Friday 14th October 2016

NJC: No Judge Can be Invited by DSS Without Due Process While condemning arrests, says it would never shield anyone accused of misconduct Recommends Onnoghen as CJN EFCC opens separate probe of eight judges

Tobi Soniyi, Senator Iroegbu and Damilola Oyedele in Abuja

The National Judicial Council has described the invasion of the residences

and arrest of some serving and suspended judicial officers by the Department of Security Services (DSS) as

a threat to the independence of the judiciary, adding that no judicial officer shall be invited by any institution in

the country, including the DSS, without complying with the rule of law and due process The council, in a statement

last night, was reacting to the arrest and release on bail of seven judges at the weekend by the DSS for

Iran Condemns Attacks on Nigerian Shiites... Page 48

alleged corruption.

The affected judges are: Justices Okoro and Ngwuta of the Supreme Court; Justice Muhammad Ladan Tsamiya Continued on page 8

Friday 14 October, 2016 Vol 21. No 7848. Price: N250

www.thisdaylive.com TR

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& RE A S O

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In a Cash-for-Girls Deal, Government Celebrates Return of 21 Chibok Girls

More girls to be released soon, says Osinbajo Abductee freed with baby Buhari, Saraki, Atiku, BBOG, others overjoyed Our Correspondents The federal government, Bring Back Our Girls (BBOG) group and Nigerians from all walks of life yesterday were in a celebratory mood, following

the release of 21 girls who were kidnapped from their secondary school in Chibok, Borno State more than two years ago in a cash-for-girls exchange deal.

Although the Minister of

21 OF OUR GIRLS ARE BACK...

Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, dismissed initial reports yesterday that the girls were released in a prisoner swap deal, reliable sources in the presidency informed THISDAY that the

girls were released yesterday morning after an undisclosed amount of money was paid to the Boko Haram leaders.

When THISDAY confronted Continued on page 8

1 2 3 4

FREED CHIBOK GIRLS Mary Usman Bulama Jummai John Blessing Abana Lugwa Sanda

5 Comfort Habila 6 Maryam Basheer 7 Comfort Amos

Continued on page 8

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and his wife, Dolapo, comforting some of the 21 Chibok girls who were very emotional yesterday in Abuja after their release, following more than two years in captivity

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PAGE EIGHT IN A CASH-FOR-GIRLS DEAL, FG CELEBRATES RELEASE OF 21 CHIBOK GIRLS Mohammed with the information on the cash that was paid to secure the release of the girls, he also denied it, saying his information was coming from the “very top”.

The 21 girls, who emerged from captivity, were some of the 276 girls abducted by the terror sect on April 14, 2014 from their school dormitory, sparking global outrage and the demand for their release by world leaders including U.S. First Lady, Michele Obama.

Of the 276 girls kidnapped on that fateful night, 57 immediately escaped from captivity while 219 were held captive for two years, until one of the girls, Amina Ali Nkeli, escaped last May with her baby who was conceived and born in captivity and one of her abductors, whom she called her husband.

With the release of 21 girls yesterday, 197 remain in captivity with a promise by the Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo yesterday that more of the girls would be released in the next few days or months.

The president’s media aide, Garba Shehu, gave the names of the freed girls as: Mary Usman Bulama, Jummai John, Blessing Abana, Lugwa Sanda, Comfort Habila, Maryam Basheer, Comfort Amos, Glory Mainta, Saratu Emannuel, Deborah Ja’afaru and Rahab Ibrahim.

Others included Helen Musa, Maryamu Lawan, Rebecca Ibrahim, Asabe Goni, Deborah Andrawus, Agnes Gapani, Saratu Markus, Glory Dama, Pindah Nuhu and Rebecca Mallam.

One of the 21 girls, who all looked emaciated and grief-stricken in the photographs released by the State House, Abuja, had a baby clinging to her.

Osinbajo, who spoke with State House correspondents after he met with the girls at the Office of the Department of State Services (DSS), said Nigerians should congratulate themselves and thank God for the girls’ release.

He also confirmed the information minister’s assertion that the federal government did not swap the girls for detained members of Boko Haram.

He said: “We should congratulate ourselves and thank the almighty God for the release and subsequent return home of 21 of the Chibok girls who were taken hostage two years ago.

“It is exciting news for the whole country. Everyone is really excited and I believe that we should be very thankful to God. “I also want to thank the military and all the security services, DSS, intelligence services across the county as well as our friends and partners, locally and internationally who have also helped in bringing to a happy end of the captivity of 21 of the Chibok girls.

“About an hour ago, I met with the 21 Chibok girls who have been brought back and they are in good health, considering the circumstances they have been held in, and they are now being well

8 9 10 11 12 13 14

taken care of in the medical facility.

“They will be staying there for sometime until we are satisfied with their health. Their parents will be coming to join them hopefully by tomorrow.

“There will be therapy, there will be counselling. Of course, we can imagine what they have gone through. So we expect that a lot of psychological therapy and so much needs to be done to get them back in the right condition.”

On whether the girls were released through a swap for suspected members of Boko Haram in government custody, the vice-president said: “There was no exchange of any kind.

There was no swap of any kind.

“When we started negotiations, we said we would consider all options available to us. Absolutely, there was no exchange of any kind.”

When asked further if the government will agree to future swaps to secure the release of the remaining girls, he replied: “We must be sensitive to the fact that the government wants these girls back and alive.

“Again, we must balance it against the security and safety of the country. In the process of negotiations, we will look at all options and we will weigh the options carefully and decide on what to do.

“But what has happened and the process we have begun is one which has not involved any type of swap of Boko Haram commanders or any militant in any way.

“That is a very good turn of events. We believe that in the next few days and months, we will be bringing in more of these girls using exactly the same kind of negotiations and the same template that we used.”

‘Red Cross Helped Convey Girls’ Providing clarity on the involvement of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which yesterday stated that it was not involved in negotiations for the release of the girls, Osinbajo said: “The Swiss government worked with us in the process of negotiations, but the Red Cross was not involved in the negotiations.

“But in conveying the girls back, of course, we worked with the Red Cross because we were unable to take our own medical team. The Red Cross was not involved at all in the process of negotiations. It was the Swiss government and our own officials comprising the DSS, intelligence and the military that were involved.”

Cash Paid for Girls However, despite the federal government’s insistence that there was no prisoner swap to secure the release of the girls, an authoritative presidency source informed THISDAY that the government was forced to part with cash to get the 21 girls out.

Although he did not disclose

FREED CHIBOK GIRLS

Glory Mainta Saratu Emannuel Deborah Ja’afaru Rahab Ibrahim Helen Musa Maryamu Lawan Rebecca Ibrahim

15 16 17 18 19 20 21

Asabe Goni Deborah Andrawus Agnes Gapani Saratu Markus Glory Dama Pindah Nuhu Rebecca Mallam

the amount involved, he said: “As you know, the federal government started negotiations for the release of the Chibok girls in July last year.

“However, there were two previous attempts to secure their release which failed because Boko Haram was factionalised.

“Despite this, the government did not give up and continued negotiations through its team led by the DSS, with the support of the Nigerian Army and Air Force.

“The team eventually got the green light recently and delivered the money to the representatives of Boko Haram, following which one of the Augusta Westland helicopters which was transferred

by Mr. President early this week from the Presidential Air Fleet to the Nigerian Air Force, was sent to convey the girls early this morning from the Camerounian border.”

The presidency official stated that the handover of the aircraft from the Presidential Air Fleet to the Air Force on Monday had nothing to do with the release of the girls, insisting that it was “sheer coincidence”.

He said once the girls were handed over to the government team, they were verified in collaboration with the Red Cross and flown immediately to Kaduna, where they spent a few hours and underwent a brief medical assessment, before being flown to Abuja.

“The release is the first of many phases that the government has embarked upon. We are very optimistic that more girls will be released in the next few weeks or months,” he said.

‘A Commitment Fulfilled’ Reveling in the release of the 21 missing girls yesterday, the federal government attributed the feat to the commitment of President Muhammadu Buhari to fulfil the promise he made to Nigerians and the international community.

“We can confirm that 21 of the girls were released safely to us by 5.30 this Thursday morning and they were flown to Kaduna from the location of their release.

“This is the most glaring manifestation to date of the unwavering commitment of Mr. President to secure the safe release of the girls and reunite them with their families,” the information minister said yesterday during a press briefing in Abuja.

“It is also a result of the round-the-clock efforts by the administration to put a closure to the sad issue of the kidnap of the girls,” he added.

Explaining the secret deal that led to the release of the girls, the minister along with other senior government officials, confirmed that the effort was led by the DSS in collaboration with a “friendly European country and a renowned international humanitarian organisation” and supported by the military.

He said that as soon as the necessary confidence was built on both sides, the parties agreed on the date and the location for the release of the 21 girls.

“It was a product of painstaking negotiations and trust on both sides. We see this as a credible first step in the eventual release of all the Chibok girls in captivity.

“It is also a major step in confidence-building between us as a government and the Boko Haram leadership on the issue of the Chibok girls.

“We want to thank all Nigerians for their support and for never

losing confidence in the ability of Mr. President to secure the safe release of our Chibok girls,” Mohammed said.

Ahead of their arrival in Abuja yesterday, the minister said the government had assembled a team of medical doctors, psychologists, social workers and trauma experts to properly examine the girls, especially because they had been in captivity for so long.

“They will also be adequately debriefed. We have the list of the 21 girls but we are now contacting their parents as part of the necessary verification exercise,” he added.

Earlier while confirming the release of the 21 girls, the presidency in a statement by Garba Shehu, said their release was brokered by the Red Cross and Swiss Government.

However, the Red Cross has clarified that it was not involved in negotiations for the release of the girls but assisted in conveying them once they were released yesterday morning.

Shehu said the Director-General of DSS, Mr. Lawal Daura, briefed Buhari before he departed for his state visit to Germany.

The statement read: “The release of the girls, in a limited number, was the outcome of negotiations between the administration and the Boko Haram brokered by the International Red Cross and the Swiss government.

“The negotiations will continue.

The president welcomes the release of the girls but cautions Nigerians to be mindful of the fact that more than 30,000 fellow citizens were killed via terrorism.

“Malam Lawal Daura wants the girls to have some rest, with all of them very tired coming out of the process before he hands them over to the Vice-President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo.

“The president takes off shortly on a trip to Germany for a state visit.”

Buhari, Saraki, Others Overjoyed Speaking on the girls’ release before leaving for Germany, Buhari through his Twitter handle, said: “As I depart Abuja for Germany on an official visit, I welcome the release of 21 of our Chibok Girls, following successful negotiations.

“The Department of State Services (DSS) has briefed me on the matter, and will continue to provide updates.

“Cooperation on the security and humanitarian situation in the North-east will form a significant part of my discussions with Chancellor Merkel.”

In his reaction, Senate President Bukola Saraki commended the president, the Nigerian security services, the government of Switzerland and the international community for what he described as their combined efforts, which led to the release of the 21 Chibok schoolgirls.

Saraki, according to a statement by his media office, said his heart went out to the families whose daughters were still being held in captivity while his thoughts and prayers were also with the families of those who had returned.

He said the Senate would continue to support federal government’s efforts to secure the release of the Chibok girls, adding that their abduction had remained a dark spot in the country's history.

“We join all Nigerians to rejoice on the return of our daughters.

Our thoughts and prayers remain with the families of those who

have returned, and those girls who remain in the hands of the terrorists.

“It is our hope that the release of more of the girls is imminent and that our nation remains vigilant in the face of the continued crisis in North-east Nigeria,” he said.

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, through a Twitter post, said he was incredibly happy at the news, adding: “A lesson, hope always wins. Prayers for the release of the remaining #ChibokGirls.”

The Borno State Governor Kashim Shettima also commended the president on his unrelenting commitment to secure the release of the girls.

He said: “If any Nigerian had doubts about the sincerity and commitment of President Muhammadu Buhari to the rescue of our precious daughters abducted

by Boko Haram insurgents at Government Secondary School, Chibok on April 14, 2014, as well as his sincerity in rescuing all other victims and ending the Boko Haram insurgency, such doubts should be eliminated by the success of the negotiations that led to the release of 21 Chibok schoolgirls.”

Shettima’s reaction was contained in a statement issued

by Malam Isa Gusau, spokesman to the Borno governor.

He said: “As people of Borno State troubled by the deaths and destructions of the Boko Haram insurgency, one of our major sources of strength since May 29, 2015, has been the undiluted sincerity we saw in President Muhammadu Buhari based on his administration’s absolutely genuine commitment towards recovering our schoolgirls, thousands of other women and children held in captivity as well as ending the insurgency in order to secure the lives of our citizens and make way for reconstruction, resettlement and other development programmes and projects.

“I am certain that the recovery of our 21 precious daughters from insurgency only strengthens the resolve of the Buhari administration to continue to work tirelessly until all the girls and all Nigerians abducted are freed and until the Boko Haram insurgency is brought to an end to guarantee public safety.”

The governor also thanked the Armed Forces and others who worked on the recovery of these 21 daughters of Borno State.

Also, a national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Bola Ahmed Tinubu, said the news of the release of the girls came to him as a “delightful relief”.

“I congratulate the families of these young ladies who have endured so much anxiety and pain on account of this horrendous experience. I am also grateful that these budding young stars now have the opportunity to again pursue their dreams and aspirations.

“I know there is road to recovery and readjustment ahead, but I am confident that the support of their families, our communities, and the assistance of our many collaborators at home, and internationally will provide the tools required for this,” he said.

He congratulated and thanked Buhari for his steadfastness and dogged effort in ensuring the release of the girls, and saluted the gallant men and women in uniform who have continued to make sacrifices on behalf of Nigeria, and have remained focused in the hot pursuit of

NJC: NO JUDGE CAN BE INVITED BY DSS WITHOUT DUE PROCESS of the Court of Appeal; Justice Kabiru Auta of the Kano High Court; Justice Mu’azu Pindiga of the Gombe High Court; Justice Ibrahim Auta, Chief Judge of the Federal High Court of Nigeria; and Justice Adeniyi Ademola.

A DSS source informed THISDAY on Wednesday that

they would be arraigned next week.

However, the NJC held a two-day emergency meeting which ended on Wednesday evening, but deferred making any statement on the arrest of the judges till yesterday.

The council, in its statement, said the invasion portends great danger to Nigeria’s democracy

and also considered the action as a clear attempt by the DSS to “humiliate, intimidate, denigrate and cow the judiciary”.

It expressed grave concern over the invasion and condemned the action in its entirety.

Confirming THISDAY’s exclusive report on the correspondence between the NJC and DSS, the council stated as

follows: “That it maintains its earlier decision that no judicial officer shall be invited by any institution, including the DSS, without complying with the rule of law and due process.

“That explains why when the DSS wrote to the council by letter Ref. No. LSC.960/4 dated 14th September 2016, to direct Hon. Justice Mu’azu Pindiga to appear

before it, the Hon., the Chief Justice of Nigeria and Chairman of the National Judicial Council directed the Hon. Chief Judge of Gombe State to ask Hon. Justice Mu’azu Pindiga to report to DSS, which His Lordship did.

“That the National Judicial Council has never shielded, Continued on page 9

the terrorists.

BBOG, Bala Usman Laud FG Similarly, a statement signed by the duo of Aisha Yesufu and Oby Ezekwesili, on behalf of the BBOG group, said: “The Nigerian government has confirmed the return of 21 of our ChibokGirls.

We are extremely delighted and grateful as we await the names.

“We welcome reports from the presidential spokesperson, Garba Shehu, of the negotiated release of 21 of our abducted #ChibokGirls today.

“This wonderful development confirms what we have always known about the capacity of our government to rescue our #ChibokGirls.

“While awaiting further details, we take this opportunity to salute the work of our security services at the front lines - the commitment, resilience and tireless efforts of our members of the Multi-national Joint Task Force and the Civilian JTF. “We also thank the International Committee for the Red Cross, the Swiss government and all negotiators involved in securing the release.

“Following this development, we trust that our government will continue to work to keep the safety, security, and well-being of the other girls a high priority.

“We further urge the international community to continue to support our government’s effort to rescue all other abducted Nigerians, so that parents, the Chibok community, the nation, and the world can finally put an end to this nightmare once and for all.”

Still speaking afterwards, Ezekwesili, who is in the United States, took to her Twitter handle to express her joy over the release of the 21 girls.

In emotional several Tweets, she thanked the president and military for the release of the girls, while expressing hope that the outstanding 197 girls still in captivity will be freed soon.

Another founding member of the group, Ms. Hadiza Bala Usman, who is now the Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), also expressed joy over the release of the girls and commended the federal government yesterday.

Speaking to THISDAY on the phone, she said: “It is a historic milestone in the fight against the insurgency, having them release 21 of the girls they held captive for over two years.

“It is an indication of their (Boko Haram) decapitation by the Nigerian military. I was overwhelmed with emotions when I heard of the girls’ release, because the Chibok girls have been symbolic of everyone who has been held captive by Boko Haram.

“It is a major symbol for all of us to celebrate, to support the military and support the government to rebuild the infrastructure and social services in the North-east.”

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T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2016

NEWS NJC: NO JUDGE CAN BE INVITED BY DSS WITHOUT DUE PROCESS nor will it shield any judicial officer who has committed any misconduct.

“That the Department of State Services is an agency in the presidency and its functions as specified in the statute establishing it, is primarily concerned with the internal security of the country.

“That the action of the DSS is a denigration of the entire judiciary, as an institution.

“That by the act of the DSS, judicial officers are now being subjected to insecurity, as criminals might take advantage of the recent incidents to invade their residences under the guise of being security agents.

“The council vehemently denounces a situation whereby the psyche of judicial officers in the federation is subjected to a level where they would be afraid to discharge their constitutional judicial functions, without fear or favour, intimidation, victimisation or suppression.

“The council will not compromise the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary.

“The council wishes to reassure the public that any person who has a genuine complaint against any judicial officer is at liberty to bring it up to the council for consideration, after following due process vide its Judicial Discipline Regulations.”

The NJC added that at the end of it two-day meeting, it unanimously agreed to recommend Justice W. S. N. Onnoghen, as the most senior, suitable and competent justice of the Supreme Court to President Muhammadu Buhari for appointment as the next Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), to succeed Hon. Justice Mahmud Mohammed, who retires from office on the 10th November 2016.

The statement further read: “At its last emergency meeting, which was held on 11th October 2016, Council decided among other matters, as follows: “That the council is a creation, by virtue of Section 153 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended, with its powers specified in Paragraph 21 of Part One of the Third Schedule whereof.

“That by virtue of Section 160 of the 1999 Constitution, council fashioned out: i) Judicial Discipline Regulations; ii) Revised NJC Guidelines and Procedural Rules for the appointment of judicial officers of all superior courts of record; iii) Code of Conduct for judicial officers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria; and iv) National Judicial Policy to inter-alia, regulate its own procedure while exercising its constitutional powers.

“That Section 158(1) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended, has unequivocally provided for the independence of the National Judicial Council vis-à-vis directing or controlling it by any authority or person while exercising its powers.

“Reiterated its absolute confidence in the President Muhammadu Buhari administration and its unwavering determination to uphold the principles of democracy, separation of powers and the rule of law enshrined in the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended and the United Nations Charter, of which Nigeria is a member.

“That it shall continue to support the President Buhari administration in its fight against corruption in all its ramifications in the federation; and in cleansing the judiciary of corrupt judicial officers.”

The council further addressed the issues as they affected each of the affected judges.

In the case of Justice Ngwuta, it stated that the public was aware that Ngwuta, a justice of the Supreme Court, was

arrested after his house was invaded by heavily armed and masked operatives of the DSS on Friday, 7th October 2016.

“The operatives did not leave his house until noon of the following day, when he was whisked away to the (“DSS”) office,” it revealed.

In the case of Justice Okoro, the council stated that the residence of Justice Okoro, a justice of Supreme Court, was raided in the same manner and was arrested by the same operatives of the DSS. It stated that “contrary to the claim by the DSS and as published in the electronic and print media, council has never received any petition against the aforesaid judicial officers: Hon. Justices Ngwuta and Okoro of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, by the DSS”.

In the case of Justice Muhammed Ladan Tsamiya of the Court of Appeal, the council said that at its meeting held on 29th September 2016, it found him culpable of professional misconduct contrary to the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers and the provisions of Section 292 of the constitution.

NJC said that it accordingly recommended him to Buhari for compulsory retirement from office, following the petition written by one Mr. Nnamdi Iro Oji for demanding the sum of N200 million bribe.

The council said: “It is to be stressed that from the evidence before the it, Hon. Justice Ladan Tsamiya did not receive the N200 million bribe. The petitioner adduced evidence to support his allegation that Hon. Justice Tsamiya only demanded for the money.

“In the exercise of its power, council suspended Justice Tsamiya from office, pending when the president will act on the recommendation. And Mr. President has approved the recommendation of the council and compulsorily retired His Lordship from office yesterday the 12th day of October, 2016.”

On Justice I. A. Umezuluke, the Chief Judge of the Enugu State, the council revealed that it also recommended him for compulsory retirement from office to the Enugu State governor for gross misconduct, pursuant to the petition written against him by Mr. Peter Eze. It stated that the judge remained suspended, pending the time the Enugu governor would act on its recommendation.

With respect to Justice A.F. Ademola of the Federal High Court, Abuja, the council said there was a petition written against him by Hon. Jenkins Duviegiane Gwebe on allegations bordering on corrupt practices.

It disclosed: “Currently, a committee of the council is investigating the allegation.

There is no other petition against Hon. Justice Ademola from DSS pending at the National Judicial Council.”

In the case of Justice Kabiru Auta of the Kano State High Court, the council said he was investigated based on allegations of corrupt practices levelled against him in a petition by one Alhaji Kabiru Yakassai.

NJC added that it had recommended the judge to the governor of Kano State for removal from office by dismissal.

It said: “Council wrote separately to the AIG Kano Zone 1, for the police to prosecute Hon. Justice Auta.

Council has suspended His Lordship from office pending when the governor will act on its recommendation.”

On Justice Pindiga of the Gombe State High Court, the council said it received a petition from DSS against him alleging corrupt practices against him.

“The DSS had alleged that the judge, in a bid to illegally enrich himself, perfected plans through third party proxies/conduits,

with a view to influencing the outcome of the election tribunal in the governorship polls in favour of the incumbent Governor Nyesom Wike (of Rivers State).

“It was also alleged that further ongoing discreet investigation, Justice Pindiga was observed to have illegally enriched himself through corrupt means.

“Part of the illegitimate proceeds suspected to have accrued to Pindiga include the underlisted: a) Two (2) completed blocks of six (6) units of two bedroom flats in Federal Low Cost Estate in Gombe metropolis; b) Four (4) units of bungalows in another part of the estate; c) An uncompleted property at GRA in Gombe metropolis; d) a Mercedes Benz C300 car in the name of MUBAJJAL; e) a Toyota Venza-Model SUV. “The DSS also alleged that from all indications, it was apparent that Pindiga, who is a very senior justice in Gombe State, was highly corrupt,” the NJC disclosed.

The council further stated that DSS alleged that “Pindiga’s continuous stay as a justice in any capacity would likely embarrass the current administration and pervert the cause of justice.

“In view of the foregoing, it strongly advised that immediate necessary administrative and judicial measures be taken on him, including appropriate sanctions and trial to set a precedent to others of his like,” NJC alleged.

The council said the complaint was not supported by a verifying affidavit deposed to by the DSS, as required by the National Judicial Council Discipline Regulations 2014.

The council said the petition should have been disregarded for non-compliance with the National Judicial Council Regulations, but by letter Ref. No. NJC/S.15/HC.GM/5/1/128 dated 19th April, 2016, the DSS was notified and requested to comply and to depose to a verifying affidavit in support of the allegations of corrupt practices levelled against the Hon. Judge, and that the DSS deposed to the verifying affidavit following which Justice Pindiga responded to the allegations against him by DSS. NJC said: “Thereafter, a committee comprising members of the council investigated the allegations of corrupt practices.

Both parties – the DSS and Hon. Justice Mu’azu Pindiga, together with their witnesses and counsel – appeared before the panel set up by council in compliance with the National Judicial Discipline Regulations and Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended, on the right to fair hearing.

“The DSS was represented by a Director, S. U. Gambo, Esq. who is also a legal practitioner in the department and Hon Justice Pindiga was represented by Joe Agi (SAN).

“At the end of the investigation, the DSS could not substantiate any of the allegations of corrupt practices either by documentary or oral evidence against the Hon. Justice Pindiga.

“Consequently, at its Meeting of 15th July, 2016, Council decided to exonerate Hon. Justice Pindiga of the allegations of corrupt practices levelled against him by DSS. “The Council’s decision was conveyed to Hon. Justice Pindiga in a letter Ref. No. NJC/ HC.GM/5/1/132 of 9th August, 2016 and copied the DSS.” In the case of Justice Nnamdi Dimgba, the council said: “Council is aware that DSS had written a complaint alleging corrupt practices and professional misconduct against Hon. Justice Dimgba by a letter Ref. No. LSD.158/2/31 dated

5th August 2016.

“At its meeting of 29th September 2016, council constituted a fact finding committee comprising its members to investigate the allegation.

“During the last emergency meeting of the council, it received a report from Hon. Justice Nnamdi Dimgba that his residence was also raided and ransacked; and in the process, his nephew and driver were man-handled, using a wrong search warrant which was not meant for the search of his house.

“The committee has commenced the process of investigating the allegations before the recent unfortunate raid and search of Hon. Justice Dimgba’s residence,” it said.

The NJC said it had also meticulously considered the entire unfolding events that led to the arrest of the judicial officers and the misinformation and disinformation making the rounds in both the electronic and print media that the DSS acted thus because the National Judicial Council was shielding the judicial officers from investigation and prosecution for corrupt practices and professional misconduct.

It noted particularly that from the available records, the DSS forwarded only two separate complaints containing allegations of corrupt practices against Justice Pindiga and corrupt practices and professional misconduct against Justice Dimgba.

“The impression created and widely circulated before the public that the DSS forwarded a number of petitions containing various allegations of corrupt practices and professional misconduct against some judicial officers to the council, and they were not investigated, is not correct.

“The council urges the DSS to make public the particulars of such petitions to put the records straight,” it stated.

Rendering an account of the disciplinary cases it has handled since 2000, it said: “Given the above background facts, on behalf of the judiciary, council is constrained to inform the general public that all petitions and complaints forwarded against judicial officers bordering on corrupt practices and professional misconduct, have been attended to and investigated, where applicable, by council since year 2000 to date, within the powers conferred on it by the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended.

“Therefore, any judicial officer that was reprimanded by council or recommended for removal from office by compulsory retirement or dismissal to the president or governor, was done in compliance with the constitutional power, rule of law and due process.

“From year 2000, when the National Judicial Council held its inaugural meeting to 2016, 1808 petitions and complaints against judicial officers, including Chief Justices of Nigeria, justices of the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal were received by the respective Chief Justices of Nigeria and Chairmen of the National Judicial Council.

“Eighty-two of the judicial officers were reprimanded (suspension, caution or warning) by council, in the exercise of its exclusive constitutional disciplinary power over judicial officers.

“Thirty-eight of the judicial officers were recommended to the president or governor, where applicable, for compulsory retirement from office; while 12 were recommended to the president or governor, as the case may be, for dismissal from office.”

NBA: No Complaints Against SC Justices

The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) also yesterday dismissed claims by the DSS that there were allegations of wrong doing against two of the justices of the Supreme Court who were arrested last week by the department.

Speaking at the end of the association’s Crisis Committee meeting held in Abuja at the new NBA House, the president of the association, Mr. Abubakar Balarabe Mahmoud (SAN) said that the Secretary of the NJC, Danladi Halilu and the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister for Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN) briefed the committee on the arrest of the judges.

He said the NJC’s secretary told the committee that there was no complaint whatsoever against Justices Sylvester Ngwuta and Inyang Okoro, both Supreme Court justices, either from the DSS or any member of the public.

He also revealed that based on investigations by the NBA the two justices were not invited for questioning.

Mahmud said that from the findings of the NBA, cases against four of the judges of the Federal High Court had been handled by the NJC and recommendations made for their punishment to the appropriate authorities, while the case against a fifth judge was pending before the council.

Mahmoud said the DSS was apparently not satisfied with some of the conclusions reached by the NJC on some of the petitions and demanded that the council sends its record of proceedings to it and which the council refused.

The correspondence between the DSS and NJC, including the council’s refusal to relinquish its record of proceedings on its probe of the judges was reported exclusively by THISDAY on Tuesday.

Mahmoud said the NJC was established by the constitution and therefore not answerable to anyone including the DSS. He said: “From the briefings we received from NJC, there was no petition the council failed to act on.

“In one of the cases, DSS was not satisfied with the decision of the council. We were shown evidence that NJC had acted but DSS was not satisfied.

The DSS asked for copies of the disciplinary procedure and NJC refused.

“We are of the belief that NJC is not answerable to DSS. The council is the sole authority.

DSS was wrong to demand from NJC the record of the council’s proceedings. NJC does not have to satisfy DSS. The constitution is clear on this.

NJC is not subject to DSS or any other authority.”

He warned that the country’s judiciary should not be exposed to ridicule and disdain by security operatives under the guise of fighting corruption.

Mahmoud insisted that the invasion of the houses of the justices in the middle of the night by masked security operatives was not proper, crude and uncivilised.

He was quick to add, however, that lawyers in the country would not condone any act of indiscipline among judges and would not shield any judge found to have contravened the law.

He declined to tell journalists what the AGF told the committee, but said both the NBA and the minister agreed to work together to fight corruption at the bar and bench.

He however announced that a task force committee had been set up by the NBA headed by former NBA presidents Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN) and Olisa Agbakoba (SAN) to make recommendations for stronger disciplinary action for erring judicial officers which he said

would be passed on to the NJC to strengthen it.

Mahmoud said the committee would submit its report within three weeks.

Reacting to the allegations made by the Chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption, Professor Itse Sagay (SAN), who said he had evidence against senior members of the bar that had colluded with judges to corrupt the judiciary, Mahmoud asked him to send his petitions to the association naming the senior lawyers he accused of bribing judges.

Yesterday’s meeting was attended by past NBA presidents including Olisa Agbakoba, Wole Olanipekun, Joseph Daudu, Okey Wali and some past general secretaries of the association.

Also in attendance were former Attorneys General of the Federation - Kanu Agabi, Akinlolu Olujinmi and Kayode Adetokunbo

EFCC Opens Probe of Eight Judges However, with the arrest and detention of eight judges by DSS yet to die down, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) yesterday announced that it was in the process of investigating another eight judges and two court registrars over corruption related offences.

The Head of Media and Publicity of EFCC, Mr. Wilson Uwujaren in a statement, said that the commission has advanced investigations in a fresh and unrelated probe of the judges, whom it did not name.

“In this regard, EFCC is currently investigating eight judges and two court registrars.

Some of the suspects who have been invited have made useful statements that have been of great assistance to the investigations.

“In due course, those who have cases to answer would be arrested and charged to court,” he stated.

Uwujaren vowed that those found culpable would soon be arrested and charged to court.

This revelation came against the backdrop of the commission’s response to a story alleging interagency rivalry with the DSS. The EFCC spokesman said: “The story, quoting some unnamed sources, tried to drive wedges between the commission and the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), on the one hand, and the commission and the DSS, on the other.

“It alleges among others, that the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation, frustrated by the alleged tardiness of the EFCC in handling petitions forwarded to it, now sends the same cases to the DSS. “EFCC wishes to put on the record that there is no friction with the Office of the AGF, and the commission is not involved in inter-agency squabbles with the DSS. “Indeed, the commission, along with the DSS, ICPC, police and the Office of the AGF, is a member of a technical committee that meets at the highest level of government to collaborate and coordinate strategies against corruption. The last such meeting was as recently as today.”

He further revealed that of the seven judges who were arrested by the DSS, only one of them had previously featured in a petition on alleged corruption at the anti-graft agency.

He said that investigation into that petition had reached an advanced stage, when the judge got a Federal High Court order to stop further investigation by the commission.

According to him, EFCC was still trying to vacate that order for the investigation to proceed with its work unfettered.

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FRIDAY OCTOMBER 14, 2016 • T H I S D AY

NEWS

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

Senate Outlaws Post-UTME, Validates Admissions for Three Years Adopts 3% VAT to fund North-east Development Commission

Omololu Ogunmade in Abuja The Senate finally put to rest the dispute between the federal government and tertiary institutions over the conduct of Unified Tertiary

Matriculation Examinations (UTME) as the new Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (Amendment) Act 2016 passed yesterday makes the conduct of post-UTME illegal.

Instead, Section 5(b) of the new bill places the sole responsibility of

At N463/$, Improved FX Liquidity Strengthens Naira on Parallel Market Obinna Chima The naira continued on the path of appreciation on the parallel foreign exchange (FX) market yesterday as it closed at N463 to the dollar, higher than the N467 to the dollar it closed the previous day.

This development was once more attributed to the appointment of Travelex and FirstBank Nigeria Limited as the only two institutions responsible for the sale of the greenback to the Bureau De Change (BDC) sub-sector of the economy.

THISDAY yesterday reported that following their failure to fully comply with the directive which requires commercial banks that act as agents of international money transfer operators to always sell foreign currency remittances to licensed BDC operators, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) this week relieved 19 other banks of the role.

However, all the affected banks are expected to sell their dollar inflows from remittances to Travelex, for onward sale to the BDC. The CBN took the decision because the returns on forex sales had shown that the affected banks had not been active in selling the greenback to BDC operators since the directive was given in July.

The President of the Association oof Bureau De Change of Nigeria

(ABCON), Alhaji Aminu Gwadabe, welcomed the move by the central bank, saying it would help strengthen the naira and improve dollar liquidity in the market.

“It will ensure that more dollar are distributed to BDCs in uniform and transparent manner as some of the banks have not been selling funds from the international money transfer operators (IMTOs).

“If you check, since Travelex started selling to BDCs, speculation has reduced in the market and the naira is on the path of recovery.

My advise to our members is to partner with the central bank on this project. I advice everybody to be patriotic, any member that goes against the rule would be punished,” Gwadabe had said.

Travelex, a global foreign exchange company, last week began weekly disbursements of US$15,000 (part of the country’s diaspora remittances) to each of the 3,000 registered Bureaux DeBDC) operators in the country.

Travelex was officially directed by the CBN to distribute FX to BDC operators following complaints from BDCs of low supply from the banks.

Nevertheless, on the interbank FX market, the spot rate of the naira remained unchanged at N304.50 to the dollar yesterday.

Goodie Ibru Not on the Run, Says Family

Obinna Chima and Chiemelie Ezeobi

The family of Mr. Goodie Ibru yesterday described the recent public notice issued by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) declaring Goodie wanted over allegation of capital market fraud, money laundering and diversion of funds as scandalous, misleading and unfortunate.

It pointed out that Ibru is not on the run.

The Ibru family in a statement signed by Akpofure Ibru, described the EFCC’s appeal to members of the public to furnish them with information on Ibru’s whereabouts as an unfortunate expression that he is on the run.

The statement said the fact of the matter was at variance with the impression created by the EFCC. “The truth of the matter is that the EFCC as at July 19, 2016, invited Ibru for an interview. On July 25.

Ibru replied through the law firm of Babalakin & Co that he would not be able to honour the invitation until his planned return in the first week of November 2016 as he was in the United Kingdom undergoing medical treatment.

According to the statement, the law firm in the said response, had stressed that as their client “is a law abiding citizen who has no interest in foiling the administration of justice, we assure you that he will appear before your commission as soon as he recovered from his illness and return to Nigeria.”

The statement said as there was no further word from the EFCC, the understanding was that the promise to keep the November date had been accepted by the commission.

“It is therefore scandalous to read the EFCC notice of October 12, purporting that Mr. Ibru was on the run,” it added.

Furthermore, it decried what it regarded as “creeping bias” into an investigation that in the main “centres on family misunderstanding and boardroom politics.”

It urged the anti-graft commission to be professional in its service delivery, saying that the family dispute was at the heart of EFCC’s decision to file a notice of discontinuance on September 17, 2015, to a suit between the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Goodie Minabo Ibru and three others.

conducting admission examinations into tertiary institutions on JAMB. “The matriculation examinations conducted by the board shall be the sole examinations required for admission and entry into all universities, polytechnics (by whatever name called) and colleges of education (by whatever name called) to the exclusion of any institution or body,” the bill states.

The bill also provides that the placement of suitably qualified candidates in tertiary institutions in accordance with existing vacancies, guidelines approved by authorities of such institutions and preferences expressed by candidates shall be the exclusive preserve of JAMB. It further adds that the collection and dissemination of information on all matters in relation to admissions into tertiary institutions and related matters are the duties of JAMB. The new bill also introduced a new Section 6 (1) into the original Act. The section guarantees the

validity of any admission offered

by JAMB to any candidate for a period of three years from the date of the examination.

Furthermore, Section 6 (2) and Section 6(3) of the bill also support the extension of admission validity period for three years.

“A candidate meeting the requirement for admission and being duly qualified shall remain so qualified for the period prescribed in sub-section (1) of this section.

A candidate awaiting admission shall be given preference in the succeeding year over fresh applicants who shall only become eligible when backlog has been cleared,” the sections provide.

The passage of the bill followed the adoption of the report of the Committee on Tertiary Institutions and TETFUND presented by its chairman, Senator Jibrin Barau.

Also yesterday, the Senate adopted three per cent of the entire value added tax (VAT) of

the federation for the funding of North-east Commission saddled with the responsibility of rebuilding the devastated North-east region in the North-east Development Commission Bill.

The adoption was the fallout of the presentation of the report of the Senate Ad-hoc Committee on North-east Development Commission Bill.

The committee was constituted on June 14, 2016 with the mandate to resolve the disagreement which arose over the funding and location of the commission in the chamber while considering the third reading of the bill in June.

During the consideration of the bill, two major disputes arose on where to cite the North-east Development Commission as well as the source of its funding. While the committee which legislated on the bill had recommended five per cent of VAT for the funding, the Senate could not reach a consensus

on it as senators from the Northeast vehemently disagreed on the location of the commission as each of them wanted the commission sited in their states, thus prompting the constitution of the ad-hoc committee to resolve the dispute.

However, upon the presentation of the report of the ad-hoc committee yesterday, its chairman, Senator Sam Egwu, said the committee resolved to reduce the earlier proposal of 5 per cent VAT for the funding of the commission to 3 per cent. Egwu also reported that in view of the prevailing security situation in the North-east, Maiduguri remained the most strategic location for the commission.

The recommendations were unanimously adopted and thus ending the controversies over the funding and location of the commission. This resolution therefore clears the coast for passage of the bill.

PUTTING HEADS TOGETHER

L-R: Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorochas; President Muhammadu Buhari; and Borno State Governor, Kashim Shettima, at the Presidendial Wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport , shortly before departing for Berlin, Germany on a state visit at the Abuja ..yesterday Godwin Omoigui

$1.1bn Malabu Oil Deal: Investigations are Ongoing, Says AGF Blames complexities for delay Damilola Oyedele in Abuja

The Attorney General of the Federation, Mr. Abubakar Malami, has said investigations are still ongoing into the controversial $1.1 billion award of Oil Prospecting Licence 245, also know as the Malabu oil deal, with no conclusive position by the federal government.

Malami said this yesterday when he appeared before the House of Representatives ad hoc committee mandated to re-open investigations into the sale of the controversial oil block, where he added that the government would not take a position until all complexities in the deal are resolved.

The complexities, he stated, are borne from the several national and international litigations among the parties to the OPL 245.

The federal government, Agip, Shell, Malabu Oil and Gas, and several individuals had entered litigation and agreements, at different times, Malami told the committee chaired by Hon. Razak Atunwa (Kwara APC).

Within Malabu Oil itself, there were different interests which made it hard to determine which parties signed which agreements, he added.

“We have multiple contentions.

There is Mohammed Abacha, we have Dan Etete, Atiku Abubakar, Hassan Adamu; they are all laying claims to entities,” Malami noted and added that the complex history of the oil well itself, has led to the revocation and re-award of its licence several times.

“So, whatever I am providing to this committee is provisional.

The investigation is ongoing and

it is not conclusive. There are many areas to look at. We will take a comprehensive position and revert to the committee as soon as possible,” the AGF said.

At the hearing which was attended by the Abacha and Oyewole Fasawe, who are shareholders in Malabu Oil, the AGF noted that some available information have already shown that there were irregularities.

The committee chairman, Atunwa noted that the ‘lucrative’ OPL 245 occupies an area of 1,958 square kilometres and holds up to 9.2 billion barrels of crude oil.

“This is a highly controversial allocation of perhaps the biggest oil bloc in Africa. There is a lot at stake on this issue and the credibility and revenue for this country is

at stake. However complex the situation may be, the law is able to deal with it. The House is also able to make enquiries and make recommendation on the matter,” he said.

Atunwa added that the hearing, even though not a substantive one, is intended to identify culpable persons in the matter of the OPL 245, and to unveil the processes that led to the award.

“The powers of the former minister to award the oil bloc in not unfettered. The House has the power to examine,” he said.

The committees members who had frowned at the absence of representatives of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), insisted they must appear.

The hearing was adjourned to October 18, 2016.

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NEWS

Supreme Court Reserves Judgment in Nyako’s Appeal for Reinstatement as Governor Tobi Soniyi inAbuja The Supreme Court has reserved judgment in an appeal filed by a former Governor of Adamawa State, Admiral Murtala Nyako (rtd), seeking to be reinstated as governor of the state to complete his tenure after the Court of Appeal quashed his impeachment.

The apex court fixed judgment for December 16, 2016 after hearing counsel to the parties in the appeal for and against the appeal.

While the appellant counsel, Mr. Uche Nwokedi (SAN), urged the seven-man panel led by Justice Ibrahim Tanko Muhammad to uphold the appeal, those for the respondents separately asked the court to dismiss the appeal for lacking in merit.

Arguing the appeal yesterday, Nwokedi urged the court to take into consideration, the damage that was done to the constitution by the State House of Assembly in their desperate bid

to impeach the former governor and to ensure that such impunity never repeats itself again.

He said the only way to compensate his client for the damage done to him was to reinstate him as governor of the state.

However, counsel to the Mahmud Magaji (SAN), Chief Chris Uche (SAN) for the Adamawa State government and the Nigerian Police represented by Oyetola Atoyebi, all urged the court to dismiss the appeal on the ground that Nyako’s tenure had since elapsed.

The Court of Appeal, Adamawa division, led by Justice Jumai Sankey had in a unanimous judgment, described Nyako’s impeachment as a high level of impunity, recklessness, rascality and a gross abuse of legislative powers by the Adamawa State House of Assembly In declaring his impeachment as unconstitutional, null and void, court condemned what it called “the

gross abuse of the legislative powers by the lawmakers to achieve orchestrated, premeditated and selfish motives.”

Besides, the appellate court held that the impeachment of the former governor was a misuse of the powers and privileges of the legislature. It the declared the impeachment as null, void and of no effect.

Accordingly, the court in granting all the five reliefs in favour of Nyako ordered that he be accorded all rights of the office of the governor of Adamawa State throughout his legally recognized period in office.

However, the court declined

to make a consequential order reinstating him the governor of Adamawa State.

Justice Tunde Awotoye while delivering his judgment at the Court of Appeal, noted that the respondents took laws into their hands as they flagrantly abused the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to meet their whimsical and selfish desires.

Justice Jumai Hannatu Sankey, in her lead judgment noted that the court as the last arbiter would not fold its arms and watch impunity being entrenched in the country.

She noted that the decision of the House of Assembly to ignore

the constitutional provision on personal service of impeachment notice on the former governor was a misnomer to the constitution which must be uprooted.

Justice Ugochukwu Anthony Ogakwu in his judgment said: “Impunity. Rascality. Impertinence.

Impudence. These are some of the adjectives I consider mild enough to employ in describing the actions of the state assembly.”

On his part, Justice BiobeleAbraham Georgewillstated: “Mylords,theculture of impunity, as displayed by the Ist respondents in the processes and procedures leading to the purported impeachment of the applicant, which

like many other acts of impunity in the land, have been tolerated for far too long in this country, has indeed run its full circle and must be stopped now and cut down! I hereby so stop and cut it down in this appeal…”

Inall,the courtcondemnedinstrong terms the arrogance of the lawmakers and some politicians who flagrantly refused to obey court orders stopping them from going ahead with the impeachment process despite the order of the high court in Adamawa State.

Nyako was impeached by the state House of Assembly on July 16, 2014 following allegations of gross misconduct levelled against him.

FG Okays $500m Industrial Port for Modandola Group The federal government has approved the development of a $500 million industrial port, which is to be executed by the Modandola Group.

The Federal Executive Council had on October 12, 2016 approved the proposal for the development of a multipurpose terminal along Badagry Creek, Apapa.

The port, which is capable of berthing 50,000 DWT vessels with a draught of 13.5 metres upon completion, will be sponsored

by Modandola Group, together with their foreign partners through Creek Road Multipurpose Terminal Limited (CRMPT) as an SPV.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that upon completion, the project will bring about foreign direct investment (FDI), increase government revenue through taxes and royalties and creation of specialised port facilities for industrial cargo and raw material.

In addition, the port will afford skilled professionals and unskilled persons job opportunities. The industrial complex is also expected to house a power station, information/ technology operating system and modern terminal building to house the administration, shipping and other government agencies.

Boko Haram: France Collaborated with Nigeria to Ensure Regional Stability, Says Envoy Mohammed Aminu in Sokoto The Ambassador of France to Nigeria, Mr. Denys Gauer, yesterday said the emergence of Boko Haram terrorist group played an important role in strengthening the relationship between Nigeria and France.

The envoy made the remark yesterday, when he paid a courtesy visit to Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal at the Government House, Sokoto.

Gauer noted that the relationship between the two countries has improved greatly in the last couple of years.

“We were good friends in the past, but the outbreak of the Boko Haram conflict has brought our two countries closer.

“We understood the need to present a united front in order to enhance regional stability and improve global peace.

“It may interest you to note that Nigeria is our biggest trading partner in Africa. Your country is very important in global politics and we are encouraging our companies to come here to invest.

“We have visible presence in the South of Nigeria and Abuja, but very minimal visibility in the North. So I’m here in Sokoto, a

very historical city and state, to listen to you and explore how best we can work together for the progress of our people,” the envoy stated.

Responding, Tambuwal commended the efforts of the French government in bringing together Nigeria’s neighbours to establish the multinational joint task force According to him, the move had gone a long way in ensuring a coordinated onslaught against Boko Haram.

The governor to this end, urged the Ambassador to expand French investment to Sokoto, saying the state has abundant opportunity in agriculture and mining.

“We are willing and ready to work closely with your investors to develop our agricultural and mining sectors.

“We intend to make use of French technology in the preservation of onions. We also believe that we have enough tomato, wheat and sesame for French market.

“Sokoto is calm and peaceful, we have very accommodating populace and I want to assure you that should you decide to invest here, the return on your investment will be positive,” he averred.

THANK YOU FOR COMING

Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki (left), presenting a souvenir to the Executive Director International Centre for Energy, Environment and Development, Mr. Ewah Otu Eleri, during a courtesy visit by the Nigerian stakeholders in the clean cookstove subsector and polymer institute to the Senate President in Abuja....yesterday.

Fayose: Boko Haram’s Release of Chibok Girls Diversionary APC wants DSS to probe Ekiti AG Olakiitan Victor in Ado Ekiti As Boko Haram yesterday released 21 Chibok girls from Boko Haram’s captivity, the Ekiti State Governor, Ayo Fayose, has described the scenario as a “tactic employed by the federal government to divert the attention of Nigerians away from the hunger and outrage generated by crackdown on judges.”

The governor said: “Nigerians have had enough of anticorruption war” saying it is high time President Muhammadu Buhari addressed massive hunger that is killing many people in the country.

Fayose spoke yesterday at the inauguration of a three-block classrooms built at the Erelu Adebayo Children’s Home in Iyin Ekiti, Irepodun/Ifelodun Local Government Area as part of activities marking his second year in office.

Fayose accused the Buhari administration of resorting to propaganda to deceive Nigerians whom he said urgently need food on their tables.

“Food security is number one, they should stop fooling us; our economy must be urgently addressed because Nigerians voted for the government in power so that they can enjoy better lives.

“It is not good for a government to be catching thieves and kidnappers everyday while its citizens are hungry. Everybody is now a thief in Nigeria, we need prayer in Nigeria and we need divine intervention.

“Our people are suffering under the APC government, I am not afraid of what a man can do to me. They have taken our rights away from us but I am not afraid because if you want to catch me you must slaughter God. “We have had enough of diversionary tactics, they are using the report of Chibok girls’ release to cover up the undue arrest of our judges. Trampling on our rights is trampling on the Constitution.

Meanwhile, the All Progressives Congress (APC) , has urged the Department of State Services (DSS) to beam its searchlight on the activities of the state

judiciary and Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Owoseni Ajayi.

In a statement by Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatunbosun, in Ado-Ekiti, the party said the war against corruption in Nigeria’s judiciary would not be complete without beaming searchlight on the activities of some judges in the state courts working in cahoots with the executive arm of government to dispense injustice to members of the public.

“A witness under oath said Owoseni induced him to implicate

innocent persons in murder case which could lead to capital punishment if found guilty.

“The principal witness in the murder, Gbolahan Okeowo, said Owoseni and Fayose’s media aide, Lere Olayinka, tore his witness statement on oath that explained the true account of the murder of his drivers’ union boss, Aderiye Omolafe, and the two jointly wrote another statement that implicated innocent opposition members and gave it to him for submission to the police.

Papa Adewumi Olufuyi Otudeko Dies at 87 The Otudeko family of Odogbolu, Ogun State has announced the transition of Papa Adewumi Olufuyi Otudeko. He died on October 11, at the age of 87.

A devout Christian of the Anglican persuasion, Papa Adewumi Olufuyi Otudeko was a long standing member and elder of Our Saviour’s Anglican Church, Tafawa Balewa Square, Lagos.

In his early years, he served CFAO where he retired as General Manager.

Papa Adewumi Olufuyi Otudeko is survived by his wife, Mama Valery Otudeko; his children, Mr. Godfrey Otudeko, Mr. Edmund Otudeko, Mr. Soji Otudeko and many grandchildren. Burial arrangements will be announced by the family.

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COMMENT

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

ABIA COUNCIL ELECTIONS AND FAILURE OF LEADERSHIP

F

Nnanna Ijomah urges Abians to use the forthcoming council election to correct earlier mistakes

or some time now I have restrained myself from writing or posting any comments on Social Media about the poor governance or the deplorable state of affairs in Abia State. The reason being, not so much about not having anything to say but more to adhering to the time tested adage, ‘if you don’t have anything nice to say about someone, just keep your mouth shut’. In the months before and after the 2015 elections, I and many others did our best to point out the seeming incompetence, unpreparedness, and inexperience of the PDP Gubernatorial standard bearer, Dr Okezie Ikpeazu, and may I add Ph.D, so as not to offend his supporters who for some reason see a doctorate degree as being synonymous with intelligence and ability as if anyone who is not so academically accomplished is unworthy of their respect and devoid of intellect and ability. However as the eventual results showed, no doubt made possible by rigging the Abia people are now reaping the consequences of that fateful election.

So recently when I heard about the forthcoming Abia Local Government elections, I decided that I will have to speak up again, disregard the above stated adage and remind the Abia people that this is one election that will afford them the opportunity to correct the mistakes made in the 2015 elections. In so doing, the primary purpose of this essay is to raise the consciousness of the Abia people by reminding them of their present hardship under the Ikpeazu administration and to instill in them a sense of awareness, of urgency and of responsibility to themselves, their children, their communities and to posterity. My goal amongst others is also to make them aware of the importance of setting the foundation for the 2019 elections by ensuring the victory and control of a significant number of the local government councils in recognition of the fact that the PDP in the last elections turned every local council into a centre for election rigging, whereby all transition local government chairmen facilitated and supervised the rigging exercise that occurred.

Again having witnessed the unprecedented show of incompetence, lack of vision, direction and mediocrity of the Abia Governor in the last 15 months, not to mention the complete squandering of the state resources in fighting numerous court cases associated with his election, I came to realise that my silence was no longer golden.

For all those who voted or enabled the election of the governor, I venture to ask them this question: how is life treating you or as some will say, “How market”? I am sure they must all be experiencing a buyer’s remorse, as I no longer see or read their flowing accolades on social media on how Dr Ikpeazu is god- sent and how he is their Moses who will lead them to the Promised Land. Unfortunately to their dismay, this Moses has left them stranded in the middle of the Nile. Salaries have not been paid for several months, neither have pensions. The road construction in Aba which was flagged off with unprecedented fanfare and publicity has been grounded, as the rains have rendered most of roads impassable. Abia schools and hospitals are still ill-equipped and in a state of disrepair. Umuahia, the state capital, still looks like a ghetto, worse than a war- torn city

in Afghanistan or a shanty town reminiscent of apartheid South Africa. Yet this Supreme Court Governor despite all his aforementioned leadership and administrative failings is fighting hard to hang on to power. A quest motivated more by greed and lust for power than the desire to serve.

FOR ALL THOSE WHO VOTED OR ENABLED THE ELECTION OF THE GOVERNOR, I VENTURE TO ASK THEM THIS QUESTION: HOW IS LIFE TREATING YOU OR AS SOME WILL SAY, ‘HOW MARKET’?

A prominent writer once wrote, “History does not repeat itself but rather it rhymes”. As we can see, the methods, style and policy directions of this administration rhymes with that of its predecessor.

Dr Ikpeazu, it would appear, seems to have turned out to be a complete clone of his erstwhile Godfather, Ochendo. For a man who promised heaven on earth for the Abia people, should he win, he does not seem to be sweating his failure to keep any of his promises because they were not borne out of any inherent principles or firmly held convictions. The incontrovertible truth is that the man has no philosophy, just an all -consuming need to be governor. In a sense he’s a fun-house mirror of the inconstancy, vanity and insecurity found in most politicians. The idea of intrinsic merit, competence and ability is alien to him. His blindness to his people’s suffering and the economic hardship they are going through is beyond the pale, unconscionable and scary. His indifference and probable awareness of it is scarier still. This is a man who has failed woefully in leadership, empathy, integrity and intelligent test and yet still fighting to stay in power.

While I commend him for even scheduling the local government elections yet to be held, I am still suspicious of his real intentions, since his predecessor for eight years refused to schedule one. This makes me wonder how far they’ve gone in their preparation to rig it. Be that as it may, the reality is that if the Abia people truly desire change, it must start with the forthcoming LGA elections.

However, to effect this change, the APGA party must be ready to present itself as the vehicle for change by choosing credible and untainted candidates to run on the party’s platform. It is also an opportunity for the party to remedy the mistakes made in the 2015 State Assembly elections, when candidates who were victorious under the coat tails of Dr, Alex Otti and APGA turned out to be toothless puppies and compliant lap dogs in the State House Of Assembly, more concerned with their personal financial gratification than fighting for the needs of their constituents. It is also an opportunity for APGA to adequately and rigorously prepare for the 2019 elections by registering more members, identifying who they are, where they live, their contact phone numbers and how to get them out to vote in this and subsequent elections. This is an opportunity for the party to build up a voters list, allocate them into voting precincts, appoint precinct captains and get them to organise among themselves, hold regular precinct meetings, with the precinct captains reporting to the party headquarters in Umuahia. With this, it is easy at the appropriate time to implement a (GOTV) or get out the vote operation.

Ijomah is a New York-based Political Science Lecturer

DISCRIMINATION AND THE RULE OF LAW

“

The law must be allowed to take its course no matter whose ox is gored, writes David Dimas

Corruption has so incapacitated the Nigerian judiciary that it is only capable of bequeathing guilt to the poor and innocence to the wealthy and politically connected” - Omoleye Sowore In 2005 a low-key legislator, Democrat and congressman William J. Jefferson came into public view when the FBI raided his residence and found $90,000 cash wrapped in foil and stashed in his freezer. Investigators believed the money, obtained from an FBI informant, was intended to bribe a top public official in Nigeria. After further investigations that cleared the FBI of any wrong doing in the bust, he was convicted and sentenced to 13 years in prison.

The American Justice System, from 1904 to date, has prosecuted and convicted almost 50 federal officials in corruption related offences.

Justice demands that when a crime is committed, the system should follow the appropriate trajectory needed to avoid recidivism. A justice system supposed to be grounded in the values of truth and fairness, and should ensure that everyone is treated in an appropriate manner if caught on the other side of the law.

Unfortunately, this is yet to happen in Nigeria and may not happen any time soon. When it comes to our justice system a number of factors come into play.

Firstly, there is a justice that impacts the poor and justice for the rich and prominent personalities.

Secondly, justice is for sale. We have witnessed, many a time, how corrupt public servants purchase their way to freedom and, sooner or later, form part of successive governments.

In fact, under the existing order, all a delinquent political office holder with bags of money needs to be free is access to a high-powered counsel who

knows how to manipulate the system.

A Senior Advocate of Nigeria and current VicePresident Professor Yemi Osinbajo, in addressing the charges of the criminal justice system in Nigeria many years ago alluded to the above assertions by saying “...many of the provisions are outdated and in some cases anachronistic. Besides, the loopholes in the law and procedures have become so obvious that lawyers especially defence lawyers have become masters in dilatory tactics. It has thus become increasingly difficult to reach closure of any kind in many criminal cases. Convictions and acquittals have become exceedingly rare”.

Professor Osinbajo’s notation is a chilling description of how our justice system has become a monumental failure. With this in mind, we, as a nation, should no longer ignore this crisis.

Some days ago, the Department of Security Service (DSS) raided residences of some allegedly corrupt judges. Monies recovered included N93.6 million, $530,087, £25,970 and €5,680.

But then, emerging public opinions, following the “sting operation”, have been conflicting. People from all walks of life have critiqued the raids with mixed reactions. A politician representing Kogi West on the platform of All Progressives Congress in the National Assembly openly described DSS’s action as “absolutely wrong and unacceptable.” The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) took it further by declaration a state of emergency in the judiciary. Perhaps the most common argument against the raid, astonishingly, is that “the Judiciary is independent and President Muhammadu Buhari has turned the DSS into a political retribution machine”.

These amusing premises shed light on and are frequently the result of many broken pieces in our political culture of selling our conscience to the highest bidder. I find these detours we often create

around reasoning absolutely diverting.

To put it in another way, our public opinion circle has been overwhelmed by hard edged duplicitous ideologies in that, despite availability of facts and figures, the practice of misleading the public reigns supreme. We seem to have, for the most part of this sequence of events, missed two very important observations.

In the first place, what are our judges doing with such colossal amount of cash hidden in their house?

Secondly, how did they come across such kind of money? I am having a tough time understanding why all we choose to complain about, with regard to alleged corruption on the bench, is the principle of rule of law. This, in my view, is contrary to logic, intuition and common sense.

Anyway, the law requires security personal to demonstrate that they have followed procedures and established rules in discharging their duties.

To this effect, a spokesman for the DSS, Abdullahi Garba, has gone on air to defend the secret police’s action saying that their “action is in line with its core mandate…The judges involved were invited, upon which due diligence was exhibited and their premises searched”.

Whatever the case, there is something so terribly wrong with a society where a poor citizen caught stealing can spend years in jail, while “authority thieves” are defended and supported in the manner we are becoming accustomed to. This is an extreme and unjust practice that grossly undermines the values of our image as a nation and is a clear sign of a disconcerted democracy. I do not think that anybody who wants our incipient democracy to survive should buy into this red herring of “judges are untouchable”.

Even more, the rule of law, which includes the principles of supremacy of the law, equality

before the law and individual rights, theorises that everyone in a country is equal before the law.

Similarly, section 1.(1) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) affirms that our “Constitution is supreme and its provisions shall have binding force on the authorities and persons throughout the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

Whether we admit or not, the judiciary and its entities are accountable under the law. Going forward, justice should be based on the rule of law as stipulated by our constitutional statute.

To change the topic, we have gone from payroll fraud chronicle, otherwise known as “ghost workers”, to budget padding and now alleged corruption in our temple of justice under a political party that gained acceptance nationally by using the catchword “change” as its selling point. We should, by now, have realised that our problem is more people and political opportunism oriented than party oriented.

These deeply rooted problems require remediation.

On the other hand, in order to uphold our constitutional values of justice and fairness, punishment must be served for every crime committed.

More importantly, we need to stop confusing challenges we must endure with those we can fight off or put an end to. Else, our democracy may, overtime, become a cynical game in which only a few benefit from.

Given these points, I like to ask: why should corrupt public officers receive little or no punishment for egregious crimes while the poor receive harsh punishment for much less? Why should the rule of law only apply to the likes of Justice Sylvester Ngwuta, Justice John Okoro, Justice Adeniyi Ademola Justice Muazu Pindiga Abdullahi and Justice Nnamdi Dimgba? The law must be allowed to take its course especially if they are found guilty.

Dimas wrote from Laurel, Maryland, U.S.A

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T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2016

EDITORIAL TACKLING THE CANCER MENACE Government could do more in containing the scourge

T

he Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria (AMLSN) said no fewer than two million Nigerian men and women are currently afflicted by cancer. In a communiqué issued by its President, Alhaji Toyosi Raheem, the AMLSN attributed the high rate of tumour and cancer in the country to a shift from the consumption of natural to artificial food and lack of regular physical exercise by citizens.

“We call on the federal government to fully equip the cancer centre and programme it has established with adequate human and infrastructural resources. This will ensure early screening, confirmation and management of tumours and other health challenges as the rate of late cancer diagnosis and detection is on the increase,’’ he said.

Cancer has become an important health concern for the country. It is bad enough that the scourge is a terminal disease, it is worse that most Nigerian hospitals and medical centres lack the diagnostic capacity to quickly detect and treat cancer infections. This has greatly compounded WHY CAN’T THE the problem, forcing GOVERNMENT several Nigerians to SUFFICIENTLY EQUIP ONE travel to countries OR TWO HOSPITALS IN like India, the THE COUNTRY TO SERVE Emirates, United AS CANCER TREATMENT Kingdom, etc., in search of treatment CENTRE? for the disease. The economic consequence of this is that it has led to so much capital flight.

It is indeed curious that despite avowals by successive governments that healthcare is one of its core agenda of action, it is becoming increasingly difficult to see the impact on the citizenry even with the existence of the National Health Insurance Scheme. The pertinent questions remain: Why can’t the government sufficiently equip one or two hospitals in the country to serve as cancer treatment centre? Why must Nigerians always be

Letters to the Editor

exposed to overseas travels in search of treatment? Why is it that a country with an estimated population of 180 million people has only six radiotherapy centres when the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommended one per 250,000 persons?

I T H I S DAY

EDITOR IJEOMA NWOGWUGWU DEPUTY EDITORS BOlAJI ADEBIYI, JOsEph UshIGIAlE MANAGING DIRECTOR ENIOlA BEllO DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTOR KAYODE KOMOlAFE CHAIRMAN EDITORIAL BOARD OlUsEGUN ADENIYI EDITOR NATION’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

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TO OUR READERS Letters in response to specific 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 (9501000 words). They should be sent to opinion@thisdaylive.com along with the email address and phone numbers of the writer.

RISING CASES OF KIDNAPPING

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side from Boko Haram that has been downgraded and the Niger Delta militancy that is partly responsible for the economic recession that the nation is passing through, another serious crime that is making wave, trending and giving sleepless nights to our security agents is kidnapping.

Kidnapping is engaged in by some criminal elements in our society either for rituals, human-parts trafficking or for ransom. The bottom line is to make outrageous sums of money from the families of their victims. Some die-hard criminals went to the extent of killing their victims even after collecting ransom.

The security challenge is made worse as a result of the current economic recession. There is hardly any week in recent times without reported cases of people being kidnapped. There was even a case of an army officer who shared his own experience when he travelled through Kaduna/Abuja road on whatsApp social -medium and allegedly implicated the police in his narrow escape from the hands of suspected kidnappers sometimes in September 2016. He was lucky and God saved the military officer who had cause to travel on that road turned kidnappers den in the night hours. Others were not that lucky as their families had to raise various sums of money in order to secure their release.

Apart from certain roads like Abuja-Kaduna,

nstructively, the most common types of cancer in Nigeria are carcinoma of the uterine cervix and breast for women and liver and prostate cancers for men over 40 years. But what is responsible for the growth of cancer scourge in Nigeria? Although medical experts differ somewhat as to the exact causes of the disease, there seem to be some agreement over the fact that increased rate of obesity, reduced physical activity, and more “Westernised” diets are likely contributors to the development of various types of cancer. Put more succinctly, the major cause is the habit of the people which is not helped by government policy or lack of one.

For instance, while most countries are making stringent laws against tobacco consumption, our government seems to be encouraging it.

The burden of cancer in Nigeria is enormous. It is feared that by 2020, cancer incidence for Nigerian males and females may rise to 90.7/100,000 and 100.9/100,000, respectively. It is also estimated that by 2020, death rates from cancer for Nigerian males and females may reach 72.7/100,000 and 76/100,000 respectively.

All said, we believe that the task of saving its citizens from the cancer scourge remains essentially with government which has to provide both the basic facilities to combat the disease and to create the enabling environment that can facilitate the collaboration of the private sector in tackling the menace. Increased awareness campaigns, improvements in public health and increased funding for health care initiatives - by government, donor agencies, and development partners - are all likely to lead to a decrease in the incidence of the killer disease. Nigerians themselves must also begin to imbibe the culture of regular medical check-ups so they can commence treatment of any diagnosed ailment promptly before it gets too late.

Abuja – Lokoja, Lokoja-Kabba and some other roads in the South-east that have been identified by the Nigeria Police as the hot spots of kidnappers especially at night, some dare – devil elements in the kidnapping business now have the audacity to come out of the creeks and invade neighbourhoods and even schools in Lagos and Ogun States to kidnap their unsuspecting victims. And it is the case of militancy in the Niger Delta area that has necessitated some of these bad boys to invade the creeks in the South-western part of the country in order to expand the frontiers of their criminal activities. Before, these bad boys used to kidnap oil-workers and expatriates for ransom. But now, these boys from the Niger Delta with the possibility of some collaborators in the areas of their operations are now allegedly involve in high way robbery and invasion of certain communities in Lagos and Ogun States where they reportedly looted shops. In one of such operations a first-class monarch was kidnapped. The septuagenarian monarch reportedly spent weeks in the kidnappers den before he regained his freedom. While we applaud the efforts of our security agents in tackling this new crime-wave, we do implore the citizens to be security conscious as the nation now lives in perilous times and everybody needs to watch and pray to avoid the snares of these criminals.

Gbemiga Olakunle, JP General Secretary, National Prayer Movement, Abuja

PARTY CHAIRMANSHIP AND POLITICAL CORRUPTION

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hen Chief John Odigie-Oyegun emerged as the Chairman of the All Progressives Congress at the party’s convention in Abuja on May 24, 2014, little did political pundits and Nigerians who yearned for change in governance envisaged that the party would soon turn around and descend into unprecedented political corruption.

It is therefore little wonder that there are intense calls for the quick intervention of President Muhammadu Buhari as the leader of the party, and the immediate vacation from the office of chairman of the party by Chief John Odigie-Oyegun to check the imminent destruction and fragmentation of the party before the next general elections. The leadership of Odigie-Oyegun in directing the day-to-day affairs of the party falls short of expectations. Nigerians and a good percentage of members of the All Progressives Congress are already hung up and will not be in a hurry to put behind them the intrigues and manoeuvering in June 2015 that played out in the emergence of the leadership of the Senate and the House of Representatives through a political coup that portrayed the party from onset as undisciplined, rudderless and incapable of managing the hard electoral victory achieved in the 2015 presidential election. The accusation of partiality leveled against his office after the declaration of the Kogi governorship election of November 21, 2015, as inconclusive by INEC and subsequent untold

developments that followed thereafter; his stance on the fraudulently conducted party primary in Ondo State for the forthcoming governorship election scheduled for November 2016 when he used his veto power to upturn the report of the appeal committee set up by the party to look into the complaints that trailed the conduct of the primary, are cases in point. In these instances, the wound created and the polarisation of the party may be the party’s undoing, come 2019 general elections. He needs to be made to understand that APC is a party owned by millions of Nigerians fully committed to the change mantra that has remained the bedrock of governance by the Buhari administration.

The stark reality today in the nation’s political terrain has remained that of disenchantment of party faithful across the country on the unfolding events in the party since coming to power on May 29, 2015, a development that is already making many Nigerians in the party to wonder if their expectations of the change that was overwhelmingly voted for in 2015 general elections is actually what is being witnessed today under the leadership of Chief John Odigie-Oyegun. Be that as it may, now is the time to save the APC from going into political oblivion before 2019 and the only and credible step to avoid this is for Odigie-Oyegun to tread the path of honour by resigning as the party chairman or in the alternative, tender a public apology to members and supporters of the party.

Joseph Odunayo, Mopa, Kogi State

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FRIDAY OCTOBER 14, 2016 T H I S D AY

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T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2016

POLITICS

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

PERSONALITY FOCUS

For Ogah, the Real Trial Begins…

The recent arrest of Mr. Uche Ogah, President of Masters Energy Oil and Gas by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission over allegation of forgery, introduces an entirely new dimension to the travails of a man seeking to be Abia State governor in a circumstance that is presently undoing the stability of the state, writes Shola Oyeyipo

P

olitics comes with lots of intrigues but one of the most important implications of participating in politics, particularly for those competing at higher echelons is that they are subjects of sometimes undue publicity and it had better been positive because negative stories spread faster and the public, not just the media, feasts quickly on them.

The news quickly went viral when operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), on Monday morning picked up the President of Masters Energy Oil and Gas Limited, Mr. Uche Ogah, on the premise of a Lagos State Magistrates’ Court in Tinubu, Lagos Island, after he got a reprieve from police, who dropped the case against him.

Ogah has remained a major challenger of Governor Okezie Ikpeazu’s emergence as the governor of Abia State . He took the governor to court over alleged presentation of fake tax document to the party, claiming that as a result of that he was not eligible to stand as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate and as such, Ogah was declared winner of the last governorship election in Abia State by Justice Okon Abang of a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on June 27.

But in what came as compliance with the principles of equity and justice and the doctrine of ‘he who comes to equity must come with a clean hand’, Ogah himself was arraigned on June 16 by the police for alleged forgery, which would translate into fraud if found guilty.

Therefore, the Abia State political power play took a rather new dimension that Monday when the police withdrew the charges against Ogah and he was arrested as soon as he stepped out of the courtroom.

The police prosecutor, Henry Obiazi, told the presiding magistrate, Mrs. Kikelomo Ayeye, that he had the instruction of the Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, to withdraw the charges against Ogah and his co-defendants.

“I am instructed by the IGP to withdraw this case, as the issue is pending with the SFU,” Obiazi said and the charges were consequently struck out by the court.

But that was not enough to sway the EFCC operatives, who drove him away in their van because according to a source at the EFCC, the anti-graft agency had received a petition from the complainant in the case against Ogah and so, he was arrested to be interrogated.

Ogah, his company, Masters Energy Oil and Gas Limited and an ex-employee of United Bank for Africa (UBA), Deji Somoye are defendants in the charge that the police withdrew. They were accused of conspiring with some persons still at large to forge a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Masters Energy Oil and Gas Limited and Mut-Hass Petroleum Limited sometime in March 2011, to forge the signature of one Mrs. Bridget Adeosun.

Part of the charge read: “ That you, Masters Energy Oil and Gas Limited, Uche Ogah, and others at large, on the same date, time, place and in the aforementioned magisterial district, did forge the signature of one Mrs. Bridget Adeosun and a document known as MoU between Mut-Hass Petroleum Limited and Masters Energy Oil and Gas Limited, with an intent that it may be in any way

Ogah...when the truth is in contention

used or acted upon as genuine.

“That you, Deji Somoye, United Bank for Africa and others still at large, sometime in August 2011, at UBA regional office, Palmgrove, in the Lagos Magisterial District, did knowing that Masters Energy Oil and Gas Limited designed to commit an offence, failed to use all reasonable means to prevent the commission or the completion of the crime.”

The Abia State political power play took a rather new dimension that Monday when the police withdrew the charges against Ogah and he was arrested as soon as he stepped out of the courtroom…As expected, the issue has brought up various angles to the debate among the supporters of Governor Ikpeazu and Ogah, who see the entire legal debacle between the two from different perspectives

As expected, the issue has brought up various angles to the debate among the supporters of Governor Ikpeazu and Ogah, who see the entire legal debacle between the two from different perspectives.

For instance, in the governor’s camp, Ogah’s eventual arrest by the EFCC simply confirmed two things. First, that it is correct that he has a case to answer with regards to the allegation of forgery and that he was only getting off the hook with police assistance.

Two, that the political crisis he had stoked in Abia over the governorship impasse, particularly as Governor Ikpeazu, who has been credited as working to improve the fortunes of the state, has been considerably affected by protracted litigation, so much that some say the overall objective was to secure immunity against prosecution against Ogah, knowing full well that he might be unable to wriggle out of the forgery case.

That much did a former Commissioner for Information in Abia State and Executive Director-General of Abia Interest Group, Eze Chikamnayo, allude to in a no-holds-barred interview with THISDAY, where he said: “Uche Ogah has nothing to uncover, rather, God is using this opportunity to uncover Uche Ogah for the people of Abia – for us to see the real Uche Ogah because the man is full of pretences.”

He alleged, amongst other things, that Ogah was seeking immunity to shield him from prosecution, stating that “Uche Ogah is known generally as a young man, who just came out of school, entered into the oil business and boom, money everywhere. And that money, when it comes like that – like

magic – it is suspect.

“But then in Nigeria, we know these people who make money in that manner – how they made their money. It is part of what President Buhari is fighting now – the culture of graft, corruption, impunity – the get-rich-quick syndrome.

“Uche Ogah, either fortunately or unfortunately for him, was around within the period individuals got all manners of channels through which to make money quickly.”

On the pending forgery case against Ogah, Chikamnayo said “The truth is that, in one of his business deals, he actually had issues bordering on alleged forgery of documents; alleged opening of fraudulent bank account; alleged diversion of money that was meant for different individuals and we are saying, if Uche Ogah couldn’t do justice to one woman, whom he did transaction with, how can he do justice to four million Abians?

“We are not interested in uncovering him, but God is interested in unveiling him for Abians to see that there is danger beyond the smokescreen; beyond the façade.”

Dismissing the story that Ogah bought the contract, he argued that “If he purchased the contract in question, let him come forward and show the original documents of the contracts he has. If I purchased a contract, as I am handing over the money to you, I am receiving the original document, whether it is a land that you are buying, you want to see the original Certificate of Occupancy.

“Truth is that he short-changed an innocent poor woman, who got a contract and approached him for some logistic support that has to do with tank farms and all. The woman was negotiating for a loan at Eco Bank, when Ogah moved over to UBA and opened an account fraudulently and forged the woman’s signature without the woman’s knowledge and transacted this business for years on that same account, changing the official address of that company – all done without the woman’s consent.”

But in a sharp reaction to Chikamnayo, the National Coordinator, Voice of the Common, Don Samuel Uchechukwu, maintained that all the information being propagated about the oil mogul-turned politician seeking to unseat Governor Ikpeazu are malicious and politically motivated.

“He (Chikamnayo ) is ignorant of what is going on. I don’t think he understood what was going on. The woman he mentioned, if he can bring the woman to confront Uche Ogah or take her to the media to say Ogah defrauded her, we will see. Without asking Uche Ogah, I know such thing never happened.

“So, Chikanmayo or whatever they call him should go and finish his law school.

You know he is not yet a lawyer until he is called to the bar. These are the kinds of people you find around Ikpeazu – people who will go around with false information”, Uchechukwu stated in defence of Ogah.

It is on the basis of the positions expressed by the opposing sides that those sitting on the fence are hoping that justice and the rule of law would be vindicated if the matter is thoroughly prosecuted without panning to any of the interests in the case. But it is worthy of note that people from in and outside Abia are following the issue with keen interest to see where the pendulum will eventually swing in pursuit of justice, equity and fairness.

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T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2016

POLITICS

PERSPECTIVE

Tinubu and the Generation of Astyanax Bimaculatus The recent attempts to deconstruct Senator Bola Tinubu in the political calculus of the nation is the height of ingratitude, writes Idowu Ajanaku “Stab the body and it heals, but injure the heart and the wound lasts a lifetime.”

- Mineko Iwasaki

T

he grand conspiracy and recent desperate attempts to de-construct and indeed, demystify one of Africa’s most decorated political colossuses, who, incidentally remains an enduring metaphor for what true democratic culture represents in Nigeria smirks of gross ingratitude. The pain runs deep, considering the incontestable fact that the masterminds are some of the greatest beneficiaries of his patriotic struggles, at one time or the other over the past five decades.

One is talking about none other than Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the famed Jagaban – the one man, who stood firm like Zuma rock in the whirlwind of Nigeria’s politics against the brutal and bruising boots of the late Abacha’s dictatorship. Our subject was the guiding light of the struggle for the realisation of June 12, 1993 mandate as won by the late Chief MKO Abiola. He is the former governor of Lagos State (1999-2007) and has remained the constant star in the firmament of Nigeria’s progressive political spectrum.

But for the commitment of this national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), perhaps, Nigeria’s then rudderless ship of state would long have capsised into the vast ocean of corruption under the clueless Goodluck Jonathan-led administration. That was then. But this is now, as he is being paid back in coins he never traded for the survival of democratic culture in his dear country, Nigeria.

So, it rankles; it shocks one to the marrow, more so because acts of sheer deception and bitter betrayal as reflected in some of William Shakespeare’s plays of the 16th century now play out in the 21st Century Nigeria, with uncanny semblances! And for what? All because of transient fame and fortunes!

For instance, in the play Macbeth, the lead character betrays King Duncan (to whom he has sworn allegiance) by killing him when he is a guest at his home. But why, one may ask? It is in an overtly ambitious attempt to gain the crown that Duncan wears. He also betrays his friend, Banquo, just to retain the power and position of being King. Thereafter, he murdered sleep!

But that is man for you, vacillating like the tropic weather. Today, he pretends to be the most loving and loyal friend or ally, only because he is in dire need of the other’s help, most likely to get out of a sticky situation. But tomorrow, he turns coat at the drop of a hat, that is, when the price is right. There are scruples but he has none. No binding philosophy of commitment to a cause. Greed for instant gains and an unquenchable desire to be seen as the man-of-the-moment are his propelling passions – his odious guiding credo.

Worse still, Tinubu’s traducers are going about it as if he was one desperate politician, who wanted power at all costs and by all crooked means. Yet, nothing could be further from the truth. If memory serves, Tinubu’s political trajectory took off when he pitched tent with the Musa Yar’Adua’s political dynasty.

That was the Social Democratic Party (SDP). Before long, he was championing the struggle for the actualisation of the June 12, 1993 mandate, as freely given by the good people of Nigeria to Chief MKO Abiola (of blessed memory). He made a lot of sacrifices; of precious time, energy, finance, strategies, wise counsel and other incalculable resources in this noble cause.

Tinubu...still an issue in national politics

And still sticking to his political guns to forever remain on the side of the people through a democratic structure, he, it was who warned Dapo Sarumi, who was then the patriarch of the Primrose Group not to jump ship into the IBB contraption of an Interim National Government.

Back then, the group was the most dominant in Lagos politics in 1992-93.

Tinubu vowed to break rank with Sarumi should he not heed his piece of patriotic advice. But the other was far too gone in his quest for political relevance under

The grand conspiracy and recent desperate attempts to deconstruct and indeed, de-mystify one of Africa’s most decorated political colossuses, who, incidentally remains an enduring metaphor for what true democratic culture represents in Nigeria smirks of gross ingratitude. The pain runs deep, considering the incontestable fact that the masterminds are some of the greatest beneficiaries of his patriotic struggles, at one time or the other over the past five decades

the military government to heed it. That singular wrong choice led to Sarumi’s political oblivion till this day.

If Tinubu was desperate, he would have joined the bandwagon as one of the infamous carpet baggers. It would also be recalled that when he, Tinubu was the Chairman, House Committee on Finance at the Senate, he was offered the juicy post as the Minister of Finance by the Abacha-led military government but he rejected it outright out of sheer national interest. Yet, that was not all.

In 2003, when as the Lagos State governor, he became the last man standing at a time OBJ’s rigging machinery raged through the South-west geo-political zone, Tinubu’s commitment, dedication, determination and personal sacrifice re-engineered the progressive community to retrieve the zone from the conservative Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The eventual emergence of Kayode Fayemi and Rauf Aregbesola as the governors of Ekiti and Osun States respectively became the turning point for the progressives’ relevance.

Another remarkable and in fact, epochal moment in the South-west politics came in 2007. When the market din swirled in Lagos over the emergence of Babatunde Raji Fashola, then a political neophyte as the governorship candidate of the AC, it was Tinubu who made another sacrifice of his Senatorial ambition, giving the ticket to Ganiyu Solomon.

It was Fashola’s victory at the polls in 2011 that empowered, emboldened and paved the way for the subsequent victories of the progressives in Oyo and Ogun States in 2011. And it was also in the spirit of Asiwaju’s sacrifice that made it possible for Ibikunle Amosun, wellknown then as a diehard conservative politician to clinch the coveted governorship seat in Ogun State, in spite of the array of other progressive politicians on

the ground.

Ditto for Abiola Ajimobi in Oyo State, who had earlier abandoned the Alliance for Democracy (AD) for ANPP! Ordinarily, if Asiwaju was one desperate politician as being insinuated, such politicians would not have ridden to political prominence on the back of the Jagaban.

Worthy of note too, is that it was the sacrifice made by Tinubu out of love for his country that led to the historic merger amongst the ACN, CPC, ANPP and a faction of APGA to form APC. And for the first time in the political evolution in Nigeria, the party was able to dislodge the incumbent greed-driven PDP-led administration.

Were he one selfish politician, he would have been contented being a king in his South-west enclave. But no, even when the then presidential standard bearer, Muhammadu Buhari offered him the post of his running mate in the presence of Chief Bisi Akande, who was the Interim Chairman of the party, Tinubu declined the offer.

He nominated Professor Yemi Osibanjo instead. This is an incontrovertible fact.

It was borne out of his patriotic zeal, taking cognizance that the PDP had then polarised Nigeria along ethnic and religious lines. Unfortunately, one John Baden, a total stranger to Nigeria’s political evolution has stood logic on its head by claiming otherwise in his recently launched biography of Mister President.

Having achieved such political feats, out of a rare sense of patriotism, it is a crying shame that some lucky individuals, who rode on his back to fame, are now hands-in-glove with the Hausa/ Fulani hegemony to attempt to rubbish his good image, which he has built over the decades. What is their aim? To gain entrance into the hearts of the new generation of Yorubas!

But they must learn from the unfailing hands of history that the Akintolas, Omoboriowos and Babatopes, who had travelled such ignoble paths, have been consigned to the dustbins of political history. No Yoruba man, who has jettisoned the collective interest of their people ever survived their ill-fated journeys.

More instructively, they may have to read the accounts of Shakespeare characters in Julius Caesar. For instance, the wily one named Antony betrays his commitment to Cleopatra by marrying Octavia. Conversely, Mena betrays Antony, Lepidus, and Caesar by suggesting that Pompey should kill the trio.

On the other hand, Ahenobarbus betrays Antony by deserting Antony when the latter is at his most vulnerable point in life. As if to literally turn tables, Cleopatra herself endures betrayal from both Caesar as well as her own treasurer.

This deception, coming from among one’s closest servants, constitutes great betrayal. Instructively, they all ended on the sad side of history.

It would, therefore, do the Yoruba political traitors in Abuja, who, like the Astyanax fish species betray their own, are now hell-bent on doing Tinubu in to have some moment of sober reflection.

Even Ayodele Fayose, Ekiti State governor in his characteristic blunt manner has warned of the dire consequences for those so involved.

They should remember that in the market square of life, it is always honourable and rewarding to be grateful to those who lift us up, instead of turning round to spit on their faces. God, who created us all, is watching. As the only one to whom vengeance belongs, He will surely take recompense. For, anybody who abuses grace will soon have nothing to eat but grass.

-Ajanaku wrote from Lagos

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BUSINESSWORLD R A T E S NIBOR OVERNIGHT 1-MONTH

A S

NIBOR

14.8750% 19.7872%

A T

3-MONTH 6-MONTH

Group Business Editor Chika Amanze-Nwachuku

Email chika.amanzenwachukwu@thisdaylive.com 08057161321, 08033294157

O C T O B E R 7 ,

20.5590% 21.4160%

NITTY 1-MONTH 2-MONTH 3-MONTH

21.4160% 18.0333% 16.2693%

2 0 1 6

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18.1358% 20.5689% 22.4006%

EXCHANGE RATE NN311.62//1US DOLLAR* *AS AT LAST FRIDAY

Quick Takes Air Peace Compensates Passengers

Air Peace has approved hundreds of free tickets for passengers who flew two of its Abuja-Lagos aircraft at the weekend.

The airline said the free tickets to 196 passengers was to compensate them for the delayed take off of their flights.

Vice Chairman of Air Peace, Mrs. Alice Onyema, who was in one of the affected flights, made the announcement to the surprised passengers.The flights, the airline said, were delayed due to unfavourable weather and VIP movement. Air Peace assured that its customers were at the core of its operations and would do everything within its powers to satisfy them.The passengers, who have already been communicated, expressed surprise at the airline’s benevolence and interest in satisfying its customers.Air Peace also said it recently issued hundreds of free tickets to its loyal customers under its Peace Advantage programme.

Golf View Unveils Automated Park

RWAND AIR DELIVERS NEW AIRCRAFT

L-R: Rwanda High Commissioner to Nigeria, Amb. Stanislas Kamanzi; Pilot of the new aircraft, Capt Kodjo; Rwand Air Country Manager, Ms. Ibiyemi Odusi; Director of Operations and Training, Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Captain Abdullahi Sidi and General Sales Agent (GSA), Rwand Air, Mr. Olufemi Adefope, cutting the cake to launch the landing of the airline’s Airbus 330 – 200 at the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos ...recently

$3 Billion Nigeria Bound Rice Stuck in Benin Republic

Eromosele Abiodun

Rice worth over $3 billion meant for the Nigerian markets are said to be stuck in various warehouses in Benin Republic due to the federal government’s policy banning importation of the commodity through land borders and fierce customs anti-smuggling drive, THISDAY investigation has revealed.

THISDAY findings revealed that the annual routine of importing rice into the neighbouring countries from July to December to make massive sales in Nigeria during yuletide has hit a brickwall as the Comptroller General of the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS), Col. Hameed Ali (rtd) has insisted that his men tighten the borders.

Nigeria shares major borders with Benin Republic

MARITIME at Seme Border (Lagos), Idiroko (Ogun State), Shaki (Oyo State),Chikanda (Kwara State) and other smaller openings. Prominent among them is Seme where the highest volume of trade and largest smuggling opportunity exists because of its easier access to Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial capital city.

Seme border, which hitherto was a major transit point for foreign rice importation and smuggling also became a no go area for the commodity as almost daily seizures of 50kg bags of it have taken a good portion of the government warehouse .

A competent source in Benin told THISDAY that most of the warehouses where the bagged rice are kept before shipment

into the country are now battling for space.

According to the source, who does not want his name in print, “some consignments of imported rice into the small West African country that had no space at the usual and popular stores were moved to makeshift storage areas and are exposed to rains, weevils and other unhygienic forms of storage.

The source said: “Popular warehouses no longer receive rice shipments as thousands of bags earlier delivered to them since July could not be evacuated into Nigeria as planned and as the usual case in previous years. Popular Cherika warehouse in Akpakpa near Cotonou with a capacity to hold 25,000 bags is fully loaded with Thailand rice with no hope of evacuating them into Nigeria except government

relaxes its policy disallowing rice imports through border or customs softening their round the clock enforcement in Seme.

“Defezi warehouse close to the Cotonou Port with is filled with over 40,000 units of 50kg bags of Indian and Thailand rice. Defezi got occupied earlier due to its proximity to the port but was not evacuated as the owners could not risk entering Nigeria with it. Cica warehouse in Missebo area of the Cotonou outskirts that suffered lack of patronage in the past due to distance from Seme border and bad road presently have over 15,000 bags. Some are getting moulded, caked with their bags torn and quantity reduced while under storage in several odd arrangements endlessly awaiting shipment Continued on page 20

FAAN Moves to End Incessant Power Outages at MMIA Chinedu Eze The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has taken steps to end incessant power outages at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos with the installation of six 24 megawatts capacity generators.

The agency had attributed major cause of recent power cuts at the international airport to disruption of cables at the construction site of the new international terminal, where the cables that supply electricity to the old terminal pass through.

AVIATION With the relocation of the cables and the coming on stream of the new generators, the agency said the power outages would be a thing of the past.

The Managing Director of FAAN, Saleh Dunoma made the promise recently when a team of senior officials of Caterpillar, the firm that built and installed the generating sets, led by the company’s Vice President, visited the agency’s Lagos office.

The Managing Director, who

was represented by the Director of Engineering and Maintenance, Olufemi Ogunode explained that two out of the six generators could provide all the electricity needed at the airport so the additional four generators were installed because the airport is expanding as the number of air travellers increases.

“Power outage is not strange in Nigeria but it is our responsibility to stop it at our airports. You can see we have a message from Caterpillar. It is our management response to find lasting solution to these issues of outages. The cause of

the outages could be because of system failure in the entire network of the nation and at times we have construction going on at MMIA here, which often leads to our cables being cut and we respond to that by using these generators as backups.

“Now we have re-routed most of our cables that pass through the construction site, so we don’t expect that to happen again. We need just about two of the six generators to power the electricity in the main terminal Continued on page 20

As solution to inadequate car parks in the Ikeja GRA in Lagos, GolfView Hotels and Suites has employed technology to overcome the challenge by building an automated multi-level car park.

Located on General Adebayo Avenue in Ikeja GRA, the car park, which was unveiled recently would take 25 cars.

Speaking at the unveiling of the facility, the proprietor of the hotel, Mr. Gbenga Olowo said the equipment which he ordered from China in 2013 cost $20, 000 when the exchange was about N119 to the dollar. He said space had been a major constraint to small hotel operators in the GRA, hence the resort to technologydriven car park. “If you see the space used, it will ordinarily take seven cars, but it takes 25. Of course, there is height restriction in this area otherwise you can go up to seven floors. But here, you cannot build more than four floors. Land here is very expensive; so we have to grow vertically with technology,” he said.

Olowo who said the automated car park would be at no extra cost to customers also stated that the facility is easy to maintain.

“This technology is so simple. You may think that it is hydraulic; it is just cable. The cable takes the car up and hangs it there. There are four corners that the car is being suspended. Maintenance is going to be next to nothing. All spare parts and the rotors can be sourced locally,” he said.

Installed by Lei Meng of China, Olowo said local personnel had been trained to maintain the car park in the event of a breakdown.

Anniston Advertises for Emirates

Hollywood actress, director and producer Jennifer Aniston has made a return to the Emirates A380, and makes a new friend, in a new global digital and TV advertising campaign for the world’s best airline.The ad builds on the success of the first EmiratesJennifer Aniston ad launched last year, a much talked-about campaign, which quickly went viral.

In a similar vein to the first light-hearted TVC, the Golden Globe and Emmy award-winning actress brings her distinctive personality, classic style, and a touch of humour, to showcase the A380. In the ad, Jennifer befriends Cooper, a feisty young boy who she finds playing in her Private Suite in the Emirates First Class cabin, while she was freshening up in the Shower Spa. The two strike up a conversation and build rapport, as they stroll through Emirates’ Business Class cabin and Onboard Lounge.

Sitting on the stairs between the lower and upper decks of the aircraft, Cooper tells Jennifer about his aspirations to become a pilot – of ‘this plane’, pointing to his model Emirates A380 aircraft.In Economy Class, Cooper is finally reunited with his surprised parents where Jennifer chooses to remain and enjoy Emirates’ ice inflight entertainment system with Cooper. The ad ends with Cooper’s mother relaxing in Jennifer’s Private Suite, having exchanged places with the Hollywood star.

Emirates’ Divisional Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications, Marketing & Brand explained, Boutros Boutros said, “A year ago, when we launched our first ad featuring Jennifer Aniston, we were overwhelmed by what a social phenomenon it became.

“I am one person who doesn’t believe that we should concession the four major airports because I know it is these four airports that are funding the other 18 airports”,

Chairman, House Committee on Aviation

Hon. Nkiruka Onyejeocha

20

T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2016

BUSINESSWORLD $3 BILLION NIGERIA BOUND RICE STUCK IN BENIN REPUBLIC into Nigeria.”

THISDAY checks revealed that while hope of smuggling them into Nigeria gets dim by the day, there is a conscious efforts at attempting the smuggling of the commodity without using bags.The unwholesome methods, our findings revealed, require pouring grains of rice into various compartments of vehicles like the booths, bonnets, inner part of the doors, under the seats and other spaces meant for spare tyres and tools.Sources disclosed that attempts to try bringing in some hundreds of bags failed as the smuggling bags ended up inside the customs warehouse in Seme and Idiroko as seizures.

The seized rice, some of which are closed to expiring and unwholesome for human consumption have become bad and unqualified for donation to Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps as was done in the recent past.

Numbers made available by the NCS revealed that over 37,000 bags of rice have so far been seized in Seme and Idiroko between January and September 2016 with a recent clamp down on 13 vehicles at a go in the Ogun State area all laden with smuggled rice.

FAAN MOVES TO END INCESSANT POWER OUTAGES AT MMIA building and around it at a time. This was designed in a way that it also has excess capacity in case there is expansion of the airport so that when more power is demanded it will take care of it. The total capacity is about 24 megawatts,” the Managing Director said.He noted that the importance of the project made the team from Caterpillar Mantrac to visit the agency to assure the people of the efficiency of the back up generators, which would serve as the secondary power supply, as FAAN also relies on public power supply.

“There will be steady power supply from PHCN and incase of failure we have the backup systems in place, which is stable, reliable and very efficient.

NEWS

Okowa: Delta State Not Abandoning Oil through Diversification James Emejo in Abuja Delta State Governor, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa has said that the state was not moving away from oil but rather exploring other potential to diversify its economy.

He said the state government is currently empowering hundreds of young entrepreneurs to establish their own businesses and also create employment opportunities for others.

“We are not throwing away the oil but we are saying that apart from the oil, we have other things that we can also rely on-so that if the oil fails, we will not fail. That’s what we are doing”, he said.

The governor added: “We are training young entrepreneurs, university graduates-instead of giving them employment and staying in the office doing nothing-they are being trained to be self-employed-to do produce things in their hands-to think about what they’ve learnt and then practicalise it.

“We teach them different trade and when they finish, the government gives them starter packs to go and start their business and when they come, they are trained first of all, on how to run a business, and then they go to established businesses to learn on the spot and they come back again and are retrained on how to manage their businesses.”

Speaking in Abuja at the Delta State Day at just concluded 2016 Abuja International

Trade Fair, Okowa, who was represented by the Delta State Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Mrs. Mary Iyasere said: “Delta State is not moving away from oil per se; the oil is there, but we have other potentials which we are also exhibiting; the potentials are in agriculture, in manufacturing, we have the raw materials to manufacture-for instance, you can do a lot of things with our solid minerals; we have clay products and everything that can be done with all the

solid minerals; they are there.

“We are telling the world that Delta State is the place to be when you want to invest because we have the landmass, we have the coastline, we have abundant solid minerals, we have wood, cassava, Palm and a lot of products that are made in Delta-and what do we do-we show them to the world and that’s why we are here.”

According to him, “We are encouraging investors to come and tap and manufacture-we encourage people to come to

Delta because we have an array of palm trees-palm business, fishing business; we have 163 kilometer of coastline and with that you can establish tourism, you can establish aqua-business.

“All the exhibitors here were brought on the sponsorship of the Delta State government......

Apart from the starter packs, they are also paid during the training period before they are properly established and that’s what Delta State government is doing and we have the micro credit office that also

gives them loan to carry on their business so that they are established and also employ others. We create jobs through our youths and through the establishment.

He added: “All these are their products and they are the people the state has helped. So we bring them here to showcase their products because it’s good to help them to produce and also good to help them market what they’ve produced-And that’s why they are here.”

MAKING MORE MILLIONAIRES

L-R: Regional Bank Head, Apapa, Fidelity Bank Plc, Obaro Odeghe ;, Assistant HOD, Regulatory & Monitoring (Lagos Office), National Lottery Regulatory Commission (NLRC), Nwakuche Durugo; Executive Director, Shared Services & Products, Fidelity Bank Plc, Chijioke Ugochukwu; and Head, Lagos Office, Consumer Protection Council (CPC), Joshua Ngadda, at the first monthly draw of the Fidelity ‘Get Alert In Millions’ Promo held at the Bank’s corporate head office in Lagos ...recently

Mining: FG Set to Provide Technical Assistance to States Kasim Sumaina in Abuja The Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has said that the ministry is set to provide logistics and technical assistance to state governments, in their bid to invest in the mining sector.

The Minister, who disclosed this when he received the

Ebonyi State Governor, David Umahi, in his office, stated that the diversification plan of the government would be better realised with states’ involvement in mining ventures.

Fayemi who lauded Umahi’s commitment to tapping the mineral deposits in his state, added that the federal government want successful projects at state level that will help us

to showcase our seriousness in becoming a mining nation.

Fayemi who together with the Minister of State, Hon. Abubakar Bawa Bwari, received Governor Umahi, said the ministry’s budget for 2017 has captured exploration, reclamation of mining sites and organisation of artisan miners, among other things that would repositioned the

sector.

He however commended the governor for making Ebonyi State a mining destination, saying that the state is a model for others to emulate.

He assured the governor that the ministry had put together an environmental team to work on reclamation of mining sites for the welfare of the host communities.

Umahi had earlier stated that beyond agriculture, Nigeria would generate more revenue from mining, adding that more countries are looking towards Nigeria because of the mineral resources.He said the state is willing to partner UNIDO and the federal government to mine its huge deposit of salt and limestone.

NESREA: Regulations Not Meant to Stifle Businesses Group Business Editor

Chika Amanze-Nwachuku AgriBusiness/Industry Editor

Crusoe Osagie

Comms/e-Business Editor

Emma Okonji

Capital Market Editor

Goddy Egene

Senior Correspondent

Raheem Akingbolu (Advertising) Correspondents

Chinedu Eze (Aviation) Linda Eroke (Labour) Eromosele Abiodun (Cap Mkt) Ejiofor Alike (Energy) James Emejo (Nation’s Capital) Obinna Chima (Money Mkt) Reporters

Nume Ekeghe (Money Market) Nosa Alekhuogie (Maritime)

Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja The National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) has said that regulations and enforcement introduced by it were not meant to stifle industries, or businesses but to ensure a balance between the environment and the business.

Its Director General, Dr. Lawrence Anukam made this known recently in Abuja at a two-day experts critique meeting of the draft reviewed National Environmental (Ozone Layer Protection) Regulations, 2009, aimed at developing an effective standard for safe disposal of Ozone Depletion Substances (ODS) in Nigeria,

According to him, “the intention of NESREA in coming up with regulations is not to stifle our industries, is not to make sure development is not going to go ahead, but the whole concept behind this, let us develop in harmony of nature, this is the principle of sustainable development.”

Anukam Stated: “Regulations all over the world, enforcement all over the world, none is done to kill industry, to make business not to grow, but to make sure there is order, there is a balance and there is a harmony in the environment and the business.”

He revealed that the stakeholders’ meeting was constituted due to some gaps identified in the regulations crafted in 2009 , which had hindered the

effective compliance, monitoring and enforcement of ODS handling, sale and disposal.

The DG noted that globally, the adverse effects of ODS have increasingly become an important issue as a result of the several pollutants which attack the ozone layer creating a hole, especially Chloroflurorocarbons (CFCs) used as refrigerants, notably in air conditioners, as agents in several manufacturing processes and as propellants in spray cans.

Anukam added: “Recognising the adverse effect inherent in ODS use, government promulgated National Environmental (Ozone Layer Protection) Regulations, 2009 with the aim of controlling the use of ODS in Nigeria.

“In the cause of enforcem ent of the provisions contained therein by NESREA, some gaps have been identified.

These gaps have hindered the effective compliance monitoring and enforcement and have also deterred the ODS handlers from complying with the regulations.”

He pointed out that major gaps are the omission of best practices for safe disposal, guidelines for ODS destruction, alternatives of ODS in the second regulations, as well as upward review of penalties among others.

The DG added that with the increase use of ODS, experts anticipate an increase in skin cancers, more cataracts (opacity of the lens) and reduced yields of some food crops.

Speaking at the event, the United Nations Industrial Organisation (UNIDO) Country Representative and Regional Director for ECOWAS, Dr. Chima Ezedinma said that nations are evolving with measures to protect their environment, and that it was therefore important and mandatory for Nigeria to reflects in its laws, disposal of ODS waste.

Ezedinma who was represented UNIDO environmental expert, Mr. Yomi Banjo noted that it was also important for the country to begin the adoption and implementation of the extended producer responsibility initiative which ensures that manufacturers are responsible for the entire life cycle of their products.

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BUSINESSWORLD

AVIATION

NAMA Saves N1.5bn by Engaging Indigenous Engineers Chinedu Eze The Nigeria Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) said it has saved about N1.5billion by engaging indigenous engineers, instead of employing expatriates to carry out technical and safety critical function of the agency.

This was disclosed by the acting Managing Director of the NAMA, Emmanuel Anasi, who said he employed the services of indigenous engineers for the maintenance of its facilities across the airports in the past two years.

Anasi disclosed this while briefing members of the House committee on Aviation led by Hon. Nkeiruka Onyejiocha, saying the money was saved following the disengagement of manufacturers of the Total Radar Coverage of Nigeria

(TRACON), which led to the maintenance of its facilities by indigenous engineers.

According to the acting Managing Director, the installers of the facility left two years ago having trained their Nigerians counterparts on the radar maintenance.

While praising the ingenuity of the engineers, Anasi disclosed that the agency needed more funds to enable it upgrade the TRACON system to meet the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) standards and systems migrate to new technology aimed at harmonising its activities.

According Anasi, nothing was wrong with the TRACON but explained that some of the systems were not included when the radar was installed.

He noted that well equipped facilities would further reduce

work load on the Air Traffic Controllers.

The NAMA boss said the country’s Airspace remained very safe and working towards improving the system.

He announced that a team of NAMA engineers was presently in Maiduguri working on the voice communication to enhance communication between the pilot and Controllers.

The agency has also embarked on other projects, including Aeronautical Information Services (AIS) Automation project in view of the fact that AIS is the “live-wire of any air navigation system, as it ensures the safety, efficiency and regularity of air navigation through the exchange of accurate, timely and reliable information to airspace users.’’

w

AIR WATCH

Rigid Visa Processes Lagos Airport domestic terminal, MMA2

Rwand Air Introduces Newly Acquired Aircraft to Lagos Route Fast growing national carrier, Rwand Air recently displayed the special attention it pays to its lucrative Lagos route by launching its newly acquired, Airbus A330-200 on the Nigeria-Kigali route.

The aircraft flew in passengers from Kigali , the capital of the East African country; its major hub to its West African hub, Lagos.

The new aircraft is the latest addition in the fleet of nine airplanes by the ambitious carrier set to take over the African skies with new product offerings ranging from competitive fares to extra luggage allowance for its teeming passengers.

Speaking at an impressive welcome ceremony at the international wing of the Lagos Airport, Rwand Air, country manager, Ms Ibiyemi Odusi

said the arrival of the Airbus 330 – 200 is one the steps taken by the airline to consolidate on the Nigerian route with attractive packages that would make the carrier the preferred choice by passengers.

She said the configuration of the Airbus with Flat Bed on the 20-seater Business Class, 21-seater luxurious space at the Premium Economy Cabin and 203-seater Economy Cabin for 244 passenger seats aircraft makes it an attraction out of Lagos to other international destinations by the airline.

Odusi called on Nigerian passengers to continue to patronise Rwand Air to destinations within and outside Africa to enable the airline resolve the lingering challenge of flight connectivity within Africa.

She stated that Rwand Air

would deliver additional Airbus 330-300 in November or December this year in order to actualise its plans to open new routes within Africa into Middle East and Asia as well as open new routes into Europe in 2017.

Also speaking at the event, the Rwandan High Commissioner to Nigeria, Ambassador Stanislas Kamanzi described the arrival of the Airbus into Nigeria as a milestone by the East Africa carrier, saying the aircraft is part of efforts to improve the national carrier of the country in offering seamless connections into and out of Africa .

He said Rwand Air would take delivery of another aircraft next month to enable the airline contribute its quota in growing air transportation in Africa.

Peacock Travels Fetes 550 Partners One of Nigeria’s travel management companies, Peacock Travels and Tours, a subsidiary of the Peacock Group, has rewarded over 550 trade partners and customers in the South West, South East and South-South geopolitical zones of the country.

The rewards were meant to show the travel firm’s appreciation to its loyal and esteemed trade partners and customers for their patronage in 2015.The programme came barely four months after the Lagos edition in which over 200 trade partners were rewarded with various gift items. Over 80 travel agencies won in the star prize categories in Lagos.

The Chairman, Peacock Group, Aare Segun Philips, had during the Lagos Agency Forum in April promised that the event would be held in the six geopolitical zones of the country.

In the three geopolitical zones of South-West, South-East and South-South, a total of 26 return free tickets to various destinations including to London, United States, Doha

and New York were given to the trade partners.

Over 300 trade partners and customers, who emerged winners in the Platinum, Diamond, Gold, Silver and Bronze categories (based on the volumes of tickets sold during the year), went home with grand prizes including deep freezer, LED television, electric cooker, giant fan and air conditioner among others.

Some of the international and foreign airlines present at the special event are: Arik Air, Kenya Airways, Qatar Airways, Etihad Airways, Egypt Air, AirFrance-KLM, South African Airways, and Golden Tulip Hotels.

The South-West zone event, which was held in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, had in attendance captains of industries, government officials and representatives, key stakeholders in the travel sector, and several foreign airlines.

The South East zone Agency forum, held in Aba on September 22, 2016 at the popular Le Paix Hotel where over 250 partners went home

with various gifts at the event.

At the South-South geopolitical zone event, over 200 trader partners were given various prizes and gifts items. It was held at Ikeda Event Centre on September 24; two days after the South-East zone event.

The Human Resources Manager, Mr. Aderemi Awolaiye, while anchoring the programme in the three zones, said the programmes showed the value the company places on its customers and trade partners.

All the winners in the various categories were presented with gifts by the Chairman, Peacock Group of Companies, Aare Segun Philips.

Aare Philips, shortly after handing over the gifts and complementary tickets to the various categories winners, assured the sub-agents that the awards ceremony would continue to be an annual event.

He enjoined the sub-agents to be more industrious and continue their patronage of the Peacock Group, while assuring them that their efforts would be rewarded.

R

ecently, Nigeria introduced visa on arrival policy, whereby a foreigner can obtain visa on arrival in Nigerian. But the conditions given for a foreigner to obtain visa on arrival is still very rigid, according to industry observers.

Nigerian Immigration source told THISDAY that over the years, Nigerian government talked glibly about tourism but it has not put in place policies and incentives that would promote tourism and there seems also not been efforts by the federal government to support states of private organisations that promote and develop tourist sites or tourist attractions in various parts of the country.

Until recently that Nigeria started looking frantically for alternative sources of foreign exchange after the protracted low prices of crude and now looking in the way of tourism and agriculture as source of foreign exchange, the country is still very conservative about the liberalisation of visa process like in many other countries that are promoting tourism and encouraging visitors from other parts of the world.

Ironically, many people from neighbouring countries and other parts of the continent troop into Nigeria on a daily basis through the nation’s porous borders, while valuable visitors that could bring in the highly sought after foreign currencies are restrained with rigid visa regulations.

But recently, the Nigeria Immigration Service issued a statement stating that it has introduced visa on arrival policy and in practice the policy has started working. Last year, during the Calabar Carnival, many visitors from outside the country benefited from that policy, but it had to be anchored on one of the organisers, so an individual could not have travelled to Nigeria and followed the given process to obtain such visa, except through that organisers.

An Immigration source told THISDAY on Tuesday explained how visa on arrival is done: “If you are expecting somebody you apply to the Controller General of Immigration who will approve and with the approval the person would be given visa when he arrives.

“The visa on arrival is given to those, including investors who live very far from our embassies and visa fee is paid according to your nationality.

The process and issuance of visa is determined by our country’s foreign policy. I must say that we were never interested in tourism despite our mouthing such words every day because we were engrossed in oil. So you cannot compare our visa policy with that of Rwanda, Kenya or United Arab Emirates. We depended on oil so much. However, we would say that we make the obtaining of Nigerian visa very rigid because of security but the truth is that we were never interested in people coming to our country before because we were making money from oil.

Recently, the Comptroller-General of Immigration, Muhammad Babandede called on foreign investors to take advantage of the Visa-at-port-of-entry facility otherwise known as Visa-on-arrival to do business in Nigeria. He said that the facility, which is presently issued at the nation’s international airports, was introduced by the federal government as part of the measures to encourage Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).

“Speaking further on the issue, the Immigration boss also said that “in order to encourage ease of doing business in Nigeria the Immigration Act 2015 has given the CGI the powers to issue such visas to investors, frequently travelled business persons of international repute, executive directors of multinational companies, members of Government delegations as well as holders of UN, AU and ECOWAS Laissez-Passer.”

“The Act also empowers him to issue Permanent Residence Visas to foreign nationals who are married to Nigerians and to foreign investors who have imported an annual minimum threshold of capital over a period of time,” the statement said.

Another official of the Nigeria Immigration Service told THISDAY that Nigeria is yet to reap the benefits of the numerous tourist sites located at different parts of the country because visa process is very cumbersome.

“I can tell you that obtaining Nigeria’s visa overseas is very cumbersome; although the policy is usually reciprocal but from the reports we get from our different embassies in the world, our people just make it difficult to obtain our visa. I can tell you that even if our foreign policy changes they will hardly effect it. We need re-orientation in our country. We should think less about what we can get for ourselves and think about our country.

Travel expert, Ikechi Uko observed that Rwand Air has become the fourth African airline in just 10 years of its existence because of the support it is receiving from the country’s government, which include the ease of obtaining visa on arrival, a policy which encourages people to travel to such country.

Recently Africa’s richest man, Alhaji Aliko Dangote had complained about the difficulty in obtaining visa from some countries in Africa, including those who wished to come and invest in those countries. Dangote noted that it is one of the factors that discourage investment in Africa.

It is believed that if Nigeria establishes another national carrier it would not have other choices than to make it easier for travellers from other countries to obtain Nigerian visa if government wants the new carrier to be competitive. Even now such a policy would help existing Nigerian airlines to connect passengers from non West African countries through Lagos and Abuja to long haul destinations.

So in its bid to have other sources to obtain foreign exchange, Nigeria should boost tourism by further easing the process of obtaining Nigerian visa; not just to change the laws, but also to ensure that the new policy is implemented.

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BUSINESSWORLD

AVIATION

As Nigeria Loses Its Air Traffic Hub Status

As the most populous country in Africa, Nigeria has the highest passenger traffic in the West and Central African sub-regions. However, the country is losing its leading role as the hub of air traffic in these regions. Chinedu Eze writes on why this is happening Few years ago, Ethiopia established its West African hub in Lome, Togo. From the tiny African country, it operates to Brazil, to New York in the US and other major destinations in the world, connecting its flight through its major hub in Addis Ababa. Many Nigerians have realised that it is cheaper, quicker and easier to travel to Brazil with Ethiopia Airlines through Lome than any other choice, as there is no direct flight from Nigeria to the South American country.

This year, South Africa Airways started direct flight from Accra to Washington in code-share with African World Airlines (AWA) and reports indicate that the airline is recording good number of passengers to that destination.

These airlines operate from locations very close to Nigeria. From Lagos to Accra is about 35 minutes and from Lagos to Lome is less than 20 minutes, so these airlines target Nigerian passengers but chose to attract and airlift them from neighbouring countries that provide conducive operating environment.

South Africa Airways and Ethiopia Airlines may not have any reason to invest in Ghana and Togo without the Nigerian passengers, but the question is why did they prefer to poach for Nigerian passengers from neigbouring countries?

Bungling Opportunities There is fear in Nigeria that Ghana may be growing into a hub in West Africa, but travel expert, Ikechi Uko has dismissed it, saying that Ghana lacks the passenger and the Katoka International Airport, Accra lacks the capacity to compete with Nigeria, but he noted that Nigeria has not been able to seize the opportunities at its behest to become the dominant air transport hub in the sub-region and one of the major hubs in the whole continent.

“I don’t see Ghana actually competing with Nigeria. They don’t have the capacity. It is Nigeria that is failing itself. Nigeria is failing its own ability to perform. Ghana does not have the capacity to compete with Nigeria.

Nigeria was naturally given opportunities but she is failing itself. We have airport that has the capacity between five to 10 million passengers per annum; Ghana is at two to 2.5 million passengers per annum. Maximum Ghana airport can reach is four million, so it is not in any way a threat to Nigeria. It is just that we lack the ability to do what we are supposed to do normally. That is our own problem. We just bungle things,” Uko said.

So it is the failure of Nigeria to seize all the opportunities available to it as the most populous country in Africa with the highest number of indigenous people that desire to travel, growing between 15 to 20 million per annum, but AWA and Ethiopia Airlines are taking advantage of Nigeria’s failures to do the right thing.

“But the success of South Africa Airways from Accra to Washington and Ethiopian Airlines from Lome to New York means that it is easy for them to stay outside Nigeria and carry Nigerian passengers. Ethiopia Airlines is doing it successfully from Lome and South Africa Airways is doing it successfully from Accra.

This will continue if we continue to bungle our opportunities,” Uko who is the organiser of Akwaaba African Travel Market warned.

Government Policies Deputy Managing Director of Arik Air, Captain Ado Sanusi said that the way to stop the dominance of other airlines in West Africa at the expense of their Nigerian counterparts is for the Nigerian government to take certain actions aimed at repositioning the Nigerian carriers and make them competitive. He noted that most of the problem Nigerian airlines are having are external and government induced, including the harsh operational environment and the failure to obtain foreign exchange.

“The airlines are facing multiple challenges.

These challenges include high cost of operation in the country, which is caused by high cost

of aviation fuel, high cost of getting foreign exchange and multiple taxes from the parastatals.

So if you are going to make the operating environment conducive for airlines, they must address these issues.

“They must look at how they can bring the high cost of Jet A1 to something comparable within the region. We can take the Ghana model.

Katoka Airport, Accra, Ghana has announced they want to reduce the price of Jet A1 by 25 percent. They will cut some taxes and make it 25 percent cheaper within the region.

“Jet A1 is major component that increases the cost of operation so if you bring down the cost of the product, it will bring down the cost of operation. Then the cost of getting foreign exchange; now this is not the first time the federal government is looking at the industry and allocating foreign exchange according to industry needs,” Sanusi noted that even during the military regimes they used to give consideration to those industries that were foreign exchange intensive and allocate them foreign exchange and this would stimulate the economy because it will allow the airlines to have access to foreign exchange.

“This will enable the airlines operate competitively at very good airfares. Then you have to look at multiple taxations by aviation paratatals and then even if you say temporarily, government should waive some charges so that the airlines can use this waiver to offset particular fees or services to reduce their cost of operation,” Sanusi added.

Favoured Foreign Airlines Government’s policies and attitude, according to industry experts have played significant roles why other airlines are doing well while their Nigerian counterparts are not doing as well. From the obsolete airport facilities to lack of plan to grow indigenous carriers, government is alleged to be behind the failure of Nigerian airlines to be competitive among African airlines.

President of Aviation Round Table (ART) a think-tank body in the industry, Gbenga Olowo also blamed government for lack of planning and lack of vision, which has left the

country’s aviation sector in doldrums despite its invaluable opportunities.

“The aviation industry, to say the least, is still at infancy. This is a shame because we do not really know what we want to do with the aviation industry. Our decisions are haphazard, so we need concise, coordinated decisions. I look at aviation in the next 50 to 100 years in Nigeria. What we are doing now is haphazard. So many airlines, we have about three generations that have come and gone.

Life span of Nigerian airlines is 10 years and the present ones are at the level of extinction, so we need to get serious,” Olowo said.

According to industry observers, government is responsible for the low performance of indigenous airlines and their failure to be competitive in the continent because government does not give domestic carriers incentives. It is said that there is no country in the world that does not give one kind of support or another to its airlines. Major countries with successful airlines and operational hubs are said to go the extra mile to protect their airlines, facilitate credit facility for them and even cancel their debts when necessary so that they would continue to thrive.

Government Indicted The travel expert,Uko also blamed the government: “First, you find out why Nigerian airlines don’t make profit. Once you find out why they don’t make profit and these may include high cost of operation, aviation fuels, cost of spares, poor access to fund and high exchange rate. We can give the sector infant industry status, as Chris Aligbe had suggested.

Government could say, don’t bother to pay us any tax for 10 years, don’t pay us any of these charges, just employ people; just employ people and grow skills. This is because once you are employing people it is good for the country.

Aero that is dying has 1, 300 workers and those people are now going to be unemployed.

So if it is possible to employ that number then government should ask itself, how do we enable these airlines to grow skills? These airlines are strategic to our economy so they should not be treated as one man business,” Uko said.

He emphasised that although these airlines are owned by individuals but the critical role they play in the nation’s economy is pivotal; therefore, they should be supported.

Uko argued: “They are owned by individuals, but individuals also owned the banks and government is giving banks foreign exchange to sell and the banks do round tripping and make money. Once you have been institutionalised you are supposed to make money. For me, government can do without the money they make from the airlines; instead they should encourage them to employ more people and government has to think more of these roles than their ownership.”

Uko added that why government seems to pay more attention to foreign airlines and respond to their needs more than the domestic airlines is because many decision makers in government seem to envy and jostle with the Nigerian airline owners.

“To the government officials, the foreign airlines are impersonal. The officials don’t know the owners, but they know the people behind the Nigerian airlines and the policy makers in government compare themselves with the airline owners in Nigeria. This is what I have learnt from my own personal experience. People see it as me; not the role I am playing, not the service I am rendering.

In Arik, they see Joseph Arumemi-Ikhide, not what the airline is doing for the country. What is in their mind is that Arumemi-Ikhide is making money. So they are actually envious of the man. That is the daily problem in this country,” Uko stated.

This could be buttressed by the fact that there has not been any overt and selfless effort to help the airlines to survive, as noted by industry operatives who said that the intervention fund given at some time in the past were aimed at assuaging the banks and at other times to fill the pocket of those behind the funds, adding that Nigerian government would lose noting if it cuts down the charges leveled on domestic carriers.The Nigerian government, from all indications has contributed in making Nigerian airlines uncompetitive. Also, because the airlines cannot speak with one voice seem to deteriorate their situation.

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BUSINESSWORLD

MARITIME

Haastrup: Inconsistencies in Govt Policies Destroying Maritime Sector Vicky Haastrup is the Executive Vice Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of ENL Consortium Limited, operator of Terminals C and D of the Lagos Port Complex, Apapa. She is also the Chairman of Seaport Terminal Operators Association of Nigeria.

She told Eromosele Abiodun how the foreign exchange crisis and inconsistencies in government policies are impacting the maritime sector negatively. Excerpts: As a top player in the maritime industry tell us how the developments in the economy in the last one year have impacted your industry That is a tricky question. I will not limit myself to the last one year because that will be indicting this present government. That will not be fair because some of the policies that are impacting the industry negatively were not made by this government. However, this is a very challenging period for the maritime industry. As you know, the volume of activities in the ports has reduced and it has been a very drastic reduction. For example in my company we have a cargo downturn of a least 57 per cent as at two weeks ago. When you compare today with this period two years ago we have a reduction in cargo output of a minimum of 57 per cent which means we are operating 43 per cent capacity. This month is even worse. Now we do only six or seven ships from for example 30. That is a huge challenge. The problem has also affected the container operators in the ports.

Theirs may not be as bad as ours but they are also experiencing a downturn in their operational activities particularly as it relates to cargo troop out. Why is it like that? It is because of the inconsistencies in government policies. What we need now is a consistent policy regime to help the economy to grow.

This will create confidence in the mind of business owners and importers of cargo. But a situation where you are not sure whether the policy may change or not you cannot do anything reasonable. Policies keep changing; government must look into that area. For example, the policies on the ban of import 42 items. They should also look at the foreign exchange policy. The present floating system is not helping matters and it is not good for the economy. Why? Because it is floating so high that it is becoming unaffordable to the ordinary Nigerian. It is a good thing to allow the naira to find its true value but the way it is been done now is making the dollar to skyrocket. Government need to look at these policies in the way that it should not go above certain level. As at yesterday (October 30th) one dollar was sold N473. That is way too high; can Nigeria as a country survive on that? It makes commodity prices very expensive. People can barely afford to eat three square meals a day. One very important thing that the government should do now is to collapse the gap between official rate and parallel market rate. The margin between both markets is too high. In other parts of the world, the disparity is very marginal. For example, if you go to the United Kingdom you can choose to go to the bank to conduct your foreign exchange transaction or go to the open market. When you go to the open market your profit is very minimal. The disparity is not very wide. In a situation where the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is selling the dollar a little above N300 and then the parallel market is N473 is not acceptable.

Government should urgently investigate to know why that is happening. Government should collapse the two to a level where the margin is not that wide, granted the fact that not everybody can get the dollar from the CBN. The fall-back position for most people is the black market but that market is somersaulting in a way that it is creating a big problem for the Nigerian people. This is very important because whatever happens to the dollar affects even our local food.

Nigeria is running a dollarised economy.

Aside the foreign exchange problems, the high cost of doing business in the

Haastrup

ports is also a problem, how do we resolve this?

Well, it is also a problem because exchange rate volatility impacts port operations a lot.

For example, customs charges their tariff at the official exchange rate but importers do not get the foreign exchange at the official rate. This is what brings about the high cost of doing business at the ports. The way out is that government should apply the right policies by way of effective exchange rate policy that will support the maritime industry. This is very important because whatever happens in the port have direct impact on the economy.

We are in a recession, people’s incomes are being eroded, states are not paying salaries, yet prices of food are skyrocketing. That to me is a big challenge to the Nigerian people.

All of the plants and equipment that you use in your operation are procured abroad and the dollar is selling at N473.

How does this affect your ability to procure equipment to reduce turnaround time of ships?

Every segment of port operations is being affected by this exchange rate crisis. Ten years ago when the ports were consessioned, the naira was exchanging for N125 to a dollar.

Today, the exchange rate is N473 or N490 in the parallel market. We just have to use the

parallel market because government does not have the capacity to fulfil demands for the dollar so the fall-back position is the black market. For terminal operators, we don’t generate enough foreign exchange to sort ourselves out. Don’t forget we have the lease fees to pay, we pay royalties in dollars and at the end of the day we do not generate enough income to be able to pay those dollar obligations to the government.

What do we do? We go to the black market and at what exchange rate? Our equipment are procured in dollars, there are so many things we do that require the green back.

Even our customers whose services are done in dollars, there fall-back position is the black market. Everybody is bleeding, the ports operators, importers, the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) is also bleeding because it is difficult for us to meet our obligation to the NPA now. We have to go to the black market to exchange dollars to be able to pay the NPA. Government indirectly is also bleeding. Government needs to invite all stakeholders for discussions, we need to talk about this and make suggestions to government how it can work. We should be allowed to make suggestions to government before policies are made. Some people just seat somewhere and advise government on the way to go. That is not good enough,

you need people who are operating within that sector to tell you their experience on day to day basis that is where you can hear the truth. They need to make adjustment to all these inconsistencies in policy making.

Government needs to make adjustment on customs duties and tariff, they need to make adjustment on the disparity between the official and parallel markets. I believe that if the official and parallel markets are streamlined, it will not be of a major concern.

These are fiscal and monetary policies that affect operations at the ports but there are also man made problems like the issue of monopoly. Some of your members have, in recent time, complained about the monopoly of oil and gas logistics. How do you want this monopoly matter resolved?

What is oil and gas logistics? Is there any terminology like that in the maritime sector anywhere in the world? It does not exist.

General cargo is general cargo, containerised cargo is containerised cargo. Why are people bringing these ambiguities and trying to apply it to the system? As at the time that my concession agreement was signed there was nothing like oil and gas logistics. Our concession agreements clearly states that we can handle general cargo. What is general Continued on page 24

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MARITIME

HAASTRUP: INCONSISTENCIES IN GOVT POLICIES DESTROYING MARITIME SECTOR cargo? They are cargoes like the so called oil and gas logistics. The terminology all over the world is general cargo. When did they come up with this oil and gas logistics?

After we signed our agreement? The Lagos Deep Offshore Logistics base (LADOL) has a huge investment sitting there. They have invested well over $500 million and then someone is tying their hands and saying you cannot do this. What we are creating in the mind of foreign investors is that Nigeria is not conducive for business. When we do that we are killing this country. We need the involvement of foreign investors to inject funds into our economy to flourish. We do not have such capacity, we need the foreign investors.

If at the end of the day people come and do good things like LADOL is doing and they are frustrated, how do they get funds from abroad? What message are we sending to the global financial market? I think that policy is evil in every ramification. At a time they even said common pipe that they use for drainage is oil and gas. There should not be monopoly; competition is good for business because ultimately it brings down the rice of goods and services. As it is today, all terminal operators are competing against each other and that helps to reduce prices and cost of doing business at the ports. Again monopoly negates the spirit of concession; the ports were concessioned to create a competitive environment, which will ultimately bring down price. But if government on its own is saying sorry we are giving it to just one party, then we are not serious. Not in anyway.

There was this argument between the concessionaires and the NPA over fees payment in dollar, has that matter been resolved?

That is exactly what I was saying about inconsistencies in government policy. When we started naira was N125 to a dollar. Today, it is N473 or even more. Even if we go to the CBN now and ask for dollars they will tell us we not part of their responsibilities.

Who can survive on that? This has been the subject of our argument with the NPA. It is not that we don’t want to pay our lease fees; the fact of the market is that we are not making enough dollars to pay them.

This sudden jump in the rate of the dollar was not envisaged when the agreement was signed. Nobody thought that the naira will crash or suffer 300 per cent devaluation. It is a major problem, but I believe the present managing director of the NPA will look into the matter in an unbiased position.

The NPA has said it will soon review the concession agreement, as someone who has been there all along what specific things do you want done in the new agreement and how will you like to respond to the allegation that terminal operators have reneged on the concession agreement in terms of port development?

Some of the things we will like to see are; one the issue of this foreign exchange and how it applies to us if there is a sudden devaluation. The NPA needs to determine what rate will be applied. Two, the guaranty minimum tonnage (GMT) needs to be reviewed downward because most of the cargo that we handle that were inserted in the technical paper that we sent go government that we thought we could achieve has changed. We were handling the cargos 10 years ago and some of them are among the 42 items banned by the CBN. For example, cement. At ENL for example, I was doing about 1.5MT of cement cargo at inception, which has been taken away, rice also has been taken away.

Even to some extent fertilizer has been taken off the list. The other one is fish and it is subjected to quotas. A lot of the cargo that we use to handle has been banned by government. What are we left with of all the several things we could handle are very little. Most of the cargos that used to come through our terminal have been banned. This means that the progression that I expected to happen in my cargo throughput cannot happen anymore. It is not because we don’t have the capacity but government policy has changed so the GMT has to be reviewed.

If government is banning the cargo that I had envisaged will form part of the cargos

Haastrup

that will come through my terminal, they have to review the GMT because it is not our fault. As regards the port development, I don’t know what they are talking about. I don’t think there is any argument whether we have developed the ports or not because we have an agreement. We had things that we specifically said that we would do in our agreement. I don’t know of any terminal operator that has not done that. In fact, we have done more than was expected of us, much more than we said we will do.

Can that be said of the NPA? As much as I don’t want to talk about them, I think the bureaucracy is too much and it is telling on their ability to do their work effectively. I am not giving excuses for them. Government should give them some level of freedom to do certain things without waiting for approval from Abuja.

They should be granted some kind of semi autonomy. NPA needs that kind of policy to operate optimally. There are so many things that the NPA has not brought to the table as contained in the concession agreement.

Can one truly say that it is because of government policy that you are running on less than your installed capacity?

Definitely! As at two weeks ago ENL terminal was operating at 57 per cent downturn. That is huge. It is even more now because as we talk I have only one ship at the port, five days ago I had just one out of 10 baths. Two weeks ago there was a period of five days that we didn’t have any ship at all. That is the order of the day now. This is peculiar to us operating general cargo terminal. It is a very serious matter.

You talked about the government policy that has changed since the concession agreement. For example the GMT that has gone down as a result of the ban of 42 items. Is there a way you can reverse the trend with export rather than import?

Yes. But Nigeria is yet to become an export based nation, but I think we are getting there gradually. I can see farmers planting a lot of

cashew. Cashew very soon will constitute a lot of export cargo for Nigeria. In another three years there will be a lot of cashew export.

With the encouragement that government is giving to farmers who say we cannot eventually export rice? So, I see that there is a lot of attention in the agricultural sector, this is good and I support it. But what I am saying is that even though we are encouraging agriculture, banning some of the food that ordinary Nigerians eat is not right. It has to be a gradual thing. You don’t just ban things out rightly because doing so will increase the price of those commodities.

There is this talk about terminal operators and the Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC) making effort to settle the tariff rift out of court what is the update on the matter?

Well, the terminal operators are not opposed to peaceful resolution of conflict with anybody, as it is now the court process still continues. I will be lying if I say we are settling out of court. Efforts were made to settle out of court, which I was not opposed to but there is issues that bothers on trust.

That is where we are, nothing has changed.

We are not saying there can’t be a peaceful resolution of the conflict, but we are still in court. I particularly was working towards it.

Trust is the key to out of court resolution, as it is now, there is no trust. We can’t see it happening now.

You talked about the NPA MD earlier, for her to succeed, she needs direction which can only come from seasoned operators like you. What specific advice do you have for her?

I have checked her record and she is an exceptionally intelligent woman right from when she was at the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE). I have asked people who had working relationship with her and they have all spoken well of her. From what she has done within the short time she has spent and from what I have heard her said, I think she will do well. She is a woman of due process, she believes in the rule of law, in

doing things well and she is not biased. I want to give her the benefit of doubt. I went somewhere to lobby about the ban on certain items and I was told she has been there to do the same thing. I never met her, we never compared records but she is making the same effort to turn around our sector.

What I want her to do is ensure that the NPA fulfils its own part of the concession agreement. Pilottage is key to our operation, enabling environment is key.

All the things that the NPA needs to do as our counterpart in the concession; she should see to it that the NPA does them. I was told she has informed them in house to seat up and stop blaming the operators for everything, comments like that gladdens my heart. I think she wants to come and make an impact. Men have done it in the past but we have a woman now and I can tell you that she will do well.

If you check around you will see that so many Greenfield ports are springing up, this has fuelled speculations that existing operators are scared. Are you scared?

We are not scared. Don’t forget that Nigeria is over 170 million people. I believe we are more than that. That is what makes us thick as a nation. Nigeria is critical to the economy of the world, if there is one nation that the world is looking at as a bride of economic hub in the world, not just Africa, it is Nigeria.

Why do you think all these expatriates are coming to Nigeria to do business? Nigeria is special. We have people, resources and brains. We are very different from other parts of the world.

Even if we have 50 or 100 ports it is not a problem, we have the number all we need to pray is for our economy to be buoyant.

When that happens, all the ports will always have cargo and people will have work to do. For me, it is a positive development, we need to develop Greenfield terminals and I am happy that some state governments are investing in Greenfield ports. Durban port in South Africa is a hub port but Nigerian port is not like that. That is why government needs to get serious particularly inconsistence in government policy. It is not making Nigeria become a hub; no country in Africa should be competing with Nigeria because we have all it takes to become hub port. Government needs to listen and take advice from stakeholders before making policies.

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BUSINESSWORLD

NEWS

CPPL Pledges to Help Businesses With Value Creating Consulting, Training Services Customer Passion Point Limited (CPPL), a value creation consulting and capacity development firm, has said it is focusing on primarily ensuring that businesses are able to satisfy all their stakeholders. The organisation affirmed, it is the customer, whose satisfaction ensures that all others stakeholders are satisfied.

CPPL, Chief Executive Officer and Lead Consultant, Mr. Ikechukwu Kalu while fielding media questions at the organisation’s September capacity development session for business owners, their core staff and professionals

in marketing, sales, customers and project management in Lagos said: “The truth is that in this time of recession, businesses need to accelerate.

That means, they must be on top of their game.”

He added: “They must think out of the box. They must be innovative. Where they do not have the resources and skills to do so, they need to look outwards and get help.

That is what we do, proffer the needed assistance to help them stay in business sustainably. Your people must be at their best and your business must be run effectively and efficiently to survive these

times. Yes, we must watch costs, however this is not the time to cut training, innovation or marketing budgets. These are the business lifelines.”

CPPL is currently making inroads in equipping small and medium scale businesses for success through their value creating consulting and training services. Kalu added: “Seasons of difficulties such as it is found in Nigeria today, do occur. The manner in which they are managed is what guarantees survival.

Good management and leadership require skills that these businesses may not have, in which case they must

get them. While we must all watch costs, businesses that want to accelerate and reinvent themselves cannot afford to continue operations without having the required know how, experience and skills. That is what CPPL brings to the table through its value creation consulting and training services. ” “Businesses suffer because their people make common avoidable mistakes. They suffer because they lack knowledge of basic business principles, and techniques.

Staff lack initiative because they are ill equipped. Cutting edge business best practices

evolve with time and seasons.

They must be learnt to enable businesses function effectively and profitably. That is why they need value creation consultants, like us, who have the experience and technical ability to keep them in good business. We are available, affordable and are ready to help bring the much needed innovation and best practices to aid the growth of businesses in the SME sector which is pivotal to the nation’s economic sustainability” Chief Executive Officer of CPPL enthused.

He concludes: “What sets us apart is that we are

result-oriented and are able to maintain a good balance between the strategic solutions we proffer and execution. We enable businesses maximise available resources working with very experienced and hands-on professionals”.

CPPL is a firm of value creation consultants registered and operating in Nigeria and Tanzania. We create value through business marketing consulting and training and our team consist of handson professionals with well over 30 years (combined) experience across business functions, industries and culture.

OTL Africa 10th Edition to Attract Strong Global Interest in Downstream Sector Africa’s elite interests in downstream oil and gas will converge for the 10th Oil Trading and Logistics (OTL) Africa Downstream Week, scheduled to hold from 23 - 26 October 2016 at the Lagos Oriental Hotel in Nigeria. In a statement issued in Lagos on Thursday, the event’s organisers said the milestone 10th edition of OTL Africa Downstream has received strong global interest because African market fundamentals remain strong relative to other global markets, while the dwindling fortunes of upstream interests have brightened the numbers midstream and downstream.

According to the statement, “Following the crash in crude oil prices, the times are relatively good for many global downstream interests as the current environment offers attractive opportunities for revenue and profit growth.

While it is acknowledged that the opportunities will not last forever, today’s low oil prices are clearly advantageous and companies need to understand the dynamics of their particular markets if they hope to fully benefit from the prospects that today’s low oil prices might afford.

Traversing a strong value-chain that includes refining, trading, shipping, storage, haulage, distribution, marketing, equipment manufacturing and supplies, regulation and associated professional services, the OTL Africa Downstream Expo 2016 will offer over 3000 delegates, speakers, exhibitors, special guests and visitors opportunities for high-level networking, business match-making and learning.”

The annual OTL Africa Downstream Week is the continent’s leading business forum for market insights, emerging opportunities, products’ showcase and

recognition of excellence in the African downstream petroleum value-chain. It features a strategic conference, dedicated industry exhibition and the annual OTL Downstream Industry Dinner. Popularly referred to as The Africa Downstream Week, it is organised in collaboration with key partners in government and the industry. This year’s event will be declared open by Nigeria’s Hon. Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu, who will also deliver the Keynote address. Delegates and visitors are expected from more than 20 countries across the globe.

The OTL Africa Downstream Exhibition is an excellent opportunity for organisations and brands to place their products and services right in front of the industry’s decision makers.

Proceeding simultaneously with the OTL Africa Downstream Conference, the OTL Africa Downstream Exhibition showcases the industry’s most important offerings, giving companies the opportunity to identify and take advantage of relevant solutions. It is also a great platform for showcasing new innovations and technology.

The exhibition is open to Lubricant dealers and suppliers, Jetty Operators, Financial institutions, Equipment suppliers, Tank Storage Operators, Ship and product Brokers, Providers of Haulage/trucking Services, Ship Owners and Charterers, Product Marketers, Industry Associations and Groups, Government Agencies/ Regulators, Operators of Petrochemical Plants and Product Suppliers, Providers of associated Industry Services, International Petroleum Products Traders/Suppliers and all other interests in trade and downstream petroleum business.

WELCOME TO LADOL

L-R : Executive Director of LADOL, Jide Jadesimi; Head Nigeria/Norwegian Chamber of Commerce (NNCC), Gulbrand Wangen; Executive Director, NNCC, Etan Ogbemi; when the NNCC team visited the $3.8 billion Egina project at LADOL base in Lagos…recently

Gloworld Opens Third Shop in Lekki, 92nd in Nigeria Grand masters of data, Globacom, has opened another premium experiential centre, Gloworld shop in Lekki, Lagos, bringing the number of customer service centres in the Lekki-Ajah axis of Lagos to three, the highest by any telecoms operator in that area.

The new shop, which is located at the Conoil Filling Station at Abraham Adesanya Estate Roundabout, is also the 92nd Glo retail outlet in Nigeria.

In addition to the Gloworld shops, there are also several Glo Zone outlets managed by the company’s business partners in different towns and cities in the country.

Globacom disclosed at the commissioning of the new Lekki centre on Monday that its objective for opening the office was to further enrich the customer care experience

of Globacom subscribers in the Lekki-Ajah area who are paramount to its operations.

The new outlet also offers subscribers in the area easier access to connect to the Glo 4G LTE network launched last week.

“As you are well aware, our approach to customer service is one that is always underpinned by innovation and total inclusiveness. This is why we are consistently seeking innovative channels to make available our array of services to them,’’ Mr. Akinloye Adebisi, National Sales Coordinator, Lagos 1 of Globacom said in his address at the launch.

He added that Lekki is strategic as it remains one of the fastest growing areas in Lagos where diverse segments of its customers live.

Adebisi said that the Gloworld shop would

explore the benefits of the increasing medium and small scale commercial activities on the Lekki-Ajah axis.

Globacom also restated its commitment to satisfying its customers, adding that well-trained customer care staff will be on ground at the new shop to provide first-class services and attend to customers’ complaints.

The company encouraged its “current and potential customers to walk into the Lekki Gloworld shop here to enjoy the unlimited service that Globacom is noted for.”

Head of Gloworld, Mr. Tunde Alimi also said that Globacom was proud to establish the third customer care centre in the axis which, he explained, was central to the network’s operations. He disclosed that Globacom’s desire is to create more platforms for its customers

to have access to its range of products and services and give them more exciting experience on the network.

He assured subscribers on Lekki-Ajah axis and its environs of quick and satisfactory resolutions of all issues ranging from SIM replacement and registration to recovery of over-scratched cards, refill, unblock phones and laptop configurations for internet, as well as post-paid bill payments and purchase of all Glo and other complementary products.

Alimi added that subscribers who wish to join the network’s 4G LTE or existing subscribers who wish to upgrade to the advanced network should visit the shop, assuring them of the first-class opportunities which abound on the 4G LTE network.

T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2016

26

BUSINESSWORLD

NEWS

NAICOM Redeploys Directors to New Portfolios

Ebere Nwoji

Insurance industry regulator, the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), has embarked on re-organisation exercise that has witnessed the redeployment of some of its directors to new portfolios.

The commission, said the

redeployment is part of ongoing exercise aimed at improving efficiency of the Commission’s workforce for effective insurance industry supervision.

The commission, in a statement signed by its Head of Corporate Affairs Department, Rasaaq Salami, said in the exercise, Alhaji Adamu Balanti,

who was hitherto the Director in charge of Research, Statistics and Information Technology Directorate, moves to the Administration and Human Resources Directorate, while Mr. Amos Michael Habila, who was in charge of Administration and Human Resources, is now the Director of Research and

Statistics.

In the same vein, Mr. Nicholas Opara, who until date was the Director of Supervision, now moves to the Finance and Accounts Directorate to replace the erstwhile Director, Mr. Olufemi Oluniyi Oba, who has also been redeployed to oversee the Supervision

Directorate.

The statement, said the commission, has enjoined the redeployed directors to remain focused and dedicated to the mandate of the Commission as they settled into their new roles.

NAICOM, said it has the vision to be among the leading

regulators of the insurance sector in the emerging markets, and the mission to conduct effective supervision of the Nigerian Insurance industry for the attainment of a high ethical standard needed to position the insurance industry as a leading market in the global economy.

Insurance Resourcery Consultancy Services Acquires 75% Stake in GNI Ebere Nwoji Great Nigeria Insurance plc,(GNI) has been acquired by the Insurance Resourcery Consultancy Services Limited(IRCSL).

This follows the take-over of 2,870,614,035 shares, representing 75 per cent equity shareholding of GNI by the IRCSL from the Wema Asset Management Limited.

A statement from the GNI on the deal, said IRCLS stands as a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) set up to acquire controlling interest in GNI Plc .

The statement, said IRCSL, in the deal, is representing the interest of a consortium of investors including the current management of GNI Plc in the acquisition.

The above shares of GNI, were crossed through the negotiated cross deal window of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) to IRCSL by Wema Asset Management Limited .The cross deal marks the closure of the acquisition process in the GNI which started in 2011.

A statement by the GNI Managing Director, Mrs. Cecilia Osipitan, said the acquisition was initiated as a result of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) directive to banks to divest from non-banking subsidiaries.

The statement, said on 28 September 2011, IRCSL had submitted an expression of interest (EOI) to Wema Asset Management and on 28 December, 2011, it emerged the winner of a competitive bid process with a bid value of circa N3,243,793,860, which

represents a per share value of N1.13(premium of 126 per cent to the market price of N0.50).

According to the statement, the transaction value, underscores the value inherent in GNI which is one of Nigeria’s oldest insurance companies with attractive real estate portfolio and no debt on its balance sheet.

According to Osipitan, the consummation of this transaction, which represents the conclusion of a transaction process that started in 2011, will enable the current board and management of GNI Plc focus on unlocking the inherent value in the company with a view to delivering strong shareholder returns.

This will be delivered through consolidation of market share in identified niche markets, excellent customer service, prompt claims payment and aggressive Investment income.

GNI is one of Nigeria’s oldest and leading insurance companies with over 54 years of insurance underwriting which has enabled the company to master the business terrain and develop skills with competitive edge in service delivery and total customers’ satisfaction.

GNI Plc is backed by adequately packaged reassurance treaty cover, providing the company with a wide capacity to underwrite risks. GNI Plc is managed by competent professionals. The company has over the years developed competences in all classes of insurance and financial products. The company was listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange on October 11, 2005.

Anchor Insurance to Launch Loss of Employment Scheme Ebere Nwoji Anchor Insurance Limited, one of the licenced non- life insurance underwriting firms, said it was set to launch its latest investment related productAnchor Loss of Employment Insurance Scheme( LoIES).

The company at a recent Preannual general meeting (AGM) media briefing in Lagos, said the product, which is targeted at cushioning the obvious effect of the current economic recession in the country that culminated in loss of jobs by many Nigerians, has already been approved by the National Insurance Commission ( NAICOM).

Managing Director, Anchor Insurance, Mayowa Adeduro, explaining the relevance of the product to Nigerian employees in both public and private sec-

tor, said:” LoIES is a product designed and approved by NAICOM to meet the yearnings of insuring public for innovation to address contemporary challenges of working class in the event of loss of job. This product guarantees a maximum 24-month salary payment after job loss.”

Adeduro urged Nigerian employees to imbibe savings culture irrespective of their pay package bearing in mind that loss of job is a daily occurrence in Nigeria and families, stand the risk of suffering because of loss of job by the breadwinner.

He assured them that with LoIES scheme income could be guaranteed after loss of job while their employment income is protected against accidental loss of job.

CAPACITY BUILDING

L-R: Deputy Rector, Yabatech, Dr. Olukemi Oyinlola; Founder Rose of Sharon Foundation (RoSF), Mrs. Folorunso Alakija; Director, College Social Department,Yabatech, Dr. Funmi Oketunji and Deputy Rector, Yabatech, Dr. Omobayo Raheem. during the kick off of RosF Enterprise Development Training and Skill Acquisition Programme held at Yusuf Grillo Hall, Art Department, Yaba College of Technology, Lagos...recently

Shipyards Trim Production Capacity as Orders Dwindle

Customs Invades Lagos Markets for Smuggled Rice

Eromosele Abiodun with agency report

Eromosele Abiodun

As 2016 is proving to be the year that new building orders dried out, shipyards around the world are having to face some tough decisions, a report by shipbroker Allied Shipbroking has revealed.

In its latest report, it noted that, “more shipbuilders are making announcements of cutting back operations, be it in terms of labor force or as in some cases closure of facilities. As things look now, it looks as though the South Korean major shipbuilders have been hit the worst, having organized operations in such a way that they require a considerably bigger in flow of fresh orders in order to keep their operations in the black”.

The report added that, “As things stand now it looks as though even respective governments are starting to slightly turn their back on troubled shipbuilders, something that could lead to a faster pace of consolidation over the coming months. The plain fact of the matter is that the orderbook has tailed off considerably for all vessel types, something that would obviously lead to a lack of requirements for such a large global shipbuilding capacity. Being that it is now looking difficult to lower costs to such a level where prices could really feel attractive to potential buyers in this poor market, we are entering a crucial phase, where those who can squeeze the most amount of efficiency

and construction cost will be those who barely survive the storm.”

In a separate newbuilding report, it noted that, “In tankers, Euronav NV have announced an order for two firm 160,000 DWT Suezmax Tankers at Hyundai Heavy Industries for delivery in early 2018. The duo will be built to Ice Class 1C and will go on a long time charter to Valero Energy Inc. Thun Tankers have announced a contract for four firm 7,999 DWT IMO2 coated Tankers at Ferus Smit Leer. These Ice Class 1A vessels are set for delivery throughout 2018 and 2019 and will be built to be LNG dual fuelled.

“The group’s fleet currently consists of close to 30 vessels built at Ferus Smit including tankers, dry bulk and general cargo. In other sectors, DFDS A/S have ordered two firm plus four optional 6,700 LM ROROs at CSC Jinling for delivery in the beginning of 2019 for the firm two units. The vessels will be able to carry 6,700 lane metres of freight equivalent to around 450 trailers. Lastly, Virtu Ferries have signed a contract with Incat Tasmania for one firm 9,000 GT Fast Passenger / Car Catamaran Vessel. This single unit will delivery in 4Q 2018 and will be able to carry 1,134 passengers and 167 cars”, said the shipbroker.”

Meanwhile, in the S&P market, VesselsValue noted that “in the Bulker sector, older tonnage has firmed in value this week.

Men of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) have continued their efforts to ride Nigeria of smuggling by storming some markets in Lagos in search of smuggled rice leading to the seizure of about six trailer load of rice from shops at the Iddo Railway Terminus.

However, some of the rice dealers complained that they bought the rice from people who brought them into the markets and had no way of knowing whether it was smuggled or not.

The owner of a shop where the NCS men reportedly seized 5,000 bags of rice was said to have collapsed and was rushed to a nearby hospital.

“This cannot be happening.

The value of rice seized from her shop is over N60 million and she took a loan from the bank for the business, ”said one of the dealers.

He added: “They swooped on the markets in the afternoon, brandishing guns. They locked up the shops and went away, only to come back in the middle of the night, around 2am to break into the shops and cart away all the bags of rice they found there. They came back to cart away more rice.

“Women are the ones selling in the markets, the Customs are supposed to be at the borders to prevent smuggled rice from coming into the country, but they allowed the rice to come in, only to come harassing traders with

guns. We are pleading with them to return the rice to the traders.”

Spokesperson for the NCS, Mr. Wale Adeniyi, said the organisation was empowered by law to impound any product suspected to be smuggled wherever such product could be found.

He said: “The rice was smuggled. We got information that the consignment was taken to a particular place and we went there.

“It is a message to smugglers that it is not just enough to bring goods across the border into the country; the goods can be seized even when they are in the country.”

Adeniyi advised Nigerians to desist from act of smuggling and go through the legitimate route to bring in their goods.The NCS has maintained its ban on the importation of rice through the land borders.

The country consumes six million metric tonnes of rice annually. Local production accounts for less than 40 per cent, leaving a wide gap, which is filled by importation and smuggling.According to the federal government, prices of rice which have risen to between N20,000 and N22,000 per 50kg bag from about N7,000 in 2015, are expected to come down in November.

Recently, operatives of the NCS, Seme Command, arrested dare devil smugglers for concealing rice as dead bodies.

WEEKEND WEEKLY PULLOUT

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

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FILE

'NO STANDARD IS TOO HIGH FOR ME’ ACTING EDITOR CHARLES AJUNWA / charles.ajunwa@thisdaylive.com

28/COVER

14.10.2016

'No Standard is Too High for Me’ Intellectually gifted, a fine orator with a good command of the English Language, and a good sense of humour, this multi-talented upcoming music artiste, Sammy Yakubu, simply known as Sammy, is taking the music scene by storm with his latest act, ‘Hustle’.

In this interview with Mary Ekah, he displays unique intellect as he talks about his entry into the music industry, the challenges, and his plans to wrestle down the industry by dictating the pace for dancers to get better and also get better respected. I am no longer a dancer but I am imbibing the dancing culture into my music and at the same time, I am trying to grow the dance community. I pretty much know all the major dancers in Lagos because I have been able to build that relationship with them and wherever they see me, they come and talk to me, we exchange ideas while some of them tell me their problems and I try to help them.

Eventually, now I have a better opportunity to help dancers and to help people respect dancers and to pay more attention to them and even pay them a little more money.

Give us a brief introduction of yourself and your journey so far?

The journey might be a long story but all the same, I will start by telling you that my name is Sammy Yakubu. My stage name is Sammy. I was born and raised in Kaduna but my Dad is from Oyo State. I have never been to Oyo State before, my Dad grew up in Kogi State and so Kogi State served more like home to me then than Oyo State. Growing up now and realising that my Dad is really from Oyo State, is something to be proud of and something to explore.

Having been born and raised in the North, how easy was it breaking into mainstream music?

Whatever it is that you are doing in life is never easy. You always have to be steadfast.

We always have to keep working. You always have to keep building relationships. You would always have down times and bad times. It is like building a business. After establishing, you have to build the clientele.

I mean you have to focus on yourself. You have to build yourself as a brand, making people to understand your brand. You have to make people understand how they can relate to your brand. You have to do a lot.

So it hasn’t been easy at all.

A lot of people have been in the industry before you. Do you think that they have set a standard that is too high for upcoming artistes like you?

I don’t think any standard is ever too high if you know who you are and you know what you want to achieve and you are ready to put in as much hard work as possible as you need to, you will also end up setting your own standard. You are not looking to be like somebody else but you are looking to create a version of you that is the best version of you ever. So if you are trying to be like someone else, you would always be number two. But as long as you try to be you and you are creating the best of you that you have to offer, you will always be the moon. It’s like saying, the sun burns, but the moon doesn’t. The moon does not shine, the sun shines because it burns. They both have different purposes, the sun shines and the mood shines in its own way. So I feel like no standard is too high.

How long have you been into music professionally?

I have been into music like about five to seven years now.

So why did it take you so long to come out?

I feel that life is in phases. When I started music, I never knew how to write in Pidgin English, I could only write and sing in proper English. So I had to take time to learn. If you hear my Yoruba in music before now, you would laugh so hard. It was so bad. But over time, I realized that no matter what kind of music you do, as long as you are in Nigeria, you need to own your music. People need to be able to relate to your music and if they can’t, then you are not making music for people, you should just record it and keep it for yourself. Eventually, I had to learn all that and that took me time. Over the years, I was able to learn and put things together properly. I also do other things all along so it has been more of balancing and learning process for me.

Sammy

How would you describe your genre of music?

I grew up with R&B but over the years, I have been able to infuse Afro beat into my music. And I have a lot of respect for commercial music. I feel like if you are not creative, you cannot make commercial music. For people to dance to your first, second and third songs and then on and on, it means there has to be something that keeps attracting them and you have something special. So I have a lot of respect for guys who are into commercial music. I had a close relationship with Wizkid back in the days and he actually made a lot of music and it was so enlightening for me. I learned so much from that process, the ways he goes around and sometimes he does not even need to write because he feels the vibe of music and sometimes music actually needs to be like that. The fact that they make money means their music have so much value because you can’t just make money with something that has no value at all.

You seem to be so philosophical about everything you say. Why? I am learning and these are the kind of things that help me remember things a lot.

I read a lot and I like philosophy; I like to be logical about things and at the same time, it is for me to be entertained.

What was the last book you read?

Wow! It has been so hard to read in Lagos since I moved here to do my work. That is the honest truth. I’m still not used to some things in Lagos. Like I worked all night last night till about 6:00am and I left my house in VGC at 7:00am for this meeting scheduled for 10am only to get here at almost mid day.

I mean in Kaduna, it wouldn’t take more than 20 minutes to get here from where I was coming from. I mean in Kaduna I just have to plan only 20 minutes before and sometimes 10 minutes before and I am there. So there are lots of things in Lagos that I am not used to but I appreciate the fact that it holds the opportunity that I need and that I yearn for, which is why I am here.

You used to be a member of an award-

Sammy

winning dance troupe. How much of dance have you imbibed in your present works?

When I first moved to Lagos about seven years ago, all my performances had dancers.

A lot of time dancers are not respected as much as they should be because people don’t really see their value; they see them as stage fillers.

But I feel that dancers can be maximised and if you take example of people like Michael

Jackson and Chris Brown, the dancers are actually stars on their own but they dance for them. So if performance, which is one of my big focuses when it comes to music, could imbibe more dancers, it will improve dance the more. Right now I feel like I do one of the best performances in Nigeria because I put up a lot of hard work and resources into my performances because I am rooting

What is your staying power in the music scene?

I think it is my performances, then my voice, I feel that my voice is unique, which I love. I have met people who didn’t know I was the one that sang a song and when they realise I was the one, they are like: "Wow! That couldn't have been you! It makes me appreciate what I have. So my performances, voice and my general overview about life have been my staying power. I am always learning. I think that if I want to make music for the next 40 years, I will continue making good music because I feel that there is no point in life that you should stop learning. So my staying power is the ability to continue to be forever young.

29/XTRA

14.10.2016

Why Widows Should Get Engaged Economically, Politically Mary Ekah The condition of a widow is a tough challenge, especially so in this part of the world where there are so many hostile acts against the women, most of which come from wicked cultural practices. The situation is made extremely tough for the widow who has many children to cater for. She takes care of the feeding of the children, the rent, school fees, upkeep of the woman herself and many more. All these are the responsibilities of both parents now left for the woman alone Widows are some of the most volatile people in our society and as such need all the assistance they can possibly get to continue with life after the death of their husbands. It is on this note that the Rose of Sharon Foundation (RoSF), an NGO focused on alleviating the plight of widows and orphans, has over the years used every opportunity accorded it as advocacy tool to draw attention to the plights of widows and orphans around the world and to help in alleviating their burdens.

During the recently celebrated International Widows’ Day marked all over the world to address the poverty and injustice faced by widows, the Foundation seized the opportunity of the ocassion to bring to bare once again the pains and agony that widows and their children go through after the death of their breadwinners.

The Founder, RoSF, Mrs. Folorunso Alakija explained that every year the Foundation works with state governments, federal government and its agencies, Civil Society Organisations, NGOs, and private sectors to ensure that every widow’s right is upheld in our society. The International Widows Day, Alakija noted, falls within RoSF Advocacy Programme (RAP) and this year, the Foundation brought together notable voices in a panel of discussants to advocate for more economic empowerment and political participation for widows who wish to run for political office.

In addition to the panel of discussants was a medical enlightenment campaign, which included a health talk on depression as well as a medical team to carry out free health checks with free drugs for minor illness for the widows and orphans.

“We must act locally and think globally as we continue to bring the pains of our groups of widows, their children and orphans to the forefront with the hope that as we do so,

Mrs. Alakija (right) with wife of Lagos State Governor, Mrs. Ambode during the event

Board members of Rose of Sharon Foundation

we will improve their lots through the right channels of legislation and social awakening”, Alakija said,.

Speaking during the event on the topic, ‘Widow’s Economic Empowerment and Political Participation: A Call for Action’, the wife of Lagos State Governor, Mrs. Bolanle Ambode, said it

was important for women in this category to note that the most important thing to pursue in this condition is a means of livelihood.

“The greatest friend and consolation at such time is economic empowerment in form of a job or an acquired skill that can bring a regular income. Your skill help you keep busy and

helps you to think less about the unfortunate situation on hand. Above all, it helps you to meet your basic financial needs,” Ambode said.

Speaking further, the Governor’s wife said, “economic empowerment means everything to a widow because widow without any form of empowerment is like a reed in the middle of a river. She flows in the direction of tide and does not have a mind of her own and sometimes finds it difficult to take a decision of her own no matter how important.” Ambode noted further, “economic empowerment helps the widow to stabilise in the midst of the storm, to gain her voice in crowd, to swim against the tide and to make a firm decision when the odds are clearly against her.”

Following closely on economic empowerment, Ambode said was political participation for widows. “Thanks to our growing democracy, the political space is constantly expanding to accommodate and engage women in political offices, either as elected or appointed office holders."

She stressed further that bad as it may be for a woman to lose her beloved spouse, that should not be the end of her own life too as children are there to look after in most cases. She therefore encouraged women, specifically widows, to not only empower themselves economically but to also play active politics.

The First Lady commended the Rose of Sharon Foundation for making tremendous impacts in the lives of widows, children and orphans in the years passed, noting, “It has offered thousands of scholarships to orphans and children of widows, and has put smiles on the faces of thousands of widows themselves through various types of empowerment.”

While appreciating the efforts of the founder for the great vision behind the foundation and for her kind thoughts towards the less-privileged, she called on other public-spirited Nigerians to emulate Alakija’s constant gesture of extending a helping hand to the people in need.

Others that graced the occasion include First Lady of Imo State Mrs. Nneoma Okorocha who was represented by the immediate past Commissioner, Budget and Planning/Economic Development and Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Imo State, Hon. Adaora Ijezie as well as Consultant Psychiatrist, Medical Director, Mayfield Medical Clinic, Yaba, Lagos, Dr. Idowu Malomo and other distinguished panel of speakers.

‘Block 13 is All About Us’ Sarah Boulus, Founder of the Society for the Performing Arts in Nigeria (SPAN), tells Mary Ekah about SPAN’s latest addition, ‘Block 13’, a music and dance drama masterpiece to be showcased next Friday, October 21, during the Muson Festival in Lagos The Society for the Performing Arts in Nigeria (SPAN) has continued to dazzle Nigerians with innovative performances.

So now tell us, what is new?

Every year as an organisation – an academy and a presenting house, we usually launch a theme every September and our theme for this year is ‘Collaborate to Innovate’ and on that note we are embanking on a number of collaborations this year. First, we started with collaboration during the Children’s Day celebration. Our second collaboration will be with the Muson Festival 2016 billed to hold on Friday, October 21, 2016 at the AGIP Recital Hall, the Muson Centre, Onikan, Lagos. During the Muson Festival event, SPAN will showcase its captivating production ‘Block 13’, a music and dance drama, which revolves around hope, love and wonders. It is a story of our coming to the SPAN hub, the Agidigba Community Centre at Marina, Lagos. We have not officially launched the Centre but we have been operating there for about two years and there are many stories coming out from there and ‘Block 13’ is one of the stories. It is titled ‘Block 13’ because we are located on house number 13 of the Davies Street in Lagos. We believe that it

and I think it is giving more hope to people in the neighbourhood and at the same time it gives more confidence to develop more things and so we plan to open a Jazz Club at Block 13. We started by naming the Centre, Agidigba Community Centre but now every body is calling it Block 13.

Boulus

is the community creations that make our journey unfold. We have been there for two years now and the Centre is so vibrant in the community. In fact, everybody in that neigbourhood knows what we do in the Centre

What is the main story behind the dance drama, Block 13?

We wanted to be sure that even in the period of hardship like this that we all are living in, there is perseverance and understanding that no matter what it is, we need to think and plan for something better. It is a very interesting story full of love, hope and courage. ‘Block 13’ is the gripping story of a group of people who lived different lives, have different aspirations but found themselves bound together by the common hope they found in the apartment, Block 13. It is a mesmerising plot filled with chart-topping songs and dance, which SPAN is famously known for. Block 13 is the story that everyone will relate with. It shows us that within every sphere of our lives, even if things aren’t the way we want them, there is always that glimmer of hope, that in the end, everything will turn out right. It is a

show worth watching. It is family –friendly, entertaining and inspire the within.

Why a collaboration with Muson?

We are collaborating with Muson because they noticed us and then gave us a chance and we had to answer that call. I am now looking forward to a long-term relationship with Muson because I believe that people grow together in the industry when they collaborate.

The Muson Festival is also opening doors for one of our dance groups, Stars on Earth (SOE) and that to me, is very exciting.

Can you tell us about SPAN’s success story so far?

Over the years we have produced students who now own their companies and studios and they are quite successful. I have done a whole lot of documentary during our 10th anniversary last year that tell the full success story of SPAN over the years. SPAN has over seven dance studios operating at the moment and over 32 teachers that teach in schools, studios and at other places in which they are required. Every one who has graduated from SPAN has a job and they cannot go hungry because they can survive anywhere.

30/ NEWS

14.10.2016

Testimonies as Salem University Holds Convocation Mary Ekah Last Saturday, Salem University, Lokoja, held its fourth convocation ceremony, which provided an opportunity for ex-students to share how values learnt in the institution have been guiding them through their current endeavours.

Precious Oyem was really in a fix. Agents and chieftains of political parties asked him to name his price. As a member of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), he was hired by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to serve as an electoral officer.

At stake was a vacant House of Assembly slot in one of the states. Though the results had been declared, he was being pressured to allow them thumbprint to serve as evidence at the tribunal. He knew he wasn’t going to be part of such insidious, unpatriotic act.

But then, many of his other colleagues had cooperated. Refusing the offer will not only endanger his life but also pit him against powerful forces. To accede to the inducing offer would go against his personal convictions and principles. It was

Precious

Ilokameje

more like choosing between the devil and the deep blue sea. He remembered all he learnt while on campus. “Integrity as a core value in Salem University really taught me that smartness can take a man to the top, only integrity can keep you there,” he recalled to an audience of graduating students, parents and other stakeholders of Salem University, Lokoja recently.

The audience applauded in appreciation of his courage. But the courage was not always there. It was learnt at the institution, Oyem stated. “In Salem, you are told to say no when necessary. Saying no does not

Tims-Ejiga

mean you a bad person. It only reinforces your convictions,” he said. “That was what I did. I told them I would not do it,” he added.

Such stance, considered a hard one, by the vested political interests almost landed him in trouble. A mob attacked him with two of his colleagues. But they escaped with whiskers. He had justified his four-year study in the school. He had refused to join the bandwagon effect. The 2013 graduate of International Relations and Diplomacy said the school equipped him for such life-defining moments.

ASA, Nigeria’s First Sales-Focused Reality Competition Debuts The first ever Nigerian Sales reality competition is set to commence. Tagged ‘Africa Sales Academy’ (ASA), this is a groundbreaking platform created by SBA Interactive and the Olusola Lanre Coaching Academy (OLCA) as a unique opportunity to challenge and motivate ambitious individuals with a passion for sales, towards a progressive and financially rewarding career. The sales academy in accordance with its civic responsibility of nation building is designed to harness potential and increase the employability quotient of job seekers.

The sales guru, Segun Akande, said the reality show is designed to combine the best elements of coaching, recruitment and reality television in a truly unprecedented manner that is not only educative, but also inspiring, empowering and fun. The programme, which has plans to cover the entire African region in the near future will be launched in Lagos this year.

Like any true reality competition, it will go through phases beginning with applications and filtering, then intensive coaching, live competitions and final selections. However, unlike random reality competitions, the Sales Academy will mentor, coach and empower every applicant who makes the top 1,000 list, and also have cash prizes

“In the US, black women are being killed by police at a rate of one a month,” says presenter Femi Oke in The Lives of Black Women, an upcoming Faultlines documentary on Al Jazeera. “One in four are unarmed. Their stories have often gone untold.” In The Lives of Black Women, the former Nigerian media Femi Oke personality of the year explores the stories of 22-year-old Rekia Boyd and 55-year-old Bettie Jones, a mother of five and grandmother of nine. Police shot and killed both women in Chicago. Boyd was unarmed when she was shot dead by off-duty cop Dante Servin.

Servin had called 911 to complain about the noise Boyd’s friends were making, and then confronted the group at around 1am, firing five shots. One of these hit Boyd in the head, killing her. Servin was acquitted after claiming that one of Boyd’s friends had pointed a gun at him.

Police never recovered the gun Servin says he saw. On the day after Christmas, Jones was shot in the doorway of her own home, after opening the door for police who were responding to a domestic dispute in the apartment above. Officer Robert Rialmo says Quintonio Legrier, Jones’ 19-year-old upstairs neighbour, swung a baseball bat at his head, so he shot him in self-defense, and killed Jones by accident. The movement known as “Black Lives Matter” continues to call for police accountability as a rising number of shootings of unarmed people of color has roiled Ferguson, New York, Cleveland, Baltimore, and other cities across the U.S. The names of the victims are now part of the national consciousness: Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, and Freddie Gray. But the names of unarmed black women like Rekia Boyd and Bettie Jones are less well known.

30 Businesses Get N7.5m in Progress Booster Show L-R Sales Consultant, Segun Akande; Head Retail General Business at Leadway, Tunji Amokade; Life Coach & Psychologist, Lanre Olusola and Investment Banker, Joseph Edgar at the event

for the final 250 participants, third prize winner, second prize winner and a grand prize of three million naira for the over.

One of the founders of the academy, Lanre Olusola said that in today's tough economic where organisations are downsizing. The Africa Sales Academy and her partners are giving hope and empowering entrepreneurs to create their own businesses and also create employment.

The Head of Commercial Retail, Leadway Assurance Company Limited, TunjiAmokade, explained why it is partnering with

the Academy.

“Our core values drives our operations and enable us to understand the importance of balance within our environment and the mutuality of purpose. It is this ideal that inspires our commitment to a sustainable CSR initiative that enables us ensure a better life for those around us and it is on this basis, that we see the need to support any initiative that creates jobs and reduces the rate of unemployment in the job market which in effect will lend its support to the growth of the nation’s economy.”

Canon to Enhance Filming, Photography Experience in Nigeria Mary Ekah Considered as a step towards enhancing filming and photography in Nigeria, Canon Central and North Africa (CCNA), a subsidiary of Canon Europe, made entry into West Africa by setting up its first local office in Nigeria.

Canon Europe - B2C, Sales Development and Marketing Director, Koji Sato, said during a press conference to announce the opening of Canon Nigeria Imaging Solution Limited in Lagos, that they have noticed Nigerians love good photography and images, stressing that Nigeria, is a big young population with potentials.

Sato explained that as a brand, Canon is trying to position itself based on quality. “We might not necessarily be the first to come to the market but we come usually with the right products with high quality, one that is sustainable, has some longevity and in some way feature-proof. Our latest marketing approach is giving people the chance to get the shot. It’s about photography being part of your DNA,” he noted.

Femi Oke Presents 'Faultlines - The Lives of Black Women'

Canon represenatives duirng the event

He said Canon whole idea is to create tools, which allow people to create and preserve momentous images whether for leisure or work. It’s about images that last.

Interestingly, Canon entry into Nigeria is at a time when the business of photography is becoming more lucrative in the country as Nigerians now have a culture of taking pictures for every activity that happens in their lives which includes pre-wedding photo shoot, photo shoot to show “baby bump” shoot and photo shoot after child

delivery. Photography is now taken as a professional job as many of the youth in the country who are unemployed now use it as a means to make money. Nollywood is growing very fast and Canon is very much aware of that and is actively trying to create products and lens technology to suit this area. Of course, the content providers are aware of the products from Canon too. The C 100 to 700 products are ideally suited to work in movie making in various scenarios.

L-R Emmanuel Agu, Portfolio Manager Mainstream Lager and Stout brands, NB Plc; Okoro Mario, winner Progress Booster; Rotimi Odukudu Head, Supply Chain Academy, NB Plc

Entrepreneurs in Abia State were rewarded with a total of N7.5 million by Life Continental Lager Beer during the Progress Booster Show held recently in Aba. Prior to this, the beer brand had presented N15 million Naira to 30 entrepreneurs in Enugu and 30 entrepreneurs in Owerri in June and August 2016 respectively. Life Progress Booster is an entrepreneurial talent hunt and mentoring radio programme initiated by Life Continental Lager Beer, from the stable of Nigerian Breweries targeted at helping talented innovative businessmen and women in the South-east. For the Aba grant presentation, 20 winners were pre-selected during the monthly radio programme while the other 10 entrepreneurs were selected from among those given the opportunity to present their business ideas to judges through a live interview at the venue.

“Progress Booster is a programme we started to support the people of the South-east who have good and innovative business ideas, we want to encourage the entrepreneurial spirit of the people of the South-eat. Our goal is to empower 200 entrepreneurs and so far, we’ve funded 96 businesses through the Progress Booster platform”, said Emmanuel Agu, Portfolio Manager Mainstream Lager and Stout brands, NB Plc. The past winners of the Progress Booster show shared stories of how the money given to them by Life Continental Beer has secured growth for their businesses.

They also encouraged the new winners to make good use of the support given to them. Interested participants aged 18 years and above can submit their business proposal on www.life-nigeria.com

31/LIVING

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Tonye Cole Urges Sustained Global Partnership as SDG Clocks One Hassan Habeeb Achieving the 2030 target for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will require strategic and continuing multi-sectoral collaboration across the globe, says Tonye Cole, Executive Director, Sahara Group as the world marks the first anniversary of the SDGs. Officially branded ‘Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development’, the SDGs is a set of 17 aspirational "Global Goals" with 169 targets between them. The goals include: ending poverty and hunger, improving health and education, making cities more sustainable, combating climate change, and protecting oceans and forests. The SDGs document was adopted at the UN Sustainable Development Summit September 25–27, 2015 in New York, USA. Cole, who is also co-founder of Sahara, a leading African Power and Energy Conglomerate, said the SDGs platform had since become a veritable tool for addressing critical developmental issues globally.

“Going by available records, a significant success trend is emerging and it is great to see unfolding collaboration amongst several stakeholders on interventions being midwifed by the United Nations and its affiliates. It is imperative for governments, private sector, NGOs, international development agencies and global civil society

Cole

to work together in a sustainable manner to ensure the targets of the SDGs are achieved by 2030.” Cole said.

He noted that Sahara Group has implemented sundry SDGs compliant interventions and is currently supporting several partnership platforms that are setting the tone for accelerating the achievement of the SDGs across the globe. He said Sahara Group SDGs goals are to end poverty in all its forms everywhere.

“Sahara has empowered people of varied of orientation through its economic empowerment initiatives across the nation.” Another goal according to him is to end hunger, achieve

food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture. “The Food Africa Project: A very first of its kind, this is the product of a partnership involving Sahara Group, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals- Fund (SDG-F) and the Kaduna State Government aimed at empowering the people of Kaduna State and alleviating poverty through food security. The plan is to replicate this across Africa.”

The third goal according to him is to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages. “Sahara has upgraded primary health centers across Nigeria, and carried out eye surgeries, malaria and health awareness programmes.”

Sahara Group also wants to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. “Sahara has implemented several Teacher training programmes, school infrastructure upgrades and scholarship programmes for indigent students.” Another goal is to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls. “Sahara is involved in skills training programmes to equip women and young girls with skills in selected vocations and empower them to become masters of skills, more financially independent and eventually start businesses of their own,” he said.

Another goal is to promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and

productive employment and decent work for all.

“Sahara Group’s ‘School Feeding Programme’ has provided employment and considerable financial independence for farmers, caterers and traders within the beneficiary communities” According to Cole, another SDGs goal is Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions. “Sahara Group is spearheading a growing wave of transparency and good governance principles across Africa’s business space through its membership of the World Economic Forum community - Partnering Against Corruption Initiative (PACI). Sahara collaborates with global, regional and national organisations to promote sustainable development and transparency in business.”

Another SDGs goal according to him, is to strengthen the means of implementation and revitalise the global partnership for sustainable development. “Sahara Group and other partners hope to integrate the entire food value chain – the farmer, wholesaler, retailer and consumer- through the Food Africa Project. This will facilitate a sustainable source of food security, poverty alleviation and eradication, skill acquisition and social inclusiveness. The Food Africa project aims to impact at least 500,000 beneficiaries (30 per cent direct beneficiaries and 70 per cent indirect beneficiaries) providing families with better nutrition and livelihood opportunities over a five year period.”

Reaching Out to the Unbanked Population Mary Ekah Right at this moment, Mrs. Oluchi Anih’s desire is to reach out to the unbanked population in Nigeria, predominantly in rural areas, to help make their day-to-day financial affairs more efficient and streamlined. She has already helped move customers from traditional paper-based systems to technology-driven systems and has boosted her company’s customer retention. Thanks to the knowledge and skills she acquired through her wise decision to enroll in an online programme offered by the University of Roehampton, London.

“I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend the Roehampton experience. It is a fantastic way to not only boost your own career and skills, but to have a tangible impact on your organisation and your community, helping to bring about real change and improve people’s lives,” noted Anih who is today a graduate of this institute.

Before now, Anih had worked in the financial industry for nearly a decade and during this time she has recognised that it is becoming one of the most tech-driven sectors in Nigeria.

However, a large proportion of the population is still unbanked; many conduct their daily financial transactions through other means, resulting in an abundance of cash in circulation.

“I feel that the country should be able to find a solution to this problem using technology,” Anih said. “Technology is becoming increas-

Anih

ingly affordable and accessible, and has already helped many organisations strategically increase performance and productivity. The same approach is needed in the banking sector.”

The married mother of two currently works for one of Nigeria’s top commercial banks as an account officer and relationship manager.

Determined to bring strategic value to her organisation and help address this financial issue, Anih enrolled on an MSc in Information Systems Management at the University of Roehampton, London online after being inspired in her Management Proficiency course at the

Nigerian Chartered Institute of Management.

“I recognised the importance of being able to use information to facilitate strategic and operational change in order to support my country in solving the problems it currently faces. The programme offered by Roehampton was the perfect way to develop the skills I needed to facilitate this process, and bring these insights to my own role,” she noted.

She was keen to study online at Roehampton, which offers flexibility and convenience – benefits that appeal to full-time workers such as Anih.

The programme’s format also allows students to apply their professional experience directly to their academic studies, and vice versa. “Studying with a British university gives you the edge over so many people, and provides so many opportunities as the quality of the programmes is so high,” she adds. “I felt confident that Roehampton was the best place to pursue my studies.”

Her employer noticed a difference straightaway, particularly in her report-writing and critical thinking skills. The skills and knowledge she gained while at Roehampton have not only given her a new confidence to be able to deliver better results and challenge the status-quo, they have also led to a promotion as well as a commendation from the management.

“At home, too, everyone is so excited about my achievement. The programme is hugely challenging; you have to learn how to rigor-

ously structure your time, and it does demand sacrifices, but the whole process is so rewarding that I knew in the end it would be worth it.

Now I hope that I will be able to inspire my children, so that when they are older they will really appreciate the effort I put into improving my education, and that they will aspire to do even better than I have.”

Anih was the first in her family to achieve a Masters degree. She also formed one of the first cohorts of students to graduate from a Roehampton online degree in July 2016. The ceremony saw her join students from all over the world to celebrate their achievement at the Royal Festival Hall in London.

“The online learning experience at Roehampton gives you the opportunity to meet people from all over the world; it’s such a vibrant, interactive community. This was the part of the programme that I found the most remarkable,” Anih noted.

“I was able to enrich my knowledge and the learning process from a global perspective.”

Even after graduation, the Roehampton community remains a big part of her life. She and around 200 other Nigerian students and graduates have formed an offline forum to continue supporting each other’s academic journeys.

“Completing my degree is one of my biggest achievements,” she said. “It is something I have always hoped to do, and now that I have, I feel very fulfilled.”

Sustaining the Legacy of Service to Humanity Mary Ekah In 1917, Melvin Jones, a 38-year-old Chicago business leader, told members of his local business club they should reach beyond business issues and address the betterment of their communities and the world. Jones' group, the Business Circle of Chicago, agreed. After contacting similar groups around the United States, an organisational meeting was held on June 7, 1917, in Chicago, Illinois, USA. The new group took the name of one of the invited groups, the "Association of Lions Clubs," and a national convention was held in Dallas, Texas, USA in October of that year.

Lions Clubs International (LCI) is an International secular, non-political service organisation and as of April 2015, it had over 46,000 local clubs and more than 1.4 million members in over 200 countries around the world. With headquarters in Oak Brook, Illinois, United States, the organisation aims to meet the needs of communities on a local and global scale.

To sustain its legacy of service and also in continuity of its objectives, the Ikeja Viva L’amour Lions Club of the International Association of Lions Club, District 404B-2,

L-R: Outgoing President, Mrs. Lion Theresa Ihenachor, newly elected President, Lion Helen Mbakwe and District Governor, Lion T.O.S Adewunmi while presenting the newly elected president to the club members

Nigeria, recently installed a new president to carry on mantle of leadership. The event which featured the investiture of her Centennial President and Fund Raising Dinner, has in attendance the Centennial District Governor, Lion T.O.S. Adewunmi who said the Ikeja Viva L’amour Lions Club is today one of the leading

clubs in District 404B-2, Nigeria, which has served humanity with passion. Adewunmi appealed to more Nigerians join in the service of humanity by donating generously to the cause of service adding, “The world needs us now more than ever before and we need to address issues of poverty, hunger, disability

and disaster which impact the lives of millions around the world.”

In her welcome address, the newly installed president, Lion Helen Mbakwe said that though the club’s reach is global, the impact is felt locally and in very personal ways that uplift spirits, improve outcomes and give much-needed hope, adding that this was the right time for members to bring out the best they can offer, especially right now in Nigeria where there is untold hardship and fewer opportunities and means. “The call to support others can be no clearer than at times like this,” said Mbakwe, a practicing lawyer who has a strong passion for helping the needy. The Centennial President who no doubt envisaged challenges during her tenure noted, “It is certain there will always be challenges but with Viva L’amour and their love spirit, we know that we are going to overcome any challenge on our path. So I cannot promise that there will be no challenges. In fact, the one assurance I can give is that in addition to challenges, there will be days that test our patience and collective will. But the one promise that I can make is that I will serve Lions Club with all my spirit and the dedication that my heart is capable of.”

32 /ENTERTAINMENTRAVE

14.10.2016

eraveonline@gmail.com

AY Attributes His Success to God Popular comedian, AY, ran through his major achievements, which he believes were a big hit due to the grace of God. His latest movie, ‘A Trip To Jamaica’ which is currently running in Cinemas nationwide has reportedly raked in 80 million naira to surpass every other Nollywood movies that has hit the cinemas in 2016. The movie also set a good tone for itself in its first week in the cinemas, by making 61 million Naira, over Will Smith’s Hollywood’s ‘Suicide Squad’ record of 40 million Naira in Nigeria Cinemas.

AY said, “I am just a product of God’s grace. When I shot ‘30 days in Atlanta,’ I just set out to go there and have fun but a lot of people are attributing it to something else. They are saying maybe I did juju. I’ve heard all sorts and I’m beginning to suspect myself in the sense

AY

that anything I do always comes out well.

“My stand-up comedy show is one of the biggest in the country. Same with my TV show. I’m just a product of grace.

“That is what I tell people. Not because I am the best, not because I know how

to do it better. I just have this shining light and I keep praying that the grace remains."

Attributing his success to God's grace, AY revealed that he had not seen it coming and now plans to bask in it for as long as it lasts. “For now, let me enjoy my grace.

I didn’t know I was going to make a difference, and right now, I am basking in that euphoria. I feel very happy. I didn’t see it coming, not even for a second.

“I mean, I always tell people, I used to go to the library back in the days to just grab that book and read. I had this impression that the people they featured probably had four heads.

“I never knew a day would come when I would see myself in the book. Maybe, somebody is reading it now and thinks AY has four heads too.” he jested.

Di'ja Talks About Motherhood Mavin artiste, Di'ja has opened up on life after marriage and what she’s been up to.

According to the new mum, she would be launching a new website soon where she’d answer questions from fans regarding her family, new child and everything they want to know about.

She said the experience of making a child makes one appreciate God even more and gives a new sense of living.

She also spoke on how she managed to surprise fans with the news of her baby. "It’s not really all of a sudden, I

think it’s just more or less that we’re in a society where because everything is just out there, it’s no longer the norm to just chill and just keep moving. It wasn’t like an aim to do, I just kinda lived, like I’m having too much fun, I forget to take pictures and I forget to post them, that’s just what really happened.

It is what it is." With the singer currently sticking to her mother duties, fans will be expecting her quick return to music for more great songs. She is popular for the music tracks, 'Rock Steady' (2008) and 'Take Kiss' (2016).

@eraveng

www.eraveng.com

FELABRATION 2016

The Felabration 2016 programme of events schedule has been released.

This year's commemoration boasts a rich selection of artiste’s established and upcoming set to give Afrobeat lovers a good time.

Billed to hold at the New Afrika Shrine, Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria, the event will run from Monday October 10 to Sunday October 16, 2016.

This year’s edition sees a rich line up of artistes.

Dija

Cynthia Yankie Nominated for BAGMA Awards Talented gospel artiste, Cynthia Yakie has been nominated for this year’s Best of African Gospel Music Awards (BAGMA).

She was nominated alongside other talented acts in the Female Discovery of the Year category.

Signed on to GY Records, the Bayelsa State born singer has over time distinguished herself as a very versatile artiste as seen in her vocal dexterity and lyrical prowess.

Her nomination didn’t come as a surprise to many who have been following the career of the talented singer. Her hit song, Tamara earned her the BAGMA awards nomination and happens to be her biggest nomination so far. She is

Cynthia Yankie

however doing all she can to canvass for votes and take home the plaque.

A graduate of Computer Science at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) 2015 in Ghana, Cynthia Yakie has performed across the length and breadth of Nigeria and also outside the shores of Nigeria.

Speaking concerning her nomination, Cynthia said she is happy she is finally getting international recognition for her music. “I love the fact that my music is beginning to get international recognitions and I see it as a great development. This will definitely inspire me to do more.” The BAGMA award show with the intention to recognise African Gospel artistes from all over the world will take place on December 2nd, 2016 in the United States of America.

EMPRESS NJAMAH Nollywood actress, Empress Njamah has shut down rumours that she had her body surgically enhanced.

Contrary to what we have all been thinking, Njamah said that she actually reduced her famous butt instead of increasing it. "I did not enhance my buttocks. I have always had big buttocks. Whoever says I tampered with my bottom is a learner. I actually reduced my buttocks because I used to like to wear a particular design and size. As a result, I had to lose weight to fit into it. My bottom reduced when I lost some weight."

RMD, Ireti Doyle, Victor Olaotan, Others Grace The Grudge’s Screening Following the huge success of the media screening of her new movie ‘’The Grudge’’ talented actress, Funmi Holder held another memorable VIP screening for selected penultimate weekend in Lagos. Guests include members of cast such as like Richard Mofe Damijo, Ireti Doyle, Ijeoma Anieboh, Hon. Otunba George Oladele, a member of House of Representatives, Hon. Gbolahan Lawal, Commissioner for Works, Lagos State, close family and friends. Other guests at the screening which started with a red carpet include; Funlola Aofiyebi, Caroline King, Taiwo Obileye, Elvis Chuks, executive member of WIMBIZ, Samuel Olatunji, CEO of BBB Media, Yemi Morafa, and others. The night took another glamorous turn when Funmi Holder’s ‘’long time dream‘ came true as she launched her foundation; Funmi Holder’s Foundation, a non-for-profited foundation which is aimed at giving hands to women who are victims of rape and widows. A member of the House of Representatives, Hon.

FEMI ADEBAYO

Crew and cast at the Grudge screening

Otunba George Oladele alongside Richard Mofe Damijo, officially did the unveiling.

The comic, educating and entertaining movie stars popular actors such as Odunlade Adekola, Ijeoma Aniebo and Ireti Doyle, Funmi Holder, Jaiye Kuti and others. The Grudge focuses on the lives of two lovelorn couples connected by one lonely widow living separate lives, their lives intertwine and led to the unraveling of a five year grudge.

Executed with brilliant comic slant and powerful delivery, The Grudge highlights serious issues in dramatic and entertaining forms to hold the audience spellbound for the one hour, 30 minutes of the screening.

Odunlade Adekola who is fast becoming a darling of movie lovers across genres gave a powerful dramatic-delivery laden with heavy comedy in a way that made people forget this is his first full feature English movie.

Femi Adebayo, ace Nollywood actor has found love once again as he weds a US-based businesswoman, Maimunat. The Nollywood actor has been separated and divorced from his first wife, Khadijat, for the last two years. Femi and Maimunat's Nikkah ceremony took place on Sunday, October 9, in Maryland, USA. Femi who is the son of veteran actor, Adebayo Salami, aka Oga Bello, shares three kids with his ex-wife who has since remarried.

33/XTRA

14.10.2016

Signing the Paris Agreement, a Step in the Right Direction The recent signing of the Paris Agreement by President Muhammadu Buhari, to mitigate the effects of Climate Change, is a step in the right direction. Damilola Oyedele writes

R-L: Assistant Secretary-General for Legal Affairs (United Nations), Mr. Stephen Mathias; Chief of the Treaty Section, Mr. Santiago Villalpando; President Muhammadu Buhari; Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geffrey Onyeama; Minister of Environment, Amina Mohammed; Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami; and Chairman, House Committee on Climate Change, Hon. Sam Onuigbo as Buhari signs Paris Agreement on Climate Change at the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York…recently As one of the main events at the just towards ending gas flaring, climate smart concluded United Nations General Assembly, agriculture, reduction of transmission losses, Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari signed the Paris Agreement on Climate Change as a sign of the country’s commitment to reverse We therefore appeal to all the negative effects.

This is necessary, as it is now a clear fact climate change impacting that Nigeria needs to take concrete steps to reverse the damaging effects of climate change MDAs to wake up and which has become manifest in the frequent make adequate human, clashes between farmers and herdsmen, and cattle rearers move southward seeking grass material and financial for their livestock. provisions from their 2017 The Paris Agreement, which was adopted last year, and open for signatures and rati- budgetary proposals and fication by states is expected to address the beyond, geared towards inadequacies of the Kyoto Protocol. Seven-four countries, excluding Nigeria have signed the tackling this menace of agreement, while 19 others have ratified it. climate change that has Nigeria withheld signature due to the need for internal consultations, but the country has been strongly linked to pledged to work with other African countries, desertification, coastal on the environment. The agreement seeks to keep temperatures below two degree celsius, erosion, gully erosion, provide more than $100 billion in support from developed countries to their develop- food shortages, terrorist ing counterparts, and increase support for activities like Boko Haram technology transfer and capacity building.

Nigeria’s Intended Nationally Determined and the clashes between Contributions (INDC) target emission reduc- herdsmen and farmers tions of 20-45 per cent by the year 2030, by working towards economy wide energy in different parts of the efficiency, efficient gas power stations, working country

and renewable energy.

As part of effortsts towards the realisation, Nigeria has already instituted an InterMinisterial Committee on Climate Change to monitor the implementation of the INDC. Buhari promised that that ratification of the agreement would be done before the 22nd Conference of parties to the agreement, coming up in November 2016 in Morocco.

The Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Climate Change, Hon. Sam Onuigbo, who witnessed the signing of the agreement, lauded the President for taking the leadership tackling the devastating effects of climate change.

Onuigbo however harped on the necessity of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to follow through on President Buhari's commitment on the issue, and pledged the resolve of the Eight National Assembly to provide robust legislative framework on climate change governance.

In a statement, Onuigbo urged that the implementation of the agreement be approached with concerted efforts and zeal by all stakeholders. This, he said, is particularly necessary as a recent World Bank report has shown that one out of every 10 deaths is caused by pollution from land, marine or air transport.

"The successful implementation of this agreement is of paramount importance to all of us as Nigerians, thus, we must approach

its implementation as a shared responsibility by all arms of government, MDAs, private sector and all other stakeholders to enable us achieve the desired goals of a low carbon green economy.

"We therefore appeal to all climate change impacting MDAs to wake up and make adequate human, material and financial provisions from their 2017 budgetary proposals and beyond, geared towards tackling this menace of climate change that has been strongly linked to desertification, coastal erosion, gully erosion, food shortages, terrorist activities like Boko Haram and the clashes between herdsmen and farmers in different parts of the country,” Onuigbo added.

As President Buhari has noted, implementing the INDC roadmap would not be an easy one in the face of dwindling revenues. He however pledged that both internal and external resources would be mobilised to meet Nigeria’s targets, adding that the 2017 budget would reflect Nigeria’s efforts to accord priority to realising its INDCs. “In addition, we are set to launch our first ever Green Bonds in the first quarter of 2017 to fund a pipeline of projects all targeted at reducing emissions towards a greener economy,” he said.

It is clear that Nigeria cannot afford to pay lip service to the implementation of the Paris Agreement, as doing so has serious implications for its security and economy.

34/ETIQUETTE

14.10.2016

THE ETIQUETTE FORUM ADEKANMI OLUSANYA

email mretiquetteonline@yahoo.com

tel. 08112661635, 0809285 4855

Mistakes, Make Ups And Makeovers (2) In 2012, I had the honour of training Nigeria’s biggest security company .The venue was Ochad Hotel hunkered down in a pristine part of Lekki. I got into the hotel waiting for the training to begin working on slides on my laptop, and suddenly came in the Managing Director of the company accompanied by a bellhop who took his luggage far away from his sight to his displeasure.

As a bellhop, you never take a person’s luggage away from their sight except with their permission - so he had every right to be displeased. However upon knowledge of his luggage not being anywhere around him, he raised his voice getting the attention of at least one person at the reception - me.

Now as a rule in etiquette you do not raise your voice in public areas or places except for cases of serious emergencies. Not that his voice was outrageously loud but it was noticeably loud. I noticed it immediately that an etiquette faux pas had been committed.

As an etiquette consultant consulting for the company I felt I should mention it during the training but the mistake I made was that I mentioned it with less tact than I should have employed especially as an etiquette consultant. This was how it all happened. The training was spread within two days and on the final day, I had to train the company on communications etiquette. Things went on to a good start with aspects of communication like body language but then things became a little shaky when I decided to dwell on communication habits to avoid and without premeditating on what to say as most of my talks and speeches go as I am not too persnickety of planning everything I am going to say word for word, - I’ll rather opt for a stream of consciousness that flows rather swimmingly. So when I got to an area that definitely had something to do with exercising self control in communication, I made reference to the point where the MD of the company wrongly raised his voice in a public area after he got into the hotel only to find that his bellhop who was with his luggage was out of sight. Immediately he interjected to explain to me why he acted in such a manner and kudos to him in true gentleman-like fashion he immediately admitted to his error. Now immediately I made that utterance I knew I had made mistake. It’s called a Freudian slip – when you say something you never intended to say. It was a mistake because as an etiquette rule you do not point out the mistakes of others in public. That should be done in private, let alone the managing director of the company you are training in the presence of his colleagues. At a formal dinner for example, you do not point out the poor manners of others at the table while dining no matter how grotesque it may seem.

So then what should I have done? I should have simply made an allusion to that scene by saying something along the lines of, when you get into a public area a reception, a hallway, a banking hall, a supermarket etc. you never raise your voice except there is a real emergency. The message would still have been passed across without making reference to anybody in particular let alone the head of the organisation I was training.

Now it really does not matter whether it was the MD of the company or not. Even if it was a security guard in a company, human dignity should be given proper priority and no one should be run down in the presence of others. Like grooming such corrections should be done in private.

Now, how did I make up for my error?

As the training continued and I was training on dress etiquette, I made reference to the fact that the MD was a power dresser and impeccable – the audience applauded in approval. At least with that accolade I was able to neutralise the effect of my criticism of him. After the training I made sure I had a meeting with him where I let him know how much I appreciated time spent with his company, I let him know how we could

Last week, the Washington Post leaked a recording made in 2005 where Donald Trump bragged about groping women. He eventually tendered an apology for the statements made

Whenever grave regrettable statements are made, sincere apology should be tendered immediately. Human dignity should be given proper priority and no one should be rundown, abused or objectified in the presence of others work on other areas and today we have a fantastic working relationship.

Now there is an issue I must trash out here. I could have apologised for my undue criticism of him at any of our subsequent meetings, however I decided to assess the situation and use my discretion. I felt that his desire to have subsequent meeting with me implied that he did not take my criticism to heart however undue it may have been. Also, I felt that my apologising for my criticism of him would only bring back memories of a forgettable event which could be totally unnecessary. The reason I say this is so that when an embarrassing situation occurs you may also need to assess the situation and

employ a little bit of discretion to see if tendering an apology would be necessary.

For instance if you are dining at a formal dinner and something embarrassing happens say for instance a piece of meat falls to the floor, you do not have to shout, wail, cry or scream ‘Oh my God’. Simply call the attention of a waiter and keep on eating your meal. As a rule in etiquette, if a situation is already embarrassing, do not make it more embarrassing.

My take away from that whole event was to desist from name calling during any of my speeches or trainings. I can postulate on principles and practices without putting down people. Also I made it a habit never to

say anything negative of people in private or public discussions even of public figures and political office holders. That way I have an increased consciousness not to say anything unsavory about people even during talks, speeches and trainings that are not preplanned, pre-thought or prewritten.

You could purchase a copy of my book on etiquette titled PROPER MANNERS AND ETIQUETTE IN ANYTHING AT ANYTIME AND ANYWHERE at the price of N3,500 at our corporate head office at 340 - 344 Ikorodu Road, by Idi-Iroko Bus Stop, Maryland, Lagos.

Or call 0811 266 1635 or 0802 312 6010 to have a copy sent to you.

35/XTRA

14.10.2016

Media Week of Fun, Honour, Glory Journalists in Abia State under the aegis of Correspondents Chapel held their maiden Media Week during which games, professional, political and social issues were blended to make a pot pouri of fun. Emmanuel Ugwu captured the high points of the fun filled week long activities Working like bees, journalists hardly find time to engage in recreational activities. But when the members of the Correspondents Chapel of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Abia State Council decided to hold its maiden Media Week there was no stopping them. In the course of the week long event the gentlemen of the press not only enjoyed the world’s most beautiful game of football but also engaged in introspection. Chairman of the Correspondents Chapel, Emmanuel Ugwu explained that it was indeed time for journalists “to press the pause button to reflect on our challenging profession, do a self-appraisal and set goals for optimum performance”.

It was fun all the way. Not even the rather disappointing outcome of the novelty football match with the Abia Police Machine FC could dampen the enthusiasm. Yes, the Correspondents Pen Pushers FC fell 0-4 to the police team captained by the State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Leye Oyebade. The journalists had held their own in the first half of the encounter only to buckle in the second stanza of the exciting match following constant barrage by the police frontline. In fact there was high hope among the journalists and their supporters at the Umuahia Central Police Station field that the match would be “inconclusive” like some recent elections conducted by INEC. But shortly after the break the home side turned the tide against the visitors. Nonetheless the Correspondents players held on to minimise the damage. Both the players and supporters of the losing side did not brood over the crushing defeat by the police team as the journalists held their head high and forged ahead to end the maiden press week on a high note.

The grand finale of the press week turned out to be the icing on the cake. While the event which was held at the Aguiyi Ironsi Conference Centre provided opportunity to delve into the issue of adherence to professional ethics it equally provided platform to review recent crucial political developments in Abia. The journalists also used the event to honour those considered to have made positive impacts on the socio-economic and political life of Abia. Former Vice-president of NUJ Zone C, Sir Ambrose Nwachukwu took the journalists on a voyage of self-appraisal of their knowledge and attitude to their professional ethics in the discharge of their duties. Nwachukwu, who is both journalist and teacher of journalism refreshed the minds of his colleagues on the code of ethics for Nigerian journalists and emphasised the need for any journalist worth the name to adhere strictly to the creed. He said that “journalism ethics is such a hacky issue that demands intensive and extensive discussions and deliberations”.

Nwachukwu insisted that “it is imperative for media professionals to be truthful, fair and comprehensive in their account of events as such is the precursor of justice and foundation in democratic governance”. But he pointed out that even as journalists strive to keep to the ethical demands of their profession they are buffeted by enormous challenges including economic hardships, political and economic interests of media owners.

Abia State Commissioner for works, Mr. Eziuche Ubani in his assessment of the journalists in Abia said that their commitment to professional ethics was not in doubt. Ubani, who was an accomplished journalist and columnist in THISDAY before his crossover to politics, was on a familiar terrain when he put Correspondents in Abia on the scale. He noted that with the volatile political crisis that has been the lot of Abia for over a year running, “it is difficult for journalists here” to do their job without falling into the trap of partisanship. But he noted that by sticking to their professional ethics journalists have helped to keep the political crisis in Abia below boiling point.

Chairman of Abia Council of NUJ, Comrade John Emejo said that journalists in Abia State have remained steadfast in discharging their duties and urged the political class to place the interest of the state above their personal interests.

The Correspondents Chapel chairman in his welcome address also harped on the need for

Hon. Ubani (left) presented the 'Hero of Equity' award bestowed on Senator T.A.Orji. Mr. Don Norman Obinna collected the award on behalf of Senator Orji

Orji

strict observance of professional ethics and not use the power of the pen to cause havoc in the society. “We must be agents of development, not destruction; growth not retardation; education, not mind pollution; cultural revival, not cultural imperialism,” he said.

Abia politics came into focus as the guest speaker took the stage. There was no sidestepping it as the journalists themselves have been witnesses to the events and personalities that have shaped the politics of God’s own state.

Because Senator Orji stood on the solid ground of conscience and truth, the PDP both at the state and national levels supported him.

The people of Abia State, especially the majority of them that have not killed their conscience because of quest for power and materialism evidently gave their support for Senator T.A. Orji’s commitment to equity

And of all the political developments witnessed in Abia since its creation the emergence of an Ukwa/Ngwa man as Abia governor in the person Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu has been adjudged as the most remarkable. It was made possible because of the political will mustered by the former governor of the state, Senator Theodore Orji which led to the implementation of the Abia Charter of Equity. The Speaker of the Abia State House of Assembly, Rt Hon Martins Azubuike, who was the guest speaker, lauded Senator Orji for resisting the intense pressure mounted by selfish politicians in the state to ensure there was power shift in the state.

Speaking on the “The imperatives of equity and fairness as initiated and implemented by the former governor, Senator T.A. Orji’s administration in Abia” Azubuike noted that Abia has become the better for it by embracing inclusive politics. According to him, the emergence of an Ukwa/Ngwa man from Abia South zone as governor after years of marginalisation was a master stroke by Orji in his desire to bequeath equity and fairness in Abia politics.“Today, Abia is in peace,” he enthused, adding that the Abia electorate saw the emergence of Ikpeazu as PDP flag bearer in the 2015 general election as healthy development” hence he was able to emerge victorious at the poll. He said: “Because Senator Orji stood on the solid ground of conscience and truth, the PDP both at the state and national level supported him. The people of Abia State, especially the majority of them that have not killed their conscience because of quest for power and materialism evidently gave their support

for Senator T.A. Orji’s commitment to equity.”

According to the Abia House Speaker, prior to the birth of God’s own state, “the founding fathers of the state had intrinsically agreed within and among themselves that their perceived state would be run on best global standard application of equity, fairness and justice”. He explained that “the synopsis of Abia Charter of Equity was, and remains that every geopolitical zone or segment in the state when created would not be marginalised in any of the state administration but rather would be given adequate sense of belonging”. Azubuike travelled the memory lane and recalled how Abia “was devastatingly torn into factions” before the emergence of Senator Orji as the third democratically elected governor of Abia state in May 2007. He named the major gladiators then as the home based politicians and the Abuja domiciled Abia politicians. “There was no love lost between the two. The result of this avoidable rancour was that the state became the victim. But Senator T.A. Orji being a seasoned technocrat and bureaucrat did not need to consult any oracle to realise that such cat and dog relationship, if not radically resolved, would continue to constitute clog in the wheel of progress of the state.”

Vice-president of NUJ Zone C, Christopher Isiguzo said that it would not be proper for the journalists to limit the event of the day to stock taking without adding their voices to draw attention to the deteriorating infrastructure and security problem in the South-east zone. He called on the federal government to take urgent action and rehabilitate its roads that have totally collapsed thereby disrupting smooth movement of people and goods in the South-east. He specifically asked the federal government “to declare a state of emergency on federal roads in the South-east”, notably Enugu-Port Harcourt, Enugu- Onitsha, Onitsha-Owerri, Umuahia-Ikot Ekpene and Aba- Ikot Ekpene highways. The conditions of all these roads have become so parlous that they are largely death traps.

The NUJ zonal leader equally expressed displeasure at the insecurity situation in the South-east as herdsmen spread death and destruction. “We’ve been asked to embrace farming, yet people cannot have access to their farms due to the murderous activities of herdsmen,” he lamented. Isiguzo regretted that the governors of the South-east zone were not helping matters as they are working at cross purposes due to their different political affiliations hence they could not adopt a common approach to solve a common problem. To further underline the urgent need for concerted efforts to tackle the herdsmen menace in the Southeast, Correspondents chairman, Ugwu warned that since Enugu State has witnessed frequent bloodsheds by herdsmen and Anambra has also witnessed such attacks there is every likelihood that the other states (Abia, Imo, Ebonyi) in the South-east zone would eventually become easy targets “if nothing is done to put a final stop to the marauding herdsmen.” He therefore called on the federal government to give definite directive to its security agencies to stop herdsmen from terrorising the zone, destroying lives and properties. “The infirm of purpose approach and paying of lip service to the issue of herdsmen has been going on long enough. It is time to do something positive,” he said.

Having been scanning the Abia environment like orbiting satellite over the years the Correspondents have followed the political, social and economic developments of God’s own state.

Therefore they saw the need to express their observations by recognising and giving awards to some individuals that have made remarkable impacts on the socio-political affairs of Abia.

Senator Orji was honoured with the Hero of Equity award for keeping his word to ensure the implementation of power shift to Abia South zone after the North and Central had taken their turns in occupying government house for eight years each.

NOTE: Interested readers should continue in the online edition on www.thisdaylive.com

36/COLLAGE

14.10.2016

L-R; Chief Executive Officer, Iconic Media Consult and Partner, Salvation Crusaders Media, Hon. (Princess) Folashade Olabanji-Oba, presenting hair dryer to one of the beneficiaries of Talent Empowerment, Mrs. Ayorinde Ayoola. With them is Mrs. Ayo Alli-Balogun, during Applause Achievers Awards 2016,in Ikeja, Lagos...recently.

R-L: Iyke Onwukwe, his wife, Caroline and Tayo Osundosunmu, during the Onwukwe's son, Chigoziem Jedidiah, dedication reception in Lagos...recently.

L-R: Son of the deceased, Mr. Soji Otudeko; Bbrother of the deceased, Mr. Oba Otudeko; the widow, Mrs. Adewumii Otudeko; and Mr. Femi Majekodunmi, at the condolence visit to the family of late Mr. Adewumi Olufuyi Otudeko. in Surulere, Lagos recently

L-R: Assistant General Counsel, Sterling Bank, Mr. Femi Aiyegbusi; Managing Director, Bulwark Attorneys, Tochukwu Chukwumerije;presenting Bank of The Year to the Company Secretary, Sterling Bank Plc, Justina Lewa, who represented MD\CEO of the bank; and Legal and Company Secretariat, Sterling Bank Plc, Mr. Sunny Kanabe, at the Nigeria Legal Awards 2016 in Victoria Island, Lagos.

KOLAWOLE ALLI

L-R: Newly Wedded Couple, Mr and Mrs Seun Oladesu; with Bride Parents,Chief and Mrs Isaiah Kolawole,during their wedding reception in Igando, Lagos...recently

Group Regional Manager, John Holt Plc. / Pastor in the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor Clifford Obanor, with wife, Mrs. Clifford Obanor, cutting his 50th birthday cake in Lagos...recently.

Clement Emuobonuvie Orife and his bride, Favour, during their wedding in Benin City recently

37/THISLIFE

14.10.2016

Shuaib

Yushau Shuaib: 47 Candles for an Iconic PR Man Abdullahi Yunusa ProfWills Having known him through his countless, well-scripted and richly informative articles and news commentaries in some national dailies and online platforms as far back as 2003, we only had our first physical contact in 2010 at a national symposium on peace organised by the management of Peoples Media Limited, publishers of the Peoples Daily Newspaper titles in Sheraton Hotel, Abuja. Our initial meeting was facilitated by my bosom friend and professional colleague, Kandi Mohammed (The civilian General).

Long before meeting him, the depth, originality, strength and convincing style with which Malam Yushau Shuaib wrote painted a picture of an old journalist who had spent several years in the newsroom. I thought I was reading a man in his late 60s who still wrote pieces with pen and paper.

I equally thought I was tapping from the knowledge reservoir of a man who had the trappings of a typical accomplished Nigerian writer and celebrity journalist.

Our eventual meeting in 2010 cleared the air on the true personality of Yushau. I met a refined, urbane, unassuming, sound, creative and down- to-earth individual whose unique qualities far outweigh his frailties. He is by all standards a perfect gentleman and thoroughbred professional.

He exudes meekness, humility, professional-

ism and sincerity in his engagements with others. Most of his literary interventions are tailored towards addressing the plight of the disadvantaged in the society, ensuring probity in public office as well as the campaign for the emergence of a country we can all be proud of. He's not your typical public affairs commentator who employs verbose, bogus or high-sounding phrases in a bid to sound sophisticated or elitist. He keeps it simple, sharp and straight to the point.

Yushau Shuaib wasted no time in fixing an appointment for a formal meeting that birthed a relationship that opened several doors of good tidings for me and also sharpened my literary teeth. He became so interested in my writings and adopted me as his professional son and mentee. The most fascinating thing about Yushau's writing is the speed with which he pens articles. I've always wondered how he manages to churn out pieces as though he picks them up from the computer.

I've always admired and envied him from afar. I desired to write as frequently as he does. Hardly a day passes that you don't get to read Yushau's piece. His works are just in a world of their own. I think his biggest selling point is the simplicity with which he writes. He writes in accordance with the dictates of his conscience. At a time pen-pushers obey approved media professional ethics only in breach, this man has continued to ply his trade with his integrity

and professional name intact.

His reign as the Head, Public Relations at the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) was quite epochal. The finesse, professionalism, spontaneity and speed he displayed in responding to information seekers made him the darling of both local and foreign newsmen.

He has indeed secured a place in Nigeria's history as one of the few patriotic Nigerians who at personal risk and discomfort, put their lives on the line by serially criticizing and countering Boko Haram's hollow media propaganda with articles upon articles.

The Abubakar Shekau led group's failure to take over the nation's media space to propagate its message of destruction was largely due to Yushau's critical pieces and interventions. He relied strongly on the understanding and benevolence of his colleagues across various media platforms to put a lie to Shekau's serial false claims as often captured in video tapes. He did his very best to puncture Shekau’s loads of twisted narratives on the insurgency war.

His fierce media face-off with former Finance Minister, Dr. Mrs. Ngozi OkonjoIweala where he courageously criticised the former Minister’s open agenda to ‘Biafranise’ appointments into key parastatals under her supervision remains fresh in our memory.

The then powerful Ngozi felt her ego was bruised and vowed to ‘deal’ with the writer.

She wanted an apology from Yushau, a mission he considered impossible. At the end, Yushau, a no-nonsense man that he is, called the Minister’s bluff and tendered his resignation letter.

The inhuman treatment meted to him did not discourage him from offering his professional services when contacted by the same government, though as a consultant on Public Communications with regards to security issues. He indeed gave his all and left no one in doubt as to whether he possessed the requisite knowledge or expertise for the herculean task of countering Boko Haram’s media narratives. He did his best without blemish.

To his credit, Spokespersons of security, intelligence and disaster response agencies had a number of media sources through which their stories or information are dished out to the reading public regarding the war against Boko Haram. Nigeria, and probably, Africa’s largest mailing platform, PRNIGERIA is Yushau’s brainchild.

Here is wishing my boss, friend, teacher and professional mentor a hearty birthday anniversary. May your labour of love be rewarded both here and the hereafter. Sound body and soul, prosperity and God’s protection are my wishes for you, now and always.

Happy birthday, Sir. Yunusa wrote from Lugbe, Abuja. meetprofwills@yahoo.com

38/OPINION

14.10.2016

LEKANFATODU HEADS-UP

O

bviously the government of President Muhammadu Buhari is not standing well economically.

Hence, that there is need for a way out is common knowledge.

The Federal Government itself is not lost on the realities of these times, so if it means striking water from the rock in an aggressive effort to keep the economy afloat the government is up for it.

Clearly, the government's much emphasised focus on diversification of the economy without an articulated framework in some ways could mean that whatever can possibly be done, even if not well tested, that can swiftly cushion the pains of the moment should just be driven on board.

Little wonder that so many ideas are bandied around, from within and outside of the government, as solutions to the country's challenges, and yet none has offered an end to some of the nation's basic predicaments. That's the more reason why the government needs to be more circumspect and very conscious in its decisions and directives now.

In moments like this, fatal blunders are wont to committed especially when serious care is not taken and ideas are not well thought out.

For instance when the government said it had injected about N2.419trn into the economy, what came to mind instantly was: yet the economy is not showing any sign of recovery as critical sectors have not ceased to groan over lack of necessary interventions, enabling policies and

Email lekantodun@yahoo.com

Tel 07058069255

Seeking Viable Alternatives

Amina Mohammed

infrastructure.

Perhaps, even with the said N2.419trn, the economic "doctors" injected the wrong part of the body (economy) or the injection was placed in the hands of quack doctors which has slowed down revival of the economy.

A vital point I've pushed with much vigour since the talk about diversification seemed to have dominated the agenda of this government is that the new economic focus shouldn't be presented in a manner that will push other potential areas of growth to insignificance, promote another mono-economy and put the possibility of reforms and development of valuable products from the oil and gas industry in jeopardy.

The truth is: Nigeria has great prospects of making extraordinary gains from several economic pursuits like the IT/creative industry and not to talk of the promise agriculture holds for the

country. And it can very much double its benefits from its challenged oil sector if the plans for such are placed in the hands of truly tested and proven functionaries, in collaboration with trusted experts in the private sector.

Thankfully, a top government official is on a similar line of thought. The Minister of Environment, Amina Mohammed, at a forum recently in Abuja underscored other aspects of the economy where the government can improve earnings and ensure sustainability in growth and development.

The plan to develop Jatropha plant as convincingly canvassed by the minister as a viable green alternative to fossil fuels while also providing an additional means of livelihood for local communities, is indeed part of the good alternatives geared towards reflating and diversifying the economy. This will essentially bring new life, boost activities and employment in a sector that is indeed troubled but still holds substantial promise for the nation in terms of rapid investment.

Also, the minister’s call for robust engagement with the private sector cannot be more auspicious within the current climate. Of course, the private sector still provides the lifeline for several economic activities to function across the country.

But their efforts, products and services should receive more approval and patronage from the public sector which is part of the concerns raised by the Chairman, Nigeria Economic Summit Group (NESG) Board Committee, Dr. Adedoyin Salami,

at the group’s annual summit four days ago.

NESG’s chair stated that for the Nigerian economy to be globally competitive, it is imperative for public procurement processes to dedicate specific portion to made-in-Nigeria goods and services.

And this, expectedly, as we’ve seen worked favourably in the oil sector, should favour franchisees of valuable offshore products and trademarks whose undertakings are helping to advance Nigeria’s vision for economic growth through the establishment and complete operation of international services in the country.

Of crucial note regarding the foregoing is the giant strides of Bafe group, a Nigerian private sector entity with cutting-edge product, Oilex, and expertise in oil spill management and remediation, a capability acquired through extensive training and collaboration with a German company that isa leader in that field.

This is certainly part of the solutions Nigeria requires to improve her terribly degraded environment in several parts of the country, particularly the Niger-Delta, in an effort to stimulating social-economic activities in such areas.

Basically, what Nigeria really needs at this time are feasible inputs just as the one suggested by the Environment Minister, the counsel offered by the NESG’s chair with required private sector investments and services as highlighted in moving the country forward.

And the message on the diversification should be made more broad and comprehensible.

Brunt of Quivering Oil Price Odimegwu Onwumere The decreasing oil revenues in the international market at a time of mounting government expenditure have become a hitch to the developmental aspiration of the present government.

Over dependence on oil, Major General Muhammadu Buhari was with high hope to rejuvenate Nigeria when he mounted the saddle as president on May 29, 2015, but little did he know that the heralded dwindling oil price in the past administration will misdirect his views and posit his government as one without a direction.

Crude oil price is today, no longer doing over $50 per barrel in the international market, whereas oil, fees for almost 15 per cent of Nigeria’s GDP but creates up a-propos of 80 per cent of government income.

There is triple re-establishing of the 2015 budget from 78USD/barrel to 52USD/barrel.

The economy has been terrified into a condition of deficits; other sectors of the economy are affected.

Nigeria nearly quitted the world market due to the current economic circumstances, but Buhari on February 15, 2016, at the Aso Rock Presidential Villa, when he received the Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Ambassador Roberto Azevedo, reassured Nigerians that the country remained fully committed to free international trade.

There is apprehension that the low oil prices, which started in the second half of 2014, will likely continue up until 2019. However, the president seemingly made things to constrict when by September 2015 his government did not make appointments of people into key positions of the energy sector or reveal his plan for the sector.

The country is freshly in dire need to meet its financial obligations and many oil and gas projects have stopped. About 500, 000 workers have been sacked and investors are remaining on the side line since the oil decline hit the country. Whereas, countries like Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates can boast of over $2 trillion in Sovereign Wealth Fund, SWF, accounts with which they have been protecting their economies not to down-spiral in the face of the oil catastrophe.

There are cases where Federal Government’s

Minister of State Petroleum Resources, Emmauel Ibe Kachikwu

inability or refusal to fund the Joint Venture budgets and expenditure stalled other oil and gas projects and operations, and delay in the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB. Nigeria which apparently has refused to save saw in March 2016 her many road projects stopped.

For example, the Yenagoa-Obogoro-Oporoma Road in Bayealsa State was stopped, as a result of dwindling economy which is as a result of low oil price.

Until the road project was stopped, it was noted that this road had been on the federal government’s project since the sixties without any people-oriented result seen on it till Governor Seriake Dickson of the state took the bull by the horns and awarded the job to a Chinese firm, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation, CCECC, at the cost of N31 billion.

There is also an indictment by March 2016 that from 2011 till date, the successive governments’ lackadaisical approach to things has resulted to the deadlock in achieving anything meaningful in multibillion dollar Bonga South-west oil and gas development, since there is no Final Investment Decision (FID) on the project.

The later is estimated at $15b with flattering investment between $2b and $3b by suppliers and subcontractors. The Bonga SWA project when ready, was expected to garner some $50 billion net revenue to the Federal Government over the 2016-2021 construction stage of the project, and extra $3.5 billion revenue through contractor taxes.

The expected 3,500 direct jobs and 15,000

indirect jobs it was intended to create through Significant Nigerian content and employment creation during construction, may be hitting the dustbin. In November 2015, the immediate past National Industrial Relations Officer, Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, Hyginus Onuegbu made it known that 120,000 direct and indirect jobs have been cut.

It has become worse with the economy because the country has not given much attention to how industries are run in the country. A casein-point is where industry budget is killed by 40 percent, thereby dampening the spirited plans of industrialists.

A topmost bureaucrat with the National Petroleum and Investment Management Services Company, NAPIMS, would say that due to low oil prices, multinational oil companies in Nigeria that include Shell, Mobil, Chevron, Total and Agip have been showing their workers the exit door. The same is the fate with engineering, fabrication, and construction companies.

In the recent past, the Royal Dutch Shell said that it was headed to cutting 6,500 jobs in Nigeria and reduces its capital spending by 20 per cent pending when things improve. There is 72 per cent fall in quarterly profit, after the $54b acquisition of BG Group by Royal Dutch Shell "showing how much strain it faces after the bumper deal."

There was a prediction that Shell’s production in Nigeria (being the world’s largest LNG trader that boosted LNG sales volumes by 52 per cent to 14.25 million tonnes in the second quarter) will fall by around 35,000 barrels per day in the following semi of the year.

Many oil companies thought that there would be a boom in the oil price and they spent much in corporate expenses. The resultant of this today was that by November 2015, Schlumberger SLB had also sacked more than 20,000 oilfield service workers, with Halliburton cutting 18,000 jobs, including Weatherford International, 14,000, and Baker Hughes BHI, 13,000 These woes may be hinged on the government’s dearth of clear cut direction, hence signaling that hard times have come to stay in the country.

But the president and his cabinet believe that whatever situation that the country is facing is an offshoot of alleged corruption that wrecked in the Dr. Goodluck Jonathan-led government

that he succeeded, with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, at the height of it all.

Apart from the low oil price in the international market, the energy sector also faces challenges in the areas of pipeline vandalism, illegal crude oil diversion; insecurity and kidnapping in the seas.

The four refineries in country situated in Warri, Kaduna and Port Harcourt have not lived to the expectation of refining crude oil leading to the country importing oil from overseas for years. The successive governments have done everything to bring to an end the importation of petroleum products because of the billions of dollars paid as subsidies from the country’s annual budget that benefit a few fuel importers and petroleum marketing companies, yet the masses are suffering the brunt.

The once booming offshore services have become a caricature of a sought with drastically drop in rig count, sending local oil service firms whose jobs revolve around drilling and packing, mostly.

There are inactive rigs everywhere with the crews not in work; they are incurring colossal losses in the areas of “well services, logging, air shuttle drilling fluids and chemicals, drill bits, casing services, marine vessels and others.”

The irony is that Nigeria is among the oil producing countries in Africa that have not listened to the head of the United Nations that sent advice to them in a Report on Economic Development in Africa, the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), to energetically take up economic diversification policies because of declining oil prices on their economies, due to the reality of economic consequences that have befallen the country today.

In what may be seen as playing politics with the diversification policies, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh has shown concern that nothing can be achieved in the country with the current shambled oil price by the year 2050, when experts have said that Nigeria’s population was expected to reach the periphery of 500 million.

Onwumere is a Rivers State based poet, writer and consultant. Email: apoet_25@yahoo.com NOTE: Interested readers should continue in the online edition on www.thisdaylive.com

T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2016

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BUSINESSWORLD

ANALYSIS

Practical, Inclusive and Timely: Senate’s Economic Rescue Plan Days after the Senate President Bukola Saraki promised decisive action by the Senate on the worsening economic crisis, the upper chamber of the National Assembly has unveiled 14 strategic recommendations to assist the executive.

Samuel T Adakole x-rays the Senate rescue package to help the country turn the corner and achieve quick and sustainable economic recovery “Many times experts have quipped that Nigeria is finished, but we come back stronger. This occasion will not be any different. But it will not happen by a slogan! No, it will take positive leadership and unity. Never in our history has the need to show leadership and unity been more acute, more urgent than now. We cannot afford to play politics with our current situation. As a parliament we are in this together with the Executive and the Judiciary, we cannot afford Eto fail Nigerians.” – Senate President Bukola Saraki The 14-Point Plan for resolving the economic crisis that the Senate last week sent to the Executive is so far the most comprehensive, practical and timely response to the economic nightmare that the country is facing.

I am particularly impressed by the clarity of the recommendations which should be a lesson to the Executive arm of government whose actions and pronouncements have been defined by incoherence and confusion.

WhiIe the specific recommendations are not revolutionary or unprecedented, they constitute a clear and practicable path out of the economic woods in which the country has found itself.

What I like most about the recommendations is the inclusive nature of what the Senate is proposing. Unlike the Executive, the Upper Chamber is not focused on unproductive scapegoating and blame game that has unfortunately become the trademark of the Executive’s response to the economic crisis.

The Senate is not only suggesting solutions but making itself an integral part of the process of implementing these solutions. This is clear from the very first of the recommendations which requests the executive to forward an Economic Stimulus Bill containing all the fiscal stimulus packages, investments and incentives for accelerated consideration and passage by the National Assembly.

Another key recommendation is the call for the fiscal and monetary authorities to harmonies all policies to show policy consensus. This is important because the public disagreement between the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank of Nigeria on interest rates is a great disservice to the country. How is the international community and investors supposed to take us seriously when at the time we should be projecting a stronger focus and unity of purpose on the economy, the two leading institutions responsible are squabbling over fundamentals. It doesn’t inspire confidence, when delicate conversations that should be conducted outside the public domain become headline controversies. In this regard the Senate is very much on point.

The Senate’s call for the adoption of peaceful means to resolve Niger Delta crisis at a time of increasing militarization of the conflict is also a very good one.

The current reality is that in spite of the growing consensus on diversification, it will take the country a little while to get to the point where other sources of revenues will start competing with oil. As for now, oil still remains our number one source of revenue. So the military solution and the attendant crisis which is likely to worsen the quantity shock which has already crashed daily production from about 2.2million barrels per day (bdp) to 1.6million bpd will be disastrous for the

Saraki

country.

Also spot on are the recommended areas for the economic stimulus to be applied: Safety Programmes; Humanitarian Activities in the North East; Power Generation; Agricultural value chain; Textile manufacturing; National highway network construction and maintenance; Railway construction and maintenance; Motor vehicle assembly plants; Completion and commissioning of Ajaokuta Steel Complex; Arts, Science and Technology.

By any measure, these are the critical focus areas where impact is most needed for the economy to turn the corner.

The Senate’s recommendation for caution in the issuance of bonds and treasury bills, a practice which is becoming a key part of government’s arsenal for fighting the economic recession, is also appropriate. It is a fact that in the rush to issue bonds, the local business entrepreneurs who are already under pressure due to high interest rates, unstable power supply and the many “checkpoints’ at the ports are being pushed out of the investment space. That is why it is important that this call for the Federal Government to cap the issuance of bonds and treasury bills in order not to crowd-out local investors from the market be heeded because Local Domestic Investment (LDI) is as important, if not more as Foreign Domestic Investment (FDI).

Also very appropriate in this regard is the additional recommendation that the Federal Government should ensure the payment of all genuine domestic

debts owed to local contractors who have completed their jobs. The health of the domestic private sector must be a central component of any viable strategy to get Nigeria out of this economic crisis.

In line with the longstanding conversation regarding the use of pension funds for infrastructural projects, an idea which has been championed by, among others, Babatunde Fashola, the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, the Senate plan also includes a recommendation for the use of pension and insurance funds to support long-term capital on lending for agriculture, industry and housing projects.

This also deserves serious consideration by the executive. The deployment of pension funds into priorities like infrastructure in order to catalyze growth and improve demand has been successfully done in many countries. But a word of caution is necessary here. Though the results are largely positive in many other countries, it is also true that, in some cases, pensioners have lost their life savings as a consequence of such initiatives.

This is why this idea should be explored with caution. The focus should be on ensuring a fidelity with extant rules and regulations to ensure that the objective of boosting infrastructure is not achieved at the expense of pensioners’ life savings/ welfare.

There is no doubt that the crash in the global price of oil with began in mid-2014 has devastated revenues at all levels within the 3 tiers of government by at least half. This development was of course

exacerbated by the country’s failure to save when oil prices were high.

But the conversation on boosting inadequate revenues cannot be complete without reference to the reality that poor governance and waste of resources especially at the state and local government levels is also a big problem. State Governors continue to live large and local government chairmen are not doing much better. This is why the recommendation by the senate for compliance with the Fiscal Responsibility Act’s guidelines for prudence and accountability in revenue and expenditure management is so important. But for this recommendation to have practical value, there is a need for people who have breached the act to be held accountable. Without that, fiscal responsibility will continue to have more bark than bite. In this regard, civil society, the media and more importantly the judiciary have a very important role to play.

The country’s revenue crisis is of course compounded by the ceaseless bleeding that continues to take place at various points of the petroleum value chain. By all accounts, the incidence and intensity is on the upward swing as both small and big time players continue to rip off the country. There have also been several reports of scams on the high seas reportedly carried out in collusion with unscrupulous staff of government agencies and rogue agents of multinational companies resulting in the loss of millions of dollars in revenues which would have gone into the national coffers.

Against this background, the Senate is very right in its recommendation that cases involving unaccounted oil exports should be pursued vigorously to logical conclusion. The hope is that the Department of State Security, the EFCC and the police will act on this as speedily as it has been handling political cases.

It is increasingly obvious that a major underlying cause of the worsening economic crisis is the crisis within the government’s economic management system. This crisis as earlier stated has found unfortunate expression in the public spat between the Finance Ministry and the CBN over interest rates. But it has manifested itself in other areas as well.

The Senate’s recommendation that the President should consider establishing a Council of Economic Advisers made up of experts in economic management, if implemented properly should help to strengthen confidence in the economy.

Perhaps the best part of the Saraki Senate’s 14-point Plan is the commitment of the Saraki Senate to fast track the passage of important bills which are critical to the economic recovery process. In addition to the fiscal and monetary initiatives, this is the third leg of the tripod on which any sustainable progress with the economy should be anchored. The bills which the National Assembly has committed to “examine, prioritize and fast-track’ are: the Petroleum Industry Bill; National Development Bank of Nigeria (Establishment) Bill; Nigerian Ports and Habours Authority Act (Amendment) Bill; National Road Fund (Establishment) Bill; National Transport Commission Act of 2001; Warehouse Receipts Act (Amendment) Bill; Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA); Investment and Securities Act (ISA); Customs and Excise Management Act; Federal Competition Bill; National Road Authority Bill To retain credit and credibility for these well thought out and timely recommendations, the Senate must make good on its promise to pass these laws as soon as possible. That will be the true icing on the cake of economic recovery.

•Adakole is a public analyst based in Lagos

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T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2016

CITYSTRINGS

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

Touching Lives Recently, 45 indigent persons were showered with gifts and cash donations by the NASFAT Agency for ZAKAT and SADAQAT, a non-governmental organisation which gives succour to the needy in the society. Peter Uzoho captures the emotional moments of this life-changing experience

Y

ou could see the frustration written on their faces as they walked into the venue at the Nigerian Institute of Town Planners Hall, Alausa, Ikeja, that Sunday morning where the disbursement took place. One is visually impaired while two other women are on the wheelchairs. The other 42 beneficiaries were able men and women who have seen the other side of life and thought all their hope was lost. So they sat down quietly while the women among them offered prayers intermittently. And even in their state of despair, they were still hopeful. Afterall, the outcome of that day would have a positive impact that would shape their future.

In what could be tagged a life changing experience, on Sunday October 2, 2016, 45 beneficiaries went home with various items and cash donations worth eight million Naira at a disbursement of ZAKAT and SADAQAT ceremony organised by the NASFAT Agency for ZAKAT and SADAQAT (NAZAS), a nongovernmental organisation saddled with the responsibility of taking care of the needy in the society. The agency was able to achieve all of these with the support and commitments of the donors and kind-hearted Nigerians who have volunteered to part with some of their yearly earnings in form of Zakat.

Though incorporated on January 31st January 2014, NAZAS commenced operations in May 2014 with the recruitment of the pioneer general and operations manager, and eight board of directors who are specialists in their fields.

The agency was formally launched on June 21st 2014 which coincided with the first day of Ramadan.

Committed to touching lives, the agency swung into action immediately through empowerment and scholarship programmes. The past 235 beneficiaries impacted by NAZAS range from 86 students on educational scholarship support, which cuts across primary, secondary, tertiary, visually impaired, law school and prison inmates. It also embarked on empowerment and business support for 15 persons/SMEs, debts bail-out for six persons, health related cases/medical support for 15 persons, business and accommodation support for six converts/ reverts to Islam. And currently,, 42 students are on regular annual scholarship list.

The agency’s benevolent act is not limited to individuals alone as it had reached out to the vulnerable within the society. In March 2016, it dispatched the first batch of relief materials to the Internally Displaced Persons camps in Borno, Yobe and Gombe States. This was jointly executed by NAZAS and MPAC (Muslim Public Affairs Centre). Also, through its public health initiative, the agency is collaborating with Islamic Medical Association of Nigeria (IMAN) to provide free medical services to the downtrodden in underserved location.

That Sunday event tagged two in one began with its maiden annual general meeting headed by the agency’s chairman board of director and managing director of Accenture Nigeria, Mr. Niyi Yusuf. The purpose was to give accout of their activities in the past years. At the commencement of the programme in 2014, the agency doled out over 36 million on empowerment programme while in June 2016 during Ramadan, it also gave out six million Naira. The third intervention was eight million which included items and cash donations. Some of the items given out according to the needs of the beneficiaries were industrial machine, sewing machine, wiping machine, deep freezer.

After the AGM came the moment they beneficiaries had been waiting for.

Mrs. Aisha Ogunbayo, a physically challenged mother of three who was brought in a wheel chair could not hide her joy for this kind gesture from NAZAS when she was called to come

The agency’s benevolent act is not limited to individuals alone as it had reached out to the vulnerable within the society. In March 2016, it dispatched the first batch of relief materials to the Internally Displaced Persons camps in Borno, Yobe and Gombe States

L-R: Abdulbasit Ahmed, Toib Ahmed and visually impaired Ahmed Ahmed Muhamed, receiving cheque from Alhaji Remi

L-R: Mrs. Muyibat Ibrahim receiving cheque from Alhaji Abdulrahman Abdulwahab while Alhaja Bola Kupolati watches

and receive a cheque of N200, 000 to revive her chemical business. “Is this real?” Ogunbayo asked rhetorically. “Nobody has ever done this to me”. She was murmuring as she was being wheeled to the front table. In an interview with journalists, Ogunbayo who has been on the wheel chair since age eight couldn’t believe her fortune.

“This is real. But at the initial stage I was skeptical about it. I am into chemical business but I have been having financial difficulty. I discussed with one of the members and my husband also persuaded me to apply for it.

With this intervention, NAZAS have bailed me out of poverty. I would be grateful for ever.”

For Ashafa Amoke, a single mother and a seamstress, she couldn’t have wished for a better Sunday. She got sewing machine, wiping machine and a cash donation to equip her business. “NAZAS is God sent. I am a tailor. I finished my apprenticeship in 2005 with only one machine. Since then I have been struggling to make ends meet. I have not been able to raise money to equip my shop. I pray to God to give me the enablement to be able to pay back. God will continue to bless them and their businesses and as God prospers the work of my hands I will be able to pay my Zakat. And to the people out there NAZAS empowerment

is real.”

Just like Ashafa, Taofeek Ahmed who completed his apprenticeship since 2004 has been managing with people because he didn’t have the financial capacity to set up his own workshop. He also received cash donation.

“I am happy today that I am becoming my own boss. Today, is a turning point in my life because God has used them for me to be able to become a man of my own. With this money, I would be able to buy welding machine, filing machine, and all the equipment needed. God has used them. I never dreamt that I would receive such amount of money that would be enough to stand on my own.”

One of the beneficiaries, Abdulfatai Onasanya, a transporter also has a story to tell. “I am a transporter. I had a danfo that had been grounded for years. I have three children and in order for my family not to go hungry, I went into petty trading. With this money I will be able to bring my bus back on the road. Today, my hope is renewed and I am back to business.

What can I say? I thank the coordinators of this life changing empowerment programme.”

And for 45 years old Ranti Sodeinde, a petty trader at Ojota garage that Sunday would remain evergreen as she also got fund to revive her business. The 45 year old mother of two lost

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T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2016

CITYSTRINGS

L-R: Mrs. Olubori Falilat Olubunmi receiving cheque from Alhaji Abdulateef Lawal while Alhaja Bola Kupolati watches

L-R: Alhaji Banji Sarumoh, Mr. Niyi Yusuf presenting cheque to Mrs. Ayisat Ogunbanjo and Alhaja Bola Kupolati. at the event

Babalola while Alhaja Bola Kupolati watches

L-R: Alhaji Banji Sarumoh, Rukayat Ashafa Amoke and Alhaja Bola Kupolati

her husband 11 years ago and life has become unbearable for her and her children. “I have been shouldering the responsibility in the last 11 years. My deep freezer that I used to put my soft drink has broken down. I also do catering rentals but I need money to keep it going. I am elated and excited. I pray that their children will not go hungry.”

Aileru Zainab, one of the organisers and a beneficiary, who was given a generating set, deep freezer and a cheque was also full of gratitude. According to her, she would want to invest into the chemical business and soft drinks. She prays that God will bless the work of her hands so she can also give back to the society.

Falilat Olubori, also received a cheque of N300,000 to expand her business said “I am elated. I used to work in an office but decided to resign and be on my own. Things were not rosy for me. This fund will revive my vision, dreams, and business. There are many of us who wanted help but I was among the chosen.

I really appreciate this kind gesture. God bless them.”

For Akewusola Shakirudeen, father of one and an unemployed marketing graduate of Lagos State University since 2008, the intervention was timely. “Since I graduated in 2008, I have

not engaged in any meaningful job. I had a brief stint with LASU Muslim community for two years. I also worked with LASU External Systems for two years before we were laid off.

Since then life has been difficult for me. With this N200,000 I intend to invest it in vegetable and palm oil business. Now, I will be able to put my marketing talents to good use. I pray that poverty will be far from them.”

A visually impaired Ahmed Muhammed, a 40year-old father of two, his story was pathetic.

Before his present predicament in 2003, he was into of wrist watches. He tried all he could to bring his vision back to life but everything proved abortive. Further medical tests indicated he was not suffering from Cataract of Glaucoma.

But his problem persisted. A reprieve came his way briefly but was short-lived as the vision went blank again. In the process his wife left him. Since then he has resorted to begging, moving from one place to another. “I have not eaten this morning and most of the time I have to rely on benevolence for survival. My house rent has since expired, my electricity has been cut. I want to go into kerosene business so that my children can take care of it. I want to move back to my home town in Ilorin so that I can pick the pieces of my life. NAZAS has been kind to me by bailing me out of poverty. It

will be well with them and their household,” he prayed.

This is not the first time the agency would embark on intervention programme. The case of Lawal Ibrahim Temitope, a visually impaired is still fresh. Maybe he would have ended up in the street as a beggar. The agency sponsored him from secondary school to University of Lagos where he studied law and up till his law school education. Today, Lawal is a qualified lawyer.

Throwing more light on what the agency stands for, NASFAT President Worldwide, Alhaji Yomi Bolarinwa, said what the organisation is doing is not extraordinary as one of the pillars of Islam is Zakat: which means share whatever Almighty has given you with the poor.

“People have given their Zakat and we are gathered here to distribute to those who are considered less-privileged. As a Muslim, you are enjoined to pay ZAKAT and it should be distributed to those who are sick, whose bills are beyond their reach. People who cannot make ends meet, people who are supposed to work but don’t have the means. Basically, to assist people become better Muslims. If someone is gainfully employed he/she will be a better Muslim. It has been a rewarding experience touching lives.”

In an interview with journalists, Chairman, board of director of the agency and managing director of Accenture Nigeria, Yusuf said the inspiration to embark on such gesture is borne out of the five pillars of Islam which says trust in the oneness of God, observe your Salat, pay your ZAKAT, fast during Ramadan and if you have the means go for Hajji. “We realised that people try to observe all but neglect the key one which is Zakat. And this is one pillar that can help reduce poverty in the land. And this is what inspired NASFAT to establish the agency focusing on two goals of NASFAT which are education and welfare (empowerment or poverty alleviation). So far we have spent 50 million naira. These funds come through donations from both NASFAT and non-NASAFAT members. And for you to pay ZAKAT you must be qualified with a value of N750, 000 a year.”

If there is something that gives Yusuf joy, it’s their effort to touch lives through donations from kind hearted Nigerians. “I am grateful that one has been chosen to do this. It is also a sense of responsibility and trust. One has

been entrusted with the wealth of others to

Since I graduated in 2008, I have not engaged in any meaningful job. I had a brief stint with LASU Muslim community for two years. I also worked with LASU External Systems for two years before we were laid off. Since then life has been difficult for me. With this N200,000 I intend to invest it in vegetable and palm oil business. Now, I will be able to put my marketing talents to good use. I pray that poverty will be far from them

cater for the needs of the less-privileged. It is a sense of accomplishment and gratitude that little one we are doing is helping others.”

Apart from consolidating on the achievements recorded so far, the agency is now aiming to expand its operation beyond Lagos State to significantly increase the opportunity to make a difference and provide more succour to the needy.

“We started in 2014 and in the last two years, we have been operating in Lagos. In the last board meeting we are looking at expanding to Ogun State and Abuja being the capital.

As the agency progresses, there are two things that can give Yusuf a maximum fulfillment. “I will be happy the day we spread our tentacles beyond Lagos and its environs by going national, I mean spreading to the 36 states of the federation. In the last two years we have been able to distribute 50 million naira. I will be fulfilled the day we get to distributing one billion naira. This will show that we have done a lot in impacting humanity,” he concluded.

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FRIDAY OCTOMBER 14, 2016 • T H I S D AY

INTERNATIONAL More Women Accuse Trump of Touching them Inappropriately

email:foreigndesk@thisdaylive.com

Zacheaus Somorin in Washington DC with agency report Two women told The New York Times in a report published Wednesday night that Republican presidential nominee,Donald Trump, touched them inappropriately, allegations that were swiftly followed by a similar claim in People magazine.

The Times reported that Jessica Leeds and Rachel Crooks each had encounters with Trump in which he groped or kissed them without their consent. One of the alleged incidents occurred in 2005, the other more than 30 years ago.

People Magazine published a report later Wednesday night by one of its writers, Natasha Stoynoff, in which she alleged that she had been physically attacked by Trump at Mar-A-Lago while she was on assignment in December 2005 writing a profile of his first anniversary with his wife, Melania.

The Trump campaign issued a statement denying the allegations in The Times, saying the reports were politically motivated and threatening to sue the paper. “It is absurd to think that one of the most recognizable business leaders on the planet with a strong record of empowering women in his companies would do the things alleged in this story, and for this to only become public decades later in the final month of a campaign for president should say it all,” said Jason Miller, a Trump spokesman.

The campaign did not respond

to request for comment regarding the People Magazine story, but a Trump spokesperson told People, “This never happened. There is no merit or veracity to this fabricated story.”

CNN has not yet independently confirmed either The New York Times or People Magazine accounts. The women chose to tell their stories after Trump told CNN’s Anderson Cooper during the second presidential debate “no, I have not,” when asked repeatedly did he ever “kiss women without consent or grope women without consent.”

Trump told The New York Times reporter: “None of this ever took place.”

An attorney for Trump demanded a “full and immediate retraction and apology” from the Times. “Your article is reckless, defamatory and constitutes libel per se,” attorney Marc E. Kasowitz wrote in a letter to Dean Baquet, the executive editor of The New York Times. “It is apparent from, among other things, the timing of the article, that it is nothing more than a politically-motivated effort to defeat Mr. Trump’s candidacy.”

Trump is also threatening to sue The Palm Beach Post over the publication of another incident of alleged groping. Jennifer Palmieri, Hillary Clinton’s campaign communications director, issued a statement in the wake of the report, saying, “This disturbing story sadly fits everything we know about the way Donald Trump has treated women. These reports suggest that he lied on the debate stage and that the disgusting behavior he bragged about in the tape is more than just words.” The Times report

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comes in the wake of an “Access Hollywood” videotape, obtained Friday by The Washington Post, in which Trump is heard making sexually aggressive comments about women. He recounts how he tried to “fuck” an unidentified married woman before bragging that he is “automatically attracted to beautiful (women)” and just starts “kissing them.”

According to The Times, Jessica Leeds, who was 38 at the time but is now 74, said that she was on the same flight as Trump, sitting next to him in first class.

She told The Times about 45

shook hands, but Trump would not let go, she said.

Instead, he began kissing her cheeks and then he “kissed me directly on the mouth,” she told the Times. “It was so inappropriate,” Crooks said. “I was so upset that he thought I was so insignificant that he could do that.”

Neither of the women pursued legal action, but both told friends and family, who also spoke to The Times. The newspaper said Cooks described her experience immediately after it occurred while Leeds did so more recently. Corey

Lewandowski, Trump’s former campaign manager who is now a CNN contributor, told Don Lemon Wednesday he doubted the events occurred.

“I don’t think it happened,” he said on “CNN Tonight.”

“Donald Trump said it didn’t happen. And I think the people on the plane would have seen something like that occur if an octopus was assaulting a person on a plane.”In the “Access Hollywood” video, Trump bragged about trying to have sex with a married woman and being able to grope women.

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The United States military launched cruise missile strikes yesterday to knock out three coastal radar sites in areas of Yemen controlled by Iran-aligned Houthi forces, retaliating after failed missile attacks this week on a U.S. Navy destroyer, U.S. officials said.

The strikes, authorized by President Barack Obama, represent Washington’s first direct military action against suspected Houthicontrolled targets in Yemen’s conflict.

Still, the Pentagon appeared to stress the limited nature of the strikes, aimed at radar that enabled the launch of at least three missiles against the U.S. Navy ship USS Mason on Sunday and Wednesday.

“These limited self-defence strikes were conducted to protect our personnel, our ships and our freedom of navigation,” Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said. U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said U.S. Navy destroyer USS Nitze launched the Tomahawk cruise missiles around 4 a.m. (0100 GMT).

“These radars were active during previous attacks and attempted attacks on ships in the Red Sea,” including the USS Mason, one

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minutes after takeoff, Trump lifted the armrest, moved toward her and then began to grope her. The Times wrote, Trump “grabbed her breasts and tried to put his hand up her skirt,” according to Leeds’ account”He was like an octopus,” she told The Times. “His hands were everywhere.

Crooks told the Times she was kissed by Trump when she was a 22-year-old receptionist at Bayrock Group, a real estate investment and development company in Trump Tower in Manhattan. They met outside the elevator in 2005 -- she introduced herself and then they

US Military Strikes Yemen after Missile Attacks of the officials said, adding the targeted radar sites were in remote areas where the risk of civilian casualties was low.

The official identified the areas in Yemen where the radar were located as near Ras Isa, north of Mukha and near Khoka. Shipping sources told Reuters sites were hit in the Dhubab district of Taiz province, a remote area overlooking the Bab al-Mandab Straight known for fishing and smuggling.

The failed missile attacks on the USS Mason appeared to be part of the reaction to a suspected Saudiled strike on mourners gathered in Yemen’s Houthi-held capital Sanaa. The Houthis, who are battling the internationally-recognised government of Yemen President Abd Rabbu Mansour al-Hadi, denied any involvement in Sunday’s attempt to strike the USS Mason.

Yesterday, the Houthis reiterated a denial that they carried out the strikes and said they did not come from areas under their control, a news agency controlled by the group reported a military source as saying.

The allegations were false pretexts to “escalate aggression and cover up

crimes committed against the Yemeni people”, the source said. U.S. officials have told Reuters there were growing indications that Houthi fighters, or forces aligned with them, were responsible for Sunday’s attempted strikes, in which two coastal cruise missiles designed to target ships failed to reach the destroyer.

The missile incidents, along with an Oct. 1 strike on a vessel from the United Arab Emirates, add to questions about safety of passage for military ships around the Bab al-Mandab Strait, one of the world’s busiest shipping routes.

The Houthis, who are allied to Hadi’s predecessor Ali Abdullah Saleh, have the support of many army units and control most of the north, including the capital Sanaa. The Pentagon warned against any future attacks.

“The United States will respond to any further threat to our ships and commercial traffic, as appropriate,” Cook said.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE), a leading member of a Saudi-led Arab coalition fighting to end Houthi control, denounced the attacks on the Mason as an attempt to target the freedom of

navigation and to inflame the regional situation.

Michael Knights, an expert on Yemen’s conflict at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, suggested the Houthis, fighters from a Shi’ite sect, could be becoming more militarily aligned with groups such as Lebanon’s Shi’ite militant group Hezbollah.

“Targeting U.S. warships is a sign that the Houthis have decided to join the axis of resistance that currently includes Lebanese Hezbollah, Hamas and Iran,” Knight said. Although Thursday’s strikes against the radar aim to undercut the ability to track and target U.S. ships, the Houthis are still believed to possess missiles that could pose a threat.

Reuters has reported that the coastal defence cruise missiles used against the USS Mason had considerable range, fuelling concern about the kind of weaponry the Houthis appear willing to employ and some of which, U.S. officials believe, is supplied by Iran. One of the missiles fired on Sunday travelled more than two dozen nautical miles before splashing into the Red Sea off Yemen’s southern coast, one U.S. official said.

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FRIDAY OCTOMBER 14, 2016 • T H I S D AY

INTERNATIONAL Taliban Fighters Ambush, Kill Retreating Afghan Troops Taliban militants ambushed and killed around 100 Afghan police and soldiers earlier this week as they tried to retreat, the heaviest losses suffered by government forces during months of fierce clashes near the capital of southern Helmand province.

On Tuesday, dozens of Afghan police and soldiers were cut down as they withdrew from their positions in Chah-e-Anjir, about 12 km outside the city of Lashkar Gah, having been surrounded and besieged for days.

“We were one battalion there and, except me and two others, no one came out alive,” Faiz Mohammad, an army soldier

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I,formerly known and addressed as ESTHER TUKPAERE EGBE now wish to be known and addressed as MITIYA ENEWARIKPAMI,.

All documents remain valid. Fidelity Bank and the general public should please take note.

I,formerly known and addressed as PATIENCE MBANG USANG now wish to be known and addressed as PATIENCE REUBEN JAJA. All documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

EMUREN WARREN EBIKAPAYE and EMUREN WARREN is one and the same person. First Bank, Sterling Bank Plc and the general public pls take note.

I Formally known and addressed as OKOJIE SANDRA OMONIGHO wish to be known as NWODO SANDRA OMONIGHO. All former documents remain valid. Generally public should take note.

I Formally known and addressed as ABUDUL RASIDI AMINU GAZALI wish to be known as ABDUL RASHEED AMINU GAZALI. All former documents remain valid. Generally public should take note.

I Formally known and addressed as ONI OLASUPO OLADAPO wish to be known as ONI OLASUPO SUNDAY. All former documents remain valid. Generally public should take note.

who survived the ambush, told Reuters in Lashkar Gah, a bloodied bandage wrapped around his head.

Afghan Taliban fighters have pushed into some areas of Lashkar Gah, firing rockets at government buildings and sparking a new wave of residents fleeing the city.

The sustained assault is the most serious threat to security in Afghanistan since the brief capture of the northern city of Kunduz a year ago, and underlines the government’s precarious defences despite support from U.S.-led foreign forces.

One senior security official put the death toll from the Chah-e-Anjir incident at around 90, while other

CHANGE OF NAME

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I,formerly known and addressed as JOYCE IKINO EDIRI now wish to be known and addressed as JOYCE IKINO ELETUODIBO. All documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

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I,formerly known and addressed as MISS BECKY ANWURI OBINDA now wish to be known and addressed as MRS BECKY ANWURI MGBECHI DENSON. All documents remain valid.

NYSC and the general public should please take note.

I Formally known and addressed as UMARU BABUGA wish to be known as MOHAMMED UMAR BABUGA. All former documents remain valid.

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I Formally known and addressed as MOHAMMED LAWAL ALIYU wish to be known as MOHAMMED LAWAL DAUDA. All former documents remain valid.

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I Formally known and addressed as MISS SADIQ MODINAT OLUWATOYIN wish to be known as MRS EDWARD OLUWATOYIN OLAYINKA. All former documents remain valid.

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I Formally known and addressed as MISS ADANMA OGECHI LUCKY UMESURU wish to be known as MRS ADANMA LUCKY UMESURU CHINEMEREM. All former documents remain valid.

Generally public should take note.

My full name is MBANEFO UCHEY EMMANUEL, my documents bearing MBANEFO UCHEY and MBANEFO UCHEY E. remains valid. The general public should please take note.

sources said it was likely to be higher. “As they (government forces) were coming towards Lashkar Gah, they were ambushed in three locations,” the official said.

Dozens of other security personnel surrendered during the debacle, while Taliban gunmen seized at least 22 armoured Humvees, dozens of trucks, and hundreds of rifles, he said. Taliban spokesman Qari Yousuf Ahmadi said that account was accurate, and that militants killed and captured dozens of troops.

Mohammad Rasool Zazai, spokesman for the army’s 215th Corps in Helmand, said reinforcements had been working on a plan to relieve police and soldiers in Chah-e-Anjir, but they left their positions before an operation was launched.

“We were in contact with the troops there and the plan was to bring them back to Lashkar Gah to protect the city, but they decided to move without coordinating with us and they were ambushed by the Taliban.”

Afghan officials say security forces are losing as many as 5,000 people each month through casualties and desertion, while only about 3,000 new soldiers and police are recruited over the same period.

With the Taliban on the offensive in several parts of Afghanistan, many new recruits are deployed to the front lines with only a few weeks of training, putting extra burden on elite special forces to do much of the fighting.

CHANGE OF NAME I formerly known and addressed as EMMANUEL MARTHA NDIDI, now wish to be known and addressed as ISOJE MARTHA NDIDI. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as HASSAN IBRAHIM DAN KAKA, now wish to be known and addressed as HASSAN IBRAHIM. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as CHRISTIANA EFFIONG, now wish to be known and addressed as UKANA TINA. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as SHUIBU ALIYU, now wish to be known and addressed as ABUBAKAR SHUIBU ALIYU. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

CHANGE OF NAME I, formally known and addressed as MISS ADENIKE ADELEYE, henceforth wish to be known and addressed as MRS ADENIKE ADEKOYA. All former documents remain valid. Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), all other government parastatals and the general public to take note.

I formerly known and addressed as ABISOLA OLAITAN OLADAPO, now wish to be known and addressed as ABISOLA OLAITAN ODUTOLA. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

I formerly known and addressed as MISS EKANEM EKPENYONG OR MISS EKANEM ASUQUO EKPENYONG, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS EKANEM EKPENYONG ADEBANJO. All former documents remain valid. The general public should please take note.

WORLD OF ISLAM

Edited by: MJO Mustapha Email deji.mustapha@thisdaylive.com

Words of Wisdom

by Luqman – I IqraSense (from Quran and Ibn Katthir’s Book)

W

isdom provides us with the capacity to solve real life problems. So, acquiring wisdom becomes a must if we want to live meaningful lives. As we live through life and its experiences, it is vital that we reflect on such experiences to make our subsequent steps in life easier. As Immanuel Kant, a famous philosopher said that “Science is organized knowledge.

Wisdom is organized life.”

So, if wisdom enables a person to make more sound decisions, take a shortcut path to success, recalibrate values for the better, and simply live a better life, then why not spend time reflecting on our own experiences as well as learning from others? As Will Durant, a renowned philosopher and Pulitzer Prize winner stated, “A wise man can learn from another man’s experience; a fool cannot learn even from his own.”

The words of the Quran and teachings of our Prophet Muhammad guide us to a wealth of wisdom and knowledge.

In fact, Allah calls Quran the “Book of wisdom” in many places in the Quran.

He says: “A.L.R. These are the ayats of the Book of wisdom.” (Yunus, Chapter 10, Verse 1). The Almighty also says: “We have sent it down as an Arabic Quran, in order that ye may learn wisdom.”

(Yusuf, Chapter 12, Verse 2) Quran emphasizes the importance of wisdom throughout its text. Allah sent prophets and messengers to propagate that wisdom. He says in one of such verses: “A similar (favor have ye already received) is that We have sent among you a Messenger of your own, rehearsing to you Our Signs, and sanctifying you, and instructing you in Scripture and wisdom, and in new knowledge.” (AlBaqara, Chapter 2, Verse 151)” In its text, Quran also teaches wisdom through the words of a person named Luqman. Although not a prophet, Allah had granted him enormous wisdom.

He was wise enough to have an entire chapter named after him. He was a pious person and according to the Quran was granted wisdom by Allah. As Allah says in the Quran: And indeed We bestowed upon Luqman Al-Hikmah (wisdom and religious understanding, etc.) saying: “Give thanks to All ah,” and whoever gives thanks, he gives thanks for (the good of) his ownself. And whoever is unthankful, then verily, Allah is All Rich (Free of all wants), Worthy of all praise. (Luqman: 12) In his book “Stories of the Prophet”, Ibn Katheer writes that Luqman’s real name was known as “Luqman Ibn Anqa Ibn Sadun” or according to some “Luqman Ibn Tharan” who was from among the people of Aylah (Jerusalem) (Stated by As-Suhaili from Ibn Jarir and Al-Qutaibi). Some accounts describe him as an Ethiopian slave who worked as a carpenter. Because of his wisdom people went to him to settle their affairs and therefore he was also known to be a judge.

Although Quran makes no reference regarding him being as a prophet, it is narrated by some as described by Ibn Katheer in his book “Stories of the Prophet” that he was offered to become one. Ibn Katheer mentions, Sa’id said: I heard Qatadah as saying: It was said to Luqman: “How did you prefer wisdom to Prophethood when you were enabled to choose between them?”

He said: “If Allah were to assign me with Prophethood, I would accept it and try hard to win His Pleasure, but He enabled me to choose. I feared of being too weak for Prophethood, so I chose wisdom.”

Luqman’s Wisdom The following are the words of wisdom of Luqman as described in the Quran.

Later, another section quotes his wisdom as narrated by other reliable narrators as mentioned by Ibn Katheer in his book “Stories of the Prophets”.

Luqman’s wisdom in the Quran Luqman’s wisdom in the Quran is described in the context of him explaining it to his son. It is described in the Quran in the following verses.

•Regarding not to associate anyone in the worship and oneness of Allah – And (remember) when Luqman said to his son when he was advising him: “O my son! Join not in worship others with Allah. Verily! Joining others in worship with Allah is a great Zoolm (wrong) indeed. (Quran: Luqman: 13) •Being dutiful to ones parents – And We have enjoined on man (to be dutiful and good) to his parents.

His mother bore him in weakness and hardship upon weakness and hardship, and his weaning is in two years give thanks to Me and to your parents, unto Me is the final destination. (Quran: Luqman: 14) •Being dutiful to ones parents except where they tell you to deviate from the Right path – But if they (both) strive with you to make you join in worship with Me others that of which you have no knowledge, then obey them not, but behave with them in the world kindly, and follow the path of him who turns to Me in repentance and in obedience. Then to Me will be your return, and I shall tell you what you used to do. (Quran: Luqman: 15) •Every person is accountable for everything that he does – “O my son! If it be (anything) equal to the weight of a grain of mustard seed, and though it be in a rock, or in the heavens or in the earth, Allah will bring it forth. Verily, Allah is Subtle (in bringing out that grain), WellAware (of its place). (Quran: Luqman: 16) •Enjoining Prayers “O my son! perform AsSalat (prayers), enjoin (people) for Al-Maroof (Islamic Monotheism and all that is good), and forbid (people) from AlMunkar (i.e. disbelief in the Oneness of Allah, polytheism of all kinds and all that is evil and bad), and bear with patience whatever befalls you. Verily! These are some of the important commandments ordered by Allah with no exemption.

(Quran: Luqman: 17) •Do not be arrogant and proud “And turn not your face away from men with pride, nor walk in insolence through the earth. Verily, Allah likes not each arrogant boaster. (Quran: Luqman: 18) •Be humble and lower your voice “And be moderate (or show no insolence) in your walking, and lower your voice. Verily, the harshest of all voices is the voice (braying) of the donkey.” (Quran: Luqman: 19) To Be Continued

44

T H I S D AY • THURSDAY, OCTOBER 13, 2016

BUSINESS/MONEYGUIDE

Uber Booms in Nigeria, Eyes Expansion to French-speaking W’African Countries Nume Ekeghe with agency report Ride-hailing company Uber has offered over a million trips in Nigeria two years after it started there and is eyeing expansion to a French-speaking West African country next, its West African chief said on Thursday.

The United States tech firm operates in over 400 cities worldwide and in Africa is present in countries including South Africa and Kenya.

It began operations in Nigeria’s business capital Lagos two years ago and in Abuja, the capital city, in March.

“We recorded our millionth trip in Lagos in July,” Uber’s general manager for West Africa, Ebi Atawodi, told Reuters on the sidelines of a Nordic-African business conference in Oslo.

After launching operations in Ghana’s capital Accra in June, Uber was now eyeing to expand in a French-speaking West African country, said Atawodi, declining to say which one.

“We are always looking at cities,” she said.

In Lagos, users include professionals braving the city’s notoriously traffic-jammed roads, students sharing a car to go to one of the city’s three shopping malls, partygoers wanting to avoid drinking and driving - but also to go to a hospital.

“In the central business district of Lagos, there is one ambulance. So in an emergency, how do you get to the hospital, especially if you can’t drive?” she asked.

“People know they can get a car in less than five minutes.”

Uber wants to attract more economic activity around its platform than just offering rides, including attracting car insurers, car washers and car mechanics, as well as offering credit ratings to individuals who would not get a bank loan otherwise.

“In the West, the Uber partners (drivers) tend to drive their own vehicle. In sub-Saharan Africa, they are employed by someone who owns one or more cars and then they employ the drivers,” said Atawodi.

“What we are starting to see is that many of these people have moved on from becoming drivers to owning their own vehicles,” she said, explaining they were able to do that by providing Uber data to banks that showed how much they earned per week and how their customers rated them.

Expert Chides FG’s Economic ManagementTeam Nume Ekeghe A financial market analyst and Managing Partner of RTC Advisory Services, Mr Opeyemi Agbaje yesterday said he lacks faith in the present economic management team, just as he argued that they do not have what it takes to steer the economy out of recession.

Agbaje said this at the Risk Managers Association of Nigeria (RIMAN) quarterly meeting held in Lagos.

Agbaje who presented a paper title: “Challenges of Economic Recession: Risk Management Perspective” spoke on the issues confronting the nation’s economy. Agbaje said: “It is patent to the eye that we have a weak economic cabinet. And as long as we are debating about that, it shows we are not serious

with our economic recovery. A few day ago we learned on national TV that our minister for budget and planning was asked how much we owe and didn’t know. That was the final confirmation that they are not serious about our economy.”

He added: “All of this has created loss of confidence in the Nigerian economy. We have now moved beyond the economic argument to the fact that there is no confidence in the economy. So even if policy changes the number priority for policy direction is how to restore confidence amongst investors.”

“You might do the right thing like CBN devaluing the currency which is now weaker than it should be, but the confidence is not there anymore.”

Speaking further on policies

that lead to the crisis of the financial system, he added: “Policies have weakened the financial sector such as the Treasury Single Account (TSA), Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) charges, no commission on turnover (CoT), etc.

“The point is that policy environment has weakened the financial sector and the financial sector’s contribution to the economy is not measured by the size of GDP such as telecoms because it facilitates every other activities and banking because it is the what channels resources to the economy. So if you weaken the financial sector because of some anger or whatever, we are just shooting ourselves on the foot and the implication would be a recession.”

Stakeholders Advocate Increased Competence to Drive Business Growth Ugo Aliogo, Abdulkareem Azeezat and Saheed Sakariyah As part of efforts to drive business growth in Nigeria, stakeholders in the financial sector have advocated increased technical competence and insightful thinking amongst key players and investors in the sector.

They noted that for Nigeria’s financial industry to remain a driving force in the continent, there was need for increased engagement and adaptability to change in order to add value in the discharge of services to the public.

Disclosing this yesterday in Lagos, at the Association of Chartered Certified Accountant (ACCA) event with the theme: Embracing Change; shaping the future, the Executive Director Business Consulting at IBFC Alliance Limited, Mrs. Folashade Odunaiya, said accounting professionals should able to combine knowledge of the business financial position with strategic insights required to guide the business towards the actualisation of its strategic goals while enhancing the

value of the entire business.

Odunaiya who referred to an article in the Economist Magazine titled: “The Imperial Chief Financial Officer (CFO),” supported the stance that CFO’s role as businesses had become bigger, more complex trading across borders, and navigating financial markets with sophisticated instruments.

She urged accountants and CFOs to proactively manage these complex parts in order to ensure the sustenance and value creation for all stakeholders, adding that this is not concerned with amassing power which was portrayed in the article; but having to expand knowledge and use information to guide the entire business.

Odunaiya added: “What ACCA is doing today is shining a strong spotlight on the role of the Accountant and the CFO. As mentioned earlier, there’s nothing wrong in Accountants and CFOs being powerful - as long as it isn’t imperial or imposing but engaging; getting the “buy in” of everyone in the organisation.

“We must therefore ens ure that our power is discharged

Technical

ethically and in a constructive manner with the overriding goal of enhancing the value of the organization always in mind.”

In her remark, the Country Head of ACCA, Mrs. Toyin Ademola, said the association collaborated with its global headquarters, in organising the launch of ACCA ‘Qualification: the future’, alongside a number offices around the world, stressing that Nigeria is one of the key market for ACCA on a global scale.

She said with the fast evolving nature of businesses, and development of new technologies, employers want financial professionals who can meet their business needs, not just for today but the future.

Ademola said as a result of ACCA’s drive to constantly, create and innovate, they organised a survey last year to find out from different employers in the world of the qualifications professional accountants of the future needs to have, “for us at ACCA, we are concerned that the professional accountants have the requisite skills this is what led to the re-design of our strategic business module.”

Broad-street

MARKET INDICATORS MONEY AND CREDIT STATISTICS

(MILLION NAIRA)

MARCH 2016 Broad Money (M2)

21,684,965.22

-- Narrow Money (M1)

9,125,933.16

---- Currency Outside Banks

1,379,187.93

---- Demand Deposits

7,746,745.22

-- Quasi Money

12,559,032.07

Net Foreign Assets (NFA)

7,105,663.47

Net Domestic Assets(NDA)

14,579,301.76

-- Net Domestic Credit (NDC)

24,318,143.03

---- Credit to Government (Net)

2,893,190.01

---- Memo: Credit to Govt. (Net) less FMA

5,004,677.26

---- Memo: Fed. and Mirror Accounts (FMA)

-2,111,487.25

---- Credit to Private Sector (CPS)

21,424,953.01

--Other Assets Net

-9,738,841.27

Reserve Money (Base Money)

5,370,199.87

--Currency in Circulation

1,684,725.89

--Banks Reserves

3,685,473.98 • Source - CBN

MANAGED FUNDS Initial Price (N) Stanbic Balanced Fund

Buying Price(N)

Selling Price

1,660.29

1,685.29

Stanbic IBTC NEF

1,000.00

11,002.32

11,326.67.11

Stanbic SIBond

20

120.47

120.47

Stanbic IBTC Ethical

1

1.10

1.13

Stanbic IBTC GIF

142.90

143.38

UBA Balanced Fund

1.2563

1.2493

UBA Bond Fund

1.3443

1.3443

UBA Equity Fund

0.8205

0.8074

UBA Money Market Fund

1.1510

1.1510

ARM Aggressive Growth Fund

N13.0544

N13.4480

ARM Discovery Fund

N288.2515

N296.9425

ARM Ethical Fund

N22.5268

N23.2060

ARM Money Market Fund

13.1030 (Yield % ) • Monetary Policy Rate - 13%

OPEC DAILY BASKET PRICE AS AT, WEDNESDAY, 12 OCT 2016 Vienna, Austria, 13 October 2016--The price of OPEC basket of fourteen crudes stood at $48.69 a barrel on Wednesday, compared with $48.81 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations. The new OPEC Reference Basket of Crudes (ORB) is made up of the following: Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Oriente (Ecuador), Rabi Light (Gabon), Minas (Indonesia), Iran Heavy (Islamic Republic of Iran), Basra Light (Iraq), Kuwait Export (Kuwait), Es Sider (Libya), Bonny Light (Nigeria), Qatar Marine (Qatar), Arab Light (Saudi Arabia), Murban (UAE) and Merey (Venezuela).

SOURCE: OPEC headquarters, Vienna

45

T H I S D AY • FRIDAY OCTOBER 14, 2016

Nigeria’s top 50 stocks based on market fundamentals

13-Oct-16

12-Oct-16

% Change

Capitalisation

EPS

P/E

P/S

Div. Yld

Price/ Book Value

01 Dangote Cement Plc

183.00

183.00

0.00%

3,118,412,855,115.00

9.56

19.14

5.76

4.37%

4.58

02 Nigerian Breweries Plc

149.20

147.98

0.82%

1,183,021,852,489.60

4.50

33.19

3.95

2.41%

7.27

03 Guaranty Trust Bank Plc

22.86

24.00

-4.75%

672,796,757,060.64

4.20

5.45

1.88

7.74%

1.49

805.57

805.57

0.00%

638,540,096,923.64

19.41

41.50

3.85

3.60%

18.15

15.06

15.10

-0.26%

472,831,196,417.16

3.10

4.86

1.13

11.95%

0.76

385.88

385.88

0.00%

213,511,383,580.44 -14.43

-26.74

2.28

4.13%

0.57

07 Lafarge Africa Plc

45.60

46.81

-2.58%

207,703,522,536.00

-6.71

-6.80

0.93

6.58%

1.48

08 Ecobank Transnational Incorporated

11.10

11.16

-0.54%

203,680,018,486.50

0.23

48.31

0.38

5.59%

0.34

152.00

159.69

-4.82%

197,977,127,656.00

3.31

45.97

1.28

2.27%

4.58

10 Unilever Nigeria Plc

45.90

45.90

0.00%

173,653,297,875.00

0.46

99.26

2.85

0.11%

19.49

11 Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc

16.50

17.10

-3.51%

165,000,000,000.00

2.04

8.10

1.40

0.61%

1.47

5.60

5.65

-0.88%

161,996,641,133.60

2.56

2.19

0.47

9.82%

0.38

40.25

40.25

0.00%

159,811,701,061.25

0.03 1,376.55

2.24

3.23%

3.82

4.25

4.31

-1.39%

154,187,986,868.50

1.75

2.43

0.46

14.12%

0.36

15 Guinness Nig Plc

80.06

79.74

0.40%

120,561,408,331.28

-1.34

-59.81

1.18

4.00%

2.89

16 FBN Holdings Plc

2.99

3.02

-0.99%

107,326,925,448.08

0.30

9.81

0.21

5.02%

0.18

17 7-Up Bottling Comp. Plc

154.50

158.00

-2.22%

98,971,211,083.50

3.75

41.22

1.11

1.42%

3.84

18 Total Nigeria Plc

289.50

289.50

0.00%

98,291,571,811.50

31.13

9.30

0.41

4.84%

4.66

6.50

6.32

2.85%

78,000,000,000.00

1.05

6.19

0.65

7.69%

1.31

186.00

185.00

0.54%

67,070,718,732.00

17.69

10.51

0.81

3.87%

3.90

19.99

19.99

0.00%

65,852,043,107.20

0.17

114.59

2.64

1.25%

5.34

5.16

5.20

-0.77%

62,098,633,493.04

-3.46

-1.49

0.33

14.53%

0.45

23 Flour Mills Nig. Plc

20.13

20.05

0.40%

52,825,894,574.31

6.81

2.96

0.14

9.94%

0.53

24 Julius Berger Nig. Plc

40.00

40.00

0.00%

52,800,000,000.00

0.24

165.22

0.51

3.75%

2.35

25 U A C N Plc

20.80

20.80

0.00%

39,953,979,249.60

2.44

8.53

0.55

4.81%

0.54

1.00

1.03

-2.91%

38,720,997,425.00

-0.37

-2.68

0.86

0.00%

0.51

27 Okomu Oil Palm Plc

40.11

40.11

0.00%

38,261,330,100.00

4.60

8.73

3.11

0.25%

2.46

28 Cadbury Nigeria Plc

16.49

16.49

0.00%

30,971,551,639.60

0.83

19.97

1.12

7.88%

2.49

29 Sterling Bank Plc

1.04

1.05

-0.95%

29,942,034,851.04

0.31

3.37

0.28

8.65%

0.36

30 Diamond Bank Plc

1.19

1.14

4.39%

27,560,862,871.92

0.11

10.78

0.13

0.00%

0.12

31 Fidelity Bank Plc

0.86

0.88

-2.27%

24,907,823,695.12

0.39

2.21

0.17

18.60%

0.14

32 Wema Bank Plc

0.62

0.65

-4.62%

23,916,168,970.22

0.06

9.83

0.49

0.00%

0.51

33 Custodian And Allied Insurance Plc

4.00

4.00

0.00%

23,527,456,780.00

0.76

5.26

0.70

3.50%

0.84

34 Cap Plc

33.25

33.25

0.00%

23,275,000,000.00

2.36

14.10

3.35

3.46%

15.94

35 Glaxo Smithkline Consumer Nig. Plc

18.39

18.39

0.00%

21,992,168,614.32

-2.54

-7.24

0.75

1.63%

2.41

36 FCMB Group Plc

1.09

1.12

-2.68%

21,584,954,751.29

0.61

1.78

0.13

9.17%

0.12

37 National Salt Co. Nig. Plc

8.00

8.00

0.00%

21,195,507,024.00

0.89

9.03

1.17

6.88%

3.07

38 Mansard Insurance Plc

2.00

2.00

0.00%

21,000,000,000.00

0.27

7.36

1.09

2.50%

0.99

39 PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc

18.00

18.64

-3.43%

18,000,000,000.00

4.14

4.35

1.36

0.56%

0.54

40 Continental Reinsurance Plc

1.00

1.00

0.00%

10,372,744,312.00

0.33

3.04

0.50

12.00%

0.54

41 Honeywell Flour Mill Plc

1.30

1.29

0.78%

10,309,256,955.40

-0.40

-3.22

0.21

12.31%

0.63

42 Skye Bank Plc

0.61

0.62

-1.61%

8,466,983,860.10

-2.93

-0.21

0.05

49.18%

0.08

43 Unity Bank Plc

0.70

0.70

0.00%

8,182,536,559.40

0.54

1.29

0.13

0.00%

0.10

44 Cement Co. Of North.Nig. Plc

5.50

5.70

-3.51%

6,911,727,713.00

0.44

12.42

0.62

1.82%

0.64

45 Wapic Insurance Plc

0.50

0.52

-3.85%

6,691,369,126.00

0.11

4.62

0.88

6.00%

0.43

46 UACN Property Development Co. Limited

3.41

3.58

-4.75%

5,860,937,482.95

-0.05

-65.40

1.74

20.53%

0.16

47 Resort Savings & Loans Plc

0.50

0.50

0.00%

5,664,866,202.00

4.68

0.11

0.02

0.00%

1.89

48 Nigerian Aviation Handling Company Plc

3.30

3.17

4.10%

5,359,921,875.00

0.15

21.40

0.67

6.06%

0.87

49 AIICO Insurance Plc

0.60

0.61

-1.64%

4,158,122,688.00

0.26

2.30

0.13

8.33%

0.44

50 Fidson Healthcare Plc

1.58

1.58

0.00%

2,370,000,000.00

0.31

5.15

0.35

3.16%

0.37

04 Nestle Nigeria Plc 05 Zenith Bank Plc 06 Seplat Petroleum Dev. Co. Ltd

09 Forte Oil Plc.

12 Access Bank Plc 13 Presco Plc 14 United Bank for Africa Plc

19 Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc 20 Mobil Oil Nig Plc 21 International Breweries Plc 22 Oando Plc

26 Transnational Corporation Of Nigeria Plc

TOTAL

9,006,081,146,530.20

TOTAL MARKET CAP

9,567,567,115,592.88

% OF MARKET CAP Annotation - MA* = Simple Moving Average

94.13%

Table 1 Market Statistics Mkt Indicators

Open 12-Oct-16

NSE All Share Index NSE Market Cap (N'Trillion)

28,027.23 9.63

27,854.78 9.57

-0.62 -0.62

116.39 9.06

115.67 9.01

-0.62 -0.62

Thisday BGL 50 Index Thisday BGL 50 Market Cap (N'Trillion)

Close 13-Oct-16

Change %

Table 3 Top 5 Gainers Stock

Open Close Change 12-Oct-16 13-Oct-16 %

Diamond Bank Plc Nigerian Aviation Handling Company Plc Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc Nigerian Breweries Plc Honeywell Flour Mill Plc

1.14 3.17

1.19 3.30

4.39 4.10

6.32 147.98 1.29

6.50 149.20 1.30

2.85 0.82 0.78

Table 4 Top 5 Losers Stock

Open Close Change 12-Oct-16 13-Oct-16 %

Forte Oil Plc. Guaranty Trust Bank Plc UACN Property Development Co. Limited Wema Bank Plc Wapic Insurance Plc

159.69 24.00 3.58

152.00 22.86 3.41

-4.82 -4.75 -4.75

0.65 0.52

0.62 0.50

-4.62 -3.85

All Share Index slides further by 0.62% Market pulse on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) today – Thursday, October 13th, 2016 ended on a negative note as the stock market closed red for two consecutive days. This was further highlighted by negative performances from the NSE Sub sectors: Banking, Insurance and Oil & Gas (Save Consumer Goods). Trading activities increased in volume as 380.75 million shares worth of N1.83 billion in 2,954 deals exchanged hands today. This is an increase from the 155.58 million shares worth of N1.43 billion in 3,277 deals which exchanged on Wednesday. Topping in volume terms were Access Bank Plc, Diamond Bank Plc and Fidelity Bank Plc, while Access Bank Plc and Guaranty Trust Bank Plc ended trading as the most active stocks in value terms.

The All Share Index (NSEASI) closed negative with 0.62% (-172.45) decrease to close at 27,854.78 from 28,027.23 the previous trading day. Market Capitalization depreciated in tandem to N9.57 trillion from N9.63 trillion of prior trading day.

Similarly, the Thisday BGL 50 Index followed suit with a decrease of 0.62% to close at 115.67 from 116.39 recorded at the end of the previous trading day, while its market capitalization stood at 9.01 trillion from 9.06 trillion of the previous trading day.

A total number of 11 stocks gained on the bourse today while 27 stocks declined, 61 leaving stocks unchanged. Diamond Bank Plc emerged as the day’s toast of investors as it topped the Thisday BGL 50 Index gainers’ list with a gain of 4.39% to close at N1.19 per share. It was followed

by Nigerian Aviation Handling Company Plc with a gain of 4.10% to close at N3.30 per share. Others on the gainers list include: Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc, Nigerian Breweries Plc and Honeywell Flour Mill Plc; while on the decliners’ list, Forte Oil Plc led with a loss of 4.82% to close at N152.00 per share. It was followed by Guaranty Trust Bank Plc with a loss of 4.75% to close at N22.86 per share.

Others on the decliners list include: UACN Property Development Co. Limited, Wema Bank Plc and Wapic Insurance Plc. REQUIRED DISCLOSURE This report has been prepared by BGL Plc. BGL Plc does and seeks to do business with companies covered in its research reports. As a result, the firm may have a conflict of interest that could affect the objectivity of this report. Investors should use this report as one of many other factors in making their investment decisions.

For more details go to www.thisdaylive.com

46

T H I S D AY •THURSDAY, OCTOBER 13, 2016

MARKET NEWS

Forte Oil Records N3 Billion Profit After Tax in Nine Months

Goddy Egene and Nosa Alekhuogie

Integrated energy company, Forte Oil Plc, has reported a profit after tax (PAT) of N2.8 billion for the nine months ended September 30, 2016, showing a decline of 34.7 per cent compared to N4.3 billion in the corresponding period of 2015.

Although the company’s top lines showed growths,

higher cost of finance and tax expenses compressed the bottomline.

Forte Oil Plc recorded a gross revenue of N121.1 billion in 2016, showing an increase of 32.2 per cent from N91.6 billion in 2015. Cost of sale rose by 34.3 per cent from N78.6 billion to N105 billion, while profit before tax (PBT) stood at N15.5 billion, showing an increase of 19.4 per cent.

The company was able to

T H E MAIN BOARD

DEALS

MARKET PRICE

keep operating expenses flat at N9.9 billion, against N10 billion in 2015. While other income fell by 13.9 per cent from N2.7 billion to N2.3 billion, net finance cost soared by 663 per cent to N2.2 billion.

Consequently, the company ended the nine months with profit before tax (PBT) of N5.6 billion, from N5.3 billion in 2015. However, tax expenses rose by 182.6 per cent from N1.0 billion to N2.8 billion,

N I G E R I A N QUANTITY TRADED

STO C K

VALUE TRADED ( N )

Daily Summary as of 22/02/2016 Printed 22/02/2016 14:36:10.010

Daily Summary (Bonds) No Debt Trading Activity Daily Summary (Equities) Activity Summary on Board EQTY AGRICULTURE Crop Production OKOMU OIL PALM PLC. PRESCO PLC Crop Production Totals Livestock/Animal Specialties LIVESTOCK FEEDS PLC. Livestock/Animal Specialties Totals AGRICULTURE Totals CONGLOMERATES Diversified Industries A.G. LEVENTIS NIGERIA PLC. TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATION OF NIGERIA PLC U A C N PLC. Diversified Industries Totals CONGLOMERATES Totals CONSTRUCTION/REAL ESTATE Infrastructure/Heavy Construction JULIUS BERGER NIG. PLC. Infrastructure/Heavy Construction Totals Real Estate Development UACN PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT CO. LIMITED Real Estate Development Totals CONSTRUCTION/REAL ESTATE Totals CONSUMER GOODS Beverages--Brewers/Distillers CHAMPION BREW. PLC. GUINNESS NIG PLC INTERNATIONAL BREWERIES PLC. NIGERIAN BREW. PLC. Beverages--Brewers/Distillers Totals Beverages--Non-Alcoholic 7-UP BOTTLING COMP. PLC. Beverages--Non-Alcoholic Totals Food Products DANGOTE SUGAR REFINERY PLC FLOUR MILLS NIG. PLC. HONEYWELL FLOUR MILL PLC NASCON ALLIED INDUSTRIES PLC N NIG. FLOUR MILLS PLC. TIGER BRANDED CONSUMER GOODS PLC Food Products Totals Food Products--Diversified CADBURY NIGERIA PLC. NESTLE NIGERIA PLC. Food Products--Diversified Totals Household Durables VITAFOAM NIG PLC. Household Durables Totals Personal/Household Products P Z CUSSONS NIGERIA PLC. UNILEVER NIGERIA PLC. Personal/Household Products Totals CONSUMER GOODS Totals FINANCIAL SERVICES Banking ACCESS BANK PLC. DIAMOND BANK PLC ECOBANK TRANSNATIONAL INCORPORATED FIDELITY BANK PLC GUARANTY TRUST BANK PLC. SKYE BANK PLC STERLING BANK PLC. UNITED BANK FOR AFRICA PLC UNION BANK NIG.PLC. UNITY BANK PLC WEMA BANK PLC. Banking Totals Insurance Carriers, Brokers and Services AIICO INSURANCE PLC. CONTINENTAL REINSURANCE PLC CONSOLIDATED HALLMARK INSURANCE PLC LASACO ASSURANCE PLC. AXAMANSARD INSURANCE PLC N.E.M INSURANCE CO (NIG) PLC. UNITY KAPITAL ASSURANCE PLC WAPIC INSURANCE PLC Insurance Carriers, Brokers and Services Totals Micro-Finance Banks NPF MICROFINANCE BANK PLC Micro-Finance Banks Totals Other Financial Institutions AFRICA PRUDENTIAL REGISTRARS PLC CUSTODIAN AND ALLIED PLC FCMB GROUP PLC. STANBIC IBTC HOLDINGS PLC UNITED CAPITAL PLC Other Financial Institutions Totals FINANCIAL SERVICES Totals HEALTHCARE Pharmaceuticals FIDSON HEALTHCARE PLC

hence PAT fell to N2.8 billion, down from N4.3 billion.

The company had posted a growth of 31 per cent in PBT for the half year (HI) ended June 30, 2016. Explaining the HI performance Group Chief Executive Officer of Forte Oil, Mr. Akin Akinfemiwa, had attributed it to aggressive sale drive, strategic retail acquisition, and prudent approach to cost containment.

According to him, HI revenue

6 6 12

30.00 34.00

12,629 11,640 24,269

374,530.15 421,345.20 795,875.35

19 19 31

1.25

1,078,511 1,078,511 1,102,780

1,358,964.30 1,358,964.30 2,154,839.65

5 68 13 86 86

0.77 1.13 20.47

33,500 6,740,423 65,995 6,839,918 6,839,918

25,070.00 7,635,453.96 1,344,425.15 9,004,949.11 9,004,949.11

13 13

41.50

31,970 31,970

1,409,214.78 1,409,214.78

5 5 18

5.20

28,901 28,901 60,871

154,716.48 154,716.48 1,563,931.26

6 24 7 98 135

2.85 118.85 20.00 99.00

190,900 53,000 15,200 429,541 688,641

528,079.00 6,201,924.95 293,757.00 42,728,789.84 49,752,550.79

9 9

168.50

166,476 166,476

28,285,937.95 28,285,937.95

54 38 6 12 1 29 140

5.61 19.00 1.37 6.86 6.65 1.27

2,120,306 314,421 40,000 119,863 433 3,285,739,119 3,288,334,142

11,610,520.13 5,953,792.96 55,716.00 842,442.48 2,736.56 4,074,348,894.07 4,092,814,102.20

11 54 65

17.86 700.00

18,825 98,360 117,185

329,518.50 68,567,962.00 68,897,480.50

11 11

4.46

99,050 99,050

420,455.00 420,455.00

13 21 34 394

21.90 28.00

36,887 133,117 170,004 3,289,575,498

820,034.75 3,737,067.92 4,557,102.67 4,244,727,629.11

82 51 21 25 200 41 16 147 11 15 67 676

4.10 1.49 15.60 1.21 16.70 1.07 1.76 2.95 5.30 0.63 0.98

3,962,506 2,163,396 278,470 790,900 4,847,312 1,969,858 1,204,932 8,586,418 39,752 501,617 5,920,564 30,265,725

16,210,255.82 3,314,106.88 4,136,459.40 958,864.34 80,963,793.44 2,115,552.11 2,087,767.85 25,302,954.71 205,645.40 316,018.71 5,813,502.17 141,424,920.83

14 8 2 3 7 10 1 1 46

0.80 0.90 0.50 0.50 2.06 0.76 0.50 0.50

200,107 276,500 5,004,000 1,000,000 351,540 327,285 37,708,135 10 44,867,577

160,838.67 251,350.00 2,502,000.00 500,000.00 720,728.80 245,325.31 18,854,067.50 5.00 23,234,315.28

1 1

1.08

4,760 4,760

4,950.40 4,950.40

31 7 105 7 20 170 893

2.46 4.00 0.85 14.15 1.31

1,149,464 27,041 31,257,120 38,035 708,255 33,179,915 108,317,977

2,830,722.84 104,002.06 26,613,309.20 537,985.34 931,556.31 31,017,575.75 195,681,762.26

27

2.69

614,065

1,572,223.05

grew as a result of ongoing strategic retail acquisitions across the country, increase in pump price of premium motor spirit and increased commercial customer base for both fuels and lubricants.

He explained that the power business contributed five per cent to revenue of the group and 15 per cent to PBT as a result of low generation due to ongoing overhaul project and gas supply constraints due to

the security challenges in the Niger delta region.

Looking ahead, the Forte Oil boss had said the company would focus on high margin products, fully exploit LPG business particularly, LPG retailing, bottle refilling, optimize and expand Geregu Power Plant Asset, diversify into upstream space through profitable acquisition of upstream assets and uptmising working capital structure.

E XC H A N G E

MAIN BOARD GLAXO SMITHKLINE CONSUMER NIG. PLC. MAY & BAKER NIGERIA PLC. NEIMETH INTERNATIONAL PHARMACEUTICALS PLC Pharmaceuticals Totals HEALTHCARE Totals ICT IT Services TRIPPLE GEE AND COMPANY PLC. IT Services Totals ICT Totals INDUSTRIAL GOODS Building Materials ASHAKA CEM PLC BERGER PAINTS PLC CAP PLC CEMENT CO. OF NORTH.NIG. PLC PORTLAND PAINTS & PRODUCTS NIGERIA PLC LAFARGE AFRICA PLC. Building Materials Totals Electronic and Electrical Products CUTIX PLC. Electronic and Electrical Products Totals Packaging/Containers BETA GLASS CO PLC. Packaging/Containers Totals INDUSTRIAL GOODS Totals OIL AND GAS Energy Equipment and Services JAPAUL OIL & MARITIME SERVICES PLC Energy Equipment and Services Totals Integrated Oil and Gas Services OANDO PLC Integrated Oil and Gas Services Totals Petroleum and Petroleum Products Distributors CONOIL PLC ETERNA PLC. FORTE OIL PLC. MOBIL OIL NIG PLC. TOTAL NIGERIA PLC. Petroleum and Petroleum Products Distributors Totals Exploration and Production SEPLAT PETROLEUM DEVELOPMENT COMPANY LTD Exploration and Production Totals OIL AND GAS Totals SERVICES Automobile/Auto Part Retailers R T BRISCOE PLC. Automobile/Auto Part Retailers Totals Courier/Freight/Delivery RED STAR EXPRESS PLC Courier/Freight/Delivery Totals Printing/Publishing LEARN AFRICA PLC Printing/Publishing Totals Transport-Related Services AIRLINE SERVICES AND LOGISTICS PLC NIGERIAN AVIATION HANDLING COMPANY PLC Transport-Related Services Totals Support and Logistics CAVERTON OFFSHORE SUPPORT GRP PLC Support and Logistics Totals SERVICES Totals EQTY Board Totals Daily Summary (Equities) Activity Summary on Board ASeM CONSUMER GOODS Food Products MCNICHOLS PLC Food Products Totals CONSUMER GOODS Totals ASeM Board Totals Daily Summary (Equities) Activity Summary on Board PREMIUM FINANCIAL SERVICES Banking ZENITH INTERNATIONAL BANK PLC Banking Totals Other Financial Institutions FBN HOLDINGS PLC Other Financial Institutions Totals FINANCIAL SERVICES Totals INDUSTRIAL GOODS Building Materials DANGOTE CEMENT PLC Building Materials Totals INDUSTRIAL GOODS Totals PREMIUM Board Totals Equity Activity Totals

DEALS

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N)

32 4 6 69 69

25.33 0.94 0.69

551,998 16,020 597,000 1,779,083 1,779,083

13,903,164.18 15,299.40 412,110.00 15,902,796.63 15,902,796.63

1 1 1

1.69

500 500 500

805.00 805.00 805.00

16 9 4 6 10 31 76

24.00 9.30 35.78 8.62 3.36 80.50

110,727 40,229 26,700 142,300 299,900 14,373,223 14,993,079

2,707,053.97 362,501.29 992,680.00 1,227,076.00 966,480.00 1,157,057,077.16 1,163,312,868.42

6 6

1.51

134,500 134,500

204,240.00 204,240.00

5 5 87

50.00

24,529 24,529 15,152,108

1,165,135.50 1,165,135.50 1,164,682,243.92

2 2

0.50

24,262 24,262

12,131.00 12,131.00

90 90

3.47

3,827,573 3,827,573

13,288,632.05 13,288,632.05

21 7 8 21 7 64

18.34 1.84 342.00 150.00 145.00

81,125 100,300 20,300 16,295 13,699 231,719

1,505,034.50 182,832.00 6,595,470.00 2,396,080.60 1,959,692.96 12,639,110.06

33 33 189

318.00

389,934 389,934 4,473,488

124,037,602.56 124,037,602.56 149,977,475.67

1 1

0.50

941 941

470.50 470.50

5 5

3.80

32,870 32,870

127,756.40 127,756.40

13 13

0.89

624,500 624,500

538,430.00 538,430.00

1 22 23

2.29 4.00

4,588 251,094 255,682

10,001.84 1,001,583.80 1,011,585.64

1 1 43 1,811

1.68

10,000 10,000 923,993 3,428,226,216

16,000.00 16,000.00 1,694,242.54 5,785,390,675.15

2 2 2 2

1.21

270,464 270,464 270,464 270,464

327,261.44 327,261.44 327,261.44 327,261.44

306 306

11.45

13,929,679 13,929,679

159,605,439.23 159,605,439.23

278 278 584

3.74

10,438,552 10,438,552 24,368,231

39,515,087.18 39,515,087.18 199,120,526.41

35 35 35 619 2,432

139.83

38,770 38,770 38,770 24,407,001 3,452,903,681

5,304,666.00 5,304,666.00 5,304,666.00 204,425,192.41 5,990,143,129.00

2 2 2 2 2 10 10 10

2,330.00 2.33 6.02 11.09 18.07

3,000 20 20 20 15 3,075 3,075 3,075

6,986,000.00 46.70 120.20 221.80 270.65 6,986,659.35 6,986,659.35 6,986,659.35

Daily Summary (ETP) Exchange Traded Fund Name NEWGOLD EXCHANGE TRADED FUND (ETF) VETIVA BANKING ETF VETIVA CONSUMER GOODS ETF VETIVA GRIFFIN 30 ETF VETIVA INDUSTRIAL ETF Exchange Traded Fund Totals ETF Board Totals ETP Activity Totals

47

friDAY, october 14, 2016 • T H I S D AY

MARKET NEWS

Stockbrokers, Stakeholders to Set Agenda for Economic Recovery Goddy Egene As part of its determination to assist the federal government in its efforts to revamp the economy, the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers (CIS) decided to focus on strategic ways to create sustainable economic development in its annual conference slated for October 27 and 28 in Lagos.

Consequently, the market operators have chosen “Building New Pillars, Creating New Values for Sustainable Development,” as the theme.

The Institute holds an annual conference as a strategic forum to articulate issues that can move the Nigerian capital market and indeed the financial market forward.

Speaking on the this year’s conference, Chairman of the Organising Committee, Mr. Yomi Adeyemi explained it would address critical issues affecting the growth of the Nigeria’s the nation’s capital market in particular and economy in general.

Adeyemi said: “This year’s conference is coming at a period when all hands are on

A Mutual fund (Unit Trust) is an investment vehicle managed by a SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) registered Fund Manager.

Investors with similar objectives buy units of the Fund so that the Fund Manager can buy securities that willl generate their desired return.

An ETF (Exchange Traded Fund) is a type of fund which owns the assets (shares of stock, bonds, oil futures, gold bars, foreign currency, etc.) and divides ownership of those assets into shares. Investors can buy these ‘shares’ on the

deck to address the challenges facing our economy and the effects on the capital market.

Therefore, the conference theme, “Building New Pillars, Creating New Values for Sustainable Development,” is predicated on the compelling need to strengthen the competitiveness of the Nigerian economy of which the capital market is the hub of medium and long term source of finance. What are the pillars of sustainable development? How do we create enduring values?

“Coming at this critical stage

floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

A REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust) is an investment vehicle that allows both small and large investors to part-own real estate ventures (eg.

Offices, Houses, Hospitals) in proportion to their investments. The assets are divided into shares that are traded on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

GUIDE TO DATA: Date: All fund prices are quoted in Naira as at 12-Oct-2016, unless otherwise stated.

of the Nigeria’s economy which is in dire need of double digit growth, the conference is strategically packaged to provide a platform for aggregating robust ideas aimed at creating a sustainable development and reinforcing investor confidence in our capital market. It is now clear than ever that sound fiscal and monetary policy, innovation and development of all value chains are necessary to revamp the Nigeria’s economy from its current recessionary status.”

Adeyemi commended the

financial media for the efforts that contributed to the success of past conferences.

According to him, “as intermediaries between us and the public, we must recognise your fundamental roles of disseminating market information, hence, we count on your professiona support as stakeholders. Let me seize this opportunity to appreciate your wonderful support for our recent Investiture. It was well disseminated and we appeal for your understanding and support

for this year’s conference as well.”

The Second Vice President, CIS, Mr. Tunde Amolegbe, said the annual conference of the institute has been a reference point in the economy as it has helped in the policy advocacy.

He said in line with determination of CIS to continue to contribute to growth of the economy, the theme of this year’s conference was chosen. He said Vice President Yemi Osinbajo is being expected at the conference among other top,government functionaries.

Offer price: The price at which units of a trust or ETF are bought by investors.

Bid Price: The price at which Investors redeem (sell) units of a trust or ETF. Yield/Total Return: Denotes the total return an investor would have earned on his investment. Money Market Funds report Yield while others report Year- to-date Total Return.

NAV: Is value per share of the real estate assets held by a REIT on a specific date.

DAILY PRICE LIST FOR MUTUAL FUNDS, REITS and ETFS MUTUAL FUNDS / UNIT TRUSTS AFRINVEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.afrinvest.com; Tel: +234 1 270 1680 Fund Name Bid Price Afrinvest Equity Fund 124.91 Nigeria International Debt Fund 216.79 ALTERNATIVE CAPITAL PARTNERS LTD Web: www.acapng.com, Tel: +234 1 291 2406, +234 1 291 2868 Fund Name Bid Price ACAP Canary Growth Fund 0.67 AIICO CAPITAL LTD Web: www.aiicocapital.com, Tel: +234-1-2792974 Fund Name Bid Price AIICO Money Market Fund ARM INVESTMENT MANAGERS LTD Web: www.arm.com.ng; Tel: 0700 CALLARM (0700 225 5276) Fund Name ARM Aggressive Growth Fund ARM Discovery Fund ARM Ethical Fund ARM Money Market Fund AXA MANSARD INVESTMENTS LIMITED Web: www.axamansard.com; Tel: +2341-4488482 Fund Name AXA Mansard Equity Income Fund AXA Mansard Money Market Fund CHAPELHILL DENHAM MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.chapelhilldenham.com, Tel: +234 461 0691 Fund Name Nigeria Global Investment Fund Paramount Equity Fund Women's Investment Fund FBN CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.fbnquest.com; Tel: +234-81 0082 0082 Fund Name FBN Fixed Income Fund FBN Heritage Fund FBN Money Market Fund FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Institutional FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Retail FBN Nigeria Smart Beta Equity Fund FIRST CITY ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.fcamltd.com; Tel: +234 1 462 2596 Fund Name Legacy Equity Fund Legacy Short Maturity (NGN) Fund FSDH ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.fsdhaml.com; Tel: 01-270 4884-5; 01-280 9740-1 Fund Name Coral Growth Fund

100.00

aaml@afrinvest.com Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn 125.54 11.80% 217.64 8.29% info@acapng.com Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn 0.68 9.59% ammf@aiicocapital.com Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

100.00

14.84%

enquiries@arminvestmentcenter.com Bid Price 12.71 292.32 22.78

Offer Price 13.09 301.13 23.46

Yield / T-Rtn 4.27% 4.59% 3.30%

1.00

1.00

12.39%

investmentcare@axamansard.com Bid Price 100.82

Offer Price 101.45

Yield / T-Rtn 1.13%

1.00 1.00 11.11% investmentmanagement@chapelhilldenham.com Bid Price 2.09 9.31

Offer Price 2.14 9.67

Yield / T-Rtn 2.67% -4.91%

82.61

84.73

1.85%

invest@fbnquest.com Bid Price 1,063.52 114.77 100.00 $101.56 $101.46 112.48

Offer Price 1,064.51 115.27 100.00 $102.36 $102.26

Yield / T-Rtn -1.72% 5.53% 10.76% 1.96% 1.86%

114.01

13.25%

fcamhelpdesk@fcmb.com Bid Price 0.94 2.50

Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn 0.96 4.40% 2.50 7.59% coralfunds@fsdhgroup.com

Bid Price 2,227.66

Offer Price 2,254.82

Coral Income Fund 2,038.91 INVESTMENT ONE FUNDS MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.investment-one.com; Tel: +234 812 992 1045,+234 1 448 8888 Fund Name Bid Price

Yield / T-Rtn 2.42%

2,038.91 7.79% enquiries@investment-one.com Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund

1.00

1.00

11.15%

Vantage Balanced Fund

1.64

1.66

0.67%

LOTUS CAPITAL LTD fincon@lotuscapitallimited.com Web: www.lotuscapitallimited.com; Tel: +234 1-291 4626 / +234 1-291 4624 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Lotus Halal Investment Fund 0.99 1.01 11.56% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 985.15 985.15 -1.48% MERISTEM WEALTH MANAGEMENT LTD info@meristemwealth.com Web: www.meristemwealth.com ; Tel: +234 1-4488260 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Meristem Equity Market Fund 9.85 9.94 0.72% Meristem Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 13.44% PAC ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD info@pacassetmanagement.com Web: www.pacassetmanagement.com/mutualfunds; Tel: +234 1 271 8632 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn PACAM Balanced Fund 1.02 1.04 4.08% SCM CAPITAL LIMITED info@scmcapitalng.com Web: www.scmcapitalng.com; Tel: +234 1-280 2226,+234 1- 280 2227 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn SCM Capital Frontier Fund 106.03 106.77 4.08% SFS CAPITAL NIGERIA LTD investments@sfsnigeria.com Web: www.sfsnigeria.com, Tel: +234 (01) 2801400 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn SFS Fixed Income Fund 1.22 1.22 7.83% STANBIC IBTC ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD assetmanagement@stanbicibtc.com Web: www.stanbicibtcassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 1 280 1266; 0700 MUTUALFUNDS Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Stanbic IBTC Balanced Fund 1,808.80 1,819.54 7.72% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 150.91 150.91 2.60% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 0.80 0.81 7.33% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 179.77 179.77 5.94% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 136.38 138.00 0.76% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 15.12% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 7,753.58 7,857.26 7.88% UNITED CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD unitedcapitalplcgroup.com Web: www.unitedcapitalplcgroup.com; Tel: +234 803 306 2887 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn United Capital Balanced Fund 1.15 1.17 7.44% United Capital Bond Fund 1.25 1.25 15.64% United Capital Equity Fund 0.70 0.72 -8.18% United Capital Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 13.00% ZENITH ASSETS MANAGEMENT LTD info@zenith-funds.com Web: www.zenith-funds.com; Tel: +234 1-2784219 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Zenith Equity Fund 9.81 9.98 2.76% Zenith Ethical Fund 11.39 11.51 -0.57% Zenith Income Fund 16.53 16.53 3.05%

REITS

NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

11.43 122.22

2.69% 5.50%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

8.94 79.65

9.04 81.16

-6.65% -4.29%

Fund Name FSDH UPDC Real Estate Investment Fund SFS Skye Shelter Fund

EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS

Fund Name Lotus Halal Equity Exchange Traded Fund Stanbic IBTC ETF 30 Fund

VETIVA FUND MANAGERS LTD Web: www.vetiva.com; Tel: +234 1 453 0697

Fund Name Vetiva Banking Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Consumer Goods Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Griffin 30 Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Industrial Goods Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva S&P Nigeria Sovereign Bond Exchange Traded Fund

funds@vetiva.com Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

2.71 7.38 12.64 17.36 -

2.75 7.46 12.80 17.66 -

17.17% 15.40% 0.95% -9.32% -

The value of investments and the income from them may fall as well as rise. Past performance is a guide and not an indication of future returns. Fund prices published in this edition are also available on each fund manager’s website and FMAN’s website at www.fman.com.ng. Fund prices are supplied by the operator of the relevant fund and are published for information purposes only.

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FRIDAY OCTOMBER 14, 2016 • T H I S D AY

NEWSEXTRA

Iran Condemns Attacks on Nigerian Shiites 78 members arraigned in Kano Group accuse Kaduna govt of murder, arbitrary arrests of members Senator Iroegbu inAbujaand Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kanowith agency report Iran’s Foreign Ministry has strongly condemned deadly attacks on Shiite Muslims attending religious mourning processions in Nigeria, stressing the Nigerian government’s responsibility is to ensure security for people.

The condemnation by Iran came as the Kano State Police Command yesterday arraigned 78 members of the Muslim group arrested during the procession in the state before a Chief Magistrate Court in the city for conspiracy and inciting public disturbances.

Following Wednesday’s attacks on Shiite mourners in Nigeria’s cities of Kaduna and Funtua, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman, Bahram Qassemi, called for efforts to end “cruel and violent acts by extremist and Wahhabi-affiliated forces that are, unfortunately, either supported or ignored by the Nigerian police.”

He underscored the need for the perpetrators of the bloody shootings to be immediately arrested and brought to justice.

Qassemi, according to the Iranian news agency, Tasnin, also highlighted the Abuja government’s responsibility for protection of Shiite

mourners and ensuring security of the religious rites.

At least nine Shiite mourners were killed in Kaduna and Futuna on Wednesday after troops opened fire on them at Ashura processions, an event marking the anniversary of martyrdom of Imam Hussein (AS), the third Shiite Imam.

Tensions have been running high between the regime and Nigeria’s Shiite Muslims who have been demanding the release of their leader, Sheikh Ibrahim Zakzaky from prison.

The confrontation followsed a spate of arrests over recent days of members of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN), the mainstream Shiite group led by Zakzaky.

The government has imposed a ban to prevent the movement’s supporters from attending ceremonies marking the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussein (AS).

Meanwhile, the 78 Shiite members were charged with criminal conspiracy, unlawful assembly, disturbance and inciting public peace.

The prosecution counsel, Sunday Ekwe, told the court that all the accused persons committed the offence on October 12, at about 1p.m.

He said the offence contravened sections 97, 102,113 and 114 of the

Penal Code Ekwe said all the 78 Shiite members criminally conspired and unlawfully assembled themselves and blocked Ibrahim Taiwo Road up to Kofar Mata to Emir palace.

“The accused persons unlawfully restrained members of the public from having access to the road and their places of business, a conduct that disturbed and causeed breach of public peace.”

Among those arraigned were Hauwa’u Aminu, Aisha Aminu, Zahra’u Zubairu, Dahira Abdulrahman, Aisha Musa, Lawal Idris and others.

Counsel to all the accused persons, Haruna Magashi, filed a bail application on behalf of all the accused persons.

Magashi said most of the accused persons are nursing mothers and have family members at home to cater for.

However, all the accused persons denied the content of the First Information Report (FIR).

The Chief Magistrate, Muhammad Idris, granted bail

them in the sum of N100,000 and two reliable sureties each.

Idris said one of the surety must be a village head or ward head of where the accused persons reside.

The magistrate said both the accused and surety should deposit two recent passport photographs and their houses should be identified by the police.

The case was adjourned to November 7 for further mention.

However, IMN has accused the Kaduna State Government of committing acts of arson, butchery, murder and arbitrary arrest of its members.

The group alleged that governments of Kaduna, Katsina, Kano, Plateau and Sokoto States, using an amalgamation of security agents and operatives turned Wednesday from what could have been a peaceful day for commemorating the martyrdom anniversary of the benevolent grandson of the Prophet, into another mourning day.

The President of IMN Media Forum, Mr. Ibrahim Musa, in a

statement yesterday, claimed the security operatives unleashed on their members the worst forms of state-sponsored terror tactics ever known, through a well-designed plot involving arson, butchery, murder and unwarranted arrests of IMN members in their states.

Musa said the pattern was uniform in all the places and not an isolated coincidence.

For most part, he stated: “The annual Ashura procession that we have conducted peacefully over the years had concluded without an incidence. Suddenly, a combined team of well-armed police, military, civil defence and other security operatives camouflaged as thugs (they are though) laid ambush on IMN members.

He said: “Using all weapons at their disposal, they maimed, killed and arrested many in Funtua, Sokoto, Kaduna and Jos in particular. This savagery was followed by arson, particularly in Kaduna and Jos, where Islamic centres, schools and private residences were torched. As at

the last count, not less than 20 members were murdered, over a hundred injured and over 300 arrested across these towns.

“Everything about this latest brutality suggests that it was planned centrally but carried out locally. The pattern of attacks was the same. The tactics were the same. Even those so-called arrested had the same terms of bail, which they had made near impossible to meet. The silence of both the governments at state and federal levels at the degree of brutality is telling.

“We will not be distracted in abandoning our quest for justice to be done in the premeditated attack carried out by the Military against the Islamic Movement in Nigeria,” Musa stated.

He once again, called “for the immediate release of our revered Leader Shaikh Ibraheem Zakzaky from the illegal detention has been thrown into for the past ten months, including all those incarcerated with him.”

FG to Boost Foreign Borrowing in 2017 to Fund Budget Nigeria is planning to borrow more abroad than locally to fund next year’s budget in a bid to benefit from lower debt costs and reduce pressure on its interest bill, Budget and National Planning Minister Udoma Udo Udoma said.

“There is going to be a shift to foreign, especially concessional debt,” Bloomberg quoted Udoma to have said in an interview in Abuja.

“Lower interest rates from foreign debt will help us manage our debt servicing, and also free domestic credit for the private sector.”

The West African nation will probably boost its budget by 12.6 percent to 6.87 trillion naira ($22 billion) in 2017, according to preliminary budget documents.

That’s to stimulate growth after the economy contracted in the first half of this year as a drop in prices and production of crude oil squeezed government revenue, and shortages of power and foreign currency weighed on output.

The country’s debt stood at $61.45 billion by June, of which $11.26 billion was foreign borrowing, according to debt office data. At 13.2 percent of GDP, Nigeria has one of the lowest debt ratios in sub-Saharan Africa, while its debt-service costs as a percentage of revenue are above 35 percent, according to budget documents.

This means “we have to be keen on the cost of new debt we take on,” Udoma said. “The Finance Ministry is finalising a borrowing plan and will soon present figures of actual levels of debt and sources.”

Rates on Nigeria’s local-currency bonds are more than eight per cent points higher than on its dollar debt.

The nation’s $500 million bond due in July 2023 yields 6.86 percent, while its naira securities have an

average yield of 15.25 percent, according to Bloomberg indexes.

The Debt Management Office said it plans to raise as much as $4.5 billion in the international market through 2018, starting with $1 billion of Eurobonds this year. The African Development Bank plans to lend Nigeria $4.1 billion over the next two years, and $10 billion by 2019, the lender’s president, Akinwumi Adesina had said.

“All our debt will be invested in capital projects that will help boost growth and create jobs,” Udoma said. “We expect that next year’s reflationary budget will get us out of recession completely, and then from 2018, we will reduce taking on new debt.”

The government plans to raise as much as $15 billion by selling assets to help fund the budget, according to Udoma.

So far, some of the presidential jets have been put on sale, and some railroads have been put on concession to General Electric Co., which will invest $2.2 billion to revamp, provide rolling stock and manage the existing lines.

“A committee has been set up to identify the assets and soon we will list them,” he said. “We are looking at everything, including bringing forward some oil-licensing rounds and putting airports on concession.”

In a bid to avoid the delays that saw the 2016 spending plans approved about four months into the fiscal year, Udoma has already started discussing the 2017 budget with parliament.

“We have drafted it in consultation with lawmakers, and we will send the actual proposed budget to the House of Representatives this month,” he said. “It’s a document they will already be familiar with.”

FOR FASHOLA’S ATTENTION

One of the failed portions of the Ijora-Wharf Road by Airways Bus Stop in Apapa....yesterday

Mubo Peters

Ondo Election will Be Tough, Admit Oyegun, Akeredolu Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, and the party’s candidate in the forthcoming November 26 governorship election in Ondo State, Chief Rotimi Akeredolu have said the poll may not be an easy win for the party.

Oyegun who inaugurated a 49-member national campaign council for the election in the state headed by the Plateau State Governor, Mr. Simon Lalong, yesterday in Abuja, described the acrimony that accompanied the selection as one of the major challenges on the way to victory for the party.

However, the chairman expressed confidence that with the level of reconciliation by the party and the expected intervention to be made by the campaign council, the party would triumph in the end.

“The challenge I am passing on to you today is the obvious challenge that arose at the primary.

But I trust that you and your team will overcome those difficulties and deliver Ondo to the APC family.

In Edo State, if was difficult and not a walk over. If was a tough and a difficult election. This also will not be a walk over. It will be a tough and difficult election, but we will win,” he said.

Oyegun said part of the responsibility of the council is to bring back unity to the party’s fold in the state, adding that the party leadership was already doing a lot to reconcile the aggrieved stakeholders so that together they can approach the governorship election.

On his part, Akeredolu though acknowledgesed that there are challenges, said there were not insurmountable.

He described as feeble threat, the

defection of a former member of the party and one of the aggrieved aspirants, Olusola Oke, describing the party he joined, Alliance for Democracy, as a dead party.

“Olushola Oke is not a threat to us.

I mean if he chose to contest under a dead party that is his choice.

There is nothing anybody can do about that. That is not a threat.

The dead does not threaten the living.

“We are confident that APC will win in Ondo. Let me give an assurance that Ondo State is a ripe fruit and it is for us to pluck, no party can match us in the state.

“We won in the state during the 2015 presidential election, why can’t we win again at the governorship election.” He promised even before the national leadership arrives the state for its campaign, his team would have smoothened all rough edges,” he added.

While pledging the

commitment to deliver on his mandate, Lalong expressed confidence that the party’s candidate who is a tested personality will emerge victorious.

He promised that reconciliation of aggrieved members would be a priority.

“The first step is to embark on reconciliation just as we are setting up committees for the main faction, we are setting up for reconciliation both within the state and outside the state, I’ve been involved in it, I am a politician just wait for us when we start you know where we are going.

“Asiwaju is a national leader, he is a key factor in the government and in the party so when we talk about reconciliation even if he was not involved, wherever you are going to talk about reconciliation you must consider him as a factor in the election,” he said.

FRIDAY OCTOMBER 14, 2016 • T H I S D AY

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Illegal Transfer of $13.9bn: MTN, Enelamah, Others Appear before Senate Committee October 20 Omololu Ogunmade in Abuja Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and Other Financial Institutions has scheduled October 20 for an open probe of MTN and Minister of Trade and Investment, Dr. Okechukwu

as a sheer violation of the system to move the money Diamond Bank and Citi Bank. Folawiyo and Victor Odili.

The Senate while debating law authorising capital Consequently, the Senate out of the country without mandated its Committee on the matter on September 27, importation within 24 hours. authorisation.

The breakdown of how The parliament further Banking, Insurance and Other had disclosed that MTN was alleged that MTN smartly beat Financial Institutions to probe incorporated in Nigeria in 2000 the money was repatriated Nigeria’s financial regulatory the minister, MTN, the banks as a private liability company through the four banks, as laws by failing to obtain a and other Nigerians said to and eventually obtained its alleged by the Senate are certificate of capital importation, have benefitted from the deal. operating licence with the Stanbic IBTC – $4.87 billion; Against this background, sum of $284,906,275.89 on Standard Chartered Bank – which would have authorised it to move capital into Nigeria the committee has summoned February 6, 2001 but failed $5.72 billion; Citi Bank – $2.98 from its South African bankers, MTN, Enelamah, Col. Sani Bello, to bring capital into Nigeria billion and Diamond Bank – Standard Bank, as authorised Chairman of Diamond Bank, as required, adding that $0.35 billion, pointing out that Dr. Pascal Dozie and Ahmed when it eventually moved the repatriation was done in by the law within 24 hours. in $117.6 billion between violation of Memorandum It further alleged that the Dasuki.

Also expected at the 2001 and 2003, it did so in 22 of the Foreign Exchange include recent recruitments by the repatriation was done through (Monitoring and Miscellaneous) Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the four banks, viz: Standard investigative hearing are three tranches.

It described the action Act, 1995.

Federal Inland Revenue Service Chartered Bank, Stanbic IBTC, Gbenga Oyebode, Babatunde (FIRS) appointments into boards and parastatals and the recent nomination of ambassadors.

“Unless urgent and positive steps are taken to check the prevailing imbalance in the appointments and sharing of federal government posts, people would continue to be discontented and despondent, and this could lead to dis-unity and disloyalty, and highten ethnic agitations and national insecurity,” Chinda warned.

He recalled that the Federal Character Commission (FCC) was established under the Federal Character Commission (Establishment, etc) Act, Cap. F7, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 with responsibility to promote, monitor and enforce compliance with the principles of the proportional sharing of all bureaucratic, economic and political posts at all levels of government. “…Also aware of Section 14 (3) of the Constitution that “the composition of the Government of the Federation or any of its agencies and the conduct of its affairs shall be carried out in such a manner as to reflect the federal character of Nigeria and the need to promote national unity and also French Ambassador to Nigeria, Denys Gauer (left), exchanging pleasantries with Skoto State Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, when he to command national loyalty, paid a courtesy visit to the governor in Sokoto...yesterday thereby ensuring that there shall be no predominance of persons from a few States or from a few ethnic or other sectional groups in that government or in any of its agencies,” Chinda added.

Enelamah, over an alleged illegal repatriation of $13.92 billion out of the country between 2006 and 2016.

The Senate had on September 27, 2016 alleged that Enelamah connived with MTN to exploit the porous Nigerian financial

Reflect Federal Character in Appointments, House Urges FG Damilola Oyedele in Abuja The House of Representatives has called on the federal government to reflect the principle of federal character in all its appointments, and in recruitments into public offices and agencies.

This, the House said, is necessary following concerns and commentaries in recent times that there were lopsidedness and imbalance in appointment into public offices and agencies, by the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration, in favour of certain zones.

The lawmakers therefore mandated the Committee on Federal Character to undertake a comprehensive overview of all public appointments/recruitments made so far, and report back to the House within four weeks on the level of compliance with Section 14 (3) of the Constitution.

The resolution followed the adoption of the prayers of a motion sponsored by Hon. Kingsley Chinda (Rivers PDP) who noted that the federal government and the Federal Character Commission (FCC) have not adhered to the constitution as there exists numerous cases of lopsidedness and imbalance in appointments and recruitment.

“Aware of the clear provision of Section14 (1) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 that the Federal Republic of Nigeria shall be a state based on the principles of democracy and social justice,” the lawmaker said.

He cited some of the cases to

DIPLOMATIC VISIT

FG to Introduce Financial Rewards for Innovative MDAs, Staff Ndubuisi Francis and Kelvin Okofu in Abuja The federal government is to introduce cash rewards and other incentives for innovative ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) as well as staff, to motivate them into becoming vessels for ideas generation.

The Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs. Winifred Ekanem Oyo-Ita, who stated this, said the incentives for innovative staff and MDAs will be part of the 2017 budget proposals.

Speaking at a workshop on “Cost Management on Overhead Expenditure for Senior Government Officials” in Abuja yesterday, OyoIta stated that one of the goals of the MDAs was developing enterprise culture and commercial orientation, adding that this would transform the civil service from being perceived as a cost centre to revenue earners.

Other benefits of this initiative, she said, was ensuring that civil servants and MDAs become ideas generation powerhouses, thus complementing the private sector

in creating business opportunities as well as making civil servants become very knowledgeable in innovation and entrepreneurship capable of translating ideas into businesses.

In her remarks at the workshop, the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, noted that the government had set out a clear strategy for resetting the economy.

“We have identified that underinvestment in capital has restricted our growth and left us dependent on oil rather than exploiting other areas with potential.

“Those economies that have continued growing even in the downturn have been those with the most diverse revenue base,” she said.

Adeosun also urged accounting officers to be more efficient and accountable in managing public funds, eliminating waste and cutting cost where necessary “Every amount we save is going direct to power, roads, rail, housing and those investments that will revive economy, create jobs and reduce cost of living for Nigerians,” she said.

Ambode Begins Clean-up of Lagos Waterways Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, yesteray began the process of ridding the state’s waterways of debris and hyacinth, with the view to boost water transportation and positively scale up activities relating to the waterways.

Speaking at the inauguration of the two water hyacinth and debris removal machines held at Ebute Ero Jetty, the governor said for a long time, hyacinth which is otherwise known as aquatic weed, had been a major source of concern with attendant challenges to the waterways sector.

Ambode, who was represented by the Commissioner for the Environment, Dr. Babatunde Adejare, said the machines were purchased by his administration to frontally address the challenges posed by water hyacinth, adding that same was in line with the strategic implementation of Lagos master plan for the waterways.

He said: “We have bought the machines to take away debris and hyacinth from the lagoon. The machines will encourage water transportation and this initiative is necessary now that we are working towards the clean-up of the waterways.

“It will also encourage fishery

so that the water economy will be improved upon,” the governor said.

In her welcome remarks, Managing Director of Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA), Mr. Abisola Kamson, said the inauguration was a dream come true as the machines would go a long way in eradicating the menace of water hyacinth on marine ecosystems of the State particularly the Ikorodu, Ajah, Badagry, Lagos Island, Oworonshoki, Mile 2 and Epe axis.

She said aside negatively affecting the socio-economic activities of fishermen and inhabitants of the riverine communities, water hyacinth, which is a seasonal threat, had brought about damages to propulsion system of boats thus affecting water transportation.

Giving technical insight as to the workings of the machine, Kamson said it acts like an underwater lawn mower and cuts the vegetation, as well as collects and store weeds and debris, while it is fitted with a pick up conveyor at the forward end which can be lowered up to six feet deep into the water for effective cleaning of the waterways.

She said: “This symbolic gesture by the Lagos State Government is jump-starting the clean-up of our waterways and preparing ground for other revolutionary activities

of LASWA’s development plan to transform the Lagos waterways to world class standards. “To us at LASWA and indeed the entire waterways family

Tribunal Grants Motion Allowing APC, Obaseki to Inspect Election Materials Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City The Election Petitions Tribunal in Benin City, Edo State has granted the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its candidate and governor-elect, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, motion to inspect election materials.

The same tribunal had on Tuesday, granted similar motion to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, to inspect all materials used in the conduct of last September 28 governorship election in the state.

The APC motion ex-parte was filed on the October 12, 2016 with number EPT/EDS/ GOV/2M/2016.

Chairman of the three-man

tribunal, Justice A.T.Badamasi granted the motion that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) allow the APC and its candidate inspect the election materials after hearing arguments from one of the counsel to Obaseki, Sentos Femi Owootori.

The INEC had declared the APC candidate, Obaseki winner of the election after he polled 319,483 total votes as against 253,173 polled by his closest rival, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, of the PDP. Though the tribunal is yet to be inaugurated, but a source at the tribunal said it will only be inaugurated after the parties filed their petitions for hearing which according to the source they have 21 days to do.

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Katsina Emirate Denies Forceful Conversion of Christian Girl Habiba’s family says denial a big mistake, may head to court

Paul Obi inAbuja and Ibrahim Shuaibu in Katsina Katsina Emirate yesterday denied reports that it had forcefully

converted 14-year-old girl, Habiba Isah Tanko, from Christianity to Islam.

The emirate which spoke through Kauran Katsina, Alhaji

Emir Sanusi to Chair Sultan of Sokoto’s 10th Anniversary Celebration Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kano Emir of Kano, Alhaji Muhammadu Sanusi II, has said arrangements have been concluded for the 10th year anniversary of his eminence, Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Saad Abubakar, on his ascension to the caliphate’s exalted throne on November 2.

Speaking with journalists yesterday on the preparations so far put on ground, Sanusi said celebrating the ascension had become imperative in view of the Sultan’s revered status as a leader of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs and the entire Muslim Ummah in the country.

Sunusi added that Abubakar had proven his mettle as a good ambassador of Muslims all over the country noting that the event will be celebrated in Sokoto State between November 2 to 4, 2016.

According to him, the Sultan

had also blazed the trail in forging the concept of unity and oneness among people of diverse religious and tribal affiliations.

He said the history of the revered Sokoto Caliphate was an eventful one, considering the giant strides it had effected over the years.

Lamido, affirming that such an epoch-making event would never be swept under the carpet, stated that the anniversary committee comprised of eminent traditional rulers of repute whose role in charting the cause of conducting a hitch free celebration cannot be over emphasised.

He further revealed that the anniversary celebration would be made colourful and eventful as erudite scholars of repute from America, Canada, Sudan and Nigeria would make presentations on the history of the Sokoto Caliphate.

Abdulkadir Nuhu, said the girl willingly converted to Islam and was not forced to do so.

He said the girl’s parents had come to the emirate where she was asked if she was in anyway forced to convert and marry; but she replied in the negative.

Nuhu also said the girl on her own decided to get married to Jamilu, and had decided on her own not to go back to her parent’s home.

The emirate also denied that it had forcefully married out the girl to one of its staff, Jamilu Lawal.

The girl, Habiba, was also brought before members of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), and emirate council members where she was asked to speak on her conversion and marriage.

She maintained that she willingly converted to Islam from Christianity, and decided to get married on her own volition and was already seeing her menstruation before she got married.

In his remarks, the CAN chairman, Reverend Nelson Onyekachukwu said the parents

of the girl were not happy about her alleged conversion and forced marriage.

Onyekachukwu said the girl was married out without consent of the parents, and that she was not the first case of such incident in the state.

“There have been complaints from several local governments that Christian girls were being forced to convert to Islam and married out without their parent’s knowledge.”

He said CAN was not happy with the conversion of Christian girls in the state, and that some children in such category had been recently released to them.

The CAN chairman called on the emirate to ensure justice in Habiba’s matter, and that putting into consideration that she was still a little girl that didn’t know her right from left, was paramount.

It would be recalled that Habiba was reported to have been abducted August 16, 2016 in Kankara council area by Jamilu Lawal, a staff of the emir’s palace.

On Tuesday, Habiba’s father, Mr. Isiyaku Tanko, through his lawyer, Yakubu Bawa accused

the emir of forcefully abducting, converting and marrying out the 14-year-old.

Bawa had alleged that by doing so, the emir erred since she was not yet 18 years old, and that she had been denied her constitutional rights.

It also alleged that the girl’s father was manhandled when he went to the emir’s palace to get back his daughter, and that the police was not serious in assisting him get back his daughter.

But the Habiba family has said the denial by the emirate that Habiba was not forcefully abducted and married out was a big mistake and holds no water.

Speaking through their lawyer, Yakubu Bawa, the family maintained that under the law, Habiba was not of ripe age to take any decision regarding her conversion to Islam and purported marriage.

Bawa said: “That is a big mistake they are making. One, considering the age of the girl, 14 years old girl, she cannot convert to Islam.

Secondly, she cannot enter into any marriage, that’s why we said it’s

a forceful marriage. She can’t take decision. All these are violation of Child Rights Act and the rest of it.”

“Their denial is nonsense; there are three issues to take note. One she is 14 years old girl, if you say she converted, she has no right under the law to convert, because she is under her parents. Two, under the law, you can’t force her to marry. So their denial doesn’t hold water, we are looking from the legal perspective, it doesn’t work like that.”

On the next line of action should Habiba not be released, Bawa said: “Certainly if by the end of this week, there is nothing, they have not release her, then, by that next week, we are filing a case. We are just going to use this weekend, latest by Monday, if there is nothing concrete, we will file the matter.”

On the health of Habiba’s father, Tanko, Bawa stated: “The man is hypertensive, he has already been taken to the hospital and he is taking some drugs. His coming to Abuja has brought some relief in his life and some succour, because he has seen how people are fighting for his family.”

IndustriAll Seeks Action against Precarious Work Conditions Nigerian workers under the aegis of IndustriAll Council of Nigeria have called for concrete action against precarious work conditions to which workers in the country have been subjected.

Precarious work, according to the global union, refers to work relationship with no distinct terms of employment such as letter of employment stating the terms and conditions of the employment relationship with the result that the workmen are hired, supervised and remunerated by a contractor.

Lamenting what they described as increasingly precarious work conditions, the workers urged for concrete economic, political, and institutional framework and policies that will bring about decent work for the working class.

Leading the call during activities to commemorate this year’s World Day for Decent Work, the Chairman, Nigeria Council of IndustriAll Global Union, Mr. Igwe Achese, said all over the world, particularly in Nigeria, workers are becoming increasingly precarious and endangered.

Achese said: “One of the strategic actions of IndustriAll Global Union and of course Nigeria Labour Congress, is to fight against precarious work through joint actions of the affiliates to reduce or limit the use of precarious work and to ensure labour rights to precarious workers.

“To ensure that government and employers do the needful in making sure that workers rights are guaranteed, and that,” workers are given their due rights”, adding that poverty level is rising sharply, and that workers are at the receiving end as cost of living continues to

skyrocket almost on a daily basis.

Achese who led the workers’ solemn procession in Lagos from Jibowu head office of NUPENG through Ojuelegba and Yaba and back to Jibowu in solidarity with the plight of workers in precarious conditions lamented that Nigerian workers in all sectors of the economy have been subjected to precarious work conditions marked by widespread casualisation, widening poverty circle and increasing inequality.

Achese who doubles as President of National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) as well as factional Deputy President, Joe Ajaero-led Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), decried increasing job insecurity, poor health of workers and absence of safety provisions, long work hours, lower wages and low quality of jobs.

According to him, studies showed that women are worse victims in the categories of precarious work conditions, and are more deprived of basic workers rights with regards to working hours, medical, holiday, safety at work, and maternal care.

He enumerated the grave impact of precarious work to include inferior job status, lack of job security, poor health and safety conditions, long hours of work, low and uncertain wages.

Beside poor working conditions coupled with absence of basic trade union rights, others are casual nature of engagement, reduction in life expectancy, widening inequality and increased poverty, social disequilibrium and crime as well as breakdown of family structure and value.

CROSS RIVER AS INVESTMENT HAVEN

Cross River State Governor, Professor Ben Ayade, flanked by team leader, TIDFORE Heavy Equipment Group, China, Mr. Tan Lang (left); Assistant General Manager, TIDFORE, Mr. Jackroo Deng (right); and General Manager, TIDFORE, Daniel Zhang, shortly after a meeting with the governor to express the company’s interest in investing in the Bakassi deep seaport and the superhighway in Calabar...yesterday.

‘Obaseki Has Nothing to Settle with Ize-Iyamu’ The Benin Progressive Front has said the Edo State Governor-elect, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has no rift to settle with the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, in the September 28 gubernatorial election.

The socio-cultural group in a statement signed by Mr. Osato Imadiyi while reacting to a media report by a Bini-born billionaire, Captain Hosa Okunbor, calling on Obaseki and Ize-Iyamu to close ranks in the interest of the Binis said: “Okunbor should channel his energies at prevailing on Ize-Iyamu to withdraw from election petition tribunal because Obaseki has no personal rift to settle with him, except electoral matters.”

Okunbor said: “Both candidates

belong to me. Ize-Iyamu is my very good friend, Obaseki is my family, so both of them are my own. But I will not want to speak much about the election because as you know, I am no longer into partisan politics.

I am now an elder statesman. So, I just want the best for the state and peace for the state.

“If that be the case, as an elder statesman Okunbor should not be seen to be making political comments in the media” says Imadiyi.

“Rather, he should advise the PDP candidate to gallantly accept defeat as that is the honourable thing to do. There is nothing to reconcile! To close ranks, according to Okunbor is to unite towards fighting a common course but

Ize-Iyamu and Obaseki do not share any common course to pursue either as individuals or as representatives of their political parties.

“Even the Bini interest in question can hardly be said to be a common denominator to them as the Lucky Igbinedion regime which Ize-Iyamu was an integral part of, did not only fail to execute any meaningful projects in any part of Bini land, but also continuously disrespected, derided and denied the Oba of his statutory allocations.

“What then can be adjudged as Bini interest in a man whose regime perpetually rivaled the palace which stands as the foremost symbol of Bini glorious

history and present interest? On the other hand, even the blind can see the giant developmental strides wrought in Bini land by the Adams Oshiomhole administration of which Godwin Obaseki was the brainbox. The same Oshiomhole regime restored to the palace, all the statutory allocations denied it by the rapacious Lucky Igbinedion/ Ize-Iyamu administration.

“One wishes that Okunbor had explained in more detail what exactly he meant by ‘a Bini interest’ which Ize-Iyamu shares with Obaseki because the issue at stake here is Obaseki’s well earned electoral victory as against the inordinate ambition of Ize-Iyamu for which Okunbor should prevail on him to withdraw from court.”

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FG Flags-off Independent Power Supply to 40 Federal Universities Ademola Babalola in Ibadan The federal government in conjunction with the German Energy Partnership Project

yesterday in Ibadan, Oyo State, formally flagged off its independent power supply initiative to all the 40 federal universities in the country with

Uniport Hosts First Edition of Glo Campus Storm In line with its effort of spreading joy to the greatest number of people, the next generation network, Globacom, has firmed up plans to provide endless fun at the nation’s tertiary institutions as another season of its Glo Campus Storm concert begins today.

In a statement yesterday, Globacom announced that several tertiary institutions across the country would be treated to world-class entertainment and fun in the next 24 weeks “as 17 of the country’s best artistes, including Wizkid, Flavour, Timaya, MI, Omawumi, Reekado Banks, Korede Bello, Di’ja, Runtown, Basketmouth, Bovi and Gordons, have been contracted to entertain our teeming youths in the nation’s tertiary institutions.”

The company stated: “We have the pleasure of announcing that our rave youth concert, the Glo Campus Storm, will be hitting tertiary institutions across the country beginning with the University of Port Harcourt, which will host the maiden edition of the 24-week show on Friday, October 14.”

The statement said apart from providing entertainment, Glo will also “be using the Glo Campus Storm to reward and empower Nigerian students as 240 of them, 10 from each institution, comprising five males and five females, will become campus ambassadors of the Glo brand across the 24 campuses.”

Globacom declared that “The 10 winners in each campus will receive up to N100,000 each, with all the 240 winners vying for the ‘Glo Data Dude’ and ‘Glo Data Diva’ coveted crowns at the grand finale. The two top winners in each category (male and female) will each have the

chance of winning N1 million in scholarships in addition to being signed on as Glo Brand Ambassadors. They will also get Special Invitations to all Globacom organised events and shows such as the Glo-CAF Awards, Glo Laffta Fest and Glo Slide ‘n’ Bounce concerts”, the statement stressed.

For the University of Port Harcourt edition of the show, Globacom listed the artistes that will perform to include the South-south don of entertainment, Timaya, ace rapper, Mr. Incredible, MI, and Nigeria’s youngest hip hop sensation, Runtown.

Popular comedian, Gordons, will anchor the show, while the most prolific female Disc Jockey, DJ Lambo, will take charge of the jukebox. The show will be held at the University of Port Harcourt’s Gymnasium starting from 4p.m.

Globacom urged students on any of the campuses wishing to participate in the show to recharge their Glo SIMs with N500 worth of Glo Campus Booster Data plan which will admit them into the venue of the show where they can contest for the mouth-watering prizes.

The Glo campus booster data plan gives up to 250 per cent of data volume purchased while on campus. In addition, the user also gets free Glo to Glo talk time and extra data to gift other Glo customers. For example, N500 campus data plan gives 500mb data outside the campus but the same data plan increases to 1.12GB whenever the customer is within the campus environment.

The subscriber also enjoys N500 free Glo-to-Glo talktime and additional 125mb data to gift another Glo customer. To buy these plans the customer is required to dial *777# and choose a Campus Booster Plan#

the ground-breaking ceremony of a 10-Mega Watts Solar Power Plant at the University of Ibadan.

In attendance at the groundbreaking ceremony were dignitaries from all walks of life including the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany, Mr. Bernard Schlagheck; the Minister of Health, Professor Isaac Adewole who is also the immediate past Vice Chancellor of the University of Ibadan; the incumbent Vice Chancellor of the institution, Professor Abel Idowu Olayinka; as well as the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Saliu Adetunji Ajeogungunniso I, among others.

Performing the ceremony on behalf of President Muhammadu Buhari at the Ajibode Extension location of the University of Ibadan, the Minister of State for Education, Professor Anthony Gozie Anwukah, described the event as “a historic occasion in the life of the university and of our nation” adding that it is in line with the national energy policy.

“That the project is

commencing at the University of Ibadan should not surprise anyone. This is where the story of university education in Nigeria started,” the minister stated adding that the fact that UI, with its huge staff and student population had necessitated a corresponding high energy requirement which is in the region of 6 to 8 Mega Watts.

The minister remarked that the federal government, in its bid to replicate the gesture to all the 40 federal universities in Nigeria, envisaged that this should be achieved through the utilisation of off-grid Independent Power Plants (IPPs) which falls under the Public Private Partnership (PPP) initiative.

He noted: “It was in this respect that the federal government, under the able leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari, recently launched the Energising Education Programme Initiative (EEPI), a collaborative effort of the Federal Ministry of Education and Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing to ensure

self-sufficiency in power to all the 40 federal universities in the country.”

The EEPI is aimed at providing reliable power supply which, in turn, will promote economic growth and sustainable development in our universities, the minister further clarified.

The minister spoke further: “This is why the federal government, through the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), has committed itself to this project with the provision of funds. It clearly attests to government’s commitment to supporting a robust educational system.

The project, when completed, will also ensure the realisation of th vision of the University of Ibadan in becoming a worldclass university, in the sense that academic activities will be boosted, and ground-breaking researches can be conducted.

“For our universities to be highly rated in Africa and the world, we must have a good research infrastructure, and a provision of energy is very key in the process. The plant

will also have the multiplier effect of providing electricity to neighbouring communities.

Government is keenly interested in this project, and its timely completion and effective utilisation will inform an extension of the project to other Universities. We shall, therefore, be monitoring the progress of the project. It is expected that the faculties of science and technology and the Centre for Petroleum, Energy Economics and Law would take advantage of his project to enhance the capacity of their staff, while embarking on further research in renewable energy resources.”

Also speaking at the event, the German ambassador Mr. Bernard Schlagheck assured that the project, which is a culmination of more than two years of negotiations involving the University of Ibadan, the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the German Government would be completed and ready for inauguration within the next six months.

CSR IN ACTION

Managing Director/CEO of Trustfund Pensions Limited, Helen Da-Souza (right), during the presentation of 5,000 reflective jackets to the Commandant General of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Abdullahi Gana Muhammadu, yesterday in Abuja as part of the company’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative

Katsina Govt Bans Assemblies, Processions

FG Set to Commercialise FIIRO’s Therapeutic Food for IDPs

Ibrahim Shuaibu in Katsina

Dele Ogbodo in Abuja

The Katsina State Government has announced the immediate suspension of all kinds of gatherings, processions and rallies until further notice.

A statement signed by the Special Assistant on Media to the Governor, Abdu Labaran Malumfashi and made available to THISDAY in Katsina yesterday stated that the suspension was with immediate effect.

“This action by the Katsina State Government became necessary in view of recent development threatening peace across many states in the northern part of the country,” statement revealed.

“It is to be noted that violation of this directive will be decisively dealt with without prejudice to the

social status of the offenders.”

The statement advised people to go about their businesses and activities within the bounds of the law, with the full assurance that government would not allow anybody, groups or organisations to hold the state to ransom under whatever guise.

“People of the state are also advised to report to the authorities any suspicious activities capable of endangering the peaceful atmosphere in the state.”

The statement also revealed that, under no circumstances should anybody take the law into their hands.

It also promised that security agencies have been directed to ensure the effective enforcement of this directive, which will remain in force until further notice.

In a bid to tackle the prevalent malnutrition problem in the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps in Borno, Yobe, Adamawa and other camps across the country, the Ministry of Science and Technology, through the Federal Institute of Industrial Research Oshodi (FIIRO), has concluded plans to commercialise its therapeutic foods to alleviate the menace.

The Minister of Science and Technology, Mr. Ogbonnaya Onu, made the disclosure on Wednesday, when the President of African University of Science and Technology (AUST), Prof.

Kingston Nyamapfeene, paid a courtesy call at the ministry’s headquarters in Abuja.

Onu said progress has been made to get intellectual property for the commercialisation of the research findings by FIIRO as one of the major intervention programmes of the ministry for the management of malnutrition.

According to him, the final product from FIIRO will also be exported too neighbouring West African countries, adding that the therapeutic food by FIIRO all came out from local food materials available in Nigeria.

According to him, the ministry is concerned about the development in the Northeast and is charting a new course by bringing technology into agriculture to improving the present food challenge in the area.

He said: “We are working very hard to move the country from resource based to knowledge based” He said the ministry was also in the process of giving grant to the Nigerian Academy of Science and National Academy of Engineering for the publications of their journals saying “this would provide the platform for the Publication of post graduate papers by the university students”.

The minister pledged to partner the university because “walking with them will help Nigerians and will also strengthen the existing relationship between the ministry and universities.

In a remark, Nyamapfeene stated that the university which

was a World Bank project to promote Science and technology in Africa, has generated human capital for the continent.

He said students are carefully selected from 26 African countries for post-graduate programmes in Science and Engineering only. “We hope to explore the possibility of supporting the work of the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology through collaboration and interaction” he noted He said the university was an initiative of two great African leaders, Nelson Mandela and Ibrahim Babangida, who jointly prevailed on the World Bank to make investment in higher education in Africa to promote science and technology.

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LASG: 13% of Lagos Population Can’t Read or Write Unveils programme to educate three million adults Gboyega Akinsanmi The Lagos State Government yesterday said 13 per cent of the state’s population estimated at 21 million, cannot read or write, thus positing that three million residents “are illiterate.”

However, the state government unveiled an adult literacy programme, which it said was designed to effectively educate three million residents who could not read not write within three years.

The state Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, unveiled the programme tagged: ‘Lagos Is Learning’ at the Ikeja Police College, disclosing his administration’s strategic objective

to achieve 100 per cent literacy by 2019.

Ambode, who was represented by the Deputy Governor, Dr. Oluranti Adebule, generously cited the statistics of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), which put the total number of illiterates in the country at 54 million.

Citing the outcome of research the state recently conducted, Ambode said 13 per cent of Lagos population “cannot read or write. This amounts to three million residents. This level of illiteracy is unacceptable.”

The governor, thus, noted that the target of his administration on or before 2019 was “to raise the

literacy level in the state from 85 per cent to 100 per cent within the next three years.”

He said he had mapped out strategies to achieve 100 per cent literacy level, noting that the adult education centres in the state “will be increased from 522 to 1,000, while additional 1,000 teachers will be engaged.”

He added that the programme would be free of charge for participants in order as “to accommodate more people.

The population of illiterate is not consistent with our vision to become Lagos Africa’s model megacity.

“This is because illiterates lack basic literacy. We are launching it because they lack other essential skills which make them more vulnerable to the activities of criminals and other anti-social groups.

“So, we are launching this project to kick illiteracy out of Lagos State. Our goal is to achieve 100 percent literacy in the state. Towards this end, we planned to increase the number of basic adult learning centres from 532 to 1, 000.

“We will also engage additional 1, 000 facilitators who would be trained in basic skills and

techniques in the teaching of adult education. We multiply and diversify channels to improve literacy in the state.”

He, thus, noted that the state government “will strengthen relationship with various stakeholders both local and internationals in the state. I encourage residents of Lagos to take the opportunity to learn.

“It is never too late to learn; age is not barrier to acquire basic literacy. It will help the learners forge a better understanding between the government and the people and as well as aid personal development.”

Also at the unveiling, the Special Adviser on Education, Mr. Obafela Bank Olemoh said the initiative was aimed at improving the standard of living of adults without formal education and make them self-reliant and employable.

Bank-Olemoh said the initiative was also targeted at raising the level of literacy in the state from 85 per cent to 100 per cent in the next three years, calling on international and nongovernmental organisations to partner with the state government to achieve the mandate of the programme.

FG Orders EFCC to Pay N10bn to NBC The federal government has directed that the sum of N10 billion be refunded by the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) to the National Broadcasting Commission.

The huge amount was confiscated by EFCC from

the NBC. NBC’s Director General, Modibo Kawu, told journalists yesterday ahead of the Africast Conference that holds next week that the presidential order for the release of the money was to enable the NBC fulfill its digitisation target for next year.

‘Obaseki Has Nothing to Settle with Ize-Iyamu’ The Benin Progressive Front has said the Edo State Governorelect, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has no rift to settle with the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, in the September 28 gubernatorial election.

The socio-cultural group in a statement signed by Mr. Osato Imadiyi while reacting to a media report by a Biniborn billionaire, Captain Hosa Okunbor, calling on Obaseki and Ize-Iyamu to close ranks in the interest of the Binis said: “Okunbor should channel his energies at prevailing on Ize-Iyamu to withdraw from election petition tribunal because Obaseki has no personal rift to settle with him, except electoral matters.”

Okunbor said: “Both candidates belong to me.

Ize-Iyamu is my very good friend, Obaseki is my family, so both of them are my own. But I will not want to speak much about the election because as you know, I am no longer into partisan politics. I am now an elder statesman. So, I just want the best for the state and peace for the state.

“If that be the case, as an elder statesman, Okunbor should not be seen to be making political comments in the media,” Imadiyi said.

“Rather, he should advise the PDP candidate to gallantly accept defeat as that is the honourable thing to do.

There is nothing to reconcile!

To close ranks, according to Okunbor is to unite towards fighting a common course but Ize-Iyamu and Obaseki do not share any common course to pursue either as individuals or as representatives of their political parties.

“Even the Bini interest in question can hardly be said to be a common denominator to them as the Lucky Igbinedion regime which Ize-Iyamu was an integral part of, did not only fail to execute any meaningful projects in any part of Bini land, but also continuously disrespected, derided and denied the Oba of his statutory allocations.

“What then can be adjudged as Bini interest in a man whose regime perpetually rivaled the palace which stands as the foremost symbol of Bini glorious history and present interest? On the other hand, even the blind can see the giant developmental strides wrought in Bini land by the Adams Oshiomhole administration of which Godwin Obaseki was the brainbox. The same Oshiomhole regime restored to the palace, all the statutory allocations denied it by the rapacious Lucky Igbinedion/ Ize-Iyamu administration.

“One wishes that Okunbor had explained in more detail what exactly he meant by ‘a Bini interest’ which Ize-Iyamu shares with Obaseki because the issue at stake here is Obaseki’s well earned electoral victory as against the inordinate ambition of Ize-Iyamu for which Okunbor should prevail on him to withdraw from court.”

THE NEW GALA

L_R: Sales Operations Manager, UAC Foods Limited, Femi Adeyemi; General Manager, Marketing, Joan Ihekwaba; , Distributor, Uche Nwana; Distributor, Agnes Okwakwa, and Senior Brand Manager, Snacks, Folasade Abiola, at the official unveiling of Gala Mega from UAC in Lagos yesterday

Amid Opposition, FG Insists on Family Planning to Tackle Maternal Health Paul Obi in Abuja Notwithstanding the stiff opposition that has trailed attempt to implement an overall national birth control policy, the federal government yesterday insisted that family planning is indispensable if Nigeria intends to address maternal health challenges.

The Minister of Health, Prof.

Isaac Adewole, explained that the issue of maternal health could not be addressed without tackling the issue of family planning.

Adewole stated this in Abuja when he received a report on Maternal Health in Nigeria: A Situation Report presented by African Population and Health Research Centre.

He stated: “Promotion of family planning and child spacing are key ingredients to reducing morbidity and maternal mortality in Nigeria.”

Adewole said: “We need to look at education, address poverty and increase access to healthcare.”

Earlier, Senior Research Scientist of African Population and Health Research Centre, Chima Izugbara, while giving the background of

the report said that maternal health remains an area for urgent policy and programmatic attention in Nigeria, stressing that, nearly one in every four women in sub-Saharan Africa is a Nigerian.

Izugbara added that the plight of women in Nigeria would vastly impinge on the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the region adding that investing purposely in safeguarding maternal health in the country was a sure strategy for improving on the current levels of progress and guaranteeing the future potential for growth and advancement in Africa as a whole.

He attributed “top medical causes of maternal mortality in Nigeria to obstetric hemorrhage, infection following childbirth, unsafe abortion, eclampsia and obstructed labour; the causes which experts agreed were largely treatable and preventable.”

According to the report, “an estimated 9.22 million pregnancies occur annually in Nigeria adding that a quarter of these pregnancies were unintended and 56 per cent of the unintended pregnancies

were aborted.

Izugbara stressed that “the majority of the abortions performed in the country were clandestine and unsafe that is, terminated either by persons lacking the necessary skills or in an environment lacking the minimal medical standard or both. As a result, unsafe abortion is a leading cause of maternal mortality and morbidity in Nigeria.”

According to the report, “In 1996, an estimated 600,000 abortions occurred in the country and the number of abortions rose to 760,000 in 2006, and to 1.25 million in 2012.

“About 53 per cent of the population of Nigeria lives in rural settings are particularly at risk for poor maternal health outcomes, including maternal mortality and morbidity” adding that “maternal health challenges of rural women are heightened by the urban bias in the location of health facilities and the availability of skilled human resources for health’’. The report further stated.

It further observed that “adequate funding is critical for addressing the current shortage of

high-quality human resources for maternal health at all skill levels and increased government investment in multi-sectoral funding will help to address infrastructural deficiencies that characterise the Nigerian health system.”

The government insistence on family planning came amid continued opposition and criticisms following the move to distribute family planning commodities to facilitate birth control.

The Catholic Church and some Muslim groups have been on the forefront opposing family planning. Last month, the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) under the Ibadan Ecclesiastical Province took the minister headlong over the matter.

In a communique signed by the Archbishop of Ibadan, Gabriel Abegunrin and Catholic Bishop of Ekiti State, Bishop Felix Ajakaye, they deplored the federal government family planning policy, arguing that “the policy is being done all in the name of providing better maternal health and empowering our people.

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CRIME&PUNISHMENT 65 year-old Woman Robbed, Raped, Shot Dead by Armed Gang Emmanuel Ugwu in Umuahia The Abia State Police Command yesterday paraded a haul of 24 crime suspects, including a gang of armed robbers that intercepted a vehicle and murdered a 65-year-old woman after she was robbed and raped along with other women returning from a business trip.

The state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Leye Oyebade, who paraded the criminal gangs of various shades at the state police headquarters, Umuahia, said Mrs. Anthonia Dike was shot in the face at close range after the rape and robbery operation that took place along Ofeme axis of Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway.

A member of the three-man vicious criminal gang, Samuel Okorie, 23, who was caught by police acting on intelligence, confirmed the heinous crime to

journalists while police said that the other two gang members were still on the run.

The youngster could not explain why they had to kill the woman after raping her and other women in the intercepted vehicle, saying that he only stood and watched the operation having conveyed his members on a motorcycle.

The victim and other women, according to the police, were returning from a business trip in Jos and on getting to Lokpaukwu axis of the Enugu-Port Harcourt highway the gang started trailing her on a motorcycle. The criminals were able to catch up with the innocent woman at Ofeme axis in Umuahia North Local Government where she was murdered.

Oyebade also said an inter-state car snatching syndicate was smashed by the police after the

hoodlums had snatched a Toyota Highlander jeep marked JJJ 872 CX and were racing back to their base in Akwa Ibom State when their luck ran out.

The Area Commander of Umuahia was said to have led the team that pursued the gang following a distress call from Finbarrs road, Umuahia, where the vehicle was snatched.

The hot pursuit paid off when the police caught up with the fleeing robbers at Umudike along the Umuahia-Ikot Ekpene road.

“On sighting the police, the hoodlums opened fire and at the end of the gun duel that ensued, three members of the gang sustained bullet wounds and were arrested, while three escaped,” Oyebade said, adding that two of the wounded hoodlums were confirmed dead on getting to the hospital while the remaining one

was receiving treatment.

The large haul of suspected criminals also included a six-man gang of vandals, specialised in electricity installations nabbed at Aba and a robbery gang that stole a Toyota Sienna and household electronics led by one Franklin Ukachukwu, who claimed to be a 300 level university student.

The Abia CP said the spate of successes being recorded by his command in the war against crime was due to improvement in the police response following enhanced communication and information gathering techniques.

He said the command was poised to do every thing in its power to make Abia very hot for criminals to ensure a safe yuletide for Abia residents and those coming home for the incoming festivities.

IN POLICE NET

L-R: Some suspected criminals being paraded at the Abia State Police Command in Umuahia...yesterday

Cynthia: Judge Closes Case of Accused Person I am not going to wait indefinitely, says judge After several delays in the ongoing trial of the suspected killers of Cynthia Osokogu, a Lagos High Court, yesterday, closed the right of the second defendant, Ezike Olisaeloka, to file his final address.

The trial judge, Justice Olabisi Akinlade, said the order became necessary in the interest of justice and the rule of law.

Cynthia Osokogu was murdered on July 22, 2012 at Cosmilla Hotel, Lakeview Estate, Festac Town, Lagos, by her Facebook lover.

The defendants who were accused of the murder, are Okwumo Nwabufo, 33; Olisaeloka Ezike, 23; Orji Osita, 33, and Ezike Nonso, 25.

They are facing a six-count charge bordering on conspiracy, murder, stealing, reckless negligence and possession

of stolen goods.

At the resumed hearing of the matter yesterday, Justice Akinlade, ordered the prosecution, Mrs. Bola Akinshete, to file her reply to final written addresses of the defendants.

The judge observed that the court has given enough time for the second defendant to file his written address but despite several adjournments he refused to do so.

Akinlade: “Said I am not going to wait indefinitely for the second defendant’s counsel to file his final written address, it is on record that the court has given the second defendant several opportunities for him to file his written address since June 16 at the last adjourned date up till now he has been unable to file.

“It is obvious that the

counsel is not ready to file his final written address, I hereby foreclose the right of the second defendant to file his final written address and order the prosecution to file her reply on the final written addresses.”

However, the judge adjourned the case to December 8, for adoption of the final written addresses.

Earlier, the prosecution urged the court to foreclose the right of the second defendant from filing his final written address to enable her file her reply on the defendants.

Akinshete said: “Since June 16, 2016, despite the order of your lordship for the second defendant to file his final written address he has refused to file.

I therefore urge your lordship to foreclose his right to filing the address to enable us make

progress in this matter.”

Justice Akinlade at the last adjourned date on June 8, 2016, expressed displeasure over the delay of second defence counsel in filing his final written address and threatened to award a substantial cost to the second defendant over failure to file.

The court had accused the defence counsel of intentionally delaying the case, which she said, is of interest to the public.

She said people always think that it is the court that is delaying the matter, not knowing that it is the defendants’ counsel.

The prosecution said the 25-year-old Osokogu, who was resident in Abuja, was lured to Lagos, where she was killed.

The offences committed are punishable under sections 221, 249, 285 and 327 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.

In Brief Herdsmen Kill Two Policemen in Kaduna

UnkowngunmensuspectedtobeFulaniherdsmen,yesterdayattackedsome policemen at a checkpoint along the Kagoro-GidanWaya Road in Kaura Local Government Area of Kaduna State, killing two of them while two others were said to be critically wounded. Two of the six policemen who were manning the checkpoint were said to have escaped unhurt. The bandits were also said to have made away with two AK47 rifles belonging to their victims. The deceased officers were of the rank of sergeant, deployed to the area to check theactivitiesofbandits whohavebeen raidingcommunitiesandkillingpeople.

Enoch Andong, a resident of the area who was among those who carried the injured policemen to the Kafanchan General Hospital, told THISDAY in a telephone interview that the incident occurred at about 9:30a.m. when the gunmen swooped on the policemen and opened fire. “This morning, around 9:30a.m., two policemen were killed by gunmen along Kagoro-Gidan Waya Road, we strongly believe they are Fulani herdsmen that have been killing people in our communities. “There were six policemen at the checkpoint, two of them were killed and their AK47 rifles were taken away by the herdsmen.

Two others sustained serious injuries from gunshots while the remaining two managedtoescapedunhurt. ”WetookthosethatwerewoundedtotheGeneral HospitalKafanchan “Iunderstandthatoneofthedeadpolicemenjustresumed dutyheretoday.This isverysadandunfortunate,”Andongsaid.

However, the spokesman of the Kaduna State Police Command, Aliyu Usman, couldnotconfirmedtheincident,sayinghewasyettoreceivesuchinformation.

Three Killed as Customs Clash with Police, Smugglers Some yet-to-be identified operatives of the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) yesterday shot three people dead at the Alakuko area of Lagos State. After shootingthethreepersonswhilechasingsomeallegedsmugglers, theoperatives then clashed with some policemen who wanted to arrest them. It was gathered thatthecustomsofficers,whowerefromtheFederalOperationUnit(FOU),were chasing the suspected smugglers conveying rice, when they shot at the vehicle, killing three persons. When alerted, policemen from the Alakuko Division were saidtohavetriedtoapprehendthecustomsofficers,whothenshotsporadically toscareawaythepoliceandotherpassers-by,whotriedtoarrestthem.Whenthey successfullyevadedarrest,sympathisersandonlookers,weresaidtohavetaken to the streets in protest. However, hoodlums hijacked the protest and started molestingmotoristsandpassersby,whiletheysmashedsomevehiclewindows.

Theincident,coupledwiththeprotest,expectedlycausedamajor trafficgridlock alongtheLagos-AbeokutaExpresswayasthehoodlumsbarricadedtheroad.A witness, John Ogbu, said: “It was around 7a.m. while I was standing in front of my shoptoobserveyesterday’ssanitation,twovehiclesdroverecklesslyastheywere being pursued by a customs patrol vehicle. “The custom officials were firing at thevehiclesandpassersbywerehitbybullets.Ialsosawsomepolicementrying to block the customs men from escaping and there was an exchange of gun fire between the two services.” Meanwhile, a senior customs official who spoke on anonymity said: “We were doing our job of arresting some rice smugglers and thepolicejumpedintothefrayby aidingandabatingthem.“Intheprocess,there wasashootoutbetweenus.Ican’tsaywhattranspired,threepersonswereshot.

Icannotsaywhofiredtheshotbut allIcansayisthatweweredoingalegitimate jobwhenthepoliceobstructedus.”Confirmingtheincident,thestatePolicePublic RelationsOfficer,DolapoBadmos,howeversaidonlyonepersonwasallegedlyshot deadbythecustoms.Shesaid:“Whathappenedwasthatthismorning,atabout7a.m., customsofficialswereonthetrailofavehicle,intheprocess,theywentberserkand startedshootingandkilledoneSaheedOmotosho.HisbrotherRasheedwastaken awaytoanunknowndestination.TheidentityoftheCustommenisnotknown.“The DivisionalPoliceOfficer(DPO)ofAlakukomobilisedhisteamtothescenetomaintain peace.”However,thespokesmanforFOU,JerryAttah,anAssistantSuperintendentof Customs(ASC) said:“Wehavenoproblemswiththepolice.“Itwasaproblembetween smugglersandthecustomsofficers.Wehavearrestedonebsuspectandtheexhibits are with us.” Although there are was still palpable tension in the area as at press time,theoperativesoftheRapidResponseSquad(RRS),ledbyitscommander, TunjiDisu,andpolicemenfromAlakukoDivisionwerestillatthesceneto maintain lawandorder.

Student Commits Suicide for Failing Promotion Exam It was a tragic situation in Omu-Aran in Irepodun Local Government Council of KwaraState onWednesdaywhena20-year-oldseniorsecondaryschoolstudent, MojiAgboola,reportedlydiedaftersheallegedlydrankasubstancebelievedto bepoison. THISDAYinvestigationsrevealedthat,thedeceased,anSS1student in a community school in the area, was said to have been treated at a private hospital in the town where she was rushed to by her mother about three weeks ago. It was gathered that, the deceased was said to have poisoned herself as a resultofherfailuretoprogresstothenextclassfollowingherpoorperformance inthelastpromotionexamination.Sourcesclosetotheancienttowntoldjournalists inIlorinyesterdaythathercrisiswassaidtohavebegunwhentheeffectofthepoison shetookstartedtomanifestatabout5p.m.onthefatefulday. Thedeceased,itwas gatheredalsotakentoChristApostolicChurch,Ori-OkeIrapada,alongOmu-Aran-Ilofa roadforprayersanddeliverance. Theprophetin-chargeofthechurch,Christopher Owolabi,saidthechurchhadtoorganisedaprayerteamforthedeceasedbeforeshe wasreturnedtoanotherprivatehospitalinthetownforfurthertreatment.Itwasinthat privatehospitalthatshewasconfirmeddead.Themotherofthedeceased,Abigael, according to the source, was said to have cried profusely at her residence around Latinwo area of the town yesterday morning. She said a younger brother to the deceasedhadearlierconfronted her on the morning of the incidence when he saw the bottle containing the poison in her hands. “It was the boy who first gave us the clue to her sickness before she later confessed to the act at the hospital,” Abigael narrated.

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T H I S D AY •FRIDAY OCTOBER 14, 2016

FRIDAYSPORTS

Group Sports Editor Duro Ikhazuagbe Email duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com

2018 WORLD CUP QUALIFIER

Rohr Warns Eagles to Ignore Rajevac Distraction Keno Edhowo with agency report Super Eagles Technical Adviser, Gernot Rohr, has warned his wards that the sensational dismissal of Serbian Milovan Rajevac as head coach of the Algerian senior national team could well work in favour of the North African nation when they visit Uyo next month in continuation of the 2018 World Cup qualifiers.

Player-power has forced Rajevac out in Algeria, who tackle Nigeria on November 12 in a crucial World Cup clash after they were held to a 1-1 draw at home by Cameroun.

Nigeria top the qualifying group with three points ahead of favourites Algeria and Cameroun, who are on a point each.

“This (sack) may be the motivation Algeria need to play against us,” warned the experienced Rohr, who led Nigeria to win 2-1 in Zambia at the weekend.

“It will be difficult for a new coach to put together a team in three weeks for our match, but possibly the assistant coaches could manage it.”

The Algeria Football Federation (FAF) has already announced that Rajevac assistants, Nabil Neghiz and Yazid Mansouri are in temporary charge and will lead the team for next month’s trip to Nigeria.

Remo Stars May Sell NPFL Slot to Ikorodu Utd There are very strong indications that promoted Remo Stars may sell their place in the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) to relegated Ikorodu United FC. Remo Stars of Ijebu-Ode won promotion to the NPFL after they topped NNL Division B1.

However, there are now suggestions that club owner Kunle Soname is locked in negotiations with Ikorodu United to sell his place in the top league especially as he has huge financial commitments that include shares in a Portuguese club and a football betting company.

A Remo Stars official informed: ”Even though we have won promotion, we might not play in the NPFL considering the fact that our chairman has so many financial commitments.

“And to play in the premier league requires a lot of cash.

“That could be one of the reasons negotiations with Ikorodu United are now going on.”

Ikorodu United finished at the bottom of the table only above expelled Giwa FC.

FAF President, Mohamed Raouraou, has admitted it will be impossible to name a permanent coach before next year’s AFCON in Gabon.

Meanwhile, the FAF president has insisted that Algerian players were not to blame for the departure of Serbian coach.

Raouraoua however admitted there were heated discussions in the dressing room after the home draw with Cameroun, but later frayed nerves calmed down.

“The players were not behind the departure of the coach,” the top official told Algeria TV. “Things happened in the dressing room, which is something quite normal in other stadiums around the world, whether for clubs or national teams.

“Sometimes these discussions are heated, but they always calm down at the end of the game. And that’s what happened this time.”

The FAF boss said they have since swung into action to replace Rajevac. Rolland Courbis and Rudi Garcia are among the coaches being targeted.

Courbis has handled local club USM Alger, while Garcia was in charge of Roma.

And latest reports suggested negotiations are on-going with former China and Lyon coach Alain Perrin as possible replacement for the Serbian.

Super Eagles Technical Adviser, Gernot Rohr, passing instructions to his players during the World Cup qualifying game with Zambia in Ndola last Sunday

NPFL: Heartland, Plateau Utd Accept LMC Sanctions Heartland FC has written to the League Management Company (LMC) communicating their decision to withdraw an earlier rejection of the Summary Jurisdiction Notice issued the club for abandoning their Match-day 38 fixture in Jos against Plateau United.

Plateau United had earlier accepted a Summary

Jurisdiction which fined the club N1million for the unruly conduct of their supporters who threw objects into the field of play in violation of Rules B13.18 of the Framework and Rules governing the league.

The LMC had in the aftermath of the match charged Heartland with breach of Rule B13.26 of the Nigeria

Professional Football League (NPFL) Framework and Rules which makes it an offence for a club to refuse continuation of play during a match.

Heartland was fined N3million and forfeiture of the three points and three goals to their opponent, Plateau United. Heartland players had abandoned the match in protest to the match

referee’s decision with scores at 1-1.

In their letter dated October 11, General Manager of Heartland FC, Oscar Keke, said the club had reconsidered their position in an October 7, 2016 letter rejecting the charge and decision of the LMC. “Our earlier letter on the above dated October 7 refers.

We have reconsidered our

position and hereby submit to the board’s jurisdiction thereof”.

The club further apologised for inconveniences their earlier position might have caused the League.

Heartland thus ended the season on 18th position with 36 points and stand relegated to the Nigeria National League (NNL)

GOV’S CUP TENNIS

Enosoregbe Bows Out, Vows to Bounce Back in 2nd Leg Nigeria’s Clifford Enosoregbe failed in his bid to make it to the semi final of the Men’s Singles of the first leg (Futures 5) of 16th Governor’s Cup Lagos Tennis Championship as he lost to Indian’s Sasi Kumar Mukund in the quarter final match decided yesterday at the Lagos Lawn Tennis Club, Onikan.

Enosoregbe lost the first set 1-6, before he forced himself back to the game to win the second set 6-3, but due to tiredness and loss of concentration, he could not make it in the third set as he was defeated by 2-6.

Though he could not make it to the semi final, the Edo-born player received loud ovation from fans at the tennis club as they believed that he fought hard before bowing out of the

first leg.

“I feel great playing to the quarter-finals of the first leg of the Governor’s Cup this year. This is an achievement I will carry on to the second leg coming up next week.

“What I need now is a little bit of rest after which I will begin my training for the second leg.

“Mukund was a good player who I learnt has been going round the world playing circuits, an opportunity that eludes many of us here in Nigeria despite the fact that we are equally good on court, “ said Enosoregbe who entered the Governor’s Cup as a wildcard player.

The other Nigerian who played in the quarter final, Sylvester Emmanuel, also fought hard before he was

beaten by Egyptian KarimMohamed Maamoun in 2-6,7-5,1-6 match.

Meanwhile, Boy Westerhof of The Netherlands was unable to make it past the quarter finals as he was stopped by the tournament number one seed, Spanish Enrique Lopez-Perez in straight set of 6-4,5-7.

In the women’s singles, top seed, Valetini Grammatikopoulou of Greece continued her quest for glory as she defeated Bulgarian Julia Terziyska in straight set of 6-4,7-6(2). Tadeja Majeric of Slovakia also won her game against Omar’s Fatma Al-Nabhani who she defeated 6-0,7-6(2). Swiss Conny Perrin has an easy ride over Harmony Tan of France with a 6-1,6-0 victory.

In the semi final matches

scheduled for Friday, Lopez Perez will face Egyptian player, Maamoun, while Mukund will battle Gianni Mina of France in the men’s singles. Top seed, Valetini Grammatikopoulou will

settle scores with Conny Perrin in one of the semi-final games in the women’s singles, while Tadeja and Deniz Khazaniuk of Israel will fight for the final ticket.

MFM FC Appreciates Gov Ambode Following the glorious outing in the 2015/16 Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) season, The management of Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries Football Club of Lagos has expressed its gratitude to the Governor of Lagos State, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode for his unflinching support for the team.

After putting up an inspiring display in the first stanza of their debut season in the

2015/16 Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) season, the Lagos-based team found itself hovering in the relegation zone, but with the intervention and unending support from the Lagos State Sports Commission, the Lagos State Football Association, and the clubs avid fans, the Olukoya Boys escaped the drop by whiskers after beating Ifeanyi Ubah Football Club of Nnewi 1-0 in the final match day of the out-gone season.

55

T H I S D AY •FRIDAY OCTOBER 14, 2016

FRIDAYSPORTS

Tyson Fury Vacates Heavyweight World Titles Suspended by BBB of C pending investigations into his medical issues Tyson Fury who Wednesday night voluntarily vacated his WBO and WBA world heavyweight titles with immediate effect to focus on his medical treatment and recovery, has been suspended by the British Boxing Board of Control (BBB of C).

The British boxing authorities confirmed yesterday that Fury’s licence was suspended “pending further investigation into anti-doping and medical issues”.

Fury, 28, has not fought since beating Wladimir Klitschko in November 2015 and has twice withdrawn from rematches. Fury was charged with a doping offence by the UK’s anti-doping body in June.

The undefeated boxer reportedly failed a drugs test in the United States and he courted more controversy recently when told Rolling Stone magazine in a recent interview he has “done lots of cocaine” in a bid to battle depression.

The British Boxing Board of Control was set to discuss removing Fury’s license on Wednesday, which would have seen him stripped of the belts, but the boxer has beaten them to the punch by vacating them voluntarily.

“I feel that it is only fair and right and for the good of boxing to keep the titles active and allow the other contenders to fight

for the vacant belts that I proudly won and held as the undefeated heavyweight champion of the world when I defeated the longstanding champion Wladimir Klitschko,” said Tyson in a statement.

“I won the titles in the ring and I believe that they should be lost in the ring, but I’m unable to defend at this time and I have taken the hard and emotional decision to now officially vacate my treasured world titles and wish the next in-line contenders all the very best as I now enter another big challenge in my life which I know, like against Klitschko, I will conquer.”

The 28-year-old’s promoter, Mick Hennessy, added: “Tyson will still be the linear world heavyweight champion in everyone’s eyes.

He beat the most dominant champion in the modern era of boxing on an amazing night in Germany to earn that accolade and that will never change.

“Whilst it’s heartbreaking to see Tyson vacate the world titles that he worked so long and hard for all his life, what’s paramount now is that he receives the medical treatment along with the love of his family and friends and the support of the boxing world to make a full recovery.”

Peter Fury, Tyson’s uncle and trainer, said, “Tyson will be back stronger from this and I will make sure,

Tyson no matter what we have to deal with, Tyson not only comes back but will reclaim what’s rightfully his. I’m very proud of my nephew’s achievements.”

Fury’s vacation is likely

to expedite confirmation of a fight between Klitschko and Anthony Joshua for the newly-vacant titles.

Negotiations are ongoing between Klitschko and Joshua, with promoter Eddie Hearn

hoping to get the fight on in December.

Fury had been given a deadline of October 17 to notify the WBO “why his title should not be vacated due to inactivity, breach of contract

and performance-enhancing drugs and stimulants.”

The WBA recently said Fury deserved a chance “to overcome this situation”, but warned he could ultimately lose his title.

Emirates FA Cup Makes its Debut in Africa Emirates, the Lead Partner of the Emirates FA Cup competition in England, has taken the famous trophy on its first-ever tour to Africa.

The airline, which sponsors some of the world’s biggest sporting events and teams, aims to connect with people through their passion for sports, and in this case, through football. It will take the Emirates FA Cup to Accra, Ghana and Nairobi, Kenya after a short layover in Dubai, giving fans the chance to get up close and personal with one of the world’s

most prestigious domestic competition trophies.

The trophy, accompanied

by FA Cup Ambassador and former English International player, David James, travelled on flight EK787 from Dubai to Accra and will continue its journey to Kenya after a two-day tour visit to Ghana.

Football fans participated in competitions in each country, and the lucky winners will get the opportunity to attend an exclusive event where they could take selfies with the trophy and meet James.

In May 2014, The FA Cup was brought to the home of Emirates airline by Arsenal Vice Captain 2014-15, Mikel Arteta to celebrate the club’s victory over Hull City. After the visit to Emirates’ Headquarters, the cup was taken to Arsenal Soccer School Dubai at the 7he Sevens to assist with football exercises for young and aspiring players.

Emirates became the Lead Partner of The FA Cup, renamed The Emirates FA Cup during the 2015/2016 season of the English Premier league. The tour of the Cup

Lakowe to Host 2016 Total Charity Golf Tournament This year’s annual Total Charity Golf Tournament will take place at the Lakowe Lakes Golf Course, Lagos on Saturday, October 15, 2016.

The tournament is designed to raise funds to improve the infrastructure for selected charity projects in one of Total’s three operational locations in Nigeria. The funds raised are to be rotated between the charities every year, as part of the company’s social responsibility. The locations are Lagos, Port Harcourt and Abuja.

This year, two charity homes, which provide care for abandoned, motherless and vulnerable children in the society, will benefit from

the special fund. They are Olive Blooms Orphanage Home Ajah, and Friends of Jesus Orphanage Home, Badore both located in the Eti Osa Local Government Area of Lagos State.

The Managing Director/ Chief Executive of Total E&P Nigeria Limited, Nicholaz Terraz, said: “We are happy to make this societal contribution in a way different from our core business.”

All players are expected to make voluntary donations as participating fees. The amounts raised will be added to a special fund set aside by Total and presented to the selected charity organisations.

In 2015, TEPNG donated proceeds from the tournament to the Zaamar Institute, Abuja, a learning ability centre for children with autism. Zaamar Institute utilised the funds for the provision of one-on-one classrooms; 2 toilet facilities; a store; and some play ground equipment for the children.

The tournament which has been sponsored for 21 years by the NNPC/Total E&P Nigeria Joint Venture tees off by 09:00a.m. This year’s competition is expected to have 80 golfers from various parts of the country and will follow the Stable Ford format (Short Gun) and will be played over 18 holes.

formed part of the three year sponsorship deal the airline has had with the English Football Association.

The Emirates FA Cup is the oldest and biggest domestic football tournament in the world with a large global following and attracts thousands of supporters all over the world including Ghana and Kenya.

With over 700 clubs entering the competition since it began in August, The FA Cup continues to touch all parts of the world’s favourite

sport, with its distributions being critical to the lifeblood of non-league, amateur and grassroots football in England.

Over two million fans have attended an FA Cup game this season with the competition also enjoying resurgence in popularity amongst domestic and global television audiences.

Emirates is a long-standing supporter of football with partnerships across Europe including AC Milan, Real Madrid, Olympiacos FC, Hamburger SV, Benfica, Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal.

Throughout the next three years, Emirates will focus on bringing the world’s most prestigious domestic cup competition closer to its fans from across the nation as well as the rest of the globe.

Emirates currently serves 27 destinations in Africa including five cargo points. The airline continues to enhance its presence in Africa by increasing flight frequencies to existing points, and deploying larger aircraft to cater for the increasing passenger and cargo demand.

Akobundu Celebrates with Golf Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja Come Saturday, the Rayfield Golf course in Jos will wake to a lavish golf tourney as popular Jos legal practitioner, Okey Akobundu celebrates 50th birthday anniversary.

Akobundu who plays off a comfortable 12 Handicap is particularly happy that the Executive Governor of Plateau State, Rt. Hon. Simon Lalong, equally a smooth golfer, playing off 13 Handicap will feature in the tourney that is expecting a field of over 100 golfers from across the nation.

Akobundu stated that turning 50 was significant to him as a golfer as he

would now be looking up to 60 years, an age for veteran golfers. He equally mentioned that he was overjoyed since his birthday is coinciding with the new golf revolution being spearheaded

by Governor Lalong. ‘‘I have been playing golf for 10 years and my wife, Uzoma has been supporting me all the way’’, Akobundu said. “I once played 9 Handicap and I have never regretted one day on the course since a bosom friend, Murphy Dogun introduced me to the game. Always I was telling people that the day we have a golfer at the helm in the state, the game of golf will take a sharp turn

for good. God just answered that prayer as we presently have Governor Lalong who doesn’t joke with the game at the helm You can see what the Governor and his associates are doing with the Lamingo course. Lamingo is undergoing a process that will make it one of the best courses in Nigeria. As we speak, the course is adorning Green Putting surfaces and its all kudos to the Governor who beckoned on his friends to bring in fund to upgrade that course which is the only Government course in the State. The Governor is all set to redefine the game of golf in the State and I pray he succeeds”.

Friday, October 14, 2016

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MISSILE Malami to Judges

“The bottom line is that we have a responsibility to fight corruption. Corruption is a crime and nobody, regardless of how highly placed is exempted as far as issues that border on crimes and criminalities are concerned. The limited exceptions as we know constitutionally are the exceptions of immunity. And to the best of my knowledge, those exceptions do not apply to investigation. For those that are conferred with the immunity, the right to investigate has not been taken away constitutionally” – The Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami (SAN), justifying the arrest of seven judges by the Department of State Services (DSS) at the weekend.

AKINOSUNTOKUN In Clinton And Jegede We Trust DIALOGUE WITH NIGERIA

L

ike many sensitive Africans I acquired the habit of waiting on the American presidential election with bated breath eight years ago. I was monitoring the polls (the authoritative projection of the probable outcome of the contest between the presidential nominees of the Democratic and Republican parties) on hourly basis. Four years later in 2012, this seasonal anxiety was reinforced by the overlapping Ondo State governorship election. I am emotionally attached to the two candidates individually running for the office of the president and governor on the platforms of the Democratic Party and Labour Party respectively, Barack Obama and Olusegun Mimiko.

The duo is serving out their two terms tenure within the year but my anxiety has not abated regardless. In a manner of speaking, they will feature in this year’s succession elections on the 8th and 26th November as the mentor and promoter in chief for the candidates of their parties vying to succeed them. Both elections would go down in their personal history as the greatest proxy war of their political life. It is the only way they can secure their legacy and finish strong.

Said Obama to the congressional black caucus “If I hear anybody saying their vote does not matter, that it doesn’t matter who we elect — read up on your history. It matters. We’ve got to get people to vote…I will consider it a personal insult — an insult to my legacy — if this community lets down its guard and fails to activate itself in this election.

You want to give me a good send off? Go vote.”

Beyond my personal identification with Obama and Mimiko, I have also a vested interest in the victory of their protégés, Hilary Clinton and Eyitayo Jegede — a personal friend and classmate. The enormity of the challenge of the forthcoming American presidential election lies, potentially, in the lapse of the possibility of Donald Trump, Clinton’s opponent, winning the American presidency. The Yoruba have a qualification for the rise of Trump in American politics — Oro pesi je! Meaning ‘we are dumb founded’.

From the high platform of the exemplary nobility and idealism of Obama’s election, America has swung to the contrarian race-to-the-bottom negativity of confounding the world with the elevation of Trump to the status of a competitive aspirant for the most powerful office on planet earth. The Atlantic magazine uniquely captured the moment in an editorial masterpiece I feel duty bound to share with readers. The editorial is no less distinguished by the observation that this is only the third time since the foundation of the magazine in 1857 that it will endorse a candidate for the office of the American president. It reads as follows: “One of the animating causes of this magazine at its founding, in 1857, was the abolition of slavery, and Lowell (the editor of the magazine) argued that the Republican Party, and the man who was its standard-bearer in 1860, represented the only reasonable pathway out of the existential crisis then facing the country. In his endorsement of Abraham Lincoln for president, Lowell wrote, on behalf of the magazine, ‘It is in a moral aversion to slavery as a great wrong that the chief strength of the Republican Party lies’. He went on to declare that Abraham Lincoln ‘had experience enough in public affairs to make him a statesman, and not enough to make him a politician’.

“Perhaps because no subsequent candidate for the presidency was seen as Lincoln’s match, or perhaps because the stakes in ensuing elections were judged to be not quite so high as they were

in 1860, it would be 104 years before The Atlantic would again make a presidential endorsement. In October of 1964, Edward Weeks, writing on behalf of the magazine, cited Lowell’s words before making an argument for the election of Lyndon B. Johnson.

“But The Atlantic’s endorsement of Johnson was focused less on his positive attributes than on the flaws of his opponent, Barry Goldwater, the junior senator from Arizona. Of Goldwater, Weeks wrote, ‘His proposal to let field commanders have their choice of the smaller nuclear weapons would rupture a fundamental belief that has existed from Abraham Lincoln to today: the belief that in times of crisis the civilian authority must have control over the military’. Goldwater’s limited capacity for prudence and reasonableness was what particularly worried The Atlantic.

“Today, our position is similar to the one in which The Atlantic’s editors found themselves in 1964.

We are impressed by many of the qualities of the Democratic Party’s nominee for president, even as we are exasperated by others, but we are mainly concerned with the Republican Party’s nominee, Donald J. Trump, who might be the most ostentatiously unqualified major-party candidate in the 227-year history of the American presidency.

“These concerns compel us, for the third time since the magazine’s founding, to endorse a candidate for President. Hillary Rodham Clinton has more than earned, through her service to the country as first lady, as a senator from New York, and as secretary of state, the right to be taken seriously as a White House contender. She has flaws (some legitimately troubling, some exaggerated by her opponents), but she is among the most prepared candidates ever to seek the presidency. We are confident that she understands the role of the United States in the world; we have no doubt that she will apply herself assiduously to the problems confronting this country; and she has demonstrated an aptitude for analysis and hard work.

“Donald Trump, on the other hand, has no record of public service and no qualifications for public office. His affect is that of an infomercial huckster; he traffics in conspiracy theories and racist invective; he is appallingly sexist; he is erratic, secretive, and xenophobic; he expresses admiration for authoritarian rulers, and evinces authoritarian tendencies himself.

He is easily goaded, a poor quality for someone seeking control of America’s nuclear arsenal. He is an enemy of fact-based discourse; he is ignorant of, and indifferent to, the Constitution; he appears not to read.

“In one of the more sordid episodes in modern American politics, Trump made himself the face of the so-called birther movement, which had as its immediate goal the demonization of the country’s first African American president. Trump’s larger goal, it seemed, was to stoke fear among white Americans of dark-skinned foreigners. He succeeded wildly in this; the fear he has aroused has brought him one step away from the Presidency.

“In its founding statement, The Atlantic promised that it would be ‘the organ of no party or clique,’ and our interest here is not to advance the prospects of the Democratic Party, nor to damage those of the Republican Party. If Hillary Clinton were facing Mitt Romney, or John McCain, or George W. Bush, or, for that matter, any of the leading candidates Trump vanquished in the Republican primaries, we would not have contemplated making this endorsement. We believe in American democracy, in which individuals

akin.osuntokun@thisdaylive.com

from various parties of different ideological stripes can advance their ideas and compete for the affection of voters. But Trump is not a man of ideas. He is a demagogue, a xenophobe, a sexist, a know-nothing, and a liar. He is spectacularly unfit for office, and voters—the statesmen and thinkers of the ballot box—should act in defence of American democracy and elect his opponent.”

Concerning the forthcoming governorship election, Ondo State has been simmering in unending controversies. Of broader dimension, it has ignited a latent supremacist struggle among contending power blocs within the All Progressive Congress (APC).

The theatre was the governorship primaries leading to the election of the party’s standard-bearer in the November 26th governorship election. The more consequential import is the manner in which it has played to the persecution complex of the national leader of the party, Senator Ahmed Bola Tinubu; and generally lending itself to the pre Nigeria historical stereotype of feuding Yoruba warlords getting blindsided into the trap and political scheme of putative Hausa-Fulani imperialists.

The meaning of this immediate background to the Ondo State governorship election is that the APC is going into the impending contest as a house divided against itself. This is good news for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Governor Mimiko and his crown Prince, Jegede, the PDP governorship candidate. Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and Attorney General of Ondo State for eight years, the distinction of Jegede lies in the fact that he is so cool, serene and largely apolitical that it is difficult

to imagine him surviving in the rough and tumble of Nigeria’s political forest of a thousand demons.

If any contender is deserving of an emasculated, enfeebled and less challenging field of opponents, God knows that none is more deserving than gentleman Jegede. In a non-partisan and less conflictual context, Jegede is the contestant whom all sides of the divide will find no difficulty in electing by acclamation. If you do not know him, just think of the commendation of the prose poem ‘desiderata’ and you would have gone far in knowing the kind of person Jegede is.

More than most people I know, he approximates the embodiment of the noble poem: “Go placidly amid the noise and the haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence.

As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant; they too have their story. Avoid loud and aggressive persons; they are vexatious to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself. Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time. Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism. Be yourself. Especially, do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is as perennial as the grass…”

THE NOISE OF THE MOMENT

P.A! …BOOK ME INTO ONE OF THESE TV BREAKFAST SHOWS - I WANT TO CONTRIBUTE MY NOISE TO THE ONGOING CACOPHONY ON THE ARREST OF JUDGES!

I KNOW, BUT I STILL WANT TO CATCH THE TAIL END OF THE SHOUTING MATCH AND HAVE MY SAY!

BUT SIR, THE STATIONS HAVE POLLUTED THE AIRWAVES WITH THE CACOPHONY FOR A WEEK NOW AND A NEW SCANDAL IS WAITING IN THE WINGS TO REPLACE IT!

SIR, DON’T FORGET PARTICIPANTS ARE AT THIS POINT SOUNDING LIKE BROKEN RECORDS AND REPEATING THE NOISES MADE BY OTHERS AND PASSING THEM OFF AS THEIRS!

A-HA! THAT’S EXACTLY WHY I WANT TO BE THERE AT THAT POINT! NIGERIANS ARE MORE LIKELY TO FORGET WHO SAYS WHAT, BUT WON’T FORGET WHO SHOUTS LAST AND LOUDEST!

AH, TRUE SIR! ...AND WE’LL BE LUCKY IF ANYBODY REMEMBERS ANYTHING ABOUT THE ARREST AFTER ANOTHER WEEK!

14-10-16

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