June 28, 2014

www.thenationonlineng.net

Vincent IKUOMOLA, Gbenga OMOKHUNU, Faith YAHAYA, Bukola AMUSAN and Grace OBIKE, Abuja

THE NATION,

4 NEWS

SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

Tension in Borno: Military stops 278 pilgrims, Ndume from using airport

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HERE was tension in Borno State following the military’s decision to stop two aircraft from airlifting 278 pilgrims going for the lesser Hajj (Umrah), as well as Senator Ali Ndume.

While the pilgrims were

Yusuf ALLI, Managing Editor, Northern Operation scheduled to travel for the lesser Hajj with Max Airline, Ndume was reportedly going to Abuja in a chartered flight.

114 Boko Haram suspects arrested in Abia return to Jigawa

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IGAWA State governor, Alhaji Sule Lamido, yesterday received 114 of the 496 Northerners detained in Abia State by the military on suspicion of being Boko Haram mebers.

The returnees include six women and four children.

The 496 suspects, arrested two weeks ago, had claimed to be job seekers, but the military said that one of them was a member of the Boko haram sect on their list of wanted people.

Speaking while receiving the returnees, Governor Lamido expressed concern over what he described as politicisation of the matter.

The governor, who was represented by his Chief of Staff, Alhaji Aminu Ibrahim, said his administration was deeply concerned about the life and safety of every indigene of the state in any part of the world.”

According to him, “since we received the information of the arrest and we confirmed that some of our people were among them, we set up a committee in the State House of Assembly to go to Abuja and Abia. This is the outcome of the committee’s

Ahmed RUFA’I, Dutse work.”

The governor therefore enjoined the returnees to consider their experience as a test from the Almighty.

“This should also be a lesson to you. Remain in your respective areas in the state to enrol yourselves at the various skill acquisition centres provided by the state government and learn your chosen trades and benefit from the state government’s policy of economic empowerment, which places more emphasis on the youth and women,” he said.

Also speaking, the Speaker of the state’s House of Assembly, Alhaji Adamu Ahmed Sarawa, said: “The committee comprises the members of the state and national assembly, which visited the Minister of Defence, Gen. Aliyu Gusau; National Security Adviser to the President, Col. Sambo Dasuki and the Commandant of the military battalion in Abia, all in an effort to free you. Thank God, it succeeded.

“So, you should go back to your homes and continue to pray for the country.”

In spite of the intervention of Governor Kashim Shettima, the military insisted that the two aircraft should return to their bases empty.

A top military source said the aircraft were barred from conveying the passengers for security reasons.

According to a top source, the military claimed that it was acting on orders from above.

The source said: “A Max Airline aircraft. chartered by a Hajj and Umrah operator, Skynet International Limited, had arrived Maiduguri yesterday to convey 278 intending pilgrims to Saudi Arabia.

“The pilgrims had undergone all security checks and were waiting to board the plane when the military issued ‘strange’ orders directing the plane to take off

empty.

“They asked the pilgrims to travel by road to Kano, a trip which will take five hours through the not too secured Maiduguri-DamaturuPotiskum.

“They directed the pilgrims to go and take off from Kano Airport. The military, citing ‘orders from above’ said their action was for security reasons.

“Explanations by officials of Borno State Government, including Governor Shettima, that pilgrims carrying pocket money and moving to Kano by road from Maiduguri could be at risk, given past instances of attacks along MaiduguriDamaturu-Potiskum route, was shunned down by the military.

“The management of Skynet which chartered the Max

Airline had explained that it had written letters to the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria and military authorities, including the Brigade command, the police headquarters and the Air Force authorities, and it was duly authorised to go on with the operations, given the fact that previous exercises took place in 2011, 2012 and 2013 at the peak of the Boko Haram insurgency in Maiduguri and yet flights landed and took off to Saudi Arabia hitch-free.

“The military insisted it wasn’t allowing this year’s Umrah operations in Maiduguri on the orders of the Chief of Air Staff that the airport be immediately closed to commercial aircraft and the Max Airline had to leave empty after it landed hitch free in Maiduguri air-

port.

“Some Government officials were worried that the military might be playing a script to avoid the government being controlled by the opposition APC.” It was gathered that the same fate befell Senator Ali Ndume, who is standing trial for terrorism.

Another source said: “The military also yesterday, barred a serving Senator representing Borno South Senatorial District, Mohammed Ali Ndume alongside a serving member of House of Representatives, representing Gwoza, Chibok, Damboa Federal Constituency of Borno State from boarding an aircraft chartered by the Borno State after an eightseater aircraft arrived Maiduguri with some gov•Continued on Page 61

10-yr-old averts massive explosions in Kano •Police uncover 13 high-grade explosives

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HE Kano State Police Command yesterday uncovered 13 high-calibre improvised explosive devices (IEDs) at Sauna Fafunga in Dakata area of Nasarawa Local Government Area.

Suspected terrorists who had parked an ox-blood Starlet car near a Juma’at mosque at about 2 pm, were said to have primed the IEDs, waiting for the Juma’at prayer to commence before carrying out their dastardly act.

It was gathered that a 10year-old boy had notified the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in Dakata, Superintendent Sani Ahmed, that he suspected a rickety car parked by the side of the mosque.

On getting the information, the DPO immediately contacted the police headquarters at Bompai for prompt response by the anti-bomb squad which came on time to save the situation.

The incident occurred five days after a bomb exploded at the School of Hygiene within the metropolis, killing seven people and injuring 20.

The Commissioner of Police, Mr. Adenrele Shinaba, while speaking to reporters at the Bompai headquarters of the command, said the terrorists had planned to detonate the bomb by remote control immediately after Juma’at prayers.

He described the IEDs as high calibre ones, noting that “if they had succeeded, the whole area would have gone down and the sound alone would have shook the foundation of Kano.”

Kolade ADEYEMI, Kano According to him, the explosion would have been devastating and many lives would have been lost.

He said: “Today, being Friday, at a place called Sauna Fafunga in Dakata area; we got information that we should come and see a vehicle that was parked within the vicinity of a Juma’at mosque.

“Our anti-bomb team responded promptly. On searching the vehicle, we discovered high-calibre IEDs, about 13 in number, which can ruin a whole village.

“We asked people to leave the area and when we detonated one of them, it shook the majority of the buildings around the area. In fact, one of the buildings had a big crack as a result of that.

“The IEDs had the capacity to pull down all the structures around that area.

“We also discovered ammunition. Their intention was to stay around and shoot people who could escape the explosion.

“I am an advocate of community policing, and I appreciate the support we have been receiving from members of the public.

“We appreciate the people of Kano and we urge them to continue to support us with useful information. We promise never to disclose the identity of anyone who brings information to us.

“We also urge residents to remain security-conscious at all times.”

•The explosives as displayed by policemen yesterday.

Police allay fear of bombs in Lagos schools

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CONTRARY to widespread rumour, the Lagos State Police Command has said that there is no bomb scare among Lagos residents.

The command stated this in reaction to the widespread rumour that members of the dreaded Boko Haram sect had planted a bomb at Government Senior Secondary School, Agege, a suburb of Alimosho Local Government Area of the state, on Friday.

Four other schools, namely Government Junior College, Girls Senior High School, Girls Junior High School and Government Junior Comprehensive College, were said be located within the premises.

Four police vans occupied by heavily armed policemen were stationed in front of the school when our correspondent visited.

Combat-ready mobile and regular policemen were also seen at strategic corners in the area.

In spite of the foregoing, however, the Police Public Relations Officer of the command, Ms Ngozi Braide, who spoke with our correspondent on the phone, said there was no iota of truth in the rumour. “I am not aware of this. There is no iota of truth in the story,” she said.

Asked why such a large number of armed policemen were stationed in front of the

•Residents jittery over large presence of cops Innocent DURU school, she responded: “The presence of policemen in the area has nothing to do with any bomb scare. I am not aware of any bomb scare and there is no iota of truth in the story.”

An official of one of the schools, who pleaded not to be named, said they were shocked when they saw a large number of armed policemen in their premises.

He said the police teams arrived the area as early as 7 am.

He said: “We were surprised to see such a large number of policemen in the school. They came as early as 7 am. When they arrived, we approached them to know what their mission was. They said they came to inspect and secure the area.

“After that, they went round each of the five schools in the premises. They interacted with all the principals and allayed their fears,” he said.

He hinted that there was no apprehension among the students because the authorities kept the information from them.

“There was no anxiety whatsoever in the school because the authorities did not divulge the information to the students. If they had been

told about it, they would have been terrified and would not have been able to settle down to study all through the day.

“In fact, there would have been pandemonium in the school. To the glory of God, academic activities went smoothly all through the day, and as you can see they are still oblivious of why the policemen are here,” he added.

A student, who identified himself simply as Ade, said he was not aware of any plan to attack the school. But he said he was surprised to see a large number of policemen around the school.

He said: “I wasn’t aware of any Boko Haram issue, but all of us were really wondering why such a huge number of policemen came around.

“We never had such in the area. The usual thing was for a patrol van to be seen moving about in the area.”

Some residents of the area, who spoke with our correspondent, said they were apprehensive when they woke up to see a large number of armed policemen.

A food vendor, who gave her name as Abibatu, said: “Nobody would see such an unusual development and not get disturbed. There must be something unpalatable whenever you see armed policemen in that manner.

“We were locked up in fear for several hours before we were told that they came because there were rumours that Boko Haram were planning to attack the schools. “ We pray that God will never allow that to happen and also appeal to the government and security agencies to be on the alert.”

Another resident who gave his name as Tunde Aliu, said the presence of the police made him to shudder.

“I was scared when I came out and saw a large number of policemen on our street.

We have never seen that number of armed policemen before in this community. I recovered from the shock not quite long ago.

“It was a good thing that they responded promptly even though the story ended up as rumour. It is an issue that must not be treated with kid glove because we have heard of such terrors being unleashed on innocent children in the north.”

A trader who gave his name as James Obi said: “ I thought the governor was coming to the area when I saw the number of armed policemen that came to the area this morning. It was unusual to find such here. It is only when the governor is passing that you see such in this area.”

THE NATION,

NEWS 5

SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

Abuja blasts: Nigeria in darkest phase of history, says Jonathan at bomb site •Victim begs Jonathan for job A S he visited the scene of Wednesday’s bomb blasts, which killed 23 people in Abuja, President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday declared that Nigeria has entered one of the darkest phases of its history.

But he was confident that the nation would overcome the Boko Haram insurgency which has claimed thousands of lives in the last five years.

"This is one of the darkest phases in the history of our nation. But surely, we will get over it," Jonathan said in the midst of rubble and charred cars at Emab Plaza, Abuja.

Wednesday's bomb attack was the third on the capital since April. But the other two, which took place at Nyanya part of the na-

Augustine EHIKIOYA, Abuja

tion’s capital and killed about 90 people between them, did not strike at the heart of the city.

President Jonathan was away in Equatorial Guinea for African Union summit at the time of the blast.

On Sunday, Jonathan told a delegation of African bishops that Boko Haram was "even worse than the civil war" that calaimed about a million lives in the 1960s.

"In a civil war, you know the battle line ... you know where to run to. But this one, the enemies are in your pocket," he said at the time.

The President was briefed yesterday by the Assistant

Inspector General of Police (AIG) Suleiman Abba.

He also visited Maitama District Hospital where he was briefed by the Chief Medical Director (CMD), Dr. Adetoun Adetimehin.

Speaking at the hospital, Jonathan said: "It is quite regrettable and extremely painful that when some Nigerians are struggling, thinking about how to contribute to the nation’s development, working very hard to take care of their families and train their children, others are busy planning to kill people, intimidate people, destroy people’s property. It is regrettable.

“It is one of the darkest phases in the history of our nation. But surely, we will

get over it. Some other countries have passed through such cloud before and they were able to overcome it."

He said he shared "the pains of the people who have been directly affected, the pains of their families but we will surely pass through this ugly phase of our history."

He vowed that the perpetrators of the attack and their sponsors would be brought to book.

He also pleaded with the generality of Nigerians affected by security measures in the aftermath of such blasts to "bear with them."

He said: "We all bear some pains from the highest to the least, because as

President, I may not go to everywhere I would have loved to go. These are some of the challenges I have to face.

“Even for our citizens, under such condition, we have reached some level of restrictions and some pains. Instead of shouting and insulting security operatives, let's give them maximum cooperation, give them relevant information.

"All countries that face terror suffer the same thing, citizens give maximum cooperation to the security operatives and help to contain and control. Surely, we will get over this.

"We are all mourning. I remember that that very day we had a football match to

Insecurity: FG wants Nigerians to install CCTV in homes, offices

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•The Chief Medical Director Maitama Hospital, Dr. Adetoun Adetimehin, conducting President Goodluck Jonathan, the Minister of Health, Prof. Onyebuchi Chuckwu and other government officials round the hospital during his visit to victims of the Emab Plaza bomb blast in Abuja... yesterday.

APC youths to FG: drop analogue security strategies The National Youth Caucus of the All Progressives Congress (APC) yesterday advised the Federal Government to tackle Boko Haram insurgency with a modern security strategy.

Condemning government’s approach to the menace, the youths said: “We urge the

John OFIKHENUA, Abuja Federal Government to stop applying an analogue solution to a digital problem.”

The group noted that it has discovered that the government is fighting the insurgency on the basis of mindset instead of its origin.

Addressing reporters in Abuja, former Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) National Youth Leader, Comrade Ebikinina Miriki, said: “We realise that the Federal Government fights the insurgency and insecurity from its conclusion instead of fighting it from the introduc-

South East governors condemn Abuja bombing

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HE South East Governors’ Forum has condemned the recent bomb blasts that rocked Emab Plaza in the Wuse 2 Area of Abuja.

The forum described the incident, which claimed more than 20 lives of mostly traders, as a bad Wednesday for the country.

The condemnation of the bomb blast was contained in a statement signed by the chairman of the forum and Abia State governor, Chief Theodore Orji. He said that continuous bombing by the insurgents will do the country no good.

The Governors’ Forum, which sympathised with the families of those that lost their loved ones in the blasts, called on Nigerians not to despair in the face of terror, but to help the security agencies to combat crimes by giving them useful information to operate with.

The forum called on Nigerians to report suspicious movements to the police and other security agencies within their domains, saying that it is one of the ways to help in combating crimes in the country.

It, however, expressed optimism in the measures taken by the Federal Government to con-

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Ugochukwu UGOJI-EKE, Umuahia tain the rising cases of insurgency and terrorism in the country.

The forum stated: “We were shocked by Wednesday’s bomb blasts that rocked the Emab Plaza in Wuse 2 Area of Abuja, which left many innocent Nigerians dead and others injured.

“We sympathise with the families of those that lost their loved ones and wish those injured and receiving treatment at different hospitals quick recovery.

“We condemn this latest bomb blasts carried out by insurgents, which left over 21 people dead.

This is an act of wickedness which any well meaning citizens of the country should condemn.

“We call on Nigerians not to be deterred in the face of terror as Federal Government has the capacity to contain it. All suspicious movements within your domain should be reported to the police and other security agencies for prompt action to be taken.

“We want to reassure Nigerians that very soon, insurgency and terrorism will become a thing of the past. Nigeria will continue to remain one united and indivisible entity.”

tory aspect.”

He wondered why government keeps applying curative measures instead of preventive ones which, according to the group, is totally wrong and an unfortunate abberation of good governance.

The APC youths warned the Federal Government to stop playing politics with the lives of Nigerians.

“We urge all our political leaders, irrespective of party affiliation, to cooperate with security agencies in bringing an end to this wanton destruction of lives and property in the name of Boko Haram,” Miriki said.

Making a veiled reference to the controversy surrounding the age of the APC National Youth Leader, Ibrahim Dasuki Jalo Waziri, Miriki insisted that Jalo was born in on April 13, 1971.

The group commended the party on his election.

The youths, who defended the integrity of their leader, likened his flair for good governance with that of the late Sir Tafawa Balewa, Chief Obafemi Awolowo and Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe.

play and all Nigerians were celebrating the Eagles, hoping they were going to win, then this act came up. I was airborne then, it was when I got down in Malabo that I got the information. Surely, we will get through this."

One of the victims at the hospital, who was selling telephone recharge cards at EMAB plaza, begged the President for a job.

The victim, who spoke in pidgin English, said: "It was recharge cards I was selling at Banex Plaza. I don't have a job. See what I have gone through.

“Since yesterday, I have not slept. I have finished school but I have no Job. I can't go and steal."

He called on Nigerians to "help me to start a better business and start my life again."

Replying, the President said: "We are happy you are alive. Thank God you are alive."

S a way out of the lingering insecurity in the country, the Federal Government yesterday advised Nigerians to imbibe the habit of installing Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) in their homes and offices as it is being done in other countries The Coordinator of the National Briefing Centre, Mike Omeri, who spoke on the security situation in the country, said the persistent bomb attacks in various parts of the country is a wake up call to Nigerians to be more vigilant and security conscious.

He reaffirmed that the CCTV on the Banex Street in Wuse 11 where last wednesday’s bomb blast occurred is still functioning while the FCTA is also making efforts to improve on its functionality.

Omeri said: “The activities of the insurgents, which is now targeted at some major cities in the country, is a wake up call on all of us to be more vigilant and cautious of our environment, and to resolve more than ever before to stand and unite as a people to end insurgency in the country.

He said: “The Federal Government commends the security agencies for their prompt action, which led to the arrest of one of the attackers and the killing of another who was almost using his gadgets to detonate the second and possibly the third deadly device.”

Bukola AMUSAN, Abuja Omeri also said that the Federal Government has noted with concern attempts by some persons who are working assiduously to demoralise the security agencies, particularly the military personnel involved in the fight against insurgency in the North East.

He said: ”While we do not want to go into details of the operations currently taking place, it is advised that the pratice in which some persons just bandied figures of casualties on either the side of the military or insurgents should be discourgaed and checked.

“The truth remains that the military is winning the war and the nation shall surely triumph in this fight.”

On the planned terror attack on some private schools in Wuse 11, Abuja, Omeri said: “This Federal Government is aware of false alarm and rumours in form of text messages being circulated in the social media with a view to create panic and anxiety among the populace to the effect that some schools are being targeted for attack.

“While we urge parents and school management to be calm, cautious and more vigilant, we wish to state that security agencies are working round the clock and have taken measures to ensure that schools are safe and academic activities (are) unhindered,” he said.

Clean-up begins at Abuja blasts scene Gbenga OMOKHUNU, Abuja

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IFE is gradually returning to the ever-busy EMAB Plaza, scene of the bomb blast that occurred last Wednesday, killing 23 people and leaving over 53 injured.

A lane has been opened to the general public and vehicular movement is presently uninterrupted while security operatives are still keeping watch over the scene.

The Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB) has swung into action by sweeping the scene while all the burnt vehicles have been removed.

Those who gained access to the shops started counting their losses while others wondered where they would start from.

Policemen were seen screening visitors to the shopping mall while those whose cars were parked in the premises of the shopping mall were asked to the particulars of their vehicles before they would be released to them.

THE NATION

6 NEWS

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SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

HE funeral service was as solemn as it should.It could not have been otherwise for the late eminent jurist, Justice Chukwudifu Oputa.

Gathered at the Sacred Heart Cathedral, at Oguta,his hometown in Oguta Local Government Area of Imo State to bid him farewell were eminent citizens from across the land and beyond.

The Catholic Bishop of Sokoto , Dr. Mathew Hassan Kukah had just delivered his sermon,followed by a tribute to the deceased by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation,Chief Pius Anyim,representing President Goodluck Jonathan.

But unexpectedly it all went awry soon after Dr.Kukah invited Governor Rochas Okorocha to the podium to read his condolence message.

The governor had just taken the microphone to speak when the eldest son of the deceased , Mr. Charles Oputa aka Charly Boy sprang to his feet ,dashed to the podium and snatched the microphone from him.

The guests were dazed as was the governor.

Charly Boy raged,vowing to stop any politician from scoring ‘cheap political points’ with his father’s death.

Not even Bishop Kukah could calm him.

An embarrassed Okorocha made for the door,followed by aides,government officials and other guests,many of them expressing disgust at Charly Boy’s hostility,24 hours after walking out of a tributes session organised in Owerri by the State government for his late father.

His reason was the same as yesterday’s.

Many guests dashed to their cars and left the church immediately for fear that the situation might degenerate into a breakdown of law and order.

The governor’s Chief Press

Drama at Oputa’s burial as Charly Boy snatches microphone from Okorocha •Governor, commissioners storm out of church • His action regrettable — Governor’s aide Okodili NDIDI, Owerri Secretary, Mr.Sam Onwuemeodo, condemned Charles Oputa for ‘embarrassing’ the Governor Rochas Okorocha.

He alleged that the action was politically motivated.

Mr. Onwuemeodo, in a statement said it was regrettable that Charly Boy “threw caution to the wind and turned the church service into a political theatre that saw him acting or playing out the script he drafted in Abuja with some Imo politicians who have remained cowed by the overwhelming popularity of Governor Rochas Okorocha.”

He added:“The Imo State governor had worked together with Charly Boy both when the late Justice was sick, until the time he died and the preparation for the burial which also encouraged the state governor to make substantial financial input and also organized a special day of tribute for the late Justice at the expense of state government with Charly Boy also present with other members of the family.

“This is why the sudden change of character of Charly Boy at the church service, in which case, he insisted that the governor would not talk as protocol demanded could not be understood, except that he was acting out the script handed over to him by some of the gubernatorial aspirants

RAMADAN GUIDE WITH FEMI ABBAS

e-mail: femabbas756@gmail.com Tel: 08115708536

WELCOMING RAMADAN

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HIS is Ramadan, the 'Dean' of all lunar months. It comes into the world once in a year. Its arrival is always with fanfare. Its splendour is shrouded in the divine paraphernalia that heralds its coming.

Unlike all other months of the year, Ramadan keeps humanity in suspense even as it sends a harbinger ahead.

That harbinger is the crescent of hope, which millions of Muslims await before commencing the annual obligatory fast.

From its name alone, Ramadan can be called the key with which to open the door to paradise. It is the solid ground upon which the formidable edifice of Islam is built. It is the month in which Islam was born.

Without the revelation of the Qur'an which started in the month of Ramadan, perhaps the world would not be talking of the five pillars of Islam today. It is from the Qur’anic revelations that we came to know of Iman (faith); Salat (worship); Zakah (alms giving); Sawm (fasting) and Hajj.

Ramadan is the great light from the heavens which wakes up the snoring humanity from their deep sleep and illuminates the dark world of man.

For those who know it, Ramadan is the incomparable yardstick of discipline in the life of man. To wake in the night and observe Nawafil (spiritual genuflexions); to take an early breakfast at dawn and abstain from eating, drinking and sexual intercourse as well as throughout the day can only be imposed

by Ramadan as an act of discipline.

With Ramadan, the hardest heart is softened and the wildest animal instinct in man is tamed. No other pillar of Islam preaches patience, sympathy and social welfare as effectively as Ramadan does. Ramadan is the month that levels the ground under the feet of the rich and the poor alike.

Ramadan is the only month that comes into the world with heavy pregnancy. Inside that pregnancy is the mystery called the Night of Power (Laylatul Qadr) which turns every true believer into a new, innocent person. If for the 'Night of Power' (Laylatul Qadr) alone, Ramadan is worth the divine splendour that characterizes it. Welcome on board of this cruising spiritual ship sailing confidently towards the ‘Cape of Good Hope’.

from the state who might have been rattled by the thunderous ovation that greeted the governor by the crowd when he was first introduced.

“At a function like that protocol had demanded that the host governor must talk before any other speaker. But Senator Pius Anyim representing President was first called to talk. Ideally, as representative of the president, there was no way Senator Anyim would not have talked at the event.

But protocol would have seen

the governor talking first to welcome the invitees to the service as the host governor.

“Perhaps afraid of the popularity of Governor Okorocha among the Imo populace ..., the few politicians from the state in Abuja who are desperate to capture power in the state in 2015, saw a willing tool in Charly Boy for them to ensure that the governor would not talk at the event.

“We condemn that ugly incident. And also wish to advise politicians from the state to stop heating up the polity

since God is the giver of power. In 2015, God will decide who will govern Imo State and when God decides that, there is nothing anybody can do about it”.

Earlier in his sermon, Kukah had lauded the virtues of the late Justice Oputa which he said made him “ tolerate a son like Charley Boy.” These virtues,he said ,were “a measure of the greatness of the man.”

He asked Nigerians to stand up in defence of justice and equity.

“Oputa, before he died, was

worried about the quality of Nigerian lawyers and judges because he believed in the Judiciary as the hope of the nation. Today his legacies are beyond his immediate family,” he said.

Dignitaries at the funeral service included Chief Anyim,Labour Minister Emeka Wogu, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Emeka Ihedioha, Senator Uche Chukwumerije, former Anambra and Imo State Governors, Peter Obi and Ikedi Ohakim.

Others were Governors Rochas Okorocha (Imo), Willie Obiano (Anambra) Theodore Orji (Abia) Senator Chris Ngige, among others.

From left: Wife of the Osun State Governor, Mrs Sherifat Aregbesola; MD/CEO OSICOL Company, Mr Bola Oyebamiji and Osun State NAFDAC Coordinator, Mr. Kayode Fagboro, during the customer forum and official roll-out of 50cl Essence table water in Osogbo, Osun State...yesterday

Ex-militants to Jonathan: run in 2015 or be“you‘banished’ should not come back

Hundreds of exmilitants,most of them Ijaw,yesterday asked President Goodluck Jonathan to declare his intention to contest next year’s presidential election or risk banishment forever from Ijawland.

Ex-militant Phase 3 Leaders (of the amnesty programme) as they styled themselves, said they could no longer tolerate the ‘provocative and unwar-

Osemwengie BEN OGBEMUDIA, Benin

ranted comments’ by politicians who are out to muzzle him out of the election.

In a resolution at a meeting held in Benin City, yesterday, the agitators said their call was inevitable “at a time like this when some individuals and selfish politicians are over heating the polity, making pro-

vocative comments, saying Mr President promised them that he will run for just one term as if they are now the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

They warned that “any attempt to stop Mr President from exercising his fundamental human right will put the unity of Nigeria at great risk,” and declared that should the President fail to contest in 2015

home but remain in Abuja forever.”

Godstime Ogidigba, Chairman of the group, and Peter Edah, Speaker, asked Nigerians to join hands with the Federal Government in stopping the Boko Haram menace.

They were confident that Nigeria will soon overcome the security challenges facing it and the school girls abducted in April by the sect released.

Freedom House inaugural lecture holds June 30

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HE Freedom House De mocracy Lecture Series will have its inaugural lecture (2014) on June 30 at the Shell Hall, Muson, Lagos with the theme, “Nigeria’s Governance Predicament: Poverty, Terrorism and Democracy”.

Former Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Abdulrahman Bello Dambazau, is expected to be the chairman of the event, while Professor Larry Diamond of the Centre on Democracy, Stanford University, is the guest speaker.

Diamond is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution and at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Stanford University, United States where he directs the centre on democracy, development and the rule of law.

He was a Fulbright scholar

at the Bayero University in Kano and has written extensively on democracy in Nigeria. He is the author of the book ‘Class, Ethnicity, and Democracy in Nigeria: The Failure of the First Republic’, (Syracuse University Press), 1988 as well as - ‘Nigeria in Search of Democracy’ Foreign Affairs. 1 Mar. 1984. Web. 18 June 2014.

He is the founding co-editor of the Journal of Democracy and also serves as Senior Consultant at the International Forum for Democratic Studies of the National Endowment for Democracy.

During 2002-3, he served as a consultant to the U.S. Agency for International Development. He has also advised and lectured at the World Bank, the United Nations, the State Department, and other governmental and non-governmental agencies. His 2005

book, ‘Squandered Victory: The American Occupation’ and the ‘Bungled Effort to Bring Democracy to Iraq’, was one of the first books to critically analyze America’s postwar engagement in Iraq.

His latest book, ‘The Spirit of Democracy: The Struggle to Build Free Societies Throughout the World (Times Books, 2008), explores the sources of global democratic progress and stresses and the prospects for future democratic expansion.

Diamond is now completing a new book of essays,’ In Search of Democracy.’ He has written, edited or co-edited over 40 books on democracy.

General Dambazau was appointed as the Chief of Army Staff in 2008

by President Umaru Yar’Adua. He received a Letter of Commendation from the Ministry of External Affairs in 1989 for his contri-

bution to the creation of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA). He is a renowned scholar and intellectual. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice (1982), a master’s degree in International Relations (1983), a master’s degree in Educational Administration (1984) and a doctoral degree in Criminology and he has authored several books, including ‘Military Law Terminologies’, (Spectrum Books Limited, 1990), ‘Law and Criminality in Nigeria’, (University Press, 1994), ‘Issues in Crime Prevention and Control in Nigeria’, (Baraka Press, 1996).

Freedom House Democracy Lecture Series, which supports the expansion of freedom in the world, is operated as an independent non-governmental organisation.

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

COMMENTARY

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All the same I want to end on a note of congratulations to both FIFA and the host nation Brazil for a job well done as well as a note of caution to both in their future endeavors

HAT Nigeria is in the last 16 of the FIFA 2014 World Cup and is scheduled to face France on Monday is no longer news. What is amazing is that Nigerians are confident that their nation can beat France hands down in the encounter in spite of the daunting and dazzling credentials of France which won the coveted trophy on home soil in Paris in 1998 whereas Nigeria has never reached the quarter finals of the prestigious FIFA soccer competition. Such clear disparity in credentials, reputations and pedigree is the bone of contention here today. We start however by taking a close look at the way Fifa has been conducting the World Cup as a competition and its business of managing the staging of this globally popular event in Brazili where demonstrators tried fiercely but failed dismally to disrupt the soccer fiesta over protests on embezzlement and inflation of stadia construction projects for the 2014 World Cup. Obviously, while we easily concede that the bravado and optimism of Nigerians in taking on a reputable soccer giant stem from the fact that so many soccer big wigs like former champions Spain, England, and Italy, did not reach where Nigeria is in the competition, means that this Fifa 2014 competition is no respecter of reputations. So if the nations hosting La Liga, Seria A, and the famous EPL – English Premier League which are the toast of soccer loving Nigerians are out of the race and Nigeria is still there standing tall and to be counted, then one can appreciate the soaring of Nigerian confidence in the ability of the Green Eagles to lift Nigerian flag as far a s possible in this Fifa Competition. Such confidence is so strong that it is not at all swayed by the disturbing news that before the Iran match the Eagles were reported to have demanded the payment of $2m as payment before playing and that they refused to train in Brazil on Thursday this week over the same non payment of arrears and allowances. The difference between the hard nosed business men the Eagles players are and their very patriotic supporters is that as long as the Eagles play and win no one cares how much they get, when and how. So you can see why the judgement day on the matter is mutually ignored for now in the euphoria of victory which will never end unless and until the Eagles win the World Cup which is not impossible given the weight of the present giddy euphoria of victory. It needs no soothsayer however to know that the daggers will be quickly drawn on both sides once the Eagles falter in flight or don’t win as expected and a very scathing and public scrutiny of player’s demands and allowances will certainly unfold on what happened to the old values of nationalism and patriotism that should normally drive the urge or zeal to play for Nigeria rather than the millions of dollars in our players’ kitty.

Anyway business has always taken a front seat where FIFA and its business of organising soccer has been concerned. So also have underhand deals which have soured the reputation of Fifa but have luckily not diminished the

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FIFA 2014 World Cup, reputations and business global love for the beautiful game of soccer. Examples abound to prove this unfortunate development even well outside the outrage in Brazil over corruption in sports management and the lack of provision of social amenities and infrastructure in an environment of poverty and misery. FIFA was reported to have lifted the suspension on German soccer idol Franz Beckenbeur this week over his failure to cooperate on corruption inquiries into the award of the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cup to Russia and Qatar respectively. Beckenbaeur had defended himself by saying that he did not take the questions asked of him as a member of the Executive Committee that took the decisions seriously.

Even though he has been forgiven his reputation has taken a beaten of sorts. Beukenbaeur however remains my soccer idol and that of millions of Germans and the entire world for his contribution to soccer as World Cup winner for Germany as player in 1970 and coach in 1990.

In football business also, one man’s food is another man’s poison. While some World Cup corporate sponsors have withdrawn their financial support for the game after Uruaguay’s striker Luis Suarez bit Italian player Chellini in the game that Uruguay defeated Italy to move to the next round of the World Competition, Barcelona Football Club has asserted that the FIFA ban of 4 months for the Uruguayan striker by FIFA notwithstanding, Barcelona is still interested in signing him next season as a new player for the Spanish giant. Which really is very interesting news as one expects a leading club like Barcelona to fight to protect the reputation of soccer which Suarez brought into grave disrepute with his disgraceful act of biting a fellow player on the field of play called foot and not biting ball which he seemed to have invented and perfected, as this in not his first time. Well, this is football business and big money in Spain goes after brilliant talents anywhere at all cost as Barcelona has shown so coldly in running after the disgraced Suarez. One can only wait for the reaction of Liverpool FC, Suarez’s club to first, the new biting offence by their star player on the world stage and secondly how they see that in terms of their corporate reputation as a successful English soccer club – as well as how that affects their reaction to Suarez and the big money offer that Barcelona are bound to bring in buying him, bag and baggage, and of course with his famous Brazil 2014 world cup brand new teeth in tow.

Let me state candidly that this has been an exciting World Cup with very many surprises and beautiful goals and I expect more to come. Nigeria under the leadership of Keshi has been brilliant and this has lifted the spirit and sense of patriotism of all Nigerians. It has also boosted our sovereign reputation positively by showing how gracefully our national team plays its football in spite of the daily internet reports of the bombing and killing of Nigerians in the North East and now Abuja and our intractable search for our 200 Chibok girls in the custody of the

nefarious and blood thirsty Boko Haram. Really do the Boko Haram guys watch football. Why can’t they for instance surprise us all by saying that for the sake of Emenike, Musa or Odemwinge ‘s goals at the World Cup they are releasing our Chibok girls as a gesture of appeasement and goodwill to all Nigerians? Or are the Boko Haram people not Nigerians and don’t they watch football which is most popular in the North of Nigeria where they hail from and have literally destroyed with their mindless bombings? Really I am appealing to their sense of decency or whatever is left of it after the bloody bombings.

All the same I want to end on a note of congratulations to both FIFA and the host nation Brazil for a job well done as well as a note of caution to both in their future endeavors.

Which for FIFA is the quest for re election by its leader Sepp Blatter for a another term and for Brazil the hosting of the 2016 Olympics. I congratulate FIFA especially for its swift and deterring action on the Suarez biting infamy especially as the referee ignored the act which a world TV audience saw with bated breath and amazement. I thank FIFA for restoring soccer to its pride of place and respectability as a game meant for entertainment, devoid of carnivorous pursuits or delights or any such danger to the soccer players and fans of the entire world. I warn however that Sepp Blatter should be persuaded not to contest in order to allow fresh blood to lead the global football house. Blatter should however be treated like a bull in a china shop and shown the way out firmly and decisively because he has done enough for FIFA and should just move on and allow FIFA to do the same, gracefully.

With regard to the government in Brazil, I want them to make significant progress on the economic sector to make life better for the average and poor Brazilians before the Brazil Olympics of 2016.

This will show respect for former President Lula da Silva a former trade unionist who secured both the World Cup of 2014 and the Olympics of 2016 for Brazil during his tenure. His ambition then was that the hosting of the two prestigious global events would create more jobs and infrastructure for Brazilians and make their lives more comfortable and not the reverse as now seems the case. More importantly the Brazilian government should brace itself for more riots if Brazil does not win the World Cup, more out of frustration than anything else.

Yet this is a looming possibility given that Brazil’s team strategy is built around one man, Neymar who is so fragile and can so easily be knocked out, which the Brazilians don’t envisage at all for now. For me however I expect the sturdy strength and skills of Emenike as well as the irrepressible spirit of the likes of Odemwinge and a recalled Victor Moses to see us through, first with France on Monday. Up Eagles!

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THE NATION, SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

COMMENTARY

As we frolic in Brazil...

EYOND borders, socio-economic differences, the unifying force of cultural affinity and all other phenomena that either unite people or set them apart from one another, there is something about the game of football that magically captivates all. It is not just the seriousness with which 22 energetic footballers chase a round-leather object while thousands of direct spectators and millions of others across the globe cheer and jeer. It is not even about the raw grit, sheer athleticism, crude tackles and deft moves that tickle. Its magnetism not only enlivens the spirit but somehow ignites the fire of patriotism in many across Nigeria.

That explains why people breathe, live, love, hate and even die for the game of soccer as it is called in the United States of America.

For us here, football is not just any other sports with its highs and lows. It is more of a catharsis. Even before the bombs started booming in our backyards and the dead were being counted in hundreds of body bags, football has always captivated our fancies in a crazily queer way. When everything else fails, we've always hidden the drudgery of quotidian living in the warm embrace of crucial football victories by the Nigerian team. After all, our trophy cabinet couldn’t be said to be that dusty like that of my favourite English club, Arsenal, until mother luck smiled on it last season with the capture of the English FA Cup. Nigeria not only holds the bragging right as African champion, it also has a couple of FIFA age group world cups in the kitty. So, it has not been a bad journey in the footballing world for us.

And in moments like this when Brazil, the host of the 20th Mundial, is literally on fire, unity is writ large on our wide canvas of pain. We just can't help being proud of our achievements on the field of play, no matter how temporal and short-lived this may be.

And so, when Chief Coach of the Super Eagles of Nigeria, Stephen Keshi released his 23-man list of players that would make the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, we knew we were bound to experience some sort of hysteria even as citizens of a nation in the throes of war from all fronts. Not that we were comfortable with some of the names that magisterially made an inroad into Keshi's list. Not that we didn't identify the tired legs and doubtful inclusions. We were just optimistic that the ultimate hysteria would be that of joy in victory even when the warm-up matches gave us little hope with a harvest of drawn matches and a loss to the USA. We just believe in that undying spirit of a Nigerian that we would always grind out a cheering result from the gravest of situation. After all, were we not grouped with lowly Iran, inexperienced Bosnia Herzegovina and deadly Argentina?

We imagined our team would clinically eliminate Iran and stave off any upset from the Bosnian pretenders. Anyhow, we were set to exhale in Brazil. Or so we thought.

We were, by all standards, ready for a party right from the blast of the whistle in the match against Iran. I can't say, for sure, that we went to Brazil with the largest governmentsponsored delegates since the media has not really written much on that aspect of our game. But what I know, for sure, is that we are adequately represented in Brazil with the President of the Senate, David Bonaventure Mark, as Cheer

Knucklehead

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With

Yomi Odunuga E-mail:yomi.odunuga @thenationonlineng.net SMS only: 07028006913

Leader, ably assisted by truckloads of ministers, heads of boards and parastatals, hangars-on and friends of the Oga at the top.

I'm told, as I was writing this last week, that the Nigerian Football Federation is set to storm Brazil with another crowd of delegates to be led by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, to physically witness the demolition of BH (not Boko Haram but Bosnia and Herzegovina) and Argentina by Keshi's bumbling, notplaying-to-instruction team. I wish them luck as the party goes on in Brazil at the home front burns.

However, even before the Super Eagles filed into the field last Saturday for their second match against BH in Brazil, I had reminded them of the deadly activities of the Boko Haram sect back home in Nigeria. If we are all agreed that football plays a unique role in the forlorn search for peace and unity in our country, then it should follow that the Super Eagles are condemned to giving us something that would temporarily take us away from the gnawing realities of the times. No matter how enervating the task, we can only exhale when we succeed in nailing BH in Brazil. Somehow, we grilled out the needed three points in that match. It then rekindled our hope that we could go further than we had imagined at the beginning of the tournament.

Of course, we were a bit deflated by that abysmally dismal performance against Iran. Yet, typical of the Nigerian spirit, we knew it was too early to say that our cup of good luck has run out. How can that be when our party train just pulled up in Brazil anyway? Why should Keshi's team deny the world the opportunity of seeing the latest dance steps from the world's largest gathering of the black race? Is it skelewu, azonto or etigi?

Every goal scored by us at this tournament must come with a unique dance both on and off the pitch. We saw a bit of that when Osaze Odenwingie drove a nail through the hearts of the BH boys led by Edin Dzeko. Our wrinkled faces need some facelift of smiles! Thankfully, Dzeko’s cancelled goal didn’t deny us of that boisterous smile.

Question is: would victory at the World Cup in Brazil etch a permanent smile on our faces? No, it won't. But since we delight in the vacuity of temporary joy, it would give some persons a reason to latch on as the bounty of a warped democratic practice. It may not bring back our girls who have spent more than 75 days of hell in the hands of their hardened, insensitive abductors. Instead, it will evoke a national hysteria of crimson unity. The victory may not even be dedicated to the scores of

people that have been bombed and may be killed, maimed and dehumanised at the various viewing centres by the blood-sucking Boko Haram sect as the World Cup tournament enters the third week. What we would have instead is the usual boot-licking where the medallion of success is delicately placed on the lean neck of the man with the good luck. By then, all the prayers, angst, patriotic fervour, anxious moments, near paralysis and even outright deaths due to cardiac arrest during a football match would not matter.

What counts is the cheap, infantile politicking that is bound to follow.

In spite of all this, there is a way the Super Eagles can truly play their hearts out for the ordinary Nigerian who continues to suffer from the callous brigandage of the ruling elite.

There is a way they can make us burst into tears of joy amid the putrid smell of sorrow. There is a way they can take us to Brazil as a major part of that frolicking group, searching for catharsis in that strange land of samba rhythm and riveting ladies with the famed Brazilian hair. If only they can see beyond the clamour for dollar rain in lost, drawn or won matches and focus on playing the game as true patriots, they would have won our affection. They can, for instance, draw positive vibrations through a resolve to win Monday’s Round of 16 match against France for the abducted Chibok school girls and all those innocent lives wasted by insurgents and petty criminal gangs in our country. How about winning Monday’s match in memory of those killed while watching a game of football at viewing centres in Yobe and Adamawa states? Would it be out of place to wear a black band in memory of those heartlessly bombed to death at a shopping mall in Abuja last Wednesday? What's wrong with fighting for victory in the search for true unity?

Absolutely nothing! But is that what would be on display on Monday or the whimsical antics of a mentally-drained team in a bitter brawl over allowances with equally greedy government officials?

Of a truth, we may never know what's in stock for us until the team file out to trade tackles. What we know is that teams that have gone to the World Cup with a baggage of unresolved issues often get booted out in disgrace. If in doubt, let us ask our next door neighbours, the Cameroonians, how things panned out for them in Brazil 2014 in spite of a galaxy of stars on display.

With just one drawn, one won, one lost matches at the group stage and a coach that has refused to take responsibility for his mistakes in the uninspiring showing against Iran, wouldn't it be too hasty to begin a party that might likely end in crisis? Anyway, let us keep hope alive the same way we fervently pray and hope that the abducted Chibok girls would suddenly reappear in their parents’ homes in one piece! It's a tough call really. But then, is there any better way to frolic with flourishing relish when our land is wreathed in the silent noise of fear, blood and anguish? So, I'll be keeping tabs in Brazil as we battle the roaring incompetence that has turned us into a laughing stock by those who ought to know that you don't fight terror with arms clasped in surrender! Hope they get the message. God bless Nigeria.

The world cools on Chibok girls Ogochukwu Ikeje ohgeeoh@gmail.com 08084235961 (SMS only) HE steam is going out of the campaign and the abducted Chibok schoolgirls no longer seem to command the attention they once did.

To be sure, relatives of the nearly 300 girls remain as traumatised and anxious as ever while some media outlets tuck the question ‘Where are the Chibok girls?’ into a corner of their front pages everyday. But still, things are no longer the same on the kidnapping, almost three months after. The crowds of protesters are thinning down. The placards are lowered, if not totally discarded. The bring-back-our-girls hash-tag is no longer the most popular trend in social media.

Why this is so is difficult to understand, let alone explain.

Has this short time healed or deadened the pain of the abduction of these minors which everyone initially seemed? Have the horrors of that chilly incident been drained out of our systems? When the news broke, didn’t our minds run riot? We moaned, oh, poor minors! Where were they taken to?

Anything that can pass for shelters there? The girls had no time to take spare clothing or even think of other provisions pertaining to ladies. Every second of their captivity they would remember their doting parents, loving siblings and fond friends. We thought about the violence on their freedoms. It was agony for the world.

Perhaps it was that torment which triggered the immediate reaction from across the globe. Fingers tapped out tweets and re-tweets on the abduction. Pastors and imams turned to the

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heavens for a response. Michelle Obama demanded that the girls be returned home. Her husband Barack dispatched United States personnel to help achieve that demand. Everyone condemned Boko Haram, the Islamist sect which claimed responsibility for the abduction.

Then, as if to prove that the agony was genuine and that the militants had bitten off more than they could chew, presidents and heads of government also began to speak and, beyond speaking, to promise trained personnel and resources to assist the Nigerian government in bringing back the girls and crushing Boko Haram.

Characteristically, the US led the way. The United Kingdom followed. France, Australia, Israel, you name it, all threw their weights behind Nigeria in the search for the Chibok girls. Never mind that some initial crises of confidence were reported between Nigeria and its helpers. Countries promising assistance, for instance, griped about President Goodluck Jonathan’s apparent reluctance to approve their offers, some even blaming the government for not responding quickly enough to prevent the abduction, having been notified earlier.

It is difficult to say how much of the pledged help has come in, or how many of foreign personnel are on the ground to boost our much-maligned military. But it is beyond question or conjecture that the world is cooling off on Chibok and on the nearly 300 schoolgirls who are close to their third month in captivity. Nigerians themselves seem the guiltiest. The World Cup has come inbetween and almost 170 million of us have turned to the TV, following every kick, every goal, every tackle, all the upsets, and never missing the ugly sides of the Brazil showpiece. We are with our loved and loathed Super Eagles, following their belaboured flights and their strengthened wings, even monitoring their discomforts and distress when it comes to daily provisions and such matters.

But beyond Brazil, haven’t we curiously begun to mind our business, Nigerians as a whole? Haven’t we started

thinking more about ourselves and what we and our families will eat? Haven’t we been softly humming that old song, ‘Que sera, sera, whatever will be will be’? Haven’t we given up on those minors?

Have Nigerians not read the lips of the Jonathan administration and felt its body language on the abducted girls?

We have not forgotten that the president and his officers will rather no one protested the abduction, or if they did, to do so pouring all their anger on the abductors, and not appearing to be suggesting that the administration is to blame or incapable of rescuing the schoolgirls. Jonathan has said repeatedly and expects to be believed that the security community was doing its best to find the girls. He has also poured curses on the terrorists, declaring that they will receive their due punishment. Also, no one has forgotten that the eternally controversial Abuja police chief, Mr Joseph Mbu banned all Chibok protests in the federal capital city. His pronouncement was later reversed by higher authorities, but it may have sufficiently shaken up the protesters’ spirit. It is also still fresh in the people’s minds that the military launched a vigorous operation to keep newspapers from circulating across the country. Although the official explanation was that terrorists were planning to attack using distribution vans, it was soon reported that vendors were harassed, some detained for a while alongside their papers. Pictures and reportage of Chibok protests formed large parts of newspapers’ daily.

How about the international community’s general coldness to the Chibok issue? The US is said to be intent on deploying its personnel to the search but even the world’s superpower is hardly convincing on this. How can anyone explain why, almost three weeks after, the schoolgirls have not been rescued. The world seems to be moving on.

The only thing that seems clear is that the terrorists are indulging their new hobby, which is seizing women and girls and taking them away. Over the week, there were reports that more than 60 women were kidnapped in a cluster of Borno State villages. Any end to the horrors?

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

COMMENTARY

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Heal the world ♫ ♪♬♩♫ There's A Place In Your Heart And I Know That It Is Love And This Place Could Be Much Brighter Than Tomorrow ♫ ♪♬♩♫ ♫ ♪♬♩♫ And If You Really Try You'll Find There's No Need To Cry In This Place You'll Feel There's No Hurt Or Sorrow ♫ ♪♬♩♫ ♫ ♪♬♩♫ There Are Ways To Get There If You Care Enough For The Living Make A Little Space Make A Better Place... ♫ ♪♬♩♫ n the above lyrics of the song, Heal the World, that place in our hearts which the song urges us to seek is one that has the power to widen our individual perspectives to include the well-being of the whole world and future generations through each of our thoughts and actions. It is a place that each and every one of us has individual and sole control of.

Heal the World is a song from Michael Jackson’s hit album, Dangerous, which was released in 1991. It speaks of peace and compels each and every individual to contribute their quota in order to change the world for the better; a change that marshals in a renewed dedication to widespread moral values, which puts an end to disagreements peacefully, through discourse instead of violence; a change that upholds human dignity and human responsibility and promotes empathy and kindness.

Of all his songs, Michael Jackson, in past interviews, spoke of “Heal the World” as the song that he was most proud to have written. As I recall the message of love and peace that he gave through his music and the stories of unity, understanding and patience that he spoke of in his work, I am comforted by the fact that the loss of Michael is one that will never be forgotten.

Five years on since that dreadful day of June 25th, 2009 when the world woke to the shocking news that the King of Pop had passed away, the sadness that those of us, who adored Michael and appreciated his philanthropy, music and message, feel is still there.

Every year, since his death, on the anniversary of his loss, I have written a tribute to Michael. This year, amidst all the turmoil and conflict that is raging all over the world, I felt it would be fitting to reflect on the message of peace that Michael was so desperate to spread in his most cherished creation, Heal the world. For it is a message that the world is presently so much in need of.

In some of his past interviews, Michael referred to the song as being about man's inhumanity to his fellow man, a development that we are all too aware of as we watch in disbelief as human beings maim, slaughter, rape, massacre, abduct, bomb and commit the most horrific crimes against other fellow human beings. All the horrors that are presently taking place world-wide are avoidable if we each take the responsibility upon ourselves and embrace the message of peace and change or heal the world from what it has, so unfortunately, become today.

As people, when we focus on our own mortality and the mortality of those nearest and dearest to us, we find that there are much more important things in life than politics or government, money or material possessions, desire and ambition, there is right and wrong, good and bad, salvation and humanity, life and death.

When each of us was born, we each came with the traits necessary for man’s being and our very survival. We each were naturally provided with the ability to be kind, to nurture and care for each other. Obviously, while, not everybody in human creation has been given these qualities in equal measures, the fact still remains that every human being created has the capac-

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ity to possess such positive qualities and has the ability to reject the negative qualities within. I do not believe that any one was born evil but I do believe that people can be evil-prone and can learn to be evil. However, I also believe that everybody has the capacity to overcome evil. It is those innate qualities and abilities within each of us that have to be tapped in order for us to heal the world and give humanity a chance for peace.

If each of us strived to maintain and develop positive qualities and advance the very basic human values we each have, our differences of religious faith, race, ethnicity, nationality, gender, and literacy, economic divide or any other differences would be of no negative consequence. If we all embraced the concept of ‘live and let live,’ we would all be individually comforted in the reality of our choosing. If we, as human beings, each concentrate on encouraging good human relations between our different identities, we have the power to heal this world and give peace a chance. All the turmoil that is playing out all over the world is created, orchestrated and developed with us and it is only from within that we can stop the world from the terrific kind of bleeding we are witnessing.

Often times it is much easier for us to push the responsibilities of working for peace on our leaders, but in reality, the duty lies with each and every one of us. For peace to have a chance in this world, the search for peace must start when each one of us embraces a sincere effort to take responsibility for each other.

When we are kind to others, it is natural for us to develop inner peace. When we search for peace and practice peace, it is inevitable that we will be at peace with ourselves and with those around us. And if within our communities, we live in a state of peace with each other, the communities next to us will benefit from that peace. It is the very circle of life which links the human family together and once that link has a weakness, the circle is invariably broken.

While it may be the norm for Michael’s message of peace to be seen as unrealistic, almost as if he speaks of some kind of utopia found only in Children’s bed time stories. But the appeal for global peace and world healing is not an entirely unrealistic one, it is an essential one. If one really thinks of some of these messages of peace, they are not really all that farfetched. In

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It is so heartbreaking and devastating to watch the madness going on in the world where man’s wickedness against man is seen in the form of the daily senseless bloodletting. Headlines of families being slaughtered, populations being bombed, and communities being massacred are just too unbelievable for the human senses

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‘Heal the World,’ Michael merely appealed for people to show love, care and need to the children who are suffering and people who are victims of wars and poverty. Just those steps of loving and caring for children and people in need are some of the vital steps towards world peace and healing.

When any of us are facing challenges in our lives, it is natural for us to regularly look towards others for assistance and support. They could be people we know or they may be strangers; they may be people who we share identity with or people with whom we share no identity. There is not one person in this world that has not had to unconditionally rely on another for help. When circumstances arise where we have had to seek assistance from someone else, we do not stop to know who people are before we ask for help. And in the instances where we each have helped others, we do not ask their identity before we offer them help. We each have helped others because they are human beings like us and others have helped us for exactly the same reason.

As human beings with a stake in this world and a stake in preserving this world in a state where our children and generations after them can live in peace, a universal principle of humanity must take precedence. There is no community in this world that can survive as an island. The world has become such a global village that none of us can afford to be concerned only for our communities, families or countries. As part of the human family, regardless of tribe, race, religion, gender and different sections of society, we must all be involved with the survival of one another and feel a responsibility for all individuals, communities and peoples. We must have compassion for those in this world who suffer and for each other.

It is so heartbreaking and devastating to watch the madness going on in the world where man’s wickedness against man is seen in the form of the daily senseless bloodletting. Headlines of families being slaughtered, populations being bombed, and communities being massacred are just too unbelievable for the human senses. From the perspective of the oneness of humanity, and from a deep understanding of the acutely interconnected nature of today's world, none of us should view the atrocities taking place in the world in isolation. Ultimately their ramifications are going to have an effect all around the world. Many of us who used to see these events so far from us have come to experience it so close to home. We in Nigeria can attest to that!

That place in our heart that the song, Heal the World, urged us to seek is the place where compassion lives. We must have compassion in our choice of goals, compassionate in our means of cooperation and our pursuit of these goals as individuals and in communities. Whether it is through dialogue, forgiveness or a readiness to think and treat ourselves with humanity can give us a possible resolution for world peace.

Michael Jackson was a man who loved peace and he used his talent to teach people how to help others. At the time he created the song, ‘Heal the World’ while sitting on a tree at his beloved home, ‘Neverland Ranch,’ and when he opened the Heal the World Foundation, a charitable organization which was designed to improve the lives of children, his immediate intention was to improve the lives of people. Five years after his death, his message of peace conveyed through his art lives on.

‘Heal the World’ and the way he performed it will always be an inspiring message in the search for peace.

As we mark the anniversary of his passing, I will let the words of Michael in ‘Heal the World’ speak for themselves and the message of peace that he preached when he sang: ♫ ♪♬♩♫ … “Heal The World Make It A Better Place For You And For Me And The Entire Human Race There Are People Dying If You Care Enough For The Living Make A Better Place For You And For Me..” …♫ ♪♬♩♫

Tiger leaps onto boat, snatches man in east India Bengal tiger snatched a man off a fishing boat in eastern India, dragging him away into a mangrove swamp as his children looked on in horror, the man's son said yesterday.

The attack happened Thursday as Sushil Manjhi and his son and daughter were crab fishing in a stream in the Sunderbans National Park. The

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tiger leaped aboard the boat and clamped its jaws on Manjhi's neck, said Sushil's son, Jyotish.

The tiger "quickly flung my father on his back and gave a giant leap before disappearing into the forest," Jyotish said by telephone from his village of Lahiripur in West Bengal state.

He said he and his sister tried to beat the animal with sticks and

a knife, but the thrashing had no effect. His father was dragged away and was presumed dead.

The attack underlines the difficult existence of millions of poor Indians who make a living by scavenging in forests and rivers, often at risk from wild predators. Many villagers fish for crabs in the Sunderbans — even though it's illegal in the

protected reserve — because they fetch a good price at markets in nearby towns.

The national park is one of the largest reserves for the royal Bengal tiger. Thursday's attack was the fourth deadly assault by a tiger this year in the Sunderbans, wildlife officials said.

India has more than half of the 3,200 tigers believed to be

left in the wild in the world. But as the country undergoes breakneck development to accommodate the growth of its 1.2 billion people, tiger habitats have been shrinking.

The big cat's numbers have also dwindled because of rampant poaching to feed a flourishing market for tiger organs and bones in China.

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THE NATION SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

ESCAPE from hell

It has been w eek tears and bloo s of d in Taraba State, f waves of ethn ollowing o-r crisis that claimeligious ed the lives of hund reds of residents. Senior C spondent, FA orreIHYONGO, w NEN ho the scenes of visited c and the victim arnage hospital days s in the afte mayhem, rep r the orts.

Story on page s

Our lucky

14&15

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

•Injured survivors of Taraba mayhem relive experience

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Injured survivors of Taraba mayhem relive experience UNDREDS of people have been killed in Ibi and Wukari local government areas of Taraba State in bloody ethno-religious clash between Jukun Christians and Hausa-Fulani Muslims.

The ceaseless bloodletting has led some to dub the affected local government areas the Afghanistan and Somalia of northern Nigeria.

At the slightest provocation, the ethnic groups, who have lived together for decades, could pick up arms and start fighting one another. Each orgy of violence leads to many deaths and wanton destruction of property.

Swords and guns are drawn with utmost ease and blood would soon begin to flow and houses burnt down.

The wars in the southern district of Taraba have not only devastated the innocent inhabitants of the area, it has scared investors away and destabilised not just the area but the entire North-East.

The nature of the crisis has left observers mystified, as minor incidents often snowball into bloody clashes. For instance, a squabble between some Christians and Muslims over the location of a mosque in the area once resulted in bloodbath, just like an argument between two amateur soccer players in a ghetto pitch culminated in a violent free for all that left many dead.

Southern Taraba is endowed with natural resources that could make the region one of the richest in the world.

It is blessed with abundant mineral resources and boasts of tourist attractions that can easily draw foreigners. Besides the vast, arable land mass, there are the fabled Mamara crocodiles who once went to the market and returned to their pond without molesting anyone.

There is also the Nwonyo Lake which threw up the biggest fish Nigeria has ever seen. There is a federal university and other higher institutions of learning. But all these have paled into insignificance in the face of violent clashes.

The latest in the series of violence was said to have been caused by the burning of two kiosks in Sabon-Gari, a Muslim Hausa-Fulani-dominated

H

part of Wukari town, by unknown persons.

According to the Public Relations Officer of the Taraba State Police Command, Mr. Joseph Kwaji, an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), “Some unidentified persons went and set ablaze two kiosks in Sabon-Gari, a Muslim/Hausa dominated area in Wukari at about 6 am. By 7 a.m., there were sporadic shootings. The violence lasted for several uninterrupted hours, spilling to Ibi Local Government Area.”

More than 100 persons were said to have been shot dead, while more than 700 sustained gunshot injuries.

Many homes and worship centres were torched as tension grew in neighbouring local government areas. More people were massacred in a spring of retaliatory attacks on the roads and in remote hamlets.

Eyewitnesses said some of the victims had their heads cut off. There was also the allegation that some of the victims were fired by soldiers who were deployed to quell the violent clash. No fewer than ten soldiers were said to have been injured in the crossfire as they tried to restore peace and pacify the warring militant groups.

Police said they recovered 15 bodies from Ibi and Wukari when the fighting ended. “In Ibi, we recovered 11 bodies. In Wukari, we have about four bodies,” police said. But eyewitnesses said the last outbreak of violence in the area was more fatal than previous ones. The Jukun tribe allegedly relied on their home grown militia, while the Hausa/Fulani elite allegedly hired mercenaries from other states to assist their local militants.

Wukari and Ibi looked deserted when our correspondent visited the scenes of fracas. The streets were empty. The residents were all in pensive mood as many of them had become nothing more than destitute persons. Many inhabitants of the area had fled to neighbouring towns, while others preferred to stay indoors.

The Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) in charge of Adamawa, Gombe and Taraba states, Mohammed Jinjiri Abubakar, the Taraba State Commissioner of Police, Kalafite Adeyemi, and the police area commander were part of the security team that visited the scenes of destruction in Wukari and Ibi.

,

There are bullets in my leg. They shot me in the leg after killing my son in my presence,” he said. He recalled that he and his deceased son had gone out to do a job but were told that the town was not safe. As they headed back home, they heard a staccato sound of gunshots. Before he could bat an eyelid, he found himself and his son surrounded by a crowd

,

The AIG visited the Aku-Uka (Wukari’s traditional ruler), Dr. Shekarau Angyu, in his palace, consoling him over the tragedy. In Ibi, Abubakar assured the people of his readiness to protect life and property.

The Acting Governor of Taraba State, Garba Umar, condemned the attacks and killings, ordering restriction of movements in the affected areas “until total normalcy is restored.”

Umar, speaking through his Chief Press Secretary, Kefas Sule, blamed the violence on the “activities of youth groups.” He said: “Preliminary findings on the cause of the recent outbreak of violence in the two areas (Wukari and Ibi) indicate that it is the result of negative activities of some youth groups. As a corollary to this, all youth groups in Wukari and Ibi have been proscribed, and security agencies should take note of this ban and enforce it.”

Umar has often said he would clamp down on insurgency in the state, after distributing about 75 patrol vehicles to the police, army, civil defence and other security agencies, and 180 motorcycles to vigilance groups.

But the senator representing Southern Taraba, Emmanuel Bwacha, and the member of the Taraba State House of Assembly representing Wukari II, Daniel Ishaya Gani, believe that the violence has political undertone. Gani reportedly lost two of his siblings, while one of his houses in Wukari was reduced to rubble as a result of the crisis.

“The crisis is being masterminded and fuelled by the powers that be in Jalingo. I believe that God will expose the sponsors,” said a saddened Bwacha, who offered deep condolences to the bereaved and those who suffered injuries.

Sorrow, tears after bloodshed Meanwhile, the inhabitants of the area are counting their losses from the tragic clash. One of them, Lawal Sule, who looked every inch an emotional wreck, groaned in excruciating pains on his bed at the Specialist Hospital, Jalingo, Taraba State capital. He is a victim of the recent crisis in Wukari. He was shot in the leg after his son had been killed. Tears flowed freely from his eyes as he fielded questions from our correspondent.

“There are bullets in my leg. They shot me in the leg after killing my son in my presence,” he said.

He recalled that he and his deceased son had gone out to do a job but were told that the town was not safe. As they headed back home, they heard a staccato sound of gunshots. Before he could bat an eyelid, he found himself and his son surrounded by a crowd.

“I saw a crowd. I saw soldiers, MOPOLS (mobile policemen) and vehicles. I cannot recall everything. They asked, ‘Where are you going?’ Before I could say anything, my son was shot in the head and he died on the spot. I was also shot in the leg.”

Sule, 50, struck by the trauma of his son’s death, cou-

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•Sule who was shot in the leg also lost his son to the crisis

•Another victim shot in the chest

,

We were in the morning service of the church around 6:30 am when suddenly we started hearing gunshots everywhere. Before I could run into safety, I was shot in the leg and I did not know what happened thereafter until some people came and took me away on a motorcycle

,

•Some soldiers patrolling a street in Jalingo

pled with the situation he has found himself, does not see any meaning in existence again.

Yet, the condition of 20-year-old Jemilu Sabo, a resident of Ibi, appeared to be worse than Sule’s. Sabo was shot several times while strolling to his house on foot.

Although he said he was getting better, his battered face told the story of the anguish he had been through. On his hospital bed, he was surrounded by a few friends who had come to sympathise with him.

It was difficult talking to Shagari Dankanawa, 25, another victim of the crisis. His speech was not audible enough for one to comprehend him. He tried to make signs but pains would not let him. But one of Dankanawa’s relations explained that the victim was walking on a street in Ibi when he was caught in the middle of hostilities.

Among the victims admitted at the hospital were two kids, with one of them in very critical condition. The Chief Nursing Officer in charge of admission, Mrs Priscilla Yakubu, said he must undergo a surgical operation if he must survive.

Nine of the 174 victims receiving treatment at the Specialist Hospital were said to have died. An ambulance

was seeing moving a body when our correspondent was being conducted round the hospital.

The wards where injured victims were being admitted were filled up. A crowd made up of the relatives of the victims were outside the hospital discussing the crisis.

The Chief Medical Director (CMD), Dr Joel Rimande, said the Specialist Hospital, Jalingo, had received more than 178 injured victims of the crisis in Ibi and Wukari.

He said 97 patients were admitted, while 77 were outpatients because of the congestion in the hospital. He noted that the medical personnel and the equipment in the hospital had been “overstretched.”

It was observed that the wards were so choked up that some of the patients preferred to stay under trees outside. The children’s ward, for instance, had been taken over by 18 adults. The medical director said the management was working on the directives of the Acting Governor Garba Umar to treat the crisis victims free of charge.

Some of the patients, who spoke to The Nation, said they were getting better after receiving medication. But others said they would leave the hospital because they were not satisfied with the pace and quality of treatment

given them. It was glaring the hospital’s resources were either overstretched or inadequate in terms of doctors, equipment, drugs and blood.

While the Hausa/Fulani Muslim victims were flown to Jalingo, the over 100 Jukun Christian victims were moved to Benue State and admitted in Gboko and Makurdi metropolitan hospitals. The Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Makurdi, the Benue State capital, received over 32 patients, according to the Acting Medical Director, Dr. Peteru Ihiundu.

Kisani Alade, a Wukari, resident, was also seen at the FMC, Makurdi. He recalled that he was shot in the leg while service was in progress at Christian Reformed Church of Nigeria (CRCN) around 6:30 am.

He said: “We were in the morning service of the church around 6:30 am when suddenly we started hearing gunshots everywhere. Before I could run into safety, I was shot in the leg and I did not know what happened thereafter until some people came and took me away on a motorcycle.”

Alade said many people died in the process but he was lucky to have escaped with a bullet wound. There were other patients with bigger injuries, including one who sustained several machete cuts in the neck.

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CRIME & OTHER STORIES WORLD CUP TRAGEDY

I was arrested raping two women —Robbery suspect

Policeman allegedly chases 22-yr-old M into lagoon at Lagos viewing centre T was a tragic nightfall on June 19, 2014 in Adeniji Adele area of Lagos Island when a policeman attached to Ebute Ero Police Station allegedly chased a 22-year-old tailor, Sulaiman Badmus, to death at a football viewing centre.

The heart-broken father of the deceased, Mr. Alaka Badmus, in an interview with our reporter, explained that the incident took place about 11pm when his son was watching the Japan/Greece tie at a viewing centre in the neighbourhood.

“My son had gone to a viewing centre (near the lagoon)on Adeniji Adele Street to watch the Japan/Greece match on June 19 about 11 pm when a group of police officers from Ebute Ero Police Station stormed the viewing centre to arrest innocent soccer buffs at the venue. In the process, one policeman aka Balo pursued my son until the poor boy fell into the lagoon and drowned. Despite the search launched to retrieve his body, it took three days before the body was found afloat and we buried him on June 21.

“We reported the incident to the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of the station •The late Sulaiman •The father of the deceased but he treated the case with levity, arguing that there was no such incident and that none of his men is called Balo. called Balo until the poor boy fell n Kunle AKINRINADE n “However, the offending officer is atinto the lagoon and drowned. Imtached to the station and is still there as mediately after this incident, the we speak. We reported the unfortunate incident to some titled policemen left the scene. This development, caused the residents to chiefs in our community and we have also forwarded a petition to visit the station, but to our disappointment they were chased away the office of the Lagos Commissioner of Police for his intervention. by men of the station who fired indiscriminately, threatening to We also wrote to the Office of the Public Defender (OPD).I want shoot anyone that dared to complain over the incident. I hold the justice because the killing of my son has really devastated me a lot. view that the action of the police in this matter was reckless, high Police should protect citizens and not destroy innocent lives in the handed and oppressive. It depicts an abuse of power not minding society.” the possible outbreak of violence such action could ignite.”

A copy of the petition written to police by 55-year-old Alaka A letter written to the DPO of Ebute Ero Police Division by OPD reads in part: “ Sulaiman Badmus was chased by one policeman

I

signed by its Director, Mrs.O.O Rotimi, urged the officer to ensure that justice is done in the matter.

“The petitioner informed us that his son (Sulaiman) went to watch a football match about 11pm on June 19, 2014 and that while he was sitting with his friends somewhere along the Adeniji Adele Road, a set of police officers suddenly commenced raiding at the said venue.

He stated further that due to this development, his son was pursued by one officer called Balogun attached to your station until his son ran into an ocean and died in the process of fighting for his life.

“He added that his corpse was later discovered on June 21 when it was sighted floating on the ocean and was buried the same day by 4pm.He also said that he had visited your police station on two occasions to report the incident but no positive response has been made to date. It is in the light of the above that we write your office to enable you use your good office to intervene in this matter and ensure that justice is done on the life of the innocent soul that has been lost.”

A community leader, Prince Mukaila Akinsemoyin, while berating the offending police officer, mentioned a similar incident in the recent past, saying:” Men of Ebute Ero Police Division have become obsessed with illegal raids under the guise of looking for criminals. A similar incident happened about 2pm on May 7, 2013 when a policeman called Azeez, attached to Ebute Ero Police Station and his team during an illegal raid under Carter Bridge caused a trader called Ibrahim Olaiya to jump into the lagoon and drowned. Men of the police station are reckless in the discharge of their duty and it is high time they are cautioned by the topmost authority in Nigeria Police Force.”

When contacted on the telephone, the spokesman of Lagos State Police Command, Ms Ngozi Braide, promised to get back to our reporter. She, however, did not fulfill the promise at press time, while a text message forwarded to her phone line was not replied.

n Ebele BONIFACE n

EN of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) of Lagos State Police Command have arrested a 33 –yearold robbery suspect, Theophillus Allens. The Republic of Benin national, who is allegedly notorious for raping his female victims during robbery operations, was arrested in Iju Ishaga, a suburb of Lagos.

He recalled how he took to crime a few years ago, saying: “I am a foreigner from Cotonou, Republic of Benin. I came to Nigeria in search of greener pasture and secured a job as security man in Lagos but the salary was too poor, so I decided to find something to do to help raise enough money before I go back to Cotonou. Unfortunately, the bad company I was keeping taught me how to make money fast. Some of them were pick pockets, phone snatchers and robbers.”

Nemesis caught up with Allens when he was abandoned by his colleagues while raping some women during a recent robbery op-

•Allens

eration.

“I joined a three-man gang and robbed two times successfully. It was during the third operation that I was caught. I was raping

two women and I did not know when my two colleagues escaped. I was the only one arrested at First Square Street, Iju Ishaga, when residents pursued me.

“I was arrested on May 25 this year. I had expected to get at least N10, 000 but got only N500 from the two women and that made me to rape them. I regret raping women during operations but I don’t know the evil spirit that pushed me to do so because I did not even enjoy it. I don’t rape women less than 15 years. I am begging God to forgive me of my sins.

“I did not go to school but I am ‘happily’ married with three children. My arrest by operatives of SARS is a good thing that has happened to me, because I have since learnt that robbing is bad and, if I regain my freedom, I will never rob again. I ask for forgiveness from all the parents, relations and friends of all my victims,” he added.

The police said the suspect would be charged to court at the end of the investigation into his case.

Man caught with human skull faces trial, gets bail OLICE has arraigned a 38-year-old, Mustapha Bakare, who was allegedly found in possession of a human skull before an Ebute Metta Magistrate’s Court, Lagos State.

The accused, according to the prosecution witness, was said to have found a decomposing body at a place where he rears his cattle in White Sand area of Orile-Iganmu.

A bystander, who saw him while he was

P

n Rukayat JIMOH n

cutting off the human skull from the decomposing body, had raised the alarm leading to his arrest.

The police prosecutor, Inspector Richard Odigie, told the court that Bakare’s conduct contravenes Section 236 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State of Nigeria, 2011. He, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.

The presiding magistrate, Mrs. E.B. granted the prayers of the defence counsel, Mr. Spurgeon Daodu, who pleaded for liberal bail condition for his client. The accused was admitted to bail in the sum of N200, 000 and two sureties in like sum.

Each of the sureties is to deposit a refundable sum of N50, 000.The money will be refunded after the conclusion of trials. The case has been adjourned to August 7, 2014.

Suspected kidnapper pleads guilty in court 29-year-old-man, John Abel Dossa, who is standing trial at the Ebute Metta Magistrate’s Court over the abduction of a two-and-half-year-old baby, has pleaded guilty to the crime.

Dossa was arrested and arraigned in court following investigations by detectives from the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Panti, Yaba, Lagos.

The charge sheet reads: ''That you John

A

n Rukayat JIMOH n

Abel Dossa 'm' on the 11th day of June ,2014 about 1630hrs at Isale Baale Street, Ayoba Ipaja, in the Lagos Magisterial District with intent to cause bodily harm did unlawfully capture and detain one Sunday Nwuzor 'm' against his own will thereby committing an offence punishable under Section 269 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State, Nigeria, 2011,

"That you John Abel Dossa on the same date ,time and place in the aforesaid magisterial district did steal Sunday Nwuzor 'm' aged 21/2 and thereby committed an offence punishable under section 275 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State of Nigeria , 2011.

The presiding magistrate, Mrs. A.A. Demi Ajayi, adjourned the case to July 9, 2014.

Residents of flood-ravaged community cry out for help

•A car stuck in the water

n Kunle AKINRINADE n JAGEMO, a suburb of Lagos State, is currently under the siege of ravaging flood. Houses have been submerged. Vehicles are stuck in the flood and access roads cut off as people ‘swim’ out of the water to their various destinations.

It was gathered that two expectant mothers had been swept away by the flood, while property worth millions of naira have been destroyed since the water overran the seedy community.

The pathetic situation, according to the traditional ruler of the community, High Chief Mojeed Adio Ajakaye, was due to a poor channelisation of

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•Resident walking on a wooden bridge

•Moses •Chief Ajakaiye

water by a company that handled a road project in the community. ”We have made fruitless efforts to salvage the problem and it is now clear to us that we cannot do it by ourselves. Since this problem began, vehicle owners can no longer drive home. Our children are ferried to school across the water on a daily basis.

“We have written several letters to Lagos State government and

Governor Babatunde Fashola visited this community in September 2011 and he promised to fix the road causing the problem but we are still expecting to receive from the government. Ever since, we have written several letters to appropriate authorities, including lawmakers, to come to our aid. We want government to come to our aid.“

When our correspondent visited the community, some residents were seen wading through the water to reach their home, while others made use of a long narrow wooden foot bridge to avoid trekking in the water.

A cross section of the residents, who spoke with our correspondent, lamented their plight. In his remarks, the Chairman of Ijagemo Progressive Forum (IPF), Elder Oluwafemi Moses, urged the government to take urgent action in the interest of residents, who have been disconnected from their homes by the corrosive flood. ”There is need for immediate action on the part of the government because our condition here is almost hopeless. As I speak, my wife and children are planning to relocate to the city despite the fact that I am a landlord here.

Reg.No. ”Even if Make of vehicle those who Nissan P/Finder FST 201 AZ are not Honda Accord LND 133 BB landlords V/W Transporter BusFST 451 XJ are leavMit. Montero Jeep KTU 629 CJ ing the Honda Accord VW 298 KJA commuToyota Camry LND 604 BX nity, many Toyota Camry S/C AKD 660 BW of us who Toyota Camry LND 710 AU are house owners cannot relocate.

Toyota Corolla KRD 623 AV It is unfortunate that our belongToyota Prado AGL 25 BV ings are being destroyed by the V/W Tourage GGE 696 CM flood that has refused to abate.”

Honda Accord EOD APP 78 AE Opel Astra S/Car APP 744

Missing persons n Ebele BONIFACE n

Beatrice Okey female, aged 40 years old, 4.5ft tall, fair in complexion and speaks Igbo and English languages fluently. If seen, contact Okey Ihuoma of No. 29B, Bafunsho Street, Egan/Igando, Lagos or Idimu Police Station. ...................................................................

Angela Nimani, female, aged 22years old, dark in complexion and speaks Togo and English languages fluently. If seen, contact one Nnamani Sunday Kingsley of No. 217B, Red Street, Jakande Estate Ejigbo Lagos or Ejigbo Police Station. ...................................................................

Shakirat surname unknown, female aged 14years old, 4ft tall, dark in complexion and speaks French, Yoruba and English languages fluently. If seen, contact Anjorin Adesupo of No. 15 Jacob Adeleye Street Odo-Eran Itire Lagos or Itire Police Station. ...................................................................

Fatima Abiodun, female, aged 21 years old, 5.2ft tall, dark in complexion and speaks Yoruba and English languages fluently. If seen, contact one Abibatu Olofa of No. 29, Obala Street, Ijora Badia, Lagos or Itire Police Station. ...................................................................

John Akapo, male, aged 15years old, 5ft tall, light in complexion and speaks Hausa, Yoruba and English fluently. If seen, contact Kolapo Remi of No. 2, Ayuba Dauda, off Babalola Street, Itire Lagos or Itire Police Station. ...................................................................

Missing cars

Toyota Camry S/Car 2003 model with Reg. No. FKJ 530 CY, colour Silver, Engine No.and Chasis No.Nil. If seen, contact any nearest police station or Ogudu Police Station.

Land Rover Jeep with Reg. No. KJA BV, Colour Wine, Engine No and Chasis No Nil. If seen, contact any nearest police station or Ogudu Police Station.

Recovered vehicles The Lagos State Police Comand recovered a total number of 13 vehicles from 5-12 June, 2014 suspected to have been stolen from different locations in Lagos and the vehicles can be located at the station mentioned against each of the recovered vehicles as follows: Colour Location Ash Badagry Div Silver R.R.S. HQTRS Wine Isashi Div Wine Area ‘G’ HQTRS Black Shagamu Rd Div Ash Alausa Div Green Gbagada Div Ash Ipaja Div Ash Shomolu Div N/Blue Ketu Div Grey Igando Div White Ilupeju Div

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Diabetic, hypertensive kids

•Amazing story of children who suffer ailments associated with adults Story on pages 18,47&48

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Amazing story of children who suffer ailments associated with adults

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I am afraid of getting pregnant again because of my experience. I was devastated to hear that the baby I carried in my womb for nine months and waited patiently for his arrival died of what I am yet to comprehend.

I am not suffering from hypertension and neither is my husband.

I can’t explain this

,

when the parents are not, adding: “It is still a surprise to many to know that children and adolescents have diabetes. There are no clear facts as to the why, but there are risk factors which if present, increase the chances of developing diabetes in childhood. When we say childhood, the ages refer to are newborn to the age of 18 years, which is the World Health Organization’s (WHO) cut off point for paediatrics.”

Professor Baba Oguntona of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, said diabetes in children could be congenital when it occurs in new born babies.

He said: “It may have to do with what we call congenital. It is partly genetic. I don’t have any evidence to show that it can be a carry-over from the mother to the child.

Let nobody blame a mother who is diabetic for the child who is diabetic.

“If the development is in a new born, it could be congenital but if it is in a grown up child, it has to do with diet and inactivity. If the level of activity balances the level of intake, then the chances of diabetics will be very remote.”

to either play computer games or be engaged with heavy homework from school. These do not allow the children to have at least one hour to play outside. We have forgotten the adage, which says ‘all work and no play makes Tolu or Quadri or Emeka a dull boy’.

“The risk of Type 2 diabetes significantly increases in a child if a parent or sibling has it. It has also been proven (although it's unclear) that children of African origin and those of some other races like Hispanics, native Americans, Asians and Pacific Islanders are more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes.

“Children in Nigeria are not exempted from these findings. We, therefore, as a nation need to wake up to this fact and explore how the change in life style affects our children and adolescents before we have an epidemic in our hands.’’

•Some fruits and vegitables recommended by nutritionists

n Innocent DURU n

Types of diabetes Dr Oduwole identified two common types of diabetes as Type 1 and Type 2 . The Type 1, according to her, is insulin-dependent and is becoming an emerging problem in Nigeria. The Type 2, she said, is related to fatness, adding that the risk factors for the two types are multifactorious.

She listed family history, genetic susceptibility, low vitamin D level and challenges resulting from other dietary factors as the risk factors of Type 1 diabetes.

She expatiated: “Anyone with a parent or siblings with Type 1 diabetes has a slightly increased risk of developing the condition. The presence of certain genes also indicates an increased risk of developing Type 1 diabetes.

Research suggests that Vitamin D may protect against Type 1 diabetes. However, early intake of cow milk, which is a common source of Vitamin D, has been linked to an increased risk factor of Type 1 diabetes. This is because of the protein in it. Its exposure to a child that is genetically predisposed to developing diabetes has been linked to an increased risk to Type 1 diabetes.

“Drinking water that contains nitrates may also increase the risk of Type 1 diabetes. The early introduction of cereal into a baby's diet may equally affect a child's risk of Type 1 diabetes. One clinical trial found that ages 4 to 7 months appear to be the optimal time for introducing cereal.”

The Type 2 diabetes, according to her, is well established than the Type 1 diabetes. She said it is still not clear why some children will develop diabetes and others wouldn't even when they have similar risk factors.

She listed excess weight gain , inactivity, family history and race as the risk factors for the Type 2 diabetes.

“Being overweight is a primary risk factor for Type 2 diabetes in children. The more fatty tissue a child has, the more resistant his or her cells become to insulin. This is an emerging worrisome issue in Nigeria of today. The prevalence rate of overweight has jumped from 3-7% to well over 20% among the middle to upper income class.

Also in the lower social economic class, the prevalence of overweight/obesity has increased from 0.3% to 6-8%.

•A doctor attending to a child “This means the prevalence of insulin resistance, which is the beginning of Type 2 diabetes, is becoming more rampant. This was how Type 2 diabetes, which has become a pandemic issue globally, started in most of the high income countries of the world. We need to be worried. Hypertension is also increasing as a consequence of this overweight among our children, especially the ado-

lescents,” she said.

She added: “The less active your child is, the greater his or her risk of having Type 2 diabetes. Physical activity helps your child control his or her weight. This has been a reason for the increase in weight gain among our children. Children no longer play ‘ten ten’, suwe, table tennis or even football. The parents prefer them to stay indoors

What leads to HBP in children?

On the causes of high blood pressure in children, Dr Oduwole said: “In a lot of cases, doctors cannot determine the direct cause of high blood pressure in a child.

This type is known as primary or ‘essential’ hypertension; even though the exact cause is not diagnosed, doctors realise a variety of factors can contribute to the disease. These include family history and excess weight or obesity. Africans are said to have a higher risk. We are not too sure of this, although in other parts of the world, children and adolescents of African heritage have been observed to have a higher risk. We need to have a national survey to confirm if our children are at more risk.

“Certain medicines can cause high blood pressure, but when they're discontinued, blood pressure usually returns to normal. This is an example of secondary hypertension.”

Cost of managing the sickness Professor Oguntona noted that both ailments are very serious conditions in children. “Do you know what it means?’’ He asked rhetorically, adding: “It is a very serious strain on the system. Most of them don’t grow up to be adults. They often don’t have long life span. But with good medical management, they can grow to adulthood.

“It costs a lot to take care of such children. For 24 hours, you have to monitor their intake, monitor their activities and their sugar level, administer the prescribed drugs and all that. It is a life time assignment for the parents.”

Surprisingly, he said, stress is the top on the list of the causes of hypertension in children.

“You must be joking if you think that children don’t go through stress. If you are living in Lagos, compare the hours you spend taking your children to school and returning them with the hours they spend at home watching television.The body systems of children are not meant for this level of stress that they are made to go through these days.

“You wake them up by 4am to prepare them to go to school. They are taken to school as early as 7am and do not go back home at times until about 6 or 7pm. When most of these children are supposed to eat breakfast, they would not eat. The parents would package sweets and biscuits in the bags for them to take to school.

Children may not worry about gas supply and water supply but they have things they worry about. These levels of stress are too much for the size of their hearts.”

He suggested that parents of such children would need to visit a hospital where proper diagnosis can be done, saying: “There could be an underlining cause which would be revealed in the blood profile. If they are able to meet a good doctor or visit a good hospital, they would be able to identify it and proffer an appropriate remedy,” he said.

Dr Oduwole noted that it costs between N15,000 and N18,000 to take care of children suffering from diabetes every month, wondering how many parents can afford the bill going by the economic situation of the country.

“To take care of one child with diabetes, parents would need between N 15, 000 - N18, 000 every month. How many parents can afford this? A child will need to test minimally his or her blood sugar three times a day. That is roughly 60 strips a month. This may be up to 100 depending on circumstances the child is, at a given point in time,” she said.

She also said such children can enjoy long life if they

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OW! A worrisome development seems to have cropped up in the world of childhealthcare management as innocent children who were previously thought to have immunity against certain illnesses associated with adults have begun to live with the burden of growing and managing such illnesses.

Before now, illnesses such as diabetics, hypertension and several others were never reported or found in children. But checks have shown that they have ceased to be associated with only adults. They have regrettably been discovered to have begun to occur in children.

For example, Biola, a newly married woman, was recently deprived the joy of motherhood by complications resulting from high blood pressure. She had been delivered of her baby in a public hospital but before she could think of returning home to savour the joy of motherhood, the baby was diagnosed of high blood pressure.

The mother, who was not hypertensive, was stupefied by the development. What could have gone wrong? How did the deceased baby come about hypertension? These and many more were rhetorical questions the embattled mother continued to ask.

After the incident, she said: “I am afraid of getting pregnant again because of my experience. I was devastated to hear that the baby I carried in my womb for nine months and waited patiently for his arrival died of what I am yet to comprehend. I am not suffering from hypertension and neither is my husband. I can’t explain this. It puts serious fears in me whenever the thought of getting pregnant again because I don’t know what will happen again.”

Apart from this unfortunate baby and others like him, findings also showed that teenagers are also not spared by the scourge. They have equally started developing high blood pressure at their tender ages.

Tolu, a teenager in a private secondary school at Gbagada, a suburb of Lagos State, stunned his teachers when he told them he was hypertensive. He was dragged before the teachers for sagging his trouser. In the course of interrogating him, he revealed his state of health but the teachers thought he was kidding. They did not believe a child of his age could have hypertension until the mother confirmed it.

Jennifer, a mother of three, also had an unpalatable experience after she gave birth to her third child. Instead of joyfully going home with her new born baby after she was discharged from the hospital, she left dejectedly. Her baby was diagnosed of diabetes.

She could not come to terms with how it came to be, because she’s not suffering from diabetes.

“When they told me that my baby has diabetes, I said it was a lie because I had not heard of such in children before. I had always known it to be a sickness that affects adults. I can’t be happy because how would I begin to manage this kind of thing for my baby from this age? It is not a cheering news to me because it is not like malaria that you can treat easily. The devil is a liar, ” she said.

What actually is responsible for these illnesses in children?

Dr Abiola Oduwole, a paediatrician at the Lagos University Teaching Hopital (LUTH), said it is possible for a child to be hypertensive even

The less active your child is, the greater his or her risk of having Type 2 diabetes.

Physical activity helps your child control his or her weight. This has been a reason for the increase in weight gain among our children. Children no longer play ‘ten ten’, suwe, table tennis or even football.

The parents prefer them to stay indoors to either play computer games or be engaged with heavy homework from school. These do not allow the children to have at least one hour to play outside. We have forgotten the adage, which says ‘all work and no play makes Tolu or Quadri or Emeka a dull boy’

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have good medical help.

“Yes they can reach a ripe old age. What is required is appropriate medical response to issues that may arise and affect the child’s well being. This should always be available as quickly as possible.

“Without gain saying, looking after a child with chronic diseases takes a lot from the patient, family, community and the nation. One child that is not well may affect a whole community in the medical care of the child. It simply drains the parents’ financial strength.”

She regretted that little or no support comes from philanthropists in the country when international agencies have been showing concerns for the victims in the country.

“We have been lucky to get an international body like Life for a Child run by the International Diabetes Foundation coming to the aid of some of the children registered with the Society of Paediatrics and Adolescent Endocrinology in Nigeria (SPAEN). I am the president of the body and that of the Diabetes Association of Nigeria.

“But supply of drugs has been intermittent. The donors could have done more but who will pay the import duty on these drugs? Why should it be philanthropists from outside Nigeria that are help-

ing Nigerian children? ‘’Why can't Nigerian philanthropists contribute to care of these children and also support medical research in the country so that we may know the peculiar predicaments of our own children?’’

Problem not as a result of failure in medical practice Professor Oguntona argued that the challenge is not as a result of failure in medical practice. He averred: “The problem is not medical, it is nutritional. Nutritionally, there are different types of food in the society that now that we never had. When you were a baby, did you eat noodles? Did you drink so much of soft drinks? What about all these processed fried chicken, meat pie and other junks? Oh! “Things have changed. The diet has changed. Have you been following a programme in the US that talks about what they add to soft drinks and energy drinks? It is causing a lot of problems there now. When people, especially children, take all these, they have long-term effects on them.”

Dr Oduwole also said science and medicine have not failed. “In fact, it is marching on pretty fast without waiting for us in Nigeria. What cannot be proven exactly is that these diseases were not in existence before now.

“Looking through the literatures, that is researches, there is paucity of information on this. This does not mean that it was not in existence. It may just be that medical personnel were either not looking out for them, or it could be that they were being mis-diagnosed or seen but the tests needed to be done to confirm such a diagnosis were not readily available until in the recent times. The fact that the number of people that see paediatricians have increased is also helping to discover this,” she submitted.

Prevention not in sight Dr Oduwole stated that there isn't really a medical help in place at the moment to prevent children from having diabetes and hypertension. “It is more of a positive life Continued on page 48

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THE NATION, SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

ABA:

The travails of an industrial city n Sunny NWANKWO, Aba n BA, the commercial nerve centre of the South-East, seats between Aba North and Aba South local government areas in Abia State. It has an estimated population of over 1.5 million people.

Nicknamed “Enyimba” or the Japan of Africa, it serves as the gateway between Abia and surrounding states like Akwa Ibom, Rivers, Imo, Cross River and Bayelsa. Its market is also well patronised by traders from neighbouring countries like Ghana and Ivory Coast.

Social and economic activities are gradually returning to the city after security threats occasioned by kidnapping. Happily, the governments at the federal and state levels rose to the occasion to rid the area of the menace.

Some residents, who spoke with our reporter, said the kidnapping era was one they loathed to recall not just because of the emotional trauma it foisted on them but also because of the huge economic loss that resulted from it.

The importance of Aba to Abia State’s internally generated revenue (IGR) and the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP) has made it impossible not to be noticed by the various administrations at state and federal levels.

The Nation investigation revealed that the body of the late Biafran warlord, Dim Odumegwu Ojukwu, was laid in state at the Enyimba Stadium in Aba on February 28, 2012 because the man had instructed his family members in his Will to make sure that his body was taken to the city before it would be committed to mother earth. Many believe it was an instruction that underscores the importance of Aba to the nation’s economic well being.

The traditional ruler of the city, His Imperial Majesty, Eze Dr. I. Ikonne, said in its early stage of development, Aba was the place where the owners of the land (Aba la Ohazu people from the Ngwa clan), who were predominantly farmers, used to assemble to sell their agricultural products.

According to Eze Ikonne, the slogan of Enyimba and pictures of elephant(s) in some parts of the city were not accidental. “When our people crossed the Onu Imo (Imo River), they met a thick forest.

And while they were contemplating what to do, an elephant appeared from nowhere and was heading towards a direction. While it was going, it was clearing the path. Our people, who acted on

A

How can anybody say that things produced anywhere is fake? It is mischievous to say that anything produced in Aba is fake. If you say that something that is produced in Aba is fake, that means, something produced in London, Italy, France, New York, Tokoyo (Japan), Hong Kong is also fake

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•A line of Ariaria, bubbling with commercial activities

their instinct, quickly followed the elephant until they got to a point where the elephant disappeared mysteriously.

Our people then decided to settle at the spot that became Aba town.’’

Although the city boasts many government offices, its economy is private sector-driven. More than 80 per cent of the resources generated in the city come from commerce. The origin of the city, regarded as one of the most populous commercial nerve centres in the South-East, could be traced to as far back as 1901. Aba had its first shot at the global scene after the role it played in the Aba Women Riot of 1929 when they resisted attempts made by the colonial masters to impose tax on women, especially in the then Eastern Province.

The city has since grown in popularity because of the volume of economic activities that are going on there. Indeed, a tour of •A road in Aba the South-East by any serious investor would not be complete without a visit to Aba. Economic experts believe that the amount of revenue generated in Aba, if well managed and properly utilised, can help Abia State to develop without much dependence on federal allocation.

Economic activities in Aba range from textiles, pharmaceuticals and plastics making to the manufacturing of cement, lubricants and cosmetics, among others. There are breweries and distilling industries in the commercial city too.

Yet ‘Enyimba’ is not only known for buying and selling; its reputation as an industrial city has gained prominence in the global market, largely because of the people’s ingenuity and prowess in handcrafts. A city, which started as a meeting point, where early settlers came to sell their agricultural products, has become a Mecca of sorts for people within Nigeria and beyond. The market is today being visited and patronised by traders from different parts of the world.

The economic potential of the city recently attracted the presence

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of a first indigenous power plant, Geometric Power Station, located at Osisioma on the outskirts of the commercial town. Although the project is yet to be completed, it is expected to provide for the business community an alternative source of electricity which, according to the initiator of the project, Prof. Barth Nnaji, would ensure steady power supply in Aba and its environs. This, Nnaji said, would boost productivity and increase the growth of the manufacturing sector as well as small and medium scale industries.

The ingenuity of the people in the production of handbags, belts, shoes and machine tools, as well as the fabrication of domestic and industrial engine spare parts, justifies its description as the ‘Japan of Africa’. The services of unskilled engineers in the commercial city are in high demand by many dredging companies, which rely on them to reproduce some of their machine parts that are either scarce or have been phased out of the market.

The ingenuity of the people in using locally sourced materials to

who tells you that Aba is a city of genius technicians is only stating the obvious. From the beginning, Aba as a city has been known for the gospel of borrowed technology which remains the hallmark of Japanese technology and development. Today, the People’s Republic of China has replicated what the Japanese did in the early 1970s. If we talk about Nigeria and even Africa, Aba remains the bastion of the gospel of copy technology.

“The multi-nationals have survived doing business, making profits, keeping their owners and investors in all corners of the world in the last 25 to 30 years from the ingenuity of the illiterate artisans who parade the streets of Aba. So, if anybody tells you that Aba has played a greater role in the development of Nigeria and Africa due to its commitment to the gospel of copy technology, that person is merely stating the obvious.

“One of the problems Aba would face is lack of interest of the government in helping the people to grow. The government has refused to build technological villages or encourage individuals, organisations, associations or unions that promote this gospel of copy technology, and that is what we have been crying about in the last 25 years. That is because of the inconsistency of the people in government or the judgmental pattern of government in choosing who runs the technocratic departments of the government in the last 25 to 30 years.

“But with the help of the press, civil society organisations, intellectual discussions and public campaigns/lectures, we can overcome this weakness or threat to our development. How can anybody say that things produced anywhere is fake? It is mischievous to say that anything produced in Aba is fake. If you say that something that is produced in Aba is fake, that means, something produced in London, Italy, France, New York, Tokoyo (Japan), Hong Kong is also fake.”

However, the pride of the commercial town is under threat as most respondents to The Nation’s enquiries •National Museum of colonial history said they were contemplating leaving the state due to what they described produce items that can compete favourably with others in the as harsh and unfriendly conditions of doing business. This, they global market has earned its goods the popular nick name ‘Made in say, includes excessive taxation by government agencies.

Aba’. The quality and durability of products manufactured in Aba According to a machine fabricating engineer, who asked not to be has attracted high patronage from consumers beyond the shores of named, “epileptic power supply and crazy PHCN bills are probthe country. Aba products traverse the West, East and North African lems we have long tried to address without any positive result. You countries, making the commercial city a sort of Mecca for traders in know how much diesel is being sold at filling stations today. ImagNigeria and other African sub-regions. ine how much we spend every day running on generators throughSpeaking on the ingenuity of Aba technicians, a fruit drink manu- out the year. facturer and President of Aba Small-Scale Industrialist Initiative “All we need is for the federal and state governments to provide (ASSII), Mr. Fortunate Dike, boasted that industrial machine parts us with the enabling environment to do business. Aba is known for fabricated in Aba last longer than imported ones. its manufacturing ingenuity. We are proud of it and will always Dike said that for Aba ‘engineers’ to compete favourably with make sure that, that which Aba is known for is protected. We hope their foreign counterparts, “all they need is to be exposed to the that the state of power supply will improve when Geometric Power modern technologies in order to help them meet with the modern Station and the EEDC (Enugu Electricity Distribution Company) fitrends of technology.” nally resolves whatever that has been hindering effective power Prof. Charles Chinekezi, a media consultant, added: “Anybody generation and distribution in the city.”

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

ENTERTAINMENT

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27 THE NATION, SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

WHAT HAS KEPT MY MARRIAGE –Jemibewon’s wife Modupe Stories on pages 28&37

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

‘Life could be beautiful in retirement’

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•Mrs Jemibewon

does not end in Abuja and neither does it end in Lagos. This is a vast expanse of land, geometrically, geographically, demographically. God has put us together and we are many, we can’t all be city dwellers. If we put all the schools and all the infrastructure in the cities, what happens to the country side?

The countryside of this country is still this country. What has happened in Chibok, for instance, has gone a long way to open the eyes of Nigerians to the fact that, the country side is also an important aspect of this country.

What actually inspired your love for the countryside, especially now that you have lived there for a long while now?

(Laughs) But you are talking to me in the city as we are now; hmm, but that is part of the sacrifice I have made. But then, it is not as if I re-located completely. Personally, I can’t do without Lagos, if you know what I mean. But I tell you, the country side of this country is it. That is where the revolution can start from. And this is our own little contribution. Half of my family live in the United States of America. I’ve children in Maryland who went to school in Baltimore, went to university in Baltimore, who work now in Baltimore. So, for me, the countryside is pristine. It is unpolluted. It is serene. Yes, the buoyancy of Lagos or Abuja may not be there, but in the countryside, we still live very normal life.

What do you enjoy about the countryside you live?

I enjoy the serenity, pristine nature, I live within palm trees.

People come and when they see where we live, they ask questions: “You mean you live here?” They are always shocked be-

Oh, my personal friends complain. Like I came in this morning to Lagos and came to my business house in Lagos. People have been coming around since morning, the place has been full; everybody has been happy, but I won’t overdo it, I mean coming here often. That is because I also want my managers to grow. They are also doing their best even though I do not tell them that.

They are and as you can see, we have not closed shop.

And does the social scene miss me? Oh, there are a thousand and one of my kind of person in this town. So even if they miss me, the party goes on. But I am here today. I am going to a friend’s 50th birthday party; the other day I was in Abeokuta somebody’s wedding.

Lagos is part of me. I maintain my friendship. I keep in touch with people. I psyche myself to attend what I am supposed to attend. But orientation-wise, I am very comfortable living in the country side. And it is not that I live there permanently, I live in Abuja too. Abuja is nearer the home for me. That is why most of the time, I do the AbujaKogi route.

Did you move to the countryside because of your husband? And how do you tend to your family seeing that you are always at different places?

Well, you know the children are grown up. They all have their families. So I have grand-children. Oh, they come home.

They always come. You need to come and see us all together some times. Even in America where we live, it is very pristine.

It is very countryside. So, I am quite used to it.

When you look back and recall your days in Nigeria Airways, do you miss the kind of opportunity Nigeria had, having her own airline?

Whether we like it or not, we must have our own airline again. I do not like talking much about this kind of issue but the truth is that when deregulation started, I was still in service, we knew this would happen. We knew that we would be flying and dropping corpses from the sky. We knew that a day would come like that. Aviation is very expensive but those who went into it after deregulation went into it all for the profit. Whether we like it or not, we will still have to have a Nigerian airline. Recently, I was happy when I heard that in Maritime, they are trying to bring back the shipping line. And automatically, they have to bring back the Nigeria airline. I am sure that the basic foundation will be different from the erstwhile Nigerian Airways.

What happened to Nigeria Airways happened to Swiss Air. The moment Swiss Air went under, the Swedish government created Swiss’ merging all the liabilities and disabilities. That is what should have been done in this country. It happens all over the world. Though I do not want to go into the details.

Yes there was mismanagement, but Nigeria Airways with all the properties and facilities that it had all over the world didn’t have to go under. In my days there, we didn’t cut corners. If a plane was not good then, it was not good. We said sorry, we cannot fly. We looked for a serviceable one and used. If that culture had continued, accidents wouldn’t have been happening.

Apart from partying, how do you catch your fun these days?

I still live my vibrant, intrusive life. I find a lot of pleasure in the children we are grooming. It gives me great pleasure to mentor children, to mentor people. I am a teacher at heart. You need to see this.

What do you do that keeps you relevant to your friends because we know you have invitations to social events in Nigeria, West Africa, Europe, America and other places?

Really, I do not know why too, because I have not gone into politics, though, I am very political, and I will go into politics when this country gets it right. I will go there when you do not need to be a mega millionaire to serve your country and your people. Anyway, I guess the people who want me are the people who know that I am a truthful person. I am always me. I don’t like people who are chameleon in nature because I am not such.

That is why my friends stay with me. Let people know you for what you are. That’s what being relevant means.

As a woman with education and good background, do you think women have been able to find their feet in the scheme of things in this country?

I am not a believer in the fact that I am a female, so somebody must give a line to excel. The brain we have is not distinguished by being female or being male. Although having grown up now, I know that there are not very many fortunate females around like those of my generation in this country culturally. There are children that were married off at age 10 and 11, it wasn’t their making. Maybe for such areas, you need to have some level playing ground. But for me, I feel when you write exams, nobody cares whether you are male or female. It is about your number. And whatever you get is from what you put down.

But at the same time, it is not to say totally that there must not be a way of inclusive women participation in governance.

Then again, I do not believe in mediocrity.

This country produced people like the former Vice-Chancellor of The University of Benin, Prof. Grace Alele Williams. There was Mrs Margaret Ekpo. There has been Prof (Mrs) Bolanle Awe; there has been Mrs Oyagbola. There have been women in the east. There have been women who carried out the Aba Riot. These things were done by women, who didn’t have people prodding them on and bending over for them because they were women.

Late Mrs Margaret Thatcher did not become Prime Minister because she was a woman. Neither did Late Indira Ghandi or Late Benizir Bhutto. They became such because they are human beings who had the capacity and capability to become such. And women even ruled in Islamic world. You know what that means for a woman to rule in an Islamic nation. I don’t want to beg the issue; this is why I feel very bad about the Chibok situation.

If in that remote part of the country, we have such large number of girls in secondary school writing their finals, it means somebody somewhere is shortchanging the women. It means that the rural Nigeria is not what people think it is.

You know our social life very well and it is even said that Nigerians are among the happiest people in the world, but don’t you think that are celebrations and its expenses are going beyond board?

Fortunately, I am a Yoruba person, I have a different take on these festivities that we do. We don’t have a culture of going to the movies. We do not have a culture of going to the theatre. As for shows, thank God that the younger generation are coming up with them. When I was young, my parents would take themselves to the cinema in Ibadan. I recall Queen Cinema, Odion, and Skala. But those things have disappeared. So, where do you want people to go and recreate or let steam off?

It is the Owambes, the parties all over the country that have filled the gap. They have filled the social purpose of taking the steam off the people.

However, I would love us to have a rounded cultural development. I would have loved us to be able to pay and use the National Theatre for the purpose that it was built. I was passing by the National Theatre yesterday, and I found the place so dark. I felt sorry for this country. As I am here, I have my tickets for concerts and theatres in England for summer: From Olympic Theatre to Cambridge Theatre. I sit at the Cambridge Theatre and my whole concentration is on what is unravelling on the stage. We must be able to have outlets for social interactions like that. Probably the Muson is doing something like that, but for how many people? It should be a mass thing, not an elitist thing.

Even as a student in those days, I spent some time in Senegal. Even as at that time, the syndrome of house helps or workers in Senegal and even Kenya was terribly different.

They were there, but by 6pm they had closed from work to go home to have a bath, put on their clothe, wear their powders, and they were off to the cinemas. I had a friend that was in Kenyan Airways, in those days, they had this open cinema thing going on out there in Kenya. And she was telling me then how she goes to the cinema, just sits in her car and from there, watch the cinema with other people in the open space.

Guess who was next to him? It was his Chef! That meant a lot to me. It wasn’t elitist. Although out there now, it’s like their government is about to destroy those beautiful people. Going to parties is just a way of letting off steam.

Over the years, you have been able to sustain your marriage even with your hectic schedule, how have you been able to do it?

I have been truthful to myself. And if you are truthful to yourself, you will be able to sustain a relationship. I am not his first wife, but I am a Catholic. I grew up with Catholicism. You must be resilient. There is no perfect individual. The perfect living Master is in heaven. I have my short falls. My husband or any other person has his own short falls. But if it is not major, we can manage these things. It is perseverance, resilience, believing in yourself and your partner. That is what has sustained me in my marriage. He is a good man. He has his faults, but he is a very genuine person.

Now that the children have left home, that means all round enjoyment for you and your husband, isn’t it?

We still work even in retirement. For instance, we should have done this school some 20 years ago, but then, God’s time is the best. We are busy as it is. Life could be beautiful in retirement though, if you sort yourself out early.

Describe yourself I am a firm believer in terrestrial and spiritual ordination of life. I was at a car wash yesterday when the man that owns the car wash saw me reading some of the philosophical writings he had on his wall. One that touched me was ‘not all idea is God’s idea, but all God’s ideas, are good ideas.’

Fundamentally, my mother was able to impact that into us that we must be a friend of the people. In my form two in school, I read a passage in a literature book that said, I like to be a friend unto man and build my house by the side of the road. That summarises my kind of life. Even in my drivers, in my guards, in my gatemen, I see intrinsic value in them. I am not all about elitist culture, I mix well because poverty does not make one a vagabond. Everybody has their intrinsic worth.

I enjoy the serenity, pristine nature, I live within palm trees. People come and when they see where we live, they ask questions: “You mean you live here?”... If only people could see the way people are living in the countryside, they will eat their heart out. If you do not move around this country, you won’t know what is available. Some of my friends say that I live in ‘Camp David’ and I reply, ‘yes I do’

To say that Chief (Mrs.) Modupe Jemibewon, the wife of ex-Minister of Police Affairs and former Governor of the defunct Western State, Major-Gen. David Jemibewon (rtd), is presently having a fun-filled lifestyle is to state the obvious. Mrs. Jemibewon has long paid her dues. Many will recall her working years with the Nigeria Airways, the defunct national carrier, and then her celebrity enchanted beauty parlour in the heart of Ikeja, Lagos, where celebrities enhance their beauty and style status. However, some years back, Dupe Jemibewon dumped all that and relocated with her husband to a serene lifestyle in their country home in Kogi State. But even then, her circle of friends in top society would not let her be. So in the last few years, this top society lady has been shuttling the city for big celebrations but equally running back to her peace in the country side. Dupe Jemibewon has found a new passion that keeps her away from city life; even the Governor of Kogi State found this out when recently he visited her in her secluded home. She tells us more, in this interview with PAUL UKPABIO.

Recently, you hosted the Governor of Kogi State, Captain of those that speak English around us.

Idris Wada, with his entourage in your school, what was it A little part of the Cameroun speaks English but even then, about? the English they speak is diluted. So we need to let this counWell the governor was visiting Ijumu local government try relate properly in language synchronisation with our where my school, Jemibewom International Academy, is situneighbours. And so in this school, there are lots of developated. He decided to start the visit in the school. I am grateful ments in the French language and when my children sing in to him because it immediately became an exposure for that French, it’s always so lovely. When they say the national anpart of Kogi State because that Tuesday morning, he was with them in English, they also say it in French. us for about three hours. He came with everybody, the deputy What is your interest in going into investment in educagovernor, who is an indigene of Kogi West, Architect Yomi tion?

Awoniyi; the SSG, Professor Jegede, and all other high rankLike I told you, I am a product of two teachers and I know ing cabinet members of Kogi State. And you know, the whole that as a child in this country, I had a rounded education. Be it entourage of the governor were with us. It was a pleasant in the province or at the capital, it was a rounded education visit. The governor did a facility tour and he spoke of his apthat my generation in Western Nigeria had. Basically, it was preciation. To see is to appreciate what we have on ground even a free education. In my days, we didn’t need to go to a there. Though my husband is a conservative person who beprivate school. That was because everything was done and lieves that word of mouth will do it. structured properly. In the last two years that I have been inWhat is the difference between your school and others terviewing people to teach in the school, I have felt very deelsewhere? spondent and feel sorry for this country in the sense that I Like the SSG said that he is surprised and shocked that we interviewed 50 graduates and hardly could I find five that I built a standard school like that and waited for the students to could acknowledge to come with me to work in the school come. And the emphasis is actually on ICT and multi-dimenand help to impact the next generation. sional education. That is what is there, in a very serene enviThat, to me, is an abysmal level. But, we can’t just keep ronment. This summer, I am going to run a summer school for complaining, we must be proactive. That is one of the reasons children who want to do sixth form because it is a very serene for this kind of school. Again, where my husband was born is place that nurtures the mind of our sort of an enclave. They’ve been a Yoruba young ones. I was very proud of what people in Northern Region. But it has been we had done when our students were an enclave that produced the core adminThere is no perfect inon the piano and played ‘Amazing istrators who have been running the adGrace’ for the pleasure of the august visdividual. The perfect liv- ministration in the Northern Region of the itors. We have a Reverend Sister, one of Then suddenly, we reached a ing Master is in heaven. I country. the notre Dame Sisters, the principal point where suddenly a northerner wakes and staff is just unique. And that is beup and starts looking for money to behave my short falls. My cause we cannot continue to complain come an ‘Okada rider’ after primary husband or any other that the standard of education has fallen school. No, we cannot let that continue, and we are not doing anything about it. person has his own short we must send them back to school. We For instance, I am a product of two must make our effort at repackaging and falls. But if it is not teachers. So the best I can do is to give re-modelling the minds of young people. back what God gave me naturally. I It is important for young people to know major, we can manage must impact on the next generation. Let that it is needful to be educated. It is esothese things. It is perseus see if we can still save this country. teric.

You love arts, how has that reflected Why locate such a high investment verance, resilience, bein your school? school in a country side and not Abuja? lieving in yourself and People in the arts are beautiful people.

We chose to locate it where my husband Art is humanity. We do a lot of literature originated from. That is where it is located. your partner. That is there and I would say that because of all cannot be in Abuja, Lagos or all the what has sustained me in We the geographic position of Nigeria, we other popular cities in the country. The should pay attention to the official use mistake people make in this country is my marriage. He is a of French language. We are surrounded thinking that Abuja and Lagos are all there good man.

He has his by people who speak French from is to this country. Those places are not the Cameroun to Chad, Niger, Burkina real Nigeria. It is because I have travelled faults, but he is a very Faso, Togo and Republic of Benin, we extensively and I have been exposed to genuine person... are surrounded by them. They are fewer various cultures, that I know that Nigeria

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THE NATION, SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

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cause the city dwellers don’t know this country. They do not know the enjoyment. If only people could see the way people are living in the countryside, they will eat their heart out.

If you do not move around this country, you won’t know what is available. Some of my friends say that I live in ‘Camp David’ and I reply, ‘yes I do.’

So, how do you run your business in the city of Lagos and Abuja when you are mostly in your country homes in Kogi or America?

The truth is that, I have been doing my business for quite a while now. If by now I have not been able to mentor people to run my business for me without my physical presence, then I would consider it to be a failure. But I have been able to groom, I have been able to mentor people. I have also been able to let them to know and live up to their responsibilities. I have been able to impact on some of my people. So, they run the business for me. All I do is to make sure that they do not deviate from the principles that made me to set up the business. Apart from that, I sleep well. I do not have worries about the business.

Yours is a top society face in city social circles. Hope your friends have not been complaining that they do not see you much these days?

,

35

AKINLOYE

AT LARGE

08050246155 atlarge84@yahoo.com

PAGE 36

Saturday, June 28, 2014

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

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Any attempt to slash 13% derivation vote for oil-producing states is inviting trouble — Delta Governor Uduaghan Delta State Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, does not shy away from expressing his views as frankly as possible and hardly parries questions. In this interview with FEMI MACAULAY, a member of the Editorial Board, he bares his mind on salient national and local issues.

OUR second term as governor will end next year.

What next?

Well, I have very many options, but the one that I think is closest to my heart is to impart the knowledge I have acquired to the younger people. So, I’m trying to put up a leadership training institute where I can bring in some young persons, young graduates, young school leavers and impart some of the knowledge I have acquired, personal ones and some other lessons I have also acquired and some experience; leadership development generally.

Because some of us get to office without any leadership experience or training, and we learn on the job, but I believe that if we have a way of imparting to the younger ones, they will have more experience by the time they are starting and they will be better positioned. That’s what I’m mainly trying to do in office. Of course, one will still be involved in one or two other political activities.

So, how would you want to be remembered?

I believe it depends on who is remembering me. For somebody who used to drive to Benin before getting a plane to go to either Abuja or Lagos, or used to drive to Enugu from Asaba before getting a plane, but can now fly to Asaba and out of Asaba, that person will remember me for the effort. Now, for a woman who could not deliver her child in the hospital because she could not afford it; maybe the woman would have four children, and probably had two, and when we came she was supposed to be delivered of the last two in government’s hospital without paying any money.

Of course, she will remember me for that opportunity of being able to deliver her babies in the hospital without money being a challenge. Now, for parents who before now could not send their children to school because of the problem of school fees, of course, those parents will remember me for the opportunity afforded their children to go to school because we have now taken the responsibility of the school fees off the parents.

For a young graduate who made a first class from the university and was able to have a postgraduate training after that, because we are going to pay his postgraduate school fees, N5 million a year;that young person, after acquiring a PhD, will always remember the administration that made it possible for him or her to acquire that kind of knowledge.

So, that’s why I said it depends on the individual. Every activity and every programme has an impact on individuals in different ways. What we are trying to do is to put up programmes that will affect the lives of the people. But one thing about programmes is that we do not just focus on the upper class, we also focus on the lower class; that’s why we have our free maternity and free ante-natal clinic, free eye treatment that’s why we have our micro-credit scheme, that’s why we have our free public transport scheme - the bus scheme – in which we pay 50 per cent of the fare of the passenger. So we try also to deal with the lower class of the society.

In addressing your legacy, and with the benefit of hindsight, are there things you would probably have done better or wouldn’t have done at all?

Things I wouldn’t have done at all? Virtually everything that we did, looking back now, there’s always room for improvement. Just as I keep saying, you just take each day as it comes, and sometimes when you plan, you meet challenges ahead, especially financial challenges. There are some contracts that have been awarded to some contractors, with the benefit of hindsight, we wouldn’t have given those contractors those contracts at all; some of them we had to revoke and re-award.

So, we have those experiences and that’s why I really want to

Y

impart my experience to the younger ones, so that when they take up leadership positions, they will do better than us.

You brought Eku Hospital back to life, so to speak; why did you single it out?

Well, the Eku Hospital, historically in Nigeria, has become a symbol of life and death in the sense that, at least for those of us around Eku, not just the immediate vicinity, even in the whole of the old Mid-West Region and some parts of the Western Region, people k n o w E k u very

•Dr. Uduaghan well. I went to the North and somebody was asking me, when I said I’m the governor of Delta State, how is Eku Hospital?

That’s the kind of knowledge people have about the hospital and its popularity. And so, for me, we needed to look at it and change it and make it at least more modern. So that’s why we took it up, renovated it, rehabilitated it, re-equipped it and we are also restarting it so that it will meet the best standard of health care delivery.

We also heard that you participated in some surgeries.

What happened was that I did anaesthesia. I specialised in anaesthesia, so when the kidney transplant was taking place, I joined the team of anaesthetists. I was in the theatre with them.

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I think it would be unfortunate if we say we want to reduce the 13 per cent...Some of us are saying let it be 50 per cent derivation to the oil-producing areas and they should pay tax to the Federal Government. But if you are saying it should be less than 13 per cent, then you are probably inviting trouble

There was something significant about that; it meant that you had not lost your skills.

Of course, I try to keep in touch generally in medicine as much as possible. Let me say this, if you ask me which calling I love more, politics or medical practice, I would say medical practice. I tell you, I still miss medical practice. I love the profession, and if I have to come back to life again and I’m asked what I want to be, I would say I want to work in the hospital. The hospital setting somehow makes you appreciate the wonders of God, if you appreciate life, because a patient that comes to you today in pains, feeling ill and all that, and you do one or two things and the next day you see the change in the person. The person is happy, appreciative; people appreciate you and appreciate God more. So, you feel fulfilled, which makes it a fulfilling profession.

Speaking about human capital development, you have laid much emphasis on that aspect of governance. How would you say your concern has been reflected in terms of policies and execution of policies?

Let me explain what we have done in terms of human capital development. We look at human capital development from the day of conception to the day the person enters the grave, which is assuming that every average person lives to about 70 or thereabout. That’s how we have looked at life, and we have planned our programmes in various stages. Now, starting from the day of conception to the first nine months, that’s a precarious stage for any human being, you are still in the mother’s womb. Yes, there’s protection by the womb, but you need to take care of the mother who is carrying the pregnancy, and also indirectly take care of the baby inside.

That’s where the ante-natal care comes in. And if the woman does not have access to modern health care, there’s the danger of either losing the woman or losing the baby at that stage.

And so that’s why we have said every woman should have access to health care, whether you have the money or not; that’s why we say it’s free maternal health care. Although it’s cost-free, we pay for it. Then on delivery, I must emphasise that during that period of nine months, if the delivery has to do with caesarean section, the operation is done free of charge.

Then from delivery to the first five years, it’s also a precarious stage for any human being; that’s when children can pick up diseases and resistance is not also very good.

To ensure that we have a healthy set of children, we also have put in place free health care for under-five, so that when they are sick, instead of their mothers running to the chemist or herbalist, they can go to the hospital and get quality health care. And then after five years, you start talking about schooling for the child – primary school, secondary school – if you don’t have money to fund that, it will be difficult for the child.

So, we said that let them have free primary and free secondary schools, and we will even pay for WAEC and NECO. And then thereafter, we have tertiary institutions where we have a lot of scholarship schemes, and then if you are intelligent and have a first class, we can also send you for postgraduate training. And then after the schooling, the next challenge is work, getting employed, which is, for now, about the biggest challenge because the rate of unemployment worldwide is quite high.

We have many presidents who are losing elections because of unemployment and that’s why we are pursuing vigorously our Delta Beyond Oil programme; a programme that we believe will improve the employment opportunities for our young ones and even our women, and even for support for some of the elderly persons. The programme is quite comprehensive; it ensures that employment opportunities are available from the micro-level to the macro-level. We have our micro-credit scheme which we regard as a programme that will bring immediate benefit to the beneficiaries. To the very macro ones, which are the big industries that we believe will be established with time as we improve on infrastructure, as we improve on human capital and as we improve on peace and security people will come and invest and provide employment opportunities for our young ones. So, I believe if we get a lot more per-

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014 sons employed, the rest of their lives can be taken care of.

That’s in a nutshell how we talk about our human capital development programme; from the day of conception to old age.

It’s very impressive; but what about sustainability? You are going to leave office very soon. What if your successor is not on the same page? What will happen to this impressive vision?

There are programmes that have a life of their own, and it’s difficult for you to say let me put it aside. It’s like saying let me remove air from the atmosphere so that people cannot breathe.

I believe that, overtime, some programmes have taken a life of their own; that it’s difficult for anybody coming now to remove it. The free maternal health care, for instance, I don’t know how you want to say you will remove the free maternal health care in Delta State; of course the women will fight you.

I don’t know how you want to say people should start paying school fees again after being used to not paying school fees.

Even our Delta Beyond Oil programme which we are marketing now, talking of the primary and secondary schools programme for it, because we want, from primary school, our children to know that there are other areas of economic activities beyond oil. That programme is starting. Whether I am there or not, these programmes have assumed a life of their own. Thank God it’s democracy; people can vote you in or vote you out. If you say you don’t want these programmes and it’s affecting them negatively; of course, they have a way of removing you. So, that’s the position.

There are well-founded fears of possible break-up of the country. Do you entertain such fears too?

No, no, I don’t have a fear of break-up. What is happening now, really, is not the fear of a break-up for me, because I move around in this country a lot and I talk to people. And one thing I do know is that Nigerians love the country Nigeria, because every aspect, one way or the other, is benefitting from the other area. There is some synergy in what is happening in Nigeria.

The Niger Delta is oil-producing and the proceeds from oil-production are beneficial to other aspects of the country.

We have the North bringing agriculture, cattle rearing and others and they bring the cattle down this way and we are benefitting from it. And, of course, we have the West well-known in the area of education, providing the opportunities for others to learn and have a good education. So, we have this kind of synergy in this country and I think, generally, every Nigerian wants to remain in Nigeria.

But having said that, every aspect, every part of Nigeria also has some challenges that we wish these challenges are looked at, and I believe that is the very essence of the National Conference that we are having. So, we are hoping that with the National Conference, we have people from every part of this country; we have stakeholders who are looking at issues and there will be give and take. The North, what are your challenges, what would you want?

Let us meet you half way. Niger Delta, let us meet you half way, and others. If there’s that give and take, I’m not sure there will be a break-up.

The Boko Haram challenge, really, I don’t see it leading into a break-up. Why I am saying so is that if you look at the activities of the Boko Haram, there’s no religious basis; it’s not as if the Muslims are supporting Boko Haram. In fact, they are also victims of Boko Haram. There’s no regional basis because who are the people that are being killed? They are mainly from the northern region. So, I just see a group of fundamentalists whose brains have been turned upside down trying to eliminate whoever they see, not bothering whether they are from the North, West or South, not bothering whether they are Muslims or Christians. When you look at the way they are operating, you cannot pin down that these people are against this type of persons. I don’t see that leading to a break-up.

On the abducted Chibok girls, what do you think the Federal Government has left undone?

I know that the Federal Government is doing its best.

International communities are coming. I also know that that kind of kidnapping can be very challenging, challenging in the sense of the terrain and because of the sophistication. Some things are very difficult to understand. I’m sure that before the Malaysian plane disappeared, nobody in this world would have believed that a plane can disappear without trace; we have all the technology in this world and would have thought that could not happen, but it has happened. I also see the issue of these Chibok girls as a very big challenge, not just to Nigeria but the rest of the world.

My appeal is let’s not politicise it; let us work together as a united people to look for these girls. I think sometimes when there’s some political colouration to the issue, it’s wrong from all sides if anybody will now play politics with such an issue.

We must be united, we must stop playing games because that’s the only way we can have a breakthrough for the girls.

It’s good to hear you being optimistic about Nigeria’s unity. I would like to ask, how much of Nigeria’s problems are due to revenue sharing and how much have to do with lack of social conscience among the political elite?

A lot has to do with revenue sharing and also a lot has to do with lack of social conscience among the elite. On the issue of revenue sharing, I believe that it has been skewed in favour of the federal government. We have a lot more money going to the Federal Government and less going to the states and the local government councils.

Now, what we have suggested is that more money should go to the states and local government councils, and the Federal Government should offload some of the responsibilities they are taking up now. Issues of primary schools, secondary schools, primary health care, secondary health care; why should the Federal Government be involved in building a primary health care centre in one remote village that they don’t have control over? Who is going to staff and run it?

These are the things we are asking the Federal Government to remove its hands from and let the states and local governments handle that. But in doing that, the sharing formula

39 should be changed so that more money would come to the states and local gove r n -

ments.

But now, when the local government council funds come, you will first remove money for primary school teachers, and for most councils, it’s 70 per cent of the m o n e y, which then

•Dr. Uduaghan

leaves them with 30 per cent. Out the 30 per cent that’s left, they have 25 per cent for the payment of salaries. So, what’s left at the end of the day is five per cent.

So, sometimes when we blame the local government chairmen for non-performance, we must look at some of the reasons for their non-performance. We must look at the way the revenue is being shared, the responsibilities that are being given to the various tiers of government, we must look at them, if not, we will continue to have problems. Apart from that, I also believe, because I come from an oil-producing state, the kind of terrain we are in and the environmental damage that is occurring as a result of oil-related activities, more money should come to the oil-producing states.

I have been able to deal with the issues of environmental challenges, I have been able to deal with other developmental challenges that will enhance more production of oil and also enhance economic development in other areas. Because right now, we need to diversify from oil, but to be able to diversify, we need money to deal with the entire structure which is, of course, very key to diversification; of course we are talking of human capital development. So, in terms of revenue sharing, if we look at these areas we will have an improvement.

Then as to the second one, which you called social con-

‘

The Niger Delta is oil-producing and the proceeds from oil-production are beneficial to other aspects of the country. We have the North bringing agriculture, cattle rearing and others and they bring the cattle down this way and we are benefitting from it. And, of course, we have the West well-known in the area of education, providing the opportunities for others to learn and have a good education. So, we have this kind of synergy in this country and I think, generally, every Nigerian wants to remain in Nigeria

science, I also believe that as Nigerians, we need to stretch ourselves to do some deep reflection. What you call social conscience now I will simply put it as attitude.

We need to have an attitudinal change in everything we are doing, whether you are a political elite or a political thug (general laughter), a teacher working in the school, a hospital worker, a journalist; whatever you are, we need to stretch our conscience and see how we can have attitudinal change. If we do that, I am sure some of the challenges we are having now we will be able to deal with them.

Yes, the political elite are in control in terms of social conscience, but we need to look at our whole attitude generally.

Now, I am trying to organise a workshop or summit on anger management. We are a country today and virtually everybody is angry with the other person. People are angry with the president, they are angry with PDP, angry with APC, one ethnic person is angry with the other ethnic person. You are driving on the road and one driver is angry with the other driver, okada rider is angry with the police and the police are angry. So we are a country where virtually every person is angry with the other person. So, what is happening? We need to sit down and look at why are people angry? Why are we angry with each other? When you read 10 columnists, you will see that eight are writing out of anger (general laughter). We just get angry with one another.

Talking about revenue sharing, northern delegates to the ongoing National Conference were reported to have advocated that nonoil-producing states deserved a greater share of oil revenue and that the current 13 per cent derivation being paid to oil-producing states should be slashed.

What’s your reaction to this?

Talking of the first one, which also brings up the issue of anger, if you look at the build up to that issue of 13 per cent, I think that committee, it took them long in reaching a decision which they called compromise decision. There was so much anger during the debate. But I think it would be unfortunate if we say we want to reduce the 13 per cent.

Ideally, we are talking of derivation from which they would pay tax.

To your tents oh Israel, whatever comes from your land you benefit from it, pay tax; that’s what is done in most places. But we have moved from that stage of what I call 100 per cent derivation. Some of us are saying let it be 50 per cent derivation to the oil-producing areas and they should pay tax to the Federal Government. But if you are saying it should be less than 13 per cent, then you are probably inviting trouble.

How have you been able to reduce crises among the ethnic groups in the state?

In Delta, for now the ethnic harmony is better than what it used to be. And I believe some of our programmes are responsible for it and what we have tried to do is to ensure that every ethnic group reasonably gets what is its due. We try not to give one ethnic group more than what it should have, but they are still grumbling. But things are better and I feel there’s still a lot of room for improvement. We have also seen as a state that we benefit more when we are together than when we are divided. At the times when we used to have ethnic crises and other ethnic fights, people were losing their properties, losing lives and it did not benefit in any way. People have generally agreed that we want to move forward as one united state.

From your perspective, can you offer some ideas, maybe one or two, about how you think the country’s potential can be realised from the angle of governance?

First of all, let me say this: there’s an improvement on actualising our potential. There’s, however, a lot of room to do more. But a lot is being done also. It’s just that we as a nation are very impatient somehow and we do not appreciate that it took so many years of damage to the country, and one day of damage will require years of repair. You can pull this house down within a few minutes but to rebuild it might take you some years. And I think that’s what is happening; there are so many years of damage to the country and it will take a lot more years to recover. The recovery stage is still on but it will take some time to recover. There’s some improvement on a lot of our infrastructure.

I know the critical area is the issue of power. But the structure that is in town now will ensure that there’s an improvement in the power sector; privatising some parts of the power sector will ensure there’s generally an improvement. A lot of work is going on, the roads and major highways. I still come back to what you called social conscience; that is the attitude.

God put natural resources in Nigeria and now put human beings that are quite challenging in terms of attitude.

Singapore and Israel don’t have natural resources as much as we do; we have natural resources in abundance but equally have human beings whose attitude has to be dealt with. It is in us to make up our minds that we want to build a nation or we want to destroy a nation. If we make up our minds that we want to build a nation, then we must work together to build a nation, but if we make up our minds we don’t want to build a nation or we want to remain stagnant, then we will continue to have the challenges that we have.

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

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GOVERNOR ORJI

GOVERNOR SUSWAM

Gov Suswam

GOVERNOR OSHIOMHOLE

GOVERNOR AJIMOBI

Gov Orji

GOVERNOR IMOKE

Gov Ajimobi

Gov Oshiomhole

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

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I married into money, so why am I so miserable?(5)

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As for Chief, I'm no longer interested in that marriage. I want to be with a man who loves me and wants to be with me and not one that just throws money at me and expects me to be happy with just material possessions

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THE NATION, SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

48 Continued from page 47 •What hope for African children? style change. Checking the weight of children and adolescents and plotting it on a growth chart which will show exactly how the individual is faring is important. This should be part of the routine things people should do when they have the opportunity with medical personnel.

“Checking blood pressure should also be part of the children and especially the adolescents once he or she has attained the age of puberty. Parents should also be aware that puberty is starting much earlier than it used to be before. When it comes to blood pressure in children, ‘normal’ is relative. This depends on three factors: Gender, age and height. A paediatrician preferably can tell you what's right for your child because ‘normal’ is a complicated calculation based on these factors.”

What food is safe for the people?

Mrs.Mainasara advised: “People should try as much as possible to eat fresh fruits and vegetables. Whatever you give to your children, don’t forget, like the nutritionists will always say, fresh food and vegetables are the best.

Children should be encouraged to eat fresh fruits and vegetables.”

She added: “Research has shown that diabetes can be genetic which means that some families have the predisposition to have it. The World Health Assembly as part of their strategy to reduce non-communicable diseases placed so much emphasies on diet.

“Diet means you have to watch what you eat. Eat what is good for you. Then engage in physical activity. In order words, engaging enough exercise is the key to your well-being.”

She further advised the public to reduce their intake of soft drinks and take more of water. “Drinking of water is the best thing that can happen to you. We were drinking water before we resorted to drinking soft drinks. You can’t replace

‘It’s a life-time assignment for parents’

,

We are fighting production of unhealthy food- NAFDAC Mrs. Ogochukwu Mainasara, the Director, Food Safety and Applied Nutrition Directorate of NAFDAC, said the issue of diabetics is mainly diet-related.

She explained that NAFDAC is working round the clock to ensure that Nigerians are not presented with unhealthy food by unscrupulous businessmen.

She said: “ Before you can distribute or sell any product, we have to register it and make sure it is safe. And before you register a product, it goes through a rigorous process. We are going to do evaluation, check the ingredients, and inspect the facilities of the factory where that product is processed. Whether the products and produced here in Nigeria or imported, we are going to inspect the facilities and make sure that they are producing under the requisite conditions they are supposed to produce. This is called satisfactory good manufacturing practice. We do all these before we approve any product.

“Be that as it may, the trend now is that all products must bear mandatory nutritional labelling. We have commenced discussions with the people in the industry to start this. In mandatory nutritional labelling, all processed food have to bear a nutritional information that would tell you how much protein, carbohydrate, fat, vitamin etc. that is in a product. It would tell you what is in the product and at what level and the recommended daily allowance.

“This will enable anybody that goes to buy a product to read the label. If you are buying a product for your children, you will read the label and know if the product is okay or not. If the product is high in sugar, you don’t buy it because it has been said that it is too much consumption of processed sugar without enough exercises that causes diabetes.”

The problem is not medical, it is nutritional. Nutritionally, there are different types of food in the society that now that we never had. When you were a baby, did you eat noodles? Did you drink so much of soft drinks?

What about all these processed fried chicken, meat pie and other junks?

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water with soft drinks. It is very wrong for your child to use soft drinks to replace water. Also, if your child would prefer to eat what is prepared outside the home, make sure that it is prepared under a hygienic environment.’’

NAFDAC’s challenges The agency’s efforts, according to her, have been hampered by a myriad of challenges. “You have regulatory challenges everywhere. Part of the challenges we are facing is helping our local industry; the cottage and small scale industry because they have to do a lot of analyses to know how to profile their products to have nutritional information. But once they profile their products and they are able to get their nutritional information, they can now put the mandatory nutritional label.

“This is why we are engaging in capacity building by training and educat-

ing them on the importance of food safety. Even when you are not talking of hypertension or diabetes, what about food-borne illnesses? What about diarrhhoea and other sicknesses that kill children now?

“Part of the challenges we are facing is funding and logistics. We need support from all the development partners from anywhere to be able to do all these programmes. The basic thing that I have noticed is that people need to be educated.”

Advice to food operators in food industry Advising operators in the food industry, she said: “If you are processing food, do it well and if you are labelling food, do it well and don’t mislead people.

Don’t claim what it does not contain.

Right now, we have a lot of nutrition programmes we are running with our non-governmental organisations and

our development partners. We are talking about Vitamin A fortification because it is good for the eye. Studies show that there is a lot of malnutrition in these children you are talking about.

“The vulnerable group is not eating right. Because of that, the Federal Government brought a policy that flour, sugar, margarine, fats and oil are to be fortified with Vitamin A. We are getting the industry to fortify them with Vitamin A and we are monitoring to make sure that they do so. We also have universal salt iodization of which we have achieved over 99 percent compliance.

Studies have shown that children with this deficiency have mental retardation.

Many parents complain that their children are not doing well in school but they fail to realise that this is because such children didn’t take enough iodine when they were growing up.”

Stiff punishment for erring operators Mrs Mainasara warned that any erring operator would be adequately sanctioned, advising every Nigerian to report anybody suspected to have made false claim in his product labelling to the agency. “Everybody is involved in this campaign. If you feel somebody made a claim that is not true, please come and report. We have disciplined those that were caught. We sanctioned them accordingly because you are not supposed to make a misleading claim.

“In the developed countries, you can sue people for misleading claim. We want to improve on the punishment we mete out to offenders. Why we have been destroying false labels, food products and giving administrative charges is because, it is expensive to prosecute in the law court. But we might increase the number of prosecution,” she said.

She bemoaned the activities of unscrupulous operators, saying: “Some people will claim that their products have vitamins and minerals when they are registering a product. When that product goes to the lab before we approve it for registration, you will find that it does not contain any of that. ‘’Once it does not contain what it claimed, we cannot approve it. From time to time, we now have what we call post packaging safety surveillance. After the products are registered, we go to the markets and randomly check if what was approved is still maintained. Where it is not maintained, we take the necessary action.”

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love their food, we have started spreading Nigerian restaurants across the world, “he said.

In his speech, a Nollywood star and board chairman of NIHOTOUR, Chief Kanayo O. Kanayo, said Nigeria was blessed with an array of food compared to other African countries and it was therefore necessary to bring them to the fore and celebrate them both locally and internationally.

He said: "China, for example, has the largest economy in Asia followed by India. Chinese and Indians are found almost everywhere in the world, and anywhere you go, as long as Chinese and Indians are there, you will always find a Chinse or an Indian restaurant. Nigeria, with the largest economy in Africa, deserves no less” Kanayo said NIHOTOUR was identifying with the vision of President Goodluck Jonathan to transform Nigeria in its entire ramfications. He said Nigeria could expand through patronage and appreciation of the country's cuisines.

NIHOTOUR's Director General, Alhaji Munzali Dantata , added that the fair was supposed to have been held but for some logistic challenges. He said it was a direct response to the Federal Government's call for participation in the celebration of Nigeria's centenary.

Hut used for cooking in the olden days

100 years of Nigeria’s food culture A

S the centenary celebration continues all over he country, Nigeria's food and cuisines came into focus. This was during the maiden edition of an event tagged Nigerian Food and Cultural Fair. It was held at the International Conference Centre (ICC), Abuja by the National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism (NIHOTOUR) this week.

It was a fair that vividly tried to replicate the country's food and culinary transition in the last 100 years, starting from the farm where food is grown to table for consumption.

The fair was attended by organisations from the public and private sectors.

NIHOTOUR set the ball rolling by recreating the transition that our food culture has made in the last 100 years, starting from the time cooking was done, using stone and wood to make the pot stand on fire to the current period when gas and electric burners are used to cook and prepare food. Visitors also had the opportunity to see cuisines and delicacies from different parts of the country.

The grsin food and soups like miyan kuka, taushe, kubewa and so on were on display.

The local delicacies with modern packaging

Cooking utensils in the olden days

were also on display.

Many Nigerians are used to the Hausa delicacy, fura da nunu, a kind of gruel prepared with millet and fresh cow milk and sugar. But the image of this meal goes with a Fulani woman carrying fresh milk on a big, intricately designed calabash on her head. A company in Kano, at the fair, displayed a wellpackaged fura da nunu that could be kept and it will last for many months. Innovations with moi moi by a lady from Bayelsa State, Anthea Pretu, were also there.

While giving the keynote address, the Minister of Tourism, Culture and National Orientation, High Chief Edem Duke, said a nation cannot be 100 years without being nutured by food. He said the fair was also to pay homage to the farmers that cultivate the food and also the women folk that translate the food grown into delicious meals on the table of families. Duke said in celebrating Nigeria's centenary, it was important for the Nigeria to export her food culture internationally. According to him, countries have extended their areas of influence through exporting their food culture.

America did it with the fast food comapnies like KFC, Macdonald's and others. Also, there was hardly a stand one would enter without seeing a Chnese or Indian restaurant.

"They are using it as a tool for cultural diplomacy and extension of influence. That is why Americans are going around the world s e l l i n g f r a n c h i s e .

For Nigeria, we must look inward. We have 170 million people to feed. Because Nigerians

I

Ife prepares

N October 2014, the Yoruba race would converge on Ile-Ife to join the Ooni of Ife, Alayeluwa Oba Okunade Sijuade, Olubuse 11, and the Ife people in the celebration of Odun Oranmiyan for 2014. Odun Oranmiyan, which has always been celebrated in the ancient city since time immemorial, is to commemorate the giant strides and impacts of the 6th Ooni of Ile-Ife and founder of a number of dynasties in Yorubaland.

The festival’s theme for this year is “Culture as a unifying factor in nation building”. The organisers are inviting Yoruba people and other Nigerians to be part of the programme.

According Yoruba history, Oranmiyan was one of the seven sons of Okanbi, the only child of Oduduwa, the progenitor of the Yoruba. The legend, Oranmiyan, despite being the grandson of Oduduwa, was famed as a strong and enigmatic leader who led his people into a path of greatness that lasted several centuries, leaving a heritage that sustains till today.

After establishing some dynasties and several wars and conquests, Oranmiyan returned to Ife, the cradle of the Yoruba and was the 6th Ooni of Ife. He later joined his ancestors. The place where the staff of Oranmiyan lies in Ile-Ife in Osun State is now a centre of tourist attraction. This great legend that has continued to shape the destiny of a race deserves to be celebrated as a unifying force for the Yoruba people. Oranmiyan is a unique name that has occupied a column of Yoruba history as a warrior, conqueror and legend.

Federal Palac

FEDERAL Palace Hotel and Casino’s Car Jackpot which has two luxury cars, courtesy Coscharis Motors, as top prizes, has come to an end in a grand finale held last Saturday at the hotel.

It was a high stake game of chance with 36 finalists, one roulette table, one spin, one winner.

The final decider was professionally done as the last finalist was given the opportunity to the ultimate prize with the throw of the dice.

After what appeared to last a life time, the ball dropped and Mr. Kareem Balogun, who ironically chose the number 36, the total number of participants, won the ultimate prize.

In a twist by the organisers, Balogun was further given the opportunity to go for the broke by the throw of one more dice. The options were that he could walk away with Range Rover Evogue he had chosen or play one more game of luck and win both Jaguar XF and Evogue.

Balogun decided not to push his luck too far.

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The Minister of Tourism, Culture and National Orientation High Chief Edem Duke ( third from left), Alhaji Munzali Dantata (fourth from left) and other guests arrive for the fair He said: "This is an event which has taken long in coming. If I go back to the beginning, it is a response to the call by Mr. President. It is a centenary event. A lot of people think that the centenary is over with the grand finale by the Federal Government about three months ago. I like to mention that the whole year is a centenary year like it is customary worldwide.

"We look inward in NIHOTOUR. We are a capacity-building organisation and the chief programmes we have are in the hotel restaurants

and so on. Among our major students are those learning to cook , wait and genrally work in hotels. So we decided to give an account of the 100 years of food culture and hospitality. The exhibition has been a success, if you look at the calibre of companies we've brought together.”

Generally, many individuals and families that attended the fair left with a better appreciation of Nigerian cuisines and food, and the general impression was that with the food at the country's disposal, it is high time the country started exporting its food culture

for Odun Oranmiyan Oranmiyan is arguably the most deified of the whole Yoruba deities.

He was the only Yoruba King that was confirmed to have established other towns like Benin, Oyo and Oke Ona-Egba, became their kings at different times and later returned to his origin and also became a king before his eventual transformation to eternal glory. The generations of Oranmiyan have continued to rule in Ile Ife as kings till today.

As an organization committed to the development of tourism in Nigeria, Flabsy Travels and Tours is the festival consultant and has been mandated to explore all creative means to ensure

•Oranmiyan bronze

that through the festival celebrations, Oranmiyan staff/ cenotaph becomes a tourist haven, enlisted in the calendar of the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation and the World Tourism Calendar thereby achieve a top-of-the-mind festival event for Odun Oranmiyan and create awareness for Ife indigenes at home and abroad to use the platform to drive cultural investment opportunities to Ile-Ife. The Oranmiyan staff/cenotaph is a renowned tourist centre that has drawn million of visitors to Ile-Ife and has continued to do same. The name has appeared in many cultural and historical books. Oranmiyan is a religion to many in Yorubaland as it is being worshipped while they visit the cenotaph to pay homage and reverence to the deity The socio-cultural festival would be totally devoid of political affiliations or leanings such that every Yoruba man would be eager to be part of the yearly event that will attract corporate organizations which may use the festival opportunity to showcase their products to achieve optimum mileage and revenue generation.

The significance of Odun Oranmiyan cannot be over-emphasized, as it is a celebration of a deity and warrior in Yorubaland. All programmes are designed to promote the rich culture of Ile-Ife as the cradle of the Yoruba.

Hotel gives away Range Rover Evogue

has left many excited . The anticipation of being a winner had left many really pumped up for the decider.

Speaking on the prize on offer and how it influenced participation, the GM said: "It is point chasing . The objective is to try and get as many opportunities. The more you ply, the more opportunities to be on the final table.

The final decider is done on the rouelette table that has 36 number.”

He settled for Range Rover. Asked what he was going to do with the car, Balogun said he plans giving it to his wife.

In what appeared to be an already exciting night for Mr. Balogun, Cosharis Motors , dealers of Jaguar Land Rover cars increased his excitement by offering him the amazing Jaguar F-Type as a compliment to test drive for 24 hours.

Mr. Balogun was quoted as saying: “When it comes to casino, there is nothing to decide. The Federal Palace Hotel and Casino is simply the very best.

The General Manager of the hotel said it had been an exciting Jaguar X5, Jaguar F-Type, Range Rover Evoque competition that

Awori community seeks tourist investment

HE traditional ruler of Apa Kingdom, Badagry West Local Government Area of Lagos State, Oba Oyekan Ajose, has urged hospitality managers to turn the ancient community to a tourist centre.

The first-class monarch spoke at his palace when he received the report of the Steering Committee on Development of Apa Kingdom. He noted that the Egun Awori community was capable of increasing the government internal revenue with the tourist centre.

He said: “The blueprint committee emphasises that currently Apa does not feature on the map of Lagos in spite of its economic prosperity.”

He added that almost all the entire land mass of Apa is under acquisition for agricultural purposes for over 20 years without justification.

Oba Ajose further stated that despite economic potential of Apa, the abundant

Musa ODOSHIMOKHe economic resources are underutilised, stressing that the direct investment by the indigenes and foreign entrepreneurs give the community a lead.

In his words: “After waiting for modernisation for the past decades, Apa is now ready to jumpstart a self-induced development plan. We shall make arrangement with partners, government, individuals or organizations to provide public utilities, security, transportation, road, housing and hospitality.”

He said the community would do all within its power to ensure those who show interest in the development of Apa are provided with the necessary incentives.

The monarch thanked the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, for his pivotal role in ensuring the community is on the track of development.

Qatar Airways commences daily direct flights to second destination in Tokyo new route

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ATAR Airways touched down at Tokyo Haneda International Airport for the first time on June 18, marking the airlines' third destination in Japan and 143rd globally.

The inaugural flight also marked the first time that a Qatar Airways Boeing 787 Dreamliner has operated to one of their three destinations in Japan. Qatar Airways has been operating to the Land of the Rising Sun, with routes to Osaka and Tokyo Narita, since 2005 and 2010 respectively.

A press conference held the following day at the prestigious Mandarin Oriental Hotel allowed local media an opportunity to hear Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker speak about the airlines' expansion into Japan as well as its overall growth plans.

“Qatar Airways is thrilled that we have further expanded our operations to the dynamic city of Tokyo. This new route will provide our passengers, both in Japan and throughout the rest of our network, with even more options and flexibility when

travelling, whether it be for business or leisure,” said Mr. Al Baker.

Mr. Al Baker, who was joined at the head table by Qatar Airways Senior Vice President Commercial, East Asia & South West Pacific, Mr. Woo Yew Seong, and Qatar Airways Country Manager, Japan, Mr. Tomohiko Matsumoto, added: “We have enjoyed a very strong relationship with Japan since we began operating flights to this culturally rich and beautiful country in 2005.”

Mr. Al Baker (centre), Mr. Seong (right) and Mr. Matsumoto at the press conference

L-R: Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer, Tantalizers Plc., Mrs. Abosede Ayeni; Vice Chairman, Mr. Mofoluso Ayeni; and Chairman, Dr. Jaiye Oyedotun, at the Annual General Meeting of the company in Lagos

Tantalizers repositions for future growth

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ANTALIZERS Plc, foremost indigenous quick service restaurant chain is, repositioning the brand for future growth by focusing on new franchise system which involves introducing new outlet models, operational techniques and tools, retrofranchise existing stores and opening new franchise locations before the end of 2014.

Addressing shareholders at the company's 16th Annual General Meeting held in Lagos on Wednesday, the chairman, Dr. Jaiye Oyedotun, stated that the company will strive to make its outlets the preferred destination of choice as the organization is streamlining and improving its menu, introducing new products and improving outlet designs to meet its desired products development and quality objectives.

The chairman stressed that the company has intensified its marketing

support programmes to improve brand visibility resulting in partnership with the Optima Media Group which led to the brand being the food partner of the justconcluded Nigeria Idol Season 4 project, and the broadcasting in Nigeria of the ongoing World Cup tournament, leading to the brand being designated the “Official Food Partner OSMI/FIFA World Cup Broadcast”.

Dr. Oyedotun used the occasion to introduce Mr. Gbolahan Labinjo as a new addition to the Tantalizers Board, while also appreciating Messrs Olumide Ale and Gabriel Ojesekhonba who retired from the company for their contributions to the growth and development of Tantalizers.

He stated that though the company revenue dropped to N3.65 billion in 2013 due to harsh operating conditions and low disposable income, the management is determined to reverse the trend in 2014 and in the future.

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Health Matters With DR MIKE OYAKHIRE 08170268670

email: drmikeoyakhire@yahoo.com

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NEWS 57

SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

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IXTEEN Northern states yesterday lost in their bid to compel the Federal Government to pay them about N7.039billion as compensation for some assets of Northern Region taken over by the Federal Government in 1977.

The Supreme Court dismissed their suit for being statute barred, having approached the court well beyond the six years allowed under Section 7 (1) of the Limitation Law, CAP 122 of the Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 1990.

The plaintiffs (states created from former NorthWestern, North-Central, Kano, North-Eastern and Central-Western) had sued the Federal Government, through the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), alleging that the Federal Military Government forcefully took over the assets owned by the defunct Northern States Marketing Board (NSMB), using Decree No. 29 of 1977.

Alleged N7b debt: Supreme Court throws out Northern states' suit against Fed Govt Eric IKHILAE, Abuja The states as currently constituted are: Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe and Zamfara.

They said that following the takeover of the assets, the then Supreme Military Council assured them that the Federal Government would pay for the assets of the NSMB and assets of other commodity boards so acquired.

The states exhibited various documents some of which were correspondence between them and the Federal Government. They said the Federal Government, as at

July 27, 1983, admitted owing them N10.3 million which when converted using the prevailing exchanging rate (N150.00 to $1) was put at N3 billion.

They further claimed that the central government owed them an additional N3.9 billion being the current equivalent of the alleged undisputed claim of N13 million which is the value of some moveable properties and cotton store complexes taken over by the Federal Government.

The states also tendered copies of demand notices where they threatened to go to court, if the alleged debt

was not liquidated. The last one was dated November 1, 2010 The AGF objected to the court hearing the case that the claim was statute barred by virtue of Section 7(1)(e) of the Limitation Act. Justice Mary Peter-Odili, who prepared the lead judgment, but read yesterday by Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, held that since the plaintiffs stated that the Federal Govrnment admitted owing them via a letter dated July 27, 1983, they should not have delayed up to 2011 before filing the suit.

She upheld the AGF’s argu-

ment that the cause of action had been caught by the statute of limitation and thereby denying the court the jurisdictional powers to hear the case.

She held that the plaintiffs ought to have instituted the suit since 1983 when it said the Federal Government admitted indebtedness.

“The jurisdiction of this court has been effectively ousted, the cause of action having expired after six years of its accrual, computed form July 27, 1983. Another way of saying it is that this action as currently constituted and initiated on February 22, 2011 is

statute barred and therefore, the jurisdiction of this court has been effectively ousted by the operation of Section 7 (1)(e) of the Limitation Law, CAP 122 of the Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 1990.

“The ensuing conclusion is that this suit lacks competence and it is hereby struck out. There is no order as to cost,” the court held.

Justices Aloma Mukhtar, Ibrahim Tanko Muhammed, Muhammed MuntakaCoomassie, Nwali Sylvester Ngwuta, Ariwoola, Clara Bata Ogunbiyi agreed with the lead judgment.

Confab: Compensate Bakassi people, Ita-Giwa begs FG

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ENATOR Florence Ita Giwa, a delegate to the ongoing National Conference and the Chairman, Conference Committee on the Environment, has pleaded with the Federal Government to compensate her people.

Ita-Giwa, while contributing to the report of the Committee on Foreign Policy and Diaspora Matters, said the ceding arrangement which was ordered by the International Court of Justice in the Hague and carried out by ExPresident Olusegun Obasanjo's administration was just to show to the world

that two countries can settle a dispute without necessarily losing blood or staying perpetually in court.

According to Ita-Giwa,it would have been a misplaced priority, if the issue of ceding Bakassi to Cameroun led to a war between both countries, adding that all the people needed to be placated was better settled through compensation.

She appealed to other stakeholders to prevail on the Federal Government to adequately compensate the people of Bakassi even though they have been relocated.

From right: Governor Gabriel Suswam of Benue State discussing with the President, Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, in Makurdi

Ekiti: Fashola raises posers on how to help the poor

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AGOS State Governor Babatunde Fashola deepened yesterday the emerging debate on the clear ideological differences between the All Progressives Congress (APC)’s utilisation of infrastructure for human development and the politics of “handouts”.

Fashola spoke at two events - the opening and rebranding of the Digital Reality Print Limited in Yaba and at the Nigeria Infrastructure Building Conference 2014 at the Four Points by Sheraton, Victoria Island.

He said the APC had emphasised that the quickest way to re-energise the economy was to renew its infrastructure and by so doing, creating economic opportunities to address the needs of the poor.

Laying the foundation for the debates at the opening of the new Digital Reality Complex built by renowned female entrepreneur, Mrs. Folorunsho Alakija, the governor said: “We agree that the poor needs to be helped, no debate about that. The real debate is about what works. Should we build roads? Should we build schools or simply just give them money? Either way, you help the poor, but that is the debate that is on now”.

He added: “It is a debate that has just come up, and if you have not latched on it, you are missing something that is so defining in our society because clearly for those who think there are no ideological and political differences, it has emerged”.

According to him, people like Mrs. Alakija, the Chairman of Digital Reality Print limited, might have voted with their feet on what side of the divide she wanted to stand “because, despite the fact that she does a lot of charity as she once donated a school, she could have as well set up the printing press as a camp just to feed the poor people.

“She didn’t need to invite all of us to come and see that and she would not need a bank to fund her to do that, so Ecobank Plc might not be doing business in a couple of months because there would be no borrower. The other type of infrastructure does not require all of those congregated layers, so I kept thinking as she acknowledged her quantity surveying firm and as she acknowledged her construction firm, where would these firms have been, if the infrastructure we chose

Marriam EKENE-OKORO was just to feed people and give them rice” he added.

Commending Mrs. Alakija for deepening the vision of his administration by bringing the ultramodern printing factory to Commercial Avenue among the areas regenerated by government, Fashola recalled that when the administration started the infrastructure renewal of Yaba roads a few years ago, its intention was to bring about the revival of businesses in the area such as the Domino Stores, adding that the new digital printing press would not have been attracted to the area without the renewed infrastructure and that one of the reasons he honoured the invitation was to come and lend the support of his office “to those who venture to dare and perhaps more remarkably for a female entrepreneur”.

Using Lagos as an example of infrastructure development as the path to creation of economic opportunities at the Nigeria Infrastructure building conference 2014, the governor said the State Government, after assessing the problems of the state at the onset, which, according to him, was economic in nature, decided that the way to begin was to address the massive infrastructure deficit in the state, adding that this has been the underpinning message of all his budget speeches as governor in the last seven years.

“What we decided to do in Lagos was to ask ourselves, ‘what is the problem here; an economic problem, life was challenging. And thinking through it was clear, at least at the time, that there was a massive infrastructural deficit’, the governor said pointing out that in spite of the large number of vehicles imported into the country between 1980 and 1990, there was no corresponding road infrastructure development.”

In a goodwill message, the Minister of Trade and Investment, Dr Segun Aganga, said anyone establishing companies in Nigeria is assisting the central government to provide the needed platform to create jobs for the teeming unemployed youths.

Mrs Alakija said the company stood to change the format of printing industry.

Digital Reality, which started in the last seven and half years, has made significant contribution in the country.

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NEWS

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

Rep alleges threat to life n Dada ALADELOKUN, Assistant Editor n ESS than two months to the governorship election in Osun State, a member of the House of Representatives from the state, Hon Rotimi Makinde, has raised the alarm over an alleged threat to his life.

The lawmaker, who represents Ife federal constituency in the House, told The Nation yesterday that he had received several anonymous calls from persons suspected to belong to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), threatening to kill him unless he withdraws his support for the re-election of Governor Rauf Aregbesola.

However, Prince Diran Odeyemi, media aid to PDP’s governorship candidate, Senator Iyiola Omisore, said nobody was after Makinde's life, adding: "We don't want anybody to blackmail Omisore; it is the APC that has been preaching violence in all its campaigns."

Makinde, who also alleged that some suspected PDP members had attacked his supporters in Ile-Ife, said: "The threat to my life became serious when I received some messages from anonymous persons last week, threatening to kill me. This is aside from the several phone calls also from anonymous callers."

The lawmaker, who said he had reported the matter to both the state police command and the Police Area Command in IleIfe, urged security agencies to investigate the allegation.

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Agricultural expert decries negative image of agric •Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State (right), Alhaji Abdulfatahi Alaga (left) and Alhaji Abdulganiyu Agbotomokekere (middle), praying at the Oja'ba Central Mosque, Ibadan, yesterday...

FG plots to cripple Osun ahead of August 9 poll, Aregbesola alleges O

SUN State governor, Rauf Aregbesola, has raised the alarm over an alleged plot by the Federal Government to cripple his administration financially before the August 9 election in the state by reducing and delaying the payment of the state statutory monthly allocation.

The governor, who made the allegation while answering questions during the 8th edition of "Gbangbadekun" a state government public interactive feedback programme in Ijebu-Jesa Oriade North Federal Constituency, said the plot would fail.

According to the governor, aside from the drastic drop in the allocation, plans are underway to temporarily stop the statutory allocation due to the state.

He accused the Federal Government of a deliberate attempt to weaken some federating units, especially the states where the opposition All Progressive Congress (APC) is in power, by not making funds available to them for political reasons.

However, Aregbesola said that despite the dwindling allocation, his administration would continue to pay the workers regularly.

He said: "Apart from the drop in the allocation, the Federal Government has devised a means to cripple our government before the August election by not giving us

n Adesoji ADENIYI, Osogbo n

the statutory monthly allocation. The allocation, aside from the drop, has not been coming on time. The allocation for the month of May only came yesterday, even before it came, we have paid the May salary of our workers.

"Let me tell you that there are plans not to release the allocation of the coming months before the election, so as to cripple our government, thinking that we will not be able to pay the salary of the workers. I want to tell you that they have failed because we will device means of paying our workers."

He assured the people that his administration would not sack any worker despite the dwindling allocation from the federation account.

According to him, "My pact with God and the people of Osun is not to sack any worker. If we can retain the glaring enemy, why are we going to sack workers who never offend us or neglect their jobs? Those peddling such rumour are ignorant or mischievous."

More than sixty traditional rulers in Ijesa North Traditional Council attended the programme.

The governor said it was gratifying that opposition candidates have not found it

possible to accuse his government of not delivering on life changing programmes, noting that all they could do is to attempt to discredit the various achievements.

He said: "But the good people of Osun have seen through the various lies they carry about. Our style of governance cannot be compared with any other in Nigeria. We have demonstrated that it's possible to make a modern state of our own territory. Our administration has offered the best to the workers, even when Osun lacks the financial capacity. We pay close to N90 billion pension funds."

The governor also assured the people of Ipetu-Ijesa that contrary to the relocation rumour, the Osun State University Education College in Ipetu will not only remain, but will be upgraded to an aviation school.

He assured the people of Imesi Ile, Esa Oke and Ira of the completion of their roads and the building of new elementary, middle and high school in their various communities.

On behalf of their communities, the traditional rulers, including the Akeji of IkejiIle, Olura of Ira Ikeji, Oba Julius Olukayode, and Oba Felix Taiwo Aribisala, the Elekuruu of Ijebu- Ijesa, represented by Odofin of Ijebu Ijesa, commended the governor for his vision and transformation of the state.

PDP lacks genuine base in Kwara, says Rep member member of the House of Representatives representing Offa/ Oyun/Ifelodun federal constituency in Kwara State, Dr. Rafiu Ibrahim has said that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) lacks the support of the people of the state to win election.

Speaking on the outcome of the recent governorship election in Ekiti State, Dr. Ibrahim said that Kwara cannot be compared with Ekiti State where

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n Adekunle JIMOH, Ilorin n the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared the PDP candidate, Ayodele Fayose as the winner of the governorship election.

The legislator told reporters in Omupo, Ifelodun Local Government Area of the state ahead of today’s commemoration of his third year at the national assembly.

Dr Ibrahim insisted that the All Progressives Congress

(APC) remains the party to beat in the state.

Members of PDP in the state celebrated the victory of the party as soon as Fayose was declared by the electoral body as winner of the June 21 governorship election.

However, the lawmaker boasted that contrary to insinuation, no bandwagon effect would spill to Kwara State, saying, “Here in Kwara, anytime, any day, APC will win elections in Kwara State”.

He said though the Ekiti election was free, fair and peaceful, he faulted what he called the “militarization” of the exercise, saying, “security seems to be too intimidating”.

Ibrahim, who said he derives his inspiration from the former Governor of the state, Senator Bukola Saraki, said the empowerment items to be distributed are spread across all the 352 polling units in his constituency.

curriculum expert and agricultural education specialist from Winrock International, Professor Scott Handskell, has decried the negative image trailing agriculture in the country.

Prof. Handskell stated this during his three weeks working visit to the Oyo State College of Agriculture, Igboora, for curriculum and Institutional assessment.

Professor Handskell, who advocated the repositioning of agriculture as a market-driven business, advised agricultural institutions to collaborate with the private sector in order to increase the institutional capacity in various areas, such as marketing, value adding, entrepreneurial development to mention a few.

The agricultural education specialist revealed that over the years, agriculture was handled as mere production exer-

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Funke Akindele, others shine at Baileys’ For coloured girls show n Segun AJIBOYE n OVERS of theater were recently treated to the best of stage performance at the Eko Hotel and Suites during the performance of the play, For colored girls, a play adaptation of NtozakeShange’s work by Wole Oguntokun.

The poem, originally adapted for film by film-maker, Tyler Perry, tells the stories of seven women who have suffered oppression in a racist and sexist society. The choreo-poem is an innovative combination of poetry, drama, music, and dance.

The performance was sponsored by Baileys, the Irish Cream drink from the stables of Diageo Brands, Nigeria.

Speaking on why Baileys sponsored the event, Mr. Felix Enwemadu, General Manager, Diageo Brands Nigeria, said that Baileys is synonymous with today’s woman, who he said is trendy and ready to standout.

“The theme of the play syncs with the Baileys spirit of a trendy stylish woman, who dares every obstacle just to be herself. Baileys had sponsored this play to further reiterate its commitment to the advancement of womanhood in a unique way.

“We want guests at this show to thoroughly enjoy themselves by the scintillating display of the cast. As a brand, Baileys want to provide more unique platforms like these to connect and engage with our consumers,” Enwemadu said.

The identities of the seven women in the play are not revealed, as they are meant to stand for the women who make up the rainbow. They are simply identified as “lady in brown,” “lady in red,” and so on, each with her own unique story.

The all-female cast drama was acted by: Funke Akindele, Bikiya Graham Douglas, Ade Laoye, OrekaGodis, Diana Yekini, Carol King and OsasIghodaro and directed by Keke Hammond.

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Trade Zone: Communities up-beat over certificate of occupancy HE Lagos State government has handed over the Certificate of Occupancy of 750 hectares of land to the communities affected by its Lekki Free Trade Zone Project.

The presentation came after a long drawn negotiation that spanned over seven years between the communities and the government. At the event, which took place at the free trade zone, the Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Mrs. Olushola Oworu, ex-

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plained that the government decided to give some of the land it had earlier acquired back to communities to boost farming in the area.

She said Lagos State government paid compensations as far back as 2009. “We are giving 750 hectares of land back to the communities so that they can have their own parcels of land. The problem we had before was that some of the land we acquired were used for farming. But now that they have their own land,

they can do whatever they want with it, so they will not disturb the investors anymore and we are now ready to move at a much faster pace with the development of the free zone.”

The commissioner said the Lekki Free Trade Zone was one of the flagship programmes of the government to attract investors, adding that there would be jobs for the people when investors start investing in the zone.

Speaking on behalf of the

communities and the traditional leaders in the affected communities, the Oloja of Epe, Oba Kamora Ishola ,commended the state and pledge the support of the communities for the project.

The event was attended by many traditional rulers in the axis.

Mr. Kayode Obembe, a consultant, who was also at the event, commended the state government for the prompt response to the wish of the people.

cise, as against a business-driven venture. He opined that through public private partnership (PPP), graduates of agriculture would be exposed and encouraged to practice agriculture as business venture.

He also charged the College and other agricultural institutions to develop their graduates as industry products.

He said this would help to increase students’ success rate.

He charged institutions to improve their curriculum in line with new developments around the globe.

In his remark, Prof. Adewale thanked the agricultural expert for his holistic assessment of the College, and promised that the management of the college would do everything possible to implement most of the recommendations put forward by the visiting Professor.

•The cast of For coloured girls

THE NATION, SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

NEWS

Abia State Commissioner of Police, Adamu Ibrahim, speaking with newsmen at the end of a security training programme for school principals in the state.

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•Some of the participants at the training programme.

Abia CP teaches school principals how to F handle strange objects

OLLOWING the incessant security breaches across the country, the Abia State police command has commenced efforts to train school principals across the state on security issues and the need to be vigilant in handling strange objects that may be found in their schools.

According to the police, the principals, who have been termed as agents of change, would be specifically trained to handle strange objects they may find around their schools, since the insurgents are now targeting schools.

In a lecture delivered by Austin Nwosu (ASP), Head of the Bomb Unit, the principals were trained on how to identify bombs and the type of damage it could cause in any environment if not properly handled by the right people.

n Ugochukwu UGOJI-EKE, Umuahia n

Nwosu said that terrorists are now targeting schools and other institutions with the aim to inflict pains and sorrow on the populace and to rubbish the government of the day through creating fear in the minds of the people before making their demands.

According to him, bombs are weapons that can explode when activated. “There are different types of bomb. But the ones the insurgents use more often are the Improvised Explosive Devices [IED] which can be produced anywhere around with little notice.”

He advised the principals not try to touch

any strange object that may be found around their schools, but that they should call the nearest police station to handle such objects.

Nwosu said, “The reason for saying this is that the police are trained and equipped to handle such situation and render same safe. But if the people do not report such, there is nothing the police can do about it.”

The bomb expert said that in the event of a bomb explosion, the people should not rush to the scene of the explosion, explaining that the insurgents are known to explode another bomb, aimed at causing more harm.

The Commissioner of Police [CP], Adamu Ibrahim, said he has been meeting with various security chiefs of banks, university and polytechnics and others in the state on the need for them to be security conscious at all times.

On the issue of cattle rearing, the CP urged the people not to confront the Fulani herdsmen. He advised that the people should rather make a report to the police, adding that the Federal Government has set up a committee to handle the situation.

In her address, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education, Mrs. Victoria Chigbu, urged the principals, who she said are chief security officers in their various schools, to go home and lecture their students, while the women should discuss same during the August meetings.

No imposition of candidates for council elections in Delta, says Uduaghan Man jailed two ELTA State governor, Dr. Em"We have agreed that there will be The governor used the occasion to for the forthcoming local government years for raping manuel Uduaghan has said no imposition of candidates, if you debunk insinuations that he influ- elections fixed for October 25 as there will be no imposition of are interested, go about your consul- enced the date for the elections as stated by DSIEC and I want to assure nursing mother candidates for the forthcoming local tations, talk to leaders, talk to women, fixed by the Delta State Independent you that the result will be 100 percent

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government elections in the state.

Dr. Uduaghan gave the assurance at Koko during a meeting of members of the Warri North Local Government Area chapter of the People's Democratic Party (PDP) of the state.

According to him, only popular aspirants will be fielded as candidates for the election, and warned against any form of violence during the elections.

Ex-militants vow to go after fraudulent NDDC contractors n Kazeem IBRAHYM, Uyo n

EADERS of repentant ex-militants in the Niger Delta region, yesterday, vowed to move against contractors who collected money for Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) projects, but either failed to execute the jobs according to specifications or abandon them completely.

The ex-militants, under the aegis of Peace and Cultural Development Initiative, met in Oron, Akwa Ibom State, where they reviewed cases of abandoned NDDC projects, and decided to constitute themselves into a monitoring team to call the contractors to order.

In his address, the President of the group, Gen. Reuben Wilson, said that they decided to take the step because the contractors were running down the NDDC and denying the people the right to enjoy the development initiatives of the federal government.

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talk to youths," the Governor said.

He added, "I beg us, let us do this election peacefully, the election should not be a do or die affair, if you don't win in this election, there will be another one in the next three years," reiterating, "it is very important that we must choose popular candidates, especially for Councillorship positions because, they will be representing the grassroots."

Electoral Commission (DSIEC) saying, "I was not the one who fixed the date for the local government elections, it was fixed by DSIEC and we should show that we are ready for the elections."

The Chairman of the PDP in the local government area, Mr. John Okoroloko had said in an address that, "we are waiting for July 28 to commence our electioneering campaigns

PDP as far as Warri North is concerned because, we are going to ensure that, it is only credible and sellable candidates that will fly the flag of the party at the elections."

Leaders of the party in the area, including Chief Emmanuel Ebimami, Mrs. Sola Williams and the youths, who spoke at the meeting, said the PDP was prepared for the local government elections.

Driver beats policeman to death in Benin police Corporal has allegedly been beaten to death by a driver in Benin City.

The Public Relations Officer of Edo State Police Command, DSP Noble Uwoh, said the driver and the car are now in police custody.

He added that investigation has commenced, and advised members of the public to be law-abiding and civil in their encounter with one another.

It was gathered that the deceased policeman, Cpl Osas Agbonmwenma, was

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Osemwengie Ben n OGBEMUDIA, Benin

serving at St. Saviour Police Division, Benin City before the unfortunate incident last Friday.

A source disclosed that late Agbonmwenma was among a team of policemen on a routine patrol. The patrol team allegedly ordered the driver, who was said to be driving a car without registration number, to pullover along Uwa Street by First East Circular Road Junction.

The source said an attempt by the policemen to forcefully take over control of the vehicle led to a physical combat between them and the driver, leading to a fight between the policemen and the driver.

However, another version of the encounter alleged that the driver who was asked to drive to the police station in company of the deceased police corporal attempted to divert the car to an unknown direction, prompting the corporal to forcefully stop the car

around St. Maria Goretti Grammar School.

The driver allegedly hit the cop on the head with an object.

The policeman was said to have been rushed to a hospital where he died.

A motorist who claimed to have witnessed the incident blamed both parties for the ugly incident, describing it as a result of overzealousness on the part of the policemen and a flagrant disobedience and attempt to resist arrest by the driver.

Cynthia: Defence opposes video evidence FFORTS by the Lagos State government to tender video evidence in the trial of suspected killers of Cynthia Osokogu, yesterday suffered a setback, following the defence counsel's objection, for lack of certification.

At the resumed trial of the four alleged killers of Osokogu before Justice Olabisi Akinlade, the state Attorney General, Ade Ipaye’s attempt to tender the video clips produced during police investigation of the matter was opposed by Victor Okpara and Michael Ajayi, lawyers to the first and second defendants re-

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Precious IGBONWELUNDU spectively.

A prosecution witness, Emmanuel Peters, a film editor and cinematographer, who was called to give evidence, narrated how he was invited by the Area E Commander, Dan Okoro (ACP) to cover the alleged confessional statements made by Okumo Nwabufo (the first defendant) and Olisaeloka Ezike (the second defendant).

Describing the atmosphere under which the statements were recorded as

normal, Peters said he produced a DVD of the defendants' confessional statements, which he handed over to the police.

He said the Area Commander later asked him to delete the "raw files" he used in producing the DVD from his camera, adding that he could only identify the video if it was played.

Ipaye sought the leave of the court for the video to be played, and Justice Akinlade granted it. Some seconds into playing the video, Peters confirmed that it was his work.

n Osagie OTABOR, Benin n

n Evboriaria Magistrate Court has sentenced one Micheal Henry Aimufia to two years imprisonment for raping a nursing mother.

Aimufia was said to have raped the victim inside a bush at Agowieyan village along Sapele road in Benin city.

Chief Magistrate Hassana Garuba held that the prosecuting counsel, Rosemary Igbinakenzua, made a prima facie case against the convict.

Rosemary informed the court that the convict accosted the woman who was returning home after taking her child to school.

She said Michael hit the victim on the head and dragged her into a nearby bush where he raped her.

The court was told that luck ran out of the convict when a vehicle hit him while coming out of the bush.

The driver of the vehicle, who turned out to be the husband of the victim, attempted to take the convict to hospital and heard the wife's cry inside the bush.

The weeping woman later identified the unconscious convict as the rapist.

The rapist was arrested after gaining consciousness.

Michael pleaded guilty to the charges. Magistrate Garuba sentenced him to two years jail term without an option of fine.

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Oyedepo warns against religious war •Tasks varsities to provide solution HE Chancellor ,Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State, Bishop David Oyedepo yesterday called for caution in the country with a view to avoiding a religious war.

Dr.Oyedopo who is also the presiding Bishop of the Living Faith Church International, called for the immediate resolution of “this looming danger by finding the way out of current events before they degenerate to a calamitous situation.”

He spoke during the Ninth Convocation of the university.

But he said no permanent solution would ever be found in foreign assistance.

Instead,he said Nigerian universities should step in and help in finding a lasting solution to the security challenges.

"Universities in Nigeria, and I dare say in Africa, must drive relevance by continuously addressing and proffering solutions to the challenges of the day,” he said in his speech, entitled ‘Towards the way out for a nation under trial.’

He added:"The university system in Nigeria must become responsive to the issues and challenges of the day. It should no longer be business as usual. University education should be beyond certification but in seeking application in real life context for improving the lot of humanity and driving causes for the good of all.

"Pretence has always been a failed ideology and it must have brought us to where we are today. From the information available in the media, Nigeria is fast becoming a breeding ground for a potential religious and ethnic war. We either stop it now or it stops us later. “ The destiny of our nation Nigeria is hanging in the balance.

This means therefore that all men and women of substance and courage should rise up and speak up. Before our eyes, Abuja has been hit several times. The seat of government has constantly been threatened by insurgencies more frequently in recent times.

"Enough of these pretences; we are face to face with a looming holocaust. This is a call to take up intellectual arms. Nigerian universities must arise and speak up, and individuals in the nation must rise up to this call."

He blamed the Boko Haram insurgency on the craze for power and religious domination.

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•From L-R: (Front Row) Vice-Chancellor, Covenant University (CU), Professor Charles K. Ayo; Vice-President, Living Faith Church (Worldwide), Bishop David Abioye; the Chancellor, CU, Dr. David Oyedepo; Vice-President (Education), Living Faith Church World Wide, Pastor (Mrs.) Faith Oyedepo; Keynote Address Speaker, Deputy Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria, Dr. Sarah Alade and the representative of the Executive Secretary, Nigerian Universities Commission (NUC), Professor Chiedu Mafiana, during the university’s nineth convocation ceremony, held at the University Chapel, Canaanland, Ota, Ogun State…yesterday.

PHOTO: Adeola SOLOMON

Kano gives N1b car loan to civil servants n Kolade ADEYEMI Kano n ANO State Head of Service, Dr. Umar Shehu Minjibir, yesterday said that the state government has provided vehicles worth over N1 billion to various categories of civil servants to cushion the effects of transportation problem bedeviling workers in the state.

Minjibir, who briefed journalists in his office, as part of the activities to mark the Civil Service Week in the state, also revealed that over N10 billion has been remitted to the Pension Trust Fund by the state government.

According to him, Governor Rabi’u Musa Kwankwsao’s administration has recruited over 7, 000 workers since he assumed office, a development he said has greatly helped in reducing the rate of unemployment in the state.

He also stated that the Kwankwaso administration, in its determination to ensure that civil servants own homes of their own, has earmarked 500 houses to be allocated to civil servants at the state housing estate at Amana, Kwankwasiyya and Bandirawo housing estates.

According to him, “it is worth noting that the theme for this year’s commemoration, as transmitted by the Federal Government, is ‘Enhancing Governance in the open Government Era”, adding that the government was paying N300 million every month to pension funds.

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•Minister of Labour, Emeka Wogu; Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Anyim Pius Anyim and Governor Rochas Okorocha at the memorial service for late Justice Chukwudifu Oputa...yesterday.

•Ejigbo pepper torture: some of the accused persons in court...yesterday.

PHOTO: Saharareporter

LASU to refund N69m excess payment to students OLLOWING the order by the Lagos State government for the reduction of school fees in Lagos State University (LASU), the authorities of the institution has concluded arrangements

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n Adegunle OLUGBAMILA n to refund over N69 million in excess of the new approved school fees regime to the students.

The decision followed a directive by the state government that the excess payment of fees be refunded to all students who have paid for the 2013/ 2014 academic session.

A statement signed by the university PRO Kayode Sutton, said the university management has promptly complied with the directive of the council.

Sutton said the management has mandated the bursary department of the institution to commence the compilation of the list of affected students and the amount involved, including how to come up with an ideal mode of refund.

He said: "After an extensive deliberation on the refund, the university authorities concluded that refunds will be made to students by cheques. The comprehensive list of the beneficiaries and the amount to be refunded to each student will be up-

loaded on the university website, while a roster for the distribution of the cheques to the beneficiaries will be made available in due course.

"LASU Vice-Chancellor, Prof. John Oladapo Obafunwa, commended government’s efforts in repositioning Lagos State University for excellence and hope that the students, as well as the university community, will reciprocate this noble gesture by contributing their quota to the upliftment of the Institution," the statement said.

Ejigbo torture saga: Lagos arraigns 10 suspects n Precious IGBONWELUNDU n HE Lagos State Government yesterday arraigned 10 suspects before an Igbosere Magistrate’s Court for their alleged involvement in the pepper torture of three women at Ejigbo in Lagos in February last year.

The incident, which went viral then, was said to have occurred at the Oba Morufu International Market, Ejigbo, after the victims were accused of stealing pepper.

A video of the brutal assault on the women showed how blended pepper, mixed with whiskey, was inserted into their private parts with sticks and broken bottles, a situation that allegedly killed one of the victims, Juliana Agoma.

However, in the course of investigation by the state, it was discovered that Juliana, who was said to have died after the assault, and was buried in her father's house in Benin Republic, was alive.

Her father had explained that she was feared dead after she disappeared and her spirit was invoked and buried in her grandmother's grave.

Subsequently, the suspects, Isiaka Waidi 60, Azeez Akinosun 35, Saheed Adisa 28, Jimoh Busari 49, Tijani Lateef 37, Adekunle Adenuga 57, Oloruntoyin Dauda 45, Buhari Yusuf 21, Haruna Abdullahi 19 and Ahmed Adisa 65 were charged to court for conspiracy, attempted murder, threat to kill, unlawful society, neglect, torturing and assault.

Prosecuting Assistant Superintendent of Police, Charles Odii, told the court that the defendants with others at large committed the offence on February 11, 2013.

Odii said the defendants attempted to unlawfully kill Juliana Agoma by inserting stick into her private part, which almost caused her death.

He told the court that they (defendants) also assaulted Ajoke Agoma and Nike Salami by pouring ground pepper into their private parts.

According to the prosecutor, Isiaka Waidi (Baba Oloja of the market) demanded N50,000 from the father of the victims, Fima Agoma, and threatened to injure him as well as kill his two daughters (Juliana Agoma and Nike Salami), if he failed to provide the money.

Odii told the court that Azeez Akinosun, Saheed Adisa and Jimoh Busari belong to an unlawful society, Oodua People’s Congress (OPC), adding that they assembled unlawfully with the intent to punish the victims.

Continuing, the prosecutor accused the Iya Oloja, Oloruntoyin Dauda, Tijani Lateef and Adekunle Adenuga of conspiring to neglect the victims, while they were being tortured, adding that the trio knew that the other suspects were committing an offence by torturing the victims and failed to prevent them.

The alleged offences contravened Sections 231, 228(1), 134, 299, 409, 41, 44(4) and 408 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos, 2011.

When the charges were read to the defendants, they all pleaded not guilty and were admitted to bail in N100, 000 each with two sureties in like sum.

In her ruling, Presiding Magistrate, A.O. Adedayo, said: "I have observed the charge before me and the offences they committed are very grievous but I am going to grant them bail because they are still presumed innocent until they are proven guilty.

"All the defendants should show their verification of three years tax clearance and their addresses should be verified. The seventh defendant, Iya Oloja, should also get a written letter from the market."

Adedayo adjourned the matter to July 23 for mention, just as she ordered that the case file be duplicated to the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) for legal advice.

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50 terrorists killed in military raid on Boko Haram camp

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BUJA- A military raid on a makeshift camp used by terrorists in Miyanti and Bulungu, Borno State has claimed the lives of 53 terrorists,the Defence Headquarters said yesterday.

A fuel dump used for storing fuel, vehicles and motorcycles were destroyed in the raid.

The DHQ, in a statement posted on its website, said two soldiers died during the operation.

IBB canvasses constitutional role for monarchs

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ORMER Military President Ibrahim Babangida yesterday canvassed a constitutional role for traditional rulers in the country He urged the National Conference to come up with a definite and well-defined role for the royal fathers.

Babangida spoke in Bida at a special National Interfaith Prayers organised to mark the 6th Nupe Day celebration at the Wadata Palace of the Etsu Nupe, Alhaji Yahaya Abubakar.

Most of the nation’s traditional rulers, according to him, are “highly educated, experienced and confident” and will not be found wanting in ”discharging any administrative role that may be assigned to them in the constitution review.”

IBB, who was the Chairman at the special prayer

Jide ORINTUNSIN, Minna session, also urged the traditional rulers to help in educating the people against inciting statements.

He pleaded with Nigerians to shun politics of violence and incitement in the build up to next year’s elections.

Also speaking the Governor of Niger State, Dr Muazu Babangida Aliyu, represented by the Deputy Governor, Hon. Ahmed Musa Ibeto, said that the security challenges facing the country are nothing but manifestations of the economic problems and governance negligence of the past.

The Etsu Nupe said the prayer session replaced the fanfare that usually heralds the annual Nupe Day, in view of the security challenges in parts of the country.

Group petitions NHRC over alleged Boko Haram members held in Abia

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GROUP, the Jigawa Forum, has petitioned the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) over the continued detention of some northerners arrested recently by security agents in Abia State on suspicion of being members of the Boko Haram sect.

The group is demanding the immediate release or prosecution of the detainees, who are “mainly indigenes of Jigawa, Kano and Bauchi states.

NHRC’s Chief Press Officer, Mrs Fatimah Agwai Mohammed, said in a statement yesterday that the commission’s Executive Secretary, Prof. Bem Angwe, while receiving the petition on Thursday, urged security agents to be cautious in their conduct.

Angwe commended members of the group, led by Alhaji Ahmed Wanga, for not taking the laws into their hands, but chose to approach the commission which would ensure that the rights of the detained persons are enforced in line

Eric IKHILAE, Abuja with its mandate.

The NHRC boss described the current insecurity in the country as unfortunate and disturbing. He advised the security operatives “not to hide under the cover of security to infringe on the rights of the citizens,” and urged Nigerians to support the security agencies in their bid to combat insurgency.

He also urged the security agencies to ensure that arrested persons are subjected to a screening process to separate those who for justifiable reasons are suspects, from those going about their normal business, since there cannot be a collective punishment.

Angwe argued that every Nigerian is entitled to the right to freedom of movemen and that any attempt to breach this constitutional provision constitutes a setback to democracy.

He urged the relevant authorities to ensure that no citizen is detained unduly.

Five others received injuries.

Besides, 15 rifles, 11 machine guns and ammunitions were captured by the troops.

The information could be independently verified.

The DHQ said that in a

separate operation close to Duguri, near the Nigeria– Niger border, troops of the Multinational Joint Task Force stormed a terrorists’ hideout, recovering 18 rifles, five general purpose machine guns, 25 hand grenades and IED making ma-

nor Shettima to send the SSG, Ambassador Baba Ahmed Jidda, to address the pilgrims and calm their nerves.

“The pilgrims left in numerous buses, driving through the night in order not to miss the flight’s inaugural slot to land in Saudi Arabia.”

A military source however said the flights were stopped for security reasons.

The source said: “There

other suspects were being detained in Abuja after a raid that led to the recovery of seven rifles, pistols, swords and other weapons.

It said that military operations to track armed gangs would be sustained in various locations.

•Wife of the late Justice Chukwudifu Oputa, Margaret Oputa and Mr Charles Oputa a.k.a. Charly Boy during the memorial service for the late Justice Oputa at the Sacred Heart Cathedral, Oguta, Oguta Local Government Area, Imo State

U.S. reduces surveillance flights seeking abducted girls

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ASHINGTON The United States reduced its surveillance flights to help find the more than 200 schoolgirls abducted in Chibok by Boko Haram, after building a body of intelligence and after other states ramped up support, a U.S. official said yesterday.

Nigeria has committed itself to the hunt for the girls, who were kidnapped in April, and received help from the United States and other countries, including n e i g h b o u r i n g Cameroun,Chad and Niger.

The senior U.S. defence official told Reuters that the U.S. intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance flights, first announced in May, were now flying at an “intermittent” rate.

The official said overall intelligence-gathering had not diminished, and noted additional operations by Britain and France.

“We had substantial initial coverage for the baseline and we’ve moved into a maintenance mode,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The official declined to say how long the period of

heightened initial U.S. coverage lasted. Asked whether it was just a week or two, the official said: “No. We were ... building this baseline for a good period of time.”

The Pentagon had said on Thursday that there were “around the clock” intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) operations in support of Nigeria’s search. U.S. military personnel are in Abuja helping coordinate the effort.

The United States also sent about 80 U.S. military personnel to Chad in May to support the surveillance operation. Chad lies to the northeast of Nigeria, bordering the area in which Boko Haram operates.

In the last month U.S. officials have played down expectations about a swift rescue of the girls and stressed the limitations of intelligence gleaned from surveillance flights.

One U.S. official spoke of concerns that Boko Haram may have laid booby traps in areas the girls could be held and there have been reports that the girls may have been split up into small groups.

“ISR alone will not solve this problem. It will take … the Nigerian piece of the equa-

Military stops 278 pilgrims, Ndume from using airport •Continued from Page ?? ernment officials it conveyed from Abuja.

“The military ordered the plane to take off empty, leaving behind all eight persons, including the two lawmakers scheduled to board the flight to Abuja from Maiduguri.

“Tension was rising at the airport as intending pilgrims were becoming uncalm; a situation that made Gover-

terials.’’

It said a suspected gun runner was apprehended .

The suspect is currently undergoing interrogation.

It said that the suspect was arrested during a cordon and search operation by troops.

The statement said that 15

was no any order from above.

The security situation in Borno State does not support such flight operations now.

“We were trying to be proactive to avoid security breaches because the Air Force Base, which is closer to the airport, was attacked by the insurgents.

“We are in a situation whereby the military cannot take things for granted. The flights were stopped purely on

security grounds.”

The Maiduguri airport was officially reopened some months ago by the Nigerian Air Space Management Agency, following closure due to the invasion of the airport precinct by the insurgents.

Although flights had been restored since January, the air traffic is managed through security clearance..”

tion with their own sources and human intelligence coupled with the other forms to really understand the picture,” the defence official said.

In an opinion piece in the Washington Post yesterday,President Goodluck Jonathan said his government and security services had “spared no resources, have not stopped and will not stop until the girls are returned home.”

The defence official did not discuss specific U.S. intelli-

gence but acknowledged that information gathered from different sources had left only a murky picture of where the girls might be, in how many groups and even in which country.

“What is clear is a sense of dispersion that would contribute to pessimism in terms of the prospects for a successful rescue operation to be mounted by anyone, whether it’s the host nation or supported in any way by external actors,” the official said.

Whose jinx?

•Continued from back page ing his right foot. Most of the times, Musa forgets to drop into the space in the midfield whenever we lose possession of the ball.

This has been another major problem with the Eagles’ style of play, largely because our coaches love the archaic 4-2-4 formation. What Messi simply did was to wait in the gap between Oshaniwa and Musa to rip the team’s defence apart.

Again, the coaches have failed to groom a player, who will have specific instructions to mark out dangerous players. For instance, the Argentines shut out Osaze Odemwingie and Emmanuel Emenike. Ploys by both players to switch positions failed because there were already entangled in the dragnet. With this predicament, the Eagles tottered in their attacking forays, needing Musa’s pace and mental alertness in front of the goalkeeper to score Nigeria’s two goals that counted for nothing at the end of the game.

Our coaches were naïve. Cerebral coaches would have exploited the mistake made by the replacement of Messi to change their strategies. Our coaches’ problem with reading trends in matches accounting for unintelligent replacement of Uchebo for injured Babatunde Michael.

Would Victor Moses have done better? Yes. Moses would have made the difference because the Argentines know him and would strive to stop him. The Argentines were clueless when Messi was substituted but our coaches couldn’t decipher that. Their conduct on the bench didn’t inspire the boys as the game ran its course.

These Eagles have shown that they cannot score goals from set-pieces. The Argentines showed mastery of setpieces. They scored their three goals from set-pieces. We have goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama to thank for his yeoman’s job in Wednesday’s tie.

THE NATION

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SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014

EQUITIES NIGERIAN STOCK EXCHANGE DAILY SUMMARY AS AT 27-06-14

DAILY SUMMARY AS AT 27-06-14

Investors gain N151b as equities rally to new high

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OST stocks appreciated and investors garnered N151 billion in additional capital gains as Nigerian equities regained their momentum yesterday to reach their highest average level so far this year.

The last trading session of the week ended on the upside, reversing the downtrend in the earlier trading session and upping the year’s average return to 2.08 per cent.

The All Share Index (ASI), the common value-based index that tracks prices of all quoted companies on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), rallied 1.10 per cent to close at this year’s high of 42,187.62 points as against its opening index of 41,729.59 points.

Aggregate market value of all quoted equities rose from N13.779 trillion to N13.930 trillion, representing an increase of N151 billion.

With 33 gainers to 23 losers, the market situation showed widespread bullish

Taofik SALAKO Capital Market Editor

sentiments with highly capitalised stocks providing additional boost to the market position.

Nestle Nigeria, the highest-priced stock, led the rally with a gain of N48.90 to close at N1,098.90. Guinness Nigeria followed with a gain of N10.79 to close at N200.

Dangote Cement, the most capitalised stock on the NSE, rose by N5 to close at N240.

Unilever Nigeria rallied N2.40 to close at N52.40. Nigerian Breweries, the second most capitalised stock, chalked up N1.98 to close at N172. PZ Cussons Nigeria gathered N1 to close at N36.

UAC of Nigeria rose by 76 kobo to close at N62.06. International Breweries added 67 kobo to close at N26.70.

Lafarge Cement Wapco Nigeria rose by 40 kobo to close at N111.40 while Red Star Express added 24 kobo to

close at N5.17 per share.

On the negative side, Forte Oil led the slackers with a drop of N19.34 to close at N206.30. Conoil declined by N2.40 to close at N65.40.

Champion Breweries dropped by 53 kobo to close at N10.17. Cement Company of Northern Nigeria slipped by 46 kobo to N11.14. Total Nigeria lost 45 kobo to close at N171.05. UACN Property Development Company declined by 40 kobo to N17.60 while Caverton Offshore Support Group dropped by 34 kobo to close at N6.56 per share.

Total turnover stood at 361.22 million valued at N 4.99 billion in 4,792 deals with the financial services stocks accounting for 271.86 million shares worth N3.18 billion in 1,994 deals. FBN Holdings was the most active stock with a turnover of 136.30 million shares worth N2.13 billion in 367 deals.

TOMORROWPUNCHLINE IN THE NATION

Fayemi showed that he was a governor, not a gubernator. He cut down all the costly and ostentatious trappings of gubernatorial power.

SATURDAY, JUNE 28, 2014 TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM VOL.9, NO. 2879

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RUTH has indeed triumph (sic) in Ekiti.

Shame on people who are paid to im age launder for people with impeccable moral and intellectual credentials. The people have spoken. Period and shut up please”.

That was the insulting and gloating text message sent to me by a reader who was reacting to my short take, last week, on the Ekiti polls titled ‘Ekiti: Truth Will Triumph’. I wrote, “As is now usual with Nigerian elections under President Goodluck Jonathan, the number of security agents will probably outnumber voters in today’s polls. On one hand is a candidate yet to clear himself of corruption and murder charges currently in court.

He confronts an incumbent with impeccable moral and intellectual credentials. There is a candidate whose loftiest idea of government was to build poultry sheds. There is an incumbent with sterling performance in infrastructure provision and social service delivery. In between is a decent progressive who unfortunately finds himself on the wrong side of history. Ekiti is a land of honourable and valiant people. They can neither be deceived nor intimidated. We shall ultimately celebrate the triumph of truth”.

Despite the outcome of the election, I take nothing back.

Despite Governor-elect, Mr Ayodele Fayose’s purported victory, Dr. Kayode Fayemi maintains the moral and cerebral high ground. In the aftermath of the polls, Dr Fayemi is suddenly being accused of sundry sins. Significantly, no one has said that he ran a corrupt government or stole Ekiti State’s funds. Yet, even after he was pronounced elected as Governor, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) maintained that Mr Fayose is still being prosecuted for alleged multi-billion Naira fraud involved in his administration’s Integrated Poultry project. Indeed, he was impeached and disgraced out of office by his own political party for that alleged offence. It speaks volumes of our diseased democracy and contaminated politics that such a person could have been presented to the electorate by a political party and claimed a landslide victory. The triumph of this kind of tainted truth can only be ephemeral and transitory. As for my friend, Honourable Opeyemi Bamidele, it can certainly not give him enduring fulfilment that all he has been able to achieve is help play the spoiler and enthrone the same retrogressive forces he had fought all his life as a committed progressive.

Fayemi has remained an icon and role model of grace, decorum and honour in what is supposed to be his moment of travail. The last has certainly not been heard of this unique intellectual, democrat even if misunderstood reformer in the country’s politics.

After rain comes sunshine and after darkness the glorious dawn, the great Awo once intoned. So shall it be in Ekiti. I am amazed at how uncritically some of our most respected public analysts have accepted and celebrated

Ekiti: Nigeria’s democracy on critical support

•Fayemi

•Fayose

the outcome of the Ekiti polls as truly reflecting the will of the people. Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) of Lagos State is one of the few who has taken a deeply introspective and philosophical look at the implications of the Ekiti polls both for decent human behaviour and democratic sustainability. Too many of our public commentators have been surprisingly desensitised to the unacceptable level of militarisation of Ekiti before, during and after the election. This has now become a normal feature of Nigeria’s abnormal elections.

A Commander-In-Chief and his military high command currently being humbled and hobbled by a rag tag Boko Haram force can dissipate scarce resources as well as the energy, passion and focus of the security agencies on the conduct of armed elections at a time when they acknowledge the country is at war. This is the height of irresponsibility.

All of a sudden the armed forces and other security agencies have become politically hy-

peractive. Minister of State for Defence, Musiliu Obanikoro and his Police Affairs counterpart, Abdul-Jelil Adesiyan, are given free access to Ekiti State. They reportedly deploy professional security personnel for partisan purposes. Yet, the mobile police tear gas the convoy of the incumbent governor. An army captain threatens to shoot another governor and prevents him from campaigning for his party in Ekiti State. The aircraft of another of the party’s governors is grounded and his freedom of movement curtailed.

When security agents get used to defying constitutional political authority, the entire democratic process is endangered. It has happened in the past. Let us be careful. There is darkness visible. Nigeria’s democracy is on life support.

It is of course not impossible that Mr Fayose won the election. But is the margin of that victory defensible? Is the scale of his purported triumph logically and rationally justifiable? Could Governor Fayemi have been so

—Biodun Jeyifo bad that even the people of his home town would vote against him? It has been argued that the Fayemi government was ‘disconnected’ from the people. Now, my question is this: What is the first level and basis of a government’s ‘connected-ness’ with the people? Is it not performance? Now, even Fayemi’s harshest critics concede that he performed. He built roads. He modernised schools. He built health care facilities. His education reforms led to marked improvements in Ekiti State student’s performance in internal and external examinations. His health policies led to a reduction in maternal and child mortality rates. He is accused of not sharing public funds to the people (stomach infrastructure). But his government had the first comprehensive social security scheme for the elderly in the country. So the majority of those elder citizens and their relatives in all local governments voted against him? He is said to have been too elitist and distant from the people. Yet, he held Town Hall meetings in virtually all communities in the state to gauge the feelings of the people. His government introduced the first community participation in the budgetary process in the country. That way it was the priority projects identified by the various communities that were reflected in the budget and implemented.

I am not saying Fayemi is a Saint. Let he who has no sin cast the first stone. It is most probable that even though he meant well, he did not communicate his government’s policies and strategies effectively enough. Postelection analysis also indicates that his administration alienated and did not empower his own party foot soldiers enough. Those are lessons for the future. But I insist that these factors cannot explain the margin by which he purportedly lost the election. Perhaps the unkindest cut has been from my favourite columnist, Ishaq Moddibo Kawu, of The Vanguard who cited Asiwaju Tinubu’s alleged overbearing influence as being responsible for the APC’s loss of Ekiti. While respecting Asiwaju as his leader, Fayemi tactfully and cleverly kept him at a distance from his administration in Ekiti. I can authoritatively say that Tinubu did not have a single nominee in Fayemi’s cabinet. Fayemi wisely cultivated local leaders like Otunba Niyi Adebayo and Chief Afe Babalola so that Ekiti people would not see him as being dictated to from Bourdillon. Indeed, the failure or reluctance of Tinubu and the other party leaders to rein in the governors and enforce party discipline for fear of being tagged overbearing has led to alienation between the governments and the party in many APC states that must be urgently addressed.

For now, I congratulate Mr Ayodele Fayose on his victory. He sounds much wiser and more mature now. If he has learnt the appropriate lessons from his first outing, Ekiti will be the better for it. Ultimately, unorganised spontaneity, cynical populism and energetic mindlessness cannot be the basis of sound and progressive governance.

Ade Ojeikere on Saturday talk2adeojeikere@yahoo.com

Whose jinx?

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NGAGE any soccer-crazy Nigerian in a discussion on the Brazil 2014 World Cup, he or she would recount jinxes that the Super Eagles have broken in this series. Before Wednesday’s 3-2 loss to Argentina, these pundits would tell you that the Eagles are the only team not to have conceded a goal after two years. You would be told that the coaches have broken the jinx of winning a world Cup game for Nigeria since France’98. You would be educated about the achievement of qualifying for the second round since 1998. These posers become more bizarre when you see people waiting for the predictions of a certain prophet on our matches before they are played.

Unthinkable. Yes, because if the prophet is that good, why don’t we hand over the team to him and start celebrating.

Have we forgotten that this is our fifth appearance and that we need to join the

(My World Cup diary, 11) league of World Cup winners at the senior level after our dominance in the age-grade cadres? The only way the world would applaud Nigeria as a football nation is when the Eagles lift the World Cup at the senior level.

Every edition, Nigeria is always tagged the favourites, at least from the African perspective. We disappoint pundits because of our tunnel-vision of trying to surpass a feat that we achieved 24 years ago.

Football isn’t mathematics where cumulative figures add up, according to various theorems. Football, for some people, celebrates exceptional talents, such as Argentina’s gazelle Lionel Messi.

Wednesday’s last group game between Nigeria and Argentina lived up to its billing, with the fixture hinged on the sublime skills of Messi and Nigeria’s John Mikel Obi. Messi

and Mikel emerged from the FIFA U-20 World Cup held in Holland, with Nigeria losing 2-1 to Argentina. Messi has grown to become FIFA’s Player for the Year of four times.

Mikel has a remarkable career with Chelsea.

While Messi has immensely talented mates for both club and country. Mikel has been Nigeria’s star-of-the-pack, with most of his Eagles mates being average players.

In 2005, Mikel and Messi were two of the best attacking midfielders in the world at the U-20 level. Messi has maintained playing in that role. He has developed into an amazing talent. But, Mikel has been played out of the attacking midfield role. Mikel now plays as the defensive general, an assignment given to him by Jose Mourinho. Mourinho converted Mikel to the defensive midfield because he needed to replace ageing Frenchman

Makelele at Chelsea FC in London. The Nigerian has done well but his knack for scoring goals has melted away like ice-cream under the scorching sun.

Against Argentina on Wednesday, Mikel’s seeming commanding presence in Eagles’ defence, playing in front of the defenders, would have yielded us more dividends for the Eagles, if we had someone else with Mikel’s talent and skills. This has been Eagles’ albatross since Mikel broke into the team.

Eagles in the last six years have not played attacking soccer anchored on creative midfielders like we have seen with Messi in Argentina, Neymar in Brazil, Pogba in France and ageing Snieder in Holland. If Holland, Brazil, Argentina and France make it to the semi-finals, it would be because of the remarkable contributions of these foursome.

On Wednesday, the Argentines showed that they watched Eagles’ matches by exploiting the team’s weaknesses. Messi remained in the vacuum created between the Eagles’ left back Juwon Oshaniwa and the left winger, where Ahmed Musa functioned, us

•Continued on Page 61

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