apt character interactions with copious and rich use of proverbs, befitting moulds of characters and relaying the essential pleasures between man and woman in most subtle, honest yet modest bravado.

It is impossible to avoid one’s common inheritance as the heritage of the Edos and Yoruba is one.

Leveraging divine grace in busines BOOK s REVIEW

achieve great success in business you have to be very close to God,” he says.

The 116-page book contains nuggets on how to utilise God’s grace and put faith in action to bring about success in business.

Although his nuggets are not new, using biblical and real-to-life

Title:

Harnessing God’s Grace For Business Success

Author: Reviewer: Publisher: Pagination:

Deacon Iyke Kanu Evelyn Osagie E.T.Ola-Bola 116

examples, Kanu creatively elaborates his points in an engaging manner that the reader is able to understand and follow. Alongside a healthy spiritual relationship with God, Harnessing God’s Grace For Business Success is also canvassing proactive business principles.

The book is divided into two parts with each side having four chapters each. The first deals with all that is needed to start and sustain a successful business, while the second touches on the spiritual side of the matter.

However, the author has classified his nuggets to a success business through God’s grace into under seven chapters, with an additional chapter that bears a conclusion of his postulations.

Kanu begins with a background on his voyage into writing the book. According to him, the idea first came up in 2012 when he was asked to deliver a speech at the Men’s Convention of The Christ Royal Family Church. “After the convention, I was overwhelmed by the burden to share my experience as a businessman…The reason for the topic was because ordinarily, I consider myself to be a product of God’s grace,” he says.

After defining the concept of each word in book’s title, Kanu, in Chapter One, begins with the need for one to “Overcome initial fears of starting a business”, saying “one must be strong-willed”; “identify a business one is passionate about; undergo apprenticeship and personal development”; “cultivate the habit of saving”; “start small, grow big”.

After Overcoming initial fears of starting a business, in Chapter Two, the author canvasses on the importance of starting one’s own business; and goes on explain how one can manage ones business in Chapter Three. He says a prospective entrepreneur should start by “registering his/her

business”; “choose a good location; “write a business plan”; “employ qualified and competent hands”, among others.

And when one has started, to young entrepreneur, the author has this shocker on Page 48, Chapter Four, “Many of the successful businessmen or businesses that exist today have failed at different points in their histories but bounced back”, adding that “Statistics have shown that only 20 per cent of business is common, bouncing back from failure is also a common thing”.

To check such phenomenon, Kanu calls for financial discipline, integrity, preparation for the unforeseen, etc.

In the second half of the book, he touches on how managerial principles and wealth multiplication, He concludes thus: “Grace is not automatic; it does not just fall on people’s lap. Success is a prize with a price tag. Being a believer in business is therefore about “using the skills and God-given gifts; working hard; conducting business with honour and strong consideration with others; praying about decisions, etc.”

50

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

The Midweek Magazine E-mail:- ozoluauhakheme@yahoo.com

PHOTO OF THE WEEK

STREET DECORATION AT EKO HOTEL AND SUITES ROUNDABOUT, VICTORIA ISLAND, LAGOS.

PHOTO: DAVID ADEJO

51

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

SHOWBIZ

Saro The Musical excites Buhari, Amaechi, others

S

TARRING a highly talented 100-man cast, the second season of Saro The Musical resonated with the import of arts and culture, thrilling many, including All Progressive Congress’ presidential candidate, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State, Malam ElRufai, Senator Adeleke Olorunnimbe Mamora and several other personality, at the 2014 December show, which held at the MUSON Center, Onikan, Lagos.

The show, which paraded entertainers such as Bimbo Manuel, Dolapo Oni and Gideon Okeke, was described by lovers of performing arts as a mindblowing reincarnation of the previous season, especially going by its swelled cast members.

The play which is centered on four young people in search of greener pastures, showcased dazzling performances in lovely costumes, choreographic

By Dupe AyinlaOlasunkanmi

dance steps and an exquisite fusion of jazz, afro-beat, hip-hop, highlife, juju, apala, and other contemporary Nigerian music genres.

In Saro, the four characters migrate to Lagos with little else but an abundance of hopes and dreams, where they are duly reoriented by the people and experiences they encounter on their journey of self-realization.

Weaving together the trials, misfortunes, love, and destinies of the foursome into a 14-act masterpiece, Saro tells the unforgettable and inspiring story of the journey to success in a city filled with broken dreams, as the audience is made to see Lagos being personified by its numerous colourful characters, frenetic pace of living and endless drama.

Sponsored by telecommunications company, Etisalat, the show has been

described as part of the company’s social responsibility projects, geared towards promoting the nation’s cultural heritage.

Speaking at the event, the company’s Head, Events and Sponsorship, Modupe Thani, said it is important to encourage regeneration of arts and culture in the country, describing it as the cornerstone of a rich civic life. “Arts & Culture can be a powerful force for good and catalyst for change. It is our belief that this force can, and should be harnessed in a positive way to work for change in Nigeria,” she said.

According to Thani, the objectives of the company’s operation since 2008 is to facilitate social and economic bridge in the areas they operate, saying that, “Saro The Musical resonates with what we stand for at Etisalat and we are honoured to have the privilege to partner with the organisers of this show again.”

• Amaechi, Buhari, Mamora

• Performers at Saro The Musical

Stella Damasus debuts with radio show

Court stops distribution of Cynthia Morgan’s song

By Dupe AyinlaOlasunkanmi • Cynthia Morgan

T

HE new song, Popori,

by Northside Entertainment signee, Cynthia Morgan, is at the moment experiencing a hitch, as

a Federal High Court has passed an injunction restraining the airplay and distribution of the song on account of copyrighted title.

The judgement which was delivered on December 29, 2014, was the outcome of suit no: FHC/L/CS/1987/14, wherein another songstress, Queen Ure claimed the former infringed on the copyright of her earlier song titled Porpori.

Going by the title of the songs which sound alike, the court reasoned that Morgan, an artiste under Jude Okoye’s label, cannot continue with that title, as it amounted to passoff.

It therefore ruled that Northside Entertainment Ltd and all other agents, including promoters, Disc Jockeys, radio stations, TV stations and bloggers among others, should desist from further publishing and distributing to the public, the music track/ single/album titled Popori

by Morgan.

Further on that, the court, among other things has empowered Ure to sue anyone in the business of recording, publishing or distributing the said work.

Ure’s first video which was released in November 2012, was titled Porpori, so was her 15-track album launched on December 29, 2012. She later released another video in March 2014, titled Porpori Dance alongside other singles and videos.

According to Ure, the sound recording of all works were registered with the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC), for which a copyright certificate was issued to her in March 2013.

Morgan’s version, which the court has asked her to relinguish, was released in November 2014, a year after Ure got certificate for her sound recordings.

Speaking on this development, Ure said the reason she went to court was to preserve and protect her intellectual property as well as her contribution to the music industry. She noted that by so doing, artistes will begin to respect each others’ works and will also begin to appreciate the act of registering their works, and protected them from infringement.

‘I had a crush on a man for 10 years’

N

OLLYWOOD actress, Jumoke Aderoumu, has been in emotional pains for more than 10 years.

The graduate of International Relations from the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) Ile-Ife, who cut her acting teeth under prolific filmmaker, Tunde Kelani, revealed to The Nation, how for a decade, she has waited for a man who would not look her way.

Aderounmu, who is the lead character in Toyin Aimakhu’s popular comedy flick, Alakada, made this revelation when asked if she is into any love relationship. “Believe it or not, I am not in a relationship because I have been having a crush on a man for 10

By Mercy Michael

years now, even though he only got to know about my feelings two years ago, when we first met.”

The TV presenter-turned actress who noted that her desire is for a God-fearing man, said she has been attracted to this man secretly because of his simplicity and high level of discipline.

She said should the man give her a chance, she would marry him at once.

“I am really looking forward to marriage, not just a date,” she said, adding that she would, however, respect his wish, if he turns her down.

Not minding the fact that people might think she is cheapening herself by her advances, she said, “If

people want to judge me, they are free to do so; at least I am being honest with my feelings.”

For those who may think the actress might have been irrationally drawn to the man, probably a married man she played a role with in a movie, Aderounmu said: “I would never have anything to do with a married man, and he is not an actor, if you care to know.”

Aderounmu, who also featured in Tunde Kelani’s Dazzling Mirage, is a TV presenter host who has worked with Concert Radio, Goldmyne Entertainment, and was the producer and presenter of Box Office, before she launched her own online TV show, The Lounge.

By Mercy Michael

• Stella

N

OLLYWOOD actress, Stella Damasus, who now resides in Atlanta Georgia, United States, has begun a radio show in that country.

The show which is tagged ‘Undiluted with Stella Damasus’ aired its first transmission on WWW.i2radio.com last Monday, at 5pm, American time.

Promoters of the show have urged fans of the actress who might want to listen to her

speak on politics, relationship, religion, showbiz and general issues to join her, as she streams the show online, by 11pm, Nigerian time.

A source told The Nation that aside the radio show, the mother of two is also planning a couple of movie projects this year, alongside her new husband, Daniel Ademinokan.

According to the source, plans have been concluded to release a new movie, Twisted, which was produced by the couple. Works on the movie is said to be in postproduction stage, while Ademinokan is also said to be frequenting Los Angeles for another project which will be taking Damasus to LA in February.

The award-winning actress started off the year by lending her voice to the fight against domestic violence, an initiative she said has occupied her thoughts for several years.

Wizkid starts year with new video

By Ovwe Medeme

H

• Wizkid

E was strongly criticised last year for not living up to his stage name, Wizkid. But it seems that pop star, Ayodele Balogun, is set to reclaim his space in the Nigerian entertainment industry.

Less than a week into the New Year, the artiste dropped the video of his single, Ojuelegba, off his Ayo album. What appears striking is that the video, which was officially released Monday night, garnered 30, 000 views in less than 24hrs, according to the artiste.

“Less than 24 hours, we got more than 30,000 views. #Teamwizkid forever!!,” he disclosed.

A ghetto-themed song, Wizkid recounts his life of hustle and bustle in Ojuelegba suburbs. He sings of the struggle, giving gratitude for his journey which started in Murdock Studios.

With the song, Wizzy, as he is also called, makes great retrospects, when he croons; “Ni Ojuelegba, they know my story, for Murdock studio, I been hustle to work. Ni Ojuelegba. Me and Siri. For Murdock studio.

We been hustle to work. Ni Ojuelegba o! My people dey there. My people suffer. Them dey pray for blessings.”

In his usual manner, the star boy blends his mother tongue, Yoruba, with English, giving the song a traditional feel with an urbane outlook, making it open to a wider audience.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

52

MODIBBO ADAMA UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY, YOLA (School of Postgraduate Studies) OFFICE OF THE DEAN FUTY/SPGS/84/Vol.1

APPLICATION FOR ADMISSION INTO FULL-TIME AND PART-TIME POSTGRADUATE PROGRAMMES FOR 2015/2016 ACADEMIC SESSION Applications are invited from suitable qualified candidates for admission into full-time Postgraduate Diploma and Masters programmes, Full-Time and Part-Time Ph.D. programmes in the Modibbo Adama University of Technology, Yola for the Year 2015/ 2016 academic session in the following programmes: 1. a) (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) (vi) b) (i) (i) (ii) c) (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) (vi) (vii) (viii) d) (i) (ii) (iv)

SCHOOL OF AGRICULTURE AND AGRICULTURAL TECHNOLOGY Department of Agric. Economics & Extension PGD Agricultural Economics PGD Agricultural Extension M.Sc. Agricultural Economics M.Sc. Agricultural Extension Ph.D. Agricultural Economics.

Ph.D. Agricultural Extension Department of Animal Science M.Sc. Agricultural Entrepreneurship (Animal Production Option) M.Tech. Animal Production and Management Ph.D.Animal Production and Management Department of Crop Production and Horticulture PGD Postharvest Physiology and Storage Technology M.Sc. Agricultural Entrepreneurship (Crop Production Option) M.Tech. Agronomy M.Tech. Crop Breeding M.Tech. Postharvest Physiology and Storage Technology Ph.D. Agronomy Ph.D. Crop Breeding Ph.D. Postharvest Physiology and Storage Technology Department of Crop Protection PGD Crop Protection M.Tech. Crop Protection Ph.D. Crop Protection

Specialization:Nemotology, Bacteriology, Virology, Mycology and Entomology e) Department of Fisheries (i) PGD Fisheries Technology (ii) M.Sc. Agricultural Entrepreneurship (Aquaculture Option) (iii) M.Tech. Fisheries Management and Aquaculture (iv) Ph.D. Fisheries Management and Aquaculture in all fields of specialization in Fisheries Management f) Department of Food Science and Technology (i) M.Sc. Agricultural Entrepreneurship (Food Processing Option) (ii) M.Tech. Food Science and Technology g) Department of Forestry and Wildlife Management (i) PGD Forestry and Wildlife Management (ii) M.Sc. Agricultural Entrepreneurship (Forest Recourse Management Option) (iii) M.Tech. Ecosystems Management (Options in Forest Biology and Ecology,Wildlife Conservation and Management) (iv) M.Tech.Forest Products Management and Utilization (Options in Forest Resource Management, Forest Economics and policy) (v) Ph.D. Ecosystems Management (Forest Biology and Ecology, Wildlife Conservation and Management, Forest Resource Management, Forest Economics and Policy) h) Department of Soil Science (i) M.Tech. Soil Science (ii) Ph.D. Soil Science

2.

SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING AND ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY a) Department of Agricultural and Environmental Engineering (i) M.Eng. Farm Power and Machinery (ii) M.Eng. Soil and Water Engineering (iii) Ph.D. Farm Power and Machinery b) Department of Chemical Engineering (i) M.Eng. Chemical Engineering (Option in Process and Ceramic Engineering) c) Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering (i) M.Eng. Electrical Power Systems and Machine (ii) M.Eng. Eltronics and Telecommunication (iii) M.Eng. Control and Instrumentation d) Department of Mechanical Engineering (i) M.Eng.Production and Industrial Engineering (ii) M.Eng. Thermofluid and Energy (iii) M.Eng. Mecatronics (iv) Ph.D. Mechanical Engineering with options in Production Materials, Energy and Thermofluid 3. a) (i) b) (i) (ii) (iii) c) (i) (ii) (iii)

SCHOOL OF ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES Department of Architecture M.Tech. Architecture Department of Surveying and Geo-informatics PGD Surveying and Geo-informatics M.Tech. Surveying and Geo-informatics Ph.D. Surveying and Geo-informatics Department of Urban and Regional Planning PGD Urban and Regional Planning Masters in Urban and Regional Planning Ph.D. Urban and Regional Planning

4.

SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

a) (i) (ii) b) (i) (ii) c) (i) d) (i) (ii)

Department of Information Technology M.A. English for Specific Purposes (ESP) M.Tech. Information Technology Department of Accountancy PGD Accounting and Finance M.Sc. Treasury and Finance Management Department of Economics M.Sc. Economics Department of Management Technology M.Sc. Management Ph.D. Management

5.

SCHOOL OF PURE AND APPLIED SCIENCES

Department of Biochemistry M.Tech. Biochemistry Ph.D. Biochemistry with options in (Nutritional, Toxicology and Pharmacological Biochemistry) b) Department of Chemistry (i) M.Tech. Analytical Chemistry (ii) M.Tech. Industrial Chemistry (iii) Ph.D. Analytical Chemistry (iv) Ph.D. Industrial Chemistry (v) Ph.D. Organic Chemistry (vi) Ph.D. Polymer Chemistry a) (i) (ii)

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

53

c) (i) d) (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) (vi) (vii) e) (i) (ii) (iii) f) (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) (vi) g) (i) (ii) (iii) h) (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) i) (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v)

Department of Computer Science Ph.D. Computer Science Department of Geology M.Sc. Applied Geophysics M.Sc. Mineral Exploration M.Sc. Hydrogeology M.Sc. Stratigraphy Ph.D. Applied Geophysics Ph.D. Mineral Exploration Ph.D. Stratigraphy Department of Mathematics M.Sc. Mathematics M.Sc. Mathematics with Economics Ph.D. Mathematics Department of Microbiology M.Tech. Applied Medical Microbiology M.Tech. Environmental Microbiology M.Tech. Industrial Microbiology Ph.D. Applied Medical Microbiology Ph.D. Environmental Microbiology Ph.D. Industrial Microbiology Department of Physics Ph.D. in Theoretical Physics Ph.D. in Energy Physics Ph.D. in Solid state Physics Department of Statistics/Operations Research M.Tech. Operations Research Ph.D. Operations Research M.Sc. Statistics Ph.D. Statistics Department of Zoology M.Tech. Applied Entomology and Parasitology M.Tech. Applied Hydrobiology and Fisheries Ph.D. Applied Entomology and Parasitology Ph.D. Applied Hydrobiology and Fisheries Ph.D. Public Health Parasitology

(c) A Candidate with a Third class honours degree or HND may be eligible if either: (i) He/She has a good relevant Postgraduate Diploma with at least Lower Credit, or (ii) He/She Passes any prescribed qualifying Examination for Admission.

7.3 Doctor of Philosophy (a) Candidates who hold a Masters Degree of MAUTECH, Yola with GPA 3.50 (on a 5 points scale) or 60% and above (b) Candidates with equivalent qualification from other recognized Universities. (c) Candidates with any other qualifications with relevant working experience which are acceptable to the Postgraduate School Board and Senate. (d) Where required by Department/School Postgraduate Studies Committee, a candidate may be required to sit for and pass a qualifying examination either before approval of his registration or at any appropriate state of his/ her programme.

6.

SCHOOL OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCE EDUCATION

a) (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v) (vi) b) (i) (ii) (iii) c) (i) (ii)

Department of Science Education Postgraduate Diploma in Education M.Ed. Educational Management M.Tech. Ed. Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics Ph.D. Educational Management Ph.D. Biology Education Ph.D. Educational Management Department of Technology Education Postgraduate Diploma in Technology Education (PGDTE) M.Tech. Industrial Technology Education Ph.D. Industrial Technology Education Department of Vocational Education M.Tech. Agricultural Technology Education Ph.D. Agricultural Technology Education

Full-Time Students Minimum Duration:6 Semesters or 36 Calendar Months Maximum duration:10 Semesters or 60 calendar months

Centre for Peace and Security Studies M. A. Peace and Conflict Studies 7.

ADMISSION REQUIREMENT

The following may qualify for admission into the specified Postgraduate Programmes: 7.1 (a) (b) (c) (d)

7.2 (a) (b)

Postgraduate Diploma Graduates of MAUTECH, Yola or any other recognized University.

Holders of the Higher National Diploma (HND) with at least a Lower Credit pass in relevant disciplines.

Holders of other professional qualifications which may be acceptable to the Board of the School of Postgraduate Studies and Senate of the University.

In special cases candidates may be admitted after passing such tests, examinations, etc., as may be prescribed by the Department/School.

Masters Degree Holders of first Degree of MAUTECH, Yola with at least a Second class Honours in relevant fields.

Holders of equivalent qualifications from other recognized Universities

7.4 General Admission Requirements Candidates must have passed at Credit level in at least five departmental relevant subjects including English Language and Mathematics.

8.

DURATION OF PROGRAMME (a) Postgraduate Diploma Programme (Course work and Project Report) Full-Time:2 Semesters 12 Calendar Months (b)

Master’s Degree Programme:

Full-time Master’s Degree by Course Work/Thesis.

Minimum duration:3 Semesters or 18 Calendar Months Maximum duration:6 Semesters or 36 Calendar Months (c)

Ph.D. Programme:

Part-Time Students Minimum Duration:8 Semesters or 48 Calendar Months Maximum duration:12 Semesters or 72 calendar months 9.

PROCEDURE FOR ONLINE APPLICATION

(i)

Prospective candidates shall visit the portal of SPGS MAUTECH at mautechonline.onejkk.com.ng. (ii) Fill in some basic information. (iii) Obtain a reference number that will be generated by the system. (iv) They should proceed to any branch of IBTC bank in Nigeria and pay N6,500 for the application form. (v) They should then use the reference number to log on to our portal (mautechonline.onejkk.com.ng) and complete the application form. (vi) Submit the filled form online and print out a hard copy of the completed application form for reference. (vii) Applicants are to ensure that the online referee forms are promptly completed and sent back by the three referees. (viii) Other relevant credentials like – Certificates and NYSC discharge certificate/exemption letter are to be forwarded tospgs@mautech.edu.ngas attachment. The programme applied for should be specified while sending the credentials. (ix) Applicants are required to make a THOROUGH ARRANGEMENT with their previous institutions to forward copies of their Transcript to the Secretary, School of Postgraduate Studiesat the Modibbo Adama University of Technology, Yola. Without transcripts applicant forms shall not be processed.

All candidates are required to have a functional e-mail for the purpose of this application through which information can be sent. The School of Postgraduate Studies also requires an applicant to have a telephone number to which text messages (SMS) could be sent. Applicants are expected to check their e-mail and message boxes from time to time for update.

A. B. Lawan (MNIM) DEPUTY REGISTRAR/SECRETARY (SPGS)

54

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

55

MONEYLINK

Oil price fall threatens financial stability, says IMF T

HE International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned that risks to financial stability have increased, but remain limited, as oil price fall continues.

U.S oil fell further yesterday to $48.01, having fallen below the symbolic threshold of $50 a barrel for the first time since April 2009 on Monday.

The prices of both Brent crude and US oil, known as West Texas Intermediate crude, have now fallen by more than 50 per cent since mid2014.

In its report titled Seven Questions About Recent Oil Price Slump, it said currency pressures have so far been limited to a handful of oil exporting countries such as Russia, Nigeria and Venezuela.

It said given global financial linkages, these developments demand increased vigilance.

According to report: “Oil exporters will want to smooth out the adjustment by not curtailing fiscal spending abruptly. For those without savings funds and strong fiscal rules, budgetary and exchange rate pressures may, however, be significant. Without

• Price falls to $48.01 Stories by Collins Nweze

the right monetary policies, this could lead to higher inflation and further depreciation.

“The fall in oil prices provides an opportunity for many countries to decrease energy subsidies and use the savings toward more targeted transfers, and for some to increase energy taxes and lower other taxes.”

The report said oil prices have plunged recently, affecting oil producers, exporters, governments, and consumers. Overall, the IMF described this as a shot in the arm for the global economy.

“Bearing in mind that our simulations do not represent a forecast of the state of the global economy, we find a gain for world Gross Domestic Product (GDP) between 0.3 and 0.7 per cent in 2015, compared to a scenario without the drop in oil prices. There is however much more to this complex and evolving

story,” it said.

Oil prices have fallen by over 50 per cent since June, over 40 per cent since September. Metal prices, which typically react to global activity even more than oil prices, have also decreased but substantially less so than oil.

“This casual observation suggests that factors specific to the oil market, especially supply ones, could have played an important role in explaining the drop in oil prices,” it said.

It said the fall in oil prices provides an opportunity for many countries to decrease energy subsidies and use the savings toward more targeted transfers and for some to increase energy taxes and lower other taxes.

IMF said: “In the euro area and Japan, where demand is weak and conventional monetary policy has done most of what it can, central banks forward guidance is crucial to anchor medium term inflation expectations in the face of falling oil prices.”

Bonds rise on oil, euro zone worries

S

TOCK prices fell on global markets yesterday, stuck in a dismal start to the new year on tumbling oil prices and Greece possibly leaving the euro zone, as nervous investors bought more gold, yen, low-risk government bonds and other safe-haven assets.

The oil market rout that began in mid-last year has continued. This intensified concerns about how the dramatic price drop, due to sluggish global growth and a supply glut, will hurt earnings of oil companies and exacerbate

disinflationary pressure worldwide.

Head, Currency Strategy at CIBC World Markets, London, Jeremy Stretch, said: “Global risk sentiment has been hurt by sliding stocks and oil prices. That is leading to a perception that there is a lack of demand, and that has implications for global growth.”

Greece’s anti-bailout party Syriza held a slim lead in polls before the January 25th national election, which rekindled speculation whether the euro zone might let the country leave the economic bloc

rather than renegotiate Greece’s international bailout.

Data yesterday showed euro zone manufacturers registered almost no growth in the fourth quarter, putting pressure on the European Central Bank to take bold steps to avert the region from slipping into recession.

U.S. and European equity markets enjoyed a brief respite, but investors resumed Monday’s exit of stocks following disappointing data on the U.S. services sector and factory orders.

Naira edges up by nearly one per cent

• CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele

T

HE naira, yesterday, ended up 0.8 per cent following a turbulent second day of trading this year. The rise contradicts Monday’s 1.9 per cent drop putting the local currency at 185 to the dollar.

The naira has been hurt by falling oil prices, which have hammered the foreign exchange reserves while stocks reacted to a global equities sell-off, traders said.

Sub-Saharan Africa Economist at Renaissance Capital and co-Author of the Fastest Billion Yvonne Mhango said the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has shown absolute commitment to dealing with dwindling fortune of the naira.

Last year’s eight per cent official devaluation of the naira, she said, allows the Retail Dutch Auction System (RDAS) to move within the range that straddles the interbank foreign exchange rate. “While the market reaction to the RDAS move in the near-term will be important, we think that these measures deal as comprehensively as possible with the challenges facing Nigeria.

“While Nigeria cannot do much to influence the oil price, the combination of measures sends a powerful signal to all stakeholders on the CBN’s intent to do what it can to

preserve macroeconomic stability,” she said.

Head, Equities Market at FBN Capital Olubunmi Ashaolu said the CBN has by the policy, set clear cut objective on its monetary policy direction.

He said the stock exchange’s positive reaction was an indication that local and foreign investors now understand where the naira is heading. “As long as there is clarity and good investment climate, the equities market will benefit,” he said.

He advised government to improve infrastructure, noting that it would make the investment climate more attractive for foreign investors.

Managing Director, Financial Derivatives Company (FDC) Limited Bismarck Rewane said the Monetary Policy Commitee’s decision has reinforced the CBN’s independence and autonomy.

He said the currency adjustment has a direct impact on the cost of imports and may undermine the MPC’s efforts at ensuring price stability in a hugely import-dependent economy.

The devaluation, he added, would slow down external reserves depletion. “Since the naira is closer to equilibrium, the need to intervene will be less,” he added.

To the President of National Association of Small Scale Industrialists, Chukwu Wachukwu, there are consequences wherever currencies are devalued.

He said the naira devaluation would make government to jettison its sole reliance on oil and pay attention to other sectors of the economy.

“We can’t just continue to depend on oil; we need to diversify,” he said.

However, for exporters, devaluation of the naira means increased cash flow and higher profit margins.

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

152.19 9.17 1.12 1.19 2,237.65 1.39 1,710.65 1,092.63 115.26 121.16 1,117.51 1.1841 1.2569 0.7009 1.1047

RETAIL DUTCH AUCTION SYSTEM (RDAS) Transaction Dates 05/01/2015 3/12/2014 1/12/2014 1,116.70 1.7777 1.2569 0.6899 1.1047

GAINERS AS AT 06-01-15

SYMBOL O/PRICE RTBRISCOE 0.84 CADBURY 10.00 PZ 23.99 LEARNAFRCA 1.35 COSTAIN 0.73 JOHNHOLT 0.98 ABCTRANS 0.55 ASHAKACEM 20.81 STERLNBANK 2.42 PRESCO 24.50 REDSTAREX 3.94

C/PRICE 0.92 12.00 25.18 1.41 0.76 1.02 0.57 21.49 2.49 24.93 4.00

CHANGE 0.08 2.00 1.19 0.06 0.03 0.04 0.02 0.68 0.07 0.43 0.06

LOSERS AS AT 06-01-15

SYMBOL

O/PRICE

NB UBN WAPIC INTBREW JBERGER GUINNESS NESTLE DANGCEM GLAXOSMITY ZENITHBANK SEPLAT UACN DANGSUGAR

163.00 4.32 0.64 22.21 57.63 165.30 995.60 190.00 47.41 18.00 351.50 34.00 6.04

C/PRICE 147.17 3.98 0.59 20.50 54.75 157.04 945.82 180.50 45.04 17.10 333.93 32.30 5.74

CHANGE -15.83 -0.34 -0.05 -1.71 -2.88 -8.26 -49.78 -9.50 -2.37 -0.90 -17.57 -1.70 -0.30

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

Inflation: November

7.9%

Monetary Policy Rate

13.0%

Foreign Reserves

$47.12

Money Supply (M2)

N16.42 trillion.

Credit to private Sector (CPS)

N17.2 trillion

Primary Lending Rate (PLR)

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

CBN EXCHANGE RATES December 5, 2015

$35b

Oil Price (Bonny Light/b)

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

Currency

Buying (N)

Selling (N)

US Dollar

167

168

Pounds Sterling

261.9395

263.508

Euro

206.2617

207.4968

171.546

172.5732

Yen

1.3838

1.3921

CFA

0.2944

0.3144

242.3484

243.7996

Yuan/Renminbi

27.1505

27.314

Swiss Franc

16.5%

NIGERIAN INTER-BANK OFFERED RATES (NIBOR)

WAUA Tenor

05-01-15 Rate (%) Rate (%) 06-01-15

Overnight (O/N)

10.54

11.17

Riyal

44.4906

44.757

1M

11.94

12.18

SDR

243.2856

244.7424

3M

13.08

13.33

6M

14.03

14.17

GOVT. SECURITIES YIELD – SECONDARY MARKET

Tenor

FOREX RATES

R-DAS ($/N)

165.29

165.29

Interbank ($/N)

162.75

162.75

Parallel ($/N)

185.50

185.50

0

Jan. 5, 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 WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

56

BUSINESS EXTRA

Govt orders closure of MDAs Revenue Accounts with banks

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HE Federal Government has directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAS) to close their Revenue Bank Accounts with Deposit Money Banks latest by February 28, this year.

In addition, the balances of the MDAs revenue accounts are to be transferred to the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Federal Government.

The directive which emanated from the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (AGF), Jonah Otunla, warned that “appropriate sanctions shall be applied against any MDA that

From Nduka Chiejina (Asst. Editor)

fails to comply.”

He said the measure became imperative because the federal government has unveiled an Electronic Revenue Collection platform to help it improve on its Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), in view of declining oil prices.

Otunla stated this yesterday in Abuja at a workshop on the take-off of the electronic collection project.

He explained that the commencement of the e-collection platform is a product of series of treasury reforms

started in 2012 to ensure transparency and accountability in the management of the nation’s resources.

He said,”Our effort this morning on the e-collection of revenue is a revenue enhancing program by freeing more funds for budget performance. We are perfecting a system of collection. We are not perfecting a system depriving commercial banks of income.”

He said government wants to make revenue collection a little more efficient, but stated that “the process might influence the inflow to the commercial banks and

that’s why the Central Bank is playing a pivotal role.”

The Director, Funds, Office of the Accountant General of the Federation, Mohammed Dikwa, explained that henceforth, government revenues would now be paid into the CRF/TSA. With the coming of e- collection, MDAs can no longer maintain Revenue Bank Account with commercial banks, he said, adding, “you are therefore advised to transfer any outstanding balance in your RBA to the CRF and immediately commence processes for closing them.

• Shareholders of Ikeja Hotel Plc locked out of the Extra Ordinary Meeting of the company in Lagos...yesterday

Ibru’s family rows over Sheraton Hotels

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HE ownership tussle of the Sheraton Lagos Hotel and Towers and its owning company, Ikeja Hotels Plc, on Tuesday deepened as different members of the Ibru family moved to assert their authority.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that while a group led, by Mrs Maiden Ibru, widow of late Guardian Publisher, Mr Alex Ibru, moved to hold an Extra-Ordinary General Meeting (EGM), Goodie Ibru, the hotel’s Chairman, described the purported meeting as null and void.

Mrs Ibru had earlier on December 1, 2014 published an EGM notice of Ikeja Hotels Plc in the Guardian and Punch Newspapers, in an apparent bid to overhaul the company.

Her notice of EGM, followed an earlier court order arising from an ex parte motion forcing the company to hold the meeting, on January 6, 2015 at the Sheraton Ho-

tel.

On the other hand, the other members of the Ibru family, led by Goodie Ibru, got an ex parte injunction from the Federal High Court, Abuja, restraining Mrs Ibru from calling an EGM or representing her late husband’s investment vehicles holding shares in Ikeja Hotels Plc. Goodie Ibru’s group said that their ex parte motion was sequel to a bitter litigation between the children of his first wife, Mrs Helen Ibru, and Mrs Maiden, his second wife.

But in a swift development, some shareholders of the hotel, against a federal high court order, on Tuesday sacked Goddie Ibru, as the Chairman and Director of the company, over corporate governance infractions.

The shareholders also appointed Mr Olumide Braithwaite and Mr Tunde Sarumi, as Directors of the company.

They also appointed KPMG Nigeria Ltd to carry out a forensic audit of the management of the company from 1999 to 2014, when Ibru was its chairman.

The shareholders also mandated KPMG to carry out a forensic audit of the share register and verification of the funding and payment for the shares of the company by holders, directly or indirectly amounting to two per cent or more.

The meeting was presided over by an interim Chairman appointed by the shareholders, Mr Rasheed Olaoluwa, the Managing Director, Bank of Industry (BOI), also a shareholder in the hotel.

NAN also reports that the meeting was held amidst drama as the shareholders were barred from entering the premises of Sheraton Hotels following a court injunction granted Ibru by the Federal High Court, Abuja.

Mr Boniface Okezie, Presi-

dent, Progressive Shareholders of Nigeria, told NAN that the shareholders were on a rescue mission to ensure good corporate governance and avoid the collapse of the company.

Okezie said that the shareholders would defy the barricades at the gate and pass all the resolutions.

“We are rescuing this company from the hands of the cabals. We are legally authorised to hold this meeting.

“The regulators have failed us; let them come and see what is happening. We want to remove the virus that is eating deep into this company.

“Whatever it takes, we must restore this company from the hands of the cabals,” Okezie said.

Mr Adeleke Adebayo, General Secretary, Independent Shareholders Association of Nigeria, described the development as an abuse of court process.

Cash-strapped govt fails to release 2014 Q4 capital allocation A

S pressure mounts on the federal government to release the fourth quarter budgetary allocation for the 2014 fiscal year, The Nation has learnt the federal government is in dire financial straits to fund the fourth quarter allocation.

The Nation investigation revealed that the delay in the release of the Q4 allocation for capital projects is akin to the biblical seven lean years that came after seven bountiful years.

The Director who spoke to The Nation in confidence, said “paucity of funds is what is holding back the release of

From Nduka Chiejina (Asst. Editor)

the fourth quarter allocation.

The director lamented that “as a mono-product economy, if we had saved accruals into the Excess Crude Account (ECA) as proposed there would have been enough to spend now that the price of crude oil is on the decline.”

He said currently, the federal government struggling to pay workers salaries with the meager monthly alloca-

tions and other sources of revenue leaving barely enough for the government to fund capital projects.”

The director added that as a result of the paucity of funds in government’s coffers, the federal government is forced “to prioritize paying workers, funding certain infrastructure projects and security and the coming elections is not helping matters as well.”

On the 18th of September 2014, the Federal Ministry of Finance released the sum of

N200 billion to fund capital projects for the third quarter of 2014 “to help ensure further progress in the execution of capital projects across the country.”

It would be recalled that the ministry in June 2014, the ministry also released the sum of N200 billion to Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of government for the implementation of capital projects contained in the 2014 budget as second quarter allocation.

So far, N600 billion stands as total capital releases for the three quarters of 2014.

Supplementary meters coming, says NERC

F

OLLOWING the metering challenges bedeviling the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) , the Federal Government has planned to provide supplementary meters in addition to the ongoing Credited Advance Payment for Metering Implementation ( CAPMI).

Chairman, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), Dr. Sam Amadi broke the news to journalists in Abuja yesterday.

He said that the supplementary metering plan is coming on the heels of metering urgency.

According to him, the Electricity Distribution Companies (Discos) already have their plans and these plans have to be implemented quickly and systematically henceforth.

The chairman noted that “in addition to that the Federal Government has ordered meter provision that will ensure we have faster metering and larger coverage before the six months.

There are more meters coming into the market to more consumers than we would have had without the supplementary support. We are looking forward to that in a couple of days and with much more clarity.”

Asked to mention the units of meters that the market would receive under the supplementary plan, the chairman said that government will unfold a clearer picture of the scheme in a couple of weeks.

He noted that the Presidency and NERC are concerned about metering for two reasons; the overall efficiency of the electricity market, twofor the Discos to have certainty about their collections and for consumers to know their consumption with certainty.

Amadi had earlier recalled that the commission recently

From John Ofikhenua, Abuja

approved a revised Multi-Year Tariff Order (MYTO 2,1, which came into effect on January 1, 2015 on tariff increase for residential consumers, who constitute about 80% of electricity consumers (known in the industry as R2 customer class) in the country.

The chairman explained that “NERC has not increased tariff for residential consumers for now. I need to emphasise this pint because it seems lost in the swirl of things.

While the scheduled increase will apply to other classes of consumers from January 1st 2015, it will not affect residential consumers until after June 2015.”

He said that the decision to grant this moratorium is a carefully considered one, arrived at after adequate consultations with stakeholders and careful considerations of the imperative to balance legitimate demand for adequate electricity supply with the need for fair tariff.

Amadi maintained that the freeze was designed primarily to protect their and promote the interests of the consumers as well as stimulate operators to serve customers better.

The chairman opened up that :”Expectedly, the electricity distribution companies are not happy about the phrased approach adopted by the commission.

“This means they cannot recoup their growing and previously unanticipated costs, , and this may negatively I pact their bottom-line in the short run.

“But while we have the responsibility to protect consumers, NERC is not anti business. Indeed, NERC is mandated by the Electric Power Sector Reform (ESPR) Act 2005 to set tariffs that reflect the cost of operators as a way of attracting and sustaining necessary investments in the sector.”

NPDC gets ultimatum to implement pact with communities

H

OST communities of Oil Mining Lease (OML) 30 in Isoko North, Isoko South and Ughelli North local government areas of Delta State, have given the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC) a seven-day ultimatum to implement the terms of agreement it signed with them or face a system’s shutdown.

It was learnt that the company had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with eight communities in the local governments as hosts of OML 30.

A statement by Presidentgenerals of the eight oil host communities, called the Forum of Communities Executives of Flow Station in OML 30, said having fulfilled their part of the terms of agreement last September, the NPDC should implement theirs or have its service workers withdrawn.

“While we have fulfilled our side of the terms of agreement, NPDC has flouted almost every part of the accord reached with OML 30 communities,” the statement said.

But NPDC’s Director of Community Relation, Dahiru Abubakar, who was

From Bolaji Ogundele, Warri

a signatory to the agreement, explained that although the matter was within the purview of his department, he was not in a position to speak on it.

A reliable source in the company, who spoke in confidence, said the matter was being resolved.

The source said the ultimatum had been communicated to the company and a meeting scheduled to deliberate on its contents.

“They (host community leaders) already sent the company a letter to communicate their ultimatum and already we have scheduled a meeting with them, which will involve state government representatives, for Thursday. Some of their demands had already been met and by the company and by the time we are done with the meeting I believe everything would have been taken care of,” the source said.

An oil spillage from a ruptured oil pipeline, belonging to the NPDC, recently occurred on Gbogidi River at Otu-Jeremi, in Ughelli South Local Government Area.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

57

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

58

NEWS

Man, 21, found dead in FCT community’s River

A

21-YEAR old man, Safiyanu Idris, has been found dead in River Gurara at Mai Kwari village in Kwali Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

Idris was reportedly found near his father’s fishing net inside the river, which passes through the community.

His family had declared him missing three days earlier.

His body was said to have

been stabbed in the stomach, back and neck.

The father of the deceased, Malam Idris Muhammad, addressed some community leaders, who visited him on a condolence.

The disturbed father said he found the decomposing body of his son when he went to the river early on Saturday to pick the catches in his net, which he

mounted at sunset on Friday.

He said the body was hanging on the stick he tied the net to in the river.

Muhammed said: “Even though I could identify him immediately, I still rushed back home to meet his older brother, who I asked to go to the place to verify whether the body was actually his.”

According to him, the older

brother confirmed that the body was that of Idris.

Muhammed said he and his older son reported the incident to the authorities.

It was learnt that the councillor representing Ashara Ward in Kwali Area Council and the District Head of Ashara, Malam Abdul-Rahman Jibrin, were among the first people at the riverside, where the body

was discovered.

“They later went to the bereaved family with some security officials. The community leaders condoled with the family and took statement from the father of the decease,” a resident said.

It was learnt that the deceased was buried near the bank of the river, according to Islamic rights.

128 strayed kids in Adamawa IDP camps, says NEMA

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HE National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has identified about 128 unaccompanied children in various Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps in Adamawa State.

The Head of NEMA Special Ad-Hoc Committee on IDPs in Adamawa State, Alhaji Sa’ad Bello, gave the figure when he addressed reporters yesterday in Yola, the state capital.

Bello said only seven of the children had been reunited with their parents or relations.

He said: “We had about 128 unaccompanied children as at last week. So far, we have reunited seven children with their relations with the help of the International Committee for Red Cross and Red Crescent.”

The NEMA chief was optimistic that more of the kids would be reunited with their parents when normalcy fully returned to the area.

He also said it was not clear whether r not the children lost their parents during insurgents’ attacks on their villages.

Also, the Executive Secretary of Adamawa State Emergency Management Agency (ADSEMA) Mallam Haruna Furo said efforts were being made to bring home people who crossed into the neighbouring Cameroon during the attacks.

He said some of the children might see their parents or relations among those to be brought back to Nigeria.

•Members of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Surulere, Lagos State, at a special prayer for the nation in Lagos ... yesterday.

PHOTO: NAN

‘No compensation, no votes for Jonathan, Yero’

I

NTERNALLY Displaced Persons (IDPs) of the 2011 Kaduna post-election violence yesterday threatened not to vote for President Goodluck Jonathan and Kaduna State Governor Mukhtar Ramalan Yero, if the compensation promised them were not paid before next month’s general elections.

This came as Vice President Namadi Sambo boasted to deliver two million votes to

From Abdulgafar Alabelewe, Kaduna

President Jonathan from the state.

The protesters chanted “No compensation, no vote for President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan and Governor Mukhtar Ramalan Yero”.

The aggrieved Kaduna IDPs said they had written several letters to the Presidency and the Kaduna State government on the matter,

but without response.

Addressing reporters in Kaduna, the spokesperson of the IDPs, Comrade Mohammed Dan’Azumi Zonkwa, regretted the suffering of the affected people, four years after.

He said the Federal Government constituted a Presidential panel to investigate the crisis and make recommendations.

According to him, the panel had concluded its assign-

Brent crude oil falls to new five-year low

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HE price of Brent crude oil has fallen to a new five-and-a-half year low of $51.12 per barrel, its lowest level since March 2009. It follows Monday’s six per cent plunge in prices. The BBC said the fall appeared to have been prompted by Saudi Arabia cutting prices to Europe.

At the same time, the kingdom, Opec’s largest oil-produc-

ing nation, raised them for Asian customers. Some analysts said the price cuts reflected Saudi Arabia’s deepening desire to defend its market share in Europe. US oil fell further on Tuesday to $48.01, having fallen below the symbolic threshold of $50 a barrel for the first time since April 2009 on Monday.

The prices of both Brent crude

and US oil, known as West Texas Intermediate crude, have now fallen by more than 50 per cent since mid-2014.

Investors are worried that a combination of global oversupply and weak oil demand could cause prices to tumble further.

US oil production has soared recently, as fracking - or the process of extracting oil from shale rock by injecting fluids

INEC: over .4m FCT voters collect PVCs

T

HE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has said it issued over 400,000 Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) to the electorate in from August 19, 2014 till January 6.

INEC’s Administrative Secretary in the FCT, Mr Abdulrazaq Adamu, spoke in Abuja in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria

(NAN).

He said: “Over 400,000 persons have collected the permanent voter cards in the FCT ahead of the 2015 general elections.”

The secretary said the commission received several complaints that many eligible voters could not collect their PVCs. Adamu said the commission, after launching the distribution of the PVCs, ex-

tended it to allow more people to collect the cards.

The INEC chief wondered why some eligible voters still complained of not being able to collect the cards.

According to him, although INEC had advised the electorate that could not find their names to reregister, many had failed to do so.

Adamu added: “The names of registered persons were displayed at their units for

confirmation within the stipulated scheduled date between August 15 and August 17.

“INEC also organised meetings with major stakeholders on how to carry out enlightenment campaign at various designations.”

The administrative secretary urged those yet to collect their PVCs to ensure they do so before the end of January.

Families of missing policemen get N•5m each

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OLICE authorities have compensated the six families of the policemen declared missing after Boko Haram attacked the Police Mobile Training College in Gwoza, Gwoza Local Government Area of Borno State on August 20, 2014.

The police announced the payment of N500,000 to each

ment, adding that Kaduna State had 80 per cent casualties.

The spokesman wondered about the delay in the implementation of the committee’s report.

Zonkwa said: “We are highly surprised that Kaduna, of all states, is yet to be paid, despite the fact that it has several men and women of high esteem representing the state at the federal level.”

From Faith Yahaya, Abuja

of the families when Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Suleiman Abba visited the affected families.

The IGP, who was represented by the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Commissioner Ibrahim Idris, promised that their salaries would

also be paid for 12 months.

The police said they would continue to safeguard life and property, despite the challenges.

Suleiman also pledged to support police personnel at all times.

A statement yesterday in Abuja by the Force spokesman, Emmanuel Ojukwu, said: “The

IGP will stand by police personnel at all times and the Force is determined to perform its statutory duties against all odds.

“We are giving each of the six families N500,000 and food items with a promise that their salaries will be paid for one year with effect from August 2014, when the sad incident occurred.”

into the ground - has revolutionised oil production in the country, transforming US states such as North Dakota and Pennsylvania in the process.

However, the increase in production has come just as demand for oil in economies across the world from Europe to China - the world’s secondlargest consumer of oil - has slowed.

Recent data also showed that Russia’s 2014 oil output hit a post-Soviet era high and exports from Iraq, Opec’s secondlargest producer, reached their highest since 1980.

Why Kwankwaso won’t return to PDP, by supporters From Tony Akowe, Abuja

A

POLITICAL support organisation, The Southern Mandate, has said the defection of Kano State Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has created a big vacuum in the party that no other person can fill.

The group’s National Coordinator, Comrade Ikonomwan Francis, in a statement in Abuja, said the PDP had nothing to offer Kwankwaso.

Francis noted that since President Jonathan cannot shelve his presidential ambition for Kwankwaso to take over and will not drop his running mate in place of the Kano governor, he has no business returning to the PDP. Reacting to a recent statement credited to the National Publicity Secretary of the PDP that there were moved for the Kano state governor and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar to return to the PDP, he said “Certainly, PDP has nothing to offer Engr.

Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso”, He explained that the PDP statement is a clear indication that they were threatened by the large followership and support base of the Kano state governor who contested the presidential ticket of the APC, coming second to General Muhammadu Buhari.

According to him, Kwankwaso is poised to give his support to end the reign of PDP in 2015 general election.

His Excellency has created a big vacuum in People’s Democratic Party (PDP) that can never be filled by any one.

He ask the Kano governor to begin the processing of selling his the Kwankwasiya ideology to Nigerians, stressing that this will help a great deal for Nigerians to have a full understanding of the uniqueness of Kwankwasiya ideology.

He said: “In course of our preparations for our party’s presidential primary election, there is no doubt that the name Kwankwaso blew like wild fire across the length and breadth of the country. It is therefore necessary for him to use this advantage to consolidate.

“Lectures and seminars should be organized at every state in the country.

This is one sure way he can as well keep all his structures and endear himself to Nigerians, expecially the ordinary common man which he fully represents.”

Libel: Governorship aspirant to pay Suswam N2.5m

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HE Federal High Court in Makurdi, Benue State, has ordered a former governorship aspirant on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2011 elections, Mr. Terver Kakih, to pay N2.5 million as damages to Governor Gabriel Suswam.

Kakih was accused of smearing Suswam’s character at a media briefing.

Justice Samson Itodo said Kakih’s statement on Suswam at the media briefing was not only untrue, defamatory and libellous, but a gross political irresponsibility intended to lower the governor’s reputation in the

From Uja Emmanuel, Makurdi

estimation of right-thinking members of the society.

The court directed Kakih to withdraw the statements and apologise to the governor on the front pages of three national newspapers, including The Guardian, The Nation and ThisDay. He is also to do same in two magazines, including Newswatch and TELL, for seven consecutive days in same font and size.

Justice Itodo issued an order of perpetual injunction restraining Kakih from further publishing and printing defamatory and libellous statements against Suswam.

THE NATION JANUARY 7, 2015

59

FOREIGN NEWS

Republicans take control of U.S. Congress R EPUBLICANS are set to take control of both chambers of Congress for the first time in eight years.

New and re-elected senators and all representatives began the swearing-in process at midday.

At the top of the Republican agenda is approval of the Keystone XL pipeline, a challenge to Barack Obama’s healthcare law and a trade deal.

Meanwhile, House Speaker John Boehner is facing a leadership challenge from several more conservative members.

Among those challenging Mr Boehner is Texas Representative Louis Gohmert, who earlier said it was time for a change after “years of broken promises”.

Mitch McConnell now

A

takes control of a still sharply divided Senate But Mr Boehner has already won a vote of Republican representatives and would need to lose dozens of additional votes from his party to be ousted as speaker.

Some Republicans have decried the leadership fight as a distraction from the party’s newly won ability to pass legislation.

The party won a majority in the Senate during November’s mid-term election.

But they have been angered by recent solo actions by Mr Obama including an executive action on immigration policy and a major shift in US policy towards Cuba.

Congress will convene at

noon (17:00 GMT), as required by the US Constitution.

A vote on the approval of the Keystone XL pipeline, a controversial oil pipeline extension on hold for years, is already expected in the House later this week.

The legislation may have enough support to pass Democratic blocks in the Senate.

Environmental groups are unhappy about Keystone The White House has not said whether or not Mr Obama will veto the legislation.

The US president has used his power of veto twice in his six years as president, but has said he expects to use it more now that both chambers are controlled by Republicans.

Turkey: Female suicide attacker FEMALE suicide hits police station bomber has blown

herself up in the Turkish city of Istanbul, injuring two police officers, the city governor says.

She hit a police station in the tourist hub of Sultanahmet. Reports say one of the officers has died of his injuries.

Governor Vasip Sahin told Turkish TV that the woman spoke English with “a thick accent”, but her nationality and identity remained unknown.

No group has yet said it

was behind the attack, the second on police in a week.

Police arrested a man who threw grenades and fired a weapon at officers near the prime minister’s office last Thursday, but no-one was injured in the attack.

Emergency services were quick to secure the area The bomber in the latest incident was reported to have died in the attack.

Police have sealed off an area in the historic district, where the Blue Mosque and

the Hagia Sophia museum are located.

Mr Sahin said the woman entered the station and told police she had lost her wallet before detonating the bomb.

“Right now one police officer is in hospital in a critical condition and another is lightly injured... The female bomber lost her life.”

The banned Marxist DHKPC group said it was behind the earlier attack in the city on 1 January, which took place outside Dolmabahce Palace.

•The annual Harbin Ice and Snow Festival is taking place in China’s north-eastern province of Heilongjiang and is expected to draw about 800,000 people to see the sculptures.

Burundi CNDD-FDD supporters shot dead in bar T HREE ruling party activists have been shot dead by gunmen in a bar in eastern Burundi, police say.

Five men dressed in army fatigues tied up the CNDDFDD party supporters before killing them on Sunday night.

They then went to the CNDD-FDD office in Gisuru, near the border with Tanzania, and burned the party flag.

Party spokesman Onesime Nduwimana blamed “the extremist fringe of the opposition” bent on sabotaging elections due later this year.

He told the AFP news agency that he feared they wanted

to destabilise the country by “sowing hatred” and provoking revenge attacks.

The attack follows heavy clashes last week in north-western Burundi between the army and rebels who officials say crossed from neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo.

On Monday, an army spokesman said 95 fighters from the so-far unidentified rebel group had died during the fighting in Cibitoke province.

Col Gaspard Baratuza said the motive of the rebels was

not immediately clear but there were suspicions the group might have been planning to disrupt the elections.

Burundi is recovering from a brutal civil war that ended with President Pierre Nkurunziza’s election in 2005.

Mr Nkurunziza, a former rebel leader and CNDD-FDD leader, is widely expected to seek another term in office but has not confirmed whether he will do so.

The ruling party and its opponents have disagreed over whether President Nkurunziza can run for a third term.

ANALYSIS

T

HE recent spate of ‘recognition’ of the ‘State of Palestine’ by major European countries represents a shift, even if symbolic from the past practice of tacit support for the unjust and illegal occupation of the land of Palestine by Israel.

The injustice has long been aided by a world that seems to have completely lost its conscience. The injustice is not always without the signature and ‘consent’ of Euro-America all along. From the Balfour Declaration of 1917 when the British government ‘viewed with favour’, the establishment of an Israeli homeland in Palestine; to the enlistment of Jewish elements into the British Army and the subsequent establishment of Irgun (otherwise called the Stern Group – a Jewish terrorist organization that was later to form the nucleus of Israeli military).

Israel has always had its wars fought by proxy. This was evident in the assistance offered

by Russia and former Czechoslovakia when the Jewish State was almost defeated in the first ‘official’ exchange of hostilities.

It is also reflected in the continuous protection of the Jewish colony by the US since after World War II to the present.

But the resilience of the occupied people especially of Gaza threw up challenges that stirred the conscience of the world, touched that of Europe but not yet America’s. What the last war on Gaza by Israel which lasted for over 50 days said was that the human cost of the occupation is neither bearable any longer nor sustainable.

Europe (not America) appears to be mov-

Palestine and return of global conscience

By Shakiru Ayinde Yekinni

ing away from its inglorious past of maintaining criminal silence. And like an icing on the cake to complement the flurry of recognition, the EU Lower House in Strasbourg decided to remove the name of HAMAS from its list of ‘terrorist organizations’.

Although the ‘recognitions’ leaves much to desire as it fell short of complementary actions such as sanctions, embargoes, withdrawal of aid (both military and financial) and many other measures that could drum sense into the Zionist state, it nevertheless was an acknowledgement of an unreasonable past that encourages contumacious belligerency on the part of Israel as well as a determination for change That the injustice endured for this is owed to many factors, the most critical being the hypocrisy of nations and individuals saddled with bringing a lasting solution to the problem. At the level of nations, foremost among these is America who after almost five decades of monopoly of brokering the ‘peace deals’ is now adjudged a dishonest broker by all except Israel whose bidding it does even at its own detriment. This has prompted other big powers as well as coalitions of medium powers to contemplate stepping into the matter.

An example of the frustration of the world with Israel is the push by a variety of nations in the UN Security Council for a resolution recognizing the state of Palestine. Hopes are

high that the resolution will scale the required 9/15 votes barring a veto from any of the big powers. Even America dropped the hint that a veto in Israel’s favor may not be in the offing.

At the individual level, I had a recent experience worth sharing here. The venue was the Bolaji Akinyemi Auditorium of the NIIA (Nigerian Institute of International Affairs) for the December edition of the monthly public lecture. The Israeli Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Uriel Palti was the Guest Speaker to discuss the topic: The Arab/Israeli Conflict: Is Lasting Peace a Possibility?

The Ambassador threw back the question and submitted that he could not say whether a lasting peace would be possible.

However he attempted a distortion of the history behind the crisis by his intermittent reference to the occupied lands as the ‘land of Israel’. He not only presented Israel as invincible, but tried also to absolve it of its numerous crimes, justified its systematic cleansing of Palestinians as self-defense and frantically struggled to portray Israel as the victim rather than the villain.

When it was time for response, I put the following posers to the Ambassador: One, if truly the occupied lands belonged to Israel, why did Theodore Herzl, (President of the World Zionist Organization- WZO) approached Sultan Abdul Hamid (then leader of the Ottoman Empire and the Islamic world) in1897 to sell to him a parcel of land in Palestine for a Jewish homeland with humongous amount of money

which the Sultan rejected: why would you offer to buy what belonged to you if your claim was true?

Second, talking about the use of violence to achieve political ends, Israel was the first and the most reckless. I reminded him of the first UN envoy selected to mediate the Arab/Israeli conflict, Lord Folke Bernadotte who was assassinated by the Irgun in Jerusalem in 1948 despite the man having negotiated the release of some Danish Jews from German concentration camps only a few years earlier. [Bernadotte was assassinated because he tried to internationalize Jerusalem as the partition resolution said so as to limit the borders of the Jewish state and prevent incursion into Palestinian portions] Third, I told him that the Zionist agenda of a ‘Greater Israel’ which envisions the entire Middle East as Jewish possession was one reason behind the intractability of the crisis; that the continuous expansion of Jewish settlements is a tactical repudiation of the ‘two-states’ solution and the cause of intense and unending hostilities. I also put it to him that the fear of an independent Palestinian state, which would legally cultivate its own military to ward off internal and external threats is why Israel continued to sabotage the peace process and the ‘two-states’ solution Fourth, I punctured his argument of an invincible Israel by pointing to him how Israel has always tricked/moved other nations to fight its wars.

I pointed to an incident known as the ‘La Von Affairs’ in American history and as ‘Bad Business’ in Israeli archives [when in 1954 Israel organized the bombing of American, British and Egyptian civilian targets so as to blame it on elements inside Egypt including the Muslim Brotherhood and thereby move the West against Egypt].

Even though I did not mention this, the defeat of Israel by Hezbollah in 2006 remains a strong support of my argument.

I then concluded that the continuous building of settlements, the siege of Gaza and the deliberate sabotage of the ‘two-state’ solution are reasons why there cannot be a lasting peace.

After my speech which lasted for less than five minutes, the Ambassador became obviously embarrassed, and so also was the Chairman of the occasion, a former Ambassador of Nigeria to Israel and the United States, Professor George Obiozor. But Obiozor’s reaction was the more puzzling and fitting into the above narrative. In a bid to safe the face of his guest, he launched into a tirade as to why I, a Nigerian wanted to ‘fight another man’s battle’: that both Israelis and Arabs are same children of Abraham and that I should not be concerned with whatever they do to themselves; that to every story there are always two sides; that Israel is a great country having succeeded in the technology of grafting for improved agricultural yield on every inch of Israeli soil. He also brought up the enormity of challenge posed by Boko Haram to crown the sway of his sentiment. Of

course, I could not interrupt the Chairman as he chose to use his privileged position to ‘kill’ my argument.

Ever since the incident, I came to see how the prejudice of public office holders and policy makers could impact either positively or negatively on vital decisions of a country on very important issues. Why did Obiozor agree to attend the discourse as chairman if we are to keep aloof of the matter; why discuss it at all; is it just for mere academic exercise?

Shall we pat Israel on the back as it slaughters innocent women, children, the infirm, the aged and the defenceless men to maintain its occupation because it is a great agricultural miracle?

The genius of Hitler’s Germany was rolling out tens of thousands of armoured cars monthly in World War II; did that make the ambition of warring to conquer the world humane and deserving of accolades? And even if Israel was to develop a technology that will make plants grow in the clouds, would that absolve it of its numerous crimes against the Palestinians and the humanity at large?

The future however belongs to a world where all men are equal, and where no race or tribe, either through indoctrination or subterfuge is allowed to lord it over others.

Obiozor definitely belonged to the past!!!

Yekinni is the Executive Director Centre for Global Peace Initiative (CGPI) e-mail:laidetop06@ yahoo.com

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THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

NEWS Jonathan must go, says Buhari Continued from page 4

perfect man at all, because I am human.

“When we came, we addressed insecurity. In the past, we could not have had our rally here. We are gradually going back to that. I hear today that members of the APC from Asari-Toru and Khana Local Government Areas (of Rivers State) were shot at on their way to this place (Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium). The PDP members believe in guns. We believe in God and man. We shall stand and face their bullets. We shall stand and face their guns. The fact that they shot you brings to the fore the argument we put forward that currently, the government in power cannot protect you and I. If the government could protect you and I, why were we shot at? Who bought guns for those people, who shot at our members?

“I’m assuring you as your governor that I will continue to stand by you. They will do nothing, if we all stand together. You know the story of the broom. You can break a broom. You cannot break them when they are togeth-

er. That is why APC has brought the symbol of a broom to our party. It is not enough to gather. Go and get your PVCs and vote for all APC candidates, beginning from Gen. Muhammadu Buhari; his vice; Rivers governorship candidate, Dakuku Peterside and his running mate Honourable Asita. We will make sure they win.”

Tambuwal, who described Amaechi as the lion from the Delta, spoke of better life for Nigerians from May 29 when the candidates of the APC, especially Gen. Buhari, would be in office, through the massive votes of Nigerians and the grace of God. The speaker said: “When I defected to the APC (from the PDP last year), many people were surprised. With the privileged position as Speaker (of the House of Representatives) for three and a half years, we oversight the executive (arm of government).

What we saw and are still seeing are mind-boggling.

We do not deserve the kind of leadership we have at the centre. Nigeria deserves a better leadership in Buhari.

His records speak for him.

We are today bedevilled by insecurity and corruption.

Nigerians should know where to cast their votes.

“Gen. Muhammadu Buhari,

by God’s grace, shall be inaugurated as Nigeria’s President on May 29, 2015. Nigerians will come out overwhelmingly to vote for all the candidates of the APC. “I am impressed by the large crowd (at the stadium).

I wish to thank Governor Amaechi for making Dr. Dakuku Peterside the governorship candidate of the APC and Hon. Asita his running mate. They are currently members of the House of Representatives. This is a National Assembly project in Rivers State. We shall support them.”

Odigie-Oyegun described as unimpressive, Jonathan’s performance. This, he said, has made change on May 29 imperative.

He said: “The whole of Nigeria is jealous of Rivers State.

This is the centre of change.

General Buhari is a straightforward leader, strong in character, reliable and incurruptible. General Buhari and Prof. Osinbajo were carefully chosen. Hardwork pays and brings success. General Buhari was ahead of his time.

His time has finally come.”

MEND endorses APC candidate Continued from page 4

“President Jonathan, since assuming his office, has setup countless number of “Committees”, none of which reports has ever been implemented. From the Nuhu Ribadu report to the KPMG and Fuel Subsidy reports, just to mention a few.

“We re-state our disregard and lack of confidence in President Goodluck Jonathan. Rather than address the perennial issues in the country responsible for his administrations failures, he is concentrating government funds in a campaign of misinformation intended to hoodwink Nigerians who,

unfortunately for him, are now wiser and smarter than he is.

“Goodluck Jonathan’s actions, utterances and arrogance prove that he is totally disconnected with the situation facing the ordinary Nigerian and completely out of touch with reality.”

On the situation with the Niger Delta, the MEND said: “Since President Goodluck Jonathan assumed office, the Niger Delta has experienced excruciating poverty faced by the people, worse pollution and environmental degradation and not once has he ever come out to openly condemn the destruction of our environment by the activities of

irresponsible oil companies.

“Recent reports confirm the country is losing billions of dollars in oil revenue due to oil theft. This theft has been aided by the pot-bellied Nigerian Army generals, in connivance with corrupt Nigerian government officials, the Joint Task Force and the Nigerian Navy. It is no wonder the once respected Nigerian Military has been reduced to a ragtag army by the Boko Haram terrorists. It can only take a bold and courageous man like Gen. Mohammadu Buhari to tackle the insecurity and oil theft plaguing the nation. He has done it before and he will and can do it again!”

‘PDP has ruined Nigeria’ Continued from page 4

God. He, however, reminded the Akwa Ibom people of the Biblical injunction that faith without work is dead.

Amaechi, who was joined on the podium by former governors of Anambra and Zamfara states Dr. Chris Ngige and Alhaji Sani Yerimah - told the people that when he was running for governor, PDP used all its might, including the military, to hunt him but with a dint of hard work and fasting and prayers, God made him governor.

He told the people that there are over 3.5 million young Nigerians who are out of school while several other millions have no gainful employment all because of PDP’s mis-governance and corruption in the last 16 years.

He urged Akwa Ibom people to vote for Umana to ensure qualitative education and real development.

APC’s Akwa Ibom State Chairman Dr. Amadu Attai assured Gen. Buhari that Akwa Ibom electorates were ready with their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) to vote APC in the February 14 Presidential election and other elections.

He said APC had served PDP quit notice when Umana and other PDP bigwigs defected to APC. Umana said Akwa Ibom

people were tired of “uncommon” propaganda by PDP-led government.

Umana said: “I want to say that it is time for change. We have had enough of uncommon propaganda. I was Commissioner for Finance. I know that in eight years, the total revenue that accrued to this state was N450billion. That is the amount the current PDP administration receives in one year.

“But have we added values for the trillions that are coming to this state? What we have had is uncommon propaganda. I will like to apologise to our distinguished guests who could not even find seats to sit in the VIP lounge of this state of uncommon propaganda.

“It is time for the real change. It is time we ensured that we put an end to poverty and impunity. We have two parties today in Akwa Ibom state. We have Peoples Democratic Party which is the Akpabio Peoples Party and we have the All Progressives Congress which is the Akwa Peoples Party. So the choice is yours. We are tired of a situation where one man will act as if he is god; as if he is the one to appoint your governor. You are the one to elect your governor.”

Ngige urged the people to vote Gen. Buhari as president and Umana as governor.

Ngige said in the last 16 years of the PDP-led government, both at the centre and Akwa Ibom State, nothing much has changed inspite of the quantum of money that has come into the country and the state.

He cited the Aba -Ikot Ekpene federal road that has remained a death trap for many years.

He said APC was ready to give Nigerians the real leadership and development they have been yearning for all these years.

Ngige recalled that when senators came for a retreat in the state, Governor Godswill Akpabio introduced Umana, then SSG, as the next governor and assured them that God will honour that declaration and make Umana governor.

The wife of late governor of Akwa Ibom State, Mrs. Imo Isemin, said Gen. Buhari is the only person who can return the country to growth and honesty.

She urged the people to vote Gen. Buhari and Umana.

The former first Lady urged the women to get serious, get back to their units and start real work to bring the much needed change.

The co-coordinator of Umana’s campaign, Mr. Sunny Udom said Umana is the only person who will bring about the much desired change in the state.

THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

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THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015

SPORT EXTRA

Lagos agog for Glo-CAF Awards •Hayatou, other dignitaries in town A LL is now set for the 2014 Glo- CAF awards Gala Night scheduled to hold

tomorrow at the Convention Centre, Eko Hotels and Suites, Lagos.

Illustrious sons and daughters of Africa who have distinguished themselves across the world play-

PUBLIC NOTICE ABIRU I, formerly known and addressed as Abiru Zainab Kofoworola, wish to be known and addressed as Hussein Zanaib Kofoworola. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

PUBLIC NOTICE ABIRU I, formerly known and addressed as Abiru Abiodun Ibrahim now wish to be known and addressed as Hussein Abiodun Ibrahim. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

ing or administering the game of football in the last one year will be honoured at the event, rated as Oscars of African football.

The awards are the most prestigious in Africa, conferred on outstanding players, coaches, supporters and administrators by the continents’ highest football authority and bankrolled by one of Africa’s biggest brands, Globacom.

Many of the award recipients, sports dignitaries, government officials and football administrators led by the President of CAF, Mr. Issa Hayatou and executive members of the continental body, CAF have started arriving in Lagos for the ceremony.

Globacom, in a press statement in Lagos on Wednesday, said that “the Glo-CAF Awards 2014 will parade the greatest African football legends, including the new Afri-

can Footballer of the Year and winners in 12 other categories.”

The categories include African Player of The Year (Based in Africa), National Team of The Year, Club of The Year, and Coach of The Year.

Other categories are Women’s National Team of The Year, Women’s Footballer of The Year, Most Promising Talent, Referee of The Year, Legend of The year, Fair Play Award, Platinum Award and Africa Finest XI. CAF recently released the final list of three shortlisted players competing for the prized African Footballer of the Year awards.

They are Nigerian Vincent Enyeama who currently plays for Lille in France, three times African Player of the Year, Manchester City and Cote d’ Ivoire Midfielder, Yaya Toure, and Pierre-Emerick

• Toure

Aubameyang of Gabon and Borussia Dortmund in Germany.

Emenike's camp in talks with AC Milan • Inter, Fiorentina ponder move

S

L10.NG understands that Fenerbahce striker Emmanuel Emenike has been proposed to a number of clubs in Italy including AC Milan.

In recent weeks, there has been uncertainty surrounding the future of the Nigeria international at the Turkish champions. Emmanuel Emenike has failed to replicate his performance last season, coupled with the fact that the relationship with his teammates and coach Ismail Kartal is far from cordial.

The 27-year-old's camp has therefore opened talks with AC Milan sporting director Umberto Gandini regarding a

move in the January transfer window.

However, The Rossoneri must move fast if they are really interested to get his signature, as Serie A rivals Fiorentina and Inter Milan are also believed to be monitoring his situation at the Yellow Canaries.

Indeed, Italian agent Davide Sabatini will hold high-level meetings with representatives of the Nerazzurri and Viola on Wednesday to discuss the possibility of Emenike joining any of the teams.

The 2013 African Cup of Nations top goalscorer is tied to Fenerbahce until the end of the 2016 - 2017 season.

Udoh, Obuh favourites for Akwa United job

F

ORMER Akwa United technical adviser Patrick Udoh and ex-Enugu Rangers coach John Obuh are front runners for Akwa United's top job.

Udoh guided the Promise Keepers to safety finishing the 2013/14 Glo Premier League season as 16th best on 51 points.

An unnamed official of the side said the picture on who would be technical adviser of Akwa United, will be clearer today.

“Many coaches have indicated interest to fill the vacant position of technical adviser but the decision on who becomes the head coach will be known on Wednes-

day.

“The management is working hard to ensure the assignment is concluded in good time to allow the new person ample opportunity to hit the ground running.

“Right now the immediate past technical adviser, Patrick Udoh, and coach John Obuh are on everybody’s lips as possible candidates for the top job.

“However, nothing is certain yet until the management makes their pronouncement. Whoever is chosen must have earn the right on merit as the management wants the very best for the side,” said the source to supersport.com.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 7, 2015 TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM

VOL.10 NO.3088

TODAY IN THE NATION ‘How many have died in potholes that should never have been allowed to grow? How many have been killed by the Okada Epidemic, a 100,000 times worse than Ebola and disguised as a Youth Empowerment Programme’ but killing, maiming orphaning and widowing Nigerians nationwide’ TONY MARINHO

COMMENT & DEB ATE EBA

L

AST Wednesday, this column ended with a promise that today, God willing, we’ll examine the question about whether the opposition leadership can deliver on its commitment of bringing an end to the nasty and brutish present the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has landed us in and would like us to continue with. Of course, PDP did not put it exactly this way when President Goodluck Jonathan read his acceptance speech as its candidate in next month’s presidential election during his recent coronation at Eagle Square in Abuja.

“The choice before Nigerians in the coming election,” he said in the speech, “is simple: A choice between going forward or (sic) going backwards; between the new ways and the old ways; between freedom and repression; between a record of visible achievements and beneficial reforms and desperate power-seekers with empty promises.”

Obviously for the president, a vote for the first options in his four dichotomies – forward/ backward; new ways/old ways; freedom/ repression; visible achievements and beneficial reforms/ desperate power seekers with empty promises – represents a vote for himself and PDP, while a vote for the second represents one for General Muhammadu Buhari and All Progressives Congress (APC).

These dichotomies, to begin with, are based on certain false assumptions and some are indeed themselves false. It is, for example, not necessarily true that the future is always better than the past or that new ways are necessarily better than old ways. Certainly in the specific case of the president, his new ways have proved more disastrous than the old because, by almost every development index you can think of, it has, as I said last week, landed us in a present worse, far worse, than the past.

Again, it is also not true that only those desperate to get power make empty promises; those desperate to retain power too can and do make empty promises.

Today our economy has come to be defined not so much by its recently rebased size, which has earned it the dubious honour of being the largest in Africa. Rather our economy has come to be defined, even by the president himself, by the numbers of the new rich, who own private jets and guzzle huge quantities of expensive wines that it has created. In other words, Nigeria has come to exemplify a society with an unhealthy huge gap between the few obscenely rich and a huge number of the rest living in abject poverty.

There can hardly be a better illustration of this new Nigeria than a seven-page article in TATLER (December 2013), the glossy British fashion magazine, headlined “THE NIGERIANS HAVE ARRIVED.” The article, which spoke about how Nigeria’s new rich fly from Lagos to London by private jets, love to live and shop in Belgravia, a wealthy neighbourhood of London, wear “bespoke suits” and play polo with princes, described the country as the second fastest growing champagne market after France. “Total consumption (of the drink),” it said, “reached 752,879 bottles in 2011 and the country is spending around N41.41bn (£159m) on the drink annually.”

Surely, this is not the kind of Nigeria we can all be proud to be citizens of, especially not when the inequality and inequity in the land is based, not on hard work and entrepreneurship, but mainly on cronyism. As that justly famous Justice of American Supreme Court, Louis D. Brandeis, once said of his country, “We can have democracy in this country, or we can have great wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can’t have both.”

RIPPLES

REV. FR. MBAKA SPOKE THE TRUTH ABOUT JONATHAN –Ndigbo Unity Forum

Yes…and those speaking against the TRUTH ‘ll see the WRATH of God in JESUS name

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

Between President Jonathan and General Buhari

•Jonathan

•Buhari

Second, the president’s dichotomies are based on the assumption that he is sincerely committed to his oft-repeated promise of allowing free, fair and credible elections. In spite of all appearances to the contrary, the man did not deliver on this promise four years ago and the stakes have become much higher since then as can be seen from the number and the character of the country’s new rich alone.

Four years ago the man won on the power of incumbency coupled with the power of religious and ethnic propaganda. Then public policy, the treasury, chief executives of state and local governments, and even traditional rulers, were all held hostage to ensuring victory for the PDP at all levels of government. Similarly the party succeeded in dressing Buhari, as the leading rival candidate - of course with the active complicity of the mass media - in the robes of an ethnic jingoist and religious extremist.

Even then the PDP did not take chances with the actual voting itself. Here, it was instructive that there were high voter turnouts in virtually all the states that were the party’s strongholds and corresponding low voter turnouts in opposition strongholds.

Whereas, for example, the highest voter turnout in opposition strongholds was in Kano with 52.3 %, the lowest in PDP strongholds in South-South and SouthEast, except for Anambra (57.3), Ebonyi (47.3) and Edo (37.2), was 60%. Indeed, Bayelsa, the president’s home state, had an improbable 85.5% turnout in a country which, like most democracies in the world, has had an average of lower than 40% voter turnout since elections started in the country.

It therefore came as no surprise that a programme on the Federal Government-owned Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), which started an analysis of the votes on April 17, was yanked off the air “on orders from above” barely five minutes into its continuation the following day when one of the discussants, Dr

Jibrin Ibrahim, who was an election expert, started raising awkward questions about the credibility of the figures.

Four years on, it now seems the power of ethnic and religious propaganda against Buhari as the leading opposition candidate, is no longer as portent as it was on the three occasions he lost, thanks essentially to his choice of a running mate, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, who is not only a senior pastor of arguably the most influential Pentecostal church in Africa, but comes highly recommended for his intellect and simplicity and as a man of high personal integrity.

This obviously means the president would now have to rely more on his power of incumbency than he did four years ago if he is to be sure of winning the election. So far he has demonstrated a willingness to use it at the expense of the opposition, witness, for example, how he sided with the minority faction of a divided Nigerian Governors Forum, how the Police recently tried to shut out the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Aminu Tambuwal, from the House because he had defected to the opposition, how the Directorate of State Services invaded the Data Centre of the APC in Lagos, under the guise that the centre was forging a voters register, and from the way his administration has selectively fought its war against corruption.

The omens are therefore not good that the elections this year will be free, fair and credible. Assuming, however, they are, and assuming the opposition wins the presidential elections, can it deliver on its promise to end the current rot?

The answer, says conventional wisdom, lies in the parties focusing on debating issues rather than personalities of the contestants. I disagree somewhat. Issues are of course important but again

HARDBALL

R

EMEMBER Gabriel Selenkere, the Ekiti super cop? Selenkere was he, who days to the Ekiti governorship election in 2014, threatened to "arrest" then Governor Kayode Fayemi. Selenkere was the commander of the local MOPOL who also happened to come from Bayelsa, the home state of the President.

Selenkere also had other briefs -- or so, it appeared.

To him, the governor and his gubernatorial court were nothing. All that mattered was the Goodluck Jonathan presidential court in Abuja.

"I don't know of any governor," -- or something to that effect, he reportedly snapped, when Governor Fayemi asked him for explanation on the bedlam, which his MOPOL boys appeared to have aided and abetted. The vice-president was in town -- and that was the sole authority in the land!

Meaning? Nigeria might run a federation on paper, but the governor could go jump into the lake and get drowned for his pains, instead of asking stupid questions, of a super-cop, loyal to nobody but the central authorities! It was the metaphysical ouster of the governor. A few days later, he was out of office.

That was the level of impunity in the run-up to Ayo Fayose's election. But though Fayose now sits pretty, impunity appears now consuming its own children.

Still, the grand irony is that Selenkere trip would ap-

as Justice Brandeis once said, “We are not won by arguments that we can analyse, but by tone and temper; by the manner, which is the man himself.” In other words what in the end makes us believe in someone is not his knowledge or competence as such.

It is essentially his character.

By all means let us discuss issues if only because therein can we tell whether someone has a grasp of the things at stake. But we must remember always that, in the end, talk is cheap and character more than even knowledge and competence, is what makes the difference.

Clearly the leadership of the ruling party has demonstrated that it lacks the character to deliver this country from the problems of insecurity, industrial scale venality and poverty that has bedevilled it. The big question is, does the leadership of the opposition have the character to enable it turn the tide for a better future?

As political parties I believe there isn’t much to choose between PDP and APC. But then even though a tree does not make a forest, small groups and even individuals can, as History has taught us, make a difference. I believe the combination of Buhari and Osinbajo can make a significant difference in the nation’s war against insecurity, corruption and the poverty in the land. This is because both of them possess what, to me, are the greatest virtues in fighting a successful war against any evil – personal integrity and a simple lifestyle, even if it is merely comparative.

As a human being, Buhari, of course has his vices but many that are often attributed to him, like religious extremism and ethnic jingoism, as I’ve had occasions to point out on these pages, are simply not true. Some that are true, like his self-righteousness, rigidity and a tendency to over-delegate, he seems to have learnt to change or moderate since he entered politics more than a decade ago, as anyone familiar with the internal politics of the opposition parties he has been a member of will testify.

Twelve years ago, on January 28, 2003 to be precise, I described the choice between President Olusegun Obasanjo as the candidate of PDP and Buhari as the candidate of the opposition ANPP in that year’s presidential election as a difficult one “between the rock and a hard place.”

Twelve years on, the choice between President Goodluck Jonathan and Buhari couldn’t be easier, given the preponderance of the character of each of them, never mind the poor record of the incumbent in the last six years, a record which would be hard to surpass in its bankruptcy.

A CORRECTION...

Last week I referred to Major-General Ishola Williams in error as Alabi William. The error was inadvertent and is regretted. ...and a notice Twenty years ago this month I was a guest speaker at an occasion during which General Muhammadu Buhari was honoured over his conferment with an honorary degree. It was a long speech but re-reading it I thought it has some relevance to the current cross-road we are in, especially given the roles some of the key players then are still playing in our politics today.

The editors of Daily Trust, The Nation, Newsdiaryonline and Gamji have obliged my request to publish it between this Saturday and Sunday.

You may wish to read it for all that it is worth.

•For comments, send SMS to 08059100107

•Hardball is not the opinion of the columnist featured above

Selenkere: Impunity consuming own children pear for something not at all ignoble.

To start with, MOPOL Commander Selenkere, a Superintendent of Police, reportedly had issues with his Commissioner of Police (CP), Taiwo Lakanu.

If that were true, that would appear like indiscipline, for SUPOL is some way off from CP. But then, that is Police business.

But his reported transfer stemmed from a much nobler act. When Governor Fayose was making a public show of distributing his Christmas chicken, in fidelity with his stomach infrastructure policy, he had the conventional Police queue up publicly to received the largesse.

It is unclear if Mr. Lakanu demurred. What is clear is that policemen dutifully queued, received Fayose's chickens and, in exchange, gifted the governor his glorious photo-op, as a benevolent Leviathan in the Yuletide season of goodwill. But not a few stomachs churned -- how could policemen in uniform possibly allow themselves the humiliation of being handed free chicken in public?

That sentiment must have spoken to Selenkere, for he reportedly ordered his MOPOL men back to base, lest they too were exposed to such treatment. Fayose, it would appear, did not like such temerity -- not to talk of the vanished stupendous icing on the cake: the photo-ops of the all-mighty MOPOL queuing before the benevolent governor!

To be sure, there should be no big deal about policemen, for good or for ill, queuing before a governor -- after all, the governor is his state's chief security officer, de jure, if not de facto. But impunity is no respecter of persons!

So, why did Fayose reportedly feel so piqued? He probably remembered Selenkere's Fayemi treatment -- and probably felt it was a matter of time before he himself got something like that.

Anyway, the news is Selenkere was awaiting signals to go build his empire somewhere. Indeed, what goes around comes around. Impunity, in Ekiti, is consuming its own children!

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