The Nation Sept 09, 2012

Why we’re reviving YarÁdua structure,

by Atiku –Page 2

NEW INSIDE –Pages 35-38

Nigeria’s widest circulating newspaper

Vol.06, No. 2243

TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM

SUNDAY

N200.00

SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

INEC seeks amendment to restrict president’s control Wants to appoint own RECs Raises six-man panel on amendment To bar parties from fielding backdoor candidates –Page 2

•Team Nigeria paralympian gold medalists, at the reception organised

by Nigeria High Commissioner to the UK, Dr Dalhatu Tafida, at Abuja House, in London, at the weekend.

Photo: NAN

12 burnt to ‘Nigerian students death in Ogun spend N160bn in car crash Ghanaian varsities’ –Page 4

–Page 5

MTN mast vandalised in Jos –Page 4

INSIDE Interview

NEWS

2

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

‘Corruption has derailed our development’

—Pgs 24 -25

Miscellany

The end of Bauchi's historic wall —Pg 53

Life

A fiery end

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HE President’s constitutional power on the appointment of Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) could be history by 2015, if the Commission has its way.

It is seriously considering pushing for an amendment to the constitution on the matter, according to investigation in Abuja.

The commission wants that power conferred on it with a view to enhancing its independence and ability to conduct free and fair polls at all times.

Besides, INEC is proposing an amendment to the 2011 Electoral Act to stop parties from fielding in elections, candidates who do not participate in primaries.

But the Commission may backpedal on its plan to deregister some ‘shelve’ political parties in line with Section 40 of the 1999 Constitution and Section 78 of the Electoral Act. Shelve parties exist largely

INEC seeks amendment to restrict President’s control

•Wants to appoint own RECs •Raises six-man panel on amendments •To bar parties from fielding backdoor candidates FROM: Yusuf Alli, Managing Editor, Northern Operation

in name.

Instead, the Commission is approaching the Senate and House of Representatives Constitution Review Committees with amendments to set criteria for parties before they can be placed on ballot papers.

It was gathered that the Commission has raised a sixman panel, headed by the National Commissioner in charge of Legal Services, Mrs. Thelma Iremiren, to collate proposed amendments to the Electoral

Act 2011 and the INEC Act. The constitution of the panel stemmed from the determination of the Chairman of INEC, Prof. Attahiru Jega to effect some reforms ahead of the 2015 polls.

Investigation showed that the proposed amendments have taken into account the reforms recommended by PricewaterhouseCoopers and Registration Election Review Committee (RERC), headed by Prof. Adele Jinadu.

A National Commissioner, who spoke in confidence, said: “We have set up a committee

to come up with sections requiring amendments in the INEC Act and the Electoral Act 2011.

“We will soon submit these proposals to the Constitution Review Committees in the National Assembly. But so far, we have consulted widely on some of these proposed amendments. We will ratify these amendments very soon for presentation to the National Assembly.

“For instance, INEC is seeking amendment to Section 14(2) of Part 1 of the Third Schedule to the 1999 Constitu-

The cremation controversy Pg 56

—Pg 27

Insight

14 years on, PDP under scrutiny—Pp 23 & 26

•L:R Retired Federal Permanent Secretary, Fransesca Emmanuel,Governor Babatunde Fashola (SAN) of Lagos State, Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, winner of the 4th Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa, Sifizo Mzobe from South Africa and former President of Ghana, Mr. John Kufuor at the presentation of the award in Lagos,yesterday

Why we’re reviving Yar’Adua structure, by Atiku

T Pp 36, 37, 38

The Arts

Let the kids play—Pg 51

HE need to ‘protect the common interest’ of members of the Peoples Democratic Movement (PDM),the political machinery of the late General Shehu Musa Yar’Adua, informed the on-going plan to revive it, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has said.

The PDM fused into the ruling PDP as its most influential component at the inception of the party in1998,going on to determine the direction of the party and who got what by way of nomination for elective offices and appointments.

Its influence has however diminished over the years partly on account of being submerged by the PDP. Atiku, who along with

By Sam Egburonu Associate Editor

former Works Minister, Chief Tony Anenih, was the soul of the group said yesterday that it is now imperative to protect the common interest of PDM members. He spoke through his media aide, Mallam Shehu Garba.

He debunked speculation that the rejuvenated PDM is designed to checkmate the alleged re-election plans of President Goodluck Jonathan in 2015.

“No, that is not the reason and we are not aware of such plans by the President.

As I said, the aim of the revival meetings is to re-position the political association so as to protect the common interest of members,” he said.

Garba also dismissed

speculations that Atiku is not part of the new moves because he is still bearing grudge against the coordinators on the strength of their actions during the 2011 presidential primaries, when the group supported Jonathan.

“That is also not true. In fact, Atiku is in full support of the current developments and would have been at last weekend’s meeting. He was not there simply because he was away in Yola and could not make it. He was however represented by no less a personality than Alhaji Lawal Kaita, the former governor of old Kaduna State,” he said.

On whether the revival of the association will not contravene the current rule that PDP will not condone

existence of caucuses, Garba said “PDM is not a caucus; it is only an interest group within PDP. It is just a situation where people with common interest decide to come together to protect their common interest.”

Several reasons have been adduced for the recent moves to revive the once powerful political association that merged with some other groups to form the PDP in 1998. While some observers claimed that it was a move by some northern leaders to checkmate Jonathan’s 2015 re-election plans, others said it was the Presidency’s men at work, in a desperate scheme to divide PDP and thereby set the stage for Jonathan’s emergence in 2015 PDP primaries.

tion empowering a sitting President to appoint Resident E l e c t o r a l Commissioners(RECs), “Although the Constitution says those to be appointed must be persons of unquestionable integrity, it is clear that some of them are actually cardcarrying members of political parties. Some of them got the appointment on the basis of loyalty to parties.

“By virtue of their appointment, it is difficult to prevent key decisions from leaking to their parties. We have been trying to manage the situation to check them to make the ballot system as transparent as possible.

“Another issue related to this borders on the need to make the Chairman of INEC the Chief Executive Officer and Accounting Officer of the Commission.”

In its report, PricewaterhouseCoopers observed that it is improper to make INEC chairman CEO and the Secretary the Accounting Officer.

It claimed that INEC chairman ought to be the CEO and AO. The source quoting from the report said: “Though the chairman of the Commission is the CEO, he is also not the Accounting Officer. Several key heads of functions may therefore not report directly to the chairman who in the eyes of the public takes direct responsibility over the affairs of the commission.

“In a situation where the Accounting Officer is weak, the operations of the Commission are likely to be affected negatively since the heads of the key functions do not report directly to him.”

The source also admitted that INEC is worried that some candidates, who won the primaries in their parties, were not fielded by such parties in 2007 and 2011 polls.

The source added: “We want the nomination to be very strict such that only candidates who win primaries can contest any election.

“It was shocking that candidates who secured tickets at the primaries monitored by INEC were later not presented for elections. Yet, INEC could not do anything because section 87 of the Electoral Act says any aspirant, who is aggrieved with the nomination process, may apply to the Federal High Court or the High Court of a state for redress.

“If any party smuggles in a candidate through the backdoor, such a candidate can get away with it. INEC is seeking amendment to the Electoral Act to reject imposed candidates.”

On the deregistration of parties, the source said although Section 40 of the 1999 Constitution and Section 78 of the Electoral Act empower INEC to do so, the Commission is seeking an amendment to set criteria for parties to meet before they can be on the ballot papers.

Column

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Towards a Nigerian Federalism A

S armies of ideas take up combat positions in the struggle to determine the fate of Nigeria, this is about the best time to look at the disposition of forces in contention. To this end, it is time to re-examine the conceptual efficacy of certain notions of federalism that we have grown up with. As this columnist has noted somewhere else, federalism is an elastic proposition and it is always better to observe the concept in actual and dynamic practice rather than in static isolation.

Penultimate week in Ibadan, the dominant Yoruba political elite weighed in on the debate with a historic communiqué demanding for regional autonomy, state police, fiscal federalism and a return to the parliamentary system of government. It was redolent and reminiscent of the old Yoruba agenda which would have been tabled at General Abacha’s Constitutional Conference which was subsequently boycotted by the authentic Yoruba leadership.

Last week, this column also made an intervention in the debate once again. It was deliberately blunt and provocative, hoping to draw out further clarifications and enunciations from the opponents and proponents alike on both sides of the divide. This was not the nuanced and detached contribution of a scholar contemplating the world in pleasure but the critical dissection of an intellectual combatant..

Those who are new to the agonistic nature of political debates may not appreciate the habits of thinking in extremes. According to Louis Althusser, the great French philosopher, thinking in extremes involves the counter proposition as a sucker punch and not a caressing blow. Althusser claimed to have learnt this gambit from Lenin who in turned claimed Machiavelli as his teacher.

Still learning from Althusser, thinking in extremes is best summarised by the metaphor of a bent stick. If your opponent bends a stick in one direction, you cannot come to equity by trying to straighten it. To arrive at equity and equilibrium, you must bend the stick in another direction. People do not come to their senses until they are confronted with the dangerous implications of their political extremism.

A younger friend from the South South cornered snooper after reading the piece. Brisk commendations over, the young man

S

OMETHING new always comes out of Africa, Pliny the second famously observed.

The great Roman historian and politician was of course referring to the endless string of African oddities and oddballs that provided sinister pleasure for the Roman Imperial Court. It did not occur to Pliny at that point that his own distant ancestors once roamed wild and hirsute on the plains of Africa.

In the nineteenth century, a European diplomat to the Court of the great Tsars observed that Russia practised autocracy moderated by assassination. He was referring to the long run of brutish autocratic rule usually punctuated by regicide. The Russians worshipped their royalty, but they were also not averse to bumping them off in gratitude.

In the late twentieth century, it would seem that African rulers practised autocracy moderated by biological coup d’etat. We are of course referring to the long string of African despots who survived determined head hunters, scary murder plots and even more blood curling

S

3

nooping around With

Tatalo Alamu

•Murtala Mohammed

pointed to what he thought was a fundamental flaw in the essay and the Yoruba position. After asking for autonomy, what is the business of the Yoruba people about how the oil is shared, the young man demanded. When he was told that autonomy does not amount to secession and that there is a distinction between on-shore and offshore exploration, the young man bristled. “You leave that to us”, he snarled.

How time flies! One thing you can say for the Yoruba progressive leadership is that no matter the internal rancour and the private animosities, there is a remarkable consistency, character and integrity about their vision for Nigeria. With their position paper, and in one fell swoop, it was obvious that the Yoruba political elite are trying to undo the baleful legacy of military rule by seeking a return to pre-military Nigeria.

It is not surprising therefore that it is those who have benefited most from military rule, particularly the beneficiaries of the unjust status quo, who have risen in opposition to the Yoruba position. Despite the carping

and sniffing from aspiring and defunct power blocs, despite a hint of presidential mumbling at the Fawehinmi lecture, it was the other hegemonic power bloc, the northern power mafia that picked up the gauntlet describing the Yoruba agenda as a manual for secession.

Thus it is that ancient war drums are beating and ancestral enemies are joined in battle once again. Abstract idealists and other cyberwonks securely ensconced in the safety of the internet, may continue to rave and rail about their phantom national projects, but those of us in the trenches know that it is always better to take a nation as it is, rather than as it ought to be.

It is surely rich and shop worn for an expiring feudal oligarchy to wave the red card of attempted secession at any attempt to reinvent Nigeria which involves a devolution of power from the centre. Nobody is going to be blackmailed by this nonsensical effusion about fake unity, particularly coming from those who were shouting Araba only yesterday. Human memory is a long slog and 1966 is just a short jog away.

But to imagine that absolutely nothing happened to Nigeria and national identity in 42 years of military and semi-military rule is to believe that you can step into the same river twice. It is a profound irony, but this is where political consistency, when it is not accompanied by strategic mobility, becomes a historic albatross.

For example, it is obvious that after years of military rule and the politics of state creation, politics of identity based on state differentiation is on the rise in the South West in contrast to the old cohesion based on regional affiliation. When and where this state identity finds expression in a wily and opportunistic local strongman, it can pose a significant threat to central regional authority and the old cohesion.

These are some of the new political baggage and unanticipated consequences of military rule that proponents of an effective federal structure must have to take on board. These new realities also foreshadow an intellectual coming of age in the postAwo epoch of federalism in Nigeria.

We say post-Awo epoch because with the death of the late sage, radical and creative thinking about federalism in Nigeria also seem to have died. Yet a man cannot be expected to assume responsibility for the intellectual plight of his society from beyond the grave.

As it is at the moment, stretched to its elastic limits, the concept of federalism may mean nothing or everything. But even a concept can be stretched to the limits of absurdity.

To trace its Roman etymology, federalism simply means to come together. The means and modes of coming together are left hanging.

Therefore, subjugated people can also federate and an empire in which conquered territories are granted limited autonomy can actually pose as a federal empire. In such circumstances, and as the rump of an old empire, the Federal Republic of Nigeria is a delightful anomaly.

To each nation according to its wishes and will. Ultimately, it is the political elite of a nation that breaths life into the inert form of the nation and the kind of federal structure it will take to give maximum expression to the aspirations and yearnings of the constituting populace. This is

Biological coups in Africa conspiracies only to succumb eventually to age-related infirmities.

Among the gravity and cavity defying bugaboos were Gnassingbe Eyadema who signed off after forty three years, Alhaji Omar Bongo of Gabon who joined his ancestors after almost fifty years, Felix Houphouet-Boigny who logged off after thirty, Hast-

A

DAY after Malam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi announced the epoch-making arrival of the five thousand naira note, Okon strolled into snooper’s room wearing a worried frown. Before snooper could ask whatever the matter was, the loony crank exploded.

“Oga, he be like if say dem mosquito mala for Center Bank him head no correct at all. Before before, I dey think say na better mala, but if I see am for corner I go beat am well well, him go shit dem fura well well”, the crazy boy spat.

ings Kamuzu Banda —whose age, real name and real country of origin have remained a spectral mystery— who clocked out after forty years and many more.

But in the early twenty first century, the grim reaper seems to have switched to the overdrive gear, making a short shrift of continental big men. This year alone, four African

leaders have joined their ancestors in quick succession, Dr Levy Mwanawasa of Zambia, President Bigu wa Muthanka of Malawi, John Atta Mills of Ghana and now Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia. The last two were among the best leaders thrown up in a long time in a challenged continent.

Could it be that death in Africa has become an undiscerning and indis-

why America, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, Brazil, India and Canada have given the world federal constitutions best suited to and uniquely adapted to the peculiarities of their nations.

Federalism does not create national character or a Nationalist political elite for that matter. Not even the best form of federalism can work where there is no culture of shame and impunity reigns supreme. In all the successful nations that we have mentioned, a powerful idea of the country takes root in the imaginary of the intellectual elite before they set to work about the best structure that could bring their vision to fruition.

Ultimately then, the crisis of federalism in Nigeria is the crisis of the Nigerian political elite and their failure and inability to come up with an acceptable structural formula for the consolidation and growth of a nation with diverse nationalities and different modes of economic production Let us end with a befitting historical memento. In the first week of February 1976, the late Murtala Mohammed, Nigeria’s tempestuous and visionary leader, announced the creation of six additional states to bring the tally to nineteen. The most remarkable thing about the broadcast was Mohammed’s stern warning that his government would not tolerate any public jubilation or recrimination about the exercise.

A week after his broadcast, Mohammed fell to the assassin’s bullet. Perhaps he went to his grave carrying a secret we will never know. State creation in Nigeria has been an elite-driven affair which does not address the fundamental structural flaw of the nation or the subsidiary issues arising from forced cohabitation.

There is an inflationary logic to this which leads to a proliferation of meaningless states. The more states are created, the more the demands for more states. The result is a prolix profusion of states that do not mean anything and will never amount to anything. Nigeria does not need any more of such meaningless states. What Nigeria needs now is a real federal state. This is the time to reinvent the nation. criminate opposition party?

Snooper will leave readers with a poser. After violent protests over some policies broke over the head of Lyndon Baines Johnson, John Kennedy’s successor, a protester was seen carrying a huge placard. It read: LEE HARVEY OSWALD, WHERE ARE YOU NOW THAT WE NEED YOU? Oswald was Kennedy’s presumed assassin. Come on, on let death be more sensible and discerning.

Okon teaches Sanusi Economics 101 “Okon, what is the problem”, snooper moaned with weariness of the soul.

“You see, Okon never get one thousand for pocket, mala wan bring five thousand. Case be like when blokos come kaput and Yoruba woman dey born abiku children. If dem yeye mala get common sense no be say him go share dem forty billion him wan use to print dem useless naira among

obodo Naija people? If Okon get him own one million , I go vamoose to dem Republic of Bakassi make Nigeria come overturn like them Dangote tanker”, Okon snarled like a wild dog.

“Okon, they say it is to fight inflation”, snooper offered with a weak smile.

“Why dem wan fight inflation now?” Okon exploded. “After dem done inflate themselves and dem

children finis? Dem Abuja thieves come inflate demself sotey and dem come be like dem trailer tyre.

So na Okon dem wan puncture, abi?

Make dem inflate everybody and make inflation come jam inflation, then you go get deflation and after you fit get inflammation. Dem mala wa finis Nigeria. Dis one na Sabo Banking”. On that note, snooper quickly threw out the turbulent boy.. .

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MTN mast vandalised in Jos From Yusufu Aminu Idegu, Jos

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NIDENTIFIED people have vandalised a telecommunication mast in Jos believed to belong to the MTN. The vandals struck early last Friday in what appeared to be a continuation of the destruction of such masts in several Northern cities by the Islamist sect, Boko Haram.

The latest vandalised mast is located at Dung village in Jos North Local Government of Plateau State.

Sources in the village said the vandals came at about 4am on Friday and were initially thought to be employees of the company who had come to effect routine maintenance.

One source said: “I was in bed when I started hearing some noise from the direction of the mast at about 4am. I did not suspect anything because staff of the company usually come there even at odd hours to carry out maintenance. So there was nothing suspicious.

“It was much later after the vandals had left that the security guard raised the alarm for villagers to come to his rescue.

We rushed there only to meet him tied to a tree near the mast.

We untied him immediately.

“We found that they had cut and made away with cables, a generator, switch box and other items.”

An MTN source in Jos confirmed the incident, saying: “It is true one of our stations was vandalised at Dung village close to the Wildlife Park. Not much damage was done. They only cut one cable and that has no effect on network service in the area.”

He said the stolen cable has been replaced and there is no service interruption in the area .However, residents said service has not been what it used to be until the vandalism.

The Plateau State Police Command said it was unaware of the incident.

‘We are satisfied with Ajimobi’s performance’

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

News

HE Chairmen of Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in all the 33 local government areas of Oyo State have pledged their loyalty and support to Governor Abiola Ajimobi.

They said they remained committed to his vision for the state.

The party chairmen made this known in a communiqué issued at the end of their meeting with the governor in his office at the weekend.

The communiqué was signed by Alhaji Remi Sadiq, Kayode Arowolo and Alhaji Abdur-Raheem Raji, ACN chairmen in Ibadan NorthWest, Ibadan-East and Lagelu Local Government Areas.

While commending the governor for ensuring unity and cohesion within the party, they expressed support for all the actions he had so far taken to ensure that the party remained one indivisible entity in the state.

The party chieftains also noted the rapid transformation of Ibadan, the state capital and other towns and cities in the state and lauded Ajimobi on his policy on employment generation and youth empowerment in the state.

I

N a rare move, a Pakistani judge granted bail Friday to a young, mentally challenged Christian girl accused of insulting Islam by burning pages of the Quran.

Activists who had pressed for the girl’s release welcomed the rare decision to grant bail in a blasphemy case.

But defense lawyers expressed concern for her safety in a conservative country where blasphemy allegations often result in vigilante justice.

The girl’s plight has drawn new attention to Pakistan’s harsh blasphemy laws, which critics claim are used to persecute minorities and settle personal vendettas.

The girl, who medical of-

Pakistan frees Christian girl accused of blasphemy ficials say is 14 years old, was arrested Aug. 16 after an angry mob surrounded her house in the capital, Islamabad, and accused her of burning pages from the Quran, an act punishable by life in prison. Her lawyer has denied the allegation.

The judge’s decision, which was handed down Friday in an Islamabad court, came after a Muslim cleric from her

neighborhood was accused of planting evidence to incriminate the girl and could signal that the case will be thrown out entirely.

Police arrested the cleric after a follower from his mosque accused him of stashing pages of a Quran in the girl’s bag to make it seem as if she burned them. He allegedly planted the evidence to push Christians out of the neighborhood and is now

being investigated for blasphemy himself. He has denied the allegation.

The arrest was applauded as a rare occurrence when blasphemy accusers are held responsible for false claims.

Judge Mohammed Azam Khan set bail at 1 million Pakistani rupees, or about $10,500, a significant sum in a country where many families live on only a few dollars a day. A Pakistani group

that represents minorities said it would pay the bail.

“We feel that this is the real victory of truth and law,” said Robinson Asghar, an aide to the Pakistani minister for national harmony.

The judge gave no reason for granting bail. Attorneys for the young girl argued that the accusations against the cleric had raised reasonable doubt about her culpability in the case.

South African wins Soyinka Literary Prize

By Ozolua Uhakheme

A

South African, Sifizo Msobe, has won the 2012 Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa.

He beat two others to the prize - Nigeria’s Prof Adimora Ezeigbo and Bridget Pitt, a Zimbabwean.

Msobe’s book is titled Young Blood, while Ezeigbo’s is Roses and Bullet and Pitt’s The Unseen Leopard.

Msobe won the $20,000 at the ceremony held at the Civic Centre, Lagos yesterday night. The event was witnessed by the Lagos State governor, Babatunde Fashola, his Ogun State counterpart Ibikunle Amosun and former President of Ghana, Mr. John Kuffuor.

12 burnt to death in Ogun road crash

•Rimsha Masih, accused of blasphemy being escorted by security officials after receiving bail.

Second Niger Bridge: Blame Igbo N leaders if project fails -Ngige

Ernest Nwokolo, Abeokuta

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ORMER governor of Anambra State, Senator Chris Ngige, has warned that Ndigbo will not forgive current Nigerian leaders if by 2014; the second Niger Bridge has not become a reality.

Explaining the efforts of the current political leaders on the project and the progress so far made, he said: “We the SouthEast senator have made representations before the

From Nwanosike Onu

federal government about the second Niger Bridge.

We have also told the Secretary to the Government of the Federation that if this bridge doesn’t work in the next two years, our people will not forgive them.”

Ngige made this declaration in an interview with The Nation during the week.

He also expressed concern over some aspects of the second Niger Bridge contract. “My worry is that they are constructing the bridge on Public Private Partnership (PPP), which means that there will be toll gates which our people would be compelled to pay. So, if you are going to Asaba you pay toll,” he said.

Ngige also spoke on other issues, including

the benefits of President Goodluck Jonathan’s recent visit to Anambra and the recent resignation of Professor Bath Nnaji as minister of power.

On Nnaji, Ngige said, “I know that Professor Barth Nnaji’s resignation would be a major setback in our power reforms. But in any case, he has laid very solid foundation.”

See the full interview on page 22

Anglican Church kicks against N5, 000 banknote

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HE Primate of the Church of Nigeria (Anglican), the Most Reverend Nicholas Okoh , says the Federal Government and the Central Bank (CBN) still have a lot of explanations to make to convince Nigerians that the planned introduction of N5000 banknote is in the best interest of the economy.

According to Primate Okoh, the apex bank has not even shown Nigerians the economic gains accruing to the nation on the strength of the introduction

From John Ofikhenua, Abuja

of the current highest denomination of N1000.

He spoke in Abuja after the consecration of the Right Reverend Nathaniel Oladejo Ogundipe as Bishop of Ifo,Ogun State.

Nigeria, he said, has many economic challenges bigger than the planned N5000 and requiring immediate attention.

His words: “For me, they have explained to us that it is not going to cause inflation. But we are aware that the ones introduced before actually caused

problems.

“My personal opinion as a common man is that we don’ need N5,000 notes.

We don’t even have money.

I think if we have something else we can do with money, let us do it, not printing N5000 notes.

“I don’t think it is desirable. It may not cause inflation as people fear, according to economic analyses. But we are aware that the ones they introduced before actually caused problems. And it has reduced our lower denominations to nothing. For me, I don’t think higher de-

nomination of money is our problem today. Nigeria has many other problems to face than introducing higher denomination of money. “ Also, the World Christian Council Association has described the plan introduction as ill-advised. A statement by the chairman of the association, Ayoola Omonigbehin said, “The federal government must always allow the interest of the people to form the fulcrum of their policies we enjoin Lamido Sanusi to listen to voices of reason in respect of this project.”

O fewer than a dozen of passengers were feared dead and three others injured in auto crash on Odogbolu - Ososa (Ogun State) stretch of the LagosOre expressway.

It was gathered that the auto crash which involved a Toyota Hiace bus marked XA 659DBC and which belonged to Ajetunmobi Express and a truck numbered LG 35BBG caused major traffic gridlock on the expressway.

The impact of the collision, it was gathered triggered an explosion that left the victims burnt.

According to the Public Relations Officer of the Ogun State Traffic Compliance and Enforcement (TRACE), Mr. Ade Adebiyi, blamed the crash on over speeding.

The bodies of those that were burnt beyond recognition have been deposited at the mortuary of the General Hospital, Ijebu Ode. Commander Adebiyi however warned motorists to desist from over said three persons escaped unhurt and warned motorists of the dangers of over speeding with approach of the end of the year.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Niger to regulate traditional medicine practice Jide Orintunsin, Minna

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CTIVITIES of traditional medicine practitioners in Niger State are to be regulated by the state government with a bill to this effect already sent to the state House of Assembly.

The Assembly Speaker, Alhaji Adamu Usman, speaking at the opening of the 2012 Pharmacy Day of the state chapter of the Nigeria Society of Pharmacy said the bill has scaled the second reading.

When it becomes law, it will ensure that all traditional medicine practitioners operate within guidelines which will ensure proper dispensation of their products.

Usman said three other bills had been forwarded to the Assembly to ensure that patients have access to medicine and other medical facilities at affordable rates.

The three bills are on the IBB Specialist Hospital, Public Health and Hospital Consumables.

He urged pharmacists in the state to assist the government in the fight against counterfeit and fake drugs which, according to him, have been claiming the lives of innocent members of the public.

Declaring the event open, the state deputy governor, Mr. Ahmed Musa Ibeto ,said the realisation of the state’s Vision 3:20:20 represents a journey with clear destination in sight with ‘efforts, determination, courage and commitment at individual professional institutional and community levels by stakeholders in the Niger state project.’

Ibeto, therefore reminded the state Ministry of Health and hospital Services of the imperative of having a service charter for the health sector, stating service tender core values vision and goals should be well publicised so that service users will be able to appreciate what the government is doing.

Edo gets 36, 697 adult literacy graduates From Osemwengie Ben Ogbemudia, Benin

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O fewer than 36,697 graduates have been produced from over 700 literacy and thirteen skill acquisition centres across Edo State in three years.

The commissioner for Education, Barrister Ekpenisi Omorotionmwan, disclosed this during the activities marking the International Literacy Day. He said the National Mass Education Commission has been assisting the state government in meeting the educational needs of the disadvantaged, especially girls, women, immigrants, refugees, physically challenged and the homeless.

According to him: “Though some progress has been made in our educational development in the recent past, there are still a large number of illiterates, mostly females”.

He urged Local Government chairmen to continue providing logistics and sustainable allowances to all personnel involved in the programme.

News

Onshore/Offshore dichotomy: NLC, TUC flay call for abrogation of derivation principle

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HE Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) in the nine Niger Delta Oil Producing states yesterday denounced as uncalled for, the fresh agitation for the re-introduction of the onshore/offshore dichotomy by some sections of the Northern elite.

The unions said the approach would bring unnecessary diversion in view of the danger it portends for the unity of the country.

Rising from a meeting in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital, the NLC and TUC said the

From Kazeem Ibrahym, Uyo

13 per cent oil derivation to Niger Delta oil producing states is inadequate and should be reviewed upward.

In their six-point resolutions, they asked the Federal government to review the current system of Fiscal Federalism such that states and Local Governments would be effectively motivated rather than continue to depend on federal allocation.

They also expressed sadness over the unwieldy power of the federal government and called

for devolution of power such that all tiers of government will be appropriately challenged and empowered to perform in the interest of the generality of the people.

The unions observed that the country has been enveloped in the heinous web of poverty, unemployment and insecurity which are largely the outcome of many years of misrule and corruption.

They told the federal government “demonstrate its determination, capacity and willingness to fight corruption which

is the bane of the unacceptable insecurity currently facing the country.” They stressed that “the call for the re-introduction of the onshore/offshore dichotomy is uncalled for and unnecessary diversion, as it portends great danger for the unity of this country and that the 13 per cent derivation is inadequate and should be reviewed upward.”

On the introduction of N5, 000 note by the Central Bank of Nigeria, they said such is not necessary now in view of the poverty ravaging the country.

• Mallam Mohammed Garba, NUJ President presenting NUJ/FRCN Lagos Chapel award to Osun State Governor Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, for good Governor while his wife Sarifat watch with keen interest, during the NUJ/FRCN Lagos Chapel 2012 press week Gala Nite held at Federal Civil Service Club, Lagos, yesterday.

PHOTO: JOHN EBHOTA

Nigerian students spend N160b in Ghana varsities, says Babalakin

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O fewer than 75,000 Nigerian students are currently studying in three Ghanaian universities incurring a total of N160billion expenditure annually, the Chairman, Committee of ProChancellors of Nigerian Universities, Dr Wale Babalakin, has said.

The expenditure is less than the Federal Government’s total budget for all its universities last year, Babalakin, ProChancellor, University of Maiduguri added.

He spoke in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, at the weekend at an award night organised by the University of Ilorin Alumni Association in honour of Governor AbdulFatah Ahmed and three other alumni of the institution.

Also honoured were the outgoing Vice Chancellor of UNILORIN, Prof Ishaq Oloyede; Vice Chancellor of the Kwara State University (KWASU), Malete, Prof Abdulrasheed Na’Allah; and the Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer of UTC Nigeria Ltd, Mrs. Folusho Olaniyan.

Babalakin, who was the chairman of the occasion said: “University education is at a crossroad in Nigeria. Only in 1973, four Nigerian universities were rated among the best 20 in Africa. Today, none of them is among the best 30, while none is among the best 1000 in the world.

“University education is a collective effort. University

From Adekunle Jimoh, Ilorin

education can only grow properly with government and active support of the populace. Leaving it for government alone is not fair. Everybody should contribute to ensure education that grows in Nigeria.

“Since 2009, when the power to appoint VC had been delegated to the university, it has been done relatively peaceful.

Most people are surprised that there has not been any rancour in the appointment of VCs. This

is the first step towards university autonomy. There are still so many areas that are still not autonomous. It is when we become totally autonomous that all the universities will have the necessary energy to develop at their own pace.

“The university should be allowed to generate money internally for development purposes. If we generate substantial money within the university and those monies are spent with great discretion, you will be alarmed at how far it will go and the catalytic effect of develop-

ment.

“Nigeria government should put measure in place to attract foreign students to Nigerian universities. In the 70s and 80s, so many went abroad for their ‘A’ level and came back to the Nigerian universities.”

“Before the just concluded Olympic games everyone of us was happy that Nigeria was participating, but I told some of my colleagues that Nigeria would have a dismal outing. This is because we don’t have outstanding primary, secondary and tertiary institution competition.”

Group protests exclusion from Jonathan’s panel

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SECTION of lecturers in the University of Abuja yesterday has protested alleged sidelining by the institution’s Visitation Panel.

The lecturers, in a petition under the aegis of ASUU Integrity, University of Abuja to President Goodluck Jonathan, kicked over what they called denial of right to interact with the panel on our submission as

From: Gbenga Omokhunu, Abuja

stakeholders.

In the September 5, 2012 petition signed by the Chairman of the group, Dr. Yau Damagun , the lecturers said: “ this deliberate exclusion of our Union impliedly suggests that a balanced position of ASUU, University of Abuja on all the issues at stake has not been cap-

tured by the investigation exercise. This is because the splinter group led by Dr. Clement Chup is also a faction which means the views expressed in their submission cannot be said to represent the views of all the Academic staff of the University of Abuja.”

They called for fairness in the treatment of all interest groups in the university.

Jonathan to visit Malawi, Botswana

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RESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan is due in Lilongwe tomorrow at the start of a visit to Malawi.

He will proceed to Gaborone, Botswana on Tuesday for a similar visit, his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, said yesterday.

The trip, according to Abati, is in furtherance of the

From Vincent Ikuomola, Abuja

administration’s diplomatic initiative aimed at enhancing economic and socio-political relations with other African nations.

President Jonathan will be accompanied by Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State and Governor Sule Lamido of Jigawa State.

While in Malawi, the Nige-

rian leader will confer with President Joyce Banda, participate in a Nigeria-Malawi Business Forum and launch Malawi’s National Cassava Project.

The President will also meet with Nigerians living in that country before departing to Gaborone, the following day for talks with President Seretse Khama Ian Khama.

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Illegal Nigerian immigrant admits using dead man’s ID

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N illegal immigrant from Nigeria admitted at the weekend he assumed the identity of a murdered man so he could work at Newark’s airport, New Jersey, where he was a security supervisor for 20 years.

He now faces possible deportation.

Bimbo Oyewole, 54, pleaded guilty in a state court to using a fake security badge under a plea deal in which prosecutors agreed to recommend he receive probation. He had been charged with identity theft when he was arrested in May. He will be jailed pending sentencing Oct. 19. The state attorney general’s office, which prosecuted the case, said Oyewole faces potential deportation.

Oyewole admitted in court that he is in the country illegally, having entered on a student visa in 1989 and stayed after it expired.

“I came in legally,” Oyewole, hands cuffed behind his back, told the court.

He admitted he used the identity and identity papers of Jerry Thomas, who was shot outside a Queens, N.Y., YMCA in 1992.

Authorities had said Oyewole assumed Thomas’s identity weeks before he died. Police in New York said Thomas had sold his documents to a Nigerian cab driver, who then sold them to Oyewole.

They said they had no evidence tying Oyewole to Thomas’ death.

Oyewole said he presented Thomas’ birth certificate and Social Security card to airport officials. He then received ID cards that give airport workers security clearance.

Prosecutors said Oyewole also obtained a New Jersey driver’s license and high school equivalency diploma under Thomas’ name.

The Port Authority, which operates Newark Liberty International Airport, said Oyewole most recently worked for FJC Security Services, a contractor that staffs access gates and had access to airplanes and the tarmac. He supervised about 30 guards.

Port Authority officials were alerted to Oyewole after receiving an anonymous letter about him.

“Today’s conviction will serve notice to all that the Port Authority of NY and NJ will not tolerate fraud or any other criminal misconduct at its facilities,” Port Authority Inspector General Robert E. Van Etten said in a statement.

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ACN dismisses Mimiko’s strategy on employment

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HE Action Congress of Nigeria gubernatorial candidate in Ondo State, Barrister Rotimi Akeredolu, has faulted Governor Olusegun Mimiko’s strategy for mass employment, if re-elected.

A statement by his campaign organisation’s Director of Media, Publicity and Strategy, Idowu Ajanaku, described the strategy as “fraudulent and an attempt to deceive the people of Ondo State.”

It reads: “For us at ACO, this is another notorious antics of the drowning Labour Party to hoodwink the people of the state, having failed woefully in the area of employment generation for the youth in the state in the last three and half years.

“Why has he failed to provide the 4,000 jobs he promised the people of Ondo State in 2007? Even the so-called employment for youths at Ore farm settlement is a charade as they have not been paid for eight months, leading to massive protest by the youths.

Even the cattle ranch settlement at Akoko was a complete failure.

“The latest antics of Mimiko were panic measures as a result of a well thought out programme of Barrister Rotimi Akeredolu (SAN) to create 30,000 jobs in his 100 days in office.’’

Residents lament fuel scarcity in Ekiti

By Sulaiman Salawudeen, Ado-Ekiti

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ESIDENTS and vehicle operators in Ado-Ekiti, capital of Ekiti, are lamenting what they described as “artificial petroleum scarcity.”

They alleged most stations are hoarding the product, saying appeals have fallen on their deaf ears.

Findings revealed that private and commercial vehicle owners have resorted to travelling long distance to access the product, which they obtain at cut-throat prices.

Almost all filling stations in and around the capital have closed down while the few that opened are selling petrol at a minimum of N110 per litre as against N97.

Long queues have appeared across the capital city in many stations.

It was gathered that the same situation obtains in neighbouring Osun, Kwara and Kogi States.

Some commercial vehicle operators expressed fears that the scarcity might lead to hike in fares within and around the state.

The Commissioner of Information and Civic Orientation, Hon Funminiyi Afuye, said the scarcity was not limited to Ado-Ekiti alone, stating it has spread to other states.

He noted that government was “monitoring the situation closely,” promising that “the state was already considering options for decisive intervention to ameliorate the situation in due course.”

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

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DETACHMENT of armed policemen from the Ondo State Police Command at the weekend reportedly invaded the residence of the Secretary of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Mr. Adegboyega Adedipe, in Ijapo Estate Akure, the state capital.

Sources hinted the policemen were said to be searching for incriminating documents, which they never found. The exercise, it was learnt, was carried out following an order from “above”.

A source said the police attempted to make away with computers belonging to the party ‘scribe but were resisted by residents around during the raid.

Adedipe confirmed the in-

Police invade Ondo ACN secretary’s residence •We were acting on information-PPRO From Damisi Ojo, Akure

cident when contacted. He said the armed police officers searched his house but left when they found nothing incriminating. The ACN’s Publicity Secretary, Mr. Rotimi Agbede, condemned the invasion.

He said it is now clear to

the whole world that the security operatives are working with the ruling Labour Party (LP) to unleash terror on members of the opposition parties.

He said:”This undue invasion of private residence climaxed the serial attack and intimidation of ACN party faithful in Akure and across the state in the last few weeks with

the view of silencing the party and its supporters.” The Ondo State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) Mr. Adeniran Aremu, confirmed the development.

He, however, said the policemen were acting on information and unarmed during the operations, which he said was not an invasion.

L-R: Women Affairs Minister, Hajia Zainab Maina, Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State; Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo -Iweala and Deputy Governor of Delta State, Prof. Amos Utuama during the 7th convocation of the Delta State University, Abraka... yesterday

BUK students protest, as truck crushes female to death

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TUDENTS of Bayero University, Kano yesterday went on rampage following the killing of a female student by a reckless truck driver at the front of the university’s old campus gate.

The deceased, who was a final year diploma student, was crushed to death while attempting to cross to the other side of the road.

The students took to the streets and barricaded strate-

From Kolade Adeyemi, Kano

gic roads linking to the university and the ever- busy Gwarzo Road, causing traffic snarls for hours.

An eyewitness said the reckless truck driver escaped immediately the incident occurred.

This irked the students, who carried placards chanting “we no go gree o.” The

university’s authority identified the deceased Mariam Bala, a final year diploma Accounting student.

She was said to have been buried according to Islamic rites. The President of the Students Union, Comrade Usman Rano, said they were protesting the death of their sister, pointing out that five students have been crushed to death by unscrupulous drivers along the BUK-

Kabuga-Gwarzo Road in the last three months.

The spokesman of the University, Malam Mustapha Zaharaddeen, said: “The University authority has intervened. We urge the students to be calm. “The matter has been forwarded to the state government as they promise to take the matter up urgently in order to check mate the recurrence of such incident.”

Gully erosion ravages Edo villages

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NDIGENES of Ibori, Ugbalo, Ewu-Eguare, Idogalo and Oludide communities in Edo State yesterday pleaded with President Goodluck Jonathan to rescue them from serious gully erosion threatening their existence.

They claimed that over 23 three persons have been washed away by the ravaging erosion in the last few days In Ibori-Uneah.

The erosion has reportedly claimed eight persons and eight houses so far, cutting the community from Ugbalo and Uwessan.

Pa Mike Iyere, a teacher and community head, said over 10 other houses are under threat if it rains. Ac-

• We need FG assistance, says commissioner From Osemwengie Ben Ogbemudia, Benin

cording to him: “Two persons died four days ago from high blood pressure because their houses will go any moment from now. “These old men have no means of building another house.

They are common farmers. We can’t leave the village any more; we are cut off. We don’t know what will happen next.” The Daudu of Oludide village in Auchi, Alhaji Gaz Momoh, said that over 500 houses have been affected by the erosion, which he said has also claimed 15.

He called on Jonathan to save the entire Auchi from

extinction.

The Commissioner for Environment, Prince Clem Agba, said government is aware of about 110 active gully erosion sites in the state.

“We have taken inventory of all of these sites. This very site is called Oshiobugie gully site and it is the biggest we have in the state.

“We are doing quite a number of studies including resettlement studies to have a plan to settle all those who live around these areas.”

He added: “Mr. President had approved the Nigeria Erosion Watershed Management Programme,

which is for five Eastern states with Cross Rivers and Edo States.

“It’s going to be World Bank funded. The board of directors of the World Bank approved $650 million facility but the issue is that there is this imbroglio between the Presidency and the National Assembly.’’

“Hopefully if the national borrowing plan is approved, we should be able to access about $75 to $100 million to begin to do some real work to address the gully erosion problem.

“It is clearly beyond the capability of the state government to handle.”

No going back on RSUST’s VC, says Rivers From Clarice Azuatalam, Port Harcourt

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HERE is no going back on the appointment of the Vice Chancellor of the Rivers State University of Science and Technology (RSUST), Prof. Barinem Fakae, for a second term, the Rivers State government declared yesterday.

The government said the appointment remains irreversible despite the hullabaloo it has generated.

The RSUST’s chapter of the Academic Staff Union of University (ASUU) embarked on strike, claiming that due process was not followed in the appointment.

The national body of ASUU also observed a solidarity strike last week to press for the reversal of the appointment.

But a statement issued in Port Harcourt yesterday by the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Mr. George Feyii, explained that “the appointment was done in conformity with the provisions of the RSUST Law, through a Joint Selection Committee of members of the Council and the Senate, set up for the purpose.”

It added that the Committee shortlisted five candidates for the position, including Prof. B. Onuegbu, Prof. M. Ahiakwo, Prof. N. Lale, Prof. B. B. Fakae, and Prof. C. Enyinda.

“The Visitor, in exercise of his discretionary powers, chose Prof. Barineme Beke Fakae,” the statement added.

Apart from following the law of the university in appointing Fakae, the SSG also said that the governor’s decision was buttressed by the fact that Fakae’s appointment in 2008 was challenged in court by ASUU but the case was struck out.

The statement also recalled that when Fakae assumed duties as the VC, less than 20 percent of the courses run by RSUST had Nigerian Universities Commission (NUC) accreditation while 100 percent of the courses have been accredited today.

Why I married a Yoruba, by Suswam From Uja Emmanuel, Makurdi

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HE Benue State Governor, Gabriel Suswam, opened up on his love life at the weekend.

He said he was the toast of ladies from the South West while growing up in Lagos.

The ladies, he said, could not resist him and delegated his wife, Deaconess Yemisi, to him.

He spoke while playing host to Yoruba Community in the Northern States led by its President, Chief Ganiyu Oguntoyinbo, in the Government House.

Suswam, flanked by his wife, said: “I will ever remain grateful to Yoruba race for giving me a loving wife from Emure Ekiti who is not just a permanent companion but the best thing that has ever happened to me.”

He described Yorubas as hospitable and advised those living in Makurdi to contest elections in Benue State instead of going home to seek elective offices.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Plateau North: Dung advocates zoning formula From Yusufu Aminu Idegu, Jos

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FORMER Military Administrator of Delta State, Chief David Dung, has pleaded with all aspirants vying for the bye-election in the Plateau North Senatorial Zone to allow a Riyom indigene complete the tenure of Late Senator Gyang Dantong.

Dung, who spoke with reporters in Jos, the capital of Plateau State, said: “Late Senator Dantong came from Riyom Local Government, and in the spirit of democracy, the people of the local government should be allowed to bring out one of their own to complete that tenure.”

Dantong died on July 8th during an attack by suspected Fulani herdsmen at a funeral procession.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has fixed October 6th for the bye-election.

Dung, who is the only aspirant from Riyom Local Government for the vacant seat, explained: “If other aspirants are ready to respect the zoning formula we have agreed among ourselves long before now. I am the right candidate to replace Senator Dantong because I am the only candidate from Riyom LGA.” He advised against imposition of any candidate, stating that “democracy requires that the people should be allowed to choose their leader as imposition will cause disaffection and become counter-productive.”

News

LG boss commends capital projects in Osun

Amnesty: 30 ex-agitators get employment in Dubai T A

By Bukola Afolabi

DUBAI-based international cladding company, the Proclad Group, has hired 30 ex-militants under the Presidential Amnesty Programme.

The trainees were picked from the 175 ex-agitators trained in welding and fabrication at the Proclad Academy Dubai under the auspices of the International Centre for Nonviolence and Peace Development (ICNPD).

A total of 165 trainees were said to have graduated from the academy while most of them are already engaged in Nigeria.

According to the Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta and Chairman of the Amnesty Programme, Mr. Kingsley Kuku, the exemplary

From Yomi Odunuga, Abuja Bureau Chief

success and employment of the ex-agitators by an international firm attest to the ability of President Goodluck Jonathan to deliver on his promises.

They are the first set of trained ex-agitators to be employed outside Africa.

No fewer than 44 of the 59 others who received training in marine, diving, sea faring, welding and fabrication were said to have been gainfully employed in Nigeria.

Ten of them secured jobs in Ghana while five others are now employed in South Africa.

Kuku, while admonishing the lucky welders and fabricators to see themselves as am-

bassadors of the country in Dubai, cautioned that any infraction could affect the placement of other trainees in the Arab country.

He said: “I make bold to say that these ones have made us proud. All you need is to behave well so that your resident permit will not become a burden.

“Our aim is for you to get trained, return home and help develop the Nigerian economy.

But you have been trained and you are going back to work.

“It is also an additional feat for this country. Thank God you did not abscond. You are Nigerians and ambassadors of this country.

He added: “When you get confirmed in your new jobs, the Amnesty Programme will stop paying your N65, 000 monthly

stipends in line with the United Nations guidelines.

“As you are going, know that you are representing a spectrum of development.

Obey the rules and guidelines in Dubai and be careful with women.”

Facilitator of the training in Dubai, Barrister Onyema Allen, said the firm decided to offer employment to the 30 exagitators because they distinguished themselves.

He disclosed that they may not necessarily work in Dubai but in several other countries where Proclad operates.

Speaking on behalf of his colleagues, Mr. Amama Odema, thanked the Amnesty office for offering them the chance to better their lives and families.

House Committee chair tasks FRCN

HE Chairman of OdoOtin Local Government Area of Osun State, Honourable Adejumo Thompson, has applauded the siting of critical infrastructures in the grassroots across the state.

He spoke in Okuku, headquarters of the local government, yesterday.

Thompson pointed out that electricity, health, agriculture, and education have received priority attention in the execution of the capital projects.

These, he said, have made rural dwellers enjoy dividends of democracy throughout the state.

On the council, he stated that transformers were procured and distributed to communities such Inisa, Okuku and Oyan with a view to enhancing constant power supply.

He said agriculture got a larger chunk of the council’s budget, as poultry farming, chemicals, seedlings and tractors were given adequate attention to achieve food security.

‘How monuments can promote unity’

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Ire brick industry re-opens next month From Sulaimon Salaudeen, Ado Ekiti

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KITI State Government last week took delivery of equipment worth N400 Million meant for the resuscitation of the burnt Ire brick industry.

The firm, which became moribund in 1998, is expected to commence operations next month.

Taking delivery of the equipment at Ire-Ekiti, the Commissioner for Commerce, Industry and Cooperatives, Otunba Remi Bodunrin, said the government in partnership with Oodua Investment Group decided to revive the moribund factory to generate income and provide employment for teeming youths.

The Commissioner disclosed the factory will commence test-run operations in October 21 while full operation is slated for November.

Bodunrin hinted that the factory on completion will employ no fewer than 300 indigenous workers.

He assured that the state will not have problems marketing the products, which vary from clay roof tiles and burnt bricks, among others since only two states produce them till date.

The commissioner said CERATEC, the Belgian firm handling the resuscitation exercise, will run it pending when local employees are sent abroad for training on production and maintenance.

7

•Shoji (centre) commissioning the transmitters. He is flanked by Nuhu(2nd left) and Ebenyi .

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HE Chairman, House Committee on Information and National Orientation, Honourable Uma Jubrin, has urged the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), to introduce and package informative and educative programmes that will correctly assuage the feelings of restive youths and adults.

He said the station should champion good causes by galvanising listeners to be well-behaved, responsible, disciplined and prepared to

promote nation-building.

Jubrin spoke last week at the commissioning of new medium wave transmitter at Enugu Ngwo.

He was represented by a member of the Committee, Ambassador Kingsley Ebenyi.

The committee chairman said the new medium wave, a collaborative effort of the FRCN and the Japanese Government Agency for International Cooperation (JICA) came at a most auspicious time. According to him: “No

area seems safe. Not the streets, homes and even sacred places of worships are spared of this orgy of bloodshed. “So your new Medium Wave, to be coming on stream now, speaks volume of the foresight of the management of FRCN.” He pledged the committee’s commitment to increased budgetary allocation to the FRCN. The FRCN’s Director General, Barrister Yusuf Nuhu, assured that the organisation would use the new facility for

PHOTO: OBI CLETUS

national integration, moderation of divergent opinions and the determination of national purpose.

The Japanese Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Ryuichi Shoji, said the radio broadcasting network project was structured to boost the capacity of the medium wave radio broadcasting network in Nigeria.

He was confident that with the medium wave in Kaduna and Enugu, radio listeners could increase from 12 to 86 millions in Nigeria.

Bakassi indigenes to seek self-determination if…

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HE Cordinator of the Save Bakassi Group, Mr. Maurice Ekong, has vowed that the people of Bakassi Peninsula will pursue self-determination if the Federal Government does not seek review of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ceding the oil-rich region to Cameroun.

The Bakassi people, he said, should not be perse-

From Nicholas Kalu, Calabar

cuted if such measure becomes inevitable.

According to him: “If Nigerians say we are not worth the trouble, the only alternative left to us is to seek and approach the United Nations and seek for self-determination and the people of Bakassi shall request for self-determination if Ni-

geria truly casts their pleas and their begs to the wind.

“It does not mean Nigeria should pursue and persecute us because we have approached the UN to ask for self-determination taking into cognisance the fact that we have begged to be Nigerians, and our father and mother, Nigeria threw us away.

“We are asking that when

we are approaching the UN, the worst Nigeria should do to us is to treat and tolerate us as refugees in Nigeria because we would rather be self-determined than be Camerounians.”

He commended the Nigerian Bar Association for siding with the indigenes, urging the Federal Government to appeal the ICJ ruling.

HE Chief Superintendent of Monuments, National Museum of Unity Enugu, Mr. Udoh Ette, has challenged Nigerians to appreciate the unifying roles that monuments play.

He told reporters that “the numerous benefits of national monuments to a country are uncountable and its unifying force is inseparable.”

Monuments, according to him, enable “us to appreciate the past, marry the past with modern technology and showcase the technological ingenuity of our fore-fathers.”

He called for inclusion of tours to monuments sites in curriculum at the secondary and tertiary school levels, assuring “this would both educate and that inspire the people, thus cementing the unity of Nigeria.”

Some of these sites, he pointed out, include the OsunOshogbo groove, Kano City walls and gate and Gidan Makama at Kano, among others named as world heritage sites.

Jonathan for Braithwaite’s book launch

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HE Jurisprudence of the Living Oracles, a book written by a foremost lawyer and former Presidential aspirant, Dr Tunji Braithwaite, will be launched on 18th September.

President Goodluck Jonathan is expected to formally launch it.

The Managing Partner at Tunji Braithwaite &Co, Mr. Olumide Braithwaite, said the book, which was first published in 1986, is a result of deep introspection and examination of the human society.

According to him:”The book is listed for reading by students of Law, Philosophy and religious studies in leading universities around the world such as Yale, Harvard, Columbia and Michigan State Universities as well as University of London.”

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News

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Sokoto releases N1Billion for students’ allowances

Add value to Cross River economy, Imoke tells Pamol From Nicholas Kalu, Calabar

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OVERNOR Liyel Imoke of Cross River State has expressed displeasure with Pamol Plantations Company, which processes palm oil and rubber in the state, for remaining a mere source of agricultural raw material 70 years after, instead of seeking ways of adding value to its products and to the economy of Cross River State.

Speaking with reporters in Calabar, Imoke expressed regrets that for about 70 years of the company’s operation, it has no investment that adds value to the state.

His words: “I am not happy with Pamol. I am tired of Cross River State being a plantation economy.

I don’t like it. If you are plantation economy, how do you grow? How do you industrialise when all you do is provide raw materials for a factory in Ondo or in Lagos? So, the value addition takes place in another economy.”

Bayelsa scholarship programme: Select only the best, Jonathan insists Isaac Ombe-Yenagoa

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RESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan has urged Governor Seriake Dickson to sanction the officials that carried out the selection of the new batch of scholarship beneficiaries in the state if the students’ performances are found to be poor.

Jonathan, who spoke at the weekend in Yenagoa at the sent-forth ceremony for 250 students who are to benefit from the state government scholarship programme to secondary schools in various parts of Nigeria, insisted that, like the similar scholarship programme carried out during his tenure as governor of the state which hinged on selection of the best, the current one too must be on merit.

He also explained what motivated him to go into the scholarship programme, saying the issue of Bayelsans not passing the entrance examination for scholarships by oil companies spurred him as the governor of the state then.

Kano to sponsor 100 to study pharmacy From Kolade Adeyemi, Kano

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HE Kano State government plans to sponsor 100 youths from the state to obtain university degrees in Pharmacy, the state governor, Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso, has said.

Kwankwaso, who stated this while receiving the Registrar, Pharmacy Registration Council of Nigeria, Mrs. Gloria Agumere, who visited him in his office, explained that he has already directed the state Commissioner for Health to work with relevant stakeholders to draft a proposal on the programme.

Lamenting that the state, which boasts of 12 million people has only 58 registered Pharmacists, Kwankwaso said his government will sponsor young men and women from Kano to read Pharmacy either in the country or abroad, as part of measures to address the gross inadequacy of pharmacists serving Kano citizenry.

From Adamu Suleiman, Sokoto

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• Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola SAN (3rd right) receiving an emblem of distinction from the National President of the Association of Movie Producers (AMP), Mr. Zik Zulu Okafor ( 3rd right) during the Association's courtesy visit on the Governor at the Lagos House, Ikeja, at the weekend. With them are: Secretary, Franklin Okoro (right), Treasurer, Mr. Mike Nliam (left) and Publicity Secretary, Dan Chris Ebie (2nd left)

Police recover four babies from T child trafficker

HE Akwa Ibom State Police Command yesterday said it recovered four babies from one Mfon Etuk, who is allegedly in the business of selling children.

The suspect was said to have been arrested by men of the anti kidnapping squad in Idoro, Uyo Local Government Area of the state.

Speaking during a briefing, the state Commissioner of Police, Umar Gwadabe, said when a search was conducted on the house of the suspect, two babies were recovered.

The police boss also said

From Kazeem Ibrahym, Uyo

the suspect led Police team to Port-Harcourt, Rivers State, where two more babies were recovered from their buyers.

The four babies, Gwadabe said, are now in government custody at a motherless baby home in the state capital.

While highlighting the achievement of the command in the month of August, the CP said the police recovered

one AK-47 rifle, five magazines with 60 rounds of 7.62 live ammunition from kidnappers.

Also recovered from hoodlums are two toy guns, five bags of weeds suspected to be Indian hemp, one RAV 4 jeep and one Vento VW car.

Gwadabe added that the command also rescued a mother and five of her children from the den of kidnappers.

On prosecution of suspects in court, the CP said six armed robbery suspects had been prosecuted and remanded in prison custody while the command smashed two child trafficking kingpins.

Gwadabe, who urged the youths to avoid the use of hard drugs, added: “There is no way the police alone can stop kidnapping. We have our limitations and there are underlying factors, the government and others have to come in by way of providing employment opportunities.”

Man 28, arraigned for raping eight-year-old girl

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TWENTY-NINE year old man, Kelechi Ebere, was on Friday arraigned before an Umuahia Magistrate Court for allegedly raping an eight-year-old primary three pupil, whom he used a children musical video to lure into his one-room apartment.

The man, who is the manager of a public toilet owned by the Foodstuff Retailers and Traders Union Umuahia Ibeku (FRATU) at Goods Shed Market, Umuahia, pleaded not guilty before the presiding magistrate, Mrs. Eunice Ezebuiro.

The magistrate, who decided to hold the court in her chambers, apparently to protect the identity of the victim since she is a minor and was also expected to give evidence against her violator.

The matter was later adjourned to September 10, 2012 after plea was taken from the accused, while the magistrate ordered that he be remanded in police custody until the day the case had been adjourned.

Ebere was accused of committing the offence on the night of August 28, 2012, when the little girl was attracted into his room to watch a musical video he was playing. It was alleged that it was while the girl was watching the film that he grabbed her and tied her mouth with cloth before raping her.

The matter, however, came to the open when the little girl came out with bruises in her private parts, with her pant and laps smeared with semen. She later narrated her

Ugochukwu Ugoji-eke, Umuahia

ordeal to her 12-year-old sister, who then rushed to inform their mother.

The mother of the victim, Mrs. Joy Emeribe, told The Nation that she was shocked when she saw her daughter in that situation and since it was al-

ready late in the day, she decided to preserve the evidence by neither cleaning up her daughter nor washing the pant she wore when she was assaulted.

Mrs. Emeribe, a widow, said that she had warned her children against entering the room of their randy co-tenant who had attempted to seduce

the elder sister of the victim with N500 but failed as she refused his amorous offer.

She said, “I want the police to take the matter to court so that the man would explain why he violated my little daughter.

I don’t even know if he did it for ritual purposes, because one wonders the attraction in an eight year old girl.”

HE Sokoto State Governor, Aliyu Wamakko, has approved the release of over N1billion for the payment of foreign students’ allowances under the state government’s sponsorship.

The financial commitment includes all outstanding allowances of the students.In a release issued by the Permanent Secretary of the state Ministry of Finance, Abdullahi Bala Sokoto, said other students from the state studying within the country as well as those on higher scheme outside the country will be paid accordingly.

According to him, the gesture by Governor Wamakko was aimed at ensuring its students undergo smooth academic pursuits without hitches.” We want our children studying at home and abroad to have concentration in a conducive and peaceful academic atmosphere,” the release said.

Bala Sokoto urged the benefiting students to reciprocate the gesture through hard work in order to achieve academic excellence as justification for the huge government expenditure on them. Meanwhile, the state government has earmarked N77 for the upgrade of the School of Nursing and Midwifery to a College of Midwifery Sciences.

Disclosing this to newsmen, the Commissioner for Health, Alhaji Ahmed Aliyu, said the college will now enroll as a degree awarding institution with standard facilities.

According to him, additional hostels, water supply and reticulation equipments, as well as rehabilitation and expansion of relevant structures and matron’s apartment, will be carried out to meet requirements. ”All necessary basic facilities required of the college will be put in place to compete favourably for academic excellence,” Aliyu stated.

Embrace state police, Methodist Church tells Jonathan

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HE Methodist Church Nigeria, the Osogbo Diocese, has advised President Goodluck Jonathan to embrace the idea of state police as being canvassed in some parts of the country, saying it was very clear that the present unitary structure of the Nigerian Police Force could not secure and guarantee the safety of lives and property of Nigerians.

Addressing a press conference to mark the 5th anniversary of the creation of the Osogbo Diocese of the Methodist Church in Osogbo, the Osun State capital, the Bishop of the Diocese, Rt. Rev. John Adeleke Bamiboye, noted that the police force is ill equipped and not well structured presently.

He said when the police structure is decentralised and state police comes into full operation, there would be a mechanism of checks and balances to protect the perceived excesses of the security agents.

Also, Bamiboye commended the Osogbo Diocese of the Methodist Church for improving the spiritual and socio-economic lives of its

From Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo

members in the last five years in the areas of evangelism, poverty alleviation and endowment fund, among others.

While giving kudos to Governor Rauf Aregbesola of Osun State for his efforts on employment generation through the Osun Youth Empowerment Scheme (OYES),

the cleric advised governments at the three tiers to give priority attention to employment, particularly for the youths.

Bamiboye also faulted the notion that the violent activities of Boko Haram Islamic sect are informed by political reasons.

According to him, if truly Boko Haram’s bombings in the northern part of the coun-

try have political motives, the houses of assembly, government houses and political parties’ offices should be the sect’s targets rather than churches and mosques.

He said the time has come for the federal government to employ a workable strategy to combat violent activities of the sect in the overall interest and unity of all sections of the country.

Aregbesola warns against military incursion

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HE Osun State Governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, has warned the military to jettison any idea of coming back to rule the country.

Nigerians, he vowed, will rise against the return of the military to power.

Aregbesola spoke on Friday in Lagos during the Gala Night of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) and Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN) Lagos Chapel.

The event featured award presentation and a lecture entitled Funding, Good Governance and Transformation of the Grassroots.

By Tajudeen Adebanjo

The Osun State Governor, who was among the recipients of the award and guest speaker, admitted that things might not be working right for the nation’s democratic process. This, he said, should not be an excuse for the military to tamper with the civil rule.

“We have not reached full blown democracy, what we have now is civil rule and there are bound to be challenges.

We should discourage any attempt to truncate this process.

We all know that there cannot be any better system of governance to democracy; never

again should we allow any unelected ruler to lead us. The military should leave us alone to correct our errors,” he said.

Aregbesola described military rule as “barbaric, uncivilised and antiprogress.”

He urged media to resist any undemocratic action or one undermining the present political system.

He hailed the media for its noble role in championing the rule of law.

The media, he said, played important role in mobilising people against the colonialists as well as in the demilitarisation of the country.

NEWS REVIEW

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

•Former Military President Ibrahim Babangida and gov.

Sule Lamido in Dutse yesterday at the 21st anniversary of Jigawa statehood

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S Jigawa State Government on August 27 marked the 21stanniversary of the creation of the state, it was a time to cast the mind back on reflect on its development. Part of the activities of the day was the commissioning of landmark projects, and this attracted the crème de la crème, who converged on Dutse, the State capital to be part of the historic event.

All previous leaders of the state, ranging from the pioneer Military Administrator, Brig-Gen Olayinka Sule to the incumbent, Dr Sule Lamido were in attendance. While activities lined up to mark the occasion lasted, the former leaders cast their minds back, recalling how Gen Olayinka Sule (rtd) kick started the state with a paltry N10 million.

Gen Babangida in his remarks acknowledged that the state has been transformed to a model state, compared to the level of development in his own home state Niger State, which was created a lot earlier than Jigawa.

The former military leader in a lighter mood prayed for the aspirations of many Nigerians who are clamouring for Lamido to declare his intention to run for the 2015 Presidential race.

Taking a cue from this, Gen Sule recalled that on his way from Hadejia he overhead a boy urging Lamido to step up to higher political office, like the Presidency after his second term as Governor of Jigawa State Sule said he has already embarked on prayers to actualise his desire for Lamido to ascend to a higher political office. This he added was based on the giant strides Lamido has made in the

2015 presidential politics as Jigawa celebrates Last month, Jigawa State rolled out the drums to celebrate its 21st anniversary. At the event former President Ibrahim Babangida and others tacitly tipped Governor Sule Lamido for the post of President. Kolade Adeyemi, who was there, reports. last five years in the state, Gen Sule observed, that the governor is a Presidential material "If there is anything like third term, Lamido would have gotten it following his achievements."

The former administrator staged a mild drama, shortly after delivering his paper when he suddenly forced Lamido to rise from his seat, raised his hand up and requested that whoever will want him to move to higher office after his tenure should say "Yes" to which Gen. Babangida and the audience responded in the affirmative, while on the other hand only Lamido raised a dissenting voice.

Gen Sule continued, "I am handing over Governor Lamido to my Commander in Chief and former military President to endorse him as his candidate for 2015 presidency."

At this juncture, Lamido hurriedly snatched the microphone from Gen Sule and declared that in his capacity as the Governor of Jigawa State, "I am using my authority to stop Olayinka Sule from proceeding further" and promptly handed over the microphone to the chairman of the occasion to proceed with other items on the agenda.

There have been speculations that Lamido is eyeing the presidency especially with his recent his body language and the flurry of activities organised by the state government in Dutse, which political analyst said is an indication that he is strategically positioning himself for the 2015 Presidential election as the North's candidate with an anticipation of enormous backing of the who's who in the region.

The symbolic anniversary

celebrations coincided with the birthday of former President Babangida, who created the state on August 27, 1991 as well as that of Lamido, who marked his 64th birthday on August 30.

Former Minister of External Affairs, Professor Bolaji Akinyemi, who was the guest lecturer spoke on "The need and justification for state creation", advancing sound arguments, against the creation of state police, as well as the creation of new states but on the other hand, supported resource control for oil producing states. However, in his presentation, he advocated for the reservation of seats in the state assembly for non indigenes, who have resided in the state for a pretty long time.

He expressed displeasure with the British amalgamation of Nigeria, lamenting that it only satisfied the aspirations of

nationalities in the majority to the detriment of minorities. "But the satisfaction of the majority aspirations was only to the extent that the structure kept the majority nationalities intact."

The renowned scholar argued that the agitation for more states by the minority groups did not demonstrate commitment to any coherent state creation philosophy and that the agitation for minority states were grouped around the Middle Belt, CalabarOgoja-River and the Mid, pointing out that none of these proposed states had any internal coherence.

One of the discussants, Hajiya Bilikisu Yusuf in her argument advocated for citizenship that will guarantee any Nigerian the freedom to live in any state of his choice, as well as to aspire to occupy any political position of his or her choice without religious or ethnic hindrance.

Apart from canvassing for the abolition of indigene ship, she called for the redefinition of citizenship, arguing that many Nigerians have been inhabitants of an area for over a century, and then queried in the event of crisis, where do they expect such Nigerians to run to? "We should rather emphasize on citizens right, which will further enhance the unity of the country", Bilikisu further maintained.

Gen Babangida was the chairman of the Anniversary symposium, held at Manpower Development Institute, Dutse, which was part of series of activities lined up to commemorate the celebrations, which featured the commissioning of landmark human-oriented projects that has impacted positively on the masses (talakawa).

Due to the significance of the state in North West region, the former military president witnessed all the activities for days.

Going back in time Gen Sule who presented a paper: "The experience and challenges of building a new state", recalled how he was empowered with just N10 million as a take grant to run the new state in 1991.

According to him, he started with six ministries, namely, Finance, Justice, Agriculture, Health, Works and Education, noting that 21 years after, the state is standing on its feet and can favourably compete with its contemporaries in terms of developmental projects at all levels of with 27 local government areas.

In his speech, Lamido commended the efforts of the founding fathers of the state, particularly Gen Babangida, who created the state. He recalled that the state has to date undergone massive transformation, stressing that it is today is on a sound footing and promised to take it to another level of socio-economic development.

Lamido acknowledged that the state is a home of administrators, an advantage it exploited to bring the state to its present level of infrastructural development, noting that the state is blessed with the highest number of professors in the North West region.

Others who witnessed the anniversary are the Vice Chancellor of Bayero University Kano (BUK), Professor Abubakar Rasheed and other personalities.

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

News Review

Bellyache for First Lady and

World Bank, EU, others worry over power reform

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HE World Bank is worried by the likely consequences of the recent resignation of Professor Barth Nnaji as Power Minister on the nation's power sector reform. Officials of the World Bank, the United Nations International Development Organisation (UNIDO) and the European Union (EU), among others, met in Abuja with the Minister of State for Power, Mr.Darius Ishaku, and were alarmed at the minister's resignation and wondered whether government was still committed to the programme. Their spokesman, Mr.Erik Feinsteiom, said having listened to Nnaji at the last power summit in Asaba, there was no doubt about the ex-minister's focus, passion and direction.

AWESOME FOURSOME A set of six-year-old quadruplets from Shenzhen, in south China's Guangdong Province, pictured last week with their hair shaved into various numbers before they start go to school for their first time. Their parents decided to mark them with 1, 2, 3, 4 on their heads to make it easier for teachers and classmates to tell them apart. Photo: AFP

Nigerian economy now 39th largest

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HE Nigerian economy now occupies the 39th position in the world, the Federal Government announced on Monday.

Minister of National Planning, Dr.Shamsudeen Usman, said in Abuja that this is a clear indication that the Jonathan Administration's Transformation Agenda is on course. Until the latest ranking, Nigeria was in the 44th position. He expressed optimism that the ranking would improve over time.

Jonathan, Dangote, others endorse N5000 banknote

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HE planned introduction of the N5000 banknote by the Central Bank (CBN) has been endorsed by President Goodluck Jonathan, the National Economic Management Team (NEMT), a group of senior government officials and leading business men. The team which is headed by Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala declared in Abuja on Tuesday that contrary to fears, the introduction of the banknote would not bring about inflation in the economy. However, about 300 protesters marched on the Central Business District headquarters of the CBN Abuja, same day, denouncing the planned introduction of the banknote. They said it would be of no use to the economy.

Ailing First Lady's aides barred from making calls

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ITH the First Lady, Mrs. Patience Jonathan, still receiving medical treatment in a German hospital, her aides have been barred from telephone contacts with Nigeria. The 'no phone' contact directive is to forestall any revelation about her state of health by the aides who are with her in Germany. She was reportedly taken to that country following food poisoning in Dubai.

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Ogoni deny secession

HE Ogonis of Rivers State are not interested in seceding from Nigeria, contrary to claims in some quarters, the Chairman of the State Traditional Rulers Council, Godwin Gininwa, and the Senator representing the area, Mr. Magnus Abe, have said. The duo, leading a delegation of the Ogonis at an interactive session with President Goodluck Jonathan in Abuja, said the generality of the people were never part of the August 2 announcement of secession by a faction of the Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People (MOSOP).

Dana Air's suspension lifted

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ANA Air is on its way back to business three months after its plane crashed at Iju-Ishaga, Lagos, killing 153 passengers on board and other people on the ground. The Federal Government, which immediately slammed a suspension on the airline, announced on Wednesday that the company could now resume operations, having been convinced about the air-worthiness of the company's planes after a rigorous technical, operational and financial audit.

CAMPAIGN RELEASED Judge in Pakistan grants bail to Obama back on the campaign Christian girl accused of blasphemy trail, accepts party nomination

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Christian girl arrested in Pakistan for defaming Islam has been granted bail days after police detained a Muslim cleric on suspicion of planting evidence to frame her.

Judge Muhammad Azam Khan on Friday accepted the bail application of 14-year-old girl who was arrested in a poor Islamabad suburb on August 16 accused of burning papers containing verses from the Quran.

"The bail application has been accepted against two sureties of 500,000 rupees ($5,200) each," the judge announced to a packed courtroom.

The All Pakistan Minorities Alliance, which represents religious minorities in the country, will pay the sum of roughly $10,000 to secure Rimsha's release from jail, said Tahir Naveed Chaudhry, one of her lawyers and a leading member of the alliance.

Rimsha's lawyer, Tahir Naveed Chaudhry, said she would not be released until Saturday at the earliest and that a date for the next hearing would be fixed in three or four months' time.

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RESIDENT Barack Obama hits the campaign trail on Friday after accepting his party's nomination for reelection by telling the Democratic National Convention and the nation that only the voters in November have the power to secure the change he started.

In a tough speech that concluded the threeday convention in Charlotte, North Carolina, the president warned that achievements made possible by his victory four years ago would be wiped out if Republican challenger Mitt Romney wins the election two months away.

Acknowledging the nation's hope has been tested since he first addressed the party conclave with a keynote speech in 2004, the president urged Americans to look beyond the "trivial" nature of election campaigns to fully grasp the magnitude of the upcoming contest.

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HE Presidential Action Committee on Power (PACP) and the Presidential Task Force were reconstituted on Wednesday, with President Goodluck Jonathan retaining the chairmanship of the PACP .It is charged with the responsibility of providing leadership and guidance for the rapid development of the power sector and determine the general policy direction of reforms in the sector.

TRIAL

Turkish woman awaits trial after beheading her alleged rapist

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woman in Turkey is awaiting trial after beheading a man who she says raped her repeatedly for months and is the father of her unborn child. Her lawyer says the woman killed the man to protect her honour.

Nevin Yildirim, a 26-year-old mother of two, lives in a small village in southwestern Turkey. She said the man, Nurettin Gider, began the attacks a few days after her husband left in January for a seasonal job in another town, according to a source close to the case.

Yildirim said G i d e r threatened her with a gun and said he would kill her children, ages 2 and 6, if she made any n o i s e , according to the source.

That was the first of repeated rapes over the next eight months, the source said.

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

News Review

Dana Air rises

Interactive gravestones link to online tales of life

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UMMING up the life of a dearly departed relative with just a terse description etched in stone may become a thing of the past, with the introduction of interactive codes on gravestones.

One funeral company in the southern English town of Poole is offering to add quick response (QR) codes to headstones which will link smartphones to online memorials illustrated with pictures, videos and contributions from family and friends.

Chester Pearce funeral directors said QR barcodes enable visitors to learn a lot more about the person buried beneath gravestones than the age, dates of birth and death, and the odd biblical passage or literary quote usually written on them.

"It's about keeping people's memories alive in different ways," managing director Stephen Nimmo told Reuters.

"When you lose somebody, whether it be suddenly or ongoing, you can really struggle with things. Talking about them is very important, keeping their memory going is very important and this is just an add-on to that."

QR codes, a barcode that can be scanned with smartphones or QR scanners, allow users to pull up information on the internet and are frequently used in advertising and marketing campaigns.

"It's a new technology, it's something that there will be people who like it, there will be people who don't and that's the same in everything that we do," Nimmo said.

He said he has seen demand growing for QR codes as they catch the imagination of the public.

Chester Pearce charge about 300 pounds to create a code that can also be placed on gravestones, benches, trees or plaques and is linked to a page on their QR Memories website.

Mary Todd Lincoln to be retried for insanity 30 years after her death, Mary Todd Lincoln will be retried for insanity.

The former American First Lady was declared insane 10 years after the assassination of Abraham Lincoln in 1865, when her son, Robert Todd Lincoln, committed her.

"Even today, historians disagree whether the evidence against the First Lady was 'trumped up,' whether the procedures used constituted due process, and what would occur if today's modernised health laws were applied to the same facts," according to a statement from the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.

Lincoln's mental stability was called into question after she suffered from depression, following the deaths of not only her husband but two of her young children. She allegedly spent the

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Jonathan reconstitutes committee on power Mr.Reynold Dagogo-Jack, an engineer, heads the task force which is to develop and drive the action plan for the power sector and articulate a proper plan of action for implementation in power generation, transmission and distribution.

FOUND Girl found alive among dead bodies in France 4-year-old girl was f o u n d hidden among the corpses in the car where a man and two women, all thought to be British nationals, were found. Two of them shot in the head, on Wednesday in a parking lot in the Haute-Savoie area of eastern France, near Lake Annecy.

The fourth victim, French cyclist Sylvain Mollier, was found with a gunshot to the head in the same parking lot off a forested road.

French police who

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THE WEEK IN QUOTES "A collapse of the Nigerian state will most likely result in an unpredictable number of mini-states controlled by war lords. It is a prospect which should shock us to exploring solutions to our current problems."

—Chief Phillip Asiodu, former 'super' federal Permanent Secretary on why Nigeria should remain one

"Unfortunately or fortunately, we do not have training for leaders. No process to select leaders; they would just come. Many of our past leaders came on board without formal training. We, perhaps, deserve less than we are getting if we have been getting a process for selecting leaders."

—Professor Anya O.Anya, former chairman of the Economic Summit Group on Nigeria's problems

· "Let us fight crime and insecurity in our society before they overtake our society. There are countries that have many levels of policing everywhere in the world. We have copied the American presidential system, but I don't know who the Inspector General of Police is in the USA. Yet we have copied the presidential system of government from America."

—Governor Liyel Imoke of Cross River State on the need for state/ community policing

"The Transformation Agenda is like an athletic race. You do not begin to celebrate until you have touched the tape.

The world is troubled and the economy is on the down ward trend, especially in Europe. We are not excluded in this, as we have critical challenges in almost every sphere of our daily lives."

—Comrade Abba Moro, Interior Minister, on the planned low-key celebration of Nigeria's 52nd Independence Anniversary

•Anya

•Imoke

•Asiodu

CASTRATION

ELECTION

South Korea to use Angola's ruling party wins general election chemical castration NGOLA to punish child sex crimes President

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are investigating the mysterious shooting of four people in the foothills of the Alps hope autopsies to be performed Friday will provide new clues to the identity of the killer. Police also hope to glean some information from the survivors of the grisly incident.

The girl has been kept under police protection since she was discovered at the scene in case of possible threats

years after President Lincoln's death attempting to communicate with him via séance.

But the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that the Illinois Supreme Court Historic Preservation Commission and the Lincoln Museum are set to give Lincoln a new trial, starting in October.

The duelling legal teams will dress in period clothes from the era, but will argue their case relying on current law. For the trial, actors will play the roles of Mary Todd Lincoln and Robert Lincoln but real-life judges will serve as lawyers for each side in the recreation of the case. Former Illinois Governor Jim Edgar will narrate the trial.

And adding more theatricality to the performance, members of the audience will reportedly serve as jury.

Mary Todd Lincoln spent about four months in the Bellevue Sanitarium after being declared

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N South Korea, the abduction and rape of a 7-year-old girl last week outraged the public and prompted President Lee Myung-Bak to consider various measures including chemical castration to combat child sex crimes, according to local media.

Chemical castration involves administering medication via injection or tablets - to take away sexual interest and make it impossible for a person to perform sexual acts. The effects are reversible, after the person stops taking the drug.

Lee said this week that all deterring measures i n c l u d i n g c h e m i c a l castration should be considered.

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J o s e Eduardo dos Santos' nearly 33 years in power looks set to be extended after his ruling People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) party took 74.46 per cent of votes in n a t i o n a l elections, according to provisional results.

The results from Friday's voting announced by the National Elections Commission showed the governing party with three-fourth of the vote - far ahead of its nearest rivals with votes counted from over 85 per cent of polling stations, but the party's margin of victory is down from the 82 per cent that it won in 2008.

The daily Jornal de Angola newspaper on Sunday declared Santos the president-elect, two days after general elections, but the opposition said it was gathering evidence of fraud.

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

News Review

EALTH is wealth. One disease that seems to be threatening this old saying is Tuberculosis. TB is a bacterial infection that destroys patients' lung tissue, making them cough and sneeze and spread germs through the air.

Experts say anyone with active TB can easily infect another 10 to 15 people a year. During the week, Scientists revealed that there is an alarming number of cases of the lung disease tuberculosis in Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America that are resistant to up to four powerful antibiotic drugs.

The thought provoking revelation came through a large international study published in the Lancet medical journal on Thursday. Here the researchers found rates of both multi drug-resistant TB (MDRTB) and extensively drugresistant TB (XDR-TB) were higher than previously thought and were threatening global efforts to curb the spread of the disease.

"Most international recommendations for TB control have been developed for MDR-TB prevalence of up to around 5 percent. Yet now we face prevalence up to 10 times higher in some places, where almost half of the patients ... are transmitting MDR strains," Sven Hoffner of the Swedish Institute for Communicable Disease Control, said in a commentary on the study.

Interestingly, tuberculosis is part of Millennium Development Goal 6 that aims to convert HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Tuberculosis. Globally, millions of people are dying from Tuberculosis and the statistics include women, many of whom were young mothers.

Tuberculosis resistance to drugs sparks worries Some researchers recently raised an alarm over drug resistance to Tuberculosis. Yetunde Oladeinde takes a look at the trend , new challenges and what it portends for Nigerians An O and G specialist, who wants to remain anonymous, in one of the government hospital's in Lagos agrees that the research is in line with some of his observations. "TB on its own is airborne. Unfortunately, in the Nigerian context the awareness is not there. Our attention is more on Malaria and HIV/ AIDS. Most times when a patient has a cough for about three weeks it is important to check if it's TB. But you find that people resort to cough syrups and other over the counter drugs. The first thing is that apart from checking the Xray is the blood count.'

He adds that: 'In the O and G where I work, I have come across a number of cases with pregnant women in the last one year. Here you need to consider some things when it comes to the drugs and benefits to the unborn child.

Most times, it would have been better if they came earlier. And if it's late, its multi-factorial and you can't really decide. We should not depend on

international organizations like the WHO for information. We need to have regular clinical runs now that the issue is on the front burner. All the local government health centers in Lagos have TB centers but the problem is with the stock, once it's exhausted it takes a while to get more. A patient came to Ifako Ijaiye with TB recently and for the first two weeks there were no drugs to administer"."

For Grace Hygie Enwerem who is part of the STOP TB, an international network on tuberculosis, there is an urgent need to focus on TB. "For those who have HIV and AIDs there are TB occurrences. I think that things are getting worse because of the economic depression and poverty level. Everyone has TB in the body but when your immune level is low it gets to this frightening level."

She adds that: "These days the weather is very cold and a lot of people are getting sick. It

shows that there immune system is low and instead of seeing a doctor they walk into a chemist or pharmacy to buy all kinds of drugs. A lot of people are dying because of self medication and there is an urgent need to

sensitise them to global trend like this".

The TB pandemic that infected 8.8 million people and killed 1.4 million in 2010.

Drug-resistant TB is more difficult and costly than normal TB to treat, and is more often fatal.MDR-TB is resistant to at least two first-line drugs isoniazid and rifampicin while XDR-TB is resistant to those two drugs as well as a powerful antibiotic type called a fluoroquinolone and a second-line injectable antibiotic.

Equally worrisome is the fact that treating even normal TB is a long process, with patients needing to take a cocktail of powerful antibiotics for six months. Many patients fail to complete their treatment correctly, a factor which has fuelled a rise in the drugresistant forms.

Researchers who studied rates of the disease in Estonia, Latvia, Peru, the Philippines, Russia, South Africa, South Korea and Thailand found almost 44 percent of cases of MDR TB were also resistant to at least one second-line drug.

Tom Evans, chief scientific officer at Aeras, a non-profit group working to develop new TB vaccines, told Reuters that treatment options for XDR-TB patients were "limited, expensive and toxic".Treatments for drugresistant TB can cost 200 times more than those for normal TB, he said. They can also cause severe side effects like deafness and psychosis, and can take two years to complete, he added.

U S A I D / N i g e r i a implements its HIV/AIDS and TB activities under a comprehensive approach with other United States Government agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Defense, which are all working as part of the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).

In partnership with the government of Nigeria and civil societies, prevention activities include initiatives to prevent mother-to-child-transmission and the prevention of sexual transmission of the HIV virus.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) predicts more than 2 million people will contract MDR TB by 2015.Another report adds that there is a $1.7 billion shortfall in funds to fight TB over the next five years . The consequence of this shortfall is that about 3.4 million patients would go untreated and gains made against the disease will be reversed.

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COMMENT and ANALYSIS THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

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

Boko Haram and its Mali agenda

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SUALLY, the terrorist Islamist Boko Haram sect, attacks primary schools, churches and sundry government buildings. Now they have picked a quarrel with telecom masts!

Over the last few days gunmen suspected to be members of the group have launched a spate of attacks on close to 30 base stations belonging to GSM companies in Borno, Yobe, Bauchi and Gombe states.

No coherent or incoherent explanation has been offered for this latest orgy of violence. While it may seem like a random act of insanity – look closely and you soon discover that there’s truly method to madness.

I am convinced that the inability of the government to pin down sect leaders or their real proxies to a genuine dialogue – is down to the fact that the group is after something no Nigerian government can ever give. That goal is the balkanization of the country to create a fiefdom where sect leaders would be lords of the manor.

This is lost on the Goodluck Jonathan administration which persists in the illusion that it can buy peace in the North – as in the Niger-Delta through massive payoffs. Unfortunately, the hardnosed determination of Boko Haram to destroy Western education, and other forms of modern day life as exemplified by the attacks on the masts, exposes their ultimate goal of isolating the North and driving it back to a long forgotten era.

It is the exact same script being played out in northern Mali by the al-Qaedabacked Islamist extremists who have divided that unfortunate West African country in two. Once they captured the upper extremities of their country, they set about establishing their own reality by embarking on a systematic destruction of historic religious tombs and priceless UNESCOlisted heritage sites in Timbuktu and other places.

Such was the outrage felt worldwide that the International Criminal Court’s new chief prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda, argued that the actions of the Islamists could be considered war crimes.

Today, northern Mali which they have declared a separate republic is effectively back in the Stone Age – what with the local population subdued through a diet of brutal beatings and amputations, and cut off from the rest of the civilised world.

It is amazing that our government cannot appreciate that what is unfolding in northern Nigeria eerily resembles what the Malian rebels have pulled off.

Ever since the Boko Haram attacks began, certain areas of the north have become no-go areas for both indigenes and non-indigenes. Local farmers cannot access their farmlands for fear of being set upon by itinerant gunmen. In places like Maiduguri strangers are now viewed with great suspicion, and stick out like the proverbial sore thumb.

Even if we don’t want to accept the fact of the gradual decapitation of certain sections of the country from the rest, it is already happening. It is harsh reality when young people posted for the National

Lekan Otufodunrin Otufodunrin@thenationonlineng.net 08023000621 (SMS only)

Barack, Michelle Obama on my mind

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•Islamic fighters in Kidal, Mali, last month.

Youth Service Corps (NYSC) insist they won’t go to certain parts of Nigeria, and they are backed by their parents and state governments.

They have not said so, but depend on it that alarmed GSM companies would already be preparing contingency rollback plans if the attacks persist. Neither they nor the state presently has the ability to protect isolated base stations and other telecom infrastructure from the killers.

Even the most fearless engineer would think twice before venturing out to fix equipment in the heart of Boko Haram country.

Even if fear does not make them bolt, raw economic reality will cause them do so. One base station takes about six months to build, and is said to cost anything from $250,000 to $500,000. That will put the losses sustained by the companies in the region of billions of naira. How long can such loss of investment be sustained by businessmen before they cut their losses?

If the companies do bolt, the extremists would have achieved a major coup in their war to isolate and conquer their region. Their strategy can be better appreciated when linked to what at a time seemed like meaningless attacks on places of worship and selected groups. In reality these were calculated cases of ethnic and religious cleansing.

And now, weeks after a supposed dialogue was started through so-called ‘back channels,’ the killings in the North-East continue unabated. I don’t know what the weeks-old talks have achieved, but if we are to assess by actions, we can conclude that rather than discussing, both sides are really not on talking terms.

That brings us right back to square one –seeking fresh options. Several weeks ago when many voices within and outside Nigeria were backing attempts by the United States to list Boko Haram as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO), our own diplomats led a forceful lobby that kept the

“What Adefuye and others failed to tell the world is that Boko Haram have killed more innocent people in towns and villages in the last two years than US drone attacks in the aforementioned two nations in the last few years”

PHOTO: AFP

sect out the American’s black book.

Outlining the reasons why government didn’t want Boko Haram called by the name they deserve, Nigeria’s Ambassador to the United States, Prof. Ade Adefuye, spoke of immigration inconveniences and the prospect of drone strikes on our villages like what happens from time to time in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

What Adefuye and others failed to tell the world is that Boko Haram have killed more innocent people in towns and villages in the last two years than US drone attacks in the aforementioned two nations in the last few years.

Today, the same US administration which was sweet-talked by Nigerian officials into keeping Boko Haram off their list, has decided to blacklist the Haqqani network, a militant organisation behind some of the deadliest attacks against American troops in Afghanistan.

There can be no question that Nigeria spurned an uncommon opportunity for putting a harsh global spotlight on Boko Haram citing suspiciously ridiculous reasons.

The truth of the matter is that designating the sect an FTO would have enabled the US and its allies using their tremendous intelligence capabilities to track down the sources of sect financing and armament – a prospect which their local backers will definitely not want.

A few days ago a bizarre incident happened that shook the security establishment to its foundation. Unknown persons dumped all the contacts of officials of the State Security Services (SSS) on the worldwide web. Who do you think did it? Certainly not Wikileaks!

President Jonathan once confessed that Boko Haram sympathizers had infiltrated all levels of his government. The SSS incident is a case in point and further proof of how badly this country needs help.

But all is not lost. Nigeria can retrace her steps as this sect is not interested in talks or resolving whatever differences it has with the state, but in bring about through violent means the type of Stone Age ‘Eldorado’ its soul mates have established in the anonymous expanses of northern Mali.

As a first step, let the government withdraw its opposition to the FTO designation.

That way we can access the resources of the international community to confront a foe that draws its own strength from its links to a global network of evil.

HE United States is really blessed to have Barack Obama as its president and Michelle as the first lady of the country.

Listening to the couple speak at the Democratic National Convention last Tuesday and Thursday, and later reading the full text of their speeches confirm how suitable they are for the national assignment they are handling.

Both of them were able to clearly articulate the American dream and their vision for a better America.

They spoke of how their humble backgrounds have influenced their approach to governance; they were honest about how the tough task of governing the country is, but exuded enough confidence that should leave no one in doubt that they are up to the challenge of tackling whatever problem should be fixed.

As I read the speeches, many paragraphs provoked in me deep reflections on the truth of Michelle’s assertions.

I only hope that our political leaders and their wives will take time to read and digest the lessons from the speeches. More importantly, anyone who aspires to lead our country must draw inspiration from great speeches like the kind given by Barack and Michele last week.

Here are some excerpts that should serve as food for thought.

Michelle: Every day, the people I meet inspire me. Every day they make me proud.

Every day they remind me how blessed we are to live in the greatest nation on earth.

Obama: America, I never said this journey would be easy, and I won’t promise that now. Yes, our path is harder – but it leads to a better place. Yes our road is longer – but we travel it together. We don’t turn back.

We leave no one behind. We pull each other up. We draw strength from our victories, and we learn from our mistakes, but we keep our eyes fixed on that distant horizon, knowing that Providence is with us, and that we are surely blessed to be citizens of the greatest nation on earth.

Michelle: Serving as your first lady is an honour and a privilege Obama: Government has a role in this.

But teachers must inspire; principals must lead; parents must instill a thirst for learning, and students, you’ve got to do the work.

And together, I promise you – we can outeducate and out-compete any country on earth.

Michelle: After so many struggles and triumphs and moments that have tested my husband in ways I never could have imagined, I have seen firsthand that being president does not change who you are. No, it reveals who you are.

Obama: Tonight, we pay tribute to the Americans who still serve in harm’s way.

We are forever in debt to a generation whose sacrifice has made this country safer and more respected. We will never forget you.

And so long as I’m Commander-in-Chief, we will sustain the strongest military the world has ever known. When you take off the uniform, we will serve you as well as you’ve served us – because no one who fights for this country should have to fight for a job, or a roof over their head, or the care that they need when they come home.

Obama: And while I’m proud of what we’ve achieved together, I’m far more mindful of my own failings, knowing exactly what Lincoln meant when he said, “I have been driven to my knees many times by the overwhelming conviction that I had no place else to go.”

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Ogochukwu Ikeje ohgeeoh@gmail.com 08084235961 (SMS only)

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Comment & Analysis

VERY day the call for leadership gets louder, and in very interesting circumstances. Apart from the attack on GSM facilities, Boko Haram was thankfully moving away from the headlines, suggesting there is something of a breather from the reign of terror. Still, security is a concern, requiring more attention. We have been informed, for instance, that the October 1 Independence celebrations will, again, be lowkey, to be observed only at a safe location in the nation’s capital. The message is clear.

Then there are jobs concerns. Everywhere, unemployment is an issue for a country’s leadership. In the United States now caught up in election fever, jobs top the table. In Europe which is battling recession, unemployment is a big issue. In Nigeria, it is even bigger, requiring urgent action. So does power. The leadership sure has a lot to worry about.

But there is more. Agitations from ethnic enclaves pose perhaps a bigger challenge.

They are so widespread that our country comes across as a nation of nations, one harbouring many countries. Rather than flaunt one Nigeria and one people, these nations hype their peculiarities, some even declaring independence, complete with a flag of their own.

The Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) did it back in May 2000. Talk of a Yoruba nation was once rife and may not have died out.

Some see the activities of Boko Haram in the North as the expression of the perpetrators’ desire to have an exclusive northern enclave, if not nation. I have made the point in this space at some point in the past that Boko Haram does not seem to represent the North nor its wishes or aspirations, but the

Nation of nations Wake the Nigerian spirit or have a sovereign national conference group left many with fewer conclusions when it ordered non-natives to leave the region late last year even as many Southerners died in blasts. Last month, the Ogoni, or a faction of them, declared political autonomy, arguing it will help them secure their indigenous rights, meet their needs and end internal colonialism. That pronouncement has since been denounced not only by Mr. Chibuike Amaechi, who governs Rivers State of which the oil-rich community is a part, but also by some Ogoni leaders. Still, the point has been made.

There is a common line running through these agitations. It points to disenchantment with the federal structure of the country as presently constituted. It alleges denials and

injustices. The agitators say they feel cheated, exploited or demeaned and that they no longer want any part of the country they have always known.

These notions and pronouncements leave me in utter discomfort. Not because the planks of the agitations are weak but rather because the only nation we have always known and which once gave us a measure of happiness, has been distorted by sundry discontents. Who can forget how Nigerians once mixed and mingled freely with their compatriots from far-flung places? It happened in secondary schools and tertiary institutions. We saw it in business. There are Yoruba people who know no other place they can call home but a town in the North.

“Notions and pronouncements of secession leave me in utter discomfort. Not because the planks of the agitations are weak but rather because the only nation we have always known and which once gave us a measure of happiness, has been distorted by sundry discontents. Who can forget how Nigerians once mixed and mingled freely with their compatriots from far-flung places? It happened in secondary schools and tertiary institutions. We saw it in business. There are Yoruba people who know no other place they can call home but a town in the North.

There are Igbo who not only set up businesses up country but also their homes. In the South, many Northerners have been doing quite well”

There are Igbo who not only set up businesses up country but also their homes. In the South, many Northerners have been doing quite well. One hot afternoon, a Fulani taxi driver once gave me a much-needed free ride over a long distance in Plateau State. In the 80s there was sufficient peace among cohabiting Nigerians, although this is not to say there were no incidents that tended to negate the prevailing harmony.

There were, but two decades ago, such occasional negative occurrences did not define Nigeria or its people.

Now, things are different. Cohabitation has been redefined. The joys of the past have disappeared. A townsman, who settled in Maiduguri where he started a business and a family, has been forced to flee southward, closer home. Before his flight with his family, he had sourced his merchandise from the South and transported it to the Borno State capital. He did this even in the heat of Boko Haram blasts. Finally, he packed up and moved with his folks. There are so many others, some sending their families home while they stayed back to look after their properties, including houses, hoping the picture would change.

What stole our peace and joys? Corruption in high places? I do not think that is a strong point. Thieving leaders have always brought grief upon the land but not a thirst for compatriots’ blood and secession. While terrorism may be hard to pin down, secessionist tendencies are not. And while past governments failed to address them, President Goodluck Jonathan has an opportunity to make history. His administration can ensure that ethnic heartaches are relieved but more than that, government has an obligation to wake up the Nigerian spirit. But should that spirit be dead, federating units should be allowed to discuss the way forward.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Comment & Analysis

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Yoruba agenda Demands from Ibadan confab underscore why Nigeria should start afresh on a new paradigm

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HE Yoruba Assembly, convoked in Ibadan, Oyo State, on August 30, made key demands: a restructured Nigeria made of a Federal Government and six regional governments, the adoption of the parliamentary system as opposed to the present presidential system of government, a decentralised police made of federal, regional and state units, establishment of a constitutional court to adjudicate inter-governmental cases and election petitions into the National Assembly, stripping the President of Nigeria and state governors of immunity over criminal cases, and creation, by the South West states, of vigilance groups to secure life and property.

On its own, the assembly decided to set up a South West Constitutional Commission, to collect, coordinate and collate memoranda from groups and individuals in the region, on their constitutional preferences on a new Supreme Law for Nigeria. The assembly also canvassed the design and production of a regional flag and anthem as a common identity for the Nigerian South West, without prejudice to the already existing emblems of the six states in the region.

These demands clearly underscore the region’s leading lights’ frustration with Nigeria as presently structured.

But they by no means suggest that the sorry structure cannot be fixed, paving the way for a fresh start. To the extent that the assembly proffered useful and robust initiatives to make for a better and more prosperous Nigerian union, it was a welcome development.

To start with, there appears nothing new in the Yoruba Agenda as enunciated in the assembly’s communiqué, aside from the recommendation of setting up vigilance groups to protect life and property in the South West. That could well be a legitimate reaction to deteriorating security nationwide.

Still, the pursuit of state and regional police would appear a more acceptable panacea to the lingering security peril. But with the northern elite adamant on central police, and the South West elite insisting on decentralised police, and even suggesting regional legitimisation of rather unorthodox vigilance groups, the police controversy could just spiral out of control. What is needed here is the spirit of give-and-take, since the first option, across the board all over the country, would appear finding a lasting cure for the perpetually sick union of Nigeria.

Restructuring Nigeria had been on the front burner

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HE West African Currency Board was responsible for issuing currency notes in Nigeria from 1912 to 1959. Prior to the establishment board, Nigeria had used various forms of monies including cowries and manilas On July 1, 1959 the Central Bank of Nigeria issued its first notes and coins and the West African Currency Board notes and coins were withdrawn. It was not until July 1, 1962 that legal tender status was changed to reflect the country’s new status. The notes were again changed in 1968 as a war strategy following the misuse of the country’s currency notes.

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UR heart bleed concerning the disheartening and reckless manner with which innocent members of the public are losing their lives in the hands of some uniform wearing personnel of the Nigeria Navy, Eastern Naval Command in recent times.

It has been one unresolved murder too many to another with impunity.

It is on the premise of the foregoing that we wish to report the murder of Chukwudi Onukaji, who was a newspaper vendor at Onitsha, Anambra State. He was killed on July 20, 2012 by some detachment of Eastern Naval officers who mounted a road-block at Owerri-Nta, in Isi-Ala Ngwa South L.G.A, Abia State.

Citizen Onukaji was part of the group of citizens who were taking the corpse of one of their kinsmen, the late Mr

since the late Alao Aka-Basorun days as President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), during the endless political transition of Gen. Ibrahim Babangida. The call for a “national conference” back then was to stem the country’s perceived drift. After the presidential election annulment of June 12, 1993, restructuring assumed a frenzied height, which even after 13 years of democracy, has not abated.

That it has gathered moss, even outside the South West from where it emanated, underscores there is something basically wrong with Nigeria’s federal system.

Restructuring is therefore a key factor to address.

The Yoruba clamour for a cabinet system of government makes eminent sense, in the context of a dysfunctional federation where an imperial centre gulps most of the money (but is least placed to solve most of the problems). When this is mixed with an expensive presidential system, it is easy to recognise the twin-guzzler causing the present development crisis. Since restructuring and adopting the cabinet system would free funds for development, the push for the cabinet system is a good contribution to the national debate over Nigeria’s future.

A decentralised police is another operational key of a true federal system. But the Yoruba Assembly has suggested a three-layered police system – state, regional and

TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM

•Editor Festus Eriye •Deputy Editor Olayinka Oyegbile •Associate Editors Taiwo Ogundipe Sam Egburonu

•Managing Director/ Editor-in-Chief Victor Ifijeh •Chairman, Editorial Board Sam Omatseye •General Editor Kunle Fagbemi

LETTERS

federal police – though the assembly was silent on federal police, which is a given, in any case. That is fine as collective security goes in a federation. Still, a third layer, in regional police, would appear an over-kill, except of course the Yoruba Assembly envisages a far loser federation than it is now.

If regional police appears an overkill, the derivation formula suggestion of 25 per cent to the oil-bearing states is too little, for the sort of a federation that envisages regional police. If every part of the country must be encouraged to fend for itself and pay tax to the federal purse for central services, then anything less than 50 per cent derivation would appear too little.

The call for a constitutional court is in order. In a federal state, a strong and robust constitutional court to adjudicate inter-state, inter-regional and regional-federal matters is a sine-qua-non for peaceful resolution of disputes.

This can only strengthen the federation by strengthening its rule of law content.

Also guardedly welcome is the suggestion that presidents and governors be stripped of immunity from criminal prosecution, in view of the current pervasive corruption, even if there is the uncomfortable feeling that the call was made more out of desperation than deep reflection. If the federation is restructured such that most funds are available where they are needed (in the regions), and each region sweats for its wealth and in so doing, takes active interest in the regional expenditure, a higher level of accountability would logically follow. If that happens, there would be less corruption. If there is less corruption, public services would have attracted a nobler set of people, whose minds are set to serve and not to loot. With such in place, removal or non-removal of immunity would become irrelevant.

As for the South West flag and crest, there is nothing much to it. After all, the old three (and later, four) regions had their flags and crests; and that did not lead to the country breaking up. However, this is a delicate matter, especially with the conspiracy theories of the Yoruba having alleged secessionist agenda.

The Yoruba Assembly has brought useful proposals to the table, on giving Nigeria a rebirth. It is left to the rest of the country to put forward their own proposals, and for the commonwealth to debate and collectively decide the best way to go.

The bleak future of Nigerian currency On March 31, 1971, the then Head of State announced that the country would change to decimal currency as from January 1, 1973. The major currency unit would be called Naira which would be equivalent to ten shilling, the minor unit would be called kobo, 100 of which would make one Naira. The decision to change to decimal currency, committee set up in 1962 which submitted its report in 1964.

The change that took place in January, 1973 was a

major one and this involved both currency notes and coins.

The major unit of currency which used to be one pound ceased to exist and the one Naira which was equivalent to 10 became the major unit.

On February 11, 1977 a new banknote denomination of the value of N20 was issued. This was special in two respects. The N20 banknote was the highest denomination to be introduced then, and its issue became necessary as a result of the growth

of incomes in the country, the preference for cash transactions and the need for convenience. It became the first currency note in Nigeria to bear the portrait of a citizen, in this case the late Head of State, General Murtala Ramat Muhammed (19381976). He was declared a national hero on October 1, 1978. The note was issued on the first anniversary of his assassination.

On July 2, 1979, new currency notes of three denomi-

Letter to President Jonathan Emmanuel Achoma, to their village, Nnoyi Isi-Ala Ngwa South, Abia State.

We learnt that, when the members of the burial team reached Owerri Nta, they were faced with acute traffic, occasioned with illegal road-blocks mounted by the naval team, they diverted to another shorter route to make haste because they would be returning to Onitsha, Anambra State immediately after the burial. The diversion apparently angered the said naval officers who pursued them until they were traced to near the compound of the late Mr Emmanuel Achoma, and ordered all the burial team to return to Owerri-Nta where they were asked to lie flat down. At this point, one of them raised

his hand and attempted to explain to the naval officers their mission, but alas, one of the naval officers shot the man but the bullet hit Onukaji. He was taken to the naval base at Owerri-Nta and kept there unattended to.

He was later taken to another hospital where he was confirmed dead as a result of gunshot wound. His corpse was later deposited at Allied Mortuary, Aba, Abia State by the naval officers.

Now, the late citizen Onukaji has been branded an armed robber. This is an attempt to cover the truth and exonerate themselves from prosecution for murdering an innocent citizen.

We (Campaign for Democracy) learnt that the Police from

Central Police Station (CPS) Onitsha was part of the burial team, yet the naval officers branded Onukaji an armed robber.

Even some opinion leaders and members of his community and neighbours in Onitsha attest to his character.

The police from Zone 9 Umuahia confirmed that they were not carrying arms or any weapons when the ugly incident happened.

Have the naval officers produced or made public the purported arms and ammunition, they alleged the burial team was carrying? Who are the culprits in the alleged armed deal?

Sir, we demand: •As a matter of uttermost immediacy, the arrest and pros-

nations, namely (N1), (N5), and (N10) were introduced.

The notes showcase the portraits of three eminent Nigerians who were declared national heroes in 1978. In 1991, both the 50k and N1 note were coined. In response to expansion in economic activities and to facilitate an efficient payments system, the N100, N200, N500 and N1000 notes were introduced in December 1999, November 2000, April 2001 and October 2005 respectively. ecution of all the officers who took part in the criminal murder.

•Also the commanding naval officer at the time of this incident should be demoted and dismissed.

•That your office order unconditional release of the body of citizen Onukaji to the family for a befitting burial without further delay.

•That a public apology should be tendered to the family for labelling their son an armed robber and that should be reversed vide three national newspapers within 14 days.

•That compensation to the tune of N500m be provided and paid to the aged father of Onukaji.

By Dede Uzor A Uzor (Chairman) and Dr. Jerry Chukwuokolo (gen. Secretary) Canpaign for Democracy, South East.

On February 28th 2007, as part of the economic reforms, N50, N20, N10 and N5 banknotes as well as N1 and 50k coins were reissued with new designs while a new N2coin was introduced.

It is sad that the former CBN Governor, Prof Charles Soludo, introduced new naira notes and coins to reduce the excess of money in circulation and curb inflation, yet all these economic parameters never solved the problems. Nigeria is currently battling with unmitigated problems of economic instability as a result of textbook policy formulators.

It has now dawned on Nigerians that the rich are getting richer while the poor are getting poorer in all ramifications. This is a country where many Nigerians cannot afford three square meals, yet the few economic policy makers never consider the plight of suffering citizens.

Regular change of currency denominations would do Nigerians no good rather it would create conflict of interests by some high profile cabals who want to sell off the country for selfish interest.

If the N5000 note is allowed, the purpose of introducing cashless policy has been defeated.

By Godday Odidi Ajegunle-Apapa, Lagos.

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Comment & Analysis

A President and his good intentions “The road to hell is paved with good intentions”....Samuel Johnson

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UR long nightmare has just begun. But no one had any inkling that dream will be truncated midstream. It all started on May 29, 2011; that sunny day in Eagles Square when President Goodluck Jonathan took the oath of office. On that day, millions of ordinary Nigerians invested their hopes in his Presidency. They had earlier demonstrated this optimism by voting en masse in the Presidential election of that year - some even died in the course of the election. But a year on, and two years into a cumulative Presidency that began in 2010 is a catalogue of woes and litany of failed dreams. The prevailing events in our country - the failings of this government, the docility of a commanderin-chief and the alleged “good intentions” not backed by action - have turned dreams to nightmares, hopes to despair, and citizens’ enthusiasm to apathy. The expectations of millions in a President whom they thought would turn their fortunes around has become misplaced; a

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

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T is quite clear from all we are passing through and from all the political debates in which we have been engaged in, that there is a sufficient body of opinion around the country that the present arrangements are not adequate and need to be discussed further. Some have gone to the extreme by suggesting the convocation of a Sovereign National Conference to renegotiate the terms and conditions of our continued Corporate Existence Many; some of them well meaning, in every part of the country, are very fearful that this is a formula for disaster that will lead to the disintegration of the country as we know it and a descent into interminable political and social crisis and violence, the like that has existed in Somalia for more than two decades now. Although such an outcome cannot be ruled out, the problems we face do not permit us to ignore the fact we need and must address these problems in order to safeguard our future either as one unit or some other form of arrangement. It is much better to face the issues frontally, discuss them frankly in an open forum, and come up with solutions that can endure and ensure for us a peaceful existence.

Many in positions of authority in the Executive and in the Legislatures are understandably, fearful of opening up the Pandora’s Box. In my opinion we cannot keep the Box shut forever. There will always remain a substantial and influential body of opinion that will reject any Constitutional tinkering that does not address some of the more important issues pertaining to our common existence. Not addressing these issues openly and frankly in a free and fair debate between our true representatives will not permit the orderly continued existence of Nigeria and or engender the potential for us to resume the rapid economic and social development that we all desire’ – Elder Statesman, Ahmed Joda With these views from the highly regarded Alhaji Ahmed Joda, a Nige-

By Bayo Olupohunda

dream deferred. How did we get to this sorry pass? Let’s look back in time.

In the run-up to the elections that heralded this administration, candidate Jonathan, as the flag bearer of his party PDP, now President Goodluck Jonathan, was viewed by Nigerians as a man who would ensure a complete break from a forgotten past; a past in which their lives were traumatised by inept, selfish and corrupt leadership, perpetuated by buccaneer politicians. Nigerians, being incurable optimists they are, were ready to look forward to a better tomorrow. Perhaps, they thought, the man who promised to break from the status quo and do things differently in Abuja could take them to the Promised Land. President Jonathan’s campaign strategists seized the moment, capitalising on the mass hysteria of a redeeming candidate. They branded their man as the “breath of fresh air”. The slogan worked like magic. Nigerians hoped against hope. ‘Perhaps this is the light at the end of the tunnel; the long sought opportunity to transform our nation.’ Nigerians were also waiting for direction after the wasted years of Yardua’s administration. The

President’s minority credentials helped his cause. It added to the sympathy the electorate had for him. For once, in a country used to the overbearing dictatorship of oligarchs’ majority tribes, a President from the minority was a triumph to the agitations of ethnic minorities Jonathan became the symbol of their yearnings. He will understand the suffering of impoverished masses, having been a symbol of poverty himself. This is in addition to his academic qualification - a PhD president is expected to be cerebral. The support for him also doubled with the previous antics of the cabal in Yardua’s government who refused to crown him as the President. The President thus swept into power, in a landslide which many saw as a victory for a new order. How wrong? It is no longer news that since his assumption, President Jonathan who came in on a groundswell of mass endorsement and popularity is presently presiding over a divided country wrecked by deepening corruption, poverty, massive discontent, insecurity and a government lacking in capacity to tackle a nation on steady decline.

This President increasingly appears to be at a point between a reluctant leader and a confounded one.

All we hear are his good intentions. Isn’t it ironical that a president who enjoyed the goodwill of ordinary Nigerians on being elected has become an object of derision? While our country hangs precariously on the precipice, the president gives excuses; blaming everybody but himself. His spin doctors keep repeating the well-worn lines; the President is a man of good intentions. Pray, what are good intentions without the leadership to back it up?

Will good intentions stem the widespread corruption that has become endemic in this government? Will good intentions stop insecurity? Will good intentions stop widespread poverty? It is sad that the President and his men do not understand the mood of the nation. Does it not surprise them that the President has lost so much goodwill since coming to power? Who do they blame for the low opinion of the President? Is it enough to blame the civil society, the press and the opposition for the President’s poor rating?

Are they not the same people that ensured justice was done when the President was being harangued and denied his rights by the cabal? Is it not the press and the opposition that fought entrenched interests who did not want the President to contest

the elections that brought him into power?

Does the President expect the Fourth Estate, opposition and civil society to shut their eyes to his failings as a non-performing leader?

Does he expect not to be criticised by the opposition and the Nigerian people when he has not shown the leadership expected of him? Is this the President they voted for? The President recently called the press “politicised”. Really? So the press who ensured that a victimised VicePresident Jonathan is sworn in as President has suddenly become the enemy? How convenient! It was also disheartening listening to the President at the conference of the Nigerian Bar Association. The President said he is the most criticised president in the whole world! He also said he is not the cause of our country’s problems - which means he should not be held responsible for them. How sad coming from a President! Nigerians elected the President not to bellyache and whimper at every opportunity.

Nigerians elected a leader to solve their problems.

Source: nigeriansinamerica.com •PROF. ROPO SEKONI’S COLUMN RETURNS IN TWO WEEKS

Interrogating ruckus over the Yoruba Assembly conference Blackmailing those who believe in the truism that stronger parts will make for a stronger Nigeria is lazy, whimsical and wrong-headed rian elder statesman of Northern extraction, it was easy for me, as should be for honest Nigerians, to effortlessly dismiss the empty effusions of some Northern politicians who mischievously decided to obfuscate things and likened the Yoruba demand for regional autonomy, alias true federalism, to what they chose to describe as a ‘semblance of secession’.

Without a doubt, whilst there is still a remnant of the Northern ancien regime which stands ramrod behind Ahmadu Bello in his intent, made public only 12 days after Nigeria’s flag independence, that, I quote: ‘The new Nation, Nigeria, should be an estate of our great grandfather, Uthman Dan Fodio. We must ruthlessly prevent a change of power. We must use the minorities in the North as willing tools and the South, as conquered territory, never to be allowed to rule over us nor be allowed to have control over their future’, many Northerners there are today who, thanks to their exposure and extant realities in contemporary Nigeria and elsewhere in the world, have come to realise that such hope was nothing but a chimera.

Those with that mindset should therefore be advised to perish the thought and concentrate on organising the North along equitable democratic ethos. Nothing demonstrates the fact that Nigeria is no animal farm more than the fact that Olusegun Obasanjo has ruled over us all, for 8 long years, and Goodluck Jonathan is not exactly a Hausa/Fulani.

At the Ibadan meet of the YORUBA ASSEMBLY under the lead of Lt Gen Alani Akinrinade, a Nigerian patriot per excellence, the Yoruba did no more than endorse a set of realities which they would like to see in a Nigeria operating on the basis of true federalism. The most rational reaction to this, if we all truly believe in equality of the Nigerian peoples, would be for serious leaders in other geo-political zones to

convene in like manner to think through what they think should constitute the basis of our existence as a unified and prosperous country. After all, our huge population, properly organized and led, could be such a massive asset. In my view, to attempt to blackmail those who sincerely believe in the truism that stronger parts will make for a stronger Nigeria is lazy, whimsical and wrong-headed.

Rather than regurgitate the effusions of the likes of Alhaji Lawal Kaita, a former Kaduna state governor, Buba Galadima and Bello Haliru Mohammed, samples of those Professor Segun Gbadegesin calls the unitarists, and as quoted in the Vanguard of Monday, 3 September, 2012, let me rather more productively, albeit briefly, quote some snippets from the YORUBA AGENDA document which is a compendium of the Yoruba position on what a true Nigerian federation should look like.

Honest Nigerians, across the board, can then decide by themselves whether the Yoruba people can rationally be regarded as self-serving in their proposals: THE STRUCTURE OF THE FEDERATION The Yoruba Agenda recommends a federation consisting of the Federal Government and SIX REGIONAL GOVERNMENTS based on the current six informal geo-political zones . Each region, in order to recognise our diversities, shall have its own constitution which will reflect its own peculiarities.

SCOPE AND LIMITS OF THE POWERS OF THE CENTRAL GOVERNMENT There shall be only one legislative list and this shall be the exclusive legislative list. Items not on this list shall be within the purview of the regions. It went further to list the 30 items that are recommended to be on the exclusive legislative list.

FORM OF GOVERNMENT Because it is far more effective and less costly, the YORUBA AGENDA recommends a return to the Westminster style of government.

RESOURCE CONTROL Mines and minerals, it recommends, shall remain in the exclusive legislative list. This is recommended because the agitation in the oil producing states centres mostly around lack of sustainable development and the paucity of the amount of revenue accruing to oil bearing states. These can be resolved by a reasonable revenue allocation formula.

REVENUE ALLOCATION /FISCAL FEDERALISM Value added tax, sales tax, income tax, company tax, stamp duties and other taxes except customs and exercise dues, petroleum profit tax and others associated with mineral resources shall be levied, collected and retained by the regions and an agreed percentage remitted to the central government. Petroleum tax shall be levied and collected by the federal government and 25 percent of oil revenue shall be remitted to oil producing states POLICE/POLICING IN NIGERIA The Yoruba Agenda recommends a regional police. Consequently there would be a federal police to enforce federal laws and each region will have its own police established by law to enforce regional laws. The police system shall be organized in such a way as to ensure that law enforcement in each locality is in the hands of indigenes of the regions.

In its ramifying scope, the Agenda, among other things, recommends the following for the constitution of the National Judicial Council, an otherwise respectable institution which has lately been bastardised, subjected as it is, to the worst form of partisan political manipula-

tion: 1. Chairman - The Chief Justice of Nigeria 2. The President of the Court of Appeal who shall be the Vice-Chairman 3. Two representatives of each of the regions of the federation who shall be appointed from among the indigenes of each region and who shall either be a serving or retired Supreme Court judge, Court of Appeal judge, Chief judge, High Court judge, Grand Kadhi or President of Customary Court of Appeal.

4. 5 representatives of the Nigeria Bar Association 5. 2 non-legal practitioners.

6. It further recommends that appointments of the Chief judge of a region, the Grand Kadhi of the Sharia Court of Appeal of a region, if any ,the President of the Customary Court of Appeal of a region, regional High Court judges etc shall, exclusively, be made on the recommendation of the Regional Judicial Service Commission subject to the approval of the head of the regional government and confirmation by the regional legislature where necessary.

It is worth mentioning that the Ohaneze Ndigbo, the apex organisation of the Igbo peoples, who are hardly ever on the same page politically with the Yoruba, in a comment by its secretary agreed with the Yoruba position stressing that ‘what Nigeria needs now is to sit down to work out the modus operandi of a federation that would accommodate all our ethnic diversities without one section feeling a sense of domination over others’. Needless to say, Ndigbo specifically supports the six geo-political zones as the federating unit.

These in brief are some of the demands of the Yoruba Assembly, demands which will be subjected to full interrogation by all sections of the country convening at a Sovereign National Conference that some people, in a do-nothing recipe of chaos, have so unconscionably demonised.

Let me conclude by allying with Alhaji Ahmed Joda that we can only delay these processes at our own peril.

Comment & Analysis

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Tunji

Adegboyega tunjade@yahoo.co.uk 08054503906 (sms only)

F

OR once, I have to disagree with the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi. When in August 2009 he came with the idea of instilling sanity in the banking sector, sacking the chief executives of five banks in the process, we were on the same page, and as a matter of fact, I felt that was long overdue. Even when he was being pilloried for his donation to victims of the Boko Haram bombings in Kano a few months back, I was still on the same page with him, at least somewhat.

But this time around, I beg to disagree with Mallam Sanusi on the planned introduction of N5000 note.

The thing does not simply make sense to me and it seems it doesn’t to millions of Nigerians out there; and that is why the CBN governor has been under severe criticisms since the idea was made public. These have also rubbed off negatively on embattled President Goodluck Jonathan, who only recently said he is the most criticised president in the world. He should get ready for more virulent criticism if he does not tell the CBN to forget the idea of printing the N5000 note.

Although Mallam Sanusi seems bent on forging ahead with the idea, irrespective of what Nigerians feel, but he should watch it. He has attracted too much negative attention to himself in his three years in office as CBN governor; yes, he has been lucky thus far, but he is not going to be all the time. The matter is not even

Postscript, Unlimited!

By

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

Y

OU know, sometimes when you are gutting some poor fish just so you can have some dinner, you are surprised to find another fish within its entrails. Then you go, ‘that poor thing must have been caught so that the fish could have its own dinner’. Right now, it feels as if the entire country is in the entrails of the Nigerian government because the government keeps going, ‘You poor, helpless folks, you have no say in the decisions I take on any matter. Of course, you’re free to wrestle me to the ground.’ This is why it keeps bringing its decisions as fait accompli; then it sits back to watch us all bellow like sick elephants, smoke coming out of our nostrils, veins standing out taut and throbbing in our necks, and eyes bulging out of our sockets in national indignation. It happened over the fuel subsidy problem. It is happening all over again because the government has decided to introduce a new N5, 000 central bank note and reduce some of our beloved paper denominations to coins.

The government has tried hard to help us figure out the advantages of the new move.

17

N5000 note? Perish the thought!

There are more fundamental problems for the CBN to tackle

being helped by some of the government officials who always weep louder than the bereaved when they want to force certain government policies down the throats of Nigerians. They display too much of overzealousness where what is required is passion. Nigeria should be one of the best countries in the world if this overzealousness is for functional purposes. That it is not calls to question the basis of the uncommon ‘passion’. So, let these government officials stop giving the impression that they are more patriotic than the rest of us. They are not.

Imagine the Minister of National Planning, Dr Shamsudeen Usman, telling us after a meeting of the National Economic Management Team (NEMT) on Tuesday that: “”So, obviously the discussion today was basically to endorse what Mr. President had already approved. That is the only requirement by law. The CBN is to propose and Mr. President is to approve. And since Mr. President has approved, really, what is important is to just explain,” Usman said. Usman was obviously referring to the National Assembly and Nigerians who have asked the CBN to suspend action on the N5000 note, if not cancel it outright. He forgot that this is not just a matter of fulfilling legal requirement; and it is not a matter for economists alone because when the

repercussions come, as they sure would, they would come on the heads of the ordinary Nigerians that the lawmakers represent. No true representative of the people in the National Assembly will support this idea because no matter the persuasion, the kite can never fly. Beyond the undesirability of the N5000 note, it is highly contemptuous for Dr Usman or any public official for that matter to say that any decision is final in a democracy, only on account of the fact that the law has been fulfilled. If Nigerians truly elected President Jonathan, they can and indeed should stop him from allowing the CBN to proceed with this policy.

The fact of the matter is that the more I see the apex bank’s defence of the idea, the more convinced I am that we do not need the N5000 note.

It is the kind of repulsiveness to expect when you aggressively market a bad product. If we say we want to go cashless, why do we need higher denomination of our currency?

Again, when, for instance, the CBN said that every currency gets reviewed periodically and that Nigeria should not be an exception, I agree; but the CBN did not tell us that in spite of reviews that the Americans have done to the dollar over the years, they still do not have beyond the $100 bill. Even at that, you hardly see the $100 note in public. And, in spite of the many

“Most of the members of the NEMT who supported the idea of N5000 note may not even know what the N100 or N200 or even the N500 notes look like... After all, we once had a presidential candidate who did not know how much a litre of fuel was sold for! At any rate, who will the fly back if not the person with a festering sore?”

reviews of the British pound sterling, they still do not have more than the 50 pounds sterling today.

In case Mallam Sanusi has forgotten, our currency was exchanging at 0.673 naira to the US dollar as recently as the 1980s. Today, one would need N162 to get the same US dollar. The point I am making is that what we need to address is much more fundamental than printing worthless high currency denominations. As a matter of fact, that is self-defeatist; it does not show any imagination in the country’s monetary policy. How come we have descended as fast as having even the N1000 currency today whereas these other countries are still making do with the highest denominations of their own currencies? It is inexplicable and indefensible that Nigeria, where the highest denomination as at late 1999 was N100 today has N1000 and would be having the N5000 note in 2013, just 14 years after. Where else in the civilised world have we seen such phenomenal leap? Also, interest rates remain high even as banks are not lending to industries. These are areas where the economy is ailing.

Mallam Sanusi may tell us that he alone cannot solve all the problems; I know, but then, he does not have to compound them.

Apparently a major factor that Mallam Sanusi failed to take into consideration is our socio-cultural peculiarities. We do not need any especial expert to know the consequences of what the CBN wants to do. If today we mint N100 into coins, it would simply lose its value.

Things can never be the same with any legal tender in coin form in Nigeria; that is the simple truth. Most of the members of the NEMT who supported the idea of N5000 note

may not even know what the N100 or N200 or even the N500 notes look like. They probably speak in dollars; so their support is not unexpected.

After all, we once had a presidential candidate who did not know how much a litre of fuel was sold for! At any rate, who will the fly back if not the person with a festering sore?

Things are far from what they should be in the economy and Mallam Sanusi may want to make a difference. But the way he wants to travel will end up being counter-productive and disastrous; and unfortunately, it would be difficult if not absolutely impossible to undo whatever damage the policy would have done by the time we all see the consequences. The naira can be strong again; but that would take a lot of courage and political will on the part of the government.

Atedo Peterside’s submission that those who steal would be compelled to keep the money at home when we introduce the N5000 note cannot hold water. The fact is that Nigeria’s rich have developed an insatiable appetite for anything foreign.

So, nothing you do that will make them ‘store’ their money at home. At any rate, they know too that the value of the naira cannot be the same for too long, unlike say the American dollar or the British pound sterling.

So, let the government fight corruption directly and not via the N5000 note which will not work.

Moreover, whatever we envisage to save from the new notes will pale into insignificance when the government frontally tackles corruption. In Nigeria today, we probably have individuals who single-handedly stole more than the N41. 7bn, N45.5bn and N32.6bn that we spent on printing and minting of our currencies in 2009, 2010 and last year, respectively.

So, what are we talking about?

Please, let the Naira be!

The government needs to demonstrate good faith with the people Yes, they say, it will help the new cashless policy. No, they also say, it will not necessarily lead to any new inflation, and yes, it will be easier to carry around.

And yes, yes, yes, it will be cheaper in the long run to print.

In truth, only very few people would benefit from this new venture. Well, there are the politicians who, we hear, carry a lot of money around. Certainly, the new note would make life a lot breezier for them as their pockets, and their girlfriends’ pockets, would be easier to fill.

The trouble is that, in order to tell us this, the government used the services of some high-powered government officials. I think that is where the problem started.

They spoke the kind of English many of us do not understand.

It would indeed be difficult for a man to describe to his son what labour pain is about: he has never felt it. In the same way, it would be difficult for a government official whose food bills, electricity bills, sleep bills, even his standing, sitting and nearly all other bills and then some, are met from government coffers. They cannot feel the effects of inflation, so they cannot assure anyone not to be afraid of inflation. You see, too many families are too delicately balanced. Too many of our families in the land are living on incomes which are hanging on the cliff edge of survival. In other

words, they are just barely managing to stay on planet earth. Any inflationary wind that blows in their direction will as certainly tip them over that edge as you and I breathe right now. The result is better imagined than described.

Then, I really do wish the government would think of what would happen to me if I just, through chance, design, carelessness, bad luck or fate, lose one five thousand naira note. I don’t know what would happen, that is why I want the government to think about it for me. I think going mad would be a very welcome relief for me if that were to happen. Seriously, accidents happen but that is not what worries me. What worries me is what some deranged parent would do if they suspect that one of their charges had pilfered one of them notes. A thousand naira note may be easier to forgive and overlook, but a five thousand naira note? I fear indeed that a gun may be called in to settle the matter.

Then, just imagine the horror of someone on a minimum wage receiving his month’s wages in the new note. When his employer places only three of the stuff (plus a few of the older notes) on his calloused hand, I think a great deal would go through the employee’s mind.

For instance, he could go, ‘For only three notes I worked for a

month? Why did I bother?’ Or, he could wax philosophical: ‘What is the meaning of this life?’ as he gazes at the fluttering things on his poor palms. He may not commit suicide, but his mind would.

More importantly, we all know that Nigerians have long since dispensed with coins! You know how I know? Beggars don’t accept it from anyone again. It may still be legal tender in the mind of the government, but in the people’s day and night consciousness, coins are no longer social tender. Coins and even the lower notes no longer carry any social value, and the government knows this. So, I am forced to come to a very sneaky suspicion: the government wants to devalue our currency.

And I ask why? What has our money done to this government?

What have we done to the government that it wants to punish us this way? I know. We voted them in.

Seriously, I hope the government will think this issue over again, turn it over in its mind, ruminate on it, regurgitate it, throw it up and turn it around in the air and see how it feels. It is not in tune with reality for a government to insist on going ahead with a step if the people who are supposed to benefit from it declare that they do not want it. It is one thing to notice that a man is dirty and needs a

wash. It is quite another to convince him that he needs a wash; he may believe you or he may not. It is however futile to try and wash him if he does not want a wash, for you just cannot make a man clean against his will.

It is possible that there just may be some advantages to gather from this venture, but they are not very apparent to our poverty-ridden eyes because, as you can guess, we are right now too battered and beaten to see very well. So, we are just thinking that, maybe, the government should just sort of let things be for the moment. There is right now too strong a choir of nays against the move. The very fact that the government had to get up a road show to try and convince the people to accept it (willy-nilly) is proof that it knows that what it wants to do is doubtful.

The government needs to demonstrate good faith with the people by choosing to emphasise the effects of this move on the people rather than the advantages it will accrue to the government. The people remain the focus of governance, whether democratic, autocratic or theocratic. It is still about the people, because governments come and go, but the people remain. I hope that the government will please let the Naira be.

18

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Comment & Analysis

Nigeria: What went wrong? (1) I

ARRIVED in Lagos, Nigeria in the afternoon of 19th June 2012 aboard Qatar Airways having departed Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia early morning of the same day.

After the usual immigration formalities, I awaited the collection of my luggage. It was gladdening that the antiquated conveyor belt was properly functioning so passengers need not wait endlessly for their luggage as it could be the case sometimes. However, I still noticed that it was still the same old and rickety escalator that ushered all passengers into the front desk of the immigration officials. There was barely adequate space for the passengers to stand before the immigration officials and the escalator. At times, depending on the number of passengers and the scheduled arrival of flights, passengers could press upon one another due to the limited space. This I have noticed for nothing less than six years without any change! One then begins to wonder whether our leaders and policy makers who travel out often close their eyes and minds while enjoying facilities in other climes. The question one can ask is: What stops them from replicating these facilities at home since we have the resources to make these happen?

This time around however, as I collected my luggage and passed the custom checkpoint, and made for the exit, I saw something that excited me. I noticed that a rehabilitation work is ongoing at the Murtala Mohammed International

By John Ekundayo

Airport (MMIA) after many years of neglect. Much more than rehabilitation work, I noticed that an extension work is taking place adjacent to the “arrival hall”. For this, I say kudos to the incumbent Minister of Aviation. However, the arrival hall at MMIA is nothing short of a place for passengers to collect their luggage. For those of us who have travelled out to few countries outside Africa, passengers arriving from other countries ought to, after the initial immigration and custom formalities, be welcome to a comfortable arrival where they can relax, dine, wine, and shop for as long as they desire. This is the international best practice!

Eventually, my old classmate in the university came to pick me up. He congratulated me for the recent completion of my PhD research and my decision to come home after my study. We later arrived home and few friends joined us. It was in the course of our discussion centred on Nigeria that one of us narrated his experience while working with an international oil company abroad. He went on thus: “While working with my company in Malaysia, there was one of my senior officers, whom I had a lot of reverence for was and always there to assist me as I settled down in my assignment in that nation. I later took him as a mentor.

One day as we were discussing about the nations of Malaysia and

Nigeria, he looked at me and said: ‘We used to look up to Nigeria but now things have changed! What Went Wrong?’ I said we ourselves in Nigeria cannot succinctly say exactly what is wrong with our nation that we have degenerated so much over the years”.

This discussion between my friend and his mentor in Malaysia was for few days agitating my mind especially the question that he threw at my friend: What Went wrong? In fact, as a researcher in management and leadership studies, I was burdened and I posted this question to: traders, artisans and taxi drivers; and I also asked elites working in the private sector, senior government officials and academicians. It was eye opening the responses that I got from people of various cadres and calibre.

Nigeria used to be the largest oil palm producer. It was on record that experts from International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan, Nigeria went to Malaysia and trained Malaysians to properly and profitably cultivate oil palm. They acquired the training and put it to practice with zeal and zest, and within three decades, Malaysia became the leading producer of palm oil in the world. She maintained this position for so long until the baton was passed over to a neigbhouring country, Indonesia. The question is: where is Nigeria presently? Is it that the physician cannot heal himself any longer?

It is also instructive to highlight Dr Jide Oluwajuyitan’s comment in his column published in The Nation newspapers of Thursday, 19 th July 2012, in which he lamented: “But how did we get to this sorry state of affairs?” In the same write-up, he mentioned that the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan was rated among the three best teaching hospitals in the Commonwealth during the first republic to the beginning of the second republic. What Went Wrong? How did we get here?

It is pertinent at this juncture to mention one unforgettable encounter I had with a jurist from one of the north central states of Nigeria.

I was opportune to initiate a discussion with this eminent judge of a high court in his state after knowing that I came from Malaysia.

During my engaging this judge, he made mentioned of something that I had heard before but thought was a rumour. He stated that at a particular time, Nigeria was the one responsible for payment of salaries of Malaysian civil servants for about 6 months. He went further to state that this took place during the regime of General Yakubu Gowon.

In concluding this first part of this serial, there is the need to ask ourselves probing, soul searching, and no-holds bared questions. It is my opinion that, for those of us in our forties and fifties, our children may, in the near future, be asking us some unfriendly and unpalatable questions. Just re-

cently, Nigeria was named as being among the top 10 failed states in the world; scoring less than countries like Togo, Burkina Faso and Djibouti. The latest rating of Transparency International regarding corruption showed that Nigeria had sunken below the improved rating we received when Chief Olusegun Obasanjo was there as the President.

As a Nigerian who lived in the Diaspora for not less than seven years, whenever I approached any immigration checkpoint, I used to pray and exercise some unusual boldness knowing that while others may be asked only one question, I better prepare for up to three to five as the rules of the game often change when you show up as a Nigerian! If we really want to decipher exit route, then we better be prepared to ask ourselves some of these soul searching questions: Why have we sunken so low to this level? How did we arrive at this station or bus stop? Are these the handwritings of epileptic, clueless and rudderless leaders at all levels? Do the followers not have a proportionate share of the blame as well? When did we start the downward slide as a nation? Do we presently possess proper values as a people?

I will sincerely value and appreciate your responses or feedback. Thank you for reading. · Dr Ekundayo, an organisational management and leadership expert writes from Lagos

Between the president and the media “I

F it were left on me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.” - Thomas Jefferson The above quotation from Thomas Jefferson, a former President of the United States, underscores the importance of the media in a democracy. The media is the lifeline of any nation. It provides not only information on what may affect the normal human being in his day-to-day functioning, but also by other features that keep him informed of developments, national and international. The reach of the media and the effect that it can have on general public has always been recognised and never been challenged.

In Nigeria, the press has always been in the forefront of the nation’s democratic struggle.

From the colonial era to the post independent era, the press has been a major rally point for the Nigerian people. It is to its credit that it has outlived many antipeople governments, though with many wounds and scars. In the dark days of the military, when men of courage and honuor were few, the press, it was, that fought the military to a standstill.

It is, therefore, amusing when President Jonathan recently came out with a scathing remark on the Nigerian press. Feeling the heat from the local press, the President affirmed that the press is no longer in a good stead to assess his administration. The truth of the matter, however, is that successive leaders in the country have come under the full hammer of the press.

Tayo Ogunbiyi

Infact, the press has been relatively fair to the Jonathan administration when compared to past administrations in the country.

Indeed, President Jonathan partly owes his ascendancy to the presidency to the Nigerian press.

When his late Principal, Umar Musa Yar’Adua was sick and the ‘cabals’ were playing games with the situation, it was the press that stoutly rose to canvass support for a Jonathan acting presidency. After his landslide victory at the 2011 general elections, President Jonathan became the toast of the press.

What then could be responsible for the sudden crack in the relationship between the presidency and the press? To start with, there seems to be a general consensus that the Jonathan administration is moving at a very slow speed. The President himself laid credence to this at a recent forum when he said that Nigerians would start praising him by 2013 when, according to him, they will begin to enjoy the dividends of democracy. So, if the president agrees that the expectation of Nigerians is presently not being met, what does the presidency expect the media to do? Roll out the drums and celebrate the dawn of a new era? It is the duty of the press to put the President and his men on their toes by ensuring that they do not lose focus on their mandate.

There is also the issue of avoidable distractions, especially from the First Lady. When she is not openly castigating an elected governor, roads are being blocked across the land to herald her

presence in town. While the rest of us wonder what the future holds for us, the First Lady has ingenuously ‘secured’ hers by becoming the first Permanent Secretary at large in the history of the nation. Each time we think we have had enough of her comic relief, trust the First Lady, she has a way of coming up with one of her distractive acts. Now, what should the press do? Applaud the presidency for refusing to tame the Dame?

Aside this, the President has not been taking advantage of his public outings to warm himself into the hearts of Nigerians. Many examples abound. In his recent visit to the training camp of the Super Eagles of Nigeria, a commendable populist act, the President mixed it up again. Having had a first- hand view of the sorry state of the pitch, one would have expected the President to query the appropriate authorities on the poor state of the pitch. But what did the President do? He set up another ‘powerful’ committee consisting of, wait for it, the Honourable Ministers of Finance (who also doubles as the Coordinating Minister of the economy among others), Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and Sports as well as the Director General, National Sports Commission (NSC) to oversee the maintenance of the stadium. A Committee of three obviously busy Ministers just for the maintenance of a football pitch?

What is the duty of the Sports Ministry? What happens to the budgetary allocation for stadium maintenance? Where are the government officials whose statutory responsibility it is to maintain the stadium? Now that the Abuja stadium has a committee

to oversee its maintenance, what happens to the stadia in Lagos, Ibadan, Enugu and Kaduna with similar problems?

The truth is that the President has continued to expose himself and his government to avoidable media ridicule. It is true that the myriad of challenges the country is presently grappling with have been with us before the advent of the Jonathan Presidency. But this should not be an excuse for failure since the President was aware of these problems before he decided to vie for the residency. In fact, it is expected that the time he spent as Vice and Acting President ought to have prepared him for the task ahead.

The fact, however, is that Nigerians are yet to be convinced that the Presidency has what it takes to tackle these problems with the required scientific and analytical precision.

Rather than vent his anger and frustration on the press, the President needs to fully concentrate on governance. Nigerians are not asking for too much. They are neither asking the President to dry up the Red Sea as Moses did nor demanding that the River Niger be brought to Kano. All they want are signs that the government is working for their good. Once they are sure of this, the Presidency can be sure that it has an ally in the people and indeed the media.

Also, we can do without the distractions of the First Lady and other parasites that feed fat on the system who pretend to be the President’s best friends. The President should be wary of such political jobbers and their hypocritical tendencies.

Perhaps, more importantly, while interacting with the media, the President and his aides need

to be resourceful so that they have the best chance of being able to put their case across. In this current political climate where negative myths about the government have been allowed to ferment in the public sphere, it is essential that the President and his aides are able to argue their position well.

This can only be done through civilized and professionally articulated viewpoints. Rather than the present confrontational approach, the Presidency has to device ingenious means of dealing with the media. Strategies may be as straightforward as knowing the issues well enough to be able to respond aptly and also knowing when not to engage by refusing to respond if the subject is irrelevant.

The Presidency needs to discern how to compete with other interests that are seeking the attention of the media. It’s a game, a strategy and the better players hold the ace.

Finally, the Presidency needs to be able to translate its transformation agenda into language and imagery that others can relate with. Flexing muscle with the media does not do any government any good. The challenge, therefore, is for the presidency to extend its scope beyond the orb of professional praise singers and sycophants who will rather tell the world that the Jonathan presidency is the best thing to happen to us, to those whose views remain antagonistic.

This is what covering new grounds is all about.

Ogunbiyi is of the Features Unit, Ministry of Information and Strategy, Alausa, Ikeja.

POLITICS

19

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

•Atiku

•Musa Yar’Adua

•Tukur

Jitters over PDM’s new schemes

Recent efforts to resurrect Peoples Democratic Movement have not only thrown up fresh challenges over the unity of PDP but have also raised questions over new strategies employed by President Goodluck Jonathan towards 2015 presidential election, reports Sam Egburonu

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T the national secretariat of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Abuja, there is intense hullabaloo following the new moves to resurrect the late General Umaru Musa Yar’Adua’s political machinery, the Peoples Democratic Movement (PDM). To a lesser extent though, this is also the case in Aso Rock, Nigeria’s seat of power.

While Alhaji Bamanga Tukur-led leadership of PDP is, according to insiders, battling to handle some members’ panicky responses to the new moves, the mood in Aso Rock is more suppressed or measured, leading to speculation in political circles that the hands of President Goodluck Jonathan’s henchmen may be traced in the new PDM resurrection moves and so, the Presidency is rather satisfied with the current development.

Although members of the political association have been meeting under different guises in the past, their meeting in Abuja, last week, attracted general attention, perhaps because of the large attendance from most of the states in the country.

Of particular interest in the last meeting was also the fact that some of the prominent PDM members that graced the occasion are known to be protecting different political interests currently, leading to diverse interpretations of their intentions at the PDM revival initiative.

Some of the influential PDM chieftains at the meeting, who are also said to be behind the new moves were Chief Tony Anenih, the former chairman of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party’s Board of Trustees, who is known to be playing a leading role in the alleged schemes to secure a second term for President Goodluck Jonathan in 2015; Alhaji Lawal Kaita, former governor of the old Kaduna State and Ambassador Yahaya Kwande, who are both believed to be among top northern leaders calling for a change in 2015.

Aside this category of elders, whose political interests are yet to be reconciled in the new deal, there are other top chieftains, who a source said are more concerned with the idea of creating a totally new political group that will, according to them, usher Nigeria into a new realm of genuine democracy. Such members include well-known politicians like Dame Titi Ajanaku, Chief Dubem Onyia, Alhaji Inuwa, who was the chief protocol officer during Obasanjo’s tenure, Senator Abubakar Mahdi, Prince Tonye Princewill and Chief Bode Ajewole, who was appointed the chairman of the political association.

Coordinating the activities of this later sub-group are what a source in Abuja described as a group of younger and

more radical men and women, that include Chief Goddie Ikechi, who emerged the protem Secretary of the new initiative, Zainab Boni Haruna, the wife of the former governor of Adamawa State and Muritala Shehu Yar’Adua, the son of the late founder of the group.

Conflict of interests Given the known and alleged conflict of interests among members that have made themselves available at the renewal meetings and among other principal stakeholders of PDM right from inception, political observers are of the view that it may be difficult for the association to champion a united objective.

This is even so because of the fact that Jonathan’s strategists, who used the group in 2011 to achieve success during the PDP presidential primaries and created deep disunity in the group, are still very much interested in repeating the feat in 2015.

But that would not have been much problem for the alleged executor of the proposed scheme, Chief Anenih, if not for the signals from Alhaji Atiku Abubakar’s camp, suggesting that the PDM leader, who, sources said, was hurt by the actions of PDM coordinators during the 2011 primaries, may not take it lightly this time around.

When he inherited the leadership of PDM directly from Yar’Adua, the founder, Atiku, a shrewd politician, nurtured the political machinery effectively and thus wielded enormous political power across the country, before and throughout the eight years when he served as Vice President of Nigeria under President Olusegun Obasanjo. Even when Atiku fell out with Obasanjo in the course of their two-term tenure, PDM political machinery came in handy to sustain Atiku as the combined forces of PDM lawmakers and governors from different parts of the country shielded their leader, the Turaki, from Obasanjo powered presidential arsenal.

Since he left Aso Rock as Vice President, however, PDM has suffered political misfortunes. In fact, the once powerful political association, which was formed during the regime of former military President Ibrahim Babangida and which played very important role in the election of former President Olusegun Obasanjo during the 1999 elections, has literally been in limbo since the 2011 elections, when some forces loyal to President Goodluck Jonathan allegedly caused a division among its leadership, thus creating a situation that led to its leadership supporting Jonathan against PDM’s patron, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.

It is in the light of this background that the new move to revive the association is being interpreted differently by vari-

ous interest groups. First, questions are being asked if the said PDM is indeed a new organisation or an attempt to revive the old association.

The Nation investigation shows that it is for this reason that various interest groups are currently scrutinising the ideology and political affiliations of each of the major participants, with a view to ascertaining the direction the new group will likely take.

The speculations Two directly opposed views have been presented by informed stakeholders and analysts as the likely objectives of the new PDM group. One is the speculation that the unity of the PDP may be under threat, as the group may be a new instrument to challenge Jonathan’s alleged insistence to retain PDP’s presidential ticket for 2015 elections.

The second speculation is a direct opposite of the first as it is alleged to be Jonathan’s strategy to contain the alleged challenge from northern PDP chieftains against his 2015 bid.

Reacting to the speculations, a top PDP chieftain, Tunde Odanye, who admitted that speculation is part of the game of politics, told The Nation that PDP has officially said no to caucuses within its fold. “You will recall that PDP has said no to every form of caucus within its fold. However, I believe it may be difficult to completely rule out a situation that may enable people of like minds to meet. This is the case in other democracies. It is only normal for like minds to gravitate together,” he said, adding, “But my take is that whatever would strengthen and advance the party is welcome, but if some elements want to use such forum for some selfish reasons, then, it must be seen as a problem. We do not want that.”

He, however, said he believes the people whose names are being associated with the move are responsible enough not to allow such selfish intentions.

The Atiku angle One major issue that has dominated debate over the new PDM is Alhaji Atiku Abubakar’s factor. As the patron of the political group, whose presidential ambition has remained at the front burner of PDP’s politics since he fell out with the former President Obasanjo in the early 2000’s, his widely reported absence at the revival meetings has been a source of concern and speculation. Is he for or against the new move?

Odanye, who commented on this said: “It can be related to the saying, give a dog a bad name in order to hang it. They have portrayed Alhaji Atiku Abubakar as overtly ambitious. So, if people are speculating that the new move is an instrument by the north to oppose or counter President Jonathan’s 2015 ambition, I think it is right for a wise statesman like Atiku to stay away from such meetings for now.”

It would be recalled that PDM, which emerged from a group called the Peoples Front (PF), was formed during the era of Military President Ibrahim Babangida, who experimented with the two party state of National Republican Convention and the Social Democratic Party (SDP).

Before the general elections in 1999, it fused with other prominent political groups to form the PDP. As one of the well established partners in PDP, the movement had played major roles in determining the fate of the party.

For example, it played very important role in the election of former President Olusegun Obasanjo in 1999.

It remains to be seen if it will still play such decisive roles, given the alleged differences of interests already playing out.

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Politics

2015 Oyo governorship race: Ladoja’s new game plan The race for the 2015 governorship race in Oyo State promises to be one interesting contest if the present permutations and scenarios being worked on by leading political stakeholders in the state are anything to go by, reports Remi Adelowo

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UTSIDE Oyo State, no one, except his immediate supporters, gave former Governor of Oyo State, Senator Rasheed Ladoja, the slightest chance to make any serious impact in the last governorship elections.

In the countdown to the election, Ladoja, who contested on the platform of the relatively new Accord Party, was subjected to intense pressure by influential indigenes of the state to step down for the candidate of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Abiola Ajimobi, who was eventually declared the winner of the keenly contested election.

The thinking of those asking the former governor to support Ajimobi’s candidacy, was to prevent the splitting of votes in Ibadan(the largest voting bloc in the state), a development which could give the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the then incumbent governor, Adebayo Alao-Akala, an advantage at the polls. Ladoja and the ACN candidate both hail from the ancient city, while Akala comes from Ogbomoso.

Ladoja stuck to his guns. He campaigned hard, contested the election and came third behind Ajimobi and Akala. His good showing at the polls also reflected in his party producing 10 members of the state House of Assembly, compared to ACN’s 13 and PDP’s 11.

A beautiful bride is born Elections over, Ajimobi became the new occupant of the Agodi Government House. For the speaker’s position, the three leading parties indicated interest to fill the slot. However, ACN as the ruling party needed it more.

But in order to have its way, ACN entered into an alliance with Accord to produce the speaker, while the latter got the deputy speaker’s position. The alliance was given a further fillip with the allocation of a few cabinet and local government chairmanship slots to Accord.

Ladoja’s new game plan After the 2011 general elections, Ladoja, following pressure put on him by PDP leaders at the state, zonal and federal levels, made attempts to return to the party under which platform he was elected governor in 2003.

But once the major conditions he put forth were not met, Ladoja has temporarily foreclosed his plan to return to PDP, with

reliable sources disclosing to The Nation that the former governor, barring any last minute change of mind, had resolved to stay put and build his party in preparations for the next elections in 2015.

While he has kept mum on his plans for 2015, The Nation reliably gathered that Ladoja is being urged by his supporters to back out of his alliance with ACN and contest the next governorship election in the state.

“The former governor is giving this advice a serious thought”, a close aide quipped. Ladoja’s initial plan was to throw his weight behind a younger candidate, but when he was allegedly told that Accord Party has become relatively popular due to his personal touch and personality, and that fielding another candidate may not evoke the same sentiments from the grassroots, Ladoja, it was revealed, allegedly decided to ‘wait for the right time’ before throwing his hat into the ring.

His game plan is that once he wins the next election, he would decamp to PDP where he would be handed the party structures on a platter of gold.

His drawbacks Though he has managed to sustain his political structures to the surprise of his critics, Ladoja’s candidacy, said a source, may not fly due to his frosty relationship with other major stakeholders in the pacesetter state. A source asked, “Yes, he (Ladoja) remains popular, but is that all that is required to win an election in Oyo State?

“Many of those who decide where the political pendulum in the state swings are not just comfortable with Ladoja, but the funny thing is that the man (Ladoja) knows this, yet, he is not making moves to rectify the situation.”

Ajimobi’s counter-strategy The governor, it is learnt, has continued to employ tact and diplomacy to keep his alliance with Ladoja working. With speculations rife that Ajimobi is allegedly interested in contesting for a second term in office, the governor has, however, kept his trump card close to his chest.

According to sources, the governor’s major pre-occupation is to justify his present mandate and make his alleged reelection bid almost a fait accompli. A source said, “The governor is not perturbed that none of his predecessors has served a sec-

ond term, as he believes strongly that his good performance would put him in good stead when the time comes.”

Another factor working for the governor is his dexterity in managing the egos of key political stakeholders in the state.

Before the last general elections, Ajimobi’s critics had portrayed him as allegedly arrogant, while adding that he would not listen to the counsel of elders on the running of the state.

However, the reverse has been the case, as the governor has maintained a good rapport and relationship with key opinion leaders, including politicians across political divides, religious and traditional leaders.

Akala’s next move Before the last elections, the PDP in Oyo State was embroiled in an internal crisis, which affected the fortune of the party at the polls. Members opposed to the leadership of the former governor, Adebayo Alao-Akala, had thought his exit from the seat of power would pave the way for a genuine reconciliation, but several attempts by national leaders in this regard have all come to naught.

At the root of the crisis, according to sources, is Akala’s alleged refusal to surrender his stranglehold of the party structures. This development has pitched the former governor with party elders like Senator Lekan Balogun, Elder Wole Oyelese, Jumoke Akinjide-Balogun and former Senate Leader, Teslim Folarin.

With no more patronage to dispense, the ranks of Akala’s support base in the last one year has been depleted, with some of his key supporters decamping to ACN and Accord Party. Unconfirmed speculations has it that Akala’s camp may have initiated exploratory talks with the Ladoja’s group ahead the 2015 elections.

A source disclosed, “rather than lose it all, Akala prefer to work with his former boss (Ladoja) than the likes of Folarin or Lekan Balogun.”

Teslim Folarin/Jumoke Akinjide Another faction fighting for relevance in the Oyo PDP is controlled by Senator Teslim Folarin, who is also alleged to be scheming for the governorship seat. He has an ally in the former Minister of State for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Jumoke Akinjide-Balogun.

Political

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RIOR to last year’s general elections when she contested for the Kogi State governorship seat, Aisha Audu-Emeje, estranged wife of

•Folarin

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The return of Aisha Audu-Emeje

•Emeje

•Ladoja

More endorsements for Lamido

ripples Alhaji Abubakar Audu, the former Governor of Kogi State, had paid more attention to her businesses instead of politics.

But in her pursuit to offer herself for public service, Emeje contested for the Kogi governorship on the platform of the Justice Party. Though she lost the election, she gave a good account for herself.

This, perhaps, explains why his fellow contestant and winner of the election, Governor Idris Wada, appointed Emeje as his Special Adviser on International Relations/ Investment, a decision that was applauded by many politicians in the North Central state, particularly the womenfolk.

•Ajimobi

•Lamido

T appears the speculated 2015 presidential ambition of the Jigawa State Governor, Alhaji Sule Lamido, looks actually real than it appears on the surface. With the alleged endorsement of Lamido by former President Olusegun Obasanjo and ex-military president, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida (retd) about three weeks ago, other individuals are also beginning to endorse the alleged ‘Lamido 2015 project’. The latest support is coming from Northern Peoples

Can Gbenga Aluko win Ekiti PDP governorship ticket?

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IS public declaration some days ago to contest the next governorship election in Ekiti State was not, in the least, unexpected.

Long before then, speculations were rife that Senator Gbenga Aluko was poised to challenge the incumbent governor of the state, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, in the next election slated for 2014.

However, the ques-

tion many PDP members in the state are asking presently is whether Aluko, son of late Professor Sam Aluko, who had taken a sabbatical from politics since 2003, has all it takes to clinch the PDP ticket, more so when the structures of the party in the state is allegedly controlled by former Governor Ayo Fayose, who is also alleged to be interested in staging a comeback to the Government House.

Democratic Party (PDP) members in the South-West. At a meeting held recently, the caucus urged Lamido to contest the next presidential election, while also assuring the governor they would mobilize for him. The communiqué issued by the caucus was signed by Alhaji Abdullahi Abdulmalik from Ondo State; Alhaji Dahiru Danlimani, a former Special Adviser on Mineral Resources in Oyo State; Alhaji Yusuf Abdullahi, who represented Ekiti State, to mention but a few.

Petition against Babangida: Matters Arising

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HO instigated the petition recently raised by a group, which calls itself ‘Concerned Citizens of Niger State’ against the state governor, Muazu Aliyu Babangida?

This is the poser many indigenes and politicians in the North Central state are trying to unravel. In the petition, the group had accused the governor of alleged financial misconduct, while also calling for his removal via impeachment.

In the opinion of many

•Babangida people, the group may be acting a script of some powerful stakeholders in the state who believe that the outspoken governor is becoming too powerful and uncontrollable for their liking.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

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OME sections of the Nigerian public in recent times have shown intense interest in the structure and personnel composition of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and on-going effort by the Commission to shape up for optimum discharge of its mandate. This interest is not exactly isolated. It drapes against the backdrop of a notion that the Commission’s manpower have a way of influencing its core task of conducting elections and, thereby, distort the popular will of the electorate. The notion was not helped by the huge credibility deficit of the 2007 general election; even though the outcomes of the 2011 General Election and other elections conducted by the present leadership of the Commission since then have effectively proved that notion wrong.

The media were awash with sometimes weird tales of goings-on within the Commission.

There were reports of imminent shake-ups and redeployments in INEC that were at variance with what the Commission was really up to. Some of the reports were downright farcical. A reputable newspaper, for instance, reported that The Presidency had directed the Commission to reshape – a directive that would be curious, if true, since INEC is an independent body whose composition and operations are defined and guided by specific provisions of the Federal Constitution and the Electoral Act. Another newspaper foretold mass retrenchment of top-level staff of the Commission, while yet another hazarded the names of persons to be affected. Only that the persons named are actually non-existent in the Commission! Online platforms equally worked up the rumour mill.

Perhaps the most bizarre was a newspaper advertorial by a faceless group called ‘Election Integrity Network’ alleging regional domination of INEC. The advertorial, which has been issued by the group twice in selected newspapers, drew strength from a report in the July 02, 2012 edition of TheNEWS magazine which had alleged sundry tendencies in INEC – the most acute, according to the magazine, of which is a purported design by the present leadership to foist Northern domination on the Commission.

The difference in the morality of TheNEWS report and the said advertorial is that while the magazine barely managed to reflect a defence to its story by the Commission, the authors of the advertorial made no allowance for such basic nicety. This ethnic campaign, perhaps, further fuelled the intensity of public (or is it just media?) interest in the on-going restructuring of the Commission.

True, INEC is restructuring; but not because of any regional domination or fundamental defect in the morality of the Commission’s personnel as presently composed. Its Chairman, Professor Attahiru Jega, made this clear in a recent interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) when he said: “Our vision in INEC is to be the best election management body in Africa, and we want to achieve this if possible by 2015. That is a very ambitious vision given a history of failed elections in this country. So, in order to actualize that vision, we have to bring in substantial reforms in terms of making INEC more efficient and more effective in the delivery of services, which are associated with elections. Obviously, we have to do a lot reorganisation

Politics

Why INEC restructures

•Jega and restructuring. We have to do what we call ‘placing square pegs in square holes’ in order to ensure that we have well-trained professional people who can efficiently and effectively deliver on the electoral process. We have started this; we are doing a lot of this already. We’ve started a process of reorganisation and restructuring.”

The Chairman particularly dispelled fears of wild-cat job displacements, saying: “The problem is that in Nigeria, anytime you talk about reorganisation and restructuring, people think you are talking of retrenchment. But it need not be so. It is not necessarily so, and in INEC our restructuring and reorganisation is not synonymous with retrenchment.

We are doing everything possible to bring efficiency and effectiveness, and it can be done without the kind of massive retrenchment that people fear and expect. We are doing our best, and we also need to motivate people. So, a lot of the reforms we are trying to bring in have to do with what levels of motivation and adjustments in the condition of service we can bring about in order to have a contented workforce that can keep on giving their best and making enormous sacrifices both for INEC and for our country. We have planned to do quite a lot in terms of restructuring and reorganisation. We employed some of the best management consulting firms that have given us proposals, and at the level of the Commission we have studied this and we have begun the process of implementation.”

Factually speaking, there is no ethnic or regional domination of any kind in INEC. The ethnic campaigners argued, for instance, that both the present Chairman and Secretary of the Commission hail from the same geo-political zone, and they hold that against the Chairman. But they miss the point that Professor Jega was appointed in 2010

by Mr. President, with the endorsement of the National Council of State and the clearance of the Senate, at a time when a Secretary tenured from the previous dispensation in the Commission had been in office. That tenure needs to run its course, otherwise there will be needless complications in service rules and dislocation of internal cohesion within the Commission.

It is also alleged that there is regional disproportion in the

chairmanship of INEC committees by the National Commissioners. That, simply, betrays grievous ignorance of legal provisions setting up the Commission and governing its operations. Section 14 (1) (a) of Part 1 (F) of the Third Schedule of the 1999 Federal Constitution (as amended) provides that The Commission shall comprise the following members: (a) a Chairman, who shall be the Chief Electoral Commissioner; and (b) twelve other members to be known as National Electoral Commissioners. In practice, the 12 National Commissioners are appointed by Mr. President on geo-political basis: two from each of the six geo-political zones making up the country. Also, Section 7 of the Electoral Act 2010 (as gazetted) provides that “the Commission may appoint one or more committees to carry out any of its functions under this Act.” The Commission for operational convenience, therefore, created committees; and the Chairman as well as all the National Commissioners head one committee or the other based on personal expertise, previous experience and ultimate responsibility. Incidentally, there is no committee more important or strategic than the other in INEC’s operations; all the committees as created contribute vitally to the core mandate of the Commission and are equally important. In effect, arguing that certain committees are strategic and are chaired by National Commissioners from a particular region, as the campaigners did, simply bears no correlation to the reality of INEC’s experience.

Strictly speaking, policymaking in INEC is the constitutional responsibility of the Commission as comprised by the Chairman and 12 National Commissioners. But the ethnic campaigners seem to presume this function applies at the directorate level, hence they have made capital of alleged domination of the headship of INEC’s departments and directorates by the North. Yet their motive shows forth to be less than altruistic, because they cited 18 departmental heads as illustrative of their claim in an organisation that has 29 directorates, departments and units. Official statistics of the headship of these departments, directorates and units show the distribution on state basis as follows: Benue (6), Anambra (4), Imo (3), Abia (3), Niger (2), Sokoto (1), Kebbi (1), Plateau (1),

Delta (1), Enugu (1), Bayelsa (1), Ekiti (1), Kogi (1), Yobe (1) Taraba (1) and Adamawa (1).

Now, if the current Chairman were nepotistic as the campaigners suggest, would there be only one head of department from his home state of Kebbi while there are six from Benue, four from Anambra and three from Imo and Abia states? And please note: All these directors came to office under the previous dispensation except for two who replaced duly retired predecessors, and one other brought in to a department where the leadership felt compelled to make a change ahead of the 2011 General Election.

In any event, heads of departments aren’t the only staff on directorate level in INEC. There are indeed 67 directors in the Commission, and the distribution on the basis of state of origin is as follows: Benue (9), Anambra (9), Imo (4), Delta (3), Cross River (3), Plateau (3), Akwa Ibom (3), Abia (3), Kebbi (3), Edo (3), Niger (2), Kaduna (2), Zamfara (2), Bayelsa (2), Lagos (2), Bauchi (2), Borno (2), Sokoto (1), Enugu (1), Kano (1), Kogi (1), Katsina (1), Osun (1), Gombe (1), Ogun (1), Jigawa (1) and Yobe (1). Talking about ‘strategic’ departments if there was one, none could be more so in INEC’s work than the ICT and Operations departments, and both presently are headed by SouthEasterners. So, what’s the argument, please?

But the issue really is that this present leadership of INEC has not had the time or seen the need to arbitrarily realign the manpower structure simply to gratify ethnic interests. It is no secret that the present Commission came on board in June 2010 – barely six months to when it was expected to conduct the 2011 General Election if there had been no adjustment in the legal framework which allowed it some breathing space till April.

Even at that, the Commission had to undertake a nationwide voter registration in January 2010, preparatory to the General Election, which was as massive and complex an operation as the election. Obviously, that wasn’t the time to indulge ethnic gratification at the cost of manpower experience and expertise needed for those complex operations.

Besides there are extant regulations, like the Civil Service Rules, which prescribe procedures and timelines for attaining and holding senior positions in the Public Service. It isn’t as if the present leadership of INEC is at liberty to throw out some senior staff and throw in others at will, in disregard of these extant regulations, without risking severe dislocations in the Commission that could incapacitate it from effectively discharging its mandate.

It is no doubt important that a nationally strategic organisation like INEC must be sensitive to the Federal Character factor. But if it must attain unto the vision of the present leadership and satisfy the yearnings of most Nigerians, merit, experience and expertise, not petty ethnic considerations, must be the primary criteria for attaining and holding key offices in the Commission. That is where the on-going restructuring is headed. And that is why the ethnic campaign is needlessly distracting.

Kayode Idowu Chief Press Secretary to INEC Chairman

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Political Politics turf

with Bolade Omonijo boladeomonijo@yahoo.com

Letter to my President

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Y dear President, I found myself compelled to address you publicly through this medium because of what I perceive to be your intention to press the panic button. When I read the intervention of the otherwise polished Dr. Reuben Abati, your adviser on media affairs and general communications, it became obvious that a lot has been happening in the inner sanctum of power that may soon push the President into taking actions that are neither good for him nor the country.

Soon after, you were at the 52nd Annual Conference of the Nigerian Bar Association and used the medium to suggest that the direct and indirect criticisms by your compatriots were getting at you. It is sad that, rather than analyse the criticisms and treat them as feedback from the populace, you said something to the effect that you could not be bothered. To any student of communication, that was just a sign of weakness. The fact that you chose that medium to make the pronouncement indicated that you had had your fill of criticisms and just fell short of declaring that enough was enough. What turn you might take on the matter takes us back to the Abati tirade.

Mr. President, I really want to ask, who is really the charlatan- the parasites and leeches who have fed and are feeding fat on the society, the cheerleaders who have always applauded every move of the government even when the nation is being pushed to the precipice or the ardent critic who warns about the rock ahead of the ship of state? Who is the parasite and who is the patriot?

Two issues worry me about your public communication policy. One, the choice of Dr. Doyin Okupe as publicist. Anyone who followed the career of Okupe as presidential mouthpiece for ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo would have realized how wrong headed the choice was. As if to confirm the suspicion that you had got it wrong again, he had hardly settled into office when it came to light that something might have gone wrong with his handling of contracts in states, with the example of a Benue contract sticking out.

Yet, it’s been mum from the presidential palace. Is it that nothing could ever shock you on corruption? Is it an indication that all the noise on war against corruption is a ruse?

Speak up, please, Mr. President.

I am also bothered about the way the speculation on the health of the First Lady of Nigeria (FDN), Her Excellency Dame Patience Jonathan, a distinguished Permanent Secretary, has been handled. The issue seems so simple and yet it is been handled as very complex. What is wrong with a human being, any, taking ill?

What is wrong with coming clean on the matter? Even a Permanent Secretary has no absolute and permanent immunity from affliction by ailments and diseases. It is not covered by section 308 of the Constitution.

It is surprising that people in high places have failed to draw lessons from recent Nige-

rian history. Does anyone still remember that, only recently, a former President took ill while in office? Does anyone realise that the lives of kings and paupers are in the hands of the Almighty? Does anyone realise the fallouts from the mishandling of the power play that attended the ailment, treatment, death and burial of the late President Umaru Yar’Adua?

It is not surprising that the public place has been filled with speculations on the state of the First lady’s health, her whereabouts, the nature of the supposed ailment and what is happening in the President’s privacy as a result of the development. Mr. President, there is nothing as constant and therapeutic as the truth. Let your media handlers tell the whole truth. In other climes, there would be regular briefing on the situation in the German hospital. It is so absurd that we even hear that aides who went with her have been forbidden from speaking with their relations for as long as they are on the national duty. It is time to come out clean, not a time to make mountain of an ordinary molehill.

My dear President, I am also worried about what is about to be made of the constitution amendment process. It should ordinarily be gratifying that you have set a deadline for collating views and passing the amendment. But, I am not impressed by the way things are going. Neither from the side of the legislators nor the President is it emerging that a thorough job would have been done by June next year when the exercise is expected to have been concluded. What matters mst to me is electoral reform. Just when would we begin to know the will of the people? So far, what we have are approximations. After each poll, the best we hear is: Yes, there were infractions, but they could not have affected the direction of the poll.

The Supreme Court affirned this laughable and pedestrian thinking when it ruled on the Buhari versus Yar’Adua case in 2009. The divided Bench came up with a verdict that the electoral commission perverted the procedure, but a thin majority ruled that the petitioners failed to prove how that affected the final outcome. Funny, isn’t it?

This remains the situation.

The law is really an ass and would remain so until the President’s influence is whittled down. Why should anyone have confidence in a process that allows a man, a politician, to pick men to handle the polls?

The President has a blank cheque to write election results by picking the INEC chairman, the national commissioners and the Resident Electoral Commissioners. They owe their re-election ad infinitum to him and he is hardly guided by any principle in doing this. As we have seen recently, he could appoint a partisan politician.

Next week, we shall continue this journey.

Bolade Omonijo Group Political Editor 08023145305

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Politics

Nigerian states are viable, but lazy -Chris Ngige Senator Chris Ngige, a former governor of Anambra State, who now represents Anambra Central Senatorial Zone at the National Assembly, in this interview with Nwanosike Onu and few other journalists in Onitsha, spoke on Anambra State's 2014 governorship election, President Goodluck Jonathan's recent visit to the state and other issues. Excerpts:

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ECENTLY, President Goodluck Jonathan visited Anambra State to commission some projects, including the Orient Petroleum Resources Company. What are the gains for the state?

Yes, we have a lot to gain from Mr. President's visit to our state. We are also happy about the success story of Orient Petroleum Resources. That project was discovered earlier by the former governor, Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife, who started the push for the exploitation of the oil and gas reserve in Anambra State. By that time, I was the president of a PAN Igbo organisation, known as AkaIkenga in Lagos. We, as a body liaised with Ezeife and the then Minister, Professor Chu Okongwu on the prospects of having a refinery in Anambra State. But the regime of Ezeife was short-lived. Then, former governor Dr. Chinwoke Mbadinuju came into office and continued. He was able to secure license for the project and set up Board of Directors. He also gave Orient Petroleum an office complex as its operational base.

When I came into office as governor, we organised an investors' forum for Orient Petroleum and worked with the Board of Directors that was put up as at then.

Like you know, government is a continuum and my administration acquired the land where Orient Petroleum is currently operating and also gave them the Certificate of Occupancy. We at the National Assembly shall push it further for Anambra State to have its share as an oil producing state and this is determinant on the quantum of the number of barrels that we produce.

So, the dream of Orient Petroleum on that day materialised and I must not fail to commend the incumbent governor, Mr. Peter Obi, for his contributions as a government to the success of Orient Petroleum. Anambra State is sitting on a large deposit of hydro carbon; we use to have a gas leakage in Ugwuagba and parts of Idemili area. So, we are going to move a step forward through gas committees in the Senate, Federal House of Representatives and Anambra gas must be tapped fully.

And during the stake Holders town hall meeting in onitsha, issues were raised about the second Niger Bridge?

We the South-East senators have made representations before the Federal Government about the second Niger Bridge.

We have also told the Secretary to the Government of the Federation that if this bridge doesn't work in the next two years, our people will not forgive them.

Already, we have approved the 2020 plan which they brought to us in that regard but my worry is that they are constructing the bridge on Public Private Partnership (PPP) which means that there will be toll gates where our people will be compelled to pay.

So, if you are going to Asaba you pay toll.

The President also commissioned the Onitsha River Port,

•Ngige how happy are you with that?

Giving the availability of road infrastructure, can it cope when the goods are discharged there? The answer is no! The answer is a big no, except for the fact that the Onitsha-Owerri road is almost completed. But you know that the road has taken almost eight years to complete.

Let us look at the National Assembly and the probe panels, especially power?

The probe panels are okay.

They are good. We are not members of the executive. The panels put people stand on their toes.

They make them sit up. And it is like an X-ray. And if you remember, it is not only probe that we do.

We also carry out what is called public hearing on any matter that has cloudiness that we are not clear on, or a matter that we want to legislate on. There has been a lot of hearsay in Nigeria, a lot of rumor-mongering, that give us the opportunity to clear the air. So in a probe panel too, it is the same thing, so he, who has done no wrong, has nothing to fear. There was a probe panel on power led by Hon. Ndudi Elumelu and later on Senator Ubani. So, as it were, they synchronise. That was the sixth senate and we looked at that report and a lot of things in that report are factual and good.

How would you react to the resignation of Professor Bath Nnaji, the former Minister for power?

You know that in that town hall meeting with Mr. President at Onitsha, before it was raised, I

told Mr. President that this question will be raised. I told him that the crux of Ndigbo are here and they would talk about Nnaji their brother, because already they have started feeling that the man was victimized. And you heard what he said. He said that Barth Nnaji did not commit any offence. That is the cardinal thing.

He committed no offence.

He quit the job based on his background. He had been in America and Europe and he had been sitting in America as a Professor of Robotics and Industrial Engineering and he said he wanted to do what is done in civilized countries. I have a company. I resigned from that company as Chairman/MD. I am now minister, but this company, because I put my interest there in a blind trust, this company had gone to align with another company without telling me and this other company that they aligned with bidded for arts and power distribution and for Enugu distribution company.

So, it is a clash of interest.

I have to step aside while the analysis and every thing go on and that is honourable. That is what is being done in civilized clans. We Nigerians don't do it.

Many Nigerians don't do it, many Nigerians even when their family company is doing business with whatever name, they are still telling you that it is okay.

I know that Professor Barth Nnaji's resignation would be a major set back in our power reforms. But in any case, he has laid very solid foundation.

Now that he has resigned how do you see power supply in Nigeria?

That is what I am saying. He has laid foundations; it is only for the next successor to be a knowledgeable person. He must have managerial acumen. On how to manage men and materials that is all, and he will then build up on that. All of you can attest that your power supply has improved and I can assure you that by 2012 December, a lot of generating stations will put in more mega wax into the grids. A lot of rehabilitation works being done in transporting them are carried out. This is because a lot of grids are old and decayed.

The senate has embarked on constitution review, how far has it gone?

So far it has been full of progress. We are in the review to define the political structure. We have six geo-political zones in Ni-

“I know that Professor Barth Nnaji's resignation would be a major set back in our power reforms. But in any case, he has laid very solid foundation�

geria but it is not enshrined in our constitution. It is not there.

So, there is the need to define it, or we say let us have regions instead of geo-political zones. Even in the area of state creation, apart from Rivers, Akwa-Ibom, Delta and Lagos States, some people say that the rest of the states are not viable. Others say we need more whether they are viable or not. Even those that are viable are being assisted by the oil companies. If you remove money from the federation accounts, how many states can stand on their own? How many of them can do business.

Also at the review, some said let us have regions due to the non viability of the component states.

But my take on this is that every state in Nigeria is viable only that they are lazy. Is it Anambra or Enugu that has coal? Ebonyi State has lead, zinc, salt and rice. We have Abakaliki and Omor rice.

In Anambra State, we are still on the area of state creation, we in the south -east zone are saying, no matter what is being said, there is a zone that has been badly treated and that is the South-East. So far, there must be equity. A state must come from south-east if other zones say there should be parity and evenness in the number of states of each geo-political zones then our zone should have two more states comparatively. We shall go to the presidency for an executive bill for the creation of states.

Anambra North is calling for the next governor to come from their zone, do you agree?

I have heard it and I have read

in the papers that the incumbent Governor Peter Obi is also canvassing the same view and in response, the Obi of Onitsha told the governor that he would allow the governor to have a hand on his successor. This is undemocratic. We are not discussing Ichieship or Kingship hereditary, when you say it is your person, if he does not win, there will be trouble. If he wins they say he rigged and he was anointed by his godfather or godfathers. I am a politician and I know what that means. Anambra people should be free to choose who ever they want. The second plane of my fears is that this particular pronouncement has caused trouble in APGA. They now have big crack and figure other states in the south-east. I am a progressive and I am also radical. I like radicalism, I am not a member of APGA but we know how APGA was formed. I was as at then, an executive member of the PDP in the South East zone, and we know our contributions to the formation of APGA. The party was formed as an alternative due to what the then president, Obasanjo was doing. We used to attend the conclave at Chris Okoye's house in Enugu. The records are there, you can ask Victor Umeh. APGA had today been cracked due to the position of the governor. But I have three questions for the North. I had asked this question during the 2010 governorship election in Omabala forum. Has there been any election till now that Anambra North said okay we give you the chance to contest, we will not contest so that after you, it becomes our turn?

In 1999, it was Chief Frank Oramulu from Anambra North.

ABC Nwosu from south but Mbadinuju snatched it, if not he would have won.

All the zones made gargantuan and titanic efforts at the primaries and even at the election proper. Same was the case in 2007.

Senator Emma Anosike from the North contested in the primaries and later became running mate to Professor Charles Soludo.

Politics should be devoid of deceit and as soon as we stop it the better. Number two question: Have politicians in Anambra state ever sat to rotate it? And the answer was defining silence, a big no.

But Ndigbo is facing the same fate at the National level?

Yes and that is why we are carrying out constitutional review, so that we agree on the rotation and enshrine it in our constitution; that is what should be done in Anambra State.

But we expect you politicians and stakeholders to do that in Anambra state.

Yes, we are ready to do that but who would call for that conference? Who should call for that meeting? It is still the governor that should call for that meeting instead of making such pronouncement like he did recently.

That is why we want to sit down and agree on rotation and it becomes sacrosanct in the state. The governor is not doing this with good intentions. Peter Obi should call a conference.

23

INSIGHT THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

14 years on, PDP under scrutiny

•President Jonathan, former President Obasnajo and others at a convention.

F

OR the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which is currently marking its 14 years of existence as a political party in Nigeria (August 31, 1998-August 31, 2012), this should be a period of general encomium. This is even so as the party has been controlling the federal government of Nigeria 13, out of the 14 years of its existence.

But instead of praises, common Nigerians, who have been enduring severe hardship and the opposition, have been lashing out on the alleged poor performance of the PDPcontrolled federal government since 1999.

“Its 13 years of calamity,” said an online commentator, Godwin Ekeoma, who also described the democracy since 1999 as a fantasy and deceit.

Such extreme resentment notwithstanding, the party leadership feels it needed to express some of its achievements over the years, pleading with Nigerians to be patient and await better days.

Addressing a news conference in Abuja last weekend, the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Chief Olisa Metuh acknowledged the high expectations of Nigerians and their disappointments, when he said: “The PDP is not unmindful of such

As the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) marks its 14 years of existence, its achievements and failures are subjects of intense debate, reports Sam Egburonu expectations. We all recall that exactly today in 1998, the heroic efforts of eminent Nigerians from all walks of life to form a credible, nationwide, issue and people-based political party were crowned with the official inauguration of our great party at the International Conference Centre, Abuja.

“The vision of the founding fathers of our party, the critical elements of its manifesto, which centred on re-building Nigeria into a pride in the comity of nations; its untrammeled credibility as

a truly national political party that has been providing a platform for all Nigerians to realise their political aspirations irrespective of religious, ethnic or cultural affiliation differentiate it from its contemporaries.

“This unique character of our party has been the major reason for its preference by Nigerians who have continued to renew our mandate as seen in 1999, 2003, 2007 and in 2011.”

Defending the alleged shortcomings, PDP said, “Seven of its 13 years in office

“But instead of praises, common Nigerians, who have been enduring severe hardship and the opposition, have been lashing out on the alleged poor performance of the PDPcontrolled federal government since 1999.”

were characterised by global economic meltdown, which almost collapsed the economies of advanced countries.”

That argument did, not however, convince some informed Nigerians.

Dr. Jona Aremu, a top economist who consults for several international organisations, for example, told The Nation in a telephone interview that the argument that seven years of the 13 years were characterised by global economic meltdown was not tenable.

“That argument is not tenable at all because Nigeria’s economy is not so much integrated with the world economy to be so affected,” he said, adding, global economic meltdown actually affected some economies but the effect will depend on the country’s economic indices.

Assessing PDP’s performance in the last 13 years, Aremu said, “It may be difficult to make comparative analysis since we have not had any other party ruling the country for such number of years. But the objective thing to do today could be to compare the performance of PDP-controlled states with that of the states controlled by other political parties. If you do so, you will see that the party has not done well enough. As I speak with you, I am in Akwa Ibom State and here I can see •Continued on Page 26

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

THE SUNDAY INTERVIEW

‘Corruption has derailed our development’ W

HAT have been your greatest fears and challenges in the last one year when you came to office?

By principle, I don’t usually feel it is time yet for celebration. In our traditional way where people usually mark 100 days in office, I told myself that when you have a whole stretch of five years to be in office, the first year, yes, you may have done a few things. To me, however, I decided it was not yet time for celebration. That is the first thing.

Secondly, I have it as a caveat. The first one year has been very challenging. In any case, I had no illusion that it will be a tea party. All my life, I have been here and so I know the environment very well. I left here in 1976 after my first degree to go study abroad. Apart from the few years for my Master’s and Doctorate and some other years for my sabbatical I have been an Ife person in and out.

So, I think I know the topography and the challenges – the academic challenges, the political challenges. I know also, what are those things the people here need and look forward to? My first challenge is to maintain the status quo of this institution as a 21st century university. These and more were the things that galvanised me into action in the last one year that I’ve been here.

Specifically, when I was running for this office-17 of us contested.

Ten were from inside, others were from outside with one or two from The Gambia and so on. I was quite sure that we have got to a stage where a name arrangement, as it were, should be given to research and other activities for the universities. This was one thing that also drove me on in the last one year.

And when you ask any member of the academic staff, he will tell you we are in a period of academic renaissance, basically.

We are now challenged to do more and so we now benchmark each head of department to do more. Gone are the days when you were a HOD and you were too relaxed. We have parameters now with which we put them on their toes.

Academic activities now are more heated. Lecturers have opportunities now to travel round for conferences, seminars, workshops etc. We now receive money for research. But more importantly we organise ourselves into groups who have been giving themselves to researches. But we are not doing research for the sake of research. We do not have enough facilities, but the few we have we try to utilise them very well.

Apart from these, we have come to adopt new work ethics.

This is so because I personally believe that what a leader does

goes a long way to influence what others do. Consequently we have given all we could to ensure that workers are serious and committed. And once you enter the campus you will certainly notice that.

So, what I have done is to ensure that we are the best in IT and you can see that working well in all areas here. We are the one with the largest website and mega bite on any campus around. More importantly, before now, it took a long time for students to get their results after graduation. Now students can be anywhere in the world and check both their semester or graduation results. And information is being uploaded virtually on hourly basis and then you get to know how the campus functions. We have not neglected the issue of physical development. We are alive in that area. As I am speaking to you now, we have twelve physical projects going on here in our campus.

Within this one year, Can you imagine although, I said it is not yet time to celebrate, we have been up SSANU and and doing. We are on the right NASU coming track to make the university retain its leading role in the into the university society. We have had some secretariat in challenges, given the little present-day resources we have so far but we Nigeria with are on the march.

Yes, both NASU and SSANU masquerades and have been giving you headache, as it were, since you came into charms? They office. Have you been able to look came with fetish deep into the root of their objects and so on, grievances?

Now, let me say this, the chanting and strike was on for six weeks; six weeks of unnecessary rancour. singing to make They did not start the problem me cave in. They now. It had been there before I assumed office. This is what I were cursing and need to make clear here and dancing, wasting now. They said the problem was not caused by Omole. They are time. talking about 2001 agreement they entered into with the previous administration. This is called parity. This is an issue of three years.

Now, let me identify three major items here. There is the 2001agreement called parity. There is one you call Conties, i.e. total salary increase. Then there is what you call double deductions. The issue of parity, for God’s sake, there is no ViceChancellor that will pay parity. That is not even approved by government and how do you now agree to pay that? And secondly, the issue here is a well-thought issue. Remember in the 1990s, a lot of brain-drain took place. A number of people abandoned the ivory tower and government felt concerned at a stage. ASUU was on strike for seven months.

Then government met with ASUU and entered into an agreement. Those who went into academics would be a stage

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A little over a year ago, Bamitale Omole, a Professor of International Relations, became Vice-Chancellor of Obafemi Awolowo University, (OAU) Ile-Ife, Osun State. In this interview with Edozie Udeze, he addresses the state of education as well as other issues of the moment.

ahead of those not in academics. This was to attract more people into the academics. Since 2001 all the universities have been paying until the issue came up here. The man whose union has been dissolved now is the man behind all the problems. Even before we came on board, no union had been suspended here on campus. It is a glorious moment for this campus.

I am a government appointee and can only operate on circulars. And every time we give them circular on parity they’d say it is fake. They will talk of 15 percent salary increase and say that the one we have is equally fake. It was unfortunate; it was six weeks of total waste and we are now where we are now.

Can you imagine SSANU and NASU coming into the university secretariat in present-day Nigeria with masquerades and charms? They came with fetish objects and so on, chanting and singing to make me cave in. They were cursing and dancing, wasting time. But thank God reason has prevailed and we are now back to normal. We thank SSANU national for showing true leadership.

Let us look at the standard of education in Nigeria. Over the years, no Nigerian university has been within the one hundred best in the world. What is responsible for this?

Now, let me say this, it is one jig-saw puzzle that we are where we are presently. How do you say the standard is falling and then we say we want to compare with others? I am one person that has refused to make a blanket judgement on this matter. Let me give you an example. When I was in the primary school, there was Arithmetic and then in secondary I did Mathematics. The Mathematics I did in secondary school is what they now teach them in primary school. Is that falling or rising in standard?

When I was there I did not know how to use computer. They use computers now in primary schools. Is that falling standard?

The kind of complex Mathematics they do now, I did not do it.

By the time you are now in class four, for instance, you know too much. Now, they teach them about rocket and space and sciences in primary schools. Is that not good enough? So where is the falling standard in education?

We have seen all of this. I read History before I read International Relations. What I have discovered is that standard has fallen more in the English Language. Yes, in that context, the standard is quite low. It has fallen and we now produce graduates who cannot even write proper application letters.

They can hardly write or speak good English. Although, not all of them do; we have to be careful in this regard. Some still speak and write well, no doubt.

I have students that I am teaching that can compete with their counterparts anywhere in the world. You even have graduates of English who cannot write simple letter of employment. So you can see it is a Pandora box. Generally, what people fail to understand is that when a nation’s ethos is destroyed, it affects all fabrics of life. Nigeria is on the threshold of that and that is what has given rise to all the rubbish we have now in our systems.

In your days it was wrong to cheat. You don’t even try it.

Today, cheating in all facets form part of our daily existence. So, when the fabric of a society is destroyed, when you do not have people that can show example, the whole place will collapse.

By and large, that’s where we are. See, a politician collected a

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

THE SUNDAY INTERVIEW

25

• Omole

bribe of $3 million and he said it is not bribe. He just collected the money. These are the people the younger ones look up to.

So, a boy in primary school, if care is not taken, will now say that that is how to make money. These are the issues, as it were, that have adversely affected our educational system and our journey to greatness.

Now let me address the issue of why we do not enter the one hundred best as you said. Now do you know what percentage of our GDP that is allocated to education every year?

Now compare that with Ghana or Botswana or South Africa.

What is the UNESCO average for education every year? Is it not 25 per cent of the annual budget? Now we get only between 5 and 6 per cent yearly. The highest we have in the history of Nigeria was 7per cent. How do we grow like that? What of the man in Malaysia who came and said they have to invest fully in education? A greater quantum of the budget was pumped into education and now see where Malaysia is today.

Malaysia gives about 50per cent to education and development. Why won’t the country grow in leaps and bounds? The government cares but the opposite is the case here. There is no continuity in terms of policies and social developments. One government will come with a laudable idea and policy and when he leaves office, the next will come and dismantle it. That is not how to grow. We are inconsistent and most of our leaders are confused and insincere.

When a country is run without a frame-work that is what you get. And that has affected us in the universities too. We cannot therefore be among the one hundred best when have no clear-cut policy towards who we are and what we do. When government has no political will and people in government are constantly changed, there will be no consistency and continuity.

I know in recent times the amount of money given to the universities have increased, but it would have been better if they were consolidated first instead of building more new universities. Today we have 124 universities in the country where there are obsolete equipments. There is a school of opinion that says it is not even enough. Fine. But the question is: as long as the government is not making education a priority, we cannot go far. But then it depends on who is making the ranking. The one from Spain always puts us first. The UK one has consistently been putting us as four. The current one puts Auchi Poly as number one in Nigeria. So it varies.

Beyond all these, all we are saying is that we need to be serious to make education work. All hands have to be on deck for that to work.

Now, let us look at NUGA. In a few weeks from now, OAU

will be hosting the game. What is the level of preparation?

We are preparing. NUGA will not come until December this year. You know it is part of the delays we have spoken about here. We did not start early and it will be difficult for us to finish on time. And that is where we are. But the contracts have been awarded. The major project that any university that bids for NUGA must have in place is an Olympics size swimming pool. We have awarded that and this is in When a country is progress.

If you go there now, you’ll run without a framesee work in progress. I go there work that is what night and day to see what is going on.

I go there you get. And that unannounced to see them at has affected us in the work. The second problem we have is with the National universities too. We Sports Commission. You cannot therefore be know they do not have two among the one sporting events within the same period. But we believe hundred best when that the December date will not we have no clear-cut be changed. I can tell you that by the time you come back here policy towards who in the next one month or so, we are and what we you will certainly know that do. When OAU is ready for NUGA. Corruption has eaten deep government has no into the national psycheof this political will and nation. What is your take on people in this?

When you look at the government are UNDP index, Nigeria has been characterised among the constantly changed, first eight most corrupt nations there will be no in the world. That is as bad as it has become. It is really consistency and unfortunate and it was not like continuity. this before.

Corruption underscores what I say here earlier. When the nation has no transparency in whatever level, it is doomed.

When a man picks money that does not belong to him that is not when it started. Look back at how he or she was trained. Look, this is one country where I know people make

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•Continued from Page 24

free money – money without regulation. Our system of taxation is lax and porous. There are laws which are hardly enforced. The law is not for the big man. And so consequently they behave as they like. See the subsidy probe. Can it happen in a developed society? Was your name or mine mentioned?

It is the same big men who are there and it will just end that way.

Until we decide to kill the cankerworm of corruption in this country, we cannot develop and move forward. But let me tell you what we can do easily. If we amend the constitution and make it a more serious document, then we can go places. As long as we are operating a federalised state, where every Dick comes to the centre, then they will continue to see the centre as the honey pot. The moment we practise true federalism, political federalism, make the centre weak, loose, then we will go places. When we grew up in this nation, for God’s sake it was not like this.

I was born in the early 1950s. Then when someone was working at the federal, people saw him as a foreigner to his people. The regions had more power, more resources and so on. We need to do that now; to make the states more cohesive in order to reduce the allure held by the centre which encourages corruption.

Now when the oil money is put at the centre, you ask people to come and do allocation every month, they will never appreciate what it is to work and sweat. That is what has caused us huge level of corruption. Even Boko Haram people fight because they see there is a huge pool of money in federal coffers. That if you have access to it you cannot go hungry.

So, decentralise the centre, make the states develop according to their capacity. Should a man in Sokoto for instance and the one in Lagos be earning the same salary?

You know to run your home in Lagos is more expensive. Or do you compare that with a man living in my village, OyeEkiti? These are issues we have to resolve in order to make the society good for us all.

Consequently, I believe it is time for us to do more. The president is trying, for this is a complex nation. But he has to really look at all these issues to redress the imbalance. The country can overwhelm a man. Let us have a system that hinges on merit and hard work. It is what you deserve you get and so on. Then we will make concerted progress. If government continues to rigmarole on constitutional amendment, the people will continue to be the worst for it.

Let us discourage the youths from looking at oil money and let government provide jobs in all rural areas. Let us discourage rural-urban migration and the propensity to make quick money.

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

INSIGHT

A

S soon as the Peoples Democratic Party was inaugurated on August 31, 1998, it immediately attracted membership from across the country, thus becoming one of the leading parties with appreciable spread across the nooks and crannies of the country. By the time the 1999 election was held, it not only clinched most of the states but also the presidency and was soon declared by its members as the biggest party in Africa.

While that claim remains to be proved, there is no doubt that the party, which has since 1999, retained its hold on the federal government is facing many challenges, raising fears that it may not retain the leadership at the federal level in 2015.

This fear emanates not only from, reports of large scale corruption at the federal and state levels, scandals at the national and state assemblies and such like, which have been part of the history of the party since 2000, but because of internal signals suggesting deep-rooted disagreements.

It began with the election of President Goodluck Jonathan as the presidential candidate of the party at the expiration of his tenure as Acting President.

Northern leaders of the party could not hide their feelings as the, alleged that it was their turn to produce the president of Nigeria. It was a major political battle for Jonathan’s men. Although he won at last, the scars of that public disagreement are yet to heal as the party has since then remained sharply divided over the issue of zoning.

Although that issue is almost as old as PDP itself, insiders say it has never taken the shape it is taking now as South-East, the North and South-South remain adamant that it is their turn in 2015.

Following the emergence of new groupings within PDP, sponsored by the various zones and aimed at 2015, it remains to be seen how the party will survive the threat in 2015.

Events traced to the dramatic emergence of the duo of Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal from Sokoto and Hon. Emeka Ihedioha from Imo, last year’s June, as speaker and deputy speaker of the House of Representatives against the calculations of PDP leadership, shows that some younger and more radical elements within the party are poised to effect unexpected changes.

Threats to PDP dominance

• Yar’Adua

Another major political challenge the party may need to address to survive is the recent disagreement between the northern governors, especially those of PDP and their southern counterparts over several issues, including state police, the choice of 2015 presidential candidate amongst others.

As the party marks its 14 years of existence, concerned observers and insiders are worried that these problems, added to the general problems faced by President Jonathan’s government are combining to make PDP more unpopular.

•Tukur

Such problems include the issue of insecurity, especially the Boko Haram issue, which the government seems unable to resolve, the ever growing rate of unemployment, the ever difficult issue of power generation and distribution, poverty and corruption in high places.

The question most Nigerians are asking today is how PDP will resolve these problems and change its image before 2015?

Dr. Udeagha Uko, a political scientist. reacting to the statement of PDP told The Nation that even the party failed to inspire

confidence in Nigerians that it is still prepared to provide leadership. “PDP must stand up if it still wants to occupy Aso Rock in 2015,” he said, pointing out, however, that the party has not failed in all determinant indexes. “Its leaders only need to be more open and truthful. Leadership of a country as big as Nigeria is not easy, it needs the cooperation of all, but PDP has been making the mistake of thinking they know it all. When they are genuinely criticised, they take offence. That is not the mark of good leaders,” he said.

14 years on, PDP under scrutiny •Continued from Page 23 some quality performance, but that is not what we see in most of the other PDPcontrolled states. What is rampant is a story of misery, corruption in high places and criminal neglect of the poor.

“It is unfortunate that PDP-led government has not tackled the issue of light, 14 years after and I cannot see how a nation will make economic progress without steady power,” he said.

Another area Aremu faulted PDP is its inability to tackle unemployment and security. “Unemployment rate is very high,” he lamented, regretting that instead of being more proactive with the matter, the government’s economic policies have remained distorted.”

According to the economist, this has led the international community to perceive Nigeria in a very bad light and unless this is changed, it would be difficult for the federal government to expect accolade from the citizens.

In all, Aremu rated PDP low, explaining that a good way of assessing the achievement of a leader is the quality of followership it is able to get. “How many Nigerians appear to be following the PDP leadership today,” he queried?

Former Military Head of State and presidential candidate of Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, General Muhammadu Buhari’s recent assessment of PDP’s 14 years actually kick-started the raging debate.

Speaking at a recent public outing in Kano, Buhari had said: “Under normal circumstances, we are supposed to work strictly within the provisions of the

• Buhari

Constitution. But this is Nigeria and nothing is perfect and the only thing they have not tampered with between 1999 to date is the Holy Qur’an.”

Obviously incensed by the assessment, PDP, through Metuh responded: “We wish to remind the former Head of State that Nigerians are not fools and that they know what Nigeria was yesterday, especially under regimes like his, and what obtains today…We wish to advise Gen. Buhari to concentrate in giving Nigerians his alternative ideas and plan of action to what the has at present or even engage

• Babangida

us in a public debate on the values of good governance.”

Mr. Rotimi Fashakin, CPC’s spokesman spoke on behalf of Buhari: “Last year, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari threw a challenge to everyone who had been president and those contesting the presidency with him, including the present president.

“He said he was a platoon leader, brigade commander, GOC, minister of Petroleum Resources, head of state, the executive chairman of Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF). In all these appointments, he never stole one kobo belonging to the state.

That was significant.”

He concluded by saying that “In a fair contest, there should not be any doubt who would win, but the PDP has corrupted the electoral system for the past 13 years.”

Other critics of the performance of PDP that have come under strong counter verbal attacks in recent times include the former military President, General Ibrahim Babangida.

Mid-April this year, the military leader’s spokesman, Kassim Afegbua, incurred the ire of the party when he discredited the National Convention that produced the current PDP National Working Committee chaired by Alhaji Bamanga Tukur.

Babangida had in that statement described the method used in selecting the leadership as undemocratic.

Reacting to the criticism, Metuh said: “It was unfortunate that for a second time in a week, such a frontal attack on the person of President Goodluck Jonathan, the National Chairman of the party, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, the PDP Publicity Secretary and indeed the entire essence of the current leadership of the party was coming from a respected statesman and from former president.”

Since the second term of Obasanjo’s government, many Nigerians have been finding more faults than applause and have consistently demanded a change. But as the party’s leadership explained, such negative perception is not general, a fact, which it said led to its re-election in 2003, 2007 and 2011 elections.

Their critics, however, insist that those elections were rigged and so do no not reflect the feeling of Nigerians. The debate continues.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

e b d l u o h My man s y a w s i h d n i f o t e l ab n e h c t i k e around th —Waje Page 43

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Glamour

Kehinde Falode Tel: 08023689894 (sms)

E-mail: kehinde.falode@thenationonlineng.net

From Asia

TURBAN hat with

I

N the midst of the head accessories, the soft and classic turban definitely takes the cake. Turbans are worn by men and women in many parts of the world.

Turbans have been worn by men and women since the 17th century. In the old days, they were worn primarily by Asian women for protection from the sun.

The turban is now a coveted fashion item, but some still wear it for religious purposes.

For a cool effect, go for turbans that are designed or studded with flowers, and ribbons. Turbans have g r o w n s o important to the point that many of our society women can't ignore them.

But this may not be just because of fashion; the truth is that turbans, among o t h e r advantages, are also light to wear and they add a touch of spice to your looks.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Glamour

29

Hop on the braid wagon Wumi Oguntuase

A

•Kemistry

PART from the common human hair styles, braids are in vogue too.

Braiding your hair is the best hairstyle for summer. The problem most people have is the time to sit and get it done, but rest assured that once you are spotting it, you will have no other worries for the next month. They allow the wearer to do several styles, creating different exciting looks. It is perfect on crude hair because of its quality. It can be done in several ways depending on your choice. You can make it in fish tails or pack it together in ponytail at the back, or drop it around the shoulders.

•Ini Edo

•Ara

Tips

E

NSURE that your hair is properly washed, treated and conditioned before braiding.

This will enable it last longer without you itching every 10 seconds.

Select a style that is right for your hair texture and length. Do not overdo just because you like the style on someone, it might be uncomfortable for you.

Prevent the use of too much hair cream because it will cause your scalp to peel and add more weight to the hair.

Always cover your hair with either the hair net or a scarf (satin or silk) before going to bed.

You may be tempted to carry your braids for a long period of time, but do not exceed eight weeks (2 months) during which it should be washed and treated. Leaving it for a longer period may cause hair break.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Glamour

31

He may be one of the most successful hip hop artistes in the world, but he makes sure to call his mother regularly. Paul Lester writes.

A

UBREY Drake Graham, better known as Drake, is one of the world's most successful performers, and without doubt the most popular Jewish rapper/singer - his father, Dennis Graham, is an AfricanAmerican musician from Memphis, but his mother, Sandi, is a Jewish Canadian.

He has achieved enormous success in the world of hip hop by being incredibly un-hip hop - instead of the usual tough-guy bravado he is unerringly sensitive and prone to selfdoubt and, even as the 25-year-old enjoys the multi-millionaire, jet-set lifestyle, he takes great pains to make that lifestyle seem the cause for some soul-searching.

He has created a new paradigm for rap the tormented solipsist, forever showing his emotions and scrutinising his actions. And in so doing he has divided opinion between those who believe the former teen TV star from an affluent suburb of Toronto is the antithesis of the authentic, street-wise hip hop hood, and those - not just screaming kids but serious music fans who love his melodies, which he raps and sings - who have been won over by him.

"There were people who incorporated melody before me," says Drake, talking backstage at the 02 in south-east London, where 18,000 people converged to see him play the biggest concert of his career, "but I would deem myself the first person to successfully rap and sing."

H e considers the question of his persona a n d agrees that: "Yes, there are aspects of it that are new in the rap world.

But it's n o t a gimmick . I just sort of e x i s t a n d people embrac e it. I'm one of the few

Drake: Unusual story of a Jewish rap star

art ists w h o gets to be himself every day. It doesn 't take m e s i x hours to get ready and I don't have to wake up i n t h e morning a n d remember to act like this or talk like this. I just have to b e m e .

That's one of t h e favourite parts of my life - I've done this purely by being myself."

B u t h o w much of his songs are we to believe? For example, on the opening track of his 2011 album Take Care, titled 'Over My Dead Body', he reveals t h a t h e performed at a barmitzvah to help pay for a friend's lawyer at a court case. Did this really happen?

"Well, I have a lot of brothers, people I consider family. That line in

the song isn't false I went and did what I had to do after one of my friends got into some legal trouble and it was v e r y expensive and he was having t r o u b l e dealing with it."

Drake is famously proud of his Jewish roots.

In April this year, amid tremendous publicity, he even had a "rebarmitzvah", footage of which was viewed by a million people on YouTube - "the most watched barmitzvah film clip in human history", as one website put it. But the idea that Drake - who has sold millions of records and was recently voted second-hottest rapper in the world by MTV, ahead of Jay-Z, and Kanye West - turned up at some random barmitzvah seems a little farfetched.

"I did!" he says, laughing. "I actually went and did a barmitzvah for a family in New York. It was very nice, and they were an incredible family to deal with. I tried to edit out as much swearing as I could, and I loved it, man - the kids loved it, the parents loved it."

Presumably the guests were surprised to see him there? "They were pretty surprised. I came out from behind the DJ booth and started rocking… It was cool. It brought back memories - I've been to a lot of barmitzvahs in my life. I've never been to one like that, though. They shut down the whole street for this kid. They paid me a lot of money to come

- they were very generous."

Does he make a habit of this kind of thing?

"I'd love to!" he says, and you could almost believe him. "If I'm in town, I'll do it - it'll be on the house." Such a nice Jewish boy. And yet his music is complex. His songs show a young man suffering crises of conscience, often making bad choices, wracked with guilt and regret.

He highlights his song Marvin's Room, in which he describes his numerous sexual conquests, but not in the bragging way expected from hip hop artists. "That's me asking: 'Do I need to get a grip on my life?'," he says. "I have friends who are in committed relationships and spend all their time focused on one woman and I'm behaving like that! You start questioning your own morals.

I'm 25 and single. I'm not supposed to care about deeper things right now, I'm supposed to be wild. But there are nights when you sit back and wonder, 'Damn, is this right?'"

He admits he worries about aspects of his personal life, including a very Jewish concern about how often he calls his mother.

"That's one of the things that plagues my mind;my relationship with my family. Am I talking to my mother enough? That kind of thing… Asking myself: 'Are you changing?

Are you a different person?' Those are my issues now. If I wasn't famous I don't think those would be my issues at all. They would be: how am I going to support myself? I wouldn't be able to get any girl that I wanted.

I wouldn't be travelling the world and I wouldn't be showered with all this affection."

Does he ever worry that he is in danger of suffering from Paradise Syndrome, where having everything you want induces misery and despair?

"No, no, no," he says. "It's not to the point where, like: 'Oh, now I have everything I want and I hate my life'. No, I'm happy."

The dilemma, of course, is that Drake has made his name, and his fortune, by expressing the sweet sadness of moral confusion. How to continue if he stays happy?

"I'm always looking for something else," he says, by way of reassurance, as he prepares to entertain 18,000 Londoners. "I'm always looking for what's beyond this point. Not to sound depressing or anything, but I don't just tell myself: 'Oh, everything's all good, man'.

Life is good. But I'm not naive. Nothing is all good.”

Courtesy: Jewish Chronicle

32

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Glamour

1

Anna Eguavon, whose stage name is Annivon, is a soft rock gospel artiste who prides herself in being prudently fashionable. She shares her top ten favourite things with Wumi Oguntuase.

Favourite shoe designer New look

2

Favourite jewellery Earrings

3

Favourite food and drink Chicken and chips and water

4

Favourite perfume Black orchid

by Tom Ford

5

Favourite cloth designer

Favourite wristwatch designer

Joan Ede Collections

Swatch

6

Favourite hangout spot Music studio and kitchen

7

Favourite actor and actress Yul Edochie and Mercy Johnson

8

Annivon’s

p o t

0 1

Favourite wristwatch designer Swatch

9

Fashion quote Your looks speak best of who you are.

10

Favourite make-up designer Sleek

THEATRE

t

BIGSCREEN

With VICTOR AKANDE

Yeka Onka returns with Bamijo

T

HE first-ever Nigerian Idol winner Yeka Onka, is back and this time, it is with a banging new single, Bamijo.

Christened 'Whitney' by the judges, the song comes with a feel of dance from different parts of the world. From Kenya to Jamaica and to the pubs in London, Onka delivers party pleasers and sure club bangers.

Produced by Micworks, her first official performance of Bamijo was at Industry Nite on Wednesday September 5, with her team Dance na the main thing and dance

E-mail:

GISTS

PAGE

33

plus

victor_akande@yahoo.com

When P Square rocked at the HMV Apollo

I

coach/Performance Director, Jeffery Daniel.

"It has been an incredible few months working on the songs on the album coming soon. But it's been very rewarding. This album has different shades of me but the voice will be the thread all through and to keep my fans happy. I have particularly been blessed with a fantastic team and they have worked extremely hard to ensure that this album will blow you away," Onka said.

Yeka who has shared the stage with Les Nubians, Shalamar, Timi Dakolo, Yinka Davies, Capita FEMI amongst others, is set to define her space in Nigeria’s entertainment industry. She made her debut with ‘Follow me’ after winning on Nigerian Idol in 2010.

T was unforgettable fun and breathtaking performance when the dynamic duo of Peter and Paul Okoye, famously known as PSquare, mesmerised fans in UK during this year's Afro Beats Festival held at HMV Apollo on Sunday, 26 August.

The twin brothers, who stormed the concert venue with their 14-man band, performed on stage for two hours, dishing out songs from their repertoire monster cuts which left their fans at the capacity-filled venue yearning for more.

P-Square's energetic dance routine and collection of monster hit songs rendered at the concert was described as the best put up by any Nigerian artiste in the UK so far. Tottenham Hotspur star, Emmanuel Adebayor, who was a special guest at the event, could not help but join the Nigerian ambassadors on stage; Nollywood actor, Mike

N

OLLYWOOD actress Stella Damasus and movie director Daniel Ademinokan recently staged a gospel music concert tagged ‘The Alternative’.

The event was organised by Index Two Studios, an outfit coowned by Daniel and Stella, at the Ladi Kwali Hall, Sheraton Hotel in Abuja. Invited guests of the much attended occasion were treated to a nice worship time, while some of them were rewarded with cash gifts and scholarships by the organisers.

During the event, Daniel and Stella,

Zaaki Azzay to perform in Paris Mercy Michael

O

NLY few weeks after the marriage crash of popular traditional hip-hop act, Zaaki Azzay, the musician seems to have put his marital challenges behind him.

As you are reading this, Zaaki is already in far away France where he has gone to perform at the Ethical Fashion Show which holds in Paris this weekend.

While his fans are itching to know the situation with his marriage vis-à-vis allegations and counter allegations by his estranged wife, this is how Zaaki responded via a telephone conversation: “I don't have time to entertain any questions regarding my marriage for now.

I'm travelling to France to perform at Ethical Fashion Show. I will also be touring three states for performances. While I'm in France, I will be interviewing the French Ambassador to Nigeria for my television show.

I'm going with my cameras. My business, particularly my music career is all that matters to me now.” He said.

SOUND TRACK

•Stella Damasu

Ahmed Boulor

Ezuronye, also joined them on stage.

Adebayor described PSquare as the best music export from Nigeria and Africa as a whole, claiming that their stage presence and coordination is second to none.

The high point of the lively performance came when P-Square performed their new single titled 'Alingo'. Though the song was released few weeks ago, it was a sing-along affair among the UK fans. Shortly after rendering that song, PSquare dedicated one of their hit songs, 'Beautiful Onyinye' to their late mother, Mrs. Josephine Okoye.

who are more prominent in the movie industry, showed their dexterity as complete entertainers. In turns, they dazzled the audience with live musical performances with a band named One Heart, One Sound.

Popular television presenter, Denrele Edun and Lamboghinny were guests at the event. While the former shared an emotional testimony with the audience, the latter thrilled with hit songs from his album.

Daniel revealed the inspiration behind

Stella Damasus and Daniel Ademinokan at it again

Adebayor (midd le) with Psquare

the event: “I have always been a church guy, not the regular church guy though; I have been crazy for Jesus Christ long time ago. It is just that because of my profession, people always say how can a man who makes films where people kiss claim to be a staunch Christian? I was born in a gospel church, nurtured in the way of God. My mother is a heavy prayer warrior. People who know me very well know that this is who Daniel is; doing church stuffs like this. So by calling, I have music (gospel) in me, but as a profession, I'm a filmmaker. So people can be surprised, but those who have known me for the past 20 years cannot be surprised that I'm doing this.”

On her part, Stella said the concert idea was mooted by Daniel and she thought it was a welcome idea to contribute her quota towards the idea. “It's all Daniel's idea because he owns the group, but when he told me about it, it became a welcome idea because I have been singing for a while and I felt like someone that didn't have a sense of direction when it comes to the music that I wanted to do. My heart tells me to be part of it. I wanted to work for God but have not been bold enough to come out and say it.”

34

Entertainment

Having taken some time off the music scene to recuperate after a brief illness, Waje is back in the studio, putting finishing touches to her debut album titled 'Words Aren't Just Enough' (WAJE). The powerful vocalist, who is one of the very few artistes to have won an award without releasing an album opens up on her childhood, her progression from the days she featured in the song ‘Do Me’ with P-Square, and how her mother ignited her passion for music, in this interview with AHMED BOULOR.

W

HAT was growing up like for you in Benin?

Growing up in Benin was exciting because I was largely an eccentric and a bit of a bully. At the same time, I was shy and easily intimidated. My growing up was basically fun, and I have fond memories of those times.

My man should be able to find his way around the kitchen —Waje

Entertainment

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Tell us, what was it like growing up with four other kids?

It wasn't really tough because I am the first child and everybody had to listen to me before anyone else. But my younger brother was a handful for me when we were younger; he was annoying and troublesome, but I later adapted to his antics as time went on.

How did music start for you?

I had the usual church background while I was growing up; my mum actually made me love music, because, as a kid, she got me this small type of TV that also served as a radio and cassette player. My mum said she got me that radio because she wanted me to get used to noise; she used to put the radio close to my ear and when the house is really noisy I could sleep well without any much problem. From there, I started mimicking Madonna using my mum's scarf as a long hair and my dad's screwdriver as microphone. I later joined the church choir, then again, I joined the choir in secondary school, and I was also part of the choir while I was in the university. That was how my journey into music progressed, and it is not a surprise to me that I am where I am today.

At what stage did you discover you could sing?

That was in secondary school. I was on scholarship because I could sing; at that point, I knew it was not just all about singing, but I actually had a voice I could groom.

Were you inspired into doing music by any local or foreign artiste?

Both! I was inspired by Madonna and Whitney Houston. As a matter of fact, I am still inspired by Whitney till date. I still study a lot of her songs; her works often serve as reference for me from time to time. On the local scene, I watched a lot of Onyeka Onwenu because I thought she looked like my mum's elder sister.

The fact that I also grew up having white hair in the middle of my head made me feel very connected with Onyeka. I used to describe her as the Beyonce of her time, because she was so sexy as a young artiste at the time. Her carriage has always been amazing and her songs were a hit; she's my kind of model and I hope to toe the same line she did.

Was your song 'For a Minute' a personal experience?

Well you can say that (laughter). Several times, my songs are my personal experiences or the things other people have experienced.

There is always this point in your life when you feel you have this very good friend that you feel something for and he just sees you as one of the girls around. I once had a friend like that and at the time, I just couldn't understand why he did not see the fact that I felt something for him. He is still my friend till date and really felt that he is the kind of person I would like to have. It was quite an experience though…

Who is the guy in question?

(Laughs) If I tell you the guy's name, would you know him?

Don't ask me, I don't know…

Have you found that guy who knows you have a hunch

Until I wear a wedding ring, I cannot confidently say that I have found the right person

for him?

(Laughs) You are crazy! I like the way you put that question. I have, have I? That is really a big question; but I know that for me, marriage isn't everything. I am still very old-fashioned and I cannot say that I have found the right person until a ring is put on my finger. Until I wear a wedding ring, I cannot confidently say that I have found the right person.

What would you have ventured into, if not music?

I would have been a caterer; I have baking skills and I know my way around my kitchen. I probably would have been a caterer because I don't like office work. You can ask my team about that; I don't like meetings and when the time comes for that, I always request to be absent. I don't like sitting down for a long time to deliberate on issues, and that means I wouldn't have been a great office person.

So your husband-to-be would not lack in that direction?

Well, I am just a young woman who has her own ideas about how to do my own things and I implore my readers not to misjudge me for what I am about to say. It will be nice for my husband to also know his way around the kitchen; just imagine Waje's husband running home early from work on Thursday because he knows that's his day out in the kitchen.

Given the opportunity, which celebrity would you like to meet?

If I had the opportunity, I would like to meet Wole Soyinka; reason is that he is such a writer that inspires me and if I could write my songs the way he writes most of his works, especially his poems and novels, it would really be timeless for me. I believe if I had such writing skills, coupled with my delivery, it would be really nice. I would love to spend some time with him and pick his brain a little bit and find out where all his talent came from.

How would you describe your progression from the days you did 'Do Me' with P Square till now?

Perfect! That's how I would describe it; reason is that it has been a gradual growth and for everyone who has been a lover and follower of Waje's music, it has been a gradual process of recognition and acceptance. Aside the audience, I have grown to know myself a lot better, I understand my craft a lot better and my delivery is better. I think I wouldn't have had it anyway…

How did you react when you heard the rumour that you were signed onto Chocolate City Music?

I wasn't surprised and it sounded funny to me; people should learn to confirm things before they start spreading any kind of news. I am close to Chocolate City and maybe it was expected by some people.

What's happening to your debut album?

What's happening to my first album is that it is still in progress…

But critics and fans wouldn't see why you have not had an album all these while…

A lot of things delayed the release of my first album; first of all, I wasn't satisfied with the total output. I know it is all about the fans, but it comes to a stage where you want to satisfy yourself as well, because if you don't satisfy yourself and believe in what you are doing, then how do you sell it? Many people have come to me telling me that they are itching and ready to have a feel of my first album, but I keep telling them I am not ready to drop it.

Have you completed works on your soul mixtape?

I haven't, but we are working on it…

What was it like being a judge on Star Quest?

I enjoyed it because I laughed a lot; a lot of it was comedy but I am very grateful because a lot of young people made me appreciate where I am today, knowing fully well that they are really working hard to fulfil their dreams. It also opened my eyes to see how much talent we really have in Nigeria regardless of whatever genre.

People have seen you and Omawunmi together several times. How really close are you?

Why is it that everyone I seem to have an interview with asks me this question? We are very good friends; we respect each other, we respect our talents as well and we also respect ourselves as women.

You are one of the very few artistes who have won awards without releasing an album.

How does that make you feel?

It is Jehovah! I would also attribute that to hard work too; whether you have an album out or not, you should be able to dish out your very best. The fact that I do not have an album out yet does not stop me from doing what I have to do as an artiste. I always ensure that I satisfy my consumers.

If you could possess one super power, what would that be?

That would be the ability to deliver foodstuff to the needy wherever they are on a daily basis not minding whether there is drought, whether it's rainy season or dry season. There are a lot of kids out there that need such kind of help and I would be glad to have such a super power to meet their needs…

A lessprivileged kid inspired my first movie

39

•Faze with Elizabeth

Academy where I studied acting and after that, the jobs have been coming. Emem Isong is a wonderful producer and I happen to learn all I know now from her.

Behind The Melody is your first flick as a producer, which one was your first work as an actress?

It was an Emem Isong film entitled Cat Walk.

Since then, I have done other ones.

Where do you see your career in the next five years?

Five years is a whole lot of years. Some people may not make it within that five years, but I trust my God to see me through. In the next five years, I see myself very tall in my career and people all over the world will acknowledge that I have done something Sultry actress Elizabeth great.

Daniels recently threw an How do you feel having so much celebrities grace your birthday? elaborate shindig where she played The experience will no doubt linger in host to her colleagues in the memory for a long time. It was a day that I chose to host my colleagues in movie industry, friends and wellNollywood to a classy shindig at Shaunz wishers. The Cross River StateLounge in Victoria Island, Lagos. Some of the celebrities that added spice and born actress, who recently glamour to the birthday party include produced her first movie, spoke Ruggedman, Faze, May D, Charles O'Tudor, Ini Edo, Victor Olaitan of about her sojourn into the Tinsel, Chukwuka Christopher, filmmaking world among other Uche Nwaezeapu, Alex Ekubo, Chigozie Atuanya , Okey issues, in this interview with Bakassi and Tony Okoye, the Chief Executive Officer of Ajeh AHMED BOULOR. Clothing, among others. I also took the opportunity to T was double celebration for you that I would do a film like that. In fact, people showcase my new movie Behind The Melody, recently, as you showcased your first would barely recognise me in the film because which is my debut movie as a producer. The movie and celebrated your birthday. How of the character I played. Everybody sees me movie was directed by Moses Ewang and it do you feel? as a glamorous girl, and most people were stars actors such as Ini Edo, Jim Iyke and me.

Well, anybody in my shoes right now would shocked that I came out with a film of that feel very happy. I am very excited and I owe We also gathered that you visited an nature. I will just say it is the grace of God; He orphanage hours before your birthday… all this joy to nobody else but God Almighty. has a purpose for giving me an idea to tell Tell us a bit about your first movie Behind Yes! I visited a Lagos-based orphanage, such a story. It is also inspired by a true life The Melody where I donated gift items to less-privileged story. I visited an orphanage on October 1st in It is a film shot early this year in Calabar, children hours before my birthday Cross River State. When we were starring Ini Edo, Jim Iyke, and Millicent, Big celebrations. playing some games, I noticed a Brother contestant from Kenya. The story is little girl in the orphanage wasn't Are you into charity because ...Being a about kids in the orphanage and how they can happy and didn't participate in the some of your colleagues in the celebrity is a grow up to be successful in life. The movie is games. After much persuasion, she industry are toeing the same line? for hope and encouragement to the lessgift and it told me others don't like her When you are in the public eye, privileged kids. The story is a way of telling because she is ugly, and that was should be you have a duty to give back to the the children out there that they should not be why she refused to partake in the used to affect society. I don't think it is a bothered about where they are, but what they games. So I decided to dig deep thing; I think it is an can become in future. So it is a movie every the lives of bandwagon into it. As much as the girl's story is obligation and a duty to give back to parent needs to watch and also advise their still young, I decided to make the people the society that made me what I am children to watch too. character bigger. today. around you.

As an actress, what would make you reject What message are you passing Is there any particular reason that a movie script?

I don't with the film, and what do you you are concerned about the lessI wouldn't accept a movie script if it doesn't intend to achieve with it? necessarily privileged? challenge me. If I receive a movie script that is Just like everything we do is Seriously speaking, being a not challenging I'd tell whoever that offers me need to be a business, mine is not all about celebrity is a gift and it should be the script to give it to a younger actor that may president or used to affect business - it is passion. I have the lives of people be interested in the role. I like scripts that are passion to do meaningful movies. I governor to around you. I don't necessarily need worth the while and I am also concerned have passion to reach out to people to be a president or governor to about who is directing the movie, the budget impact in order to change their lives one impact positively on the lives of of the movie and the cast. positively on way or the other through my people. Being a celebrity is a gift and What's your take about actors becoming movies. It might not be those in the the lives of blessing at the same time, and it producers? orphanage alone. Everybody has a It is fantastic and it is the usual thing. Most should be used positively. We are people story, but this movie in particular actors in Hollywood who know their onions called stars for a reason because a lot will touch everybody's life. are now movie producers. The truth is actors of people look up to us.

Tell us about your foray into the make the best producers and directors of Are you in any relationship at the movie industry? movies because they understand the dynamics moment? of movie-making. It is very easy for a good I came into the industry just like every other (Laughs) That part of my life is private and I actor to become a good producer. girl who has the dream of becoming a star. would like to leave it that way. When it is time Do you not think they need training before When I was growing up, my father wanted me to dwell on that I will let you know, but for becoming producers? to read law and become a lawyer, but at a now, no comments on that!

I think everybody needs some level of point I went to a movie location to get my When eventually you retire as an actress, training to become whatever they want to house key from a friend, and that was how I what would you like to be remembered for? become. There is absolutely no excuse for got entangled to come and audition for a film.

I am not going to leave the scene to start anybody coming into the industry at this time From there, thanks to Charles O'Tudor who with, but maybe when I am old and grey. I without any form of training. later gave my contact to Desmond Elliot who want to leave a legacy, I want to be Why did you choose a story that centres on took me to Emem Isong, and they said I'm a remembered as someone who has a dream less-privileged kids? talented actress, but that I still need a formal and who pursued it with lots of energy.

Looking at me, nobody will even believe training. So I enrolled into Royal Arts

—Elizabeth Daniels

I

Sport&Style SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

PAGE 38

‘Hairstyles

boost my scoring ability’ From page 35

for scoring goals come from it “My teammates know that I'm crazy about having different hairstyles and they usually ask 'what would be my next style.

“I see it as fun and Spartak fans love me for it. My hairstyle can read different meaning to different people but all I know is all about football.

"Sometimes, I made some hard hairstyles to compensate for my hard look to intimidate people but when you get closer to me, and then you can judge me.

"This style is my own brand, I call it Emenike's brand, and I am happy to have my

own identity like some great footballers.

“Great players like David Beckham, Mario Balotelli, Djibril Cisse and Cristiano Ronaldo are known for their extraordinary hairstyles and this has not stopped them from playing good football. So having fanciful hairstyles should not make me a bad boy in the eyes of some people.

I have a specialist that makes my hair and the style I choose often depends on my mood.”

On Champions League "On my arrival, I saw Spartak as a team that can fly with my inclusion, though I

struggled for some weeks but the club stood by me and gave me necessary support. I quickly adapted to the game before the goals started flowing. Making an impact in a team like Spartak is what the fans want, and I am happy today that I got it right even when the going was rough.

“I regard Barcelona as the best entertaining club in the world and having a chance to play against them in the Champions League is a dream come true for me.

If I had my way, I would have loved to play against Chelsea or Real Madrid in the group stage, but at the same time, we will respect Barca and give them the fight.

On designer shoes "I cherish Christian Louboutin shoes a lot and that is my favourite and you can always see me with that off the pitch. Its s very fit.

It's very expensive because of its uniqueness. Sincerely speaking, I don't like common designers and that is why I love going for uncommon but great outfit designer like Philipp Plein clothes.”

On Cars “I love cars a lot just like I love making different hairstyle but I spend wise on BMW X6 car. Though I love other unique cars as well, BMW X6 is my best,” he revealed.

KARIBE OJIGWE SPEAKS

'I don't mind wearing

Aba-made jeans!’

T

HEY say style is the man. No wonder, debonair Karibe Pascal Ojigwe, former Super Eagles' midfielder has told The Nation Sport & Style that mood and occasion are the key factors that determine what he wears.

On this sunny afternoon at a posh hotel in Calabar, Ojigwe was in a fitting shirt with a brown denim pants complete with a brown belt and a marching brown shoes and he truly expressed the image of a corporate guy than a footballer.

“Style is all about how you dress and what you like to wear,” Ojigwe, one of the stars when the Golden Eaglets won the 1993 FIFA Under-17 World Cup in Japan, stated. “Every individual has his own personal touch and style because we do things differently. Style is something that comes with your mood because wearing a particular cloth depends on the occasion.

“I can wear any cloth but it depends on where I'm going. If it's time for me to wear track suits, I wear them. If I have to be formal, I would have to and you won't catch me wearing anything sloppy.

“I don't wear clothes based on labels

By Morakinyo Abodunrin

or designers. There are millions of designers but what I look out for is fitness. Will the cloth sit well on me? Is it good for the occasion I'm wearing it for?

Those are the points I consider when wearing a particular cloth,” he explained.

Ojigwe was born and bred in Aba, the big trading city in Abia State known for its peculiar craftsmanship, and the former Bayer Leverkusen has enthused that it won't be a bad idea to wear clothes designed from the downtown.

“Aba people are very productive and you can bet that I would be the first to put on anything that is made in Aba,” Ojigwe stated with an approving smile.

“But they must be of high standard and quality too. Why won't I wear Aba jeans if it's well-sewn?” Excerpts You were part of the team that won the FIFA Under-17 World Cup for Nigeria in 1993, what advice do you have for this present squad?

There is no hard work to success and I really want to commend both the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and the technical crew of the present team.

The NFF has ensured that preparation started on time and their choice of the technical crew that has former players who had gone through the youth system would help in the overall development of our football on the long run. I'm hopeful that some of these players would end up playing for the Super Eagles. We must continue to pay attention to the grassroots. As far as we pay attention to the grassroots, the senior national team would not lack players that are good and talented so that they can better what we did during our time.

You, an Under-17 World Cup winner, how far can the present team goes?

They should also aim to win the Under-17 World Cup by playing attractive football. Win the Most Valuable Player as well as the top scorer award amongst other things. These are things you work for and you don't achieve them without planning for it.

We achieved so much then because we worked for it.

What are the things that helped the team to succeed then?

Contd. on page 37

Karibe

40

Entertainment

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Cobhams’ mum is Supermom Celebrity Show winner

F

ORMER clerical officer in the Nigerian Army, Mrs Gladys Asuquo, the mother of celebrated singer-song writer-producer, Cobhams, has won the Supermom celebrity edition.

She was adjudged winner of the show after amassing the highest votes by fans and followers among the ten finalists. Thus, Mrs Gladys would be presented N2m cash prize at an elaborate ceremony later in the year, which she is expected to donate to a charity of her choice. She would also be treated to an all-expenses paid trip to Dubai. Fuji music star, Abass Akande Obesere's mother, Taibat Omobonike, emerged first runner up while Banky W's Empire Mates Entertainment debutante rapper, Skales' mother, was second runner up. They are expected to be on the all-expenses paid trip to Dubai while also getting N1m and N500, 000 cash respectively which would also be donated to a charity of their choice. Other runners up are Julius Agwu and Tony Tetuila's mothers, who would get an appreciable cash prize too, the organisers, Digital Interactive Media, have announced.

A recap of Cobhams' story was broadcast during the announcement last weekend. Cobhams isn't just one of the most talented young men in the Nigerian music industry with a remarkable record of success in his chosen career, he is also a conqueror; having won several battles including that against congenital blindness.

Viewers would recall the tear-filled and intriguing story of how a blind kid turned his disability to a success story.

•Kate Henshaw and Bas orge Tarriah

F

EDERAL Palace Hotel, Victoria Island wore a glamorous look recently, courtesy of Solution Media and Infothech Limited (SMIL), a solely indigenous Nigerian company with expertise in mobile smart stage, cinematography, media and post production. Tagged Memoirs and Wine: A Touch of Class, the show which was initially scheduled to hold at the Harbour Point, took Federal Palace by storm, with lacer light display adorning the walls of the hotel with romantic splendour. But that was just a tip of the ice berg. The red carpet session was a path next to the theatrical paradise created by SMIL. Thus, cameras clicked away as celebrities arrived the venue one after another.

An exemplary model of what a superb event should look like, Memoirs and Wine fulfilled that aspiration with two imported bands: Soda Pop band from Philippines and The Flame band, a seven-man group from Kenya. The two groups, it is said, play regularly at Le Meridien in Dubai. And although the two headliner bands set the ball rolling on that night of legendary music, the show soon became interactive, with over 200 guests, most of whom took to the stage to try their

•The Flame band

Old tunes, showmanship come alive at Memoirs and Wine knowledge of old popular tunes. The show made everyone a star, and as the duo of Kate Henshaw and Basorge Tarriah, anchors at the event, joked, the stage lights, bubbles, and other theatrical effects, were the inspiration for the instant music stars who got prizes for their efforts.

Indeed, the event hall of Federal Palace was turned to a wonderland, judging by ambiance created with Robe 100, MMS 600 and MAC 2000 laser lights, a P4 LLD Screen, a 23 metres stage and a Pearl Tiger light mixer that set the high mood for a show to remember.

To say the least, Kate and Basorge, did just more than MCs. Their spontaneous interaction, jocular

interjections and exchange of banters induced a sense of belonging in which everyone became a participant.

Icing on the cake was by choreographers, who brought the musical performance to high crescendo.

With applaudable energetic performances amidst lighting effects, the guests were enthralled by the choreographic and musical performances.

Date was August 24, 2012, but the crew of SMIL were on ground ahead of the show date. According to Adeyeloye Lipede, Executive Director of the company, the equipment required about a week to set up. The artistes had also arrived ahead of date to engage in serious rehearsals. “Bringing these people to do rehearsals is a way of inspiring Nigerian artistes to the culture of preparedness,” said Lipede.

About KSA’s 35th crowning anniversary •Mrs Gladys Asuquo

Jimmy Jatt, M.I, Gbenga Adeyinka lead celebs to Naija Corner

N

IGERIANS and non-Nigerians came out, all clad in glittering green and proudly waving a Nigerian flag , to represent Africa's most populous nation at the official Naija corner at the popular Nottinghill carnival on Monday, August 27.

Gathered at the official Nigerian stand 'Naija Corner' on Golbourne road W10, from noon until day-end, were iconic rapper M.I, comedians Gbenga Adeyinka, Princess, Encomium publisher Kunle Bakare (who came with his son), Nollywood's Sam Dede, Jaiye Opayemi, Grafton's Tonye Ibiama, Alariwo of Africa, NET publisher Ayeni Adekunle, KJV, MTN's Kelvin Orifa, celebrated filmmaker Kunle Afolayan, as well as executive producer Abisoye Fagade and his Naija Corner partner Layinka Oyedeji.

With Africa's best DJ Jimmy Jatt behind the music, and Mayhem Crew and Papa Jones in charge of sound and PA, the Naija Corner was a seven-hour concert, with music and performances from almost everywhere in the world.

T

HE proposed 35th Crowning Anniversary of Sunny Ade as King of Music has been enlarged into a festival that will also mark the 50th year of KSA as a performer, and also his 66th birthday.

Scattered over the next three months, a concert has been slated for Ibadan, just as there will be two concerts in Lagos, and another in UK. The grand finale will hold again in Ibadan where the crowning, legitimised by the incumbent Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi (III), will take place on a date yet to be announced via a press conference.

During a meeting with members of the Crowing Anniversary Planning Committee led by Akogun Lekan Alabi in Lagos two weeks ago, KSA revealed that committees had already been set up for both the 66th birthday and 50 years on stage, and therefore would want harmonisation so that all the three committees involved would not be working at cross purposes.

The same fans, friends and organisations that want to support any of the programmes will wonder why three different proposals on the same person are sent to the same people for support, which KSA would not want, informed a committee source.

As a result, KSA instructed that all the three events be collapsed into one, while Akogun Alabi and his six-

member committee will coordinate all programmes.

Rising from another meeting in Ibadan last week, and after having agreed to mode of operations, it was again agreed that a 3-in-1 festival be held in honour of the global brand, KSA. Information has it that the Nigerian High Commission in England is willing to support the committee as regards plans to hold a UK concert anytime before the grand finale.

Expectedly, many organisations and individuals have declared interest in the project now tagged KSA Festival 2012.

FROM LEFT: Barr. Gbenga Makinde (Secretary of the KSA Festival 2012 Planning Committee), Akogun Lekan Alabi (Chairman of the planning committe), King Sunny Ade and Mr. Clement Ige (Vice Chairman of the committee)

Entertainment

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

41

Leo’nel Zach Orji:

Terry G, Buchi, I will beat my Nigga Raw set dad in the game ‘Real Deal Nite’ L ablaze

Nadia Buari, Gloria Young, others grace Heroes and Zeros premiere

T

HE Silverbird Galleria was jampacked last Friday as celebrities, politicians and the Nigerian media stormed the venue for the premiere of one of the most anticipated movies of the year, Heroes and Zeros.

From the red carpet event which saw A- list actors like Nadia Buari, Bimbo Akintola, Yomi Fash Lanso, Nobert Young, amiable politician, Mr. Obanikoro, strut the red carpet to the premiere itself, the event will surely be recorded as one of the most successful.

Kicking off at about 6pm, guests let loose their guards as they interacted freely with the press. After the paparazzi had taken their shots, and guests had drank to their satisfaction, they were later ushered into the hall to watch the premiere.

The suspense-soaked movie evoked pity and got many of the guests emotional at the rise and fall of the main hero of the movie which received a thunderous applause at the end of the premiere.

Directed by Niji Akanni, the brain behind brilliant Nollywood flick, Aramotu, Heroes and Zeros tells the story of the destructive pursuance of Tonia (Nadia Buari) on the trail of Amos Fele (Bimbo Manuel).

Heroes and Zeros employs a multinarrative technique which saw the movie being narrated from three perspectives. The movie will be in cinemas across the nation from Friday, September 7, 2012.

Who is spoiling Stephanie Chijioke?

I

F reports going round are true, then rising actress Stephanie Chijioke is sure having a swell time at the moment.

Yet to find a strong footing in the industry, the actress is reported to be building a home worth N100million at present. She is also said to have acquired a 2012 Mercedes Benz CLS Wagon worth about 18.7million Naira with a Mercedes Benz G55 AMG worth about 25.1million Naira.

Though the person behind all this is yet to be revealed, it is now clear why the actress is referred to as Arab Money.

•Stephanie Chijioke

nting a generator •Raskimono prese alomi to Dr. Matthew Ish

H

IGHLY eccentric and energetic music entertainer, Terry G, was in his usual “gingah” elements at the recent edition of the exciting monthly Legend Real Deal Nite. An all star affair, Terry G, the 'Akpako Master' got the audience moving as he thrilled them to his hit songs and characteristic energetic dance performances.

Singing sensation, Nigga Raw and comedian, Buchi, were also on ground to entertain the audience at the event which took place at the Niteshift Coliseum hangout, Lagos.

An in-bar monthly brand activation, 'Real Deal Nite' rewards consumers for being loyal to the Legend brand. The event, which holds every last Friday of the month, gives brand loyalists an opportunity to win fantastic prizes in a raffle draw promo while they have fun

•Terry G

and feel the spirit and uniqueness of the Legend brand.

Consumers at the event were rewarded with gift items ranging from refrigerators, DVD players, generators, standing fans and others. One of the lucky winners of the night, Mr. Christopher Eze, carted home a brand new refrigerator. Eze, who works as an office assistant, could not hide his joy when he was announced as the winner of a refrigerator.

For winner of a brand new generator, Dr. Matthew Ishalomi, a chemical engineer, it was double celebration as he was also celebrating his birthday that same day.

In the coming months, the “Real Deal Nite' is expected to hit other major cities across Nigeria, according to the organisers.

EO'NEL Zack Orji, son of legendary Nollywood actor, Zach Orji, is now ready to pursue his dream- hip hop music. Having finished his degree programme from the University of Bradford, United Kingdom, where he obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Media Studies/Television, the burgeoning act looks forward to a fruitful career as a musician.

His hit singles, 'Baby Joor' and 'Rockstar' are already making a remarkable impact in the music scene, weeks after its production.

“I just finished shooting the video for the song 'Rockstar' and it’s being given a fair playtime on both local and satellite TV stations across the country, same with the audio version of the two singles. Radio stations are excited with the songs and they play it religiously. It's indeed a sign of some progress,” the youngster said in an interview last week.

On why he shunned acting, a turf his father made his fame and fortune from Leo'nel said, “Music has always been what I wanted to do even though my dad tried to encourage me to go into acting by giving me scripts when I was much younger.

I actually was to play a lead child actor role in a big movie that my dad was the lead actor, but somehow I could not bring myself to do it because acting is not in me. Music is my life so I had to wait till after my university education to begin my career proper, because that is the proper thing to do. I am now mentally and physically ready for the challenges of Nigeria's music industry and with God on my side, I will make my mark the way my dad made his on the acting turf. In fact, my dream is to surpass my dad's records in Nollywood, in the music scene,” •Leo’nel he said.

Last Flight to Abuja grosses N20 million

O

BI Emelonye few days ago appeared on CNN for an exclusive interview on the African Voices segment to talk about his life so far, achievements and his projects, Mirror Boy and Last Flight to Abuja.

“The movie, Last Flight to Abuja, has made N20 million at the cinemas in just four weeks of showing, a feat that surpassed the cinema sales of my previous work, Mirror Boy, which made a total of N18 million at the cinemas,” the producer and director of Last Flight to Abuja said.

The University of Nigeria graduate of Theatre Arts was asked how he got into mainstream filmmaking and he said, “I studied Theatre Arts at the University of Nigeria and it was

mainly stage craft that we learnt. I started writing scripts in my second year and almost became very renowned in my university for my writing skills. So when I left university, I knew that the world was going digital and I had to be a part of that, so I bought a camera and made my first film. I was the writer, producer, costumier and the make-up artiste; I learnt my lessons anyway.

•Last Flight to Abuja

“After that I went to different film schools in London, I did short courses in editing which I think is one of the most important but the aspect I love the most is making a film.”

Obi Emelonye also praised Diamond Bank for supporting the movie, a move that has paved the way for other private sector partnerships as far as Nollywood is concerned.

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Entertainment

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

CINEMA GUIDE

BIG

LAGOS

PICTURE

Ice Age 4 Featured Actors: Ray Romano, Denis Leary and John Leguizamo Genre: Action/Adventure Running Time: 94 min Ice Age 4 (3D) Featured Actors: Ray Romano, Denis Leary and John Leguizamo Genre: Action/Adventure Running Time: 94 min Madagascar 3D Featured Featured: Actors Ray Romano, Denis Leary and John Leguizamo Genre: Action/Adventure Running Time: 94 min Snow White Featured Actors: Kristen Stewart, Chris Hemsworth and Charlize Theron Genre Action/Adventure Running Time 127 min Bol Bachchan (Indian) Featured Actors: Ajay Devgan,Abhishek Bachchan,Asin Thottumkal Genre: Comedy Running Time: 150mins The Amazing Spider-Man 3D Featured Actors: Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone and Rhys Ifans Genre: Action/Adventure Running Time: 136 Mins The Amazing Spider-Man (Rating: 15) Featured Actors: Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone and Rhys Ifans

Supported by: SILVERBIRD CINEMAS

Joker: A laugh riot

F

EATURING Akshay Kumar, Sonakshi Sinha, Shreyas Talpade in the leads, Joker revolves around a funny, madcap story, where the viewer gets introduced to Paglapur's weird characters, who takes us on a laughter ride. An Hindi flick, filmmaker Shirish Kunder's latest release is alienated from the real world.

When Agastya (Akshay Kumar), a NASA scientist, fails to invent a machine (that would help us to communicate with the aliens) in UK, he travels back to his village Paglapur, which isn't considered as a part of India.

When we get introduced to the remote village Paglapur, it gives us a feel of a circus, where each clown has a different role to

play. Every character in Paglapur is a complete lunatic, more or less kind of an asylum. The unfortunate thing about this village is that it lacks basic facilities like water and electricity. When nobody is ready to solve the problem, Akshay Kumar creates a hoax by involving aliens in order to attract attention to the village's problems. The film is surely a laugh riot.

In Joker, every character promises a great deal of laughter as expected from a typical Akshay Kumar style flick. The film also portrays some dirty, monstrous looking aliens that might just scare you at a glance.

But the aliens are also skilled performers, who dance and entertain.

ABUJA

The music is quite good, and so is the cinematography. Joker is a good watch as it is a mass entertainer and delivers a lovely message.

That’s My Boy: nonstop raunchiness

T

HAT'S My Boy delivers the outrageous situations, nonstop raunchiness and juvenile humour that Sandler (Donny Berger) fans typically seek -- for those who are actually still in the market for this particular brand of comedy.

Director Sean Anders and screenwriter David Caspe follow the game plan adequately enough.

Thus the movie gets mildly amusing Donny Berger (Sandler) is a burned-out former reality TV star with no job and practically no family, at least none who stands by him. Now well into his 40s, he's infamous for having slept with his eighth-grade teacher (currently

serving a 30-year sentence in the Massachusetts penal system), fathering a son with her while still a teen and leveraging his notoriety to launch a lucrative TV show and series of celebrity endorsements.

But he dodged paying taxes in the process -- now he has a $43,000 IRS bill that will land him in jail if he can't quickly raise the cash to pay it off.

He also has neglected his son, Todd (Andy Samberg), who moved away as soon as he turned 18 and hasn't spoken with his epically incompetent dad ever since.

Despite his traumatic childhood and a bucketful of neuroses, Todd - whose birth name is Han Solo Berger -- is now a wealthy and

Genre: Action/Adventure Running Time: 136 Mins The Past Came Calling Featured Actors Chioma Chukwuka Akpotha, John Dumelo, Marie Gomez, Oliver Jolliffer, Penelope Bouchot Humbart Genre Drama Running Time 110mins Think Like A Man Featured Actors: Chris Brown, Gabrielle Union and Kevin Hart Genre :Romance Running Time: 122 min Madagascar 3D Featured Actors: Ben Stiller, Jada Pinkett Smith and Chris Rock Genre Action/Adventure Running Time 93 min Men In Black Featured Actors Will Smith,

successful hedge fund manager who's about to marry the woman of his dreams. The last thing he expects is for his estranged father to show up, which Donny does in classic wedding-crasher style after devising an unsavory scheme to settle his tax debt.

Mortified and about to see the lie he's told everyone about his deceased parents exposed, Todd introduces Dad to fiancĂŠe Jamie (Leighton Meester) and her family as his best friend. Improbably, Donny utterly charms the other wedding guests and is soon getting along with everyone except his son, even after people recognise him as the notorious TV personality with an insatiable addiction to cheap beer.

Donny's determined to see his son through an increasingly bumpy wedding weekend, however, as Todd is confronted by the hostility of Jamie's Marine brother Chad (Milo Ventimiglia), a pugnacious priest (James Caan) and a series of mishaps leading up to some serious father-son bonding over Todd's calamitous bachelor-party night out. Todd's quandary over forgiving Donny's past and current transgressions begins to pale in comparison to his mounting marriage woes, leaving the groom with the unenviable choice between a parent he's tried to avoid and a bride he soon might want to escape.

The Amazing Spider-Man Featured Actors: Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone and Rhys Ifans Genre: Action/Adventure Married but Living Single Featured Actors: Funke Akindele, Joke Silva, Joseph

Benjamin, Tina Mba, Femi Brainard, Kiki Omeili, Yemi Remi Genre: Action/Adventure Men in Black III Featured Featured Actors: Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones and Josh Brolin Genre: Action/Adventure Dark Shadows Featured Featured Actors: Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfeiffer and Eva Green Genre: Action/Adventure Running Time: 113 min The Avengers Featured Featured Actors: Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans and Scarlett Johansson Genre Action/Adventure Running Time 142 min The Hunger Games Featured Featured Actors: Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson and Liam Hemsworth Genre: Action/Adventure Running Time: 142Mins

PORT HARCOURT Ice Age: Continental Drift Featured Actors: Ray Romano, Denis Leary and John Leguizamo Genre: Action/Adventure Running Time: 94 Mins Snow White and the Huntsman (Rating: 15) Featured Actors: Kristen Stewart, Chris Hemsworth and Charlize Theron Genre: Action/Adventure Running Time: 127 Mins Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted Featured Actors: Ben Stiller, Jada Pinkett Smith and Chris Rock Genre: Action/Adventure Running Time: 93 Mins The past came calling (Rating: 18) Featured Actors: Chioma Chukwuka-Akpota, John Dumelo, Nigerian actors, Nigerian actresses, nigerian movie directors, Nigerian movie producers, Nigerian movies, Ruke Amata Genre: Drama Running Time: 110 Mins The Amazing Spider-Man (Rating: 15 )

Featured Actors: Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone and Rhys Ifans Genre: Action/Adventure Running Time: 136 Mins Think Like a Man (Rating: 18) Featured Actors: Chris Brown, Gabrielle Union and Kevin Hart Genre Comedy Running Time122 Mins Ties That Binds (Rating: 18) Genre: Drama Running Time: 92 Mins

43

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Glamour

Clement Enajemo is the brain behind Mudi Clothings which has now metamorphosed into Mudi Africa with outlets in Ghana, Senegal, Kenya and Johannesburg, and headquarters in Nigeria. Mudi, as he is fondly called, attributes his success to good focus and determination. He shared his success story and why he hardly designs for women with Adetutu Audu.

r e h t a r d l u o Iw h t i w l a e d t o n i d u M n e m o w Y

OU have conquered Africa now because your signature is seen everywhere. How have you been able to achieve this?

I have not conquered Africa, I am still trying.

It has been work and work. There are times I sleep in the office. It has not been easy. My social life is suffering. It is not about money but the fulfilment you get doing the job. Money should not be a major factor; it is the passion.

You started in 1993. When you look back, what will you say has kept you going?

It is good focus. With due respect, most designers are not focused.

You will see some designers who are also into event management, modelling and other fields. To me, those things are distractions. Let people know you for one thing and with time, you will get there. For the past 17-years, I have not done anything apart from clothing. I have not sold shoes or any other thing. Everything I do is about clothing. If, for instance, we are in the same business and I am putting efforts more than you do, there is no way we can be at the same level.

I used to get to the office by 7.30am and I don't close till late in the night. The time and efforts I put can't be compared to those who just open shop and stop by at their own convenience.

God sees people who are dedicated and rewards them.

Initially, it was rough but we thank God we have been able to stabilise. I won't tell you I have achieved but I will tell you I am happy doing what I am doing. What gives me joy is when people have occasions and they said they want to wear MUDI. That means I am touching lives. My first shop I got, I paid for two years, but when the two years expired, I couldn't pay for additional one year.

You see, there is a thin line between being poor and being rich. Then, a friend once told me that I should forget about the work and look for something else to do. I almost wept. If I had abandoned the work, maybe by now, I would be working under somebody. Imagine the number of staff I have now. I have three in Ghana, three in Nairobi, three in Johannesburg and three in Senegal. If you add it to the ones I have in Nigeria, you are talking of about 35 staff. If I had backed out, how would these people be able to get job and feed their families? So you can imagine how people kill dreams.

What was the turning point for you?

I am not there yet. The level I am now is through discipline and personal efforts. I have never taken a dime form the bank before. All I am doing is through personal savings. Our society is a funny society. There are people who have everything going for them,

whose parents are rich but people like us had nobody. This environment kills dreams. If you are not determined and have vision, you can hardly make it.

Who were your first clients?

RMD was among the first clients I had. I met him 1994/1995 and since then, he has been consistent. These days I don't want to mention my clients' names. During one of my interviews, I forgot to mention one of my big clients' name and he was angry. I have stopped mentioning names because I don't want anybody to get angry.

W h a t a r e y o u r challenges?

The first is trust.

Whoever is going to be in charge of the outlets must be somebody that is trustworthy. Each country I go to, a particular country, what I do is to go to the Nigerian ambassador to that country, because he/she must give me his/her blessings before I start the business. Before I pay for the shop, the ambassador must be aware. They will give me a lawyer who is on ground there and assist me to register my business. The host countries have been nice. Fashion is universal.

Once they like what you are doing, they allow you. It might take time for them to adapt to your style but they will accept you. The first outlet I opened outside the country was in Ghana.

Initially, it was not easy. It took almost a year before the business started growing.

Does that mean the market in Nigeria is saturated?

No. you must spread your wings. It is not about money. Let people have access to good clothes.

When I went to Kenya, the people there are used to western way of dressing. So I gave them Afro-Centric, something that has to do with Africa and they are buying.

How will you compare fashion in Nigeria with other countries?

Nigeria is a bigger market but you still have to spread. Nigeria is number one in terms of fashion in Africa. We are f a r advanced

than all other African countries. Our men and women dress well.

Do you design yourself?

Yes, I design myself. It is just like a writer. You have to keep writing. One has to keep coming with more ideas. You have to keep thinking as a designer. The day you stop thinking, you remain stagnant.

Are you thinking of diversifying?

Not now. I want to concentrate on clothing. If I rush to other things, it might distract me. I want to consolidate on clothing.

What are your regrets?

No regret. I have worked so hard. There is time for everything. It is a natural process. Here, people want to become like MUDI overnight, but it is not possible. You must start the way I started. Some people do not believe in hard work.

They want to cut corners.

Based on my experience, I get to work at 7:30am every morning. So if you are a designer and you get to your office by 11am, we can't be in the same level. If I drive better cars than you who is also a designer, you must check yourself whether you are also putting more efforts into your work. It is simple.

A lot of people are making mockery of the profession.

Anytime I complain, some people think I am just criticising but it is not so.

Have you ever been embarrassed?

That was 1994. A military guy gave me cloth to make for him, but unfortunately, I delayed. Then, I was just growing and had no experience. The guy came to my shop, pulled me out and embarrassed me outside. I almost wept.

Most of our male designers always claim they are passionate about the job and hardly have time to settle down in marriage. How have you been coping as a designer and family man?

It has been challenging managing both. There are times I sleep in the office working because I have to make sure I distribute works to the outlets. So you can hardly have time for the family but I make sure I still give time to my wife. On Sundays, I create time for my family. And every end of the year, we must travel out for holiday.

You are in a profession where women are attracted to you, but you were able to pick a person. How did you achieve this?

I met her through this work. I saw humility in her. For someone that is humble, he or she must have respect. She is natural. She is Yoruba but her mum is from Ghana. Where there is love, you tolerate each other. When I met her, she was quite younger than me. My friends were saying she was too young for me and is not my level, but I insisted on marrying her.

Many designers complain that one of the challenges is staff. What is your relationship with your workers?

You must be nice to them. There are some designers who can't help their tailors when they need help. They deliberately underpay their tailors. One needs to be nice and people will always want to work with you. If your staff has accommodation problem and you can't help, how do you expect him to be productive? Though no matter how good or nice you are, some staff can be ungrateful.

Most of your designs are for men, don't you design for the women?

I used to, but I stopped a few years ago, around February 2001.

Why? The pressure was becoming too much. But I have a couple of reasons. One, women are too emotional. When you are making clothing for them, they are emotional about how they choose their designs and their clothes.

Then there are also some who want more than designing.

They will come to your office and serve as a distraction and with schemes to entrap you. That is too much of a distraction from work, and I would rather not deal with them.

Women are complicated, even in design. Women buy more for less. From a business perspective, I would rather make clothes for men. Men on the other hand buy less for more value, they are better shoppers.

Some people say your clothes are expensive for the average person. How true is this?

Good things come with good value. I don't make my clothes for a certain market. I design to make good clothes that look good and make you feel good about having spent that value. It is value for money. I produce a good outfit, with good fabrics, good design and ensure good finishing and I put the price tag. I don't consider the personality when designing. People may have that belief that my clothes are expensive, that's very subjective. I ensure that a lot of finesse is put into my designs. My designs are painstakingly made. But above all, good things don't come easy.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Glamour

44

Social

ADETUTU AUDU (E-mail: crownkool@yahoo.com, Tel: 08023849036)

Carverton Helipcopter boss, Remi Makanjuola, welcomes grandchild

C

HIEF Remi Makanjuola, the Lagos businessman behind Carverton Helicopters, is elated. The reason we gathered, is that his son, Bode, who got married to Moyo, Creative Director, Kareema Mak Fashion label and younger sister of Moji, the exwife of Gbenga Obasanjo, is now a proud father of a baby girl.

The new baby is the first for the couple after six years of marriage, and was delivered at a hospital abroad last weekend.

Moyo and Bode Makanjuola now rank among the hottest couples in town. Bode and his brother, Rotimi, are heirs to the Carverton Group and one can imagine the joy that overwhelmed the household.

Chief Makanjuola has continued to wax stronger in his line of business, with Carverton Helicopters as one Nigeria's most successful indigenous helicopter companies; and it made history as the first in the rotary sub sector to start international operations.

•Lola's father Mr. Omotayo) with Peter

About Lola Omotayo’s surprise birthday soiree

T

HOSE who think Peter Okoye of P-Square fame has left Lola Omotayo, the mother of his fiveyear-old son, Cameron, in the lurch, may need to have a re-think.

Going by the love and affection that the hip-hop sensation displayed at the surprise birthday bash he organised for the mother of his son, the lovebirds are still waxing strong in love. This is coupled with the news making the rounds

•Remi

Dumebi Kachukwu, wife expectant

Maureen EmanalomAhize rocks baby bump

D

UMEBI Kachukwu, the multi-millionaire father of four and ex-husband to Naeto C's older sister, Somachi Chikwe, is in one of his best moments. The Abuja-based businessman is expecting his first child with new wife, Ikeme Kachukwu. The couple got married in June 2011.

Not many people will forget the celebrated but crashed romance between the Abuja businessman and Somachi, daughter of former Minister for Aviation and Nigerian Ambassador to Ireland. The ex-couple has since moved on, with Dumebi remarrying last year, and Somachi relocating abroad with her four children, products of the union.

M

•Amaka Yomi

Amaka Araraume savours marital bliss

I

•Dumebi

that the media friendly lady is carrying the second child of the music sensation.

Sunday, September 2 will not be forgotten in a hurry by friends, family and well-wishers of the love-birds as they stormed West Fosters, Queens Drive, Ikoyi, Lagos to honour Peter who threw a soiree for his heartthrob.

The attendance included family members of both Lola and Peter, including Lola's father, Mr. Omotayo, her cousins, close friends and few staff, while those who came from Peter's side included his two sisters, Lillian and Mary, cousins and friends.

The Managing Director of DANA Air, Jacky Hathiramani, was also at the party with his wife. Lola was taken unaware by her lover boy. The multiple award-winning musician had told her that only both of them were going to West Fosters to have a good time. But on their arrival, Lola was surprised to see her father and other guests who stood up to sing birthday song for her.

T is no longer news that Chiamaka, the beautiful daughter of Senator Ifeanyi Araraume, who was dumped by R&B singer Naeto C and son of former Aviation Minister, Kema Chikwe, has hooked Yomi, the son of the late First Republic Minister of Information, Chief T.O.S Benson.

The expansive compound of Chief Ifeanyi Araraume in Isiebu, Isiala Mbano, Imo State, played host to the crème de la crème of society for the traditional wedding. The white wedding took place at a Church in Central London, while the reception was at the Four Seasons Mayfair, Marylebone, London, very close to Wellington Arch, Buckingham Palace & St. James Park.

The gist is that the proprietress of A2 salon located in the heart of Abuja, is savouring marital bliss and leaving no stone unturned to make the union last.

AUREEN Emanalom is said to be expecting her first child with popular Lagos businessman Charles Ahize. The Lagos business man and the beautiful socialite got married in September 2011 after dating for a few years And to seal the wedding, Maureen, we gathered, got a BMW X6 as a prewedding gift.

Maureen is a constant fixture and companion at Trybeca, the home of leisure Ahize jointly owned and run with night life factor, Ahmed Uhwubetine, after the Chief Executive Officer of Atlantic Automobiles parted ways with his wife and mother of his children, Mercy.

A widely travelled businessman, Ahize, popularly called Charley Akpuruka, rides in some of the best cars and it is not unusual to see him driving around town in glittering automobiles that make him the cen- •Ahize tre of attraction.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Glamour

45

Anita Iseghohi plots charity baby shower O

ne-time Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria, Anita Uwagbale, now Mrs.Iseghohi, always has an ace up her sleeve. As you are reading this, the mother of two is rocking with friends and family at Posh Café, Mega Plaza,Victoria Island.

The event is the celebration of her birthday and also a charity baby shower. Anita, who runs The Baby Store, always uses the occasion of her birthday to reach out to the less-privileged. She sent out invitations during the week and encouraged attendees to bring a gift for charity.

At the end of her reign as the Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria in 2004, she quit the klieg lights only to resurface with her princecharming, Tom Iseghohi, former Managing Director of Transcorp, as both walked down the aisle to tie the knot. Now a mother of two adorable kids and armed with a degree in Business Administration from the University of Phoenix, Arizona, she has continued to prove that she is not your regular beauty queen turned sit-athome wife and mother.

Emeka Offor quits politics?

•Jim

Jim Ovia's soaring profile J

IM Ovia founded Zenith Bank in 1990 and grew it to become West Africa's second largest financial services provider by market capitalisation and asset base, before stepping down as a result of a new Central Bank of Nigeria's directive on tenure of banks' CEOs. This is no longer news.

However, the gist now making the rounds is that the bulk of the wealth of the reclusive millionaire comes largely from a massive portfolio of prime real estate in some of Nigeria's priciest neighbourhoods: Victoria-Island and Ikoyi. The shrewd banker, sources say, is moving into hospitality business. Inside sources divulged that a massive hotel is under construction. Ovia also owns Aquamarine, an exclusive boat club catering to Nigeria's wealthy folks.

B

•Anita

USINESSMA N and politician Sir Emeka Offor may have given politics a wide berth following his long absence on the political scene.

The founder of Chrome Oil Services has become a godfather of sort by virtue of his boundless financial resources. It would be recalled he was a major financier of former President Olusegun Obasanjo's campaigns. Offor singlehandedly funded the election of former Anambra State governor, Chinwoke Mbadinuju, whom he later fell out with. He threatened that the governor would not come back to office like other PDP governors and made good his threat.

Mbadinuju has been in political wilderness since then.

•Offor Sources close to the Igbo billionaire say he has quit politics and now concentrates more on his business, as his influence and freegiving nature seem to have dwindled over the years. In fact, we gathered that many who rushed to him for political support have been turned down by the controversial •Jamiu businessman.

Popular socialite Akin Temple dies A

KIN Adewale, the younger brother of billionaire businessman Otunba Mike Adenuga's wife, Titi, fondly called Akin Temple, is dead.

The late Akin in his 40s succumbed to death at Reddington Hospital, Lagos after complications arising from diabetes and high blood pressure.

Until his death, the father of two was the toast of many musicians who were always singing his praises.

•Akin

Jamiu Abiola christens baby

J

AMIU Abiola, one of the sons of the acclaimed winner of June 12 1993 presidential elections, late Chief MKO Abiola, who runs NNPC Mega station, drew Lamai dignitaries to the palatial home of the late philanthropist at Ikeja to christen the latest addition to the family last weekend.

46

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Glamour

&

OLUSEGUN RAPHEAL (08033572821) raphseg2003@yahoo.com

Dignitaries honour Chief Okafor at daughter's wedding

•Bride’s father, Chief Chika Okafor& Mrs Favour Okafor

By OLUSEGUN RAPHEAL

D •The Couple: Anthony and Nneamaka

IGNITARIES across the nation, among whom were former military President, General Ibrahim Babangida, Sen. Florence Ita-giwa, Prof. Charles Soludo and Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, recently honoured Chairman, Chickason Group, Chief Chika Okafor, as his daughter, Nneamaka, was joined in holy matrimony to her heartthrob,Anthony, at the Catholic Church of Asumption, Lagos. Guests were later treated to a lavish reception at the Civic Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos

•L-R: Mrs Bose Clarke and Mrs Gani Vigo

•L-R: Chukwuemeka Soludo and Dr Mrs Okonjo-Iweala

•Fmr Head Of State, General Ibrahim Babangida

•Bride’s mother, Mrs Eunice Ejikeme

•L-R: Prof Dora Akunyili, Senator Florence Ita-Giwa and Dr Olusegun Aganga

•L-R: Chief Mrs Henrietta Vanni and Helina Sakutu

Bishop Okonkwo marks 67th birthday •L-R: Prof Akachi Ezeigbo, Chairman of the occasion , Philip Asiodu, Lagos State Governor, Mr Babatunde Fashola Presiding Bishop of The Redeemed Evangelical Mission (TREM), Dr Mike Okonkwo and his wife, Peace, Guest lecturer, Prof. Anya O Anya and his wife, Inyang, during the 13th Mike Okonkwo Annual Lecture in Lagos .

•Chairman of the occasion , Philip Asiodu

•Guest lecturer Prof. Anya O Anya and his wife, Inyang, during the 13th Mike Okonkwo Annual Lecture in Lagos .

• L-R: Lagos State Governor, Mr Babatunde Fashola (SAN), winner of Mike Okonkwo Annual Essay Competition, Master Fego Ahia, and Presiding Bishop of The Redeemed Evangelical Mission (TREM), Dr Mike Okonkwo.

By MUYIWA HASSAN

T

HE Presiding Bishop of The Redeemed Evangelical Mission (TREM), Dr Mike Okonkwo, marked his 67th birthday in Lagos recently. The event was prestigious as important personalities including the Governor of Lagos State, Mr B a b a t u n d e R a j i Fashola(SAN), Prof. Anya O. Anya and his wife, Inyang, and Bishops of TREM from different parts of the world graced the occasion.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

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VOL 1 NO. 037

Newspaper brand management: W

From my professional stand-point, therefore, managing newspaper/magazine publication brand requires some level of professionalism and experience. In fact, I have considered managing a brand in the above mentioned brand world, much more demanding, compared to a snackbrand; because most managing executives and even pub-

get market – their traits, habits, peculiarities and expectations. I can take a bet on the argument of whether most of the newspaper/ news magazines in our local market today have a clear profile of their primary and secondary target. Most of them do not even have a properly written positioning statement. If Nigeria Tobacco Company can identify the location of a particular batch of her cigarette product in the market, identify who uses her brand, versus competition,

lishers of newspaper brands and establishments do not think they need brand managers for the success of their brands, same way other marketing-led brands/products.

Most times, this mistake takes root from the publishers themselves. The prevalent mind-set is the thinking that since they gather and publish news for mass communication, public enlightenment and information, publish adverts and sometimes - including brands/products and some market activities, run commentaries and opinion pieces on popular issues, etc., they are as good as brand managers (in fairness to them they stop at being equal to ADVERTISING AGENCIES).

Consequent upon such rather unhealthy professional assumption, they make mistakes in the consideration and handling of core and basic issues that should be treated and handled carefully, for their brand(s) to survive - APCON's WINDOW OF OPPORTUNITY added to the confusion, but we shall leave that for a later date.

As in other brands, newspaper/magazine publication brands need to be clear on their core and peripheral value essence, their target market, a proper profiling of their tar-

the average daily newspaper in this market must be clear about the profile of its reader. Now, the difference between the success rate of a properly managed brand and one taken for granted is its ability to survive down-time because every brand must go through the full course of the product life cycle.

So, NEWSWATCH is dying… …A brand that carved a niche for itself as the leader in investigative news reporting; a brand that made news reading exciting, always innovative in its offer, a brand that distinguished itself in the efficiency with which it delivered on its promise – informing and educating the reading public. NEWSWATCH took the market over and led even the daily newspapers in mass communication, public information, enlightenment and even entertainment.

We have so many threatened brands among the newspapers/magazines in the market today…because their owners do not know that, like every other brand, they need to be managed by a professional. Newspapers/ magazine –brand success depends 60 to 65% on the nonnewspapering aspect of their value essence.

T h e reason newspapers and magazines have survived the initial threat occasioned by the technological advancement in internet technology is strategic repositioning. If NEWSWATCH were to be in developed market or even as informed as its opposite type in those developed markets, the owners will not even share coffee with the present majority shareholders. The brand had built up an enviable equity that is strong enough to help it through periods of financial difficulties. We must permit the law of core competence and professionalism guide us in our endeavors, to avoid the mistakes NEWSWATCH made.

We at MC&A DIGEST will offer to take those manager-executives of our newspapers/magazines interested through the rudiments of brands management/marketing communications at a subsidized fee, to, among other benefits, help them identify the big gap between what they know and do, within the scope of their core competence as journalists and advert sales executive on the one hand, and advertising (not to mention integrated brands management plus the all-important strategic planning imperatives) on the other, at a special forum.

Next week, we shall specifically analyze the issues that led NEWSWATCH on its downward path. Please, keep doing only that which you know best.

The Newswatch case study (1)

E once wrote on the topic MANAGING A NEWSPAPER BRAND, in consideration of the peculiarities of brands in relation to their differences in the basic characteristics by which they are classified. Some practitioners have termed these peculiarities a collation of the constituent parts of a given set of brands' DNA. For purposes of proper appreciation, let us spend some time to work out a passable understanding of DNA and how it relates connects with a brand.

The dictionary explains DNA deoxyribonucleic acid – is the hereditary material in humans and almost all other organisms. Another explanation says DNA is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions specifying the biological development of all cellular life.

Wikipedia says (DNA) Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid containing the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms.

DNA is one of the major macromolecules that are essential for all known forms of life. Making the connection between the DNA concepts with a brand could be out of place, without the creative insight required for effective brand engineering. All sorts of terminologies have been thrown up in recent times by the Yuppie-Brand Managers in recent times. Some submit what is ordinarily referred to as strategic planning, as being BRAND ARCHITECTURE…hmm! No bi small thing O, Man pikin must chop.

However, linking brands' personality with the concept of DNA, for me, primarily helps the theory of the brand being a living thing – sharing similar traits, characteristics, attributes and emotions with us humans.

That further explains the sensitivity with which practitioners relate with, and treat brands. Just like in MAN, if a brand is not properly and adequately cared for, it can/ will die. By help of professional insight, brand managers pay special attention the emotional, clinical, social and physical needs of brands in their care. So, when you hear a practitioner tell you he is a brand architect, see at as a modest re-presentation of his or herself as a clinical doctor who will not like to go all the way to equate brands with humans in the totality of that classification. He/she is only putting a stop, at some point, to the personality theory of the brand.

To note, however, brands are peculiar in nature. To the extent that brands are distinct along the lines of fundamental elements as captured above, all brands cannot also be treated as same. Therefore, relating with brands requires the carefulness of a trained mind. It is even as dangerous to treat all brands equally. So we have strategic mentions such as classification of brands, brands DNA, brands in relation to (their) brand –world and their peculiarities. Paying attention to these fundamentals is why a brand architect will not relate with or treat a brand from the pharmaceutical world same way he/she will, with a brand from hospitality world. These require different sets of considerations, for proper handling. The variables – controllable and otherwise – are quite different and requires of totally different approach.

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Rita Ohai asks if women would hang their occupational boots if their husbands were wealthy enough to provide all their needs.

Would you be a ‘kept’ woman?

L

IVING a pleasurable and fulfilling life is every woman's fantasy. The romance novels they read, and happy-ever-after movies they watch only help to fan the embers of this desire.

A few wonder at the rate at which vibrant women of all ages, shapes and sizes are willing to compromise to get and stay married to a man with a large heart and an even deeper pocket.

However, in return for their money some men insist their wives give up their careers and stay, as they say, 'kept' - a compromise some women call ludicrous.

While arguments about the rationality behind basking in the glorious wealth of a rich spouse without an alternate source of income rages, Iniobong Udoede, a marriage counselor and life coach, explains the tag 'kept woman'.

“Historically, being a kept woman meant that someone was supporting the woman financially, and looking for certain favours in return. That person who was offering the support was usually a wealthy married man.

“This generally means that the woman would live a life of total comfort and luxury, provided by her husband without having to go through the stress of paying bills or getting a job. In return, she would be completely available to him and meet all his demands.”

Surprisingly, after a century of struggle for equal rights, many other females say they would give up their jobs, roll down their sleeves and spend the rest of their lives doing their spouses' bidding as long as the price is right.

Evelyn Omoregie, a wife and

•Bidemi Mark-Mordi

business woman who owns an adire shop in Egbeda, is one of them.

“If my husband becomes a billionaire tomorrow, what will I be trying to prove by working?” she asked.

“As far as I am concerned, the only reason you see many woman coming out to get jobs is because their husbands cannot support them 100 per cent. The minute the man can give a woman everything she and her children physically need, nobody will tell her to calm down.

“We were not created to struggle in this world and the very day I see that my man is up to the task, I will close my shop. It is only if he insists that I have to keep working that I will continue and I don't think he will even tell me that kind of thing in the first place,” she said.

Expressing a slightly different opinion, Charity Nwabugo, a publicist, is willing to be 'kept' on the condition that she is paid a monthly allowance and allowed to make family decisions; “There is nothing wrong with not having to work. To be realistic, it actually gives me time to invest in my relationship with my husband and the rest of our family. It is even a thing of joy to know that I don't have to worry about where the next meal will come from.

“The only problem I may have with that kind of arrangement,” she continued, “is if I am not given direct access to the cash.

He should at least make some monthly arrangements. There are certain things I may want to do with cash that I won't want to go to him for. I also will want my voice to be heard in the home since our marriage is a partnership; he brings the finance and I bring the emotional and physical support.”

Though some women would give an

arm and a limb to enjoy the fruits of their husbands' labour unhindered, others take a stand opposing this.

Ngozi Agbara, a woman who believes in the need to pursue personal goals regardless of the circumstance, aired a different view when she stated, “Having a man who can take care of you as a woman is every girl's dream. But the fact remains that no matter how much we want to be pampered, we still need to have something to hold on to as the fruit of our labour.

“We have personal goals that we will want to achieve and staying at home cannot make those dreams come true.

When our sole purpose in life is to wake up in the morning, look good for our husband and do only the things he tells us to do, after a while we will feel like properties.

“And once another human being knows he has that kind of control over you, there is no way he will not take advantage of you.”

Asking Mojisola Akanbi, a banker, the same question was akin to grating on a sore nerve as she exploded, “That is ridiculous! So if I want to buy my pant and bra, I will go and beg for money and if my sanitary pad finishes, I will go and kneel down for money again? If that is the case, what did I get an education for? Why did God give me a brain?

“You cannot tell me that a man who is married to that kind of woman will appreciate what he has at home because you are not making any contribution to the family. It will just give him the authority to walk over you like a doormat.”

As the views on the benefits and disadvantages of living the life of a 'kept' woman differ, legal practitioners state

that such a union should be entered with caution and a clear picture of the future in mind.

Barrister Tayo Mabogunje says, “The law does not have a special provision for couples who decide that it is best for the wife to live off of her husband. What counts is that they are married in the court of law, everything else about how you want to run your marriage is your business as long as no form of abuse is involved.

“Since the woman knows the kind of commitment she is entering, it will be safe for her if she can get her husband to write a Will so that she will have something to defend herself with later in life. It will be wise too for her to store some money in a reserved account,” she stated.

Also giving a sound advice, Mrs. Agnes Ogba, a grandmother, seamstress and retired headmistress, says, “Nobody knows the future, people make all kinds of promises which they do not intend to keep. If she makes the mistake of living with an abusive man, nothing will stop him from killing her. If he is a flirt, she should better be prepared to turn her house to a hotel since she does not have a say in the home.

“And even if she prays for the man to die and he eventually does, the relations of the man can attack her, and if no legal provision was made she will lose everything.

“Therefore, it is always wise for a woman, no matter how well-to-do her husband is, to own some small business or have a job on the side that will bring in money no matter how little it is. It will give her some level of independence and a feeling of confidence. It makes her realise that if the money becomes unavailable tomorrow, she will still be able to survive.”

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9 , 2012

New WOMAN with

The art of being a ‘kept’ woman A

NY woman who dares to suggest that it's OK to live off a rich man is likely to be dismissed as a traitor by feminists.

Yet this is exactly the lifestyle promoted in a new book by Abigail Bosanko. Though the novel is fictional, the author was 'kept' by her husband, an investment fund manager, in an elegant Edinburgh, London mews house while she wrote it. Here, we present Abigail's guide to becoming a kept woman. . .

Know what you want Before you even contemplate being a 'kept' woman, know what kind of man you want. If you want a business mogul, don't settle for a farmer, even if he has a string of shops.

Be confident. Be an intriguing 21st century woman. You want this man to fall in love with your beautiful mind. Obviously he's got to be wealthy, but he's also got to be discreet.

Showy wealth is a definite no-no.

Lots of gold jewellery shows someone who needs to be in a credit card club to feel financially confident. All a man needs is a beautiful watch, or a signet ring with the family crest.

Have a skill Choose an unusual skill. Play polo, or golf but not football. Men see women who like foo tball as spies in the camp. Have an intimate knowledge of politics and business ethics, play an instrument, learn about wine or speak a n u n u s u a l l a n g u a g e .

Knowledge of food is always sensual.

Spend time on yourself T h i s i s s o m e t h i n g p u r i t a n s disapprove of, but spending time

on yourself - doing your nails, having a massage or a facial, or even just wearing your favourite perfume - is all good for your selfimage and self esteem.

Kissing with too much enthusiasm

I

major source of finance when the well runs dry. Expect a single, beautiful pearl, elegant jewellery or a race-horse.

What to do with his money

Terms Be bold, be daring, be honest. You need a joint bank account - you set the limit - plus your own personal savings account.

He can buy you a chic mews house, a penthouse flat - or, of course, you can move into his mansion. Ask for accounts at your favourite shops. You also need treats such as manicures, pedicures, chocolates and flowers. Exotic holidays and weekend breaks are essential.

Gifts You should ask for gifts that are original. These can be a

YETUNDE OLADEINDE

molaralife@yahoo.com

Clothes Nurture your curve. There is nothing wrong with being a curvy woam, just learn how to make people look at you the right way every time you enter a room.

Wear elegant, simple, well-cut clothes, such as shawl-collared suits which hug your curves, in neutral tones. And don't forget your heels. Even if you feel like 90denier, wear something silky that makes you feel good.

49

It goes without saying that you will revamp your wardrobe. Keep champagne, chablis, caviar, organic bread, bacon and quails' eggs in your fridge.

A bit of philanthropy is essential too, so set up covenants to your favourite charities and feel charitable towards bona fide people. They might be your protection someday.

Send your family on their dream holiday, and treat your man to a surprise trip on Concorde or the best seats at a major international sporting event.

What to say to critics Always keep a bottle of champagne in the fridge for your disapproving female friends. They will be extremely envious, so kill them with kindness.

Never apologise about your chosen lifestyle. Don't brag about it either; it's not dignified.

If you have to, know when to end it If you enter this arrangement and you find that you feel worse than you should feel, you can insist on an expiry date. It could be a year, or a day maybe, but you decide when. Do not return your gifts.

When it ends, put all your overflow cash into a reserve personal account and go on holiday for a month.

Go somewhere romantic and beautiful, and take time to think.

When you return, come back with a rock-solid business plan and launch your business.

Source: Google

T was a get-together and everyone was in a relaxed mood.

Then he stepped into the hall and this queen lost control.

She was all over the gentleman and some fellows just had to rescue him. What a show of shame! Has it gotten to this level?

Desperation is not an excuse, as a matter of fact it is at this point that you should be cautious and be sure it is exactly what you are looking for.

When you find love, what are you going to do with it? First, you need to be sure that it is what you think it is. At that stage you would obviously want to kiss your sweetheart and fall deeper and deeper into the love mesh. Entangled? Yes, that has been the romance of your dreams - that romantic getaway, and you try to create more sparks. Kissing is often an overlooked art when it comes to seducing your partner, but it actually plays a crucial role.

It sends all kinds of messages flying in different directions.

From the hello-kiss to asking how her day was, then it graduates to the passionate, playful and longer kiss. Usually, it could start with a peck or two. Then you can graduate to a real kiss and then a full or partial hug. It actually takes a process, and like a memorable gift, you need to unwrap your emotions gradually.

Unfortunately, our girls kiss with all their mouths wide opened signifying that they are asking for more. That is unladylike. Even if he is the only one giving you nightmares, you don't have to make it so obvious. Put up some defence (pretence) and ask him to give you time to think about it. Don't act stupid or cheap.

For girls it's better to delay the game and not just jump into it recklessly. You must make him sweat for your affection. Don't make yourself so cheap and accept a dumb kiss just for the asking. Your self-worth is better appreciated when you show less enthusiasm at the beginning and gradually, you may just consider the idea if it is worthwhile.

Some think that the love arena has become too competitive and you just cannot afford to beat around the bush for too long.

Of course, that is not really true. It is the common mistake that we usually make, settling for less and always mindful that someone's going to take away the Romeo that you so desperately want to take. The hard truth is that desperation is not the answer. No matter how desperate you are, you may never catch a slippery Romeo. So it is better to look very well before you leap.

Besides, guys do not like or appreciate girls that do not have a mind of their own. It is better to make up your mind about a guy and see if he fits into your overall picture of love, romance and the future you hope to build together. If you take a deeper look, you would discover that men do not like lily-livered and over romantic babes.

When you are not in too much of a hurry, you get to discover the character you are dealing with. The process known as courtship allows for the intimacy you deserve as well as one that registers naturally. Here, it is quite easy for the one you are attracted to toe this love line from time to time.

Old school! Yes, that is the way modern lovebirds would sum this up. Things have certainly changed and everyone is in so much hurry. The question on the lips of this group of people is why you need to waste a whole year dancing around one silly love question. Why should anyone pretend to be a saint when you can take a short-cut and achieve the same result?

Also remember that it must be on your terms. Don't start with the impression that you must always settle for less. “Anytime I want to start a relationship there are certain things I look out for in the lady. They are very important and the babe must satisfy these characteristics at least 70 or 80 per cent.”

Yes, that came from eavesdropping and getting info from the usual boys' talk. Everyone in that circle vowed never to settle for less. The arguments moved from the fact that if they were going to empty their pockets and be at the receiving end at the beginning of the game , then it is wise to start the haggling from a point where the bargain would still be right. On the other hand, you are the queen and so you must be in charge. So, the big question is why you must settle for less. Start from the point where you are at the advantage and if you must sacrifice anything it would be just a little, something minimal.

“A friend once told me that she opted for a guy who was not very good looking so that she would not lose him.” But then who told her that ugly guys are not Casanovas. Sometimes, they can be worse and because they have caught a trendy babe, this can be used as bait for others. I think it is going to be very painful if you have been kissing an ugly guy for long and then he disappoints you at the end of the day. The memories from that kind of experience can be really terrible, but then it is part of the sacrifices that we all have to make.

You choose the rules and apply it to your own situation. If you must, then it is better to kiss with your eyes open and maintain eye contact. Do it in private, but again how private can you get these days with the internet as a naughty ally?

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Issues

HE gains of President Jonathan’s diplomacy are often overshadowed by misrepresentations of the size of his delegation, ignorance about the value of his foreign travels, and the positives of his constant engagement with the international community. I have had cause on more than one occasion to expose the lie about published figures about the size of his delegations. I intend to deal here with what is overlooked.

Given the damage that the Nigerian interest suffered a few years ago, the same interest needed to be clarified and strengthened. We are living witnesses to that short, critical, phase in Nigeria’s foreign relations when the country failed to show up at important international meetings, lost many positions in multilateral associations, forsook obligations, and found itself in a situation where many of our allies started wondering what had gone wrong with Nigeria. President Jonathan has brought the much-needed change in this arena, and has launched an operational framework for Nigerian diplomacy, which continues to strengthen the place of Nigeria in the world.

In 2010, as Acting President, he embarked on a number of diplomatic shuttles, as part of a deliberate attempt to reassure the world that Nigeria was well and secure despite the trauma of succession that it had just experienced and the divisive politics of zoning that threatened to scuttle the country’s political transition. Many may have forgotten, selective amnesia being a dangerous national malaise, that President Jonathan’s statesmanship, his humility, and the maturity that he displayed during that momentous season proved to be a strong stabilising influence on a nervous Nigerian community. He had promised that Nigeria’s next general elections to be conducted under his watch, in 2011, even with him as a contestant, will be free and fair, and that nobody’s blood was worth being shed for him to win an election.

That promise was kept. The elections were not only free and fair, they were adjudged the best ever in Nigeria’s modern history. The achievement was not merely one of legitimacy; the applause from the international community was redemptive. Nigeria, at that point, almost a typical case study of the challenges of democratic consolidation, became yet another success story. President Jonathan has since taken many steps further to build on this.

One of the very early steps was a four-day, August 2011, seminar on Nigeria’s Foreign Policy Process, with inputs from the Presidential Advisory Committee on Foreign Affairs led by Chief Emeka Anyaoku. The seminar and the foreign policy experts, recommended, inter alia, a robust diplomacy, driven by Nigeria’s economic interests. This accent on self-interest had shown up during the Obasanjo years.

It reflected an increasing awareness that Nigeria’s foreign policy should not be driven by the vainglory of being a certain brother’s keeper, or the Father Christmas pretensions that dominated it for years, rather, hardheaded pragmatism. The world had changed a lot since Nigeria distributed its oil wealth to other countries and asked for nothing in return. The new strategy called for partnership, mutual respect, enhanced and innovative diplomacy, and constructive exchange.

In this context, President Jonathan leads a foreign policy process that has been fruitful and meaningful, and properly linked to domestic policy.

His foreign travels fall into three categories: state visits (formal state to state activity), courtesy visits (attendance at ceremonies, burials, inaugurations) and working visits (trips to attend multilateral, bilateral and regional meetings). Each of these visits is official, the ultimate gainer is Nigeria, and it is well worth noting that since his assumption of office, President Jonathan has not gone on any unofficial or private trip abroad. It is a trite point that a strong foreign policy process, one which involves constant

The gains of Jonathan’s diplomacy

• President Goodluck Jonathan at the burial of former Ethiopian Prime Minister, Meles Zenawi, recently.

By Reuben Abati

interaction and openness brings a country much goodwill, promotes understanding and strengthens the country’s friendship with other countries.

Closed countries are often treated with suspicion; their leaders are subjects of mystery. President Jonathan has worked very actively in the last two years to promote Brand Nigeria.

His foreign travels are usually, carefully chosen. He has equally played host to Heads of State and Governments and delegations from around the world including high profile visits

by Britain’s David Cameron, Germany’s Angela Merkel, and US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton.

On all of these occasions, Nigeria’s interest is strategically promoted. The President is accompanied on each of his trips by members of the National Assembly and Ministers who attend the relevant meetings and make necessary inputs for follow up action.

Trade and investment always top the agenda. The President personally leads the campaign of inviting investors to set up industries in Nigeria, and produce locally if they wish to take advantage of Nigeria’s huge market potential. Interestingly, Nigeria’s domestic security challenges have not proved to be a disincentive.

Foreign Direct Investment generated in the last year alone according to UNCTAD’s 2012 Investment Report was $8.9 billion making Nigeria No 1 in Africa and a top quartile investment destination in the world. During a recent trip to Rio, Brazil, Nigeria signed an MOU with Electrobras to invest in the generation of 10, 000 MW; since then, there have been subsequent visits to Nigeria by Brazilian investors interested in infrastructure, food and beverages and consumer items. In October 2011, when President Jonathan met with the Australian investment community in Perth, on the sidelines of CHOGM, the Australia-Nigeria Trade and Investment Council (ANTIC) was established to facilitate the flow of investments into agriculture, mining and the petrochemicals sector. Australian Council members have since visited Nigeria, and there is an agreement in place to provide technical support for the local mining sector.

In April 2012, the President, in the course of an official visit to Germany, got Siemens to commit to investment in power generation, and turbine maintenance and repair in Nigeria. Generally, there has been massive support from governments and investors for the President’s policies and strong interest to invest in the country.

The corollary to this is the search for opportunities for Nigerian investors in foreign markets. The President often times travels with Nigerian businessmen who are looking for in-roads into foreign markets: the Nigerian private sector is involved in banking and insurance in Rwanda and other parts of Africa (Access Bank, IGI, GTBank), in manufacturing in Ethiopia, and Southern Africa (the Dangote Group, LUBCON) and so on. Such investors often require the support of the Nigerian government, which has been readily and consistently provided by the Jonathan administration.

The class of Nigerians who have probably benefitted most or who stand to do so, would be the Nigerians in the Diaspora. Wherever President Jonathan goes in the world, he insists on the local embassy organising a meeting with the Nigerians in the country. He likes to exchange views with them, find out how they are faring and even ask them to raise issues they may want him to take up with the host country. Such issues usually range from immigration to Nigerian issues, particularly absentee voting, and in one instance, request for the airlifting at Government expense of Nigerians who are willing to return to home, but cannot afford to do so.

President Jonathan never fails to acknowledge the importance of Nigerians abroad and the invaluable resource that they represent. To prove the point, many members of his government were sourced from the Diaspora. The Jonathan administration has always had cause to defend the interest of distressed Nigerians in the Diaspora in pursuit of citizen diplomacy, famously the evacuation of distressed Nigerians from Libya (more than 2,000 between March and November 2011) and Egypt (more than 1, 000 in January 2012). It continues to engage with several development partners to

ensure managed migration in the overall interests of all sides, including Nigerians. The fifth Nigeria/EU dialogue on Migration and Development was held in Abuja in January 2012. Thus, the welfare of Nigerians in their relations with other countries has also been given the top most priority. Government has stood up to all countries in upholding the principle of reciprocity and by insisting that Nigerians be treated fairly.

Multilateral institutions usually have vacancies to be filled by nationals from all over the world. Even when the positions are rotated on a regional basis, the relevant countries still have to compete for such positions. It is not always an easy struggle as each country jostles for the positions with the highest possible visibility or influence.

It requires sharp diplomacy to secure the support of other countries and to get the required number of votes for your candidate. When your country is not eligible for the post, you become one of the brides to be wooed to deliver the vote in favour of a particular country’s candidate. It sounds like routine diplomacy, but it is high-wire politics. In the past one year, President Jonathan has devoted considerable energy to lobbying and campaigning for Nigerian candidates to get into positions in international organizations. The achievement in this regard has been remarkable: Dr. Bernard O. Aliu, President of the Executive Council of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) based in Montreal, Canada; Mrs. Theodora Oby Nwankwo, member, UN Committee on the Elimination of All forms Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW); Dr. Aisha Laraba Abdullahi, AU Commissioner for Political Affairs.

After three unsuccessful attempts, Nigeria finally broke the electoral jinx at the AU for the first time in ten years.

Mrs. Salamatu Sulaiman, Commissioner Political, Peace and Security at the ECOWAS Commission; Nigeria’s election to the Executive Board of UNESCO for a term of four years in November 2011; Nigeria’s election to the Governing Board of the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP); Nigeria was also elected to

“The gains of President Jonathan’s diplomacy are often overshadowed by misrepresentations of the size of his delegation, ignorance about the value of his foreign travels, and the positives of his constant engagement with the international community. I have had cause on more than one occasion to expose the lie about published figures about the size of his delegations.”

the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) on October 24, 2011; Election of Mr. Adamu Mohammed, a Deputy Commissioner of Police, as the Vice President of INTERPOL representing Africa at a meeting held in Hanoi, Vietnam in October, 2011; Re-election of the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Hon. Mohammed Bello Adoke, SAN to the International Law Commission on November 17, 2011.

The election of Dr. Chile Eboe-Osuji as one of the six judges of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in a tightly contested election in New York in November, 2011 and the election last year, of Nigeria as the first President of the Executive Board of the United Nations Entry for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (UN Women).

Our embassies abroad are also better organised. Ambassador Gbenga Ashiru, Jonathan’s appointee as Minister of Foreign Affairs, is a career diplomat who has been doing a good job of actualising the new framework for Nigerian diplomacy. He is collegial in approach, and supportive of Mr. President’s vision. Career diplomats used to complain about their jobs being taken over and messed up by politicians. This year, President Jonathan handed over letters of commission to the country’s new set of ambassadors, mostly career diplomats, and because he has thus encouraged the professionalisation of the diplomatic service, career diplomats are no longer complaining. Many who have no foreign postings have achieved their career dreams as ambassadors-in-situ; our diplomats are reciprocating by showing higher levels of enthusiasm for the job. Nothing can be more damaging to a country’s foreign policy process than a distracted professional foreign affairs cadre.

We have a leader who is respected by the international community.

When TIME international magazine named President Jonathan one of the 100 Most Influential leaders of the world in 2012, a fitting acknowledgement of his achievements, and the only African leader to be so recognised, the warm citation was written by the Liberian President.

Our President also holds one of the highest national honours in Liberia.

In the last year, he has also been honoured by people, governments and institutions in Nigeria, Ghana, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago.

At the regional level, Nigeria’s voice now rings loud and clear; its interventions are taken more seriously.

President Jonathan served as ECOWAS Chairman for two years, and received great applause at the end of his tenure in February 2012. Under his watch, he led both Nigeria and ECOWAS to put an end to the threatened mayhem in Cote D’Ivoire when Laurent Gbagbo refused to hand over power, after the 2010 Presidential elections in that country. He helped to check a similar crisis of self-perpetuation in office in Niger, and has provided support for democratic efforts in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Senegal, Mali, Ghana and Guinea Bissau. He was one of the first African leaders to recognize the National Transitional Council of Libya and ask Muammar Gaddaffi to quit. Since handing over as ECOWAS chair, President Jonathan has remained a respected voice among his brother Heads of State. At the moment, he is a co-mediator in the crisis in Mali. The relationship between Nigeria and other countries in the region, particularly Ghana, Chad, Cote d’Ivoire, Republic of Benin, Niger, Senegal and Liberia has never been stronger.

Commentators often insist that greater emphasis should be placed on domestic policy, not foreign policy. Our new framework links both strategically.

The investments that are flowing into Nigeria create jobs, deepen competition within the market, push the drive for necessary infrastructure further, and on all fronts, Brand Nigeria is strengthened.

Dr. Abati is Special Adviser (Media and Publicity) to President Jonathan.

THE ARTS

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Reliving The Village Headmaster days Y

OU are at a forum and Modupe Onabanjo Obazee stands up to introduce herself as the only stained glass artist in Nigeria. What is it all about ? The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings. Although traditionally made in flat panels and used as windows, the creations of modern stained glass artists also include three-dimensional structures and sculpture.

Stained glass, as art and a craft , requires the artistic skill to conceive an appropriate and workable design, and the engineering skills to assemble the piece. In some parts of Europe they constitute the major form of pictorial art to have survived. In this context, the purpose of a stained glass window is not to allow those within a building to see the world outside or even to admit light but rather to control it. It is for this reason that stained glass windows have been described as ‘illuminated wall decorations’.

Still smart and bubbling with a lot of energy, the woman in her early 70’s is indeed a woman of many parts. Obazeee is proud to tell you that if she has the opportunity to turn back the clock of time , she would want to play all these roles once more. Ask her what it means to be a stained glass artist in Nigeria and she replies this way. “It’s beautiful. Every day, I work from 9am to 5pm when I have a project from my

Modupe Onabanjo Obazee is a stain glass artist and a member of the cast of the old Village Headmaster. In a recent encounter she spoke with Yetunde Oladeinde about her passion, achievements and her dreams as a septuagenarian clients.”

So how did she discover this line of business, you ask? “I was in the United States of America and I was at the Blueband Conservatory of Music. Here I was doing a course in Fine Arts and my principal invited me to work in her office. I became very busy at a point and I couldn’t continue with the Fine art. She then asked me to come to her house on a Sunday to fill in the gaps.

For Obazee it was a great idea and she also found another surprise waiting for her. “When I got to her house, I discovered that she had stained glass. So I said okay, stain glass is going to be my major. That was in 1985 and I didn’t finish training until 1987".

Is the stain glass business lucrative in Nigeria? “It’s an exclusive thing and I supply churches, homes especially people who have imbibed the culture from abroad. They want to beautify their home or the dance hall. To produce a set for a new home for instance takes about three months to produce”, informs Obazee who turns 71 in September.

One other interesting aspect of Obazee’s life is her career as an actress with the Village Headmaster TV series. “I felt very sad when I heard of Ambassador Segun

Olusola’s death. Over the years, he achieved a lot more than the average person. But with his concern for Village Headmaster, I would say that he did not achieve what he wanted to do recently.”

Obazee stated that: “Olusola eventually got the exclusive right to it and we were hoping to have something exciting to look forward to. Then he told us that we were about to start the Village Headmaster again this year. We met at a wedding, just before he was sick and it feels so sad that he just couldn’t do what he wished for.”

She went down memory lane to recall how it started. “Of course, Segun Olusola wasn’t there, it wasn’t a personal thing. He created it, set it up and the producers in NTA were in charge. I was more connected with his wife, Elsie Olushola who was part of the cast. So with that connection I was able to link up with Village Headmaster.”

She continues: “Interestingly, I have always had a feeling that he was talking about his village and the concept was so beautiful and unique at that point. He must have been a very observant young person and he was relating his village and a lot of people identified with it and still wants it.”

•Obazee

The septuagenarian recalls how she was auditioned and became part of the Village Headmaster family. “I was recommended

by Mr Eloziri. He came to the NTA tennis club to play, he visited and wasn’t a member of the club. Usually, there was this rule that the first person would play with the next person, even if the next is a world champion.”

Obazee got there first and he was next. She narrated further: “But he said Oh no! I want to play with a man. I said I am a man and I took off my wrap around skirt, then I said see I am in pants just like you. He was happy and he said you are a good actress. Then he said why don’t you come to

NTA but not to Village Headmaster actually. He wanted me to be part of the drama group there.”

Luck, however, smiled in her director that fateful day because she went there on the day when the Village Headmaster cast members were at work. “So he said do that for the time being. I played various roles but after some time, they said they were auditioning for the role of Mrs. Eleyinmi. I was not expected to be there but I went there and I just took part in the audition. I came out the best for the production and everyone objected, saying that I wasn’t meant to be there. But Mrs. Elsie Olushola and Ibidun Allison (Amebo) said you did so well, don’t mind them.”

Let the kids play National Troupe of Nigeria (NTN) explores ways of exposing young actors and actresses to international arena, reports Edozie Udeze

•Hansel and Gretel being demonstrated on stage

T

HERE is no doubt that the Creative Station stage theatre introduced three years ago for the children by the National Troupe of Nigeria has begun to have the desired impact. Last week, a command performance took place at the National Theatre, Iganmu, Lagos, to usher in an era of total theatre for the kids who are on summer break.

The atmosphere was bright as children practically took over the

stage to display and demonstrate what was taught them for over a month. And as they did so, the audience, comprising mainly of their parents and theatre enthusiasts, were totally awed and amazed to see the kids in their best elements on stage, dancing, delivering their lines perfectly and generally showing that they can be their own masters if properly tutored and wellguided and groomed. The idea of the creative station for children, like

the Artistic Director of the National Troupe of Nigeria (NTN) Mr. Martin Adaji, keeps saying is to help keep the children busy while they are on holidays. It is also to encourage them to love the art and see if they can find their vocation in the profession.

This was basically why this year’s show was more grandiose.

The kids were made to experiment with some local dances in order to let them understand their own lo-

cal traditional values. They were made to dance Ibibio, Igbo, Fulani, Yoruba and other dances. It was their appearance in the local costumes that impressed the audience most.

According to Adaji, the idea of interspersing the local dances with some foreign ones was to put the kids in the proper mood to appreciate both ends of the art. And because the children will be expected in the United Kingdom any moment from now to be part of an international show, it became extremely necessary to introduce a foreign play to them. “Let them explore what theatre is like elsewhere,” Adaji said.

This was primarily why Hansel and Gretel, written by Ian Faraday and Andrew Oxspring, was chosen.

Part of the experiment for the international show in the UK is that every participating country should present a show outside its own shores. This is essentially to give a global clout and outlook to the children theatre jamboree. The Perma-

nent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Culture, Mrs. Ibukun Odusote, who stood in for the minister, assured that Nigerian kids will henceforth be exposed to international theatre competitions.

“It is part of the transformation agenda of Mr. President,” she said.

“And we have to show the world that we have brilliant and bright kids who can showcase us anywhere in the world. I was just coming back from South Africa where such a show took place. And our kids were at their best. This is why we are giving our best kudos to the Troupe,” she said.

In choosing Hansel and Gretel as the stage show, what was uppermost in the mind of Josephine Igberaese, the programme anchor person, was to bring out sound moral lessons for the kids. The story is about a poor woodcutter and his wife who had two kids named Hansel and Gretel. The two Continued on page 52

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Arts/Reviews

Let the play go on

Books

In the spirit of the word

N

•Odusote

•Adaji

Continued from page 51 kids were too wise for their ages. However, before long, they’d lost their mother.

That was the moment their many woes and nightmares began.

Their father’s second wife did not like them, hence she quickly sent them out into the woods. There they lost their way back home. They tried all they could but still did not find their way home. After many long stay in the woods, a witch discovered and put them inside a cage. She was ready to kill them both. While she held Hansel in readiness to cook him in a hot water, Gretel carefully pushed her inside the water from behind. This was the end of the witch. Now dead, the kids discovered a treasure in her cottage. They took this home, only to discover stepmother was dead an their father was so lonely. He was not only happy to welcome them home, they now had plenty to eat and live on. It was a momentous moment.

No doubt, the play excited the kids so

much that they laughed and clapped endlessly.

The lesson was too clear to them: Be smart at all times and stick together even if you are in the midst of turbulence.

But beyond the lesson in the play, it was obvious that this year’s show was not as exciting and as rich as the previous editions where the kid actors and actresses were more at home with their lines. It was discovered that the dexterity on the part of the kids, this time around, was a bit lukewarm. It was too early in the day to have lost or allowed the ones trained previously to abandon the programme.

Secondly, it was discovered that at N15,000 per a kid as performing fee, not too many parents could afford to indulge their children even if the show appealed to them. As Mrs. Odusote had assured, it is hoped that next edition will see the ministry offsetting or subsidising the amount in order to give more kids the opportunity to explore their talents.

If the kids are to be exposed to the global stage arena, they should be offered better opportunity at all levels.

Anambra State University hosts literature conference

T

HIS is a season of seminars and conferences on literature, language and communications in Nigeria.

Just recently, the authorities of Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) Ile-Ife, Osun State, concluded their own conference on Literature in a digilatised era. It offered all the participants the opportunity to seek new ways to tap into the internet and other related ICT to improve on the goals of making literature as relevant as ever.

It is in the same vein that the English Department of the Anambra State University, Uli, is calling for papers for its first international conference on language and literature.

The theme of the conference is Language, Literature and National Consciousness. The aim is primarily to underscore the role of literary

By Edozie Udeze

affairs in the conscience of the nation. Beyond that too, it is to examine what writers and novelists are churning out now and how apt they are for an emerging society like Nigeria where the internet has suddenly become the norm and a way of life.

The deadline for submission of the abstracts for the conference is slated for 10th October, 2012. Abstracts should not be more than 400 words a nd should also be sent to englishdepartment56@yahoo.com All submissions will be treated with dispatch so that no one will be delayed before the conference proper. In hosting its first literature conference, the Anambra State University is proving that it is abreast with the situation in the country and will want to make a statement.

Poetry W

ATER, water everywhere But not a soul to save So so sad on that plane Once heaven-bound Solo with several souls Multifarious destinies on a trajectory With no salvation aloft No one soared For safety In that afternoon Of many children Who lost The extravagance of their noons On that tarmac of unhinged flames Each and all blazed like flickers Of individual dooms Seeking the balm Of heaven in the plenty Of watery flow bordering and beneath All we could do

Children of Sosoliso Awed in frozen eyes Limbs leashed Was sigh As one boy flesh after girl flesh Redefined barbecue In the savagery of fire If we could coalesce them The teary waves Soft dew of sky The humid drops from eaves If we could muster genius sympathy In conjured hoses And wet these children Back to limbs and eyes and hearts Ignited unlike the forged incinerator

By Sam Omatseye

IGERIA has in recent years witnessed a massive growth in number of churches. The country expectedly has been rated as one of the most religious worldwide.

However, while there has been numerical growth in terms of buildings and membership, there has been concern about the quality of messages preached by church leaders.

A major irony of our circumstance has been that though we are said to be a very religious country, we are also one of the most corrupt countries worldwide.

The Abandoned Gospel

by Pastor David Ololade Odubote of King of Glory’s Throne Ministry International attempts to provide a possible answer to the above contradiction. The central message of his book is that the true gospel has been abandoned for the gospel of materialism and human philosophy now being given undue emphasis by church leaders The book highlights some of the missing links in the messages being preached

By Nyinongo Menasseh Aondona

by many ministers of the gospel today. For example, it is believed that until one observes water baptism, one is not yet a Christian. The missing link is that converts have wrongly taken water baptism to be baptism into Christ. This misconception may entirely not be from the converts but from the church.

The elementary principles of Christ which every new convert must know and have as foundation are: Foundation of repentance from dead work, Faith toward God, Doctrine of laying on of hands, Doctrine of resurrection life, and Eternal Judgement.

The author noted that there are mixed multitude which started in the wilderness when the children of Israel left Egypt.

They are circumstantial unprepared immigrant in the church, who, because of lust, miracles, healing, relationship and love of someone in the church, decide to become members, but having no idea of what the church is. Just as the

m i x e d multitude were agents of bad influence, snare and confusion to the church in t h e wilderness, so also are these individuals making the mockery of the image of the church by their conducts, lifestyle, language and influence.

The abandoned gospel of genuine repentance to reformation should be given priority in the church as a cardinal focal point by the leaders. The beauty of the original church of Christ is in the originality of its beauty, which is the original gospel/mission that is handed over to us.

The book is, therefore, a compendium which a nation must use as a guide. It is a book that an individual should endeavour to have because it is incomparably rich and thoughtprovoking. It is time specific book for research, reference, a sign post and a road map for the church leadership in Nigeria and the entire universe.

Geraldine Brooks’ Pilgrims and Indians

G

ERALDINE Brooks’ new novel, “Caleb’s Crossing,” her fourth in a decade, is a short and seemingly modest historical work — no kings, no famous events — told by an equally modest narrator who does not go on to become acquainted with, say, the infant Benjamin Franklin. Bethia Mayfield’s given name means “servant of Jehovah,” and Bethia means to abide by the rules of her family and her Puritan religious affiliation. But even as she begins writing her confession on precious scraps of scavenged paper, she is transgressing the boundaries her father and older brother consider appropriate for a woman — and they have God’s word on this.

It is 1660. Bethia is part of a community that has broken away from John Winthrop’s colony in Massachusetts Bay and settled on Martha’s Vineyard. Her father is the village “liberal” who doesn’t believe in stealing from or slaughtering the local Indians, but he faces tensions from both sides.

Some of the Wampanoag are distrustful, and another influential family, the Aldens, would like to get rid of the indigenous population altogether.

Bethia’s concerns are at first domestic ones: her beloved mother has died in childbirth, leaving Bethia in charge of the baby and the household. Her father is burdened with farm work, with missionary work and with preparing his son, Makepeace, for matriculation on the mainland, at Harvard.

Bethia knows she is likely destined for an arranged marriage to a good-natured local fellow, Noah Merry. Given her upbringing, she is not entirely in touch with her feelings, but she does recognize that she is quite fond of an Indian boy she meets and talks to from time to time, Cheeshahteaumauck, the

nephew of the most powerful (and suspicious) local pawaaw, or priest-healer.

Bethia thinks it may be this friendship, and the Wampanoag rituals she has allowed herself to witness out of curiosity (or what we may call intelligence and a sense of adventure), that has caused God to punish her by killing her mother.

In “Caleb’s Crossing,” Brooks returns to the time period and some of the issues she explored in “Year of Wonders,” a novel that takes place in a 17th-century English town ravaged by the plague, told in the first person by a young servant girl. The setting of this new novel is, however, not an earthly hell but a version of paradise, fertile and beautiful. For most of the narrative, Bethia’s conflicts are internal: how can she teach herself to exist within the narrow confines of the lives women in her world are expected to lead?

The important difference between this novel and “Year of Wonders” is that in “Caleb’s Crossing” Brooks gives her narrator not only a voice but writing tools. What makes this novel utterly believable is Brooks’s mastery of the language Bethia employs in her confessional di-

ary. Bethia’s inner conflict, for example, is clearly expressed by her automatic use of phrases like “already the Lord’s Day is upon us” or “I went on, dutiful, trying to keep in mind what father preached, that all of this was God’s plan, not his, nor his father’s nor any man’s.” But she also calls sheep “tegs” and barrels “butts” and the Indians “salvages.” Her archaic usages (“misliked,” “alas”) bring the reader much more fully into her consciousness and her world than the plainer and less wellresearched style more common to popular historical novels, where the characters seem to be much like ourselves, although wearing weirder clothes. A serious historical novel like “Caleb’s Crossing” always proposes that consciousness is at least in part a function of language, and that as language changes, so does thought, understanding, identity. The triumph of “Caleb’s Crossing” is that Bethia succeeds as a convincing woman of her time, and also in communicating across centuries of change in circumstance, custom and language. She tells a story that is suspenseful and involving. It is also a story that is tragically recognizable and deeply sad.

Culled from New York Times

• Beauty pageants at the just concluded Osun/Oshogbo festival

53

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Last week Saturday after torrential rainfall, the wall built during the Fulani Jihad collapsed, Austine Tsenzughul in Bauchi reports

I

T was a rain that started like any other one. However, by the time it stopped it has almost undone the history of the Bauchi wall built in 1804.

The Nassarawa Jahun Ward of the Bauchi metropolis where the historic wall is located has become a place where many visit now to have a glimpse of the ruins. The collapse of the historic wall led to the death two people while four others were injured.

The two people killed were identified as Abdullahi Aliyu, 50,a father of five and his neighbour's wife Bilkisu Yahaya, 38.

The two daughters of the late Aliyu told our reporter amid tears that the collapse of the wall which fell on their house and killed their father was “the will of Allah SWT.'' They said they have taken the incident in their stride.

Asamau, 17 and her sister Hafsat, 15, said that their father was sleeping in his room when the wall fell on their house and killed him.

The sisters who were pulled out of the rubble along with two other survivors wept as they narrated their ordeals.

Asmau whose body was covered with red dust of the collapsed building as she spoke said: “We were sitting inside the parlour with my sister when the house started falling. My father was inside his room. He was asleep when the building collapsed on him.”

Another survivor, Mallama Jamila Salihu said she was preparing food for the wedding of a neighbour with Bilkisu in Abdullahi's compound when the incident occurred.

According to her, “I was in the kitchen when I heard the wall collapsing as it fell and there was dust everywhere. I was rescued.”

The Chairman, Bauchi Local Government Area, Sagir Baba Maji, who was represented by the Education and Social Development officer, Aminu Yaya described the incident as unfortunate and sad.

The chairman condoled with the family of

“

The end of Bauchi's historic wall

Rescuers bringing out survivals from the debrils the deceased and urged residents to build their houses at least 20 metres away from the old frail wall to avoid another disaster.

Ibrahim Saidu Jahun, the Galadiman Bauchi, said there had been signs that the wall would collapse. He attributed the incident to

the early morning rains that occurred on Saturday.

Jahun, who is the immediate past Rector of the Federal Polytechnic, Bauchi observed that people need to build their houses far

away from the wall to enable the authority to carry out repairs on it.

“It is a very sad incident and I pray Allah to grant the families the fortitude to bear the loss. It is sad but one needs to submit to Allah.”

History of the wall

According to historians, when man stopped wandering in the cause of gathering his food, he decided to live in places he considered to be safe from attacks by wild animals and inclement weather. This led him to choose caves and grooves including trees that provided “good” shelter or him.

“Man also used his new found shelter for storing his foodstuffs, weapons for hunting, farming and self defence.”

The above was an introduction by the 16th and the current Galadima of Bauchi, Ibrahim Jahun giving reasons for the construction of defence wall said to have been built about 150 years ago through slave labour around his official residence.

Located about four kilometres away from the Emir of Bauchi's palace, and about 10 kilometres from Government House, the seat of political and economic power in the heart of Bauchi, the state capital, is an historic wall.

It was built as a fence around the official residence of the Galadima, one of the indispensable traditional title holders among many in the Bauchi Emirate.

The wall around the Galadima residence which was built by the 8th Galadima had initial height of over 70 feet with about 12 feet thickness and was built on a 10 hectares plot of land.

Giving reasons for such a tall wall around residential houses, Alhaji Saidu Ibrahim Jahun who became the 16th Galadima in 2010 said “the wall was built so tall in order to secure the environment against attacks by enemies as it was in those days. It was also a symbol of authority and was also to demarcate and to show that this area belongs to a particular person, persons or even an institution. As it was in those days, there used to be wars between empires, or other authorities for territorial expansion, so people had to build such fences as means of defence too,” he added.

House of history

There have been thousands of families that lived within the Galadima palace among who were slave servants, officials and family members of the Galadima. It is said that, during the reign of the 10th Galadima, there were about 3000 people living in the enclosure.

The walled compound is divided into several quarters among which are the slaves', palace ushers, palace police, Galadima's body guards, who were mainly eunuchs, female slaves, princesses, princes, concubines and the Galadima' s wives.

There were also sections for Galadima's horses, domestic animals, and birds, armoury. While the Galadima sleeping quarters was housed within the inner most cycle to avoid any attack from getting quick to him and his family. This defensive arrangement was made by the Galadima who came from a place called Fadar Bayek. It is, however, not known how long it took the Galadima to build the wall around his palace, how many people were involved in the construction and the source of construction materials including the cost as there are no known records available on this project.

The much that is known today about the Galadima palace is that “the Galadima that came from Fadar Bayek built the place as his official residence. But before him, other Galadimas had their homes and did not bother about having all their weapons, slaves, wives and children in one place for fear of been attacked and possibly being wiped out by enemies,” a source at the palace told The Nation on Sunday in Bauchi.

According to the present Galadima, “not much attention had been given to the aspect of renovating the walls by those who had

such responsibility. It began to receive attention only two years ago and we will continue to renovate it as it is not an ordinary place but a historical monument”.

Jahun who is not happy with the wear and tear from the rain, sun and wind noted that “there is lot of historical distortions due to the encroachment on the wall. There is a similar thing happening to the Bauchi city wall used around 1804 as a defence. It is regrettable that the renovation had always been over looked.”

He linked this to the combined factors of human encroachment, natural erosion of the wall by wind, sunshine, and rain from its

Jahun

base, which led to its collapse on some buildings last week.

Mallam Bello Buba Auwalu, whose house shares boundary with the ancient wall regretted that “It is unfortunate that nothing is been done to preserve the wall despite the fact that the wall is regarded as a historical piece. Nobody has ever thought of fixing it.”

An information officer with the Bauchi Local Government Council who does not want his name in print said, “Nobody is interested in something that cannot put food in your stomach and has no much value to the lives of the people” He said the council was too concerned with other things that bother itself with fixing any historical wall.

At the Ministry of Tourism and Culture, a senior staff who did also want his name in prints said “It is only the Commissioner that is competent to comment on such things but he has travelled and may be in the office next week.”

A visit round the wall showed that, it is almost extinguished as people have excavated sands from it to construct their own houses or broken the wall to get more land to construct their houses or create passage to their property.

At the Ministry of Lands, most civil servants approached refused to talk. The few that agreed to talk merely complained about the 10 percent being deducted from their salaries.

But for now, the wall whose base is being excavated does not only pose serious threat to lives and properties of people sharing common boundary with it, it is also dangerous to anybody who might be passing near it when there is either strong wing or heavy rainfall as it happened penultimate on September 1.

54

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Miscellany Delta State University Teaching Hospital, Oghara

Saving lives in Delta State O

GHARA town in Delta State was a few years ago put on the world map for a number of reasons, chief among which was the political vicissitudes of the previous governor of the state, James Ibori, who hails from the community. The town also became famous when it had cited in its enclave by the state government a medical institution, Delta State University Teachimg Hospital, Oghara (DELSUTH), which has today grown to become a phenomenon. For a first-time visitor, turning off the major express road that connects some towns in the state to take the smaller road that leads to the part of the town where the hospital is allocated, it is a feeling of mild shock. The narrow road is lined on either sides by nondescript buildings, a situation that painst a stark contrast to the tales of Eldorado associated with the erstwhile governor, regarding what he had done to his native town.

The visiting reporter was, however, cautioned by his guide not to judge yet by these initial sightings. Presently, the road leads to a wide vista of architectural delights in a well-planned setting. The landscape is sprawling and airy. The DELSUTH complex comes through like an oasis in an arid setting vis-à-vis the larger picture of that part of the town.

This impression was uppermost in the mind of the journalist when he met the vivacious and articulate Chief Medical Director of the hospital, Dr. Leslie E. Akporiaye, a specialist in Urology medicine, in his clinically tidy and expansive office atop the multi-storied administrative block within the complex.

The location of the hospital seems far from the major urban centres of the state. Would that not make it less accessible to people? Dr. Akporiaye was asked. He retorted: “It doesn't really matter. People go to India for medical treatment without knowing where India is on the map. Mayo Clinic which is in Minnesota in the United States of America is in the middle of nowhere. The place is cold and miserable, but people go there from everywhere, from as far as Saudi Arabia and other places.”

Akporiaye said of Mayo Clinic in a decidedly Deltan patois: “That is where medicine take hand touch ground.”

He was asked to comment on why the DELSUTHl has been generating much public attention to an extent like Mayo Clinic. He stated: “This has been so for a lot of reasons.

But let me talk about at least two or three reasons. The first or probably the one that is most wide-spread is the nature of the equipment available for use. The second is the things that at this initial stage we've been able to put the equipment to use for. We've done some things that are considered to be landmark. We've done joint replacement surgery. We've done minimally invasive surgery. We've done a medical process in preparation for a transplant programme.

“The other part of it is the model by which we are trying to do this. The model is to bring

Reports on the state of healthcare delivery in Delta State.

Associate Editor Taiwo Ogundipe Nigerians in the Diaspora to work with local Nigerians to great capacity so that the use of all these equipment is sustained in a longer term. The third part of it, which is probably the most long-lasting one, is to develop a skills-acquisition centre here. Technology is always changing, so that even if it changes, we have an incubator of it for us to keep pace with it. And generally the aim is also to build capacity in healthcare in the state and hopefully nationwide.”

The journalist went to some of the departments in the hospitals where he saw very modern and massive equipment installed. One of the most remarkable is the PACS, an acronym that stands for Picture, Archives and Communications System. All Xrays done in the hospital are captured digitally. Once an X-ray is done, it comes to PACS and the image is available to the clinician to see both in the ward and the clinic room in a matter of five to ten seconds. The youthful manager of the department, Taofeek Ahmed, explained further: “And at the same time, when you have a radiologist or consultant who is far away from the hospital and you want to send an examination done to him, we have the capability of giving the clinician access to the images in a matter of minutes. They could be in Lagos, Sapele, the UK or the US, for example. They'll be able to see the images in a matter of time. Gone are the days when films were being used which can go missing. With PACS you can change the contrast or modify the image to suit what you are looking for instantly. It saves the patient from undergoing radiation so many times due to lack of films or bad exposure of the films. We also have back-up systems. There is never a situation where the images are not available.

Overall, it offers the patient a better quality of care.”

The hospital also has 64 slice CT scanner, an MRI, a digital mamo, two conventional Xray units and an ultra-sound. The services, Ahmed commented further, are not expensive and an average person can afford them. In his words: “We are the cheapest in Nigeria. We charge N750 for

each part of the body. Most other hospitals, even government-owned ones, charge between N150, 000 and N2, 000.”

The Chief Medical Director, Dr. Akporiaye, also commented on the affordability by the average person of the services provided by the hospital: “Yes, we've made our services available to people who would not be able to pay the normal price. And when you are trying to start a new service, you need to demonstrate that this is available and reliable.

People would then begin to ask, where is this place before you actually start charging what it costs you to provide the service? So, in the meantime you can say that the government is subsidising that part of it. We call it training, that is, subsidy. Because in real terms, if you do something for N100, 000 that should normally cost you N600, 000 to do, and it involves a whole team of people, the balance of the money is actually used to train the entire team members. For that price it's much cheaper than sending all the members of the team to some place in the world for the training. That is not even a fraction of what it should have cost to do the training.”

Talking about government support, the CMD observed: “The government has contributed equipment; the government is paying wages; the government gives us enough money to run the place; and the government has allowed us to use the income that we generate and to keep the place running. So, what the government expects of me is to make this place self-supportive in many ways till the end of my term. I feel confident that if we develop all these services in line with the equipment, we'll be able to achieve that.”

With the array of equipment, expertise and

Akporiaye

services in the kitty of the hospital, is Dr. Akporiaye suggesting that it might no longer be necessary for wealthy Nigerians to travel abroad for medical attention? “Of course,” he replied, “almost right away, there are two areas in surgery where there is absolutely no need for anybody to travel abroad. These are joint-replacement treatments and minimally invasive surgery.

We have arrangement on ground where Nigerians both local Nigerians and the ones from the Diaspora as well as people like me in urology are available to provide these services here now. No question.”

Akporiaye, who said he still engages in clinical practice as an administrator, (because, according to him, if you don't engage in clinical practice you won't know what is going on) stated that his major challenges in administering the hospital include “managing people and getting them in line with the governor's vision.

Maintaining the infrastructure is a challenge. Power, as everywhere in Nigeria, is also a challenge.”

Does he agree with the notion held by some observers that the Delta State government is doing much more than any other state in the country in the health sector? He stated: “Yes, I can say that. There are 66 hospitals in Delta State providing a lot of secondary health care. I think Delta State, barring Lagos State, has the largest number of health institutions in the country. And it has a number of different health programmes running at the primary care level. And very important tertiary care is being provided by the Delta State University Teaching Hospital.”

Asked to look into the future of the hospital, he quipped: “Brilliant. Come in another two years, you'll be amazed.”

Doesn't he think that the same fate that befell similar institutions in Nigeria might befall it? He replied: “No, it's a different model.

Apart from teaching, there are some layers where it is really outstanding. You'll remember that the federal government tried to do the same thing in different teaching hospitals, designating Nsukka for centre of excellence in cardio-vascular diseases, UCH for neuro-surgery, etc. Those outlooks became largely unrealised. We don't intend that to be the case here because of our model and the fact that we narrow what it is that we want to do, keep it narrow and stay focused on it. We have collaborations with hospitals all over the world where Nigerians have come from the Diaspora. It is not a monolithic effort. The project is more sustainable that way.”

Central Hospital, Warri Another medical institution, among several others, to which the Delta State government is paying much attention is the Central Hospital, Warri. Built in 1906 by the colonial masters, the hospital still has many of the ancient buildings in place. However, a good number of new modern structures are being put up to accommodate the burgeoning traffic of patients which now daily throng the hospital to take advantage of the government's introduced special health care programmes the free maternal and under-five children schemes.

Overseeing these bustling activities which are literally making the hospital to burst at its seam is the sprightly and soft-spoken Dr. (Mrs.) Faith N. Ejegi, the Chief Medical Director, who is an ophthalmologist by practice. She classifies the hospital as a tertiary institution. She said: “We have all the specialists in all the areas we are focusing on. We also have all the equipment to use.

For the government's special programmes, the free maternal and underfive schemes, we have enough personnel for them. We have about four consultants in the obstetrics and gynaecology department who are resident doctors. We are also doing training or fellowship programmes for doctors to qualify as specialists. We also have similar programmes in the Paediatric Department. We have in Anesthesia Department as well. We are also running postgraduate programme in these three areas. Other areas will come in subsequently.

Contd. On page 65

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

55

82-year-old Ile-Ife prince murdered, dumped in the bush —PAGE 56

A fiery end The cremation controversy •Crematorium

Recently, a member of the Lagos State House of Assembly presented a bill asking the state to legalise cremation. This has generated lots of controversies. Taiwo Abiodun reports

W

HO wants to be cremated? To put it in a layman’s language: Who would like his body to be ‘burnt’ into ashes after death? Cremation is a method of using high heat and flame to physically reduce human body to ashes and also crushing the bones into a powder.

After cremation the family may decide to throw the ashes into the sea, mountain tops, or desert, it may also be be kept at home or be buried in a container in the garden, or cemetery.

A member of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Hodewu Suru Avoseh, has sent a bill to the House seeking for cremation to become law in the state. According to him, for now he wants the law passed to take care of unclaimed and unidentified dead bodies in government mortuaries. However, since the debate on the bill commenced, tongues have been wagging as many are opposed to it. Those against it feel it is unAfrican and not a part of our culture.

However, in defending the proposal, Avoseh said the idea was not to force anyone to embrace it, but was borne out of the non availability of land in the state. He added that the rate at which the state is going, it might not have space again to bury the dead, therefore, it is advisable to cremate in order to save costs and preserve land.

It’s a matter of land He said the deplorable state of mortuaries in

the state led the House’s ad hoc committee to think of such a bill. Avoseh added that when the members visited some of the mortuaries they saw many decomposed bodies that have been lying there for two or three years or more in some cases.

He observed that, “When the members were sent out with the hospital attendants and officers, from what they told us they were not allowed to do the mass burial. What they said they experienced was appalling, as they met resistance where they wanted to do the mass burial. They were chased away by the community members. The environmental officers despite the security officers that were provided for their protection were all humiliated as no community wants to release their land for the mass burial.”

It was reported that many communities in the state have started kicking against the idea of giving their land to government for mass burial because such communities claim that they are not allowed to sleep as the victims always trouble the communities.

Solving a growing problem Cremation is not new to mankind. According to Cremation Statistics, the first act of cremation was in America in 1876, while it rose to one percent in 1900 and three percent in 1960. It has since grown in the United States. It rose to 10 per cent in 1980 and in 2005 shot up to 30 per cent. The Roman

Church approved cremation in 1963. However, India has the highest numbers of cremation. It recorded 100 per cent in 2005, while Japan recorded 97 per cent in 2005.

Though cremation is not popular in Nigeria, but it is believed that the Indians who live in the country do cremate their dead ones.

Clearing misconceptions Trying to dispel misconceptions about cremation, Avoseh said, “The Bill is in progress. Most of us don’t know what a crematorium is. Many think it is just to throw in dead bodies into a live furnace as it was being done in the old times. No. The crematorium we are talking about is a systematic burning. It involves burning but it is a modern

•Cremation vase system of burning. We went as far as Florida (USA) to see how it is being practised at St Matthews. When we got there, we were convinced about what we saw. Now, the state government is building a crematorium and it will soon be completed. The only thing we are waiting for is the law to back it up.”

He, however, affirmed that the proposed crematorium is to take care of unclaimed corpses, “We only make provision for voluntary cremation if somebody wishes to be cremated.” It is also to take care of the growing population of Chinese and Indians in the state whose cultures have since embraced cremation. “So, we make •Continued on Page 57

56

T

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Life

HE disappearance of Prince Benjamen Adereni from his home in Ile Ife, Osun State threw not only his family but the entire neighbourhood into confusion. That was on August 1 through August 3, 2012. The confusion would later snowball to untold sorrow on August 4 when his body was found in a bush at Fashola village on the Ile-IfeIbadan expressway.

The search party which was made up of a team of Police, vigilante and some members of his family, frantically combed the large expanse of land which incidentally belonged to the deceased. They had a tough time jumping from one spot to another until their effort yielded fruits amid a wild exclamation of horror.

At the sight of the already decomposing body, none of the team could move near it. After the initial shock, the Divisional Crime Officer, Ajiboye, instructed that the photograph of the body be taken in accordance with the law. It was then deposited at the mortuary of the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital, Ile-Ife. “We could not believe our eyes when we suddenly saw the body in a bad state. The matchet cut on his head which was already covered by thick blood showed that some wicked people deliberately matcheted him to death, leaving me to wonder why these people chose to kill such an old man, a prominent prince in the town for that matter,” a member of the search party explained under a condition of strict anonymity.

The last journey It was gathered that on the day the late Adereni left his residence for the journey from which he never returned, his wife’s persuasion that he should take his breakfast went unheeded. He reportedly told her that he needed to reach his bank at Lagere in the other part of the town to withdraw some money to buy certain item to fix his Mercedez Benz car.

He further justified his early trip to the bank as a panacea to beat the human traffic which is regarded as the hallmark of banking halls on Monday mornings. He dressed and carried a bag containing vital documents, left the house and boarded an intra-city commercial bus from the bus stop to Lagere.

However, a few metres to the bank, his mobile phone rang and he received the call. He disembarked from the bus and crossed over to the other side of the road to board another bus. This trend, according to his family, offered an indication that his assailants had laid an ambush for him at the scene where his body was found.

This line of argument gained credibility and provided his family with a clue needed to uncover the circumstance behind the murder.

It was learnt that two days before the deceased left home, he had received several phone calls, which provoked the curiosity of his wife. But “Baba”, as the deceased is fondly called, could only offer a terse explanation on the issues discussed on the phone. More insight into the phone call was revealed by one of the children of the deceased who also spoke with our reporter at the family’s residence.

The son, who pleaded anonymity, said his father had a few days to the incident attended a reconciliation meeting with some people following the sale of a land belonging to him by the head of a community.

“He told me that he rejected the plea of those who called the meeting to let go. He said he decided to reject the plea so that it won’t give others confidence to tamper with his property in the future. I recall that

82-year-old Ile-Ife prince murdered, dumped in the bush When he disappeared from home, it was thought to be the handiwork of kidnappers. However, when his body was found three days later, it became clear that Pa Benjamen Adereni, 82, was a victim of hired assassins. Tunde Busari reports.

•Adereni

he took me to the property amounting to 75 hectares. He said the land belongs to the father of his mother and he was in charge of it as the eldest son of his mother who inherited the land from her father.”

Another angle to the puzzle is that one Adewale Ademiluyi, a leader of Celestial Church of Christ in Ile-Ife, who was always together with the deceased rushed to his residence soon after ‘Baba’ had left home. His comment indicated that he was aware of ‘Baba’s itinerary for the day.

The man was also alleged to have attempted to pull a fast one on the search party when they reached the bush where the body was eventually found.

“He tried to mislead us by diverting us away from the spot where we found the body. But we did not listen to him. We said we were going to search everywhere.

That is why when the body was found he was the first person the police arrested. Later the man who sold my father’s land and another man who last year threatened my father on phone were also arrested,” he said.

Police Public Relations of Osun State Police Command, Folasade Odoro, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) confirmed the arrest and detention of the trio at the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) Osogbo which, according to her, was in line with

investigation procedures to fish out the perpetrators of the heinous crime.

The PPRO, however, clarified that the arrest of the suspects was not tantamount to finding them culpable as investigation is still in progress. “I need to say this without fear of contradiction that they are not found to be the people behind the crime. At the same time we have not absolved them as the investigation is the only means that will throw light on the whole matter. Investigation world over has a standard procedure which is exactly what we are following on this matter,” she said.

Ademiluyi, who differed with a report indicting him as the man behind the murder, confirmed his arrest alongside two other suspects, maintaining that he has no hands in the murder of the deceased whom he described as his benefactor.

He stressed that there was no way he would want any evil to befall the man who treated him as one of his biological sons. He added that the late prince provided a means of livelihood for him by seeking prospective land buyers for him from which he collected his commission.

“On every buyer I took to Baba, I collect 10 % commission which I have used to sustain myself. I am happy with this. So is this same person I will plan or conspire to

kill? It is sad and a trial which I have accepted because in the first place I should not have involved myself in such a deal as a man of God,” he said.

Ademiluyi attributed his foray into land agency to greed which he could have resisted long before this incident. But he said he stuck to the deceased when he realised that he did not carry his biological children along and the need to assist him so that he would not be cheated.

Contrary to the allegation making the round in the town, the man said he had never cheated Baba because he believed he did not deserve it for being a father figure to him. He pointed out that the confidence and trust the deceased reposed in him has made him an object of scorn by his family.

“Baba’s family members don’t like me. This is a fact I know because they don’t hide it and they always spread all sorts of rumour that I cheat him. But the God I am serving is my witness that I have never done evil to him. I have left everything in the hands of God. I don’t begrudge anyone of them. All I am concerned with is that God reveal those who killed Baba in that manner,” he said.

However, to members of Baba’s family, his tears are mere crocodile tears meant to appeal to emotion of the public and distract investigation process. He was alleged to have used spiritual

power to manipulate the deceased.

Before he relocated from Baba’s area where he had lived for three years, he was allegedly in the bad book of many who preferred to keep him at arm’s length.

“Nobody is out to blackmail him or spoil his name but whatever we say is what everybody in this area and beyond knows of him. We are not interested in whatever he says but we know that God will fight for us because we learnt he has been released and he is back in the town along with other suspects.

Is that right? Is it right to release murder suspect just like that?” A member of the family asked.

It was further learnt that the Assistant Commissioner of Police in charge of the SCID Osogbo, Ebenezer Adeyemi, had expressed the determination of his team to get to the root of the matter with a view to doing justice to the soul of the deceased.

This he showed when he invited the suspect who allegedly sold the deceased’s land and one of the children of the deceased to gather primary information expected to help investigation. Adeyemi was said to have promised to reach the GSM service provider to analyse the calls log to ascertain the calls the deceased received shortly before he was hacked to death.

“We have done this but we have not achieved result. But certainly we are going to fully explore this to throw more light on the matter.

The suspects have been given bail but this does not mean they are free.

They are still under investigation.

“I must say that we are already doing a thorough job that will lead us to the root of the matter in due course. We should also say that we cannot divulge all information at our disposal to you as this can easily jeopardise the investigation effort,” the PPRO said.

Her word of assurance, however, seems to carry a feeble weight to persuade the family which revealed that one of the suspects celebrated his release with a Thanksgiving. The family sees this as a dance on the grave of their father and indeed a proof to the alleged attempt to sweep the case under the carpet.

“We believe that whoever attempts to ridicule our father will face the wrath of God because our father did not deserve this kind of death. He has been in the mortuary without knowing when the matter will be concluded for us to bury him.

The doctor at the OAUTH is also helpless about the matter because his request for the photograph of the body has not been granted as I was made to understand,” the source said.

But the police maintain that it has nothing to hide in the matter as effort is being made to get the calls log to further animate the investigation.

The matter is now attracting more attention of the residents of Ile-Ife and its environ, owing largely to the status of the deceased who, until his death, ranked among the first 10 Sooko (Prince) in the traditional Council of Princes in IleIfe. A man who identified himself as a lecturer at the Oduduwa University, Ipetumodu via Ile-Ife, lamented the implication of the killing of the deceased, describing it as a dangerous signal and evidence of insecurity in the town.

Relying on the public perception of the deceased, especially among the residents of the Ife City area, he said such a man with glittering reputation deserves a glorious exit having already attained an advanced age. “But it is unfortunate that the man was not allowed a peaceful transition to the great beyond. But there is a consolation in the fact that his good work will live after him,” the man said.

Life

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012 •Continued on Page 55

provision for that and back it up with law. This is not addressing every corpse to be buried in Lagos State, that every dead person should be cremated.

No.That is not the law.’’

A witness cremation Avesoh said he witnessed how cremation was done. “A lot of cremation took place when we visited a place in Florida in America .Within one hour, cremation is done. The process is simple.

The crematorium is an oven with electricity. In the cremation process if they are unclaimed corpses, say about three or four lying, then the switch will be on, it is automatic and it has a duration and within few hours, the bodies will turn into ashes and will be packed together and stored or saved.

Within two or three hours, over 300 bodies were brought voluntarily and they were in cardboard coffins not in caskets because you cannot cremate casket, so, it is cheap, easy and with no ceremony attached .’’

Public cemeteries A visit to some of the public cemeteries in Lagos metropolis is enough to convince one that the cemeteries are bursting at the seams. It clearly shows that there is need to search for more locations if the idea of cremation is not acceptable. For instance, at Matori Cemetery in Mushin, one could see many of the tombs which had been there for over 50 years! Some of these are tombs of the rich ones in those days who bought family vaults. A staff of the cemetery who does not want his name in print said. “Some of the vaults have caved in, some are virtually empty. No wonder suspected ritualists have turned the cemetery to their business centres. Many of them have been caught in the past for possessing human parts. Not only this , it is quite difficult to have a space, therefore within a month, three to four bodies are buried on top of another. Other shallow vaults are unkempt as foul odour emitting from them pollute the environment since the graves are not deep. However, the environment is clean and trees have sprouted there producing green and healthy leaves which form shades over the area.

The staff added that some of them do help families take care of the dead if given money to do so. He, however, added that but the fact is that there is no more land in Lagos and the local councils which are supposed to take care of cemeteries don’t do that. Therefore maintenance has become a problem.

At the Ikoyi Cemetery, the story is not different. One of the staff said “About 10 people are buried in the same vault within one or two months!

The bitter truth is that these places are congested, there was a time when human skulls are just like pepper and tomatoes because they are bought cheaply and if they are not seen cheaply they could not have been bought cheaply too. When about 10 to 20 people are buried in the same vault no matter how deep the it is, will be congested one day. The fact is that there is no more space here, no more land here.”

The idea of cremation has, however, continued to receive knocks from religious quarters.

Former Catholic Archbishop of Lagos Olubunmi Anthony Cardinal Okogie is stoutly against it, saying “it is unacceptable.’’

In the same vein, Very Rev. Msgr. Gabriel Osu, the Director of Social Communication of Lagos Catholic Church, frowned against it. He said “The law makers should stop this debate and look for other things to do. How can we talk about cremation in a society that respects human body? But unfortunately we no longer respect our dead ones, seeing the way we treat our dead ones.’’

He continued “We have our own cemetery in Ikoyi and we do take care of it. Go and look at it. I think the state government should look for alternative land and buy it like other private undertakers and others who bought land where they buried their clients’ bodies.”

In the case of cremation, Osu said since we believed in resurrection and after life, we should bury the dead in the ground in order to resurrect on the day of resurrection.”

To Rev Moses Iloh, the whole idea is “nonsense.’’ According to him, “There is nowhere in the Bible where the Lord approved of cremation.

People who burn bodies don’t understand. God took time to create us in His own image. When a man is dead it is proper to lay him and bury him in the ground for him to decay as the Bible rightly puts it, we are from the earth and to the dust we shall return. Burning of bodies is un-Christian.

The idea is from the Hindus and Buddhists. Those who don’t understand and know God as the creator.’’

On the issue of lack of land in Lagos, Iloh disagreed and said “In the world today we have about four billion people and because of the wickedness of man some don’t have a house but there is always a place to lay their heads in the night. In the day, you see people walking, thinking they would not have a place to lay their heads but when night comes, you would not find anybody outside as they had gone somewhere to sleep. The state government should go and buy land and find ample facilities for burying their people. You cannot burn the dead because the spirit belongs to God.’’

57

The cremation controversy

•Avoseh

Chief Bola Ogunmola, Retired Engineer “Cremate me”

•Ishola

Supo Adetifa, “It’s a bad idea”

“I love it. It is only strange in Nigeria because many are not used to it. I have told my children not to bother to celebrate or buy expensive coffin, it is all waste ...

They can cremate me, it is okay. The moment a man is dead, he is dead and gone. But in Nigeria, we enjoy celebration, spending and wasting our hard earned resources, money, land and other things. The Hindus, Chinese do it.

The Hindus appreciate this more than anything. But in Nigeria here you will see those who cannot afford three square meals per day celebrating the dead, spending hard earned money on the dead that they did not do when alive.”

“I don’t believe in cremation. It is against the will of God. It is evil, it is ungodly and devilish. How can you burn human being and say you are doing the right thing? I don’t like it, I don’t believe in it. In Yoruba culture we respect the dead, even in Africa as a whole. We would like to know where the dead are buried in order to be going there to pray when the need arises.

That is why Muslims bury one hour after death to avoid contamination.

We need to respect our culture, values and belief.”

But Popoola Olaniyi Ishola, 78, said he has nothing against the idea. A few weeks ago, he just buried the ashes of his cremated sister who died in England since 1979. This was done in his compound in Awe, Oyo State.

Pointing to a box, he told our correspondent, “That small box contained the remnants of my sister, Madam Caroline Omolara Agbebi Adejumo [nee Ishola], who died in England in 1979. Then her children were still small. I was there during the cremation, it was a simple thing.

There was a church service , the family members of the deceased attended the service ,which was conducted by a Christian, and thereafter the coffin was wheeled into the crematorium, and within 10 minutes, everything was over as the incinerator had melted the body and the casket, and a wooden sealed box appeared at the other end of the factory with her name engraved on it.

The small box that contained the ashes is then given to the family members of the deceased. All these are done for a fee.’’

Asked how he coped with the ashes of his sister for 33years without having nightmares, the septuagenarian looked at the ceiling and parted his lips with a smile, saying “I feel comfortable. It is like I am superstitious, as I feel like my sister’s spirit is woven around me, protecting me. I believe she was no more physical but spiritual. I felt protected throughout. I have seen where people overseas keep the ashes of their beloved ones on top of their shelves, showing visitors that that is where they keep the remnants of their beloved ones. Some bury the small box and plant beautiful flowers with good aroma on them, and as they blossom and grow, they tell you that the scent of their beloved ones is smelling fine.”

Pa Ishola is stoutly in support of cremation.

According to him, “There is nothing bad in it.

The reason why they cremate bodies in advanced countries is due to lack of land. I like it, it is practical. In South-East Asian countries it is a normal thing.’’

In spite of defending cremation, Ishola, does

PHOTOS : TAIWO ABIODUN

Pastor Duromola Samuel, General Overseer, Christ Worshippers Church, Warri

“It is wrong” “Where did you find it in the Bible that they burnt dead bodies? This is wrong, it is ungodly. I wonder why we should be thinking about cremation at this time. We have enough land all over the country. If Lagos starts this now other states will follow suit, we are not Hindus or Indians who don’t respect the dead. We revere and respect our dead ones, we don’t throw them away or burn them in Africa, it is not in our culture. No, Never!” not want to be cremated when he is gone, “Since I have houses and there is enough land here in my home town, I don’t think my body should be cremated. I once lived on Igbosere Street, in Lagos where most of the prominent people buried there have been exhumed and reburied somewhere else. They exhumed the body of Bishop Ajayi Crowther from The Cathedral Church, in Lagos to Lokoja. The church took a decision over the matter. So, cremation is supported where there is not enough land.”

Niyi, one of the children of Mrs. Adejumo said he is in support of cremation because “I cannot imagine seeing maggots coming out from the body of a human being and stinking! When I am gone I also want to be cremated.” On seeing his mother being cremated he said, “I was very young then. But I don’t see anything bad or wrong in it.”

However, no matter what anyone says about it, the idea of cremation would take a long time to hold in the country.

58

Your HEALTH THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Food for the eyes

While stacking up the petroleum jelly for dry skin and cracking lips, it is essential that we pay attention to our eyes and the organisms that may want to attack them, writes Rita Ohai.

I

A

S the rainy season gradually gives way for harmattarn, there is a gradual increase in the amount of particles flying in the air.

Among these particles are pollen grains, bacteria and viruses which serve as irritants for the eyes. Irritants which may cause a disease called conjunctivitis, popularly known as Apollo.

According to global health organisations, conjunctivitis is the second most common eye infection in Nigeria.

Ironically, Apollo became a popular nickname owing to a legend which lists the causative microorganism as part of the living things that rode home with the astronauts from the moon on the APOLLO spacecraft in 1969.

Defining the eye condition, Dr. Bruce Akpanogho, an optician, explains, “If someone's eye is red or bloodshot and inflamed, they may have conjunctivitis or what we popularly call 'Apollo'. This is because there is an irritation of the conjunctiva, which is the membrane that covers the white of the eye and the inside of the eyelids.

Continuing, Dr. Akpanogho said, “Within this membrane, there are tiny blood vessels that get enlarged when the conjunctiva becomes irritated with a foreign particle, bacteria or virus. The enlarged blood vessels make the eye look red and sometimes itchy with pains.”

Although the thought of red eye causes anxiety in most patients, it is, however, not an uncommon d i l e m m a . U s u a l l y , ophthalmologists can determine the cause of an Apollo by the way the eye looks and the symptoms produced.

Highlighting a few ways in which the disease may manifest, Bruce says, “If a person has a cold and suddenly develops red eyes with little or no discomfort, it may be viral conjunctivitis. If the eyes get red and itchy at the onset of the dry or harmarttan season, it is probably due to allergic conjunctivitis.

“On the other hand, the ones caused by viruses and bacterias tend to start in one eye and make their way across to the other after two to five days. However, if the irritation stays in one eye only, it's possible that a foreign body or chemical is causing t h e irritation, ” h e finished .

Oth e r sympt o m s m a y

When Apollo g n i k c o n k s e com include an increase in the amount of tears dripping from the eyes, thick yellow discharge that forms a rough crust over the eyelashes, especially after sleep, burning eyes, blurred vision and a higher sensitivity to light.

To protect ourselves from this uncomfortable experience, experts say that maintaining proper hygiene such as frequent hand washing is very necessary in minimising transmission.

Dr. Eunice Alegbe of Health Sinai Clinic said, “With regards to conjunctivitis, proper hygiene can help reduce the risk of infection.

For example, if someone in your household has apollo, they need to make sure that they wash their hands often and thoroughly. '' She further stated that, “The minute there is proof that somebody around us may have a pink or red eye, we would have to start avoiding direct contact with that person so that there is a limit to which the infection will spread.

Sharing towels, clothes, pillowcases or make-up with the person can be dangerous.”

While many believe that the regular use of the right eye drop will cure this ailment, other medical professionals are of the view that the irritation experienced by the eye can only be cured by identifying the cause and avoiding it as much as possible.

According to a pharmacist, Julia Igbinovia, “Most of the things we take drugs for can actually be tackled by the body's immune system under t h e r i g h t

conditions. Many times, people just put all sorts of things in the eye in the name of treatment which will eventually damage the eye.

“Some people who have come down with eye problems today,” she stated, “are people who should not be suffering from these things in the first place because the eye drops contain steroids. Therefore, the more effective a drug is, the harsher it will be on the eyes and the harsher it is, the more dangerous it becomes.”

Giving advice on how conjunctivitis should be handed, Igbnovia said, “The smartest thing to do is to try and avoid the thing that you suspect is causing it. After you have done that, improve your nutrition so that your body can naturally fight for you. It is only after you have done this that you can now use medication prescribed by a qualified doctor and make sure the doctor explains why he or she is giving you that drug in the first place.”

To relieve the symptoms of Apollo, medical practitioners suggest the following: Protect your eyes from dirt and other irritating substances.

Avoid the use of makeup, but if you must use it, do not share eye makeup with anyone.

Don't touch or rub the infected eye, rather wash your hands often with soap and warm water especially after applying the eye drops or ointment to your eye or your child's eye Wash any discharge from your eyes several times a day using a fresh cotton ball or paper towel. Afterwards, discard the cotton ball or paper towel and wash your hands with soap and warm water.

Keep the bed sheets, pillowcases, and towels clean by washing in hot water and detergent.

Switch all the contact lenses for normal eyeglasses because of the high level of irritation the eye feels each time the lens is placed on the eyeball. It is also wise never to wear another person's contact lenses so that the infection is not aggravated.

Do not use eye drops that were used for an

T is generally known that exposure to the sun is very bad for the eyes.

Similarly, if we use the computer for long hours, it also harms our eyes. Adding to these, we constantly hear that smoking is also bad for the eyesight. But what we rarely hear is that we can take care of our eyes with a healthy diet.

There are many foods which are good for the eyes. Here is a list of the best foods for the eyesight; Carrots: Vitamin A is very essential to maintain good eye health. As carrots contain antioxidant beta carotene which helps to main good eye health, it is a good choice for having Vitamin A. Besides carrots, we can also have cabbage and lettuces which are also good sources of Vitamin A. Lack of Vitamin A can cause night blindness.

Spinach: This is also known locally as Ugu leaves. It protects eyes from eye diseases. A carotenoid called lutein which is found in spinach protects eyes from cataract and macular degeneration.

Fruits: Fruits such as kiwis, oranges, wolfberries are full of Vitamin C. As you know Vitamin C eliminates free radicals that cause damage to the eyes.

Soy: It contains essential fatty acids, phytoestrogens, vitamin E and natural antiinflammatory agents that are good for the eyes. Soy products like soy milk, soy beans, soy yogurt are good for eye health. Olive oil and corn are also good for the eyes as these contain good amount of Vitamin E. Garlic: Garlic is an excellent food for improving eyesight. It contains sulfur that helps in making the lens stronger and resilient. Onions are also rich with sulfur and good for the eyesight.

Apricots: Apricots contain Vitamin A which relieves eyes from the damage done by the free radicals. It also contains carotenoids which is responsible for better vision.

Eggs: If you are an egg lover, then it's good news. Eggs are very good for the eyesight. Eggs contain cysteine, sulfur, lecithin, amino acids and lutein. These also protect eyes from developing cataracts.

However, try not to take more than one egg a day for cholesterol control.

Salmon and Sardines: Omega-3 fatty acids are good for the eyesight and they can be found in fishes of this nature.

Dark Chocolate: Many do not know this, but dark chocolate contains flavanoids which protect blood vessels of the eyes. As a result of that, cornea and lens stay strong.

One point should be noted that dark chocolate needs to be pure to get the desired result.

Besides the above mentioned foods, there are many other foods which are very good for the eyesight. For instance, grapes and lemon are very good source for good eyesight.

BUSINESS

59

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

A

DEDOYIN Idowu Owolabi, ICAN President, has warned the Governor of Central Bank, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, that CBN’s repeated change in its monetary policy rate is an indication of severity of inflation which it has been targeting for some time. “If unemployment was lower, it would not have been a cause for worry given the established inverse relation between unemployment and inflation.”

He explained that : “ To print more currency as envisaged without earning foreign revenue to support its value will put more inflationary pressure on the naira and lead to a diminution in its value. Indeed, one of the indices of a growing inflation, from economic history, is the creation of higher denominations as exemplified

by Argentina, Peru, Poland, Russia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Angola, Zimbabwe”.

While commending the initiative to redesign the security features of the nation’s currencies with a view to reducing the huge annual royalties paid to foreign interests, ICAN also noted that caution should be taken in some areas.

“There is nothing fundamentally wrong with the idea to introduce the N5,000 as there are some benefits to be derived.

Beside, having the potential to

ICAN president cautions CBN gov over N5000 note Stories by Bukola Afolabi

reduce royalty payments on existing security features as well as the cost of printing and maintenance of the currencies, the initiative will enhance the profitability of the CBN and its ability to generate funds for the

government.”

He stressed: “In spite of the above benefits, we are not persuaded that the N5,000 denomination should be introduced. At a time when the size of government deficit is about 2.8% of GDP (although within acceptable limit), the intention

to spend N40billion for this exercise appears to be both a waste of scarce public resource and misplacement of priority. Set against the benefits, the proposed expenditure of N40billion will add little or no value to wealth creation.”

From this perspective , the

introduction of N5000 note will eventually alter the pricing structure of products in the market leading ultimately to the permanent disappearance of the 5, 10, 20 & 50 naira notes (and even the proposed new coins) from circulation. “ The extinction of these smaller de-

N18 Billion contract for Port-Harcourt -Enugu road awarded

T

HE Federal government has awarded a sum of N18 billion to ensure that the dualisation of Port-Harcourt-Enugu road is delivered.

This was said by the Minister of State for Works, Ambassador Bashir Yuguda while conducting a tour round the South-South\ to access the road projects being carried out by the Federal Ministry of Works. According to Yuguda, the project is expected to take off 2013.

A visit to the access road to Onne port which has been completed , Yuguda pointed out that the completion is

part of what President Goodluck Jonathan has been trying to do in order to endure that all the access road to the major ports in the country as well as the infrastructures needed are provided by the federal government. The project, he revealed was awarded in 2006, along the line, there was the issue unrest in the Niger-Delta and the contractor had to withdraw but with the good amnesty programme provided by the federal government, the project was later reawarded to another contractor and the project is now completed. His words

•Ayo Gbeleyi, Director General and Special Adviser To Governor Raji Fashola Of Lagos State On Public-Private Partnership (3RD R) and Rajan Swaroop, MD/CEO, Airtel Nigeria (4th R) cutting the tape to declare open the new Airtel Express Shop at Ikeja City Mall, Alausa, Lagos recently

“The moment we have peace in the country, there will continue to be dividends of democracy,” he said.

The other access road to Tin Can Island Ports Yuguda said is on-going, while that of the refineries: Kaduna and Warri Refineries are completed, the one of PortHarcourt refineries is o-going. The executing ministry which id the Federal Ministry of Works has ensured that the projects are completed.

Speaking about steps taken by the federal government to ensure that most federal roads which are in a bad shape are rehabilitated most

especially the East-West road, Yuguda said the EastWest road is receiving serious attention from the federal government. “The project are in phases and it is fully awarded but the incessant rain is currently hindering the work along the East-West road” he said.

Other road visited was the Bodo-Bonny road located in Gokana local government area as well as the Karki-Kolo road in Bayelsa State which about 40% completion.

The project Yuguda said will be completed within the next few months.

nominations will negatively impact the buying capacity and habits of low-income earners and the poor as goods and services will be priced above their levels. Sustained increases in prices may the unintended consequence.”.

The group also advocated that the CBN should work towards strengthening the purchasing power of the naira through policy consistency. “ The steady slide in the value of the naira in relation to other currencies like the USA dollar, British pound sterling, etc, as an import-dependent country should be a major source for concern. As an import-dependent nation, when Nigeria converted to naira and kobo in 1973, the exchange rate was GBP£1=N2.00 and USA$0.30=N1.00. Today, the exchange rate is now G B P £ 1 = 2 4 6 . 3 1 , USA$1=N157.50.”

Owolabi added: “ From the literature and empirical experience, devaluation benefits export-oriented economies. As a mono-product and importdependent economy, we are most unlikely to benefit from the resultant devaluation that this initiative may unwittingly cause. Since the naira is not convertible, increasing the denomination will not check the perceived trend towards dollarisation.” .

•L-R: Senior. Office Administrator, KAZTEC Engineering Limited, Udymike Udosen; Technical Director Chrome Group, Engr. Adebanji Babarinde receiving award for KAZTEC Engineering Limited as the best indigenous company of the year, with them is President, South-East/South -South Professionals, Mr Emeka Uju during the NAEC Award in Lagos.

PHOTO: OLUSEGUN RAPHEAL

INSIDE BUSINESS

Clear and present dangers in Nigerian airspace -- Pages 60-61

‘Wellregulated ICT industry will increase yield’ -- Page 62

60

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Business News

Clear and present danger in Nigerian airspace As the nation’ s civil aviation sector currently battles with the challenge of diminishing manpower, paucity of funds vis-à-vis infrastructural deficit, among other woes, experts have expressed fears over the continued viability and sustainability of the nation’s airspace. Ibrahim Apekhade Yusuf and Gbenga Oyebanji examine the issues

INSIDE BUSINESS

•Stella Oduah

•Harold-Demuren

D

ESPITE tepid denials by the authorities concerned, there is growing fear out there that the nation’s airspace is anything but safe just as there are apprehensions by industry pundits over the sector’s future prospects considering its dwindling fortunes in the last decade.

Investigations by The Nation showed that the industry is being dogged by many challenges, from poor infrastructure, high cost of aviation fuel to huge expenditure on aircraft acquisition and maintenance,

the safety of the country’s airspace is now a subject of controversy between the Federal Government and foreign airlines.

Experts’ damning verdict If the verdict given by the investigative panel set up by the Federal Ministry of Aviation to review operations in the aviation industry is anything to go by, it is correct to say that the sector is in a mess.

The panel at the submission of its findings advised the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency in the sector in order to tackle

its deficiencies.

The retired Group Captain John Obakpolor-led panel told the Minister of Aviation, Mrs. Stella Oduah, that a state of emergency was required to check decayed infrastructure in the sector.

It also said N500billion was required by airlines to address some of the deficiencies in their operations.

The panel revealed that, “At the end of its deliberations, the committee came up with 59 findings and 41 recommendations, in line with the terms of reference.

“The Federal Government should immediately declare an emergency in the aviation sector and commence implementation of the Aviation Safety Emergency Programme.”

It added, “The Federal Government should intensify efforts to complete the ongoing reconstruction and remodelling of the terminal buildings and structures, as well as construct new ones across the country.

“The Central Bank of Nigeria should empower commercial banks to create a window for a long-term low interest funding for direct lending to aviation. The industry will

require at least N500billion for this purpose.

“An aircraft leasing company with an initial investment of $10billion should be set up by the Federal Government to acquire modern aircraft directly from major manufacturers and lease to qualified Nigerian air operators at preferential rates. This will help in the reduction of operating cost and improvement of efficiency and competitiveness.”

“Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) should ensure that airline operators are put under closer surveillance. Maintenance actions carried out by operators, if not routine, should always be queried to establish what necessitated the maintenance action and ensure the continuous proper use of the technical logbook.”

The panel recommended that greater emphasis should be placed on proper and adequate maintenance of aircraft, rather than age restriction.

Decades of deplorable infrastructure to blame On the parlous state of the sector, the jury is out that things have since gone bad. Operators stated the fact that airplanes enter the Nigerian airspace without the knowledge

of air traffic controllers, they only get to know of such flights through telephone calls from their counterparts in Nigeria’s friendly nations.

The implication is that virtually all the major foreign airlines have quietly refrained themselves from using the nation’s airspace.

The Nation can authoritatively report that at least 10 foreign airlines have stopped using the Nigerian airspace and prefer to use longer routes to get to their destination.

Among those affected are the British Airways flight 55K which goes from London to Johannesburg; Air Namibia 286 from Frankfurt to Windhoek; Belgian Airline 357 from Brussels to Kinshasa; Air France 889 goes from Kinshasa to Paris; Air France 995 from Johannesburg to Paris; Air France 900 from Yaoundé to Paris; Air France 928 from Luanda to Paris; Air France 896 from Brazzzaville to Paris; South African Airways 237 moves from London to Johannesburg; SAA 260 from Johannesburg to Frankfurt; SAA 261 from Frankfurt to Johannesburg; SAA 264 from Johannesburg to Munich; SAA 265 from Munich to Johannesburg; Emirates 261 runs from Dubai to Sao Paulo; Emirates 246 from Dubai to Rio De Janeiro; and Qatar 922 from Sao Paulo to Doha.

These airlines argued that the country’s airspace is dotted with moribund communications gadgets (visual and voice) such that air traffic controllers and pilots now have extreme difficulty in reaching one another.

Before the foreign airlines took the action, some key officials in the aviation agencies and workers’ unions had inundated the office of the Minister of Aviation with letters on the deplorable state of the communications equipment to no avail.

The Airspace Manager of Nigeria Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), J.I. Ekweonwa on July 9, 2012 informed the agency’s managing director that, “Kano Area Control Centre (ACC) radio communication frequencies - 124.1MHz and 128.5 MHz sectorised East and West respectively have deteriorated in quality and reception thereby making pilots/controllers communication terribly bad. In short, pilots and Continued on page 61

Business

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

61

Aviation sector confronts challenges Continued from page 60 controllers hardly receive or communicate to each other within the Flight Information Region (Kano FIR). Sir, it would be pertinent to suggest that an expert, who will carry our members of staff along be sent to configure these TVHF into the system within these sectors -East and West for eventual quality and lasting services to our stakeholders.”

Also, on July 10, 2012, the Deputy General Manager for NAMA, Okwor .I. informed the Airspace Manager of Malam Aminu Kano Airport, that “Kano’s Very High Frequency radios on frequencies 128.5MHz (Kano West) and 124.1mhZ (Kano East) were “not only poor but deplorable,” adding that, “ communication based on these radios in their present state has not only become very difficult and ineffective in the provision of Air Traffic Management (ATM) but has also impeded the growth of air traffic in our FIR.” Air traffic controllers and the National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE) in a presentation to the Minister of Aviation on July 18, 2012 on the status of the Total Radar Coverage of Nigeria (TRACON) facilities, safety of the Nigerian airspace said: “It is worrisome that the nation’s airspace is increasingly but gradually being avoided by the international over flyers due to poor communications between air traffic controllers and pilots.”

The economic implication is that the Federal Government is losing revenue, which would have accrued to the country if the airlines that now fly from South Africa to London had used the Nigerian airspace.

The document signed by the NUATE President, D.M. Safiyanu, which was received by the minister on July 20, 2012, stated that the provision of Controller-Pilot-DataLink Communication (CPDLC) would have been a remedy to this “unfortunate situation,” regretting that, “all our neighbouring airspaces have such facilities.’’

He said this might probably account for the over flyers’ preference for nation’s neighbour’s airspace even though they make their trips longer.

Safiyanu urged the minister to call for global, African and Nigerian navigational chart routes for details.

He also tasked her to consult the carriers for more details on the appalling danger of the nation’s airspace.

He said more often than not, air traffic controllers through NAMA do receive Air Safety Reports (ASRs) from airlines flying Nigerian airspace.

The ASR is an avenue in which pilot, crew-members in a data form, report or lay complaint to NAMA and copy to International Air Transport Association (IATA) on relevant safety matters or issues observed in the course of their flight.

According to him, “there are several cases where aircraft enter into Nigerian airspace unnoticed until neighbouring airspace notifies us through telephone, for example, Ndjamena, Chad. As a matter of fact, air traffic controllers on duty are facing operational hazards daily as they sometimes watch helplessly whenever aircraft are near collision and cannot provide air traffic control due to inability to communicate.’’

He said for the minister to get a clearer picture of the deplorable condition of the country’s airspace, she should contact IATA, the clearing-house for global airlines and call all the air traffic control closed logbooks for Lagos, Kano, Port Harcourt and Abuja from January 2012.

“The pilots of the presidential fleet can attest to these communication problems. Urgent remedies to these problems are very necessary because of its negative impact on safety, revenue and national security. Generally, history has shown that chief executives in the past misled former ministers, because they will never expose their deficiencies for you to help. We shall never allow that to happen again if you desire to hear regularly from workers who are the direct operators or end users of all aviation and airport facilities,” he said.

In the view of British Airways, British Airways Regional Commercial Manager, Africa, Mr. Ian Petrie, who spoke to journalists in London recently, said the situation coupled with soaring oil prices had taken their toll on the airline business as major clients from other industries including banks, oil firms among others have drastically reduced their budgets for travel.

Harrowing experience of an air traveller Following the recent Dana airplane crash on June 3, 2012 in the residential area of Iju Ishaga, one would expect that the other companies plying the Nigerian air route would be cautious enough to lay to rest fears associated with air transport in Nigeria.This was not the case on 22nd August, 2012 when Aero flight AJ 301 took off to Enugu at 8:45am but couldn’t land in the state on two occasions due to bad weather condition.

According to a passenger on the plane, Mr. Ayodele Adesanmi, the plane went to Enugu twice during the same journey and never reached its destination. He said, ‘After experiencing several turbulence in air coupled with the bad weather, the plane return to Lagos around 11:00am, then we asked to disembark for refueling but just about 20min after, we were asked to get on board the second time. The plane took off around 11:30 and the same thing happened again, we could not land the second time. So we return to Lagos around 1:30pm. By this time nobody was willing to travel again by the same flight. Yet the airline management wanted us to. We had to protest before they cancel the flight and refund our money.”

According to Adesanmi, “Passengers on board had to forfeit appointments and those who have not

flew in several years had a bad experience of air transport in Nigeria.

Some who were determined to travel on that day resort to traveling by road…”

Aviation budget The aviation gulped a total of N48.9billion naira which is 1.1% of the 2012 budget, even the CBN has estimated that the N300billion will be required to bring the aviation sector to a satisfactory condition. Akin Omotunde, an economics argues that aviation industry is of immense and strategic importance to the rapid development of Nigeria’s economy, as she depends mostly on air transport to link people with each other and the rest of the world at large.

A safe, secure and efficient aviation industry, Omotunde contended, “Is crucial to Nigeria’s growth and prosperity. The development of the industry is threatened by a plethora of socio-economic, policy, and political issues including public perception that the industry in Nigeria is unsafe and inefficient. “ 30 years ago, International Civil aviation Organisation (ICAO) estimated that Nigeria needed 500 Air traffic controllers to effectively man its airspace but presently that goal is not realistic because of the high turnover skilled personnel in the sector.

Echoing similar sentiment, in an interview with Akin Oni, Managing Director at Bristow Helicopters, recently, he lamented the huge capital outlay required to finance the Nigerian Content Act, training of aviation personnel, import duties on aircraft, and other challenges in the aviation industry.

“We are talking about a maintenance hangar for Nigeria, has anyone asked where we would get the engineers from? We are struggling today looking for Nigerian engineers. We don’t have engineers,” Oni lamented.

Captain George Santos, the Director, Employee Development and Resource Management with Caverton Helicopters, while giving an overview of the financial status of the sector, said it costs well over $200,000 to train a qualified pilot for four years.

This cost, he said, can hardly be borne by an individual. A development, he said may be affecting the availability of highly trained personnel like pilots in the country.

Market share in aviation In the economic calculus of the sector, Nigeria’s impact account for nothing. The largest market share by any African airline in 2007 according to a World Bank research conducted by Henrich c. Bofinger for World Bank on Air transport industry, South African Airways 10.7%, Kenya Airways had 3.6%

“

Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) should ensure that airline operators are put under closer surveillance.

Maintenance actions carried out by operators, if not routine, should always be queried to establish what necessitated the maintenance action and ensure the continuous proper use of the technical logbook

”

•Group Captain John Obakpolor

• Captain Shehu Iyal

share, out of 15 airlines collated no Nigeria airline carrier was among the top 15. Five years after it has not change.

Last year Egypt Airline led the trend, followed by South African Airline, Ethiopian Airline and Kenya airline are still leading the fronts, they are among the top 9, and none of the top Nigeria airline could be in rank, base on market share, customer relation management we are still lacking behind.

Road show to nowhere Perhaps, in the Federal Govern ment‘s quest to address the budget deficit in the sector, the supervising minister of the sector, Mrs. Stella Oduah, embarked on a three-nation road show ostensibly in search of foreign direct investments remains diversionary.

But in the view of aviation pundits, this was diversionary. According to Mr. Wale Alabi, an aviation analyst, “Granted that the Federal Government has announced plans to borrow N106 billion from the Chinese in order to expand six airports across the country such as Lagos, Abuja, Rivers, Kano and Enugu, which they want us to believe is a fallout of the road show, many Nigerians are not deceived.”

Minister’s response From information released by the ministry, the road show received positive responses as many Chinese companies are willing to do business in Nigeria; major aircraft manufacturer, Bombardier is interested in helping Nigeria build maintenance,

repair and overhaul (MRO) facilities and also may reach a term with government to facilitate Nigerian airlines acquire Bombardier aircraft.

Aviation minister, Stella Oduah said: “As we travel round the world, we see and admire international airports in other countries and wish that our nation could boast of just one that can truly go by the name international airport. Today, following the approval of FEC, we have concluded arrangements to commence construction of not just one, but five brand new, world class international airports.

“The company that is doing the execution is a Chinese company.

When the Chinese NEXIM or any country NEXIM gives a loan, that country’s contractor will have to do the execution. That is the process we follow.

“They will have to decide on who will do the awarding of the project, so ours is for Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) to check if its in line with our regulation to ensure that the loan is in order. Once BPP gives no objection then we are free. Secondly, on what it will be spent upon, I want to say they are five international airports and six international perishable cargo terminals and all that is N106 billion all inclusive.”

The airports will be completed within two years with a concessionary loan of 22 years and five years moratorium of an interest rate of 2 per cent.

Continued on page 67

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Business

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

‘Well-regulated ICT industry will increase yield’ Otunba Biodun Ajiboye is the Executive Chairman of the Logical Media Group.

In this interview with Bukola Afolabi, he talks about key challenges facing the Information Communication Technology (ICT) sector

•Ajiboye

H

OW will you assess the growth of telecoms sector since it was deregulated in 2011?

Without gainsaying, the industry has grown tremendously. There is no doubt about it. Unfortunately, I have a feeling that we have overgrown. We grew beyond the capability of the infrastructure of the environment. We grew beyond the readiness of the subscribers. We grew beyond the readiness of the operators and that was what actually backfired into the myriad of problems we are having in the industry. If growth has been managed in accordance with simultaneous infrastructural requirement in the industry, then growth needed to have been managed, but we didn’t manage our growth. That is why an operator can be having as much as 42 million subscribers on its network and half of the time you make calls you experience poor quality of service. It’s even getting better now. That is why the regulator should be on top of management of growth which it has started doing now.

But I really would, again, not blame the regulator in the last 10 years. It was a stability period. We are coming from an experience of the pariah state - a state that lacks foreign investment at that time. The people who brought the foreign investments came and I can say that we have spent the last 10 years to manage their arrival. Fortunately or otherwise, the industry grew beyond expectation. I say to you, MTN came to Nigeria with a feeling of having about 200,000 or so subscribers per annum.

But for the first year, it recorded one million subscribers on its network and it was mind-blowing. Of course, they know how to do business.

There is no doubt about it. They brought in experience that was cogent and that’s why MTN was able to go that far beyond every reasonable doubt. All the other

INTERVIEW operators are doing well also.

A Nigerian-owned operator like Globacom has well over 22 million subscribers as we speak. That is extremely very good anywhere in Africa. So, growth of the industry, going back to your question, has been extremely wonderful.

What do you see as current challenges to sustain growth in the sector?

The sector is currently almost overwhelmed by challenges. As we speak, voice calls are not perfect and the world has even gone beyond voice.

Voice is even supposed to be free as we speak now. The world is going into data. We are not even in the data business yet, because the voice we have not perfected and the infrastructure on ground cannot support as much data as we would be doing and that is why everybody is clamouring for broadband. If government can support broadband and broadband becomes solid then you can be sure that the problem is solved. All this hype about 3G, I have not seen it.

The operating environment is still troubled. For starters in the sector, you are bound to face the enormous challenge of running on generators because our electricity situation is in doldrums. The Power Minister, Prof. Barth Nnaji, just resigned amid the ongoing privatisation process, which we are yet to get right, which may be taking us many years backward.

So, the challenges are a lot.

There is nowhere in the world where generators are stolen the way they are being stolen in Nigeria. Nowhere else in the world are telecoms cables cut at will by vandals. Nowhere else in the world do you see that over 167 million population will have less than 22, 000 base transceiver stations. All the base stations we have in Nigeria are

less than 22,000. Europe with less than 40 million subscribers has over 60,000 base stations. What the situation means in Nigeria is that the networks have to provide enough infrastructure to ensure that there is enough infrastructure to cater for the availability of investment and business opportunities in telecoms in Nigeria. So the challenges are enormous.

Recently, the Foreign Direct Investments and local investment in the nation’s telecoms sector hit $25bn. Do you see this as a milestone?

It is indeed a milestone. Tell me what other sector of the economy in Nigeria has recorded such calculable volume in terms of investments asides telecoms sector. An industry can be worth $50bn in less than a year or in a year if well regulated. Telecoms have been able to achieve that milestone because that is about the only industry that is properly regulated. It has been extremely regulated and that is where we pick our interest from. We watched the oil industry move from a highly unmonitored level. What we are doing to the telecoms industry to monitor by merely instituting an award in this industry, is to tell people that some people are around the corner that are watching your activities and that monitoring helps in their stability and uprightness and in a lot of other things in doing businesses. So, the investment in the telecoms industry can even move beyond that $25bn if the industry is monitored ad guarded properly. Of course, the leakages in the industry are a lot that nobody is talking about. There are so many leakages. I attended a meeting where Dr Stephen, former acting Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission, said he was very sure that the level of leakages in the industry required some regulatory intervention and interest and he made a lot of instances such as calls that are terminated offshore. In whose account does it go? Who monitors those calls?

Those are extra-investment issues.

Nigerian Telecoms Awards has been one of the most recognised awards in this industry since 2005. Can you give us a background of the award and its significance to the telecoms sector?

At some point in 2001, 90 per cent of my clients as an advertising practitioner were

telecoms companies, and I found out that most of them were foreigners and that they needed a template to relate with.

Because of my interest in the industry and the need to provide information for stakeholders in the industry, we started Nigerian Telecoms “News magazine” and in 2004, we felt there was a need for award in the industry called Nigerian Telecoms Awards. We got the name registered, and yet we felt we needed an award that government and industry would accept. We then called the Minister of Communication at that time to intimate him and we subsequently constituted the board of trustee and the minister inaugurated the board of trustee and all telecoms companies were representatives in the steering committee that was later formed and we had the first of such award ceremony in 2005.

It was a big event as the Presidency was well represented during the event, which was the first time in the industry. By 2006, former Head of State AbdulSalam Abubakar chaired the award that year where he pointed out that the award should become the watch-dog of the telecoms industry. We have had Presidents from Sierra Leone, Today, the award has become dominant in the industry and I can tell you that there is no single company in Nigeria that has not had one or two things to do with the award. It has impacted on the industry most positively. All the time, we need to justify why X Company must get an award and not Y Company. It has become the mainstay of the industry in terms of evaluation of performance by the players in the sector. Award is a reserved area for media practitioners, though there are a couple of other awards in the industry, the award has a wide spectrum of interest and today I can tell you that we have done well. The award has never been the case of being over-impressed by the performance of a company to give an award. We have a credible panel of assessors which determine who gets which award, though we may not be perfect in our selection.

Only God is perfect in all ramifications. Though we have challenges, I can tell you that we shall overcome those challenges.

For the 2012, four governors have written to us that they would be attending the award and it is the kind of award that we don’t ask for sponsorship from anybody. Today we also stage the Nigerian Information Technology Exhibition, NITEX.

Beyond Talent

By Adetayo Okusanya Email: adetayookusanya@hotmail.com

Never leave home without anthena

I

N 2003, the company I worked for was perhaps one of the early adopters of formal mentoring in Nigeria. I arrived at work one day and discovered that my colleagues and I had been assigned mentors from the management cadre. While the intention behind the idea was great and laudable, it did not work very well for me because my formal mentor and I were thrust together without being adequately prepared to build a mentoring relationship. I do not believe that my assigned mentor understood the responsibilities of a mentor, nor did I understand how to get the best out of the mentoring experience. Fortunately, an informal mentoring relationship had emerged between another member of the management team and me, and this great relationship helped me develop a broad repertoire of professional skills early in my career, that have served me well.

A decade has since passed and I have been very fortunate to have had several wise and trusted counselors and advisers who have willingly and generously provided guidance, so that my chances of achieving higher levels of success in life are greatly enhanced. These individuals regularly set time aside to share their personal experiences, knowledge and social capital to help me solve work related problems, close performance gaps, achieve my career ambitions and expand my world view and network. All my mentoring relationships have developed informally. In some cases I approached an individual I respected, who possessed qualities and experiences that were important to me, and asked him or her to be my mentor. In other cases, social or professional relationships, over time, took on a mentoring flavor as I faced challenges and opportunities in life and work. My mentors have helped me create and execute successful career strategies, navigate treacherous office politics, make difficult choices between important values, and steer clear of performance pitfalls.

The word “Mentor” derives from Greek mythology.

Mentor was the friend that Odysseus, King of Ithaca, entrusted with the care and education of his son, Telemachus, when he, Odysseus, left to fight in the Trojan War. Twenty years passed without word from Odysseus, and many suitors set their sights on Penelope, his wife, in hopes of claiming the land. It is said that Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom and heroic endeavors, disguised herself as Mentor when visiting Telemachus, a favorite of hers, to provide guidance on how to deal with his mother’s suitors and empower him to go in search of his father. Athena, being goddess, knew that Odysseus was alive but did not tell Telemachus, choosing to allow him to embark on a hero’s journey with her as his guide. The nature of the relationship between Mentor and Telemachus, coupled with the disguised intervention by Athena, inspired the English adoption of the name “Mentor” as a noun that describes someone who imparts wisdom to and shares knowledge with a less experienced colleague.

A mentor is an extremely useful resource for career and professional development. If I could live my life again from scratch, I would have a mentor by the age of thirteen.

I strongly believe that every professional should have at least one mentor; someone more experienced than they are, who makes a conscious decision to invest in their long term success. When thinking about who to choose as a mentor, consider the chemistry and compatibility that exists or may develop between you and that individual, personally or professionally. It is important that you set expectations from the start. Let your mentor know what you would like to get out of the relationship. This way, both you and your mentor are embarking on a journey that leads to the same destination. Additionally, think about what your mentor will get out of being in a relationship with you. Mentoring is, after all, a two-way relationship, with both parties giving and receiving. The experience must be extrinsically or intrinsically rewarding for both you and your mentor.

How will you know when a mentoring relationship is going well? The first sign of a great mentoring relationship is alignment. Your mentor should possess personal or professional qualities that are important to your success.

You, on other hand, must be willing to listen and act on mutually agreed plans. The second sign is that the protégée (you) is achieving set goals. This shows that the energy and effort in the relationship is purposeful and effective.

Many mentors have a sincere desire to have positive impact on the lives of their protégées. Third, you and your mentor feel secure in your relationship and feel comfortable to share your experiences, because you trust each other to respect the confidentiality of personal information shared.

Last, there is mutual internal expansion. A mentoring relationship is a journey, in which both parties are seeking to self actualize by accomplishing mutually compatible goals.

• Okusanya is CEO of ReadinessEdge

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ESCUE workers cleared roads yesterday so they could search for survivors and rush aid to a remote mountainous area of southwestern China after twin earthquakes killed at least 80 people.

More than 200,000 villagers were evacuated after Friday’s quakes toppled thousands of homes and sent boulders cascading across roads in a region of small farms and mines near the border between Guizhou and Yunnan provinces, where some of China’s poorest people live.

The official Xinhua News Agency quoted local officials as saying the death toll could climb further because the quakes seri-

WORLD NEWS THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

80 dead as China steps up earthquake rescue efforts ously damaged roads and communications, making it difficult to collect information.

The damage also slowed rescue efforts.

“Roads are blocked and rescuers have to climb mountains to reach hard-hit villages,” Xinhua quoted Li Fuchun, head of Luozehe township in hardesthit Yiliang County, as saying.

State television said yester-

day that workers had succeeded in clearing a road into the worsthit area that had been blocked by fallen boulders, allowing rescuers and assistance in.

Rescue work was also likely to be hampered by rain forecast over the next three days. There was, however, some uplifting news: State television reported that four babies had been born in temporary hospitals set up

after the quakes.

The first magnitude-5.6 quake struck just before 11:30 a.m. Friday and was followed by an equally strong quake shortly after noon, joined by dozens of aftershocks. Though of moderate strength, the quakes were shallow, which often causes more damage than deeper ones.

Zhang Junwei, a spokes-

man for the Yunnan Seismological Bureau, said by telephone yesterday that 80 people had died and 821 others had been injured.

All but one of the deaths occurred in Yiliang County, according to the Yunnan provincial government’s official website. Yiliang’s high population density — twice the pro-

vincial average — along with flimsy building construction and landslide-prone hillsides were blamed for the relatively high death toll.

The dead included three primary school students, Xinhua said. It cited Zhou Guangfu, deputy chief of the Yiliang county education bureau, as saying 15 students were in their classroom in Jiaokui township when the first quake hit. Eight were buried in rubble and teachers and villagers were able to rescue five of them, he said.

CCTV footage showed heavy equipment being used to clear roads littered with rocks and boulders.

Obama gets bigger ‘bounce’ than Romney did, but it’s more like a ‘blip’ E ARLY returns are in, and it looks like President Obama got more of a poll bounce right after his party’s convention than Mitt Romney did out of the GOP’s big event.

Gallup’s daily tracking poll for Friday put Obama’s job approval rating at 52 percent, the highest it’s been since the killing of Osama bin Laden. Obama has also moved to a three-point lead over Mitt Romney among registered voters (48-45 percent), up from Obama’s one-point margin over the last nine days.

“It is possible that these upticks are short-lived and that the race will devolve back to a parity by next week,” Gallup editor-in-chief Frank Newport wrote in his morning-after analysis. “On the other hand, if Obama builds on and sustains his higher job approval rating and lead over Romney, it could signal a possible resetting of the presidential race as it enters the remaining three-and-a-half weeks before the first debate on Oct. 3.”

By comparison, Romney’s standing bounced not at all after last week’s Republican convention.

Morning-after convention polls can evaporate pretty quickly, and Friday’s grim jobs report just hours after Obama’s convention speech Thursday night may hasten that. Plus, postconvention bounces going back to 1964 have averaged a healthier five points. Still, an upticked three point plus for Obama in a very close race can make the difference between a second term in office and packing his bags for Chicago come January.

A fuller picture of recent polls brings a mixed picture for Obama (and for Romney).

An Ipsos/Reuters Poll sees “the beginning of a convention bump for the President.” Obama is up 2 points to 46 percent and Romney down one point to 44

percent among likely voters.

In addition, according to Ipsos/Reuters, Obama’s ratings on his personal attributes have increased across some metrics: “Tough enough for the job” is up 4 points to 42 percent; “Represents America” is up 4 points to 44 percent; “Will protect American jobs” is up 4 points to 40 percent; “Can be effective in Washington” is up 4 points to 38 percent; “Presidential” is up 3 points to 45 percent; “Understands people like me” is up 3 points to 44 percent; and “Has the right values” is up 3 points to 44 percent.

Note that all of those figures are in the 40s – not great marks.

Meanwhile, a new poll for The Hill newspaper finds that a majority of voters believe the country is worse off today than it was four years ago (52 percent) and that President Obama does not deserve reelection (54 percent). The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Friday shows Romney ahead of Obama among voters nationwide by one point (46-45 percent).

On the other hand, RealClearPolitics has Obama ahead by just under one point, but – perhaps more significantly – ahead at least slightly in 10 of 12 battleground states. (All except North Carolina and Missouri.)

Another measure of conven-

•U.S. President Barack Obama delivers remarks during a campaign rally on the campus of St. Petersburg College yesterday in St Petersburg, Florida. Working with the momentum from this week's Democratic National Convention, Obama is doing a two-day campaign swing from one side of Florida to the other on the politically important I-4 corridor.

AFP

tion performance – Obama’s acceptance speech – has gotten mixed reviews at best. Too lowkey, some are saying, not enough detail or forward-looking ideas for a second term.

Newsweek/Daily Beast special correspondent Michael Tomasky (no great fan of the Romney/Ryan ticket) didn’t hold back: “Barack Obama gave

a dull and pedestrian speech tonight, with nary an interesting thematic device, policy detail, or even one turn of phrase.”

But Howard Kurtz, Newsweek’s Washington bureau chief says he’s found out why “the president deliberately dialed it down, stopping well short of the altitudes he is capable of reaching.”

“While the pundits are generally calling the president’s Thursday night address mediocre, Obama and his advisers had taken great pains to avoid soaring rhetoric that might have been derided as empty,” Kurtz writes on Newsweek’s Daily Beast website. “Indeed, they extensively tested the president’s speech in dial groups, a type of

focus group where voters twist dials to register approval or disapproval of specific passages, and say it tested off the charts.

The reaction, they say, was more positive than to Obama’s 2008 acceptance speech in Denver.”

Election Day two months from now will tell whether or not that ploy paid off for Obama.

Romney, Ryan blast convention video

H

AVING faulted President Obama for Friday’s jobs report, Mitt Romney and his running mate, Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, added to their list of criticisms of Democrats a video shown at the Democratic National Convention.

Appearing in Orange City, Iowa, the GOP presidenaital nominee highlighted the video

shown on opening night in Charlotte that stated, “Government is the only thing that we all belong to.” After conservative commentators castigated the message, the Obama campaign disavowed it, saying that the video was produced by the city’s host committee.

“Boy, they sure got that one wrong, didn’t they?” Romney asked a crowd of more than

2,000 people gathered in a college gymnasium in northwest Iowa who cheered their agreement.

Romney used the incident to make his case for a limited government that answers to the people. “The government belongs to us,” he said. “We value the government we have, and we pay for it too. It ain’t free.”

In a swing state further west,

Ryan told a group of about 1,500 voters in Reno, Nev., that the root of Obama’s problems lay in his policies, not his personality.

“President Obama is not a bad guy. He’s good at giving great speeches, he’s just really bad at creating jobs,” said Ryan, who was raising money in Los Angeles as the president spoke on Thursday evening. “Here’s

the problem: When you think that the road to success and prosperity is more borrowing, more spending, more taxing, more regulating, a government-centered society with a government-run economy, these are the kinds of results we will get. And if we want the next four years to be any different than the last four years, we need a new president.”

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World News

HE presidential race is tight with President Obama possessing a slight lead over his Republican opponent, Mitt Romney.

However, anything can happen with over two months remaining until the election. An unexpected event can turn the race on its head. That surprise did not come this week. Instead, the Democratic National Convention event gave the president’s campaign a shot of pure adrenaline, strengthening his slim lead. If the quality of the two parties’ conventions were the decisive factor, the President could sleep soundly knowing his party’s confab had delivered to him another four years in the White House. While the Republican convention performed the flight pattern of a wingless bird, the Democratic event was the best, most animated convention in the past thirty years.

The Democratic convention exceeded its Republican counterpart in every aspect save the median age of its participants. The demographics of the two events, the divergent organisational styles, the quality of the speakers, and the policy substance of the events were telling. In most things, the Democrats painted a picture starkly different more positive picture than the dour Republican one. Sadly, on the most important aspect, that of economic policy, Democrats have been cowed by thirty years of Republican intellectual dominance of the discourse on economics. Instead of offering a different, truly progressive economic agenda, Democrats offered a milder version of Republican slash and burn economic policy. The Democrats have largely ceded the economic debate by joining the Republican chorus on budget cutting and reduction of government social programs. Because Democrats have weakened on the economic objectives that once differentiated them from the Republicans, even if President Obama wins the election, the Republicans will still realize many of their economic goals. As such, the Republicans may win the election although their candidate loses it. It is still better that the Democrats win. Yet, in terms of fiscal policy, the difference between the two parties is one of nuances, shades, and inches.

In short, a Democratic victory will lessen the pain but pain, unnecessary, unwise and self-inflicted, there shall be. Yet, for the moment the Democrats rightfully congratulate themselves; they showed themselves to be a cut better than their rivals.

Demographically, the two conventions could not have been more different. The Republican convention was largely peopled by old white men and, in addition to them, older white men.

The convention had the bitter air of a village of unrepentant Scrooges having eschewed their lone chance at kind redemption because they too perversely enjoy humbugging everything and everyone different than they are.

At their convention, the Republicans harkened to a time where America was a Herrenvolk democracy where upper-class white males defined all things and everyone meekly deferred to their proclamations. The Republican attendees were like a troop of misers searching in the dark for lost trove.

Although lacking the power of the Divine, they tried to resurrect the corpse of dead ideas. This gave the Republican convention a funereal quality. Instead, of looking to the future, the Republican gathering had the nostalgic quality of people looking at faded, yellowed photographs of a longgone benefactor in hopes the more they looked at the photos the greater the chance the benefactor would reappear. The benefactor was the narrow privilege and power given to a small segment of society to the detriment of all others. Because they would benefit there from, the Republicans seemed unconcerned about the injustice manifest in their desires. Instead, they were more than happy to label it sanctimoniously as the natural order of things.

Meanwhile, the Democratic gathering was an exercise in diversity.

Blacks, Latinos, and Whites attended in considerable numbers. Some wore

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

The Democratic Convention: Obama outsmarts his opponents •Politics is the sly art of turning your lies into truth and your opponent’s truths into lies

•Supporters hoist signs reading “Forward” as US President Barack Obama states his acceptance to run for a second term as president at the Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina, on September 6, 2012 on the final day of the Democratic National Convention (DNC).

AFP PHOTO Brendan SMIALOWSKI

By Brian Browne business suits. Others were garbed casually. Some donned the dress of their ethnic heritage, including turbaned Sikhs plumed Native Americans. All were welcome and none seemed out of place. The convention looked like a representation of a dynamic, ever evolving nation seeking to perfect the theme that in diversity there is union and in that union there is strength. The tableau presented by the Republican convention was that of a crumbling, unjust past. As such, their event was more a grim, archaeological display than a political happening. It had the emotional energy of a stroll through a museum. Meanwhile, the picture painted by the Democratic convention was perfectly incomplete. Like America itself, the picture cannot be finished because America always exits today into order to evolve into its better tomorrow. The Democratic convention shows an America that has a beginning but no end, an America where the highway never ends and failure in one town or vocation does not preclude finding success and home in another.

The Republican depiction of America was stark and unforgiving: Those who don’t look like them are not full-fledged Americans. The poor are such because they desire to be indolent. The sick and frail are accursed and represent a drain on society. The average man does not deserve a helping hand but big business is entitled to a large handout. Giving women equal pay is a wasteful extravagance and public education is dangerous socialism. The quality of education a child receives should be determined by his parent’s income, not the child’s aptitude. The Republicans’ America is one of privilege and power. It is elitism cloaked in the thinnest gossamer of fair play. Meanwhile, Democrats offered the picture of a nation that lends a hand to its downtrodden and supports the aspirations of its most humble. Theirs is an egalitarian aspiration more perfect in its postulation than in its implementation. This is an America where the poor and working class have dignity and their children can nurse aspirations of a better life.

The Republican America is one of walls and dead-ends. The Democratic America is one of wide vistas and broad opportunities. There is little contest between the two visions of society. The Democratic version is more just.

The featured speakers at the Democratic convention clearly outdid their Republican rivals. Florida Senator

Mark Rubio was the best performer at the Republican convention. However, at least seven Democratic speakers bettered the Republicans’ best. Moreover, the Democrats collectively did a masterful job on two fronts. First, their speakers effectively countered Republican arguments. Second, they passionately roused the constituencies that form the party’s support base.

Michelle Obama delivered the best ever address given by a First Lady or spouse of a candidate at a convention.

Hers was a touching love story wrapped in message of civil and political purpose. As she talked about her husband’s love and commitment to the nation, there were few dry eyes in the conventional hall. Those who remained unmoved by her speech are those fated not to be moved by the normal things that touch the hearts of the average mortal. One would be pardoned if they had decided to vote for the incumbent yet still wondered whether the wrong member of the family was the candidate.

Former President Clinton was at his folksy best. Point by point, he dissected the Republican platform with the skill of a brilliant surgeon. On all major things, from health care, to national security to tax policy, he showed the Republicans to be in the wrong.

Truly, the ascent of Mitt Romney to the White House would amount to the descent of the nation. Clinton also sought to excuse President Obama’s tepid handling of the economy by saying no one could have done better given the deep hole into which America had fallen due to the Bush Administration. Clinton is the most popular public figure in American political life. His hardy, intelligent endorsement was a needed tonic to a President locked in a close race. It will not only rouse the traditional support base of the party, it will pull some undecided voters into the Obama camp, helping to seal his victory in November.

Former Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm brought the convention to its feet. Amidst prolong and energetic applause, she berated Mitt Romney for opposing the President’s rescue of the auto industry. Although Romney was the son of a famous auto executive and of the state of Michigan where the auto industry is the lifeblood, he proposed that the industry be allowed to fall bankrupt. Granholm accurately stated Obama’s decision to support the car industry staved a wider recession. She then reeled off a list of jobs saved by Obama’s intervention in all of the most hotly contested states.

The convention went into happy up-

roar with the mention of each state. At the end of her speech, the crowd was in pandemonium. All she could do was to pump her fist in the air as she could not talk above the din.

Vice President Biden gave a faithful endorsement of President Obama calling him a man of utmost courage and character. President Obama provided a statesmanlike, yet moving address in a fitting climax to the convention. In a subtle counter to those who claim he is not fit to be president because they suspect his place of birth to be outside the United States, he merely stated that he was more than a candidate for office but he was the “president of the United States.” Again, the convention erupted in applause. With his Democratic colleagues pillorying Romney, the President spent scant time on his opponent save to ridicule him as so tax cut happy as to be reckless.

Instead, Obama gave a “Moses” speech in which he told the people that he wanted to lead them to a better nation but needed their help and vote to do so. His was an effective message and conventioneers energetically believed him. If he gets a similar response from those who watched by television, his residence for the next four years is assured and well known.

In some ways, the energy and enthusiasm of the convention was surprising. The President’s campaign had been flagging under a lack of enthusiasm. Something happened after the Republican convention. The Democratic rank and file awoke to the threat the Republicans pose to their vision of a diverse and tolerant society. The Republican convention revealed a party adverse to minority rights, to immigrants, to workplace equality for women, to access to education and health care for the poor and to jobs for the unemployed. The Republicans also showed themselves to bristle at gay and abortion rights. After the Republicans bared their true colors, the Democratic base was repulsed by what they saw. The Republicans did for Obama what he had been unable to do for himself. In the space of a week, a significant portion of the traditional base of the party jettisoned their sense of disappointment in his cautious leadership. They decided that he was no longer the lesser of two evils but a positive good and as the rallying point to fight Republican atavism.

Additionally helping the President’s electoral prospects, the Democrats have successfully expropriated several major issues once the province of Republicans. With his muscular foreign policy, President Obama

has taken the mantle of national security away from his opponents. He can boast of killing America’s most dreaded nemesis, Osama bin Laden, where the previous Republican administration had failed. Democrats no longer allow themselves to be characterized as effete internationalists too frightened to confront the nation’s enemies. Today, the Democrats assert they are willing to pull the trigger if needed but without being as irresponsibly trigger happy as the Republicans.

Democrats also have seized the mantle of economic patriotism from the Republicans. While accusing Romney of outsourcing jobs and thus exporting American prosperity, Democrats claim they stand for a return to a time when American manufacturing was the envy of the world and where products marked “made in America” instead of jobs are exported from the nation’s shores. This stance will prove attractive to labor and working class people who worry about the security of their jobs.

Unfortunately, for every silver lining, there is a cloud. The Democrats have copied one too many things from the Republican manual. Over the past three decades, Republicans have dominated the economic discourse. To compete against the Republicans, Democrats made a fateful decision twenty years ago. Instead of developing a compelling progressive alternative, mainstream Democrats gave wholesale embrace to Republican orthodoxy about fiscal rectitude, budget surpluses. Thus, both President Obama and former President Clinton spoke of implementing the Simpson-Bowles commission recommendations that would axe government expenditure by 4 trillion dollars during the next decade. Both extolled budget surpluses as if government surpluses are always righteous.

They are not. A government surplus is not an objective; it is merely a tactic appropriate to periods where the private sector expands at too rapid a pace.

It constitutes a brake on the economy.

To extol budget reduction at a time of weak private sector growth is to extol recession. It is the equivalent of a man in quicksand asking to have a millstone placed upon his shoulders as a means of lifting him from his sinking position. In other words, Democrats leaders now join Republicans seeking to deflate the economy. Unwittingly, Democrats transgress their own egalitarian ethos by imbibing Republican economics. It is as if the Democrats have taken the shackles from their social and cultural hand only to apply it to their economic one.

While the enunciation of overall Democratic fiscal policy was disappointing, there was a saving grace.

Sensing the need to shore his support among progressives, President Obama explicitly retreated from his previous dalliance with privatizing Social Security. He pledged to keep this valued program in government hands instead of turning custody of it to the carpetbaggers of Wall Street.

The two conventions proved one thing: Democrats have style while the Republicans have bile. In most aspects, the Democratic convention outpaced the Republican version. Sadly, it is on the issue of economic policy, on the issue where most people live, that the two sides are mostly alike and wrongly so. If only President Obama could break from his economic conservatism and deliver a compelling message as to why the break is needed, he could put this election in his pocket and rest assured of victory in November. As things are, the convention has given him a boost in opinion polls but some of the new lead will evaporate as the economy drags during the eight weeks leading into the election. Even with that, the President can still smile at his fate. His opponent is awkward and so insensitive to the suffering of less fortunate human beings that he seems to be made of wood. In the end, most Americans would rather a reasonable, though cautious, black man as their commander-in-chief than a man with the personality of wood and the harsh policies to match.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

EBERE WABARA

65

WORDSWORTH 08055001948

Saving lives in Delta State

ewabara@yahoo.com

‘Although’ and ‘but’ can’t co-function

N

ATIONAL Mirror of September

6 exhibited editorial slovenliness in two paragraphs: “The conference, which is organized by the NGE, will see an assemblage of editors, comprising of men and women….” Yank off the second ‘of’ in the extract.

“Although it may be difficult to ascertain whether all of them are Nigerians, but it is evident that majority (the majority) are predominantly Yorubas (Yoruba).” Insight: ‘although’ and ‘but’ cannot co-function. Therefore, delete ‘but.’

DAILY Sun of September 5 disseminated copious solecisms right from its front page: “Masquerade arrested for robbery” This is impossible! What was arrested was not the mask (masquerade), but the masquerader.

“Okorocha condoles (condoles with/consoles) Meche, motor dealer’s (sic) president (another comma) as he buries mum” “Sokoto PDP commends Wamakko over (for) crude oil discovery” THE GUARDIAN of September 4 lacked lexical focus: “Challenges of restoring peace on (to) the Plateau” “Real reasons why employees quit their jobs” A rewrite: Real reasons employees quit their jobs LAST week’s edition of this medium circulated multifarious blunders: “Impeachment threat: Fed Govt in race to beat Reps deadline” No news: Reps’ deadline “No fewer than 501 Kano indigenes have been awarded scholarship for masters degrees at (in) different universities of their choice.”

Would it have been my choice? Get it right: master’s degree(s) or just master’s.

“The governor said Kano has (had) been experiencing….”

“He said if something urgent is (was) not done….”

“The beneficiaries, he assured, will (would) take over the realms of leadership of the state at (in) various human endeavours.”

Still on this medium: “Venezuela had built the biggest refinery in (on) that continent….” No further comment or analysis.

“Alleged lopsided appointments in the

INEC is (are) presently generating ripples in the Presidency….” Who can tell me the function of ‘presently’ here, please?

“Container-carrying trailers often constitute a menance on the roads” Death on wheels: a menace on roads.

“What has happen (happened) to them?”

Lastly from THE NATION ON SUNDAY under review: “Syria (Syrian) rebels target regime air power” World news: regime’s air power.

“Ajimobi buries mum with pomp” The governor buried his mum in pomp—certainly not ‘with pomp’!

“Minister commissions incinerator” The cabinet official did not do that! What the man did was to launch it.

After a long break from this column, THE PUNCH returns. Its edition of September 1 did not advance the advocacy of the English language: “It’s intended to allow us, as Yoruba sons and daughters, to rub minds on the way out of the country’s crippling underdevelopment….”

Quest for unity: there is nothing like ‘rub minds’!

You either exchange concepts/ideas/perspectives/thoughts/views or have a meeting of minds.

How do you ‘rub minds’?

Let’s meditate/think before communication, like Chaucer who really transformed English into a literary language.

National Mirror of August 30 politicised the English language through slip-shoddiness: “No love lost between Saraki and I (me)— Ahmed” “ G o v e r n o r Abdulfatah Ahmed has been in the news of late on issues bothering (bordering) on governance in Kwara State and his relationship with his predecessor, Senator Bukola Saraki.”

Lastly from National Mirror: “How public varsities’ fee hike truncate (truncates) students’ ambition” Advertised unpardonable infelicities: “...great cultures and civilizations have been those in which the ruling class has (have) made conscious efforts to initiate, promote and sustain their peoples, cultural talents.”

“In would be height (the height) of folly if Nigeria is taken unaware (unawares).”

“Nigeria should use all her (its) political and diplomatic efforts within and without for a peace-

ful resolution on (of) the issue.” I say ‘no’ to the feminisation of language!

“They wanted to deport them back to Africa….” Just delete ‘back’ which is implied in ‘deportation’.

Wrong: non-challant; right: nonchalant. And this: in spite (not inspite). “…the electorate is (are) weak and is (are) often intimidated, so nothing avails.”

“It is even more so because this has happened in the Holy month of Ramadan when faithfuls (the faithful) are supposed to eschew hate and violence….”

“Whatever may have been the grievances of the rioters in Kaduna and Abuja, their conduct is an assault on the rule of law, and a set-back (setback) for (to) the democratic process.”

“If and (or) when you relate it to the time....” “…he gave credence to the annulment by advocating for....” Delete the last word in the extract.

“However, emerging signals point to the fact that the older generation of politicians are (is) only interested on (in) how to ensure that....”

“A situation where a housemaid or nanny becomes endangered specie (species)…. “….I buy kola nuts and cigarettes and exchange banters almost every night.” ‘Banter’ is uncountable.

“He however said that his men are (were) equal to the task and that they are (were) already….”

“He contended that bankers, being an integral part of the polity, cannot be immuned (immune) to the moral degeneration....”

“A Vehicle Revolving Loan Scheme was in place by which staffs were assisted to purchase their own cars” Back to the future: staff. “…the purchase of modern luxurious aircraft to offer comfort....” No more old school: luxury aircraft.

“However, we should stop talking about potential but hold the bull by the horn.” Get it right: take the bull by the horns (not horn).

“With regards to the particular case of the armed forces….” This way: with regard to or as regards.

“Answers to the above question is hereby provided below by PDP-USA C h a p t e r . . . . ” ‘Answers…is’ indeed!

Gosh!

•Governor Uduaghan and others inspecting one of the hospital’s equipment

From page 54 We have an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) where we already have equipment and about starting to operate it fully. We are also putting up a new 100bedded building to run the government free maternal and under-five programmes.”

Commenting on the patient traffic in the hospital, she stated: “It is so much. To tell you the extent of it, my doctors in the Obstetrics and Gynaecolgy Department are not willing to move out completely from their former place and occupy the new building because they feel that it will not be adequate. They are saying we should still retain the 50-bedded building. Sometimes you see two women lying in the same bed. And I keep buying chairs for the antenatal clinic. It is the same situation in the children ward.”

Talking about the enormity of her duties as CMD, she said: “I'm on my toes every time. It is very tasking. We face the serious problem of electricity supply. I've just come back from the engine house. The electricity company is not giving us light regularly.

I've just called the PHCN officials now. They told me there is something wrong or a fault somewhere and they are trying to fix it. We are always on generator. The government has to address the issue of electricity as a priority. In a hospital environment, you need electricity for most of your functions, to run your laboratory, X-ray and incubator, where children are placed and need oxygen. We had a dedicated

•Faith

transformer before now. It got blown up on the 20th of May last year.

“We need another dedicated transformer which had been promised us but has not come. The transformer we are currently connected to is full of problems every day.

Electricity is very irregular.

Most times we fall back to our 500 kv generator. It developed a nozzle problem and it started consuming one drum of diesel every hour which costs N30, 000. It was like just pouring water into a basket. We cried to the Honourable Commissioner for Health. Fortunately, he has been able to repair it for us. Now the diesel consumption is much less at one drum per five hours, which is reasonable.

However, we need a dedicated transformer so that at least where there is electricity at all, the hospital will have it.”

Dr Ejegi listed the other needs of the hospital: “We need more personnel. The government is aware of this.

We need more hands especially with this new building coming up.

Thirdly, we need water.

Water supply in the hospital is hindered. All our boreholes in parts of the hospital are rusty because the iron content in them is very high. There used to be a central borehole but it is no longer functioning. We need another central borehole to service the entire hospital because water is very crucial to hospital operations.

Another challenge we face is waste disposal. It is a tug of war making sure that this place is cleared. Formerly, a private company used to clear the waste for us. I think

their contract had been stopped. So, we need an incinerator.”

The Chief Medical Director, however, said she is not daunted by the challenges she faces on the job. In her words: “I believe that if you want to do something, you should do it well.” She added that the experience has been worthwhile. “Yes, it's been worth it. Initially, I was reluctant to take up the job. I felt it would entail a lot of work and I won't be able to cope. But coming into it, I feel like it's been fun. It's a good experience. Every time, I buy slippers. I used to wear covered shoes but now I can't do that because I'm on my feet 24 hours. Even the slippers get frayed within one week. The job has also kept me fit.”

She said that as an ophthalmologist or eye specialist, she still runs her clinic and has her theatre days in the hospital where she sometimes see about 50 to 60 patients in one day.

She said she sees nothing wrong in the extensive attention the Delta State government is paying to the health sector in the state. “If you as a journalist become a governor, what would you do? Won't you make your sector good? That is not bias.

Charity begins at home, as they say. If I take up a position, as an ophthalmologist, you won't tell me that the eye section would suffer. I should be able to put things in order in that department. If I don't do that well, I won't be able to do other things well. So, if the governor pays attention to medicine because he is a doctor, he has not done anything wrong. He is in order,” she concluded.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

66 CHANGE OF NAME TIJANI

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OGUNTAYO

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AMANZE I, formerly known as Barrister Miss IRENE IJEOMA AMANZE, now wish to be known and addressed as Barrister (Mrs.) IRENE IJEOMA ALICHE, All former documents remains valid, Nigeria Bar Association and general public should please take note.

ADESUJI I formerly known and addressed as MISS ADESUJI MOROLAYO now wish to be known and addressed as MRS OLOWA MOROLAYO . All former document remain valid .

Ekiti west local government and general public to take note.

OLOWOLAFE

I formerly known and addressed as MISS OLOWOLAFE SEUN SABAINAH now wish to be known and addressed as MRS OMOTOSO SEUN SABAINAH. All former document remain valid . The general public to take note.

CHANGE OF NAME OSASU

I, formerly known and addressed as Fadayomi Emmanuel Oluwatosin Ojo, now wish to be addressed as Oludayomi Emmanuel Oluwatosin. All former documents remain valid. General public take note.

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS. CHINEDO ASSUMPTA NWAKAEGO, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. ABEL ASSUMPTA NWAKAEGO. All former documents remain valid.

General public please take note.

I, formerly known and addressed as Adisa Saheed Ayinde, now wish to be addressed as Adisa Saheed Gbolahan. All former documents remain valid. GTBank Plc, British Embassy and general public take note.

CHINENDO

OKON

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS. GLORY BONIFACE OKON, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. GLORY RICHARD UGOCHUKWU. All former documents remain valid.

General public please take note.

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Onitiju Oyetola Elizabeth, now wish to be addressed as Mrs Makinwa Oyetola Elizabeth. All former documents remain valid.

General public take note.

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS. COLETTE AJEOVIE KENNI, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. COLETTE JULIUS GABICE. All former documents remain valid. Nana College Warri, University of Ilorin and general public take note.

DUNIA I, formerly known and addressed as MRS. IBIENE FAVOUR PAUL DUNIA, now wish to be known and addressed as MISS. IBIENE FAVOUR KABAKA BROWN. All former documents remain valid.

General public please take note.

CONFIRMATION OF NAME I, JOSHUA BARRY UE-LOR, UELOR BARIWEREMELOO A-EREME BARRY and UELOR BARIWEREMELOO are one and the same person, now wish to be known and addressed as JOSHUA BARRY UE-LOR . All former documents remain valid. General public should take note.

CONFIRMATION OF NAME I, VIVIAN CHIGOZIE GODWIN and VIVIAN CHIGOZIE MOH are one and the same person, now wish to be known and addressed as VIVIAN CHIGOZIE GODWIN. All former documents remain valid.

General public should take note.

AKINWUNMI

I formerly known and addressed as MISS. AKINWUNMI JULIANAH AJOKE now wish to be known and addressed as MRS.OLANRENWAJU JULIANAH AJOKE. All former documents remain valid. LGEA,Ogun State SUBEEB and general public take note.

ALAYAKI

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Alayaki Rukayat Ololade, now wish to be addressed as Mrs Balogun Rukayat Ololade. All former documents remain valid.

General public take note.

OLABISI

I, formerly known and addressed as Ekemode Kafayat Olabisi, now wish to be addressed as Ekemode Kafayat Omowunmi. All former documents remain valid. General public take note.

IBINI

SANGOLANA

ADERIYE

GABRIEL

I, formerly known and addressed as Gabriel ogunleye Koya, now wish to be addressed as Gabriel ogunleye OgunKoya. All former documents remain valid. General public take note.

IBRAHIM

I, formerly known and addressed as Bakare Rasaq, now wish to be addressed as Bakare Rasaki Adesoji. All former documents remain valid. General public take note.

AFOLABI

I formerly known and addressed as MISS AFOLABI FUNMILAYO now wish to be known and addressed as MRS.AKINDELE FUNMILAYO.All former documents remain valid.N.P.F,Ifo Division,NPF Headquaters Eleweran Abeokuta and general public take note.

OLOFINNUSI

KENNI

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS. IHUAKU ADAEZE EKE, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. IHUAKU ADAEZE EKE-OKOKO. All former documents remain valid. General public take note.

I formerly known and addressed as MR SANGOLANA OLAJIDE JAMES now wish to be known and addressed as MR.OLULANA OLAJIDE JAMES. All former documents remain valid.UBA and general public take note.

LIGALI

ADEBAYO

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Adebayo Bolanle Folake, now wish to be addressed as Mrs Akinnola Bolanle Folake. All former documents remain valid.

General public take note.

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Olofinnusi Olayinka Kikelomo, now wish to be addressed as Mrs Ilori Olayinka Kikelomo. All former documents remain valid. General public take note.

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss aderiye Adesol, now wish to be addressed as Mrs Agbi Adesola. All former documents remain valid. General public take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Ligali Oluwatoyin Comfort now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Adegoke Oluwatoyin Comfort. All former documents remain valid. Osun State University Osogbo and general public take note.

AYINDE

EKE

OMOGBARE

I formerly known and addressed as MISS IBRAHIM OLAYINKA OLUSHOLA now wish to be known and addressed as MRS.OLULANA OLAYINKA OLUSOLA. All former documents remain valid.Diamond Bank Plc. and general public take note.

FADAYOMI

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS. OSASU AUGUSTA IGBINEWEKA, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. OSASU AUGUSTA ERONMWON. All former documents remain valid.

General public please take note.

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Ibini Oyovwe, now wish to be addressed as Mrs Odisie Oyovwe Bridget. All former documents remain valid. General public take note.

I formerly known and addressed as Omogbare Yemisi Ada now wish to be known and addressed as Omogbare Yemisi Adebisi O. LSG/ LGSC and general public should take note.

CHANGE OF NAME

BAKARE

AGBIM

I, formerly known and addressed as Agbim Ogoh, now wish to be addressed as Agbim-NNagbo Ogoh Veraline. All former documents remain valid. General public take note.

AMUSA

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Amusa Oluwabukonla Abiola, now wish to be addressed as Mrs Anifowose Oluwabukonla Abiola. All former documents remain valid. NYSC and general public take note.

PATRICK

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS PATRICK ANGELA CHINWE now wish to be known and addressed as MRS FAJEMISIN ANGELA CHINWE. All former documents remain valid. IMT, NYSC and general public take note.

ONITIJU

OGUNLARI

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Ogunlari Omokehinde Olufunke, now wish to be addressed as Mrs Adebayo Omokehinde Olufunke. All former documents remain valid. General public take note.

ADERIYE I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Akoleowo Olufunke Olufunke Omolola, now wish to be addressed as Mrs Abodunrin Olufunke Omolola. All former documents remain valid. General public take note.

MUSA I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Mary Musa, now wish to be addressed as Mrs. Chinedu Mary.

All former documents remain valid.

Nigeria Army and general public take note.

JOEL

I, formerly known and addressed as Mr. Ekpete Moses Joel, now wish to be addressed as Mr. Ekpete Omar.

All former documents remain valid.

General public take note.

CHIBOKA

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Rebecca Ogechi Chiboka, now wish to be addressed as Mrs. Rebecca Ogechi Nnaji. All former documents remain valid. General public take note.

MOSES

I formerly known and addressed as Miss Justina Akuba Moses, now wish to be known as Mrs. Justina Akuba Aripakubo. All former documents remain valid, The Nigerian Police and the general public please take note.

WIFA

I formerly known and addressed as Dr. Miss. Anita Nubarido Wifa, now wish to be known and address as Dr. Mrs. Anita Nubarido Oweredaba all former documents remain valid general public please take note.

FEYITIMI

I formerly known and addressed as Miss. Feyitimi Gloria Ifeseyitan, now wish to be known as Mrs. Onokpite Gloria Ifeseyitan. All former documents remain valid.

NYSC and the general public please take note.

ONWUMERE

I formerly known and addressed as Miss. Onwumere Georgina Nkechi, now wish to be known as Mrs. Amadi Georgina Nkechi, all former documents remain valid, Nigerian Prisons Service, and the general public please take note.

OKON

I, formerly known and addressed as MISS EFFIONG, NKOYO OKON, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS OKOLI NKOYO JAMES. All former documents remain valid. NTA, First Bank Plc and general public take note.

CORRECTION OF NAMES

My name(s) were erroneously spelt in some of my documents as ODOH, CANDIDUS and MMADUABUCHI respectively, but wish to state that my correct names are ODO CANDIDIUS MADUABUCHI. All former documents bearing the above names remain valid. NSCDC and general public take note.

ADVERT: Simply produce your marriage certificate or sworn affidavit for a change of name publication, with just (N4,500. NEW RATE effective from 20th March) The payment can be made through FIRST BANK of Nigeria Plc. Account number 2017220392 Account Name - VINTAGE PRESS LIMITED Scan the details of your adteller to vert and gbengaodejide@yahoo.com or thenation_advert@yahoo.com For enquiry please contact: Gbenga on 08052720421, 08161675390, Emailgbengaodejide @yahoo.com or our offices nationwide.

Note this! Change of name is now published every Sundays, all materials should reach us two days before publication.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Petrol scarcity hits Ibadan

By Bisi Oladele, Ibadan

CARCITY of Prime Motor Spirit (PMS) popularly known as petrol hit Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, yesterday.

Many filling stations shut their gates to motorists in need of the products.

Queues started building at some stations in many parts of the city in the early hours when rumour frittered in that some other states were experiencing scarcity.

But stations selling stuck to the N97 official price.

Fuel station workers said they had no stock contrary to the belief they were hoarding the product.

Some of them also claimed that the problem was due to shortage of supply from depots.

There was similar report of scarcity in Fiditi, Oyo and Ogbomoso towns.

A source at the Ibadan office of the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) said: “There is no supply to any depot in Ibadan and many parts of Oyo state.

“What we heard was that some vandals attacked the pipeline around Ogun state and so disrupted the flow of the product.

“There was a report that there was even shooting around the area. That is why the filling stations are shut.

“The situation is however going to be temporary because we are hopeful, by next week, the scarcity would have been over.”

S

L

ITERACY level in Lagos State has hit an all- time high of 87 percent, making it the first to attain the highest level in the country. The Special Adviser to Governor Babatunde Fashola (SAN) on Education, Mr. Abdul-Fatai Olukoga, disclosed this at news conference to flag off this year’s celebration of In-

News

Lagos tops literacy level

By Tunde Busari ternational Literacy Day. He said a recent survey carried out on the 20,546,999 population in the state revealed that 17,875,889people are lit-

Osun challenges PDP over security

T

HE Osun State government has challenged the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to present anyone allegedly harassed and intimidated by the Joint Security Outfit, Swift Action Squad (SAS) inaugurated by Governor Rauf Aregbesola to combat crimes. Speaking with reporters yesterday in Osogbo, the Osun State capital, Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Hon. Sunday Akere, said that the security outfit should be appreciated for its effort rather than being criticised. Akere noted the efforts of the bank’s guard department of the Osun State Police Command, the unit responsible for monitoring the security of banks across the state.

He said: “The reasons why Governor Aregbesola set up the joint

67

From Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo security team known as Swift Action Squad was to stem the tide of rising wave of crimes in the state. “And with the inauguration of this security outfit comprising the police, the army, men of the State Security Service and the Nigerian Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC), the crime rate has dropped, particularly bank robbery. ”But when the PDP say people are being harassed and intimidated, I would want those who were allegedly abused by the SAS to come forward and establish their case. He urged the SAS not to be deterred by “the rumour being peddled by the elements within the opposition” but operate within the confines of the law.

erate, leaving only 2,671,110 illiterate.Olukoga said the government has established different programmes spread across the various Local Government and Lo-

cal Council Development Areas (LCDAs) to improve the literacy level of the citizens especially at the rural communities.He explained that a total of 17,674 people

attained literacy in the state in the last one year at the 466 centres operated by the LGs, LCDAs, non-governmental organisations and faithbased organisations, among others.

We complement police, declares vigilance boss

T

HE Chairman of the Harmonised Vigilance Group in Osun State, Alhaji Ridwan Husain, has justified the role of the group as complimentary to security operatives.

Husain, popularly known as Yasalam, stated that the group is not an autonomous but works with the understanding and approval of the police.

His clarification came on the heel of the misconception that vigilance group is an independent security outfit set up as an alternative organisation.

According to him: “Vigilance group in any state

By Tunde Busari must work together with the State Police Command so that together they can deal with any security challenge that arises.

“That is what we have been doing here in Osun State and our track record is there to confirm my claim.

We have worked together with the past Commissioners of Police with fruitful results.”

While commending Commissioner of Police of Osun State Command, Kalafite Adeyemi, he said the public should consider security as a collective issue.

He challenged members of the group to continue rendering the service with a

view to making the state more peaceful and investorfriendly.

Husain also commended Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola for his commitment to the security of the state.

His words: “A governor who employed thousands of unemployed youths has taken a meaningful step to prevent crime. That is why we are saying that such a governor will make our job easy.

“And with the CP we have, we are very sure that the state will witness a lot of transformation as we can see that many people are coming down to Osun State on daily basis to enjoy the new era.”

•Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Ondo State Deputy Governorship candidate, Dr Paul Akintelure acknowledging the cheers from the people of Igbotako Osooro in Ondo State at the weekend.

PhotoNIYI ADENIRAN.

Clear and present danger in Nigerian airspace Continued from page 61

Also the minister disclosed that the first phase of the aviation roadmap, which is the remodelling and reconstruction of 11 airports around the country had reached 80% completion.

“These include: the Murtala Mohammed International Airport and the General Aviation Terminal (GAT), both in Lagos; Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport, Abuja; the Port Harcourt International Airport, Omagwa; the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu and the Malam Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano. Others include the Margaret Ekpo International Airport, Calabar, Yakubu Gowon Airport, Jos; the Yola, Kaduna and Sam Mbakwe Airport, Owerri,” Oduah explained.

Something to cheer about At a time the nation’s aviation sector is facing trouble times, private sector financing has been recom-

mended by stakeholders as a measure to mitigate the dwindling fortunes bedeviling the sector.

Little wonder regulators and other stakeholders in both the oil and gas and the aviation sectors recently commended Shell Petroleum Development Company and Caverton Helicopters on their strong commitments to indigenous manpower and capacity development in fulfillment of the objectives of the Local Content Development Act. This commendation was given recently at the Business Performance Review of the five-year contract awarded in 2010 by Shell to Caverton Helicopters/Dancopter for the provision of aviation support services.

Won after a competitive bidding process, the contract is the biggest ever awarded by the oil multi-national to an indigenous company and is seen as a major milestone in a field previously dominated by foreign companies.

The meeting was held primarily to review the per-

formance of the contract as indicated in the contract documents, but it ended not only with praises for both partners but with a strong vote of confidence in the Local Content Development Act, a legislation designed to aid the development of indigenous capacities in the oil and gas sector of the economy.

The consensus among stakeholders at the meeting, which was held at Sheraton Hotel in Lagos, was that the Shell/Caverton Helicopters’ partnership is early proof of the workability and gains of the national content development initiative of the Federal Government.

The Director General of the Local Content Development Board, who was represented by Mr. David Adeyeye, lauded Shell for taking local content development seriously and for taking the lead in this area. He also commended Caverton Helicopters for making a bold statement on behalf of indigenous companies.

“Caverton Helicopters has

demonstrated that, as a nation, we can succeed if we are serious about capacity building and that the opportunity and potential to grow and do more is there,” he said.

On its part, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority also extolled Shell and Caverton Helicopters for partnering effectively for local content development in such a strategic sector. The NCAA representative at the event, Engr. Mike Uwaifo particularly noted that the stride of Caverton Helicopters has been “surprising and heart-warming,’ adding that “the steady growth and progress of the company must be appreciated.”

The Country Chairman and Managing Director of Shell Nigeria, Mr. Mutiu Sunmonu, who said Caverton Helicopters was selected for the contract based on demonstrated competence, expressed satisfaction with the company’s performance so far. “I believe Caverton Helicopters is setting itself up for growth,” he stated. “I also believe that

these partnerships will open doors of opportunity both for the company as well as other local companies ready to display same level of competence.”

He reiterated Shell’s commitment to the national content drive of the government, adding that Shell will continue to work closely with all important stakeholders including the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and the Nigerian Content Development Board (NCDB) to ensure that local capacity is improved because the initiative is “good for business.”

The Managing Director of Caverton Helicopters, Mr. Sola Falola, said the contract has enabled the company to both demonstrate and improve its capacity at the same time. He promised continued investment in infrastructure and capacity building to ensure that it continues to deliver on its obligations to Shell and its other clients.

Way forward Experts have canvassed

for a quick implementation of an Aviation Sector Emergency Programme (ASEP) just as they urged the NCAA to ensure that airline operators are put to closer surveillance even as they stressed the need for the Federal Government to intensify efforts to complete the ongoing reconstruction and remodelling of the terminal buildings and structures.

Greater emphasis, they stressed, should be placed on proper and adequate maintenance of aircraft, rather than age restriction with the Federal Government reviewing downwards, all taxes and charges relating to airline operation, as well as take measures to reduce the cost of jet fuel.

Besides, they want the Federal Government to take urgent steps to provide maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facilities.

But will the authorities concerned consider some implementing some of these far-reaching measures by aviation pundits?

Time will tell.

68

WORSHIP THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

INTERVIEW General Overseer of Victory Life Bible Church (VLBC) Abeokuta spoke with Sunday Oguntola on challenges facing the nation and developments in the church. Excerpts:

H

OW come you are busier these days than even business executives?

It’s been very tight to be honest with you. It’s been very tight. Maybe I am running against time. There are a lot of people and places to reach, a lot of souls to be redeemed. I want to do everything within the confines of the grace given to me. You know the devil is on rampage too, so I am restless, working for God. I want to cover as many grounds as possible.

I am involved in training pastors and speaking in conferences. By the time I come back, I just hit the bed and sleep off.

Where do you find the strength to carry on?

People have asked me how I cope without breaking down. I just say it is just the grace of God and I know when to rest. I rest a lot.

When I tell you I want to sleep, you better excuse me and go because you will just be talking without me hearing you.

Don’t these trips affect the church and its operations, especially attendance?

Initially, the trips were affecting the church. But here in VLBC, we are decentralised. They have their pastors and the churches are almost autonomous. It is not that I am trying to play God. I have trained them to know God and not me. I am to show them God and not me. It is when I am showing them me that they cannot do without me. Since I am showing them God, they can cope without me. They are more interested in meeting God and not me.

But when things become very difficult for them, they

can reach me. They have my mobile numbers and can access me wherever I am. Apart from that, I meet with my pastors once every month, including the whole church.

I have made them to know I am not God. I am just His agent. They know that I am always available every first weekend of the month. No matter where I am, I must return every first weekend. I don’t take preaching engagements or invitations. I must be here, no matter what.

What would people find in VLBC that might be difficult to find elsewhere?

I will readily say sincere love. I love people to a fault.

Has it been rosy? No. I have been beaten; I’ve been wounded but I am not bothered. I have had to pay back loans of church members in banks. They were church members, took loans and I stood for them as guarantor.

But they defaulted, left the church and I had to pay back.

They turn around to say bad things about me. When people tell me what they say, I just tell them ‘leave them. Between me and them, we know the truth’. No matter what any has said or done against me, I don’t tell others about it.

You mean you don’t bad mouth people?

What will I gain from that? Will it make me taller and better? I just tell people ‘any body saying anything about me should come and tell me to my face’.

But doesn’t that make you vulnerable?

Then, you are telling me to stop loving and I can’t because it is part of the work of the ministry. Man, by nature, is not good but you just

‘Why Nigeria will survive’

•Achudume

continue loving them. You keep helping, knowing at least one out of hundreds will reciprocate. But those who stab you will also get stabbed one way or the other.

Nigeria is said to be sitting on a keg of gunpowder.

What do you have to say?

As far as I am concerned, this is the greatest country on the earth. I don’t care what others say. I believe God has this country in mind. America went through a civil war and became stronger for it. So, I don’t see Nigeria breaking no matter what people are saying. God has a hand in Nigeria. There are many prophecies of God about this coun-

try that have not come to pass. So, the country will remain until those prophecies come to be. The dream of God for Nigeria will come to pass.

If I go by the mind of God for Nigeria, this country will survive.

So, Nigeria will come out stronger for it?

Absolutely. The next Nigeria will be stronger, brighter and richer with or without oil. I have strong faith in this country because of the Bible and the prophecies of God. There is a Nigerian spirit that is only interested in making noise. Nigerians love themselves. Have you noticed that Nigerians

relate better when they meet overseas regardless of their ethnic differences? I met a Muslim Nigerian in a plane sometime ago. He accosted me when he realised I was black, almost sure I was a Nigerian. I introduced myself as a pastor and he said he is a Muslim from Katsina. Guess what? We are the best of friends till date. It is our socalled politicians fuelling these ethnic, religious sentiments because they have done much evil that they want to cover-up. So, they throw the kite into the air and all of us are scrambling for it, while they cover their backs. They are trying to divert attention from their evils.

Does that explain the Boko Haram insurgency?

It is part of it. Initially, they were targeting Christians but we have seen they did it to gain attention. They are attacking Mosques and Islamic clerics too. So, who is Boko Haram? Is it Muslim or Christian? Most of them are just political thing. I don’t think a true Muslim will hate a Christian and vice versa. One of my good friends from the University days is an Islamic Professor.

He calls me often and we are in very good terms. So, one begins to wonder what to make out of everything. I think politicians are just behind everything. They have cornered the nation’s wealth, amassing money that they don’t need. They then become arrogant and proud, fighting tooth and nail to maintain the status quo.

Would you say you are satisfied with the state of the church in the country?

I don’t think I am in a position to assess the church.

But if you ask me what I see in the church, I will say those who are genuinely called are doing their best.

They are trying their best.

There are many who are now pastors because of what to gain, but that is in every sector. But those called who are interested in making heaven are doing their best and they are many out there.

It is just that the fakes are louder than them.

How come we don’t see them?

Because they don’t have the money to be on TV and buy adverts in papers but they are there. And you know, lies sell more and faster than truth. It is easier to buy a lie and pay for it than the truth. If you tell people the truth, they are likely not to come again. But if you tell them someone is after them, they get interested and want to do anything you ask them to.

So, how are you handling such pressures?

Many pastors have been pushed to say what God did not say. But you must stand your ground as a man of God. When you misbehave, God will judge you and not the people that mislead you.

What is the next phase for your church after the first 20 years?

What I have in mind is to make my people self-reliant, not depending on government or anybody but their God-given gifts. Then, I intend to make them true disciples and Christians who will not be afraid of death and rapture. They will not fear death but see it as glorious transition. Without carrying stickers or anything, people should see them as credible Christians.

On projects, we want to build a new auditorium and expand the college. We are working on a hospital and then empower people to succeed in business. I see all of these materialising in the next five years. I have so much faith in God.

NEWS

Rowan Williams admits failings over church split A

RCHBISHOP of Canterbury Rowan Williams has admitted he didn’t do enough to prevent sharp divisions within the Anglican Church over homosexuality.

Williams, who is stepping down in December, spent much of his decade as archbishop trying to hold the diverse Anglican Communion together after the ordination of the first openly homosexual Anglican bishop, American Gene Robinson, split traditionalists, such as African churches, and liberals.

“I don’t think I’ve got it right over the last 10 years. It might have helped a lot if I’d gone sooner to the United States when things began to get difficult about the ordina-

tion of gay bishops, and engaged more directly,” he told Britain’s Daily Telegraph newspaper in an interview published yesterday. “I know

that I’ve, at various points, disappointed both conservatives and liberals.”

The archbishop reiterated the church’s opposition to gay

marriage but said it had been “wrong” in its past treatment of homosexuals.

“We’ve not exactly been on the forefront of pressing for

civic equality for homosexual people, and we were wrong about that,” he told the newspaper.

Williams, 62, also said the

‘Attacks against churches over soon’

T

HE District Overseer of the Foursquare Gospel Church, Akute District, Ogun State, Rev Moses Alawode, has assured that the recent insecurity in the nation will soon pass away.

According to him, the constant attack on churches would not discourage Christians from preaching the gospel because necessity has be been placed on them to do so.

He stated that the district

By Gbenga Aderanti

has churches in some parts of Nigeria which have been tagged volatile areas.

Alawode said the problem of religious extremism in some parts of the country “is a tough problem to analyse,” adding, “that the weapon of Christians is prayer which is capable of pulling down strongholds.”

He advised that Christians should pray rather than fight

to get out of the constant harassment from these militants.

While expressing joy with the achievements of the district within a short period, Alawode noted that the district started with 40 churches but has increased to 50.

This growth, according to him, is attributable to God and the strategic planning model adopted by the district.

The district, he added, also won awards within and

outside the country For those who think miracles are not real, Alawode insisted that miracles are still in existence today because people still experience miracles.

“Ministry is about meeting the needs of the people.

The word of God is capable when it is preached in an undiluted way of changing bad situation to become great, “Alawode said.

Anglican Church is drawing up plans to overhaul the global duties of the Archbishop of Canterbury and introduce the role of a “presidential” figure. That figure would ideally oversee the day-to-day running of the Anglican Communion so the archbishop can concentrate on leading the Church of England, he told the newspaper.

When he steps down, Williams will take up a new post as master of Magdalene College, Cambridge.

He was appointed in 2002 as archbishop of Canterbury, the senior official in the Church of England and the spiritual leader of the global Anglican Communion, which says it represents 85 million people worldwide.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

Passing on the generational blessing (4) Archbishop Sam Amaga

Family Heritage

T

O conclude the series of passing on the generational blessing, I will like you to know certain things those who pass on the generational blessing do that others don’t. These things make the covenant blessing work in their family.

Everyone in such family walk in the fear of the Lord Praise ye the LORD. Blessed is the man that feareth the LORD, that delighteth greatly in his commandments.

His seed shall be mighty upon earth: the generation of the upright shall be blessed. Psalms 112:1-2 The fear of the Lord is a holy reverence for God Almighty. It is not the fear of terror. It is such a reference that you want to please Him at all times, whether good or bad. It is that holy reference that makes you keep away from secret sins. Your wife may not see you. Your children may not see you. Your parents may not see you but you fear God. That was the holy reference that kept Joseph from committing adultery. It was this fear of the Lord that made Daniel to purpose in his heart never to defile himself with the king’s meal (Daniel 1:8).

So those who go around defiling themselves with men, women, with all manner of evil cannot partake in the family covenant blessings.

This fear for God will: § Make you not to come late to His presence. § Make you not to defile God’s presence and His house just like some leaders, ministers, church people, church workers are defiling themselves and God’s house.

THE BLESSING IN THE FEAR OF THE LORD 1. Makes you live clean before God (Psalm 19:9).

2. Gives you access to God’s secrets (Psalm 25:14).

God has secrets and His secrets can protect you and make you great in life. It was God’s secrets that job discovered that made him prosper wonderfully (Job 29:3-6).

Those who lay hold on God’s secrets will outshine every darkness and every storm in life.

When you lay hold on God’s secrets; - Nothing will be impossible to you.

- You lay hold on God’s presence and Gods friendship.

This is when the covenant of family generational blessing will come on you.

3. The blessing in the fear of the Lord make God rescue you in the time of affliction (Psalms 33:18-19)- The Message Translation Parents you have to flow in these blessing, so you must keep blessing your children daily. Children you need to flow in these blessings. So, keep blessing and honouring your parents daily.

4. Children who fear the Lord and want to be blessed with the covenant generational blessing must be ready to listen to instructions from their parents as Proverbs 13:1– Message Translation rightly puts.

“Intelligent children listen to their parents; foolish children do

their own thing.”

Some children do not have Godly parents to speak Godly future into their destinies.

So such children need to be planted under strong spiritual parents who will speak to their destinies, and will not exploit and use them for selfish purpose.

Children, you must honour parents in other to draw these blessings out of them as admonished by the scripture in Ephesians 6:1-3 The order of the honour is: •Parents in the Lord first.

•Followed by Your father and mother.

And then the promises which signify the blessing can follow you. And it shall ultimately be well with you.

Part of these blessings is longevity of life on earth.

That means the power of untimely death will be eradicated from such families. I speak into your life as a servant of the Most High god right now; You shall live long and have great posterity on the earth.

In my privileged position in the church of Jesus Christ, I put the name of the Lord upon you to bless you.

The LORD bless thee, and keep thee: The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. Numbers 6:23-26 I put the name of the Lord upon you my readers and your children; and you are blessed in Jesus Mighty name (Amen).

Contact: Archbishop Sam Amaga @ Salem Mission House, Mabushi Abuja.

Phone: 08023018836, 08074450763

How to make marriages work, by Adewale

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EADING Christian marriage counsellor, Pastor Bisi Adewale, has advocated for introduction of family education from primary school level to enhance marital knowledge in the nation.

He also explained why ministers of the gospel are experiencing marital challenges.

He spoke last week with reporters in Lagos ahead of the special breakthrough for singles summit organised by the Living Home Foundation.

The summit with the theme “before you say I do” holds on Sunday September 30th at the National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos.

Adewale said if family education is taught in schools, it will equip Nigerians with better knowledge of how to make marriages work.

He blamed the alarming rate of divorce and marital disenchantment in the nation on ignorance.

The publisher of Family Booster marriage also appealed to government to

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Worship

By Sunday Oguntola

initiate familyfriendly policies that will enable mothers spend more time at home.

This, he said, will help raise godly children and rebuild “family values in the nation.”

On marital challenges facing ministers, Adewale said gospel ministers live under the illusion that being anointed is enough to make their marriages work.

A functional marriage, he explained, has nothing to do with anointing and gifts of the Spirit.

“Marriage does not work by anointing but wisdom. It is not gifts •Adewale of the Spirit that make marriages work but marriages work. It is wisdom that makes marriages fruit of the Spirit.

“So ministers must learn work, not experiences,” he about how to make their stated.

The prophetic ministry of biblical Prophet Isaiah(4) Apostle Israel Akinadewo

SANCTUARY MESSAGE

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N our last discussion in this column, we had concluded on chapters three and four. But today, we will commence on message of the great prophet concerning ‘A love song gone sour’. It was a chapter that related the disappointing state of the nation of Israel as being contrary to the expectation of their Creator.

This disappointment made the prophet to pronounce what is known as the 6-Woe message.

In the first seven verses of the thirty verses of chapter five, prophet Isaiah had described the mind of God for His chosen nation in a poeticlike manner. He talked of how a vineyard was well kept; with well chosen and good choicest vine planted inside. This was done with the expectation that it would bear good fruit.

But alas, it was a letdown, for rather than bringing out good grapes; it brought forth wild and sour grapes. Isaiah 5:1-2 say ‘Now I will sing to my well beloved a song of my beloved touching his vineyard. My well beloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill: And he fenced it, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine, and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a winepress therein: and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes’.

As the nation of the then Israel had failed God, so are many of us as children and servants, have failed our parents and masters respectively.

Our parents and masters might have invested hugely on us; talked proudly about us, and made all good things available for us. But, what did we do to compensate them?

Failure; unfaithfulness; disobedience; immorality; lack of loyalty; unfounded allegations against our benefactors/ parents, etc. Waxing philosophically and lamenting, the prophet said in verses 4-5 that ‘And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem, and men of Judah,

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ROM Rev. Dan Olumefun, comes a word of advice to Christians: “Learn to live in peace and harmony.”

He gave this charge at the 1st convocation anniversary/ ordination of new deacons and deaconess at the Foursquare Gospel Church, Iba district, recently.

Rev. Olumefun, who is the senior Pastor and District Overseer at Foursquare Gospel Church, urged newly ordained deacons and deaconesses to fulfill their calling by preaching the gospel of truth to the flocks committed to their care.

Speaking on the theme of the anniversary “Glorious Expectation”, Olumefun decried the culture of covet-

judge, I pray you, betwixt me and my vineyard. What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it? Wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes’.

Without having to wait for any response or suggestions as to what to do to the disappointing vineyard, he prophesied the decision of the owner of the vineyard. ‘And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down. And I will lay it waste: it shall not be pruned, nor digged; but there shall come up briers and thorns: I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it’ (5-6). I mean, of what value is the continuation of injecting more funds into investment that has refused to add value, but decided to be working against the investor’s interest?

The prophesied decision Due to this dissatisfaction, the 6-Woe pronouncement was made concerning the disobedient people of Judah, which quicken their journey into captivity in Babylon.

Woe 1 (verse 8) ‘Woe unto them that join house to house, that lay field to field, till there be no place, that they may be placed alone in the midst of the earth’!

Woe 2 (verse 11) ‘Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink; that continue until night, till wine inflame them’!

Woe 3 (verse 18) ‘Woe unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and sin as it were with a cart rope’: Woe 4 (verse 20) ‘Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter’!

Woe 5 (verse 21) ‘Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight’!

Woe 6 (verses 22-23) ‘Woe unto them that are mighty to drink wine, and men of strength to mingle strong drink. Which justify the wicked for reward, and take away the righteousness of the

righteous from him’!

From all these, it is evident that whenever we disappoint those that put so much of trust and hope on us, it ends up becoming a situation of ‘ a love gone sour’. God had repeatedly and continuously assured the people of Judah of His love for them; maintaining He would keep the promise He made with their forefathers through Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; which then brought about the twelve tribes in Israel as represented by the 12 sons of Jacob/Israel.

But in spite of the fact that God has kept His own bargain; the obstinate people of Judah took the interest of God in them for granted, thinking, ‘Irrespective of our behaviour, He will always be there for us, for we are His chosen people’.

Relationship of this chapter with contemporary nations of the world Just like one of the inspired songs in Cherubim & Seraphim that says ‘In the black nation of Africa; we have been seen as irrelevant; but that we have our heavenly Father; that knows we are His creation: In Africa as a whole and particularly in Nigeria, what more can we ask from God, when He gave us mineral resources as our heritage? He gave us so many things in this part of the world that we should be controlling the nations of the universe; but we lost focus; behaving like a prodigal son; mismanaging God’s given gift; using our wealth for irrelevances; until we overstretched the goodness of Almighty God, making us to become beggars in the presence of less-privileged nations. Rather than light, we have darkness; in place of riches, there is poverty; rather than winning at competitive games; we have become perennial losers: Why all these? We planned to fail and have forsaken our God! Let us go back to Him, and it shall be well with us.

To be continued Prayer point: Pray that God should heal your home, your community and your nation. ies:

For Comments and enquir-

Tel: +2348060572904 E:mail:motailatusanctuarychurch @yahoo.com

NEWS Cleric urges steadfastness among church’s workers ousness and quest for material acquisition among many Christians, a development, he said, far negates the tenets of Christianity.

Expatiating, he said despite the insecurity challenge facing the nation, Foursquare Gospel Church is undeterred and will continue to preach the gospel in all states of the federation, even as he expressed optimism that the nation will soon overcome the challenges.

The Chairman, Planning Committee, Deacon Fred Ughulu, thanked God for the successful anniversary and

lauded members of the committee for a job well done.

The Zonal Superintendent Rev. J.A. Omojuwa further reiterated that the convocation anniversary was a welcome development in the district.

The church, he said, is moving forward to ensure that the gospel of Christ Jesus is spread throughout the country.

Omojuwa also disclosed that the Iba District has been experiencing steady growth in recent years, stating that they have more than 20 branches within the district.

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THE NATION SPORT SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

SPORT EXTRA

Unimpressive Black Stars win 2-0

AFCON 2013 QUALIFIERS

Nigeria, Liberia settle for draw

By Ade Ojeikere, Monrovia

Ik Uche celebrates with Ahmed Musa

Kalou, Gervinho score in Senegal's massacre

Caroll

Cape Verde shock Cameroon

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AFCON 2013 qualifiers results Zambia 1 - 0 Uganda CAP. 1 - 0 B/Faso Gabon 1 - 1 Togo Ghana 2 - 0 Malawi S/ Leone 2 - 2 Tunisia C/ Verde 2 - 0 Cameroon Ivory Coast 4 - 2 Senegal Mali 3 - 0 Botswana Sudan 5 - 3 Ethiopia Today's Matches Mozambique v Morocco Zimbabwe v Angola Guinea v Niger Libya v Algeria

APE Verde have caused one of the biggest surprises in recent times with a 2-0 victory over Cameroon in the first leg of their 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier in Praia on Saturday.

The victory is arguably the biggest in the history of the country and confirms the downward spiral of the Indomitable Lions.

There will now surely be a public outcry for the return of Samuel Eto'o, who has just finished an eight-month ban imposed by the Cameroon Football Association, but who refused the call-up for this match due his unhappiness over that incident.

Cape Verde's goals came via Ricardo, who netted midway through the first half, and Djaniny, who added a second just past the hourmark.

All is not lost for Cameroon, they have the home leg of the tie to come next month, but they will have to put in a considerably improved performance from the lackluster display of Saturday.

Burkina Faso go down in Bangui

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URKINA Faso will have to come from behind in their final round qualifier for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations after losing 1-0 to Central African Republic in Bangui on Saturday.

'The Stallions', who have been regular participants at AFCON tournaments in recent years, succumbed thanks to a first half goal from the host team's Vianney Mabide.

They will try to turn the tie on its head in the second leg in Ouagadougou next month.

For CAR, who shocked former African champions Egypt in the previous round, this result puts them on course to qualify for their first ever Nations Cup finals.

Katongo gives Zambia edge over Uganda

Adebayor secures draw for Togo in Libreville

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THE NATION SPORT SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012

SPORT EXTRA

Scotland, Serbia battle ends in stalemate Japan

FIFA U-20 WORLD CUP

dashes Falconets bronze dream

...As USA claim U-20 Women's World Cup title

UNDER-17 QUALIFIER

Golden Eaglets start in flying colours ...Beat Junior Menas 4-1

Jones faces eight weeks injury layoff

Lampard expects tougher Ukraine test ...Cole out, Terry a doubt

Tinubu praises participants at Bolton/COD Football Camp

By Morakinyo Abodunrin, Niamey

QUOTABLE "Our religions and holy books put emphasis on justice and fair play. Once there is justice and fair play, there will be peace in the land. When I am just to you regardless of wherever you may come from, that is when you will see me as a true leader."

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2012 TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM VOL. 7, NO. 2243

—Emir of Borgu, His Royal Highness Alhaji Haliru Dantoro III on religion and justice.

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EXT month’s Ondo State governorship election transcends Governor Olusegun Mimiko’s obsession both with his independence and isolation from the main progressive forces in the Southwest and his general inability to conceive and implement great things for the present and future. The election also transcends the limiting, if sometimes befuddling, practice of employing caucus method to select standardbearers for the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in an environment long conversant with and amenable to open primaries. Ondo faces two stark choices, each of which, to put it apocalyptically, is capable of fundamentally affecting not only the politics and future of the state itself, but the politics and future of the Southwest region. This is why no south-westerner can afford to be indifferent to the leadership and politics of the state, in this and subsequent elections.

The first choice is for the state to join the progressive bandwagon and endorse the principle of regional integration, not because it is asked by anyone or leader to do so, but because it is the sensible thing to do in a country that is becoming increasingly susceptible to cultural and political fragmentation and even sectarian fractionalisation. The state will have to persuade itself to understand that the nonsensical babble about progressives in the region being scattered in various parties is simply too unreal to deserve any explanation or argument. The Labour Party (LP) in the state has absolutely nothing in common with the unionism principles that drive left-of-centre political parties, let alone anything that has to do with progressivism. The LP was, and remains, merely a convenient vehicle for Mimiko to realise his morphing political ambition, an ambition driven by capricious embrace of expediencies and enthusiastic belittlement of personal principles and character.

Even if the ACN does not approximate archetypal progressivism, it is still the most progressive party in Nigeria today, and in particular in the Southwest. If Ondo should come into that progressive column, it would help the region clarify and refocus its politics, help cobble an ideologically coherent developmental paradigm, enable the region to enjoy economies of scale, and most crucially, and for all it is worth, help make the region an oasis, if not of prosperity, at least of peace and stability, in a country traumatised by violence, poverty and various manifestations of crime and anarchy. The Ondo electorate may not understand the gravity of what is at stake, especially given the fouling of the well of trust in the region by reactionary and retrogressive politicians. Nor is

Ondo faces stark choices

• Mimiko

• Akeredolu

it likely that at the moment they are able conceive in their minds the benefits of joining the progressive bandwagon and profiting from integration. And so, in case the issues are not clear enough to profit them, analysts have a responsibility to open their eyes.

Already, even the rest of the Southwest is not quite as clear about ideology and integration as would be required to lift them up into the kind of oasis they have the human and material resources to deliver. Whatever ideological and integrationist clarity exists has been left almost entirely in the hands of Ekiti and Osun, both of which now seem fanatical because of the reluctance or morass in surrounding states. If Ondo should join the progressive column, it would bring further clarity and energy to the cause. Oyo has managed to convey its willingness to pursue the cause of progressivism and integration, but either because of its preoccupation with the

degradation left by the previous government or because at bottom it is itself not too clear what integration and progressivism entail, it has not been too forthcoming in stirring speeches, like Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, or in dogged commitment like Dr Kayode Fayemi.

Lagos, which should have been the natural leader of the integrationist agenda because of its huge resources and manpower, has balked at making the sacrifices needed to turn the region into an oasis. This is not too surprising. The state is obsessed with becoming the right kind of megapolis, and it thinks the main ingredient to midwife this is technocracy rather than regionalist paradigm. It probably suspects that integration would deplete rather than add to the resources of the state. It is also possible that its stealthy multiculturalism may have somehow vitiated its commitment to both inte-

Fear and folly in Southeast and South-South

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FTER President Goodluck Jonathan promised to build the second Niger Bridge to link Onitsha with the West, or go into exile if he failed, the elite who received him in Onitsha during his one-day visit to Anambra simply went ballistic with promises of their own. If he built the bridge, the elite swore loudly in terms and language that made the rest of the Southeast wince, they would back his presidential ambition for 2015. He must take advantage of the constitutional provisions for two terms, they reminded him stridently. Yes, they remembered that there was something like rotation of the presidency between the South and the North. If that would be a problem, the elite presumptuously moaned on behalf of the region, rather than Jonathan not contesting in 2015, the Southeast would be willing to forgo their 2015 ambition, gladly suffer the humiliation of seeing power rotate to the North in 2019, and tamely wait to receive the baton in 2027. There is no worse abnegation anywhere – and all because of one bridge, the declaration of Anambra as oil producing state, and confession by the president of being a home boy who could roam the streets of Onitsha without security.

As this newspaper’s irreverent Hardball column said last week, all that remained for Jonathan to be comprehensively adopted by

the Southeast was for him to pay a similar visit to one or two more states in the region and make sweet promises and declarations of development and projects. So, what would become of the presidential ambition of a few Igbo men who by 2027 could become ineligible on grounds of age to make a pitch for the highest office in the land? Too bad; their views are not important. They’ve been sold to Jonathan for a mess of pottage. Of course, the Ohanaeze Ndigbo, a pan-Igbo socio-cultural organisation vainly tried to denounce the presumption of the Anambra elite. But all things considered, the Anambra promise will stand, for as it is looking increasingly likely, Jonathan will contest in 2015, probably get his party’s nomination, and go on to receive popular support from the zone as he received in 2011, according to his confession.

As the folly of cheaply surrendering something that looked like a birthright was being enacted in Anambra, the South-South zone was also indulging its fearful taste for the politically bizarre. Since Jonathan assumed the presidency, the elite in this southernmost part of the country had lived in suspended animation, sometimes giving the impression they were nonplussed one of their sons became president. Much worse, they also give the impression Jonathan got to high office by virtue of his origins, and

must stay there by the same virtue if the country was not to sunder. It was, therefore, not surprising that last week, at a meeting of the South-South Peoples Assembly in Effurun, Delta State, the region endorsed Jonathan for a second term. This endorsement is coming unabashedly three years early.

Historians and psychologists should be invited to study the worldview of the Southwest, whose elite fought amongst themselves when leading politicians from that region unthinkingly endorsed Chief Olusegun Obasanjo for the presidency in 2003. It was not enough that he was a son of the region; he had to prove himself to earn support. But since he could not prove himself, and since the endorsement from the region was unpopular, a new and precocious elite emerged to defeat the acquiescing old, and from the ashes of that sanguinary battle has arisen a new regional political structure infinitely purer, more progressive, even more aggressive, and much better designed to espouse and blend social and political ideals with cosmopolitan culture and worldview. There will always be tradeoff in politics, but it sickens the mind to see how cheaply quality leadership is traded for mediocre leadership simply because federal projects are the media of exchange.

gration and ideology. By current estimation, it actually appears that Lagos, Nigeria’s melting pot, is the least ideological, least committed to regional integration, least progressive, and the most technocratic and multicultural of all the states in the region.

Indeed, Lagos is apparently unable to understand that more than any state in the region, its protection, safety, stability and progress depend on the well-being, and in particular the progressivism, of the surrounding kindred states. In fact, the state only compares well with the equally ideologically disinterested Edo State, which has done very well to enact great and electorally rewarding public works programme but without the salient character and ideological underpinnings to ensure a lasting legacy.

The second choice facing Ondo is to reject progressivism and denounce integration.

This is what Mimiko has done, and this is what must be changed in next month’s poll.

So far, the governor has anchored his campaign on what he and his supporters describe as the virtues of independence and isolation.

In their opinion, and in a crass repudiation of what politics is all about, they argue that ACN leaders wish to control the state and impose their ideas upon a people who have always been proud to stand and walk alone.

History, of course, does not bear them out. If the LP were to win the Southwest, would it not impose its ideology and programmes on Ondo? If the LP were to win the presidential poll, would it implement another party’s programme?

Mimiko can in fact not campaign on any other issue but his spuriousness scaremongering. He has few projects to illustrate his commitment to development; he has nothing to indicate his ideological clarity; and he has little stamina and depth to enunciate a rigorous and coherent developmental programme to turn Ondo into a first class state commensurate with its human and material endowment. He will, therefore, continue to inflate the mob with fears of being overrun by Lagos or of their resources being siphoned to other places and for other uses.

He will insist on creating and nurturing a fiefdom that is already counterproductive, and which will become even more damaging in the years to come. Lacking in the discipline and resourcefulness required to take advantage of the potentials of the state, he will reign, not lead, and will push the state into unnatural isolation at variance with the culture and politics of the region.

Ondo will be called upon in October to consider whether the progressives seeking their votes are neither trueborn Ondo sons nor sons of the Southwest, as Mimiko and his supporters insinuate. They will determine by their votes whether they can be fooled some of the time or even all of the time. If they vote unwisely next month, coming generations will ask them poignant questions about their negative and shortsighted attitude to fellow south-westerners, why they repudiated the ideology that is at the core of the region’s being and essence, and why instead of using their intellect to weigh the issues of the day they chose to deploy emotions. Coming generations will ask many more questions, for the consequences of the choices made one day do not always end with that day; they linger on and on.

Nigeria made wrong choices in the 1959 elections, and repeated the mistakes in the 1964/65 elections. Faced with national dilemmas of their own, a few Asian countries did much better than Nigeria in leadership selection. Today those Asian countries have outpaced Nigeria in every sphere, while Nigeria grapples with the forces of poverty, disease and disintegration. Will Ondo vote right? Will they be able to tell the difference between the scarecrow being erected by their governor to prevent the right leadership from emerging in the state and the nirvana of joining their souls and bodies in passionate embrace with their kith and kin in the region to build a prosperous and stable commonwealth? The choices are indeed stark, and we must hope that Ondo can with a sense of history make the right call. The danger of failing to vote right is too grim to contemplate.

Published by Vintage Press Limited. Corporate Office: 27B Fatai Atere Way, Matori, Lagos. P.M.B. 1025, Oshodi, Lagos. Telephone: Switch Board: 01-8168361.

Marketing: 4520939, Abuja Office: Plot 5, Nanka Close AMAC Commercial Complex, Wuse Zone 3, Abuja. Telephone: 07028105302 Website: www.thenationonlineng.net ISSN: 115-5302 E-mail: sunday@thenationonlineng.net Editor: FESTUS ERIYE