THEWILL NEWSPAPER April 23, 2023

OnahNwachukwu Editor, THEWILL DOWNTOWN

Growing up, we had a couple of paintings in our home. One that stood out was The Mona Lisa (not the original, obviously). It was my dad’s favourite and a pretty good version. It still sits hanging in our family home. I, however, never got comfortable with the painting. My dad, on the other hand, loved it. Well, obviously, he bought it. While it is listed as one of the greatest works of art, I found it disturbing. It seemed she was staring at me with a strange smile from any angle of the living room. And no matter how much my dad tried to explain the painting and its beauty and concept, it still made me unconformable. That was over thirty years ago. I have slowly come to appreciate The Mona Lisa and gotten over the way she seemed to look at me as a child, so I urge you to read pages fourteen through fifteen as we list the GOAT (Greatest of All Time) paintings.

The fashion pages suggest that we may have someone from the Afrobeats genre of music score a ticket (invite) to the Met Gala this year, analyzing those likely to get an invite to the ultimate Fashion event and the designers they’d wear. It makes for an exciting read.

Our personalities change as we grow older, and with each phase comes different things; the way we dress, the house we live in and even the cars we drive—interestingly, it is said that you can tell a person’s personality from the vehicle they drive. Although some factors such as flooding may also play in part in deciding your choice of cars in this clime, it’s more accurate than not that we know your personality based on your car.

From SUVs to hatchbacks, sports cars and sedans, they all tell us exactly who you were at that time in your life when you bought the car. Would you agree?

Until next week, enjoy your read.

Photo: Kola Oshalusi @insignamedia Makeup: Zaron

adieu mummy!

who transited peacefully in her siesta at the age of 83.

ORDER OF FUNERAL CEREMONY

THURSDAY, APRIL 27, 2023 • 5PM TO 6PM

Vigil Mass @ All Saints Catholic Church, Onicha-Ugbo, Aniocha North, Delta State.

FRIDAY, APRIL 28, 2023 • 7AM - 9AM

Lying-in-State @ Family Residence Annex, Off Isele-Uku-Onicha-Ugbo Road, Ishiekpe Quarters, Onicha-Ugbo

10AM TO 11AM

Funeral Service @ All Saints Catholic Church, Onicha-Ugbo Road, Aniocha North, Delta State. Private interment afterwards [For family members only]

Reception @ Family Residence Annex, Off Isele-Uku-Onicha-Ugbo Road, Ishiekpe Quarters, Onicha-Ugbo

SUNDAY, APRIL 30, 2023 • 9AM

Thanksgiving Mass @ All Saints Catholic Church, Onicha-Ugbo, Aniocha North, Delta State

SURVIVED BY

CHILDREN

Uche & Ngozi Maidoh

Prince Tonnie & Nkechi Oganah

Dr. Beatrice and Prince Bayo Ikujenyo

Dr. Pamela Irabor

Prince Alfred & Bukola Oganah

Prince Austyn & Mayen Ogannah

GRANDCHILDREN

Danielle & Phillip Loth

Dr. Dale Dan-Irabor

Danisa Dan-Irabor

Kidochukwu Oganah

Chikwa Uche-Maidoh

Dawn Dan-Irabor

Nwamaka Uche-Maidoh

Nkem Oganah-Ike

Somto Uche-Maidoh

Kikanwa Osita-Oganah

Nkeiruka Osita-Oganah

Chukwunonso Odiaka-Oganah

Ehima’Konnor Austyn-Ogannah

Kenechukwu Osita-Oganah

Victor Odiaka-Oganah

Ozioma Osita-Oganah

Roman-FitzGerald Austyn-Ogannah

GREAT-GRANDCHILDREN

Rhys Loth

Zoe Loth

Wealth Ikechukwu Anene

RSVP: Prince Austyn Ogannah (08061111872) • Dr. Beatrice Oganah-Ikujenyo (08023002528)

Tinubu: Lobbyists on Wild Goose Chase to Mecca

BY AINA OJONUGA

The political circuit in Nigeria is working full time for those who want a stake in the incoming Federal Government. With just about a month to the inauguration of President-elect Bola Tinubu on May 29, high-profile job hunters with impressive CVs are seeking an audience with him, THEWILL can authoritatively disclose.

With professional lobbyists in tow, many had besieged Mecca, thinking that the President-elect will be there to perform the Lesser-Hajj.

Spokesman for the President-elect, Tunde Rahman, had said on March 22 that his principal had travelled to France and

London to get a deserved rest after the grueling electioneering.

“The President-elect decided to take a break after the hectic campaign and election season to rest in Paris and London, preparatory to going to Saudi Arabia for Umrah (Lesser Hajj) and the Ramadan Fasting that begins Thursday,'' Rahman had said, adding, “While away, the PresidentElect will also use the opportunity to plan his transition programme.”

Cashing in on the revelation contained in that statement, the lobbyists, who thought the solemnity of a religious event would provide a perfect cover for their game-plan, had flooded Mecca in search of Tinubu.

Primed for action, the lobbyists descended on Mecca to see the President-elect and make their case. But it all ended in an anticlimax. The President-elect was nowhere near Mecca, neither did he go for the Lesser Hajj.

He was 5.967.2 kilometres away in France. He avoided the Holy Land. Some other more pressing and demanding matters had captured the attention of the Presidentelect and holed him up in that seductive European country.

According to THEWILL investigation, Tinubu is in France for his medicals, clinicals as well as body and mind rejuvenation ahead of his inauguration in to office.

Lobbyists on Wild Goose Chase to Mecca

What his media aide had described in elegant language as “travelled abroad to rest and plan his transition programme ahead of May 29, 2023 inauguration,” was not out of place except that the health aspect was cryptically left out though for understandable strategic reasons.

Although the nature of the ailment could not be independently verified because of the unnecessary mystery surrounding it, THEWILL gathered that there was no cause for alarm: “The illness is unnecessarily being exaggerated,” according to a dependable source.

Right now, THEWILL can report that the president-elect is still in France and may not be able to make it to London as he’s set to jet into Nigeria to begin preparation for his inauguration by the middle of next week. THEWILL also gathered that Tinubu is fine and presently staying in a health farm in France.

However, Tinubu and his handlers have been working hard to keep prying eyes at bay and keep the public focused on the imminence of his administration.

Last Thursday, the President-elect announced a 13-man Presidential Inauguration Committee that will be responsible for the planning of a week-long event that will usher him and his VP-elect, Senator Kashim Shettima, in as President and Vice-President of the country.

In a letter to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr Boss Mustapha, a former Senator representing Borno North and current National Deputy Chairman (North) of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Mr Abubakar Kyari, will be Coordinator and Director of Finance and Budget of the Committee.

The Executive Director (Business Development) at the Nigeria Export-Import (NEXIM) Bank, Stella Okotiete, will serve as the head of Secretariat, Planning and Monitoring, while Mr Makinde Araoye, an ex-APC governorship aspirant from Ekiti State, will serve as the Director of venue, parades and swearing-in for the week-long event.

Presidential Campaign Spokesperson, Mr Bayo Onanuga, will serve as Head of Media and Publicity, while National Women Leader of the APC, Dr Betta Edu, will coordinate the medical team for the inauguration committee.

Col. Abdulazeez Yar’Adua, a younger brother of late Nigeria’s President, Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, will act as the Head of Security and Ceremonial while Mrs Zainab Buba Marwa,

will coordinate the pre-inauguration dinner and gala night for the committee.

Other members of the committee include Samira Saddik to take care of Children’s Day and Abuh Andrew Abuh will handle Accommodation. Dr Danladi Bako will deliver the Inaugural Lecture, while Hajiya

Hadiza Mohammed Kabir will take charge of Transportation and Logistics.

Former Special Adviser to VP Yemi Osinbajo on N- Power, Donald Wokoma, will take care of Protocol and Invitation.

Bishop Adegbite will conduct the Church Service and Imam Faud, the Jumat Service. Tinubu is expected to be inaugurated as Nigeria’s fifth elected President in a colourful ceremony in Abuja on May 29, 2023.

THEWILL recalls that on Wednesday, April 19, he struck a presidential tone in a statement calling on the police to probe the Adamawa supplementary governorship election that was nearly bungled by the Resident Electoral Commissioner, Hudu Tunusa-Ari, who illegally declared the candidate of the APC, Senator Aisha ‘Binani’ Dahiru, as governor-elect while collation was still going on.

Incumbent Governor Ahmadu Fintiri was later declared the rightful winner by the Independent National Electoral Commissioner, INEC, having polled 430, 861 votes against 393,788 by ‘Binani’.

Tinubu, who called for a thorough investigation of “all that transpired” in the election, reminded Nigerians of his imminent swearing-in.

He said; “With the conclusion of the 2023 elections, I now welcome all of us who have been elected to brace up to serve our people with diligence and dedication and to join hands with me as your President-elect in the pursuit of our agenda to renew the hopes of our people in a better, stronger, more secure, economically vibrant and prosperous Nigeria.”

Tinubu’s media aide, Rahman, did not respond to phone calls seeking his reaction to new developments.

However, there are strong indications that the President-elect has penciled down close and trusted aides for appointment before meeting party big wigs for discussion on an enlarged team.

Last Friday morning, President Muhammadu Buhari and Tinubu exchanged Eid greetings in a phone call to mark the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. Both leaders thanked God Almighty for seeing this day and prayed for the stability and the wellbeing of the nation.

A statement by Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant to the President (Media & Publicity), said President Buhari expressed his readiness to welcome Asiwaju Tinubu to the State House as President on May 29.

Tinubu and wife, Senator Oluremi, in France

Although the nature of the ailment could not be independently verified because of the unnecessary mystery surrounding it, THEWILL gathered that there was no cause for alarm: “The illness is unnecessarily being exaggerated,” according to a dependable source.

Right now, THEWILL can report that the president-elect is still in France and may not be able to make it to London as he’s set to jet into Nigeria to begin preparation for his inauguration by the middle of next week

Pardon Me Where I’ve Hurt You, Buhari Begs Nigerians

BY AINA OJONUGA

President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday thanked Nigerians for the honour to serve for two terms (2015-2023) and he asked for pardon from those he might have hurt while discharging his duties.

A statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, said President Buhari made the appeal at the ninth and final Sallah homage by residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), led by the minister, Mohammed Bello, at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

With less than 37 days left in office, the President recounted his leadership roles in the country for more than forty years, serving variously as a military officer, military governor, minister, and Head of State, and returning as a democratically elected President in 2015.

President Buhari told his guests that his journey was not all smooth, as he was incarcerated for three years, after the coup that ousted him from power in August, 1984, and contested elections three times, 2003, 2007 and 2011, without success.

“I dared the politicians and ended up at the Supreme Court three times. They laughed at me, and I responded, ‘God dey’. God sent technology to my rescue, with Permanent Voters’ Card (PVC). The fraudulent people became unemployed", the President noted.

Buhari said the flaunting of ethnic and religious cards in elections was “rubbish”, as the presiding justices at the Supreme Court that squashed his cases were Muslims, from the North, Zaria in Kaduna State, Niger and Jigawa.

“It is good to reflect on what used to happen here, in FCT, especially on security. Security is not only about the North East, it also spread to the FCT and all over the country.

“Those who wanted to make our lives uncomfortable reached the FCT, and they have been marginalised", he added.

President Buhari highlighted the strengths of democracy as a system of government, particularly in providing

How Confucius Institute Promotes Nigeria-China Relations — Director

The Chinese Director of the Confucius Institute in the University of Lagos, Prof. Zhao Hongling, has said that the institute played the role of a bridge in the relationship between Nigeria and China. Hongling made this known while speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on the 2023 United Nations Chinese Language Day observed annually on April 20.

NAN reports that the UN celebrates language days to celebrate multilingualism and cultural diversity, and also to promote the equal use of all six official languages throughout the organisation.

Chinese was established as an official language of the UN in 1946 alongside English, French, Russian and Spanish while Arabic was included in 1973.

Eid-el-Fitr: PDP Calls For Justice,

opportunity to participate, and fostering a sense of belonging among citizens.

“I have been counting the years. Democracy is good, otherwise how can someone come from one end of the country to rule for eight years. My home town, Daura, is about eight kilometres to Niger Republic.

“When the Minister of Interior wanted to shut down petrol stations ten kilometres from the border, there was a fuel station close to my house, and I pleaded if he could allow it to keep operating", he added.

The President stated that he decided to retire to Daura, which was far away from Abuja, in order to get some respite, after years of work.

“I can’t wait to go home to Daura. If they make any noise to disturb me in Daura, I will leave for the Niger Republic. I deliberately arranged to be as far away as possible. I got what I wanted and will quietly retire to my home town. In spite of technology, it will not be easy to get to Daura", he said.

President Buhari said he accepted all the complaints and criticisms in good stead, knowing it was part of the leadership he prayed and asked from God.

“God gave me an incredible opportunity to serve the country. We are all humans, if I have hurt some people along the line of my service to the country, I ask that they pardon me. All those that I have hurt, I ask that they pardon me", he appealed.

The outgoing President said he remains grateful to Nigerians, who voted him in 2015 and 2019, without any monetary incentive, with some trooping to the campaigns, and receptions in states just to catch a glimpse.

“I think it is a good coincidence for me to say goodbye to you, and thank you for tolerating me for almost eight years", said Buhari.

In his remark, the Minister of FCT thanked the President for hosting residents for the 9th Eid-el-Fitr, and allowing more people into the Villa for the last homage, before his handing over on May 29th.

National Regeneration

BY AYO ESAN

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has congratulated Nigerians, especially the Muslim faithful, on Eidel-Fitr, the completion of the Holy Ramadan Fasting, urging them to use the occasion to pray and work towards the entrenchment of justice, equity, fairness and good governance in the country.

The PDP, in a statement issued and signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Hon. Debo Ologunagba, said the Holy Ramadan offers the people a divine opportunity for serious introspection, especially on issues of the fear of God, integrity, accountability, adherence to set rules and constitutional order, as well as respect for the rights, personal freedom and will of the citizens in a democratic setting.

The statement read in part, "Nigerians, especially leaders, must reflect on the essence of Ramadan and use the occasion to reawaken the virtues of selflessness, honesty, self-restraint, fair-mindedness, mutual respect, forgiveness, love and compassion for one another without regard to ethnic, sectional, religious or partisan considerations, as this is the only way to achieve the much-desired politically stable and economically viable nation."

The party said it was deeply saddened that at a time such as this, Nigerians were still under siege by terrorists and subjected to a life of fear, misery, anguish, abject poverty and excruciating economic hardship occasioned by the inexcusable misrule of an incompetent, insensitive, heavily corrupt and manipulative leader in the last eight years.

"It is more saddening that efforts by Nigerians to instill a purposeful, honest and responsible leadership are being sabotaged by oppressive forces desperate to impose themselves against the will of the people.

"Our Party is, however, optimistic that with fervent prayers to God and determination of the citizens, our nation will triumph in the collective quest to entrench a God-fearing leadership that is derived from the free Will of the people as expressed at the polls," it said.

NAN also reports that Confucius Institutes are funded and run by the Chinese International Education Foundation, a government-organised non-governmental organisation under the Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China. The objective of this is to promote the study and appreciation of Chinese culture, arts and heritage globally.

Hongling told NAN that the language was taught to help people in other parts of the world understand Chinese values and cultural differences.

This, he said, would help prevent culture shocks.

“There are two Confucius Institutes in Nigeria. The one here in the University of Lagos was established over 13 years ago while the other is in Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Anambra.

“China is a country that has a history of more than 5,000 years. We have a long tradition of being friendly to everyone, both inside and outside the country.

“We want to share this value with everyone not only in Nigeria, but also all over the world.

“In communicating with Nigerians, we want both of us to understand each other and learn from each other,” he said.

According to Hongling, to many people, Chinese language is difficult, but once learners develop an interest, they will find that it is interesting and fun to learn.

He said that many Nigerians spoke Chinese even better than native speakers, noting that Nigerians had great ability to learn new languages.

“Over the years, we’ve seen an increase in the number of registrations for Chinese classes.

“Our students at the institute are good and quick at learning. It makes our efforts worth it because we have come here especially for the youths,”

According to him, Nigeria is rich in resources, while China is good at building infrastructure, thus the presence of many Chinese enterprises in the country.

He also said that having an understanding of Chinese language could boost the employment chances of youths.

“Many Nigerian graduates who speak Chinese can easily find jobs with Chinese companies because they’re trying to localise and in need of people who can speak the language,” Hongling said.

L-R: President Muhammadu Buhari; Vice President Prof Yemi Osinbajo SAN,  and  President of the Senate, Dr Ahmed Lawan, during the Sallah Homage to mark the 2023 Eid El-Fitr held at the State House Abuja on April 21, 2023.

POLITICS

Political Parties Battle For Imo, Kogi, Bayelsa

BY AYO ESAN

Political Parties have concluded their primaries and they have elected candidates for the governorship elections in the three Nigerian states of Imo, Kogi and Bayelsa on November 11, 2023.

With the emergence of the political parties’ candidates, the battle for the soul of the three states has begun in earnest. As expected, there are complaints from the aggrieved aspirants of the various parties in the primary elections and most of them have filed their grievances before the Primary Appeal Committee.

However, the parties must follow the time - table set by the Independent National Electoral Commission, (INEC) and they are striving ahead to meet the deadline for the submission of candidate names.

According to the INEC Time Table, the online portal for the submission of nomination forms (EC9 and EC9B) by political parties opens at 9.00am on April 24, 2023 and closes at 6.00pm on May 5, 2023.

The final list of candidates will be published on June 9, 2023 while campaign by political parties commences on June 14, 2023 and ends at midnight on November 9, 2023.

One state where the primary of the APC is hotly disputed is Kogi State.

Four governorship aspirants of the APC in the justconcluded gubernatorial primary election in Kogi State, have declared that the exercise did not hold, saying that the results announced by Hon. Patrick Obahiagbon was just allocated.

According to the aspirants, none of them voted in the said primary election, adding that there was no electoral official in their local government areas.

They called on President Muhammadu Buhari, PresidentElect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the National Chairman of the APC, Senator Abdullahi Adamu not to accept the result of the Kogi State primary election.

“

The aspirants were Senator Smart Adeyemi; Murtala Yakubu Ajaka; Steven Ocheni and Shuaibu Abubakar Audu.

It would be recalled that the Secretary of the Kogi State Primary Election Committee, Hon. Patrick Obahiagbon, had at the State Secretariat of APC in Lokoja announced Ahmed Usman Ododo as the winner of the APC governorship primary election.

He said the total number of registered voters was 93,729 while 83,419 were numbers of accredited voters.

Obahiagbon said Shaibu Abubakar Audu scored 763 votes; Stephen Ikani Ocheni polled 552 votes, the former Executive Director of Rural Electrification Agency (REA), Dr Sanusi Ohiare, scored 424 votes while Smart Adeyemi, the incumbent Senator representing Kogi West, scored the least number of votes – 311.

The Secretary of the committee said Abubakar Yahaya Achimugu polled 1,159 votes, Salami Momodu Ozigi

scored 1,506 votes and Ahmed Usman Ododo polled the highest number votes – 78,704 – and was consequently declared winner of the primary election.

But, reacting to the exercise at a joint press conference in Abuja, the aggrieved four aspirants said the results announced were manufactured, adding that they couldn’t even vote in the said, primary election since electoral officials were not on ground.

They warned that if the APC National Working Committee (NWC) accepted such a result and the candidate, the party would lose in the forthcoming November, 2023 gubernatorial election.

According to Senator Adeyemi, “What happened is like having a bad military government. Nobody is a slave. Nobody is conquered. The argument that the East did 16 years ago is not an issue.”

He added that even the officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) could not supervise the primary election.

“INEC did not show up in the election. Even security agents can attest to the fact that the election did not hold. “The man they said they nominated cannot win the election. If there is need eventually, we will go to court. But the National Working Committee will not allow that to degenerate”, he said.

The Race – Bayelsa State (Diri versus Sylva)

While the Imo State is going to be a three-horse race between the candidates of the Labour Party, ( LP), the ruling All Progressives Congress, (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party, ( PDP), the contest in Kogi and Bayelsa will be a two – horse race between the candidates of the APC and the ruling PDP.

Timpire Sylva (APC)

Timipire Marlin Sylva was born on July 7, 1964. He is a

The final list of candidates will be published on June 9, 2023 while campaign by political parties commences on June 14, 2023 and ends at midnight on November 9, 2023

Diri ylva

Melaye

...Battle For Imo, Kogi, Bayelsa POLITICS

former Governor of Bayelsa State and the current Nigeria Minister of State for Petroleum

Sylva was born in Brass, Bayelsa. He got part of his education in Bayelsa and Lagos. He was a member of the Rivers State House of Assembly in the 1990s.

Sylva graduated from the University of Port Harcourt with distinction in English (Linguistics) in 1986.

Sylva was awarded his second Doctorate (Honoris Causa) in Public Administration on the 2nd of December 2020 by AiPA (African Institute of Public Administration), Leading Edge Foundation and LBBS.

Sylva's political career started in 1992 when he won a seat in the House of Assembly Election representing Brass Constituency in old Rivers State.

His political career continued when he was appointed as the Special Assistant to the Minister of State for Petrolatum in 2004 under the auspices of Dr Edmond Daokoru.

He continued in that position until he resigned to join the PDP gubernatorial primaries in 2006 in Bayelsa State, in which he placed, second behind Dr. Goodluck Jonathan. After the PDP presidential primaries election and Dr. Jonathan was appointed as a running mate to Umaru Yar’Adua of blessed memory, the gubernatorial candidacy for PDP became vacant, and conventional wisdom took the better of the political actors and Sylva was elevated to occupy the position of PDP gubernatorial candidate.

As a candidate of the PDP, Sylva won the 2007 Bayelsa State Governorship election and succeeded Jonathan who went on to the position of Vice President.

Until his election as APC Candidate, he was the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources.

Douye Diri

Douye Diri was born on June 4, 1959. He represented Bayelsa Central senatorial district of Bayelsa state at the 9th National Assembly.

Diri began his early education at Okoro Primary School, Sampou and concluded it at Rev. Proctor Memorial Primary School, Kaiama in 1977, where he obtained his First School Leaving Certificate.

He later attended Government Secondary School, Odi in Bayelsa. Douye studied at the College of Education, PortHarcourt, Rivers State where he obtained a National Certificate in Education (NCE) in 1985. He also attended the University of Port-Harcourt, obtaining Bachelors of Education (B. Ed) Degree in Political Science in 1990.

On February 13, 2020, the Supreme Court invalidated the results of the 2019 gubernatorial elections on grounds that the running mate of the actual winner of the election, David Lyon, submitted a controversial certificate to the INEC. The court ordered Diri to be issued a certificate of return, which would make him governor- elect.

On February 14, 2020, he was sworn-in as the governor of Bayelsa State.

He is contesting the November 2023 election to secure a second term in office.

Kogi – Melaye versus Ododo

Usman Ododo (APC)

Ahmed Usman Ododo was the Auditor General for Local Government in Kogi State.

He was born in the 1960s and is an Ebira man who hails from Okene in Kogi state.

Ahmed Usman Ododo previously served as the head of Kogi State Internal Revenue Service under the administration of Governor Yahaya Bello. He has been actively engaged in the politics of Kogi State and has been a vocal advocate for the development of the state.

He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria; Master’s degree in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Lagos and he is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) .

What may work against Ododo in the next election is that he is coming from the same senatorial District with the incumbent governor, Yahaya Bello, who has spent eight years in office. Many Kogi people are agitating that Kogi West should produce the next governor of the state.

Dino Melaye (PDP)

Dino Melaye was born on January 7, 1974. He is a former senator and was a member of the Eight National Assembly representing Kogi West Senatorial District. He is from Ayetoro Gbede in Ijumu Local Government Area of Kogi State.

Dino Melaye is a former member of the House of Representatives In 2015 he defected to APC), but returned to PDP in the buildup to the 2019 elections after months of political struggle with Kogi State governor.

He was the Chairman, Senate Committee on FCT and briefly the Senate Committee Chairman on Aviation in Nigeria. He was the spokesperson of 2023 Presidential candidate of the PDP, Atiku Abubakar.

Melaye may receive the support of Kogi West people where he hails from because his election will satisfy the yearning of the people of the district to produce the next governor.

While the Imo State is going to be a three-horse race between the candidates of the Labour Party, ( LP), the ruling All Progressives Congress, (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party, ( PDP), the contest in Kogi and Bayelsa will be a two – horse race between the candidates of the APC and the ruling PDP

Imo - Uzondima versus Samuel Anyanwu, Athan Achonu

Hope Uzondima

Hope Odidika Uzodimma was born on December12, 1958. In January 2020, the Supreme Court declared him the winner of the governorship poll in Imo State on the platform of the APC and nullified the election of the thenincumbent Governor Emeka Ihedioha.

In 1999, after Nigeria’s return to democracy after a spell of military rule, Uzodimma joined the PDP, where he served as a member of the party's National Caucus, National Executive Committee and on the Board of Trustees at various times between 1999 and 2017.

As a party boss in Imo State, he was a close associate of the Governor Achike Udenwa until late 2002, when ahead of the April 2003 election he defected to the Alliance for Democracy (AD), becoming the party's candidate in the Imo State governorship election. After losing the election to Udenwa, he returned to the PDP in February 2004. He later contested the PDP governorship primaries in December 2006, coming second to Senator Ifeanyi Ararume In 2011, after the incumbent Governor Ikedi Ohakim joined the PDP, Uzodimma endorsed him to run for a second term as Governor of Imo State, favouring him over Rochas Okorocha who he later defeated.

Uzondima

Anyanwu

Achonu

Labour Party’s Post Election Crisis Lingers POLITICS

BY AYO ESAN

The post-election crisis that hit the Labour Party, (LP) which emerged the Third Force in the recently concluded 2023 General Election continues to fester, instead of abating.

Attempts to get the suspended Chairman, Comrade Julius Abure, reinstated as the Chairman of the party failed as the High Court, Federal Capital Territory, has fixed May 12 to decide on whether or not to lift the suspension order placed on him and other officials of the party.

Justice Hamza Muazu fixed the date after taking arguments and objections from various counsels on the matter.

On April 5, the court had, upon an ex parte application, restrained Abure, Alhaji Farouk Ibrahim (National Secretary); Oluchi Opara (National Treasurer); and Clement Ojukwu (National Organising Secretary), from further parading themselves as officials of the party.

Also, on Monday, April 17, Justice Muazu refused to vacate the interim order restraining Abure and the other officials from further parading themselves as national officers of the Labour Party.

This followed a suit challenging the suspended chairman and his co-defendants’ continued stay in office on grounds of alleged fraud, forgery and criminal conspiracy.

At the resumed hearing on Thursday, Abure and his codefendants in their preliminary objections maintained that the suit bordered on a leadership crisis.

They therefore argued through their counsel, Ben Nwosu, that the matter was an internal affair of the party and that the court lacked the jurisdiction to entertain the matter.

It would also be recalled that the National Executive Council of the party met last Tuesday in Asaba, the Delta State capital as part of efforts to resolve the crisis in the party.

The meeting, which was attended by members of the National Working Committee, also had the state chairmen and secretaries of the party and its presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi, in attendance.

The Asaba meeting was also attended by the party’s National Assembly members-elect, officials of INEC, those of the NLC and the Trade Union Congress, according to the statement.

The statement issued at the end of the meeting said the NEC reaffirmed and upheld the decision of the Akure convention which expelled its former publicity secretary, Mr Arabambi Abayomi.

“NEC considered the disciplinary committee’s report which recommended the suspension of the former Youth Leader, Mr Anslem Eragbe and recommended him for expulsion at the next national convention.

“Pending the next convention, NEC suspends Eragbe indefinitely.

“NEC also suspended the following National Working Committee (NWC) members: Lamidi Apapa, Alhaji Salem Lawal, Favour Reuben, Gbenga Daramola, Samuel Akingbade and Mohammed Akali,’’ the statement also read.

It added that the NEC constituted a disciplinary committee comprising the National Youth Leader, Prince Kennedy Ahanotu, Acting National Publicity Secretary, Mr Obiora Ifoh, and Acting National Legal Adviser, Mr. Edun Kehinde, as members.

It listed other members as the Acting Deputy National Secretary, Mr Rotimi Kehinde and the National Vice Chairman South-South MR Anthony Ezeagwu.

The NEC said it critically evaluated the 2023 general election and noted INEC’s failure to transmit election results in real-time from polling units, which it said gave room for massive manipulation of results.

The statement condemned electoral violence and the use of security agencies to intimidate voters and perpetrate other crimes in parts of the country.

“NEC noted the resilience, and doggedness of our presidential candidate and its resolve to legitimately reclaim its mandate in court.

“NEC accordingly calls on the judiciary to do the right thing irrespective of whose ox is gored,’’ the statement also read. It stressed its implicit confidence in Mr. Julius Abureled National Working Committee.

The National Working Committee (NEC) of the Labour Party last Tuesday suspended Apapa for “anti-party activities, contravening the constitution of the party and running of parallel leadership and putting the party in total disrepute,” following an order by an Abuja High Court restraining Julius Abure from parading himself as the LP’s national chairman.

Following the order, Apapa, who was the party’s deputy national chairman (South), declared himself national chairman.

But, speaking on the outcome of the NEC meeting which suspended him, Apapa said his suspension was invalid, saying that Abure did not have the legal backing to convey the NEC meeting of the party.

Apapa said his rejection by officials of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) was due to the lack of knowledge of the party’s history and the roles he played.

He said, “I was not suspended. I was not invited to the NEC meeting. They think that I was not supposed to be there. As of today, I’m the only legitimate acting national chairman of the party.

“I’m not struggling with Abure. I’m there in an acting capacity. The constitution of the party is so clear on this, that for whatever reason if the national chairman is unable to perform his role, the deputy takes over. That is exactly what has happened.

“Nobody is sponsoring me. Nobody has suspended me. I remain the acting national chairman of the party. I maintain that.”

Speaking on the crisis, the Director-General of the Labour Party Presidential Campaign Council, Chief Akin Osuntokun, blamed the judiciary for the crisis rocking the party after the 2023 general elections.

Osuntokun said that the judgment by Justice Muazu ordering the party’s chairman, Julius Abure and other national executives of the party to stop parading themselves as national officers of the party created the crisis currently engulfing the party.

He said: “There is nothing going on (in the Labour Party) other than the crisis of the judiciary. It is a judge, the judiciary that made a judgement that is now responsible for creating a crisis in the Labour Party.

“It was a judge here, who in his discretion, said that Abure, who has been chairman for the primaries of the presidential, for the governorship, for the state Houses of Assembly should stop parading himself as chairman of the party.

“A judge, thereafter, gave a judgment that the chairman should no longer parade himself as a chairman. What do you make of that? And look at who and who brought the case before him.

“The judge is a Nigerian, he reads newspapers like the rest of us and he could have taken a more logical position on what was brought before him. Does it mean that if a clerk in the Labour Party brings a complaint before you, you can give a judgment on the basis of that?”

Osuntokun maintained that the judge had the option of allowing the chairman of the party to remain in his position and go on with the case, but he chose an option that shows he was “setting the party up for crisis.”

Apapa said his rejection by officials of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) was due to the lack of knowledge of the party’s history and the roles he played

Obi Abure

Edo PDP Hails INEC For Protecting Democracy in Adamawa

The Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Edo State, Dr. Anthony Aziegbemi, has commended the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), for taking decisive steps to ensure that the right thing was done in Adamawa State, where a Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) usurped the powers of the Chief Returning Officer to unilaterally declare a winner when collation had not been concluded.

In a statement, Aziegbemi said the disgraceful conduct of the erring INEC official, Mr. Hudu Yunusa-Ari, draws parallel to a similar occurrence that marred the successful conduct of the PDP congresses and primary elections to produce candidates for the justconcluded National Assembly elections in Edo State, urging the electoral body to follow up with security agencies and other relevant authorities to ensure, just like the Edo case, that the Adamawa REC is duly prosecuted.

The statement reads: “After a review of the circumstances surrounding the conduct of the supplementary governorship election in Adamawa State, I commend the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), for taking decisive steps to ensure that the right thing was done in Adamawa State, where a Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) usurped the powers of the Chief Returning Officer to unilaterally declare a winner when collation had not been concluded.

“The bold and courageous stance by INEC is the right step in upholding the tenets of democracy and reinstating the Commission's commitment to promoting a fair and healthy democratic process, raising hope that the country is on a path of progress in its democratic journey.

“The disgraceful conduct of the erring official, Mr. Hudu Yunusa-Ari, draws parallel to a similar occurrence that marred the successful conduct of the PDP congresses and primary elections to produce candidates for the just-

POLITICS NEWS

Forum Commends INEC Chairman Over Conduct of 2023 Elections

The Nigerian Forum for Democracy, an interest group which believes in the advancement of democracy has commended the National Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu for a peaceful conduct of the 2023 general elections.

The forum gave the commendation in a statement jointly signed by its National Coordinator, Bala James; National Secretary, Mr. James Olu; and Public Relations Officers, Chief Edem Moses, made available to journalists in Abuja.

Kogi 2023: NNPP Candidate Promises Civil Service Reforms

concluded National Assembly elections in Edo State, where Dr. Johnson Alaibo Sinkiem, then INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state, usurped the powers of the party’s National Working Committee (NWC), the body empowered by law to conduct congresses and primaries.”

He continued: “Sinkiem, who is now the INEC REC in Rivers State, in flagrant violation of the electoral laws, arrogated to himself the powers of the returning officer and party's National Working Committee in respect of the primaries he conducted and accordingly forged the PDP primary election results.

“The forged primary election results of the PDP primaries are what enabled the warring aspirants to file suits in the Abuja and Benin Divisions of the Federal High Court before the cases were finally put to rest by the Supreme Court which maintained that only the National Working Committee (NWC) of a political party has the power to conduct party primaries.

“It is however gratifying to know that the then-dissident INEC REC in Edo State currently faces charges of alleged forgery and conspiracy in Edo State Police Command and we urge INEC to take a cue from this and follow up with the security agencies and other relevant authorities to ensure that the same decisive steps taken in Edo State is also taken so that the REC is duly prosecuted. His actions could have triggered a constitutional crisis, and it is imperative to ensure that such flagrant disregard for due process and established electoral laws do not reoccur.”

Aziegbemi added, “We, once more, express our deepest appreciation to INEC for standing with the people and defending the sanctity of our democracy.

The Commission’s actions in Adamawa State are a beacon of hope for our nation's electoral process, and we hope that the electoral body will continue to display such courage, integrity, and impartiality in the discharge of its mandate.”

The candidate of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) in the upcoming Kogi governorship election, Mr. Mubarak Musa, has promised to reform the civil service in the state, if elected.

He said this in a statement made available to newsmen in Abuja against the backdrop of his emergence as the candidate of the party. The NNPP candidate said he would make the civil service productive, adding that as governor, he would implement a comprehensive civil service reform. This, according to him, is to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the public sector.

He promised a thorough review of existing policies and procedures.

Musa said an introduction of new measures aimed at promoting transparency, accountability and merit-based recruitment and promotion would be introduced.

“I will also prioritise the training and development of civil servants to equip them with the skills and knowledge necessary to meet the evolving needs of the state,” said the NNPP candidate.

Musa said by undertaking such measures, he was confident that he would be able to build a more responsive and responsible public sector that would serve the needs of all citizens.

On planned infrastructure development, the NNPP flagbearer said his administration would prioritise infrastructural development to drive economic growth and improve the well-being of citizens.

“This will involve identifying key areas for investment, such as transportation, power and water infrastructure, and developing a comprehensive plan for their construction and maintenance.”

Musa said he would also explore innovative financing mechanisms, such as publicprivate partnerships, to ensure projects sustainably.

He said: “Through these efforts, we will build a modern and resilient infrastructure that supports private sector investment, promotes job creation, and enhances the quality of life for all citizens of Kogi State.”

The forum said it was aware of enormous challenges faced by the commission in spite of the amended Electoral Act, 2022 which was meant to aid the electoral processes, but which was tried to be arm twisted by some alleged anti-democratic elements.

“Of note is the development in Adamawa State governorship election which was marred with controversies, but which the electoral umpire insisted on doing the right thing no matter which ox is gored.

“That the INEC swiftly reacted and declared it a nullity, the announcement of Sen. Aishatu Binani winner after the rerun election on Saturday April 15 in Adamawa State is a testament of a responsible electoral umpire, which Prof. Yakubu deserves commendation,” it said.

The forum recalled that the INEC national chairman read a riot act in his pre-election briefing with all the Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) after they went through orientation and handed with guidelines of how elections should be conducted across states.

“This shows the frantic effort of Yakubu’s conduct of free and fair election, irrespective of pitfalls as a result of some unforeseen circumstances,” it added.

The group said it was emphatic that INEC’s fair disposition led to emergence of a sizeable number of opposition lawmakers, as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has 35 seats and Labour Party, (LP) eight in the National Assembly.

It added that the New Nigeria Political Party (NNPP), the Social Democratic Party (SDP), All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and the Young Progressives Congress (YPP) have one Senators-elect each, awaiting inauguration in the first week of June.

It said that the opposition political parties also did well in the lower legislative chamber as well as State Houses of assembly across States.

“With the general elections concluded with runoffs on Saturday, the forum expressed optimism that the proposed ‘Electoral Offences Commission’ would complement INEC’s effort, if passed into law.

“Hence, they were calling on the Nigerian parliament to pass the bill into law in the interest of free and fair elections in future.

Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu (third right), being presented a souvenir by Executive members of Lagos Legislators Forum, Hon. Rasheed Fashina (second left) and Hon Yahaya Dosunmu (left), during the Forum’s congratulatory visit to the Governor, at the Lagos House, Marina, on Wednesday, 19 April 2023. With them: APC Lagos chairman, Hon Cornelius Ojelabi (second right) and Special Adviser, Office of Civic Engagement, Princess Aderemi Adebowale (right).

EDITORIAL

Lagos And Roguish BRT Drivers

The recruitment process for drivers of the Lagos Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) needs a complete overhaul as recent cases of avoidable fatal accidents involving BRT buses in Lagos are becoming very embarrassing. The mental stability of most of the drivers of the public transportation service in a megacity like Lagos needs regular checks. A situation where innocent lives are needlessly lost to road accidents largely caused by these roguish drivers can no longer be acceptable. There have been at least two fatal accidents involving the Lagos BRT in the past two months. The first accident was recorded on Thursday, March 20 when a BRT bus conveying Lagos State Government civil servants and their relatives ran into a moving train at the PWD level crossing in Ikeja. No fewer than six persons were killed and about 79 others sustained varying degrees of injuries in the accident said to have been caused by a stubborn driver who simply refused warning to stop for the moving train.

Last Wednesday, April 19, almost a month after the Ikeja incident, an unidentified danfo driver lost his life, while his passengers sustained

Publisher/Editor-in-Chief

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Editor – Olaolu Olusina

Deputy Editor – Amos Esele

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Nigeria Bureau: 36AA Remi Fani-Kayode Street, GRA, Ikeja. Lagos, Nigeria. info@thewillnigeria.com / @ THEWILLNG, +234 810 345 2286, +234 913 333 3888.

EDITOR: Olaolu Olusina @OLUSINA [Letters/Opinions: opinion.letters@thewillnigeria.com]

serious injuries in another accident involving his bus and a Lagos BRT bus in the Ogudu end of the Oworonshoki - Berger Expressway.

Although accounts of the latest accident differ, an eyewitness account alleged that the BRT driver actually caused the accident by attempting to chase away the erring danfo driver from the BRT lane, thus hitting his vehicle from behind, causing it to somersault several times and spilling the smoked fish it was carrying on the road. An angry mob present at the scene of the accident was said to be so furious with the BRT driver that they set the bus ablaze.

BRT drivers are generally known to consider themselves as kings on Lagos roads because they drive vehicles owned by the Lagos State Government. However, when this attitude is taken to the extreme, resulting in constant loss of lives and property, as witnessed nowadays almost on a monthly basis, then something drastic has to be done to stop the ugly trend. A good background check is necessary for future recruitment into the pool to prevent hoodlums and notorious drivers from being taken into the system. While the BRT system should not be a rehabilitation centre for hoodlums and political thugs in need of settlement, driving the Lagos BRT should not also be a job ''for the boys.”

Lagosians are yet to put behind them the shock of the case of the BRT driver, Andrew Ominikoron, currently on trial for allegedly raping and killing his passenger, Oluwabamise Ayanwole, in 2022.

Ominikoron, who initially fled Lagos and ran for cover somewhere in Ogun State after committing the crime, was later discovered to have, allegedly, been raping his passengers in secluded places before he was finally busted.

Sadly, his employer, the Lagos BRT, has not denied him, though he has been released to face trial, following a public outcry over what was initially perceived as protection for a man that was declared wanted by the police for a serious criminal case. It is unfortunate and highly embarrassing that such a character would be found in the service of a public transportation service in Lagos, in the first place. We call on the Lagos Bus Services Limited (LBSL), operator of the Lagos BRT, to step up its game and purge itself of all roguish and notorious elements in its system. The Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA), which is the government regulator of the Lagos BRT, also has to come in and properly regulate the system with good code of practice and operational guidelines as being done in other climes. It is very shameful and disgraceful when the public loses confidence in the operations of a stategovernment outfit to the extent of targeting its facilities and buses for vandalisation at the slightest provocation. The dream of turning Lagos into a mega city and a true centre of excellence will remain a long dream if hoodlums and rogues are retained in the system and are allowed to continue to rubbish the good works of the government.

A good background check is necessary for recruitment into the pool to prevent hoodlums and notorious drivers from being taken into the system. While the BRT system should not be a rehabilitation centre for hoodlums and political thugs in need of settlement, driving the Lagos BRT should not also be a job ''for the boys

Supplementary Elections And The Debacle in Adamawa

BY REUBEN ABATI

With the way the Independent National Electoral Commission of Nigeria (INEC) is carrying on under the watch of Professor Mahmood Yakubu as Chairman, it would take a miracle for the present Chairman of that controversial and embattled body not to end up on the wrong side of history.

In Yakubu’s time, Nigeria came up with the Electoral Act 2022, which indeed is a different kind of law, an advancement from the Electoral Act 2010. Everyone celebrated the emergence of the new Electoral Act as a game changer for Nigeria with the novel innovations about INEC’s financial independence in Section 3(3), early conduct of primaries and submission of candidates list in Section 29 (1), legal backing of electronic voting and transmission of results in Sections 47 and 50(2), overvoting redefined in Section 51, the non-eligibility of political appointees as delegates or aspirants in Section 84(12), special provisions for the physically challenged in Section 54, early commencement and longer period of campaigns in Section 94, provision for a central electronic data base in Section 99…

Mahmood Yakubu’s INEC boasted that the commission had tested the law in the bye-elections in Osun and Ekiti and that during the then scheduled 2023 general election, INEC would put all the reforms into effect. What have we seen? It turned out from the very beginning that the National Assembly did not understand the same law that it had enacted and the implications. The same people who enacted the law tried to change it. They didn’t succeed.

Before the elections, INEC said it was ready. It put out messages about how results would be uploaded from polling units to the INEC Results Viewing Portal, real time. It said its officials were up to the task.

The details of how INEC disappointed Nigerians is wellcaptured by the reports of various observers, local and international, and the tsunami of litigations that have attended the elections held this year, on February 25 (Presidential and National Assembly), and March 18 (Governorship and State Houses of Assembly).

Nigeria’s 2023 general election would go down as one of

the most disputed in the country’s electoral cycle since the first general elections were held in the country in September 1923 under the Clifford Constitution of 1922. It may be said, after a fashion, that the true test of a law is in its implementation. Any piece of legislation is a living organism. Laws are made for the good of society. Thus, as living organisms, laws evolve and implementation structures and organs are aligned with the law-givers’ original intentions.

Given the contortions that have been experienced so far with the Electoral Act 2022, Nigeria needs to work further on the electoral framework, to oxygenate and deepen our democracy and to align it more reasonably with the people’s will. The minimum lesson at this point is that when a law is made, those who are expected to operationalise it must study and understand it.

State and party officials are so routinely distracted, they do not pay enough attention.The extent to which this is so is that after the elections of February 25 and March 18, the electoral body, INEC took the decision to conduct supplementary elections in 24 states of the Federation, 2,660 polling units, 93 Legislative constituencies and 185 local governments, where elections had been declared inconclusive.

Those supplementary elections took place on Saturday, April 15. INEC said it was better prepared, having learnt lessons from its most recent exercises, and having tested the Electoral Act in a general election. It was possible to believe that certain lessons had been learnt within the space of close to a month: March 18 – April 15. The InspectorGeneral of Police lent his voice to the matter and said that the supplementary elections would proceed smoothly. But on April 15, it was déjà vu.

The same weekend, party primaries were held in some of the states where off-cycle elections would take place later in 2023. The primaries were just as problematic. In Kogi state, four aspirants were reported to have rejected APC governorship primaries. The Nation said: “Sylva wins Bayelsa APC Guber Primary… Confusion as Labour Party holds factional primaries in Imo… Anxiety in Kebbi,

Adamawa over guber elections”.

In one word, despite all the concerns and anxieties expressed about the 2023 process as seen on February 25 and March 18, the supplementary elections of April 15, and even the party primaries in Imo, Bayelsa, and Kogi states, indicated very clearly, that nothing had changed and nothing would probably change going forward.

Nigerians run a peculiar kind of democracy where anything and everything is possible and the only thing that matters is winning at all costs. It is a democracy of deaf and dumb persons fixated on only one goal and who define democracy strictly by personal standards. I have stumbled on the argument that there will never be a time Nigerian democracy will be run by saints and I am tempted to believe that ours may well be described as a democracy of villains, where the smartest villain wins. This takes us immediately to Adamawa State, Nigeria where a show of shame was enacted on Saturday by a certain Hudu Yunusa Ari, adult, male and Resident Electoral Commissioner of Adamawa State who engaged in a violent act of breach of public peace by disrupting the collation of the results of the supplementary governorship election in Adamawa State in a criminal and roguish manner.

It would be recalled that INEC had declared the election inconclusive due to issues in Fufore Local Government, which caused much furore and on the ground that the number of cancelled votes exceeded the margin of lead between the People’s Democratic Party candidate, incumbent Governor Ahmadu Fintiri and the closest challenger, Aishatu Dahiru of the All Progressives’ Congress.

By 9 am on Sunday, April 16, collation officers and the returning officers at the State Collation Centre in Yola, the state capital had announced the results from 10 of the affected LGAS, with Fintiri, the PDP candidate leading with a wide margin. The Returning Officer then announced a recess for a continuation of collation and further announcement of results to re-commence by 11 am.

Buhari’s Subsidy Withdrawal Deadline: When Sleaze Becomes Unprecedented

BY IFEANYI IZEZE

The more you try to understand Nigeria, the more confused you are. A nation that has all it takes to be so great and be the envy of other nations is wallowing in chaos created by its leaders to defraud the governed.

Recently, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in its report said the price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), popularly called Petrol, rose by over 81 percent in the past three years despite the Federal Government paying over N6 trillion as a subsidy within the same period.

In the last three years, fuel subsidy went from N134 billion in 2020 to N1.43 trillion in 2021, and N4.39 trillion in 2022. This led to a total of N5.83 trillion in subsidy payments, excluding the figures for 2023. The projection for the year half of 2023 (June) is N3.63 trillion. So another N3.63 trillion or more for the remaining six months of this year will land the nation paying well over N6 trillion as fuel subsidy.

The NBS report stated that the average retail price paid by consumers for Petrol in February 2023 was N263.76, indicating a 54.76 percent increase when compared to the value recorded in February 2022 (N170.42).

At the onset of 2020, the average price paid by consumers for petrol increased by 0.08 percent year-on-year and monthon-month by 0.03 percent to N145.41 in February 2020 from N145.37 in January 2020, according to the NBS. States with the highest average price of petrol were Abia (N146.87), Rivers (146.67) Adamawa (N146.67) and Niger (N146.57). States with the lowest average price of premium motor spirit were FCT (N143.67), Enugu (N144.50) and Lagos (N144.73) in 2020.

We should not forget that Kyari’s NNPC(L) has remained the sole importer of all the petrol used in this country for years now. That means the NNPC(L) brings in whatever volume of fuel it likes, they give us the figure of the quantity they want us to believe because there’s no way an outside source can verify

the company’s claims.

The same NNPC goes ahead to pay itself what they think the subsidy cash for such imports should be from the oil revenue it generates on trust for the nation and nobody dares say anything as if the nation is spellbound.

As rightly said by an analyst, the subsidy is the biggest scam in the history of this country, second only to the operations of the NNPC. No one has accurate data on the volume of petrol Nigeria uses. We pay subsidy claims using arbitrary data generated in the minds of NNPC managers and their masters at the Presidency.

The rot we have today in the nation’s apex concern under Mele Kolo Kyari is unprecedented. There is nothing that anybody is going to twist-say to change this glaring fact.

For some months NNPC did not pay a dime as oil revenue into the Federation Account, the reason being that the company ran at a loss during those months. Till this day, nobody (not even President Muhammadu Buhari nor the National Assembly) could muster enough willpower to ask a single question on such fictitious claims by Kyari and his men. Is this not the height of leadership ineptitude or maybe complicity?

The NNPC under Kyari woke up one morning and surreptitiously jacked up the nation’s daily consumption of petrol from about 33 million litres a day to over 65 million litres per day. Rather than take up the responsibility to conduct proper forensic audits and obtain credible data, the Presidency and the National Assembly, even the NGOs, just swallowed the figure wholesale.

The subsidy was removed for Dual Purpose Kerosene (DPK) and Diesel (AGO) and till date, no one can point out how the nation has profited from that action. One of the major campaign promises of General Buhari in 2015 was the cancellation of subsidy payments. He had since 2015 to fulfill his promise, but he waited till a few weeks before the end of his tenure to

bring it up. Worse still, he has shifted the responsibility to the incoming government that should just be less than one month before the slated date for the subsidy removal. Is this not to deliberately create a crisis for the new government?

The same Buhari and his supporters went to Okija shrine to swear that fuel subsidy does not exist anywhere and that it was a scheme packaged to drain the nation’s badly needed scarce resources into the pockets of a few individuals and their cronies. Ironically he ended up paying over 1,000 percent more than what the Goodluck Jonathan Administration paid on a monthly basis.

What justification do we have to astronomically increase the price of petrol because that is the actual meaning of this so-called “complete withdrawal of subsidy?” When will the leaders of this country be serious?

The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, came up last week to tell Nigerians that the Federal Government had borrowed $800m from World Bank for the purpose of palliatives for Nigerians, ahead of fuel subsidy removal. Is this not a severance package for Zainab Ahmed and her gang at the presidency on one hand and the NNPC rogues and their collaborators at the presidency also? Why is the government borrowing to share among poor Nigerians as palliative? How is the government going to determine the actual Nigerian poor and their exact population? In a country where over 95 percent of the population is poor, what yardstick is the government going to use to sieve the few rich from the poor masses?

Nigerians are not even interested in Buhari’s palliatives so the president and his rogue team can keep the $800 million, but they should know that when a new Sherriff comes to Aso Rock he may ask questions willingly or by compulsion from the masses who will definitely want explanations for the ongoing broad day ravaging of our collective wealth by those who operated under this government from the NNPC to the presidency. God bless Nigeria!

Regulatory Infractions: CBN, PenCom, Others Slam N159m Penalties on Stanbic IBTC

BY SAM DIALA

Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc paid a total of N159 million as punishment against its subsidiaries for breaching various regulatory guidelines in the 2022 financial year. The penalties were imposed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), National Pension Commission (PenCom), National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).

Although the penalties were 32 percent less than the N233 million collectively slammed on the Group in 2021, stakeholders have expressed concern over the habit of incurring regulatory infraction penalties by the financial services institutions, and using investors’ funds to settle them.

Data gleaned from the 2022 audited financial statement of Stanbic IBTC Group showed that the highest penalties were incurred by the pension subsidiary, Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers Limited, which was slammed with a N79.6 million fine by PenCom.

“PenCom imposed a penalty of N69,600,000 on Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers Limited for contravening the provisions of the Revised Registration Guidelines.

PenCom imposed a fine of N10,000,000 on Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers Limited as an administrative sanction for the publication of an unapproved advert by Stanbic IBTC Group,” the Group revealed in its 2022 audited financial statement.

For failing to report export proceeds and Certificate of Capital Importation to CBN and NFIU, amid efforts to boost non-oil export revenue, the apex bank punished Stanbic IBTC Bank with a penalty of N44,850,000. The CBN also imposed a fine of N5,000,000 on the

SAATM: Stakeholders Mull 30% 5th Freedom Traffic Penetration in Africa by 2025

BY ANTHONY AWUNOR

African Civil Aviation Commission (AFCAC) says it is working with all the stakeholders and support from its technical and financial partners to improve the 5th Freedom Traffic penetration in Africa from the current level of 14.5 per cent to 30 per cent by 2025.

Fifth freedom, otherwise known

as economic freedom in aviation, means the right for an airline to pass between two foreign countries during flights while the flight originates or ends in one's own country.

Secretary General of AFCAC, Ms Adefunke Adeyemi, gave the hint

Continues on page 33

financial services institution for late rendition of daily returns.

The regulatory hammer of SEC fell on Stanbic IBTC Trustees Limited for misinformation of the income earned on the investment of Bond sinking funds on the year 2020 returns. The subsidiary coughed out N8,205,000 to settle this penalty during the year.

The financial statement further stated that “The SEC imposed a fine of N500,161.25 on Stanbic IBTC Capital Limited for not depositing all the proceeds of the Stanbic Infrastructure Fund issue in an interest-yielding account with the custodian.”

During the year, NAICOM “imposed a fine of N15,250,000 on Stanbic IBTC Insurance Brokers Limited for alleged failure to avail an on-site inspector with the full representation of KYC/CDD documents conducted on customers.”

NAICOM also imposed a fine of N250,161.25 on Stanbic IBTC Insurance Limited for late upload of online real-time data of policies booked. It also punished the subsidiary “with a fine of N250,161.25 on Stanbic IBTC Insurance Limited for late upload of online real-time data of policies booked.”

The Group’s audited performance report also revealed that the financial services institution breached the tax regulations of the country which earned it a N50,000 fine by the FIRS for late filing and remittance of Value Added Tax (VAT).

THEWILL had published last year that Stanbic IBTC Group coughed out a total of N2.76 billion on penalties imposed on it by

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MORE INSIDE

Air Peace Begins

Two Weekly Flights to Israel

PAGE 34

NBS set to Release Unemployment

Data in May

PAGE 34

ETFs: Popoola Hints on Potential Listings, Investors Tackle Market Challenges

The Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX), Mr Temi Popoola has said that the market would see a renewal in Exchange Traded Fund listings as four new ETFs were in the pipeline. This was echoed by Popoola at the recently completed ETFs conference themed “ETFs in the Nigerian Capital Market: Opportunities and Challenges” held on Wednesday, 19 April 2023. Giving his remarks, the CEO explained that the Exchange is leading the ETFs market in West

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AVIATION/BANKING

SAATM: Stakeholders Mull 30% 5th Freedom

Traffic Penetration in Africa by 2025

Continued from page 32

Regulatory Infractions: CBN, PenCom, Others Slam N159m Penalties on Stanbic IBTC

Continued from page 32

the authorities for contravening various industry regulations within five years (2017-2021),

Among the major penalties the bank paid in 2021 was N200 million for flouting the CBN directive on Cryptocurrency, a sanction the bank said it would press for reversal.

In 2020, the financial services institution paid a “Penalty on Involvement in Textile Importation

Using FX Sourced from the Nigerian Market. The CBN imposed a penalty of N152 million on the bank following the investigation which was conducted on foreign exchange used to import textiles for the period of 02 and 15 October 2019,” the company revealed.

recently at the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) PIP Cluster 1 Coalition Roadshow hosted by the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), where Nigeria was placed alongside nineteen other African countries deemed ready for SAATM Pilot Implementation Programme( PIP).

The roadshow, the first of its kind in Africa for states identified to proceed with the accelerated implementation of SAATM, is holding in Abuja between April 18th and 19th, 2023 with the country’s government affirming support and commitment to the full implementation of the project.

According to the AFCAC Scribe, as more 5th freedom traffic rights are granted through liberalization, airlines can manage to connect more city-pairs in Africa which will in turn lead to the full maximization of the benefits associated with the direct and indirect gains from a competitive environment.

She said a reason for granting Nigeria hosting rights was to engage with Nigerian stakeholders; to see how efforts can be intensified to implement practical strategies and taking concrete actions to address the challenges preventing the achievement of the projected growth; share ideas to boost the development of air links to and from Nigeria.

This is in addition to promoting tourism, trade and investment development ,especially through improvements in the regulatory framework, infrastructure investment and operational incentives for airlines in order to create a competitive environment for aviation business to thrive.

Adeyemi encouraged all eligible Nigerian airlines to take advantage of SAATM, expand their operations across Africa and invest in infrastructure to ensure safe, secure, efficient, sustainable and competitive operational environments that promote easy connectivity, business growth and job creation across the African continent.

According to AFCAC, the twenty States ready under

SAATM PIP are Cape Verde, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Cote d Ivoire, Congo, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Gabon, Kenya, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa, Togo and Zambia.

Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika who was represented by the Permanent Secretary of the Aviation Ministry, Dr. Emmanuel Meribole stated that the air transport market in subSaharan Africa presents a strong dichotomy in Southern and Eastern Africa wherein the market is growing, with few major African carriers dominating international and domestic markets which are becoming increasingly concentrated.

This, he said, is in contrast to Central and Western Africa in which the sector is stagnating, with the vacuum created by the collapse of mostly state-owned airlines and a few privately owned airlines in the region.

He acknowledged the significant progress and achievements of States and Institutions in African Region, particularly the AFCAC for its efforts in the promotion of the implementation of International Civil Aviation Organization’s International Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs) for Civil Aviation Safety Oversight in the region as well as being the driver and promoter of Yamoussoukro Declaration (YD) and the SAATM.

In his welcome address, the Director-General, Civil Aviation, Captain Musa Nuhu commended AFCAC for the presentation of the SAATM-PIP Roadmap which is borne out of the desire to address challenges of air travel in the Region as well as eliminating to the barest minimum, probable impediments, to the full and sustainable implementation of SAATM.

He expressed optimism that SAATM will enhance intra-African connections and make movement of passengers and cargo smooth with minimum transit points at competitive prices.

Captain Musa, however, solicited collective resolve not only to implement SAATM but also to make conscious efforts to address the issues of non-physical barriers including the high cost of travel within the region.

Meanwhile, SAATM is a project of the African Union to create a single market for air transport in Africa. Once completely in force, the single market is supposed to allow significant freedom of air transport in Africa, advancing the AU's Agenda 2063.

Primarily, the goal of the SAATM is to fully implement the 1999 Yamoussoukro Decision. This means that all participants agree to lift market access restrictions for airlines, remove restrictions on ownership, grant each other extended air traffic rights (first through fifth freedoms, not affecting cabotage rights), and liberalise flight frequency and capacity limits.

Both passenger and cargo aviation are included. It also seeks to harmonise safety and security regulations in aviation, based on ICAO requirements.

The highest penalty of N1.9 billion the bank paid during the 5-year period related to capital importation documentation which earned it the CBN’s hammer: “Penalty arising from CBN investigation on ‘irregular’ Certificates of Capital Importation (“CCI’s”) issued to MTN Nigeria Communications Limited (MTN Nigeria), between 2007 and 2015 - N1,885,852,847.46.”

Reacting to the report, the Chairperson, Pragmatic Shareholders Association of Nigeria, Mrs Bisi Bakare had described the development as unfortunate and worrying, though not peculiar with Stanbic IBTC Bank. She said some of the penalties are avoidable if the banks can be more proactive. “It is not peculiar with Stanbic IBTC Bank; other banks pay penalties. My candid advice to the management is to be proactive in their dealings,” she said in a note to THEWILL then.

Despite a challenging environment, Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc in its 2022 audited financial statements for the period ended December 31, 2022, reported significant improvement in key financial parameters to maintain its position as one of the leading Tier-2 banks in the country.

The Group in the review period announced a significant increase in balance sheet position that impacted on its bottom-line: Its total assets hit N3.03trillion in 2022, an increase of 10 per cent from N2.74trillion in 2021, driven majorly by growth in gross loans & advances and customer deposits.

The Group’s gross loans & advances was up by 31 percent to N1.24 trillion in 2022 from N946.26 billion in 2021, while customer deposits increased by 11 percent to N1.25 trillion in 2022 from N1.13 billion achieved in 2021.

Commenting on the results, the Chief Executive Stanbic IBTC Holdings, Dr Demola Sogunle in a statement said, “2022 was a peculiar year for us as a financial services provider within the Nigerian operating environment. Despite the volatile macroeconomic indicators, coupled with varying regulatory burdens, we made substantial progress towards achieving our set financial goals based on our guidance for the year.

“We recorded growth in our profit metrics, loans and advances, and

deposits during the year. The Group’s profit after tax increased by 42 percent to N80.81billion, being the second highest PAT in the history of the organisation.

“This was largely attributable to significant increase in net interest income and growth in non-interest revenue. The 50 percent YoY increase in net interest income resulted from growth in the volume and average yield on cumulative risk assets while growing our loan book.

“In addition, non-interest revenue was driven by growth in trading revenue following an improvement in trading activities as well as 9 percent growth in fees and commissions compared to the prior year.

“The improvement in our earnings led to an increase in our return on equity to 20.4 per cent from 14.7 per cent in 2021, well above our target range. Increased focus on our cost savings initiatives led to a moderation in our cost-to-income ratio to 53.9per cent from 62.3 per cent in 2021, which is in line with our target of at most 55per cent for the year.

“We particularly exceeded our guidance for loan growth as gross customer loans increased by 31 percent to N1.24 trillion, attaining the one-trillion-mark as we continue to support our clients in achieving their financial goals.

“The non-performing loan ratio moved up to 2.4per cent, still within the acceptable limit of five per cent, as the total non-performing loans increased YoY due to proactive recognition of increased credit risks in specific clients. We will continue to extend loans in a responsible manner and in line with our established credit risk management practices.

“The increase in our loan book was funded by a 11 percent YoY growth in customer deposits. The current account to savings account ratio increased to 71.7per cent, exceeding our target of at least 70 percent due to accelerated growth in low-cost deposits.”

He added that, “We demonstrated our commitment towards promoting sustainable finance and climate action during the year as 32 bank branches and seven pension locations now run on solar powered energy solutions.”

SAATM will enhance intra-African connections and make movement of passengers and cargo smooth with minimum transit points at competitive prices

“Among the major penalties the bank paid in 2021 was N200 million for flouting the CBN directive on Cryptocurrency, a sanction the bank said it would press for reversal

Rite Foods Urges Refreshing Moments During Eid el-Fitri Celebration

Rite Foods Limited has admonishes Islamic believers to have rejuvenating moments with its award-winning brands as they celebrate this year's Eid el-Fitri festival, to mark the successful completion of the one-month fasting during Ramadan.

Ramadan fasting, which is the period of penitence and self-denial, is in fulfilment of the fourth pillar of Islam, observed annually by Muslim Faithful, globally, as enshrined in Islam.

ETFs: Popoola Hints on Four Potential Listings, Investors Tackle Market Challenges

Africa with a market capitalisation of N8.87bn ($19.25m), noting that the market is still in its nascent state, compared to the South African ETF market with a $7.11bn capitalization.

“There has been a dearth of new ETFs listings on the NGX in recent years, however, there are bright spots on the horizon with 4 new ETFs listings in the pipeline. It is incumbent to state that current macro-economic challenges resulting in the exit of Foreign Investors, impacted the ETFs space which resulted in a sharp dip in the ETFs market Cap from 2020 highs of N24.5bn. We are hopeful that the policy tilt of the new administration would impact positively on our market.”

Also speaking at the event was the Executive Commissioner, Operations, Securities and Exchanges Commission (SEC), Mr Dayo Obisan, who also touched on the challenges in the market but expressed confidence in the ability of experts to proffer solutions. He urged all stakeholders including the Fund Managers Association, NGX, and other institutional investors to extend the message of ETFs in order to deepen the market and make the asset class more vibrant, thereby driving growth in the capital market.

Adeyinka Shonekan, the Executive

Director, Central Securities and Clearing System (CSCS) Plc spoke on the CSCS’s developmental efforts in the ETFs market. He explained how the CSCS was using technology to improve the onboarding of retail investors into ETFs. “CSCS has been driving the initiative to reduce the settlement cycle from T+3 to T+2 or T+1 and we have been engaging stakeholders to make sure we make this a reality,” he added.

Adele Hattingh, Manager, Business Development and Exchange Traded Products at the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, JSE, gave an overview of the South African ETFs market including why investors should consider investing in the asset class. The Managing Director, Vetiva Fund Managers Limited, Oyelade Eigbe, on her part also spoke on how retail investors could access the ETFs market in Nigeria and monitor their investments.

During the panel session, capital market experts further addressed the opportunities and challenges of the market, with liquidity as a central topic of discussion. Featuring were Mr Aigbovbiose Aig-Imoukuede, President, FMAN, Oladele Sotubo, CEO, Stanbic IBTC Asset Managers, FBN Quest Capital and Nornah Awoh, Chief Equity Analyst/ CEO, Palesa Capital Markets Associates.

Equities Market Records 1.08% Drop on N27.96trn Capitalisation

The NGX All-Share Index and Market Capitalization depreciated by 1.08% to close the week at 51,355.74 and N27.963 trillion respectively.

The market opened for four trading days last week as the Federal Government of Nigeria declared Friday 21st April 2023 and Monday 24th April 2023 as Public Holidays to mark the Eid el-Fitr celebration.

A total turnover of 3.920 billion shares worth N15.620 billion in 16,856 deals was traded this week by investors on the floor of the Exchange, in contrast to a total of 2.824 billion shares valued at N10.964 billion that exchanged hands last week in 15,686 deals.

The Conglomerates Industry (measured

Air Peace Begins Two Weekly Flights to Israel

BY ANTHONY AWUNOR

As part of its expansion programme in the international routes, Nigerian carrier, Air Peace, has started to fly direct, nonstop to Israel.

The airline commenced scheduled operations into Tel Aviv on April 20, 2023, from Lagos and Abuja.

At the inaugural flight ceremony held at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, the Chairman of Air Peace, Barrister Allen Onyema, said history has been made in the bilateral relations between Nigeria and Israel through the commencement of direct, nonstop flights from Lagos and Abuja to the city of Tel Aviv.

According to Onyema, "This is undoubtedly a big milestone as, for the first time, a Nigerian airline is connecting both countries directly through scheduled commercial flights".

Onyema said the airline was delighted particularly because this new route will provide huge respite to Nigerian travellers who, henceforth, do not have to travel to Israel through other countries, spending over 20 hours in stopovers whereas a direct flight is less than 6 hours.

Commending Muslims for their uprightness and excellent conduct during Ramadan which has led to the Eid el-Fitri celebration, Rite Foods' Managing Director, Mr. Seleem Adegunwa, avowed that the company's unique products comprising the 13 variants of the Bigi Carbonated soft drink, the premium Bigi Table Water, the Sosa fruit drink with its five variants, the Fearless energy drinks, Bigi and Rite sausages, are available for consumers' delight and satisfaction in the memorable celebration.

Adegunwa affirmed that the company's consumers which comprise Islamic believers should get refreshed after fasting with its array of brands that are produced in a world-class factory with modern technology and artificial intelligence, under good hygienic conditions in line with global best practices.

He stated that the leading company in the food and beverage industry of Africa's largest economy will continue in its stride to deliver unparalleled products stemming from adequate research and development, to cater to the needs of consumers across the country as a Proudly-Nigerian brand, and outside its shores, as a Proudly-African organisation.

by volume) led the activity chart with 3.050 billion shares valued at N5.964 billion traded in 1,379 deals; thus contributing 77.81% and 38.18% to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.

The Financial Services Industry followed with 707.962 million shares worth N6.175 billion in 8,430 deals. The third place was the Consumer Goods Industry, with a turnover of 43.155 million shares worth N1.026 billion in 2,223 deals.

Trading in the top three equities namely Transnational Corporation Plc, Access Holdings Plc and Fidelity Bank Plc (measured by volume) accounted for 3.302 billion shares worth N7.999 billion in 2,375 deals, contributing 84.23% and 51.21% to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.

"Our entry into Israel today will open up more layers of opportunities and possibilities socially, and economically, and advance the implementation of the Bilateral Air Services Agreement between Nigeria and Israel. The connectivity will boost 'religious tourism', especially factoring the numerous Nigerians who embark on pilgrimage trips to Israel", the Air Peace Chairman stated. He stressed that the airline is familiar with Israeli airspace as it operated evacuation flights to the country in 2020, following the COVID-19 pandemic.

Onyema expressed gratitude to the Israeli government, especially its Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Michael Freeman, the Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria and other stakeholders whose efforts made this launch possible.

Ambassador Freeman expressed joy over the new connectivity, stressing that it would help deepen bilateral ties between both countries and promote mutually beneficial economic engagements.

The Rite Foods boss also called on Muslims to use the Eid el-Fitri period to pray to Allah for a peaceful and great nation, and for the actualisation of set developmental goals. In the same vein, the Company's Assistant Brand Manager, Boluwatife Adedugbe, pointed out that Rite Foods, with brands that are the hallmark of distinctiveness in its market segment, is poised towards putting its consumers at the topmost of its priority, hence it felicitated with Muslims during the Ramadan period which now culminates into the Eid-el-Ftri celebration. She stated that the company's unrivalled and innovative products with their unmatched flavours are available across the country for consumers' satisfaction, irrespective of their religious and cultural beliefs, on memorable occasions.

Certainly, Rite Foods' brands are the preferred consumers' choice as reflected in its numerous laurels, as the Bigi Cola CSD won the "Fastest Growing Bigi Cola Brand of the Year" in 2022, at an award ceremony organised by Marketing Edge Magazine, while its Bigi and Rite sausages clinched the "Fastest Growing Sausage Brand of the Year," at the same event.

The sausage brands also earned ECOWAS Sausage Roll Snack Manufacturing Company of the Year at the ECOWAS Manufacturing Excellence Award in 2021, which was powered by BusinessDay Newspapers (Ghana], and Daily Independent Newspapers in Nigeria.

L-R: President and Chairman of Council, Nigerian-British Chamber of Commerce (NBCC), Bisi Adeyemi, during the presentation of appreciation plaque to the Group Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Airtel Africa PLC, Segun Ogunsanya, during the April edition of the NBCC Sharing Experience series at the NBCC Plaza in Lagos on April 14, 2023.

Photo: Peace Udugba.

BUSINESS NEWS

Ibom Air Receives International Safety Certification

Ibom Air, a commercial airline owned by the Akwa Ibom State Government, has received a safety certification from the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

The Chief Executive Officer of Ibom Air, Mfon Udom received the IATA certificate at the airline headquarters in Uyo, according to a statement on 12 April from Group Manager Marketing and Communication, Ibom Air, Aniekan Essienette.

Mrs Essienette said the certificate was presented to Ibom Air by IATA representatives, Samson Fatokun, area manager, West and Central Africa, and Jennifer Aisha Yeates, assistant director Operations, Safety and Security, West and Central Africa.

“The IOSA audit of Ibom Air was conducted in the second half of 2022, just over three years after the airline commenced commercial operations. Ibom Air’s effort was championed by the airline’s Quality and Safety Team, led by Engineer Edem Essien, Group Manager, Quality and Safety.

Transport Safety: NSIB Seeks Collaboration

BY ANTHONY AWUNOR

The Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) is seeking partnership with the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) on how to further ensure safety in all modes of transportation across the country.

The two bodies have also agreed to draft a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on how their partnership could be concretised and ensure mutual benefits for all.

According to a statement released by the General Manager, Public Affairs, Mr. Tunji Oketunbi, the Bureau paid a courtesy visit to the NSCDC Railway Command Headquarters in Lagos yesterday with the aim of establishing a mutually beneficial relationship between the two agencies.

Engr. Akin Olateru, the DirectorGeneral, NSIB, who led the courtesy visit to the NSCDC Railway Command Headquarters at Ebute Metta, Lagos said that it was necessary for the two federal government agencies to synergise for the safety and security of the over 200 million Nigerians who either patronise air, road, rail or water transport, especially in the area of accident investigation.

Olateru who described the NSCDC as an important stakeholder to the bureau, said that as the first responder, the corps could help to secure crash sites and provide security for its investigators at crash sites.

He explained that the new NSIB Act 2022, empowered the bureau to conduct investigation into other modes of transport accidents, including rail and maritime, noting that with this, the causal cause of any accident would be known, while recurrence of similar accident could also be prevented.

He maintained that no institution or organisation could go it alone without the collaboration of the others and appealed to the corps to work in harmony with the bureau.

He explained that through the investigation of serious incidents and

With NSCDC

accidents in the air transportation industry in Nigeria by NSIB and the issuance of safety recommendations, the spate of accidents in the sector had reduced, while the air transport in Nigeria was also rated among the safest in the world.

He vowed to replicate such in the other modes of transportation in Nigeria.

He said: “Nigeria has one of the safest air transportation anywhere in the world. This is so because we enhance safety by investigation. There is no hearsay when we do our own investigation. So, we do thorough investigations and come up with safety recommendations.

“Our proposal to investigate all modes of transportation was approved in 2018 and the draft bill was sent to the Ministry of Justice for vetting. After that, it was sent to the National Assembly and we went through the first and second reading, public hearing and then, the third reading. Then, Mr. President signed it finally.

“In today’s world, when you look at the US, Canada, Singapore, Hong Kong, even Cape Verde and others, you must have an independent agency of government for investigating accidents so that there won’t be conflict of interest. There will be clarity. Up until this bill was passed, accident investigation in the rail sector was under the management of the railway. They are the regulator, operator and the investigator. Same thing applies in the maritime with the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) as the regulator and investigator.

“So, you need to separate the regulator from the service provider and the investigator. There must be three legs to every mode of transportation. This will lead to clarity.”

Besides, Olateru explained that the NSIB had co-opted the railway team to join its investigators on the investigation of the rail and bus accident, which occurred in Lagos on March 9, 2023.

NBS set to Release Unemployment Data in May

The National Bureau of Statistics says it will publish the new unemployment and employment figures for the country before the end of May 2023.

“The certification validates the airline’s high operational and safety standards and is an essential milestone as the airline positions for regional operations and collaboration,” Mrs Essienette said.

Ibom Air is scheduled to begin regional flights to seven African countries.

The airline, in November 2021, signed an agreement with Airbus for the purchase of 10 A220 aircraft to boost its fleet, an addition that will see it flying to West and Central African countries.

The bureau said this in its “Nigeria Labour Force Framework Re-design 2023 report released on its website.

The NBS said it has significantly enhanced the methodology it uses to collect labour market data through the Nigeria labour force survey (NLFS).

The statistics office added that it collaborated with the World Bank to bring the NLFS methodology in line with best international practices.

This, it said, includes the adoption of the 19th ICLS “Resolution concerning statistics of work, employment and labour underutilization”.

It seems to also “Provide measures of labour underutilization, beyond unemployment and recognize and provide a framework for the measurement of all work, paid and unpaid.”

The report noted that the status of the NLFS data collection for 2022/2023 is ongoing beginning from last year October.

“Q4 report will cover data collected between 19th October 2022 and 22nd January 2023. The report for the reference quarter is almost concluded and will be published before the end of May 2023,” the NBS said.

According to the NBS, working with the World Bank has significantly improved the methodology and design for the conduct of the NLFS in Nigeria.

“The new methodology would tell an unbiased story of the Nigerian Labour Market Statistics as it should be told.

“The use of 1-hour criterion for employment would ensure unemployment is regarded as total lack of employment and more attention towards assessment of the quality of employment,” it said.

The NBS had in March 2021 reported that Nigeria’s unemployment rate rose to 33.3 per cent, translating to some 23.2 million people, the highest in at least 13 years and the secondhighest rate in the world.

The figure jumped from 27.1 per cent recorded in the second quarter of 2020 amidst Nigeria’s lingering economic crisis made worse by the coronavirus pandemic. The unemployment rate in the country has more than quadrupled since 2016 when the economy slipped into a recession.

Onyeali-Ikpe, Olusanya Make Top 10 on 2023 Definitive List of Women CEOs

The third annual Africa.com Definitive List of Women Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) was revealed on April 19. Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe, Managing Director/ CEO, Fidelity Bank Plc and Miriam Chidiebele Olusanya, Managing Director, Guaranty Trust Holding Company made the top 10 list. Both companies are listed on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX).

The list is unique in that it is based on datadriven research. Sponsored by Standard Bank Group, it represents one of the first analyses of the performance of publicly listed companies in Africa conducted through a gender lens.

This year’s list of 93 women represents 17 countries who have qualified based on either large-scale revenue or large-scale market capitalisation..

Africa.com analysed 2,020 companies listed on the 24 African stock exchanges. Of the 2,020 companies, Africa.com screened for those companies with revenue of $100 million or more, or a market cap of $150 million or more, which yielded a list of 787 companies. The public websites of all 787 companies were examined to identify female C-suite executives. The team then researched each woman to determine those who have a title of chief executive officer or managing director or president AND conducted a review to confirm that these executives have bottom line, profit and loss responsibility for the companies. This resulted in 40 women CEOs on group 1.

Ibom Air, which launched its maiden flight in June 2019, is rated as one of the most successful airlines in the country and has garnered several awards including best airline of the year award in 2020, 2021 and 2022. *Continues

L-R: President of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Otunba Francis Meshioye and Governor of Anambra State, Professor Chukwuma Charles Soludo, during MAN Business/Stakeholders Town Hall Meeting in Onitsha, Anambra State, on April 21, 2023.

It is a given that the incoming Federal Government of Nigeria will have to decisively tackle the macroeconomic challenges of a fraudulent and wasteful petrol subsidy regime; our debt, revenue and resource allocation crisis; and a broken foreign exchange regime, in order to get our economy back on track. But, if we are to put our country on a firm path to prosperity, we must go beyond these well-known challenges because they are only symptoms of deeper, more foundational obstacles.

Three BIG ISSUES have kept us poor – the absence of nationhood, the absence of political will for real reform, and knowledge gaps in economic policymaking. The links between these issues, on the one hand, and high rates of poverty and unemployment and low economic productivity, on the other, have not received adequate attention in the past.

Nigeria cannot become a wealthy, prosperous country without first becoming a nation with a shared sense of national identity and unity of purpose, even in our diversity. Development begins in the mind. When people agree on a common goal of prosperity, based on an inclusive sense of national identity, shared values, justice and equality before the law, they can collectively put their shoulders to the wheel and push in unison.

This characteristic, sometimes described as “social cohesion”, can have a transformative impact in terms of productivity. Because our country has been fractured along ethnic and religious lines of primordial identity, our politics reflects this fractionalisation.

Electoral outcomes create “Governments of Nigeria” that frequently (mis)manage the economy, not for purposes of real wealth creation, but for that of advancing group vested interests of class, ethnicity, religion, or partisan political affiliation. In essence, then, what passes for economic management has become mostly a “rewards” system for chosen cronies of multiple hues. A national economy managed in this manner, rather than on the basis of technocratic competence, cannot create the wealth of nations.

Moreover, the matter of constitutional reform back to real federalism has foundational implications for Nigeria’s chances at economic prosperity. The recent constitutional amendments signed into law by President Muhammadu Buhari, including giving states powers over electricity generation, transmission and distribution, as well as to establish railway services, are a pointer to the potentially positive impact on our economy of an even more foundational constitutional restructuring of Nigeria. Such restructuring will also address questions of nationhood, equity and justice, creating a more durable foundation for development.

Political will to embark on necessary reforms to reverse state capture by vested interests requires the selfconfidence and courage of elected political leaders. While it might be assumed that such political will can only come from a political leadership that emerges from “outside the system”, there is nothing that decrees — especially given the existential crisis of the Nigerian state and its economy — that it cannot exist, even if imperfectly, in a leadership that has emerged from “within”.

Whatever its provenance, such political will depends largely on the decisiveness of an elected political leader, and is essential for our national economic progress because of the challenge of state capture.

Perhaps the trickiest problem of economic policymaking in Nigeria is that of knowledge gaps. I use the word “tricky” advisedly, and based on both insight and experience.

Most Nigerian political leaders have university degrees and Nigeria has thousands of brilliant economists, yet we have a suboptimal economy. This reality is due not just to the two big issues of a weak sense of nationhood and absent political will, but just as important, a frequent lack of fundamental understanding of economics and its relationship with the other social sciences, law, and technology to create a productive economy.

The first problem is that, even within the economics profession itself, there often is an emphasis on the technical and the mathematical, with little appreciation and application of a sound knowledge of economic philosophy and political economy as the necessary foundations of economic development and wealth creation. All successful economies are based on some sort of philosophical foundation or the other.

The internal dynamics – and sometimes contradictions – of these philosophical leanings matter for economic policy, as do their differences. This, then, requires a certain amount of intellectual interrogation, a level of comfort with ideas and concepts, and their application to everyday

Nigeria’s Economy: Path to Prosperity

BY KINGSLEY MOGHALU

economic policy challenges. Alas, this is only too rarely a habit of economic policymaking in Nigeria.

Let me illustrate this: Most Nigerians today believe in profit-oriented, market activity. We are dynamic and entrepreneurial. We are therefore mainly capitalist in persuasion, at least to varying degrees. But, you see, capitalism is a philosophy. If we fail to understand this, as we often do, we will copy capitalist societies who understand this, and then fail to create wealth for 200 million Nigerians the way these societies have done for their citizens. The wealth of a few and the poverty of many are the natural outcomes, because we are “doing” but without first thinking deeply. According to the Nigerian Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), 99.4% of Nigerians who are banked have less than N500,000 in their bank accounts. From this we can see why, for the average Nigerian, an “alat” hitting his or her “acant” is a truly big deal.

In order for capitalism to create wealth, we must come to a clear, pragmatic understanding of the right balance between the state and the marketplace (this leans too much in favour of the state in Nigeria, thus distorting the economy), the essential bedrocks of successful capitalist economies (strong property rights as opposed to state ownership of land, an important factor of economic production, under the Land Use Act, an innovationdriven economy, and capital), as well as the four kinds of capitalism – entrepreneurial capitalism that is dominant in the United States, welfare capitalism that is practised in Europe, crony capitalism that is dominant in Russia and Nigeria, and “state capitalism”, an unlikely but functioning oxymoron that has been invented and practised in China over the past 40 years.

Another example: We are fixated on economic GDP growth. “The Nigerian Economy Will Grow by X % in 2023” is a frequent headline of economic news. But we have taken our eyes off the ball: Such growth must be inclusive. To be precise, this means it must be broad-based across sectors and anchored on a steadily increasing productivity of labour. This misunderstanding takes us away from a more important focus on overcoming poverty with skilled human capital, jobs, and increasing GDP per capita. Nigeria’s GDP per capita is $2,000, and its average between 1960 and 2021 was $1,867.70.

Comparisons with Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Brazil and South Korea will make you weep, and I don’t want you to cry. Our economic policymaking, going forward, must understand the distinctions and the three stage-linkages

Comparisons with Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Brazil and South Korea will make you weep, and I don’t want you to cry. Our economic policymaking, going forward, must understand the distinctions and the three stage-linkages between human development (literacy, water, health, skilled human capital), economic growth, and structural economic transformation

between human development (literacy, water, health, skilled human capital), economic growth, and structural economic transformation. Economic growth without real human development is not just unsustainable.

It will not be able to yield structural economic transformation. The latter means a shift from subsistence agriculture, commodities and mineral resources as a share of the GDP, to value-added manufacturing and export as an increasing part of GDP. This cannot happen without “productive knowledge” (PK), or skills. This means that educational system reform must become the number one priority for our medium/long term economic progress.

•Moghalu is former Deputy Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria.

SHOTS OF THE WEEK

Photo Editor: Peace Udugba [08033050729]

L-R: Director, Internal Assurance, Airtel Nigeria, Ngozi Akamelu; Acting Chief Commercial Officer, Airtel Nigeria, Femi Oshinlaja; Chief Executive Officer, AXA Mansard, Tope Adeniyi; Chief Customer & Marketing Office, Customer Engagement and Marketing, AXA Mansard, Jumoke Odunlami, at the press briefing announcing the Airtel and AXA Digital Health Partnership at Airtel Headquarters in Lagos on April 19, 2023.

L-R: THEWILL NEWSPAPER Publisher, Prince Austyn Ogannah and THISDAY NEWSPAPER & ARISE TV Chairman, Prince Nduka Obaigbena. In front are Fidelis Odita QC SAN & Ms. Ruth Osime, at the funeral ceremony of Mrs Patricia Kehinde Akpata in Benin City, Edo State on April 21, 2023.

L-R: Grand Patron of Parkland Golf Resort Club, Mr. Muftau Bello; President, Nigeria Institute of Architects (NIA), Enyi Ben-Oboh and former Governor of Akwa Ibom, Obong Victor-Attah, during the visit of NIA delegation to the Vice President at the Presidential Villa, in Abuja on April 20, 2023.

L-R: 1st Vice President, Lagos Polo Club, Akindele Rockson; Polo Captain, Lagos Polo Club, Rotimi Makanjuola; Head, Brand and Marketing, Stanbic IBTC, Bridget Oyefeso-Odusami; Staff Welfare Member, Lagos Polo Club, Olumbe Akinkugbe and Regional Head, Equity Research, West Africa, Standard Bank Group, Muyiwa Oni, at the 2023 Lagos Polo Club Easter Cup Draw sponsored by Stanbic IBTC on April 19, 2023.

L-R: Conveners, Coalition for Good Governance and Economic Justice in Africa, Prince John Mayaki; Mr. Ayobami Oyalowo and Prince Kassim Afebua during  a press conference to call for the zoning of the Senate Presidency to the South-south Geopolitical Zone, in Abuja on April 19, 2023.

L-R: Director-General of the Nigerian Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Professor Ayo Omotayo and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo SAN, during the Policy making and Good Governance Lecture series at the National Institute in Jos, Plateau State on April 17,2023.

My Life, My Music IMANSE

Afro pop sensation singer, Omowunmi Fosudo, more popularly known as Imanse, is one of the few female singers carving a niche for herself in Nigeria's music industry. She speaks with Ivory Ukonu on her musical journey since taking the bold step to relocate from America to Nigeria.

Excerpts:

FOR ME, MUSIC IS A DREAM COME TRUE – IMANSE

How did your journey to music start?

My journey into the music industry has been a pretty long one to be very honest. I used to sing in secondary school, Queens College precisely, with my classmates. I not only sang but also acted in plays. I used to play the drum. If any popular song at that time comes out, we take the song and switch it up. It is what people call 'covers' today. After secondary school, I waited a while in Nigeria before I moved to America. I was there for 10 years and in those 10 years, I joined a choir in my church in Maryland. That was my next most important interaction with music because I became the lead singer. I did that for about six years. At that time, I wrote original songs for a Broadway play. That was when I started writing music took different cycles and life spans. After being in the choir, I made up my mind to really go into music full time.

Would you say that music is for you a means to an end?

The truth of the matter is that you can't do music as a means to an end. Well I am not because it requires so much of your time, resources mentally, physically, spiritually, it has to be a calling and a purpose for you. I would say that music is very much a purpose, a dream come true for me and obviously, a way to earn a living because anything you are spending most of your time on, you plan to make money from it. But it is definitely not a means to an end.

Did you find it difficult getting accepted in the industry?

I don't think I have had any difficulty being accepted. I think you will be accepted if you put out music consistently, accompanied with good visuals, backed up with a strong public relations plan. All these are what makes people know and accept you. At least I can say that most of the records I have put out has received extremely positive reviews, no one has ever come to me to say, 'Oh that is a bad song from Imanse.' It has literally been positive and so I feel there is heavy acceptance of my music. Now, is my music at the platforms I need it to be on? Is it at the level I need it to be at? No, not yet. I am still building it but I would say it has been positively accepted.

How long have you been in the industry?

I have been in the industry now going on eight years, solid eight years of being consistent, trying out things, taking risks. So yes, it has been a ride.

Do you play any musical instrument?

Yes, I like to play the drums when I am performing. I also just like to hold the shekere during live performances. I play the guitar, but I am not that perfect yet.

Which song would you say announced your official entry into the music industry?

It is really hard to say which song announced me into the industry because the funny thing is that people know your music and they know you, but you may not get that popularity that you are expecting. But I think either my hit single, 'Ajala' or 'Never in my life,' a single I released last year. I mention 'Ajala' because I was nominated for a Headies Award in the Best Female Vocal Performance category alongside heavyweights like Yemi Alade, Niniola, Simi in 2021. So there is no way the industry is nominating me without knowing me. They know me, they know my music and they acknowledged me. But for a wider spread, it is 'Never in my life' because it trended in different countries, on several charts, it travelled to places I never even thought it would go so perhaps that announced me and gave me the biggest recognition.

You released your first album, 'Vibes and Cruise' in late 2022 after several years of being in the industry. Why did it take so long?

The thing with releasing albums in the music industry is that there is a rule, whether written or unwritten, to always release an album on the back of a very successful record. I believe 'Never in my life' was a very successful record and it was tied to an album because really, you do not want to put out an album when you do not have an audience yet, you have to have that anticipation, build an audience, then you put out an album. I didn't mind putting out an album earlier than I did but my team didn't approve so I had to wait. I think I had gotten to the point where I just had to put out an album instead of waiting for world dominated acceptance. I believe that even if 20, 50 or 100 people listen to your album, to me, that is success as an artist, it means you are touching 100 lives somewhere and I am on that journey where I am ready to just put it out there and let it flow to people that really care about the Imanse brand and music.

I suppose there is a story behind each of the songs and why they have the titles you gave them Yes, there is a story behind each of the songs. I feel like I started leaning more into my very playful side. I can be very intense and deep and this is evident in some of my past records. I started leaning into being more relaxed and just letting things flow. I didn't know how to do that before. Music is always a reflection of where you are and how you feel. So 'Delicate' was a song I did to kind of, speak to my boyfriend and tell him to be gentle with me. Because I carry myself as a strong woman who runs her own record label. So because I negotiate a lot with different parties in the music business, people see me as this tough lady. But the truth of the matter is that I am pretty soft at heart and like to be treated with that level of gentleness. 'Vibes' is all about having a good time, just chilling really. 'Cruise' is about just taking a trip and taking in the scenery of the trip and generally having a nice time. 'Jaiye' is about turning up at a party, letting loose, not caring about what the next person thinks. 'Never in my life' is a caution song, about getting smarter, wiser and not being taken advantage of as I used to because you know, as you grow in life, you get wiser, smarter and sharper. 'Be Honest' is about sharing a bit of honesty, vulnerability and trust in a relationship, no lies, no deception. 'Follow

Follow' is about following my man to the ends of the earth. How well was the album received?

I will say it was decently received. I am an independent artist and people in my category do not have the budget of big record labels. I did my best and I see the streaming numbers going up daily and I know that someone out there is listening to my music and that is satisfying for an independent female artist. Not a lot of independent artists have been able to roll out a full body of work. It is a tough and expensive process and I encourage myself and pat myself on the back for being able to achieve this in the first place.

Why didn't you feature any known music personality in the album?

The thing about features is that if you want a feature from well known artists, you have to get clearance from their record label and this process can take as long as six months to a year. You already noted how long it took me to release the album. If I want to wait for made people to be featured on the album, then you may not see the album till 2025 or longer. So will I not release my album because one big artist is not being featured? No, I don't subscribe to that, I subscribe to independence, perseverance and persistence. Now the album may get traction, one may get more popular because of well-known artists featured on the album but I also believe in humble beginnings, starting from scratch, doing things yourself first before people will come and join you on the journey. Let them see that you have tried, that you have put in the effort, that you know the business and that you are willing to take risks on yourself because doing this alone, is essentially betting on myself big time.

Fosudo

Fosudo

If you have the opportunity to feature any known artist perhaps for your next album or single, who would that be and why?

I would go for Bukola Elemide aka Asa; Beyonce Knowles; Simisola Kosoko; Chike; Chinedu Okoli aka Flavour; Chibuzor Nelson Azubuike aka Phyno; Owoh Chimaobi Chrismathner aka Zoro; Kingsley and Benjamin Okorie aka Cavemen; Oluwatobiloba Daniel Anidugbe aka Kiss Daniel; Joseph Akinwale aka Joeboy. These people really understand music on a deeper level.

What are some of the challenges you have faced as a female artiste in Nigeria?

There are many challenges being a female in the music industry and it is pretty obvious in the statistics and ratio of men that are more successful than the women. First off, a lot of record labels do not shy away from telling you they do not want to start with female artistes. When they are scouting for artists, they do not look at women as much as they look at men. I am sure they have their reasons and I am not going to blame them because it is a business but also, I wish they will give more women a chance. There is no way that the balance of the equation will be fair if they do not give women a chance in the first place. This keeps us at the back for a longer time. Another challenge for women is funding. I doubt that women have the same access to funding like the men folks. So funding is a bit of an issue. Also, a lot of females know how to hustle but there are certain things we cannot really do or will not look appropriate on a woman in the quest to push out their music but if a guy does it, it is acceptable but not a woman. There are limitations and most of the people at the top have successfully overcome these challenges and the people coming behind them are finding means to overcome these challenges. I just wish that more people will give women a chance.

What would you say has been your biggest achievement since embracing music?

Getting nominated for the Headies Award. It is an achievement because there are people who have been in the industry longer than I have and have never been nominated for anything, talk more of winning. So when you get that level of recognition, it makes you feel that your work matters, and you know what you are doing. Another intangible achievement is the power of knowing that you can dream something, believe in it and go after it. That in itself is a win.

Are there things you feel should be better done in the industry to enable it thrive better than it is currently doing?

I think a little bit more structure, having governing bodies, making policies etc. So many things can be done better in the industry. I think some people are working on different things to help with the structure part because I assure you, if we had more structures, it would just be better overall. Most artists just go through that lack of structural process, and it sometimes affects your growth and success in the industry.

Who are the people you look up to in the industry and why?

I look up to Tiwa Savage because, let's be honest, I sometimes wonder how she has managed to maintain this whole thing as long as she has and at the level she has maintained it on. I see a lot of people come and go, rise and fall but for some reason, this woman keeps rising like a phoenix every time. It is something to admire because I know how hard it is. When you know what it takes to be a female artiste in Nigeria, then you will appreciate her more for remaining at that level for a long time. I have a lot of respect and admiration for her. I respect Ayodeji Balogun aka Wizkid because of where he has taken Afrobeat to. I also respect Damini Ogulu aka Burnaboy, his lyricism, the quality of his music, his stage craft etc. I respect David Adeleke aka Davido for his heart, his hustle, his team building capability. I also respect Aituaje Iruobe aka Waje, she has one of the most beautiful vocal textures. There are so many I respect in the game for various reasons. Then we have the legends like Sunday Adegeye aka King Sunny Ade. On the international level, there is Beyonce Knowles, Brandi, Alicia Keys, Rihanna, Jay Z. The list goes on and on of people who have done great things.

Do you hope to someday dust your degree in Business Administration (finance) or is it goodbye to it as you face music squarely?

The thing with music or the entertainment space in general is that there is a lifespan to what we are doing. Most artistes have a lifespan and I think the women have a shorter life span that is why it is impressive to see people like Tiwa Savage still operating at the level she is operating for this long. So will I dust my degree certificate? Absolutely, if I get to my wits end or end of my life span, musically, or I couldn't achieve the kind of success I desire at a certain level, I am not afraid to dust off my degree from Howard University, Washington DC, a prestigious university. So if I am not able to convert what I am doing to what I want it to be, I have no shame using my degree.

What was growing up like for you, did it in any way influence your choice of career?

Growing up for me was pretty cool. I have beautiful parents and siblings. We used to listen to music a lot in my family, music like that of Obesere King Sunny Ade etc. We used to listen to very folk original Yoruba music. We also listened to the music of Fela Anikulapo Kuti, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey etc. So I grew up hearing some of the best music and I think it had something to do with me going down this path.

What would you say must have significantly shaped you to be who you are today?

I think my experiences have shaped me to be who I am today, the good, the bad, the ugly. I have learnt to assess things before I speak, decide what kind of brand I want to build, understand the landscape of the people, I just take it all in.

Did you at any time think of quitting music?

There is no artist, from the in-your-face-ones to the laid-back ones, that has not thought about quitting at some point in their career because

doing music is not a journey for the faint hearted. When you see people and you think they are a certain way or that they are not pushing as hard, find out how hard they used to push before and how they are now all of a sudden, 'laid back'. Find out what makes it the way it is. There were days when I would say, 'I'm out of this,' and the next day, I do a better song recording. It is just a crazy cycle really. You can't predict it and if you don't have the heart for this type of heartbreak, because music will break your heart sometimes, it is just not your space if you can't survive it.

How do you unwind?

I love swimming, I love watching Netflix, Youtube. I love seeing what is happening on the creative landscape, watching what other people have created as well and reading a book. And then I really love to rest, sleep. Because of the funny way our schedule is, sometimes, working late into the night, it is always important to make time out to rest.

What else do you do besides music?

Outside of music, I have a lot of different projects I am working on. I have a lot of other businesses. I am a record label owner, I manage my own record label. I also manage an organic skincare company called Imanse Beauty. I also have different interests that I am kind of still working on, so I don't want to talk about it too much.

I suppose you are still single. How would you describe your ideal man?

I am as single as a dollar bill. People don't believe this because of what I do. My ideal man must have a purpose driven life meaning that he must know what he was put on earth to do. I know without any shadow of doubt what I was put on earth to do. The thing is, someone who doesn't have a purpose driven life would sometimes question why you care so much about your dreams or passion or your job. But if the person has his own thing, then it makes it better as they would understand where you are, why you are there and what you are doing. Secondly, my man must love physical activities just like I do because it is important for my job, my health. So, I want to be yoked with someone who finds that important as well. I like for the person to also have a spiritual connection with God, to be prayerful, sensitive, resourceful, nurturing and beautiful to look at. I mean let's be honest, you want to be with someone who excites you, not just physically, but mentally, spiritually, emotionally. And finally, someone who has something successful going for themselves, that way, they are able to understand you building something for yourself. A man who is comfortable in himself will let you breathe.

Why did you feel the need to move to Nigeria?

I have a lot of friends who felt that relocating to Nigeria was a mistake. I don't think so. Of course, I took a big risk, but no risk, no reward. I couldn't have written some of the songs I wrote from America. I couldn't have connected with my audience from America and I wanted my audience to be here and you can't speak for Nigerians without understanding what makes them who they are and being part of them. I meant business and I put my money where my mouth is and my location where my career is.

Fosudo

Fosudo

Getting nominated for the Headies Award is an achievement because there are people who have been in the industry longer than I have and have never been nominated for anything, talk more of winning. So when you get that level of recognition, it makes you feel that your work matters, and you know what you are doing

STORIES BY IVORY UKONU

JOSHUA OKEOWO, MAN BEHIND COLLAPSED BANANA ISLAND BUILDING

It is no longer news that a seven-storey building still under construction collapsed in highbrow Banana Island, Ikoyi, Lagos State last week, killing two site workers and injuring several others. What is news is the man behind the collapsed building.

Joshua Okeowo, the younger brother to wealthy businessman and socialite, Sir Olu Okeowo, is the face behind the collapsed Banana Island building. Both brothers are involved in construction business. While the elder Okeowo operates through Gibraltar Holdings Limited, the younger Okeowo operates through Joe Faraday Limited, a company he floated 12 years ago. While he is the managing director of the company, his wife, Nike, is the chief operating officer but also runs Esther of Kish, an outfit that curates handcrafted jewelry.

Following the unfortunate incident,

the younger Okeowo's social media page has been under 'lock and key' and the website of the company is currently under maintenance. But sources reveal that like his older brother, he loves luxury cars. A philanthropist, Joshua dispenses his milk of kindness through his Joshua Okeowo Foundation. There have been conflicting reasons as to why the building collapsed.

While the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) claims the building collapsed after a truck ran into it, the Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers, NCRIB blames the collapse of the building on negligence by the contractors handling the building.

Still, the Deputy Director, Public

Emmanuel Njoku's Lazerpay Crumbles

Affairs, Physical Planning and Urban Development, Mukaila Sanusi, claims the building was unapproved. It remains to be seen if the buck passing of blame will eventually result in the state government wielding the big stick on the offender instead of sweeping the matter under the carpet as has been the custom.

Meet Shola Akinlade, The Young Lad Who Bought Danish Football Club

Gone are the days when some of Nigeria's elites would boast of being interested in buying huge stakes in foreign football clubs. While Africa's richest man, Aliko Dangote has repeatedly spoken of his desire to purchase both Arsenal Football Club and French football club, Valenciennes, former Abia State governor, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu has in the past also boasted of his plan to purchase at least 35 per cent stake in Arsenal Club. But it appears that both of their desires are at best wishful thinking as the younger generation interested in owning football clubs are

very serious about walking their talk. Beside Nigerian billionaire, Dozy Mmobuosi making strategic moves to buy English club Sheffield United in a deal worth £90 million, another Nigerian who isn't building castles in the air is Shola Akinlade. The young lad a few weeks ago shelled out a huge sum to buy majority stakes, 55 per cent to be precise, in Danish club, Aarhus Fremad and also finalise agreement for the football club to become a sister club to Sporting Lagos FC, a team in the Nigeria National League (NNL) which Akinlade founded in 2022. But who really is Akinlade and how was he able to shell out such a huge sum to purchase a Danish third-tier division club? A tech entrepreneur, he is the co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Paystack. Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Akinlade attended St Gregory’s College before proceeding to Babcock University for a Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science. Fresh out of school, Akinlade worked as a Management Trainee and Database Manager with Heineken, but left after two years because he wanted to create things, rather than just be a management staff. He took his first shot at entrepreneurship when he founded Klein Devort, a

This is the sad story of how one of Nigeria's promising crypto based fintech came crashing after its initial success. Lazerpay has unfortunately decided it is about time it shuts down its operations. In a statement it issued via its official Twitter handle, the company's youthful Chief Executive Officer, wonder tech kid, Njoku Emmanuel, said Lazerpay has ceased operation after multiple fruitless efforts to raise funds for the business’ survival. Emmanuel explained to stakeholders that he fought hard to keep the lights on as long as possible, but unfortunately, got to a point where the need to shut down became inevitable. The firm however promised to resolve all outstanding matters and advised merchants to withdraw their funds from the platform before April 30, 2023. Late last year, Lazerpay downsized and laid off quite a number of its staff after a proposed lead investor pulled the rug from under its feet abruptly. Before this resolution,

management staff of the company had been working without salary for months even as salaries of junior staff were cut. Recall that a few months ago, THEWILL published a report on the rise of the 21-year-old and how he was disrupting the technological space with his company. The dropout from the Enugu State University of Technology, got into the business of coding, became an authority in it and rose to become one of the best blockchain engineers of his generation. In its short time of existence, the Nigerian crypto payments startup commenced operation two years ago, has so far

enabled over 3,000 businesses to accept payments in stablecoins, including an off-ramp feature to help merchants convert crypto to fiat directly to the bank in over 100 countries.

Gladys NdubuisiKanu Returns to Social Scene

software development and consulting company, with his friend, Mayowa Okegbenle in 2008. Their flagship product, Precurio was designed as a collaboration and content management platform for the midenterprise segment and businesses in emerging markets. Within five years of running the company, the duo had grown their small idea and had over 200,000 companies using it. It had been downloaded over 150,000 times and was available in six different languages.

The success of Precurio opened Akinlade to more opportunities and some banks started reaching out to him to build their banking software. It was in the course of executing these projects that the inspiration for Paystack, a Nigerian financial technology company that offers payment processing services to businesses, came to be. He cofounded it with Ezra Olubi in 2016 and it became the first Nigerian company to be accepted into the tech accelerator Y Combinator program and received funding of $120,000. In 2020, the company was acquired by Irish American financial services company, Stripe for $200 million, making it the biggest acquisition in Nigeria. Still based in Nigeria, it is headquartered in Lagos. Despite the deal, Paystack continues to operate independently with Akinlade as CEO. When Akinlade is not running Paystack, he is busy running the Sporting Lagos football club.

Two years after Gladys Ndubuisi-Kanu disappeared as a result of the death of her husband, Rear Admiral Ndubuisi Godwin Kanu (retd.), she has returned to take back her position as a matriarch of high society. Gladys, who likes to

dress in brightly coloured clothes accessorized with diamond jewellery and bold hats or fascinators, didn't disappoint with her signature look as she made a bold return last weekend, her very first since her husband passed on. She was one of the guests of billionaire businesswoman Folorunsho Alakija on the occasion of her son's wedding to his lover. As usual, she attracted stares from other guests as a result of her choice of ensemble. Gladys lost her husband who was a former

military governor of Lagos and Imo States, in January of 2021 due to COVID19 complications. Following his death, Gladys first launched an attack on her late husband’s wives, children and the Nigerian Navy over his burial arrangements. He was eventually buried nine months after his demise following which she launched another attack on the Nigerian Navy over his entitlement and benefits. She also sought legal orders for her to be declared his only legal wife and sole widow, having lived with him until he breathed his last, for 27 of the 31 years that she knew him.

Adebayo Ogunlesi Throws Befitting

Farewell Party For Late Father

Last weekend, Professor Emeritus, Theophilus Oladipo Ogunlesi, Nigeria's first professor of medicine was laid to rest in his hometown, Sagamu, Ogun State. The late Ogunlesi who died in January at the age of 99, was also the first Nigerian to head the Department of Medicine, University College Hospital, Ibadan.

To ensure that he got a befitting burial, one of his children, United States-based businessman, Adebayo Ogunlesi, flew in and feted members of the social, corporate and political scene at his father's final farewell party. Present at the ceremony was a federal government delegation led by vice president Yemi Osinbajo amongst

several others. Like his father, the younger Ogunlesi is a very accomplished man.

A member of former President Donald Trump's economic team, Ogunlesi is a lawyer, an investment banker and the current chairman and managing partner of private equity firm, Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP). In 2006, he led GIP to acquire the majority stake in London Gatwick Airport in a deal worth £1.455 billion. He also led GIP to acquire Edinburgh Airport in 2012 and Nuovo Trasporto Viaggiatori in February 2018. He is also the lead director of Goldman Sachs. The younger Ogunlesi has had stints lecturing at Harvard Law School and the Yale School of Management.

THEWILLNIGERIA THEWILLNG THEWILLNIGERIA

Njoku

OKEOWO

Ndubuisi-Kanu

Akinlade

Ogunlesi

STORIES BY IVORY UKONU

BASHIR FAKOREDE MOVES LAGOS SOCIALITES TO LONDON FOR DAUGHTER'S WEDDING

Oil mogul, Aare Bashir Olawale Fakorede on Sunday staged one of the grandest wedding parties of the year so far, in faraway London for his first daughter, Moyosore, who got married to her lover, Olubanji Kalejaiye. It was the second leg of the marriage ceremony. They hosted the cream of both Lagos and London social circles at Fairmont Windsor Park, spoiling their guests silly with the best drinks and food that money can buy. Fuji music maestro, King Wasiu Ayinde Marshall aka K1 De Ultimate and Laolu Gbenjo were specially flown out to dish out songs from their repertoire to guests all glammed up in the chosen aso ebi and danced their hearts out as they celebrated with the Fakoredes.

To say that the occasion was a perfect owambe party held in London would be an understatement. It was reminiscent of the first led of the marriage ceremony which took place earlier in the year which is still being talked about till this day.

How Esther Ajayi Celebrated Her 60th Birthday

Penultimate week, foremost female clergy, Reverend Esther Ajayi aka Iya Adura, founder of the Love of Christ Generation Church, Cherubim and Seraphim, Lagos, joined the 60s club. Rather than throw a lavish party, perhaps due to the current mood of the nation, she chose to hold a thanksgiving service at her Lagos megachurch. However, her family and friends felt just having a thanksgiving service wasn't enough

to celebrate her landmark age and opted to throw her surprise party a week later. Turning up at the party in company with her husband, the clergy woman showed up at the party looking almost unrecognisable in a lilac sleeveless flowing gown and bone straight, Kim Kardashian inspired center parting wig of 24 inches long. She wowed guests as much as they got her wowed with the show of affection that went into planning the surprise party.

Where is Olori Elizabeth Opeoluwa Ogunwusi?

Some of the guests who made it to the party are, the Akinsiku of Lagos, Chief Adebola Dosunmu, acclaimed clergyman, Tobi Adegboyega, founder of London based Salvation Proclaimer Ministries Limited, also known as SPAC Nation. The bride's parents are both respected and well-loved within the Lagos social circuit. They are known for hosting classy events. The father of the bride started out in the oil industry with his flagship Bash Distinct Oil in 1996. He soon began to expand and grow into a formidable force owning chains of filling stations with Enyo Retail & Supply (ERS), a leading indigenous oil and gas distribution company with over 50 retail stations across Nigeria. After years of conquering the oil and gas sector, he later diversified his investments with 2B5M Limited Agricultural firm, High link Royal Castle Development Real Estate and Dredging Company. An easygoing dude who doesn't like to speak much, he is the Aare Bobajoko of Ikate Elegushi.

TONY ELUMELU BRINGS TRANSCORP HOTEL TO LAGOS

Tony Elumelu led Transcorp Hotels Plc is planning to spread its tentacles to the country's commercial nerve centre, Lagos and has begun planning to build a five-star hotel in the upmarket Ikoyi neighbourhood of the state. The facility, a 300room hotel towering 20 storeys, will also feature a 21-storeyed office block, with construction estimated to cost $110 million. In addition, the suave businessman is already putting finishing touches to replicate the Eko Hotel Convention Centre in the Federal Capital Territory. The event centre is expected to have a 3,500 to 5,000 seating capacity and will be located at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel. While the delivery date for the events centre is expected to be in the first quarter of 2014, no time has been announced as the expected delivery date for the hotel project.

Last week when THEWILL Society and Entertainment section did a feature story on 21st century traditional queens, one person's photograph that was conspicuously missing was that of Olori Elizabeth Opeoluwa Ogunwusi. Although her name was mentioned in the story, her photograph wasn't part of the five other queens the Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Adeyeye Ogunwusi, married in one month in quick succession. And this is simply because, unlike her co-wives who have all embarked on photo shoots to announce their statuses as queens, there is no clear public photograph of her in the public space save for the blurry one she took on her wedding day at her parent's home in Magodo, Lagos, with the groom in absentia. Also, quite unlike her co-wives who have not stopped hugging the limelight since their status

got elevated, Olori Elizabeth is not in the least bit bothered about social or public validation. The lady has simply gone into oblivion leaving many to wonder if the Ooni really married her. Well, he did and she is in fact the number two in order of hierarchy. No one seems to know whether she is hibernating out of public glare in Nigeria or she has returned to her base in Scotland where she is a data processor.

Ayodeji OkoyaThomas Gives Out Daughter's

in Marriage

This past week, Ayodeji Okoya-Thomas one of the sons of late industrialist, Molade Okoya-Thomas and Lagos society woman, Lola Otegbeye came together for the sake of their daughter, Funke, a graduate of London School of Economics and Politics, who they gave out in marriage to a young man

Hand

named Solapo Ayandele. While Ayodeji is a businessman operating in several sectors of the economy, Lola was once the director general, Ogun State Bureau of Intergovernmental Affairs as well as a former federal commissioner, Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission, RMAFC. The ceremony which was held at the Balmoral events centre, Victoria Island, Lagos, was a wedding/ engagement reception as the couple had earlier tied the knot in a white wedding at Castell del Sant Marcal, Barcelona, Spain in October 2022. Dignitaries present at the ceremony were Oba Adedapo Tejuosho and his three Oloris, Aremo Segun Oniru, Prince Samuel Adedoyin, former deputy governors, Lagos State, Sarah Soesan and Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, Muiz Banire, Olorogun Sunny Kuku, Mrs Florence Ajimobi, Mrs Toyin Saraki, Chief Alex Onabanjo, Tunde Ayeni etc.

Elumelu

The Kalejaiyes

Ogunwusi

The Ayandeles Ajayi

STORIES BY SHADE WESLEY-METIBOGUN

FEUD BETWEEN OLU OF WARRI, AYIRI EMAMI DEEPENS

Oluomo Wins Fourth Term Bid Amid Fraud Allegation

Olakunle Oluomo, the embattled Speaker of the Ogun State House of Assembly has won his fourth term bid to represent Ifo Constituency 1 in the assembly despite his ongoing battle with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC. A supplementary election was held at Oluomo’s polling unit in unit 4, ward 1, Ifo Constituency 1 on Saturday, a few weeks after the first election which took place in March was declared inconclusive as a result of over voting. He was declared winner after the returning Officer for Ifo Constituency 1, Prof. Richard Shobayo, revealed that he polled 7,546 votes to defeat his rival, Yusuf Ogundele of the Peoples Democratic Party who garnered 6,596 votes. This development is coming after EFCC arrested him and slammed an 11-count charge bothering on fraud and stealing on him. Oluomo was said to have allegedly

conspired with some members of the assembly, namely, Adeyemo Taiwo and Oladayo Samuel to spend the total sum of N2,475,000,000.00 for unlawful activities while allegedly forging receipts to cover up the alleged fraud.

The Speaker was arrested by the operatives of EFCC while he was at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos and charged him to court in Abeokuta. He was granted bail in the sum of N300 million with two sureties in like sum. Not long after resuming to the House of Assembly, he was accused of preventing the Deputy Speaker, Dare Kadiri, who was reinstated by the court after being suspended and impeached as a result of some allegations bothering on insubordination to the speaker, alleged attempted murder in his constituency and abuse of office from entering into his office despite being acquitted of the allegations against him.

It seems the ongoing feud between Olu of Warri, His Majesty, Ogiame Atuwayse III, Oba Tsola Emiko and Chief Ayiri Emami, the former Ologbotsere of Warri kingdom is far from ending soon. Olu of Warri had wielded his royal axe on Emami, stripping him of his chieftaincy title, Ologbotsere (Prime Minister), in 2021.

Emami had opposed the emergence of Emiko as the Olu of Warri in-waiting. He headed to a Warri High Court, seeking legal interpretation of the amended 1979 Olu of Warri Chieftaincy Edict, which says that the Olu must have Benin and Warri blood flowing in him. However, Emiko’s mother, Olori Gladys Emiko (wife of Olu Atuwatse II, Emiko’s father) is Yoruba.

He sought the court’s order of an interlocutory injunction to restrain the defendants either by themselves, agents and/or whoever from crowning any person as the Olu of Warri Kingdom, pending the hearing and determination of the suit. The two became arch enemies after that time.

The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi attempted to step in by mediating peace between the two, but his efforts failed to yield a positive result. After theb Ooni's intervention, a four hour meeting was held behind closed doors with dignitaries in attendance to resolve the situation but the meeting and efforts also met a brick wall.

Two years after stripping Emami of his title, the traditional ruler decided to replace him with

another worthy indigene of Warri kingdom. He installed Chief Oma Eyewuoma as the new Ologbotsere of Warri Kingdom. Eyewuoma was the Aboludero of Warri Kingdom before his new title. The installation ceremony took place last week amidst pomp and pageantry and was witnessed by many people in the kingdom.

Shortly after the installation of Eyewuoma as the new Ologbotsere, the Olu of Warri announced a new title ‘Eyeku’ of Warri, to be conferred on Emami. But Emami declined and walked out of the gathering insisting that he is still the rightful Ologbotsere as the paraphernalia of office he was asked to submit by the Olu, towards a peaceful resolution of their dispute, which he did were the fake ones and not the originals.

Toyin Saraki Marks 12th Anniversary of Gbegi Ojora’s Death

Toyin Saraki, the former first lady of Kwara State has remembered her late elder brother, Adegboyega Ojora, also known as Gbegi Ojora, 12 years after his sudden death. The first son of corporate boardroom guru, Otunba Kunle Ojora and Erelu Ojuolape Ojora, Adegboyega died in April 2011. He drove himself to the First Consultant Hospital, Lagos, where he went for treatment after feeling uncomfortable with his

breathing, but, unfortunately, didn’t leave the hospital alive. Saraki posted old photographs of herself and Gbegi together when they were children and accompanied it with some verses from the Holy Bible that talked about the resurrection of Jesus Christ after his death. She revealed that his departure was temporary as there is hope that they would still meet again. Since his untimely departure at 51, his younger sister always

takes out time to pay tribute to him on his death anniversary. The late Ojora had obtained a Bachelor degree and a Master’s degree in Law from the University of London and Cambridge University, England. He was the director of Interstate Securities Limited, 7up Bottling Company Limited, Phoenix Assurance and Evans Publishers Plc among other businesses before the unfortunate incident happened.

Ogun

LG

Chairmen Make U-turn, Accept Car Gifts From Gov Abiodun

The local government chairmen in Ogun state have made a U-turn and finally accepted the car gifts offered by Governor Dapo Abiodun. This development is coming a few weeks after they rejected the car gifts from the governor.

The gifts were meant as rewards to the LG chairmen, 12 in all, for standing by the governor and ensuring he won in their local government areas during the last governorship election in the state. Abiodun allegedly presented brandnew Mikano Sport Utility Vehicles to them, but they rejected the gifts, stating that they would prefer other popular brands.

The chairmen, who had stormed the Government House in anticipation

of taking home new cars, were all disappointed. Some who were not familiar with the brand insisted that the gifts were sub-standard while stating that Mikano only produces generators. The aggrieved parties insisted that they had not been treated well by the Dapo Abiodun Administration in the state. However, in a sudden twist, the Chairman of the Association of Local Government Chairmen in Ogun State, Babatunde Emilola, revealed that all council chairmen have accepted the car gift while declaring their support for the governor. It was gathered that the sudden change of attitude is as a result of a meeting held among the council Chairmen where they all agreed to support the state governor.

Folorunsho Alakija Fetes Guests at Son's Traditional Wedding

Billionaire businesswoman and philanthropist, Apostle Folorunsho Alakija and her husband, Modupe Alakija, gathered who-is-who in Nigeria to the traditional wedding of one of their sons, Rotimi Alakija and his beautiful bride, Eniola Sokoya, which took place on Saturday, April 15th, 2023 at the Landmark Event Centre, Victoria Island.

The colour of the day was mint green which was strictly adhered to by the guests who graced the occasion. The governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-olu who was in attendance was given the responsibility of praying for the couple as the event kicked off. The first female chancellor in Africa, Folorunsho played a dutiful host as she ensured her guests were well taken care of in the few hours they spent at the ceremony. Desmond Emokiniovo of Veentage band was at the music stand to entertain guests. The groom, Rotimi is a chief executive officer at her mother's oil company, Famfa oil,

he also has his hands in the real estate business. Rotimi schooled at the University of West of England, Bristol, where he bagged his first degree in Marketing before proceeding to the University of Surrey for his master’s degree in communications and international Marketing. He is also a director at Dayspring Property Limited, an upscale real estate company based in Lagos. His passion for polo, rugby and car racing is second to none. Florence Ita Giwa, Dame Abimbola Fashola, Toyin Saraki, Gladys Ndubuisi-Kanu were among the dignitaries who graced the occasion.

THEWILLNIGERIA THEWILLNG THEWILLNIGERIA

Oluomo

Saraki and Ojora

Emiko Emami

Abiodun

Alakija

Tony Onyemaechi Elumelu: Homegrown Business Titan

BY MICHAEL JIMOH

It used to be that business moguls of a certain generation in Nigeria followed the classical route in their rise to top managerial positions. A sound education from a prestigious school - London School of Economics, say, or Harvard Business School – was an assurance of placement in any of the big corporations. A sounder degree – First Class or Second Class Uppermeant automatic employment in a senior management cadre.

But once in a while, some people break the rigid rules of engagement by companies relying mostly on graduates from Ivy-league institutions or even those with super grades. One such person is Mr. Tony Onyemaechi Elumelu, banking and finance maharishi, entrepreneur, philanthropist and Africapitalist.

Bendel State University Ekpoma (now Ambrose Alli University) where he graduated from in the eighties wasn’t even among the top 10 institutions in Nigeria at the time. Graduating with a Second Class Lower division from the Department of Economics was even less certain of catching the eye of a company boss looking to hire super bright graduates. But TOE, as he is fondly called, served with Union Bank as a youth corp member in 1985. Then he upgraded with a Master’s degree in the same discipline from the University of Lagos.

Of course, for his primary and secondary education, Tony had both in Nigeria, first in Jos where he was born on March 22 1963 to Suzanne and Dominic Elumelu of Onicha-Ukwu and Onicha-Ugbo in Delta state. He also attended St Pius Grammar School in his native state and then his first degree at Ekpoma.

Post-youth service at Union Bank, he had a stint as a copier salesman and then All States Trust Bank where, according to those in the know, the young man beavered away as a thoroughgoing banker and investor. But working as a banker wasn’t just enough for the ambitious and audacious man. He wanted to own a bank. Presented with an opportunity of buying a floundering Crystal Bank, he wasted no time in acquiring it along with a group of likeminded investors. They named it Standard Trust Bank, then UBA after a merger of both. Bowled over by the audacity of the merger, experts in the banking sector described it as the “largest mergers in the banking sector in sub-Saharan Africa.”

It was also Elumelu’s emergence as a banker to reckon with in Nigeria and Africa. From then on, he pretty much knew what he wanted to be – a banker. At 34, he became the youngest CEO of a bank, the youngest of any bank at the time. In one recent Facebook post, he attributed his swift rise in the banking sector to two things – hard work and luck.

“I owed my accelerated career and successes to two things: hard work and luck, and I know firsthand how these factors are inextricable in success,” he wrote.

In the same post, he explained his fascination with helping young people develop their entrepreneurial skills: “My successes – and yes failures – have always

driven me to create opportunities for young people. I believe that our young have the talent and the zeal to transform our world.”

In a birthday tribute published in Vanguard as Viewpoint by Toni Kan headlined “Tony Elumelu: Africapitalist @ Sixty,” we get the impression of someone who has shown an unflagging commitment to helping African youths in various entrepreneurial projects. Some of the beneficiaries from the Tony Elumelu Foundation were on hand to celebrate with their benefactor. “The outpouring of congratulations to TOE @ 60 all point to the fact that he has become a truly phenomenal and inspiring business leader with a Global sphere of influence and one who has, in the past 10 years, empowered over 16,000 African entrepreneurs and by so doing catalyzed Africa’s development,” TK wrote. “Today, with a sprawling business empire, built through organic and inorganic growth, bestriding Nigeria’s major sectors, Tony Onyemaechi Elumelu is better known as an Africapitalist and philanthropist who has committed $100m “to create opportunities for young people” because as he noted in a facebook post “I believe that our youth have the talent and the zeal to transform our world.”

Elumelu’s philanthropic initiatives, TK went on, isn’t clout-chasing as some of his critics think. “While many have tried to reduce Tony Elumelu’s philanthropy to clout-chasing especially when you consider his largerthan-life social media impression, it is important to note that while his focus may well be to up skill and so uplift young people, he has always displayed a predilection for helping other people.”

Of his soar away success with STB and TEF, TK notes that “back then people spoke about Tony Elumelu as ambitious, audacious and driven. He had turned STB into a nation-wide success and even though his

name was being mentioned with some degree of awe among young bankers, no one could have predicted back in 2001 that Tony Elumelu would become the apostle of Africapitalism and the global business icon (with multiple TIME magazine mentions) he is today with fingers in several pies from banking and finance, real estate and hospitality, insurance and health management, to oil and gas and power, and a man committed to helping young Africans realise their potentials from Kano to Kigali and Nupe to Nairobi.”

TK was not alone in his glowing tribute to Elumelu. In the Life & Style section of THISDAY published last March headlined “Tony Elumelu’s 60 Years of Un-relentless Service to Humanity,” Festus Akanbi pays tribute to the “billionaire banker and foremost philanthropist” who on his own set up one of the most important development projects for youths in Nigeria and the African continent.

“How do we fight poverty and other indices of underdevelopment in a country with a burgeoning population like Nigeria? Should we leave the government to do justice to the ever-increasing needs of the people? Economists explain that as demand for a better life among the citizenry continues to rise, the reality is that government alone cannot turn the economy around without the full support of the private sector.

“All over the world, discerning political officeholders have realised the symbiotic relationship between the public and private sector players. While one sets the rules and provides the enabling environment, the other party executes the policy and funds the government by playing its role as a set of good corporate players.

“Perhaps, this explains the decision of Nigeria’s President-Elect, Bola Tinubu to have picked the Lagos home of the foremost philanthropist and serial investor, Mr. Tony Elumelu as one of the places to visit shortly after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) pronounced him the winner of the 2023 presidential election.”

Continuing, Akanbi writes that Elumelu “has indeed paid his dues as a foremost businessman with his interest spanning the power, oil, hospitality, and banking sectors of the economy. Today, Elumelu has distinguished himself as a consistently focused

And just last week on the occasion of Elumelu’s birthday, TEF disbursed $30, 000 to 17 recipients across Africa in line with the Foundation’s “economic philosophy of Africapitalism

Homegrown Business Titan FEATURES

administrator. He has carved a niche for himself as one of Africa’s leading investors and philanthropists. He is the founder and Chairman of Heirs Holdings, his family-owned investment company committed to improving lives and transforming Africa, through longterm investments in strategic sectors of the African economy including financial services, hospitality, power, energy, technology, and healthcare. He is the Chairman of the pan-African financial services group, the United Bank for Africa (UBA), which operates in 20 countries in Africa, the United Kingdom France, and is the only African bank with a commercial deposit-taking presence in the United States. UBA provides corporate, commercial, SME, and consumer banking services to more than 21 million customers globally.

“He also chairs Nigeria’s largest quoted conglomerate, Transcorp Plc whose subsidiaries include Transcorp Power, one of the largest generators of electricity in Nigeria, and Transcorp Hotels Plc, Nigeria’s foremost hospitality brand. He is the Founder and Chairman of Trans-Niger Oil & Gas Limited (TNOG), an upstream oil and gas company that owns and operates Nigeria’s OML17, (with 2P reserves of 1.3 billion barrels of oil equivalent) and is committed to creating resourcebased added value on the African continent.”

TEF has bankrolled, the reporter stated, just under 10,000 entrepreneurs and created a digital ecosystem of over one million Africans as part of its ten-year, US$100m commitment through its flagship Entrepreneurship Programme. Self-funded, the Foundation is increasingly sharing its unique ability to identify, train, mentor, and fund young entrepreneurs across Africa, with institutions such as the United Nations Development Programme, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and other global development agencies.”

And just last week on the occasion of Elumelu’s 60th birthday, TEF disbursed $30, 000 to 17 recipients across Africa in line with the Foundation’s “economic philosophy of Africapitalism, which positions the private sector, and most importantly entrepreneurs, as the catalyst for the social and economic development of the African continent.”

Africapitalism, Akanbi states further “positions the private sector, more importantly, entrepreneurship, innovation, and business enterprise, as the key economic driver of growth and job creation across Africa, while also promoting sustainable development. The Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) is the leading champion of Africapitalism in Africa, and across the world, with significant contributions to the achievement of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) across the continent.”

In Elumelu’s reckoning, successful businessmen and other leaders can make a whole lot of difference by supporting and championing goal-oriented young people, “hardworking and committed to making a difference in their communities because their drive and determination make things happen.”

In that regard, Elumelu himself has said that “more than ever, all of us who have attained success must become role models for the younger generation so that the next generation can learn from our mistakes and achieve even more than we have.”

African youths are not the only beneficiaries of Elumelu’s largesse. Even the Nigerian government got some billions of naira to assist in their campaign against terrorism. In one interview, for instance, Elumelu let on how a coalition he was part of put some money together to fight insecurity in Nigeria. “We, the private sector, have just put N100 billion together, again, under this coalition to help fight insecurity or to support our security agencies’ capacity to be able to deal with the issues we have in the country on security.”

And then, there is the African No Filter initiative begun last year. It is, according to Akanbi, “a donor collaborative working to transform stereotypical narratives of Africa, launched the Tony Elumelu Storytellers Fund. Named after African business leader and philanthropist Tony O. Elumelu, the Fund will award grants to emerging artists and storytellers, whose work shines a light on entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship in Africa. The

$30,000 fund is sponsored by Heirs Insurance and Heirs Life Assurance, the insurance subsidiaries of the panAfrican investment group, Heirs Holdings.

“The Tony Elumelu Storytellers Fund is a standalone initiative and an extension of his commitment to catalysing a redefined African success story, powered by Africa’s youth and their creative ideas. The Fund calls on journalists, filmmakers, content producers, and visual and performing artists to submit multimedia creative ideas, that tell the stories of inspiring entrepreneurs and showcase the true and positive spirit of entrepreneurship in Africa.”

With these various philanthropic initiatives, it is no surprise Tony Elumelu is close friends with current and past world leaders. For one, it is not for nothing that President-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu chose Elumelu’s residence in Lagos as his first port of call soon after INEC declared him winner of the February presidential polls.

He is also close buddies with former POTUS Barack Obama and former Prime minister of England David Cameron. Creating job opportunities for young Africans who might be tempted to drown themselves in the

Mediterranean in search of greener pastures in America or Europe is certainly part of the relationship between the businessman and the politicians – a rare relationship considering the mutual suspicion between governments and business moguls whom they see as overly rapacious.

Most often, the charge against such moguls is their tendency to become monopolistic, their tendency to emasculate competitors and so run them out of business therefore having the playing field to themselves alone.

One good example was the case against the founder and emperor of Rockefeller business empire, John D Rockefeller around the early 20th century. The Standard Oil Rockefeller founded had become too big for its britches, having gobbled up smaller competitors through direct acquisition or other unethical business practices. To curb its power, the United States under the leadership of Theodore Roosevelt declared in a State of the Union address in 1901 the necessity of checking the excesses of big corporations like Standard Oil owned by Rockefeller and JP Morgan’s railroad conglomerate, Northern Securities Co.

“Great corporations exist only because they are created and safeguarded by our institutions,” Roosevelt said. It is “our right and our duty to see that they work in harmony with these institutions.”

In a historic Supreme Court ruling of 5-4, the corporations were dissolved.

The major reason for dissolving the conglomerates, as Roosevelt put it, was the “widespread conviction in the minds of the American people that the great corporations known as trusts are in certain of their features and tendencies hurtful to the general welfare.”

A more recent instance of government wielding the big stick against monolithic businesses was that of the United States Government versus Bill Gates, Microsoft founder who was accused of the same unethical business practices as his compatriots of the early 20th century.

As in the Rockefeller case, “the Microsoft antitrust case came to be one of the high-profile cases a few decades ago. In the 1990s U.S. federal regulators sued Microsoft, which was at that time the world’s leading software company. The Federal Trade Commission launched an investigation as a response to the rising market share of the company in the personal computer market. The investigation aimed to determine whether Microsoft was trying to monopolize the personal computer market. The federal agency soon ended its investigation, only to be brought up again by the U.S. Department of Justice in 1998.”

What were the charges by the DoJ? In one report, the charges “came about in response to Microsoft bundling additional programs into its operating system. It meant that for customers who wanted to access a particular Microsoft application, buying the Microsoft Windows operating system was a prerequisite. Moreover, Microsoft distributed its browser software, Internet Explorer, among consumers for free. It led to a concentration of the market share and the eventual downfall of Netscape, the company’s top competitor at the time. The DoJ case alleged that Microsoft was intentionally making it extremely difficult for consumers to install software by other companies on personal computers that ran on Microsoft’s operating system.”

And what was the verdict? In a ruling by District Court Judge, Thomas Penfield Jackson said that Microsoft did violate the anti-trust laws.

It is hard to see the same fate befall any of the companies Tony Elumelu chairs or has shares in, not with his professional business practice and his self-developing initiatives for thousands of young people across Africa. Are you still wondering why he is pals with past world leaders and an incoming one in Nigeria? Your answer is as good as ours.

In Elumelu’s reckoning, successful businessmen and other leaders can make a whole lot of difference by supporting and championing goal-oriented young people

SportsLive

Onyekwere's African Record Poses Challenge to Nigerian Sports Administration

BY JUDE OBAFEMI

The world of athletics is often dominated by the likes of sprinters and long-distance runners. However, the recent feat achieved by Nigerian discus thrower, Chioma Chukwujindu "CiCi" Onyekwere has shone a bright light on the world of field events, which is often overlooked.

A native of Lansing, Michigan, Onyekwere is an American-born Nigerian track and field athlete specialising in and representing Nigeria in the discus throw. She has donned the green-white-green in international competitions and holds the Nigerian National Record for the Discus Throw.

On the weekend of the Oklahoma Throws Series in Ramona, the 28-year-old delivered a stunning performance in the women’s discus event, achieving a massive personal best (PB) of 64.96m. This feat not only secured her victory in the event but also broke the 16-year-old African record set by South Africa’s Elizna Naudé.

Naudé, a retired athlete who set the South African national record in the women's discus throw, achieved that feat in March 2007 in Stellenbosch, with a throw measuring 64.87 metres. She competed in two Olympic Games, in the women's discus throw event at the 2004 Athens, Greece Olympics and in the same event at the 2008 Beijing, China Games but was not able to finish on the podium in either events. However, such was her dominance that at the 2003, 2007 All-African Games, the 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010 African Championships and the

2006 Commonwealth Games, there was no athlete able to wrest the gold medal in the discus throw event from the iron grip of Naudé.

Naudé's achievements in athletics included a thirdplace finish in the African Championships of 2002 and second-place podiums at the All-African Games of 2011 and the African Championships of 2012. All of these made her one of South Africa's most successful female athletes in history and her South African national record in the women's discus throw was still standing until the weekend of the Oklahoma Throws Series in Ramona, when Onyekwere took over.

Onyekwere's trajectory this season has been consistently upward, as her opening throw two weeks ago measured 55.88m, and her subsequent improvement to 60.79m last weekend quickly followed. Her new PB surpasses her previous mark of 63.30m by more than a metre and a half.

Aside from her record-breaking achievement, Onyekwere also met and surpassed the World Championship qualification standard with her latest feat, even though she already has a wildcard to the competition taking place in Budapest with her status as an African champion. She became the first Nigerian field athlete (male or female) to attain World Championships standard in the 2023 outdoor season. It is noteworthy that Onyekwere has enjoyed the best of outings in 2022, where she won gold at the African Championships in Mauritius and at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, becoming the first Nigerian woman in history to do so.

Yet, Onyekwere is not new to achieving milestones in her career. In the mould of Naudé, whom she surpassed in the discus throw record, Onyekwere has won three African titles over her career, two consecutive gold medals at the African Championships (2018 and 2022), and a gold medal at the 2019 African Games. She began from school as she was recognised for her academic achievement as a student athlete at the University of Maryland for four years by the Big Ten and the ACC while serving as one of the team’s captains. She also

Onyekwere became the first Nigerian field athlete (male or female) to attain World Championships standard in the 2023 outdoor season

SportsLive

...Poses Challenge to Nigerian Sports Administration

reset the Discus record at the Big Ten Outdoor Track and Field Championships with a throw of 54.43m. Her collegiate honours include All-American recognition, All-Big Ten honours, All-Academic Big Ten, 5 Big Ten Conference Medals, and Solomon Eye Terp of the Week recipient.

Onyekwere is now in the league of Nigerian stars like Vivian Chukwuemeka, who won the gold medal in the shot put at the 2002 Commonwealth Games and has won three consecutive titles at the AllAfrica Games from 1999 to 2007, Ese Brume, who is currently the commonwealth games record, African junior record and African record in the event, a twotime medalist at the world athletics championship, an Olympic bronze medalist and also a five-time African junior champion in athletics, and Annette Nneka Echikunwoke, who holds the African area record in hammer throw, with a throw of 75.49 m in Tucson in 2021 but who has changed allegiance to the USA, to reign supreme in field events in Africa. Onyekwere's recent record-breaking feat at the Oklahoma Throws Series in Ramona has further cemented her status as one of Nigeria's most decorated field athletes.

It is not just Onyekwere's achievement that should be celebrated, but also the fact that she achieved it against all odds. Her triumph in Oklahoma is not just a personal achievement but a testament to her determination and perseverance. Despite her impressive achievements, Onyekwere's success has not come easy. She had to juggle her studies as an engineer with her training and competitions, often sacrificing sleep and social activities to focus on her goals. In the midst of the gruelling training to excel at her events, she also had to make out some time to focus on her academics and graduated from the A. James Clark School of Engineering at the University of Maryland in Winter 2016 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering. She is currently an engineer even as she continues to defy odds and break records. Her dedication and hard work have paid off, and she has become an inspiration to many young athletes in Nigeria.

However, Onyekwere's success story is not unique in Nigerian sports. Many Nigerian athletes have demonstrated exceptional talent and potential, but have been hindered by a lack of support and facilities to train and compete at an international level. Nigeria, a country of over 200 million people, has a rich history in sports, particularly in athletics, and has produced world-class athletes such as Chioma Ajunwa, Blessing Okagbare, Mary Onyali, Ese Brume and Oluwatobiloba Amusan. Despite these, Nigeria has struggled to maintain its dominance in the international sports scene due to various challenges, including a lack of adequate facilities, poor funding, and corruption in the management of

Continued from Back Page

sports in the country. This has resulted in a brain drain of talented athletes who seek better opportunities abroad.

The success of Onyekwere and other Nigerian athletes should serve as a wake-up call to the government and sports authorities to invest more in sports development and identity the best hands to administer sports governance. With the best hands, the right support and state-of-the-art facilities, Nigeria can produce more world-class athletes who can compete at the highest level and bring glory to the nation. Onyekwere's trajectory is evidence that it is crucial to provide young athletes with access to quality training facilities and equipment, as well as scholarships and incentives to encourage them to pursue their dreams. Sports academies and training camps should also be established across the country to provide a platform for young athletes to hone their skills and showcase their talents.

Furthermore, there should be transparency and accountability in the management of sports funds to prevent embezzlement and ensure that funds are used for their intended purposes. This will go a long way in

...Banditry, Terrorism, Kidnappings Return

three others in Kaduna State. The police have arrested some of the attackers, but more needs to be done to prevent such incidents from occurring in the future. Still, as a result of these attacks, which occurred separately in Abuja and Kaduna, at least 19 people have been abducted and their distraught families will have to live through the anguish. They will be required to cough out large sums of money, in millions of naira, to potentially be reunited with their loved ones, if they are fortunate.

On April 7, more than 80 people were kidnapped by gunmen while picking firewood in Wanzamai Village, Zamfara State. The kidnappers have since demanded ransom for their release.

In another incident, Professor Onje Gye-Wado, a former Deputy Governor of Nasarawa State, was also abducted from his residence in Gwagi Village, Wamba Local Government Area, with a ransom of N70 million demanded for his release. He was later released after his family parted with N4 million to secure his freedom.

There have been other reported cases of attacks and kidnappings, including an attack on an Internal Displaced Persons (IDP) camp in Benue and an attack in Umogidi Village, Entekpa-Adoka District, where 46 people were killed.

These examples exemplify the current state of insecurity in the country. It is therefore imperative that action is required to curb this new wave. The increase in crime rates, loss of lives and properties, and a perception of Nigeria as a kidnap haven with its consequential decrease in foreign investments are not positives that can be allowed to fester.

Indeed, the situation has also affected the country's image, as it is perceived as a nursery for criminal activities.

The APC-led Federal Government must adopt a multifaceted approach to arrest these issues. The incoming government will need to take a comprehensive approach that addresses both the symptoms and the root causes of these crimes for an end to the scourge.

encouraging private sector investment in sports and attracting international support and sponsorship. Given the poor state of support in the country, it is doubtful if Onyekwere's incredible record-breaking feat in the discus throw could have ever come to pass if she was in the country and depended on the available facilities, training and scholarship in Nigeria. Yet, her record is a testament to the potential of Nigerian athletes. However, to harness this potential and achieve more exploits, the Nigerian government and sports authorities must invest more in sports development and provide the necessary support and facilities for athletes to excel. With the right investment and support, Nigeria can once again become a powerhouse in international sports and produce more world-class athletes like Onyekwere and Amusan, Nigeria's only World Record holder.

superstars. With more support and facilities to train and excel, Nigerian athletes can accomplish even greater feats on the global stage. From football to athletics, boxing to Mixed Martial Arts, Nigerian athletes have proven themselves to be among the best in the world. when Nigerian athletes are given the support and facilities they need to excel.

In conclusion, Onyekwere's record-breaking feat is a significant milestone in Nigerian athletics, and it serves as a source of inspiration for young Nigerian athletes. It is a reminder that with the right support and facilities, Nigerian athletes can achieve great things on the global stage. Nigerian sports authorities should take note and invest more in sports facilities, equipment, and athlete development programs to help unleash the full potential of Nigerian athletes.

Indeed, Team Nigeria made history by producing two medalists in the Discus Throw event for the first time, with reigning Nigerian champion, Obiageri Amaechi, winning the bronze medal with her 56.99m fifth round effort. Onyekwere has now become the second Nigerian after Adewale Olukoju to win the discus throw title for Nigeria in the history of the championships. Olukoju threw 62.62m to win in Aukcland in 1990. All these point to the same goal - if the country can invest in Nigerian athletes and provide them with similar conditions enjoyed by elite athletes in other countries, Nigeria will be a force to contend with in not just the track events but including field events like discus, shot put and the rest.

Amusan Brume

AsBanditry, Terrorism, Kidnappings Return

Nigeria and her people have gone through the last eight years plagued by various security challenges, including terrorism, armed banditry, kidnapping, separatist tendencies, crude oil theft and militancy. If anything, the impact of these criminalities, which scourged the Goodluck Jonathan Administration, only worsened in this government.

We cannot forget the numerous individuals, including Bethel Baptist School children, Leah Sharibu, 98 Chibok girls, 29 Birnin Yauri schoolchildren and 85 boys in Zamfara that remain in captivity. Despite President Muhammadu Buhari's promise to reunite these victims with their families, the situation did not improve and more individuals continued to be kidnapped. All that changed in February and March. There appeared to have been an observable lull in these criminal acts in the thick of the activities around the 2023 General Election. With all attention directed at the campaigns and electioneering in the lead-up to the election, which started in February, reports of banditry and kidnapping all but disappeared from the local news. Those closely following developments will have, however, noticed that there is a renewed uptick in security challenges and crimes now, in the postelection climate.

The re-availability of naira notes in the country, after the bottlenecks that occasioned the currency redesign, has contributed to the increase in security challenges in the country. Kidnapping for ransom has picked up pace like the lucrative business it has become, with criminals using the cash obtained from ransoms to fund their activities and purchase firearms and ammunition. The situation is worsened by the lack of accountability for security leaders who often escape punishment, even in cases where kidnapping occur under their jurisdiction, a very sore facet of the current administration.

Still, about four weeks ago, President Buhari declared that his administration had achieved significant milestones in national security over the last eight years. Buhari made the claim while inaugurating two facilities - the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) and the National Counterterrorism Centre (NCTC). The President noted that these were set to provide a legacy of infrastructure for the incoming administration to coordinate national security and counterterrorism efforts. In expressing his delight about his administration's milestones, he indicated that they had degraded the threat of terrorism in the NorthEast, curbed armed banditry and kidnapping cases in the North-West and North-Central geopolitical zones, and effectively tackled key maritime security threats such as piracy, sea robbery, crude oil theft and illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing.

The President also spoke about protecting Nigeria's cyberspace and establishing the Nigeria Computer Emergency Response Team. Furthermore, he praised the ONSA for producing or revising several key security policy documents such as the National Counterterrorism Strategy 2016, National Security Strategy 2019, National Cyber Security Policy and Strategy 2021 and the National Crisis Management Doctrine 2022. Buhari expressed his confidence that the newly inaugurated ONSA and NCTC facilities would enhance the desired peaceful and secure environment for the country. Yet, the recent resurgence in armed attacks and kidnappings across Nigeria point to the fact that

the situation has not improved. Fresh attacks have resulted in the destruction of communities and homes in Abuja, Taraba, Plateau, and Kaduna, resulting in numerous deaths and abductions over the course of the last two weeks.

According to a witness named Isah John, the bandits shot dead two passengers and kidnapped several others after blocking the road. The operation lasted for about an hour and the bandits eventually left with the kidnapped passengers. Gunshots were heard in nearby villages, including Ganmi, Garam and Idah, causing panic among the residents.

This is not the first attack by bandits at the same junction. Two weeks ago, they abducted five people who paid a significant ransom before being freed. The villagers residing along the road from Bwari to Jere are now living in fear, according to reports, and a community leader has called on the military to intervene by combing the areas to dislodge the bandits.

Along with the leader, some commentators have asked the military to curtail the activities of bandits and kidnappers, but the truth is that the police, not the army, is responsible for internal security in Nigeria. To combat the security challenges in the country, the police should implement strategies, such as increased road checks and intelligence gathering. Their leaders should be held accountable and deprived of promotion if there are cases of kidnapping in their jurisdictions. Due to harsh economic realities, many criminals have turned to kidnapping as a means of generating income. Experts believe that revisiting the implementation of the cashless policy with a more refined approach and better mass enlightenment is the only way to stop the crime of kidnapping for ransom.

For instance, on March 5, Sunday morning, Maru Divisional Police Officer, SP Kazeem Raheem, and Inspector Rabiu Umar were murdered by bandits armed with sophisticated weapons in an attack on the Maru Division. The police report indicates that the bandits intended to destabilise the town's security architecture to make it easier to attack and abduct members of the community. Unfortunately, the DPO and the above-named Inspector lost their lives while protecting the public and the command has not announced any arrests in connection with the attack.

The following day, March 6, suspected bandits attacked Kimbi Village of Randagi Ward in Birnin Gwari Local Government Area of Kaduna State, burning an immovable armoured vehicle belonging to the Mobile Police. The attack occurred around 1:00 am, with eight bandits holding AK 47 storming the village, but they did not kill or kidnap anyone. According to Alhaji Yahaya Kimbi, the community leader, the bandits only intended to destroy the armoured vehicle.

In another attack on the Bwari-Jere Road, near Bwari town in the Federal Capital Territory, gun-wielding criminals killed two passengers while abducting several others. The incident occurred this month around Ganmi Junction and witnesses reported that the bandits had been shooting sporadically.

Nigeria's security problems, occasioned by the availability of naira notes after the issues of currency redesign and scarcity, is a serious concern that requires immediate attention. This fresh wave of armed criminality has caused me to counsel the Federal Government to take another look at the implementation of the cashless policy. Evidence shows that there were positives to be accorded the policy, especially in curbing the prevalence of ransom-based crimes and armed robberies. What failed the policy however, were the implementation and actions of unscrupulous bankers. While the policy did result in a reduction of kidnappings during the presidential election period, there are recommendations for a refinement of its implementation phase, which will this time be accompanied by impactful mass enlightenment to render it truly effective. This is to the credit of the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, who has been severely maligned for the courage and fortitude involved with the policy. It took nothing less than heroic guts to identify the issues around the currency, relating to counterfeiting, security and the overall integrity of the country's currency and be determined to make the most daring changes in decades.

The decision of the Supreme Court to allow the use of the old currency bills until December to ameliorate the pains of the citizens under the drudgery of the redesign implementation has now revealed the flip side of the entire process. The activities of these criminal elements are a reference point.

In a recent incident, a large group of gunmen raided several apartments in Abuja, kidnapping nine people, including women and children. In another attack, bandits killed a pastor's son and abducted his wife and Continues on Page 47

While the policy did result in a reduction of kidnappings during the presidential election period, there are recommendations for a refinement of its implementation phase, which will this time be accompanied by impactful mass enlightenment to render it truly effective