The Nation June19-2011

Nigeria’s truly national newspaper

Abuja blast: IG orders release of exhibit, accident vehicles nationwide

– Page 6

Joint security forces to comb hideouts in Borno, Yobe states

VOL. 05, N0. 1795

SUNDAY, JUNE 19, 2011

TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM

N200.00 Life

My 31 co-lawmakers are my new husbands — Oyo State first female Speaker – Pages 19&20

• First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan (centre) flanked by Hajia Amina Sambo, wife of the Vice President, (R) and Dame Judith Amaechi, wife of Rivers State Governor at the 27th Convocation ceremony of the University of Port Harcourt yesterday PHOTO: NAN

Cabinet: Obasanjo now to choose S/West nominees No place for Bankole, Omisore, Teslim-Folarin, others Lagos PDP still divided over choice

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Five JAMB exam candidates die in auto crash

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

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Mobile phones version of M.K.O Have your Abiola say video for free download

•M.K.O Abiola

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HE Nation newspaper, yesterday, released mobile phones video version of its acclaimed databank and archive mini-documentary on the Life and Times of Bashorun M.K.O. Abiola for free download from the internet. The epochal video is available for free download via a weblink on the

facebook page of the The Nation Databank’s PCUser2User. It is located at www.facebook.com/pcuser2user The unique 18-minute extract of the special video and data disc documentary which was given free with the newspaper in 2009, was opened up for free mobile phones downloads yesterday in response to a deluge of download requests on the facebook page on which it was first offered as a regular televisionviewable home video last week.

Nigeria’s novel digital-age marketing forum OpenMarket, had released the historical video for free viewing via the internet’s largest video library, Youtube last weekend. That first video release on the internet for ‘viewing only’ last Sunday, was to mark the 18th Anniversary of the June 12, 1993 Nigerian Presidential election.

By Wednesday, just three days after the video was released for viewing only on the internet, the Databank had received more than 350 requests for download access by Nigerians within and outside the country. More than 200 of the requests were from mobile phone users and the regular televisionviewable version of the video was immediately freed for download on the internet.

By yesterday, Nigeria’s oldest private

media archive, the 23-year old Media Databank, in partnership with the country’s premier private digital archive, The Nation Databank, had published the first-ever mobile phonesviewable version of the acclaimed minibiography. It is in six parts of three minutes each.

More than half of Nigeria’s 80 million mobile phone users, including BlackBerry and Nokia phones, will now be able to download and play copies of the video on their phones.

Virtually every modern phone user will also now be able to copy and share the videos with other phone users who may not have downloaded the video directly. The video is available for download for a limited time, but will remain viewable on the internet for ever, on the world’s largest online video databank YouTube.

The Abiola video documentary begins with a rerun of the popular Hope ‘93 political campaign jingle M.K.O. is Our Man o, which today is perhaps Nigeria’s most-loved Presidential campaign jingle. It goes through rehashes of the beginnings of the June 12 crisis, with video clips of the actual voting, by the eventual winner of the annuled election Bashorun M.K.O. Abiola.

The video documentary also runs through what is perhaps Nigeria’s knotiest peacetime political crisis, which followed the criminal annulment of the election and abortion of the announcement of the election results by the military regime.

General Babangida’s infamous televised broadcast, in which the then head of state tried unsuccessfully to explain why the election had to be annuled, is also featured in the video package.

Although The Nation Databank has more than six hours of archival videos on the June 12, crisis, the duration of the video that has now been released for internet download, was determined by file-size limitation imposed for single videos to be viewed or downloaded through YouTube free of any payments for example.

The video was also broken down into chunks of small downloadable parts for easier and faster downloads in Nigeria, because of the slow and unreliable nature of basic internet service in the country. The video also had to be warehoused specially in an open digital store hosted by Easy-Share, one of the internet’s leading websites specially for the downloads of large computer files intended for free distribution and sharing worldwide

Africans in New York react to suicide bombing in Nigeria

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MA Mensah from Ghana I think it’s tragic and just horrific.

And the fact that it was actually done at the police headquarters is just something that brings to scale how global terrorism has become in the world today. Who would have thought that in Africa you would have Islamic terrorist sects?

I pray and hope that the Nigerian police do put a stop to it, but at this point in time, their previous actions don’t give me much confidence. This is not the first time to my knowledge that Boko Haram has acted and blown things up, but up till now, there has been no apprehension. This group seems to be going on and on and they don’t seem to be stopped.

E.C. Ejiogu from Nigeria It is a tragic affair, but this is not the first time, I wonder why people should be so perplexed about it. It has been happening over and over in the last few months. So it is a continuation of the instability that is evident in the system of a society that doesn’t want to be responsive to what it should do to solve the issues politically.

When have the police in Nigeria been efficient or realistic? We’ve been having cri-

By Adeola Fayehun, New York

sis, which one of them has been solved by the police? So don’t just mention the police.

Fungai Maboreke from Zimbabwe It’s not something unexpected but it’s quite disturbing in the sense that it is a suicide bombing from an Islamic sect, and this is quite a threat to the security system of the country. And it causes a certain amount of concern on how safe the place is.

I do not have confidence in the Nigerian police system, not at all. Because there is corruption everywhere and crime all over the place and they haven’t been able to curtail it.

Mohammed Bah from Guinea I was shocked and very surprised. We already have enough trouble in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea where am from, we don’t want suicide bombing in Africa.

To be honest, I do not trust the Nigerian police; that’s my personal opinion. The reason is that Nigeria has a long record of corruption going on, and it’s very hard to now trust them.

Omoyele Sowore from Nigeria When they were about to detonate the bomb, the traffic officer entered the car with

the suicide bomber and was directing him.

The reason why the Nigerian police do that is because when they catch you, they would enter your car so that you can negotiate bribe with them. But this person he was in the car with was not in the mood to pay bribe because he was about to pay the supreme price for his own convictions, so that was how the traffic officer died. There were a lot of injuries; the police are still hiding it.

Sadou Barry from Guinea Right now, we should be thinking of how to rebuild our countries, we shouldn’t even be thinking at all of suicide bombing like this. I was shocked when I heard.

I won’t say I don’t trust the Nigerian police, but I don’t think they’re doing their job the way they’re supposed to be doing it. They have to do better.

• Ama Mensah

•Mohammed

Have your say Following the sucide bomb blast of the police headquarters in Abuja, what can be done to stop the spate of bombing in the country?

— Send SMS with full name and location before Wednesday to 08074473182 Responses to previous week’s question are on pages 48 & 52

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Column

A Long Revolution A

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nooping around With

Tatalo Alamu provement on the previous three, Nigeria is still beset by fundamental problems. The inequities of a phantom federalism will not go away. With the old west tugging at its rotting innards in a show of sophisticated brinkmanship, with the core north in tactical revolt as seen in the Tambuwal episode, a far more potent threat to national survival has now appeared in the horizon. Now, with the bombing of the police headquarters in Abuja by a suicide squad, the Boko Haram sect has turned Nigeria into another Pakistan. It represents a militant disavowal

of the post-colonial nation as a modernist, proto-Judaic project.

It has virtually overrun the state in the north east. Because it is religiously inspired, it is driven by a wild and merciless fanaticism which strikes at the very notion of the modern nation and its modernizing impetus.

This morning as part of a continuing national dialogue over the fate of the nation, snooper yields space to a veteran pen-pusher and notable academic.

Adebayo Lamikanra is a professor of pharmaceutics at the Faculty of Pharmacy, OAU, Ife.

The end of an argument

States and would have taken Ondo State but for the violent protests which prevented the erstwhile deputy governor turned NPN stalwart from holding on to his stolen mandate.

The NPN was only allowed to savour its fraudulent victory for three months before the Army intervened in a coup which condemned the nation to sixteen sterile years of military rule. The less said about those wasted years the better but it is worth noting that it was during those years that the country plumbed the depths of infamy, first when in 1993 the wishes of the nation expressed in what continues to be described as the freest and fairest elections in the nation’s history was annulled

by Babangida and his boys. The second was when Ken Saro Wiwa, a world acclaimed writer was murdered in cold blood by a military government claiming to act in the interest of the good people of Nigeria.

The years of military rule were finally pushed to a close by the fortuitous demise of the most vicious character to have wielded power in Nigeria and a new democratic experiment began. As in the old dispensation, the old parties wearing new robes stepped into the ring and as before, the people of the South west rejected the argument that it was not expedient for them to be in opposition to the party at the centre even though the new president was, at least by the sound of his names one of them.

Not only did they reject PDP, the successor party to the NPN, they refused to endorse his candidacy even though it was clear that he was going to win the presidency since the PDP was and still is, the party of retired Army generals and the biggest retired general was none other than their man. However as in the NNDP days, there were many so called politicians willing to collaborate with the ruling party ostensibly in the interest of the zone but in reality, in the interest of their private purse.

By 2003, the equation in the South west had changed and it was no longer about collaborating with the centre since the man at the centre was one of them and was in fact occupying the post because it had had been allocated to the South west by the crooked logic of zoning subscribed to by the PDP.

•Tinubu

N argument which began fifty long years ago appears to have been settled by the results of the recently completed elections. The importance of this outcome is brought into proper perspective by the fact that the country was brought to her knees and came within a whisker of disintegration by the chain of reactions which were set in motion by this infernal argument.

The general elections of 1959 was won by the NPC but the party did not have the majority in the Federal Parliament and therefore formed a coalition government with the NCNC leaving the AG to provide opposition in the Federal parliament. At that time, the NPC was the dominant party in the North whilst the NCNC held sway in the East and the AG formed the government in the Western Region. High on the agenda of the coalition governof a new region to be carved out of the West in order to diminish further, the influence of the opposition party and moves to achieve this objective were started very early in the life of the coalition government.

The new region was duly created in 1963 under an NCNC government thereby fulfilling the objective of the Federal government because it meant not only did the AG have no influence in the centre, it lost a considerable portion of the territory that it controlled at independence. To make the situation even worse from the AG perspective, it was only in the West that there was an opposition party, the NCNC which had enough strength to entertain realistic hopes of taking over the reins of government in an election.

As if the situation was not sufficiently dire, the Federal government had by 1962 set up the Coker Commission of inquiry into the activities of the Western regional government and given the divisions within the party, it was not long before all sorts of shocking disclosures were filtering out into the public space, rocking the AG to its foundations which appeared to have been irreparably shattered when its leaders were arrested and thereafter vigorously prosecuted for treasonable felony.

Long before external forces in the shape of the Federal government began to batter the ramparts of the AG, some internal forces had begun to undermine AG defences by starting an argument about strategy. Whilst the majority of the

LONG revolution is a violent contradiction in terms; an oxymoronic balderdash, if you permit. By their nature, revolutions are short, nasty and brisk affairs brimming with blood and broken bones. But an actual revolution is not an overnight owanbe party. It is usually a long drawn affair full of stunning reversals, heartbreaking retreats and sudden advances. It has taken Mama H.I.D Awolowo to remind us that she was the first person to use the broom as a symbol of resistance to feudal oppression.

Yet it has taken fifty years after her symbolic defiance for the broom revolution to take full hold in the old west through an impossible route and an impossible set of actors. How cunning can history be!

Despite the fact that the last elections were a remarkable im-

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By Adebayo Lamikanra

party stood behind their leader, Chief Awolowo and insisted on maintaining the party’s independence, a powerful minority under the leadership of the Deputy Leader and premier of the Western Region, the eloquent Chief Akintola, argued that the best, if not the only way forward for the party, was to form an alliance with the NPC in the way that the NCNC had done. This, it must be admitted, appeared to be a very attractive proposition given that the NPC’s hegemony in the North was built on the relentless persecution of opposition groups. It was clear that the same tactics would be employed throughout the Federation as was quickly manifest by the Coker enquiry as well as the plans to bring about the dismemberment of the West through the creation of the Mid West Region. The political intentions of creating the Mid West was very clear given the fact that the agitation for the creation of new Federation units was greatest in the North where there was an active revolt in Tivland where the demands for a Middle Belt Region had gone beyond the bounds of rhetoric whilst the Eastern minority groups in the Niger Delta were to declare war on the nation very shortly after independence.

The agitation in the West fell far short of these violent measures but it was only in the West under the control of the opposition that the NPC/NCNC government thought it fit to respond positively to minority demands.

This argument simmered within the party until it came to head in May 1962 when an open fight broke out in the Western Parliament and the Federal government seized this opportunity to declare a state of emergency and appointed the personal physician to the Prime Minister as the administrator of the Western Region.

With its leaders in detention everything went rapidly downhill from then on as the AG broke into two factions. The Akintola faction, with the full backing of the Federal government , took over the government from the AG in defiance of court rulings going all the way to the Privy Council in London. In the meantime, some of the more op-

portunistic members of the opposition NCNC in the West, crossed over to the Akintola faction and formed the NNDP which went into formal alliance with the NPC for the farcical 1964 general elections.

The NNDP like its Northern mentor, the NPC , ruled the West with the power of impunity and was consequently bitterly unpopular. But, with the pernicious federal might behind it, the party was able to laugh its numerous opponents to scorn. Given the prevailing conditions, they were tolerated by the electorate which waited patiently for the mandatory elections to come. This duly came in October 1965 and the electorate turned out in their millions to chastise the government with their votes.

Elections in Nigeria had been rigged before then but never before had an election been so blatantly rigged. The opposition was simply blown away. Unfortunately for the government, the people in a fit of desperation revolted and all over the Region, all those who were connected, many of them only remotely connected to the government were set upon and killed and/or had their properties burnt to ashes.

The disturbances were so widespread that the Federal government, the same government which had declared a state of emergency over a brawl in Parliament was paralysed and could not come to the aid of its surrogates in the West.

This proved to be its undoing as it provided an excuse for the Majors to stage a coup which consumed the Sardauna, the Prime Minister, the Finance Minister, the Premier of the Western Region and several top ranking Army officers. The aftermath of that coup was another coup followed by the civil war.

And so, the argument which started as an internal matter within a political party, albeit, the best organised party in the land ,ignited a conflagration which forty-five years later, the country has not recovered from. Thick gloom in the shape of military rule descended on the country in January 1966 and it was not until 1979 that the pall was partially lifted by a return to civil rule.

Most of the old protagonists emerged from the military interreg-

num to play the same old games, most of them in the new parties which in reality were the old parties in disguise. The party to have changed most significantly was the NPC which had metamorphosed into the NPN. The old warriors in the defunct NPC duly picked up NPN party cards but from all over the country, especially the so called minority areas, politicians flocked into the NPN which had no programme other than to form the government and in this, the party was resoundingly successful, the only success which can be ascribed to that group of spectacularly clueless people. Prominent within the NPN were politicians from the South- west who were the disciples of Akintola and craved to be part of the Federal government in the same way that their deceased mentor had advocated for his party to join the government in Lagos. They clung tenaciously to the argument that led to the fragmentation of the old AG and were consequently massively rejected by the people of the South west who had cast their lot with the UPN, the new party that had risen from the ashes of the AG but this time with the addition of many members of the NCNC, erstwhile bitter rivals within the old Western Region, to revive the old UPGA coalition which had been formed to fight the 1964 general elections.

The new coalition swept the polls in the South west, including Bendel State, the successor unit to the old Mid West Region.

Unfortunately, the UPN governors did not consolidate their electoral gains and their performance though spirited was patchy and were therefore not fully prepared to face the electorate with confidence in the 1983 elections. Apart from this there was a great deal of in-fighting within the party leading to the loss of many members to the hegemonic NPN in what can now be seen as a continuation of the old argument about not being in opposition to the party ruling in the centre. The elections followed the pattern which had become established in Nigerian politics as they were massively rigged in favour of the ruling party as a result of which the NPN which the polls capturing Oyo and Bendel

Continued on page 70

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

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CBN defends sack of former T Afribank CEO HE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has defended the August 14, 2009 sack of the former managing Director /CEO of Afribank, Mr. Sebastian Adigwe.

The apex bank disclosed this in a filed Notice of Appeal at the Court of Appeal, Lagos against Hon Justice Tsoho ruling at the Federal High Court, Lagos on 15th April, 2011.

The judge had dismissed the Preliminary Objection canvassed by the CBN challenging the jurisdiction of the Court to entertain the suit, No FH/L/CS/1286/09 instituted by the alleged shareholders of Afribank Plc. The CBN had further filed a motion for stay of proceedings at the lower Court pending the determination of the appeal.

A statement from the CBN signed by its Head of Corporate Communications, Mohammed Abdullahi, said the suit instituted by the shareholders was essentially to set aside the CBN decision of 14th August, 2009 which among others removed the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer as well as the Executive Directors of Afribank Plc. The shareholders had equally sought to restrain the CBN and Corporate Affairs Commission from giving effect to any resolution of the current Board of Directors of Afribank as constituted.

Abdullahi explained that the application for stay of proceeding came up for hearing at the lower Court on 9th June, 2011, but could not be heard due to the Court’s impending vacation. “The matter was subsequently adjourned to 26th September, 2011 for hearing of the CBN’s application for stay of proceedings.

For the avoidance of doubt, NO ruling has subsequently been given on the case,” he

By Collins Nweze

said.

He said that there is deliberate attempt to mislead the public especially in the context of the recent High Court rulings in favour of the CBN in two similar cases on Bank PHB and Intercontinental Bank which will no doubt pave the way for their smooth recapitalisation.

It would be recalled that Justice James Tsoho of a Federal High Court in Lagos had declared that the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, does not have absolute power to remove bank executives without disclosing the findings and recommendations of the special examination conducted into the books of

the affected banks to their directors.

The judge made the declaration while ruling on the preliminary objection filed by the CBN and others against a suit filed by some aggrieved shareholders of Afribank over the action of the apex bank’s governor.

According to the judge, even though the CBN has power under Section 35 of the Banks and Other Financial

Nigeria tops at FLP African rally

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Law Union house Houseup upin inflames flames Law •The seven storey building Law Union house, housing various offices and organisations including a branch of Skye Bank, Plc, CashCraft and Mafix Bookshop at Alagomeji area of Lagos Mainland yesterday morning went up in flames as a result of fire whose source could not be ascertained. The fire started at around 2.30am from the underground tunnel of the building.

Before the arrival of Fire Service men with their equipment at about 6.45am who put the fire under control, the fire had done a lot of damages to property worth millions of naira as it spread to other parts of the building floor.

Photo : GRACIOUS AKINTAYO

Mimiko urged to execute masses oriented programmes A

former lawmaker in Ondo State Hon. Otito Atikase yesterday urged the Labour Party [LP] administration to embark on policies that will transform the state and enhance human capacity.

Atikase, who represented Ilaje constituency II under the platform of Peoples Democratic Party [PDP] and recently defected to Action Congress of Nigeria [ACN] said the state needs a viable economic transformation system.

Speaking on “Adaba FM” radio programme, the Director of Contact and Mobilization of Sunshine Liberation Forum [SLF] alleged that the present administration has no blueprint.

According to him, “Governor Mimiko on assumption of office in February 2009, promised to work for the entire citizenry but people are now desirous

Institutions Act to regulate and control the business of banking, there should be a disclosure when such powers would fundamentally affect interested parties.

The judge,while dismissing the preliminary objections filed by the apex bank and its appointed directors, held that the shareholders were able to convince him that there was lack of good faith towards them and Afribank in the exercise of statutory powers conferred on the CBN and its governor.

From Damisi Ojo, Akure

to see his administration in action after two years.

“Government is about planning and effective changes, but such things are not forth-coming. We need a positive change in the state.”

While responding to Atikase’s comments, the State Commissioner for Information, Mr. Ranti Akerele said government would not dignify a faceless and irresponsible group led

by Atikase.

Akerele added that the state government has transformed the state to a better place to live for its citizenry through people oriented projects.

His words, “I invite every non Ondo State visitors to come and see the unprecedented growth and development across the

length and breadth of Ondo State.

“Atikase and his faceless carpetbaggers are no more responsible than stakeholders like Papa Reuben Fasoranti, Chief Olu Falae, Bishop Bolanle Gbonigi and the ordinary folks who have unequivocally continued to support the present administration.”

However, Atikase noted that the state government was running away from reality and failed to do the biddings of the people.

“When PDP was in power former Governor Olusegun Agagu built model schools that cut across the nooks and crannies of the state, but when Mimiko’s administration came, it abandoned the project, and embarked on building of mega schools which has no peculiarity in the state except Lagos and other major cities”

Atikase stressed.

He described the state Oil Producing Areas Development Commission [OSOPADEC] as “Octopus of Corruption” stressing that no visible project had been implemented for the oil producing areas since the inception of the present administration.

Atikase said the on –going beautification programme was mainly the removal of the median on Adesida road and replacement with new ones, noting that there were many roads in Akure metropolis that are in bad shape which need urgent attention.

Speaking on the financial profile of the state, the former lawmaker said in the last 28 months, the state government had allegedly acquired N147billion from federation account, while local government received N35billion with additional N42billion as Internally Generated Revenue [IGR].

IGERIA again emerged Forever Living Products’ No. 1 Country in sales in Africa in 2010. This was announced at the just concluded African Rally held in Cape Town, South Africa. FLP South Africa was ranked 2nd.

FLP Nigeria has thus established its leadership position in Africa in the global network of the multi level marketing company.

This achievement has been attributed to the diligence of the company’s Independent Distributors all over Nigeria and Benin Republic, as well as the commitment, dedication and discipline of managing director, Mr. Cornelius Olanrewaju Tay, and wife, Caroline Tay, together with a highly efficient staff in charge of the nationwide operations of the company.

Parading nearly 600 distributors at the Rally, Nigeria/Benin pocketed most of the awards at this year’s African Rally.

Nigeria/Benin won the “Country Pride Award” which was personally handed over to the Managing Director, Mr. Tay by founder and Chairman, FLP International Inc., Mr. Rex Maughan, on the second day of the Rally. The Country Pride Award is given annually to the country that shows the greatest enthusiasm, overall good conduct and projects the culture and image of the nation they represent the most.

It was almost an all Nigeria affair as Africa’s Top 5 distributors for 2011 were recognized by Rex Maughan. Nigeria took four places in this ranking, with John and Justina Ekperigin as Africa’s No. 1 Distributor for the second year running. Kike and David Apeji emerged Africa’s No.2 Distributors; Maria and Clement Idigo, Africa’s No. 3 Distributor and Oma and Tony Attah took the fourth position in the Top 5 ranking. South Africa’s Thabani Jabulani & Nombuso Biyela came 5th.

7,260 beneficiaries get N350m loan From Hakeem Quadri, Ijebu-Ode HE Ijebu-ode Development Board on Poverty Reduction IDBPR has disbursed a total sum of N203, 240,000 as revolving loans in its micro credit scheme to about 7,260 beneficiaries including market men and women.

The chairman of the Board, Chief Olubusola Okuboyejo made the revelation at the 11th Annual General Meeting held at the palace Awujale on Thursday.

Addressing stakeholders made up of board members, beneficiaries, representative of NAPEP, Abuja headquarters, and other non-governmental agencies, Okuboyejo explained the trading and profit and loss account for the year ended 31st December 2010 and five years financial summary showed that the results were impressive compared to year 2009.

In its Enterprise Development Programme the chairman revealed that the board has disbursed a sum of N143,371,936 to 1,384 beneficiaries under the Enterprise Development Programme Scheme.

In his remarks, the Chairman Board of trustees, Prof Akin Mabogunje lamented the lackadaisical attitude and non performance of the Ijebuode local government and other councils in Ijebu land to support the activities of the board, saying there was need for a change of attitude.

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Mrs. Kujimiyo is dead

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RS. Elizabeth Adeyinka Kujimiyo has passed on.

Kujimiyo, a staff of the Federal Ministry of Culture and Tourism, she died on Saturday, June 11, 2011.

Mrs. Kujimiyo, 49, will be buried on Friday, June 24, 2011 at Kujimito’s family house in Ilado, Ijebu, Ogun State after a funeral mass at Catholic Church of the Assumption, Oke-Maria, Ilado, Ijebu.

There will be Service of Songs and Mass at the family residence at Federal Housing Estate, Lugbe, Abuja on Tuesday, June 21, 2011.

She is survived by her husband, Olusegun Olufunlade Kujimiyo and son, Oluwaseun.

...Margret Okereke too THE Isinebu Ojo (Chief dancer), of Aroikpa Autonomous Community,inUmunneochiLocal Government, Abia State, Chief Mrs.Margret NwakaegoOkereke, is dead.

Okereke, aged 82 died on the 17th April this year after a brief illness.

She was the first daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Robinson Ochiabretor and wife of Mazi Alfred Okereke.

She is survived by Gladys Nnennaya, Solomon Emeruwa, BasseyObasi,VictorChima,Ebere, Philip and keneth Amaobi.

•Late Mrs. Okereke

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

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S the nation awaits the announcement of the new cabinet from President Goodluck Jonathan, informed sources at the seat of power, yesterday, disclosed to The Nation that the president may have given ex-president Olusegun Obasanjo the sole prerogative to pick the nominees from the Southwest zone.

There also strong indications that some former members of the National Assembly, who had initially been penciled down for ministerial positions may not be considered after all.

A source told The Nation “Ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo may be given the latitude on the choice of nominees from the South-West. The President does not want any clash with Obasanjo on the choice of nominees from the South-West.’’

It was also learnt that security agencies have concluded final checks on the first and second batches of 20 nominees sent to them.

But while it is being speculated that Prof.

Bartholomew Nnaji may head the Ministry of Power, the battle for the slot from Oyo State is between Ms Jumoke Akinjide and a former Senate Leader, Senator Teslim Folarin.

But party leaders in Oyo State are said to be keen on Jumoke Akinjide.

Investigation by The Nation showed that final checks have been conducted on 20 out of the 42 nominees of the President.

According to findings, the complete list of nominees would be forwarded to the Senate on or before its resumption on June 28.

A reliable source said: “There is so much anxiety on the list as ex-Ministers and other speculated

News

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Cabinet: Jonathan bows to Obasanjo From Yusuf Alli, Managing Editor, Northern Operation

nominees have been infiltrating the presidency and Office of the Senate President to ascertain whether they have made the final list or not. Some of the nominees are desperate to the extent that they have cultivated key aides of public officers connected with the nomination process.

“This is the first time the cabinet will be composed in a water-tight manner such that even exMinisters are unsure of their fate.

A former Minister, who spoke in confidence, said: “Some of us ought to have travelled overseas, but we could not go because we are anxious to see the list to enable us plan the next action. I think the cabinet will fully take-off on or by the middle of July.”

A presidency source, however, said: “There is no basis for anxiety because the list will be unveiled next week. The President has done his homework and the nation will be better for it.”

Responding to a question, the source added that “there are still a few challenges in Lagos, Oyo and Rivers State. Take the case of Oyo State, some key leaders of the party prefer ex-Governor Adebayo Alao-Akala; others favour Ms Jumoke Akinjide, while a few others want ex-Senate Leader, Senator Teslim Folarin. But some forces in the presidency are rooting for Mrs. Mulikat Adeola-Akande, who was defeated in the House a fortnight ago by

• Ex-President to choose Southwest nominees • No place for former Senators, Reps Speaker Aminu Tambuwal. “The PDP leaders are, however, joining issues with Folarin over his alleged anti-party activities during the last elections in Oyo State.

They alleged that Folarin did not show much commitment to the party’s victory at the poll.

“There is, however, a zonal snag to the slot for Oyo, as some PDP leaders are claiming that Ibadan zone cannot produce the state governor and still get the ministerial slot. As it is now, the party leaders are saying that since the governor is from Ibadan; the deputy from Oke-Ogun and the Speaker from Oyo, the Ogbomoso axis ought to produce the Minister.

Both Akala and Mulikat are from Ogbomoso.

Although Mulikat had about an hour private audience with the First Lady, Dame Patience Jonathan last Sunday at the Presidential Villa, it could not be immediately ascertained if the Ministerial issue was discussed or not.

The Lagos State chapter of the PDP is also still divided on the choice of its ministerial candidate as the party is at crossroads over who to pick.

While a former Deputy National Chairman of the PDP, Chief Olabode George is trying to call the shot, most party members are opposed to any candidate from George.

It was learnt that George, who was said to have conferred with the

President and the national leadership of the PDP on Thursday, is seeking the nomination of either a former Commissioner for Health in Lagos State, Dr. Segun Ogundimu or the governorship candidate of the party in the last poll, Dr. Ade Dosumu.

But the ex-PDP chieftain was said to have favoured Ogundimu.

One of the forces opposed to Bode George, who also flew into Abuja yesterday, said: “We won’t accept Ogundimu because he is not from Lagos State. He is from Ogun State.

“Ogundimu worked well as a commissioner in Lagos but we want an indigene this time around.

We have slept over our right over the years but this will no longer be the case.”

Section 147 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), empowers the President to constitute his cabinet to reflect the Federal Character Principle.

The Section says: “There shall be such offices of Ministers of the Government of the Federation as may be established by the President.

“Any appointment to the office of Minister of the Government of the Federation shall, if the nomination of any person to such office is confirmed by the Senate, be made by the President, “Any appointment under subsection(2) of this section by the President shall be in conformity with the provisions of Section14(3) of this Constitu-

L–R: Governor Muazu Babangida Aliyu of Niger State chatting with the Etsu Nupe, Alhaji (Dr) Yahaya Abubakar (R) and Governor of Benue State, Hon Gabriel Suswam during the Wedding Fatiha of Etsu Nupe’s children at his palace in Bida on Friday.

tion provided that in giving effect to the provisions aforesaid the President shall appoint at least one Minister from each state, who shall be an indigene of such state.”

Concerning the fate of ex-Senators and former Reps, THE NATION gathered that security reports on the ongoing alleged loan scandals in the House of Representatives have changed the cabinet game plan of President Goodluck Jonathan.

Investigation by our correspondent confirmed that the presidency was not comfortable with security reports on how the funds of the House and running cost of members of the 6th National Assembly were enhanced in defiance of the directive of the Revenue Mobilization and Fiscal Allocation Commission.

It was gathered that the President had initially planned to accommodate some ex-Senators and former members of the House of Representatives in the 6th National Assembly who either lost at the primaries or general elections in April.

But the House scandal has changed the cabinet game equation in the presidency following seeing security reports that the two chambers allegedly benefited from enhanced ‘running cost.’

It was also learnt that some Senators (names withheld) actually backed ‘collapse of statutory funds’ by the House and at a point facilitated the lending of the Senate funds to the House to ‘augment the running cost’ of former Representatives.

A top source, who spoke on the matter, said: “Based on security reports, the President is no longer keen in making some members of the 6th National Assembly Ministers again.

“You know during the countdown to the PDP primaries, he had struck an unwritten deal with principal officers that the party will be as fair as possible to ensure a near automatic return of lawmakers wanted by their constituents. That was why he went to a greater extent to see that exSpeaker Dimeji Bankole got the party’s ticket. It was in line with the agreement with Senators and Reps that the President of the Senate, Chief David Mark and his deputy, Chief Ike Ekweremadu were returned to office. The President had also offered to integrate a few former Senators and exRepresentatives into his cabinet.

“But reports from security, anti-graft agencies, and the management of the National Assembly have

shown that there was not much difference between the Senate and the House in the ‘enhancement of running cost by the 6th National Assembly. Although no petition or issue has been raised against the Senate, some House leaders are presently on trial for alleged loan bazaar and mismanagement of funds.

“By implication, all members of the 6th House of Representatives have a case or the other to answer.

And if a probe is launched into the Senate funds, there could be issues to contend with. But the President does not want a strain in the relationship between the Executive and the Legislature. Any full-scale investigation of the two chambers will heat up the polity and may further erode the integrity of the Legislature.

“So he decided to leave the situation as it is concerning the 6th National Assembly.

In line with his commitment to anti-corruption campaign, however, the President is tinkering with three options. These are: not interceding on behalf of former members of the 6th National Assembly on trial; putting financial checks in place to prevent such recklessness in the 7th National assembly, and avoid giving Ministerial slots to either a former Senator or Representatives in the 6th Assembly.

“The only exception might be the ex-Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Senator Bala Mohammed, who had left the National Assembly before the enhanced running cost was paid.”

As at press time, the hope of experienced Senators and House members jostling for Ministerial tickets was slim.

Although none of these ex-Senators and Reps was indicted, fingered, or convicted of any shady deal, the source said the “presidency is trying to break away from the past.”

Some of those already ‘strongly recommended’ but who may be affected are ex-Speaker Dimeji Bankole, his former deputy, Bayero Nafada, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, Senator Iyiola Omisore, Senator Teslim Folarin, Senator Abubakar Sodangi, Senator Anthony Manzo, Senator Kamorudeen Adedibu, and ex-Governor (Senator) Isiaka Adeleke, among others.

But party leaders and influential National Assembly members are mounting pressure on the President not to ‘draw a general conclusion’ on all members of the 6th National Assembly. They cited a case of Makarfi, who has a wealth of experience in finance management and is rated as a “good ministerial material.”

Another source added: “It is left to the President to decide whether he will accommodate the affected exlawmakers or not.”

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

News

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OLLOWING last week’s bomb blast in Abuja at the Police head quarters, the Inspector-General of Police, Hafiz Abubakar Ringim yesterday ordered the removal of all accident vehicles at Police stations and formations across the country.

He has also directed that all exhibit vehicles connected with cases under police investigations be released to the owners on bond or taken to court.

Two persons died in the blast while thirty five vehicles were burnt in the fire that engulfed the Police headquarters.

The Force Public Relations officer Olusola Amore in a statement

IGP orders removal, release of exhibit, accident vehicles nationwide From Sanni Ologun, Abuja and Yusuf Alli, Managing Editor, Northern Operation

in Abuja however said: “The action of the Force is to ensure adequate security of all Police stations, formations and persons coming to report cases and to forestall any breakdown of law and order.

“This directive also enjoins owners of accidented or exhibit vehicles

to approach police stations or formations where their vehicles are parked to seek for their immediate release of these vehicles within seven days.

“The Police Force wishes to assure the members of the public who are having pending cases in Police stations or formations across the country not to see this

Thumbs up for JAMB’s biometric screening

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HE decision by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) to introduce biometric screening before allowing candidates to write the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) yesterday has been lauded for helping to reduce impersonation.

The absence of writing materials for candidates who wrote the second edition of the UTME however created a huge setback.

However in future, the Board has been advised to provide each centre with more than one laptop and fingerprint scanner to reduce verification time and ensure the examination starts early.

In many centres The Nation visited in Lagos, the examination started behind schedule despite the biometric screening starting 7am – two hours before the stipulated examination time.

This notwithstanding, centre supervisors, coordinators and invigilators said the procedure acted as a check to confirm whether the candidates were genuine. In situations where the computer rejected their fingerprints, the candidates’ eslips downloaded from the Internet were checked against JAMB’s attendance register and where they corroborated, they were allowed to write the examination. But Supervisors still filled forms to report such cases to JAMB. At Saka Tinubu Secondary School, Orile Agege, Centre Supervisor, Mr Lukman Animashaun said they detected a case of impersonation at the centre.

“The scanner was able to detect impersonation. One candidate came here, a male. On

By Kofoworola Belo-Osagie and Adegunle Olugbamila, Gbenga Omokhunu, Abuja

his e-slip, he had his photograph but on the computer and the attendance, it was the photograph of a female candidate so we sent him away. Out of 540 candidates, about 30 could not scale through the scanning process so we noted their names to include in our report,” he said.

Centre Coordinator for Sanngo Secondary School, Agege, Mr B. Popoola said the examination has become saner with measures introduced by JAMB. “The examination is improving every year. The major problem we usually have is that of impersonation. But this year, the scanner has reduced the issue of impersonation to the barest minimum,” he said.

At Dairy Farm Secondary School and Sanngo Senior Secondary School, two other centres in Agege, fewer candidates had that problem. The major complaint was the time it took to verify the candidates with just one laptop.

“We started the exam 10.30am all because I wanted everybody seated in the halls. I think if JAMB can provide more than one computer for verification, we would be done with verification within one hour,” said Mrs Veronica Ikwele, supervisor for Dairy Farm Senior Secondary School.

Supervisors also complained that the candidates were not provided with writing materials as promised, which inconvenienced candidates, especially those who needed calculators.

Mr Moruf Sanusi, Supervisor for Sanngo Senior Secondary School said: “When JAMB promises to give something they

should do it because many candidates could not use calculators because of that. I only knew this morning that JAMB did not provide writing materials – erasers, pencils and calculators – as promised so I phoned the Centre Coordinator to inform candidates so they could buy, he said.

Bajulaiye Albert, a coordinator for Center 24302 in AOCOED told our reporter thus: “When the issue of non availability of writing materials got to our attention, it took the intervention of the college provost, the centre supervisor and the civil defence corps members and other officials that made quick efforts to save the situation, otherwise we would have been in a fix.”

In Abuja , The examination was yesterday delayed due to the slow pace of the biometric verification of the candidates.

Most of the centres in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja started late. One of the centres, Model Secondary School 1, Maitama the exam started at 9: 45 due to the failure of the biometric system.

The candidates had no option than to be on queue till they were screened. At about 9:30 in the morning JAMB authority had no choice than to allow the candidate go into the examination hall without going through the biometric system due to the failure.

The development hastened the conduct and starting of the examination.

JAMB registrar and Chief executive, Prof. Dibu Ojerinde who expressed disappointment about the failure of the biometric system to complete the verification of candidates said the board will improve on the development next years.

order as attempt to infringe upon their fundamental human right but to decongest police premises which have become a dumping ground for accidented and exhibit vehicles.”

Meanwhile, Following threats posed by the Boko Haram sect, security agencies have concluded plans to swoop on Borno State in order to unmask members of the sect and also restore peace in the state.

Investigations revealed this task would be a joint operation involving all security agencies and the Armed Forces.

It was gathered that security might also be tightened at all border posts leading to Borno State, especially Chad and some neighbouring states.

According to findings, the operation which has taken off on a covert note, may lead to a fullscale ‘tactical action’ against Boko Haram members once their base is identified.

The combing of Maiduguri and the entire Borno State was said to have started about a week ago.

The preliminary stock-taking by the joint operation team accounted for the pronouncement of the Inspector-General of Police, Hafiz Ringim in Maiduguri that the days of Boko Haram were numbered.

There were also strong suspicions that the closing in on the Boko Haram sect members might have informed their relocation to Abuja to strike.

A reliable source, who spoke to The Nation, said: “A constructive security engagement is already going on in Borno to dislodge the Boko Haram once and

for all.

The security agencies have been careful in their engagement because of intelligence reports that Boko Haram members have mingled with the indigenes of Borno State in all parts of the state, especially Maiduguri.

“A challenge confronting the security agencies is the strict Islamic law in operation in Borno, which implies that they cannot conduct a house-to-house search yet. But where there is any evidence of terrorism in any household, the government will know how to isolate the area and conduct a comprehensive investigation.

In his response on how long the operation would last, the source replied, “No one can say for certain if it (operation) will last one month or six months, but one thing that is sure is that there will be no respite for the Boko Haram until the sect members and their sponsors are unmasked.

“The mandate given to security agencies is to restore peace to Borno and neighbouring states. The nation has paid so many prices for their insurgency which can no longer be tolerated.”

It was learnt that a similar covert combing is going on in neighbouring states such as Yobe and Bauchi.

“We have so far discovered a place called Afghanistan in Yobe,” the source added.

On the situation at borders, the source said: “We may have to mount tight security in all our borders with Chad. We have intelligence reports that some of these Boko Haram members are Chadians who have taken advantage of their cultural affinity with Borno people to unleash mayhem

Tanibuwal’s election as speaker commended by NUF

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HE Ndigbo Unity Forum, an Ibo socio-cultural organization has commended members of the House of Representatives for electing Hon Waziri Tanibuwal as the Speaker of the lower House.

In a statement signed by NUF President Mr Augustine Chukwudum and Uchenna Okafor, the Publicity Secretary, the union stated that it is a good development rejected Mrs Mulikali Akande who is an impostor by the PDP. This is a step in the right direction as it make the chamber to be fully independent from the executive arm of government as stipulated by the constitution that there shall be three arms of government that is executive,

legislator and judiciary, each of them are independent of each other and that is separation of power. The union therefore call on the new leadership of Hon. Waziri Tanibuwal and Emeke Ikeduha, speaker and deputy speaker respectively to focus on what will impact on the lives of the masses who have suffered much for the past 12 years. NUF called on the PDP to stop the utterances against the leadership of the house because they do not hold allegiance to PDP stressing that the speaker is not the speaker of PDP. If there is apology to render as demanded by PDP national working committee NWC to the PDP members in the House for detecting their impostor Hon Mrs Mulifat Akande.

The apology shall be sent to the people of Southeast because PDP deny them the post of president and speaker Federal House, they are the people that deserve to be apologized by the PDP because they are the only zone their voted massively for the PDP presidency and national election on April 2011 election.

Instead of giving Southeast the post of presidency or speakership of House, PDP cartel led by Olusegun Chairman PDP board of trustee insist that the speakership must remain to his Southwest geopolitical zone. The NUF therefore draw attention of the Federal Government and National Assembly that Ndigbo will no longer tolerate all these 6th citizen treatment been meted on them.

•Winnie Oshiomhole, daughter of Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State and Solomon Uvie Owumi, son of Chief Benson Owumi, the Adanne of Okpe Kingdom, Sapele, Delta State during their traditional wedding at Iyamho, Auchi, Edo State last Wednesday.

News

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

World renowned evangelist invites robbers to crusade

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RENOWNED world class preacher, Evangelist Dag Heward-Mills, have invited armed robbers to a 5-day crusade scheduled to hold at Ede in Osun State from July 2011, assuring that any bandit, who attends the programme would be converted and made to change his bad way.

Director of Organization of the crusade, Evangelist Ebo Ankra, who represented the Ghana-based preacher at a press conference heralding the crusade in Ede on yesterday said the crusade was meant to set free people with all kinds of burden and bondages.

According to Ankra, not less than one million people are expected at the crusade holding at the Adventist Grammar School playing field, Ede where he also disclosed that more than 1000 pastors across the globe would attend the great crusade.

Evangelist Ankra, further

CAN President, Oritsejafor declares June 26, National Prayer Day

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HE Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, President Ayo Oritsejafor has declared Sunday, June 26, 2011 a National Prayer Day for the nation.

In his special message after a prayer retreat yesterday in Canada where he’s currently on missionary duty, Oritsejafor passionately “appeals to all Nigerians, particularly the Christians and our Muslims brethren to please observe Sunday June 26, 2011 as a special day of prayer for our country and all our leaders that God’s mercy and supreme will may prevail over our nation.”

“We should pray for God’s intervention, mercy and deliverance from every evil machination of the devil and his human agents.

“The security challenges in our nation need divine intervention now more than ever before. From the look of things, human efforts have failed. Nigeria as a nation has been swimming from one problem to another; and from militancy to full scale terror-

ism.

“We need God’s help at this precarious period of our life as a nation. Sporadic bomb blasts in parts of the country in the last one year portend danger of insecurity and anarchy.

“Also, our economic and political challenges are in need of God’s help. Where human efforts, wisdom and strength end, God’s own begins. We should all acknowledge our failure as humans, humble ourselves before God in prayers and ask for His help at this needy hour.

“In II Chronicle 7: 14, God says “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal land.” This is what we as Nigerians must do now - to humble ourselves, seek His face in prayers and repent or turn away from our evil way deeds, then, the merciful God will heal our land (Nigeria) of all her woes.

Ogun to relocate Isheri cattle market

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GUN State Government has assured traders at Oluwanisola Cattle Market, Isheri, along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway that it will provide a better site for them as it plans to relocate the market.

Governor Ibikunle Amosun who on Friday paid an unscheduled visit to the market popularly called ‘Kara’ in company with some top government officials said he decided to personally consult the traders on the relocation to assure them that their interest will be well protected at all times.

The Governor who spoke to newsmen after a discussion with leaders of the traders said the process of rebuilding the

Nigeria will soon be one of the developed countries in the world - President Jonathan

Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo

said that the crusade with the theme “Healing Jesus Crusade” was aimed to show the healing power of Jesus for people and make them benefit from it accordingly.

He assured people those attending the crusade of their safety, saying the organizers of the programme have had series of meetings with security in the state, which in turn had assured that lives and property of the attendees are safe.

He also disclosed that free medical services and free clothing would be given to participants, particularly the needy, saying that a conference for Christian workers and ministers would also hold to educate Christian leaders during the crusade.

Ankra, who gave the reason for taking the venue of the crusade to Ede, said it was meant to reach people in the grassroot and support them spiritually and economically.

state will require sacrifices from all residents and indigenes.

“Government will provide a better site with well equipped abattoir, grazing land and other facilities for the traders where they will be comfortable and their customers will feel adequately protected.

“Instead of just sending officials to forcefully eject the traders, I decided to come personally and explain government’s position to them. They are our people and we must accord them the respect they deserve.

“The people’s welfare remains paramount to us and we would do everything possible to ensure the state remains the pride of all among its peers,” he said.

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RESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan has assured that Nigeria will soon become one of the developed countries of the world, with emphasis placed on qualitative education and steady power supply, while assuring that the nation will be transformed.

He also stated that he directed that there must be entrepreneurial studies in Nigerian universities, in order to have better and wellequipped graduates, who would contribute meaningfully to the nation’s development.

President Jonathan, who was represented by his deputy, Namadi Sambo, stated these yesterday at the 27th Convocation of the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT), Rivers State.

The best graduating student, Miss Dieteke Oke, with Cumulative Grade Point Average (CPGA) of 4.68, from the Department of Guidance and Counselling, was offered automatic employment at Diamond Bank, by its Managing Director, Dr. Alex Otti, who was in attendance.

Oke, in her speech, on behalf of the graduands, urged President Jonathan to give jobs to graduates and employment opportunities and fur-

From Bisi Olaniyi, Port Harcourt

ther studies for the youths, as leaders of tomorrow.

Also in attendance at the colourful event were a former Vice President, Dr. Alex Ekwueme; the Governor of Rivers State State, Rotimi Amaechi, and his counterpart from Bayelsa State, Chief Timipre Sylva, both alumni of UNIPORT. Others were Acting National Chairman of People Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Mohammed Bello; former Chairman of Board of Trustees of PDP, Chief Tony Anenih; former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Odein Ajumogobia and the 19th President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Mr. O.C.J. Okocha, SAN, among other dignitaries.

At the launch of UNIPORT’s N5 billion endowment fund and Dame Patience Jonathan’s Centre for Gender Studies and Women Development in the university, a total of N590 million was raised.

Jonathan, in his address, said: “This (yesterday) morning, I asked the Vice-Chancellor of UNIPORT (Prof. Joseph Ajienka) to tell me what the needs of the university are and he said it is power (electricity), I told him that power has been

taken care of by this administration and we will soon have steady power supply throughout Nigeria.

“Rapid progress will be made in the Nigerian education sector. There is need for good education in the country. The policy of this administration is education, education and education.

“Nine more federal universities were established by this administration, to bridge the education gap. I have also approved, through the ETF, the sum of N3 billion to be expended in UNIPORT.” Jonathan further charged the National Universities Commission (NUC) and the Federal Ministry of Education, to pursue the education road-map.

He noted that there was the need to reward honesty and hardwork, stressing that the quality of higher education must be increased.

The President expressed displeasure over the attitude of the graduands, who almost all left the convocation arena, before he presented his address.

The crowd at UNIPORT was unprecedented, as there were many centres of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board’s (JAMB’s) Unified Tertiary Matriculation Exami-

•Security operatives screening candidates for 2011 Jamb Examination at Model Junior PHOTO: NAN Secondary School, Maitama Centre in Abuja yesterday.

nation (UMTE) there, coupled with Very Important Personalities (VIPs) and others who attended the convocation.

Honourary doctoral degrees were awarded to five eminent Nigerians, comprising the President’s wife, Dame Patience Jonathan; a renowned educationist and novelist, Chief Elechi Amadi; the President of African Business Round-Table, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur; a former Executive Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mr. Stanley Lawson and a legal luminary, Chief Jacob Nwokolo.

Responding on behalf of the awardees, the President’s wife urged the university authorities to put in place gender-friendly policies, while lauding the initiative of making the institution an entrepreneurial university.

For the 2009/2010 session, a total of 7,509 students graduated, with 16 having first class honours.

The 7th Vice-Chancellor of UNIPORT, Prof. Joseph Ajienka, who is the first alumnus and first engineer to become VC, earlier in his address, entitled: “The New UNIPORT: The Making of an Entrepreneurial University,” said plans had been initiated to establish a Technology Park and an Arts Village, where research would meet business and enterprise.

To lay the foundation for an entrepreneurial university, he said the institution was establishing academic structures and infrastructure for research and development, as well as partnerships between industries, faculties and institutes.

Ajienka reiterated that the national strategic Vision 20: 2020 could only be achieved through education, stressing that by 2020, Nigerian universities should be ranked among the best 20 universities in Africa and 200 universities in the world.

Ajienka, who is the first petroleum engineer to be appointed vice-chancellor in any Nigerian university, further described President Jonathan as a worthy ambassador, as the first alumnus of UNIPORT to become its visitor.

President Jonathan did his Bachelor’s, Master’s and Doctoral Degrees at UNIPORT, with his wife, Patience, hailing from Okrika, headquarters of Okrika Local Government Area of Rivers State.

Aliyu submits 21 names as commissioners nominees IGER State governor, Dr. Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu yesterday sent 21 nominees to the state house of assembly for approval as commissioners, withonly four women and nine of the former members of the state executive council making the list.

The list of the nominees was contained in a letter the governor sent to thespeaker of the house dated 14th June, 2011.

Of the old commissioners that made the list were Dr Jibrin Sule, former commissioner of works, Dr Pe-

N

From Jide Orintunsin, Minna

ter Sarki of Education, Hassan Abdullahi of lands,Aminu Yusuf of Agriculture, Mu’azu Bawa of finance Abubakar Garba (skipper) of sport and Abdullahi Bawa Wuse of local government and later Attorney General.

Also on the was list, Mrs Susan Gana, a one-time commissioner for environment, before she was dropped mid way of Aliyu’s first term and Dr. Isah Yayaha Vatsa, former commissioner for water re-

sources.

Aliyu’s nominees list also consists of his former chief of staff, Mallam Yusuf Tagwai and the contentious former Speaker of the state house ofassembly, Honorable Ndako Idris Kpaki. The nomination of Kpaki has been kicked against by some youth in Mokwa on Wednesday.

Two permanent secretaries, Alhaji Nuhu Musa of the Head of service office and that of Basic education Dr Mustapha Lemu also made the list of thenew emerging state executive council.

Three other women that made the list were Mrs Hasantu Adamu, Hajiya Abdullahi and Mrs Victoria Jumma.

The governor’s letter which was delivered to the Speaker on Wednesday evening was in compliance with section 192 of the country’s constitution.

Meanwhile the House of assembly has approved 21 slots for the Governor to appoint as Special advisers.

This will bring the executive council to forty two, despite the earlier plan by the governor to reduce the executive council to twenty.

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

News

S members of the newly inaugurated Senate are about to settle down to business, it is imperative that they imbibe certain ethical codes that may not be found in the Senate standing rule booklet. These unwritten ethical codes, drawn from rich reservoirs of hindsight, should be engraved in the minds and consciousness of the lawmakers individually and collectively. The absence or non observance of these rules has remained a low point in the federal legislature since 1999 and will continue to injure the collective wellbeing of the greater majority.

First on the list is budget padding, an entrenched cult like practice that has remained an annual ritual among federal lawmakers. Budget padding is the art and science of inflating annual budgetary figures presented by the President to the National Assembly for approval and passage. In the process of working on the estimates, the various standing committees, in cahoots with the various heads of the MDAs, do insert some obnoxious components into the proposal thereby jerking up the figures originally presented by the executive branch. When the budget finally scaled through in this form, the legislators then go behind the scene to cream off the excess funds, obviously for personal use. In some instances, the lawmakers apply a safety catch by demanding for the booty upfront as precondition for approving and ensuring the eventual passage of the inflated figures. For similar reasons, the legislators also inflate their own budget by inserting a number of obscene components on the lame excuse that the executive arm equally inflated its own estimates. This has resulted in the annual bunfight between the executive and the legislature over discrepancies between the figures presented to the parliament and the estimates passed by the National Assembly.

A better part of former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s eight-year tenure was devoted to fighting this legislative menace resulting in unnecessary delay in assenting to the budget. When the legislature stuck to the practice, Obasanjo, with his unquenchable thirst for mud fight, designed his own approach to budget implementation. With the right hand, he would sign the bloated budget as passed by the legislature, and with the left, he would go ahead to implement his own version of the Appropriation Act. Apparently beaten in their own game, the National Assembly, particularly the House of Representatives, threatened to impeach Obasanjo on a number of occasions for failing to implement the garnished version.

The story was not different for the brief period the late Umaru Yar’ Adua occupied the presidency. On more than one occasion, Yar’ Adua was also forced into dissipating his already sapped energy to register his disapproval of bloated budget figures passed by the lawmakers in the 2008 and 2009 fiscal years. Some analysts were quick to link the constant relapse in the late President’s deteriorating health to the strain exacted on him by the ravenous disposition of the legislature in that regard. Even President Goodluck Jonathan, as supple as he is perceived to be,

Agenda for seventh Senate The seventh Senate has come on stream with renewed expectations from members of the public. Assistant Editor, GBADE OGUNWALE reports that this time around, certain things need to be done differently for these expectations to be met

• Senate chamber

was forced to disagree with the National Assembly on the 2011 budget. He had to send the document back for pruning when he could not swallow the lump that was being pushed down his throat by the fiddling legislature. On his insistence, the federal legislature was compelled to scale down the figures. The two arms were only able to reach a hurried compromise for the President to sign the budget late May, in the twilight of the expiration of his tenure. Legal experts posit that the last minute compromise became necessary to avoid the resultant constitutional clumsiness that failure to sign the budget before the May 29 handover date would have thrown up. The grim reality is that the nation only had a budget five months into the fiscal year.

For this and similar other reasons, the average annual budget implementation median has never gone above forty percent since 1999 when the nation started the current democratic journey. This time around, the executive and legislative arms must strive hard not to give the impression that this jigsaw nature of budgeting is going to be one of the vital policy components of the administration’s “transformation” agenda. It is instructive to note that the 2012 budget of the United States had been tabled before the American Congress since the first quarter of 2011. Another fundamental is-

sue the Senate needs to address is the process of screening the President’s nominees for the various high profile offices. It should not be lost on the senior lawmakers that the credibility or otherwise of the screening process will invariably reflect on the quality and performance of the appointees at their designated posts. It has been observed that the screening process has consistently failed to meet the minimum credibility test in the immediate and remote past. More often than not, primordial considerations, rather than merit, were mainly the yardstick.

Observers insist that the trend has been responsible for the enthronement of incompetence in public service with the attendant consequences of non performance and policy failures. They cite the case of a certain high ranking Nigerian diplomat who was recently recalled from his duty post in Kenya for battering his own wife beyond recognition. According to them, the ensuing national embarrassment arising from the reckless action of the pugilist diplomat would have been averted if the Senate that screened him in the first place had taken time to do some elementary search on the man’s antecedents.

It is inconceivable to think that the diplomat’s disgraceful conduct was his first outing in the art of domestic violence.

The blame is a collective one in which the screening author-

ity must have its own fair share. The American Congress once rejected a nominee, John Towers, whose name was forwarded to it by the late President Roland Reagan for consideration as public office appointee. After diligent investigation by the Congress, Towers was discovered to have been in passionate romance with debauchery at a certain time in his life. And that was the end of the matter. The right lesson from this is for the Senate to put in place a more rigorous process and to observe due diligence in the screening exercise, at least to meet the sill. In the light of this, the Senate may have to reconsider the existing practice whereby nominee and former federal lawmakers are asked to take a bow and go, with little regard for their individual record while in parliament. Another aspect of legislative business that would require due diligence is the appointment of committee chairmen and women.

In the last Senate for instance, the leadership took little cognisance of the forte or areas of comparative advantage of individual senators in considering candidates for most of the committee headship. This was apparent in certain instances where a few committee chairmen demonstrated less understanding of critical issues relating to the sectors under their oversight.

There were occasions

where members of committees with deep knowledge of issues under discourse would grill heads of MDAs over observed anomalies in modus operandi, only for a less knowledgeable committee chair to halt the progress of the inquisition midway. Incidentally, a committee chairman has the final say at public hearings and sessions involving the various MDAs. National Assembly watchers could not fathom the rationale for appointing a veterinary doctor as chairman of the committee on Health as it was the case in the last Senate. In considering candidates for committee headship therefore, the leadership must strive to put merit above other primordial considerations, ranking or no ranking. This is the only way to ensure optimal results in that department. Of the existing 54 standing committees, 20 are considered strategic.

The most sought after of the committees are: Appropriation; Power; Petroleum; Gas; Works; Police Affairs; Federal Capital Territory; Foreign Affairs; Agriculture; Water Resources; Education; Aviation; Health; Niger Delta; Senate Services; Finance; Banking and other Financial Institutions; Communications; Information and Media; and the Public Accounts committee the headship of which is constitutionally reserved for members of opposition parties.

It may be forgivable if consideration is given to members

who drove the support campaign for the retention of the present leadership in the selection of chairs for the few strategic committees. But that should not be done at the expense of competence and merit. For the purpose of equity, it is important for the leadership to strike a fair balance between reward for loyalty and service to the people. Also at issue is the snail pace at which bills are processed and the resultant delay in their passage. In the last Senate, many bills were left to gather dust in the shelf for no apparent reasons. A plethora of them were hurriedly passed in the twilight of the session.

But the refusal of the Senate to pass the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) has continued to generate controversy within the polity. Allegations were rife in certain quarters that legislators in a certain committee were making monetary demands from stakeholders as condition for passage. Incidentally, the bill had been with the National Assembly for over two years but was not passed up to the time the session ended. Although the leadership of the Senate had since denied the raving bribery allegation, it has not been forthcoming on why the bill got frozen along the line. Apparently, this pussy-footing on the bill might have given the critics apple room for suspicion. In one breath, the alleged bribe Continued on page 56

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

THE NATION

11

ON SUNDAY

COMMENT and ANALYSIS JUNE 19, 2011

Nigeria’s very own

Understanding the suicide bomber •The terms “crazy” and “inhuman” miss the mark

For Nigeria to defeat this monster our thinking must be strategic

Festus Eriye efestus2003@yahoo.com 08052135878 (SMS only)

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T is not the first bombing, neither is it the first time some government institution would be targeted by terrorists; but in Thursday’s suicide bomb attack on the Nigeria Police headquarters in Abuja, we may just have witnessed our very own version of the New York 9/11 bombing.

Al-Qaeda’s bloody sortie into the Twin Towers was not just about massive fatalities; it was about striking a psychological blow at the very heart of America, by targeting institutional symbols of her power. It was an audacious and successful attempt to strike fear into the heart of a people long shielded from the foreign terror phenomenon.

The Towers represented her dominance of the global economy, while The Pentagon – which was also targeted– represented her military might. In one well-coordinated move al-Qaeda sent a devastating message that for all her much vaunted might, the United States was a clay-footed giant that was vulnerable to attack from foreign enemies.

The Abuja bomber not only managed to detonate his deadly cargo, he almost claimed the scalp of the Inspector-General of Police, Hafiz Ringim. But for providence, Boko Haram would have scored a tremendous propaganda coup with global headlines about Nigeria losing her police chief to a terror attack.

This was a successful assault on an institution that is a symbol of the state. It was also a statement indicating that the sect could strike in the deepest recesses of the Nigerian establishment. Although Ringim narrowly escaped, his organisation would be exposed to ridicule over the manner in which what should be one of the most secure security facilities in the land was so casually breached. The immediate question many would be asking is: if the police cannot take care of themselves, what hope is there for defenceless millions?

Even worse is the deployment of the most feared and deadly of devices in the terrorist’s arsenal – the suicide bomber. Until now the killers had been content to use car bombs and sundry Improvised Explosive Devices (IED).

All these weapons produce the same result, but the suicide bomber has the added menace of introducing fear into the land because the passenger sitting next to you on the bus or plane could be a Boko Haram courier wearing plastic explosives in his underwear – a la Farouk Abdulmutallab.

The rapid rise and transformation of Boko Haram after the reverses it suffered following the crushing of its 2009 uprising represents a stunning turnaround for an organisation that many predicted would not survive the killing of its leader, Mohammed Yusuf.

It is also clear evidence of how badly the government and its security agencies misread the situation in the country in the last two years. While they went to sleep after the apprehension of Yusuf, his group was qui-

etly rebuilding. Even without a clearly identifiable successor, sect members were within months carrying out assassinations using motorcycles.

There was plenty of evidence, obviously downplayed, that pointed to the increasing sophistication and ambition of Boko Haram.

First there were the car bombs that went off on the occasion of the celebration of Nigeria’s 50th Independence anniversary. With the benefit of hindsight it makes senses to reintroduce the radical Islamists to the list of suspects.

Those attacks were quickly followed by explosions in one of Abuja’s military barracks. The countless motorcycle-assisted assassinations in Maiduguri and environs would claim the life of the brother of former Borno State Governor, Modu Sheriff. In Kaduna sect sympathisers staged a stunning jailbreak, freeing hundreds of their members.

The election season was ushered in with attacks on a Peoples’s Democratic Party (PDP) campaign venue in Suleija. Hours after the inauguration of President Goodluck Jonathan, coordinated bombings across four northern cities claimed several lives. Who did the government think was carrying out these attacks? Henry Okah? May be ex-Niger Delta militants who are owed allowances!

The government has underestimated Boko Haram for too long. Now it has a fight on its hands, and it’s going about it the wrong way. It is trying to apply the same medicine to two different ailments by allowing itself to be blackmailed by those who draw comparisons between what is happening in Borno and what took place in the Niger-Delta creeks.

There is no basis for these parallels. The Niger-Delta struggle was basically economic and environmental in nature. The Borno phenomenon is driven by religion. One case responds to reason and rationality; the other answers only to emotion and mysticism.

You can pay an ex-Niger Delta militant several thousands for his rifle, and he can understand that. With what do you bargain with someone who is ready to turn himself into an IED in anticipation of some eternal reward? The sorts of characters who gravitate towards Boko Haram are driven by something higher: glory and martyrdom. Asking them to take something else in exchange is like asking that they give up their very reason for living.

How do you begin to reason with an organisation that already sees its interlocutors as evil? After all, all things Western – including our style of government – is despicable in their sight.

Last week, the sect gave the world a clearer picture of what this fight supposedly is about: Sharia in 12 northern states.

But it would be naïve to expect that even if that is delivered to them on a platter they would be appeased. Nothing will satisfy a group that is bent on imposing its worldview on others by force.

But this conflict is no longer local. It is

By Dr Noam Shpancer

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• Ringim

clear that Boko Haram has tapped into the resources of the international terror networks. It claims the Abuja blasts were executed by a suicide bomber just back from training in Somalia. Al-Qaeda already has functioning cells in East Africa. You can connect the rest of the dots.

For Nigeria to defeat this monster our thinking must be strategic. Only a simpleton would think that given this country’s endowments we can stay out of the ongoing clash between Middle Eastern extremist groups and the West. Nigeria has one of the largest populations of Muslims in the world – that makes us susceptible to infiltration by these radical groups.

The attacks of 9/11 caught the US napping, but it soon rolled out an appropriate response that took the fight to the terrorists in their holes in Afghanistan, Pakistan etc.

They have not succeeded in stamping out terror, but the bombers know that they would be hunted down relentlessly and their organisations decimated.

We must re-think our defence strategy bearing in mind that the biggest security challenge today is terror. Let’s maintain a fairly strong naval presence because of oil, and the prospect of the Niger Delta conflict flaring up again.

We must also rejig our military to focus on the prospect of external threats from the north – given the instability of countries like Chad, Niger and Libya.

But the greatest danger today comes from terrorists who can operate in small cells, and wreak havoc wherever they choose. To confront this threat successfully would require us diverting nothing less than 50% of our annual defence budget to the cause. Nothing less would do.

“You can pay an ex-Niger Delta militant several thousands for his rifle, and he can understand that.

With what do you bargain with someone who is ready to turn himself into an IED in anticipation of some eternal reward? The sorts of characters who gravitate towards Boko Haram are driven by something higher: glory and martyrdom”

NE of the most puzzling phenomena to emerge from the various ongoing conflicts in and around the Middle East is the suicide bomber. How do we explain suicide bombing? An initial impulse may be to ascribe suicide bombing to the lunacy of the bombers themselves, or to something inherent in the ‘mentality’ of the bombers’ ethnic or religious group—which to those on the outside always appears as uniquely backwards and brutal.

Ascribing a behavior to individual ‘craziness’ or to a group’s ‘mentality’ is a seductive impulse—it offers an easy solution that absolves ‘us’ and implicates ‘them.’ It releases one from the burden of seeking nuanced understanding of complex processes. That explanation, alas, is deeply flawed.

First, using ‘craziness’ to explain suicide bombers is circular reasoning. (Why did he blow himself up? Because he was crazy. How do you know he was crazy?

Because he blew himself up.) To become useful as an explanation, the proclaimed ‘craziness’ should have been verified beforehand, in unrelated contexts. In most cases, evidence of what we would consider individual insanity or mental illness is not a feature of future suicide bombers’ profiles.

Second, attributing suicide bombing to internal properties of the bombers exemplifies what psychologists call, ‘the actorobserver effect,’ a common, and commonly wrong, inclination to attribute the lousy behavior of others to their personalities while excusing our own bad behavior on account of circumstance. You’re late to the meeting because you’re lazy. I’m late on account of heavy traffic.

Third, episodes of brutality and backwardness have periodically visited every religion and ethnicity. The ‘mentality’ explanation is also the seed of all racism— Jews, for example, were said over millennia to have a seedy, greedy mentality— and also the seed of despair, since ‘mentality’ is innate and unchangeable.

To approach a fuller understanding of suicide bombers, we need to apply a more nuanced analysis.

We have to acknowledge the human romance with brutality. As the British philosopher Jonathan Glover has noted, our species’ fascination and preoccupation with inflicting brutality on itself, the sheer innovative effort dedicated to the task, and the visceral thrill of it are akin in their intensity to the human preoccupation with sex. Brutality for our species is not just a means to an end. It is an end in itself. This is not unique to Muslims, or to the insane Then there is the power of society. Society gives us language, a worldview, an identity, a set of rules and rituals to live by.

Society, in this sense, is God (with one difference: the existence of society is not in dispute and is supported by observable evidence). You are created in your society’s image. Once society settles on a set of values and the accepted ways of obtaining them, individuals within the society, any society, are compelled to follow the path. Suicide bombing, in this context, is but the latest twisted incarnation in a long tradition of socially-sanctioned brutal rituals enacted in different societies throughout history—from foot binding and witch hunting to duals, lynching, and systematic war rape.

Culled from Insight Therapy

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Comment & Analysis

27B, FATAI ATERE WAY, MATORI, LAGOS. WEBSITE: www.thenationonlineng.net

Violence has changed everything Ogochukwu Ikeje ohgeeoh@gmail.com 08084235961 (SMS only)

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HE days of innocence are gone. But we have not just come to this realisation.

Violence took away the blissful era even before Thursday’s blast at the headquarters (or, if you like, heart quarters) of the Nigeria Police in Abuja. Everything has changed. Everything.

For a moment, take your mind away from the now blessed company of ex-militants, and recall when the terrain of the Niger Delta was one deadly battleground. It was not just about breached pipelines or merely of kidnapped expatriate workers, or even of grandparents and their grandchildren. Full scale war was fought between the region’s combatants and federal forces. In Warri, Delta State, militants once sent governors and other dignitaries running as a powerful explosion rocked the venue of a crucial meeting. Today, ex-militants are having a jolly good time under a well thought-out amnesty programme. But who can forget those days of horror. Who took those days for granted?

Who can forget the 50th independence anniversary eve explosions in Abuja that terrified everyone and kept the nation’s capital residents quivering long after?

After the blasts and the horror that followed, the authorities hit upon the idea that

Law enforcement agents and the rest of Nigerians are at the mercy of terrorists disused vehicles, even broken-down ones, be pushed out of sight. It was a wonderful idea.

Who will provide bombers a place to lay their deadly objects? But long after the explosions, it was still difficult for dignitaries to attend any open event in the federal capital city. When they did, security was so tight that motorists and other road users suffered greatly. A family of four will probably think hard before embarking on a park stroll. Violence has changed everything.

After the death in broad daylight of members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) during post-elections violence, and after the recent abduction of five Corps personnel in Rivers State, it seems to me that some may have started rethinking the national service idea. A Corps member of my acquaintance who was lucky to escape the killings in Bauchi informed me she would be discharged in Ibadan, not Bauchi. Things have been sorted out, she said. Things are no longer what they used to be. A scheme that produced cross-cul-

tural couples, thus helping to unite the country, is slipping into dishonour. Blame it on violence that has since seized the land.

Consider the once beloved Plateau State.

Since violence visited it, claiming an undetermined number of souls and inestimable property, Jos, the tin city and capital, has shed its innocence. The once renowned tourist haven has lost its touch and its allure.

Picture Bauchi where Corps members were killed, and Maiduguri, Borno State capital city, where Boko Haram, the violent Muslim sect, has made its operational base. To say innocence has since fled from that town will be saying the obvious. Even though the sect seems to target police personnel, some others are also cut down, sending a loud and clear message.

Maiduguri can hardly be listed as one of the most attractive places to visit or settle these days.

Nor is the state governor Kashim Shettima to be envied. Unable to apprehend and punish those who killed a relative of the revered Borno Shehu, among other atrocities, Shettima is reported to

The Abuja explosions will strike more fear into people. But the biggest worry is that after the police and other security agencies have failed to contain the violent elements in the country and cure Nigerians of their security nightmare, the sources of our fear have held our protectors by the yin-yin

have flashed the amnesty card before the sect.

But, perhaps, sure that they can carry on without any opposition, members of the group have rejected the offer.

Now, let’s rewind to Thursday. Shortly before noon, the Inspector-General of Police Hafiz Ringim had just driven into the premises of the force headquarters. Following him was an unmarked car. Moments after, the heart of Nigeria’s police rocked to the explosion suspected to have emanated from the unmarked vehicle. It started an instant fire and sent thick clouds of smoke into the Abuja air. Two people, one the strange car driver, the other the police traffic warden who rode with him in order to search him, according to the police, died instantly in the blast.

The police chief was unhurt. Thirty-three cars were reported burnt. Forty were badly damaged.

Was casualty figure lean? Not quite, according to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), which said five badly burnt bodies were recovered from the blast scene.

The police suspect Boko Haram, which the IG, two days before the explosion, swore to crush.

Before this strike, clearly the most daring and embarrassing, violent activities had changed much of the country and its citizens. But now, we must prepare for more changes. Road travellers, even air passengers and staff, will be more scared, not knowing what to expect. The other day, some explosive objects were reported found on a rail track.

The Abuja explosions will strike more fear into people. But the biggest worry is that after the police and other security agencies have failed to contain the violent elements in the country and cure Nigerians of their security nightmare, the sources of our fear have held our protectors by the yin-yin.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Comment & Analysis

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Faulty start Why are legislators’ offices never ready on resumption?

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HE seventh national assembly is commencing legislative duties on a flawed note with revelations that office accommodations for honourable members of the House of Representatives are not ready. During a facility inspection tour to get first-handinformation that was embarked upon by the Welfare Committee members of the House including Speaker Aminu Tambuwal and. Emeka Ihedioha, Deputy Speaker, it was discovered that facilities for the use of newly resuming members are far from being ready.

The contractors handling the projects are still working on them. The House which ought to resume plenary on June 28 will have to further be on recess till the end month of August when the facilities hopefully will be ready according to the contractors met on site.

The inspection tour contrary to impression of all-iswell given by the management of the national assembly saved the nation the national embarrassment of having honourable members resuming without office spaces to work in. While management of the complex should be blamed for not hearkening to their statutory responsibility having known the time-table of the House, the question must equally be asked about what has happened to the old offices used by out gone 360 members of the sixth assembly?

The contractors handling the construction of the supposed extension office complex of additional 175 new offices and the repair of old ones must have had delivery clause included in their contractual agreement. We demand to know what caused the delay.

Also, we want to know at what point they realised that such delivery date is no longer feasible. Who did they contact so that alternative arrangements could be made and what was the official response to this disclosure?

If the welfare committee and the leadership of the House had not visited the sites, what would have been

T

HE inauguration and swearing-in ceremonies of the president and governors of 26 states of the federation have come and gone.

However, this is the time for them to start implementing policies and programmes that would benefit the lives of the masses.

I cannot say that I was disappointed with some governors for their jubilation, exhilaration and jamboree displayed immediately they were announced winners by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). But I was full of sober reflection on the innocent souls that passed away for the victory of the newly-elected governors and president, good citizens of the country that have died because of the bad roads we have, the numerous businesses that could not see the light of day due to poor power supply.

I am looking forward to a day when there will be good roads, unin-

the excuse for not concluding the works? Could they plead to be innocent in what would have further projected the country in bad light to the outside world?

We are disturbed regarding why the nation has not learnt from its history of waste and ineptitude. Every passing democratic transition had shamefully witnessed the kind of problem being encountered at the moment in the national assembly- the Senate inclusive.

We recollect that such misnomer was encountered in 2003, 2007 and now 2011. Yet, those people saddled with managing and administering our affairs have learnt nothing from the past. They keep repeating the same mistakes simply because there seem not to be sanction for official laxity in this country. Staring every nooks and crannies of officialdom is crass public consumption. Otherwise, what has happened to the office spaces used by the sixth assembly? Such could only need refurbishment that would have taken less than two weeks to conclude if the work is awarded to the right company to handle.

Of course, we are aware that such offices would have been neatly used since those that used them in the past

TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM

•Editor Lekan Otufodunrin •Managing Editor Festus Eriye •Olayinka Oyegbile Deputy Editor •Associate Editor Taiwo Ogundipe

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•Chairman, Editorial Board Sam Omatseye •General Editor Kunle Fagbemi

Letter to the newly elected candidates terrupted power supply, safety of the lives of masses. A situation whereby public officers will be held responsible for their actions and deeds, where the ruler and the ruled is equal before the law, where the law is the same and supreme to both the ruler and the ruled.

In an attempt to articulate the responsibilities empirically, I suppose the newly-elected candidates will give crucial attention to the safety of lives of the people. Having police officers at every bus-stop, monitoring the activities of the miscreant and thugs, I was shocked when I heard the story of a motor-cycle man who was killed by thugs in a heated argument all because of N200 at Mushin bus-stop. Can I ever forget how we

Stop WAEC special centres of fraud, FG urged HE continuous fall in the standard of education in Nigeria could be traced to some policies and arrangements by the West African Examination Council. One of such arrangements is the use of special centres for registration of students for WAEC Examinations. For instance, there are hundreds of special centres scattered all over the country where SS1 and SS2 are registered for WAEC annual examinations and these unqualified students are provided, in advance, with WAEC questions. Further investigation revealed that many officials of WAEC are either stakeholders or proprietors and proprietress of hundreds of special centres where WAEC questions are exposed and sold to students, every year, at very high prices.

As corruption and sharp practices are part of the life-styles of many Nigerian parents, such parents agree

•Managing Director/ Editor-in-Chief Victor Ifijeh

are supposedly refined men and women. They need minimal repairs and replacements just to meet the taste of in-coming new members.

The Deputy Speaker promised that an alternative temporary accommodation will be made so that the House can resume this end month, even when the contractors espoused the contrary. The question to ask is; at whose expense will this be done in view of the undisclosed but expectedly colossal amount already injected into updating old and providing new office spaces for the honourables?

If the problem of office space is eventually resolved, we doubt whether that of accommodation will not, as perennially witnessed, spring up in both the Senate and the House. Whether or not this springs up, the fact that legislators now have to rent accommodation or stay in hotels at the expense of the state casts serious aspersion on the monetisation policy introduced by the former president Olusegun Obasanjo administration.

Time has proved that the policy is a misnomer that must be urgently revisited in view of the abuses it was subjected by profiteers of the system. This is necessary to forestall what ordinarily in an organised and well focussed country would not happen.

Nigerians are filled with high expectations regarding what is expected from this seventh assembly. But we are not too pleased that avoidable hiccups are already dotting its path of making progressive laws for the country. There are too many important assignments requiring the attention of our legislators and without equivocation, they need a decent atmosphere that would make meaningful reasoning and planning possible to achieve these goals.

This faulty start at the national assembly must forthwith be corrected so that the enormous task ahead of the central legislature will not be jeopardised.

readily with their lazy children to register at WAEC special centres where cheating and all examination mal-practices are secretly practiced. Consequently, thousands of qualified and unqualified students now rely on these special centres describing the old habit of reading and working hard to pass examinations as sheer waste of time and energy.

As these centers of fraud had contributed largely and directly to the falling standard of education and morals in our society, WAEC should, as a matter of necessity and patriotism, stop its arrangements with these centers where a lot of mal-practices are carried out annually retarding the standard of our education and the moral psyche of our society.

Mr. W.A Falana Oke-Odo Market Lagos -State

lost faithful patriotic youth corps members during the post-election violence? The most pathetic story about them is the only son of 65-yearold retired woman who is waiting to eat the fruit of her labour. What can quantify the tragedy of monumental proportion in the life of this woman?

Another area, I will like the newly-elected governors and Mr. President to give priority to is the bad roads that become the order of the day. It is so unfortunate that we live in the part of the world where we

believe that accident are mostly caused by diabolic forces, which in the true sense, is not so.

On the contrary, there are two sides to a coin on this issue of bad roads. The construction of new roads and maintenance of the former roads, I think by now, they should have mapped out the roads that would be constructed. Because we cannot afford to be mourning the lives of people when there is a way to avert untimely death of our beloved citizens.

Most importantly, poor power supply has weakened the economy of

this country. Not too long ago, one of the leading beverages company in this country left the shore of this land for another neighbouring country.

What a shame on our part! If a country that is not as buoyant and naturally endowed in terms of natural resources like Nigeria could celebrate one solid year of uninterrupted power supply, then it is high time we do something too.

Samuel Adetunla Department of Mass Communication, University of Lagos.

University of Lagos; a well rounded institution

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HE academic life of an individual is very important yet; scholars have proved that a real student is one who can balance it all i.e. his academic, religious, social and other aspect without letting anyone suffer and without giving too much to each one. In other words, they say “pass through school and let school pass through you”. That is why the University of Lagos stands out of all the tertiary institutions in Nigeria.

The university is balanced in the sense that, every student has the opportunity of getting everything to its fullest. In there, they have over fifty fellowships making it the institution with the most number of fellowships on campus in Nigeria.

These fellowships consist of almost all the church denomination in Nigeria ranging from Celestial, Redeemed, Daystar, just name it, the list is endless. Even the Muslims are not left out; they have their massive central mosque usually full of activities just beside the chapel.

Aside from this, there are a number of clubs organised by students. These clubs put money to-

gether and also get sponsors to organise parties outside school either after exam or just when they feel like.

These clubs give their parties names like GOAT, Greatest of All Times, havoc, traffic night and many more.

We also have various indigenous associations that involve people from the same state of origin. There are also departmental and faculty associations that organise debates, barbeque nights, beach parties, excursions and other recreational activities.

At the same time, the students academic life is not lagging behind. The university authority has provided a serene environment for studying.

There are many spots in the environment where one can read. You see students reading in every corner, some in the Akintunde Ojo library, Lagoon front, Senate basement, main library, and faculty and department class rooms. This accounts for their ability to stand out and excel in their school work and even in international competitions. For instance, the Roger Hatchuel Public Relations Competition was won by a student of the university this year.

So it is left for the student to choose where he belongs. You find students who have a healthy spiritual life and at the same time are doing well in their academics. There are also some, who go to clubs regularly and at the same time, are also doing well in their academics. Some even balance the three. It all depends on the individual belief and orientation.

Whichever way, there are other forms of social activities apart from clubs and party. The University of Lagos students are also known for their trendy and smart look, irrespective of the level. In short, the University of Lagos student can be referred to as an epitome of fashion and good looks.

That is why a graduate from the university is usually a well-rounded one, one who has lived a well balanced life. He is not a one sided person, smartly dressed, well-behaved, can manage any situation and can fit in anywhere.

Segun Funmilola Abijoke Department of Mass Communication University of Lagos.

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Comment & Analysis

June 12 and outstanding issues Ropo Sekoni ropo.sekoni @thenationonlineng.net

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NE event in Nigeria that has not been forgotten readily and may be unforgettable is the election of June 12, 1993. Even eighteen years, Nigerians at home and abroad are still marking the day with infectious enthusiasm. A few days ago, the 18th anniversary of June 12 was celebrated with fanfare in Lagos and other states in the Southwest. Heroes and pseudo-heroes were celebrated in grand style. Right speeches reminding citizens about the history and impact of Abiola’s heroism and that of NADECO at home and abroad were made with eloquence. Even those whose participation was half-hearted were celebrated while many who lost so much time and resources to the struggle were ignored.

The atmosphere of freedom in 2011 is without doubt markedly different from what obtained in the days of Abacha’s seizure of the country and incarceration of the winner of the 1993 presidential elections. In 2011 Nigeria has avoided being castigated for failed elections. The country’s international friends have unlike in 2007 said that the recent election is a good beginning and a deepening of electoral democracy in the

Femi Orebe femi.orebe @thenationonlineng.net 08056504626 (sms only)

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OGOF, meaning ‘buy one, get one free, was an aphorism made popular in the Clinton ian era in the United States of America largely as a result of the symmetry between President Bill Clinton and his wife and now U.S Secretary of State, Hillary Rodham Clinton. The word symmetry can be variously defined.

For some, it is harmony, or beauty that results from balanced proportions, but for the purpose of this essay, I am staying with its Encarta dictionary definition as ‘a state of invariance shown by some phenomena when changes of orientation, charge, or parity are made’.

And I make bold to say that with respect to passion for Ekiti’s socio-economic development, the only difference between Dr Kayode Fayemi and his spouse, the Ekiti First Lady, Erelu Bisi Fayemi, is that the latter was not voted for by the good people of Ekiti.

Two issues immediately follow that assertion: why the writer’s literal fixation on Ekiti affairs and why root for Fayemi this much given he has not even spent a year in office?

As to the first, the Holy Book answered that question thousands of years ago when it said, ‘where thy treasure is, there also will your heart be.’ I talk here not of physical possessions; rather I am saying Ekiti is my little Jerusalem and that should explain it. But am not the only Ekiti writer, so more on this anon.

Indeed, some uncharitable persons will ascribe my support for the

Another June 12 anniversary is a good opportunity to remind citizens committed to sustainable federalism and democracy country. Undoubtedly, noticeable progress has been made in the country in terms of electoral democracy.

But there are other concerns generated by the June 12 struggle that have been pushed to the back burner as a result of undue attention that had to be given to the birthing of free and fair elections in the last twelve years.

One NADECO goal that is not being given the attention it deserves

by NADECO legatees or survivors is demand for true federalism that occupied equally important position in the struggle for return to democracy in the days of General Sani Abacha. All organizations involved in the pro-democracy activism of 1993-1999 spoke and wrote unequivocally about three demands: restoration of Abiola’s mandate, convocation of a sovereign national conference, and restoration of true federalism and regional autonomy.

National Democratic Coalition (NADECO), National Liberation Council of Nigeria (NALICON), World Congress of Free Nigerians (WCFN), Oodua Youth Movement, and Oodua People’s Congress, to name a few, had a consensus on the importance of a sovereign national conference (SNC) for the purpose of restructuring Nigeria with or without the presidency of Chief Abiola.

Egbe Omo Yoruba in North America even established a short-wave radio Ijinle Ohun Oodua to mobilize the people of the Southwest on the importance of political restructuring to the growth of cultural democracy in the country and development of the

Yoruba region.

Since 1998, Nigeria has not had anything more than a civil rule. In 1998, Chief Olu Falae got close to the Supreme Court in his contest of the election results that brought General Obasanjo to power. In 2003, General Buhari was in court for most of General Obasanjo’s second term, not to talk about most Yoruba states becoming theatres for election tribunals for over three years. Nigerians in general and NADECO members in particular should now be anxious about how much democratic governance and culture they would experience under Jonathan’s new dispensation, after the first election in twelve years that has not received F grade from the world’s working democracies.

Citizens must know by now the difference between the elections of June 12, 1993 and the others conducted between 1999 and even 2011. How many people would have joined organizations here at home or abroad to resist the annulment of any of the elections in the country since 1999, should there have been anyone crazy enough to annul any of such elections? Most rational political thinkers in the country now know that what we have is a civil rule that can be most euphemistically described as regimes of transition to democracy. What is now at stake is how much of that transition will happen in the era after Jega’s elections.

June 12 anniversary gives another notice to pro-democracy activists to pay more attention to the fundamental problems of the Nigerian polity.

In June 2011, Nigeria is as unitary as it was in the days of Sani Abacha, for obvious reasons. Under the 1999 Constitution, Nigeria is federal in name and unitary in action. A central policy system is unable to provide security of life and property, but custodians of federal power are content with the appearance of unity that a central police represents even when all indications show that people’s life and property cannot be protected in a multiethnic nation by one central police system.

The constitution currently in force was crafted under the supervision of Abacha and later imposed on the country by Abacha’s successor.

It has not been possible in the last twelve years to have a sovereign national conference to create a people’s constitution. It has not been possible to get the men and women in legislative positions to amend or review the constitution in the direction of more powers to the states and peoples of Nigeria. National Assembly leaders are acting in a way that suggests their unwillingness to touch the constitution that brought them to their present legislative positions. Like sitting governors and local government chairs, federal and state legislators have sworn to protect a constitution that NADECO and NALICON members believe is not a truthful record of the desires of the country’s citizens.

Whatever could have served as basis for optimism for members of old NADECO, NALICON, and

now CODER, and other organizations in the last twelve years, has been eroded by the realities of the moment point. Although NADECO appears dead, Nigeria is at the moment between NADECO and PRONACO in terms of the way out of the perennial crisis in the polity.

The challenge is that Nigeria needs to be restructured, if there is to be any meaningful electoral and revenue allocation reforms. A new constitution with the endorsement of citizens via a national referendum is needed, if the rush to eat out of the national cake through membership of executive or legislative teams is to be stopped. Nigeria’s governments (including the federal government with over 52% of the country’s resources in its hands) are like a Hedonists’ club, where the emphasis is on cake eating than cake baking.

Another June 12 anniversary is a good opportunity to remind citizens committed to sustainable federalism and democracy that the cause of most of Nigeria’s political, economic, and religious problems has not been addressed and may not be successfully addressed without a constitutional conference. The reminder should include coming to terms with ineffectiveness of armchair criticism of the political and constitutional status quo that stifles creativity and innovation in the polity, economy, and society. It should be used to mobilize existing post-NADECO/ NALICON organizations and activists that the main issue of the June 12 struggle remains unresolved: cultivation of sustainable democracy through restoration of unfettered federalism and regional autonomy via the mechanism of a constitutional conference.

Elect one, get one free Good things are indeed here for our people since by empowering a woman, you empower not only her family, but the nation governor to ‘come and chop’, that banal political objective made popular by the immortal Uncle Bola Ige in a disputation with Chief S.M Afolabi.

I have a real life story for those who may be so persuaded.

In the course of ‘Ekiti’s long walk to freedom’, and at a time when the received knowledge, nation-wide, was that a seemingly, all-conquering, impunity-driven Obasanjo would rather die than see Fayemi retrieve his mandate, an article appeared here which drew the ire of a very brilliant lawyer; indeed, a PhD holder in law, who was on the legal team of Petitioner Kayode Fayemi.

The lawyer, now my highly regarded aburo and friend, was infuriated that I was making life difficult for Fayemi’s legal team whose strategies he charged me with exposing, week in, week out, via this column.

Off he fired a nasty text message to me berating me like never before. I think we must have exchanged two or three of these thoroughly nasty correspondences in the course of which I asked if he ever saw me at any of their strategy meetings. ‘Mide felt disgusted enough with me that he reported the matter to the petitioner himself, repeating how he had ‘dealt’ with me. Dr Fayemi did not mince words one bit. ‘You did that to uncle so and so’, he asked? ‘Please, he counseled, ‘write back now to apologise because, for that man, this struggle is his life’.

How touching?

To his eternal glory and humil-

ity, my brother did as was advised and we have since had occasions to laugh over the incident.

And why did the struggle literally become my life, in my own little way? Two things really: First, was then President Obasanjo’s obsession with Ekiti affairs and his penchant, all the time, to treat us like we were less than human. He actually once took all Ekiti to the cleaners describing us as educated illiterates just as he swore Fayemi would never retrieve his mandate. It should be remembered too, that to ensure Ekiti remained under his stranglehold, he conjured an Emergency administration in charge of which he assigned his kinsman. To me all these were totally repugnant and, I guess, I must have felt like David at the taunting of Israel by that Philistine. How low would you take a people, Mr President, I thought? If you think it became an obsession with me, I have nary an apology.

As to Dr Fayemi, call it a case of love at sight. You could touch this young man’s genuineness; his passion for the development of the state, which he had eloquently demonstrated during the administration of Otunba Niyi Adebayo during which he was instrumental to the intervention of some development partners, was in no doubt. Here too was your quintessential educated gentleman, so distinct from the rabble of gubernatorial wannabes parading the state that at a fund launch for him in Lagos, one of Ekiti’s most outstanding pa-

triots, Sir Remi Omotosho, did not mince words in saying Fayemi would very readily be the U.N SecretaryGeneral, given his bio-data, and those who know Remi know for a certainty that he is not flippant.

Above all, Kayode Fayemi is my brother; he went through the same portals as I, and was taught the very lessons, not just academics, but also in civility and civic responsibilities as I at Christ’s School, Ado-Ekiti. That was absolutely the clincher and once my mind was made up, whatever came in the course of the struggle was worth it for me, not minding how forlorn hopes had become of his ever retrieving a mandate Ekiti people had twice given him. And since he became governor I have taken it as my bounden duty to encourage him in the arduous task of making poverty history in Ekiti.

But today is about his better half, Erelu Bisi Fayemi, the Ochiorah (peoples’ leader) of Imezi Owa, Ezeagwu Local Government Area, Enugu State, Nigeria.

A Historian, Cultural Anthropologist, Gender Scholar and journalist, she has, with considerable justification, been described by those who should know, as the ‘primus inter pares’ in structured Philanthropy in Africa.

Holder of a first degree in History from the university of Ife, Ile-Ife and two Masters degrees in History and Gender Studies from both Ife and Middlesex University, U.K respectively, the Ekiti First Lady has recently been recognized as one of the world’s leading 100 personalities

working for the interest of women and children.

Erelu Fayemi last Friday, June 10, 2011 drew a large audience of who is who at the launch of her Ekiti Development Foundation, EDF. She is, of course, not new to this type of structured philanthropy having founded the African Women’s Leadership Institute which has trained over 5000 women all over Africa as well as co-founded the African Women Development Fund, which has supported over 800 women’s organizations in 42 African countries.

Put succinctly, EDF is in place to do the following in Ekiti: Support initiatives which will economically empower women and youth by providing capital on revolving basis for co-operative societies; support civil society organisations, promote the rights of women and enhance their leadership capacities. It will encourage women’s political participation and focus on health care, education and give financial assistance to women with multiple births as Erelu Fayemi had done long before the launch of EDF It should gratify all that not a penny of state funds will go into the activities of EDF as the Foundation will operate solely from within its coffers, a rarity around here.

Good things are indeed here for our people since by empowering a woman, you empower not only her family, but the nation and, nothing can be grander than helping to meet the needs of the youth which constitutes 60% of Nigeria’s population.

Here then is saluting an Amazon, in the service of the land of honour: Ile Iyi, Ile Eye.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Tunji

Adegboyega tunji.adegboyega @thenationonlineng.net 08054503906 (sms only)

I

BELIEVE in constructive engagement of people who have issues with the state or an institution, no matter how silly that may sound sometimes. That explained my tactical support for the government’s position to engage members of the Boko Haram sect in a dialogue. Such an idea should be welcome because sometimes, we only assume we know why people behave the way they do; yet we know next-tonothing about what propels them to take up arms against the State, or what sets them at cross-purposes with other members of the society. Moreover, we have often learnt that it pays to jaw-jaw than to war-war because in the end, issues that led to wars have often had to be resolved at round-table parleys.

We need to engage the Boko Haram in dialogue because it should interest us to know why anyone at this stage of our development would see education as ‘sinful’. One point we must not fail to stress however is that the proliferation of this kind of sects in the country is a sad commentary on the political leadership, especially in the north. It is also a sad commentary on the approaches adopted by successive governments in finding answers to the questions posed by the menace of these people to the Nigerian State. This is an issue we have been battling perhaps before the advent of Musa Mekaliki and his Maitatsine group in the ‘80s.

Postscript, Unlimited!

By

Oyinkan Medubi 08187172799 (SMS only) puchuckles7@gmail.com

T

HE fact that no African family is complete without children is a most baffling paradox when we view it against the roles children play in maintaining the (in)sanity level of the society. Listen. Too often, you hear women exclaim that their children are driving them insane. It is true what they say: Insanity is hereditary – we get it from our children.

When asked how old her son was, a woman exclaimed that he was at an age when he was too old to spank yet too young to talk to. So, she usually sent him on exile when he misbehaved: to his room.

The exilic experience has never been known to do anyone much good, except enforce brief moments of sober reflection which, in the case of many sons, quickly evaporate on Flanders Fields, Football Fields or Cartoon Networks. Many of us children, believe me, prefer to seek solace in the comfort zones of various car-

Comment & Analysis

15

Just how safe are we?

Bomb attack on police headquarters is a national embarrassment Without trying to make any case for the illegalities of the Boko Haram and other deadly sects, we cannot deny the fact of the inequities and inequalities in the country. The government must address these and there must be conscious efforts to do this on a sustainable basis.

Now that the Boko Haram people have done close to its worst, (it is difficult to say they have done their worst because we do not know what they have up their sleeves) with the suicide bombing of the police headquarters in Abuja on Thursday, killing at least two people, perhaps it would now be clearer to the government that it has to review its approach to solving their problem. If the government must continue with its idea of talking with them so that we know exactly what the problem is, no problem.

But if it is discovered that they are not interested in genuine dialogue and that all they want is their idea of de-educating the rest

of us just because they believe education is sinful, that, for me is taking the joke too far.

Nigeria is a secular state; at least that is what we have enshrined in our construction. It is also a free country where everyone is free to exercise his or her constitutional rights of the basic freedoms guaranteed in the grund norm. The government has to make the point unambiguously clear that where ‘A’s’ freedom stops, ‘B’s’ begins. In other words, inasmuch as the Boko Haram or any religious sect for that matter is free to want to propagate their ideas in the country, they have no right to force it down the throats of others.

This latest incident has brought to the fore the need for one Nigerian to be interested in what is happening in other parts of the country. If we are all agreed that the world is now a global village, then there appears not to be any other choice for us, especially given that we all suffer col-

“If people can be as daring as to want to eliminate the chief security officer of the country, then nothing says they cannot make attempts to get at the First Citizen. I can hear you say ‘God forbid’. But this is not a question of God forbidding; it is a question of doing something that will actually make God to forbid that happening”

lateral damage when Boko Haram or any other aggrieved group sneezes. We saw how members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) serving their fatherland were brutally murdered simply because the result of the presidential election did not go the way some people expected.

Thus, an otherwise laudable scheme to foster national unity was now subjected to virulent criticisms as to its continued relevance, after the unfortunate incident. The recrudescence of violence in the northern part of the country should be enough cause for concern for us all. There is a big problem on our hands if we want to continue with business as usual. On this matter, it has to be business unusual. We have to seek a new paradigm to get to the root of this matter. We have to be interested in how the states spend their revenue; at present, we concentrate all our energy on the Federal Government. When a government is not doing enough on education, we have to point that out because if we don’t, we will all carry the cross when the products of that deprivation decide to make life difficult for the rest of us.

The other day when we were somehow close to getting some clues as to what the Boko Haram was all about, some security personnel deprived us that opportunity by killing the leader of the sect, even when he was supposed to be in custody. Till today, we are yet to know why this was done. Was it to shield some highly connected people backing the sect? We do not know. Yet,

The Heroes of our Homes toon networks. Sadly, however, while Superman, Spiderman, Batman and other heroes who people the grounds, woods and spaces of the networks are paid for their jobs, no one thinks of reimbursing we the children for time well spent watching them.

So, while modern mothers were looking to forget their children in front of the Telly or the shopping centre, here was the world thinking that children ought to be remembered now and then for their role in the society by instituting what they call World Children’s day. On those days, the world hopes to draw attention to the rights, benefits, cares, needs (good feeding and quality of life), and so on, of children across the world. No one obviously pays any attention to or thinks of rescuing the harassed and not-so-modern mother of Junior who is tearing her hair out because Junior insists on eating with the dog, or biting everyone in sight. Without any manual on child-raising, she watches both dog and son grow up and finally finds something useful for them both to do. The dog is dispatched to go and earn his living on the streets, and so is Junior.

So, at the tender age of nothing, Junior finds himself with a

major occupation: breadwinning for his family. If he is not begging for alms, then he is hawking one item or the other. There is a ragged, slightly retarded or halfwitted young man in my city who cannot be anything more than sixteen, begs for alms for a living and lives on the streets. Come Friday at a decided hour, however, his parents come to collect their week’s housekeeping money from him right there on the street. Revenge time for the parents, you say? In this case, decidedly not.

For many such parents, their children provide for them the line of least resistance.

The number of child-hawkers is increasing no doubt, what with the down-turn in the economy.

Just drive along the major streets in Lagos and other cities and you’ll see a community of children who should be playing with toys hawking some item or the other, nimbly jumping through and crisscrossing the traffic in ways that would make even Dracula gasp in fear, all so that their parents can eat.

All around the country, children are used as the default programme in the family’s attempts to meet its needs. When the family lacks food, water or shelter, the children are set in motion. So now,

women are no longer the hewers of wood and drawers of water.

These responsibilities have fallen on the children. Many are the children who now come into the house from school, drop their school bag, greet the inmates, and pick up the bucket to go search for water in the neighbourhood. Not for them the mandatory post-school-hours rest time, prep time, or even social time.

They are too busy fending for their families. They are the heroes of the home, watched by fathers and mothers who take their rest for carrying the child for nine months and feeding it for three years.

Naturally, working at such young ages, children are exposed to occupational hazards that even their parents can’t obviously believe. Many are the children who have been crushed or maimed by vehicles in traffic; many are those who have been stolen or lured away into slavery; many are those who have lost their ways because they do not have expert knowledge of their environments; many are those who have been sold into prostitution by their own parents; etc. And are we parents appreciative of these heroes of the home?

Not on your life!

Rather, one hears stories of how a parent or guardian has found, by some strange or un-

this was the insinuation in many quarters. Yet, no one has been able to give any clues as to why this was done in spite of the sporadic attacks in parts of the country by members of the group. We simply console ourselves by hoping that each such attack would be the last, with the government giving empty assurances that it is on top of the situation. Unfortunately, each time, it has always been proved not to be, as the perpetrators of the attacks get emboldened the more and wreak more havoc than the previous ones. Tjhis is much ore so when no one is ever punished for such crimes.

Attacking the police headquarters is a way to send fears about our collective insecurity into our numb skulls. I guess the next target would be the military establishment. We do not have to wait for that to happen and then the president would still want us to be cam and that all is well.

Now, President Goodluck Jonathan has urged us to be calm.

I wonder how many Nigerians take such with a pinch of salt. No one remains calm when there is fire on his rooftop. If people can be as daring as to want to eliminate the chief security officer of the country, then nothing says they cannot make attempts to get at the First Citizen. I can hear you say ‘God forbid’. But this is not a question of God forbidding; it is a question of doing something that will actually make God to forbid that happening. And we do not have to wait for that to happen before doing that something. known power, that his or her child or ward has, somewhere in its tiny body, traces of witchcraft that can only be exorcised by extreme beatings, torture by fire or hunger, or just plain old neglect. So, when daddy or uncle loses his job because of his own lazy or careless rudeness, the little tyke at home is to blame; when a lone, weary and lost bird cries in the night because it cannot find its companions, it must be the little witch asleep on the mat but who is really out hunting in the spirit.

So, let’s treat our children right. The first thing to do is to ban Okada riders from lifting children and pregnant women. I still have a picture of a woman who held her baby loosely against her shoulder while riding on an Okada; and there have been too many stories of children being abducted by Okada riders. No pair of hands is too little to toy with in this country. As Seneca said, potest ex casa magnus vir exire: a great man can come from a hut.

I believe the philosophy that propelled the declaration of the children’s day is someone’s profound truth that children are really the future. In the present, however, I have found that most festivals are what they are because the children are there. Their gaiety at Christmas and other festivals provide the colours of the rainbow that proclaim God’s message to earth – that the world should go on.

16

R

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Essay

ECENTLY, American Secretary of State Clinton barnstormed Africa. She visited a few nations before her junket was abbreviated due to concerns caused by migrating ash from the agitated Chilean volcano. Africa owes its sister continent a debt of gratitude. By chasing Secretary Clinton back to Washington, the Chilean ash saved African ears from a deluge of prickly sermonettes America’s chief diplomat was set to speak unto the continent. If at all feasible, Secretary Clinton would have poked her head out the window of the plane to deliver the remainder of her proclamations via bullhorn as the aircraft traversed those nations she did not visit. Though her visit curtailed, Clinton managed to issue two remarkably brazen statements that revealed more about the brashness of America’s foreign policy elite than they did about Africa.

In Zambia, Secretary Clinton cautioned about the dangers posed by China’s swelling interests in Africa, referring to it as “new colonialism.” I always thought it a breach of etiquette for the lion to cavil that the tiger’s teeth were too sharp. Clinton should me that my sense of manners was outdated.

China’s tumescent presence in Africa bothers America more than a little. China’s gallop should also give Africa pause. That Clinton made this statement in Zambia was not coincidental. Zambia sadly mortgaged much of its copper mining to Chinese firms. Lusaka is just beginning to feel the long-term pinch of occupying the wrong side of what are effectively loan transactions with Beijing.

China, with India closely on its heels, is buying large tracts of land to grow crops primarily to feed its populace back home. While a small portion of the crops will stay in Africa, that remnant will be insufficient compensation for the reduced production of indigenous farmers and for the social consequences of legion of small-scale, traditional farmers being divested of their familial landholding or of access to water for the parcels they still maintain. Many African nations have been enticed into “front-end loaded” deals whereby the Chinese offer dollops of money and all manner of assistance at the onset. However, those careful to read the fine print will see that the future payments due China will be steep and painful.

To a significant degree, Clinton was right but she is one of the last people on earth to give this message. As the American Secretary of State, she represents the West, including its imperialism. Instead of getting people to be more circumspect about China, her statement will cause many Africans to believe she is trying to hoodwink them; they will take her allegation as affirmation that they might cut a better deal with China than with America. Clinton’s statement will have the opposite effect intended because she has not the moral or historic right to gripe about another nation’s colonial behavior. A victimized homeowner is not obliged to take at face value the advice of a thief who, while making off with the man’s oven, advices the man to forget that confiscation in order to prepare himself because another thief shall come later in the night to snatch the refrigerator and dining table to boot! That Clinton did not understand this obvious fact makes one worry about the advice she is taking and about the Obama Administration’s perception of its place in the world. For reasons known only to them, senior members of the administration view themselves as more saintly than the rest of the world appraises them. As if by word or magic wand, Clinton thinks she can suddenly divorce herself from a half century of America foreign policy toward independent Africa.

While Clinton and other senior officials gauge their expressions as nearly biblical in wisdom and majesty, most people view them as nearly bankrupt.

In the main, American policy toward Africa has taken more from the continent than given to it. This unevenness goes back for centuries. Clinton would have you believe the unfair cutting of corners is the past. She would have you believe wrong. She should have peered across Zambia’s border to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DROC).

There, she would have seen a bevy of western companies extracting precious metals for cell phones and other advanced technologies. Nothing wrong with that except the firms employ what is effectively slave labor. The companies do not accurately report their extraction levels, thus depriving a poor nation of needed tax revenue. Worse, to play this indecent game, these firms give toll to local warlords whose indifference to the plight of the general population under their cruel writ is comparable to the treatment these firms extend to their laborers. The funds paid by these firms to these minor potentates are turned into weapons by which they lord like demigods over the innocent poor.

Washington’s enlightened and forceful response to this pounding ruthlessness was to propose a regulation that companies operating in the area sign a promise that they are not engaged in any malpractice. This is a tiny cup of weak tea. In the face of glaring inhumanity, America is prepared to do nothing but ask some of the most greedy and predatory firms in existence to execute a pledge of honorable intentions.

Fond of empty and quixotic pursuits, they might as well ask a wolf to affix its paw print on a declaration of vegetarianism.

If a firm can force laborers to toil in conditions that make hell seem like the French Riviera that firm will have no compunction in signing a meaningless warranty of decency.

Without any American government intent to investigate this netherworld, there are thousands of ways to circumvent this puny obstacle. A firm could create a “pristine” shell company or subsidiary that would buy the material from the tainted parent while completely feigning ignorance of the practices of the company on the ground. In the end, both the signing firm and requestor government know the pledge to

Hillary’s Hilarities The Unending Farce: The Wise Rarely Have Power And The Powerful Are Rarely Wise.

•Hillary’s Hilarities

By Brian Browne

be a lie. Yet, it will appear solemn, legal and reassuring to the American public enabling it, without darkened conscience, to continue purchasing items made with semi-purloined metals and obtained via labor practices better suited to the Dark Ages. Those toiling in the swamps and mines will be rendered breathless, gasping for air because the injustice and hypocrisy the signed paper represents would be stuffed down their throat on a daily basis.

If DROC is not enough to convince her the West’s “old colonialism” is alive and well, all Clinton need do is peek at Libya to see what her advice has wrought. The operation was billed as an urgent humanitarian intervention. It has revealed itself to be something more noxious. Bombing Tripoli to smithereens, NATO is the decisive factor in what should have remained a civil war. The war is now an uneven struggle pitting a cohort of nations against a fragment of a weaker country. There is nothing gallant in this unequal line-up. It is as sordid as the dictator it seeks to dispossess. In the end, NATO will win the war not the rebels. But for NATO’s intervention, the war would have long been decided in the direction opposite to which it now tilts. To the winner goes the spoils and NATO will not abstain from the expected desserts. Already, the rebels know the game they must play.

They are better at selling oil to their NATO overlords than in fighting Gaddafi’s tattered forces. This method of obliterating the Gaddafi regime is eerily reminiscent of the gunboat diplomacy of a century past. Given that the decisive strategic military advantage is no longer marine but aerial, this modern version can be called “gunship or drone diplomacy.” While the instruments are more sleek and refined than in the past, the motives of the powerful western nations remain unchanged. They have tired of Gaddafi’s teased bouffant and seek to knock the crown from his rebellious head. The words may be more manicured and the clothes more stylish but this still looks and acts like the same assailant who robbed Africa in the past.

Both West and East intend little good for Africa. Their firms and merchants, even most of their diplomats, do not see Africa as a place to do business or conduct their embassy with equals. They swagger into Africa as if embarked on a venture into semi-civilized territory. They view themselves as brave explorers bent on extracting all they can take and not as respectful emissaries bound by honor and law to cut an honest deal. They do things in Africa they dare not contemplate at home. Sadly, many Africans help perpetuate this attitude by volunteering to play the servile role in this overacted drama.

The second curious statement by Clinton was her dire warning to unnamed African leaders that they faced protests like the Arab spring lest they reform. Many African governments need reform and some leaders need to retire.

However, Clinton made this statement with an air of certitude removing it from the arena of diplomacy into that of a tutorial on democracy as if she had more concern for the hoi polloi than anyone. She spoke as if she had come down from the Delphic temple to pronounce a curse on those craven mortals who dare disobey her instructions.

This attempt to rattle continental leaders would be equal parts futile and transparent. The stark proposition shows her unfamiliarity with the demographics of most African states. More people are close to hunger and base illiteracy in sub-Saharan Africa than in the Arab reaches. For these people, the quest boils down to corporeal survival. They

don’t have time to window-shop sophisticated political or economic rights. The percentage of the population of most sub-Saharan nations who consider themselves of the middle and professional classes is markedly small compared to their Arab counterparts and it was this segment of the population that fueled protests in Egypt and Tunisia. Last, ethnic, sectional and religious cleavages are more pronounced in African nations than in Arab states. These factors militate against the likelihood of an Africa Spring.

This does not mean that there will not be a stirring somewhere at some point. Where there is widespread misery, people can be profoundly moved by the most unexpected provocation. Should this take place in an African nation, it will not be a peaceful awakening as if one were rising to a new dawn. It will be the awakening that occurs when one’s sleep is interrupted by a loud and violent outburst. It is doubtful Clinton would relish such an outpouring of pentup black rage.

To a material degree, Clinton did not mean what she said. It was partially for esthetic effect to polish the democratic credentials tarnished by Washington’s feckless reply to the Arab awakening. One can always do and say things more boldly and with less negative backlash in Africa than elsewhere. To whom was her warning directed?

Leaders like Meles and Museveni who remain American allies in the omnibus war on terrorism despite having long ago bartered their democratic pretenses in order to extend their reigns. Or perhaps she was referring to Gabon’s Ali Bongo Ondimba who a few days before the Clintonian edict was sipping mid-day tea at the White House.

The most likely nation in sub-Saharan Africa to experience anything like the Arab Spring is South Africa.

That highly industrialized economy remains unbalanced racially. The stark racial economic division could unite the numerous black ethnic groups into a demand for justice.

However, this is the last thing Washington would like to happen in Africa. It would pluck the feathers from American foreign policy and reverberate across America’s domestic political spectrum like the ghost of civil rights past. Clinton should be a bit more reticent in offering dire prognoses for they may come true but not quite in the way and location she hopes.

An even more likely place for a repeat of the Arab Spring is along the north shore of the Mediterranean where people battle the financialization of their governments and their leaders’ attempts to impose fiscal austerity on whole populations to sate a few large international banks. In Africa, the people have not sampled middle class prosperity; they yearn for what they don’t have. Europeans have lived their lives at this economic watermark. Now government is ready to drop them into the sump. What the mass of Africa experiences is more physically daunting but the decline many Europeans now face may be more psychologically twisting. To lose something valuable is often more unsettling than never to have had it.

What the Greek and other governments are doing is contrary to the will of the vast majority. The citizens of Greece have taken to the streets in mass protests that at times resemble those of Cairo’s Tahir Square. This is people power rolling into action against government that caters to a shadowy, moneyed elite. Yet Clinton mentions not a peep about this. When people take to the streets against African or Arab governments, America rails the will of the people must be respected and the offending governments are closedminded and hard-hearted if not utterly illegitimate. When the people take to the streets against the financial impositions of western governments, Washington says nothing about the mausoleum hearts of those in power or it labels the protestors as an overly riotous and immoderate rabble.

Power is much like money. Both are better to have than to have not. Yet, each comes with pratfalls. As money cannot purchase happiness, power cannot arrogate wisdom. Those who wield power should not grow too cozy with it. Over familiarity, dulls the mind and renders dumb even the most astute leader. The current edition of American leadership is stricken by this affliction. They cannot see the world as it is or remotely see themselves as the world sees them. They see themselves as cloaked in righteousness and take the fact that people listen to them as evidence of their high mastery.

That people listen is not so much a function of their greatness but of the greatness of their nation’s power. If they were shorn of power, the rabble would chase them down the causeway. In some ways comical, this vast misperception of the world and of self is also dangerous. By definition, the powerful have the ability to cast the world in their own image. If that image is distorted, they can too easily see rectitude in the most flagrant abuse of martial power. This makes the world a more dangerous setting. When Obama and Clinton took office, America was engaged in two wars.

Now the nation openly fights three (add Libya) and two undeclared ones (Pakistan and Yemen). American squanders peace and her better self on matters in which there is no urgent need to resort to weapons and fighting.

The maxim is no longer peace through restraint but that since America has a mighty hand, it might was well swing it. Power, it seems, is lost on the powerful.

Cover Story

Cover Story

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

•Not celebrating

PHOTO: GEORGE OSODI

Harrowing plights of the Nigerian child June 16 every year is celebrated as The International Day for the African child when issues affecting the African children are brought to the fore. Joe Agbro Jr. and Miriam Ndikanwu examine the reality of the Nigerian child

I

T is Thursday, 5:30pm at Oshodi, Lagos. Right under

a section of the bridge, a squad of street children have made their home. They are there most of the time. On the other side a football match is in progress, while further on, some adults hang around lazily. Others are smoking marijuana; for them, vices are a second way of life. I am shocked when a boy of about seven years lights up and inhales a stick of marijuana.

Wasiu, who looks elderly, sees my expression and says, “everybody dey free for here.”

Beside where I sit, a young girl who can’t be more than 10 years old lies curled up. Five others spread on cartons around. Two lie across the rail tracks. They are all in different stages of slumber.

And across the rail tracks with the overhead bridge for shelter, they smoke marijuana and ‘skunk’ with reckless abandon.

They have a home under the bridges and under stalls at

Oshodi, a commercial hub of Lagos. Passers-by see them. At night, they gather usually under the bridge in groups; a number of them already indoctrinated in smoking marijuana. These children seem to have been rejected by the society. They live for the moment, and every day is just about the same.

They’ve also honed the primordial instincts borne from living hard. Bold, showing signs of guile, they care no hoot about the fact that it is a day

17

meant for them to celebrate the African child – a category they belong to. They only constitute a nuisance when things get out of hand as it sometimes does.

This scenario is a daily occurrence, even while it is ironic that the other side of the barbed wire swarms with law enforcement officials.

Last week Thursday was International Day for African Child. But, to the kids at Oshodi, it was just another day. For work, these kids chase buses, begin work as conductors, load carriers, and also engage in different categories of menial tasks - all for a token amount. To them, the rising sun heralds another struggle. Bleak, dreary, and with only the comfort of hope as true companion, these kids forge on in public glare despite the fact that there is a law to protect them as children.

The idea of the International Day for the African Youth was birthed on June 16, 1976. It was the day when South African children protesting were massacred by the then apartheid South Africa’s government. The kids were in the fore-front of demands for better schooling, health and others. But, instead of their demands being considered, they were sprayed with bullets, their innocent young lives cut short. The incident haunted the world and 15 years later, the Organisation of African Unity which metamorphosed to the African Union (AU), adopted June 16 as international day for the African Child.

It is not yet Uhuru for the African child. Nigeria is a signatory to the Convention on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. But Nigerian children still suffer many privations which the convention hoped to abolish.

Children across the continent still suffer the conditions that occasioned that sad 1976 event.

In Nigeria, the passing of the Child Rights Act has made little difference to these conditions that necessitated the Soweto protests.

In Lagos State where the Child Rights Act has been passed, a law prescribing jail term for any parent whose child is caught hawking during school hours is in place. But the sad reality is that kids are still out of school, on the streets, most often, engaged in hustling to eke out a living.

Mr. Guy Doughty, Director for Africa, Preparation for Life Education, a career development consultancy firm, in a recent interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, ascribed brilliance to Nigerian students schooling in universities abroad. He said a lot of Nigerian students are talented, “but there are not enough resources in her tertiary institutions to meet their demands.”

The seeming brilliance is, however, stultified by conditions in Nigeria. For instance, the United Nations has designated that 26% of the budget has to be devoted to education. But sadly that figure is yet to be earmarked for the sector in Nigeria. In a report last year by Hajiya Amina az-Zubair, the then senior special assistant to the president on Millennium Development Goals, she said, “90 percent of Nigerian children under school age had been registered and attend school, • Continued on page 18

18

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Cover story

• Continued from page 17

which was a significant achievement as it translated to nine out of 10.” Does that figure include the street children who roam the streets of different Nigerian cities?

The health factor is also another big question mark. Quality healthcare in Nigeria is still a big challenge.

According to a report by Action Aid, more than 1,500 babies born in subSaharan Africa die daily, “mostly from preventable or treatable causes and the life expectancy of an African child at birth is 50 years, much lower than the world average of 68.”

Also, the case of disabled children is worsening. The Action Aid report said that in Nigeria, only about 2% of children with disabilities receive education while more than 80% have no access to services.

“We have recognised that it is becoming increasingly important to promote the rights of children with disabilities,” said Tunde Aremu, ActionAid Nigeria’s Policy, Advocacy and Campaign Coordinator.

“We have many children living in rural and urban areas that have different form of disabilities and have been denied access to their basic rights such as right to education and health care services.

“There are inadequate health care and education facilities in the country especially in rural communities. Most schools do not provide special education and amenities that children with disability need to lead a normal life and so parents of these children keep them at home without any basic education or health care,” he lamented.

Even able-bodied childen are not spared a soft-landing. Lagos State is one of the states that have adopted the Child Rights Act. Permanent Secretary Ministry of Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Mrs. Risqat Akiyode, who gave an update of the government’s child development programme in the last four years, explained that government through the ministry designed enlightenment campaign geared towards orientation and moulding of children behavioural pattern.

She said, “in order to build the capacity of our children for leadership position and encourage them to participate in governance, the ministry sponsored 40 members of Lagos State Children parliament on leadership training in South Africa in august 2010.”On the Child Rights Law of the state government which took effect in 2007, she said, “the ministry has taken the issue of implementation seriously so that various forms of abuse on our children could be eradicated in the state.

“A simplified version of child’s right law and Yellow card were produced and distributed to students of public schools.

The government resolved to implement this law by sensitizing the public on the rights of the child.”

Dr. Olabomi da Costa, a former director-general of the Ogun State Council for Arts and Culture, is of the belief that children be made to adopt speaking their local languages.

Somewhat in line with one of the objectives behind the 1976 Soweto uprising which included making use of local languages in school, da Costa said, “when our children are in school, let them learn our culture and use our culture to promote their activities in school.”

But with a worsening economy, many parents now find they have to spend more time at work, thereby leaving the care of their children to relatives or hired hands. This situation throws up situations where these children are exposed to vices even where they ought to be protected. As the world celebrates the African Child Day, the time is auspicious to re-consider the plight of the African child.

What rights do the Nigerian child have?

•Displaced children of Basa community in Nasarawa State PHOTO: MONDAY EMONI

•Children scavenging in Abuja

•Living under the bridge

•Rushing for food

PHOTO: JOHN EBHOTA

PHOTO: MUDASHIRU ATANDA

PHOTO: SUNDAY OGUNDUGBA

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

PAGE 19

Itsekiri lively connection Page 21

‘My 31 co-lawmakers are my new husbands’ — Oyo State first female Speaker “Mr Speaker sir.”

“Yes, Honourable Ogbomoso. You are recognized.”

“Observation!”

“Observation overruled!”

Welcome into the hallowed chamber of the Oyo State House of Assembly, Ibadan.

Though the position has been historically attached to a man, Alhaja Monsurat Jumoke Sumonu, 52, made history when she emerged the first female Speaker of the seventh Oyo State House of Assembly two weeks ago. With her unassuming mien and a smile for everyone, Sunmonu is endaring many more to herself and to politics at her expansive office in the Parliament Building, Secretariat, Ibadan.

A UK-trained administrator, the new Speaker, who is the only female member of the Assembly and the only female child in a family of six in her mother’s line, said she is finding Nigerian politics interesting. A pleasant and affable mother of three (all boys) in her debonair posture, assured Nigerians that her leadership of the House would last because she is at home in the world of men and that she had labeled her 31 co-lawmakers her new husbands.

She spoke with BISI OLADELE AN you let us into your educational background?

I studied at Children’s Boarding School, Osogbo; Ilora Grammar School, Ilora; Oliveth Baptist Height, Oyo before going to Kwara College of Technology for my Advance Level studies.

Then I attended Holborn Law Tutors, London where I did my intermediate LLB. I went to the London School of Accountancy where I studied for stages one and two of the Chartered Institute of Secretaries and Administrators. I did Management with the United Kingdom (UK) Immigration for three years.

What about your work history?

I worked for the Housing Corporation of Oyo State up to 1979 when I was here.

Then I worked for Natwest Bank in the UK briefly. I worked for the London Borough of Hackney for few months. Then I joined the UK Immigration Service 22 years ago.

As the first female Speaker to lead the House, what gives you the confidence that you can lead the House successfully for four years, particularly considering the volatile nature of politics in this state?

It is simple – what a man can do, a woman can as well do. I believe that by God’s grace, I have got the strength and ability and I pray to God to help me demonstrate it effectively. Oyo State House of Assembly is one of the oldest in Nigeria.

It has played host to many notable

C

•Olatunji

Nigerians such as Anthony Enahoro and Rotimi Williams of blessed memory.

What motivated you into politics?

When I came into the country 10 years ago, I saw an accident in Oyo. A crane fell over some people. Then I managed to assist some of the casualties. Then I called the chairman of the local government to see what he could do. But the answer I got was not impressive at all. That made me to go back to the UK and I spoke to my other colleagues from Oyo in (Oyo Descendants Union). We reasoned that it was better for one of us to stand for election rather that assisting younger ones with cash. The association has been assisting four indigent students with their education yearly till date. So I decided to contest.

Have you been involved in advocacy in any way before?

I am the Vice-Chairman, Board of Trustees, Assalam Araman, UK where we handle so many problems and issues. The group is like an advocacy group.

Now that you are a lawmaker and the Speaker, do you think this position will afford you the opportunity to make direct impact on the lives of your constituents?

I am here as the representative of my constituency. That will give me opportunity to make direct impact because when you have a bill that brings certain programmes to your constituency, that will make direct positive impact on the people. We will be •Continued on page 20

20

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Life

The tales of national youth service “U

NDER the sun and in the rain...Nigeria we serve” As the Batch ‘B’ Corp members sang the NYSC anthem for the last time, a glorious feeling of jubilation filled the atmosphere. Family relatives and friends watched from the sidelines as the ‘corpers’ stretched their vocal chords. The expression plastered on the faces of many read ‘freedom’. Others wore the empty look of uncertainty, their graduation from the Corp signaled their induction into the job hunting population.

Amonia Karibo, a Batch ‘B’ ex-Corp member serving in Ekiti State posits: “It’s a bitter sweet experience. Although it’s a good thing to be able to live with people from other parts of the country and learn their culture but there’s no place like home.

I’m so glad it’s finally over.”

The graduate of Microbiology recounted some of her experiences while serving in a land thousands of miles away from her family in Port Harcourt: “I really didn’t know what to expect when I was posted to Ekiti but secretly I had hoped that it wouldn’t be very different from PH. When I got here, all that hope just vanished into thin air.

“Initially, I was faced with the language barrier issue. Most of the students and some of teachers here cannot speak English. Passing along even the most basic information in the school where I taught was a challenge. I found out that the people here prefer the laid-back lifestyle. Majority of the workers are either teachers or they work in the Government House which is sad because there are only very few businesses around making it’s really difficult to find places like supermarkets when you need something,” she stated.

Karibo, like many other Youth Corp members who participated in the INEC registration and voting exercise said, “Many of us who participated in the INEC exercise have not been paid. They owe different people various amounts of money. I am yet to receive the remaining N14, 000 allowance they promised to pay us. Some other people are being owed higher amounts.”

While Corp members in Ekiti State still have an axe to grind with INEC, Leerabari Tebira, who served in Delta State expressed: “We were happy when they eventually paid us our INEC allowances because we had waited for so long that we thought it would never come again.”

One of the silent yearnings of a ‘corper’ is to retain their position in the organisation they were posted to. However, Leerabari, who served in a rural town, stated in shock, “Why would I want to be retained here? Who would want that kind of thing? I am leaving this place as soon as possible.”

The ex-Corp members serving in states like Lagos and Abuja tell a different story.

Amarachi, who hails from Abia State, narrates: “I graduated from Abia State University (ABSU) but I purposely wanted to serve in Lagos because I want to get a good job after service. Now that we have done our Passing-Out-Parade (P.O.P), the next

Youth Corps members who officially wore their ‘jungle boots’ for the last time at the Passing Out Parade (P.O.P) which held during the week spoke about their experiences while serving their Motherland. Rita Ohai reports.

•Corp members at their Passing-Out-Parade

thing on my mind is to start giving people my C.V.” According to her, some of her colleagues had begun job hunting months before the expiration of their one-year National Youth Service tenure. “I even started looking for a job very late. Most of the people who are in my Community Development (C.D) group were already going to meet different companies for jobs and a few of them got it. I just know that I don’t want to go back to Aba empty-handed so I will try my luck here first.”

Okadu Azibayam, a graduate of the University of Port Harcourt refused to show up in camp after he discovered the state he had been posted. He said “I was posted to Zamfara State when I graduated from school and I refused to go. I would rather miss out on one year of service and re-apply next year than go to a place where the chances of loosing my life over a flimsy reason will sky-rocket.”

Re-iterating the need for the cancella-

tion of the National Youth Service Corp (N.Y.S.C) programme, Ruky Sesebo, a Batch ‘A’ ex-Corp member says, “Taking part in the Youth Service programme at some point in Nigeria’s history had its benefits but now that we have cases were the Government cannot secure the lives of its children, it is no longer worth it. People are being paid peanuts and can barely survive on the stipend they are given. Corp members are forced to live in terrible conditions and the Government is doing nothing about it. In light of all this abnormality, the programme should definitely be scrapped.”

An Abuja based Corp member, Tobi Ogunwobi, who is serving as a Dentist in a private clinic takes a different stand: “I am more in favour of reforming the NYSC rather than totally scrapping it. I strongly believe that Corp members should be able to choose which geo-political zones they would want to serve in. I am also of the opinion that only indigenes of zones with a history of violence

should be sent to those areas and the welfare package of Corp members should be reviewed because it’s unfair to pay a graduate N9,500 in this age when that amount can barely feed a person for a week” Records show that over 4,000 Corp members have died during their service year since 1999. More than 11 of them were brutally murdered during the 2011 elections.

In states such as Bauchi, Kaduna, Kano, Adamawa, Nasarawa, Benue, Gombe, Sokoto, Plateau, Niger, Katsina and Delta, dozens of young ladies have been raped and brutally molested.

In Rivers State, at the Passing-OutParade of Batch ‘B’ Crop members, it was announced that 5 Corp members had been confirmed dead. Another five who were supposed to partake in the parade had been kidnapped by unknown gun-men. The kidnappers are requesting a ransom fee of N100 million from the State Government.

The kidnapped Corp members are yet to be released.

‘My 31 co-lawmakers are my new husbands’ •Continued from page 19

working with the chairmen of the local governments.

Now that you are a political office holder, what specific corrections do you target in the society in the next four years?

At the end of four years, I want to be able to thank God for having achieved what actually brought me into politics – making good impact, helping people, looking after the community and so on.

Politics is said to be different in Nigeria from the way it is practised the world over.

Since you returned from the UK to participate in politics, what has been your

experience? Are things really the way you thought they were?

It is quite interesting. And I’m happy to be involved because I have good leaders. My people are very accommodating. Right from the time I was seeking the ticket and even the governor himself has been open. He has been giving me the opportunity to express myself. He is a good listener. So, I’m enjoying it.

Why did you join the ACN? Why not any other party?

My parents have always been progressives. And I love the manifesto of ACN which is free education, free health,

development of agriculture, rural development which are part of the programmes I have lined up.

In the UK where you are coming from, the Parliament stands firm to make democracy interesting. What kind of Assembly do you want to lead here?

We have to work hand-in-hand with the Executive. We are to understand each other.

One won’t disturb the other but everything has to be incorporated in order to have a successful government.

Who is your mentor?

Chief Awolowo, Alhaji Lam Adesina.

That is a man that wants the best for Oyo State. He has been a leader to me.

As a mother and wife, do you still cook for your family?

Yes, I do. I enjoy cooking a lot.

Do you think this role will still allow you to do your home chores?

It is a matter of prioritizing. It is not that you are at work round the clock. There will always the time for you to attend to your family.

What advice do you have for the people of Oyo State?

My advice for my people is to be cooperative. Let us be patient and pray for the legislators for them to be able to fulfill all our campaign promises.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

T

HE music of Adunni Nerfertiti, accompanied by drums rang through the chilly Agip Hall of the MUSON Centre, Onikan, Lagos.

Gradually, the group of four women began the songs, starting with an Itsekiri number.

And sonorously, the music stirred the soul of Her Excellency and Distinguished Senator Oluremi Tinubu who has Itsekiri blood in her. And unplanned, she left the high table to join in the dance. The celebrant, Sam Omatseye, a thoroughbred Itsekiri himself would not be left out. Hon. Temi Harriman, ex-legislator and an Itsekiri daughter mounted the dais to join in the graceful gyration.

As prayers and good wishes were heaped on Omatseye, Chief Hope Harriman, father of the day, and an Itsekiri sage looked on. The four of them understood the Itsekiri song belting out.

As Itsekiris, the quartet shared a bond that only comes through birth.

The Speaker of the Federal House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Tambuwal as well as his deputy, Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, savoured the thrill. No one knew yet that that was just the beginning of more to come. They would later be gripped when Evelyn Osagie, a journalist mounted the stage to perform. Many were surprised at her masterful thematic recitation of a number of the poems in Lion Wind and Other Poems. The guests would later savour Topsticks, an all-female youthful band of instrumentalists.

There were also political banters and barbs dished out by the coterie of politicians who graced the event. Hope Harriman delved into history, issuing a threat to reveal a lot the asiri (secrets) of past and present office holders. The occasion also witnessed the gathering of the galaxy of stars in the country’s media firmament, back-slapping and gisting.

The occasion was Omatseye’s 50 th birthday. And to celebrate with him were friends, colleagues, and well-wishers gathering to celebrate the golden jubilee of the author who is also a journalist and public commentator.

Last year, Sam Omatseye officially made a debut as a published author with presentation of two poetry books: Dear Baby Ramatu, a long poem inspired from a baby buried in the desert sands of Yobe, north-eastern Nigeria and Mandela’s Bones and Other Poems. And only last Wednesday, he marked his 50th birthday with the presentation of three books: In Touch, The Crocodile Girl, and Lion Wind and Other Poems.

His first novel, The Crocodile Girl, Omatseye said, was inspired by a story his father told him as a child. In the novel, Alero is the village beau. She gets to meet the Tim Forester who has come from the United States in search of links to his roots.

In his quest, Tim, with his Itsekiri friend, Itse, whom they met in the US, had entered the ‘forest of silence.’ They had been chased and attacked by wild pigs. Tim would recover to make a second attempt.

But, before he embarks on the journey again, to his dismay comes face to face with a culture steeped in superstitions. It is ridiculous to Tim to hear of Alero’s perceived crocodile links. Tim’s major preoccupation to salvage whatever links he has to the Itsekiri village consumes him.

Nevertheless, a romance blossoms between Tim and Alero but fate’s hands has other things in store for the couple.

And bliss and misfortune occur in a rapid succession.

In The Crocodile Girl, Omatseye deploys a heavy dose of poetry to bring alive the scenes, moods, and feel of his characters in the Itsekiri village. This is perhaps not surprising as poetry defines most of his writings, even when he engages in serious political discourse. And, after establishing a romance between the duo, Omatseye builds up suspense to the eventual outcome.

In Touch is a collection of some of Omatseye’s weekly columns in The Nation newspaper. His columns have been as controversial as the writer. Only recently, Omatseye succeeded in drawing the ire of many Yorubsa with a column, ‘Awo family without an Awo.’ Following the article, a flurry of responds flew on the pages of newspapers, as well as on the internet. To

Life

21

Itsekiri lively connection To celebrate his golden anniversary, Sam Omatseye gifts three books to the literary world amidst songs and speeches, Joe Agbro Jr. writes

•Omatseye and Her Excellency Senator Oluremi Tinubu dancing with Adunni Nerfertiti

•L-R: Prof. Hope Eghagha, Mr. and Mrs. Omatseye, Chief Hope Harriman and Senator Oluremi Tinubu

some, he had trounced the African culture of unconditionally edifying age, a situation which Omatseye refers to as the “tyranny of age.” However, many still agree with his incisive thoughts and decimation of public discourse.

Lion Wind and Other Poems which comprises of 57 poems on varied themes is his third work of poetry. Like old wine, he is gradually finding his voice as the reviewer of the book, Dr. Harry Olufunwa, a senior lecturer in the Department of English, Redeemers Universit,y said, “Lion Wind and Other Poems clearly marks a distinct stage in

the evolution of Omatseye’s poetic voice.

He is no longer quite so vulnerable to the temptations of timeliness, the desire to focus on contemporary issues, is an occupational hazard for one who is, after all, a practising journalist. It is as if he realises that the requirements of poetry and literature give him the leeway to exercise his extremely fertile imagination to its limits.”

On how he finds time to write, Omatseye simply says, “I write at home, I the office, in the car if I am being driven, and when I am on the plane.”

Omatseye was born on June 15, 1961.

PHOTOS: GABRIEL KUTELU

His heroes include his father who introduced him to the joys of reading. And at the Government College Ughelli, he honed his writing by writing essays daily.

In his office on a bookshelf are photographs of him with V. S. Naipaul, Wole Soyinka, and Derek Walcott. A picture with Gunther Grass, however, did not come out clear. Omatseye has currently established himself as an eclectic reader, poring over different subjects. He also has promise to become a prolific writer. “I still have some books I am working on,” said Omatseye, who is the chairman Editorial Board of The Nation newspaper.

22

Life

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

PICTURE OF THE WEEK

...THAT giraffes use their tongues to clean dirt from their ears ...that the level of gravity on the moon is so low that when you speak, the sound form your lips will not get to the next person’s ear. ...that crocodiles can live as long as 250 years and can weigh 2500 pounds. ...that the energy generated from lightening can power a bulb for 3 months.

Keeping tabs on people and events in cyber space

WHO’S TALKING...

‘WHY does Akpabio want to kill me?’, that’s the title of the article published by saharareporters.com.

The article which drew attention to claims by Dr. Ime Umanah states in detail the alleged threat on the life of the Deputy Governorship Candidate. These are some of the responses the article triggered on their website and Facebook: Akpan Asunwa The irony is that, Mr. Akpabio is celebrating, frolicking all over the place, while the state has actually gone to the dogs. Tell me, if he won decently like Fashola of Lagos, how e for do am?

Ubong Please correct me if I am wrong. Is it not the same Ime Umanah that asked his

would be surprised if he doesn’t deny this article on SR. It would be better if Ime gets well than fighting from a sick bed because sickness might make you say things you weren’t meant to say.

•Udoedehe

aide to send an sms to Governor Akpabio saying Boko Haram is after him. He should watch his back!!!

When questioned by the SSS, he agreed to asking the SMS to be sent but not in a spiteful way, after he was implicated by his aide. I

Clem Okonkwo If you really want to know, ask him. Besides, you are probably interfering in his daily bread or property. Does he have the right to protect it, you decide but stay away from his property if you believe he is vicious and has bad intentions against you.

The choice is yours, fight him to beat him or fear him and stay fearful and stop complaining.

Justina Odobo C O N F E S S I O N TIME!!!!

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• This paints a picture of beauty and the beast...only

this time, beauty is a ‘chimpanzee’! Go figure!!! Source: Darey Yommy on Facebook

out with actor friend Will Mellor, she noticed he had rings on both hands, one of which was on his wedding finger.

‘He was banging his right hand on a table and one mate asked, “Is that your wedding ring?” ‘Rhodri held up his left hand and said, “No, that’s my wedding ring”. Then he pointed to his right hand and said, “That’s my divorce ring”. I just thought it was a

throwaway comment. But now it makes you wonder if he already knew what Natasha had been up to.’

She said later on that night, ‘One thing led to another’ after they met up again at a house party. We spent half an hour in the bedroom and then just went back downstairs and carried on the night. And everybody vanished into the night at about 3.30am.

It was a one-night stand but I had his number and decided to text him just to make sure he was all right.’

And Danielle said Rhodri replied but said he was glad she texted as ‘Natasha checks my emails’.

Ryan, 37, is accused of having an eight-year affair with Natasha as well as former Big Brother contestant Imogen Thomas behind wife Stacey’s back.

RANDOM POST JUNREY Balawing, from a remote town in the southern Philippines, stands just under two feet tall and has been officially declared the World’s Shortest Man by Guinness World Records.

Balawing, who has just turned 18, is 23.5 inches tall (59.93cm), making him more than 7cm shorter than previous title holder Khagendra Thapa Magar from Nepal, who is 26 inches tall.

A team from Guinness World Records made the announcement in the remote town of Sindangan, where

Balawing lives. Balawing’s father said his son, the oldest of four children, stopped growing in his first year. His speech is also stunted and his conversations are limited to short phrases.

Balawing mostly stays at home, needing assistance to move around. His condition has prevented him from attending school. While the award does not come with a cash prize, Glenday said the team hopes that publicising Balawing’s case will draw the attention of medical experts who may be

FREE DOWNLOAD The Official Summer 2011 Legooo Mix is an eclectic blend of all the great tunes out there, it also includes some exclusive DJ edits & remixes including a mash up of songs by Michael Jackson and Fela Kuti. The creative mind behind the mix is DJ Marv has put the link up for download at www.bellanaija.com

JOBS ONLINE

4-1-WEIRD THERE are only a few things as entertaining as ‘family drama’. It’s even more interesting when the key player involved is internationally acclaimed footballer, Ryan Giggs.

Giggs who was recently slammed for having an affair with his younger brother’s wife, Natasha, might not have to face the music alone. The younger brother of the footballer has been branded a ‘hypocrite’ by a woman who said he cheated on his wife with her.

Danielle Healy has claimed that Rhodri Giggs (Ryan’s younger brother) slept with her while his wife Natasha was having her alleged affair with Ryan. She said Rhodri slept with her four months ago and said he was ‘just as bad’ as his Manchester United star sibling and ‘had a lot of balls’ for playing the victim.

Speaking to the Sun, she said: ‘I think Rhodri has got a lot of balls trying to play the victim in all this. I might not have had an eight-year affair with him but what we did was still wrong. He was a married man with children when he had sex with me. He wasn’t exactly being the family man the night we got it together.’

Danielle, 24, who works as a business administrator, told the paper she met Rhodri, 34, at a pub in Greater Manchester in February. But she said she only decided to tell her story after she became ‘sick’ of Rhodri coming across as being hurt and wounded by Ryan sleeping with his wife Natasha.

She told the newspaper: ‘I don’t feel sorry for Ryan, Rhodri or Natasha. They’re all at it and as bad as each other.’ Danielle said when she met Rhodri, who was

OMG!!! DID YOU KNOW..

able to help him.

Local medical practitioners have not been able to explain his growth disorder. “The previous record holder had been given medical care. He even had free surgery provided by the USA. So there are benefits to being a record holder,” Guinness World Records editor-in-chief Craig Glenday said.

Source:www.telegraph.co.uk

RECKITT Benckister, makers of Mortein, Strepsil,Harpic,Dettol, Jik, durex and Airwick is recruiting for its management training programme. Interested applicants are to send their C.V’s to www.rb.com/careers. Remember to use the job number LAG002. The deadline for application has been set for the 21st of June, 2011.

Exciting career opportunities exist in Industrial Automaton and Control in Yokogawa Nigeria Limited.

Professional applicants in Safety System Engineering, Field Service Engineering, Inside Sales Engineering will be short-listed. Interested candidates for any of the positions should send an updated copy of their resume to yok@kimberly-ryan.net before the close of business 28th of June, 2011.

May and Baker Nigeria recruiting applicants to fill the following positions: Public Sector Co-ordinator, Utility (Boiler) Technician, Product Manager and Mechanical Engineer. To apply, visit www.myjobbers.com.

The British Deputy High Commission in Lagos has a vacancy in the UK Trade &

Investment Section. The successful applicant who will fill the position of Trade Development Manager should posses a BSc degree. He/she must have sound knowledge of the local business environment / practices and excellent communication (written and oral) and presentation skills. In addition, he/she should have experience in people management and demonstrate strong IT skills.

Knowledge of the oil and gas sector would be desirable, and the applicant should be a strong team player, who is flexible. To apply, write a 2 paged letter outlining how your skills and background fit the job on offer and attach a comprehensive CV (which includes contact phone number) to the following address: Thelma Egunjobi, HR Manager, British Deputy High Commission, LAGOS. The deadline is Friday 24 June 2011.

UNICEF is also recruiting an Executive Assistant who will serve for a two-year span.

If you are interested in the position and meet the requirements, please forward your application in a sealed envelope marked ‘confidential’ quoting the vacancy number addressed to: The Human Resources Manager, UNICEF, UN House, Plot 617/618, Central Area District, P.M.B 2851, Garki Abuja, by close of business on Tuesday, 21 June 2011.Your application should include a completed UN Personal History Form and your curriculum vitae with your current detailed contact information to include a telephone number & email address and a one-page summary statement that describes how your experience and qualification relate to the job description above.

N.B: You can send your jokes, pictures and gist online to pearlohai@yahoo.com

23 SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

The bounty of Bounty Press R

IGHT from his youthful stage through to his eventful adult life, he has been possessively committed to a singular “calling” – stocking and enriching the mental redoubts of humanity through provision and publication of books. This, more than any other else, aptly sums up the enviable life of the gracefully old personage, Deacon Olu Anulopo, founding Managing Director and Chairman of Bounty Press LTD. The journey definitely began somewhere: “It started way back in the mid 50s. The Nigerian Baptist Convention was to set up a bookshop at Okebola in Ibadan. Before that time I was an assistant to my Manager in the CMS bookshop, Abeojuta. That was where the missionary spoke to me about the plan.

And that was because I was serving him very well. Any time he came to our bookshop in Abeokuta, he would say, ‘boy you are doing well here’. I would say, ‘yes sir’. He then asked me one day weather as a Baptist I was aware that the Convention would set up a bookshop very soon. I told him that I was not aware but that when the time came he should remember me. Later he came to me and informed me that the bookshop would come up in 1955. Eventually I got employed to go and set up the bookshop at the Baptist Convention Secretariat, Okebola. I was there for another six years when an advertisement appeared in The Daily Times then. I read that the Macmillan people in the UK were look-

Meeting the relevant book needs of people at the various levels of learning is one of the major concerns of Bounty Press LTD, Orita Challenge, Oyo State. Since its establishment 21 years ago, the publishing firm has remained unwaveringly committed to the best tradition of advancing the frontiers of human knowledge. Deacon Olu Anulopo, pioneer Managing Director of Macmillan, Nigeria, and Chairman of Bounty Press, talks about his decades of involvement in book publishing. Ademola Adesola writes ing for a Nigerian to represent them in Nigeria. I took this to my wife and she asked me to apply since I had the qualifications. I applied, that was sometime in August. About November then came a reply. I was asked to report at Springfield Hotel for an interview.

It was very interesting. At the end of the day they could not resist giving me their File for Nigeria, because they thought I was the type of person they were looking for. That was how I got employed to be the pioneer of Macmillan in Nigeria beginning from January 1963.”

For the octogenarian, it was not a cinch pioneering Macmillan in Nigeria. A daunting and uphill task it was.

“It was after I took up the job,” he recounts, “that I knew what it entailed to be a

pioneer. It was no joke. They just said, ‘make a success of it. That’s your problem’. But with hard work and prayers I made a success of it.”

Just what major steps did he take in transforming the firm? He explains: “You have need of focus. You have to be someone who can work very hard, go to places and meet people. These were challenges. There were people who had set up big organizations before you. How would you be able to match them, seeing that you were starting with nothing? Then we had no books relevant to Nigerian system of education. ‘Where are the authors?’ I asked myself. However, little by little the materials which the big companies rejected I was picking them up and sending them to Britain. They were taking to my advice and

then they were being directed to meet people in the Ministry of Education to guide them.

That was it. Gradually we began to have good books. They didn’t want to publish Yoruba books because they thought it wouldn’t sell.

But I encouraged them to try it. We discovered that there were many readers in the Yoruba language literature. One of our popular authors was the late Professor Olabintan; he had series of good literature books. There was also Aromolaran who has gone to settle in America for years now. They produced very good books which did very well. Later on we went into science books. Strangely, the identical Oyewole twins in Abeokuta did two good books for us – one on Chemistry and the other one on Physics. Both of them were teaching at Abeokuta Grammar School then. Those books did very, very well. They wrote them in the way and manner that the African man would understand science, simple English!

“Thankfully, every project which I encouraged them to invest in was successful. We added English to it. Initially the problem with that was how to challenge the Oxford Readers which had been in circulation in Nigeria for many years, ditto Longman. It was difficult.

But I encouraged UK to let us do something.

They were feeling reluctant because they didn’t want to waste their money. It took us about eight years before they could eventu•Continued on page 24

24

Arts

•Continued from 23

ally give it a trial. As time went on we broke through. God really helped us. Our books were very, very commercially successful. Later on again we had this geographer who wrote atlas for us. The atlases too did very well. Again, they took their time to edit everything. For about a decade, Macmillan controlled the market share of atlas sales in Nigeria. It was fantastic; we sold millions in Nigeria.

Time to rest. Ironically this turned out to be time for another active engagement in the business of book publishing. With retirement for Pa Anulopo, as he is more famously known, came the glorious birth of Bounty Press. This again attests eloquently to the inseverable affinity he has with books. Hear him: “I retired in March 1989. At that time I was thinking about what else to do. I was still a young man then, about 61. There was still so much left for me to do. But I was asking God to guide me. Then the inspiration came that I should keep on in the line I have known – start my own business. Strangely too, a few years back then I had registered Bounty Press Limited. I had forgotten about it. So, it was after I retired that I remembered I registered a company. What I was going to do with it then I didn’t know. That was how I came back to think about it. It took me a long time before I could locate the name that I had registered to be able to activate it. That was how in 1990 Bounty Press came into being. I thank God that, little by little, a solo effort has today become great. I have a lot of staff here now and so many books have been published on all aspects of learning. That’s how we have been.”

He speaks further on the types of books they publish. “Immediately as we started we were ordering some books from the UK, trying to see what we could buy and sell. Then there was a book among them, Ibuolokun, a Yoruba book published by Holder, UK. We were buying regularly from them. Then they gave us the permission to publish it in Nigeria. It was one of our first publications. Little by little we were looking for people who could help us.” As he carefully picked his words, he pointed at Agbo Areo, another notable publisher whom he employed at Macmillan then, who was quietly listening to Pa Anulopo, saying “this is my boy. We’ve been growing up together at Macmillan. He himself has set up his own firm. He was one of those who have been very useful to us. If we saw or got any material, we would ask him to assess it. For editing and production he has been very helpful.” As Agbo himself noted, Bounty Press is into publishing of different books ranging from nursery to tertiary texts. The bounty of the firm also abounds in

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

‘We are standing by the giants’

•R-L: Mr Lanre Anulopo, Executive Director, Pa Anulopo, Chairman, and Mr Tunde Adeosun, PHOTOS: ADEMOLA ADESOLA House Editor of Bounty Press

its ability to meet the needs of schools and individuals for books at affordable prices.

On the publishing process of Bounty Press, the Chairman explains that it is in line with the best practice of the industry. According to him, “once you are in the hands of the editors you are at home. We work with experienced editors and that helps in checking the common errors that you often find in some books today. It may cost big money, but as a publisher you must publish what is good. We have Agbo Areo and at a time the late Mr Amori.

We have our house editor too. We receive manuscripts from young writers and we read them through very thoroughly. We form our own opinion too on weather they are publishable or not. Critically we examine them. We look for people who have the knowledge on any area that the manuscripts deal with and we get them to advise us objectively so that we can take our decision. Our student Series on Shakespeare is motivated by the need to make students understand the complexity of the works of Shakespeare. The notes are very important. What we do is to get some people who can write these notes along each of the Shakespeare Series anytime. We tested this and it has been successful.

“Let me add that we also publish for the

general public. We have a lot on children’s literature. We want to move further with adult literature and strengthen the French language, which is one of our strongest lines here. We are also looking out for serious authors who can write for us. Once you write a book for us, what we do is that we sign an agreement with you on the universal contractual agreement form so that we can at the end pay you royalties on your book for as long as it remains in print. We don’t ask you to bring money for us to publish your book.

We finance it.” In addition to this, Mr Tunde Adeosun, Bounty Press house editor, informs that they also publish memoir, biography and autobiography. He explains that the condition attached to the publishing of these books is different from that of the regular books they publish.

A publishing firm is described as successful if it is the case that, among other important areas, it has a viable distribution network through which it makes its products available to the public. Bounty Press qualifies as one. Pa Anulopo elucidates: “We employ marketers and representatives. There are quite a good number of them all over the country, visiting schools, bookshops and booksellers. We have a viable distribution

network. We circulate all over the country.

We have area offices in Abuja, in Lagos, Ibadan, and in the East. We meet the book distributors in those areas. They are our customers. We have close to 40 representatives across the country. And they are doing very fine because we have to train and retrain them. We have trainers too.”

Is it a roller coaster ride making books available for readers? Before the question was out of the reporter’s mouth, the affable old man heaves a deep sigh, “um” comes the sound, and then he exhales: “Finance first! Then you have need of enough cash (laughs) to be able to pay for every aspect. When you invite the artist you have to pay him. Same for the designer, the typesetters, and the paper itself. It’s very sad that Nigeria hasn’t got an industry to produce paper till now with all the vast forests that we have. I pity the newspaper proprietors too. Paper is very costly.”

This notwithstanding, the man of books is highly indebted to God, he confesses, for the success story of Bounty Press. He brightens up and chirps: “I thank God that it has been a success. We are indeed grateful to Him because we are beginning to stand by the giants too. We are quite happy with our size.

They themselves are pretty much aware that there is a company known as Bounty Press.

We are making impact in schools.”

The aged one must be, as it is often said, smiling to the banks. “What we are doing here,” he posits, matter-of-factly, “is not to amass wealth. Imagine the number of staff this young company is employing. If there are more of people setting up companies where they can employ 20 to 30 people, unemployment will lessen. We are playing a major role by employing people. That is how it should work, not people amassing billions of naira without setting up businesses in which they could employ people. We pay our workers regularly. We pay about 64 workers every month. We get from the society and we give back to it.”

His dutiful son, Mr Lanre Anulopo, is more than prepared to keep the flag of the company hoisted. His paterfamilias can rest confidently because there is a son who will continue to consolidate on the successes that Bounty Press has achieved. And when you get to know that he is the Executive Director of the company, then there may not be any doubt that he will get it to move on swimmingly. “I am ready,” he quipped heartily to this reporter.

Ojomolami goes on stage Edozie Udeze writes on Ojomolami, a play on the plight of widows by Martin Adaji which is receiving attention at the National Theatre, Lagos, presently

O

JOMOLAMI is a new play written

by Martin: Adaji, the Artistic Director of the National Troupe of Nigeria. The play which will go on stage any moment from now, dwells on the plight of a widow somewhere in Igalaland, Kogi State of Nigeria. But interestingly, the playwright uses this singular case to mirror the entire widowhood in different strata of the Nigerian society where once a husband dies, the wife or wives of the deceased are immediately accused of being responsible for his death.

Ojomolami which means God knows my plight, dramatizes this scenario to let the world into this peculiar situation where the relations of the man do not even care to look into the ingredients of the will which gives the women something to be proud of. All they know is that their brother did not die a natural death not even when it is obvious he became sick when he was 40 years. At 62, when he died and after retiring from the civil serv-

ice, they still believed he was bewitched by his wives.

Da Costa Adeyemo, the assistant director of the play explains that it is essentially an actors play. By that he means that the play need seasoned and professional stage actors and actresses to bring out the beauty and convince the public that this story is real. This is why the cast includes actors who have caught their teeth on stage.

“Essentially, it is a 17-man actor, including the crowd,” Adeyemo said in an interview. “But we have quite a number of Igala traditional songs to spice the play to bring out the whole essence of the story,” he said.

In order to ensure that the songs truly explains the story, an artiste was brought from the Kogi State Council for Arts to explain and teach some of the songs.

On why the songs sound so sorrowful and emotional, Adeyemo said, “Yes, it is to tell you the seriousness of the situation. Don’t forget that a man has just died and the people are in mourning mood. The wives are

•A scene from the play

not happy either because not only that they have lost their breadwinner and loved one, they are now to face the worst hurdle in their lives. This is why the songs are more of dirge as you can see,” he said.

Adaji wrote this play based on what happened in his area a few years ago. “Of course, the incident truly happened to someone the playwright knows very well,” Adeyemo stressed. This is why the story is very convincing on stage. The women harp on the need for the men to let go some of these age-long practices that keep them perpetually in the background.

With their songs and slow movements on stage, one can readily see how traumatized and troubled they are. How long must women continue to endure such obnoxious and innocuous practices? This seems to be what those movements on stage suggest.

The play is indeed an eye-opener and a warning to the society that women should be allowed to be themselves. The story should be told to those who care to listen to allow modernity to hold sway so that together, men and women will move the society to the next level of development.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Books

25

In Pursuit of Meaning and Truth O

N E day in 1990 when Sam Omatseye was on a political reporting fellowship at Kansas City Times in Missouri, he went to the Time Building in New York to spend time talking with Roger Rosenblatt, one of the most brilliant TIME magazine columnists, writers and essayists.

Rosenblatt, who had been a long time hero of Omatseye in journalism, was then the editor-atlarge of LIFE magazine, a sister publication of TIME. Over a cup of tea, Roger and Sam spoke about great writings. Listening to Omatseye, who was barely 29 years old, quoting offhand from his elegant, illuminating and erudite essays in TIME magazine was, for Rosenblatt, a wonderfully moving experience. The then 50-year-old award winning Roger kept saying to Sam, “you have a great memory, a valuable asset to a writer.”

Omatseye then asked him how he managed to develop the capacity to write competently about anything, how he managed so often to bring many things to enhance the felicity of his essays and, lastly, how he always managed to recall with ease the books and ideas which he used so admirably to illuminate his thoughts and perspectives.

It was Rosenblatt, the unassuming mentor, who encouraged Omatseye, the willing mentee, to continue to read voraciously and to develop and sustain a sense of restless inquisitiveness: to seek knowledge without discrimination, to search for it beyond borders, to chase truth and meaning to the end of the world even if it means running against the grain. He assured Omatseye that he had a long time ahead of him to learn the tricks of ceaselessly inventive and thrillingly profound writings.

This was a young man who had been taught at the University of Ife to read extensively and comprehensively. He tells us in one of his articles that he had an extra semester in Ife because of his greed for books. This was the young man whose book-lovingfather, Moses, began to respect only when he started showing that he was an aspiring bibliophile who had outread the old man.

Yet Roger Rosenblatt was still asking him to commune with more books. He likes Lance Morrow but he is enamoured of Rosenblatt.

Indeed, Harold Bloom, the recondite author of The Anxiety of Influence may find in this huge Rosenblatt influence a tacit support for his controversial theory. In his carefully crafted book, Unless it Moves the Human

A Review by Kunle Ajibade

Heart: The Craft and Art of Writing, which he published early this year, Rosenblatt says that as writers go for imagination over invention, as they write with precision and generosity, they must not forget the word restraint. It is this word restraint that is my birthday gift to Sam Omatseye as he turns fifty today. For reading, one more time, this collection of Omatseye’s columns which he had published earlier in The Nation newspaper, it seems to me that Omatseye has the Roger Rosenblatt insight and style without the magisterial restraint of the master prose stylist.

Part of the pleasure of reading Omatseye’s In Touch: Journalism as National Narrative, is the encounter you will have with many of the very important writers whose worldviews have helped him to see the world more clearly. These writers include William Shakespeare, Toni Morrison, Ivan Turgenev, T. S. Elliot, Dostoyevsky, Oscar Wild, Wole Soyinka, Claude Mckay, Victor Hugo, Joseph Conrad, George Bernard Shaw, J. P. Clark, William Wordsworth, Chinua Achebe, Anton Chekov, Pius Okigbo, Mahmud Darwish, George Orwell, Chimamanda Adichie, Margaret Atwood, Ayi Kwei Armah, Teslima Nasirin, Odia Ofeimun, J. M. Coetzee, Ngugi wa Thiongo, Jean-Paul Sartre and Mark Twain. He admires these writers largely because their books unravel the complexity of human nature, they use language with a deep sense of originality and the power of their observation is like that of a healthy eagle.

There is a sense in which he lures the reader to share with him the joy of reading these writers. Omatseye is one of those passionate lovers of books who memorise interesting passages and quote them accurately to lubricate the wheels of their writings. To people like him, too much familiarity with books does not breed contempt; what it breeds is contemplation.

Sam Omatseye worships at the altar of ideas. He believes that part of his obligation as a writer is to see more than a bird, to touch like a lecher and to sniff like a security dog.

Omatseye’s voice is lucid, engaged and irate.

There is no doubt that he is partisan. But he is immensely and gregariously partisan on the side of slices of truth, justice and equity. He writes to persuade and incite without any apology. His studied indignation is against the tin gods who ride rough-

shod over others. Omatseye appears incapable of writing to amuse. He deploys his yelling energy against all pretenders to the throne.

He could be extremely angry and hurtful. He could assail those he regards as evil men and women, whether in public or corporate office, with insults and abuse, believing that all those who treat others as subhuman deserve no respect. Salman Rushdie once said that freedom of expression should include freedom to abuse those who make life unbearable, the agents of oblivion. The restraint I wrote about, then, should not be misconstrued as apologia for self-censorship. What I meant is discretion which, we are told, is the better part of valour.

This collection is very detailed in its evocation of those things of value which some hooligans in power, who parade themselves as statesmen, have been smashing and crushing with absolute impunity.

One of these valuable things is education which is not given the attention it deserves. Yet Omatseye says no country in history has developed without a strong knowledge base. He quotes Abraham Lincoln, who wrote that the greatness of a society does not lie in the number but in the quality of its citizens. He pleads with us to save Ni-

geria by first of all rescuing its children, particularly children of the poor, from the educational factory that produces half-baked youths. His words: “In Nigeria, we pay lip service to education. As far as I am concerned, Nigeria’s top two problems are economy and education. Without fixing both, everything else is meaningless. It takes bright minds to get up in the world. That means our education should get the attention as the economy.

We seem to think otherwise. No civilisation has thrived without its smart people. America talks of its founding fathers today.

Look at all of them. They were geniuses of the mind.

All the great empires thrived on special stamps of men”.

Omatseye empathises with many people who are weeping privately in their homes as a result of the mismanagement of the economy. Every major business is going down. Factories are dying. He argues trenchantly that the agony that people suffer today was, largely, a failure of banking under Professor Charles Chukwuma Soludo, the former Central Bank governor. When the man was removed as the governor, Omatseye justifiably gloated over his removal. He dismisses Soludo as an empty barrel.

Before the meltdown,

Soludo had said that Nigeria “had been inoculated against the wild waves of recession in the world.

Then, suddenly, the crash.

And the genius, who was supposed to fib, said he did not say so.” Under his watch, Omatseye remembers, many of the bank managers and directors looted their own banks and left them to crawl and cough. The banks were simply a trap to fleece the masses. They played dangerous games of initial offerings and gambler in the stock exchange. Inflation roared. Omatseye proposes modestly that Soludo, the showman of well-cut suits and guttural voice should be called to proper accounting. Same for Ndidi Okereke-Onyike and many other fake economic experts.

Omatseye also observes that our value system that used to be a backrest of good behaviour is now in tatters. Materialism of the worst kind is the order of the day. We have a country of energetic people who don’t want to work because there is no pride in labour any more.

We live in a country where honesty does not pay again. We live in a country where court rulings are bought. We live in a country where kidnappers seek new victims every day.

Armed robbery, unemployment, food insecurity, infrastructural decay, religious riots, ethnic cleansing and stereotyping, inadequate healthcare and corruption, among other social ills, are issues to which Omatseye turns his attention. These are obviously not new issues but the way he frames them for scrutiny are refreshingly sassy. As he criticises both the secular and religious leaders for their gross irresponsible conducts he does not spare the generality of our people for their docility and indolence.

He writes in praise of Obafemi Awolowo, Nnamdi Azikiwe, M. K. O. Abiola, Kudirat Abiola, Adaka Boro, Mahtma Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jnr., Wole Soyinka, Gani Fawehinmi, Barrack Obama, Chinua Achebe, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Ken Saro-Wiwa, Haruna Ilerika, Bola Ige, Femi Falana, Olusegun Mimiko, Kayode Fayemi, Rauf Aregbesola, Adams O s h i o m h o l e , Chimamanda Adichie, Sultan Saad Abubakar, Justice Ayo Salami, Chris Ngige, those children who were persecuted for witchcraft in Akwa Ibom State, victims of Jos crises, among a host of others. He is very critical of Olusegun Obasanjo, Odumegwu Ojukwu, Atiku Abubakar, Papa Anthony Enahoro, Abubakar Rimi, Olagunsoye Oyinlola,

Gbenga Daniel, Olusegun Agagu, Segun Oni (described six times as the man with a phony Awo cap), Rilwan Lukman, Umar Musa Yar’Adua, Turai Yar’Adua (described as a shrew and a termagant), Ibrahim Babangida, Dora Akunyili, Ebenezer Babatope (described as a quisling), Bode George, Margaret Etteh, Maitama Sule, Lamidi Adedibu, Adebayo Alao-Akala (described as illiterate-in-chief), Bello Abubkakar, Kaase Andoakaa, Justice Katsina-Alu, Goodluck Jonathan, Vincent Ogbulafor, Ayo Fayose, Achikwe Undenwa, Dimeji Bankole, Datti Ahmed, Justice Thomas Naron, Kunle Kalejaiye, Ayo Arise, Maurice Iwu and Mike Okiro. The election riggers and their minions all over Nigeria, particularly in the South West, come under heavy attack. This is where Omatseye’s ‘gift’ for political prophesy is in full display. He predicted that Rauf, Mimiko, Kayode, Adams, Ibikunle and Abiola would be governors. Don’t ask me why he was so sure! Omatseye shows how totally unworthy President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua and his very close associates were of the offices they occupied for turning his illness into the single most important national project.

Sam Omatseye who used to make jest of the bearded radicals at the University of Ife sounds in this collection like a radical even though he tells us that he is not a revolutionary. To use his words, he even sounds at times like “a dog of politics howling with a canine fury.” He tells us that all he wants is just a good society with egalitarian ethos. Deeply concerned about how his country is ruled, he explains that a good society will not emerge by itself if we don’t work strenuously for it. It is for this reason that Dubai, which is making wealth out of nothing, is of interest to him. Is there or is there not a lesson to be learnt from a country that was a village in the desert in 1979 but now transformed into a magnificent city? Using Professor Ropo Sekoni’s concept of luminal moment as a theoretical compass, Omatseye argues that we are in a state of terminal ambiguity, a hazy time of transition. No one can say for sure where and how the current transition of this neo-colony will end. But if we are not careful, he warns us, we may conceive and give birth to another monster.

Kunle Ajibade (Executive Editor of TheNEWS Magazine)

26

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Arts

1st Chapter Considering soft power approach

L

EADERSHIP is changing – or so we are told. The information revolution is transforming political and organizations. Hierarchies are becoming flatter and embedded in fluid networks of contacts. Most workers in postindustrial societies are knowledge workers, and they respond to different incentives and political appeals than did the industrial workers of the past century. Poll show that people today are less deferential to authority in organization and in politics. Soft power is becoming more important.

The CEO of Goggle says he has to “coodle” his employees and another Silicon Valet executive explains that with an educated workforce and free flow of information, “if I don’t treat my employees with respect and involve them in decision-making, they will walk down the street to some start-up that has an interesting story.

“Even the military faces these changes. The Pentagon says that American army drillmasters do “less shouting at everyone” because today’s generation responds better to instructors who play “s more counseling type role. Military success against terrorist and counterinsurgents requires soldiers to win hearts and minds, not just break bodies. Management expert’s reps that their studies observe an increase in the use of shared leadership and “distributed leadership.” They

With The Power to Lead, Joseph S. Nye Jr. offers a sweeping look at the nature of leadership in today’s world, in an illuminating blend of history, business case studies, psychological research, and more. As he observes, many now believe that the more authoritarian and coercive forms of leadership–the “hard power” approaches of earlier military-industrial eras-have been largely supplanted in postindustrial societies by “soft power” approaches that seek to attract, inspire, and persuade rather than dictate suggest images of leaders in the center of a circle rather than atop a hierarchy.

At least that is the new conventional wisdom about those who occupy authoritative political and organizational positions in postmodern societies.

Some say leadership will be increasingly a “woman’s world.” Leadership research on gender reports the increased success of what was once considered a “feminine leadership.”

In terms of gender stereotypes, the masculine leadership style is assertive, competitive, authoritarian, and focused on commanding the behavior of others.

The feminine style is collaborative, participatory, integrative, and aimed at co-opting the behavior of followers.

Not everyone agrees.

The Stanford psychologist Roderick Kramer warns that “in all our recent enchantment with social intelligence and soft power, we’ve overlooked the

kinds of skills leaders need to bring about transformation in cases os tremendous resistance or inertia. “although some studies suggest that bullying is detrimental to organizational performance, Kramer describes bullies who has vision and disdain social constraints as “great intimidators.” And they often succeed. So where do we stand on leadership?

Mistrust of leaders is not a new problem. Three decades ago, experts were asking “Where have all the leaders gone?” In part, such attitudes reflect the golden glow of the past.

The present is never like the good old days. Studies by psychologists show that people regularly rate dead leaders more highly than living leaders. But part of the answer is that people are looking in the wrong places. Leadership is ubiquitous, and leaders are all around us. People persist in looking for heroic leaders – a Mount

Rushmore syndrome – although leadership is actually much more broadly distributed leadership that makes them run. A Canadian expert urges, “Let us ger rid of this cult of leadership.”

DO LEADERS MATTER? Skeptics deny that leaders matter all that much.

People easily make the mistake of leader attribution error.” We see some thing going right or wrong with a group or organization and then attribute the result to the leader. He or she becomes a scapegoat, even while being more symbol of failure than its cause.

Sports teams fire coaches after a losing season whether or not they are blameworthy. Business executives lose their jobs after profits turn down; others get credit for success in bull markets. Voters reward and punish politicians for economic conditions that often were created before the leaders took office.

In the presence of mul-

tiple causes and random events, attributing blame or praise to a person can provide a sense of psychological comfort and reassurance about our ability to understand and control events in a complex and confusing world. Primitive people’s belief in magic provided them with a reassuring sense of control over such crucial events as disease and storms, which they were actually impotent to affect. The modern political arena offers a similar illusion: “Belief in a political leader’s ability to alter affairs may generate a feeling of indirect control.

The ability to reward or punish incumbents through the vote implies this influence. Various ex-

periments hve shown that the desire to make sense of confusing events leads to a romanticized, larger-thatlife role for leaders, particularly in extreme cases of very good or very bad performance.

How much leaders do really matters? Studies of organizations show missed results. For example, General Electric prides itself on course at a special school in crotonville, New York, and though only few will make it to the top of GE, the company boasts that these GE alumni do as CEOs of other companies?

About half succeed and half fail. That is better than we would expect from a group selected at random, but far from perfect.

Nobel Greats

Joseph Brodsky

Winner of Nobel Prize in Literature 1987

“For an all-embracing authorship, imbued with clarity of thought and poetic intensity”

J

Born: 24 May 1940, Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg), USSR (now Russia) Died: 28 January 1996, New York, NY, USA Residence at the time of the award: USA

OSEPH BRODSKY was born in 1940, in Leningrad, and began writing poetry when he was eighteen. Anna Akhmatova soon recognized in the young poet the most gifted lyric voice of his generation. From March 1964 until November 1965, Brodsky lived in exile in the Arkhangelsk region of northern Russia; he had been sentenced to five years in exile at hard labor for "social parasitism," but did not serve out his term.

Four of Brodsky's poems were published in Leningrad anthologies in 1966 and 1967, but most of his work has appeared only in the West. He is a

splendid poetic translator and has translated into Russian, among others, the English metaphysical poets, and the Polish emigre poet, Czeslaw Milosz.

His own poetry has been translated into at least ten languages.

Joseph Brodsky: Selected Poems was published by Penguin Books in London (1973), and by Harper & Row in New York (1974), translated by George L. Kline and with a foreword

by W.H. Auden. A volume of Brodsky's selected poems translated in French has been published by Gallimard; a German translation, by Piper Verlag; and an Italian translation, by Mondadori and Adelphi.

Farrar, Straus, and Giroux published Brodsky's acclaimed collection, A Part of Speech, in 1980.

On June 4, 1972, Joseph Brodsky became an involuntary exile from his native country. After brief stays in Vienna and London, he came to the United States.

He has been Poet-in-Residence and Visiting Professor at the University of Michigan, Queens College, Smith College, Columbia University, and Cambridge University in England. He currently is Five College Professor of Literature at Mount Holyoke College. In 1978, Brodsky was awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Letters at Yale University, and on

May 23, 1979, he was inducted as a member of the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters. In 1981, Brodsky was a recipient of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation's award for his works of "genius".

In 1986, Farrar, Straus, and Giroux published Less Than One, a collection of Mr. Brodsky's essays on the arts and politics, which won the National Book Critic's Award for Criticism.

In 1988 Farrar, Straus, and Giroux published a collection of his poetry, To Urania, and in 1992 a collection of essays about Venice, Watermark.

I can’t dump Nigeria Carragher pleased with —Obinna Obiefule Liverpool’s home start Pg. 28

Pg. 22

Pg. 45

Nation Sunday, June 19, 2011

Free Copy

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•Taiwo

AC Milan offer irresistible —Taiwo

Pg. 28

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I can’t dump Nigeria –Obinna Obiefule O

BINNA OBIEFULE is the younger brother of former Nigeria International, Paul. He just signed for a Norwegian First Division team Sandnes Ulf. In this interview with NationSport's TUNDE LIADI, the former Sliema Wanderers of Malta forward currently enjoying his break after the end of the Maltese League holidaying in Owerri, Imo State of Nigeria, expressed uptimism over Super Eagles' qualification bid for the Africa Cup of Nations. He recalled how Benin Republic approached him to play for the Squirrels, that country's national team but his heart is with his country of birth, Nigeria where he is still eligible to play for the All African bound Under 23 and the Super Eagles. He spoke on what he had done to keep his international future with Nigeria and the problem with Heartland FC and what the Eagles under Samson Siasia among other burning issues. EXCERPTS

HOW will you review your last season with Sliema Wanderers?

It was nice and Maltese League was another adventure for me. They didn’t believe it when I wanted to leave because they offered me another two years contract extension in Sliema Wanderers but because I already had another offer waiting for me I had to go to Norway. Another reason for going to Norway was to take my football to the next level and I believe that the Norwegian League is another step forward in my career. It was the reason why I went to Sandnes Ulf and I am very happy that after undergoing a successful trial I was signed.

How did Sliema fare in the just concluded season?

Sliema finished in 7th position on the league in the just concluded season.

How much do you know of Sandnes Ulf before joining them?

I knew the club beforehand because one of my friends is playing for them, Mobi Okoli and then it was my agent who took him there. I have been their long time admirer and since the club is an ambitious club and very keen on getting to the Norwegian top flight when the opportunity came to play for them I didn’t hesitate to pen a deal. I hope I will use the club to get even better in my career.

Why the choice of First Division when their elite division is there?

It was just because they were the most serious of all the clubs that made enquires about me. There were lots of premiership clubs which came for me but did not back it up with serious bids.Sandnes coaches and their club President love me and they were happy with me when I went for the trials and I have heard nice things about the club. They told me I was the kind of player they needed and because of their seriousness and their urge to gain promotion to the top division I signed. It was a very good contract for me. The contract was a bit better than the one I had in Sliema and it is a one year contract but with option of further two years if I perform well.

What are your targets as you begin life in Sandnes Ulf? My top target is to help them get promotion and as well to score a lot of goals for them.

You have spent couple of days in Nigeria. How will you describe the blend between the country and overseas?

There is a lot of difference between Nigeria and Europe. The football there is professionally run and they have lots of facilities but here we have great talents here but the problem is how to fish them out. We don’t have enough facilities. We have a lot of good players in Imo State here and sometimes I see myself as a lucky player and I don’t see myself as a good player because when I see my friends and the way they play for me if they come to Europe they can easily make it and I just saw myself as a lucky player and not the best.

Nigeria acquired the services of current Super Eagles ’boss Samson Siasia. What do you have to say as regards the team under his guidance?

Yeah for me I think Siasia was the right man for the job. He has done well and the record is there as a testimony for everyone to see. I have been following all their

matches and I think they have really done well. I am happy for him that Nigeria gave him the job. He has been the man touted to coach the Eagles long time ago and I am happy that he was given the job eventually.

Siasia is someone who believes in young players. I spoke with him in Malta and he told me he was going to give me a chance because he was still trying to build a team and everybody will be given a chance a prove himself.

If you receive national call up will you be willing to honour it based on the threat from Benin Republic to play for them?

Yes I was approached by Benin to play for them but then I still want to play for my country and that is what I told Coach Austin Eguavoen that Benin Republic people are pushing me to come and naturalise and play for them and for me I will like to represent my country and for me I want to play for the Super Eagles and that is my dream.

How did you get the link to Benin Republic? Did you play in Benin?

No, I didn’t play in Benin but I have a friend who is a Nigerian that is playing for them as well What is his name?

Isaac Okotie is his name he is playing for the Benin National team and he was the one who recommended me to their coach and the Benin Federation and they started making moves for me to come and lace my boots for them. But I told them it was a decision I could take on my own that I had to be given time to think about it and discuss with my family. I spoke with Austin Eguavoen that irrespective of the threat from Benin for me, I will like to play for my country of birth and that I am a young player and I am not in a hurry to play since I still have years ahead of me in the profession.

•Obinna Obiefule

NationSport

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

NationSport

What did Benin Republic offer you to play for them?

They didn’t say anything but they were serious about it they wanted me to come to Benin to get their passport and play for them the Nations Cup Qualifiers against Ivory Coast for them and then we could now discuss other things after the match.

They wanted me to come and play for them by all means. They watched my DVD and my Youtube and the coach said I was the kind of player he wanted in his team that was it.

Talking about the Super Eagles, there are fears in some quarters that we might not qualify for the 2012 African Cup of Nations. Do you also share same view?

I am very sure and very optimistic that we are going to qualify for the Nations Cup. We have very good players and a good coach to make that happen. I think we are going to qualify because we must qualify.

There was a time you had an interview with me form your base stating that you want the Under-23 team selectors to give you a look in the, what has come out of your plea?

Yeah, I want to play for my country at any level and if not for my age I would have been in the camp of the Under 23 because when I spoke with Austin Eguavoen, he told me that he wanted to invite me but it was my age that disqualified me since I am already 23 years but I am still looking forward to the All African Games if I could be given a chance.

Talking about the All African Games Nigeria has a match against Ghana next week and you plan to travel that same time what of if you receive a call up will you honour it?

I have to rejoin my club because the league is on and they are waiting for me to

come and join them and start training and playing for them. I have always been in touch with the Under 23 and the match against Ghana is going to be very great game because the Ghanaian Under 23 team is another strong and formidable side. They have a lot of players who are playing overseas.

Are you satisfied with the results of Austin Eguavoen as the coach of the U-23?

Yes I am quite satisfied and impressed with the results the team has got under Eguavoen. They have won nearly all their matches. I am quite impressed with him and the players in the team.

Heartland is not living up to expectation considering their pedigree in the local league and outside it. The club got to the final of the CAF Champions League in 2009 and also played the following year in the same competition but today the club is at the wrong end of the table in the NPL. What will you say was responsible since you once played for the team?

Yeah, I am not impressed at all because when I came back I watched their match at home to Warri Wolves at the Dan Anyiam Stadium and I wasn’t comfortable with what I saw. The club’s football is going down. The Heartland I saw that day was a lot different from the one I played under before I travelled. They lost many of their good players whom moved to another club because of lack of finances since they owed them. Some of the big players left someone like Ike ThankGod who moved to Warri Wolves. I don’t know what is wrong with them whether it was lack of good coach or probably the players are not well motivated. There is still hope and what we need to do is to look at what we can do top support them. The league is still very much on and they could still come around.

You said you watched the match against Warri Wolves, what were those lapses you noticed in the game you watched?

I noticed that their attack wasn’t good at all. There is no force in the attack and they don’t have players who can make the difference in a match. They have good defenders but they need to go to the transfer market to shop for quality strikers who can score goals for them since football is about scoring goals.

Do you still have fond memories of Heartland of old and those players you played alongside with?

I used to watch my brother when he played with Uzoma Igwe before he left for Europe and a lot of other players. I know Uzoma Igwe because he was their highest goals scorer then before I left when he travelled to Viborg with my brother?

The Norwegian League is fast becoming Mecca of the sort to Nigerians players with many Nigerians playing their trade there.

Howwillyouviewtheprospectoflining out with your other compatriots in that league?

I feel so great and good and excited because this move for me is a very good one. I know Anthony Ujah and I think he is the hottest commodity in Norway and Nosa Igiebor who is Ujah’s team-mate at Lillestrom. Nigerian Players have taken the Norwegian league by storm and I hope I will be among those players who will make a difference in that League as well.

Milan offer irresistible –Taiwo N

IGERIA defender Taye Taiwo has revealed that the moment he got a call from AC Milan, all other options were closed.

Taiwo recently joined Milan as a free agent from Olympic Marseille, but admits that he had been in talks with other European clubs, chief of which was Portugal's Benfica.

"I had a lot of contact from many clubs in Europe, but Benfica were the ones who really came to speak to me," he told KickOffNigeria.com.

"They wanted me to sign a precontract, but I told them I was not prepared to sign a pre-contract yet.

But my agent and my brother were

talking to them.

"And then, while I was in Nigeria for our game against Ethiopia in Abuja, I got a call from AC Milan. I was shocked.

"They had already spoken to my brother and he was in Milan when they called me. As soon as I was sure the call was from Milan, I didn’t think twice. Every other option was immediately closed and I knew that was where I was going."

During that game, Taiwo told KickOffNigeria.com that he knew what club he planned to sign for.

"It was Milan," he said with a chuckle. "I made up my mind as soon as I spoke to them. You don’t

reject Milan. They are one of the biggest clubs in the world and I am

confident that I can help them to win trophies."

WAFU CLUB CUP COMPETITION

Kwara Utd, Adauna tie shifted to July 3

K

WARA UNITED of Ilorin’s WAFU Club Cup first leg encounter against Adauna Stars of Ghana initially fixed for Sunday June 19th in Accra now has a new date.

From Tunde Liadi, Owerri In an exclusive interview with the duo of Kwara United’s Technical Adviser, Kadiri Ikhana and Team’s Secretary, Mallam Demola Kiyesola the new date for the initial leg of the tie will now hold on July 3rd in Ghana.

According to Ikhana, “Yes I learnt the match will now hold on July 3rd and not June 19th as earlier stated. No reasons were given for the change by the organizers and I don’t have any also.”

The Secretary of the club, Kiyesola also expressed in the affirmative what coach Ikhana said and decried the change in date which he reckoned had hampered some of their preparations for the trip but assured that the team would be better charged to concentrate on the local league matches before their fortnight date with Adauna Stars.

Nigeria’s Blue Angels, Sharks of Port Harcourt are the defending champions.

2011 SPECIAL OLYMPIC GAMES

Team Nigeria promises gold medals •Pledges to be good ambassador •Jets out today

By Paul Oluwakoya

M

•Blessing Okagbare

Cross Rivers to host best athletic championship ever

T

HE CROSS River state government has assured athletes, officials and spectators that will throng the U.J Esuene Stadium, Calabar next week for the All Nigeria/Cross River State Athletics Championships of hosting a world class event comparable to the USA and Jamaica national championships.

The Calabar 2011 championships will be used by the Athletic Federation of Nigeria as selection trials for the 13th IAAF World Championships in Daegu,South Korea in August and September's 10th All Africa Games in Maputo, Mozambique and Senator Liyel Imoke,the executive Governor of Cross River state has promised to pull out all the stops to ensure the athletes get the maximum comfort that will enable them give their best.

To this end,the Governor has set up a three-man committee headed by the Deputy Governor,Efiok Cobham with the Sports Commissioner,Chief Raymond Obeten and Information Commissioner,Patrick Ugbe to ensure not only a hitch free

championships, but also one that will linger on in the memories of all participants till next year when another edition will be held.

'His Excellency has charged us to organise a befitting championships that will be in line with our culture of excellence. He wants us to maintain the high standard we have already set for the Obudu international mountain race',revealed Ugbe who acted as the media chief for the hugely successful Obudu mountain race which has received worldwide acclaim.

Ugbe further revealed that arrangements that bother on transportation and accommodation to make the championships very successful have been concluded.

'The athletes,the primary focus of the championships will have a taste of the famed Cross River state hospitality while adequate security will be provided for all participants including the spectators who will see the best of Nigerian athletes in action.

"Come And Live and Be at Rest" is an appropriate acronym for

Calabar which offers visitors a safe and relaxing atmosphere away from the commotion and congestion of Nigeria's big cities.This is what His Excellency wants all participants at the championships to come and savour. The Governor,being an ardent sports lover wants the athletes to have the kind of environment they enjoy at major international championships and Games like the IAAF Worlds and the Olympics so that they can give their best.Let me reveal that he is already looking forward to watching the duo of Blessing Okagbare and Damola Osayomi go head-to-head in the 100m event at the championships',said Ugbe.

The Cross River state government has already committed N50m in sponsorship fee to this year's edition of the championships and Governor Imoke,according to Ugbe has assured the AFN of his continued support for their programmes.

Meanwhile, the technical meeting of all the delegates for the championships will hold next week Tuesday at the U.J Esuene stadium in Calabar.The meeting will be preceeded by the AFN Congrees also on that day.

EMBERS of Team Nigeria have assured Nigerian of better outing at the forthcoming Special Olympic Summer Games in Athens, Greece.

A 61 member delegation of the Special Olympics Nigeria comprising of 43 athletes, 16 coaches/care givers, one head of delegation and one assistant head of delegation are expected to depart the shores of the country today.

Speaking on behalf of the 43 athletes at a final farewell party and parley with the media held at Victoria Island Lagos on Friday, Witani Musa told NationSports that the team has prepared well and their focus now is to win as many gold medals as possible for the country.

“I believe we have prepared well for this games and I want to use this opportunity to assure Nigerians that we will continue to do them proud”, said the swimmer.

A board member Special Olympics Nigeria Engr. C.A. Akindayomi, assures parent and friends of the athletes on their safety in Athens.

“The goal of the Special Olympic movement is to ensure that all persons with intellectual challenges have the chance to become useful and productive citizens who are accepted and respected in their communities.

“Among the various games in the tourney for male and female athletes, team nigeria will feature in football, basketball, badminton, swimming, athletics and table tennis. Our athletes have been in camp for the past three weeks and had a fantastic preparation in Shagamu. So they can’t wait to be in Athens,” said Akindayomi.

Special Olympics Nigeria has participated twice in the World Summer Games held in Dublin, Ireland with four athletes representing the country. Her second was the 2007 games held in Shanghai, China with a total of 34 delegates; 24 athletes, 7 coaches one Head of Delegation and one Assistant Head of Delegation and they came home with gold, silver and bronze at both outings.

45

Fergie: McLeish will shine THE ex-Birmingham boss' move to Villa has spurred much controversy, leaving his former supporters enraged as they protested at Villa Park on Wednesday evening.

But McLeish's appointment will still go ahead and is set to be confirmed on Friday after talks with the 52-year-old proved successful earlier this week.

Fellow Scotsman Sir Alex, who gave McLeish his break as a player at Aberdeen, is convinced he will lead the club to success.

The 70-year-old said: "At the end of the day what will count is this - can he do the job for Villa?

"It doesn't matter whether there are 50 against him, 500 against him or five against him because the experience and the ability he has got, believe me, he will prove that he can do the job.

"I've known him for a long time and I know his abilities. I know how conscientious he is.

"I know the determination and work ethic he's always had to make sure he does the job right."

McLeish's managerial career began at Motherwell and Hibernian before he joined Rangers to win two league titles,

after which he managed the Scotland national side.

He guided Birmingham to a Carling Cup triumph last season even though the club still got relegated from the Premier League.

McLeish becomes Villa's third fulltime manager in nine months as he takes over from Gerard Houllier after ongoing health problems forced him out.

•Ferguson

Carragher pleased with Liverpool’s home start JAMIE CARRAGHER is hoping that Liverpool can take advantage of playing their first Premier League game at home by making a flying start to their campaign.

The Reds have been drawn to face Sunderland in their first league match of the season, which means new signing Jordan Henderson has a swift reunion with his former club.

That match will be followed by a visit to the Emirates to face Arsenal before ending the month at home to Bolton Wanderers.

The first Merseyside derby is on October 1 at Goodison Park and a fortnight later Liverpool face their other bitter rivals, Manchester United, at Anfield.

With optimism high around Anfield after a resurgence last season under Kenny Dalglish and money spent on new signings this summer, Carragher is hoping to the positivity will continue into the new campaign.

"It doesn't really who you get in the

first game - it's always a massive and tough game,” he told the club's official website.

"There is so much on the first game and I am really pleased we are at home because it's not often that happens for us. Hopefully we can take advantage.

"It's important to get off to a good start, but that is the same for everyone.

Sunderland will be in our minds now throughout pre-season and we'll be in their minds as well.

"Arsenal away will obviously be a tough game - but it will be a tough game for them as well."

Carragher is also expecting £20 million Henderson to play a big part in the club’s future, starting with the match against his previous employers.

He added: "Football always seems to bring up things like this. It's a big start for him."

Reid relishing opening double ROY HODGSON's men will kick-off the campaign at home to champions Manchester United on Saturday, August 13 and then travel to runnersup Chelsea a week later.

But Reid insists Albion should not

•Hodgson

be intimidated by their start after being the only team to take a point at Old Trafford last term and suffering a undeserved 2-1 defeat by the Red Devils at The Hawthorns.

He is also looking forward to rectifying their performance in the 60 drubbing they suffered at Stamford Bridge in their opener on the road last August.

"It's going to be a difficult start facing the champions on the opening day of the season," said the Baggies defender.

"They are the best team in the country and it will be tough to play them anytime.

"But we showed last season we're capable of getting results against the top teams, so we have nothing to fear.

"We've just had a good season so we'll be looking to get off to a good start this year.

"The lads should be full of confidence and play without fear.

"We deserved something out of the home game against United last season.

"Peter missed a penalty and we should have had another spot-kick when Gary Neville should've been sent-off.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, JUNE 19, 2011

Style Watch 29 In-Vogue Social Circuit Oops & Kudos Parade Well-being Entertainment plus

Successful people inspire me, but I learn more from people's failure –Wole Madariola In spite of enviable achievements in his career, Wole Madariola does not see himself as a successful man. A security expert of no mean repute, this young man, who is also the CEO of Fut Concepts Manufacturing Nigeria Limited, in this interview with Kayode Alfred, explains what his job entails and what success means to him Interview on Page 32

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

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Glamour Continued from Page 29

W

hen people mention the name Madariola, what easily comes to mind is the issue of security and footwear business, so could you tell us how your interest in these two sectors started?

It's a well known story. The fact is, the footwear story came out of a metamorphosis. The metamorphosis was just out of passion; it got to the level that I just felt that there was nothing more challenging when it comes to my real profession as a protection expert. Because I find myself in this terrain, I try to see if the government will come up with new legislations that will encourage our profession and all that. It wasn't forthcoming, and you know if you have the passion to do a thing and it's not being productive, then you begin to look elsewhere. So my second passion was footwear. Not even for me to manufacture or set up a manufacturing firm, because I never even thought I could get the money to do that, but for me to even have a little space so I can sell to people, that was what was on my mind.

It was a passion, my dad being in uniform as a military officer, knowing about security, stuffs like that… I wanted to join the military, I wanted to go to NBA sports academy, but when my dad said look here, “I'm going to kill you if you try to join the military”, I said “why” and he said because he didn't want me to go through the process he went through as a military officer. So I said “okay, fine”. I had always wanted to be an intelligence officer, so I thought about how I could help people if they find themselves in problems or crisis. Even as a young person in the house when there were issues at home, I loved to be a solution giver. So being a solution giver has always put me in a place where I find myself thinking ahead of people.

And you know thinking ahead of people requires a lot of efforts, so because of that, I try to seek for knowledge. In anything I do, I want to seek for knowledge. So when the man refused me to join the military, I asked him “what do you want from me?” He said he wanted me to become a doctor, if I can't be a doctor, then an engineer, and that kept me in the house for six years after my O'levels. So today, I just thank God for everything, I've spent over 19 years as a detective, as a protection specialist, and I have just four years experience as a footwear maker. I'm more than a twoin-one person.

You are a surveillance expert, what really spurred your interest in this line of career?

Well yes, because I love being ahead of people, I mean people in my environment, I try my best to seek for knowledge that would empower me to do that. When I had my surveillance training, it opened my eye and made me to understand that my part of the world where I come from has not gotten anywhere. The first experience was a practical class where we were exposed to air surveillance, using devices to monitor other people's terrain from the air, and I was like 'wow, does this thing really exist'? Before we knew it, the wireless stuff started coming in, and you find yourself in a situation where you are seeing a lot of covert stuff, monitoring stuff… like what you saw in the situation room during the invasion of Pakistan for Osama Bin Laden.

Those things have been in existence for years. I was exposed to things like that and that was what helped, and I decided to improve on it, and I had to train with the British.

But every country where I had the opportunity to train, the U.S, Britain, Israel, Germany, where I had my fire and tactics weapon handling training, they are all skilled when it comes to intelligence, surveillance and countersurveillance. You can't take it out of the Israelis when it comes to intelligence, investigations; you can't take it out of the Americans when it comes to surveillance and policing; you can't take it out of the British, and if it comes to complete protection, fire-arms, weapons, you can't take it out of the Germans. So this is what really spurred me, so I said “How do I make myself a protection specialist if I can't be an intelligence officer or a police officer?'' So, I went for my detective training about 19 years ago. I didn't know I had just started, everything I thought I'd learnt was just like a first stage that didn't even qualify me to practice anywhere in the world, except where I was trained. So I discovered that I needed more training, I needed to join associations that would empower me to be able to go to other countries to practice, and that was what led to it.

Along the line, I continued and found myself at this level.

Today, by the grace of God, I have more than 18 certifications in all the areas of protection you can think of, including one from the United Kingdom Defense Academy, one from St. Andrew for counter-terrorism. I'm so proud of what God has made of me.

Could you tell us more about the security company?

I run a consultancy agency, I run one in the U.K called Fortifiers. And it is the same thing I run here. Like I told you, everything I've learnt is just knowledge in my brain, and what I try to do in the society is that I transfer them now, put them in writing, I have about four books now… because I can't put all of this into practice in my area of origin, where I come from. What Fortifiers does in the U.K, it can't do it in Nigeria. Like now, this country does not have a legislation or an act for private security and investigation. And in an area where that is lacking, the police would continue not to have support from the

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

'I'm not yet a successful man’

•Madariola

citizens. Community policing or whatever they are talking about starts from there. That is the same thing you need to help the country when it comes to terrorism, when it comes to anarchy, when it comes to propaganda of deed by way of which incitement comes about through leaders of nations.

Things like that can't be productive using the Police Force without the assistance of either people or organizations that would help the police. Without intelligence and proper policing, there is nothing that any nation can do about terrorism.

What is the secret behind the success of your own company?

Well I must be frank with you, everything I do in my life, before I start, I consult God. I might sound a little religious, but I consult God before I start anything, and I allow God be my sustainer. I'm a man that seeks for knowledge; I try to learn from people's flaws. I don't just read success books because successful people inspire me, I also read failure books because to learn from people's failure. I seek for knowledge and apply wisdom. When I do my thing, I do it and want to learn from people. I've never seen myself as a teacher. As I talk to you, I still don't see myself as a teacher.

I'm a student, and I'll always be a student, and I know being a student, I learn more, and what I learn, I put in practice and it must work. I'm just privileged and opportuned.

When you came in, you won several awards, which do you appreciate the most?

I think I appreciate all my awards. For the last two years, I've not received any award, except one that the Federal Government gave to me. But the one that I cherish the most is when I was made the adviser of West African Students Union. I find it worthy and I feel honoured. The second is the one that gave me the opportunity to contribute when the Crime Reporters Association of Nigeria made me their patron, and I've been their patron for more than two years.

The first award I received from them was about 7 years ago,

so I cherish all the awards. It's like asking a father which of his kids he loves most. I cherish all, the small, the low, the government given, international organizations, I cherish all.

How would you describe yourself?

I would simply describe myself as a man that came by chance, and didn't know what it would be like. As a privilege, he got the opportunity and made use of it, and by God's support, he excelled. If you call me a successful man, I won't accept because Wole Madariola is not successful. He can be an impact on success, success might have made impact on him as well, but he is not successful. Who is a man that is successful? Would you call my relation that just died a successful police officer? No! He had a successful career for 34 years, and at the last moment, his life was cut short. A man is not successful until the last minute that His maker takes him.

You've done well in terms of leather products in Africa, are you planning to expand?

Right now, we are the largest manufacturer in Africa and still growing. Anything made in Italy today, when you bring it and put it beside our products, you can't see the difference because all our machineries, instructors and trainers are the same. We are proud of our achievement.

You always look very stylish, so what is your definition of style?

Style is a personal thing; people try to flow with the trend which is not right. I see people in fantastic Agbada and I love it on them, but I've never worn it in my life because I don't like it. If I put it on, and you say it fits me, I would tell myself in my heart that it doesn't! So, as far as I'm concerned, style is putting on all the things, including accessories that suit my soul. I'm happy with what I wear but another person might not like it. So, my style is me.

Tell us about your family, your wife…?

My wife is the most wonderful person I've ever met or known in my life. She is an educationist and a teacher.

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

–an eye on celebrities and society people

08023201831(sms only)

A stylish birthday bash

BY PATIENCE SADUWA

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Chief (Mrs.) Oluremi Tinubu

T'S not often that members of the penpushing profession (or rather keyboardpushing as many are now computer compliant except for some die-hard, old school types who still write in long hand), are in the limelight. By their training, they prefer putting others on the spotlight while they remain quietly in the background. Sometimes, though, they come out of the 'shadows' and become the news. This was the case last Wednesday June 15, when the amiable Chairman of The Nation's editorial board, Sam Omatseye turned 50.

At a colourful ceremony at the Muson Centre, Onikan, Lagos, family, friends, colleagues and well-wishers were on hand to rejoice with the 'birthday boy' on reaching the golden age as well as the public presentation of his books. It was more of a journalist and writers day as the media community was there in full forceboth those still practicing and some that had 'abandoned' the industry and moved on to other fields, considered more lucrative.

Adding some glamour and style to the powerpacked event attended by the Speaker of the House of Representatives Aminu Tambuwal, his Deputy and other political bigwigs was Lagos State former First Lady, Chief (Mrs) Oluremi Tinubu.

Dressed in a wax print skirt and blouse ensemble, she was her usual radiant self as she performed her role as the Chairman (she refused to be referred to as Chairlady) of the occasion with panache. There was also former broadcaster-turned journalist, Hon. Abike Dabiri who turned up in a lilac gown with pleat detail, as well as Temi Harriman, a former legislator.

They were among the guests which included media top shots such as The Nation's Managing Director, Mr Victor Abike Dabiri-Erewa Ifijeh, Dimgba Igwe, Mike Awoyinfa (of The Sun), Louis Odion, (MD. National Life ), Mideno Bayagbon, Editor, Vanguard Newspapers and writers like Odia Ofeimun and Okey Ndibe, to name just a few.

34

Glamour

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Social Kenneth Iyoha's Sensational Bliss holds Dare2Bare talents conference

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en Iyoha's Sensational Bliss (a talent and events management agency) is set to hold the third edition of Dare2Bare talents conference and exhibition. The theme of this year's edition is the “Nigeria Talents Industry, “The Untapped Goldmine”. Kenneth, who is the Project Director, said the conference is specifically designed for the entertainment and creatively focused professionals, “those who understand the dynamics and the challenges of the talents industry in Nigeria and seek to address same with a global vision.” According to him, the target audience includes producers, script writers, entertainment practitioners, dancers and instructors, brand/ marketing professionals and PR consultants. Others are: human resources managers events planners, film/television/music producers as well as style/fashion icons.

Why is Nasir Sule Garo so favoured?

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hy is Hon. Nasir Sule Garo so favoured that at a point, the people of the North-West caucus in the House of Representatives who supported zoning were of the opinion that he should vie for any position zoned to the North-West? That is the question that is still on the minds of many people at the moment. Garo who is from Kano is seen as one of the youngest in the House and is said to have shown reliability and diligence in the many committees that he has served in. For this reason, many are asking that he should be positioned to represent the zone in a higher political office whenever it is made available to the North-West. A question resonating at the moment is since his kinsman is now the Speaker, what new configuration will be made available to encompass the handsome young man who is loved by everyone?

Olayemi Akindayini, Pacesetters Academy's ace staff, in a joyous mood

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f there is one person in the FCT that is in a dancing mood, then it is Olayemi Akindayini, an ace staff in Pacesetters Academy, Abuja's elite educational institution.

Yemi's joyful disposition is understandable as she is set to get married to her heartthrob, Micheal Okhime, a worker in Living Faith Church, Abuja. The couple recently had their registry wedding at the Abuja Municipal Areas Council (AMAC) registry in Area 10 on Thursday last week and will be having their church wedding in Akure, Ondo State, later this week. This, no doubt, is more than enough reason to dance.

Bishop John Praise's Church builds N10m road for community

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•Apostle of Sign and Wonders, Uma Ukpai (left) , Presiding Bishop, Dominion Chapel Int'l Churches, John Praise and National President Dominion Chapel ,Waliki Power, during the commissioning of the access road constructed by Dominion Chapel in Abuja at the weekend

n a season when the yearnings and aspirations of the majority of Nigerians are yet to be met in terms of amenities and infrastructure, a ministry, Dominion Chapel Int'l Churches, has stepped into the gap to bridge the chasm between the people and their needs. Presiding Bishop of the Dominion Chapel Int'l Churches, Bishop John Praise, last weekend commissioned a one kilometre stretch of road built solely by the church in order to alleviate the transportation problems of the citizens in that areas. It cost the church N10 million.

According to the Bishop, the Church embarked on the project because the road was very bad and vehicles were breaking down on it.

He said: “This is the old secretariat, where Abuja actually stated in 1979.

But invariably, its like successive governments had come and gone and nobody had done anything. We have roads here that have not been put in place and there is no water for the people. So, somehow being here, and God having given us the privilege to do whatever we can to alleviate the suffering of the society, we constructed the road.” The Bishop said before that, the church had built a police station and a borehole that served the whole of the community.

VICTOR OLUWASEGUN (E-mail: thejagu@yahoo.com, Tel: 08032439153)

Glamour

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

High Society mourns Tayo Aderinokun

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he harvest of deaths in the last few months reminds us of our grim mortality, and of the brittleness of our hold on human existence. From the social firmament, an illustrious man has departed, never to be seen again. The Managing Director and cofounder of Guaranty Trust Bank plc (GTBank), Tayo Aderinokun, has bidden farewell to the land of the living, and taken a sojourn six feet under for eternity. The loveable banker, who submitted, though unwillingly, to the firm grip of death, had battled vigorously with cancer which was said to have incapacitated him for almost two months. He finally gave up the ghost last Tuesday in Wellington Hospital, Saint John’s wood, North-West London.

Tayo, a very brilliant banker, had always favoured being in the background. A technocrat with milk of human kindness, he knew what loyalty and deference meant. And throughout the tenure of his friend and partner, Fola Adeola as the CEO of Guaranty Trust Bank, he was contented with staying out of the camera’s focus. From the outset, GTBank set the pace, rewriting the rules and raising the stakes and demanding good business practices. Born in Kano, Aderinokun attended University of Lagos, Akoka, Yaba, and University of California, Los Angeles. He enjoyed literature, reading and swimming, which were his pastimes. His forte was starting new projects and ensuring that they fly before picking a new adventure.

However, the Nigerian social milieu and the banking sector have been thrown into deep mourning by his untimely departure. From the look of things, it may take more than the passage of time for this wound to heal.

Caroline Olaseinde-Rhodes slows down

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any years ago, Caroline Olaseinde-Rhodes was one of the flower girls of high society that makes the social space tick. Her outstanding physique and good looks ensured that she easily stood out in a crowd.

How time flies! Ever since Caroline, who works in the oil and gas industry, got married to Captain Lanre Rhodes some years ago, she slowed down her social life, settling for a calm and contented marital life. She no longer appears in party circuits and celebrity journals, a scene where she held the gaze and attention of those who matter. The last time she was sighted was when she hosted a grand party in honour of her mother, Princess Adebimpe Ayoka Olaseinde, when she turned 70.

•Tayo Aderinokun

A-listers dazzle at Dumebi Kachikwu’s wedding ow do you know the essence of a man? One way is to check

H

and analyze his friends and associates – those whom he surrounds himself with. Dumebi Kachikwu, son of Justice Francis Okafor Kachikwu, sure has some well-to-do people around him.

After many years as a single dude, Dumebi is happy again. Last Saturday, June 11, Dumebi and his lover of many years, Ikeme Anni, had their traditional engagement in superlative style at BMO Events Arena, Riverplate Park, Wuse2, Abuja. It was a day that witnessed another classy wedding that would comfortably take its unassailable place among the best wedding ceremonies ever held in Abuja. The ceremony attracted A-listers, fashionistas, politicians and businessmen and women – basically, all those who matter in the social milieu. The high-octane shindig will not be forgotten in a hurry as food and drinks were in abundance. The atmosphere was electric with so much frenzy in the air.

Hundreds of people had a good time, and you could see it in their faces as they jiggled and swayed to the rhythmic sound of invited crooners.

Dejare Adegbenro plans another big show

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hey all gave him kudos. His “friends” allow him to be in front on account of his creativity when it comes to heartwarming ideas. Adejare Adegbenro, the chairman of Balmoral International Limited, some weeks ago pulled all the stops when he hosted children in Lagos. Everybody who mattered on the social space and those who appreciate the finer things of life were at the classy event mainly for children. His company, Balmoral International Limited, HIT Entertainment Ltd and Premier Productions, debuted with “The Little Big Club – live in concert” in Nigeria.

The first of its kind in innovative singing, dancing and stage drama show paraded a rich assemblage of the world’s most popular pre-school characters, all in one exciting adventure. The event was staged at The Landmark Village, Water Corporation Drive, Victoria Island Annex, Lagos. Popular children characters that featured at the show were Bob the Builder, Angelina Ballerina, Pingu, Fifi and the Flowertots and Fireman Sam, in addition to beautifully written and choreographed shows. After hosting the very successful show, Adejare Adegbenro, the grandson of Pa Alfred Rewane, is plotting another big show in the next few months, though the details of the new show is still being kept under wraps. But you can trust that the bulky dude is set to rock Lagos and Abuja to its foundation again.

KAYODE ALFRED

35

Mulikat Adeola-Akande’s consolation gig

T

hat Hon. Mulikat Adeola-Akande lost out in her bid to become the Speaker of the House of Representatives recently is no longer news.

The thrust of the story, however, is that the pretty Ogbomoso- born lawmaker is yet to reconcile herself with the loss. Ever since she lost the election to Hon. Aminu Tambuwal, the very affable woman has taken everything in her strides, but still hopeful of the future. Those who should know have informed Society Circuit a day after the Speakership election, Adeola threw a low-key party at her Asokoro, Abuja home, to thank those who supported her in the election. While some people informed us that Hon. Adeola is still bitter about her loss, others say she is not bothered and that she is in the House primarily to give her constituents a good representation in the Lower House of the National Assembly.

•Mulikat Adeola

(E-mail: kayflex2@yahoo.com, Tel: 08035733605, 08099400057)

38

Glamour

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Ex-beauty queen, Munachi Abii still keeping her eyes on the ball

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ears after she relinquished her crown as The Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria, sassy and beautiful Munachi Abii has been quite busy, obviously towing the line of her worthy predecessors, including the legendary Helen Ajayi and the ever gorgeous Nike Osiniowo-Soleye. While modeling seems to be her natural forte, Abii is also trying her hands in music and television production, with plans in advanced stage to start her talk show in the very near future. And though still relishing the undisguised attention that her status as a former beauty queen confers on her, this young woman has, however, remained relentlessly focused, while still keeping her eyes firmly gazed at her ultimate goal-being the best that she can ever be.

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o w lo de iA em R

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Glamour

39

with Patience Saduwa

Lifestyle Health Nutrition Fitness

08023201831 (sms only) psaduwa@yahoo.com http//edirinsaduwa.blogspot.com

ÀŞÀBI, Nike Oshinowo's Women's special health and dietary needs (1) new perfume enters market

D

UE to their physical, physiological and psychological make-up, women have their own special health issues which deserve special consideration. These needs are essential throughout the different stages of a woman's life-puberty, adulthood, menopause to old age. Different nutrients are required to meet up with the demands of the body especially during the childbearing years and beyond. Luckily many of these can be got from food sources as well as supplements in case of a deficiency.

Some of these essential nutrients vital for good health and wellbeing include iron, calcium, folic acid, Vitamin D, A and other vital vitamins and minerals.

The blood enhancer

Iron for instance is a mineral found in every cell of the body. It is considered an essential mineral because it is needed to make part of blood cells. The human body needs iron to make the oxygen-carrying proteins hemoglobin and myoglobin.

Hemoglobin is found in red blood cells and myoglobin is found in muscles. Iron also makes up part of many proteins in the body.

The best food sources of iron include liver, lean red meat (especially beef), eggs, dried beans, iron-fortified cereals, oysters, poultry, salmon, tuna, whole grains, dried fruit and a few others. Reasonable amounts of iron are also found in lamb, pork, and shellfish.

The human body stores some iron to replace any that is lost. However, low iron levels over a long period of time can lead to iron deficiency anemia. Symptoms include lack of energy, shortness of breath, headache, irritability, dizziness or weight loss. Those at risk for low iron levels include women who are menstruating especially if they have heavy periods, women who are pregnant or who have just had a baby, breastfeeding women and people who frequently donate blood among others.

The bone strenghtener Calcium is the main component of bones and teeth. It is essential for growth in children, and helps to ensure efficient muscle contraction and blood clotting in adults. It is also useful for lower blood pressure. The body uses calcium to help our heart, muscles and nerves work properly.

It cannot make calcium itself so we must get it from the foods we take. When we eat calcium rich food the calcium enters our blood and is carried to the organs to perform the work that is needed. The extra calcium we eat is stored in our bones and when there is deficiency of calcium from food, the body will take the calcium from

•A woman’s world: To stay healthy and fit, women of all ages require certain essential nutrients that can be sourced from foods and supplements

•Milk, yoghurt, cheese, fish and vegetables are good sources of calcium

•Bananas

our bones to meet its needs. A deficiency in calcium can result in osteoporosis which is a mostly preventable and treatable disease that thins and weakens the bones.

Elderly women are especially susceptible to this disease. To prevent it, it's essential to increase your intake of calcium. Also weight-bearing exercises regularly and if you smoke, quit. Food sources of calcium include dairy products such as milk, yoghurt and cheese. Milk is one of the best providers of calcium in the diet.. Besides these, there are several other types of non-dairy sources of calcium that you can opt for to ensure your daily calcium intake.

The soft bones of fish, as with sardines, pilchards and tinned salmon, provide us with valuable calcium. Other useful sources include soya bean products such as tofu as well as sesame seeds, nuts, white bread, dried fruit, pulses and green leafy vegetables. Okra and curly kale are also rich vegetable sources of calcium. Soya milk alternatives, bottled water, breakfast cereals and orange juice are also fortified with extra calcium.

•Assorted fruits

40

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Relationship

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OLADE Finished university seven years ago. At thirty three, she was still single and happy with her status.

She had a good job which afforded her a good standard of living. Though she had admirers and male friends, she was not interested in marrying any of them. The issue was that she was not interested in getting married at all. As far as she was concerned, marriage will tie her down and prevent her from reaching her goals. She wanted to have children; she just did not want to live with the father of her children. Neither did she want the restriction of having one man for life. She believed that if she did not get married, she could do as she pleased including having boyfriends when she wanted to and quitting the relationship when she got tired. She had a number of single mothers in her extended family to use as examples of successful single mothers. She compared their lives to others who were married and concluded that the single mothers were just as happy as the married women. Her family members were concerned that she did not seem eager to settle down.

Even the single mothers in her extended family told her that they were single due to circumstances and not that they chose to be single mothers. They simply could not understand why she would elect to be single when there were responsible men who wanted to marry her.

“Why get married and tie myself down?” she told her mother and aunties. She already has a daughter and

all she wants is a son to complement the daughter and as far as she is concerned they are a family and do not need any man to live with them.

Risi is just twenty eight but she is worried about her single status. In her family, ladies get married as early as twenty. She seemed unable to keep a man long enough to make a marriage proposal. Her average dating time was five months.

By which time she either discovered that the man had a string of girlfriends and decided to break up with him. Sometimes it was the men that broke up with her, without any serious reason. She has begun to wonder if something is seriously wrong with her or if she has a curse or something that drives men away from her. Although, she is seriously in search of a marriage partner, the men she meets now are either already married and want her to be a second wife or they just want a lady they can use and dump. Some even have the audacity to tell her upfront that they do not really want a serious relationship. She stays up in bed at night wondering what exactly is wrong with her. All kinds of thoughts race through her mind: “How can I say that I am a woman if I cannot find a man to settle down with?

Am I so ugly that every man is afraid I will give birth to

children who will be ugly?

Did I do something wrong and God is punishing me by keeping me single? Am I going to be single for life?

What will happen to me when I am old?”

While Bolade is single and happy, most matured single ladies are not happy about their status. Some were like Bolade at a particular stage of their lives and suddenly realized at forty that they would like to have a husband after all.

The only snag is that all the men who used to be interested in them are no longer interested. Some of their former suitors are now married and no longer available.

Some matured single ladies are still single because their past stands in the way of a better future?

When Stephen met Joy and they became friends, he believed that he had found his soul mate and was seriously considering settling down with her. As their friendship deepened, he was praying about making a marriage proposal until someone in his office mentioned that he knew Joy and made a nasty statement about it being Stephen’s turn now and that he should enjoy himself. He was quite unhappy about the statement and decided to ask Joy what had transpired between herself and his colleague. Joy decided to tell him the truth. She had

gone out with the guy about three years previously and the relationship had been sexual. This was all Stephen needed to break up with her. He explained that he did not think he could manage his colleagues jesting about her and felt it was better to end the relationship. While a single lady may not be bothered about a man’s past relationships, most men are bothered about a lady’s past relationship.

Some men can manage knowing about their fiancée’s past as long as they do not know the men she has had relationships with. Some men assume that a lady who has had many boyfriends would not be a faithful wife and may cheat on them with one of her former boyfriends. It is so easy for men to have a wrong impression about a matured single lady.

Most men cannot believe that a lady may be thirty eight years old and be a virgin. If they believe that she is a virgin then they wonder if she is normal. People generally have a wrong impression about matured single ladies. If these ladies have had relationships with people at work, then the people in their office assume that these relationships were sexual and warn other coworkers not to marry such a lady. When a lady

Clinton Bolu Oni, wife, give out daughter in marriage

•Groom's Mother, Mrs. Oluwatoyin Onamusi (left) Bride's Father Mr,Clinton Bolu Oni, Couple Gbolahan and Seyi, Bride's Mother Yetunde Oni and Groom's Father Dr Franklin Onamusi at the wedding

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T was glamour and all round fanfare as the Former Head of the Press in the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Mr Cliton Bolu Oni and his wife, Mrs. Yetunde Oni gave their daughter, Oluwaseyi in Marriage to Gbolahan the Son of the Managing Director of Ore Ofe Oluwa Hospi-

Relationship Deola Ojo

Why are matured ladies still single?

tal Ijebu Ode, Ogun State, Dr Franklin Onamusi on Saturday, 11th June 2011 at All Souls Church, Bodija Ibadan, Oyo State.

The Couple Oluwaseyi Oni and Gbolahan Onamusi were filled with joy as many dignitaries, family members, friends, colleagues and well-wishers came to

honour them at their nuptial. Amongst the dignitaries at the event were the DG of NAFDAC, Dr Paul Ohil, DG National Gallery of Arts, Mr Abdullahi Muku, former Permanent Secretaries, Traditional rulers and many others.

The Chairman of the occasion was the Head of the

Civil Service of the Federation, Prof Oladapo Afolabi and he charged the couple to always put God first in whatever they do. The reception was held at the Civic Centre Agodi Ibadan Oyo State where the guests were later entertained. the traditional wedding had earlier held at Fun Factory, Bodija Ibadan

08027454533 (text) pastordeegfc@yahoo.com has gone out with people in the neighborhood or amongst a close community, people generally assume that such relationships are sexual. This makes guys shun them.

There is this general trend where the average lady is not looking for a virgin or not expecting to marry a male virgin, while men on the other hand hope for a virgin. Some may even actively look for one.

So a situation where the society expects a man to be experienced but a lady to be chaste puts matured single ladies in a disadvantaged position. There is also a general assumption that a lady who is still single at thirty plus may have issues. But there are many wonderful, descent and

matured single ladies who would make wonderful wives if given the chance.

There are many reasons why such ladies are still single.

1. Education. Lateness in pursuing a tertiary education is making many single ladies approach thirty by the time they leave university. There is a lovely and kind lady who is still single because she decided to pursue first, master’s and doctorate degrees.

During this time she told all her suitors that she was not ready for a relationship as her education came first.

By the time she finished her doctorate degree and became a lecturer, all the men were nowhere to be found.

To be continued next week

Did you marry the wrong guy?

Thirty percent of now-divorced women say they knew it was wrong from the start

By Kimberly Goad

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S Amanda Clark, 33, a caterer from Boston, walked down the aisle toward her fiancé, wearing a $15,000 gown and a 7carat ring, she felt nothing but dread. I don’t want to go through with this, she thought, with each step toward the altar.

Just two hours before the ceremony, Clark had gone for a dip in the ocean with her two sisters. When it was time to get ready, Clark wouldn’t budge. “I couldn’t get out of the water,” she says. “It was like knowing you have a work meeting, but you don’t want to go.”

Clark had dated a handsome businessman for four years before they got engaged, and although he didn’t make her heart race, she still loved him. “We were best friends, and I thought he’d make a great husband and father, even though I wasn’t ‘in love,’” she says. “I walked down the aisle thinking, ‘What the heck?’ During my vows, I wasn’t making eye contact with my fiancé.”

Five years and two kids later, their sex life nonexistent, Clark wanted out. “I’d often wish he would cheat,” she says. Finally, her husband, sensing her unhappiness, ended it.

Clark is hardly the first woman to say “I do” when her heart wasn’t in it. According to recent research conducted by Jennifer Gauvain, a therapist in Denver, 30 percent of nowdivorced women say they knew in their gut they were making a mistake as they walked down the aisle - and kept walking anyway. Only a handful backed out. The

obvious question: If you know you’re marrying the wrong guy, why do it?

For starters, blame Cinderella. “Women are raised with an unrealistic impression of what love is supposed to look like,” says Gauvain. “Girls read fairy tales where the woman gets saved by the prince, and when they’re older, the same message is enforced through romantic comedies where love always prevails, despite impossible scenarios. So women learn that love can always work, even when it’s unhealthy.”

Then there’s the usual suspect: the biological clock.

Clark’s was ticking and she was ready to start a family.

“The number 30 reads like an expiration date for unmarried women,” says Gauvain. Not only are your baby-making years racing by, but you’re leaving behind your 20s - a decade of experimentation, one-night stands, and making mistakes, professionally and personally. In the next decade, you’re seen as an adult and can’t do those things.”

And the unspoken bum’s rush to the altar makes things worse. “Although women won’t say it aloud, there’s often a huge sigh of relief once they get their ring,” says Gauvain.

“Getting engaged can be a triumph, and if he’s the wrong guy, the high from the attention of the engagement can minimize that fact.”

And finally, there’s the rise of Wedding Fever, now a $40-billion-a-year business. Proposals are getting more elaborate and showy; YouTube yields hundreds of videos featuring proposals during activities like skydiving or scuba diving.

THEATRE

With VICTOR AKANDE

t

BIGSCREEN

Tel: 08077408676

Year in, year out, Emem Isong produces some of the finest movies in the annals of the Nigerian movie industry. MERCY MICHAEL caught up with Emem who has just finished producing a new movie “kiss and tell” to talk about her staying power, instinct and work principles that have helped her to the top in movie production.

SOUND TRACK

plus

: g n o s I m e m E s s e h c u D e h T e i v o m e h t f o y r t s u d in •Emem Isong

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ROM producing some of Nollywood finest flicks such as Guilty Pleasure, and Bursting out, to her role in the resurgence of Ibibio movies Emem Isong has not only planted herself as a leading film maker but has become a leading agent of change.

Given the litany of commercially successful movies Emem has produced, one will want to ask how she gets to identify potential box office success and if her instinct has ever failed her in picking a movie story to work on. “I don't know how, but when I take a look at a story; I will know if it is going to crawl, walk or fly in the market. To be honest I have pushed out movies that failed to work a whole lot of times, not once, not twice, and not thrice but a lot of time.” The forgone revelation leaves one wondering how on earth can an Emem whose name is fast becoming the new definition of quality in Nollywood churn out movies that did not sell. “We are all humans, we make mistakes but I don't allow the poor reception that one movie got to stop me from working on other projects. The truth is this, for every movie that has experienced poor

acceptance I know something went wrong.” Like what? “Like errors in casting, the director of the movie and a whole lot of things.”

For her new movie, “kiss and tell”, does Emem think it has the potential to fly? The few errors that have hunted a few of her movies in the past, will they not rear their heads again? “I know for a fact that this movie will not only work, it will fly...” Why? Because it has got a different kind of dialogue that is quite higher than what we have done in the past. The “kiss and tell” story” is an intriguing story that was shot last year and we took our time in putting a few things in place before the release of this movie.”

For a reporter who watched the movie at its first screening, you cannot help but notice a few technical issues that came up in that movie with audio being the most glaring of them all, how does Emen Isong intend handling all of this before sending the movie to the cinemas? “You are very correct, in fairness to the director of the movie, Desmond Eliot, he did a good job with the picture but the audio was a big issue during and after production, but I am very sure it will be well taken care of

before it hits cinemas officially. And I am so sure it will come out good.”

Sitting at the top of the pack at Royal Art Academy (Nigeria's fastest growing movie company) Emem has a lot of her friends as partners, how does she ensure that productions take place without being complaisant? “They all know one thing about me; I do not mix business with pleasure when it's work time it's work time. Even Monalisa who is the executive producer of “Kiss and tell” will tell you that during this production we almost quarreled, because even if you are an executive producer or co producer you must put away indiscipline…” can you share with us a typical scenario that you insisted it has to be done your own way? “It has never been about doing things my own way, rather; it has always been about doing things the right way. If you are a co-producer or executive producer but are acting in that movie and when we agree that call time is 8a.m. and my cast member is strolling in by 10 or 11a.m. I will not hesitate to dress that person down, after the work is done we will continue the friendship that is how I work.”

A look at all Emem's job, and you will

GISTS

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41

e-mail: victor_akande@yahoo.com see a professional who has risen above the challenges surrounding her industry. As she gets set to welcome the cinema community to watch her latest movie, this reporter sought to know what role has been the most demanding for her. “Every movie is demanding, but without doubt I will pick the first dance movie that I have ever done as the most challenging movie I have produced. The irony is this, I majored in choreography at the University but I have been away from dance for a very long time. I must quickly point out that my absence from dance isn't what made producing the movie a big deal, rather the large crowd and the fact that I had to shoot in Akwa Ibom State, Cross River State and Lagos really challenged me. I had to spend over a month on set, which is very unusual.”

From the real time challenges on the job, The Nation thought it wise to find out from Emem how she has coped with challenge of gender equality as a female movie producer, “honestly I do not think about it, I just wake up thinking about what to do or what not to do in order to get the job done. For a fact movie making is not about being male or female.”

No doubt Emem Isong and partners at Royal Art Academy stand as the pillars that have tapped, exposed and glamorized Ibibio theatre in such movies like “Uyi”, “Edikan” and Okon Lagos”. Where did she find the nerve to produce Ibibio film given the considerable low number of people that speak the Ibibio language? “Let me ask you this, how many people understand the Indians when they speak, but we all know the story with Indian films today; they are popular and watched all over the world. It is my personal belief that when a story is peculiar to a particular people, the best thing to do is to tell that story in their language to ensure the message is not distorted in any way during the process of translating. After all said I did Ibibio language movies because I saw the need to, and another thing is that I came across stories that could only be told in Ibibio language.

I do not mix business with pleasure when it's work time it's work time. Even Monalisa who is the executive producer of “Kiss and tell” will tell you that during this production we almost quarreled, because even if you are an executive producer or co producer you must put away indiscipline…

42

Entertainment

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 18, 2011

HO LLYWOOD

A Top Job reality show

Compiled by MERCY MICHAEL

B

RITISH singer Amy Winehouse was back on stage for a secret concert on Sunday -- less than two weeks after completing a rehab stint.

The singer, who has long struggled with substance abuse, checked out of The Priory clinic earlier this month after reportedly suffering a relapse.

But Winehouse proved she's on the road to recovery as she took the stage at London's 100 Club to perform a seven-song set, which included her hits "Rehab" and "Valerie."

Among the crowd cheering Winehouse on at the secret show were her parents and filmmaker boyfriend Reg Traviss.

A source tells Britain's The Sun, "Gone was the fragile, volatile and unpredictable

A

Winehouse makes comeback at secret gig Amy. She wasn't knocking back vodka on stage. ... Amy was on fantastic form. She looked and sounded great. It was like one of her old performances. ... She had the crowd laughing along with her gags, poking fun at herself and dad Mitch.”

•Winehouse

Love Triangle hits Jennifer Aniston’s new romance

T

•Aniston

HAT tapping sound you hear? It's the tabloids doing a happy dance over Jennifer Aniston's rumoured romance with Justin Theroux now that a supposedly wronged third party has entered the mix.

The New York Post is pushing an all too familiar love triangle story line with the former Mrs. Brad Pitt blaming her budding connection with the scruffy actor-writer for the fizzling of his 14-year live-in relationship with costume designer Heidi Bivens.

"Heidi is heartbroken. She was completely blindsided," sniffles a source. "She and Justin had been together for years, they had a home. Then he met Jennifer and everything changed. At first he

claimed he and Jen were friends."

Bivens' mom brushed off the romance chatter last month, insisting to Star, "It's not true at all. That's from Justin's own

mouth. … It's been just a big, big misunderstanding -- and you can take that as the truth."

Now, Heidi feels "devastated" and has moved out of their shared New York digs.

Stevie Wonder inducted into Apollo Hall of Fame

T

HE first time Stevie Wonder performed at the Apollo, he was just a child and he remembers being so nervous, he dropped his bongos on the stage floor.

Wonder had no such butterflies Monday night as he was honoured during the famed theater's spring gala with induction into the

Legends Hall of Fame, which includes Aretha Franklin, Michael Jackson, Ella Fitzgerald and James Brown. Though Wonder was the main attraction, the audience was also wowed as he collaborated with a cast of friends and admirers including Tony Bennett, Chick Corea, Paul Shaffer and Doug E. Fresh.

Crane over Ghollywood

I am single with a kid but not searching —Tiffany

P

OPULAR female artiste Tiffany has revealed on VIASAT 1's flagship primetime television programme, The One Show, that despite having a child, she is happily single and has no intentions of snagging a man as yet.

“Am single with a kid but not searching,” says Tiffany. The Fake London Boy-pretty faced songstress told the show's host that plans are far advanced for her new album, which features controversial hiplife act ASEM. The album is expected to be released into the market in the coming months.

Touching on the inspiration that led to the making of her Fake London Boy track, Tiffany said, “these days, you find most Ghanaian youths out there trying to imitate Londoners' style of life and I felt it was not

proper and needed to address it.

That is why I came out with the song “Fake London boy”.

Tiffany hails from the Ashanti Region and would have been a poet or comedian had she not been blessing and cursing the microphone.

I don’t cheat on my wife —Van Vicker

reality series tagged Top Job has been created to discover budding editors who will be given the chance to showcase their talent and secure their dream job. The show, according to award winning famed serial entrepreneur, Alexander Amosu, is an initiative meant to scout for a junior editor for OK!, a Nigerian magazine.

Amosu said the show promises to deliver quality family entertainment with fun and exciting content for Nigerian television.

The thirty-minute weekly show, he added, will air on major television stations all over Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States of America and is expected to run for eight weeks.

“Each episode will be packaged to highlight the values of the OK! international brand with a Nigerian twist. Ok! Nigeria magazine will be launched a few months later than earlier scheduled to accommodate the show.”

Amosu, a young entrepreneur who turned his interest in technology and the mobile phone industry into a commercial success story, now heads a business at the forefront of mobile entertainment.

He also runs a mentoring service and hopes that “Top Job” will be a tool of guidance and standard for intending publishers in Nigeria.

Top Job is expected to broaden the minds of young writers who seek to pursue a career in journalism in the 21st century.

Amosu said, “OK! Nigeria will be a monthly publication and content will be 60% Nigerian celebrities on a global scale, whilst just 20% of the 60% will be local Nigerian celebrities in Nigeria. The remaining 40% is divided into 30% African American celebrities such as Will Smith and Oprah and the remaining 10% will be the usual celebrities we love to read about such as Paris Hilton and David Beckham. Nigeria will be the first African country to launch an indigenous edition.”

A

MERICAN superstar Arnold Schwarzenegger recently confessed about cheating on his wedded Tiffany wife, but Ghanaian actor Van Vicker has created an impression that Arnold made the most stupid mistake on earth with that honest ELEBRATED Ghanaian which they then speed off and confession. songstress Mzbel and two drove for a distance with the The Ghanaian actor explained other accomplices were policeman still hooked that he has never cheated on his arrested by officials of the Motor dangerously on the bonnet wife since they got together a Transport and Traffic Unit while eyewitnesses screamed at decade ago.

(MTTU) for physically the horror of what was 'Let me tell you; I will surely assaulting a uniformed happening. policeman on official duty.

Their vehicle was eventually say 'no' any day I am asked that The musician and two others forced to stop when it was question and I am telling you were reported to have crossed by a private security van. that I have not. Because you see, deliberately run their Police sources said when Mzbel even if a married man has Mitsubishi 4x4 vehicle with got out of the Mitsubishi, she (cheated on the wife) it will be registration number GR 9470-11 started yelling at the cop, very disrespectful to admit he into the policeman who fell on claiming he had no right to cross has on public TV.’ the bonnet of the vehicle, after their way.

Mzbel beat up a police officer

C

•Alexander Amosu

Entertainment

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 18, 2011

TELEVISION

BIG

43

CINEMA guide LAGOS

PICTURE Supported by: SILVERBIRD CINEMAS

Your Highness Genre: Comedy Fast Five Genre: Action/Adventure and Sequel Priest (3D) Genre: Suspense/Horror, Thriller and Adaptation Street Dance Genre: Action/Adventure, Art/Foreign, Drama and Musical/Performing Arts Thor Genre: Action/Adventure and Adaptation

PORT-HARCOURT

DStv E! Schedule 06:00: 25 Hottest Hollywood Cougar Tales 07:50: 10 Most Compelling Mama Dramas 08:40: Forbes Top 20 Celebrity Cash Couples 09:30: E! News 10:00: Girls Of The Playboy Mansion 10:25: Holly's World 10:50: Keeping Up With The Kardashians 11:15: Forbes 15 Hot Hollywood Moms 12:15: E! News 12:45: Kendra 13:15: Kourtney & KhloŽ Take Miami 15:20: E! News 15:50: Kourtney & KhloŽ Take Miami 19:00: E! News 19:30: Kourtney & KhloŽ Take Miami 22:30: Holly's World 23:00: E! News 23:30: Dr. 90210 00:30: 10 Most Compelling Mama Dramas 01:30: Sexiest Cover Girls 02:25: Dr. 90210 03:20: Extreme Hollywood 04:15: Billionaire Crime Scenes: Was It Murder?

05:10: Addicted To Pills E! Investigates

RADIO Wazobia FM 95.1 SUNDAY(EVENING) 12/09/2010 6-7 Hi Life with Femi 7-8 Street Yarn 8 - 10 9ja Sense 10 - 12 Take Am PROGRAMME (Yaw's Schedule) MONDAY - FRIDAY 6:30AM Make Una Wake up 6:45AM Word from Abada and Blue Boat 7:30AM Sports Yarn 8AM - 8:15AM World Tori 8:15 - 9AM Music, Gist...

9:00 AM Top Tori for Town 9:30 News (short, short tori) 9:30 - 10AM Tori for Town Continues

I

Street Dance: Dance drama times 3D

MAGINE the thrill of a dance and musical film. Imagine the feel of a competition drama and the energy exerted by the players. Imagine when the director taking you through an intriguing narrative techniques that gives the drama a sense of filmic reality. Then imagine that as a viewer you are watching this through the 3D glasses. This and more are what make Street Dance thick.

Starring Charlotte Rampling, Nichola Burley, Eleanor Bron, Patrick Baladi, and Tameka Empson, this musical cum performing arts is an action packed adventure all through its100 minute's duration which dwells on a dance crew being forced to work with ballet dancers from

the Royal Dance School in exchange for rehearsal space, just to win the Street Dance Championships.

StreetDance 3D comes alive in the showcase showdowns with all stomp and back flips, so fun and infectious even the most skeptical might find themselves considering classes. And, thought the story is as hokey as they come, it's charmingly played by the two leads, and given just the right amount of support by the others in particular Eleanor Bron as Mme Fleurie, an outraged old-school ballet mistress.

Expectedly, the 3D immerses the viewer into a brave new worlds.

Your Highness: Cool Comedy

T

HROUGHOUT history, tales of chivalry have burnished the legends of brave, handsome knights who rescue fair damsels, slay dragons and conquer evil. But behind many a hero is a good-for-nothing younger brother trying just to stay out of the way of those dragons, evil and trouble in general. Danny McBride and James Franco team up for an epic comedy adventure set in a fantastical world--Your Highness. As two princes on a daring mission to save their land, they must rescue the heir apparent's fiancée before their kingdom is destroyed.

Thadeous (McBride) has spent his life watching his perfect older brother Fabious (Franco) embark upon valiant journeys and win the hearts of his people. Tired of being passed over for adventure, adoration and the throne, he's settled for a life of wizard's weed, hard booze and easy maidens. But

when Fabious' bride-to-be, Belladonna (Zooey Deschanel), gets kidnapped by the evil wizard Leezar (Justin Theroux), the king gives his deadbeat son an ultimatum: Man up and help rescue her or get cut off.

Half-assedly embarking upon his first quest, Thadeous joins Fabious to trek across the perilous outlands and free the princess. Joined by Isabel (Natalie Portman)--an elusive warrior with a dangerous agenda of her own--the brothers must vanquish horrific creatures and traitorous knights before they can reach Belladonna. If Thadeous can find his inner hero, he can help his brother prevent the destruction of his land. Stay a slacker, and not only does he die a coward, he gets front row seats to the dawn of an all-new Dark Ages. The movie stars Danny McBride, James Franco, Natalie Portman, Zooey Deschanel, and Justin Theroux.

Ghetto Dreams Genre: Drama Running Sucker Punch Genre: Action/Adventure and Science Fiction/Fantasy Wrecked Genre: Thriller Just Go With It Genre: Comedy and Romance No Strings Attached Genre:Comedy and Romance HOP Genre: Comedy, Kids/Family, Animation and Holiday Red Riding Hood Genre: Romance, Suspense/Horror and Adaptation

ABUJA

True Grit Genre:Action/Adventure, Western, Adaptation and Remake Rango Genre:Action/Adventure and Animation Tango With Me Genre: Drama and Romance Thor Genre: Action/Adventure and Adaptation Fast Five Genre: Action/Adventure and Sequel Tommorow When the War Began Genre: Action Adventure Drama Ghetto Dreams Genre: Drama Sucker Punch Genre: Action/Adventure and Science Fiction/Fantasy No Strings Attached Genre:Comedy and Romance Just Go With It Genre: Comedy and Romance Bent Arrows Genre: Drama and suspense

44

Entertainment

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 18, 2011

Star Trek: Fans go wild in Enugu, Owerri

T

HE second to the last leg of the 2011 edition of the popular musical road show “ Trek took Enugu and Owerri Star by storm last Friday and Saturday respectively. Reports say music lovers trooped out in their thousands to catch an all night date with the long list of new generation artistes that catch their fancy.

Organised by Nigerian Breweries Plc, the Star Trek musical concert is a musical concert which tours semi-urban areas and residents of these selected cities where music buffs are given the opportunity of witnessing stellar performances from Nigeria's best music stars for a token fee.

After the music superstars had 'trekked' to Abuja, Auchi, Asaba and Nnewi, the next stop was the Blue Island Hotel, Enugu. As usual, the BEAT Band, winners of Star Quest 2011, opened the Enugu leg of the musical show with a medley of their original compositions. The

obviously thrilled audience hailed the Star Quest winners, as it was evident the Star Quest revelations had improved greatly on their performances.

The next performer was ace producer and performing artiste, Jesse Jags, who also thrilled the crowd with his musical hits from his 'Jagz of all Trades' album. He was followed by Rugged Man who introduced a new act - Chinedu from his Rugged Records label.

The star attraction of the Enugu leg of the show was the musical superstar group P Square. Dressed in the semblance of blue military regalia, the duo, Peter and Paul, serenaded the crowd with their deft dance steps, as they were occasionally joined on stage by their dancers. They wowed the crowd with musical renditions of their hits such as 'E No Easy', 'Roll it', as well as many other musical hits from their repertoire of songs.

If P Square swayed the Enugu

•P’square performing at the event

crowd on Friday, June 10th, MI simply took the crowd's breath away on Saturday, June 10th. After miming to songs from his MI 2 album, the crowd was electrified when he invited Flava, popular Nigerian R & B crooner, for the rendition of 'African rapper number 1'. The crowd's mood was simply ecstatic as they rhymed to MI's lyrics and sang to the chorus on the song, as delivered by Flava.

Just like his previous performances at the Nnewi and Enugu legs of Star Trek, MI invited individuals who feel they are talented to perform on stage with him.

Flava, during a solo performance, had thrilled the crowd with musical hits such as Adanma and Nabania. Other musical stars that thrilled the crowd at the Old Township Stadium venue of the Oweri edition were Wande Coal, 2 Shotz, Ella B and past Star Quest winners Juke Box.

Berry O sets to save children

SUNNY NEJI tests mettle with N1000 album

A

CE musician Sunny Neji is set to test his mettle in the raucous Nigerian music market by introducing an album that costs N1000 as against the regular price of N150 for Akinola FABUNMI music compact discs.

In a release by his management USTINE Ebere Ekeoha, company, Now Muzik, it said the popularly known as 'Berry move has an objective to O' with his debut album advocate for improved conditions 'never too late' is organizing a project tagged “Save the Children for musicians in the industry. It argued further, 'I don't think Concert".

N1000 is too much, I think the The artiste disclosed that the music is worth more than a concert is organized in order to thousand naira. A thousand naira impact positively on the lives of is not much for a CD you are children, widows and the less going to have for a life time, if privileged ones that had been you consider how much you neglected in the society.

Said he: “I discovered that a lot spend to buy things like recharge cards and the likes. Those who of people don't understand the have been investing in music language called give but their have not been making money.' thoughts and minds are focused 'If I decide to invest in a young on receiving, For talking on this artiste now, the truth of the word and the message that matter is that, I'll promote the follows along with it, it has been an outreach that a lot of people are young artiste but there will be no return on investment except if the always touched after listening to the message, which prompts them person becomes very successful to give their little to help touch or gets one endorsement or the lives.” other. That's why it's only the

A

Geli unveils debut albums

O

N July 2, 2011 invited guests and the general public will be thrilled to gospel and highlife music on the occasion of the unveiling of two albums by up and coming singer Geli at the Tant One Gardens & Events Center, Agege, by 2.pm.

Geli, whose real name is Princess Oby Eluemunor from Anioma local government area of Delta State, has been singing since 1993. In a chat with our reporter, she stated that the reason for the unveiling was to achieve renown and take a front row seat in the Nigerian music industry. Her highlife album Nukuma has four tracks while the gospel album 'God of Restoration' has eight tracks.

The albums, which were produced by Mola Smith and Akeem Reid, features as guest artistes Righteousman, King Wadada and Luky Okri.

The occasion has as special guest Chief Predy Wise Okowa, PMAN President. Other guests include Tee-Mac Omatshola Eseli, former PMAN President, HRH Dr Ngozi Ibekwe, Mrs Pat Chujor and Chief Mrs Ebere Ubani.

•Geli

Moji Adeniyi drops new album

M

ULTI-TALENTED artiste and songwriter, Moji Adeniyi, has finally released her much anticipated album 'Arugbo Ojo'.

The event took place at Isaac John Street, Ikeja GRA, IkejaLagos at 4pm on 4th of June, 2011.

The composer and song writer said the motive for the title of the album is that “God is the solution to all problems and it is through Him that all things are made possible.”

With the release of her album, she hopes that apart from

Adeyeni ADEYEMO

passing a message to Nigerians and educating them on some dutiful vices, she also wants to entertain them with other pleasant songs in the album.

According to the female gospel sensation, the loaded album features potential hits that will receive massive airplay in different radio stations nationwide.

Among the repertoire of songs from the album are tracks like Se Rere, Dabira, Awesome God and the hit song Arugbo Ojo. •Moji

artistes who have been investing in the industry. No business man is coming to the industry to say this is a lucrative business, I want to invest in it; only the artistes are doing the investment and it's not enough. All the major recording companies have pulled out of the country because of that, so, we need to create the atmosphere to encourage them to come back so that the business will be as big as it ought to be.'

The album titled “Timeless” was produced with inputs from Samclef, Dapiano, Adebayo, Phat-E and Bright. It introduces exotic remixes, collaboration and he experiments with daring lyrics which is evident in the remix of 'One more time' and 'Bad as I bad' featuring Fragrance.

'Timeless' has 13 tracks, three remixes and collaborative inputs of four artistes; J'odie on 'Lovey Dovey', Jhibo on 'Awarawa', Fragrance on 'Bad as I Bad' and Kiki on 'No be Oyinbo'.

The released album which comes with a lyrical booklet has hit markets in Lagos and is fast spreading to other states. Bigsam Media, Mr Neji's publicist, stated 'We are selling the album at selected locations in Lagos and we are working on more locations outside Lagos. The response in the past weeks has been encouraging and we have no doubts that we are going to go platinum.'

Sunny Neji was propelled to fame in 1997 with the hit 'Mr Fantastik' released that year. It was followed by the monster hit 'Oruka', which used to be a favourite at wedding receptions in Lagos. His single, 'Lovey Dovey', from the album, 'Timeless', is enjoying heavy rotation on air. The album is marketed by Impact Records.

FROM THE CAMPUS PAGE 46

With Prof. Emmanuel Ojeme

THE NATION SUNDAY, JUNE 19, 2011

Golf...Golf...Golf...Golf...Golf...Golf...Golf...Golf...Golf

GOLFLINE

NTDC brings for

WITH

Tony Akhigbe

Okunbor counts blessings

•Usain Bolt

golflineintl@yahoo.com 08056180071

Now that sports festival is here...

W

E are lucky in this country. We always have a place to run to when there is a disaster. and yes, just in a short while. Look at Boko Haram... they blew to hell what we call the security of this country. The Police Headquarter as it stands. The whole thing was so terrible. It was like dying and going to heaven or hell. Choose this. You are not safe in this country.

But look at the way we make up in this country, and its truly by the glory of God. We have a way of containing any disaster, not through the might of the government, that one is helpless, but through the grace of God that has a way of putting us together, and making us have another chance to see the sun when it becomes apparent all is lost.

Now, there is a new window of opportunity that will make us believe Boko Haram ever happened and that the Police Headquarters was never being blown to bits. Reason? Come the end of this month, 12,000 Nigerians from all over the nation, even from the Boko Haram region will converge in Port Harcourt to be part of the National Sports Festival. This is enough balm to heal all wounds. Like it is said in the Arab world: All religions, All songs, One song. It's clear the festival could unite this nation again by the end of this month only if the National Sports Commission can play its role cool and clear.

This is where the problem could surface. Will the National Sports Commission [NSC} be up to the task of presenting to the nation an all free festival devoid of whatever irregularity? Can this one be free and fair?

Hear this. The festival held in Kaduna was almost going into smoke. And all because of the game of golf that carries as many as 20 gold medals. Golf as a game is being played by rules and respect. You must play by your handicap. Cheating is a sin here.

You don't even think about it.

In Kaduna, all hell burst loose. Every State wanted to win something for a political Governor who would announce pay for every medal won. Administrators who accompanied golfers to Kaduna wanted a piece of their Governors' pie. Rather than train golfers who could bring glory, they went through the back door. Know what they did? They went through NSC officials who were willingly trading Golfers Handicap for some filthy lucre. It was like you were playing 10-Handicap and you would be handed an 18-Handicap so you could pick gold in your category and get your Governor's vote... for some dirty lucre...

Some N50,000. At the time, this infuriated the North and they were shocked that such could be happening right in their doorsteps. It was a riot that was contained with some wisdom.

We are there again. The Festival is to maintain National Unity which we need at this time when blood is spilling, unnecessarily.

There should be no argument in Port Harcourt. Nobody should buy Handicaps for golfers. And the Director General of the NSC, Sir Patrick Ekeji should ensure this. What is being said at this moment is that the North should not be given any reason to go Boko Haram way in Port Harcourt. The way to ensure this is to make all games clean and clear. No 'mago-mago'.

•Golfer set to tee off

F

OR about a decade now, the Home of Golf, the Benin Golf Club has not witnessed the real major golf tourney that involves professionals and amateurs alike.

Ir was a significant event.

The event came at the heels of real golf devotee, Otunba Olusoala Adekanola who used his CMCL conglomorate to celebrate his own birthday. It was a huge event, worth some N4 million. It was worth more than this. The Professionals never played in a tourney for six months before Adekanola stormed Benin.

The Benin event wasn't really pleasant. A shameful 9-Over won the event. This is where one of the godfathers of golf in Nigeria, Sam Iredia got enraged. Hear Iredia. "That was a bizarre score for a N4 million tourney. This simply shows we don't have Pros in this country. We should be building and breeding new Pros.

I play off 9-Handicap and I can't come up with such alarming score. What message are you passing to the Sponsor who put in N4 million. Are you telling him he doesnt know what he is doing with his money? This is Pro golf. It is business. If our Pros cam't stand the pressure, let's forget it. Am not impressed".

But one man is impressed. He is Kingsley Okunbor the Captain

of the Benin Golf Club. Not with the terrible performance of the Pros, though, but for the fact that his tenure has attracted a Pro tourney after a decade.

Hear Okunbor "Am shocked at the results posted by the Pros but then we made the course difficult for them to play. But that is not really bothering me. I am a happy man. I told members I would bring a Pro tourney after a long while and we did it. We wont stop at that. The Edo Open is on the way and it will surpass this. While coming as a Captain, I had one thing in mind. This is without quality tournaments, a Club is dead. We are bringing the tourneys and I thank God that all I promised before coming to this post are coming to fruition.

We are just starting".

•Okunbor

2011 Memorial Championship promises more memories

M

ORE than the 10 million naira that would be staked at this year’s Memorial Championship, professional golfers are in for one of the defining tournaments of the 2011 season whne the event tees off in Abuja from June 23.

First, the event would key determinant for the mid-year ranking which is presently topped by returning number one Oche Odoh after his CMCL win in Benin. The mid year ranking has become a key item on the PGA workings as it has become PGA automatic qualifier for the World Cup of Golf qualifier which Nigeria is hoping to return to this year.

Unfortunately it is still very sketchy if the country can muster a team that is capable of creating the spary that Oche and Gboyega Oyebanji created in 2008 whne they shocked bookmakers at the event and only losing their third sport at the last hole to Italy’s Francesco and Eduardo Molinary.

At the memorial, because of the chunk of cash top finishers will be going home with there are pressure mounting that an unlikely surge can dismantle further Nigeria’s hope of

putting experience and top rated players up for the World Cup. Oche N400, 000 win at the CMCL win may not count if he doesn’t finish anywhere in top three at the Memorial (even though top two will be ideal) if he want a chance to repeat to try the World Cup of golf qualifiers again. Already his 2008 partner Oyebanji is condemned to win or forget to travel to Malaysia (venue of this years qualifier), he finished poorly outside top twenty in Benin.

Again there is a flash of chance for him as he ranks as one of the best player on IBB golf course; the host course.

But again none of this permutation will count, if 2009 PGAChampionship winner Umoh Edet gets hold of the memorial championship.

He missed cut for the second time in his career at the CMCL in what is more an emotional instability than physical. He has since relocated to Akwa Ibom where he has been building up for the Memorial championship at the toughest and longest championship course in the country, the Le Meridien Ibom Golf Course.

Usain Bolt’s hunger for professional football and other issues

E

VERY SPORTING activity has its icons. The icons represent the frontier of such sports and served as models or its ideals. In track and field athletics or sports, the world has seen icons such as Jesse Owens, Carl Lewis, Kip Keino, Ed Moses, Tyson Gay, Innocent Egbunike, Mary Onyali and Falilat Ogunkoya among several others. Usain Bolt, the Jamaican speed star is the latest on the block of Iconic performers, demonstrating superior somatic and anthropometric qualities and setting new world record in 100m. Many believe that Usain Bolt has challenged sports scientists and sprinters to find solutions to his awesome performances in his events. The other time Tyson Jay beat him; his legs almost ran out of his hips. Why would Usain Bolt want to play professional football, when he declared that he would want to play for Manchester United? This paper attempts to examine some of the issues and volunteers an advice.

In this same piece, I will also look at FIFA and NFF imbroglio.

Every sports man or woman is at liberty to choose which sports to engage in, considering ones talents and skills.

Usain Bolt has made a name in track and field in just a few years. Track and field is a non-contact sports. It is also an individualistic and closed-ended sport. Thus, the variables of performance differ from the open-ended sports such as football as a team sports. Although Usain Bolt may be multi-talented but may not be as successful in football as he has demonstrated in track and field. The sports world needs Usain Bolt as a track and field ambassador. Is it the money in football? I hope he is also worried and scared about the ethos and ethics associated with football. Although a popular sports, the management of football at the FIFA and local levels obviously leaves more questions than answers. The money in football is the root of the evils bedeviling it and FIFA seems to have no clue as to what it needs to do to revamp its image. Usain Bolt should remain in his track and field sports and help to make it a better place for humanity. Moreover, football, a contact and orthopaedic event may shatter his beautiful legs.

What is wrong with FIFA? Its fundamental strategy of running football as a business without standard ethos and ethics is consuming and will continue to consume the organisation. Why did Sepp Blatter offer himself for re-election at 75 years of age and for a 4th term in office inspite of the quagmire in the place? If I were in his shoes, I would have stepped down and set up an interim management committee. Almost all of FIFA affiliates replicate its organisational behaviour pattern. Look at the Nigerian version; it is a perpetual house of commotion. Nigerian football continued to slide. Coach Siasia, his team and the NFF are back to our traditional mathematics of our chances of qualifying for the Nation’s Cup as it was in the last edition. These are symptoms of poor football management. We are never able to dominate the opposition. We are just wrong footed enjoying the luxury of games against Argentina when we cannot even defeat Ethiopia on home and away basis, a country that plays football as a recreational activity.

Football and indeed all of sports cannot be on a proper footing except the Sports intellectuals have a place in Federations that run its affairs. The present approach of sidelining sports intellectuals in the management of sports at local and international levels will ever be to its detriment. Sports is not just a business, it is an institutionalised socio-cultural activity that requires the convergence of sports epistemologist sitting on the high table with the commercial moguls and others for it to attain its natural status as a disciplined activity. Right by the international and local Federations to its detriment.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

I

N the 3rd week of May 2011, Retired Brigadier Olagunsoye Oyinlola got his chance at the Panel of the National Judicial Council (NJC) looking into petitions originating from two former illegal and discredited Governors from Osun and Ekiti states. They separately alleged bias and miscarriages of justice with regard to the respective judgements of the Court of Appeal on the petitions of their opponents who were candidates of the Action congress of Nigeria (ACN) with whom they contested the 2007 governorship elections in their states. The two separate judgements put-paid to their usurpation and colonisation of political offices of power.

Our interest is not to dwell on or go into the legal correctness or otherwise of the claims and fabrications contained in the petitions. Eminent jurists and members of the National Judicial Council are well-endowed and more than competent to dissect and dispose of these bundles of lies, blackmail and slanderous threats to the duties and responsibilities of members of the bench to do justice without fear or fervour and in strict compliance with the dictates of their conscience. And in any case it will be tantamount to re-trying a case that has already been pronounced upon by the highest Court of competent jurisdiction on the matter which will also be equal to committing an affront against the Judges and the Constitution.

The decisions of the Courts of Appeal stand and are unchangeable, as they already are, no matter how unpalatable and ‘hemlock-like’ Olagunsoye Oyinlola and Segun Oni find them to be. This is because we are all under the canopy and protection of the law. Oyinlola and his ousted political kinsman are not bigger than our Constitution neither are they above the judgement of our Courts for whatever reason.

They cannot be allowed the free hand to launch tirades of moral and unbridled media campaigns against the judges just because they did not like the rulings of the Appeal Courts. The judiciary and indeed every member of the public must frown at the use of frivolous petitions, unfounded rumours and unsubstantiated allegations to mentally and psychologically assault judges just because Oyinlola and his likes are wont to act as judges in their own case, a position which they seem to have enjoyed for so long until nemesis caught-up with them in recent judicial pronouncements.

With particular reference to Osun state, we recollect that since the Appeal Court’s judgement, Oyinlola and his group have been ‘hitting their heads on the hard floor’, ‘wriggling’ in pains and ‘throwing’ their bodies on the ground behaving like the proverbial snake whose head was cutoff. The master of ‘yabis’, ‘verbal ridicule’ and ‘abusive name-calling’ finds it difficult to swallow the ‘bitter-pills’ of justice served on his plate by the judgement which removed him from an office which he was not meant to occupy, in the first place. He has been behaving like the proverbial ‘bull’ that ran into a ‘china-shop’.

Together with his prominent ‘comrade-in-arms’ such as Mr. Iyiola Omisore and Alhaji Isiaka Adeleke, he has attempted to frustrate the present government in Osun state by plotting mayhem and chaos.

Oyinlola’s petition against the President of the Court of Appeal and against the Appeal Court Judges is an attempt to mastermind and force an appeal or compel a judicial review, in which case the NJC will serve as the Supreme Court since the last judgement cannot be appealed against anywhere in accordance with the Electoral Act and the Constitution.

Their Lordships are very apt in their description of the character of Oyinlola, that; he is a “tendentious liar and malevolent blackmailer” and that he is “an incorrigible liar frantically conjuring up dishonest information even in the face of unassailable evidence”. If Brigadier Oyinlola is not happy with the truth as told by the Judges, the best option is not to ‘groan’ and ‘moan’ in anger, but to go to Court in order to defend his honour and integrity; if he thinks that he has any. The commentary of the Judges on Oyinlola’s attributes could not have been better stated. In fact, if one is not careful, we will be conducting dialogues with a man who, in spite of his questionable antecedents persistently lay claims and make false pretentions to truthfulness, Godliness and gentlemanliness even though nobody except, perhaps Oyinlola himself, will ever take these claims seriously.

Many Osun citizens have been pressurising the government of Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola to probe Oyinlola and his gang to expose and punish how they looted the treasury of the state and vandalised various institutions of governance while in office thereby leaving a mountain of debt running to several billions of Naira for the new government to pay.

The above is separate from the burden of more than N8 billion worth of unexecuted

Issues

47

Oyinlola’s pursuit of evil

By Olusegun Mayegun projects which already have been paid for with the resources of the Osun state people. How can this same person be allowed to regularly abuse our popular democratic intelligence and take undue advantage of the freedom permitted by the new democratic era of our society?

Is it not paradoxical that it is those against whom we fought so hard to re-gain our democratic dignity that still demonstrate the unquenchable desire to keep us captives and perpetually enslaved in the same context of freedom which we constructed in spite of their determination to keep our society locked-up in the dark age of authoritarianism and militaristic oppression and exploitation?

Worse of all, Oyinlola never misses any opportunity to remind us all that he is a “retired general” and “a battle tested” soldier. Of course the occasion of his appearance before the NJC panel offered him another opportunity to do the same as though Nigerians are not yet fed-up of listening • Oyinlola to the same monotonous voice.

It is only for the likes of Oyinlola that a career in the military sounds fashionable, great and presentable: Whereas, our memory is jolted at the mere mention of such things. Oyinlola should tell us the battles that he has fought as a soldier and we will bring him enough evidence of his war against innocent and harmless civilians for which he ought to be standing trial for war crimes either in Nigeria or before the International Court at The Hague.

Here in Nigeria, Oyinlola is renowned to be a soldier that has waged war against the Nigerian people either as the Administrator of Lagos state during the terrible military era of the 1990s or in Osun state where he deployed his military training and arsenal to ‘capture and plunder’ the territory before the Appeal Court judgement of October 26 2011 got rid of him. It appears to us that Oyinlola has lost his vast retinue of spindoctors and praise singers. It has been left for him to learn the painful lessons of a man who has been left alone to sing his own praise. We are happy to witness the inglorious and ignominious exit of a boisterous ‘Brigadier-General’ whose martial morality has been completely defeated and vanquished by the new judicial order in Nigeria and whose military arrogance met its ‘waterloo’ against our newly built and fast growing system of democratic civility.

In any case, the Appeal Court judgement over the Osun state election dispute was to the joy and popular acclamation of over-whelming majority of the citizens of the state who heaved a sigh of relieve that justice has been done and that freedom and prosperity has returned to their troubled lives. It was victory long-deserved and longawaited. Oyinlola can continue to cry over his ‘spilled-milk’ as that is his personal prerogative.

But calling the judges names and attempting to threaten, intimidate or get them punished for the judgement delivered is completely out of order and must be put to a stop. It is an under-handed strategy which must be understood for what it is and which must be dispassionately resisted and done-away with. It is our fervent belief that

learned members of the National Judicial Council will see through the smoke-screen of the disgruntled Oyinlola’s petition and dismiss his insidious and perfidious vituperations.

It is important for us to say something in the name of the law and for the sake of judicial practices anywhere in the world in as much as we should not be seen to be engaged in any form of re-trial or re-investigation of an already concluded case. In terms of that, these are the questions which Oyinlola and his depleted gang of extinguished political juggernauts must think about: 1. Did Rauf Aregbesola win the majority of lawful votes cast in the April 2007 governorship election in Osun state or not? 2.

Did his declaration as the lawfully elected Governor of the state meet the requirements, qualifications and prescriptions of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria or not? These are the questions that must be answered in the affirmative as the Appeal Court Judges who sat on the Osun Governorship election controversy already did ending a protracted legal trial which lasted over three years and which commenced from the lower election petition tribunals in which the penchant of the retired brigadiergeneral to regularly manipulate and impose his wishes on the outcomes of Court judgements was made manifest. If we may ask, what became of the observations of the petitioner that known lawyers of the respondents were hob-knobbing with members of the infamous Justice Thomas Damar Naron-led Governorship Election Petition Tribunal prior to the initial judgement of the first Tribunal? Did anybody or institution ever investigate the call-logs which were presented by the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) before the National Judicial Council (NJC)? These were very followed by very potent and clear allegations of fowl-play. Rather, the petitioner was hurriedly arraigned by the police in Abuja on trumped-up charges of forgery and only God knows what. Are we now to abandon this and follow the lead of Oyinlola on his perfidious path of rumour mongering and mudslinging against

“Oyinlola expects to return to ‘status-quo’ with the ploys of his legal jargons and stammering-statements on an already given judgement. But what or which ‘status-quo’ is he dreaming about? Is it the same ‘status-quo’ which has been demolished forever by the well-considered judgement of the Court of Appeal? And if Oyinlola is so much loved and wanted by the citizens of Osun state, why did he lose his senatorial bid in Osun state in the just concluded general elections? The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and all its candidates lost so woefully at all levels and in every aspect of the just concluded elections”

the Appeal Court Judges?

Furthermore, Oyinlola and his council of ‘sore-losers’ should be reminded of a popular statement in law: That ‘the Court cannot give you what (a relief) you did not ask for’, which follows another equally popular maxim that; ‘you cannot eat your cake and have it’. Granted that Aregbesola prayed the Court of Appeal to cancel elections in 10 local governments in Osun state and declare him winner of the election, on grounds of massive and utterly reprehensible magnitude of fraud, irregularities, grievous noncompliance with the Electoral Act and the Constitution, violence and corruption; and granted that Oyinlola and his lawyers argued defiantly and arrogantly that the elections in those 10 local governments were free and fair insisting he be declared winner on the strength of the fraudulent results emanating there form, can Oyinlola be allowed within the context of any theory of law not to accept the decision of the Court of Appeal? The answer is NO! The unique proposition is to the effect that there are two positions which, in terms of logic and an adopted tactic and strategy, the legal team of Oyinlola could not have taken all at once, that is to say: you cannot on one hand argue that an election is perfectly alright and free and fair in a place while on the other hand argue that it should be reconducted. The reason is that the two propositions are conflicting, contradictory and mutually exclusive.

The above is the legal propositionalargumentational wicket, in simple language, which Oyinlola, being a novice of the knowledge, practice and strategy of law might never understand. And whether his legal advisers are in tune with the gallantly modernising role of law in our country today is an issue for another day.

Oyinlola expects to return to ‘status-quo’ with the ploys of his legal jargons and stammeringstatements on an already given judgement. But what or which ‘status-quo’ is he dreaming about?

Is it the same ‘status-quo’ which has been demolished forever by the well-considered judgement of the Court of Appeal? And if Oyinlola is so much loved and wanted by the citizens of Osun state, why did he lose his senatorial bid in Osun state in the just concluded general elections? The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and all its candidates lost so woefully at all levels and in every aspect of the just concluded elections: Why? The people of Osun spoke passionately and decisively with their votes ending in a resounding confirmation of the Appeal Court decision. They ought to have used that as an opportunity to prove their acceptability in Osun rather than resulting to the cheap option of going after the Appeal Court Judges. The truth of the matter is that Osun citizens have prayed and their prayers have been answered: that the evil that befell them with the emergence of Retired Brigadier-General Olagunsoye Oyinlola will never befall them again: That the war which was won through the pronouncement of the Appeal Court Judges over Osun will never rear its stinking and ugly head again. Never!

If Oyinlola has any modicum of humanity within the shadows of his soul he ought to come out and publicly apologise to the people of Osun rather than compounding his already dented records which will always be borne in mind by all Osun indigenes from generations to generations and from whom he might never have any hope of forgiveness. His naked dance in the market place has ended: Oyinlola should keep quiet!!

Finally, how do we comprehend, calculate or explain the level of devastation, ruthless despoliation, reckless squandering of resources of the Osun state government and its people and the callous and inhuman degradation of the land and its people and the brutal suppression of fundamental rights under Oyinlola who illegally occupied the position to govern through the means of electoral violence and political manipulation? For this reason, Oyinlola and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) should not be in a hurry. It is advisable for them to accept their illfated destiny and thereafter await another type of judgement which is yet to come upon them for all the atrocities they committed: It is the natural justice of the Almighty God to which the decision of the Court of Appeal Judges will be only a preamble. *Mayegun is the Director of ‘New Nexus Enlightenment Systems’ (NEWNES), Lagos.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

48

DIS GENERATION

Have Your Say A

MORE devastating battle encouraged by the absence of meaningful and serious presence of security was freely enthroned at Iwo Road, Oyo State, in the last three weeks by the lawless members of the equally brutish and callous factional leaders of the State’s National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Lateef Akinsola (Tokyo) and Mukaila Lamidi (Auxiliary).

Many were the innocent souls that fell victims of their reprehensible act of rudderlessness. Here is how Olujimi Jiboye, from Lagos, puts it: “I am aggrieved at the zero premiums we place on human life in Africa, nay Nigeria! Must we always allow the ravenous demons of greed and power-lust to inspire us?

The Oyo State Government should handle the NURTW fracas as an act of terror and deal as such with the perpetrators of the crime”.

Beyond the banning of the union, respondents say the two leaders, already declared wanted by the police, should be tracked down, apprehended and charged with wilful murder and arson.

Government should try and move their HQs away from Olomi. A lot of innocent lives have been lost in this congested area whenever their crisis comes up. A new location far from the congested area would reduce not only influence of using people as shield when bubble burst but to manage the crisis.

Steve Ojo, Ibadan, Oyo State.

Since the Oyo State branch of the NURTW is known for violence, rascality, and destruction of properties, my advise to the state government is that the authorities, committees and the management of the union in the State should be managed by the Commissioner for Transport. In management, only the professionals can manage large organisations and not daft.

Muoneke John chukwumaijem, Nanka, Anambra State.

Apart from the proscription of the NURTW by government, the local government should be asked to completely see to the daily running and management of the union, and have the political will power to prosecute those involved in the killings that took place.

Mr Davidson Ikechukwu, Ajegunle-Ikorodu, Lagos State.

The Local Government should take over finally from the union people. The Lagos government too should do the same thing.

Rotimi Yaku, Iju Ishaga, Lagos State.

The whole thing is very unfortunate. If something urgent is not done to Tokyo and his men, one day he will be announced as the Executive Governor of Oyo State. Take all of them to court, put whosoever

Apart from the proscription slammed on the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Oyo State chapter, what other measures would you advise the state government to initiate in order to prevent a recurrence of the destruction of life and property? is guilty to life imprisonment or death penalty since they too have taken innocent lives. If the Government of Ajimobi is serious, life and property will be guaranteed.

Ajayi Abraham, Ilorin, Kwara State.

tration.

All those that have been involved in the NURTW crisis since 1999 should be prosecuted to serve as deterrent to others.

Sola Fatoki, Lagos State.

Thank God Governor Ajimobi has taken the bull by the horn with the proscription of NURTW in the state. The second step is for him to ensure the prosecution of both Tokyo and Auxiliary for their nefarious activities. The governor should not dine and wine with any tout.

Aare ‘Bayo Hassan, Amuwo-Odofin.

It is left to Lam Adesina, Adewolu Ladoja, Adebayo Akala, Ajimobi and the socalled Commissioner of Police, Adisa Bolanta, to come together and find a way of taming their dogs. Each and everyone of them had in one way or the other benefited from the activities of these hoodlums.The blood of the innocent killed will be on every one who may pretend not to know the truth about what is happening. Proscription is not the answer except we are trying to increase the population of armed robbers.

Bayo Kongi, Ibadan, Oyo State.

The activities of the NURTW, Oyo State Chapter, has reached its elastic limit. The state government should constitute an enquiry commission and those found guilty should be immediately arrested and prosecuted so that such ugly incidence will not occur again.

Isiaka Ibrahim, Iree, Osun State.

I don’t actually know the functions of the union. What I know is that they only cheat people and prevent government from generating revenue.

There is No need to them!

Henry I., Makurdi, Benue State.

The relevance of the NURTW in OYO or anywhere in Nigeria cannot be under-estimated. This is due to their contributions to our national growth. Nevertheless, government should begin to get involved in the activities of this union by way of organizing seminars and education on good conducts and morals. The literate society should also take interest in the leadership as to give impetus to moral standards.

Bayo Olumoko, Abuja.

The proscription of the NURTW in Oyo State is good for public safety. Government should use the opportunity to re-plan the motor parks and bus stops to make them public friendly and safe.

Barr Olukunle Kamisi, Ibadan, Oyo State.

It is the wont of some state governments to give room for miscreants in some unions to play role in their governments because of the unions’ population, ignorance of the members and zombie-like devotion to any authority. Any of them found culpable in this last imbroglio should be dealt with severely. Besides, the govern-

• Mukaila Lamidi (Auxiliary)

ment should henceforth supervise the union directly. A life is too precious to be wasted on the altar of this banal politics.

Akinduro, H.O., Okitipupa, Ondo State.

I recommend full prosecution of all the parties involved.

Government should look into the activities of the NURTW from the time of Alao-Akala and jail all the culprits irrespective of their status in the society as a deterrent to others.

Alonge Oladele, Lagos State.

It is obvious that the commissioner of police and his men in Oyo State have lost the battle. My advice is that the, the entire police system be overhauled.

Patrick Olatokunboh, FCT, Abuja.

The government should make the security outfit proactive rather than reactive.

Education should also be provided for these thugs.

Bello Lukman, Pol Science, Unijos.

Let the leaders of the Oyo State NURTW be changed.

New officers and appointees should be given clearly spelt out instruction. The NURTW should be under the supervision of the Ministry of Transport. The union should not be involved in the State’s politics.

Gloria Udofia, University of Calabar Staff Quarters.

Let the Local Governments in the State take over the administration and control of the motor parks, as all levies collected will increase the IGR of such LGS. Ojoawo Folarin, Abeokuta, Ogun State.

For now there should be adequate security in all the parks. In addition, a panel of

• Lateef Akinsola (Tokyo)

enquiry should be set up by the government to determine the genesis of the crisis, the extent of damage in human and material resources as well as recommend what should be done to prevent such ugly situation. It is also essential that the National Assembly should come up with a bill regulating the activities of the NURTW throughout the country.

Ikpechukwu Ogbonnaya, Ubahu Enugu State.

There is urgent need for total bottom-up re-orientation, education and training for them. Twenty-four-hour security presence. The motor parks should be under a government agency.

Alhaji Adams K. Braimoh, Effurun, Delta State.

The government should bring to book the perpetrators of the act and at the same time appoint consultants to manage the motor parks. The leaders of the union are feeding fat on the money from parks which ought to go to government. The government should not take sides as some of these union leaders and their cronies are being used by politicians too.

Adefisayo Tajudeen Ropo, Ibadan, Oyo State.

Oyo State Government should take the bull by the horn: Prosecute the perpetrators, and thereafter make arrangement to sponsor trusted, mature and credible candidates to take over the leadership of the union to prevent thugs from taking over.

Dr Usman Kuti, Otukpo, Benue State.

The Local Governments should carry out their statutory role of managing the parks and markets. This will increase revenue, both for the State and LGs. This could be out-sourced by appointing managers for effective control and adminis-

Proscription is not the panacea to the violence rocking the NURTW, Oyo State chapter. But calling on the two warring factions to drop their swords and come to the round table for dialogue and resolve their differences.

Prince Fola Kolaru, Okaka, Oyo State.

Appoint care-taker committee to run the affairs of the union for at least six months. Invite the two factional leaders for reconciliation. Put effective and efficient security measures in all Oyo State NURTW chapter’s area operations, and invite the national NURTW Abuja officials to conduct a fresh election.

Mr. Anele H. Amadi, PHC, Rivers State.

Beyond this NURTW matter is another evil. Along Ibadan to Asejire river there are some touts under the cover of Egbeda LG that are patrolling the expressway in many vehicles. If your vehicle breaks down, or you park to ease yourself and they arrest you, they will rob you of your belongings or may take you to their office for great embarrassment. Something needs be done to this.

Temitope Jegede, Ibadan, Oyo State.

The state police Commissioner should be redeployed to force HQS. A new police boss should lead the investigation.

All the officers and men that have served above five years should be redeployed to other states. Sanity will come.

Raymond Okoigun, Owerri, Imo State.

Continue on page 52

By Jennifer Ehidiamen 08054503875 (Sms only)

Lessons from “Aramotu”

T

HE movie depicts a lot of socialeconomic elements present in our society today.

Aramotu (Idiat Sobande) represents a powerful woman. Yes, like today’s 21st career woman active in the boardroom as well as the bedroom and kitchen.

She is an epitome of beauty, brain and charisma. But the movie is not just about one woman, women liberation or a voice to project the importance of women empowerment. You have to read between the lines and dissect every bit of it to get the full message.

As the plot unfolded, I began to compare Agesi Village to our present day Nigeria. Except, the movie is too deep to be seen as a satire. There is no difference between our greedy politicians today and the greedy and manipulative leaders, especially Chief Olookanda (Ayo Olabiyi) who was willing to do anything just to get the lands of his subjects and egoistic Iyalode (Ireti Osayemi) who was more concern about materialism than tackling the real issues affecting the women she claimed to represent.

Aramotu was a trader who traveled to other parts to sell her goods- it was through her experiences that she was able to dream and aspire for a better life for her village. She became a pillar of strength in her household and community.

Yet she remained humble.

The world is too round for each of us to just sit silently in a corner. Nigeria is a big country, if you have not started traveling yet, hope you take up the challengetravel, broaden your horizon and allow yourselves to see and do more. The movie sure reminded us of the importance of traveling and interacting with others.

It is no surprise that Aramotu, produced by Yinka Kolapo, and directed

by Niji Akanni, won the Best Nigerian Film and Best Costume Design at the just concluded African Movie Academy Awards (AMAA).

The movie is epic.

Right from the minute the movie started playing on the screen, I knew I was about to watch something exceptional. It was worth the N1,000 (N500 discount with my student ID) I paid at the Silverbird Cinema last weekend. If you have not seen it yet, please go and give yourself a treat and come back to share your experience! Even if you don’t understand yoruba, you will be able to follow the story line via English subtitles, laugh at the rich humor in the movie and maybe shed some tears at the tragic-happy ending.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

D

R. Cletus Akwaya has taken up of a critical study of immense interest to Africans and the international community. The subject matter of foreign policy indicates that nation-states act according to their distribution of attention and their expectations of reward. It is all about preservation of a nation’s independence and security as well as the pursuit and protection of its economic interest. It is also, as this study reveals, about nation-states seeking to increase their power, developing on their core-values and other middle-range goals and objectives.

Dr. Akwaya’s work a seven-chapter book of 240 pages. The finishing is neat and presentable, following all acceptable formats of serious work.

The cover invites the reader to see the colonial world usually ‘considered as francophone Africa’. Chapter one of the book provides a reasonable background which identifies the uniqueness of French presence in Africa on two principal grounds; that it had the second highest number of colonies (18) after Britain with 19, and that French colonial policy was the most ambitions system of administration, both conceptually and practicably. This introductory chapter also outlines the objectives and significance of the study, including critical issues in France’s policy towards Africa. The main plank of this chapter hinges on the statement that obvious changes in official colonial policy leading to reduction of commitment were manifestable as one reviews French foreign policy in Africa over the decades. He dwells considerably on these issues in chapters ahead but it is good to point out that such changes were induced by economic and political factors.

The research questions to address these changes revolve around what explains France’s declaring interest in former territories, what her role in violent conflicts in those colonies were; why did she have to win Anglophone interest what her role regional bodies and international security outfit were.

Chapter two undertakes an extensive review of contemporary scholarship on French – African Policy as well as the theoretical issues arising.

The works consulted and commented upon are wide ranging, expressing views on France’s relationship with Africa from the perspective of her neo-colonial activities. Such scholarly works speak on the complexity of French policy, especially the foreign policy stance anchored on the principle of grandeur – which promotes French greatness through the spread of her culture and influence abroad. The reviews indicate that the principle of grandeur was enumerated by Charles de Gaulle, aimed essentially to reclaim france’s lost glory

Arts Extra Book Review

Feeling French presence in Africa

and the attempt to re-established her as a ‘global power’.

As it is characteristic of this type of academic works, the chapter concludes with a theoretical framework, largely on the theory of hegemonic stability (which he notes is predicated on the existence of a powerful state actor welding tremendous influence and control over a number of group of states; and the theory of interdependence (which could be defined as the direct and positive linkage of the interests of states where a change in the position of one state affects the other).

Chapter three focuses on the evolution of France’s African policy. The effort here is to take the reader through a brief history of imperialism and partition of Africa. The chap-

ter talk about the contentious issues over Egypt as they border on British and French imperal ambition as well as the tension in Europe over territories in Africa which culminated in the Berlin West African Conference of 1884 – 1885.

Chapter four focuses on France and her efforts in post-independence Africa. The author extensively discusses the concept grandeur and the building of a French community and observes that the definition and interpretation of grandeur was a problematic. This has to do with the examination of French culture and experience after World War II and the issue of alignment and distribution of power. The author explains that France went ahead to build a community of sorts. It was relative easy

because post-independence political leadership had no problem dealing with France since a reasonable number of them regarded themselves more as French people than as Africans.

France obviously made a huge political and diplomatic capital of this relationship which were close, strongly personalized and which also help to preserve a strong network of influence in cooperation agreements and defence pacts. The author supplied a great dose of statistics, which are not adequately interrogated, to strengthen his point.

In the same chapter the author holds an extensive discussion on France’s relationship with Analophone Africa. He discusses Nigeria- France relations, hitting on the obvious point of differences in January 1961 as a result of French atomic test in the Sahara. The author noted that Nigeria, just fresh out of colonial grip, wanted to assert her sovereignty based on local prevailing sentiments.

What followed coloured Nigeria – France relationship extensively, including the unacceptable role France played over the civil war.

Chapter five zeros largely of what looks like the over all title of the book: that is, change and continuity in France foreign policy in Africa.

Here the author specifically examines the determinant factors for change in French policy. Out of several issues five key factors could be drawn out.

These are: the collapse of communism and the end of the Cold War which necessitated French policy option; second is, the collapse of the Berlin Wall and re-unification of Germany in which France knew it had to adjust to new realities of the regional structure in Europe; that is, the domestic issue in the change of administration after Francois Mitterand’s fourteen years presidency gave way to Jacques Chivac who asserted he would run a policy of change and continuity.

Chivac’s policy, it is noted, whatever the expectations, made it difficult for Francophone relations to return to the era of paternalism crafted by the Gaullist regime. The fourth factor has to do with the shift from some sources of strategic raw materials, like uranium, in Africa to deliveries for elsewhere in US, Canada and Australia as well as reasonable local availability; the fifth being the awful development in Rwanda which put France on the spot of international criticism.

Chapter six reviews France’s new level of socio-cultural and economic relations with Anglophone Africa.

The author largely provides a re-emphasis of the issues raised in the previous chapters. The platform for the new level of relationship rests on spreading French language and the establishment of the French Cultural Centre (Alliance Francais). On the whole, cultural activism at interna-

Youths and premarital sex

I

T is important to talk about premarital sex because many youths have made grievous mistakes in the past and many more may still make mistakes which may affect their lives because of ignorance on this subject and the half-truths they hear from peers who may want to either exploit them or influence them.

The topic of premarital sex is treated in-depth, unveiling what youths think about sex, the triggers of premarital sex, and the implication of having premarital sex in the book titled Sex: Facts & Fallacies.

The book is divided into 9 chapters dealing with different issues about premarital sex. Some of the chapters include: What’s new about sex?, The Triggers, Sex-Magnet and quotable quotes.

The book discusses sex as it is online. The author discovers that youth have different definitions,

sentiments, opinions, and reservation about sex that will enlighten the readers. In this light, the author discusses issues about sex which many parents shy away from discussing with their daughters – issues that the daughters eventually find answers to usually from peer group, superstitions, misleading beliefs in so called romantic novel and movies, which may result in wrong counsel.

Using scriptural-based approach, the author seeks to explode the myths surrounding boy/girl relationships and provide a balanced argument in support of adherence to God’s standards of morality.

Practical examples are given along with scientific facts.

This book provides honest, reliable advice to guide personal decision on sexual

behaviour, dating and marriage. In an age where sexual promiscuity is glorified and the pure are ridiculed and made to feel inferior , the author provides assurance that it pays to put ‘pleasing God’ above every consideration.

The author stresses the importance of abstaining from premarital sex, the reason why youths should avoid it, the benefits of abstaining and the fruits of illicit sex.

Some of the benefits identified are: clear conscience with God, peace of mind in relationships and marriage, respect from people, satisfying and stable marriage. Also, the author enuerates some of the fruits of illicit sex to be generational curses, Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs), abortion, premature death, childlessness, as well as un-

planned marriages.

The author noted that having premarital sex is like eating an unripe fruit; it spoils the mouth and leaves a bitter experience. She therefore encourages youths to say no to sexual advances not minding the consequences. Also, she gave guidelines or tips to say no to sexual advances.

Just as interesting and educating the book is, it is one sided.

The focus is more on the female gender than their male counterpart, leaving the readers to think it is only the female gender that engage in premarital sex. But in reality, it affects both parties.

Title: Sex: Facts & Fallacies Author: Olaomo O.O Publisher: OSAB Ventures Year of Publication: 2010 Number of Pages: 107 pages Reviewer: Omotayo Babalola

49

tional level has been a long standing phenomenon in France’s foreign policy. At the economic level she has done tremendously well; for instance by 2007 over 120 French companies were actively involved in Nigeria’s economy whose combined investment reached a total of $4 billion.

Chapter seven, the concluding segment, provides the usual outline associated with the conclusion of a doctoral thesis: findings, contribution and recommendations.

Dr. Akwaya no doubt has made tremendous contribution to knowledge through the explanation of the complex relations between a highly developed economy and democracy and developing states of Africa. It is recommendations are no doubt instructive, although they are no cutting edge submissions. The author has been able to intelligently employ theoretical and conceptual frameworks to re-validate postulations in the pattern and characteristics of the foreign policy of a hegemonic state.

Dr. Akwaya has taken a ‘forest view’ approach of the French foreign policy in Africa which affords the reader a panoramic assessment. The weakness of this is quite obvious – that it provides a run-away commentary on some key national and international issues devoid of the comprehensiveness in specific cases. For the former colonial power whose policies have been largely dictated by its continental realities such as the revolution, the Napoleonic exploits, the Franco-Prussian war, the First and Second World Wars, it will not be difficult to understand the trend of change and continuity of the nation’s policy framework. Along this construction, Dr, Akwaya has done justice to the treatment of the subject matter.

For Nigeria, we cannot say same of how we have faired since 1960. It is obvious that we have not been able to clearly define our national interest and values, and where there have been theoretical attempt the political will to convey it has been lacking. At a point, because we were not even certain of what we wanted in the global setting, our leaders reduced international relations and diplomacy to tourism, dwelling on the number of visits made to other countries without commensurate returns. It must be stated that the why and how a nation manages the clashes in conflicting foreign policy commitments in a competitive world is dependent on its national role conception.

Title: French foreign policy in africa: Change and continuity Authors: Dr. Cletus Akwaya Publishers: Concept, Ibadan Reviewer: Armstrong Matiu Adejo, Department Of History, Benue State University, Makurdi

Arts & Life

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

50

SUNNY SIDE

Cartoons

By Olubanwo Fagbemi deewalebf@yahoo.com 08060343214 (SMS only)

POLITICKLE

Fateful voyage The day after tomorrow is the third day of the rest of your life.

—George Carlin

CHEEK BY JOWL

OH, LIFE!

THE GReggs

ON a trip to the north of the country that began on a January afternoon Mike dozed, faintly aware of conversation between the driver – a short rakish fellow – and a passenger in front. He’d heard drivers tell of the need to be kept awake by constant communication on long northsouth journeys but never was comfortable with the practice. Distraction could be as fatal as engagement, he reasoned. But if he sensed a perilous turn, Mike didn’t let it bother him as the old Volvo station wagon motored through kilometres of highway across the savannah.

After a brief stop, the journey resumed and it was soon dark. It was relatively quiet, with the Volvo engine’s endless drone not an unwelcome attendant. About an hour before midnight, and following a period of silence in which nearly all but Mike slumbered, the vehicle took a bend through a village rather fast. Then a motorcycle sprang across the road from a bush path, wavering with a rider and a companion atop.

The driver swerved madly but barely missed. A resounding thud followed from impact and the hapless fellows were spun with remarkable force. Mike’s world wobbled and bobbed before halting in a flurry of dust, sand and leaves. Multiple limbs scrambled to exit the distorted form of transport which lay half in, half out of a ditch.

As the car’s horn blared from resounding fault, villagers surrounded the wrecked vehicle and the travellers, cackling in prevailing dialect. The driver was the first to react, breaking into a frenzy of gesticulation and the local dialect to explain that the ‘driver’ had escaped unhurt into the night after a dastardly display of driving skill.

Mike half-expected some local to fault the report or investigate membership of the crash-landed party. Yet, it would have been nearimpossible for anyone not in the vehicle to counter the driver’s claim as vehicles on the route rarely operated with a passenger manifest in their notorious craving for overload.

Mike found the deliberate act of deception disgusting and was immediately torn between saving himself and betraying the driver’s identity as he grasped the precariousness of their situation.

Volunteers from the village, meanwhile, attended to the injured which included a mother with an infant and an old man. The baby and its mother suffered little bruising but the woman moaned intermittently, apparently from shock. A man who identified himself as a nurse soothed her as he promised medical care.

A few metres away lay the broken motorcycle and the two victims.

One was lifeless while his slightly better companion managed some verbal response to queries from helpers. Someone called for a vehicle to ferry the men to the hospital. Mike wondered why the incapacitated duo contemplated the ill-fated crossing at all.

He was jolted out of his reverie as tales of their impromptu hosts’ penchant for impetuosity and unprovoked violence registered. He prayed hard to God to get out of the mess. Realising he needed to demonstrate quick thinking in the circumstances, Mike fetched his bag from the wreckage after claiming ownership in improvised sign language to native sympathisers.

He crossed the expressway briskly, and so did a hundred haunting eyes. To lasting relief, a passing taxi stopped and passengers from the accident scene and elsewhere rushed. Mike took the last seat available and followed with a swig at a plastic bottle of soft drink he had saved for later. Rather warm, it was welcome salve for his parched throat.

As the taxi left, Mike turned for a last look at the chaos behind and realised that the vehicle rested a few yards away from the more dreadful obstacle of huge trees by the yawning man-made gap that was a drain under construction.

QUOTE

Mishaps are like knives, that either serve us or cut us, as we grasp them by the blade or the handle.

—James Russell Lowell

Jokes Making contacts A policeman stopped a lady and asked for her license.

He said, “Lady, it says here that you should be wearing glasses.”

The woman answered, “Well, I have contacts.”

The policeman replied, “I don’t care who you know! You’re still getting a ticket!”

Wise Guys A young boy enters a barbershop and the barber whispers to his customer, “This is the dumbest kid in the world. Watch while I prove it to you.”

The barber puts a 100 naira note in one hand and a 50 naira note in the other, then calls the boy over and asks, “Which do you want, son?”

The boy takes the N50 and leaves.

“What did I tell you?” said the barber.

“That kid never learns!”

Later, when the customer leaves, he sees the same young boy coming out of the ice cream store. “Hey, son! May I ask you a

SUDOKU

question? Why did you take the N50 instead of the 100 naira?”

The boy licked his cone and replied, “Because the day I take the 100 naira, the game’s over!”

White Hair One day a little girl was sitting and watching her mother do the dishes at the kitchen sink.

She suddenly noticed that her mother had several strands of white hair sticking out in contrast on her blonde head.

She looked at her mother and inquisitively asked, “Why are some of your hairs white, Mom?” Her mother replied, “Well, every time that you do something wrong and make me cry or unhappy, one of my hairs turns white.”

The little girl thought about this revelation for a while and then said, “Momma, how come ALL of grandma’s hairs are white?”

•Culled from the Internet

1ST STEP IN SOLVING PUZZLE: (310) Look at the three bottom horizontal (GHI) 3x3 boxes. The right box has 3 in cell Gh, while the middle box has its 3 in cell Ie. The left box must, therefore, have its own 3 in row H, where there are 2 vacant space —cell

PUZZLE 310

A B 5 C 3 D 7 1 E 6 F 5 4 G 6 H 9 I a

b

c

1 2 5 5 2 1 7 8 5 8 7 3 1 7 8

4 3 e

f

Ha and Hb. But, since column b already has a 3 — in cell Cb, the only space available to accommodate 3 in the left box is cell Ha. Reasoning along these lines, try and fill in all the other vacant cells.

Solution on SATURDAY. Happy Puzzling!

SOLUTION TO PUZZLE 309

6

d

19/6/2011

g

h

i

5 9 2 8 7 4 3 6 1

3 6 4 2 5 1 8 7 9

8 7 1 6 9 3 4 2 5

1 4 5 3 8 6 2 9 7

9 2 7 4 1 5 6 3 8

6 3 8 7 2 9 5 1 4

2 1 9 5 6 8 7 4 3

4 8 6 1 3 7 9 5 2

7 5 3 9 4 2 1 8 6

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

51

Young Nation

Olaitan Akisanya 08056745268 SMS only

with

Hello children, How are you all enjoying your mid-term holidays? Hope you are using the time to also do something constructive. Did you know that last Thursday was International Day for the African Child?

WORD WHEEL

This is an open-ended puzzle. How many words of three or more letters each including the letter at the centre of the wheel can you make from this diagram? We’ve found 43 including one nineletter word. Can you do better?

•Innocence of childhood.

PHOTO: JOE AGBRO JR.

Remembering June 16, 1976 L B LACK students in Soweto protested against the Afrikaans Medium Decree of 1974 which forced all black schools to use Afrikaans and English in a 50-50 mix as languages of instruction. The Regional Director of Bantu Education (Northern Transvaal Region), J.G. Erasmus, told Circuit Inspectors and Principals of Schools that from January 1, 1975, Afrikaans had to be used for mathematics, arithmetic, and social studies from standard five (7th grade), according to the Afrikaans Medium Decree; English would be the medium of instruction for general science and practical subjects (homecraft, needlework, woodwork, metalwork, art, agricultural science). Indigenous languages would only be used for religion instruction, music, and physical culture.

The association of Afrikaans with apartheid prompted black South Africans to prefer English.

Even the homelands regimes chose English and an indigenous African language as official languages. In addition, English was

gaining prominence as the language most often used in commerce and industry. The Afrikaner-dominated government used the clause of the 1909 Constitution that recognized only English and Afrikaans as official languages as pretext to do so. While all schools had to provide instruction in both Afrikaans and English as languages, white students learned other subjects in their home language.

The decree was resented deeply by blacks as Afrikaans was widely viewed, in the words of Desmond Tutu, then Dean of Johannesburg as "the language of the oppressor".

The resentment grew until April 30, 1976, when children at Orlando West Junior School in Soweto went on strike, refusing to go to school. Their rebellion then spread to many other schools in Soweto. A student from Morris Isaacson High School, Teboho 'Tsietsi' Mashinini, proposed a meeting on June 13, 1976, to discuss what should be done. Students

formed an Action Committee (later known as the Soweto Students' Representative Council) that organized a mass rally for June 16 to make themselves heard..

On the morning of June 16, 1976, thousands of black students walked from their schools to Orlando Stadium for a rally to protest against having to learn through Afrikaans in school.

Many students who later participated in the protest arrived at school that morning without prior knowledge of the protest, yet agreed to become involved. The protest was intended to be peaceful and had been carefully planned by the Soweto Students' Representative Council's (SSRC) Action Committee, with support from the wider Black Consciousness Movement. Teachers in Soweto also supported the march after the Action Committee emphasized good discipline and peaceful action. But this changed when one teacher was assaulted with a brick when trying to stop the students and another was stabbed with a knife.

Send in your stories, poems, articles, games, puzzles, riddles and jokes to sundaynation@yahoo.com

WORD SEARCH

Major languages

ANGUAGE may refer either to the specifically human capacity for acquiring and using complex systems of communication, or to a specific instance of such a system of complex communication. The scientific study of language in any of its senses is called linguistics.

The approximately 3000–6000 languages that are spoken by humans today are the most salient examples, but natural languages can also be based on visual rather than auditory stimuli, for example in sign languages and written language. Codes and other kinds of artificially constructed communication systems such as those used for computer programming can also be called languages. A language in this sense is a system of signs for encoding and decoding information.

The human language is thought to be highly complex in that it is based on a set of rules relating symbols to their meanings, thereby forming an infinite number of possible innovative utterances from a finite number of elements. * Find some major languages in the world

ARABIC BENGALI ENGLISH FRENCH GERMAN HINDIURDU ITALIAN

JAPANESE JAVANESE KOREAN MANDARIN PASHTO PORTUGUESE PUNJABI

RUSSIAN SPANISH TAMIL TELUGU TURKISH VIETNAMESE YUE

52

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Life

Driven by anger

I

STARED out the iron bars keeping me from the outside world as I reflected on what got me in a roomful of criminals. I ought not to be here, I thought, as I dodged the flurry of blows ongoing in the room between some of the inmates. I was in a separate world where criminals and misfits were held, a prison cell. As I sat huddled against the wall, against my will, memories came flooding back.

As a young boy, I grew up in a wealthy household where I had anything I wanted. Being the only child got me the best things wealth could offer. I felt I could always get my way and this made me impatient and angry whenever things did not go the way I planned for it to.Instead of berating me whenever I did something wrong, my parents placated me with gifts and rebuked anyone who tried to get me to see the error of my ways. This was the norm with me till I got into the University.

The University was a different place. It was where I met Tunde who was from a background different from mine and he was principled. Tunde became my roommate and living with him started influencing me positively. I started attending classes regularly and stopped some other vices but I couldn’t get over the “rich boy” mindset I had.

The day my world came crashing, I woke up to see the early morning sun shining on my face and happily went to take my bath. As I dressed up for class I noticed the house was strangely quiet, it was unusual because Tunde being an early bird would have woken up hours earlier. Assuming he must have stayed out late, I dressed up quickly but when I reached into my bedside drawer to take the money I stashed in there, I pulled out air.

It’s a mistake, I thought as I dug deeper into the drawer but after several minutes of frantically searching the house, I concluded that I had lost my money.

I decided to wait for Tunde as I knew he had an

Entry by Morenike Fadayomi

important class that morning which he wouldn’t miss, but as the hours wore on, my patience wore thin and I suddenly remembered Tunde asking me for some money equivalent to my missing money the previous day. I was enraged as I summed things up and concluded that Tunde had stolen my money.

“Where have you been?” I asked ignoring Tunde’s greeting as I saw him step into the house. I noticed he wasn’t his normal exuberant self.

“I went out, CK,” he replied dragging his feet with each step he took.

“Okay, so you spent my money. From the

look in your eyes I would say that you used it to pay off some of your debts,” I accused Tunde angrily as I grabbed him.

“Hold on,” he said, “I didn’t take your money. I went to the hos…,” he didn’t finish because I had pushed him furiously.

Many thanks to our amazing readers who send in their comments. If you are passionate about writing exciting short stories, you can send two copies of your writing samples to pearlohai@yahoo.com. Winning entries will be published once every month.

N.B: Each entry must have a minimum of 800 words and a maximum of 1000 words. Credit will be given to each writer for every story published.

Continue from page 48

These guys are stupendously rich. Three-term-tenure system should be introduced. Let them have this and quite the stage.

Hon. Onuama Onyekachi, Umuahia, Abia State.

A high-powered panel of inquiry should be set up by the Oyo State Government with a view to fishing out the real culprits and their sponsors.

Comrade John Kalama, Bayelsa. State.

In addition to the proscription, the OYSG should prosecute the two factional leaders, nay bosses of the NURTW. The LGs should assume the administration of the motor parks.

Peace will reign in the State. More revenue will accrue to the LGs and the huge unjustifiable allowances paid to the union bosses invariably charged on the commuters will cease.

Ayoola Odusanya, Ijebu-Igbo, Ogun State.

The ban is a welcome development. The two factional leaders of the union should be held responsible for killing innocent souls.

Afolayan Olaniyi, Okeigbo, Ondo State.

All the key actors, especially the two factional leaders (already declared wanted by police) must be arrested and prosecuted to serve as deterrent.

Frank Rotimi, Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

The factional leaders and their aides should be arrested and prosecuted for murder and arson. Si kee na.

Idris Lawal.

Have Your Say Apart from the proscription slammed on the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Oyo State chapter, what other measures would you advise the state government to initiate in order to prevent a recurrence of the destruction of life and property?

I suggest that the union should be made to imbibe democratic culture, and encourage open and transparent way through which all members can elect leaders. They must be guided by clear constitution.

Anonymous.

What Gov. Ajimobi can do is to let them remain banned because they are illiterates. So, no matter how many times you try to package them, their eyes will still remain blind. And if there is need to return them back, all the current executive members must be exempted from coming back to the office.

Abiodun Costa, Ogun State.

“Tokyo” and “Auxiliary” should be charged for murder. Pure and simple!

These two guys, I tell you, are murderers.

Adetayo Ogunleye, FHA, Lugbe, Abuja.

The Government of Oyo State should take its stand, not yielding to any unwarranted distraction. It should make sure those hoodlums who did those evil acts are be made to dance to the music.

Tomi Toye,

Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State.

The two factions of the NURTW should b invited to a round table where they will resolve this lingering crisis amicably for them. Moreover, the government on its own part should desist henceforth from interfering in the affairs of the union in the interest of peace and tranquillity in the State.

Muniru Gambia, Iwo, Osun State.

The government should ban their operation and use it as source of revenue to pay minimum wages.

Kola, Jos, Plateau State.

The proscription of NURTW in Oyo State may bring a change if the government has patriotic work-force for the proposed Local Government revenue generation team, and not to recycle the old union touts as revenue collectors.

UtibeAbasi Umoren, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.

Tokyo, Auxiliary and their subordinates should face murder case. Government should then restructure and give Oyo NURTW strict rules and regulation to operate with. Their ban should

I watched as he fell backwards, tripped on the rug and hit his head on the glass table in the sitting room. The glass shattered and I saw Tunde lying on the ground with unseeing eyes.

All that happened from that moment till I was arrested seemed like a dream of which I could only recollect bits and pieces. I later found my money in the car while taking Tunde to the hospital. I’ll never forget the look on my friend’s face as he lay dead.

I had killed my friend in anger.

I am to face the court in a few days’ time. My parents’ money can’t bail me out and neither can the best lawyer they’ve hired save me. I wish I had patiently listened to Tunde, especially after I found out he had been to the hospital that fateful day. I’ve learnt to control my anger but it’s a little too late.

be for at least two years.

E. Olusegun, Oyo, Oyo State.

Their godfathers and sponsors must be brought to book. Indeed, the whole affairs are confirmation of a failed state.

Etim Inyang Esq. Tokyo and Auxiliary should be arrested and prosecuted for murder.

Wale Olabode, Jos, Plateau State.

Tokyo and his cohorts should be made to face the wrath of the law squarely. The Commissioner of police of Oyo should know now that Nigerians are watching him with keen interest that he cannot maintain public order in that State is an indictment.

Izuata Egbidhi, Ibienafe, Edo State.

In order to prevent such a recurrence of such tragedy, the Oyo State Government has to take over the union for at least two good years. Thereafter, a new union will be constituted, of which if anything happens it is the chairman that will be held responsible.

Abdulrahim (vendor),

Auchi, Edo State.

The proscription of that madness in Oyo State by the new government is laudable. But the leaders of the two groups should also be in jail for killing people in the name of that useless union.

Ibe Albert Ugbene, Awka North LGA, Anambra State.

If proscription of the NURTW is the solution to the crisis in Oyo, it is a welcomed move by the government.

All the leaders of the union should be tried for the lives lost.

Nnorom.

The genesis of the whole saga emanated from the past governments who for their own selfish end romanced with the thugs among the union. To prevent the menace from recurring, the proscription should remain and the parks should be managed the Local Governments. Those suspected should be arrested and prosecuted in the law court. Sunday Oladeji, Ogbomoso, Oyo State .

Oyo State Government should stop all forms of romance with either of the factional leaders because the era of using thugs in whatever guise to intimidate the electorate is gone for good. Oyo State can introduce the Lagos State transportation model to keep these enemies of progress in their rightful place.

Deji Adegbola, Ibadan, Oyo State.

Prosecute all the brigands and send them to jail for a long period, then unban the NURTW. Pekun Tomori, Magodo, Lagos State.

Continue on The Nation website: www.thenationonlineng.net, Click on Sunday Magazine, then Have Your Say

53

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011 CHANGE OF NAME ADEBOWALE

CHANGE OF NAME OLAMILEHIN

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Deborah Temitope Adebowale, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Deborah Temitope Akiode.All former documents remain valid.

Education District 11 and general public should take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Olaitan Iyabode Olamilehin, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Olabode Olaitan.All former documents remain valid. Education District 11 and general public should take note.

BAKARE

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Eruemulor Loveth, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Nwokohu Loveth.All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Bakare Yusuff Olatunji, now wish to be known and addressed as Oseni Yusuff Olatunji.All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

ERUEMULOR

BARIDA

IGBINEDION I formerly known and addressed as Igbinedion Caroline Kehinde, now wish to be known and addressed as Alafe Caroline Kehinde.All former documents remain valid.

General public should take note.

ODUTEMOWO-OLUGBILE I formerly known and addressed as Odutemowo-Olugbile Omolara, now wish to be known and addressed as Oseni Olugbile Omolara. All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

ALAJO I formerly known and addressed as Miss Alajo Idowu Adeola, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Okon Idowu Adeola.All former documents remain valid.

Lagos State Civil Service Commission and general public should take note.

ADELEYE

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Adebolarinwa Mary Adeleye, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Adebolarinwa Mary Ashaolu.All former documents remain valid.

Nigerian Copyright Commission, All Hospitals in Nigeria and general public should take note.

ECHEJO

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Echejo Omite Florence, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Humphrey Omite Florence.All former documents remain valid. Federal Polytechnic, Idah, Ibaji LGEA and general public should take note.

OLUWATIMEHIN

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Temitope Love Christy Oluwatimehin, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Temitope Loveth Christy Oyesola.All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

OPARA

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Ijeoma Opara, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Ijeoma Onyekwere Odimegwu.

All former documents remain valid. Abia State Polytechnic and general public should take note.

UKEH I formerly known and addressed as Miss Helen Chikamnele Ukeh, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Helen Chikamnelen Vinning Valentine Cookeygam. All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

EBO I formerly known and addressed as Miss Izukanne Ernestina Ebo, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Izukanne Ernestina Anyaegbuna.

All former documents remain valid. Univesity of Nigeria, Nsukka and general public should take note.

AYANO I formerly known and addressed as Miss Ayano Taiwo Racheal, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Afon Taiwo Racheal. All former documents remain valid.

General public should take note.

AFULUKWE I formerly known and addressed as Miss Priscilla Nnenna Afulukwe, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Priscilla Nnenna Ubanese. All former documents remain valid. United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc. and general public should take note.

IYINBOR

I formerly known and addresses as Miss Grace Amarachi Iyinbor, now wish to be known and addresses as Mrs Grace Amarachi Uduji. All former documents remain valid. General public take note.

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I formerly known and addressed as Miss Barida Torma Nbete, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Merit Barida Torma Emmanuel.All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

BELLO I formerly known and addressed as Miss Bello Hadizatu, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Joy Hadizatu James Oghenoghue Stephen.All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

MANUEL

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Mabel Owupele Manuel, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Mabel Owupele Nnadi.All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

TOGUN

I formerly known and addressed as Togun Mary Olaitan, now wish to be known and addressed as Ajewole Mary Olaitan.All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

NWOBODO

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Nwobodo Mary C., now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Mbah Mary C.All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

ADEAGBO I formerly known and addressed as Miss Adewumi Oluwadamilola Adeagbo,now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Elizabeth Adewumi Oluwadamilola Ogundere. All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

UGWU

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Ugwu Charity Odinkenma, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Alum Charity Odinkenma. All former documents remain valid. Enugu State Local government Service Commission, Enugu and general public should take note.

OZOEMENAM

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Ozoemenam Chioma Blessing, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Okongwu Chioma Blessing. All former documents remain valid. ESUT, NYSC and general public should take note.

ONYENSO

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Onyenso Caroline Chiehiura, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Chukwudi Caroline Chiehiura. All former documents remain valid. IMT, Enugu, NYSC and general public should take note.

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AKENI I formerly known and addressed as Miss Akeni Cynthia Ejomafuwe, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Oyubu Cynthia.

All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

CONFIRMATION OF NAME This is to confirm that I Edeson Elijah Edeson is the same person as Emedo Ahamefula and Emedo A. Edeson Prince. All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

EGBUJOR I formerly known and addressed as Miss Egbujor Jessica Chigaemezu, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Oyubu Cynthia.

All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

FOLARIN

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Folarin Adekemi Abosede, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Olatunbosun Adekemi Abosede. All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

EZENWAFOR I formerly known and addressed as Miss Oluchukwu Maryjane Ezenwafor, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Oluchukwu Maryjane Ugochukwu Okeke. All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

BAMGBOSE

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Bamgbose Oluwakemi Naimot, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. AdebusuyiOmole Oluwakemi Naheemah. All former documents remain valid.

LGSC, Oke Mosan Abeokuta and general public should take note.

FAMUYIWA

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Opeoluwa Oluseyi Famuyiwa, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Opeoluwa Oluwaseyi Anjorin. All former documents remain valid. Medical Centre Idi-Aba, Abeokuta and general public should take note.

OWOLABI I formerly known and addressed as Miss Olufunke Elizabeth Owolabi, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Okewusi Olufunke Elizabeth. All former documents remain valid. Medical Centre Idi-Aba, Abeokuta and general public should take note.

ADEYEMO

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Aderonke Adenike Adeyemo, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Aderonke Adenike Adejimi. All former documents remain valid. NYSC, TAI, Solarin University Education and general public should take note.

BELLO

I formerly known and addressed as Mrs Bello Ashiat Folayemi, now wish to be known and addressed as Miss Adeniran Ashiat Folayemi. All former documents remain valid. Nigeria Immigration Service and general public should take note.

ABIODUN-SALIMON

RASAK

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Sunday Esther Bukola, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Bienonwu Esther Bukola.

All former documents remain valid. Ido-Ekiti Divisional Headquarters and general public should take note.

I formally known and addressed as Miss Christiana Egong Obeten, now wish to be known and address Mrs Christiana Godwin J. Gekpe.

All former documents remain valid. General public take note.

BALOGUN

I, formerly known and addressed as Mrs. Odukoya, Adebusola Adeseyi, wish to be known and addressed as Princess Ajagbe, Adebusola Adeseyi. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Rasak Abiodun Udiat, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Iji Abiodun Racheal. All former documents remain valid.

General public should take note.

ADEUSI

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Adeusi Olusola Serah, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Mese Olusola Serah. All former documents remain valid.

Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba Akoko and general public should take note.

OLUSIPO I formerly known and addressed as Olusipo Oluwabusayo Mojisola, now wish to be known and addressed as Akintola Oluwabusayo Mojisola. All former documents remain valid. Olabisi Onabanjo University and general public should take note.

OGUNMAKIN I formerly known and addressed as Miss Ogunmakin Jumoke Bukola, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Olufemi Olajumoke Olubukola. All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

UKA I formerly known and addressed as Miss Uka Oluchi Cynthia, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Ukanero Oluchi Cythia. All former documents remain valid.

General public should take note.

OGUNBANJO

OGUNYALE

I formerly known and addressed as Pastor Ijade Gbeminiyi Micheal, now wish to be known and address as Pastor Ijadopin Gbeminiyi Micheal.All former documents remain valid. CAC, Worldwide and general public please take note.

MICHAEL

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Felicia Michael, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Felicia Godstime Daniel. All former documents remain valid.

General public should take note.

TANKO I formerly known and addressed as Miss Alice Olubunmi Tanko, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Alice Olubunmi Onwuemene.

All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

EMMANUEL

I formerly known and addressed as Mr. Emmanuel Onyemaechi Memeh, now wish to be known and addressed as Mr. Onyemaechi Emmanuel. All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

ENYINDAH I formerly known and addressed as Miss Chika Enyindah, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Chika Emmanuel. All former documents remain valid. Rivers State government and general public should take note.

CONFIRMATION OF NAME I, Ezirim Cajetan Junior O.,Ezirim Cajethan O. and the Ezirim Junior Cajetan is the same and one person.

All former documents remain valid. Federal Polytechnic, Nekede, Owerri and general public should take note.

OKE

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Oke Tosin Rebecca, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Olowo Tosin Rebecca. All former documents remain valid.General public should take note.

FOLOWOSELE

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Folowosele Oluwabunmi Yewande, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Oluwarotimi Oluwabunmi Yewande. All former documents remain valid.General public should take note.

ALIYU

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS SARAH JUMMAI FUNMILAYO ADEBISI ALIYU, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS SARAH J. FUNMILAYO APELEHIN. All former documents remain valid.

General public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Olubunmi Folasade Folorunso, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Ogunleye Olubunmi Folasade. All former documents remain valid. Office of The Presidency, Abuja and Ekiti and general public should take note.

OGUNYALE

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Ogunyale Ayotunde Folashade, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Idowu Ayotunde Folashade. All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

FOLORUNSO

CHANGE OF NAME

I,Abiodun-Salimo Olubunmi Grace is the same as Olubunmi Owoyemi, Owoyemi Grace Omolara, Olubunmi Omolara Owoyemi, Owoyemi Bunmi Grace & Abiodun-Salimon Grace. All documents bearing the above names remain valid. University of Nigeria, Nsukka and general public should take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Ogunbanjo Morounfayo Esther, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Aigbobo Morounfayo. All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Ogunyale Ayotunde Folashade, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Idowu Ayotunde Folashade. All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

CHANGE OF NAME

MICHEAL

OMOTAYO

I formerly known and addressed as Mr. Omotayo Olugbenga, now wish to be known and addressed as Mr. Lucas Omotayo Olugbenga.

All former documents remain valid. Ministry of Foresory , Abeokuta, Ogun State and general public should take note. 1

OSIKOYA

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Osikoya Abisola Grace, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Sofola Abisola Grace. All former documents remain valid.

Teaching Service Commission, Abeokuta and general public should take note.

ARCHIBONG I formerly known and addressed as Miss Mfon Archibong, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Mfon Akanimo Ibok. All former documents remain valid. Akwa Ibom State Civil Service Commission and general public should take note.

ADEYEYE I formerly known and addressed as Miss Adeyeye Omolara Ademolabi, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Ola-Olu Omolara Ademolabi. All former documents remain valid. Teaching Service Commission and general public should take note.

EDORE

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Lydia Oghenetega Edore, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Lydia Imohimi Omiunu. All former documents remain valid. AAU Ekpoma, Edo State, NYSC and general public should take note.

ODUOYE

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Oduoye Mutiyat Iyabo, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Olawale Ghazal Mutiyat Iyabo. All former documents remain valid. Federal Polytechnic, Ede, NYSC and general public should take note.

JEGEDE

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Jegede Oluwakemisola Yemi, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Oladapo Oluwakemisola Yemi. All former documents remain valid.Directorate of Information ,Communication and Technology, Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State and general public should take note.

SUNDAY

I formerly known and addressed as Lolade Bidemi Balogun, now wish to be known and addressed as Lola Abidemi Balogun. All former documents remain valid. AOCOED and general public should take note.

FASANYA I formerly known and addressed as Miss Oluwatoyin Mary Fasanya, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Oluwatoyin Mary Ope-Babatunde. All former documents remain valid. UBA and general public should take note.

YAHANNA I,formerly known and addressed as Miss Jummai Yohanna, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Jummai Sylvanus. All former documents remain valid.

Nigeria Police, National Health Insurance Scheme, Premium Pension Limited, Afribank Nigeria Plc and the general public place take note.

AJEGE

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Lorretta Okhome Ajege, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Lorretta Daniel Usman. All former documents remain valid.

University of Jos and the general public place take note.

IBEH

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss IBEH IFEOMA BLESSING now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs GODWIN IFEOMA BLESSING. All former documents remain valid. Abia Poly Aba, NYSC and general public should take note.

OBICHIRI I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Onyenanmaya Martha Obichiri, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Onyenanmaya Martha Martins.

All former documents remain valid. NRCRI, Umudike and general public should take note.

ODOJILI I, formerly known and addressed as STELLA EBELE ODOJILI, now wish to be known and addressed as STELLA EBELE EMESIN. All former documents remain valid.

Nigerian Immigration and general public should please take note.

OYEMAKINDE

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS BIBITAYO ABIDEMI OYEMAKINDE, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS BIBITAYO ABIDEMI OLUJOLA. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

ADEJOH I, formerly known and addressed as MISS MIMI FLORENCE ADEJOH, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS MIMI FLORENCE JANDO. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

KORETIMI

I, formerly known and addressed as KORETIMI OLUWAYEMISI BIODUN AGNES, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS IDOWU AGIDA OLUWAYEMISI BIODUN DORCAS. All former documents remain valid.

Consumer Protection Council and general public should please take note.

ABDULRAHMAN

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS ABDULRAHMAN MUNIAT TINUOLA, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS BASHIR-ABDULRAHMAN MUNIAT TINUOLA. All former documents remain valid. Head of service, Federal Ministry of Interior and general public should please take note.

OKECHUKWU

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS OKECHUKWU JOSEPHINE NNENNA, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS ONAH JOSEPHINE NNENNA. All former documents remain valid.

University of Nigeria,Nsukka, NYSC and general public should please take note.

OBETEN

ODUKOYA

EZEUDE

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Ezeude Oluchi Catherine, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Chukwuali Oluchi Catherine. All former documents remain valid. Enugu State University of Science and Technology and general public should please take note.

OLUSANYA I formerly known and addressed as MISS OLUKEMI ADEOLA OLUSANYA, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS OLUKEMI ADEOLA OLUSANYA. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

OKPALEKE

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Stella Ijeoma Okpaleke, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Obimah Stella Ijeoma. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

ADVERT: Simply produce your m a r r i a g e certificate or sworn affidavit for a change of name publication, with just (N3,500.)

The payment can be made through FIRST BANK of Nigeria Plc. Account number 1892030011219 Account Name VINTAGE PRESS LIMITED Scan the details of your advert and teller to gbengaodejide@y ahoo.com or thenation_advert@ yahoo.com For enquiry please contact: Gbenga on 08052720421, 08161675390, E m a i l gbengaodejide @yahoo.com or our offices nationwide.

Note this! Change of name is now publish every Thursdays and Sundays, all materials should reach us two days b e f o r e publication.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

54

BBHS mourns the demise of Chief Ayotunde Ayopo EBERE WABARA

O8055001948

ewabara@yahoo.com

Police defuse, not detonate, bombs…usually

“P

OLICE detonate bomb in K a d u n a ” (DAILY CHAMPION Headline, June 14) As irredeemable as our policemen are, they cannot publicly detonate a bomb!

What they do is to defuse it. Both the print and electronic media are guilty of this malapropism. ‘Detonation’ cannot be used in the reported circumstance: “Men of the Anti-Bomb Disposal Squad of the Kaduna State Police Command yesterday recovered and detonated another bomb at one of the gates leading to NNPC staff quarters….”

“We congratulate you on your election as the DEPUTY SPEAKER, House of Representatives federal representative of Nigeria (sic)” (Full Page Congratulatory Advert signed by Alex Oti, Nduka Irabor, Philip Oduoza, Chinedu Chukwuonye, Senator Osita Izunaso and Chris Asoluka, THISDAY, June 14) No comment!

“More greaze (sic) to your elbow” (Full Page Congratulatory Advert for Senate President David Mark by Otobo Akor, MD, Diplomat Travels and Tourism Agency, Abuja, THISDAY, June 14) Beyond the spelling error (grease), it is ‘more power to somebody’s elbow’, but you can grease somebody’s palm if you have corruptive tendencies!

“Glo’s associates relieve Man U-Barca match experience” (Newsstar Headline, June 11-12) Have a lovely week: relive.

EvAen as an ardent supporter of the topmost English team, that was a mismatch now worsened by this local language poverty!

BUSINESSDAY WEEKEND Front Page Headline of June 10 circulated two embryonic blunders that remind one of dissemblance: “Rescued banks, investors in last minute (last-minute) rush to tie-up (tie up) deals” “Ondo police discovers illegal arms factory” Police: plural verb always.

“But coming within a shared calender space of one another (a comma) it pointed to one fact….”

This way: calendar.

“Oceanic Bank International helped liberalized (liberalize) the supply end of the financial market.…”

“For a party and leadership that had barely swim (swum) out of the blemish of the Dimeji Bankole’s corruption

scam.” Furthermore, there is no need for ‘scam’ in the extract because of its dysfunctional input as it is clearly otiose: the Dimeji Bankole corruption.

“From indications, many elected political leaders in our democracy are still basking in the thrills of election victories, copious weeks after they’ve (they’d) been sworn in.”

“An irate Nigerian wondered why the honourable members were not made to refund the N4,000 daily sustainance allowance.…” Get it right: sustenance.

“Shortage of such materials as stationeries for printing order papers....”

Some of the words that are uncountable: stationery, furniture, cutlery, heyday, jewellery, equipment and loot.

“In another incident, six suspected armed robbers, including a military personnel....” ‘Personnel’ is a collective noun. Rite it right, as Dr. Adidi Uyo will write: a military officer. “...that you will be sent to jail to rotten and regret the day you embarked on those inglorious acts of perjury and forgery.” Adjective: rotten; verb: rot.

“Compatriot Bankole, can you imagine the great rupture your imprisonment would have caused in the placid relationship existing between the three arms of the Nigerian government….” ‘Between the three’ again? Just among the three, I beg you.

“The embarrassing development, according to a principal engineer who inspected the damages….”

On Guard: ‘damage’ is uncountable except in legalese. “…defence pact between two unequal partners which was well open to blackmail, curtailment of freedom of speech at the price of democracy. Yank off ‘two’ in the interest of linguistic currency. Don’t depend solely on dictionaries (some of which tolerate a few of these embarrassing contradictions); be inquisitive and exploratory in language usage, which is the hallmark of developmental communication. I always advocate lexical modernism as a way of life.

“Importers and customs agents may have deviced a new strategy to pay lower tariffs….”

Noun: device; verb: devise (in British Standard English usage). The excerpted muddle is the American

version of it. The same thing applies to ‘advice’/ ‘advise’ and ‘practice’/ ‘practise’, among many other entries.

“This practice which makes the government to loss (lose) substantial revenue….”

“Therefore, confronting robbers who are armed with superior arms and ammunitions is only being irresponsible and foolhardy.” ‘Ammunition’ is non-count.

“Less than 5 per cent of Nigerians have assess (access) to telephone–even public telephones.”

“If two towns in every local government in the country is (are) provided with telecommunication facilities every month, within 4 to 5 years, the project would have been completed.”

“Philosophers literarily (literally) threw metaphysics through the front door and bolted it.”

“Firewood could just as well had (have) served as handsets.”

“Often, a simple telephone call could save lives that are needless (needlessly) shed on our highways daily.” A poser: is it lives that are shed or blood?

“A few weeks ago, an Abuja-based paper has (had) alleged that....”

“These brazen acts of banditry is (are) also enveloping secondary schools.…”

‘Even when he was answering questions from newsmen, he was still beaming with smiles.”

Would the man have ‘beamed with a frown’?

Please, delete ‘smiles’ to avoid ‘Bankole-gate’!

Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu yesterday said President Goodluck Jonathan is not responsible for the marginalization of Igbos (sic)” Reported speech: Goodluck Jonathan was not responsible for the marginalization of Igbo.

“He observed that the September 22 OPEC meeting would be a break-ormake event that would determine the way the price goes.” Fixed expression: make or break.

“In any case, there is no doubt that the actions and perhaps inactions of Goodluck Jonathan since May 29 has (have) been giving a sizeable part of the South West serious concerns.” “…force his friend to comply to (with) his own desires at the pains of being bundled into their horrendous cell.

• Ayopo

T

HE Old Boys of Association of Baptist Boys High School, BBHS, Lagos has mourned the death of Chief Ayotunde Ayopo, a former National Secretary, first Vice-President and national trustee of the association.

In a statement by the

National President, Mr Olusola LadipoAjayi, the association said its has lost one of the finest old boys who gave his all to the development of the school and the association.

Ladipo-Ajayi paid tributes to Chief Ayopo as distinguished old boy who also taught English and Literature in the school.

Chief Ayotunde Ayopo, a renowned educationist and teacher who died on Saturday June 11, was 71 years old.

The deceased born on May 5, 1940 in Abeokuta was educated at the Baptist Boys High School ,Abeokuta and read English at the University of Nigeria Nsukka where he graduated in 1966.

He also bagged a Post Graduate Diploma in Education from the University of Ibadan and started his career as a teacher at the Baptist Boys

High School, Abeokuta.

He later became the Principal of Ebenezer Grammar School, Abeokuta, Vice Principal, African Church Grammar School, Lafenwa High School and Lisabi Grammar School, Abeokuta.

He taught the former Ogun State Governor, Otunba Gbenga Daniel, Mr OLusola Ladipo-Ajayi,Group Managing Director of LASACO ASSURANCE PLC, Professor Kayode Oyesiku, Former Vice Chancellor of Tai Solarin University of Education and several others at the Baptist Boys High School.

He is the Agbaakin of Owu Christians, Sakotun of Ika Gbagura and the Akinlagun of Gbagura.

He will be buried on Saturday July 16, 2011 at the Owu Baptist Church, Abeokuta.

He is survived by children and grand children including Mrs Morayo Akinkunmi, Mrs Titilayo Soroye, Mr Ayodeji Mayokun Ayopo, the CEO of SHORTLIST PUBLIC RELATIONS, Mr Mofolasayo Ayopo, Busayo Ayopo, Dayo Ayopo and Mr.Moyo Ayopo.

Safety and Security Alert!

Strategies for Government to combat Terrorism

T

ODAY’S Terrorists’ Activities Innocent citizens continue to experience degraded but dangerous terrorists attacks in recent time while public places and law enforcement installations were not left out. Ineffective counterterrorist efforts have forced them to evolveways.

The terrorists confront Nigeria by trans-regional movement of extremist organizations, networks that exploit religious use of terrorism ideologies. Such as: · Vision, · Set of ideas, · Goals and · Ideology.

They exploit religion to achieve political vision by: · Fueling radical ideology · False beliefs · Expelling Western education and influence. · Creating divisions. · Distort jihad.

Other groups and individuals use terror and violence. Their regional motives include: · Threat to national interests’. · Enemies of humanity. · Violence. · Bombings and other weapons. · Demonstrate indifference · Inflict damage.

Strategic Visions War on Terror is against murderous ideology. In the short run, it involves: · Application of instruments and influence. · Deny safe haven and control · Prevent WMD · Identify and render targets less attractive. · Cut off funding and resources.

In the long run, it is a battle of ideas to: · Transform the embittered. · Define government strategic intents.

Strategies for Winning Short term: The use of effective democratic governance which will: · Honor and uphold basic

human rights. · Exercise sovereignty, order and resist corruption. · Limit the reach of government while protecting the institutions. · Freedom is indivisible.

In long-term, is the battle of ideas, is not: • Inevitable by-product of poverty.

• An active period in the peace process.

• Simply a response to our efforts to prevent terror attacks.

Today’s terrorists spring from: • Political alienation. Tran regional terrorists are recruited from populations with no voice. They are vulnerable to manipulations based on violence and destruction.

• Grievances. The failures terrorists feel and see are blamed on others and perceived injustices.

• Subcultures of conspiracy and misinformation. Terrorists recruit from populations with false information and conspiracy.

• Ideology that justifies murder. Terrorism depends on one that glorifies the killings.

In place of: • Alienation, democracy offers an ownership in society.

• Festering grievances, democracy offers the rule of law, peace and interests.

• Conspiracy and misinformation, democracy offers freedom of speech, media, and ideas.

• Ideology that justifies murder, democracy offers respect for human dignity.

Democracy is the antithesis of terrorist tyranny, equality and dignity while terrorists see individuals as objects to be exploited, ruled and oppressed.

Short term approach: Prevent terrorist attacks.

Nigerian government has higher obligation to protect

residents’ and livelihoods of citizens. The hard core terrorist enemies can only be tracked down and prosecuted. Their network has to be deterred, disrupted, and disabled and establish protective measures.

• Attack terrorists and their capacity to operate. We must take active measures against terrorist and certain others that pose serious and continuing threat. We must incapacitate their: - Leaders, who provide vision, direction, discipline, and motivation.

- Foot soldiers, include operatives, facilitators, and trainers.

- Weapons or tools, all avenues to develop and acquire weapons like explosives, arms, missiles and other devices .

- Funds, means to secure material support for survival and operations. Effective disruption of funding and interdiction of transfers can help to starve terrorist networks.

- Communications, the ability to receive, store, manipulate, and exchange information by couriers and face-to-face contacts, technologies with increasing acumen and sophistication.

- Propaganda operations, to justify violent actions. We must deny, defend, deter, detect, prevent, define, end and disrupt all operational networks and ancillaries.

In conclusion, the government and spirited agents are to eliminate all safe havens of terrorist enemies which include physical, legal, cyber and financial safe havens utilized by them for survival.

Please, send responses and feed-backs by sms to the undersigned.

By: Mr. Timilehin Ajayi (Safety and Security Consultant) E-mail: timilehinajayi@yahoo.com 08095683454.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2010

A

NUMBER of postgraduate students of OAU are of the opinion that the Postgraduate College administrative system is weak and inefficient owing to the fact that students’ transcripts and files get lost too often, there is consistent difficulty accessing the NetQue during registration, unfriendly disposition by staff members, among many other worrisome lapses. How do you see it?

Well, I want us to recognise one thing, the PG College is evolving! And as an evolving system you cannot be talking about perfection. It is a human institution, and anywhere we have human institution there is bound to be some problems here and there. But in terms of some of the points raised by students, I should like to say that transcripts cannot miss here. Maybe they mean the difficulty of getting transcripts. For you to get transcript we will need your file. That is where we normally have problem. We are dealing with so many candidates and we don’t have enough hands. If you then see our staff not coping sufficiently, I think people must have some understanding.

We have written letters to the university for more hands when it comes to filing. I have discussed with the Registrar. Yes, the university has been promising that. But on our own we have had to recruit some casual workers in order to help our students and serve them well. We have about two of them that we recruited on our own. If they are saying files are missing, it is not for me to disprove, or say yes.

But what we know is that if we cannot locate a missing file, what we normally do is to create a new file, temporarily until the missing one is found. So, at each point in time you find us doing one thing or the other to salvage the situation.

All I can say is that within the resources at our disposal, we have been able to do something to really help students.

On the attitude of our staff, I want us to understand one thing as human beings. It is the way people approach you that will determine how you will respond. And we have had some nasty experiences here. Let me give you one instance of one candidate who was seeking admission here. He came to our NetQ office and for one reason or the other he slapped a staff member. The case was brought to me and we had to ask the security people to intervene. That is an example. Some would come with impossible demands. Take for example they want to get clearance. If you are owing the university, you will not be cleared. If there is going to be waiver, there must be justifiable reason. We go by regulations. Anything that will run counter to the university regulations Again, there are complaints bordering on multiple charges. For instance, some students complain that even though the ID card fee is already included in the total amount they are required to pay, they are still asked to pay additional #400 for the ID card at the point of collection. And two, they are asked to pay #5,000 for late registration regardless of weather they had paid their money before the deadline period or not. What is the misconception about this?

We don’t issue ID cards. But we are thinking of this because students are requesting for it. I don’t really think that we are collecting money on any ID card. When students ask for it, I always tell them that we will discuss that with those at the computer section. That is their own duty. I cannot on my own say let’s begin to issue ID card. I don’t really think the assertion about the money is correct.

The #5,000 is for late registration. Students just feel that they can do whatever thing they like. For registration there has to be time limit.

But some will not mind that. Today, you will still find some people that have not even started their registration. Some will not even register.

If you cannot register in the First Semester, at least you can do it in the Second Semester. I know that we had course to shift the normal registration for this Semester twice. We keep on shifting it because of our students. The last time we had discussion on this matter I said those who are in for the MBA Executive would not pay for late registration. This is because the admission for this programme has not been concluded. But for those in the system, if you can give me convincing reason why you should not pay for late registration, we are ready to excuse you. If you have started your registration at the right time but for one reason or the other you have not concluded it, then we will exempt you. But how can we exempt somebody who has not even started at all? If I were to have my way, I would say the money should be #10,000. Maybe that would bring

Focus

55

‘OAU runs a superior PG programme’ Amidst the clangour of complaints and criticisms raised by the postgraduate students of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, against the administration of the Postgraduate College, the Provost of the College, Professor Sunday Idowu Oladeji, reveals that he and his team members are working very hard to find lasting solutions to the various problems bedevilling the College. This and many more are the thrust of what this Prof. of Economics shared with Ademola Adesola who visited the College recently

•Professor Oladeji sanity into the system. It is here in this part of the world that students can just take registration with levity. I know that outside the country you have to obey all the instructions. My daughter who is studying abroad almost missed her chance. We had to rush in order to meet the deadline. So, this idea of late registration is to bring sanity into the system. It is when people find out that they will be penalised that they take you seriously. Those in Planning and Budgeting have been asking us for the total number of students that we have enrolled this year. We cannot provide that because any figure we give will be incomplete.

Let’s look at the issue of processing of results and the issuance of such forms as A, B,C, D, and so on. The grouse of students is that all of these take time and cause unnecessary de-

lay. What is your position on this?

Students don’t even know a lot of things when they are making such complaints. The forms are just administrative forms. We have forms A to Q. But not all the forms are applicable to all students. The basic ones are very few. You need to have your form A, which is for the approval of theses title. We have form for progress report but we don’t normally insist on that. You want to get research grants, you need a form. You want to extend your studentship, or you want to change your mode of study, you have to apply. If there are students who run their programmes normally, they will have few forms to fill. If you are on a two-year master’s programme, at least you have to fill your forms. But if for one reason or the other you cannot complete your

programme, you are expected to fill form K, that you want to extend your studentship. You can’t just write; you have to fill a form. So, where does the delay come from? There is no more delay in the College! Forms take average of one or two weeks to process in the College. It is because we didn’t have many forms to treat that we changed our meeting from weekly to fortnight basis. Some years ago we used to have so many delays in processing these forms.

But we have changed the system. What we have done is to decentralise the processing of forms. Instead of the entire board members meeting on a case, we decentralise it into four groups.

The problems we usually have are the students themselves. They would not make themselves available. Because when we process form A, our representatives will get back to students. And if we have students that would not turn up, how would they respond to the comments on the forms? There was a man who completed his PhD sometime last year.

We thought he could make it for Convocation.

He wasn’t around! I had to send people to look for him. It is now that we are processing the thing to Senate. So, to students it is “oh they are delaying the thing”. They would never recognise the fact that they are the people causing the delay.

Does the College have Students’ Handbook which should contain some of the basic information that students should be acquainted with? Do you conduct orientation programme for new students?

The orientation programme is for the Division of Students’ Affairs (DSA) to conduct. The only thing that we have not been doing but that we may be doing later on is an orientation programme by the College. But time wasn’t on our side. What we expect is for each faculty to make arrangement, at least to get information across to the postgraduate students. And what I have encouraged our faculty chairmen and representatives to do is that they can arrange and then invite me. I have received some. I will just give them a date. I use that opportunity to reach out to students, to inform that the old ways of doing things are no more. Two-year programmes should be two years. Of course you heard people who came in here saying things have changed. These are part of those who have overstayed. What we have done is to give them marching order. For God’s sake, how can I feel comfortable as a Provost when we still have 06/07, 07/08 students on Master’s? That was why when I assumed office I said this thing must stop. All that we need to do at the board level has been done.

The next thing is to force students and supervisors to act and get these students out of the system. For those who have overstayed we have reached a decision that by July they must finish. Otherwise we will terminate their studentship. We sent circulars out and wrote to those that are concerned.

About three weeks ago I was invited for a programme at the PG hall. I couldn’t go but I had to send my senate representative, who is going to come in soon as the Deputy Provost.

Also, the Students’ Handbook has just been printed. Every PG student will get a copy.

They will find the information in it very useful.

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Life

‘I got the worst from June 12’ Prophet Holywood Ogunlade is one of those who gave themselves for the struggle toward the actualisation of the June 12, 1993, presidential election. But the instrument with which he enlisted in that warfare was not carnal; he fasted, prayed on the mountains and even wrote letters to Chief MKO Abiola, the acclaimed winner of the annulled presidential election. Aside all these, the prophet also keeps Abiola’s and other world leaders’ pictures. He remains unwavering in his prayers for them everyday in his room. Taiwo Abiodun writes

I

N his dingy room is a small altar where he placed the big photographs of the late Chief MKO Abiola, the winner of the 1993 presidential election, and the incumbent President of Nigeria, Goodluck Jonathan. Those are not all: Adorning the altar are the photographs of all the newly-elected governors in Nigeria, Barrack Obama the president of America, Queen Elizabeth of England among others. He prays for them all, regardless of whether they are dead or not.

According to Prophet Holywood Ogunlade, who is the General Overseer of The Tree of Life Bible Church Prayer Ministries (aka Sanctuary of Blessing),Ota, the love he has for his country and the truth he believes in made him struggle and risk his life to make sure that the late MKO Abiola won the 1993 presidential election. He said that he contributed in no small way to the success of the June 12 election. He recalled, “I walked round Ondo town in the dead of the night praying for MKO Abiola to win the election. I prayed to God that rain should not disturb and rain did not. I went to Erinmo, Ikoyi, Ekiti, and Ibadan praying mountains as instructed by God and prayed.”

Very confident of Abiola’s victory, he then wrote a letter to him on the 6th of June, 1993, predicting his victory. Sadly, however, the victory came as predicted but rather than reaping from it, he got something else. During the crisis that ensued after the annulment of the election, he lost most of his valuable properties!

His house was vandalised and burnt because he was perceived to be an ardent supporter of MKO. He therefore left Ondo town for Lagos.

Ever since he has been in Ota where he continues to preach the word of God. While narrating his odyssey, he showed the letter he sent by post to the MKO and the speed post receipt issued at the post office. He said that the late politician later replied him through one of the defunct daily newspapers, Daily Sketch, where he acknowledged his letter publicly. “The late MKO replied me in many newspapers, and implored me to keep on praying for him,” he said.

Continued from page 9

money was put at $10 million. It was in N2.5 billion in another, leaving members of the public divided in what has now become a brewing crisis of confidence over the bill.

A few circumspect others say it might as well be a case of undue procrastination giving birth to ugly speculations. Observers maintain that leaders should be guided by the realisation that the way and manner they handle the public trust will ultimately determine their place in history. A lot depends on the leadership here. As first among equals, President of the Senate, David Mark must go beyond official rhetoric and strive to keep the article of faith on behalf of the greater number. Beyond his immediate Benue South constituents, he must be prepared to look at a larger picture of Nigeria as his constituency. At this point in his life, Mark must be inclined to playing less politics and offering quality service. He must learn to rely more on his hunches whenever the interests of a few members of the privileged class appear to be at variance with the aspirations of the majority of the toiling electorate.

He should be prepared to take certain actions that could change certain mindsets and hurt some existing relationships. He has got almost everything that is required to make the desired difference; intellect, experience

Describing what he was doing as service to humanity, he said, “I used to predict and prophesy and counsel heads of states, governors and people who are in need. I have written letters to the former President of United States of America, President Bush and predicted that he would win the elections and he won. I have written President Obama too before his election and predicted his victory. I wrote the present Nigerian president, Jonathan Goodluck and his vice, Sambo, that they would win in a landslide and all came to pass. I have all the letters with me.” Beating his chest as he talked, handed copies of the letters and their receipts to this reporter.

Asked why the June 12 did not yield result despite his prayers, the man of God responded, “the devil used Ibrahim Babangida to perpetrate evil and that is why up till today IBB’s voice cannot be heard or listen to. IBB will remain popular, but like Judas Iscariot, he will be dumped and will never remain the same again.

IBB betrayed his trusted friend.”

What of the replies of the letters he wrote to these big guns? The man of God laughed and said he received few letters from those he wrote: “The late Adebayo Adefarati, governor of Ondo State, replied my letter dated August 18th, 1999, with the reference ODGOV.2/2/A/461, and signed by one Foluso Aminu, the principal Personal Assistant to the Governor. Another letter dated 31st August, 1992, was written by Otunba Sunday Adeniyi Adegeye [Sunny Ade] the Juju musician, in which he acknowledged the receipt of my letter to him. It is a pity that only few people recognised me. Because I am not a popular prophet, you don’t see me on the pages of newspapers. I predicted that the present Ondo State governor would become the Secretary to the State Government, a minister and lastly that he would become a governor when he was still in his Mona Clinic at Ago Itunu, Ondo town. He was still a staunch Muslim then. But since then I had no access to him. He had changed the phone number he gave me.”

Asked whether he was doing all of that for financial assistance, the carpenter turned prophet

•Prophet Holywood Ogunlade

said, “I am not after money, nor am I after fame.

In the Holy Bible, the father of Jesus Christ was despised because he was a carpenter. In the end his son, Jesus Christ, is worshipped. I have that gift of prediction but imagine I was rendered homeless and poor by June 12 crises. It forced me to relocate to Lagos in 1993.”

Born about 48 years ago, Ogunlade attended only secondary school and left to learn carpentry where he established Holywood Furniture Company in Ondo town, Ondo State. While he was working one day he heard a voice that asked him to stop what he was doing and work for God. In 2003, he went to El Shadai Bible School,

Akure, Ondo State. After graduation he started his own church.

“Seeing vision is a gift. I was on my own when God instructed me to write MKO, and I did sacrifice all that I had then to God. I mean my time, energy, money and even fled the place where Abacha and IBB planted their men then.

But it has become history and I want the present government to immortalise MKO Abiola. This is what Obasanjo refused to do.Whether you like it or not, MKO Abiola is among the most popular Nigerians that ever lived. I pray for him every day and I am using this medium to tell the President to immortalise him now before it is too late,” said.

Agenda for seventh Senate and maturity. What is required is the will.

Someday, David Mark will certainly be called upon to stand on the scale, to render account of his stewardship. He will not be standing before the ubiquitous tiny crowds of favour seekers, but before a wider and more critical Nigerian audience. It’s about accountability. Which brings us back to the unfinished business in the amendment to the Constitution and the Electoral Act. At different occasions in the past few weeks, co-chairman of the committee on the review project, Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu had stated that the task of amending the constitution and the electoral act has not been concluded. According to Ekweremadu who chaired the Senate “faction” of the review committee, certain aspects of the amendments would still have to undergo further scrutiny with the view to improving upon the existing documents. This time around, it is hoped that there will be functional cooperation between the two chambers. Necessary internal mechanisms should also be put in place for the harmonisation of positions before hitting the road. This will prevent a repeat sce-

nario where Senators and Rep members in the committee were engaged in verbal warfare ostensibly over who got designated “chairman”, “vice chairman”, or “co-chairman” of the joint committee.

It was quite a spectacle in Minna, Niger State, where 88 members of the committee in the two chambers openly traded tantrums in what was supposed to be a retreat to kick off the review exercise way back in February 2009.

The two chambers had to go their separate ways after several bouts of hiccups that lasted another year. They ended up with two separate reports that were hurriedly harmonised to beat the tight 2011 electoral datelines which they created through their infantile hysteria in the first place. By a stroke of providence however, it appears the new leadership of the House of Representatives may be ill disposed to the irrational obstinacy and impulsive belligerence of its immediate past leaders. Legislative advocacy groups expect the two chambers to work in harmony and functionally cooperate to deliver the goods this time around. They don’t have to wait until the eve of the next

general election before they hit the ground running. Analysts have opined that lawmakers in the two chambers should be responsive enough to start the process as early as possible to avoid the traditional fire brigade approach.

But before then, Ike Ekweremadu who chaired the Senate arm of the committee, and immediate past Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Alhaji Usman Bayero Nafada who headed the Reps chapter, may have to render financial account of their stewardship. Ekweremadu had, on at least two occasions in the past, parried questions on the subject on grounds that the exercise was still ongoing and that it would be premature to give details of how funds were disbursed at that point in time. Event watchers have maintained that the taxpayers deserve to know what the last review exercise cost them. According to them, bookkeeping is not a difficult task. It’s simple arithmetic. They urged the two gentlemen to take the little challenge by making available to the public the cost implication of the exercise so far. The account record, they say, should include the vital specifics.

57

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, JUNE 19, 2011

Furore over jumbo pay Following recent revelations of excessive allowances and other perks of office illegally enjoyed by public officers in all tiers of government, a cross-section of Nigerians have made strident calls for drastic reduction of emoluments and salaries of those concerned, to ensure equitable distribution of state resources, reports Ibrahim Apekhade Yusuf

E

VERY worker deserves his wages they say, but the consensus these days is that such a privilege should only be enjoyed by those who truly deserve the wages in the real sense of the word, and not so-called public servants.

The issue however, is that most public officers, serving in all the tiers of government have since gained notoriety for allegedly receiving extravagant emoluments and allowances, albeit incongruous with what the constitution stipulates.

Expectedly, this development has naturally pitted these privileged few against other Nigerians, who hold the view that the country cannot afford to devote a large chunk of its resources to a select few, to the detriment of the economy.

Media reports on the Dimeji Bankole saga, analysts have argued, has made it particularly necessary to seek a drastic review of the emoluments and allowances being received by public office holders.

Rage over jumbo pay

Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi had last year declared that lawmakers consume 25 per cent of Nigeria’s overhead budget, a claim the National Assembly denied.

But Professor Itse Sagay (SAN), a constitutional lawyer made public what he described as the scandalous wages and allowances being received by public servants in the country, especially legislators, serving ministers, public appointees, among others - a development, he argued, was for a cause for concern.

President-General, Trade Union Congress of Nigeria, Mr. Peter Esele, in an interview recently while also commenting on the jumbo pay for legislators and other political office holders in Nigeria, said: “It was very regrettable, especially when you compare their pay with the state of the Nigerian economy, the living standards of those they represent, life expectancy in Nigeria, the per capita income and the salaries paid to the Nigerian workers, Nigerian professors etc. It is even more unfortunate when you recall that the United States President, Barack Obama’s salary is $400,000 per annum, while a Nigerian senator collects N48million per quarter, $1.7m per annum, and each member of the House of Representatives receives $1.2million per annum.”

The TUC boss, who said he was not surprised over the revelation by the CBN governor that the National Assembly alone consumes 25 per cent of the country’s annual overhead cost, stressed that statistics show that Federal legislators in Nigeria are among the highest paid in the world, despite the fact that the country is among the poorest in terms of per capita income, security, social provision and living standards.

Echoing the same views, Leonard Karshima Shilgba - an Associate Professor of Mathematics with the American University of Nigeria and President of the Nigeria Rally Movement, had last December, in a paper titled: ‘Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Com-

•Dimeji Bankole

•David Mark

•Farida Waziri

•Lamido Sanusi

mission: Observing the Constitution in Breach’, cited what he called constitutional infractions committed by the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) with regard to the remuneration of both state and federal legislators.

The RMAFC, he said: “Should publish the salaries and allowances they have approved for Nigerian legislators for Nigerians to see if they have complied substantially with the constitution.”

He added: “The huge financial bleeding the nation is suffering must be stopped by the RMAFC. It is an emergency, more so at this time that government is looking

at reducing significantly recurrent expenditure.

“If we take into consideration the fact that 1,152 members of the state legislators earn a minimum of N50billion a year (N5.1 billion in salaries, and N35.9 billion in allowances); 8, 692 members of the local legislatures in the 774 local government areas in Nigeria earn N342.9 billion a year (N25. 9 billion in salaries, and N 317 billion in allowances), and less than 500 federal legislators earn N60. 4 billion a year (N 6.2 billion in salaries, and N 54.2 billion in allowances), we can see that just 10, 308 Nigerians (legislators at the three

tiers of government) earn a total of N 453.3 billion, which is an average of N43,975, 553 a year!

“A lie that Nigerians have been fed with for years is this. Basic salaries of our public servants are published, while allowances, as percentages of the basic salaries are selectively released. The real thing is befuddled. Take, for instance, the basic salaries listed above. All those 10, 308 legislators earn a total of N37.2 billion a year in basic salaries (average is N3.6 million per legislator), which is just 8 percent of their total annual remuneration! The significance is that strange allowances are being paid those legislators, and the RMAFC is empowered by the constitution to cut or expunge those allowances in accordance to sections 84 and 124. The ball is now in the court of the RMAFC.” The varsity don was however, quick to add: “This problem of unjust reward of public officials is not limited to the legislature. The federal, state, and local executives, with at least 472 officials (federal), 2664 officials (state), and 3,096 officials (local), take a cumulative of N98.3 billion (federal; N8.6 billion in basic salaries, N89.7 billion in allowances); N300.6 billion (state; N28.4 billion in salaries, N272.2 billion in allowances); and N250billion (local; N16 billion in salaries, N234 billion in allowances).

“From what I have stated here, which was the case in 2009, we can see that a total 16, 540 Nigerians take from our commonwealth at least N1.102 trillion a year, or more than 7 billion US dollars a year! If Nigerians cannot join some of us to picket the RMAFC office in Abuja during the break and to symbolically protest at the various legislative houses across the nation, we have only proved we not ready to pay for what we desire.

“Think of what three billion US dollars, invested annually in infrastructural development can achieve for our nation!

They keep feeding us with information such as we need $100 billion to generate 40, 000 mega watts of electricity, just to show us that government is impotent as far as generating electricity is concerned.

“But this translates to just $1 billion for 400 megawatts, or 1,200 mega watts generated with three billion US dollars. If we, through the RMAFC, could peel off just $3 billion from the more than $7 billion that our public officials earn (that is, less than 50 percent off their individual salaries and allowances), we could generate at least 4,800 megawatts of electricity in four years with no external funding!

Nigerians, this must be our rallying point!

“Now is the hour! In fact, I would not advise more than 20 times the national minimum wage as sitting allowances/ salaries for a legislator, while their transport and accommodation expenses should be paid only when they are sitting, and nothing more.”

Conspiracy of silence?

The chairman of RMAFC, the commission responsible for setting allowances •Continued on page 58

58

Business

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Furore over jumbo pay •Continued from page 57

and salaries for public servants, Elias Mbam, however, denied knowledge of the said extravagant pay the lawmakers receive.

He stressed that RMAFC does not have any information on other emoluments and allowances the lawmakers take home, besides what was approved for them by his commission. He said: “The speculations in the public that lawmakers collected between N10 million and N15 million were strange to the commission.”

Implications on the economy

According to Shilgba, while public office holders have continued to benefit from this disparity in the allocation of resources, “Our public education shall remain under-funded; our roads, railways, and airports shall remain in their ugly and decrepit state; manufacturing industries in Nigerian shall continue operating at far below installed capacities or even shut down, thus frustrating job creation due to poor public electricity; our health sector shall remain parlous; and our aspiration to join the 20 most industrialised countries in the year 2020 shall remain a pipe dream if we don’t stop the bleeding and plough the savings there from in the critical sectors of the economy, some of which I have itemised.”

What the Constitution states

Sittings of the legislature: In section 63 of the constitution, it is states: “The Senate and the House of Representatives shall each sit for a period of not less than one hundred and eighty one days in a year.” Besides, with regard to the sitting of a State House of Assembly, section 104 of the constitution states: “A House of Assembly shall sit for a period not less than one hundred and eighty one days in a year.”

Section 68 (1):” A member of the Senate or of the House of Representatives shall vacate his seat in the House of which he is a member if: (f)”: “Without just cause he is absent from meetings of the House of which he is a member for a period amounting in the aggregate to more than one-third of the total number of days during which the House meets in any one year.”

Section 109 (1): “A member of a House of Assembly shall vacate his seat in the House if: (f) ) without just cause he is absent from meetings of the House of which he is a member for a period amounting in the aggregate to more than one-third of the total number of days during which the House meets in any one year.

Section 70: “A member of the Senate and House of Representatives shall receive such salary and other allowances as the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission may determine.”

Section 111: “A member of the House of Assembly shall receive such salary and other allowances as the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission may determine.”

Way forward

The chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Farida Waziri, has asked members of the National Assembly to publicly declare their salaries and allowances.

Mrs. Waziri made this call at a oneday interactive session for the newly inaugurated lawmakers at the International Conference Centre, Abuja, last week. She said that would be the only way the lawmakers would regain public trust, which was lost on suspicion that they earn extravagant pay illegally.

“Our expectation from the seventh National Assembly is that they should raise the bar on public probity and accountability by making public your salaries and allowances. This will ensure that the rumour mill about your salaries and allowances is cancelled,” she said.

To Shilgba, perhaps the best way to address the issue of jumbo pay is for: “All legislators in Nigeria to serve part-time,

according to the constitution. They do not deserve gratuities, pensions, or severance benefits. Each legislator must keep a stable job or business, and would only sit when the need arises for law-making or consideration of serious national issues; then their transport allowances, sitting salaries, and accommodation allowances, and committee (where required) allowances are paid.

“That means, someone like me can keep my teaching job in the university, where I can, given class scheduling, and still do my legislative work if I am a legislator. The Vice-president of the US, until he commenced his current job, taught law in the university while he served as US senator.”

In the view of Esele: “The salaries and allowances of legislators should be tied to performance of the Nigerian economy, the contributions they make to the improvement in the welfare and living standards of the ordinary Nigerians that they represent as well as bear resemblance to the salaries and allowances paid to Nigerian workers.

“It should also be benchmarked to the salaries that are paid to legislators in other parts of Africa. In addition, the legislators should return all the salaries they have received since May 1999 that are above that approved by the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission”, Esele maintained.

Archbishop of the Metropolitan See of Lagos, Anthony Cardinal Okogie, said the agitations for upward review of salary by the Nigerian Labour Congress and other stakeholders would continue unabated unless the government at all levels drastically reduce the amount of monies paid as salaries to public officers.

The Federal Government, he stressed: “Must adjust the allocation to states and look into the present take home package of our political office holders, because it is very disheartening to note that in a country such as ours, where the average worker is paid less than N20, 000, there counterparts in the Senate and House of Representatives are smiling home with over N15million. Political office holders should see there appointments as a call to selfless service to the nation and not for self-enrichment”, Okogie stressed.

For Baba Omojola, renowned economist and World Bank consultant, it is unthinkable that public officers take a chunk 25 per cent of the country’s earning. “This is very atrocious; it should not be more than 2.4 per cent. You can imagine a situation where our public servants earn over N10 million per month, that’s scandalous in a country where the per capita income is way too low”, he argued.

He however, suggested: “The current salaries and emoluments of public office holders should be reduced to up to 90 per cent of their current earnings. There is need to re-orientate our public servants and parliamentarians that you don’t go into politics to make money, but to serve.”

Dr. Ayo Teriba, Chief Executive Officer, Economic Associates, has a different view.

According to him, it is too early in the day to attempt to comment on the propriety or otherwise of the alleged excessive remuneration of some past public office holders, specifically the Bankole saga, considering the fact that the case is still in the court.

In a telephone interview with The Nation, on what should be the benchmark for salaries of public office holders, Teriba said: “There is no question of whether there were infractions committed because the allowances being talked about are what they were entitled to any way. So it would not be fair to join the bandwagon of those who are already condemning these people.”

Analysts are however, agreed on the fact that the government at all levels have no excuse paying the N18, 000 minimum wage, if they cannot plug wastage in the system, fueled, of course by excessive allowances.

Photo News

•L-R: JKN Mamabolo, South African High Commissioner to Nigeria; Thandiwe, JanuaryMcLean, South African Tourism CEO and Phumi Dhlomo, SA Tourism Regional Director for Africa/Domestic and Middle East at a Media Roundtable in Abuja to announce SA Tourism plans to open Nigeria office

•L-R: New President, Institute of Taxation of Nigeria, John Femi Jegede; past President/ Chairman, of the institute, Prince Rasaq Kunle Quadri and Mr Kayode Adigun at the PHOTO: BADE DARAMOLA Annual General Meeting in Lagos recently.

•L-R: Chairman, Ikeja Branch of Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) and Chief Rotimi Akeredolu (SAN) at the 2011 Annual Law Week organised by (NBA), Ikeja branch held recently in Lagos.

PHOTO: BADE DARAMOLA

•L-R: Brand Management Group, Stacomms Plc, Mr. David Babalola and Hon. Dele Olugbemi, representing Ikole II Constituency, Ekiti State House of Assembly, at the inauguration of the 4th Assembly of the House in Ado-Ekiti recently.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Business

59

‘How we changed fortunes of Xerox Nigeria’ Managing Director, Xerox H.S (Nigeria) Limited, Mr. Femi Okunade, was one of the guest speakers at the Tom Associates Talking Business recently. He told the audience how his team turned around the fortunes of Xerox Nigeria from almost a moribund and debt-ridden company to a successful business enterprise. Ibrahim Apekhade Yusuf was there

T

HE story of Xerox H.S Nigeria Limited has not always been a rosy one. The company, like many of its contemporaries out there, has also suffered a chequered existence of some sorts. The Managing Director of the company, Mr. Femi Okunade, said that much at a public forum in Lagos recently.

The Xerox boss, who addressed captains of industries, technocrats and professionals from diverse disciplines, shared his personal experiences reviving what he described as “a deadwood company”, at an interface and discussion session, which lasted several hours.

Okunade, who spoke on ‘Lifeline Miracles: How we Remodel Our Business and Turn Our People to Champions’, laced his presentation with wisecracks and rich anecdotes.

“The success of any business enterprise is not only a function of experience, but is largely dependent on the capacity of the owners of the business to take calculated risks as and when due, among other wise investment decisions critical to the overall growth of the business”, he said.

Okunade, who trained as an engineer at the nation’s premier university, the University of Ibadan, and began his working career at Rank Xerox Nigeria Limited in 1989, where he rose to become the first indigenous Customer Service Director. He later took a break from the company to work elsewhere for a few years.

However, the unseen hands of providence literally forced him back to the company in 2006, which incidentally was in dire financial strait and only waiting for an undertaker at the time.

He tells the story: “I resumed on the 6th of March, 2006, a week earlier than planned. At that time, nobody ever wanted to have anything to do with the company because it was in a terrible financial mess. The company had a huge amount of non-performing high interest loans/ statutory payments including N300million bad loan with interests ranging from 24 per cent to 36 per cent to banks and third parties and N100milliom unremmitted deductions of statutory obligations.

“We had a breakdown in financial control with a very poor credit rating at the CBN. Staff morale was at its lowest ebb, a development, which adversely affected productivity, leading to high turnover of staff among others. Besides, obsolete and disused infrastructure, the company was not in the good books of the Xerox International. As such, there was no question of any support coming from that quarters because of the element of distrust.

“Worst still, the organisation by the end of 2006 first quarter had already made N120 million loss. If the slide had continued, the company would have gone into extinction”, he recalled.

Aware of the great odds against his team, Okunade needed no much prodding but to roll up his sleeves to work. Of course, to do this, he had to set out clear cut objectives.

In Okunade’s determination to not only restore the fortunes of Xerox Nigeria, he said, he, along with his team, set out a five years turnaround plan for the company.

“We set clear cut precise objectives aimed at first understanding what our business model is. We also set out to create a new culture of hard work, results, reward system and recognition as well as hard and ethical work culture from leadership downward”, he recounted.

Okunade admitted that the management took a bold

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THE EXECUTIVE

•Okunade

“This company has turned around, no doubt! But there is need to regain our position in the market and speed in order to hit the next billions. And there are three dimensional keys to our future explosive growth and these include strategic thinking, strategic implementation plan with a customer-driven approach to our marketing and expansion” step compared to many of their contemporaries out there, who torn between liquidating their business and selling out, are wont to follow the easy route, which is filing bankruptcy. He said the teams’ decision to stick out their necks at the time they did, was a wise decision after all, as the company is now the better for it, judging by its strong fundamentals, soaring growth and profitability.

Okunade, who also doubles as management consultant and motivational speaker, said it was rather heartening to note that few years down the line; his team has been able to turn the poor fortunes of an almost moribund and debt-ridden company to a successful business enterprise.

Enumerating some of the milestones achieved thus far, Okunade, an alumnus of the Lagos Business School, at the risk of sounding immodest said: “We have been able to achieve a new improved revenue and profit before tax regime, just as we were able to pay back the nonperforming loan of N350 million loan in five years.

“We got ISO recertification back. We have also opened five new offices within the period. We were able to provide car loans and grants to deserving members of staff. Xerox Nigeria regained the confidence of Xerox Middle East and Asia”, said Okunade.

Expatiating, he said: “We have also been able to put in place productivity-related compensation plan and have since commenced efforts aimed at reaching out to blue chip companies to win back lost accounts. We scrapped old and obsolete assets and replaced them with better tools for staff to enhance productivity.”

Okunade, who would not want to take the credit for the successful turnaround of XHS after five years, attributed the steady growth to the support of the board and management, staff, the parent company -- Xerox Corporation, and of course, its clientele.

“We were able to turnaround the fortunes of Xerox Nigeria due to God’s immeasurable grace first and foremost and also due largely to the confidence of management and non-interference in day-to-day running of the company by the Chairman and other members of the Board of Directors,” he declared.

The Xerox boss, who belongs to many professional bodies identified the role of wise decision making to the success of a business, but was quick to admit that there have been cases where he took certain decisions in error to the detriment of the company.

But rather than dwell on such misfortunes, Okunade advised business managers to take responsibility for such actions and guide against a re-occurrence in the future.

Xerox’s modest achievements notwithstanding, Okunade said there was still a lot of room for improvement as the management is not yet resting on its oars, in its quest to take the company to greater heights.

“This company has turned around, no doubt! But there is need to regain our position in the market and speed in order to hit the next billions. And there are three dimensional keys to our future explosive growth. These include strategic thinking, strategic implementation plan with a customer-driven approach to our marketing and expansion”, he said.

Considering the torturous journey he and his team had to endure in order to return Xerox Nigeria back to profitability, Okunade, was perhaps in the best position to offer candid advice to his fellow managers, who were saddled with the onerous task of providing leadership for their companies at this critical time of recession.

At the risk of sounding sanctimonious, he said: “Transforming a business requires not only a brilliant innovative strategy, but also faith, focus, fortitude and more. These are the internal realities of transformation.

Transformation requires relentless and aggressive leadership.”

EasyFuel boosts oil and gas with e-payment solution

E

ASYFUEL Limited, a new Nigerian company engaged in the provision of e-payment solutions in the downstream oil and gas sector, has launched its new range of products in that sector.

The integrated e-payment solutions were unveiled in Lagos. This new system will eliminate the use of cash in buying petroleum products at filling stations across the country.

Speaking at the company’s inaugural press conference, Managing Director of the company, Mr. Tayo Olajide, said the initiative was in line with the global trend towards cashless solutions.

He said: “Our belief at EasyFuel is that Nigeria cannot be an exception in adopting

By Adline Atili global standards. All around the world, there is a gradual shift towards cashless payment systems because of the various challenges that go with cash transactions.

“With these new solutions, what a customer needs to purchase fuel is nothing but a bank card or any of EasyFuel’s proprietary e-payment products, SpeedPass, Sprint or e-Go which may be installed in the vehicle or issued as contactless fobs.”

The EasyFuel system also accepts bankissued Automated Teller Machine (ATM) debit and credit cards thereby enabling customers to pay for their fuel electronically from their current and

checking bank accounts.

Explaining how the products work, Olajide said: “For those who cannot entrust their drivers with their ATM cards, SpeedPass comes in handy. It is a contact-less device that is waved in front of a contact-less reader at the pump at the filling stations to initiate a transaction. With it, customers can set predetermined limits on how much a vehicle can refuel, how often, on what kinds of products and services and during what period of time.

“The Sprint product offers the highest level of control and accountability for fleet managers. It is a smart RFID device, which is installed in a vehicle. Sprint works by identifying the vehicle to the EasyFuel system.

It provides vehicle information such as fuel type and tank capacity, vehicle registration

number, personal account number, fuel grade and permissible volume, minimum distance between refuelling and incremental odometer and hour metre readings.

“Through a Web portal, fleet owners have access to transaction information per vehicle thereby enabling them real time visibility on fuelling cost per car and eventually generate reports for planning purposes. Sprint also comes fitted with GPS module which enables asset tracking.

“With our solutions, customers will no longer be cheated by their drivers while it is a new dawn for fleet managers, who no longer have to worry about fraud. The solutions guarantee convenience and control while eliminating cash in transactions at the filling stations.”

NATION ON SUNDAY 60 THE JUNE 19, 2011

Business

‘Our goal is to reduce cost to income ratio’ In the aftermath of the financial crisis that engulfed the banking industry, Money Deposit Banks are refocusing and concentrating of sectors that have pedigree of yielding returns and not easily susceptible to the vagaries of volatile economic changes. Fidelity’s Bank’s focus on corporate financing, is an apt departure from the margin loan era that almost wrecked the financial system, writes SIMEON EBULU, Deputy Business Editor

F

IDELITY Bank is catching in on its expanding retail outlets and strategic corporate investment to grow its balance sheet. The growing retail banking infrastructure, has also come in handy as ready source of financing for distributors and suppliers of the bank’s corporate customers. This sign posts a clear departure from the concentration of margin loan financing that almost spelt doom for the nation’s banking industry.

Branch Network Expansion The Managing Director, Reginald Ihejiahi, said the bank opened 34 new branches in 2009 and 18 in 2010, adding that thirteen others, which construction commenced in 2010, would be ready for use in the middle of the year. “We have therefore grown by 52 new branches, or 43 per cent between 2009 and 2010,” he stated.

Ihejiahi, said the strategy has enabled the bank access to lower cost deposits, while at the same time has improved customer accounts by 44 per cent from 900,000 as at end of 2009 to 1.3 million in the review period.

He disclosed that the branch expansion strategy, has also impacted on savings’ deposits, which in his words, “have grown by a monthly average of N1.3 billion, from a total balance of N24 billion as at December 31, 2009, to N40 billion as at December 31, 2010.

He stated that Fees and Commissions have also continued to improve on the back of the linkage effect created by the expanding retail distribution capacity, saying this resulted in a 110 per cent growth to N8.5 billion in the review period from the N4.0 billion recorded in 2009.

Ihejiahi, admitted the Operating expenses grew by 84.8 per cent to N29.8 billion, but attributed it to inflationary pressures and “the impact of cost of the 18 new branches constructed and opened in 2010 and 13 others that were in progress to be opened in the first half of 2011.

Nevertheless, he reassured shareholders that there was a turnaround as management was able to reduce, as he put it, “our cost to income ratio (without loan provisions) – to 71.0 per cent in the 2010 financial year from 73.2 per cent recorded in 2009 financial year. Our target is to come down to 50 per cent

DUE DILIGENCE

•Reginald Ihejiahi

to 55 per cent.”

The impact on the Balance Sheet as a result of this development, the CEO stated, “is a 40 per cent growth in sustainable low cost deposits from N168 billion as at end of financial year ended December 31, 2009, to N236 billion as at December 31, 2010. Total deposits stood at N326.7 billion as at December 31, 2010, representing a growth of 13.4 per cent from N288.1 billion by December 31, 2009, while low cost deposit was 72.2 per cent of total deposits compared to 58.4 per cent as at December 31, 2009.”

Strategic Corporate Funding The Managing Director told shareholders that the bank was instrumental for the establishment of the largest aluminum can manufacturing plant in Africa by providing the $65million required to build it. In addition, he stated, the investment pulled about 1,800 people out of the labour market through direct and

indirect job placement.

Hear him: “ In August 2010, President Goodluck Jonathan commissioned GZ Industries Limited ((GZI) Aluminum Canning plant which was financed by our bank to the tune of $65 million.The factory is the largest Aluminum Can manufacturing plant in Africa and the first of its kind in West Africa. It is producing 900 million aluminum cans per annum, and will save foreign exchange.”

The plant, he stated, has capacity to directly employ 300 Nigerians and about 1,500 others through a network of suppliers, contractors and haulers, adding that the finished products would be exported in due course.

Another strategic area the bank has cut a niche for itself, is in power projects and gas financing. Its involvement with the witch Power project, recently commissioned by the Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Raji Fashola and the 120km Gas Pipeline project approved by Oando Gas and Power, are cases

in point.

Financials Ihejiahi, said the bank recorded Profit before Tax (PBT) of N8.6 billion in the year under review, representing an increase of 321.0 per cent on the N2.0 billion achieved for the six months financial year ended December 31, 2009, saying this achievement was recorded despite the impact of the N3.5 billion in loan loss expense (net of recovery) during the period.

He stated further that Gross Earnings increased by 61.4 per cent to N56.0 billion from N34.7 billion of 2009. “ Of particular mention is the significant improvement in Net Interest Income of N26.5 billion, a 98.6 per cent increase from the N13.4 billion figure of 2009,” Ihejiahi, observed, adding that for every N100 interest income gained, the bank used only 34kobo to pay for the cost of deposits in 2010 compared to 48kobo the previous year.

Moribund Jebba Paper Mills comes alive

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ESPITE the story of abandon ment that is said to have per meated some of the public corporations, which the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) privatized, the former Nigeria Paper Mills Limited which Jebba Paper Mill bought in 2006 has proven to be an exemption.

Last week, Assistant Director, Dr. Anwoh Joseph Emeka-led BPE monitoring team and media representatives’ tour on the factory in Jebba, Kwara indicated that the firm has been revived.

Now like a flourishing hidden flower, as workers are busy, the plants burn with papers rolling out from the finishing units to the consumers, it reminds one of how the nation would have kept losing had Jebba Paper Mill not bought it.

Besides, the testimony of the current state of the mill can be better heard as one listens to the enchanted host community.

During the tour, the Oba of Jebba,

Jebba Paper Mills, which hitherto suffered a lull in activities, is gradually transforming into a successful business enterprise, reports John Ofikhenua, just back from a facility tour of the mill who would have ordinarily waited for the BPE delegation to pay him a courtesy visit in his palace forgot status and appeared at the mill to enunciate his feelings.

According to the Oba of Jebba, His Royal Highness (HRH), Alhaji Abdulkadir Adebara, who recalled the untold hardship the community suffered while the Nigeria Paper Mills collapsed, the community is grateful that it has come back as its livewire.

Hear him: “the Nigerian Paper Mill was the livewire of the people but when it collapsed the progress of the people and the town went down. But we thank God for what we are today because of the Jebba Paper Mills that came out to help the people of Jebba. But what

we have been hearing is that the Jebba Paper Mills needs assistance from the Federal Government. To help the Jebba Paper Mills to progress, Federal Government must do something to help them in their needs.”

The mill, which has three paper making machines with the capacity of producing a total of 16,000 tonnes per month and 192,000 tonnes yearly, is currently under- utilized due to numerous challenges that the firm is grappling with.

Ordinarily, the firm had targeted N12billion investment but it has now completed phase 1 with N3billion.

It has modernized the mill and upgraded the technology as it is now driven and controlled by electronic and computer.

Exactly which assistance does the firm want? Power supply is topmost on the list of the firm’s priority as the company is currently grappling with inadequate and uninterrupted power supply to operate the plants.

For instance, the JPM has a generator plant that can only be fueled by Low Pulp Fuel Oil (LPFO) “the quantity of LPFO used on a daily basis to generate 22 mega watts is 150,000 litres per day. Conservative prices of LPFO at present is between N80 to N90 per litre”, said Jha. He however explained that all the mill needs for quality and uninterrupted power supply is for the PHCN to connect the mill with a separate line from the Jebba Generating and Transmission Station, which is nearby.

The Asiwaju of Jebba, Chief James Babatunde, who confirmed the company’s claim on employment said: “We want to put it on record that the Jebba Paper Mill has been performing well since they started production and therefore we want you to help us influence the government to give them necessary encouragement.”

Business Diary

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

VOL 1 NO. 018

J

UICE drink market in this country is worth well over N4bn annually in value terms! That sounds interesting. But as we always say on this page, we are prima-

rily concerned with consumer satisfaction.

Following, is our appreciation of sales offer based on sincerity, credibility and reasonable profitability. So much as we would like to build a consumer population that is wholly satisfied and happy on the basis of RETURN ON purchase INVESTMENT (ROI), we also like to see a position of equilibrium between buyer and seller satisfaction. Both sides must be happy. Let's face it, what would life have been without sellers? Imagine the need for any particular product you can think of, without a supply source.

Or even a situation of absolute monopoly; all sorts will manifest. There wouldn't have been the luxury of questioning product and value-essence not to mention branding.

So we like to appreciate investors for their time, energy, resources and industry.

However, the basic ingredient instrumental in the efficient co-relation between buyer and seller is satisfaction, especially within the context of return on investment, with a bias for consumers, predominantly. Satisfaction within that context therefore, will bother on either rational or emotional benefits.

We like to appreciate the place and importance of SINGLEMINDED PROPOSITION in brand positioning; it distinctively says what the brand stands for. It forms the single most important thing to say for and about any given brand.

It is very important to run through the process of brand advertising as above, for the sake of students preparing for practice of advertising and marketing communication. The industry yearns for proper training. We are committed to passing on some of the vital learning we were opportune to have had from our highly competent senior practitioners and industry doyens.

The other reason for this professional analysis, however, is the need to enlighten non-professionals and consumers generally, on those behind the scene elements that are brought to play in brand offering. In all of these, the underlying principle is sincerity/credibility. For any brand to succeed, it must be sure to deliver on its promise.

But there is another tricky aspect to this consideration; how do your judge a brand on the basis of its promise versus its efficiency at delivering on such promise when the need to be satisfied is basically emotional? Take for instance, the consumption of beer. What could be the tangible reason for brand preference other than perceived emotional satisfaction? That is the reason some consumers will drink any cold beer (strictly emotional satisfaction).

Compare that to the challenge of choosing between alternatives within the pharmaceutical products category: you will not engage a pain-killer in place of an anti-biotic product because the reason for each is as distinctly different as day and night.

To the extent that the sincerity of a brand in relation to its promise and ability to deliver on such promise is not expressly tangible, what happens is that such offerings are often times economic with the truth! How do you judge an alcoholic beverage that promises to make you 'the real man' by such promise? In same vein, how would one judge the effectiveness of a beer brand by it's of being a complement of the SHINE SHINE BOBO? What changes after consumption, beyond being 'under-the-influence?' Some alcoholic beverage users will claim to be loyal to a particular brand (for instance) because of their experience of such brands, but it is all delusion based on the individual value touch-point, set as a result of image perception.

We hold, therefore, that the responsibility for brands' sincerity rest on the brand owner. There was an airline brand in this country that promised direct flight between Lagos and New York (nothing in between). It was a clearly quantifiable value offer within the consideration of emotion.

Though such brand offer is based on emotion, it was clearly positioned/sold on the basis of direct flight to destination no stop-over.

Such is what we crave for when we look at the JUICE brands in our market!

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SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

FRUIT JUICE ...What if we say NO?

How much do you know about that juice brand you buy?

Predominantly, the decision to buy among target consumers of juice drink brands in this market is based emotional consideration. Therefore, most of the juice brands make all sorts of claims. They succeed in their marketing objectives, because the target consumer is, in addition, not discerning.

There-in lays our focus for this week: consumers need to find out more about the juice brand they buy!

Broadly speaking, juice drink market is categorized into fruit juice and flavored juice. While the fruit juice is presumably derived from natural fruit, the other is a combination of additives/sweeteners and minimally inconsequential amount of fruit, with largely dominant ratio of additives. The general assumption is that both categories exist as same in purpose and consumer expectation.

However, the very important distinction between both juice drink categories is that one is a product of natural fruit while the other is predominantly a mix of flavors (and other additives to achieve appealing taste).

To all intent and purpose, there are no inherent danger in the use of either category, both categories. The problem, however, is that advertising for these brands are not expressly sincere about their constituents and categorization. A lot of consumers are deliberately made to mistake flavored juice for fruit juice. Not much is known among majority of consumers, about this market, to make informed judgment.

A structured survey of this market in consideration of consumer traits and habits (with special focus on buying pattern), establishes that most consumers of juice drinks do not know the difference between fruit and flavored juice. Add to that is the fact that majority of consumers do not bother to read the product packs for constituents. In most cases, therefore, brand loyalty is near-zero, because all juice drinks are fruit juice to the average consumer.

Consequent upon this lack of consumer discernment, therefore, all sorts are offered to the public as fruit juice (I

am yet to see that brand that expressly and boldly positions as nectar or flavored juice within the premium brand segment). It is all blurred and veiled perception.

But we know that the intention of many consumers is to buy juice made from natural fruit, because the belief is that nutrients identified with natural fruit are present in those juice drinks. This perception is borne out derived lifestyle based on predominantly false claim (brand positioning/advertising).

Therefore consumers must begin to ask: •Which are the truly fruit juice brands in the market?

•Within the category of fruit juice, how much of their contents are truly of natural fruits?

•What are those other constituents of such brands?

•What is the difference between fruit juice and flavored juice?

Beyond immediate consumer expectation, pricing is another strong reason for this distinction. One expects the cost of producing juice drink from natural fruit to surpass the cost of producing flavored juice. Therefore, the unassuming consumer should not be made to pay for flavored juice when the intention is to buy fruit drinks.

The brand offering in this product category needs to be more explicit to guide consumer purchase decision.

So we ask what if we say NO to deceptive advertising messages. The consumer will be better for it. So, let's keep asking questions.

QUICK NOTES 1. Our series on Outdoor Advertising practice continues next week (there is a whole lot to talk about) 2. MC&A DIGEST is a brand extension of MARKESTRIDES COMMUNICATIONS, practitioners in advertising and marketing communication. We are open for consultancy and service delivery.

We are focused on building a population of discerning consumers, free of abuse and compromises, for the good of all.

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Business

Alleged plot to remove FIRS boss uncovered

T

HE Executive Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service, (FIRS), Mrs. Ifueko Omoigui-Okauru may be sacked, it was learnt.

Last week when the kite was flown that Omoigui-Okauru had been sacked from office, two years to the termination of her appointment as chairman of the FIRS, Abuja became abuzz with the possible reason(s) for her hasty removal.

According to informed sources, the “Tax Lady”, as she is called, was about to be kicked out of office because the President was under pressure to appoint politicians who helped him win the 2011 election to lucrative positions.

However, initial inquiries by The Nation at the FIRS headquarters indicated that the lady was still in office and had not been sacked but investigation around Abuja and among government officials alleged that such a plan was in the offing.

A highly placed source confirmed to The Nation that: “A prominent figure being pedaled to take over Omoigui-Okauru’s job was a former governor and senator from North-west Nigeria. It was suggested that the politician along with others are being groomed to take over strategic parastatals and agencies of government if they do not make the ministerial list.

“The interest in appointing politicians to these parastatals instead of seasoned technocrats is predicated on a number of perceived factors among which are to reward politicians who

From Nduka Chiejina (Assistant Editor), Abuja “delivered” to President Goodluck Jonathan’s victory.

These politicians in turn are expected to use their appointments to serve the federal character and ultimately favour supporters and acolytes.”

On the other hand chairperson there are different arguments for and against the removal and retention of Mrs. Ifueko Omoigui-Okauru as chairman of the FIRS. The arguments against her retention are predicated on the fact that she became chairman of FIRS in 2004 and if the two term mantra is to hold her tenure would elapse next year.

But those in support of her stay as chairman of the FIRS argue that she became substantive chairman after her confirmation by the Senate in 2009 after the passage of the FIRS act.

Abayomi Adelaja, a chartered accountant and tax consultant in Abuja, told The Nation that he as a professional would rather have a technocrat like Omoigui-Okauru run the FIRS than have a politician “mess up the place.”

However, he believes that “President Goodluck Jonathan is caught between a rock and a hard place because whether he likes it or not he has to reward those who worked for his success at the polls with juicy appointments.”

Whatever argument the president chooses to accept and not withstanding whoever takes

over from Omoiui-Okauru as chairman of FIRS, the challenge pertaining to the sheer amount of revenue required to address some of the developmental challenges that confront Nigeria today is huge.

Whilst it has been recognized that government alone cannot fund the developmental requirements (Private-Public Partnerships and Financial Institutional involvement will also be sorely required), there is still much that Government can do in growing Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) and attempts will be made to suggest how the country can improve on the machinery for improving IGR. Under her headship of the FIRS, the service in 2010 surpassed its targets and recorded many landmark achievements.

In 2010, approval was given for the National Tax Policy by the Federal Executive Council and the National Economic Council.

This was the first time Nigeria

•Mrs. Ifueko Omoigui-Okauru

as a country was putting out a formal document as its policy on taxation and laying a foundation for the development of the Nigerian tax system at all levels.

In 2010, the Tax Appeal Tribunals were inaugurated by the then Minister of Finance and created a formal administrative appeal process for aggrieved tax-

payers for the first time since the passage of the FIRS (Establishment) Act in 2007.

Last year, the FIRS played a leading role in the African Tax Administrations Forum (ATAF) leading to the signing of the ATAF Articles of Association. This in turn led to the signing of a cooperation agreement with South Africa and other African countries.

Under Omoigui Okauru, the FIRS announced that the Service took an important step towards automation of its operations by obtaining several approvals for various landmark projects including the Unique Taxpayer Identification (UTIN) Project, which the service is carrying out in collaboration with State and Local Governments under the auspices of the Joint Tax Board to develop for the first time a national taxpayer database and the Integrated Tax Administration System (ITAS) Project, which is probably the most ambitious project to be undertaken in the history of the FIRS.

Chevron, GTBank, others in race for CSR award

A

S the count down to the 2011 Social Enterprise Report and Awards (SERAs) reaches a critical point TruContact Ltd, organisers of the award have received over sixty entries in response to the call for entries placed in the print and electronic media.

Among the brands that beat the deadline of May 27, 2011 are: Procter & Gamble, Shell, Promasidor, BATN, Chevron, FCMB, GTBank, and Unicem with more entries still coming in.

For the Fifth year running, TruContact Ltd, in collaboration with Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and the Standards Organization of Nigeria (SON), has successfully implemented the annual Nigeria Social Enterprise Report and Awards (The SERAs) designed to promote corporate sustainability and responsibility in Nigeria and thereby contribute to social and economic development of Nigeria.

The project substantiates the case that corporations that are socially responsible stand to gain huge benefits – the triple bottom line – economic, social and environmental capital.

The entries so far received for the SERAs 2011 cover projects in thirty states of the federation. For verification purposes, an independent team of investigators will visit cited project sites from July 11, 2011

By Abdullahi Inapeh Yusuf and interview direct beneficiaries and stakeholders.

Subsequently, a panel of judges made up of distinguished Nigerians will examine the entries in the light of the field reports and the corporate entries in making the final selections.

On the entries so far received, Managing Partner of TruContact, Ken Egbas, said: “I am truly excited about the quality of entries we have received for the SERAs 2011; we also have many companies taking part for the first time. We are beginning to see the gap between companies reducing considering the fact that this is still the fifth season of the project, I am really happy.”

Tagged: ‘Leading Change: Building Competitive and Green Brands’, the event is scheduled for September 30, 2011 at the Shell Hall, Muson Centre, Onikan, Lagos.

The annual SERA project is made up of two components: an annual report - a compendium of best practices, highlighting the innovative ways that corporate organizations continue to engage with the people and the communities where they do business - and a grand award ceremony which brings together in one room, the stakeholders of SERA. Both serve to rivet public attention on CSR best practices in Nigeria.

•Sweet Sensation’s Bode Thomas, Surulere outlet manager, Victor Igbape, presenting a gift to a winner and her mother at Sweet Sensation Surulere outlet during the just concluded Children’s Day celebration. With them are the compere of the event (second right) and a marketing staff of the eatery, Adeola Oduduwa

FLP blames low productivity of Nigerians on poor health

M

R. Cornelius Olanrewaju Tay, Managing Director of Forever Living Products (FLP) Limited, Nigeria and Benin Republic, says poor health conditions undermine workers’ productivity levels and as a consequence negatively impact the economy.

He, therefore, challenges Nigerians to take responsibility for their personal health and imbibe good health habits that ensure longevity and enhance their productivity.

Mr. Tay said this while presenting a paper, Healthy Living, Productivity and Prosperity, during a Workshop on Effective Service Delivery for personnel of the Deputy Governor’s Office at Hotel Presidential, Port Harcourt.

According to him,

“Nutritional medicine and nondrug therapies enable us to take responsibility for our own health,” advising them to “find the optimum nutritional supplements and products, including lifestyle that will reprogramme your complex biological ecosystem,” stressing the importance of exercise, watching their weight and meditation.

Mr. Tay, an Integrated Marketing Communications, Social Marketing and Wellness Consultant, with 36 years experience in varied products and project categories as a registered consultant for major international organizations and foremost Nigerian companies, disclosed that FLP, currently operating in 148 countries, is harnessing the power of nature to help people.

He observed that FLP, a

successful company with over $3billion annual sales, produces over 200 natural products all helping millions all over the world to enjoy excellent health and fulfilling lifestyle and is currently the number one grower of Aloe Vera in the world and the only manufacturer of patented stabilized Aloe Vera Gel. He declared that FLP has created a unique and powerful family of products that bring the remarkable, healing properties of Aloe Vera and the beehive to the entire body, adding that the company is committed to helping people across the globe achieve the World Health Organization (WHO) definition of health which is “a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of infirmity.”

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

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Politics

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

‘Agagu is the problem with Ondo PDP’ Barrister Benson Enikuomehin is the Resident Commissioner representing Ondo State on the Board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC). He spoke with newsmen last week on why Ondo PDP is fumbling and the NDDC’s ongoing projects. Vincent Nzemeke reports

L

ET’S start with a review of recent political developments in the nation?

Well, to start with, President Goodluck Jonathan has been given the mandate to lead Nigeria. He is from Bayelsa State, the smallest in Nigeria and from a minority tribe.

What Nigerians did in April is a confirmation that no matter where you come from, if God destines you to be at the top, you will get there. And it shows we have broken away from the politics of zoning and tribal hegemony.

In Ondo State, the PDP house was collapsing and we did not do anything about it. The party was drifting and divided. We were busy playing against ourselves, fighting ourselves. We had political gangsters who hijacked the party for destabilisation. We saw some of these and I thought we would remedy the situation. But rather, Agagu was on one side, Dairo was on another. We were working at cross-pur-

poses and I am not surprised, we failed woefully. We had a one-man party. Agagu this, Agagu that. If he is not governor, he must be minister.

If he is not a minister, he must be a senator. If it is not him, then it must be his younger brother as Chief of Staff. The party is not for just a person. Can a general fight a war without a troop? Just one bullet will finish him.

Are you saying Agagu is the problem with Ondo PDP? Absolutely. Since he hijacked the party, we have not won any election in the state. We lost all the rerun elections, beaten black and blue.

In April, we lost so badly that we were bleeding. The Labour Party (LP) has proven it is the party on ground but what we have is someone who is busy gallivanting, boasting he is the father of all. He sees everyone as a conquered territory.

Rather than initiate true reconciliation, Agagu is busy fighting everybody.

So, you are clamouring for reconciliation?

Things are beyond reconciliations now. Some dead woods must be removed. Agagu must go. He must leave the scene completely. He is a wounded solider that should go for rehabilitation. He should leave the battle front. He should be on rehabilitation and we can consult them politically and say ‘sir, you got wounded. How did it happen?’

He should be recuperating politically.

But some PDP candidates are contesting LP victories at the polls.

Could it be LP manipulated the process?

That is totally untrue. I belong to the PDP but I know LP deserved to win. Governor Segun Mimiko knew us inside out. He was with us. He knew all our strategies. He knew we could only balloon the ball and cannot play underground. So, he just studied us and made a mess of us.

Those who are going to courts should go. We would see how far they can go.

Being a former minister and governor shouldn’t Agagu naturally be the leader of the party in Ondo State?

The truth is no tree can make a forest. What makes the lion the king is not because it is the strongest but because they flock together to pursue their preys. There is not only a lion in Ondo PDP. There are several others in the party. As the secretary of the caucus meeting in the party, I observed Agagu would be the only one talking and dishing out orders.

If you confront him, you are in soup.

Some of us could not stomach it and

•Enikuomehin

left. I left for my legal practice because I am a proud lawyer. What I am doing today in the NDDC if I realise there is something trying to mess me up, I will leave. I have told people I don’t want a second term and that is the truth. I will get back to my profession and work.

I agree experience is good but if it is archaic then let’s do away with it for goodness sake. There are genuine young men coming up who know how to stoop to conquer. God

forbid assuming the man were dead, won’t the party continue? A best actor leaves the stage while the ovation is loudest. If you are still dancing after everybody has left the arena, then you must be insane. In 2002, I was a member of the 15-man committee that traversed the length and breath of Ondo to bring Agagu in. He can’t deny that. The fifteen of us have since left him. No one is left. There must be something wrong if everybody is wrong and you are the only one right.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

News

65

•Ali after being caught by the Police with the human skulls on display

Human skull business booms in Taraba T

WENTYFIVE-year old Umaru Hamadu, until the fateful day of arrest by the Nigerian Police, had six human skulls ready for sale. The buyer, Umaru Usman Ali, 29 was waiting patiently for him to deliver the product.

The academic economic forces of ‘Channels of Distribution’ in trade also ring true in the evil business. So, while Hamadu is the producer, Ali, is an agent who searches for prospective customers. He profiteers as he bargains with the clientele.

Thus, after arranging with a customer, Ali had gone to Hamadu to collect the goods (skulls) when police led by Cpl. Ben Sunday, on a tip off, emerged and arrested him.

The producer – Hamadu brought out a single barrel gun and fired at the policemen. There was exchange of fire and Hamadu was shot in the leg and arrested. He, however, died while receiving medical treatment.

Ali and the late Hamadu were arrested at Nbosung Village in Zing Local Government Area of Taraba State. “Ali hails from Yorro Local Government Area.

The Police Commissioner, Chintua Amajor Onu confirmed the development to The Nation.

Although, Hamadu is now late, the State Police Command at the weekend paraded Ali with the six human skulls.

Another dealer in human skulls is 22-year old Thomas Aondowase of Bali Local Government Area. Cpl John Ogale Aondowase was able to apprehend him at Dan-Anacha market with one human skull and a human tongue while selling the products.

When paraded, the suspect told The Nation that he inherited the

From Fanen Ihyongo, Jalingo

skull and the tongue from his late uncle who he named as Terseer Gaga who died in 2005. But a close scrutiny showed that the tongue was fresh, not stored for six years as claimed by the suspect.

Of what uses are human skulls, and where could they be obtained? Investigations revealed several sources and their uses.

It was gathered that some suppliers patronise cemeteries or graveyards where they exhume and behead already buried bodies.

When the head is gotten, other organs could be removed and used for other purposes while the skull would be preserved.

One Mohammed, 19, who was arrested some time ago with his mother’s head, confessed they find it easier to exhume corpses that were buried without coffins and the grave not strongly built. He gave particular reference to the North, where Muslims bury their dead ones without casket.

Mohammed’s mother had died and was buried by afternoon in the backyard. That very night he dug the grave and exhumed his mother and beheaded her. His uncle got up in the morning and suspected that the grave was tampered with.

But he did not know exactly what had happened.

In a quest to make quick money, he wrapped the head and took off to Gombe State for its sale, some 350km from Garba Chede, Taraba State. But luck eluded him. The commercial bus conveying him was stopped at Mutum-Biyu by policemen manning a roadblock who demanded a N20 denomination from the drive. The driver was asked to park for a check when he refused to ‘understand’ with the police. At this time, an inpatient

and threatened Mohammed reached out from his pocket and threw N100 at the police to exit them. But the suspecting police insisted on checking the passengers.

And behold, Mohammed was caught with the head of his own mother. Some of the passengers who had attended the burial identified it was the head of the woman they buried the previous day. The culprit was arrested and taken to the Jalingo Police Command.

Another way to obtain a human skull, sources said, is to simply kill somebody and behead the lifeless body. Yet, some heads must be obtained by beheading a person while he is alive, with cutlass.

A fresh head, particularly the one with blood still oozing out, is said to be the most expensive. Other organs like the eyes, ears and tongue are first removed for various ritual purposes when a human head is freshly gotten, There are several ways of removing the skull. One way is said to be by burying the head (after the other organs are removed) in a swamp soil to completely remove the remaining parts covering the skull. The skull is the bony case that encloses the brain. It is scientifically called the cranium.

So, of what use is the human skull to these dealers? It was gathered that the human skull, like other vital organs, is used for magical powers and magical rituals. A herbalist who spoke under anonymity said: “The history of a skull –whether it is of an infant, young or old woman or man is necessary.” He said some fetish acts require skulls of people who just died while other acts require skulls of people who had died over many years ago.

The source said war lords or militia leaders drink from the skull for magical powers. It is believed

that whenever they drink from the skull, they get ‘covered’ and become so powerful that nothing physical or spiritual can harm them –not even a bullet can penetrate their mortal body. Such a skull must be of an old man. But before then, certain cultic initiations are carried out. If an ordinary person drinks in the skull, he or she would take ill, because they are not initiated in the industry.

For other magical operations – that manipulate aspects of reality, such as turning things into other forms, like sand into rice or other manipulations, the skull of a young man or woman is used.

The head of a baby is said to be used for protection against spiritual attacks. “If you do it and another person wants to harm you spiritually, it will not work because the baby does not know any bad or good. Even a gun cannot trigger when pointed at you if you do this ritual”, another source said.

He said the magic works in such a way that anybody older than the baby used cannot harm you. The repercussion however, the source noted, is that when you use a baby, for instance of three months old to perform the act, you cannot hold any baby aged three months and below. “Because, since the baby has become your protection, any offensive thing the boy or girl does to you could lead to your dead.

“That is why anybody who has done that does not hold or play with a baby of similar age, even his own child. You can see some politicians who indulge in the fetish act do not carry their babies until they grow older than the victims used,” he said.

A complete human head, sources said, is more expensive than a skull. Then a very fresh human head, particularly the one

whose blood is still oozing out, is more costly than the one preserved for some time. A fresh head, sources said, could go for as high as N1million to N2million depending on the urgency placed by the customer.

For a skull, it cost from N90, 000 to N400,000, depending also on the urgency, wealth status of the customer and the brokers involved in the transaction. He said desperate politicians and strangers pay higher than the agents and their regular clients. He added that some politicians use human heads to win elections and to maintain their appointments.

He stated further: “Other individuals from various walks of life, who belong to secret societies, too use human skulls for ritual acts to protect their positions and or get quick promotions to acquire more wealth. Not that a ritual act involving human skulls or other organs can directly give you money. Some human parts are used in baking charms for various financial purposes.”

For suppliers, sources revealed that there are big time dealers who specialize in both buying and reselling or who have employed a killer or seeker group that kills and beheads victims or exhumes skulls from cemeteries and other sources.

Police said it is unlawful to be in possession of a human skull, because it is believed somebody may have been killed in the process. So, if you are caught in the act, you will be arrested and tried in the court of law and appropriately punished if found guilty.

The human skull business is thriving in Taraba like in most Nigerian cities, in recent time. Police said they are poised to crackdown on the crime. Ali and Aondowase are already awaiting trial.

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Foreign

Former Zambian President Frederick Chiluba dies F REDERICK Chiluba, Zambia’s first democratically elected president who became increasingly autocratic during his decade in office, died yesterday. He was 68.

Chiluba, president from November 1991 to January 2002, suffered from heart problems.

The son of a copper miner and former trade union leader, Chiluba took office after 27 years of one-party rule by Kenneth Kaunda. Hailed as “the black Moses” and “the liberator” by his supporters, he vowed to introduce political freedoms and replace Kaunda’s debt-ridden, centrally planned economy with a free market.

At first, Chiluba expanded civil and political rights and Zambia was seen as a model of democracy on a troubled continent. But eventually he slipped into Kaunda’s methods of suppressing opposition and he was dogged by corruption allegations into his retirement.

He declared a state of emergency in 1997 after a failed coup and subsequently detained Kaunda — whom he accused of being behind the plot — under house arrest. Chiluba was unapologetic after Kaunda was shot and wounded by government forces during demonstrations the same year and escaped an assassination attempt in 1999.

•The late Chiluba

Chiluba’s antipathy toward Zambia’s founding father stemmed from being imprisoned without charges in 1981 for allegedly organizing strikes to weaken the government. In prison, Chiluba became a born-again Christian and peppered his speeches with biblical references.

Chiluba barred the charismatic Kaunda from running again for president in 1996 by saying that his Malawian origins disqualified him. The opposition boycotted the poll as Chiluba’s Movement for Multiparty Democracy was elected for a second term.

He left office only reluctantly.

After repeated promises to retire when his term ended, he flirted with changing the constitution to enable a run for a third five-year term. The move angered many Zambians who cherished their relatively new democracy and he was forced to back down.

In his bid to free up copperrich Zambia’s economy, Chiluba slashed import duties and abolished currency controls. He sold state owned enterprises to private buyers, many of them from Europe or South Africa.

But the measures failed to improve the lot of the vast majority of Zambia’s 13 million people, who remained mired in abject poverty.

The extent of the corruption

Saudi beheads Indonesian woman convicted of murder

Obama ‘overruled lawyers’ in Libya war debate

P

RESIDENT Barack Obama overruled two senior government lawyers in deciding that he had the authority to continue US military operations in Libya without Congressional approval, The New York Times has reported.

In reaching his conclusion Obama rejected the opinions of Jeh Johnson, the Pentagon general counsel, and Caroline Krass, the acting head of the Justice Department?s Office of Legal

Counsel, The Times reported late Friday, citing unnamed officials familiar with the deliberations.

Johnson and Krass both told the White House they believed that US military activity in the NATO-led air war over Libya amounted to “hostilities.”

Under the 1973 War Powers Resolution (WPR), a president has 60 days to get authorization from Congress — which under the US constitution has the authority to declare war — for a

•Balinese people walk on a wood bridge at Ulun danu temple Beratan during the Panca Bali Krama ceremony in Tabanan on the island of Bali yesterday.

The Panca Bali Krama ceremony, a large putifiction ceremony, will peak on AFP PHOTO/SONNY TUMBELAKA June 21.

military deployment. Failing that, the Resolution sets a further 30 days to withdraw US forces from harm’s way.

Obama however agreed with two other top government lawyers — White House counsel Robert Bauer and State Department legal adviser Harold Koh — who said the US military •Obama action in Libya did not amount to “hostilities” because it was in a support role.

The White House said it would not comment on the Times report, but spokesman Eric Schultz described the deliberations as “a robust process.”

The WPR “has been subject to intense debate since it was first enacted in 1973, and even critics of the administration’s position concede the legitimacy of different points of view,” said Schultz, adding that “there was a full airing of views within the administration.”

He said the White House would not discuss the internal process in which Obama receives legal advice, but said: “It should come as no surprise that there would be some disagreements, even within an administration, regarding the application of a statute that is nearly 40 years old to a unique and evolving conflict.”

Reports of internal disagreements, despite being downplayed by the White House, are certain to fuel the building political row in Washington over the US role in NATO’s Libya mission, and claims in Congress that the president overstepped his powers in ordering the conflict.

That Obama is reported to have overruled a top Pentagon

became apparent after Chiluba left office and handed over to his hand-picked successor Levy Mwanawasa.

In 2009, a magistrate acquitted Chiluba of corruption charges after a six-year trial.

Chiluba had been accused of diverting nearly $500,000 of state money for his own use. The judge ruled that the funds could not be traced to government coffers.

Several people close to Chiluba — including his wife — were convicted earlier on related charges. Chiluba had claimed to be the victim of a political witch hunt backed by Britain, Zambia’s former colonial ruler.

In 2007 in a London High Court civil case, a judge ruled that Chiluba was guilty of stealing $46 million from Zambian state coffers during his years in office.

Zambian prosecutors had pursued the case in British courts because some of the money was allegedly laundered through British banks.

The British judge ordered Chiluba to pay back 85 percent of the money, and in his ruling painted a picture of a decadent ruler who spent taxpayer funds on expensive suits and shoes while most Zambians lived in poverty. Chiluba appealed and the High Court decision had to be registered in Zambia, a lengthy process, before any enforcement.

A

lawyer will also likely add to speculation of differences of approach on some national security issues between the White House and the Defense Department — key figures including Defense Secretary Robert Gates were seen as skeptical of US intervention in Libya from the outset.

The White House on Wednesday made their case for participating in the NATO-led assault on Moamer Kadhafi’s forces in a 30-page report to lawmakers.

The document was compiled after Republican House Speaker John Boehner sent a scathing letter to the president warning that US operations would be illegal come Sunday because they lacked formal congressional approval.

“US forces are playing a constrained and supporting role in a multinational coalition,” the White House report said, noting that the use of force was being used solely to protect civilians, enforce a no-fly zone and an arms embargo.

A senior administration official added: “we are not engaged in any of the activities that typically over the years in war powers analysis has been considered to constitute hostilities within the meaning of the statute.”

N Indonesian woman was beheaded by the sword yesterday after being convicted of murdering a Saudi woman, the interior ministry said.

The woman named Roiaiti Beth Sabotti Sarona, according to a transliteration from Arabic, was found guilty of killing Saudi Khairiya bint Hamid Mijlid by striking her repeatedly on the head with a meat chopper and stabbing her in the neck, the ministry said in a statement carried by the official SPA news agency.

The ministry did not elaborate on the motives of the crime, nor it did disclose the relation between the two women. But Indonesian officials say that around 70 percent of the 1.2 million Indonesians working in Saudi Arabia are domestic staff.

The beheading in the western province of Mecca brings the number of executions in the ultraconservative kingdom this year to 28, according to an AFP tally based on official and human rights group reports.

London-based watchdog Amnesty International called on Saudi Arabia last week to stop applying the death penalty, saying there had been a significant rise in the number of executions carried out over the past six weeks.

It said at least 27 people have been executed in Saudi Arabia in 2011, “the same as the total number of people executed in the whole of 2010. Fifteen people were executed in May alone.”

In 2009, the number of executions reached 67, compared to 102 in 2008.

Rape, murder, apostasy, armed robbery and drug trafficking are all punishable by death under Saudi Arabia’s strict interpretation of Islamic sharia law.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Foreign

67

Syria forces storm border town near Turkey S YRIAN troops and gunmen loyal to President Bashar alAssad stormed a town near the Turkish border yesterday, burning houses and arresting dozens, witnesses said, in a persistent military campaign to crush popular revolt.

The latest assault followed another Friday of protests, which have grown in size and scope over the last three months, despite Assad’s violent clampdown on public dissent. Activists said security forces shot dead 19 protesters on Friday.

“They came at 7 a.m. to Bdama.

I counted nine tanks, 10 armored carriers, 20 jeeps and 10 buses. I saw shabbiha (pro-Assad gunmen) setting fire to two houses,” said Saria Hammouda, a lawyer living in the border town, in the Jisr al-Shughour region, where thousands of Syrians had fled to nearby Turkey after the army clamped down on the area earlier in the month.

Bdama is one of the nerve centers providing food and supplies to several thousand other Syrians who have escaped the violence from frontier villages but chose to take shelter temporarily in fields on the Syrian side of the boundary.

“Bdama’s residents don’t dare take bread to the refugees and the refugees are fearful of arrests if they go into Bdama for food,” Rami Abdulrahman of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told Reuters.

Another witness said government troops were also burning crops near hillsides in an apparent scorched earth policy.

European powers initiated a detente with Assad prior to the street unrest to try to draw the authoritarian Syrian leader, whose family has dominated Syria for 41 years, away from Iran and also stabilize Lebanon.

But they now say Damascus should face tougher sanctions over the violence against demonstrators seeking more political freedoms and an end to corruption, the impunity of political leaders and their allies, and poverty.

Syrian rights groups say at least 1,300 civilians have been killed and 10,000 people detained since March.

Tens of thousands rallied across Syria on Friday, defying Assad’s repression and ignoring a pledge that his tycoon cousin Rami Makhlouf, a symbol of corruption among the elite, would renounce his business empire and channel his wealth to charity.

Witnesses and activists said people rallied in the southern province of Deraa where the revolt began, as well as in the Kurdish northeast, the province of Deir alZor, which borders Iraq’s Sunni heartland, the city of Hama north of Damascus, the Mediterranean coast and suburbs of the capital itself.

“The security grip is weakening because the protests are growing in numbers and spreading.

More people are risking their lives to demonstrate. The Syrian people realize that this is an opportunity for liberty that comes once in hundreds of years,” opposition figure Walid al-Bunni told Reuters from Damascus.

The worst bloodshed on Friday was in Homs, a merchant city of 1 million people in central Syria, where the Local Coordination Committees, a main activist group linked to protesters, said 10 demonstrators were killed.

•A Syrian refugee child plays yesterday in the Boynuyogun Turkish Red Crescent camp in the Altinozu district of Hatay, near the Syrian border. Some 10,000 Syrians have crossed the border into Turkey to escape bloody unrest in their country.

AFP PHOTO / MUSTAFA OZER

State television said a policeman was killed by gunmen.

One protester was also reported killed in the northern commercial hub of Aleppo, the first to die there in the unrest.

The state news agency SANA said nine people, including civilians and police, were killed in attacks by gunmen.

The Syrian government has barred most international journalists from the country, making it difficult to verify accounts from activists and officials.

Syrian authorities blame the violence on “armed terrorist groups” and Islamists, backed by foreign powers.

Two towns on the main Damascus-Aleppo highway north of Homs were also encircled by

troops and tanks, residents said, five days after the army retook Jisr al-Shughour, sending thousands fleeing across the border into Turkey.

Refugees from the northwestern region said troops and gunmen loyal to Assad known as “shabbiha” were pressing on with a scorched earthed campaign in the hill farm area by burning crops, ransacking houses and shooting randomly.

The International Federation for Human Rights and the U.S. based Damascus Center for Human Rights Studies said in a statement that, according to local sources, Syrian forces had killed more than 130 people and arrested over 2,000 in Jisr alShughour and surrounding vil-

lages over the last few days.

The number of refugees who have crossed over from Syria has reached 10,114, and another 10,000 were sheltering by the border just inside Syria, according to Turkish officials.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said more than 300 soldiers and police have also been killed.

Assad has responded to the unrest with a mix of military repression and political gestures aimed at placating protesters.

He has faced international condemnation over the bloodshed, and has seen the first signs of cracks in his security forces after a clash in Jisr al-Shughour earlier this month in which the government said 120 security personnel

were killed.

There have been no mass desertions from the military, but the loyalty of Sunni Muslim conscripts might waver if the crackdown on mainly Sunni protesters continues.

Assad’s family and many military commanders are members of the Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shi’ite Islam. In a spillover of the unrest into Lebanon, Sunni and Alawite gunmen clashed in the northern city of Tripoli and four people were killed.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, trying to break a deadlock over a proposed U.N. Security Council resolution to condemn Assad’s crackdown on protesters.

Russia and China dislike the idea of any Council judgment on Syria and have played little role in discussions on a draft resolution.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy said France and Germany had agreed to lobby for stronger sanctions against Syria for “unacceptable actions and repression” of demonstrators.

Meanwhile, the British Foreign office has urged British nationals in Syria to leave the country “immediately.”

In a statement posted on the website of the British Embassy in Syria, the Foreign Office says Britons should leave “now by commercial means whilst these are still operating.”

It says those who chose to remain in Syria should be aware that it’s highly unlikely that the British Embassy in Damascus would be able to provide a normal consular service in the event of a “further breakdown in law and order.”

Britain, France, Germany and Portugal are also sponsoring a draft resolution at the U.N. Security Council to condemn Syria.

Water cleanup system shut down at Japan nuke plant

A

SYSTEM to clean massive amounts of contaminated water at the site of Japan’s nuclear disaster was shut down yesterday, just hours after it began full operations, because a component filled with radioactivity much more quickly than expected.

Tokyo Electric Power Co., which operates the tsunami-hit Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant, is investigating the cause and isn’t sure when it will restart the system, company spokesman Junichi Matsumoto said.

Fresh water is being pumped in to cool damaged reactor cores, and is getting contaminated in the process. Some 105,000 tons of highly radioactive water have pooled across the plant, and could overflow within a couple of weeks if action is not taken.

In earlier tests, the water treatment system reduced cesium levels in the water to about one10,000th of their original levels.

The system began full operations Friday night after a series of problems involving leaks and valve flaws.

The system was suspended in early Saturday when workers detected a sharp radiation increase in the system’s cesium-absorbing component, Matsumoto said. Radioactivity in one of 24 cartridges, which was expected to last for a few weeks, had already reached its limit within five hours, he said.

Japan’s March 11 earthquake and tsunami knocked out power

to the nuclear plant, incapacitating its crucial cooling systems and causing three reactor cores to melt.

TEPCO aims to bring the reactors to a stable cold shutdown state by early January.

The water treatment system is to be eventually connected to a cooling system so the treated water can be reused. But treating the water will create an additional headache — tons of highly radioactive sludge will require a separate long-term storage space.

The Fukushima crisis shattered Japan’s confidence in the

safety of nuclear energy and prompted anti-nuclear sentiment.

But there are also concerns that Japan will face a serious summertime power crunch unless more of its reactors get back on line.

Of Japan’s 54 nuclear reactors, more than 30 — including six at Fukushima Dai-ichi and several others that stopped due to the quake — are out of operation.

Economy and Industry Minister Banri Kaieda said yesterday that the rest of the nuclear plants in Japan are safe and their reactors should resume operations as

soon as their ongoing regular checks are completed. He said nationwide inspections this week have found that Japanese nuclear power plants are now prepared for accidents as severe as the one that crippled Fukushima Dai-ichi.

Resumption of about a dozen reactors undergoing regular checkups is up in the air amid growing local residents’ fear of nuclear accidents. Many of the plants’ hometown officials have said restarting any pending reactors would be impossible amid the ongoing crisis.

South Korean troops shoot at civilian airliner by mistake

S

OUTH Korean Marines fired rifles at a South Korean commercial aircraft flying near the sea border with North Korea, thinking it was one of the communist North’s jet fighters, but they never hit their target, military sources said on Saturday.

The shooting illustrates the level of tension between the two Koreas, still technically at war after the 1950-53 Korean conflict ended in a truce rather than a peace treaty, which came close to all-out war last year.

A Marine Corps spokesman said two soldiers guarding an island on the waters off the South’s western city of Incheon fired their K-2 rifles for about 10 minutes at around 4 a.m. on Friday.

The plane was later identi-

fied as an Asiana Airlines Airbus A320 flying from China making its descent into Incheon, Seoul’s main airport.

A defense ministry source said the plane, carrying 119 passengers and crew, was undamaged as it was about 500 to 600 meters out of the range of the hand-held K-2 rifles.

Yonhap News Agency and other local media said the soldiers believed the plane was flying north of the normal air corridor. Asiana officials told the news agency the plane never left its scheduled course.

“We checked yesterday through the air force and the airport control center to make sure there were no abnormalities such as being off course,” Yonhap quoted a company offi-

cial as saying.

An airline official confirmed the plane was an Airbus A320 but made no other comment.

Yonhap and other news reports quoted Marine Corps officers as saying troops would undergo thorough training on how to identify civil aircraft.

Airlines will be asked to ensure their planes do not deviate from set courses.

The North denies responsibility in the sinking last March of a South Korean warship and says it was provoked in the second incident, the shelling of the South Korean island of Yeonpyeong after the South testfired shells into disputed waters.

The two attacks killed about 50 South Koreans.

68

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Worship

Living Faith

By David Oyedepo

You can access divine guidance! (3)

I

N a world where several forces compete and contend for a man’s attention, seeking to lead him, it has become imperative that we be able to identify which leading is of God and which is not.

One major characteristic of divine guidance is that it has its source in God. It is God’s revealed plan, and therefore, must be traceable to Him. Any guidance that does not have its source in God will lead to destruction. So, don’t go running with just anything you receive. Prove its veracity first. How do you determine the accuracy of the leading you have received? Let me show you how.

God’s Word: God’s Word is the surest tool for proving a vision. When you receive any guidance, first illuminate your spirit in God’s Word for a backing, before you step out in its pursuit. By so doing, you have the double assurance that it is from God, because God will only back up what He has said.

Jesus, the Son of God, was faced with this trick of the devil on the mountain of temptation (Matthew 4:1-11). The devil quoted scriptures to Him, but He was not moved. This was because He had the right scriptures to set the devil running.

Therefore, wisdom demands that before you start running with a leading or any word you have received, first subject it to biblical examinations. Check out its accuracy, sieve off the unwanted elements and hold on to the substance. If God’s Word could be subjected to testing (Psalm 12:6), then every vision you receive must be properly scrutinized also.

Identify the personality behind the voice: Another way of proving the vision or word you have received is by determining the personality behind the voice. This is because there are many voices all around seeking to grab man’s attention. Since divine guidance involves communication, it has become necessary to ascertain the personality behind the voice you have heard.

The peace of God: A key acid test for determining the voice of God is His peace. All God-given guidance is characterized by His peace that follows. Guidance and peace are covenant partners; so when you receive guidance and rest is driven away from you, then re-examine the guidance.

God’s voice ministers peace to whom it is sent (Psalm 85:8).

If peace is absent after a leading, then watch it; it must be the stranger hiding at a corner to rob you of what belongs to you.

When you are upset, it is the enemy planning to crash your destiny! However, for God to work in you, you must first be at rest (Exodus 14:14). If God must take over, then you must hold your peace.

Supernatural enablement: Everywhere God leads you, He provides supernatural enablement that empowers you to go on that way (Judges 6:14). Anything God leads you into doing, He gives you the matching strength to accomplish it. So, whenever you lack the might for an assignment, check whether it is God’s plan you are running or your own.

Supernatural favour: Another acid test is the favour of God, which always trails His plans. Every plan of God enjoys His good hand upon it, which provokes His favour from strange quarters.

The favour of God was what gave us the land upon which Canaan Land is built. This is because there are no human mechanics you can use to purchase 530 acres of land from the owners! God’s favour was at work; so everyone, including pagans and muslims excitedly sold us their land for building the house of God. What’s more, majority of them now worship with us! That is what happens when you are led by the Spirit of God! Pleasantness: When God is leading you, because His wisdom is also at work in you, He guides you in the paths of pleasantness (Proverbs 3:17). God’s way is the way of pleasantness; it is full of refreshing and it is tension-free (Psalm 23:2-3)!

Ascertain the content of the voice: The content of every leading must be scrutinized and verified. Get a good understanding of the content of whatever leading you have received, before you start running with it. God has no pleasure in your being confused; rather, He is excited at your being correctly directed. So, when you receive a leading, get back to God and ask for further illumination on the content.

I invite you to come and fellowship with us at the Faith Tabernacle, Canaan Land, Ota, the covenant home of Winners. Our midweek services hold on Wednesdays between 6 and 8 p.m. We have four services on Sundays. The first one holds between 6.30 and 8.15 a.m., the second between 8.25 a.m. and 10.10 a.m., the third between 10.20 a.m. and 12.05 p.m. and the fourth between 12.15 and 2.00 p.m. God bless you as you come!

Every exploit in life is a product of knowledge. For further reading, please get my books — In Pursuit Of Vision and Understanding Divine Direction.

I know this teaching has blessed you. Write and share your testimony with me through: BISHOP DAVID OYEDEPO, Faith Tabernacle, Canaan Land, Ota, P.M.B. 21688, Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria; or call 7747546-8; or E-mail: bishop@davidoyedepoministries.org

• Chairman, Western Region of the Christian Booksellers Association of Nigeria, (CBAN) Reverend S.T. Assiamah with other executive members of the association at the Chrisatian Book Fair 20011, held in Lagos, recently PHOTO: MIKE GOODNEWS

Clerics calls for peace among parties

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HE Cherubim and Seraphim (C&S) Church of Nigeria has called on the President and the 36 elected governors to set in motion reconcilable measures in various state so as to enjoy the cooperation of opposition parties.

The church stated this in a statement jointly signed by the church’s Executive Council Chairman, Dr. O. O. Sowande, and Secretary General, Senior Apostle Akin Owolabi last week in Lagos The church observed the just concluded elections truly reflected the overwhelming confidence and support of the great people of this country on

President Goodluck Jonathan administration.

A statement jointly signed by the church’s Executive Council Chairman, Dr. O. O. Sowande, and Secretary General, Senior Apostle Akin Owolabi, said the church wishes to congratulate President Jonathan on his election to steer the affairs of the nation for the next four years.

It observed that the just concluded election was well deserved and truly reflected the overwhelming confidence and support of the great people of this country on President Goodluck Jonathan administration.

It noted that the President

and other elected governors should see their victory as a further call to service to God and their fatherland. “We would enthrone justice, fairness and credible government made up of people of impeccable character and of good repute if political office holders rule in the fear of God and shun all act of corruption which has eaten deep into the social and moral fabrics of Nigeria”.

The Church also commended the INEC Chairman, Prof Attahiru Jega, and the staff of the commission for a job well done, said “Jega has shown Nigerians and the entire global community that

there are credible, incorruptible and God-fearing individuals in our country, in spite of the negative image being given to the country by a negligible number of her citizens”.

It applauded the spirit of good sportsmanship exhibited by those that lost at the gubernatorial polls in some states which is a welcome development that should be emulated by all and sundry. “The new governors, too, should set in motion reconciliatory measures in their various states so that their administrations could enjoy the cooperation of their political opponents,” the statement added.

‘How thousands were killed for translating Bible to English’

A

UNITED States based historian, Dr. Scot Carroll, has given a graphic description of how people lost their lives daring the translation of the Bible to English many years before the King James of England finally authorized its translation.

Carroll who was the guest speaker at the historic celebration of the KJV Bible in Lagos last Friday in Lagos said there are both empirical and cultural evidence to prove the authenticity of the Bible pointing out that the Christian faith is a faith that is founded on the Word of God. Giving an account of how the Bible evolved at the event which held at the headquarters of The Apostolic Church, Ketu, Carroll told a bewildered audience that many people were killed by the then church leaders for translating the Bible to English because English was considered to be a language of the commoners and the church leaders felt it was improper to translate the Bible to the language of the dregs of the society.

He said, “The Bible you have in your hand today is a product of divine grace because many people lost their lives in the course of history for making attempt to trans-

late the Bible. Some risked their lives for even carrying the Bible about.”

The guest speaker who holds a PhD in Ancient Studies and who speaks 13 ancient languages gave a graphic detail of how William Tyndale was arrested and killed for daring to translate the New Testament to English. He said, “The Bible did not come down by magic. It was God who protected His words through the ages and ensured that it was preserved for the present generation and the generation to come.

“William Tyndale who translated the New Testament to English was arrested in 1535 and condemned to death for no other crime but for daring to translate the Bible to English, the language of the common man. He was imprisoned and waiting for death for one full year. But that did not stop him from working on the translation.

“He still went ahead and took other books of the Bible and worked on them. In 1536 he was strangled and burnt at the stake. The way people were burnt was that balls of fire are used to surround them and they do it in such a way that the fire gets to them slowly till they are burnt com-

pletely. Several hundreds of people suffered similar faith for even holding the Bible. It was crime to circulate the Bible then” He said John Wycliffe had also suffered persecution for being the first person to translate the Bible to English though it was handwritten translation which was not published. But Tnydale is reputed to be the first person to translate and print.

“The KJV Bible is indebted to Tyndale translation. The original KJV drew heavily from the work of Tnydale about 83 percent of the KJV were lifted from Tyndale’s work.”

The professor of History said further the English Bible went through three stages, the Old English, the Middle English and the present English.

He said 300 years after Christ the Bible was being put together in the desert.

He then took the pain to explain all the antifacts that he brought from the US to the attentive audience describing how the Bible was written on dead sea scroll and some other ancient writing materials and how God had miraculously preserved these items over thousands of years.

At the two day conference,

artifacts dating back to the preJesus era were exhibited. The participants had the privilege of being the first set of people that would see such materials in the West Africa region.

Earlier the founder of West Africa Theological Seminary, Dr. Gary Maxey whose organization is collaborating with the Bible Society of Nigeria for the celebration told participants that Nigeria is better positioned to celebrate the Bible.

He said he was encouraged by the interest of the Bryd family also based in the US in Nigeria. “It was the Bryd family that inspired this celebration in Nigeria and we are grateful for them. We are also grateful to the Greene Family in the US who made available all the artifacts for exhibition here in Nigeria.”

Thousands of people from different denominations attended the ceremony including prominent church leaders.

Of note were the President of the Apostolic Church, Pastor Gabriel Olutola, General Overseer of Soul Winning Ministry, Dr. Moses Iloh, President of the Christ Apostolic Church, Pastor Oluseye, the Anglican Archbishop of Lagos, Rt. Rev Ephraim Ademowo and a host of others.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

Worship

Group donates, prays for orphans

H

UNDREDS of orphans last Saturday exuded unusual joy during a luncheon organised in their honour by Pray Care group, a faith-based Christian welfare organisation in Ota, Ogun State.

The orphans, drawn from two homes, danced exuberantly to gospel tunes and performed choreography much to the delight of guests.

The event was organised to commemorate the birthday ceremony of Mrs. Justina Arogundade, initiator of the project.

Arogundade said she was inspired to undertake the project by divine leading.

She said: ‘’I have two kids that I pray for almost everyday. While reading a

book during vacation in the US, I realised there are millions of children out there who do not have someone to pray or cater for them. ‘’I remembered how my husband and I escaped death by the whiskers last December and shuddered how we would have prayed and catered for our kids had we died’’.

These, she recounted, influenced her decision to bring orphans together for prayers and care.

Ministering at the event, Pastor Femi Ikusagba said giving is the highest form of living.

He appealed to Nigerians to let go of acquisitive tendencies and think of how to leave lasting legacies of hard work and integrity for generations yet

unborn.

Ikusagba said God has a way of rewarding benevolence, stating ‘’if you save a life, you save a generation.

Whatever you do for others, you are doing for yourself because what goes around comes around’’.

He cautioned against greed and materialism, saying stealing to guarantee the future of one’s children is futile as wealth is not transferable.

Ikusagba called on the orphans not to allow the circumstances of their background to keep the backs on the ground. He urged them to lead purposeful lives and be challenged to rise to greatness.

The event also witnessed presentation of cheques to Ijamido Children Home and Home of Grace

orphanages.

Ten children from both homes were also awarded scholarship worth N1 million for the next one year.

Prayers were also offered for the orphans by ministers of God. Husband of the initiator, Elder Peter Arogundade, said the annual initiative has come to stay.

He said the family will stop at nothing to transform lives of disadvantaged children.

Arogundade said: ‘’we find joy doing this though it is costing a fortune. But the fulfilment is nothing compared to the costs. We shall continue to do this as long as we have breath and Jesus is yet to return’’.

• L-R: Mr. & Mrs. Aruoture, Pastor Ronald King, Dr. I. S. James (Founding Pastor) with Prince & Pastor Uche Uche during the 2011 family & couples' reunion programme held at the Glory Christian Ministries, Lagos recently

Assemblies of God holds 9th revival summit

O

VER 100,000 people are expected to attend this year’s 9th Revival Summit of the Assemblies of God, Nigeria christened Peniel 2011.

The Peniel 2011 is expected to start from June 20 to 24 at Assemblies of God International Conference Centre, Evangel Camp, Km

From Chris Oji, Enugu

48, Enugu / Abakiliki Exp r e s s w a y , Okpoto,Ebonyi State.

Speaking at a press conference in Enugu on state of preparedness, the General Superintendent, Reverend Professor Paul Emeka stated that the

Fashola will deliver, Atilade assures

N

ATIONAL President of Christian Welfare Initiatives (CWI), Archbishop Magnus Atilade, has stated that Lagosians made a good decision by re-electing Governor Raji Fashola.

Fashola, he said, will do much more for Lagos in his second stint in office.

Atilade spoke last week at a briefing.

He said: ‘’Lagosians made the best decision to re-elect Fashola. Going by what he did in his first term, there is no doubt Lagosians are in for a good time’’.

The governor, he assured, will touch all facets

of life and move the state to greater heights.

He called on Fashola not to rest on his oars but accelerate the pace of allround development in Lagos to write his name in gold. ‘’The governor has a golden opportunity to become the best governor in the state. I urge him to keep the focus and do much more to enter the history book as a transformer,’’ he added.

He asked Lagosians to co-operate with Fashola to move the state forward for the next four years.

theme of this year’s Peniel which is entitled” Behold He Cometh” will help in reawakening the consciousness of the fact that Christ, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, is coming in Glory and power”.

The General Superintendent said that would help Christians across the country to experience God in His majesty, glory and power.

According to him, “ At Peniel, God is expose to man and man to God which results in massive harvest of souls to the kingdom of God, healing of diverse sickness, restoration of broken relationships, all around divine prosperity and provision for human needs and vision, for with God all things are possible”.

On social security, the Cleric said it would be beefed up throughout the summit, stressing that the law enforcement had since been contacted to protect the lives and property of the people who would be attending the event.

“We will not have any problem on security ar-

rangement as the police are already aware. We also have our own internal security measure.

There would not be anything like robbery, kidnapping or any other social vices. There is adequate arrangement for accommodation and transportation. People would live there better as they will be there to seek God face”, he added.

Anointed servants of God expected to join Reverend Professor Emeka in ministering at the revival summit included among others, Reverend Dr Frimpong Manso, General Superintendent, Assemblies of God, Ghana, Dr Mrs. Sharon Emeka, Director Women Ministries, Assemblies of God, Nigeria, Dr Chidi Okoroafor Assistant General Superintendent, Assemblies of God Nigeria, Reverend Dr John Ikoni, General Secretary Assemblies of God Nigeria, Reverend Vincent Alaje, General Treasurer Assemblies of God Nigeria.

69

Making Sense of Life with adeWale Adefuye

Apocrypha: Not on Abraham’s list, you see!

“Y

OUR piece on the KJV was educative. But could you, please, throw more light on the apocrypha?”

The Apocrypha is a collection of spurious books written by various individuals.

It was at the Council of Trent (held in 1546) that the Roman Catholics pronounced the Apocryphal books sacred; declaring them, together with unwritten traditions, to be of God, to be received and upheld as the Word of God. They, therefore, have the Bible, the Apocrypha and Catholic Tradition as co-equal sources of truth.

But not so with the Protestants. We do not regard these books as part of the canon of Scripture. We reject them as divinely inspired. There are many reasons for this: Not one of the apocryphal books is written in Hebrew, the language, used by every one of the inspired historians and poets of the Old Testament. All the apocryphal books are in Greek, except one extant only in Latin; even the apocryphal writers, unlike the writers of the Scriptures, never laid claim to inspiration; the apocryphal books were never acknowledged as canon by the Jews, the custodians of the Hebrew Scriptures; no apocryphal book is referred to in the New Testament whereas the Old Testament is quoted numerously; the Lord Jesus left them out when He listed out Scriptures in Luke 24:44. Indeed, they were not reckoned with until after the first four centuries of the Church.

There are other historical attestations to the fact of Scripture having stood uncorrupted as extant today – without the Apocryphal.

You would discover, if you ever read the books in the collection, that they contain fantastical statements which not only contradict the canon of Scripture but themselves, with doctrines widely at variance with the Bible s such as: - Prayers for the dead The Canon of scriptures teaches how your eternal state in the hereafter is determined by your beliefs (and the resulting conduct) here on earth. Everyone must die once, and after that be judged by God (Hebrews 9:27 TEV). Jesus, in an illustration in the 16th chapter of Luke, narrated the eternal state of two men. One was in torment and the other in splendour and between the two states is a huge, uncrossable chasm. The tormented fellow then implored Abraham to send Lazarus, the other fellow enjoying eternal bliss, to the earth to warn his brothers to change their ways to avoid his destination. Hear Abraham’s response: ‘They have Moses and the Prophets’ [catchphrase for the Old Testament]. The Apocrypha was not on Abraham’s List!

Worse still, the Apocrypha teaches otherwise, contrary to the father of faith. Consider this passage: ‘He also took up a collection... to the amount of two thousand drachmas of silver, and sent it to Jerusalem to [make] atonement for the dead, that they might be delivered from their sin. 2 Maccabees 12:43-45 - Salvation by works The Scriptures teach that salvation is a gift of God which is appropriated by accepting the lordship of Jesus Christ. Listen to Jesus: ‘As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.’ Now to the most popular verse in the whole Bible: ‘For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.’ John 3:14-16, NKJV) Guess what the Apocrypha propagates! For almsgiving delivers from death, and it will purge away every sin. (Tobit 12:9).

Water quenches a flaming fire, and alms atone for sins. (Sirach 3:30) The Apocrypha even promotes magic! It prescribes making a smoke of liver and heart of a fish to drive away evil spirits (Tobit 6:6-8). And in the next verse, it recommends an exquisite cure for cataracts: rub the gall of a fish on the eyes of the sufferer, blowing into his eyes right on the cataracts; his sight would be restored.

It is true that the 1611 KJV had the Apocrypha inserted between the Old and New Testaments as an appendix or reference material. But the translators never considered that curio of a collection the word of God; merely as books of historical value.

In an earlier version of the Bible, the Reformer, Martin Luther, prefaced the Apocrypha with a statement: ‘Apocrypha— that is, books which are not regarded as equal to the Holy Scriptures, and yet are profitable and good to read’ – as one would the Encyclopaedia Britannica!

About 1640, the public reading of the apocrypha was forbidden. Later editions of the KJV were printed without it.

Just pondering...

How much pressure can God apply to get someone’s attention?

Clue: Read Amos 4:6-11 adeWale Adefuye, dean of LifeClass, can be reached at dean@lifeclassonline.org or by sms at 070 3002 3002 The Dean Speaks date: Friday 24- Sunday 26 June 2011 @ City of Refuge Church, 58, Ogudu Road, Ogudu GRA, Lagos. on: National Transformation -Practical Steps

70

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

News

Tragedy in Rivers: 5 JAMB’s exam candidates die, 5 injured in auto crash

T

RAGEDY struck yes terday in the Ahoada axis of the East-West Road in Rivers State, as five candidates for the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board’s (JAMB’s) Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UMTE) died in an auto crash, on the way to their centres, while five others were injured.

Corpses of the deceased were deposited at the morgue of Ahoada General Hospital in Rivers state, while those injured and on danger list, are receiving treatment at the same hospital.

It was learnt that the accident occurred around 7am at Ojiagbidi, near Mbiama in Ahoada West Local Government Area of Rivers state and it involved a Mazda saloon car and a motorcycle.

The car, with the UTME’s candidates, was coming from Yenagoa, Bayelsa State capital and heading for Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital.

Driver of the car was over speeding, with the vehicle veering off the road and hit the motorcycle carrying some persons, before the car eventually hit a tree, leading to the heavy casualties.

From Bisi Olaniyi, Port Harcourt

The Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) in Rivers State, Mr. Osas Osadebanwen, who confirmed the “unfortunate” accident in a telephone interview, said recklessness and over speeding by driver of the Mazda car, caused the “avoidable” incident.

Osadebanwen, however, said he was not sure if all the deceased and injured were moving to the venues of UTME. An impeccable source, who would not want to be named, maintained that the deceased were travelling to Port Harcourt from Yenagoa and specifically for UTME. The source added that the deceased were rushing

to their centres, because of JAMB’s directive that they must get to their centres before 7 am.

The sector commander then admonished motorists to exercise caution while driving and to avoid over speeding, overloading, dangerous overtaking and recklessness, especially during this dry season, when the roads would be slippery.

•Gov Obi of Anambra State commissioning some empowerment equipments for the poor and widows under Fadama programme at Oba-Ofemili, Anambra State....at the weekend PHOTO: OBI CLETUS

The end of an argument Continued from page 3

In any case the foxy general did not submit himself to the lottery of the ballot box. He followed the Akintola script of 1965 and rigged the 2003 elections in favour of himself at the centre and garrisoned the whole of the South west except Lagos with rascals in his own image. Thus it was that the argument in respect of an alliance with the centre appeared to have been resolved in favour of those who wanted to shelter under the rude umbrella of the ruling party, the seemingly unconquerable PDP. Now that the South west was no longer in opposition the people could be forgiven for sitting back and expecting the dividends of democracy to falls into their laps.

Unfortunately, the much expected dividends failed to arrive as the various garrison commanders did nothing but fatten themselves on the funds which had been sent into the zone for the provision of facilities for public use as they were simply frittered away on frivolities. For example, one of the more profligate of this bunch of spendthrifts supposedly poured millions of Naira into a poultry project which could only boast

of a few borrowed chickens when one of the biggest poultry farmers in the country came to town as President and Commander in Chief of the Armed forces to commission the non-existent project. The wily chicken farmer was not fooled by a poultry farm which was almost completely free of odour. Thus it was that the Akintola argument began to unravel terminally. Rather than gain anything of value by the association with the centre, the region lost whatever freedom of action that could be had within our Federation.

The people waited breathlessly for the opportunity to regain their freedom from the oppression of the garrison commanders by voting them out of office in the 2007 general elections. They came out in droves to vote for the new party which had risen from the ashes of AD, which had expired in the wake of the disastrous 2003 elections. The chaotic elections of 2007 are remembered with pain all over Nigeria but nowhere else was it more so than in the South west where in spite of their woeful performances PDP governors were said to have been reelected. The only exception as it was in 2003 was in Lagos State. There the

AC won comfortably due mainly to the uncompromising stance of the outgoing governor of the state who had defiantly handpicked his putative successor and stuck to him like glue all through the electoral process. He has since been proved right as his nominee has now come to epitomise vigorous governance.

The elections were so transparently fraudulent that the results in all the South west states were challenged in court.

Progress through the courts was slow, ruinously expensive and excruciatingly painful but first, Edo State, then Ondo State followed by Ekiti and finally Osun State were wrested from the grasp of the rapacious PDP. All those court victories were greeted with thunderous cheers, very loud music and exuberant dance on the streets. The destructive argument provoked

by Akintola all those fifty years ago appeared to have collapsed but for the fact that Ogun and Oyo, incidentally the home states of the respective original antagonists, were still ruled by the PDP and the argument could not be said to have been resolved until the conclusion of the 2011 elections.

The results of the elec-

tions are now in and the argument seems to have been decisively settled as in elections which were seen to be a true reflection of the wishes of the electorate in the South west, the PDP was trounced in what could be seen as the equivalent of a knockout in boxing terms. The results show clearly that without the rigging machine of the PDP, the argument would have been settled as early as 1999.

With this longstanding argument no longer viable, the people of the South west can heave a sigh of relief as they stride along their freely chosen path of self-determination within a wobbly Federation. It is when other units in this Federation strike out on a similar path that the centre will become an empty prize leaving each of these units as masters of their own destiny. It is then that the true Federation of our dreams will have a chance at last of becoming reality.

It needs to be clearly stated however that the final nail in the coffin of this argument must be driven home by South west governors who must rise up to the challenge before them by making sure they provide the high quality of leadership which their electorate have the right to demand from them.

The Eagle has landed

By Omoba Kenneth Aigbegbele

W

HEN I wrote about the Asiwaju of Yorubaland, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, some few months ago, many people from far and near started castigating me as to the title given to one of the most progressive leaders of our time. However, time and events have proved them wrong and me right. The tsunami wind of progressive democracy that has blown across the southwest states truly confirm my foresight and belief that the enigma called Tinubu, is here to stay and work to entrench democratic ideals of people like late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, the scion of the Yoruba nation. A lot of pundits were of the belief and opinion that I have been either settled or induced to do the bidding of my master but the wind of change across the geo-political divide of Nigeria has shown that Nigeria truly deserves the leadership qualities of not only the Asiwaju, but the principles, ideals and the manifesto of the progressive ACN in Nigeria. Wonders, they say will never end, but the 2011 political tsunami like I predicted in my article, has far reaching effects and has also silenced my opponents and enemies against progressive ideals in Nigeria. All my postulations about the socio-economic development and capability of the ACN have really come to pass.

Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu is not only a progressive at heart, but a sworn and determined apostle of Awoism of the first order who has decided to forgo everything he had believed in and built over the years but to pursue the ideals, principles and philosophy of late Chief Obafemi Awolowo who to us, is the present day reincarnation of the scion of Yorubaland.

Asiwaju is a man of many parts and history; a man who grew from humble backgrounds to somewhere, a man who typifies and stands for the ordinary Nigerian of our dream; a man who grew from a simple abode to somewhere today. He is no other person but the advocate, promoter and apostle of the present day progressives in Nigeria. When his amiable and lovely wife decided to take the gauntlet and fight the battle for the average woman on the streets, many people got it wrong while the opposition were busy sending text messages to persuade the people against the progressive family. We were busy also convincing them that the progressives have stood for good governance all their lives and at the end, it paid off because the good people of Lagos State and the South West generally saw genuine reasons with us and decided to give their vote to a Lady of substance and an amazon who has fought a good fight through her New Era Foundation years back to bring to the fore, the plight of the less privileged, the girl-child education and maternal mortality rate. All this, to the glory of God, is history today. The ACN and indeed, the greater part of Nigerians are convinced that they will surely reap the dividends of democracy as is being enjoyed in Lagos state today.

There is no gainsaying the fact that the enigma has positively affected the people of Lagos State and the entire south west much to the chagrin of opponents who looked in aghast about the awesome reactionary tendencies of the elections of the 1960’s being re-enacted in 2011. Indeed, the entire political landscape have agreed with me that when a man has paid the price, what comes next need not be a surprise to the people, for this man has paid the price and has reached the zenith of his elucidations all these years. The wind of change blowing across Nigeria today can be likened to the fact that Nigerians are indeed change agents and receptive people who tag along with anything that is good, including the voting pattern for the presidency of Dr.Goodluck Ebele Jonathan. It is time that politicians see and read between the lines that the electorate are becoming more and more aware, sophisticated and well informed about the do’s and don’ts of democracy thereby leading us to the belief that the next four years will witness the socio-economic transformation of our nation due to the political sagacity created by the voting pattern of the electorate in the just concluded elections.

It will go down in history that on February 8, 2011 during the last presidential campaign in Ibadan; the president had declared that the south west was too important to be left in the hands of rascals. Indeed, the words of elders are the words of wisdom because the rascals in Alao-Akala, Dosunmu, Olurin etc have been chased out while the real progressives have taken over the southwest, not only the south west but have taken the chunk of Nigeria including the legislative chambers for good. The National Assembly promises to be exciting and a deviation from what we used to have bearing in mind the entry of the progressives. With due respect to OBJ, we were told that he is retiring from politics but I do know that Asiwaju’s victory in the southwest states have humbled ‘Baba’ to the bones and have retired him from active politics completely. Tinubu is now the undisputed political generalissimo and the Asiwaju of Yorubaland who “fought the good fight and kept the faith.” I tell you papa Awo in his grave will be smiling and saying ‘yes’ indeed, he has a son in Tinubu. Asiwaju has demystified all political calculations, intrigues, permutations and what have you to the detriment of pundits who watched in utter amusement what has happened in the southwest states. Power, they say, belongs to the people and the people have spoken “loud and clear” through their votes for the socio-economic emancipation of their lives. I must at this juncture, give kudos to the entire southwest states for taking their political destiny into their hands for the ultimate good of mankind. Asiwaju has taken the bull by the horns and has orchestrated what can today be referred to as “the worst defeat of the PDP” by the liberation of not only the southwest states from the clutches and captivity of the Sixty years of PDP expected dynasty as envisaged by the elders of the party.

Today, the story cannot be said to be the same again, as the PDP has been stripped bare, naked and empty at the market square. As the rhythm of the drums beat at the different electoral tribunals across the country, many Nigerians are of the view that the last has not been heard as so many other states will go with the opposition in due season.

•Omoba Kenneth Aigbegbele is of NRA, COYAC, CWN, and CAPRRIN. Email-kenneth_aigbe@yahoo.com

THE NATION ON SUNDAY JUNE 19, 2011

T

HE 2012 London Olympics qualifier between Nigeria and Tanzania will now hold today as against the earlier scheduled time yesterday.

The Dream team of Nigeria were due to play their East African counterparts at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadiun yesterday but a heavy down pour which left the pitch waterlogged ensured the game was shifted till today after match officials concluded the condition of the pitch was not favourable for the teams to a proper match.

The players of both teams were already on the pitch for their warm up exercises when the rain began and after waiting till few minutes to 5pm the announcement of postponement came through the stadium’s public address system.

Reacting to the postponement, Dream Team’s goalkeeper trainer, Alloy Agu said: “It’s something that is of God’s making, it’s not anybody’s making.

You can understand that we want to play the game but the weather was not conducive.

I hope that tomorrow (today) we will have a (fair) weather.

As to what the the postponement portends for his side, Agu said” “Everything work for the good of those who know God and are called according to His purpose, so we believe

Sport Extra

Nsofor signs 4-year deal with Lokomotiv Moscow

Nigeria / Tanzania match postponed A •Match may now hold 2pm, 3pm or 4pm today •It’s in our favour – Alloy Agu •No, it’s in both our favour – Tanzanian Assistant coach From Olusoji Olukayode and Tunde Liadi in Benin that this is for Nigeria’s good and we believe that God will give us the victory” Similarly, the Assistant coach of the Tanzania team, Ayoub Mohd said of the postponement: “We are Muslims and Christians, we believe in God therefore we understand (believe) that this game (is not meant to be played) tomorrow not today.”

Asked if he thinks the postponement was meant for Nigeria good or Tanzania’s, Mohd said: “for two of us, for us and Nigeria” The exact time for today’s game will be known this morning but according to the announcement made at the stadium, it could hold by 2pm, 3pm or 4pm.

•Musa

S

H

EARTLAND of Owerri striker, Bartholomew Ibenegbu scored four goals as Nigeria defeated Madagascar 7-6 in the semi final to book a place in today’s final of the Africa Beach Soccer Championship against Senegal at the Ain Diab Beach in Cassablanca, Morocco.

Beach Eagles and Senegal will also be representing Africa at the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup scheduled for Ravenna, Italy in September.

Though Nigeria defeated Madagascar 5-3 when both sides met earlier in the competition, it was, however, a different case in yesterday’s semi final game as the Nigerian side had to make use of its experience in the competition to overcome the much more improved Madagascan side.

The tension-soaked game saw Tiana open scoring for the

•Ehiosun, Oduamadi, others react From Olusoji Olukayode and Tunde Liadi in Benin due to a heavy downpour that left the field waterlogged.

Musa who presently plays for the Super Eagles as well as the Under-20 told NationSport on Friday that the U-23 team was unperturbed about Tanzania’s record against Cameroon whom they bundled out of the

Olympic qualifiers.

According to him, “Nigeria should expect total victory and it will be done with lots of goals by the grace of God. For us it is no big deal and their win over Camerounwillnotstopthemfrom escaping Nigeria with defeat. We are not in any way afraid.

Similarly, Warri Wolves and Super Eagles’ attacker, Ekigho Ehiosun said: “We have done our best ahead of this match

and I believe our best will be enough to beat Tanzania. We put everything in God’s hands and we are also of the conviction that victory is ours.

We assure our fans that they will see a very great game and we shall triumph. Nigerians should give us their maximum support and we are assuring them that we will not only beat Tanzania but we will eventually pick a ticket to the Olympic Games in London.”

Also, AC Milan of Italy midfieder, Nnamdi Oduamadi exudes confidence that the Tanzanians would fall.

He said: “We are going to give our best and we are not only guaranteeing a victory but one with plenty goals. We shall get the three points and it will be in style.”

AFRICA BEACH SOCCER CHAMPIONSHIP

Ibenegbu fires Nigeria into final •Beach Eagles qualify for World Cup

By Akeem Lawal Madagascans as early as the 2nd minute to show that they are no more underdogs.

Ibenegbu, however, equalized for the Beach Eagles six minutes later to make the score line at 11 after the first quarter.

Ibenegbu gave Nigeria the lead immediately after the resumption of the second quarter, but Madagascar equalised just three minutes after and added another almost immediately. Kwara

•Nsofor

Manchester City, from an economic point of view, the championship of Russia's difficult to compare with the other European Championship. '' Obinna was also on the radar of Chinese Super League champions, Shandong Luneng, but he did not favor a move to China.

•...Held by ten-man 3SC

Expect a massive win I

S exclusively reported by Italy's number one transfer market website, Tuttomercatoweb, Nigerian international Victor Obinna Nsofor has joined Lokomotiv Moscow on a four- year deal. ''Yes, the signing took place, Obinna has signed a four-year contract, '' Obinna's agent Nerbini Valentino told TMW and continued: ''The talks lasted about two days. In Russia, the salary is 20-30% higher than in Western Europe. Obinna has had offers from Italy, but the terms offered by Bologna and Napoli were not adequate. ''My client saw a new team with enthusiasm. Except for teams such as Chelsea or

Sharks draw again at home

AHMED MUSA TO NIGERIANS

N spite of their initial 0-1 loss in the first leg to the Vijana Stars of Tanzania Nigeria’s Under-23 national team, the Dream Team V latest invitee, Ahmed Musa has assured Nigerians that the country’s representatives record a massive victory in their London 2012 Olympics Qualifiers.

The game was billed to hold yesterday at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin but will now be played today

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United defender, Ogbonaya Okemiri made it 3-3 before the break.

It was, however, a tension soaked third quarter for Nigeria as Madagascar added more pressure on the defending champions by scoring two goals in quick succession to make the score line 3-5.

Ibenegbu then reduced the score line when he scored his third goal of the day, while Enugu Rangers striker, Musa Najere leveled up at 5-5 just two minutes after.

Tiana, however, shocked

Nigeria with his third goal in the match to make it 5-6 with the Beach Eagles trailing once again.

Just as the Madagascans were celebrating a place in the final, Beach Eagles proved they were not yet done with Ibenegbu scoring his 4th goal to make it 6-6.

With both teams preparing for a possible penalty shoot-out, Captain of the Nigerian side, Isiaka Olawale, who also scored four goals when they defeated South Africa 8-4 on Friday, showed the veteran stuff when he scored the winning goal with just four minutes remaining.

HARKS football club of Port Harcourt lost another point at home yesterday in the week 26 of the Nigeria Premier League matches when hard fighting Shooting Stars fc of Ibadan held them to a one all draw at the Sharks stadium in Port Harcourt.

Sharks started on a note that gave much hope to their fans by taking the lead early in the first half when Bright Ejike nodded in a crossing from Odinga Odinga in the first minute of the game.

3SC seemed to learn very quickly from the experience as they played their game and resisted every other move by the home team to score further, much mor to their advantage was the goalie, Segun Oluwaniyi who once as a Port Harcourt boy seemed to be very relaxed and at home.

Sharks lead became nullified in the second half

From Florence Nkem Israel, Port Harcourt. when Babatunde Yusuf scored for 3SC by nodding in a corner kick in the 51st minute.

The struggle to maintain the tide hit against the visitors when Festus Iyoma was given the marching order in the 69th minute for kicking the ball after the referee's whistle and accidentally landing his boot on the cheek of Shark's Mamaya Yusuf sending the player screaming in pain.

The red card led to 3SC going defensive and beautiful defensive works they did coupled with good savings from Segun Oluwaniyi to ensure that the point followed the impressive team back home to Ibadan while Sharks failed to convert any of the dying minute chances that was created by their players.

Messi edges Ronaldo as football's top earner

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ARCELONA’s Lionel Messi has been confirmed as the bestpaid footballer in the world having picked up $43.8 million 30.5m euros in the last 12 months, according to America's Sports Illustrated 'Fortunate 50' list.

The Argentinian, who is widely acknowledged as the greateat player on the planet, came out above Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney in the list, who earned 27.1m euros and 23m euros respectively.

The ‘Fortunate 50’ takes into account the earnings, endorsements, bonuses and appearance fees of leading sports stars.

Tiger Woods is leading the way – earning a staggering 46m euros last year, though that was down 20m euros on

his previous year’s earnings.

Despite being the highest earning footballer, the Camp Nou superstar only came seventh on the overall sporting list, behind the likes of Formula One driver Fernando Alonso, who is a Real Madrid supporter himself.

Below are the footballers who made the international top 20, with figures given from the recently-completed season.

Rank Player Amount Earned 1 Lionel Messi $43,800,000 2 C. Ronaldo $38,800,000 3 W.Rooney $29,200,000 4 Kaka $27,300,000 5 D. Beckham $26,800,000 6 Ronaldinho $25,800,000 7 Carlos Tevez $21,700,000 8 F. Lampard $20,100,000

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QUOTABLE “Nigeria is also having some ugly incidents lately, but surely we will get over it and people should not panic at all. Soon most of these things will be things of the past.”

SUNDAY, JUNE 19, 2011 TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM VOL. 5, NO. 1795

— President Goodluck Jonathan, reacting to the bomb explosion at the police headquarters in Abuja on Thursday.

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FTER the terrorist bombing of the Nigeria Police Headquarters in Abuja last week Thursday by the Boko Haram militant group, it seems all but certain that much more than the naïve talk of amnesty, the government will now focus urgently on the task of dealing with the menace with all the firmness it deserves. I do not envy the government. Two years ago, when a major skirmish took place between the group and the military, its leader, Ustaz Mohammed Yusuf, was captured and handed over to the police.

Rather than interrogate him over the group’s philosophy, membership, methods and backers, he was summarily executed in police custody. In the killing frenzy that followed, his father-in-law and another major backer were murdered in controversial circumstances, with no one called to question. Consequently, the government is still largely ignorant of the forces and principles that drive the militant group.

Now, Boko Haram has festered badly and dangerously, and it has become so emboldened that even intellectuals have begun to propound social and economic theories of its underpinnings, particularly why they think amnesty is needed to tackle it. When Kashim Shettima, the new governor of Borno State, suggested amnesty could help persuade Boko Haram militants to lay down their arms, I suspected he based his appreciation of the Islamic sect’s militancy on the wrong premises. And I said so in a short piece I penned last week to criticise the option. Given Nigeria’s disheartening history of compromising with and excusing crimes against the state, I knew my opinion was unlikely to be popular, especially among some public affairs commentators in the North. But after Thursday’s bombing of the Force Headquarters in, of all places, the Federal Capital City, Abuja, I am no longer sure the amnesty boondoggle will be pursued with the same simplistic fervour it was promoted when Boko Haram attacks were predominantly localised in the Northeast zone of the militants’ founding.

It is not clear whether the amnesty proposal by the Borno State governor was prompted by desperation or by hardnosed reasoning, but whatever the motive, it was not thought through at all. Who does not know that crime feeds on economic deprivation, as most forms of political agitations feed on alienation? The question, it seems, is where to draw the line between indulging criminals without abetting crime, and putting criminals down without ignoring the inflammable contexts that nourish them.

My reservation with the amnesty op-

Boko Haram: The future catches up with us

•Jonathan

•Ringim

tion has nothing to do with the factors that have engendered Boko Haram. The sect’s militants are largely economically deprived, uneducated, restless and prone to manipulation, particularly given the northern populace’s difficult and unsuccessful battles with the retrogressive social and economic policies of their governments and elite. The large scale poverty in that region may predispose the rabble to the sort of periodic explosions we see in Maitatsine, Boko Haram, and other forms of ethnic and religious conflagrations, but there is hardly any part of Nigeria, and indeed Africa, that is not inundated with similar, though sometimes less vicious, contradictions. If social unrest in other parts of Nigeria often finds outlet and generally ends in anti-government explosions, we must not fail to note and understand why in the North it often spills over to xenophobia.

It is easy to blame economic problems for massive expressions of criminal tendencies. But it is not the only factor. Boko Haram can only be partly explained by poverty and ignorance, in the same way

that it is not only economic crisis that leads to xenophobia. Even anomalous situations like a country losing a war can find expression in xenophobic anger towards a minority group within that country. It seems dishonest to discountenance or downplay other factors involved in the Boko Haram phenomenon. It is not only when people are poor that they are susceptible to cultural and religious indoctrination, again as al-Qaeda shows. The problem with Maitatsine and Boko Haram, to mention just two, is that you really cannot assign weights out of context (time and politics, for instance) to some of the factors that predispose them to recurring explosions.

To be fair to the Borno governor, however, he did not talk of amnesty alone; he also said tackling Boko Haram would need a stick and carrot approach. While a stick and carrot approach is hard to quarrel with, the problem arises when the carrot is raised to the status of amnesty. This is the trouble I have with his suggestion. Improving the social and economic conditions of most parts of the North will not wipe out phe-

Perish the six-year, single term tenure

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NE of the reasons I was late in joining the debate on what tenure to recommend for the executive in our presidential system is because I was not sure whether to dignify the distraction with my attention. We may lack the patience and stamina for thorough debates on public policies, as exampled by the brusque, convulsive and unidirectional approach to central banking in Nigeria, but it really beggars belief that of all the serious constitutional issues facing us, it is the peripheral matter of how long a president or governor should stay in office that agitates our kidneys.

I am, to put it mildly, irritated by the discussions on single term of five or six years.

Tenure problem is certainly not the cause of national disharmony or instability. President Goodluck Jonathan is credited with thinking aloud over the desirability of amending the constitution to replace the two terms of four years each to an extended single term, which, he pointed out carefully lest anyone should question his altruism, would not start with his presidency. While some people denounce the suggestion, others ap-

plaud it. I think we should focus on better things.

Typical of our hurried approach to issues, we judged that the First Republic collapsed because we were not temperamentally cut out for the parliamentary system of government. When we got round to restarting the democratic experiment once again in 1979, we found it irresistible to copy the American presidential system, doubtless because of our love for the American way of life – what with the garish splendour of Hollywood, the White House and the alluring and captivating cities of America.

But barely half way through the experiment, we found out to our dismay that we could not afford the cost of running the new system, and we began to yearn for the old ways of doing things. The campaign for the parliamentary system ebbs and peaks whenever we come to a fork in the road, unsure whether to turn left or right. Now, it appears we want to tinker with the tenure of the executive, not the spirit of the document, and we are thinking Mexican, French and any other country that catches our

fancy.

I hope that on one bright morning, it will occur to us that indeed the problem is not whether it is parliamentary or presidential, single or two terms. Both systems of government can work well here. What is militating against any constitution working in Nigeria is also not the fact that the military bequeathed them to us, as they always did, but because the structure of our co-existence is violently at variance with any sensible constitution we have ever had.

Until we have the courage to pull down the constitutional arrangements of the past four republics and determine consensually how we wish to live together, taking cognisance of our similarities and differences, whether they are cultural or religious, nothing will work.

We may love sailing near the wind, but I am not sure how far we can continue to tempt fate, especially in view of the divisive tendencies daily manifested by militant organisations, intolerant local populace and obscenely expensive and intolerably burdensome government at all levels.

nomena like Boko Haram and Maitatsine; just like amnesty will not signal the end of the eruptions, for some of the issues feeding these explosions run deeper and interminably. Far beyond the issues of development or underdevelopment, I see us as a country that stubbornly refuses to acknowledge that our cultural and religious pastiche calls for a different political arrangement deeply and fundamentally different from the current one in use.

When I discussed the Jos native-versussettler problem in this place a few years ago, and insisted that the problem could not be solved with a constitutional amendment redefining citizenship, many commentators described the sentiments I expressed as exhibiting anti-Muslim or antiNorth prejudice. This was shocking and silly. I would not be surprised if the same view is held against me for describing amnesty as wrongheaded approach to a much more fundamental problem. Whatever anyone says, and whatever improvements are sustained in the economies of the northern states, the idea of cultural and religious isolation will always strike a chord in the hearts of northerners, whether educated, as Farouk AbdulMuttalab was, or uneducated, as many Maitatsine and Boko Haram followers showed. How many amnesties are you going to declare?

By our reluctance and cowardice to restructure the federation to accommodate our differences, we are unwisely mortgaging our future. Unrest in most parts of the country is not decreasing; it is increasing.

It can break out anywhere tomorrow. The option we face is either to acknowledge the social and political problems that confront us, and to discuss and implement a fundamental restructuring; or like the Arab Spring, an adverse restructuring would be forced on us by events and circumstances beyond our control. The cost of restructuring now can still be managed; on some inauspicious tomorrow, the cost may become too prohibitive. To avert disaster, we need a fresh constitution, not a constitutional amendment.

A few weeks ago, the Inspector General of Police, Hafiz Ringim, was asked why the police could not curb the activities of Boko Haram. He seemed to love the question. But rather than engage us in reasoned exchange, he simply begged the question by asking why we thought Britain had not solved the IRA question. Now, embarrassed by the explosion at his doorstep, he knows he cannot wait for Britain to eradicate IRA before he stops Boko Haram from running rings round him. Unlike Niger Delta militants who fought the state and economic injustice by paralysing the country’s oil economy, Boko Haram uses classical terrorist approach to fight individual enemies and the state. Final proof that the militant group has no interest in amnesty, as indeed by its extremist and fundamentalist nature it cannot, are the conditions it gave for peace to reign in the North. There is no question that most of those conditions cannot be met either now or in the future. The government must, therefore, not make the mistake of compounding the folly of executing Ustaz Yusuf with the intellectually lazy option of offering amnesty.

If the so-called poor and illiterate militants are having a field day killing innocent people, burning police stations and houses of worship, and bombing strategic offices, it is time for intelligence officers to crawl all over them. In the short run, however, Boko Haram will not be undermined by heavy guns and armoured cars, as Ringim thinks, or be decommissioned from violence by amnesty, as Borno governor wistfully expects. Detective work and a firm resolve to punish those who commit heinous crimes on the altar of civil unrest should bring the crisis under temporary control. In the long run, only a restructuring of the country can foster stability and create favourable conditions for rapid economic development.

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Editor - 08050498530, Marketing: 4520939, Abuja Office: Plot 5, Nanka Close AMAC Commercial Complex, Wuse Zone 3, Abuja. Telephone: 07028105302 E-mail: sunday@thenationonlineng.net Editor: LEKAN OTUFODUNRIN