The Nation July 14, 2012

327 Nigerians deported from Libya arrive Lagos airport PAGE

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Britain spent N3.6bn to investigate Ibori, says CJN Musdapher

Salami:

Court orders substituted service on Jonathan 7

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Dana Air crash: Anyene family of six buried in Anambra amid tears Ex-VP Ekwueme, Tambuwal, others pay last respects PAGE Onyeka Anyene’s twin sister, Odinaka, being consoled yesterday by a sympathiser at the burial of six members of the Anyene family who died in the June 3 Dana plane crash

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GOVERNORSHIP POLL

Tension in Edo as 8 soldiers take over towns PAGE

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Governor: There is no curfew in the state SEE PAGES 11-16 Polls favour Oshiomhole FOR ANALYSES Shehu of Borno, deputy governor escape death in bomb blast

THE NATION, Saturday, July 14, 2012

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•Shots after the fire incident

HE Rivers State Commissioner for Special Duties, Emeka Nwogu, with his experiences over the years, gave an insight into what led to the petrol tanker fire at Okogbe on the everbusy East-West Road in the Ahoada West Local Government Area of the state on Thursday.

The horrible incident led to the death of 95 persons while scooping fuel and given mass burial at the scene. Over 100 persons were badly burnt and still receiving treatment in various hospitals.Four vehicles were affected and 34 motorcycles were also burnt.

Nwogu said: “During the March 17, 2012 Igwuruta tanker fire in Port Harcourt (in Ikwerre LGA of Rivers State, on the dualised road to Port Harcourt International Airport), six persons died, many people were injured, houses and other valuable property were burnt in the morning, but I got calls in the evening of the same day that some people still went into the burnt tanker to scoop fuel.”

An indigene of Okogbe, Mr. Christmas Ede, at the Okogbe scene, attributed the accident to the bad and narrow road, ridden with potholes and bad spots, but currently being dualised by the Federal Government, through Setraco Construction Company.

Ede declared: “Poverty is too high in this area, despite the richness in crude oil and gas. Government should do something about the plight of the people, especially to empower them and employ the many qualified youths. We also need a fire service station in the area.

“Seven years ago, Rivers State Government promised to build a befitting fire service station at Ahoada Town (headquarters of Ahoada East LGA of the state), but what we have there is nothing to write home about and it is not functioning.

“Immediately the tanker fell at 6:30 am (beside Oando filling station), we contacted the fire service in Port Harcourt, but the unmarked Mercedes Benz truck, with Ateco 1325 inscribed on it, got to the scene at 12:02 pm, when the deed had been done.”

Rivers special duties commissioner, however, disagreed with Ede, especially on the issue of poverty, which he said was not an excuse for the victims to be involved in the avoidable tragedy.

Nwogu stated: “What level of poverty will make people to scoop fuel from a tanker carrying 33,000 litres of petrol? Our people will never learn. This is not the first time, but the magnitude is very high. Our people are not safety and security conscious. They play with their lives.

“Vehicle owners, especially tanker owners, should start using educated drivers. Most of the tanker drivers are stark illiterates, who take drugs, alcohol and sleep in brothels, but will still drive in the morning.

“Educated drivers, who are well paid, will know the implications of taking drugs, alcohol and sleeping in brothels and will know traffic signs. If the road is bad, can’t

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n From Bisi OLANIYI, n Port Harcourt

Rivers petrol One tragedy

they slow down? It is a pity that Rivers State lost many persons. I sympathise with their families.”

On July 10, 2000, a pipeline explosion killed no fewer than 250 villagers in Jesse, Delta State, with the fire burning out of control, yet many people refused to learn. Six days later, at least 100 villagers died, when a ruptured pipeline exploded in Warri, Delta State.

A leaking petroleum products pipeline caught fire at a beachhead near the fishing village of Ebute near Lagos on November 30, 2000, killing at least 60 people, while on June 19, 2003, an oil pipeline punctured by thieves exploded North of Umuahia, the Abia State capital, killing 125 villagers.

Also on September 17, 2004, many people were killed in a pipeline explosion in Lagos, after thieves tried to siphon petrol belonging to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), while on May 12, 2006, a pipeline explosion in the fishing village of Ilado, Lagos State, killed more than 250 people.

Officials of the Nigerian Red Cross disclosed that 269 bodies were retrieved on December 26, 2006, when fuel from a vandalised pipeline exploded in AbuleEgba, Lagos.

On October 12, 2007, the fishing and farming community of Otor-Edo in Ughelli South LGA of Delta State escaped being roasted alive, when the trunk-line of the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC) 10-inch Utorogun gas plant exploded.

Four persons were injured in the OtorEdo incident, while no life was lost, as the people were saved by the high tide and overflow of water from the adjoining river.

On December 26, 2007, at least 45 people were burnt to death on the outskirts of Lagos, when the fuel they were siphoning from a buried pipeline caught fire, while on May 15, 2008, at least 100 people were killed and scores injured, when fuel from a pipeline ruptured by an earth-mover exploded in Ijegun, Lagos.

Another pipeline explosion in the fishing and farming village of Ilado, Lagos on June 13, 2009, led to the death of unknown number of people.

On March 17, 2012, tragedy occurred at Igwuruta Roundabout in Ikwerre LGA of Rivers State, on the dualised road to the Port Harcourt International Airport, with a family of four and two others burnt beyond recognition in the petrol tanker fire. Over 25 houses and four vehicles were also razed, with many persons injured.

In the Igwuruta incident, six fire fighters and two of their vehicles were attacked by mob, while expressing anger that the officials arrived at the scene very late. Six injured fire fighters of the Rivers State Government were on the danger list in hospitals for some days.

The tanker, laden with petrol, overturned at Igwuruta on the Port Harcourt-Owerri Road at 4:30 am, spilling its contents on the main road, with the impact igniting fire, which spread to the houses and vehicles, when residents of the thickly-populated area were fast asleep.

The members of the family of four that were consumed comprised the father, mother and their two children.

The driver of the tanker and the conductor were badly burnt and rushed to hospitals in Port Harcourt. When the attacks by Igwuruta people were becoming uncontrollable, more policemen and soldiers were deployed in the scene, thereby dispersing the protesters and later clearing the road.

The Igwuruta mob insisted that if the fire fighters had arrived much earlier, the casualty figure and destruction of valuable property would have been drastically reduced.

While commenting on the Okogbe tragedy, the Rivers State’s Health Commissioner, Dr. Sampson Parker, who was at the scene and later at Ahoada General Hospital, where the badly-burnt persons were rushed to, described the incident as cremation, a national disaster and the worst, since after the Civil War. Parker, who cried at the hospital, said: “I think this is the worst single disaster that has happened in Nigeria. The corpses I counted there (at the scene) alone, in fact, 200 and they have not finished counting. It is cremation. The corpses were burnt to ashes. So, how many can you count? It is a sad situation. Quite a pity!

“Most of the victims have over 70 per cent burns. Bad cases. In best centres, it will be difficult to save them. If they did not go to scoop the fuel, the situation would have been saved. We heard that over 50 victims were taken to hospitals. Fire fighters response should not be blamed.

“Those running in the bush were affected by the fire. People should be disaster conscious. Tanker with fuel is a bomb waiting to explode. Our people should understand the danger they are exposed to.”

Before the health commissioner could speak at the hospital, he excused himself for five minutes to regain his composure, with his eyes red with tears. He declared that the fire was worse than the Sosoliso plane crash

of 2005 at Port Harcourt International Airport.

The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Rivers State chapter, while commiserating with Rivers people, especially with relatives of the deceased and injured, described the petrol tanker fire incident at Okogbe as one too many.

ACN, through its Rivers Publicity Secretary, Jerry Needam, noted that within four months, the state had lost many innocent persons to avoidable fire disasters.

The main opposition party in Rivers said: “Weeping and wailing cannot resurrect the dead, but we should have a re-think on how the resources of the state are mismanaged, a situation responsible for the bad roads and abject poverty in the land.

“If those at the helm at the local, state and federal government levels have the interest of the masses at heart and are committed to rendering selfless services to the people, this kind of misfortune will be minimised.

“Besides loss of lives through accidents, the East-West Road in recent times has become a haven of sort for armed robbers and kidnappers.

“We call for the immediate rehabilitation of the roads, provision of fire fighting services at the council areas and 24-hour surveillance of such important busy border areas by security agents, to checkmate disaster.”

The ACN also prayed for the repose of the souls of the departed and the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss, while calling for a day prayer for persons who lost their lives to the unfortunate fire incident.

The ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers State described the Okogbe fire incident as an unprecedented human catastrophe, while lamenting the huge loss of precious lives of Rivers people and commiserating with the affected families.

Rivers PDP, through its Publicity Secretary, Mr. George Ukwuoma-Nwogba, disclosed that the state Chairman of the party, Chief Godspower Ake, was “shaken” at the magnitude of the disaster.

It called for collective prayers of comfort and consolation for the families, whose precious ones perished in the fire disaster, stressing that the incident would draw attention to the urgent need for everyone to live for one another and be united.

PDP lauded Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, who is also the Chairman of the

THE NATION, Saturday, July 14, 2012

tanker fire: too many Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF), for responding promptly to the tragedy and ordering full investigation and best medical attention for survivors, wondering why people seemed hard at learning from incidents as the fuel fire and similar disasters.

The ruling party said: “We have been on this sad lane before. Our people ought to learn from previous experiences and avoid exposing themselves to untimely deaths. We had suffered similar tragedies and had thought those sad lessons were enough. Our people should be lifeconscious.

“As Rivers people mourn, it is imperative that politics be kept at abeyance. This is a period of mourning and not time for blame-trading.

Precious lives have been lost, which calls for collective reflection and prayer that God averts such disasters for us.”

To show the magnitude of the tragedy, President Goodluck Jonathan, who expressed sadness over the Okogbe incident, directed the federal relief and health agencies to do everything possible to ensure that the survivors with burns and injuries receive prompt and effective medical attention.

The Governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi, who had to cancel all his engagements in Abuja and rushed to the scene, was utterly devastated and shattered by the tragic incident.

Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi, described the tanker fire as heartrendering, tragic, pathetic, touching and depressing.

Rivers Commissioner of Information and Communications, Ibim Semenitari, who decried the tragedy, stated that visibly-shaken by the Okogbe incident, Amaechi directed that everything must be done to save the lives of the victims.

Semenitari said the Rivers governor ordered immediate investigation into the incident, while declaring that: “We must stop this needless loss of lives.

We must be more safety- conscious.”

The Okogbe fire was caused by one of the victims who made a call, asking others to come and scoop fuel.

The tanker, with registration number: Delta: XA 340 TDU, was moving petrol from Port Harcourt to Warri.

A brand new Toyota Corolla saloon car, with registration number: Lagos: RQ 218 AAA that was heading for Port Harcourt, had head-on collision with a Mazda bus moving towards Warri in Delta State. Registration number of the bus had either been removed or badly burnt.

After the collision, the Toyota Corolla was moving towards the tanker, with the tanker driver attempting to avoid it, to reduce the fatality, thereby falling on its side, just beside the filling station.

A business man, Mr. Segun Oluwatuyi, who resides in Ahoada, but rushed to the scene of the accident, said the tanker was still steaming, as at the time of the fire.

Oluwatuyi stated that after the accident, the driver came out of the tanker and told the villagers and other people around not to move near the tanker, to avoid disaster, and he immediately escaped.

30 minutes later, the villagers, comprising women, children, youths and elderly persons, came out and began to scoop the fuel. Within 10 minutes of scooping petrol, fire started and burnt most of them. 34 motorcycles were also razed, with the resultant heavy traffic better imagined.

Relatives of one of the dead persons, Fatai, who was selling phones at Okogbe, wondered why he would be at the scene, when he was earlier told to come and pick some litres of petrol.

Fatai was partly burnt, with his brown leather belt still on his trousers, while his expensive wristwatch was seen on his left hand un-burnt, but with part of his white shirt torched.

Ahoada West LGA Chairman, Awori Miller, supervised the mass burial in the evening of the same day at the scene, stressing that avoidance of outbreak of epidemics and stench were considered in quickly burying the victims.

Officials of Ahoada West council carried out the mass burial, amid wailing by relatives of the victims,

3 who never imagined that such calamity could befall them.

The Chief Medical Director of Ahoada General Hospital, Dr. E. G. Kiri, deserves special commendation, as he was personally involved in treating the many badly burnt victims at the hospital, while health personnel from neighbouring government hospitals were mobilised to assist at the Rivers government-owned hospital.

One of the badly burnt victims on bare floor at the Ahoada General Hospital, due to inadequate bed space, Mr. Victor Ezekiel, an indigene of Okogbe in Rivers State, while writhing in pains at 1:39 pm on Thursday, said: “Please doctor, save me. My stomach is paining me.”

Giving an insight into the number of persons treated at the Ahoada General Hospital, the Chief Nursing Officer, Mrs. E. Ebeku, said the first batch of eleven persons brought had 100 degree burns, but were given first aid and moved to an undisclosed hospital in Port Harcourt.

Ebeku stated that the second batch of eight victims were given first aid and moved to Port Harcourt, while the third batch of 16 victims were also treated.

The traditional ruler of Igbuya in Ekpeye Kingdom, near the scene of the accident, King Joshua Eziba, noted that if fire service men had arrived earlier, the casualty figure would have been less, while declaring that if the road had been fully dualised, the accident would not have happened.

The councillor representing Ward 5 in Ahoada West Legislative Arm, Mr. Thompson Otobo, at the scene, said fire service stations should be located in either all the LGAs or senatorial districts.

Otobo said people of the area were not happy with the Federal Government over the slow pace of the dualisation of the East-West Road, declaring that the bad and narrow road caused the accident, while Marvis Ikhile equally maintained that the road with craters should be blamed for the tragedy.

The Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) in Rivers State, Dr. Kayode Olagunju, stated that a tanker laden with petrol crashed with three other vehicles: a Toyota Corolla, Hummer Toyota bus and a Mitsibushi bus, while 34 motorcycles also got burnt.

Olagunju noted that FRSC, police, fire service, Joint Task Force (JTF) operatives and officials of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) were at the scene.

The Rivers FRSC boss said: “Rivers health commissioner is not correct (on figure of 200 as dead persons). The bodies were jointly counted by all the agencies: FRSC, NEMA, JTF, Police, Civil Defence and others involved in the rescue.

“Rivers health commissioner was not there when the counting was being done. He only got to the scene and said they (corpses) could be up to 200 and he left. He did not wait for physical counting that we did.

“87 corpses burnt beyond recognition, as a result of the crash involving a tanker and three other vehicles, were given mass burial at the scene of the crash at Okogbe along Ahoada-Mbiama on the East-West Road in Rivers state.

“Six of the bodies of the victims that died on the spot had earlier been identified and released to the families.

Two of the 20 injured taken to the hospitals also died. A total of 95 persons died in the crash, with 18 others injured.”

Most of the injured persons are still writhing in pains in hospitals across Rivers State and beyond, while not being sure of surviving and should be a lesson to the people not to scoop fuel from tankers. Governments should also address abject poverty, for Nigerians, especially the masses, to have a sense of belonging.

Customs impound three air rifles at MMIA n Kelvin OSA- OKUNBOR n

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HE Murtala Muhammed International Airport ( MMIA) Command of the Nigeria Customs Service yesterday impounded three high calibre air rifles that were sent into the country through the courier shed of the airport, concealed as golf bags in a carton.

The guns concealed as golf bags, were wrapped in a carton sent as courier to be delivered to the unamed importer in Abuja, through a courier coampany, UPS. Parading the guns before newsmen yesterday at the Customs Command at the MMIA, the Area Customs Controller, Epowei Charles Edike, explained that it took the eagle eyes of officers of the command to intercept the prohibited guns, which were brought in in gross contravention of existing rules and regulations.

Edike explained that the guns, packaged as golf bags, also had in the cartons, pellets and other probibited items, which will not be allowed into the country, except the importer has relevant permits, either from the inspector general of police and the comptroller general of customs.

The customs boss also explained that the interception of the three guns came barely ten days after the MMIA Customs Command intercepted •Diko, Customs boss a Barretta pistol that was smuggled in aboard a South African Airways flight by one Bahir Alli who, he said, had been handed over with the siezed items to the police.

He explained that some desperate Nigerians have now seen the airport as the avenue thay can utilise to carry out their unlawful activities, warning that the customs will not relent in its efforts to smash the network.

He spoke of plans by the customs to extend its investigative, intelligence and collaborative network to ensure that such people do not operate in the airport.

Edike explained that with the cooperation of UPS, the courier company, the customs will track the importer of the guns.

327 Nigerians deported from Libya ....Including 11 infants n Kelvin OSA- OKUNBOR n BOUT 327 Nigerians, including eleven infants, were yesterday deported from Libya, the North African country.

The deportees arrived the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos aboard an Air Mephis aircraft with registration number 5U-BME, which arrived the cargo axis of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos about 6.00 pm.

The deportees were received on arrival by offocials of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the Police, Nigeria Immigration Service, Nigeria Customs Service, NDLEA and other security agents around the airport.

As the aircraft taxied to the cargo shed axis of the airport, two vehicles conveyed the deportees, including those who were assisted into the buses to a location, from where NEMA officials will release them to travel to their states of orgin.

As the deportees alighted from the aircraft, they shared experiences of their harrowing sojourn in the North African country, claiming that they were maltreated by the Arabs.

According to an official of NEMA, the first batch of the deportees consist of 113 females and 47 males, while the second batch will be 167 males.

The official explained that NEMA will provide facility for them to be transported to their respective states of orgin.

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THE NATION, Saturday, July 14, 2012

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DANA PLANE CRASH

Rain of tears, as Anyenes are buried in Anambra peaker Aminu Tambuwal of the House of Representatives,Governor Peter Obi of Anambra State and Second Republic Vice President Alex Ekwueme were all tears yesterday as Onyeka Anyene,his wife-Maimuna- and their four children,all victims of the June 3 Dana plane crash in Lagos,were buried in Ndiowu,Orumba North Local Government area of Anambra State.

Other friends, relatives, sympathizers also broke down in tears as the six were laid to their final rest.

The symphatizers came from far and near turning the community into one huge sea of heads,possibly the largest recorded there in many years.

The Anyaenes’ compound could not contain the massive crowd many of whom had come to testify to the generosity of Onyeka.They include widows,indigent students and the less privileged.

The corpses were driven into the compound at 10.10am in a white 32-V-North Star Cadillac.The weather was cool,which some of the sympathizers said was a divine attestation to Onyeka’s good nature.

As the coffin containing his body was opened for the lying in state,the crowd surged to have a final look but only a few of them could control their emotion.

Onyeka’s twin sister, Odinakachi, in particular was uncontrollable,shouting his name and crying,all at the same time.

At exactly 11.20am, the corpses were moved to St. Lawrence Anglican Church, about 300 meters from the compound for the funeral service.

In the church for the service were eighty-three clergymen,led by the Anglican Archbishop of the Niger Diocese,the Rt. Rev Christian Efobi.

The Anglican Bishop of Amichi, in Nnewi South local government area of the state, Rt. Rev. Ephraim Ikeakor preached the sermon.

Onyeka,he said , came, saw and conquered.

“For Onyeka to have achieved what he did within his 44 years existence on earth, he had the premonition that he might not live long,”he said.

“He was a young man with a large heart; he touched lives.He made young men and women to move up without publicity.He has fought the fight and kept faith”.

Ikeakor said that people should not cry for Onyeka as his death was so destined by God. He said there were reasons why Onyeka chose the names he gave his children like Kamsiyochukwu his first son, Kanyitochukwu and Kanyimarachi his twins and his five month boy Noah, adding that he was at liberty to name them Clinton, Jefferson, Churchill since they lived in the USA. Governor Obi in a short speech, urged the people to continue to pray for Anambra state and Nigeria as a whole for such a tragedy not to happen again.

Obi who arrived exactly, 1.20pm from Abuja in company of Speaker, Aminu Tambuwal said “I do not know where to begin in this kind of situation.

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•Obi, Tambuwal also weep

•Onyeka's corpse being lifted high

•Onyeka's wife and children being brought out from the church

•Edith and Ikechukwu Anyene

•Governor Obi (right) and Speaker Tambuwal

•Archbishop Christian Efobi during the church service

Dr. Alex Ekwueme and wife, Ifeoma

Onyeka was a fine gentleman, but who will question God. Sorry is not enough in this kind of situation but God knows best.”

Tambuwal,a personal friend of Onyeka , said, he had always planned to visit Anambra with him.

He said he has lost a reliable friend and brother.

“Our solace is that we have everlasting grace in God.We are here with a heavy heart,” the Speaker said.

The Onyeka’s brother and

former commissioner for Health in Anambra state, Dr. Ben Anyene, said the family was overwhelmed by the solidarity shown by Nigerians over the tragedy.

He said that the Anyene family will lead the battle in making sure that such disasters do not occur again in Nigeria.

The roll of symphatizers: · Governor Peter Obi · Speaker House of Representatives, Aminu

Tambuwal · Former Vice President of Nigeria, Dr Alex Ekwueme · Senator Andy Uba · Senator Ugochukwu Uba · Senator Joy Emodi · Hon Uche Ekwunife · Chief Simon Okeke, former PSC chairman, · Hon. Victor Ogene · Hon Chris Azubuogu · Hon. Chris Cato. · Hon Nkeiru Onyeaguocha · Hon Leo Ogor. · Hon Ben Nwankwo

· Mr. Godwin Ezeemo of Orient Publications · Prof Uche Azikiwe (Zik’s wife) · Prof Boniface Egboka (VC UNIZIK) · Prof. Godwin Onu (Rector Okopoly) · Bishop Sam Ezeofor of Ogbaru · Bishop Henry Okeke of Mbamiri· Former Archbishop on the Niger and Dean Anglican Communion Rt. Rev Maxwell Anikwenwa among others.

News 5

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

Perm Sec appointment: More knocks for First Lady, Bayelsa Gov Segun AJIBOYE and Oziegbe OKOEKI

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.Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu (left) displaying his temporary new National Driver's Licence at FRSC Headquarters in Abuja yesterday, With him is Corps Marshal, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Osita Chidoka PHOTO: ABAYOMI FAYESE

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Tanker fire: Death toll rises to 130

HE death toll in Thursday’s fire disaster yesterday rose to 130 from the initial 100 with medical workers in Port Harcourt continuing to struggle to save the survivors.

Over 40 critically injured survivors rushed to the Ahoada General Hospital and other medical centres in Port Harcourt soon after the fire outbreak were said to have died yesterday morning.

At the Ahoada General Hospital, 24 of the victims died between midnight and the early hours of yesterday.

A staff of the hospital said they did everything they could to save the victims but their conditions were hopeless.

“Between last night (Thursday) and this morning (Friday) 24 persons have died.It is so painful seeing all our efforts come to nought because of the critical nature of the wounds.The degrees of the burns were severe,” he said.

The Rivers State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Sampson Parker spoke in the same vein.

•Doctors struggle to save survivors Bisi OLANIYI agency reports

He said survivors were dying every 10 minutes in spite of spirited efforts by medical personnel to save them.

“It is the worst scene I ‘ve ever seen in my experience as a medical doctor,” he said.

His Special Duties counterpart,Mr.Emeka Wogu said over 70 per cent of the hospitalised victims may not survive.His assessment was based on the conditions of the victims at Ahoada General Hospital.

Relatives of those who were engulfed in flames while scooping fuel from an overturned tanker flocked to area hospitals and found family members who were hardly recognisable.

Sade Orisola said she received a call to say that her brother was among those burned in the inferno near Ahoada on the East/ West Road, in Rivers State.

“When I got to the hospital, I

met a different person wrapped under a huge bandage,” she told reporters as she sobbed outside the Federal Medical Centre in Yenagoa, capital of neighbouring Bayelsa State.

‘Can that be my brother?’ is what I asked.”

The severely burned survivors were rushed to several hospitals as medical workers were struggling to come to terms with the high of casualty figure.

“What I can tell you is that we are still losing people,” Rivers State Information Commissioner, Ibim Semenitari said.

“In one of the hospitals where we had 13 wounded, four people had died,” she added.

More fatalities were feared at two other hospitals and the state plans to release a final toll on Monday,” Semenitari explained.

Medical workers at the hospital in Yenagoa who requested anonymity said they were not equipped to care for victims

Group warns against deploying southern corps members to North

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HE mid week appointment of the First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan, as a Permanent Secretary by the Bayelsa State government drew more flak yesterday with constitutional lawyer, Professor Itsay Sagay, calling it a huge joke, comical and nonsense.

“It is a huge joke. It is comical. I don’t really know what they take us for. It is only in Nigeria that you can have such kind of bizarre announcement. It is nonsense,” Sagay told “The Nation on Saturday”.

Human rights activist and member of the Constitution Review Committee, Mr. Olisa Agabkoba (SAN), who is currently out of the country, expressed shock on phone saying: “That cannot be true.”

After a prolonged laughter,

HE Southern Nigeria Peoples Assembly has called for the convocation of a Sovereign National Conference (SNC) to address the problems militating against the growth and unity of the country.

In a two-page communiqué read by Mr. Ledum Mitee at Le Meridien Hotel and Golf Resort, Uyo, the participants warned against posting of graduates from the southern part of the country to serve the compulsory one-year National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) in the volatile and life-threatening areas of the North. ‘’That until the security situation in volatile and lifethreatening areas of the country improves, we insist that none of our youths should be posted to serve the compulsory one-year national service in any part of these volatile and life-threatening areas in the North,” the communiqué stated.

It called on Mr. President not to hesitate in ridding his government and the nation’s security forces of all persons of dubious loyalty and to treat the activities of Boko Haram

• Calls for SNC sect as treason and apply the relevant laws on the culprits and their sponsors.

The communiqué urged President Goodluck Jonathan and other organs of government, especially the Judiciary to firmly prosecute the war against corruption without fear or favour, with no sacred cow spared, to serve as a deterrent to others, saying: ‘’In particular, government should fast-track the prosecution of all those identified as culprits in the probe reports.

In order to reposition the country for the attainment of Vision 20:20:20, the leadership must sanitise the economy of fraudsters and economic saboteurs.

The communiqué also noted that ‘’That the six geopolitical zone structure should be formalized and reflected in the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The quarterly conference is scheduled to be hosted by the South East.’’

The communiqué re-affirmed its commitment to cooperate and work with Presi-

dent Goodluck Jonathan and thanked the people and government of Akwa Ibom for hosting the conference.

It, however, deplored the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria as amended, arguing that it was standing on a faulty foundation and does not guarantee true federalism required for stability and development of the country.

The communique was signed by Chief Edwin Clark, leader of South-South; Rt. Rev. Bolanle Gbonigi, leader, South-West and Chief Mbazulike Amaechi, leader, South-East.

Earlier, Governor Godswill Akpabio, represented by his deputy, Mr. Nsima Ekere had condemned the insecurity in the country, blaming it on insincerity of some northern leaders.

Governor Akpabio thanked the Southern elders and leaders for waking up to the clarion call to build their country and called for unity among them for the assembly to realize its goals and aspirations.

with such high degree burns.

The tragedy happened after the tanker swerved to avoid three oncoming vehicles.

Semenitari said that the toll could have been much higher had the fire occurred closer to the town of Ahoada, as even more people may have rushed to the scene to collect the fuel spilling out of the toppled truck.

“In a way, we may have been fortunate,” she said.

Governor Chibuike Amaechi has ordered a full probe into the causes of the crash.

Some residents of the area said the poor state of the road was partly to blame, but the Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC), Mr.Kayode Olagunju said such speculation was premature.

He disagreed with the state Commissioner for Health, Dr.Sampson Parker who on Thursday put the death toll at about 200.

He said: “I think this is the worst single disaster that has happened in Nigeria. The corpses I counted there (at the scene) alone, were in fact, 200 and they have not finished counting. It is cremation. The corpses were burnt to ashes. So, how many can you count? It is a sad situation. Quite a pity!”

“Most of the victims had over 70 degree burns. It will be difficult to save them. If they did not go to scoop the fuel, the situ-

ation would have been saved.

We heard that over 50 victims were taken to hospitals. Fire fighters’ response should not be blamed.”

Disputing the Commissioner’s figure, Olagunju said: “Rivers State Health Commissioner is not correct (on figure of 200 as dead persons). The bodies were jointly counted by all the agencies: FRSC, NEMA, JTF, Police, Civil Defence and others involved in the rescue.

“Rivers State Health Commissioner was not there when the counting was being done.

He only got to the scene and said they (corpses) could be up to 200 and he left. He did not wait for physical counting that we did.

Some residents believe many lives would have been saved if the fire service in the area had been well equipped and the men up to their responsibility.

Mr. Christmas Ede said: “Seven years ago, Rivers State Government promised to build a befitting fire service station at Ahoada Town (headquarters of Ahoada East Local Government Area of the state, but what we have there is nothing to write home about and it is not functioning.

“Immediately the tanker fell at 6:30 am (beside Oando filling station), we contacted the fire service in Port Harcourt, but an unmarked Mercedes Benz truck, with Ateco 1325 inscribed on it, got to the scene at 12:02 pm, when the deed had been done.”

Lagos, Supreme Court, others to kick-start Judiciary Technology Policy Kamarudeen OGUNDELE, Abuja

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HE Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal and the Lagos State High Court are among the 12 pilot courts to implement the Nigerian Judiciary Information Technology Policy Document.

Launching the policy document in Abuja, the outgoing Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Dahiru Musdapher said it will fast-track trials and ensure speedy justice delivery.

The other pilot courts are the Federal High Court, the National Industrial Court, the FCT High Court, Bayelsa State High Court, Borno State High Court, Ebonyi State High Court, Enugu State High Court, Kaduna State High Court and Kogi State High Court.

The document was prepared by committee of eminent judicial and non-judicial officers chaired by the Chief Judge of Borno State, Kashim Zannah.

The document entails comprehensive, pragmatic IT Policy which could be effectively implemented in all jurisdictions and serve as a blue-print to integrate, propel and mainstream IT in the Nigerian judiciary.

According to Justice Zannah, the policy derives from experiences all over the world, aimed at serving our peculiar circumstances.

“It comprises the A-Z of the requirements of introducing and sustaining court technology, like planning, infrastructural requirements, acquisition and maintenance of hard and software, assets, processes and benefits management, budgeting, security, IT audit and capacity building etc.”

Agbakoba asked: “And did she accept it?”

He later promised to call back after a check on the story.

He sent a text message that he was unable to confirm the story and said: “I can’t confirm, so, until I’m back.”

Activist and gubernatorial candidate of the National Conscience Party (NCP) for Lagos State in the last general elections, Comrade Ayodele Akele, would rather “wait and make some findings” before taking a stance on the issue.

According to Akele, “I don’t know her civil service background. I would advise that we find out some things about her history with the Bayelsa State civil service before making any statement.”

Continuing, Akele said: “We need to establish if she was in the state civil service and if she was on leave of absence when her husband became governor of the state. I won’t have any problem with it if she meets all the requirements for the appointment. I know the wives of some public officials who are in the civil service. We wouldn’t say such women should not be promoted because their husbands are public officials. So we should find her records of service before making a statement on whether she merits the appointment or not.”

President of the Campaign for Democracy (CD), Dr. Joe Okei-Odumakin, snapped: “It is shocking. It has turned governance to a huge joke. It’s the theatre of the absurd that can make Nigeria become a laughing stock in the comity of nations. The country is gradually becoming a banana republic.”

Victor Opara, lawyer and former Secretary General of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Ikeja branch, said the appointment smacks of nepotism, and expressed hope that the First Lady would turn down the appointment.

“For me, this is nepotism of the highest order. However, there is nothing wrong with it if she is qualified.”

Opara said in a nation like Nigeria, “when you appoint your sister, brother or family members into a position of authority, people would read meanings to it. Sincerely, I don’t expect the First Lady to take the appointment.”

Deputy Whip of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Rotimi Abiru accused Governor Seriake Dickson of being unnecessarily generous in making the appointment.

Abiru said the governor was wrong to have promoted Mrs. Jonathan to Permanent Secretary when she is already occupying the office of the First Lady.

His words: “I don’t understand what informed the appointment because the position of a Permanent Secretary is meant for seasoned Civil Servants who have gone through many levels in the service. Permanent Secretaries are policy makers and they are the engine room of the government.

“Looking at the exalted position of the First Lady, though it is not constitutionally recognized, it is permitted by our own system of government. I wonder how the First Lady will cope with the position and still handle the work of a ministry. What has happened is morally reprehensible and should be condemned by all.”

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

6 News

Britain spent N3.6bn to investigate Ibori, says CJN Musdapher Kamarudeen OGUNDELE, Abuja

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USTICE Dahiru Musdapher formally bowed out as Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) yesterday amidst accolades from senior lawyers.

He described himself as a fulfilled man but regretted that continued slow pace of investigation and prosecution of cases in the country in comparison with other countries.

He cited the recent trial of former Governor James Ibori in the UK and said his investigation alone cost the British taxpayers £14 million (about N3.6billion).

The occasion was the Valedictory Court Session organized to mark his retirement from the bench after 33 years career as a judge.

He was called to the Nigerian Bar as a lawyer in 1968.

His retirement takes effect from tomorrow when he turns 70 years.

The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) President, Joseph Daudu (SAN) called Justice Musdapher’s tenure as “the most vibrant and reform oriented in recent times.”

He said, he rose to the challenges he inherited from Justice Aloysius Katsina-Alu by restoring people’s confidence in the judiciary. “ Happily, his Lordship rose to the challenges, did not hide his head in the sand; he set out at high speed to reform the identified ills.”

Alhaji Abdullahi Ibrahim (SAN) described him as “a patriot, a respecter of seniority, both biological and professional.”

The Attorney General of the Federation and Justice Minister, Bello Adoke (SAN) said Musdapher demonstrated a great commitment and zeal to drive the judiciary on the path of Honour within a short period.

Justice Musdapher spent only eight months in office as the CJN. The event organized at the Supreme Court was attended by the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Emeka Ihedioha; Governors Sule Lamido (Jigawa), Idris Wada (Kogi), Isa Yuguda (Bauchi), Kayode Fayemo (Ekiti), Ibrahim Shemma (Katsina) and (Nasarawa) and representative of Yobe Governor.

In an emotion-ladened voice, Justice Musdapher recalled his years as a lawyer and on the bench.

“It has not been easy, for the life of a judge is hard. It is even harder to become a good and worthy judge, and perhaps seven-fold harder in a young democracy such as ours.”

“It is a heavy burden that fate has placed on our mortal shoulders, and though I shall miss the only life I have known made a positive difference to my society as a Legal Practitioner, a Judge and finally as the head of this nation’s judiciary”, he added.

Quoting a report, Justice Musdapher revealed that £14 million was spent to investigate and prosecute convicted Delta Governor, James Ibori,.

He said such huge expenses to investigate crime might be part of the reasons for the slow pace of investigation and prosecution of such cases in Nigeria.

Besides, he lamented that the number of charges filed by anti corruption agencies make it cumbersome to prosecute.

On the cause of delay, Justice Musdapher said “ the sheer volume of cases being handled by individual judges ensures that their cause lists are unduly choked”.

“To make matter worse, many of the Judges involved in corruption cases had to be away on National assignment at the various Election Petition Tribunal across the country and could not sit and dispense with the cases during that period.

“The Prosecutory Agencies often times arrest and charge alleged offenders before concluding investigations and as such they are largely unprepared for trial.

“Defence lawyers have perfected strategies of stalling the trial process via filing pointless interlocutors appeals. Which situation further underscores the need to hasten our plans to amend the relevant sections of the Constitution and other statutory laws calculated to block unjustified invocation of the Right of Appeal.

“It is hoped that these challenges shall be addressed as quickly as possible to ensure that the judiciary play its necessary role in curbing corruption in Nigeria.”

Justice Musdapher canvassed an independent body to deal with issues of discipline and removal of judicial officers as the National Judicial Council (NJC) is overwhelmed.

The NBA boss lamented that government has not been able to rise to the security challenges poised to the country.

“There has been a palpable failure to protect the lives of Nigerians by the State from internal strife or external aggression. Where the latter is the case, Nigerian State is entitled to proceed on hot pursuit of the aggressors and murderers of our people even as far as into other sovereign territories.

“However, none of the foregoing has happened to restore the faith of Nigerians in the ability of Government to provide safety and security. Nature abhors a vacuum. Government must take decisive steps to remedy this alarming state of insecurity.”

On the situation in the judiciary, the NBA boss pointed out that there is gross indiscipline among judicial officers, age falsification while a few are sick and begging for attention while still on the job “A number of Heads of Courts are faced with very sick judicial officers; these officers are afflicted with varying debilitating medical conditions that completely impair their ability to perform judicial functions. These include loss of eye sight, hearing, terminal physiological ailments, chronic contagious diseases etc. “ In most cases, these officers remain on the Bench doing no work for years and collecting their salaries and perquisites without fail. It is time that strict rules must be devised to expeditiously through appropriate Medical Boards of Assessment determine the state of health and ability of such sick non performing judicial officers to continue in judicial service. “The retention out of sympathy of these sick officers blocks the way for young aspiring persons to fill the vacancy. Their certification as being unfit owing to ill health does not mean that they would be left to die in penury and neglect. The new Rules must make it mandatory for the health and welfare of these ill judicial officers to be borne by the State.

•From left: Ojora of Ijoraland, Oba Fatai Aromire; Alhaji Lai Mohammed (standing),Hon. Kamal Bayewu and Cardinal Jmaes Odumbaku yesterday

2015: PDP's ‘take over’ of Lagos a joke, says Lai Mohammed

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ATIONAL Publicity Secretary of Ac'tion Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Alhaji Lai Mohammed has dismissed the claim by the Lagos State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), that it would take over the reins of power in Lagos State as a joke.

Speaking at the empowerment programme organised by Ajeromi-Ifelodun Local Government Area, Mohammed said: ''The boasting by PDP that it would form the government in Lagos State come 2015, is laughable and a joke. I believe

Kunle AKINRINADE that a woman who has no set of twins cannot have a child called Idowu in Yorubaland.

While they boast that they are capable of defeating us at the poll, they do not have anything to justify their existence in many of the states where they are the ruling party. In 2003, we frustrated them from taking over Lagos when they embarked on their so-called ''invasion'' of the South-west and today, through the visionary leadership of Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu, our great party

has added five more states making the figure six and God willing, Ondo is joining the fray soon.''

He explained that ACN remained the only party with programmes capable of turning around the life of the masses of the people, adding that the party would continue to make life better for people. ''What we are doing today is a testimony to the fact that our party is the only political party that has genuine interest of turning around the lives of the masses and this is what the council chairman Hon. Kamal

Bayewu has demonstrated with provision of poverty alleviation items for residents.''

Various items ranging from fridges, coolers, soft drinks, head dryers, sewing machines, generators, foodstuff, computers were given out to 210 beneficiaries at the occasion.

The event was witnessed by ACN bigwigs in Lagos State such as Cardinal James Odumbaku; Deputy Speaker of Lagos State House of Assembly, Hon. Kolawole Taiwo, Chief Ademola Adeniji-Adele, Alhaji Sinai Adaranijo and Ojora of Ijoraland, Oba Fatai Aromire, among others.

How to tackle Boko Haram, by media executive

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OREMOST media executive and commentator Mallam Mohammed Haruna and Chairman of Nigerian Guild of Editors, Mr. Gbenga Adefaye, yesterday cautioned against wrong diagnosis of the Boko Haram’s activities in the northern part of the country, urging Nigerians never to perceive the onslaught as purely religious and tribal insurgency.

Haruna said the adherence to the ethics of journalism will largely prevent the media from from being used by both sides in a conflict.

Adefaye, who is the Editor-In-Chief of The Vanguard newspaper, implored reporters to avoid bias, labeling and primordal sentiments. He emphasised that, despite the raging conflict, Nigerians have resolved since 1999 that democracy should be enthroned permanently in Nigeria.

The duo spoke at the fourth Wole Soyinka Centre Media Lecture Series (WSCI) in Lagos. The theme was: “Media and civil liberties when the clouds of fear gather”. Other speakers at the event which held at the NECA Building, Agidingbi, Ikeja were Col. Gabriel Ajayi, who represented the human rights crusader, Comrade Shehu Sani, and Mr. Patrick Obiese, who stood for the founder of Channels Television, Mr. John Momoh.

The event was part of activities marking Soyinka’s birthday.

Paying tribute to the Nobel Laureate, WSCI Board Chairman Prof. Ropo Sekoni, said Soyinka has devoted his life to the promotion of social justice. He said the lecture would advance the cause of liberty, democracy and good governance.

Sekoni explained that the theme was chosen because the “clouds of fear has turned into torrents of tragedy”. He disclosed that the centre would start receiving entries for the yearly ‘Wole Soyinka Award for Investigative Reporting’ in October.

Haruna, who was the keynote speaker, corrected the erroneous impression that the Boko Haram sect was waging war against Christians alone, adding that Muslims are more casualties. He said the violence unleashed by the group has created

•’There is need for state police’ Emmanuel OLADESU strains on the Northern Nigerian economy, emphasising that Boko haram is a threat to all Nigeria.

He lamented that the media has been subjective in their reports on the conflict, complaining that reports were laced with anti-northern sentiments.

Haruna also pointed out that the fear of Boko Haram has made governments to violate the rights of some Nigerians under the guise that they are suspects, adding that the affected citizens are languishing in jail.

Obiese said the media has been under attack by agents of destruction, recalling that Channels Television lost a crew member to the violence in Kano. He observed that the police lacked the manpower, training and equipment to fight crime in the country.

He called for state police and comprehensive social welfare for the neglected parts of the country, stressing that youths should be empowered for a secured future.

Col. Ajayi observed that Nigeria has failed to develop a security system to sustain its current level of development.

He said: “We need military operation to go with psychological operation, whereby you employ force and you at the same time build roads, hospitals and other social amenities”.

Ajayi, who supported the call for state police, urged government to make military service compulsory for the members of the National Youth Service Scheme. He also called for a Sovereign National Conference to discuss the basis for peaceful coexistence in the country.

Welcoming the audience, the chairman of the centre’s board, Prof. Ropo Sekoni, said there is need to investigate governance and tackle greed and bad leadership in high places.

Presbyterian Church declares Boko Haram’s mission a failure

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HE Presbyterian Church of Nigeria has warned the Boko Haram Islamic sect and its sponsors to desist from their violent and bloody attacks on innocent Nigerians as their mission would not only fail, but could also lead to the break-up of Nigeria.

In a communiqué issued at

the end of the quarterly meeting of its General Assembly Executive Committee (GAEC) in Calabar, the Church expressed concern over the Boko Haram terrorist attacks which are targeted mainly at Churches and Christians. It called on Christians, and in deed, all Nigerians, to intensify their prayers for the peace

and unity of the nation.

In the eleven-point communiqué jointly signed by the Prelate and Moderator of the General Assembly, The Most Rev. Emele Mba Uka and the Principal Clerk, Rev. Ndukwe Nwachukwu Eme, the Church stated that since Boko Haram had been universally classified as a terrorist

organization through its links with Al-Qaeda in the Maghreb (AQM), the Federal Government should partner with international stakeholders in the fight against terrorism to deal decisively with Boko Haram menace.

The Church stated that the • Continued on Page 7

News 7

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

Shehu of Borno, Deputy Gov escape death as suicide bomber hits mosque

Many Nigerians don’t have access to condoms, says NPC Gbenga OMOKHUNU, Abuja

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VERY minute several people contact sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including HIV, it is simply because they do not have access to condoms, it was learnt yesterday.

The Chairman, National Population Commission (NPC), Festus Odimegu who disclosed this to newsmen in Abuja at a press conference to commemorate the 2012 World Population Day, expressed displeasure over the development.

Odimegu also disclosed that several women are confronted with unwanted pregnancies every day.

These, he said could have been easily prevented if only people had access to contraceptives.

Better funding of family planning will, according to the NPC chief ensure that these commodities are accessible by everyone that needs them.

He commended President Goodluck Jonathan’s earlier statement on population management and family planning, adding that it was a step in the right direction.

Represented by the NPC Commissioner for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Sani Sulieman, Odimegu said public enlightenment on the use of contraceptives must be stepped up, especially in areas that are high fertility, infant and maternal mortality rates.

His words: “when essential reproductive health supplies including contraceptives are made available, individuals are empowered to determine their family sizes. When the need is not met, the efforts at reproductive health in the country are highly frustrated and jeopardised. Several women are confronted with unwanted pregnancies every day. These could have been easily prevented if only they had access to contraceptives. Every minute several people contact sexually transmitted infections (STIs) including HIV, it just because they do no have access to condoms.”

‘Boko Haram’s mission a failure’ • Continued from Page 6 Dana plane air crash of 3rd June, 2012 was one air disaster too many and called on the government to introduce enough reforms in the aviation industry to reduce to the barest minimum, the high rate at which plane crashes occur in Nigeria.

The Church commiserated with the nation and the families over the loss of lives and property and prayed God for the repose of the souls of those who lost their lives.

In a statement by its Director of Information and Public Affairs of the Church, Rev. Kalu Eme, the Church expressed concern over the numerous scams and scandals arising from probes and investigations into the operations of the various sectors of the nation’s public life. Such scandals include the pension fund, the Stock Market and the oil subsidy scams which have again defined the high level corruption has grown in Nigeria. The Church urged the relevant law enforcement agencies which are handling the cases to conduct thorough investigations and make the culprits to face the law accordingly.

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AIDUGURI -The deputy governor of Borno State,Alhaji Zanna Umar Mustapha,the Shehu of Borno,Alhaji Abubakar Umar Garbai ElKanemi and other dignitaries narrowly escaped death yesterday when a 15-year old suicide bomber struck at the Shehu’s Palace Mosque moments after the jumat prayers.

The Shehu , a hugely popular symbol of Islamic tradition in the North ,appeared to be the prime target of the hitman.

Five other worshippers including the bomber were however killed in the latest attack in a region plagued by insurgency by the Islamist sect,Boko Haram.

In a separate

Joseph ABIODUN, Maiduguri, ONYEDI Ojiabor, agency report

•Five killed

incident,unknown gunmen murdered the education secretary of Marte Local Government in the state,AlhajiAbacha Abbas.

“Five people have been killed and six others injured in the Maiduguri central mosque suicide bomb attack,” military spokesman Sagir Musa told reporters.

“The suicide bomber, who was about 15 years old, was pushed between me and the Shehu before detonating the bomb. Fortunately we both escaped unhurt,” Mustapha told reporters.

“It was God that saved me and the Shehu, otherwise we

would have been dead by now.

“I heard a loud blast and it dawned on me that the young man had detonated a bomb.

Luckily neither me nor the Shehu was injured, but our robes were splattered with human flesh and blood,” Mustapha said.

Two soldiers assigned to guard the traditional ruler were “critically injured” in the attack.

The deputy governor and the Shehu were immediately whisked away from the scene by security men.

Armed soldiers and policemen soon cordoned off the area.

Spokesman for the Joint military Task Force (JTF)in the state,, Lt. Col. Sagir Musa said: “At about 1410 hours a suicide bomber strapped with explosives detonated bombs very close to the Shehu of Borno and the deputy governor of Borno State and their entourage immediately after the Juma’at congregational prayer.

“The JTF troops attached to the Shehu’s palace prevented the bomber from getting to the Shehu and the deputy governor.”

Boko Haram,using guns and bombs , has killed hundreds of people this year in separate attacks in Kano,Kaduna,Borno,Yobe,Bauchi and Plateau states.

Targets include govern-

•Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State (middle); the Chief Judge of the state, Justice Badejoko Adeniji (second right); Hon. Justice Okunola Boade (right); Hon. Justice Eni Esan (left) and Hon. Justice Misitura Bolaji-Yusuf (second left) in a group photograph after the inspection of the state High Court by the governor on Friday.

ment officials, religious figures and places of worship, usually churches.

Security experts believe Boko Haram’s attacks on religious centres in central and northern Nigeria are an attempt to provoke wider religious conflict in the country.

Boko Haram claimed responsibility for attacks that killed more than 100 people in Plateau State last weekend.Among the victims were Senator Gyang Dantong and the majority leader of the state House of Assembly,Mr.Gyang Fulani who were attending the mass burial of those killed by Fulani gunmen on Saturday.

The murder of Alhaji Abbas took place at about 3 o’ clock yesterday at his residence in old Maiduguri.

He was killed by a gang of three men.

He was also the founder of Abbas Memorial School named after his late father.

His corpse was taken to the morgue of the Maiduguri Specialist hospital by members of the Joint Military Task force in the metropolis.

Senate President David mark condemned the attack which he described as callous.

Attack on places of worship, he said , is not only ungodly but "a huge sacrilege."

"The attack on the Shehu's Mosque has shown that Boko Haram itself is not helping to propagate Islam contrary to the messages that had been churned out by the sect," the Senate President added.

He commiserated with government and people of Borno State and advised Nigerians to be security conscious.

He urged Nigerians to continue to provide information that would quell the activities of the Boko Haram sect to security agencies even as he called on those responsible for these murderous acts to have a rethink and accept dialogue.

Ayo Salami: Court orders substituted service on Jonathan

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FEDERAL High Court, Abuja, has ordered the service of a court process on President Goodluck Jonathan through the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mohammed Bello Adoke (SAN).

Justice Adamu Bello granted the order following an exparte motion filed by 11 plaintiffs suing for themselves and on behalf of the Registered Trustees of Centre for the Promotion of Arbitration.

The motion was brought pursuant to Sections 153 and 21 of the third schedule of the Constitution as amended order 4 rule 2 and order 6 rules 5 (b) of the Federal High Court (Civil Procedure) rules 2009 and under the inherent jurisdiction of the court.

The court also granted an order for the plaintiffs to sue in representative capacity.

The plaintiffs are: Mr. Jitobo Akanike, Idris Musa, Allens Agbaka, Ibrahim Bawa, Princewill Akpakpan, Obruche Ayeteni, Nosa Ihaza, Timothy Odumosu, Stewart Salomi, Egogo Lawrence and Maxwell Adeniran. They are challenging the refusal of Jonathan to

Kamarudeen OGUNDELE, Abuja reinstate the suspended President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Isa Ayo Salami.

According to them, Jonathan has breached the Constitution for disregarding the recommendation of the National Judicial Council (NJC).

They want the court to declare the extension of Justice Dalhatu Adamau as the Acting PCA as unconstitutional, illegal, null and void.

The Defendants are Jonathan, Adoke, NJC, Salami and the Acting President of the Court of Appeal, Dalhatu Adamu.

In the Originating Summons, the Plaintiffs are seeking: • A declaration that the National Judicial Council is the only body that has the sole functions to exercise disciplinary powers over the justices of the Court of Appeal and/or the President of the Court of Appeal.

•A declaration that the refusal of the 3rd defendant to implement the recommendation of the three man panel headed by Justice Aloma

Mariam Muhktar (JSC) urging the recall of Justice Salami (PCA) as president of the Court of Appeal constitutes a breach of the 1999 Constitution as amended.

•An order of mandamus directing the 3rd defendant to implement the recommendation of the three man panel urging the recall of Justice Salami (PCA) as President of the Court of Appeal forthwith.

•An order of the court directing the 3rd defendant to recall the 4th defendant to resume his duties as President of the Court of Appeal forthwith.

•A declaration that the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has no power whatsoever and/or howsoever to exercise disciplinary functions over the justices of the Court of Appeal and/ or Justice Salami (PCA),President of the Court of Appeal •A declaration that the further reappointment and/or approval of the extension of the tenure of the 5th defendant as the acting President of the Court of Appeal by the 1st defendant is unconstitutional illegal null and void.

•A declaration that any fur-

ther recommendation made by the 3rd defendant to the 1st defendant for any further appointment of the 5th defendant as the acting President of the Court of Appeal is in conflict with relevant constitutional provisions.

•An order of the court restraining the 5th defendant from further acting as the President of the Court of Appeal.

•An order of perpetual injunction restraining the 1st defendant from further re-appointing the 5th defendant as acting President of the Court of Appeal.

•A perpetual injunction restraining the 3rd defendant from further recommending to the 1st defendant the extension or re-appointment of the 5th defendant as acting President of the Court of Appeal.

The Plaintiffs want the court to determine •Whether the President (1st defendant) by law has any disciplinary power over the justices of the Court of Appeal including (4th defendant) the PCA under section153 and s.21 third schedule of the 1999 constitution.

•Whether it is within the constitutional function of the

(3rd defendant) National Judicial Council to recall the President of the Court of Appeal,Justice Salami (4th defendant) from a disciplinary suspension in compliance with sections 153 and s.21 of the third schedule of the 1999 Constitution.

• Whether the President (1st defendant) of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has any step to take within the provisions of sections 153 and s. 21 third schedule of the 1999 as amended in relation to the recall of Justice Salami (PCA) as recommended by the National Judicial Council (3rd defendant).

• Whether the 3rd defendant’s three man panel’s recommendation for the recall of Justice Salami (PCA) has not put an end to all disputes in relation to his suspension/recall.

•Whether the National Judicial Council (3rd defendant) solely has the powers to exercise disciplinary functions over the justices of Court of Appeal and/or the president of Court of Appeal in the circumstances of this case as it affects Justice Salami (PCA) under sections 153 and s.21 of the third schedule of the 1999 Constitution.

8 News

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

EDO DECIDES.. EDO DECIDES.. EDO DECIDES

•Armed soldiers at the INEC office, Aduwawa Road in Benin... Yesterday

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Governorship poll: Tension in Edo as soldiers take over towns

DO State voters head to the polls today to pick their governor for the next four years amidst tension occasioned by massive deployment of soldiers.

Most towns in the state are playing hosts to heavily armed soldiers deployed in the state.

The incumbent, Adams Oshiomole, is favoured to win the possibly most talked about governorship contest in the current political dispensation.

A polling survey ahead of the election by Nigeria’s leading research group, RMS, placed the ACN candidate ahead of other candidates by 93 per cent.

Contesting the election with Oshiomhole are Solomon Edebiri (All Nigeria Peoples Party); Izevbuwa Roland (Congress for Progressive Change) and Andrew Igwemoh (Labour Party), Mr. Paul Orumwense (National Conscience Party), Major Gen. Charles E. Airhiarvbere (rtd) (Peoples Democratic Party) and Prince Frank Ukonga , Social Democratic Mega Party (SDMP).

Tension remained high in most parts of the state yesterday with soldiers and policemen deployed in strategic places.

The parties also sent their representatives to the Benin office of the Independent Na-

C

•Governor: There is no curfew in the state neutral and to deliver an elec• Polls favour Oshiomhole tion that will be free, fair and Osagie OTABOR & Joseph JIBUEZE, Benin

tional Electoral Commission (INEC) to ensure that they were not in any way shortchanged in the election process, especially in the distribution of electoral materials.

The materials were moved to the INEC offices in the 18 local government areas at about 4pm yesterday under heavy security and accompanied by party officials.

Soldiers were seen patrolling the streets while some were sighted at local government headquarters assisting INEC ad-hoc staff to sort out the materials.

Eight INEC National Commissioners and 10 Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) are taking charge of affairs in the election.

A National Commissioner or a REC will man each of the 18 local government areas.

Fully armed soldiers and riot policemen stood guard as vans were loaded with sensitive and

other voting materials.

A Police Anti-Bomb Squad mounted guard outside the premises, with other armed officers patrolling.

Coaster buses were on standby to convey those to serve as electoral officers from the various tertiary school campuses and the National Youth Service (NYSC) camp to their beats today.

INEC’s Head of Public Affairs in Edo, Mrs Priscilia Sule, said the transportation arrangement was meant to ensure that the officers get to their polling stations on time and easily.

There are 2,627 polling units in Edo State. INEC deployed 8,842 personnel to conduct the election. These personnel include: supervisors, collation officers, supervising presiding officers and presiding officers.

The number of registered voters to take part in the election is 1,555,776.

INEC’s Director, Public Affairs, Emmanuel Umenger, said: “The Commission is determined to be impartial and

acceptable to citizens of Edo state and all Nigerians.

“INEC urges citizens of Edo state to exercise their franchise peacefully as the security agencies have assured the Commission that they would secure the entire state during the election.”

Residents ,particularly housewives, besieged markets and stores yesterday to buy food items and other essentials since movement will be restricted during today’s voting.

There were also queues at many filling stations as motorists filled their tanks in preparation for the election.

A petrol attendant said she had been standing for over five hours selling fuel.

Traders however hurriedly closed their shops following rumours that the state government had imposed a curfew.

The traders said they heard that an order was issued that residents in the state should be home by 6pm.

Chief Press Secretary to Governor Adams Oshiomhole, Mr. Peter Okhiria denied any such

directive by the governor.

He said:”The Edo State Government wishes to assure all citizens and residents in the state that government has not imposed any curfew in any part of the state.

“Anybody who has any legitimate business to do in any part of the state today is free to do so. Government warns that anyone caught spreading such rumour with the intent to cause panic or chaos will be prosecuted.”

The research group, RMS, in its polling survey report said: “As things stand, the chances of Adams Oshiomhole retaining his job as governor are as high as 93 per cent. This means that he has further widened the gap between him and his closest rival by 89 per cent.

“His chances are high in total and across all the local governments and even in Esan West where he had the least chance, he still will likely clinch 74 per cent of the votes cast there”.

In apparent comparison with previous polls, the report said: “Across the local governments, the incumbent retains a high chance still.

“Three months ago, he had a very narrow chance of winning

in Esan West and Esan Central local governments, which were the two local governments where he had the least chances then.

“His chances have since grown in these places with the possibility of almost 8 in 10 votes cast there in his favour”.

The survey also revealed a sustained robust relationship between the present administration and the people, stating that “the relationship between the Edo State people and their government is very positive and this has remained so over the last three months. The indicator of the healthiness of this relationship is the result of the application of our TNS branded tool TRI*M.’’ It went further to state that “some improvement in engagement level has been recorded in a number of local governments with low index in February.

“Local governments like Ovia South West, Esan West and Esan Central have seen an increase in their index figures, while local governments like Ovia South West and Orhionmwon have reduced index figures.

“These losses, notwithstanding, the overall index has been sustained on a positive note because the gains have been more than the losses.’’

Observers meet on effective monitoring

IVIL Society Organisations accredited by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) met yesterday to perfect their strategy for a successful monitoring of the poll.

They met at the Secretariat of the Africa Network for Environment and Economic Justice (ANEEJ) and resolved to ensure that votes count. They also deployed monitors to

T

•Election materials being loaded for the verious location for the Edo State governorship election... Yesterday Photos: Dayo Adewunmi

HE revised oil industry bill reduced taxes to be paid by producers after energy companies including Royal Dutch Shell Plc opposed initial proposals as too high.

The Petroleum Industry Bill, which was approved by the Cabinet on July 11 for presentation to the Parliament, proposes 50 percent tax for onshore and shallow fields and 20 percent for deepwater fields, according to a copy of the bill obtained by Bloomberg. The original proposals were for 85 percent and 50 percent respec-

Joseph JIBUEZE, Benin various units.

Executive Director of ANEEJ, the Rev. David Ugolor said the CSO’s needed to build synergy to ensure success of the exercise.

The observers are to take note of when a polling unit opened, whether materials were adequate, whether ballot papers were counted,

whether ballot boxes were shown to be empty and then sealed, and whether party agents were present.

Similarly,they will observe whether secrecy in voting was adhered to, note acts of intimidation or interference, when counting started and if it was done in public and whether results were publicly announced at the polling station.

They are also to watch out for abnormalities, such as im-

proper accreditation, disorderly polling units, vote buying or bribery, underage voting, and unregistered voters being allowed to vote.

The monitors will note whether the result was pasted at the polling booth, and whether what was transmitted to the collation centre was the same as announced at the polling station.

They will check whether results were properly recorded on

official forms, whether all party agents signed and were given copies of the signed result forms, and whether security agencies interfered with the election process.

Even where there is more than one polling unit in a location, each observer is to stay with one unit so that no manipulation takes place when he leaves to another unit.

After voting, they are to monitor collation centres to ensure

Revised oil bill reduces taxes for exploration tively.

A fiscal framework was “developed to make the industry more investment friendly and make it more profitable for investors,” Petroleum Minister Diezani Alison-Madueke said on July 11. At a time when more African countries are becoming oil producers, Nigeria needed to take measures to attract investors and remain competitive, she said.

The bill, which seeks to reform the way the oil industry

of Africa’s top producer is regulated and funded, was first introduced to the parliament more than three years ago.

Lawmakers were unable to pass it before the end of the last legislative session in May 2011.

Energy companies including Shell, Chevron, Exxon Mobil, Total and Eni said in a joint presentation to lawmakers in 2009 that the proposed tax increases would make exploration “uneconomical.” They pump more than 90 percent of

the country’s oil through ventures with state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Corp.

The new draft includes plans to privatize the state oil company also known as NNPC, create an asset management company which will operate as a holding company, and set up a new gas company.

The proposed law would ban flaring of gas in the course of oil production in Nigeria after Dec. 31. The West African nation, which has the continent’s

largest gas reserves of more than 180 trillion cubic feet, burns away most of the fuel it produces along with oil because it lacks the infrastructure to process it. The petroleum minister may grant exceptions of up to 100 days to companies for safety flaring, equipment failure or because a customer can’t receive it.

Energy companies will be required to remit 10 percent of their profits to a fund to help develop communities in the oil

that results are not changed.

They must observe turnout against the number of accredited persons in a unit in relation to the number of registered voters.

If an observer is concerned that a person is wrongly turned away or wrongly being permitted to vote or that the Electoral Act is being violated, he may bring this to the attention of the INEC official in charge of the centre region and curb sabotage bred by resentment to ecological damage from oil activities.

Attacks by armed groups including the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta targeting Nigeria’s industry led to output losses of more than 28 percent from 2006 to 2009, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The disruptions subsided after thousands of militants campaigning for more local control of the delta’s energy resources accepted a government amnesty and disarmed in 2009.

9

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

T

HE military is hanging like a sword of Damocles over the presidents of Egypt and Pakistan and the judiciary is aiding and abetting the unusual development and overheating the political systems in those two nations. In the Democratic Republic of Congo –DRC- a UN report on armed rebellion in that nation has already indicted neighboring Rwanda of arming the rebels called M23, a group of mutineers led by an accused war criminal called Bosco Ntaganda and the regular Congolese army is reported to be callapsing like a pack of cards and fleeing at the sight of the rebels.

In Nigeria where Boko Haram has reportedly claimed the mass killings in Jos, a soldier reportedly told those he was supposed to protect to seek cover with their feet, as the guns booming from the other side were more powerful than the gun in his hands.

In all these nations, there is a fragile political stability that is bound to affect business life and the economy because, there is a growing absence of security.

Whereas in a democracy, which they all are, there is supposed to be a separation of powers in which the executive, the judiciary and the legislative are all expected to be independent and equal in the exercise of their powers in the interest of justice good governance and transparency.

But, really, separation of powers is expected to be functional in a democracy with adequate security and safety of life and property - with the army secure in its barracks which seem not to be the case in the countries we are considering today. Instead, what we witnessed this week was a cat and mouse game between the executive and judiciary in Egypt and Pakistan while the military failed the executive in fighting terrorism and rebellion in both DRC and Nigeria. In Nigeria where a new Chief Justice, Alomar Mukhtar was confirmed by the Senate the new judicial helmsman did not mince words in saying that the Nigerian judiciary is corrupt and her priority is to rid it of pervasive corruption. Really I expect at least one Nigerian judge to come out and say that he or she is not corrupt but none has belled the cat so far. Which shows that the issue of transparency and integrity is a mirage in our own type of democracy and separation of powers for now.

In Egypt, however, the problem of the judiciary is not corruption but politicization, capable of destabilizing the political system with potential military intervention. The judiciary had earlier ruled that Egypt’s last parliamentary elections deemed the freest since the collapse of the Mubarak dictatorship in 2011 were flawed and on that basis the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces -SCAF - of Egypt dissolved parliament.

But newly elected President Mohammed Mursi summoned parliament in defiance of the military ban - which is like challenging the military. But the judiciary waded in again and ruled that its decision leading to the closure of parliament stands. The parliament did indeed convene, albeit for a day, before the President announced he was seeking talks with the judges to find a way out of the military ban parliamentary

Separation of powers, the military and leadership conundrum. Which puts the entire political and democratic process in Egypt on edge as to what, when and how the military will interpret the defiance of its parliamentary closure by the newly elected democratic president of Egypt.

In Pakistan the judiciary has used a contempt charge to remove one Prime Minister from office and has given a deadline to his successor on the same matter. But Parliament where the President’s party has majority has started making a law that will make it impossible for the Supreme Court of Pakistan to remove state functionaries including the President and PM from office for contempt charge as has been done in recent times in that nation. The issue is that the highest office in Pakistan’s judiciary wants the office of the PM to open criminal proceeding against the incumbent president on corruption for siphoning public funds abroad while his wife the late Benazir Bhutto was PM of Pakistan .

This was a charge put on hold before the elections that returned the President’s party to power after the assassination of his wife which generated an euphoria and groundswell of sympathy for the president’s party in the last general elections. Now Pakistani‘s legislators have drawn their legislative daggers to take the judiciary to the cleaners on the fine

point of the rule of law. After all, law making is first and foremost a legislative chore before metamorphosis to the interpretation of the law which the judiciary is using to blackmail the political class in Pakistan; whilst the military waits like a lurking tiger ready to pounce and seize power on perceived or imagined breaches of the rule of law. Really it is a hard time for the concept of separation of powers and its practice in Pakistan in the weeks and months ahead.

In the DRC where the UN has accused Rwanda of sponsoring rebellion, a charge the Rwandese authorities have denied, the setting is familiar to the rebellion in neighboring Congo Kinshasa that brought the late Joseph Kabila, the father of the present president of Congo Kinshasa to power. The charge of Rwanda sponsoring that rebellion was denied then until the rebels defeated the army

of Mobutu Sese Seko and set up shop in Kinshasa as the bona fide, de jure and de facto government of that country. A subsequent general election which some in Kinshasa claimed was massively rigged had since legitimized a government that some Congolese say is a government of Rwandans and aliens.

Given the way the DRC regular army is dissolving on the approach of the rebels there is no doubt that another puppet Paul Kigame regime is about to be established in the DRC to restore sanity to the sub region in spite of denials to the contrary from Kigali. Obviously the Kigame foreign policy in the sub region is to have a military solution before a democratic or political one - and it seems to be working well, in spite of the UN barking at the moon in protest at what it says is interference in the internal affairs of the DRC.

Lastly, the spate of killings in Nigeria has been likened to the massacre of Bosnian Muslims in Bosnia Hercegovina during the Balkan Crisis that followed the break up Yugoslavia after the death of their leader Broz Tito.

The death toll in that massacre was said to be the largest after the second world war. So, to equate the Boko Haram slaughter in Nigeria to that is really something embarrassingly and tragically important, but most unacceptable. If you add to that the internet news that some 100 Nigerians were killed while trying to get free petrol from a blazing oil tanker , then you know that human life is very cheap in Nigeria nowadays.

But the real danger is in the fact that the Nigerian military is being portrayed as fleeing from the Boko Haram terrorists and that is a bad image for the army whose name still strikes terror in ECOWAS states which had rebellion on their hands in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea Conakry. I have faith in the ability of the Nigerian Army to secure the nation against any external aggression or internal insurrection as it did in the past especially with the Maitasine rebellion in Kano.

The Army should however try to revamp its image by denying these charges or putting the Boko HARAM menace to sleep on the battle field , once and for all. That is the only way to save the Nigerian nation from the killings of the Boko Haram which is turning the nation to a battle field of carnage and mayhem , when we have not been told that we are at war by any of our leaders.

10 COMMENTARY

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

Time to tame these uncustomed customs men

vincentakanmode@yahoo.com

I

T was Monday morning on March 21, 2008, and I was on my way to the office at the former Punch office in Ikeja, Lagos. There was a snarl of traffic and vehicles crawled at snail speed and halted for long intervals. I was approaching the overhead bridge at the Dopemu section of the Lagos-Abeokuta expressway when I noticed a broken down patrol van belonging to the Nigerian Customs Service on the service lane of the expressway.

The customs men who occupied the vehicle had arrested a vehicle loaded with items they must have suspected were smuggled into the country. Under the broken down vehicle on the fast lane of the expressway lay a mechanic who had been called to fix the car. I was trying to negotiate my own car away from the lane the customs men had blocked with their broken down van when I suddenly heard a bang on the windscreen of my car. One of the gun-wielding customs men had hit the windscreen with the butt of his gun and shattered it.

Shocked and moved to high dudgeon by the aggressive act of the customs man, I hurriedly alighted from my car and sought to know what madness had come over him that he would break my windscreen without any provocation. He reacted by pointing the nuzzle of his gun at me and threatening to shoot if I asked the question again. “Why did you have to drive so close to our vehicle when

you saw that somebody was working under it?” he thundered.

As he spoke, a strong smell of alcohol oozed out of his mouth and I suddenly realized that I had taken a big risk by daring to challenge him. The man had most likely lost control of his faculty and there was every possibility that he would shoot if I dared say a word more. I had already made up my mind to accept my fate and escape with my life when his other colleagues stepped in, held the gun in his hand and desperately pleaded with him not to shoot.

My belief that I would have been a dead man on that day would later be reinforced with the story of an innocent man some customs men were said to have shot dead at the Ogere, Ogun State section of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway a few months later. As the story goes, the young man, who was based abroad, had returned to Nigeria purposely to get married. Married he did, but he was dispatched to the world beyond about three days later. He was said to be travelling with his wife when some customs men at Ogere accosted him and told him to park his car. But he was still trying to comply with the order when one of the customs men opened fire and killed him instantly, leaving his newlywed wife in utter shock and misery.

The latest in this theatre of the absurd occurred at Idiroko, the nation’s border town with Benin Republic, when some customs men shot an innocent 21-year-old man dead and compounded murder with ridiculous lies, claiming that the young man was shot by a smuggler who pulled the trigger while trying to wrest the gun from one of their men.

This, instructively, is a different account from the one they had earlier given the police. The account the errant customs officials gave the police, according to the Public Relations Officer of the Ogun State Police Command, Prince Muyiwa Adejobi, was that the appren-

‘

If smugglers are eating excess sugar, hapless citizens should not be the ones to suffer dysentery.

The ways many customs officials comport themselves leave one with the impression that there is a lot of indiscipline in the organisation

’

tice tailor, who was preparing for his graduation ceremony at the time of his death, was hit by the vehicle of the smugglers being chased by the customs men. Meanwhile, the relations of the deceased man, whose elder brother was said to have also been killed by accidental discharge from the gun of a customs man in August last year, had no fewer than three bullet wounds on his body.

Bemoaning the people’s plight, one of the community’s leaders and Chairman of OdeOgun Community Development Association, Prince Ade Adesina, said it had become the habit of customs officials in the town to kill innocent residents in the guise of chasing smugglers.

Hear him: “It is important we cry out over the incessant killing of our youths in order to put a stop to it. I believe that the customs officers lack the basic skill for handling firearms. If not, why should they fire at people all the time in the name of trying to arrest

suspected smugglers?

“The killing of Elijah Aiyelade, a blueblood of this town, is one death too many. In 2005, one Ahmed was killed. We shouted but there was no justice. Before then, in 2004, Ilesanmi Aiyelade, the deceased’s elder brother, was shot in the leg by customs men while walking home. He died on August 13 last year as a result of the gunshot injury. Yet there was no justice.

“On the same day, one Abiola was shot dead by customs men. Again, no justice was done in the matter by customs authorities despite the fact that the victims were not smugglers.”

The Nigerian Customs Service has the statutory responsibility to prevent illegal goods from getting into the country. That implies that their duty posts should necessarily be at the nation’s borders. But what you have now is a situation where customs officials are harassing innocent people in communities located hundreds of kilometres away from the nation’s borders while many of their colleagues at the borders are busy aiding and abetting smugglers for selfish reasons.

Of course, there is no denying the fact that customs men are having it raw with desperate smugglers. As a journalist, I have personally reported many instances where customs men were shot dead by smugglers in order to escape with their goods. But this cannot stand as an excuse for Customs’ wanton killing of innocent Nigerians. If smugglers are eating excess sugar, hapless citizens should not be the ones to suffer dysentery. The ways many customs officials comport themselves leave one with the impression that there is a lot of indiscipline in the organization. It is incumbent on its leadership to instil the requisite discipline if public confidence must be regained. The way to start is to bring errant officials to justice.

What’s the worth of that Nigerian’s Knucklehead With life, anyway?

F OR Nigeria, it has always been a question of why its governance process never involves its first eleven. Medi ocrity, sycophancy, nepotism, bigotry and other sundry negativities in high places plague our collective aspirations for development. Many times, on this page, I have had cause to lament the dearth of true heroes in the Nigerian nation. I once whined about the waning list of true patriots and those who damn the consequences in speaking the truth to power. I said such men and women are rarely found in the corridors of power. Oftentimes, they are seen in the congregation of the civil society groups only to embrace the usual thread of deceit in governance when they get that rare invitation to ‘come and chop.’ It is amazing seeing them transform into government official megaphones as they, shamelessly so, defend the same policies they had once condemned with equal passion when they were on this side of the divide.

It is not surprising then that the list of these masters of doublespeak keeps growing by the day as the bloated government continues to keep faith with its fixation on finding “jobs for the boys” or ‘for the ladies’ as the recent employment of Dame Patience Jonathan as a Permanent Secretary in Bayelsa State has shown. A big shame on Governor Seriake Dickson for elevating prebendal political ‘godmotherism’ to a ridiculous low! There are simply too many square pegs in round holes. Rather than being efficient machinery, our government has now become one huge jungle of wrongly sorted, queer-shaped interlocking blocks. Pity.

With the harvest of tragic impulses that continues to ravage the country, one cannot help asking this pertinent question: does President Goodluck Jonathan avail himself of quality advice from the retinue of aides around him before taking decisions on key national issues? If anything, the pervasive lethargy in his governance style and the benumbing public proclamations of some of his top aides tend to suggest otherwise. There is an obvious absence of a systemic crossfertilisation of ideas before rushing to the public. Each time this happens, his government has always ended up with a bloodied nose. If it was meant to be a public relations stunt, then it should be clear to his media strategists that it is a failed project. No doubt, the latest victim of the serial failure in an attempt to win public sympathy for the Jonathan administration’s policy thrust is the Minister of Youth Development, Alhaji Inuwa Abdulkadir.

While being screened by the Senate, shortly before he became a minister, Inuwa Abdulkadir’s tasteful colourlessness had indicated that he was going to be an interesting character.

For a man who studied Law, his dry responses to questions posed to him on the floor of the Senate couldn’t be said to be unusual for anyone who knows how people get into high office here.. After all, many holders of ordinary pass or third class degrees have become notable VIPs in Nigeria. For me, it is not about the class of the degree but the intellect deployed to the situation that confronts the occupier of that office. Every man deserves the benefit of the doubt and that was why I had expected much from Abdulkadir when he was assigned the Youth Development portfolio by President Goodluck Jonathan.

Evidently buoyed on by the illusion of being a true patriot and modern-day Nigerian hero to boot, Abdulkadir told a

mourning nation last Tuesday that the lucky few who were able to scale through tertiary education among its teeming alienated and despoiled youth should be prepared to pay the ultimate sacrifice in a spirited attempt to keep Nigeria united. As it is, Abdulkadir’s ‘heroic’ advice was meant to douse the fears being expressed by parents whose wards were posted to violenceprone states for the compulsory one-year National Youths Service Corps (NYSC) scheme. Some said the man was merely regaling in a verbal ministerial rascality and that he should not be taken seriously. However, I beg to disagree. We can only ignore him to our own peril. He did not speak in his personal capacity as one Mr. Inuwa Abdulkadir of no fixed address. Instead, he spoke as someone who was giving a presidential directive.

Hear him: “The unity of Nigeria is paramount and every Nigerian should be ready to sacrifice to keep and sustain the unity, including the NYSC. There is no war in Nigeria now. It is only internal crisis we are facing and even if there is war, some of these corps members would be recruited and deployed to fight for the security of the country.”

He sermonised about patriotism and urged Nigerians to be wary of the activities of some enemies of government “bent on sabotaging whatever the Federal Government is involved in. It is disheartening that they do come in several guises and take every slight opportunity that presents itself whether positive or negative to undermine the activities of the state.”

…and Funso Aina exhales at MTN If he had not taken to the journalism profession as a young graduate, I have no doubt that Funso Aina would have equally excelled as a stand-up comedian. Funso, as he is fondly called, was a relaxing factor in the newsroom during our days at The PUNCH and later when he came for a short stint at the Abuja office of The NATION. He never runs short of those jokes that sent everybody reeling in laughter.

An accomplished journalist by all standards, Funso left us in the newsroom to pit tent with telecommunications giant, MTN, in January 2009 as External Communications Officer. It was a perfect move for a man who temporarily embraced the newshunting business after working as Communications Manager with the British Council.

Today, his professionalism has been rewarded with his appointment as MTN’s Public Relations and Protocol Manager few months after his elevation as Corporate Communications Officer. This definitely is the time when his sixteen years’ working experience in journalism, cultural diplomacy and telecommunications will be put to active practice.

Therefore, as he navigates through the tasking but interesting job of media relations and publicity, I wish him all the best. With his educational background in History, International Relations and Journalism, Funso is ‘condemned’ to excel. True excellence is the minimum standard expected of him. Good luck to the newsroom’s No. 1 stress reliever, Mr. Funso Aina. See you at the top, buddy!

Yomi Odunuga

E-mail:yomi.odunuga @thenationonlineng.net SMS only: 07028006913 Is this man from Planet Mars? If not, then he should show us the section of the Nigerian Constitution or any of our extant laws which compels a citizen of this country to put his life on line of fire even when the government has failed in its primary responsibility to defend and protect him. Loyalty is always a two-way street; it does not only go from here to there. Like a bridge, it also faces backwards. If the unity of the country is paramount and requires our sacrifice, why is it difficult for the leaders to lead by example? Why are the high and mighty practically living in heavily fortified fortresses and bunkers when they should be at the war-front, battling those baying for the blood of the innocent? In asking these potential youth corps members to accept serving in volatile states, is Abdulkadir asking them to put blind sacrifice above common sense? Maybe he should lead the way for us by relocating his opulent office in Abuja to any of the states where gunmen kill, maim and continue to cripple business activities as the government buckle under their seeming superior power!

True, Nigeria may not be at war with any of the neighbouring countries but evidently, it is definitely at war with itself. In the last two years, countless lives have been lost to what Abdulkadir generously described as ‘internal crisis.’ The irony is that the government seems to be at its wit’s end, struggling to assure Nigerians of their safety anywhere they chose to live in the country including areas where policemen now hide their identity by parading the streets in mufti. The tragedy is that the government keeps on reiterating that promise as families, communities and hundreds of lives are wiped out in a sickening orgy of bloodletting that has gripped the country. It played out again earlier in the week when more than 100 lives were wasted in the killing fields in Plateau State. Why should anyone believe the government assurances of safety of lives and property when it is manifestly clear that it is merely playing to the gallery, offering condolences after condolences?

Now to the main question: what is a Nigerian’s life worth, anyway? We may really not know until we take the pain to collate the number of lives that have been wasted in the course of this madness. The number of those widowed, orphaned or bereaved should be near that of some malevolent war zones.

Yet they say we are not at war. For as long as some persons continue to treat the victims of the killing spree as mere statistics, the likes of Abdulkadir will never cease to insult our collective intelligence—seeing no evil, hearing no evil. Can somebody tell this man to get real and stop the empty sloganeering?

If a government official cannot offer words of comfort to hurting souls, he can, at least, shut up!

—Actress, Bimbo Akisanya

'I want to sell my kidney…

And I am a Nigerian' orld Inside the organ-trafficking underw

THRILLER / 19-21

LIFE & STYLE/ 41

SCREEN/ 21

Why men want to die for my lips

‘A nasty thing I once did’

Weekend

PEOPLE THE NATION, Saturday, JULY 14, 2012

Relat io

nship

11

It’s D-day in Edo

A

fter weeks of grandstanding and verbal missiles, the D-day is here for the gladiators in the Edo State governorship contest. Although there are about six parties involved in the contest officially, political analysts believe it is a straight fight between the incumbent governor and candidate of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, and the flagbearer of the People's Democratic Party (PDP), Gen. Charles Airhiavbere (rtd).

The foregoing observation can hardly be faulted, considering the fact that of all the parties involved in the contest, only the ACN and the PDP have had the opportunity to govern the state since the advent of the current political dispensation in

PROLOGUE 1999. It is particularly significant that it is the first time the PDP would join the contest as an opposition party since the nation returned to democratic governance in 1999. Besides, the South-South was a zone regarded as the exclusive rights of the PDP until the political equation was altered by the emergence of Oshiomhole on the state's political scene.

After about nine years in the saddle, a period many are wont to describe as the state's years of the locust, particularly the eight years that former Chief Lucky Igbinedion held sway as the state's chief executive, the PDP lost its stranglehold on the state when the courts ruled that the election that brought in Igbinedion's

immediate successor, Professor Osarienmen Osunbor, in 2007 was won fraudulently.

Oshiomhole was thereafter sworn in as the authentic winner of the election.

Oshiomhole's tenure began on a peaceful note with the support of the icon of the PDP in the state, Chief Tony Anenih, but the seeming rapport between them soon collapsed and the two engaged each other in a verbal war.

Today's election is the climax of the bitter rivalry the ACN and the PDP have exhibited in the past three and a half years. Victory today for either of the parties would mean much more than an electoral triumph.

12

EDO DECIDES.. EDO DECIDES.. DECIDES..

T

HE race for the number one seat in Edo State has not been an easy one.

It climaxes today with the conduct of the election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Events leading to today’s election, including the campaigns, have been described as unprecedented since the return to democratic rule in 1999.

The three candidates in the contest are Governor Adams Oshiomhole of the Action Congress of Nigeria (CAN), Major-General Charles Airhiavbere of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Chief Solomon Edebiri of the All Nigeria Peoples Party.

The battle for Osadebey Avenue, the seat of the Edo State Government, has been characterised by ethnic sentiments, suspected political killings, violence, alleged manipulation of voters’ register and purchase of voters’ cards, among others.

It is a known fact that whoever will emerge as governor today must get the support of the Benins (Edo South senatorial district). That is the battleground of the three candidates because it contans more than 50 percent of the voting population in the state. Edo Central has less than 20 per cent while Edo North has less than 30 per cent.

Governor Oshiomhole is from Edo North while Airhiavbere and Edebiri hail from Edo South. Today’s battle is, however, a two-horse race between Oshiomhole and Airhiavbere.

Indications that ethnic sentiments will be played up emerged two years into the administration of Governor Oshiomhole, when some leaders in the ACN allegedly led by former Chief Whip of the Senate, Roland Owie, began moves to shop for a candidate of Benin extraction as possible replacement for Oshiomhole. The moves, it was learnt, made Oshiomhole to fall out with Owie, who later moved to the PDP. The emergence of Airhiavbere as PDP candidate re-ignited the call for a Benin governor. Some campaigns advertorial sponsored by the PDP described Governor Oshiomhole as a stranger to Benin land. The advertorials urged the Benins to vote their son (Airhiavbere) as the next governor.

But, the Benin Forum, under the leadership of the Oba of Benin, Oba Erediauwa, backed the candidacy of Governor Oshiomhole. Chairman of the Benin Forum, who doubles as the Esogban of Benin Kingdom, Chief David Edebiri, declared Oshiomhole the chosen candidate of the Benins.

He said: “I was coming to the palace one day and I met a multitude of people and I asked, ‘what is happening?’ They said the governorship candidate of the PDP was inside. I quickly told my driver to reverse the car, because I didn’t see the Iyase’s car, and if I came to the palace, it would be my lot to pray for him, and I didn’t want to pray for a candidate who would not pass.

“Adams Oshiomhole is the Benin candidate. He is the one who wants Benin City to join other modern cities in the country, so he is our candidate. Some people said the palace is playing politics. What is politics? The Oba himself is an embodiment of politics.

“If you have a house and you are old and your children did not come to paint the house and somebody from outside came and painted it and decorate it for you, will you leave that person? Once again, we are voting for Adams Oshiomhole.

“As the Odionwere of Benin Kingdom, and I am speaking on behalf of the Oba, you are going to win. The Oracle has spoken. Anyone who disputes it or fights against the oracle, then let him fight on.

We will wait and see the result.”

One week later, the Benin monarch, in a press statement, said his prayers was for the party or individual that was committed to infrastructural development of the state, creation of jobs for the people, reduction of poverty and, above all, respect for the traditional institution.

On the day Governor Oshiomhole was to flag-off his re-election campaign in Edo South, tragedy struck as a tipper lorry rammed into the convoy of the governor along Auchi-Afuze Road. Three

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

The bumpy road to July 14 The Youth Leader of the PDP in Edo State, Barr. Vincent Akhere, was beaten up by some students and youths at Ekpoma, Esan West Local Government Council of the state, where he went to deliver a lecture. Akhere alleged that he was attacked by ACN youths in the locality, but sources at the lecture venue said he was attacked after making some uncomplimentary remarks about the administration of Governor Oshiomhole.

On Monday, May 14, 2012, officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) at their Edo State secretariat along Aduwawa Road, resumed duty only to find that some ACN members had barricaded the entrance to the office.

They said they had to besiege the secretariat after they got words that some INEC officials had connived with opposition political parties in the state to commence an update of voters’ registration two days ahead of the scheduled time. The fears of the ACN leadership in the state were that 472 DDC machines were deployed for use in an exercise that was supposed to require 192 DDC machines if the exercise were to be conducted in every ward in the state.

State Chairman of the ACN, Thomas Okosun, said INEC needed only 18 DDC machines in the state and that having an excess of over 200 DDC machines confirmed their suspicion that they were going to use secretly registered people from neighbouring states, including some thugs.

He noted that INEC did not conduct the updating of voters register in other states where it conducted governorship elections recently.

An official of INEC, identified as Mr Aigbe Goddie when the ACN protesters caught him in possession of a direct data capturing machine and registration kits, reportedly admitted to have used the machine to register some persons at Uromi and was trying to return it when he was caught.

Governor Oshiomhole, who led the protest, vowed that they would continue to occupy INEC until two officials in charge of INEC ICT unit in Abuja and Benin, Engr. Chidi and Miss Umeh respectively, were redeployed.

According to Oshiomhole, “Jonathan must not allow an old man who has no future to destroy Nigeria for him. They want to rig so that we would go to court.

We will not go to court. We will fight them eyeball to eyeball.

“Our youths were vigilant. They caught a young man who wanted to carry one DDC machine away. He has been arrested by the police and he confessed that he was paid to register people somewhere. He also said registration is going on at some other places.

“We don’t need their blood. It has been compromised. We will queue at where they will do their underground rigging tomorrow.”

The exercise was postponed after a meeting with stakeholders presided over

by INEC boss, Prof. Jega. For the ACN, the cancellation of the voter registration was God-ordained while the PDP, through its Publicity Secretary, Mr. Matthew Urhoghide, said it was a disenfranchisement of eligible voters in the state.

He said: “There is no way you are going to do anything that is outside the law in this country

•Jega

Osagie OTABOR, Benin journalists died in the accident while several others were injured. The accident led to the postponement of the official flag-off of Oshiomhole’s campaigns.

Oshiomhole said the accident was targeted at his life as, according to him, the driver rammed into his official car where he was supposed to be. Six days later, the Principal Private Secretary of Governor Oshiomhole, Olaitan Oyerinde, was murdered in front of family at his GRA residence in Benin City.

The assassination of Olaitan occurred four days after the Edo State Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Louis Odion raised the alarm that the state government’s officials were being targeted for kidnapping or killing by opposition political parties. Odion told journalists that some gunmen invaded his residence at about 2 am the previous night, and sought to know his whereabouts but he was lucky not to be at home.

But in spite of Olaitan’s death, Oshiomhole flagged-off his campaign the next day, saying the killings were meant to weaken his fighting spirit.

He said: “Last week, they succeeded in killing three journalists. Last night, they killed Olaitan. Let me be clear, they cannot kill my fighting spirit. The blood of those young men will whet my appetite for justice, because their plan is to postpone for the second time our campaign.”

“Tomorrow, we will go ahead because Olaitan, in his lifetime, was a fighter. We met in the field of struggle, not on the dining table.

I asked you not to be afraid and not to be intimidated. Don’t give up. If anything, we should be more resolved.”

assassination of Olaitan occurred ‘The four days after the Edo State Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Louis Odion raised the alarm that the state government’s officials were being targeted for kidnapping or killing by opposition political parties

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that will succeed. I want to say that INEC, having been established to superintend elections in Nigeria, electioneering is not only the day you cast the votes; all other activities that will that will precede the day of voting, like voters’ registration and all other activities that must be carried out by the superintending body, must be put in place before the election.

“We are not going to allow it. INEC is going to do their duties not minding whose ox is gored. And if the ACN and others who want to connive with them because they don’t want the exercise to go ahead, we will insist on it. We will let the world know that the issues of law must be taken into consideration. The provisions of the law must be taken into consideration and INEC has to do the right thing and they must abide by it.

“If that is done, a lot of people will be disenfranchised. It will be wicked and inhuman for persons to be disenfranchised. There is no way Nigerians who are of voting age in the election will be disallowed. If INEC does that, it is going to be the first ground that will be very ripe for election petition, because a lot of persons were disenfranchised.

“I know the parties are aware of this and I know the issues pertaining to electoral litigation. We are very versed in it and we will have no option but to take to that.”

State Chairman of PDP, Chief Dan Orbi, denied PDP’s involvement in the attacks on Oshiomhole and his aides. He said Governor Oshiomhole was unnecessarily heating the polity and urged him to concede defeat if he was afraid of defeat.

There were outcries by the PDP and ACN over the use of members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) and officials of the Federal Civil Service as ad-hoc staff for the election. While the PDP kicked against the use of corps members serving in the state, the ACN said employees of the federal government could not to be trusted.

Oshiomhole said: “They protested that they did not want corps members to conduct the elections because they saw some youth corps members at the venue of our campaigns, even when it was obvious that the rallies are held in schools and students are in session.

“They claimed the decision was due to the violence in the state. Where is the violence in the state? They can bring the youth corps members from anywhere; from Sokoto or Maiduguri. But we do not want federal employees. This election must be won or lost at the polling booth.”

The PDP wrote three petitions to INEC, stating why corps members serving in the state should not be used for the election.

Orbih said: “We provided video evidence of corps members at a rally of the ACN and leaders of the ACN did not deny it. We are totally against the use of corps members currently serving in the state. We don’t believe they will be good umpires. We don’t trust them. In the interest of justice, Prof. Jega should not use them.”

“We believe INEC has capitulated and treated Governor Oshiomhole and the ACN with kid gloves once too often, even when the governor made ridiculous and impossible demands like asking for the voters’ registration exercise to be suspended.”

INEC went ahead to recruit 10,000 youth corps members, students of federal institutions in the state and employees of the federal government. This is the first governorship election the PDP is contesting in the state as an opposition party since 1999.

Even as depleted as the party has become, following its loss at last year’s polls, the PDP believes it can still get back to power in the state.

The winner of today’s election will surely know it did not come as an easy victory. In one of its campaign messages, the PDP appealed to the people of the state that it is now a reformed party.

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

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EDO DECIDES.. EDO DECIDES.. DECIDES..

T

HE D-day is here. Whatever happens today will determine the outcome of the rigorous campaigns political parties embarked on to canvass votes for their candidates gunning for the most coveted seat in Edo State.

The candidates for today’s election include the incumbent Governor Adams Oshiomhole of the Action Congress of Nigeria, Chief Solomon Edebiri of the All Nigeria Peoples Party and Major-General Charles Airhiavbere of the Peoples Democratic Party. Analysts, however believe the main contenders are Oshiomhole and Airhiavbere.

About 1.6 million registered voters are expected to participate in the election to be held in 192 wards across the 18 local government areas of the state. Of the state’s three senatorial districts, the real centre of action will be Edo South Senatorial District which has over 50 per cent of the voting population in the state.

Airhiavbere and Edebiri hail from the zone while Governor Oshiomhole hails from Edo North, which has less than 30 per cent of the voting population, according to last year’s general election.

Edo South Going by the antecedents of the ACN, the party is hopeful of winning in all the local government areas in Edo South. This is because during the elections conducted in the state last year, the party won all the national and state assemblies seats.

In Oredo Local Government Area, the PDP has always lost. However, the party’s hope in the local government appears to have been rekindled with the open support of billionaire Captain Hosa Okubo has demonstrated towards. Yet the chances that he would sway the voting pattern in favour of the PDP in the local government are very slim, given the political heavyweights paraded by the ACN in the council.

Okubo will have to contend with the likes of Chief Osaro Idah, Pastor Osagie IzeIyamu, Chief Amos Osunbor, Chief Osamede Adun, Mrs. Modina Emovon, Chief John Oyegun, Hon Rasaq Bello-Osagie and the Chairman of Road Transport Employers Association, Osakpamwan Eriyo.

Ikpoba-Okha In Ikpoba-Okha, the Chief of Staff to Governor Oshiomhole, Barr. Osarodion Ogie, holds the ace. The ACN won in the local government area in 2007 and last year’s elections and would expect to repeat the feat today.

Although a former Special Adviser to Governor Oshiomhole on Foreign Matters, Ehigie Agbonnayima, recently defected to the PDP over power struggle for the control of the council, he is not expected to propose a serious threat to Oshiomhole’s victory in the local government.

Egor Egor Local Government Area is also a stronghold of the ACN. Although the PDP governorship candidate, Airhiavbere, hails from the area, his kinsmen at Agbodo village placed two full page advertorials recently in which they vowed to vote for the ACN. In 2007, the ACN won the House of Assembly seat in the local government; a feat it repeated in the state and National Assembly elections in 2011. Arisco Osemwengie can be regarded as the PDP bigwig in the local government, but it could be a pipe dream to think of winning the area for the PDP today.

•Edebiri

•Oshiomhole

•Airhiavbere

Orhionmwon The ACN is expected to enjoy an easy ride in Orhionmwon where the Deputy Governor, Dr. Pius Odubu, hails from, even though some observers believe the defection of one of ACN chieftains, Emmanuel Igiebor back to PDP might increase the chances of the latter party. Here, the ACN clearly defeated the PDP in last year’s elections.

Uhunmwode Uhunmwode is the local government area a PDP chieftain in the state, Dr. Samuel Ogbemudia, hails from. While it was formerly a stronghold of the PDP, Uhunmwode is currently controlled by the ACN. If Ogbemudia dreams of dreams of delivering Uhunmwode to the PDP in today’s election, he will be contending with Oshiomhole’s achievements in the area where he recently connected about 33 communities to electricity and constructed a road that traversed the area.

It is the local government area former Chief Whip of the Senate, Roland Owie, and candidate of the ANPP, Solomon Edebiri, hail from. But that does not appear to constitute a threat to ACN’s potentila landslide victory in the area.

Ovia North East Ovia North East is the local government where the Esama of Benin, Chief Gabriel Igbinedion, hails from. Chief Igbinedion whose son, Lucky, ruled the state for eight years, recntly begged the people at a rally begged the people not to let him down.

A former Woman Leader of the PDP, Barr.

Lucy Omagbon, and the member representing

How the candidates stand in local government areas Osagie OTABOR, Benin Ovia Federal Constituency, Engr. Isaac Osahon, also hail from the area. With the resolve of Igbinedion to ensure victory for the PDP, the ACN may face a serious challenge in its bid to retain the control of the area.

In a recent interview, Engr. Osahon said the ACN would win 95 per cent of the votes cast in the area.

Ovia South West In Ovia South West, the ACN may not be too sure of victory. It won in last year’s polls after it was discovered that an INEC ad-hoc staff had falsified the results from Ugbogui ward to favour the PDP. The Deputy State Chairman of the PDP, Christopher Adesotu, hails from the local government and has a great influence at the grassroots. The factor the ACN would count on here is the infrastructural development the Oshiomhole administration has done in the area.

Edo Central Edo Central can generally be regarded as the stronghold of the PDP. It won four out of the five seats in the State House of Assembly, and all the seats in the National Assembly in last year’s elections.

It is the zone Chief Tony Anenih, Barr.

Kenneth Imasuangbon and the Minister of Works, Mike Onolememem hail from.

To prove the insistence of ACN leaders in the state that Anenih is finished politically, a win for the party in Edo Central is crucial. The defeat of the ACN in the district in last year’s polls was wildly celebrated by the PDP.

Esan South East This was the only local government in the zone where the ACN won in last year’s polls. It is the local government of Senator Odion Ugbesia and the late wife of Adams Oshiomhole. The ACN should be sure of victory in the area again today.

Esan West All the campaign efforts made by the ACN to win in Esan West Local Government Area last year failed. A former Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Bright Omokhodion of the ACN was voted out of office by the people.

Former governor of the state, Prof.

Oserheimen Osunbor, is from the local government and his support for Oshiomhole has increased the chances of the ACN in the area.

Esan Central The ACN was believed to have lost elections in Esan Central last year because of the tussle for power between its two leaders in the area, namely Francis Inegbeneki, a former Youth Leader of the PDP, and Mr. Theophilus Okoh.

Their combined support for Oshiomhole

•Continued on Page 16

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THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

•Oshiomhole •Anenih

HEAD of the 2007 governorship election, former Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party Board of Trustees, Chief Tony Anenih, declared that he would be finished politically if the PDP‘s candidate, Prof.

Oserheimen Osunbor, lost the election to opposition political parties.

As expected, the Independent National Electoral Commission, led by Prof. Maurice Iwu, announced PDP as the winner of the election after delaying the result for two days. But the courts thought otherwise and pronounced Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, who contested the election on the platform of the then Action Congress, as the authentic winner.

In the early stage of the Oshiomhole’s administration, all was well between him and Chief Anenih. Nenih nominated three commissioners into Oshiomhole’s cabinet. At the Auchi Day celebration in 2009, Oshiomhole referred to Anenih as “My Leader” while Anenih in turn called him “My son”. The romance between them raised fears among leaders of the ACN who were in doubt about Oshiomhole’s political moves.

Oshiomhole had said: “Although I came in on the platform of Action Congress/Labour Party, soon after my final victory at the Court of Appeal, many people expected it is going to be endless battles in Edo State. First because they know the House (of Assembly) is made up of young men and a woman who are known to be quite vocal and rugged and, of course, the comrade who had a history of battles. But it is not so.

The first shocker was when our own members in the House narrated to me how our leader advised the PDP members in the house to put politics aside and support the comrade governor.”

“I didn’t have to lobby him for him to do that. There are occasions when we have cause to draw his attention to any matter and he is always there for us. Today, I have the opportunity to publicly say thank you very much, and I believe we will continue to work together. The only

A

Is Anenih in his last political battle?

Osagie OTABOR, Benin way to avoid deceit is not to seek secret. Once a person sets out to contest, you either win or lose, And where you don’t have the appetite to accommodate either of the outcome, you shouldn’t be in the game.”

But the romance between Anenih and Oshiomhole developed a crack when the State House of Assembly, under the leadership of the PDP, refused to pass the 2009 budget. They did not also clear Oshiomhole’s nominee for the State Universal Basic Education Board (UBE), which made the state to forfeit over N2 billion of UBE counterpart funding in 2009.

It was after the intervention of Chief Anenih that the 2009 budget was passed.

The Akoko-Edo rerun election saw Oshiomhole’s and Anenih’s paths crossing. Chief Anenih led the campaign team of the PDP while Oshiomhole led that of the AC. Oshiomhole defeated Anenih in the election and the Uromi Chief was blamed by the PDP

supporters for trusting Oshiomhole’s loyalty.

At a supposed PDP unification rally at Ewohinmi, Edo State, Anenih sought for forgiveness from PDP members for the rift within the party and emphasized that Edo State needed a government that would develop the state.

Anenih had said: “Governance is a different ball game because you must be organised and focused rather than jump from one place to another, asking for acclamation and clapping of hands by students’ union leaders. The AC-led administration in Edo State is a vibrating AC without compressor, which can never cool the house.”

In another PDP unity rally, Anenih vowed to reclaim Edo for the PDP, saying, “I mean it. We are not supposed to be in opposition. The party executives should be up and doing and march to Government House. It may take a few months or years, but I assure you that we will get there.

“We will criticise constructively in the interest of our people. No intimidation, no Ghana-must-go

In a democracy, there is no godfather; ‘we only have God’s people. I saw a dying godfather desperately running his mouth. Who was speaking? The man who once had an opportunity to be a minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, with a mandate to fix our roads?

They call him Mr. Fix-it, but he could not fix the Lagos-Benin Road...

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bags. They will not succeed. We in the PDP are not for sale.”

Governor Oshiomhole responded at a grand rally of the then AC by throwing invectives at Anenih. Oshiomhole said: “In a democracy, there is no godfather; we only have God’s people. I saw a dying godfather desperately running his mouth. Who was speaking? The man who once had an opportunity to be a minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, with a mandate to fix our roads? They call him Mr. Fix-it, but he could not fix the Lagos-Benin Road.

They call him Mr. Fix-it, he could not fix Uromi roads where he comes from. He could not fix water for his people. The dual carriage way terminates in Kogi State and he could not extend it to his own state. He could not fix his family in PDP. “His time is up. Any father who refuses to accept that his children have grown up is not a good father. Any leader who does not want to retire, if he cannot see the political exit gate, we have a responsibility to take him to the exit gate.”

The three commissioners nominated by Anenih into Oshiomhole’s cabinet resigned their appointments the following week. Three months later, Oshiomhole confessed that the reason he fell apart with Chief Anenih was because the 2009 budget was approved in the bedroom of the PDP chieftain.

According to him, “There were controversies because the budget the House of Assembly approved was mutilated. A number of projects I thought were crucial to

the development of Edo State were removed. I can confirm to you that the 2009 budget of Edo State was settled in the quiet living room of Chief Tony Anenih, in his residence in Abuja.”

“I was asked to go to the private sitting room of Tony Anenih where I had to table the budget line by line. And all the key proposals—the building of 19 model schools across the state, the buying of mass transit buses—were deleted by Chief Tony Anenih with his own biro.

“After the deduction, what was left was such that it would be impossible to start work on Airport Road and the Ugbowo-Lagos Road. So, the end of it is that if I do not do the job, the prediction of the House that the job is not doable would have become valid.

“I came to Benin like a chicken that has been abandoned by the mother hen. I came back to wait for the House to pass the budget as amended by the godfather himself, who dictates decisions for the 2009 budget.

“Of course, I knew it was not time to fight because I had not grown the teeth with which to fight and there was no need to be aggressive over it. Everyone was abusing me that I was Mr. Stooge. But I knew my day would come. And when it came, there would be no doubt that I have arrived.”

The people’s verdict today will determine whether Anenih will retire to a life of political fulfillment for restoring the PDP back to power or otherwise.

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

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EDO DECIDES.. EDO DECIDES.. DECIDES..

Power brokers behind the candidates

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HE long preparation is over. Campaign drums and songs ceased on Thursday night as the election takes place today. Within 10 hours, the people of Edo would have spoken through the ballot on their preferred leader for the next four years.

Officially, no fewer than seven candidates are contesting the election. But in political observers believe the real contenders are the incumbent Governor Adams Oshiomhole of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and the leading opposition candidate, Gen Charles Airhiavbere (rtd) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The rest are regarded as parties on the fringe.

But who were the powers behind these candidates while

the campaign lasted?

The Electoral Act 2010 makes it clear that only political parties can sponsor candidates for elections in the country. To that extent, it was normal to see the leaders and governors of the ACN going to Edo State for a grand rally in support of their candidate, just like the PDP also did.

In fact, in the case of the PDP, the journey to Benin was undertaken twice. The first was led by the Vice President, Namadi Sambo, while the second was led by President Goodluck Jonathan.

As for the power brokers in Edo State, each candidate has no fewer than three prominent individuals backing him. They are as follow:

Governor Adams Oshiomhole Tom Ikimi

Among those considered the chief supporters of Governor Oshiomhole in the state is Chief Tom Ikimi, an architect and politician. He was a member of the Constituent Assembly between 1988 and 1989. He was elected the first National Chairman of the National Republican Convention Party (NRC) in July 1990, where he served for a little over two years.

He became Foreign Affairs Minister in March 1995 and retained the portfolio until the Federal Executive Council became dissolved on July 8, 1998.

In 1999, Chief Tom Ikimi was a foundation member of then All Peoples Party (APP).

In the build up to the 2003 general elections, Ikimi was persuaded by forces internal to his home state of Edo to join the PDP. His performance as the chairman of the party’s Electoral Committee for its presidential primaries in 2003 remains legendary.

The PDP candidate, Olusegun Obasanjo, eventually won the election and piloted the affairs of the country for four more years after his first term.

Ironicallly, Ikimi became one of the prominent politicians that fell out with Obasanjo and was deregistered from the PDP allegedly on the orders of Obasanjo and his cronies in a strange bid to facilitate Obasanjo’s self-succession plan tagged Third Term.

With his close friends, Ikimi formed the Movement for the Restoration and Defence of Democracy (MRDD) with close friends. It became the rallying platform through which the self-succession plan of Obasanjo was foiled.

Ikimi, one of the foundation leaders of the ACN, and specifically, the South-South geopolitical zone leader, led the party to victory in the 2007 general elections in Edo State.

John Odigie Oyegun

Another political bigwig behind Oshiomhole in the state is a former governor of the state, Chief John Odigie Oyegun.

An Ecnonomist, he functioned in the civil service as a development planner before he retired and became a politician.

Oyegun was elected as civilian governor of Edo State on the platform of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) during the ill-designed transition programme of the General Ibrahim Babangida administration. He reigned from January 1992 to November 1993 before he was removed from office when General Sani Abacha seized power.

Later, he became a leader of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) and ran as vice presidential candidate in the 2011 presidential election. After the election and when it became obvious that the ANPP was showing sign of moving forward, he joined the ACN.

Julius Ihonvbere

Prof. Julius Ihonvbere, a former stalwart of the PDP and two-time governorship candidate in Edo State, is one of the latest supporters of Governor Oshiomhole. He recently defected to the ACN. In an address to his supporters who gath-

•Tom Ikimi

•Odigie Oyegun

•Julius Ihonvbere

Augustine AVWODE

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Ihonvbere, who has been repeatedly denied the opportunity to govern the state by the party’s acclaimed godfather, told the people that his going into the ACN was meant to show that he was fired by his conviction that a people-driven democracy is the only solution to Nigeria’s multi-faceted problems

ered at his country home at Uzebba, Owan West Local Government Area, the professor of Political Economy and former special adviser to former President Olusegun Obasanjo on Projects Monitoring and Implementation, chided the PDP for lacking the democratic ethos and vision needed to pilot an emerging democracy like Nigeria.

Ihonvbere, who has been repeatedly denied the opportunity to govern the state by the party’s acclaimed godfather, told the people that his going into the ACN was meant to show that he was fired by his conviction that a people-driven democracy is the only solution to Nigeria’s multi-faceted problems.

He promised to reinforce the leadership in Owan East and West by bringing everybody on board to actualise the inauguration of Governor Adams Oshiomhole for a second term.

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The Benin monarchy

Perhaps the biggest of the support is the one from the revered Benin Palace. Even though the highly respected monarch Omo N’Oba Erediauwa of Benin is a father to all, he has shown clear support for the candidacy of Governor Oshiomhle on account of his performance in office.

The governor was recently commended by the Crown Prince of Benin Kingdom who put it without ambiguity at a grand reception organised to mark his return from ambassadorial tour of several parts of Benin City that the Palace acknowledges his good works and would want him to continue.

The Crown Prince, who was Nigeria’s former Ambassador to Italy, His Excellency Prince Ehenede Erediauwa, while commending Governor Oshiomhole for the

•Erediauwa

massive infrastructural development in the Benin Kingdom, revealed where the heart of the Palace is in the matter.

According to him: “This reception will even ginger me to do even more for the Edo people. You will note that I said the Edo people, not just the Bini people, because the Bini people are the origin of all other people.

And our comrade governor has always emphasised that, and I know that he has gone through some travails over that; that

why is he developing Benin? Why not other places?

“The Governor told me a simple philosophy, that ‘Your Highness, if a visitor comes to your house, where will he enter first? Is it your bedroom? It is the sitting room. So, he has started focussing on the job at hand.

“I’m not campaigning, I’m just stating the facts. I’m following my father’s footsteps.

So, I want to thank the comrade governor.

So, the prayer that our father said we should pray for the gubernatorial candidate, God has made it to come through, God has brought it to reality in the person of my friend. Not political friend, but personal friend. God has brought it to fruition in the person of the Comrade Governor, ably supported by his Deputy, Pius Odubu.”

Of course, there are numerous other reputable individuals and organisations supporting the candidacy of Governor Oshiomhole.

•Continued on Page 16

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THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

•Igbinedion

•Onolememen

•Ogbemudia

Power brokers behind the candidates •Continued from Page 15

Charles Airhiavbere

T

ONY Anenih Leading the powers behind the PDP candidate is Chief Tony Anenih, a retired police officer from Uromi, former chairman of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the party and former Minister of Works.

A politician with an uncanny ability to get things done, he is popularly called Mr Fix It. The former Chairman of the defunct Social Democratic Party (SDP), through which the late MKO Abiola won the 1993 presidential election, has been in the corridors of power since Shehu Shagari became President in 1979. He was close to former President Olusegun Obasanjo and worked as a minister under him.

He was relaunched into limelight by the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua who appointed him as

Chairman of the NPA in 2009; a position he still holds.

Samuel Ogbemudia

Another power behind the PDP candidate is two times governor in the state, Dr. Samuel Osaigbovo Ogbemudia, a retired army officer and politician. He was the military governor of the Mid-Western State, later renamed Bendel State, part of which became Edo State, from 1967–1975. Following the return to democracy in 1999, he became a stalwart of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

During a brief return to civil rule, Samuel Ogbemudia was elected the governor of Bendel State in October 1983 as the candidate of the National Party of Nigeria, replacing the late Ambrose Alli of the Unity Party of Nigeria. However, he lost his position in December that year when Muhammadu Buhari became a military ruler after a coup that ousted President Shehu Shagari.

He was later appointed Minister of Labour and Productivity by the late General Sani Abacha.

In 1998, Ogbemudia became one of the founders of the PDP in Edo State, and a member of the party’s Board of Trustees. Ogbemudia and Anenih controlled the PDP in Edo State for the next decade, at first working well together but later coming into open conflict.

But to his credit, Ogbemudia has never hidden his applause for the performance of Governor Oshiomhole, even though he is in the PDP.

Gabriel Igbinedion

Business mogul, Chief Gabriel Osawaru Igbinedion, is another supporter of the PDP candidate. The man who made the sleepy little town of Okada popular has been very visible in the politics of Edo State. In fact, his son, Chief Lucky Igbinedion, reigned as the governor of the state for eight years.

Unfortunately, his son’s abysmal performance remains an albatross for the

PDP in the state. When in 2003, after Lucky’s first term, the PDP stakeholders were not inclined to give him a second term ticket, the senior Igbinedion allegedly joked: “They said Lucky failed. If a student failed in a class, he should be given the opportunity to repeat the class.” Lucky got the opportunity, but he could not improve on his previous record.

Mike Onolememen There are other supporters, including the Minister of Works, Mike Oziegbe Onolememen. He is a chartered architect and professional construction manager of over 25 years experience in the private and public sectors. He had served earlier as Minister of State in the Ministry of Defence and Head of the Directorate of Project Management of the then Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF).

By the end of today, the political relevance of these personalities will be measured by the success or failure of their candidate.

How the candidates stand in local government areas •Continued from Page 13

this time around may boost chances of the ACN in the local government. But it would not be an easy ride for ACN and Oshiomhole in this area.

Esan North East This is the base of Chief Anenih. It is an area ACN leaders would want to win. the party’s leaders in the area recently embarked on a house-to-house campaign, educating the villagers on why they should vote for the ACN Anenih wields so much influence in the area that not many elite would openly canvass for votes for the ACN there. Here, the pendulum swings highly in favour of the PDP. Edo North This is the stronghold of Governor Adams Oshiomhole where almost 100 per cent victory can be guaranteed for the ACN. Because of the high stakes, even the few erstwhile supporters of the PDP in the zone may vote for Oshiomhole to ensure their son get a second term.

In 2007, elections in this zone were can-

celled due to violence and ballot box snatching. In the 2011 elections, the ACN routed the PDP in the area.

Esako West In Estako West, the ACN enjoys a lot of support from the traditional institutions.

The ACN will expect the roads constructed by the Oshiomhole administration as well as the street lights, walkways and schools to do the magic.

A former Speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly, Zakawanu Garuba of the PDP hails from the area, but there may not be much he can do for the PDP because of the large followers of the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Lucky James, Etsako Central Estako Central is the hometown of the Edo State Chairman of the PDP, Chief Dan Orbih, and the Chief of Staff to President Goodluck Jonathan, Chief Mike Ogiadomhe. They were both defeated in last year elections.

Former Vice President of Nigeria, Admiral Mike Akhigbe, is also from the local government, but he will most likely not

support the PDP, particularly because the power tussle between him and Ogiadomhe remains unresolved.

Villages like Epkeri-Anegbette and Udaba are likely to reward the ACN for the access road of more than 25km constructed by the Oshiomhole administration. Electricity was also extended to many villages within the area.

Etsako East The ACN is favoured to win in Estako East Local Government Area because roads previously described as impossible to construct have been done by the Oshiomhole administration.

Many communities in the local government have also been opened up with roads constructed by the Oshiomhole administration.

Akoko-Edo In Akoko-Edo, the ACN will most likely find victory easy. That is the local government where it defeated the PDP in two rerun elections and the general elections last year. ACN stalwarts like John Onaivi, Senator Obende Domingo, Hon. Peter Akpatason, Malik Afegua and Prince Clem

Agba are quite popular in the area and would guarantee victory for the party.

Owan East In Owan East Local Government Area, the battle will be tense. The ACN won in the local government by a narrow margin in last year's elections. It is the hometown of the late Chairman of Setraco Construction Company, Alhaji Inu Umoru, Senator Yisa Braimoh and Kassim Ozetu.

The late Inu Umoru was a great financier of the PDP, and the vacuum his death left in the PDP is yet to be filled. The House of Representatives member representing Owan Federal Constituency, Hon. Pally Iriase, elected on the platform of the ACN, is from the local government area and enjoys the support of the masses.

Owan West The recent defection of Prof. Julius Ihonvbere to the ACN dealt a big blow to the PDP in Owan West. PDP deputy governor candidate, Johnson Agbolagba, is from Owan West and was picked because of his performance in last year's election.

The ACN looks more likely to win in the area, but it may not be by a wide margin.

THE NATION, Saturday, July 14, 2012

17

•Pastor’s residence at ECWA Church, Bangai also razed

•A victim who lost her husband in the attack

Lamentations over loss of loved ones in Jos attack OLLOWING two years of a seemingly endless bloodbath occasioned by the ‘internecine war’ between the Fulani and the Berom of Plateau State, graveyards have become a common sight, steadily taking over the landscape.

In fact, there is no other word or adjective in the English dictionary to describe the humanitarian crisis in Berom land, except to conclude that it is grave with displaced victims, hunger and starvation and kids without parents. All across the crisis-torn areas are mounds that house human bodies. The land is now famous for its numerous mass graveyards than what it was hitherto known for.

No doubt, Berom land can occupy a space in the Guinness Book of Records as having more mass graves than any other town in the world. It all started in 2010 after the Dogo Nahawa massacre of over 500 women, children and the aged.

While that of Dogo Nahawa in 2010 took place on March 7th and consumed 504 victims, the most recent attack of July 7, 2012 consumed 140 victims Today, mass graveyards constitute major landmarks in Jos North, Jos South, Riyom and Barkin Ladi. In these areas, the land has also become popular for its number of homeless citizens, with

•Mass grave

F

•Chairman, Barkin Ladi lga, Hon. Emmanuel Loman hundreds buried and thousands displaced.

In the last violent attack on the Berom people, which took place on the morning of Saturday July 7, 2012, ten Berom villages were attacked simultaneously by unknown gunmen. At the end of the attack, the local government and its people had 140 of its citizens to bury in

•Speaker, Plateau House of Assembly consoling late Gyang Fulani’s widow three mass graves.

A visit to the sites of the attacks could leave you preferring to be blind for the rest of your life than behold the corpses that lay yet unburied.

Equally worrisome is the dire situation of thousands of survivors of the attack who have no house to return to. The sight of the displaced persons, mainly women

and children, is so pathetic that you are tempted to ask why God created you human. Apart from the ten villages attacked last weekend, residents of other villages have had to flee their villages voluntarily to escape the gunmen’s attack.

The development has equally thrown up numerous abandoned villages and numerous displaced people’s camps in Berom land. Worst of all, humanitarian assistance that could have come from agencies like Nigerian Red Cross (NRC) and International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) could not get to the displaced on time due to inadequate security in the areas.

At the last count, more than 50 Berom villages have been sacked by suspected armed Fulani. There are Angwuan Werem, Tahoss, Bangai, Sopp, Danjol, Kak, Sho, Dung, Gwong, Rim, etc. Currently, the Plateau State government is buffeted on three fronts: security, refugee crisis as well as medical bills of the injured.

The government is losing sleep on how to stop the armed Fulani insurgence in Berom land and elsewhere in the state; the lack of capacity to deal with the flow

Continued on page 18

THE NATION, Saturday, July 14, 2012

18

•A house razed in the attack in Bangai village, Riyom

•Women, children fled their homes for safety in Barkin Ladi

‘We’re going the way of Mali where rebels have taken parts of the country’ Continued from page 17 of refugees from the hot zones and the challenge of the medical bills of the injured victims currently receiving treatment at the Vom Christian Hospital and Barkin Ladi General Hospital.

No doubt, the state governor, Jonah David Jang who himself is a Berom, is more than frustrated. Voicing his helplessness, all he could say was: “I am the governor of the state at a time my people are being killed, you can imagine my state of mind. I’m becoming frustrated and devastated over these continuous attacks on Berom people.

“But as a Christian I have not given up hope in God almighty. These attacks and bloodshed of innocent women and children of this state may have defied all man-made solution, but it will certainly not defy God’s own solution. One day, God will send His divine intervention and it shall be over forever.

“Plateau is God’s own state and I urge all citizens, children of God, to be committed to Him in whatever we do, for only Him can wipe away our tears and our sorrows. I have received a revelation that very soon, God will intervene in the case of Plateau, I mean very soon.”

But the question everyone seemed to be asking when The Nation went round Jos city is “Do we have security agencies in this country? What is going on in Plateau State?”

Against the background of unrestrained attacks on hapless citizens, the Plateau State House of Assembly has seeming passed a vote of no confidence in the Federal Government, declaring

•Women wailing for loved ones killed in the attack in Barkin Ladi

that it has failed the state for its failure to secure lives and property in the state; a role the federal government took over since 2010.

This was the unanimous position taken by the 23-member state House of Assembly in an emergency sitting held over the recent attacks.

Deputy Speaker of the House, Honourable Johnbull Shekarau who presided over the sitting on behalf of the Speaker, John Clark, said in his opening address: “Since the beginning of this political dispensation in 1999, we have never experienced what we are going through today. One of us in this House, a member representing Barkin Ladi Constituency died in an attack at a time he went to bury members of his constituency killed in an earlier attack.

“More worrisome to us is the fact that one of the three senators representing the state in the National Assembly also died in the same attack. This is too heavy to bear. This is more than a tragedy, it is a calamity of immense magnitude.”

Another member, Hon. Istifanus Muansat, member representing Pankshin South Constituency said: “I fear for Plateau State, I fear for Nigeria, I fear that we are going the way of Mali where rebels have taken parts of the country. It is high time the Nigeria Police and army confessed to all Nigerians that they are incapable of securing we Nigerians. The loss of lives to terrorism in Nigeria is growing each day and something urgent must be done by the Federal Government to stop this trend.”

In his own contribution, Hon. Timothy Golu from Kanke Constituency said: “We

are finding it difficult to console our people all the time; our people are fast running out of patience. It is obvious the Federal Government has failed us in this state. The Federal Government came in to take over security situation in Plateau State from the governor, but so far, we have been experiencing more and more devastating attacks with the usage of more sophisticated weapons and killing more of our people than before.

“If the Federal Government cannot secure a small state like Plateau and most states in the country, what is that government doing in Dafur, Sudan? This is a shame on a nation, terrorism is consuming this nation.”

Hon. Gondina Musa Sambo from Pengana Constituency called on the Federal Government to own up to its failure and withdraw its soldiers from the streets of Plateau State.

According to Hon. Sa’adat Garga of Kantana Constituency, “The Federal Government and its security agencies are aware of an armed depot in a Fulani residence in Barkin Ladi LGA, but refused to take action. Now the arms are being used to kill our people en-mass. I therefore think the House should hold President Jonathan responsible for the ethnic cleansing going on in Plateau State.

Hon Zaina Dogo of the Quan’Pan North Constituency called on the National Assembly to summon President Jonathan and ask him to tell Nigerians and the world why he has failed to protect the citizens of this country. This is becoming too much and is unbearable. It must stop.

•Widow of late Majority Leader, Plateau House of Assembly, Mrs. Gyang Fulani

•Moses Gwom survived three attacks on his family

•Displaced women and children of Nyar village

19

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

Saturday

THRILLER

•Continued on Page 20

… y e n d i k y m l l 'I want to se ' n a i r e g i N a m a I d An nderworld u g in k ic ff ra -t n a rg o e th e id s In

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

20

Inside the organ-trafficking u S

ILENTLY, she smiled; but her smile was worse than grief. It was worse than the smile of a newlywed wife when another man has been with her or the smile of a mastiff about to spring. It was the smile of a mother nursing the saddest variety of woe. Thus was the intensity of Bolanle Ilori’s smile, a former grocer and single mother of two, who recently lost her only son to the “good life.”

“It should have been me. Death should have taken me instead. Or what else do I have to live for? Death has given me names that are not mine. People are calling me a witch. People are calling me a bad mother…or what do you call a widower whose only son dies before her very eyes.

(Hisses) I am finished…totally finished,” she cried.

Although much of what she said was gibberish, Ilori’s dramatic monologue spoke unwieldy volumes of her grief. It revealed her love for 22-year-old Timothy a.k.a TMoney, and her desolation over his death.

Late Timothy, according to her, deserved to live longer than he did; he deserved a wonderful life because he had worked too hardly to achieve it.

Having sworn to his mother and sister that their family would suffer no impoverishment in the wake of his father’s death, T-Money started to ‘hustle’ to foot the family’s bills. Thus when he turned 21 (last year), he forced his 38-year-old mother to retire from her petty trade in vegetable and stockfish to enjoy the proceeds of his ‘hustle.’

Neighbours alleged that he was an internet scammer (otherwise called Yahoo boy) but Ilori dismissed their insinuations claiming her late son was a computer scientist – even though he pursued a Sociology degree before he dropped out. “They said my son spent blood money. He didn’t. My boy made good, clean money. He prospered by God’s blessing in his life and he was very generous too…If not for the terrible ailment that claimed his life, all these people spreading bad rumour about him will be begging him for money now. I know somebody was responsible for his death because he was hale and hearty until his sudden death. God will judge the evil ones according to their deeds,” said Ilori.

But what could have led to the sudden death of the 22-year-old? The tragedy is in the detail. Contrary to Ilori’s claims, The Nation findings revealed that T-Money, her late son, was never a ‘computer scientist’ as she claimed. A former associate and first cousin of late Timothy who simply identified himself as Wolex, revealed that he was a victim of ‘bad company’ and ‘uncontrollable greed.’

He said: “I warned him when he started moving with some guys we met on the floor (in the conmen’s underworld). They told him Yahoo runs (internet scam) was outdated and that there was a better and faster way to make cool millions.”

That “better and faster way” led to his grave, according to Wolex. It led T-Money, a native of Iragbiji in Osun State, to a basement lodge in Gurgaon on the outside of Delhi, in India. There he was paid $3, 700 (about N580, 900) to part with a kidney. Spurred by the prospect of making a fortune, T-Money travelled to India in the company of his brokers and two other prospective kidney sellers. On arrival in India, they were sheltered in a basement lodge for four nights and were due to go to the clinic the fifth day for the operation.

Wolex said that T-Money disclosed before his death that during the night before the day he was billed to go under the knife in India, he lost consciousness and when he woke up the following day, he found that he had been operated upon in his sleep and one of his kidneys had been removed. He lacked the strength to fight and when he attempted to stage a feeble protest; his broker hurried into the room and dumped $3, 400 on his chest.

He said he refused the money stating that the agreed sum before he left Nigeria was $5, 500 but his broker explained that the influx of desperate immigrants from Africa and the Eastern Europe have made it easier to procure the organs from the black market.

This, the broker explained, had brought down the price of the human organ.

Eventually the broker got him additional $300 making his total earnings for his kidney $3, 700. T-Money counted his losses and

•A kidney seller displays a scar gotten from a poorly executed kidney harvesting operation.

Olatunji OLOLADE, Assistant Editor returned to Nigeria on the next flight.

“I don hammer!” T-Money reportedly screamed at his cousin and friends two days after he returned from his ‘business trip.’

However, three weeks after he returned, he fell terribly ill. “He refused to go to the clinic and told his mother to prepare herbal concoctions for him instead. Every time I visited their house, they left me in the sitting room to discuss in hushed tones. At times, I was told that he was tired and had been placed on temporary bed rest,” disclosed Wolex.

That temporary bed rest became a permanent bed rest sooner than anyone could imagine.

Precisely one month and five days after TMoney sold his kidney; he died following corrective surgery in the wake of complications suffered from his kidney sale operation. “He probably saw it coming,” stated Agnes, a former girlfriend of the deceased who alleged that T-Money blew through his fortune in a week and two days claiming that he had only got one life to live and he would spend it enjoying his money today because no one knows tomorrow.

T-Money’s case is, in many ways, the stereotypical ‘urban myth’ of organ trafficking.

Despite repeated medical assurances that it is simply not possible to carry out kidney transplant surgery in a basement or a flat, recent developments suggest otherwise.

In the wake of media reports and public outcry about the increasing rate at which Nigerian youths are flocking to Asia to sell their kidneys at N10million, late T-Money’s experience among other things suggest that even though the price of a kidney may have irreversibly nose-dived, the lure to exchange one of their kidneys for “cool millions” is too much for many Nigerian youths to resist.

Yahoo boys or internet scammers constitute a larger section of the black market from Nigeria according to Pat, a self-acclaimed ‘runs girl’ (commercial sex worker) and ‘Yahoo babe’ (internet scammer). According to her, having realized that cyber-fraud is not as lucrative as it used to be as most Europeans are bit wiser now; many ‘Yahoo boys’ have resorted to selling their kidneys in desperate bid to make “cool millions” and keep up with their extravagant way of life. “They now troop to India, Malaysia, China, Turkey and other Asian countries to sell their kidneys at varied rates from $1, 500 to $5, 000,” she disclosed.

But while many Nigerian youths have discovered in Asia, an organ trafficking Eden of sort, Ebuka and Raphael Akachi, two

siblings from south-east Anambra having sold one of their kidneys each, would rather seek out desperate natives in rural areas in Romania and Moldova in particular, and persuade them to sell their kidneys to prospective buyers in Europe and Asia. Naïve villagers looking for work and seeking to make their fortunes in seemingly wealthy cities like Istanbul are approached and persuaded to sell their kidneys for at ridiculous rates ranging from $650 to $2, 000. “What we offer them is a better deal,” claimed Raphael arguing that things have gotten better since their foray into the regions’ organ black markets.

But “Nobody will ridicule you or ostracize you for selling your kidney in Nigeria. You do what you can to survive,” stated Henry Idowu, a retired doctor and anatomy teacher.

Nigerians are actively seeking markets to sell their kidneys online and have been making journeys to countries in Asia, – Malaysia and India particularly, to sell usually just one of their two kidneys. The initial price offered for a kidney was about $30, 000 to $60,000 which translates to N5 to N10 million for the vital blood filtering and red blood cell (RBC) generating organ. There is a sophisticated online network of vendors, agents, resellers and hunters actively seeking candidates; sometimes going to the extent of kidnapping them and supplying this usually desperate young Nigerians, to ready slice-and-pop physicians in basements, sheds and other makeshift medical facilities.

These ‘experts’ excavate the organs and preserve them in ice-boxes till they get to the eager transplant centers thriving with Asians, Middle Easterner’s and Europeans on the waiting list, hoping for that fresh, cheap ‘third world’ kidney.

Global trade in human organs Given the high incidences of chronic kidney diseases in some Asian countries, the trade is certainly a money-spinner within the region.

In Malaysia alone, there are about 2,500 cases of kidney failure yearly while in China about 1.5 million people are reportedly in need of organ transplants, of which only 10,000 were performed yearly, thus fueling an illegal trade in organs.

In 2003, Vermot-Mangold, Rapporteur of the Social, Health and Family Affairs Committee of the Council of Europe, wrote a report on organ trafficking in Europe stating that rapid progress in medical science and technology has transformed organ transplantation, and kidney transplantation in particular, into a routine medical procedure practiced in

hospitals across the world. “Five-year survival rates for most organ transplantation programmes are reaching the level of 70 per cent, thereby rapidly increasing the demand for organ donation. International criminal organisations have identified this lucrative opportunity caused by the gap between organ supply and demand, putting more pressure on people in extreme poverty to resort to selling their organs,” said Vermont-Mangold.

Indeed, there has been recent national and international media coverage of illegal organ harvesting and kidney trade in Asia and Eastern Europe. A United Nations (UN) lists organ trafficking cases that occurred in several member states claiming there is sufficient proof that organ trafficking exists, although it does not receive priority attention or close scrutiny by the states involved.

Over the past three decades, organ transplantation has become a standard and successful medical procedure, giving new life to thousands of people with failing hearts, kidneys, livers and lungs With patient demand for transplant so strong and the medical capacity to satisfy it so widespread, a global scarcity of organs has resulted stranding thousands of people on to currently on national waiting lists in Western Europe and the US, waiting for a heart, liver, kidney or lung. As a consequence of this scarcity, there has been a worldwide shift from the use of cadaveric organs towards the procurement and use of organs from living donors who can give one kidney, half a liver or the lobe of one lung.

The rising demand for organs has led to a circulation of bodies and body parts that increasingly transcends national boundaries.

Additionally, the imbalance of the demand for and supply of body parts has created the basis for a highly profitable black market of organs.

According to The Nation findings, this market has become part of a robust international industry with brokers traceable on the internet.

For those living in parts of the world that have been subjected to centuries of colonization, forced labor and peonage, as in the Philippines, the idea of selling a spare body part seems as natural and ordinary as any other form of indentured labor. In the extensive shantytown of Bangong Lupa, Manila, for example, the majority of young men are reportedly willing, even anxious, to sell a kidney, and they express few regrets afterwards, except for the natural limits imposed on other saleable body parts.

Nigerian youths have joined the stream of prospective vendors hoping to sell one of their

21

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

g underworld

•Art work satirizing Chinese teen, Zheng’s sale of his kidney to secure an iPad2 device.

•Many kidney sellers are denied the safety of a decent operating theatre like this.

transplantation procedures. Recipients from Botswana, Mauritius and Namibia, as well as from countries such as Israel, go to South Africa to buy organs from live donors. Nigerians, Brazilians and until recently, Moldovans and Romanians, travel to South Africa and are reportedly kept in safe houses before being offered the ‘opportunity’ to sell their kidney.

Such sellers have a kidney removed under immense psychological, economic and sometimes even physical pressure.

•Victim of a hastily done kidney extraction recuperate at a proper medical facility.

ORGAN TRAFFICKING BLACK MARKET STATISTICS Average paid by Kidney Buyer: Average paid to Seller of Kidney: Kidney broker in Yemen: $60,000 Kidney broker in the Philippines: Kidney buyer in China: Kidney buyer in Israel: Kidney buyer in Moldova: Kidney buyer in Singapore: Kidney buyer in United States: Kidney buyers in Saudi Arabia: Kidney seller in Bangladesh: Kidney seller in Nigeria: Kidney seller in China: Kidney seller in Egypt: Kidney seller in Israel: Kidney seller in Kenya: Kidney seller in Moldova: Kidney seller in Peru: Kidney seller in Ukraine: Kidney seller in Vietnam: Kidney seller in Yemen: Kidney seller in the Philippines: Liver buyer in China: Liver seller in China: Lung seller in Europe: Asking price of kidneys and any other saleable body part at an attractive price. Thus like their European rivals, a great many eager and willing kidney sellers from Nigeria travel to Asia to wait outside transplant units; others check themselves into special wards of surgical units that resemble kidney motels where they lie on mats or in a hospital bed for days, even weeks, watching T.V, eating chips and waiting for the ‘lucky number’ that will turn them into the day’s winner of the kidney transplant lottery.

$150,000 $5,000 $1,000 to $1,500 $47,500 $125,000 to $135,000 $100,000 to $250,000 $300,000 $120,000 $16,000 $2,500 $2,500 to $30,000 $15,000 $2,000 $10,000 $650 $2,500 to $3,000 $5,000 $200,000 $2,410 $5,000 $2,000 to $10,000 $21,900 $3,660 $312,650

The usual ‘victims’ Scheper-Hughes argues that most Nigerian kidney sellers are poor, single women. Current reality however, indicates a variety of additions to the demographic qualities of kidney sellers from Nigeria. There is however, less trafficking in Africa itself due to lack of advanced and affordable organ transplant technology in the African region, although South Africa is a hub like Turkey for

Wages of poverty As hunger and despondency increases, it is more than likely that the exploitation of the poor and the scope of the crime of body parts trafficking will escalate according stakeholders in the global health sector. The latter argued that dealing with this problem of organ trafficking in its many manifestations will require addressing the root cause, namely poverty.

The nexus between poverty and environment demonstrates clearly that the sale of an organ is an act of desperation, one to which a person is only driven in dire circumstances. According to Fadekemi Oguntoyinbo, a Lagos-based medical doctor, “Watching your family go hungry while you lack a job and a wealthy person waves a wad of bills in your face is not exactly a scenario that inspires confidence in the fairness of a market for body parts. Talk of individual rights and autonomy is hollow if those with no options must choose to sell their organs to purchase life’s necessities.”

The morality debate Some argue for a free trade in human organs; others argue for a regulated market.

Transplant surgeons however see themselves as ‘above the law’ some of the time. The younger generation of transplant doctors for instance, see themselves as societal mavericks breaking down ‘old taboos’ and standing in the way of advancing technological capabilities argued Nancy Scheper-Hughes of the University of California, Berkeley, USA. Corroborating her, Tesola Dawodu, a retired matron and hospital proprietor, affirmed that the younger generations of doctors simply turn a blind eye in the face of various ethical irregularities, like illicit transplants with paid donors.

Some actively facilitate an informal sale usually to save or improve the life of one of their patients. Others prepare and counsel kidney patients for transplant trips overseas and admire the initiative of those who have returned having purchased a kidney from a hapless woman in a Lima slum or from an executed Chinese prisoner, as the case may be.

Patient autonomy, individual freedom, the right to choose and the commitment to a utilitarian ethos of the greatest good for the greatest number guide the sense of the ethical in these illicit transplant practices.

Another consumer-based stimulus behind the occult economy in living donor kidneys and part-livers is the growing rejection of hemodialysis by increasingly sophisticated kidney patients.

Dialysis treatment for any period of time, even as a bridge while waiting for transplant, is increasingly viewed by kidney activists as unacceptable suffering, as time on the cross.

Thus kidney transplant from a living person

according to organ black marketers remains the most natural solution because you are free of the [dialysis] machine.

At the same time, many kidney patients resist the idea of conventional ‘waiting lists’ for cadaver organs as archaic vestiges or residues of wartime triage and rationing, or worse, as reminiscent of socialist bread lines and petrol ‘queues.’

And an insistence on the absolute value of a single human life saved, enhanced or prolonged ends all ethical or moral inquiry and erases any possibility of a global social ethic according to stakeholders. Meanwhile, the traffic in kidneys reduces the human content of all the lives it touches.

For bioethicists the slippery slope in transplant medicine begins with the emergence of an unregulated market in organs and tissue sales. But perhaps the dilemma actually begins earlier, with the first time that one ailing human being looks at another living person and recognizes that inside that other living body is something that could prolong, improve or extend his or her own life. But few organ recipients know anything about the impact of transplant procedures on the donor’s body and the donor’s social life and world.

If the medical and psychological risks, pressures and constraints on organ donors and their families were more generally known, transplant patients might want to consider opting out of procedures that demand so much of the other. The division of the world into organ buyers and organ sellers is a medical, social and moral tragedy of immense and not yet fully recognized proportions.

The strangest news story hit the web recently when Zheng, a 17-year-old Chinese, sold one of his kidneys to purchase an iPad 2. Zheng wanted the electronic device but could not afford it thus he advertised his organ on the internet. Soon he was contacted by a broker who said he could help him sell one kidney for 20,000 yuan (about £1900).

After having the operation to have a Kidney removed and receiving his hard earned money, he headed to his nearest Apple store but decided against the iPad 2 idea and bought an iPhone and MacBook instead.

After Zheng’s mother got home and saw the new gadgets she thought something was up, and once Zheng explained what he had done she went mad. Zheng’s mother quickly marched Zheng to the police station, after they did their investigations it came about that the hospital wasn’t even qualified to carry out the surgery.

If stories of illicit organ removal resonate as the stuff of rumour and urban legend, there are countless people wearing scars to prove otherwise.

Narratives of impoverished families and people compelled to sell a kidney to “live a better life” or to get out of debts, who become disabled, further impoverished or die because of the act banishes any accruable benefits of the organ transplant black market.

Notwithstanding its dreaded consequences, many Nigerian youths would kill for an opportunity to jet out of the country to sell one of their kidneys, at a price. “If I could, I would sell one of my tits too. I owe nobody any apology. After all, I own my body and whatever I choose to do with it is my business,” argued Kanyinsola (T-Money’s surviving sibling), berating “jealous neighbours and rumour mongers” for gloating over her brother’s death.

Given how T-Money’s death connects his family to global medical realities of disturbingly emergent flows of life and capital, it is no longer justifiable to dismiss organ trafficking as “not really a Nigerian problem” anymore.

It is actually. A visit to KidneyKidney.com offers a pilgrimage of sort; there, many Nigerian youths at home and abroad place desperate advertisements in the following formats: “47659 Rosemary: Is it possible to sell my kidney in South Africa legally? How much is its value; 47884 Jide: hello, I would like to know how much you are going to pay for a kidney, if I want to sell mine for (sic) another person. So I will be waiting for the respond asap; 47505 Segun Ajayi: Please can I sell my kidney in USA or UK at a very expensive pay, and I am a Nigerian; 47235 Ofene Bright: I want to sell my kidney legally am in die (dire) need of money to help my mum and sibling hw (how) do I start?”

Many more youngsters are probably reading this with you, hoping to find a link to that much sought underground network where they can meet the broker of their dreams.

SOCIETY

22

THE NATION SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

UGCAN president celebrates at 46

T

Abike ADEGBULEHIN

•Prince Ademola Adedokun(left) and Mr. Adekunle Yusuf

•Rev. Steve Etormi and Joses Hizkiah

•Barrister Dan-Faparusi

•Dr. Augustine Azum-Joseph and wife, Peace .

WHAT & WHERE

•Engr. Otuya, his wife, Mrs Okose and her husband cutting the 46th birthday cake

HE United Gospel Churches Association of Nigeria (UGCAN) experienced a change in leadership as for the first time in 32 years a woman was inaugurated as their national president.

It came as double joy for Rev. Pricilla Otuya as she made history, being the lucky one to be inaugurated.She also celebrated her birthday.

The event, which was held at Rockview Hotel, Festac Town, Lagos, was glorious as Dr. Justus Olu Latunji mastered the ceremony.

The programme kicked off with the opening prayer from Rev. Godson Ihekoronyi. This was later followed by praise and worship led by Rev Amos Akinwale.

Rev. Oluchi Irole delighted the guests as she gave a special number, I Know My Redeemer Liveth, to honour the

•Dr. Justus Olu Latunji

celebrant.

The outgoing president, who is now the President of the International Mission Association, Bishop Jacob Okose, who was accompanied by his lovely wife, Mrs. Adeyinka, advised the celebrant in his speech to always use what she has been taught while still a member to her advantage and he also prayed that she will become successful and bring positive changes to the organization.

The inauguration was done in two stages as a constitutional swearing-in was done by Barr. Anne DanFaparusi and a prayer section was led by Bishop Okose.

The guests joined Rev. Oluchi Irole in the hymn “To God be the Glory” as she led them.

“I am truly humbled because history has been made

today having taken the mantle of leadership as the first elected female President of this great body. It is great”. Mrs. Priscilla said.

She also went ahead to enlighten every one on her goals and vision for the organization.

“I see my election as the new president of the UGCAN as a product of God’s divine arrangement and an avenue to fulfil God’s plan to put things in order and ensure that godly elders are ordained in every city”.

Her joy was full as her son, Joshua, sang a song for her which was followed by the presentation of three wonderful cakes of orange; white, green and pink; and white and gold.

She cut her cake alongside her husband, Engr. Sunny Otuya, the outgoing President, Bishop Okose, and his beautiful wife, Adeyinka.

PHOTOS: GBENGA KUTELU

Ogun community gets transformer

The Adeniyi community in Agbado,Ifo Local Government Area of Ogun State was agog penultimate Sunday as it became recipient of a new transformer courtesy of Ogun State government.

At the handing over ceremony witnessed by community leaders, residents and members of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) lawmaker representing Ifo State constituency 2, Hon Adijat Adeleye-Oladapo, urged the residents to guard against vandalisation of the equipment, adding that the state government was ready to provide more social •Hon. Adeleye-Oladapo in handshake with Alhaji Olowo during amenities for the people of the state. the ceremony

•From left: Permanent secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Corperatives, Mr Olajide Bashorun; Commissioner for Agriculture and Corperatives, Lagos State, Prince Gbolahan Lawal; and 1st Vice President, Lagos State Corporative Federation, Mr. Bamidele Odunsi, at the media briefing on 2012 International Corporatives Day celebration in Lagos.

Photo: Bola Omilabu

LOCATION

BACKSTAGE

SNAPSHOT

REEL NEWS

MUSIC

SCREEN

Edited by: VICTOR AKANDE

Tel: 08077408676

E-mail: victor_akande@yahoo.com

ntertainment

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012, 2012

Why men want to die for my lips

—Actress, Bimbo Akisanya

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THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

STAND BY! h

Wit

VICTOR AKANDE E-mail: victor_akande@yahoo.com Tel: 08077408676 (SMS only)

THINK

SNAPSHOTS

nt part of An importa s of any the succes is its civilisation late the mu ability to e t led to the a th factors ther success of o Eric .— s civilisation rt Reine

Rough-and-ready guide to a blockbuster movie!

If a Hollywood studio has spent a lot of money on a movie, say $200m, then you will probably find out about it. Talk of vast budgets is good for business.

From the audience's point of view, it might be worth the price of the ticket just to see what justified that expense. But finding out exactly how the money is spent is more difficult. On rare occasions production budgets have leaked out, but up-to-date information is hard to come by.

And that's hardly surprising, as there is a lot at stake. Exposing a movie's financial details could upset a lot of powerful people. A film's director, actors and producers will be some of the most significant costs in the budget, and they will not be happy to have their pay open to public scrutiny. But it is possible to get an idea of where the money goes. So, if you have always wanted to direct a blockbuster movie, here's a rough-and-ready guide to how much it is going to cost you. And, lower down, find out how you might get some of that money back.

Budget So what qualifies these days at a big budget? According to Nikki Finke, founder and Editor-in-Chief at the respected Hollywood news website Deadline.com, $200m is the starting price. "$200m is when they (studio executives) really start thinking hard about it." Approving (or green-lighting) a project of that size might be beyond the remit of even a studio chairman. It might have to go to top executives at the parent company.

Story Rights You are going to need a story for your movie. More often than not that will come from a book, a play, or in some cases a video game. The rights to a best-selling book can cost anything between $500,000 and $2m.

Screenplay So you have permission to use the story, now it needs to be converted into a script. Top scriptwriters will command hefty fees and you could spend as much as $2m. That's the elite end of the market; most Hollywood writers toil away for much, much less.

Director This varies wildly form director to director. Some like Steven Spielberg may take a producer role, which means extra payment.

The most successful directors will ask for as much as $10m for a movie, and may also want a cut of the film's profits.

Producers The title "producer" can mean a lot of different things in Hollywood. Typically it is the person who will shepherd the movie from the script page to the premiere.

A producer can be thought of as the chief executive of the film.

They are the financial controllers and will make hiring-and-firing decisions. They will also bring investors into the project and negotiate deals with distributors.

In the US, home entertainment spending, which includes DVDs and film rentals, has been falling since hitting a peak in 2004.

Nevertheless it remains an important part of a film's revenue At the high end of the industry they will receive millions of dollars. While rarely getting paid more than the lead actor, they can make up to $5m for a film.

Cast A big name actor can expect an up-front payment, $10-$20m would not be unusual. The biggest names can demand a percentage of a movie's box office return.

While studios are generally reluctant to offer such deals it can be a way of managing financial risk. If the film is more successful than expected, everyone is happy.

But if it fails, at least the payments to actors will be limited.

For the Hollywood elite, vast sums can be made. It is reported that Johnny Depp has made hundreds of millions of dollars out of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies.

Production Costs Again, this can vary wildly. If you want to film in Manhattan, you will have to pay for filming permits, insurance, security - the list goes on. And if you want to film at night, elaborate lighting will be needed. You can save money by filming in cheaper locations. Many countries will offer tax breaks. The Lord of the Rings trilogy received substantial tax breaks from New Zealand.

Producers will have day-by-day breakdowns of how much filming will cost. Something relatively straightforward like a courtroom drama could cost $500,000 a day.

For a 40-day shoot, that is $20m.

But if you want car chases or pyrotechnics, then you can expect to pay a lot more.

Visual Effects Keep plenty of money in reserve for this. Computer generated imagery (CGI) is expensive, and big-name directors like long movies. For some films that rely on visual effects, it will almost double the cost of the movie. You could end up spending $100m.

Music A relative bargain. For an original song, a well-known pop star may charge up to $1m.

Marketing So you have made the movie, the director is happy and you have kept to the budget. Surely the worst is over. Wrong. "Actual filming, unless the director goes off

WRITE TO US!

the rails, that is often the easiest part of it all. These days it is extremely rare that a production will be a month or two late. In this business, one or two days is a big deal," says Nikki Finke at Deadline.com. You are now entering the world of marketing, which is very expensive. Big films will need a global advertising campaign. This can often amount to 50% or more of the original budget. Reports say that Disney's flop movie, John Carter, cost $250m to make and another $100m to market.

Revenue So the film has been made and the advertising campaign has been rolling for months, now it is time to make some money.

Box Office The rule of thumb is that a movie studio can expect to receive about half of the box office sales.

But in reality, the deals struck will be complicated. Studios often negotiate a high percentage for the opening week, which will then tail off, so the cinema chain gets a greater share as the film gets older.

DVD Sales In the US, home entertainment spending, which includes DVDs and film rentals, has been falling since hitting a peak in 2004.

Nevertheless it remains an important part of a film's revenue.

Bruce Nash, the founder and president of Nash information services, which provides movie industry research and support, says: "The death of that market is somewhat overblown. "The DVD market peaked much earlier than studios would have liked, but the overall viewing of video at home continues at the same rate as ever.

It's a much more mixed market between DVD, Blu-ray, video streaming and rental services like Red Box." A studio will typically take 40% of DVD and rental sales, and that can generate some healthy sums.

DVD sales of the movie Avatar totalled $600m in the US alone.

Another $57m was spent on renting the movie.

Merchandising In the business this is known as ancillary revenue. It includes licensing for toys, games, posters and other items. This area is particularly important for animated family films like Pixar's Toy Story series. In-flight entertainment is also included in this bracket. Ancillary revenue can amount to about 10% of box office take.

TV Releases Generally a film will be offered on some kind of video-on-demand service first, then a premium cable package, and finally it will make its way on to regular television.

The fees will be based on the film's box office performance. A studio can expect to make about 11% of its box office total from TV releases. —Ben Morris, Business Reporter writes on 7 May, 2012 in BBC News Business

Do you watch Nollywood movies? What do you think of the Nigerian motion picture industry? Send your review of any movie or short essay on any topic of your choice about the film industry in not more than 200 words. Send entries by e-mail to: victor_akande@yahoo.com or SMS your short comments to 08077408676

Joke Silva stages surprise birthday bash for Olu Jacob @ 70

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ETERAN actor, Olu Jacob was a year older, last Wednesday. The versatile actor who is one of the most celebrated actors on the scene was born July 11, 1942 in Ogun State.

The actor who is presently in London with wife Joke Silva, and a host of other rave actors including Justice Eshiri, Segun Arinze, Bimbo Akintola, Toyin Oshinaike, Keppy Ekpeyong, OC Ukeje, among others, may th not forget his 70 birthday in a hurry, as Joke Silva throws a surprise birthday bash to mark

the special day.

An obviously elated Olu Jacob was flanked by colleagues and friends who are in London, as part of the Lufodo Productions for the Olympic 2012. There was a lot to eat and drinks as Uncle Olu as he is fondly called had two large cakes to share with his guests.

It would be recalled that Olu Jacob's Lufodo Productions stormed London a couple of weeks ago to put together a major showcase of Nigerian theatre.

Omotola takes charity to Tanzania

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MONG Nollywood actresses, one screen diva whose heart of generosity is unrivalled is sultry actress; Omotola JaladeEkeinde. Her ingenuity on the screen may have put her in the spotlight, but her beauty, hard work, and charitable works have endeared her to many and sustained her on the limelight.

Omotola's undying love for charity was again brought to the fore recently when the delectable actress visited an orphanage in East African country, Tanzania. She was invited to come help raise money for orphanages there.

Although the mother of four

was in Tanzania for the premiere of Tanzanian model/actress, Wema Sepetu's movie, but also seized the opportunity to engage in charitable work, when she visited the Mitindo House for HIV infected children.

Commenting on the orphanage, Omotola who has since returned to Nigeria said she was impressed by the method of raising funds for the orphanage - Auctioning special numbers donated by fashion designers/houses from all around Africa. She also revealed that she was so honoured to have been received with so much fanfare by the Tanzanians.

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THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

RE ELNEW S

Board commences film censoring in Ibadan

Filmmakers converge as YOVIFPMAN talks digital marketing

From Bisi OLADELE, Ibadan

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•celebrate Alade Aromire

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AINLAND Hotel, Oyingbo Lagos, wore a festive mood when filmmakers, actors, regulatory agencies and the corporate Nigeria converged for the much anticipated workshop organised by the leadership of Yoruba Video Film Producers and Marketers Association of Nigeria (YOVIFPMAN). The event, which was organised to train members of the association on the art of digital marketing of films, was also used as an avenue to discuss other issues bedevilling the Nigerian motion picture industry.

The variety of issues of concern was evident in the number of resource persons slated for discussions at the event. They include Ace Cinematographer Tunde Kelani (Effect of Movie in Diaspora); Managing Director, Remdel Optimum Communication, Biodun Ibitola, (Effect of Piracy on Nigeria Movies); Hope Yongoh, Manager, NEXIM Bank (Finance in Nollywood); Lola Fajana, Mutual Benefit Assurance (Insurance in Nollywood); Seyi Yeroku, Iroko Partners (Digital Marketing, The Challenges); Ayo Sewanu; Silverbird Distribution (Film Distribution); Barrister Tunji Bamisigbin (Effect of Subtitling on Indigenous Movies); Aina Kushoro (Distribution Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow); Pastor Cyprian Orakpo (Technological Development in Nollywood); Barrister Akeem Aponmade(Copyright and You); Edward Odion (Governmental Regulation and You); Jonathan Bruce, MD, Silverbird Cinema, Lagos (Nollywood and the Cinema).

Chairman of the association, Alhaji Toyin

•L-R: Biodun Ibitola, Seyi Yeroku and Aina Kushoro

•Tunde Kelani with Edward Odio

Uthman, noted that his executives have resolved to, in his words, “use our days to overhaul, engineer, and dry-clean the tradition of movie distribution in Nigeria to a more befitting state, only comparable to what is obtainable in developed countries. “ Uthman added; “We are firmly committed to the task of educating, informing and restructuring our membership through activities like seminar, retreat, capacity building workshops and other civilised means to upgrade the status of our membership and increase our profit margin.“ The general mood of the workshop is on how filmmakers could get around the problem of piracy, while also fashioning

alternative channels of distribution and exhibition of their films.

The organisers also used the avenue for a posthumous honour of the late frontline filmmaker, Muyideen Alade Aromire, an icon of development during his life time.

Uthman noted that Aromire, was the first filmmaker to shoot a movie for home consumption alone, in 1987. The movie, he said, was titled Ekun.

“Aromire, a prince of Lagos origin, paddled through so many obstacles and barriers to change from the trend of celluloid and cinema exhibition tradition to a less costly but affordable home movie tradition.

The singular innovative gesture of this prince has brought smiles to several homes, today by providing employment opportunities, creating rooms for investment, rebranding Nigeria before the world, and making entertainment a more commercially valuable industry.” He enthused.

Also honoured with an award at the event was the Director General of National Film and Video Censors Board, Mr. Emeka Mba who was Special Guest of Honour at the event.

Agony of a Last Flight to Abuja

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HE award winning director and producer of one of the highest grossing Nollywood movies of 2011, The Mirror Boy, Obi Emenloye is back in the news with new flick, Last Flight to Abuja.

Following his much publicised film, The Mirror Boy, a Nigeria/The Gambia coproduction, Obi Emelonye is in the news again. This time, the producer/director is out to beat the record set by the first. This is indeed stating the obvious, going by the status of Last Flight to Abuja, his latest star studded movie, which was screened to the press in Genesis Cinema last Tuesday.

•Last Flight to Abuja crew

Emelonye's latest work focuses on the ills of the Nigerian aviation industry. And although this appears timely, going by the June 3, 2012 Dana Air crash in Lagos, the filmmaker had shot the film far ahead of the recent crash.

In his usual marketing style, Emelonye's casting for Last Flight to Abuja will no doubt capture the interest of movie fans across the political and tribe divides in Nigeria and abroad- as fans' favourite, Omotola JaladeEkeinde, is paired with Ali Nuhu, a leading actor in the North, and Jim Iyke, playing his usual eccentrics. There is also

Hollywood/Nigerian actor, Hakeem Kae Kazeem, and cross over frontline Yoruba actor, Jide Kosoko. Others are Anthony Monjaro, Celine Loader, and Uru Eke, making a huge presence in this emotion evoking thematic film that has already opened in the UK cinemas.

The movie recently premiered at the Troxy Theater in London. The London premiere was dedicated to the memory of the victims rd of the June 3 Air crash with the name on the manifest replacing the end credit of the movie.

The movie reveals the daring mid-air difficulties that stare most Nigerian commercial passengers in the face and how in this instance the fictitious Flamigo Airways plane is forced to make an emergency landing having been caced midair with a problem associated to a mixture of human error, technical failure and bad luck, teetering on the brink of disaster. As the pilots fight with the controls of the stricken plane, a series of flashbacks unravel the twists, turns and leaps of fate that put each passenger on the fateful flight. Young lovers, an elderly couple, a corporate party, a sportsman on the threshold of greatness; all the passengers are caught up in the nightmare scenario and sense the final moments of their lives approaching.

The Lagos premiere is scheduled for August 3 in Genesis Deluxe Cinema, Lekki.

HE National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) has commenced censoring activities in its office in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

Commissioning the office which is located at the Federal Secretariat, Ibadan, Oyo state Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Barr. Bosun Oladele, opined that the commencement of censoring activities in Ibadan would not only bring the services closer to practitioners in the industry, but also serve as a vehicle through which the restoration, transformation and repositioning agenda of the Governor Abiola Ajimobi administration could be achieved.

He added that apart from reducing transportation costs from Ibadan to either Lagos or Abuja, the Ibadan branch of the Board would also improve the production cost of film and video production as well as improve the revenue base of the Oyo State Government.

The state Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Engineer Abiola Ladoja, enjoined the management of the Board not to rest on its oars in ensuring that only film and video output which showcases and promotes social values were approved for public consumption.

Highlights of the commissioning ceremony included a drama, cultural display and official inauguration of the preview centre by the Information Commissioner, Bosun Oladele and other guests.

•Emeka Mba

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THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

Fast-rising Yoruba actress, Tokunbo Latona, is a woman of many hats. Apart from acting, Tokunbo is also a fashionista and publisher of Say Cheese Magazine. In this interview with DUPE AYINLAOLASUNKUMI, the graduate of Theatre Arts from University of Ibadan talks about her acting career, publishing job, and fashion outfit.

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HY do you like acting as a career? Acting as a profession gives room for playing while working. While acting, I could still catch fun alongside my work and at the same time earn a living simultaneously.

Personally, I don't see acting as a job because I do enjoy myself when acting and I don't feel like I am working. Unlike other professions in which you sometimes get bored while working, acting is funfilled, and moreover, I earn good pay from it even more than what some bankers earn.

What is the biggest amount you have earned from acting?

As a professional, I do not need to disclose my professional fee because every job is treated on its own merit. It depends on the nature of the job, the personalities involved and the proximity of the location. Mark you, if I mention any amount now, I may find it pretty difficult to get somebody who will pay me higher than that amount. I charge my fees and I give consideration where necessary. But the truth is; we actors are not as rich as people perceive.

But most of you use big cars, how do you acquire such if you are not so rich?

Even though I cannot speak for everybody, but I would plainly say that some get those cars from their personal savings, some as gifts while some procure those cars from the proceeds of their movies. It's just about what you value most; what is on top of your priority list that would determine where you expend your hard earned money.

But many are of the opinion that you ladies get money, cars and other gifts from big men who adore your screen beauty.

While I wouldn't dispute the fact that it's possible for men to appreciate screen divas in cash and kind, but I suppose it would be very erroneous to generalize since we do not have the same background and we are not from the same family. So it's very untrue to say that we ladies cannot afford or achieve “anything� worthwhile without the influence of so called big men. I am a professional actress and besides, I have my fashion label and I am the publisher of Say Cheese Magazine that is currently making wave all over Euro pe and Nigeria now. With these, I think I don't need to tell anyone that I can afford to buy whatsoev er I need.

And besides, those ladies

My boobs, not my assets for clinching roles —Tokunbo Latona who are not actresses get gifts from their suitors so far the guy would not break his jaw to satisfy them. So if any actress gets money from her boyfriend to buy a jeep or whatever, there is no big deal about it.

It means the guy appreciates her. That is all.

With these laudable achievements, how do you intend to give back to the society?

You know life is in stages; achievement in phases, so I would say I have not achieved anything, I am just starting what I love to do. And very soon, I will contribute my quota to national development. Just two days ago, I celebrated my birthday with the orphans.

I and my crew with some friends and colleague were at three different orphanages for three consecutive days to celebrate my birthday with them. While I wouldn't say that I have started giving back to the society on that note, I would rather say, it is a clear indication that I would soon fashion out something unique along that line. I am very emotional. I am an emotional being, sometimes I cry when going on the street and I see some people begging, it normally moves me to tears. I hate seeing people suffering, but sometimes, you discover that you cannot help everyone; you just have to try your best and leave the rest.

What is your take on the popular premise that marriage debars actresses from reaching the peak of their career?

Acting is a profession just like any other profession; if marriage cannot debar those in other fields, it should not also be like that for acting. I don't think a man who truly loves me would not be happy seeing me excelling in my chosen career.

Why would a man who would love his wife in banking industry to succeed not want the same, if the woman were to be in the film industry. I know it is not easy when people watch your wife slug it out on bed with another man, though, it is make-believe, but many would play it over and over in their minds and imagine they are even the one playing the role with the lady. Therefore it is pertinent and imperative to draw a boundary.

But people believe theatre artistes lack sexual discipline, what is your take on this?

Being sexually loose is not peculiar to any field; we have read many nasty stories about some randy lecturers, pastors and even primary school teachers on the pages of newspapers. The issue of promiscuity, lewdness and sexual harassment is the way we portray and comport yourself, it depends largely on how you relate with people. Many ladies cannot differentiate between being friendly and being sexually suggestive, they cannot relate friendly without being sexually suggestive and inviting. Even though I am very friendly with my male colleagues, I make sure I don't sound amorous towards them especially the ones who have made names for themselves in the industry.

Some actresses believe their boobs are God-given endowment that should be flaunted. Are your boobs your asset for acting business too?

My major asset is the fact that I am very natural. God has given me unusual way to render lines and deliver roles perfectly, naturally and convincingly. And this is what has been keeping me moving.

For how much would you consider acting nude?

I can't. I am an African lady and I hope to settle down some day with a man of my dream. I can't afford to let some roles I had played in the past haunt me later in life.

Are you saying you cannot consider acting nude because of marriage? But can you opt for some millions of naira in exchange for exposing certain parts of your body?

The truth of the matter is that as a

professional, you should not have any boundary. But as an African lady, who is brought up and nurtured in a cultured environment that detests shameful acts, I do set boundary for myself. I always tell myself that there are so many things I must not do, not even for professionalism.

One of my dreams is to have a blissful home and raise wonderful kids. So, I can never be fulfilled without having a family.

What if your man asks you to quit acting?

My guy is very understanding; he knows me and understands my passion for acting. He cannot ask me to quit what gives me joy.

Among all roles you have played, which one is most challenging?

Every role is demanding. I have to read through the script, acquaint myself with the writer's intention and develop a unique mannerism that will distinguish my character from other roles I had played before. Some directors will like my mannerism while some will come up with another concept. I just have to adapt in order to bring out best from that job. I can remember a day Antar Laniyan almost frustrated me on set; he intimidated me in a good way. It was like the whole world turning against me, I did not know when tears were flowing down my cheeks. But at the end, the job was wonderful. It was later that we realized we are related.

How was your growing up?

I grew up like every other kid, it was formerly rosy but later, my family had some problems. My mum and dad had to separate, so I was raised by my mum. I later lost my dad which made everything worse. It was not easy to be raised by a single parent. I suppose I owe my success story to my mum's support and encouragement.

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THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

s n o i t i d u a s o Lag e m a F t c e j o r P r fo

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•Monica, winner of 2011

Judges

HE popular Optima Studios, Lekki, will open its doors to music hopefuls who will be participating at the Academy in the th 5 edition of the popular Reality TV Show; MTN Project Fame West Africa.

The auditions' train, a five-city search for these fresh Nigerian music talents berth in Lagos this weekend.

The venue of the two-day exercise is expected to be a beehive of activities as the participants in their large numbers will try to outdo one

2face, Eedris grace Oshiomhole's campaign

another to book a place in the highly competitive academy. Those admitted will undergo rigorous training by the best of voice trainers, stage acts and many other music icons.

General Manager, Consumer Marketing, MTN, Kola Oyeyemi said “the time has come once again to empower another set of West African youths in line with our brand philosophy of “enriching lives”.'

MTN Project Fame West Africa is a music competition that discovers

2KAY, Ruggedman in Kosi Were

AST-RISING act, Mr 2Kay recently shot his popular track Kosi Were with Veteran rapper, Ruggedman in Lagos.

The Port Harcourt-born artiste had a number of celebrity friends from both the movie and music industry at the shoot to show support and also make cameo appearances. Some of the guests include 2Shots, Jaywon, Chigozie Atuanya among others. BET award

winner, Wizkid also made a surprise stop at the video shoot.

Mr 2Kay released his debut album titled, "Waterside Boy" in April 2012 and also dropped a video for "Waterside Boy". The hit tracks, Waterside Boy, Run This Town and Kosi Were have gotten massive airplay on major radio stations across the country especially in the South South. Kosi Were video was directed by Clarence Peters.

Fada U-Turn resurfaces

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ADA U-turn who has been off the entertainment scene for quite a while, now has staged a comeback with a new album titled Galala Swagga.

The work comes under his personal record label called Shakara Sounds.

Known as the King of galala music, Femi S. Mayomi a.k.a Fada U-Turn's new album is a ten tracker with tracks like Gbafun, Kpakurumo, Yetunde rmx, Happy Birthday Naija, Election Time and others.

According to the artiste, “It's been long time coming, so I thank God for his grace, because I still dey Kampe.”

•Fada U-Turn

latent talents who are later groomed in an intensive 10-week music academy, where they receive the very best of training in the area of song-writing, vocal delivery and stage-performance which will subsequently shape them into toprated professionals.

Public voting by SMS determines which contestants are eliminated on a weekly basis, with the lucky winner walking away with cash prize, a car and a recording contract.

Reports say that this year's edition of the project is being powered by MTN Pulse, the new youth and trendy segment value offering.

Prospective participants are expected to send their details to the short code 35850 after which they will receive a Personal Identification Number (PIN) which will be required to complete the application form from www.projectfamewestafrica.com.

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Osemwengie Ben OGBEMUDIA, Benin City

T was trills and fun at the Samuel Ogbemudia stadium and its environ as the campaign train of Comrade Adams Oshiomhole re-election bid hit the centre city, with music artistes, Eedris Abdulkareem, 2face Idibia, Osayomore Joseph, Maleke, I go Dye, Aki and Pawpaw and a host of others added colours to the campaign.

Major roads linking the Kingsquare were on stand still as business activities and vehicular movement were close to the campaign activities. Paul Obazele, Charles Inojie, Desmond Elliot, Zack Oji, Aki and Pawpaw led other Nollywood stars on the walk in solidarity with Oshiomhole re-election which holds today.

2face Idibia opened the music session singing his popular One Love track. There was also Osayomore Joseph with his Efewedo hit track, and Eedris Abdulkareem, singing his controversial Nigeria Jagajaga track.

Speaking to our reporter, Zack Oji noted that there are very few active governors in Nigeria, and Oshiomhole is one of them.

“When we see somebody like Adams doing all these good things, we just have to support him so that he can keep on developing Edo State that has been neglected for so long”.

Desmond Elliot who fashioned his dress after the Comrade Adams Oshiomhole style had on it an inscription which reads: “Desmond Elliot supports Oshiomhole election 2012”.

The musical jamboree that heralded the campaign also had Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the ACN Governors, Chief Bisi Akande, Chief Audu Ogbe, Chief Olusegun Osoba, Chief Tom Ikimi, Senator Chris Ngige, Prof Julius Ehonvbere, Chief Odigie Oyegun, Rev. Peter Obadan dancing to the aspiration of the ACN enthusiasts that crowded •2face the 12 thousand capacity stadium.

P-Square is bereaved

USICAL twins, Paul and Peter Okoye have been reportedly devastated, following the demise of their mother, Mrs. Josephine Okoye, who died hours after a heart surgery in an Indian hospital on Wednesday, July 11.

Mrs. Okoye was said to be a devoted Christian and church minister, in Jos, Plateau State, before her death.

The late Mrs. Okoye was first admitted at St. Nicholas hospital, Lagos, but when there was no assurance on her improved health, she was transferred to another hospital in Kolkata, India, where she eventually died.

Reports say that Mrs. Okoye, who was popularly known as a major pillar and source of inspiration to her musician children (P-Square), had been in and out of the hospital for about four months before she eventually gave up the ghost.

She is survived by her Jos based husband, children; Ifeanyi, Henry, Jude, Lilian, Tony, Peter, Paul and Mary. She also had grand-children, one of which is Cameron, the son of Peter.

A condolence register has been opened in her honour at P-Square's Omole Phase 1 residence. Friends and colleagues of the multiple awardwinning singers have been visiting the house to commiserate with the Okoye family.

Peter, one-half of P-Square, said their mother will be greatly missed, not just because she was their mother, but because she

played a vital role in the success story of PSquare.

"You know that she was a prayer warrior, so I don't need to tell you how she stood by us spiritually. Besides, she was the only one that believed in us when we decided to make a career out of music.

"I can remember that she used to sneak us out at night then to attend shows without the consent of our father who insisted that we must quit music to face our education," Peter said.

28

R R R R R R R R R E E E E E E E V V V V V V V E E O O O O O O O V V C C C C C C C O O C C THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

COVER

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

COVER

‘I wept when the court delivered its judgment’

H

OW is the story so far? Well, I thank God Almighty for His blessings and protection.

God has really been wonderful in my life.

You look good. What is the secret?

I don't really have any particular secret about my look. I only try to eat good food and fruits.

What particular food do you like?

I love yam a lot. So also is tea. As a matter of fact, I drink tea with plenty of milk every day. My day is never complete until I have my cup of tea.

How did your acting career start?

It started about eleven years ago. I was still in school at the time. On this particular day, I ran into a popular actress, known as Iya ibeji omo araye le. I met her at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), and approached her and told her I loved to act. She advised me to go to Odunfa and meet another popular actor, Araosan. But unfortunately, I went there for about two times without meeting him. I later met Ogogo (Taiwo Hassan) when I went back again for the third time.

In other words, Ogogo was your boss. He taught you the rudiments of the profession.

Yes. Ogogo was my boss. He was the one who taught me the job.

Was it your pretty look that attracted you to theatre?

(Prolong laughter) No, not at all. You see, I fell in love with acting right from my days in secondary school. I remember in those days, whenever I watched stars like Regina Askia and the late Bimpe Adekola, I would feel like 'oh I want to be like them'. It was at that point that I decided I was going to act.

So how would you describe the journey so far?

The last eleven years have really been very memorable. I've had my good times and of course, low times. But overall, I need to give God all the glory. You see, I so much love this job.

Let's have the good times first.

Like I told you, I love this job. So the first thing that I enjoy is meeting people every day.

These are people that matter in the society, people that can touch your life and make a huge difference to your life. I walk on the street and people kind of recognise you and want to touch you. That is something that I really enjoy. Some people would want you to believe that the pay is poor. In some cases, it is true. But it is not as bad as they are putting it.

Was there any time you felt like quitting the industry?

There was nothing like that. Like I told you, I had both good and trying times. But it never got to a point where I felt like quitting. And don't forget that I said I love this job with a passion.

So when did you have your first break?

That was about ten years ago. It was a minor role, but for me at the time, it was such a big role that took me to cloud nine.

How much were you paid for that role?

I didn't get anything. But it was worth more than a million dollars at that time.

So you suddenly became a super star in your neighbourhood with a waka pass(extra) role.

Yes. I needed to flaunt it in my neighbourhood that a star has arrived How long did it take for the major roles to start coming?

It wasn't long at all. I think it was about my

Wonders at MUSON graduation concert

well. So why would she claim that I led some gunmen to her church to kill her left me confused. However, the matter ended up in court. And for the ten months that the trial lasted, I can simply say life was tough. One particular thing that impressed me in the entire episode was how the police handled the case. They did excellent job So how does it feel to be vindicated by the HE occasion of the fifth court? graduation concert by I can't really say how I felt when the graduating students of judgment was read out. I wept and tears of joy the MUSON School of Music, rolled down my cheeks. It was an experience I spoke volume. It was an couldn't explain. But I give all the glory to God exhilarating night of for giving me justice. merriment anchored by a Tell me about growing up. group of students who had just bagged their diplomas in I am the last child in a family of six. I grew music. It was a time to exhibit up in the Yaba area of Lagos before my mastery of musical parents moved from that area. As the last instruments and vocal child, my parents, especially my mum, renditions. It was a time to pampered me and would not allow me do share with the guests some of some household chores in those days. For me, the skills they have acquired growing up was fun. in the past two years as Most actresses in Nigeria wear scandals students of the MUSON like second clothe. Is it same with you?

School of Music.

It's not as you are putting it.

The concert kicked off with I think most of us are the performance of two simply trying to live with graduating students; Tobi it. I no longer bother Aladetuyi and Timothy myself about what people Adesina, who took the say about me because I audience through Trumpet realised that some people Concerto in E Flat a beautiful go out of their way to composition originally bring you down. arranged by J.N Hummel, an What is the worst thing eighteenth century Austrian ever said about you? composer and virtuoso It was a story published pianist whose music reflected by a soft-sell magazine the transition of classical about five or six years ago. music to the romantic musical They wrote that I am era. Their performance drew wayward and that I am fond intermittent applause from of sex. the audience. And so were Are you wayward or fond the acts of others who took of sex? turns thereafter.

I am not wayward in any The highpoint of the way. I think the question musical concert was the should be how they found out that I am wayward or fond of sex. How much of me do they know?

This is one aspect of your profession that I really don't like, people speculate about others a lot. I am not saying that EMI Adebayo and fastI am a perfect being, but that is not rising actress, Bimbo enough reason for anybody to write Thomas are at the lies about me. centre of a love triangle in a Given the opportunity, what part new star-studded Yoruba of your body would you love to flick entitled Roku (Die change?

Hard).

I don't think there is any part of Roku is the story of a my body that I don't like.

YA young reckless lover (Bimbo N A S I Okay. What part do you like O AK Thomas), who spent the BIMB most?

I love my voice, eyeballs and others. But the parts I love most are my lips.

Do you deliberately use the lips to attract What happened? men?

The last ten months have been How do you mean? I don't go out of my tough for me. The story started like a joke and way to use my lips to draw attention. before I knew what was happening, I found However, most men would tell me that they myself in court. It all started last October when love my lips. Some would even ask that a a woman came with the police to our house. single kiss would be enough for them and all The woman is a pastor and a neighbour. She that. told the police that I came to her church with So how many calls do you get from men some men and ordered them to shoot her. daily?

Prior to that incident, there had been a serious I cannot count the number of calls I get in a argument between the woman and other day. It gets worse every day because the men residents who claimed that she disturbs them are getting daring, asking to date me and other with noise from her church. The landlords naughty stuffs. association even took up the matter and reported her to the police and other What advice would give the up and coming government authorities. I was never part of actresses? the move to stop the woman, so it was a big They should know that everything that surprise to me at first. The police first took me glitters is not gold. In those days, I admired to their station at Shasha, and later to SARS. and wanted to be like Liz Benson and Bimpe Even the police were confused as why the Adekola. But I realised that I needed to be woman would accuse me of such grave myself. So I'd advise them to be themselves offence because we never had any cause to and work hard to achieve whatever dream fight. She even said she does not know me •Bimbo they have.

T

Popular Yoruba actress, Bimbo Akisanya, is surely living by her rules to work and live her life irrespective of whatever anybody thinks. Bimbo, who entered the industry over a decade ago, leaves you with an impression that is hard to forget. In this encounter with SEGUN AJIBOYE, the pretty actress told the story of her lucky escape from a charge of conspiracy. “I broke down and wept when the court delivered its judgment and absolved me of the charge,” she said. Bimbo, the last child in a family of six children, also spoke on other issues, ranging from her acting experience, romance, and scandals. second or third job that fetched me a major role.

How did your parents take it when they realised you were going to be an actress?

My mummy was against it at the beginning.

She was like 'you cannot do it. You don't want to get married?' But I did my best to convince her that being an actress does not mean you won't be married or that you won't be responsible. But my dad wasn't really bothered. He only gave me a condition that I must go to school.

And you agreed to the terms of the condition?

Yes. I first studied Laboratory Technology at the Osun State Polytechnic, Ire. Then I went on to study Micro Biology at the Olabisi Onabanjo University.

But Bimbo, I feel you have proved your mummy right somehow.

How do you mean?

You are not married yet. And don't forget that that was her fears.

How do I answer your question? But the truth is that my mother is very proud of me.

She is Iya Bimbo to everybody, and she loves that. However, like a mother, she may not really be happy that I am not yet married. But you see, the only certain thing in life is death. I always tell people that death is the only thing that all of us are sure of about life. Marriage, children or any other thing, nobody can say with certainty that those things would happen.

I am not saying that I wouldn't get married.

For sure, I would get married and have my own kids. But it would happen at God's time.

Are you into a relationship at the moment?

Yes, I am into a relationship. We both love each other and we are working towards sealing the relationship with marriage.

So what's your ideal man?

My man must be handsome and Godfearing. He must also be of good height.

However, religion is not an issue. He can be a Christian or a Muslim. All I want is that he must have the fear of God in him.

The fad among celebrities is to have tattoos on their body. Do you have any?

Yes I have two tattoos on my body.

And on what part of the body do you have yours?

(Laughter) I know what you're driving at.

Well, my tattoos are on my arms. I have a cross on one arm and a bird on the other.

What's the significance of the bird, or are you…

...I don't go out of my ways to use my lips to draw attention. However, most men would tell me that they love my lips.

Some would even ask that a single kiss would be enough for them and all that

37

instrumental rendition of Y'ello Prelude; a string composition with a combination of flute, arranged by Alaba Ilesanmi for the appreciation of MTN Foundation, which had borne all the cost of their education at the school. In previous graduation concerts, appreciation renditions in honour of the Foundation were done in vocals, but this group of students comprising five instrumentalists took the bold step to change the norm and the result they got was a standing ovation from the elated audience.

The MTNF/MUSON project commenced in 2006, when the Foundation was approached by the school to assist some students of modest means to pay the fees needed to run the diploma programme. According to Mrs. Aishatu Sadauki, Director, MTN Foundation, the Foundation surprised the institution by providing scholarships for all the students. To date, a total of 133 students have graduated from the music school in a period of five years and have gone ahead to prove their mettle in their chosen areas of specialization.

Bimbo Thomas makes a difference in Roku

Cuts in… Why didn't you ask about the significance of the cross?

Have you produced any movie?

Yes I have three productions to my credit. They are Agbara Ife, Soko Sale and Eni maa kure.

I've observed a trend among artistes in Nigeria. The women seem to do better than the men in term of wealth. What do you think is responsible for this?

I'm not sure you are right about this. If you look round very well, I'm sure that you'll find some men who are doing very well too.

You are kind of cantankerous in most of your movies. How does this character apply to you as Bimbo Akisanya?

I think that depends on how you look at it.

Yes, some people might want to say that I am stubborn. But the truth is that I don't take nonsense from people. And the reason is that I try as much as possible not to do to anybody what I wouldn't like them to do me. For this simple reason, if you say one word, I'm always ready to say three words to you. I don't have too many friends because I don't go to clubs or parties. This is not to say that it is bad, but that is just my own way of life.

Which of your movies do you love most?

It is difficult for me to say which one is the best. But I love movies like Agogo Eewo and Tambolo. The two movies have remained memorable to me.

About a week ago, a Lagos court set you free of conspiracy and wounding a pastor.

F

better part of her life abroad but was eventually brought home by her dad. The overbearing western influence on her lifestyle placed her on a collision course with her family and the society at large. A major climax of the movie is when the young lady joins hands with her boyfriend to assassinate her father because he did not approve of their relationship.

Bimbo Thomas' character of mimicking the British accent could be painstaking, and many have rated her above the average.

Producer of the movie, Sorunke Adeolu Opeyemi stated that Roku addresses salient issues in the societymost especially the blinding influence of westernization on homegrown values.

Sorunke, an ex-lecturer is concluding work on a comedy entitled Taoridi Alanti, featuring Olaniyi Afonja popularly known as Sanyeri.

Other cast of Roku include Fathia Balogun, Lola Alao, Dele Odule, Aina Gold and Oluwole Cole among others.

RAUL:

Leaving Real Madrid was my decision

• Martinez

Inside The

Glass House WITH AMINU MAIGARI

AKINLOYE

AT LARGE

08050246155 atlarge84@yahoo.com

38

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

W L O H L Y OOD Tom Cruise takes to set

Big Brother Stargame

H

IS life has been thrown into turmoil over the past few weeks with Katie Holmes's shock decision to file for divorce after five and a half years of marriage. But Tom Cruise may have found some much needed release on the set of his new movie Oblivion.

The 50 year old star shot a large silver laser gun during the scene, which was filmed in the Mammoth Lakes area of California.

He seemed professional and focused as he filmed the scene wearing a checked blue shirt and jeans. At one point, the star was even seen laughing and smiling in a break from the action. Earlier, he was joined by his 17-year-old son Connor, who jetted in to support his famous father while he shot the film.

The actor, who has removed his wedding ring, was seen smiling and chatting to his son and the crew between takes, with the teenager clearly buoying his mood.

Gaga reveals Lohan's slimming recipe

•Junia and Malonza

Goldie at the centre of gossip •Lovebirds Junia and Malonza kiss the door

I

T has been a series of intrigues in the Big Brother Gaga later tweeted actress for her bizarre diet.

HE'S worked hard Africa House, has the 35 Lindsay a picture of a Lady Gaga poked fun at for her slim figure contenders try to outdo each cucumber and lemons at a and is looking better Lindsay Lohan for other for the coveted money bar. Lindsay replied: than ever. And now Lady snacking on cucumber prize of USD 300 000. '#skinnysnack1‬ when the pair went to Gaga has revealed the Recall the Esparanca and @ladygaga hahaha.' Gaga dinner at Mr Chow in secret behind Lindsay Seydou drama. These two then tweeted Lindsay a Beverly Hills.

Lohan's slender physique Angolans from the moment picture of a cucumber, next they got into the house had She wrote: - snacking on cucumber to an array of sliced '@lindsaylohan when you when the pair went out one issue or another with each ordered a cucumber and a lemons on a tray on a bar, for dinner earlier this other. They had come in to the with the cheeky caption: knife to the bar last night.

I week. house as a pair because of their 'How much could one do thought your were gonna The Born This Way close friendship, so one could with this arrangement!’ perform a vasectomy singer took to her Twitter not fathom why that •LadyGaga #justaskinnyb***h.' page to poke fun at the friendship seemed to fizzle out before the end of their run for HE'S been seen sporting a rather the prize money. The Nigerian scary costume while shooting scenes duo of Chris and Ola also left from her latest film Maleficent. the house barely. Ola was a However Angeline Jolie sports a much ladies' man who though giantmore understated look when playing sized had a way of melting his mummy. way into the hearts of the The 37-year-old actress stepped out in female folk, while Chris was a her signature simple style in a flowing man's man. The house was black top and a pair of sunglasses. visibly thrown off balance Angelina was with three of her six when Ola announced to his children and was seen with Shiloh, Zahara fellow housemates that he and Pax during the outing. would need to exit the show The eldest biological child of Angelina due to his blood pressure and Brad Pitt, Shiloh, six, was sporting her which had shot off the roof usual androgynous style in a Burberry and had refused to normalize. polo shirt. Little Zahara had opted for a Talk about the the first fist white vest with bow detail and a pair of fight was between Ghanaian shorts, while Pax also wore light colours. comedian DKB and Sierra The family snaps were taken on a trip to Leone's upcoming model Sarajevo. But while she took a break from Zainab. This is not the first work, Angelina Jolie was back on the set of Maleficent. Proving that she's quite the fight Zainab had gotten into professional, the actress resumed filming with a male housemate though by taking part in her own daring stunts. it was the first time it had The 37-year-old was spotted dangling gotten physical. She had been from a crane dressed once again in the evil involved in an altercation with character's typical attire.

Angola's Seydou where she had accused him of having hit her. Seydou swore that he only pushed her playfully and if he got disqualified from the game OPULAR Ghanaian quite popular in the US. She is due to her claims, he would actress Yvonne Nelson seen and acknowledged as not give her a good beating before was recently crowned the just a mere acting figure but he left the show. But for Face of Ghana Best Actress someone who represents values Zainab's 'potty' mouth, herself 2011/2012 at a red-carpet of hard work and dedication. and celebrity housemate ceremony held at the JFK It is not yet certain which would probably still be in the International Hilton Hotel in other Ghanaian stars made it to game but Zainab is the United State of America. the event but indications were not one to let things She was honored for her that there were some other go. impact on the world via her nominees from around the And in exploits in movies within the world. The event has been in year 2011/2012. The actress left existence for 15 years and has Ghana on Thursday for the over the years honored more several USA ahead of the ceremony. than 500 hard working other Currently, Yvonne's films are individuals all over the world. instances, the rate of voluntary exit and HANA'S VIP was, a Thisis50.com is famed for its disqualification become couple of days ago, top entertainment and Hip-hop rampant in this year's edition of the show. under the spotlight on exclusive contents, especially The celebrity house has been Thisis50.com which with stuff about 50 Cent. buzzing with activities aside purportedly belongs to Thisis50.com and Young Jack from the fighting and superstar rapper, 50 Cent. The Thriller talked about Africa's group happens to be the first entertainment and particularly Nigeria's Goldie is at the top of the chart.

African group to get spotlight Ghana's excelling music Her off and on that platform. industry.

S

S

Angelina Jolie gets into scary character

Crane over Ghollywood

Yvonne P Nelson is Face of Ghana Best Actress VIP featured on 50 Cent's blog

on relationship with Kenya's Prezzo has got viewers begging for the songstress' eviction from the show. If she is not wailing, puking or choking over something Prezzo did or did not do, there is little else on her itinerary.

One would think they had met before BBA but there is no evidence to point to an earlier dalliance. Goldie has been the center of gossip for the other housemates as they think she is overly emotional. The episode of Goldie having a meltdown when Prezzo told her they were nothing but good friends gave cohousemate a good laugh as the Nigerian lass refused to eat for three days, making the other contestants feel she could go on a dangerous bend. She broke down in uncontrollable tears yet again when Prezzo was nominated for possible eviction as though her world was crumbling before her.

Being Head of House, she had the power to save him and that she did, putting Ghana's Keitta up in his stead. Sunday arrived and Africa chose to save Keitta which meant Barbz, South Africa's celebrity representative was due to exit the game. The ever emotional, always teary Goldie broke down in uncontrollable tears as she knelt before Barbs and asked for her forgiveness for not having saved her when she had the chance. Barbz very gallantly and gracefully exited the show with smiles and swag. Pretence or not, she sure looked good and grateful for her experience in the Big Brother house.

But on last Sunday's live eviction show, Africa's votes sent a duo - lovebirds Junia and Malonza - packing.

Goldie, Kyle, Lady May and Prezzo picked up more votes from Africa than Junia and Malonza, meaning they live to fight for the USD 300 000 prize for another week at least.

G

•Goldie

39

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

My wife has HIV/AIDS; should I leave her?

D

EAR Adeola, compliments.

Please I deserve your ad vice though I started without your knowledge. I’m 45 years old with 3 children from the first marriage. I had a divorce because the third child was not mine. I had a second marriage and the marriage was blessed with 2 children but my wife died in a fatal accident; 21 of them burnt beyond recognition. I had a third wife in 2010 with a child now but I later discovered she is an HIV/ AIDS patient of 15 years. I fell sick due to BP and the tests done including HIV was negative, our boy is also negative. What should I do; divorce or maintain the marriage? I have stopped having sex with her. I can’t use condom etc. please help. Yours, Worried Man. Dear Worried man, yes, I know it must be daunting to live with a partner who has HIV/AIDS. M-e-n!

That’s not like sharing ice-cream. But since you’re fortunately perfect (at least yet until the window period is over (or is it over already?)), it is a situation you can manage; I tell you my brother.

You’ve been through a lot my dear and now that it seems you’re about to resettle down in marriage, this ugly realization rears its head. No, you’re not going to be on the run. This marriage must endure – HIV/AIDS or not.

I went searching for answers for you and below I have the question of a man like you and also the answer to that. I bet it will help you address your present situation. If it still doesn’t help and you need a personal friend to help you add tonic to your marriage through counseling, I’m here for you. I’ll send my personal telephone number to your line. Be happy. Life has so many surprises, holding up and not being beaten solves most of the bad surprises.

Matchmaking

Hearts With Adeola Agoro

E-mail: libranadeola@yahoo.co.uk Tel: 08023162609

I won’t fail myself

I

wake up most days having an idea of exactly how I want to run the day. I however know that it is when God takes my hand and follows me all the way that I can achieve all my set agenda, so I spend some time with Him, just talking to Him. The times I spend with God are actually my happiest. I always thank Him for taking me always to the next level, and of course, I expect Him to continue to guide me to the next stage. So I start each day with writing what I would do between AM and PM and as the day progresses, I take a pen and mark or cross the ones I have done or the ones I’m unable to do.

For the ones I’m able to do half-way, I mark it half-way like our teachers used to do then when we got just half the answer.

Sometime the set agenda just doesn’t work. For instance, one of the things I wanted very much to do since last week was get hold of one Hausa man who sold me some herbs, which I bought just for the sake of it, but which turned out to be what I had needed since my doctor said I had a medical condition which could be treated with a drug that made me sleep and weak. The herb worked not only for me, but also for my friend’s brother who took a little of it and has been begging me to get more for him. Unfortunately, the Hausa man has not been seen since I’ve been searching for him.

Before setting out to do this page, I had woken up and driven to the point where I first met the man. I asked around for him and those at the village market said the man is in very hot demand so; he comes to that place only once in a while now. So on my list, I did the half mark. One thing I know is that if I don’t find that man ever again, I wouldn’t fail in getting another one.

After all, I got him by chance the same way I will get another by chance.

And that is me; I don’t accept failure in anything. If one thing fails, I look for the next option. People have failed me many times. Situations have failed me. In fact, life itself fails me at times. But because my expectations in people, in events, in plans and even in my wishes are always fifty-fifty, I have always passed the test of life- averagely. And I tell you, I’m finding life funny in spite of what it dictates. I just won’t fail myself and I pray I never fail you all. Enjoy the rest of the month.

Females for Love Kafilat is a 42-year-old Muslim divorcee with 4 kids and her last child is in JS 2. She needs a divorcee or widower for marriage. Text me with your details to get her contact.

•Engr. Obiora, 47 years old widower, fair in complexion, 6.3 ft tall based in Lagos is searching for a serious relationship that will lead to marriage with a woman aged btw 32 and 44. Call: 08029114058.

Males for Love •Austin needs a lady for serious dating. She could be a graduate or a nurse by profession and below 30 years of age. Call: 08063884973.

•Lukmon, 35 years, live and work in Lagos, slim, dark in complexion, 5.6 ft tall needs a good-looking and working class lady for a serious relationship. Call: 07037067372.

•Abiodun is 46 years old and a civil servant from Osun State. He needs a god-fearing lady btw 28 and 45 for a serious relationship.

Call: 08135796241.

I lack composure, self-confidence; how do I get along with the opposite sex?

•Tray is 30 and based in Makurdi.

He needs a god-fearing lady btw 22 and 28 years old based in any NorthCentral states for a serious relationship. Call: 08101197033.

•Livy, a 37-year-old Christian who is employed and God-fearing needs a working class or business woman btw 25 and 35 years old for marriage.

Contact: 07082797267.

•Kazeem, 36, Muslim, single, handsome and employed from Ibadan but based in Lagos needs a woman between 22 and 26 for a serious relationship. Call: 080785111310.

•Shola, 32 years old, 5.5ft tall based in Lagos needs a God-fearing Yoruba lady for a serious relationship. Call: 08160933514.

Dear Aunty, I’m as pleased as a king with your responses. I want you to counsel me on what it takes to get along with the opposite sex.

I lack composure, self-confidence and so on. Thank you and God bless. Sincerely, Bernete.

Dear Bernete, there is no trick that will teach you self-confidence so well if you don’t have it in you.

For me, self-confidence is about being sure of yourself and it starts from doing things which would not ordinarily make people laugh at you. Wearing clean cloths without running after the things in vogue, taking your bath and smelling well, taking care of stains on your teeth and grooming your hair, being educated (not necessarily having all the degrees in the world) and being informed enough to hold good conversations and generally feeling good

about yourself would make you develop self-confidence.

To improve self-esteem, Nathaniel Branden suggests a technique called Sentence Completion, which you can use with the six pillars of self-esteem. The technique is based on the premise that all of us have more knowledge than we are normally aware of, more wisdom than we use, more potential than we reveal in our behavior. The technique basically consists of creating an incomplete sentence and writing six different endings to it as rapidly as possible.

Assume we are dealing with the first pillar—conscious living. Now, first thing in the morning, before proceeding to the day’s business, sit down calmly to write the following: Living consciously to me means… write six endings to this as quickly as possible. Go on to the

following: • If I bring 5 per cent more awareness to my activities today…

• If I pay 5 per cent more awareness to my most important relationships…

• If I pay more attention to how I deal with people today…

At the end of the day do six to ten endings each for the following: • When I reflect on how I would feel if I lived more consciously…

• When I reflect what happens when I bring 5 per cent more awareness to my activities…

• When I reflect on what happens when I bring 5 per cent more awareness to my most important relationships…

Do this exercise every day of the week from Monday to Friday.

There will be many repetitions but new endings will also occur. At the end of the week write a minimum of six endings for this stem:

Fear of having HIV

H

I all, I guess the reason I am here is that I am scared of be coming infected with HIV if I have a live-in relationship with my partner. We are engaged and I love him to bits. I understand that I can’t contract the virus from everyday living, but I’m even afraid to have protected sex with him now, and I don’t know whether having sex with 5 condoms will improve my feelings towards sex or not. Sounds ridiculous, I know, but I guess I’m after reassurance from someone who has been in a similar situation?? It is doable to live with someone with HIV and not to contract it, isn’t it? – Confused.

It is perfectly understandable your fears, but to answer your question its very doable to live with a positive partner and remain negative yourself. The most important thing in any relationship is communication and understanding. As long as you and your partner are both open and honest I really believe anything can be overcome. You will find there are many discordant couples that live very successfully together. (this just means one negative and one positive). A great resource for you would be the site www.thebody.com as they address this issue often.

I think the main thing is for you to both become extremely educated, for your partner to know and understand their viral load and to take care of their health, for you both to be open and comfortable with your sexual relationship. No 5 condoms will not help, but one certainly will! There are many ways to gratify (like toys, mutual masturbation) each other it just takes some communication and some understanding.

Most importantly do not be forced into anything you are uncomfortable with or puts you at risk. The main goal should always be BOTH of your health, this means keeping you negative and you both healthy.

By healthy I mean not just physically but emotionally and mentally. Living with HIV is never going to be an easy path, life rarely hands us those, but it is a path that is certainly possible as many are proving.

People live long productive healthy lives with HIV, as do their negative partners.

They have children (look into a process called sperm washing if you are interested in this) they have jobs and they are just like negative couples, so please don’t feel you’re the only ones out there.

I would also suggest looking for an AIDS Service Organization in your area, see if it has a support group and try to find other couples living the same challenges you are.

Most of all love and cherish each other, none of us has an infinite time on this planet so we need to make the best of what we have been gifted.

She shuns me in school but relates with me well on vacation Hello ma. I have a friend who doesn’t talk to me in school but whenever we are on vacation she talks to me very well on phone.

She behaves strangely to me in school and when I asked if there as any problem she said no. When I send gifts to her she rejects them.

She is in senior class but I can’t afford to lose a close friend like her. Please advise me on what to do. Thank you ma.

•From left: Chairman, Emergency Response Group, Dr. Nnamdi Nwauwa and Chief Medical Director, National Orthopedic Hospital, Dr.Wahab Yinusap during the inauguration of the basic life support training for Nigerian nurses/midwifery schools in South West zone, Lagos

That girl is wise, I tell you.

Socializing in school or the workplace is very important. But at the end of the day, being too close with juniors may create a form of familiarity that may lead to contempt. It is possible that she has noticed your set of friends and she feels that being close to you may cause them to be rude to her. Mind you, once she losses respect, it may be hard to get it back. I’m sure that one of the reasons that you hold her in high esteem now is her ability to cut you off in school and relate well with you at home.

Respect her way of life and remain good friends with her. Do not try to

bribe her with gifts because you may despise her later if she collects and still behaves the way she does. Most importantly, face your studies and be good.

Help link Aunty Adeola, my name is Abiola. I’m a friend of your column and really thank you for being there for people. Aunty, I’m 37 years old and a mother of one. I’m a single parent. My husband bolted and every effort to trace him proved abortive. I need the best for my son. Presently I’m out of job and the admission of my son into the School of Science is pending and that amounts to a lot of finances that I don’t think I can afford. Fellow Nigerians please come to my aid. My account details are: Adeitan Fapohunda CA, First Bank, Gbagi, Ibadan and the number is: 3046068762. I have a project that I’m working on but I need some financial assistance.

Thanks.

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THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

J

AMIE fell on his knees pleading.

“Tilda, you can’t do this!

We’ve come a long way-you can’t just end our relationship like this! Please reconsider your decision. Think of how long we’ve been together.

Please, honey, I love you...”

I looked at him angrily and hissed.

“You didn’t remember that when you slept with two girls at once. I caught you, remember?”

“But I explained to you what happened and I thought you had forgiven me,” he said, getting up.

“That’s not the issue now.

I don’t love you anymore and I’m calling off our engagement. So, please leave!” I ordered again.

BJ spoke up for the first time.

“You heard the lady. Just go quietly and avoid creating a scene.”

Jamie eyed him, a scornful look on his face.

“What’s your business in this? She’s my wife! So go and look for your own wife and leave her alone. Wifesnatcher! It’s men like you who go about snatching other people’s wives, breaking homes...” he said angrily.

“Nobody is snatching anybody. And what home are you talking about? We are not even married! Just go. It’s over. Get over it,” I said, impatient for him to leave.

“Tilda, please. Don’t do this. Don’t do something you might regret later...” he stated.

“I won’t regret anything!”

Just go!”

He left then, glancing back at me, a pleading look on his face... * * * I thought the issue with Jamie had been settled with the breaking off of our engagement. But I had reckoned without my sister, Betty. She was not in support my action and she didn’t mince words in letting me know her mind.

“How could you do this to Jamie? Remember how good he has been to you all these years!” she noted.

“So what? I can change my mind can’t I?” I replied, in an irritated tone.

“You are being irrational.

Palace of pain (3) You have to be careful about this because your future happiness and peace of mind are at stake here.

Think, Tilda!” she said, pulling at her ear.

I stood, my arms crossed on my chest, a defiant look on my face.

“I’ve thought about it.

And it’s BJ I want.”

“What do you know about this guy, anyway? Or are you just carried away by his wealth?”

“It’s not about the money. I love him. He’s the one I want to be with,” I stated firmly.

She shook her head.

“I still think you are making a big mistake. It’s not too late to retrace your steps. Jamie still loves you and wants you back.”

“I’m not going back to Jamie. It’s BJ for me and the earlier you accept that, the better for everyone,” I said before going to my room.

My mind was made up on the issue so I refused to see Jamie again even though he kept begging me to take him back.

Sweet love If I had had any doubts about dumping Jamie for BJ, the way my new fiance treated me erased every doubt. As soon as I accepted his marriage proposal, it was like BJ could not do enough for me. He spoilt me with all kinds of gifts- jewelry, clothes, an expensive phone and other gadgets.

To top it all, he bought me a car for my birthday.

“My God! This is too much,” I exclaimed on seeing the four wheel drive in metallic grey colour.

He grinned, a pleased look on his face.

“Nothing is too much for my baby,” he said.

“Thanks, BJ. I love it!”

“So, it’s only the car you love. What about me?” he asked.

“I love you too!” I declared and I meant it. I had fallen for him big-time and I had no regrets choosing him over Jamie. He was a sweet guy to be with, a different kind of love from what I had experienced in the past.

Later that week, he took me to the new house he was building. It was on a large expanse of land with all kinds of facilities including a tennis-court, swimming pool, games room, a gym, sauna among others. He showed me round the different rooms which all looked glossy with marble tiles and other fancy decor. It was beautiful and I was really impressed.

“But is this place not too big for you alone? It’s like a palace!” I said, admiring the art decor plastering on the main living room ceiling.

“Yes. And you, my darling are going to be its princess,” he said, hugging me tightly.

The main house which had about ten bedrooms was nearly ready for occupation except for the garden. We stood outside, watching the men he had contracted to do the landscaping at work.

“So, when do you plan to move in?” I asked.

“That depends on you,” he asked, turning to me. “I want us to move in together,”

he added.

I thought about that for a while.

“I can’t. We have to get married first,” I pointed out.

“Then let’s get married now,” he said.

“That’s not possible, BJ! We have to make arrangements-the wedding gown, cake, caterers, guests list...”

I said.

He sighed.

“Must we do all that?

Can’t we just have a simple ceremony? I’m not into all these big ceremonies, you know...”

“Well, that’s what I want!

It’s being my dream since I was a young girl-to have a really big wedding with me in a lovely gown.”

“Alright, sweetheart. You will have all that and more.

You know I will do anything for you,” he said, giving me a peck on the cheek. Taking me by the hand, we went back to the house so I could inspect the kitchen again as I was not too happy with the colours of the tiles the decorators had used ...

A new life Things moved fast after that and seven months later, BJ and I were married. It was a lovely wedding, the type I had always dreamed of. BJ spared no expense, doing everything to satisfy my every whim. Most of my family members including my parents were there to witness my great day. My mother,

‘

Alright, sweetheart. You will have all that and more.

You know I will do anything for you

’

who loved BJ like a son, wept tears of joy as I walked up the aisle to meet my handsome groom. My sister, Betty who didn’t like him that much for reasons best known to her, had even managed a few smiles. It was a great day indeed.

The honeymoon was also special and memorable. We first travelled to London where we spent about a week. I didn’t enjoy it that much as it was always raining and the weather was cold even though it was supposed to be summer. From there, we moved to Paris where we stayed a week and finally headed to the Bahamas. It was warmer here and the people were very friendly. We had a nice time and as the days drew nearer for our return back home to Nigeria, I grew sad. I wished we could stay longer, have more time to savour the beauty of the place.

“Don’t worry honey. We could always come back some other time,” BJ assured me a few days before our departure home. It was late at night and we were in bed after a day spent mostly at the beach and some sight-seeing.

“Promise?” I said.

“Trust me, my sweetheart,” he said, drawing me close. “Are you happy?” he asked as he kissed me tenderly.

I nodded.

“Very,” I replied. He cradled my face in his hands and even in the dim light in the room, I could see all the love he had for me in his eyes.

“I’m glad. I promise to make you happy for the rest of my life.”

“Thanks, honey. I love you so much.”

“I love you too, my sweet darling,” he said as he removed my nightie, his fingers caressing my body in a way that made me feel all hot with desire for him. Our love-making that night was ‘sizzling’ and we could not seem to get enough of each other. It was quite late before we drifted off to sleep, curled up in each other’s arms, exhausted from all the passion...

Back in Nigeria, I settled down to married life. At first, it was a bit strange. You should remember that I had been a single, career lady for some years, used to being independent and making my own money. Now, I was a full-time housewife as BJ had told me to resign from my job after our wedding.

Initially, I had wanted to continue working until I started having babies. But he objected, stating that there was no need for that as he made more than enough to take care of me.

“Besides, you will have enough on your hands running our home, so leave the job.”

So, here I was with not much to do but supervise the retinue of domestic staff we had employed to help run the house. This occupied my time, though there were times I got bored and longed for the challenge of working in an office and interacting with my colleagues.

However, about a year after we married, I had my hands really full as I gave birth to twins-a boy and a girl. BJ was ecstatic and in

his excitement, gave me so many gifts, including another posh car that I had to beg him to stop.

My mother and Sister Betty came to stay with me during this period so I had a lot of help with the babies who were quite a handful.

They cried a lot especially the boy who slept mostly during the day and kept us awake at night with his crying and fretting.

Despite that, I was happy with my life and thanked God for his abundant blessings The twins’ first birthday was coming up and BJ and I planned to mark it in a big way with a party. A few days before the anniversary, one of the twins, the boy whom we named Junior fell sick. It started with a slight fever and I gave him some syrup so he could sleep. Some hours later, he began convulsing like an epileptic patient. We rushed him to the hospital where he was admitted. Not long after we got to the hospital, though, he died. I lost my sweet little boy and the shock nearly made me pass out.

I was simply inconsolable; I couldn’t get over the loss of my baby who just a day before was healthy and full of life. How could this have happened, I kept thinking...

“Thank God you still have the girl. So, take heart my daughter,” my mother stated as I sat on the floor of my small, private sitting room, tears rolling down my face.

It was the same with BJ. “We are still young. We will have more kids. Stop crying or you will make yourself ill. I can’t afford to lose you, too...” were his words.

With time, I recovered sufficiently enough to move on with life. There was a good reason as shortly after, I found out I was pregnant so I had to be strong for the new life growing inside me.

Some months later, I gave birth to another boy and I wept with joy as I held the baby in my arms. He looked so much like Junior that I felt my dead son had come back to me.

“I will make sure nothing happens to you, my darling boy,” I crooned to him as he slept in my arms. “You will grow up strong, healthy and handsome like your dad.”

They say things never work out the way we planned and this was especially true in my case. One day, I had gone into the nursery which the baby, who was about six months old then, shared with my daughter, Stephanie. He had been sleeping for some hours and I wanted to wake him as it was time for his breastfeeding. I went up to the pram to pick him up and I froze with fear when I touched him...

To be continued Something terrible has happened to Tilda’s newborn. What is it? And what was responsible? Details next Saturday!

Many thanks to all those who have been sending text messages and emails on stories featured on this page.

We hope to publish some of these next edition so keep the reactions coming in!

&

LIFE

Society Profile

THE NATION, Saturday, JULY 14, 2012

STYLE Gossip Interviews

A nasty thing I once did - Wife of NSCIA Secretary General Adegbite

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LIFE

THE NATION SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

With KAYODE ALFRED E-mail:kayflex2@yahoo.com

n o d n o L n i s e t a r e p u c Awujale re A

wujale of Ijebu-land's recent domestic accident seems to be generating more concern by the day as friends and subjects alike have been fretting over the aged king's state

of health.

For those who do not know, Oba Sikiru Kayode Adetona, the Paramount ruler of Ijebu land, experienced a fall while trying to help a member of his domestic staff clean some water that spilled on the floor at his Lekki, Lagos home.

Owing to his size and age, the fall proved much more dangerous than expected, and he was taken to Reddington Hospital on Idowu Martins, Victoria Island, Lagos.

He was steadily regaining his strength, but the constant throng of visitors and well-wishers seemed to be a major source of distraction, and he was immediately flown abroad for a more serene and controlled environment suitable for his recuperation.

At 78, the Awujale is no spring chicken and sustaining a fall at that age, many believe, is dangerous to his health. This is why many have been worried and restless.

Happenstances gathered that the sound and educated monarch is recuperating nicely in London, far away from the hordes of never ending visitors.

Having ruled for 52 years, it is no wonder that the people of Ijebu do not want to lose their well-loved king because he rules with a sense of justice and equity.

Lolu Shodeinde bounces back

T

hese are certainly good times for boss of the defunct Rehab Night club, if one is to judge by his latest acquisition in the auto department.

The lanky and handsome dude, whose relationship with beautiful Linda Mesrob has elicited mixed reactions from many over the years, seems to be back in his groove.

At a time, it seemed they would be buried underneath the avalanche of snide comments and crude outbursts they were subjected to, but they prevailed and the union produced a baby boy in England at which time Lolu excused himself from work and went to be with his new family.

Lolu and Linda's romance, while it was fraught with issues, seemed to have sustained itself over the years, and their love story was eventually crowned with the coming of the new baby.

A while back, Lolu's Rehab Night Club was shut down due to some issues with his landlord, and many thought he had gone broke.

However, on June 29, 2012, Lolu was spotted in a Mercedes Benz G-Wagon on Akin Adesola Street, Victoria Island, Lagos, and by all indications, the former Night Club boss has updated his garage, indicating that he is far from broke.

Bimbo Okoya goes underground

D

electably charming first daughter of the man of affairs, and Aare of Lagos, Chief Rasaq Akanni Okoya, Bimbo Okoya, seems to be flying way below the social radar, as she has not been sighted in recent times.

Married to her Adonis-like Liberian lover, her wedding a couple of years back would be remembered by those who attended.

Chief Rasaq Akanni Okoya was indeed the perfect host at his Oluwanisola Estate where the ceremony took place.

In a display of extreme affluence and knowledge of how to put it to good use, the amiable billionaire of the Eleganza fame indeed serenaded his lovely daughter.

Marriage, however, seems to have changed the lovely Bimbo, as she is no longer seen on the social scene. She has retreated deep into her cocoon and many believe she is enjoying the joy and splendour of a happy marriage.

Whatever the case may be, things have certainly mellowed in her camp.

Femi, Funke Kuti finally divorced

T

he curtain on the prolonged legal battle between the son of Afro-beat legend, Femi Kuti, and his wife, Funke, over their troubled marriage is finally drawn. The Lagos High Court, sitting in Ikeja, dissolved the marriage on Thursday, June 28, 2012.

The divorce proceedings were initiated on February, 2011. It will be recalled that the development was well documented in the media.

Many believed during Femi Kuti's superlative 50th birthday bash that Funke Kuti was back in the picture as she was very much involved. She was in charge of distribution of gift packs to guests, and her camaraderie with Femi on the day was mistaken by many to be love rekindled.

Before Femi initiated the divorce suit, the couple had been estranged for years, and in the 10-page petition with Suit no ID/49HD/2011, Femi urged the court to put an end to his marriage to Funke on the grounds of irreconcilable differences.

Presently, the divorce is final as ruled by Justice L.A.M. Folami. Femi and Funke Kuti are no longer married and the duo, as stipulated in the ruling will, have unrestricted access to the only issue in the marriage, Omorinmade, and they both will see to his upkeep.

Funke Kuti, as thought by many, claimed no alimony or financial compensation, and instead made a clean break of the whole affair.

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TEL:08035733605

Ladi Adegbite cheats death

T

here is an ancient saying among the people from western Nigeria that the dog that goes to the house of the lion and returns unscathed should count himself lucky. This adage certainly relates to Ladi Adegbite's recent close shave with death.

For those who do not know young Ladi, he is the charismatic son of Alhaji Lateef Adegbite, and the erstwhile brother-in-law to Tunde Folawiyo, as he was once married to Tunde's sister, Rennie.

Death visited him about a month ago when some daredevil brigands stormed his Ajah, Lagos home. He was shot, and he was subsequently rushed to the hospital.

He was later transferred to a London hospital where Happenstances gathered he is recuperating speedily.

The young, savvy business dude, who is into estate management penetrated the social scene a while back, and is well known in the comity of silver-spoon kids with class and style.

Where's Femi Akande?

T

hose who do not remember Femi Akande, they would certainly remember his upscale fun spot, Newscafe. It was indeed the hottest hangout on the block and it was the favourite of celebrities, fun lovers, A-listers and the happening crowd.

At a time, Femi Akande's claim to fame, Newscafe, was the place to go to on the Island. Business was good and money poured in, in torrents.

He had many winning tricks in his arsenal, and it was without a doubt the reason he was so successful in the fickle field of Night club business.

However, when trouble struck, Newscafe caved in and eventually fizzled out. Many believed that it would again be resuscitated, but everyone has moved on with the realization that Newscafe has shut down for good.

Femi Akande, like his club, seems to have gone under. No one has heard or seen him since the nightclub's shut down, and those who should know believe he has truly gone under.

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BBC, Powerlight hold business luncheon in Lagos

Elizabeth Adejare Atuche gets Adegbenro serenades succour

P

How Connie Madubuko died at 54

V

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THE NATION SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012 TEL:08035733605

ivacious and spirited wife of the man at the helm of affairs of Revival Assembly Ministries International, passed on to the great beyond on July 6th, 2012.

It was a day of extreme sadness and weeping when the news of the death of lovely Pastor Connie Uzoamaka Madubuko was announced. Her charming and spirit-filled husband, Apostle Anselm Madubuko, was terrified when the news reached him in far away Russia while on apostolic mission.

Many would remember that theirs was one marriage that served as a point of contact for many other marriages. Their union, blessed with three kids, was the envy of many, and they seemed to do all the right things right.

On the ill-fated date of her death, there was no inkling to the fact that anything was wrong. She was said to have been in good health before she slumped and eventually gave up the ghost at Humana Hospital, Agidingbi, Ikeja, Lagos.

While the cause of her death is yet to be fully ascertained, those who should know have informed that the cause of the sudden death was cardiac arrest.

Pastor Connie was married to her Apostle husband for 28 years, having married the man of God in August of 1984. Their ministry over the years has grown in leaps and bounds, but the church of God is presently in mourning.

The man of God has since returned to the country to mourn his once supportive wife. A disciplined and organised woman, Pastor Connie, as she was fondly called, will be truly missed as she is one irreplaceable gem. It is no wonder her widower, Apostle Anselm, has made a vow to God to remain celibate for the remainder of his anointed life.

owerlight Communications and BBC Advertising, member of BBC Worldwide, under the leadership of Kayode Akinyemi, will on Tuesday July 17, hold a business luncheon in Lagos to showcase the various opportunities inherent in the joint arrangement.

Currently the Chief Executive Officer of Powerlight Communications, a post which netted him the BBC job, the former head of corporate communications, Skye Bank Plc is planning the event which is scheduled to hold in Protea Hotel, Ikeja.

It will be graced by the BBc's Vice President, Europe, Africa and Latin America, Sean O'Hara, Katie Waxman, BBC Advertising Director for Africa and other top management staff of the corporation. Among other guests expected at the event are captains of industry from the various sectors like: banking, telecommunications, oil and gas, advertising practitioners, manufacturing, media personnel.

The event, whose aim is to bring to light the various opportunities Nigerian businesses stand to benefit from the venture and new programme offerings dedicated to Africa, promises to avail the Nigerian business people the platform to harness their target audience.

In an official statement from Katie Waxman, the BBC Advertising Director for Africa, she urged many to join them: “Please join the BBC and our new local advertising representative, Powerlight Communications, on Tuesday 17 July for an exclusive insight into commercial opportunities around new and relevant content across BBC World News, Digital and Lonely planet.

E

ver-smiling wife of former MD, Bank PHB may smile to the bank any time soon. For those who have followed the story of her detention by the EFCC in May 2011, the reason for her happiness would come as no surprise.

On Tuesday, July 10, 2012, A Federal High Court in Lagos presided over by Justice Binta Nyako, awarded the sum of two million naira in favour of Mrs. Elizabeth Atuche for being illegally detained by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

Aside this wave of good luck, the court, in a separate ruling, ordered the release of some of the property said to have been wrongly seized from Atuche by the EFCC. While the trial is still on, this stroke of good luck is a welcome relief and Elizabeth is enjoying it immensely.

Presently, even in the midst of all the allegations, this is indeed a form of succour to her, and many believe she truly deserves it A lively and energetic woman, known on the social scene as one of the forces to reckon with in high society, she has indeed been missed.

Indeed, all the sorrow her brush with EFCC brought is gradually giving way, and she is steadily getting her groove back.

Marifa Whyte gets busy

T

hese days, one thing you will notice about Marifa Whyte is her newfound vivacity. Hardly can you see Marifa now without a smile and bubbly look.

Many are of the opinion that the Saver Q Limited boss's mood came about as a result of her business endeavours.

However, Happenstances gathered that her new mood is owing to her new outfit, Tickle Bay. It cannot be forgotten so soon how her social claws were forcefully sheathed when news made the rounds a while back that she was pregnant and was later delivered of a baby boy for her married lover, Mohammed Asibelua.

The pregnancy and eventual arrival of the baby set tongues wagging, and it was believed that she would retreat into her cocoon. Instead, she embraced motherhood with zest and zeal that many marveled at.

To crown it all, she set up her new outfit, Tickle Bay. The Marquee tent is the new toast of party freak celebrities, and Tickle Bay is indeed a welcome addition.

Marifa has certainly put all of the negativity behind her and now embraces life with a different kind of vigour and jollity, which is definitely connected to the new outfit that has already proved a success.

daughter

B

usiness savvy grandson of late Pa Alfred Rewane, Adejare Adegbenro, last Saturday threw a lavish birthday party for his adorable daughter at Tickle Bay, Ikoyi, Lagos.

Happily married to Jumoke, the sociable dude outdid himself as a proud father and socialite.

Those who attended the high octane party still have many sweet tales to tell and their stories have been turning those who were unable to attend green with envy.

It was a roll call of the movers and shakers of the society. Adejare really pulled out all the stops and it was indeed a memorable day for the family.

Currently the President of Balmoral International Limited, the sturdy dude is a member of the Polo Club, Ikoyi. Many months back, he rocked the Lagos social firmament to its foundation when he brought “The Little Big Club Live in Concert” to Nigeria for the very first time. The first of its kind in innovative singing, dancing and stage drama show, it paraded a rich assemblage of the world's most popular pre-school characters.

It was therefore no surprise that his daughter's birthday party was a resounding success.

Food and drinks were in abundant supply, and fun was totally unlimited for adults and kids alike.

Among the guests in attendance were Lulu Enaibeifo, Segun Fowora, Louis Priddy, Ruth Osime,Tope Atere.

Ade Dosunmu goes under?

T

he prospect of victory many a time consumes a man so much that he forgets the other side of victory, and when this happens, the disappointment is at times too great to

bear.

For Ade Dosunmu, the politician who gave Governor Fashola a good run for his money, this seems to be the case.

His defeat in the last Lagos gubernatorial election seems to have pushed him deep into his cocoon. At the time he contested, he really thought he had it in the bag, and the prospect of a defeat never crossed his mind. The thought was, indeed, anathema to him.

He had all the makings of a leader and a winner; what with his unblemished record of public service and financial prowess, and the fact that he is a former Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency.

Alas, Governor Fashola prevailed again and Ade Dosunmu went AWOL. Since his hibernation, there have been many speculations as to the reason he went under.

Some said he went back to the academia to collect more certificates and acquire more knowledge; others simply wouldn't give him the benefit of the doubt and said he was broke.

All the same, the big question is: will Ade Dosunmu ever resurface?

44

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Who is Hajia Modinah Adegbite?

I’m myself (laugh). I was born and bred in Lagos. My parents were from Abeokuta, Ogun State. One quarter of me is Hausa because my maternal grandmother was from Sokoto. I’m a businesswoman, the CEO of Mujeeza Global Consult. We are also into buying and selling.

That means you can speak Hausa ?

I can’t speak it fluently. I have the rudimentary knowledge of the language.

Did you at a time stay in the North?

I remember I once visited my maternal great grandmother.

What was growing up like?

It was interesting. I grew up in Lagos. My family house is at Palm Avenue in Mushin where my parents lived. It was an interesting one; we were well-taken care of because ours was a very large family, a polygamous family and an Islamic home.

Very early in life, we were introduced to worshipping Allah. My father was an agriculturist, while my mother was a trader.

How did growing up in Mushin affect you?

We were so lucky because of the side of Mushin we stayed then. We usually said it was the GRA because Palm Avenue a quiet area. It was believed then that Palm Avenue was for the elite. If there were disturbances in Mushin, our parents would keep us indoors, and there were always security operatives to protect people at Palm Avenue. Our parents gave us special protection. There were many trees; it was a very solemn place. I really enjoyed its peaceful nature despite being in Mushin.

Have you witnessed any cisis in Mushin?

Of course, I remember the Ali Must Go crisis. I lost my dear cousin. He was schooling at the University of Lagos (UNILAG). Unfortunately, he was knocked down by a driver in Mushin.The driver was trying to escape from the mob, and they later brought him dead. I remember that very well; it was a very sad experience. His name was Ridwan. Do you find it comfortable telling people that you are from Mushin?

We rather say we are from Palm Avenue. You know when you say you are from Palm Avenue, they say oh the ‘A je butters’ so it is quite different from the centre. I must tell you, we feared going towards those trouble areas. We passed through Ilupeju when going to Yaba or Oyingbo. I was schooling at Obanikoro. Even the Olateju side, I would avoid that area because we were so much concerned with our safety.

How was growing up like under your parents?

Being a polygamous house, there were many children. including members of the extended family. We were not usually allowed to go and play in the next house. We stayed at home to recite Quran or read our books, or watch television.

Do you remember any nasty thing you got involved in?

I remember this one. It was during the month of Ramadan. I love cooking. I always watched my mother when she cooked. She was not at home and I wanted to impress her. I cooked the yam. That was excellently done.I tried to make soup. As I was cooking, I just noticed that the oil disappeared. I opened the store to get more oil.The oil disappeared again.

In short,I messed up the cooking.

When my mother came, she dragged me towards herself, held me with her leg and taught me how to go about it next time. She did not beat me. We were all very careful because my father was a disciplinarian. We never

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

Hajia Modinah Similola, the wife of Dr Abdullateef Adegbite, Secretary General, Nigeria Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), is the Chief Executive Officer, Mujeeza Global Consult. In this interview with TAJUDEEN ADEBANJO, she talks on her marriage,husband,home, among other interesting issues. Excerpts:

‘Adegbite never ceases to amaze me’

•Hajia Modinah

tried incurring his wrath.

Did your parents influence your career?

No, they gave us free hand in choosing our careers. I happened to be the youngest among the girls. The way my sisters applied their make-up, the way they dressed and other things about them interested me a lot. So, I just changed my mind from becoming a physiologist and told my mum that I wanted to become a cosmetologist. What they forced on us were worshipping Allah and education.

Who are your role models?

My role modelwere my parents. They were very hardworking and they believed in what they were doing. Truthfulness, openness and dedication were their watchwords. For instance, you could not differentiate our tenants or neigbours. If we were cooking lunch or dinner, you saw a lot of children. They would abandon their parents and come to our house; they called it Alhaji Baba house. I learnt a lot of from my parents. They were so nice and generous.

What were the things you were not supposed to do?

We could not play music or sing when my father was around.

He didn’t allow them. You could not bring boys as friends into our house. You could not go parties, especially night ones. Also, we could not dress without covering our heads. We could not waste food.

How did you meet Dr Adegbite?

It was a very interesting story. Being the Amirah (female President) of an Islamic organisation, I led a delegation to invite him to one of our functions. He honoured the invitation and delivered a memorable lecture. He later invited me to a workshop after which we were to attend a confer-

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THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

•Hajia Modinah with her husband Dr. Adegbite ence in Malaysia. We had to go through Dubai to Saudi Arabia to do the lesser Hajj. I was the only Yoruba; others were Hausa with their wives. I enjoyed the seminar at Malaysia before we moved to Mecca for the lesser hajj. It was at the lesser Hajj that he actually proposed to me. I was shocked. Though I had been praying for a good man in my life,but I didn’t know that he was going to be the one. I was shocked, but I could not say no there. I was in my city, Madinah.

When we came back, I did not tell anybody until I went for Hajj same year.

When I came back, I called my aunt and discussed it with her. She was happy.

She advised that I should accept the proposal. The date for the Nikah (wedding) was fixed, and here we are today.

How was it like, marrying an Islamic figure?

Marrying my husband, Dr Abdul Lateef Oladimeji Owolabi Aremu Adegbite, gives me a complete joy.

Sadly, my previous marital relationship did not work out; it was conditional and very adoptive which did not tally with my upbringing as a Muslim.

Alhamdulillah, it was productive, and I’m very proud of my lovely kids that gladden my heart.

And then, I decided to move on. When your life takes a wrong turn, remember you are on the driver’s seat to right the wrong. Allah actually erased the past wrong and placed me on the right path with Adegbite, and it has been so natural despite the difference in our ages. I cannot thank Allah enough for saying ‘yes’ to the man who is the best example of how a good and responsible husband should be.

The marriage I would say is ordained, for the happiness and peace of mind that I cherish. In Adegbite’s household, I am well integrated. His children and family members love me. There has never been any display of hatred and no fault-finding attitude. We are all one in the spirit of Almighty Allah. To the glory of Allah, my fourth child was born into the family. Though my husband usually has very tight schedules, he makes the little time he spends with his family a memorable one.

He never ceases to amaze me with the

way he captures every family member’s feelings even when he is far away. Due to the fact that he is an Egba Chief and frontline Islamic scholar, our houses both in Lagos and Abeokuta aree a Mecca of sorts because we entertain a lot of visitors. But amazingly, he ensures that he attends to all guests as they come, no matter how many they are.

How do you feel marrying an Islamic figure?

I believe my prayer was answered because I actually prayed. . I did not plan it because he made it easier for me. He was modest just as Allah has instructed we Muslims. He is also a disciplinarian. I give that to him.

How do you cope with his travelling and many people coming to visit him?

He is a busy man; one thing about me is that I love travelling even before I married him. I just see it as his calling because he is so used to it. I pray to God to give me the wisdom to go along with it. I am used to it.

He just told me yesterday morning that he would be going to Abuja. If not for what I want to do, I would have gone with him.

How will you describe him, apart from what people know about him?

My husband is very unique; he is an open man. He is very transparent. He sleeps with his books.

How do you address each other?

Simple darling, love…

At your ages?

Never mind.

Love is more than that. Sometimes, he calls me mummy and I call him daddy.

What is your relationship with his children?

When God is manifesting Himself, you will feel the impact. The children are loving and caring.They give me anything I ask for.

Are they not bothered that you are age mates?

No, they believe I can take care of him. Naturally it took them time.

They studied me. They were so pleased with me; we were very close.

What dictates what you wear?

At times, my mood. As a Muslim, I believe you must always be presentable. I always feel bad when I see Muslim ladies and sisters exposing their bodies. You must dress properly. Cover your body, but look beautiful from head to toe. Wear something that will make people see you as a Muslim and be happy about it. Exercise body, eat lightly and so on.

Back to your question, I design most of

‘

It was at the lesser Hajj that he actually proposed to me. I was shocked. Though I had been praying for a good man in my life,but I didn’t know that he was going to be the one. I was shocked, but I could not say no there. I was in my city, Madinah. When we came back, I did not tell anybody until I went for Hajj same year

’

•Hajia Modinah

my clothes and when people see them, they look lovely. It is something I want to go into fully, but for now, I’m dedicating my time to my husband. I have a shop in Abeokuta where we sell gift items and another one at Surulere. I will soon go into fashion properly because that was what I was doing before.

What’s your best dish?

My best food is rice, though I eat little of it now because I don’t want to go out of proportion. I love vegetables and salad. I love grains generally.

How about your leisure time?

I read a lot and watch movies that are very educative. Our local movies are becoming something else. Even if you have a message to pass, that does not mean you should go nude. I don’t want my children to get used to such things.

I don’t like going out to parties, but I love to dress and look beautiful. At times, I will just get dressed and stay indoors. I don’t keep friends because of bad influence.

I just have to be careful because of my husband. I realise a lot of people want to get closer to you to know what is going on in your family. If there is anything I enjoy as Adegbite’s wife, that is peace of mind.

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THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

Fashionably creative S

•Damola Avaoye

TYLE is meant to be a fun process in which you can take it upon yourself to do just about anything. Not sure what your style is exactly? Or maybe your lifestyle has changed and you are not the chic urbanite you once were. The best way to forge a path to your new signature style is the process of discovery. Opting into a few fun activities to get your creative juices flowing will do just the trick.

-What do you adore? What do you love? Let your interests lead to your style. Have faith in the process. You may not find an entire outfit that communicates your style. But you will find something that makes your heart sing, your eyes see fireworks and your soul do a happy dance.

Take that as a style sign. Maybe you come across a beautiful vintage rhinestone brooch that you can’t take your eyes off of. Ask yourself what about it do you love so much? It is the fact that it has a story?

Does it have clean lines? Does it sparkle? Come up with three adjectives that represent it. Take those words and look for the same qualities in a blouse or skirt. Once you’ve found a selection of items that communicate those core adjectives, the second step is making sure there is some contradiction or conflict. A little drama always sparks the curiosity of others. If there is flow, add some structure. If the outfit is predominantly black, add a punch of colour. Step three is putting the effort into the details. Your fragrance, jewellery, accessories, makeup and hair all unify your look , making it more interesting.

Take a deeper look, explore the meanings and venture outside the box to create something unique. Translate that into a wearable outfit that emulates your essence and is an authentic representation of your soul.

-Go on a sensory shopping experience and become a connoisseur for your unique beauty. Here are some of my favourite style hunting activities.

-Go to your local fabric store, play with pattern. Maybe you pick up a unique fabric for a one-of-a-kind dress.

-Attempt a DIY project, get crafty. Maybe that turns out to be your signature element.

•For the nighttime, a simple, flirty dress should do the trick

•How you could combine a black evening dress

•Biola Awosika

•Get the look

•Priscilia Suchi-Best

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THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

Wumi OGUNTUASE

F

ITTED clothes are now taking back stage as oversized wear takes centre stage. Ladies are now favouring the long flowing big gowns rather than clinging ones and the same applies to tops and trousers even skirts and clutch too. Apart from the fact that it is a vintage style, it is very comfortable and also brings back the era of the old fashion. In order words, it is the maxi fashion period and we are going big. It favours all sizes and no matter what item it is, you can pull it off.

Accessorise with simple items that will blend in well.

Go for simple hair-styles like sweeping your hair up into a bun or just go for a ponytail, if your wear is oversized.

If you are going for maxi gowns, flat shoes or sandals would do for you, but if it is a top, tee shirt or trouser, go for the heels. For casual outings, you can wear flats too.

You can rock oversized wear without sacrificing any shape or style appeal.

•Mpho Laing

•Genevive Nnaji

Black Up for launch in Lagos

M

ONTAIGNE Place spearheaded by Alali H. Hart is working with Black Up of Paris to bring the first Black Up stand-alone shop to Lagos. The store will be formally launched July 22 at the Ikeja City Mall, Alausa, Lagos, Nigeria. Black Up was founded in Paris in 1999 by a professional make-up artist of African ancestry. This is the first premium brand to enhance the look of black women and all women of colour. It offers luxurious skin care and make-up focused on modernity, elegance and innovation.

The Black Up launch event will take place at the new Black Up store and will gather together special guests and celebrities. This unique event will feature live make-up demonstrations by a team of make-up artists headed by international celebrity make-up artist and creative ambassador of Black Up, David Coranson, and presentations by professional models.

•Eku Edewor

•Chineze Anyaene

•Yvonne Nwosu

48

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

Accidental discharge: Customs men allegedly shoot 21-year-old tailor dead 11 months after they killed his elder brother •Victim died a month to his graduation ceremony •Hoodlums killed him with our gun —Customs •The residence of the deceased

•The late Aiyelade

P

EACE took a flight from Idiroko, a boundary community between Nigeria and Republic of Benin, on July 1, 2012. Gunshots allegedly fired by some customs men were all it took to shatter the peace in the town and leave it in chaos.

All appeared to be well until about midday when some customs officers in a hot chase of smugglers allegedly shot a 21-year-old tailor, Elijah Aiyelade, on the eve of the anniversary of the death of his elder brother, who was also allegedly killed by the careless gun of a customs man in August last year.

Elijah was said to have run into the customs men who were on the trail of some smugglers as he was returning home on his motorbike. He was said to have died instantly.

The incident caused an outrage in the community, whose youths, aided with the oro cult, confronted the customs men.

Chaos was then enthroned as rifles boomed and missiles flew in different directions. Perhaps scared by the scenario, the customs men allegedly fired more shots leaving some other residents wounded.

According to The Nation’s findings, it was on a Sunday and Elijah had

taken his mother to church. He returned home a few minutes later and took his aged grandmother to church also. But before he could leave the church premises, he got a phone call from a friend and decided to visit him somewhere around Ajegunle area of the town. He was returning on his motorbike when the customs men, who were on the trail of some smugglers, allegedly fired a shot at him.

Explaining the circumstances that led to Elijah’s death, his elder brother, Samson Aiyelade, said: “I was in church together with my mother, his wife and our grandmother when news got to me that Elijah had been shot. I initially dismissed the story as rubbish because he had just left the church after dropping our grandmother, and I wondered how he could have suddenly fallen victim of gunshot.

“Then I tried to contact some of his friends to ascertain the veracity of the story but many of them could not be reached on phone. But before I could reach out to eyewitnesses, some of his friends who had gone to our house came to me at the church to confirm the news of his death.

“I learnt that he was riding a moAccidental discharge: Customs

Kunle AKINRINADE torbike when he was shot by customs men at about 11 am while he was on his way to Ajegunle. I immediately reported the matter at the Idiroko Police Station, because the customs officers were then still in custody of his corpse.

“In order to cover their tracks, the customs officers had lied that it was an accident and that our brother was hit by the vehicle they used in chasing smugglers. But it was all lies because he was actually shot. Pictures don’t tell lies.

“Ironically, there was no Customs base at the place where he was killed.

He had a son and a wife and we were just planning to organise his graduation next month. He was the last child of the family and had completed his apprenticeship in tailoring a few years ago. We would have done it long ago but we felt that we should have it after the one year anniversary of our late elder brother, who was killed in similar circumstances

by Customs personnel.

“Our eldest, Gabriel Ilesanmi Aiyelade, was shot in the leg by a customs man called Oseni and he died

on August 13, 2011 after a protracted battle to save his life. We had decided to organise a remembrance party in his honour while Elijah’s graduation ceremony was to hold a week after.

As a matter of fact, our mother had just bought him a new sewing machine in preparation for the day, not knowing that he would be sent to his untimely grave.”

At the residence of the bereaved mother of the deceased, Chief (Mrs) Felicia Aiyelade, scores of sympathisers were on hand to commiserate with her. The new sewing machine purchased for her son stood in a corner of the austere living room.

Tears rolled down her cheeks as she recalled her son’s last moments before his gruesome death.

“Look at the new sewing machine I just bought in readiness for his graduation ceremony next month. I would have celebrated his graduation before now but for his brothers who persuaded me to hold on till after the one year anniversary of my first son who was also killed by the evil Customs men.

“On the day of the incident, Elijah actually took me to church on his motorbike and he came back to pick

his wife and grandmother to church.

When he was leaving church to honour an appointment he said he had, I never knew that it would be a journey of no return.

“I had urged him to take some ofada rice I took to church, which I had planned to eat after service, but he declined, saying he did not want to fail the appointment. He was never a smuggler and he did not keep bad company. I know that God will surely visit His anger on his killers, who believe that uniform men are above the law.”

The deceased’s widow, Roseline, could not hold back tears during a brief encounter with our reporter. She said: “Well, what else can I say, the Customs men have killed him like a fowl. But I know that God willing, they would not get away with it.

“He was in his workshop throughout Saturday June 30, and he had even sewn some dresses for our three-yearold son called Abiodun. I was busy ironing my clothes when some people came to inform me that my husband had been shot. They said he was shot on his way to Ajegunle by some Customs men who were chasing suspected smugglers.

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THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

•Akinyemi

•One of the vehicles destroyed during the protest

•The deceased’s brother, Samson

•The deceased’s mother

•The deceased’s widow and son •The new sewing machine

Our eldest, Gabriel Ilesanmi Aiyelade, was shot in the leg by a customs man called Oseni and he died on August 13, 2011 after a protracted battle to save his life. We had decided to organise a remembrance party in his honour while Elijah's graduation ceremony was to hold a week after. As a matter of fact, our mother had just bought him a new sewing machine in preparation for the day, not knowing that he would be sent to his untimely grave

‘

,

“The Customs men lied that he was hit by a vehicle while they were chasing some smugglers. But contrary to their explanation, his body was riddled with bullets and this shows that he was deliberately killed by the cruel customs officers for no just reason.”

However, the deceased tailor was not the only victim of the triggerhappy customs men. Other bystanders also had a taste of the bitter pill.

One of them is Monday Akinyemi, who is hovering between life and death at a private traditional clinic as a result of gunshot.

When our reporter visited the 25year-old electrical technician at the clinic, he narrated how one of the Customs officers pumped bullets into his leg.

Akinyemi said: “I never knew that the Customs officers had killed Elijah, who happened to be my friend. I was also returning from Ota where I had gone to work when the Customs men started shooting sporadically. I was terrified and tried to manoeuvre my way from the scene when one of them fired at me and the bullets hit me in the leg.

“I was rescued from the scene by

some bystanders after I had fallen in a pool of my own blood. Yet the callous Customs men did not attend to me. I was initially taken to Idiroko General Hospital before I was transferred to this clinic when my people could no longer afford the hospital bill.

“The bullets perforated my leg and I have been asked to provide N150,000 or risk amputation. Where would an artisan like me get that kind of money when I can barely feed?

“Elijah was one of my best friends. I saw him in the morning when I was leaving for work. He was such a nice person and he had planned to hold his graduation ceremony next month.”

Another victim,Mr Fatai Ogunwole who is a staff member of Power Holding Company of Nigeria(PHCN) narrated how he was shot in the leg by the customs men.

“I was on my way to Ajegunle to restore electricity supply caused by damaged cables with a junior colleague of mine,when we ran into the customs men who were shooting sporadically while chasing suspected smugglers. Suddenly ,the bullets damaged some high tension cables and we were forced to ran into a nearby bush for safety.

“We made a detour and then decided to go back to our office to lodge a report.But before then I had quickly informed the Divisional Police Officer(DPO) in charge of the area

•Prince Adesina

asking for protection,so that we can clear the damaged cables.Unfortunately,before he could respond,I was hit by bullets on the leg and I fell down in a pool of blood.I was later taken to a nearby private hospital called Mayowa Hospital where doctors succeeded in stopping the blood that was gushing out of my leg. I have not been able to walk ever since because my leg had been badly damaged by the bullets.”

Anti-riot policemen were deployed in the town following violent protests by angry residents. Some vehicles belonging to officials of Immigration Service were destroyed by the angry mob who took to the streets to vent their anger over the killing.

Although the traditional ruler of the ancient community, Oba John Olakunle Ojo, the Onikolaje of IkolajeIdiroko, was not in town when our correspondent visited, but a community leader who is also the Chairman of Ode-Ogun Community Development Association, Prince Ade Adesina, blamed the Customs men for the killing of the deceased. He added that it had become the habit of Customs officers in the town to kill innocent residents under the guise of chasing smugglers.

“It is important we cry out over the incessant killing of our youths in order to put a stop to it. I believe that the Customs officers lack the basic skill for handling firearms. If not, why should they fire at people all the time in the name of trying to arrest

suspected smugglers?

“The killing of Elijah Aiyelade, a blue-blood of this town, is one death too many. In 2005, one Ahmed was killed. We shouted but there was no justice. Before then, in 2004, Ilesanmi Aiyelade, the deceased’s elder brother, was shot in the leg by Customs men while walking home. He died on August 13 last year as a result of the gunshot injury. Yet there was no justice.

“On the same day, one Abiola was equally shot dead by Customs men.

Again, no justice was done in the matter by the authorities despite the fact that the victims were not smugglers.

“We have also observed that the perpetrators of the killings are people who cannot speak Yoruba. They are usually very rash and irrational in their conduct. There were many other people who sustained injuries during the pandemonium that followed the killing of the boy.”

There were conflicting official responses by the police and customs authorities. The spokesman of the Ogun State Police Command, Mr Muyiwa Adejobi said: “It was a case of auto-accident involving an okada (commercial motorcycle) rider who was hit by one of the vehicles being chased by customs men. No life was lost in the incident.”

But the Public Relations Officer of Nigeria Customs Service, Ogun State Command, Mr. Chike Ngige, a Deputy Superintendent of Customs (DSC), said it was a case of accidental discharge by some hoodlums who “stole” a rifle from a Customs officer.

He said: “It was a case of accidental discharge. What happened was that some of our men were chasing some smugglers who were riding in a vehicle. During confrontation with our men, the smugglers overpowered one of our officers and took his gun from him. It was while they were fiddling with the gun that it discharged bullets which hit the deceased tailor while he was passing by.

“We should be honest with ourselves. I think our men are doing their best to contain the excesses of youths in the area who are into smuggling activities. I don’t think it would be wise for Customs officers to fold their arms when they are being violently attacked by aggressive smugglers.

“We have also lost our men too during operations, yet people did not sympathise with us. The community too should caution their indigenes against attacking our men who are going about their lawful duty.”

Samson Aiyelade, the elder brother of the deceased Elijah, however, describing the Customs spokesman’s explanation as a tissue of lies. He said: “The Customs officers are pathological liars. When we protested the killing of our brother, they said it was an accident and they connived with the police to say that he was hit by one of the smugglers’ vehicles. Now, the story has changed to that of accidental discharge caused by hoodlums who stole their rifle.

“The latest excuse is laughable, because my brother was shot three times in the leg and twice on his chest.There is pictorial evidence to prove it, and their lies will not endure because they deliberately shot him at close range.”

A witness to the incident, who asked not to be named, said: “I was at the scene of the incident. I was actually returning from one of my relations when I saw the customs men chase a vehicle. But I think it was a failed mission and they were shooting sporadically to scare the occupants of the vehicle who had by then jumped out and were running away. It was during this period that the late tailor was passing by on a motorbike and he tried to manoeuvre his way out of the scene. It was then that one of the officers opened fire on him and bullets hit his legs. He dropped off the motorcycle and had wanted to run, but he was again shot twice and he died immediately.”

THE NATION, Saturday, July 14, 2012

50 INTERVIEW The Chairman of the Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People (MOSOP) Provisional Council, Prof.

Ben Naanen, is the Director of Emerald Institute of Petroleum and Energy Economics, Policy and Strategic Studies, University of Port Harcourt. The professor of Economic History and founding General Secretary of MOSOP hails from Bodo, Ogoni in Gokana Local Government Area of Rivers State. In this interview with BISI OLANIYI, he calls on the Federal Government to immediately implement the recommendations contained in the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) report on Ogoniland, submitted to President Goodluck Jonathan in Abuja in August 2011. He accuses President Jonathan of being insensitive to the plight of the Ogoni people and vows that they will soon occupy Ogoniland. Naanen describes the hanging of renowned environmentalist, Ken Saro-Wiwa, and eight other Ogoni activists by the regime of the late Gen. Sani Abacha on November 10, 1995 as unjustifiable.. The activist also discloses the reason why he returned to Nigeria at the time the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) was biting, contrary to the advice his supervisor at the University of Canada gave him:

How I narrowly escaped being arrested along with Ken Saro-Wiwa —Prof Ben Naanen, Chairman MOSOP Provisional Council

LGA).

For a lot of people in Ogoni, immediately after the civil war, it was like a liberating experience. Ogoni was then in a state of internal colonialism by people from the South-East zone. Ogoni people really felt liberated after the civil war.

More opportunities opened up.

Was the civil war justified?

You returned to Nigeria during the military regime of Gen. That is a very difficult question to Ibrahim Babangida’s SAP. That was the time many Nigerians answer. To a lot of people in Ogoni, the were ‘checking out’ of the country, leading to brain drain. What war represented an important was the motivation? opportunity to be themselves. It was a ERVING my country was the main motivation. Actually, at kind of liberation and window of that time, returning to Nigeria was an act of courage, given the economic, political and social way things were at the time. Things were very difficult then. opportunities largely because of the My wife, Virginia, and I completed our programmes in creation of Rivers State. Education was Canada about the same time and decided to return to the country. also made easy after the civil war. Getting We felt we could do a lot of things in Nigeria, to contribute to the positions in government and getting jobs development of the country. It was not that we were not aware of the were made possible by the post-war years. economic and social conditions in Nigeria in the SAP era. We do not The war presented opportunities. Every revolution has negative and regret the decision that we took to return to the country. positive sides. There was destruction during the civil war, just like any Something happened when I returned to Nigeria. Some of my armed struggle. The negative side was overwhelming, but then, the friends asked me if I was not being too optimistic or being very civil war also represented an opportunity. That is the nature of the unrealistic. We decided to make it an act of faith to be here.

•Naanen world. In every adversity, there will also be a positive side.

Remaining in Nigeria has its own challenges. The decision taken by Some academics of your stature do not believe in the existence of my wife and I to return to Nigeria was the best.

God, but you are an elder in the Redeemed Christian Church of Did you attend the same university with your wife in Canada?

God… She studied at the Mount Saint Vincent University, Halifax, It happened through my wife. We realised that there are lots of Nova Scotia, Canada, a predominantly women university, for things that science cannot explain. Religion is a kind of holistic her first degree. She read Clothing and Textile, fashion In the night, I visited the UNIPORT experience, which tends to understand the seemingly actually. She wanted a career in fashion. That was the closest inexplicable. It was from there that I realised the existence of Senior Staff Club where Lt. Col. Paul that was available at the time for her dream. some transcendental force, comprehensively What does your wife do now?

Okuntimo (the notorious military incomprehensible.

She went into business upon her return to Nigeria, but commander), whose troops were implicated You have lectured for many years. Have you been the business condition in Nigeria is extremely challenging. with sex, cash or gifts for unmerited marks?

She is currently a university administrator. She is the in murder and rape in Ogoniland, while Lt. tempted That is a very important question. There is often an Faculty Officer of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Col. Dauda Komo was the military attempt by members of the society to make general UNIPORT. She is also doing her master’s in Educational administrator of Rivers State, who only knew statements and cast aspersions on university lecturers. I Psychology at UNIPORT. It has been quite challenging have not experienced such things and I would not do it. combining family, NGO and humanitarian work, my name but could not identify me. He Right from the time I joined UNIPORT’s Department of including a lot of work in the church. She has actually offered me a drink, which I politely turned History and Diplomatic Studies, it has been an unwritten been a very busy person. law that sorting is forbidden. To the best of my knowledge, How did you meet her? down. I left immediately and travelled there is nobody in the department who has engaged in such We met in Nigeria and travelled to Canada after our out of the country early the next day. If I malpractice. We frown on it. We condemn it and guard marriage, although I arrived in Canada a couple of months against it seriously. was arrested, it was almost certain before she joined me. At the time, she had just finished from There is a standing instruction in my house that anybody who the Rivers State College of Education, Port Harcourt. We that I would have been hanged brings gift as a student, nobody should accept it. Sometimes, the married as very young couple before we travelled to Canada. like Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight students feel embarrassed. There are moments even out of Since we were travelling, we did not want to miss each other. We goodwill, especially the graduate students, they bring gifts to my quickly did the marriage and I left. Actually, I did not participate in other Ogoni activists. house, but they are turned back. Some might even offer money, but that some of the ceremonies, because I was already airborne. She joined me has never been accepted. in Canada a few months later.

Sorting is strange to me as a person. I am not saying that these things are not What was the attraction? happening, but there is always the tendency for members of the society to She was hard working and had an ambition for higher education. She was exaggerate them. Some students, who are not working hard enough, try to use gratification, disciplined, God-fearing and properly trained by her elder brother. Her father died earlier. We which some lecturers may find difficult to resist. As far as I am concerned, that is a foreign met in the early 80s and got married at the end of 1983. We have four children—two boys and practice. two girls. Our first daughter has just turned 22. She has just graduated. She read Economics at At the faculty level, have you had cause to sit on a disciplinary panel over sorting?

UNIPORT. The two boys in the middle are undergraduates, reading Engineering. The last have. That was many years ago. Eventually, the lecturer was exonerated. I am not saying child is a girl, who is still in secondary school. that sorting does not happen. But in our department, we guard jealously against it.

What are the secrets of a successful marriage?

There had been a few cases where individuals were found culpable. But when such Tolerance and communication are the secrets of a successful marriage. It must proceed from things come to the attention of the university authorities, the errant lecturer is punished, the realisation that human beings are not perfect. Only God is perfect. based on the gravity of the offence. Often, it is students who put lecturers under pressure.

What about your parents?

What about cases of male lecturers harassing their female students for sex?

My mother died in 2010. My father is still alive and he is in Ogoni.

If you are in the system, you will appreciate the pressure on lecturers. The harassment may What was your experience of the civil war between 1967 and 1970? not be only one way. Students also harass lecturers, but the practices must be condemned.

I was a little boy then and had not entered secondary school. Those of us in war-affected You studied abroad and you can appreciate the difference. How can qualitative education areas lost a year or two. I lost a year to the civil war. The war was not a pleasant experience. be ensured in Nigeria?

Conflicts and deaths hardened people. Soldiers were being killed and people were dying all The critical factor is funding. Nigeria’s education is grossly underfunded, which translates to over the place. Seeing dead bodies everywhere was unpleasant. The experience was not good lack of equipment, lack of facilities, difficult learning conditions for students, difficult working at all. Things were not normal then and a lot of things were improvised by my parents. It was conditions for lecturers, and so on. There is need to improve university funding and a challenging period, especially with food. Bodo, during the civil war, was a staging post and manpower. Social factors, like the kind of society we operate in, are also there. But these are major military camp. The war was concentrated in Bonny Island (headquarters of Bonny

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THE NATION, Saturday, July 14, 2012

INTERVIEW 51 minor

•Prof Naanen issues. The most fundamental issue is funding.

President Goodluck Jonathan is an alumnus of UNIPORT. How has that impacted on the university?

It is good that President Jonathan is an alumnus of UNIPORT. He has tried to support the university through the alumni association. He has done some good works here (UNIPORT). But there is a general feeling that he can still do a lot more than he has done so far, as a distinguished alumnus of the University of Port Harcourt. The Governor of Rivers State, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, is also an alumnus of UNIPORT, just like the former governor of Bayelsa State, Chief Timipre Sylva.

Governor Amaechi impacted on UNIPORT in some ways when he was the Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly for eight years. He actually built the Ken SaroWiwa English House in UNIPORT. They have made some contributions. But they can still do more.

About two years ago, Governor Amaechi promised to build a new Faculty of Humanities Complex at UNIPORT, but nothing has been done on the project. As an insider, what would you say is responsible? ust as you have observed, nothing yet has been done.

From all indications, it seems that Governor Amaechi has reneged on that particular promise. I am using this medium to plead with him that it is an important legacy project he can assist UNIPORT to achieve.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo initiated the United Nations Environment Programme’s (UNEP’s) environmental assessment of Ogoniland between 2005 and 2006, as a result of many years of pollution, neglect, marginalisation and environmental degradation in the four Ogoni local government areas of Gokana, Khana, Tai and Eleme. The initiative was well supported by the late President Umaru Yar’Adua, while the 262-page main report was submitted to President Goodluck Jonathan, a Niger Deltan from Otuoke in Bayelsa State, in Abuja in August 2011, but the recommendations contained in the UNEP report are yet to be implemented even though a ministerial committee was set up and a report was submitted to President Jonathan. What went wrong and what is the way forward?

The Federal Government has not demonstrated sufficient political will to implement the recommendations contained in the UNEP report on Ogoniland. Ogoni people are concerned about it. Almost a year after the UNEP report was submitted to President Jonathan in Abuja, no concrete action has been taken by the Federal Government. The far-reaching recommendations are yet to be implemented. With the growing agitation in Ogoniland over the non-implementation of the recommendations contained in the UNEP report, we have now resolved to embark on international campaigns to ensure the full and immediate implementation of the recommendations.

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What does MOSOP’s initiative of ‘Ogoni occupy Ogoniland’ entail?

It is in consonance with the occupy movements in other parts of the world, which is a form of protest against corporate greed and government’s insensitivity. The same is going to apply to Ogoni. The Ogoni people are going to occupy areas of strategic economic interest in order to compel the Federal Government to implement the recommendations contained in the UNEP report on Ogoniland. Ogoni people feel justified on claims of environmental devastation. They could not believe the extent of the environmental devastation, until the UNEP report was released. You can imagine the international attention that ‘Ogoni occupy Ogoniland’ will attract, because it will be centred on key areas of strategic economic interest.

Which of the strategic economic interests will be affected by the move and when will it commence?

We will not disclose the details for now. But it will commence very soon.

At Ogale-Eleme in Eleme LGA, the UNEP report reveals that the water contains cancercausing Benzene, which is 900 times the World Health Organisation’s (WHO’s) standards for water contamination, with the Rivers State government using tankers to supply water from Port Harcourt, the state capital, to Ogale-Eleme and other affected Ogoni communities. What else should be done?

There are certain remedial measures that are contained in the UNEP report. Supplying water with tankers from Port Harcourt cannot be a sustainable initiative. The Rivers State Government can establish water treatment plants in the affected Ogoni communities. It is a responsibility of the Federal Government. The oil company concerned (SPDC) should also be alive to its responsibilities, having caused the pollution and environmental degradation.

Ogale-Eleme is just one case. There are numerous other Ogoni communities like Bodo, K-Dere and Yorla, among others, which are so terribly affected. The water they drink is polluted and the environment is degraded.

There must be a comprehensive remedial plan, especially to provide alternative safe water and other social amenities for the affected Ogoni communities, while showing commitment to fully implementing the recommendations contained in the UNEP report. Ogale’s case is particularly pathetic.

Is MOSOP still insisting on dialogue with the Federal Government before the implementation of the UNEP report’s recommendations?

We are standing by the decision. We do not want a situation where the implementation will be haphazardly done. Ogoni people are supposed to be the primary beneficiaries of the project. So, it is natural to dialogue with the people. In fact, there is an international convention now about prior consent about communities’ engagements. Not only must people of the communities be aware before the engagements, they must be informed. So, the Federal Government cannot just stay anywhere and begin to implement projects in Ogoni without dialoguing with the Ogoni people. Proper guidelines must be put in place.

There are also issues of corporate social responsibility involved in the situation. Ogoni people will want a situation where they are given first priority in the cases of economic and social opportunities connected to the clean-up of Ogoniland. How do we address all these issues without dialogue? It is not proper for officials of the Federal Government to stay in Abuja and award UNEP report’s recommendations implementation contracts which Ogoni people can handle to persons outside Ogoniland. There must be a template or guidelines that recognise communities’ interests in the implementation process. That is why the dialogue is very important in order to set out the guidelines.

Ogoni people have decided to resist any imposition from Abuja. A situation where the officials of the Federal Government stay in Abuja and dispatch contractors to Ogoni without proper dialogue will never be allowed. There is need for adequate engagement.

With the Federal Government not implementing the recommendations contained in UNEP’s report on Ogoniland, do Ogoni people still trust President Goodluck Jonathan, who also hails from the Niger Delta?

I will be very frank. Ogoni people are disappointed.

President Jonathan has not demonstrated sufficient sensitivity to Niger Delta issues, especially the Ogoni situation. He still has the opportunity to change this perception of people in the Niger Delta, particularly in Ogoniland, where the people seem to be excluded and alienated from the Jonathan administration. He should change the situation for the better.

The Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) was sent packing from Ogoniland in 1993, while the renowned environmentalist, Ken Saro-Wiwa, and eight other Ogoni activists were hanged on November 10, 1995, during the regime of the late Gen. Sani Abacha. What is the way forward?

The Federal Government has already revoked Shell’s operation of the Ogoni field. SPDC’s return to Ogoniland no longer arises. The Federal Government has not clearly told us

what is happening, but apparently, the Federal Government wants the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company Limited (NPDC), which is the exploration, exploitation and production arm of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), to take over the operation of the Ogoni field.

Is MOSOP comfortable with the arrangement?

We are not. MOSOP is not comfortable with the Federal Government’s arrangement.

What do Ogoni people want?

We want a situation where the Federal Government will open dialogue with the Ogoni people on the issue. We prefer one of the international oil companies (IOCs), but not Shell.

We want an IOC with excellent environmental and corporate social responsibility records that will be sensitive to the needs of the Ogoni people and will be able to honour contractual agreements and can be held accountable in its home country for violations in Ogoniland.

As the intellectual brain behind the Ogoni non-violent struggle, why were you not arrested with Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight other Ogoni activists by military men and other security operatives, who were then on your trail? was not arrested with Ken Saro-Wiwa because I had travelled to accept a visiting scholar appointment at the University of Leiden in the Netherlands, at the time the four Ogoni chiefs, who were also leaders of MOSOP, were murdered and Ken Saro-Wiwa was subsequently arrested. At the same time troops were sent to arrest Ken Saro-Wiwa and Ledum Mitee (the immediate past President of MOSOP, who is a Port Harcourt-based legal practitioner and Chairman of the Niger Delta Technical Committee, NDTC), another squad was dispatched to my residence at UNIPORT, where my young family was terrorised by the heavily-armed troops.

Thereafter, my UNIPORT’s residence was kept under surveillance.

On one occasion, I had smuggled myself into the country across the land borders to see my family and check the situation of MOSOP. In the night, I visited the UNIPORT Senior Staff Club where Lt. Col. Paul Okuntimo (the notorious military commander, whose troops were implicated in murder and rape in Ogoniland, while Lt. Col. Dauda Komo was the military administrator of Rivers State. He only knew my name but could not identify me. He offered me a drink, which I politely turned down. I left immediately and travelled out of the country early the next day. If I was arrested, it was almost certain that I would have been hanged like Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight other Ogoni activists.

You were very close to the late Ken Saro-Wiwa. How will you describe his hanging along with eight other Ogoni activists?

It was very sad and unjustified. Actually, the Federal Government wanted every opportunity to destroy the Ogoni revolution. Circumstances that culminated in their hanging, which we call extra-judicial execution, remain suspect up till this day. The killing of four highly-respected Ogoni chiefs was a very regrettable situation, but the Federal Government did not do well to properly investigate the incident. The Ken Saro-Wiwa that I knew very well would never have been involved in the killing of the four Ogoni chiefs.

You just said that Ken Saro-Wiwa could not have been involved in the killing of the four Ogoni chiefs. Can you say the same thing of the eight other Ogoni activists hanged along with him?

Let me give you an instance: there was a particular person I will not mention his name. He was one of the members of the youth group. When the killing of the four Ogoni chiefs happened, everybody fled. The man fled to Lagos and was living in a police barracks. Simply because there were some differences between him and his host in Lagos, who happened to have been a relative of his wife, the host was reported and he (host) was promptly arrested and quite unfortunately, was one of the persons hanged with Ken SaroWiwa. The host in Lagos did not have a hand in the deaths of the four chiefs. Can you imagine that situation?

The hasty way the trial was conducted, which precluded proper investigations, tends to make it suspect. Some persons carried out the dastardly act, but whether the right people were apprehended and tried remains debatable till tomorrow.

The British Prime Minister at the time described the murder of Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight other Ogoni activists as judicial murder.

How did you begin life? began life in Bodo, Ogoni in Gokana Local Government Area of Rivers State where I was born in 1958. I had primary and secondary school education in Ogoni. I attended Birabi Memorial Grammar School in Bori (the traditional headquarters of Ogoniland and seat of Khana LGA of Rivers State) and I made Division One. I had the best result in WASCE at the school in 1974. For my first degree in History and Archeology, I attended the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), the first indigenous Nigerian university established in 1960. Between 1976 and 1980, I worked for two years as a Graduate Assistant at UNIPORT. I later proceeded to the Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada for a master’s degree in Economic History between 1983 and 1984 and doctoral degree in Economic History/Development Studies at the same university between 1984 and 1988, after which I returned to Nigeria.

I was on the verge of taking an appointment in Canada or the United States of America. My supervisor was not happy that I was returning to Nigeria at the time of the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP), introduced by the Babangida regime. He was afraid that I would not be able to pursue my career as a successful academic here in Nigeria. I was encouraged to stay behind and take up an appointment, but I did not. I have since then been teaching at the University of Port Harcourt. That is occasionally punctuated by fellowships and visiting academic appointments in different parts of Europe and North America.

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THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

Reflecting a suitable spouse (2)

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EAR Reader, You are welcome to another intriguing moment in

God’s presence! I started this teaching last week, by showing you how to be committed to your spouse. I said love and submission are the two most important characteristics that aid commitment, in order to reflect a suitable spouse that you are.

This week, I will be teaching on, Fulfilling Your Mutual Obligations to one another for a most exciting marriage.

Fulfilling your mutual obligations is part of your family responsibilities though, but it actually helps you to reflect a good spouse. When I say ‘mutual obligations’, I mean romance, affection, intimacy and sexual relationship that should be fulfilled

in your marriage.

For instance, God’s idea of procreation establishes the coming together of husband and wife. God’s Word says: Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote unto me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman. Nevertheless, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have her own husband. Let the husband render unto the wife due benevolence: and likewise also the wife unto the husband. The wife hath not power of her own body, but the husband: and likewise also the husband hath not power of his own body, but the wife. Defraud ye not one the other, except it be with consent for a time, that ye may give yourselves to fasting and prayer; and come together again, that Satan tempt you not for your in-

continency (1 Corinthians 7:1-5).

Many homes are broken today because of lack of understanding of this concept.

The moment a home becomes deficient in marital affairs or romance, it begins to break.

Sexual relationship in marriage is God’s approved channel for procreation and pleasure. Everything done against it by either the husband or the wife is targeted at the ruin of the home.

God’s Word says: And Adam knew Eve his wife; and conceived and bare Cain…

(Genesis 4:1). This means that Adam had marital sex with his wife and she conceived.

Also, Proverbs 5:18-19 says: Let thy fountain be blessed: and rejoice with the wife of thy youth. Let her be as the loving hind and pleasant roe; let her breasts satisfy thee at all times; and be thou ravished always with her love.

God intended that couples fulfill their mutual obligations for procreation and pleasure. He created the necessary organs and feelings in you, so that this commandment can be fulfilled. Fulfilling your mutual obligations with a wholesome approach to it will heal many wounds

in homes. Statistics show that families where the husband and wife enjoy each other sexually are the happiest homes. “For the breasts of a man’s wife to satisfy him”, means for the two of them to have pleasure in marital sex.

As a suitable spouse, if you are not fulfilling your mutual obligation, it amounts to marital fraud and every act of marital fraud is an offence.

It robs homes of glory and beauty. When you fulfill your mutual obligations, you will find out that every act of love expressed becomes like the engine oil that keeps marriage running smoothly.

Also, it successfully blocks any loopholes that might give the enemy a foothold in your marriage.

After the holy solemnization of a marriage, sex is no longer forbidden. If anything, it becomes an essential part of the union. However, the marriage bed can be defiled by the married, when adultery is committed by either the man or the woman (Hebrews 13:4). Adultery opens the door for God’s judgment and causes either you to lose your spouse’s respect and honour that was originally meant for mar-

Factors that determine our health later in life

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IET, lifestyle, and environment can be considered the three major categories of physical factors that determine our health in old age. Our bodies are made up of parts that are normally kept in good functional states through processes of replenishment, repair, and recycling. There are organs that we call vital organs.

These include the brain, the heart and blood vessels, the lungs, the kidneys, and the liver. We cannot live without such organs.

These organs often become life-limiting in old age if they underwent too much assaults earlier in life. Assaults can come through our diet, lifestyle, or environment.

Our bodies are very resilient to normal everyday assaults through two major processes. One process is called homeostasis (from Greek, homeo or “same”, and stasis or “stable” (Wikipedia)).

Homeostasis is the ability of body functions to return to a control or balanced state or to an equilibrium after stimulation or inhibition; increase or decrease; overload or underload, etc.

The brain and nervous system plus the hormones of the body work together to counteract the deviation from balance. Thus for example if we are subjected to too much heat, we begin to sweat in order for the body to be cooled. This is one process that we can observe externally. There are numerous homeostatic processes that go on within our bodies beyond our consciousness. Thus our bodies are able to main-

tain normal blood pressure, normal body temperature, normal composition of all the various body fluids, normal utilization of nutrients, normal clearance of waste and toxins, normal growth, repair, and recycling rates, etc. This maintenance of normalcy goes on and on as the body is continually exposed to foods, drugs and chemicals, changing environment, and various assaults.

The process that determines our resilience to invasive harm is the immune system. The immune system is a specialized complex relationship and interaction of cells and chemicals that work together against any target that is abnormally present on or within the body. The immune system neutralizes, disables, or destroys foreign matter (that cross the protective barriers of the skin and mucus membranes and invade our bodies) such as bacteria or abnormal matter that develops within our bodies such as cancer cells. Thus the immune system controls the “enemies” of our bodies by limiting their presence, capabilities, and activities.

Both processes of homeostasis and immune function naturally age. Thus as we grow older, we should be careful not to subject ourselves unnecessarily to assaults. For example a midlifer may survive half a bottle of whisky in his stomach but an elder may not because his stomach protective mechanism may be weaker. A midlifer may find it useful to take aspi-

riage.

Allow romance, intimacy and love to be expressed in your marriage. You may just need to go back to those little acts of love you used to do, when you first got married.

You may need to start those sweet things that made your honeymoon exciting; you need to start treating your spouse a lot more lovingly, but whatever you must do, just do it to fulfill your mutual obligations. You will not fall into any trap of the enemy in Jesus’ name.

Accepting God, the Creator of man, woman and the mutual feelings enables you fulfill your obligations with ease. You can accept Him through His Son, Jesus Christ, and be born again. If you would like to do so,

please say this prayer: Dear Lord, I come to You today. I am a sinner. Forgive me my sins. Cleanse me with Your precious Blood. I accept You as my Lord and Saviour.

Now I know I am born again!

Congratulations! Till I come your way again next week, call or write, and share your testimonies with me through: E-mail: faithdavid@yahoo.com Tel. No: 234-1-7747546-8; 07026385437, 07094254102 For more insight, these books authored by me are available at the Dominion Bookstores in all the Living Faith Churches, and other leading Christian bookstores: Marriage Covenant, Making Marriage Work, and Building A Successful Family.

Health news Eye physicians holds conference The Nigerian Optometric Association will hold its 36th annual general meeting and conference in Lagos.

The national event, themed, ‘expanding the frontiers of optometry in Nigeria, is slated to start on Thursday July 19 till Saturday July 21 at Welcome centre and hotels, Lagos.

In her analysis of what the programme will encompass, the secretary of the Association, Dr Chara Adekunle said, there will be free eyes examination at The Arena in Oshodi for the public on the 18th .

According to her, the three-day conference will officially start with an opening ceremony which will include an exhibition of eye equipments.

Other programmes include; scientific sessions, meetings, AGM and Gala/Award night.

All stakeholders in the health sector are expected at the event.

Fasting and its inherent health benefits rin tablets for killing pain but an elderly may end up with severe stomach bleeding from inability to resist the irritant action of the drug on the stomach. A midlifer may run a marathon with ease whereas an elderly may collapse during the exercise. The elder may not crack nuts with his teeth the way a youth can.

Often, in severe weather such as extreme cold or heat waves or severe conditions such as famine, it is the elderly that die first. Elders may also be highly susceptible to sudden epidemics such as new strains of flu and bacterial infections.

Thus one way to enjoy good health in our old age is to be mindful that our physical resilience is different and we should avoid unnecessary exposure to assaults.

In the face of the weaknesses of old age, the Yoruba elder would often lament: “agba ti de”, which means old-age has come (“old age is affecting me”).

The brain and memory function also undergo aging. To avoid suffering from confusions, the elder needs a strong spiritual component. An old lady’s daughter fried some fish for her and left it on the table to cool. The old lady saw the cat enter the room and she moved the fish unto a shelf in a cupboard and then went to the bathroom and from the bathroom to this and the other thing and fi-

nally a little nap. Later in the evening she felt like eating fish and went to the table and there was no fish. The door was open and some teenagers were laughing and playing outside. She stepped out on the balcony wondering if they stole her fish. Sure enough, two of them were sitting aside and watching the game and snacking on fish. In all appearance, they had entered through her door and taken her fish. She had no proof so she opted to let it go blaming herself for leaving the door open. Three days later her daughter was led to the cupboard by a stench coming from there and she brought out the plate of fish. The old woman crossed herself thankful that she had not gotten into a fight with the area boys three days ago which could have landed her with a knife stab or heart attack.

We should not play with the mind of the elderly (or that of anybody) because this can easily cause confusion and very bad consequences. As we grow older we should remember to be at ease and keep our peace whatever comes and however things may seem.

Dr. ’Bola John is a biomedical scientist based in Nigeria and in the USA. For any comments or questions on this column, please Email bolajohnwritings@yahoo.com or call 07028338910

Risikat RAMONI Throughout the world, many people fast, mostly for different reasons. Little do they know that as they are fasting, for spiritual or other reasons, there are inherent health benefits attached to their complete abstinence from all substances.

Philippus Paracelsus, famed Swiss physician and one of three Fathers of Western Medicine, with Greece’s Hippocrates and Galen, practiced and prescribed fasting.

Throughout history, many ancient religions believe that some form of fasting or food and drink deprivation has spiritual benefits; most of them never knew it also has health benefits.

Asides the fact that the body welcomes the deprivation, especially the liver and digestive system, it also make the body fight off disease on its own. It is generally regarded as the greatest remedy, the physician within.

A fast does not chemically begin until the carbohydrate stored in the body begin to be used as an energy source.

In recent time, people often consume too much unhealthy food in the form of fat and protein especially animal fat and animal protein. They also consume too much refined sugar, refined carbohydrates and caffeine in the form of coffee, tea, alcohol, cigarettes and soda.

Fasting for a period of time would provide an opportunity for the body to reverse the harmful effects of unhealthy diet and thereby restore good health.

Medical research shows that fasting can have numerous health benefits.

Some of the benefits are: •Fasting promotes detoxification. The body rids itself of the toxins that have built up in the fat stores throughout the years. “Detoxification is a normal body process of eliminating or neutralizing toxins through the colon, liver, kidneys, lungs, lymph glands, and skin.”

•A second prescribed benefit of fasting is the healing process that begins in the body during a fast. The body heals itself and repairs all the damaged organs. During a fast, energy is diverted away from the digestive system due to its lack of use and towards the metabolism and immune system.

Abnormal growths within the body, tumors and the like, do not have the full support of the body’s supplies and therefore are more susceptible to autolysis. When one is fasting, the person is consciously diverting energy from the digestive system to the immune system.

•In addition, there is a reduction in core body temperature. This is a direct result of the slower metabolic rate and general bodily functions.

•Growth hormones are also released during a fast, due to the greater efficiency in hormone production.

•The most scientifically proven advantage to fasting is the Continued on pg 53

FAMIL Y HEAL TH AMILY HEALTH

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

53 Coping with diseases with Prof. Dayo Oyekole

Keeping heart disease at bay (1)

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OR some years now, cases of heart diseases both in children and adults in the country have been on the rise. Indeed, health experts warn that with over 30 million Nigerians suffering from hypertension, cardiovascular diseases may become a major health problem in the near future.

Heart disease is any disorder that affects the heart’s ability to function normally.

Coronary artery disease, which is the narrowing or blockage of the coronary’s arteries, is the most common type of heart disease.

While some people are born with heart abnormalities (congenital heart disease), others inherit theirs. The majority of such cases however, can be attributed to numerous factors like diet, lifestyle, work, weight among other causes.

A high fat and salt-filled diet, sedentary lifestyle, obesity can raise cholesterol levels and cause narrowing or blockage of the coronary’s arteries, experts warn. Heart attacks and strokes often result if left unchecked or untreated.

Not just the old alone Previously, heart disease particularly the non congenital type was considered an old age ailment, something that happened to those over 60. New evidence however, shows that younger people are being affected yearly. For instance, the American Heart Association states that almost 150,000 Americans who die from cardiovascular disease each year are under the age

Continued from pg 52 feeling of rejuvenation and extended life expectancy. An anti-aging hormone is also produced more efficiently.

•Fasting results in weight loss, elimination of excess cholesterol, triglycerides, uric acid and other accumulated environmental toxins.

•It normalizes the blood pressure in the vast majority of cases, the blood pressure will remain low after the fast, if the person follows a health-supporting diet and lifestyle.

•It has also been proven that many fast to reduce weight, that is, it initiates rapid weight loss with little or no hunger.

•Fasting clears the skin and whitens the eyes. It is common to see skin eruptions clear while fasting, and the whites of the eyes never look so clear and bright as they do after fasting.

•Inflammatory conditions, such as arthritis, colitis, asthma and hepatitis, often are greatly improved or resolved. Many enzymatic functions of the liver and other organs, including the insulin-resistance characteristic of diabetes, can rapidly normalize. In the fasting state, the duration and intensity of illness, such as inflammation, mucus produc-

Eating foods which contain anti-oxidants such as these are beneficial to the heart of 60. And one out of every 20 people below the age of 40 has heart disease.

Luckily, heart disease can be prevented. Certain lifestyle and dietary habits can according to Dr Meg Akpotor go a long way in preventing heart problems.

“What you eat contributes a lot to being prone to heart disease. Too much fat, salt and highly processed junk food are not ideal especially for those with high blood pressure which is one of the risk factors in heart disease.

To protect the heart, she recommends the eating of anti-oxidant foods, monounsaturated fats such as ol-

ive or canola oil, drinking black or green tea, oily fish and nuts. “Foods that contain anti-oxidants include fruits and vegetables like tomatoes which contain lycopene that have protective properties,” she noted.

Regular exercise, she added, is also important. “It should be the type like aerobic exercise (running, brisk walking, swimming or cycling) that will make you sweat and increase the heart rate and beat. This will improve circulation,” she said.

Live a heart-friendly lifestyle by: •Controlling high blood

pressure •Eating a low fat salt, heart-healthy diet •Reducing cholesterol levels •Exercising •Controlling diabetes •Controlling weight •Managing stress •Quitting smoking/ drug taking •Having regular checkups especially bold pressure and cholesterol •Avoiding a sedentary lifestyle-sitting too long in one place watching TV or working on the computer •Avoiding too much stress

Fasting health benefits tion, fever and diarrhea are often dramatically reduced.

•Fasting restores taste appreciation for wholesome natural foods. Taste buds come alive after fasting.

•Fasting shrinks the stomach – not in a harmful way, but restoring it to its normal size. People tend to be satisfied with less food after fasting.

•And finally there is good evidence to show that regulated fasting contributes to longer life.

However, many doctors warn against fasting for extended periods of time without supervision.

Minimizing the effect of fasting Hunger pains can be

minimized by drinking more juice and performing mild exercises.

Water with lime can be drunk before the commencement of the fast to help settle the stomach acids which cause a great deal of pangs and discomfort.

Fasting Side Effects Dizziness, weakness and headaches are normal when fasting.

Those who cannot fast It is not advisable for certain people to fast. They are: •People with medical conditions such as severe kidney disease and certain types of cancer are not advised to fast.

A comprehensive examination should be performed including urine analysis and blood evaluations to ensure that fasting is safe for the in-

Individuals have to avoid food, drinks and other substance to maximize the health benefit of fasting

dividual.

•Those with liver weakness or disease, or are extremely frail, malnourished, anemic, or exhausted. Those with a weakened immune system, severely high blood pressure, medication-dependent diabetes, or weak circulation causing frequent fainting should consult a doctor and be under his/her care during fasting if they so desire it.

•Those who just did a surgery or are recuperating from a major illness. Time should be taken to recuperate before attempting a fast. Also, fasting should not be done directly prior to major surgery.

•Individuals suffering from genetic fatty acid deficiency should not fast because they can have serious side-effects which include severe hypoglycemia and other medical conditions.

Contraindications Before attempting a fast, a physician should evaluate the complete health history of an individual taking into account any illness, injury and treatment.

Whatever reason individuals fast for, it is established that fasting is a powerful tool for helping sick people to get well and healthy people to stay healthy.

Prostate enlargement

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ROSTATE enlargement is generally a disease of elderly men; and it is characterized by urine retention, leading to severe pains, anxiety, discomfort, and sometimes, loss of consciousness.

The full function of the prostate is not yet fully understood by scientists all over the world. However, it is known that as a gland, it produces fluid called‘semen’ which is released by men, at the climax of sexual activity. The prostate gland will only grow and function under the influence of male hormones, the most important of which is called TESTOSTERONE, produced from the testicles.

The prostate gland surrounds the neck of the bladder and the first part of the urethra goes through it. An enlarged prostate, presses on the urethra and decreases the size of the opening through it, or it forms a dam which holds back part of the urine.

The causes of prostate enlargement are not very precise, but they are associated with hormonal imbalance; and available information indicates that most men who use drugs to improve their sexual performance tend to activate the level of their Testosterone hormone beyond the threshold, and consequently, they often end up developing prostate enlargement and related complications.

The enlargement can be a simple type called Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia, or it may be cancerous, that is, Malignant Prostatic Hyperplasia. Both the benign and malignant types usually present similar symptoms of frequency in urination, hesitancy, urgency, trickling flow of urine and in advanced stages, there is acute urine retention as a result of blockage of the urinary tract.

A man suffering from enlarged prostate will first notice that he has to get up oftener than usual, to pass urine at night.

The stream will be small and slow to start. A long time may be required to empty the bladder.

Many cases will get worse until the patient cannot empty the bladder, and must resort to a catheter for relief.

Unfortunately, after the urine has once begun to be drawn by catheter, the danger of bladder infection is great. Also, the symptoms and problems of cystitis are likely to occur.

Treatment and Control In Holistic Lifecare, it is strongly advocated that the best prospects of controlling Prostate Enlargement, is by going back to Nature. When symptoms of an enlarged prostate are noticed, it is advisable to avoid spices, condiments and alcoholic beverages; to lessen bladder irritation, which may promote infection. It is also important to avoid cold conditions or getting the feet wet, or holding the urine for too long.

Prostate Enlargement is not new in African context. In fact, ethno-medicinal research has shown that herbal remedies are very effective, without complications or side effects.

The holistic natural remedy being suggested for Prostate Enlargement is a combination of natural extracts of herbs such as Saw Palmetto, Cocos nucifera, Khaya ivorensis and Lycopersicum esculentum.

For further information and consultation on Holistic Lifecare research and services, especially on Blood Infections, Infertility, Sexually Transmitted Diseases, Chronic Debilitating Conditions as well as mental and social problems, please call on: 0803-330-3897 or visit: Mosebolatan Holistic Lifecare Centre, Adeyalo Layout, Ogbere-Tioya, Off Olorunsogo Express Bridge, Ibadan. Website: www.holisticlifecare.com. Distance is no barrier, we can send remedies by courier if need be. We also have facilities for accommodation, admission and hospitalization in a serene and homely environment.

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THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

•Bird eye view of Movenpick

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ALKING along the streets of the Osu area of Accra, Ghana, it is easy to appreciate better what stability could do to the tourism industry of a country. Tens of foreign tourists shuffle freely through the streets, peeping through the show glasses at items that attract their interest and occasionally popping in to buy.

They wear Ghanaian fabrics, eat local food and generally bask in the friendly atmosphere of Accra . Currently what the

Movenpick: adding luxury to Ghana’s leisure offering ladies call “patches” tend to be in vogue. Wooding shops also had many trooping in and out to make purchases. Nobody moves about with the perpetual self-consciousness that one has to always be on one’s guard to avoid being

a victim of muggers or scammers.

Despite the high level of economic activities that Accra , the Ghanaian capital, is witnessing, it has not lost the lustre of being a prime tourist destination in West Africa. Stability is

what the tourist market offers. The peaceful environment within which to relax within a context of an authentic African ambience.

Of course, like every top travel destination, one of things that makes it tick is the accommodation facili-

ties. There is an international traffic for business and leisure , and with it, the demand for world-class hospitality facilities. In most hospitality facilities in Ghana, the traditional West African hospitality is ever present: good food, courte-

ous attendants and, of course, options for relaxation. But within the last one year, the hospitality hue of Accra has changed as the accommodation facility has moved from middle class leisure outfits to also offer top luxury experience. As the country’s economy continues to grow, so also is the leisure taste.

One hospitality outfit that was quick to cash in on this, and is currently reaping the benefits is Movenpick Ambassador Hotel, Accra . It is Accra’s top luxury hotel whose story is a true reflection of the current tourism fortune of the country.

Located in the heart of Accra, it is surrounded by landmark buildings that define the city. Opposite the hotel is the ship-shaped national theatre and Kwame Nkrumah Museum. The National Conference Centre is not far from the hotel.

However, one thing that makes the place tick is not just the facility. It is the large expanse of land on which the hotel sits. It is a miracle for a property to have a land mass in the heart of the city.

But this has become a blessing for business and leisure seekers who troop to Ghana . It is like the bonanza one sees in the London shops telling buyers to buy one and get one free. In other words, it serves as both a business and a leisure hotel.

From the entrance of the hotel, the friendly reception area and the hotel lobby, one is left with the impression of being in a business hotel, but walk through the glass door on the left into the open area, it is transformed into a hotel. A large swimming pool with a false island in the middle, the expanse of green grass and

Tourism News T

HE Cross River Expe rience is a stakeholders’ meeting that seeks to integrate the tourism products available in the state as a way of simplifying booking and marketing. The meeting will be coming up in Calabar on July 24.

The process of integration will see tour operators and hotels integrating their products to make marketing cheaper.

Tourists have always complained that it is more expensive travelling within Nigeria than going abroad for holidays. Bundling tours through packaging have helped most destinations reach more clients.

The private sector in Cross River is applying this world tested tech-

Cross River Experience holds in Calabar NCPC boss meets with

•Travel journalists from the UAE with the NTDC boss, Otunba Segun Runsewe during the journalists' recent visit to Nigeria their experiences in destinique nation marketing as On the 24th, speakers Gambia, the smallest from Gambia (Mr Aliu country in mainland Secka, former president, Africa, has used packagGambia Hotel Associaing to advance its tion) and India will share

economy and the use of technology to improve tourism sales.

A new online marketing portal,Experience Cross River, will be launched on that day.

The portal is a comprehensive electronic pleasure platform that allows individuals, groups and corporate organizations have full access to all that Cross River State has to offer the world just in a click.

The platform brings airlines, hotels and car hire and tour operators together in offering discounted and free airport pick-up and drop-off services.

North East stakeholders

•Borno State Governor, Alhaji Kashim Shettima (middle) with NCPC boss, Mr. John Kennedy Opara (second right) and others, during a visit.

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HE Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Christian Pilgrim Commission (NCPC), Mr. John Kennedy Opara, and his federal commissioners met with the stakeholders in the North East in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital,

during the sensitization visit to the state.

The stakeholders included leaders of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in the zone, NCPC officials in the zone, members of the Christian Pilgrim Welfare Board in Borno State,

55

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012 local and foreign tourists on their cane swimming pool beds lapping the mild sun and sipping drinks continuously replenished by scooter riding attendants give one the feeling of being in a resort.

The tour guide, Rebecca, let us into the secret of a group of palmtrees just before the swimming pool.

The palm trees are 12 in number and planted in circle. According to her, the trees stand for the 12 hours that make up clock. One could, she said, know the time of the day by simply standing in the middle of palmtrees and observe where one’s shadow falls on. If it falls on one, then it will be one pm and so on.

These little things remind one that despite the luxurious cosmopolitan features of the hotel, the African imprint is not lost. Movenpick is more like an arts gallery rather than hospitality property. So much was invested in acquiring rare art works and artifacts. The collections, about 1500piece, might rival any gallery in Ghana , and the works have history behind them.

Annie Terminet Schuppon, Movenpick’s director of sales and marketing, said despite being a luxurious hotel and a well-received one in the market, it is working towards improving its allround services.

The unique offering, according to Annie, enables it to truly become a multiuse with a balance between leisure and business facilities offerings.

She said: “Business has been good. Even at opening, we started with a full blast of between 70-80 per cent occupancy. It is a testimony to the acceptance of our offerings and brand equity in Ghana , West Africa and the continent at large.

“While we are five-star, we aim to become six-star in service and facility offerings. However, the hotel is also keen at hospitality skills transfer and development of its workforce to meet its standard. The hospitality industry revolves around people, and our

Delta plans grand water regatta

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•Movenpick Hotel Ghana

aim is to set a new benchmark in the region for quality and personalised service. Thus, we have spent a great deal of time on our selection process and providing our successful candidates with extensive training to ensure that our brand values are upheld.”

The upward swing of the Ghanaian economy

has seen an upswing in the disposable incomes of many Ghanaians. This is another area that is working in favour of Movenpick as the restaurant that serves both continental and local dishes are packed with people as families troop to dine at the restaurant on weekends.

Part of what they are do-

ing in Movenpick is to offer Nigerians the opportunity to continue to savour even a higher standard luxury hospitality experience while holidaying in Ghana .

As the socio-economic progress of Ghana continues, many Nigerians put the country on top of their hospitality experience.

•Mofe-Damijo graphically, it is perhaps one of the fastest developing cities in Nigeria because of our airport and its proximity to one of the biggest markets in Africa.

“We feel in Delta State that there is life outside of oil and gas and so our new mantra, if you ever hear my governor speak, is Delta Beyond Oil. That is why we have, in spite of all the security challenges in this country, decided to become a tourism pro-active state.

“We are trying now to open up our state to the rest of the world, so that when people hear the new Delta State, they not only think of hydro-carbon, they also think of tourism and indeed one of the most ambitious projects that we have embarked upon is the Delta Leisure Resort . We are trying to build one of the biggest resorts in this part of the world; one in Warri in a place called Oleri and, of course, the wildlife park in Ogwashi-Ukwu .”

Tourism can help protect wetlands, says UNWTO

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•Tourists at a gift and craft market , Ghana

Tourism News ground handlers, some state government officials, among others.

The NCPC boss thanked them for joining him in the sensitization visit to the state.

He assured them that the governor promised he would sponsor about 500 pilgrims this year and also promised to set up a Christian Pilgrim Welfare Board for the state.

The NCPC boss said: “I believe that today’s visit has opened up a new window of opportunities in the state and this is the beginning of good things to come”.

In his welcome address, Archbishop Numuel Babba, Federal Commissioner North East, welcomed the Executive Secretary to his zone. He thanked God for the NCPC boss whom he had worked closely with for four years.

ELTA State govern ment is putting plans in place to hold a water regatta that would showcase the rich culture of the people of the state and boost the tourism industry.

This was disclosed by the state’s commissioner for tourism, Mr. Richard MofeDamijo, when the Naija Seven Wonders team paid him a courtesy visit in his office.

According to him, the regatta will be part of the flagship product of the tourism in the state.

He asaid:“We also discovered that in Nigeria, most states are identified with particular programmes. In the light of this,we have created the Delta State Tropical Regatta. We had the unique opportunity when Delta was 20 years to have a go at what the regatta would look like when fully developed. We had one Bomadi and it turned out to be a fantastic regatta. So, we are trying to do the regatta as our own signature festival like we hear of the Festival Calabar, CARNIRIV and so on.

“The idea is that we will be able to put about 200 boats on water with the scopes of colours, dancing and costumes will brighten the waters. Part of the historical basis for our regatta is the returning of King Nana of Koko.”

Mofe Damijo also said the state government was working towards diversifying the economy of the state away from oil, and tourism will be a key component.

He also talked about development in the state capital, Asaba.

He said: “Asaba is the city of the future because apart from its location geo-

ITB-Berlin to operates two exhibition grounds

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HE ITB-Berlin, one of the world’s top most tourism fairs, held in Berlin is to operate from two new venues.

A new venue, the Berlin/ Brandenburg exhibition grounds next door have been completed. Berlin Expo Centre Airport, which is now ready, is a fair and event venue that can be used in a wide range of ways.

Besides three permanent display halls covering a display area of more than 20,000 square metres, it offers space for large outdoor displays as well as additional temporary trade fair buildings and service facilities. Thus, in addition to its well-established

•ITB-Berlin fair complex, Germany

inner-city venue at Berlin Expo Centre City next to the Berlin Radio Tower, Messe Berlin now operates two exhibition grounds in the capital’s local region.

Construction of buildings for the International Air Show has begun immediately on the new

grounds. This year, the ILA, Europe’s leading event for the aerospace industry, will be taking place from September 11 and 16.

In January 2013 the new Panorama Berlin fashion show, part of the Berlin Fashion Week, is scheduled to debut on the grounds.

HETHER kayaking in the Iberá Marshes in Argentina or bird-watching at Ba-Be Lake in Vietnam, tourists are providing income for the conservation of wetlands worldwide, as demonstrated in a new publication launched by the Ramsar Secretariat and UNWTO. Besides providing essential services such as water, food and energy, wetlands offer significant opportunities for tourism, which can in turn deliver economic benefits for local communities and the sustainable management of wetlands, according to the publication Destination Wetlands: Supporting Sustainable Tourism.

Growth in sustainable tourism not only reflects environmental realities, but also a desire from tourists themselves to embrace green tourism. “There is a trend among tourists of turning towards green forms of tourism, towards destinations that offer wildlife and heritage,” said Cristian Barhalescu, State Secretary, Ministry of Regional Development and Tourism of Romania.

Through 14 case studies, covering different wetland types around the world, the publication demonstrates how sustainable tourism practices in and around wetlands can contribute to conservation, economic growth, poverty reduction and support to local cultures.

The publication was launched at the 11th Meeting of the Conference of the Contracting Parties to the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (COP11) in Bucharest, Romania (6-13 July 2012) held under the theme Wetlands and Tourism, COP11 will debate a landmark resolution on Wetlands and , urging sound tourism practices in wetlands.

“The adoption of this resolution on tourism and wetlands will provide an important framework to help countries better recognize the linkages between wetlands and tourism so as to develop sustainable tourism in wetlands and other ecosystems. It proposes measures that they can take in the short and long term to ensure sustainable wetland tourism,” said Anada Tiéga, Secretary General of the Ramsar Convention. “Of course it is important to consider tourism in all wetlands – not just those designated as Ramsar Sites – since the Contracting Parties to the Convention are committed to managing all wetlands and promoting their wise use,” stated Corneliu Mugurel Cozmanciuc, State Secretary, Ministry of Environment and Forests of Romania.

THE NATION, Saturday, July 14, 2012

56 INTERVIEW

As the Director-General of NTDC, one of the tasks that Otunba Segun Runsewe is saddled with is to ensure a conducive atmosphere that will enable tourists within and outside the country, patronize, benefit and enjoy the beautiful tourist destinations in Nigeria. But with the spate of bombings, killings, and insecurity presently taking place in different parts of the country, especially in Northern Nigeria in the name of Boko Haram, the NTDC boss, Otunba Segun Runsewe seems to be at a crossroad. He was in Lagos a few days ago, to honour the judges who participated in the ‘Seven Wonders of Nigeria project.’ For him, it was another opportunity to drum up support for the project and also promote the landmark tourist destinations in Nigeria. He spoke with PAUL UKPABIO on his strategic plans for tourism in the face of insecurity in the North and the inherent challenges in the tourism industry. Excerpts: ‘Seven Wonders of Nigeria’ project seems to be the present rave on the tourism burner of your corporation. Can you enlighten us more on the project and the extent of your involvement?

HE Seven Wonders of Nigeria project is a private sector initiative which some group of stakeholders put together. We looked at it and saw that it was good and we got involved.

Presently I can assure you that we believe in the project as another avenue to showcase the wonders of Nigeria. So to me, it is a way of having another window to further communicate to the people within and outside Nigeria that we have lots to offers in terms of destination marketing and revealing the tourism potentials of the country. My involvement basically is that, when we see a product brought by people, who are responsible and credible, and ready to do the country proud, we welcome them and embrace their ideas and encourage them. So, that is why NTDC is supporting Severn Wonders of Nigeria project because we see the project as credible and a great opportunity to market our country at home and abroad.

How do you perceive that this project will help to improve the image of the country and market tourism destinations in Nigeria?

You see, it is a product line that can make a statement to every tourist interested in coming to Nigeria. It is like saying ‘this is the seven wonders that you need to see when you visit Nigeria.’ Now from visiting one destination, you might want to visit other new destinations that you discover on the way.

So to us, we see it as a product which could be well promoted as it is easy to tell somebody that, ‘this is one of the seven places that you need to see before you die!’ A lot of marketing words could be coined out of it for destination marketing purpose. And that to us is a good marketing strategy.

As the DG in charge of NTDC, the organization in charge of tourism in Nigeria, the project has been on for some time now, so can you say that you have started seeing its fruits and relevance?

The fruits and relevance are things you can see right away, they are real. Take for instance, the number one destination which is the flagship destination in the country that is the Obudu Cattle ranch. Almost every foreigner that comes into the country wants to see the mountain resort. As at last week, some of those who came in for one conference or another, were asking how they can get to Obudu Mountain resort. The number of visits to Obudu has increased tremendously and even government activities have increased there too. We must commend Mr. President who set a good example, by going there with the First Lady for a holiday and then an official retreat.

That aprt, I am aware of about 12 major conferences that have taken place there in recent times and also in the Calabar environs. This has made it possible to re-open choice destinations which hitherto had become silent in that southern state and also encouraged tourists particularly, in coming to Nigeria. The number of international conferences taking place there has increased. For instance, there was a conference that was planned to take place in one West African country, but was later shifted to Nigeria because of the Obudu Cattle ranch.

More and more people are getting to know about the Seven Wonders of Nigeria and we are delighted about it as it will continue to make a major impact in the history of this country.

You have been in office for some time now, what challenges would you say that you still face in the course of promoting tourism in Nigeria?

The biggest challenge is firstly that people do not understand what tourism is all about. Most people, I must say, see tourism as the beating of drums and dancing. But today, we thank God that more and more people are getting to know that tourism means a lot more than that. People are getting to know more of the potentials in tourism and its economic strength as a tool to increase employment opportunities and reduce violence and crime rate in the society. So, gradually people have been embracing tourism.

Secondly, people didn’t understand the benefit of tourism, but now people know that the benefits inherent in tourism are enormous. Tourism impacts on every part of society. We have brought a new approach to understanding tourism in Nigeria. No matter how you work on your tourism, if people within and outside do not understand it, then you have little result. But now, Nigerians have a change in attitude when it comes to tourism. There is a total transformation as to how people now understand tourism and what it stands for, and how it can be harnessed.

Considering the security challenge of Boko Haram in the northern part of the country, how does it affect tourism promotion in the country?

Basically, every country has its own security challenges. It may be different from what we have. Yes, we do have the

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Boko Haram or no Boko Haram, there will always be tourism

–DG NTDC Otunba Segun Runsewe security challenges here and there, but that does not mean that it has affected the totality of our tourism plans and potentials in the northern part of the country. These challenges are regionally classified and are therefore being regionally addressed. I can assure you that as at present, government is making effort and putting every necessary process on ground to ensure the tackling of these challenges which is getting better. And I can see that within a couple of months, all will be okay. This in a way will serve as a history of our past and we will overcome it and our future will be better.

What about the eastern and the South-South states where we have kidnappings taking place?

Well just like the issue of Boko Haram in the North, kidnapping was very rampant in the eastern states and South-south states two years ago. But as at today, the noise about it has almost gone into oblivion. So that means that government has been able to checkmate some of these vices which are normal in every developing nation. Kidnapping is now a thing of the past and so will it be in other areas that we presently have security issues like Boko Haram.

Presently in the hospitality industry in Nigeria, there are complaints here and there that the rates charged by hotels are on the high side as compared with what is obtainable in other countries. What is your office doing about this?

It is an international phenomenon, a lot of hotels are springing up, there are bound to be some level of competition in terms of quality control. Yes, it is true that some of them are a bit expensive, so we have to check their rates in terms of the international monetary exchange rate.

Please note, I am not making a case for them. Secondly, we are working on registering the hotels so that we have a record for them. Then we need to appeal to government.

When I say government, I mean the higher echelon of government to bring what can be called ‘seed money.’ This is because people do not understand that to grade hotels is a very cumbersome process. The money involved is a lot. But we are working to put regulation so that each hotel will know how to operate. For instance, a hotel of a hundred rooms on Victoria Island cannot be compared with a hotel with 200 rooms in Ajao Estate because of location. So these are some of the technical issues which people don’t know, of

which we are working on. It is a process which we have to get through with.

Nigeria has tried in recent times to re-brand her image. You have travelled and attended several international events abroad. Would you say that the image of Nigeria is improving abroad?

I can say that things have been changing for the better. Before, Nigerians used to be seen as people who did not respect law and order, but I can tell you that the re-branding that we have been doing in one way or the order is bearing fruits. Some foreign journalists were here sometime ago, they left for the United Emirates. They came to understudy us here and we took them round and they said they were impressed.

They even said that what they used to read about Nigeria was different from what they have seen on ground. I must confess that there has been some sort of conspiracy on how stories about Nigeria have been written in time past. But thank God we are now writing our own stories the way it truly should be written.

What will you say has been the factor that has been propelling you so far in handling the challenges of your office?

The secret is my belief in my God and doing my best in whatever assignment that I am faced with. I give God Almighty the praise for giving me the restraint, the courage, the tenacity and wisdom to take on projects. I know there is still more to be done, but I also know that with God, nothing is impossible.

You are believed to have fought many battles in the cause of holding on to your position as the DG of NTDC. Are there still more battles for you to fight, and do you know of any human-factor impediment to your success in your office?

I have never fought any battle: the battles were fought for me by the Almighty who will continue to fight some more battles for me. The problem is that people are used to free lunch, people are used to doing what is wrong and that is why we have been having a bad name in this country. And I will not allow that to happen because I believe that posterity will judge all of us. Now we can change from the bad ways to do the right things so that at the end of the day, our country will be good for us and for people who visit us. To me, I will continue to do my job, if there’s another battle to be fought, then so be it. But I believe that He that fought the other battles will continue to fight for me.

You have created a beehive of activities around the NTDC. What in your own estimation is the present drive of tourism in states nationwide?

Until recently a lot of state governors did not understand what tourism was all about. I must say this emphatically here. But now they are coming to understand what it is all about. Some of the states didn’t have a functional Ministry of Tourism, even boards, but they are now coming to terms with what tourism is about. And that is our vision to make a whole change in the right direction.

What would you consider as your achievements so far?

We brought the navigator: we came in with mapping, and conducted that for all the states of the federation. We are presently supporting over 155 festivals across the country: the Osun-Oshogbo festival, the Agungun festival, the New Yam festival and so on. We also came up with Youth Tourism, the Eco-tourism, Sport tourism, and even when Nigeria did not play well at the World Cup, we won the Best Village Award by cultural content of the World Cup Tournament. So we have been able to do a lot. We have enlightened the public about tourism. We have created stakeholders among different spheres of profession which may have any relationship with tourism in the country. That is why I remain grateful to the collaboration we have with the Nigerian media which have been of great help to us in letting the people understand that oil is good but tourism could be better. This is because oil is exhaustible but tourism is sustainable.

Ordinarily at this point, lovers of Nigeria and lovers of Agungun Festival may be apprehensive about attending the popular Agungun Festival which takes place in Kebbi State and other such festivals in the northern region where there are security crisis. How do you address their fears?

I’ll like to draw attention to the fact that Agungun Festival for instance, is over a hundred years old. And it was my good self, in 2007 that opened up that chapter. I want to assure you that the governor and people, especially the emir, they are so passionate about the best they can give to the festival and will certainly continue to do their best. So I am assuring all that it will be a continuous festival that will bring in a lot of good and attention to the country. I will like to use this opportunity to appeal to all Nigerians that wherever they come across a tourist, they should ensure that they give necessary assistance with regards to understanding so that they may also return to invite more people. Tourism is about reaching out to people, keeping in touch with them, so that they can always come back. And that will help our GDP and economic strength.

News 57

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

Obi congratulates CJN, IGP, new SANs

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NAMBRA State governor, Mr. Peter Obi has sent con-

gratulatory messages to the new Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Aloma Mukhtar, Inspector General of Police,Mr. Mohammed Dikko Abubakar and the latest batch of 25 senior advo-

cates.

The governor said Justice Mukhtar’s appointment came at a “time the judiciary is faced with critical challenges associated

with growing countries, underscored the confidence reposed in your records as a judicial officer.”

Describing her new office

as historic, Obi said it was consistent with other trails blazed by Mukhtar, including being the first female to be elevated to the Supreme Court. He ex-

Ritualists kill brothers, bury them in shallow grave Ugochukwu UGOJI-EKE, Umuahia

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WO suspected ritualists who are alleged to have kidnapped two brothers and killed them are now in the police net .They are helping the police to fish out others who were involved the dastardly act.

The two boys, Kenneth Chimeize and Prince Chimezie six nd four years old respectively met their untimely death after they were abducted on their way to school,a distance of about tone kilometer from their home.

A search party to look for the victims the following day after they had been declared missing, found one of them dead with his vital organs removed while his brother was buried in a shallow grave close by.His own organ too was found to be missing after he was exhumed raising suspicion that the toddlers were victims of ritual murder.

The state House of Assembly while reacting to the situation urged security agencies operating in the state to go after the brains behind the devilish act.

The Nation gathered that one of the suspects whose action raised the suspicion that the two sons of Mr Chimezie might have been kidnapped, had gone to the mother of the children and gave her his phone number demanding that her husband should call him on his return.

Chimezie, an ambulance driver, was said to have run to the man for a possible clue on the whereabouts of his missing sons when he was told that his sons would be found if he provided a specific amount of money.

He was said to have promised to go and raise the money.He then reported the matter to the Army who dispatched soldiers to apprehend the suspect .He named two others who were allegedly involved in the heinous crime.

The two suspects from the neighboring village of Abayi Obeala whose names were given as Chibuike Ekeji Ogbeenyia, a father of three and Chimezie Njoku Ekenta also a father three were latter handed over to the police at the Eastern Ngwa Divisional Police headquarters Umuobiakwa.

•Governor Peter Obi of Anambra State (middle), flanked by Francis Cardinal Arinze (right) and Bishop Hilary Okeke of Catholic Diocese of Nnewi (left), at the burial service for the Emeritus Bishop of Okigwe, Anthony Ilonu at the Cathedral of Immaculate Conception, Okigwe, on Wednesday.

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pressed the hope that she will introduce “salient reforms towards quicker dispensation of justice in our legal system.”

On the IGP, Governor Obi said his confirmation in that office was not unexpected after six months in acting capacity.

“Within this period, you brought enduring innovations to bear on the comportment of the Force and its crime fighting disposition,” he said.

Noting that there was still much work to be done especially with regard to security challenges in parts of the country, the governor urged him to be of “good courage as Nigerians will offer you needed support.”

And felicitating with the new SANs announced on Thursday, Obi asked them, especially the two from Anambra State-Luke Ilogu and Francis Agbuappealed to them to continue to use the instrument of law to impact on the democratic rights of Nigerians and equally sustain the growth of jurisprudence in the country.

Tension in Onitsha as Muslims protest plan to demolish mosque

HERE was palpable tension in the commercial city of Onitsha yesterday when the Muslim community comprising Igbos, Hausas and Yorubas resisted alleged plot by the Anambra state government to demolish their Central Mosque located close to the Bridgehead market. Saturday Nation gathered that the Muslims numbering over 1000 and chanting “Allah is the greatest”, maintained that the plan by the state government to destroy their place of worship was a fallout of the cold war against them in the state.

Addressing journalists yesterday during the protest, the leader of the Muslims, Alhaji Habib Faruk, said they have already compiled with the state government’s decision to beautify the Bridgehead

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HE Abia state chapter of the National Population Commission [NPC] says the infant mortality rate in the state is still on the high side, even as the present administration is working assiduously to ensure that it is brought down to a manageable level.

The federal commissioner of NPC in the state, Dr Sam Ahaiwe said this in

Okodili NDIDI, Onitsha and Upper Iweka axis by removing all their shops as directed, adding the said mosque does not fall within the area marked for demolition.

Alhaji Faruk who led the protest, condemned the manner members of the Anambra state task force under the Transition Committee Chairman of Onitsha South descended on the Muslims during their Friday prayer and forced them out of the mosque.

He maintained that the action of the state government might not be unconnected with the current activities of the dreaded Boko Haram in some Northern parts of the

country.He pleaded with the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Mohammed Abubakar, to prevail on the state government to approach the issue with caution in view of the security situation in the country.

“We are not resisting the decision of the state government to beautify the Bridgehead but the plan to demolish our place of worship is more political and could result in breakdown of law and order because no Muslim would stand by and watch their place of worship demolished for no just cause” Meanwhile, the Transition Committee Chairman of Onitsha South, Mr. Okechukwu Ezeani, said the actionof the state govern-

Infant mortality high in Abia •Government on top of it—Abia NPC Ugochukwu UGOJI-EKE, Umuahia Umuahia on the occasion of this year’s world population day, adding that the state government is trying to bring it down with the building of over 210 health

centres in all parts of the state.

He said government is worried about the high child and maternal mortality rate and had gone ahead apart from the several health centres it has built, to ask the health centres to grant free ante natal care to

ment was not politically or religiously influenced, but a measure to clean up the entrance to the state.

He said “we are not targeting any mosque.Even if a cathedral is standing in the place marked out for demolition, it would be pulled down, so, the insinuation that the state government is witch hunting Muslims is unfounded and malicious” It took the intervention of the Commander of the 302 Artillery Regiment, Onitsha , Col J. T Durowaiye, the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Balla Nasarawa and the Onitsha Area Commander, Mr. B.C. Wordu who drafted detachments of armed security men to the area to bring the situation under control.

all pregnant women in the state.

The federal NPC Commissioner said that one of the ways to avoid population explosion is for the health centres to commence the free distribution of condoms and contraceptives to people to prevent unwanted pregnancies and the contracting sexually transmitted diseases.

Police insist ace presenter, Gawat, still missing

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ONTRARY to the breaking news on the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) Channel 10, Tejuosho last night that their former presenter and Master of Ceremonies, Alhaji Rasak Gawat, had been found, the Lagos State Police Command said the information was not true.

The force Public Relations Officer, Ngozi Braide, a Deputy Superintendent of Police, told The Nation that Gawat was yet to be

Tajudeen ADEBANJO found.

“The information is false.

We are still searching for him,” Braide said.

The Nation visited Adeniji Adele Central Police Station where people said the missing presenter was being kept, but the Divisional Police Officer, Mr Monday Agbonika, who allowed this reporter to see Gawat’s wife, Alhaji Fatimat, declined comment.

Confirming this incident, Chief Executive Officer, Centre Spread, Alhaji Kola Ayanwale, slammed NTA for broadcasting unconfirmed reports.

“I’m sure the police will investigate where NTA got such report. I also expect the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) to take NTA up on the matter,” he said.

Former Lagos State Independent Electoral Commissioner, Musbau Oyefeso, expressed shock over the

attitude of the national broadcasting station.

Oyefeso said NTA out of their overzealouness for their former staff added confusion to the state of dilemma on ground.

“We all love Gawat. We want him to be found, but the information dished out by the NTA is not true.

They should be careful on sensitive issues like this one. We pray Gawat is found in a good state of health,” he said.

Rep donates motorcycle, office to group Polycarp OROSEVWOTU, Warri

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HE member representing Udu, Ughelli North and South Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Hon. Austin Ogbaburhon on Thursday donated two motorcycles and a two bedroom office apartment to members of the Concerned Okada Riders For Ogboru (COFO).

Handing over the motorcycles and office at the Democratic Peoples’ Party office in Udu, Hon. Ogbaburhon who was represented by Mr. Daniel Omeco Ekorhi said the gifts were part of his campaign promises to the people.

Ekorhi explained that Hon. Ogbaburhon recognized the efforts of COFO during the election hence the donation .

State chairman of COFO, Prince Felix Edidju while receiving the motorbikes and keys to the two bedroom office apartment expressed appreciation to the lawmaker for the gesture, saying it was the first gifts ever received by the group since its existence in 2002.

Edidju advised other lawmakers who emerged on the platform of DPP to emulate Hon. Ogbaburhon.

Cable operators call for steady power supply Ugochukwu UGOJI-EKE, Umuahia THE Association of Cable Operators in Nigeria [ACON] has called on the federal government to prevail on the power sector for the provision of steady power supply to save their hitch equipment from being destroyed by power surge and interruption.

They also urged the federal government to enact antitrust laws, proper rules of engagement to help check the excesses of the foreign pay cable operators who they claim are siphoning the resources of the country into their different countries.

Arising from a one day meeting in Aba, hosted by the Modern Communications Limited [MCL], the Chairman of the association, Kunle Osisaya-Afolabi said that apart from the giving a steady power supply the enactment of the antitrust law will also help to stabilize the industry.

Osisaya-Afolabi noted with regrets that in the areas where the Power Holding Company of Nigeria [PHCN] have their electric transformers, that they are not properly earthed, “thereby causing us untold hardship with equipment blowing up when there is a little problem”.

He called on the federal government not to be deceived with what is going on with Startimes and NTA, saying that it is one of the ways the country’s capital flight take effect, stressing that no country allows other foreign companies to use its national television and staff for transmission.

58 NEWS

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

rule of law be your goal, I’m still in ACN, says Boroffice Let Aregbesola tells new SANs T A

senator representing the Ondo North Sena torial District, Prof.

Ajayi Boroffice, yesterday debunked the reports in some national dailies that he had dumped the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Boroffice, a governorship aspirant of the ACN for the

SAN: Tinubu hails Falana

Damisi OJO, Akure

October 20 election, said “I’m still a member of the party.”

He described those behind the report as mischief makers and writers who feed fat on crises.

He said: “I am disturbed.

The report is baseless and mischievous. It is calculated to rubbish my integrity and portray me as political harlot.

“I still remain a committed chieftain of the ACN and I am not at any time contemplating leaving the progressive party for any other one.

“I am the only senator on the platform of the ACN from Ondo State and I am contented with this.”

The Asiwaju of Akoko urged the leadership and members of the party within and outside the state to disregard the defection story by

some people aimed at causing disaffection within the party.

He said: “I remain committed and I can assure everybody that I and my supporters have resolved to work for the success of the party in the coming election.”

He said the party would come out strong and unseat the incumbent Governor Olusegun Mimiko.

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SIWAJU Bola Tinubu, former governor of Lagos State, has hailed the elevation of Lagos lawyer and human rights crusader, Femi Falana, to the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), saying the elevation was well-earned.

"Femi Falana is most deserving of the silk, for which he has just been considered.

Despite coming so late in the day, this is one honour well earned," Asiwaju said.

Tinubu said Mr. Falana's SAN odyssey was no different from that of the late Gani Fawehinmi, SAN, whose denial of silk for a very long time became an embarrassment to everyone.

"Incidentally, both Gani and Falana belong to the same legal orientation. Both are perceived as people's lawyers; and both are human rights crusaders, even when it was very costly during the military era. Both also have contributed immensely to the development of the law as an agent of positive social change in Nigeria," the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) national leader said.

He added that the country should evolve a new culture of rewarding brilliance, merit and hard work, no matter the ideological hue of the person in consideration, adding that society could not develop without highly intelligent people, questioning the status quo and wondering why things could not be differently done.

Asiwaju Tinubu: “We must find a way to accommodate their non-conformist temper, and learn not to see critics as enemies. They are not. They are only patriots with radically different mindsets from the majority."

He added: “Mr. Falana should consider his elevation as endorsement of his positive contributions to Nigeria, and, therefore, should continue to serve his country to the best of his ability in his forte of legal activism.”

Community policing working in Lagos –Fashola’s aide

T President/Chairman of the Council Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, Aare Afe Babalola (left), presenting a plaque to Mrs. Justice Olufunlola Adekeye, a justice of the Supreme Court (centre), and the Lagos State Attorney General, Mr. Ade Ipaye, during the annual presidential dinner and conferment of fellows of the institute held at the Sheraton Hotels/ Towers, Ikeja…yesterday.

PHOTO: ADEGUNLE OLUGBAMILA

Ogun CNPP calls for peaceful LG election

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ONFERENCE of Nige rian Political Parties (CNPP), Ogun State Chapter, has called on the electorate in the state to come out en-mass and exercise their voting rights in the July 21 local government election in the state.

Eight of the 14 political parties fielding candidates in the election urged their members to conduct themselves peacefully during the polls, while also calling on the Ogun State Independent Electoral Commission (OGSIEC) to ensure a free and fair election and the contestants to avoid violent campaigns In a communiqué issued

after a pre-election press conference held in Abeokuta and jointly signed by the Ogun CNPP chairman, Otunba Owolabi Odebudo, General Secretary, Biola Lawal, and BOT chairman, Are Shola Coker, the group strongly appealed to all party agents representing various parties at the polling booths to conduct themselves in a peaceful manner, while also urging the OGSIEC to ensure all contesting parties are fairly treated without any favourism..

Representatives of the eight contesting political parties that addressed the press included Otunba

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Odebudo, Chairman, Peoples Redemption Party (PRP); Mr. Biola Lawal, Chairman, African Renaissance Party (ARP); Mr. Sola Coker, Chairman, Community Party of Nigeria (CPN); Prince Segun Odediran, Chairman, Peoples Progressive Party (PPP). Others are Hon. Adebanjo Adeniyi, Chairman, Republiccan Party of Nigeria (RPN); Alhaji M.I. Quadri, Chairman, All Progressive Ground Alliance (APGA); Pastor J.A. Odejide, Chairman, Action Party of Nigeria (APN); and Chief O. Ezekiel, Chairman, Citizens Party of Nigeria (CPN).

Local councils crucial to development —Amosun

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GUN State governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, has said that local governments play a crucial role in the development of the state.

The governor disclosed this yesterday during the fourth day of his campaign tour of Imeko Afon, Yewa

North, Abeokuta North and Ewekoro local government areas in preparation for the July 21 local council polls in the state.

Local governments, according to the governor, assist in rapid development of local communities through provision of infrastructure,

Bishop attributes Nigeria’s stagnation to political class HE Bishop of Awori Diocese (Anglican Communion), Rt. Revd.

(Dr.) Johnson Akin Atere, has attributed the nation’s state of insecurity, monumental level of corruption and deplorable condition of infrastructure to the political class.

Atere, who made this remark during the presentation of the “Bishop Charge” at the second session of the first synod of the Diocese of Awori, with the theme “The Church: A Movement not a Monument” (Mark 9: 2 – 8), held at the Holy Trinity Anglican Church, Ilogbo-Ota, Ogun State, stressed that the three tiers of government

HE Governor of Osun State, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, has charged the 25 legal practitioners newly conferred with the Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) award by the Legal Practitioners Privileges Committee (LPPC) to strive in the cause of justice as well as raise the integrity of the administration of justice in the country.

This was contained in a congratulatory statement signed by the governor’s Director, Bureau of Communications and Strategy, Mr. Semiu Okanlawon, in honour of the renowned human rights crusader and Lagos lawyer, Barrister Femi Falana, and 24 others who have been named as the news SANs. The governor said their conferment with the SAN honour is a clarion call to higher duties as ministers in the temple of justice, a call which must be answered forthwith now that the ship of justice system in Nigeria is rudderless and needs people of unquestionable character to steer it to the right path.

According to the governor, the present state of anomie across the country is, to a great extent, due to the pervading atmosphere of injustice in social, political, economic and religious spheres of the society.

“Even though the honour was long overdue, yet it does not detract from the fact that with or without the award, you have fought and are still fighting with fervour and unequalled zeal to uphold the rule of law and defend the human rights and dignity wherever they appear to have been breached or threatened,” the governor said.

were currently operating below the general expectation of the citizenry in tackling the issues of insecurity, corruption and infrastructural deficiency in the country.

Specifically, the cleric stated that the inability of the government to find the much desired solutions to the power situation, rising unemployment, bad road network and general state of insecurity had generated widespread concern in public and private circles.

The Bishop blamed the past and current administrators for failing to rise to the challenges of the prevailing socio-economic crisis, warning that the

twin threats from Boko Haram and the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) could pose a big distraction that will make the current administration to find it difficult to attain any development height.

Speaking on the recent killings in Jos, the Plateau State capital, the Bishop condemned the spate of violence, describing it as cowardly, despicable and a calamity of immense magnitude, calling on the government and the nation’s security operatives to carry out a proper investigation on the crisis and ensure that severe penalties are prescribed for those found culpable.

welfare services, primary education, public health, collection of rates and granting of various licences, registration of deaths, marriages and births, maintenance of markets and motor parks, slaughter houses, public conveniences, roads, streets, drains, refuse and sewage disposal and so on, thereby bringing government nearer to the people.

“Such important responsibilities,” Amosun said, “should, therefore, not be left to those who do not mean well for our people. The ACN, as you all know, is committed to the development of the grassroots and general welfare of our people. This we have demonstrated in the last one year. This is why we must troop out on July 21 to vote for the candidates of our party for chairmanship and councillorship positions.”

He promised party faithful that his administration would continue to assist the local councils to be able to discharge those responsibilities to the people.

HE Lagos State Govern ment has said that com munity policing is a major strategy being employed to checkmate security challenges in the state.

Speaking at a security seminar organized for members of the Police Assistance Committee (PAC) in Lagos, Security Adviser to the Lagos State governor, Mayor Tunde Panox (rtd) said the idea of community policing whereby everyone involved in giving information to the police and other security agencies to combat crime has been working magic in Lagos state.

The Security Adviser, during an interactive session at the security workshop, emphasized the need for both young and old people within the community to constantly give information to the police on every strange movement or happening around them, stating that “everybody is a neighborhood watcher in Lagos State.”

Major Panox said the Lagos State government had always been taking security issues seriously by equipping and assist-

ing the police in the state through the state security trust fund set up for that purpose which he said was working well for the state.

The Security Adviser, who pointed out that human elements are the problem in every security situation, further stressed the need for religious and traditional leaders within the communities to work more in counselling their members and subjects on the importance of keenly observing what goes on around them always and passing such information to security operatives.

He enjoined the citizenry in the state to be security-conscious at all times, adding that those who engage domestic and other categories of employees must thoroughly screen them before employing them.

Speaking at the seminar the Director General of Police Assistance Committee (PAC), Dr. Martins Oni, also commended the strategy adopted by the Inspector General of Police, Alhaji Mohammed Abubakar, on community policing to address the security situation in the country.

Tank farm owners beef up security

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OLLOWING the rise of insecurity in the country, Tank Farm Owners at the Ibru Complex, Ibafon, Apapa, Lagos, have beefed up security to protect lives and property at the largest terminal in Africa for the importation of petroleum products.

In a letter to the Zonal Chairman of the Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD) branch of the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), the stakeholders explained that "with the rise in tempo of insecurity in the country, we have been advised once more to step up security and ensure that only people with legitimate business to the complex should be allowed within and around the complex.

The letter signed by the Chairman, Technical Committee of Committee of Directors, Mr. Godfrey Okorie, enjoined the PTD to clear its various unit offices of all illegal activities.

Okorie listed illegal traders, illegal petroleum products traders, unknown visitors, among others as some of the illegal activities that must stop.

The letter also stated that the Ibru management had made available a car park with adequate security in front of the jetty for the use of visitors and it advised the drivers to always direct their visits to use the car park.

NAFDAC raids chemical hawkers in Ondo

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N a bold move to decisively curb the menace of hawking chemi cals in the open markets and streets in Ondo State, operatives of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control-(NAFDAC) have commenced a major raid and enforcement activities accross the state impounding chemicals and related sustances worth over N2.5m.

The action of the regulatory officers, which took some stakeholders by surprise, was necessitated to sanitise the chemical markets, its sales and distribution chain to ensure compliance to the requirements of the law.

Speaking to news men in Akure, the state capital, after the twoday operation, NAFDAC’s Head in the state, Mr. Paul Agbejimi, said the agency as a regulatory body was concerned and had to come in to eradicate the hawking “because of the ubiquitous nature of chemicals in the very wide range of their uses both poison and hazardous, there was a need for total control to ensure their safe handling, distribution, prevent diversion and avoid banned and expired ones from being sold to the public”.

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THE NATION, SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

•Major Tunde Panox (right), Special Adviser on Security to the Lagos State Governor, and Dr. Martins John Oni, Director General, Police Assistance Committee, PAC, at the security seminar / workshop by the PAC in Lagos.

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ENATORS from the North, under the aegis of The Northern Senators’ Forum, have condemned the killing of their colleague, Senator Gyang Dantong and others that were killed in Plateau State on Sunday, July 8.

The Senators, in a press release, said: “It is with deep sorrow that we condemn the killing of our colleague, Senator Gyang D. Dantong and other victims of the recent Jos crisis. As a body, our heart

Northern Senators condemn killing of Dantong, others goes to all the families of the deceased and the Government and people of Plateau State. That the life of a patriotic fellow and the lives of the others killed last Sunday were halted through violence is a wake-up call to stop violence in our midst.

We have witnessed terrorism and bloodshed the way we never

thought possible in our peaceful country.”

Northern Senators’ Forum called on Plateau State government and the Federal Government to fish out the perpetrators of these dastardly acts, bring them to book and find a lasting solution to the crisis raging in Plateau State.”

Doregos’ biography set for launch

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BOOK titled Clementina Abeke Doregos: A Woman of destiny, a biography on Sports Philanthropist and Educationist Mrs. Clementina Doregos, will be formally presented to the public today at 10 am at Saint Bernadette Schools Gowon, Estate Ipaja.

The book written by Standard Mandate International

a body of Authors provides a clue on the life of Doregos who had provided succour and upliftment by touching the lives of Nigerian Youths through sports and Education through her foundation Clementina Doregos Foundation (CADFOD).

The Coordinator Author of the Project, Pastor Nelson Ayodele said that the idea to

One year remembrance service holds for Ayotunde Ayopo ONE year remembrance service holds on Sunday, July 15, 2012 at the Owu Baptist Church, Totoro, Abeokuta in honour of Chief Ayotunde Ayopo,distingushed educationist and teacher, who died on June 11, 2011 and buried on July 16, 2011.

The deceased attended Baptist Boys High School Abeokuta and the University of Nigeria Nsukka where he

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bagged a degree in English.He also obtained a Post Graduate Diploma in Education from the University of Ibadan.

The late Chief Ayopo taught the former Governor of Ogun State, Otunba Gbenga Daniel,Group Managing Director of LASACO ASSURANCE ,Mr Olusola Ladipo-Ajayi and several others at the Baptist Boys High School, Abeokuta..

write a book on the renowned Philanthropist is based on her impeccable services to humanity.

He said that the book written by Standard Mandate International, a body of Authors provides a clue on the life of Doregos who had provided succour and upliftment by touching the lives of Nigerian Youths through sports and Education through her foundation Clementina Doregos Foundation (CADFOD).

PROPERTIES FOR SALE *6 plots of land for sale along Ikorodu/Lagos Express Way, directly facing the express. Ideal for school, petrol station, church etc.

-3 plots fenced with completed ome room self contain at Basin GRA Ilorin.

Intested person should contact 08058749912

THE NATION SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

60

EQUITIES NIGERIAN STOCK EXCHANGE DAILY SUMMARY AS AT 13-7-12

NSE index hits 11-month high

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HE market remained bullish at the close of transactions yesterday as value gains posted by major capitalised stocks pushed the market average to its recent high. Consequently, lead indicator; All-Share Index added to the 7-week high posted on Thursday, an 11month high at its closing points of 22,741.06 points.

The closest high was August 19th, 2011 when the market closed at 22,724.02 points.

Total volume transacted firmed up by 70.5 per cent, while the log of advancers against decliners confirmed the market's bullish outlook.

This coincided with positive expectation for first half earnings seasons' already prefaced by UBA and Diamond Bank's results.

By Taofik Salako and Tonia Osundolire

In summary, market added 248.10 absolute points, representing 1.10 per cent growths to close higher at 22,741.06 points.

Similarly, the Market Capitalisation of all listed equities gained N79 billion representing 1.10 per cent appreciations, to close higher at N7.260 trillion.

Gains by the following capitalised stocks; Dangote Cement (3.57 per cent), First Bank (0.62 per cent), GT Bank (1.25 per cent), Nigerian Breweries (0.75 per cent) and Access Bank (0.79 per cent) had a stronger impact on the market upturn.

Shareholders however, transacted 443.185 million shares worth N1.438 billion across 3,513 deals. The financial Services sector as

usual led in terms of volume of activities transacted. The sector traded 364.812 million shares worth N934.875 million in 2,070 deals.

Others with relatively high volume were Conglomerates, Consumer Goods, Oil & Gas, Services, Health Care and Industrial with 42.673 million shares, 15.377 million shares, 5.122 million shares, 4.807 million shares, 3.973 million shares and 3.690 million shares.

In all, 42 equities recorded price change with 24 appreciating while the remaining 18 reduced in value. Dangote Cement led the gainers table with an increase of N4.00 to close at N116.00 followed by Nigerian Breweries with a gain of N0.82 to close at N110.01.

Also this table were WAPCO, Dangote Sugar, Guaranty Trust Bank, UBN, UAC-Property, NAHCO, Dangote Flour and First Bank.

On the losers, table, PZ led with a drop of N0.75 to close at N26.00 followed by Cadbury with a dip of N0.35 to close at N14.00. Also on the table were ETI, UBA, Vitafoam, Paint Company, Redstar among others.

NIGERIAN STOCK EXCHANGE DAILY SUMMARY AS AT 13-7-12

THE NATION SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012

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SPORT EXTRA

Terry cleared of racially abusing Ferdinand C

HELSEA’S John Terry has been acquitted of racially abusing QPR defender Anton Ferdinand.

The former England captain’s explanation that he was repeating the words he thought Ferdinand was accusing him of saying was accepted by Westminster Magistrates’ Court.

Chief Magistrate Howard Riddle said: “The prosecution evidence as to what was said by Mr Ferdinand at this point is not strong.

“It is therefore possible that what he [Mr Terry] said was not intended as an insult, but rather as a challenge to what he believed had been said to him.

“In those circumstances, there being a doubt, the only verdict the court can record

is one of not guilty.”

Mr Terry admitted using the word “black” sur-

rounded by swear words towards the QPR man.

TV cameras had seen him

disputing what he believed Ferdinand thought he had previously said to him, he said.

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Continued from Back Page Nigerians who ply their trade in the United States perhaps with sprinklings of home-based stars who would join them after the Olympics. Building on the gains of London should stars with providing the facilities for the talents to play the games.

And with the basketball squad pitched against the best in the slamming and dunking game, our habitual style of relying on prayers to defeat our opponents will come to the fore. Clear to one is the need for us to ensure that the National Institutes for Sports (NIS) in Lagos move from being the centre of unmitigated corruption to the place where our coaches are trained on the new tricks of sports like we have in renowned institutes such as in Australia.

The drift of our athletes to European countries and the Americas doesn’t guarantee development. It destroys the fabrics of sports here because every talent strives to jump into any aircraft for greener pastures leaving the less talented ones at home.

Our domestic sports cannot grow when it is infested with the dreads who cannot inspire others.

Matters are made worse by the poor quality of coaching that the budding talents are exposed to. The resultant effect that they don’t know the basics of the sport which eventually hunts

Q

ATAR Airways and the Qatar Olympic Committee has announced a strategic partnership with the national airline named Official Sponsor of the Qatar Olympic Team.

Twelve Qatari athletes are set to compete in the London Games this summer, thus making up the biggest ever contingent of local stars to participate in the world’s biggest sporting event.

The Doha-based carrier will provide a fitting send off to the athletes as they prepare to join thousands of sporting stars from across the globe for the 30th Olympiad in the British capital.

The Qatari athletes are, between them, competing in four key disciplines – shooting, swimming, table tennis and athletics – during the two-week

event between July 27 and August 12.

The partnership between the two local organisations was signed by Qatar Olympic Committee Secretary General Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker at a press conference held at the Qatar Olympic Committee headquarters in Doha.

Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al Thani expressed his delight at Qatar Airways becoming a key sponsor of the Qatar Olympic team for the forthcoming London Games.

“I would like to express my thanks to Qatar Airways, like other leading national companies, in supporting the sports sector in our country in a big way,” said Sheikh Saoud.

Warri Wolves reject Bauchi centre again

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• Chelsea captain, John Terry the court premises yesterday

Flying Eagles to stick to old players HE U20 Men’s Team of Nigeria, (Flying Eagles) is optimistic that the country will qualify for the 2013 African Youth Championship in Turkey without the introduction of any new players to the team.

The Media Officer of the Team, Sam Audu while speaking on Thursday evening revealled that the coach John Obuh had what it takes to make the finals come next year June.

Audu who revealed that the coaching crew was not planning to introduce any new

Qatar Airways named official sponsor of Qatar Olympic Team

By Paul Oluwakoya players now said the country will parade the same players that will prosecute its friendly match against Benin Republic on Sunday for the 2013 African Youth Championship qualifiers.

“We don’t have the intention of trying new boys. It’s too late. What we have to do now is to consolidate on what we have." He added the team was focus at making it to the Championship, noting that it was not going to underate any oponents

enrout to Turkey.

The Teslim Balogun Stadium, Surulere, Lagos will host the prestigeous international friendly match between the U-20 Men’s Team of Nigeria, (Flying Eagles) and their counterparts from Benin Republic, on Sunday, July 15.

Officials recently confirmed that the match, meant to prepare both teams for upcoming 2013 African Youth Championship qualifiers, has now been moved to Sunday and will attract gate fees of N200 for popular side and

N300 for covered stands.

Head Coach, Sam John Obuh is expected to lead his boys into Nigeria’s later today ahead of the game, which would be the team’s first big game since a poor outing at the Cape Town International Challenge in South Africa at the end of May. The Flying Eagles will lock horns with the Junior Taifa Stars of Tanzania in Dar es Salaam on July 28 in the first leg of the 2013 African Youth Championship qualifying fixture, with the return leg in Nigeria on August 11.

The Nigerian spirit them in their chosen careers.

This drift is chiefly responsible for the empty stands during most competitions even though sports is a money spinner and the biggest platform for employing people. It is also the best public relations tool that any discerning government can use to launder its image just as it can take the youths out of the societal vices.

Global practice encourages athletes to combine sports with education. And this novelty is possible because such educational institutions are available in such developed climes. Sadly, even as our best athletes are invited from the collegiate systems, our sports chiefs keep chasing shadows by insisting that the industry is grossly under funded by the government. Yet, sports in England, Italy, Germany, France, Spain e.t.c is anchored on programmes sponsored by the blue-chip companies there.

Dr Samuel Osaigbovo Ogbemudia sports revolution in the defunct Midwestern region and Bendel State was anchored on the Afuze College of Physical and Health Education where coaches were trained. He also created the New Era College where distinguished athletes combined sports with education.

Lagosians watched in awe each time the Midwest con-

tingent stormed the Centre of Excellence for the National Sports Festival in 1973 and 1975, with the greatest spectacle being 1975, when women piloted the luxurious buses that brought the athletes. Ogbemudia used sports as the vehicle to connect with the people little wonder he didn’t need to beat any sweat to win elections in the state, years later, having made his mark as Military Governor.

Our sports administrators are tunnel-vision and think through their pockets. How do they expect the blue-chip companies when there is no sports calendar, when events can be cancelled without considering them, when money given is never accounted for and where the federal government pays lip service to the critical aspect of offering juicy tax rebates to companies that invest in sports?

The minister needs to get his men to emulate what is happening in Lagos. There is a sports renaissance in Lagos anchored by credible people that blue-chip firms’ bosses can trust. The projects get the governor’s (Babatunde Raji Fashola) backing just as he attends the opening and closing ceremonies. This gesture further emboldens the management of such donor companies to sustain the sponsorship despite their tight bud-

gets.

Fashola’s presence in big sports competitions provides the platform for the corporate world to connect with the dreams of the government.

For instance, the Lagos Boxing hall of Fame has been embraced by the youths in the state. The enthusiasm shown by the clubs in discovering talents for the fistic trade is amazing. Every edition throws up new talents and one was shocked at the manner in which a little girl boasted of her ability to be world champion. Her footwork reminded me of Mohammed Ali and it further told the story that all sports can reach for its zenith the honest, God fearing and prudent leadership. But would the National Sports Commission (NSC) offer the Hall of Fame’s chairman Wale Edun, the leadership position at the Nigeria Amateur Boxing Federation (NABF)? Under Abdullahi, it is possible.

Is it not laughable that Nigerian boxers went to training tour without sparring partners? What do you expect from boxers who would listen to tactics from coaches who only joined them in training weeks to the event?

Sports is the biggest public relations tool that government can use to change the perception of outsiders about what happens here. Nigeria

HE management and board of Warri Wolves Football Club of Warri , has restated its appeal to the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) on the relocation of the group A game of the on-going Federation Cup competition from Bauchi, as it can not allow its players and officials to travel to the Northern City of Bauchi for the competition.

Arising from an emergency meeting on Friday in Asaba, the management noted that it is still at a loss as to the reasons why the listening NFF president and the parent body the Nigeria Football Federation is insisting on Bauchi still being one of the centers for the group games despite the security challenges the center and by extension the region is facing presently.

Noting that based on the report that the NFF had assured all participating teams of was almost a pariah under the jackboot administration of the late Sani Abacha. But the world stood still to listen to our national anthem in Atlanta’96 Olympic Games when Chioma Ajunwa mountain the winners’ Dias to be decorated with the women long jump gold medal.

We may have lost that chance in London, not because we don’t have the talents but because we keep recycling failures in the sports administrators in the associations. It would have been a breath of fresh air for Nigeria, if our athletes ruled the sports arena in London. It appears to be a mirage given the way we have prepared for the Olympics. That would have done a cleansing for us amidst the spate of bombings, kidnappings, killing, corruption and others scams that bedeviled the land. I hope that at the end of the Olympics that the minister would sack the sports federations.

They have all failed to gain the confidence of the corporate world to identify their cash with sports.

Minister sir, come to Lagos and see how blue-chip companies fall over themselves to fund sports. In Lagos, sports works. Professionals run the sports federations.

Excellence isn’t compromised. I won’t be surprised if Lagos regains it leadership role without the sharp practices that former champions adopted to win the National Sports festival. Eko oni baje.

"adequate security" it engaged the services of a private security firm that was also used by the DFA during the botched attempt by Warri Wolves to host the world junior champtionship in Nigeria and from the report of the security firm, it indicated an unfavourable security report as all routes leading to the government house Bauchi, police headquarters and other security agencies in, high profile private residences, state secretariat and other public areas in Bauchi have been cordoned off, which has created serious tension in Bauchi.

Before Warri Wolves in its tradition has already a camping site in Bauchi, if it was a one or two day-event management would have conceded in allowing the team to participate, but based on the fact that the players and officials will be there a week, every thing will be done in fear, which at the end will not make them bring out their best.

That aside the management noted that since the issue of the participation of Warri Wolves FC has become of subject of media attention since the draws for the group phase of the Federation Cup was held, it feels any of this terrorist group while trying to make a point might send one of its suicide bombers to ram into the vehicle of the team, and that based on the above they have written to the DFA their decision not to be part of the event in Bauchi.

Messi wins ESPY award ahead of Ronaldo,Djokovic

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ARCELONA striker Lionel Messi has won the Excellence in Sports Performance Yearly Award (ESPY) for Best International Athlete.

The No.10 ended the 2011-12 season with a club record 73 goals, and helped his side to victories in the Spanish Supercopa, European Super Cup, the Club World Cup and the Copa del Rey. In recognition of his achievements over the past campaign, he has pipped Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo, reigning US and Australian Open tennis champion Novak Djokovic and female golfer Yani Tseng to the prestigious honour, presented by sports broadcaster ESPN.

Tomorrow in THE NATION PUNCHLINE

What strategy or strategies do we need to fight corruption that we have never heard of? We know what to do if truly we want to fight the menace —Tunji Adegboyega

SATURDAY, JULY 14, 2012 TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM VOL.7, NO. 3086

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agree entirely with the cerebral and highly analytical Is‘haq Modibbo Kawu who in his Thursday column in Vanguard newspaper, contended that today’s governorship election in Edo State has wider implications beyond the confines of the ‘Heartbeat of Nigeria’. Kawu masterfully located the epic battle for power in Edo within the macro context of the ongoing struggle for the political soul of a clearly dysfunctional Nigeria. The conduct of the election and how far its outcome genuinely reflects the will of the majority will go a long way in determining whether democracy will be deepened in Nigeria or the country will accelerate faster on her current disastrous route to state failure and national disintegration.

This is a historic and decisive moment in the evolution of Nigeria. Ah, what interesting times to be alive in a country at once so blessed and yet so cursed as Lord Lugards’ contraption is. The old over centralised, excessively bureaucratised and morally bankrupt Nigeria is clearly dying. A new more democratic, truly federal Nigeria with higher moral integrity is struggling to be born.

Beneficiaries of the old order are determined to preserve the oppressive and hopelessly corrupt status quo. They are best emblematized by an increasingly insensitive Goodluck Jonathan presidency that: (1) doesn’t give a damn about public declaration of assets (2) openly disdains a recommendation of the National Judicial Council (NJC) for the reinstatement of an unjustly suspended President of the Court of Appeal (PCA) and (3) so provocatively spurns an invitation from an arm of the National Assembly for a briefing on the unacceptable state of insecurity in the country.

Unfortunately, the supposed opposition mid-wives of a new order, passionate as they sound about the need for fundamental change, are perennially incapacitated by organizational incoherence and ideological incongruity. Even then, the death throes of the old order are all too evident in the ever worsening poverty, surging unemployment, mass hunger, chronic insecurity, endemic corruption, collapsed infrastructure and other indices of utter state failure that characterize contemporary Nigeria.

Yet, despite the gloom, there are some signs of hope. Let us just cite just three: (1) The President says on national television that he doesn’t ‘give a damn’ about publicly declaring his assets as a matter of ‘personal principle’. But following a written request by a Non Governmental Organization citing the Freedom of Information Act, the Presidency has been forced to admit that the information on the president’s assets can be obtained from the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB). So public opinion does matter after all; (2) The Presidency says there is no going back on the controversial renaming of the University of Lagos after the pro-democracy icon, Chief MKO Abiola. But a competent court has ordered a stay of execution on the matter pending its resolution of a dispute before it. So the President’s word is not law after all and (3) Against all odds, the NJC has reversed itself and decided to remedy

All eyes on Edo

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•Oshiomhole the grave injustice done to the suspended President of the Court of Appeal, (PCA), Justice Ayo Salami, by recommending his reinstatement. No matter how partisan he is inclined to be, the President can certainly not continue to stonewall on the matter indefinitely. Implication: Our institutions can be made to work and justice will ultimately triumph. Surely, there is hope for Nigeria.

The architects of the current dispensation did Nigeria a gross disservice in 1999. Was it not democracy we struggled and clamoured for? Yes, they gave us a form of electoral democracy aplenty shorn of its substantive content. We thus had elections in which we frequently voted without choosing. They gave us so much motion without movement; so much change without transformation. The more we voted, the more things remained the same. The more the country’s earnings from oil soared, the more the quality of our lives deteriorated. Yet, the more the miseries and agonies of Nigerians increased, the more emphatic the ‘victories’ of the ‘largest party in Africa’ at the polls became first in 2003 and then even more scandalously in 2007 and 2011!

As God would have it, a most illustrious persona of noble heritage emerged as Presi-

Again, it would appear that Governor Oshiomhole has played his politics adroitly without antagonizing popular political sentiment in the South-South. Thus, a key supporter of President Jonathan in the zone, the highly respected Chief Edwin Clark on Thursday warned on the need to “let the people cast their votes according to their conscience” and that “Nobody, regardless of his status, should rig the election in the name of Mr. President

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dent in 2007. I refer to the late President Umaru ‘Yar Adua. Without any prompting, Yar ‘Adua admitted that he was elected through a flawed electoral process and initiated electoral reforms. To be fair to him, President Jonathan initially continued in the spirit of his late predecessor but as he settled into office, the gains of the brief Yar’Adua tenure in this regard have been eroded. The greatest assault on democracy under Dr. Jonathan’s watch has been against the integrity and autonomy of the judiciary. Even though all the allegations against Justice Salami have been found baseless and consequently dismissed by the country’s apex judicial authority, the NJC, for instance, President Jonathan has refused to reinstate a jurist he suspended with uncharacteristic alacrity on the recommendation of the same NJC. This is clearly an attempt to send a signal to courageous jurists to toe the line of the ruling party in future electoral disputes or face the Salami treatment. Again, the constitution has been amended to ensure that electoral disputes which formerly terminated at

the Appeal Court level must now go all the way to the Supreme Court. Despite the increase in time for the prosecution of cases that this implies, the constitution has equally been amended to give a ceiling of 180 days in which electoral disputes must be resolved or they automatically lapse. Can there be a clearer example of a systematic attempt to emasculate the judiciary’s capacity to redress electoral injustice?

Another disturbing development under Dr. Jonathan is the virtual militarization of the process of conducting elections. Thus, troops are massively deployed in a ‘show of force’ in states where elections are held. It is ironical that a leadership that cannot maintain security in several parts of the country where terrorists and armed bandits reign supreme is not embarrassed to dissipate the time, energy and attention of troops for routine elections that the police should ordinarily be able to handle.

It is thus within this context that today’s election in Edo is taking place. The campaigns for the polls have been quite interesting and sometimes quite feisty. Governor Adams Oshiomhole’s strategy was to concentrate on his widely acknowledged infrastructural transformational across all zones of the state to make the case for his second term bid. The massive turn out at his rallies suggest that he connected well with the people in this regard. On its part, the PDP has consciously sought to distance itself from a past it is clearly uncomfortable with in the state. Thus, its candidate, MajorGeneral Charles Airehiavbere (rtd) often spoke of the ‘new PDP’. But will the electorate not rely on the past to assess the present and project into the future?

Also, the PDP has sought to play on the need for Edo State to join other South-South states in the mainstream PDP as a mark of solidarity with President Jonathan. Again, it would appear that Governor Oshiomhole has played his politics adroitly without antagonizing popular political sentiment in the South-South. Thus, a key supporter of President Jonathan in the zone, the highly respected Chief Edwin Clark on Thursday warned on the need to “let the people cast their votes according to their conscience” and that “Nobody, regardless of his status, should rig the election in the name of Mr. President”.

If today’s election in Edo reflects the will of the people, there will be renewed faith in the capacity of electoral democracy to promote good governance and development. If it does not, future elections will inevitably be “do or die” affairs that must be won at all costs. This is particularly so given the growing improbability that courts, following the manipulations of the PDP, will be able to redress electoral injustice. Now, we are confronted with a disturbing paradoxical situation in the country. Illegitimate armed groups operate with impunity across Nigeria at the same time that the legal security agencies are showing increasing incapacity to guarantee public safety. At this rate, it will be only a matter of time before things completely fall apart if people lose faith in elections as a mechanism for accurately reflecting their will.

Ade Ojeikere on Saturday talk2adeojeikere@yahoo.com

The Nigerian spirit

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T is another Olympics season. The media is buzzing with memories of our past exploits at a time others are telling other contenders who their medalists are. Previous winners such as Usain Bolts are beginning to re-strategise having been humbled in their countries’ qualifiers. The mood in London is that of welcoming champions.

We appear to think that the Spartan Nigerian spirit will always lead us to create upsets. We hinge all our plans on prayers as if God has shut others from his sights. Yet we know that the holy book forbids slothfulness. It is about time this Nigerian spirit fails us so that we can properly appraise the way we do things for the better.

But does Nigeria stand any chance of mounting the winners’ podium? If your reply is in the affirmative, then you must think that preparing for the Olympics is a piece of cake. Winners at the 2012 London Olympics began their work at the end of the 2008 Beijing Olympics. They tested their preparation through international sports competitions in the last four years. They are now programmed to explode in London not the guess work exercise that Nigeria is preparing for. It is true that Chioma Ajunwa shocked the world in 1996. Such pyrrhic feats come once in our lifetime. Chioma’s is our last.

Our problematic evaluation starts when we only compare the past with the present to justify why we must not panic about going to London. But, the truth is that those past

heroes were some of the best in their trades at the time they went to the Atlanta’96 Olympic Games or even before that edition.

They would have been described as flops, if Nigeria didn’t excel in the football competition for instance.

The Dream Team I was an amalgamation of the best of the country’s stars to her debut World Cup appearance in United States and the winners of the Japan 1993 U-17 World Cup Golden Eaglets squad. Yet this Dream Team 1 had some other players who were playing regularly for top European clubs such as Victor Ikpeba, Taribo West. The team was so talented that Jonathan Akpoborie, a nightmare to many German sides with the ease with which he scored goals for his team in the Bundesliga never made the cut, a rarity many Germans couldn’t understand until

Nigeria lifted the gold medal.

The talk in town suggests that Nigeria’s best outing has been the Atlanta’96 Olympic Games. The big question however is- when would we stop celebrating our best outing in the past? Why can’t we identify where the problem is and ask those incapable hands to quit for others with fresher ideas? Do we expect changes when those who are leading us to London have already doctored the election document to ensure their return unchallenged.

Interestingly, the sports minister Bolaji Abdullahi understands the new direction by stating categorically that plans to excel at the Brazil 2016 Olympic Games begins for Nigeria with the gains from the London edition. I believe Abdullahi especially as he posited that qualifying for the basketball event should signpost the need to see sports from its totality than just football.

What Abdullahi didn’t say is that even the basketball squad is built on the abilities of

•Continued on Page 63

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