Monday 28st March 2016

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MONDAY MARCH 28 2016 T H I S D AY

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MONDAY MARCH 28 2016 T H I S D AY

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MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2016 • T H I S D AY

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FG Commences Reconstruction of N’East Daji Sani in Yola with agency report

The reconstruction of schools and police stations destroyed

by Boko Haram insurgents in the Northeast has started in earnest.

The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr. Babachir David Lawal, made this known yesterday in Hong, Adamawa State, during the graduation of

500 students of Buba Industrial Village.

The skills acquisition programme was part of the youth empowerment scheme introduced by Yusuf Buba, the member representing Gombi/ Hong federal constituency in the House of Representatives.

He said the reconstruction of the region was part of the election campaign promise made by President Muhammadu Buhari.

The SGF stressed that the aim was to bring lasting solutions to insurgency and rebuild destroyed infrastructure in the area.

“The federal government has begun the reconstruction of schools and police stations, among others, destroyed by Boko Haram insurgents in the Northeast region.

“The present APC-led government is determined to guarantee peaceful co-existence

among Nigerians and ensure that Nigerians, irrespective of their locality or belief, benefit from the dividend of democracy,” Lawan said.

He criticised the opposition parties for what he called a campaign of calumny during the last general election, which linked the All Progressives Congress party with a particular religion and the insurgency.

Lawal said Buhari and the APC-led government would

never discriminate against any Nigerian on the basis of religion or any other affiliation.

He commended Buba for initiating the skills acquisition programme for youths, describing the gesture as a “landmark achievement” worthy of emulation.

According to him, the programme was the first of its kind in the area since the inception of democracy in 1999.

In his address, Buba said

that the gesture was part of the promises made during his election campaign.

“During my election campaign, I promised my constituents that if elected, I will bring change through youth empowerment programmes.

“And today, this is the second graduation where over 500 youths were trained in various skills and assisted with free equipment to start their businesses,” Buba said.

According to him, the APC BoT, as provided by the constitution, may become a clog in the wheel of progress of the party if careful consideration is not given to its unwieldy size.

“The large membership could become unwieldy with many new entrants to the party rushing to join the party at the late hour so as to take up positions in the BoT. “We have even ended up having former military administrators as members of the BoT,” he said He said this crop of late entrants to the party, who are laying claim to the membership of the BoT have become so many and that if care is not taken, they may even outnumber their civilian counterparts.

“The membership of the BoT will become too unwieldy; you cannot easily manage this number. Even a lecturer with such number of students cannot cope, not to mention mature leaders who will be contending with varied individual opinions and interests.

“You see, what we have realised is that when you are talking about the BoT, you are talking about people with integrity and people you can identify as the conscience of the party,

elders of the party who can easily be reached in times of conflict within the party.

“In fact, the BoT is so powerful that it plays a very important role in the affairs of the party, including approving constitutional amendments.

So the moment you constitute and inaugurate it, they will never agree that the constitution be amended.

“That was why we had to shift the inauguration of the board until we were able to put things right,” he said.

However, it was gathered that at the time the party drew up the list of membership to the BoT and included same in its constitution, APC was still in the opposition and not yet in government.

But no sooner had the party taken over power at the centre, than the politicians and other interests groups swarmed the ruling party, thus swelling the number of those who belong to the BoT. Political gladiators in the ruling party such as the former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, the ex-Lagos State Governor, Senator Bola Tinubu, and the former National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Abubakar Baraje, are known to be

interested in chairing the BoT. But recent developments have portrayed a slightly different picture in the power tussle. Investigations revealed that while the former governor of Osun State and erstwhile interim National Chairman of the APC, Chief Bisi Akande may stand in for Tinubu as the man to be trusted to protect his interest on the BoT, the former vicepresident is said to have beaten a retreat and is now insisting that he would not compete with anyone as far as the BoT chairmanship is concerned.

The swollen number of BoT members has further compounded the situation for APC since many of those who were listed were neither involved in the formation of the ruling party in 2013, nor were they members when the APC won the general election in 2015.

The APC BoT membership is supposed to comprise past and serving presidents and vice-presidents who are members of the party, past and serving senate presidents and deputy senate presidents who are members of the party, and past and serving speakers and deputy speakers of the House of Representatives

who are members of the party.

Others include past and serving state governors who are members of the party, past and serving national chairmen who are members of the party, and BoT chairmen of political parties who have produced a past president, senator(s), member(s) of the House of Representatives, governor(s) of state(s) or member(s) of state house(s) of assembly and are members of the party, subject to approval

by NEC. The BoT will also include the serving national secretary of the party; two serving senators from each geopolitical zone who are members of the party to be nominated by the senators from such zones; one member nominated by each State/ Federal Capital Territory Executive Committee for consideration, and subsequent recommendation by the National Working Committee (NWC) to NEC for approval; and one woman from each geo-political zone of the country nominated by the zonal committee for consideration, and subsequent recommendation by the NWC to NEC for approval.

an annual budget witnessed more cuts as was the case with this year’s budget.

He blamed the budgetary cuts on the country’s economic challenges, explaining that cuts were made in recurrent spending, the budget deficit and the federal government’s borrowing plan.

The budget as passed provided N2.646 trillion for recurrent (non-debt) expenditure; N1.587 trillion for capital expenditure; N351.3 trillion for statutory transfers; Nl.475 trillion for

debt service and N500 billion for social intervention.

The budget was also predicated on an oil benchmark of $38 dollars per barrel, oil production volume of 2.2 million per day, exchange rate of N197 to $1, a N2.204 trillion fiscal deficit, and a gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate of 2.14 per cent.

Under the capital spending plan, the Ministry of Power, Works and Housing got the lion share of N422. 9 billion, this is followed by the Ministry of Transportation

with N188.6 billion.

Other allocations included N130.8 billion to the Ministry of Defence; N61.7 billion to the Ministry of Interior; N46.1 billion to the Ministry of Agriculture, and N35.4 billion to the Ministry of Education.

Under recurrent expenditure, the Ministry of Interior got the highest allocation of N451.9 billion, followed by education with N367.7 billion. Other notable allocations are N312 billion to defence and N221.4 billion to health.

he said.

Fayose also took a swipe at the manner elections have been conducted under the present regime, saying they had destroyed the legacy of credible elections left behind by former President Goodluck Jonathan.

“It is an understatement to describe the conduct of elections in Kogi, Bayelsa and Rivers States by the Buhari administration as a show of shame.

“This is an aspect where the president has to be very careful. He must not allow himself to be led by the nose

by some rejected and crooked politicians.

“These are politicians who were soundly rejected in previous elections by their people and who now want to use state power and brute force to lord themselves over the people because their party is now in power at the federal level,” he noted.

The governor further advised Buhari to spend more time in the country addressing pressing national issues, instead of globe trotting, saying the country must be given adequate supervision.

APC MOVES TO PRUNE MEMBERSHIP OF BOT to take place in June.

According to a reliable source that was privy to the proposals made during the meeting of the APC national caucus at the Presidential Villa last week, “The party is worried about the large membership of the BoT which has given room to all manner of persons with perceived ulterior interests to be part of the board.”

The National Chairman of the APC, Chief John Oyegun, who recently spoke on the approval given to him by the party’s NEC for the reconstitution of the BoT, had said: “The party has decided to downsize our BoT in line with all other constitutional amendments.”

But Oyegun did not give a specific number of members the party wants on the BoT. “NEC has decided to downsize our Board of Trustees in line with all other constitutional amendments.

We don’t have any particular number, but it is going to be seriously downsized.

“The committee to work on this will be headed by the National Legal Adviser. We will put our heads together on that in the next day or two and there may be need to hold on a little bit,” he said.

While defending the decision of the party, the

Deputy National Chairman of APC (North), Senator Lawan Shuaibu said what the leadership was concerned about was the large number of BoT membership and how it can be reduced so that its members can offer meaningful contributions to the issues affecting the party.

Shuaibu said the party believed that the current number provided by the APC costitution was too unwieldy to manage and as such approached the NEC to get approval for a constitutional amendment to prune it down.

He said a committee would be set up to make recommendations on how to reconstitute the board as well as the ratification of the constitutional amendments at the party’s national convention that may hold in June.

Regarding the delay in the inauguration of the BoT, Shuaibu said it was not due to the clash of interests as speculated in the media but that “the party leadership was all the while tinkering with the idea of pruning it down to a manageable size so as to ensure that the membership is drawn from among those that have the interest of the party at heart and are knowledgeable about what the party stands for”.

BUHARI ORDERS THOROUGH REVIEW OF 2016 BUDGET BEFORE ASSENT to it, he has directed that it should be sent to all the MDAs to double check it to ensure that there were no significant amendments or errors that could adversely affect the implementation of the budget.

“It is only when this is done and the president is satisfied that there were no material alterations that are not consistent with the objectives of this administration, then he would assent to it.”

The presidency official said that the process of reviewing

the budget should not take more than a week or two, following which Buhari would assent to the bill.

“However, if there are significant alterations, it may have to be sent back to the National Assembly until a compromise is reached on what should be passed in the budget,” he explained.

The National Assembly last Wednesday passed a record budget of N6.060 trillion, the first that will be implemented from scratch by the Muhammadu Buhari administration, thus

laying to rest the numerous controversies that trailed its presentation by the president last December.

The budget that was passed by the legislature, however, was slashed by N17 billion from the N6.077 trillion initially proposed by the executive.

The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriation, Senator Danjuma Goje, in presenting the budget report to the Senate, said never in the history of the National Assembly, since 1999, has

FAYOSE: PRESIDENT’S APOLOGIES NOT ENOUGH ATONEMENT FOR FLAWED ELECTIONS, POLICIES Idowu Adelusi in Ado Ekiti yesterday, Fayose however commended the president for admitting to some errors by his government.

The governor also said the president should be wary of some selfish persons in the APC who are bent on dropping his name to commit atrocities all in the name of politics.

“This is a moment of truth.

I commend the president for being bold enough to apologise for his lapses.

He has come out to admit and accept that criticism is part of democracy. He can

do whatever he likes, but it must be within the ambit of the law.

“The president has swallowed his pride by admitting that there is a sharp drop in electricity and that we are experiencing agonising fuel scarcity in the country.

They told us the refineries are working, but that was a lie, we are still importing fuel.

“The president must not, however, stop at apologising.

He cannot continue to apologise over everything, he must step up. A leader must think very well before making policy statements.

“He apologised over the dissolution of governing councils of federal universities which I had earlier criticised, because there are laws establishing these boards and you cannot just wake up one day and say you are dissolving them.

“I call on the president to do something about the lingering fuel scarcity.

Many motorists now sleep at filling stations. Unfortunately, the federal government has told Nigerians not to expect a solution soon. The government should end the pain without delay and stop

chasing perceived political enemies.

“The president should also address job losses which have become a daily occurrence.

They promised Nigerians jobs but the reverse is the case now,” he said.

Fayose also advised Buhari to pay attention to security issues, rather than exerting energy on silencing the opposition. “Look at the Agatu issue. That place is a food basket for the country and when herdsmen now go on the rampage destroying lives and properties, we should not fold our arms,”

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MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2016 • T H I S D AY

NEWS

News Editor Davidson Iriekpen Email davidson.iriekpen@thisdaylive.com, 08111813081

Presidency Plans Town Hall Meetings to Discuss Policy Direction Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja The presidency has said it will soon commence a nationwide sensitisation tour to ensure that Nigerians are adequately informed about the efforts being made by the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led federal government to tackle the challenges facing the country.

Following the perceived disconnect between the

government and Nigerians over reasons for the current hardship being faced by Nigerians, the Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to the President, Mallam Garba Shehu, said Vice-President, Yemi Osinbajo would soon begin a nationwide tour to hold town hall meetings with the various segments of the society to enable them understand issues better.

Speaking with journalists at the weekend, Shehu said the meeting would

Military Clears More Terrorist Enclaves, Rescues 54 Hostages

focus on the policies and achievements of the present administration and how it is grappling with other issues bordering the people.

“I know that there is a plan that Osinbajo would start town hall meetings in zones, and then, the meeting would be broken down to the state level.

Government realises that there is a need to take information to the people and there are steps that are being taken in order to ensure that that is done,” he said.

Shehu commended the efforts of the Minister of Information, Alhaji Lai Mohamned, whom he said had been doing everything

possible to sell the policies of the government to the people.

“To be fair to the Minister of Information, Mohammed, I have never seen somebody as hardworking as that gentleman, even as minister, you find out that he doesn’t miss the talk show on radio, from one radio station he would move to another and then he would move to television stations, to newspapers and all of that.

I believe that more needs to be done,” he said.

However, Shehu identified the poor efforts by agencies like the National Orientation Agency (NOA) as the

reason for the apparent disconnect the federal government has had in getting Nigerians to appreciate the giant strides being made by the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration in several areas, including the achievements in the crusade against corruption and plugging of loopholes for wasteful spending.

“We have an agency like NOA with 773 offices nationwide, each has not less than 5 to 7 staff, well equipped but you know also, sometimes democracy has its own dark side. The president came and he wanted to really be fair to every chief executive. If he wanted to

fire people on assumption, he would have done it and he would not have violated any rule, but he decided to give everyone a chance to see whether they would imbibe the change mantra, or prepared to come along.

“I will say with all sincerity that I know that the NOA had worried us in government, the people there and the leadership never believe in what we are doing, they never believe in change, they just fold their arms and watch us all this period - eight and nine months -they are there, I believe the new leadership would begin to formulate things for agencies like that,” he said

Arrests six persons over Ibi communal clash Senator Iroegbu in Abuja The Nigerian military in the ongoing counter-terrorism operations in the North east, has cleared more Boko Haram terrorist enclaves and rescued 54 hostages in Borno State.

The Director of Army Public Relations (DAPR), Col. Sani Usman, said yesterday said that troops of 114 Task Force Battalion, 28 Task Force Brigade, in conjunction with some vigilantes in their areas of operations, carried out clearance operation of reported remnants of Boko Haram along Bita-Madube Ciki-Njubul axis.

“During the advance, two soldiers unfortunately stepped on a buried Improvised Explosive Device (IED) that seriously injured one of the soldiers,” Usman said.

Despite the minor setback, he said the troops continued the advance and had contact with the terrorists and cleared them out of Madube Cikin, killing four terrorists.

He said the troops also destroyed two vehicles and two motorcycles belonging to the terrorists, and recovered two cylinders, AK-47 rifle, three boxes of 7.62mm (Special) ammunition, two bicycles and bags of grains.

“The troops also rescued 54 persons held hostage by the Boko Haram terrorists,” he stated.

Usman said the released hostages are being screened while the wounded soldiers have since been evacuated for proper medical care.

The Nigerian Army has arrested six persons and recovered arms and ammunition during the recent communal clash in Ibi Local Government Area of Taraba State.

The Commanding Officer (CO) of 93 Battalion in Takum, Taraba State, Lt-Col. Chima Obinna Egemole, disclosed

this yesterday saying, “what happened on March 25, 2016 at Ibi Local Government Area was characterised by ethnoreligious crisis.”

According to Egemole, the incidence started with some youths throwing stones at Muslims in the mosque during Jumuat praying which later escalated to sporadic shooting but for the timely intervention of troops and other sister agencies, normalcy was restored and 24 hours curfew imposed.

“Six persons have so far been arrested in connection to the crisis and manhunt ongoing for other perpetuators,” he said.

He listed items recovered including three Ak47 assault rifles, two AK47 magazines, four single barrel guns, 11 cartridges, axe, two hammers, cutlass, two handsaws, knife, three mobile phones, catapult, broken butt, 19 rounds of 5.56mm, 104 rounds of 7.2mm special and a liter of PMS have so far been recovered.

He said the army would be hand over the suspects and arms to the police for further investigation and prosecution.

Egemole however noted that prior to this incidence, “the Unit had two major peace meetings as directed by higher authorities between the stakeholders within the same week but it seemed all that was said fell on deaf ears, but dialogue will never cease”.

He also restated the commitment of the troops to continue to ensure the safety of the citizens as more meetings had been held with the stakeholders to resolve the crisis in the area.

The Commanding Officer also assured that measures have been put in place for more peace meetings to resolve the ongoing crisis in Ibi. He further urged all stakeholders in the area to educate mostly the youths on the need for peaceful coexistence and tolerance amongst one another for the benefit of growth and sustenance.

AFRIMA VISITS OBASANJO

L-R: Director, Sponsorship and Brand Communications, All Africa Music Award (AFRIMA), Matlou Tsotetsi; former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo; and President, AFRIMA and Managing Director, PRM Africa, Mike Dada; and 2015 AFRIMA’s Best Artiste in R&B and Soul in Africa, Praiz, during a courtesy visit and meeting with Obasanjo on the planning of 2016 All Africa Music Awards, in Abeokuta...recently

Sultan: Why Islam Has Become the ‘Bashing Boy’ Oluwo, Olorode preach peace Yinka Kolawole in, Osogbo The Sultan of Sokoto and the President, Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III, yesterday enjoined Muslims in the country to work very hard towards making things better.

The royal father, who stated this while inauguration a central mosque built in the premises of The Wings Schools, Iwo, Osun State, said the attitude of a few was being used by people to judge the religion, thereby turning it into the object of bashing.

He said the notion of holding religion responsible for the misdemeanor of an individual is making Islam a “bashing boy” and enjoined Muslims to work with a common goal to endear the religion to more people.

Abubakar said: “Our religion

is becoming the bashing boy because people hold it responsible for the misdeeds of a few individuals. Don’t pretend, you can’t afford to be lazy, work for this religion and be peaceful. People should know that an individual’s attitude cannot be used to determine what a religion is.

“We must henceforth separate the behavior of a few individuals from what our religion stands for, because if an individual is bad, religion should not be held responsible.

An individual is an individual while religion will always be separate.”

In his remarks, Oluwo of Iwo, Oba Rasheed Adewale Akanbi, demanded from adherents of Islam a Jihad of love, urging them to shed all acts that could discourage people from embracing the religion.

He said the visit of the Sultan was significant and

would further cement North/ South relationship, which will in turn help in promoting peaceful coexistence of people from different parts of the country.

Oba Akanbi who argued that centering of Islamic preaching on Sharia of punishment and killing has caused a lot of set back, segregation and dis-harmony among Muslim faithful in the country, affirmed that it is only Sharia of love that could promote peace in the circle.

He opined that many qualities, like tolerance, endurance, peace, harmony, mutual understanding, sacrifice among others are embedded in love and expressed optimism that if love reigns supreme in the Islamic circle, remarkable progress would be more recorded and appealed to them to always embrace love in their various dealings.

The traditional ruler therefore remarked that any given society where love is missing, there would be retrogression and backwardness, and charged them to right all wrongs concerning this.

In his contribution, the National Commissioner, South-west of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Profeasor Lai Olurode, advocated better understanding and promotion of knowledge and more dialogue between religions in the country.

Professor Olurode stressed that: “We need to understand and appreciate the values of others in order to concede to them a measure of respect as humans.”

He also urged everybody to show practical commitment to the promotion of cultural literacy and particularly it’s religious component as a basis for knowing values which others live for and which guide their social landscape.

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MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2016 • T H I S D AY

NEWS

IPOB to Resume Protests, Condemns Detention of 76 Enugu Farmers Emmanuel Ugwu in Umuahia After a lull in its protest marches against the continued detention of its leader, Nnamdi Kanu, the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) is poised to reignite the wave of protests in the South-east and parts of South-south zones.

Some IPOB’s Head of Media and Publicity, Emma Powerful, dropped the hint in a statement at the weekend, saying the group had endured enough waiting for the federal government to release Kanu, who has been in detention since October 14, 2015, following his arrest and ongoing trial.

“We have endured, we will start the protest that will bring the government to its knees,” he said, adding that the protest was earlier called off “not out of cowardice and fear but to show maturity and professionalism in what we are doing and to allow federal government to release our leader, Kanu unconditionally.”

The IPOB spokesman explained that in observing a break in its protests, the group gave the federal government an opportunity to take a decision and “release the man who did not commit any crime.”

Alluding to the often violent crackdown by security agencies during IPOB protests, Powerful said: “We know they will kill us as they used to do before now but in the end we will be free.” He called on, “Biafrans to be ready for what is to come.”

Citing the famous quotation of Martin Luther King Jr that ‘injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere’, the IPOB media and publicity head noted that the organisation was pleased with the pro-Biafra protests going on around the world which is still in progress.

He therefore stated that “we in Biafraland will not stop until our leader is released unconditionally.”

The spokesman said it was

regrettable that those who advised President Muhammadu Buhari do not want freedom for the IPOB leader, adding that they had continued to make it difficult for the president to do the right thing by releasing Kanu.

He added that the same sycophants in his administration were also waiting to laugh over his downfall.

Meanwhile, IPOB has vehemently condemned the arrest

and detention of 76 villagers of Ugwuneshi community in Awgu Local Government Area of Enugu State following a clash with Fulani herdsmen accused of destroying crops and farmland with their cattle.

The farmers are being held in prison custody at the federal prisons in Afara, Umuahia, after they were denied bail when they were arraigned before a magistrate court last week.

But IPOB condemned in strong terms the Nigeria Army and Nigeria Police Zone 9 for saying they were not aware of the farmers by “men in military uniform” who took them to Umuahia and then dumped them in prison.

IPOB spokesman said it was appalling that the army would deny knowledge of the “fake soldiers, fake police and their collaboration with Fulani herdsmen in ravaging, killing,

maiming and raping women and girls of Awgu community in Enugu State.”

He raised this poser: “If they are fake soldiers as claimed, who handed them (farmers) over to fake police, who prepared the fake charges against them and transferred them to fake Zone 9 in Umuahia and who took them to fake magistrate court, who remanded them in fake prison in Umuahia?”

Lagos at 50: Indigenes Reject Soyinka’s Appointment Femi Durojaiye A group of Lagos indigenes under the aegis of Eko Foundation at the weekend rejected the appointment of Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, as the co-Chairman of Lagos at 50 Celebration Committee.

The group also lamented that Lagos indigenes had been marginalised in their own land, noting that residents from other states of the federation “are taking the appointment meant for us.”

The group expressed the grievance of Lagos, indigenes at a news conference its President, Prof. Oluwole Smith addressed in Surulere noting that the state Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode had been offering non-indigenes more appointment than indigenes of the state.

The conference was attended by the state Commissioner for Women Affairs during the Bola Tinubu administration, Mrs. Peju Philips; Special Adviser on Environment during the Babatunde Fashola administration, Dr. Taofiq Folami and former Solicitor-General of the state Mr. Lawal Pedro among others.

But at the conference, the president of the foundation said Soyinka’s appointment as the chairman of the committee for the celebration of Lagos State at 50 was a wrong choice and unacceptable.

Smith said successive governments in the state had retained the penchant of marginalising those he called,’ true indigenes’ for the past 18 years, saying they would henceforth resist government decisions to give sensitive appointments to non-indigenes of the state.

“There are very many elders, octogenarians, septuagenarians , former governor, ministers, academicians, public and civil servants and other indigenes

both at home and in the Diaspora, who are more than eminently qualified to celebrate their state.

“Prof. Soyinka’s choice is an insult to the indigenes and he should decline to serve, to accord with his reputation as a protester, who has tirelessly protested against wrongs and injustice in the better part of his adult life,” he said.

Smith observed that the choice of Alhaji Rasheed Gbadamosi, an indigene “to co-chair the committee with Professor Soyinka was a deception and mischievous make believe. We decided to cry out to enable us partake as of right and in accordance with extant laws, in the government of the state.

“We can no longer afford to keep silent and pretend that all is well when in fact there appears to be no future for the indigenes of this state and the generations yet unborn in the state.

“At the moment, we have six Ibos occupying the seat of Lagos in the House of Representatives, non-indigene as a senator, several non-indigenes in Lagos State House of Assembly and in the executive council of the state.

“In the past, indigenes of other states have taken over our ministerial slot and occupy positions in various parastatals both in the state and at federal level. These are not replicated in any other state in Nigeria.”

Smith said the implication of the abnormality was that Lagos indigenes would have to passionately appeal to the nonindigenes to secure employment for themselves and their children in their own land.

He added that indigenes would henceforth closely monitor and periscope the activities of the present administration in the state, warning that appointments in the state must conform to Federal Character Commission Act, the constitution of the country and other subsidiary legislation.

LEAD YOUR PEOPLE WELL

L-R: A representative of the Governor and Secretary to the Government of Osun State, Alhaji Mohood Adeoti, presenting a staff of office to Akinla of Erin-Ijesa, Oba Isaac Adeyeba Ayeni and Olori Titilayo, during the Installation and presentation of staff of office to the traditional ruler at Erin-Ijesa,Osun State.....weekend Yomi AkinYele

Judge Responds to Metuh’s Petition, Denies Any Relationship with PDP Spokesman Tobi Soniyi in Abuja

The judge handling the trial of the spokesman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Olisa Metuh, has said he had neither social nor work relationship with the politician.

Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court, Abuja, said he did not know Metuh during his (the judge) practice as a lawyer and while in school.

The judge however did not deny the fact that he was in the same law school class with Metuh.

The judge’s position was contained in his response to a petition written against him by Metuh to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, Justice Ibrahim Auta.

Justice Abang’s response is dated March 23.

Metuh had, in the petition written by one of his lawyers, Emeka Etiaba (SAN), claimed among others, that the judge was his classmate at the Law School in 1988 and that he last met the judge late last year at the Meridien Hotel, Akwa Ibom State.

Metuh, who said he was worried he could not get justice before the judge, accused him (Justice Abang) of bias and of deliberately refusing to release records of proceedings to enable him appeal the judge’s earlier decisions.

Metuh is praying Justice Auta to transfer the case to another judge to commence afresh.

Metuh and his company, Destra

Investment Limited, were arraigned before Justice Abang in January on a seven-count charge, in which they were accused of retaining proceeds of unlawful act and engaging in money laundering.

The prosecution closed its case in February after calling eight witnesses. But, rather than open their defence, Metuh and his firm made a no-case submission.

In a ruling on March 9, Justice Abang rejected the no-case submission, on the ground that the prosecution had established a case against Metuh and his company, requiring them being called upon to enter defence.

Rather than open his defence, Metuh, on March 11, petitioned the Chief Judge, raising sundry accusations against Justice Abang and requested the transfer of the case against him to another judge.

The prosecutor, Sylvanus Tahir, said he was not served a copy of Metuh’s petition as required by procedure.

Justice Abang, in his response to Metuh’s petition, a copy of which was sighted THISDAY in Abuja, said although he neither knew nor had any relationship with Metuh, it was impossible for the relationship Metuh claimed existed between them to affect the facts and laws in relation to his (Metuh’s) trial.

“With respect to the first issue that the petitioner Emeka Etiaba (SAN) stated that the 1st defendant in charge FHC/ABJ/CR/05/2016 was my classmate in the Nigerian

Law School, my Lord, for the records, I was at the Law School in 1987/88 academic session.

“I am not aware that Olisa Metuh was my classmate in the Nigerian Law School. I cannot recall seeing him in the session in my time. In the law school, we were over 1,000 students and we had two sessions then attended morning session.

“He is not from my place, Oron, in Akwa Ibom State. I did not see him as a student in University of Calabar that I attended between September 1983 till June 1987.

“I have never met him in practice anywhere in the country before I was elevated to the bench in June 2009. Again, he claimed he met me in Le’ Mariden Uyo late last year.

“I was not at the Le’ Meriden Uyo late last year . I had no function that I attended at the Le’ Meriden Uyo late last year. I did not meet him at the Le’ Meriden Uyo late last year.

“If the records show that he is a lawyer and was called to Nigerian Bar on November 3, 1988, which record I am yet to see, that cannot affect the facts and the law.

“I attended recently my class reunion meeting in Abuja, Lagos and Enugu, I did not see Metuh in the places I mentioned. I am not related to Metuh in any way, I do not know where he comes from,” Justice Abang said.

On Metuh’s allegation that majority of the judge’s rulings was in favour of the prosecution, Justice Abang noted that as a lawyer,

Etiaba knew what option exists for a party, who is not comfortable with a court’s decision.

“As regard the issue that I made interlocutory decisions in favour of the prosecution in the matter, my response here is simple. And that is, that I am entitled to give decisions in matters placed before me for adjudication having heard parties.

“That is why there are appellate courts. If he is dissatisfied with those decisions, I think Etiaba ought to know what to do.

“As regard the alleged non-release of the record of proceedings, I think Etiaba is not fair to me at all. I will leave him to his conscience. He has an improper motive in this regard.

“For the records, my lord, the defendant applied for the Certified True Copy of proceedings at the time proceedings were going on from day to day. I approved same and directed my secretary to type the proceedings.

“The proceedings were bulky in nature because I heard the case from day to day. When the secretary concluded typing the proceedings, I abandoned all other matters before me and concentrated on checking the typed proceedings to be in line with what were in the court’s records.

“When I proofread the proceedings and was satisfied that they represent what transpired in the open court, I endorsed same for certification and released the proceedings to them on March 15, 2016,” Justice Abang said.

MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2016 • T H I S D AY

12

NEWS

Rivers Not Deadliest State, Govt Insists Blames Amaechi for Buhari’s perception Ernest Chinwo in Port Harcourt The Rivers State Government has disagreed with President Muhammadu Buhari on his statement that the state is the deadliest in the country.

Buhari, in his statement last Friday at the National Executive Council (NEC) meeting of his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), in Abuja, said Rivers State was the deadliest state in the country.

The president was reacting to situations that led to suspension and inability of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to announce the results of the rerun elections in the state.

Reacting to the president’s remarks, the state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Emmanuel Aguma (SAN), lampooned Buhari for saying his comments were unfortunate.

Aguma said: “Our reporter met with a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and a chieftain of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers State, Mr. Emmanuel Aguma who spoke with The Trent in his personal capacity as a citizen of Nigeria.

We asked him what he thought about Buhari’s remarks about the ‘deadliest’ status of Rivers State.

“First and foremost, I find the president’s statement quite unfortunate. But, I also do not blame him because he does not live in the state and he only acts

on information he is fed. I believe that the information given to him is totally and completely distorted,” said Aguma, at an interview session with journalists last Friday.

According to him, “More people are not dying in Rivers State than in Borno State, where Boko Haram is performing unconscionable acts of violence. More people are not dying in Rivers State than in Yobe State. More people are not dying in Rivers State than in the North-east region. Even right now, in Benue State, the number of people being killed is unthinkable. We heard the case of Agatu where they [the security agencies] are saying they never saw graves with 300 people, but that is their business. The fact is that more people are dying in Benue State than in Rivers State.”

On who is responsible for distorting the facts to the president, Aguma said: “So I believe that statement of the president was informed by the falsehood being peddled by Amaechi and his gang and being fed to the President through the Department of State Security’s leadership and it is totally and completely false.

“If such people are being killed, how come the Federal High Court is still sitting in Port Harcourt?

How come the Federal Court of Appeal is still sitting in Port Harcourt? How come the State High Court is sitting? How come Federal Secretariat is working?

How come INTELS is here?

How come the banks are open?

How come the markets are there?

How come the street hawkers are hawking on a daily basis? How come bus services are working?

How come you never heard any exceptional bomb explosion with headlines like ‘300 people dead’, ‘Man shoots at market, everybody dead?

“You have never heard any such things. The only thing you hear is gangland killings in Amokur and election day killing by APC members. That is all you hear in the state.”

As a concerned citizen of Rivers and Nigeria, Aguma said he was inviting Buhari to the state for a on-the- spot assessment so that he would have the correct security information about Rivers.

“So, Mr. President, the people feeding you with information that made you come to this conclusion,

are feeding you with lies and more lies. Rivers State is part of your territory. Please come to visit us and see. I am asking you not as a government official. I am appealing as a citizen, for you to come and see for yourself, and appreciate for yourself, and know for yourself that there is nothing wrong with Rivers State.

Nobody is killing anybody. It is sheer propaganda.

“It is also necessary for you to come and know that Rivers people have nothing against you.

The person who Rivers people have anything against is Rotimi Amaechi for his misrule of the state.

“You have never ruled Rivers State before, they have no basis to assess you. You have no problem with the state government of Rivers, you have not problem with the people of the state.

“But Amaechi has problem

with them (the Rivers people), they will never vote for him. The one they gave him in the past is enough, they don’t want anymore of him. That is the bottom line,” he stated.

In his message to Buhari, Aguma maintained that Amaechi is a major liability for the APC in the state saying the political party, which had just lost a legislative elections in the state was ‘practically dead’ in the state because of the presence of Amaechi in the party. He also accused Amaechi and the APC of perpetuating violence and killing people in the state.

“And it is the rejection of Amaechi that has affected the fortunes of APC in Rivers State and made APC a practically dead political party in Rivers State.

“So, they will tell you, it is because people are being killed that is why they are losing

elections. They are the ones killing people. They will tell you that Rivers State is insecure; they are the ones responsible for the insecurity. They will tell you all sorts of stories, but whatever they tell you is what they are doing,” Aguma said.

He also warned the president that he was being baited by Amaechi with the intent of causing him to declare a state of emergency in the state.

“They are doing this so that your opinion, Mr. President, will be biased. So that you would declare a state of emergency; so that you would do all sorts of unprintable things to Rivers people.

“Amaechi’s rampage and assault on River State is akin to a man who builds a house, puts it out to let, but warns tenants that it is cockroach infested, it is snake invested, it is reptile infested. Is such landlord sane?

Vlisco Rewards Loyal Customers As part of activities designed to celebrate the 2016 annual International Women’s Day (IWD), leading fabric designers and makers, Vlisco Nigeria, has rewarded its loyal consumers with gift items and prizes at the Ikeja City Mall in Lagos.

Vlisco Group has been integrated into the African fashion world for over a century by continually creating, inspiring and connecting

with Africa’s creative spirit and talent.

Over the years, the company has built an integrated business model and a sustainable relationship with clients and consumers.

The relationship has grown over time, entwining the brand into the cultural diversity of West and Central Africa, which allows them to be at the forefront of promoting African print design and fashion

both inAfrica and the world at large.

“This reward is part of Vlisco drive to delight consumers and appreciate them for their continuous support and patronage of the Vlisco brand here in Ikeja City Mall.As a company that cares, Vlisco is dedicated to rewarding consumers with greater value, and we will continue to do this with attractive rewards and campaigns throughout the year. As the world’s leading fabric

maker, we believe in giving back to our society, and this reward is certainly a true reflection of our principles.

“We came here to thank our customers and encourage them to continue in the patronage of our brands and we promise that loyal and commitment consumers would have the opportunity to travel on the Dana Airline,” she disclosed.

14

T H I S D AY • MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2016

COMMENT

Editor, Editorial Page PETER ISHAKA Email peter.ishaka@thisdaylive.com

THE SENATORS AND THE DISCOS

It is in the nation’s interest that electricity tariffs are reflective of operational cost, argues Femi Aderibigbe

O

n February 15 this year, the Nigerian Senate imperially directed the Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing and the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Council [NERC] to suspend the announced increase in electricity tariffs. The tariffs were approved for implementation on February 1, 2016. In making the order stopping the increase, the Senate claimed it was trying to ensure that the Nigerian worker was not short-changed by the electricity distribution companies (Discos) that took over from NEPA, as it were, in terms of metering and billing of electricity consumers nation wide The Senate order portrayed the legislative body as a public- spirited institution acting extraordinarily to defend the masses of Nigerians from exploitation by the Discos who were presented as sharks ready to make profit from electricity tariffs by all means. This certainly is not correct and nothing could be further from the truth.

Indeed it is the Senate which is desperate to launder its image and credibility given its leadership election rumpus which has alienated it from the masses especially the labour unions and its shameful purchase of state-ofthe-art SUVs for senators at a time when the economy is comatose that is looking for any excuse to save its face from the inevitable anger of Nigerians and workers. In claiming that it is acting to ensure that the Nigerian worker is not short-changed the Senate is simply shedding crocodile tears and the Nigerian worker or average electricity consumer is not deceived at all.

By stopping the increased tariff the Senate made three grievous errors. The first is that it has delayed the economic development of Nigeria inherent in the tariff increase as the tariffs are cost-reflective and planned pricing peculiar to the electricity industry globally and are not made at the whims and caprices of anybody. The second is that in making the order to stop the increase, the Nigerian Senate brazenly usurped the statutory duty of NERC, the regulatory body saddled by law to approve such pricing regime in the electricity industry according to global best practices and which has already sanctioned and approved the new tariffs . Third, the Senate in

IN MAKING THE ORDER TO STOP THE INCREASE, THE NIGERIAN SENATE BRAZENLY USURPED THE STATUTORY DUTY OF NERC, THE REGULATORY BODY SADDLED BY LAW TO APPROVE PRICING REGIME IN THE ELECTRICITY INDUSTRY

stopping the new increase in tariffs sabotaged the good work of the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Raji Fashola who has staked his reputation and credibility on selling the new tariffs to the Nigerian public and which had believed him when he said that the new tariffs were comparable to a bitter pill like quinine used to cure malaria and the public had willingly bought into the idea before the Senate threw spanner in the works .

Again in portraying the Discos as profit sharks the Senate has demonstrated crass ignorance on the workings of the electricity industry especially with regard to the delivery of electricity and power generally. Nigerian discos are not expected to make profit for the first five years in spite of their huge investments in the industry. They got their mandate in 2013 and are looking forward to 2018 to see some light at the end of the tunnel for their huge expenditure and layout. The regulatory body, NERC is monitoring and regulating the Discos on this before the Senate meddled in what is not in any way its business or even an oversight function.

Again, the Senate has assumed falsely and illogically that it thinks for Nigerians who do not know what is going on in the world. But that is a very grievous mistake on the part of the Senate. The world has become a global village and Nigerians know what is going on in the world. They remember the high cost of GSM phones and SIM cards when the technology came to Nigeria and the cheap prices they now buy them for their functional use. They can see the same development coming from increased electricity tariffs and are ready to pay as long as the Discos make the electricity available and constant.

They cannot wait to see the Discos get their act right like the gsm companies did before and are not amused by the diversionary and expensive order of the Senate in delaying their dream of seeing the discos giving value for money in terms of constant power supply in the very near future or as soon as NERC regulates the Discos to achieve their electricity delivery mandate.

Aderibigbe, an engineer, wrote from Lagos

NO GOING BACK

G

ive credit to Professor Mahmood Yakubu, the Chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission [INEC].Without any grandstanding and public hoopla, Yakubu who barely took over at INEC four months ago, has steadied the ship of the election management agency while steering it calmly through a very tricky terrain that emerged from the 2015 general election.

At INEC, often times, it looks like it is one day, one trouble. The story of the agency is that of an institution that is always in the eye of the storm, pinned down by desperate political interests.

Contest for public positions in Nigeria is known to be fierce, with elections turning into something of a “do or die affair” [apologies to former President Olusegun Obasanjo].

The Electoral Act and other laws which prescribe how elections should be conducted in Nigeria are found to always be one or two steps behind the capacity of politicians when it comes to exploiting loopholes in the law or sidestepping the law to do what they want. In fact the electoral laws are not always pro-active enough although it is always amended every four years.

To be fair to the INEC people and the extant laws guiding elections in Nigeria, some of the intractable problems that confront elections day in and day out, can be traced to sources outside the realm of law. Security and social environment in which politics is played and elections are conducted more often than not present the

Toyin Oke argues Mahood Yakubu, chairman of INEC, is doing remarkably well biggest headache for the electoral system in Nigeria. Politicians and the Political parties in the country seem resolved often to torpedo the whole system if they cannot get their way. In this disposition, there is hardly any difference between the political parties. The level of desperation is same among all of them. It is always the one on the losing side at any juncture that takes to shouting louder about how the winning side is breaching the law. All of them are on the same wave length. For a society where political manoeuvres rage on all year round, there is hardly a difference between election time and post election period.

Prof.Mahmood Yakubu coming in after a general election obviously had no breathing space before being confronted with the heat that is a part of his new office.

Although the 2015 general election was seen as successful, more so as it witnessed the first defeat of an incumbent ruling party in the country, the elections left a hefty baggage for the new INEC chairman and the system.

With over 80 re-run elections arising from cancelled or upturned elections in the 2015 polls, Yakubu on assumption of duties at INEC found himself confronted with the highest number of upturned and re-run elections in the history of elections in Nigeria. The financial cost of these numerous re-run elections must be stretching INEC resources. This further adds to the high cost of democracy in Nigeria.

Many cannot stop wondering how much Nigeria is ready to spend on elections and running governance. The judiciary does not help the matter too.

The new INEC Chairman seems to have brought along a very impressive profile of equanimity and fair-handedness to INEC. In spite of the daunting challenge of conducting over the 80 re-run elections he inherited from the 2015 elections, he has been discharging the obligation smoothly and steadily. So far the re-run elections have been fairly conducted that none of the political parties can say that INEC is working against it. In fact, as it is, the parties have been winning and losing the re-run elections according to their strength in the field. That is the way it should be.

The first major election conducted by the new INEC under Professor Yakubu was the Kogi governorship election late last year. It was a baptism of controversy garnished with complications. The two major political parties, APC and PDP took turns criticising INEC during the Kogi governorship election, depending on the decision that favoured or went against each side.

Yakubu’s INEC remained calm and firm.

Since the Kogi election, Nigerians have noticed a level of fair handedness by the commission in conducting elections. These days, before any party that loses in one election could start blaming INEC for its loss, the same party finds itself winning in the next re-run election. That is the way it should be. Yakubu deserves commendation for bringing this fair-handedness to the system. He has the task to continue on the same track if he is to retain the confidence of critical Nigerians.

But some factors in conducting free and fair elections are outside the control of Yakubu and INEC. In spite of this reality, INEC and its leadership are always

condemned to carry the can.

Security is one of these serious factors.

For example, in the Bayelsa governorship election, security challenges almost marred the whole thing. Desperate politicians had amassed troops and weapons fit for a full-fledged war, all in the name of going for election. INEC under Yakubu stood its ground on decisions guiding the election.

Truly, big credit goes to the new INEC chairman for adjusting the procedure of the election to now have accreditation and voting taking place simultaneously, as against the old practice where people got accredited, waited for hours and returned to vote. The old procedure left a lot of free space and time which trouble makers exploited. The adjustment has made a lot of positive difference. INEC was also able to stand its ground on decisions it took in the face of violence in some areas during the Bayelsa election. The new INEC Chairman managed to navigate these challenges without much public grandstanding and chest beating.

From all indications, legislative elections in some states will present another round of serious security challenges. Government should ensure that the necessary environment is created for the even-handedness that the new INEC chairman has brought to elections to thrive. Even Mahmood Yakubu knows that there is a long way to go. There are many more re-run elections to come. Some governorship elections will also hold later this year too. Can the system help the new INEC head continue the way he has started?

Oke wrote from Lagos

15

T H I S D AY MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2016

EDITORIAL PASSAGE OF THE 2016 BUDGET

S

The implementation of the budget should get the country back on the path of growth official letter of apology to end the fuss about having two versions of the 2016 Appropriation Bill.

As it would happen, even that did not end the puzzle.

When the various National Assembly committees began to work on the details by inviting heads of ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) to defend their proposals, the issue of errors, inconsistencies and overpadding was unearthed. The Health Minister, Professor Isaac Adewole, for instance, literally disowned the version of budget he met with the lawmakers, stating that the figures therein were quite different from what he submitted. Almost every other minister would discover huge discrepancies between what they claimed they budgeted and the figures before the lawmakers.

hortly before the 2016 Appropriation Bill was passed by the National Assembly last week, the chairman of the House of Representatives’ Committee on Appropriation, Hon. Abdulmumin Jibrin described this year’s budget as the most tasking he and other lawmakers had ever encountered. All factors considered, the statement was quite understandable. While we await the details, we must commend members of the appropriation committees in both chambers of the National Assembly for wading through the murky issues and getting the bill passed.

In the budget, the lawmakers retained the benchmark price of $38 per barrel with a crude oil production estimate of 2.2 million barrels per day and an exchange rate of N197 to $1, all as proposed by the executive.

A breakdown of the budget further reveals statutory transfers of N351,370 billion; debt service,N1,475,320 trillion; recurrent expenditure, N2,646,389 trillion; capital expenditure, N1,587,598, trillion and fiscal deficit of N2,204, 937 trillion. The budget will also run for 12 calendar months, starting from the date it is assented to, in line with Section 318 IT IS STILL A SCANDAL of the 1999 ConstituTHAT A NATION tion.

THAT ASPIRES TO BE While analysts have AMONG THE 20 MOST continued to worry INDUSTRIALISED over the fundamentals COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD of the 2016 budget and SPENDS MOST OF ITS whether it is impleANNUAL BUDGET ON mentable, given the RECURRENT ITEMS current revenue profile of the nation, that there is even a document to work with is in itself an achievement. Presented in December last year to the joint session of the National Assembly, the problem with the 2016 budget started with a report that it was “missing” at the Senate! It took a meeting between the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki and President Muhammadu Buhari for that controversy to be resolved.

Soon, it became the question of having two versions of the budget in circulation and later, about which of the versions was authentic. Again, it took President Buhari’s

Letters to the Editor

I

T T H I S DAY

EDITOR IJEOMA NWOGWUGWU DEPUTY EDITOR BOLAJI ADEBIYI MANAGING DIRECTOR ENIOLA BELLO DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTOR KAYODE KOMOLAFE CHAIRMAN EDITORIAL BOARD OLUSEGUN ADENIYI EDITOR NATIONí S CAPITAL IYOBOSA UWUGIAREN

T H I S DAY N E W S PA P E R S L I M I T E D

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF/CHAIRMAN NDUKA OBAIGBENA GROUP EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS ENIOLA BELLO, KAYODE KOMOLAFE, ISRAEL IWEGBU, EMMANUEL EFENI, IJEOMA NWOGWUGWU GROUP FINANCE DIRECTOR OLUFEMI ABOROWA DIVISIONAL DIRECTORS PETER IWEGBU, FIDELIS ELEMA, MBAYILAN ANDOAKA, ANTHONY OGEDENGBE DEPUTY DIVISIONAL DIRECTOR OJOGUN VICTOR DANBOYI SNR. ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR ERIC OJEH ASSOCIATE DIRECTORS HENRY NWACHOKOR, SAHEED ADEYEMO CONTROLLERS ABIMBOLA TAIWO, UCHENNA DIBIAGWU, NDUKA MOSERI GENERAL MANAGER PATRICK EIMIUHI GROUP HEAD FEMI TOLUFASHE ART DIRECTOR OCHI OGBUAKU II DIRECTOR, PRINTING PRODUCTION CHUKS ONWUDINJO TO SEND EMAIL: rst name.surname@thisdaylive.com

aking responsibility, President Buhari fired the Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Alhaji Yahaya Gusau, and replaced him with Alhaji Tijjani Abdullahi. While that helped in dousing the controversy, now that the 2016 budget has been passed, sufficient lessons must be learned. It is also important, as the National Assembly has suggested, that the proposals be submitted on time. But there are critical issues that we cannot gloss over.

Even though it is something that predates the current administration, it is still a scandal that a nation that aspires to be among the 20 most industrialised countries in the world spends most of its annual budget on recurrent items some of which have been identified as: procurement and maintenance of generating sets in government offices; purchase of vehicles for public officers which in itself bastardises the monetisation policy; high wages and questionable allowances for political office holders; payments for non-existing (ghost) workers; unnecessary duplication of job schedules and responsibilities in the public service and continuous leakages in the bureaucracy, etc.

It is therefore our hope that in the preparation for the 2017 budget, there will be a greater attention to detail so that we can, by next year, put some of these unfortunate developments behind us. Budget must begin to make meaning in Nigeria.

TO OUR READERS Letters in response to speci c publications in THISDAY should be brief (150≠ 200 words) and straight to the point. Interested readers may send such letters along with their contact details to opinion@thisdaylive.com. We also welcome comments and opinions on topical local, national and international issues provided they are well≠ written and should also not be longer than (950≠ 1000 words). They should be sent to opinion@thisdaylive.com along with the email address and phone numbers of the writer.

CARING FOR DOWN SYNDROME VICTIMS

t is a painful thing for a child’s right to life to be decided ever before his arrival on earth. This, of course, is the plight of children with Down syndrome. Available statistics show that the estimated incidence of Down syndrome is between one in 1,000 and one in 1,100 live births worldwide. The origin of Down syndrome can be traced to John Langdon Down, an English physician that first described the external appearance of the genetic condition, which he classified in 1862. It was later to bear his name,” Down”. He also referred to it as Mongolism and the people with the disease are known as Mongoloids.

In Nigeria, it has been discovered that the disease is prevalent because of the increasing maternal age at which more women in Nigeria now conceive. This follows the increasing strong desire to complete formal education before conception and the rising incidence of infertility. But this claim has been faulted, as it has recently been observed that 80% of children with Down syndrome are born to mothers under the age of 35.

Scientifically, Down syndrome occurs when an individual has a full or partial extra copy of chromosome 21, referred to as Trisomy 21, which remains the most common form of Down syndrome.

Therefore, individuals with this type of Down syndrome have 47 chromosomes instead of the usual 46. This is caused by an error in cell division called non-disjunction, which leaves a sperm or egg cell with an extra copy of chromosome 21 before or at conception.

Trisomy 21 accounts for 95% of Down syndrome cases, with 88% originating from non-disjunction of the mother’s egg cell. This additional genetic material alters the course of development and

causes the characteristics associated with the disorder. Usually, it is always difficult to differentiate people with Down syndrome if a large number of them converge in the same venue due to the physical characteristics they share.

The remaining 5% of Down syndrome cases are due to conditions called mosaicism and translocation. Mosaic Down syndrome results when some cells in the body are normal while others have Trisomy 21. Robertsonian translocation occurs when part of chromosome 21 breaks off during cell division and attaches to another chromosome (usually chromosome 14). The presence of this extra part of chromosome 21 causes some Down syndrome characteristics. Although a person with a translocation may appear physically normal, he or she has a greater risk of producing a child with an extra 21st chromosome.

Down syndrome is not linked to race, nationality, religion and social or economic status. In addition to other traits unique to individuals with this disorder, a few of the common traits are low muscle tone, small stature, an upward slant to the eyes, and a single deep crease across the centre of the palm. In essence, it causes delays in physical and intellectual development. It is important to note that people with Down syndrome may possess these characteristics to different degrees according to the form as mentioned above.

In order to ascertain the possibility of giving birth to babies with Down syndrome, during the pre- natal period, two types of procedures are available to pregnant women: screening tests and diagnostic tests. The screening tests estimate the risk of the baby having Down syndrome while the Diagnostic tests tell whether or not the baby actually has Down syndrome. The most commonly

used screening test is “The Triple Screen”, a combination of three tests that measure quantities of various substances in the blood.

These tests are carried out between 15 and 20 weeks of gestation. In conjunction with other screenings, sonogram, a form of ultrasound is performed to show some physical traits that are helpful in calculating the risk of Down syndrome.

However, it is usually identified at birth or shortly thereafter by conducting a Karyotype test, a chromosome study which provides a visual display of the chromosomes grouped by their size, number and shape is used to determine if a child has the disorder or otherwise. This is carried out through the examination of blood or tissue cells of the baby. The aforementioned physical characteristics commonly seen in babies with this disorder are also used in the diagnosis after the birth of the baby.

Aside from both children and adults with Down syndrome experiencing developmental delays and mild to moderate impairments, many children with Down syndrome have health complications beyond the usual childhood illnesses. Approximately 40% of the children have congenital heart defects; therefore, it is very important that an echocardiogram be performed on all newborns with Down syndrome in order to identify any serious cardiac problems that might be present. While some of the heart conditions require surgery, others only require careful monitoring.

Children with Down syndrome have a higher incidence of infection, respiratory, vision and hearing problems as well as thyroid and other medical conditions.

Bilkis Bakare, Ministry of Information & Strategy, Alausa, Lagos

16

T H I S D AY • MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2016

POLITICS

Group Politics Editor Olawale Olaleye Email wale.olaleye@thisdaylive.com 08116759819 SMS ONLY

T H E M O N D AY D I S C O U R S E

Let the Trial Begin...

With politics and issues competing for attention in the trial of Senate President Bukola Saraki over alleged false assets declaration, it’s time to finally end the drama, write Shola Oyeyipo, Segun James and Jameelah Sanda

M

onths after the news of alleged false declaration of assets against the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, by the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) first hit the airwaves with preliminary legal engagements, the tribunal last week declared it had jurisdiction to prosecute the case and consequently fixed April 5 for the commencement of the trial proper, in a charge brought against Saraki by the federal government.

Since the resolve to try Saraki for corruption in spite of the many alleged procedural flaws and perhaps, make him a major celebrity scapegoat, the political class and the legal family have been sharply divided on the development. From the about 13 charges to the process and the various provisions believed to being manipulated to arrive at a premeditated answer, the trial has become a public concern.

There is also the belief that the chairman of the CCT, Danladi Umar has been found as a canon folder for the Saraki project, a development that has also raised a character debate about the CCT boss. Thus, from the shock of resurrecting a 12-year-old case, to the suitability of a perfect judge, the dismissal of a 5-year-old case as an error and the complications of the charges with their obvious inconsistencies, the Saraki trial promises to be a hard nut to crack even though those after him do not intend to stand down on the project.

The Issues, the Politics The case filed against Saraki has continued to raise many suspicions, including the fact that it is part of a survival game and of course, the extrapolations ahead of the 2019 election, first within the All Progressives Congress (APC). A corollary to this also s that the Senate President too has said at every given opportunity that his trial was orchestrated because he assumed the office of the Senate President against the interest of some power brokers in the party.

Discussing the issues, the Saraki case has been identified as the first time the office of the Attorney General of the Federation is initiating a case to the Tribunal. This is because the law establishing the tribunal provides that cases before it will be referred by the Code of Conduct Bureau and not the AGF. But that section of the provision was violated in an attempt to undermine the process.

Contrary to the provisions of this law, members of the CCB did not know about the charges before the case against Saraki was filed. The case was supposed to have emanated from the bureau as a referral.

Of particular note is that the investigation was handled by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the eight witnesses produced too were from the same EFCC. That, naturally, raised some fundamental questions about a flawed process.

Signs of Cracks in APC Signs that the Saraki trial is more troubles for the APC are beginning to manifest already.

Not only are members of the ruling party unhappy with the alleged persecution of their number three citizen, whatever his iniquities, they have started to react to the situation in a manner that suggests the party might just be sitting on a time-bomb.

At the caucus meeting of the party held last Wednesday in Abuja, a mild drama was said to have taken place to the shock of many.

A senator from a North Central state was said to have cursed out at President Buhari in Hausa, saying if this was how he planned to rule and divide the party, then he would have them to contend with. The senator

Saraki...will this cup pass over?

was also said to have threatened that they would soon start to collect signatures for his impeachment. According to sources, the president’s security had to quickly build a wall around him, fearing the senator could out of

Unfortunately, he didn’t seem to clearly understand the import of his action, hence the manner with which he declared that his ruling five years ago was a mistake. That it took him five years, and another case to realise he made a mistake is believed, speaks to his competence. This is because, assuming he had given a capital punishment in error, it is doubtful if he’d ever own up or admit in such a casual manner

rage attack him. But the senator was said to have dismissed the possibility of attacking him, however satisfied that he had delivered his message to him in person.

As if that was not enough, immediately this happened, the Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the party, Comrade Timi Frank also added his voice to Saraki’s trial and described it as worrisome in view of the manifest flaws in the processes leading to his arraignment. He said in a statement in Abuja, that it was dangerous that the leadership of the APC had decided to sit on the fence and watch Saraki swim or sink.

“I sincerely hold that the current trial of Saraki is not only underserved, but amounts to paying a good man with evil. I also want to say that the leaders of our great party have unfortunately remained quiet in the face of evil. I don’t believe we have forgotten that the victory of the APC during the last general elections could not have been possible without courageous strategists like Saraki, who lent their political weight in favour of the APC at the risk of their own lives and personal survival.

“I don’t think we have forgotten how Saraki as a Senator in the 7th Senate brought the attention of Nigerians to the fraud perpetrated by the last administration in the name of fuel subsidy? I don’t think we have forgotten too soon how Saraki led five other governors of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) into

the APC – a development that successfully turned the political tide against the PDP and eventually tipped the electoral scale against them during the 2015 general election.

“I don’t think we have forgotten how Saraki led scores of Senators to cross over to the APC on the floor of the Senate. I don’t think we have also forgotten what he gave of his time, personal resources and energy to ensure that the APC emerged victorious both at the National, State and Local Government level.

“The question is: Why is the case of Saraki being treated differently at the CCT that in 2011 struck out the case against one of our national leaders because he was not given the opportunity to deny or admit the alleged discrepancies in his asset declaration forms in line with Section 3(d) of the CCB/CCT Act unlike 11 other ex-governors, who had similar cases of irregularities whose cases were dropped by the CCB after they were invited by the agency.”

Alluding to sheer persecution, Frank asked: “Or where else in the world will the number three citizen of a country be hauled before a tribunal over alleged irregularities in his asset declaration forms 13 years ago, and the hierarchy of the ruling to which he is a bonafide member will not come out to show solidarity or defend him? If it is true that the trial of the Senate President is not borne out of genuine desire to fight corruption but is CONT’D ON NEXT PAGE

17

T H I S D AY • MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2016

POLITICS/ THE MONDAY DISCOURSE LET THE TRIAL BEGIN...

Senators at the CCT with Saraki as a show of solidarity

being carried out for selfish political ends, then who is next?”

Since Frank made the statement, it has been an uneasy calm in the ranks of the APC, as a majority of its members now share the views of the comrade. Apart from the senate standing with and by Saraki regardless of party affiliations, the public too is sharply divided because many of them have reservations about the handling of the trial and the likely implications it portends for the polity, especially the fight against corruption.

Reading Umar’s Body Language From the day he was handed the assignment, the CCT chair, Danladi Umar has not been able to come clean at his desk with his reputation constantly under attack. However, lately, he has also given reasons why he could not be trusted with the assignment or any job of this nature.

For example, his reversal of himself on Thursday in the CCT verdict involving a former governor of Lagos, Bola Tinubu, has thrown up reputation concerns for the CCT as well as the integrity and credibility of the Nigerian judiciary. That he admitted giving a judgment in error was described in many quarters as impossible, raising many questions including the condition under which he delivered the judgment.

Unfortunately, he didn’t seem to clearly understand the import of his action, hence the manner with which he declared that his ruling five years ago was a mistake. That it took him five years, and another case to realise he made a mistake is believed to speak to his competence. This is because, assuming he had given a capital punishment in error, it is doubtful if he’d ever own up or admit in such a casual manner?

Thus, when taken apart, Umar seems to be treading yet another path of error as he did in the case of Tinubu. His recourse to Paragraph 3 (e), of the third paragraph of the 1999 Constitution, as the tribunal’s basis for not adhering to Section 3 (D) of the CCT Act raises genuine concern about justice.

It is against this backdrop that a new assumption that the Thursday ruling was not Umar’s is the talk of the town. He was alleged to have been taking instructions from outside the tribunal and also alleged to have been sighted at a location believed to be compromising on the morning the judgment was delivered. Besides, the manner he read the ruling was believed to have confirmed the fear of some that it was written and handed over to him because it was alleged to be long hand. Already, a very senior lawyer with the coveted SAN title in the executive arm of government is being suspected as having written the ruling.

For instance, from the way he allegedly stuttered while delivering his ruling, no one

Umar...a make or mar assignment

would struggle to read something written by himself, no matter how bad his handwriting is. Umar may have not left many disappointed the way he handled that part of his brief.

It is understandable, therefore, why some eminent jurists and leading legal practitioners had quickly reminded Umar that the CCT is not a law court as enshrined in the 1999 constitution and therefore lacks criminal jurisdiction to exercise certain powers. The jurists include former Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Salisu Modibo Alfa Belgore, Retired Justices of Supreme Court of Nigeria, Messrs Gorge Oguntade and Samson Odemwingie Uwaifo.

Others are Justice Bode Rhodes-Vivour of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, Prof. Ben Nwabueze (SAN), former Attorney-General of Anambra State, Chief Nnoruka Udechukwu (SAN), former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Dr. Olisa Agbakoba (SAN), Chief Emeka Ngige (SAN) and Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN).

The Debate Continues An APC stalwart in Kogi State and former House of Representatives member for Kabba/

Bunu/Ijumu federal constituency in the state, Hon. Duro Meseko, did not mince word in his opinion that going by the circumstances that surround the trial, it has political undertone.

“Yes, I think it is politically motivated, because of the circumstances through which the accusation came. It came in the midst of the struggle for the Senate presidency and the way and manner the bench warrant was issued exposed the hypocrisy behind the action.

“You will recall that when it first happened, some of those who supported those who are against Saraki are supporters of those who contested the office against him. For instance, el-Rufai, who is a prosecution witness supported Ahmed Lawal for Senate President. The way it came about gives doubt about the sincerity of his (Saraki’s) traducers.

On a personal note, I think it is highly political and effectively aimed at removing him as Senate President,” Meseko said.

He regretted that the attack on Saraki is coming at a time that he is performing well as the Senate President. “This is very unfortunate because right now, he (Saraki) is giving purposeful leadership to the Senate

to the admiration of all,” he stressed.

A political ally of the Senate President and Chairman, Ekiti Local Government Area, Mr. Akintoba Fatigun said it was impossible to divorce politics from what the Senate President is currently going through. He contended that if former Lagos State governor and a stalwart of the APC, Senator Bola Tinubu could be left off the hook in a similar case on the grounds that he was not given fair hearing, Saraki should get same treatment.

“For 13 years, the government did not say anything about his asset declaration, but after 13 years, when he contested and won the Senate Presidency, they now looked for something to punish him. Let’s say he did anticipatory declaration and they found out, there is something we should know – before you can go to tribunal – if you discovered that there is a difference, you should call him to say we discovered this. If he agrees and corrects the form, there is no basis for trial.”

In the case against Tinubu, he claimed section 3 (D) of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act spelt out that the Bureau shall among other things, “receive complaints CONT’D ON NEXT PAGE

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T H I S D AY • MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2016

POLITICS/ THE MONDAY DISCOURSE LET THE TRIAL BEGIN...

President Buhari and Saraki, when the latter presented the complete list of the ministerial nominees to the president...when will they work together

about non-compliance with or breach of this Act and where the Bureau considers it necessary to do so, refers such complaints to the Code of Conduct Tribunal established by section 20 of this Act in accordance with the provisions of sections 20-25of this Act; Provided that where the person concerned makes a written admission of such breach or noncompliance, no reference to the tribunal shall be necessary.

“It was based on this provision of the law and in compliance to section 3 (d), that Justice Umar said while discharging Tinubu that: ‘I feel compelled by the argument of the learned SAN for the accused. It is a condition precedent for referring a charge to this Tribunal that the accused ought to have been invited to either deny or admit the allegations against him.

This is missing in this case as the complainant has no such evidence of prior invitation”.

He said it was against this background that the lead Counsel to Saraki, Kanu Agabi insisted that for the purposes of equity, the Senate President was not invited by the Code of Conduct Bureau as required by law to deny or admit the alleged discrepancies in the asset declaration form submitted to the Bureau.

“What is good for Tinubu is good for Saraki.

It is the same judge, Justice Danladi Umar, who ruled in favour of Tinubu who now ruled against Saraki. When you look at issues like that, you will be able to come up with the argument that it is a political persecution. So, anybody that says it is political persecution, it is true. There is no existing complaint by the public and there is no result of investigation present to the bureau,” he said.

Lawyer, former National Secretary, Labour Party (LP) and founder, Egalitarian Mission for Africa, Mr. Kayode Ajulo said when a major political figure is involved in a high profile case, everything about it is political, but he advised that a true course of justice should be allowed and more so, Saraki has said he would defend himself in the trial.

“Whatever we call it, the case against Senator Bukola Saraki has as origin in the allegation of commission of crimes, that he is guilty or not is the function of the Code of Conduct Tribunal as provided by the 1999 Nigeria Constitution as amended. As it is, a crime is a crime, though we cannot take our eyes away from the fact that Senator Saraki is a politician and the crimes committed was committed while holding a political office.

“We cannot remove elements of politics from the trial. All over the world, once a politician commits a crime, drama must ensue depending on the subjective and objective interpretation of political and non-political friends and foes. We should therefore not be surprised that while some will be clapping,

others will be crying blue murder and feeling it is an attempt to get their man down.

“Yes, Senator Saraki is a politician, the President of the Senate, our law however must take its course and good enough, Saraki has decided to defend himself. He should therefore be given the best leverage to defend himself. And again, our law is no respecter of anybody; it should not look at politics.

Whatever decision government takes, there must be two sides of reactions to it.

“As the case stands today, the federal government has the discretionary powers to stop the case; the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) has the power to invoke ‘nolle’ to abate the trial. As it is, he has no immunity, only the AGF can withdraw the case, if the trial must stop but to what end would that be? The law must be allowed to take its course and when he is able to prove his innocence, he should be left off the hook,” Ajulo stated.

Like Fatigun, Ajulo also saw the need for Nigerians to pay attention to reviewing the similar Tinubu trial and how he was freed.

“But I’m worried the ruling of the tribunal that the ruling on the case against Ahmed Bola Tinubu, the former governor of Lagos State was done in error. Such ruling should not be lost on all of us. That means there is need for the case to be revisited. What happened to those that delivered the ruling?

“Such ruling should not be lost on all of

That said, now that Umar has declared Saraki’s trial as unstoppable, it therefore behooves him, the prosecuting and defence counsel to understand that all eyes are on them and with suspicion. Another error will not be tenable before the law and the people.

The people will take into account every gist from the grapevine and check it side-by-side with the proceedings in the tribunal

us. That means there is need for the case to be revisited. What happened to those that delivered the ruling? The Saraki case is complex. However, it is a test for our democracy and the will of our institutions.

Plain meaning of the democracy is rule of law in action. The law should be allowed to take its course.

But differing on the issues, two-time Commissioner of Information in Kogi State and presently, the Managing Director, APC News Online, Dr. Tom Ohikere, said those attributing the trial to senate presidency are “mischievous.”

Ohikere, who is the Program Director of the forth coming Broom Roundtable, argued that attributing the Senate President’s trial to politics is an attempt to distract President Buhari.

“It is cheap blackmail and an attempt to distract the president by those who feel the case of Senate President is a form of political persecution. I would rather urge the government to tread carefully on this issue because of the controversies it has generated which must not be allowed to affect the goodwill and image of the office of the Senate President.

“Every public office goes with income and expenditure, so there is nothing wrong in proper asset declarations, accountability and transparency. So, every leader must be held accountable for adequate stock-taking of the past and present for better Nigeria. In doing this, President Buhari must be faultless also,” he stated.

Mr. Doueyi Fiderikumo, a lawyer, said most of the charges against the Senator were for offences committed when he was a serving governor and immune from being prosecuted.

To him, nemesis has only caught up with him for offences committed. “Nemesis has come to his door step, let him pursue it. The allegations against him are enormous, weighty and serious, let him prove himself.”

Fiderikumo stressed that Saraki has breached the Code of Conduct for public office holders as stipulated in the constitution.

Also concurring with him, a senior party official of the African Peoples Alliance (APA), Alhaji Samaila Sifawa agreed that Saraki’s problems may have some political connotation, but insisted they are beyond politics.

Sifawa said from all indications, President Buhari is obviously not happy with Saraki and the way he went about his emergence as the senate president.

“Politics has not been introduced yet and from all indications, he is not being victimised because the investigation against him was before Buhari came in as president.”

Otunba Abayomi Bodunde, an APC chieftain, said all of Saraki’s problems can be traced to disrespect for elders, inordinate ambition and selfishness. He said the refusal

by Saraki to respect the leadership of the APC, the party through which he rode to power is his greatest undoing.

According to him, when Saraki emerged as the senate president, he chose to scorn the leadership of the party, so he cannot expect the party to stand by him in his hour of need.

He disclosed that at the moment, Saraki and former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar were hands in glove to move back to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which he stressed is the reason for the audacity of the senate president’s actions. He insisted that Saraki must face the law as required by the law.

For former secretary to the Bayelsa State Government, Alabo Gedion Ekeuwei, the senate president’s case is both political and legal.

He stressed that either way, the man should be made to face the law as enshrined by the constitution. He said what is being done now by the federal government is what was supposed to have been done in the past.

He cited the rot in the military as example of evil things that has be condoned in the past that is being put right by the government of President Buhari and therefore urged Nigerians to support the effort of the government.

On the whole, it is unfortunate that a trial ordinarily meant to test the anti-graft stance of the current administration, cushioned by truth, honesty, justice and fairness to all is believed to being manipulated to suit or serve certain interest. By merely ratifying the trial of Saraki and declaring Tinubu’s ruling of five years ago as one delivered in error, the joke in town now is that President Buhari might have killed two birds with a stone.

With the first stone, it is presumed, he will successfully keep Tinubu under control as the fear of a retrial is said to have now gripped the camp of the former Lagos governor.

And with the other stone, however, there is an alleged plan to not only stop Saraki’s rumoured presidential ambition in 2019 and give the current administration a peace of mind, but more cogently is the said plan to taint and stall his career for many years – as long as a decade – depending on the CCT Act. In all of this, it should not be lost on anyone that whether it ends good or bad, the Saraki debacle has reached a point that it is most certainly going to go down dirtier, with many casualties tied to its apron. One, if he is forced out on the grounds of what is now regarded as trumped up charges, the APC CONT’D ON NEXT PAGE

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T H I S D AY • MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2016

POLITICS/ PERSPECTIVE

God and Terrorism: A Different Debate Goke Omisore posits that the place of God is absent in the rising threat posed by terrorism

A

much, much younger friend, whom I consider a great son – a brilliant mind – and whom I am very fond of called me in the heat of a breaking news on CNN – the latest terrorist bombing in Brussels, Belgium. He was fed-up and disillusioned and posted a pertinent question. He assumed I could do justice to the answer, with no sentiment attached.

He asked: “Is God enjoying this spectre of terrorism world-wide? Does God exist?” and proceeded to add that with all these heinous, horrendous acts going on in the world today?”

In other words, is God a spectator at his own creatures’ lunacy? Bemused but not amazed, my faculties stood on edge.

I promised I would get back to him in 24 hours, a challenge that has always constantly been prowling my reasoning faculties – the existence of God in our lives.

Well, son, nothing in today’s world runs more on parallel lanes than God’s invincibility, indivisibility, omnipotence, and omnipresent in His infinite wisdom and the acts of men. It obfuscates and bewilders one’s reasoning, beclouding the senses but preachers all over the world in all faiths have been compounding the intricate web of realities of this profound question, mostly in their own selfish interest and limited knowledge. Over the ages, pastors of all denominations in Christianity, most especially have failed and usually glossed over it as a nondebatable issue and they’ll rather dwell and fidget around the greatest book of all times: The BIBLE, from where they quote profusely tons of verses and Psalms to absorb God for these reoccurring insanities in our acts as we are selfdestroying.

We, His creatures, I myself very often wonder: Is it nature or nurture, evolution or the Lord’s Commandments – trillion dollar question begging to be yet resolved but always preferred in favour of faith? Whatever one’s opinion on this circumspection will be a great virtue!

Here is my feeble and humble but brutally frank attempt to nimble at a question as old as humanity. I will not even flatter myself that I can answer it.

Sacrilege! But I will contribute my two cents knowledge. With the wherewithal in my pedigree, degrees and prodigious curiosity, I will say that the creation of men, mind and matters may travail in painful and in-depth analysis but cannot escape its destiny. I am a continuous learning student of documentaries, especially Animal Kingdom documentary.

I can say without an iota of doubt in my mind that I am not sure, we human beings are superior to animals – it is just one of our arrogant claims and under discovery or lack of it in the recurring decimal from the grains of our intrinsic constitutions as human beings. The animal in us always betrays and embarrasses us, when the chips are down. We are brutally insane animals with minimal exceptions amongst of us, but when provoked, realities have us imprisoned. From our backyard in Maiduguri, to Sudan, to Syria; the worst of the animal instinct in us manifest uncensored. Take a cursory look at the madness in Rivers State, in a river of blood in a simple political civic duty!

Oba Oluwa mo oun gbogbo, O si’le se oun gbogbo, sugbon opolopo oun gbogbo ti oba alagbara, arinu ri ode okan l’ese po, ti kii se. Eyi lo fi ju awa eda lo!

Brussels on high alert for terrorist attack

(Translation: God Almighty knows all things and can do all things. But there are many things that God Almighty, who sees the inside and outside of our hearts can do but chooses not to do). And that is how He shows His superiority to his creation! The Lord immortal, lords things over us and who are we but mere mortals to question His wisdom? On these doctrines rest all faiths, to the best of my knowledge.

However, I have news for us. The greatest treasure in all human beings is THE BRAIN! Big deal, but the bigger deal is: we are barely using far less than 10 per

The believability of the existence of God is confounding in the intricate webs of religion, racism, or tribalism and culture which are often compromised, in total confusion by civilisation of all times, at different times. This is a passing phase. This yoke shall pass over mankind.

Religion is a faith of canonical obedience, devotion and very often, in total submission by the adherents of all faiths…

In-here lies the confusion in millions of followers or non-believers in any faith

cent or so of it, bigger deal! The biggest deal is when we optimise it maximally, thank God you and I won’t be around!

The human mind is a reservoir of scripts unscratched, just compare the analogue years to this digital leap – shattering all myths – the existence of God in our lives will be best revealed sooner than later but today, the gods are having their ways.

“Enia lo’nje anibi’re, Oba Oluwa o re ibi kankan! God is immoveable! Inimitable!

Animal documentaries always fascinate me. From our curiosity of birds’ flight, we copied in aeronautics. Plane crashes variously occur while birds soar, glide and swirl in breathtaking aeronautical displays in their thousands without one touching the other in a symphonic, wellorchestrated sanity in the air of display!

Yet, we deem them inferior! Fishes in the ocean are not less fascinating but even more awesome in their God-given abilities.

But wait till animals too go berserk.

You will definitely be convinced that we are first cousins. When one of the most graceful of all creatures, the lion rest majestically – oozing beauty and grace – we are marveled. Wait till the pain of hunger commands, he pounces and rips-off violently any animal in sight.

The king will have its fill, but usually has the decency of choice and walks away contented but not we men. Nothing is ever enough for the mankind of animals.

Human species, we are terribly possessive, jealous, envious and we revel in insane greed and that is the bane of human existence. The latest revelations on corruption in our land speak volumes about us all. By commission and omissions, it is our collective guilt. Where is God in all these matters?

Now, I have a confession to make. My utmost respect on this particular subject matter goes to Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa. When he won the Nobel Peace Prize years back, I was glued to my TV on the occasion of his acceptance speech in Oslo in Norway. If memory bears me right, the Archbishop was asked a most profound but somewhat

embarrassing question: “What is your position on the existence of God?” I am sure millions that were watching moved to the edge of their seats or sunk in their couch. He gave a very deep but sober and very humbling reply.

“The question on the existence of God is puzzling but thank God, even if God does not exist, thank God somebody invented the idea.” His answer serves me right aptly. That was his reply and indeed, a brilliant one. We all applauded. Don’t even imagine the world without faith in God or Allah.

The believability of the existence of God is confounding in the intricate webs of religion, racism, or tribalism and culture which are often compromised, in total confusion by civilisation of all times, at different times. This is a passing phase.

This yoke shall pass over mankind.

Religion is a faith of canonical obedience, devotion and very often, in total submission by the adherents of all faiths.

In-here lies the confusion in millions of followers or non-believers in any faith.

The myth surrounding the birth and death of Christ is one of these greatest puzzles, as time and science keep probing the truth of this sacred matter, then again to millions, it’s a non-debatable matter of faith.

I was window-shopping on Fifth Avenue in New York City in a jewelry shop one day. I needed to buy a strap for my treasured old Cartier wrist watch. The shop owner was pressuring me to buy for my wife, a piece or two, as most salesmen are wont to do.

He persistently pressured me to buy a necklace at a very tempting price, the typical African man in me, dishonestly kept saying, he should not worry, that I’ll be back to purchase from his array of choices! After I have repeatedly said that and resisted buying thrice, despite a fifty per cent discount offered, he cut in sharply: “I will come back – that’s what Jesus said three thousand years ago. He is not back yet!” Hilarious, amusing but a fact! I humbly submit.

-Omisore wrote from Lagos

LET THE TRIAL BEGIN... should simply bid the senate presidency goodbye and except of course, the president does not mind.

At the party level, the ranks are divided already with the younger members clearly for Saraki, in addition to the support base he appears to enjoy from senators of other political extractions. Buhari, this way, would have succeeded in destroying too soon and

with his own hands, a project that consumed the time and resources of everyone, who opted for change.

That said, now that Umar has declared Saraki’s trial as unstoppable, it therefore behooves him, the prosecuting and defence counsel to understand that all eyes are on them and with suspicion. Another error will not be tenable before the law and the people.

The people will take into account every gist from the grapevine and check it side-by-side with the proceedings the tribunal.

The allegations that Umar is under strict instruction to dismiss every defence brought before it by Saraki would not be waved aside by the people. This will also either confirm or discard rumours that before each sitting, the CCT chair goes to a certain office in the

presidency for instructions.

It is unfortunate that the trial is already a mess and Umar cannot afford to make a further mess of it. The trial can go on as he has pronounced; a subversion of the rule of law and due process under whatever guise will not be condoned. Indeed, it provides an opportunity to clear his name and change the tide of perception that presently defines him.

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IMAGES

T H I S D AY • MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2016

Photo Editor Abiodun Ajala Email abiodun.ajala@thisdaylive.com

L-R: Minister of Communications, Mr. Adebayo Shittu; his Special Assistant, Technical, Abdullah Binuyo; MainOne’s Regional Executive, West Africa, Kazeem Oladepo; and Chief Executive Officer, MainOne, Funke Opeke, during the Minister’s courtesy visit to MainOne’s Data Center subsidiary, MDX-I’s Lekki Data Center, in Lagos… recently.

R-L: Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Okechukwu Enelamah; National President, Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), Dr. Bassey Edem; National Vice President, Mr. Solomom Nyagba; and Acting Director General, NACCIMA, Janet Omisore, during NACCIMA’s visit to the Minister in Abuja

L-R: Director of Rural Community Development, Ministry of Agriculture, Oyo State, Pastor Yode Ayanlowo; Executive Director, British American Tobacco Nigerian Foundation (BATNF), Mrs. Oluwaseyi Ashade; Aare of AgoAre, His Royal Highness, Oba (Dr.) Abodunrin Oyetunji KofoworolaI; General Manager, BATNF, Abimbola Okoya; and Chairman, Management Committee, Ago-Are Cassava Cottage Industry, Chief Adedigba Josiah, during the inauguration of the newly rehabilitated Cassava Processing Cottage Industry in ATISBO Local Government Area of Oyo State,...recently

Chairman, Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), Mr.. Gbenga Adebayo (left) presenting the report on ‘Socio-Economic Impact of Telecoms in Nigeria’ to Managing Director/CEO, Airtel Nigeria, Mr. Segun Ogunsanya during a courtesy visit by ALTON to Airtel Nigeria in Lagos...recently.

L-R;Senator Babajide Omoworare; Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly Rt. Hon. Mudashiru Obasa and Dr. Olorunmibe Momora during the presentation of the most outstanding award of excellence to Lagos State House of Assembly by Global Excellence Magazine in Lagos...recently.

L-R: The Second Zonal Superintendent, Christ Apostolic Church, Alapere Zone, Pastor Ezekiel Olu Adebayo; Zonal Superintendent, Kosofe DCC, Pastor Samuel Adeyemo Adedayo and Director of Evangelism,, Lady Evangelist, Elizabeth Sade Adebayo, after the Induction of Pastor Ezekiel Olu Adebayo as the Second Zonal Superintendent of Christ Apostolic Church, Alapere Zone in Lagos…recently.

R-L; Head Media and Strategy , Federal Road Safety Corps, Bisi Kazeem; Corps Public Education Officer, Imoh Etuk and The Sector Head of Operations , FCT Command, Udeme Bassey Eshiet during the Easter Public Enlightenment Rally in Abuja...recently

L-R: Group Head, Retail Banking, Skye Bank Plc, Nkolika Okoli; Winner of the N100, 000 Category (A Civil Servant), Mr. Razak Olugbenga and the Business Development Manager, Alaba Branch, Skye Bank Plc, Mathins Obaze at the tenth cheque presentation to winners in the ongoing Skye Bank’s “Reach for the Skye” Millionaire Reward Scheme in Lagos... recently

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T H I S D AY • MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2016

BUSINESSWORLD

INSIDE BROAD STREET

MPC’s Warped Monetary Policy

Obinna Chima After a massive easing of monetary policy in its meeting in November 2015, the monetary policy committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) again tightened liquidity last week.

Specifically, the Committee raised the benchmark Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) to 12 per cent from 11 per cent. It also increased bank’s Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) to 22.5 per cent from 20 per cent, in a move aimed at tightening liquidity, which the central bank blamed for the current pressure in the foreign exchange market with a strong pass-through to consumer prices.

Inflation in the country rose to 11.4 per cent last month, effectively exceeding the CBN’s inflationary ceiling by 240 basis points.

However, some analysts have faulted the move by the MPC, saying that the factors that led to the double-digit inflation rate recorded in February were not as a result of expansion in banking system. This has even made some of them to liken monetary policy to a gamble. For instance, the source argued that while the federal government had concluded plan to reflate the economy with a strategic injection of N350 billion, the CBN resolved to further restrict money supply with the hike in interest rate. This, according to the source would contract growth in the economy.

In the fourth quarter of 2015, the economy grew by 2.11 per cent (year-on-year), compared with 5.94 per cent in the corresponding period of 2014. The issues surrounding the currency curbs introduced by the CBN and weak purchasing power were responsible for the sluggish growth recorded in the fourth quarter of 2015. The latest inflation figure saw the consumer price index (CPI) breach the CBN’s target band of between 6 – 9 per cent.

The last time inflation hit double-digit in the country was in December 2012 at 12 per cent.

CBN governor, Mr. Godwin Ifeanyi Emefiele, said the decision to resume the tightening regime after a four-month break, followed the evaluation of both internal and external factors, explaining that the “balance of risks is tilted against price stability.”

He said all members voted for a tightening of monetary policy, except one member who voted to retain the CRR at 20 per cent, while

MARKET INDICATOR another member voted to retain the current width of the asymmetric corridor.

The CBN governor noted that, contrary to the notion of a liquidity overhang in the financial system, the wider economy appears to be starved of the needed liquidity to spur growth and employment.

He also said, though conflicting signals from slowing growth and rising inflation present a difficult policy challenge, the committee stressed on the need to urgently address key sources of pressure and resolved to closely monitor the development while working with the relevant authorities to address the structural bottlenecks.

He said though headline inflation shot to 11.38 per cent in February, substantially breaching the policy reference band of 6 – 9 per cent, the increase in inflation rate was largely driven by structural factors including fuel scarcity, increased electricity tariffs, persistent insecurity, exchange rate pass through and seasonality of agricultural produce, and “not so much by liquidity”.

In arriving at the decisions, Emefiele said: “The committee noted the weakening macroeconomic environment, reflected particularly on foreign exchange shortages, the slowing GDP growth rate and rising inflation.

“Overall economic growth slowed significantly in 2015, particularly in Q4. Apparently, the conditions responsible for the slowdown – uncertainty around fiscal policies, an adverse external environment, security challenges in some parts of the country affecting production and distribution of agricultural produce, low electricity supply, fuel shortages, and sluggish growth in credit to the private sector – have continued in the first quarter of 2016.”

On the CRR hike, he said: “From the monetary data, the committee noted that the excess liquidity in the banking system was contributing to the current pressure in the foreign exchange market with a strong pass-through to consumer prices.

But the Chief Executive Officer, Cowry Asset Management Limited, Mr. Johnson Chukwu, faulted the premise on which the MPC raised the two monetary policy tools, saying it was at

variance with the factors that drove inflation to double-digit.

The MPC decision, Chukwu argued, would not necessarily lead to a moderation in inflationary pressure.

He explained that: “Inflation was not driven by expansion from the banks and we are in a situation where the banks are not lending.

Therefore you cannot moderate inflationary pressure, if it was not driven by credit, by increasing the MPR and CRR. “The rise in inflation was driven by the pass-through effects of the devaluation that we have seen in the parallel market rates, the increase in energy charge and increase in petrol price as a result of inadequate supply.

“So those factors have nothing to do with the availability of credit. Therefore increasing the MPR would not in any way benefit the country and would not bring about a reduction in inflationary pressure. I don’t think the premise on which they decided to raise the MPR and CRR was based on the factors that are driving up inflation rate.

“They also said they want to encourage investments in financial assets. I don’t think that would happen unless we address the challenges we have with the exchange rate.

Foreign portfolio investors are running away from the Nigerian market not because yields are so low, but because our exchange rate is not market reflective.”

Nonetheless, the Chief Executive Officer, Rand Merchant Bank Limited, Mr. Michael Larbie stressed that monetary policy cannot be likened to a gamble. According to Larbie, Nigerians ought to empathise with the policy makers considering the challenges in the macro economy, saying that the MPC members always try to do their best with the facts they are confronted with.

Larbie explained: “We want to believe that the MPC members are people of high integrity, people who are experienced and who would do the right thing, based on the information provided to them. So, I don’t think it is a gamble.

“One can always have a view on how things can be done, but when you are not in the room and provided with the facts, you can always sit back and be judgemental. We see from the notes that come from the MPC that there are certainly differences of opinion.

“The MPC exists to ensure price stability and one cannot lose the fact that in the last quarter, inflation rate jumped significantly and when you have such inflation, you need an increase in interest rate to be able to counter that. What we were experiencing in the market until the latest MPC decisions was a negative rate of return environment, in a market where inflation was higher than yields and MPR. “That was because MPR was at 11 per cent, while inflation was 11.4 per cent. The sensible thing to do was to ensure that there is a positive rate of rate to attract investors.

So, I will not call monetary policy decisions a gamble.”

Also, the Head of Research at Afrinvest West Africa Limited, Mr. Ayodeji Ebo, said the MPC decisions were based on current economic reality, saying the move was to compensate real returns on investment.

“However, our own reservation about that is that the cause of increased inflation was not money supply. It was imported inflation and the hike in electricity tariff. But I won’t say it is a gamble, but in terms of its policy choices, we feel that the MPC has left the main point which is the absence of a forex policy,” Ebo added.

To analysts at CSL Stockbrokers Limited, with the policy, the central bank has switched away from giving banks the leading role in resuscitating the economy. CSL analysts noted that “liquidity entrusted to the banks to stimulate the economy, ends up in the forex market.”

“So, the authorities wish to take back liquidity themselves. That means making the government bond market attractive again. In our view, the new policy, if followed up with a rise in market interest rates to the level of the MPR, would have a fair chance of attracting domestic banks into the bond market, and of attracting domestic pension funds: but foreign investors would likely remain sceptical of both forex liquidity and the exchange rate.

“In short, the reversal of policy is designed to put the government back in charge of stimulating the economy,” they added.

Therefore, while the central bank continues to adjust its tools in the nation’s fight against recession, it is clear that monetary policy alone cannot cure the country’s ills as a healthy balance with fiscal policy is required to stimulate growth.

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T H I S D AY • MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2016

BUSINESSWORLD

FEATURES

Shell, Total Mull LNG Terminal Projects in the Philippines

An LNG vessel Longstanding plan by the Philippines to build liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals to help the country diversify its energy mix and to address a more pressing issue posed by depleting resources at its only major gas field were given a nudge forward recently by two European majors.

Royal Dutch Shell plc and France’s Total S.A. made moves earlier this year revealing their interests to progress plans for LNG terminals in the Philippines, where demand for the clean fuel has been crimped by a lack of LNG receiving options.

Industry players believe demand for natural gas in the Philippines has room to increase as it comprised only 6.42 percent of the domestic energy mix in 2014, down from 8 percent in 2011, data from the country’s Department of Energy (DOE) showed.

Shell Considers FSRU Option Shell has been mulling over plans for an LNG facility for some time as it is the operator of the country’s ageing deepwater Malampaya gas field in Service Contract 38 located in northwest Palawan offshore western Philippines. The company said an LNG import terminal would help bridge the domestic demand for gas supplies pending the discovery and development of another gas field.

Malampaya’s production now supports three gas-fired power plants that have a total electricity generating capacity of 2,700 megawatts (MW) in Luzon Island. Supply from the gas field is projected to deplete by 2024, Laura L. Sanguin, division chief of Natural Gas Management at

the DOE, told Rigzone.

Shell’s local unit, Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp., is finalizing the technical aspects of a front-end engineering design (FEED) study for an LNG facility to deploy to the Batangas Bay area by 2017, Sebastian Quinones, managing director of Shell Philippines Exploration B.V. (SPEX), the Malampaya project operator, said March 7 in the Philippine Star.

Pilipinas Shell hopes to deploy a floating storage regasification unit (FSRU) after finalizing the FEED study ahead of a final investment decision (FID) for the project. The SPEX executive said the company’s investors and shareholders would only approve the project if there is a “good and viable plus-minus 10 percent estimate” on the total project cost.

“Probably, this would be hundreds and hundreds of millions again … I don’t think [the FID] will be this year. It could be next year,” Quinones said.

If the project is approved, construction of the FSRU should be completed in less than three years. Shell is pinning its hope on the FSRU as “it’s too late to be able to develop something that can replace Malampaya. So, to bridge the gap between that would require LNG imports,” he added.

Total Surveys Philippines for LNG Opportunities Given its role as a major player in the global LNG industry, Total is constantly on the lookout for potential business opportunities in the sector. So it was perhaps unsurprisingly that the firm explored investment prospects in the Philippines’ LNG sector. After all, Qatar’s RasGas Company Ltd. CEO Hamad Mubarak Al Muhannadi, too, shared a similar

observation when he said at an industry event in Singapore last October that the Philippines is an emerging new market for LNG. Total’s executives visited Manila in January and held talks with Philippines Energy Secretary Zenaida Y. Monsada, including discussions on a plan to build an LNG import facility.

“They are planning to invest in an LNG terminal,” Philippines’ Energy Undersecretary Donato Marcos told the Manila Bulletin on Jan. 21.

The French major first mooted such an investment in the Philippines years ago and the latest development appears to be in sync with its upstream acquisition activities in Asia Pacific in recent years.

Total completed a $401 million transaction with InterOil Corp. in March 2014 to purchase 40.1 percent interest in Petroleum Retention License (PRL) 15 in the Gulf Province of Papua New Guinea (PNG), giving it ownership in one of the region’s largest gas fields, including Elk-Antelope.

“Elk-Antelope is a significant project in Total’s global portfolio and our presence in Papua New Guinea provides an ideal opportunity to grow our business in the Asia-Pacific region,” Total Exploration and Production Senior Vice President Asia Pacific Jean-Marie Guillermou commented on the deal.

The company also acquired stakes in several blocks in PNG’s Gulf of Papua region, including Petroleum Prospecting License (PPL) 244, as well as options in other licenses, such as PPL 339 in October 2012.

In neighboring Australia, Total took a 30 percent stake in the

Ichthys LNG Project, located offshore northwest Australia, with the development scheduled to commence production in 2017. The firm also has a 27.5 percent interest in the producing Gladstone LNG Project in Queensland, Australia.

First Gen Yet to Finalise Plans for LNG Terminal Philippines firm First Gen Corp., now dependent on Malampaya gas supplies, is seeking future fuel sources for its power generation plants as the field’s resources are expected to be depleted around 2024.

The firm plans to construct its own onshore LNG terminal at an estimated cost of $1 billion to import gas to fuel its two power generation plants – the 1,000-MW Santa Rita and the 500-MW San Lorenzo units – in Batangas, Luzon. Another two power plants, the 97-MW Avion and 414-MW San Gabriel units now under construction in Batangas, will rely on Malampaya gas upon start-up later this year, but will eventually have to switch to imported gas.

First Gen President and Chief Operating Officer Francis Giles Puno said March 15 that his firm is prepared to partner local or foreign companies to develop the proposed LNG receiving, storage and regasification terminal as the expected depletion of Malampaya gas would start as early as 2022.

Puno’s views were echoed by SPEX’s Quinones, who indicated that Shell is still open to partnerships given the huge interest in LNG. “We are always talking to as many people as we can ... We are all aiming to achieve an LNG facility,” he said.

Meanwhile, Japan’s Osaka Gas

Co. Ltd. has held discussions with Manila Electric Co. regarding a $2 billion integrated LNG project, covering a terminal and a power plant, in the country.

Gas May Have a Bigger Role in the Philippines Gas is likely to have a larger share of the Philippines’ energy mix after the country agreed to a 70-percent reduction in greenhouse gas emission by 2030 at the recent United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris.

“Given the commitment to climate change, there is a bigger role for natural gas as a transition fuel,” DOE’s Sanguin told Rigzone.

The DOE in a Jan. 26 presentation to the Committee on Energy of the Philippines’ House of Representatives reported that the country would need 72,922 gigawatt hour (GWh) of electricity in 2030 and 34.3 percent of these needs would be derived from natural gas. This represents a growth of around 150 percent of power generation supplied by natural gas. The additional demand could only be met by imported LNG as local supplies from Malampaya are already committed.

Despite the interests of several LNG investors, the DOE official said growth in Philippines’ gas demand is not expected to increase sharply due to competition from cheaper alternatives, mainly coal, as well as the availability of renewable energy resources such as geothermal and hydropower. DOE data showed that renewable energy and coal comprised 53 percent and 28 percent of the domestic energy mix in 2011, respectively.

Culled from rigzone

36

T H I S D AY • MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2016

CITYSTRINGS

Acting Features Editor Charles Ajunwa Email charles.ajunwa@thisdaylive.com

A Commitment to the Downtrodden As parts of efforts to assist the less privileged in the society, Airtel Nigeria has been using the Airtel Touching Lives initiative to impact on people’s livelihoods, write Ugo Aliogo and Jemima Bolokor

L-R: Ruth Egwuatu with her daughter, Treasure who is suffering from cerebral palsy, Ruth’s mother, Esther, at the Airtel Touching Lives Studio

S

he laid down on the rugged floor, her mouth was dripping with saliva.

She was looking helpless and weak.

She could barely move her hands and legs. Sitting beside her, was her mother looking frustrated and drained of hope. Treasure Egwatu can neither hear nor communicate properly. She is in a serious dilemma, in her present state, material things makes less meaning to her. All she aspires for is to live a normal life like others.

Egwuatu is seven-year-old girl suffering from a medical condition known as cerebral palsy. The condition has prevented her from living a normal life like others. It is a condition which involves a group of permanent movement disorders that appears in early childhood.

Medical research posits that the symptoms include poor coordination, stiff muscles, weak muscles, and tremors. It could result to problems with sensation, vision, hearing, swallowing, and speaking. Babies with cerebral palsy do not roll over, sit, crawl, or walk as early like other children of their age. It is caused by abnormal development or damage to the parts of the brain that control movement, balance, and posture.

The mother of Treasure, Mrs. Ruth Egwuatu, said at the initial stage, she cried and prayed to God to reverse the situation, but it did not change. She however accepted the situation as her cross and never gave up on her daughter. As a single parent, she continued to seek recourse in prayer and the support from her mother. For Egwatu, treading this lonely path has been very difficult, but her determination and courage in the face of adversity has kept her strong.

In the journey of life, the supplications of the afflicted are not left unanswered by God. Recently, Treasure’s case received the attention of Airtel Nigeria, and she was nominated in the Airtel touching lives episode 9.

After a thorough screening process, Treasure’s entry was picked and she given an imported

deluxe wheelchair to aid her gradual recovery.

She was also given a speech therapy and physiotherapy session. Treasure’s story is one amongst many individuals which Telco is utilizing its Touching Lives initiative to create a compelling narrative.

Egwuatu expressed appreciation to the telecommunication company for the gesture, noting that her burden has been lightened and daughter is improving gradually.

The programme which is a television series targets individuals and communities with a story to tell. It offers a platform to celebrate humanity, inspiring hope and enhancing people’s quality of life. The programme identifies extraordinary people from various walks of life with dire needs and impacts their lives. The programme has helped build a culture of giving selflessly and nominating extraordinary individuals, who ought to be given a gateway to a better life.

Speaking during a viewing session in Lagos

After a thorough screening process, Treasure’s entry was picked and she was given an imported deluxe wheelchair to aid her gradual recovery. She was also given a speech therapy and physiotherapy session.

Treasure’s story is one amongst many individuals which Airtel has changed their story in the Airtel Touching Lives initiative

recently, the Director Corporation Communication and Cooperate Social Responsibility (CSR) Airtel, Emeka Oparah, stated that the touching lives initiative is aimed at supporting the less privileged in the society.

Noting that the uniqueness of the initiative is not only to assist the needy, but also to encourage others to help, “the reason behind what we are doing is that, when people see the good work we have done, they will be motivated to also do the same thing.”

Oparah explained that through the initiative they are trying to spread a message of giving, adding that they get positive feedbacks from the media, the community and the stakeholders, adding “government is impressed with the way we go about it.”

He said: “We try to go a step further to touch people’s lives. Touching people’s lives is very wonderful. We are not obliged to do this, yet we do it, pay tax and go a step further to touch lives. Another unique thing about touching lives is that the people you touch their lives do not go back to their former condition.

“We intend to continue this project because if it is not a good thing, we would have stopped.

Generally speaking, CSR is beginning to get good attention from government. Last year during the tax reform period, the people in tax office were asking me to put together a story of what we have done. But I could not put figures together; I know CSR is influencing tax.

“As the country develops, we will begin to see goodwill reporting. Again, we are a private company and we are not quoted on the Nigeria Stock Exchange (NSE), therefore we cannot account for it publicly. But I know that as things take shape in the future, government will tell the story of how companies are giving back.

“The mechanism for a nominee is that at the beginning of a new season, we call for nominations. It comes through email, text messages, or typed document. Then we collate

all these entries together. We screen the entries and pick 10, 20, 30 entries out maybe out of the hundred that are most pressing.

“Touching lives is an initiative centred not just in Lagos; rather we concentrate in all the geo-political zones. It is our CSR flagship initiative. The reason behind the initiative is that there are a lot of incredible changes people are going through. People are really suffering, it is only when you look closely, you realise that people are going through a lot. We have received a total of 75,000 entries, and for this year we had 1,000 entries.

“For us, the real essence of it is to create awareness for the hardship that people are going through. Airtel invests just money to help and encourage others to join us. We want to popularise the ideal of giving. This is the season 2 of the programme and we are not planning to stop here. We have been in this for a long time and the initiative is something that is borne out of the desire of the employee to help the poor.

“We have what is known as employee volunteer scheme, it is an initiative where staff give certain amount of their salary monthly, some give debit loan and some write cheques which we put together to give to the poor in the community. It was what the staff were doing that motivated the company to do a little more into touching lives.”

Oparah appealed to the media for support, in order to propagate the message, while encouraging other people to emulate what Airtel is doing stressing that the brand wants to remain customer friendly and the most loved brand in the country.

The story of Treasure is a reminder that we should always appreciate God for the gift of good health. Whether in affluence or want, good health is vital. When people suffer serious health challenges, it can impede their dreams and prevent them from living a normal life.

37

T H I S D AY • MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2016

PERSPECTIVE

EFCC Vs Alex Badeh

EFCC Chairman, Ibrahim Magu

Abdul Mairago

W

hile many Nigerians have hailed the war waged against corruption by the government of President Muhammadu Buhari, there are aspects of this ‘war’ which have been taken out of context and, thus, remain grey, no thanks to the ineptitude of the anti-graft agencies.

There have been more than a few cases expected to have turned out well and landed those involved in prison or otherwise, where they rightfully belong, save for the bungling by these agencies.

Strangely, they repeat the same mistake, case after case, leaving Nigerians to wonder if they are just hunting in the dark with an end-goal in mind. High profile cases are put before the press and, when Nigerians are beginning to hope that the agencies get it right, they just let it go to the dogs.

The case of the former Chief of Defence Staff, Air Marshall Alex Badeh (Rtd.) is one of such examples.

After so much haranguing in the media, he was finally arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), who claimed that it had found the sum of $1m in the bedroom of his mansion in Maitama, Abuja.

In addition to that, the EFCC had slammed a 10-count charge on the former CDS, bordering on money laundering, criminal breach of trust and corruption.

It is also alleged that Badeh diverted the sum of N3.97bn belonging to the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) – for procurement of arms – to purchase a mansion in Abuja.

Badeh was ‘picked’ by the EFCC and

Badeh was taken to answer a few questions and, somewhere along the lines, roped into the ‘Dasukigate’ scam. He was alleged to have pocketed the sum of N4.1bn from the ‘deal’.

Thus, the EFCC detained Badeh for three weeks, without trial, despite his admission to help them find whatever it was they were searching for.

Shortly after his ‘arrest’ by the EFCC, the former CDS, made a statement insisting that he had been allegedly accused, to ensure that he is roped in and ‘stamped’ for prison, just so ‘they’ can humiliate him.

If, really, Badeh is liable as he has been said to be, surely his actions are in contravention of Section 15 (2) (d) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended) and punishable under Section 15(3) of the same Act, the anti-graft

The EFCC has variously claimed that Badeh has a number of properties.

Great. If this is true and it is confirmed that the properties are his and were obtained illegally through proxies, it is even simpler.

All the EFCC needs to do is go to court and get an order of forfeiture and these said houses will be turned over to the government

body said. He is guilty as charged.

Badeh has roundly denied everything the EFCC has thrown at him, insisting that “during my time as the CDS, funds for weapons were directly released to the Chief of Air Staff, army staff and naval staff.”

The EFCC said Badeh misappropriated $800,000 from his Director of Finance and Accounts, but the former CDS insists that he did not “receive such money from the erstwhile DFA”.

He went on to inquire; “If he claims to have given me money, where is the proof? Was it paid into my account? Did I sign for it?”

The EFCC has variously claimed that Badeh has a number of properties. If this is true and it is confirmed that the properties are his and were obtained illegally through proxies, it is even simpler. All the EFCC needs to do is go to court and get an order of forfeiture and these said houses will be turned over to the government.

Nigerians have the right to rejoice over the rate at which the net is closing in on former corrupt public officers, especially in the previous administration. However, the EFCC needs to be careful that it does not take our collective mentality for an insulting ride.

Before you go against an individual, you must take some time to build the case against him.

If Badeh is guilty, why is he denying everything which the EFCC has thrown at him? Dasuki did not do that, Metuh did not do that and a number of others who were caught with their hands in the cookie jar did not do that. What gives Badeh the boldness to deny the charges leveled against him by the EFCC? Something is amiss.

Badeh must be lying through his teeth or the EFCC has to have forgotten to get its acts together.

How can a body which is supposed to be tenacious, precise and accurate (to a fault) not have clear evidences of the acts it alleges were perpetrated by suspects?

Is Badeh going to get away with this because the EFCC waited for nightfall to begin the important search for a black goat? Is Badeh going to get away with this, because the EFCC could not get its acts together and build a strong case against him?

No, this is not a piece against the EFCC; this is a piece against tardiness and a case of using the basket to fetch water in the rain. The EFCC has long used baskets to fetch water from the stream; it is time to get buckets.

If Badeh is guilty, the justice he will get will, no doubt, be swift and sweet.

If, on the other hand, the EFCC is about to bungle this case with its verbal evidences, it will not only become a toothless bulldog; it will, also, become the scorn of the nation and butt of many jokes, both locally and internationally.

On Monday, March 7, 2016, a Federal High Court, sitting in Abuja, ordered that Badeh be remanded at the Kuje Maximum Prison, pending the determination of his bail application on March 10.

How can Badeh be arraigned and sentenced based on allegations? The EFCC must get its acts together this time.

Yes, the charges against Badeh have been read and, yes, it so happens that he is currently cooling off in Kuje. However, it must get its acts together.

Hunting in the dark has never augured well for anyone, it will not favour the EFCC. .Mairago wrote in from Jos, Plateau State

38

MONDAY MARCH 28 2016 T H I S D AY

39

MONDAY MARCH 28, 2016 • T H I S D AY

INTERNATIONAL

email:foreigndesk@thisdaylive.com

US: Bernie Sanders Wins Alaska, Washington, Hawaii Caucuses

The United States Democratic presidential contender, Bernie Sanders, at the weekend won nominating contests in Alaska, Washington and Hawaii, challenging Hillary Clinton’s commanding lead in the race to pick the party’s candidate for the White House.

Sanders still faces a steep climb to overtake Clinton but the big victories in the West generated more momentum for his upstart campaign and could stave off calls from Democratic leaders that he should wrap up his bid in the name of party unity.

Sanders appeared headed to victory margins of more than 50 percentage points in both Alaska and Washington, and led by about 40 points in Hawaii with some 90 percent of the results tallied there.

“We are making significant inroads in Secretary Clinton’s lead and ... we have a path to victory,” Sanders told cheering, chanting supporters in Madison, Wisconsin. “It is hard for anybody to deny that our campaign has the momentum.”

Clinton, the former secretary of state, has increasingly turned her attention toward a potential Nov. 8 general election showdown against Republican front-runner Donald Trump, claiming she is on the path to wrapping up the nomination.

Heading into Saturday, she led Sanders by about 300 pledged delegates in the race for the 2,382 delegates needed to be nominated at the party’s July convention in Philadelphia. Adding in the support of superdelegates - party leaders who are free to back any candidate - she has 1,690 delegates to 946 for Sanders.

Sanders, a U.S. senator from Vermont, needs to win up to two-thirds of the remaining delegates to catch Clinton, who will keep piling up delegates even when she loses under a Democratic Party system that awards them proportionally in all states.

“These wins will help him raise more funds for the next few weeks but I don’t think it changes the overall equation,” said Democratic strategist Jim Manley, a Clinton supporter.

“Hillary Clinton has too big a lead.”

But Sanders has repeatedly said he is staying in the race until the convention, pointing to big crowds at his rallies and high turnout among young and first-time voters as proof of his viability. After raising $140 million, he has the money to fight on as long as he wants.

He has energized the party’s liberal base and young voters with his calls to rein in Wall Street and fight income inequality, a message that resonated in liberal Washington and other Western states. Sanders won in Utah and Idaho this week.

“Don’t let anybody tell you we can’t win the nomination or the general election,” Sanders told supporters in Wisconsin, which holds the next contest on April 5. “We are going to do both.”

All three contests on Saturday were caucuses, a format that has favored Sanders because it requires more commitment from voters. They also were in states with fewer of the black and Hispanic voters who have helped fuel Clinton’s lead.

“He was just more aligned with my values. I am young and I never knew there could be someone like him in politics,” said Samantha Burton of Seattle, who said Sanders was the first candidate who had inspired her to make a donation.

Jocelyn Alt, a birthing assistant at a Seattle hospital, said she backed Clinton because she believed the times called for someone who could get things done.

“She knows how to make things happen,”she said.“I think Hillary is more likely to win against a Republican.”

After Wisconsin, the Democratic race moves to contests in New York on April 19 and a bloc

Egypt Orders Detention of Four over Student’s Murder Egyptian prosecutors have ordered the detention of four - suspected of being part of those who murdered an Italian student, Giulio Regeni, judicial sources said on Saturday.

The gang leader’s wife, brother, sister, and brotherin-law were held, accused of concealing a criminal and hiding stolen goods, the sources said.

Police have said they found Regeni’s possessions at a house belonging to the sister.

A judicial source told Reuters that local prosecutors dealing with the gang case requested that senior prosecutors handling Regeni’s death add the questioning of the four relatives to their case file.

On Thursday, Egypt’s interior ministry said the gang, whose

four members were all killed in a police shootout, had Regeni’s bag and passport in their possession. The group specialized in impersonating police and kidnapping foreigners, it said.

But the statements of the police and the ministry have failed to satisfy Italian investigators, politicians and Regeni’s family.

Rome’s chief prosecutor, Giuseppe Pignatone, said on Friday that the investigation into Regeni’s murder would continue.

The broken body of the 28-year-old Cambridge University student, who was researching independent labor unions, was found at the side of a motorway on the outskirts of Cairo in February.

of five states in the Northeast, led by Pennsylvania, on April 26.

There were no contests on Saturday in the Republican race featuring Trump and rivals U.S.

Senator Ted Cruz of Texas and Ohio Governor John Kasich.

On Saturday, the New York Times published a lengthy foreign policy-focused interview

with Trump. The New York billionaire told the newspaper he might stop oil purchases from Saudi Arabia unless they provide troops to fight

the Islamic State.

Trump also told the Times he was willing to rethink traditional U.S. alliances should he become president.

STRUGGLE FOR SURVIVAL

A man falls on the ground as refugees and migrants grab goods donated by volunteers from a truck at a makeshift camp at the Greek-Macedonian border….recently

Islamic State Driven out of Syrian City of Palmyra Syrian government forces drove Islamic State fighters out of Palmyra yesterday, the army said, inflicting a major defeat on the militants who seized the desert city last year and dynamited its ancient temples.

The army general command said in a statement that it had restored security and stability to the city in an operation it said showed that Islamic State was beginning to retreat and collapse.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said there were still clashes on the eastern edge of Palmyra, around the prison and inside the airport, but the bulk of the Islamic State force had withdrawn and retreated east, leaving Palmyra under President Bashar al-Assad’s control.

Syrian state-run television broadcast from inside Palmyra yesterday morning, showing largely deserted streets and several badly damaged

buildings.

It quoted a military source saying Syrian and Russian jets were targeting Islamic State fighters as they fled, hitting dozens of vehicles on the roads leading east from the city.

For government forces, the recapture of Palmyra opens up much of Syria’s eastern desert stretching to the Iraqi border to the south and the Islamic State heartland of Deir al-Zor and Raqqa to the east.

It follows a three-week campaign by the army and its allies on the ground, backed by intensive Russian air strikes, aimed at driving Islamic State back.

Russia’s intervention in September turned the tide of Syria’s five-year-old conflict in Assad’s favor. Despite Moscow’s announcement that it was pulling out most military forces two weeks ago, Russian jets and helicopters carried out dozens of strikes daily

over Palmyra at the height of the clashes.

Observatory director Rami Abdulrahman said 400 Islamic State fighters died in the battle for Palmyra, which he described as the biggest single defeat for the group since it declared a caliphate in areas of Syria and Iraq under its control in 2014.

The loss of Palmyra comes three months after Islamic State fighters were driven out of the city of Ramadi in neighboring Iraq, the first major victory for Iraq’s army since it collapsed in the face of an assault by the militants in June 2014.

Islamic State has lost ground elsewhere, including the Iraqi city of Tikrit last year and the Syrian town of al-Shadadi in February. The United States said the fall of Shadadi was part of efforts to cut Islamic State’s links between its two main power centers: the cities of Mosul

in Iraq and Raqqa in Syria.

The Observatory said around 180 government soldiers and allied fighters were also killed in the campaign to retake Palmyra, which is home to some of the most extensive ruins of the Roman empire.

Islamic State militants dynamited several monuments last year, and Syrian television broadcast footage from inside Palmyra museum on Sunday showing toppled and damaged statues, as well as several smashed display cases.

Syria’s antiquities chief said this week that other ancient landmarks were still standing and pledged to restore the damaged monuments.

“Palmyra has been liberated.

This is the end of the destruction in Palmyra,”Mamoun Abdelkarim told Reuters on S u n d a y.

“How many times did we cry for Palmyra? How many times d i d w e f e e l despair? But we did not lose hope.”

Newly-elected Benin President to Reduce Presidential Terms Newly-elected Benin president, Patrice Talon, is planning to reduce presidential mandates to just one five-year term, he said at the weekend, after the constitutional court confirmed his election victory over prime minister Lionel Zinsou.

Talon took 65.4 percent of the vote in last Sunday’s run-off poll to decide who

would replace President Thomas Boni Yayi, who is stepping down after serving two terms in office, the constitutional court said on Friday. The figures confirmed results that came out earlier in the week.

“I will first and foremost tackle constitutional reform,” Talon told reporters, reinforcing a promise made during campaigning. One term of

five years would reduce presidential “complacency”, he said.

Benin presidents can currently serve two five-year terms. The peaceful election was seen as reinforcing the democratic credentials of Benin, a bastion of stability in a region where elections are often marred by violence.

By relinquishing power

after serving two terms in office, Boni Yayi stands in contrast to leaders in other African nations, including Burundi, Rwanda and Congo Republic, who have altered their constitutions to extend their rule.

Talon said his government will be made up of 16 members, down from the 28 members of the outgoing government.

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Mixed Reactions Trail Tinubu’s Attack on Kachikwu OnyebuchiEzigbo,Senator IroegbuinAbujaandOlakiitan VictorinAdoEkiti

The South-south chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) yesterday asked the Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu resign his position if he is not capable of providing workable solution to the current fuel scarcity in the country.

The party was reacting to a statement credited to a national leader of the party, Senator Bola Tinubu where he was quoted to have lambasted the minister for saying that he had no magic to perform over the present oil scarcity in the country.

In a statement issued yesterday and signed by the National Vice Chairman on charge of the zone, Prince Hilliard Eta, the party said rather than the minister constituting a cog in the wheel of progress he should do the needful by resigning.

The statement titled: “No split in APC: Tinubu has right to criticise Kachukwu,’ the party said it was, high time the minister climb down from his high horse to face squarely the duties required of him by his office.

It said responsibility to the people is one of the cardinal points of the APC which every member should profess.

Etta said the South-south chapter of the APC feels that Kachukwu is yet to purge himself completely of the orientation of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) where he was, pointing out that this has manifested in his actions and utterances such as the recent one that attracted opprobrium from many Nigerians.

“In the light of the foregoing, Kachukwu must not be a cog in the wheel of progress and he should do the needful by resigning honourably if he is not capable of doing his part by efficiently running the ministry

assigned to him,” he said.

While denying any split in the party, Etta said: “Following reports in the dailies that there is a major rift in our party, the APC due to the statement by one of our party leaders and statesman, Bola Tinubu, I am compelled to set things straight from the stand point of the South-south chapter of the party which the minister concern is a member of.

He said rather than view Tinubu’s criticism as a sign of split in the party, the former Lagos state governor should be commended for coming out to draw attention to shortcomings in the system.

“It is important to reiterate here that winning the federal election in 2015 has not eroded the core ideology of progressivism which we espouse as it is the very foundation on which the party rest.

Also, a chieftain of the APC, Olusegun Osinkolu, has praised the national leader of the party, Senator Bola Tinubu , for cautioning Kachikwu on how to address Nigerians on the issue of fuel scarcity.

He said the statement made

by Tinubu was in the best interest of Nigerians and the APC-led government and should not be mischievously misinterpreted to mean existence of crack within the ruling party.

Speaking inAyede Ekiti yesterday while addressing his supporters, Osinkolu dispelled the insinuation milling rounds that Kachikwu is not competent to handle the Ministry.

Supporting Tinubu’s vituperation against Kachikwu, Osinkolu said Nigerians who are at the receiving end of the hard-biting scarcity expected proactive action from government in line with the change agenda of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s government and that Kachikwu’s response was not the best way to

assuage Nigerians’ feelings.

Osinkolu vehemently disagreed with the proposition by some people that the minister should resign, describing this as another way of exacerbating the problem created by the oil scarcity.

“Though it is going to take a while before the issue of oil scarcity will be resolved, but the minister should learn how to manage the public.

He should try and understand the mood of the people. How can a minister be saying that he is not a magician under this circumstance?

I don’t think it is right.

“This is not the first time Nigeria will be experiencing fuel scarcity, but Buhari represents change and this must reflect in our deeds and actions in APC. Kachikwu should have handled the current situation better than addressing the public in such a haughty and brazen manner.

“So, I want to thank our leader, Tinubu for mustering the bravado to speak even against someone who is in his own party,” he said.

But the South-east zone of the APC has said that it did see any rationale for asking Kachikwu to resign his job.

In a statement issued by the zonal spokesman of the party, Mr. Osita Okechukwu, the zone said Kachukwu has recorded major achievements within his short spell at the position.

“Whereas, our national leader,

Tinubu is not only politically correct but has the constitutional rights to condemn the awkward joke made by the Kachikwu, over the national embarrassment caused our great country by the ugly fuel supply chain logjam; however, the “Those who call for his resignation should not forget the transparent, frugal and prudent manner in which Kachikwu and co deployed in the petroleum product importation and fuel supply chain; a policy which has saved our dear country over N500 billion for the country.

“May we also remind those who call for his resignation, how the PDP turned the petroleum product importation and fuel supply chain into a slush fund, recklessly increased the cost geometrically from N634 billion in 2010 to N1.6 trillion in 2012.

In 2013, N888 billion was officially budgeted with a supplementary budget of N232 billion in the same year, making an average N1 trillion per annum.

“It is our considered opinion that Kachikwu should stay, for bringing sanity to the petroleum product important and fuel supply chain in the last 10 months,” he said.

Also, a member representing Ohaozara/Onicha/Ivo federal Constituency of Ebonyi State in the House of Representatives, Hon. Linus Okorie, has faulted Tinubu’s scathing attack on Kachikwu.

Okorie in a statement yesterday,

said Tinubu derailed along the line by using the attacks as a platform to blame the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and shore up his party image, than genuine concern for the people.

According to the Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Agricultural Colleges and Institutions, the APC leader should take part of the blame for the failure of his party to fulfill its promises to Nigerians, instead of dwelling on excuses or looking for a scapegoat.

The lawmaker while agreeing with most of Tinubu’s concerns and criticisms directed at the minister, however disagreed with him on linking the current handling of affairs to that of former PDP administration.

Unfortunately, he said, Tinubu mysteriously derailed from this ennobling track for no sensible reason than, probably an urge to redeem some modicum of public respect and confidence for the APC, which evidently has lost more political capital through a consistent display of planlessness and crass incompetence than even its extreme opponents could have contemplated, a few short months ago.

This, according to Okorie, he did by attempting a weak and non-contextual connection of the PDP to the “undemocratic excesses”

of a rapidly evolving fascist regime of the APC. He said: “With the greatest of respect to the ‘Lion of Bourdillon’, the APC has a responsibility to deliver on its over 3,000 promises to Nigerians and would do well to keep its eye on the ball than this compulsive and overburdened recline into the past.

“The ‘issues that press us’ cannot be resolved by President Bauhari and the APC by the continual bashing of the PDP which has long yielded power. The only reason the APC is in government today is because they laid alluring claims to some magical and often esoteric ‘solutions’ of the problems of the Nigerian nation.

“Tinubu, an accomplished chartered accountant, is well aware that ‘sunk costs’ or irretrievable expenditure in whatever quantum add no value to corporate plans and bottom line. He is in the know that clear plans/policies, focused implementation and diligent monitoring systems are the basic parameters for productive governance.

“Can he, in clear conscience and at the risk of personal integrity, point to the Buhari/APC policies on any sector of the economy, including the petroleum sector to ‘support his confidence that President Buhari and this government can resolve the issues that press us’?,” he queried.

Gwagwalada Violence: Police Arrest Eight Jaiyeola Andrews in Abuja Following the violence in Gwagwalada between members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the run up to the councils’ polls where one person was killed at the weekend, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command has said it has arrested eight suspects involved in the orgy of violence.

The unfortunate violent political clash occurred in Dobi Village, in Gwagwalada Area Council, claimed the life of one Haruna Adam and left in its wake the destruction of property worth millions of naira.

The FCT Police Commissioner, Mr. Wilson Inalegwu, who made this revelation on the arrest yesterday, said eight suspects allegedly involved in the violent clash were already cooling off in the police net.

He said investigation

had reached advanced stage to unravel the remote and immediate causes of the fracas.

The CP noted that all those found wanting would soon be taken to court for prompt prosecution.

Inalegwu warned that no stone would be left unturned in applying the law fully in order to serve as deterrent to anyone who may want to tow the same barbaric path.

He added that normalcy had returned to the area, assuring residents of the FCT that the security agencies were on top of the situation.

The FCT Minister, Malam Muhammad Musa Bello had directed the security agents in FCT to fish out the perpetrators of the violent political skirmish.

The minister also directed that all those involved be made to face the full wrath of the law, adding that nobody was above the law.

Government College Ughelli Old Boys Hold Party Today Government College, Ughelli Old Boys Association Lagos Branch will hold a get together today tagged: ‘Friends and Family-Day-Out.’ A statement by its Publicity Secretary, Stephen Ighofose, said the event would hold at the newly acquired

GCUOBA Secretariat on 22, Mac Neil Road, Yaba, Lagos from 12p.m.

The statement added that the event welcomes all GCU Old Boys in Lagos and its environs with their friends and families.

ON-THE SPOT-TOUR

L-R: Commanding Officer, 3 Brigade of the Nigerian Army, Kano, Brigadier-General, Hamisu Hassan; Katsina State Governor, Aminu Bello Masari; Director General, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Alhaji Sani Sidi; and the Chairman of Sabon Gari Market Association, Alhaji Ali Bagadaza, during the governor visit to Sabon Gari Market over the fire incident that razed the market on Friday and Sunday....yesterday

Ondo Begins Lawyers’ Wigs Production, Eyes NBA Deal As the Ondo State Government makes further progress in its determination to focus on agriculture as a means for job creation for the youths in the state, Governor Olusegun Mimiko has encouraged the Seri-culture section of the state’s Wealth Creation Agency (WECA) to go into massive production of lawyers’ wig in anticipation of a business relationship with the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA).

Mimiko during a tour of the Sericulture section at the weekend, reiterated that agriculture remains the sector with capacity to stimulate and insulate the economy, noting

that the state government’s decision to reinvigorate WECA was part of his administration determination at enhancing food security and providing raw materials that can promote industrialisation as well as, employment opportunities to the youth and at the same time grow the state into the regions agribusiness hub.

He charged the sericulture section of the state to go into massive production of the lawyers’ wigs in order to provide more employment opportunities for the youths and promised to liaise with NBA Chairman for

collaboration and patronage.

Mimiko had before the visit to the sericulture section, visited the newly established 1,000 daily capacity chicken processing plant of WECA also along Ondo Road in Akure, the state capital.

The governor, who commended the Chairman of the agency, Mrs. Bolanle Olafunmiloye, and the management staff for their initiative during the visit , advised the pro-farmers attached to the processing plant to make the maximum use of the opportunities in the entire agricultural value chain

they are being exposed to by the present administration in order to become an employer of labour in the nearest future.

Responding, Chairman of the agency, Mrs Bolanle Funmiloye, while conducting the governor and his entourage round the premises of the processing plant, explained that the chicken processing factory was set up to add value to the chicken being raised by the profarmer-agropreneurs attached to different Agro Business Cities established by the state government across as training and incubation centre for the youths.

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Revenue: Group Petitions EFCC over Non-remittance

Ugo Aliogo

An anti-corruption coalition, Civil Society Network against Corruption (CSNAC), has urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to immediately commence investigation into the alleged non-remittance of generated revenue by about 600 government agencies.

In a petition forwarded to the acting chairman of the anti-graft commission, Mr. Ibrahim Magu, the group through its chairman, Mr. Olanrewaju Suraju, said the alleged non-remittance of generated revenue was a great disservice to the nation as well as an economic sabotage.

The coalition said it took its cue from the February 26, 2016, report of an online newspaper, The Cable, where it was reported that about 600 government agencies underremitted generated revenues to the federal government.

According to the report, these agencies include Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Nigeria Television Authority (NTA), National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA), among others.

“In a National Assembly Budget and Research Office (NABRO) report obtained by TheCable, titled: ‘Improving revenue collections and remittances by federal government agencies,’ it was gathered that the NNPC, which should have remitted N3.02

trillion to the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) between 2007 and 2011, made no payment.”

According to the report, The federal government has nearly 600 agencies covering a wide spectrum of activities such as central and mortgage banking, insurance, oil and gas, maritime administration and safety, air and sea port management and so on.

“These agencies control trillions of naira, but paradoxically, they account for only five per cent of the federal government budget deficit financing…the record shows that none of them, except those managed by technical partners (NITEL, NIGERDOCK, NAFCON etc.), make profits.”

“In a calculated disregard for the provisions of the Fiscal Responsibility Act that mandated government agencies to remit 80 per cent of their operating surplus to the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) of the federal government, while keeping 20 per cent in the agency’s general reserve fund.

Though the Act only covered 31 out of the 500 government agencies, most of the agencies listed have faulted in compliance.

Since they were told to remit 80 percent of operating surplus, these agencies, began to post losses rather than surpluses, thereby remitting no amount to the federal purse.

“Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria, Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria, News Agency of Nigeria, Nigerian

Civil Aviation Authority, Nigerian Copyright Commission and the Nigerian Export Promotion Zones Authority,” all recorded losses. “The highest deficits were recorded by Federal Road Maintenance Agency (N18.30 billion in 2011), Nigeria ExportImport Bank (N5.46 billion in 2009), Federal Mortgage Bank (N3.58 billion in 2010), Nigerian Communications Commission (N5.76 billion in 2009 and N7.49 billion in 2010) and the Nigerian Communication Satellite (N3.33 billion in 2009).

“Furthermore, following the obvious disregard for the FRA, the federal government under Goodluck Jonathan, and the ministry of finance under Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, in November 2011, directed these agencies (particularly the revenue generating agencies) to remit 25 per cent of their gross operations revenue to the CRF.” “This directive led these agencies to under-report their revenues, so they could remit less to the federal government.

For instance, in December 2012, NABRO claims “the Financial

Reporting Council expected to receive N1.61 billion as subvention from the government in 2013, generated N4.28 billion internally, and posted a surplus of N85.69 million”.

This happened across many of the agencies listed in the report.”

The report also stated that though WAEC was not listed in the FRA, the council was expected to pay 80 per cent of its operating surplus and 25 per cent of its IGR to the federal purse, but the NABRO report shows otherwise.

“WAEC did not remit any amount between 2009 and 2012.

The N1.93 billion that the council should have paid into the CRF of the federal government during the period was kept for future use. “In effect, the council had regard for neither the provisions of the FRA, 2007 on remittances nor the directive of the Federal Ministry of Finance to remit 25 per cent of its gross internally generated revenue to the CRF.” “However, the WAEC Act of 1973 does not explicitly state that the council should remit any amount to the federal purse.

NAFDAC also contravened FRA 2007, holding on to an operating surplus of over N500 million.

“NAFDAC recorded deficits in 2010 and 2011 but had a surplus of N759.6 million in 2009. Of this amount, N607.68 million was to be remitted to the CRF,” the NABRO report read.

“However, the audited accounts and treasury receipts indicate that only N105 million of this amount was paid in 2011. Thus, the authorities of NAFDAC are yet to remit the outstanding 2009 operating surplus of N502.68 million.”

“Finally, NPA indicated in its summary of financial report (2009 to 2012) that it remitted N5.17 billion on August 26, 2009 in respect of its 2009 operating surplus, but the Office of the Auditor General of the Federation stated that only N3.02 billion was received from the NPA in the same year.

“The NPA also “stated that the sum of N3.50 billion was remitted on January 26, 2011 and July 25, 2011 with regard

to its 2010 operating surplus.

“The OAGF was surprisingly unaware of this as the NPA did not provide any evidence of this remittance, saying NPA ‘did not make any remittance in 2010 but made a total remittance of N1.1 billion in 2011 out of which the sum of N167.9 million was in respect of 2009 while the sum of N1 billion was on account of 2010’.” For the NNPC and its subsidiary NAPIMS (National Petroleum Investment Management Services), generated trillions of naira and failed in remittance.

According to NABRO, NAPIMS “earned N9.58 trillion (excluding proceeds from crude oil and gas) between 2009 and 2011 and accumulated a surplus of N2.07 trillion.

“Hence, the NNPC ought to have remitted the sum of N1.65 trillion to the CRF. However, the sums of N338.26 billion, N572.22 billion and N746.17 billion (due to the government) were retained and stated as having been transferred to revenue reserve in 2009, 2010 and 2011 respectively.”

Attah Igala, Ali Call for Peace Yekini Jimoh in Lokoja The Attah Igala, Idakwo Michael Ameh Oboni 11, and former National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Ahmadu Ali, have called on those hiding under ethnicity to foment trouble in Kogi State to have a rethink and embrace peace in the interest of all.

The duo spoke separately at the third anniversary programme of the paramount ruler held in Idah in the state at the weekend.

The royal father who commended the state Governor, Alhaji Bello, for his peaceful disposition further stated that Ebiras migrated from Idah to Koton Karffi and Okene in search of greener pastures, stressing that Igalas and Ebiras are one tribe.

He warned those trying to fan the ember of disunity between the Igalas and Ebiras to desist from such act in order to pave the way for peace and development in the State.

The monarch charged the governor to start the change mantra of the All Progressives Congress (APC) from the Igala Kingdom which is his ancestral home in order to bring development closer to those at the grassroots.

On the anniversary celebration, the royal father said the occasion was postponed for a week following the death of the Minister of State for Labour

and Employment, Mr. James Ocholi.

Meanwhile, the former National Chairman of PDP, Ali, speaking at the occasion, said power belongs to God and He chooses whom He gives at a particular time, urging the Igalas to massively support the administration of Bello in order to bring even development and transformation to every part of the state.

“Don’t go to war with Ebiras; my children, power belongs to God, He chooses whom to give, it can be your turn tomorrow, now it is the turn of Yahaya Bello whom all of us have to support to succeed,” he stated.

The governor who was delighted by the encouraging words from the royal father and several speakers at the occasion. said his government would ensure equity, justice and fair play in the discharge of duties and distribution of social amenities to every part of the state.

The governor who was welcomed into the palace by a large number of admirers said the Attah Igala has exemplified foresight required by any leader to lead the nation.

He said the bane of the state and the nation at large is the people at the helms of affairs who only thought of their “belly and the end was always disastrous.”

CSR IN ACTION

L-R: Government and Community Relations Officer, MTN Nigeria, Mr. Andrew Esun; Principal, Ugborikoko Secondary School, Warri, Mr. Charles Okotie; and Customer Relationship Manager, MTN Nigeria, Ms. Gloria Osako, during the handing over of school furniture donated to the school by the MTN Foundation, as part of its ‘What Can We Do Together’ initiative, in Warri, Delta State…weekend

Buhari Urged to Break Jinx by Rebuilding 40-year-old Federal Road

Emmanuel Ugwu in Umuahia

President Muhammadu Buhari has been called upon to intervene in breaking the jinx that has scuttled every effort to rehabilitate the ArochukwuOhafia federal highway over 40 years after it was built.

A member of House of Representatives, Hon. Uko Nkole, made the call at the weekend while speaking with journalists during the inauguration of his constituency headquarters at Ohafia.

He said presidential intervention on the road had become necessary given that a contract was awarded for the rehabilitation of the road when Mr. President was the Chairman of the defunct Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF).

He lamented that the PTF contract was never executed while subsequent contracts for the rehabilitation of the same stretch of road had all ended the same way.

Nkole, who represents Arochukwu-Ohafia federal constituency, specifically asked President Buhari to probe why the contract that PTF awarded for the road project under his watch was not implemented.

“The Arochukwu-Ohafia road, which has suffered neglect over the years, has continued to represent a sad commentary on the state of federal roads in Abia State with its attendant negative impact on economic and social life of the people.

“I have made every effort to ensure that the road was accommodated in the 2016

federal budget,” Nkole said, adding that while every segment of his constituency has its peculiar problems, the road issue was a common denominator.

Aside from the nagging problem of collapsed federal road in his constituency, the federal lawmaker also stated that erosion menace had continued to wreak havoc in the area as buildings and farm lands had disappeared on many occasions.

According to him, erosion havoc in his constituency is so severe that it has resulted in the internally displaced persons (IDPs) but the problems has been contained because of the strong bond of extended family system, which has made it possible

for the IDPs to be absorbed by relatives.

He warned that if nothing urgent was done before the commencement of this year’s rainy season “many people would suffer” hence the need for the relevant federal agencies to tackle the erosion menace urgently.

Nkole, who is less than 10 months in the National Assembly, said he had so far undertaken a number of projects to enhance the quality of life in his constituency.

These, according to him, include five water projects that have attained 70 per cent completion, skill acquisition programme for youths and completion of classroom blocks at Ndiakpu Ohafia.

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Saraki’s Trial: Desperate Politicians Have Hijacked CCT, Says Kwara APC Hammed Shittu in Ilorin The Kwara State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has raised the alarm that desperate politicians in the country have hijacked the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT), warning that the judiciary may throw the country into needless chaos in view of the ugly development.

In a statement issued in Ilorin by and signed by its Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Sulyman Buhari, yesterday, the party said: “The President Muhammadu Buhari should not be seen to be watching helplessly when politicians hijack a crucial arm of the government to carry out political vendetta against perceived political adversaries.”

According to the statement, “For anyone who ever doubted our position that the trial of the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, is not an anti-corruption drive but political persecution and witch-hunt, the ruling of

the tribunal last Thursday was the clearest signal that what the senate president is going through is nothing but political persecution at the tribunal.”

The statement said: “It also shows that the CCT is being manipulated and remotecontrolled by some desperate politicians.”

The APC said further that, “Like the counsel to the Senate President rightly noted, we are convinced that the right thing has not been done as far as the charges are concerned. It is now clear and glaring that due process has not been followed and the CCB has broken its own laws.

“Given identical cases, Nigerians should note that the CCT under Justice Umar Danladi discharged and acquitted a leader of APC in 2011 based on Section 3 (d) of the CCB/ CCT Act. Why is the Senate President’s motion on the same Section 3 (d) of the CCB/CCT Act being denied by the same

tribunal under the same judge?,” the party queried.

The party added: “In carrying out its hatchet agenda, the tribunal didn’t mind the implications of turning the law and its own precedent upside down. Anyone who watch the proceedings of the tribunal meticulously last Thursday would be convinced the tribunal has an hidden agenda and pre-determined conclusion.”

The party pointed out that, “Therefore, we have lost hope in the CCT and its judges as presently constituted.

“Also, we are concerned about the continued intimidation of judges by media blackmailers reportedly sponsored by agencies of government and politicians.

“Not once, not twice, judges have been intimidated to either abscond with judgment or to withdraw from the cases involving the Senate President.

This is sheer injustice. If the Chairman of the National Assembly can be treated in such way in this country, what is the fate of the masses?

“The Chief Justice of Nigeria should note the rascality of

judicial officers and these clear inconsistencies.

“Judgment is not suppose to be based on personal opinions and political vendetta. It should be about the law. And the law is the law.”

Sulyman noted further: ”The CCT has been hijacked by politicians and we are concerned that the judiciary is about to throw our beloved country into avoidable chaos and pandemonium. The CJN should show leadership as it appears politicians have usurped his functions and powers.

“The silence of the leadership of our party is no longer golden. In the first instance, the travails of the Senate President was initiated by the bad losers in our party.

“The APC leadership should note that the Senate President has deployed his powers and influence to protect and promote the interests of the party and the agenda of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration. It is time for the party to intervene and take position on the ongoing trial.”

Yobe Govt, DFID to Hold Governance Retreat Members of the Yobe State Executive Council and other key officials of the state government, including some permanent secretaries and heads of parastatals, will hold a twoday governance retreat in Abuja in collaboration with the state Partnership for Accountability, Responsiveness and Capability Programme (SPARC) of the United Kingdom Department for International Development (DFID) from March 30 to 31, 2016.

The retreat, with the theme: ‘Keeping Abreast of Governance Reforms in Yobe State,’ is designed to review the progress made so far in governance reforms in the state and further explore the relevance and use of data, revenue, budget and development partners, among other economic variables, in deepening and sustaining social

development in the state.

A statement by the Director of Press Affairs to the state governor, Abdullahi Bego, said Governor Ibrahim Gaidam would deliver the retreat’s keynote address with the title: ‘A New Mandate for Change and Sustainable Development.’

Bego said the retreat would also receive a goodwill message from DFID SPARC’s National Programme Manager, Mr. Mark Walker.

He added that participants in the retreat would engage in intensive discussions and share experiences about the ongoing governance reforms in the state.

At least 10 papers would be presented and discussed both

by Yobe government officials and DFID SPARC specialists and consultants.

A communique would be issued at the end of the retreat.

Free Eye Surgery for Ogwashi Uku Indigenes Victims of cataracts and other eye ailments in Ogwashi Uku, Delta State will soon get relief as Adaigbo Cultural Organisation begins the second phase of its free eye surgery.

The non-profit organisation had distributed over 1,000 free eye glasses to the old, widows and the needy in the Ogwashi Uku community in the first phase last year.

Coordinator of the organisation, Mr. John Ubaka, disclosed that surgeons and other medical experts had been deployed to attend to the patients as part of the second phase of the annual program, saying adequate arrangement had been made to ensure success for the program.

“We are targeting over 40 patients for treatment and we are also prepared to give out eye glasses to people,” Ubaka said,

adding that the organisation was non-partisan or profit-driven but motivated to affect lives of the poor and vulnerable positively.

“The second phase for the eye surgery will hold at the Ogwashi Uku Town Hall on March 28,” the coordinator also said.

Meanwhile, Ubaka has enjoined well-meaning Nigerians to partner with government to make health care accessible to the needy as Delta State Governor, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, leads other dignitaries and government functionaries to the Easter Day event.

The Adaigbo Cultural Organisation had last year assembled a team of doctors and other medical personnel to offer free medical treatment for different ailments to the people of Ogwashi Uku community.

CELEBRATING EASTER

R-L: Wife of the Lagos State Governor, Mrs. Bolanle Ambode; Representative of Commissioner of Police, Fimihan Adeoye; Assistant Commissioner of Police Folasade Adam; and Assistant Commissioner of Police, Imohimi Edgal, during the Easter celebration service and Lagos State Police Command thanksgiving service in commemoration of the Police Week celebration, in Alausa, Ikeja...yesterday

Calabar to Host World Mayors’ Conference

Ogun Sensitises Residents on Benefits of Tree Planting

Adebiyi Adedapo in Abuja

The Ogun State Government has urged residents of the state to plant trees in their surrounding, saying aside their importance of planting trees in the society aside economic value, they are also important for human survival.

The state government promised to support the campaign with 1.5 million seedlings, which would be spread across the nine forest reserves in the state.

The Commissioner for Forestry, Chief Kolawole Lawal, spoke shortly after planting some tree seedlings as part of events commemorating the annual Forestry Day, tagged: ‘Forest and Water.’

Lawal said 2016 had been earmarked by the ministry for massive tree planting in the state as government had started distribution of tree seedlings across the three senatorial districts of the state.

“For the government and the people of the state, year 2016 is a tree planting year, that is why

Nigeria is set to play host to the 2016 edition of World Mayors’ Conference, scheduled to hold between May 23 and May 27, in Calabar, the Cross River State capital.

The Chairman, World Mayors’ Conference, African Region, Eyo Asuquo, made this known weekend in Abuja during a courtesy visit to the Deputy Head of Mission of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China to Nigeria, Mr. Qin Jian.

“We are at the embassy to officially inform it of the forthcoming World Mayors’ Conference and to solicit the Embassy’s support to mobilse mayors from China to attend the conference,” he said.

Asuquo noted that the objectives of the conference are in line with the agenda of President Muhammadu Buhari to diversify the country’s economy from oil to agriculture and solid minerals. He added that the conference would be attended by the 774 local government chairmen from the country as

well as mayors from Africa, Asia, America and Europe.

Qin Jian, the Deputy Head of Mission of the Embassy of China to Nigeria, while appreciating the team for the visit, reiterated that China was always willing and ready to partner Africa in any way it could to promote a win-win cooperation.

He said China had no fewer than 2,000 mayors in all its provinces.

The envoy then tasked the organisers of the conference to put adequate modalities in place to ensure a successful hosting.

Jian also expressed his embassy’s resolve to inform relevant stakeholders about the importance of the conference.

The conference manager, John Igoche, said some of the benefits of the conference would include capacity training, skills acquisition, as well as showcasing the potential of various participating countries.

Igoche said his committee had resolved to host a successful conference and called for a win-win situation for all would-be participating countries.

we have stepped up the numbers of tree seedlings in our nursery sites from 700,000 to 1.5 million tree seedlings, so that we can have enough for distribution and planting in our forest regeneration exercise.” he said.

He explained that the distribution and planting exercise were expected to commence around June during the rainy season, urging the people of the state to key into the free tree seedling distribution that would be provided by state government.

“It is very pertinent for the residents to plant trees even in their immediate environment to mitigate against climate change in the society. The last man dies when the last tree dies,” he added.

About 200,000 tree seedlings had been earlier raised by the ministry, but for the coming rainy season, it has to increase to 1.5 million to cut across the nine forest reserves in the state.

T H I S D AY • MONDAY, MARCH28, 2016

45

EASTER MESSAGES...

EASTER MESSAGES...

Atiku, Oyegun, Others Preach Sacrifice, Say Nigeria will Rise Again Our Correspondents Former Vice President, Alhaji Atiki Abubaka and the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief John Odigie-Oyegun. have enjoined Nigerians to be strong amid current harsh challenges, as better days would soon come.

They added that there was “hardly a testimony without a test and a crown without a cross.”

In an Easter message issued in Abuja by his Media Office, Atiku stated that the message of Jesus Christ’s death and resurrection was a perfect analogy for the current situation in Nigeria today.

According to him, “The significance of the celebration of Easter demonstrates that there is never an indomitable situation that hope, good team-spirit and hard work cannot overcome.”

The former vice-president therefore encouraged Nigerians not to lose hope, particularly as the ruling APC government would continue to work assiduously to find long term solutions to the country’s hydra-headed problems.

“Things may seem rough and tough today, but it is only for a while. Nigeria will surely rise again in line with the spirit and tenets of Easter,” he added.

On his part, Oyegun called on Nigerians to pray for the peace, development and prosperity of the country.

He urged Nigerians to imbibe the humility, tolerance, selflessness and sacrifice exhibited by Jesus Christ when gave his life to save mankind.

The APC National Chairman urged the Christian community especially religious leaders to always promote religious harmony between and among various religious affiliations.

He assured that the 10-month old APC-led administration of President Muhammadu Buhari is committed to delivering on the Change Agenda promised Nigerians.

“The 2016 National Budget recently passed by the National Assembly provides ample framework to deliver on these promises,” he said.

Odigie-Oyegun called for greater international cooperation to effectively combat global terrorism.

“No country is insulated from the global terrorism threat. Our best chance is to come together as a unified front to defeat this global threat.

“I call on all Nigerians irrespective of religious, ethnic and political affiliation to support government in the fight against violent extremism, abductions, mass killings, politically-motivated killings and other criminal activities. Also, the public should remain vigilant and cooperate with security agencies in the fight against all criminal activities.”

Wike Felicitates with Rivers People

Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has felicitated with the people of the state on the Easter celebrations, urging them to use the season to pray for the peace of the state and her sustained development.

In an Easter message to the people of the state, Wike advised Christians to re-dedicate themselves to the sacrificial living as exemplified by Jesus Christ for the growth of the state.

He assured the people that his administration would continue to work towards the promotion of security across the state in conjunction with security agencies.

The governor said the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ offers all Christians the privilege of rising with the Saviour into a new existence that would translate into better living.

While wishing the people of the state a joy-filled Easter celebration, he urged them to remain vigilant and report any suspicious movement to security operatives.

We Need Rebirth, Says Aregbesola

The Governor of Osun State, Rauf Aregbesola, has said only a total rebirth in national consciousness and values would deliver Nigeria from its many challenges.

Aregbesola, on the occasion of Easter celebration, said renewal, a crucial theme in the celebration of Easter, should make Nigerians rediscover themselves for the purpose of their creation in the first place.

The governor, in a statement by the Director, Bureau of Communication and Strategy, Mr. Semiu Okanlawon, also called on all Nigerians, especially Christians, to use the period to supplicate to God on behalf of the country so that Nigeria will be able to come out of the present economic challenges.

Fayemi Fetes Christians

The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has felicitated with Christians all over the country and Nigerians in general for witnessing another Easter season, urging them to always uphold the virtues of love and sacrifice which are the hallmark of the Easter celebration.

Fayemi also congratulated them for the successful completion of the Lenten season-a period of 40 days of fasting and prayer which climaxed in the Easter celebration.

The minister, in his Easter goodwill message signed by his Special Assistant on Media, Mr. Yinka Oyebode, also called on Nigerians to make ample use of the opportunity of the season for sober reflection.

While urging Nigerians to celebrate with moderation, Fayemi also charged the people to spend quality time with family and friends, reflect on developments in the country and the world at large as well as pray for peace and progress.

Akpabio Preaches Love, Unity L-R: Dean of the Cathedral, Ven. Abel Olu Ajibodu; Chancellor of Lagos West, Justice Olusola Ogunade; Bishop of Diocese of Lagos West, Cathedral, Rt Rev. James O. Odedeji and his wife, Lydia, during the Easter church service at Achbishop Vinning Memorial Church, Ikeja....yesterday KOLAWOLE ALLI Aregbesola, who also described Easter as a period of sober reflection, enjoined Nigerians to live in peace and harmony at all times despite the present economic hardship.

According to him, religious tolerance and peaceful coexistence among humans are necessary elements in the sustenance of development.

Ambode Preaches Unity, Tolerance

As Christians across the world celebrate Easter, the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, has called on Nigerians to collectively imbibe the spirit of unity, tolerance and peaceful co-existence as panacea for overcoming the nation’s current challenges.

Ambode, in his Easter message to Lagosians, said such fundamental values would go a long way in promoting and strengthening the foundation of love, peace and harmony in the society, adding that the season should serve as a reminder to all of the selflessness, love, sacrifice and tolerance of Jesus Christ throughout His earthly sojourn.

In a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Habib Aruna, the governor said: “Remembering that foundation is particularly meaningful this Easter as our nation is facing challenges which we can overcome if we choose to, by exercising collective tolerance and be ready to make sacrifices.”

It’s Time to Re-awaken our Humanity, Says Obiano

Governor of Anambra State, Chief Willie Obiano, has called on Christians across the world to seize the moment of deep reflection that the feast of Easter usually brings to reawaken their humanity and re-establish the presence of God in their lives.

In a special Easter message in Awka, the state capital, Obiano observed that the complex challenges that face modern Christians has seriously eroded the values that once sustained the essence of mankind and weakened the connection between many Christians and Jesus Christ, and calls for rigorous self-interrogation and re-awakening.

According to him, “Easter is a period when Christians devote time to reflect on the role of Jesus Christ in the life of mankind and resolve to walk the path of moral regeneration. This is made easier by the Lenten season which precedes Easter and prepares the church to enter the period of Grace that Easter offers.”

Hard Work, Sacrifice are What We Need Now, Says Ajimobi

Oyo State Governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, has expressed optimism that the country is capable of scaling the current economic crises through selflessness, hard work and patriotism by the people, irrespective of social stratification.

In an Easter message by his Special Adviser on

Communication and Strategy, Mr. Yomi Layinka, the governor said these were the sterling attributes that distinguished Jesus Christ for which his death and resurrection had become an annual celebration among the Christians.

The governor felicitated with the people, particularly Christians, on the occasion of this year’s Easter, a period he said was meant for sacrifice and forgiveness as exemplified by the life and times of Jesus Christ.

Harping on hard work, the governor said no country could survive if its working age population relies heavily on the government for survival instead of getting actively engage in profitable ventures to eke out a living.

Umahi Calls for Meditation

Ebonyi State Governor, David Umahi, has called on the people of the state to always meditate on the central message and purpose of the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ by ruminating on the essence of Easter.

Umahi, in an Easter message issued on March 23, said it was very important for all Ebonyi people and other Nigerians to be prayerful and always remember that the death and ascension of Jesus Christ liberated “us from sins.”

He also used the opportunity to praise the people of the state for their unflinching support for his administration, noting that the successes he had so far recorded would not have been possible without them.

The governor said: “As we celebrate the death, resurrection and ascension into heaven of our Lord Jesus Christ, which ultimately liberated us from sins, I enjoin you all to always meditate on the central message and the purpose of His birth, death and resurrection by ruminating on the essence of life and by being prayerful.”

Okowa Enjoins Christians to Emulate Christ’s Humility

Delta State Governor, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, has enjoined Deltans, particularly Christians, to emulate the humility of Jesus Christ, who in spite of his heavenly endowments, took up the cross in utter obedience to God’s will.

In a goodwill message to the people of the state signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Charles Ehiedu Aniagwu, Okowa noted that the society would be a better place if adherents of Christianity imbibe the spirit of love and sacrifice; which is the bedrock of the religion.

“Easter is the reason why we are called Christians.

But Christianity places a demand on all of us-a responsibility to look out for each other and be our brothers’ keepers,” he said.

The governor noted that there is nowhere the demands of Christianity are required more than in Delta State with its unique multi-ethnic diversities.

He said: “The ability to blur our lines of differences is the hallmark of love which is central to the Easter message.”

Senate Minority Leader and former Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Senator Godswill Akpabio, has felicitated with Christian faithful across Nigeria and in the world on the 2016 Easter festival, charging them to continue to live in love and harmony.

Akpabio, who stated this in his Easter message to Nigerians, which was signed by his Special Assistant on Media, Jackson Udom, maintained that the essence of Easter “is about love and the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ. It is about showing love to others and living lives worthy of emulation,” urging Christians to imbibe Christ’s qualities of love and sacrifice.

The former governor charged Nigerians to, as a part of their sacrifices, pray for Nigeria and continue to seeks its progress, noting that “together in unity, we can all overcome all challenges facing our great country.”

Our Unity will End Nigeria’s Crises, Says Kwara Speaker

As Christians in the country join others around the world to celebrate the Easter the Speaker of Kwara State House of Assembly, Hon. Ali Ahmad, has enjoined Nigerians to be strong in unity and togetherness in the face of several challenges facing the country.

He said with unity of purpose, Nigeria would soon overcome the crises.

Ahmad made the charge in Ilorin, the state capital, yesterday while speaking with journalists on the celebration of this year’s Easter period.

He advised that Nigerians must utilise their differences in religion, ethnicity and language to make the country great.

While congratulating Christians for the Easter celebration, he admonished them to imbibe Jesus Christ qualities, be their brother’s keepers, preach peace at all times and show love to people around them, especially adherents of other religions.

Lagos Speaker Prays for Love, Peace for Nigerians

The Lagos State House of Assembly Speaker, Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, has called on Christians and all Nigerians to see the Easter period as an opportunity to increase their efforts at showing love and promotion of peace among mankind.

Obasa, in his Easter message to Nigerians, Christians in particular, urged them not to relent in cooperating and supporting the All Progressives Congress (APC) governments at the centre and the state levels in their efforts to put in place programmes and measures that would enhance and improve the standard of living of Nigerians.

In the message signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Musbau Rasak, Obasa charged Nigerians, particularly Christians, to emulate Jesus Christ who, through his love for mankind, decided to sacrifice his life for people to live.

“Easter is a period to share love and promote peace. Jesus Christ lived and died for peace and love to reign and we can all emulate the exemplary life of Christ by becoming promoter of peace and love,” he stated.

He also called for the increase of state government monthly subvention to N150million to ensure up to date payment of retired primary and secondary school teachers gratuity and pension and also called for the immediate payment of the backlogs of gratuity of retired primary school teachers.

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T H I S D AY • MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2016

MONDAYSPORTS

Fallout of Nigeria v Egypt: NFF Blames Police for Overcrowding, Defends Choice of Kaduna

Part of the overcrowded stadium last Friday in Kaduna Olawale Ajimotokan, who was in Kaduna The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has cleverly absolved itself of any liability arising from overcrowding and security breaches witnessed in Kaduna on Good Friday when Nigeria hosted Egypt in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifier.

NFF Secretary General, Dr Mohammed Sanusi insisted that it was not the duty of the federation to control crowd at the stadium.

Sanusi said it was the function of Kaduna State government and the police to control crowd and provide security. He added that the football federation’s role was limited to organising the match.

The crowd control measures adopted for the match fell short of international best practices and also made Nigeria a laughing stock among nations.

It was only by divine intervention that no casualty was recorded during and after the match that ended 1-1 when Mohamed Salah stoppage time goal cancelled out Oghenekaro Etebo’s 62nd goal for Nigeria.

The suitability of Kaduna, the heart-beat of Northern Nigeria, to stage a fixture of such scope was raised given that the Ahmadu Bello Stadium only has a capacity for 25,000 fans.

The Super Eagles are no strangers to Kaduna: they hosted Chad in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifier and had played

Zambia and Burkina Faso in friendly matches.

However, good judgement demanded that a match between Nigeria and Egypt, with a spot to the Africa Cup of Nations at stake was not right for Kaduna which has seats for about 25,000 spectators.

Indeed, about 40,000 fans or more were cramped inside the Ahmadu Bello Stadium last Friday to cheer the Eagles to victory.

The tension was not helped by the decision of Kaduna State government to declare the stadium gates open as a way of marshalling public goodwill for the national team.

The fans choked into every available space.

Some clambered into the television stand to the west of the stadium and the score board, directly opposite the VIP area, while the daring ones even did the extreme by climbing the four monolithic floodlights, portraying an impression of anarchy. The gate to the covered stand was locked two hours before the match, while those who managed to assess one of the two gates that directly lead to the pitch, infiltrated the technical area and the track further away from the goal post.

But the question is: where were the police while this embarrassment was foisted on the country in the glare of the world as the match was relayed on cable television?

Some of the security personnel on duty, including the police, army, Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps and Department of State Services (DSS) were present in high

number such that those on the pitch were mere football spectators.

International football rules forbidding unauthorized men around technical area, was defiantly violated, prompting the Match Commissioner, Mr Abbasi Ssendyowa from Uganda to threaten not to sanction the kick off unless the infiltrators were removed from the area.

NFF officials’ repeated appeal to the violators even in the local language was not headed.

In the heat of the moment, frustration could be seen on the face of President Amaju Pinnick, as he realised that the scenario being projected was a bad public relations for the country’s image.

Before kick-off as the both teams were warming up, an overzealous fan evaded security attention when he jumped from the stands and ran to the field to hug John Mikel Obi. He was chased and ‘arrested’ by security men who repeatedly beat him as he was whisked away.

Sanusi told THISDAY yesterday that federation officials were highly embarrassed by the security lapses at the match.

He said that though the federation did all within its capacity it could not enforce control over the crowd.

“We did everything, we played our role but we have no control over the crowd.

NFF is not a security agency; we can’t go

and mount the gate.

“We even paid a courtesy visit to the Inspector General of Police in respective of this match. Our security committee even came to Kaduna where they had a meeting with the security here. The Commissioner of Police too was here, so how can anybody say NFF was responsible for security. We are not responsible for security in Kaduna state. It is the responsibility of the state government and the corresponding security operatives,” Sanusi declared.

It will be a mirage if CAF does not sanction Nigeria and in particular, Kaduna for the after studying Ssendyowa’s report.

But Sanusi insisted that CAF’s action would only be informed by media report, saying no one is sure of what the match commissioner report would write in his report.

He similarly defended the choice of Kaduna, saying it is national stadium and the possibility of Nigeria playing in the city in the future can’t be ruled out.

“We have not had this kind of problem since we have been playing in Kaduna. Just because of one episode and a setback, it does not mean we should place a blanket ban on Ahmadu Bello Stadium.

The overcrowding was quite disturbing, but we thank God there were no casualties.

The players were motivated by the presence of the fans who cheered from start till the end,” Sanusi said.

GOtv Boxing Night 6: Fijabi Wins N1m Again Boxing rave, Olaide Fijabi, Friday at the Indoor Sports Hall of the National Stadium, Lagos won the N1 million cash prize for the best boxer at the sixth edition of the GOtv Boxing Night.

Fijabi, a second time winner of the prize, defeated Djamiou

Ekekpo of the Republic of Benin via a technical knockout in the sixth of the 12- round West African light welterweight title fight.

Fijabi said his next target is to become an African champion.

“I am not yet satisfied. I

feel like punching on and on. Ekekpo couldn’t take my punches. Whoever is holding the African light welterweight title, I am coming to claim it” he said.

In other big fight, Nigeria’s Abolaji Rasheed knocked out Adjei Sowah of Ghana in the

third of their 12-round contest to win the West African middleweight title.

Former best boxer of the GOtv Boxing Night Otto Joseph made light work of Hogan Jimoh Jnr., knocking him out in the first round of their six-round national

lightweight challenge bout.

Jimoh’s father , widely known as Atomic Bomb, was in attendance.

In the first fight decided, Michael Rolland was knocked out in the fifth round of their national lightweight challenge bout by Nwoye Prince.

Matthew Obinna defeated the more experienced Yusuf Moshood, while Saidi Lawal was defeated by Samuel Elegbede in the super middleweight challenge.

The boxing event was broadcast live by SuperSport in 47 African countries.