May 04, 2015

Newspaper of the Year

Fuel, food Page 4 supplier to Boko Haram captured

•Ex-Speakers sue 22 Ondo lawmakers for defection •SEE •Fayose ‘demolishes’ APC members’ family house PAGES •Ladoja files petition against Ajimobi’s election 5,8&12 •$20b: ‘Govt should report PwC to accounting body’

•Nigeria’s widest circulating newspaper

VOL. 10, NO. 3204 MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

TR UTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM TRUTH

N150.00

Fed Govt, oil marketers clash over N200b subsidy claims

Police discover fraud in sales of Fed Govt’s houses From Eric Ikhilae, Abuja

A

T

HE police have unearthed a massive fraud allegedly being perpetrated by officials of the Presidential Implementation Committee (PIC) on Sale of Government Properties.

They reportedly utilise phony companies to defraud members of the public interested in buying any Federal Government property being offered for sale.

A team of investigators at the Police Special Fraud Unit (SFU), Lagos made the discovery while investigating a petition by a company, Multiplication Global Trade Limited.

Continued on page 57

•www.thenationonlineng.net

•Dr. Okonjo-Iweala

MAJOR showdown looms today between the Federal Government and major oil marketers over fuel subsidy payment.

The disagreement over the marketers’ claims and their insistence on being paid immediately may elongate the fuel scarcity that has crippled business.

From Nduka Chiejina, Abuja and Akinola Ajibade

Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said in Abuja yesterday that the oil marketers “have formed a cartel that can ground the nation to a halt at will”.

She added that “the nation must do something about

it”.

The Executive Secretary of the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN), Mr. Obafemi Thomas Olamwore, said the oil marketers would not back down at today’s meeting.

He told our correspondent last night that they Continued on page 4

•INSIDE: THE MORNING AFTER NNPC AUDIT REPORT P29 WEMA EYES NATIONAL LICENCE P6

PDP leaders reject calls to resign as crisis grows Secretary attacks Bode George Ndoma-Egba lashes governors Mark: opposition not death sentence NWC panel to review failure From Gbade Ogunwale, Onyedi Ojiabor and Sanni Onogu, Abuja

T

HERE seems to be no end to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) blame

game —the result of the ruling party’s massive electoral loss.

Party Chairman Adamu Mu’azu hit back at the Presidency and the governors at the weekend, cautioning them against “the developing culture of using and dumping”.

He rejected any blame on him and the National Working Committee (NWC) for

?

WILL THE CHIBOK GIRLS KIDNAPPED ON APRIL 15, LAST YEAR EVER RETURN?

the party’s thrashing by the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Also at the weekend, a group of Southwest leaders of the party met in Ado-Ekiti and canvassed the resignation of the NaContinued on page 4

•Women and children rescued from Sambisa forest and handed over to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), arriving at the PHOTO: NAN Malkohi camp in Yola...on Saturday night.

Boko Haram: Hostage women fire at soldiers •PAGES 4&7

•SPORTS P15 •POLITICS P17 •JOBS P35 •CEO P37 •MOTORING P39 •FOREIGN P58

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

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NEWS

How insurgency

•Group Managing Director, Wema Bank Plc, Segun Oloketuyi (left), Chairman Wema Bank Plc., Adeyinka Asekun (middle) and Serving Overseer, Latter Rain Assembly, Pastor Tunde Bakare at the bank's 70th anniversary Grand Ball in Lagos...at the weekend.

PHOTO: SOLOMON ADEOLA

The latest projections of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) show that Boko Haram insurgency has impacted on the agriculture sector. The report suggests that President-elect Muhammadu Buhari is expected to take agriculture as one of the priorities of his Presidency, but with modifications to agricultural policies. Excerpts of the report:

U •L-R, President, Jericho Businessmen Club, Mr. Tunde Adewale (left), Mr. Bayo Olugbemi (middle) and Immediate Past President, Ibadan CCII, Chief Bayo Oyero at the 2014 Annual General Meeting (AGM) of Jericho Businessmen Club at Supreme Hotel, America Quarters, Agodi, Gate, Ibadan...at the weekend.

PHOTO: FEMI ILESANMI

•From left: General Manager, Trinity Inland Container Depot, Sifax Group, Mr. Oliver Omojuwa; Executive Director, Human Resources/Admin.

Dr. Philips Ofulue (middle) and Assistant Manager, Commercial, Sifax Shipping Nig. Ltd., Mr. Olasunkanmi Olubi at a news conference on the appointment of Sifax Group as the agent of Morocco, Nigeria and Mauritanian in Lagos...yesterday.

•Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer, Diamond Bank Plc., Dozie Uzoma (left), Chairman of the bank, Dr. Chris Ogbechie (middle) and Company Secretary, Nkechi Nwosu at the twenty-fourth AGM of the bank in Lagos.

PHOTO: ADEJO DAVID

NITED States (U.S.) 2015/16 wheat exports to Nigeria (which stands) at 2.3 million tons, a 17 per cent decrease, is largely due to existing import levies. The U.S. market share for Nigeria’s wheat imports currently stands at about 55 per cent. Farmers are expected to shift from corn production largely due to unprofitable market prices and lack of storage facilities. Given large carryover corn supplies, (Market Year) MY2015/ 16 corn imports are estimated at 300,000 tons. MY2014/15 rice ending stocks are at 1.3 million tons due to major importers purchasing higherthan-normal supplies to sell during the presidential election campaign and to stockpile in anticipation of policy changes to existing import quotas and levies by the new government.

Agricultural policies on grain and feed products Post is closely monitoring current government policies, such as the Agriculture Transformation Agenda (ATA). This agenda is designed to significantly increase production of five key crops - rice, cassava, sorghum, cocoa and cotton - and reduce all major food imports. Sources indicate that ATA’s implementation has not been significantly successful in increasing domestic food production.

On March 28, Gene. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) was elected to be President, effective from May 29. Sources note that agricultural policy is expected to be one of the priorities of his presidency, thus there could be modifications to the ATA and other agricultural policies.

MY2015/16 wheat production is estimated at 60,000 tons, a decline of approximately 17 per cent from the previous year of 70,000 tons. This is largely due to the dislocation of farmers by the Boko Haram insurgence and unfavorable climatic conditions in major wheat growing areas.

Nigeria is a major wheat market for Hard Red Winter. There is also a growing demand for Soft Red Winter for biscuits and cookies; Hard White Wheat for breads and noodles; and Durum Wheat for pasta.

MY2015/16 wheat consumption is estimated at 4.7 million tons, a 17 per cent increase from the current MY2014/15 figure of 4.2 million. Several factors are contributing to Nigeria’s growth in wheat consumption. In the market, Nigeria’s most popular local food is called semolina, a wheatmeal product. For this product, local processors are now using more wheat (preferably imported) than locally sourced staples like cassava flour. This product is widely distributed through-

•President Goodluck Jonathan

out the country and is becoming very popular in urban areas. Separately, with Boko Haram insurgencies in major growing regions for wheat substitutes, donor organisations are purchasing more wheat and wheat-based products to help feed more than one million Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).

Imports MY2015/16 wheat imports are estimated at 5.0 million tons, a four per cent increase due to rising demand for inexpensive and lower quality supplies from the global market. Sources note that the Boko Haram insurgency in northern Nigeria has generated the dislocation of over one million IDPs, mostly farmers. These individuals are settled in refugee camps, and they depend on food donations, which include wheat-based products mainly from imported wheat.

Constraints to U.S. exports U.S. trade year exports to Nigeria are estimated at 2.3 million tons for (Target Year) TY2015/16, a 17 per cent decrease largely due to import levies.

According to trade sources, the U.S. market share of Nigerian wheat imports currently stands at about 55 per cent. Prior to mid-year 2012, the U.S. held more than 90 per cent of Nigeria’s wheat market. This drastic change in market share is attributed to the country’s wheat import reduction measures.

As noted in previous reports, a 15 per cent levy on imported wheat grains from all origins pushed the effective duty from five to 20 per cent.

This generated market price increases for wheat and wheat-based products, but there are major challenges, particularly the devaluation of the naira, that make it difficult for wheat millers to pass on rising prices to consumers. To remain competitive, importers and millers have sought to reduce costs.

Some importers have been purchasing inexpensive and lower quality wheat supplies from Ukraine, Russia and Argentina; and flour millers are blending lower quality wheat with the high quality and more expensive U.S. wheat. The currency devaluation has reduced consumer purchasing power and increased demand for cheaper wheat-based products.

MY2015/16 corn production is estimated at 7.0 million tons, a seven per cent decrease from the previous year, based on sizeable carryover supplies and declines in market prices. The Federal Government proposed to purchase carryover supplies from farmers, but lowered global oil prices reduced government revenue. As a re-

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

3

y affected agric sector, by U.S. agency

‘

The general elections in March and April increased rice demand and import figures. Politicians employed rice gifts to build goodwill from voters in the country’s general elections.

Rice importers and distributors also hoarded supplies in anticipation of limited food supplies following a potential post-election crisis.

•President-elect Buhari

Wheat Market Begin Year Nigeria

•Agriculture Minister Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina

2013/2014 July 2013 USDA Official New post 70 200 70 4,550 4,550 2,631 4,820 500 500 50 4,070 4,120 200 4,820

Area Harvested Beginning Stocks Production MY Imports TY Imports TY Imp. from U.S. Total Supply MY Exports TY Exports Feed and Residual FSI Consumption Total Consumption Ending Stocks Total Distribution

70 200 70 4,550 4,550 2,631 4,820 500 500 50 4,070 4,120 200 4,820

2014/2015 2015/2016 July 2014 May 2016 USDA Official New post USDA Official New post 70 200 70 4,750 4,750 0 5,020 600 600 50 4,170 4,220 200 5,020

70 200 70 4,750 4,750 2,730 5,020 600 600 50 4,170 4,220 200 5,020

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

60 200 60 5,040 5,040 2,300 5,300 400 400 50 4,650 4,700 200 5,300

1000 HA, 1000 MT, MT/HA

•Above: Wheat production, supply and demand data statistics •Below: Corn production, supply and demand data statistics Corn Market Begin Year Nigeria Area Harvested Beginning Stocks Production MY Imports TY Imports TY Imp. from U.S. Total Supply MY Exports TY Exports Feed and Residual FSI Consumption Total Consumption Ending Stocks Total Distribution

2013/2014 October 2013 USDA Official New post 4,250 246 7,700 200 200 31 8,146 100 100 1,900 5,900 7,800 246 8,146

4,250 246 7,700 100 100 50 8,046 100 100 1,800 5,900 7,700 246 8,046

2014/2015 October 2014 USDA Official New post 4,250 246 7,500 200 200 0 7,946 100 100 1,900 5,700 7,600 246 7,946

4,150 246 7,515 300 300 100 8,061 200 200 1,950 5,561 7,511 350 8,061

2015/2016 May 2016 USDA Official New post 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

3,800 350 7,000 300 300 0 7,650 250 250 1,750 5,550 7,300 100 7,650

1000 HA, 1000 MT, MT/HA sult, limited government purchases of corn supplies have been made to date.

Moreover, Boko Haram’s insurgency across Nigeria’s main corn producing areas cut off transportation routes for food supplies within Nigeria and across borders to neighboring African countries.

Farmers are expected to shift away from corn cultivation in MY2015/16 as lack of storage facilities, limited funds and lowering prices continue to cut into their earnings. The current average corn price for MY2014/15 is $230 per ton, which is $130 lower than

the average MY2012/13 price of $360 per ton.

MY2015/16 corn consumption is expected to drop more than seven per cent to 7.3 million tons from 7.8 million in MY2014/15. In the previous year, feed utilisation increased due to the steady growth in the poultry and aquaculture sectors; however, with currency devaluation and weakened consumer purchasing power, poultry farmers and food processors (the major users) are reducing their corn usage levels.

Given large carryover supplies,

MY2015/16 corn imports are estimated at 300,000 tons, a 50 per cent decrease from the current MY2014/15 figure.

Nigeria’s MY2014/15 corn imports are revised to 300,000 tons. Major commercial poultry operations reported large purchases for immediate use.

Traders were concerned about the availability of domestic food supplies after the presidential election. So, additional purchases were made preelection to help rebuild privately-held stocks.

There is high demand for corn

‘

among food processors in both Nigeria and other West African countries.

Farmers are concerned with low domestic prices, so corn suppliers are expected to seek external markets in neighboring West African countries for better pricing, thereby increasing MY2015/16 exports to 250,000 tons.

Post’s 2015/16 sorghum production estimate is 6.2 million tons, a minimal decrease of two per cent from the 2014/ 15 figure of 6.3 million tons. The sorghum harvest area has been reduced due to increasing Boko Haram insurgency in the sorghum-producing areas.

The 2015/16 consumption estimate is 6.1 million tons, a decrease of nearly eight per cent from the current 2014/ 15 estimate, due to declining demand for sorghum-based consumer goods and recent import of low-cost cereal derivatives by food processors as substitutes for sorghum-based ingredients.

Sorghum is a major food and industrial crop for producing malt drinks, breakfast cereal, weaning formula, cookies and other products. With sorghum as the primary food crop in the northern region of Nigeria, research had been intensified on sorghum uses and their outcomes, resulting in new and expanded uses/usage. Sorghum use in poultry feed in the country had been limited; however, a recent research found a formula for safety and nutritious sorghum use to substitute corn in poultry feed formulation.

Sorghum is also used for meal preparations and food fortifications. As mentioned in last year’s annual report, fortified sorghum foods are mostly used for the Home -Grown School Feeding (HGSF) programme and World Food Program (WFP) food aid programmes in neighboring countries like Chad, Niger, and Mali.

In 2008, Nigeria lifted its import ban and instituted an import tariff of five percent. Insignificant trade is reported as domestic production is used to meet the national demand. Sources note that the growing practice by many local Nigerian food processors of importing cereal derivatives, such as malt extracts and glucose syrup, is replacing sorghum products and causing sorghum farmers to shift to other crops.

In 2011, the Federal Government removed its export ban on sorghum.

Sources note that there have been larger-than-normal MY2014/15 purchases made by Chad, Niger, and other neighboring countries.

Post estimates that Nigeria’s 2015/ 16 milled rice production will decline to nearly 2.3 million tons due to unfavourable domestic prices in relation to current global prices. For example, the price of domestic rough rice is over $370 per ton compared to the global

price of about $300 per ton. High production and processing costs, coupled with limited finance options for smallscale farmers further restrict local rice production.

Through the ATA policy, the Federal Government has set 2017 as the new target year for self-sufficiency in rice production.

MY2015/16 consumption is estimated at 6.0 million tons. MY2014/ 15 rice consumption is revised at 6.5 million tons compared to six million tons the preceding market year, largely due to rice donations during national elections.

The general elections in March and April increased rice demand and import figures. Politicians employed rice gifts to build goodwill from voters in the country’s general elections. Rice importers and distributors also hoarded supplies in anticipation of limited food supplies following a potential post-election crisis.

As mentioned earlier in this report, Boko Haram’s insurgency resulted in the displacement of over one million people in northern Nigeria. Similar to wheat and corn, these IDPs depend on rice donations by the government and donor organisations. The MY2014/15 consumption estimate is higher than normal to reflect this unusual high demand.

MY2015/16 imports are estimated at 3.0 million tons. Reportedly, investors in local rice production and distribution are skeptical that current rice import policies and implementations would continue with Nigeria’s new government.

MY2014/15 rice imports are revised to 4.5 million tons, up by 1.0 million metric tons. Investors in local rice production enjoy a 40 per cent reduction of the 70 per cent duty on imported rice. Rice traders without any commitment in domestic rice production however pay the full 70 per cent duty.

Therefore, investors in local rice production can offset their losses from domestic operation costs and investments by taking advantage of the import quotas and import duty differential policies.

Constraints for U.S. exports U.S. rice is highly priced and not competitive in the market. Thailand, India, Brazil, and China are the major suppliers to this market.

On May 26, 2014, the Federal Government of Nigeria approved a new rice policy to promote local investments in rice production/milling. This policy introduced an import duty differential on rice (brown or polished) favouring imports of local rice investors against rice traders with no local rice investment. Investors that have milling capacity with verified Domestic Rice Production Plans (DRPP) enjoy an import duty of 10 per cent and a levy of 20 per cent. Rice traders (with no commitment in local rice production) will pay an import duty of 10 per cent and a levy of 60 per cent. This new rice policy also states that importation of brown or polished rice should be limited to the National Supply Gap (NSG) for import-grade rice which a ministerial committee determined to be 1.5 million tons. Rice import quotas at the preferential duty of 10 per cent and levy 60 per cent for 80 per cent or more of the NSG will be issued to existing and new rice millers/producers.

MY2015/16 beginning stocks will be boosted by large amounts of MY2014/15 rice imports. Post estimates that the country’s MY2014/15 ending stocks will reach 1.3 million tons. Major rice importers purchased larger-than-normal supplies for several reasons: to sell during the presidential election campaign; to reserve supplies in anticipation of a national food price crisis after election; and to ensure adequate stocks in fear of a policy change on import quotas and levies by the new government.

4

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

NEWS Army hands over 275 rescued women, children to NEMA

T

HE Army’s 23 Armoured Brigade based in Yola, Adamawa State, handed over 275 rescued women and children from Sambisa Forest to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) for rehabilitation.

The rescued women and children, traumatised and malnourished by their ordeal, were immediately taken to Malkohi IDP camp in Yola for profiling and were provided with food, mattresses, blankets, mosquito nets, soap and detergents.

The Commander 23 Armoured Brigade, Col. Aba Popoola, handed them over to NEMA Those handed over according to NEMA, are: ”69 women, 14 girls, 26 male children •Vice President Namadi Sambo (right), FCT Minister Bala Mohammed (second right) and other dignitaries praying during the funeral prayers for Chief Imam of Abuja National Mosque in Abuja…yesterday.

Boko Haram: Women ‘fire at soldiers on rescue mission’

W

OMEN taken hostage in the Sambisa Forest opened fire on soldiers who tried to rescue them, it was learnt yesterday.

The women - apparently forced by the terror sect into acting as conscripts - shot at the unsuspecting troops when they staged an operation to free them from the remote village of Nbita in the Northeast last week.

Seven soldiers were killed in the ensuing gunfight, in which a dozen of the women also died, according to offi-

cials who spoke to the Associated Press (AP) on the condition of anonymity because they are not authorised to speak to the media.

The captive women were among nearly 700 women and girls who have been rescued from Boko Haram hideouts in the vast Sambisa forest in recent days.

They are now being looked after at the Malkohi Internally Displaced Persons’ (IDPs’) camp, outside Yola, where many are showing signs of severe trauma and exhaustion. They were taken into the

camp on Saturday after the military released them to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).

A number of the children also have distended stomachs and tinted orange hair – which are signs of malnutrition.

Government officials said the women were being used as cooks, sex slaves and human shields in the Boko Haram camps.

Many are believed to have been abducted during raids on villages in which hundreds of menfolk were killed.

“Boko Haram killed the father of this child,” sobbed Lami Musa, a mother of four who was cradling a four-dayold girl at one displaced persons’ camp. “I have no idea where my other children are.”

Many of the hostages were in such a distressed state when they were found that they had no idea whether their rescuers meant them good or harm.

Government officials are trying to determine where the women and children are Continued on page 57

Fed Govt, oil marketers clash over subsidy claims Continued from page 1

would resist any attempt by the Federal Government to postpone the payment of the N200billion balance being owed them beyond two weeks.

The government, he insisted, must pay up before leaving office.

The outcome of the meeting, Olawore said, will deter-

mine whether the strike over the subsidy payment will continue or end.

Olawore denied that marketers were paid N156billion last week.

He said N154billion was paid.

He added: “Bidding for importation by the marketers has reduced drastically due to lack of funds. That is the reason behind agitation for speedy payment of the

debts owed us. “ The major marketers supply 60 per cent of fuel.

The minister said the government is owing them N131 billion based on Petroleum Pricing Products Regulatory Agency’s (PPRA’s) template.

The minister attributed the fuel scarcity to the activities of a group of cartel determined to hold the nation by

the jugular vain. She expressed surprise at their attitude, stressing that “they were more liberal in times past even when their outstanding was in the region of N2.3 trillion.

“It has become a situation where we have a cartel that can ground the nation to a halt at will. I strongly suggest that the nation has to do Continued on page 57

From Franca Ochigbo, Abuja

aged six-12years, 49 male children aged five years, 48 female children aged 0-five years and 69 female aged six12 years while 21 injured people are on admission at the Federal Medical Centre, Yola.”

Receiving the rescued people, the Director-General of NEMA, Muhammad Sani Sidi, who was represented by Director Search and Rescue, Air Commodore Charles Otegbade, said the women and children needed special attention and that the agency had made arrangements with stakeholders for trauma counseling and other forms of assistance to enable them recover and return to normal life.

Troops battle militiamen on Plateau

N

IGERIAN troops battled militiamen in central Nigeria yesterday after they destroyed several villages and killed scores of people last week, including six soldiers who had their eyes gorged out and tongues cut off, a military spokesman said.

The group is not part of Islamist militant group Boko Haram, Special Task Force spokesman Captain Ikedichi Iweha told Reuters, but he did not give further details on their identity.

“Tongues were cut off, eyes were gorged out, bodies were decapitated,” Iweha said of the soldiers killed in the April 28 attack that saw several villages on the border of the central states of Plateau and Taraba razed to the ground.

“Yesterday, contact was made with the militia group and a firefight ensued. It is still going on,” he said.

Iweha said he could not disclose what triggered the initial attack until the operation was Continued on page 57

Fuel, food supplier to Boko Haram captured

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HE Defence Headquarters yesterday said a man who specialises in supplying fuel and food to Boko Haram terrorists was nabbed in Daban Shata in the suburbs of Baga, Borno State.

Director of Defence Information Maj.-Gen. Chris Olukolade, said in a statement in Abuja, said the military intelligence had been trailing him till he was trapped in the early hours of yesterday.

He added that the man was undergoing interrogation.

Olukolade also said troops on patrol on Saturday located

260 women and children in the outskirts of Chalawa village in Adamawa, where they had been held up while trying to escape from terrorists.

He said they had been returned to their various communities in Madagali after undergoing the normal security profiling. ''Some of them said they abandoned their homes to escape from the terrorists when Madagali came under their attack. ''While others are actually Continued on page 57

PDP leaders reject calls to resign as crisis grows Mark: opposition not death sentence

Continued from page 1

tional Secretary, Prof. Wale Oladipo, and the National Auditor, Alhaji Adewale Adeyanju, for leading the party to failure.

Oladipupo faulted the call.

He attacked party’s former Deputy National Chairman Chief Olabode George, one of the conveners of the meeting.

Oladipo, in a statement yesterday, said: “However, a very careful examination of the inherent breaches in the procedures adopted in the convening of the meeting as well as the content and tone of its resolution shows an orchestration by a few individuals bent on sowing a seed of discord within the PDP fold in the zone.

“This is evident in the fact that the said communiqué in no way reflected the views of majority of those who attended the meeting, neither did it tally with the opinion of the generality of our party members in the region.

“It is indeed undermining

S

ENATE President David Mark at the weekend said being in the opposition is not a death sentence for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) which lost power after 16 year.

“The role of opposition is strange to us but it is not a death sentence. We should be ready for the challenges.

“We are prepared to play a credible opposition. I believe the nation and indeed Nigerians would be the best for it.

“The failure of yesterday should be our lesson for a better today and a triumphant future.”

Mark spoke when he met with PDP Senators-elect and House of Representatives members-elect in Abuja, according to a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Paul Mumeh.

“We must accept the ups and downs as an opposition party. That is what the

and a clear breach of protocol the fact that a meeting of some leaders of the zone would be convened to discuss issues of the party’s presidential campaigns and the highest-ranking national officers of the party from the zone were excluded.

“This is in continuation of

From Onyedi Ojiabor, Gbade Ogunwale and Sanni Onogu Abuja

PDP is now. We must remain a united family and face the reality.”

We are going back to the drawing board to do a critical review and fashion out a blueprint that would get us out of the woods for good.

In line with Mark’s expectation, the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party yesterday set up a 15-member Post-Election Assessment Committee to review and evaluate the performance of the party in the elections and make recommendations for the repositioning of the party.

The terms of reference of the panel was not stated in a statement yesterday by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh.

However, inside sources said the committee may be saddled with the

the apparent marginalisation of the National Working Committee and the party structure at all levels in the handling of the presidential campaigns.

“More so, even some of those who attended the meeting were not privy to the agenda and the eventu-

task of reviewing the rationale or otherwise of retaining the present crop of elected officials among other issues.

Key stakeholders in the party, particularly outgoing governors elected on the platform of the PDP, have been pushing for the sack of the NWC members led by National Chairman Adamu Mu’azu.

Members of the committee are: Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu (Chairman); Akwa Ibom State Governor Godswill Akpabio; Abia State Governor Theodore Orji; Gombe State Governor Ibrahim Dankwabo; Rivers State Governor-Elect Nyesom Wike; Education Minister Ibrahim Shekarau; and former Niger State Governor Abdulkadir Kure.

Others are Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Emeka Ihe-

al content of the communiqué issued at the end”.

Oladipo said the call was absolutely unpatriotic and against the wishes and aspirations of majority of party members from the Southwest through whose mandate he occupied the office of the National Secre-

Continued on page 57

tary.

He also spoke for Adeyanju, saying: “If we concede to the demands in the communiqué, especially given the fact that as elected members of the National Working Committee, our positions have a tenure which lasts until March 2016”.

•Mu’azu

According to him, members of the PDP in Osun State, his primary constituency, have already passed a vote of confidence on him as the party’s National Secretary.

Continuing, Oladipo said: “Furthermore, while some of those asking us to resign performed very poorly even Continued on page 57

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NEWS

A cross-section of members of Ansar-UdDeen Youth Association of Nigeria, Lagos branch and guests during the Seventh Edition of the Annual Leadership Seminar of the association with the theme: “Recipe for The Next Leaders” in Lagos...at the weekend.

Missing $20b: Reps seek sanction for PwC

T

HE House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts has urged the incoming government of Presidentelect Muhammadu Buhari and regulators of the accounting profession to probe and sanction PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) over “unprofessional auditing” of the alleged missing $20 billion oil funds.

Its chairman, Solomon Adeola, added that any amount paid to the company for the audit of the accounts of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) should be recovered by the Federal Government “because no auditing was done”.

Adeola, who spoke in Abuja with reporters on the purported release of the forensic audit report by the firm, said it was meant to mislead, deceive and to send wrong signal to the citizens.

He hailed Gen. Buhari for signaling his resolve to probe the alleged missing oil money after taking over from President Goodluck Jonathan’s government at the end of the month.

He said: “There is need

From Victor Oluwasegun and Dele Anofi, Abuja

for us to revisit and know the truth behind this particular issue. Where is this $20 billion? Is it really missing?

This is not N20 billion; it is billions of dollars, which represent more than two years’ budget of this country in terms of funding.

“If you could remember, there was a press statement by this committee, where we requested that this all important forensic report be laid before the National Assembly, and a copy sent to this committee within a specified period of time.

“This was because we noticed there was some foulplay in that particular report as submitted by this reputable firm, the PricewaterhouseCoopers, where in that report it was adjudged that the amount of money that the NNPC ought or need to pay back was just $1.485 billion.

“Now, the PwC has said there was no report and that what they did was not a forensic audit, but just gathering of information; that a lot of documents were not released to them to car-

ry out this exercise.

“But prior to now, all these were not brought to the notice of this country and the country has been deceived all along.

“And if a reputable firm like PricewaterhouseCoopers can go to that level, I think it’s only fair and proper for such body to be reported to the International Federation of Accounting, Association of Conference, and also to the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria; and to face disciplinary action of all these bodies by explaining their role in this $20 billion saga.”

He called on the incoming government “to henceforth suspend PricewaterhouseCoopers from carrying out any financial audit or investigation on behalf of the Federal Government or into any of its agencies with immediate effect.

“And not only that, it has collected audit fees from the Federal Government. If there was no audit carried out and if there was no report submitted, I think they should go ahead and refund back into the Federal Government coffers the amount

collected in carrying out this exercise; failure which should be met with very stiff disciplinary action from the Federal Government and relevant professional bodies.”

He said for a highly rated firm like PwC to be allegedly involved in such financial saga showed that “there is more to it”.

Adeola said all audit exercises and investigations that have been carried out by PwC in the past few years should be revisited by the incoming government.

According to him, this should include the oil subsidy report tendered by PwC. “Don’t forget during the oil subsidy issue, PricewaterhouseCoopers was engaged to carry out audit exercise. I also implore the incoming administration to carry out verification of the report submitted on the issue of the oil subsidy,” he said.

The lawmaker said his committee and the National Assembly have been vindicated in their insistence that the report was fraudulent.

“We must get to the root of this matter, and we must address this issue once and for all,” he said.

Press Freedom Day: Amaechi urges more support for democracy

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IVERS State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi has advised journalists to continue to support democracy to move the nation forward.

With this year’s World Press Freedom Day coming barely three weeks to the historic inauguration of Gen. Muhammadu Buhari as the President, the governor said the roles of journalists could not be over-emphasised.

Amaechi, who is also the chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), through the Rivers Commissioner for Information and Communications, Mrs. Ibim Semenitari, yesterday in Port Harcourt, urged journalists to continue to be fearless, accurate, fair and objective.

The Rivers governor described this year’s theme for the World Press Freedom Day: “Let Journalism Thrive: Towards better reporting, gender equality and media safety in the digital age,” as apt and timely, calling for better opportunities for women journalists.

The United Nations Gen-

NAFDAC destroys N30 billion counterfeit products

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HE National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has destroyed fake drugs, unwholesome foods and other substandard regulated products valued at N30 billion in the last six and half years.

The agency’s director-general, Dr. Paul Orhii, said this to reporters yesterday in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, when he visited the Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji Ibrahim SuluGambari, in his palace.

He added that the proliferation of counterfeit products in the country was as a result of the inability to manufacture them locally.

Other dignitaries on his delegation include Founder/ Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian American Agricultural Empowerment Programme Chief Temitope

•Agency says July deadline on anti-malaria drugs stands From Adekunle Jimoh, Ilorin

Ajayi; President, Project Fix Nigeria Chief Olusegun Kowontan; Director, Administration and Human Resources Management, NAFDAC Mrs. Yetunde Oni; and its Kwara State Director, Mrs. Bolaji Abayomi.

Dr. Orhii said: “More than 70 per cent of essential medicines for management of public health programmes were imported from other countries. So, what we have done is to encourage Nigerian local pharmaceutical manufacturers to produce medicines so that Nigeria can be self-sufficient in the supply of these medicines and we have succeeded.

“When we started, people thought I was just dreaming,

but now, the World Health Organisation (WHO) came to approve four pharmaceutical companies last year alone, that their medicines now meet international standards and we can now export them.”

He added that the July deadline for all manufacturers of anti-malaria and antibiotics products for ‘scratch and pick’ authentication service on their products remains sacrosanct.

“All manufacturers of antibiotic and anti malaria drugs by July this year should have their products with the ‘scratch and pick’ mobile authentication service on them so that consumers can scratch and authenticate the medicine before buying them.

“The advantage of the

scratch card is that it makes it difficult for people to fake medicine that has scratch card on it. So, if we use the scratch card method, we have the opportunity to finally completely eradicate counterfeit in our system.

“The Emir of Ilorin tasked us to look for equipment that can show if a medicine has expired or not.

“I want to say the True Scan can help identify if medicine is fake or it has expired.

This is because once the chemical composition is not the same with what we approved originally, it will fail the scanning,” the agency’s boss said.

He warned people against consumption of illicit items to avoid a repeat of mysterious death in Ondo State.

He said: “NAFDAC has

been conducting mass public awareness campaigns to tell people not to patronise illicit gin. It was the consumption of illicit gin that caused the death of 18 people in Ondo State; because the gin they consumed contained methanol. Methanol is not the common ethanol that people consumed. So, we are warning members of the public not to patronise these products. They are not approved by NAFDAC.” Alhaji Sulu-Gambari urged NAFDAC to prevent importation of expired drugs into the country.

He said: “I hope it will also be extended to cover expired drugs because most of the drugs advertised in Nigeria get expired from Europe before being shipped to Nigeria for sale. That is why you have fake drugs. Expired drug is even more dangerous than fake drug.”

From Bisi Olaniyi, Port Harcourt

eral Assembly, in December 1993, following the recommendation of General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), declared May 3 as World Press Freedom Day. The day is to raise awareness on the importance of freedom of the press and to remind governments of their duty to respect and uphold the right to freedom of expression, enshrined under Article 19 of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

But, Amaechi said: “Freedom of the press and freedom of expression are fundamental human rights and essential pillars of democratic societies and good governance. Journalists bridge the information gap.

“Many journalists have died, disappeared or in jail across the world, in their determination to bring good news to the members of the public and they must not be forgotten.

“Every effort should be made by government to ensure that journalists do their work in safe and enabling environments, while the crimes against them are prosecuted.

“However, the media professionals also have an obligation to ensure fairness, accuracy, decency, responsibility, impartiality and objectivity in the discharge of their duties.”

•Amaechi

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

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NEWS Court to hear N500m Agip surveillance suit tomorrow From Mike Odiegwu, Yenagoa

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HE Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, has fixed tomorrow for hearing on a suit filed by some oil pipeline protection contractors against the Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC).

The contractors took the oil company to court for allegedly aborting N500 million security job it awarded to them for the protection of pipelines along the creeks of Nembe Local Government Area in Bayelsa State.

The aggrieved contractors alleged that Agip reneged on a contractual agreement it entered with them on May 24, 2014, to protect its pipelines against oil thieves and pipeline vandals within the Obama, Okoroma operational area.

They named the top management officials of Agip involved in the signing of the aborted agreement as Mr. Fontana Salvatore (CVR Manager) and Mr. Giovanni Azzarelli (TP Manager).

They argued that the decision of the Federal Government to set up oil and gas task force to combat oil theft and oil pipeline vandalism in the state was not enough for Agip to revoke the contract.

The contractors, in a writ of summon signed on their behalf

by Nyenye Matthias, are seeking an order directing Agip to pay N500 million, representing arrears of monthly remuneration due and accruing to them for the services they rendered to the company from June 2014 till October, 2014.

They demanded an “order directing that the sum of N3 billion damages be awarded against the defendants for a breach of contract and undue interference.

“An order of injunction restraining the defendants by themselves or by their servants or agent, from further interfering or inter-meddling with the lawful commercial transactions or business of the plaintiff or interfere with the payment of his lawful service entitlement”.

New airline underway

By Tonia Diyan

A

NEW airline is underway on the country’s domestic route, according to its promoters.

The founder and Chief Executive Officer of the company, Mr. Babawande Afolabi, said: “We have been mulling the idea for quite a while now.

So, the next natural step is to apply for an Air Travel Licence (ATL) and then see where things take us.”

He added: “We are not putting a time frame on it yet.

Our approach is to take each step as it comes with more emphasis on getting things right.

“The idea behind it is to start with domestic operations plans to ultimately build a strong Pan African network from the west coast of the continent.

Under the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) regulation, a new airline must pass through two major regulatory hurdles. It must apply for an Air Travel Licence (ATL), before getting the Air Operators Certificate (AOC).

Dangote Cement production hits 30m mt in Africa

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ITH the successful inauguration of his plants in Senegal and Cameroon, the President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, said the Dangote Cement yearly production in Africa has hit 30 million metric tons.

The achievement, Dangote noted, has earned Nigeria respect on the continent and beyond.

The industrialist, who spoke at the just-concluded Kaduna International Trade Fair, said his conglomerate “plans big for the African economy”, saying Africans must look inward and put its human and natural resources to best uses, rather than political conflicts Dangote, who was represented by the group’s Executive Director, Mansur Ahmad, an engineer, said the company’s cement produc-

By Okwy Iroegbu-Chikezie

tion has since surpassed Nigeria’s average total consumption of about 20 million metric tons.

He added that Nigeria under-consumed cement product when compared to other African, Asian and European countries.

The company, Dangote added, has started production of cement in some African countries, including Senegal, Cameroon and South Africa, adding that by the time it completes its projects in 11 other African countries, the conglomerate’s total production will surpass 50mmt.

He said Dangote Cement in Nigeria controls about 65 per cent market share and about 30 per cent of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).

The investment in other

African countries, according to him, was strategic and aimed at supporting governments on the continent by creating thousands of jobs for the people.

He added that the firm’s involvement in petrochemicals, fertilisers and petroleum refining was another step at helping to reduce poverty in Africa through promotion of gainful employment.

The industrialist assured that on completion of all the projects, there would be massive employment opportunities.

The firm’s president said the beginning of refinery and other petrochemicals would make Nigeria to become independent.

He described as unacceptable, the present development, where Nigeria has to depend on other countries for refined products.

Commending the organisers of the Trade Fair, Dangote expressed optimism about Nigeria’s economic rebound, adding that both outgoing and incoming leaders have done the citizens proud by ensuring that the country remains peaceful for businesses to thrive.

A council member of the Kaduna Chamber of Commerce Industry Mines and Agriculture (KADCCIMA), Hajia Rakiya Musa, who spoke on behalf of the organisers, lauded the support of the Dangote Group to both the chamber and the nation’s economy.

She said what Nigeria needed at the moment was more of Dangotes in the economy.

But Hajia Musa lamented that most Nigerian businessmen were traders and not entrepreneurs.

•From left: Gombe State Governor Ibrahim Dankwambo, Katsina State Governor Shehu Shema, Vice President Namadi Sambo and Bauchi State Governor Isa Yuguda, praying when they visited Yuguda over the death of his mother, Hajia Hauwa Yuguda, in Bauchi...at the weekend.

PHOTO: NAN

Wema Bank eyes national banking licence

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EMA Bank Plc has unveiled its new logo and reiterated its commitment to reapply for a national banking licence.

Its chief executive officer, Segun Oloketuyi, who unveiled the new look during the bank’s 70th anniversary grand ball in Lagos at the weekend, said the new logo would be out today.

He added that just like the bank was committed to offering quality services to its customers in 1945, “so it is doing today, and will always do”.

He said the new logo depicts the bank as modern, bold, good partnership and forward-looking.

He described the new logo as “a contemporary

By Collins Nweze

symbol that is youthful”.

Oloketuyi said the bank was still considering reapplying for a national banking licence to enable it meet the increasing financial needs of its customers.

The bank, he noted, has secured the needed regulatory capital that would aid its comeback as a national bank.

“We will come back as a national bank. We now have the required capital to come back as a national bank,” he said.

The bank chief added that as a regional bank, Wema Bank has been able to boost its e-payment infrastructure, and now has “over 200 Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) making banking eas-

ier for its customers”.

According to him, “the bank is always willing and committed to offering its customers the best quality of services”.

Oloketuyi said the bank has survived the worst of times, because of great support it enjoyed from customers, shareholders and regulators.

“Seventy years in the life of a man, if he looks back, he will see ups and downs.

Same thing applies in the life of a bank. There have been ups and downs. But we have reasons to come out and celebrate. We have gone through circles, but we are here celebrating,” he said.

Oloketuyi said the bank’s first priority remains providing better returns to its

shareholders, adding that in the last few years, the bank has been carrying out some internal restructuring on its processes, people and technology.

The bank’s former Chief Executive Officer, Tunde Lemo, who represented the past chief executive officers, attributed the survival of Wema Bank to God’s divine mercy.

He hailed the bank’s management for its visionary leadership and commitment to customers’ needs.

He said the future of the bank remains bright, adding that the lender has a good brand.

“Wema Bank is a giant in the making. It has a bright future,” he said.

IPC director urges media to uphold professional ethics

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HE Director, International Press Centre (IPC), Abuja, Mr. Lanre Arogundade, has advised journalists to uphold the media code of ethics to earn respect and relevance in the

society.

Arogundade said this in a statement in Abuja as part of activities to mark the World Press Freedom Day. He enjoined media professionals and organisations to constantly adhere to their code.

“Media organisations must realise that whatever the circumstances, it pays to keep to faith with professionalism and ethics.

“Those who operate strictly on media code of ethics will reap the profit in the long run.

“Those who ignore ethics will smile to the banks today, but possibly come out of the banks crying tomorrow,” the News

Agency of Nigeria (NAN) quoted Arogundade as saying.

He called on journalists and media organisations to always work for the reduction of conflict and promote peace without compromising themselves in their duty to inform.

On the general elections, Arogundade expressed concern that significant areas of non-compliance with the code of ethics overshadowed the few areas of compliance in the media coverage.

“There are major challenges with the implementation and enforcement of the code.

“The monitoring and the enforcement mechanisms were virtually non-existent,” he said.

Besides, the director called on media regulators and professional bodies to be alive to their responsibilities by monitoring and sanctioning members on adherence to ethics of journalism and broadcasting.

RMAFC hails NIPC over reform

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HE Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission has hailed the Nigeria Investment Promotion Council (NIPC) for its reform programmes.

It said the programmes were capable of transforming the council into a worldclass agency.

The reforms, according to the RMAFC, would enable the NIPC to enforce the rule of law and minimise leakages in its activities.

RMARC Chairman Mr. Elias Mbam spoke during the presentation of Status Report on the administration of fiscal incentives by the members of the commission’s Non-Oil Monitoring Committee in Abuja.

Mbam said: “Nigeria at the moment cannot sit back and watch a few unscrupulous elements in our midst fiddle with our common patrimony by taking undue advantage of some fiscal policies, including the Pioneer Status Incentive, waivers and concessions and tax holidays designed by government to encourage and promote economic activities in priority areas and growth drivers of the economy”.

According to him, import duty waivers, concessions and exemptions have direct bearing on the quantum of revenue accruals into the Federation Account.

He said RMAFC was happy that the Executive Secretary of the NIPC, Mrs. Saratu Umar, was taking bold steps, which have sanitised the granting of the pioneer status incentives.

Mbam advocated a multi-stakeholder approach involving revenue generating agencies and regulatory bodies to stop revenue leakages to boost the country’s dwindling revenue base.

The Chairman, RMAFC Non-Oil Committee, Rev. Ajibola Fagboyegun, also lauded the revenue generating agencies and other stakeholders for their concerted efforts aimed at reducing revenue leakages and boosting remittances into the Federation Account.

BUK advises CBN, others on liquidity issues From Kolade Adeyemi, Kano

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HE International Institute of Islamic Banking and Finance, Bayero University (BUK), has called on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the National Security Exchange Commission (SEC) and the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) to double their efforts at easing liquidity management issues facing the nation.

In a communiqué at the end of its Second International Conference in Kano, the institute urged governments at all levels to make use of the opportunities in the Islamic segment of the capital market to address the nation’s acute infrastructural deficit.

The conference noted that to fast-track the growth of Islamic finance in country, there was the need for more institutions to be involved in the training of experts.

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

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NEWS Peterside hails Nigerian media

FCT demolishes expatriates’ homes despite court order F OLLOWING an alleged directive by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Bala Mohammed, officials of three agencies of the FCT, aided by policemen, on Friday demolished two residential houses in Maitama, belonging to some non-Nigerians.

The demolition was carried out by officials of the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA), Abuja Metropolitan Management Agency (AMMA) and the Department of Development Control (DDC) despite a subsisting order of March 26, by Justice Bello Kawu of the High Court of the FCT, Kubwa, ordering parties to maintain the status quo and refrain from destroying the res (subject) of a suit pending before the court.

The FCT officials, allegedly instigated by Chrome Oil Services Limited, owned by a businessman, Emeka Offor, were said to have shunned entreaties by owners of the structures, mostly Irish na-

From Eric Ikhilae, Abuja

tionals, that the dispute between Chrome and Micad Project City Services Limited, in respect of the land on which the property were erected, was still pending in court.

The property owners had, through Micad Project, sued the FCT minister, FCDA, DDC and Chrome in March following Chrome’s claim to the land described as Plot 4072 Cadastral Zone A06, Maitama, Abuja.

The plaintiff stated, in its statement of claim, that it applied for and got approval from relevant FCT agencies in 2006 and developed the residential apartments.

It said in 2009 while it was about to roof the buildings, Chrome Oil allegedly sponsored policemen, thugs and court officials to invade the site, purporting to execute a court judgment.

“The plaintiff challenged the invasion and the purported judgment obtained by the fifth defendant (Chrome Oil) in respect of Plot 4072 Maitama, Abuja, consequent upon which the court, presided over by Justice Ishaq Bello set aside the judgment same having been procured by fraud, deceit and without service of trial processes on the plaintiff.” The court later ordered that the case be heard afresh.

Micad stated that Chrome Oil filed a notice of discontinuance, following which the court struck the case out, a decision it (Micad) appealed on the grounds that the court ought to dismiss the suit since parties had joined issues and trial had commenced.

The plaintiff prayed the court to, among others, declare that it was entitled to continued possession and occupation of Plot 4072 Cadas-

tral Zone A06, Maitama, Abuja covered by Certificate of Occupancy No: 17c4w12e30-56bbr-1280u-10 dated October 6, 2006.

The plaintiff, who is also seeking monetary reliefs, equally sought an order of perpetual injunction restraining the defendants and their agents from further trespassing on the land.

Of the five defendants, only Chrome filed processes in response to the suit by Micad.

In its defence, Chrome denied the plaintiff’s claims and stated that the plot allocated to Micad formed a portion of a larger plot earlier allocated to it by the FCDA. It equally filed a counterapplication, opposing the plaintiff’s motion for interlocutory injunction. Hearing in the case has been fixed for May 11.

But rather than allow the court to hear and determine the case, the defendants resorted to self-help with the invasion and demolition of the buildings on Friday and their continued occupation of the disputed plot till date.

Women narrate ordeal in Boko Haram’s camp

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OKO Haram fighters killed older boys and men in front of their families before taking women and children into the forest where many died of hunger and disease, freed captives said yesterday after they were brought to a government refugee camp.

The army rescued hundreds of women and children last week from the Islamist fighters in Sambisa Forest in a major operation that has turned international attention to the plight of hostages.

After days on the road in pickup trucks, hundreds were released on Sunday into the care of authorities at a refugee camp in the eastern town of Yola to be fed and treated for injuries. They have been able to speak to reporters for the first time.

“They didn’t allow us to move an inch,” said one of the freed women, Asabe Umaru, describing her captivity in the forest. “If you needed the toilet, they followed you. We were kept in one place. We were under bondage.

“We thank God to be alive today. We thank the Nigerian Army for saving our lives,” she added.

Two hundred and seventyfive women and children, some with heads or limbs in bandages, arrived in the camp late on Saturday.

Nearly 700 kidnap victims were freed from the Islamist group’s forest stronghold

since Tuesday, with the latest group of 234 women and children liberated on Friday.

“When we saw the soldiers, we raised our hands and shouted for help. Boko Haram, which was guarding us, started stoning us so we would follow them to another hideout, but we refused because we were sure the soldiers would rescue us,” Umaru, a 24-year-old mother of two, told Reuters.

The prisoners suffered constant malnutrition and disease, she said. “Every day, we witnessed the death of one of us and waited for our

turn.”

Another freed captive, Cecilia Abel, said her husband and first son had been killed in her presence before the militia forced her and her remaining eight children into the forest.

For two weeks before the military arrived she had barely eaten.

“We were fed only ground dry maize in the afternoons.

It was not good for human consumption,” she said.

“Many of us that were captured died in Sambisa Forest.

Even after our rescue, about 10 died on our way to this

place.”

Amnesty International estimates the insurgents, who are intent on bringing western Africa under Islamist rule, have taken more than 2,000 women and girls captive since the start of 2014.

Many have been used as cooks, sex slaves or human shields.

The prisoners freed so far do not appear to include any of more than 200 schoolgirls snatched from school dormitories in Chibok town a year ago, an incident that drew global attention to the sixyear-old insurgency.

•Peterside

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HE governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State Dr. Dakuku Peterside has hailed the media for its courage and resilience as the world marks the Press Freedom Day. Peterside, who spoke in Port Harcourt, hailed the media for its contribution to nation building, describing the nationalist journalists of the colonial era as patriots, who fought gallantly for Nigeria’s independence.

He called on the media to emulate the shining examples of these statesmen and founding fathers, who fought even at the risk of their personal comfort for a better society. He called on Nigerians to work tirelessly

towards protecting freedom of expression and rights of everybody.

“Freedom is an indivisible word and no country can genuinely make progress if its citizens are denied the right to life, right to choices and above all, right to freedom of expression.

“As we mark World Press Freedom Day, we must reflect on the dangers of censorship, particularly in developing countries where government policies and absence of strong institutions remain a stumbling block to free speech.

“It is important for Nigerians, irrespective of creed or political leanings to stand in defence of press freedom as we consolidate on our nation’s march to democracy”.

For Peterside, censorship of any kind is not only a flagrant infringement on personal liberties of citizens but a damaging trend on the growth of any nation He praised campaign groups across the country for their crusades and called on citizens to resist impunity and any contravention that dehumanised their existence either as individuals or groups.

Jonathan mourns Abuja imam

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RESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan has extended his condolences to the Muslim community on the death of Ustaz Musa Muhammed, the chief imam of Abuja National Mosque.

Jonathan also commiserated with the family of the late cleric, who greatly inspired his followers with his exemplary lifestyle, moral conduct and teachings.

Jonathan said Ustaz

Muhammed stood out as a passionate and diligent promoter of inter-religious understanding and co-operation, adding that he would always be remembered as a bridge-builder and a gentleman in every circumstance.

The President, in a statement by Special Adviser (Media), Dr Reuben Abati, prayed Allah to grant him peaceful rest in Al-Jannah Firdaus.

If you ‘needed the toilet, they followed you.

We were kept in one place.

We were under bondage.

We thank God to be alive today. We thank the Nigerian army for saving our lives

’

•From left: Emir of Dass, Alhaji Usman Bilyaminu; President, Dangote Group of Companies, Alhaji Aliko Dangote and Governor Isa Yuguda of Bauchi State praying during a condolence visit to the governor over the death of his mother Hajia PHOTO: NAN Hauwa Yuguda in Bauchi ... at the weekend.

Nigerian, 15 others win U.S. institute’s fellowship

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MEMBER of the Editorial Board of The Union, Helen Eni, has been named one of the recipients of the 2015 The Media Project Coaching and Leadership Fellowship Award.

In a press statement signed

by Caroline Comport, general manager, The Media Project selected 16 international journalists from 13 countries this year.

Paul Marshall, the Media Project president, noted that “The journalists selected for this award practice their craft

in different situations. Some have broad freedom, while others labour under heavy censorship.”

He hoped the recipients would together develop leadership skills that transcend cultures and gain a better understanding of the challenges their colleagues face.

The Media Project Coaching and Leadership Fellowship aims to build a global network of journalists dedicated to ethical decisionmaking and leadership values, those willing to mentor the next generation of jour-

nalists.

The programme will begin with a weeklong workshop at The Poynter Institute in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States where the Fellows would participate in a series of interactive sessions designed to help them recognise universal leadership principles.

The statement said the training topics include strategic and critical thinking, emotional intelligence, feedback, intrinsic motivation, conflict resolution, and collaboration.

The core training sessions would be led by Jill Geisler, who holds the Bill Plante Chair in Leadership and Media Integrity at Loyola University, Chicago.

Geisler, whose leadership mantra is “helping others succeed,” is the author of “Work Happy: What Great Bosses Know”. For 16 years, Geisler guided the leadership and management programmes of the Poynter Institute.

The Media Project fellows will also explore the intersection of journalism and

faith with nationally syndicated “On Religion” columnist and Media Project Board Member, Terry Mattingly.

The fellowship requires participants to make a yearlong commitment to explore, hone, and implement their new coaching and leadership skills, as well as agree to mentor two journalists working in their home country.

This year’s recipients include Helen Eni, Nigeria; David Blevins, Ireland; Francis Brewer Jr., Liberia; Tito John Burgonio, Philip-

pines; William Bustos, Columbia; Lucy Chattopadhyay, India; Marcos Deles, Philippines; Liu Dong, China; Barbara Hough Roda, United States; Edyth Kambalame, Malawi; Comfort Mussa, Cameroon; Anna Ntemiris, Germany; Daniel Raus, Czech Republic; Beletu Sorsu, Ethiopia; J. Sam Daniel Stalin, India; and Iris Voellnagel, Germany.

Since its creation in 2012, forty-seven journalists from 31 countries have completed the fellowship programme.

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

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NEWS

Ondo ex-Speakers sue 22 lawmakers for defection

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WO former Ondo State House of Assembly Speakers– Taofiq Abdusalam and Ayo Agbomuserin– have sued 22 lawmakers for defection.

They asked the court to declare the seats of the lawmakers vacant, following their defection from the Labour Party (LP) to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Governor Olusegun Mimiko and the lawmakers defected to the PDP in October.

From Leke Akeredolu, Akure

In the suit filed at the Akure Judicial Division of the Federal High Court, the duo said the lawmakers should have vacated their seats since they defected from LP, the platform on which they were elected.

Joined as defendants were the Independent National Electoral Commission

(INEC), inspector general of Police, director-general, Department of State Security Service and the House of Assembly.

The ex-Speakers asked the court to declare that the lawmakers, having left LP for PDP, should automatically vacate their seats.

Also, they asked the court to declare that the lawmakers ceased to be members of the House from October 8,

when they dumped the LP. “And that all legislative actions and activities performed, bill passed and other legislative functions carried out by them be declared null, void, unconstitutional and ultra vires.”

In the written summons, the duo urged the court to grant an order of perpetual injunction restraining the lawmakers from parading themselves as members of

the House of Assembly.

The former Speakers, who are now in the All Progressives Congress (APC), said the 22 legislators defected from LP to PDP, when LP had no division.

According to them, the lawmakers contravened Section 109(1)of the 1999 Constitution.

No date has been fixed for the hearing.

‘Olanusi’ll be reinstated’ From Damisi Ojo, Akure

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HE All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ondo State has said Deputy Governor Laisisi Oluboyo has a short time in office.

It described Oluboyo’s nomination as illegal, assuring the people that the court would reinstate ousted Deputy Governor Ali Olanusi.

In a three-paragraph statement, the Publicity Secretary, Abayomi Adesanya, said: “It is clear even to a lay man that Olanusi’s impeachment is illegal. It is an affront to the 1999 Constitution and cannot stand. Olanusi will regain his seat.

“Our advice to the illegal occupant is that he should desist from receiving any entitlement reserved for that office, as he will certainly refund money and entitlements collected when the court nullifies Olanusi’s impeachment.

“All the aides appointed by him (Oluboyo) are also advised accordingly, as Alhaji Ali Olanusi remains the deputy governor.”

The party decried the “silence” of respected bodies and civil society organisations, such as the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) and Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ).

Lawmaker-elect hails workers From Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo

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HE lawmaker-elect for Obokun in Osun State, Olatunbosun Oyintiloye, has praised civil servants for their endurance and understanding.

Oyintiloye described the workers’ perseverance as unequal, blaming non-payment of salary on poor management of the economy by the Peoples Democratic Party-led Federal Government.

Oyintiloye said: “One important thing to know is that the state government has been consistent in paying workers, until this financial crisis caused by poor and delayed federal allocation.

“But I must commend the public servants for their commitment to the development of the state through their sacrifice in the face of economic hardship. It is an unwarranted situation but I want to assure the workers that the tough time will not last.

“Their understanding is highly commendable as this is one of the things that is giving the government the courage to move on, despite the harsh condition imposed on us by the Federal Government.”

•From left: Lady Paulina Ezeh; Mr Biodun Shobanjo; Rev Akinde; his wife, Bassey and Ven Nwosu...at the weekend.

PHOTO NNEKA NWANERI

Govt: PDP candidate too ‘stiff’ to develop Ogun

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HE Ogun State government has said the light rail project was a contractor-finance arrangement, using long term funds, which will open the state’s economy to massive investment and create employments opportunities for the youth.

The government, in a statement by Commissioner for Information and Strategy Yusuph Olaniyonu, described the views expressed by the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP), Gboyega Isiaka, as a reflection of his ignorance and narrow world view about development, even within the country.

“Ogun State, by signing the contract with Chinese Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCECC), is joining a network that both the Federal and Lagos Governments are about to create. That is why we are using the same contractor as them. This will save money, time and ensure compatibility.

“We are surprised that Mr. Isiaka did not know about the proposed light rail until last week. We publicly signed the Memorandum of Understanding in 2013 so that the contractor could prepare the design for us.

“The design was in fact

Isiaka: why I’m challenging Amosun’s victory

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HE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Ogun State, Gboyega Isiaka, has said he is challenging the victory of Governor Ibikunle Amosun at the Election Petitions Tribunal because he believes “the poll was flawed by acts that contravene the Electoral Act”.

Isiaka, who spoke with reporters at the weekend in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, claimed that the election was marred by irregularities.

He stressed that his resolve to take his case to the tribunal was in the best interest of the people, adding that he believes he and his party would get justice.

Isiaka, who vied for the same office in 2011 on the platform of the Peoples Party of Nigeria (PPN), claimed that the evidence showed that the result declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was not the true reflection of the will of the electorate.

featured prominently in last year’s state calendar and other government publications.

“We advise Isiaka to always check his facts well before rushing to make public statements which are unbecoming of a man aspiring to govern the state.

“His statement describing the rail project as a misplaced priority was only a reflection of his myopic world view which would have kept Ogun State in the past, if the PDP candidate had been elected governor.

From Odunayo Ogunmola, Ado-Ekiti

Isiaka said: “You know generally once you take a case to the tribunal. You need to be careful about what you say in public.

“But I think the general thing is that there is gross manipulation of the election and we have done our own findings in this regard.

“And we have come to the conclusion that we are not going to allow the electoral fraud to stand.

“There are a lot of cases of people using all manner of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) from sources, which I am sure they will explain at the tribunal.

“And so many other things that are contrary to the Electoral Act. And for this reasons, I feel this is the mandate freely given by the people of Ogun State.

“So, I, as an individual, cannot allow it. So, we must stand up to defend the position of Ogun people in that election.”

“We are a forward-looking, progressive administration. Our plan is to create a modern, agro-based, industrialised and developed state. The light rail project is central to achieving this.

“However, we need to remind Mr. Isiaka that constructing a rail project does not disturb investment in other social services. Our rebuilding mission in all other areas will not be disturbed in any way. That is why last month, we still inaugurated a new block of classrooms in

Arepo town, Obafemi Owode Local Government Area.

“We believe the time for campaign is over. The people have made their choice.

It is good that Mr. Isiaka has gone to the Election Petition Tribunal. We shall meet him in court.

“Our advice to him is that he should allow the judiciary to do their work while he keeps his cool and stop making prejudicial statements,”, the government added.

Alaafin gets kudos for promoting heritage

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N estate property expert, Chief Olufemi Ajeniya, has hailed the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, for protecting and promoting the Yoruba cultural heritage.

Ajeniya, who chairs Dejofas Nigeria Limited

From Tayo Johnson, Ibadan

spoke yesterday when he visited the monarch in Oyo. He was accompanied by the Royal Ambassador to Alaafin, Aare Ayandotun Ayanlakin and his aides, Mr Patrick Avoseh and Mr.

Shoremekun Akorede.

The visitor said the monarch has to protected and promoted the Yoruba cultural identity and preserved its heritage.

“The Alaafin’s palace remains the emblem of the Yoruba and the monarch the

custodian of Yoruba culture, tradition and artefacts.

“Alaafin is the most respected and that is why I have come here to receive his royal blessing because I am planning to invest in this town and build a housing estate.”

Synod for May 21

By Nneka Nwaneri

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HE Diocesan Bishop (Lagos Mainland), Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, Prof Adebayo Akinde, has said the focus of the third session of the third Synod is the youth.

The bishop spoke at the Pre-Synod Breakfast Fellowship at St Jude’s Cathedral, Ebute Metta, Lagos.

The fellowship also served as an avenue to raise part of the N15.5 million needed for the Synod.

The Synod will hold from May 21-24. Expected to attend are more than 400 youth chosen from across the diocese.

He said: “The proceedings this year will be slightly different from the previous ones. We will have a youth summit of 23 hours session where they will talk to us on their problems, ambitions, aspirations and perception of the future.

“All we want to do is help them know God and help them stand their ground as ambassadors of Christ.”

A lecture was delivered

by Ven Nnaemeka Nwosu entitled: ‘Teach the Youth Today and Fashion the Future’, where he highlighted challenges inherent in building the youth for the church and for the nation.

He said the youth have a lot of gifts and talents available to the church.

Today’s investment in them, the cleric said, will bring about the gains of tomorrow.

PTA to help Osun in tax collection From Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo

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HE Parent-Teacher Association of Nigeria (PTAN) in Osun State has said it will enforce payment of N1,500 tax bonanza introduced by the government to boost its Internally Generated Revenue (IGR).

At a meeting attended by its chairmen across the 30 local governments, the association agreed that its members would pay the N1500 tax bonanza for the 2013/ 2014/2015 to bail out the government from its financial predicament.

The government owes four months salaries as a result of dwindling revenue from the Federation Allocation.

The PTAN state Chairman, Demola Ekundayo, said the association resolved to contribute to the development of the state, especially on issues of financing public primary and secondary schools.

According to him, Governor Rauf Aregbesola had been using the tax for the development of the state.

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

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THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

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CITYBEATS

CITYBEATS LINE: 09091178827

•From left: Mallam Muhammad Jamiu Aderintan; Mallam Zambo; Alhaji AbdulKareem AbdusSalam; Sheikh Shafi’i; the author, Abubakar; Mallam Shuaib; Dr Adeniyi; Dr Adedimeji and Alhaji Kalejaiye during the presentation of the book...yesterday

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Media unfair to Islam, says university don

S Islam being well projected by the media? No, says a university teacher, Dr Mahfouz Adedimeji, while reviewing a book: “Muslims and the threats of the media.”

The book, written by a reporter with Encomium Weekly, Rasheed Abubakar, was launched in Lagos yesterday, as part of activities marking the World Press Freedom Day. The event was held at the Abdul Wahab Iyanda Folawiyo, New Lagos Central Mosque (Hall) in Shitta, Surulere, Lagos with the theme: "Let Islam thrive! Towards balanced reporting and religious equality."

Many at the event hailed Abubakar's resilience in the face of an accident that almost claimed his legs two months ago. His injury did not stop him from going ahead with the book presentation.

Adedimeji, Director, Centre for Peace and Strategic Studies (CPSS) at the University of Ilorin (UNILORIN), lamented what he called some distortions in the media about Islam.

•Reporter launches book on World Press Freedom Day

By Safiyyah AbdurRazaq

The book, he said, was meant to serve as a "wake-up" call for all media practitioners to be objective.

"This event does not only serve as a convergent point but a medium to showcase the value of Islam which is opposed to what is presented in the media. It will appreciate the positive role the media have played in our democratic experience".

He expressed displeasure with the harassment of journalists in some parts of the world, describing some Al-Jazeera reporters' incarceration by the Egyptian government as a travesty of injustice.

He chided the media for not projecting Islam's positive side to the world.

"Islam," he said, "is not averse to journalism neither is Islam an

enemy journalists. The picture we are seeing in the media implies that the media have not portrayed Islam and Muslims in good light. If journalists are balanced with their reportage, I believe everybody will be taking care of.

"Whoever is found culpable in a criminal offence should be made to face the law without linking the crime to the person's religion.

"We have about two billion Muslims in the world. The ones that are crazy cannot be up to 50, 000.

They are not up to one per cent of the population. So do not say Muslims perpetrate a crime because their religion has asked them to do it."

Chairman on the occassion, Executive Director, Zakat and Sadaqat Foundation, Mallam Abdullah Shuaib decried the western media reportage of Islamic issues.

He said: "When someone

commits an offence and he happens to have the name 'Abdullah', the headlines become sensational condemning Islam and Muslims. If on the other hand, the perpetrator is Solomon, the media report attributed it to the individual without including his religion."

Managing Editor, News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) Mallam Yusuf Zambo described the book as a great step and a challenge to other media practitioners.

Abubakar appealed to the western media to be objective in dealing with matters affecting Muslims.

Muslims, he said, have not been well represented in the media especially when it comes to coverage of Islamic events, explaining that he embarked on the work to x-ray the attacks on Islam and Muslims and chart the way forward.

He urged journalists to learn

I'm not a thief, says woman, 80

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N octogenarian, Alhaja Basiratu Balogun, accused of stealing N7,000 and harrasing her neighbours, is alleging frame up by the police.

She claimed that an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) at X-Squad is aiding land grabbers and cultists to take over her family land.

Alhaja Balogun, who was arraigned before an Igbosere Magistrate's Court in Lagos, with 21 others last Wednesday for allegedly stealing N7, 000 and frightening her neighbours with a single barrel gun, described the allegations as false.

She said she and her family have suffered injustice.

The police, she said, are biased against her and members of her family.

Alhaja Balogun alleged that during the raid, the police bulldozed some buildings and acted as a shield for some people to take over her village.

She said: "It is ridiculous, at my age, what am I doing with money that I will conspire with 21 people to steal N7, 000? The fact of the matter is I was born here and

Husband seeks refund of dowry

By Tajudeen Adebanjo

grew up in the village. Some 15years ago, certain strangers showed up in the villages, laying claim to our land.

"This same ACP was then attached to area 'A' Police Command, Lion Building.

He was then a Deputy Superintendent of police 13 years ago. He did exactly the same thing. He led a police team that completely sacked us from the village. Against a directive from the InspectorGeneral of Police that policemen should not be involved in land matters, the ACP at X-Squad is doing otherwise.

"Nothing exposed him better than that count charge No S/16/2015 that reads that the 22 of us, "and others at large on the same date, time and place, did forcefully enter a piece of land in IgandoOrudu, property of Agbaje and Elesho Family of Ibeju Lekki."

One of those whose houses were demolished, Alhaji Mutairu Owoeye said he would fight the "injustice".

"The police at the X-Squad department of Zone 2, Onikan have abandoned

more about Islam to ensure their stories are balanced.

"The fact that you are a Christian journalist doesn't stop you from learning Islam; ditto to the Muslims in the media. It's essential for journalists to have wide range of knowledge on all other fields of study, because Islam doesn't restrict knowledge-seeking to particular areas. If journalists study Islam from the source (Quran and Sunnah), they will definitely know that ISIS, Boko Haram and other terrorist groups are not representing the true Islam brought by Prophet Muhammad," he said In attendance were Grand Mufti, Conference of Islamic Organisations (CIO) Shaykh Dhikrullah Shafi'i; Chairman, Management Board, Vanguards Academy, Dr Zafaran Adeniyi; Alhaji AbdulRasaq AbdusSalam of the Voice of Nigeria (VON) and Amir, Muslim Students' Society of Nigeria (MSSN) Lagos State Area Unit Alhaji Kamil Kalejaiye.

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•Alhaja Balogun

their statutory duty and have become land agent. The whole thing is ridiculous. The police at General investigation (GI) of the same Zone 2 are currently investigating

the same matter. The matter is still under investigation and the police at X-Squad of same zone 2 came with some cult boys to demolish our houses," Owoeye said.

MIDDLE-AGED-MAN, Collins Nduka, has pleaded with an Ojo Customary Court in Lagos to order his wife, Sefinat, to refund N1.4 million he spent on marrying her.

Collins told the court that his wife, whom he married three years ago, had decided to abandoned her matrimonial home for more than a year.

“I would want a refund of the amount that I spent as marriage and dowry expenses because she has become unfaithful.

“My wife is not faithful to the marriage because she has other relationships apart from me and I don’t love her anymore. After all, she has not given birth to any child for me.

“The most painful thing is that she has packed all my belongings in my house to an unknown place in addition to her emptying my shop which I stocked with over N750, 000,” he said.

According to him, the three-year-old marriage is being threatened and every bit of her action portrays her as someone no longer interested in the union.

“I invited my friends from outside the country to make the marriage an expensive one and after it, she wants to leave me for another man, I need my dowry so she can be free,” Nduka said.

He pleaded with the court to dissolve the marriage and order Sefinat to return his belongings and money so that he could continue with his life.

Sefinat, who was not in court, had earlier said she did not cart away her husband’s property.

She said that she was ready for the divorce.

The court President, Chief Joseph Ogunmola, while advising the husband on the dangers of divorce, instructed that the respondent be invited to court.

“The court does not dissolve any marriage except in extreme cases, we need the consent of both parties before judgment so she must be invited,” he said.

Ogunmola, adjourned the case to May19.

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CITYBEATS Court dissolves 16-year-old union

By Basirat Braimah

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HE Agege Customary Court has dissolved the 16-year-old marriage of Mr and Mrs Joseph Ibeh.

Mr Ibeh told the court that his wife, Eneh, is adulterous, troublesome and a threat to his life.

Ibeh said they met while in secondary school, adding that he single-handedly sponsored her university education.

“My wife’s attitude changed overnight. She was not the same woman I loved. She brought different men home whenever I was on sea, referring to them as her siblings. The last time I came home, I met another man in the house whom she referred to as her brother. I realised they spoke different languages but I didn’t suspect her,” he said.

Mrs Ibeh didn’t deny the allegations, blaming it all on her husband for not performing his matrimonial duty.

She said:”He knows the nature of his job and each time he is around, he complains of tiredness. What should I have done? I know all this is because he wants to marry another woman.”

The couple confirmed the relationship had broken down completely.

A mediation session was fixed for the couple and they both agreed on dissolution.

The union produced three children between ages 7 and 15.

The court’s President, Pa Adekunle Williams, said they ceased to be husband and wife.

He ordered the petitioner to give his wife N150,000 to re-settle with the children. The amount, he ordered, should be paid within 30 days.

Pa Williams referred the estranged couple to the family court for the children’s custody.

CITYBEATS LINE: 09091178827

Ex-Naval officer's son held for 'robbery'

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ON of a retired naval officer is being held by the police in Lagos for robbery.

Emmanuel Enu Ekpong, whose father retired as a Master Warrant Officer said he took to robbery to raise N300, 000 to process his papers "to travel to Sweden to hustle".

The suspect, who hails from Ogoja in Boki Local Government Area of Cross River State, is being detained by the Lagos State Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS).

Before his arrest, Ekpong and his gang operated around Marine/Oduduwa Road in GRA Apapa, using a motorcycle. They snatched money, phones and vehicles before the police sighted and pursued them on another motorcycle, it was gathered.

On sighting the policemen, Emmanuel and the gang leader, Maxwell, ran into a nearby building; Ekpong later came out, clutching a bag, attracting suspicion.

The police found a locally made gun in the bag, and transferred him to SARS. Ekpong, who said he was raised in the Navy Barracks, Lagos, added: "My father retired when I finished Senior Secondary School three years ago, but he refused to sponsor my higher education. I

•Ekpong

By Ebele Boniface

was a footballer and I was not getting much money from it and my father was not ready to train me because he is a polygamist and

Guard steals car from church

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A 56-YEAR-OLD security guard, Sunday Robert has been arraigned before an Ebute Meta Chief Magistrate's Court in Lagos for alleged stealing.

Robert, who hails from Akwa Ibom State, was alleged to have conspired with others at large to steal a Honda Odyssey shuttle car valued at N750, 000 from St. Paul's Catholic Church, Ebute Meta.

The defendant, a security guard, it was learnt stole the car with registration number JJJ379AZ, belonging of a church member, Chukwuemeka Moumegha.

The Nation learnt that the defendant was recommended for employment by the Reverend Father when he approached the cleric for a job.

The charge reads, "That you, Sunday Robert on April 21 at St Paul's Catholic Church, Ebute Meta, in the Lagos Magisterial District did conspire with others to steal an Honda •Professor of Computer Science Olayide Abass, one of the three professors conferred with Emeritus Professor by the University of Lagos (UNILAG) last Thursday posed with Prof Ray Okafor of Department of Mathematics (left) and Mass Communication Department Senior Lecturer Dr Ismail Ibrahim at the reception.

Man, 55, ‘damages’ windscreen

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By Rukayat Jimoh

shuttle car with registration number JJJ379AZ valued N750, 000 only, property of one Chukwuemeka Moumegha and thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 285 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State.

The offence, according to the prosecutor, Adeyemo Tunde, who held brief for Elizabeth Ekuma, a Deputy Superintendent of police (DSP), is punishable under Sections 409 and 285 of Criminal Laws of Lagos State.

The accused pleaded not guilty.

Defence counsel Mrs Beauty Otigih prayed the court to grant his client bail in the "most liberal terms".

Magistrate Nurudeen Layeni granted him N100, 000 bail with two sureties in the like sum.

The matter was adjourned till May 25.

never cared for any of his wives or children before he retired.

"None of his wives is living with him. Once you bear two or three children for him, he drives you away. He does not even pay bride

price. He married three wives. My mother is the third and I am the first son from my mother. When my father retired, I was still in the barracks working and playing football. We were five from my mother. One is in Italy; another named Bose is in Ikorodu."

On how he left the APMT Terminal, Apapa, where he was working, he said: "One day, Wharf rats (thieves) came and we joined them to break a container. They later gave me N10,000 as my share. We later broke another container and the company sacked us."

Regretting his arrest, the suspect said: "It was around between 8 and 9pm. I would have escaped because the policemen that were pursuing us could not recognise me when I came out from the building I ran into because many people ran into the same building. The others did not know whether the two men on motorcycle were policemen or robbers. We were the only ones who knew that they were policemen pursuing us. Maxwell escaped from where he went to urinate and I was the only person arrested. I am a footballer. I have represented Coca Cola and Pepsi Limited in Benin and Togo. If my father had taken care of his wives and children, I would not have become an armed robber.

Government should arrest and charge mothers and fathers to court for abandoning their wives and children."

"If I am released today, I will never marry more than one wife and I must take care of the children God gives me," he said.

Lagos State Police spokesman Ken Nwosu, a Deputy Superintendent (DSP), said accomplice who escaped would be tracked down soon.

•Robert

55-YEAR-OLD man, Bola Agbaje, has appeared before a Badagry Chief Magistrate’s Court in Lagos for allegedly damaging a car windscreen.

Prosecuting police Inspector Innocent Uko told the court that the accused committed the offence on April 19 at 11, Ilobi Street in Imeke, Badagry.

Uko said the accused damaged the windscreen of a Nissan car with registration number APP 118 AX belonging to Mr Bode Olaitan. The windscreen is said to cost N15, 000.

“The accused was just walking on the street when he saw the car parked on the road and for no reason; he took a stone and damaged the windscreen.

“He was immediately apprehended by passersby,” he said.

The offence contravenes Section 348 of the Criminal Law of Lagos

‘The accused was just walking on the street when he saw the car parked on the road and for no reason; he took a stone and damaged the windscreen’ State.

The accused pleaded not guilty.

Defence counsel Mr Babatunde Ahmed urged the court to grant him bail, since the offence is bailable.

Magistrate Abiodun Etti granted him N100, 000 bail with a surety.

He said the surety should provide evidence of tax payment as part of the bail conditions.

The case was adjourned till May 26.

Wife of Executive Secretary, Ikeja, Local Government Area, Mrs Layide Adeokun leading the sanitation exercise in the council

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

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NEWS

Fayose ‘demolishes’ APC members’ family house

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KITI State Governor Ayodele Fayose is embroiled in a fresh controversy in his home town of Afao-Ekiti over the demolition of the Omotoso family house at 7, Oke Iro Street.

In the demolition, which started at 3am, remains of family members who were buried in the building were excavated.

The family members are very furious over what they called “Fayose’s act of impunity”.

Family sources said although the governor claimed

that the house was demolished to give way for the construction of a new palace for the Alafao of Afao-Ekiti, his real reason is because most of the family members belong to the opposition APC. The family’s spokesman, who is also the APC secretary in Amuwo Odofin Local Government Area of Lagos State, David Oluwafemi Omotoso, in a statement said: “On May 2 by 3am, government agents bulldozed my father’s house which has been in existence for over 100 years.

“The reason was that the

house was ‘covering’ the palace.

“The land on which the new palace is built is part of my father’s land.

“This is a case of sheer victimisation and humiliation just because I am an APC member.”

The governor had earlier informed Omotoso of his decision to acquire the house and land for the building of a new palace but his request was turned down.

Omotoso said the present site of the palace was part of his family land, which they

released a long time ago for the palace.

“We, therefore, cannot release our only family house, which had existed over 100 years and where we have buried members of the family.

“Members of the Omotoso family and the town were shell-shocked when they woke up on May 2 to find the building in rubble after Fayose’s bulldozers brought it down at 3am.

“The most revolting action was the display of some of the coffins excavated by the bull-

dozers. “ As at the time of demolition, the house was undergoing renovation,” Omotoso said.

Another uncompleted building located behind the demolished building belonging to Mr. David Omotoso, was also pulled down.

The rubbles were swiftly and clinically evacuated before dawn.

Another member of the family, Mrs Bose Ige (nee Omotoso), an APC member, also believes that Fayose demolished the family house to

punish them because they belong to the APC. “If a land or property is to be acquired, is it by force and without compensation?

“Is Mr. Fayose acquiring our family house as an indigene of Afao or as governor ?

“This is an abuse of power and oppression of the highest order. My family will not take this lying low at all.”

The governor’s aides, Idowu Adelusi and Lere Olayinka, could not be reached for comments.

The duo did not answer their calls yesterday night.

CCII gets new exco From Tayo Johnson, Ibadan

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socio-cultural group in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, Central Council of Ibadan Indigenes (CCII), has elected new executive members for the next two

From left: Chief Akinade, Popoola, Aboderin and Oyero…at the weekend

Eko Atlantic City to take off next year

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HE first set of office buildings at the prestigious Eko Atlantic City, Lagos, will be ready for occupation next year.

The project concessionaire has offered some of the soonto-be-ready office buildings for sale.

Among the projects are the Afren headquarters building; a skyscraper, presently at 16floor, likely to be completed next year.

Commissioner for Waterfront Infrastructure Adesegun Oniru, who gave an update on the city’s development, said besides the Afren building, the Eko Pearl Towers, would soon be ready.

According to Oniru, the

•Concessionaire offers office buildings for sale

By Miriam Ekene-Okoro

project is no longer a mere idea, “it is now a reality as significant progress has been made with construction of infrastructure, such as storm water drainage, installation at 79 per cent, sewage pipe installation at 40 per cent, water supply pipe installation at 21 per cent, and telecom ducts installation at 27 per cent.”

Oniru, who described the new city as “the most impressive urban development project in Africa,” said “the construction includes buildings owned by ITB, presently at the 16-floor, and Eko Pearl Towers, presently at fifth-floor,

which the concessionaire has offered for sale and has attracted a significant rate of subscribers”.

The commissioner said of the land size to be reclaimed from the Atlantic Ocean (almost twice the land size of Victoria Island), about 5,184,999 sqm, had been reclaimed as at October 2014, and 33 million cubic metres of sand pumped since the commencement of phase 1 of the reclamation in November 2011, while sand pumped in phases 1 and II was in excess of 58 million cubic metres.

The project, with an added advantage of decongest-

ing and protecting Victoria Island from the ocean surge, would host an estimated 250,000 people living and working within the city. An additional 150,000 people would commute to and fro the city daily.

The multi-billion dollar new city project being undertaken by South Energyx Nigeria Ltd, a subsidiary of the Chagoury group, in collaboration with Lagos State government, is to be protected by an 8.4 kilometre long sea defence revetment, known as “Great Wall of Lagos”, to serve as a barricade against any surge.

Akinjide’s group: Folarin responsible for HE Peoples DemocratOyo PDP’s defeat ic Party (PDP) in Oyo

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State has entered another round of crisis after its defeat in the last general elections.

Cracks emerged last week when a faction of the party under the leadership of Yekini Adeojo and Senator Teslim Folarin issued a statement suspending Jumoke Akinjide and a few others for alleged anti-party activities.

But the group headed by Akinjide, who is the Minister of State for Federal Capital Territory (FCT), lambasted the other faction, saying it was responsible for the party’s disgraceful defeat.

The Progressive Youths Frontier blamed Folarin, who was the governorship candidate, and other leaders of the faction for refusing to allow Senator Rashidi Ladoja return to the PDP and contest as its governorship candidate.

The group in a statement by its Secretary, Abiodun Adeniyi, insisted that working with Ladoja was the best option because of the agreement that he would return to

From Bisi Oladele, Ibadan

the PDP after winning the election under the platform of Accord.

The group further blamed Folarin for forcing out AlaoAkala and Makinde from the party.

With the latest brickbats between the two factions, the PDP has entered another phase of internal crisis after failing to resolve the first phase which started in 2003

between the late Chief Lamidi Adedibu and former governor Rashidi Ladoja.

The crisis protracted till 2006 when Ladoja was illegally impeached. It continued till 2011 when Alao-Akala emerged the governorship candidate of the party and continued to this year when both Alao-Akala and Makinde opted out of the party.

“Those who worked with Ladoja at the 11th hour were only saving democracy and

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‘Don’t set Ekiti on fire From Odunayo Ogunmola, Ado-Ekiti

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AWMAKERS-ELECT of the Ekiti State House of Assembly have warned the 19 All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmakers against setting the state on fire.

Acting under the aegis of Conference of Ekiti State Elected Lawmakers, they regretted the boycott of the peace parley brokered by elders last Thursday by the APC lawmakers, which they described as a “clear display of arrogance”.

All the 26 lawmakers-elect were elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) during the April 11 House of Assembly election.

They promised that the incoming Assembly will not be a rubber stamp legislature.

The spokesman of the lawmakers-elect, Kola Oluwawole, said they were disturbed by the behaviour of the APC lawmakers, whom he accused of disrespecting elders.

Oluwawole, who was elected to represent Moba Constituency 1, described the impeachment move as “legislative rascality”.

He explained that the lawmakers-elect appreciate the roles played by traditional rulers and elders, who have waded into the political logjam.

Don advises Buhari From Tayo Johnson, Ibadan

•MsAkinjide

sowing the seed of strengthening the PDP in Oyo State to which Ladoja could have returned after winning the election.”

Ladoja files petition at tribunal HE governorship candidate of Accord in the April 11 election, Senator Rashidi Ladoja, has filed a petition before the state’s Election Petition Tribunal.

He is challenging the re-election of the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Governor Abiola Ajimobi.

In a statement by the Director-General of his campaign organisation, Hon. Adeolu Adeleke, yesterday, Ladoja said he had enough evidence to reclaim his mandate allegedly stolen during the election.

He gave his petition’s file number as EPL/ IB/GOV/22/2015.

The former governor also alleged that some

years.

After a four-hour voting by 53 accredited voters from different clubs, a former President of Omo Ajorosun Club, Chief Wole Akinwande, polled 30 votes to emerge as the new president. His co-contender, Mr Yemi Soladoye, scored 23.

Other elected officials include second Vice-President Alhaji Mudasiru Adetona, General Secretary Remi Popoola, Second Assistant General-Secretary Alhaja Romoke Badmus, Publicity Secretary Ademola Alabi, Social Secretary Chief Idowu Lawal, Chief Whip Idowu Gesinde, Ex-Officio 1 Olu Adeniran, Ex-Officio 2 Mrs E.M Badmus.

Others who emerged unopposed were First Vice-President Dr Lasisi Balogun, Tresurer Alhaji R.S Oyebamiji, Financial Secretary Gbenga Adeoye, Auditor General Mr A.K Tanimowo and Legal Adviser Ajeniyi Ajewole.

Akinwande thanked the voters for believing in him.

“This election was free, fair and credible. This election brings us closer to all the clubs in Ibadan and shows the unity of the clubs to move Ibadan forward.

“We only carried out an exercise and a winner just emerged.

I promise to work together will all members to move our club forward,” he said

From Bisi Oladele, Ibadan

election materials were being burnt in a particular local government to destroy his evidence and that of other Accord candidates.

He warned against the alleged act and threatened to “react accordingly by doing the right thing which may make the state to be ungovernable”.

The statement went on “Sen Rashidi Ladoja wishes to express his commitment to the use of instrumentality of law to retrieve his stolen mandate as he always does. He also urges the tribunal members to discharge their duty with utmost dedication without any fear or favour as the whole world is watching.”

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FORMER World Bank scribe, Prof. Ladipo Adamolekun, has urged the President-elect, Gen. Muhammad Buhari, to fight corruption to bring change in the country.

Adamolekun spoke at the Silver Knights’ 2015 edition of May Day Lecture held at the International Conference Centre, Lead City University, Ibadan.

He said the only way to bail the country out was by tackling corruption.

Recalling the case of a convicted former governor, who was pardoned and given a national award, Adamolekun said: “A president who says no stealing in my government will not pardon a convicted thief and award him a national honour.

“First evidence from countries that have successfully reduced corruption support the assertion that just as the fish rots from the head, corruption at the head of a national government will permeate the entire government as we have witnessed in the country.

“In order to turn Nigeria into an environment that will remain permanently hostile to leaders with high degree of corruptibility, the president-elect must prosecute a genuine war on corruption during the next four years.”

The professor of Public Administration and former Dean, Faculty of Administration, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, Osun State, said there were disjunctions at critical points of Nigerian history.

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

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THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

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MONDAY MAY 4, 2015

POLITICS THE NATION

E-mail:- politics@thenationonlineng.net

LAGOS POLITICS

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has lost the governorship polls in Lagos State since 1999. Its defeat at the recent election has further weekend the chapter. Assistant Editor LEKE SALAUDEEN examines the factors working against the party and why it may not effectively play the role of opposition in the next dispensation.

What next for Lagos PDP? S

INCE the return to civil rule in 1999, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been left in the cold in Lagos State. Its ambition to produce governor for the state has been thwarted by the progressive bloc. In 1999, the party’s candidate, Chief Dapo Sarumi was defeated by the Alliance for Democracy (AD) flag bearer, Senator Bola Tinubu. In 2003, the PDP fielded the late Mr. Funsho Williams and he was also defeated by Tinubu. Williams defected from AD to pick the PDP governorship ticket.

In 2007, the stakes were high. Both the PDP and the Action Congress (AC) prepared hard for the poll. The PDP fielded Senator Musiliu Obanikoro who lost his deposit at the close of the poll. He was defeated by the AC candidate, Mr. Babatunde Fashola (SAN).

Obanikoro was elected senator on the platform of the AD, but he defected mid-way to the PDP. The emergence of Obanikoro was riddled in controversy because William’s widow, Hilda, was named as the flag bearer, following the primaries held at the National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos. But, the ticket was withdrawn from her and given to Obanikoro, following the directive from Abuja.

In 2011, the party fielded a dark horse, Dr. Ade Dosunmu, for the governorship election.

At that time, the party was very weak to withstand the ruling party. Most of the chieftains had deserted the party and embraced the ACN. Dosunmu, like Obanikoro, performed woefully and lost his deposit. After the poll, some PDP chieftains defected to the ruling party. Among them were the pioneer chairman of the PDP, Chief Olorunfunmi Bashorun, Prince Ademola Adeniji-Adele, former Minister of State for Defence, Demola Seriki, former state secretary, Wale Mogaji and former legislator Dr. Wale Ahmed, Dr. Yomi Finnih, former deputy governors, Alhaji Rafiu Jafojo and Otunba Olufemi Pedro.

Many party chieftains believe that since Commodore Olabode George (rtd) became the party leader, peace has eluded the chapter. A chieftain complained that George has aborted the efforts to unite the polarised chapter by taking unilateral steps considered infuriating to other party leaders. Others have accused him of imposition of governorship candidates and preventing a proper congress from holding at the ward, local government and state level.

In 2011 many party faithful perceived Dosunmu as George’s imposition; rather than as the standard bearer of the party. The party went into the election as a divided house. After its loss, the party leaders started to trade blames.

A reconciliation move was mooted by some elders, but it did not see the light of the day.

In the run-up to the 2015 general elections, the party promised to provide a level-playing field for all candidates. But, the primary that produced Jimi Agbaje as governorship candidate was not transparent. It was a straight fight between Obanikoro and Agbaje. There was desperation on both sides. Although Agbaje did not approach the contest as a do-or-die affair, his supporters hinged their survival on his ambition and success at the general elections. Obanikoro’s supporters did not leave any stone unturned to get the ticket.

The decision of Obanikoro to vie for the party ticket reopened the old rivalry between him and George and former Minister of Works, Senator Adeseye Ogunlewe, who were the prominent PDP leaders backing Agbaje. They accused Obanikoro of joining the race to cause trouble.

George said it was curious that he resigned as a minister few months after he was appointed by President Goodluck Jonathan. He also said

• President Goodluck Jonathan (right) being welcomed to Lagos State by the PDP National Chairman, Alhaji Adamu Muazu, for a presidential rally. Left is Chief Ebenezer Babatope

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A chieftain complained that George has aborted the efforts to unite the polarised chapter by taking unilateral steps considered infuriating to other party leaders. Others have accused him of imposition of governorship candidates and preventing a proper congress from holding at the ward, local government and state level

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Obanikoro was peddling rumour that he had been endorsed by the Presidency. His summation was that Obanikoro’s candidacy may dent the image of the party and make it lose election in the state.

The former High Commissioner to Ghana returned the missiles, saying the retired naval officer and former governor of Ondo State was his rival at the primaries and not Agbaje, who he described as a foreigner in the chapter. He boasted that he will win primaries without George’s support. At the end of the day, Agbaje triumphed, with the assistance of George and Ogunlewe.

It is history that the party lost the governorship election for the fifth time. What could be responsible for its misfortune at the poll, despite the enormous resources deployed to the contest by the Presidency?

A party chieftain said the chapter went into the election as a divided house. Reflecting on the division, he said the party was weakened by the escalation of the crisis that preceded the primaries. “In spite of the last minute reconciliation by the Presidency, the party was not united. Many supporters of Obanikoro did not vote for Agbaje on April 11. Until we are able to resolve the deep-seated animosity between George and Obanikoro, the PDP will never produce governor in Lagos State.

“Remember what happened at the venue of the primaries at Oregun Road, Ikeja, where supporters of Obanikoro and Agbaje clashed. They exchanged gun shots to intimidate delegates and observers. At the end, Obanikoro rejected the results of governorship primary won by Agbaje.

Obanikoro went to court to challenge the validity of the result. He also alleged that George manipulated the result in favour of Agbaje.”

“Agbaje’s defection to the PDP few weeks before the governorship primaries was controversial. Some members perceived it as deliberate attempt to block the chances of Obanikoro. His teeming supporters believe that only Obanikoro can win the poll for the PDP. It was true that

Obanikoro remained in the party and campaigned for Agbaje, but not all his supporters worked for the party. In fact, some of his supporters worked against the party interest.”

But, Ogunlewe does not agree with the idea that there was division in the party. He poured encomiums on the leadership of George, saying the elders of the party have reposed confidence in him.

No individual can impose his will on the party.

According to him, the elders rejected Obanikoro because he cannot add to the fortune of the party.

He said the out-going Minister of State for Foreign Affairs does not have what it takes to win the election for the party. In Ogunlewe’s view, Obanikoro is perceived as a certified spoiler by the elders’ forum. He said Obanikoro is determined to weaken the PDP before he jumps ship.

The State Financial Secretary, Chief Taiwo Kuye, also ruled out division in the party. He said there is unity in Lagos chapter. “We are united. Obanikoro is a leader. George is also the party leader in Lagos and the Southwest.

Anyone who jumps ship because the APC is taking over power at the centre is making a fool of himself or herself. Anyone who makes such a stupid mistake would have himself blame.

Youth activist Babatunde Davies said the PDP is jinxed in winning governorship election in Lagos State. He said the selfish interest and dictatorial tendencies of the leadership are recurring decimal that makes the party serial losers in the state.

According to Davies, the last has not been heard about the PDP’s loss in Lagos. He wants those who collected money from Abuja to prosecute campaign to render accounts. “From what we heard from the grapevines, several million dollars were collected by some individuals to work towards the victory. But, I doubt if they spent 10 per cent of what they collected.

He said: “The party’s image in Lagos State is negative because of two reasons: The neglect of Lagos by the ruling PDP since 1999. This made many Lagosians to hate the party. All the federal

roads and federal government properties were abandoned. The Lagos State government that has been responsible for their maintenance, but it has not been reimbursed. Second, the leaders lack charisma to command followership. They lack electoral value. Many of them can’t win elections in their wards. The likes of Bode George, Ogunlewe , Ogundimu and Obanikoro should retire from active politics and allow youths to take over leadership of the PDP in Lagos.

“It is painful that Agbaje has lost again in his bid to govern Lagos State. The loss by Agbaje should be a painful defeat for him and his followers”.

Since 1999, the PDP had been playing the role of passive opposition in the state because it hardly wins a seat in the House of Assembly; thus making it a one party affair. That will change in the next dispensation when the 8th assembly is inaugurated. Out of the 40 seats in the state House of Assembly, the PDP for the first time has won eight. The voice of the PDP will be heard in legislative matters.

Lagos PDP spokesman Taofik Gani was excited by the party’s performance in the general elections. He recalled that the PDP won eight House of Assembly seats and six Federal House of Representatives seats.

Gani said: “We commend ourselves; we made a long leap. This is the first time the PDP has recorded such winnings. We now have seats in the House of Representatives and House of Assembly. We are indeed very excited. We want it to be known that we won more seats, but lost out to manipulation. The party had re-oriented its members who won House of Representatives and House of Assembly seats not to see themselves as PDP members, but as representatives of the people.

“They are not going to be antagonistic, but to contribute their quota to the growth of the country. The opposition we will play will fundamentally be constructive and not destructive. Indeed, it is the opposition the APC played that gave them power. We will be constructive in our criticism and ensure that we engage those in power meaningfully.

“The party would eventually get the governorship seat in future. We will go back to the drawing board because we cannot be in opposition for more than four years. We shall work hard to win the governorship seat in the next election.”

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THE NATION MONDAY MAY 4, 2015

What we have on our hands requires somebody with stoic ‘and sound determination, very resolute to take on the power that be. The President-elect must step on toes. To bring the ship of state back on track, you must do the unusual

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In 2005, Chief Bisi Adegbuyi, lawyer and the Asiwaju of Ode-Remo, Ogun State, hosted the alternative National Conference organised by the Pro-National Conference Organisation (PRONACO) in Lagos. Last year, he was a delegate to the National Conference in Abuja. During the last general elections, the former senatorial aspirant in Ogun East District on the platform of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) was Deputy Director-General of Amosun Campaign Organisation. He spoke with Group Political Editor EMMANUEL OLADESU on the challenge of transition, tasks before the incoming Federal Government and the significance of Southwest’s participation in the mainstream politics.

‘Buhari must reduce cost of governance’ A

PROGRESSIVE government will be inaugurated at the centre on May 29.

What are your expectations?

My expectation is that the change, which was our mantra, and which the people overwhelmingly subscribed to, should be made to be a reality. It is not just a cosmetic change; it must be a fundamental change, a new direction, a new thinking in government, a paradigm shift. The expectations of our people are high. They believe that, by voting out the incumbent, which in a way was a referendum on the performance of the Jonathan Administration, they expect the government of Gen. Muhammadu Buhari to do what Jonathan did not do in office.

What are the challenges?

We all know Nigeria’s problems-insecurity, impunity, lawlessness, corruption, dearth of infrastructure. A lot of Nigerians know the problems. But, few people know the solution. are.

As Chief Obafemi Awolowo, my hero, has said, only the deep can call to the deep. What we have on our hands requires somebody with stoic and sound determination, very resolute to take on the power that be. The President-elect must step on toes. To bring the ship of state back on track, you must do the unusual. The powerful people are entrenched. They are running from pillar to post. I hope the President-elect will see through their shenanigans. At the end, we will have the government of the poor. We have had the government of the elite before. The elite of Nigeria have benefitted immensely from the system.

Leakages must be blocked. The bloated government must be reduced. There must be a lean government. The high recurrent expenditure in our budget must be drastically reduced. Insecurity is multi-dimensional. We have poverty and unemployment. There must be a carrot and stick approach. Central to reforming security in Nigeria is the issue of state police because policing is a local issue.

State police is one of the recommendations of the last National Conference. Are there other recommendations that can be useful to the incoming government?

The incoming administration of President-elect Gen. Muhammadu Buhari can only ignore the recommendation of the National Conference to our own peril. We have structural problems in Nigeria. We have the problems of asymmetric federalism, lopsided federalism; the tail wagging the head. Devolution of power. Increased revenue allocation to federating states, state police.

There is a recommendation which the Presidentelect must quickly look into. And that is the law setting up the parastatals that allows parastatals to withdraw from the source the recurrent expenditure content of their budget before remitting whatever remains to the Federation Account. That is the biggest drain pipe and the huge component of the recurrent expenditure content of the federal budget. Why will NNPC withdraw from source unilaterally the amount determined by it as forming the recurrent expenditure and remitting partly sum to the Federation

Account. We need to look at such laws that impinge and impede progress. When you spend 72.3 percent of your budget on recurrent expenditure, leaving 27. 7 for debt servicing and capital expenditure, certainly, there is no way you can improve on the welfare if the people. The cost of governance in Nigeria is humongous. We must find a way of reducing the cost so that people with sublime ability who do not have a huge amount of money to spend on the electoral process will be interested in government. All these have been recommended in about 6000 recommendations of the National Conference.

Buhari will be inheriting a divided country.

How do you see him emerging as a personification of national unity?

We should deceive ourselves that the cleavages will disappear because a President Buhari has emerged. The national question is there.

Buhari will fight corruption, impunity and lawlessness. He will strengthened the institutions.

His deputy is versed in building institutions. But, we should stop behaving like the Ostrich, who will bury his head in the sand, pretending that the whole body is not seen. The result of the election has further divided Nigeria along ethnic and religious lines. What Mr. President should do is to get experts to advise him on how to wean a nation out of the multi-ethnic and multi-religious state. Central to that is the devolution of power and autonomy to different geo-political entities and multi-ethnic make-ups.

What is the solution to unemployment?

Unemployment is a major problem confronting Nigeria. There are three main sources of generating employment-massive construction of houses, revolutionalising agriculture and revamping the manufacturing sector. Without achieving the requisite electricity supply, you can’t do anything to manufacturing. For agricultural revolution, you must embark on land reform. By virtue of my membership of the National Conference and my membership of the Sub-committee on Land Tenure and boundary adjustment, my eyes were open to the problems militating against agriculture in Nigeria, which is land reform. Let the President-elect look at what they do in Brazil. He shares similarity with the President of Brazil, who contested four times before becoming the President. What he did was to embark on extensive land reform in Brazil and thereafter, he revolutionalised agriculture. Ethiopia is the second largest producer of maize in Africa and third largest producer of livestock.

Twenty years ago, it was ravaged with farming.

How do we resolve the housing deficit? We need a primary mortgage in Nigeria for people who have steady income to access income from the primary mortgage market. Then, you can begin the process of massively constructing houses. If we block loopholes and we reduce the number of parastatals, we have a lean government, the money that will be saved can be ploughed into agriculture and housing. But, the Federal Government may not be able to successfully do that without devolving power to the state

•Adegbuyi

governments. But, after the regime of impunity has gone, a government that is against impunity will look into it and recover the money from the few people.

Do you see the President-elect setting up a cabinet of talents, judging by the sheer number of politicians looking for ministerial positions?

Expectations are high. Politicians are working, lobbying and positioning themselves. There are ways of taking care of the run of the mill politicians. You can give them patronages and contracts. But, you don’t allow them to occupy the dying seat of governance. That is not to say that you don’t have politicians who are technocrats and who must be involved in governance. There are politicians without second address. There are politicians who are technocrats. These are the people that must be considered. There are grassroots politicians that have worked for the emergence of Gen. Buhari. There are ways of taking care of people like that. Gen. Buhari’s cabinet should be a cabinet that will unusual, a cabinet that will consist of people Nigerians can have confidence in. We need a breath of fresh air. we cannot continue to re-circle people who have been part of governments that have not done well for Nigeria. He can bring in old men, full of wisdom. They understands themselves. He must also bring in relatively young men and women, well educated; those who have ideas about governance, people who can think out of the box.

Governance is about the judicious application of scare resources for the benefit of the people.

What will be the impact of the gravitation to mainstream politics for the Southwest?

This is the first time we are having an alliance between the Northwest and the Southwest. It is important to recall the prophesy of Awolowo that there will be a time when the dialectical process of the forces of thesis will coalesce with the anti-thesis to produce a synthesis; a time will come when progressives in conservative parties will dump their parties and join forces with their progressive counterparts that will get out of the woods. This is what we are likely to have. It is the prophecy of Chief Obafemi Awolowo that is coming to past. It is a revolution. It is the first time an opposition party will take over power from an incumbent government. It will lay an automatic foundation for progress in Nigeria.

An incumbent has lost. An opposition party is taking over power. The next ruling party will look inward to ensure that it does not commit the same mistake committed by the PDP. My worry is that, because the PDP is so power drunk and it is used to dispensations of patronages, it may be difficult for the PDP to play the role of the opposition. They are jumping their ship to the APC. The leaders of the APC should be careful so that there will be no overload that will sink it. Let them stay in their party. We remained in our party fro 16 years and gave the PDP constructive opposition.

Why was it difficult for the associates of Chief Obafemi Awolowo in Afenifere to imagine that the prediction of the late sage was about to be fulfilled in the last general elections?

With due respect to our great leaders, the associates of Chief Obafemi Awolowo, I think their major undoing, was that they were fighting proxy war against Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

They never wanted to belong to the same political party with him for reasons best known to them, whether justifiable or not. The case of Chief Olu Falae comes to mind. I respect him so much.

In 2011, he supported Buhari. But, in 2015, he supported Jonathan because he believes that he will implement the recommendations of the National Conference. I don’t think it is right to endorse Jonathan because he has promised to implement the report. The man has failed to fulfilled the promises he made in the past. Now, everybody has gone to the political field to test his strength. We know the people Yoruba will listen to. There is a new, emerging power bloc.

It is clear no who will tell the Yoruba where to go and they will listen to them. As it is said, the Yoruba know their leaders. There is no controversy as to who the political head of Yoruba is.

Somebody worked from one government, worked assiduously, moved to four, and later, after working with people, increased to 16 and now he has succeeded in joining forces with other people to win the central government. There are four heroes of democracy in Nigeria now and not in any particular order-Major-General Buhari, out-going President Goodluck Jonathan, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Prof. Attahiru Jega. It became possible for the opposition to wrest power from the central government because of the political sagacity of Tinubu.

Group seeks relocation of Rivers election tribunal to Port Harcourt

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GROUP, the Society for Good Governance (SGG), has urged the President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Zainab Bulkachuwa, to relocate the Rivers State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja to Port Harcourt, the state capital.

The group faulted the decision of the Court of Appeal President to allow the tribunal to sit in Abuja when Port Harcourt is peaceful and there is no threat to the lives of the tribunal members.

The group’s coordinator, Tamuno

From Eric Ikhilae, Abuja

Greg, said in Abuja that there was no basis for compelling the tribunal to sit in Abuja.

Greg said that law, equity, justice and fair play demanded that the tribunal should sit in Port Harcourt. He added that it will be in the interest of all the parties to ?have the tribunal relocated to Port Harcourt.

He urged the people of Rivers

State to put the rancour associated with the elections behaind them and work together for the interest of the state.

Greg said: “If the city is not peaceful as they would want us to believe, why has the President of the Court of Appeal not relocated the Court of Apppeal in Port Harcourt to Abuja?

“Our argument is that if the Court of Appeal and the Federal High Court can continue to sit in Port

Harcourt, what is the justification for bringing the tribunal to Abuja?

“Look, all the witnesses are in Rivers State. The plaintiffs’ witnesses and the defendants’ witnesses are in Rivers. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) staff, who conducted the elections, are in Rivers. So, why putting everybody under inconveniences?

“We therefore, call on the President of the Court of Appeal to rescind her decision by relocating the tribunal back to Port Harcourt.”

• Prof. Jega

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

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COMMENTARY EDITORIALS

LETTER

On tenterhooks Budget passed in the fourth month of the year with a paltry provision for fuel subsidy ...

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LTHOUGH the out-going administration of President Goodluck Jonathan may continue to be in denial, the economy is in dire straits. First, the 2015 federal budget which was passed by the National Assembly last week is coming in ludicrously late – four months in the year. Yes, the budget never came on time all through the life of this administration, but exceptional latitude seems to have mired the process this year.

Never being able to get the budget ready on time in six years is indeed symptomatic of the economic and fiscal management of the polity in this era. No studied attempt was made by the overly large economic team of President Jonathan to take the economy nary one step further than it was pre-2011. While oil prices were at their best ever in the international market, Nigeria’s economy was roiling – tumbling and stumbling until the current crunch which started late last year.

There is indeed crisis and it is uncanny that the Jonathan administration would want to leave the economy in a gale of crises. The budget has been passed with the provision of a paltry N100bn for fuel subsidy. This automatically means that government has unilaterally reduced the so-called subsidy drastically, given that about N500bn was said to have been spent on it this year alone. The subsidy is supposed to be a safety net for cushioning the possible adverse effects that may be occasioned by hikes in pump prices of petrol and kerosene. This is a highly volatile issue that is capable of sparking sustained dissension in the polity. The labour unions have already warned that it would not accept any jumps in petrol

prices.

Another signpost of an imminent economic upheaval is the scarcity of fuel which has started to manifest across the country. Oil marketers who are the importers of petroleum products claim the Federal Government owes them arrears in excess of N356.2 billion and some of the debt dates back to last year. They insist they can no longer import, store or transport products. They also cannot raise fresh loans while interests on old facilities are crippling.

Minister of Finance, Mrs. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, was a sorry sight as she explained that N156 billion was available to pay the marketers last week. She admitted that “despite revenue challenges facing the government”, the issue of fuel subsidy payments had always been a priority of government. She appealed to the marketers: “They are also Nigerians and they need to also cooperate with us.”

Since passionate appeals will not offset bank loans or make trucks move, it is apparent that scarcity and its attendant social anxieties will remain with us for quite some time. This fact will be more germane in this last month of administrative transition. Unless this government sources at least N300 billion in the next few days, the country could be in for a blistering energy crisis.

The chicken has come home to roost, so to speak, for the Jonathan administration, for failing to take smart economic measures all through its time. After the January 2012 fuel subsidy protests occasioned by a sudden hike in price, government had promised to build four green field refineries. Completion of these refineries would have ensured the stoppage of

importation of products and saved huge foreign exchange, especially in these lean times of oil price crash. Not even one was built despite the huge oil earnings in these past few years.

Nigeria is the only major oil producer that still imports refined products, sometimes from non-oil producing countries.

We urge that the sitting government should promptly raise funds and pay the marketers to avert the looming crisis. The incoming government has its work cut out for it. It must review the entire gamut of the oil sector in order to revamp and clean the subsisting mess therein.

Of course, building of modern refineries must be a priority of the Buhari administration as the current importation scheme is not sustainable. Refining a good percentage of crude could also be a precondition for major oil corporations in Nigeria. They run huge refineries elsewhere; they should be mandated to do same here as government pursues a medium term policy of zero crude export.

It will be a shame for the Jonathan administration to end in a crisis.

‘We urge that the sitting government should promptly raise funds and pay the marketers to avert the looming crisis. The incoming government has its work cut out for it. It must review the entire gamut of the oil sector in order to revamp and clean the subsisting mess therein’

Banks’ chronic debtors We welcome CBN’s decision to name and shame

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OULD it be that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has suddenly realised the destructive influence of chronic bank debtors on the economy?

The apex bank, in a letter titled “Recovery of Delinquent Credit Facilities,” and signed by Tokunbo Martins, its director, banking supervision, on April 22, told the banks and discount houses that from May 1, 2015, delinquent debtors, whether individual or corporate accounts, must be given three months ultimatum to turn their accounts from non-performing to performing status.

Those who fail to do so will have their names published, by the end of July, in not less than three national newspapers.

Apart from this, they would also be banned, alongside their members of the board of directors, as well as their subsidiary firms, from participating in the Nigerian foreign exchange market, and also from participating in the Nigerian government securities market.

‘The move to curb the increasing NPLs is a welcome development ... We call on the Bankers’ Committee to be more effective in this regard. It will be sad if this trend is allowed to bring back the era of liquidity problems in the banking sector’

According to Martins, “…it is increasingly becoming difficult for some debtors to pay up their loans. So it was decided that going forward, one thing that we may do is to stop them from getting access to foreign exchange. This is to ensure the continuous safety and soundness of the banking industry…It is not all debtors, it is the bad and chronic debtors, those ones that have deliberately refused to pay; those are the ones we are talking about.

Total loans in the industry are in the region of N13 to N15 trillion.”

The move to curb the increasing NPLs is a welcome development. This is much more so that the intervention of the widely celebrated Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), on toxic assets from the banks’ books in the past has not really yielded the desired result.

The point must be made though that not every person that took loans from banks did so with the intention of repaying, especially in our kind of country where things are upside down and laws are hardly enforced.

We call on the Bankers’ Committee to be more effective in this regard. It will be sad if this trend is allowed to bring back the era of liquidity problems in the banking sector. Basically, the menace of NPLs is purely a manifestation of regulation failure as most banks’ officials either circumvent laid-down regulations or deliberately ignore the basics while considering and approving loan requests.

Indeed, some top officials of banks have gone away with this without any serious sanction, thereby serving as impe-

tus for others to also go in that direction. This was not the way it was done in the past as officials ensured that collateral security taken from people wishing to take loans from the banks was such that would make it unattractive for them not to want to repay the loans.

The government too has a fundamental role to play because instability of government policies has also impeded the performance of several loans. This is a consequence of consistent change in policy to satisfy the whims of a few without thinking of the implications of such decisions on the larger economy.

This is further aggravated by incompetence of several investors that have taken bank loans to finance investment take-over without due diligence. The grandiose unsustainable lifestyle of some of the people that took loans has worsened the chances of redeeming such facility within the stipulated time frame.

The apex bank must therefore come up with a practical solution to the challenges of foreign exchange rate that have been worsening by the day, thus rendering the calculations of what debtors are expected to repay due to fluctuations in the exchange rate meaningless. The problem becomes the more compounded when added to the ever rising interest rate.

The nation should try as much as possible to avoid another bank crisis that the increasing rate of bad loans might precipitate. All loans must be repaid and the onerous task of achieving this is on the CBN.

Still on the status of Lagos

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IR: Having lived and worked in the city of Lagos for many years and for the better part of my youthful years, I am always nostalgic about Lagos and hence issues pertaining to it. I was enthralled as a young man by its hustle and bustle along with its variety of lively social life. It is a place without inhibitions compared to other cities and with so much freedom that easily makes one forget one‘s hometown. This must be a credit to the accommodating nature of the indigenes.

No doubt outsiders along with the indigenes made profound contributions in making Lagos what it is now. Its development has been impacted upon by the colonialists who chose it as a capital and made immense investments in infrastructure that made it a befitting capital. Its natural endowment as seaport with a huge interior market also made it the destination for international capital; and hence its emergence as West Africa‘s pre-eminent industrial hub. Its subsequent metamorphosis into a megacity came naturally as people within and outside continue to flock into it in droves seeking fortunes. Among the non-natives who are so visible in Lagos are the Igbos and they are probably more in numbers in Lagos than any other place outside the east. This no doubt has led to demographic shifts in places like Ajegunle, Isolo and Ojo. However, if truth must be told, Lagos remains Yoruba both in origin and present composition. As for the recent ‘jibe‘ on the Igbos attributed to his eminence, the Oba of Lagos, it is unfortunate that most people readily pounced on the Oba without giving even a scant rebuke to the often boorish behaviour of the guests towards the hosts.

No history of Lagos can jettison the roles of such Obas as Kosoko, Dosunmo or Akitoye.The whiteman‘s impact as colonialists during which they lifted up the city can not be easily forgotten. No ethnic group can pride itself as the prime factor in making Lagos progress. What is more; the Ibrus, Dangotes and many of their likes who are non-Igbo have made visible contributions to Lagos and yet have not beaten their chests to the high heavens over their contributions.

Coming to the crux of the matter, it is important to give Ceaser what is Ceaser‘s. While all Nigerians have a stake in Lagos as necessitated by history, that does not eclipse the fact that it has it‘s aborigines. For those of us from up north travelling down to the city, the ubiquity of a particular ethnic group with it‘s distinct culture is easily noticeable particularly as one moves down from Ilorin in Kwara State. If contiguity and propinquity counts, then Lagos has it‘s indigenes and they need acknowledgement by all settlers and visitors alike. While we all have the right to choose where live in one Nigeria, we all must not forget our own corner of the country or succinctly put - our roots.

• Usman Bulama Mairi Village, Maiduguri

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20

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

CARTOON & LETTERS

S

IR: Healthy citizens, make a healthy and wealthy nation.

That is why nations of the world serious about achieving great wealth, prioritizes health matters and devote enormous resources to the sector; from huge financial resources, to ensuring that the sectors’ manpower are kept happy. Over the years, this has not been the case of Nigeria. Despite the volumes of strategic health documents and commitments signed by previous governments (at federal and state levels) to improve health sector funding, the budgetary allocation to the sector still remains low; as medical personnel more than often go on stike actions; hospital wards still lack sufficient facilities and skilled manpower; the sick in many communities especially in the rural villages still travel miles to access medical care; while the supposedly rich in the urban cities spend fortunes to travel abroad in search of better health services. According to fig-

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The change the health sector needs ures quoted by the Nigerian Medical Association, more than 5,000 Nigerian patients travel abroad for medical treatment every year; spending over N120bn ($800m) annually on foreign medical trips.

From the Ebola outbreak, it has become obvious to all, that access to adequate healthcare and sanitation facilities is suppose to be a right to everyone regardless of tribe, economic status, legal position, state or location.

Despite the enourmous resources in Nigeria, recent figures published in World Health Statistics 2014, shows Nigeria dragging positions

with nations recovering and experiecing wars and genocide.

Nigeria records the second highest maternal mortality rate in the world after India. The same applies in the rate of infant and child mortality rates. Medical personnel especially in government hospitals are more than often over stretched; take the furstartion out on patient, and in some cases induced to work negligence, which in many cases have led to the death of patients especially pregnant women and babies. With one midwife attending to over 20 pregnant women, contrary to WHO recommendation

of one to four patients, in hospitals that lack water facilities, medical staffs are not only at the risk of loosing their minds from work overload, but are also at the risk of contacting transmitable diseases depite being owed arrears and under payed by their governments.

There is the need for decisionmakers, faith based organisations and other stakeholder and relevant audience to support and implement actions for the holistic reform of the health sector to reposition the health and developmental need of the people. This can be achieved when stakeholders, especially the

Orphanages and the plight of orphans

S

IR: A major humanitarian and development challenge facing Nigeria and which has hampered the realisation of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) is the increasing number of orphans and vulnerable children in the country. A visit to some of the orphanages in Nigeria shows that the impetus created by Nigeria’s participation of the 2002 West and Central Africa regional workshop on orphans and vulnerable children has since fizzled out.

Although only a small percentage of orphans find their way to the orphanages as most of them finds solace in the homes of family friends or relatives where they often end up being abused in many ways, the government still has to beam it searchlight and lend some support to the orphanages or motherless babies homes as they are often called.

Years of enquires and research have shown that some of the owners of these orphanages/motherless babies homes didn’t set them up because they have enough resources to cater for the orphans and abandoned children but for their

passion for humanity and human survival. After over-stretching or exhausting their resources, many of them have to depend on donations from well-meaning Nigerians and when such donation aren’t forthcoming, they often resort to all manners of activities to keep the orphanages running. Apart from the ones being and operated by some religious bodies that have definite access to regular funding, many of the orphanages/motherless babies homes operators sometimes engage in activities that demeans the very existence of this category of children.

Today, insurgency and HIV/AIDS pandemic have made the problem worse, producing millions of orphans and countless vulnerable children whose rights are being violated as a result of the combined effects of poverty, conflicts, terrorism and gender inequity. The children are left to experience untold economic hardship, lack of love and attention, withdrawal from school, poor health and psychological and emotional difficulties.

Government cannot claim to have achieved most goals of the MDGs

while millions of orphans are still out of school; when more than 40% of Nigerians can hardly feed even once a day due to abject poverty and the health and emotional well-being of orphans and vulnerable children are not prioritized. Ours is a country whose number of orphans, abandoned and vulnerable children keeps increasing almost daily.

Governments at various levels should look beyond the political achievement of MDGs and chart a way forward towards addressing the plight of orphans and abandoned children in this country. As a matter of deliberate policy, the Federal Government should set up a task force through the ministry of social development to liaise with the state ministries social development towards appraising the activities of orphanages/motherless babies’ homes.

Educational support should be provided to them; ditto nutritional support through the provision of cost effective, locally sourced and sustainable nutritional supplements in order to address the nutritional needs of the children.

Individuals and groups operating

and managing orphanages/motherless babies home have done and are still doing their own part of championing the cause of humanity; it is time for governments at various levels help them to help humanity. Corporate bodies, the well-to-do in the society and of course all Nigerians have a role to play at addressing the plight of orphans, abandoned and vulnerable children in our midst.

• Hussain Obaro, Ilorin, Kwara State.

government, pays critical attention to ensuring the full implementation of the relevant laws, acts and signed treaties relating to health sector improvements.

Since 2001, allocation to the health sector has been on the downside. Barely six percent of the aggregate budget annually is allocated to the health sector, despite several re-affirmations by both past and present governments to commit 15% of the national budget to the sector. While South Africa and Ghana have their average percentages of public health expenditure as a total government spending to be 10.8% and 10.7% respectively, Nigeria lingers at 6.5% from 2007 to 2014. There is therefore need for increased budgetary allocation to the health sector as stipulated by the AU Abuja Declaration.

While seeking for other innovative ways of funding the health sector to increase accessibility and affordability, there is also need to fast-track universal access therough health insurance. The in-coming administration will do well to take more proactive approach to providing better working conditions for medial workers.

Finally, while the burden of providing healthcare have been more on the neck of the federal government, citizens need to wake up from the traditional docility and demand for improved health care delivery from the state governments as well as their local government, as staying health is basic to the fundamental right to life we all deserve.

• Donald Ikenna Ofoegbu Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), Abuja.

Re: I will probe missing $20b

S

IR: In my view, General Muhammadu Buhari does not need to advertise how he intends to run his government. I see his promise to probe the missing $20b oil money as unnecessary and unhelpful. It will generate needless controversy and encourage the outgoing government to seek ways of covering its track.

All Nigerians are agreed that NNPC and its subsidiaries need to be probed; whatever questions

need to be asked can then be asked without all this fanfare.

Talking of what needs to be changed, all the Service Chiefs and the National Security Adviser should have their resignation letters ready or it should be President Buhari’s first assignment to replace them. They have failed the nation.

• Abiodun Sopitan Oregun, Ikeja-Lagos.

21

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

COMMENTS

F

OR the first time, I decided to reproduce a previously published article. With the country’s general elections concluded, I reflected on the incoming state governors, particularly Kashim Shettima of Borno State who has been reelected for a second term.

He was my focus in the piece “My Governor of the Year 2013” published on December 30, 2013, which is reproduced here.

It took only 30 minutes for Borno State Governor Kashim Shettima to qualify for the accolade, and his eligibility was perfected in highly remarkable circumstances. Shettima on December 15 reportedly departed from Abuja on a 7pm Arik flight to Lagos, where he was scheduled to participate in three meetings. A little over two hours after he left the federal capital, specifically at 9.15pm, the governor was having dinner at Mummy B Food Canteen, located in Onigbongbo, Maryland, Lagos, which he last visited some 20 years ago.

He was drawn to the local restaurant with only four tables for 10 customers at a time by his love of amala, which he reportedly “missed so much”.

So irresistible was his craving for the particular food, prepared in a particular way, that it was Shettima who gave directions to the official convoy, and he reportedly trekked to the eating spot in the company of two commissioners, his special adviser on media, staff of Borno Laison Office in Lagos and security aides. Interestingly, he was recognised as an old customer by the restaurant owner, Iya Moriya; and for his meal, he insisted on being served with the same kind of plates he was used to two decades ago. By the time he left the place at 9.45pm, word had travelled round the neighbourhood that a VIP was around.

In significant ways, Shettima’s amala activity represents an enlightening metaphor for political leadership in a pluralistic polity. To start with, the 47-year-old leader born in Maiduguri, Borno State, in the country’s northern region, demonstrated that he was ethnically accommodating by his taste for food of a different cultural provenance from his own. Amala is a cultural dish popular among the Yoruba in the country’s Southwest region, and to have a northerner who would readily eat it without discrimination is a plus for Shettima’s pan-Nigerian credentials.

Furthermore, it is commendable that Shettima remembered. Not only did he have a clear memory of the enjoyable taste of the particularamala, he also could recollect the route to the restaurant, even though he had not been there in years. It is striking that he even remembered the plates of yesteryear. More importantly, perhaps, he

Shettima on my mind remembered that he had not always been a governor and that he had a past. His remembrance of things past mirrored his modesty, despite the context of high political office.

In a manner of speaking, Shettima’s interaction with the restaurant workers can be likened to a descent from an Olympian height. It was a rare event that held lessons for the powerful. He certainly could have avoided eating in the lowly restaurant, given the fact that he had people at his beck and call that could have gone there to get a take-away meal for their boss. It is pertinent to wonder at the cost of eating in such a cheap restaurant, when he could have opted for a five-star hotel in the megacity, all at government expense.

What was Iya Moriya’s recipe that made her amala so unforgettable for Shettima? His visit to the eating place must have made her day, not necessarily in financial terms, but on the psychological plane. Shettima returned to her restaurant as a governor, which was something to be proud of; and the happening may well have elevated her profile in the area, apart from giving her understandable bragging rights. By his association with the people, and his electrifying presence, therefore, Shettima scored well.

For the avoidance of doubt, it is relevant to highlight Shettima’s education and exposure for the benefit of the narrow-minded who might consider his behaviour as perhaps informed by possible lack of sophistication. A Masters degree holder in Agricultural Economics from the University of Ibadan, Oyo State, and a former lecturer in

‘More importantly, perhaps, he remembered that he had not always been a governor and that he had a past. His remembrance of things past mirrored his modesty, despite the context of high political office’

I

N the Sunday April 12, edition of the Sunday Vanguard, Obi Nwakanma expressed the view that President Goodluck Jonathan’s ready concession of victory to General Muhammadu Buhari in the March 28, 2015 Presidential elections “has been frankly over-analyzed in the local and international media”. He proceeded to state: “But those of us who are a bit more historically minded should know that concessions have been made in power by those who consider Nigeria far above their personal interest. It is on record that Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe won the 1957 elections, for which the British colonial Governor-General, Sir James Robertson, first setting the standard of electoral manipulations and gerrymandering in Nigeria, invited Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa to come first to head the government at the centre even before the votes had all fully come in 1957 for the first home rule government. Azikiwe conceded and bid his time even though his party (w)as compensated by having the highest number of ministers in 1957 – 60. In the independence elections of 1959, again Azikiwe’s party had the highest plurality of votes nationwide and would very easily have formed the National Government with the Action Group. But against a threat of Northern secession, much like today’s Boko Haram, compelled Azikiwe to agree to join the Northern People Party in a “government of national unity”, one from which Awo’s Action Group opted out, but which along the road torpedoed the AG in due course”.

All the foregoing statements and claims by Nwakanma are most incorrect. It is curious and worrisome that such grotesque falsification of Nigeria’s political history was made by someone who claimed to be “more historically minded”.

It is also unnecessary and avoidable because the facts are available and easily accessible in various documents at the National Archives. They were also published in the 5th Edition of Nigeria: A Complete Fact-finder in 2004. It is very important to correct the falsehood presented by Nwakanma because, for far too long, the public especially our youth have been fed with lies about Nigeria’s history, and this has promoted disaffection among our communities. The correct relevant facts may be summarized as follows: In 1951 the Macpherson constitution was proclaimed, and led to elections in the newly created Houses of Assembly which ushered in participation by Nigerians in governance all over the groups of provinces.

On January 29, 1952 the Federal House of Representatives met for the first time with members selected by and from the Houses of Assembly, and the House of Chiefs in Ibadan and Kaduna. Regional governments were set-up in the groups of provinces and were controlled by the NCNC (East), NPC (North) and AG (West). Four Central Ministers were appointed from each of the three regions.

On March 30, 1953 Anthony Enahoro(AG) moved a private member’s motion for Nigeria to become independent in 1956.

Alhaji Bello (Sardauna of Sokoto and leader of the NPC) moved an amendment to replace “1956” with “as soon as possible”. This led to uproar in the House, and the Governor, Sir John Macpherson, threatened to sack any minister who participated in the debate. In reaction to this, the four AG

the same subject at the University of Maiduguri, Borno State, and a one-time top-level banker, he served as Commissioner of the Borno State Ministry of Finance and Economic Development and Commissioner in the Ministries of Local Governments and Chieftaincy Affairs, Education, Agriculture and later Health before his election as governor in 2011 on the platform of the then All Nigeria People’s Party (ANPP), which this year merged with others to form the All Progressives Congress (APC).

It is significant that Shettima governs the terrorised Borno State, which is currently under emergency rule imposed by the federal government, along with Adamawa and Yobe states, in a controversial anti-terror measure specifically introduced to check the murderously rampaging Islamic religionists known as Boko Haram. It is a reflection of his sensitivity that he lately overlooked his personal security in a visit to Bama local government area of the state, which is officially regarded as exposed to Boko Haram insurgents and the scene of carnage in recent times. At the palace of the Shehu of Bama, Alhaji Kyari Ibrahim El-Kanemi, where he donated N100 million toward the rehabilitation of terror victims in the community, Shettima said momentously, “I took an oath of office as the governor two years ago to work for the people devoid of ethnic, religious and political affiliations. That is why it becomes a duty for us to share in your moments of grief.”

It is noteworthy that his gesture tellingly contrasts with the rather detached attitude of the central administration on the contentious issue of compensation for casualties of the mayhem.

In another defining instance, Shettima demonstrated understanding leadership during an unscheduled visit to Gen. Mohammadu Shuwa Memorial Hospital in Maiduguri, where he donated blood to an expectant mother in need of transfusion. According to the Commissioner for Health, Dr Salma Kolo, “The governor was disturbed by the condition of the woman and wanted to help. He later discovered through the medical attendants that his blood group matched that of the woman, so he decided to help out.”

Remarkably, in these days of self-described professional politicians who go to extreme lengths to remain politically relevant, it is food for thought that Shettima has a vision of his post-governorship years. “I have a Masters degree, but after the political interregnum I wish to go back and get a PhD so that one can become a true intellectual in the real sense,” he said, while receiving the governing council of the University of Maiduguri (UNIMAID) in his office.

In the end, there seems to be a fine quality to his personality that should naturally dovetail with good governance. Regrettably, his story is the stuff of fantasy in the real world of the country’s largely unfeeling politicians.

Give Jonathan his due

By Kayode Oyediran & Adetowo Aderemi members (Oba Adesoji Aderemi, Chief S.L. Akintola, Chief Bode Thomas and Chief Arthur Prest) walked out of the chamber and resigned their appointments. Their NCNC colleagues from the East also walked out of the chamber but did not resign from the cabinet. A constitutional crisis ensued.

When it was not possible to replace the AG ministers Mr. Oliver Lyttleton, then British Secretary for the Colonies, came to Lagos to try to resolve the impasse. After a series of meetings in Lagos and London, adjustments were made to the 1951 Macpherson constitution which resulted in the creation of semi-autonomous regions (each with its own constitution, coat of arms etc), and a new Federal Constitution which took effect from October 1, 1954.

The Federal House of Representatives with members selected from the regions was dissolved, and direct elections into a new House were held on October 11, 1954 throughout the country. In the Western Region, the NCNC won 23 seats as against 18 seats for the AG. That was the first time in Nigeria that a political party lost elections in region where it was in power. It is important to emphasize that the regional assemblies were not dissolved, so the AG’s control of the Western Regional government was not affected. The defeat of the AG in the federal elections in the region was a result of opposition to the introduction of the Capitation Tax in 1953 in order to generate funds for the Free Education programme which was scheduled to begin in January 1955. However the AG won the subsequent regional elections held in May 1956, some 18 months after the start of the free education scheme, with 49 seats to NCNC’s 31.

Because it won the October 1954 elections in the Eastern and Western regions, it was the NCNC that nominated ministers to represent both regions in the Federal government – Raymond Njoku, Kingsley Mbadiwe and Matthew Mbu from the East, and Adegoke Adelabu, Kola Balogun and Festus Okotie-Eboh from the West. The NPC nominated Tafawa Balewa, Inuwa Wada and Mohammadu Ribadu from the North. Balewa became primus inter pares because his party had the highest number of 79 seats in the House, while the NCNC had 56 seats, the AG 23, and others had a total of 17 seats.

On August 5, 1957 self-government was granted to the Eastern and Western Regions; the Northern Region declined because it was not ready for it – in a dramatic announcement on August 30, 1957 the Governor-General, Sir James Robertson (who had succeeded Macpherson in 1954) named Balewa as Prime Minister to head a broad-based National Government which would midwife Nigeria’s independence.

No Elections were held in 1957. Contrary to Nwakanma’s

claim, there was nothing like Azikiwe conceding the prime minister-ship to Balewa. Balewa’s cabinet was a carryover from the 1954 elections with Malam Bukar Dipscharima replacing Inuwa Wada, Aja Wachukwu replacing Mbu, and J.M. Johnson replacing Adegoke Adelabu. In addition S. L. Akintola and Ayo Rosiji were appointed into the broad-based national government.

The next elections into the Federal House of Representatives were held on December 12, 1959. Whereas Awolowo and Azikiwe resigned as Premier of their respective regions to vie for seats in the Federal House, the Sardauna did not.

Chief Akintola and Dr. Michael Okpara took over as Premier of the Western and Eastern Regions respectively. In the elections the NPC won 134 seats, NCNC/NEPU 89 seats, AG 73 seats and Others 16 seats. Thus no political party had the simple majority to form a new government.

The leadership of the AG sought an alliance with the NCNC but the latter preferred to team-up with the NPC. In the ensuing horse-trading, Balewa retained his position as Prime Minister and Azikiwe emerged as Governor-General at independence in 1960, a post which proved to be ceremonial. Azikiwe did not and could not have conceded anything to Balewa whose party won 45 more seats than the NCNC/NEPU. President Jonathan’s concession of victory to General Buhari before the official announcement by INEC is the first such occurrence in Nigeria whether at the federal, regional or state level. He must be given due credit for this irrespective of whatever analysis by any individual or group at local international level.

Dr. Azikiwe never conceded electoral victory to anyone at any time. On the contrary, despite incontrovertible documentary evidence, persistent lies have continued to be peddled about the 1951 elections in Western Nigeria which the NCNC lost to the AG. Some of the admirers of Dr. Azikiwe should note that inadvertent or deliberate distortion of Nigeria’s political history tarnish rather than burnish his legacy.

• Prof. Oyediran, former Vice-Chancellor, University of Ibadan and Prince Aderemi, wrote from Ibadan.

‘Azikiwe never conceded electoral victory to anyone at any time. On the contrary, despite incontrovertible documentary evidence, persistent lies have continued to be peddled about the 1951 elections in Western Nigeria which the NCNC lost to the AG. Some of the admirers of Dr. Azikiwe should note that inadvertent or deliberate distortion of Nigeria’s political history tarnish rather than burnish his legacy’

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

22

COMMENTS

S

OMEHOW, we have been able to muddle through the 2015 general elections. Muddle through? Yes. They ran their full cycle penultimate Saturday with the reruns in the three states of Abia, Imo and Taraba. Whether the current situation is thrust upon us by luck, contrivance or some other extenuating circumstances, the results of those contests have been announced and general peace is anticipated to reign supreme.

With it, all predictions of cataclysm by doomsday prophets appear to have come to naught. Nigeria has again, been saved from itself given the charged atmosphere and intemperate campaign language deployed by the parties as they sought to take control of the minds of the electorate.

There is relief that there is another opportunity for us to once again, give democracy a chance. There is another chance for the country to correct itself if democracy must survive as a development paradigm. That appears the pervading feeling given the shortcomings of the process that brought about our current situation.

To borrow the euphemism within our sports circles, we have wobbled and fumbled and ultimately gotten to our final destination- the conduct of ‘successful’ elections. It is a different kettle of fish how we got there.

The above allegory was popularized some years back when our Super Eagles serially disappointed Nigerian sports enthusiasts due to lacklustre performance but ultimately managed to qualify for semi-finals and finals in continental competitions.

Though they managed to qualify for further engagements, it was obvious the nation’s football was doomed if wobbling and fumbling was the strategy of its handlers to give the nation a first rate football team. Soon, it dawned on us that our national football game could no longer survive by trials and errors as denoted by this catchphrase.

‘We can only secure its future when politicians are compelled to play by the rules and errant ones made to face the full weight of the law’

T

Emeka OMEIHE 08112662675 email: EmekaOmeihe@yahoo.com

2015 elections: A postscript The fate of our national football today is symptomatic of how deficient the absence of clear performance standards and non adherence to rules can be in institutionalizing a lazy football culture in this country. Today, the Super Eagles plays without many Nigerians bothering about the outcome. Such is the scenario that is about to re-enact at the political level in matters concerning elections unless clear steps are taken to ensure that the will of the people as expressed at the ballot box prevails. The way things stand much is still awry with our electoral process.

A peep into those reruns depicts a galore of complaints by the runners-up. In Taraba State, the APC candidate, Aisha Alhassan rejected the result describing the entire process as “daylight robbery” She alleged that the election was marred by violence, massive rigging, ballot snatching and abuse of the card readers in substantial parts of the state. The APGA and PDP in Abia and Imo have respectively complained of sundry infractions that detract substantially from known standards of free, fair and credible elections. The parties alleged incidences of manipulation and changing of election results by INEC staff among other malpractices. In the days ahead, many of the complainants will be proceeding to the election petitions tribunals to seek justice. We hope justice will come their way.

The case of the three states is symbolic in more ways than one. Being the three states where governorship reruns were held, they mirror very vividly all that went wrong during the general elections. Whatever assessment we have of their outcome can be used as

HE victory of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its ‘change’ mantra has brought with it a huge burden of expectations from Nigerians. However, before the presidential elections and its aftermath - especially the euphoria of ousting an incumbent president becloud the important tasks that lies ahead, it is imperative that the full import of this seismic shift be appreciated by all Nigerians. This article is therefore a call to action by all Nigerians towards ensuring that true change is delivered, as the Nigerian public may soon realize that change without substance is utterly useless!

I believe the notion of change and harnessing the multifaceted expectations of many Nigerians regarding what it means, is the biggest challenge that the President-elect and his party now needs to focus their attention on, rather than the more egregious issues of patronage as our political class is wont to engage once elections are won.

A look at the APC manifesto reveals a shopping list of broad policy statements, without enough punch and clarity as to how the expectations of Nigerians will be met and managed in key public policy areas. Education, health, the economy, job creation and youth employment all have broad policy statements that stop short of being mere rhetoric and a little ‘more of the same’ story from previous administrations.

In my view, managing citizen expectations in the next four years will be tough considering that in its current form, the President-elect and his party’s manifesto have offered no new benchmarks for delivering on the change promised during the campaigns.

This call for a more strategic approach to meeting citizen expectations stems from the fact that leadership performance in the public sector is an ambiguous, multi-dimensional and complex concept for which there are two main classes of performance measures – output and outcome measures.

Output measures relate to public agencies’ organizational efficiency (output) – how many kilometres of road are constructed, how many more new schools/hospitals do we have for defined amounts of Naira budget etc., while effectiveness (outcome) measures are in terms of the ease of access, and quality of public goods and services received by citizens – how long does it take to see a doctor, student teacher ratios or other citizen satisfaction effects, to mention a few.

The critical point these issues raise is that for the new administration to successfully manage the expectation of citizens and be seen to have ‘performed’, it must clearly articulate a service delivery strategy that converts its current ‘shopping list’ into a measurable set of service standards for which citizens are able to hold it accountable for performance. This is no mean feat, and requires a commitment from both the incoming government and the people working together as critical stakeholders to achieve a stable

a fair measure of the outcome of the elections preceding them. Moreover, given their limited number, the minimum expectation was that malpractices of any hue would not feature as the INEC will deploy its surplus human and material resources to ensure a more successful outcome. If they did so, it failed to achieve the desired result as attested to by these complaints.

If such irregularities including connivance

by INEC officials can manifest in the manner alleged in these supplementary elections, it then stands to be imagined what transpired during the general election when the commission’s resources were stretched to their fullest. That should give us an idea of how credible the outcome of the elections had been. It will also form the basis for any assessment of the performance of that electoral body.

From all accounts, the elections were marred by large scale malpractices in many areas. Sundry killings, under age voting, manipulation and falsification of results, snatching of ballot boxes and collusion by INEC officials at all levels of the election were some of the unwholesome features recorded.

The source of these shortcomings can be grouped into two broad categories – the ones committed by politicians and their supporters and those wrought on us by INEC officials. But by far the most worrisome of them is the latter. These are people employed and paid by the government for this and other related functions. Instead of doing the work for which they are paid, INEC officials have

become the greatest cog in the wheels of the successful conduct of elections. Many of them see elections as the ripe time to make quick money. They invent sundry subterfuge to manipulate election results to satisfy politicians and line their pockets.

That is why you hear of fake or duplicate result sheets being supplied to the polling and collation centres while the authentic ones are given out to politicians in exchange for money. With such connivance, all a politician needed to do is to sit back at home and enter whatever results that suits him and return same to the unscrupulous INEC official who in turn, submits them as authentic results. That is the genesis of the phenomenon of falsification of election results. There was much of it in the last general elections.

When you place this sabotage of the electoral process by those whose duty it is to conduct free and fair elections side by side the penchant by our politicians to win by fair or foul means, the prospects it paints for the survival of democracy is very gloomy. Yes, by whatever contrivance, we have managed to muddle through, we can as well beat our chests and say democracy has come to stay in this country.

But that would amount to an oversimplification of extant realities given events of the last elections. Perhaps, the relative peace we are now savouring is because the presidential election went the way it did despite some of these lapses. Had there been some dispute as witnessed at other levels of elections, the story may have been another thing altogether.

For now, there is no guarantee that in subsequent elections, there will be this ‘spirit of give peace a chance’ in the face of observed lapses. If the attitude of politicians and those of INEC officials as witnessed in these elections is anything to go by, there are still thorns sown on the path to our democracy. We can only secure its future when politicians are compelled to play by the rules and errant ones made to face the full weight of the law.

INEC officials fingered in falsifying, manipulating and selling of authentic results sheets must be identified and punished. Such official have become the greatest threat to the successful conduct of elections. We have muddled through. But wobbling and fumbling will soon turn out a defective approach to institutionalizing democracy in this country. There is still serious work to do to restore the confidence of the people in the sanctity of the electoral process.

Change and the burden of expectations

By Akin Oke society in a complex governance environment.

Achieving desired governance outputs and outcomes requires that pertinent questions regarding Nigeria’s fiscal federalism be re-examined and appropriate answers demanded at every level of government. This evaluation is critical in view of the political economy of public service delivery in Nigeria which places different governance outputs in the different domains in our supposed three tiers of government (Federal, State and Local government).

The implication of this lopsided federalism is a lack of clear delineation in accountability for specific service delivery outputs which has resulted in critical sectors of national life being left in ‘no man’s land’. A case in point is the national road safety and management strategy that leaves Nigerian roads in the unenviable position of being the third most unsafe roads in the world – according to a recent WHO Global status report on road safety. When this statistic is juxtaposed against the multiplicity of functions between the state governments-led Vehicle Inspection Services (VIO) and the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC), it becomes clear that inefficiencies in public sector agencies account for an unprecedented burden of service failure, from which no nation can extricate itself unless radical changes in public accountability are implemented.

An unbundling of service delivery bottlenecks within the complex layers of our peculiar federal state will be key to successful change in all the sectors of our national life begging for change. This should inform a restructuring of the civil services in a way that aligns national priorities with specific agency mandates. Parallel and duplicating functions that abound in our current public service agencies and remain avenues for inefficiency of production must be tackled with the same zeal as corruption and insecurity.

In reality, the changes desired by the Nigerian populace can only be delivered when services delivered within the public sector (both civil and public services) reflect a harmonization of the yearnings and expectations of citizens from government at all levels. How effectively the new governing party achieves this marriage of expectations and bridge the gaps will determine its success as change agents.

Putting service delivery at the heart of governance reflects an understanding that the perception of government/ governance effectiveness, is directly related to the experience of citizens when they access or are unable to access public goods and services. Unfortunately in Nigeria, this connection has in recent times been reduced to ‘stomach infrastructure’ – made available only during electioneering seasons. This is where the real change must happen for governance to be meaningful, in spite of high sounding numbers about economic growth and perceived national prosperity that leaves the poor feeling poorer. Effective and efficient service delivery is the magic glue that closes the expectation gap between government and the governed.

In order to succeed in its change agenda, the APC and the President-elect in actualizing their defined objective of instituting a set of ‘progressive social welfare programmes’ must seek to build a more robust public accountability framework under which each layer of government can be held accountable for failure of service delivery.

It is only by setting clear performance standards in policy implementation; standards derived from wide consultations with citizens as critical stakeholders, that the new administration will set a new bar for meeting citizen expectations which currently range from the most simple, to sometimes unrealistic demands.

•Oke is Executive Director, Centre for Sustainable Leadership

‘For the new administration to successfully manage the expectation of citizens and be seen to have ‘performed’, it must clearly articulate a service delivery strategy that converts its current ‘shopping list’ into a measurable set of service standards for which citizens are able to hold it accountable for performance. This is no mean feat, and requires a commitment from both the incoming government and the people, working together as critical stakeholders to achieve a stable society in a complex governance environment’

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THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

BUSINESS THE NATION

E-mail:- bussiness@thenationonlineng.net

JOBS

THE CEO

Creating wealth, jobs with charcoal - P. 35 News Brief PenOp pays N260b to retirees THE Pension Fund Operators Association of Nigeria (PenOp) said its members, through the scheme, has paid N260 billion to retirees since it was inaugurated over a decade ago.

–Page 26

Mansard posts N17.4b gross premium MANSARD Insurance Group has recorded gross premium income of N17.4 billion in the financial year end December 31, 2014, from N13.59 billion recorded in 2013, indicating a 28 percent increase.

–Page 26

CBN holds AMCON bonds worth N3.80tr

2015 better year for SMEs, says BoI boss - P. 37

SEC: Evaluation of firms’ audit members coming P UBLIC limited liability companies would soon be required to conduct yearly evaluation of the individual members of their audit committee, according to new rules being proposed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The audit committee is a statutory body that is empowered by the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) to scrutinise the management and independent audit reports of a company. The audit committee comprises equal number of appointees by the board of directors and shareholders at their yearly general meeting.

A draft amendment to the rules on the audit committee mainly focuses on the institution of yearly evaluation and independence of audit committee members.

According to the new rules,

By Taofik Salako

the yearly evaluation will be used as criteria for future eligibility for re-election as member of the audit committee.

Public companies would now compulsorily be required to put in place a mechanism for the annual performance evaluation of their audit committee and the individual members of such committees.

The performance evaluation system would include criteria and key performance indicators and targets for the audit committee as well as for the individual members of such committee. Besides, the performance evaluation of the audit committee and the indi-

vidual members shall be independent.

“The performance evaluation of the Audit Committee and the Individual members shall be used as part of the criteria for determining eligibility for annual re-election,” according to the draft.

Also, every existing audit member would have to successfully scale through annual performance evaluation that includes key performance indicators and targets set by the company in order to be eligible for re-election.

Any public company that violates any provision of the rules and regulations on audit committee shall be liable to a penalty of not less than N100,000 and a further sum of not more than N5,000

for every day of default.

Besides, the new draft stipulates that a prospective member of the audit committee of a public company shall be independent.

The descriptive definition of independence, according to the rules, includes that the prospective member must not be a substantial shareholder of the company. His direct and indirect shareholding must not exceed 0.1 per cent of the company’s paid up capital. The prospective member must also not be a representative of a shareholder that has the ability to control or significantly influence management and such prospective member must not have been employed by the company or the group of which it currently forms part, or has served in any executive capacity in the company or group for the preceding three financial years.

THE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is the only holder of a six per cent 2023 Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) bond worth N3.80 trillion, its Deputy Governor, Financial System Stability, Dr. O.J. Nnanna has said.

–Page 31

DATA STREAM COMMODITY PRICES Oil Cocoa

$54/barrel $2,686.35/metric ton

Coffee

¢132.70/pound

Cotton

¢95.17pound

Gold

$1,396.9/troy

Sugar

$163/lb RATES

Inflation

8.4%

Treasury Bills 10.58%(91d) Maximum lending 30% Prime lending

15.87%

Savings rate

3%

91-day NTB

15%

Time Deposit

5.49%

MPR

13%

Foreign Reserve

$34.5b

• Guest Speaker,/Chairman, Standard Chartered Bank Nigeria Ltd, Sir Remi Omotoso; 1st Vice President, Institute of Directors Nigeria (IoD), Mr. Yemi Akeju and President/Chairman of Council, Chief Eniola Fadayomi, during the induction of new members into the institute at Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos.

PHOTO: BIODUN ADEYEWA

Why fuel scarcity persists, by MOMAN chief

D

ILEMMA and not politics is a major reason behind the decision of the major oil marketers to shut their operation nationwide over unpaid N362billion subsidy arrears, the Executive Secretary Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) Olufemi Olawore has said.

Speaking in Lagos, Olawore said the decision of the marketers to go on strike was not borne out of politics as many Nigerians are thinking, but out of the need to choose between two or more varying, but difficult choices before the group.

By Akinola Ajibade

He said major marketers such as Mobil, ConOil, MRS, Forte Oil, Oando, and Total after evaluating the situations in the industry, have to choose between keeping quiet by not asking for the money and in the process, allow their businesses to crumble, or going on strike and get the Federal Government to pay its debt.

He said the issue of going on strike was a hard choice to make in view of its socioeconomic implications to the country that is struggling to survive.

He said the country is

transiting from one government to another, adding that the development poses a threat to the ability of marketers to recover the N362billion debt.

He said: “Marketers do not know where to stand in view of the political situations in Nigeria. Are we going to wait for the incoming government of Gen Muhammadu Buhari(rtd) to pay money or the outgoing government of President Goodluck Jonathan to pay the debt it is owing. This is a question that is proving our mind. But we believe that it is better to recover our debt from the government that owes us.’’

He said beyond the payment of subsidy arrears to the mar-

keters by the Federal Government, is the issue of promoting efficiency in the nation’s oil and gas sector.

According to him, the industry is not operating at optimal level due to problems such as poor output of the refineries, destruction of oil facilities, and others. This, Olawore said, informed the decision of MOMAN to advocate for deregulation of the industry.

He said the MOMAN is coning up with what he described as’ a crack team on deregulation’ to critically examine the issue of deregulation vis-à-vis its merits and demerits to the economy.

Multinationals threaten oil palm farmers

By Daniel Essiet

A

LOT of communities could lose more than just land as more organisations invest in oil palm, to improve local economic opportunity and reduce poverty.

Deputy Director, Department of General Adminstration, Agricultural and Rural Management Institute(ARMTI),Dr Ademola Adeyemo,said though oil palm cultivation will create jobs, the negative effects in terms of ecology can be massive.

His concern is that small scale producers may lose land to large multinationals.

According to him,oil palm is major raw material for foods, cosmetics, soaps and pharmaceuticals an this required expansion projects to meet industrial demand.

Agreeing that the country needs to increase oil palm production to double production, Adeyemo said efforts should made to assure s rapid expansion don’t affect the host communities.

He said so many communities are going to lost access to the land that they traditionally used. As land became more commercially valued, he said large investors migrants began to take control of it, while promised infrastructural improvements for locals will fail to arrive.

With the opening of the oil palm estates, he said seasonal farming land would become limited; clean water scarcer during the dry season; increased erosion and flooding in the region and air pollution wouldn increased due to land-clearing fires; while there would be s higher incidence of disease.

He urged the government to ensure communities who depend on the forests are compensated .

According to him, farming palm oil is challenging—cultivation, harvesting, transporting and marketing palm oil products can be costly, especially when harvesting costs increase as the palms age.

Though oil palm farming would improve the quality of life for many stakeholders in the industry, he noted that that further expansion needs to be transparent and take into account the needs of local communities.

If oil palm expansion schemes are seen as a way to further alleviate poverty and create economic opportunity, he said land also needs to be set aside for k communities to continue their lives.

To prevent further deforestation and land degradation, he said development efforts should focus on regenerating old plantations and introducing higher yielding varieties.

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BUSINESS NEWS Internet tool for employment, others, says Spectranet’s chief

Mansard posts N17.4b gross premium

By Omobola Tolu-Kusimo

M

ANSARD Insurance Group has recorded gross pre mium income of N17.4 billion in the financial year end December 31, 2014, from N13.59 billion recorded in 2013, indicating a 28 percent increase.

Its net premium also grew by 20 per cent to close at N9.05 billion as against N7.54 billion in the previous year.

Underwriting income appreciated 79 per cent from N1.89 billion in 2013 to N3.38 during the period under review, while investment income and other incomes slide marginally by three per cent to close at N3.60 billion.

Mansard however closed the year with a profit before tax of N2.02 billion from N1.98 billion in 2013, while the profit after tax stood at N1.53 billion from N2.09 billion the previous year.

The drop in profit the company explained was due to expenses resulting from acquisition as well as business expansion, which gave rise to more agency offices called Mansard welcome Centres.

However, the company’s shareholders who were excited at the coming into the company of AXA group, a global insurance giant with presence in 56 countries, 160 million employees and 102 million clients, believe that it places Mansard on global business map for competitive edge.

Some of the shareholders who spoke during the company’s 23 Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Lagos expressed satisfaction with the expansion project, which they stated positions the firm for more growth in the near future.

Chairman of the Company, Victor Osibodu said Mansard stands to benefit from limitless access to global resources, capacity development and stronger global recognition, most especially in the corporate space.

He said: “I am very confident that these factors will transcend into better service delivery and product innovation that will deliver unequaled solutions to our esteemed customers and translate into increased returns for all shareholders.”

Govt inaugurates investment tech promotion office From Franca Ochigbo, Abuja

T

HE Federal Government has inaugurated the United Na tions Industrial Development Organisation’s (UNIDO’s) first global Technology and Investment Promotion Office (TIPO) in Nigeria.

The establishment of the Nigeria ITPO, the first in sub-Saharan Africa, is a product of the discussions and negotiations between the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr. Olusegun Aganga, and the UNIDO Director-General, Mr. Li Yong, in June, last year, on the desirability of establishing the office in Nigeria.

Aganga, who spoke during the inauguration of the office in Abuja, said the establishment of Nigeria TIPO signified UNIDO’s confidence in the economy, as the long term objective of establishing the office is to drive rapid industrial development, create jobs and expand the industrial base of the country and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) region.

He said: “Today, we are making history as we inaugurate the first TIPO in Africa to be located in Lagos, Nigeria.

This is a sign of UNIDO’s confidence in the Nigerian economy and the Nigeria Industrial Revolution Plan (NIRP). In June 2014, I officially requested UNIDO’s contribution to the implementation of the (NIRP) and the National Enterprise Development Programme (NEDEP), by setting up an ITPO in Nigeria. I am delighted that that request has been granted, and it is one of my many parting gifts to my country.

By Lucas Ajanaku

T

• From left: Healthcare Sector Lead, Access Bank, Chinyere Bishop-Adigwe; Head, Inclusive Banking, Ope WemiJones; Head Strategic Brand Management, Amaechi Okobi; and Managing Director, Pathcare Laboratories, Pamela Ajayi, during the workshop for women in healthcare, by the Wa Women Banking Initiative of Access Bank in Lagos.

PenOp pays N260b to retirees

T

HE Pension Fund Operators Association of Nigeria (PenOp) said its members, through the scheme, has paid N260 billion to retirees since it was inaugurated over a decade ago.

It, therefore, urged organisations that have still not joined the scheme to do so in the interest of the future of their workers.

Its Executive Secretary, Susan Oranye, who spoke during this year’s May Day celebration at the Onikan Stadium, Lagos, said the essence of PenOp’s involvement in the May Day celebration was to celebrate the Nigerian workers, celebrate the hard work that Nigerians go through every day and to encourage them to prepare for the future.

She said: “The contributory pension scheme, which has existed for about 11 years, has recorded successes. About N260billion has been paid to retirees from inception to March 20 this year. As at last year, we had 5.5million contributors in the contributory pension scheme, it has gone up by 6.4 and we have just ended the first quarter.

“As you are work very hard today, you must remember that there will be a time when you can’t work as hard as you work today. When you retire and your salary stops coming in, you will still need to cater for some other needs. That is

• Urges more firms into scheme

By Adedeji Ademigbuji

the essence of having a pension.”

She further explained that it is eight per cent of the worker’s basic salary, housing and transport and the employer is required and employers are to match it with 10 per cent of that same emolument and that goes into employee’s account.

Oranye noted that the informal sector contributes to the bulk of the Nigerian economy which cannot be ignored adding that there has to be a framework that caters for the uniqueness of the sector.

She assured that the National Pension Commission (PenCom) and PenOp are collaborating and working very hard on a framework that will accommodate the informal sector, so that everybody that works will have the opportunity to set up a retirement savings account. The framework is being discussed among the operators, stakeholders and the PenCom. Speaking on the compliance rate, she said: “The population of Nigeria is approximately 172million people and half of this makeup the working population, which is 80million people, with 6.4 currently in the contributory pension

scheme. This she said is a huge success.

“In the Pension Reform Act 2014, compliance is a major issue. Employers are demanded by the law to set up retirement savings account for their employees and make sure they remit. For those employers who do not comply, the National Pension Commission has recovery agents that will track them down. Any employer who does not comply will be held liable by the law,” she added.

Oranye however said there are still so many people who need to be educated, not just about pension but about financial literacy and PenOp is actively involved in seeing that people are educated.

“We are also involved in the National Financial Inclusion System, where we are trying to increase the level of financial literacy across the country and it is our core responsibility to raise the awareness. We arrange forums with the media and employers in different locations to get people educated and let them know what it is all about,” she said.

PenOp provides financial security in retirement, is of the view that employees deserve to be looked after and for the employees to be productive enough to grow the business, the employer has to put their future and wellbeing into consideration by providing the employees with their pension.

NLC: public officers must be accountable

T

HE Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has said public offic ers must be accountable to the people that elected them, arguing that they should learn a lesson from the last general elections through which the people spoke with their permanent voter cards (PVCs) and sacked a non-performing government.

The workers also added that the election is a warning that the era of impunity is over in the country.

Speaking during this year’s May Day celebration in Abuja, President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, said the achievements of Gen Buhari’s government would depend on the manner in which his administration immediately hits the ground, post-inauguration; to deliver the change it promised Nigerians.

‘On the part of the NLC, we are already working towards the presentation of our views on the state of the nation and our perspectives on how we can all move forward together as a nation. We look forward to presenting our positions to General Buhari when we eventually meet with him as soon as he

By Toba Agboola

assumes office. However, we must seize this moment to make pronouncement on a few urgent national issues,” he said.

Wabba said the social challenges facing the Nigerian workers are many but it appears that most compelling are uncertainties in the work place.

He said many Nigerian workers are no longer sure of the commitment of employers to the fundamental work place principle of timely and adequate pay for work done.

He said: “The gale of unpaid salary arrears in different public and private establishments has only compounded the perennial injustice of poor compensation for the sweat and blood of Nigerian workers. To crown frustrations faced by the average worker in Nigeria is the overt and covert threat of retrenchment devoid of reasonable social benefit or retirement plans. Delay and outright refusal by some states and federal agencies to pay the gratuities and

pension of our retirees have forced our older colleagues into an undignified post work life. This is most unfortunate, reprehensible, abominable and condemnable.”

He said the nation at the moment is confronted with daunting socio-economic challenges underscored by mounting unemployment, appalling infrastructural deficit, unprecedented cost in governance and corruption, abysmal poverty, and insecurity, among others.

“The fact that our national economy is almost prostrate is no longer news. The fall in the price of crude oil in the international market, the gross mismanagement of our national resources by the political class and their cronies in the private sector and the failure of successive Nigerian governments to build critical infrastructure that can support the diversification of the national economy have all contributed to the construction of our narrative of economic woes,” he said.

HE Chief Executive Officer, Spectranet, David Venn, has said the internet has opened a new vista of opportunities for youths who not only use the platform to access information and entertainment but also as a veritable tool for job creation/employment.

He said many people now have an opportunity to work for organisations outside the country from their homes.

Venn, who spoke on the sideline during the unveiling of the 4G internet service provider’s new logo in Lagos, said: “Consumers all over the world including Nigeria are increasingly embracing the internet as the next revolution in gaining access to information and entertainment, deepening social relationships as an alternative to traditional means of communication and directly making their voices heard in public debates.

“Spectranet’s customers use our services not only to access their emails and browse the internet but also to communicate through social media platforms such as Facebook, Twiiter and Skype. They watch videos on Youtube, play multi-player games across the world. They also watch full feature movies or a world class chef prepare a recipe. Families are using broadband service to do this every day and the internet is fast becoming an essential part of modern family life.”

He said the new logo conveys a vibrant, warm, bright yet humble strong and friendly outlook. It represents the relationship, knowledge, technology and most importantly humility to connect every one of our customers to their world.

The navy blue font coveys the attribute associated with the intrinsic value of the new essence of Spectranet-strong, uncomplicated, clean, modern, sincere, friendly, down to earth and made unique enough to stand on its own and be recognisable.

While the icon suggests dynamic movement and represents a number of different things ranging from relationship, connectivity, family, bridge, speed, go live and others. All the elements work together to create a fresh outlook and together represents our connection to the future.

In commemoration of the logo change, the firm said it is offering one CPE (indoor) modem to customers at N12000 with 5gigabytes free data or one CPE (indoor) modem at N16000 and get 30 gigabyte if free data.

He said if a customer buys one portable MIFI at N16000, the customer automatically gets 20 gigabytes of data free.

He said further that customers on its network will continue to enjoy roll-over of unused data when they recharge.

He said the recently concluded elections in the country is an example of what good the internet could do as citizens watch live television programmes on their mobile phones, exchange information as it unfolded at the various polling stations across the country.

“Nigerians across the globe glued to online TV to gain access to up-to-minute information about the elections. Internet has become part of our lifestyle in Nigeria and we can see its impact felt in almost every facet of our lives. The individual is now a major player in the happenings around him, powered by information communication technology (ICT),’’ he said.

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SPECIAL REPORT

World Bank’s $500m facility: improving maternal, child healthcare in Nigeria

T

HE Board of Executive Directors of the World Bank Group, last month, ap proved a $500 million International Development Association (IDA) credit forNigeria.

The IDA is the window of the World Bank which offers grants and low- to zero-interest rate loans for projects and programmes that boost economic growth, reduce poverty, and improve standard of living. The facility granted Nigeria was designed to bring about significant improvements in maternal, child, and nutrition health services for women and children in the country.

Domestic reforms aimed at improving cogent primary healthcareindicators in the country and engagements with multilateral funding agencies and donors fructified the credit. In 2012, Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg of Norway and Chelsea Clinton, in her capacity as Board Member of Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), arrived in Nigeria to join President GoodluckJonathan and (then) Honourable Minister of State for Health,Dr. Muhammad Ali Pate, to launch theSaving One Million Lives (SOML) initiative with support from CHAI. The rationale for the initiative was that in Nigeria, an estimated one million mothers and children die each year from preventable causes. As a result, the Federal Ministry of Health decided to set new goals to improve quality healthcare from 2013 and save the lives of Nigerian mothers and children.

Health sector experts and stakeholders credit Dr. Pate as the initiator of the SOML initiative.He had come into Nigeria’s healthcare limelight following his trailblazing work at the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA),where he served asthe Executive Director from 2008 to 2011. Prior to his appointment, Nigeria was one of the four polio endemic PAIN countries; the others being Pakistan, Afghanistan and India. Dr.Pate tackled the polio epidemic headlong. By June 2009, he had instigated a grassroots-oriented campaign of engaging respected traditional rulers in the North, under the leadership of the Sultan of Sokoto, to assist with delivery of the immunisation programme messages in combination with the development of an effective primary healthcare system. A decade earlier, the national immunisation programme had suffered severe setbacks, especially in the North.

The effectiveness of the strategic approach adopted by Dr. Pate caught the attention of the international and local stakeholders in less than two yearsof his appointment. In 2010, incidences of the Wild Polio Virus (WPV) fell to only 11 cases from a staggering figure of 803 in 2008. His work also entailed the consolidation of the National Programme

By Chinedu Moghalu

on Immunisation (NPI) into the broader framework of NPHCDA, in line with international best practices. The merger sought to address old issues of structural constraint, fiscal decentralisation, mismatched burden of disease and low quality spending.

This effort resulted in the strengthening of core diagnostics, systems development and human resources capacity development within the new NPHCDA. With the critical arms of the agencythus strengthened, the national Midwives’ Service Scheme (MSS) was launched, to mobilise midwives to selected primary healthcare facilities in rural communities to increase the pool of skilled birth attendants and boost delivery of services. The overarching objective of this programme was to significantly reduce high maternal and child mortality and morbidity. The level of work done to achieve the targets of the MSS paved the way for the Saving One Million Lives initiative.

Subsequently, at the time of his appointment as Minister of State for Health by President Goodluck Jonathan in July 2011,Dr. Pate already had a clear focus on what his priorities were, namely continued fight for polio eradication and mobilization of public-private coalition for SOML.Nigeria is now at the verge of being declared polio-free by the World Health Organisation. However, Dr. Pate resigned his appointment in 2013 to take up a professorial chair at the United States’ Duke University’s Global Health Institute.

The position would see him serve as Senior Adviser to the Seattle-based Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (a major player in Nigeria and other developing countries in the fight against major diseases like Polio), among other high-level engagements.

Nevertheless, this high profile exit from Nigeria’s health policy sector, raised concerns on continuity of some of the programmes that had begun to gain traction under the purview of Dr. Pate. To address the concerns, he offered to continue to provide his services on part-time basis as chairman of the Presidential Task Force on Polio Eradication and the public-private coalition for Saving One Million Lives initiative, in fulfilment of his previous commitments

to”see to conclusion of these important national priorities.”

It becomes obvious that Dr. Pate, a consummate Nigerian health professional, has a strong passion and exceptional commitment to improvements in healthcare delivery in Nigeria, especially to the most vulnerable groups.It always instils confidence when donors are able to associate someone of this quality with a development programme they are giving funding consideration. The $500 million credit will serve as a necessary fillip to the policy drive towards a Nigeria where maternal, child, and nutrition health services for women and children would be significantly improved. Not least because of the existing constraint in the fiscal space as a result of the sharp drop in oil prices.

The healthcare challenges the $500million credit is supposed to help address are enormous. Nigeria accounts for 14% of all annual maternal deaths worldwide, second only to India at 17%. Similarly, the country accounts for 13% of all global deaths of children under the age of five years, again second only to India at 21%.

To address the challenge of estimated annual 900,000 maternal and child deaths, SOML focuses on increasing the use of high-impact reproductive and child health and nutrition interventions, and improving the quality of these services; strengthening monitoring and evaluation systems and measurement data; encouraging private sector innovation; and increasing transparency in management and budgeting for Primary Health Care (PHC) in the country.

The World Bank Group says it is expectedthat the new health operation will start implementation on August 1, 2015 and run till December 2019. TheBank’s support for SOML will utilize the Programme-forResults (PforR) instrument to encourage a greater focus on results, increase accountability, improve measurements, strengthen management, and foster innovation. Importantly, the PforR funds will only be disbursed to the Federal and State governments for independently verified improvements in key services such as vaccination coverage among young children, rates of contraceptive use, Vitamin A supplementation, skilled birth attendance,

‘Appointment of a competent Nigerian with experience in result-based budgeting as Minister of Health will boost the chances of success in the implementation of health policies and foster judicious use of available resources’

•Pate

HIV counselling and testing among women attending antenatal care, and preventing new malaria infections among children by using insecticide-treated bed nets. Also, the Federal and State governments will receive incentive payments for effective tackling of governance and management issues in the health sector and for improving the quality of basic health services.

The incoming administration of General MuhammaduBuhari now has the responsibility of successful utilisation of the IDA credit. Based on the passion of the Presidentelect to serve, there is high hope that the $500 million funding will deliver its objectives, and that further general improvementin healthcare delivery in Nigeria will be realised over the next four years.Appointment of a competent Nigerian with experience in result-based budgeting as Minister of Health will boost the chances of success in the implementation of health policies and foster judicious use of available resources. The need for such a professional to have exposure to the international health policy community and global funding agencies cannot be overemphasized, considering the significant international resources to be mobilized for healthcare under the Sustainable Development Goals which will replace the Millennium Development Goals in 2015.

The WHO asserts that”the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health is one of the fundamental rights of every human being.” This means children should have access to healthcare when they need it. It also implies that pregnant women should be able to receive antenatal care and deliver safely with the assistance of skilled birth attendants.

•Moghalu is Head, Corporate Communication Department, Nigerian Export-Import (NEXIM) Bank.

Skye Bank’s in-road into SMEs’ development: the stakes, impacts

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ITH the recent successful conclusion of the Skye Bank SME Roundtable, the bank has upped the ante in SME development in Nigeria, a sector long touted as the likely driver of growth for the Nigerian economy.

The sector accounts for about 20% of the country’s population – 35/40 million people, and therefore making it imperative that the bank pays close attention to the sector.

Why the Skye Bank intervention is crucial is that, as findings show, over half the number of the country’s 17 million SMEs identified by the National Bureau of Statistics may not make it through the next five years.

The fatality rate for this class of business, experts say can be attributed to a number of factors, including poor infrastructure, inappropriate tax regime/multiple taxations, limited access to finance, unfair competition, poor managerial capacity and accounting/ marketing/operational planning issues.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) groups the militating factors into four namely: unfriendly business environment, poor funding, low managerial skills and lack of access to modern technology (FSS 2020 SME Sector Report, 2007).

Yet the sector, according to the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), has a significant role to play in economic development. They form the backbone of the private sector; they make up over 90 per cent of enterprises in the world and account for 50 to 60 per cent of employment.

They also play an important role in generat-

• Oguntayo

By Alvin Afadama

ing employment and poverty alleviation.

“Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are critical to the development of any economy as they possess great potentials for employment generation, improvement of local technology, output diversification, development of indigenous entrepreneurship and forward integration with large-scale industries”, ob-

serves the CBN. With such importance, it is little wonder that government is deliberate about developing the sector, especially by creating access to finance, albeit a fractional level to the needs of the economy. All Banks, including Skye Bank, are expected to contribute a fraction of their annual profits to financing SMEs. In 2010, to improve access to finance by SMEs, the CBN approved the investment of the sum of N500 billion debenture stocks to be issued by the Bank of Industry (BOI). The structure of the financing was such that in the first instance, the sum of N300 billion was applied to power projects and N200 billion to the refinancing/restructuring of banks existing loan portfolios to Nigerian SME/ manufacturing sector.

The objective of the CBN was to fast-track the development of the SMEs and manufacturing sector of the Nigerian economy and improve the financial position of deposit money banks. Complimentary to that, the CBN also established a N200 billion Small and Medium Enterprises Credit Guarantee Scheme (SMECGS), for promoting access to credit by SMEs in Nigeria. The Scheme is be wholly financed by the CBN. The objectives of the SMECGS is to provide a guarantee for credit from banks to SMEs and manufacturers; increase the access of promoters of SMEs and manufacturers to credit and set the pace for industrialization of the Nigerian economy.

The overall goal of these two initiatives are to increase output, generate employment, diver-

sify the revenue base, increase foreign exchange earnings and provide inputs for the industrial sector on a sustainable basis. But government intervention, while crucial and a necessary ‘first step’ can only go so far. Interventions such as that by Skye Bank, with its Business Roundtable platform, play a complimentary role.

That role, beyond providing finance is that of nurturing and mentoring, a clear recognition of the fatality rate in the sector. Business owners need to be guided on their journey to entrepreneurial success. It is in the spirit for laying the groundwork for this journey that the first SME Roundtable on Distributive Trade was organised at the Lagos Oriental Hotel in Lagos last week. It is the harbinger of a long line of Roundtable events lined up by the Bank in the course of the year.

The business roundtable, which is part of the bank’s initiative to connect with stakeholders in the different sectors of the economy, was well attended by stakeholders in the distributive trade sector.

It was kicked off by the bank’s GMD/CEO, Timothy Oguntayo who assured participants of the bank’s commitment to serve customers better as symbolised by its customers’ service charter.

The audience benefited from the experiences of the keynote speaker, Dr. Abiodun Adedipe and Director-General of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industries (LCCI), Muda Yusuf.

Quoting UN sources, Adedipe harped on the importance of distributive trade saying • Continued on page 28

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

28

BUSINESS NEWS

UK manufacturing growth in sharp slowdown G

ROWTH in the United Kingdom (UK) manufacturing sector slowed sharply in April, according to a closely watched economic survey.

Financial data company Markit said its monthly Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for manufacturing fell to 51.9 in April from 54 in March.

The fall in the index was the biggest since February 2013, although a figure above 50 still indicates expansion.

Companies said the strength of

the pound against the euro was affecting competitiveness in the eurozone.

The survey follows the release of official figures on Tuesday that showed the UK’s economic growth rate halved to 0.3 per cent in the first quarter of the year.

Rob Dobson, senior economist at Markit, said: “Today’s UK PMI delivered less-than-positive news on the health of the manufacturing sector.

“Any signs of rebalancing the economy towards manufacturing and exports remain frustratingly

elusive.”

The survey found that new export orders fell at the fastest rate since January 2013, job creation was “modest”, and manufacturers cut prices at their fastest rate in almost six years.

In recent months, the pound has gained in value against the euro.

In March, it was at its highest level compared with the single currency in seven years, making UK goods more expensive in the eurozone.

At the same time, sterling has weakened against the dollar, and

the survey said prices paid for goods priced in dollars had risen.

The pound fell against both the dollar and the euro following the release of the PMI survey. Sterling dropped by about a cent against the dollar to $1.5281, and fell by about a euro cent against the euro to •1.3580.

David Tinsley, an economist at UBS, said: “The source of the drop (in the PMI) may be an indicator that the appreciation of sterling against the euro is having an impact on UK manufacturing competitiveness.

“One would hope that as the upswing in the eurozone gains traction demand may begin to compensate for the currency move, but it’s a reminder that monetary policy will need to be sensitive to the pound.”

However, Lee Hopley, chief economist at EEF, the manufacturers’ organisation, said: “It would be premature to write off manufacturing’s contribution to growth in the future, not least because continued employment growth points to some confidence about longer term prospects.”

Skye Bank’s in-road into SMEs’ development: the stakes, the impacts • Continued from page 27

• From left: Head, Benefit Payments and Client Services Palpensions, Mrs Ophelia Alex-Iwuanyanwu; Executive Secretary, PENOP Pension Fund Operators Asociation of Nigeria, Miss Susan Oranya; MD, FUG Pensions, Mr Usman Suleiman and Compliance Officer, Stanbic IBTC Pension, Mrs Idu Okwuosa, during the Workers’ Day celebration in Lagos at Onikan Stadium, Lagos.

Adplus360 adverts booking portal makes its début T

HE Chief Executive Officer, Adplus360 Software Company Limited , a subsidiary of HiiT Plc, Mr. Kayode Shobajo, has urged start-ups in the country to embrace adplus adpreneur programme.

Adplus360 is Nigeria’s first and only online advert/media placement portal where an adpreneur can send advert, public notices, announcement and other unclassified announcement directly to both print, electronic and outdoor from any internet access point At a briefing in Lagos at the weekend, Shobajo said Adplus360 is a revolutionary service designed and developed by IT Solution Development and Services Division of HiiT Plc. Considering the high unemployment rate in the country, he explained that one can become his own boss by signing on to the programme.

He further explained that the portal allows advertisers, independent

By Lucas Ajanaku

sales consultants and self-service users to place adverts and public notices in the media via the internet with the media houses prepaid.

Shobajo said Adplus360 positions adpreneurs to earn multi-streams revenue which a competent chief marketing officer (CMO) is expected to harness.

“As a result of the nature of Adplus360, job opportunities abound for individuals, with passion for persuasion, result-focused and selfmotivated to become Adplus Adpreneurs,” he said.

According to him, an Adplus Adpreneur is an Adplus360 certified independent sales consultant authorised to solicit for adverts and public notices including announcements, congratulatory messages, birthdays, obituaries, change of name for individuals, companies,

organisations, government, among others by placing them in the media house via the online portal after which the adpreneur earns commission and other incentives.

He said commissions are paid via e-payment adpreneur’s account within seven days of any accepted bookings by the ARMH. By signing up to the program, he said with optimism that one can be an entrepreneur of a business with high return on investment, low risk and reasonable start-up capital.

Benefits of the program, according to him are not limited to generous commission, flexible working hours, performance-based incentives, regular attractive commissions, among others.

“Being an Adplus Adpreneur means you can reap the benefits of all your hard work, make all decisions and have complete control.

This allows for a huge degree of independence and a chance to shape one’s own career”, he explained.

that it “has long been of great interest for analysts and forecasters as the changes in value and volume of trade turnover, in particular the retail turnover, is regarded as an important short-term indicator of consumer confidence and economic activity in general…The output of distributive trade is a significant component in the compilation of the GDP.” He made the point that distributive trade at 17.64 percent is a begging opportunity that SMEs can latch on to create significant value.

According to him, “The spike in demand for consumer goods by Nigeria’s growing middle class has created opportunities, which will continue to boost trade for those who make the right choices”.

“As retail turnover is regarded as an important short term indicator of economic activity, one may predict with some certainty that, distributive trade in Nigeria will continue to thrive”.

His advice for people in the distributive trade is to focus on spending patterns of ‘millenn’ who are crazy about gadgets. They are large and growing; Lifestyle and living (is fast becoming a vogue that the wise distributor should key into); Online Shopping; and government budget, especially what government would spend money on.

Director-General, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Mr. Muda Yusuf commended the management of Skye Bank Plc for its new business strategy and its new focus on retail banking, saying the move is supportive of the distributive trade in Nigeria.

“One of the concerns of business owners today is that financial institutions view them as customers and not partners. Today’s platform demonstrates that Skye Bank is different. As it nurtures its bond with partners in the distributive trade sector, Skye Bank is redefining the relationship between banks and their customers.”

The Sectoral Roundtable is an ongoing programme by the bank

Brittania-U: U.S. court orders Chevron, BNP to produce documents

T

he District Court of Harris County, Texas, United States, has ruled that Chevron and BNP Paribas should produce documents relating to the award of Oil Mining Licences (OMLs) by Chevron.

They were directed to produce any correspondent among any officers, employees or agents of some companies mentioning or discussing the bidding process, the OMLs or Brittania-U, týhe plaintiff.

The defendants in the suit numbered 2014-15279 are Amni International Petroleum Development Company Limited; Amni Internatonal Petroleum Production Services, Inc; Tunde Afolabi; Belema Oil Producing Limited;

By Joseph Jibueze

Belema Oil Producing Corporation, LLC, and Jack-Rich Tein, Jr. The order followed Brittania-U’s notice of intent to subpoena documents from Chevron and BNP Paribas, which are non-parties to the suit.

They are to produce any correspondence among or between the agents of BNP Paribas, Amni, Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc, Belema Oil, Chevron, as well as all documents submitted in the bidding process.

They are also to produce any documents containing financial information regarding Brittania-U obtained by them from any source, including correspondence between them

and the Nigerian government or state discussing the bidding process.

Also subpoenaed were any contract or agreement between Belema Oil, Amni or Seplat and BNP Paribas or Chevron executed in the last five years.

Brittania-U sued the defendants over the Oil Mining Leases numbered 52, 53 and 55, sold by Chevron.

Brittania-U had also taken the matter to the Supreme Court of Nigeria over the ruling of an Appeal Court, which vacated an order of interlocutory injunction by a high court restraining Chevron and Seplat from concluding any deal on the oil leases.

Chevron had offered for sale

OMLs 52, 53 and 55 and as usual invited bids from interested firms.

The sale of the assets became controversial after Chevron allegedly failed to make a public announcement of a winner, a reserve bidder and unsuccessful bids.

It then allegedly turned its back on the highest bidder, Brittania-U Nigeria Limited, and began to deal with Seplat behind the scene.

Brittania-U went to court to contest Chevron’s action of not declaring it winner after it posted a $1.67 billion bid for the three assets, an amount later revised to $1.015 billion after both companies’ officials met in Houston, United States.

Seplat was said to have posted a bid of $630 million for the same assets.

planned to span the federation. In that light, the second Skye Bank Sectoral Business Roundtable on the Construction Sector is scheduled for April 2015 in Lagos.

But watchers of the banking space and analysts are least surprised with the Skye bank initiative as the bank has a history of supporting SMEs. The bank was at the vanguard for providing intellectual support to the Youth Enterprise with Innovation in Nigeria (YouWiN) empowerment programme of the federal government by taking the awardees through entrepreneurial training. While engaging in that endeavor the bank had said that its management valued its relationship with the programme and expressed readiness to do more in the area of economically empowering the youths, through financial and business advisory intervention thereby reducing unemployment in the country.

The bank, which is among the five lenders that got CBN’s nod to disburse the FG intervention funds for SMEs, has lined up several SME seminars and would also be encouragin/promoting SMEs on its platform by giving them the opportunity to advertise their activities on her platform.

The bank seems poised to do more for SMEs and entrepreneurs upon full integration of its recent acquisition of Mainstreet Bank, a move that has set the entire financial services sector in rethinking their strategy. The acquisition ensures that Skye bank is fully represented in all regions of the country and can therefore empower and energise SMEs to do more pan-Nigeria.

Chicken Republic gets new CEO, CFO

T

HE Board of Directors of Food Concepts , owners of Chicken Republic, has appointed David Butler as Chief Executive Officer and Mrs. Anthonia Agbonifo as Chief Financial Officer for the Quick Service Restaurant (QRS) firm.

The appointments, the firm said in a statement, are critical to the company’s expansion strategy.

The firm’s Chief Human Resources Officer, Mrs. Claudette Russel said Chicken Republic is entering an exciting growth phase that will see the brand grow its footprint and extend its market leadership across Western Africa.

Chairman, Food Concepts Plc, Mr. Deji Akinyanju, said, the firm is delighted to have secured the services of two highly experienced and talented executives.

He said: “David and Anthonia joined Chicken Republic at a critical time of our growth. David will lead the continued transformation and growth strategy of Chicken Republic including, new concept stores as well as franchising that will support the Brand’s expansion strategy across West Africa.”

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

29

ISSUES The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) is in the eye of the storm. With the release of the Pricewaterhouse Coopers' audit report that found the state-run oil firm culpable of monumental fraud in the management of the nation's commonwealth, the corporation is now the butt of scathing criticisms by angry Nigerians. Assistant Editor EMEKA UGWUANYI looks beyond the audit report and captures the mood of Nigerians itching for a functional, transparent and prudent NNPC.

NNPC audit report: The morning after

•NNPC Towers

N

OTHING would gladden the heart of the Lead Director, Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), Eze Onyekpere, than to see a quick and fundamental restructuring that would separate the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), the oil and gas industry regulator, from also being an active player in the industry.

To him, such restructuring would immediately usher in a regime of private sector efficiency and pave the way for investors to finance big ticket and long-term transactions and projects in the oil and gas industry. He said what the sector needs is beyond a probe of the missing $20billion, but a probe of the management of NNPC since the return to civil rule in 1999.

"The money earned in the last 15 years is not matched by developments and expenditures that Nigerians can see," he told The Nation.

Onyekpere, a lawyer, is not alone in his desire for a quick restructuring of the staterun but largely inefficient oil firm. "As the NNPC is constituted, it is a conduit. It is supposed to be made autonomous so that the private sector would put in money. But interests will not allow them because anytime there is politics in the air, they pull

money from there and that is why NNPC is the way it is.

“Let the government privatise the NNPC so that people and, mostly indigenous entrepreneurs, invest in it. There are areas where foreigners should not play and the areas they have to play in," Dr. Austin Nweze of the Pan Atlantic University, Lagos, said.

The don said for NNPC to meet the expectations of Nigerians and add value to the economy, it must be free from governme’s interference. He pointed out that the NNPC's legal department sometimes makes drafts for business transactions without knowing the names of companies involved, with such names being added by politicians later. "That is the NNPC we have," he said in utter disappointment.

He lamented that the Petroleum Industry Bill

‘

(PIB) that could have corrected a lot of issues in the industry and the NNPC have been enmeshed in regional politics and international conspiracy that has stopped the bill from being passed into law thereby stunting the growth of the industry.

Nweze emphasised that until NNPC is restructured and the PIB passed into law so that everybody's interest is covered, the corporation would not be able to operate as an enterprise built for profit-making. "PIB has been bedevilled by politics. The sincerity of purpose which the bill wanted to express has been stalled over the years because people from some parts of the country felt the content of the bill is not in their interest and doesn't favour them; hence they stood against its passage. These are the same people that control 83 per cent of the entire oil blocks in the

It didn't start today. It existed in the military era and through other governments. NNPC is where every government goes to get money. Everything about NNPC stinks and the mess didn't start today. The issue of corruption in NNPC is beyond PwC's report

’

country," Dr. Nweze said, adding that the industry is controlled by foreigners, which is one of the issues the PIB wanted to address by encouraging increased local participation.

He told The Nation that even the Joint Venture (JV) partnership as it is currently is lopsided in favour of the multinationals because NNPC doesn't know the volume of oil due to it. He lamented that NNPC depends on multinationals' measurement and whatever figures they give. Besides, whatever the multinationals say is their costs of production stands because thestate oil firm doesn't have the technology to determine the accuracy or otherwise of the figures.

"The JV should be renegotiated to benefit Nigerians more," he insisted, adding that NNPC should have its own equipment and facilities to enable it explore, produce and be able to measure the quantity of oil it produces.

Onyekpere and Nweze echo the frustration of many Nigerians who feel cheated out of their common patrimony following the large-scale fraud recently uncovered by the audit report on the NNPC by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).

• Continued on page 30

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

30

ISSUES

NNPC audit report: The morning after •Continued from page 29

The international audit firm had, in its report, taken the NNPC to the cleaners, exposing monumental fraud that has pushed the anger of not a few Nigerians to the boiling point.

Since the report was made public, the NNPC has been in the eye of the storm, with many calling on the incoming administration to beam its searchlight on the corporation and reform it.

For Nweze, the NNPC, from the beginning, has been a conduit from which people in government siphon money. "It didn't start today. It existed in the military era and through other governments. NNPC is where every government goes to get money. Everything about NNPC stinks and the mess didn't start today. The issue of corruption in NNPC is beyond PwC's report. The report should have covered a longer period at least from 1999 because no such report has been done in the past," he said.

Nweze said each time NNPC wants to solve one problem, it ends up creating another.

Sometimes they create new departments and jobs for people who don't need them. "You see people with Local Purchase Orders (LPOs) and letters from government officials attached to it. Such LPOs are sold with a margin to a third party to implement.

“There was a man I met at NNPC who said he was a contract facilitator and he sells LPOs. That is the kind of things you see in NNPC. Because of the way NNPC is structured, that was why former President Olusegun Obasanjo became the Petroleum Minister and nobody asked questions," he said.

He,however, advised the incoming administration of Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) to take a more critical look at the report with a view to identifying and plugging the various pipes through which leakages are explored. "If he focuses on probing activities of the NNPC, his first four years will be focused on investigating the corporation. “Also if Buhari wants to probe the NNPC from the beginning, the culprits can plan to overthrow his government because it is a high stake risk because of the calibre of people involved. My advice is that he should leave sleeping dogs lie but identify the holes and plug them to prevent future looting and stealing," he advised.

On his part, Onyekpere expressed disappointment over some aspects of the report. He said: "PricewaterhouseCoopers said documents concerning transaction and transfer of divested oil blocks by Shell to National Petroleum Development Company (NPDC) by NNPC were not made available to them. So with utmost respect to PwC, this goes to show that what they did cannot in any sense of the word qualify as an audit before any addition of the term "forensic" to the audit.

"It seems that it was a poor attempt to cover up some fraud. If the parties they were supposed to audit were not cooperating with them, they should have stopped work and told Nigerians rather than the shoddy job done. In one breath, they stated that no money is missing and in another, they did not have access to records to come to that conclusion.

That is not my understanding of an audit."

While noting that it is a welcome development that the president-elect would upon assumption of office probe the alleged missing $20billion, he said this will help to establish the veracity of the allegation, expose and punish any culprit(s) and restore public confidence in the industry.

The demand for this fresh probe, he said, is accentuated by PwC's affirmation that "it was unable to provide an opinion or attestation to the numbers provided nor did it claim it had done an examination in accordance with generally accepted accounting standards. It therefore did not vouch for the veracity and

• Austin-Avuru

•Onyekpere

accuracy of the figures."

Notwithstanding the shortcomings of the report, Onyekpere said there was need for restructuring of the NNPC and that the kind of restructuring CSJ is agitating for is a process of liberalisation that creates opportunities for Nigerians and their friends to be in a win-win situation, adding that this will untie the binding constraints on Nigeria's development.

"This will be a PIB type of reform that addresses fundamental issues in the sector without creating new bottlenecks and opportunities for rent seeking by government agencies and functionaries. This will bring in more rent and taxes for the Federation Account, make gas available for power generation and increase the stock of processed gas that can be used locally by industries and for export," he explained.

He said the thrust of reforms for NNPC should focus on transforming it into an oil company to be owned by government and private investors.

This, according to him, would position it to transact business like any other company without the impediments of government interference.

"The new company will operate with the best norms of ethics and corporate governance and should be able to raise credit on the strength of its balance sheet. Government will no longer be in a position to hire and arbitrarily sack its managing directors and top executives for political expediency and reasons," he pointed.

Besides, management workers would now be recruited like other top notch executives in the competitive oil industry. The new company will no longer be an octopus with enormous powers rolling together the player in the industry and regulatory roles. The reforms will also involve unbundling the NNPC and its subsidiaries to become corporate organisations standing on their own with specific roles and duties in accordance with their memorandum and articles of association.

He said the PIB has sought to delineate the contours for unbundling the NNPC. "One is at a loss as to the reasons informing the National Assembly's refusal to pass the bill in three years. It is a big shame," he said.

Onyekpere is not done. He insisted that the NNPC must be detached from the day-to-day running of government and politics; have quality personnel and must be properly managed. "The management must be transparent and accountable to shareholders.

It should be adequately funded. Government should be involved like other shareholders, but should not laden the company with its inefficiency," he pointed out.

According to him, the restructuring is not going to be a complex exercise, as the foundations of this quick reform have been laid since 2005. "All it takes is to dialogue with the incoming National Assembly on the PIB and any modification thereof and get same approved and assented to within a space of two months after the inauguration of the new National Assembly," he said, lamenting that it is a shame that the outgoing Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) administration

produced the president, the majority and the leadership in the National Assembly but could not muster the political will to pass the PIB in the interest of nation.

He, however, said there is absolutely nothing wrong with the concept of JVs; the only challenge is the way it has been implemented in Nigeria. As he pointed out, JVs can be profitably run if they are managed transparently and in the best corporate traditions. "The failures and challenges in the oil industry are not about forms of partnerships; they are man-made and the product of the greed of a few coupled with the docility of the larger population and the entrenched impunity in the system. But the way forward is the PIB model with a few modifications," he explained.

‘

• Dr Nweze

Genesis of corruption The huge corrupt activities in the NNPC, especially in petroleum products’ import and subsidy reimbursement, started with the collapse of the refineries. Previously the refineries were properly maintained, but decay set in as a result of neglect by the government, particularly the last sets of the military junta.

By the time the civilian government took over in May 1999, the four state-owned refineries were operating below 30 per cent of their installed capacities even when they got 445,000 barrels per day of crude oil allocation through the NNPC, which is the volume of crude refined by the refineries at maximum capacities.

Ever since, the refineries have not been fully operational. Attempts by the government to boost in-country refining capacity by issuing licences to private companies to build refineries didn't bailout the comatose refining sector, as none of the licencees was able to make it. That is how Nigeria became 100 per cent dependent on imported petroleum products to meet its domestic consumption.

According to the Managing Director, Seplat Petroleum, Mr. Austin Avuru, in June 1992, the former Petroleum Minister, Prof Jubril Aminu was sacked because of queues occurring in petrol stations.

In those 23 years, things moved only downwards to a point where refineries are not working and queues at fuel stations have become a norm despite trillions of naira spent on fuel importation and subsidy.

In 2011 alone, subsidy gulped over N2 trillion in the world's seventh largest exporter of crude oil.

The way out To prevent this anomaly, experts and stakeholders say the refineries must function at close to nameplate capacities, the downstream fully deregulated and subsidy completely removed. To stop all manner of fuel subsidy and corruption through the Offshore Processing Arrangements (OPA) and product exchange referred to as (swap), stakeholders say that existing refineries should not only be in working condition, but also work at nameplate capacities, while construction of new ones must follow.

As long as Nigeria doesn't refine its petroleum products needs in-country but depend on importation to meet is fuel requirement, Nigeria's oil and gas industry will continue to be enmeshed in corruption

’

According to them, as long as Nigeria doesn't refine its petroleum products needs in-country but depend on importation to meet is fuel requirement, Nigeria's oil and gas industry will continue to be enmeshed in corruption because all the arrangements in whatever name they come but involves bringing fuel from outside the country, will certainly create windows for sharp practices.

For instance, the PWC report showed that money spent on fuel subsidy for the last quarter of 2011 was $9.97 billion and within the period audited it was discovered that duplicated claim for Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) or petrol subsidy claim, duplicated Dual Purpose Kerosene (DPK) subsidy claim, subsidy computation errors, subsidy claim on un-incurred DPK cost, and over-claim of subsidy, among other unsubstantiated costs and errors in cost schedules, amounted to about $2 billion.

Nweze, for instance, insists that subsidy must be removed because it adds undue extra cost on fuel. Besides, removal of subsidy, he said, will encourage competition among entrepreneurs in that sector. "It will encourage local entrepreneurs to build refineries in the country. Oil marketers can import and sell at a price considered okay. There will be free market entry and exit," he told The Nation.

According to him, Nigeria refines its crude in Singapore and gets the right quantity, but in other countries, the government gets less.

"The removal of subsidy will stop all these in the long run as enough crude will be refined in-country and the cost of products will be much less in the long term," he argued.

Money is also fraudulently lost through the OPA by which the NNPC provides crude oil to another party that would refine the crude oil on behalf of the corporation and returns the refined products to the NNPC based on the yield slate of the party's refinery, and NNPC pays the refining and other incidental costs.

The same applies to the product exchange (swap) transactions in which the NNPC contracts to supply the other party with crude oil in return for the other party supplying the NNPC with refined products for sale locally on a value-for-value basis. These holes, experts say, have to be plugged to prevent frittering away public funds. And the way to go is to deregulate the downstream arm of the oil industry and stop subsidy.

Until now, the NNPC has been spending billions of naira to replace the Fluid Catalytic Cracking Units (FCCU) of the refineries, and soon after the replacement, the components would be reported to have gone bad again. As a result of this development, NNPC officials were continuously changing the component at high price.

The refineries over the years have been conduit pipes from where the government and officials of the oil firm allegedly siphon money hence the continuous call for their privatisation. Some governments have tried to privatise the refineries but such attempts were stalled by some vested interests.

At a forum in Lagos, oil and gas industry operators spoke with one voice on the need to make NNPC autonomous and take away the management of the refineries from the government to the private sector. The former General Manager, Warri and Kaduna Refineries, and Chairman, Petrodata Management Services, Babajide Soyode and former Group Executive Director, Corporate Services, NNPC and now Chairman, Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), Mr. Ibrahim Waziri, supported sale of the refineries.

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

31

MONEYLINK

CBN holds AMCON bonds worth N3.80tr

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HE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is the only holder of a six per cent 2023 Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) bond worth N3.80 trillion, its Deputy Governor, Financial System Stability, Dr. O. J. Nnanna has said.

The AMCON bond position is contained in the Financial System Stability (FS) report released at the weekend. He said the bonds are expected to be progressively redeemed over its remaining life from contributions to the Banking Sector Resolution Cost Trust Fund and recoveries from AMCON’s opera-

Stories by Collins Nweze

tions.

He said AMCON had last October, completed the scheduled redemption of its Series 5 Bonds with a face value of N866.74 billion, including N13.295 billion repurchased by the Corporation.

The CBN Deputy Governor said total amount thus far redeemed since its inception is N1.8 trillion while total recoveries stood at N506.50 billion or 28.94 per cent of the total Eligible Banking Assets of N1.75 trillion which comprised of cash recoveries of N201.37 billion (39.76 per

cent ) and assets forfeiture worth N305.13 billion (60.24 per cent).

He explained that analysis of the December FS report showed that the assets forfeited comprised real estate and other properties valued N191.82 billion, as well as securities of N113.31 billion.

“During the review, the Corporation divested its equity interest in Enterprise and Mainstreet Banks to Heritage Banking Company Ltd and Skye Bank Plc, respectively.

The corporation is expected to divest from Keystone Bank, the last of the three bridge banks, in 2015,” he said.

Nnanna said the report focused on the resilience of the financial system to withstand unanticipated adverse shocks, while ensuring the continued smooth functioning of the system’s financial intermediation processes.

“A stable financial system should aim at facilitating sustainable economic growth and development necessary for improved standard of living and enhanced economic conditions. The critical role of a stable and sound financial system in the growth and development of the nation, can therefore, not be over emphasised,” he said.

•CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele

ANAN gets new president

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•From left: Executive Director, Marketing Services, Nestle Nigeria, Mrs. Iquo Ukoh; Chief Host, SpidNetworking, Mrs. Clara Ogunsemi; Executive Director, Lagos and Southwest Bank, Fidelity Bank Plc., Mr. IK Mbagwu and Divisional Head, Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), Fidelity Bank Plc, Ken Opara at Fidelity-SpidNetworking forum in Lagos.

Fidelity Bank grows earnings by 12.5% to N34.8b

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IDELITY Bank Plc has released its unaudited results for the first quarter ended March 31, which showed a 12.5 per cent growth in gross earnings to N34.8 billion and a Profit before Tax (PBT) of N4.7 billion.

The result also showed that its fee income increased by 54 per cent to N9.2 billion from N6 billion in first quarter of 2014 while operating income increased by 14.4 per cent to N21.6 billion from N18.9 billion same period of last year.

However, total expenses increased by 12.9 per cent to N14.4 billion from N12.7 billion in first quarter of 2014 while profit before tax increased by 5.6 per cent to N4.7 billion from N4.4 billion during same period of last year.

Profit after tax increased by 5.6 per cent to N4 billion from N3.8 billion in first quarter of last year.

On the results, its Managing Director, Nnamdi Okonkwo, said the lender built on the successes of the last financial year as it remains committed to delivering sustainable earnings and improved asset quality. “Notwithstanding the headwinds witnessed in our industry, we recorded a 5.6 per cent growth in Profit before Tax (PBT) to N4.7 billion putting us on the right path to achieving our 2015 financial year guidance,” he said.

The bank chief said deposits declined by 2.7 per cent in the quarter under review as the lender continued to replace more expensive wholesale funds with

cheaper retail deposits.

“Our retail banking strategy continued to deliver impressive results as core retail liabilities increased by 7.7 per cent in first quarter of this year, while e-banking income from increased crossselling of products to the expanding retail customer base also grew by 49.3 per cent. Risk assets grew marginally by one per cent with non-performing loans declining to 3.8 per cent and cost of risk at 0.8 per cent,” he said.

The bank chief said the lender continued with its balance sheet optimisation which saw average yields on earning assets improve by 100 basis points and net interest margin inched up to 6.2 per cent during the quarter.

Heritage Bank appoints directors, promises ERITAGE Bank has ap- quality services rience.

Olabinj joined Heritage Bank pointed three top bankers

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as directors to consolidate its emergence as one of the leading banks in the country.

The new directors are Mrs. Adaeze Udensi, appointed as Executive Director, South Directorate; Ola Olabinjo, Executive, Lagos, Southwest and Corporate Banking Directorate, and Jude Monye, Executive Director, Risk Management/Chief Risk Officer.

Managing Director/Chief Executive, Heritage Bank, Mr. Ifie Sekibo, said the appointments reaffirmed the bank’s commitment to offering safest banking services by engaging competent and experienced bankers with proven track record of performance.

“The successful acquisition of Enterprise Bank has projected Heritage Bank into the leadership rank of the banking industry with huge expectation of quality, fast and efficient banking services from our customers

and members of the banking public.

“We intend to consolidate on this leadership status and exceed expectations by ensuring every customer of the enlarged Heritage Bank enjoys fast and efficient services irrespective of their location in the country.

The three new directors are bringing to Heritage Bank, over 50 years of banking experience among them, spanning various aspects of banking services across the industry, and these would contribute greatly to the achievement of this goal,” Sekibo said.

Prior to joining Heritage Bank, Mrs. Udensi worked at Zenith Bank Plc where she earned various awards for top performance. She holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s in Banking and Finance and Business Administration from Rivers State University of Science and Technology, and has over 17 years’banking expe-

from FCMB where he was Senior Vice-President and Divisional Head. He has over 18 years’ experience spanning Investment Banking, Corporate Banking, Transaction Banking, Risk Management, Treasury and Operations.

He holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s in Economics from Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile- Ife and the University of Lagos and is also an alumnus of Lagos Business School.

Also, Monye joined Heritage Bank from Wema Bank Plc where he was the Chief Risk Officer and Head Enterprise Risk Management division.

He has over 25 years’experience in various areas, including Risk Management, Finance, Credit Administration, Regulatory Compliance; Control, and System Audit; Structured Finance in Upstream Oil sector, SME Development and Project management.

He holds a B.Sc in Chemistry, MBA and M.Sc from University of Nigeria and Ibadan.

HE Association of National Accountants of Nigeria (ANAN) has appointed Anthony Nzom as its new president for the next two years.

Nzom promised to promote research in Natural Capital and Peace Accounting; Small and Medium Enterprises/Practice and physical and infrastructural development.

He noted that capacity building for workers both locally and internationally would be given priority. The new ANAN chief also promised to strengthen the activities of the association’s branches and work more closely with the Nigerian capital market.

“We must support the Federal Government in the task of national development, aid the Africa Union in charting continental agenda for growth and boost accounting and financial management in the region,” he said.

He said the admission of ANAN into the IFAC encourages it to stand committed to work in partnership with the ICAN, the continental body, the PAFA and the sub regional body ABWA to promote international best practices in accounting, auditing, education, ethics and good governance

He said he would employ an allinclusive leadership approach to good governance by deploying all available resources within reachthe staff, Council members, Past Presidents, Governments in Nigeria and international institutions.

“We must hone our skills and develop our practices in the four main strata of the profession Accounting Education, Public Practice, Industry and Commerce (that is private sector practice) and the Government,’’ the new ANAN chief said.

According to him, this is the time to stand up and be counted in our struggle for greatness and enduring relevance in Nigeria, Africa and well beyond.

“Today, the rules of engagement are fast changing for the emerging professional accounting organisation (PAO) of our dreams- International Financial Accountants and Edinburg Group which are fast becoming part of our everyday vocabulary in ANAN. As ANAN basks in the euphoria of her new found international recognition, necessity is placed on the association to sustain and improve the tempo of her development,” he said.

Ecobank unveils Advantage Banking service

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COBANK Nigeria has unveiled Advantage Banking, a dedicated service for the mass affluent and upwardly mobile segment of society. Advantage Banking by Ecobank offers convenience and ease in carrying out banking transaction for customers within the category.

The Advantage Banking initiative which suggests the redefinition of banking service in Nigeria is characterised by the design of special products that suit the life style of people within the segment. This would make banking much simpler, friendlier, more engaging and more personalised.

Unveiling an Advantage Service Lounge in Lagos, its Deputy Managing Director, Mr. Anthony Okpanachi said service is an extension of the bank’s strategy to offer its customer dedicated banking service across all customer type.

According to Mr. Okpanachi, it is designed in such a way to “ensuring our customers get the quality of service they desire. We have a bouquet of lifestyle enriching products available to address their dayto-day banking needs. We provide them a dedicated relationship manager, who follows them, providing all their banking needs where ever they may be or in whatever they do”.

Its Executive Director, Kingsley Umadia said the vision to create Advantage Banking Service by Ecobank follows continuous interaction with the average bank customer in Nigeria which reveal that

there is a dare need to personalise engagement with the individual.

He emphasised that the customer would rather be treated as a separate entity having his/her individual and peculiar needs resolved in a tailor made fashion to get maximum satisfaction and endearment to the brand. Mr. Umadia emphasised that the initiative is about building a rewarding partnership with customers by meeting their financial, investment and lifestyle needs when it matters most.

He listed some of the special privileges of the Advantage customer to include a dedicated relationship manager, who follows the customer, providing all his/her banking needs; entitlement to a Zero COT on Salary Accounts; access to e-banking and remittance services; access to overdrafts on salary account that act as extra cash whenever the need arises.

•Ecobank CEO, Jibril Aku

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THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

EQUITIES NIGERIAN STOCK EXCHANGE DAILY SUMMARY AS AT 1-05-15

DAILY SUMMARY AS AT 1-05-15

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

33

EQUITIES

Stock Exchange mulls delisting rules

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ITH the number of delisting significantly higher than listing in recent years, the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) is considering new rules and regulations that will equate voluntary delisting from the Exchange to the same level as major corporate changes such as mergers, acquisition and share capital structure.

The main highlights of a new draft of rules and regulations on delisting from the daily official list of the Exchange include obtaining a court order for the convening of shareholders’ meeting for consideration of any scheme related

• Sets court-ordered meeting, 75% approval as new criteria for delisting to the delisting and the requirement of at least 75 per cent approval of the resolution for the delisting.

According to the new rules, any issuer that intends to delist its shares from the daily official list of the Exchange shall convene a meeting of its board of directors, at which the board shall consider and pass a resolution recommending to the shareholders of the issuer that the issuer should be voluntarily delisted.

The board will also pass a resolution on an annual general meeting (AGM) or extraordinary general meeting (EGM) at which the board’s

recommendation will be considered by the shareholders for approval.

Subsequently, the company shall notify the Exchange of its board’s recommendation to delist and shall submit a copy of the board’s resolution in that regard, a copy of the draft notice of the AGM or EGM and the request for approval to publish the notice of the AGM or EGM at which the shareholders will consider the board’s recommendation to voluntarily delist the company in at least two national daily newspapers, at least 21 days before the AGM or EGM.

• From Left: Outgoing Group Managing Director, Chams Plc, Sir Demola Aladekomo; Chairman, Very Revd Ayo Richards; newly appointed Group Managing Director, Mr. Olufemi Williams and newly appointed Deputy Group Managing Director, Mr. Luqman Balogun, at the company's 31st Annual General Meeting (AGM) at the MUSON Centre, Lagos.

After receiving the Exchange’s approval, the company shall convene an AGM or EGM, during which a resolution for voluntarily delisting the issuer will be proposed and passed, if agreeable to the shareholders. The Exchange shall be invited to, and be represented at the AGM or EGM. “A resolution to voluntarily delist an issuer shall be validly passed if supported by at least seventy-five percent of members present and voting during the AGM or EGM, in person or by proxy,” the rules stated.

Besides, the company’s board of directors shall appoint professional advisers who will provide all relevant professional support as well as obtain all relevant approvals with respect to the delisting.

The company shall also apply for a court-ordered meeting of the shareholders to consider and if thought fit, approve where required, any scheme and other relevant matters. After receiving the court’s order, the issuer shall convene the court-ordered meeting of the shareholders, and the Exchange shall be invited to, and be represented at the meeting.

After holding the court-ordered meeting, the company shall submit its resolutions passed at the meeting to the Court for sanction.

At the Exchange, the dealing member concerned shall submit to the Exchange an application on behalf of the company, to delist its shares from the daily official list of the Exchange, and the application shall be submitted with a delisting fee as determined from time to time by the

Exchange.

The company is also required to set aside funds sufficient to purchase the interest of all shareholders who expressed their dissent to the resolution to delist the company, and the funds shall be domiciled with a Registrar or a Custodian duly registered by and in good standing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

“The share price at which the issuer purchases dissenting shareholders’ interests shall not be less than the highest price at which the Issuer traded in the six months immediately preceding the date on which the notice of the AGM or EGM at which the resolution to delist the issuer was issued,” according to the rules.

The Registrar or Custodian is expected to open and publish a register of dissenting shareholders which shall be kept open for at least three years. The list of dissenting shareholders shall also be published on the company’s website for the same duration, and submitted to the Exchange within three months of the shareholders’ expression of their dissent.

Thereafter, the entire listed shares of the company shall be delisted from the daily official list upon receipt of evidence from the Registrar or Custodian that the interests of all dissenting shareholders have been purchased by the company.

However, except a period of three years has elapsed since the initial listing of its shares; the Exchange shall not consider a company’s application for delisting of its shares.

Also, a delisted company can only seek to list its shares again on the Exchange after three years from the date of its delisting.

Fidson’s MD wins top 25 CEO awards

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ANAGING Director, Fidson Healthcare Plc, Dr Fidelis Ayebae was again for the second consecutive year voted as one of the top 25 chief executives of quoted companies in Nigeria at the latest edition of the BusinessDay Top 25 CEO Awards.

The awards ceremony for the 2014 financial year was held recently in Lagos. Ayebae had earlier emerged winner of the 2013 edition of the awards.

The awards’ committee picked Ayebae because of his company’s performance in the capital market and contributions to the country’s economy.

Fidson has sustained appreciable

growths and consistent dividend payment over the years, a performance record that has earned the indigenous healthcare company a consistent position in the top league of the highly fragmented industry.

In his remarks, Ayebae, who was represented by the company’s operations director, Mr. Abiola Adebayo, said the award was an acknowledgment of the company’s commitment to adding value to the lives of Nigerians through the provision of quality healthcare solutions.

“As a company, we are motivated to up our ante and continue to deliver on these promises,” Ayebae said.

The Top 25 CEO Awards ceremony, organised by the BusinessDay re-

• Managing Director, Microsoft Nigeria, Mr Kabelo Makwane (right) presenting the Top 25 CEO Awards to Operations Director, Fidson Healthcare Plc, Mr Abiola Adebayo, during the BusinessDay top 25 CEO Awards in Lagos.

search and intelligence unit, focuses on the chief executives officers of companies listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), who aroused positive interests in the Nigerian capital market, as well as share price appreciation.

According to the organisers of the event, the Top 25 CEOs Awards is meant to appreciate the contributions of the 25 CEOs who contributed the most to the growth of the capital market in a particular financial year. Winners of the awards are selected from over 200 listed companies on the NSE after they have successfully met the criteria set up by the Awards Committee.

In the latest earnings report, share-

Sterling Bank assures shareholders of better returns

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HE management of Sterling Bank Plc has assured that the bank would continue to build up shareholders’ value in spite of envisaged challenges in the banking industry.

Managing director, Sterling Bank Plc, Mr. Yemi Adeola, said the bank’s performance in 2014 showed the strengths of its resilient growth model and its ability to continue to deliver value for all stakeholders.

Addressing shareholders at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Lagos, Adeola assured that a proposed multi-currency debt capital of $200m would improve the bank’s fortunes substantially.

According to him, the 2014 financial performance lays credence to the commitment of the Sterling Bank team to its collective goals and the resilience of its business model.

He outlined that the bank has in-

vested substantially in the upgrade of its technology infrastructure and re-engineering, centralization and automation of processes to improve customer experience.

He added that the credit processing engine for the retail and Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) space was re-engineered to streamline the process from origination to disbursement to enhance service delivery noting that various projects are at varying stages

of implementation.

He however pointed out that the full adoption of Basell 11 requirements could drive capital build up and slower loan growth in the banking industry while more efficient management of and slower growth in government revenue would see greater competition for private sector deposits leading to higher deposit rates.

“While the economic landscape may be challenging, I strongly be-

lieve that the bank is on sound financial footing, given its stronger capital position, asset quality and dedicated workforce to advance its growth plans,” Adeola said.

Sterling Bank’s shareholders received 6.0 kobo dividend per share. Though the dividend payment reduced by 76 per cent against 25 kobo paid for the previous year, the bank was able to grow its profit by nine per cent in 2014.

Vitafoam to distribute N246m, 164m shares to shareholders

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HAREHOLDERS of Vitafoam Nigeria Plc would receive about N246 million in cash and additional 164 million shares as cash dividends for the immediate past business year.

The dividend recommendation released by the board of directors of the foam-manufacturing company indicated that shareholders would receive a dividend per share of 30 kobo and bonus share of one share for every five ordinary shares held by shareholders.

The much-awaited earnings report for the year ended September 30,

2014 triggered a bullish rally on the stock at the weekend. Audited report and accounts for the year ended September 30, 2014 showed that profit after tax rose by 67 per cent to N659 million in 2014 as against N395 million recorded in the previous year.

Earnings per share subsequently rose by 69 per cent from 48 kobo in 2013 to 81 kobo per in 2014. Shareholders of the company are expected to meet on the earnings report and dividend recommendation on June 4, 2015.

Management report indicated that the performance was due to increased innovation and improved

internal efficiencies. As part of the strategy to strengthen its African operations, Vitafoam had installed modern equipment in its plant in Sierra Leone, which serves all the neighbouring countries including Guinea and Gambia.

Only recently, its subsidiary, Vitapur Nigeria Limited acquired modern equipment called SAIT Advanced Polyurathane to boost production of quality pallets and reinforce capacity utilization.

However, it should be noted that the audited report had been delayed by what the board of the company

described as accounting software.

The board of directors had earlier indicated that it would consider the accounts and report and make dividend recommendation at its meeting in December 2014.

According to the company, the delay was as a result of challenges associated with its migration from Sage Line 500 accounting software to the newly acquired Sage ERP X3 Package. Vitafoam stated that the implementation of the new software impacted the timelines previously set for the preparation and audit of the year end accounts.

However, the release of the audited earnings report came almost simultaneously with the announcement of the retirement of the group managing director and group finance director of the company. The board of directors announced the appointment of Mr. Taiwo Adeniyi as the acting group managing director following the approval of the retirement of Mr. Joel Ajiga. Both Ajiga and Mr. Brabindoh Ogun, the group finance director, are expected to retire on October 23, 2015. Ajiga has since commenced his pre-retirement leave with effect from April 23.

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

34

Taxation

Basics of withholding tax (1)

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ITHHOLDING Tax is an advance payment of income tax. In principle, WHT is a payment on account of the ultimate income tax liability of the taxpayer or company.

Withholding tax is not a separate tax on its own and does not confer an exemption from the filing of annual tax returns by the company which had suffered WHT. The tax is normally to be deducted at source when a payment is to be made to the beneficiary.

APPLICABLE TAX LAW Withholding Tax (WHT) is not a distinct tax type and therefore has no legislation of its own. It is only a mechanism for the collection of other taxes. Consequently, its application is provided for in the enabling law of other tax types i.e. Section 81 of Company Income Tax Act, Section 54 of Petroleum Profit Tax Act, Section 73 of Personal Income Tax Act and Section 13 of Value Added Tax Act. TAX COVERAGE AND INCOME SUBJECT TO WITHHOLDING TAX The WHT provisions seek to collect taxes that may otherwise have been lost through evasion and/or avoidance. The aim is to ensure that taxpayers are correctly taxed but it must be understood that transactions that are ordinarily not liable to tax in Nigeria are also not liable to WHT; thus, contracts and supplies of goods and services performed entirely outside Nigeria by non-resident taxpayers will not be liable to WHT. The residence of the taxpayer is generally not relevant for the purpose of determining liability to tax or the application of WHT, but it is important to consider whether the provider/supplier of the goods or services is liable to Nigerian tax.

The rate of tax applicable to the various goods and services is provided in later parts of this paper. The introduction of the WHT regime came about in order to address the problem of tax evasion. Although, there is the overriding objective of full disclosure, transparency, predictability and fairness; in the light of these objectives and bearing in mind that the tax is intended as an advance payment of tax, its operation should always be scrutinized to ensure that taxpayers are not overtaxed and Government does not lose revenue.

Rents: This includes rental income on both real and personal property. As a general rule, income on a property (rent, hire or lease payments or rights (royalties) situated in Nigeria is liable to tax in Nigeria, the place of payment notwithstanding. Where a person rents or hires property/services from another, WHT at the rate of 10% will apply. But where a person provides services to another for e.g. air/land transport service, using its own equipment/facilities, the transaction becomes a contract of services rather than rental or hire.

Interest: This is income from investments of every kind.

WHT is applicable to income from government securities and income from bonds or treasury bills.

Interest on loans paid by a Nigerian company is often not subject to WHT. Dividends: This refers to income from shares. The income is

subject to tax whether it is received by a Nigeria company or a non-resident company. The tax imposed is regarded as final tax, but corporate bodies are allowed to recoup WHT deduction where the dividend is to be redistributed as Franked Investment Income (FII). The Petroleum Profit Tax Act (PPTA) however exempts dividends payable by oil producing companies on petroleum operations from WHT imposition.

Royalty: This refers to unearned income which accrues to the owner from past endeavors. Permission must be obtained before it can be used. It is payment of any kind as a consideration for the use of or the right to use any patent, trade mark or right/ Consultancy/Professional/Management/Technical Services-These are specialized services rendered by persons with the required knowledge and skills. The mere fact that services are provided by a company which has consultancy as part of its name does not by itself render such service as consultancy. The real content of the services being provided must be examined and if it amounts to a consultancy service, then the appropriate rate would apply; the same treatment applies to Professional/ Management services. For instance, if an engineering company is carrying out a construction activity, the proper classification for the services would be ‘‘construction’’ as opposed to Professional/ Technical services. Similarly, the use of industrial machinery/equipment to provide a service does not render it to be ‘Technical’ because the industry position requires that only arrangements thatinvolve a transfer of technology should be classified as technical.

All types of contract activities and arrangements, other than outright sale and purchase of goods and property’s classification is wide enough to capture every transaction, other than outright purchase/ sale of goods and property. The revenue holds the view that majority of the activities carried on in the oil industry are done by way of contractions, and should properly fall under this category. The issue of contracts and transactions, not being conducted in the ordinary course of business has over the years been subjected to series of reviews and amendments, aimed at improving the WHT system in order to achieve efficiency as well as minimize the cost of doing business. The aim of withholding tax is not to compound the problems of producers, manufacturers and those engaged in any forms of activities, other than services. The definition of manufacturing activate as contained in the FIRS information circular No. 2002 appears to have further generated more controversy than expected. The following classification will assist in the understanding of circumstances where WHT will apply in relation to any production activity.

WHERE THERE IS A DUAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PARTIES IN A BUSINESS TRANSACTION An example of this contract is where a manufacturer/ producer require raw materials from a supplier for its production. This is a dual relationship between both parties and the transaction will not be liable to WHT. E.g. a farmer supplies groundnut to a manufacturer of groundnut oil; a

• Acting Executive Chairman, FIRS, Samuel Ogungbesan

manufacturer of glass supplies bottles to a bottling company or soft drink manufacturer or an oil marking company supplies diesel directly to a user.

WHERE THERE IS A TRIPARTITE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PARTIES IN A TRANSACTION. In a tripartite contract relationship involving a manufacturer, supplier and agent, there could be either two options, depending on the level of financial arrangement. For example, where Manufacturer A, engages Agent C to procure or source for raw materials from Supplier, B, for his production line, there is a tripartite arrangement here.

There is nothing preventing Manufacturer, A from dealing directly with supplier B in order to achieve a dual contract relationship. (a) If Agent C is mobilized by Manufacturer B with fund to source for materials for its operation, there will be need to segregate the service cost from the entire contraction, and only the service component will be liable to WHT. (b) If the Agent, C, entirely finances the sourcing of the raw materials for Manufacturer A, the entire contract value will be liable to WHT at the time of payment.

WHERE A MANUFACTURER DELIVERS ITS NORMAL PRODUCTS TO ITS DISTRIBUTORS AND DEALERS FOR SALE In this situation, the income accruing to the manufacturer will not be liable to withholding tax (WHT) as it is regarded as transaction in the ordinary course of business, but the commission earned by the distributors/dealers will be subjected to WHT. Agency Transactions & Arrangements Agency arrangement implies a contract between a principal and agent. The reward payable for services rendered by the agent is commission, which is subject to WHT of 10%.

However, if the principal is a non-resident, any sales proceeds from the arrangement will attract5% WHT, where any of the conditions in Section 26(1) (b) of CITA holds.

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

35

THE NATION

BUSINESS JOBS

•Gbadamosi with bags of charcoal.

Charcoal is a multi-billion dollar industry, with a lot of potential, but many investors do not know this.The Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) says over 40 million metric tonnes of charcoal is consumed globally. Nigeria supplies the product to about 2.4 billion worldwide who rely on wood and charcoal for fuel.Those in search of jobs do not have to look far, writes ADEDEJI ADEMIGBUJI.

Creating wealth, jobs with charcoal O

LOYE Seyi Gbadamosi, an international trader and agribusiness con sultant, has struck gold. Four years ago, he won a contract to supply charcoal to Poland for nine months at 72,000 euros (N15.9million) per month).The business development and e-technology consultant and Chief Executive Officer of Royal Farm Produce got the contract through information researching. But things were not easy before he got his big break in 2011.

Gbadamosi said: “72,000 Euros monthly for nine months is what I have. November 2011 to July 2012 is the duration. I have been running this contract sending charcoal to Poland from Lagos Port. Friends, it’s easier to run this business when you have the right information. See me in a tshirt supervising workers loading charcoal ready for Lagos port. I practise what I preach. I don’t just say it. It’s easier for anyone to sell information without practising the business, but how will that person mentor you rightly if he is not into

the business? I am a charcoal exporter as you can see. Here are the loaders in action.”

According to CharcoalExport.tripod.com, charcoal is an essential commodity in Africa and a multi-billion dollar industry and money spinner for interested investors. It stated that the United Kingdom alone consumes more than 60 metric tonnes yearly, out of which about 70 per cent comes from tropical Africa. As a result, the demand for charcoal, Gbadamosi said, is high especially from Nigeria whose charcoal has one of the best qualities needed at the international market.

“Nigeria’s wood charcoal is of good quality. And it’s widely demanded in European countries like Belgium, Poland, Italy, Holland and Germany. These are the major buyers of Nigeria charcoal and they in turn supply other European countries.

Nigeria’s Charcoal is heavy as compared to other competing countries and that is why our charcoal is in high demand,” he said.

While the prices of charcoal in the international market is between 170 Euros and 190 Euros, Gbadamosi said the total cost for completing each ton of charcoal is about N28,260. “The selling price to the buyer is at 180 Euros per ton. Let’s use N220 to a Euros so that we don’t get too excited and miss it. That will give us N39,600. That’s a profit of N11,340. You, then, multiply it by the number of tons you are sending to the buyer. In this case if you have very quality and heavy charcoal that gives you 23 tons, it will give you a profit of N260,820,” he said.

He noted that besides selling, another way of making money in the business is through export brokerage. “The number two way of making money in this business is the export brokerage. You stand in gap for the exporter (local supplier) and the importer (the buyer in Europe). This is the easiest way to make money to start doing bigger export contracts. Some investors just have money and looking for

where to invest, so I get connected or someone connects us and he/she gets paid instantly,” he explained.

He said to succeed in the business, interested candidates should have the right mentorship, or else, the capital invested in the business might go down the drain. “This business is very lucrative. But you can only succeed in it only if you have the right mentorship. That is my candid opinion about any business,” he warned.

He, however, said charcoal business in Africa is worth more than $1 billion a year in terms of income for market participants, rural livelihood and the wider economy. As an essential commodity in Africa and one of the most important sources of alternative fuel across Europe, he said the consumption is about eight million pellets per annum.

Also, Proshare, quoting the Food and •Continued on page 36

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THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

JOBS

Creating wealth, jobs with charcoal

•Continued from page 35

Agricultural Organisation (FAO), said over 40 million metric tonnes is consumed globally with about 2.4 billion people relying on wood and charcoal for their daily fuel, hence, it has capacity to employ over a million jobless youths.

The business According to Gbadamosi, there are two basic opportunities available for entrepreneurs: The entrepreneur with no capital and entrepreneur with capital. “The entrepreneur with no capital can still run an export business (not restricted to charcoal alone). You can run as an export agent and make cool money. All you need do is to get properly trained and know the nitty-gritty of the export business. Once you know this, then you begin to rake in cool cash without capital. You will need a considerable level of marketing skill here. This can be easily acquired with proper practical training which we offer.

Most exporters don’t have the time to look for buyers of the product. You can just create the time and get paid on the spot,” said Gbadamosi.

Skills needed For an entrepreneur with the capital, having about N750,000 is not enough to strike the gold in charcoal business but other skills are needed to step on the green land. “An investor with capital can start with N750,000 but that is not enough. He must acquire skills to make the capital produce profits. The skills we are talking about here are very important. The difference between a success and a failure in any business is the quality of time spent in learning the process of that trade. Many underestimate the importance of knowledge and run into trouble when in

business.

Risk Gbadamosi said one of the greatest risks of charcoal business is the fluctuation of foreign exchange.“Changes in foreign exchange could increase or decrease the profit. Euro/Naira since January has been between N219 and N225,” he said.

Planning Gbadamosi said an average Nigerian would not take planning seriously citing an experience of his friend whose investment failed as a result of lack of planning. He said: “My very good friend went to the village and got charcoal and loaded it only to wait for over two months to get the shipping schedule. Oh it’s easy to criticise others until you start the business. You see many successful people making cool Euros around and the next thing is that you rush into it without plan. As a result, he said proper planning is needed to succeed in the business.

He also noted that investors should have an understanding of proper management in the area of logistics, forwarding agents, among others. He also noted that investors should ensure that the charcoals are properly loaded.

“Many fail because of this. Charcoal has its quality and quantity specified on the contract paper.

Failure to plan and meet the specific standard required would lead to failure. Everyone can go to the bush and make wood charcoal, but not everyone making noise about its potentials can source for the right quality and quantity. You need an experienced trader beside you to achieve this,” he said.

Mentoring

Before venturing into the business with capital or no capital, Gbadamosi advised prospective candidates to employ mentors.

He said with the success he had recorded in the business, he now mentors prospects through his company.

“Never take mentoring for granted. That is the bedrock of any successful businessman. I make money from this business and in spite of that, I still have mentors. Getting started at this point is a very easy thing to do,” he advised.

Where to get charcoal Charcoal is virtually available all over Nigeria as many local communities have perfected the technology of charcoal production. Some known charcoal depots are found in places, such as Oyo, Isheyin, Saki Igbo-Ora, Ogbomoso - all in the western part of the country. There are also depots in Jebba, Omu Aran, Egbe, Kabba in the northcentral states. Charcoal is found in abundance; also in Minna, Jos and Kaduna. Besides, an individual can produce his own charcoal wherever he/she is located.

When to sell Charcoal is a seasonal business.

According to exporters, the season differs from one country to another. For instance, in Belgium, United Kingdom, Holland, France, Germany and Denmark, the season is from May through August because that is their summer time. Europeans give out their orders from September to May of the following year. In countries like Kuwait, Israel and other Asian countries, it is all-year round and order is placed from January through December.

However, there are some big time importers in Europe who also order all year round. Companies like Big K Charcoal Lim-

•Supervising Minister of Labour and Productivity Alhaji Kabiru Turaki

ited and Diamond Fuel, among others in the United Kingdom order all year round.

There are certain standard requirements to be met in charcoal exports; parameters like fix carbon, ash content, volatile matter, moisture content need to meet buyers’ specification. Some of the buyers use their local agents to inspect here when loading. Others sometimes request for presentation of sample of the product before shipment.

“Packaging of charcoal is usually done to the specification of the buyer. Some want bulk packaging, in which case, the charcoal is tipped into open high cube containers while others prefer packaging into finished packs such as 3kg, 5kg, 10kg and 15kg. Shipping is done through a reputable forwarding company and Terms of Trade can either be by letter of credit or cash against document. The latter is however easier and less costly than the former,” experts said.

CAREER MANAGEMENT OB hunting has striking similarities to marketing a product. Like the four Ps of branding, the “P”-words for a successful campaign are positioning, process, and persistence followed closely by performance, personality, and pricing. The product is the candidate.

In order for a candidate to have the opportunity to sell his value to the targeted buyer/employer, the strategy driving the search has to be effective which means choosing the correct focus and developing the right approach.

Your job search project may be one of the most demanding, and rewarding campaigns you will ever manage. Let’s look at the ways you can improve odds in your favour through savvy job hunting and best practices in job search implementation skills.

Six Ps of job search

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Positioning The first step to launching a successful campaign and propelling it forward is to identify what makes you a unique candidate.

With such stiff competition, it is imperative that candidates distinguish themselves. This means creating a message or an identity that is remarkable and memorable, one that will separate you from the pack of resumes hitting recruiters’ desks.

It is sometimes difficult to develop this for yourself especially if your career has depended on doing this for others. You may want to seek advice and counsel

By Olu Oyeniran

to establish your value objectively. What is it that you do better than others? What is it about you that enables you to succeed where others don’t? Is there something in your background that others easily remember? This bit of specialised, personal data is your tagline.

If you get the positioning targeted correctly, your campaign will be focused on the right employer market with a message that the buyer will value generating more employer interest. Once you have captured an employer’s attention, then you have created a chance to demonstrate your abilities that eventually may produce a job offer, the goal of your job search campaign project.

Process The swiftest route to a new opportunity is to identify your target employers and then address their needs in terms of how you can meet them better than anyone else. Don’t wait around for a company to advertise for a job that is perfect for you. Rather, go out there and seek out a company where you are confident you can make a positive impact, especially one measurable in dollars saved or made.

Double back to ensure that your

positioning vis a vis your target employers is consistent with your most outstanding ability or characteristic that an employer will instantly value. In other words, the better the match, the greater the likelihood of capturing the employer’s interest immediately to actually satisfy their needs and exceed their expectations.

If you understand the dynamics between meeting employers’ needs first and then promoting your skills against these requirements, your chances of making a connection are much greater than if you concentrate only on your achievements and accomplishments without customising them for an individual company in a way that unmistakably proves your value.

Cite ways you can save money, save time, retain customers, reduce costs, increase sales or profits, etc.this will offset their expenses of adding you to headcount.

Persistence and perseverance The early bird, the first candidate to impress the decision maker, has a competitive advantage. So be the one to create a new job just for you by introducing yourself to employers you want to work for. This also means staying in contact with

individuals with whom you “clicked” but didn’t reach an employment agreement for whatever reason. That positive interpersonal chemistry can make or break a situation in your favour so don’t let a good relationship slip away because the timing was off for hiring you.

Sticking with your job search goals also means doing a whole lot more than simply submitting a resume or an online application—go and find out who is the hiring manager and speak with them directly. This will get you name recognition and hopefully allow you to pitch them on the phone or in person with your credentials; a much better method than a written marketing document/resume by itself.

A word about focus and establishing priorities:concentrate your resources on activities with the largest potential return on your investment. While all search methods have their place, most executive jobs are filled through one avenue: personal referrals.

Keep track of your contacts and refresh them periodically.

Use different methods to stay in touch varying phone, email, snailmail, an article or clipping, invitations, face to face, etc. according to the recipient preferences. Remember that in networking, maintaining contact is key to results—out of touch can mean out

of mind. Ask your contacts for advice, introductions and information—not directly for a job. Rely on your professional network and return favours generously.

Persistence in personal interactions is guaranteed to be the very best way to identify a new opportunity. Recommendations carry tremendous weight over cold calls and unsolicited inquiries. If you can get a colleague to make a direct referral to a prospective employer, your chances of being given serious consideration are much higher.

If one colleague asks another to meet with a third person, this usually happens and once you are face to face, this is the best possible circumstance to create good interpersonal chemistry and share ideas.

Interactions like these often lead to creating a new opportunity specifically in response to a candidate being available; in other words an unadvertised position in the hidden job market is created just for a particular candidate. Let this be you!

Good luck and see you next week for the concluding part.

This article relied heavily on a presentation by Debra Feldman of Jobwhiz.com •Oyeniran is Lead Consultant, EkiniConsult & Associates.

He can be reached on Jobsearchhow.com.ng Tel 08083843230 (SMS Only).

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

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THE CEO

2015 better year for SMEs, says BoI boss The Managing Director, Bank of Industry, Rasheed Olaoluwa, says the Development Finance Institution (DFI), has adopted sufficient measures to drive the Small and Medium Enterprises sector, thereby helping to create jobs and growing the economy. He speaks on these and other issues in this interview anchored by Group Business Editor, SIMEON EBULU and TOBA AGBOOLA.

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HAT strategies have you adopted to ensure that funding gets to the intended segments?

The Bank of Industry has embarked on a number of innovative steps to deepen its credit delivery process and enhance the access of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) to financial services. Since poor packaging of loan applications and lack of access to working capital have been identified as two of the major challenges facing MSMES, BOI in a competitive process appointed 122 Business Development Service Providers (BDSPS) to assist MSMES with the preparation of bankable business plans and also provide them with post-finance services, such as mentoring and capacity building that would ensure proper utilisation of loans and their repayment.

BOI will like to become the leading development financial institution, not only in Nigeria but in Africa. What that means is that in terms of industrial development, BoI will play a significant role in the key sectors. According to the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, they’ve identified commodity-based industrialization as the best way forward. What this means is that, rather than export primary agric products , we can add value to them locally. So we have agro-processing. Rather than export solid mineral that is dug from the ground, we can add value locally in terms of beneficiation. We can also process them locally.

Another bold initiative embarked upon by the BOI towards fulfilling its developmental mandate, is the creation of a N5 billion Cottage Agro Processing Fund (CAP Fund).

This is designed to address the challenge of post-harvest losses by financing the establishment of cottage agro processing plants that produce food products and other intermediate products for industries. A minimum of 20,000 direct and indirect jobs are expected to be created under the first phase of the scheme.

We have also established a dedicated Bottom of the Pyramid (BOP) Scheme for micro enterprises in the lower stratum of the society. Under the Scheme, funds are provided for eligible micro-finance banks to on-lend to micro entrepreneurs at single digit interest rate per annum.

You appear to have robust partnerships with both locally and international financial bodies?

We are partnering with lots of organisations and we intend to do more. One of them

• Olaoluwa

is the Department for International Development (DFID). The interesting thing about DFID, is that you are right at the centre of activities, you are right in the middle of the economy.. We must of necessity interact with several stakeholders. These include governmental and non-governmental, domestic , international and so on.

On the domestic scene, we deal with lots of stakeholders in terms of several state governments,. most of the ministries at the national levels, the Federal Ministry of Agric is a very important partner for us, as well as

the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs, the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals, the Federal Ministry of Communication and Technology.

We relate with research centres as well.

We have visited Project Development Institute (PRODA), National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), Federal Institute of Industrial Research, Oshodi ( FIIRO), and the Raw Materials Research and Development Council (RMRDC).

On the international level, we are also partnering with the United Nation Devel-

opment Programme (UNDP). We also work very actively with the United Nation Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO).

There is a programme they are about to introduce to Nigeria, called the XPX in which BOI is going to play a very important role.

It’s about how we can insert our domestic SMEs into the value chain of the major multinational companies. I As one of our strategies to diversifying our funding base from government to other •Continued on page 38

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

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THE CEO

2015 better year for SMEs, says BoI boss •Continued from page 37

sources, we are talking to the Brazillian Development Banks (BNDES), the Industrial Development Corporation in South Africa (IDC), as well as the Development Finance Company (FMO) in Netherlands. We are talking to the customer groups, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Nigeria Association of Small and Medium Enterprise (NASME) and the Nigeria Association of Small Scale Industries ( NASSI), What about the recent A-rating for BOI? For the first time we got A-rating and I think we are probably the only developmental bank in Nigeria that has gotten that. We are not there yet and we believe that by supporting players and companies in this sector, we would have contributed significantly to the achievements of Nigeria’s strategic vision of becoming among the top twenty leading economies by the year 2020 How optimistic are you about a thriving future for the SMEs? I believe this year is going to be a very good year for SMEs in Nigeria. There are a lot of programmes and initiatives in place to enhance the growth of the sector. I believe that 2015 will be a better year for the SMEs because things have already started taking shape since 2014.

The most pressing issue of 2014 was the realisation that SMEs have not had so much access to finance in the past. What we have done in this regard is to identify all the factors responsible for the inability of SMEs to have access to finance. We have done that and we are addressing the factors, one at a time. Sometime last year, we accredited a number of business development service providers. That was done to address the fact that most of the applications that we received from SMEs were not bankable.

In order to address the issue of loan applications by SMEs we employed the business development services providers who will in turn help them repackage their proposals so that they can stand a better chance of success. We are essentially taking steps to derisk the sector. If an SME goes through the BDSPs, it is hoped that they would have helped to streamline the business proposal of that SME in terms of the supplier, market demand and other requirements. That way, they must have put together a proper business proposal. We are hoping that with this initiative, the risk can be reduced and the operators will stand better chances of accessing funds.

Talking about de-risking the sector, what does it entail?

In addition to the strategies that we have put in place to ensure accountability, we also recently came up with a scheme to applaud those who have been faithful in paying, back the loan they collected from the bank.

The BoI Board of Directors approved the establishment of a hall of fame where we celebrate worthy customers who have taken loans, not only once but in some cases, five times, and have fully repaid. The inaugural list contained 10 names and those names, pictures and profiles adorn our website.

On the other hand, we have also established a hall of shame alongside the hall of fame, to expose people who not only failed to pay back the loans they collected, but who had collected the loans under fraudulent and dishonest circumstances. A lot of them gave cloned documents and diverted loan proceeds to other ventures not mentioned in their document. Just as the names and citations of the inductees into the hall of fame are published on our website, the names of the inductees to the hall of shame are equally published to serve as deterrent to others.

Apart from being exposed in the hall of shame, notices will be sent to banks where the defaulters do business as a warning to the bankers.

Most SMEs have lost faith in commercial banks because of high interest rates, how is

• Olaoluwa

the BoI helping to solve this problem?

The bank is well aware of this problem.

Often, when we ask SMEs to approach commercial banks for working capital, they complain about the high interest rate. Because of this, we had to find out which banks were more SME friendly. When we engaged an SME group to identify banks that were SME friendly, the group came up with a number of names. We wrote to the banks and requested an agreement to the effect that while the BoI provides long-term loan for plants and machinery, the commercial banks will provide the working capital.

In addition to that, we entered into a long negotiation process that also covered the duration of the loan facility as well as other things that SMEs feel very uncomfortable about. Last year, we signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the SMEs friendly banks. What we did under the MoU was to agree with the SME friendly banks that they will charge MPR (Monetary Policy Rate) plus six per cent interest for any loan advanced to SMEs. By working with com-

mercial banks we can arrange proper working capital facility. We have seen instances where BoI gave out a long-term loan and the SME ended up stranded for lack of working capital.

When loans go bad, one needs to understand why the loans have gone bad. What we are also doing is to look at all the reasons why loans go bad and try to address them one at a time. We believe that over time, the incidence of defaults will also reduce. There are genuine businessmen that really want to do business but for some reasons, they are hampered by factors beyond their control.

What is the level of success of your recent partnership with the Federal Ministry of Agriculture?

The bank is currently working with the Ministry of Agriculture on a N13billion Rice Intervention Fund for the establishment of 10 integrated rice mills and six cassava mills across the country.

The objective of the Federal Government’s Agricultural Transformation Agenda is not

‘Often, when we ask SMEs to approach commercial banks for working capital, they complain about the high interest rate. Because of this, we had to find out which banks were more SME friendly. When we engaged an SME group to identify banks that were SME friendly, the group came up with a number of names. We wrote to the banks and requested an agreement to the effect that while the BoI provides long-term loan for plants and machinery, the commercial banks will provide the working capital’

only to increase crop production, but also to create value-added food processing industries as a means of reducing food imports.

BOI had in the past successfully implemented a N3.4billion Cassava Bread Fund designed by the Ministry of Agriculture to finance the establishment of 41 processing plants for High Quality Cassava Flour.

The agro processing is one of the four key sectors that have been identified as strategic under the Nigeria’s Industrial Revolution, noting that it has backward linkages with the primary agricultural sector.

The agro-processing has multiplier effects in job creation, reduction of post-harvest losses and generating better rural incomes.

For instance, a High Quality Cassava Flour processing Plant uses cassava as raw materials and supplies its products to Flour milling plants.”

Also the N5billion’ Cottage Agro Processing Fund being launched by the bank will provide loans to beneficiaries to establish small scale plants, or mini mills to process Nigeria’s agricultural products such as cassava, oil palm, paddy rice, groundnut, yam, maize, sorghum, cocoa and plantain, among others.

What is your funding basket like?

Based on our performance, we have continued to attract funding from the public and private sectors as well as the international development community.

Consequently the bank has been appointed to manage 32 special intervention funds. They include two on behalf of the Central Bank of Nigeria - the N300 billion Power and Aviation Intervention Fund (Graphics CBN’s N300 billion PAIF) as well as the N235 billion Restructuring and Refinancing Fund for Manufacturing Firms (Graphics CBN’s N235 billion RRF). The other major funds under BOI’s management includes the N100 billion Cotton Textile and Garment Industries Revival Scheme, the National Automotive Council’s Fund in respect of which BOI received N18.1 billion, the N10 billion Rice Processing Fund and the N4.3billion Cassava Bread Fund being managed on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Nobody is looking at the gains. I think it is everybody’s enlightened strategy.

We are talking about growing our national economy and banks play essential role in the economy. If SMEs grow, they add more value to the economy, they create more jobs. It has a multiplier effect.

We all have an interest in ensuring that the SME sector grows. One way for them to grow is to have access to funds.

We are in the process of ensuring that we address all the factors that had hitherto militated against SMEs accessing funds. There are lots more to come. In addition to engaging BDSPs and SME friendly banks, we have a dedicated directory on SMEs and we are also increasing the number of locations where we operate.

How long will the partnership with the SME-friendly banks last before it is subject to review?

It is a long-term partnership. We would happily have it run for eternity. In some instances, however, we would like to review it after three years just to see aspects of it that require amendments.

What is the framework and the target?

The framework is very simple. When we have SMEs that require long-term loans for plants and machinery, we will grant such loans. But we also know that most SMEs require working capital components. They will choose the bank and we will provide a reference to the bank on their behalf. It also goes the other way, the SME friendly banks that have customers looking for long-term loans for plants and machinery can also refer them to BoI. We aim to address a lot of the synergies that have been absent in the SME system for a long time now. We are hoping that with some of these steps that we have taken, we can also strengthen the system to deliver value.

Given the measures in place, what is the success rate of loan repayment?

I think I can say we have achieved a reasonable amount of success in that area. Let me give you an example, BoI has supported a very small company employing less than 30 people. They have taken loans from BoI five times. They took the first loan to buy equipment, they repaid. They came back for three more equipment, they repaid, then they came back for five equipment. Now that company is a large enterprise. They have 7,200 employees currently.

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

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BUSINESS AFRICA

ITF spends N10b on training

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•Wins award

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HE Director-General, Industrial Trust Fund (ITF) Dr Juliet Chukkas-Onaeko, has said the organisation spends about N10 billion yearly to train youths on vocational skills.

She made this known during a lecture in Lagos State, with the theme, Sustaining the industrial growth through job creation: ITF role.

Mrs Chukkas-Onaeko said such training require huge capital, adding that the Act establishing the Fund, stipulates that employers should contribute part of the funds while Federal Government gives subventions to ITF. She noted that the training is in line with its policy trust to promote and encourage acquisition of skills in industry and commerce while generating a pool of indigenous trained manpower, sufficient enough to meet the economic needs of the country.

According to the ITF boss, about 70 percent of the ITF budget goes into training, adding that such training are capital intensive; hence the Fund needs financial supports from the public and private sectors of the nation’s economy. ‘’We are thinking of establishing vocational training centres in all the geographical zones of the country. We are trying and one day, we will get there. Funding is holding us back. Training of manpower is our major trust. We need to build capacity for our nation.

Every year, we spend about N10 billion in various training programmes in and outside the country’’, she stated.

•From left: Mazi Okereke; Dr Chukkas-Onaeko and Dr Demetrius, during the presentation of award to the ITF in Lagos.

By Toba Agboola and Joseph Eshanokpe

Meanwhile, ITF has won an award for excellence in service by the Business Education Examination Council (BEEC) in Lagos.

Its President Mazi Mike Okereke said though ITF has over the years had many helmsmen, under its Director-General, DrChukkasOnaeko, the body has grown. He said ITF has contributed to nation building through its reliable service delivery in skills acquisition, noting that over 12million Nige-

rians have benefited from her.

He said: “No organisation can prosper or be effective without skills by its workers or members.

A factory on its own does not operate except by people. The type of government you have depends on those who push it. And this is what ITF is doing over the years in ensuring that skills required to move every sector are provided.’’

He noted that the ITF was chosen for the award because of its excellent performance under Mrs Chukkas-Onaeko.

Presenting the award to Mrs

Chukkas-Onaeko, a Senior Management Consultant, the Management School, London, Dr David Demetrius, commended ITF for the award, urging them not to rest on their oars.

Mrs Chukkas-Onaeko dedicated the award to the management and staff of the organisation.

She said at the 43-year-old body, their core value is teamwork. “I believe in collaboration. Excellence is our watchword. We can’t do it alone. We are open to BEEC and others for partnership,’’ he added.

‘WD purple surveillance drives, solutions to insecurity’

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ESTERN Digital company and storage industry leader, has said one of its flagship products, purple surveillance drives (WD Purple) designed for high definition (HD) surveillance applications remained a security solution to be rivaled.

Its Sales Director Distribution, Middle East, Africa & India, Mohammed Owais, who spoke on the sideline of SECUREX exhibition in Lagos said the surveillance solutions are designed to address insecurity in the country.

He said: “Our surveillance solutions can address insecurity situation in Nigeria and not only Nigeria, but in all places where there are insecurity issues. We created our surveillance so-

By Lucas Ajanaku

lutions to address insecurity challenges. For example our Purple Drive Solution offer up to 6TB of capacity and is capable of monitoring troubled environment 24/7 non-stop and capture images of people and objects in such environment.” added Owais.

According to him, digital surveillance systems are rapidly replacing analogue systems in the region. These systems, he added, feature HD cameras which are able to capture footage in high resolution, making it easier to identify critical details when reviewing footage. WD Purple hard drives are engineered for 24/7 always-on surveillance in high-definition surveillance systems that use up to eight hard drives and up to 32 cam-

NACCIMA gets new DG

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HE Nigeria Chambers OF Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture, NACCIMA has appointed Mr Emmanuel Cobham as DirectorGeneral.

Cobham has varied experience which he garnered at senior levels in the state, national and international organisations.

He was a Correspondent on the Network Service of NTA, served four Military Administrators and Governor of Cross River State as Chief Press Secretary and Director of Press Affairs from 1992 to 1999.

He worked briefly at the African Union Commission (AU) as Legal Officer in the Security Arrangements and Ceasefire Commission, one of the three Commissions during the Seventh Round of the Talks on the future of Darfur in Abuja, thus putting him in a good stead to appreciate the workings of International organisations.

He served as Executive Secretary, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) Cross River/ Akwa Ibom states Branch, and

BAT rewards 300 farmers

lately, Executive Secretary of the Calabar Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture before assuming duties as the DG. Cobham attended Apapa Baptist Primary School, Lagos; Gaskiya College, Cardoso, Lagos; Community Secondary School, Ugep; University of Lagos, (UNILAG); University of Calabar, (UNICAL); Imo State University (IMSU); Television College, Jos and the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos.

He holds a Certificate in Entrepreneurship Development from the Central Bank Entrepreneurship Development Center Calabar.

Cobham served as a Senior Reporter, Newscaster and Correspondent Anchor, Nigerian Television Authority, Channel 9, Calabar, and NTA Network Center, Lagos, 1984 to 1991. He served as Chief Press Secretary to the Governor of Cross River State, from 1992 to 1993; Director of Press Affairs to four other Military Governors/Administrators of Cross River State, between 1993 and 1999.

eras.

WD Purple drives feature IntelliPower and AllFrame technologies, which deliver premium reliability and peace-of-mind when installing in homes or small- to medium-size business security systems. AllFrame technology works with ATA streaming to reduce frame loss, improve playback and increase the number of drive bays supported in a surveillance system. Moreover, AllFrame reduces video interruptions that commonly occur when desktop hard drives are incorrectly used in security systems.

WD surveillance drives enable

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SDRVRs, NVR, CCTV, IPTV, and other digital video surveillance systems to deliver a comprehensive range of features and capabilities such as high-resolution image quality, streaming video from multiple highdefinition cameras, video archiving with ultra-fast data access and on-demand video playback.

Regardless of the surveillance environment, whether it is banking, Casino, retail, commercial, corporate, government or law enforcement, WD surveillance-based hard drives deliver the performance, added capacity, and enhanced reliability that surveillance applications require.

HE British American Tobacco Nigeria Limited has rewarded 300 farmers in Oyo State for supplying raw materials worth N740 million in 2014 financial year.

The beneficiaries, who were drawn from 30 farmers’association in the state, were given new motorcycles, water pumps with accessories, over –head-water tanks, including sprayers for their efforts in last year’s production.

Speaking during the presentation of these items to the affected farmers at Iseyin, Head, Leaf, BAT Nigeria Limited, Thomas Omofoye, said the farmers supplied the company leaves worth N740 million which was higher than the N224 million in 2013 under the company’s leaf growing scheme.

“The productivity awards ceremony is a kind of encouragement for them to appreciate them better.

First, farmers don’t tend to appreciate what they are doing, perhaps they don’t know that farming is actually a business. So we thought of celebrating them, their activities, and their commitment and to ensure that they are actually earning a living from farming operation,” he said.

The Corporate and Regulatory Affairs Director, BAT, Freddy Messanvi, added: “I will like to congratulate the farmers on the hard work done in the previous year.

Despite the unforeseen acts of nature, they have defied the odds and delivered once again as always.

“I urged the farmers to maximise the resources and technical knowhow being offered by B AT to continue to improve their yield, increase their income and improve lives.’’

The Farmers Productivity Awards Scheme is an initiative of the BAT Iseyin Agronomy, a subsidiary of BAT Nigeria, to train, advise and support the farmers by providing farm input and extension services on proven best practice yearly.

A member of Senate Committee on Agriculture, Senator Anthony Adeniyi, urged the recipients of the awards to reciprocate the kind gesture of the BATN/ Iseyin Agronomy by making use of the equipment given to them, to boost efficiency in production.

He urged other private sector operators and non-governmental operators to take a cue from the efforts of BAT Iseyin Agronomy in the areas of food security and poverty reduction through the development of agriculture.

IPAN chief criticises govt for engaging HE President, Institute of Pub- foreign experts lic Analysts of Nigeria (IPAN)

Dr Dahiru Abdulahi has berated the Federal Government for engaging foreign consultants in areas that can be handled by their indigenous colleagues.

He spoke at the 21st Mandatory workshop of the institute in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital.

The training had as theme, “Your Laboratory,Your Business.”

He said: “Furthermore, the use of foreign consulting laboratory/consultants who are not appropriately registered under laws, to just monitor water produced for Nigerians is unacceptable. IPAN members must be given the opportunity to do that.

Else, it is a slap to the government in the face,who keeping on talking of creating jobs and wealth.

“Therefore, I call on National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to engage IPAN members to exploit ways of domesticating that exercise to build confidence, competence and expertise, and help to conserve our scarce foreign exchange. If we are all working towards benefiting the Nigerian we must work together in tandem.’’

Abdullahi listed some challenges

By Joseph Eshanokpe

of the institute as its inability to discipline members and register labs; good governance in testing, accreditation and sustainability of labs.

He added: “IPAN has continued to face challenges in the confused implementation of the White Paper on the Oronsaye Panel which has now been botched. The committees set up to review our enabling law, laboratory operations, relationship with our stakeholders are all working and we hope t o receive their reprts at the next Presidential Committee in May. IPAN has continued to face challenges in the confused implementation of the White Paper on the Oronsaye Panel which has now been botched. The committees set up to review our enabling law, laboratory operations, relationship with our stakeholders are all working and we hope t o receive their reprts at the next Presidential Committee in May.’’ The Acting Registrar, Duro Abdusalam, said the training was organised to hone the skills of members to enable them be at par with their colleagues elsewhere.

He said: “As Public Analysts, we

• Prof Peters ... at the event

are in the business of service provision . To have a cutting edge above our competitors, give satisfactory service that will compel our clients to return and win new ones, thre is need to be on top of our game. Therefore, to keep abreast of happenings in the industry and as you are aware,the dynamism of science is transcendental.”

At the event were Kwara State Commissioner for Health, Mr. Kayode Isah and Executive Director, Nigerian Stored Products Research Institutes, Prof. Olufemi Peters.

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

40

MOTORING

Jeep Renegade, Nissan Murano, Ford Edge lead April SUV sales C ROSSOVERS and SUVs were showroom favorites in April, with shoppers snapping up the Jeep Renegade, Nissan Murano, Chevrolet Equinox and Ford Edge.

“As the U.S. continues its love affair with utility vehicles, April is likely to be the 20th straight month in which light trucks outsell cars,” said Jessica Caldwell, an Edmunds.com senior analyst.

Automakers, including GM, FiatChrysler, Ford, Toyota and Nissan, crowed about strong sales of SUVs and crossovers. GM noted that April was its best-ever month for crossover sales.

“Light truck sales have carried the auto industry to its best start in 15 years,” said Bill Fay, Toyota division group vice president and general manager, in the automaker’s preliminary report. “The demand for crossover SUVs is off the charts and both

Stories by Tajudeen Adebanjo

the RAV4 and Highlander set April records.”

Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac dealers in the U.S. delivered 269,056 vehicles in April, up six percent year over year.

“Consumer and commercial customer demand for pickups and utility vehicles have been building since last fall,” said Kurt McNeil, GM’s U.S. vice president of sales operations, in a statement. “The auto industry continues to be on track to have its best sales year since 2006.”

Chevrolet crossover deliveries were up by 51 percent. The Chevrolet Equinox was up 42 percent for its best April ever.

The same theme was repeated at

Nissan.

“Nissan’s new Rogue and Murano crossovers couldn’t have launched at a better time,” said Fred Diaz, senior vice president of Nissan’s U.S. sales & marketing and operations, in a statement.

Nissan Group, including Infiniti, set an April record with sales of 109,848, an increase of 5.7 percent over the previous April. Sales of the Murano increased by 73 percent, while Rogue sales were up by 44 percent.

Fiat-Chrysler reported U.S. sales of 189,027 vehicles, a six percent increase compared with sales in April 2014, powered by Jeep SUV sales.

“Our all-new Jeep Renegade small SUV is off to an exceptional start with more than 4,200 units sold in its first

full month in the market, helping to propel our Jeep brand to its best monthly sales ever,” said Reid Bigland, Fiat-Chrysler head of U.S. sales, in a statement.

The 2015 Jeep Cherokee had its best monthly sales ever last month with a 27 percent increase.

“With more small SUVs in its lineup than any other brand, Jeep certainly has products that match consumer demand at the moment,” Caldwell said.

Ford-brand SUVs turned in an alltime April sales record, the automaker reported.

“Our SUVs are in particularly high demand and the new F-150 is off to an outstanding start,” said Mark LaNeve, Ford vice president of U.S.

marketing, sales and service, in a statement.

Sales of the 2015 Ford Edge were up by 78 percent. Edge is now turning on Ford dealer lots in just 10 days, Ford said.

Ford reported a five percent increase in total U.S. sales in April with 222,498 vehicles sold.

Luxury automakers also basked in the glow of strong SUV sales.

April represented strong demand for Audi luxury SUVs, with a 35.6 percent increase in sales encompassing the Audi Q3, Q5 and Q7 models, the automaker said.

Car shoppers did not turn away entirely from small cars.

Hyundai Motor America said it was the “best April ever for Elantra and Genesis sedan,” in a tweet.

Overall, Hyundai’s April sales were up 2.9 percent with 68,009 vehicles sold.

Automotive Council launches portal for vehicles

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HE National Automotive Council (NAC) has launched a National Automotive Repository Portal (NARP) for all manufactured and imported vehicles in Nigeria.

NAC Director-General Aminu Jalal, said the NARP would serve as effective tool for town planners on infrastructure needs, especially in roads, bridges and parking development Jalal said the portal would also be helpful for petroleum marketers as it would assist them to determine the level of fuel requirement and pattern of allocation nationwide, among others.

Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment Olusegun Aganga, at the official launching of the portal in Abuja, said the system would serve as a database for all vehicles in Nigeria.

According to him, the NARP is vital, saying it will serve as a collection of Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) for all locally assembled and imported cars in the country.

Aganga explained that VIN was intended to be a cross-reference portal for all vehicle licensing authorities before the issuance of vehicle licence and number plate.

He said that the NARP would serve as a platform for national vehicle registration system, adding that it would also facilitate the tracking and auditing of vehicles registration in Nigeria.

Aganga added that NARP was designed to integrate all

stakeholders in Nigeria, to provide them with a national automotive database for all the vehicles in the country.

He listed the Police, Federal Road Safety Commission, Vehicle Inspection Officers, Customs Service, auto dealers and town planners as those that would benefit from the scheme.

According to him, the NARP would assist the council to know the number and profile of registered vehicles in Nigeria for purpose of planning and decision making.

According to him, NARP will help Nigeria Customs Service to control smuggling which would lead to increase in its revenue generation and ensure a smuggled vehicle is easily identified.

Aganga said it would serve as marketing intelligence report for dealers in auto industry and prevent the diversion of automobiles to other ports.

According to him, this is because all vehicles entering Nigeria will not be registered if their VIN is not in the database.

Aganga said that NARP would assist the Police, Road Safety and Vehicle Inspection Officers to know about the historical information of vehicles.

Mrs Valentina Mintah, the Managing Director of WestBlue Consulting, which designed the portal, said one could access the portal via www.Narp.Nac.org.ng.

Mintah reiterated that the portal would enable the public to access any information needed on any vehicle.

Ford to hold Ranger Odyssey Africa Challenge

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HE Ford Motor Company, in association with its accredited dealer in Nigeria, Coscharis Motors, has announced call for entry into the 2015 edition of the Ranger Odyssey Africa Challenge.

The third edition of the annual Ranger Odyssey will see a total of 20 contestants navigating through the extremely challenging northwestern region of Namibia on a 12day expedition. The adventure starts off at Spitzkoppe and travels through Palmwag, Khuwarib and the barren and unforgiving Desolation Trail that follows the Huab River to Desolation Valley.

“The Ranger Odyssey is a unique event that gives dynamic individuals with a spirit for adventure the chance to see some of the most spectacular parts of Africa,” says Tracey Delate, General Marketing Manager, Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa (FMCSA).While

the life-changing experience is an exceptional prize in itself, there is also the allure of the grand prize which includes the use of an Odyssey-spec Ranger for a year, along with R5 000 or its naira equivalent (in case a Nigerian emerges winner) worth of fuel per month.

General Manager Marketing and Corporate Services, Coscharis Motors, Abiona Babarinde said Ford is offering Nigerians, with an adventurous spirit, the opportunity to experience the adventure of a lifetime through the Ranger Odyssey. “The Ranger is built for the tough, and through this competition, Ford aims to bring together a group of people across the continent who have adventurous spirit to experience the best Africa has to offer.”

He explained that in preparation towards the Namibia competition, Nigeria will hold an antecedent event on May 29.

• From left: Dealer Development Manager, Ovisiddharthan, Nadkarni; Elder Udhoh; Enebros Motors Limited Managing Director Anietie Udoh and Regional Manager, Hyundai Motors Nigeria Jill Johnny at the ceremony.

Hyundai Motors appoints dealer in Uyo

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YUNDAI Motors Nigeria Limited has expanded its dealership with the appointment of Uyo-based vending and aftermarket shop, Enebros Motors Limited as the company’s fifth agent including Warri, Awka, Anambra State and two dealerships in Lagos.

Enebros Motors will cater for the growing Hyundai clientele in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State and provide sales and technical support to customers in neighbouring Oron, Eket and other Niger Delta communities.

At a sign-on ceremony in Uyo, Hyundai Motors Nigeria Head of Sales and Marketing Jatin Nadkarni said the investiture was in line with Hyundai business expansion plan to guarantee seamless access to valued automobile products and services with the provision of higher level customer satisfaction and enhanced hospitality.

Nadkarni urged the dealer to em-

brace Hyundai’s global vision of ‘Life time partner in automobiles and beyond’ by moving one step closer to customers and extending its role beyond being a simple sales and service shop to become customers’ lifetime companion.

“It isn’t enough to be Hyundai certified dealer but you must be constantly focused and embrace the brand best practice for high level performance,” he said.

While also encouraging the new dealer to value the basic principle of maintenance and improvement as standard ways of working throughout an organisation, Nadkarni said: “Our aim is to provide customers with best-in-class products and services and look forward to a long lasting and successful association.”

Enebros Motors Limited Chairman, Elder Enefiok Udoh applauded Hyundai Motors’ resilience and de-

cisive response to her request for representation in the Niger Delta, pledging allegiance to industry best practice and create exceptional awareness for Hyundai products and services in the fledging Akwa Ibom market.

Elder Udoh also promised to provide efficient after sales facility for existing customers in Uyo, Oron and Eket.

“We discovered in our survey that most customers who drive Hyundai vehicles here and in neighbouring communities are confronted with challenges of after sales and in most cases, they travel all the way to PortHarcourt or Calabar for mere servicing but now that we are here we can bridge the gap,” he said.

“We are ready to collaborate with Hyundai Motors to develop a local brand that could in future place Nigeria on the global map of technologically inclined,” he said.

Implementation of the national council on transport communique

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ITHOUT any iota of doubt, the rate of road traffic crashes and fatalities in Nigeria is among the highest globally and unless we want to deceive ourselves, the rate is still on the increase in every State in Nigeria.

The 2014 annual National Council on Transport Conference with the theme: Providing safe and secure Transportation: Building Stakeholder’s confidence, was indeed a right step in the right direction.

Consequent upon the very low rate of compliance to the previous resolutions of the council, it is obvious that the seriousness attached to the implementation of

the resolutions of council is condemnable and a pointer to the fact that human lives are less valued by governments and their agencies in Nigeria.

For the purpose of this article, I want to focus on two memoranda submitted and the council resolutions on both with an appraisal of the actions taken so far.

A memo from the Committee of Vehicle Inspection Officers (VIOs) nationwide requested for the following: the establishment of Motor Vehicle Administration Agency, Computerised vehicles Inspection Centres, funding and empowering of VIOs, curbing indiscriminate issuance of driver’s licence and ap-

Jide Owatunmise Registrar /Chief Executive, Professional Driving and Safety Academy

propriate classification and inspection of used vehicles at ports of entry.

•To be Continued next week

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SHOWBIZ Celebration as Africa Magic launches Igbo channel

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HE event was akin to the celebration of a heritage, as Nollywood stars of the Igbo extraction stormed The Dome in great number, as Multichoice Nigeria launches Africa Magic Igbo channel in Enugu, Enugu State, last Thursday.

Hosted by ace comedian and Nollywood actor, Okey Bakassi, the glamorous event was attended by icons of the Nigerian film and television industry such as Pete Edochie, Onyeka Owenu, Bob-Manuel Udokwu, Eucharia Anunobi, Kenneth Okonkwo, Clem Ohameze and Francis Duru among others.

The event, which featured colourful display of the Igbo culture, was declared opened by Edochie through the traditional, symbolic breaking of kolanut. He hailed the Africa Magic team for their tenacity in making sure the Africa Magic Igbo dream came to reality. Edochie, who spoke entirely in Igbo, was assisted by Kenneth Okonkwo in the opening prayers and urged Igbo filmmakers to take advantage of the new channel to produce rich and enduring Igbo content.

By Mobisola Oladapo

Africa Magic Igbo is a 24 hour general entertainment channel, featuring the best of Igbo language content.

The channel features magazine shows, movies, drama series and sitcoms, all showcasing the best of the Igbo culture.

Speaking at the event, Regional Director, M-Net (West), Wangi MbaUzoukwu, said: ”Africa Magic is renowned for providing entertainment made for Africa by Africans. We are renowned for telling the African story, and giving African entertainers a platform to show the world what they can do. We have demonstrated this with our channels, including the indigenous language channels which continue to promote the richness of Nigeria’s different cultures beyond the nation’s borders and we are continuing this trend with the Africa Magic Igbo channel.”

According to Mba-Uzoukwu, “People in Nigeria and across Africa remember Living in Bondage, Nneka the Pretty Serpent, Rattlesnake and many other popular Igbo language movies which continue to be relevant

• Genevieve Nnaji flanked by Ugbe and Mba Uzoukwu

today as they were many years ago.

These movies not only set the trend for the modern film and TV industry, their enduring legacy continues, and we can see this in the amazing Igbo language entertainment content being produced today.”

Also speaking at the event, Managing Director, MultiChoice Nigeria, John Ugbe said: “At MultiChoice, we

pride ourselves on being at the forefront of the development of the Nigerian film and television industry.

For over 20 years, we have consistently invested in Nigeria’s creative industry. Furthermore, the Africa Magic channels which sit on our DStv and GOtv platforms provide Nigerian talent with the opportunity to showcase their works to the rest of

the continent and indeed the world.”

The star-studded event featured elegant performances by an Igbo traditional troupe and rave-of-the-moment artistes such as Chidinma, Phyno and Flavour. Highlight of the evening was when the Onwenu, popularly called the Elegant Stallion, joined Chidinma on stage in a spontaneous, enthralling duet.

‘We did nothing to help Peter Bunor,’ says Lancelot Imasuen

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• The late Peter Bunor

W A R D - w i n n i n g Nollywood director, Lancelot Imasuen, has decried a situation whereby the late veteran actor, Peter Bunor, received little or no support from his colleagues in the motion picture industry, during his trying times.

Bunor, who had battled a stroke for close to five years, died last Friday, at the age of 60.

Imasuen who described the late actor as a fine gentleman, a hardworking and consummate professional, said it was worrisome that stakeholders in Nollywood were unable to assist him

By Jane Kolade

significantly throughout his ailing period.

According to Imasuen, the late Bunor was also the father, trainer and mentor to many, including his son, Peter Bunor Jr., who is one of Nigeria’s finest kid actors today.

“Such is the quality of his mentoring and management of his young son’s career, that the young man was even more popular than his father at some point,” he said. ”Not much was done for him until he was snatched by the cold hands of death,” he said, adding that “We

did quite a lot together in his lifetime. He was a fine gentleman, professional and hardworking. We were aware of his sickness, though nothing was done for him. It is unfortunately becoming a recurring decimal that nothing was done to better his life.”

The actor, during his ailing period had lamented the nonchalant attitude of his colleagues to his sickness. He had relocated to Asaba during his travail, where he became active in church activities. The outspoken actor had thought that his colleagues lacked the understanding of empathy, having denied

Newman Street: Compelling malaria-alert sitcom enters Season 2

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N a clumsy ghetto suburb aptly called Newman Street, a picture of Ajegunle, a notable hub of sports and entertainment talent in Lagos State, Nigeria is re-enacted through an engaging situation comedy, and anchored on a serious subject matter – malaria.

The advocacy movie, which has just entered its second season, was launched amidst pomp, penultimate Sunday, with Nigeria’s hip-hop singer, 2Face Idibia leading the performance of a new National Malaria theme song, Play your part, featuring notable Kannywood actor and singer, Sani Danja and vocalist Eve B. The launch of the drama series at the Agip Recitall Hall, Muson Centre, Lagos, was part of activities to support the National Malaria Eradication Programme’s commemoration of the World Malaria Day 2015 tagged “Invest in the future, defeat malaria- Your Action Counts”.

By Famuyiwa Dare

Directed by Bond Emeruwa, the TV series showcases the twists and turns of life in an urban slum as each new episode brings tales of suspense, love, betrayal and intrigues with hilarious moments.

Following an enthralling Season 1, Newman Street 2 reveals what the future holds for Andy, Usman, Mama and Papa Ejiro and other regulars in the drama series.

It narrates Andy’s journey to stardom with its ups and downs. It also tells the story of the contrasting experiences and struggles of Usman and Salamatu, a typical young couple starting a family; and Mama and Papa Ejiro an older couple, striving to improve their quality of life and intimacy.

The 2nd Season features internationally acclaimed celebrities, ace actors and actresses like Bimbo Akintola, Fred Amata, Edmond

Enaibe, Saka and 2Face among others.

Newman Street is produced by Nollywood Concept Promotions (NCP) and the Center for Communication Programs Nigeria (CCPN), with support from United States Agency for International Development (USAID/PMI), United Nation’s Population Fund (UNFPA), the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Center for Communication Programs (JHU’ CCP) and UK Department for International Development (UKaid).

Guests at the launch include First Lady of Lagos State, Mrs. Abimbola Fashola, who was represented by Prof. Yemi Olatunji-Bello and Prof.

Ralph Akinfeleye, former Head of Department of Mass Communication, University of Lagos. Also in attendance are representatives of the development partners, NGOs, banking, oil and gas sectors and advertising agencies.

• 2Face Idibia, Sani Danja and Eve B performing Newman Street Season 2 sound track

themselves the opportunity of showing him compassion.

However, upon his death, his colleagues have described him as a prolific actor with well over 100 movies to his credit in the course of his illustrious career. During his career which spanned over three decades, Bunor featured in popular soap operas and movies including Cock Crow at Dawn, Memorial Hospital, Checkmate, Sound of Destiny, Second Chance, Third Eye, Living in Bondage and a host of others.

His son, Peter Bunor Jr., stated that his father’s funeral arrangements would soon be made public.

Excitement as Lagos Jazz Festival ends

By Joe Agbro Jr.

• Wura Samba

A

FTER over 200 live performances, the three-day Lagos International Jazz Festival, yesterday, came to an end. The event, in its third annual edition, held at the Freedom Park, Lagos, attracting several jazz musicians and lovers of jazz music.

This year’s edition which had as its theme, Jazz in the megacity, had Mr. Rashid Lombard, founder of the Cape Town International Jazz Festival as its guest of honour.

The carnival-like atmosphere had guests shuffling along the esplanade to the five stages named after five famous and late Nigerian musicians – Fela Kuti, Elder Steve Rhodes, Fatai Rolling Dollar, Osita Osadebe and Bala Milla, where the musicians performed from Thursday to Saturday. On the menu were music in different genres such as Afrobeat, Reggae, Apala, Highlife and Naija Hiphop – all infused with a touch of jazz.

According to Ayoola Sadare, Festival Director of Lagos Jazz Festival and CEO of Inspiro Productions, the dream is to make the festival a world-class event.

“The festival should be one of the leading Jazz festivals in Africa in the near future,” he said.

“And we are working tirelessly to fully integrate Lagos into the global jazz tourism circuit.”

The festival comprised an eclectic mix of the young, old, amateur and professional musicians.

Some of the performers include Alex Osho, Wura Samba, Seun Sticks, Dotun Bankole, Nene, Femi Leye, Ugo, Oyin and Dr. Blaze.

Jamming on the closing day was Skata Vibration, a quartet of artistes whose styles include playing to a loop. While the sound came out at times as groovy and funky, at other times, it assumed a tone of spirituality. Leader of the band, Jad, however, says ‘we just play music.’

At the Bala Milla stage, some of the Project Fame participants like Ugo, Daniella and Emekus, in continuation of the zeal they exhibited in the reality show, thrilled guests.

The magic continued late into the night, signaling the end of the festival.

One of the organisers, Bowale Adefule, popularly known as Scooby, says, “It’s been a challenge.

With all the challenges, we’ve still been able to complete it.”

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‘

The election of Buhari should throw up a new phase of politics in Nigeria which must be accompanied by new style of governance that considers the concrete reality of mass unemployment of youths and productive adults, lack of electricity, scarcity of fuel and bad governance to justify the basis for faulting the continuity of President Ebele Jonathan

’

Human rights activist and All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain in Oyo State Comrade Mashood Erubami spoke with MUSA ODOSHIMOKHE on the recent general elections, the mistakes the incoming administration should avoid and urgent steps it should take to reposition the polity.

‘APC ‘ll make difference at centre’

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HAT are the lessons to be learned from the recent general elections?

For future elections to be free, fair and legitimate, the leadership of INEC must continue to prove doubting Thomas’s wrong that it is not engaged in unwholesome affiliation with politicians.

Not only this, INEC must show mastery of its past faults and show capacity that it can correct them, in the right manner without failing to use the past reported challenges to improve on its performances. It will be unacceptable to Nigerians to be told again why INEC could not perfects its action to conduct acceptable election that meets international standards, It must not repeat the same old mistakes which have been highlighted in the past.

If we consider the way and manner the voters registration was carried out in 2010 with many of the newly acquired machines not functioning well , staff of INEC not properly trained to handle the machines and other logistics problems making it impossible for majority of prospective voters to register within areas of their domiciliation, all these made many potential Voters to register not necessarily where they live but where the registration machines were available.

To me and others from my own school of thought, INEC must discourage an electoral process that would allow voter’s apathy in all future elections.It should not deny registered voters who registered outside their living areas the opportunity to come out to regularise their registration, in fact it must attend to all outstanding transfers and ensure that all names on the register had permanent Voters Cards while all efforts must be made. to transfer their names back to their living abode where they can vote conveniently.

INEC must publish before the election dates, the list of its officials with their Names, Contact Phones and Status, in National newspapers and on its websites to enable local and International Observers and Party Agents to verify the genuineness of the officials at every polling centre and for transparency.

INEC should ensure that there is PVC for every name that appears on its voters’ register.

INEC must publish the list of voting areas and polling units in the states where election is being conducted with contact description and community names to ease navigation and making them accessible to electoral officials, observers, media, party agents and other stakeholders.

Every efforts must be put in place to ensure that millions of yet to be collected PVCs from the points of printing are collected and distributed to their owners without further complications in preparation for future election and not necessarily very near election dates bearing that voters registration is a continuous exercise.

Many are worried that bad eggs may infiltrate the government of Gen. Muhammed Buhari and clog the wheel of development...

These worries are not unfounded nor misplaced, the members and leadership of APC are not all infallible given the nature of its merger, what this foist on all of us includ-

• Erubami

ing the media is not to go to sleep immediately a new President is sworn in on May 29 2015, we must be ever vigilant and pro active. It behoves on all Nigerians to start setting agenda of good governance for General Muhammadu Buhari, placing before him the genuine needs of the people with a strong warning that the bulk stop on his table and that the electorate will not tolerate frivolous excuses for failure, we need to constantly remind the Government that some of the party members might turned landmine for his progressive government, it is therefore left for him and others who are credible to guard jealously their goodwill and ensure that nobody is allowed to

‘

We need to constantly remind the Government that some of the party members might turned landmine for his progressive government, it is therefore left for him and others who are credible to guard jealously their goodwill and ensure that nobody is allowed to blot it with mud

’

blot it with mud.

General Buhari or any government striving to fight corruption and indiscipline should remember that corruption do fight back and only strong internal cohesion and stronger discipline can thwart its impunity.

The Buhari administration should put in strong barricades that will not allow the infiltration of bad eggs into the system and use the same barricades to choke those that would have infiltrated before the count began. No government is bereft of the bad eggs but they are easily identified through their greed and should be dealt with publicly to send strong signal that their impunities would not be tolerated.

What is your advice to Presidentelect Muhammadu Buhari?

The best choice before the new APC government from May 29 is not to jettison all that the outgoing government did for sixteen years including the good ones, it must condemn what is condemnable and Commend what should be commended.

General Buhari should immediately set up a “multi stake-holdership government” to be constituted with genuine stakeholders who are technocrats and professionals that will invigorate the already weak Naira, boost the morale of Nigerians who are victims of the 15 years of unimpressive and un rehearsed governance of the People Democratic Party (PDP). The election of Buhari should throw up a new phase of politics in Nigeria which must be accompanied by new style of governance that considers the concrete reality of mass unemployment of youths and productive adults, lack of electricity, scarcity of fuel and bad governance to justify the basis for faulting the continuity of President Ebele Jonathan and underscore the reasons which have left Nigerians with no healthier alternative than to change him and replace him.

Buhari having been giving the chance, should set up an innovative “multi-stakeholdership government” as interface program to make genuine change in the country , for Nigerians to know and enjoy happiness again being the rare genius that can end Nigerians years of misery and hunger in the midst of plenty including stopping the seemingly unrelenting insecurity so as to help in halting the worsening state of our economy, generating enough revenue for creating massive employment for all.

•Tejuoso

•Abiru

Race for Lagos Speaker hots up

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INCE 1999, the Lagos State House of Assembly has continued to maintained its frontline position among the 36 Houses of Assembly. It has remained the pride and reference point of other legislative Houses in the country. The House has remained decisive and categorical in its pronouncements and resolutions. The credit for these notable and remarkable archievements must be given to the leadership.

However, particular reference must be made to the spectacular archievements of the Sixth and the current Seventh Assembly under Hon. Adeyemi Ikuforiji who has distinguished himself as an accomplished administrator by setting an uncommon standard, which has now become a template for measuring archievements by other State Assembly. He is leaving behind a legacy that even his political enemies will applaud.

Ikuforiji is the longest speaker having served between December, 2005 till date, a period of 10 years.

As his tenure winds down.

Lagosians are looking forward to the continuation of the legislative excellence of which the House has been known for.

As Lagosians were hoping for this continuity, especially when a fresh character will be at the top of the executive arm of government, this, therefore, has made having not only an experienced member of the House, but one who had been part of the architects of various archievements recorded by the House in recent times at the top level of the House and who had remained a creative member of the think-thank caucus that has

• Lagos State House of Assembly member-elect Desmond Elliot of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Surulere Constituecny 1, and wife Victoria after receiving the Indpendent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) Certificate of Return.

PHOTO: MUSA ODOSHIMOKHE

By Oziegbe Okoeki

offered the best leadership to the House to which Lagosians has become the ultimate beneficiaries inevitable in the next Assembly.

Aspirants for the positions include Mrs Funmi Tejuoso (Mushin), Eshinlokun Sanni (Lagos Mainland) and Hon. Rotimi Lateef Abiru the Shomolu Constituency II. Abiru, the only member of the top caucus, the principal and management officers of the House that was re-elected.

This may naturally place on his shoulder the responsibility of overseing the tradition of continuity in the House.

Abiru, apart from being the only returning principal officer and the only member of the topmost caucus, enjoys the confidence and support of the majority of the returning members as well as members of staff of the Assembly. He is highly favoured by members to lead the next Assembly for his competence, calmness and ability to relates freely with every members as well as carry them along in all matters all these, in additions to his intellegent and maturity as been displayed on the floor of the House.

“If the leadership of the party would not sacrifice competence and ability to further take the House higher for zoning, a mere unwritten political arrangement, Abiru should be allowed to lead the next House,” an out-going principal officer of the House had maintained.

Abiru, called the Barometer, by fondly colleagues as a result of his ability to logically gauge the mood of the House and analytically douse tension, is the son of the legal luminary, Late Hon. Justice Akanbi Olatunji Abiru, Abiru holds a Master Degree in Chemistry from University of Lagos, Bachelor of Science Degree in Chemistry from Lagos State University, (LASU). For his secondary education, he attended Baptist Academy, Obanikoro also in Lagos.

He had attended several leadership trainings, workshops and seminars that includes those of the Leadership Institution Arlington Virginia, Harvard Kennedy School and the Judge Business School University of Cambridge.

He first won election into the State House of Assembly in 2007 and won again in 2011 and had remained a principal officer till date.

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BUSINESS EXTRA

Regulatory squabble sets CBN, NDIC on war path For many stakeholders, ongoing clash between the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) over proposed amendment of the NDIC Act 2006 is a distraction that should be stopped to safeguard the banking sector. They insist that the proposed Act, which seeks to duplicate regulatory roles, could hurt financial sector stability and dampen depositors’ confidence, writes COLLINS NWEZE.

T

HE banking sector has been evolving in recent years, bracing up for new challenges. For instance, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and other stakeholders are promoting the cash-less banking initiative, a policy meant to move the economy away from cash. So far, the cashless banking initiative has made banking easier and transactions faster for customers.

But getting things done differently, may sometimes spell doom for the economy especially if such move will hurt financial sector stability and subsequently, customers’ confidence in the sector.

That explains rising skepticism over the planned amendment of the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) Act 2006, to bring about proposed NDIC Act 2014.

But the Corporation simply wants a change from the status quo. Managing Director/Chief Executive of the NDIC, Alhaji Umaru Ibrahim, insisted that the proposed amendments were based on lessons learnt from past and recent experiences of the corporation in the supervision of banks and protection of bank deposits.

As financial experts weigh the necessity or otherwise of the proposed Act, the two regulatory institutions have engaged in protracted debate.

Other stakeholders also held different views from that of the NDIC’s boss. The Director-General, West African Institute for Financial and Economic Management (WAIFEM), Professor Akpan Ekpo said the Act, if enacted, would run contrary to the established responsibilities of deposit Insurance Corporation.

He said it would also give NDIC power to license banks, suspend banks without recourse to the CBN, determine the licences of banks and appoint itself as a liquidator. This, he said, overlapped with that of the role of the CBN and out of line with the functions of the deposit insurers anywhere in the world.

He called for clear indications of mandate and collaboration from both institutions in the interest of growth and development of the economy. “There is no need amending the NDIC Act to enable it be at par with the CBN. It will amount to overkill. It has never happened anywhere in the world. It will create a loot of confusion and weaken the financial system,” he told The Nation.

A financial expert and strategist, Mr Opeyemi Agbaje, did not believe any serious changes will be made in the banking regulatory landscape, implying that the NDIC’s proposed Act 2014 may not materialise. He said now is not the time to begin radical changes in the financial services sector.

Also, Mr Bismarck Rewane, an economist, said it was not necessary for the NDIC to seek for additional powers for effective operations.

“Since there has been an existing collaboration between the two institutions, they should work in the interest of the growth of the sector,’’ he said.

For the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, amending the NDIC Act will spell doom for industry. “Permit me to humbly invite the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions to note that the amendments being sought by the NDIC are the very ingredient for chaos and anarchy, and will threaten the fabric of our financial stability, which, ironically, the Corporation claims, it is seeking to ensure. Rather, in the interest of financial stability, we

banking sector.

“All we are asking for is additional powers to work effectively and we are not competing with the CBN,’’ he said.

Other jurisdictions

• Emefiele

• Ibrahim

• Prof. Ekpo

propose that this opportunity be used to review the Corporation’s enabling Act to focus it on its essence, which is deposit insurance, in line with best practices.

“We submit the above for the consideration of the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions, please,” Emefiele stated while submitting the memorandum.

While it is clear that CBN is not totally opposed to change in all the sections of the NDIC’s proposed Bill, Emefiele kicked against certain aspects of the proposal at a hearing of the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and other Financial Institutions on the amendment. He said that if the bill was passed as recommended, it would make the NDIC and the CBN parallel regulators of the country’s banks.

“It will confer conflicting supervisory functions and powers on NDIC over banks and create overlapping regulatory responsibilities for the corporation,’’ Emefiele said.

The CBN governor, who was represented by Deputy CBN Governor (Operations), Alhaji Suleiman Barau, said that the apex bank also objected to Section 49 of the draft bill, which empowered the NDIC to appoint itself as liquidator upon the revocation of a bank’s licence by the CBN, among others.

However, analysis of the powers that the corporation sought to assume and exercise and the consequences thereof are still ongoing but tilting in favour of CBN.

position that since it is not involved in the licensing of the banks but is compelled to insure them, it should be bestowed with the power to determine their deposit insurance status with a mere notification in writing to the CBN. Another is the power to supervise banks without Reference to the CBN: The NDIC’s position in this respect is evidenced by its written request to the CBN that banks in the financial system be equally shared between both organizations with each party able to exercise regulatory and supervisory powers over its “share” without reference to the other.

It is in this regard that the corporation proposed to examine banks and issue reports thereon without reference to the CBN. Also, the corporation seeks to be able to remove board and management based on the report of its examinations on these banks. Furthermore, the Corporation has sought powers to carry out the consolidated supervision of banks subsidiaries, associates and affiliates without due regard for the sector regulators of such entities.

It also seeks power to determine the licences of banks: The power sought by the NDIC in this regard is evidenced by the proposed amendment to its Act which will empower it to terminate the Deposit Insurance Status of a bank with a mere notification in writing to the CBN. Experts explain that one of the effects of such an action alongside the consequential run on the bank, will be the technical and effective revocation of the bank’s licence, as deposit insurance coverage is a mandatory requirement for a licensed bank. This power, which is subsequent upon the occurrence of some events that are listed in the proposed Act, can be exercised by the Corporation on its own with a mere notification in writing to the CBN. It also seeks the power to appoint itself as liquidator: Subsequent to the power to determine the licence of a bank as detailed in (3) above, the Corporation also seeks the power to appoint itself as liquidator of the same institution. In other words, should its proposal receive a favorable consideration, NDIC

would licence, supervise, insure and resolve a bank.

Industry analysts said that all the above powers, which the NDIC seeks to assume and exercise, are ostensibly to ensure that it carries out its function as a risk minimizer and that depositors of distressed banks and other deposit taking financial institutions are paid in good time to avoid delays.

Regulatory powers sought by NDIC The Corporation seeks power to licence banks which was evidenced by the position of the NDIC that applicants for banking licences should simultaneously submit to the CBN and the NDIC, their applications for licences to enable the Corporation determine whether or not it will grant Deposit Insurance Status to the bank, if and when licensed.

CBN said this position, appears to still form the bedrock of some of its current proposals on the amendments and is the basis for some of the powers that it seeks to exercise.

In this regard, it is the corporation’s

Implications of the Act While the CBN supports the desire to pay depositors of distressed institutions in good time,it says the proposal to make NDIC “the judge and juror” in cases involving banks is fraught with dangers and is a recipe for financial instability.

“It is indeed the ingredient for chaos and anarchy and is not practiced in any financial system in the world. There is also the moral hazard of the NDIC as a deposit insurer that charges premium on the basis of the riskiness of an institution which it supervises without recourse to the CBN to rate such institutions as riskier than they actually are in order to enhance the premium charged to bolster the deposit insurance fund.

“Consequently, it is essential that the NDIC must flow from its primary function, which is the basis for its establishment, that is, Deposit Insurance. Then and only then, will its role in the financial system as it relates to banks and other deposit taking financial institutions be properly defined,” CBN stated in a memorandum to the senate committee at the Public Hearing on the Proposed Amendment (House of Representatives).

To Ibrahim, the proposed amendments are aimed at incorporating provisions that would enhance the legal framework put in place for the corporation to effectively carry out liquidation activities with little or no interference from courts, among other challenges.

He, nonetheless, pledged the corporation’s readiness to work in collaboration with the CBN in a sustainable manner.

“This has been the culture, we are not in competition with the CBN; we are here to work together for the growth and development of the

‘The Act, if enacted, would run contrary to the established responsibilities of deposit insurance corporation. It would also give NDIC power to licence banks, suspend banks without recourse to the CBN, determine the licences of banks and appoint itself as a liquidator. This is out of line with the functions of the deposit insurers anywhere in the world’

To those in the camp of the apex bank, the above responsibilities, which should form the basis of the mandate of the corporation, do not differ from those in other jurisdictions including Canada, Malaysia, and Japan. Consequently, the new powers that the Corporation seeks to assume and exercise are not only difficult to subsume under its responsibilities as detailed above, but are alien to deposit insurance practices in those jurisdictions.

The NDIC cited two reasons for its proposal, which are: The Core Principles for Effective Deposit Insurance issued by the International Association of Deposit Insurers (IADI) issued in June 2009; and the practice in the United States of America, where the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), along with the Federal Reserve and the Office of the Comptroller of Currency regulates and supervises banks to ensure the safety and soundness of financial institutions, stability in the financial markets, and fair and equitable treatment of consumers in their financial transactions.

Regarding the Corporation’s assertions with regard to (i) above, experts explained that the IADI Core Principles for Effective Deposit Insurance Systems on which the Corporation relies for its propositions acknowledges the limitation of deposit insurance in ensuring financial stability. Specifically, item 5 under the core principles and preconditions states that, a deposit insurance system is not intended to deal, by itself, with systemically significant bank failures or a “systemic crisis”.

In such cases all financial system safety-net participants must work together effectively. Furthermore, Core Principle 1, states that, “… the principal objectives for deposit insurance systems are to contribute to the stability of the financial system and protect depositors”.

This principle makes no reference to supervision and does not advocate a take-over of the supervisory function as is being canvassed by the NDIC. The IADI Core Principle 2 on mitigating moral hazard, expatiating on the role of the deposit insurer, states that, “…the deposit insurance system contains appropriate design features and through other elements of the financial system safety net”.

Also, Item 4, under the core principles and preconditions states that, “the introduction or the reform of a deposit insurance system can be more successful when a country’s banking system is healthy and its institutional environment is sound.

While a herd of analysts agree that the Federal Reserve shares supervisory and regulatory responsibilities for domestic banking institutions with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), and the Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS) at the federal level, and with the banking departments of the various states, the primary supervisor of a domestic banking institution is generally determined by the type of institution that it is and the governmental authority that granted it permission to commence business.

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

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NEWS NIMET, NEMA advocate flood prevention and mitigation From Vincent Ohonbamu, Gombe

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•Managing Director/Chief Executive, Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), Ibrahim Abdulsalam flanked by Director, Safety Electronics & Engineering Services, Emma Anasi (left) and Chairman LAAC, Mr. Chucks Iwelumo at a news conference on the inauguration of new operations for airlines at NAMA Headquarters, Murtala Muhammed International

HE Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NIMET) and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) in Gombe, Gombe State, have urged Nigerians to heed early warnings on disasters and emergencies as a way of preventing and mitigating them.

NIMET Manager Mr. Peter Ibrahim and NEMA’s Head of Operations Alhaji Saidu Minin spoke at a one-day awareness programme on Pre-Flood campaign, towards early warning and early action for stakeholders in Gombe.

Ibrahim said pre-flood campaigns were to enlighten residents on preventive measures, as well as measures to mitigate such disasters if they occurr.

“Therefore, I urge all and sundry to take its (NIMET) predictions serious; anticipating floods before they occur allows for precautions to be taken, and people warned so that they can be prepared in advance for flooding conditions,” Ibrahim said.

Minin said heeding early warnings and early actions were imperative towards preventing and mitigating disasters and emergencies.

He said the campaign will enable non-governmental organisations, community-based organisations, civil society organisations, and other stakeholders to synergise with other disaster managers in public campaign for flood prevention and mitigation.

The Northeast zonal Director of the National Environmental Safety Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA), Abdullahi Aliyu said early warning raises awareness to impending disaster to vulnerable population to enable them respond appropriately and minimise damage.

Aliyu advised residents to stop dumping refuse in drainage channels, enforce environmental laws, ensure appropriate management of dams, among others, to prevent flood.

Be cautious, CSO urges pensioners

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•From left: Head of Business Strategy, Greater Washington Logistics Limited, Mr. Adeniyi Awosan, Assistant General Manager, Corporate/ Auxiliary Business, Mr. Bright Aghogban, Managing Director, Mrs. Adenike Brown, Head, New Business, Mrs. Omamegbe Murhoko, and Head,Cargo and Agency Business, Mr. Temitope Popoola, at a conference in Lagos PHOTOS: ISAAC JIMOH AYODELE

MASSOB: we’ll reclaim people’s mandate

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HE ethnic militia group, Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB), has vowed to liberate Abia State from the claws of an impending hegemony.

The pan-Biafran group yesterday said the result of the governorship election was unacceptable to it and so, must be salvaged to reflect the true wishes of the people.

A leader of the group, Ndubuisi Igwekani, said

From Chris Oji, Enugu

what happened in Abia State was not an election because while the people voted for the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) candidate, Dr. Alex Otti, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu got the votes.

“The PDP, in collusion with officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), denied the people what they wished.

“What happened in Abia

was not an election but a fraud. We (MASSOB) were there as representatives of our people. When we arrived in Abia, the mood of the people was that they want change, they came out and they voted for change.

“But the man at the helm of affairs wants to institute a family hegemony by rigging the election; he wants his nephew to be the governor and his son to be the speaker.

“He will not succeed. The will of Abians must come to

pass. INEC and the election tribunals should do something to save the people.

“As we observed during the election, every corner in Abia State, people came out to effect change by voting for APGA. For God’s sake the people should be allowed to have the leader they chose.

“We are pleading with the powers that be, to come to the aid of Abians and allow their will to prevail,” Igwekani said.

NUJ seeks revival of state-owned newspapers

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HE Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) has urged state governments in the Southeast to revive their print media outfits.

National Vice President (Southeast) Chris Isiguzo spoke yesterday at the commemoration of the 2015 World Press Freedom Day. Isiguzo congratulated journalists for their dedication and discharge of duty with utmost sense of professionalism.

He reminded them that the objective of the World Press Freedom Day is to remind governmental and non-governmental organisations, as well as civil societies, of the role of the freedom of press in

From Chris Oji, Enugu

strengthening democracies and promoting development around the world.

“The theme for this year’s Press freedom Day: ‘Let Journalism Thrive Towards Better Reporting, Gender Equality and Media Safety in the Digital Age’ is apt in view of the array of challenges facing the media world over.

“As we celebrate, we must take time to reflect on salient issues that would advance the practice of the profession, bearing in mind that a free press is a critical tool for the development and sustenance of democracy.

“The role of the media cannot be over emphasised.

Apart from the primary role of educating, informing, enlightening and entertaining, the media remains an agent of positive change. The press can assist in strengthening and deepening our democracy through promoting transparency, accountabil-

ity, good governance, human rights and rule of law,” Isiguzo said.

The comatose media outfits include: National Ambassador (Abia), National Light (Anambra), The Patriot (Ebonyi), Daily Star (Enugu) and Statesman (Imo).

Church celebrates 19 years From Tayo Johnson and Sikiru Akinola, Ibadan

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CTIVITIES marking the 19th year anniversary of The Livingstone Church of Zion, Sabo, Sagamu, Ogun State, has been released.

It will be a weeklong programme, featuring revival services, seminar, counselling and N25 million fund-raising.

Church head, Pastor Benson Malato Ikuesan, assures the public of blessing, salvation, and prophetic impartation.

Guest ministers include Pastor Elliot Akins from the United Kingdom, and other anointed ministers of God.

CIVIL society Organisation, the Nigeria Good Leadership Forum (NGLF), has urged pensioners of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) to always exhaust available options of expressing their grievance before embarking on protests or defamation of character.

The group said the allegation against the board chairperson of the fund, Dr. Ngozi Olejeme, was uncalled for as its investigation showed that the government was yet to release the increase.

Addressing reporters at the weekend in Abuja, the Secretary of the forum, Comrade Ayatu Usman, said the pensioners have the right to be aggrieved if their money is not paid, but should not engage in defamation of character of persons.

Usman said the institution responsible for the payment would pay as soon as government releases the money.

“The allegation, that Dr. Ngozi is withholding their arrears, using her proxy com-

From Bukola Amusan, Abuja

pany, is falsehood meant to tarnish her reputation.

“She is not the one in charge of the day-to-day running of the fund. It is unfortunate that the pensioners went ahead to protest despite several meetings “Meetings have been held with them by the management, National Pension Commission (PENCOM), and the pension administrator, where these issues were clarified.

“There is no doubt that there is a political undertone to all these. The fact that the woman contested for governorship position in her state does not mean she should be accused of stealing,” Usman said.

Pensioners of the NSITF shut activities at the fund office for unpaid 58 months arrears.

They alleged that the fund’s management refused to pay the approved increase by the Federal Government since July 2010.

Group backs Onu for SGF From Ogochukwu Anioke, Abakaliki

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HE National Youth Frontier, a sub-group of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Southeast zone, has supported calls for the appointment of Dr Ogbonnaya Onu as Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) in the incoming government of Muhammadu Buhari.

The group urged APC to consider the zone for the position of Speaker, House of Representatives or the Deputy Speaker, because according to them, Onu was ‘a de-tribalised Nigerian with a huge appeal, followership and acceptability, across all states in the Southeast’.

“This makes him the most qualified among the contenders.

We can vouch for his integrity and promise that he will not disappoint Buhari, having been with him for many years,” they said.

The group urged Igbo, irrespective of party affiliation, to join hands and support Onu for the position.

Madam Adeoya dies at 77

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HE Adeoya family of Ifaki-Ekiti, Ido–Osi Local Government Area of Ekiti State, announces the exit of their matriarch, Madam Victoria Olufunke Adeoya (nee Fayemi), who died on April 10. She was 77.

Born on August 28, 1938, to late Pa Jacob Aina Fayemi, Madam Adeoya attended Methodist Secondary Modern School, Ifaki-Ekiti between 1956 and 1959 for her post primary education. She proceeded to Wesley Guild College, Ilesa, Osun State, where she graduated in 1963 as a Nursing Midwife.

On December 26, 1964, she married David Adefemi Adeoya.

A devout Christian, she is survived by her husband, Pa David Adeoya, children and grandchildren.

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THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

NEWS Edo monarch: police never arrested me

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HE traditional ruler of Sasaro in AkokoEdo Local Government Area of Edo State, Azutorome Unuaikhazor, the Oba of Sasaro, yesterday debunked the report that he was arrested last week when a missing police rifle was found in his bedroom.

The monarch spoke against the backdrop of the attack on a quarry site by youths from the community.

The attack, it was learnt, followed the death of an employee and an indigene of the area.

Addressing reporters at his palace, Unuaikhazor said he retrieved the rifle from the youth and kept it in his palace for the police.

The monarch said quarry companies operating in his community had “very cordial relationship” with his community.

He said: “It is the press that is spreading a rumour to destroy me. Such a thing never happened in Sasaro clan, except there is another Sasaro clan elsewhere.

“The action of the police led one of the angry youths to collect the gun from the policemen and made away with it. I was informed that

From Osemwengie Ben Ogbemudia, Benin

the police rifle was missing; so, I came out of my palace and started shouting that the youth should not invite trouble to Sasaro clan. I was shouting that whoever was with gun should return it to me.

Later, I saw a young man coming with the gun.

“It was my wife that led him to the kitchen where the gun was kept safely.

“I know the implication of illegal possession of fire arms. That was why I called for the gun.

“That same evening, at 7 pm, the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) and his team came to my palace to report the missing gun. I told them that it had been found.

I led him to the kitchen where we kept it and gave it to them.

“The DPO appreciated what I did and left with his men.

“The following day, I was told that the Edo State Police commissioner had heard about the incident and that he was inviting me to Benin.

“I went to Benin to meet him. After discussing with him - a discussion that was not up to an hour - I left for Sasoro.”

Search begins in Edo for kidnapped Lebanese

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OCAL vigilantes and security operatives have intensified the search for a Lebanese abducted in Auchi, headquarters of Estako West Local Government Area of Edo State.

The Lebanese, whose

From Osagie Otabor, Benin

name had not been made public, is a worker of Setraco Construction Company.

He was working at the Auchi gully reclamation site when gunmen took him away.

Security operatives attached to the Lebanese reportedly ran away when the gunmen shot into the air before abducting the foreigner.

It was learnt that a security team has been combing the forest the kidnappers fled

to with their victim.

Work has been halted at the gully site since the incident occurred last Friday.

Police spokesman Stephen Onwochei, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), said he had not been briefed on the abduction.

PDP to RSIEC: you can’t conduct council poll

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HE Rivers State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has told the State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) that any attempt to proceed with the planned local government election, scheduled for May 23, will amount to a disrespect for the court.

A court, it was learnt, had ordered that the status quo ante be maintained.

The party noted that the election would be a waste, if the RSIEC conducted it as scheduled.

In a statement in Port Harcourt, the state capital, by his Special Adviser (Media), Jerry Needam, PDP state Chairman Felix Obuah said the party affirmed that anything done to conduct the

election against the decision of the court - that all parties should maintain status quo ante - would amount to a nullity.

The PDP alleged that RSIEC chairman and its members were card-carrying members of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who should “not have the moral standing to conduct the election”.

The party said the composition of RSIEC negated the principle of natural justice, adding that the RSIEC should abide by the rule of ‘nemo iudex in causa sua’ (meaning: no person can judge a case in which he has vested interest).

It queried the rationale in conducting an election that breached the provisions of the law.

NYSC Batch ‘A’ begins tomorrow

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HE 2015 Batch ‘A’ orientation course programme of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) will start tomorrow nationwide and last till May 25.

In Akwa Ibom State, the orientation course will take place at the NYSC Permanent Orientation camp in Nsit Atari Local Government Area.

It was learnt that 2,350 corps members would take part in the orientation course, according to a statement by the NYSC State Office, signed by

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UPU hails ex-Niger Delta militants for backing APC, Buhari

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HE leader of the Urhobo Progress Union (UPU), Chief Tuesday Onoge, has hailed former Niger Delta militants, under the auspices of All Progressives Congress (APC) Security Committee, for backing the party and President-elect Muhammadu Buhari.

Onoge spoke at the weekend when he hosted the former militants at his home at Ekpan in Uvwie Local Government Area of

From Polycarp Orosevwotu, Ughelli

Delta State.

The UPU chief told the former militants, led by “Commander” Bini Oduku, that he was overwhelmed by the group’s commitment to Buhari’s victory.

He hailed the group for identifying with him, adding that its members should be united to pursue a collective goal instead of personal or individual

From Uyoatta Eshiet, Uyo

Albert Favour, for the state coordinator.

The statement added that registration of prospective corps members starts tomorrow and closes by midnight on May 6.

Governor Godswill Akpabio is expected to preside over the swearing-in ceremony on May 7, while the acting chief judge will swear in corps members for the mandatory one-year service, the statement added.

Fuel sells for N300 per litre in Edo HE Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) yesterday sold for N300 per litre in the black market in parts of Edo State.

At some petrol stations selling the product in Benin, the state capital, and environs, motorists bought fuel for between N130 and N150 per litre.

Petrol stations belonging to major marketers were out

•Benue State All Progressives Congress (APC) Chairman Abba Yaro (left); Azendeshi Ward Chairman in Ukum Local Government Area, Mnunga Kyenge (middle), at the presentation of party membership card to Benjamin Ashaver (right) following his defection to APC at Chito, Ukum Local Government Area...at the weekend.

PHOTO: UJA EMMANUEL

From Osagie Otabor, Benin

of products when our reporter went round town yesterday.

At other petrol stations, the attendants said they were waiting for instructions on what price to charge per litre.

Those selling at black market price in Benin claimed they got the products from Agbor in Delta State.

achievement.

Onoge said he was confident that with Oduku’s leadership of the group, the Niger Delta would witness lasting peace.

The UPU chief decried the way President Goodluck Jonathan treated the Urhobo by failing to involve them in his administration.

Oduku said the visit was meant to pledge the group’s support to the Urhobo for spreading

change across the nation.

He promised that in future elections, his group would ensure that the governor returns to the Urhobo.

On this year’s elections, Oduku hailed Onoge for ensuring Urhobo’s support for Buhari and APC. He noted that as the Southsouth coordinator of Security for Buhari, he saw Onoge’s commitment for the transformation of Delta State.

Olu of Warri prays for better governance

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CTIVITIES marking the 28th coronation anniversary of Ogiame Atuwatse II, the Olu of Warri, continued at the weekend.

The monarch prayed for the newly elected All Progressives Congress (APC) Federal Government to give the nation effective leadership.

Addressing his subjects and well-wishers at his palace in Warri, the 19th Olu of Warri also hailed the ground breaking of the $16 billion Federal Government’s Ogidigben Gas Export Processing Zone (EPZ).

In his address, which centred on the need for better leadership by the incoming administration, the Olu noted that contrary to predictions of a dire post-election violence, there had been peace since the 2015 polls.

•Hails $16b EPZ project From Bolaji Ogundele, Warri

He said: “The people we have elected: some, as we wished; others, not as we wished. But we thank God for them all. We pray that through them, there will be

prosperity and progress for us all.

“We hope too that those elected will learn to do better in office so that our burdens in the nation may be made lighter and life better for us and our children.

“We thank God for the

EPZ and President Goodluck Jonathan for the groundbreaking before the elections. The good from it will be for our people and for all Nigerians.”

The monarch urged the host communities to provide a conducive environment for the $16 billion project.

‘Sustain Amnesty programme’

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ORMER Niger Delta militants yesterday urged President– elect Muhammadu Buhari to disregard calls for the Amnesty programme, initiated by the late President Umaru Yar’Adua, to be discontinued.

The former agitators urged the incoming administration to carry out a complete audit of the programme.

From Osemwengie Ben Ogbemudia, Benin

The Ijaw group, under the umbrella of Izon-Ibe Global Policy Network (IGPN), in a statement yesterday, noted that the call was necessary because the incoming All Progressives Congress (APC) government had promised to usher in a new lease of life for Nigerians, irrespective of

their regional or political affiliation.

The group’s spokesman, Ayubalayefa Olu Dennis, noted that the programme had tackled youth restiveness in the Niger Delta.

Dennis said beneficiaries of the programme had been trained in vocations in Nigeria and abroad.

He said such people appreciated the benefit of the programme.

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

55

NEWS

‘Bankers behind 90 per cent of robberies in Warri, environs’

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INETY per cent of robberies targeting bank customers in Warri and environs in Delta State have been identified as insiders’ job.

This was disclosed at a meeting the Area Commander of the Nigerian Police Force, Delta South, Mr Mu’azu Muhammed held with bank managers and Chief Security Officers in Warri.

A source at the meeting said Muhammed warned banks to put their houses in order.

“At the meeting, it was confirmed that over 90 percent of the incidents people being robbed after leaving the bank are done with in-

From Shola O’Neil, Regional Editor, S’South

siders’ help. Most of the victims told us that their attackers told them specifically the amount of money they withdraw down to the last kobo.

“There was the case when a man withdrew N4million from a popular new generation bank around the Warri metropolis and a few minutes later he was dispossessed before Ogunu Flyover, on his way back to his office. The robbers told him they wanted the N4million he had with him. That cannot be coincidence.”

It was gathered that the Area Commander in charge of Delta South has demanded

monthly and quarterly meetings with bank managers and CSOs with a view to reviewing the solutions proffered to end the ugly trend.

A source, who attended the meeting, said a CSO blamed the bank managers for their inability to operate properly, disclosing that the security cameras are usually locked up in the offices of the managers who hardly look at them.

“Normally, these cameras should assist the security officers do their jobs, but the CSOs complained managers who keep them in their offices barely have time to observe activities in the bank hall. As a result, suspicious

characters are not identified and trailed.”

Similarly, it was gathered that the meeting was told that bank operators use mobile policemen and other security agents attached to their branches for special operations such as escort of bullion, contrary to the demands of their posting.

“They do this because they do not want to pay for special escort. The downside is that this lead to lapses that criminals capitalises on to rob customers and the Area Commander has warned them that the security of customers lives, cash and property should not be compromised.”

•From left: Students of Founders International Academy Jos, runner up, Miss Esther Jackson, overall winner, Mr Cishak Erasmus and second runner up, Mr Selchang Dassak, displaying prizes, at the 12th Annual National Mathematics Competition in Jos ... at the weekend.

PHOTO: NAN

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HE Ijaw Professionals in the Diaspora, a socio-cultural group , has warned against the humiliation of Ijaw leaders.

The group rose from an extraordinary congress in Atlanta, Georgia in the United States with a resolve to sensitise Ijaw people on the need to ensure its leaders are accorded respect.

In a statement by its General Secretary, Mr. Akpoebi Okrowanta, the group urged Ijaw leaders to always work together.

It set up a five-person committee to independently investigate allegations against prominent Ijaw leaders and draw up a code of conduct for all its leaders.

Ijaw in Diaspora warn against pulling down leaders The group said the legacy of President Goodluck Jonathan must be preserved, adding that leaders, such as Governor Seriake Dickson must be supported “to play a more nationalistic role and to mitigate the collapse of the Ijaw cause”.

The group said: “Already the group has investigated and found to be untrue, the latest attempts to destroy the unblemished record of performance of the leader of the only purely homogeneous Ijaw State to the mud by link-

ing him to a spuriuos claim of misappropriation of funds with what it claimed as a First Bank Chairman, as being distributed in the social media.

“We confirmed with the EFCC, that no such complaints have been received contrary to claims that the EFCC was handling the case.

“With a fake website, the sponsors, who are strangely prominent Ijaw sons did not consider what the big picture of their action would be, but only concentrating on the

immediately perceived political advantage.

“This is just one of the many cases we have investigated and if those concerned does not stop this self destruction, we shall publish their names for the world to see.

“Once again we appeal to all well meaning Ijaw people to prevail on the larger Ijaw community to work for their collective stability and progress as a way to ending the unfavourable tide that the enemy has woven for our people.”

Directors to host Fashola •Book for presentation

•Fashola

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HE Institute of Directors Nigeria will on Wednesday host Governor Babatunde Fashola at the Shell Hall, Muson Centre, Onikan, Lagos.

The governor will deliver a Public Policy Lecture titled: “My stewardship - Eight Years of Delivering Excellence”.

The Director-General of the Institute of Directors Nigeria, Victor Banjo, stated that the IoD Nigeria Public Policy Lecture platform is designed to promote good governance and give the governed the opportunity to assess the qualitative and quantitative impact of the policies of government and key governmental agencies.

The event will also feature the public presentation of a book titled: ‘The Example - The Era of Babatunde Raji Fashola as Governor of Lagos State’ edited by Mr Sam Omatseye

(Chairman, Editorial Board, The Nation Newspaper).

A statement by the institute said: “The Institute of Directors Nigeria (IoD Nigeria) founded in 1983, is a prime leadership organisation that champions good governance and promotes business ethics in Nigeria. It is an affiliate of the Institute of Directors UK. IoD activities spans across all sectors of the economy and aims at securing greater effectiveness and efficiency in boardrooms. IoD offers a network of over 110,000 members in over 150 countries, and membership is drawn from directors, business leaders, policy makers in the public and private sector across diverse enterprises and industries.

“IoD Nigeria supports directors by equipping them to be more effective in the discharge of their duties and responsibilities to their organsations. Various Director Development courses, seminars, and workshops are organized to achieve this.

Also, it provides members opportunities to meet and discuss with policy and decision makers in the economy.

Membership is open to Board Chairmen, CEOs Executive Directors, Non- Executive Directors and senior management staff in the private and public sectors of the economy.”

Akwa Ibom governor-elect Udom urges prayers for leaders

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KWA Ibom State Governor-elect Udom Emmanuel has urged Christians to continue to pray for God’s constant blessing on leaders.

Emmanuel said since the divine charge on people is that they should always pray for leaders, Christians should not relent in praying for peace, progress and the Lord’s blessings on the land.

The in-coming governor, who addressed the crusade of the Lord’s Chosen Charismatic Revival Church held in Uyo yesterday, claimed that it was in response to prayers by the people of the state, that God brought him as his own instrument to bring

•Traditional dancers at the Annual Mbapur Festival in Mbula Kuli village of Demsa Local Government Area of Adamawa ... at the weekend.

PHOTO: NAN

From Uyoatta Eshiet, Uyo

about more development in the state.

Commending the zeal and prayerful spirit of the Lord’s Chosen Charismatic Church, he said: “You sacrifice your pleasure and time, praying for God to do his will in the state, and lo and behold, his will has been done and I urge you to keep the fire burning.”

He hailed the General Overseer of the Church, Rev Lazarus Muoka, and the church leadership for organising the convention with the theme, “The Master Has Arrived”.

He added that although God has always been with Akwa Ibom State, the convention meant that God had new plans and prospects for the betterment of the people.

Emmanuel said: “Having stood on several Christian platforms and churches to seek for support in the elections, it would not be fair for me to ignore a convention of this magnitude by Christians, and I want to use this opportunity to again thank the church and indeed all Christian faithful for standing by me, and I promise that I will allow God to use me to create wealth for the state.”

He announced a donation of two buses for evangelism to the church, maintaining that the everyone’s supreme responsibility is to be focused on God in order to make Heaven, which is the ultimate destination of all Christians.

Rev Muoka prayed for the Governor–elect and for the state.

56

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

NEWS ‘Zone Senate presidency to Northeast to end insurgency’

Gombe APC petitions tribunal From Vincent Ohonbamu, Gombe

From Abdulgafar Alabelewe, Kaduna

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T

HE Kaduna State chapter of a group of stakeholders in the Northeast, under the aegis of Northeast Zone People’s Forum, has said the zoning of Senate Presidency to the area is inevitable.

Addressing reporters at the weekend in Kaduna, the forum’s President Ibrahim Babashani said unbiased and equitable sharing of national political offices is among the solutions to end insurgency in the area.

Babashani noted that if some national political positions could be zoned to the Northeast, there would be more political will and commitment among appointees to join forces to end insurgency.

The group’s leader urged political actors to zone the Senate presidency to the Northeast, adding that it would solve crisis in the region.

He said: “We need a leader at the national level, who can stand firmly and speak for the wellbeing of our people and the country. This is because the people of the Northeast have suffered undue neglect over the years.

Our people have been killed by insurgents. We can no longer bear this under the coming administration of Muhammadu Buhari and the All Progressives Congress (APC). “...The forum wishes to make a passionate appeal to the leadership of APC to concede the zoning arrangement to the Northeast...”

•From left: Kaduna State Governor-elect Nasir El-Rufai; National Chairman, Anwar Faidot Society of Nigeria, Alhaji Abdulrazak Alejaiye and Deputy President, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Issa Aremu, at the seventh day fidau for the late Chief Imam of Anwar Mosque, Sheikh Daniyatu Shita-Bey, in Kaduna...yesterday PHOTO: NAN

Millions gone as fire razes Gamboru Market in Maiduguri G OODS worth millions of naira were destroyed yesterday when fire razed a section of Gamboru Market in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.

Some traders in the market told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the fire started at 3 am when there was nobody in the market.

Malam Mohammed Ibrahim, a leader in the market, said he noticed thick smoke at the market

during early morning prayers around 5am.

He said: “We were at the mosque praying when we saw thick smoke coming from the market.

“But we could not get to the market due to the prevailing curfew in the state,” he said.

He added that when the traders eventually got to the market in the morn-

ing, they discovered that the fire destroyed several shops and goods worth millions of naira.

“Nobody can say specifically the source of the fire, but some traders leaving nearby said it started around 3 am,” Ibrahim said.

Another trader, Malam Usman Kachalla, urged the state government to

come assist the government in rebuilding their shops.

A NAN correspondent, who visited the market yesterday, reports that many traders were salvaging remains of their wares, while others stood by and lamented the situation.

The market was gutted by fire in 2009 and 2011.

Borno hails military for rescuing abducted women

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HE Borno State government yesterday hailed the military for rescuing about 500 children and women abducted by suspected Boko Haram insurgents in Sambisa Forest.

The military, last week, rescued the women in batches, following an operation in the forest.

Governor Kashim Shettima, in a statement in Maiduguri, the state capital, by his Special Adviser on Communication, Mallam Isa Gusau, described the military operation as gratifying.

The statement said: “The operation is gratifying, regardless of whether or not the rescued women form part of the over 200 students abducted by insurgents at Government Secondary School, (GSS), Chibok, on April 14, 2014.”

It added: “The lives, safety and wellbeing of residents of the state are of equal importance to us and as such we celebrated the news about the rescue with so much excitement in a manner we would have celebrated if the military succeed in freeing the Chibok schoolgirls.”

The governor urged the military to sustain the tempo by freeing other abducted persons from the forest.

Shettima hoped that the military would also rescue

•Govt deploys social workers to IDP camps to tackle trauma NEMA resumes weekly intervention in Borno IDP camps

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HE National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) said yesterday that it had resumed weekly supply of relief materials to Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps in Borno, following the successful conduct of the 2015 general polls.

Alhaji Mohammed Kanar, the NEMA North East Coordinator, stated this at the end of a stakeholders meeting in Maiduguri.

Kanar explained that the agency had suspended its operations during the polls to avoid politicisation.

“We had to stay back for a while, because a number of polling units were located at the camps.

“We do not want to be involved in the politics at the camps during the elections,” he said.

Kanar said that although NEMA continued to provide essential materials at the camp the abducted Chibok schoolgirls within a short time.

Also, the Borno State government has said it had deployed social workers to the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps to tackle rising cases of trauma and psychiatric problems among displaced persons.

Dr Muhammad Ghuluze, the director, Emergency Medical Response Department in the Ministry of Health, spoke with the

even during the polls without any noise.

“Although we rushed in to provide some materials at the Lamisla Primary School to the IDPs from Northern Borno who were displaced few days to the election.

“We felt that the best thing was to suspend large scale distribution of relief materials to avoid politicisation,’’ he said.

But Kanar noted that with the elections over, the agency had mobilised to the camps to continue its intervention.

“Last week we presented trailer loads of food and non-food materials to IDP camps in Dalori, the NYSC camp, among others.

“We have just received 10 new tents from the head office for onward distribution to some IDP camps like the Federal Training Centre Dalori where the rescued Bama residents are being kept,” he said.

Kanar assured that NEMA would supply mattresses and mats to the camps to take care of new inmates.

News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Maiduguri on the deployment.

Ghuluze explained that the objective was to assist the displaced persons, who suffered trauma due to the activities of the insurgents.

The doctor said the ministry had established clinics in almost all the IDP camps.

He said the ministry also deployed doctors, nurses, midwives and other health workers to ensure proper management of the clinics.

Ghuluze said: “We have already set up medical clinics in 18 of the 21 IDP camps in Maiduguri, with the aim of providing medical services to the displaced persons.

“We mobilised social workers, including psychiatric doctors, to the clinics after we discovered the high rate of psychiatric disorders in the camps.

“The social workers will co-exist with the other medical and health workers in the clinic for effective

service delivery. The idea is to provide easy access to those in need of such services.”

He said the ministry had ensured regular supply of drugs to the clinics.

Ghuluze said: “We have been supplying drugs to the clinics for treatment of minor ailments. The camps workers have been empowered to refer patients requiring further attention to the Specialists Hospital for treatment free of charge.”

He said the ministry had also distributed thousands of insecticidal-treated mosquito nets to the IDP camps to protect them from malaria.

“We have distributed Insecticidal Mosquito Nets to all the IDP camps as part of the Roll Back Malaria programme.

“Once, a camp was set up by the government, we simply supply equal number of mosquito nets to the IDPs in the camp.”

He added that the continued influx of displaced persons into the camps had led to scarcity of the nets.

“We have noticed inadequacy in the distribution of the mosquito nets due largely to the influx of new persons into the camps.

“We have taken notice of the problem for immediate action,” the permanent secretary said.

HE Gombe State All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Alhaji Inuwa Yahaya, has filed a petition at the elections tribunal to seek redress on the result of the poll.

He urged the tribunal to announce him the winner of the election.

Inuwa said his party won the election though some elements in the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), in alleged connivance with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), denied APC its victory.

The APC candidate said he had proof to buttress his claims.

He said: “My mission is to tender our claim and seek redress from the tribunal because we believe APC won the election. Some elements in the electoral commission connived and contrived and purportedly that APC did not win the election.

“So, we brought proof to the tribunal to prove and claim the mandate of the people of Gombe for the governor of the state.

Court restrains FCT minister, others From Eric Ikhilae, Abuja

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USTICE Othman A. Musa of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Apo, has ordered the FCT minister and three others to desist from further re-allocating shops and open spaces at the N6.5 billion Wuye Ultra-Modern Market in Abuja.

Also affected by the order are the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA), the All Purpose Shelter Limited (APSL) and the Abuja Property Development Company Limited (APDCL).

The order was contained in the judgment delivered last Wednesday in a suit filed by 706 traders, led by Abah Denis, who claimed to have earlier been allocated shops and open space in the market.

Maiduguri records first rain

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AIDUGURI, the Borno State capital, yesterday recorded its first rainfall for the year.

Residents express joy after weeks of intense heat, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.

The rain, which started at about 5:30 pm and lasted for 30 minutes, brought relief to the city, which has experienced temperature of more than 47 degree Celsius.

Malam Alpha Ibrahim, a resident, told NAN that he was happy.

Ali Goni, another resident, said the heat in the area before the rains was unbearable.

He said: “Nobody thought it will rain today. We just saw a heavy dust without any cloud in the sky.”

57

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

NEWS Fuel, food supplier to Boko Haram captured

Police discover fraud in sales of Fed Govt’s houses Continued from page 1

The investigators, in a report, a copy of which The Nation sighted yesterday, revealed how some officials of the PIC, working with some cronies outside the committee, defraud tenants by denying them the right to buy such houses, contrary to the government’s laid down procedure for selling the property.

They then offer the houses for sale to members of the public at inflated prices.

They said the method was recently deployed in relation to the sale of the property identified as No 6, Ruxton Street and No 3, Rumens Road (both in Ikoyi), Lagos.

The investigators stated that their “discreet investigations reveal that there actually exists a cabal within the PIC, whose modus operandi” is described below: “As soon as sitting tenants of any government property expresses interest to buy their flats in accordance with government policy and the PIC has profiled such tenants and

found them qualified, the information about such property is immediately passed to members of this cabal, who would approach the tenants and make offers to buy the property off their interests at very ridiculous rates, usually between N10 million and N12 million maximum per flat, with subtle threats and intimidation that either they accept or they shall be disqualified.

“The tenants are usually informed that they must all make payments for their respective flats together as one.

Having succeeded in putting sufficient fear in the tenants, they are now compelled (the tenants) to give a joint letter of authority to the supposed buyer to deal exclusively on their behalf with the PIC and pay on their behalf the offer price. Sometimes, the tenants are paid even before the offer letter is issued.”

“This modus (operandi) was recently deployed to intimidate the present occupants of No 6, Ruxton Street, Ikoyi,

Lagos and in the process several high ranking police officers have been maligned as having interest in the property,” the investigators said.

They added that, on further investigation, they found that any member of the cabal being used for any property, without paying a dime to government purse, was allowed to source for buyers using the offer letter of the PIC and because the properties were usually in choices areas, buyers were easy to find.

They added that when a buyer is found for a price that usually doubles the government offer price, usually ranging between N650 million to as much as N900 million for Ikoyi property, such a buyer is then instructed to raise drafts in the name of PIC on behalf of each tenant for the value of the offer price while the balance goes to the member of the cabal that has been assigned that property to handle and consequently shared.

Continued from page 4

•Police IG Solomon Arase

“This was the exact modus that has been deployed in respect of No 3, Rumens Road, Ikoyi, Lagos where the instructions for the distribution of the N670 million was handed to the petitioner,” the police investigators said.

They recommended further investigation, particularly compelling some identified officials of the PIC found to have engaged in corrupt practices and abuse of office to provide needed information.

Fed Govt, oil marketers clash over subsidy claims Continued from page 4

something about it. It has been very stressful for four years, trying to cope with a group that controls a very important sector of a nation and they are small enough to organise themselves.”

This, she said, “means that they can hold a nation to ransom anytime they want.

And that is what is happening. I remember when I came back as finance minister on August 17th, 2011, the first thing that confronted me was this scandal of subsidies. By then, more that N 1 trillion had already been paid. And we went through that whole thing and since then we cleaned up, restructured and trimmed down.

“You see that the amount we have been paying year by year diminished substantially to about N971 billion

a year, down from the N 2.3 trillion of 2011. We brought it from N 2.3 trillion to about N 971 billion that has been in the budget each year. So, we made very substantial restructuring and changes to the whole process that brought the amount down for the nation. But yet we have to deal with this problem and the whole country has seen us trying our best struggling”, Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala said.

She noted that oil marketers are a small cartel that are into no risk business, based on the template negotiated with the PPPRA a long time ago, which factored in exchange rate differential and profit margin guarantee - a situation she said, that leaves them with absolutely no risk.

The minister said: “The

template that governs their business is designed to cover all their costs plus a profit margin. That is PPPRA template which I have quarrelled with for quite some.

So it is really no risk business for them. Or very little risk. I am not saying there is no stress. Of course, they have stress. But the risks are all covered by the template that was negotiated with PPPRA long ago. And it is actually that template that we have been quarreling with.”

That template, Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala “says that they must be paid exchange rate differentials, interest rates, profit margin guarrantee plus the principal amount they spent in the business.

Based on that, the government is taking a full risk of their business, according to

this template. Even when we have revenue shortfall, any interest that accrues has to be paid by government.

That is what was negotiated. So, they are in a no risk business and we have been pleading with them that if that is the case, at least supply Nigerians with the fuel because at the end of the day the government is still paying for all of this. Why are you making Nigerians suffer? Why these long queues?”

Last Thursday, the Federal Ministry of finance said it paid the marketers N156 billion and put the balance at N98 billion. The minister said yesterday that the balance had increased to N131 billion, based on last figure obtained from the PPPRA. She said the figures constantly changed based on offloading of products.

PDP leaders reject calls to resign as crisis grows Continued from page 4

in their polling units, it is on record that the National Auditor and my humble self performed creditably and delivered our areas in the general elections.

“It is therefore disheartening that rather than joining other well-meaning members of our great party in supporting the National Working Committee in the on-going re-engineering process to rebuild the PDP, some elders from our zone, particularly, a former Deputy National Chairman, Chief Olabode George, who should know, have instead resorted to divisive politics by attempting to instigate our members against one another.

“What our party needs now in the Southwest and indeed across the country is for all hands to be on the deck as we work harmoniously in our determination to reposition the PDP to regain power in 2019.

“Our party members are by this therefore charged to watch out for individuals whose agenda is to sow

seeds of discord and pave the way for crisis within our fold for their selfish interests.

“The National Working Committee is now more than ever before determined to rebuild the PDP and restore its glory as the preeminent political party in Nigeria. This resolve is irrevocable and we shall not allow ourselves to be distracted in anyway by any person under any guise whatsoever.”

Senate Leader Victor Ndoma-Egba also accused the governors of being behind the failure of the party at the elections.

In a paper entitled “Majority and minority parties in the Legislature: party defection (cross carpeting in the legislature)”, which he delivered at the induction course for legislators-elect of the 8th National Assembly in Abuja, Ndoma-Egba said: “In the PDP, government is no longer of the people and for the people. It is now government of governors, by governors and for governors.”

Speaking on the defection of members to opposition parties, Ndoma-Egba explained that politicians “defect because their former party squeezed them out, or in the case of the PDP recently, that they did not fit within the governors’ calculations. In my view, since every politics is local, each case should be treated on its merit.

“Unbridled defection has the capacity of not only overheating the polity and upsetting the entire political configuration but destabilising the polity.

“While the law has clearly settled the circumstances under which a person elected on the platform of a political party can switch parties, nothing restricts those who are not in the legislature from switching parties.

“The phenomenon will endure for as long as ownership of political parties is not with its members but, as in the case of the PDP, with governors. Governors (especially of the PDP) have become so over bearing that it is only their wishes that rule.

The party (at the national

level) suborns its Constitution, guidelines and even court orders to please the whims and fancies of governors who appropriate the will of members and impose theirs in its stead.

“This has bred sycophancy, impunity and arrogance, and eroded internal party democracy.

“Consequently, after the last so-called primaries, there was a lot of traffic out of the PDP and no corresponding traffic into it. The party simply imploded under the weight of governor’s impunity and arrogance.

“The PDP carefully choreographed its downfall. It worked very hard at it and got the result it deserved.”

Ndoma-Egba advised that the best antidote against the PDP defeat in 2015 is to stem further defections by ensuring “internal party democracy” as “a party can only give the nation what she has.

“A party that does not have internal party democracy can only falsely promise the nation democracy.”

abducted and taken there, the terrorists were sacked from the Madagali recently. ``A number of terrorists, however, died in an encounter with troops who caught up with them as they fled prior to the recovery of the women and children. ''Some of the terrorists still managed to escape with varying degrees of gunshot wounds. Others who were captured, are now being in-

terrogated by intelligence officers,’’ he said.

Gen. Olukolade said a machine gun, some rounds of ammunition, as well as some motorcycles and bicycles were also recovered from the terrorists.

He said that a member of the vigilante group serving as guide to the troops was, however, wounded.

He added that the operation in Sambisa forest was ongoing as troops were methodically searching every aspect of the expansive terrain.

Troops battle militiamen on Plateau Continued from page 4

completed.

A resident of the area said the army had killed 20 people in retaliation for the dead soldiers, who he said were murdered Saturday night.

Those killed belonged to the Tarok ethnic group, members of which had allegedly engaged in cattle rustling.

“I saw people killed deliberately by the soldiers. Some ran

to the river but could not escape. They were caught by the bullets,” Usman Sabo told Reuters.

Iweha denied the army had attacked the villagers.

Clashes pitting the cattleherding Fulani people against mostly settled farming communities like the Berom in Nigeria’s volatile “Middle Belt” are common.

Boko Haram: Women taken hostage ‘fired at soldiers’ Continued from page 4

from.

“Based on registration we have carried out so far, none of them is from Chibok,” said Zakari Abubakar, an official of NEMA. Ms Musa’s four-day-old baby was born the day before her group set off from the Sambisa Forest area for a refugee camp in Yola, crammed into the backs of rickety, open pick-up trucks.

On the trip’s first day, one military vehicle escorting the group exploded a landmine, wounding two soldiers, according to a soldier travelling with them.

Boko Haram has been on the back foot militarily in recent months, having previously controlled an area of north-east Nigeria almost the size of Belgium.

The tide turned in the past nine weeks with a new infusion of armoury, including helicopter gunships, and a coalition with troops from neighboring countries.

The military has spent days “processing” and trying to identify the women and children, as they receive medical and psychological care.

A total of 22 of the group were dispatched immediately to a hospital in town due to their condition. Dr Mo-

hammed Auwal said that many were suffering from malaria, diarrohea and malnutrition.

Almost 300 children and women arrived at the displaced persons’ camp in Yola after a three-day journey to safety.

The military has said it liberated 677 girls and women and destroyed more than a dozen insurgent camps.

The women arrived at the camp in Yola, the capital of Adamawa State, on the back of open pick-up trucks.

One of the rescued women at the Malkohi Internally Displaced Persons’ (IDPs’) Camp outside Yola, the Adamawa State capital, has relived their experience.

According to the Associated Press (AP), a 27-year-old woman, Lami Musa, who had just given birth at the time the troops arrived, was quoted by Associated Press (AP) as saying: “Boko Haram came and told us they were moving out and said that we should run away with them. But we said ‘no’. Then they started stoning us. I held my baby to my stomach and doubled over to protect her.

“We just have to give praise to God that we are alive, those of us who have survived.”

‘PDP is now an opposition party’ Continued from page 4

dioha, Interior Minister Abba Moro; Alhaji Adamu Waziri; Senator Ahmed Makarfi; Chief Makanjuola Ogundipe; Chief Pegba Otemolu; Mrs. Funmi Ayoola; and BoT Secretary, Alhaji Walid Jibril who will act as secretary to the panel.

The committee is expected to be inaugurated at the PDP national secretariat, Abuja tomorrow.

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

58

FOREIGN NEWS IS militants ‘kill 300 Yazidi captives’

Baltimore relieved by charges, curfew lifted

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EOPLE seeking racial justice and rebuilding for Baltimore planned a day of prayer and healing, even as others chafed under a curfew set to expire early today. City leaders refused calls to lift the curfew following the city's top prosecutor's announcement that charges had been filed against six officers accused of fatally injuring a black man in police custody.

On Friday State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby filed charges against six police officers involved in the arrest, transport and fatal injury of Freddie Gray, who died a week after suffering a broken neck while inside a police van, she said.

•Protesters march through Baltimore on Saturday, May 2, 2015, the day after charges were announced against the police officers involved in Freddie Gray\'s death. PHOTO:AP

At the demonstration on Saturday that was billed as a "victory rally," speakers expressed gratitude to Mosby for her decision.

"Every prosecutor should have such backbone," said Malik Shabazz, president of Black Lawyers for Justice and one of the demonstration's organizers.

"Every prosecutor should have such spine."

Mosby said Gray's neck was broken because he was placed head-first into a police van while in handcuffs and later leg shackles where he was left to slam against the walls of the small metal compartment. Police said the officers who arrest-

ed Gray ignored his cries for help because they thought he was faking his injuries. He was repeatedly denied medical attention.

Mosby deemed the death a homicide. After Gray's arrest Caesar Goodson, who was the driver of the transport van and who is facing a second-degree

murder charge, made several stops before arriving at the police station and calling an ambulance. While some video footage of those stops is available, a camera inside the police transport van was not recording during Gray's ride, according to police.

Gordon Brown calls for release of missing Chibok girls

T •Gordon Brown

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HE United Nations Special Envoy for Global Education and former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown called for the immediate release of all abducted girls, saying the release of 200 girls from captivity by Boko Haram is a welcomed move.

“For a year families have not known whether their daughters are dead or alive, married off,

ALTIMORE-the Charm City of the East coast in the United States of Americawent up in violent rioting and destruction most of last week after the burial of 25year old Freddie Gray, a black man who died April 19, a week after his arrest, under mysterious circumstances in the custody of six Baltimore Police Department officers.

Coming at the heels of recent cases in Wisconsin, Atlanta and New York, where police brutality; especially against black men have led to serious and violent rioting, the explosion in Baltimore is definitely not surprising.

Giving the lack of trust or even mutual distrust between the black community and the police; the rioting is a pointer to a people demanding for redress in a broken justice system much skewed against the poor black segment of a blessed nation.

For sure the job of police officers all over the world is herculean, even in monolithic societies. Then throw in the volatile mix of racial distrust, inequality and economic deprivations, lack of access to employment and empowerment opportunities, the result, at any given provocation is violence.

The fear of the unknown and the fact that in recent cases of police brutality in America hardly leads to prosecution of these overzealously over reactive cops push the people over the precipice and thus taking the law into their hands, as condemnable as this might be, is not altogether out of place in the overall scheme of things.

Well thank God as we write all six police officers in the Freddie Gray death are now to face criminal charges ranging from homicide, manslaughter, criminal negligence as well as medical negligence all which culminated in the death of this young man whose only offence was running away from an officer who gave him an intimidating look at a bus stop on the east side of town in broad daylight.

I lived in the Charm City for well over a decade and it is not unusual for a police officer to pull you over for a simple traffic offence and drum it into your ears, if you dare protest to “’go back to your country if you don’t like it here”. It’s not that Baltimore is a flat –out racist city, but even without committing a crime, I cannot blame the young man, Freddie for taking to his heels on sighting a police officer who refused to take his eyes off him in broad daylight for no reason.

The pursuit and subsequent arrest were ruled illegal for lack of probable cause but a life was unnecessarily lost at the end of the day.

On the flip side, the burning of a CVS store on North Avenue, a veritable source of government -subsidized and easily available

By Evelyn Osagie

sold off or violated as a result of their captivity. Now that some girls have been released we want all girls released,” he said.

The United Nations Envoy also called for increase security in schools, especially those in the north, saying: “We need more secure, better-prepared safe schools to make girls and parents know everything is being done

to protect them”.

“Today 10million children don’t go to school in Nigeria. By creating safe schools and communities where girls are free of fear we can get every child into school and learning,” he added.

According to a statement, Brown held discussions with the President-Elect Muhammadu Buhari over the

weekend on how the international community can provide air and military help to free the girls.

He said: “It is time to end the nightmare. And we want them home with their families in days - not months or years.

And I will also offer help for safe schools, which allow girls to participate in education, free of fear.

Global Focus DAYO FAKUADE, Foreign Editor sms 08134230367

daborgu@gmail.com

Baltimore in the radar, UK Election 2015: Issues and Gladiators medications for pregnant women and senior citizens in an already economically- depressed black neighbourhood does not equate in any which way you look at it, a demand for justice. Also a church-based multimillion dollar facility about to be commissioned this month for senior citizens hospice needs was razed; while rioters were seen dropping in on liquor stores through the roof tops along Pennsylvania by North Avenue, throwing alcoholic beverages to irate mobs on the street below. How that amounts to a demand for justice for a slain young man is beyond imagination.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake did not waste time in clamping a city-wide curfew on Baltimore to arrest the imbroglio and now the peoples’ feelings must have been assuaged, albeit temporarily, with the city’s Attorney General’s office to put the officers on trial. But the damages done are against the rioters themselves; short-changing the innocent of much –needed infrastructures, social and health services.

We will be watching into which direction the pendulum of justice swings in this case.

Moving on to United Kingdom, the push has now come to shove as the country looks forward to Thursday’s general election which will decide the next occupier of that prestigious address: 10 Downing Street. A stately mansion built by Sir George Downing in the early 16th Century and has since been officially housing UK prime ministers as well as official seat of Her Majesty’s Government.

The incumbent Prime Minister David Cameron of the Conservative Party-led coalition is fighting a political fight of his life against Ed Milliband of the Labour Party in this elec-

tion. This is so because of his take on UK’s continued stay in the European Union. He is prime minister by virtue of the collaboration he is enjoying with the Nick Clegg-led Liberal Democratic Party, a party in favour of the country’s continued stay in the EU. Cameron has vowed to disengage with the Liberal Dems even at the expense of losing the coalition which brought him to 10 Downing St. Should Liberal Dem insists on going the way of EU. Cameron game plan is an in-out call out referendum for the people to decide on continued stay in the EU in 2017. His other concern about EU is the spate of freebies which is attracting immigrants across the region to come to UK for jobs and benefits, which he says is hurting the British economy. He has also been accused by former Prime Minister Tony Blair of xenophobia, with his passive involvement in assisting or receiving African migrants rescued off the coast of Italy from Libya.

His arch-rival from the Left, Ed Milliband of the Labour Party says he is not unmindful of the advantages which a $15.5 Trillion, 28 nation- 500 million population EU economy offers British businesses, so he wants to stay in.

United Kingdom Independence Party’s (UKIP) Nigel Farage is a factor that has to be reckoned with as well. He is controversial and a maverick. He is anti-euro but pro-EU. He is a conservative representing South East England in the European Parliament since 1999.

Also, during the week under review, Indonesia ignored all pleas from the international community, including United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, to spare the lives of eight convicted drug prisoners. The government likened the activities of drug dealers in the country as an equivalent of a fight

EVERAL hundred Yazidi captives have been killed in Iraq by Islamic State (IS) militants west of Mosul, Yazidi and Iraqi officials say.

A statement from the Yazidi Progress Party said 300 captives were killed on Friday in the Tal Afar district near the city.

Iraqi Vice-President Osama al-Nujaifi described the reported deaths as “horrific and barbaric”.

Thousands of members of the religious minority group were captured last year.

It is not clear how they were killed, or why this has happened now, says the BBC’s Middle East editor Alan Johnston.

Many are reported to have been held in Mosul, the main stronghold of IS after the militants swept through large areas of northern and western Iraq, and eastern Syria in 2014.

Yazidis, whose religion includes elements of several faiths, are considered infidels by IS. Thousands fled to the Kurdish-controlled region of northern Iraq after IS captured the Yazidi-populated Sinjar district in Nineveh province.

Hundreds of men were killed, while some Yazidi women were held and used as sex slaves.

against terrorism; as the illicit trade kills about 50 of her citizens daily. Among the eight executed prisoners were four Nigerians: Sylvester Obiekwe Nwolise; Martin Anderson; Okwudili Oyatanze and Jamiu Agbaje Salami (also known as) Jamiu Owolabi Abashin. Also we have in the list two Australians, one Brazilian and one native Indonesian.

Australia’s Prime Minister Tony Abbot was furious and recalled his country’s ambassador to Jakarta while Brazil came down with harsh criticism of the executions.

On another sad note a 7.8 earthquake rocked Nepal, a South East Asia land-locked country of about 29 million people wreaking havoc, deaths and chaos along its brutal and macabre path. Kathmandu, the nation’s capital and other regions suffered catastrophic devastation. As at now the death toll has passed 7,000, while the injured with varying degrees stand at 14,021 with many more deaths sadly expected. Relief efforts in terms of logistic deliverables are being hampered by the not- so standard state of the only international airport in Kathmandu, with a double whammy of destruction hoisted on its runway by the earthquake, thus forcing some relief cargo planes to divert to India and China which on their own suffered deadly casualties as well.

Also last week, the world marked the 40th anniversary of the fall of Saigon marking the end of America’s most disastrous military forays in South East Asia in the Vietnam War— the day North Vietnam’s Communist army captured South Vietnam’s capital.

The Q word as in “Quagmire” crept into America’s military’s historical lexicology. It was a devastating conflict that left more than 3 million Vietnamese and nearly 60,000 American troops dead.

On a pinky, sweet note, the Royal Palace welcomed another member with yet- to- be named princess by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge- Williams and Kate. She will be fourth on the succession line but she is referred to as a “spare heir” because only her bother George can in all practical terms reach on to the monarchy.

With the list growing, and on a lighter note, can someone please call Buckingham Palace and ask QII to abdicate so that Prince Charles can be enthroned and the traffic clear out a little? Don’t think so!

Well, will be closing by urging you to always treasure and treat this God-given planet earth with all respects. It is the only one we have. Live green and put a smile on a strangers face by just doing an act of random kindness. RBF administration admonishes all to live green because life is good with trees.

See ya.

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

59

FOREIGN NEWS NYC officer shot in head, suspect arrested

101-year-old man rescued one week after Nepal quake

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OLICE rescued a 101year-old man from under the rubble of his home on Saturday, one week after an earthquake hit his country, Nepal Police spokesman Kamal Singh Bam told CNN. The elderly man is in stable condition and police do not know how he survived or the extent of his injuries. He was rescued in Nuwakot district, just northwest of the capital, Kathmandu.

The death toll from the devastating magnitude-7.8 earthquake that struck Nepal last weekend stands at 7,250, and the number of people injured is 14,122, according to the National Emergency Operation Center.

Funchu Tamang, 101, sits at a hospital in Nuwakot district on Sunday after being res-

cued from his collapsed home.

A Nepalese government minister warned Sunday that the death toll is expected to climb "much higher."

"There are still villages where we know that all houses have been destroyed, but have not yet been able to reach," Finance Minister Ram Sharan Mahat said at an event in Baku, Azerbaijan.

Mahat portrayed a desperately bleak situation in his comments at an event on the sidelines of an Asian Development Bank meeting.

"It is with great pain and sadness that I stand before you to present the case of my country Nepal which now remains devastated," he said, according to a transcript of his remarks posted on the bank's website.

Mahat said the quake had

The unnamed rescued elderly man PHOTO: Getty Images

caused "incalculable human loss and suffering, with millions of people rendered homeless."

"The aftershocks have not receded and we expect the final casualty numbers to climb much higher," he said.

His government warned Saturday that the chances of finding survivors buried in rubble are "extremely slim."

"It will be a miracle if anyone is found alive," Home

Ministry spokesman Laxmi Dhakal said. "But we have not completely given up yet and are continuing to look."

The United Nations estimates that more than 3 million people are in need of food assistance -- and nearly half of those need it immediately.

Emergency funding of $415 million is needed, the United Nations said.

Mahat said the quake had

completely or partially destroyed nearly 300,000 houses.

He said Nepalis would rebuild their nation and come out of the crisis stronger, but not without help from other countries.

"We need your technical advice, global knowhow and importantly, substantial financial resources to propel us," he said."

Philippine rebels kill Islamist militant in south

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HE Philippines’ most wanted Islamist militant, who escaped after a raid in January that killed 44 police commandos, was killed on Sunday in firefight with Muslim rebels, officials said.

Protracted police operations to arrest three Islamist high-value targets had become the biggest political crisis in five years for President Benigno Aquino and put at risk his government’s peace efforts with Moro Islamic Liberation Front.

A proposed law creating a new autonomous govern-

ment for minority Muslims in the south of the mainly Catholic state in the poor Southeast Asia state has stalled as some lawmakers, civil society groups and activists called on Aquino to resign. “(Abdul) Basit Usman was killed in a fire fight in Guindulungan, Maguindanao at around noon today,” Herminio “Sonny” Coloma, the presidential communications secretary, said in a statement.

“Usman was the second target of the operations conducted by the PNP-SAF to capture Zulkifli bin Hir, alias

Marwan last Jan. 25,” he said referring to a commando raid on a Muslim rebel lair in Mamasapano town.

In March 2014, the Front signed a peace deal with the government ending about 45 years of conflict that has killed 120,000 people and displaced 2 million. But, the rebels will not lay down weapons until after a final peace deal is reached.

The rebels are waiting for government to set up a new Muslim autonomous government in the south, granting wider powers on its economy,

politics and social life.

The two militants were blamed for strings of bomb attacks in the southern Philippines. Both had links with the defunct Jemaah Islamiah, a regional al Qaeda-linked militant network and were subject of a combined $6 million bounty from the U.S. State Department.

Coloma said there were no other details of the fire fight.

But army and police officials said Usman and five others were killed near a creek in Muti village.

The peace deal was ques-

tioned after some Liberation Front rebels were blamed for the death of 44 police commandos, who went on a secret mission to arrest Marwan and Usman in January. Marwan was killed and Usman escaped in the operations.

The government said it will file murder charges against 90 Muslim rebels who were found to be involved in the killing of 44 police commandos. Seventeen rebels and four civilians also died in the deadly clash in January 25.

The African Union and regional bloc ECOWAS also said

the vote was free and transparent.

Togo court confirms Gnassingbe's presidential poll win

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OGO's constitutional court yesterday confirmed the victory of incumbent president Faure Gnassingbe in last week's election, declaring he had beaten rival Jean-Pierre Fabre with just over 58 percent of the vote.

"I declare that the elected president of the Republic of Togo is Faure Gnassingbe," said constitutional court head Aboudou Assouma in a statement broadcast live on national television.

The official results put Gnassingbe on 58.77 percent of the vote with Fabre on 35.19 percent.

"The court's decisions are final," Assouma added.

Togo's opposition said Friday it would not challenge Gnass-

ingbe's victory, even though it claimed the vote was rigged, because it said the court "serves" the government.

Opposition leaders had gone into last weekend's election looking to prevent Gnassingbe from securing a third term of office and end his family's nearly 50-year grip on power of the tiny west African nation.

Gnassingbe's father, Gnassingbe Eyadema, seized power in a coup and ruled with an iron fist for 38 years over the former German- and Frenchadministered colony until his death in 2005.

The European Union, Togo's leading international lender, said the election "went off calmly, confirming the Togolese peo-

•Gnassingbe ple's attachment to democracy".

Why the new royal baby will be a princess

T •Tony Appleton 80-year royal towncrier announcing the birth of the princess

HE Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s new baby will be fourth in line to throne, but few are likely to realise that until just a few years ago she would not have been entitled to be called princess.

According to a decree made by George V in 1917, the titles HRH and, therefore, prince and princess were restricted to the children of the sovereign, the children of the sovereign’s sons and the eldest

son of the eldest son of the Prince of Wales.

Hence Prince Andrew’s daughters, Beatrice and Eugenie are princesses, but not Zara or Peter Phillips, the children of Princess Anne.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s new baby will be fourth in line to throne and will receive the HRH title Prince Edward’s young son and daughter, Louise and James, were entitled to use the HRH title, but Edward and his

wife, Sophie, declined it as they wanted their children to have more of a ‘normal life’.

Their daughter, while technically being a princess, use the courtesy title of the daughter of an Earl instead and is known as Lady Louise. Her brother is James, Viscount Severn.

So if William and Kate’s first born child had been a girl, she would also have been styled Lady MountbattenWindsor.

A second-born son would have similarly lacked the HRH title and become Lord (forename) MountbattenWindsor rather than a prince.

Shortly before the birth of Prince George, the Queen, who had long been keen to rectify this imbalance, issued what are known as Letters Patent under the Great Seal of the Realm, an ancient type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by the monarch.

A police officer shot in the head while attempting to stop a man suspected of carrying a handgun was hospitalized in critical but stable condition yesterday and a suspect was in custody in the case, the fifth shooting of a New York City officer in as many months, officials said.

Officer Brian Moore, 25, underwent surgery after being rushed in a patrol car to a Queens hospital Saturday evening after he and his partner pulled up in an unmarked police car to a man who was adjusting his waistband suspiciously, police Commissioner William Bratton said.

The officers exchanged words with the man before he turned suddenly and fired at least twice, striking Moore, Bratton said. His partner, Officer Erik Jansen, 30, radioed for help.

Rights group: Evidence cluster bombs used in Yemen •20 Arab coalition troops in Aden HUMAN Rights Watch says a Saudi-led coalition may have used cluster bombs in its airstrikes targeting Shiite rebels in Yemen.

In a report released yesterday, the U.S.-based group says satellite imagery indicates the munitions landed “within 600 meters of several dozen buildings in four to six village clusters.”

Cluster munitions spread bomblets over a wide area, many of which do not immediately explode. The bomblets can kill or maim civilians long after a conflict ends, and have been compared to land mines.

The report says the weapons were supplied to Saudi Arabia by the United States.

Saudi Arabia has denied using cluster munitions during its monthlong campaign against the rebels.

The U.N. says at least 550 civilians have been killed in the conflict, both in airstrikes and ground fighting.

Meanwhile, Yemeni military officials say at least 20 Arab coalition troops have landed in the southern coastal city of Aden on a “reconnaissance” mission.The officials and witnesses reached in Aden said the black-clad and masked troops landed Sunday in a central area between the city’s neighbourhood of al-Mansoura and the airport. They said helicopter gunships hovered above the landing area.There were no reports of fighting between the Arab troops and Iranian-allied Shiite rebels and their supporters, who have for weeks been trying to capture the strategic port city on the Arabian Sea.The officials spoke on condition of anonymity as they weren’t authorized to brief journalists.Defending Aden are militiamen loyal to President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, who fled Aden to neighbouring Saudi Arabia in March.

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

60

CITYBEATS

CITYBEATS LINE: 09091178827

One week after, kidnap victim returns home

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T was all praise and worship at the United Apostolic Church in Agege, Lagos, last Thursday, one week after Mrs Felicia Ajijola, who was reported missing, returned home hale and hearty.

Mrs Ajijola left her Irepodun, Orile-Agege, Lagos home on April 16, few minutes after she received a strange phone call.

Narrating her experience, Mrs Ajijola said she escorted her daughter out around 6am that day and returned home, but she couldn’t remember what happened thereafter.

“I had just returned from vigil and accompanied my daughter, who left for work.

Anything that happened afterwards, I am not aware. Last Thursday, I was shocked to have found myself at Pleasure Bus Stop along Lagos/ Abeokuta Express-way and

•Mrs Ajijola

By Ibrahim Adam

that was how I returned home. I didn’t eat or drink for one week but I thank God I could still locate my house. I appreciate those who prayed for me during my absence,” she said.

Her step-daughter, Oriyomi Ajijola, who was at

home that day, said she was washing clothes when her step-mother received the phone call.

She said: “I was in the bathroom when she received a call but I didn’t know who she spoke with. Whenever she returned from vigil, she takes her bath and sleep but I was surprised not to have found

her in her room. It was my niece who told me she went out. I thought she went to the market to buy fruits because she sells fruits at a primary school near Pen Cinema in Agege.

“We dialled her mobile line severally but she didn’t pick our calls. Around 4pm, her line was switched off. I contacted all my siblings because I couldn’t think straight.

Right now, I am glad she is back. It is really a miracle.”

The junior wife, Mrs Florence Ajijola, told The Nation that the case was reported to Elere Police Station in Pen Cinema, Agege and Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to track her phone.

“We were told her mobile phone couldn’t be tracked because it was a small phone,” she said.

She described her senior wife as patient, kind, quiet, accommodating and easy going.

“My senior doesn’t go out anyhow, she informed us before leaving the house. We are happy she returned to us hale and hearty. We thank God and those who stood by us,” she said.

Sailor, 62, charged with 62-YEAR-OLD RE- alleged fraud TIREE, Bamidele

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King has been arraigned before an Ebute Meta Chief Magistrate's Court in Lagos, for alleged fraud and stealing.

The sexagenarian was alleged to have fraudulently obtained N750, 000 from six persons by impersonating an International Ship captain with Maritime Academy of Nigeria, Oron, Akwa Ibom State.

The victims are Lawal Oladipo, Famoriti Colosse, Okoruga Uchenna, Princewill, Jeff Barnabas and Imonimion Sylvester.

It was learnt that the defendant obtained N150, 000 each from his victims under the pretence of securing a job for them on the ship.

The Nation learnt that the defendant, who claimed to be a Lagosian, impersonated nationals of Liberia, Ghana, Senegal and Trinidad and Tobago in the past.

He was said to have conspired with one Muri, who is at large to file a fake Maritime document last July.

The offence, according to the prosecutor, Constable Adeyemo Tunde who held

By Rukayat Jimoh

brief for Elizabeth Ekuma, an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) is punishable under Sections 409, 312, 374, 285 and 93 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State.

The accused pleaded not guilty.

Defence counsel Mr A. Eton pleaded for his client's bail.

Magistrate Nurudeen Layeni granted him N100, 000 bail with two sureties in the like sum.

The matter has been adjourned till May 27.

•Bamidele

'My woman isn't good for me'

By Basirat Braimah

A

MIDDLE-AGE man, Egberamen Iyobor, has taken his wife, Abieyuwa, before an Agege Customary Court in Lagos, for being troublesome and abu-

sive.

The petitioner, who lives at Pa Alao Street in Fagba, a Lagos suburb, said his wife started acting up two weeks after she moved into his house.

"I met her in 2008 but I never promised her marriage because I was jobless then. Since she kept in touch for five years, I decided to give her a chance," he said.

Iyobor said he couldn't wish for another woman when she visited because she cleaned the house and cooked for him.

He said: "I also gave her some money to get kitchen utensils which she did but everything ended within a week. She complained N1, 000 was too small to prepare a pot of soup. Each time I returned from work, she sat outside gisting with neighbours pretending not to see me which made me dish my food myself after the day's stress. There was a day she poured urine on me when I was about to leave for work. Her attitude disgusts me."

The father of one said it was from that moment he realised she was not good for him.

"As I intended to end the relationship, she said she was pregnant. I told her I wasn't ready to marry her and gave her N10, 000 to abort the pregnancy but she didn't. Our son is now two years old," he said.

Iyobor added: "The last time I slept with her was six months ago and my wife recently told me she is expecting another child for me. As I speak, I am just aware she is expecting another baby. In fact, am not ready to marry her."

The court's President, Pa Adekunle Williams, asked the petitioner: "Why will you say you are just knowing your wife is seven-months pregnant and you live together?

Egberamen: "She once told me she had a boyfriend and that is the reason she stopped disturbing me for sex. I just know she is pregnant and we live together."

In her defence, Mrs Egberamen claimed all her husband said was not true saying they left home together and rarely quarreled.

"I didn't want to collect the summons because we have no trouble in our home. He told me his parents were late but we did introduction. He pleaded with me to live with my father when I had our first child because he didn't have enough money to cater for our needs. " She said: "How could he say he is not aware of this pregnancy and we live under the same roof. He keeps saying I raped him and doesn't have feelings for me.

His attitude changed towards me because he has another woman." she said.

Mrs Egberamen said she wanted settlement not dissolution.

Williams fixed a mediation session and ordered both parties to bring two relations each. He adjourned the matter till May 18.

Agencies partner on posters' recycling to protect the environment

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HE Lagos State Signage and Advertisement Agency (LASAA) and the Lagos State Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) are working on recycling waste generated from campaign posters to protect the environment.

LASAA's Managing Director George Noah told re-

By Miriam Ekene-Okoro

porters at the weekend that the partnership would aid the agency, as it strives to rid the state of an estimated 1.5 million posters.

Underlining some of the benefits of recycling the posters, Noah said: "Recycling paper waste conserves natural resources, saves energy,

•Executive Secretary, Apapa Local Government Area, Bolaji Dada (second right) being honoured by members of Apapa Rotaract Club for exemplary leadership.

cuts greenhouse gas emissions and keeps landfill space, free for other forms of waste that can't be recycled."

The waste to be recycled, he said, was generated by LASAA's enforcement team.

On the process of recycling paper waste, LAWMA said in a statement: "The bulk of paper collected from our landfills or recycling banks

is sorted and graded at our Paper Bailing Section at Olusosun dumpsite in Ojota, Lagos and processed at Jebba Paper Mill.

"At the mill, the paper is added to water and then turned into pulp. It is then screened, cleaned and deinked through a number of processes until it is suitable for manufacturing new pa-

per products."

Few weeks ago, LASAA started removing posters used during elections.

Noah said over one million posters would be removed, adding: "We are also removing 358 illegal billboards of various types deployed in the state with Alimoso and Eti-Osa accounting for the highest".

•Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) Lagos State Chapter President Comrade Lasisi Akinsanya with (from left): Vice President Comrade Michael Ajose; Treasurer Comrade Okanlawon Pelaiye and NULGE Chairman, Amuwo Odofin Local Government Branch, Comrade Tope Lawal, during Workers' Day celebration at Onikan Stadium, Lagos.

THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

61

NEWS ‘Why we passed bill on ex-governors’ entitlements’

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HE bill on the entitlements of former governors, speakers and their deputies passed by Jigawa House of Assembly, is aimed at eliminating corruption, the Speaker, Alhaji Adamu Ahmed, has said.

The bill made provision for former governors, speakers and their deputies to receive the basic salary of the incumbent as pension.

It also stipulated that the government should provide the former officials with two new vehicles to be replaced after every four years.

The officials are also entitled to six-bedrooms apartment fully furnished, two personal assistants not below grade level 10, two drivers and furnished office.

Adamu spoke yesterday in

Dutse while reacting to the controversies generated by the bill.

He explained that the house passed the bill to curb looting of public treasury by former office holders, saying it was not passed to enrich them after leaving office.

“The bill will discourage stealing and looting of government treasury.

“If a former governor or speaker knows that the government will take care of him, there won’t be any basis or need for him to steal,” he said.

The speaker said that all former civilian governors, speakers and their deputies were expected to benefit from the provisions of the bill which is awaiting the governor’s assent.

•A section of Gamboru Market in maiduguri gutted by fire…yesterday.

PHOTO: NAN

Tips on how to address graduates unemployment,

by VC

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NTREPRENEURSHIP studies will address the challenge of mass unemployment among school leavers including university graduates in Nigeria, Prof. Hillary Edeoga, the Vice-Chancellor of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, has said.

Edeoga spoke yesterday in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Umuahia.

He said that the university had established a centre for entrepreneurship studies after sensitising members of staff and students on the prospects of entrepreneurial capacity development.

“The centre has fully commenced the hands-on training of students on entrepreneurship in engineering, agriculture, food science and technology.”

According to him, the centre has concluded arrangements to conduct training for traders, artisans and other members of the public, after which they will receive certificates of the university.

“Another major stride recorded by the centre is its collaborative arrangements with some national and international organisations to train students and provide micro credit to enable them embark on small-scale entrepreneurial activities,’’ he said.

Edeoga said that some of the students were beginning to appreciate the benefits of the training including cooperative arrangements in procurement, product marketing, and production.

The vice chancellor said students participating in the programme had formed entrepreneurship clubs to properly harness their activities.

Edeoga disclosed that the Tertiary Education Trust Fund had assisted university’s entrepreneurship centre with incubators, equipment for converting waste to wealth, among others.

In a separate interview, the institution’s Head of Public Relations, Mrs Onyinyechi Ralph-Nwachukwu told NAN that plans were underway to hold a fair and product exhibition, to showcase products from the centre.

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THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

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THE NATION MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015

SPORT EXTRA

Confident Flying Eagles land in Germany U

PBEAT Flying Eagles of Nigeria landed in Germany Sunday morning after a six-hour flight from Abuja the previous night.

The African champions made up of 26 players and 10 officials’ touched down at the Frankfurt Airport at 6am local time, which is an hour ahead of Nigerian time.

They then made the three-hour bus ride to Nurnberg, where they will be for the next three weeks finalising their preparations for the FIFA U20 World Cup in New Zealand.

Nurnberg is an hour drive from Munich.

Team spirit has been very high with coach Manu Garba again thanking the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) for making it possible for his team to travel overseas for maximum concentration.

“The NFF has done very well to get the country for us to fully concentrate on the huge task ahead and we believe we will justify the confidence of Nigerians in this team,” he said.

The weather is cold and rainy, but goalkeeper Olorunleke Ojo said they will cope.

“It is not as cold as some of us feared. We can cope with the weather,” said the Giwa FC shot stopper.

Fellow goalkeeper Joshua Enaholo was excited to make his first trip to Europe.

“I like what I see. I hope I can return to Europe soon to start a professional career,” said the goalkeeper, who was first choice at the 2015 African Youth Championship in Senegal in March.

The team is booked into Novina Hotel, Sudwestpark.

Officials said the players will hit the gym Monday morning as the countdown to the World Cup continues.

The squad will be joined by four other Europe-based players in Germany, namely Isaac Success (Granada, Spain), Wilfred Ndidi (Genk, Belgium), Moses Simon (Gent, Belgium) and Kelechi Iheanacho (Manchester City, England).

All 21 players from the 2015

RESULTS Glo Premier League Sharks 2-2 FC Taraba Wikki Tourists 4-2 Rangers Heartland 0-3 Sunshine Giwa FC 3-1 Bayelsa Utd Dolphins 2-0 Lobi Stars Gabros 2-0 Enyimba Nasarawa 2-0 A. Warriors Kwara Utd 1-0 Kano Pillars El-Kanemi 1-0 Akwa Utd Shooting vs Wolves (PP) England - Premier League Chelsea 1 - 0 Crystal Palace Tottenham 0 - 1 Man City England - Conference Bristol 2 - 0 Green Rovers Grimsby 3 - 0 Eastleigh Italy - Serie A Roma 2 - 0 Genoa Atalanta 1 - 1 Lazio Fiorentina 3 - 1 Cesena Hellas 0 - 1 Udinese Inter 0 - 0 Chievo SSC Napoli 3 - 0 AC Milan Spain - Liga BBVA Espanyol 1 - 1 Rayo Getafe 1 - 2 Granada Valencia 3 - 1 Eibar Germany - Bundesliga Mainz 05 1 - 2 Hamburger Hertha 1 - 2 Gladbach France - Ligue 1 Lille 3 - 1 Lens Monaco 4 - 1 Toulouse

AYC triumph in Dakar, Senegal, are on the trip to Germany.

Nigeria have until May 15 to submit a final 21-man squad for the World Cup, which begins on May 30.

African champions Nigeria is drawn against Brazil, Hungary and North Korea.

They will be based in New Plymouth for their first round matches.

PLAYERS IN GERMANY: GOALKEEPERS: Joshua Enaholo, Sunday Alampasu, Olorunleke Ojo, Adamu Abubakar DEFENDERS: Musa Muhammed, Zaharadeen Bello, Izu Omego, Mustapha Abdullahi, Samuel Okon, Abdulganiyu Saheed, Bashirou Monsoru MIDFIELDERS:Chidiebere Nwakali, Ifeanyi Matthew, Ifeanyi Ifeanyi, Akinjide Idowu, Musa Yahaya, Bernard Bulbwa,

• Flying Eagles on arrival Abdullahi Alfa, Kingsley Sokari STRIKERS: Taiwo Awoniyi, Christian Pyagbara, Abdullahi

Ibrahim Alhassan ‘Muazam’, Usman Hassan, Chidera Ezeh, Wasiu Jimoh, Saviour Godwin.

Ugbade speaks on the benefits of camping in Germany

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LYING Eagles’ assistant coach Nduka Ugbade has stated that their

• Ugbade

Germany training camp will help improve the team’s understanding of the science of the game and make them a better team overall.

The former Nigeria international said with the training facilities in the European country and with the friendly matches they are most likely to play with some German youth teams, they will help improve his team’s ‘scientific’ approach to games.

“It is a very good thing that we are going on this tour because it is what we need for our preparation for the World Cup. “Having spent the last few weeks at home, camping in Germany will certainly help

the players understand the science of the game more, and make us a better team in all aspects.

“We will have better facilities there and the friendlies we are likely to play will also go a long way in preparing their mindset for the kind of challenge they will face in New Zealand.

“It gives us better preparation and also improves our scientific approach to games. It is not a tea party for us, it is a continuation of our work.”

The Nigerian U20 team departed the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja on Saturday night and flew directly to Frankfurt.

ZENITH BANK WOMEN BASKETBALL LEAGUE

First Bank BC, Dolphins dominate • Ilorin, Asaba battle for second phase hosting right

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EFENDING Champions, First Bank Basketball Club and Dolphins of Lagos emerged the major teams at the end of the first phase of the Zenith Bank Women Basketball League, winning all their games.

At the sports hall of the Abuja Stadiun yesterday, First Bank defeated Benue Princess 73-26 to top Group A, while Dolphin beat Zamfara Babes 69-15 with another commanding performance. In other games, Taraba Hurricanes lost to Immigration 38-40, FCT Angel beat GT 2000 33-31, while Customs lost to Delta Force 48-51.

Also, Two cities, Ilorin and Asaba are currently in battle over which city hosts the second phase of the Zenith Bank Women Basketball League.

The technical committee at a meeting yesterday placed before the board of the Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF) the bids from Kwara and Delta State for hosting rights, with the board delaying the announcement after a close look at both bids.

With Ilorin hosting the sec-

By Adeyinka Adedipe ond phase of the last two editions of the league, the city hopes to host for the 3rd straight year. However, Ilorin faces a tough opposition from one of the strongholds of women basketball in Nigeria, Asaba, Delta State.

Asaba, perennial hosts of the second phase in the early years of the Zenith Bank League long to get back the rights, having missed out in the last two editions and cit-

ies of Akure and Kaduna also playing host of the second phase in times past.

The board will announce the host for the 2nd phase as soon as the 1st phase is over following a close look at the fulfilment of the criteria set by the technical committee for both cities to win the hosting rights for the Zenith Bank Female Basketball league.

Meanwhile, the NBBF hammer has fallen on Oluyole Warriors, Kada Stars and Civil Defenders.

I’m still with Eagles — Amokachi insists • Says he will take it as act of God if removed

S

UPER Eagles’ First Assistant Coach, Daniel Amokachi popularly known as the Da Bull has told NationSport that he was not aware of any plot to remove him from his position in the team.

Amokachi who is media shy when quizzed on the news going round that he would be replaced by another Coach in the new dispensation of Stephen Keshi’s re-appointment said he wasn’t ready to comment on the issue because he was quite sure that his employers- the Nigeria Football Federation who have the power to hire and fire any national coach would have informed him of his removal if the story going round was true.

He confessed that he engaged in this small chat with the NationSport Correspondent based on the respect he has for him because he has since made up his mind not to talk about the matter since he has not been officially communicated on the issue.

“Firstly I want to say that I am talking to you here as a friend if not I won’t even talk at all. As a matter of fact on the issue you are inquiring about it is only my employers, the Nigeria Football Federation that can answer that because they have the power to sack me since they are the ones that hired me in the first place.

From Segun Ogunjimi, Abuja

• Amokachi “So as I speak with you I have not gotten any information as regards that from the NFF. I only read like others on the pages of newspapers that Amokachi would be replaced or Amokach has been replaced. So I don’t want to react on rumours. I know I have put in my all in this job and it is a privilege serving the nation among many other qualified coaches.

“The job of coaching is attached to hiring and firing, praising when the going is good and condemnation when the going gets rough. So whatever happens I will take it as an act of God and I will move on from there”, Amokachi told NationSport at the weekend.

Kwara Utd pip Pillars in Ilorin

A

FIRST half goal from Emma Eviemere was what Kwara United needed as they beat Kano Pillars 1-0 on match day seven in the ongoing Nigeria Professional Football League on Sunday at the Kwara Stadium.

It was a tense game for the Harmony Warriors in the opening minutes of the game.

They opened fire on the away side but failed to hit the back of the net. The away side stood very strong in the game as Rabiu Ali was thrice denied by goalkeeper Kazeem Yekeen.

It was end to end battle as there was little to choose be-

tween the two sides but the home side looked more effective whenever they were in the attacking third of Kano Pillars.

In the 20th minute, Eviemere broke the deadlock and the first half of the game ended 1-0.

From the recess Kano Pillars began the game on a high spirit searching for the equalizer but Kwara United looked very strong at the back with no margin of error.

The tempo of the game went down as the Harmony Warriors reverted to a defensive tactic which paid off as they won the game 1-0 to lift themselves to 7th on the ladder.

Greensprings, St Saviours dominate AISEN swimming gala

A

S the host Greensprings School emerged overall winner in the secondary school category at the second invitational swimming gala held at the school's Lekki campus.

The Swimming Gala organised by Greensprings school under the auspices of Association of international School Educators of Nigeria, AISEN with the Lagos state swimming association providing technical support for the competition.

Swimmers from ages 6 to 16 drawn from 9 schools competed for honours at the one day tournament which featured 57 events for boys and girls.

St Saviour School, Lekki emerged overall winner in the elementary school category ahead of Children International School, Lekki and Greensprings School.

Greensprings won the secondary school category while, Atlantic Hall, Epe and Children International School finished in second and third respectively.

According to the Director of Education, Greensprings

School, Harry McFaul, events like this would engender friendship among the students.

“An event such? as this promotes team work, cooperation, patience and encourages people to prepare properly.

You can't just turn and swim, you have to train, you have to know your strength, you have to be part of a team field your team properly so you can get best results. You learn a lot more outside the classroom, particularly in sporting activities then people will see what you are doing in the classroom.

"There are future stars being developed here and that's why we have people from the Nigeria Swimming Federation here to identify these young swimmers and it's the same with the other things, whether it is the Greensprings Kanu football camp, whether it is the debating competition, we want to promote the best and among the children themselves, they will say so is very good and if I try hard, I can do that too and that encourages standard. Why is it that the best Nigerian talents are abroad? We need to promote what we've got and keep our best talents here,” he said.

TODAY IN THE NATION

MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015 TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM

VOL 10 NO 3204

‘We can only secure its future when politicians are compelled to play by the rules and errant ones made to face the full weight of EMEKA OMEIHE the law’

COMMENT & DEB ATE EBA

T

HE bell is now tolling. The Abuja high rollers are packing their bags and heading out of town. President Goodluck Jonathan is not an island in this regard. He leads the pack. Also in the wagon are familiar wayfarers: not just ministers and advisers and hangers-on, but a generation and tribe of politicians.

They have vaingloriously called themselves “mainstreamers.” This is a word of opportunism. They say their people should not stay back to play state or regional politics. It is better to follow, like sheep, the scent of the stew. And in our skewed federal structure, the aroma of the centre bustles in a big and liberal pot. All insiders can eat from the accompanying fufu. The fufu, in its outsize extravagance, compares to Achebe’s feast in Things Fall Apart where those eating on one side cannot see those eating on the other.

So, the so-called mainstreamers are, properly defined, “main-eaters.” They are the carnivores of our democracies. In other words, they are the man-eaters who scavenged on all the fat-cow contracts, glamour trips and money declared missing in the past half-decade. They gorged on the NNPC’s unaccounted billions, flapped haughty wings in tales of impunity, whether in the MDAs or in the ministries or Presidency. They mainstreamed while the rest of us majority snorted as islanders. It was corruption writ large.

But nowhere did this predatory logic rear itself more than in the Southwest. Its ancestor was the Owu chief, our Olusegun Obasanjo. He lured the tribe, while he was president, away from the canons of the Afenifere group. They had coalesced in the Alliance for Democracy.

It was the beginning of the tribal traitors.

They sold their patrimony for a mess of centralised pottage. It became clear who was on the people’s side.

They had it going for them for a long time. The so-called Afenifere bigwigs launched smear campaigns against the mainstays of the AD, who would not yield to the tantalising follies of centralised lucre. The Owu chief puffed with power then and worked with the renegades to sweep the Southwest states for the PDP, leaving Lagos and Asiwaju Bola Tinubu as the lone tree in a deforested swath of progressive politics.

The story of the so-called Afenifere bigwigs underpins what some psychologists call the fear of gratitude.

Most of them who call themselves Afenifere dynamos today once gleefully nestled in Lagos State under the beneficence of Tinubu. But they loathe

RIPPLES

SAM OMATSEYE

IN TOUCH

intouchnation@gmail.com 08054501081(sms only) Twitter: @samomatseye

•Winner, Informed Commentary (DAME)

The prodigal sons

•Fayose

•Mimiko

their benefactor. They are like the men who did not return to say thank you to Jesus after their miracles. The older Afenifere think he is too young to be that powerful and his kindness hurt. His contemporaries’ envy is couched in the poisonous cliché: why him? The younger ones want to pull him down. The fear of gratitude merely means the fear of saying thank you to the person who rescued you. It is the buffoonery of arrogance. This fear leads to another, more malignant one: the fear of contempt.

The best example of this is recorded by Edward Gibbons in his all-time classic, The Decline and Fall of Roman Empire. He told the story of Emperor Maximin, a coarse, low and sanguinary fellow who rose to the apogee of Roman pomp and power. He felt a sense of inadequacy, and decided to kill anyone who knew him when he was nothing and helped him along the way.

The same psychology is played in

ACTING IGP BANS ROAD BLOCKS, SAYS THEY BREED CORRUPTION–News NE notorious expression often bandied during the equally notorious era of President Olusegun Obasanjo was that “the rot is deep”. Meaning that the preceding and indeed, fleeing military junta had damaged the country almost beyond salvage that it would take so much time and huge resources to repair.

Such was the banner hoisted by the Obasanjo administration that for eight years it accomplished very little and failed to repair anything of note.

The rot was deep no doubt but Obasanjo did not tackle it with the requisite zestfulness either. If the rot was deep then, today, the entirety of Nigeria has become one heap of soggy mess and the petroleum industry is the epitome.

The Ministry of Petroleum Resources and its prime agency, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, have turned out to be the most debased institution of government in the last six years.

Ironically, this is the honey pot of the nation which accounts for more than 80 percent of her revenues.

It must be noted upfront that there was no

O

Infacr POLICEMEN see DRIVERS as ATM MACHINE

Shakespeare’s bloodiest play, Titus Andronicus, where Titus gave up his right to the royal throne to another man. That man played along with a scheme to kill Titus, so as to justify his hollow manhood.

So, the Afenifere bigwigs have since 2003 mounted a campaign based on fears of gratitude and contempt against Tinubu.

They have plotted, plodded and preened for many years, and boasted with only stumbles and falls to tell their stories. One of them is the whitlow of the west, the mimic Mimiko, who genuflected and pleaded for Tinubu to save him from the machinations of the chief mainstreamer, the Owu Chief. He had been swindled out of his Ondo State Governorship slot, and he wanted justice. Tinubu was his only lifeline, and the oxygen came aplenty. Once secure in his position as governor, he played Brutus. He did not want to say thank you. When he was in trouble he pledged to belong. Once he was rescued, he feigned an independent giant. His is a prostitution of the virtue of self-regard. He is a fraud.

He worked with all the others, including the old men and fuddy-duddies hungry for financial fountains. They were mercenaries and leeches, bleeding their own race to nest their high places.

They coaxed Jonathan to their side after their leader, Obasanjo, had abandoned them. They were a decapitated group, a mere body without ears, eyes, hair, olfactory lobe, medulla oblongata, or mouth, but flailing with weapons in hand, swishing in the air. They fell like humpty dumpty. From a lone state in Lagos, Tinubu with tact, diligence, wise daring and a talent for talents took the west and now the centre, making him the numero uno ever of Nigerian politics. Since 1999, it was for him the success of a long distance runner.

On March 28, they lost the centre, and that

capped the tragic story of the mainstreamers. Suddenly, they no longer saw the mainstream, since the water was now dry in Abuja. They turned their eyes to the Lagoon. With Jonathan behind them, they embarked on a journey of revenge.

If they lost the centre, they could not do without Lagos. So all resources poured into the state of excellence. Their bridgehead was a certain pharmacist who staked all his past doings in the progressive camp for a vaulting ambition. In the process, he lost a sense not only of ideology but values.

Jimi Agbaje knew he was in a foul crowd.

Hence his campaign posters miniaturised the PDP logo and enlarged his name and picture. He was an unwilling joiner. He made it look like he was the pearl among swines. It was a colossal gamble of moral significance, a thing he would explain for the rest of his life. How come his name jingles among militants, ex-convicts and quislings?

The battle for Lagos was a waterloo. They have now drowned in the Lagoon. After losing the centre, they have lost the state.

They may play stragglers with Fayose and Mimiko, as the last redoubts of an expiring tribe. They are the prodigal sons of the west, only theirs is more tragic because they have no home to which to return. They are neither mainstreamers nor regionalists. They are dead-enders. They have now been exposed as moral cretins.

They remind one of the words of the Russian poet Pushkin: “In our vile times, man was, whatever his element, either a tyrant, or traitor, or prisoner.” It is true to the renegades.

But the mainstreamers were taken for granted in other regions, especially in the Southsouth and Southeast. They have to now scramble for the limited resources in those states. Their big, fat appetites will now be humbled before such governors as Dickson, Okowa, Udom, Wike, etc.

President Jonathan knew this when he decried defecting PDP men. “Those people running and those already cross-carpeting, will come back on an empty stomach because they (APC) will touch the primary members of their party before they get to them. They know you are coming because you are hungry; and before it will get to you, the food will be gone.”

In Achebe’s feast, handshakes snapped across the fufu. But as GEJ warned, the APC is in no mood for such fistic felicity.

In the Southwest, they are more or less in the lagoon. On Tinubu, their envy evokes the refrain from American writer H.L. Mencken, who wrote, “the haunting fear that someone somewhere may be happy.” Hence what is left for them is a smear campaign. From mainstreamers, they are now “main screamers.”

HARDBALL

•Hardball is not the opinion of the columnist featured above

The grand larceny at NNPC

were in a mess and its treasury leaked damagingly. But the mother of all scandals was the report of the missing $20 billion from the treasury of NNPC. This issue is turning to a case of grand larceny because when the former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Lamido Sanusi, first blew the whistle, government officials blatantly denied and even mocked that such a sum could not be removed from the system. As pressure mounted, government instituted an audit of the accounts of NNPC by Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC).

The so-called ‘forensic’ audit was carried out and its report was handed to government.

It was as damaging as can be but official releases claimed NNPC had been vindicated.

It was to pay only a ‘paltry’ $1.48 billion.

Even that sum was never remitted to the treasury after one year.

But the big bang now is that everything has turned out to be a lie. It has come out that PwC never did a proper audit as Diezani and her people in NNPC, CBN and NPDC would not avail PwC requisite information. PwC even prefaced the report with a disclaimer!

Is this not grand larceny?

love lost between Hardball and our dainty oil minister, Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke but beyond that, it must be said too that the worst thing that happened to the about-tobe-rested Goodluck Jonathan administration was charging Diezani with the running of Nigeria’s most valuable assets – petroleum resources.

Through this period, she infested the sector with so much scandal that NNPC is in putrefaction. Every new month of her tenure came with a new scam; it was as if she was appointed to wreak havoc on the system. To compound it all, she never could get anything done all this while. Not old refineries were repaired nor a new one built.

When she is not into a dubious oil swap deal, she is locked in a crude trade snafu; petrol subsidy-gate or kerosene subsidy rip-off.

At a time when oil prices soared above $100 for about five years, the NNPC accounts

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