The Nation March 5, 2012

Nigeria’s widest circulating newspaper

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VOL. 7, NO. 2055 MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

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JTF recovers bodies of slain officers From Isaac Ombe, Yenagoa

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FTER four days of combing the Creeks of Brass, Bayelsa State, the Joint Military Task Force (JTF) in the Niger Delta (Operation Pulo Shield) has recovered the bodies of four slain personnel, including an Army officer.

Lt.-Col A. Malik, who was in charge of the Brass Unit of the JTF, two naval ratings; and four Marine policemen were killed by gunmen last Thursday on Eweleso River.

The JTF, which announced the recovery of the bodies, also explained how the military personnel were ambushed and killed.

It identified the group behind the attacks and denied that it was the Movement for the Emancipation of Niger Delta (MEND), which on Friday claimed responsibility for the killings.

In a statement, JTF spokesman Lt.-Col. Timothy Antigha said: “On that fateful day, ‘Mammy Water’ and his gang left his base in a convoy of about five speed boats heading for Forupa, a new location in Bayelsa State. However, en-route, the criminal convoy attacked JTF personnel who were heading for Ogbia from Brass. Thereafter, the same convoy encountered a Marine Police check point which they also attacked.”

The JTF spokesman added that following the incident, “military patrol teams within the vicinity were notified”. “Expectedly, the same convoy emerged at One Man Camp (a fishing settlement). At this point, they were engaged by a Nigerian Navy patrol boat.

Three of their speed boats were sunk while two others escaped. The leader of the gang, Shedrack Itokofuwei, alias Mammy Water, Continued on page 4

•Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola distributing gifts to physically-challenged persons to commemorate their 2012 Joint National Election at the Local Government Service Commission, Governor’s Office, Osogbo.

Plan to raise oil benchmark by $3 fails

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MOVE to raise the oil benchmark for the 2012 budget from $70 to $73 by the Appropriation Committees in the Senate and the House of Representatives has suffered a setback.

Senate President David

By Our Reporter

Mark has overruled the committees and directed them to retain the benchmark at $70.

Mark has also asked the committees to tidy up the budget for passage next week.

President Goodluck Jonathan initially proposed a N4.7trillion budget, which was readjusted to N4.6trillion.

It was gathered that the committees, headed by Mohammed Maccido (Senate) and John Eno (House), approached the Senate

President on plans to increase the benchmark from $70 to either $72 or $73.

The committees reportedly claimed that the $2 or $3 increase will take care of budget deficit.

Continued on page 4

Fed Govt to South Africa: stop cruelty to Nigerians Talks today in Pretoria over abuse of travellers

A •Amb. Ashiru

ROW has broken out between Nigeria and South Africa over last week’s deportation of 125 Nigerian travellers.

The Federal Government at the weekend demanded an explanation from the South African government over the “harsh” treatment meted out to the Nigerians, who were turned back at the Oliver Tambo International Airport in Johanesburg for allegedly carrying

From Yusuf Alli, Abuja

fake yellow fever clearance certificates.

The government also vowed to react in a “calculated” manner, depending on the outcome of talks between Nigeria and South Africa today in Pretoria.

The Nigerian passengers, comprising 50 on Arik Air and 75 aboard South African Airways, were deported at the point of entry on Fri-

day.

Following the action, Arik Air suspended its flight operations to South Africa. It later rescinded the decision, pending further discussions.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Ambassador Olugbenga Ashiru yesterday said the Federal Government considered the maltreatment of Nigerian passengers as harsh and a violation of international practice.

The Minister said: “On Friday, I directed our High Commissioner to

South Africa, Amb. Yusuf, to formally send a protest note to South African Government about this maltreatment of Nigerian passengers. And that South Africa should stop this harassment.

“First of all, the Federal Government deplores what the South African Immigration officials did to Nigerian passengers by sending them back to Nigeria on the excuse that they were in possession of fake yellow card certifiContinued on page 4

•CITYBEATS P17 •SPORTS P23 •JOBS P29 •CEO P32 •POLITICS P43

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

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NEWS

How systemic failure ‘killed’ Nigeria’s international airports Though attempts are being made to uplift the nation’s international airports, experts are of the opinion that new terminals will serve the country better, report KELVIN OSA-OKUNBOR, BISI OLANIYI and KOLADE ADEYEMI

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T peak periods, the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, is like a mad house. It could take passengers an average of about three hours to pick up their luggage from the old conveyor belt.

The air-conditioning system at the airport has become inadequate for the large crowd of passengers, who go through extreme discomfort while waiting for their baggage.

The situation in Abuja, Port Harcourt, Enugu, Kano and Calabar international airports is not different.

The Port Harcourt International Airport at Omagwa, Rivers State is strategic, in view of its location in the oil-rich Niger Delta, especially with the influx of expatriates who work for multinationals.

The airport is only international in name. The standard is nothing to write home about. Renovation work is ongoing there at the moment.

The Deputy General Manager (DGM), Public Affairs of FAAN at the Port Harcourt International Airport, Mr. Ola Ogundolapo, said: “Port Harcourt International Airport is small, unlike Lagos airport. We have evacuated people at the terminal building to makeshift places around the airport.

Parts of the main building are being demolished to give room for expansion, because the place is currently choking.

“The airport, parking areas and toilets are being totally reshaped and remodelled by Inter Bau Construction Company. We want world-class treatment for the passengers and other airport users.

They should bear with us in the next two months, when the works are expected to be rounded off, by God’s grace.

“The initial airport is too small for thecrowd. FAAN is trying its best to have befitting airports in Port Harcourt and other parts of Nigeria. I am assuring you that in the next two months, Port Harcourt International Airport will not be the same.”

Over the years, the neglect of facilities at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA) attracted the attention of stakeholders, including the Emir of Kano, Alhaji Ado Bayero, who on several occasions, appealed to the Federal Government to revive the airport. Government after government came with mounting promises.

Contracts were awarded and re-awarded, but nothing much was achieved.

At a point in 2007, a group of National Assembly members from the Northwest, led by Hon. Kawu Sumaila, toured facilities in the airport and urged the revitalisation of the airport.

Like the PortHarcourt International Airport, the Kano Airport is also undergoing some face-lift.

Most of the projects hitherto abandoned are being completed.

The Zonal Manager of the Federal Aviation Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) in charge of MAKIA, Alhaji Mohammed Ali-Nock, said the airport has never had it so good. He added that unlike in the past, when airlines are forced to buy generators to operate, the airport now has constant power supply with the installation of three 1125 KVA generating sets and another 1000 KVA generating set as standby.

Good as the face-lift being given the airports is, experts are of the opinion that they amount to scratching the issue on the surface.

FAAN’s Managing Director George Uriesi said: “ What our airports have been in the last few years have not been the kind of things Nigerians want to present to the world. I always think about it from this point of view. Somebody has always heard about Nigeria and has been looking forward to come into this Nigeria one day and he now arrives in Nigeria. The first sense I imagine they will get is a sense of disappointment. They will begin to ask, is that how these people are? From that perspective, it is unacceptable that we continue to have an airport like that of the Murtala Muhammed Airport.”

He added: “There is a very simple answer to that. The airports are in Nigeria. They are not in Mars. They are not in Canada or Sweden. The airports in the country were built in the 1970s and ever since they were opened, we just went to sleep. Airports infrastructure is continuously upgraded, continuously expanded.

No airport remains stagnant except the ones we have in Nigeria.

“So, for a whole generation, for more than 30 years, nothing significant was done to the airport environment. As a result, we are where we are today. We are now beginning to upgrade and expand our facilities. If we don’t do that, other countries will leave us further behind. They have left us behind already. I know about airports all over Africa. The Zambians built a new terminal few years ago, Accra has continuously upgraded, the Kenyans have done so.

The Egyptians have gone very far.

South Africa too. Even small countries like Zambia, Gabon have invested significantly in their airport infrastructure. Senegal is currently doing some wonderful work to the airport environment.

We have left it too late.

“To be honest without blaming anyone, I think it is a systemic failure. It is a systemic failure of everybody. I think what we should do is to say, we put down the shovel and we are now trying to fill the hole so that we find our way out of the hole.”

An aviation consultant, Mr. Chris Aligbe, said if the airport system must work well, government must concession major airports. He said: “We need a legal policy

•Administrative block of MAKIA under construction

•Mrs. Oduah

‘

The airports in the country were built in the 1970s and ever since they were commissioned, we just went to sleep. Airports infrastructure is continuously upgraded, continuously expanded. No airport remains stagnant except the ones we have in Nigeria

‘

framework that could cater for the development of airports, airlines and ground handling companies,

•Demuren

which will provide a roadmap for the development of the aviation industry. At the moment, there is no such specific policy in the aviation industry which will help the industry have good airports and airlines. All Nigerian airports should be concessioned. That is the only option to achieve global standards for airports, which will bring about private sector funding.”

He urged the government to build a transit lounge at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, which can cater for over 1,000 passengers for an airport positioned as a hub for West Africa.

He said: “ Government is poised to upgrade some airports across the country, but the question remains as to how far government is poised to turn around the airport beyond mere cosmetic renovation here and there.

One way to achieve this is for government to build a transit lounge at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos,

to cater for over 1,000 passengers to make the airport a regional hub.”

He added: “Ghana has engaged foreign airlines and it is fast becoming a hub in West Africa. It has given several relief packages to attract them and Ghana is almost taking over premium passengers in the region. First and business class flight tickets from Accra to Europe and other parts of the world are now cheaper than what obtains in Nigeria. And from a study, most high- profile passengers from Nigeria now prefer to travel through Ghana. It is a deliberate attempt by Ghana to take over the premium passenger market from Nigeria.”

A former Executive Director, Bellview Airlines, Mr. Gbenga Olowo, said private operators must take over Lagos and Abuja airports under a concession arrangement, if Nigeria hopes to become a hub.

He said: “Concession or total privatisation of our airports

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

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NEWS

•Members of the Igbo community in Cote D'ivoire during a programme to honour the late Odumegwu-Ojukwu

PHOTO KOLADE ADEYEMI

•Director- General, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of nigeria (SMEDAN), Alhaji Muhammad umar (left), with the Managing Director, news Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Mrs. Oluremi Oyo, diring his visit to NAN Headquarters in Abuja...yesterday

•Uresi

should not be jettisoned. That is the modern day approach. See airport companies of France, British Airport companies, among others.

“Rather than remodel the antique airports with N90billion, PPP should reflect on how to construct new terminals at the Lagos airport where 70 per cent traffic demand and revenue flow exist.

During the civil war in Sierra Leone and Liberia, open fields were used as airport terminals and the process was much easier than the present experience at MMIA. “No remodelling or restructuring effort will satisfy the high demand need of that airport.”

The Chairman, Aviation Round-Table, Captain Dele Ore, said the MMIA could only become a hub if the right thing was done.

He said: “You cannot be a hub when you do not have that dominant carrier that has its own airport, and other facilities. You cannot have Lagos as a hub when you still have these charges as high as they are now. There is no attrac-

tion to come to Lagos. Aviation fuel or jet A1 is so expensive that it pays airlines to just fly across to Republic of Benin or Togo to refuel and come to Nigeria.”

Director-General, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, Dr. Harold Demuren, described the facilities at the MMIA as the architecture of the 1970s, which could not cope with the current level of activities.

The Chief Executive Officer of Capital Airlines, Amos Akpan, said: “ One way that government can position the aviation sector for development is to invest in its airlines. This is because, no airline in world history has sustained economic growth and profit without having long term finance; low interest fees; and government relief in crisis. The reality of concession is an institution driven by deliverable return on investment through private enterprise management team; with’ government participation by provision of discounted equity over same length of time as the long term finance.”

•Members of the Igbo community in Cote D'ivoire during a programme to honour the late Odumegwu-Ojukwu

•Igbo women in Ikot Abasi, Akwa Ibom State marching in honour of the late Odumegwu-Ojukwu

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THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

NEWS

•National Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) Chief Victor Umeh (middle), flanked by Anambra Governor Peter Obi (right) and wife, Margaret, and other members of the party during a condolence visit to Ojukwu’s family ... yesterday.

Plan to raise oil benchmark by $3 fails

PDP chair: Anenih’s group, reformers draw battle line

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HEAD of the National Convention of the Peoples Democratic Party, a battle line has been drawn between a group of elders led by a former Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the party, Chief Tony Anenih, and a new set of reformers, over the choice of the next National Chairman of the party.

Also, about four influential groups have emerged in the party as part of steps to hijack the party machinery ahead of 2015.

The groups are BOT leaders, sitting governors, exgovernors, and National Assembly caucus.

The presidency is yet to make up its mind on the direction to follow despite the fact that some of its functionaries have identified with an aspirant.

The convention is slated for March 24 in Abuja.

Some of the aspirants for the national chairman office are ex-Governor of the defunct Gongola State, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur; the National Publicity Secretary of PDP, Prof. Rufai Alkali; exMinister of Commerce, Ambassador Idris Waziri; exMinister of Agriculture, Alhaji Shettima Mustapha; the National Secretary of the PDP, Musa Babayo; ex-Minister of Agriculture, Alhaji Adamu Bello; a former National Chairman of the defunct The Grassroots Democratic Movement, (GDM), Alhaji Gambo Lawan; exGovernor Adamu Mu’azu of Bauchi State; and a former

Continued from page 1

From Yusuf Alli, Abuja

Special Adviser to the President on National Assembly Matters, Senator Abba Aji. According to investigation, four groups are seeking to control of the party.

It was gathered that unless care is taken, the PDP may split after the convention.

A source in PDP NEC said: “The division within the party is so deep that a slip may lead the party to the brink. We have four powerful groups in the party battling for its soul.

“On one side, we have some leaders of the Board of Trustees, led by its former chairman, Chief Tony Anenih; the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim; and the former Secretary of BOT, Prof. Jerry Gana.

“Against the norms, these leaders have endorsed the nomination form of ex-Governor of the defunct Gongola State, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur.

They have virtually told party members where they stand.

“Although these elders are pursuing consensus option, their approach has created tension because some aggrieved members felt they ought to be neutral.

“On the other side, we have three groups. These are the serving governors, ex-governors, and the National Assembly caucus.

“A group of 12 serving PDP governors are already making a case for an aspirant outside Bamanga Tukur. So, you

•Senate President David Mark (l) with the leader of PDP ward congress monitoring group, Mr Humphery Abba, at the party’s ward congress in Otukpo Ward 1, Otukpo, Benue State ... at the weekend

•Anenih

can see that it is going to be a battle royale.

“Some governors, ex-governors and National Assembly members believe that the era of imposition is gone in the party. They want the President to practice what he preached recently at the party’s NEC. “Unless the President makes the right judgment, he might be pitched against the governors at the convention.

Why must the BOT group dictate to us every time?

Another source in the party said: “The issue is about 2015, all the party leaders want to be at a political advantage to call the shots.

“That is why whoever emerges as the National Chairman of PDP is crucial to 2015 political calculations.”

As at press time, five aspirants have emerged top contenders for the seat with governors split on who to back.

They are Tukur (Adamawa), Alkali (Gombe), Waziri (Taraba), Lawan (Borno) and Musa Babayo.

A party leader said: “Going by the way governors are going about it, any of these four aspirants could emerge as National Chairman of the PDP.

But Mark was quoted as cautioning the committees against moves to “bastardise” the budget in any form.

Sources said Mark, at a session with one of the committees, repeatedly said: “I won’t be a party to any increase in the benchmark.”

It was gathered that Mark, who is also the chairman of the National Assembly, rejected the benchmark increase, following concerns that the difference of over N100billion might be used for projects in the lawmakers’ constituencies, which will be executed by Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).

A source, who spoke in confidence, said: “Plans to increase the benchmark were actually turned down by the Senate President who believes that the National Assembly should not deviate from the mutual consultations it had with the Executive on the budget.

“Before the National Assembly started working on the budget, there were highlevel consultations to avoid Executive-Legislative feud.

“He also told the committees that any increase in the benchmark of the 2012 Bud-

cates.

“Number one, the same yellow card certificate is a requirement at the South African Embassy before they can issue you visa. So, the visa officers at the embassy in Nigeria usually crosscheck yellow card certificate submitted by the applicant.

“Having crosschecked and given them visas, why should the Immigration Department at the point of entry say the same certificate that have been crosschecked by their embassy officials is fake.

“And the standard international practice, for countries requiring yellow card, is for

them to quarantine passengers without yellow card certificates at the point of entry.

“It is improper to send them back. It is a harsh treatment of Nigerian passengers, it is not good to send them back.

“They should realise that they do not have the monopoly of sending back passengers or ill-treating them at the point of entry.

“Our officials and the South African officials will be meeting on Monday in Pretoria.

And thereafter, Nigeria would react in a mature and calculated manner to this obvious maltreatment of Nigerian travellers.”

Ashiru also said Nigeria had been certified by the

World Health Organisation (WHO) as a Yellow Feverfree nation and, as such, he did not see why the South African Immigration Services turned back the travellers.

“That is why countries in Europe and the United States do not demand Yellow Fever cards from Nigerian travellers; it is only South Africa and a few countries in the Southern Hemisphere that demand Yellow Fever card from Nigerian travellers.”

Nigeria and South Africa in 2001 established a Bi-National Commission to, among other issues, promote trade and investment. The pact is also to ensure easy visa process.

for House leadership.

“No Senator or member of the House has anything to do with the award or execution of these N100b constituency projects. Members of the National Assembly also have no say on the choice of contractors. Only the relevant MDAs will identify the needs of each constituency and execute the projects accordingly. The essence is to bring government closer to the masses.

“This is different from the past experience where lawmakers scramble over constituency projects. What the lawmakers can do is to gauge the feelings of their constituents on priority projects for the MDAs to implement.”

Asked how soon the budget will be passed, a member of the Appropriation Committee in the Senate said: “The Senate President wants the budget passed between March 8 and 13.

“We are hopeful that the budget may be passed next week. Mark does not want the budget to drag again.”

A source in the Presidency said: “We envisage that the National Assembly will keep the budget within implementable limit. Any arbitrary increase in the benchmark without justifiable indices might not be accepted.”

JTF recovers bodies of slain officers

Govt to S/Africa: stop cruelty to Nigerians Continued from page 1

get could cause friction with the Executive, which may not accept it. And we may end up returning to the old era of disagreement over budget instead of moving forward.

“The Senate President also said he does not share the view that a nation must spend all it earns.”

Although the committees claimed they wanted to propose the increase in the benchmark to take care of budget deficit, it was, however, learnt that the bigger picture is to use the additional $2 or $3 (amounting to over N100b) for constituency projects.

If the proposed increase in benchmark was not rejected, the vote for constituency projects would amount to over N200billion.

Another source said: “Some of us also felt that there is no basis for shoring up votes meant for projects in the lawmakers’ districts or constituencies. Even at N4.6trillion, the budget as proposed has provision for constituency projects.

“The N100b structured in the budget is as follows: N10b constituency projects in each of the six geo-political zones; N20b constituency projects for the Senate leadership and another projects worth N20b

•Lt.-Col. Antigha Continued from page 1

was among those killed in the fire fight as disclosed by his gang member captured close to the scene of the encounter with the Navy Patrol boat.

“It is instructive to note that Mammy Water and his gang were the criminals behind the series of pirate attacks within Nigerian territorial waters in the last three months. This led to the JTF storming his residence in Azagbene in De-

cember after which he was declared wanted.

“The JTF wishes to make it clear that the attack on its personnel and other atrocities committed within the last three months have been staged by a few different and uncoordinated groups of itinerant criminals operating within the Niger Delta region.”

Dismissing MEND’s claim that it was responsible for the attacks on the Marine Police, the JTF said: “The JTF dismisses the shameful attempt by the so-called MEND to seek relevance by creating a false impression that the attacks have been carried out by loyal groups of militants of which it is the coordinating authority.”

The statement warned that the JTF was prepared to crush any attempt by “some misguided persons to orchestrate another round of violence and insecurity in the region

because the JTF is prepared more than ever to crush any obstacle on the path to lasting peace and security in the Niger Delta region”.

Describing the development as “organised criminal activities by people who believe that the only profitable way to engage with government is through violence”, the Task Force noted that “these criminal elements might occasionally score opportunistic and temporary victories, such as this most recent attack on personnel who were on purely administrative and logistic movement, but ultimately, these agents of insecurity will lose”.

Lt.-Col. Antigha urged the public to remain vigilant and report suspicious characters to security agencies.

“Creek communities are, once more, warned on the consequences of providing sanctuary for criminal elements,” he said.

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THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

NEWS Dead terror suspect wasn’t maltreated,

by Prisons Service From Gbenga Omokhunu, Abuja

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A scene of an accident where a car somersaulted,killing all the four occupants at Obanikoro bus stop in Lagos... yesterday

Suspected ritualists behead two-year-old girl in Minna A TWO-year-old girl was on Saturday beheaded by unknown ritualists in an uncompleted building in Tunga ward of Minna, Niger, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.

NAN learnt that the victim, identified as Ummul-khairu Mohammad, was believed to have been beheaded in an uncompleted building adjacent to her house while playing with other children in the neighborhood at about 10 a.m.

Her mother, Malama Fati Mohammed, 22, said the deceased

was her first child.

“Before the unfortunate incident, I prepared the child for the day’s trip to an Adult Islamic School which both of us are attending.

“Subsequently, I realised that the little girl had poured water on her blouse and I was forced to arrange a new dress for her but she sneaked out to her usual playing ground, only for one of her play mates to

come back home with her pant.”

Mohammed said the play mate informed her that a boy handedover the deceased pant to her and a search party was organised immediately.

She said a neigbour later informed her that the lifeless body of her daughter had been discovered, adding that she went to the scene of the incident where she met her husband.

Mohammed said her daughter had since been buried in accordance with Islamic rites after the police released the corpse to the family for burial.

The Police Public Relation Officer, Mr Richard Oguche, confirmed the incident to NAN, pointing out that the police had commenced investigations into the case and that the perpetrators would soon be arrested.

Oguche advised parents to always care for their children and report suspicious persons to the law enforcement agents in order to curtail criminal activities in the society.

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•Jonathan, Amosun greet ex-President at 75 From Vincent Ikuomola, Abuja

75th birthday anniversary which comes up on Monday, 5th March 2012, I join you, your family, friends and well-wishers to thank almighty God for the life of fulfillment and uncommon accomplishment which He has blessed you with.

“You have spent virtually all of your adult life in dedicated patriotic service to our fatherland: as an accomplished officer in our nation’s army; as a military commander who played a historic role in effecting the end of the unfortunate civil war; as a military Head of State who ushered in civil democratic governance; and later serving two terms as a democratically-elected President, and helping to consolidate the democratic process in our country.

Today you are the Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the ruling, and by far the largest political party in Nigeria.

“Through it all, you have demonstrated exceptional courage, steadfast commitment and abiding faith in the unity, peace, stability and

prosperity of the Nigerian nation.

It is gratifying to note that you stand ready to continue to avail us of your wise counsel at all times.

“On behalf of my family, the Government and people of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, I congratulate you on this milestone and wish you many more years of fulfillment.”

Governor Amosun, whose message was signed by his media aide, Mrs. Funmi Wakama, described the former President as an epitome of selfless service to the fatherland.

The message reads: “It is indisputable that Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has devoted virtually his entire adult life to the service of the nation, first as a fine officer in the army, Head of State and later President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

The message quoted Amosun sas recalling that Obasanjo did not only fought for the unity of Nigeria but contributed immensely to its growth and development.

“President Obasanjo’s policy of backward integration, to cite one example, has not only led to private

•Obasanjo

investments in the country but has ensured that substantial raw materials for such industries are sourced locally, thereby maximising the God-given resources of the nation, providing employment for the teeming masses of our people and reducing pressure on our currency.”

He wished Obasanjo many more years of meritorious service.

Police arrest suspects over N15.8m engine oil theft HE Police in Lagos have intercepted a truck carrying engine oil worth N15.8 million allegedly stolen by suspected armed robbers.

Police spokesman Jaiyeoba Joseph told reporters yesterday that two of the nine suspected robbers had been arrested along with four receivers of the goods.

According to the Joseph, the goods, which belong to Con Oil Plc, were recovered in Kano State at the weekend by opera-

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tives of the State Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), led by Mr Abba Kyari.

He said that the truck was hijacked on its way to Kwara State by the suspects around Ojuelegba and moved to Mushin both in Lagos, where the goods were transferred into another truck belonging to the first receiver.

Joseph said that the goods were later transported to Kano, while the hijacked truck was dumped at Iyana Ipaja.

The police spokesman explained that the fourth receiver of the goods, based in Kano, bought the goods at N10 million.

He said the suspected robbers had perfected a fake way bill which they used in convincing the receiver in Kano about the genuineness of the goods.

He said the SARS was still searching for the remaining seven members of the suspected armed robbers.

Meanwhile, Joseph said that the

National Assembly security chief in auto accident From Victor Oluwasegun and Dele Anofi, Abuja

Book presentation, dinner to mark Obasanjo’s birthday HE public presentation of two books in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital and a dinner at the Civic Centre, on Ozumba Mbadiwe, Victoria Island, Lagos, by the siblings of Chief Olusegun Obasanjo are parts of programmes scheduled to mark the 75th anniversary of the former President.

Both events are billed to hold today, The Nation learnt last night.

President Goodluck Jonathan and Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun showered encomiums on the ‘birthday boy’ yesterday.

A thanksgiving service attended by family members and close associates of the former President, including chieftains of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the Southwest, was held yesterday in Abeokuta.

In his congratulatory message, President Jonathan described Obasanjo as a former President with exceptional courage, steadfast commitment and abiding faith in the unity, peace, stability and prosperity of the country.

Jonathan’s message, signed by his spokesman, Dr. Reuben Abati reads: “On the historic occasion of your

HE Prisons Service (NPS) yesterday said Francis Osuvwo, a terror suspect who died at Kuje Prison, Abuja last Friday was not maltreated.

NPS’s spokesman, Mr. Kayode Odeyemi yesterday said Osuvwo, who is standing trial for his alleged role in the October 1, 2010 bombing explosions in Abuja, was well-treated in custody.

Odeyemi, in a telephone interview with The Nation, said: “The allegation is baseless. Anybody can die in the prison custody. We do not maltreat any prisoner no matter the condition.”

Osuvwo’s lawyer, Mr. Festus Keyamo, alleged murder. He said: “Osuvwo died on the heels of series of complaints by counsel representing him and his co-accused about the maltreatment meted out on the accused persons by the Nigerian Government in custody.”

General Gbokos, as the deceased was called by his friends, was standing trial with three others Charles Okah, Obi Nwabueze, and Edmund Ebiware.

Odeyemi said of the 73 escapees from the Koton Karfe Prison in Kogi State , 13 have been rearrested thought joint efforts of security operative.

He said: “We are trying all possible best to re-arrest all the escapees. The security operatives are working round the clock to ensure this and no prison is left without heavy security to forestall any unforeseen circumstances.”

command is investigating a case of 55 stolen vehicles recovered by the SARS. According to him, the vehicles were all stolen in Lagos but were traced to Port Harcourt, Lagos and Abuja.

He said three suspected armed robbers had been arrested in connection with the case.

The vehicles, he said, included Toyota Corolla, Toyota Matrix, Toyota Camry, Toyota Spider and Honda Accord models.

HE head of the Sergeants-atArm in the National Assembly, Mr. Emeka Okere had a fatal accident a few days ago, it was learnt at the weekend.

He is receiving treatment at the National Hospital in Abuja.

Okere, who has been in the intensive care unit of the National Hospital since Saturday, February 25, was reportedly moved to the general outpatient ward on Friday.

The Nation learnt that Okere was involved in the accident shortly after leaving the National Assembly Saturday last week to inspect the construction of some security structures at the entrance of the National Assembly gate.

According to a source, who does not want his name in print, the Head of the Sergeants-at-Arms is lucky to still be alive due to the serious nature of the accident.

He said: “He was driving home after checking some additional security structures being erected a the National Assembly gate when a motorist veered off its track and headed straight for him near the Defence College in Garki.

“In an effort to avert a head-on collision, Okere veered off the road and hit a pole. He was subsequently rushed to the National Hospital.

“If you had seen the wreckage of his car, you will know he is lucky to still be alive.”

Sources said the management of the National Assembly is considering flying the security chief to South Africa or Germany for further treatment.

When The Nation called Okere’s mobile phone, a female relative, who claimed to be his niece, picked the call.

Her words: “He is still here at the National Hospital. But we want to evacuate him to another hospital because they are not giving him enough treatment here.”

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

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NEWS

Ribadu task force set to boost revenue

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HE Petroleum Revenue Special Task Force will explore ways to boost government revenue, it was learnt at the weekend.

Led by former anti-corruption czar, Malam Nuhu Ribadu, the Task Force is set to create new revenue opportunities in addition to its core assignment of determining all petroleum upstream and downstream revenue.

A source close to the taskforce said it will explore how to plug loopholes by demanding the review and strengthening of applicable laws.

The source said: “The task force sees its mandate as a huge responsibility. It will therefore be proactive and far-reaching in carrying out that mandate without going

By John Austin Unachukwu

outside its terms of reference.

“It will carry out an analysis of existing laws and crude swap agreements to identify areas that need to be strengthened to plug loopholes and wastages.

“The analysis will also enable the taskforce determine if there are laws that need a review with a view to boosting revenue that come from the by-products of crude production and exploration.

“Don’t forget that the chairman is a man of integrity who would want to protect his reputation. And remember that members of the committee are Nigerians of repute.

“So, expect to see far reaching recommendations even as it concerns petroleum pricing, because at the end of the day, they would not want to disappoint Nigerians.

“They would rather want a pricing regime that Nigerians will support even if subsidy is removed in order to end rent seeking revenue losses.

This will all be done in the interest of Nigerian.”

The Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison- Madueke named the 2011 Presidential candidate of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) as the chairman of task force to achieve probity and accountability in the petroleum industry.

The taskforce, which also has the former Head of Service of the Federation, Mr. Steve Oronsaye as a member is mandated to “work with consultants and experts to determine and verify all petroleum upstream and downstream revenue (taxes, royalties, etc. due and payable to the Federal Government of Nigeria.”

The taskforce was urged to take all necessary steps to collect all debts due and owing; to obtain agreements and enforce payment terms by all oil industry operators.

The minister directed the taskforce to develop an automated platform to enable effective tracking, monitoring,

and online validation of income and debt of all drivers of parastatals and agencies of the ministry.

It was also mandated to work with word-class consultants to integrate system and technology across production chain to design and monitor crude oil production and exports, ensuring at all times, the integrity of payment to the Federal Government of Nigeria.

Other members Malam Abbah Kyari, Mr. Benedicta Molokwu, Mr. Spo Sasore (SAN), Mr. Tony Idigbe (SAN), Mr. Tony Idigbo (SAN), Mr. Olisa Agbakoba (SAN), Itulah Ighodalo and Dr. Mrs Omolara Akanji and others.

Reps invite AGF over BPP From Victor Oluwasegun and Dele Anofi, Abuja

THE House of Representatives Committee on Public Procurement has invited the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Bello Adoke over what it described as the refusal of the Presidency to constitute the Board for the National Council for Privatisation.

The Minister, who will appear before the House Committee headed by Jumoke Okoya-Thomas tomorrow is to explain if there is a law that supercedes the Public Procurement Act and which allows the current Director of Bureau of Public Procurement to singlehandedly approve contract that is above the threshold of Ministries, Departments and •Chief Mission in Nigeria, International Organisation for Migration, Martin Ogaga (right) presenting some documents to Agencies.

Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Diaspora, Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa after a meeting at the National The committee has been in a Assembly…last weekend. With them are members-Mustapha Khabeeb (left) and Nosakhare Osahon running battle with the BPP over the violation of procurement processes and has repeatedly queried the Director – CTIVIST-LAWYER Mr Femi Falana has demanded for General over inconsistencies in the contracts it submitted to information on the renewal of three oil mining leases

By Joseph Jibueze the committee.

(OMLs 67, 68 and 70) for Mobil Producing Nigeria.

He said Nigerians deserve to know the terms of the renewal lion in a refinery and gas infrastructure for the domestic market. for the sake of transparency and probity in the management of “But Mobil rejected the said terms and paid $600 million for their resources. the renewal of the three oil blocks which have a combined outIn a letter to the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs Diezaput of 580,000 barrels of crude oil per day. Curiously, the payni Alison-Madueke, Falana said the request is in line with the ment was accepted by the then Minister of State in the Ministry provisions of the Freedom of Information Act, 2011. of Petroleum Resources who purportedly signed the deal.

From Kamarudeen Ogundele, A copy of the letter, dated March 2, 2012, was made available “However, your predecessor refused to endorse the quesAbuja to The Nation. tionable transaction. Hence, the leases have just been renewed He wrote: “It was widely reported in the media last week that for 20 years by your good self on behalf of the Government of JUSTICE Olusegun Adeniyi of the Federal Government had renewed three oil mining leases the Federation. an Abuja High Court hearing (OMLS 67,68 & 70) for Mobil Producing Nigeria. However, the “In the light of the foregoing and in view of the demand of the rights violation suit details of the terms of the renewed leases were not disclosed to against Minister of State for the Nigerian people for the transparent management of the oil the press.

Finance, Dr Yerima Ngama, and gas industry we are compelled to request for information “It would be recalled that based on the valuation conducted has ordered the service of on the terms of the renewal of the three oil leases. by the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Mobil and the Nigeriprocesses on the Inspector “More so, that a Chinese company had offered to pay the General of Police, Mohammed an National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), as equity holders difference of $4.85 billion for 30% equity interest in the NNPCwere required to pay $6.375 billion as 100 per cent of the reserve Abubakar.

Mobil Joint Venture.

The Yobe State Chairman of fee.

“It is hoped that our request will be granted within seven the Peoples Democratic Party “Mobil’s 40 per cent share in the leases was fixed at $2.55 days of the receipt of this letter in line with the provisions of the (PDP), Alhaji Abbagana Tata billion and a commitment to invest additional sum of $1.2 bilFreedom of Information Act, 2011.” and the party’s Senatorial candidate in the last year’s election, Hassan Kafayos have sued the Minister and the police chief over alleged ernors have been doing like sweep this under the carpet,

By Emmanuel Oladesu OUNDER of Latter Rains unlawful detention.

Ibori. They are twin brothers greater danger lies ahead. Let Deputy Political Editor Assembly Pastor Tunde The Judge, who observed and cousins of Ibori. us fix the problem before the Bakare yesterday adthat the processes were served “ Integrity is a good virtue vised President Goodluck prits, stressing that the onus is problem fixes us”. on the defendants since Febru- Jonathan to resist the tempta- on the executive arm to live to for public servants, but it is not Bakare decried the soaring ary 15 warned against delay enough. Important people corruption in the land, allegtion to sweep under the carpet expectation. before adjourning till March Delivering a sermon titled: ing that many governors are came to me asking me to sign the report of the Petroleum 19 for hearing. as vice presidential candidate Probe Panel set up by the Na- “Wisdom for public service”, like former Delta State GoverThe respondents counsel Pastor Bakare said President nor James Ibori, who is curthat will not occupy the office tional Assembly. had both requested for time to and promised me some He told his congregation Jonathan needed wisdom, in- rently standing trial over monregularise their processes. things. But I refused. If I signed, that many Nigerians have not tegrity and sense of justice to ey laundering abroad.

The plaintiffs are demandit will be on the front page of He said: “There is no differcome to terms with the incre- fish out those who embezzled ing N2 billion damages newspapers the second day. ment in subsidy allocation the amount earmarked for sub- ence between Ibori and other against the Minister and the sidy, maintaining that any at- governors. How many of them “Integrity is not enough; from N640 billion to over N2 IGP, over alleged illegal tempt to dump the report could can declare like the late former experience counts. There is the trillion, warning that any atdetention for four days. need for skillfulness of your Ondo State Governor Papa tempt to throw the report into lead to greater danger.

They also want the court to He said: “The subsidy palav- Adekunle Ajasin that he went hand. Wisdom is required in the dustbin would be tantacompel Ngama and the IGP to er will either make or mar governance. No leader that is publicly apologise to them for mount to postponing the evil Jonathan. The ministries and into Government House with worth his salt will look down the same set of clothes and day. the unlawful detention and officials involved must be came out with the same set of on people and call them misThe activist-cleric noted that inhuman treatments they sanctioned and be made to pay creants, hoodlums and ordisuffered in the cell of the Force the National Assembly lack back what they looted. If we clothes and came back with the nary Nigerians, having resame asset. Since 1999, all govthe power to prosecute culCID, Area 10, Abuja.

Falana demands information on oil mining leases

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•Writes minister on terms of renewal

Court orders service on IGP

Minister lists gains of NigeriaVatican City relationship From Gbenga Omokhunu, Abuja

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P P A R E N T L Y building on the gains of the recent visit of the Apostolic Nuncio in Nigeria, Archbishop Augustine Kasuja to her office, the Minister of State (II) for Foreign Affairs, Prof Viola Adaku Onwuliri, has listed areas of cooperation between Nigeria and the Vatican City.

The minister acknowledged the support of the Vatican to the country in education, science and technology, from which many Catholic priests, seminarians, Nuns and young Nigerians benefit yearly.

She specifically named the Pontifical Council of Education as being very supportive to Nigerians through its universities and scholarship schemes.

Recalling that the late Prof Adeoye Lambo was a member of the Pontifical Academy of Science, the Minister listed cooperation on inter-religious dialogue, migrants’ issues, terrorism and human trafficking, as other areas of collaboration between Nigeria and the Vatican.

According to her, the Vatican should use its weight, great influence and leverage on global politics to rally support for Nigeria’s bid to clinch a permanent seat on the United Nations (UN) Security Council.

Rev Kasujja, who had served in Algeria, Tunisia, Seychelles, Comoros and Mauritius, said his mission to Nigeria was to applaud Nigeria’s decision to upgrade its Mission in the Vatican to a full embassy.

He spoke of his plan to hold series of meetings with Archbishops Olubunmi Okogie and John Onaiyekan of the Lagos and Abuja Arch-Dioceses between March 22 and 23.

The cleric said another parley has been scheduled for Sokoto with prominent Christian and Islamic leaders on inter-religious dialogue and peace in the country.

Bakare: Govt should not sweep probe panel under carpet

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•Pastor Bakare

ferred to them as great people when asking for their votes”.

Bakare added: “There will be peace in Nigeria, if there is justice. Selfless leaders who have sense of justice need not steal from the treasury. God will raise people to bless them”.

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

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NEWS

Oodua groups slam Oyinlola

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•Wife of Ogun State Governor, Mrs. Olufunso Amosun, presenting the 2nd Position prize to Oluwafemi Damilola Jones (second left) and Adebawa Moses (left) from Kwara State during the grand finale of the 6th National Culture Quiz Competition held in Abeokuta...on Thursday.

LP, PDP chieftains join ACN in Ondo

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HIEFTAINS of the Labour Party (LP) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ile-Oluji/Oke-Igbo Local Government Area of Ondo State defected to the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) at the weekend.

Leading their supporters to the ACN were: former council chairman Mr. Akinsunmola Akinro; former State Independent Electoral Commission (ODIEC) member; Dr. Banji Opeke and Mr. Abiodun Ige – all from the LP; and Mr. Lawrence Adenugba from the PDP. The former LP leaders said the administration of Governor Olusegun Mimiko has failed to meet the needs of the masses.

They were received by the ACN’s State Secretary, Mr. Adedipe Adegboyega; Treasurer Ade Adetimehin; Deputy Chairman in the Southern Region Olorunsola Adesoji and former Commissioner for Finance Wale Akinterinwa.

Akinterinwa said more defections should be expected from the PDP and the LP because the people have realised that “ACN is the only progressive party in Nigeria.”

The governorship aspirant described Mimiko’s three years as “a waste of the state’s resources.”

The former commissioner said he resigned from the LP administration to protect his name.

•We’ll takeover next year, says party chair •Why I dumped LP, by Rep Abegunde said: “LP beneFrom Leke Akeredolu and Damisi Ojo, Akure

He said: “Our people have realised that the present government caters for only a few people and are requesting a change. Our people want to join other progressive states and I am proud to say that in 2013, ACN will win the poll.”

Adenugba declared PDP dead. He said any politician who wants the state to progress must not remain in PDP. The new members promised to work for the success of the party in the governorship election.

The former PDP ViceChairman in Idogun Ward 4, Ose Local Government Area, Elder J.B Adelakun, and his supporters have also joined the ACN. They were received by the ACN State Chairman, Mrs. Jumoke Anifowose; ACN Chairman in the council Mr. Ogundimbola; Chief Gbadamosi; Elder Ajiboriota; Dr. Tokunbo Modupe; Mr. Omo Ogbowa; Mrs K. Adeniran; and Pastor Wale Adelakun; among others.

Adelakun said: “It is the ACN’s time to take the Sunshine State to greater heights.

I will work assiduously for the party’s victory in the coming elections.”

Mrs. Anifowoshe told

members to expect more defections to the party. She said the ACN is “the modern Ark of Noah that would lead Ondo people to the promised land.”

Mrs. Anifowose was confident that the party would take over power in Ondo next year.

Also at the weekend, the lawmaker representing Akure North/South Federal Constituency at the House of Representatives, Mr. Ifedayo Abegunde, said he dumped LP because of the “total neglect” of his constituency and the “intractable crisis” rocking the party.

Abegunde said the ACN’s philosophy of progressivism would enable his people enjoy the dividends of democracy, if the party gets into power.

He spoke to The Nation when he visited the ACN Secretariat in Akure, the state capital.

Abegunde, who dumped LP for ACN on the floor of the House of Representatives on February 1, said moves by some LP leaders in Akure North to recall him from the National Assembly would fail.

He said the case is pending before the Federal High Court, sitting in Akure, and the LP leaders are risking contempt of court.

fitted from the rule of law, but it is surprising that they are now negating the process through which they got into power. “They are taking laws into their hands. When a case is pending in court, nobody, no matter how highly placed, should talk about it. It is absolutely a contempt of court in Judiciary parlance.”

The Chairman, House Committee on Emergency Disaster and Preparedness said the court has restrained LP at the National, State and Ward levels from recalling him, pending the determination of the suit.

He said Mimiko reneged on his electioneering promises to his constituents, adding that his people have been neglected in terms of infrastructure, employment and political positions.

Abegunde decried the administration of local government councils by caretaker committees since 2009. He said it has stunted development at the grassroots.

Abegunde described ACN as “the foremost progressive party, where the culture of progressivism built by the late Chiefs Obafemi Awolowo and Adekunle Ajasin and others is still intact”.

He pledged to work with other progressives to ensure the ACN’s victory and urged the people of the state to support the party.

Aregbesola: food security key to growth

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SUN State Governor Rauf Aregbesola has said no responsible government would be nonchalant about food security.

Aregbesola spoke at the weekend at the closing of a three-day technical review of the Osun Rural Enterprises and Agriculture Programme (O’REAP), held at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.

He said: “Until scientists discover that a living being can exist without food or nourishment, no government can be complacent

•Osun, UNICEF partner on water, education From Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo

about food security.”

Aregbesola urged O’REAP to organise agricultural fairs at the local and state levels to enable farmers market their products and share ideas.

Describing the participants as “heroes who are sacrificing their time, energy and resources to make his administration succeed,” Aregbesola said: “Nobody mentions the names of those eggheads who made our late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo,

excel as Premier of the Western Region.”

The governor restated his administration’s determination to ensure food security and eradicate poverty.

He said the government would revive Owena Market in Oriade Local Government and fresh farm produce would be sold there.

Also at the weekend, the Osun State Government and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) signed an agreement on the provision of water, basic education,

sanitation and hygiene in the state.

The partnership is expected to uphold the right of children to survival, development, protection and participation in governance.

The agreement was signed

by Aregbesola and the UNICEF Assistant Country Representatives, Mrs. Sara Beysolow-Nyati, who doubles as the Chief of Lagos Office.

UNICEF is expected to contribute to N669,640,597.80 in cash, technical support, supplies and capacity building for the programme,

HE Oodua Nationalist Coalition (ONAC) yesterday criticised former Osun State Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola for “trying to further diminish the reputation of the Nigerian judiciary.”

ONAC is a coalition of 25 Yoruba groups, including the Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC), Oodua Liberation Movement (OLM), Yoruba Revolutionary League (YRL) and Oodua Youth Alliance (OYA), among others.

In a statement by its Secretary, Mr. Sunday Akinnuoye, and Woman Leader Alhaja Medinat Agbaje, ONAC described Oyinlola’s decision to sue telecommunication giant, MTN, as “a daunting affront on Nigerians and their right to the free-flow of information, which MTN currently provides.”

It accused Oyinlola of waging a desperate war to undermine democracy in Nigeria.

The statement reads: “The suit against MTN over the electoral disputes in Osun and Ekiti states, filed by Oyinlola, is disgraceful. We are aware that the decision of the Court of Appeal is final on governorship election disputes and the court has already given its judgment.

“It is ridiculous and unethi-

From Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo

cal to see a group of desperate politicians trying to scuttle the will of the people as affirmed by the court, the final arbiter on the matter.

“The people of the Southwest affirmed the court’s decision through their overwhelming vote for the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) during the 2011 elections.

“It is on record that Oyinlola lost his ward and local government during the last elections. What other form of rejection can a man suffer to realise that the people detest him?

“We want the PDP to realise that when people are not allowed to express their democratic choice, they are often tempted by aggression and discontent.

“The Southwest enjoys some level of peace largely due to the fact that the choice of the people was respected during the last elections. It will be catastrophic for the future of the country, if the PDP runs a full circle in its wellnoted culture of impunity, which the party is desperate to instal in the Southwest by undermining the decisions of the judiciary on electoral matters.”

Lagos to establish Science Park

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AGOS State Commissioner for Science and Technology Adebiyi Mabadeje has said a Science Park would be built by the government to bring science and technology closer to children.

Mabadeje spoke at the weekend while unveiling his ministry’s programmes for the celebration of the Science and Technology Week, which begins today.

He said: “The planed Science Park will be developed like the mythological gardens we have in schools. Our intention is to bring science closer to the people in a more useful manner.

Models that children can inter-

By Miriam Ndikanwu

act with will be put in the park and this will arouse their interest in technology development.

“We are working on a variety of programmes on ICT development in schools. We have a programme where children from age five and above would be encouraged to use technological devices and learn how the devices are developed.”

Programmes lined up for the celebration include quiz competitions for secondary school pupils and a discussion between the state and potential investors.

Osun PDP members fault selection

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EMBERS of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Osun State yesterday condemned the selection of a candidate for the forthcoming local government election by elders of the party.

It was learnt that at the weekend, some elders of the party met at the home of ousted Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola and selected a former House of Representatives member, Kayode Idowu, who is running against Oyin-

•Aregbesola while the state government would contribute a counterpart fund of N155,645,000.

By Musa Odoshimokhe

lola’s former aide, Mr. Ganiyu Olaoluwa.

Senator Iyiola Omisore; Erelu Olusola Obada; Mr. Olu Alabi; Mr. Shuaibu Oyedokun; Chief Ebenezer Babatopa and Mrs. Patricia Etteh were at the meeting.

Members from the eight federal constituencies described the action of the elders as “undemocratic” and “not representing their interests.”

They urged the elders to resort to the party’s constitution and the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) directives on party congresses.

They said members should be allowed to pick their choice candidate at the congress as enshrined in the party’s constitution.

It was learnt that those against the selection process may seek redress in court, if the elders fail to rescind their decision.

A former governorship aspirant, Mr. Diran Odeyemi, said: “The elders have made their choice, but I believe the people should be allowed to make their choice. This will command some credibility.”

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THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

NEWS Bayelsa Assembly backs Dickson

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AYELSA State House of Assembly has said it will back Governor Seriake Dickson to utilise state funds judiciously.

Speaker Konbowei Friday Benson, who made the promise while inspecting the Assembly Quarters under construction in Yenagoa at the weekend, said the House “through its committees will carry out oversight functions to ensure that public funds are judiciously spent.”

The Speaker advised contractors to execute quality projects.

“Make good use of the execution of these projects as opportunities to write your names on marble.”

Benson said relevant House committees would carry out oversight functions, to ensure that contractors handling state projects comply with contractual terms, conditions and specifications.

Edo judicial workers suspend strike

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EMBERS of the Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) in Edo State have suspended their indefinite strike.

Courts in Edo State have been shut, following the strike by JUSUN over the non-implementation of minimum wage for its members in Level 7 and above.

The strike forced the state Police Command to hold special court sessions for arrested suspects inside its headquarters in Benin City.

Police spokesman Etim Bassey said the special courts presided over by judges and magistrates were to avoid over congestion of cells and to act in line with directive of the Inspector-General of

From Osagie Otabor, Benin

Police,Mohammed Abubakar.

JUSUN State Chairman Kayode Egbaragbon, who announced the suspension, said discussions have begun between JUSUN and the government.

According to him, “we saw the need to adjust the basic salary, transport and utility.

But because the government has assured us on some of them, we are calling off the strike.”

Commissioner for Information and Orientation Louis Odion said they agreed in principle to resolve the issue because the government has the interest of the people at heart.

Firm, workers bicker over Ibru’s forfeited assets T HE last has not been heard of the plea bargain agreement between the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and convicted exChief Executive Officer of former Oceanic Bank Plc, Mrs. Cecilia Ibru.

Some individuals and companies are challenging the agreement before a Federal High Court in Lagos.

They are laying claim to some of the property tradedoff by Ibru in exchange for a lighter sentence by the court.

She was sentenced to six months imprisonment in 2010.

The property are 4A Iru Close, Ikoyi , Lagos; 4B Iru Close, Ikoyi, Lagos; 5A George Street, Ikoyi Lagos; 5B George Street, Ikoyi, Lagos;

By Eric Ikhilae

16 Glover Road, Ikoyi, Lagos; and 3, Okotie-Eboh Road, SW Ikoyi, Lagos.

Shortly after her conviction, a company, Michaelangelo Property Development Company Limited, filed a suit before Justice Fatimat Nyako, praying, among others, for the voiding of the agreement.

In the suit, the company accused Ibru of acting fraudulently by allegedly pleading its (the company’s) property in the deal with EFCC. Named as defendants in the suit are Ibru, the Federal Government, Asset Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON) and the EFCC. Besides, a group of employ-

ees of the now defunct National Electric Power Authority (NEPA) has also claimed ownership of some of the property.

The workers have applied to be joined as party in the suit.

Michaelangelo claimed to have bought some of the houses from the Federal Government in 2005 through the Presidential Implementation Committee.

The company said it had the Certificates of Occupancy for the property, including those claimed by the PHCN workers.

The firm, through its counsel, Oshahon Idemudia, contends that Mrs. Ibru’s act of passing of the property is contrary to the principle of maxim

nemo dat quod non habet (you cannot give what you don’t have).

The firm urged the court to declare the plea bargain involving the six property null and void and an order directing Ibru to pay to it N60million “being damages for her unlawful actions (passing off and fraudulent misrepresentation).”

The workers said the property was owned by the then NEPA before it was sold to them in April, 2007 by the Federal Government during the implementation of the government’s monetisation policy.

The workers include Michael Afolabi Dada, Charles Ndubuisi Amadi, Lawan Muhammad, Mrs. Comfort Odili-Iwuafor and Anthony Abikoye.

Lawmakers advised From Kazeem Ibrahym, Uyo

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HE Speaker of the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly, Sam Ikon, yesterday advised lawmakers to ensure quality representation of their constituents.

Ikon gave the advice during the maiden constituency briefing, inauguration of the constituency office and empowerment programme by the member representing Nsit Ubium, Onofiok Luke.

The Speaker said the wave of development in the state needs to be supported by the lawmakers to make development meaningful at the grassroots.

He hailed the Nsit Ubium representative for showing the example of effective representation by opening the constituency office as a liaison to meet with his constituents and for empowering over 54 persons.

Luke said his promise to effectively represent the people has started to yield dividend eight months after his inauguration.

NBA urges review of voters register

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OLLOWING the poor turn out of voters in the last governorship election in Cross River State, the election working group of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) has called for a review of the voters register.

This, it said, is to determine whether or not voter apathy was genuine or that the register was padded with non-existent names.

A statement by the chairman of the group, Dafe Akpedeye and its alternate chairman, Festus Okoye,

From Nicholas Kalu, Calabar

called on parties, the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC), the National Orientation Agency and civil society groups to intensify voter education.

The statement reads: “The turnout of voters in all the places where elections took place between December and February 2012 is not encouraging.

“Creative and engaging strategies must be mapped out to get voters.”

NEMA relief for Bayelsa community From Franca Ochigbo, Abuja

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HE National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has begun the distribution of relief materials to victims of Chevron’s gas explosion at Funiwa platform at Koluama community in Bayelsa State.

A statement by the Head, Public Relations, Yushau Shuiabu, said the Director-General, Muhammad Sani-Sidi, was represented by the Deputy Director ,Relief and Rehabilitation, Mike Adeyanju, at the official presentation of materials to government officials.

He said: “From the agency’s assessment, the fire at the Chevron gas rig burnt for several weeks.

“Several communities and settlements were affected by the explosion which began from January 16 from a shallow-water gas well near the North Apoi oil platform.

“We are giving out food and toiletries, including 600 bags of rice, 300 bags of garri, 200 bags of beans, 100 kegs of vegetable oil and palm oil.

“Others are 500 buckets, 50 bags of salt, 100 bags of sugar, 50 cartons of bath soap, 50 cartons of detergent, 500 pieces of mosquito nets and 500 blankets.

“The affected communities are in Koluama clan in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area and Akassa in Brass Local Government Area of the state.”

•Ekere dispensing the fuel...at the weekend

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Akwa Ibom sells N50 per litre kerosene

HE Akwa Ibom State Government at the weekend flagged off the NNPC/CAPITAL Oil Lease Direct Kerosene Purchase Scheme in Uyo. It promised to get the product directly to the people in the 31 local governments.

Deputy Governor Nsima Ekere made the promise while flagging off the exercise on behalf of Governor Godswill Akpabio.

He said the direct sale was starting with six local governments and would go round the remaining local gov-

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ernments.

The deputy governor said the government was involved because it was important to allow the people to benefit from the scheme.

Ekere said the scheme was a Federal Government policy aimed at bringing kerosene directly to homes at an affordable price.

The Deputy Governor hailed the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) for working with Capital Oil in the implementation of the scheme.

More monarchs, students endorse Oshiomhole

HREE weeks after traditional rulers in Edo South endorsed Governor Adams Oshiomhole’s second term bid, traditional rulers in Edo Central have assured the governor of their support.

Drawn from Igueben, Esan West and Esan Central local governments, the monarchs said although they are not members of any party, they will support the growth and development of their communities.

The Enogie of Ebelle said: “We are supporting you because we want your government to do more.”

The Enogie of Ekpoma, Anthony Abumere II, said: “I want to say that the governor is doing very well.

I mentioned it sometime ago at Igueben that what is called democracy is what is happening in Edo State.”

The Ogirrua of Irrua and Enogie of Irua, William Momodu, he said: “I want to tell you that the assurance of your second term in office in intact.

“We may not be visiting

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PDP youth leader joins ACN

HE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Youth Leader in Akoko Edo, Desmond Obaro, has joined the Action Congress of Nigeria.

He was accompanied by 11 other youth leaders and more than 300 of their followers.

Speaking at the ceremony in Benin at the weekend, Obaro said he and the youths took their time, because they wanted to be sure that the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) government.

The other youth leaders were Peter Ekun, Olorunda Idowu, Mrs. Grace Alao, Aiyepada Alex, Olubayo Edward, Victor Omokhusu, Stephen Akegbehin, Adodo Asega, Edward Aderonle, Toyin Adegbeleye and Desmond Napoleon Shegun.

Obaro said: “I do not consider this meeting as being late. We are joining CAN because we have seen the Comrade Governor has delivered. We did not join early because we wanted to be convinced that you would perform, as some of my people needed practical evidence of your performance before joining your party.

“We are here today because we have seen the practical and physical evidences in the roads, schools, hospitals, water projects and others you have done and are still doing.

“When we were looking at this party from afar, it was then I knew that youths get party and elective positions. I thank your Excellency for the recognition you are giving to the youths.”

you in the office, but we have you at heart.”

Also, the National Association of Polytechnic Students (NAPS) has assured the governor of getting re-elected on

July 14.

They described the July 14 election as an opportunity to reward performance and consolidate on the progress made by the administration.

NAPS National President Olu Jacobs spoke during the presentation of award and investiture of Oshiomhole as grand patron.

He urged students to support Oshiomhole.

Jacobs said the governor has proved to the world that comrades are good leaders and that they were impressed with the infrastructural development in the state.

He said: “We are impressed by the state of the schools and we were happy to see the level of infrastructural restoration from the primary level to the higher institutions.

“The students body, through all the students union governments in the state, has approved your return to the Government House.

Oshiomhole assured them that his administration will ensure even spread of development across the state.

He thanked the monarchs for the cooperation and collaboration between the government and the traditional institution in the maintenance of peace and security.

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

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NEWS

•Some Bauchi citizens with the Emir, Alhaji Rilwanu Adamu (middle), during a condolence visit on the death of Madakin Bauchi, Alhaji Ahmed Abubakar, at the emir’s palace …yesterday PHOTO: NAN

Cars, shops damaged in Lagos

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OCIAL miscreants went on the rampage yesterday at EbuteMetta, Lagos Mainland, damaging 40 vehicles, seven shops and two tricycles.

An unconfirmed account said the destruction was triggered by the alleged refusal of a lawmaker to ‘settle’ the hoodlums.

The lawmaker, whose car was hit by the aggrieved youths, was said to have returned to the scene with armed policemen few minutes later to arrest the unruly youths.

The youths were said to have shielded their ringleader from being arrested.

Supporters of the lawmaker reportedly stormed the scene to avenge the assault, a development that led to a free-for-all.

A victim, whose car was damaged, Lukman Balogun, said there should

•From left: Chairperson of the day Mrs. Abosede Adeyemo; Mother of the Day, Mrs. Gladys Evbodi, Bishop of Ifo Anglican Diocese Rev. Akin Odejide and proprietress of Janet Memorial Schools, Mrs. Olubunmi Odejide at the school’s fifth Inter-House Sports competition

be compesation for property damaged.

He said: “What happened was that there was a clash of area boys.

“The next thing we saw was that the lawmaker brought in thugs to vandalise our community.

“They damaged cars and injured people.

“I am sure more than 40 cars have been damaged.

“We want everything to be restored.

“We don’t expect this type of behaivour from a lawmaker.

“It is an insult to the community. If a man in his 60s can descend so low and he even confirmed it.

“He said when they insulted him; his boys have to come here to retaliate.”

But the lawmaker said he only reported the matter to the police.

Another victim, Sherifat, said the hoodlums raided

her shop.

She said: “They were fighting and I locked my shop. “ I ran inside and locked my shop, but they used cutlass to destroy the padlock, they took all my money and goods, then left the shop open.

“The money should be more than N30,000 and my goods will be around N20,000.

“I learnt they were sent by someone, but I urged the person to please assist me.”

According to Mr. Adenowo Raji, whose car was also damaged, the police has assured that they will be an investigation.

Raji said: “The incident is a spillover of what happened last night.

I just got a call that I should come and see my vehicle and others that were damaged on the streets.”

Fed Govt decries dearth of accountants

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HE Federal Government has decried the dearth of accountants to audit the books of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).

The Minister of State for Finance, Lawan Ngama, raised the alarm at the weekend.

He spoke while hosting members of the Association of National Accountants of Nigeria (ANAN) .

Ngama said: “The government has to challenge people in the public sector because we don’t have enough staff to audit all the parastatals in the first week of April when the annual accounts are ready.”

As a result of the shortage of accountants, the minister said:“Some parastatals have been allowed to engage private accounting bodies to audit their

From Nduka Chiejina (Assistant Editor)

books.”

He urged his guests to use the opportunity to prove themselves because he has observed that it is the graduates who will promote the association.

According to him “the ministry is open to new ideas that will enhance on-the-job training for accountants.”

The Federal Government wants to encourage ANAN members to go into private practice because there are lots of opportunities now that self-employment is what the government is encouraging because there is a limit to the number of people government can employ as accountants. We have many accounting challenges.”

PDP ward executives advised

A • Mark Walker speaking at the DFID/SPARC Sensitisation Workshop on the new Lagos State Public Procurement Law for Permanent Secretaries held at Renaissiance Hotel, Alausa, Ikeja Lagos . With him are Commissioner for Establishment, Training and Pensions Mrs. Florence Oguntuase (second left); Permanent Secretary, Office of the Establishment and Training Mrs Folashade Jaji (third left); Permanent Secretary, Public Service Office Lateef Dada Abari (right); General Manager, State Public Procurement Agency, Akin Onimole (left) . PHOTO: OMOSEHIN MOSES

KWA Ibom State Deputy Governor Nsima Ekere has advised the newlyelected ward executives of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state’s 329 wards to be proactive.

Speaking after the ward congress in his Edemaya Ward 1, in Ikot Abasi Local Government, Ekere asked the executives to be magnanimous and reconciliatory in victory to engender continuing peace and unity in the party.

He praised the conduct of the exercise across the state, pointing out that it reflected the confidence of the party faithful in the leadership of Governor Godswill Akpabio.

The deputy governor said it was clear from the enthusiasm for the exercise that the PDP was well-entrenched in the state.

He hailed the PDP members in his ward for their massive turn-out and orderly conduct during the congress.

The member representing Ikot Abasi/ Eastern Obolo/Mkpat Enin in the House of Representatives, Akpan Micah Umoh, said the ward congresses were successful.

The Chairman of Ikot Abasi Local Government Transition Committee, Uko Ekpe, hailed the congress committee for the area for conducting the exercise successfully and transparently.

The leader of the congress committee team for Ikot Abasi, Uwem Imo-Ita, who monitored the exercise, said the congresses had gone on peacefully in the 10 wards of Ikot Abasi and saluted the party members for conducting themselves orderly.

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THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

NEWS Illegal checkpoints: Eight arrested in Abia

Ojukwu made Nigeria’s unity possible, says Ribadu

From Ugochukwu Eke, Umuahia

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IGHT policemen in Abia State have been arrested for mounting illegal road blocks.

Acting Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Mohammed Abubakar had directed that all police check points be dismantled.

The suspects were arrested for flouting the Acting IGP’s directive.

Commissioner of Police Bala Hassan told reporters in Umuahia that they would go through orderly-room trial.

Hassan said Abubakar has set up a team of policemen to monitor compliance to his directive .

The Police Comissioner said the command has also set up a monitoring team to ensure compliance.

Hassan said the suspects mounted illegal checkpoints early in the morning and late at night.

He said: “The Acting IGP’s team will also assess the condition of those detained in police cells. I have directed that all police cells be decongested.

“The command has been complying with the Acting IGP’s directive, except for check points on the boundaries with sister states. They will remain so for security reasons.

“The directive does not mean that policemen should be off the road entirely, but that they should be patrolling the highways and state roads without stopping commuters and disturbing the free flow of traffic.”

Hassan said policemen still have the right to stop and search cars suspected to be carrying something illegal.

He said the HighWay Patrol team has been directed to stop checking vehicle particulars and face the job of ensuring accident-free highways.

He said the command has mapped out strategies to curb crime.

•Umeh: we must emulate Ikemba From Nwanosike Onu, Awka and Odogwu Emeka Odogwu, Nnewi

•The late Ojukwu

HAIRMAN of the Task Force on Petroleum Revenue Malam Nuhu Ribadu has said former Biafran waelord, the late Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, made Nigeria’s unity possible.

National Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) Chief Victor Umeh said the legacies left behind by the late Ikemba Nnewi must be adhered to.

The duo spoke yesterday when they visited the late Ojukwu’s family at Umudim, Nnewi.

Ribadu, who was accompanied by former Bauchi State Governor Adamu Muazu and other senators from the North, said: “We have come from all parts of the country to celebrate a great leader.

“He is one individual who made the unity of this country possible. We have struggled to become a nation, but Ojukwu made it possible.

“We have lost a father and a hero. He will forever remain a part of our history. He did well for his people and country. We will continue to associate him with what Nigeria is today. May

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his soul rest in peace. ‘’He is one individual who stood for what he considered justice and fought for it.”

Umeh, who was accompanied

by Anambra State Governor Peter Obi and APGA chieftains, said it would be difficult to replace the late Ojukwu.

He said: “We have come here today to pay our last respects to our leader, Ojukwu, who has had a very wonderful burial.

“Today is a very solemn moment for our party. We condole with the family and reassure them that Dim Ojukwu remains the leader of APGA. “Even in death, we will have no other leader except Ojukwu. That was what we agreed eight years ago. Nobody will replace him as our leader.

“We shall appoint a deputy national leader over time, somebody who will be helping him to perform his duties in the physical realm.

“From the terrestrial heights above, Ojukwu remains our guiding light, because we do not have any other better name to use in this party than Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu.

“He was the pillar of this party. We used him to garner electoral victories. So, we will continue to use his name to go back to the electorate.”

Obi said Ojukwu’s successful burial is the beginning of his immortalisation.

He said: “When you assess the burial, you will realise that this

is the beginning of Ojukwu’s immortalisation.”

Also yesterday, the Presidential Adviser on Inter-Party Relations, Senator Ben Ndi-Obi, said the successor of Ojukwu as Igbo leader cannot come through imposition.

He spoke with reporters in Awka. Ndi-Obi, who was the Chairman of the Outreach Committee on Ojukwu’s burial, said those jostling to succeed Ojukwu should have a rethink.

He said Ojukwu did not become the leader of Igbos in a day and it would be difficult for anybody to impose him or herself on the race.

Ndi-Obi thanked Obi and President Goodluck Jonathan for their roles in Ojukwu’s burial.

He said the greatest challenge of the committee was accommodating all the individuals and groups that wanted to participate in the burial.

Ndi-Obi said: “None will be buried like Ojukwu again in Nigeria. All the six geo-political zones were interested in the burial.

“In fact, Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola set up his own committee in Lagos for Ojukwu’s burial.

“Ojukwu was certainly our best.

It will be difficult to replace him.

We also thank the governors of the old Eastern Nigeria and the military for their participation.”

The Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria (MBGN), 2011, Miss Silvia Nduka, and Mr. Nigeria, 2010, Mr. Kenneth Okolie, yesterday said the late Ikemba Nnewi is a role model for youths.

They urged youths to strive to

Ngige visits Madalla victims

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ENATOR Chris Ngige yesterday visited the family of Sir Emmanuel Obiuwku of Awka Etiti, Anambra State, whose four daughters, Miss Chioma (23), Twins Ifeoma and Uche, and Chidinmma (13) were gruesomely murdered in the Christmas Day bombing of St. Theresa’s Catholic Church Madalla, Niger State last year..

Ngige attended the Church service at St Anne’s Catholic Church Umudunnu, Awka – Etiti, in honour of the deceased.

He donated the N500,000 to the family and another N500,000 to the church to support the building of a befitting monument in memory of the children.

Ngige who noted that it was painful for one family to have lost four children in one fell swoop, urged the family to take the situation with equanimity as Christians.

He also pledged to facilitate educational and other benefits for the remaining two children who survived the blast in order to ensure that the other did not die in vain.

•Kwara State Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed (right) discussing with the Managing Director, Hajaig Construction (Nig) Ltd, Mr. AbdulNassar Hajaig, at the Governor’s Office..on Thursday.

Orji suspends 17 council chairmen, others

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BIA State Governor Theodore Orji yesterday suspended the Transition Committee Chairmen of the 17 local government councils, his Chief of Staff and some commissioners over alleged insensitivity to security matters.

The suspension was announced on the state radio.

The affected commissioners are Emma Nwabukofor (Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs); Akujuobi Nkoro (Petroleum); Ugoeze Joy Alozie (Women Affairs); Ike Onyeweaku (Agriculture); Nike Eleri (Finance); Don Ubani (Information and

From Ugochukwu Eke, Umuahia

Strategy); and the Commissioner for Urban Renewal.

Chief of Staff Donatus Okorie; Deputy Chief of Staff Charles Ogbonna and Government House Security Adviser Awah Agwu were also suspended.

Those suspended were accused of sabotaging the governor’s development plans, especially at the grassroots.

The chairmen have been directed to hand over government’s property in their possession to the most senior officials in the

councils toady.

It was learnt that the House of Assembly has summoned the suspended functionaries for questioning.

Deputy Director, Information and Protocol, Abia State Assembly, Mr. Ogbonna Ogugua said the 17 chairmen are expected to appear before the Assembly.

The fate of other members of the State Executive Council is unknown.

There are speculations on whether Orji would dissolve his cabinet and appoint new members or not.

stand out wherever they find themselves, just as the late Ojukwu stood out for his people.

They spoke yesterday when they visited Ojukwu’s widow and former beauty queen Bianca.

Miss Nduka and Okolie urged the late Ojukwu’s family to be united and build on the deceased legacies.

Miss Nduka said: “I urge you to take heart, because Ojukwu did not die unfulfilled. He died a happy man. He is a hero and I urge our leaders to emulate his virtues.

“Bianca has encouraged youths in many ways and we are sorry for this huge loss.’’

Okolie said: ’’Ojukwu was a great leader.We all look up to him.”

The Project Director of the National Youth Summit and United Nations Ambassador, Mr. Utchay Odims, who was with them, said: “Nobody in Africa has been given the kind of burial Ojukwu received.”

Wife of the Anambra State Governor, Mrs. Margaret Obi, who spoke for Bianca, thanked them for coming.

Oni, Fayose, Olubolade, others meet From Sulaiman Salawudeen, Ado-Ekiti

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ORMER Ekiti State Governors Ayo Fayose and Segun Oni at the weekend pledged to work together for the development of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

They spoke at a meeting of the party’s chieftains, which was held at the Ipoti-Ekiti country home of the Minister of Police Affairs, Navy Capt. Caleb Olubolade (rtd).

The meeting came barely 24 hours after a similar one was held in Ado-Ekiti, the state capital.

Olubolade said the meeting, which was held behind closed doors, was in preparation for the 2014 governorship election.

He said leaders of the party have resolved that no candidate would be imposed on members.

Olubolade said: “As you can see, all the leaders are here, so the followership will do the same. We are confident that working together in this manner will make our party victorious.

“We have resolved that there will be no disagreement and things will go smoother than they used to. We are happily united. Oni and Fayose have been part of this success story, likewise Chief Paul Alabi, Chief Awoyelu, Surveyor Aluko, Chief Dayo Okondo and many others here.”

Oni said factions of the party have resolved their differences and whoever emerges the PDP candidate would be supported by all.

He said: “The person will become our candidate and we will all work with him or her.”

Fayose said: “When we finish our congresses you will see that we have taken everything into consideration. Do not ask too many questions.”

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

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THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

HELPING HAND

PRAISE

LEARNING

N540m For Oyo Farmer

Group hails Amosun on education

Quiz For Student

Lagos

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Ogun

MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

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S a way of reducing poverty in Ondo State, a chieftain of the Action Congress of Nigeria (CAN) Mr. Segun Abraham has initiated an empowerment programme for market women and youths.

The programme, which is going to be a continuous exercise, will enable market women and youths in the state to have access to soft loans worth over N20m. Abraham, who disclosed this while addressing some supporters of the party in IkareAkoko in Akoko North East area of the state said the gesture is interest-free.

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Ondo

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Email: news_extra@yahoo.com

ACN chieftain lifts women, youths From Leke Akeredolu, Akure

He noted that the present administration has failed to address the issue of unemployment, stressing that 80 per cent of the citizens lived in abject poverty.

He also said that the soft loan is meant for traders and unemployed youths across the 18 local government areas, even as he stressed that he is determined to eradicate hunger in the state.

Abraham, who used the occasion to declare his intention to contest in the forthcoming governorship election, urged the people to give their support to the ACN candidate.

He said: “Hunger has taken over Ondo State and our governor has embarked on beautification of the state capital when thousands of people sleep at night without food in their stomachs.

Youths are now roaming the

streets and government offices because they have no job.”

He lamented the comatose state of all the industries which he said were neglected by the present administration, saying that an ACN government would resuscitate all the industries that have allegedly been abandoned by the present administration. He also promised to establish more industries if the party wins at the polls.

“The government has neglected

the industries established by our progressive leaders like the late Adekunle Ajasin and Adebayo Adefarati. That is why majority of young graduates have no jobs.

The governor inaugurated the Alpha 3D but there was nothing going on there,” he stated.

He, however, urged the people to be patient, saying that the ACN would transform the state by creating employment opportunities for youth.

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INDFUL of the need to better the lives of rural dwellers, wife of Ekiti State Governor, Erelu Bisi Fayemi took time off to tour the council areas in the state.

The tour which lasted several weeks would leave a lasting impression in the minds of the beneficiaries of various items donated to people under the auspices of the Ekiti Development Foundation (EDF).

The EDF, a non-governmental organisation, was initiated by the governor’s wife.

At the commencement of the tour, the governor’s wife had said that she was embarking on the tour to interact with the women at the grassroots and as a thank-you for their support for the administration of her husband in the last one year.

As a feminist and advocate of women’s rights and empowerment, the tour afforded her the opportunity to feel the pulse of the people and have first-hand knowledge of their critical areas of need.

She also seized that opportunity to introduce her initiative, the Ekiti Development Foundation (EDF) to the people at the grassroots. The initiative was launched in June, 2011.

To underscore her commitment to success in getting the rural populace well informed about some social issues, she told journalists that she would partner with key ministries, departments and agencies to ensure proper enlightenment and sensitisation on health and social issues, including existing laws that protect the rights of women and the girl child.

She emphasised that the tour had no political undertone as beneficiaries of the largesse would not be chosen based on their political affiliation or religious belief.

In the circumstances, Newsextra gathered that no candidate of the ruling Action Congress of Nigeria was permitted to turn the venues to campaign grounds.

The office of the wife of the governor was in partnership with the EDF, SACA, Ministries of Women Affairs, Social Development and Gender Empowerment; Ministry of Youth

•A group of women farmers collecting fertilisers at Ijero-Ekiti

Fayemi’s wife empowers rural dwellers Donates items worth N12m Sensitises women on diseases, rights

By Kunle Akinrinade

and Sports; Ministry of Health and EEDA for the tour.

True to her promise as she crisscrossed the 16 local government areas of the state, beginning from Oye on January 4, experts from the MDAs

who were in her team took turns to sensitise and educate thousands of the enthusiastic local people that turned out in each of the places visited. A board member of the EDF, Chief Ronke Okusanya, explained the vision and mission of the EDF on each occasion of the visits.

The Commissioner for Women

Affairs, Social Development and Gender Empowerment, Mrs. Fola Richie-Adewusi, whose ministry was one of the key collaborators for the tour, brought relevant laws like the newly passed gender-based violence (prohibition) act, Child Rights Act and •Continued on Page 52

•Mrs Fayemi

THE NATION MONDAY MARCH 5, 2012

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‘Entrepreneurship ’ll enhance economic development’

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•Mrs Amosun

IFE of Ogun State Governor, Mrs. Olufunso Amosun, has urged leadership in the country to place high premium on entrepreneurship, saying this could engender faster economic growth and development.

She explained that most developed countries always encourage small and medium scale business enterprise which had led to the increasing rate of their Gross Domestic Products.

Speaking at the official launch of the Nigeria’s chapter of the Federation of Business Women Entrepreneurs of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Mrs. Amosun said: “our youths and women should be encouraged to acquire one vocational skill or the other irrespective

Youths warned against abuse of ICT

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N Educationist, Mrs Yinka Ogunde, has cautioned youths against abusing the Internet and other Information and Communication Technology (ICT) tools.

Ogunde, Chief Executive of EDUMARK, a Non-Governmental-Organisation, spoke with journalists in Lagos.

She noted that a majority of today’s youths paid too much attention to ICT tools to the detriment of their studies.

“We, as parents must be able to monitor and check on what these children engage in as much as we could so that they do not misapply the use of the ICT to the detriment of their studies.

“Of course, we all know that the ICT has its plus and minus in some respects not just to the younger ones, but every other person that uses it,’’ Ogunde said.

She added: “The ICT remains a viable tool in exposing everyone to information that one was not disposed to before now, as well as a medium for making informed decisions on issues, but it must be channeled properly.”

Ogunde charged the youth to use the social network media positively, especially in contributing to nation-building rather than wasting man hours surfing the internet on issues that could compromise their future.

“What we need to do is to encourage the youth to channel the opportunities presented

by ICT positively in order to help in improving on our knowledge, inspire and motivate them. “ Don’t forget that the ICT is a veritable tool for change that could be for good or the other way round but if we are able to harmonise it properly, we would be able to get the pulse of the younger generation,’’ she said.

According to her, this can help the country to predict what is likely to happen in the next10 years.

She said that her NGO would be celebrating role models and promoting unity among youths by hosting more than 3,500 students across the country in March.

Oyo approves N540m loan for farmers T

HE Oyo State Chairman of All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN),Mr Emmanuel Elegbede, says the state-owned Agricultural Credit Corporation has approved a N540 million loan package for farmers in the state.

Elegbede told journalists in Ibadan that officials of the corporation had already met with members of the state’s branch of the Cassava Growers Association of Nigeria over the loan deal. “ Very soon, farmers in Oyo State will collect forms from the corporation to be used in applying for the loan,’’ he said.

To apply for the loan, he said farmers would approach government as corporate groups while farmers would repay the loan as a corporate entities.

Elegbede said that approaching government as groups rather than as individuals had brought credibility and respect to farming.

“With this type of understanding on both sides, we believe there is hope for

Ogun of their educational qualifications.”

According to her, “Most of our children and women may not necessarily continuously hunt for white collar jobs if they can acquire a vocational skill in order to earn a living.

If you can acquire a skill, you can earn a living and put food on your table.”

Mrs. Amosun advised women to always support themselves through various empowerment programmes that would improve their standard of living.

Also speaking at the occasion, the President of the Nigerian the Federation of Business Women Entrepreneurs, Iyalode (Mrs.) Alaba Lawson, said the federation was set up to promote and facilitate trade on a common platform for various groups and individual women entrepreneurs across the West African sub-region.

She called on the federal and state governments to create the enabling environment for increasing participation of women in entrepreneurship.

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•A Chieftain of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in Ibarapa Central Local Government of Oyo State, Alhaji Olayide Abas (right), addresing supporters during a solidarity rally for Governor Abiola Ajimobi in Igbo Ora

‘Ekiti ALGON supports Fayemi’s agenda’

HE newly inaugurated Hon Rotimi Ajidara-led Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON) in Ekiti State has promised to work with Governor Kayode Fayemi to ensure that his government’s 8-point agenda is accomplished at the grassroots level in the

state It was contained in a statement signed by the Special Assistant on Media to ALGON in the state, Mr Gbenga Sodeinde that the new Chairman of the Association who doubled as the Caretaker, Ekiti East Local Government stated this when he reeled out his action plans after their inauguration in Ado Ekiti

Islamic cleric advises parents

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HE Mujaahiduun Mission of Nigeria has held its maiden edition of Quran reading competition at Beleke Smith Memorial Mosque, Surulere, Lagos. In attendance were students from various Islamic schools (Madrasa).

The event marked the third of its kind is for the propagation of Islamic reading culture among the students.

The club president, Chief AbdulRasak Idris, in his speech enjoined parents to take good care of their children as they would be accountable to whatever circumstance that befalls them.

Speaking on the mission of the club, he said Quran reading will enable students know more about the Holy book and guide them on the right path; it will assist in observing their prayer time. It will equally reconstruct their future for the betterment of the nation and reduce crime.

He further stressed the need for all and sundry to donate generously for the forthcoming programme as it has become an

Lagos

By Duro Babayemi

annual competition in order to encourage the participants and the organisers of the competition.

Winner in the junior category was a sixyear-old Umar AbdulRasak, who went home with 21" colour TV. Second position went to Muadh AbdulHakeen. He went home with a standing fan while Muhammed AbdulHakkem took the third position carting away a DVD player.

The first and second winner came from Madrasatul Ihyal Athar School, Ogun State.

In the senior category, Obaditan Samad, who came first went home with a colour TV, while Ahmad Sakariyah came second and went home with a standing fan. Both of them were from Madrasatul Taalimul Quran School, Agege-Lagos. Afuape Ibraheem who came third went home with a DVD player.

•Abudul Rasak Umar (left) receiving his prize from the president of the mission Chief Abdul Rasak Idris. With them are the winner’s instructor and the secretary Mr Olajide Yunus.

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Ekiti According to him, the new leadership of ALGON in the state would leave no stone unturned in working with Governor Fayemi in ensuring his governments aspiration towards eradicating poverty completely in the state Aside this, the ALGON also promised to introduce various measures to ensure that people pay their taxes at the local government level so as to boost the Internally Generated Revenue of the Local government and that of the state in a bid to ensure speedy development at the grassroots in the state The statement which listed other EXCO members of the association as including the Caretaker chairman of Irepodun/Ifelodun, Major Tajudeen Awe (rtd) as Treasurer and the caretaker chairman, Ido/Osi Local Government, and Mr. Gbenga Agbeyo as the Secretary described the new leadership as vibrant and equal to the task Meanwhile, the State Deputy Governor, Mrs Funmilayo Olayinka has charged the new local government helmsmen to be prudent, saying the Dr Fayemi-led administration would not tolerate any form of misappropriation of funds and all forms of corrup, the local government chairmen were admonished to consolidate on the progress already being recorded at the grassroots and ensure that no project is abandoned as long as such projects will benefit the people.

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Council launches women initiative OISED to ensure that women in the council were not left behind in benefitting from dividends of democracy, leadership of Apapa Local Government has established a forum to liase between the council and women in the area.

The forum tagged Apapa Women Forum, was inaugurated last week at the council secretariat on Burma Road, Apapa, Lagos.

The event had in attendance large number of women from various wards in diverse professions.

They all gathered at the council’s Multipurpose Hall to deliberate on the issues affecting womenfolk in the council.

Speaking at the event, wife of the council chairman, Mrs Sarah Joseph, said the initiative would go a long way in ameliorating the economic hardship faced by women in the council.

The goal of the project, she said, is welfarism for all women with special consideration for widows and aged.

Mrs Joseph said the forum was meant to identify the needs of the women and encourage the council leaders to urgently address them.

“That is why we have equally inaugurated ward coordinators in all five wards to make the job easier and wellcoordinated,” she said.

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By Tajudeen Adebanjo

She urged the coordinators to also decentralise the headship of each ward to that ensure real grassroots people benefited from the government gesture.

Supervisor for Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Mrs Modupe Oniyitan, thanked the council chairman, Hon Ayodele Joseph for being gender sensitive.

Mrs Oniyitan said the chairman has keyed into the campaign of the state government to allow more women participation in governance.

“We have four women in the executive council including the Vice-Chairman and we pray not to disappoint the trust given us so that more allocation would be give to women,” she said.

She urged women in the council to cooperate and pray for the council leadership.

Among the women at the event, Mrs Modupe Adedipe, described the initiative as worthwhile.

She believed many people would be relieved of financial constraint with the project.

She enjoined her fellow women not to rely on council chief for their daily livelihood but rather engage in something that would fetch •Mrs Joseph them money.

O

GUN State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun has been praised by the Ogun Unity Forum, a non-governmental organisation for improving the standard of education.

The President of the forum, Mr. Damilola Ogunpola, said the landmark effort of the governor in the education sector since assumption of office could only affirm the leading position of the state in education.

He said some of the initiatives were the construction of 50 new modern schools with each of the 20 local governments benefiting. The modern schools have the capacity to accommodate 240 pupils.

Ogundipe maintained that the official handover and commissioning of the China Assisted Rural Primary Schools facilitated by the state government was a right step at restoring confidence in the decayed public primary schools.

He further noted that the initiative of the government at distributing free primary, junior and secondary school textbooks with instructional materials to over 600,000 pupils in the state in subjects would boost performance.

Some of the books distributed were in Computer Studies, Basic Science, Mathematics, English language, Physics, Chemistry, Economics, Civic Education, Biology among others.

On the merging of higher institution, he said: “we must realise that before his assumption of office, the state of education in Ogun State was very bad. I am sure the government meant well and I advise all stakeholders to continue to work together so that we can produce quality and not quantity.”

agriculture and better farming this year, “ Elegbede said.

The AFAN boss expressed optimism that farmers would soon witness a new dawn as the state government had put in place measures to boost food production. “ We are very hopeful that the present administration is interested in agriculture and from all indications, it is the listening type. “ I believe that very soon, government will put in place measures to help farmers,’’ he said.

He, however, advised farmers in the northern parts of the state not to plant crops for now, saying the soil was yet to receive adequate water for planting inspite of the recent rainfall. “ The unfortunate thing is that the rain is not widespread enough. In some areas, it is encouraging, in some it is not,’’ he said.

•Governor Ajimobi He said farmers in Oyo North should refrain from planting now while those in Oyo South may commence planting as the rain was becoming steady.

Rotary donates to Ikoyi inmates

EMBERS of the Rotary Club of Falomo District 9110 Nigeria have visited the Ikoyi Prisons donating items.

The first leg of the visit was the donation of a matress, portable generating set and standing fan to the security house. The items were received on behalf of the Prisons Security personnel by ASPII Ogbozor Gerald Donaldson and SIP Uzowanne Moses.

The second leg was the main visit and donation of various items including a sewing machine, barbing kits, carpentry tools, pharmaceutical items, bed sheets and general household items for the use of the inmates.

Lagos Members of the club and the items were received the Deputy Controller of Prisons, Bamidele Emmanuel Olanrewaju.

The leader of the group,Rotarian Oboro , noted that the visit was an annual event by the club in its service projects programme. He particularlypraised the acceptability of the

DCP to the generality of the inmates and the entire prison community as demonstrated by the ’people’ everywhere we visited at the prisons.

Rotarian Oboro promised that the club will not relent in its global efforts towards the emancipation of mankind in general and that the club in particular will focus more attention on assisting to make life more meaningful for the inmates.

Stakeholders meeting HE Chairman of Ikeja Local Government Area, Hon Wale Odunlami has described the new trend of budget formulation as an effort towards eradicating ignorance and backwardness.

Odunlami stated this at the stakeholders meeting on budget formulation of the council, in Ikeja.

He said the initiative was to make stakeholders part of governance as their news become relevant in the direction the budget should tilt. This is because of the belief of the Action Congress of Nigeria in people as the true democracy and not a selected few. He urged participants to discuss freely.

T

Kudos for Amosun on education •Dancers at the 10th anniversary of the Rotary Club of Ikoyi ,Lagos District 9110 Rotary International at the Golden Gate Restaurant, Ikoyi, Lagos

Oyo

By Musa Odoshimokhe

He advised the local governments in the state to compliment the efforts of the state government by improving and sustaining the various educational projects in their council.

• Deputy Comptroller of Ikoyi Prisons, DCP Bamidele Emmanuel Olanrewaju (middle in uniform), Club President Rotarian Andrew Oboro (fifth from right ), other members of the club with the items donated at the Ikoyi Prisons, Lagos

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ARENTS have been urged to give attention to the education of their children as this remains the only legacy they can bequeath to them. They have equally been advised to inculcate the habit of leisure reading as a sure way of improving

Mrs Sofola, Raji Rofiat of Ogudu Nursery/Primary (third positiion), Sunday Many of Araromi Primary School ( First position) and Miss Ebhowe Glory of Maryland Nursery/ Primary School (second position) during the competion

‘Encourage reading culture’ their vocabulary and use of English Language.

This advice was given by wife of he chairman of Kosofe Local Government Area, Mrs Mosunmola Sofola at the inauguration of the preliminary stage of the Year 2012 Spelling Bee Completion at the council headquarters.

Sofola described the competition as an avenue for pupils to exhibit their spelling prowess.

She noted the interest of the council in primary education,saying: “This administration believes in primary education, that is why in the short time we have spent in office, efforts have been made to improve the standard of education within the council area”.

She however noted that reading culture had been adversely affected by youth’s concentration on the internet. She said: This is not to say that there are no positive sides to the internet. It has been noticed that our children and wards concentrate on nonimportant things as against the important ones thereby negating the enhancement of their educational development.

She pledged the council’s commitment to the initiative saying: “This we will continue to do because we are of the view that no amount spent on our children who are tomorrow’s leaders is too much nor a waste.

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

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THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

CITYBEATS THE NATION

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E-mail:- ynotcitybeats@gmail.com

Ojota Village suddenly came into the limelight when 10 pupils died as a result of a strange weather change that culminated in a storm. But, besides mourning, indigenes of that small island tucked in-between waters in Ojo, near Badagry Local Government, are crying for development. JOKE KUJENYA tells their harrowing story.

•Wide shot of Omi Ette in Ojota Village

Grappling with life at Ojota Village F

OR residents, the thought of drinking good water in Ojota village is a mirage.

In this village situated on an island, the indigenes’ source of water is a small, dirty and yellow stagnant pond called Odo-Ete. To get to Ojota Village, a chartered canoe came to the rescue. The take-off point was Igbede Town near the shore, where 10 children lost their lives to the morning storm on Monday, February 6. On the other end where the reporter disembarked from the canoe that was to return in about an hour later to convey her back to town, the path leading to the heart of Ojota Village was a scary walk.

The walk down to the village took about eight minutes amid 'struggles' for the pathway with weeds. This is, however, natural for indigenes born in the village who have lived there all their lives. To them, fear is a rarity.

According to the tour guide, Friday, they use the pathway any time any day without fear. "We can pass here anytime of the day or night. Even little children pass this place without fear," he boasted.

On the way, three women emerged from one side of the thick bush with buckets of water on their heads. Alarmed at the emergence of the women, the reporter sought to

Amuwo Odofin hosts children’s parliament AMUWO Odofin Local Government has created a platform for children to express their views on issues that concern their well-being and encourage advocacy on violence, exploitation, and child abuse.

Speaking at the maiden event, which was held at the council secretariat, Mrs Iwuoha Angela, the Supervisor for Education, representing the chairperson of Amuwo Odofin Local Government, Princess Zainab Adewale, said the parliament will help to "train the kids on the processes, modalities, and value system to address the leadership challenge in the country and strengthen democracy for meaningful and sustainable development of our society."

•Ojota Village women fetching water from Odo Ete

know if there was another path leading to the village. The younger of them, a fair complexioned lady, said in Yoruba: "Why are you surprised? We only went to fetch water. This is the water we all drink from. I have drunk this water every day of my life before I grew up to start fetching by myself."

Then mocking the reporter, she said: "Why is your mouth opened like that? You are looking like that because the water is so dirty.

Well, it is not for people like you O. This is what we all use for bathing, cooking and all that because it is not all the time that we can use the water from the sea to bathe. We only use that to wash our clothes and other things,

Lagos empowers special people ATHLETES and Special Sports Persons can now heave a sigh of relief with the Lagos State Government planning to roll out initiatives aimed at empowering them, particularly in sports.

The Permanent Secretary, Office of Sports, Ministry of Youth, Sports and Social Development, Mr Delano Joseph AdepojuConde, said this at a capacity development event with the theme: The principles of intrusiveness: from policy to practice.

He said the initiative would "promote the role that sport can play in helping person living with disabilities to acquire skills and confidence to become effective advocates for themselves and others."

He said the state would continue to promote sports development, adding that the state would also be involved in the emotional development of its athletes in various special sports.

PHOTOS: JOKE KUJENYA

all the time.

"And it is the same water our pregnant women drink. But, as I said, someone like you dares not try it. I tell you. It is express way to death. Our children have been used to the water because their systems have been programmed for it since they were in the womb.

"It is not that we like it; but what can we do.

And let me explain to you that we don't consume it like this. For each of the buckets you see on our heads, we will drop a chunk of alum into the bucket of water and leave it till night to 'settle'. We will then turn the clean • SEE PAGE 18

Fashola seeks fresh commitment to scholarship scheme LAGOS State Governor, Mr Babatunde Fashola, has at an interactive session with beneficiaries of the BRF Scholarship scheme, called for a renewed commitment to the programme, to enable it to outlive his administration.

The BRF Scholars Scheme is a scholarship and mentoring programme initiated by the Governor in collaboration with Access Bank Plc (formerly Intercontinental Bank Plc) to assist indigent students of the state who are schooling in tertiary institutions across the country. Beneficiary students also enjoy mentoring from selected reputable people in the society.

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

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CITY BEATS • Continued from page 17

Life at Ojota Village water into another clean bucket before we can drink. It has never killed any of us. We know the time to go and take the water, especially when it is well settled in its source. Already, we have some we did yesterday. We just came to fetch more quickly before other members of the community would go to the pond.

That time, everything would be rowdy and the water would be dirtier," she explained.

Also, a chief in Ojota Village said each time there was rain, Ojota Village gets submerged in water.

"Each of our rooms will be over run by the flood. That is why you would not see exquisite or expensive furniture or electronic gadgets in people's homes when you go round.

“At such times, our children don't go to school at all. This is the first time that rain will affect us badly.

We are in between two rivers leading to Badagry. Sometimes, the water level will go up and, other times, it will be normal. Many of our forefathers lived and died here. From this Village, we have produced a Deputy Governor, members of Lagos House of Assembly and the House of Representatives at the na-

• Ojota Village

PHOTO: JOKE KUJENYA

tional level. Currently, we have a serving commissioner. But the painful thing is that, once they leave for the big city, they don't remember to look back. And that is very painful. When they need our votes, they bring politicians here. Once they get the votes, they erase us from their

agenda.”

He went on: "Then, there are times we suffer from 'Omi Ile.' It is a surge of water which suddenly overflows and spill over to our homes. At such times, we suffer losses too. That one usually threatens to drown some of our

homes. But we usually come together to save the situation when that happens."

What about light from the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN), Baba, he was asked?

"As for that one, nearly every

one of us has a small generator.

You know the one they call "I better pass my neighbour." That is the generator we all use. Those who cannot buy a generator use the new China torch lights. Life here is another thing O. But, we thank God for life," he added.

But, despite their deprivations, they still continue to look into the future with optimism. The chief, who preferred to remain anonymous, said though the people continue to grieve the death of their loved ones, particularly the children who died on February 6, the people are grateful that their deaths have eventually brought the attention they badly needed.

He said among other immediate reliefs the government had promised the community as a fallout of the tragedy is the proposed construction of a link road to open the village to Igbede.

"We are happy that, finally, the government is looking our way.

With the opening of this community through the proposed road, we are sure that rapid development would follow. We cannot wait for this to happen as the government has promised. Though we are yet to see any sign, the government had, after the tragedy, promised the people of this village that they would construct the road within two weeks. We know they are honourable people, so our confidence remains unshakable that it would be done as promised," he stated.

Lagos trains workers on accountability, transparency

A

HEAD of the implementation of the Procurement Law, billed to kick off from next month, the Lagos State government has organised training for members of staff of the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) to ensure accountability and transparency in the discharge of their duties.

The Director-General, Lagos State Public Service Staff Development Centre, Mrs Olubunmi Fabamwo, told participants during the training at Magodo, that the high expectation for the dividends of governance has heightened the call for accountability and transparency in the conduct of government business.

She said the government, through the Procurement Agency, will establish fair pricing standards and benchmarks that would ensure the application of fair, competitive, value for money standards and practices for the procurement and disposal of public assets and services.

Mrs Fabamwo said the course was designed to expose workers to the realities and requirements of public administration. She said consideration was given to the peculiarities in Lagos as well as the requirements of the Procurement Law such that, at the end of the course, participants would be able to deeper understanding of their roles in achieving the state's vision and mission.

She said the training Govt would also promotes help participants discuss better the roles and disposal of responsibiliof propublic funds ties curement/

By Miriam Ndikanwu

store officers; describe the proceedure for obtaining and maintaining supplies, explain the principles of purchasing, carry out effective stock auditing and control as well as maintain up-to-date records and accounts.

She enjoined them to make maximum use of the opportunity of being selected among the crowd by attending classes punctually and regularly.

She said: "Please, note that as officers of the state we owe a duty to ourselves today, and to coming generations, to ensure that we discharge our responsibilities creditably.

"We all must operate with the mindset that any frivolity, corruption or indiscretion in our use of public funds is an erosion of a better life for generations yet unborn.

We must, in our enlightened selfinterest and in the knowledge that posterity would ask sooner than later, resolve to dispose public funds and property in our care with utmost integrity."

She urged them to eschew corruption and all its tendencies to build a society they can be proud of.

Chairman, SUBEB, Mrs Gbolahan Daodu, charged participants to make better use of the opportunity, stressing that PSSDC has the entire requirement that would enable them achieve the set goal.

Mrs Daodu, who was represented at the event by Director, Personnel, Mrs Morayo Adebanjo, said it was important for workers to be well equipped with the necessary information that would enable them operate effectively when the implementation of the law commences.

• From left: Director-General, Lagos State Public Service Staff Development Centre, Magodo, Mrs Olubunmi Fabamwo; Director, Personnel, Lagos State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Mrs Morayo Adebanjo and Director, Management Development and Consultancy Services, Mrs Bamidele Akinyemi, at the opening session of the course

Traditional rulers want more cash

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OME monarchs and traditional rulers in Lagos State have charged members of the State House of Assembly to work towards ensuring that their takehome pay of N41,800 monthly is increased.

The monarchs lamented that their salary was too poor to cater for their families and their communities, adding that some of them who are pensioners use their pensions to run some of the communities' activities.

They made the appeal when the House of Assembly Committee on Local Government Administration and Chieftaincy Affairs visited the Ikosi-Ejirin Local Council Development Area (LCDA) Friday to inspect the level of development in

By Oziegbe Okoeki

the area.

Members of the committee were inundated with the same complaints in all the council areas visited since the visitation started about three weeks ago.

Addressing the lawmakers at the council secretariat, the Elejirin of Ejirin land, Oba Rafiu Balogun, pointed out that what the state government is paying monthly as salary is nothing to write home about.

He said: "We want you our representatives at the House of Assembly to assist us in the area of our salary, because what we get as oba every month, is just N41,800. We are not being taken care of and we have been complaining about this

issue, but nothing has been done.

The money is too small to take care of us.

"Every election year, the government will always come to us and seek for our support; they will come to us and ask us to mobilise our people for them. But once we gather our people and they are able to get our votes, that is the end of everything, they don't look back again. This is very unfortunate, I have been using my retirement benefits to take of my family and the community, because I retired from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). We've been neglected and it is not fair; so we want you as our lawmakers to ensure that our salary is reviewed."

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070-55462708; 080-65154338 767 or email: rapidresponsesquad@yahoo.com 6. Health Services – LASAMBUS Ambulance Services Phone Nos: 01-4979844; 01-4979866; 01-4979899; 01-4979888; 01-2637853-4; 080-33057916; 080-33051918-9; 080-29000003-5.

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

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EDITORIAL/OPINION EDITORIAL FROM OTHER LAND

COMMENT

U.S. must maintain way to press Putin regime on human rights

Private hands •We not only need refineries and now, but we should bring in able entrepreneurs

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HE January rage across the country over the removal of fuel subsidy focused the nation’s attention on a number of issues. But a major concern remains the provision of refineries as a means of mitigating cost and minimising corruption.

It has been agreed that refineries are crucial in restoring supply sanities and cost effectiveness, but policies have often conflicted with the savage reality of implementation.

In the past, the Federal Government decided it was its duty to provide refineries. The reasons for this were cost and control. Experience has demonstrated that we failed as a government. The refineries were marred with bloated bureaucracies, inefficiency, corruption, ineptitude and a lack of appreciation of the urgency of constant supply for a nation

‘There is no doubt that we need refineries in Nigeria, and the best approach is not to foreclose the debate but encourage innovative thinking that will result in realising the dream. The options have been whether it should be run by government alone, whether it should be run by government and private initiatives in a competitive environment, or whether it should be deposited completely in the hands of entrepreneurs’

in the throes of development.

The government decided to give it to private hands, but that also was bungled and the familiar Nigerian primacy of self-enrichment over result crippled the exercise from the start. Obtaining licenses was seen as the end rather than the beginning of the exercise.

With the constant supply of fuel from outside, it is still a disgrace for a country that discovered oil before its independence over five decades ago and yet cannot come to terms with the attitude and policies that will turn it not only into a source of direct prosperity but a conduit for other industries that give robustly to the plenty of our collective purse.

In a recent visit to the President, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, Shell Petroleum Development Company executives suggested a negative spirit into the temperament of the debate. The executives included its out-going chairman, Malcolm Brinded, his replacement, Andy Brown and the managing director, Mutiu Sunmonu. They pointed out that investing in refineries was not a viable business.

Hear Brinded: “We are not investing because essentially there is a surplus of capacity of refineries in the world and actually it is a global business,” adding that many refineries in the world “run at a loss.”

His was a recipe for the status quo. In essence, he was urging the country to continue with the importation of fuel with all its deleterious effects like a drain in foreign exchange, loss of local jobs, sti-

fling of initiatives and, of course, a festering atmosphere of corruption.

If Shell is not interested in encouraging growth because it has lost a will and a creative and entrepreneurial verve, it should not try to suggest such suffocating point of view in an economy in dire need of new ideas and daring initiatives.

There is no doubt that we need refineries in Nigeria, and the best approach is not to foreclose the debate but encourage innovative thinking that will result in realising the dream. The options have been whether it should be run by government alone, whether it should be run by government and private initiatives in a competitive environment, or whether it should be deposited completely in the hands of entrepreneurs.

The Federal Government, it is clear, has foundered woefully in this endeavour. All the refineries in the country are becoming monuments in a young nation.

It is therefore not only wrong but wrongheaded for any company to occlude the wisdom of building refineries. It is also common knowledge that refineries should not always come in the monster sizes that we have in Warri or Port Harcourt. We have to embrace the idea of ‘small is beautiful’.

What is important is to issue licenses to those who qualify and demonstrate earnestness. The failure of the past was corruption. This time we should give licenses not on the basis of filial, ethnic loyalties or cronyism, but on merit. We cannot leave out private entrepreneurs in this all-important matter.

Oni’s wild goose chase •Disgraced ex-governor still wants to reap where he did not sow

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HE disgraced and illegitimate former Governor of Ekiti State, Segun Oni, appears not to care how many times he bites the dust. Mr. Oni indeed delightfully epitomises the aphorism that he who is down, needs fear no fall, as he engages in stunts that shred his already tattered reputation. The tragedy however is that he always tries to smear one public institution or another in his free falls. During the election it was the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and its officials that his actions endangered; now that a stolen mandate has been retrieved from him, it is the courts that he is seeking to put to shame and ridicule.

In pursuit of his inordinate ambitions, Mr Oni tried to pull the wool over the eyes of the Court of Appeal sitting in Ado-Ekiti by asking the court to reverse the judgment delivered by the Court of Appeal that sat in Ilorin. Thankfully, the share absurdity of this abuse of the process of the court has been pronounced by the Court of Appeal while dismissing the case. The appeal panel was chaired by Justice Tijani Abdullahi, with such other members as Justices Musa Abba-Aji, M.O. Kekere-Ekun, Ismaya Mohammed and R.C. Agbo. The learned justices emphasised that the matter should not have come before them in the first place.

We recall that in a well considered judgment, the Court of Appeal sitting in Ilorin

on October 15, 2010, sacked Mr Oni from the Ekiti State Government House, and returned the incumbent governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, as the validly elected governor of the state. The judgment, delivered by a panel headed by Justice Ayo Salami, was hailed by all and sundry as bold, incisive and fair; and a clear message against those who rely on rigging to get to power; that they will ultimately lose it. We also recall that the Court of Appeal was then the final court for governorship election petitions, and so the sour grape of Mr. Oni ended there.

Having exhausted the judicial process, Mr Oni then resorted to shenanigans, as he sought with other desperate interests to cast aspersion on the integrity of the learned justices that sat on the appeal, particularly Justice Salami. While the National Judicial Council (NJC) has not found any merit in the petition by Mr. Oni against the learned justices; he still went ahead to ask for a review of the judgment on the grounds of bias on the part of the panel members. To further show the absurdity of his reasoning, Mr. Oni made his application for a review in the Ado-Ekiti division of the Court of Appeal, instead of the Ilorin division, where the appeal was heard and the judgment delivered.

Despite the public odium that greeted Mr. Oni’s latest attempt to ridicule the judiciary, he was reported to be interested

in further appealing to the Supreme Court. While he is entitled to further his show of shame, we are of the opinion that this further attempt should be quickly rebuffed by the court, to send a clear message that the abuse of the courts cannot be tolerated by the highest court in the land. In furthering his plans, we hope that Mr. Oni pauses to weigh wherein lay the interests of the people of Ekiti State in this charade. Considering his days in office, we doubt whether Mr. Oni would have the courage to parade the streets of Ekiti as a democratic governor were he to be given the opportunity by this means.

We doubt.

‘Despite the public odium that greeted Mr. Oni’s latest attempt to ridicule the judiciary, he was reported to be interested in further appealing to the Supreme Court. While he is entitled to further his show of shame, we are of the opinion that this further attempt should be quickly rebuffed by the court, to send a clear message that the abuse of the courts cannot be tolerated by the highest court in the land’

H

AVING CAMPAIGNED on a platform of anti-Americanism, Vladi-mir Putin likely will be proclaimed the winner of Sunday’s presidential election in Russia, giving him a new six-year mandate — and likely inaugurating an era of unrest in a nation whose rising middle class rejects him. The United States, which has focused on cutting deals with Mr. Putin while largely ignoring his autocratic domestic policies, now has a clear interest in encouraging the emerging mass movement demanding democratic reform.

It’s therefore unfortunate that the Obama administration’s first initiative after Mr. Putin’s return to the presidency will be to lobby Congress to grant Russia permanent trade privileges. The problem is not the preferences, per se; it is the administration’s resistance to replacing an outdated protocol for pressing Moscow on human rights with one suited to this moment.

The White House is seeking the repeal of a 1974 law known as Jackson-Vanik, which links the trade preferences for Russia to free emigration. Repeal is logical for a couple of reasons: Russia, unlike the former Soviet Union, does not restrict the exit of Jews and others; and if the law is not removed, U.S. companies will be penalized after Russia enters the World Trade Organization later this year.

But a bipartisan coalition in Congress is concerned about removing this legacy of U.S. human rights advocacy without addressing the abuses of the Putin regime. Led in part by Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin (D-Md.), the group proposes to couple the Jackson-Vanik repeal with a measure that would require the administration to single out Russian officials responsible for gross human rights violations, ban them from traveling to the United States and freeze their assets.

This measure could be as effective in its own way as Jackson-Vanik was on the Brezhnev-era Kremlin. Unlike their Soviet predecessors, senior Russian officials crave contact with the West; they vacation in Europe, send their children to U.S. colleges and, not infrequently, transfer their money through U.S. banks. A visa ban and asset freeze would be severe punishment for those involved in persecuting liberal politicians and journalists, or extorting money from U.S. companies. That’s why the Russian opposition strongly supports the measure.

The Obama administration, on the other hand, is doing its best to kill it. In part it objects to Congress mandating foreign-policy actions. (In an attempt to defuse the issue, the State Department last year banned visas for a few dozen officials involved in one notorious human rights case, the death of lawyer Sergei Magnitsky, after whom the congressional legislation is named.)

But the administration also worries excessively about provoking Mr. Putin. At a hearing Wednesday, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton told Mr. Cardin that she agreed “we should send a message about our continuing concern about human rights in Russia.” But the State Department proposes only a modest program of aid to Russian civil society groups.

Mr. Putin’s imperious return to the presidency has destroyed his political legitimacy in Russia.

The sensible U.S. response is to sanction those in his regime who are imprisoning and killing journalists, whistleblowers and advocates of democratic change. Trade preferences should go forward. But so should the Magnitsky bill.

– Washington Post

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THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

20

9EDITORIAL/OPINION

S

IR: February 23 marked the third year since Dr Rahaman Mimiko was sworn-in as governor of Ondo state. Unlike every other anniversary, since he assumed office, this year anniversary is symbolic as it was meant to serve two ulterior interests.

The first is the purpose of politics because the governor is surreptitiously interested in taking a shot at the governorship seat and the other is to further display the imaginary hold of Dr Mimiko on the people of Ondo State.

Anniversary is important especially if it aims at fostering unity and flows from a genuine sense of service and commitment to the development of all. It is, in an ideal situation a period to take stock and chart a new path to a sustainable development without any social or deliberate infliction of economic burden on the resources of the state.

It is equally a moment of reassurance and vivid definition of intentions and clarification of purpose. It is unfortunate that such no longer exist. Anniversary is nowadays a sure way of patronizing the scores of thieves the system has produced.

Typical of an anniversary of its brand, the airwaves of the government owned electronic media was hijacked by the men of the governor. Those that have benefited from the government largesse splashed substantial money on advertising him to high heavens.

Some deify his deftness describing him as unequal even when the roads that led to the communities where they live are impassable.

As an observer who lives here in Ondo state, I looked around the state

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Three years of Mimiko to really do an honest estimate of the projects of the present administration to enable me present a good view of the current situation.

I can see NEPA and Afunbiowo Street markets. The mother and child hospital, mega schools, Oba Adesida, Arakale and Oba Ile roads at least here in Akure and that I believe is where the governor has the concentration of his pocket of projects. It amazes me that despite the strong financial base he met and the over N300 billion he has so far received from the federation

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account, three years down the road, more than 70% of these projects are yet under construction. His inability to prudently manage the cash at his disposal has plunged the state into N42 billion naira debt.

It is a worrisome fact that the present administration has mortgaged our statutory allocation on loan that has been dedicated to prosecute inflated contracts and uneconomically prioritized projects.

If other states of the federation are sourcing fund from the bond market just for the purpose of financing

infrastructure, must Ondo state join the league? The interest cost on this loan, both the new loan stock and the N15 billion internal loans is over N200 million on monthly basis. If everybody is losing their heads mustn’t we keep ours?

Over N1 billion was said to have been spent on the jamboree. From all indications, majority of the people that attended the public jamboree did on the assurance of pecuniary benefit.

On his way back from the anniversary arena, one of the known

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• Ogunleye Rotimi Williams, Akure, Ondo State.

Bring back Western Region magic to South-west

IR: Between 1963, when Nigeria became a republic, and 1966, when the first military take-over of governance took place, Western Region dictated the pace and trend of development in Nigeria. Late Chief Obafemi Awolowo was the technocrat and philosopher that had the visions and the leadership qualities to turn them into missions. He was ably supported by those that shared and believed in these missions.

Western Region ran a peoplefriendly government, a ‘lean politics’ in which the results superseded the means of achieving them. It was

a result-oriented government targeting sustainability more than ostentation and show-off. We had free education in all parts of the region, we had income from cocoa exportation, we had palm oil and yam and cassava, and we had the best industrial estates in Nigeria.

There were the Ikeja Industrial Estate covering Oba Akran and Adeniyi Jones Street, and Oluyole and Oke-Ado Industrial Estates in Ibadan. The present Ogun State had an industrial estate in Abule-Owu after the Neuro Psychiatric Hospital at Aro. Awolowo gave the western re-

gion many firsts. Western State Broadcasting Corporation (WSBC) came before Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN). Western State had the first television house in Nigeria, the government established the first private university in Ife. The Polytechnic at Ibadan and the research institutes were innovations of the Western State government.

Western region had a television station before Scotland in the United Kingdom. Some parts of Western Region had electricity before Inverness in the highland of Scotland but today Inverness, a ru-

Adieu, Emeka Ojukwu IR: That Ojukwu was popular and immensely loved by his people used to be the common belief amongst people, but events following his death have shown that he is universally loved because of his marriage to the principles of justice and equity which he spent all his life espousing.

On February 25, during the requiem mass for Dim Chukwuemeka OdumegwuOjukwu in London, I met the 83 year old Phil Philip, who, under the auspices of the Joint Churches’

unemployed boys that lives in Igoba estate, dressed in a costly tee -shirt and cap freely supplied by a dedicated agent of the government sat pensively on a chair near my mechanic workshop completely fagged out. I inquired from him where he was coming from; in an apparent shame he reluctantly informed me that he attended the third year jamboree because of the promise of a thousand naira by the agent of the government.

Apart from his distant assessors who on invitation by the governor have measured the performance of Mimiko from the wetness of the flowers planted on the roadside by the present administration, the people of the state are deep in economic hardship and are daily looking up to God and man for liberation.

Council piloted one of the planes that supplied relief materials to Biafra during the war.

The old man said that the moment he got to know the real reasons Ojukwu was forced to defend his people, he was inspired to put all he had into assisting the worthy cause of justice.

Mr. Phil is not alone. Since Ojukwu’s death, we have witnessed a torrent of tributes.

All those who spoke about him, past leaders of different categories and people from all walks of life,

struck the same chord. Today, everybody has one good thing or the other to say about Ojukwu’s sacrifices for justice and the type of leadership he provided for his people. This is the challenge he leaves us as he bows out. How many of us today have been just to our neighbours and to the nation?

Are we ready to make similar sacrifices for the well-being of future generations as he did? Given a slight opportunity, all of us would want to appropriate the resources of the state for ourselves without a

moment’s reflection on the cost of such action on the society.

Much as Ojukwu made sacrifices, can we say that today, both the leaders and the led in Nigeria are willing to make sacrifices? Ikemba, Dikedioramma, Ezeigbo Gburugburu, you had seen it all.

You gave us so much of yourself that we can hardly let you go.

Although the time is due for you to move on to a higher plane, neither time nor space can break our bond.

•Peter Obi Awka, Anambra State

ral city in Scotland, is more sustainably developed than any part of Western region. We excelled in education, sports, industry and in infrastructural development and our culture was our symbol.

We have lost greatly in this union we cast our all but the investment is so enormous that integration and not secession is our best bet. If the whole refuses to move, what is wrong with a part moving it forward as a people on issues that affect our collective stand? It is our collective resolve to develop the parts that make up the whole. It is now our challenge to re-enact the Western Region era show.

With a stronger Western Region through collaboration of the states in the South West, Edo and Delta who share the same culture and aspirations, Nigeria will be great again. Switzerland has no petroleum and is self-sustaining. The United Kingdom, where our people are running to for work and to spend their retirement, has less reserve of petroleum than Nigeria and yet they are greater. If we can re-act the Awolowo era show, not only the Western States, but Nigeria will be greater.

• Olufemi Oyedele, Cotonou, Republique Du Benin.

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THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

EDITORIAL/OPINION

Yobe: Fixing the North one state at a time

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HERE is no question that Nigeria is going through difficult times. As many experts and commentators noted and, more significantly, as a majority of Nigerians going about their daily businesses know, security and social conditions have never been worse. The situation is graver in the northern part of the country where the Boko Haram insurgency has led to the loss of hundreds of innocent lives and continues to take a heavy toll on the region’s socio-economic development.

These problems must be fixed for the country – and for the North – to move forward. There is no way, for instance, that we can expect any meaningful industrial growth when we can’t guarantee electric power supply from the national grid at least 15 hours a day. There is no way we can out-compete even the West African countries that still benefit from our support and assistance if we can’t ensure a stable and secure investment climate and if our schools fail to teach pupils and students the skills they need to become future entrepreneurs and innovators.

And there is no way that we can get out of this vicious circle if we are not genuinely and wholeheartedly engaged in the task of finding honest solutions to real problems.

Unfortunately, there are some who see the current unfortunate security and social situation not as a call to collective action and a return to the basic values that unite us as Nigerians, but as an opportunity to score personal or political points; those whose holier-than-thou take on the issues of the moment make them preach what they are not. Rather than add to the substance of the debate for viable solutions, these people conflate the issues by assuming quick-fixes to endemic problems, thereby making a mockery of the modest efforts that governments, individuals and groups continue to make to address problems in a real and sustainable way.

One clear example is a preachment to the Yobe State Government by one Ayisha Osori. Writing in the Leadership news-

‘In the North today, Yobe is about the only the State that gives the highest discount of 65 percent for houses allocated to workers on owner-occupier basis. The Gaidam administration had so far built 1160 units of public housing and currently, along the Guba-Maiduguri By-Pass road in Damaturu metropolis, a new 300 housing estate is under construction and nearing completion.

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HETEROGENEOUS society made up of 167 million people, a nation of multi talented crop of humans. A land flowing with milk and honey in a very vivid and physical sense, a tourist destination, a fertile land for agriculture, splendid climate a blend of not too hot and not too cold. Indeed this country has all it takes to be one of the few greats among the committee of nations.

Yet, she is faced with a daunting, religiocultural rift that is threatening her very existence as a country.

The term “Boko Haram” comes from the Hausa word boko meaning “Animist, western or otherwise non-Islamic education” and the Arabic word haram figuratively meaning “sin” (literally, “forbidden”). Originally called Jama’atul Ahlus Sunna Lid Da’awatis Jihad but named Boko Haram. The group was founded in 2002 in Maiduguri by Ustaz Mohammed Yusuf. In 2004 it moved to Kanamma, Yobe State, where it set up a base called “Afghanistan”.Boko Haram is a controversial Nigerian militant Islamist group that seeks the imposition of Sharia law in the northern states of Nigeria.

It is opposed not only to Western education, but Western culture and modern science as well. Yusuf is hostile to democracy and the secular education system, vowing that “this war that is yet to start would continue for long” if the political and educational system was not changed. ‘There isn’t good leadership in Nigeria. Muslims are being killed daily and the authorities are doing nothing about it.

These are the reasons why we are retaliating against the police, because they are the ones who killed our brothers.’ The sect has killed 250 so far this year and a least 935 since 2009 according to Human Rights watch.

Terrorism is a global trend which needs to be tackled intelligently. Nigeria has seen a glimpse of the Boko Haram challenge and come to the realization that it cannot be wished away. Thus, there is a greater need for continuous information and sensitization to becoming more security conscious. Safety it is said, is less expensive than accident. Nigerians need to be aware of the mode of operation of terror operatives to make informed and timely decisions. Obviously, our security apparatus

By Babangida Jaba paper of February 14 under the title ‘Fixing the North: One State at a Time’, Osori ventured what appeared to be a concerned attempt at making Yobe State revive and tap from its vast agricultural and other potentials. But a closer reading reveals a concealed attempt to misinform unsuspecting readers about the situation in the state and take attention away from the modest effort of Governor Ibrahim Gaidam at improving the people’s living conditions and addressing long standing social problems.

For starters, social development is always said to be a work in progress. Created in 1991, Yobe State, like other states around the country, had seen its fair share of progress and missed opportunities. Like every part of the country, things could always be better. But it is from 2007, when the current administration took over, that Yobe began to see real movement in the direction of change.

Take every key social sector where government can be a catalyst for social development. In the roads sector, for example, Yobe State had remained one of the most internally inaccessible for long. In many nooks and crannies of the state, movement of people and goods was difficult for as long as the rainy season lasted annually. As a result, even farm produce which could be taken to the markets for sale by local farmers sometimes get to rot away because of the difficulty in getting them out.

During the 2011 electioneering campaign, as those who followed the campaigns knew, demands for road construction and for access roads by local communities were by far the largest made of all the political parties and their candidates.

It is no wonder that the Gaidam administration considers roads development an important priority. The fact that the federal government had not built one single road in Yobe State since the return of democracy in 1999 also underscored the need to push ahead with roads building to link agricultural and business communities and improve social interaction. If the Yobe State government decided to devote a large chunk of resources to this sector, as it did in the 2012 Budget and the previous four years, it is because roads are expensive to build. It is not because they are necessarily more important than, say, education or agriculture, as some have erroneously tried to make out.

In any case, the Gaidam administration is giving the state’s education and agriculture sectors about the highest priority of any administration so far. Although the government is working to improve school environments and enhance teaching and learning, by renovating the schools, providing furniture, books and other incentives, it is worth mentioning that the Gaidam administration had not spent N2.3 billion in the provision of furniture at the Bukar Abba Ibrahim University, Damaturu as the article by Ayisha Osori wrongly pointed out.

The entire budget for the state university in 2011 was N700 million. Except to mischievously misplace the issues, and to try to suggest wrongdoing where there was none, there is simply no way that fund for furniture would have exceeded the total budget for the institution by over 200 percent.

All this is not to suggest that some of the suggestions by Osori on developing agriculture and other natural resources are vainglorious. Many of them are already being implemented. Yobe farmers, for example, continue to get some of the highest subsidies on fertilizer and farm inputs in the North.

At a time that a bag of NPK fertilizer was selling at over N5, 000 in the open market, the Gaidam administration provided the same product at N1, 900 during the last farming season.

Over 16, 000 metric tons were provided last year alone. The government had also procured and deployed over 700 tractors and implements to rural communities to support farmers. Ten tractors were deployed to each of the 17 local government areas while farming cooperatives also received some on loan purchase to their members.

Only a week ago, the Yobe State government also engaged 200 university graduates and holders of HND certificates into the civil service, bringing the total to around 1, 000 that were engaged in two years at that level. Under the Ministry of Youth Development’s Youth Empowerment Programme also, some 10, 000 youths were sponsored for skill acquisition training at the Sani Abatcha Youth Development Center in Kano and, upon their graduation, were provided with the tools to practice what they had learnt and set up their own businesses free of charge.

Other critical social sectors, such as health and housing, are also progressively upgraded and turned around to improve the living conditions of Yobe people. In the North today, Yobe is about the only the State that gives the highest discount of 65 percent for houses allocated to workers on owneroccupier basis. The Gaidam administration had so far built 1160 units of public housing and currently, along the GubaMaiduguri By-Pass road in Damaturu metropolis, a new 300 housing estate is under construction and nearing completion. When this housing estate is completed in the next two months, the total houses built by the government will be 1460. Even the most unrepentant critics will acknowledge the importance of housing and shelter to the well being of the people.

All these go to show that the Yobe State government is keen to improve on the living conditions of its people. As the saying goes, the room for improvement is the biggest space in the world. This is why Governor Gaidam, in a workshop organised recently for senior government officials on accountability and transparency in Damaturu, spoke of his commitment to entrenching good governance as a means of curbing waste and corruption and maximizing resource utilization for the benefit of the people.

• Jaba writes from Damaturu.

Boko Haram: Which way out?

By Fortune Gbenedio have proven inadequate. People need to organize themselves into homeland security networks.

Economic growth and prosperity comes as a result of a stable political as well as the social state of any nation. Nigeria needs a safe, conducive environment for government to operate and run effectively and efficiently.

It is no gain saying that this is a collective effort, all need to agree before this nation can sail safely across life’s stormy seas.

Consequent to this is foreign investments that boost the economy of any nation. The fear of Boko Haram is giving the country a poor image and loss of foreign investors.

We need peace. Nigerians need to come together and agree to work and stay together as a united entity. Blessed with different religious preferences, with multicultural panorama, above all the human resources potentials of the country are boundless.

Instead of bombing and destruction, we need to build bridges across our differences, cement the cracks that are dividing us as a people, come together in unity cause united we stand, divided we fall.

Government in itself needs to have people to govern. Without the people there will be no government. Hence, insecurity and the like should be tackled firmly. Injustice should be corrected and reconciliation made.

Government apparatus and infrastructure should function as they should, corruption should be killed, and government should be transparent so that all would see that there is nothing to hide. With all of these government will succeed and as proposed during electoral campaign, politician should deliver on their campaign promises. Against this background nobody will have reason to take up arms in any form to foment trouble.

The first acid test for the present government was the politically-motivated riots that erupted in some parts of the north; following the emergence of the President

Goodluck Ebele Jonathan as the president.

Subsequently, after his swearing in, he was greeted with the Jos upheavals that left scores dead, we wake up and go to sleep with the music of bombs left, right, and centre.

What would the previous administration have done? Or how would it have handled the situation: Decisively or with kid gloves?

Your guess is as good as mine. With due respect to the Commander in Chief of our armed forces, Nigerians need someone ‘in charge’ of her affairs, someone who welds the necessary authority and speaks as well as shows that it is no business as usual. Knowing when to be tough, diplomatic, and compromise. Someone who takes charge not only in words, but one who ‘barks’ as well as ‘bite’. This is very true in the situation in which we find ourselves; we need timely action to meet with our clear and present danger because anything short of this will cost Nigeria and Nigerians a lot.

Why is the Boko Haram situation lingering?

How come suspects are apprehended, and before they are taken to court and tried they escape police custody in broad day light?

These questions could go and on, but certain facts remain: the Boko Haram and other political challenges remain unresolved because some of our leaders seem to have compromised or hidden ’skeletons’ in their closets.

Nigerians need to come together to put aside individual and ethnic prejudices because the country belongs to all. Every true born citizen of the country that qualifies stands the chance to vie for any or the highest office in the land and nobody should pull down the heavens because of personal interest. The time is coming and is dawning when Nigerians will resist all forces that stand against the country’s drive to reaching and exceeding her potential for greatness. They will stand up and say, “Enough is enough.”

The President needs to take decisive and

adequate steps towards strengthening security networks in various parts of the country. He needs to draft specialists from all our security forces in the country to constitute a counter terrorist squad (CTS). The CTS would comprise people who can use force when necessary, persons who can think on their feet and operate with speed and intelligence. Indeed, they need to be people who can operate with tact and diligence.

President Jonathan I believe is aware that this is a war that needs to be fought shrewdly.

More than ever before, these call for the use of his presidential powers in checking the excesses of violence in some states by declaring a state of emergency in any state when the threat to peace and security become intolerable. This might require temporal suspension of any governors found wanting, or who has compromised his oath of office.

This will put a check to cases state executives’ compromising or sponsoring terrorist activities while acting as if they have no clue about what is going on. Furthermore, people in public office need to learn to be selfless in the discharge of their responsibilities by putting Nigeria first in all they do.

Above all, justice should be done in our judiciary; sentences should be carried out on the conclusion of all legal procedures. We believe in the Sovereignty of Nigeria. We believe in its unity. We believe in its advancement. On the strength of this, there should be no ‘sacred cows’ in our polity.

• Gbenedio writes from Babcock University, Ilishan-Remo, Ogun State.

‘Instead of bombing and destruction, we need to build bridges across our differences, cement the cracks that are dividing us as a people, come together in unity cause united we stand, divided we fall’

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

22

EDITORIAL/OPINION

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HE call by northern governors for an alteration of the revenue sharing formula to give more to their region is bound to generate a good measure of resentment. Babangida Aliyu, Governor of Niger state who spoke for his northern colleagues said the review became necessary so as to reflect “current realities’.

Piqued that his state got between N4.2bn and N4.5bn monthly allocation whereas some others got 20 times the amount, he said it will not serve any useful purpose if some parts are not doing well while others are doing exceptionally well. For this, he promised that the ‘pressure will continue until we are able to find a solution’ Implicit in this is the obvious inference that their grouse is with the derivation principle of the revenue formula. The governors are neither asking for the whittling down of the 52.68 per cent federal share, 26.72 per cent shared on the equality of states nor the 20.6 per cent for local governments. If they had been asking the federal authority to divest some of the revenue at its disposal to the benefit of the states, it would have made more sense.

But they seem not concerned about that. Their anger is with the 13 per cent earmarked in the constitution as derivation for oil bearing states.

That is the aspect of the revenue allocation formula that on the face value, gives advantage to some states. On the face value because, there are also other components of that sharing formula that some sections take advantage of but which did not come into the purview of the northern governors. If they had given a thought to them, it may have served to modify their extreme views on the matter of

‘The heuristic value of the northern governors’ position is in drawing attention to the imperfections of our federal structure. Their stand reinforces more poignantly, the imperative of reexamining the ground norms for our existence as a nation. It is getting clearer by the day that we can wish away the tide of restructuring at a great peril’

Emeka OMEIHE 08121971199 email: EmekaOmeihe@yahoo.com

Northern Governors and Derivation derivation.

For instance, their calculations left out or deliberately ignored the disparities in states and local government structure between the north and south which could also tilt the balance. Of the 36 states, the north has 19 excluding the federal capital territory (which is also more or less a state) while the south has 17. In terms of the number of local governments, the disparity is even more glaring. Kano state alone, has 45 while Katsina 34. The local governments in Kano state alone are more than that of the three southern states of Bayelsa, Anambra and Ebonyi put together.

Yet, these are extant units for revenue sharing.

What these imply is that in terms of the percentage revenue accruals from the federation account, the north receives more than their southern counterparts when computed on the basis of the number of states and local governments. These facts are not in doubt. The need for even development among the various states of the federation cannot be discountenanced. Before now, it has been vigorously canvassed that there is the imperative to reduce the enormous resources at the federal level to the benefit of states and local councils. That does not seen to be the concern of the northern governors. The issue is the derivation principle.

But what should be of interest here is not just that one section receives more money than the other. The capacity of the superintending parasitic elite to plough them for the general good of the people is very important. It is therefore superfluous to contend as the governors did, that the northern section of the country is not developing because it has no access to the revenue accruing from derivation.

That would amount to an oversimplification of the complex factors that influence the momentum and direction of development.

This is more so when it is realized that not all the states in the south share in the derivation revenue. Aliyu will therefore be hard put to account for why some southern states that do not share in the fund, rate high in the development matrix than many states in the north.

We also needed to be told if states with the highest share from derivation also topped the ladder in the development chart. Per capita income has not got much to do with the amount of money at the hands of the government. That is why though Nigeria is rated a very rich country, yet it trails behind in human development and poverty indicators. Why this is so should constitute a food for thought for Aliyu and his kinsman at the Central Bank of Nigeria, Lamido Sanusi who has been at the forefront of this sectional and misdirected campaign.

He had in an interview with the Financial Times of London decried what he termed the low allocation to the northern states from the federation account. Sanusi also rationalized the devious activities of the Boko Haram sect on the uneven distribution of the nation’s wealth. This conclusion is not only ridiculous but at variance with the reasons given by the group for its activities. It is very sad and dangerous for a key public officer like Sanusi to transmute over night into an image launderer for that dreaded religious sect, imputing motives into their actions even when they have not said so. From all we know, Boko Haram is against anything western including its development paradigm.

So if you make more funds available to them, chances are they will deploy them to the pursuit of their fancied agenda.

How then did Sanusi get his facts that Boko Haram which has shown strong aversion to western education and the development it conveys is interested in the western development model? Or how is the western development concept in tandem with the sect’s avowal to do away with anything associated to it and impose sharia law in the country?

These are the sore facts of Sanusi’s reckless use of just revenue accruals to account for the complex human, socio-cultural and religious issues that impinge in the ability and capacity of a people to respond to change. Apparently persuaded by Sanusi’s misleading data, it is not surprising that northern governors have taken up the issue without examining the entire ramifications of the claim. Even without going into the settled argument on the propriety of derivation, it is incongruous to account for the difference in the poverty index of the north and south solely on the basis of inequitable revenue allocation arising from the derivation principle. It just cannot add up as there are other potent variables. Human capital is a key issue. The determination of a people to improve on their squalid living conditions also comes into play. That is why all over the globe, you find Nigerians of southern extraction doing all manner of menial and sometimes ignoble jobs in order to take care of themselves and people at home.

Many of them are hewers of wood and drawers of water in foreign lands because they are desirous of changing their lot at home.

The foreign currencies they earn impact positively on development in their home states. There is also an array of very qualified Nigerian professionals of southern extraction earning fat foreign exchange abroad. They did neither wait for oil revenue nor has oil revenue got anything to do with their standard of living. Thus, any development index that shuts out the human factor and private window of foreign capital in flow is at best, a figment of educated guess lacking in empirical validity. That is the folly of the argument we have been led into by Sanusi.

Perhaps, the heuristic value of the northern governors’ position is in drawing attention to the imperfections of our federal structure.

Their stand reinforces more poignantly, the imperative of re-examining the ground norms for our existence as a nation. It is getting clearer by the day that we can wish away the tide of restructuring at a great peril. Now that any and every body is complaining, who will stand on the path to restructuring? Your guess is as good as mine.

VIEW FROM THE FOREIGN PRESS

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N e-mail came in the other day with a subject line that I couldn’t ignore.

It was from the oil economist Phil Verleger, and it read: “Should the United States join OPEC?” That I had to open.

Verleger’s basic message was that the knee-jerk debate we’re again having over who is responsible for higher oil prices fundamentally misses huge changes that have taken place in America’s energy output, making us again a major oil and gas producer — and potential exporter — with an interest in reasonably high but stable oil prices.

From one direction, he says, we’re seeing the impact of the ethanol mandate put in place by President George W. Bush, which established fixed quantities of biofuels to be used in gasoline. When this is combined with improved vehicle fuel economy — in July, the auto industry agreed to achieve fleet averages of more than 50 miles per gallon by 2025 — it will inevitably drive down demand for gasoline and create more surplus crude to export. Add to that, says Verleger, “the increase in oil production from offshore fields and unconventional sources in America,” and that exportable U.S. surplus could grow even bigger.

Then, add the recent discoveries of natural gas deposits all over America, which will allow us to substitute gas for coal at power plants and become a natural gas exporter as well. Put it all together, says Verleger, and you can see why America “will want to consider joining with other energy-exporting countries, like those in OPEC, to sustain high oil prices. Such an effort would support domestic oil and gas production and give the U.S. a real competitive advantage over countries forced to pay high prices for imported energy —

A Good Question ByThomas L. Friedman nations such as China, European Union members, and Japan.”

Indeed, Bloomberg News reported last week that “the U.S. is the closest it has been in almost 20 years to achieving energy selfsufficiency. ... Domestic oil output is the highest in eight years. The U.S. is producing so much natural gas that, where the government warned four years ago of a critical need to boost imports, it now may approve an export terminal.” As a result, “the U.S. has reversed a two-decade-long decline in energy independence, increasing the proportion of demand met from domestic sources over the last six years to an estimated 81 percent through the first 10 months of 2011.” This transformation could make the U.S. the world’s top energy producer by 2020, raise more tax revenue, free us from worrying about the Middle East, and, if we’re smart, build a bridge to a much cleaner energy future.

All of this is good news, but it will come true at scale only if these oil and gas resources can be extracted in an environmentally sustainable manner. This can be done right, but we need a deal between environmentalists and the oil and gas industry to lock it in — now.

Says Hal Harvey, an independent energy expert: “The oil and gas companies need to decide: Do they want to fight a bloody and painful war of attrition with local communities or take the lead in setting high environmental standards — particularly for “fracking,” the process used to

extract all these new natural gas deposits — “and then live up to them.”

Higher environmental standards may cost more, but only incrementally, if at all, and they’ll make the industry and the environment safer.

In the case of natural gas, we need the highest standards for cleanup of land that is despoiled by gas extraction and to prevent leakage of gas either into aquifers or the atmosphere. Yes, “generating a kilowatt-hour’s worth of electricity with a natural gas turbine emits only about half as much CO2 as from a coal plant,” says Harvey, and that’s great. “But one molecule of leaked gas contributes as much to global warming as 25 molecules of burned gas. That means that if the system for the exploration, extraction, compression, piping and burning of natural gas leaks by even 2.5 percent, it is as bad as coal.”

Hence, Harvey’s five rules for natural gas are: Don’t allow leaky systems; use gas to phase out coal; have sound well drilling and casing standards; don’t pollute the landscape with brackish or toxic water brought up by fracking; and drill only where it is sensible.

I’d add a sixth rule for crude oil. No one likes higher oil prices. But — perversely — the high price benefits America as we rapidly become a bigger oil producer and it ensures that investments will continue to flow into energy efficient cars and trucks. If we were smart, we would estab-

lish today a floor price for any barrel of crude oil or gallon of gasoline sold or imported into America — and tax anything below it. A stable, sufficiently high floor price serves the environment, our technology investments and our energy productivity. As our producers succeed, we would become increasingly energy self-sufficient, keep a lot more dollars at home for our Treasury, stimulate innovation on renewables and drive down the global oil price that is the sole source sustaining Iran and other petro-dictators.

But all of this depends on an understanding between the oil industry and the environmentalists. If President Obama could pull that off, it would be a huge contribution to America’s security, economy and environment.

– New York Times

‘The oil and gas companies need to decide: Do they want to fight a bloody and painful war of attrition with local communities or take the lead in setting high environmental standards — particularly for “fracking,” the process used to extract all these new natural gas deposits — “and then live up to them.” ‘

Joel Obi: I’ll be bigger than ‘Jay Jay’ Pg. 41

Ameobi salvages point for Newcastle Pg. 24

•Okocha

Nation Monday, March 5, 2012

PAGE 23

Osaze

Pg. 24

pleased with triple

award

•Osaze

24

41

NATIONSPORT MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

NATION SPORT

Osaze

Ameobi salvages point for Newcastle

S

H O L A I scored t i m e as Newcatsle drew 1-1 m a n in the derby

•Ameobi

AMEOB an injuryequaliser United with 10Sunderland Tyne-Wear on Sunday.

The point l e a v e s Newcastle five points behind Arsenal in the race for fourth.

Nicklas Bendtner put Sunderland ahead with a 24thminute penalty, but Stephane Sessegnon was sent off for elbowing Chiek Tiote 13 minutes into the second half.

That prompted a siege, and Simon Mignolet saved a Demba Ba penalty with eight minutes remaining.

The equaliser finally arrived in injury time, through, Ameobi heading in at the back post.

The first booking of a feisty game came after only 33 seconds, Lee Cattermole perhaps fortunate not to be sent off for a dreadful lunge on Cheik Tiote, and five more followed in the opening quarter of the game.

In that spell, there was also a mass confrontation after Danny Simpson

reacted angrily to a foul by James McClean as well as angry words between the two managers.

The away side took the lead after 24 minutes, Bendtner becoming the first Sunderland player to score a penalty this season after referee Mike Dean had penalised Danny Williamson for pulling the shirt of Michael Turner.

Sunderland were on top at that stage, minding to play a little football between the stoppages, but Newcastle rallied towards the end of the first half and enjoyed a spell of protracted pressure.

Mignolet made a fine save to keep out a Fabricio Coloccini header and then Demba Ba headed against the crossbar.

Newcastle continued to apply pressure early in the second half, but it took a superb double save from Tim Krul to deny first Seb Larsson then McClean as Sunderland broke.

The game tipped decisively Newcastle's way 13 minutes into the second period, though, as Sessegnon was sent off for swinging an arm at Tiote.

Tiote went down clutching his face having been hit in the chest, but there was no doubting that the decision was correct.

Newcastle piled on the pressure, and were awarded a penalty with eight minutes remaining as Fraizer Campbell fouled Shola Ameobi.

pleased with triple

award

•Osaze

2012 FIFA U-20 WOMEN'S WORLD CUP QUALIFIER

Super Falconets hit Abuja camp today

P

LAYERS of the Nigeria From Tunde Liadi, Owerri Women's Under 20 team d u b b e d t h e S u p e r preparation for the second round of Falconets will report to their qualifier for the 2012 FIFA U-20 Abuja c a m p t o d a y i n Women's World Cup slated for Japan.

The head coach of the team Edwin Okon last week invited 29 players to camp ahead of the second round first leg clash between Nigeria and the winner of Mozambique and Zimbabwe tango. Zimbabwe won the first leg of the tie in Harare 4-0 and the team is highly favoured to square up IGERIA will begin with Nigeria in the next round. It was the defence of the after the Falconets have gained a berth A f r i c a n Y o u t h to the next stage without kicking a ball Championship when they as their opponent, Sierra Leone take on either Sudan or withdrew.

One of the assistant coaches in the team, Chris Nwehi told NationSport that the players would first begin the first part of the build up to the qualifier at Abuja before rounding it off in Abeokuta, the venue of the tie few days to the match.

The first leg of the second round fixture holds in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria on the 24 March with the return leg fixed for two weeks later.

Nigeria has participated in every edition of the Under 20 Championship since inception in 2002 and the Falconets got to the final of the last edition before losing to Germany in Dresden.

Tanzania at the end of July.

The winners of the first round match-up between Sudan and Tanzania, which is slated for between April and May, will take on the reigning African U20 champions on the weekend of 27-29 with the return leg match in Nigeria a fortnight later.

And the winners of this second round fixture will then battle the winners of the match between Congo and South Africa.

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) are expected to name a new coach for the Nigeria U20s this week.

The Flying Eagles defeated Cameroon 3-2 to win the 2011 AYC staged in South Africa.

The next AYC will be staged

by Algeria next year with the top four teams flying Africa's flag at the 2013 FIFA U20 World Cup in Turkey between June 21 and July 13.

Nigerians were expecting so much from the track and field team, most especially as it this same sport that rescued the country at the last All Africa Games in Maputo, Mozambizue.

"We cannot afford to let down the country at the Olympics in London. You need to constantly monitor our athletes in their various bases and report back to the federation their progress. We on our part at the AFN board will do all we can to support these athletes," stressed the Delta State commissioner on the NDDC board.

Nigeria' track and field team is to have two training camps in Atlanta and California in the United States of America as part of the country's preparations for the Olympics.

Nigeria begins AYC title defence July

N

S

UPER EAGLES’ striker, Peter Osaze Odemwingie says he deserves his Barclays English Premier League Player of the Month award for February.

The 30-year-old became only the second player in the Midlands after Manchester United winger, Ashley Young to scoop the award three times following his sparkling showings in February.

The striker's award came on the back of impressive showings for the month which saw him net a hat-trick in the 5-1 rout against Wolverhampton Wanderers and a double when the Baggies thrashed

AFN appoints committee to monitor Olympic Training Camp Sunday, March 4

T

HE Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN), yesterday appointed a four-man committee to monitor the country's track and field team preparing for the London 2012 Olympics.

The committee is headed by AFN board member Dr Ken Anugweje who also doubles as NUGA president.

The vastly experienced sports medicine expert is to work with AFN secretary, Mrs Maria Wophil, a former Team Nigeria captain Yusuf Alli and Ag Group Sports Editor of THISDAY Newspaper, Mr Duro Ikhazuagbe.

President of the AFN Chief Solomon Ogba charged the committee to carry out the assignment with utmost seriousness it deserves because.

Sunderland 4-1 at Molineaux in the final weekend of February.

“The award in particular is one the team deserves because we have scored so many goals,” Odemwingie said.

"It's totally deserved and if I could share it into pieces and give each player his own piece, I would. I am very happy to have won,” he said.

Odemwingie has now scored nine goals in the 2011/2012 BPL and having started the season on such an auspicious note, the attacker is pleased to have finally turned the corner.

“The season did not start too good for me but now things seem to have turned around for me and the team and I am very happy,” he said.

SuperSport.com can report that Odemwingie has now gone into the history as the first African player to win the prestigious award on three occasions.

Former Leeds United and Black Stars of Ghana striker, Tony Yeboah had won the award on two occasions.

Omeruo happy with debut clean sheet

E

X-NIGERIA youth international Kenneth Omeruo has said he is happy to have shut out one of the best attacks in the Dutch league on his debut Saturday.

The 19-year-old Omeruo played his first-ever official game in Europe Saturday as his club ADO Den Haag held out for a goalless draw with Heerenveen.

The former Sunshine Stars ace was in the junior ranks at Belgian club

Standard Liege before he opted for a deal with Chelsea that has seen him loaned out to Den Haag.

The highly-rated Nigerian defender played for 89 minutes before he was replaced by Chiro N'Toko to a rousing ovation by the 12,000-strong crowd at the ADO Den Haag Stadium.

“The draw was a good result for us considering the quality of the opposition, who boast one of the best attacks in the entire league,”

Omeruo told MTNFoo tball.com “The team, the fans and the press congratulated me on my debut and they said that it did not show that I was playing at right back for the first time.

“I must have done a great job because I marked out one of the best wingers in the league, Rajiv van La Parra, who had to be replaced by Morocco international Oussama Assaidi at the start of the second half.

“I was very happy with my man marking. And overall I would score myself an 8 out of 10.”

He added, “Because of our injury problems and the suspension of our captain, we mostly defended in the first half.”

Den Haag remain in 15th place on the table with 25 points from 24 matches.

Omeruo said he expects to play again at right back away at Heracles on Saturday b e c a u s e t h e established player in that position is still out injured.

NATION SPORT

Erico faults Joel Obi: I'll be plans for BIGGER THAN foreign coach 'Jay Jay’

•Okocha

By Innocent Amomoh

F

ORMER coach of the Super Eagles Joseph Erico has frowned at the rumors making the rounds that the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) plans to contract a foreign coach to tinker the senior national team to subsequent engagements.

Erico, who bared his mind on the outcome of the Nations Cup qualification match against Rwanda which ended in a goalless draw, said the NFF would have taken this decision before now and after contracting an indigenous coach for the team.

“I am not comfortable with the plans to contract a foreign technical adviser for the Super Eagles at this time. The NFF should have known what they wanted and go for it in the first place. We must begin to discourage this win by all cost mentality and realize that in football we win some and loss some,” Erico advised.

On the not too-impressive performance by the Super Eagle in Kigali, the Jogo Bonito exponent blamed Keshi for not strictly sticking to the home based team he has built to prosecute the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualification match.

“Well I am very happy that Keshi has said any foreign player that is not ready to play for the country should not bother come when invited. For me he would play the match against Rwanda with the home based players he took to Liberia.

“Thank God we did not loss, but I expect the coach to make the necessary changes in the grey areas of the team. I think that everything necessary was done preparatory to the match, the visit of former coaches to the camp, including that of Kanu Nwankwo should have inspired the players to do better,” he further asserted.

He however charged coaches in Nigeria to desist from the act of recycling athletes, but that they should the attitude of developing athletes from the grass root that will take over from the older ones.

•Omeruo

I

N THIS exclusive interview with MTNFootball.com, Inter Milan midfielder Joel Chukwuma Obi has revealed that he hopes to be a bigger star than Nigeria 2002 World Cup skipper Austin 'Jay Jay' Okocha as he hopes to help the Eagles win the 2013 AFCON and reach the final of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

He assures that there is no cause for alarm after the 0-0 draw in Rwanda in a 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier and also speaks on the big role Jose Mourinho has played in his blossoming career.

Many fans back home in Nigeria see Joel Obi as new Jay Jay Okocha, what can you say?I thank them for that compliment. It means they love and appreciate my qualities as a footballer.

I am a young man who is ready to put in anything I have for Nigeria and my club, I will do my best for Eagles, but mind you I am not Okocha and I can't be Okocha. There can never be another 'Jay Jay' Okocha, he made his mark in Eagles while he was there.

I am Joel Obi and I am aspiring to do more than Okocha in the national team. He has done a lot for Nigerian football and I wish to surpass him. I will do my best so as not to disappoint Nigeria, myself, the fans and the coach.

Are you related to Mikel Obi? Yes and No. We are related as far as football is concerned because we are one big family in the Super Eagles, but if it is blood relation, no. I am from Imo State while Mikel is from Anambra.

What are your ambitions as a player?

I want to make it big. I want to be one of the best in the world and win a lot of trophies at club level. I want to play and w i n t h e African Cup of Nations starting with the one in 2013 and I wish to play at World Cup in Brazil in 2014 and set a record.

What record?

To be among the first set of Nigeria players to reach final of the FIFA World Cup or at worst reach semi-final in Brazil.

Do you think Eagles have all it takes to reach that height?

Yes, Nigeria is a blessed country and there are a lot of players home and abroad. I am optimistic we will get there.

But the Eagles started the 2013 Nations Cup qualifiers on a laboured note with a draw in Rwanda?

We went there to win but it was not to be. I don't want to give excuses for not winning the match, but I am sure we will put it right in the ret urn leg.

You are playing for one of the best teams in the world, Inter Milan, how do you feel?

The feeling has been great and wonderful since I joined Inter reserves. I was very happy when coach Jose Mourinho promoted me to the senior team to train •Joel Obi with players like Zanetti and Eto'o.

It was wonderful and they motivated me a lot to raise my game. I owe my progress here to Mourinho because he gave me the breakthrough I needed to launch myself.

You have played a limited number of games this season so far, are you disappointed?

No. Inter are a big team with a lot of young as well as experienced old players, and so being on the list of registered players and making it to the bench is an achievement but I want to press further.

I am learning here and to get a chance to play in the team is a great achievement for me.

I am happy that anytime I play, my coach and teammates praise me for a good outing, which is enough motivation for me to get better. I will continue to do my best to see that I tie down a regular shirt with Inter.

Finally, what message do you have for your fans?

They should keep praying for me and I will keep making them happy and proud of me. They should also keep faith with Eagles, this is a new team being built and I am sure we will get it right under coach Stephen Keshi.

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

25

BUSINESS THE NATION

E-mail:- bussiness@thenationonlineng.net

If we do have an expansionary budget plus the fuel subsidy removal, I think the likelihood is more for an increase in interest rates than a cut.

-Lamido Sanusi, CBN Governor

J OBS T HE CEO ‘Over 60% of phones in circulation fake, P. 32

Job hunting made easy, P. 29

News Briefing NAICOM on new firms THE National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) will only issue licence to applicants with extra-ordinary business model to float new insurance companies, the Commissioner for Insurance Mr Fola Daniel, has said.

DMO infrastructure loans THE Debt Management Office (DMO) has said its inability to provide sovereign guarantee for critical projects of the economy, was due to the delay in getting approval from the Federal Government.

CBN adds Yuan to reserves THE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has added the equivalent of $500 million in Chinese Yuan to its reserves and plans to buy seven times that amount, in a shift that underscores booming commerce between China and the Africa.

Sale of Nigeria Unity Line shares THE National Council on Privatisation (NCP) has approved the sale of Federal Government’s shares in Nigeria Unity Line (NUL) through a strategic investor.

- Pages 26

DATA STREAM COMMODITY PRICES Oil -$107/barrel Cocoa -$2,686.35/metric ton Coffee - ¢132.70/pound Cotton - ¢95.17pound Gold -$1,800/troy ounce Rubber -¢159.21pound MARKET CAPITALISATIONS NSE JSE NYSE LSE

-N6.503 trillion -Z5.112trillion -$10.84 trillion -£61.67 trillion RATES Inflation -10.5% Treasury Bills -7.08% Maximum lending-22.42% Prime lending -15.87% Savings rate -2% 91-day NTB -15% Time Deposit -5.49% MPR -12% Foreign Reserve $33.01b FOREX CFA 0.2958 EUR 206.9 £ 242.1 $ 156 ¥ 1.9179 SDR 238 RIYAL 40.472

•Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Enterprise Bank Limited Ahmed Kuru(right) in a hand shake with Managing Director/Chief Executive, Union Bank UK Plc, Dr. Adekola Ali,when the latter visited the Enterprise Bank boss in Lagos from United Kingdom ... at the weekend..

CBN probes banks’ forex deals in April T

HE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will next month probe banks’ foreign exchange transactions.

Known in banking parlance as special or target examination, the investigation is to ensure that banks’ foreign exchange deals are in line with the stipulated rules.

The examination, it was learnt, is to enable the banking watchdog to authenticate the huge demands by banks at the official foreign exchange market (Dutch auction system) where the apex bank

•Concludes profit audit

By Ayodele Aminu, Group Business Editor

has until, lately, continued to defend the naira with the country’s foreign exchange, which had dropped to $34.74 billion, as at February 27.

The probe, according to a top CBN official, who does not want his name is print, would include the three nationalised banks - Keystone, Mainstreet and Enterprise Bank.

Similar exercise, which was

to ascertain and verify the December 31 common year end results of banks, was concluded last Friday, The Nation learnt.

Other types include routine examination, which is conducted once a year by the CBN in collaboration with the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) and maiden examination that is conducted six months after a new bank, has been established.

Five months ago, based on

allegations of round-tripping, the CBN and the NDIC had probed the forex deals of 21 banks in three batches. The first were lenders that are top foreign exchange players.

These included Stanbic IBTC, CityBank, Standard Chartered Bank, Guaranty Bank, Zenith Bank, United Bank for Africa (UBA) and Access Bank.

The others were examined in the second and third phases of the plan.

The three nationalised banks were, however, excluded because they were new in the system.

Experts had said the consistent rise in forex demand, coupled with increased spread between the official and parallel markets, raised the risk of “round-tripping”, sourcing official funds for onward sales at the parallel market.

Last year, the CBN funded the forex market with about $28billion, which analysts said cannot be sustained if huge demands persist at the official forex market.

This had compelled the CBN to roll out some measures to curtail the demands at the official forex market.

NCAA begins bilateral, commercial pacts review

T

O enhance the capacity of indigeneous carriers, the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has begun a review of the 176 Bilateral Air Services (BASA) and commercial agreements it signed with some countries.

The Nation gathered that the the review was necessitated by the paltry $70 million it earned in the past four years from royalties from such agreements where Nigerian carriers are not designated.

The amount, aviation experts say, is insignificant when compared with mil-

By Kelvin Osa-Okunbor

lions of dollars that foreign airlines repatriate from Nigeria yearly.

According to the source, who spoke to The Nation in confidence, only 38 of the bilateral air services agreements are active, while the others are not, raising concerns for some experts in the industry.

The source said if the Federal Government must aggressively pursue a review of air services agreements, it must engage experts versed in air routes and its dynamics and pursue multi-lateral

agreements rather than mere pacts between countries.

The review of the bilateral air services agreement was also triggered by the recent face-off between Arik Air and British authorities over traffic rights and slot allocation into the London Heathrow Airport, which is United Kingdom’s busiest and most lucrative airport.

Director of Flight Safety in Arik Air, Captain Ado Sanusi, confirmed that it was time the Federal Government concluded a review of bilateral air services agreements to enhance capacity

for domestic carriers.

He said it was wrong in the first instance for Nigeria to have signed the open skies agreement with the United States of America, which allows unrestricted access into the American market, because at the time then, no Nigerian carrier had the capacity to fly into the United States.

Sanusi advised that if the Federal Government is poised to achieve any serious review of the BASA agreements, consideration must be given to reciprocity, equal access into any

market, as well as the damaging effects of multiple entry points for foreign carriers, which he said, is against the principles of protectionism.

Mr Olumide Ohunayo of Zenith Travels explained that until the interest of indigenous carriers is protected, the reviewing of bilateral air services agreement would not achieve its purpose.

He said that any BASA agreement that is not reciprocal is detrimental to the growth and development of capacity for the aviation sector.

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

26

BUSINESS NEWS Flight Schedule MONDAY - FRIDAY LAGOS – ABUJA Departure Arrival 1. Aero 06.50 08.10 2. Associated 07.00 09.30 3. Air Nigeria 07.00 08.20 4. IRS 07.00 08.20 5. Dana 07.02 08.22 6. Arik 07.15 08.15 7. Chanchangi 07.15 8. Air Nigeria 08.15 09.35 9. Dana 08.10 09.20 10. Aero 08.45 10.05 11. Arik 09.15 10.15 12. Chanchangi 10.00 11.00 13. IRS 11.15 12.35 14. Dana 12.06 12.26 15. Aero 12.20 13.30 16. Air Nigeria 13.25 14.45 17. Chanchangi 13.30 14.30 18. Arik 13.45 14.45 19. IRS 14.00 15.20 20. Aero 14.10 15.30 21. Air Nigeria 14.50 16.10 22. Dana 15.30 16.50 23. Chanchangi 15.30 16.30 24. Arik 15.50 16.50 25. Aero 16.00 17.20 26. IRS 16.30 17.50 27. Arik 16.50 17.50 28. Dana 17.10 18.30 29. Chanchangi 17.30 18.30 30. Air Nigeria 17.35 18.55 31. Air Nigeria (T/TH) 18.30 19.50 32. Arik 18.45 19.45 33. Aero 19.20 20.40 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

LAGOS – BENIN Arik 07.30 Associated 08.30 Aero 10.50 Arik 11.45 Associated 13.00 Aero 14.25 Arik 15.30 Associated 16.00

1.

2.

3.

4.

Arik Aero Arik Aero

1. Arik 2. Aero 1.

2.

3.

4.

LAGOS – CALABAR 07.30 11.20 12.50 16.00 LAGOS – JOS 10.55 11.15

LAGOS – KADUNA Aero 08.00 Chanchangi 10.00 Arik 10.00 Arik 15.10

08.30 09.10 11.50 12.45 13.40 15.20 16.30 16.40

CBN adds Yuan to reserves

NAICOM restricts licensing of T new firms T HE National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) will henceforth only issue licences to applicants with good business models to float new insurance companies, the Commissioner for Insurance Mr Fola Daniel, has said.

Daniel told The Nation that NAICOM will only issue fresh licences to applicants who have unique models.

He said no matter the pressure, the commission will not grant the application of individuals who just want to join the league of insurers without new initiatives.

He said: “We have not stopped licencing companies, but there must be merit in their application. If the new applicants are coming to do what nobody is doing in the market right now, then, there will be a good reason to issue them licence.

But if the applicants are coming to increase the number of operations, then, we have reason to be courteous.

“We cannot say no more issuance of licence, but if somebody is coming to bridge gaps such as services, human capacity and products, the individual would be granted a licence. Unless an applicant has something extra-ordinary to offer, it would not make sense to issue

By Chuks Udo Okonta

such individual a licence.

“Our sister regulator, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), since the last banking recapitalisation, has not granted a licence for the establishment of a conventional bank. The licence it granted recently started right from the time of the immediate past CBN Governor Chukwu Soludo.

“The new licence was issued to operators to start non-interest banking, which we do not have. So, that is extra-ordinary justification. Unless we have something that is compelling, we are not going to issue fresh licence no matter where the pressure is coming from.”

He noted that the commission in the past five years has only issued one licence, adding that it is better to have few companies with strong capital base than many, which cannot underwrite large risks.

Daniel said the industry is being groomed for risk-based recapitalisation that would enable operators to raise capital in line with the business they underwrite.

“The commission is not looking at the direction of fresh recapitalisation. We are rather looking at what we call risk-based capital. By risk-based capital, we would be asking an insurance company to recapitalise in accordance with the risk in it taking.

“So, if you are an insurance company that does aviation and oil and gas underwriting, then you must have the wherewithal to absolve those risks. If you are an insurer that does motor insurance alone, you do not need the same capital. That is the concept of risk-based recapitalisation.

“That is what we have in other climes such as Britain, United States and Canada. So, we need to migrate, because if we go to N20billion, and some insurance companies have capital in excess of N20billion, yet their ability to take large risk is very limited. So, why N20billion if you cannot underwrite businesses in aviation, oil and gas?” he said.

He noted that the industry has been moving very slowly and that NAICOM is poised to speed up the pace at which the operators work, adding that many opportunities have been created for operators to develop their business.

08.50 12.40 14.10 17.20 12.15 12.45 09.10 11.00 11.10 16.20

LAGOS – PORT HARCOURT (CIVIL) 1. Aero 07.15 08.35 2. Arik 07.15 08.35 3. Arik 09.00 10.20 4. Dana 09.27 10.40 5. Aero 10.50 12.30 6. Arik 11.40 13.00 7. Air Nigeria 12.00 13.10 8. IRS 13.30 15.00 9. Arik 14.00 15.20 10. Dana 15.03 16.20 11. Air Nigeria 16.00 17.10 12. Arik 16.10 17.30 13. Aero 16.15 17.30 14. Arik 17.10 18.30 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

LAGOS – OWERRI Aero 07.30 Arik 07.30 Air Nigeria 13.40 Arik 14.00 Arik 16.30

08.40 08.40 14.55 15.10 17.40

1.

2.

3.

4.

Arik Aero Arik Aero

LAGOS – WARRI 08.15 11.50 11.55 14.55

09.1 12.50 12.55 15.55

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

LAGOS – KANO Air Nigeria 07.10 IRS 08.00 Dana 08.10 Arik 12.20 IRS 14.00 IRS 18.15

08.50 09.45 09.40 14.00 15.45 19.55

LAGOS – OWERRI 07.20 14.00 16.30

08.30 15.10 17.40

LAGOS – UYO 10.35

11.35

1. Arik 2. Arik 3. Arik 1. Dana

LAGOS – MAIDUGURI 1. IRS 11.15 13.15 2. Arik 15.50 18.00 LAGOS – ILORIN 1. Overland 07.15

08.00

LAGOS – ABUJA SAT/SUN Arik 7.15; 10.20; 2.20; 5.20pm – 7.30; 9.15; 10.20; 2.20; 4.50; 6.45 Aero 07.30; 09.35; 13.10; 14.50; 20.20 – 07.30; 09.35; 13.10; 14.50; 20.20 Air Nigeria 08.15; 14.30; 17.15; 18.30 – 08.15; 13.30; 14.30; 17.15; 18.30

•From left: Acting Inspector-General of Police Mr Mohammed Dikko Abubakar and Managing Director, Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) Mr Gimba Ya’u Kumo during a courtesy visit to the IGP by the FMBN Management in Abuja ... on Friday.

‘Why DMO can’t guarantee infrastructure loans’

T

HE Debt Management Office (DMO) has said its inability to provide sovereign guarantee for critical projects of the economy, was due to the delay in getting approval from the Federal Government.

Sovereign guarantee is a government-backed guarantee that DMO gives to companies financing projects such as roads construction, power, transportation and employment generation, among others.

Speaking with The Nation, Director, Market Development Department, DMO, Mrs. Patience Oniha, said the government has not given approval to the agency to guarantee infrastructural development in the country.

She said: “We are developing a product around sovereign guarantee. We have not fixed a date for the take-off of the product.

“The reason is because we have not got approval from the Federal

By Akinola Ajibade

Executive Council and our supervisory ministry - the Ministry of Finance.

“The approval is not yet in place.

When the product matures, it will be approved by the authorities concerned.”

The director said there is a process for getting the approval from the government, adding that DMO is working on it.

Oniha, however, said the DMO is not launching a product, contrary to insinuations in certain quarters. “What we are planning is to provide guarantee for projects of fundamental needs to the economy.

“We are not going to give loans or provide money for any organisation that wants to invest in the economy by constructing roads or building power plants.

“We want to provide some kind of buffers to companies interested

in the development of projects that have serious economic implications to the government. When there is the need for any company to borrow money for such developmental programmes, we would guarantee the company,” she added.

She said DMO will select the projects it would guarantee, stressing that it is not all the projects that can fit into the agency’s plans.

According to her, projects that would not add value to the economy need not be mentioned at all in this scheme. “For instance, if somebody imports shoes into the country, of what impact is it to the economy?” she asked.

The DMO has been issuing Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) Bonds of various tenors to bridge infrastructural financing gaps. The body is trying to complement these efforts, by planning to provide guarantees for some developmental projects.

HE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has added the equivalent of $500 million in Chinese Yuan to its reserves and plans to buy seven times that amount, in a shift that underscores booming commerce between China and the African continent.

The bank will gradually increase its Yuan holdings to 10 per cent of its $35 billion in reserves, CBN Governor Sanusi Lamido Sanusi said in an interview with Wall Street Journal.

Over the past six months Nigeria has converted 1.4per cent of its reserves to Chinese currency, largely by selling euro and buying Yuan on offshore.

Fed Govt okays sale of Nigeria Unity Line shares From John Ofikhenua, Abuja

T

HE National Council on Privatisation (NCP) has approved the sale of the Federal Government’s shares in Nigeria Unity Line (NUL) through a strategic investor.

This was one of the decisions taken by the Council at its first meeting in this year, which was held last Monday at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Spokesman of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Mr Chukwuma Nwokoh, disclosed this in a statement made available to The Nation in Abuja at the weekend.

He recalled that NUL was privatised in December 2, 2005 to Seaforce Shipping Company Limited as the preferred bidder with a bid price of $20, 000, 000.

According to the statement, the transaction failed because it was largely predicated on a presidential directive to Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to allow the investor lift 40 per cent of crude, which was not complied with by the NNPC. ”However, the passage of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) Act 2007 and Local Content Act 2011 are current positive indicators in the maritime industry that have added value to NUL and have provided the necessary institutional framework to enforce compliance with extant laws.

In addition, some prospective investors have shown interest in NUL. “The Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) had consistently ensured that NUL’s licence was renewed in order to maintain its local and international relevance. Furthermore, NUL has no liability and is not encumbered in any way.

NUL is a public limited liability company wholly owned by the Federal Government through NIMASA. It was incorporated on January 23, 1995 and started operations in July 1996.

Solid minerals’ firms for auditing From John Ofikhenua, Abuja

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HE Nigeria Extractive Indus tries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) has signed contracts for the audits of the oil and gas and the solid minerals sector, it was learnt at the weekend.

According to a statement from NEITI’s management, the contract was signed in Abuja last Thursday.

The signing ceremony took place at the NEITI Secretariat. It was witnessed by a cross section of the media and the civil society. The signing of these contracts signals the starting of the much-awaited audits and brings to four the number of audits by NEITI. The first two audits (1999-2004 & 2005) have been in the Oil and Gas sector alone.

It added: “ In a statement, the Executive Secretary of NEITI, Mrs Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed, said the oil and gas audit to be conducted by the firm of Sada Idris & Co. is to cover 2009 and 2011.”

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

27

ISSUES

•Insurance industry market outlook

Terrorism: An insurance risk unforetold Terrorism was something Nigerians hitherto heard about in distant land until the menace crept into the country. Hardly a day passes now without one terrorist act or the other being recorded in the country. The development is giving insurers grey hairs because this is one risk they never bargained for . In this report, CHUKS UDO OKONTA examines the efforts of risk bearers to develop a product to mitigate risks associated with terrorism. • Story on page 28

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

28

ISSUES

•Daniel

•Ladipo Ajayi

•Adegboyega Adepegba, D-G, CIIN

Terrorism: An insurance risk unforetold • Continued from page 27

U

TIL terrorism reared its ugly head, all insurers were confronted with familiar risks such as motor vehicle, burglary, group life and more. They never thought terrorism will become pronounced in the country because its people are regarded among the happiest in the world. If there is any risk insurers never thought of, it was terrorism as they were busy finding solutions to the enormous challenges in their operations.

With the advent of terrorism, insurers' burden has ballooned as the people now look up to them for a solution to the menace which is giving the government sleepless nights. Though the solution to terrorism risk is alien to insurers, their counterparts abroad have, over the years, developed products to cater for this aspect of risks.

In finding a solution to the threat, insurers have started shopping for foreign partners they can align with to provide succour for individuals who fall victim to the menace.

Regulators’ perspective Commissioner for Insurance Mr Fola Daniel said the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) is worried over the threat posed by terrorism, adding that the commission awaits any operator that would be willing to offer products to mitigate the risks. He said no insurance company has indicated interest to underwrite such risks, stressing that consideration would be given to any company that has interest.

He said: "If any underwriter wants to write terrorism and evolves a product, we will grant him an approval. NAICOM will not call companies to take up the risk, operators are to take a decision whether they can do it or not. If they take a business decision and approach us, we will ask for the details of what they want to write and if it is in the interest of the populace, we will grant the approval. What operators need is not a new licence but product approval. Nobody has approached us for that line of business for now; if they do we will be very receptive to grant them approval."

Daniel classified the risks, stressing that those associated with natural disaster cannot be solely handled by insurers due to the cost implication. He said such risks could only be handled by the government, adding that damages from natural disasters are difficult to value. He noted that Nigerian insurers are capable of handling big risks as the industry has been repositioned for such.

“Natural disasters such as the earthquake in Japan cannot be handled by insurers. Such catastrophes are borne by the government, for the lost are often too large to be valued." We do not pray for such in our country, but I would tell you that our industry is capable to handle big risks now that it has been repositioned for improved performance."

Daniel said to ensure operators meet their responsibilities, NAICOM has continued to provide guidelines to strengthen insurance practice, adding that the com-

mission has focused its attention on the daily operations of companies to discipline erring firms. He said almost all the insurance firms are sound and efforts to ensure they remain healthy would be sustained.

"All the companies are behaving well, there is no problem. This is a statement for today. If you go to a doctor and he said you are well, that does not mean that you will not be sick tomorrow. The companies we have interfered in their operations are okay today," he added.

Daniel said NAICOM will continue to improve public confidence on the industry by ensuring the operators respond to claims settlement promptly, adding this is the reason why insurers are in business.He also called for the need for human capacity development, adding that there is an urgent need for operators to strengthen their workforce in line with emerging risks.

Operators' perspective Managing Director, First Bank Life Assurance Limited Mr Val Ojumah, said most life insurers are reviewing their policies to accommodate terrorism risks, adding that the menace has thrown up challenges for operators and the government.

"Most life policies do not exclude terrorism previously, but they exclude war and war like situations. Now insurers are reconsidering terrorism to seek the possibility of covering it. General insurance market is a special market that offers special cover only. Now, most life insurers are reviewing their cover because of the dimension terrorism has taken.

Terrorism cover may not be generally available now, but a lot of people are considering how to cover it with reinsurance," he said.

President, Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB), Mrs Laide Osijo, said brokers were partnering with foreign underwriters to find a way of providing cover for the menace. She said that most local underwriters are turning away from the risk due to its hazardous nature.

"Terrorism is alien in Nigeria, it is something we are not used to, but it is written abroad. Presently, some brokers are working on policies to enable us place the risk abroad with underwriters who cover terrorism risks. The risk is very hazardous, if some underwriters are willing to offer the cover, we will partner with them, but most brokers are really engaging discussion on it and if there is any insured who wants to take it, the brokers are prepared to provide the necessary cover. Most brokers have an arrangement with partners abroad, but for us to provide this cover with our partner abroad, the right of attestation must be attain from NAICOM.

"Some underwriters are rejecting the risk because of its hazardous nature, but that notwithstanding, local underwriters can still take part of the share of the risk while some are placed abroad. It is a hazardous risk no doubt about that, but we are making it," she said.

Managing Director, Delight Insurance Brokers Limited, Mr Tai Adediji, said the industry is in a serious dilemma with terrorism threat, adding that everybody believes risk such as terrorism should be underwritten, but the current capacity of underwriters is inadequate to underwrite such risks. He urged operators to pull resources together to provide some element of protection where it is required, stressing that insurers as risks managers must be proactive in the handling of risks.

"It is true that where you have this kind of challenge, where nobody can predict where it takes place, the government plays a major role to boost security, insurers still have a lot to do as risks managers.

"It is the role of insurers to insure against the unexpected and since what is happening now is unexpected, there is need for insurance companies to be proactive. Insurers should now begin to engage in seminars, workshops and conference to find ways to provide insurance succour for the risks. The concern here is that we do not know the risks that will come up tomorrow, this should spur stakeholders to begin to think of how to manage risk appropriately.

"Brokers should rally among themselves to see how they can put up policies, which should be presented to underwriters to mitigate this risk. The brokers should use their experience, by virtue of the fact that they are close to the consumers to package a policy that will appeal to the underwriters to manage this risk.

"The risk is really sellable as insurance is not limited to the Nigerian market. This type of risk should not be left to be handled

by Nigerian underwriters alone; it has to be thrown abroad so other renowned underwriters can participate in," he said.

President, Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA), Mr Olusola Ladipo-Ajayi, said operators are cautious about offering of products on terrorism as the menace may not be for a long time. He noted that operators are optimistic that the menace of terrorism will soon be overcome, adding

‘Some underwriters are rejecting the risk because of its hazardous nature, but that notwithstanding, local underwriters can still take part of the share of the risk while some are placed abroad. It is a hazardous risk; no doubt about that, but we are making it’

•Adedeji

that insurers and Nigerians are also wary about the effects of terrorism.According to him, terrorism insurance is very expensive as it generates large claims due to the risks that emanate from it. He said the industry will consider the provision of such risk when there is demand for it.

"We have not started offering terrorism policy because it is very expensive and we pray that this Boko Haram menace will soon pass by. But if it is persistent and people start looking at that direction and begin to make enquiries, the market will respond accordingly. We are very careful for we do not want to fish in troubled waters. We do not want to promote it because when you do that, you are saying this Boko Haram thing will not go away, we don't want to succumb to the menace," he said.

Though insurers have not started offering the policy, the Managing Director, Standard Alliance Life Assurance Limited, Mr Austin Enajemo, said terrorism is taking a toll on their claims profile. He noted that the rise in claims settlement could be as a result of the shock people got from incidences associated with terrorist act. He said the company has settled claims running into millions, adding that though terrorism and other natural disasters are excluded in most insurance clauses, their effects affect the normal services provided by underwriters.

Enajemo noted that an insured that died as a result of shock from terrorism must be indemnified though the death cannot be said to be caused directly by incidences, such as bomb blast and other terrorist acts. He said the company has settled both death and medical claims of victims of the April general elections, adding that N650,000 was paid to all those who died or sustained injury under the policy taken by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

"Though insurance cover risks, there are always exclusions. If you have a special policy that covers terrorism, and you are affected by it, you would be properly indemnified. But, in most of our products, we have exclusion clauses. If you are covered against natural death, things that have to do with war, we exclude them. But if it is with mutual agreement we will provide the cover. You, however, have to note that there is nothing that happens in the economy that does not affect everybody. Therefore, either by a way of shock from activities of terrorist act - Boko Haram - a natural death would occur. If somebody dies by a natural cause unknown to the insurer that it is as a result of shock from terrorism, would I not pay the claims? Therefore, we are directly or indirectly affected. And that pushes our claims settlement," he added.

The Director-General, Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria (CIIN), Mr Adegboyega Adepegba, said the institute was conducting a research on some emerging risks, adding that the industry must brace up to terrorism. He said the institute has no course on the menace, but it will continue to work on it and get information about it.

Adepegba said as terrorism is underwritten in some other countries, the institute would get the requisite information on it and pass them to insurers. Besides, he said the institute would soon organise conferences and seminars on terrorism to update members, stressing that CIIN is willing to assist any company that wants to research the menace.

JOBS THE NATION

Website:- http://www.thenationonlineng.com

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

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• Job portals

With online recruitment a.k.a. e-recruitment, the search for jobs and suitable applicants has been made easy. e-recruitment offers value, efficiency and effectiveness. To benefit from it, more and more professional bodies are setting up job portals on their web sites.

DANIEL ESSIET examines the development and its effect on the job market.

Job hunting made easy N

O economy can grow at the desired speed in this age of the Internet and other technologies without the use of electronic channels such as e-business, e-marketing, e-learning and the like. Virtually all aspects of business is done online these days. So, job search and recruitment cannot be an exception. To this end, a new platform, erecruitment, has entered the labour market. e-recruitment is the use of the Internet to identify and attract potential employees. It encompasses everything, from website or career portal, the job boards’ employers and employees use to receive registration and applications via the web, through to the management of the recruitment process.

Right now, e-recruitment is the big online revolution in the market of employers and opportunity seeking employees.

Taking advantage of this, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) has launched an online portal for jobs in accountancy and business. Its Presi-

dent, Prof Francis Ojaide, said the job portal is part of the commitment of the institute to equip members with the tools to help them succeed.

With the job portal, Ojaide said the institute aimed to support accountants’ professional development by connecting them to a wide array of career opportunities.

Likely to feature on the site are multi-national companies, government agencies and recruitment firms.

He said the job portal provides an easy way to search and apply for vacancies in the accounting industry.

ICAN’s portal allows for the submission and updating of applications, personal details and qualification on-line, anywhere and anytime. Interestingly, notification to applicants is sent immediately via e-mail and/or Short Messaging Service (SMS).

By using this system, accountants can search for jobs within the industry.

Experts believe e-recruitment helps organisations to reach target audience and recruit qualified candidates. Similarly, it allows employers to broaden the scope of their search, thus, enhancing the chances of re-

cruiting quality candidates.

The Chairman, Membership Affairs Committee, Chidi Ajaegu said the initiative started in 2006 with the manual collection of members’ resume and giving same to prospective employers upon request.

Ajaegu said the council approved an e-recruitment portal to make it easy for members to upload their resumes from the comfort of their homes and, at the same time, allow prospective employers or their agents search for qualified chartered accountants without recourse to the institute in 2009. The beauty of the portal, he said, is that it will make the institute the first port of call when chartered accountants are required.

“The job portal will be used to unite employers and prospective candidates by bridging the existing gap of reach,”Ajaegu said.

He said members can search and apply for jobs online, as well as subscribe to email notifications for jobs they are interested in.

He said: “Registered members can deposit their CVs and manage their profiles online anytime, enabling potential employers to seek them out. To make it easier for members to focus on their preferred positions,

job vacancies are categorised, according to areas of specialisation, including accountancy and finance, banking and financial services and practice.”

The Managing Consultant of Projektlink Konsult Ltd, Mr Adetunji Adepeju, said the site will help employers who have decided to move their recruiting efforts online. He said the institute collects, processes and analyses all resumes for employers.

Adepeju, a member of ICAN’s Membership Affairs Committee, said the institute will respond to applications received through its website via SMS. With the portal, he said accounting job seekers will have greater and flexible access for jobs while the employers have greater access to talents for their organisations.

Adepeju said the portal is established to provide well-educated accountants the opportunity to connect with employers.

Rising trend of online job search signals the need for organisations and can• Continued on page 30

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THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

JOBS • Continued from page 29

didates to maximise web technologies to improve search for the right person for the right job.

Speaking with The Nation, a member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria (CIPM) and personnel consultant, Dr Peter Kudaisi, said the recruitment industry is richer and more varied thanks to digital technologies and the Internet.

According to him, e-recruitment provides Human Resources departments with faster access to candidate profiles and a broader search.

For him, the technology has levelled the playing field in the job market for companies with large and small recruitment budgets. Organisations with lesser resources can turn to online platforms to communicate their job openings more easily at a much lower or even at no cost.

Companies now post vacancies’adverts at relevant sites to get the attention of prospective candidates. They then use appropriate software such as candidate-matching or filtering tools to handle the massive volume of submissions.

While more recruitment activities are moving online, Kudaisi and his colleagues still use traditional platforms such as newspapers to play a major role to online media.

Most companies, such as KPMG, Accenture and SAP, involved in e-recruitment now acquire special software. This enables them to intelligently match suitable candidates from their own database.

With a cleverly automated recruitment system, responses from job boards are imported with all data and skills automatically extracted and applicants ranked based on their skill match.

This enables them to identify the most suitable candidates, speeding up short-listing process significantly.

Kudaisi said the impact of online recruitment is huge and unprecedented. Because of this, online job sites have gained popularity and won job seeker’s trust in no time.

He said online recruitment plays a vital role in getting people on board, according to the organisation’s required set skill and educational demands.

Kudaisi said the Internet has completely revolutionised the role of the traditional recruiter. Recruiters now search through hundreds of thousands of CV’s placed on personal web pages and browse online corporate staff directories.

Job hunting made easy

•Ojaide

•Ajaegu

He said e-recruitment has helped to reduce favouritism, which is common in physical recruitment exercise.

However, he maintained that candidates short-listed from the e-recruitment process still need to see their prospective employers face to face. Presently, e- recruitment has been adopted in large organisations and small companies.

The real strength and power of online recruitment, when executed properly, he said lies in harnessing Internet technology to not just attract candidates but to deal with them

too. In this sense, it is also about streamlining the recruitment process, freeing up more of Human Resources (HR) time for more value-added tasks.

Across the industry, practitioners considering introducing online recruiting and erecruitment systems feel apprehensive about using e-recruitment to hire top management staff.

For this reason, some companies continue to use more traditional recruitment services for hiring executive level staff. Kudaisi said job portals are not suitable for recruiting top

‘The e-recruiting process consists of three major steps: attracting, sorting, and contacting candidates. The first step involves tracking potential candidates on the Internet and in on-line databases’

management. He said some positions are better sourced using a newspaper or using newspaper and website advertisement. According to him, the position of chief executive is so critical to the success of an organisation.

“Besides written tests CEOs need to go through stress test to ascertain their ability to withstand the pressure of corporate management.” This, he said, e-recruitment will not reveal.

Kudaisi said recruiters need to interact with prospective CEOs. Such interaction, he said, will reveal the quality of candidates, experience, building desire and motivation to work for the organisation.

According to him, the growth of the company is dependent on the quality of the CEO. Companies deploying e-recruiting utilise a broad range of electronic means in their recruitment practices.

The e-recruiting process consists of three major steps: attracting, sorting, and contacting candidates. The first step involves tracking potential candidates on the Internet and in on-line databases. The next step – sorting – involves the screening of candidates. The third step, contacting candidates. e-recruitment systems are a big help, since they enable communication tasks to be automated.

On the balance, the job portal can reach people at a worldwide level while newspapers can reach people only at a local level.

Companies achieve cost savings in three areas; reduced direct costs of newspaper advertisements, job fairs and head hunter fees, reduced mailing cost and reduced workload for the HR department. Also, in terms of time saving, e-recruitment can help companies achieve faster recruiting cycle.

There are three results: faster posting jobs on the Internet; once a job is posted the HR department starts receiving resumes the same day and the Internet can speed up the processing period by automating some tasks.

Other issues that relate to e-recruitment is the risk of overload of resumes as the Internet makes it easier for applicants to submit their resumes and it removes all barriers of time and geography in communication between employers and applicants. As a result, it could create a huge volume of unqualified candidates.

Across the industry, concern about e-recruiting system is about lack of personalised response to applicants that are rejected. Applicants want to receive an explanation why they were not hired, instead of just being rejected through the e-recruitment system.

CAREER MANAGEMENT

K

AYODE has a poser: I cast a wide net in my job search and interview with some companies that I am not that interested in just to practise and get out there. Well, I am far along in the process with some of these and just beginning with my first choice companies. I am afraid that an offer will come along that I don’t really want. At the same time, in this market I am afraid to turn down a sure thing with just the hope of something better. What can I do to buy time?

In this market, more candidates are casting a very wide net with their job search with good reasons.

Hiring targets change constantly as budgets get slashed, companies get acquired or restructured, or circumstances change the needs over time as firms take longer and longer to decide. The reality of applying to a lot of places is that it is almost impossible to control the pace of the search. Some companies move through the process faster than others. You may find that you are in the final rounds at one company and just starting the first round elsewhere. If you prefer the slower company, how do you slow down the faster search without seeming disinterested?

Just as you negotiate salary and other conditions of service, here you need to negotiate for time. The same general rules of negotiation apply: know who you are negotiating with - their wants, their constraints - and frame your requests accordingly.

Prospective employers want their company to be your first choice.

They want to know that you’re ex-

Optimising multiple job opportunities

By Olu Oyeniran

cited and genuinely interested in the position. They also have very real time and budget constraints.

Maybe you are filling a spot for someone who is leaving in two weeks and they need to have the replacement there next week to transition. Maybe their fiscal year ends in two weeks so if they don’t hire for this spot before then they lose that space in the budget. When a company pushes a process through quickly or pushes for a decision quickly, they may have good reasons and not just giving you a hard time.

Therefore, ask about timing for all employers as you go through the process. How quickly do you expect to make a decision? When do you need this person to start? How many rounds/how many people will be involved in the decision?

Once you know that a firm is interested in you, these are all fair questions and will help you know how quickly the process may move for all companies in your pipeline so you can effectively juggle your schedule and negotiate for time.

Negotiate a wide range. You might say, “Officially, I am to give two months notice, but I can make it one. Really, it all depends on the projects at hand.”

You can get the information to your first-choice company about what is happening with the other company. Don’t be pushy but let

them know that you have another company who is interested and close to a decision. Get a commitment or at least a good estimate from your first choice as to when you will hear from them. Then you know how much time you need to negotiate for. You also remind the first choice company that you are desirable on the market!

At the same time, ask your second choice for the time you need. Reiterate your interest, but let them know that you have committed to certain projects/assignments and don’t/can’t/shouldn’t want to cut these short. It is not recommend continuing to interview with companies that you are not genuinely interested in because it wastes everyone’s time.

But if you would potentially accept an offer at a firm but it is just a lower priority, it is worth negotiating for more time so you can make an informed decision. Your second choice may become more desirable as you learn more about it (or about your first choice). In this way, negotiating for time means a more informed job search.

Seven strategies to customise each and every resume The grand strategy is to create a Master File, including everything you may have to offer to any employer. Already it sounds daunting, but don’t let this be a roadblock! It’s just the on ramp. Start entering and keep entering as you think of other

information that might interest an employer. This will never be “final” since it’s a living document, growing throughout your career and/or your current job search.

You never delete anything from the Master File but you are always adding to it.

Here is how to do it: • Format your existing resume to your advantage before you start to add things. If you’ve worked in one profession your whole career and steadily advanced, a chronological resume can be a winner. If you haven’t had that kind of career, consider a functional resume or a hybrid so you can focus attention on what you bring to the job instead of your work history.

• Add a summary - a paragraph that gives an overview of who you are professionally. This can be long and include more than you would ever send for any individual opportunity. Don’t edit as you go. Just get every high level statement about you that you can offer into your Master File. If you wind up with 100 pages it doesn’t matter. No one but you will ever see it all.

• Add as many general objectives as there are for what you know you can do well. You should be able to think of several positions that you’re qualified for and several industries where you have something to offer. Objectives are theirs, not yours. Each one is a Job Title in an industry.

Example: General Manager for a pharmaceutical manufacturing company.

• Show your skills. Use the keywords and search engine terms that you know employers are looking for. Showing them near the top of the resume will keep you from landing in the reject pile. Using the terms the company is looking for will keep you in the running whether your resume is being reviewed by a human or a machine.

The skills that will stay in your customised resume are the ones that support the objective you use.

• List your accomplishments in concise, bulleted paragraphs - two to five lines. This is the part that differentiates you and shows that you do more than just meet expectations. Start with the most powerful verb that fits and then mention the results, showing the numbers in as many situations as possible.

After that you can elaborate about how you did it.

This article is an adaptation of a presentation by Caroline CenizaLevine. She helps people find fulfilling jobs and careers, and co-author (along with Donald Trump, Jack Canfield and others) of the bestselling How the Fierce Handle Fear: Secrets to Succeeding in Challenging Times 2010; Two Harbors Press.

Olu Oyeniran is the Lead Consultant, EkiniConsult & Assoiciates.

Website: www.jobsearchhow.com E-mail: oluoyeniran@yahoo.com Tel 08083843230 (SMS Only).

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5 , 2012

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DUE DILIGENCE

Nestle Nigeria: Losing grip of N profitability ESTLE Nigeria Plc sustained appreciable growth in sales in the immediate past year but increasing financial leverage stifled the performance and undermined the profitability of the food and beverages company. Audited report and accounts of Nestle Nigeria for the year ended December 31, 2011 showed a decline in underlying profitability as the company struggled with midline costs. With 324 per cent increase in finance costs, profit before tax was almost flat while underlying returns to shareholders and other stakeholders dwindled to their lowest levels in recent years.

Rising costs of sales and finance underlined the adverse impact of the rising financial gearing of the company and generally high cost of business in Nigeria, which altogether coloured the returns outlook of the company. Although net earnings benefited from reduction in taxes, the company decided to maintain its payout ratio per share for the third consecutive year and transferred the tax gains into the reserves.

However, with 20 per cent increase in outstanding shares due to bonus issue in the previous year, the cash payout for the 2011 business year represents same increase in cash dividends to shareholders.

Financing structure Nestle Nigeria’s paid up share capital increased by 20 per cent from N330 million in 2010 to N396 million in 2011. The increase was due to previous decision to capitalise reserves and distribute bonus shares of one for five shares to shareholders. Shareholders’ funds jumped by 58 per cent to N23.49 billion as against N14.87 billion in previous year. The company had reduced percentage cash payout out of the net earnings from about 66 per cent in 2010 to 59 per cent in 2011, thus allowing more earnings to flow into reserves.

Total assets rode on the back of significant increase in fixed assets to N76.94 billion compared with N60.35 billion in 2010, an increase of 27.5 per cent. Permanent assets had grown by 36 per cent from N40.24 billion to N54.86 billion while current assets had increased marginally from N20.10 billion to N22.08 billion. Total liabilities rose by 17.5 per cent from N45.48 billion

30.2 per cent in 2010 to 24.1 per cent in 2011. Return on equity also declined from 85 per cent to about 72 per cent. Dividend cover meanwhile improved from 1.5 times to 1.7 times.

By Taofik Salako

to N53.45 billion. Liabilities were primarily driven by bank loans, which nearly doubled from N3.4 billion to N6.8 billion.

With heavy dependence on loans, Nestle Nigeria’s gearing ratio, which had halved from about 47 per cent in 2009 to 23 per cent in 2010, shifted upward to 28.9 per cent. Meanwhile, the proportion of equity funds to total assets strengthened to 30.5 per cent in 2011 as against 24.6 per cent in 2010. The increasing financial leverage counteracted the positive equity position to hang the company’s financing position on the balance, with tendency towards negative than positive.

Efficiency Average cost efficiency rate dropped during the year as the company lost its previous tight control of top-line cost. Average cost of sale per unit of sale trended upward in 2011 and overshadowed sales growth as against the impressive cost management in 2010 that delivered significantly higher sales growth on lower cost. Nestle Nigeria however, fell back on internal administrative and distributive cost management, a strategy that moderated the overall cost of business.

Total cost of business, excluding finance charges, thus inched up from 76.4 per cent in 2010 to 77.8 per cent in 2011. There are no official data yet to measure employee productivity and management.

Profitability Nestle Nigeria suffered a reversal in terms of comparative profitability in 2011 as nearly all key underlying profitability measures declined during the year, culminating into an almost flat pre-tax profit. Both underlying profitability measures and actual profit and loss items had surged to new highs in the previous year, delivering a well-rounded robust growth that enabled the food and beverages company to combine both cash and scrip dividends.

However, gross profit margin dropped from 45.2 per cent in 2010

to 41.6 per cent in 2011. Pre-tax profit margin dropped by four percentage points from 22.8 per cent in 2010 to Liquidity 18.9 per cent in 2011, indicating deThere were no enough details as cline in average profit per every unit at now to assess the current liquidof sale from about N23 to N19. ity position of the company. But the Nestle Nigeria had sustained approportion of debtors to creditors preciable growth in sales during the stood at 64 per cent in 2011 compared year but rising costs, especially surgwith 122 per cent in 2010. It should ing finance expenses, counterbalbe noted that liquidity had imanced sales growth, leaving the comproved in 2010 with current ratio impany with profit growth of 1.6 per proving from 0.99 times in 2009 to cent in 2011 as against 32.4 per cent 1.03 times in 2010. in 2010. Total sales rose by 22.3 per cent from N80.11 billion to N97.96 Governance and structures billion. Cost of sales however, inNestle Nigeria is a member of the creased by 30.3 per cent to N57.2 bilNestle Group, which holds about lion in 2011 as against N43.9 billion 62.76 per cent equity stake mainly in 2010. Gross profit thus grew by through its Ghana-incorporated 12.6 per cent from N36.23 billion to Nestle CWA Limited. There were no N40.79 billion. major changes in the board and manTotal operating expenses-includagement of the company. Chief ing administration and distribution Olusegun Osunkeye, who was recosts, stood at N19.08 billion in 2011 cently reappointed, still chairs the as against N17.3 billion in 2010, repboard while Mr. Martin Woolnough, resenting an increase of 10.3 per cent. an Austrian, directs the executive While non-core business income management team. Nestle Nigeria declined by 63 per cent from N64 subscribes to many international million to N24 million, finance excodes as well as Nigerian code of penses leapt by 324 per cent to N3.2 corporate governance for public billion in 2011 compared with a decompanies. The annual report also cline of 63 per cent to N753 million contained corporate governance rein 2010. Consequently, profit before port detailing key principles, methtax was almost unchanged at N18.54 odologies and actions. The highestbillion in 2011 as against N18.24 bilpriced stock at the Nigerian stock lion in 2010. market, Nestle Nigeria has also been However, with tax management hailed severally as the icon of good impacted positively on net earnings, corporate governance. It has usually pushing profit after tax up by 33.4 been the first quoted company to per cent from N12.60 billion to submit its audited report and acN16.81 billion. Consequently, basic counts well ahead of due date and earnings per share improved by 11 its forecasts are mostly reliable. This per cent from N19.08 in 2010 to reputation has insulated its share N21.20 in 2011. The board has recfrom the downtrend at the stock marommended retaining dividend per ket and enhanced its store of value share of N12.55, its almost rating. standardised cash payout value in recent years. Gross cash dividend meanAnalyst’s opinion while, increased by 20 per cent from Nestle Nigeria’s performance outN8.29 billion to N9.95 billion, relook hangs on the balance, a twist to flecting the 20 per cent bonus increase the left may further undermine profin outstanding shares made in 2010. itability and returns while a twist to Net assets per share rose by 32 per 2011 cent from Fiscal Year Ended December 31 % N22.50 in 2010 to N29.62 in Financing structure 2011.

Equity funds/Total assets 30.5 Return on Long-term liabilities/Total assets NA total assets Current liabilities/Total assets NA dropped from Debt/Equity ratio 28.9

Fiscal Year Ended December 31

2011

Nmillion Profit and Loss Statement Main Business Segment Total turnover Cost of sales Gross profit Operating expenses Interest and other incomes Finance expenses Pre-tax profit(loss) Post-tax profit (loss) Basic earnings per share(kobo) Gross dividend Cash dividend per share (kobo) Net Assets per share (kobo)

12 months

% change

12 months

97,961 97,961 57,168 40,793 19,080 24 3,196 18,539 16,808 2,120 9,948 1,255 2,962

22.3 22.3 30.3 12.6 10.3 -63.0 324.3 1.6 33.4 11.1 20.0 0.0 31.6

80,108 80,108 43,877 36,231 17,297 64 753 18,244 12,602 1,908 8,290 1,255 2,250

54,859 54,859 4,843 22,085 76,944

36.3 36.3 -2.6 9.8 27.5

40,242 40,242 4,970 20,105 60,347

7,543 6,780 NA NA 53,451

84.7 99.5 17.5

4,085 3,398 19,454 26,027 45,481

396 23,492

20.0 58.0

330 14,865

Balance Sheet Assets: Fixed assets Total long term assets Trade debtors Current assets Total assets Liabilities: Trade creditors Bank loans Current liabilities Long-term liabilities Total liabilities Equity Funds Share capital Total Equity Funds

2010

Nestle MD Mr Martin Woolnough

the right may accentuate returns and profitability. The nexus is in the financial leverage of the company.

While recent expansions have expectedly stimulated the top-line, increasing reliance on interest-based short-term loans has mounted a midpoint counterbalance cutting of the gains from shareholders. This may become increasingly choking and ultimately unnerve the entire profit and loss profile.

Against the background of the global and domestic financial and economic crises, especially the resultant constraint in access to equity funds and other amenable funds, the performance of Nestle Nigeria is still commendable. The company needs to sustain its aggressive sale growth strategy as well as improve on internal cost management. But there is a need to deleverage the company to provide more supportive balance sheet for stable growth and returns to shareholders. While the recession at the capital market has no doubt soured investors’ appetite for equities and to some extent corporate bonds, there is reasonable ground to assume that just as Nestle Nigeria’s share price has rallied against the bearish stock market, its supplementary equity offer may ride above any lull in the primary market.

2010 % 24.6 43.1 32.2 22.9

Profitability Gross profit margin Pre-tax profit margin Return on total assets Return on equity Dividend cover (times)

41.6 18.9 24.1 71.5 1.7

45.2 22.8 30.2 84.8 1.5

Efficiency Pre-tax profit per employee (Nm) Staff cost per employee (Nm) Cost of sales, operating exp/Turnover

NA NA 77.8

8.6 4.41 76.4

Liquidity Current ratio Working capital/Turnover Debtors/Creditors

NA NA 64.2

1.03 0.8 121.7

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

32

THE CEO Since the SIM card registration jointly embarked upon by the Nigeria Communication Commission (NCC) and operators all seems to be quiet on the telecom scene. NCC Executive Vice Chairman Dr Eugene Juwah disagrees. In this interview with Managing Editor, Northern Operations YUSUF ALLI; Abuja Bureau Chief YOMI ODUNUGA and AUGUSTINE EHIKIOYA, he speaks on NCC’s efforts to sanitise the sector.

‘Over 60% of phones in circulation are fake’ T

ELL us some of the activities of your commission since you came into of-

fice?

These activities include: consolidation and integration of mobile wireless services including quality of service; fixed lines and broadband development of competitive market and choice for the consumers; vigorous compliance monitoring and enforcement of regulations and directives, national connectivity of accelerated growth and enhanced international relations. A primary decision towards realising the foregoing policy direction was the SIM card registration.

The exercise began on March 28, last year. The project will soon come to an end. We have a combined registration of 110,433,976 SIM cards and the data is undergoing processing and cleaning at NCC. We are going to commence verification of the SIMs before we can come to a conclusion about the number of SIM cards duly registered. With the country’s telephone penetration standing at 95,886, 714 lines, there is evidence of multiple registration.

So, what happens if this turns out to be true?

It will be eliminated to create a database of integrity and credibility. As the exercise comes to a close, subscribers whose SIM cards are not registered will be deemed not to be interested in the process or that the SIMs have been abandoned and we will have no choice than to disconnect them.

What actually are the gains of • Continued on page 33

• Juwah

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

33

THE CEO •Continued from page 32

this SIM registration and how will it benefit the common man?

When we launched the registration, we noted that apart from helping to enhancing security, it will facilitate the collation of data by the commission of phone users, and enable operators to have predictable profiles about the users in their networks. The exercise will also enable the commission to implement other value added services like Mobile Number Portability (MNP), which from current schedule shall commence in the last quarter of the year. The contract has been awarded. MNP will broaden the choices of operators and products available to subscribers and on its own impose a code of behaviour on the operators who will want to provide top notch services in order to retain their subscribers. The success of MNP also rides on successful registration of SIM cards and creation of SIM card Data Base Integrity.

The public is of the opinion that NCC is on their pay roll and so, all the commission is doing is to protect them, rather than sanction them?

That is untrue. The Compliance and Enforcement Unit has been strengthened to enable the commission enforce its regulations and directives better than we are doing at the moment. Recently, the unit shut down the office of a major GSM operator in Abuja.

However, that notwithstanding, more vigorous enforcement actions are continuing. On February 17, the unit carried out enforcement actions against some mobile device dealers who flood our markets with non-type approved devices, which in turn affect quality of service of the various networks.

No, we are not protecting the operators; we are also not here to close down the operator as they have been here for over 10 years serving the country. What we do is to ensure they do the right thing and not close down their businesses.

Don’t forget that they are also offering employment to our people and the telecomm sector is the highest employer of labour now in the country.

Do we have any prospect for growth in the sector, especially as the public do not seem to appreciate what you have been saying?

Growth in the sector will encourage more investment. The major operators are making huge investment; tearing down some of their installations and bringing in better and more sophisticated equipment that can move their platforms better and provide better services to the public. The tearing down and replacements are what partly is affecting the quality of service you notice now.

We have just introduced a new regime of quality of service among all the service operators and they must meet such bench mark. We are a regulatory agency, we stand between the public and the operators and so, we must create a synergy for both of them to co-exist. We have massive plans for broad-band deployment to enable them reach the underserved and indeed all parts of the country; the commission has adopted an open access model as platform and is also looking at resuscitating the fixed lines sector by giving out new licenses to increase telephone penetration.

One of the things we noticed is that it is difficult for service operators to protect their customers’ phones from being stolen, whereas road side technicians all over the GSM Villages can bar one’s stolen phones from being used, why has the NCC not found it important to ask operators to provide this service for their customers?

I must tell you that those people who

‘Over 60% of phones in circulation are fake’

• Juwah

‘We have just introduced a new regime of quality of service among all the service operators and they must meet such bench mark. We are a regulatory agency, we stand between the public and the operators and so, we must create a synergy for both of them to co-exist’

• Juwah

claim that they have the capacity to bar phones from being used are not telling the truth. NCC had even before we came into office, embarked on a project to bar

stolen phones from being used again, but that project was stalled when we discovered that about 60 per cent of the phones used in Nigeria are fake and of substan-

dard quality. Most of the phones we use do not correspond to prescribed and approved quality and if we had done what we should have done, it means that more than 60 per cent of the people who are using phones would not be able to use them again. So, those who claim they can bar stolen phones from being used are just duping those who patronise them.

The reason is very simple. All these phones came from the same market in Asia and what they do is to produce millions of phones with the same Equipment Identity Number (EIN). So, where several phones have the same EIN, it is impossible to do what we are supposed to do. If we bar one phone by barring the EIN, several phones would be affected and this could affect more than two million phones. So, we decided that we would not do that so as to protect our poor people who are the main culprits of these merchants of fake phones.

With what you are doing, particularly with the SIM card registration, do you intend to make the data available to government to use such data to fight kidnapping, robbery, Boko Haram and other insurgents?

We are not a security organisation. We have several security organisations doing their own bit and carrying out their own assignments and we don’t relate with them. They are on their own; we are on our own. Providing security or whatever information they need is their own prerogative and we are not involved. We believe they have their own way of getting what they want but certainly not through us as we are not working in tandem with them; we are not doing anything with them.

Complaints have remained a problem to the ordinary man, who would have to spend all his money calling the major operators and all he gets are machine recorded responses that lead to nowhere. What is NCC doing about this?

We have established a three digit Code 112. It is true that this has not been rolled out, it is to be implemented for emergency calls. In the alternative, we have provided another emergency call line 080callNCC (that is, 08002255622), from where people can reach NCC Public Complaints Bureau to lodge complaints about drop calls, noisy networks during calls or other matters the GSM customers are not comfortable with. As I speak with you now, we have pilot sites for the Code 112 which are to be established in Awka, Anambra State and Minna, Niger State, in the first instance, while other sites would be established later.

‘Most of the phones we use do not correspond to prescribed and approved quality and if we had done what we should have done, it means that more than 60 per cent of the people who are using phones would not be able to use them again’

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

34

EQUITIES WATCH

Email: taofad2000@yahoo.co.uk

UBA: From sell to buy T

HE stock market has been in a depressed mood for some weeks. With N237 billion shaved off investors’ value in February, the extremely bearish market in the month, now euphemistically referred to as February blues by the melancholy brokers struggling to make humour out of a bad market, eroded marginal gains in previous month. It built up extensive losses for many investors. The benchmark index at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), the All Share Index (ASI)-a common value- based index that tracks price changes of all quoted companies, posted a negative return of 3.60 per cent in February.

Aggregate market value of all quoted companies also dropped by 3.60 per cent from month’s opening value of N6.579 trillion to close February at N6.342 trillion, representing a loss of N237 billion. The congruence between ASI and market capitalisation decline rates validated that the loss of N237 billion was actually due to depreciation in investors’ value rather than possible other causes such as delisting.

With the overwhelming bad market in February, average year-to-date return at the stock market for the first two months of the year stood at - 2.93 per cent. With inflation rate currently at 12.6 per cent, simple adjusted inflation return would be -15.53 per cent. The cost of capital might further worsen the return of several investors.

But the overall market situation belied impressive performance by several stocks, which have all through shown resistance to the downtrend or made a strong comeback to deliver appreciable returns to investors.

United Bank for Africa is leading the pack of such resurgent stocks. With a capital gain of 35.5 per cent in February, UBA’s shareholders pocketed N23 billion. UBA’s share price opened the month at N2 per share and closed at a high of N2.71 per share, indicating increase in market capitalisation from N64.67 billion to N87.63 billion.

The resurgence has also coloured UBA’s overall year-to-date performance. Against the overall market’s negative return, UBA posted a positive average year-to-date return of 15.06 per cent, an exceedingly better value than returns on savings and many debt instruments of similar tenors. UBA’s share price had opened this year at N2.59 per share.

Interestingly, UBA’s upwardly pricing trend has been simultaneous with large turnover. Technically, volume is a wave breaker for pricing trend except where the demand exceedingly overwhelms supply.

Where there are more investors willing to buy at premium than investors willing to sell, higher price becomes a bait to attract volume and vice versa. All things being equal, sustained large volume with sustained capital appreciation is an indication of strong prospects. As profit takers turn in their shares to lock in their capital gains, more futuristic investors round up the supply and up the demand to elicit further supply. Suffice to note that on the NSE, like other markets, price movementeither up or down, is dependent of possession of minimum volume of shares. Thus, price appreciation occurs where the selling investor and the buying investor- through their stockbrokers, agreed on the premium value of the stock and vice versa. That explains why a bearish market is regarded as a buyer’s market- because the interest of the buyer is to purchase at a lower price, and a bullish market is referred to as a seller’s market, since the interest of the seller is to sell at premium.

UBA was obviously the most active and rallying stock for the voluminous turnover in recent weeks. In the first week of February, UBA accounted for 22.3 per cent of total turnover for the week. By the second

United Bank for Africa (UBA) is the rallying stock at the market. TAOFIK SALAKO examines the undercurrents driving it. week, the bank contributed 31.8 per cent of aggregate turnover and with the price rallying the profit-takers and more value investors responding to supply, UBA’s percentage contribution to total turnover rose to 55.4 per cent in the third week. UBA accounted for 31.3 per cent of total turnover for the fourth week.

In the immediate past week, UBA accounted for 27.5 per cent of total turnover.

Going bad

But February also started as a bad month for UBA. With high expectations that banking stocks, which had supposedly used previous years to clean their books and take in all the losses, would deliver impressive

profits and dividends for the 2011 business year, the management of UBA in the first week of the month surprised the investing public with a profit warning indicating that the bank could post a loss for the 2011 business year. The bank said it had spun into losses due to write-offs and provisions for non-performing assets; the albatross that investors thought the banking sector had put behind it.

Chief Finance Officer, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, Mr. Ugo Nwaghodoh said the write offs were necessary to put the past behind the bank once and for all and steady it for stable growth.

The warning was an anti-climax for a bank that its net profit rose by 52 per cent to N10.1 billion by the third quarter ended September 30, 2011.

The interim report had shown strong prospects for high dividend yield, with earnings yield then at 10 per cent.

The report showed gross earnings of N133 billion in 2011 as against N136 billion in comparable period of 2010 while profit after tax rose from N6.6 billion to N10.1 billion. It also indicated that total assets rose from N2.27 trillion in December 2010 to N2.94 trillion in September 2011. Deposits grew by 18 per cent from N1.27 trillion in December 2010 to N1.5 trillion in 2011.

The bank’s non-Nigerian operations were also doing well. Deposit base outside Nigeria stood at N258 billion, up with 17 per cent from N221 billion in December 2010 while loans grew by 29 per cent to N117 billion as against N91 billion in December 2010. Foreign gross earnings rose to N25 billion compared to N19 billion in the corresponding period of 2010.

Accordingly, deposits, loans and

gross earnings outside Nigeria accounted for 17 per cent, 16.6 per cent and 20 per cent of group performance respectively, compared to 17 per cent, 15 per cent and 12 per cent recorded respectively in the corresponding period of 2010. To spin into loss, the loan loss provisions and write-offs must have exceeded third quarter net earnings. That was mind boggling.

Taking in the same breath with the suspension of its planned equity capital raising, changes to its holding company structure and the historic sense of disappointment with UBA and banking stocks generally, the market was furious with the bank.

For both speculators and shareholders, it was a rush to exit. That was evident in the volume and price

trends in the immediate period for the announcement. UBA’s activities in the first and second weeks were driven by the selling instincts. It’s share price, which had opened the second week at N2 per share, plummeted to N1.81 by the end of the week, a drop of 9.5 per cent. The share price further dropped to a low of N1.64.

However, by the third week, it was evident most investors had sensed the overreaction in the steep decline and seen the opportunity created by the bottom-pricing. Then, the market reversed and upsurge in demand pushed share price to close third week at N1.89.

It rode on the back of the scramble to close fourth week at N2.38 per share and in the last days of February rallied more gains to close the month at N2.71 per share. It opens today at a high of N2.98 per share. Why did the trend turn positive?

Turning to fundamentals Most analysts believed that the steep decline witnessed in earlier period had further underpriced UBA, which was considered underpriced even at its 2012’s opening value.

While the immediate reaction to the profit warning was guided by the herd instinct, most investors and professional managers re-evaluated that the approach taken by UBA to deal once and for all with the hangover of bad assets was in the best interest of shareholders. A clean balance sheet would support sustained growth and strengthen the bank against the vagaries in the industry. Many including the management of the NSE have also commended the courage and the transparency implied by the profit warning noting that the management could as well have resorted to man-

aging the bad debts from the prying eyes of investors.

There was also the prospects of a strong rebound since the expected loss for the 2011 was due to provisions for historic bad debts rather than impairment in operating fundamentals.

In its performance preview for the first quarter ending March 31, 2012, the board of UBA estimated that profit before tax could be N15.1 billion while net earnings after taxes would be N12.1 billion. Gross earnings is expected at N59 billion within the three-month period. This indicated a pre-tax profit margin of 25.6 per cent, implying that the bank could make a profit of about N26 from every N100 transaction.

With net profit at N12.1 billion, first quarter earnings per share is expected at 37 kobo. This variously implies earnings yield of 20.4 per cent, 19.6 per cent and 15.55 per cent at market price of N1.81, N1.89 and N2.38 re-

spectively. This represented a significant upside potential for the stock.

With the bad loans behind, there appears to be no inhibition for the consolidation of the bank’s fundamental performance throughout 2012.

Analysts perspective This perspective was shared by several reputable investment research firms and fund managers, which have placed the buy tick on UBA shares.

Analysts at Citigroup Global Markets Inc, a member of the global financial services group-Citigroup, said all fundamentals and comparative analyses indicate that UBA is overtly discounted. Citi places its revised target price for UBA at N5 per share, a point down from N6 set prior to the profit warning but about 85 per cent above UBA’s March opening price of N2.71 at the stock market.

Also, Renaissance Capital, which has also placed a buy tick on UBA, said the bank has upside potential of 71 per cent. In its latest 175-page report on 10 banks including Access Bank, Diamond Bank, Fidelity Bank, First City Monument Bank, First Bank of Nigeria, Guaranty Trust Bank, Skye Bank, Stanbic IBTC Bank, Zenith Bank and UBA, the global investment and research company noted that all the selected banks have significant upside potential. Renaissance Capital placed the buy tick on UBA and four others, which it adjudged have the most significant propensity to generate higher returns. UBA’s upside potential of 71 per cent as determined

by Renaissance Capital was the highest within the covered banks.

“The value of UBA is in its funding.

Whilst the full-year 2011 profit warning has provided the market with yet

•GMD, UBA, Phillips Oduoza

another reason to question the value in UBA’s business model, we continue to believe that its liability driven profit model will deliver strong future earnings growth, which is currently not being priced in by the market. UBA’s 2011 third quarter total deposits of $10 billion are currently being valued at only $0.4 billion. Notably, UBA’s current market value is only $100 million more than Skye Bank, despite its deposit base being 10 times that of Skye Bank. Relative to Zenith Bank, UBA’s market capitalisation represents only 15 per cent of Zenith Bank’s, despite UBA and Zenith Bank sharing very similar deposit bases,” analysts at Citi noted.

Citi stated that its reasoning was validated on the premise that Nigerian banks earn the bulk of their net interest income on the liability side.

In other words, a Nigerian bank’s profit model is driven primarily by its deposit base.

“We believe one could argue for a UBA value of anything from N2.80 per share to about N5 per share,” Renaissance Capital concluded. According to analysts, from whichever perspective, one cannot but find value in the UBA stock; based on the current data and reasonable future estimates.

With its restructuring into pan-African financial services holding group, operations in 19 African countries and major global financial centres, qualitative balance sheet and expansive deposit base, UBA is a stock to watch. However, the performance of the bank going forward would be influenced greatly by the realisation of the first quarter forecasts and sustained growth thereafter.

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

35

PERSONAL FINANCE Investor’s Worth

Knowledge investor

I

NVESTING in the information and communication sector requires adequate knowledge of the risks and potential of the sector. As an emerging sector, the ICT sector comes with specialised risks and potential. As such, major investors in the ICT sector tend to have close professional career or business operation to the sector. Mallam Bashir El-Rufai is one of such investors.

A well-rounded telecommunication expert, El-Rufai holds the largest known individual equity stake in IHS Nigeria Plc, the most capitalised telecommunication and second most capitalised ICT company on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).

IHS, a telecommunication infrastructure service provider, is owned mainly by several institutional investors including a foreign core investor with majority shareholding and many Nigerian financial services companies.

El-Rufai’s shareholding runs well into nine digits and represents substantial chunk of IHS’s N11.4 billion capitalisation. A pioneer in the Nigerian telecommunication sector, El-Rufai‘s vast experience spanned the pre and post deregulation of the in-

dustry. He had served as the chief commercial officer for the Northern District of the Nigerian External Telecommunications Limited (NET) and later at the Nigerian Telecommunications Limited (NITEL) where he held senior management positions including general manager, Lagos Zone; territorial manager, Lagos Zone and deputy director.

Beside, IHS, El-Rufai has significant interests in telecommunication operations in Nigeria and beyond. He is the cofounder and president of Intercellular Nigeria Limited, the first indigenous telecommunication operator. He also has appreciable interest in Intercellular/Sudatel (Nigeria) Limited, where he serves as the vice chairman and corporate advisor.

El-Rufai is known as a shrewd investor that plays on the basis of his professional knowledge and stringent evaluation. He also sits on the board of First Securities Discount House (FSDH) Limited, a financial services group that that provides products and services across the wide gamut of the investment market including money market securities trading, funds

C

•El-Rufai

management and trading in fixed income securities, asset management, unit trusts, equities trading, corporate finance and pension funds management and administration.

Apart from his substantial investment, El-Rufai’s in-depth knowledge of the telecommunication industry has contributed immensely to the sustained growth of IHS in Nigeria and expansions across Africa. Under his chairmanship, IHS has grown from being a site builder of telecom towers to a managed services provider of choice with subsidiaries in Ghana and Sudan.

Ask a Broker

I

NTANGIBLE assets are simply assets without physical or tangible character or value to hold on to.

Nonetheless, intangible assets form part of the balance sheet of a company because of the general assumptions that they hold inherent values even where such values cannot be seen like other assets such as buildings, machinery etc. These intangible assets include goodwill, trademarks, secret production processes and formulas, patents, copyrights, franchises and brand value.

What are intangible assets?

Intangible assets can generally be classified into: assets with determinate life and those with indeterminate life.

Some intangible assets such as patents, copyrights and franchises have determined lifespan subject to the law while others such as goodwill have indeterminate life.

Practical examples of intangible assets include the goodwill that accrued to Access Bank from the acquisition of Intercontinental Bank or

goodwill that accrued from Kraft Food’s acquisition of Cadbury.

The recognition and treatment of intangible assets depend on the applicable laws and rules in a particular jurisdiction.

These may also differ from industry to industry. Suffice to note that the issue of intangible assets is a delicate issue that is susceptible to underestimation and overestimation, in whichever case it becomes injurious to investors’ returns.

Ways and Means What to consider before opening bank account

F

ORMAL banking relationship starts with the opening of an account; irrespective of the type. Either savings or current accounts, investmentlinked or transactional accounts, a potential account holder needs to consider some key points that may be crucial to optimal account management and security of his account.

The first consideration is the fundamental strengths of the financial institution. These measures of a fundamentally strong bank include compliance with all statutory operating requirements issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), profitability of its banking operations as evidenced by the profit and loss accounts and its institutional financial strength as indicated by the balance sheet. Banks are required to display key extracts of their audited report and accounts in the banking hall and in the absence of a displayed copy; one may request to see the key financials of the bank. Ascertaining the fundamentals of the financial institution is important because the depositor also stands to lose from the sudden collapse of the bank. Although the Nigerian financial services authorities guarantee all deposits in the

event of any untoward development in any bank, the intervening period between the intervention and resolution of the issue may weaken the depositor’s financial position or create an outright insolvency problem.

A potential account holder also needs to consider the board and management of the bank.

The composition of the board in terms of diversity of skills, experience and influence as well as integrity of members of board would determine the quality of their oversight functions. Also, the quality of management in terms of professional knowledge and cumulative experience will drive the financial performance of the bank, which is crucial to the security of the deposit or investment. Many sudden unexplained resignations from the board or management are often early warnings of serious organisational crisis.

Ownership and structures determine the resilience of any financial institution, especially in the event of sudden regulatory changes such as the knee-jerk increase of banks’ minimum capital base from N2 billion to N25 billion or macroeconomic changes such as sharp decline in public sector funds.

Landmines and goldmines in IPOs (3) LandminesandgoldminesinIPOs(3

Besides, the potential account holder must consider the suitability of the bank to his needs.

This encompasses the niche banking segment, products and services and general customer orientation. A top-tier bank with main focus on corporate and high networth individual clients may not adequately cater for the banking needs of retail depositors, although the exigencies of the operating environment may necessitate offering retail banking products.

Proximity of a bank, in terms of nearness to one’s centres of transactions- home, office etc, is also a major consideration. This not only reduces cost of transaction, it also enables the account holder to cope with emergencies. For instance, nearly all banks are well represented on the Marina commercial hub of Lagos and this may induce a low-to-middle cadre employee whose official centre of transaction is within the corridor to choose any of the banks. But many of the banks are not represented in the suburbs where most of the employees live, thus limiting their effective hours of transactions to official hours alone. It is also important to consider the feedback/dispute resolution mechanism of the bank.

ORPORATE valuation methods: As part of the several important disclosures in the Initial Public Offer (IPO) document, the issuing house is expected to take the investing public through the process it used in arriving at the offer price. It should be noted that the pricing of an IPO depends entirely on the issuer and its professional parties as capital market regulators cannot fix price for any issue. As such, there is always the tendency by the issuer to adopt the most favourable valuation method. But in a highly competitive market with a large segment of well-informed investors, companies and issuers have been found to adopt a middle-of-the-course valuation approach that uses the averages of several valuations to arrive at the fair price for the IPO. Several IPO prospectuses usually contain synopsis of the valuation methods but in the event an IPO prospectus does not reflect the valuation approach, investors can demand for the basis of valuation from the company, issuing house and similar professional parties as well as at the investors’ forum for such IPO. A potential IPO investor needs to pay particular attention to the valuation method or methods adopted by the company and its professional parties since the choice of valuation model oftentimes indicates the thinking of the management. Valuation provides indirect window to understanding the business concept, board and management strategic business plans, the expected performance of the company over the years and the likely return to investors. Besides, since a company issuing shares to the public for the first time does not have any current independent secondary valuation history like quoted companies, the main window of assessment is the fundamental valuation; and other relevant disclosures.

In considering valuation, investors need to scrutinize the basic premises, facts and rationales that provide validation for the valuation. While it is important to take all disclosures into consideration, investors should be wary of valuations that rest largely on vague notions and intangible concepts such as good wills, technical know-how, competitive advantage, growth opportunities, emerging trends and several hard-to-pin concepts unless such are supported with measurable facts and projections.

Some of the major valuation methods include the Dividend Discount Model (DDM) and the Discounted Cash Flow Model (DCFM). The DDM values a company by forecasting the dividend payouts and as such is a measure of probable returns to shareholders over the course of

‘There are several other hybrid and emerging valuation methods. Fundamental analysts recognise that there is no perfect valuation method and thus most analysts combine many valuation methods to arrive at an average value, especially in a competitive primary market’

By Taofik Salako

the years. Since dividend, expectedly, is a function of earnings, the DDM provides insight into the future profitability of the company. Although the actual calculation requires deep understanding of financial analysis, investors generally can sense the imports of the valuation through the explanatory details.

The DCFM is premised on the cash flows from the company’s operations. Since the ultimate survival of a company depends on cash flow from its operations, this model values the company by assessing its net cash flow.

The net cash flow, otherwise known as free cash flow, is the difference between a company’s total cash flow from its operations and cash investments or capital expenditures. After forecasting the free cash flow, fundamental valuers then apply the present value formula to generate appropriate value for the shares of the company.

Many issuing houses and discerning investors also use the comparative value approach to illustrate the fairness of the offer price. This approach rests majorly on the existing pricing trends of companies of similar standing with the issuing company and it is a derivation of the efficient market model. The efficient market theory basically holds that the share price of a company on the secondary market truly reflects the current value of the company. To arrive at a more reliable value that takes into consideration the fluctuations in market behaviours and latent period between information dissemination and assimilation, valuers depend on average value of a stock over a period of time. The basic premise of this approach is that since a company of similar value (and operations) trades at this price at the secondary market, the IPO company will also trade at around the same price.

There are several other hybrid and emerging valuation methods. Fundamental analysts recognise that there is no perfect valuation method and thus most analysts combine many valuation methods to arrive at an average value, especially in a competitive primary market.

Investors also need to put this at the back of their minds and treat valuation as one of several considerations in their investment decision-making.

Forecasts and assumptions: Directly related to fundamental corporate valuation is the concepts of forecasts and underlying assumptions for such forecasts or projections. As noted earlier, several investors sleepwalked into padded IPO by ignoring even obvious disclosures in terms of forecasts and management assumptions. IPO prospectuses usually contain two segments on forecasts: a summary of forecasts- usually included in the summary of the offer, and a full forecast and assumptions. While the summary indicates the key highlights, the full forecast outlines the expected incomes and expenditures and the underlying reasons or assumptions for such expectations.

Key highlights of such forecasts include the income or turnover, profit before tax, net profit after tax, earnings per share and expected cash payout.

Extant rules at the Nigerian capital market require companies to provide a three-year forecast. The full forecast is a proto-

type profit and loss account statement. Just as the profit and loss account must be read alongside the explanatory notes and accounting principles, a forecast must be read and understood within the context of the underlying assumptions. One of the key points to note that forecast is usually premised on the full subscription of the offer. An undersubscription impinges on the directors’ liability for the forecast and provides room for variation of the forecast. But in the event of an oversubscription, the initial forecast becomes the minimum attainable estimates.

Key questions to consider when assessing a forecast include: Is the forecast prepared in line with the consistent historic accounting principles of the company? Is the forecast consistent with the historic growth of the company? Is the forecast dependent on factors subject to imminent changes such as government policy? How realizable is the forecast within the context of the macroeconomic environment? What are the tangible verifiable assumptions backing the forecasts?

In most instances, underlying assumptions for forecasts are

‘Key questions to consider when assessing a forecast include: Is the forecast prepared in line with the consistent historic accounting principles of the company? Is the forecast consistent with the historic growth of the company? Is the forecast dependent on factors subject to imminent changes such as government policy?’ equally casted in fluid expressions and vague concepts that impinge on reliability of the forecast. For instance, some of the assumptions behind forecasts for some IPOs include that the expertise of the present management personnel will be sustained throughout the period of forecasts, there will be no adverse changes in the government’s fiscal policies, there would be stable monetary policy, there will be more direct business and incomes, and there shall be no drastic changes in the domestic and global political and economic situations among others. Many of these underlying assumptions are vague and can be easily interpreted to excuse the board and management of any liability.

For example, the resignation of an executive director will vitiate the assumption of no change in management expertise.

But even with the limitation posed by vague underlying assumptions, forecasts provide investors with additional information to make informed judgement on the fairness of an offer price and probable returns.

In addition to underlying assumptions for forecasts, investors need to consider the potential risks and risk management strategies or mitigating factors for such risks. Each IPO prospectus carries a segment on risks and mitigating factors with typical explicit note that “investors should be aware that there are a number of specific corporate risks, industry risks, economic risks, political risks and general business environment risks.”

Feedback/Comments: Email: taofad2000@yahoo.co.uk; SMS only: 080-2833-0861

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

36

EQUITIES NIGERIAN STOCK EXCHANGE DAILY SUMMARY AS AT 2-3-12 2ND-TIER SECURITIES

Investors stake N13.3b on equities

B

ARGAIN hunters increased demand for equities last week as investors staked N13.36 billion on equities as many companies announced they would be holding their board meetings for the consideration of their audited reports and dividend recommendations.

Turnover at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) increased to 2.223 billion shares worth N13.356 billion in 21,433 deals last week as against a total of 2.044 billion shares valued at N12.332 billion exchanged in 20,449 deals two weeks ago.

The increase in turnover also triggered a bullish rally for several equities and impacted positively on the market direction.

The benchmark index at NSE, the All Share Index (ASI) recorded a week-on-week appreciation of 0.5 per cent to close the week at 20,592.02 points. Aggregate market value of all equities also trended upward to N6.490 trillion.

Most sectoral indices also closed on the upside with the NSE-30 Index, which tracks the 30 most capitalised

By Taofik Salako and Tonia Osundolire

stocks, appreciating by 0.1 per cent to 937.35 points. The NSE Banking Index appreciated by 4.66 points or 1.6 per cent to close at 307.95 points while the NSE Oil and Gas Index firmed by 9.42 points or 4.4 per cent to close at 218.40 points.

However, the NSE Consumer Goods Index depreciated by 72.78 points or 4.45 per cent to close at 1,581.20 points while the NSE Insurance Index depreciated by 2.10 points or 1.7 per cent to close at 118.64 points.

Analysis of activities showed that the financial services sector accounted for 1.915 billion shares valued at N8.953 billion traded in 13,430 deals. The consumer goods sector followed with 102.954 million shares valued at N2.615 billion traded in 3,908 deals.

Banking subsector was the most active during the week with 1.621 billion shares worth N8.8 billion exchanged by investors in 12,489 deals. The volume in the banking subsector was largely driven by activity in

the shares of United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, First City Monument Bank Plc, Ecobank Transnational Inc and Fidelity Bank Plc. Transactions on the shares of the four banks accounted for 1.144 billion shares, representing 51.44 per cent of the aggregate turnover.

Insurance subsector placed a distant second on the weekly activity chart with a turnover of 251.22 million shares valued at N142.8 million traded in 934 deals.

Meanwhile, Dangote Cement led 28 other stocks on the gainers’ list. Dangote Cement gained N5.25 close at N110.25 per share. Oando Plc followed with a gain of N4.32 to close at N24.43. Zenith Bank Plc rose by 70 kobo to close at N14.05. Access Bank Plc added 61 kobo to close at N7.63 while UBA chalked up 60 kobo to close at N2.98 per share.

On the downside, Nestle Nigeria Plc topped the 33stock losers with a loss of N20 to close at N400. Guinness Nigeria Plc trailed with a loss of N11.90 to close at N209.10 per share. Nigerian Breweries Plc dropped by N5.04 to close at N92.95. Seven-Up Bottling Company Plc slipped by N2.10 to close at N43.90. GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Nigeria lost N2.01 to close at N19.99 while PZ Cussons dropped by N1.90 to close at N24.10 per share.

NIGERIAN STOCK EXCHANGE DAILY SUMMARY AS AT 29-2-12

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

37

MONEY LINK

Taxation key to economic devt, says Okonjo-Iweala

E

FFECTIVE taxation is critical in driving key sector of the economy to substantial growth, the Finance Minister, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has said.

Speaking at the first West African Union of Tax Institutes (WAUTI) conference held in Lagos, the minister said the government is taking keen interest in taxation as it is needed to drive its revenue base and bring meaningful development to the country.

She said the Personal Income Tax (Amendment) Act, 2011 has given more opportunities for tax professional to do better jobs. The Minis-

tax institutes in collaboration with Revenue Agencies in the West African Region have a common forum to address all tax matters.

He said uniting the key tax institutes in the region will give them the opportunity to share ideas on how to move the sector forward.

Quadri said the group will dive membership that will be fully involved in tax matters to lift the economy forward.

tably and that its major provisions reflected the focus of the overall tax reforms, which included introducing a more equitable tax system by introduction of realistic tax rates, efficient and effective tax administration system, simplification of laws, empowering tax authorities and a shift from direct to indirect taxation by lowering of direct tax rates.

The WAUTI President, Kunle Quadri said the body was formed to enable the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (CITN) and the Chartered Institute of Taxation, Ghana (CITG) and other emerging

By Collins Nweze

ter said that government is working on getting a National Tax Data that will enable the government at all levels tax people effectively, adding that such feat will help address challenges facing taxation in the country.

The minister, who was represented by the Chairman, Joint Tax Board (JTB) and Chief Executive Officer Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) Ifueko Omoigui Okauru, said that from the outset, the act was developed to ensure that personal income tax was administered equi-

•Okonjo-Iweala

FirstBank partners forum on agenda for Africa

Sterling Bank to enhance real sector financing

S

TERLING Bank Plc is poised to become a systemically important commercial bank that impacts on all sectors of business participation in the economy going by feelers from those close enough to the Bank’s business strategy.

This was disclosed in a report titled: “Sterling Bank: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow.” It was further revealed that the Bank is aiming at strengthening its firm hold in the fold of tier two banks in Nigeria; with the aim of becoming the leading tier two bank in the country by 2016.

A statement from the bank said the bank desires to be a competitive financial services franchise, fully scaled business model with institutionalised

processes.

The bank currently operates a national commercial banking license and has been rated ‘Short Term A3,’ with a stable outlook. It recently assimilated the business interest of the erstwhile Equitorial Trust Bank to emerge a formidable tier two bank.

“With current business focus being the mid-tier corporate, institutional banking, small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs), government and consumer banking; the bank’s vision is to be the financial institution of choice while its mission is to deliver solutions that enhance stakeholders’ value,” it said.

The bank’s chief strategy officer, Yemi Odubiyi, said the bank’s custom-

ers and shareholders are in for a good time. He also reiterated that the Bank will remain true to its core values of customer focus, integrity, team work and excellence.

Sterling Bank Plc is the preeminent investment banking establishment in Nigeria. It commenced operations as NAL Bank in 1960. Today, with a capital base of more than N44 billion, over N508 billion in assets and about 200 branches nationwide complimented with 200 Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) points nationwide, Sterling Bank has grown into a major commercial Bank in Nigeria. The Bank prides itself as “The one-customer Bank” that celebrates every customer as a unique individual.

to start or grow existing businesses.

This is done through blending tailored business finance and support to clients in what has been referred to as the “missing middle”. Branson applauds GroFin for having developed an innovative, scalable and commercial approach that generates real developmental and economic impact.

Founder of GroFin, Jurie Willemse

explains: “While the small business sector is widely considered to be a vital source of job creation and local economic growth, its potential has yet to be reached. This is largely due to some key obstacles these businesses face, namely lack of access to the right kind of finance coupled with appropriate support,” he said.

He said the firm was launched seven

F

IRST Bank of Nigeria Plc is sponsoring the CEO Brain storming Dinner designed to articulate Nigeria’s position ahead of the 2012 World Economic Forum on Africa. The bank said in a statement the decision was in line with its thought leadership role and commitment to economic development in Nigeria and Africa.

The bank is co-hosting the CEO Brainstorming Dinner with the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) on tomorrow in Lagos. The event will provide a platform for leading Nigerian Chief Executives from various sectors of the economy to meet with global business leaders to adopt strategic expectations for Nigeria and the entire continent

Fund manager gets global recognition

G

ROFIN, a pan-African fund manager and growth financier has been recognised by English Business magnate, Richard Branson.

In his new book titled: “Screw Business As Usual” that features selected case studies of companies using business as a force for positive change in their clime, Branson said GroFin creates sustainable jobs by supporting entrepreneurs

years ago to respond to these challenges and to stimulate the growth of what is referred to as the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) sector which will drive the knock-on benefits to the communities they operate in.

The driving force behind this model was the vision that these businesses could create sustainable jobs in developing nations.

from the 2012 World Economic Forum on Africa, which holds from 9-11 May 2012 in Addis-Ababa, Ethiopia.

FirstBank’s Group Managing Director and Chief Executive, Mr. Bisi Onasanya said the event would enable business leaders in the nation align their views with those of their global counterparts on how best to consolidate the economic gains and socio-political changes being recorded on the continent.

“FirstBank is proud to be co-hosting this event with the NSE and we are confident that the meeting would help the nation come up with the Nigerian perspective on the roadmap for a prosperous future for Africa,” he said.

According to Onasanya, the meeting will address several focal points of the forthcoming World Economic Forum including how to seek new investment frontiers, reduce the continent’s vulnerability to resource price volatility and turbulent global financial systems and transform Africa’s natural resource wealth into long-term investments for quality growth, among others.

DATA BANK Tenor

Amount N

Rate %

M/Date

3-Year 5-Year 5-Year

35m 35m 35m

11.039 12.23 13.19

19-05-2014 18-05-2016 19-05-2016

WHOLESALE DUTCH AUCTION SYSTEM Amount

MANAGED FUNDS Initial Quotation Price N8250.00 N1000.00

NIDF NESF

Current Market 5495.33 N552.20

Price Loss 2754.67 447.80

7.9-10% 10-11%

PRIMARY MARKET AUCTION (T-BILLS) Tenor 91-Day 182-Day 1-Year

Amount 30m 46.7m 50m

Rate % 10.96 9.62 12.34

Date 5-02-2012 “ 6-02-2012

GAINERS AS AT 2-3-12 SYMBOL DANGCEM JBERGER BAGCO UBA NCR CADBURY NAHCO ETERNAOIL AIRSERVICE CUTIX

O/PRICE 105.00 20.53 1.62 2.84 9.75 8.74 7.15 3.72 1.47 1.51

C/PRI CE 110.25 21.55 1.70 2.98 10.23 9.17 7.50 3.90 1.64 1.58

LOSER AS AT 2-3-12 SYMBOL GLAXOSMITH GOLDINSURE FIDSON DANGSUGAR IBTC CUSTODYINS STERLNBANK RTBRISCOE FIDELITYBK DIAMONDBNK

O/PRICE 21.00 0.67 0.91 3.83 7.39 1.62 1.02 1.25 1.40 2.60

C/PRICE 19.99 0.64 0.87 3.70 7.20 1.58 1.00 1.23 1.38 2.57

Exchange

Sold ($)

Rate (N)

Date

450m

452.7m

450m

156.8

250m

313.5m

250m

156.8

03-2-12

250m

250m

245m

156.7

01-2-12

08-2-12

CAPITAL MARKET INDEX Year Start Offer

Current Before

Current After

CUV Start %

NGN USD

147.6000

149.7100

150.7100

-2.11

NGN GBP

239.4810

244.0123

245.6422

-2.57

NGN EUR

212.4997

207.9023

209.2910

-1.51

BANK (S/N)

149.7450

154.0000

154.3000

-3.04

(S/N) Bureau de Change

152.0000

153.0000

155.5000

-2.30

153.0000

154.0000

156.0000

-1.96

NSE CAP Index

NIGERIA INTER

27-10-11 N6.5236tr 20,607.37

28-10-11 N6.617tr 20,903.16

% Change -1.44% -1.44%

MEMORANDUM QUOTATIONS Name

(S/N) CHANGE 2.25 1.02 0.08 0.14 0.48 0.43 0.35 0.18 0.07 0.07

Amount

EXHANGE RATE 26-08-11 Currency

INTERBANK RATES OBB Rate Call Rate

Amount Demanded ($)

Offered ($)

Parallel Market

DISCOUNT WINDOW Feb. ’11

July ’11

Dec ’11

MPR

6.50%

6.50%

12%

Standing Lending Rate ,, Deposit Rate ,, Liquidity Ratio Cash Return Rate Inflation Rate

8.50% 4.50% 25.00% 1.00% 12.10%

8.50% 4.50% 25.00% 2.00% 12.10%

9.50% 5.50% 30.00% 2.00% 10.3%

Offer Price

Bid Price

9.17 1.00 1,177.37 99.76 0.76 1.04 0.88 1,666.70 8.24 1.39 1.87 7,137.57 193.00

9.08 1.00 1,160.06 99.49 0.73 1.04 0.87 1,663.73 7.84 1.33 1.80 6,953.84 191.08

ARM AGGRESSIVE KAKAWA GUARANTEED STANBIC IBTC GUARANTE AFRINVEST W.A. EQUITY FUND THE LOTUS CAPITAL HALAL BGL SAPPHIRE FUND BGL NUBIAN FUND NIGERIA INTERNATIONAL DEB. PARAMOUNT EQUITY FUND CONTINENTAL UNIT TRUST CENTRE-POINT UNIT TRUST STANBIC IBTC NIG EQUITY THE DISCOVERY FUND • ARM AGGRESSIVE • KAKAWA GUARANTEED

CHANGE 1.01 0.03 0.04 0.13 0.19 0.04 0.02 0.02 0.02 0.03

• STANBIC IBTC GUARANTE • AFRINVEST W.A. EQUITY FUND

NIBOR Tenor 7 Days 30 Days 60 Days 150 Days

Rate (Previous) 23 Dec 2011 9.0417 9.6667 11.2917 12.1250

Rate (Currency) 24, Dec, 2011 10.17% 11.46% 11.96% 12.54%

Movement

OPEN BUY BACK Previous

Current

04 July, 2011

07, Dec, 2011

Bank

8.5000

8.5000

P/Court

8.0833

8.0833

Movement

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

38

MONEY MARKET REPORT

Dollar supply drops by 28% S

UPPLY for the United States Dollar at the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) Wholesale Dutch Auction System (WDAS) fell by 28 per cent, to $288 million last week compared with $400 million offered by the regulator the preceding week.

However, volume of demand and supply were met at the auction last week as $138 million and $150 million were offered at Monday and Wednesday’s auctions with $138 million and $150 million sold. Low demand for dollar triggered the market result even as analysts ruled out possibility of any significant changes in trading patterns this week.

Out of the 19 banks that participated in the bidding on Monday, 17 were successful while two were not. The trend was slightly different on Wednesday as out of the 17 banks that participated in the bidding, 16 were successful while one was not.

The naira was trading at N157.80 to the dollar on the interbank market on Thursday, weaker than the 157.78 to the dollar at Wednesday’s close.

“More demand is gradually coming into the market and (unless) we have significant inflows of dollars from oil companies and foreign investors, the naira will be under pressure by next week (this week),” analysts said.

The moderate supply and demand for the dollar is expected to continue next one or two weeks except the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) sells dollars this week.

Besides, inflows from offshore investors into the bond market could also help to counter moderate demand and supply.

Operators said more importers are showing a preference for the interbank market because of the convergence of rates with the official window and the short turnaround time for transactions.

This could result in greater pressure on the naira at the interbank market and rates might cross the N158 to the dollar mark this week, traders said.

The naira firmed marginally against the greenback on the interbank on Monday, spurred by dollar sales by a unit of Royal Dutch Shell and declining demand for foreign exchange at the official window, traders said. The naira closed at 157.60 to the dollar on the interbank market, stronger than the 157.65 it closed on Friday gaining 0.5 kobo, representing about 0.31 per cent increase.

Conversely, the naira weakened against the dollar on Wednesday on a resurgence of dollar demand at the interbank market, but it remained unchanged at the official foreign exchange window. The naira closed at 157.78 to the dollar on the interbank market, weaker than the 157.65 it closed at on Tuesday, losing 13 kobo at a stretch representing, about 8.2 per cent of its value. This brought a total loss within the week to 12.5 kobo, as against 50 kobo, gained the previous week.

Analysts said the naira is seen reversing some of its gains against the dollar on a resurgence of demand from importers and declining dollar inflows from oil companies and foreign investors.

Interbank market The interbank lending rates dropped by 59 basis points to an average of 14.41 per cent last week, compared with 15 per cent previous week, following the disbursal of budgetary allocations to government agencies, traders said on Friday.

They said the disbursal of over N300 billion in January budgetary allocations to government agencies swelled cash liquidity in the system and forced down the cost of borrowing among banks.

The secured Open Buy Back (OBB) eased to 14 per cent, from 14.5 per cent last week, 200 basis points above the central bank’s 12 per cent benchmark rate, and four percentage points above the Standing Deposit Facility (SDF) rate.

Overnight placement dropped to 14.5 per cent from 15 per cent, while call money traded at 14.75 per cent compared with 15.5 per cent.

Reserves movement Nigeria’s foreign exchange reserves fell to $34.74 billion by February 27, from $35.03 billion on February13, their highest in six months, data from the CBN said. The reserves stood at $33.24 billion around the same date a year ago and were $34.41 billion a month earlier than that. Analysts attributed the decline to a withdrawal by the government to top up revenue shortfall for January’s budgetary distribution to the three tiers of government.

Head, Market Risk, Greenwich Trust Limited, a research and investment firm, Babatunde Obaniyi said despite all hindrances, the reserves will not fall below $30 billion this year, equivalent to about seven months of import cover.

•Source: FMDA

By Collins Nweze

Debt office The Federal Government of Nigeria raised N111 billion at a bond auction on Wednesday, its second this year. The Debt Management Office (DMO) said yields on the 2019 bonds are marginally higher than at its previous auction, while yields fell on its 2012 bonds. The 2019 bonds were sold at a marginal rate of 16.16 per cent, higher than the 16 per cent they yielded at the previous auction, while the 2022 instruments were issued at 15.89 per cent compared with 16.39 per cent at the January auction.

The debt office said it auctioned N35 billion each in the 10-year bonds due to mature in 2019 and 2022, while it issued an additional N41 billion in 2022 maturity paper in a noncompetitive sale. Total subscription at Wednesday’s auction stood at N141.65 billion compared with N109.35 billion at the previous auction. An Official of the DMO said the N41 billion worth of bonds in 2022 were sold to some mandate customers with large volumes of funds outside the auction proper.

AMCON powers The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) took possession of some property and assets belonging to its debtor, Tonique Oil Services Limited. AMCON’s decision was sequel to orders for possession granted ex-parte on February 21 by Justice Okechukwu Okeke of the Federal High Court, Lagos.

The corporation executed the said orders on Tonique Oil’s premises in Ikoyi and Gbagada, Lagos state with the assistance of law enforcement agents, lawyers and court bailiffs.

The properties were pledged by Tonique Oil as security for the loan it obtained from Skye Bank Plc. Tonique is said to owe over N200 million.

AMCON said it had purchased the said loan from the Skye Bank as Non-Performing Loan, the oil services firm being a defaulting customer of the bank.

Bank-to-Bank Report Wema Bank’s Managing Director/CEO, Segun Oloketuyi said after a critical review of the operations of the bank, it was clear that the decision of the lender to adopt a regional structure was rewarding. He said the choice of south west and south-south geo-political zones as a business territorial has culminated in efficient deployment of resources with its attendant profitability.

Fidelity Bank said its support of critical infrastructures in the productive sectors of the economy has led to the emergence of a new generation of businessmen in the country. This is can be seen in the increase in the number of small businesses and the general growth of the informal sector of the economy.

Standard Chartered Bank earned $17.64 billion for the year ended December 2011. This represents a 10 per cent rise even as profit soared by 11 per cent to $6.78 billion. Customer loans went up by nine per cent to $269 billion and customer deposits up 11 per cent to $352 billion.

Tax matters The Chairman, Joint Tax Board (JTB) Ifueko Omoigui Okauru reiterated Federal Government’s commitment to fighting multiple-taxation. Speaking on the Personal Income Tax (Amendment) Act, 2011, she said that the government is working on getting a National Tax Data that will enable government at all levels tax people effectively, adding that such feat will help address problem of multiple taxation.

She explained that one of the major reasons for the Amendment of the Act was to bring the Personal Income Tax up to date, with existing realities of the Nigerian economy especially in relation to how it impacted low and middle income earners.

World Bank Emerging economies said they will challenge a tradition that has placed an American at the head of the World Bank for decades. They said it was time to break a decades-old tradition that

has long shut out candidates from the developing world and kept an American at the head of the World Bank and a European leader at the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Amar Bhattacharya, director of the G24 Secretariat said the problem emerging economies face is finding a candidate willing to challenge the United States, which is the largest and most influential shareholder in the World Bank and International Monetary Fund.

Meanwhile, Marcelo Giugale, Africa’s Poverty Reduction and Economic Management Director at World Bank said Capital flows into Africa will grow significantly in 2012 as investors seeking higher returns out of Europe look at the continent for better opportunities in infrastructure projects.

He said that the appreciation of the region’s currencies against the dollar was an indication of increased foreign direct investment (FDI).

S&P, RenCap For the first time in two years, banks got a pat on their backs for surviving a troubled era.

Standard & Poor’s (S&P), international rating agency, insisted that banks that emerged from ashes of mergers and acquisitions are bigger, better and with brighter outlook. In a special report, it projected that the banks would end the year with higher profit and recognised their growing appetite in supporting the domestic economy.

The rating firm sees Nigeria as having fewer but larger, with better corporate governance and regulatory oversight. In S&P’s view, however, the sector needs a longer regulatory track record for a going forward to consolidate past achievements.

Specifically, the agency said that many investors are both weary and wary of the Nigerian banking sector after some challenging years. Share-price performance has been dismal and non-performing loans and Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) write-offs continued during the dark years.

Reported loan growth for some banks was disappointing and the expected recovery in returns and profitability did not fully materialise.

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

39

LABOUR Ministry to introduce new trades

Enugu, Abia disagree over workers’ sack

T

HE Enugu State government has urged its Abia counterpart to settle the entitlements of non-indigenes it sacked from its civil service last year.

Reacting to the sack, the Chairman of the state civil service commission, Mr Albert Nnamani, urged the Abia State government to pay the sacked workers or recall them.

He said it was ‘’unpatriotic and unconstitutional’’ to sack a worker simply because the person was from another state.

“They should please do well to recall our people or pay them their entitlements. Some have put in 30 years and 20-something years and with one letter, one single line back-loaded to their

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Stories by Dupe Olaoye-Osinkolu

state of origin.

“What offence did they commit? Just because they happen to come from a state other than your own? No, it is wrong.

“After using their skill, serving you for years, you just woke up one day and say go back to your state of origin.

“There is no language, there is no word, in the public service rule or in the constitution of the Federal Republic like back-loading. You do not backload. You get employed as a contract. “ Nnamani noted that there were non-indigenes working in Enugu State, adding that the state government had no intention of sacking them.

• Enugu Governor Sullivan Chime

• Abia Governor Theodore Orji

On whether the state will absorb the sacked workers, Nnamani said if the government directed the commission, it would do so.

Abia State recently issued a cir-

cular recalling the sacked non-indigenes except those from the Southeast while Abia daughters married outside the state needed to get exemption from the governor before being re-absorbed.

Taraba teachers set for strike over minimum wage

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HAIRMAN of the Taraba State Branch of the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), Alhaji Aliyu Mafindi, has urged the government to implement the minimum wage for teachers or face a strike.

Mafindi said the union had reminded the government of the need to implement the new wage several times in the past.

“We want government to implement the new minimum wage for teachers by the end of February or face industrial action.

“Our cup of endurance is fast running over. We have waited enough,” he said.

The teachers are particularly

• Govt pleads for more time miffed because Taraba had already implemented the new minimum wage for other workers in the state.

However, the scheme is yet to be implemented for teachers and local government workers in the state.

The NUT Chairman also said that teachers in the state had not enjoyed promotion for the past 10 years, describing the situation as unfortunate.

“Over 16,000 teachers have not been promoted for the past 10 years, despite our continued ne-

gotiations with government,” he said.

Mafindi said there was no need for any fresh negotiations with government because the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) had already done a coordinated negotiation for all its arms.

The state Commissioner for Education, Mr Yakubu Agbaizo, however, said the delay in the implementation of the new wage was due to government’s desire to build a bio-metric data base for all the teachers.

He stated that the issue of non-

promotion of teachers was also linked to the ongoing bio-metric exercise.

“I want to appeal to teachers to give us a little time to complete the ongoing exercise.

“We understand their frustration. We value the work they are doing. Government is committed to ensuring that the issues raised and other welfare issues of teachers are addressed,” he said.

Agbaizo said there had been promotion for teachers but the problem had been the implementation, assuring that all these issues would be tackled when a clear data base of teachers was built.

Military pensioners to benefit from NHIS, says Minister

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HE Minister of State for Defence, Mrs Olusola Obada, has said the ministry is making arrangements for military pensioners and their families to be included in the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).

She said this at the 2012 verification exercise for military pensioners to be conducted by the Military Pensions Board (MPB) and supervised by the Ministry of Defence.

Obada told The Nation that the exercise would also be used to compile the data of retirees with a view to proposing to government the inclusion of retirees and their families in the NHIS programme.

“The health insurance programme will be at no cost to the retirees.”

Mrs Obada said the 2012 verification exercise would be conducted for all military pensioners on the payroll of the MPB. She said the exercise, carried out yearly, was aimed at determining those who might have died after the last verification exercise.

The minister said specified dates had been designated for each rank for the conduct of the exercise to alleviate the suffering of the persioners.

She said arrangements had been concluded and necessary logistics put in place to ensure that the retirees had sufficient comfort and a stressfree verification exercise “Snacks, water, canopies, chairs, standby generator and medical fa-

cilities and other welfare requirements will be provided during the exercise.

“The exercise will be a technical one. We are employing biometrics with three parameters of finger prints, iris scan and photo geometry to ensure credibility of our military pension data base.”

Mrs Obada said the combination of the three biometric parameters gives one of the best possible authentications to the data base as well as a means to cater for disabled retirees. She urged all military retirees to cooperate with officials of the ministry to enable the government to achieve the objective of the exercise.

Mrs Obada also appealed to the

• Labour and Productivity Minister Emeka Wogu, addressing research workers.

Nigerian Legion, especially the state chairmen, to be patriotic enough by submitting names of deceased pensioners and avoid any act that could jeopardise the exercise. She warned that no act of indiscipline would be tolerated during the exercise.

Rear Admiral Mohammed Mshelia, the Chairman of MPB, said the exercise would be conducted simultaneously in the 36 locations across the country.

He said the FCT and Nassarawa had been merged for administrative convenience.

“Pensioners are expected to attend the exercise at any of the designated centres nearest to them. They are, therefore, not expected to travel outside their states.

HE Skills Upgrading and Training Centre of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Productivity plans to introduce additional areas of trade in its curriculum to meet the increasing demands of the country.

Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Productivity, Mr Anthony Ozodinobi, said this in Bauchi at the graduation ceremony of some of the trainees.

He said qualified instructors would be engaged to handle the training.

Ozodinobi said that skills acquisition was vital for the economic development of the country and should therefore be taken seriously.

He said the centre had helped in reducing unemployment and under-employment, by providing vocations that encouraged Nigerians on self-reliance.

“The objective of the Centre is to upgrade the skills of artisans and craftsmen in the private and public sectors, so as to meet up with the modern technology, thereby improving their efficiency.’’

‘Fed Govt should fulfil its promises now’

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HE Nigerian Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), Lagos State Chapter, has called on the Federal Government to fulfill its promises of cushioning the adverse effect of fuel subsidy removal by providing buses and other palliatives.

In a communiqué issued after its February Congress, Lagos NAWOJ Chairman, Mrs. Dupe OlaoyeOsinkolu, called on President Goodluck Jonathan to restore confidence in Nigerians by fulfilling his promises of cushioning the negative effects of fuel subsidy withdrawal.

“We also call on the House of Representatives’ committee probing the fuel subsidy issue to make their findings and recommendation known to Nigerians so that the Committee’s efforts would not be in vain.

“The ongoing probe on subsidy removal will boost the confidence of many Nigerians if the committee performs its duty without bias.”

Journalists no threat to national security, says NUJ President

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HE National President of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Malam Mohammed Garba, has said Nigerian journalists do not constitute a threat to national security. .

Garba spoke last Thursday when he visited members of the League of Airport and Aviation Correspondents (LAAC) at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja.

The NUJ president, who was accompanied by some executive members of the national and Lagos State Council of the union, urged security agencies to always allow journalists perform their functions as watchdogs of the nation.

He described journalists as patriotic citizens who had contributed and were still contributing to national development through their profession.

Garba condemned the current travails of LAAC members, who had been prevented from using the press centre at the Presidential wing of the MMIA for security reasons.

Security agencies barred the LAAC members from the centre about three weeks ago.

“I am sure that all of them operating at the MMIA as correspondents must have been posted there by their various media organisations and as such are qualified LAAC accredited members.”

THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

40

BUSINESS INTERNATIONAL

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ANADA’S two largest banks are seeing profits fall as their capital markets businesses feel the pinch of global economic uncertainty, most notably in Europe.

Both Royal Bank of Canada and Toronto-Dominion Bank reported first-quarter profits that were down slightly from the same period last year. The banks’ earnings both dropped by roughly five per cent – to $1.86-billion and $1.48-billion.

Globe and mail newspaper said given the headwinds the banks are facing from low interest rates and volatile markets, analysts had actually expected a worse performance this quarter.

And both banks hiked their dividends, offering a sign they are comfortable their future profits will be resilient. Investors reacted favourably, sending shares of both companies up.

The core Canadian consumer and business lending operations of both banks posted solid growth, but their capital markets divisions reported significant profit declines compared with a year ago, when trading revenue

Banks hit by global volatility soared amid uncertainty in Europe that ignited a frantic bond market. Since then capital markets revenue has fallen steadily.

“I still don’t believe that we’re in markets that could be even remotely described as normal,” Mark Standish, RBC’s co-chief executive officer of capital markets, told analysts on a conference call.

RBC was particularly exposed to the volatility, given its large capital markets business. That operation made $448million, a drop of 30 per cent. The decline overshadowed record earnings for the Canadian retail banking business, which made $994million, up seven per cent.

The bank had previously told analysts what range of profits they could normally expect from activities such as trading, but Mr. Standish refused to give a range this time around. While there have been signs the market is improving, he suggested the environment simply remains too unpredictable.

RBC’s $1.86billion profit was equal to $1.21 a share, down from a profit of $1.95billion, or $1.27, last year.

TD’s earnings of $1.48billion amounted to $1.55 a share, down from $1.56billion, or $1.67, a year ago. Though TD’s retail banking, wealth and insurance units reported higher earnings, profit at its capital markets division fell 17 per cent.

TD’s results were also impacted by a number of one-time items, most significantly a litigation reserve that amounts to $171million after tax, which TD is setting aside after it was ordered to pay $67million for its role as a third-party bank in a $1.2billion Ponzi scheme operated by Scott Rothstein, a disbarred Florida lawyer.

Despite the earnings drops, both TD and RBC kicked more money back to investors in the form of a dividend increase. TD raised its quarterly payout 5.9 per cent to 72 cents, while RBC announced a 6-

per cent hike to 57 cents.

TD Chief Executive Officer Ed Clark and his RBC counterpart Gord Nixon said they are feeling more optimistic about the markets and economy.

However, the banking sector is expected to see some challenges in the next year or two, as Canadians seek fewer loans while low interest rates squeeze profit margins.

“Our message is that the economy does feel a bit better, certainly the U.S. economy feels better and I think Europe has taken out a bit of the tail risk,” Mr Clark told analysts on a conference call.

Given that low interest rates appear to be here to stay for quite some time, Mr. Clark said he is operating on the premise that margins will be pressured. As a result, he’s embarking on projects to permanently lower the cost structure of the bank. He added that TD will have to work hard to meet its goal of boosting annual profits by seven to 10 per cent.

RBC is also seeing growth in consumer lending slow. “In terms of Canada, generally, clearly we are starting to see some slowdown of the consumer side,” Mr Nixon said.

Spurred in part by the low interest rates, Canadian consumers have racked up record high debt levels. There are fears that many borrowers are taking on more debt than they will be able to afford once interest rates rise, and both the federal Finance Minister and central bank governor have been warning consumers to rein in their debt loads.

As a result, bank executives say they are looking elsewhere for growth, and are putting new muscle into areas such as insurance. Mr. Nixon said there is also some momentum in business lending. “We’re starting to see a pickup in commercial loan demand, which is a good thing, it’s a sign that companies are investing,” he said.

Spain's jobless hits 22.9%

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•World Customs Organisation(WCO)Deputy-Secretary General, Sergio Mujica, and the new Chairperson of the Kimberley Process, Ambassador Gillian A. Milovanovic, in hand shake at WCO headquarters.

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PAIN’S Labour Ministry says the number of people filing for unemployment benefits rose by 112,269 in January, raising the overall figure to a rounded 4.7 million.

Spain's jobless rate stands at a 22.9 per cent, the highest in the 17-nation euro zone.Barclays anticipates cautious macroeconomic policy from China.

Barclays Capital expects Chinese authorities to approve cautious macroeconomic policy, to ensure a “soft landing” with a focus on expanding consumption and stabilising and encouraging private-capital investment into strategic industries, when the National People's Congress meeting starting today.

Also Barclays expects a 2012 target growth rate for gross domestic product of 7-7.5per cent, a consumer-price-index inflation target of 3.5-4 per cent and “prudent” monetary policy in 2012, with M2 expected to grow by 14 per cent and fiscal deficits targeted at 1.5per cent of GDP. “Strategic economic policy is expected to one) expand domestic demand as a top policy priority; two) focus on urbanisation; three) promote more balanced regional development; four) stimulate servicesector growth; and five) encourage investment stabilisation,” Barclays added.

Commodity-market participants closely monitor economic developments in China, a growing consumer of commodities such as base metals and oil.European Leaders Speed Up Cash for Bailout Fund in Response to Global Push.

European leaders agreed to provide capital faster for the planned permanent bailout fund in a concession to international pressure to

strengthen the bloc’s defences against the debt crisis.

Euro governments might pay the first two yearly instalments into the 500 billion euro ($666 billion) fund this year and complete the capitalization in 2015, a year ahead of schedule. A decision will come later today.

“There will be an acceleration,” European Union President Herman Van Rompuy told reporters in Brussels after an EU summit. “It could be starting with the payment of two tranches in 2012 but we have to take a definite decision.”

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who last year pushed for the longer five-year payment schedule, reversed course this month and spearheaded the drive to speed up the timetable as world leaders and the International Monetary Fund pressed for bolder European action to stamp out the crisis.

At the same time, Merkel forced the EU to put off a discussion of increasing the overall ceiling for rescue lending. Others, including Luxembourg Prime Minister JeanClaude Juncker, have pushed to pair the permanent fund, to be set up in July, with the temporary facility that is set to lapse in mid-2013.

The euro weakened 0.3 per cent to $1.3270 in Brussels while the Stoxx 600 Index added as much as 0.3 per cent.

Finance ministers from Group of 20 countries made clear last month that they won’t pour more money into the IMF’s anti- crisis resources until the 17-nation euro zone does more to help itself.

IMF Deadline Europe faces a March 13 deadline -- a day after the next meeting of euro finance chiefs -- to boost the rescue limit to win over the IMF, Juncker said.

Bundesbank head warns ECB over loans

HE head of Germany's Bundesbank (Central Bank) Jens Weidmann has warned the European Central Bank (ECB) about risks involved in the massive 529.5billion euro ($712billion U.S.) credit offering it made to banks.

Germany's Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung has said Mr Weidmann wrote a letter to the ECB warning about the risks of looser rules on collateral for the loans.

It's different this time. The loser rules meant more banks could borrow money — 800 banks took advantage of the loans this time around, compared with 523 the

last time the credit was offered back in December Mr Weidmann is warning that the practice exposes the ECB and national central banks to more risk.

Neither the Bundesbank nor the ECB had any comment on the letter.

The ECB lent the 529.5billion euro Wednesday with the aim of steadying the region's financial system against the euro zone debt crisis. The operation — known as a Long-Term Refinancing Operation — follows a similar offering of 489billion euro to 523 banks on December 21 The three-year ECB loans, given against collateral such as bonds or other securities,

cost banks one per cent.

This time the ECB relaxed its rules to allow a wider circle of assets that could be offered up to central banks as collateral in return for loans. The new rules allowed national central banks to accept corporate loans in return for credit, with the national central bank bearing the loss risk.

This was a move aimed at getting smaller banks to join in the credit offering.

The ECB wants to make sure banks have enough funding to do business so that the flow of credit is not restricted in the wider economy. It added that the added risks from less secure col-

lateral are being addressed by lending out far less than the face value of the assets being offered as the collateral. Some 700billion euro in new collateral being offered by the new banks to take part in the credit offering could obtain only about 200billion euro in loans, ECB head Mario Draghi has said.

The mass infusion of credit — estimated by Commerzbank analysts to be some three times the theoretical normal cash needs of the banking system — has led to a general easing of market tensions brought on by the debt crisis. Banks have been able to issue bonds, and borrow-

ing costs have fallen for indebted governments as they roll over their debt loads.

But the Bundesbank — guardian of Germany's conservative approach to monetary policy — has made increasingly skeptical comments about the programme Mr Weidmann has warned that overly generous liquidity could lead to banks investing in risky assets.

He said last week in a speech in Mexico City that “the crisis cannot be solved solely by throwing money at it.” Indebted governments needed to tackle the root causes of the crisis by closing budget deficits and by reforming their economies so they grow faster.

Monday, March 5, 2012

42

Chelsea sacks

Oshiomhole,Kanu,Okocha, Keshi salute Itemuagbor

By Ade Ojeikere

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Villas-Boas

•Villas-Boas

Robben considering Bayern exit

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•From left: Chief Mike Itemuagbor, Mr Adrian Dwyer, Project Manager, Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State and Mr. E.J Agbonayinma during the flag-off of the Ogbemudia Stadium rehabilitation in Benin City

UTCH master Arjen Robben has opened the door on a move back to the Barclays Premier League, just days after slaying England at Wembley. Robben is •Robben unhappy with life at Bayern Munich and admits he is considering his options - which will interest the likes of Chelsea, Tottenham, Manchester United and Arsenal.

Holland ran out 3-2 victors over the Three Lions in last week's friendly at Wembley where Robben bagged two stunning goals. Flying Dutchman: Robben was Holland's star at Wembley But he has now conceded he is open to moving away from the Bundesliga and could be picked up for as little as £10million as he has just one year remaining on his current deal.

Robben told the Sunday Mirror: 'I don't have an ideal situation in Germany. I am now considering the options I have and I will get.

'It was great to play at Wembley and to see many people I know. It was only my second international game for Holland since the World Cup and it was great that this was in London at Wembley.

'I can try put up a brave face and make out all the things in Munich do not effect me, but of course it gets on my nerves and effects me. 'I just needed this game against England so much. It was a joy to be playing at my best again.'

Blue is the colour: Chelsea could be tempted to re-sign their former player

DO STATE executive governor Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, business mogul and chairman of Globacom Otunba Mike Adenuga, former Super Eagles’ captains Nwankwo Kanu and Austin Okocha will today in Lagos grace the 50th birthday breakfast bash of Pamodzi Sports Marketing (PSM's) chairman, Michael Adoge Itemuagbor in Lekki, Lagos.

Also expected are captains of industry who have identified their products and services with different facets of sports in Nigeria through Itemuagbor's marketing blueprints.

Kanu and Okocha, would be joined at the birthday bash by Super Eagles’ chief coach Stephen Keshi, former Eagles coach Shuaibu Amodu and several eggheads of the Nigeria Football Federation(NFF).

In fact, the crème de la crème of sports business would converge on the venue with sports editors and writers expected extract rave interviews with top players on Itemuagbor's contributions to sports business.

Indeed, sports have enjoyed immense fillip from funds pumped into the industry by Pamdozi's initiatives with the Super Eagles, Nigeria's biggest sports getting the largest chunk.

Nigeria's most accomplished football star, Segun Odegbami eulogised Itemuagbor thus: “Mike my aburo, is a determined, hardworking, pioneer and visionary sports marketer whose business transcends Nigeria and impacts on African football. He is well ahead of his age in terms of his achievements and is setting a pace in sports marketing that the rest are trying to emulate. Although he maybe rather “reclusive' in the manner of his business, he succeeds nevertheless. At 50, he has traversed the landscape of football business like a colossus. We may have our differences in the politics of Nigeria football but we have mutual respect for each other that thrives on healthy friendship. I congratulate him and wish him another Century of happiness, good health and posterity.

Edo State Commissioner for Information Louis Odion said: “Mike’s has been an exemplary life. Life is meaningless if it does not affect others positively. Mike’s spirit of giving is legendary. His sense of Huymour is infectious. There are a few guys out there whose company you can never be tried of, Mike is one of them. On this golden occasion, I can only wish him manny happy return of the day.

Japan'93 Golden Eaglets World Cup winning coach Fanny Amun said: “At 50 Mike Itemuagbor is vast in business acumen, always concerned about issues, a right thinker, kind hearted and a friend for all who value friendship. I wish you better days to service your family and the entire world of sports.”

Managing Director of Samsung electronics West Africa Idoyen Enang stressed that: “Mike is an exemplary gentleman with impeccable values that will shock anyone who tries to observe him from a distance. On this golden jubilee celebration, I say kudos to a man who has made great marks in the annals of sports marketing and management. Happy 50th birthday my brother and friend.”

For the Executive chairman of the Delta State Sports Council, Pinnick Amaju described Itemuagbor as: “An excellent sports marketer of impeccable quality, a reliable and loyal friend.

He is a consummate football ‘politician’. He is a true professional.”

Dr. Larry Izamoje revealed that: “Mike is warm, cheerful, very industrious and a man on the podium of excellence and success by dint of hard work. He is a true contributor to sports development and an accomplished family man. He is a welfarist, always ready to help those genuinely in need. I am happy to have him as a friend and welcome him most enthusiastically to our club 50.”

Aisha Falode said: “A humble and amiable friend and brother. He is a God fearing man with kind heart. A great philanthropist who has touched many lives in a way only those who fear have. I wish him many more years of good health and service to humanity.”

Taiye Ige, CEO Hotsports said: To Mike, the Ebullient, aggressive marketer @ 50. It is easy to describe him as a fantastic store of energy resulting in a capacity for work that is simply uncanny. Add this to his formidable academic and professional qualifications in marketing. The picture begins to emerge as to why so much success has attended his endeavors in life so far Harry Iwuala, a sports marketer said: “Itemuagbor is a testimony that we don't have to succeed only with a family name but by smart work aided by the Grace of God. He is a good natured, generous person and doesn't condone indolence.”

Frank Illaboya stated that: “a jolly good fellow, a colossus in sports business and marketing.

Fan Ndubouke said: “he is an influential member of Nigeria football mafia, very enterprising and daring person. Nigeria football needs his like.”

Emeka Inyama said: “good man. Compassionate but tough and always businesslike. I wish him well in future endeavours.”

Taiwo Ogunjobi said: “Happy birthday at 50 to a young, energetic and kind hearted man.

Thank you very much for your warmth, open-minded manner, generosity and you contribution to the development of football in Nigeria.”

Sani Lulu said: “ a young, dynamic and hard working man has attained the golden age. I believe with his fearless approach to life and unshakable faith in God, the nation shall have a role model in him.”

Bolaji Ojo-Oba said: “An astute sports guru. Big hearted and an achiever, par excellence.”

Born March 5, 1962, Itemuagbor has shaped the sports development through effective marketing. A member of FIFA and CAF's marketing committees, Mike undertook the restructuring of Edo State's sports by producing a blueprint which the Oshiomhole administration is using to revamp the industry in Edo State.

He will be remembered as the man who raised the funds which gave the domestic game a new impetus when he convinced Globacom to pump as much as $500million into the domestic league. For the nationals teams, Globacom through Mike's enterprise splashed N959million.

MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

43

POLITICS THE NATION

E-mail:- politics@thenationonlineng.net

Is electronic voting feasible in 2015?

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is proposing the use of electronic voting for the 2015 general elections. Deputy Political Editor EMMANUEL OLADESU highlights the prospects, merits and hiccups.

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S Nigeria ripe for electronic voting? This is a puzzle that may agitate the polity between now and next general election.

In the past, exponents of e-voting who vigorously canvassed the method believed that it was a panacea for malpractices. They premised their argument on the success of the biometric measures adopted by finger prints experts to establish rigging in Ekiti and Osun States at the 2007 polls. Their contention is that, if technology is employed to unravel rigging, technological device can also be used to avert it at the polling booths because prevention is better than cure.

However, political parties and other stakeholders opposed the idea. They cautioned against jumping from the frying pan to fire.

They submitted that e-voting had not insulated many countries from electoral fraud, pointing out that computer can also be manipulated to do the bidding of master riggers.

In 2006, when former Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Chairman Maurice Iwu proposed electronic voting for the 2007 elections, it was greeted with wild criticisms. The pan-Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, rejected the method, saying that the country was not ripe for it.

The organisation cited the low literacy level and lack of time to ascertain its worth and workability.

Its former Publicity Secretary, Yinka Odumakin, alleged that Iwu had a hidden agenda. He described e-voting as another electronic rigging mechanism that could cripple the electoral process, stressing that the voting procedure required some sorts of sophistication, training and skill.

Also, the Senate rejected the scheme. When electoral officers stormed the chambers to explain its viability, the senior legislators said that they were not convinced. However, some of them acknowledged that the nation may fall back to it in the future.

Last week, INEC Chairman Prof. Attahiru Jega hinted in Lagos that e-voting may be considered for the 2015 elections. The two hurdles to cross are constitution amendment and funding. The chief umpire did not elaborate on the elements of the voting system. He merely disclosed that contracts were being awarded by the commission for the production of a permanent voter register, which would be embedded in electronic chips on cards. Each card, he said, would carry all the information about the voter, his or her biometric data, including finger prints and photograph.

The INEC boss stressed: “Our hope is that, in 2015, at the minimum, we are going to have an authentic verification of anybody who presents himself or herself at the polling unit for voting. We will have card readers and it will automatically verify whether you are the genuine owner of the card. The chip-based card can be made compatible with an electronic voting system. Also, we have been working very hard to integrate our database. We are doing it in stages”.

Since Jega’s INEC seemed to have impressed Nigerians by the comparatively successful 2011 polls, it appears that they would give this innovation a trial, if other criteria, especially funding and legal impediments are resolved. The main issue however, is whether the agency can get it right.

Advocates of e-voting want it to be given a trial because of previous experience. Since the open ballot system, which was used in the Third Republic had been dismissed as a crude method, despite the fact that it made fraud impossible, the only option to the current ballot method is e-voting.

Since 1964, elections have been problematic in Nigeria. Ballot boxes have often developed wings in Nigeria and losers declared winners by electoral commission.

When those boxes resurfaced at the counting centres, they were stuffed with multiple thump-printed ballot papers. In the First Republic, violence erupted in the Southwest.

The “operation wet e” was build upon in 1983 when similar crisis erupted in Oyo and Ondo States after the 1983 governorship elections. In fact, the military cited electoral malpractices as one of the reasons for sacking legitimate authorities on December 31, 1983.

The electoral commission chief in the Third Republic, Prof. Humphrey Nwosu, who wanted to maintain a clean break from the past, introduced the open ballot system.

The method served as an antidote to rigging.

However, there was an impediment. Once the physical counting of voters on the queue is completed, voting would close and late comers are discenfranchised.

The 1999 election was fair. 2003 contest was bad. 2007 was worse. After the poll, litigations flooded the tribunals. It was at the Appeal Court that the stolen mandates were retrieved. In the court, fingerprint analysis was employed to prove massive rigging.

Since then, some people reasoned that there would be a progression to technologicallybased electoral system.

However, the fear of failure among antagonists of the technological model is fueled by its abysmal performance in other climes. To them, this is food for thought.

For example, the adoption of e-voting generated controversy at a time in California, United States. Consequently, it was put on hold for a season. The government had harsh words for the voting machine maker, Diebold Election Systems, for committing fraud. Thus, in a statement, Afenifere said: “If America is scared and cautious, it is advisable that Nigeria sticks to the open secret ballot system which worked for the country during the June 12, 1993 presidential elections”.

Decrying the faulty machines in United Statesn, California Government Secretary Kelvin Shelly said: “California government and voters would not tolerate deceitful tactics as engaged in Diehold System and we must send a clear and compelling message to the rest of the industry.

Also, at a time, Maryland State resisted the

•President Johnathan

•Jega

continuation of the electronic voting process, citing its unreliability and susceptibility to hacking as reason. Voters even threatened to file a court action to stop its use. What enraged them was the obvious flaws in the presidential contest between President George Bush (Jr) and Vice President Al Gore.

There was outcry in Columbus, Ohio State, where an el-voting system error allegedly gave Bush 3,892 extra vote in the 2000 election. There was emotional outburst in Gahanna Precinct where only 638 voters cast ballot and Bush scored 4,258 votes as against Kerry’s 260. In another part of California, over 4,500 votes were lost in the election because polling officials mistakenly believed that a computer that stored ballot electronically could hold more data than it did.

There were more startling revelations. A researcher, Bev Haris, who focused his study on the efficacy of the “strange method” found out that clever technical experts could manipulate the voting machines, thereby casting doubt on its integrity. He said when he clicked for a file transfer protocol site belonging to Diebold System, he found about 40,000 unprotected computer sites. Among the files were programme files for its “Global Election Management System Tabulation Software, a Texas Voter Registration list with voters’ names and a semblance of live vote data from 57 precincts in a 2002 California primary election.

According to the finding, the California file was time-stamped 3:3pm on election day, indicating that the manufacturer, Diehold System, may have obtained the data during voting. To Haris, this is strange because polling precincts are not supposed to release votes until after the close of poll at 8pm. In addition, the researcher discovered that an expert could enter the vote database, using Micro Access, and bungle the election by changing results without leaving a trace.

Since the manufacturer did not have a password-protected file or secured audit log, anyone with access to the tabulation programme during election, including Diehold System employees, election officers and hackers, could change votes and alter the log to erase the evidence, if the systems are connected to

a phone line.

Electoral officers were actually scandalised in Scurry, Texas, in 2002, when two Republican Commissioners won landslide victories on the “ES and S” optical scan machines.

When the anxious officers counted the ballot twice by hand, it was found out that the Democratic opponents actually won the election.

Other technical experts, including the Technical Director of John Hopkins Information Security Institute, Avi Rubin, John Hopkins University doctoral students; Tosh Kohno and Adam Stubbliefed, and Computer Service Professor Dan Wallech, have also highlighted the hiccups associated with electronic voting. The believed that unauthorised privileged escalation, incorrect use of cryptography, vulnerability to network threats and poor software development are certain challenges.

According to the researchers, e-voting relies on a smart card lisp to ensure that each person casts only one ballot on a dire IT recording electronic voting system. It is possible for a person to create a specially progremmed smart card and surreptitiously use it in the voting booth to cast multiple ballots. They feared that a 15 year old computer enthusiast may make these counterfeit cards in a garage and sell them.

Rubin said: “Even, an ordinary voter, without knowing anything about computer code, could cast more than one vote for a candidate at a polling place that uses the electronic voting system”, adding that, “if attackers gained access to the link system between the machines and the backend services, they could stir more mischief”.

Corroborating this, his co-researcher, Cohno, added: “I clicked on George Bush and it was really counted for Al Gore and I clicked on Al Gore and it was really counted for George Bush”.

In 1977, Costa Rican Government had asked “AT and T” Laboratory Research Company, where Rubin worked, to design an e-voting system. But during meetings between the company experts and government, the latter developed a cold feet because they perceived the procedure as a sufficient threat tom security.

Alliance for Credible Election (ACE), in its reaction, asked INEC to consider many factors before introducing the mechanism. Its secretary, Emma Ezeazu, cautioned against rushing, saying that it should be “piloted” and “localised”. He said: “Electronic voting is the direction to go. But INEC has to begin by piloting it. It is complicated. It must be localised. You don’t import abandoned and outdated technology from Brazil and China and flood the polling booths with them. We must know the working processes of the machine”.

‘Electronic voting is the direction to go. But INEC has to begin by piloting it. It is complicated. It must be localised. You don’t import abandoned and outdated technology from Brazil and China and flood the polling boots with them. We must know the working processes of the machine’

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POLITICS

‘Expect new PDP after convention’

Nigerians deserve better deal, says Rep

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Mr. Bala Kaoje, a former Minister of Sports and a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) stalwart spoke with KUNLE AKINRINADE on what should be done to reposition the party.

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HY do you think the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is not living up to expectation in terms of visionary leadership?

It is not an easy task for a ruling party to govern. Those managing the party at the moment, to me, are doing their best. The bane of the ruling party today is the fall in standard of leadership. It is the reason PDP is no longer as vibrant as it used to be. If you have been following the happenings in the system, you will know that a lot of Nigerians saw the past leadership of the party as more committed and focused. One major problem is the nature of the constitution of the party has for now. What I mean is that it does not place authority in the hands of its officers but in the hands of the president. That means before the party can do anything, it must first concede to the opinion or directive of the President.

The case in the past was different. I could recall during the Second Republic, the ruling party then; the National Party of Nigeria, NPN enjoyed supremacy. That was when the late Chief Adisa Akinloye was the national chairman. As the chairman, Akinloye was very strong and had authority. He could ask the then President, Shehu Shagari to do something and he would take to his instructions. The NPN was better organised than the PDP because the party was supreme. My prayer is that we could use the forthcoming National Convention of PDP to correct this anomaly.

Is the lack of visionary leadership in PDP a reflection of the parlous state of the Nigerian economy?

PDP being the ruling party has the biggest role to play in shaping governance and that is the reason I concluded that the party needs to wield the correct power to be able to play that role.

For example, PDP as a party should have conducted its own research on the fuel subsidy issue to obtain necessary information that the government can use to address the problem in the oil industry.

What is your panacea for curbing violence and insecurity in Nigeria?

Insecurity has become a serious problem today due to the inability of successive governments to come up with a sustainable youth em-

powerment programme. Like I have said in various interviews, and I will repeat, we need high technological gadgets to monitor everywhere in the country. That is the only way our security operatives can successfully work with less hitches. Sport is one major area that I have seen that could unite irrespective of a lot of people, religion and ethnicity. The government can engage the activities of the youths in its various sporting activities.

During my days as the sports minister, we undertook survey and even organized a lot of competitions that were self developmental among the youths and we got positive responses that can be done this time. The government should push a lot of resources to that sector.

The successful evolution of a nation state comes with many challenges. Nigeria is not an exception.

You simply need to look at history; the modern European states went through trials even more extreme than ours. We must not lose faith.

The issue is that we must see insecurity as a threat to our democracy.

The government has to be very proactive by providing the adequate modern gadgets to fight this crime.

We can use our traditional rulers in the rural areas to curb this menace. They are the people that are at the grassroots, they know when a visitor is among them. The government should encourage social justice. When justice is permissive, the necessary consequence is insecurity. Most Nigerians have attended all manner of educational qualifications and are still roaming the streets, what do you expect?

A popular saying goes “A hungry man is an angry man” the government has to provide adequate jobs that will engage most of our youths. When everyone is engaged positively, he or she will have no time to think negatively.

How would you react to agitation for sovereign national conference?

It is unnecessary because sovereign national conference is a way of causing problem. Why do we go for another representation of our people when we already have people we voted for at the National Assembly to represent us?

Some people in every dispensation would want to cause confusion, if we have any cause to complain

•Kaoje

that we are not satisfied, we should connect it to the national assembly through our representatives and I believe in the current members of the assembly because they are men and women of high integrity.

National convention of PDP is fast approaching and you are contesting for the post of organizing secretary, do you think you stand a chance?

Well, the transformation agenda of President Goodluck Jonathan is serious and genuine and that actually calls for decent people; people who are self discipline and have the mind to serve and contribute meaningfully to participate in the activities of the party. If you follow political parties in Nigeria and especially PDP you will agree with me that it needs selfless leaders who are ready to serve, reorganize and reposition it ahead of other elections to come in the feature. My experience, selfless service in the activities of PDP at the national and my home state will go a long way to see me through.

What is your agenda for the party if you eventually win?

The office of the national organizing secretary is the nerve center in getting things done and in getting the party to impact positively on the electorate, and on democracy itself. It holds the ace in party activities. So, it would require an officer that understands the dynamics; the administration of a political party. Having bee in politics for times now, I have learnt a lot and I understood vividly what it takes to run a successful political party; I understand party administration. I know what it means to build up-todate data on membership.

I believe I will be able to bring my experiences to bear on the administration of this party. PDP is a very big party; our major challenges are effective administration.

And if you are talking about administration, it all bothers on the office of the organizing secretary.

I would make bold, courageous and with some measure of independence the organisation of the party.

•From left: Commissioner for Water Resources and Rural Development Alhaji Sani Burra, Deputy Governor Alhaji Sagir Saleh, Emir of Ningi Alhaji Yunusa Danyaya, Commissioner for Information Alhaji Umar Saleh and Chairman, Ningi Local Government Area Alhaji Danlami Al-Hassan, during a visit to the Emir by the Deputy Governor ...

Wednesday

R. Ifeoluwa Arowosoge who represents Ekiti South West, Ikere and Ise/Orun Federal Consistency 1 in the House of Representatives has admonished the government at all levels to consider the poor in policy making.

The lawmaker, who was reacting to the increase in electricity tariff, contended that with the deregulation of the power sector, government must ensure 24-hour uninterrupted and affordable power supply.

He said: “Consumption of PMS will drop but about 40 per cent if there is steady electricity, government should ensure that all the existing refineries produce at maximum capacity; commence without further delay and the establishment of the three new refineries promised as part of the palliative measures.”

Arowosoge urged government to bring smuggling and piracy to zero level and promulgate laws that would ensure stiffer penalty for economic saboteurs.

He wanted the authorities to double its efforts on exportation of refined products to meet the need of the neighbouring countries that rely on smuggled product from Nigeria and the opening of mega stations by Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation in those countries.

Worried over the unabated killing of innocent Nigerians by the dreaded Boko Haram, he asked government to urgently rally human and material resources to tackle the menace.

This according to him would be possible when political leaders were honest and proactive in the business of governance in order to check the growing culture of rivalry, thuggery, hatred and bloodletting.

He said: “Illiteracy, poverty and unemployment are the root cause of violence in the society. Government at all levels should identify the real propagators of violence and arrest the situation while employment and training opportunities should be provided for the

By Musa Odoshimokhe

teeming jobless youths.”

On infrastructure, he reiterated the need for Nigeria to learn from countries like Venezuela, Trinidad and Tobago, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Ghana and Cote’de Ivoire that had put high premium on their transport, power, tourism, agriculture and oil & gas sectors.

He said: “They have efficient road, rail/water/Air transportation system, well organized tourism sector and un-interrupted power supply. Today, Cote’de Ivoire refines oil for NNPC. Venezuela has 12 refineries in the USA and 18,000 gas stations in the West Coast all in the hands of Venezuelans.”

The lawmaker maintained that government should not be afraid to tackle the barons and petroleum products cartels whose activities had continued to weigh government and the people down.

He cautioned that the country was currently witnessing brain drain therefore, government should start to work out a policy that will put Nigerian economy in the hands of honest, dedicated, efficient and hardworking Nigerians.

•Arowosoge

Lawyers fault court’s verdict on electoral petitions

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AWYERS have criticised the Supreme Court judgment forbidding election tribunals from hearing petitions 180 days after they are presented by petitioners.

They said it was an act of injustice.

In separate interviews, the lawyers argued that inconclusive hearing on petitions and the failure of the court to determine the true winner of the election would spell doom for our democracy.

A Senior Advocate (SAN), Mr Chris Uche, criticised the apex court ruling on the ground that “the judgment was based on technicalities which has done more injustice to the petitioner who approached the court to seek justice”.

Uche admitted that what the Supreme Court did was to interprete Section 285(6) of the 1999 Constitution as amended by the National Assembly, but argued that the interpretation was not done according to the spirit of the law, rather it was interpreted according to the letters.

Section 285(6) stipulates: “An Election Tribunal shall deliver its judgment in writing within 180 days from the date of the filing of the petition”.

A Lagos lawyer Mr Ajibola Bashiru said it was unfortunate that the Supreme Court has sounded a death knell to judicious electoral dispute.

Bashiru, Commissioner for Special Duty in Osun State, said: “The rationale for the judgment is arid techni-

calism which is not in line with the apex court principle on the need to shun technicalism for the purpose of substantive justice”.

He cited the case between the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Independent National Electoral Commissioner (INEC) In which the Supreme Court chided the Court of Appeal when it said the best thing is to take purposeful approach that will further the course of justice rather than engage in literal interpretation.

“I hope one day the Supreme Court will have a rethink over its ruling, otherwise the damage that the judgment will do to our democratic system is unimaginable, Bashiru added.

Uche recalled that in the last dispensation, it took some politicians up to three years to regain their mandate through due process. Even though the process was long, but at the end there was justice which, he said is a plus for the nation’s democratic development.

According to him, it will amount to injustice if the tribunals struck out the petitions of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) governorship candidates in Akwa Ibom and Benue states on technical ground because their cases were sent back to the tribunals for retrial on the order of the Supreme Court. Is it their fault that the tribunals failed to conclude hearing and deliver judgment within 180 days, he asked.

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CITYBEATS HE Lagos State Government has given cash to five male and two female corps members who distinguished themselves at their places of primary assignment.

The Commissioner for Special Duties, Dr Wale Ahmed, who presented the cash awards to them, said the gesture was to motivate other corps members to put in more effort and be part of the Mega City development programmes in the state.

Ahmed said the contributions of corps members to Governor Babatunde Fashola's development strides have made the government to continue to enjoy the confidence

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QUOTE OF THE WEEK The Office of Public Defender is the manifestation of public-spirited thinking. It appeals to the ideals of a just and agalitarian society where the rights of all men and women, whether young or old, rich or poor, are protected with equal force by the laws and authorities of the land.

Lagos State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Ade Ipaiye on the relevance of OPD during the handing over of the agency's Permanent site, last week.

Govt splashes N1.3m on seven corps members

By Yinka Aderibigbe

of the people and rekindle the people's faith in the country. He said the youth are blessed with the potential to lead the country.

He disclosed that the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme has continued to be a veritable tool for unifying the diverse ethnic groups of the country.

He said the programme has, over

the years, created the opportunity for the equitable distribution of manpower to the various parts of the country, leaving the government to strive towards sustainable economic growth, national integration and promotion of ethnic, social and cultural re-integration.

Ahmed also commended the Lagos State NYSC Governing Board and other stakeholders who have been actively participating in

the activities of NYSC in the state.

Earlier, in his welcome address, the Lagos State NYSC Coordinator, Mr Oldipo Laniyan, lauded the state government's gesture, adding that it help in encouraging corps members to put in their best.

Laniyan, who was represented by an Assistant Director, Mrs Faniyi Belinda, said through the gesture, corps members are aware

One-day chairman emerges in Mosan-Okunola

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UCK smiles on an SS one pupil of Abesan Comprehensive High School Master Emmanuel Makinde when he emerged the winner of the Spelling Bee Competition organised by Mosan-Okunola Local council Development Area (LCDA), Lagos last Tuesday.

Courtesy of his achievement at the competition, Master Makinde would soon be sworn in as Oneday Chairman of the council.

The competitive words spelling exercise saw participants from various schools in the council.

The pupils impressed the guests at the event with mastery of spelling difficult words correctly and good pronunciation.

Makinde's schoolmate Nyce Seth and Ifeanyi Kalu from State Senior High School grab the first and second runners-up positions.

At the Primary school category, pint-size Chibike Emeka from Housing Estate Primary school emerged winner with Azeez Mohammed from African Church Primary School and Happiness Fafiolu of Estate Primary school settled for the first and second runners-up positions.

Numerous gifts were showered on the winners. Other participants also did not go home emptyhanded.

that all eyes are on them in their areas of primary assignment.

She commended the Lagos State government as the only one that pays regularly the stipulated allowances of corps members serving in the state public service beside the monthly allowance paid by the Federal Government.

At the event were members of the State NYSC governing board.

The corps members honoured were Aboderin Olusola Nosifat who got N200,000; Okunlola John Olayemi N150,000; Agbor Daniel Ekpe N200,000, Egbunna Kennedy, N150,000, Adeleke Sharon N200,000, Ewumi Olusola A. N150,000 and Ezuma Christian N200,000.

By Tajudeen Adebanjo

A visibly Makinde thanked his mum and teachers for the feat.

He said they assisted him in act of memorisation and spellings.

He promised to do the entire council proud by clinching the coveted prize at the state level.

Wife of the council Chairman Mrs Oyedoyin Mafe congratulated the winners.

She praised the school teachers for their effort in nurturing the pupils. She urged them not to relent on their oars. She said the completion is not aimed at discouraging promotion of local languages but an avenue to develop the society to the highest level.

"This Administration is poised to have its own brand of the spelling competition to produce 'A Day chairman' of our LCDA probably in Yoruba language," she said.

She hailed Oluyemi Adesina-led panel of judges for embracing fairness and to adhere strictly to the rules and regulations of the competition.

"To our teachers I say thank you for providing the avenue for our children to showcase their skill in this competition. Please do not transfer aggression and anxiety to the competitors. I urge you all to relax and trust that our children

• Vice-Chairman of the Council, Princess Opeyemi Akindele (left) and Mr Idowu assisted by Mrs Mafe present a prize to the winner Makinde PHOTO: TAJUDEEN ADEBANJO

will put in their best as they seek to make us proud at the state level.

"The responsibility lies on you to prepare and deliver to our children a good curriculum that will meet the needs of our time," she said.

Mrs Mafe thanked her husband, executive members, Legislative arm, Ministry of Education Officials, District officials, staff and people of the local government for the successful organisation of the competition.

"To our dear representatives, listen to the words carefully and take a deep breath before answering any question. Stay calm, relaxed, reassure and put in your best. We know you all have crossed a lot of hurdles in preparing for this competition.

Therefore, ultilise this opportunity wisely to bring glory to yourself, parents, school, and the council as a whole by winning the state finals and becoming the One-day Governor of Lagos State," she said.

Representative from Ministry of Education Mr Segun Idowu commended the pupils for a good outing.

"This is one of the best I have witnessed so far. The pupil's performance was encouraging. It shows that their teachers have done a good job," he said.

Idowu, an Assistant Director, Private Education and Special Programmes Department saluted the council for a befitting organisation.

Council chair pleads for FESTAC Town

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HAIRMAN, Amuwo Odofin Local Government, Comrade Ayodele Adewale, has urged the Federal Government to address the derelict infrastructure in FESTAC Town, which he said has turned into environmental danger He stated this while welcoming members of the Lagos State House

By Oziegbe Okoeki

of Assembly Committee on Local Government Administration and Chieftaincy Matters led by Moshood Oshun to the Council who were on oversight duty to his council.

He said the water system of the

biggest estate in Africa has stopped running, adding that of greater concern was the decline in quality of the water which resulted from the increased use of pollutants by sewage works and that the local government has been carrying the burden alone for some time.

He sought the assistance of the

• From left: Chairman, Ejigbo LCDA, Kehinde Bamigbetan, Roxy Austin and Co-ordinator of Justice, Development and Peace Commission, Patrick Onyejiuwa, during the familiarisation visit of the NGO executives to the chairman in his office.

state legislators to persuade the Federal Government for its intervention, warning that the environmental crisis if not urgently addressed could lead to a disaster.

He commended the council boss for his initiative, especially the Primary Health Care programme, which he described as worthy of emulation by other councils.

He promised that the House would take a look at the environmental situation in FESTAC and urged him not to relent in his efforts to fulfil his electoral promises.

He promised that the committee would liaise with the Environment Committee of the House to address the environmental crises in FESTAC. He blamed the Federal Government for neglecting its infrastructure across the state leaving them in dilapidated condition.

In a related development, residents of Ojo Local Government told the delegation through Osolu of Irewekun, Oba Abideen Durosimi, that many settlements in the area need potable water and electricity. He commended the council Chairman, Mr Mursiq Durosimi, for constructing staff quarters for teachers in the riverside areas.

The monarch disclosed that the bridge that links many hamlets,

which was constructed 31 years ago and abandoned by previous administrations, has been re constructed by the current administration.

The residents cried out over non-existence of a General Hospital in the council, lamenting that during emergencies, patients are taken to Igando General Hospital, where they claimed, many of their cases cannot be accommodated.

They want the state government to expedite action on the construction of Ira-Abule Osun road and rehabilitation of Mosafejo-Ilufelodun.

Oshun said the heaping of refuse on the streets was caused by attitude of some residents who do not patronise the Lagos State Waste Management Authority (LAWMA), but instead prefer the services of illegal cart pushers who allegedly drop the refuse on the streets.

He advised them to desist from such acts, warning that littering the environment could lead to a break out of communicable diseases and that the community should fight the defaulters.

He warned that any council boss that inflates any contract would be made to refund it, and that the committee is ready to assist any council that spends its funds judiciously on laudable projects.

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Fayemi’s wife empowers rural dwellers •Continued from Page 13 Female Genital Mutilation Act, among others into the fore.

She advised the gathering to guard against running foul of any of the extant laws in order not to become “tenants in the new prison facility” recently inaugurated by the Federal Government along Afao Road, AdoEkiti.

The Project Manager of State AIDS Control Agency, Dr. Charles Doherty, spoke on the HIV pandemic, means by which it is contracted, the need for individuals to go for voluntary test and counseling to determine their status, HIV-related symptoms to watch out for, how to live a healthy life when tested positive and the need not to stigmatise the people living with the virus.

On her part, an official from the health ministry, Mrs. Kemi Akinleye, enlightened the gathering in each of the local government areas on breast cancer, and the need for self examination of breasts for early detection of cancer. There was also practical demonstration with breast examination kits produced by the Ekiti Development Foundation.

Mr. Olumide Jebooda of the Ministry of Youth and Sports was also on hand to educate the physicallychallenged persons to take advantage of government’s policies and programmes for them.

He advised parents of gifted children to enroll their wards with the ministry to enable them to benefit from the programmes of the state government for the special people. Harping on the age-long saying that there is ability in disability, he was always advising the people concerned to harness their potential for commercial purposes rather than take to begging for alms as a means of survival.

The Director-General of Ekiti Enterprise Development Agency (EEDA), Mr. Oska Ayeleso, whose agency coordinated the EDF/Glo mobile commercial call centre empowerment for 200 beneficiaries across the 16 local government areas also spoke about the commitment of N12m to the cause by the governor’s wife’s foundation during the visits.

Mr. Ayeleso stressed that the Glo package included branded big umbrella, chairs, laptops, handsets and other accessories.

To demonstrate the determination of the EDF to ensure that the beneficiaries derived maximum benefit from the venture, he said that they would undergo training for two weeks on how to handle the tools.

The Regional Manager, South-West

(Public Sector) of Glo, Mr. Eyitayo Olutekunbi, also said that the telecommunication company was proud of the activities of Mrs Fayemi, hence the partnership.

About N20m was also said to have been disbursed to various women groups and co-operative societies during the statewide tour to expand their businesses.

She warned the beneficiaries against diverting the grant to other uses, stressing that the fund was not meant for repayment of debts, sharing among members to cater for personal needs or for social engagements.

Many physically-challenged persons were also assisted with walking aides, including state-of theart wheelchairs and crutches following the EDF partnership with the Ministry of Youths and Sports.

The items that were given out in all the local government areas were bags of rice, fertilisers, school bags, walking aides, including wheelchairs, crutches, plastic buckets, hair dryers, cash and many more.

More than 400 widows also received bags of rice, while about 200 women farmers were given fertilisers. Primary school pupils also went home with school bags, while hair dryers and thousands of plastic buckets were among the freebies doled out during the tour.

At the end of the tour, which was rounded off on February 2 with visits to Ikere and Ado-Ekiti local governments, the wife of the governor disclosed that she was happy that she was able to touch lives through her foundation.

Speaking in an interview with journalists in Ado-Ekiti, she said she decided to launch the foundation to enable the people of the state to benefit from her philanthropic projects across Africa in the past two

•Some of the items donated to the beneficiaries

decades.

Having founded or co-founded many non-governmental organisations devoted to women empowerment, she said she deemed it necessary to extend the gesture to the state as her own way of supporting the administration led by her husband, Governor Kayode Fayemi.

She said: “There is a saying in Yoruba that charity begins at home.

Although I have been involved in philanthropic and empowerment projects for about two decades now, they have been mostly in some

African countries. I saw the election of my husband as governor as an opportunity to extend the gesture to my people.

“This was why we launched the EDF in June last year to empower our people, especially women. I’m determined to ensure that the foundation outlives the administration of my husband.

“Although the stark reality in Nigeria is that you attract a lot of goodwill when you are in power and people shift attention away from you as soon as your tenure ends. But, I will continue to assist the people with

all the goodwill I’m able to attract to the state from local and international agencies and individuals.”

The governor’s wife said that her experience during the tour had shown that a lot still needed to be done to lift the people at the grassroots from the cycle of poverty.

She used the tour as a showcase to thank the people of the state for the support she received in the 16 local government areas she visited and promised to embark on more empowerment programmes aimed at giving women a new lease of life.

Council organises quiz for students

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O further ensure that the dividends of democracy was felt at the grassroots through the provision of infrastructures such as good roads, water and electricity, among others, the Oriade Local Council has organised yet another quiz competition for the primary and post-primary schools in the area.

The competition entitled “Spelling Bee Competition” is an annual event instituted by the erstwhile First Lady of Lagos State Hon. Oluremi Tinubu under the New Era Foundation. This is aimed at providing opportunities

By Ambrose Nnaji

for students in public schools to really see how well they can perform I English language through spelling of words.

Contestants were drawn from all local governments in the state. At the end of the preliminaries winners are drawn from each local government as flag bearers who will then proceed to the state event which date is yet to be fixed. Also at the state level, the overall winner after all rounds of contests is crowned as “One Day

•From left: Chairman, Kosofe Local Government, Hon. Afolabi Babatunde Sofola; Mr. Tunde of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs; Vice-Chairman, Hon. Omotuyi Awoshola and Supervisor for Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Hon. Olajumoke Dairo during the environmental sanitation held at the secretariat

Governor of Lagos State” It is the initiative of the Lagos State Government to ensure that good leadership was practised at all levels including the school children age thereby enthroning a true democratic dispensation in any nation.

Speaking during the event, wife of Chairman, Oriade Local Council Development Area, Mrs. Basiri Sanusi, stated that the essence of the competition was to inculcate in the young ones the need to strive for excellence and hard work as a means of achieving greatness.

Represented by the Vice-Chairman and also the supervisory Councilor for Education in Oriade Local Council Area under Amuwo Odophin, Hon. Gbolahen Dauda, Sanusi noted that the journey of ones success in life started with a step.

She said: “This competition will not end in the four corner walls of the auditorium but with more hard work put into it to attain the position of leadership” While appealing to the contestants to abide by the guiding rules of the competition, she thanked the organizers of the event for the job well done.

She urged them to continue in the

spirit of keeping the hopes of the children alive, saying; they are the leaders of tomorrow.

The Vice-Chairman in his own remarks stated that both the parents and the teachers have failed in their duties to ensure that the child was given proper training. This, he said has given rise to the falling standard of education in the country.

He observed that some teachers in the public schools have resorted to doing their own personal businesses such as selling of recharge cards, ‘pure’ water, minerals etc during the school hours giving rise to what he described as mass failures of students during exams.

He therefore called on parents, guardians and teachers to wake up to their responsibility to ensuring adequate attention was given to the children.

At the end of the competition the following emerged as the winners Chisom Ndubuisi from ZI Nursary and Primary School and Etefia Michael Reuben, among others emerged winners in the primary and secondary schools category respectively. They are to represent the local government at the state event in a latter date.

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NEWS ‘Cancel Adamawa election’

10 killed as Fulani herdsmen invade Benue communities

From Tony Akowe, Kaduna

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CIVIL society group which monitored the Adamawa State governorship election, yesterday called for its cancellation, alleging irregularities.

This is almost a month after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared Governor Murtala Nyako as the winner of the poll.

The group, under the aegis of the Coalition of Accredited Civil Society Groups for the Adamawa Election, alleged that results released by the INEC were written two days before the poll was conducted.

Speaking through its Secretary, Mallam Garba Yakubu, at a news conference in Kaduna, the group alleged that the election was marred by irregularities such as ballot stuffing and falsification of figures, adding that the votes counted at the polling booths did not tally with the results released by the INEC. Yakubu, who gave The Nation a copy of the result, which he alleged was compiled before the election was conducted as well as the result released by the INEC, also alleged that sensitive materials did not arrive at most polling units early.

According to the 15-man coalition, the number of votes counted and released by the commission far exceeded the number of accredited voters.

The group said: “The above points and others are the reasons we consider the Adamawa State governorship election conducted on February 4 as the worst in the history of Nigeria.

“We want a free and transparent poll. If we keep silent, we will endanger democracy. We want a credible election in Adamawa State. We reject the result of the poll as declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission which pronounced Rear Admiral Murtala Nyako (retd) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as the winner.

“Since the election was rigged even before it was conducted and did not reflect what the voters expressed at the polling booths, it did not meet the basic electoral and democratic standard. We regret that the poll in question did not meet the political, electoral and democratic rules of engagement. It was a mere farce, we therefore consider it an exercise in futility.

“We also call on the security agencies to fish out and punish perpetrators of the rigging. If not, irregularity of this magnitude has the capacity to truncate our democracy.”

AUCTION SALE NOTICE On Instruction of Mortgagee: ADAIGBO Microfinance Bank Ltd, the duly registered and Government licensed auctioneer-MAC-GILBONS & CO. will sell by PUBLIC AUCTION OR PRIVATE TREATY, the property: Piece and parcel of land / ANCOMEK HOTEL LTD lying and Situate along Ubulu-Unor Road, Ogwashi-Uku in Aniocha L.G.A, Delta State, measuring 5182-603sq.m and registered as No. 19 at Page 19, volume 355 of land registry, Benin.

Mortgagor: Date: Time:

Chief (Hon) Mekoma Anderson.

Wednesday, 21st March, 2012; 12noon prompt.

Terms of payment: Fifty percent of the purchase Price by certified Bank cheque and balance Of Fifty percent payable within seven (7) days.

Please, for further details, contact: Conductor: Chief Gabriel .M. Nwokedi (Chairman / Managing Director) MAC-Gilbons & CO. (Regd. comm. Agent & Govt. licensed Auctioneer) 90 Old Enugu / Osha Rd. Nkpor-Agu (08035484465, 07043444936)

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EN persons were reported killed and property worth millions of naira destroyed as Fulani herdsmen yesterday attacked some villages in Gwer-West Local Government of Benue State.

An eyewitness, Solomon Igbo, told The Nation that the herdsmen stormed the villages about 10am when the

From Uja Emmanuel, Makurdi

victims were in church, torching their homes after shooting sporadically.

Communities affected were Tsechile, Mbahungwa and Mbachwa in MbakpaSengev district where more than 100 houses were destroyed.

Some residents were shot

dead as they attempted to escape.

Another eyewitness said the invaders were armed with sophisticated weapons and dressed like Chadians, speaking Hausa.

The traditional rural of Gwer-west(Ter-Tyoshin), Chief Daniel Abomtse, said that they received information about the plan by the

Fulani herdsmen to invade their village two days ago and they alerted security agencies.

Police spokesman Ejike Alaribe said information on the incident was still sketchy, “but our men are on ground to stop further destruction of life and property.”

Boko Haram kills woman, son

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UNMEN suspected to be members of the Boko Haram yesterday killed a trader at the Gamboru market in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.

In two other attacks on Saturday night, a woman and her 10-year-old child were shot dead by suspected Boko Haram members.

Sources said the gunmen stormed their home at

From Joseph Abiodun, Maiduguri

Zannari, on the outskirts of the town. They said another unidentified man was killed in the same area moments later.

The gunmen fled the scene, leaving their victims in a pool of their blood.

It was learnt that the attack at the Gamboru market caused pandemonium.

People were running to save

their lives as the gunmen shot into the air to escape.

The Joint Task Force spokesman, Lt. Col. Hassan Mohammed and the Borno Police Command Public Relations Officer, Samuel Tizhe, could not be reached last night for comments.

But the police spokesman confirmed the killings to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)Hausa service, which was monitored in the

•Acting IGP Abubakar

town.

Doctors seek establishment of paramedic corps

A

TEAM of doctors has called for the establishment of a national emergency medical service and paramedic corps.

The doctors, who have just returned from a two-week skill acquisition training in Israel, said this at the weekend when they were received by the Minister of Health, Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu.

The 10 doctors said the national emergency service and paramedic corps is necessary to ensure timely intervention of medics occasioned by killings and injuries resulting from the Boko Haram attacks.

From Augustine Ehikioya, Abuja

They were selected from the teaching hospitals in Gwagwalada, Abuja, Jos and Maiduguri.

The leader of the delegation, who is the Director of Emergency Preparedness in the ministry, Dr. Abdulrazaq Gbadamosi, said the recommendations of the team are “an urgent need to set up a national emergency medical service and establish a paramedic corps.”

Others, he said, are the establishment of pilot designated trauma centres using selected tertiary hospitals, enhancement of inter agency coordination and collaboration and retention of the group as the steering committee on the establishment of the Emergency Medical Service (EMS).

According to him, the training in Israel was aimed at understudying the school of paramedics, ambulance dispatch centres, ambulance service network and pre-hospital

emergency medical equipment.

The training, he also said, involved disaster and emergency preparedness, national and local trauma system towards adoption in Nigeria through the public- private partnership model in operation in Israeli healthcare and life support industry.

Prof. Chukwu reiterated the need to establish trauma and emergency centres of excellence in tertiary health institutions nationwide.

Tofa urges opposition parties to unite

A

N All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP)chieftain,

Alhaji Basher Tofa, has said that the opposition parties should unite to form a strong front capable of wresting power from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the next political

From Kolade Adeyemi, Kano

dispensation.

He expressed fear of a possible collapse of the nascent democracy if the trends in the political landscape continued unchallenged.

Tofa said the country was drifting into a one party state, saying this would promote anarchy.

He said it was time efforts were made by the opposition leaders to rescue democracy from the clutches of undemocratic principles fos-

tered by the PDP. He described PDP’s domination of the political scene as a bad political omen that should be challenged by well-meaning democratic forces in the country.

Tofa noted that parties such as the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA), Labour Party (LP) and Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) could merge with the ANPP, adding that if this is done, PDP will face stiff competition at the polls.

Yobe to employ youths From Duku Joel, Damaturu

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OVERNOR Ibrahim Gaidam of Yobe State has directed local governments, communities and government agencies to liaise with the Office of the Head of Service to employ youths.

He said such youths must be university graduates or holders of diploma or NCE certificates.

The governor said this at an interactive session with community leaders and elders from the 17 local governments, held at the WAWA Hall, Government House, Damaturu.

He assured that youths would be employed in the civil service to address unemployment.

The governor said 194 diploma and NCE holders and university graduates were recently recruited in the civil service.

Ahmed calls for harmony From Adekunle Jimoh, Illorin

WARA State Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed has urged religious faithful to live in harmony.

The governor, who assured the people of equity and justice, made the remark while receiving the 2011 Hajj report.

He said government would not relent in offering quality service to the pilgrims.

“Religion is not only about peace with our creator, but also about harmony with neighbours irrespective of religious leanings,” Ahmed said, adding: “For a greater and better Nigeria, we must learn to be agents of peace as no religion preaches violence.”

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THE NATION MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012

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NEWS

Man arrested for assaulting daughter

A

LABORATORY assistant has walked his way into trouble for allegedly assaulting his daughter.

The 33-year-old employee of Spintex Mills, Solarin Muyiwa, was said to have poured hot water on his daughter.

Muyiwa was arrested at his No. 3, Adeyiga Street, Ikorodu, Lagos State home yesterday by security agencies led by officials of the Ministry of Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation (WAPA).

A director in charge of Child Development, Mrs. Alaba Fadairo, alleged that Muyiwa poured hot water on his daughter (name withheld) for licking soup from the pot without his permission.

According to her, the alleged assault left the girl with serious injuries and complications.

She said: “The incident in question took place on Friday, but a concerned neigbour who saw the state of the young girl, put a distress call across to the ministry. We responded immediately to rescue the girl

By Miriam Ndikanwu

and she is presently being treated in the hospital.”

Mrs. Fadairo said investigation conducted showed that Muyiwa had directed his wife to boil the water and subsequently ordered his daughter to dip her hands inside.

She said: “Her father told her stepmother to go and heat water when the wife reported to him that she caught the girl stealing from the pot of soup and it was that water he poured into a plastic and ordered her to put her hands inside.

“The young girl, who was gripped with fear, said she was afraid to put her hand inside the water and the father carried it and poured on her which gave her severe burn and complications.

“His wife also confirmed that he asked her to boil the water and after that, he asked the girl to put her hands inside the water, but she said at that juncture, her baby was crying and she had to go and nurse her and she didn’t know

what transpired afterwards.”

Muyiwa, who obtained an Ordinary National Diploma (OND) in Science and Laboratory Techology, from the Lagos State Polytechnic, Ikorodu, admitted to the crime and explained that his intention was not to harm, but to scare his daughter.

He said: “That was exactly what happened and I just want to apologise. I regret what I did. She has been stealing, but I did not mean to pour hot water on her. I just wanted to scare her with hot water so that she will know the difference between good and bad. I did not know it would result to this and am very sorry.”

The Deputy Governor, Mrs. Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, had on Wednesday appealed to parents, guardians and care-givers to desist from any form of child abuse, reminding them that the state has launched the enforcement of the Child Act Law. She noted that the Law, as passed in 2007, stipulates the rights and privileges to be enjoyed by children and such

rights must be respected by all parents, guardians, teachers, care-givers and members of the society, adding that the 2007 Law highlights penalties to be handed down when offenders are found guilty in court.

The deputy governor said: “The Child Rights’ Law was passed in 2007 and the law stipulates penalties for offenders who are caught abusing or molesting our children. Parents who deny their children access to education or beat them without caution will also be prosecuted.”

Mrs. Adejoke-Adefulire also disclosed that the government will soon organise another round of enlightenment and public advocacy to sensitise the public on the dangers of child abuse and to also inform them of the existence of the law.

She said the government, through WAPA has taken delivery of enlightenment vehicles and sensitisation materials to adequately educate all Lagosians on the dangers of abusing the children.

CAN President names media aide

T

HE President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor has named a Special Assistant (Media and Public Affairs). He is Kenny Ashaka, who, until now, was Bureau Chief in charge of the North Central zone for The Sun. Ashaka started his journalism career as a programme presenter with Radio Nigeria, Lagos in 1982 and then became a reporter with The Guardian in 1986, covering the old Gongola State from Yola.

By 1988, Ashaka moved on to the Weekly Scope, owned by the then Gongola State Government and operated at various times in Yola, Kaduna, Lagos and Abuja, until 1995

when he joined Ibadan-based Third Eye as Head of Abuja Bureau.

Three years later, he relocated to Kaduna to work as the state correspondent for THISDAY newspapers, from where he joined the defunct National Interest newspapers in 2000, as Kaduna State Bureau Chief.

In February 2003, Ashaka teamed up with The Sun as the Kaduna State Correspondent. Through hard work and diligence, he was promoted Abuja Bureau Chief. Last year, he was mandated to establish a new bureau for the North Central with Head Office in Jos. Ashaka is married and has children.

Commission shuts firm over ‘illegal lottery promo’ From Olugbenga Adanikin and Adebowale Adenike, Abuja

T

HE National Lottery Regulatory Commission (NLRC) has shut down Sojette Nigeria Ltd over alleged illegal lottery promotions.

In a statement in Abuja, the Director of Enforcement and Compliance Department, Prince Emmanuel Jeminiwa said the LG licensed firm in Benin-City, Edo State, was sealed off following the company’s refusal to legalise the lottery promo executed in Benin and Warri between February 11 and 19.

He said the closure was carried out by the commission’s enforcement team with a deputy director. He was assisted by Police Investigation Officers from the Force Headquarters after securing a warrant.

The statement reads in parts: “There had been several attempts by the NLRC Zonal Office in Benin to prevent the LG Electronic dealer from carrying out the lottery promo tagged: “LG Seasons Promo” without a permit, but all these as well as correspondences of the Commission inviting them to regularise were rebuffed as mere threats.

“The seal-off is a strong statement by the Lottery Commission, showing that it is no longer going to be business as usual, for illegal lottery operations.”

How to avert flooding,

by Lagos commissioner

L

•Lagos State Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) chieftain Funso Ologunde (right), his lawyer-son Pelumi Ologunde, Deji Sanyaolu, a lawyer and Prof Fisayo Ologunde during Pelumi’s call to the Bar in Abuja

Lagos to refurbish 254 health centres, says lawmaker

N

O fewer than 254 health centres have been listed for refurbishment in the Centre of Excellence by the government.

The planned upgrade is to improve healthcare delivery to residents.

Chairman of the Lagos State House of Assembly Committee on Health Services Suuru Avoseh, who dropped the hint

at the weekend when he visited the Badagry General Hospital, said the government would start the refurbishment and rebuilding of the facilities across the 57 council areas next month.

According to him, the state remained committed to the provision of quality and affordable healthcare services through the provision of ap-

propriate medical equipment and motivation of the medical personnel.

“We want to improve our hospitals to the standard obtainable in developed countries,’’ he said.

Replying, the Medical Director of Badagry General Hospital, Dr Gbolahan Durojaye, told the committee that the hospital has 370 workers,

including 26 doctors and 103 nurses.

He listed insufficient drugs and erratic power supply as some of the challenges and hindrances against the smooth of the hospital.

Avoseh also inspected facilities at the hospital’s accident and emergency unit, medical laboratory, male surgical and paediatrics wards.

Revolution looms, says ex-SSG Basorun

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IGERIA may be heading towards revolution, unless urgent steps are taken to rekindle citizens’ confidence and hope for a brighter future, former Secretary to Lagos State Government Olorunfunmi Basorun, has warned.

He said the inflationary trend has demonstrated that all the sectors are on their knees, adding that Nigerians are overburdened by the impact of government’s fiscal irresponsibility, lack of initiative, and loss of economic direction and focus.

Basorun also kicked against the President’s opposition to the convocation of a national conference without deep reflection, adding that he does not love Nigeria. He stressed that

By Emmanuel Oladesu Deputy Political Editor

only a national conference can address the fundamental questions confronting the country.

He doubted his transformational agenda, saying that it is empty.

He said: “The crux of the matter is that Nigeria’s wealth should be re-distributed. The first step is to return the socalled subsidy. That is what the down-trodden can share. I don’t live in Ikoyi and Victoria Island. I live in the village.

People now trek. They cannot use commercial motorcycles and buses from Igbogbo to Ikorodu”.

Basorun described the plan to increase electricity tariff as

thoughtless and wicked move borne out of gross insensitivity to the plight of Nigerians who do not enjoy regular power supply.

The lawyer and politician said President Goodluck Jonathan has betrayed Nigerians by reneging on his promise on palliatives to cushion the effects of the bitter oil subsidy removal on the first day of this year. He recalled that the removal was in bad faith, stressing that Nigerians outrightly rejected the decision.

Basorun asked the President to resign, saying that he has not shown the trait of a good leader worthy of trust. He said: “Subsidy Re-Investment Empowerment (SURE) Programme is now a camouflage scheme designed to deceive

Nigerians and give them a false hope. Following the outcry that trailed the subsidy removal, he set up Kolade Panel. He came up with SURE. He said members of the committee would implement palliative measures.

“Two days ago, there was a PDP top meeting and people came there with document relating to SURE and frowned at it. He said there would be no palliative again because the subsidy was not removed as he would have loved to remove it. He said before that whatever money that was realised would be shared among the federal, state and local governments, but he said that was no longer relevant. This is a wonderful President.

AGOSIANS have been urged to use the emergency numbers in alerting its agencies to disasters, stressing that citizens’ cooperation is needed to conquer tragedy.

Commissioner for Special Duties Dr Wale Ahmed told reporters in Lagos that the “Command and Control Centre” has been fortified to respond to emergency calls through “767” and “112”, which are toll-free.

He advised the people to internalise the numbers and judiciously make use of the reinvigorated centre.

He alerted Lagosians to the imminence of more rains this season, advising them to desist from blocking the drains and canals.

Ahmed also cautioned against building houses, kiosks and shops on canal pathways to avoid flooding, which he said, has posed danger to the mega city.

He said: “Rain came early this year, since January. And if we want to go by the prediction of the meteorological department, we should expect a lot of stormy weather, not just in Lagos and Nigeria, but throughout the world. The weather is getting more inclement everyday, stormier everyday. All over the world, there is global warming.

There is rise in sea level. That is leading to flooding all over the world.

“In Lagos State, the government has been proactive enough. It has put in structures to anticipate, plan for and handle emergency situations.

There is the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, which is an award winning agency, to take care of emer-

By Emmanuel Oladesu

gency occurrences. Recently, the Lagos State Safety Commission was established to sensitise the people, institute safety standard and let people know what to do at work, at home, factory, construction site, hospital, offices. “ Then, the Ministry of Environment has been going around to ensure that the drains and canals are not blocked. More canals have been built by government to increase the capacity of canals to absorb flood water. Government definitely will not be in a position to determine how much rain we are going to have. That one is beyond any human being. But the administration of Mr. Babatunde Fashola is doing its best to make sure that structures are in place to mitigate whatever situation. One of them is the recently commissioned Command and Control Centre in Alausa that operates 767 and 112 emergency lines. It is important for all Lagosians to know these two numbers by heart. If you call any or the two numbers, there are people there to receive these calls on 24 hour basis and process them and determine who to call, depending on the complaint you give them. In that command and control centre, there are representatives; officials of Lagos State government from about eight different agencies that are concerned with whatever emergency situation you may find yourself. Among them are LASEMA, fire Service, Rapid Respond Squad, environmental task force, LASTMA. All of them have representatives. These people are professionals.”

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FOREIGN Syrian crisis: Red Cross struggles to reach victims

Putin ‘elected Russian president’

THE Red Cross has been unable to access the wrecked area of Baba Amr, in the Syrian city of Homs, for a third day.

The agency said it had begun to hand out food and blankets to people who had fled Baba Amr to nearby areas.

Syrian officials told the Red Cross that Baba Amr had to be cleared of booby traps, but activists said troops were carrying out reprisal attacks.

Meanwhile, the bodies of two foreign journalists killed in Homs are due to arrive in Paris later.

The bodies of Remi Ochlik and Marie Colvin had been put on an Air France flight from Damascus on Saturday evening.

Rebels from the Free Syrian Army withdrew from Baba Amr late last week after weeks of shelling from government forces.

A seven-lorry Red Cross convoy has been waiting to enter Baba Amr for three days.

The government gave permission for the agency to access the area, but has since refused to let the convoy through.

The BBC’s Jim Muir, in neighbouring Lebanon, says the Red Cross and Red Crescent have now begun to help those who fled Baba Amr, giving them blankets to help deal with the bitter cold.

LADIMIR Putin has been elected Russian president for the third time, exit polls suggest, after spending the last four years as the country’s Prime Minister.

The exit polls gave Mr Putin about 60% of the vote, meaning that he should avoid a runoff with his nearest rival, Communist Gennady Zyuganov.

Officials say turnout was higher than the last election in 2008.

But opposition groups have reported widespread violations, with many people voting more than once.

They have called for mass protests in central Moscow on Monday.

Meanwhile thousands of supporters of Mr Putin have gathered with Russian flags and banners outside the Kremlin for a concert to celebrate his victory.

With counting already under way in most of the country, the electoral commission published preliminary results showing Mr Putin gaining nearly 62%, and Mr Zyuganov just under 18%.

The other three candidates were in single digits.

V

•Putin (middle) speaking to reporters at a polling station in Moscow...yesterday

206 dead in Congo’s arms’ depot blast

O

VER 206 people died in the Republic of Congo after amunitions depot caught fire and caused several large explosions, a presidency official has said.

Hundreds more have been injured by the disaster at the Mpila military barracks in the east of the Congolese capital, Brazzaville, which sent a plume of smoke above the city.

Betu Bangana, head of protocol in the president’s office

in Brazzaville, said: “According to sources at the central hospital we’re talking of around 200 dead and many injured.”

My first thought was of Tshisekedi and Kabila and I thought to myself that maybe they started the war again here in Congo and maybe there was fighting going on, John, a resident in Kinshasa, said.

He added that “lots of buildings have been destroyed”.

Fleeing residents reported that houses in the area had been flattened.

“I saw someone being carried to hospital with their intestines hanging out. They had been hit by a shell,” one witness told Reuters news agency.

“Some people are still (trapped) in their houses...

They’re saying the entire neighbourhood of Mpila has been destroyed.”

Congolese TV showed pictures of terrified people on the streets of neighbour-

hoods close to where the explosions happened.

There were also images of many injured people being rushed to hospital or being given first aid on the streets.

The explosions were so strong that they shattered windows in Kinshasa, the capital of neighbouring country Democratic Republic of Congo, across the river from Brazzaville.

The explosions caused so much panic that some people even thought war had broken out.

Police disperse students’ protest in Sudan

S

UDANESE police used batons to disperse more than 100 students protesting in the centre of Khartoum against the closure of their campuses following the independence of South Sudan, witnesses said.

South Sudan became independent in July under a 2005 peace agreement with Sudan to end decades of civil war.

Both sides have failed to sort out a long list of issues such as sharing oil or marking the poorly defined joint border.

Students who used to attend southern universities with campuses in Sudan gathered in front of the presidential palace. They called on Sudan and South Sudan to start talks to allow them to get diplomas from their old universities.

“The fate of students must come before oil,” one banner said.

The government has opened a new campus in Khartoum for northern students who went to southern universities but protesters said that was not good enough.

“We cannot accept a diploma from a university that was founded only in 2011,” said one engineering student, asking not to be named. “We want to graduate from our old universities.”

Police used batons to disperse the protest and arrested several students, witnesses said.

Protests are rare in tightly controlled Sudan, but a severe economic crisis with high food inflation has triggered small rallies in Khartoum and other university cities.

Train crash in Poland kills 16

T

WO trains have collided in southern Poland, leaving 16 people dead and 58 hurt, local officials say.

The accident occurred on Saturday evening on the WarsawKrakow mainline at the small town of Szczekociny, according to Polish TV. Two express trains, one of which was on the wrong track, collided head-on, a senior railway official said.

Prime Minister Donald Tusk called the accident Poland’s “most tragic train catastrophe... in many years”.

Mr Tusk arrived at the scene early on Sunday morning, with three other cabinet ministers.

President Bronislaw Komorowski has said he will announce a period of national mourning once emergency teams have completed their work to remove the wreckage from the track.

“The scope of this disaster is sufficiently large to warrant national mourning,” he said.

The two trains, comprising 10 carriages in total, were carrying an estimated 350 passengers at the time of the crash.

Helicopter ambulances from Warsaw and Wroclaw helped to take the injured to hospitals.

Romney catches Santorum in Ohio dead heat

R

EPUBLICAN presidential candidate Mitt Romney has surged

into a dead heat with Rick Santorum in the Ohio primary, setting up a cliffhanger race tomorrow, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Sunday.

The former Massachusetts governor and former United States senator from Pennsylvania are tied with 32 percent support from likely voters in the Ohio Republican primary, the most important of the 10 state nominating contests on “Super Tuesday” this week.

After his victory in Saturday’s Washington state caucuses, Romney is gaining mo-

mentum going into tomorrow after trailing Santorum in recent polls in Ohio.

“This race could really go either way between now and Tuesday,” said Ipsos pollster Chris Jackson.

“If Mitt Romney is able to close this out and win this race, that gives him a leg up in going all the way to the convention and winning the Republican nomination.”

Ohio is a traditional bellwether state that could play a key role in deciding which Republican candidate challenges President Barack Obama in November’s general election.

The poll showed Newt Gingrich, the former speaker

of the US House of Representatives, with 17 percent support, and Ron Paul, the congressman from Texas, with 6 percent support.

Asked whom they would back in a two-man race, 44 percent of respondents in the online survey said they would support Romney, while 43 percent said they would support Santorum.

Romney got a boost yesterday when US House of Representatives Majority Leader Eric Cantor endorsed his presidential bid. Cantor, a Virginia congressman and the No. 2 Republican in the House, praised Romney's economic plan.

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TOMORROW

www.thenationonlineng.net

MONDAY, MARCH 5, 2012 TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM

‘Let the passage of the Ikemba Nnewi remind everyone of the futility of domination in a nation state. Let therefore be set in motion processes to admit and correct basic inequities at the nativity of the Nigerian state’ VOL.7, NO. 2056

C OMMENT & D EB ATE EBA

W

HEN Ojukwu’s remains finally rested last week, I could not but ponder the wonder of the man. With all his flaws, he possessed the quality of a myth. In a pre-modern society, he would be a god in the mould of Ogun, the god of iron, a fire-spitting warrior and conqueror of guns and gunpowder. Or Sango, the temperamental god of thunder in Yorubaland.

Not only his physical bearing assigned him such transcendental accolade. His big eyes of defiant gazes and beard of luxuriant profusion, his martial walk, his elocution in any language, his ironic smile and a certain hint of affectionate glow that arrested the overlay of hauteur and warrior.

All of these prepared him for the world of myth. In our lifetime, did some not see Awolowo in the moon? So maybe, Ojukwu may well rise out of the mist of earth to the condensed gases of the heavens.

Hercules, the superman of mythology, was after all believed to be human.

Ojukwu’s claim to eternity was the quality of the hero. He was a man who saw his moment, and he never dithered nor fainted in the days of adversity. He never feared what the Greeks called blood guilt, nor did he flinch at the fact that the Igbo, his people, were numerically inferior to their enemies.

The cause was right, so the moment was his and his people to choose. Pogrom was a moral albatross. Death was an honour; capitulation a dark humour. He took the baton, draped in blood, and led his people to battle.

But in those days, it was not only Ojukwu, it was all Igbo who became the heroes. In his classic essay on Napoleon Bonaparte, essayist Ralph Waldo Emerson described the greatest general since Alexander the Great as embodying the spirit of France and Europe. So, he wrote in the Essay titled Man Of The World, if Napoleon carried the impulse of all in Europe, it meant that the continent was populated with many little Napoleons. In the throes of the Nigerian crisis in the 1960’s, it is safe to say that while Emeka was the chief Ojukwu, Biafra teemed with many little Ojukwus.

That his dream for the Yellow Sun or Biafra did not come to fruition did not diminish the quality of the hero. He did not need to be right by other people. He only needed his people’s nod, and he got that aplenty. Winston Churchill said, “I have never accepted what many people have kindly said, namely that I inspired the nation. It was the nation and the race…that had the lion heart. I had the luck to be called upon to give the roar.” Ojukwu roared on his people’s behalf. The point was not that he lost the battle, but that he did not lose his people. They followed him last week to

RIPPLES

REPS PROMISE TO BE GUIDED BY WISHES OF NIGERIANS

Okay...REDUCE FUEL PRICE first

SAM OMATSEYE

IN TOUCH

intouchsam@yahoo.com 08054501081(sms only) •Winner, Informed Commentary 2009& 2010 (D.A.M.E)

Born Nigerian, died Nigerian

•The late Ojukwu

‘So when the issue of Civil War came, it was history and not his volition that thrust upon him the role of a secessionist. It was quite obvious in the way he prosecuted the affairs of Biafra that even when he was the leader of Biafra, his heart was in the country’

the grave.

Abraham Lincoln is regarded by many historians as America’s greatest president.

But a few months before his second term, he thought he was going to lose the civil war.

So he wrote a secret document called a “blind letter” in which he pledged to work with his opponent who would succeed him. That was before the tide of battle turned, and Generals Grant and Meade stunned the opponents with key victories. History would still have judged him a hero of freedom even if he lost.

Jefferson Davis, his opponent, is still regarded in the American South as a hero.

Davis, however, fought to defend a masterslave universe and that diminished the moral ardour of his fight.

But what struck me most in the past week was that Ojukwu so epitomised the moment.

He died at a time many Nigerians are questioning the value of our nationhood. They wonder whether we should live together. But Ojukwu was an example of the quintessential Nigerian. He was born in Niger State, attended secondary school in Lagos, was a senior officer in Kano. He was a polyglot, mastering Yoruba, Igbo and Hausa. As Governor Babangida Aliyu, Niger State Governor, noted last week, some people thought his Hausa was smoother than his Igbo. His Yoruba was eloquent.

His father Louis Philip was like today’s Dangote, a wealthy man who had residences across the country, his stakes embedded in the essence of the country. He had friends

T

IN THE NATION

HE death in prison custody of Mr Tiemkenfa Francis Osvwo, one of the suspects in the October 1, 2010 Abuja bombing, is one more in a rising number of avoidable deaths in prison and police detention facilities. Mr Festus Keyamo, the dead suspect’s lawyer, told the media that since January he had tried unsuccessfully to get prison officials interested in his client’s failing health. He added that his client’s illness probably started when the cell in which he and other October 1 bombing suspects were interned was fumigated with substances of indeterminate origin. The lawyer went on to paint very dreary picture of his client’s battle with illness and the alarming and suspicious indifference of prison officials.

It is certain that in a matter of days prison officials will respond to the accusations with a catalogue of remedial steps taken by them to arrest the suspect’s declining health. But whether they will convince anyone depends on what they have to say, and how plausible their account sounds. Whatever explanations they give will, however, not answer all the questions agitating the minds of those who want justice done in the matter. The prison officials can make their own case, but it will not obviate the need for judicial en-

OLAKUNLE ABIMBOLA

everywhere. So when the issue of Civil War came, it was history and not his volition that thrust upon him the role of a secessionist. It was quite obvious in the way he prosecuted the affairs of Biafra that even when he was the leader of Biafra, his heart was in the country. He had non-Igbo in strategic positions, and no less a senior man than Banjo was entrusted to lead the charge to Lagos.

You see, Ojukwu’s eyes and heart did not lie east of the Niger alone. It was as though if he was to lead Biafra, the rest of the country must be part of it. Ojukwu loved the sound of Lagos and craved the scent of Kaduna. Hence he wanted to go to Lagos, to vanquish Gowon, after he had conquered mid-West without so much as a resistance.

The victory did not happen, so we cannot say how that enterprise would have shaped up.

Ojukwu never grew up with a dream of Biafra. The Igbo of the era never imagined a separate country. Providence reckoned otherwise. Then Igbo did not see the necessity to build village homes as they do now. History affects us more than we affect history. Lincoln never grew up with a passion about abolishing slavery in America. He merely wanted to pursue the innocuous ideological pretensions of the day until the issue of slavery encapsulated the temper of the day and he could not run away from his principle.

In his days in King’s College, he made friends across the country, and many of them testify to the brilliance of the kid who was far younger than anyone in his class but held his own. He enlisted in the army to be a Nigerian soldier. After the war, he joined the NPN and not Zik’s NPP, where many Igbo put their heart. Some have argued that he was out of sync with his people by that decision while others say he had to have a broad mind to have gone the way of another party.

After the civil war, he may have become what some historians would call a “static hero.” But the cause for which he fought has taken on a number of incarnations from the Niger Delta militants to Boko Haram insurgency. The ideas have taken on motions and cycles of their own. His battle days were in the 1960’s but his heroism was not locked into that time capsule.

No one fathered the Igbo nation until Ojukwu led Biafra. No one reflects the strings that bind us together as Nigerians like the biography of that great man. Whenever we eulogise our common spirit, Ojukwu nods in his grave. Whenever we generate fratricidal storms like militancy and Boko Haram, he mocks and frowns at us. It is because, like Lord Jim, in Joseph Conrad’s classic, “he is one of us.”

HARDBALL

•Hardball is not the opinion of the columnist featured above

Death in custody

given if he wondered whether an institutional and official prejudice against other terror suspects existed somewhere in the corridors of power.

The errors may yet be compounded as the government gets set to enter into dialogue with Boko Haram terror group. Other terror suspects would, as Keyamo indicated, ask for equitable considerations, for terror is terror, whether it originates from the South or North, or from among Christians or Muslims. This column will restate once again that the business of government is more serious and demanding than the Federal Government has seemed to acknowledge. It must not assume that what it does today will not have future implications.

With insensate policies such as the official attitude towards Boko Haram, the chickens would come home to roost one day.

The Federal Government must institute an inquiry into the death of Mr Osvwo. Until he is proved guilty, he must be assumed to be innocent according to the provisions of the law. The government must also make it a standing policy that all deaths in detention, whether the suspect takes ill suddenly in the night as the police often say or not, must merit a high-powered enquiry. To do less is to affront civilised values.

quiry into the matter. Like other recent deaths in police custody, which signpost a callous descent into barbarism, this latest death should disturb all free Nigerians who understand the implication of not sanitising Nigeria’s detention facilities. We have a huge responsibility to thoroughly investigate every death in custody.

But by far more disturbing, indeed as this column had recently warned, is the comparison Mr Keyamo has rightly and sensibly made between the seemingly lenient official attitude towards Boko Haram suspects and the hardline approach to other terror suspects. It was bound to come to this since the Federal Government opted irrationally to treat Boko Haram terrorism as if it was understandable on account of what is interpreted as its socio-economic underpinnings.

If the government would not strongly oppose bail applications of Boko Haram suspects, in fact at a time even freeing them to their local chiefs, any lawyer could be for-

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