Thursday 5th January 2017

NNPC Names Oando, Sahara, 37 Others Winners of 2017 Crude Term Contracts Ejiofor Alike The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has announced the list of successful bidders for the 2017/2018 crude oil term contracts.

The list consists of 39

winners comprising 18 Nigerian companies, 11 international traders, five foreign refineries, three National Oil Companies (NOCs), and two NNPC trading arms.

The Group General Manager, Crude Oil Marketing

Division (COMD) of the Corporation, Mr. Mele Kyari, who announced the results, according to a statement posted on the corporation’s website, said the contract would run for one year effective January 1, 2017 for twelve consecutive circles of

crude oil allocation.

According to the statement, all the contracts are for 32,000 barrels per day except for Duke Oil Limited, the oil trading arm of NNPC, which shall be for 90,000 barrels per day.

The 16 Nigerian companies,

excluding NNPC subsidiaries that emerged successful, are Oando, Sahara Energy, MRS Oil and Gas, AA Rano, Masters Energy, Eterna Oil, Britannia-U, North West Petroleum, Optima Energy, AMG Petroleum, Setana Energy, Prudent Energy, Arkleen Oil and Gas, Emo

Oil, Bono, and Hyde Energy.

International refineries that made the list include Indian refiner, Hindustan Energy, Varo Energy, Sonara Refinery, Bharat Petroleum and Cepa.

Trafigura, ENOC Trading, Continued on page 8

FG: Airport Security Personnel to Bear Arms, National Carrier to Start This Year...

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Thursday 5 January, 2017 Vol 21. No 7931. Price: N250

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Security Operatives Raid Abuja Home of Jonathan's Brother-in-Law...

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Obasanjo, Awujale at Each Other’s Throats over Adenuga Ex-president on the defensive over persecution of Globacom boss by EFCC Sheriff Balogun in Abeokuta Former President Olusegun Obasanjo and the Awujale of Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Adetona, have gone at each other’s throats over the travails of the Chairman of Globacom, Chief Mike Adenuga, when the latter was investigated by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)

in 2006 over allegations that Obasajo’s deputy, Atiku Abubakar, had used funds of the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF) to acquire shares in Globacom.

Also, Mohammed Babangida, son of Nigeria’s former military president, Ibrahim Babangida, was Continued on page 9

Fayose Accuses APC of Plot to Remove Him from Office, Writes CJN Fayemi dismisses gov’s allegation Presidency slams him over comment on N5,000 stipend Davidson Iriekpen in Lagos and Tobi Soniyi in Abuja Ekiti State governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, has raised the alarm over a new plot by the All Progressives Congress (APC) to remove him from

office with the connivance of the judiciary.

Addressing journalists in Lagos yesterday, Fayose said he had already petitioned the acting Chief Justice of Continued on page 8

Army Confirms Arrest of Borno LG Chairman over Alleged Links to Boko Haram... Page 10

L-R: Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mr. Mohmmed Musa Bello; Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun; and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Geoffrey Onyema, during the first Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting of 2017, held at the Presidential Villa in Abuja… yesterday godwin omoigui

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N’Delta Militants Might Return to Creeks, Clark Warns Buhari Urges FG to sustain dialogue Oghenevwede Ohwovoiole in Abuja A critical stakeholder in the Ijaw nation and leader of the Pan-Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), Chief E.K. Clark has warned that Niger Delta militias might return to the creeks and resume hostilities if the federal government holds out too long on the issue of dialogue with the agitators.

He stated this in his country home, Kiagbodo in Delta State this week while receiving the newly sworn-in executives of Izon-Ebe Oil and Gas Producing Communities Association (IOGPCA) – an association of oil and gas contractors of Ijaw extraction that cut across the entire oilrich region.

According to Clark, “It is getting late for President Muhammadu Buhari and the federal government on the issue of dialogue with the aggrieved Niger Delta agitators who have stopped the bombing of pipelines and other oil facilities. “If the dialogue fails to commence as soon as possible, the boys may feel betrayed and go back to the creeks and resume hostilities. “I saw the president’s media man (Femi Adesina) claiming that we are not one and not united, and that the federal government was still looking for people to negotiate with. “That was a great insult to us. I was in government before he was born. On July 30, 2016, I summoned a meeting of all

Ijaw leaders and traditional rulers to my house in Warri and the Deputy Governor of Delta State was in attendance. “After that first meeting, I decided to call for another one with paid adverts in national dailies, since it was not only the Ijaws that have oil and gas.�

The Ijaw leader added that at that meeting, which was held at the Petroleum Training Institute (PTI) Effurun, with over 500 delegates in attendance, the Ijaw leaders advised the agitators to lay down their arms and stop the destruction and vandalism of oil and gas facilities.

Clark added that after the meeting, the “boys in the creeks� quickly responded and mandated him to negotiate

on their behalf, stating that on November 1, 2016, he led a delegation comprising traditional rulers, leaders, women and youth leaders from the Niger Delta to the Presidential Villa, Abuja, where they presented to the federal government a 16-point demand for dialogue and negotiations. “Yet, this government is saying that it does not know whom to negotiate with. We are ready to negotiate, the earlier the better. Therefore we are using this opportunity of you coming to see me, to tell the federal government that it’s getting too late. We are Nigerians and we are nationalists,� the Ijaw leader warned.

The elder statesman also highlighted some of the

educational benefits for the Ijaws under the amnesty programme, adding that of those who graduated from universities in 2015, four of them made first class, 26 made second class upper in Benson Idahosa University, Benin City in 2016, while 187 passed with second class upper and lower divisions.

He advised the association to maintain peace in expressing their grievances and should not let their enemies to divide them. “Let us come together and fight our cause as one. I am happy that you realised that for us to achieve our aim we must come together and fight our common enemy,� Clark added.

On the issue of the Maritime

University in Okerenkoko, Delta State, he also warned against the scrapping of the university, adding, “I do not see any reason why people are opposed to the Maritime University in Okerenkoko as this was something that was recommended as far back as 1998.�

He congratulated the association’s president, Hon. James Edoukumo and his executive members for their victory in their elections, and urged them to always respect their traditional rulers, elders and leaders.

Chief Clark, who said he will be 90 this year, said for the government to take the oil and gas from the Niger Delta, it should be ready to develop the region.

would not only refuse to fall for the APC’s cheap and pedestrian blackmail, but would also resolutely and confidently defend the hallowed grounds of the judiciary and secure it from desecration by anti-democratic forces running riot all over the country.

The governor, who used the opportunity to speak on national issues, also berated the APC-led federal government for engaging in propaganda when Nigerians are suffering.

First, Fayose wondered why nobody had been brought to justice over frequent killings of Christians in southern Kaduna, saying that what the Christians were going through in the hands of Fulani herdsmen calls for concern.

He called on the Muhammadu Buhari administration to urgently put a stop to the killings in Kaduna State.

The governor said the country’s electoral process was devoid of violence under Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)-led federal government unlike the situation today. “Our electoral process was devoid of violence but today the story is different,� he said.

Fayose again described the stories surrounding the adopted Chibok girls as a hoax, adding that the report on the release of the girls was part of the propaganda of the APC when Nigerians were completely tired of the their misrule. “Some day, the whole story surrounding the Chibok girls will be told. Everything you

read and hear about the girls is a hoax. Everything looks stage-managed. There was nothing about the Chibok girls. The girls were camped somewhere and trained. The truth will be told one day.�

But when contacted, the Special Assistant on Media to Fayemi, Mr. Yinka Oyebode, said he would rather not dignify Fayose’s ranting with a response.

According to Oyebode, “It is simply a case of the wicked running when no one pursues. “It would appear, Governor Fayose wakes up daily in search of new controversies and making one spurious allegation after another. And it does not really matter to him whether such allegations are reasonable, logical or sensible. “This allegation is not only irresponsible, it is quite unfair to the two former governors of the state. “And one is not surprised at this, because under Fayose, falsehood has been elevated to the level of statecraft, sustained by the machinery of state. “My advice to him is: Let the governor go and honour the promises he made to the Ekiti electorate (if he ever made any). Let him pay workers’ their salaries, take governance more seriously and make the

FAYOSE ACCUSES APC OF PLOT TO REMOVE HIM FROM OFFICE, WRITES CJN Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Onnoghen, on the plot.

The governor said the target was to silence him as the voice of opposition in the country, because he had bluntly rejected all overtures for him to defect to the ruling APC or stop talking.

He alleged that at a recent meeting held in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, with several stalwarts and chieftains of the APC in attendance, two former governors of the state and members of the APC, namely Segun Oni and Dr. Kayode Fayemi, now Minister of Mines and Solid Mineral Development, boasted that there was no going back on the latest plan to remove him from office at all cost before the expiration of his (Fayose’s) tenure in October 2018.

The governor, who warned against any plot to destabilise his state, wondered how long the Ekiti APC and its collaborators would pursue their clandestine agenda of reversing an election they lost over 30 months ago and was validated by the tribunal, Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court.

In a letter he addressed to Justice Onnoghen, Fayose alleged: “Certain APC chieftains were again making subterranean moves to manipulate and compromise a section of the judiciary, particularly some judges, to get through the back door what they failed severally to achieve through the ballot box as well as in open court, even

in matters already decided by the Supreme Court. “The essence of all of this is to silence him as the voice of opposition in the country because he has bluntly rejected all overtures to him to defect into the ruling APC or stop talking.�

The governor added: “At a recent meeting held in AdoEkiti, the state capital, at which several stalwarts and chieftains of the APC were in attendance, two former governors of the state and members of the APC, namely Segun Oni, a former governor of the state, and Dr. Kayode Fayemi, the Minister of Mines and Solid Mineral Development, boasted that there is no going back on the latest plan to subvert the will of the people of Ekiti freely given. “Wrest the governance of Ekiti from me at all cost before the expiration of my tenure in October 2018 through an orchestrated but dubious legal process; and thereby render nugatory the sacred mandate of the people given unto me openly and unequivocally when I won in all the 16 local governments of the state while the then incumbent governor, Fayemi recorded zero.�

Fingering the presidency in the latest plot, with Oni and Fayemi as their local arrowheads, Fayose alleged that a concocted fresh suit was being rehashed and will be filed against him on the same old allegation that had been thrashed all the way from the tribunal to the Supreme Court.

He alleged: “This time, the

plotters of this judicial coup d’etat plan to procure the services of a compromised or malleable judge to get selfserving ‘jankara’ and kangaroo judgments with the intention of having the Supreme Court reverse itself on the June 2014 Ekiti election. “Oni and Fayemi boastfully claimed that they have enlisted the assurances of Justice Okon Abang and one or two other judges in the concocted fresh suit, hinged on the report of a useless, senseless, and orchestrated military report not known to the electoral law.�

Urging the CJN to take “notice of judicial pronouncements by courts of concurrent jurisdiction, as well as the scathing remarks of appellate courts on how Justice Abang has been used in the past by anti-democratic forces to endanger democracy and engage in deleterious miscarriage of justice�, he prayed that the judiciary would not succumb to devious plot to undermine its independence and integrity and rubbish its good name and hard-earned reputation any more. “My Lord, you have a duty to ensure that no judge under your watch is enlisted into this diabolical act by any rampaging anti-democratic elements. “The embarrassing incidents currently playing out on our national judicial horizon, with several judicial officers, including serving Justices of the Supreme Court, enmeshed in simulated and orchestrated corruption scandals and

indictments by agencies of the federal government because they had refused, at one time or the other, to serve the base interests of the ruling APC government in matters pending before their lordships, have kept us wondering whether the judiciary will succumb to these unwarranted harassments and intimidation meant to coerce and cower it into submission and make this very important and indispensable Third Estate of the Realm subservient to the arbitrary wishes, whims, and caprices of the executive and political desperados,� he said.

Describing himself as “a leading opposition figure in Nigeria today who has been very critical of the anti-people policies of the federal government and its anti-democratic actions that endanger our nascent democracy�, Fayose added that “democracy without a virile opposition will eventually turn into a dictatorship, which is currently being experienced�.

He said he would continue to believe in the judiciary going by the open declaration of the CJN to defend the independence of the judiciary; maintain its integrity and deliver a virile and disciplined judiciary that is impartial, independent, nonpartisan, and not subservient to the selfish interests of any individual, group or cabal, however powerful or influential they may be.

The governor therefore expressed confidence that Justice Onnoghen in particular and the judiciary in general

NNPC NAMES OANDO, SAHARA, 37 OTHERS WINNERS OF 2017 CRUDE TERM CONTRACTS BP Trading, Total Trading, UCL Petro Energy, Moco Trading, Levene Energy, Glencore, Litasco Supply and Trading and Heritage Oil are the 11 international traders that were selected.

Term contracts were also awarded to India (Indian Oil Company), China (Sinopec), and South Africa’s SacOil based on government-to-government contracts.

NNPC’s subsidiaries that

made the list included Duke Oil and Carlson/Hyson.

The Group Managing Director of NNPC, Dr. Maikanti Kacalla Baru had said during the bid opening late last year that the corporation would ensure due process, transparency and fairness in the selection process. “We will ensure transparency and fairness in the process.

There is nothing that is hidden,�

Baru had said.

The corporation also debunked speculations that Nigeria’s crude was finding it difficult to get buyers in the international market, stressing that the country’s oil grades were still the most sought-after among refiners in Europe and other users in Far East Asian countries.

A total of 224 bids were submitted by companies seeking to lift Nigerian crude grades for the period 2017/2018.

Some of the bidders reportedly included Delma Nigeria Limited, Green and Green Petrochemicals, Forte Oil, Nisen Investment Limited, CMCO Nigeria Limited, Acorn Petroleum, BP Oil International and North Oil and Coral Global.

Others were Calson Bermuda, Glencore Energy Services, Emadeb Energy Services Limited, Tamoil Overseas, Demure Energy Services

Limited, Vitol SA, Ankor Oil and Emo oil Petrochemical, among others.

Baru had revealed that the list dropped from the 278 that applied for the contracts in 2015, because the corporation introduced some new criteria that had to be met by bidders.

According to him, refiners and big crude oil lifters were given priority in the process, which he said was to be concluded next month.

Continued on page 9

TOP GAINERS NGN NGN VITAFOAM 0.12 2.54 LIVESTOCK 0.04 0.88 UPDC 0.13 2.88 AFRIPRUD 0.09 3.00 UNITEDCAPITAL 0.08 2.89 TOP LOSERS NGN NGN ASHAKACEM 0.59 11.43 GTBANK 1.10 22.90 DIAMONDBANK 0.04 0.86 CCNN 0.20 4.55 OANDO 0.17 4.30 HPE Nestle Nig Plc N810.00 Volume: 166.088 million shares Value: N873.572 million Deals: 2,149 As at yesterday 04/01/17 See details on Page 44

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Three Female Suicide Bombers Shot Dead in Madagali Three female suicide bombers were shot dead yesterday in Bakin Dutse, Madagali Local Government Area of Adamawa State, officials have said.

The officials said the three girls were on a mission to carry out suicide bombings at a crowded market in Gulak, before they were shot by soldiers and local vigilantes.

The three women were intercepted at Bakin Dutse village, five kilometers from Gulak, the administrative

headquarters of Madagali Local Government Area, where villagers converge in their hundreds every Wednesday for the market day.

Badare Akintoye, the Army Public Relations Officer at the 28 Task Force Battalion in Mubi, confirmed the incident, reported online news medium, Premium Times.

“We gunned down three female suicide bombers. Our soldiers are on alert and commercial activities are going on there,” the army

major stated.

The chairman of Madagali Local Government Area, Yusuf Gulak, provided more details in a telephone interview.

“Our local vigilantes that are now assisting the soldiers saw the three female suicide bombers who were on a mission to strike in the market.

“On seeing them fast approaching, they asked them to stop but the girls declined instead running faster, so one was instantly gunned down and the bomb on her body

exploded, so also the second girl.

“The third girl attempted to run but could not succeed as she was also shot dead.”

Mr. Gulak called for the deployment of more troops in the area.

Yesterday’s incident is coming a few hours after soldiers repelled an early morning attack on Tuesday

by Boko Haram insurgents on Dar village in Madagali.

Last December, two female suicide bombers killed over

50 people at a local market in Madagali.

Suicide bomb attacks, mainly on soft targets like markets, are some of the major forms of attack by Boko Haram insurgents whose activities since 2009 have caused the death of at least 20,000 people.

The Nigerian military recently achieved a major feat against the insurgents by taking control of the Sambisa forest, formerly a bastion of Boko Haram.

Adamawa State Governor, Jibrilla Bindow

Nine Authors Make Etisalat Prize for Literature 2016 Longlist Helon Habila, chair of the judging panel of the 2016 Etisalat Prize for Literature has announced the 2016 longlist of nine books.

The longlist is made up of entries from first-time authors whose books were published in the past 24 months.

A statement from Etisalat yesterday said the longlisted books are Mr. and Mrs. Doctor by Julie Iromuanya (Coffee House Press, USA), The Yearning by Mohale

Mashigo (PanMacmillan, South Africa), Piggy Boy’s Blues by Nakhane Toure (Blackbird Books imprint of Jacana Media, SA), The Peculiars by Jen Thorpe (Penguin Random House, USA), Born on a Tuesday

by Elnathan John (Cassava Republic, Nigeria), And After Many Days by Jowhor Ile (Farafina an imprint of Kachifo Limited, Nigeria), Dub Steps by Andrew Miller (Jacana Media, South Africa), The Seed Thief

by Jacqui L'Ange (Umuzi

Publishers, South Africa) and Nwezelenga: The Star Child by Unathi Magubeni (Black Bird Books Imprint of Jacana Media, South Africa).

The Chief Executive Officer of Etisalat Nigeria, Matthew Willsher, endorsed the judges’ carefully moderated selection process, saying: “The novels in this year’s longlist represent a good number of African publishing companies.

“Each novel reflects a very interesting and dynamic

perspective that will provoke intense conversations about different personal and societal issues.”

The judging panel, comprising Nigerian novelist and poet, Helon Habila (chair), South African writer/activist Elinor Sisulu and Ivorian writer and Africa39 laureate Edwige Rene Dro, now has the task of selecting three authors for the shortlist, which was to be unveiled last month.

The winner of the 2016

Etisalat Prize for Literature will be announced in March 2017 and will receive £15,000, an engraved Montblanc Meisterstück pen, and an Etisalat-sponsored fellowship at the University of East Anglia to be mentored by renowned Professor Giles Foden, author of The Last King of Scotland.

Etisalat Prize for Literature is a pan-African prize that celebrates debut African writers of published book-length fiction.

Previous winners include

Zimbabwe’s NoViolet Bulawayo in 2013 for her novel We Need New Names, South Africa’s Songeziwe Mahlangu in 2014 for Penumbra, and Democratic Republic of Congo’s Fiston Mwanza Mujila, whose book Tram 83 won the Etisalat Prize in 2015.

The Etisalat Prize for Literature also incorporates an award for Flash Fiction; an online-based competition for non-published African writers of short stories.

the President of Nigeria to undermine the EFCC by hobnobbing with Adenuga when he tried to see him in Abuja before he fled Nigeria, saying, “Mike did not need to send anything to me to satisfy me, he needed to satisfy EFCC and so your sending any documents to me was insinuating that I was the one to be satisfied rather than the EFCC.” He added: “So, such documents were not paid any attention by me. You, as the cousin and part beneficiary from Mike, as you have told me in the past, would not be able to see the tree from the forest as far as the mode of operation of Nuhu Ribadu was concerned vis-a-vis Mike.

“If he was my child, the best I could do, would be to secure a good lawyer to handle the matter before the EFCC.” On the Awujale’s reference in his book to Adenuga’s invitation to contribute to the building of the library block of Bells University, the former president said the invitation was issued to the Globacom chairman by the then vice-chancellor of the university, Professor Julius Okogie, who never told him about inviting Mike to do so until Mike pulled out.

“That I had no idea and I did not talk to Mike about it should convince you that I know nothing about its genesis,” he said.

The former president declared that he owed nobody an apology in the course of doing his work, as he believed in what he did in the course of defending the interest of Nigeria and defending his integrity.

“All that you wanted me to do in respect of Mike was

improper, whether when I was president or when I was out of office. I must not be seen to be in the way of allowing the law to take its natural course.

All I should do is to help the course of the law and help secure a good lawyer to help the process,” he said.

Also responding to another excerpt in the Awajale’s book in which the Oba said he informed the former president of his rumoured part ownership of the Obajana cement factory built by Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Obasanjo said: “It is not only in the case of Obajana Cement that you were rumour-mongering about me. You have done that repeatedly on many occasions.

“The latest one you did in 2016 was you telling me that you heard that I had gone to Rasak Okoya to seek to marry her (sic) daughter, Abiola, when it was the girl that came to appeal to me to intervene to placate and appeal to her father to forgive her for all her misbehaviour to her father.

“I did and the father and daughter were reconciled.

I told you even then that it was unbecoming of an Oba. Of course, I am used to such rumours, slandering and insinuations since my days as a Unit Commander in the Army and I have developed thick skin.

“If ten per cent of the rumours ascribing businesses and properties I know nothing about were true, I would be the richest man on earth.

“But recently, when Aliko, yourself and myself were together, Aliko assured you that I never ever had a single share in any of Aliko’s business interests but whenever he has called on me to help within

and without to promote his business interest, I have always helped and I will always do because that is part of my job as a Nigerian leader – to help Nigerians grow their businesses or interests – and I have done that for other Nigerians and indeed for non-Nigerians, Africans and non-Africans who have requested me for help.

“It was revealing to me on that occasion when Aliko made the point that one of the directors of his cement company is somebody very close to you.”

On his reputation, Obasanjo queried: “Kabiyesi if I have squandered all the goodwill I had, you would not have contacted me on behalf of the All Progressive Congress (APC) to receive them in 2014 and you would not have been personally present when I received them as I demanded.

“I probably have greater goodwill today internally and externally than I had in office.”

In concluding, Obasanjo informed the Awujale that the type of “hate propaganda” he had tried to project in the book against him (Obasanjo) was “grossly unbecoming of an Oba let alone an Oba of your status and stature”.

“However, I still accord you the respect which I believe an Oba should be accorded and one for that matter who I presume to be a friend. In spite of your unfortunate projection, my position remains the same – respect for you as an Oba and a friend.

“Kabiyesi, I believe that I should set the record straight for posterity and to caution you from engaging in unedifying rumour-mongering and untruth(s),” he said.

started in nine states. And then a certain governor came and said it was not true. It’s just a matter of who do you believe.

“This is a government that is built on integrity and accountability. This government will not lie to Nigerians, does not lie to Nigerians, in fact

anything you hear from this government you can take it to the bank, believe it.

“So if anybody comes and says it is not true. Choose who to believe; I can tell you that you should believe this government because this government will not lie to you.”

OBASANJO, AWUJALE AT EACH OTHER’S THROATS OVER ADENUGA arrested by the EFCC at the time, over allegations that he was fronting for his father in the telecoms firm established

by Adenuga.

The investigation and threat of arrest by EFCC, headed at the time by its pioneer chairman, Nuhu Ribadu, forced Adenuga to flee the country, first to the United Kingdom and later to Ghana.

He did not return to Nigeria until late 2007 when the late President Umaru Yar’Adua was in office and Ribadu’s days as EFCC chairman were already numbered.

The war of words was sparked by excerpts from Awujale’s autobiography titled, “Awujale: The Autobiography of Alaiyeluwa Oba S.K. Adetona, Ogbagba II,” in which the traditional ruler accused Obasanjo of deliberately unleashing the EFCC after Adenuga, because the Globacom boss failed to donate to Obasanjo’s Bells University when he was still president.

The Ijebu ruler also alleged that the EFCC became Obasanjo’s attack dog that was used against those who opposed his third term agenda.

According to the Awujake, these actions by the former president had robbed him of influence and negatively affected his reputation.

But reacting in a defensive letter dated December 30, 2016 to the Awujale, Obasanjo advised the monarch to stop peddling “half-truths and falsehood”.

The former president also negated and described as untrue the Oba’s claims that he hated Adenuga, alleging that the Awujale’s assertions

in his book were a “tissue of lies and untruths”.

Obasanjo said he had nothing against the telecommunications business mogul and billionaire, and that he only performed his duty as president without fear or favour.

He maintained that wild rumours should not be perpetrated by an Oba of the Awujale’s calibre, adding that if he had anything against Adenuga, he would not have taken photographs with him (Adenuga) when he was under investigation.

He said in the letter: “Kabiyesi, do you think I would set the press up to capture me and Mike in a photograph for the newspapers? That would be puerile of me as president.

“Of course, I could not say that Mike could not do that. That you think that I, as President of Nigeria, would descend to such depravity makes me think of you much less than I thought of you, until now.”

Obasanjo noted that the total sum of what the Awujale wrote down in the pages of his book was that he disliked Mike, saying, “Maybe I need to remind you that if there was any iota of truth in such a position or mindset, Mike would not have been granted the mobile telephone licence which made him a billionaire.”

He added: “It was my prerogative as the president so to do. You may also be reminded that in the first round of the auction which Mike did not make, the country earned US$285 million for each licence.

“The country earned only US$200 million from the licence transaction with Mike and in the subsequent transaction with

Etisalat, the country earned US$400 million.

“It was a deliberate action on my part that a Nigerian should own one of the licences.

Anybody else but Mike could have been that Nigerian.”

On the charge that the former president used the EFCC against Adenuga, he said under his watch, the commission was free to do its job as it saw fit.

He claimed that he never dabbled in the affairs of the commission and queried if the Oba’s cousin, Adenuga, ever told him that his (Obasanjo's) then Chief of Staff, Abdul Mohammed, put his reputation on the line by assuring the EFCC that Mike would not be a flight risk and could be trusted if his travel passport was released to him.

“I did not even know that Abdul had done that until the chairman of EFCC, Nuhu Ribadu, reported the case of my chief of staff seemingly colluding with Mike to run out of the country. But I had implicit confidence in my chief of staff and I was to resolve the issue.

“Should your cousin not have mentioned to Abdul who guaranteed the release of his passport his fears and intention to go on exile? On several occasions, Nuhu Ribadu has asserted that, under my watch, he was a free agent to do his work as he deemed fit.

“Where it was necessary, he reported the outcome of his work to me and the subsequent or follow up actions he intended to take. On no occasion did I guide, lead or direct him on what to do,” he said.

He added that he did not consider it right for him as

FAYOSE ACCUSES APC OF PLOT TO REMOVE HIM FROM OFFICE, WRITES CJN state safe for lives, property and investments. If he can do these, then he needs not fear anyone.

“However, this is certainly a poorly contrived alibi for his ineptitude and apparent low capacity for the serious business of governance. It is

purely a cheap blackmail that will not fly.”

In another riposte, the president’s media aide, Mr. Femi Adesina yesterday asked Nigerians to accept as the truth the statement issued by the Office of the Vice-President that the federal government

had begun payments of N5,000 to indigent persons.

The vice-president's media aide, Mr Laolu Akande had in a statement on Monday said that the stipend had been paid to poor Nigerians in nine states.

However, Fayose dismissed the statement, describing it as

mere propaganda on the part of the federal government.

Responding after the Federal Executive Council meeting held in Abuja yesterday, Adesina said: “On the N5,000 stipend, it was announced specifically from the Office of the VicePresident that the scheme has

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NEWS

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

FG: Airport Security Personnel to Bear Arms, National Carrier to Start This Year FEC jacks up Kaduna airport terminal building cost from N500m to N1.5bn Entire runway of Abuja airport has failed, says aviation minister

Tobi Soniyi in Abuja As part of plans by the federal government to ensure security at the nation’s airports, President Muhammadu Buhari has granted an approval for airport security to bear arms.

The Minister of State for Aviation, Hadi Sirika, disclosed this yesterday while briefing journalists after the first Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting which President Buhari presided.

Also at the briefing, the Minister for Interior, Abdulrahman Dambazau, and the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina,

were also in attendance.

Sirika said the president gave his approval last week.

According to him, “We are very serious about aviation security. Just last week, the president approved that aviation security should bear arms.

“So we are trying to make them take the form and shape of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) of the United States with K-9 dogs, handcuffs, guards, batons, light weapons among others.

“The minister of interior is helping us in that regard with the directive of the president. They are partnering us and other stakeholders

Herdsmen Invade Benue Community, Kill FiveVillagers George Okoh in Makurdi Suspected Fulani herdsmen yesterday allegedly invaded Okpale-Ogege, Edumoga in Okpokwu Local Government Area of Benue State, killing five farmers and destroying crops worth several millions of naira. The crisis also left several persons in critical condition with severe machete and bullet wounds.

According to an eyewitness, the herdsmen invaded the area last Tuesday with large a number of their herds which grazed indiscriminately on the farmland of the community.

He said: “Our people went to their farms on Tuesday morning only to discovered a large number of cows and herdsmen grazing and destroying their farms.

“The people tried to stop them but the herdsmen resisted them and in the process attacked and inflicted many of the farmers with

machete wounds.

“The people were forced to flee from the scene, and later today being Wednesday, mobilised youths of the community to chase the herdsmen out of their farms not knowing that the invaders were armed with sophisticated weapons.

“Unfortunately in the ensuing fracas, the herdsmen opened fire on the local farmers leaving about five of them dead and many sustaining serious injuries.

“As I speak with you, many of the wounded have been taken to hospitals in the local government area while the remains of those found have been depositedatthemortuarythoughmany are still missing and unaccounted for.

“Many of the people have also fled their homes for fear of being killed by the well armed herdsmen.”

Contacted, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Assistant Superintendent Moses Yamu, said he was yet to get details of the incident.

to keep our airports secure. All these will be unveiled at the next stakeholders’ meeting.”

The minister said the position of the present administration was that the country needs a national carrier.

He said: “When we came in, we were very clear on our targets, goals and what we set out to achieve and we did say that Nigeria needs a national airline.

“The national airline will be one that the government will have no hand in, and normally, it can have three per cent. It will be private sector led and private sector driven.

“Except with the Ethiopian airline, it has been proven that the government doesn’t do well with this kind of venture.

“We are going to have a national carrier; it is on course and because it is a Public Private Participation (PPP) thing, it has to go through all the due process.

“So, it is time consuming but I hope very soon, before the end of the year, we will have a very strong viable national airline.”

He said if any airline in Nigeria has the capacity to deploy several aircraft with seamless operation; non-disruptive; provide the service effectively; go the long

haul; take advantage and give other international airlines a run for their money, the government would allow it run as a national carrier.

However, the minister noted that Nigeria did not have such a private airline.

He said: “We don’t need to get involved because there is none yet. The Nigerian airways used to do this but in the wisdom of the then government, it liberalised the sector, and because of the absence of Nigeria’s capacity most of these airlines will come and leave as fast as they came in.

“But we are addressing all of these. We are going to establish this national carrier and it will give good service. This is the solution because Nigeria has the market, we are 180 million people; we are in West Africa and in the region has 450 million people and Nigeria is the major player.

“If you add the Central Africa which is in the central belt, we are 600million people which is equivalent to the US market and also equal to the European market.”

The minister also said FEC had approved the completion of Kaduna terminal building and the variation of the project cost.

He said: “The cost is up from N500million plus to N1.1billion plus. This is just for the terminal building and not the runway.”

According to him, the project would be completed in six months and that the contractor had given an assurance that the work would be completed in six months.

He said the project awarded in 2011 and commenced in 2012, explaining that while the rehabilitation work was going on, a contractor noticed some structural damages to the building itself and then increased the scope of what should be done to put it into use.

Sirika said: “The cost of variation is in excess of 15 per cent, it had to go to the then President Goodluck Jonathan for approval anticipation, which was approved and they went to BPP. So we brought it to council today (yesterday) to ratify, and of course taking into cognisance the exchange rate and inflation that has increased the cost of completion of the terminal building.”

The minister also spoke on the planned rehabilitation of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja.

He said the rehabilitation work would take six months but that the airport would only be closed

for six weeks.

While asking airport users to bear with the government, Sirika said if the runway was not repaired now, it would shut down itself.

He said: “The runway was designed for 20 years to cater for not more than 100,000 people per annum. Today, it is doing over 5 million persons per annum and has been there for 34 years. So it is going for 14 years in excess of design. It is not a joke; we are a government and a very sensitive one for that matter. We would not just cause hardship or disruptions to the economy for the heck of it.

It is a very serious matter and for a very good reason.”

He also cited the case of the airport in Port Harcourt which he said had shut down itself.

The minister also said the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport would also have a second runway.

This, he said, would further enhance safety, eliminate delay and introduce efficiency at the airport.

He also cited non availability of aviation fuel which he said resulted in flights cancellation, explaining that it was not sustainable for

cont’d on pg 46

Kaduna Government Relaxes Curfew in Jama’a, Zangon Kataf LGs John Shiklam in Kaduna The Kaduna State Government has relaxed the 24-hour curfew in Jama’a and Zangon Kataf Local Government Areas of the state.

Zangon Kataf, Jama’a and Kaura Local Government Areas had been under 24-hour curfew since December 21, 2016, following security challenges that rocked the areas.

The government in a statement yesterday, said the curfew in the two localities had been reviewed to 12 hours, beginning from 6p.m. to 6a.m.

However, Kaura Local Government Area still remains under 24-hour curfew following rising security concerns.

Samuel Aruwan, the spokesman to Governor Nasir el-Rufai, in a statement, said: “The curfew in Jema’a and Zangon Kataf Local Government Areas is now for 12 hours daily, from 6p.m. to 6a.m.

He added that medical and health personnel carrying out essential services are exempted from the curfew which was imposed in December 2016 following security challenges.

Aruwan said the 24-hour curfew was relaxed following improvements in the security situation in Jema’a and Zangon Kataf council areas.

He said the state security council, chaired by the governor unanimously took the decision to relax the curfew after reviewing the security situation in the three local government areas and the entire state at meeting.

The statement said security agencies had also been empowered to arrest individuals and groups found violating the curfew.

“Furthermore, the security council urges security operatives to ensure enforcement using best practices,” the statement added.

SECURITY MEETING

R-L: Chief of Defence Staff, General Abayomi Gabriel Olanisakin; Yobe State Governor, Ibrahim Gaidam; Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje; and National Security Adviser (NSA), Major Gen. Babagana Monguno (rtd), at the opening of a meeting with national security and defence chiefs at the office of the NSA in Abuja....yesterday.

Army Confirms Arrests of Borno LG Chairman over Alleged Links to Boko Haram The Nigerian Army has confirmed the arrest of the Chairman of Mafa Local Government Area in Borno, Alhaji Shettima Lawan, for alleged links with the Boko Haram terrorists.

The Theatre Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, Maj.Gen. Lucky Irabor, made the

confirmation during a news conference at the headquarters of the 7 Division, Nigerian Army, Maiduguri, yesterday.

According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Irabor said: “All I can say is that the chairman is a big supporter of Boko Haram.

“We heard that he harboured

a Boko Haram member along with his father. That he kept the Boko Haram members because the father begged him to do so.

“The chairman was in the habit of accommodating people that had fled from the bush.

“At some point, he was valuable to us being with the

Civilian JTF to fight Boko Haram.

But that does not mean we cannot investigate him for a crime especially one like this.

“We have also arrested the Vice Chairman of Kaga Local Government Area and he is undergoing interrogation,” Irabor said.

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Power Generation Hits 3,959MW 12 electricity stations did not produce power on Christmas Day Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) yesterday wheeled out about 3,959 megawatts of generated electricity to the 11 distribution companies as the country’s power supply gradually stabilised.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that the power generation data is obtained from daily forecast on the Nigerian Electricity System Operator (SO) website.

The daily power statistics posted

by SO, a section of the TCN, showed that power generation gradually improved during the festive season with a peak generation of 3,959 megawatts from the national grid.

The website showed that the country’s power generation also recorded its lowest generation of 3,366 megawatts within the same period.

According to the Nigerian

Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) operational report for January 3, the power sector hits a peak generation of 3,959 megawatts as against 3,321 megawatts recorded on December 2.

NESI, a subsidiary of the TCN, said the sector recorded highest system frequency of 51.52Hz and lowest system frequency of 48.85 Hz. It also said the highest voltage recorded was 372KV, while lowest voltage recorded on the same day was 300KV. Meanwhile, NESI, on January 3 disclosed that over N534 billion of revenue was lost by the power sector in 2016.

Among the reasons for the loss are shortages in gas supply, frequency and line limitations and water levels management constraints that led to several cases of electricity outage in the country.

Security Operatives Raid Abuja Home of Jonathan’s Brother-in-Law Paul Obi in Abuja A team of security operatives comprising the Department of State Services (DSS) and police yesterday raided the residence of former President Goodluck Jonathan’s brother-in-law in Abuja.

The house located in Maitama District in the Abuja metropolis, was combed by security operatives.

Though there were no clarification regarding the raid, the wife of the former president, Mrs. Patient Jonathan, is facing charges bordering on money laundering, among other allegations.

Since 2015, security agencies have continued to raid the houses of relatives to the former president, including his brother, Mr. Azibaola Roberts.

Again,Vehicle Dealers Appeal Ban on Importation through Land Borders Some car dealers in Lagos have urged the federal government to rescind the ban on importation of vehicles through land borders to aid inclusive economic growth and crime reduction.

The car dealers stated this in Lagos yesterday that the policy was ill-timed considering the economic recession, high foreign exchange rate and increasing unemployment.

The federal government, had on December 5, 2016, announced a ban on importation of used and new vehicles through land borders with effect from January 1, 2017.

The Managing Director, Attitude Auto Mart, Mr. Kingsley Godswill, said the economic situation in the country had reduced ability of Nigerians to purchase automobiles.

“The car lots of many auto dealers that import massively into the country are almost empty.

“The exchange rate is killing the business and prices of automobiles are going beyond the reach of an average Nigerian.

“The land border ban will further worsen the situation, especially for upcoming car dealers that prefer the land borders because of affordability.

“My appeal to the government is to reverse this order because we are only struggling to survive in this harsh economic climate.

“We understand that the government needs to improve its revenue base, but it can be done by strengthening the customs service and instilling transparency in its operations,” he said.

The Chief Executive of Emmoba

Motors in Lagos, Mr. Olaseni Obafemi, according to The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), said downward review of duties on imported automobiles would boost economic activities, while generating more revenue for government.

“The current price of a vehicle could purchase three vehicles before now due to the fluctuations in the foreign exchange rate.

“Due to the decline in the value of the naira, unemployment rate and increasing cost of living, the attraction for automobiles has reduced drastically.

“If duties paid to customs are reviewed, vehicles will be affordable for the citizens and life would be easier for all.” The General Manager, Exotic Autos, Mr. Felix Agbaje, warned that the ban would worsen unemployment, poverty and encourage smuggling.

“This policy is not thoughtful.

It holds a lot of implications for the economic development of the country.

“There are many unemployed youths in the country striving to survive whether by legal or illegal means.

“In this business, we face a lot of challenges of auto snatching from armed robbers; the country has many porous borders and these daring groups may increase smuggling activities.

“Before the government rolled out policies, it should consult extensively with stakeholders to appreciate the likely effects on their businesses,” he said.

NESI, which put the average daily revenue loss at N1.5 billion, said gas constraint remained one of the major challenges facing the electricity sector.

It explained that the N534 billion amounts to the value of electricity lost on account of the challenges, part of which could have been used to bridge the liquidity gap in the power sector, estimated at N1trillion.

Already, the sector is finding it difficult to access more loans from Nigerian banks due to their inability to meet the payment obligations for previous debts.

The situation will also affect the capacity of the power firms to improve on electricity supply to consumers for domestic and industrial uses. NESI said in its daily statistics on energy losses that the industry lost N1.525 billion on

December 24, 2016 alone.

It also disclosed that about 12 power stations could not produce electricity during off-peak period under the review.

Statistics from the National Control Centre, Osogbo, showed that Afam IV-V, Geregu Gas, Alaoji National Integrated Power Project (NIPP) and Olorunsogo Gas plants could

not produce a single megawatt (MW) on December 25, 2016 Others that could not produce a single megawatt (MW) on Decembaer 25, 2016 include Odukpani NIPP, Okpai, Ibom Power, ASCO, AES, Omoku, Rivers NIPP and Gbarain power plants.

Nigeria has installed power output of 11,165MW, of which the 12 plants have a combined capacity of 2,035MW.

NCC: Active Telecom Subscribers Rose by 435,343 in November The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has said active users of telecommunications services in the country increased to 153,949,450 in November 2016.

The telecommunications industry regulator gave the figure in its Monthly Subscriber/ Operator Data, obtained by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) yesterday in Lagos.

It said that the active telecommunications service customers increased by 435,343 in November over their October number of 153,514,107.

According to the data, 153,547,164 of the 153,949,450 active numbers subscribed to the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) network services.

The GSM operators’ active customers increased by 460,454 on the October number of 153,086,710 subscribers.

The report stated that of the GSM operators, MTN had 61,280,293 users in November, an increase of 297,806 on the October figure of 60,982,487 subscribers.

Globacom’s figure increased in November by 150,491, giving a total of 37,268,483 customers, as against 37,117,992 recorded in October.

Airtel had 33,376,556 subscribers in the month under review, which was an increase of 600,640 on the October figure of 32,775,916.

Etisalat, however, recorded a reduction in customers by 588,483, giving a customer base of 21,621,832 compared to 22,210,315 users recorded in October.

The Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) operators had 217,566 active users in November, showing a decrease of 26,865 from 244,477 customers they had in October.

Between the two surviving CDMA service providers, Visafone’s customers reduced to 213,106 in November, as it lost 26,911 users from the October record of 240,017, while Multi-Links maintained 4,460 customers in November.

The monthly subscriber/operator data showed that the Fixed Wireless network’s (landline) consumers decreased to 26,865 in November, as they lost 77 customers from their record of 26,942 in October.

Also, between the two Fixed Wireless operators, Visafone had 26,437 subscribers in November, losing 77 users from the October record of 26,514; while Multi-Links maintained its October record of 428 customers.

The record also indicated that the Fixed Wired operators (landline) subscriber base reduced by 99, giving a total of 124,713 users in November, as against

124,812 recorded in October.

In the Fixed Wired area, MTN Fixed moved from 5,842 in October to 5,697 in November, thereby reducing by 145 users; Glo Fixed had 12,586 users in November, adding 72 customers to the October record of 12,514.

IpNX network moved from 2,539 subscriber base in October to 2,480 in November, reducing its customers by 59 in November.

It said 21st Century network had 103,950 customers in November, recording an increase of 33 users on its October record of 103,917.

The report also showed that Smile Communications, the only operator on the Voice-Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) network had 33,142 active users in November, as it added 1,976 customers to its October subscriber base of 31,166.

The regulatory body said that Section 89 Subsection 3(c) of the Nigerian Communications Act 2003 mandated it to monitor and report the state of telecommunications industry.

“The commission is mandated to provide statistical analysis and identify industry trends with regard to services,

tariffs, operators, technology, subscribers, issues of competition and dominance. “’This is with a view to identifying areas where regulatory intervention will be needed.

“The commission regularly conducts studies, surveys and produces reports on the telecommunications industry.

“Therefore, telecommunications operators are obligated, under the terms of the licenses, to provide NCC with such data on a regular basis for analytical review and publishing,” the report said.

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Kanu’s Trial: Presidency Procuring Witnesses from Ghana, Cameroun, Alleges IPOB Biafra leader begins serial release of documents to ‘sink’ Nigeria Emmanuel Ugwu in Umuahia and David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) yesterday alleged that information at its disposal indicated that the presidency and the Department of State Services (DSS) had “imported” some people “from Ghana and Cameroun to bear false witness against Nnamdi Kanu” during his trial billed for January 10 and 11.

A statement issued by the Head of Media and Publicity, Emma Powerful, said the procured witnesses “are presently undergoing intense coaching at DSS facility located at Victoria Garden City popularly called VGC Abuja “Incidentally, this supposedly secret detention centre owned by the presidency and run by DSS for the detention of political enemies of President Muhammadu Buhari is where the brutalised Sheik Ibrahim El-Zakzaky of Nigeria Islamic Movement is being illegally detained presently,” IPOB said.

The Biafra restoration group also expressed the alarm over an ongoing effort by the presidency to influence the reporting of the forthcoming trial of the IPOB leader by selling the idea to media

organisations that the witnesses to testify against Kanu would be partially covered.

The trial judge, Justice Binta Nyako, had already ruled that the prosecution witnesses would have their faces fully covered to protect them as Kanu and his co-accused persons stand trail for treason.

But IPOB stated that the move by the presidency to deceive media organisations with the false news that the witnesses would be partially covered was aimed at deceiving the world into believing that Kanu would not undergo secret trial as already planned and endorsed by the trial judge.

“This intelligence report is from an impeccable source who visited one of the media houses involved in the presidential conspiracy to pervert the course of justice. “ According to him, the main interface between Aso Rock and media houses is a man who is notorious for blackmailing editors on behalf of the presidency should any media house fail to comply with how Aso Rock wants a particular news item or information reported. ”The main aim of the presidency according to this source, is to deceive the public and make Biafrans, human rights organisations and

other international bodies, which have condemned the secret trial, appear as though they are the people delaying the trial by rejecting this wholly unconstitutional mode of criminal trial,” IPOB stated.

According to IPOB, its intelligence gathering showed that both “Buhari and DSS are so worried on how the secret trial can be reported as being partial shielding of witnesses without the public accusing the presidency and DSS of being compromised and biased, especially as the case of Kanu has gotten a lot of interest and commands worldwide attention.”

It explained that the latest propaganda tool being assembled to give false impression about Kanu;’s secret trial was in the same mould as the strategy employed to deceive Nigerians and the rest

of the world that Buhari was a repentant democrat in the run-up to the 2015 presidential election.

“The way his (Buhari) image was laundered around the world as a repentant democrat is the model they want to follow. All they need to do is to keep repeating the mantra that it is not a secret trial by partial screening of witnesses until the gullible public buys into it,” IPOB said.

Meanwhile, ahead of his appearance in court on January 10, Kanu has begun what he termed a serial release of secret documents that will sink Nigeria.

Recall that Kanu had in his last appearance in court threatened to collapse Nigeria by revealing some secret information at his disposal, which have not been accessed by a majority of the country’s citizens.

In a statement sent to THISDAY

by Powerful, IPOB said Kanu has begun a serial exposure on the country ahead of his appearance in court by Monday.

Powerful said the first which has already been released is a video showing what he termed ‘the grand conspiracy’ on the part of former Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon (rtd) and the British to commit premeditated genocide in Nigeria against the Igbos, during the civil war.

The group said Kanu apparently wants to live up to his promise to sink Nigeria with hidden truths which the world does not know existed, with the releases.

Part of the statement read: “We warn Buhari of the dangers ahead for Nigeria and himself for his dictatorial style of leadership.

“The exposure will continue unabated with more compelling revelations to follow in the coming weeks. All the hidden secrets of the atrocities and crimes against humanity committed against the people of Biafra during the war (genocide) in 1967 to 1970 will become the most talked about topic within diplomatic circles around the world until Nigeria collapses.

“These revelations will not stop until the likes of Gowon, Buhari and others are carted off to the Hague to face trial for crimes they committed against humanity. Kanu is prepared to sink Nigeria with the truth hidden from public that people around the world have never heard before about Nigeria and the amalgamation in 1914 by British merschants,” the group said.

Accidental Discharge at Aso Rock Lands Woman in Hospital Tobi Soniyi in Abuja One of the female workers at the State House in Abuja yesterday sustained an injury when the weapon of one of the security operatives suddenly went off.

The incident happened at the Administrative Reception.

The security agent was said to be making attempt to empty the weapon when it went off and injured him and the woman.

The female worker was injured on her thigh and a part of her back.

She is currently recuperating at the State House Medical Centre in Asokoro at press time.

Group: Anambra Won’t Support Candidates With Godfathers for Guber Poll David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka A group, Movement for Greater Anambra State (MOFGAS), has said that as Anambra governorship election draws nearer no candidate sponsored by a political godfather will receive the blessings of the people.

The group in a statement made available to THISDAY yesterday said the state has suffered the effect of godfatherism in previous governments where political power brokers foisted their godsons on the state only to reap dividends of their expenditure from the state.

The statement by its Coordinator, Chief Shedrack Anakwue, stated: “Our position today is that we will no longer support a candidate who has no solid base; who needs and must rely on people to climb to power.

“The candidate Anambra State needs to make progress must be capable of standing on his own, capable of contesting and winning election; a candidate who has the financial muscle and strength

of character to shoulder the responsibilities of election and leadership; a man who does not have a questionable source of income and who is seen as man of the people. The era of jumping down from Aeroplane and picking governorship seat is over and gone forever.

“We feel that we owe it a duty to not only make our stand known but speak out as the hustle and bustle and search for the next governor of Anambra State begins,” it stated.

The group recalled that save for former governor Peter Obi, every other governor that has ruled the state were all the product of godfathers.

It cited the case of former governor Chris Ngige who at some point was even kidnapped because he refused to do the bidding of his godfathers; Dr Chinwoke Mbadinuju, who was foisted on the people by a cabal and also removed him after one tenure and lastly, Chief Willie Obiano who he said was foisted on Anambra by Obi.

FIRST FEC MEETING IN 2017

R-L: President Muhammadu Buhari; Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir David Lawal; and Chief of Staff, Mallam Abba Kyari; Head of Service, Winnifred Oyo-Ita; and National Security Adviser (NSA), Major-General Babagana Monguno (rtd), at the Federal Executive Council (TEC) meeting at the Presidential Villa in Abuja...yesterday Godwin Omoigui

INEC Has Prosecuted 61 Electoral Offenders, Says Yakubu Police seek collaboration in probe of Rivers elections Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said it has so far successfully 61 electoral offenders, between 2015 and 2016, the highest since the electoral umpire was established.

While giving a firm commitment to cooperate with the authorities of the Nigerian Police in fishing out those who committed offence during the last legislative elections in Rivers State, the commission said it had already received a total of 120 case files from the police.

The Chairman of INEC, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, made this known in Abuja yesterday when he received members of the InspectorGeneral of Police’s Investigative Team on Rivers Re-run Election.

The INEC chairman had lamented the absence of any

legal authority for the commission to prosecute electoral offenders, which he said is making it difficult for it to deal decisively with such malfeasance.

However, Yakubu said the assistance of the police and other security agencies had proven invaluable in the process leading to the successes recorded in the prosecution of electoral offenders.

“We have cooperated with security agencies especially the police in the course of prosecuting electoral offenders. Since 2015 general elections and the rerun elections in 2016, we have received 120 case files from the police for prosecution. And I am so far to say that we have recorded 61 successful prosecutions as a result of cooperation with the security agencies,” he said.

According to him there can never be any successful election without the assistance of the police and all

other security agencies to help in maintaining peace.

He further disclosed that the commission had conducted 163 elections under his leadership of the commission and has six more to conduct in the next 60 days.

While declaring that the commission would give the Special investigative team its full cooperation to take on the assignment, Yakubu said the commission has also set an internal administrative panel and any staff found wanting will be dealt with according to the law.

He expressed happiness at the setting up of the joint investigative panel which comprises the police and Department of State Services (DSS).

“On our own as a commission, we have also set up an administrative panel to review of what transpired in Rivers so that where our staff erred, we deal

with such situations.

“The most important thing in this situation is to learn lessons. So far, since the last general election, INEC has conducted 163 elections. We still have six more elections between this month January and next month, including the unfortunate death of a member of Delta State House of Assembly, which occurred a week or so before Christmas.

“I want to assure the commission that we will full cooperate with the security agencies in your investigations. Whatever may be required to facilitate the investigations from the commission, be rest assured that the commission will be forthcoming,” Yakubu noted.

Earlier the leader of the police team, Deputy Commissioner of Police Dan Okoro, said he was at the commission to “interact with the leadership of the commission and to seek their cooperation to carry out our assignment.

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It’s Time for Nigerians to Win Back Peace in North-east, Says Military Michael Olugbode in Maiduguri The Nigerian military yesterday declared that it is now time for all Nigerians to contribute in the battle to win peace back in the North-east region with the Nigerian troops having won the war against insurgency for the country.

Addressing a press conference in Maiduguri, Borno State, the head of the nation’s counter-insurgency operation (Operation Lafiya Dole), Major General Lucky Irabor, affirmed that the war has been won against insurgency and it is now time to win back peace.

He said though the military is still very much involved in the battle against the insurgency and has a role to play in winning the peace, a lot revolved round every

Nigerian to establish a lasting peace in the North-east region.

Irabor said every Nigerian has to ensure that peace is restored and sustained in the region.

He said the process of winning peace is more of the stakeholders working together and evolving lasting strategies to address the root causes of the insurgency and ensuring that the ‘monster’ does not rear its head again. Irabor, while revealing that the whereabouts of the Boko Haram leader, Abubakar Shekau, is largely unknown to the military, said: “If I know where Shekau is now, I will grab his balls.”

He however paraded 10 Boko Haram suspects who he said surrendered and handed themselves to the Nigerian military.

The theatre commander, who said surrendered sect members

belong to the two insurgency groups of Shekau and Mamman Nur, disclosed that they have undergone de-radicalisation process as they have shown their willingness to retrace their steps.

He said the ten members have committed crime against the Nigerian state, but their willingness

to surrender shows that they are willing to become responsible members of the society.

Irabor disclosed that the troops have also rescued 1,400 persons in the ongoing battle against the insurgents in the last one week.

He said the troops were able to gundown three suspected

female suicide bombers yesterday in Madagali town of Adamawa State in the cause of the military operation in that part of the state.

The commander said the trio tried to run at the troops with their explosives so they had to be gunned down to prevent a major disaster.

Irabor also confirmed the arrest

of the Chairman of Mafa Local Government Area who allegedly harboured a top Boko Haram commander and his father at his residence in Maiduguri as well as the Vice Chairman of Kaga Local Government Area, who was also alleged to have been involved in cattle rustling.

No Polio Outbreak in Cross River, Says Health Commissioner Bassey Inyang in Calabar The Cross River State Government has declared that there is no case of poliomyelitis outbreak in any part of the state.

The state Commissioner for Health, Dr. Inyang Asibong, stated this against the backdrop of fears that there is an outbreak of poliomyelitis in Odukpani Local Government Area of Cross River State.

A press statement from the commissioner indicated that she has mandated the state epidemiology team to conduct another round of polio sensitisation in the state and issue a briefing as soon as possible.

Asibong called on members of the public not to be deterred by the rumors, but be very vigilant as the yuletide season has increased influx of people in the state.

The commissioner’s statement read in part: “Polio, also known as poliomyelitis and infantile paralysis,

is a highly contagious viral infection that can lead to paralysis, breathing problems, or even death. Polio, in its most debilitating forms, displays symptoms such as paralysis and death. However, most people with polio don’t display any symptoms or become noticeably sick. When symptoms do appear, they differ depending on the type of polio.

“If you notice any person, especially children, with symptoms such as neck and back stiffness, abnormal reflexes, and trouble with swallowing and breathing, limb weakness, report immediately at the nearest medical facility. The hallmark is prevention by immunisation, because paralysis is often irreversible “Medical personnel are hereby directed to report any case of suspected poliomyelitis immediately to the state epidemiologist.“ She applauded healthcare professionals in the state for their show of resilience in the fight against all forms diseases.

Somalia Honours 136 Nigerian Police Officers A total of 136 policemen from Nigeria were awarded medals to mark the end of their duty tour in Somalia.

This was disclosed in a statement by the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM).

The statement indicated that the 136 policemen participated in a medal parade last Tuesday to mark the end of their one-year duty term in Somalia.

“The officers were awarded medals at a ceremony presided over by the deputy special police commissioner of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM),” the statement read.

“Somali police commissioner, Gen Mohamed Sheikh Hassan Hamud, was also present, with a delegation of Somali officials.”

It said Lydia Wanyoto, the chairperson of the African Union Commission (DSRCC) in Somalia, appreciated the Nigerian government for supporting the peace process in Somalia.

According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), she also expressed gratitude to the Somali security

forces present at the ceremony for recognising the Nigerian contribution.

“We are here because of Somalia; saying it yourself on behalf of the Somali government makes our work easy; it gives us morale and makes us to work even harder,” she said.

“I want to thank you for the services you have provided; thank you for being here in Somalia, for volunteering to assist the people in Somalia.”

Mohamed Sheikh Hassan Hamud, Somali police commissioner, also commended the Nigerian police contingent for its contribution to the restoration of law and order in his country.

“You have been good ambassadors,” Hamud said.

“Somalia will not forget Nigeria standing side-by-side with Somali people and the federal government.”

The contingent is the fifth formed police unit from Nigeria to serve in Somalia under AMISOM. They will be replaced by a new police contingent from Nigeria.

LET THE CHANGE BEGIN WITH US

L-R: Permanent Secretary, Sokoto State Ministry of Information, Abubakar Muhammad Danshehu; Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal; and Commissioner for Information, Jeli Abdulkadir Abubakar, during the flag off of the ‘Change Begins With Me’ campaign in Sokoto...yesterday

FG Seeks Partnership with A’Ibom Govt to Establish Oil and Gas Free Zone Okon Bassey in Uyo The federal government has identified three locations in Akwa Ibom State, namely Ibaka, Ibeno and Ikot Abasi, for the establishment of oil and gas free zone in the state.

The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Oil and Gas Free Zones Authority (OGFZA), Mr. Umana Umana, dropped the hint yesterday during an official visit to the state Governor, Udom Emmanuel, at Government House in Uyo. Accordingly, he said the federal government was ready to go into partnership with state government towards the realisation of the oil and gas free zone in the state considering numerous economic benefits of the free zones concept.

The OGFZA, Umana said, would use its expertise to

establish a competitive oil and gas free zone with best global practices, obtain all necessary permit, licences, consents and approvals for the establishment of the free zone; attract potential investors to the free zone, regulate, licence investors and manage the free zone as well as advise and facilitate compliance with all necessary requirements for the establishment of the zones.

The state government, on its part, is expected to provide land for the project, keep the project site free from all aliens, encumbrances and adverse possession as well as provide offsite infrastructure such as roads, electricity, gas pipeline, telecommunications, crude feedstock and also make financial and other contributions for the successful execution of the project.

The chief executive cfficer of OGFZA explained that the establishment of the zone in the state would attract investments, create jobs and fast-track economic development.

As at 2015, Umana hinted that the investment inflow into the free zones represented about 65.5 percent of total investment into Nigeria within the last 10 years, a feat which made the Financial Times of London to rate Nigeria’s oil and gas free zone at Onne, with regards to Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), as the most successful in Africa.

Tracing the story of oil and gas free zone, Umana maintained that the first oil and gas export free zone to be established in the country was the Onne Oil and Gas Free Zone in Rivers State which was subsequently followed with the establishment of other oil

and gas free zones in Warri and Lagos as public-private partnerships (PPP) between the Federal Government of Nigeria and private sector operators.

“The history of the free zones is a record of collaboration between the federal government and other investors such as states and private sector operators in the development of the logistic support base for the oil and gas industry,” Umana added He posited that the benefits of the oil and gas free zones have helped to deepen the economy of Nigeria and placed it on the map as a leading player in the oil and gas economy of Sub-Saharan Africa, saying OGFZs have attracted all major oil companies which are now using the free zones as a hub for their business transactions covering the entire Gulf of Guinea up to Angola and South Africa.

Groups Laud Ambode on Achievements Some Lagos State-based political groups have hailed Governor Akinwunmi Ambode for his efforts in making life better for residents.

The groups include the Awori Youth Vanguard (AYV); Lagosians Future Group (LFG); Akinwunmi Ambode Movement Organisation (AAMO); Asiwaju National Forum (ANF); De-Fash Movement (DFM); Akinwunmi Grassroot Movement (AGM); Akinwunmi Ambode for Governor Projects (AAGP), among

others.

They described the governor as an exemplary leader who places premium on the welfare of the people.

The groups, which spoke through its General Coordinator, Mr. Seyi Bamigbade, at their general meeting, said over 20 political groups, even from the opposition party are backing the governor.

He said members of the groups

cut across the local governments and local council development areas.

Bamigbade said the groups took the decision after being convinced of Governor Ambode’s leadership qualities, general concern for the common man and efforts to make life more meaningful for residents.

According to Bamigbade, the level of transformation in the mega city , restructuring in civil service for better performance,

concern for youths and retirees, improvement in primary education, special attention to peoples’ health, transparent governance, road infrastructure and tackling traffic headlong across the state deserve qualify him for his a second term.

Bamigbade, appealed to Lagosians to support the programmes and policies of the governor to ensure continuity and make Lagos a preferred state to live in.

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COMMENT

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

2017: BUHARI, CHANGE AND GOVERNANCE Emmanuel Ojeifo contends Nigerians are increasingly losing faith in the present political leadership

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t the start of the New Year, amidst the characteristic Nigerian resilience and optimistic outlook that things will become better, there is still an air of uncertainty about what this New Year holds for us as a nation.

All human beings tend to embody hope for the future, a feeling that something good will happen, that today will be better than yesterday, and that there will always be light at the end of the tunnel. It is this hope that sustains the human resolve to forge ahead in spite of a prevailing atmosphere of gloom and pessimism. However this hope is not founded on illusions or on empty promises. It is founded on clear thinking, visionary leadership, hard work, sacrifice and dedication. On these grounds, Nigerians are yet to see any clear positive commitment on the part of our country’s leadership.

If we take a hard look at the situation of things in the country, from politics and the economy to security, education, healthcare, social infrastructure, and the general organisation of our national life, the indices are dismal and discouraging. After a year of hard knocks, an epidemic of mass hunger, starvation and rising levels of depression, caused by lacklustre political leadership that spawned a battered economy, Nigerians are yet to start looking forward to better times. A dislocated political economy continues to decimate the lives of millions of people unrestrainedly. With the magnitude of political, economic, and security challenges facing our nation, we might need a superhuman effort to help us.

As things presently stand, many Nigerians have lost faith in the present political leadership. Two years ago, many people had the conviction that Muhammadu Buhari’s coming to power would frontally address the structural and systemic loopholes of governance that have held this country down and made it a plaything in the hands of rogue politicians. Nearly two years on the saddle, we might just have to look for our political messiah elsewhere. Basking in the euphoria of one man’s personal integrity, we seem to have overrated Buhari’s possibilities. The change promised by this government is long in coming. As Nigerians are told to be patient, many of them are dying in instalment by the day because they are too poor, too sick, too helpless and too hopeless to stay alive. Amidst all the hoopla about a rice revolution, we are still being threatened with mass starvation.

President Buhari sought the will of the Nigerian people to be their president for three consecutive electoral cycles before eventually winning the presidential election on the fourth attempt, yet he keeps complaining about his predecessor administration. He grumbles about his age and about the timing of his presidency.

Such complaints do not inspire confidence in the people about the quality of leadership. Buhari forgets so easily that if things were so good and glorious the Nigerian people would not have voted out an incumbent democratically elected president for the first time in the country’s political history.

ALMOST TWO YEARS INTO HIS GOVERNMENT, IT APPEARS THAT NIGERIANS ARE NOT SURE OF THE MAN THEY VOTED FOR. THE WHOLE EDIFICE ABOUT ONE MAN’S CEREBRAL DISDAIN FOR CORRUPTION HAS FALLEN LIKE A PACK OF CARDS

President Buhari rode to power on account of his much-touted anti-corruption credentials. We still remember what the Buhari phenomenon was like. Today, all the euphoria and excitement about a Buhari presidency has crumbled. Almost two years into his government, it appears that Nigerians are not sure of the man they voted for. The whole edifice about one man’s cerebral disdain for corruption has fallen like a pack of cards. He is said to be not corrupt. But right under his nose monumental corruption continues with unhindered velocity.

In 1998, when he was tapped to deliver the keynote address at the Fourth Annual Sir Ahmadu Bello Memorial Lecture at Arewa House in Kaduna, retired General Buhari spoke on the topic, “Leadership and Accountability in a Period of Moral Crisis.” In his address, the visibly angry former Head of State lamented how our country has become a paradise for maggots. His eyes were red with rage and grief as he spoke: “Nowhere else in the world can one find a society tolerating the theft of its precious resources in broad daylight with nothing happening to the thieves. A day in the office, as far as the general public is concerned, often means eight hours of converting public resources to private purses.

Few societies seem to reward embezzlement with ‘honours’ as does our own.” With the kind of coldness and indifference that President Buhari manifests today with regard to serious allegations of monumental corruption in his own government, one really wonders whether he was the one who spoke those fiery words in 1998.

With President Buhari today, the art of governance has become abysmally uninspiring. Our president has an unusual fondness for drag and delay in matters of serious national importance. When Nigerians expect him to act swiftly on a matter, he prefers to remain silent. This tendency to respond to the most everyday issue after maximal delay is a disease that continues to afflict the Buhari administration. More than anything else, this gross insensitivity and indifference to the plight of the Nigerians people, is the worst part of the change agenda, and it is this limp and lacklustre approach to governance that has compounded our problems.

Today, there is widespread mistrust, anger, and resentment across the polity. We see unrestrained violence, criminality and bloodshed brewing all over the place. This is a sure sign that Nigerians are frustrated and unhappy. We do not need any other symptoms to know that the architecture of governance has collapsed. This is what happens when a government lacks a listening ear and is practically unmoved by the plight of the masses. We cannot continue this way. Without clear thinking, political altruism and visionary leadership there can be no real, positive change. If we try to build our skyscrapers on shifting sands, we have ample lessons from history that such an edifice cannot stand the test of time. The house will definitely fall.

Ojeifo is a Catholic priest of the Archdiocese of Abuja.

NIGERIA’S E-COMMERCE MARKET The relevant agencies should ensure substandard products are kept away from consumers, writes Ray Umukoro

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he United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the arm of the UN that deals with issues on trade, development and investment in its July 2016 report placed the worth of global e-commerce at $22 trillion. This is a huge market and with increasing penetration of internet and ubiquity of broadband deployment around the world, especially in emerging markets in Africa and Asia, this volume is bound for the sky in the coming years.

In the UNCTAD 2016 business-to-consumer (B2C) e-commerce index which gauges the readiness of countries to engage in online commerce, no African nation made it to the top 50 nations, but the report did not fail to notice that e-commerce is on the bounce in Africa.

Different studies by McKinsey and PricewaterhouseCooper (PwC) among others have placed Africa’s ecommerce on a growth curve. The continent’s online sales are expected to top $75 billion by 2025, with Nigeria taking $10 billion of it, according to projections.

This is buoyed by Nigeria’s fast-growing mobile internet market ranking, coming seventh among the top 20 highest internet users in the world by country after China, India, US, Brazil, Japan, and Russia in that order according to Internet World Stats, June 2016 data. Such impressive mobile internet profile and the current zeal of the Nigerian Communications Commission to spread broadband across the vast corners of the nation bode well for the future of ecommerce in the country.

There are many drawbacks to online retail in Nigeria but they have not dampened the spirit of shoppers. This writer has patronised all the major online retail outfits. Yes, it gives a good

feel factor doing the traditional shopping of walking into stores, seeing and feeling what you buy but online shopping frees you up, saves you time and the routine stress of moving through dodgy traffics. A recent Wall Street Journal (WSJ) report revealed that studies show 70% of 3,000 online shoppers prefer visiting their preferred retailer online. This attests to its growing popularity and the rising preference of shoppers to online purchases.

Jumia, Yudala and Konga are top of the range among the crowd of ecommerce stores in the country. There are many more and all of them have made lasting impressions, for good or bad, on shoppers. But there is an inherent risk posed to online shoppers. It is an ugly global trend that is being dealt with by various governments and consumer protection cum anti-counterfeiting agencies across the globe. It’s the critical matter of online retailers offering substandard products dressed and garnished as high-end products and showcased to consumers as such. In plain language, what you see is not what you get for the consumers. In some cases, product on display for the online buyer is not exactly what is eventually delivered to the buyer. Using Photshop and sundry technological morphing tools, substandard products are garbed and sexed up as original stuff; in some cases popular brand names are misrepresented and passed off by the retailers.

OpSec Security, a division of OpSec Security Group, London, recently did a study to monitor the level of counterfeiting and vending of substandard products among online retailers.

OpSecSecurity is reputed to be a global leader in providing anti-counterfeiting technologies as well as solutions and services for physical and online brand protection to companies and over

50 governments worldwide. The study revealed a dangerous dimension to online retailing especially in the Asia Pacific region where online B2C retailers took advantage of the desire of consumers to buy cheap products to offer them substandard products. This online buyers’ nightmare is already trending in Nigeria.

Countless consumers have complained of how they placed orders for certain items which looked elegant, top-of-the-range on display but turned awkwardly different on delivery. Most of the top 10 online retailers have been accused of engaging in this what-you-see-is-not-what-youget bubble. But Yudala has continued to buck the trend, offering a wide range of products on a credit line of integrity. People are more comfortable with Yudala because what they see is what they get and the online-offline scheme gives it a head-start on the integrity curve.

Launched barely a year ago, Yudala adopted a disruptive composite style of online and offline retail, a novel formula which has also become the preferred strategy of America’s Amazon and Alibaba of China, the two dominant players in the world. Yudala debuted as the first true composite retail platform in Africa. What the continent has seen prior to its entry was at best a window-dressing of what modern, competitive e-commerce retailing should be. It is the first to combine a world class e-commerce platform with an offline chain of retail stores. This innovative model immediately set it apart from competition.

Nigeria’s Yudala combines B2C (Business-toConsumer) and C2C (Consumer-to-Consumer) models through its trademark Mobile Monday and Neighbour to Neighbour campaigns. These market-deepening strategies are now being deployed by Alibaba and Amazon to cut deep

into the global e-commerce markets.

This is the sense in which Nigerians should take pride in the evolving revolution of ecommerce across the nation. With obvious limitations of poor connectivity, bad road networks to enhance speedy delivery of orders, Nigeria has through the innovative spirit of a dynamic team at Yudala added value to the global ecommerce value chain.

It is both humbling and intriguing that the offline-online model initiated in Nigeria has become the trending global model for major players in e-commerce. It is a model that is fast bridging all the gaps that have limited ecommerce in recent years by connecting business to consumers in a more direct manner.

Recent studies on consumer behaviours outlined a few key factors that influence online purchase decision among consumers. Credibility and trustworthiness are at the root of these factors. This is where Yudala towers above the pack. In barely one year, it has redefined the nation’s ecommerce space with integrity of products and credibility of processes.

But no matter, the relevant agencies should be alive to their responsibilities to keep substandard products away from consumers. With more people having access to internet, Nigeria looks good to drive her big foot into the lucrative global online market. But first, she must deal with the issue of substandard products.

Standards Organisation of Nigeria, the Ministry of Trade and Investment through Consumer Protection Council (CPC) and other relevant agencies must rise and arrest this seeping miasma of substandard goods being forced on Nigerian consumers by some of the online retail stores. Nigerians deserve better than this.

Umukoro, a blogger, wrote from Lagos

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T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍłËœ 2017

EDITORIAL GENDER INEQUALITY IN NIGERIA Women have the same intrinsic worth as men

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iscriminated against at every level, women and girls traditionally have limited access to education, ownership of land and assets in Nigeria. And they are denied equal treatment in inheritance rights, human resources development and sustainable economic growth.

It is therefore worrisome that at a time they are seeking equal treatment and participation in issues that concern them and their families, some respected traditional rulers who ordinarily should know better are making utterances that are entirely unhelpful.

The general notion in our country that women are inferior to men was recently reinforced when President Muhammadu Buhari, at a press conference in Germany, said the role of his wife did not extend beyond the kitchen and “the other room�. It was an unfortunate gaffe, especially given that women in Nigeria have made their mark in the political and economic arena.

Only recently, a Nigerian woman, Amina Mohammed, was named as the Deputy Secretary General to United Nations.

WOMEN MAKE UP ABOUT Against the 50 PER CENT OF THE background that NIGERIAN POPULATION. just last September, THEREFORE, IT MAKES NO gender equality was SENSE TO EXCLUDE HALF declared “not only a OF OUR POPULATION FROM fundamental human CONTRIBUTING TO NATIONAL right, but a necessary foundation for a PROSPERITY AND WELLpeaceful, prosperous BEING FOR ARCHAIC AND and sustainable OPPRESSIVE REASONS world� President Buhari’s remarks about his wife was unfortunate.

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on which Ms Mohammed was an adviser to the outgoing United Nations Secretary General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, had helped set as one of the goals, undertaking reforms to give women equal rights to economic resources as well as access to ownership and control over land and other forms of property, ďŹ nancial services, inheritance and natural resources.

Letters to the Editor

It is all the more disheartening that in this climate, the Nigerian Senate has been found wanting in its role to help achieve these new goals of promoting gender equality. In September last year, a watered down version of the Gender and Equality Bill passed a second reading in the Senate, and was referred to the committee on judiciary, human rights and legal matters. The ďŹ rst bill put forward six months earlier, and which included equal rights for women in marriages, divorce, property ownership and inheritance, was voted down. That bill was rejected because members of the upper arm of parliament said “enacting a law to accord women equal rights with men was un-African and anti-religiousâ€?.

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here are 102 men and seven women in the Nigerian Senate. But the ratio of women to men in the Senate should not inuence the seriousness with which issues relating to women should be taken.

Women make up about 50 per cent of the Nigerian population. Therefore, it makes no sense to exclude half of our population from contributing to national prosperity and well-being for archaic and oppressive reasons.

Gender equality is not just a human rights issue, it is essential for the achievement of sustainable development and a peaceful, prosperous world. Therefore, circumscribing the access to opportunities that ultimately empowers women and girls is counterproductive. Women are not the objects of pleasure of men or property to be used and disposed of. Indeed, women have the same intrinsic worth as men. Therefore any custom that seeks to treat them as inferior to men or treats women as the property of their husbands cannot and should not stand.

In a landmark judgment in 2014, the Supreme Court held that the Igbo Customary Law which bars the female child, irrespective of the circumstances of her birth, from inheriting or partaking in the sharing of the property and estate of her father, is a violation of her right to freedom from discrimination enshrined in section 42 (1) (2) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. According to the Supreme Court, “any culture that disinherits a daughter from her father’s estate or wife from her husband’s property by reason of God-instituted gender differential should be punitively dealt with.�

TO OUR READERS Letters in response to speciďŹ c publications in THISDAY should be brief (150-200 words) and straight to the point. Interested readers may send such letters along with their contact details to opinion@thisdaylive.com. We also welcome comments and opinions on topical local, national and international issues provided they are well-written and should also not be longer than (9501000 words). They should be sent to opinion@thisdaylive.com along with the email address and phone numbers of the writer.

RUSSIA, AFRICA AND A NEW GLOBAL ORDER

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he destruction of Aleppo, the annexation of Crimea and the alleged interference with the election that produced US President-elect, Donald Trump, are visible signs of Russia’s drive to achieve global dominance.

The world is becoming multipolar, coupled with the rise of populism in the West, and Russia seems to be in a position of enormous advantage to lead, change or destroy the world. Russia is emerging from the vestiges following the dissolution of the Soviet Union into independent states 25 years ago, towards establishing her relevance in global politics in a very brutal way, mainly by showing off its diplomatic and military might against the US and other regional powers, especially in the Middle East.

Russia has been accused of intervening in the recent US election that saw the victory of Donald Trump. Also, of supporting right-wing populism in Europe in a manner that raises global suspicion. Donald Trump, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbån, Nigel Farage of Brexit, and such other politicians have all indirectly helped to promote Russia’s view of a world opposed to an established order, a subtle design for Russia to emerge as a new global power base.

Israel’s recent face off with the United Nations and interference of Donald Trump is another interesting dimension. In fact, Trump has repeatedly and openly criticised the UN and its decisions calling it on twitter ‘a club for people to come together, talk and have a good time. So sad!’ It is known fact that Russia is interested in weakening the United Nations, NATO and the ability of the

United States to impose economic sanctions on countries known to hold and cherish anti-West views. Russia has consistently indicated willingness to increase its nuclear capabilities and expansion of military dominance.

Building a cultural harmony between the US and Russia may be the safest part to peace for the rest of the world, given the determination of Putin to exert himself in an aggressive way. The world should be genuinely interested and probably worried about the rise of Russia and her desire to control world policies at this time. With Putin and Trump as leaders of two powerful countries; both men known to hold extreme views on some pressing world issues, the rest of the world should be worried about the chance of peace especially for minorities, Muslims and Blacks around the world Mikhail Gorbachev supervised the fall of the Soviet Union and the fall of the iron curtain on December 26, 1991. The big question is: can Putin successfully initiate and execute another come back for Russia (Soviet) dominance?’ Will trump and Putin abandon the part of peace at some point? What would that mean for global peace?

While Britain continues to struggle with her self-inflicted exit from the European Union; Germany, France and Italy battle with immigration crises and rising terror attacks, the West and of course the rest of the world must keep an eye on Putin’s Russia in 2017.

For Putin, if he can successfully lead the world to defeat ISIS and promote economic freedom in mostly poor countries in Asia

and Africa, then maybe he will have a legitimate claim to world leadership. Certainly, not through barrel bombs as is the case in Aleppo, Syria.

For Africa, the world is still waiting anxiously for the rise of the black power. When this rise of Africa will happen no one knows for sure but certainly Africa must rise from economic slavery.

Africa will rise when there is a full restoration of democracy and economic freedom to central and regional governments.

Africa will rise when a regional power emerges and institutes a clear policy of Pan-Africanism. Currently, there is no visible regional power in Africa that commands the trust, followership and confidence of fellow Africa countries.

Since the fall of Gadhafi, there has not been a single African leader that has shown interest in forging a United African front for the purpose of negotiating a place for the continent on the global stage. Africa still remains largely divided and dependent on the West.

African leaders must think about Africa first. Africa leaders must restore hope in the African economy and stem the rise in migration of the best of African brains to the West. Africa must build an inclusive educational system that teaches skills that are useful to the continent.

With the emergence of Donald Trump and the rise of Putin, African leaders must begin to look inwards for an African model of economic growth where there can be counterpart funding of development projects within Africa.

Victor Ikem, analyst on Politics, Policy and Governance

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THURSDAY JANUARY 5, 2017 T H I S D AY

T H I S D AY THURSDAY JANUARY 5, 2017

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T H I S D AY Ëž THURSDAY, JANUARY 5, 2017

POLITICS

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

PERSONALITY INTERVIEW

Obidigbo: APGA Now a Privately Owned Entity A governorship hopeful in Anambra State, Dr. Chike Obidigbo is the Chairman of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, South-east zone, and recently defected to the All Progressives Congress from theAll Progressives GrandAlliance in a bid to chart a new political course. In this interview with Charles Onyekamuo, he gave reasons for his defection and provided some insight into his vision if elected governor of the state. Excerpts:

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ou recently left your party, the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) for the All Progressives Congress (APC). Why is that?

As a matter of fact, I have many reasons to leave APGA behind. The most important is that APGA got converted into a private company by two or three individuals. It was contrary to the original aims and objectives the founders of the party had in mind. APGA you may know is the brain child of Chief Chekwas Okorie sold to our late leader, Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu. APGA was sponsored by many Igbo politicians from different political parties. The funding came from political leaders in Ebonyi, Enugu, Abia, Imo and almost all the Igbo nation.

The original concept was not to have a separatist party. The intervention was not to alienate the Igbos from the main stream politics in Nigeria. The idea was to have a political platform that originates from the South-east, where a majority of South Easterners will belong and have unencumbered access to contest political positions throughout the federation.

The idea then was for APGA to be a negotiating instrument whereby our people could go into strategic alliance with other groups within the country. The Igbos do not have the number that can support a presidential bidding but through negotiations with other groups of people at the political level could be in a position to get whatever out of Nigeria.

That was the reason some people tagged it Igbo party. So in the true sense of it, APGA is never and has never been an Igbo party.

It was intended to be a political arrangement through which we can bargain our way into main stream Nigerian politics and national government.

Some of us have seen through the lies and made efforts to steer APGA back on course but it became impossible because it is in the hands of people, who do not care for the welfare of our people and who as a result of personal gains they make out of APGA will resist any form of change. So, we have no choice than to leave and seek for the wellbeing of our people elsewhere.

During the 2014 gubernatorial preparations, you were the obvious choice of Anambra North people prior to the APGA primaries.

Suddenly, the party exco settled for Willie Obiano, who incidentally is from the same North zone with you. Do you still enjoy that measure of support from people of the senatorial zone this time around?

Before I emerged the consensus candidate of Anambra North, so many of us were in the race and at the end of the day, Traditional Rulers, Presidents-General of Town Unions and Women Leaders were asked by former Governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi to select a candidate of their choice that their administration will support. A committee headed by the Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Alfred Nnaemeka Achebe, the Agbogidi of Onitsha, was set up.

All the Traditional Rulers and PresidentsGeneral from the zone were in the committee and after series of discussions, interviews and others with a group of us that they invited, I came tops and my name was submitted to Governor Obi, who called and congratulated me.

Before this exercise, Obi had told me that he would want me to succeed him so that

Obidigbo...a few individuals are running the show in APGA

we will develop the economy of Anambra State. He did this because he is visionary and knew at that point what Anambra needed was somebody, who could competently work on the economy of the state in order to create jobs for our teeming unemployed youths.

I believed the then governor because I saw sincerity in the decision.

I went on campaign with the support of Governor Peter Obi and all that he told me was to ensure that I continue with his developmental programmes which of course I agreed because many of his projects were such that touched the lives of people. All this while, the incumbent Governor, Chief Willie Obiano was not in the group, nor was

I have many reasons to leave APGA behind.

The most important is that APGA got converted into a private company by two or three individuals. It was contrary to the original aims and objectives the founders of the party had in mind

he interviewed. He was somewhere else in the United States of America resting while we were busy campaigning and also running from pillar to post.

But a few days to the primaries, he was imported into the country and selected and he won the election using the structure I built. Since then till date, there has been a lot of political disquiet in Anambra State because the person they supported was not the person that won the election.

Governor Peter Obi became the first casualty of the administration which refused to have any dealing with the political class that worked tirelessly to see that APGA won. Happily though, Governor Peter Obi had seen his mistakes and had since apologised to Ndi Anambra for the wrong done to me and the state and he has promised that the mistake would be corrected in 2017.

Do you still enjoy the support of Anambra North people, because you seem silent on that?

Anambra North people were very unhappy when it happened because they felt deceived and so many of them said that much. When power shifts, the tendency is that some people should follow the direction of power and then a number of people from Anambra North joined the new administration.

But now, they have realised they made a mistake and retracing their steps to return to status quo. So, any day, I will enjoy the support of Anambra North and indeed Anambra State because during the campaign, I visited the 177 communities in the state and knew their problems first hand and they know me. I am not a stranger to them.

In concrete terms, why the desire to serve in governorship capacity?

Like I said earlier, there is a very urgent need to develop an economic base that will provide jobs for the teaming youths, put bread on the tables of many families. We have all the resources in place. We have men and women with massive creative energy. We have very industrious young men and women. There are so many people in this state with the burning desire to see the state develop. Unfortunately, the energy is elsewhere outside the state in other states and elsewhere in the world. We need our people, where they are to think home and bring back their ingenuity, their industry, their wealth of experience and resources to come and develop Anambra State.

Other regimes since the time of Chukwuemeka Ezeife to the present administration have been singing this song but then, it is not enough to ask people to come and develop their place. As a matter of fact, investment is not what you beg somebody to make because it is neither charity nor philanthropy. People make investments where they see potential for profit and you can only see profit where the universally acknowledged factors of production are in place.

So, what we intend to do is to create that environment that will attract genuine investments into Anambra State. This is not what anybody else can do. It requires a lot of knowledge and experience in the field of wealth creation. Before Chris Ngige became the Governor of Anambra State, he was complaining bitterly about the poor state of our roads and he was perfectly right. As soon as he became the Governor of Anambra State, he tackled road infrastructure. He is still remembered today as a man who solved lots of transport problems for the people of this state.

Again, before Peter Obi became the Governor, he had already drawn up his road map which some of us had the opportunity to read in his manifesto.

He was discussing integrated development programme for Anambra State. He hit the ground running as soon as he became the governor and carried on with a lot of developmental programmes for which the people of Anambra State are grateful.

Towards the end of his tenure, we discussed and agreed that the next phase will be the economy. And I have done a lot of work in this direction. Unfortunately, the present Governor prepared no manifesto so he had none. He just got governorship responsibilities thrown at him. That is why nobody should blame him so much because he didn’t prepare for the responsibility of governance and he does not pretend to be prepared for it.

Why the choice of APC? Well as I said, the original idea behind the formation of APGA by chief Chekwas Okorie and company was to give us a negotiating pad into the mainstream of the Nigerian politics.

Since this original concept has been shoved aside and the party hijacked by political merchants and mercenaries, the option left to us is to find our way into the main political party which is the APC. When former Governor Peter Obi joined the political mainstream at the time which was the PDP, some people in Anambra State accused him of all sorts of things but so many of us at the same time saw through his intention.

We cannot continue to alienate ourselves from the main stream politics of this country and expect to get somewhere.

We can’t continue to remain in this enclave

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T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY, JANUARY 5, 2017

PERSPECTIVE

Before Buhari Loses the Fight against Graft President Muhammadu Buhari must be careful not be isolated in his fight against corruption, writes David Omokioja

A

nyone who doubted the sincerity of the Muhammadu Buhari administration’s fight against corruption should have had his doubt cleared by President Buhari’s reaction to two recent events. First was the purported indictment of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr. David Babachir, by the Senate for alleged inability to account for about N2.5billion allocated to the Presidential Initiative on North East (PINE) kept under his watch. He was also alleged to have awarded N273million contract to Rholavision, a company in which he had substantial interest.

The second event was the Senate’s refusal to confirm the Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC), Mr. Ibrahim Magu as the substantive helmsman of the anti-graft commission.

Relying on a security report by the State Security Services, which indicted Magu for alleged corrupt practices and professional misdemeanor, the Senate declined confirmation and asked President Buhari to send a fresh nominee for the position that had been vacant for over a year now, following the expiration of the tenure of Mr. Ibrahim Lamorde.

Expectedly, the events generated heightened public interests as social critics latched on to the allegations indicting the two key officials of the Buhari administration. Just as critics mounted the moral high horse to challenge the president to proceed against his men had he ordered further investigations into the alleged malfeasance, asking the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami, to get to the bottom of the matter.

Opposition politicians, who had accused the president of being selective in his fight against corruption, must have been disap-

Given that these procedural lapses are too glaring to have escaped the distinguished Senate, it is necessary to look behind the veil to find out the real motive of the senators, at least, the dominant ones. It should be obvious that the target is President Buhari. The intension is to embarrass and isolate him. If he could be blackmailed to drop his trusted aides, his government would soon become weakened

Buhari...there’s the need to embrace caution

pointed by his reaction. They had thought that he would toe his past line of defending his officials. For there had been allegations of corruption against two ministers of the administration.

The Minister of Transportation, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, and Minister of Solid Mineral Resources, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, had both been variously alleged to have misappropriated sundry sums running into billions of naira while holding sway as governors of Rivers and Ekiti States, respectively. But President Buhari’s reaction was that their accusers should approach the appropriate anti-corruption agencies for redress. When they did, the agencies did nothing and the president too said nothing.

President Buhari would appear to have turned a new leaf with the latest development. He would, however, need to be careful not to unduly hurt his foot soldiers and subsequently isolate himself in his chosen task. For the Senate’s actions look more like a self-serving fight back against the executive arm of government that has been adamant on taking the war against corruption to the legislature.

Whilst the point had been made severally that the Senate leadership might have railroaded the Upper Chamber to come to the decision to indict the SGF and refuse confirmation for the acting chairman of the EFCC because there was no love lost among Senate President Bukola Saraki, Babachir and Magu, it is necessary to note the abuse of legislative process by the Senate and seek an immediate remedy.

Following domestic and international

public outcry over the plight of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the North East of the country, the Senate decided to institute an enquiry into the worsening condition of the IDPs. It subsequently composed an ad-committee headed by Senator Shehu Sani from Kaduna State to look into the matter and make a return within two weeks or so. The committee went to work, visiting the IDP camps, interviewing stakeholders and considering memos from members of the public. What should have been a noble assignment, however, degenerated into a witch-hunt. There had been reports of serious humanitarian crises in the various IDP camps across the North East and Abuja. Relief materials, including foods and medicines meant for IDPs were not reaching them. Rather they were being found in open markets being illegally sold.

The results were that the IDPs were starving. Malnutrition was ravaging the camps and basic needs, including shelter and water had become rare. The committee’s brief was to find out why these were happening and to suggest solutions to the problem. But what did it do?

First, it could not conclude its simple enquiry within time and decided to rush in an interim report. Why an interim report when it could have asked for more time to complete its work? Second, it betrayed its intention and the main reason for its composition by the indictment of the SGF and demanding his resignation or sack by the president.

In its interim report, the Shehu Sani committee, among others, reported that the

PINE could not account for the N2.5billion allocated to it to take care of IDPs and that the SGF corruptly enriched himself by awarding N273million contract to his company, Rholavision. Accusing the SGF of corruption, it called for his resignation, failing which the president should relieve him of his position. How the committee could have come to these conclusions even when it did not hear from the SGF is baffling. But the flourish with which the Senate received and considered the defective interim report betrayed the sinister motive behind the entire exercise.

It is a notorious fact that while the Senate has the constitutional power to carry out oversight over the activities of the executive and the judicial arms of government, such function must be exercised within the limits of due process of the law. PINE is an ad-hoc agency of the government under the SGF, whose accounts are subject to audit by the Auditor-General of the Federation.

The audit of federal agencies is done annually. As at November when the Senate committee was charged with its assignment, the audit had not been concluded. How then could the Senate have come to the conclusion that the budgetary allocation to PINE could not be accounted for? Did the committee receive an interim report from the AGF stating that the ad-hoc agency had been found wanting? The Senate conclusions are to say the least, hasty.

If the Senate had to be hasty to levy a charge of misappropriation of fund against Babachir, they had to do something worse to hang him for corruption. The committee told the Senate that it sat for about two weeks to consider memos forwarded to it and to scrutinise the accounts of PINE. Yet, in spite of the gravity of the allegations of corruption it leveled against the SGF, it did not think it was important that he should be allowed to come and defend himself.

There is no doubt that this is an exhibition of bad faith. How do you proceed with a recommendation on an allegation, which consequence could be the termination of someone’s appointment without giving the person a chance to defend himself? Even God, who knew that Adam had eaten the forbidden fruit at the Garden of Eden, did not pass a guilty sentence until he had heard from Adam.

Given that these procedural lapses are too glaring to have escaped the distinguished Senate, it is necessary to look behind the veil to find out the real motive of the senators, at least, the dominant ones. It should be obvious that the target is President Buhari.

The intension is to embarrass and isolate him. If he could be blackmailed to drop his trusted aides, his government would soon become weakened as he would have to deal with less trustworthy hands, a situation that may see his administration underperform far below the expectation of the people.

It is, therefore, necessary for President Buhari to exercise caution in the handling of the corruption allegations leveled against Babachir and Magu by a Senate that has shown scant attention to worthy causes, including the fight against corruption.

-Omokioja, a public affairs analyst wrote from Warri

OBIDIGBO: APGA NOW A PRIVATELY OWNED ENTITY and complain about marginalisation. The people we complained that are marginalising us are men like us. We will therefore join forces with them to demand for our due and get our fair share of what belongs to all of us.

That is why I chose APC because I believe that APC will better serve our interests within the context of the Nigerian nation.

What, therefore, are your chances in APC? Politics and the fate of Anambra State is not an exclusive right of anybody. Political party is a union of a group of people with supposedly similar ideology.

This being the case, the decision to run for the governorship of Anambra State on the platform of APC does not rest with me. The decision is for the party to take and if I am

found worthy, I will be very grateful to fly the flag.

I know that with God on my side and the people of Anambra State giving me their support, I will win and I will deliver something very tangible and beneficial to the state.

Now my message will go to the youths of the state because it is the energy of the Youths that builds a nation. Anambra State

youths have suffered so much neglect, yet we expect them to become productive and competent leaders of tomorrow.

So, I enjoin them to look around and give their full support to whoever they believe they can trust to serve their interest. The people of Anambra State, I say pray let God give us the leader that will not short-change the people or misappropriate our wealth.

20

THURSDAY, JANUARY 5, 2017 ˾ T H I S D AY

FEATURES

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

Celebrating Finland’s 99th Independence in Style Just a year to celebrate her centennial independence anniversary, Finland on December 6, celebrated her 99th anniversary, marked around the world where the country has a presence. Peace Obi who was at the reception in commemoration of this great event in Lagos, reports

L-R: Ambassador of Finland to Nigeria, Pirjo Suomela-Chowdhury, President, Nigeria-Finland Association, Otunba Gbenga Daniel and the husband to the Ambassador, Mr. Elias Chowdhury, during Finland's 99th Independence celebration in Lagos

F

inland, one of the Nordic countries in Northern Europe recently marked her 99th independence anniversary.

The country which passed from Swedish to Russian rule in 1809 at the time had her elites kick off efforts to assert Finnish identity as an autonomous part of the empire. This, it was said opened up the opportunity for a bigger freedom that saw Finland declared an independent state on December 6, 1917.

A small country of about five million to six million people, has ever since leaped from being an agrarian society to an enviable global status of education and technology giant in the world. Just a year to celebrate her hard earned centennial independence anniversary, the 99th anniversary was marked around the world where the country has its presence.

In Nigeria, where the relationship between the two countries dates back to the early years of Nigeria's independence, the occasion was celebrated in a low key, as the country looks forward to a more elaborate celebration for her centenary this 2017.

Speaking at an anniversary reception hosted by the Nigerian-Finnish Association in conjunction with the Embassy of Finland and Team Finland, the Ambassador of Finland to Nigeria, Ms Pirjo Suomela-Chowdhury, said Nigeria and Finland have come a long way in their relationship and that it is getting stronger by the day. Suomela-Chowdhury also remarked that the participation of the very important people in Nigeria at the event was a demonstration of a very strong commitment to building stronger ties between the two countries.

Stating that the relationship between Nigeria and Finland span in many different areas, she however noted that business is it at the heart of it and that Finland as a country is

working hard to explore the huge opportunities this offers. According to the Ambassador, the embassy is aware that there are many Finnish companies already present in Nigeria such as Nokia, KONE which is represented

by Kresta Laurel Limited, among others. "I know that KONE has fantastic representation in this country and there are much more

Personally, I want to see business relationship between Nigeria and Finland grow. The embassy and Finpro are set out to achieve this. We have given and we will continue to give all the support we possibly can to this effort.

And we are extremely lucky to have Finpro office in Nigeria and in its commercial capital, Lagos

opportunities, much more potential and you can see many Finnish companies interested in this country, exploring the possibilities,” she said.

Noting that though businesses might be faced by some challenges, the Ambassador said that she was confident that the opportunities far outweigh the challenges. And that Nigeria is a country, Finland cannot afford to ignore. "We can see that in the interest of the Finnish companies that they know that Nigeria is too important a place to ignore.

And that is why they are here.

"Of course, personally I want to see business relationship between Nigeria and Finland grow. The embassy and Finpro are set out to achieve this. We have given and we will continue to give all the support we possibly can to this effort. And we are extremely lucky to have Finpro office in Nigeria and in its commercial capital, Lagos."

Adding that Finland is strategic in positioning and establishing its presence, adding, "it is not many countries in Africa where we have offices,” the ambassador said.

The Honorary Consul, Dr. Kingsley Akinroye hinted that while Nigeria-Finland Association was formed in 2002, Nigeria and Finland have been together for long a time. Disclosing that Finland was the first country to recognise Nigeria after independence, the Honorary Consul said that it was a pointer to the mutual interest they have shared and continue to enjoy. In what seems like reading the lips of many, Akinroye said, "what everybody is interested to know is that with Nigeria towering high with a population of over 150 million people and Finland around the mark of between five to six million people, what do we have in common?

"We have a lot in common. A lot has been in common and we have benefited from each other and we want to thank our ambassadors,

especially in the last 10 years that Finland has sent to Nigeria to partner with us. Last two years, we were here to show that Finland is in fashion. And our gain has been in our community that is Finland that is growing from time to time. And we are happy that trade between Nigeria and Finland is also increasing. We are hopeful that in the next few years to come, it is going to grow more and better,” Akinroye said.

In his goodwill message, Senator Omoworare Babajide, congratulating Finland on her 99th independence anniversary said that it was high time Nigeria consolidated and concretised her relationship with the Nordic country.

And that with his visit to some businesses in the country, he also discovered that Nigeria and Finland can do a lot of things together.

"We can do a lot of things together in the area of agriculture, mining, timbering. We still have a lot of forest in Nigeria. What matters most is not taking our raw materials out of these shores without having impact on the economy.

"It will be better where a lot of value chain is added to it, so that we can have fruitful partnership in the area of technology transfer, equipment for both economies,” Babajide said.

The President, Nigeria-Finland Association, Otunba Gbenga Daniel in his speech, congratulated the Republic of Finland on their independence anniversary. Commending the enduring relationship between the two countries, he hinted that progress made so far since the assumption of duty by the present Ambassador of Finland to Nigeria could be described as geometric progression. And that with his 25 to 30 years active relationship with the Nordic country, he could describe the “people as one of the most honest people on earth, whom honesty and transparency are most suitable as their second name.”

Speaking further, the former governor

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FEATURES of Ogun State, noted that the relationship between Nigeria and Finland is unique in various ways and that he is confident there are a lot the two countries stand to gain from each other. "I have no doubt in mind that Finland will be able to support our dear country. And I think especially now that the country is working very hard to combat incidence of corruption.

"It is one period when our dear country requires support, because you are very much aware that it is a time when we are facing dire economic challenges, when we begin to actually think out of the box. All over the world, when countries face challenges, solution is not about partisanship, it is by everybody dropping their garb of partisanship and supporting the government of the day.

And by using your network of connections and information about this country, I have no doubt that there is a whole lot you can do to foster this kind of development in our country,� he said.

Adding that there are so many areas Nigeria could get support from Finland, Daniel said, "I want to ask you to consider the possibility of establishing some kind of scholarship for a few Nigeria students. It doesn't have to be many, if you do five this year and five in another year, it tends to have a multiplier effect. So, we can really begin to foster relationship from this perspective,� the president suggested.

And congratulating those who have emerged as the present leaders of the Nigeria-Finland Association, the President of the association said his team would sign-post new perspectives and evolve better relationship between the two countries.

In her goodwill message, Senator Oluremi Tinubu noted that Nigeria and Finland have come a long way in their friendly relationship. Represented by Honorable Omobolanle Akinyemi-Obe, Tinubu said Finland has been known for its commitment to quality of life, education, technology among others and that it is hoped that the mutually beneficial relationship between Nigeria and Finland will continue to exist. Also speaking, the former military governor of Lagos State, General Mohammed Buba Marwa, represented by Alhaji Mohammed Olagbaye, in congratulating the country on her independence also prayed that both countries will witness the centenary celebrations in 2017 in peace.

Part of the activities marking the 99th independence celebration of the Finland was an art exhibition by two Nigerian artists.

Presenting his artistic works like ‘Sweet Mother’, ‘My Mother’, ‘United We Stand’ and ‘Let's Celebrate’, Mr. Muyiwa Adetula noted that while his works are diverse both in concept and style that they are however brought together in one respect - unifying the culture of excellence.

Also, an award-winning journalist, Ms. Evelyn Osagie whose passion for pictures has had some galleries discover and exhibited some of her pictures, had her picture like

The President, NigeriaFinland Association, Otunba Gbenga Daniel in his speech, congratulated the Republic of Finland on their independence anniversary. Commending the enduring relationship between the two countries, he hinted that progress made so far since the assumption of duty by the present Ambassador of Finland to Nigeria could be described as geometric progression

L-R: Professor Samuel Odeyemi, his wife, Yetunde and the representative of Senator Oluremi Tinubu, Hon. Omobolanle Akinyemi-Obe

L-R: Representative of Senator Oluremi Tinubu, Hon. Omobolanle Akinyemi-Obe, Mrs. Mojisola Moradeyo, Mrs. Sarah Osedo and Mrs. Roseleen Akinroye, at the event

One of the participating artists, Mr. Muyiwa Adetula (left), explaining the concept of his drawings to the guests

Wengar's Art, 2009, Let's Dance, 2010, Harmony 2011, among others on display. Explaining the concept of some of her pictures to the guests at the independence celebration,

Osagie whose perceptive mind for creative details and an eye for image said that she finds her voice through diverse art forms, creating pictorial and written narratives that

celebrate the beauty of Africa and its people.

According to Osagie, "Catching each moment in a flash gives me the most satisfaction as a journalist and artist."

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IMAGES

L-R, Chairman, Toyota Nigeria Ltd, Chief Ade Ojo; National President, Nigerian-American Chamber of Commerce (NACC), Chief Olabintan Famutimi; Vice Consul, U.S Consul General, U. S Consulate, Lagos, Eric Eggleston and Managing Director/Chief Executive OďŹƒcer, Airtel Nigeria, Mr. Segun Ogunsanya at the NACC Annual Dinner Dance in Lagos....recently.

L-R ; Chairman, Guinness Nigeria Plc, Babatunde Savage; President, Diageo Africa, John O Kee and Managing Director, Guinness Nigeria Plc, Peter Ndegwa during a visit to the Oba’s Palace by Board Members of Guinness Nigeria Plc. in Benin...recently

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Photo Editor ĂŒĂ“Ă™ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă˜ ÔËÖË Email Ă‹ĂŒĂ“Ă™ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă˜Ë›Ă‹Ă”Ă‹Ă–Ă‹ĚśĂžĂ’Ă“Ă?ĂŽĂ‹ĂŁĂ–Ă“Ă Ă?Ë›Ă?Ù×

L-R ; Mr Amechi Bayem of the Accountant General oďŹƒce, Asaba;i Controller Internal Audit, Thisday Newspaper Group, Mr Nduka Ernest Moser and Major Afam of the Nigerian Army during the elavation of Fellow of the Nigeria Institute of Taxation in

Baale of Abule- Odi, Ojora Kingdom, Chief Hakeem Olatunji Abolade (left), and Ojora of Ijora Kingdom, Oba Abdul Fatai Aromire Oyegbemi 11, during the installation ceremony of Chief Olatunji as the Baale of AbuleOdi, Ojora kingdom, by His Royal Majesty Oba Aromire, at ObaĂ­s Palace, in Ojora, Lagos...recently

L-R; Executive Producer, The Next Titan, Mr. Mide Kunle Akinlaja; Winner of The Next Titan Season 3, Mrs. Marshal Idio; Divisional Head, Retail and SME, Heritage Bank, Mrs. Ori Ogba and , Divisional General Manager, Dealer Network Development, Coscharis Motors, Mr. Olalekan Adenuga during the presentation of N5m and Ford EcoSport to Idio, at the Next Titan Season 3 grand ďŹ nale in Lagos....recently

FCT Minister, Malam Muhammad Musa Bello (left), and the outgoing Chairman of Christian Association of Nigeriia(CAN)), Rev. Israel Akanji, who is also the new Chairman, North central Zone, when the Association visited the Minister to introduce its new executive members in AbujaĂ–.recently

L-R; Vice President, Marketing, Etisalat Nigeria, Adebisi Idowu; renowned economist, Prof. Patrick Utomi; his wife, Dr. Ifeoma Utomi and Director, Brand and Experience, Etisalat Nigeria, Elvis Ogiemwanye at the command performance of Love and Recession stage play sponsored by Etisalat Nigeria in Lagos....recently

L-R: Chairman, Moshood Abiola Polytechnic, Caretaker Committee, Mr. Sodiq Adeniyi; Rector, Prof. Oludele Itiola; and Director, Student Aairs, Mr. Seyi Sobande, during the donation of tricycles to the School by the caretaker committee. in Abeokuta, ogun stateÖrecently

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Quick Takes Huawei Wins 2016 Brand Award

TOGETHER WE WILL MAKE TELECOMS GREAT

L-R: Executive Vice Chairman, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta; Chief Executive OďŹƒcer, VDT Communications, Mr. Biodun Omoniyi and Chief Executive OďŹƒcer, Phase3 Telecoms, Mr. Stanley Jegede, at a telecoms forum organised

by NCC in Lagos...recently

Stakeholders Fret over Possible Rise in Interconnect Debts Stories by Emma Okonji Given the high level of interconnect debts among telecoms operators, industry stakeholders are worried that the debt profile may continue to rise in 2017.

As at 2012, interconnect debt between small and major telecoms operators stood at N20 billion. But the figure rose to N30 billion as at December 2016, a situation that has raised concerns among industry stakeholders who are worried that the figure may continue to rise if adequate measures are not put in place.

Giving reasons why the interconnect debt figure may continue to rise in 2017, the

TELECOMS Chief Executive Officer of one of the six Interconnect Clearing Houses in the country, Medallion Communications, Mr. Ikechukwu Nnamani, told THISDAY in a telephone interview that currently Nigeria has no official settlement platform in the telecoms sector, hence operators, especially the bigger operators, continue to settle interconnect debts at will, thereby accumulating the debts to the detriment of smaller operators. “None of the operators in Nigeria has a settlement scheme in place with their interconnect partners. Invoices are sent out at the end of the month and

the operators just sit back and wait for payment from the interconnect partners. It is only when payment is not received after a long period of time that dispute and reconciliation is embarked upon. This has led to high level of disputed interconnect indebtedness,�

Nnamani said.

According to him, the cumulative effect of interconnect settlement challenges is that there is today in Nigeria over N30 billion of interconnect debt, while variances in settlement invoice values can be as high as 20 per cent and unpaid invoices ranging from six months to three years in arrears.

In telecoms parlance, interconnect debt is the money owed

by an operator for terminating calls generated from its network on another operator’s network, based on the agreed interconnect fee approved by the industry operator, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC). “For a system that is 95 per cent prepaid, the inability to pay for terminated calls cannot be blamed on the subscribers not being able to pay the telecom operators, because up to 60 to 70 per cent of all interconnect debts in Nigeria are disputed debts. This is because over 95 per cent of the interconnect calls are still passed on a peer-to-peer basis Continued on page 24

Technology Innovation Key to ICT Development, Says Elegbe The Managing Director of Interswitch Payment Platform, Mr. Mitchell Elegbe has called on Nigerians, especially solution developers and software programmers, to imbibe the culture of innovation and creativity, in order to remain relevant in the scheme of things where technology is virtually driving everything we do.

Elegbe, who spoke at the maiden ImpactGen Technology Summit organised by ImpactGen Foundation in Lagos recently, said: “Technology innovation is about ideas and it comes with disruption to existing technologies, which means that people must choose the right technology models

ICT and apply them wisely in their businesses in order to excel.�

According to him, any idea that is not able to address specific societal challenges, is dead on arrival and should be discarded immediately.

Elegbe advised upcoming entrepreneurs and technology startups to be proactive always and come up with workable ideas that could address specific challenges in an organisation and the society at large.

Elegbe who shared profound perspectives on the ties between innovation, growth and value creation, said: “All of the world’s greatest corporation

such as Guinness, Coca Cola, GE, Ford and Apple are driven by innovation. They either innovate as value proposition or leverage technology innovation to deliver growth and bottom-line impact.

They strategically deliver core innovative products, invent new technology and new brealthroughs, harness advancements in technologies while developing world-class talents.�

Other areas of emphasis

by Elegbe were on digital technology. According to him, advances in digital technology have created important new industries and new jobs. Technology has brought about significant growth and

specialization within diverse industries be it hospitality, health care, banking and insurance and of course manufacturing and retail. “Today, digital technology is driving unprecedented growth for innovative companies such as Uber, Amazon, Facebook, Alibaba, Airbnb and several others. Technology is helping these companies deliver solutions in much more dynamic, swifter and value filled approach. Their reach continuously grows wider with higher level of market penetration and acceptance that deliver positive bottom line� Elegbe added.

Continued on page 24

Ă&#x;Ă‹ĂĄĂ?Ă“ Ă’Ă‹Ă? ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă˜ Ă˜Ă‹Ă—Ă?ĂŽ ËŤ Ă?Ă?Ăž Ă™Ă˜Ă?Ă&#x;Ă—Ă?Ăœ Ă–Ă?Ă?ĂžĂœĂ™Ă˜Ă“Ă?Ă? ĂœĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽËœËŹ ĂŒĂ?Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÙÞÒĂ?Ăœ ĂŒĂœĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽĂ? Ă?Ù×ÚĂ?ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă?Ă™Ăœ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă‹ĂžĂ?Ă‘Ă™ĂœĂŁ Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă–Ă&#x;ĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÚÚÖĂ? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă‹Ă˜Ă™Ă˜Ë› Ă’Ă? ĂĄĂ“Ă˜Ă˜Ă?Ăœ Ă™Ă? ËŤ Ă?Ă?Ăž ĂœĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽĂ? Í°ÍŽÍŻÍ´ËŹ Ă‹ĂĄĂ‹ĂœĂŽ ĂĄĂ‹Ă? Ă‹Ă˜Ă˜Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜Ă?Ă?ĂŽ ĂŒĂŁ Ă&#x;ĂœĂ™ĂšĂ?ĘšĂ? Ă–Ă‹ĂœĂ‘Ă?Ă?Ăž Ă“Ă˜ĂŽĂ?ĂšĂ?Ă˜ĂŽĂ?Ă˜Ăž Ă?Ù××Ă&#x;Ă˜Ă“Ă?Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă‹Ă‘Ă?Ă˜Ă?ĂŁËœ Ă’Ă? Ă?ĂœĂ Ă“Ă?Ă? ĂšĂ–Ă‹Ă˜ ĂœĂ™Ă&#x;ĂšËœ Ă“Ă˜ Ă?Ă™Ă–Ă–Ă‹ĂŒĂ™ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ åÓÞÒ Ëœ ÞÒĂ? ĂĄĂ™ĂœĂ–ĂŽËŞĂ? ĂœĂ?Ă˜Ă™ĂĄĂ˜Ă?ĂŽ Ă—Ă‹ĂœĂ•Ă?Ăž ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă‹ĂœĂ?Ă’ Ă™ĂœĂ‘Ă‹Ă˜Ă“Ă?Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ëœ Ă‹Ăž Ă‹Ă˜ Ă‹ĂĄĂ‹ĂœĂŽĂ? Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ?Ă—Ă™Ă˜ĂŁ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?Ă’ Ă’Ă?Ă–ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ Ă’Ă‹Ă˜Ă‘Ă’Ă‹Ă“Ëœ Ă’Ă“Ă˜Ă‹Ë› Ă’Ă? ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ăž ĂŒĂœĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽĂ? ÞÓÞÖĂ? ĂĄĂ‹Ă? ĂŽĂ?Ă?Ă“Ă‘Ă˜Ă?ĂŽ ÞÙ ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă™Ă‘Ă˜Ă“Ă?Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă—Ă™Ă?Ăž Ă?Ă&#x;Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă&#x;Ă– Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ÚÙåĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă&#x;Ă– ĂŒĂœĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽĂ?Ë› Ă’Ă? Ă—Ă‹ĂœĂ•Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă‹ĂĄĂ‹ĂœĂŽĂ? ĂĄĂ?ĂœĂ? Ă“Ă˜ĂžĂœĂ™ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?Ă?ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ Ă’Ă“Ă˜Ă‹ Ă“Ă˜ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍ˛Ëœ Ă“Ăž ĂĄĂ‹Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ę¨ĂœĂ?Ăž ĂŒĂœĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂœĂ‹Ă˜Ă•Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă“Ă˜ Ă’Ă“Ă˜Ă‹ ÞÙ ÞËÕĂ? Ă‹ Ă?Ă™Ă—ĂšĂœĂ?Ă’Ă?Ă˜Ă?Ă“Ă Ă? Ă Ă“Ă?ĂĄ Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă?Ă&#x;Ă—Ă?ĂœËŞĂ? Ă™ĂšĂ“Ă˜Ă“Ă™Ă˜Ă?Ëœ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă–Ă? Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ĂžĂœĂ‹Ă˜Ă?ĂšĂ‹ĂœĂ?Ă˜Ă?ĂŁ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă™ĂŒĂ”Ă?Ă?ÞÓà ÓÞã˛ Ă’Ă“Ă?Ă? Ă‹ĂœĂ•Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ĘŠĂ?Ă?Ăœ Ă™Ă? Ă&#x;Ă‹ĂĄĂ?Ă“ Ă™Ă˜Ă?Ă&#x;Ă—Ă?Ăœ Ă&#x;Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă?Ëœ Ă–Ă™ĂœĂŁ Ă’Ă‹Ă˜Ă‘Ëœ ĂŽĂ?Ă–Ă“Ă Ă?ĂœĂ?ĂŽ Ă‹ Ă•Ă?ĂŁ Ă˜Ă™ĂžĂ? Ă?ĂšĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă’ Ă‹Ăž ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ?Ă—Ă™Ă˜ĂŁË› Ă˜ Ă’Ă?Ăœ Ă?ĂšĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă’ Ă?Ă’Ă? ÞÙĂ&#x;Ă?Ă’Ă?ĂŽ Ă™Ă˜ Ă“Ă—ĂšĂ™ĂœĂžĂ‹Ă˜Ăž Ă—Ă“Ă–Ă?Ă?ĂžĂ™Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă“Ă˜ Ă—Ă™ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă? Ă’Ă“Ă?ĂžĂ™ĂœĂŁË› Ă’Ă? Ă?ÞËÞĂ?ĂŽ ÞÒËÞ Ă“Ă—Ă? Ă‹Ă‘Ă‹Ă¤Ă“Ă˜Ă? ĂœĂ‹Ă˜Ă•Ă?ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? ÍŻÍŽÍŽ Ă—Ă™Ă?Ăž Ă“Ă—ĂšĂ™ĂœĂžĂ‹Ă˜Ăž ÚÒÙÞÙĂ? Ă“Ă˜ Ă’Ă&#x;Ă—Ă‹Ă˜ Ă’Ă“Ă?ĂžĂ™ĂœĂŁËœ Ă˜Ă™ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÒËÞ Ă&#x;Ă‹ĂĄĂ?Ă“ Ă‹Ă–Ă?Ă™ Ă“Ă? ĂšĂ‹ĂœĂž Ă™Ă? ÞÒËÞ Ă’Ă“Ă?ĂžĂ™ĂœĂŁ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă’Ă‹Ă? ĂĄĂ™ĂœĂ•Ă?ĂŽ åÓÞÒ Ă?Ă“Ă?Ă‹ ÞÙ ĂœĂ?ĂŽĂ?Ę¨Ă˜Ă? Ă?Ă—Ă‹ĂœĂžĂšĂ’Ă™Ă˜Ă? ĂšĂ’Ă™ĂžĂ™Ă‘ĂœĂ‹ĂšĂ’ĂŁ åÓÞÒ ÞÒĂ? ĂĄĂ™ĂœĂ–ĂŽËŞĂ? Ę¨ĂœĂ?Ăž Ă?Ă“Ă?Ă‹ ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă‹Ă–Ě‹Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă?ĂœĂ‹ ĂŽĂ?Ă?Ă“Ă‘Ă˜Ëœ Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă&#x;Ă‹ĂĄĂ?Ă“ ͡˛ Ă&#x;Ă? ÞÙ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă&#x;Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? ͡ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂŒĂ?Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă˜Ă‹Ă—Ă?ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ăž Ă?Ă—Ă‹ĂœĂžĂšĂ’Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ëœ Ă&#x;Ă‹ĂĄĂ?Ă“ ĂšĂ‹ĂœĂžĂ˜Ă?ĂœĂ?ĂŽ Ă?Ă“Ă?Ă‹ Ă‹Ă‘Ă‹Ă“Ă˜ ÞÙ Ă?ĂœĂ?Ă‹ĂžĂ? Ă‹Ă˜ Ă?Ă Ă?Ă˜ Ă—Ă™ĂœĂ? ÚÙåĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă&#x;Ă– Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă?ĂœĂ‹ Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂ–ĂŁ ĂœĂ?Ă–Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă?ĂŽ Ă‹ĂžĂ? ͡ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?Ă’ Ă’Ă‹Ă? Ă’Ă?Ă–ĂšĂ?ĂŽ Ùà Ă?Ăœ ÍŻÍŽ Ă—Ă“Ă–Ă–Ă“Ă™Ă˜ ĂšĂ?ÙÚÖĂ? Ă‹ĂœĂ™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? ĂĄĂ™ĂœĂ–ĂŽ ÞÙ Ă?ËÚÞĂ&#x;ĂœĂ? ÞÒĂ? ĂĄĂ™Ă˜ĂŽĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă&#x;Ă– ×Ù×Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂ? Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ?Ă“Ăœ Ă–Ă“Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂžĂ&#x;ĂœĂ˜ ÞÒĂ?Ă— Ă“Ă˜ĂžĂ™ Ă‹ĂœĂžĂ“Ă?ÞÓĂ? ÚÒÙÞÙĂ?

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Europe Moves with Spectrum Plan Ă™Ă™ĂœĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă™Ă? ;͎͎ ä Ă?ĂšĂ?Ă?ĂžĂœĂ&#x;Ă— Ă?Ă™Ăœ Ă—Ă™ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă? ĂŒĂœĂ™Ă‹ĂŽĂŒĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă‹Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă?Ă? Ă&#x;ĂœĂ™ĂšĂ?Ëœ åÓÞÒ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă“Ă— Ă™Ă? Ă“Ă˜Ă?ĂœĂ?Ă‹Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă?ĂšĂ?Ă?ĂŽĂ? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂšĂ‹Ă Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÒĂ? ĂĄĂ‹ĂŁ Ă?Ă™Ăœ Íł Ëœ Ă’Ă‹Ă? ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă˜ Ă‹Ă‘ĂœĂ?Ă?ĂŽ Ă&#x;ĂšĂ™Ă˜Ë›

Ă? ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ę¨Ă?ĂŽ ĂŒĂŁ Ă&#x;ĂœĂ™ĂšĂ?Ă‹Ă˜ Ă˜Ă“Ă™Ă˜ Ě™ Ěš Ă—Ă?Ă—ĂŒĂ?Ăœ Ă?ÞËÞĂ?Ă? Ă“Ă˜ Ă?Ă&#x;ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă›Ă&#x;Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă—Ă?Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘Ëœ Ă‹Ă&#x;ĂžĂ’Ă™ĂœĂ“ĂžĂ“Ă?Ă? ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– Ă’Ă‹Ă Ă? Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂžĂ“Ă– Í°ÍŽÍ°ÍŽ ÞÙ Ă?Ă–Ă?Ă‹Ăœ ÞÒĂ? ĂŒĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă‹Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă?Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă™Ă—Ă“Ă? Ă¤Ă™Ă˜Ă?Ëœ Ă&#x;Ă˜Ă–Ă?Ă?Ă? ÞÒĂ?ĂŁ Ă‹ĂœĂ? Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽ ÞÙ Ă’Ă‹Ă Ă? ËŤĂ?ĂšĂ?Ă?Ă“Ă‹Ă– Ă?Ă“ĂœĂ?Ă&#x;Ă—Ă?ĂžĂ‹Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă?˛ˏ

Ă˜ ÞÒÓĂ? Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă? ÞÒĂ?ĂŁ Ă‹ĂœĂ? Ă‘Ă“Ă Ă?Ă˜ Ă‹Ă˜ Ă?Ă˘ĂžĂœĂ‹ ÞåÙ ĂŁĂ?Ă‹ĂœĂ? ÞÙ ĂœĂ?Ă‹Ă–Ă–Ă™Ă?Ă‹ĂžĂ? ÞÒĂ? Ă?ĂšĂ?Ă?ĂžĂœĂ&#x;Ă—Ëœ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă?Ă’ Ă“Ă? Ă?Ă™Ă—Ă—Ă™Ă˜Ă–ĂŁ Ă&#x;Ă?Ă?ĂŽ Ă?Ă™Ăœ Ă‹ ĂœĂ‹Ă˜Ă‘Ă? Ă™Ă? Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ Ă“Ă?Ă?Ă? Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă–Ă&#x;ĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÎÓÑÓÞËÖ ĂžĂ?ĂœĂœĂ?Ă?ĂžĂœĂ“Ă‹Ă– Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂĄĂ“ĂœĂ?Ă–Ă?Ă?Ă? Ă—Ă“Ă?ĂœĂ™ĂšĂ’Ă™Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ë› Ă?Ă?Ă™ĂœĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÙ Ă&#x;ĂœĂ™ĂšĂ?Ă‹Ă˜ Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜Ă?Ă“Ă– Ě™ ĚšËœ Ă?ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă‘Ě‹Ă&#x;Ăš ÞÒĂ? ;͎͎ ä ĂŒĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă™Ăœ ĂĄĂ“ĂœĂ?Ă–Ă?Ă?Ă? ĂŒĂœĂ™Ă‹ĂŽĂŒĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă?ĂœĂ Ă“Ă?Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă?Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă™Ă—Ă“Ă? Ă¤Ă™Ă˜Ă? ĂĄĂ™Ă&#x;Ă–ĂŽ Ă?Ă˜Ă‹ĂŒĂ–Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă‘ĂœĂ?Ă‹ĂžĂ?Ăœ Ă&#x;Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă? ËÚÚÖÓĂ?Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă‹Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă?Ă? ĂŒĂ™ĂœĂŽĂ?ĂœĂ? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂœĂ?ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?Ă? Ùà Ă?ĂœĂ‹Ă–Ă– Ă“Ă˜ĂžĂ?ĂœĂ?Ă?ĂœĂ?Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ë› Ă˜ Ă‹ Ă?ÞËÞĂ?Ă—Ă?Ă˜ĂžËœ Ă“Ăž Ă?Ă‹Ă“ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? Ă‹Ă‘ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă’Ă‹ĂŽ ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă˜ Ă—Ă‹ĂŽĂ? ÞÙ Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă? ÞÒĂ? ĂŽĂ?Ă Ă?ÖÙÚ×Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă™Ă? Ă“Ă˜Ă˜Ă™Ă Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă–Ă&#x;ĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă˜Ă?Ă?ĂžĂ?ĂŽ Ă?Ă‹ĂœĂ?Ëœ ĂœĂ?×ÙÞĂ? Ă’Ă?ËÖÞÒ Ă?Ă‹ĂœĂ? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă™ Ă?ĂžĂœĂ?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ËÚÚÖÓĂ?Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂĄĂ™Ă&#x;Ă–ĂŽ Ă?Ă Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂ&#x;Ă‹Ă–Ă–ĂŁ ÚËà Ă? ÞÒĂ? ĂĄĂ‹ĂŁ Ă?Ă™Ăœ Íł Ë› Ă’Ă? ÚÙÖÓĂ?ĂŁ Ă™Ă? Ă&#x;Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÒĂ? ;͎͎ ä ĂŒĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?âĂ?Ă–Ă&#x;Ă?Ă“Ă Ă?Ă–ĂŁ Ă?Ă™Ăœ Ă—Ă™ĂŒĂ“Ă–Ă? ĂŒĂœĂ™Ă‹ĂŽĂŒĂ‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂĄĂ‹Ă? Ę¨ĂœĂ?Ăž ĂœĂ‹Ă“Ă?Ă?ĂŽ ĂŒĂŁ ÞÒĂ? Ă“Ă˜ Ă?ĂŒĂœĂ&#x;Ă‹ĂœĂŁ Ă–Ă‹Ă?Ăž ĂŁĂ?Ă‹Ăœ åÓÞÒ Ă‹Ă˜ Ă“Ă˜Ă“ĂžĂ“Ă‹Ă– ĂšĂœĂ™ĂšĂ™Ă?Ă‹Ă– ĂšĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂ?ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ Ă‹ĂŁË› Ă’Ă? Ă&#x;ĂœĂ™ĂšĂ?Ă‹Ă˜ Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜Ă?Ă“Ă– Ă?Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂŒĂ–Ă“Ă?Ă’Ă?ĂŽ Ă“ĂžĂ? ÚÙĂ?Ă“ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ ĂŽĂ&#x;ĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă? Ă—Ă™Ă˜ĂžĂ’Ëœ ĂĄĂ’Ă“Ă–Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă&#x;ĂœĂ™ĂšĂ?Ă‹Ă˜ Ă‹ĂœĂ–Ă“Ă‹Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă?Ă?Ăž Ă™Ă&#x;Ăž Ă“ĂžĂ? ĂšĂœĂ“Ă™ĂœĂ“ĂžĂ“Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă“Ă?Ă?Ă&#x;Ă? Ă“Ă˜ Ùà Ă?Ă—ĂŒĂ?Ăœ Ă–Ă‹Ă?Ăž ĂŁĂ?Ă‹ĂœË›

“As the world of productivity shifts towards digitisation, the cloud becomes a powerful enabler to digital transformation, considering the fact the future is becoming increasingly digital�

Chief Executive OďŹƒcer, IPI Solutions Nig. Ltd, Mr. Adamu Garba II

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STAKEHOLDERS FRET OVER POSSIBLE RISE IN INTERCONNECT DEBTS among the operators, resulting in disputes and inability to reconcile call records,�

Nnamani told THISDAY. He blamed the situation on lack of official settlement platform for the telecoms industry, and called on the NCC to come up with policies that would address issues with interconnect debts in the country.

He suggested the introduction of Nigeria Interconnect Settlement Scheme (NISS), which he said, would reduce the accumulated debt profile and improve cash flow among operators. “Upon full implementation and maturity of the NISS platform, it is expected that no less than 30 per cent of interconnect traffic will be settled through NISS, and this will result in cashflow improvement of over N5.4 billion per month,� Nnamani said.

TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION KEY TO ICT DEVELOPMENT, SAYS ELEGBE He also emphasised the importance of forming technology partnerships that will foster collaboration and growth. He highlighted how partnering successfully with an industry peer, represents a growing trend among forward thinking companies.

Also speaking, the Founder/Executive Director, ImpactGen Foundation, and the Convener, ImpactGen Tech Innovation Summit, Mr. Greg Malize, stated that “ImpactGen was formed out of a burning desire to provide a platform where millenials can creatively engage with industry experts and thought leaders to share new knowledge and insights in the areas of technology, innovation, leadership and enterprise development. It is committed to creating programs for engagement, learning and networking that foster positive impact thereby raising a generation of impactful youth as future growth catalysts.�

Forex Scarcity May Mar Telecoms Business in 2017, Says Adebayo Emma Okonji The Chairman, Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), Mr. Gbenga Adebayo, has raised the alarm that the current foreign exchange (forex) scarcity in the country, that has pushed up the price of dollar against naira, will spell doom for telecoms business in 2017, if the issue is not addressed.

According to Adebayo, “If the issue of forex is not addressed and telecoms operators do not still have easy access to dollars in 2017, it then means it will be extremely difficult to embark on importation of telecoms facilities in 2017.�

Speaking on the implications, Adebayo said telecoms operators would not be able to carry out network expansion in 2017, which invariably would affect service quality.

Aside network expansion, which is key to telecoms development, Adebayo said operators that have been awarded spectrum licences to operate on the 2.3GHz and the 5.4GHz frequency bands by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), may not be able to roll out the services on the frequency bands as stipulated by NCC, should they face the same challenge of forex scarcity.

This calls for serious concern and urgent steps must be taken in order not to make rubbish the efforts of NCC and the telecoms operators who are keen at further developing the telecoms sector that has contributed over $68 billion in telecoms investment from 2001 to 2016, according to recent statistics from NCC. Adebayo said with the high forex rate, operators need to raise so much naira to get the dollar equivalent with which they could use to import telecoms facilities for network expansion and rollout.

He therefore, called on

Ă’Ă“Ă•Ă‹ Ă—Ă‹Ă˜Ă¤Ă?Ě‹ ĂĄĂ‹Ă?Ă’Ă&#x;Ă•Ă&#x; AgriBusiness/Industry Editor

ĂœĂ&#x;Ă?Ă™Ă? Ă?Ă‹Ă‘Ă“Ă?

Comms/e-Business Editor

Ă—Ă—Ă‹ Ă•Ă™Ă˜Ă”Ă“ Capital Market Editor

ÙÎÎã Ă‘Ă?Ă˜Ă?

Senior Correspondent

Ă‹Ă’Ă?Ă?Ă— Ă•Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ĂŒĂ™Ă–Ă&#x; (Advertising) Correspondents

Ă’Ă“Ă˜Ă?ĂŽĂ&#x; äĂ? (Aviation) Ă“Ă˜ĂŽĂ‹ ĂœĂ™Ă•Ă? (Labour) ĂœĂ™Ă—Ă™Ă?Ă?Ă–Ă? ĂŒĂ“Ă™ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă˜ (Cap Mkt) ÔÓÙĂ?Ă™Ăœ Ă–Ă“Ă•Ă? (Energy) Ă‹Ă—Ă?Ă? Ă—Ă?ÔÙ (Nation’s Capital) ĂŒĂ“Ă˜Ă˜Ă‹ Ă’Ă“Ă—Ă‹ (Money Mkt) Reporters

Ă&#x;Ă—Ă? Ă•Ă?Ă‘Ă’Ă? (Money Market) Ă™Ă?Ă‹ Ă–Ă?Ă•Ă’Ă&#x;ÙÑÓĂ? (Maritme)

the federal government to expedite action in addressing forex scarcity in Nigeria this year, to enable telecoms operators embark on telecoms business that will not only be profitable to them but will also add value to telecoms business in the county.

He also asked government to consider giving telecoms operators some concessions in the area of tax rebate and waiver for the importation of some critical telecoms facilities that will drive telecoms development in the country.

Speaking on social environment effect, where most Nigerian operators are currently

relocating to other African countries that offer better and enticing social environment scheme, Adebayo said the Nigerian government must rise up to its responsibility of addressing national issues that will attract more foreign direct investment into the country.

He commended the efforts of the National Assembly in fast-tracking the bill on critical national infrastructure, which he said, would help protect telecoms infrastructure from willful destruction by social miscreants, if eventually passed into law.

While bringing up the issue of telecommunications tax bill

that has passed through the first and second readings at National Assembly last year, which seeks to increase telecoms tax by additional nine per cent, Adebayo pleaded with the lawmakers to step down the bill, describing it as anti-telecoms that is capable of eroding the gains of telecoms in the past decade.

According to him, the bill, if passed into law, will spell doom for the industry, because telecoms operators would be tempted to pass the same tax to telecoms subscribers by way of increasing telecoms tariff, which he said would be detrimental to telecoms

growth, especially now that the country is passing through economic recession.

The telecommunication tax bill, which seeks to increase telecoms tariff, is a private bill that has passed through the first and second readings at the National Assembly, awaiting public hearing, where Nigerians will be invited to make inputs that will determine the decision of the law makers to pass the bill or not.

He said government could make telecoms industry great in 2017 by coming up with the right policy framework and implementation that will boost development in the sector.

MAKING OF A MILLIONAIRE

L-R: MD/CEO, Lotgrand, operators of Grandlotto, Niyi Adekunle; winner of a N10.8 million cash in the Yellow Terminal Machine Number lotto game, Razaq Adewale Abdulmalik and Chief Operating OďŹƒcer, Lotgrand, Wale Adekunle, at the cheque presentation ceremony to the winner in Lagos...recently

Minister Calls for Reduction Glo Backs Govt’s Effort to Improve Quality of of Food Importation Life in Lagos Rebecca Ejifoma

Group Business Editor

The Honourable Minister of Science and Technology, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, has called for reduction in the importation of food in the country in order to correct the mistakes Nigeria made in the past, saying that only science and technology can totally stop unfortunate trend.

He said this at the 38th annual conference of the Association for Consulting Engineering in Nigeria (ACEN). “Nigeria cannot continue to depend on foreign expertise for national development. It is only Nigerians that can best develop the country,� the minister said, adding that Nigeria imports rice, cotton, palm oil among others. He declared we cannot continue that way.

On what science is doing to ensure there is enough food in 2017, Onu said: “Things like these do not happen

overnight. Agriculture is at least 90 per cent science and technology. In some countries, it is as high as 95 per cent.

The reason we have not been doing well in agriculture is that we have not deployed science and technology as we should.

Many Nigerians forget there was a time we used to export rice,� he said.

He added that the Ministry of Science and Technology would ensure that the trend is changed by working together with other stakeholders. “Science and Tech is important in the creation of wealth.

We will not rest until we have strengthened our indigenous capacity to become an important capacity in economic renewal.

Mistakes made in the past need to be corrected urgently. The situation today is that we need foreign engineers to do our jobs.

This should change. We should not cintinue to repeat avoidable mistakes,� the minister said.

Emma Okonji Globacom has said it will support the efforts of Lagos State government to boost the profile of the state and improve the quality of life of the residents.

The company’s Coordinator, Business Enterprise Group, Mr. Folu Aderibigbe, made the pledge at the Grand Finale of One Lagos Fiesta, an end-of-the-year entertainment initiative of the Lagos State government co-sponsored by Globacom.

Aderibigbe said the grand masters of data was committed to the growth and development of the state as well as to the well-being of its customers.

He assured the audience that Globacom would continue to support projects that add value to people’s lives, and promised that the company would continue to invest in building the best telecommu-

nications network in Nigeria and Africa.

He said the company was delighted to again be the exclusive telecom partner of the One Lagos Fiesta after sponsoring it in 2016, adding that “Globacom is a brand that promotes the active lifestyle of fun and excitement.�

In his remarks at the event, Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, stated that he believed 2017, which marks the 50th anniversary of the state, would offer boundless opportunities for true joy for all Lagos residents. “Our vision remains the same: to create a smart mega city where business and creative opportunities abound; where physical and social amenities are world-class; and where lives and property are safe and secured,� the governor said.

The grand finale of the fiesta, which was held at the Bar

Beach, Victoria Island, featured the climax of the talent hunt show tagged ‘Lagos Has Got Talent’. Youths who emerged from the five major cities of the state competed in dance, rap, comedy and drama.

Master Ogunlaja Ahmed a.k.a Mr. Dollar from Epe Division emerged the overall winner, while Blessing Akiote (Agege) and Flexible Twist emerged second and third respectively.

They were presented with fabulous prizes by Globacom and the state government.

The finale also featured performances by artistes including rapper and Globacom Ambassador, MI, King Sunny Ade, Olamide, Tiwa Savage, Adekunle Gold, and Dr. Sid. Hundreds of fun seekers danced their way into the New Year as fire crackers lit up the sky at midnight, sending echoes of excitement around Victoria Island and beyond.

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BUSINESSWORLD

E-BUSINESS

Local Content Devt in ICT to Top Agenda in 2017 Besides other priorities that will shape activities in the information and communications technology sector in 2017, stakeholders are also pushing for the Nigerian Local Content Development Law, writes Emma Okonji

Danbatta

A

lthough 2016 was perceived as a tough year for telecoms and information technology (IT) business, ICT stakeholders are of the view that 2017 could be a better year if certain critical measures are put in place by government to drive development of the industry.

Among all identified factors that will shape ICT activities in 2017, the Nigerian Local Content Development, topped the agenda.

From broadband development and penetration, to spectrum management as well as protecting ICT infrastructure and licensing of additional InfraCos, up to regulatory framework, quality of service and data floor price, stakeholders strongly believe that if the issue of local content development and patronage are full addressed, it would automatically take care of all other factors that needed to be addressed in the ICT sector in 2017.

The Nigerian local content law in ICT The Chief Executive Officer of Teledom Group, Dr. Emmanuel Ekuwem, is one stakeholder that is passionate about developing the Nigerian local content law in ICT, which he said, would spur development in the ICT sector.

According to Ekuwem, “the economy is down with recession and the best way to move Nigeria out of recession is for government to develop her local content law by encouraging locally developed products and their patronage.

If this is achieved, it would not only create jobs, but also boost GDP growth as well as the Nigerian economy.�

He therefore insisted on patronage, protection, projection and promotion of the Nigerian local content development. To achieve this, Ekuwem said government must put the right policies in place and ensure full implementation of such policies across boards. “What Nigeria needs at the moment is a general consumer content law that will drive local content development in the ICT sector,�

Ekuwem said, while frowning on a situation where the telecoms operators depended largely on importation of telecoms infrastructure, to the detriment of local manufacturers.

He expressed his displeasure over importation of items like switches and routers by telecoms operators, insisting that such items could be manufactured in the country, if the right policies are put in place, and backed with proper implementation strategies. Ekuwem is of the view that if local content development is encouraged in the ICT sector, it will boost development and create additional jobs for the unemployed youths of the county.

President, Institute of Software Practitioners of Nigeria (ISPON), Mr. James Emadoye is another stakeholder who believes government

Ekuwem

must wake up to its responsibilities in 2017 in the area of policy implementation that will drive local content development in the ICT sector.

Emadoye, who blamed the federal government for policy inconsistencies and poor implementation, gave an instance where the federal government, through the former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Chief Ufot Ekaette, wrote a letter with Ref No SGF/OP/1/S.3/VII/795, to head of civil service commission, ministries department and agencies (MDAs) of government, on the need to patronise made in Nigeria products, including procurement of locally assembled computers and locally developed software.

He said the letter directed all federal MDAs to comply with the directive, but expressed deep dissatisfaction that such directive was never implemented. The situation, he said, has grounded several local manufacturers of ICT products and equipment in the country, while importation of ICT equipment still thrives.

Emadoye therefore called on government to expedite action in putting in place policies and the right implementation that would support local content development in a sector where there are willing and talented people that could develop ICT equipment with global standard and best practice.

The President, Association of Telecoms Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), Mr. Olusola Teniola, said local content must be a priority in 2017 for the ICT industry in general and that government should further collaborate with industry, civic society and academia to find the best fit for Nigeria in ensuring that capital flight is minimised in the areas of software, digital content and data hosting.

Spectrum licensing In the area of spectrum allocation and sales, Teniola said the ICT industry needs further allocation and utilisation of spectra that would contribute to the growth of mobile broadband penetration in rural areas of the country and that the options presented at the Spectrum Trading Forum hosted by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) in 2016, should be explored and implemented in 2017, specifically in consideration of the Nigerian terrain. He added that the migration of analogue TV to digital TV should be a major focus during 2017 and this should free up more broadband type spectra that will allow high speed or superfast broadband to be easily rolled out. “Until these are achieved, 2017 may witness more ‘refarming’ of spectrum usage amongst the mobile network operators (MNOs) and a gradual push to 4G type speeds with NCC having to put in place more enforcement to

Teniola

ensure spectrum is effectively being used to meet service quality standards across the industry,� he said.

In the same vein, Ekuwem said the Digital Switch Over (DSO) plan by the federal government to migrate the country from analogue to digital broadcasting, should be given serious attention, since the successful migration will free up spectrums that would be used for broadband penetration.

Broadband penetration In the area of broadband infrastructure and penetration, Teniola is of the view that 2017 is the year when we need to have implementable programmes in place to ensure we are on track to achieve the National Broadband Plan (NBP) of 30 per cent penetration by end of 2018. The ICT industry, he said, would need all the government agencies in charge of and responsible for infrastructure at state level to work with and support the roll-out of much needed fibre optic metro infrastructure that supports the whole eco-system to deliver on the promises made in the NBP. “Furthermore, the industry needs government policies in place that will attract much needed investments to support the capital expenditure programmes that should be undertaken to realise the country’s vision of a digital transformation through smart cities, e-Government and Internet of Things (IoT).

The infrastructure that is rolled out for support broadband services needs to be fully protected from vandalisation, theft and destruction and therefore the enforcement of the Critical National Infrastructure (CNI) under the Cybercrime bill needs to be enacted without any further delay,� Teniola said.

Ekuwem said the country’s broadband plan should be vigorously pursued and implemented further in 2017, since several factors in ICT development revolves around broadband.

The Executive Vice Chairman of NCC, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, said NCC would intensify action to ensure deeper penetration of broadband infrastructure, using its 8-Point Agenda. “Our decision to focus on facilitation of broadband penetration was guided by the empirically proven, and globally acknowledged potentials of this service to promote socioeconomic transformation, citizen empowerment, and ease of governance. This is why we have taken very practical steps to actualise the Open Access Model of infrastructure required to drive broadband penetration. This is why we are currently inviting bids for broadband infrastructure deployments in five geopolitical zones of the country, having licensed two operators for Lagos and North Central Zone of the country for the same infrastructure.

We have also issued licenses in the 2.6GHz Spectrum Band and allocations of spectrum to service providers in the 5.4GHz Band began in the first week of December 2016.

Some service providers are already rolling out these services, including the Long Term Evolution, LTE-based services. “We have been able to develop a broadband regulatory framework, with a monitoring committee set up to align our various efforts in this direction. So in 2017, we will work to meet the expectations of the approved National Broadband Implementation Plan, which has set a target of 30 per cent broadband penetration by 2018. The encouraging news is that Nigeria’s broadband penetration as empirically adjudged by the global telecom regulator, the International Telecommunications Union, ITU, is 21 per cent. This means that our efforts are yielding desired results,�

Danbatta said.

Licensing of InfraCos In the area of licensing of Infrastructure Companies (InfraCos) that will drive deployment of broadband infrastructure across the country, Teniola said for Nigeria to realise the National Backbone Network (NBN) the Open Access Model needs to be fully implemented to the ‘letter’ and hence the remaining licences need to be given out within the first quarter of 2017. “Also, issues surrounding the project execution in each geo-political region will need speedy intervention by federal and state government’s collaboration to avoid experiences observed in 2016 with the InfraCos that were awarded licences to cover Lagos and North Central regions. We must avoid the mistakes already made to ensure the success of the overall intent,� Teniola said.

ICT policies and regulations In the area of ICT policies and telecoms regulation, Teniola insisted that telecoms regulation would need to balance Over the Top Technology (OTT) presence alongside the current industry setup of strong MNOs and a few Internet Service Providers (ISPs) against the uncertainty of the Nigerian economic situation vis-a-vis infrastructure investments and capital deployed to achieve it. “In 2017 the telecoms industry needs to see an immediate clarity on data price floor and other intervention instruments that will need to be explored and maybe introduced into the industry to ensure competition doesn’t stifle innovation for the long term growth of industry as a whole. 2017 is the year where the NCC will be looked upon by all industry players for a level playing field to exist in the emerging broadband data era in Nigeria,�

Teniola said.

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Impact of Web Jurist Awards Emma Okonji writes that the introduction of Web Jurist Awards by Phillips Consulting about a decade ago has forced many organisations to step up efforts in ensuring better functioning websites

Over a decade ago, Phillip’s Consulting started the Web Jurist Award project that looks very insignificant and nearly unrecognisable but today, it has turned out to be a great foresight that forms the building blocks of modern societies.

Web Jurist, as the name implies, seeks to examine the effectiveness of organusations’ websites without the website owners having the slightest knowledge that their websites were being examined. The independent examination lasts for close to one year and at the end of the year results are released and organisations are awarded in various categories. The categories include: the website with the highest numbers of visits, the best designed website of the year, the best navigational websites, among others.

Since Philip Consulting started the process, it has been consistent and the results have spurred website competition and have equally challenged several organisations to step up their games in website administration, just to win awards and be recognised as one of the best websites.

Some chief executive officers (CEOs) have even had issues with their web managers, threatening to fire them if they do not, for once win the Web Jurist award.

How NCC clinched Web Jurist Awards The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), the telecoms industry regulator, is one body whose website was independently monitored by Philips Consulting and the website met and surpassed all the criteria for adjudicating websites, leading to it clinching three awards in the latest edition of the Web Jurist award.

This feat has attracted comments from NCC and industry stakeholders who testified that the commission truly deserved the awards based on the consistency and flexibility of the regulator’s website.

NCC, while commending Philips Consulting for its unbiased and independent assessment of websites, said when an organisation knows that somebody is watching over its shoulders, things do indeed change. “Something very important is the need for people and organisations to take interest in what is happening in the society in order to bring about positive change, and we commend Philips Consulting for that,� NCC said in a statement.

The motivation Speaking on what may have propelled NCC into winning several awards the Director, Public

Affairs, NCC, Mr. Tony Ojobo said when the awards were announced in previous years, NCC was not mentioned but could not understand why an organisation regulating mainstream technology would not be the one leading the pack. Between the relevant departments some situation meetings were held to reappraise the situation. We all admitted failure for not receiving honourable mention in an award that was independently done, where those involved did not even know that they were being judged, Ojobo said. “We also agreed to retool the various web platforms to ensure the Commission doesn’t fall short another time.This is what makes the recent awards very exciting for an organisation that wasn’t even in the radar some years ago to suddenly get very reasonable mention in three categories, which include: Winner - Web Content, Parastatal Category; Second Place,

The Web-Jurist evaluation tool used for the ratings, according to Phillips Consulting, was developed using intelligent algorithms and the process entails a step-by-step web analysis using detailed criteria developed specifically to evaluate the effectiveness and performance of web sites

Best Overall, Parastatal Category; and Third Place, Use of Social Media (Twitter ) Parastatal Category,� he added.

How Web Jurist Awards started According to a statement culled from the website of Phillip’s Consulring, the Web-Jurist ratings were conceived by e-business experts at Phillips Consulting. The ratings commenced in May 2001 with version 1.0. Its primary objective was to critically and objectively evaluate the effectiveness of websites in Nigeria, focusing initially on the financial services industry and taking into account what the customer wants. Phillips Consulting sought to establish a barometer for assessing e-business activities and for identifying best practices. This exercise evaluated a total of 46 Banks’ websites at the time.

The impact and effect of this initial evaluation exercise has been far reaching: Web Jurist 1.0 served as a wake up call for banks. For the first time, websites got executive attention which resulted in a deluge of internet activity by the banks. Several websites have been extensively revamped, some even abandoned their existing sites at the time and developed brand new websites, many websites are still in the process of evolving.

Criteria for assessment The Web-Jurist evaluation tool used for the ratings, according to Phillips Consulting, was developed using intelligent algorithms and the process entails a step-by-step web analysis using detailed criteria developed specifically to evaluate the effectiveness and performance of web sites. The criteria include: Aesthetics, Technical Aspects, Site Content, Web Transaction Processing, Consumer Experience and Performance.

It examines adherence to key design principles such as legibility of text, functionality of graphics and appropriate use of colours.

For the technical aspects, it examines the functionality of the site based on the ease of navigation as well as the security features implemented on the site. For site content, it evaluates the accuracy and freshness of information presented on the site as well as the presentation of the web content.

For web transaction processing, it evaluates the ease with which a customer is able to actually transact business effectively on the website, and for the consumer experience, it evaluates the extent to which a customer or potential investor’s needs are satisfied.

As for performance, the criteria evaluates the overall performance of the site by measuring such critical metrics as the extent to which web pages have been optimised and the speed with which web pages are displayed.

This kind of process developed by Phillips Consulting does not recognise faces, tribe, state or nationality. It recognises quality, excellence and the ability to remain on top, according to Philips Consulting.

Validity of the award Speaking on the credibility of Web Jurist Awards, Ojobo said: “For a Commission that bases its regulatory activities on the platform of being fair, firm and forthright, the Commission does not only validate the Phillips Project but will strive to lead the pack going forward. There are still some grounds to cover and the present management led by the Executive Vice Chairman (EVC), Prof Umar Garba Danbatta, will not leave anything to chance by way of achieving its overall target of being a reference point among parastatals.�

Telecoms growth in 201 For the NCC, the preceding year wasn’t a bad one after all. Investment in the telecommunications sector hit an all-time high of about $68 billion contribution to GDP, and this was bullish in the first three quarters in 2016. Telephone subscriber base is well over 153 million with over 93 million connected to the Internet. And here is the big clincher. Whereas the country’s National Broadband target is 30 per cent by 2018, recent research by the the International Telecoms Union (ITU), United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) Broadband Commission For Sustainable Development says Nigeria already has 20.95 per cent broadband penetration as at 2016, making it very likely that Nigeria can easily surpass that target.

With that encouraging information and based on the 8-Point Agenda of the current administration at the NCC with facilitation of broadband penetration being a cardinal arm of the agenda, plus a carefully coordinated spectrum licensing regime put in place, Danbatta is excited and is assuring that the sector has the capacity to do much more than what is stated in the broadband plan.

The victory of NCC at the recent Web Jurist Award is a testament to the fact that NCC, as industry regulator, is determined to further drive industry growth, through available technology tools.

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Microsoft, MainOne Collaborate to Boost SME Business Stories by Emma Okonji MainOne, in collaboration with Microsoft, has launched a new product offering called SME-in-a-Box Pro, aimed at enabling small and medium businesses (SMEs) in Nigeria.

The new solution, SMEin-a-Box Pro, offers SMEs business productivity tools from Microsoft such as Office 365 and Exchange Online, along with reliable broadband communications from MainOne. The

offering will enable SMEs to stay productive and connected anywhere, anytime, from any device and on any operating system. The connectivity solution allows SMEs to take advantage of MainOne’s fast and reliable SME-in-box broadband service or other Internet Service Provider (ISP) connections to drive their business growth and efficiency.

In recognition of the fact that most Nigerian SMEs are yet

to get an online presence, the companies introduced Gigalayer as their partner to provide domain name registration services for Nigerian websites, which will empower SMEs to build a branded website and gain access to new markets.

Speaking during the launch of the product, Director, Small, Midmarket Solutions & Partners Group, Microsoft Nigeria, Oluwawemimo Adeniyi, highlighted the great impact of the new offering on

SMEs in terms of efficiency, cost savings and flexibility.

According to her, Microsoft’s mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.

She said: “For SMEs, this means ensuring that business owners and employees have access to the technologies and solutions they didn’t previously have access to, in order to enable them compete, grow and succeed. Microsoft in collaboration with MainOne

wants to enable SMEs with expertise that frees them to spend their energy on their businesses instead of on technology.�

The Chief Executive Officer of MainOne, Funke Opeke stressed that the joint partnership with Microsoft remained a great step towards helping small businesses in Nigeria enhance their productivity and internet presence. She highlighted the impact of the new solution on such

businesses in terms of growth and job creation.

According to Opeke, “the SME-in-a-Box Pro is a welcome product for small businesses who require tools that enable their ability to scale up. There are many challenges for small businesses especially in this period of recession. The offering enables SMEs subscribe to these products directly with support from MainOne in Nigeria and to pay for the services in naira denomination.�

Ericsson, Qualcomm Technologies Demonstrate LTE in Africa Ericsson and Qualcomm Technologies, a subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated, have announced a successful demonstration of over-the-air Gigabit Class LTE in Africa with the use of licensed spectrum.

Peak data speeds over 900Mbps were recorded using Ericsson Radio Access Network equipment and a Qualcomm Snapdragon X16 LTE modem mobile test device.

Gigabit Class LTE means up to one billion bits of information delivered to a mobile device in a mere second. In technical terms, that’s LTE Category 16.

The demonstration continues the long-term cooperation between Ericsson and Qualcomm Technologies to support African operators in bringing advanced communication technologies and enhanced user experience to their subscribers.

Vice President, Business Development, Qualcomm International, South African Branch Office, James Munn, said: “This achievement of Gigabit Class LTE download

speeds with Qualcomm Technologies and Ericsson is an important milestone on the road to Africa’s first 5G networks. This continent’s first announced demonstration of this technology using licensed spectrum makes use of the Snapdragon X16 LTE modem, which is expected in multiple devices during the course of next year, and underlines Qualcomm Technologies commitment to African ICT development.�

While smartphone ownership continues to increase exponentially with consumers still restricted by a lack of fixed broadband availability, mobile broadband is the most common way to connect to the internet in Africa.

For example, 83 per cent of Nigerian mobile phone subscribers rely solely on this channel. Research indicates that LTE networks will serve 50 per cent of the population in 2021, according to Ericsson Mobility Report Sub-Saharan Africa of 2015.

Spectranet 4G LTE Launches Full Speed Unlimited Gold Plan Spectranet 4G LTE, an internet service provider, has introduced a new promotional offer tagged full speed unlimited gold plan into its range of data plans for its teeming subscribers to enjoy.

The Chief Executive Officer, Spectranet 4G LTE, David Venn, who made the disclosure, said the introduction of the unlimited plan was aimed at meeting the ever growing demand by subscribers for more data to consume as they continue to experience the great service of Spectranet. “We decided to provide what the subscribers want as a listening and caring brand,�

Venn said.

The unlimited data plan, according to him, at a price of N18,000 for a one month subscription, provides users with unlimited upload and download without worries or fear of poor connection.

The Unlimited Gold plan is designed for heavy data users that live an active lifestyle and who want to stay connected for a whole month to accomplish all their business and personal tasks. “As you are aware, we take our rollover policy very seriously. All our existing customers who migrate to this plan will have their unused data warehoused in their account

and this will be credited back to them should they choose to return to their existing capped plan,� Venn said.

He added that aside the full speed unlimited Gold plan, they are also introducing a Unified Value Plan of 40GB for N12,500 only, as part of our effort to ensure that more people have access to the affordable quality internet service of Spectranet.

He said: “As a brand that has enjoyed tremendous success in the market, it is important we show our subscribers that we appreciate them and listen to their needs. It is this appreciation that has led to the introduction of a sincere unlimited data plan in the market, which is the first of its kind and in a class that is different as we are a brand that prides itself on integrity; our unlimited plan is truly unlimited in the real sense of the word.�

For now, the Unlimited Gold plan is open to only Lagos and Ibadan customers, while customers in other cities will be activated later.

Last year, Spectranet 4G LTE brand was recognised by various institutions on the strength of the character of brand in the area of service offering, particularly customer satisfaction.

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY IN ACTION

L-R: Business Operations Manager, OLX, Goodluck Ikporo; Brand Marketing Manager, OLX, Fife Aiyesimoju; Founder of Modupe Cole Memorial Child Care School, Rev Adebayo Adeyemi-Cole and Country Manager, OLX, Lola Masha, during a courtesy visit of OLX management and sta to the school located in Akoka, Yaba, where OLX painted the vocational section of the school...recently

Botosoft Technologies Launches Document Security Solution Botosoft Technologies has launched the world’s most advanced anti-counterfeiting technology, known as Botoseal.

The new document security solution was unveiled at the 20th annual conference of the United Kingdom National Recognition Information Centre (UK NARIC) held in United Kingdom recently.

The launch had in attendance representatives from recruitment agencies, examination bodies, academia, assessment institutions and security agencies from across the world.

Speaking at the launch, CEO, Botosoft Technologies, Agbeyo Tolulope, said, “Botosoft Technologies prides itself on a culture of making life easy.

The company recognises that forgery is rampant because document verification is difficult; if verifications were made easy, forgery would be contained and eventually eradicated.� According to him, with the prevailing problems associated with document security in organisations, Botosoft in collaboration with HID Global, a worldwide leader in trusted identity solutions, partnered to develop the document security solution.

Tolulope noted that with document control, management, and issuance being core to every business, Botoseal created a document management platform that allows users, through a unified dashboard, to set document issuance privileges within any organisation, track the usage of

a document and revoke access to its use as necessary. “The introduction of Botoseal finally lays to rest the problem of document forgery, document doctoring, content alteration and signature falsification.

It reverses the norm of easy forgery and difficult verification of document authenticity.

Botoseal facilitates the secure signing and seamless verification of documents authenticity with the simple tap of a smart phone,� Tolulope said.

Director, Business Development and Strategic Innovation, Identification Technologies with HID Global, Mark Robinton, said partnering Botosoft on the innovative solution would be a natural extension of HID Global’s commitment to add trust to a wide range of new use solutions.

According to Robinton, “HID Trusted Tag Services, coupled with Botoseal, ensures the authenticity of legal documents to combat counterfeiting. This unique solution leverages the cryptographically secure NFC tags and HID Cloud Authentication from our HID Trusted Services offering to provide peace of mind to users seeking to validate the authenticity of documents.�

He explained that Botoseal remained a solution with physical attributes and security features needed to develop and implement a successful document security strategy in any organization.

V8 Technology Incubation Hub Opens in Lekki A new technology incubation hub known as V8, has been launched in Lekki area of Lagos, at the new co-working space and technology accelerator.

The hub is a community and collaboration platform providing professional support services to entrepreneurs, start-ups and small businesses, especially those in the digital technology space.

V8 will provide services such as on-demand workspaces, mentorship, capacity building, business strategies and funding. Members of the co-working space will have access to secure enterprise grade internet and Wifi, uninterrupted power supply, meeting/board/training room, break out area to receive guests and a communal kitchen with tea & coffee making utilities. These will all be provided as a service, saving V8 members the significant capital costs if procured on a stand-alone basis.

A brainchild of the former Head of Intel Capital Africa, Tobi Oke, and CEO of iConcepts, Ugo Okoye, V8 Africa was formed from several years of actively creating conducive environments and strategies for new technology businesses and benefits heavily from the experiences of its founders in identifying, enabling and accelerating start-up growth across Africa.

Between the two founders is over 30 years’ experience in investing, delivering world

class technology solutions and contributing to the ecosystem, enabling innovation within Nigeria and Africa.

Speaking on the motivation behind V8, Oke said: “Higher than usual infrastructure requirements and costs are needed for businesses to be successful in our part of the world.

A significant number of businesses have not been able to move past their startup phase due to these infrastructure hurdles which range from limited access to funding to the lack of very basic infrastructure.� “As Nigeria steps boldly into a more technology-driven economy, we see more local businesses embracing co-working communities, especially in this period of infrastructure unavailability and CAPEX costs. At V8, we are passionate about helping businesses overcome these obstacles by offering efficient and affordable infrastructure as a service,� Oke added.

According to Okoye, “We do not see ourselves as competition with other co-working spaces, but we rather we see ourselves as part of the ecosystem in Nigeria enabling entrepreneurship, innovation and collaboration.�

Apart from providing co-working space to its members, V8 will also incubate new technology companies with its maiden accelerator programme, which begins first quarter, 2017.

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Apple Faces Legal Issues over Glo 4G Subscribers Applaud Service, Ask for Extended Fatal ‘FaceTime crash’ Coverage An American couple, whose daughter was killed by a driver allegedly using FaceTime on his iPhone, have launched a lawsuit against Apple.

The lawsuit alleges that the firm should have introduced a feature that disabled use of the video-chat application while driving. It points to a patent for a such feature for drivers filed by Apple in 2008.

The iPhone maker has not yet responded to requests for comment.

The accident happened on a Texan road on Christmas Eve 2014. Five-year-old Moriah Modisette subsequently died.

The lawsuit states that the parents - James and Bethany Modisette - were seeking damages for “the defendant’s wrongful failure to install and implement the safer, alternative design for which it sought a patent in December 2008�. The patent, which was issued by the US patent office in April 2014 aimed to lock out users while they were driving.

The driver involved in the crash - Garrett Wilhelm - drove his SUV into the back of the Modisette family’s vehicle while travelling at high speeds. The lawsuit documents state that he told police he was using FaceTime at the

time of the crash and that the application was still active when police found his phone at the scene.

The issue of driver distraction has become a big concern to motor safety experts in recent years.

The lawsuit quotes several studies into the use of tech while driving, including one for telecoms firm AT&T which found that 43 per cent of teenagers admitted to texting or emailing while driving.

A study by the RAC recently suggested that the number of motorists illegally using mobile phones at the wheel was rising. The UK government plans to double fines and points on licences for using a mobile while driving.

A BBC Radio 5 live Freedom of Information request to the DVLA revealed that almost 10,000 drivers have been caught twice for being distracted while driving, including using a mobile phone, in the last four years.

Lorry driver Tomasz Kroker was jailed in the UK for 10 years last year after he killed a mother and three children while distracted by his smartphone. The court heard that he had barely looked at the road for almost a kilometre before the crash.

Stories by Emma Okonji Globacom’s 4G LTE service has been commended by its subscribers who requested the telecoms operator to extend the advanced network to more locations to enable them to enjoy the service more.

Within two month of launching the Glo 4G LTE network, the service is already live in about a hundred locations nationwide, some of which include: Lagos (Lekki, Ikoyi, Victoria Island, Ajah and Akoka), Port Harcourt (Aba Road, Trans Amadi, Diobu, Old GRA and UNIPort, Warri, Eket and Benin), Abuja (Maitama, Wuse, Asokoro, Garki/Central Business District and Airport Road), and Jos in North Central), Yola – ABTI (North East) and Zaria- ABU in North West.

The fast rollout notwithstanding, subscribers who have experienced the unprecedented

network quality called on Globacom to extend the service to their home cities and villages so that they could enjoy the service whenever they travel home. For instance, an Abujabased businessman, Maniru Saminu, described the Glo 4G LTE service as the best thing to happen to telecoms, and specifically commended the fast internet quality. He said this has led him to abandon other networks. “I really appreciate Glo 4G service. It is very fast. I am enjoying the internet service, I do not experience delays doing streaming and downloads. I also do my internet banking transactions with ease,� Saminu stated, adding that he had already encouraged his friends in the same business to subscribe to Glo 4G. “I even gave my old Samsung S7 Edge phone to one of my friends to use and he has subscribed. The second

person will soon subscribe. I want to urge Globacom to bring the service to Kano, my home state so we can enjoy it over there also,� he further said.

Stephen Obembe recently ported to Glo from another network. A resident of Wuse 2, Abuja, Obembe was full of praise for Globacom for launching the 4G LTE services in the FCT. “It’s been great. Glo 4G has been good, very good. I use a lot of data for my business and I am really satisfied with the service. I am very happy I ported to the Glo network,� he said. Similarly, Titilayo Lawal, a fashion designer in Surulere, Lagos, commended Glo 4G LTE service. Lawal said she ported from another network into Glo because she believed she was not getting equal value for the money she was spending on data packages.

Since joining Glo, she said her story has changed. She

described the Glo 4G service as “impressive. It is good. It is very fast no matter the amount of attachment you are sending.

I love the service.�

Lawal said there are some locations she spends considerable part of her time in that are yet to enjoy Glo 4G LTE service. She called on Globacom to extend the network to these locations as soon as possible.

Globacom in a press statement said that customers who have upgraded to Glo 4G LTE network were assured of superior service quality. “Glo LTE network is one of the very best you will find anywhere in the world. Apart from an expansive, nationwide state-of-the-art telecommunications infrastructure which our 4G LTE network is predicated on, it is also riding on the much sought-after spectrum band 28.

This gives it a strong edge,� said the company.

Tap 21st Century Innovation, Tech Industry Tells US PresidentElect The Software Alliance and a number of technology trade associations have offered their commitment to work with US President-elect, Donald Trump to leverage America’s leadership in technology and help move the country forward.

The joint letter includes recommendations to invest in jobs and a more inclusive economy, and to use technology to grow productivity and work across silos.

Technology can play a significant role in fostering growth and innovation across the nation. The success of the tech industry is also critical to the US economy. A recent report from BSA shows the software industry contributes more than $1 trillion to the US GDP, nearly 10 million jobs, and $52 billion in research and development with significant impact in each of the 50 states.

As leaders of organisations representing the world’s most dynamic technology companies, we are committed to moving the country forward toward a brighter economic future. The companies and innovators we represent employ over 5.7 million people who live and work in communities in every state of the nation; our strength is our range of perspectives. We are the incubator of technologies transforming people’s lives for the better. We are a powerful engine for economic growth and competitive strength, driving over $1 trillion into the American economy, the group said.

The technology sector consists of industries rang-

ing from silicon to software, social media to digital services, factory computing to supply-chain management, and from smart vehicles to virtual reality. “Our technologies enable growth and unlock efficiencies across the entire U.S. economy.

Indeed, we are increasingly the platform for powering everything from small main street businesses to the leading powerhouse companies that are the envy of the world. “We are united by our commitment to ingenuity and our drive to accelerate the achievement of success.

It is with that in mind, that we urge you to consider the principles below in setting successful policy to foster growth and innovation across the nation,� the group said.

The world is increasingly global and integrated, but America’s technological leadership places it in a unique position to pioneer new frontiers of innovation and to drive prosperity for citizens.

Through tax reform, for example, we can establish a tax code that motivates more investment and jobs here in America that also leads to more innovations for products that are sold around the world, the group told Trump.

Modernising laws, regulations and rules regarding data, including international data transfers, will also help make critical strides toward this goal, the group added.

The group promised to work faster and smarter to achieve continued prosperity.

FOR INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT

L-R: A representative of the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA), Mr Femi Fayombo; PPIP Expert, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia, Prof Neil Paulsen; Associate Professor of Urban Planning, University of Lagos, Dr. Taibat Lawanson and AGM, Corporate Banking, Keystone Bank, Mr Anayo Nwosu during the two-day colloquium organised by Center for Ethics and Sustainable Development (CESD), to galvanise discussions around Public–Private Partnership (PPP) initiative in Lagos...recently

Stakeholders Caution against Twitter CEO Solicits Product Weakened Encryption and Data Feedback, Seeks Larger Role Localisation Twitter CEO, Jack Dorsey wants low the tweets of others, has had In a letter sent to member states ahead of a meeting of European Union (EU) Justice and Home Affairs Ministers in Brussels, the digital technology industry voiced its continued support for improved cooperation between digital service providers and law enforcement authorities in instances where criminal investigations require access to evidence in cyberspace.

Director General, Policy, EMEA, at Business Software Alliance (BSA), Thomas BouĂŠ, said: “Our industry shares member states’ objective of improving cooperation with national authorities to address criminal threats in cyberspace.

As responsible stewards of the information of enterprises and customers, we believe facilitating law enforcement authorities’ access to needed evidence can be achieved without the weakening of encryption or requiring localization of data. In choosing measures to facilitate the work of law enforcement authorities, we must ensure we

do not undermine consumer privacy and the overall integrity of software and communications networks.� Director General of DIGITALEUROPE, John Higgins, said: “Our member companies take very seriously their obligation to work with law enforcement agencies as well as their obligation to protect customer data from unauthorised access. We welcome the progress achieved by the European Commission to date and believe a clear acceptance of a rule of law, that authorises data access only in defined and limited circumstances, subject to proper safeguards, is the best way to enhance trust, enable law enforcement activity, and at the same time preserve the interests in privacy and confidentiality.�

Justice and Home Affairs Ministers will meet this week to discuss the progress achieved by the European Commission in implementing the June 2016 Council conclusions on improving criminal justice in cyber space.

Twitter Inc.’s users to know he’s listening to them, and wants their feedback.

His recent tweet soliciting product feedback from users drew hundreds of responses, highlighting concerns with everything from abuse on the site to users’ inability to fix errors after they publish tweets. “We’ll consider everything we heard from you,� Dorsey said on Twitter. “Not going to ship all of it, but will be more transparent about why and what we learned.�

Dorsey is taking more control over Twitter’s product after the company lost its chief operating officer and chief technology officer. Now, out of necessity, the product, engineering and design divisions report directly to him. The product division is run by an executive relatively new to Twitter, Keith Coleman, who joined with an acquisition on December last year.

Twitter, which lets users post 140-character messages and fol-

trouble defining its vision after years of executive turnover. The San Francisco-based company is under pressure to show it can expand its audience of about 317 million monthly active users, as advertising revenue starts to increase more slowly.

Twitter failed to find an acquirer earlier this year and the social media company said in October last year, it would eliminate 9 per cent of its workforce. The shares lost 30 per cent this year, closing Friday at $16.30.

Dorsey summarized user requests on his Twitter account.

For addressing abuse, the CEO and co-founder said the “biggest ask was for greater transparency around our actions (or inaction) and faster shipping.� For editing tweets, he said the “clearest ask was to provide a quick way to fix errors. Anything beyond requires showing edit history given tweets are public record.�

People also wanted an easier way to follow topics and understand the flow of conversations, Dorsey said.

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As MTN Consolidates Market Leadership with New Award MTN Nigeria has consolidated its market leadership status by emerging the Most Valuable Brand in Nigeria, writes Raheem Akingbolu Nigerian market has witnessed a lot of marketing developments in the last 14 years. Thanks to the successive civilian administrations that have encouraged investment and gave birth to an enabling environment for foreign investors to flourish. From banking to telecommunications and food and beverages, the story has remained the same; success.

Expectedly, the calm business environment has also led to stiff competition in various sectors, with every brand attempting to garner major share of the market. To this end, many rating organisations have emerged in the market to recognise brands annually to encourage excellent practice.

One of such rating platform is the Top 50 Brands Nigeria that has, over the years, created a niche through transparency and involvement of consumers’ feedback in arriving at the winners. Brand Strength Measurement (BSM) is a specially designed model that uses basic qualitative elements: brand identity/ retention, quality elements, market/category leadership, innovation, national spread and corporate social responsibility (CSR) to test the strength or weakness of a brand.

This year, the organisation, again, identified the best of Nigerian brands at a ceremony that was attended by top captains of industry in Lagos. In what looked like the peak of the event, leading information, communication and technology (ICT) company in Nigeria, MTN, was recognised as the Most Valuable Brand in Nigeria in 2016, after a survey was conducted using BSM indices. Other brands on the top 50 list include: Coca-Cola, GTBank, Dufil Prima (Indomie), Nestle, First Bank of Nigeria, Dangote Group, Nigerian Breweries, and Guinness amongst others.

Chief Executive Officer, Top 50 Brands Nigeria, Taiwo Oluboyede, who spoke on the project, said the purpose of the forum was to create a quality engagement public discuss platform, particularly among the productive class, where it deliberates on feasible ways of enhancing the value of the Brand Nigeria. “Knowing the strength or weakness of your brand can also help in refocusing your strategies and approach to the market as well as in resource allocations for higher value. Brand strength measurement become handy in brand management, budget allocations and measuring the outcomes,� he said.

Competition in the telecom sector In the Nigerian telecommunications market where operators depend on subscribers trust to succeed, the competition has been stiffer than other sectors. The challenge of the operator is to find a hook that will hold the attention of likely subscribers. In helping to achieve this, use of celebrity endorsers, reality shows and promotions have been widely used as marketing strategy by operators of the major networks in the country. This becomes necessary because of the belief that advertising alone might not solve the problem as many newspaper readers and television viewers, these days, pay little or no attention to campaigns.

As at the last count all the major operators –Airtel, Glo, Etisalat and MTN are either involved in reality show, talent hunt exercise or sponsorship. Experts believe that these areas are attractive to the owners of the brands to appeal to the youth market.

Innovation Top operators in the telecoms market are at the peak of competition for consumers’ loyalty with each coming out with innovative ideas to win the biggest chunk of the market. As a major player, MTN is using innovation and sponsorship to make a statement.

From MTN to Glo, Airtel to Etisalat, it has been a fierce ‘war’ in the last few years. At the beginning, the subtle war was between MTN and the then Econet. Of course, MTN

L-R: CEO, Top 50 Brands Nigeria, Mr. Taiwo Oluboyede, CEO, MTN Nigeria, Mr. Ferdi Moolman and GM, Corporate Aairs, Ms. Omasan Ogisi at the presentation of the 2016 Most Valuable Brand recognition award to MTN Nigeria by Top 50 Brands Nigeria.

carried the day because of instability at the board level of the then Econet. However, Glo came on board and changed the game with the introduction of per second billing. The new phase of the struggle came with the launch of

Receiving the award, Chief Executive Officer, MTN Nigeria, Ferdi Moolman, said: We are pleased to have emerged the Most Valuable Brand in Nigeria through this award. We are particularly glad that participants of the survey f ind us worthy as the Most Valuable Brand in Nigeria. This is a demonstration of our continuous drive to make the lives of our customers a whole lot brighter by meeting their needs and aspirations through our products and services�

Etisalat and the rebranding of Zain to Airtel, which seemed to end many years of trouble for the then ‘Zain’ brand. Despite this and other challenges facing business owners in Nigeria, MTN, has remained an unbeatable market leader.

To observers, MTN’s success story is due largely to the vision, mission and commitment of its operators in establishing a market leadership position for itself.

When MTN launched into the market, its PR account was handled by Corporate and Financial, while the advertising brief was handled by TBWA/Concept Unit. The two agencies launched the brand aggressively into the market with the pay-off line ‘Best Connection.’ In April 2005, it launched ‘Everywhere you go’ to harmonise and create a universal brand promise in all MTN operations across the continent.

Still yearning for top of the mind presence, the brand went into its creative kitty to launch the ‘Go’ campaign with a view to positioning the telco as a company that encourages men and women to go and conquer the world, knowing that man desires to live a better life, desire a secured future, progress and change. ‘Everywhere you Go’ was said to have been anchored on MTN’s core values of leadership, integrity and can do spirit. However, due to the company’s leadership on coverage and market share, in the Nigerian market, consumers’ interpretation of the pay-off was seen to have emanated more from a geographical rather than a brand philosophy perspective.

In order to change ‘Everywhere you Go’ being geographic, to seeing it as a philosophy of the brand. It was for this reason, according to MTN General Manager, Consumer, Mr. Kola Oyeyemi, that ‘the company re-strategised and launched another value proposition tagged ‘Moving you ahead.’ The brand has equally launched a highly creative advertising campaign with the theme ‘Mama na Boy!’ Meanwhile, to pacify the gender activists, who criticised the usage of the word ‘boy’ in the campaign, ‘Mama na Girl’ was quickly coined.

The strategy perhaps resolved the riddle but the brand also benefitted immensely from the

raging debates.

No sooner the issue came to a head than MTN harmonised the brief, which was shared between TBWA and SO&U by consolidating it in one agency with the appointment of DDB, Lagos. The appointment of DDB in 2006 is a landmark creative renewal of sorts for the brand that has been known for cutting-edge creative themes.

The agency, which prides itself as ‘enemy of the ordinary’ has in the last six years created innovative selling ideas in pushing the brand equity of MTN in the market place. At the moment, MTN PR accounts reside with Brooks & Blakes and DKK & Associates.

Relevance of Top 50 Brands Nigeria Speaking at the award’s presentation in Lagos, the CEO of Top 50 Brands Nigeria, Oluboyede, said the year-long research was done with the top of the mind survey, where members of the public were engaged to list out brands they are familiar with. “This enabled us to test people’s feelings, feedbacks, knowledge of brands and affinity.

Based on this mechanism, respondents listed brands that they can easily recall or they are familiar with and it was observed that people easily recall brands they recently engage with or they see often. It was following these methodic and meticulous processes that MTN Nigeria emerged as the Most Valuable Brand in Nigeria,�

Oluboyede said. Receiving the award, Chief Executive Officer, MTN Nigeria, Ferdi Moolman, said: “We are pleased to have emerged the Most Valuable Brand in Nigeria through this award.

We are particularly glad that participants of the survey find us worthy as the Most Valuable Brand in Nigeria.�

Moolman further said that this is a demonstration of our continuous drive to make the lives of our customers a whole lot brighter by meeting their needs and aspirations through our products and services.

He used the opportunity to thank Nigerians for the confidence they have reposed in MTN through the years and affirmed the company’s commitment to continue to invest in infrastructure to enhance Nigerians’ experience on the network.

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Deepening Market Influence with Beer Festival Raheem Akingbolu writes that as the industry prepares to witness the first global beer festival this year, the development could positively affect other sectors of the economy Beer is one of the oldest beverages humans have produced, dating back to at least the fifth millennium BC and recorded in the written history of ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia.

Chemical tests of ancient pottery jars reveal that beer was produced as far back as about 7,000 years ago in what is today Iraq.

According to findings, during the Industrial Revolution, the production of beer moved from artisanal manufacture to industrial manufacture, and domestic manufacture ceased to be significant by the end of the 19th century.

Alcohol has long been regarded as a social leveler, and the act of communal drinking as a means of communication between those of different ranks and status in society Major life-cycle events such as birth, coming-ofage, marriage and death; important life-changes such as graduation or retirement - all require ritual of endorsement and celebration Today, the brewing industry is a global business, consisting of several dominant multinational companies and many thousands of smaller producers ranging from brewpubs to regional breweries. More than 133 billion liters (35 billion gallons) are sold per year—producing total billions of naira in revenue.

In Africa, the beer market has grown significantly led by South Africa, followed by Nigeria and Angola. Today, beer is celebrated all over the world and in some countries, it has assumed the status of a special day for celebration and enjoyment.

Proposed beer festival in 2017 To keep the scene active in Nigeria and to further open up the economy, beer brewers in the country will in September 2017 collaborate with their counterparts across the globe to hold the maiden Nigerian Beer Festival in Lagos.

The festival will make variety of beers and other alcoholic drinks available for consumers.

Like in Germany, where the festival has become a major tourist’s event, attracting over 50,000 tourists yearly to the “oktoberfest� beer festival, other countries in Europe and America are catching the bug. This event, according to the organisers, would see Nigeria enrolled into the league of Beer Festivals around the World Other notable countries are Czech Republic, Canada, Durham, Columbia, Britain, Belgium, among others. “Nigeria Bear Festival will be a week-long carnival-like funfair, entertainment, sales and marketing event with the idea to gather the largest community of beer consumers from across the country and beyond with economic value for the brands and the economy at large,� the organisers said.

Comparative study The Germany festival commonly referred to as Munich Beer Festival or Oktoberfest is famous not only because it is a carnival but because it retains the integrity of Bavaria custom and lifestyle. People enjoy delicious food at the festival and as well participate in series of colorful recreational activities like horse racing, shooting, juggling and various theatrical performances.

The Nigerian festival, therefore, will serve as platform to showcase and market the various beer brands and other alcoholic drinks in Nigeria, while at the same time creating leverages for captains of industry to mingle and network.

Each of participating brands has the opportunity to own particular days during the week to entertain the teeming visitors at the festival. Variety of beer brands will be available for tasting and purchase in a carnival like atmosphere.

A selection of top Nigerian artistes will perform daily at the festival. Fashion show, music concerts, fireworks display, carnival, lifestyle, barbeque, asun, beer will beautify the atmosphere.

It is also important to note that the festival

Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah,

would serve as an umbrella for other sectors of the economy to display their products and services which will attract business networking.

In order to display and achieve first class standards as obtained in other parts of the world with world class innovation, The Nigerian Beer Festival organisers in partnership with reputable and qualified architects in Poland and Spain have also designed modula stand to fit into any shape or style desired by exhibitors.

Reasons for the festival Organisers of the festival have also explained that the reason for the event is that Nigeria has the largest population in Africa, a growing middle class and a large number of drinking age consumers continues to emerge.

According to them, Nigeria is indisputably the second largest alcohol market in the entire Africa, with an expected total volume of 15.2m hectolitres per year.

So, drinking alcohol is a social activity in Nigeria as 80 per cent of the country’s alcohol sales are on-trade. Beer is the most popular alcoholic drink in the country, making up the larger percentage of all alcohol sales.

Therefore, this event will be an organised platform to showcase and celebrate the various beer brands and other alcoholic drinks in Nigeria with reference to business, lifestyle, culture, tradition and social economic benefits in a carnival like atmosphere.

The organisers also make bold to say that this festival is strictly for adult who are advised to drink reasonably, saying further that Nigeria Beer Festival will not admit persons below “18 years.�

More importantly, the organisers maintained that the Nigerian festival, therefore, will apart from serving as platform to showcase and celebrate the various beer brands and other alcoholic drinks in Nigeria, while at the same time creating a forum for socio-cultural interaction and networking.

Aside beer tasting, organisers have stated that the week-long festival would see an international speaker talk about, Beer And You, while another speaker will discuss Beer And Responsibility Enjoyment and the guest speaker rounds off with Beer And Celebration.

The organisers stated on their website that

Managing Director, Nigerian Breweries, Mr. Nicolaas Vervelde

drinking alcohol is a social activity in Nigeria as 80 per cent of the country’s alcohol sales are on-trade. “Beer is the most popular alcoholic drink in the country, making up the larger percentage of all alcohol sales. Therefore, this event will be an organised platform to showcase and market the various beer brands and other alcoholic drinks in Nigeria with reference to business, lifestyle, culture, tradition and social economic benefits in a carnival-like atmosphere. The organisers also make bold to say that this festival is for adults who are advised to drink reasonably, saying further that beer festival will not admit persons below 18 years,� they said.

An experiential marketing practitioner, Lucas Ekom, believes that festival like this has fast grown to become major tourism event across the globe with countries, such as Germany attracting well over 50,000 tourists, adding its being hosted in Lagos means that over 50,000 tourists are expected to come to Nigeria to boost the economy yearning for growth. “To my knowledge, the beer festival will partner the Federal Ministry of Culture and Tourism to drive this noble idea. It will hold in Lagos, the headquarters of all the major beer brands, and touted as the entertainment hub of Nigeria and by extension, Africa,� he said. Meanwhile, a new report by Canadean Market Report, expects more Africans to enter the beer market from the home brew sector, while commercial beer and premium brands forge ahead in the exploding African beer market.

According to the report, the African beer market is the fastest growing global beer market with a yearly average growth rate of five per cent between 2013 and next year.

This means the African beer market growth will beat that of Asia and Latin America, projected to witness a growth rate of four percent and three percent. South Africa is the biggest market in Africa, with an expected total volume of 30,921th hectolitre (hl) in 2014, followed by Nigeria with 15,200th hl and Angola with 12,790th hl.

Account Director, Canadean Market Report, Kevin Baker, said: “Africa has seen inflation fall, foreign debt shrink and GDP rise in the last few years. Moreover, population

growth – once feared as a major contributor to poverty – is now perceived as an asset, with the working age population set to outgrow that of China and India.�

Beer growth rates Canadean survey found that more African consumers will change their home brewed drinks for commercially brewed ones over the coming years. “At the moment, homemade alcohol products still dominate the African market, but they pose a significant health risk. This is an incentive for consumers to move away from ‘home brews’ and instead turn to commercial beer,� says Baker.

Protecting under-age from the beer festival According to Ekom, the festival will not allow an under-age. “In fact, there are mechanisms that will be used to check this and the event will also be used to preach responsible drinking among adults,� she said.

Contribution to the economy The beer industry is a large segment of the food and beverages sub-sector. It constitutes the non-oil sector where Nigeria is leveraging on to drive her economic diversification programme. Having evolved from bottling to a diversified industry involved in the production of canned drinks and the use of tetra pack, the sector accounted for 35.9 per cent of the growth in the industrial sector, which grew in 2014 by 6.41 per cent as against 0.87 per cent in 2013.

Nigerian Breweries Plc has the largest coverage, with about eight breweries located across the country and estimated yearly capacity of 13.5 million hectoliters (mn hl).

Guinness operates four breweries with a total yearly capacity of 7.5mn hl by 2014.

SABM has built up its capacity (by acquisition) to about 1.8mn hl, which includes Pabod Breweries in Port Harcourt, International Breweries in Ilesa and Onitsha.

Experts said the beer sector is very well positioned to galvanise the economy through industrialisation. Brewery companies, whose principal activities include the production, packaging and sales of alcoholic and malt beverages, employ close to one million people.

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APCON Absolves Minister over Council Reconstitution The Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria (APCON) has stated that the delay in the reconstitution of a new council for the regulatory body is beyond the office of the Minister of Information, Mr. Lai Mohammed. APCON Registrar, Garba Kankarofi, who was quoted by Marketing Edge, an online portal, said neither the minister nor himself can do anything to change the status quo.

He said the prerogative of setting up a new APCON council lies within the jurisdiction of the President Muhammadu Buhari and that the Minister and APCON have both done all within their powers to get the President to act, but still nothing has been done.

He noted that the regulatory body had written several letters to the president, explaining the importance of the council and why it should

be set up. “The formation of APCON Council is beyond me, it is beyond the Federal Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, right now the decision is left in the hands of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Muhammadu Buhari because we have written and we have made our case known to him,� Kankarofi.

The APCON Registrar further noted that it was left to President Buhari to determine the time for the reconstitution of the council, adding that he was glad that APCON law had been signed by the President. �There are national issues that are very apt and more agile than my council. Anytime it suits the President to release the council, he will but I am very glad that he has signed our law and that is a sign of good things to come�

Edelman Signs On Chain Reactions as Exclusive Affiliate in Nigeria Raheem Akingbolu In what looks like a grand preparation to compete favourably in the public relations(PR) arm of the marketing communication industry in 2017, Edelman, a leading global communications marketing firm, has announced that it has signed on Chain Reactions Nigeria, a Lagos based PR firm, as its exclusive affiliate in the country following a one-year strategic partnership.

The affiliation further expands Edelman’s existing operation outside its South African office, located in Johannesburg.

Chief Executive Officer, Edelman South Asia, Middle East & Africa, Robert Holdheim, was quoted as saying that the decision to partner exclusively with the Nigeria agency was informed by the team’s unique understanding of the Nigerian market, the richness of the strategic thinking and the creativity behind their work.

“The addition of Chain Reactions Nigeria into Edelman’s network of exclusive affiliates further enhances our ability to provide seamless, strategic communications marketing support across the African continent,� he said.

Commenting on the development, Managing Director/Chief Strategist of Chain Reactions Nigeria, Israel Opayemi, said: “Our admission into Edelman’s affiliate network is an important milestone in

our growth trajectory. It is the kind of best-of-breed partnership we have always desired.

Our current and prospective clients can anticipate a balance of best-in-class services backed

by Edelman’s international reach and expertise. Our affiliation with Edelman will continue to raise the bar of creativity and excellence in all that we do.

Edelman’s global resources will propel us to do more of the creative work we have been known for in Nigeria.�

Regal Dry Gin Thrills Consumers at Fuji Slam It was fun, glitz and glamour as Regal Dry Gin, a premium gin brand on the stable of Grand Oak Limited, thrilled its teeming consumers as part of activities heralding the yuletide festivities while appreciating their patronage over the years.

Specifically, the gin brand opted for a spectacular activation model in Ibadan, the ancient city of Oyo State at an activities packed music concert tagged ‘Regal Fuji Slam 2016.’ The concert was unique in many respects as popular fuji artist, Wasiu Alabi a.k.a Pasuma led other musicians in the music and dancing fiesta that lasted through the night till day break.

Commenting on the event, Senior Brand Manager, Regal Dry Gin, Mr. Olufemi Afolabi Falomo stated that “the brand organised the concert as a way of appreciating its esteemed customers for their patronage

despite the economic situation in the country,� adding that “though it is long over-due, Regal Dry Gin is delighted to host the Ibadan version of the event as a way of saying a “BIG THANK YOU� to our numerous customers and prospective ones.�

On why the company staged another campaign for its 12.5cl package, Falomo said that, “the initiative was as a result of popular demand and the huge acceptability and love that have been shown to the brand. This is why we cannot but appreciate our customers for sticking to our brand. As a result of this, we promise them more redefined and captivating package in 2017.�

The atmosphere came alive when Pasuma, stormed the stage, leaving the crowd stunned and ecstatic with series of his popular hits and the just released songs for hours.

Infosys, Wipro Leaders Warn of Challenging Times for Indian IT The leaders of two of India’s largest technology services companies, Infosys Limited and Wipro Limited, have warned employees that their industry faced a grave threat from rising political and economic conflict around the world.

Employees need to innovate and bring out their best to survive, Infosys Chief Executive Officer Vishal Sikka said in a year-end note to staff. In a separate memo, Wipro Chairman Azim Premji identified recent political and social developments as a huge risk to a globalized industry like IT services, though he didn’t mention specific issues.

Asia’s largest providers of IT services, which include leader Tata Consultancy Services Ltd., have lost business as their corporate customers reined in spending. They have been buffeted by macroeconomic swings in the two largest

markets of Britain and the US, together accounting for about four-fifths of revenues in India’s $108-billion IT services export industry. Britain’s planned exit from the European Union cast uncertainty over the outlook for IT spending, while U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has threatened to choke the flow of overseas workers Wipro and Infosys rely on.

After years of stupendous growth, India’s IT industry trade body Nasscom in November cut its revenue forecast for the current year. “At a time when the world around us seems ever more influenced by the baser instincts and tendencies, we must bring the best of our intentions, and the best of our imagination, our knowledge and our conviction, to all that we do,� Sikka wrote.

Premji said 2016 raised questions and obstacles which could not be ignored.

REWARD FOR DILIGENCE

L-R: Branch Lead Enugu, Total Health Trust Limited, Mrs. Chizoba Okeke; Executive Assistant, Miss Esther Sele; Chief Executive OďŹƒcer, Mr. Nick Zaranyika; Chairman of the Board, Dr. Ladi Awosika; Admin Executive, Ilorin, Mr. Abdulkadir Alhassan; Branch Lead, Yola, Mr. Yerima Shuaibu; Admin Executive, Kaduna, Mr. Cletus Thomas, during the 10-year long service awards presentation at the company’s’s end of year party held in Lagos‌recently

Group Recognises Odogwu’s Contribution to Entrepreneurship Raheem Akingbolu The Anioma Professionals Forum recently honoured eminent industrialist and elder statesman, Chief Sunny Iwedike Odogwu, with the Lifetime award as outstanding personality of the decade in Lagos.

The honour was bestowed on Odogwu for his pivotal role in promoting enterprenurship , philanthropy and nation building. Speaking at the event , the organisation’s President, Mr. Ikem Nkenchor, said the body, which is made up of professionals of Anioma origin in Delta State, honoured Odogwu after a careful study of his outstanding achievements in industrialization, philanthropy and nation building.

Nkenchor further said that Odogwu has for more than 50 years dominated the business sphere in insurance, hospitality ,manufacturing, real estate and human capital sectors, which has made him a global industrialist of note. He added that Odogwu remains a pioneer and doyen of the insurance industry in West Africa having started his career in the sector.

The forum’s president, however, expressed dismay at an advertisement in a newspaper on December 5, 2016 where a property of a company Odogwu has shares in ,Robert Dyson &Diket was put up for sale

over a controversial debt that was still a subject of litigation in the Appeal Court, Lagos.

He, however, commended the counsel to Robert Dyson &Diket Limited , Chief Anthony Idigbe, for putting up a counter advertisement on Friday, December 9, 2016 , saying that the said property at Ikoyi , Lagos was not for sale.

He disclosed that it was reliably learnt that the contending parties in the suit, Robert Dyson & Diket Limited and Diamond Bank were already ending talks to resolve the issues in the spirit of equity , fair play and justice and shame detractor Nkechor further said: �Let it be stated without doubts that Chief Odogwu is a man of integrity and honour who has over 50 years built a reputation as a trusted and responsible businessman and has businesses spread across Asia , Europe, Africa ,America and assets abroad are valued at over one billion U.S dollars.

More importantly, his business dealings are also guarded by best ethical practices. Moreover, Odogwu is building a five star hotel in his home town Asaba, Delta State, valued at about 160 million U.S dollars, which will create jobs for the teeming unemployed youths when opened in April 2017.

Moreover, at over 85 years Odogwu is still investing and helping people.

Farmcrowdy.com Online Portal for Agric Products Launched Emma Okonji Farmcrowdy.com, Nigeria’s first digital agriculture platform, has been launched to offer new ways for Nigerians to participate in agriculture, using online technology.

Speaking at the launch in Lagos recently, the Co-founder and CEO of Farmcrowdy.com, Onyeka Akumah, said by partnering Farmcrowdy to own a minimum farm space, it is now possible for Nigerians across the world to commit an agreed sum to starting and completing a farming cycle.

In doing so, the farm partner is able to sponsor a farmer in one farming cycle thereby empowering the farmer, expanding their farm operations, participating in the drive to end food scarcity and making use of 50 million hectares of arable farm land in Nigeria that is currently under-utilised according to the World Bank.

The Farmcrowdy.com platform allows farms partners to sponsor any farm of their choice including maize farms, poultry farms (broiler), cassava farms and tomato farms.

The farm partners then gets bi-weekly updates about their farm progress including pictures and videos

from the farmers. Also, farm partners can visit their farms if they wish to at any point in time to learn about the farmer they have partnered with and the farm products they are working on.

According to Akumah, the company has acquired over 1,000 hectares of farmland in the South-eestern part of Nigeria especially in Oyo and Ogun states as it launches the initiative. “With one farmer working on one hectare per season, this means that we have provided a platform to engage a minimum of 1,000 farmers with Farmcrowdy.

Our goal is to secure 10,000 hectares around the eastern parts of Nigeria and the Lakaji Corridor in other to make use of dams and irrigation facilities in these areas,� Akumah said.

He further explained that the launch of Farmcrowdy’s website and platform was brought forth out of a need to engage Nigerians especially youths in agriculture, empower small-scale farmers and increase food production to keep up with the growing Nigerian population. “According to a UN research, crop yields need to double within 40 years in order to keep up with the world population growth.

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BUSINESSWORLD

DEVELOPMENT

Agriculture as a Viable Revenue Alternative As Nigeria seeks to diversify its economy, lessen its dependence on dwindling oil revenue, and prioritise agriculture as an alternative source of foreign and local revenue in 2017, Abimbola Akosile looks at some calls and initiatives on the viable option Agriculture worldwide has been identified as the key ingredient to any country’s stable economic growth, and crucial for the elimination of hunger in most countries in Africa.

In Nigeria due to weak infrastructures, the potential agricultural produce holds for the country as a major foreign revenue earner is yet to be tapped but the focus of the Federal Government is slowly turning things around.

Experts have stated that if the country must make any headway in improving agricultural activities and creating wealth for the citizens of the country, then there must be a mechanised approach to agriculture.

Paradigm Shift Nigeria and other countries have been told that, in order to move towards more sustainable agriculture, a broader approach is needed to overhaul the world’s food system.

The call was made by the head of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), as he pressed for a global reduction in the quantity of chemicals and water in contemporary agriculture, according to a UN release.

Speaking at the recent 24th session of the Committee on Agriculture (COAG) in Rome, Director-General JosĂŠ Graziano da Silva called for a “paradigm shiftâ€? in global attitudes on agriculture, adding that only by decreasing the amounts of “inputs,â€? such as water and chemicals, could the sector move towards a more sustainable and productive long-term path.

Pointing to options such as agro-ecology, climate-smart agriculture, biotechnology and the use of genetically modified organisms, the Director-General emphasised that global food production would need to grow by 60 per cent by 2050 in order to meet the expected demand from an anticipated world population of nine billion.

Youth Involvement The Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) recently launched an initiative to promote the involvement of youths in the agricultural sector; calling it a major step towards tackling unemployment in the country.

In a workshop jointly organised by Abira Agribusiness Support Initiative and the NESG, stakeholders called on governments at all levels and the private sector to channel resources towards creating incentives that would encourage younger Nigerians to pick up interest in agriculture as a means of livelihood.

Speaking at the event, Founder of the Abira Agribusiness Support Initiative, Mrs. Cynthia Mosunmola Umoru, said the summit was designed to engage the government in policy formulation and development across Nigeria and drive agricultural growth while taking advantage of the large youth population in the country as a source of efficient human resources for the fledging sector.

Tackling Unemployment A chemical engineer and Professor of Chemistry, Dr. Oluchukwu Ekechukwu, has suggested unique ways to developing and enhancing agriculture in Nigeria, in a bid to tackle youth employment, ensure food security and reduce insecurity in the country.

Ekechukwu, also a Nuclear Production Engineer based in North Carolina, United States of America, proffered the cultivation of cash crops across a wide section of Nigeria and the use of wind turbines to generate electricity and provide employment for thousands of youths in the unemployment market.

While responding to an issue raised on these pages recently, the don said “The approach will involve very many people digging the soil and planting seeds and seedlings of certain cash crops. The cash crops of interest will be very high yield, short hybrid palm trees, cocoa, coconut tree, melon, kolanut trees, groundnut or peanut. “An objective should be driving Nigeria to regain its position as the world’s number one producer of palm oil and palm kernel oil,

Agriculture as a revenue earner the position it has lost to Indonesia, Malaya, Thailand and Colombia, in that order. These countries obtained from Nigeria the seeds of the palm tree, indigenous to Nigeria and other West African nations, cross-bred them to get high yielding, short hybrids that produce large quantities of fruits and oils. From 1960 till date, Nigeria lost its bearing and focused on crude oil production, to its detriment. “To regain its position, Nigeria should immediately import back from those countries listed large quantities of the seeds and seedlings of the hybrid palm trees, if NIFOR does not already have such seeds. As the seedlings become available, the unemployed graduates, students and other unemployed people who are willing to work should plant them in their natural habitat, the ‘Palm Belt’ of Nigeria. This belt includes the following states: Abia, Anambra, Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Ekiti, Enugu, Ondo, Ogun, Osun, Oyo, Imo, and Rivers. “Thus, employment will boom. Our villagers and local government enhancers must participate in the rehabilitation programme. Because of the high yield and fast growth qualities of the hybrids, positive product results will begin to show within 3-5 years. That was what happened in the countries mentioned above�, Ekechukwu

added.

Osun-IITA MoU In a bid to make agriculture the mainstay of its economy, Osun State Governor of Osun, Mr. Rauf Aregbesola has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA).

The signing ceremony which took place at the governor’s Office in Osogbo will have the state release 204.39 hectares of land around Ago Owu to IITA for the purpose of conducting research and setting up demonstration farms for best farming practices.

IITA, in turn will also carry out cassava, plantain and other crops multiplication and train Osun youths on modern, commercial and profitable farming. Signing the MoU on behalf of the state government, Governor Aregbesola said releasing the farmland to IITA would complement Osun agriculture programme, extend robustly the agriculture value chain and create jobs for farmers, especially the youths that are being attracted to farming.

The Governor commended IITA and its Director General Dr. Nteranya Sanging for supporting Osun’s flagship agriculture programme, the Osun Rural Enterprise and Agriculture Programme (O’REAP). He stressed

that agricultural development especially food production has been the main thrust of his administration’s policies since his assumption of office in November, 2010.

Greater Collaboration In a bid to reduce importation of rice varieties into the country, the federal government has moved to boost local production, backed by efforts from states and the private sector. The recent collaboration between Lagos and Kebbi States which resulted in the Lagos-Kebbi (LAKE) rice variety helped to feed numerous families in both states during the recent Yuletide season and its cost (N12,000 for a 50kg bag) served to help control the soaring price of rice products in the country.

With initiatives and collaborations such as the Lagos-Kebbi partnership, backed by federal government investment in the agricultural sector through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Bank of Industry, and increased agricultural production, processing and export, there is a corresponding increase in agricultural output and export, with resultant higher foreign revenue generation. In 2017, this is crucial if the economy must come out of recession. Enough of dependence on oil revenue; agriculture is the way to go.

RANDOM THOTS Promising Start Ę°Ă?Ăœ ĂœĂ?Ă–Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂ–Ă?Ă?Ă? Ă?ĂœĂ“ĂžĂ“Ă?Ă“Ă?Ă— Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă“Ă—Ă‹Ă‘Ă? ĂŒĂ‹Ă?Ă’Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă— Ă–Ă™Ă˜Ă‘Ě‹Ă?Ă&#x;ĘĽĂ?ĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă—Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?Ëœ Ă?ĂœĂ“ĂžĂ“Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ÙÚÚÙĂ?Ă“ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ ĂšĂ‹ĂœĂžĂ“Ă?Ă?Ëœ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĚ‹ ĂœĂ?Ă˜Ăž Ă‹ĂŽĂ—Ă“Ă˜Ă“Ă?ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă–Ă?ĂŽ ĂŒĂŁ ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜Ăž Ă&#x;Ă’Ă‹Ă—Ă—Ă‹ĂŽĂ&#x; Ă&#x;Ă’Ă‹ĂœĂ“Ëœ Ă“Ă? Ę¨Ă˜Ă‹Ă–Ă–ĂŁ Ă‘ĂœĂ‹ĂŽĂ&#x;Ě‹ Ă‹Ă–Ă–ĂŁ Ă?Ă™Ă—Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ ÑÙÙÎ Ă™Ă˜ Ă“ĂžĂ? ĂšĂœĂ™Ă—Ă“Ă?Ă?Ă?Ë› Ă’Ă“Ă? Ă“Ă? Ă‹Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă‹ĂŽĂ—Ă“Ă˜Ă“Ă?ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ëœ Ă“Ă˜ Ă•Ă?Ă?ĂšĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ åÓÞÒ Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă“ĂžĂ? Ă•Ă?ĂŁ Ă?Ă–Ă?Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă?Ă‹Ă—ĂšĂ‹Ă“Ă‘Ă˜ ĂšĂœĂ™Ă—Ă“Ă?Ă?Ă?Ëœ Ă’Ă‹Ă? Ă?Ù××Ă?Ă˜Ă?Ă?ĂŽ ÚËã×Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? ͖˜͑͑͑ Ă—Ă™Ă˜ĂžĂ’Ă–ĂŁ Ă?ÞÓÚĂ?Ă˜ĂŽ ÞÙ ÞÒĂ? ĂšĂ™Ă™ĂœĂ?Ă?Ăž Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? Ă—Ă™Ă?Ăž Ă Ă&#x;Ă–Ă˜Ă?ĂœĂ‹ĂŒĂ–Ă? Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă™Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂžĂœĂŁ ĂžĂ’ĂœĂ™Ă&#x;Ă‘Ă’ ÞÒĂ? Ă™Ă˜ĂŽĂ“ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă‹Ă– Ă‹Ă?Ă’ ĂœĂ‹Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă?Ăœ Ě™ Ěš Ă?Ă?Ă’Ă?Ă—Ă? Ă™Ă? Ă“ĂžĂ? Ă™Ă?Ă“Ă‹Ă– Ă˜Ě‹ Ă Ă?Ă?Þ×Ă?Ă˜Ăž ĂœĂ™Ă‘ĂœĂ‹Ă—Ă—Ă? Ě™ ̚˛ Ă˜ĂŽĂ?Ăœ ÞÒĂ? Ă˜Ă™Ă Ă?Ă– Ă?Ă?Ă’Ă?Ă—Ă?Ëœ Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă—Ă“Ă–Ě‹ Ă–Ă“Ă™Ă˜ Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹Ă˜Ă? ĂĄĂ™Ă&#x;Ă–ĂŽ ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă“Ă Ă? ͖˜͑͑͑ Ă—Ă™Ă˜ĂžĂ’Ă–ĂŁ ÚËã×Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂ? Ă‹Ă? Ă‹ Ă?Ă™ĂœĂ— Ă™Ă? Ă?Ă™Ă?Ă“Ă‹Ă–

Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă?Þã Ă˜Ă?Ăž Ă?Ă™Ăœ ÞÒĂ? ĂšĂ™Ă™ĂœĂ?Ă?Ăž Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă—Ă™Ă?Ăž Ă Ă&#x;Ă–Ă˜Ă?ĂœĂ‹ĂŒĂ–Ă? Ă‹Ă? ĂšĂœĂ™Ă Ă“ĂŽĂ?ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Í“Í‘Í’Í— ĂŒĂ&#x;ĂŽĂ‘Ă?Þ˛ Ă?Ă?Ă™ĂœĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÙ Ă‹Ă˜ ÙʊĂ?Ă“Ă‹Ă– Ă?ÞËÞĂ?Ě‹ Ă—Ă?Ă˜ĂžËœ Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ę¨ĂœĂ?Ăž ĂŒĂ‹ĂžĂ?Ă’Ëœ ĂŒĂ?Ă˜Ă?ʨĂ?Ă“Ă‹ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă? Ă“Ă˜ Ă˜Ă“Ă˜Ă? Ă?ÞËÞĂ?Ă? Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă–Ă&#x;ĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă™ĂœĂ˜Ă™Ëœ ĂĄĂ‹ĂœĂ‹ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă‹Ă&#x;Ă?Ă’Ă“Ëœ ĂœĂ™Ă?Ă? Ă“Ă Ă?ĂœËœ Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœËœ Ă™Ă‘Ă“Ëœ ĂŁĂ™Ëœ Ă‘Ă&#x;Ă˜ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ÕÓÞÓ ÞËÞĂ?Ă?Ëœ ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă“Ă Ă?ĂŽ ÞÒĂ?Ă“Ăœ Ę¨ĂœĂ?Ăž ÚËã×Ă?Ă˜ĂžĂ? Ă™Ă˜ Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă—ĂŒĂ?Ăœ ͔͑˜ Í“Í‘Í’Í—Ë› Ă’Ă“Ă?Ă’Ă?Ă Ă?Ăœ ĂĄĂ‹ĂŁ ÞÒÓĂ? Ă“Ă? Ă Ă“Ă?ĂĄĂ?ĂŽËœ Ă“Ăž Ă“Ă? Ă‹ Ă?ĂžĂ?Ăš Ă“Ă˜ Ă‹ ÚÙĂ?ÓÞÓà Ă? ĂŽĂ“ĂœĂ?Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă‹Ă˜ Ă™Ă˜Ă–ĂŁ ĂšĂ™ĂœĂžĂ?Ă˜ĂŽ ÑÙÙÎ ĂžĂ“ĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘Ă? Ă?Ă™Ăœ ĂšĂ™Ă™Ăœ Ă?ÓÞÓ̋ äĂ?Ă˜Ă? ÞÒÓĂ? ĂŁĂ?Ă‹ĂœË› ÖÞÒÙĂ&#x;Ă‘Ă’ ͖˜͑͑͑ ËÚÚĂ?Ă‹ĂœĂ? Ă‹ Ă—Ă?ĂœĂ? ÚÓÞ̋ ĂžĂ‹Ă˜Ă?Ă? Ă“Ă˜ Ă‹ ĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă“Ă™Ă˜Ě‹ĂœĂ‹Ă Ă‹Ă‘Ă?ĂŽ Ă?Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă™Ă—ĂŁ Ă–Ă“Ă•Ă? Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹Ëœ Ă“Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂĄĂ’Ă?Ă˜ Ă?Ă–Ă?Ă?ĂžĂœĂ“Ă? ÚÙåĂ?Ăœ Ă“Ă? Ă‘Ă?Ă˜Ă?ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ?ĂŽ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă&#x;ÚÚÖÓĂ?ĂŽ Ă—Ă™ĂœĂ? Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ě‹ Ă?ĂžĂ‹Ă˜ĂžĂ–ĂŁËœ ÞÒĂ?Ă?Ă? Ă—Ă™Ă˜ĂžĂ’Ă–ĂŁ Ă?Ă&#x;Ă˜ĂŽĂ?Ëœ Ă‹ĂšĂ‹ĂœĂž

Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă— Ă?Ă?Ă?ĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ĂšĂ&#x;ĂœĂšĂ™Ă?Ă?Ă?Ëœ Ă?Ă‹Ă˜ ĂŒĂ? Ă“Ă˜Ă Ă?Ă?Þ̋ Ă?ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜ Ă?Ă—Ă‹Ă–Ă– ĂŒĂ&#x;Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă? Ă–Ă“Ă•Ă? Ă’Ă‹Ă“ĂœĂŽĂœĂ?Ă?Ă?Ě‹ Ă“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă™Ăœ Ă?Ă Ă?Ă˜ ĂŒĂ™Ă–Ă“ ĂœĂ™Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ÞÙ Ă?Ă&#x;ÚÚÖĂ?Ă—Ă?Ă˜Ăž ÞÒĂ? Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ù×Ă?Ă? Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? ĂŒĂ?Ă˜Ă?ʨĂ?Ă“Ă‹ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă‘Ă?Ă˜Ă?ĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ? Ă‹ ĂœĂ“ĂšĂšĂ–Ă? Ă?ĘĽĂ?Ă?Ăž Ă™Ă˜ Ă˜Ă&#x;Ă—Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă&#x;Ă? Ă?Ă‹Ă—Ă“Ă–Ă“Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ă?ĂœĂ™Ă?Ă? ÞÒĂ? ÚÓÖÙÞ Ă?ÞËÞĂ?Ă?Ë› Ă? Ă™Ă˜Ă–ĂŁ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂœĂ?Ă˜Ăž Ă‹ĂŽĂ—Ă“Ă˜Ă“Ă?ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ ĂĄĂ™Ă&#x;Ă–ĂŽ Ă‹Ă–Ă?Ă™ ×Ùà Ă? Ă?Ă‹Ă?ĂžĂ?Ăœ Ă“Ă˜ Ă“ĂžĂ? ʨÑÒÞ Ă‹Ă‘Ă‹Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ăž Ă?Ă™ĂœĚ‹ ĂœĂ&#x;ĂšĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ ĂŒĂŁ ĂšĂœĂ™Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă&#x;ĂžĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă—Ă™ĂœĂ? Ă?Ă‹Ă?ĂœĂ?ĂŽ Ă?ÙåĂ? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă?Ă–Ă&#x;ĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ĂžĂœĂ“Ă‹Ă–Ă? åÓÞÒ Ă?Ă™Ă˜Ă Ă“Ă?Ě‹ ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă? ÞÒÓĂ? ĂŁĂ?Ă‹ĂœËœ Ă‹Ă˜Ă™ĂžĂ’Ă?Ăœ Ă•Ă?ĂŁ Ă?Ă‹Ă—ĂšĂ‹Ă“Ă‘Ă˜ ĂšĂœĂ™Ă—Ă“Ă?Ă? ĂĄĂ™Ă&#x;Ă–ĂŽ ĂŒĂ? Ă?Ă&#x;ÖʨÖÖĂ?ĂŽË› Ă™Ăœ ÞÒÓĂ? Ă‹ĂŽĂ—Ă“Ă˜Ă“Ă?ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜ ÞÙ Ă?ÒÙå ÞÒËÞ Ă“Ăž ĂžĂœĂ&#x;Ă–ĂŁ Ă—Ă?Ă‹Ă˜Ă? ĂŒĂ&#x;Ă?Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂĄĂ‹Ă˜ĂžĂ? ÞÙ ĂšĂœĂ™Ă—Ă™ĂžĂ? Ă?Ă’Ă‹Ă˜Ă‘Ă?Ëœ ÞÒÓĂ? Ă“Ă? ÞÒĂ? ĂĄĂ‹ĂŁ ÞÙ ÑÙ˛˛˛ÓĂ?Ă˜ËŞĂž ÓÞˣ Ě‹Abimbola Akosile

33

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍłËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍľ

Ëš

Some past leaders of Nigeria

To Get it Right in 2017, What Must Change in Nigeria?

As the New Year 2017 begins next week, Nigerians have a lot of expectations in governance to rescue the country from the claws of recession and set it back on the path of prosperity. But just like you have to break an egg to get an omelet, some things have to change in crucial areas of the economy and society, for the citizens of this country to enjoy the dividends of democracy and gains of development in the New Year. To you, what priority things must change across board (from government to the ordinary citizen) for this to happen?

Abimbola Akosile

THE FEEDBACK

* Genuine leadership properly guided by transparent fear of God, positive mindset devoid of indiscipline, dishonesty, corruption, fraud, unpatriotism, disunity e.t.c. Also decentralisation of power equally to all the stakeholders is best.

We must give priority attention to good morals, energy, agriculture, information and research. Soft loans must be made available at the grassroots for intensive small-scale rice farming.

- Mr. Apeji Onesi, Lagos State

Top tip:

Collective change in attitude

Second:

Total overhaul in leadership

Third:

Genuine love for one another

Radical tip:

Stop celebrating criminals!

* Government must carry the people along with their policies.

- Mr. Feyisetan Akeeb Kareem, Coordinator, CDHR, Aniocha South, Delta State

Total no of Respondents:

15

Male:

11

Female:

4

Highest location:

Lagos (7)

* The kind of change required in Nigeria must be comprehensive affecting all facets of life. The change must affect four key areas of economy, politics, social and technological.

Citizens should be educated about upcoming changes before they occur. The nature and logic of the change should be clearly communicated.

Training and resources should be provided to the change agents. Incentives should be offered for co-operation and punishment should be applied to those who resist change. In addition, government should recruit change champions who are passionate about change, and are prepared to lead the process of change. They should be able to develop a clear vision and strategy for the change process.

- Dr. Otive Igbuzor, Abuja * We have to focus on things that will make us happy first before pleasing others. By so doing we will have better 2017 and be good citizens of this nation.

- Mrs. Adetoun Moses, Lagos State * The naira should not be allowed to dwindle further. Secondly, in other climes, political prisoners are celebrated when they are released from jail but Nigerians celebrate convicted criminals when they are released, in the name of ‘He’s our son’. The sad part is that those whose wealth was stolen are not even interested in having their stolen wealth recovered. They prefer their hero to keep his loot. This mindset must change if we really want to move forward.

- Mr. Buga Dunj, Jos, Plateau State

* Selfishness must change; the born-to-rule attitude must be discarded. Seeing each other better than self is important. Our leaders are typical idol worshippers; otherwise God looks at your inner being than outside to get applauded.

- Hon. Babale Maiungwa, U/Romi, Kaduna * Our leadership must be completely overhauled for the better. Our methods of governance, politics and security challenges, excessive love of money, indiscipline leading to various types and degrees of moral decadence which brought Nigeria to her knees today must be checked. We need to draw our children closer to God through the church, mosque, mothers, and the community e.t.c. to have good hearts and be good citizens. Our future leaders must be properly and carefully moulded for a better tomorrow and society. God bless Nigeria.

- Miss. Apeji Patience Eneyeme, Badagry, Lagos * Leaders must show moral example. Leaders from political, economic, religious and ethnic groups must provide moral leadership that encourages creativity, sustainable industry, tolerance, repercussions for crime against individual/society and peaceful coexistence.

That’s the foundation of our collective prosperity.

- Mr. Utibe Uko, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State * Despite the economic challenges in 2016, year 2017 is going to bring bumper harvest of agricultural products and other sectors that will boost our economy. The budget presented

by PMB to the National Assembly for approval

is a budget of hope to end recession. All hands must be on deck to ensure it gets accelerated debate for early approval for implementation.

Nigerians don’t want to hear of budget padding again because we are hungry for change, the change they voted for. Let there be no delay in release of money for ministries to start working on projects, which should be monitored. God bless Nigeria.

- Mrs. Ijeoma Nnorom, Lagos State * Our leaders from Presidency to Local Government bosses must demonstrate absolute honesty.

The fight against corruption by PMB should be holistic and not selective. By so doing, anyone who still has the intention to loot public fund will know that he or she has no canopy to hide under. Women empowerment shouldn’t be toyed with especially the indigent women.

Our health sector needs proper attention. We need healthy and functional citizens. This can only be possible if the health institutions are well equipped, funded and activities of health care providers well supervised and monitored.

Wastages should be minimised.

- Mrs. Rosemary Nwaebuni, Asaba, Delta State * To make Nigeria sweet again across board, we must all endeavour to treat others the way we treat ourselves, or the way we like to be treated. The recent fiasco between the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and the Super Falcons (National senior female soccer team) is an example of what to avoid: forget you are a big shot, treat others properly.

- Mr. E., Iheanyi Chukwudi, B.A.R. Associates, Apo, Abuja * The mentality of the people from all sectors must change.

- Mr. Ifeanyi Nwankwo, Lagos State * There should be attitudinal change towards one another in love and not in killing. Nigeria should not be dependent especially on imported rice, finished or assembled machinery, agricultural products e.t.c. Instead, we should be dependent on anything produced within e.g. agriculture, mineral resources. Government has to diversify on that even at slow pace but steady, with repair of airports, old railway lines e.g. Port Harcourt to Kano, Lagos, Jos, Abuja, Maiduguri to Kaduna e.t.c. They should not constantly invest in money-wasting projects

that will remain uncompleted for years with no revenue yield.

- Mr. Dogo Stephen, Kaduna * Our phantom anti-corruption fight must be re-jigged. With corruption still thriving, Nigeria’s quest for development will remain a mirage - Mr. John Ogunsemore, Lagos State * There must be a total change in attitude for all Nigerians, from top to the bottom. Our orientation must change from what we can extract from the system to what can we bring in to make the system better for all. That is the way the average American thinks, collective impact through individual effort and contributions. This will create more servant-leaders in office and ensure more understanding citizens who are willing to make effort to see a better Nigeria. That is the way to go in 2017.

- Mr. Olumuyiwa Olorunsomo, Lagos State

Next Week: How Can Nigeria Best Tackle Inequality in 2017?

Ă˜Ă?Ă›Ă&#x;ËÖÓÞã Ă’Ă‹Ă? ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ă˜ Ă“ĂŽĂ?Ă˜ĂžĂ“Ă?Ă“Ă?ĂŽ Ă‹Ă? Ă™Ă˜Ă? Ă™Ă? ÞÒĂ? Ă—Ă‹Ă”Ă™Ăœ Ă’Ă“Ă˜ĂŽĂœĂ‹Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă? ÞÙ ĂŽĂ?Ă Ă?ÖÙÚ×Ă?Ă˜Ăž Ă‘Ă–Ă™ĂŒĂ‹Ă–Ă–ĂŁË› Ă˜ Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹Ëœ ÞÒĂ?ĂœĂ? Ă‹ĂœĂ? Ă&#x;Ă˜Ă?Ă›Ă&#x;Ă‹Ă– Ă‘Ă‹ĂšĂ? ĂŒĂ?ÞåĂ?Ă?Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? ĂœĂ“Ă?Ă’ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ÞÒĂ? ĂšĂ™Ă™ĂœËœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ ĂŽĂ?Ă?ÚÓÞĂ? Ă›Ă&#x;ÙÞË Ă?ĂŁĂ?ĂžĂ?Ă— Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă?ĂŽĂ?ĂœĂ‹Ă–Ă“Ă?Ă— ĂšĂœĂ“Ă˜Ă?ÓÚÖĂ?Ëœ Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă›Ă&#x;ËÖÓÞã Ă‹Ă–Ă?Ă™ Ă?âÓĂ?ĂžĂ? Ă‹Ă—Ă™Ă˜Ă‘ Ă?Ă™Ă?Ă“Ă‹Ă–Ëœ ĂœĂ?Ă–Ă“Ă‘Ă“Ă™Ă&#x;Ă?Ëœ Ă?ĂŽĂ&#x;Ă?Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ă‹Ă– Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ù×Ă? Ă?ĂžĂœĂ‹ĂžĂ‹Ëœ åÓÞÒ ÞÒĂ? ĂšĂ™Ă™ĂœĂ?Ă?Ăž Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? Ă?Ă™Ă?Ă“Ă?Þã ÞÒĂ? ĂĄĂ™ĂœĂ?Ăž Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă?ĂžĂ?ĂŽË› Ă˜ Ă™ĂœĂŽĂ?Ăœ ÞÙ Ă˜Ă“Ăš Ă‘ĂœĂ™ĂĄĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ Ă—Ă‹Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă? Ă‹Ă˜Ă‘Ă?Ăœ Ă“Ă˜ ÞÒĂ? ĂŒĂ&#x;ĂŽ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă˜Ă?Ă&#x;ĂœĂ? Ă‹Ă˜ Ă?Ă Ă?Ă˜Ă–ĂŁ ĂŒĂ‹Ă–Ă‹Ă˜Ă?Ă?ĂŽ Ă?Ă™Ă?Ă“Ă?Þã Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ă™ĂœĂœĂ?Ă?ĂšĂ™Ă˜ĂŽĂ“Ă˜Ă‘ ĂŽĂ?Ă Ă?ÖÙÚ×Ă?Ă˜ĂžËœ ÒÙå Ă?Ă‹Ă˜ Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹ ĂŒĂ?Ă?Ăž ÞËĂ?Ă•Ă–Ă? Ă“Ă˜Ă?Ă›Ă&#x;ËÖÓÞã Ă“Ă˜ Ͱ͎ͯ;ˣ Ă–Ă?Ă‹Ă?Ă? Ă—Ă‹Ă•Ă? ĂŁĂ™Ă&#x;Ăœ ĂœĂ?Ă?ĂšĂ™Ă˜Ă?Ă? ĂŽĂ“ĂœĂ?Ă?ĂžËœ Ă?Ă’Ă™ĂœĂž Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?Ó×ÚÖĂ?Ëœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă?ÞËÞĂ? ĂŁĂ™Ă&#x;Ăœ Ă?Ă&#x;Ă–Ă– Ă˜Ă‹Ă—Ă?Ëœ ÞÓÞÖĂ?Ëœ Ă™ĂœĂ‘Ă‹Ă˜Ă“Ă?Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ëœ Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽ Ă–Ă™Ă?Ă‹ĂžĂ“Ă™Ă˜Ë› Ă?Ă?ĂšĂ™Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă? Ă?Ă’Ă™Ă&#x;Ă–ĂŽ ĂŒĂ? Ă?Ă?Ă˜Ăž ĂŒĂ?ÞåĂ?Ă?Ă˜ ÞÙÎËã Ě™ Ă‹Ă˜Ă&#x;Ă‹ĂœĂŁ Íł Ęś Ă™Ă˜ĂŽĂ‹ĂŁËœ Ă‹Ă˜Ă&#x;Ă‹ĂœĂŁ ̚͡ ÞÙ abimbolayi@yahoo.com, greatbimbo@gmail.comËœ abimbola. akosile@thisdaylive.comË› Ă?Ă?ĂšĂ™Ă˜ĂŽĂ?Ă˜ĂžĂ? Ă?Ă‹Ă˜ Ă‹Ă–Ă?Ă™ Ă?Ă?Ă˜ĂŽ Ă‹ Ă?Ă’Ă™ĂœĂž ĂžĂ?âÞ Ă—Ă?Ă?Ă?Ă‹Ă‘Ă? ÞÙ 08023117639 Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽËšĂ™Ăœ 08188361766 Ă‹Ă˜ĂŽËš Ă™Ăœ 08114495306Ë› ÙÖÖËÞĂ?ĂŽ ĂœĂ?Ă?ĂšĂ™Ă˜Ă?Ă?Ă? ĂĄĂ“Ă–Ă– ĂŒĂ? ĂšĂ&#x;ĂŒĂ–Ă“Ă?Ă’Ă?ĂŽ Ă™Ă˜ Ă’Ă&#x;ĂœĂ?ĂŽĂ‹ĂŁËœ Ă‹Ă˜Ă&#x;Ă‹ĂœĂŁ ÍŻÍ°

34

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍłËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍľ

BUSINESSWORLD

DEVELOPMENT

Boosting local content; skilled craftsmen at work in Lagos

ABIMBOLA AKOSILE

Global Community Makes Record $75bn Commitment to End Extreme Poverty Targets fragility, refugees, climate change and other pressing challenges Abimbola Akosile A coalition of more than 60 donor and borrower governments have agreed to ratchet up the fight against extreme poverty with a record $75 billion commitment for the International Development Association (IDA), the World Bank’s fund for the poorest countries. “This is a pivotal step in the movement to end extreme poverty,� World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim said. “The commitments made by our partners, combined with IDA’s innovations to crowd in the private sector and raise funds from capital markets, will transform the development trajectory of the world’s poorest countries. We are grateful for our partners’ trust in IDA’s ability to deliver results.�

The funding, according to a release issued by the global body, will enable IDA to dramatically scale up development interventions to tackle conflict, fragility and violence, forced displacement, climate change, and gender inequality; and

promote governance and institution building, as well as jobs and economic transformation -areas of special focus over the next three years. These efforts are underpinned by an overarching commitment to invest in growth, resilience and opportunity. “With this innovative package, the world’s poorest countries – especially the most fragile and vulnerable – will get the support they need to grow, create opportunities for people, and make themselves more resilient to shocks and crises,� said Kyle Peters, World Bank Group Interim Managing Director and Co-Chair of the IDA18 negotiations. “IDA’s focus on issues like climate change, gender equality and preventing conflict and violence will also contribute to greater stability and progress around the world.�

Financing during the IDA18 replenishment period, which runs from July 1, 2017 to June 30, 2020, is expected to support: Essential health and nutrition services for up to 400 million people; access to improved wa-

ter sources for up to 45 million people; financial services for 4-6 million people; safe childbirth for up to 11 million women through provision of skilled health personnel.

Others are: training for 9-10 million teachers to benefit 300+ million children; immunisations for 130-180 million children; better governance in 30 countries through improved statistical capacity; and an additional 5 GW of renewable energy generation capacity. “IDA is writing a whole new chapter in the story of development,� said Dede Ekoue, IDA18 co-chair and Togo’s former Minister of Development. “Together with donors, working hand-in-hand with borrower governments, we are putting forward an innovative, ambitious and responsive package of support that gives hope to the poorest.

These interventions will help transform the lives of billions of people living in IDA countries.�

To finance this groundbreaking package, IDA is proposing the most radical transformation in its 56-year history. For the first

time, IDA is seeking to leverage its equity by blending donor contributions with internal resources and funds raised through debt markets. By blending concessional contributions from donors with its own resources and capital market debt, IDA will significantly increase the financial support it provides to clients. “The innovative financing package offers exceptional value for money, with every $1 in partner contributions generating about $3 in spending authority,� said Axel van Trotsenburg, World Bank Vice President for Development Finance. “It is one of the most concrete and significant proposals to date on the Addis Ababa Action Agenda - critical to achieving the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.�

The additional financing will enable IDA to double the resources to address fragility, conflict and violence (more than $14 billion), as well as the root causes of these risks before they escalate, and additional financing for refugees and their host communities ($2 billion).

Increased financing will help strengthen IDA’s support for crisis preparedness and response, pandemic preparedness, disaster risk management, small states and regional integration, the release noted. Efforts to stimulate private sector development in the most difficult environments, at the core of job creation and economic transformation, will receive a major push in the form of a new $2.5 billion Private Sector Window (PSW).

The PSW, being introduced together with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), will help mobilise private capital and scale up private sector development in the poorest countries, particularly in fragile situations. The funds will also help governments strengthen institutions, mobilise resources needed to deliver services, and promote accountability.

A total of 48 countries pledged resources to IDA; additional countries are expected to pledge in the near-term. The World Bank Group is continuing the tradition of contributing its own

resources to IDA. “One of the extraordinary things about IDA is that it brings different countries together to help the poorest. In this replenishment in particular, we’ve really seen that IDA is truly a global coalition,� said van Trotsenburg.

A total of 75 low-income countries are eligible to benefit from the IDA18 financing package.

The World Bank’s IDA, established in 1960, helps the world’s poorest countries by providing grants and low- to zero-interest loans for projects and programs that boost economic growth, reduce poverty, and improve poor people’s lives.

IDA is a multi-issue institution, supporting a range of development activities that pave the way toward equality, economic growth, job creation, higher incomes, and better living conditions. Its work covers, for example, primary education, basic health services, clean water and sanitation, agriculture, business climate improvements, infrastructure, and institutional reforms.

‘Capacity Building is Central to Sustainable Economic Growth and Devt’ Segun Awofadeji in Bauchi A University Lecturer, Dr. Hussaini Tahir has observed that capacity building is central to sustainable economic growth and development, the same way as capital is the greatest asset of any organisation.

Tahir said one of the greatest challenges facing Nigeria in the current millennium is the issue of capacity building to enhance productivity in the economy.

The don therefore stressed the need for the Nigerian economy to be efficient and competitive in

the new World order in which national frontiers no longer constitute barriers to human, material and capital flows.

The lecturer, at an interactive forum organised by the Bauchi State Office of the Industrial Training Fund (ITF) held in Bauchi recently, noted that sustainable development of any nation depends largely on its human capacity building.

Tahir, who heads the Economic Department of Bauchi State University, Gadau, explained that capacity building also depends on the kind of

knowledge and skills acquired and its application towards the socio-economic transformation of the society. “It was suggested that government must heavily invest in capital projects which are self-financing/liquidating, educational programmes and social amenities to enhance productivity and create capacity towards economic recovery�.

According to him, government should strengthen policies of human capacity building in all strata of the

economy, federal, state and Local Government levels.

Equally too, he noted that diversification of the economy to agriculture, mineral resources and tourism should be accompanied with realistic economic plan that ensures youth participation and guarantees return on investment.

Tahir said the organised private sector should complement government efforts by establishing youth empowerment programmes within areas of operations to enhance the

capacity building of the people.

He also suggested for a realistic plan of diversification reforms in the civil service, local, state and federal with emphasis on capacity building, which should be vigorously pursued. “Monetary and fiscal policies that will encourage one digit interest rate financial borrowing will strengthen and motivate entrepreneurs and industrialisation which in turn facilitate human capacity building and sustainable development�, the don noted.

He called for collective efforts of all towards nation building by avoiding primordial sentiments, eschewing greed and rededicating oneself to the Supreme Being.

Tahir concluded by quoting Mahatma Ghandi of India who said, “Things that will destroy us are: politics without principle; pleasure without conscience; wealth without work; knowledge without character; business without morality; science without humanity and worship without sacrifice�.

35

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍłËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍľ

BUSINESSWORLD

DEVELOPMENT QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“Our own part, we are intensifying efforts towards building capacities and quality infrastructure. We will in no distant time complete and accredit more laboratories. Through the development of standard laboratories, locally made products would enjoy high patronage at home and global acceptance. This is part of our strategies towards economic diversification (oil-to non-oil sector) and industrial growth�

- DIRECTOR GENERAL, STANDARDS ORGANISATION OF NIGERIA (SON), MR. OSITA ABOLOMA, SPEAKING IN LAGOS RECENTLY

Recession, Revolt Undermined N13bn Alade Mall, Says Concessionaire Gboyega Akinsanmi

Kwara Begins Disbursement of N850m for Community Projects Hammed Shittu in Ilorin The Kwara State government has flagged-off an N850 million Community Development Programme with presentation of N165 million to beneficiary communities in the state.

Speaking at the project launch and cheque presentation to 41 communities at the Banquet Hall, Ilorin recently, the State governor, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed said the first tranche of the counterpart-funded disbursement was released to promote all round development at the grassroots level.

Represented at the ceremony by the Chief of Staff, Government House, Alhaji AbdulWahab Babatunde Yusuf, Governor Ahmed said the aim of the programme was to enable all the 193 wards across the state have improved access to infrastructural services that will bring about development.

Under the scheme, ward-based community associations receive N5 million to implement water, education, health, energy and other micro-projects on provision of a ten per cent contribution.

He recalled that a sum of N50 million was injected into Community Development Projects in the State in 2015 with additional budgetary provision of N200 million in 2016 to consolidate government commitment to the project. “The presence of counterpart fund of N200 million as contained in the 2016 Appropriation allowed for further draw-down of over N670 million to scale up the implementation of projects across the state�, the governor stated.

He urged the communities to make judicious use of the funds and ensure proper retirement of receipts so as to facilitate the release of the second and third tranches.

The Governor stressed that his administration will continue to put in place strategies to ensure all round development in the state,

A community development project in Kwara State especially at the grassroots level.

Alhaji Ahmed commended the State Community and Social Development Agency (KWCSDA) and the World Bank for their efforts at ensuring rural development in the state.

Earlier, the Commissioner for Planning and Economic Development, Alhaji Wasiu Odewale said a total of 318 community micro projects have been implemented and are in use in different rural communities across the 16 LGAs in the state so far under the scheme.

Kwara State has always placed emphasis on development in the rural areas and the grassroots, and the current administration, which is in its second term, has pledged to continue the legacy on good governance and overall development established by the previous administration under then Governor Bukola Saraki, who is now the Senate President. This move has been demonstrated through different initiatives and projects, all geared towards making Kwara a better place.

The concessionaire of the Old Alade Market redevelopment, Masters Reality Int’l Concepts Limited has lamented that economic recession and revolt by market women gravely undermined the execution of Alade Mall designed to cost N6.8 billion at inception.

Unlike other malls across the federation, the concessionaire said the Mall would be the first 24-hour smart shopping centre situated at the centre of commercial activities in Ikeja and about one kilometre to the state’s seat of power.

The firm’s Group Managing Director, Mr. Lai Omotola disclosed this at a recent session with journalists in the firm’s head office, Maryland alongside other executive directors, noting that the mall would be ready by the end of 2018.

At the session, the concessionaire lamented grave impact of economic recession on the project, noting that the project cost had moved from N6.8 billion to N13 billion due to foreign exchange crisis, crushing inflation and revolt by some market women against the project.

He said the concession “sealed in 2010. The exchange rate was N152 to a dollar, but now the official rate is N315 while the black market rate is going towards N490. Costs of building materials have equally increased.�

Omotola provided a little background on the project, on which he said his firm signed a 30-year concession agreement with Ikeja Local Government on August 17, 2010. Nigeria of today needs bold and savvy entrepreneurs.

He explained that the thrust of the concession was to redevelop the Old Alade Market into a first-class shopping mall after it suffered fire disasters three times and became unsafe for trading. He said agitation by some concerned traders stalled the redevelopment of the old market for six years until peaceful settlement of all issues and subsequent relocation of the traders on July 16, 2016.

Even though his firm lost several millions of naira in the period of six years, Omotola disclosed that the concessionaire had already commenced construction of the New Alade Mall.

Upon its completion, the managing director explained that the new shopping centre “will be the first 24-hour live, work, shop, eat and entertain smart mall in Nigeria and West Africa at large. It sits on 1.56 hectares of land at the highbrow Allen Avenue, Ikeja, Lagos.

The Mall is just one kilometre away from Governor’s Office and located at a prime area of Allen/Opebi Street. “The layout plan consists of two basement parking lot for at least 700 cars, ground floor plus three floors, 214 shop spaces, a hotel, cinema, anchor tenants, two lounges, walk in clinic, restaurant, game shops, bowling space, offices, giant aquarium and common areas for entertainment.� He, also, gave insight into the design of the New Alade Mall, which he said, “is iconic in nature.

It will be a delight for both the customers and the vendors. We are indeed confident that the Mall will generate the most unprecedented crowd of shoppers in the history of Nigeria. “Unlike other malls that depend on anchor tenants across Lagos State, we have been able to make more addition towards this end.

36

T H I S D AY THURSDAY, JANUARY 5, 2017

HEALTH & LIFESTYLE

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

Stopping Incessant Outbreaks of Lassa Fever With the re-emergence of Lassa fever in Ogun State, and the palpable fear that it might spread to other parts of the country, Martins Ifijeh writes on the need for stakeholders and the government to find a lasting solution to the recurring outbreaks

W

hen early last year Nigeria recorded another bout of Lassa fever outbreak, which unfortunately took the lives of over 80 Nigerians, the Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole promised that the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government would find a lasting solution to the incessant outbreaks through awareness creation, optimised research, the upgrade of existing Lassa fever centres and the establishment of new centres across the country.

But before the year ended last week, the country recorded at least three outbreaks.

Each of which took along with them the lives of Nigerians who ordinarily should live to celebrate the dawn of 2017 if vaccines against the fever were available or had the proper education to prevent the scourge or access treatment on time.

The latest of the outbreaks, being the one reported in the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Abeokuta, Ogun State, took along with it two casualties, an Assistant Nursing Officer, Adesuyi Abolanle and a serving corp member only identified as Okusaga. The corp member was believed to have contracted the virus through a Lebanese patient who later died, while Abolanle treated the corp member, where in turn she got infected.

In dousing the tension, the State Government, through the Commissioner for Health, Dr. Babatunde Ipaye, said everything would be done to curtail further spread of the deadly virus. He allayed the fear of the staff, particularly the nurses, saying the situation does not call for unnecessary panic.

“We are going to immediately create an isolation centre here at FMC to cater for unexpected cases and emergency on public health issues like Lassa fever to include other communicable diseases and have set officers out to confirm the root of the cases,” he said.

But with a routine assurance given by either the government of states where the outbreaks are recorded or by the Federal Government anytime there was an outbreak, experts believed the governments and stakeholders can make eradication of the hemorrhagic fever a top priority rather than putting palliative and mitigating impacts on ground to curtail every outbreak anytime it occurs.

A Virologist, Dr. Olaolu Akinjide said until a lasting solution was found, there would continue to be outbreaks. “Nigerians will continue to suffer the pain of losing loved ones anytime an outbreak occurs,” he said.

He said with a fairly new government in place, from the Presidency, the Federal Ministry of Health, up to the Nigerian Institute for Medical Research (NIMR) and the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, (NCDC), old approaches against Lassa fever outbreaks must be suspended, as it has obviously not yielded lasting solution to the menace, adding that thoughts of solving the incessant outbreaks should involve the provision of vaccines, and the establishment of more Lassa fever centres for prompt tackling of the scourge.

They said government must look beyond providing fire brigade approach to ending disease outbreaks in the country, adding that, that had been the approach since the very first outbreak of the virus, which was why at 47 years after, people were still dying from the disease.

Akinjide, believes since the disease originated from Lassa community in Borno State, it behoves on the country to find a lasting solution to the reoccurring bouts of the outbreak, which he said was becoming a national embarrassment.

“It’s almost 50 years since the first case of the disease was noticed here. We should not wait for another country to find a vaccine for us. Researches in this regard should be

When will Nigeria be free from Lassa fever outbreak?

given priority by the government. We have a medical research institute that should be funded to come up with solutions in this regard,” he said.

This again brings to fore the level of priority placed on medical research in the country.

While the United States National Institute of Health will spend about 32.3 billion dollars this year alone on medical research for the American people, the entire health budget for Nigeria cannot be said to be close to that figure.

According to the World Health Organisation, between 300,000 and 500,000 cases are recorded annually, with about 5,000 deaths recorded yearly, especially in sub-Sahara West African region. Apart from Nigeria, which has one of the highest burdens of the disease, other countries that have recorded the outbreak

The federal government should make the eradication of the hemorrhagic fever a top priority because, until a lasting solution is found, there would continue to be outbreaks and casualties

are Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea and the Central African Republic.

Akinjide also wondered why the country only has two active Lassa fever centres to cater for the several Nigerians who are infected yearly by the virus. “The government should scale up the establishment of Lassa fever centres across the country. The present two centres, which are the ones in Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital (ISTH) and that in Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) cannot be said to be enough for prompt diagnosis and treatment of cases,” he explained.

Though the federal government had consistently said the country has 13 Lassa fever centres, Akinjide insists that there were only two centres serving the over 180 million persons living in the country.

Also on his part, the President of the Nigerian Academy of Science (NAS), Prof.

Oyewale Tomori, during an earlier interview wondered why Nigeria was not taking surveillance system seriously, adding that, the country has a weak surveillance system, poor funding of epidemiology studies, inadequate diagnostic centres and poor awareness of the disease Transmission According to the WHO, it is a known fact that humans become infected with Lassa fever virus from exposure to urine or faeces of infected Mastomys rats. The virus may be spread among humans through direct contact with the blood, urine, faeces, or other bodily secretions of an infected person.

It could also be transmitted from person to person through exchange of body fluid and blood, contaminated medical equipments or through sexual intercourse.

Those at risk Available information suggests that everyone is at risk, as it may occur in all age groups, both sexes, and in all classes of people.

However, it has been observed that people with poor hygiene or those in rural areas

where Mastomys are usually found are more susceptible to it.

The Health Minister, Adewole, during one of the outbreaks, advised Nigerians to properly cover their foods in order not to get them exposed to the virus-causing vector, as people who refuse to do so are at a high risk of being infected by the virus.

Symptoms Tomori said the symptoms may start to appear between six to 21 days, and may start with gradual signs like fever, general weakness and malaise.

Other symptoms include headache, sore throat, muscle pain, chest pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, cough and abdominal pain may follow. Experts believed in severe cases symptoms may include bleeding from the mouth, nose, ear, vagina, as well as seizures, tremor, coma or even death.

Deafness may occur in 25 per cent of patients who survive the disease. In half of these cases, hearing returns partially after one to three months. Transient hair loss and gait disturbance may occur during recovery as well.

Diagnosis Experts believe general diagnosis is often difficult because the symptoms are non-specific, since it is difficult to distinguish from other viral hemorrhagic fevers such as Ebola virus and many other diseases causing fever, including malaria and typhoid.

But, it is advised that definitive diagnosis be done in specialised laboratories like the ones in ISTH and LUTH. Treatment and prophylaxis The antiviral drug ribavirin seems to be an effective treatment for Lassa fever if given early in the course of clinical illness. There is no evidence to support the role of ribavirin as postexposure prophylactic treatment for Lassa fever. There is currently no vaccine that protects against Lassa fever.

37

T H I S D AY THURSDAY, JANUARY 5, 2017

NEWS

WHO: One Third of Health Facilities in Borno State Have Been Destroyed Martins Ifijeh One third of more than 700 health facilities in Borno State have been completely destroyed, and of the facilities remaining, one third are not functioning at all, according to a report published by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

It said high insecurity, difficult terrain and lack of health workers, medicines, equipment and basic amenities such as safe water were making access to essential, lifesaving healthcare extremely difficult for people in the conflict-affected area.

According to WHO’s Representative in Nigeria, Dr. Wondi Alemu, the report identified 743 health facilities in Borno State, of which 35 per cent were completely destroyed, another 29 per cent partially damaged and only

34 per cent intact, adding that about 100 temporary health facilities have been set up to support the response, of which 49 were emergency clinics for displaced people living in camps.

“Of the 481 health facilities that have not been destroyed, 31 per cent of them are not functioning, mostly as a result of lack of access due to insecurity. Almost 60 per cent of health facilities have no access to safe water (32 per cent have no access to any water at all) and 3 out of 4 (73 per cent) facilities do not have enough chlorine stocks to decontaminate the water used in the facility.

“WHO has been working with the Borno State Ministry of Health to set up a Health Resources Availability Monitoring System (known as HeRAMS) to collect information on the availability of

health resources and services in this humanitarian crisis.

He said top priority for the world health body was now to help save lives and prevent sicknesses among the estimated six million people who need health assistance in the terrorist-torn state.

Lending his voice, the Deputy Director, Planning, Research and Statistics, Ministry of Health, Borno State, and the HeRAMS task team chairman, Mr. Kadai Baba Gana said the information from the system was critical to inform the management of Borno State Ministry of Health and its partners on gaps that need to be addressed urgently.

This will help us to better coordinate and monitor the response and guide the allocation of scarce resources.”

HeRAMS is a rapid online system used to monitor which health facilities, services and resources are available and accessible in emergency settings.

“Health workers are trained

by WHO to enter key information into the system about the clinic or hospital where they work. This information includes the kind of services the facility can provide, whether the infrastructure has essential resources like electricity and water, the skills of health workers, and the type of

services, equipment and medicines available as well as support received from external partners. Information is updated regularly to help monitor improvements or new gaps in services.

“Around 60 per cent of the health facilities in north-eastern Nigeria are currently being supported by one or more of the 18 health partners responding to the crisis,” he added.

According to him, WHO is working closely with the various partners to support the government to deliver essential lifesaving health services, gather and analyse key health information and

prepare for and respond to disease outbreaks.

“WHO has a strong presence in the community in these areas thanks to a well-established polio programme which includes teams of health workers trained to work in areas of high insecurity and reach communities that no other partner can reach.

“However, more resources are needed. The United Nations and partners need US$ 94 million to provide health services to six million people, more than half of them children, in this crisis. Of this share, WHO needs US$ 31 million to deliver on its response plans in 2017,” he said.

NIDS Alarmed over Increase in Infectious Diseases in Nigeria Tasks

government

on

preventive

interventions Martins Ifijeh Members of the Nigerian Infectious Diseases Society (NIDS) have raised alarm over the increase of infectious diseases in Nigeria and its effect on morbidity and mortality in the country.

It said as one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in Nigeria , infectious diseases require urgent but sustainable preventative interventions by government at all levels.

NIDS, a professional association of all persons with interest in prevention and control of infectious diseases in Nigeria noted that, healthcare-associated infections, antimicrobial resistance and zoonotic infections were rapidly emerging as public health threats in Nigeria.

The association stated these in a communique issued after its 5th Annual General Meeting and Scientific Conference held recently in Abuja.

In the key resolutions signed by NIDS President, Prof. Abdulrazaq Habib and the General Secretary, Dr. Mahmod Dalhat, the association expressed concern over persistent dearth of adequate resources, health data, research and health policies as well as well-equipped diagnostic facilities to inform decision making and strategy in infectious diseases prevention and control in the country.

The association commended the efforts and commitments of the federal government, state ministries of health, government agencies and Non-Government Organisations in the prevention and control and reaffirmed its strong commitment to advocacy, research, training and partnership toward the prevention and control of infectious diseases in the country.

“In accordance with international best practices, governments at all levels ought to improve funding

and human resources for health, as well as strengthen surveillance and diagnostic facilities to guarantee effective prevention and control of infectious diseases, monitor antimicrobial resistance and emerging/re-emerging infections in Nigeria,” it noted.

While urging the federal government to immediately implement the National Health Act, which makes provision for funding of various health activities related to infectious diseases, in addition to establishment and implementation of quality standards for healthcare delivery in Nigeria; the group recommended mandatory implementation of infection prevention and control and antimicrobial stewardship programmes in all health facilities as well as controlling/ limiting overthe-counter use of antibiotics in Nigeria through enabling legislations.

The NIDS further advocated country-wide expansion of immunisation against bacterial diseases such as pneumococcal conjugate vaccines to mitigate antibiotic resistance.

In the prevention of zoonotic infections and antimicrobial resistance, the association advocated improved collaboration between veterinarians, human health professionals, and other stakeholders in the agriculture sector, including animal husbandry.

It advised the federal government to strengthen the one-health approach through establishing a Zoonotic Diseases Unit comprising above stakeholders within an MDA. “Given the high burden of HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Tuberculosis in the country, NIDS strongly advocates nationwide expansion of access to quality testing, provision of Anti-Retroviral Therapy, Artemisinin Combination Therapy, anti-tuberculosis treatment, care and proven preventive interventions,” it further suggested.

FOR MATERNAL & CHILD HEALTH

L-R: House of Rep Member, Hon. Babajimi Benson; Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammed Buhari on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, Mrs. Abike Dabiri; Special Adviser, Primary Healthcare, Lagos State, Dr. Olufemi Onanuga; Ayangburen of Ikorodu Kingdom, Oba Kabiru Adewale Shotobi; Wife of the Governor of Lagos State, Mrs. Bolanle Ambode; Commissioner for Health, Lagos State, Dr. Jide Idris; and Chairman, House Committee on Health, Hon. Segun Olulade, during the Town Hall Meeting on Maternal and Child Mortality Reduction, in Lagos ...recently

Vita Foam Awards First Three Babies of the Year Rebecca Ejifoma The Group Managing Director of Vita Foam, Mr. Taiwo Ayodele Adeniyi, has assured of its unwavering commitment in contributing to the healthy growth of babies and hospitals in Lagos State after it presented all-baby’s kits at the Lagos Island Maternity on Sunday, January 1 to the first three babies of the year.

Stating that this has been the tradition of Vita Foam for decades, he noted that over the years, they have been known for good quality products. “And good quality products can only be used by those who appreciate quality.

We pride ourselves in the fact that the company’s existence is highly dependent on the society. If we make products and nobody buys then it’s of no use.”

He explained that the company has recognised the need to give back to the society as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) annually.

“All the products given out today - from the wooden cot, mattress, pillow, duvet, baby covers to the baby feeder are

made in Vita Foam.

More so, Vita Foam donated 10 hospital mattresses to the maternity. “It’s not just for the women to come and have their babies. But we want to be sure that the facility is in good state, too. That is why we adopted a ward, Vita Foam ward, and renovated it for both mothers and their babies’ delight.”

Now, the three babies, all male, had first two births at 12:01am while the third was recorded at 12:03am, weighing between 3kg and 3.1kg respectively. The forth birth at same hospital was a triplet.

Mainly referred to as the “baby factory”, Adeniyi said that was what informed their choice. “Lagos Island Maternity is known as the baby factory as far as Lagos is concerned. Imagine, we were just told that the fourth birth is a triplet. You can imagine the number of births that have occurred just after that. Which kind of hospital has such a volume at such a space?

“If babies are not being born, there can’t be continuity in the country. We want to be part

of that continuity. We have been around for over 50 years and we want to continue to be. It’s a way to bond with the babies. Obviously, their parents will tell them this,” he noted.

Therefore, in advising the government to do its beat, he said, “If only we can do a little more in the area of improving our health facility, what goes out of this country in terms of repatriation, money -. So, if the health sector can be improved - not necessarily all, just certain ones people can go and be confident they will find value - then it will be good for all.”

Meanwhile, according to the Medical Director, Lagos Island Maternity, Dr. Imosemi O. Donald, Vita Foam has been its traditional partner. “Over the years, they have identified with us in various ways; top of it is the first baby of the year celebration.”

For this, he firmly commended Vita Foam for its many contributions to the hospital. “For Vita Foam, the belief is that a baby that is born healthy and starts off healthy grows into a citizen

that the country will be proud of.

“Now, apart from their CSR, their major line of products has more to do with new babies. So by coming to identify with such babies and mothers, I think they are playing their own role in ensuring that our mothers continue to appreciate the need to nurture babies to healthy ones and healthy Nigerians.”

Continuing, Imosemi acknowledged that the maternity has benefited from the partnership. “Our partnership with Vita Foam has been beneficial. And we are grateful.”

Thanking Vita Foam for its amazing gifts, Mrs. Aderonke Akande alongside her husband Mr. Olumide Akande, whose baby was born at 12:01am according to the hospital records, expressed profound gratitude to the organisations for such a happy New Year package. “I didn’t expect this. May God bless Vita Foam, the doctors and the nurses, who treated me so well.”

Other mothers are: Mrs. Oluwatoyin Oluwadamilare and Mrs. Salaudeen Saidat

T H I S D AY THURSDAY, JANUARY 5, 2017

38

HEALTH

HEALTH MATTERS

goketakinrogunde@gmail.com

By Goke T. Akinrogunde 07036777348; 07029126776

Coping with Low Back Pain

L

is to put a small pillow or something of that matter behind the lumbar region.

Individual sleep positions vary from person to person, but one basic component reigns true for everyone. Mattresses that are too hard or too soft will cause back pain. One should test different mattresses to find which one is comfortable for them. While sleeping, your spine should have an “S” shape (known as the neutral position) to it. A pillow under one’s knees while sleeping on their back or a pillow in between their knees while sleeping on their side are good ways in which to keep the back in the neutral position.

One of the most overlooked things in preventing lower back pain or injury is lifting. Never lift any objects too heavy for oneself. Ignoring this rule is a surefire way to an injury of one’s back and even a possible trip to the hospital. When lifting, one should keep the head up, the back straight and down, bend the knees and use the legs to push. Never stoop over to lift an object, and be sure to always keep the object close to oneself. Always, plan the best way to lift an object and do it slowly and carefully. Feet should be kept shoulder-width apart. Finally, set down the object carefully by bending with the knees and hips only.

ow back pain is a common musculoskeletal disorder estimated to have affected 4 out of 5 people at some point in their lives. In modern day work environment, it accounts for a number of work “absenteeism” and what is now recognized as recurrent “presenteeism”, which is a public health description of those who managed to come to their places of work but nevertheless are unable to perform their job schedules in spite of their presence at work.

Low back pain can either come as acute, subacute or chronic in duration. Most often, the symptoms of low back pain show significant improvement within a few weeks from onset with conservative measures.

So, what causes low back pain?

Most cases of lower back pain are due to ordinary musculoskeletal problems and are generally referred to as “non-specific low back pain”. These are generally believed to be due to a sprain or strain in the muscles of the back and the soft tissues, especially if the pain arose suddenly during physical load to the back, and the pain is to the side of the spine. The rate of serious causes is less than one per cent.

The lumbar region (or lower back region) is made up of five back bones (vertebrae) (L1-L5); the backbones from top downward house the spinal cord, which is an extension of the brain. In between these vertebrae lie fibrocartilage discs (intervertebral discs), which act as cushions, preventing the back bones from rubbing together while at the same time protecting the spinal cord. Nerves stem from the spinal cord through holes within the vertebra, providing muscles with sensations and movement associated messages. Stability of the spine is provided through ligaments and muscles of the back and lower back.

The lumbar region is the area of the spine that is also the source of most movement and flexibility, and is the support structure for much of a person’s body weight. Both factors often contribute to the onset of back pain, but the causes of lower back pain are varied. Most cases are believed to be due to a sprain or strain in the muscles and soft tissues of the back. Meaning that over activity of the muscles of the back can lead to an injured or torn ligament in the back which in turn leads to pain. An injury can also occur to one of the intervertebral discs (disc tear, disc herniation).

One thing to note also is that as the body ages, the spine also does. Due to aging, discs begin to diminish and shrink in size, resulting in vertebrae and facet joints rubbing against one another. Ligament and joint functionality also diminishes as one ages, leading to the vertebrae to move much more than they should. In the

Low back pain is preventable

vast majority of cases no noteworthy or serious cause is ever identified. Usually the pain resolves on its own after a few weeks.

How to avoid low back pain Low back pain is common and there are several steps one can take towards prevention. Although exercise may not relieve existing back pain, it is the first step to prevent lower back pain and injury. Exercise helps keep one’s back healthy and strong. Exercise routines such as aerobic conditioning, back stretching, back strengthening, and low impact activities (swimming, walking, bicycling) all helps prevent lower back pain and the return of it.

Maintaining good posture It is important to note that protecting ones back while sitting and standing is another key component of maintaining a healthy back.

Good posture is important because it decreases the amount of stress that is put on one’s back.

A good standing posture consists of having one’s ears, shoulders, hips, and knees all in line with one another. If one must stand for long periods of time, it is recommended to have something to rest one foot at a time on to alleviate back strain. While sitting, one should have a chair with good lumbar support. If the chair is not equipped with low back support

Treating low back pain For most people low back pain can be treated conservatively. Applying heat to the lower back provides temporary relief of acute low back pain.

Physical therapy is beneficial in recovering from a low back injury or low back pain. Treatments include electromyography, stretching, strength conditioning and cardiovascular exercise.

These days it is now realized that firm mattresses are less likely to lead to improvement when compared with a medium-firm mattress.

Short term use of over-the-counter pain and anti-inflammatory medications, such as NSAIDs (Ibuprofen, Piroxicam, Aspirin etc) or Paracetamol can help with the symptoms of lower back pain. However, these medications are not without risk; hence for persistent pain a medical practitioner should be consulted for apt assessment. In the same vein Muscle relaxants for acute and chronic pain have some benefit, however, there are concerns with side effects, and their routine use is discouraged.

Staying physically active as possible is recommended. Absolute bed rest is discouraged as not being helpful. Even when the pain is severe, some activity is still preferable to prolonged sitting or lying down, as long as it does not involve movements such as heavy lifting that would further strain the back.

Generally, for most patients with acute lower back pain recover completely over a few weeks regardless of treatments. This is especially so in individuals where lower back muscle strain or sprain is the cause of the pain.

One-on-One I Control My Hypertension with Lawn Tennis Your Piece on Hypertension Refers: Try constant lawn tennis session for one week. Get your BP checked again and you would see the difference.

I was on 220/120mmHg two years ago.

I went to USA, it was discovered that my cholesterol was high and was placed on drugs.

However, since I started the lawn tennis, my high blood pressure had been an old story as it is now 110/90mmHg. In fact, I have placed myself on drug holidays since 2011 and my blood pressure is still maintained within normal bracket.

Ndukwo

Dear Ndukwo, I quite agree with you that regular exercising goes a long way with controlling high blood pressure as well as being a very good tool for our body’s general wellbeing.

As I had mentioned in the piece on hypertension under reference, many factors are potential causes of high blood pressure, especially the common variant called essential or primary hypertension.

Essential HBP is the type of hypertension not related directly to other medical condition in the body; e.g. kidney conditions and adrenal gland diseases might lead to secondary hypertension.

One common reason why high blood

pressure might arise is overweight or recently add-on weight; hence with routine exercising and physical sporting activities, a sustained reduction in body weight might be achieved as well as corresponding decrease in blood pressure.

It is a research fact that an increase in body weight by as little as 10kg can increase the blood pressure by more than 10mmHg; hence it needs not be stressed that corresponding decrease in body weight would lead to blood pressure reduction.

As an emphasis, in as much as I agree with you on the aforementioned, I however disagree that for all cases of hypertension, regular physical sporting activities would

automatically replace other forms of therapy.

Hypertension control has its many technicalities; it is best to be under the guidance of a physician, who will not only monitor the blood pressure regularly, but also in the best position to tell when to reduce medication or in not very uncommon circumstances to stop medication wholesomely.

To do otherwise could result in worsened morbidity and avoidable fatality. This is my take on your experience and professional guide for all high blood pressure patients.

Best wishes.

39

T H I S D AY THURSDAY, JANUARY 5, 2017

HEALTH

Adewole, Saraki, Others 1% Basic Health Fund Can’t Cover Women, Children Research, Inaugurated as Vaccine Say Experts Champions Stories by Martins Ifijeh As part of efforts to lead vaccine financing campaigns and reduce the burden of diseases in Nigeria, the Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, wife of the Senate President, Mrs. Toyin Saraki, and eight other have been inaugurated as Vaccine Champions to achieve the task.

Inaugurating the champions, the Women Advocates for Vaccine Access, WAVA, said this would help sustain funding for vaccination in the country.

Other members of the team include the Emir of Shonga, Haliru Ndanusa Yahaya; Country Director, Johns Hopkins International Vaccine Access Center; Dr. Chizoba Wonodi; former Minister of State for Health, Dr. Ali Pate; and wife of the Kebbi State Governor, Dr. Zainab -Bagudu Other members include wife of Ogun State Governor, Mrs. Olufunso Amosun; Deputy Chairman, House Committee on Health Services, Hon. Muhammad Usman; IyalojaGeneral of Nigeria, Chief (Mrs.) FolasadeTinubu- Ojo; and Head of Stations, CoolWazobiaInfo, FCT, Mrs. Martha Ebele Yough.

Addressing newsmen, the Country Director, John Hopkins International Vaccines Access Centre, and National Coordinator, WAVA, Dr. Chizoba Wonodi, said members of the team were expected to give voice to the issues around immunisation programmes.

“We expect them to help solve the problems of sustainable funding of immunisation

because beginning from next year, the GAVI funding will start declining. And, Nigeria needs to invest more in immunisation programmes. They are going to ask for funding, they are also going to advocate for health workers and the health system to deliver vaccines to all children, everywhere, regardless of where they are born, regardless of their socioeconomic status.”

She said there was need for government to commit more funds into vaccination in the country, despite economic recession facing the country.

Her words: “I think that that is even the best thing to do because if you consider the alternatives, if there is no vaccination and children get sick, it actually costs more to treat illnesses and diseases that will come out of not being vaccinated.”

She also assured of adequate vaccine in the country. “There has been no stock out of the routine vaccines in the last two years; government is doing a great job. Why we are setting up this process is to ring the alarm, to warn that there is a funding clip coming up beginning from 2017 when the funding from GAVI is going to start declining. We need to have our plans in place, we need to know how we are going to replace the money that is leaving from GAVI. We need to know how we are going to fund the addition of new vaccines that are going into the programme. So, that is why this is really important at this point in time,” she said.

Kuni Tyessi, in Abuja New research has concluded the Basic Health Care Provision Fund at its current level of financing will not assure universal health coverage for pregnant women and children.

The Fund, built into the National Health Act, stipulates at least 1 per cent of consolidated revenue be set aside to pay for a package of basic health.

But researchers at the Health

Policy Research Group (HPRG) based in University of Nigeria examined the Fund’s feasibility using six scenarios providing basic minimum of care in test states of Imo, Kaduna and Niger, and concluded the Fund would need to be increased at least fourfold to make a difference.

“What we discovered is that in reality, the money is actually too small,” said Dr Felix Obi, a researcher with HPRG. “If we

focus only on 1 per cent, we might not be able to achieve universal health coverage.”

He said the finding underscores need to seek more funding sources.

“Even though we are going through recession, government would have to look for alternative ways. Reducing funding to healthcare will not be to our benefit,” said Obi. “Various funding scenarios show the inadequacy of avail-

able funds to meet the needs of the target beneficiaries,” the researchers, led by Prof. Obinna Onwujekwe, reported, adding, “The funds are not enough to cover all potential pregnant women in each state, assuming that the basic minimum benefit package covers only pregnant women, even using 100 per cent of the Fund. The only feasible option is funding of only child services utilising at least 70 per cent of the Fund.”

L-R: Deputy Managing Director, Society for Family Health (SFH), Dr. Jennifer Anyanti; Managing Director SFH, Bright Ekweremadu; and Assistant Inspector General of Police (Rtd), Dr. Grace Okudo, at the Family Planning Final Dissemination programme held in Abuja ...recently

RCCG Delivers New PHC to FrieslandCampina WAMCO LAWG Urges LGs to Release Ogun Community Marks Four Years without Lost Regular Funds for Family In a bid to provide succour to a borehole and full staff of the health needs of the people of Magboro community in Ogun State, the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), has delivered a Primary Health Centre to the community.

The PHC, which is the first in Magboro community, was inaugurated by the wife of the General Overseer of RCCG, Mrs. Folu Adeboye, who said the facility would serve the people’s demand for better healthcare and will be funded by RCCG as part of it corporate social responsibility.

Mrs. Adeboye noted that the health centre was not only built for Christians in the community but for everybody regardless of differences in religious and cultural background.

She urged the residents to have an attitude of gratitude, saying it was also important they protected the facility.

“We must not allow religious discrimination. Let us not say the hospital was built by Christians and then we stay away from it. Let us realise that whatever God does, it is for everybody. Whether you are a Christian or a Muslim, let us live together in peace. Let us provide adequate security for the facility and protect it from vandalism,” she added.

The facility, named Stillwaters Hospital, is equipped with an X-ray centre, a laboratory,

doctors and nurses.

Speaking during the inauguration, the Assistant Pastor in charge of Province 2, heading the corporate social responsibility department, Pastor Tope Abe, revealed that apart from the fact that health facilities were needed in every community, early last year when the church visited the community for medical outreach, the crowd helped the church to spot the demand of the community.

“We as a church have the mandate to go around the world and be a blessing to communities we find ourselves and that is what we have done here. Early last year, we were in this community for a medical outreach and we saw the crowd and we knew their demand.

Thank God today we are inaugurating a PHC,” he said.

Pastor in charge of Lagos Province 2, Yemi Lebi, while addressing the press, explained that RCCG did not build the health centre to generate income, rather to give employment opportunities and serve the healthcare needs of the community through subsidised payments.

Lebi pointed out that the health centre was just one of the projects the church was looking into, but there were other projects to be unveiled as time unfolds.

Time Accident

FrieslandCampina WAMCO Nigeria Plc ended last year with a new record in safety, health and environmental performance, recording four years without Lost Time Accident (LTA).

Speaking in Lagos at an occasion marking the achievement, the Managing Director, FrieslandCampina WAMCO Nigeria, Mr. Rahul Colaco, said “People don’t wake up in the morning expecting to get hurt. In FrieslandCampina, we believe nobody should be injured while at work. That is why ‘Zero Accident’ is one of our company’s 4-Zero KPI’s (Zero Accident, Zero Quality Defect, Zero Lost Sales and Zero Waste).

“Zero Accident ensures that everyone working for FrieslandCampina, including our suppliers and visitors, return home safely and unharmed. This campaign is focused on simulating the right safety behaviour where safety values drive continuous improvement,” Colaco noted.

In addition to Zero Accident, FrieslandCampina WAMCO reduces cost of operations and impact on the environment with Zero Waste, using the 3R’s - reduce, reuse and

Planning Consumables

recycle. Separation and segregation of waste (paper, nylon, food waste, plastic) from source has substantially reduced waste, which is then evacuated for recycling by LAWMA-approved third parties.

In September, the dairy giant was awarded ‘Company of the Year’ at the Nigerian Safety Awards for Excellence - a platform that celebrates exceptional corporate initiatives that promote Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) best practices in the workplace.

FrieslandCampina WAMCO Nigeria PLC also celebrated its ‘Safety Day’ with an update of its safety records board, a fitness walk, in-house safety contest and vehicular safety campaign by the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC).

FrieslandCampina’s first life-saving rule is: “I am safe.”

Corporate Affairs Director, Ore Famurewa, explained: “It is only through this approach that we will continue to succeed in setting safety records.

As a company, we believe that if we are successful in working safely, we will be successful in all other areas as well and our consumers and business partners will also be safe.”

In order to ensure that family planning services and consumables are free at the local government level, The Lagos State Advocacy Working Group (LAWG), has urged the Sole Administrators of Local governments to make available and release regularly, a monthly imperest for family planning (FP) consumables at the Primary Health Centres.

The group made the call during their last review meeting held in collaboration with Nigerian Urban Reproductive Health Initiative (NURHI), in Lagos.

The group noted that family planning consumables are now free at the secondary facilities while some Primary Health Centres (PHCs), have also started making FP consumables free.

According to the group’s Chairperson, Barr. Ayo Adebusoye, this improvement is partly due to their many advocacy visits to some of the Local Council Development Area (LCDAS) Sole Administrators, requesting for imprest for FP consumable.

“As a result of these visits, some of the sole administrators have started releasing monthly impress for FP consumables while others have made

promise to release fund.

This means that soon FP consumables will become free at the LG level. Also, women should know now that at the Lagos State secondary facilities like the general hospitals, FP consumables are now free, according to a statement by the permanent secretary health service commission, the medical directors have started ensuring that this is put in place. This is a big step in improving the uptake of family planning in the state,” he said.

While commending the LAWG team for their effort, NURHI-Lagos Programme Officer, Prince Adewale Haastrup, admonished them not to rest on their oar. He said there was need to follow up on the Sole Administrators and medical officers of health (MOH) at the local government to ensure that the funds are released regularly as promised.

“Although FP commodities are free in all the state health facilities, the FP consumables have not been free at the PHCs and this has hindered many women from accessing the service. From the first quarter of this year, we will be holding town hall meeting to sensitise the local government on family planning services,” he noted.

40

THURSDAY JANUARY 5, 2017 ˾ T H I S D AY

INTERNATIONAL

email:foreigndesk@thisdaylive.com

I’m Alive and Well, Says Gambia’s President-elect, Barrow Nigeria pledges to ensure Jammeh hands over peacefully Contrary to media reports, Gambia’s president-elect, Mr. Adama Barrow, yesterday said he was hale and hearty.

CBN Television, Banjul had earlier reported that Barrow was murdered by that unknown assailants who overpowered his security guards, leaving two dead and six others injured from gunshots.

However, a tweet from his official handle, @adama_barrow, said he’s alive and well. “We would like to inform you that the President-elect is alive and well. #Gambia,” it read.

His rumoured death, according to PM News, is coming few days after he referred to the country’s constitution that a court action taken by supposed outgoing President Yahya Jammeh cannot prevent the winner of the poll from assuming office as mandated by the constitution.

“It should be crystal clear that filing an election petition is the private matter of a loser in an election. It does not prevent mandatory constitutional processes from taking place.

“The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the African Union and the United Nations could only intervene if the two presidents fail to do, with impeccable thoroughness, what the constitution of the republic demands,” Barrow, who vowed to take office on January 19 despite the refusal of Jammeh to give up power, had stated.

Meanwhile, Nigeria’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Geoffrey

Onyeama, has said his country will do everything possible to help The Gambia have a peaceful resolution to its political crisis.

Mr. Onyeama stated this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja.

The minister expressed optimism that the Gambian President Yahya Jammeh would listen to the voice of his people to resolve the political impasse in his country.

Earlier, Gambia’s army chief, General Ousman Badjie, had reaffirmed his loyalty to embattled President Yahya Jammeh, as the deadline given by the West African regional bloc, ECOWAS gets closer.

“May I please seize this opportunity to renew to your Excellency the assurance of the unflinching loyalty and support of the Gambia Armed Forces,” General Badjie had written in a letter to Jammeh published today in a pro-government newspaper.

The Gambian leader had accused West African regional body, ECOWAS, of declaring war against his country, when he was asked to step down for a democratically elected president.

Mr. Jammeh spoke in reaction to a statement by the ECOWAS Commission President that the regional body had put forces on alert should the Gambian leader refuse to voluntarily quit after losing presidential elections.

Mr. Jammeh lost the December 1, 2016 election to rival Adama Barrow. He initially accepted the result and congratulated Mr. Barrow, but later recanted saying

he would not step down.

The Gambian leader, who has been in power for 22 years, also promised to defend Gambia against any outside aggression in a New Year speech broadcast on state TV. Mr. Onyeama expressed belief that in spite of the Gambian leader’s stance, Mr. Jammeh would honour the call of the ECOWAS leaders to bow out of office at the end of his mandate on January 19.

“We will like to believe that he will listen to the voice of his peers in the sub region ECOWAS. “And that he will also listen to the voice of his people but above all he will follow the democratic path. So, we will do everything possible to bring that about.

“Essentially, we want a peaceful resolution to the issue, you know we have experienced conflict in our country and we know how far back in development conflict can take a country to.

“So we will do everything possible to help Gambia have a peaceful resolution to this political crisis,” the minister said.

President Muhammadu Buhari, who is heading a mediation committee on the Gambia’s political impasse, had led other West African leaders to meet with Messrs. Jammeh and Barrow on the issue.

Other leaders in the ECOWAS delegation were Presidents Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf of Liberia, Ernest Koroma of Sierra Leone, and John Mahama of Ghana.

The leaders appealed to Mr. Jammeh to leave office and also reportedly sought a ‘honourable exit’ for him. The exit would ensure that he is not tried for various human rights crimes he is alleged to have committed while in office.

However, in spite of the visit, Mr. Jammeh remained defiant.

Marcel de Souza, ECOWAS Commission President, said last

week that the body had put standby forces on alert. Most of the forces would be Senegalese they be required, he said In his speech on New Year Day, Mr. Jammeh decried the resolution of ECOWAS on the current situation to implement the results of December 1, 2016 presidential election by whatever means possible. “It is in effect a declaration of war and an insult to our constitution. “Let me make it very clear that we are ready to defend this country against any aggression,” he said.

West African regional bloc ECOWAS has placed standby forces on alert in case Jammeh attempts to stay in power after his mandate ends on Jan. 19.

Jammeh has called the bloc’s stance “a declaration of war”.

Many Gambians, who have lived through 22 years of Jammeh’s increasingly authoritarian rule, were

stunned when the elections commission declared opposition figure Adama Barrow the winner of last month’s election. Jammeh’s initial acceptance of the result sparked nationwide celebrations.

Badjie declared his allegiance to Barrow soon after the poll results were announced, according to a spokesman for the president-elect.

However his position remained unclear following Jammeh’s dramatic about-face.

In an illustration of the growing pressure on Gambian officials as the Jan. 19 deadline looms, Alieu Momarr Njai, the head of the elections commission, fled Gambia on Friday due to fears for his security, family members said.

Last month Gambian security forces seized control of the commission’s headquarters, which holds the original poll records and told staff, including Njai, to leave.

I Stand by Jammeh, Gambian Army Chief Declares General Ousman Badjie, Gambia’s army chief has reaffirmed his loyalty to embattled President Yahya Jammeh, as the deadline given by the West African regional bloc, ECOWAS gets closer.

“May I please seize this opportunity to renew to your Eexcellency the assurance of the unflinching loyalty and support of the Gambia Armed Forces,” General Badjie wrote in a letter to Jammeh published yesterday in a pro-government newspaper, reported AFP. Jammeh initially accepted his defeat in the December 1 election but a week later, reversed his position, vowing to hang onto power despite a wave of regional and international condemnation.

West African regional bloc ECOWAS has placed standby forces on alert in case Jammeh attempts to stay in power after his mandate ends on Janaury 19.

Jammeh has called the bloc’s stance “a declaration of war.”

Many Gambians, who have lived through 22 years of Jammeh’s increasingly authoritarian rule, were stunned when the elections commission declared opposition figure Adama Barrow the winner of last month’s election.

Jammeh’s initial acceptance of the result sparked nationwide celebrations.

Badjie declared his allegiance to

Barrow soon after the poll results were announced, according to a spokesman for the president-elect.

However, his position remained unclear following Jammeh’s dramatic about-face.

In an illustration of the growing pressure on Gambian officials as the January 19 deadline looms, Alieu Momarr Njai, the head of the elections commission, fled Gambia last Friday due to fears for his security, family members said.

Last month Gambian security forces seized control of the commission’s headquarters, which holds the original poll records and told staff, including Njai, to leave.

Lastweekend, Gambian security agents closed three private radio stations, making it harder for the incoming government to communicate with its supporters.

“It is a sign of weakness for any side of the political spectrum to resort to media closures rather than engagement to put one’s position across,” Barrow’s office said yesterday in a statement that also called for the release of detainees.

Leaders of ECOWAS member nations have dismissed Jammeh’s move to challenge his election defeat before Gambia’s Supreme Court on January 10 and say they will attend Barrow’s swearing-in this month.

Sgt Elor Azaria’s family said the court had ignored evidence proving he was innocent

ExxonMobil, Tillerson Reach Agreement to Comply with Conflict of Interest Requirements Ejiofor Alike ExxonMobil Corporation, represented by its board of directors, has reached an agreement with former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the company, Rex W. Tillerson, to sever all ties with the company to comply with conflict-of-interest requirements associated with his nomination as US Secretary of State.

United States’ President-elect Donald Trump had announced the nomination of Tillerson, for the post of the Secretary of State.

Trump had promised that Tillerson, who reportedly has deep ties to Russia, and a personal friend with Vladimir Putin, has “second to none” relationships with world leaders.

If confirmed by the US Senate, Tillerson, who has spent his entire professional career at ExxonMobil,

would be the first secretary of state without any government or military experience in American history.

The Irving, Texas-based company said in a statement that under the agreement, which was developed in consultation with federal ethics regulators, “if Tillerson is confirmed as secretary of state, the value of more than two million deferred ExxonMobil shares that he would have received over the next 10 years would be transferred to an independently managed trust and the ExxonMobil share awards would be cancelled”.

In addition to the agreement with ExxonMobil, Tillerson has also committed to the State Department that, if confirmed, he would sell the more than 600,000 shares in ExxonMobil he currently owns.

The net effect of the agreement,

according to the statement by the company, is a reduction of approximately $7 million in compensation owed to Tillerson, who retired on December 31, 2016, with more than 40 years of service with ExxonMobil.

According to the statement, the trust would be prohibited from investing in ExxonMobil and the trustee would manage the assets consistent with government ethics rules.

The agreement also provides that payments to Tillerson from the trust would be subject to the same 10-year schedule that the cancelled awards would have had if they had continued in place.

Under the agreement, Tillerson would also surrender entitlement to more than $4.1 million in cash bonuses, scheduled to pay out over the next three years, and other benefits such as retiree medical and

dental benefits, and administrative, financial and tax support.

“The one-time payment to the trust would be equal to the value of Tillerson’s cancelled shares based on a volume-weighted average price per share. Consistent with guidance from federal ethics regulators, the value would be reduced by about $3 million,” the statement said.

The trust would include forfeiture rules that would prohibit Tillerson from working in the oil and/or gas industry during the 10-year payout period.

“The trust rules dictate that in the event of forfeiture, the money would be distributed to one or more charities involved in fighting poverty or disease in the developing world. Neither Tillerson nor ExxonMobil would have any control over the selection of the charities,” the statement added.

41

THURSDAY JANUARY 5, 2017 ˾ T H I S D AY

INTERNATIONAL

Israeli Soldier Elor Azaria Convicted over Hebron Death An Israeli soldier filmed shooting dead a wounded Palestinian attacker after he had been disarmed of a knife has been convicted of manslaughter.

Sgt Elor Azaria, 20, shot Abdul Fatah al-Sharif, 21, in the head while he was lying immobile on a road.

The incident happened in Hebron in the occupied West Bank last March, after another soldier was stabbed.

Sgt Azaria said he thought Sharif might have an explosive vest, but prosecutors said his motive was revenge.

The high-profile trial has proven extremely divisive in Israel, says the BBC’s Yolande Knell in Tel Aviv.

There have been rallies to support the soldier and some senior politicians backed Sgt Azaria. However, top military figures were quick to say that his actions did not reflect the values of the Israel Defence Forces (IDF).

In the incident on 24 March, Sharif and another 21-year-old Palestinian, Ramzi Aziz al-Qasrawi, stabbed and wounded an Israeli soldier before troops opened fire on them, wounding Sharif and killing Qasrawi.

Footage of the scene several minutes later, filmed by a Palestinian and released by the Israeli human rights group B’Tselem, shows Sharif alive.

A soldier, identified as Sgt Azaria, is then seen cocking his rifle and fatally shooting Sharif from several metres away.

In their indictment, prosecutors said Sgt Azaria “violated the rules of engagement without operational justification as the terrorist was lying on the ground wounded and represented no immediate threat for the accused or others who were present”.

Delivering the verdict on Wednesday, the panel of three military judges rejected Sgt Azaria’s defence that he shot Sharif because he continued to pose a threat.

He had told the court that he believed there might be a suicide belt under the Palestinian’s jacket.

The judges, who took twoand-a-half hours to deliver their verdict, noted that Sgt Azaria’s commanders had testified that he did not mention the same concerns when they questioned him immediately after the shooting incident.

The judges also said there was no dispute regarding the veracity of the statements made by another soldier, who testified to military investigators that Sgt Azaria had told him during the incident: “They stabbed my friend and tried to kill him - he deserves to die.”

Sgt Azaria told the court that he did not recall having any such conversation, but the head of the judging panel, Col Maya Heller, described him as an “unreliable witness”.

“His motive for shooting was that he felt the terrorist deserved to die,” she said.

Prosecutor Lt Col Nadav Weissman said: “This is not a happy day for us. We would have preferred that this didn’t happen.

But the deed was done, and the offence was severe.”

A spokesman for Sgt Azaria’s family said evidence proving his innocence had been ignored. “It was like the court was detached from the fact that this was the area of an attack,” he said.

The soldier’s mother, Oshra, shouted at the judges: “You should be ashamed of yourselves.”

The defence team has said it will appeal against the verdict.

Sentencing is expected in the

next few weeks. Manslaughter in Israel carries a maximum 20-year term.

Sharif’s father Yusri was quoted as saying Sgt Azaria deserved a life sentence. Sharif’s uncle, Fathi, told Haaretz that the decision to try him for manslaughter rather than murder was “a perversion of justice and of the court”.

But a right-wing member of the governing coalition, Naftali Bennett, has called for an immediate pardon for the soldier.

The final decision lies with President Reuven Rivlin, who said in a statement that he would only deal with the issue once the judicial process had run its course.

Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman, who expressed support for Sgt Azaria before taking office in May, said the verdict was “difficult” and that the defence establishment would “do everything it can to assist the soldier and his family”.

But he also called on the public to respect the court’s decision.

Sari Bashi, Israel advocacy director at Human Rights Watch, described the verdict as “a positive step toward reining in excessive use of force by Israeli soldiers against Palestinians”.

The shooting happened during a wave of knife, gun and vehicle ramming attacks by Palestinians or Israeli Arabs in Israel and the West Bank that has killed at least 42 people since September 2015, according to the Israeli authorities.

Human Rights Watch said on Monday that video footage or witness accounts raised serious questions about many of the more than 150 instances in which Israeli forces have fatally shot Palestinians during attacks or attempted attacks on Israelis.

Donald Trump Backs Julian Assange over Russia Hacking Claim President-elect Donald Trump has backed Wikileaks founder Julian Assange in casting doubt on intelligence alleging Russian meddling in the US election.

Mr Assange said Russia was not the source for the site’s mass leak of emails from the Democratic Party.

Mr Trump has now backed that view in a tweet. He wrote: “Assange... said Russians did not give him the info!”

The president-elect has repeatedly refused to accept the conclusions of the US intelligence community.

Several US agencies including the FBI and the CIA believe Russia directed hacks against the Democratic Party and the campaign of its presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.

The information, released through Wikileaks and other outlets, was intended to help Mr Trump win the election, say the FBI and CIA. On Tuesday evening, Mr Trump said an intelligence briefing he was due to receive on the issue had been delayed.

“Perhaps more time needed to build a case. Very strange!”

he wrote.

But US intelligence officials insisted there had been no delay in the briefing schedule.

In an interview with Fox News, Mr Assange repeated his claim that Russia was not behind the leak.

He also said a 14-year-old boy could have carried out one of the hacks, on the email account of John Podesta, a top aide of Mrs Clinton.

In 2010, several leading Republican figures were calling for the Wikileaks founder to be imprisoned after his website published thousands of embarrassing diplomatic cables leaked by former Army Pte Chelsea Manning.

Mr Trump tweeted twice on Wednesday morning in support of what Mr Assange said on Fox News.

In another development, Mr Trump’s pick for secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, has agreed he will cut all ties with Exxon Mobil and comply with conflict-of-interest requirements. He departs with a $180m retirement package.

Meanwhile, Republicans have ditched a plan to gut the independent body that investigates political

misconduct after a backlash.

The lawmakers’ surprise vote to strip the Office of Congressional Ethics of its independence prompted public uproar and a dressing down from Mr Trump on Twitter.

The secretive move, which overshadowed the first day of the 115th Congress, was reversed in an emergency meeting.

The ethics body was set up in 2008 following a slew of scandals that resulted in several House lawmakers being jailed.

Mr Trump made cleaning up corruption in Washington a key theme of his campaign.

Republican Speaker of the House Paul Ryan had argued unsuccessfully against the rule change, which was adopted on Monday night in a closed-door meeting.

As the news spread, internet searches for “who is my representative” rocketed, according to Google Trends, and constituents tried to call and email lawmakers to object.

House Republicans called an emergency meeting and abruptly voted to undo the change.

42

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍłËœ 2017

BUSINESS/MONEYGUIDE

Stock Market Sheds 1.4% in Two Days on Profit Taking Obinna Chima The Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) stood at 52 index points in December 2016, indicating expansion in the manufacturing sector during the review period. The index had recorded decline in the preceding 11 months.

The report showed that production level, new orders, and raw material inventories expanded from contraction; employment level declined slower; but supplier delivery time worsened from improving December 2016.

The report posted on the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) website showed that eight of the 16 sub-sectors surveyed recorded expansion in the review month in the following order: cement; food, beverage & tobacco products; textile, apparel, leather & footwear; plastics & rubber products; paper products; appliances

& components; chemical & pharmaceutical products; and furniture & related products.

The fabricated metal products sub-sector remained unchanged, while the remaining seven sub-sectors declined in the order: computer and electronic products; electrical equipment; primary metal; transportation equipment; petroleum and coal products; printing and related support activities; and nonmetallic mineral products.

Also, at 57.6 index points, the production level index for manufacturing sector indicated the sector expanded in the review period, compared to the decline recorded in the preceding eleven months.

Five manufacturing sub-sectors recorded growth in production level during the review month in the following order: cement; food, beverage and tobacco products; electrical equipment; plastics and rubber products; and textile, apparel, leather and

footwear.

Furthermore, the appliances and components sub-sector remained unchanged, while the remaining 10 sub-sectors declined in the review period in the order: primary metal; petroleum and coal products; computer and electronic products; transportation equipment; furniture and related products; fabricated metal products; non-metallic mineral products; paper products; chemical and pharmaceutical products; and printing and related support activities.

At 51.8 points, the new orders index showed expansion in new orders after eleven months of contraction. It stood at 45.1 in November 2016. The five subsectors that recorded expansion in new orders were: cement; food, beverage & tobacco products; textile, apparel, leather and footwear; paper products; and fabricated metal products.

CBN to Punish Violators of Anchor Borrowers’ Scheme James Emejo Ă“Ă˜ ĂŒĂ&#x;ÔË The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) yesterday issued guidelines for the implementation of its Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (ABP), listing far-reaching sanctions for any violations by all stakeholders.

The ABP, a brainchild of the apex bank was launched by President Muhammadu Buhari on November 17, 2015 to create a linkage between anchor companies involved in the processing and small holder farmers (SHFs) of the required key agricultural commodities.

The thrust of the scheme is

to provide farm inputs in kind and cash (for farm labour) to small holder farmers to boost production of these commodities, stabilize inputs supply to agro processors and address the country’s negative balance of payments on food.

Essentially, the broad objective of the ABP is to create economic linkage between smallholder farmers and reputable largescale processors with a view to increasing agricultural output and significantly improving capacity utilization of processors among others. However, the new guidelines, posted on the CBN website detailed sanctions

for any attempt by stakeholders including Participating Financial Institutions (PFIs); Anchor; Small Holder Farmers (SHF) and Project Monitoring Team (PMT) to undermine the objective of the programme.

Specifically, any PFI involved in the diversion of funds to unauthorised activities would cause the amount diverted to be recovered by the CBN while a penalty charge at the maximum lending rate of the PFI on the amount diverted would apply.

Such PFI also faces outright ban from participating under other CBN Interventions following another infraction.

Tanzania’s Current Account Gap Narrows 61.6% Tanzania’s current account deficit shrank by 61.6 per cent as at the end of October, 2016 helped by a decline in imports and improved performances by the tourism and mining sectors, the central bank said on Wednesday. The gap narrowed to $1.84 billion in the 12 months to October from $4.79 billion in the same period last year.

In its monthly economic report, the Bank of Tanzania attributed the change to a fall in imports of goods and services to $10.69 billion from $13.23 billion and a 7.5 percent rise

in goods and services exports to $9.47 billion.

According to Reuters, the East African country generates most of its foreign earnings from tourism and gold exports, both of which increased in the year to October from the same period a year before.

Tourism revenues grew to $2.22 billion from $2.01 billion as more visitors arrived, while gold exports rose to $1.39 billion from $1.18 billion on higher volumes and global prices. Tanzania is Africa’s fourth-largest gold

producer. Export earnings from manufactured goods fell to $1.25 billion in the year to October from $1.31 billion a year before, while the value of traditional exports led by tobacco, cashew nuts and coffee rose to $849.9 million from $837.9 million. “Gross official foreign exchange reserves held by the central bank in the year to October amounted to $4.05 billion, or about four months of import cover, in line with the government’s target,� the central bank said.

Ghana’s Q3 GDP Growth Rises to 4% Ghana’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth in the third quarter of 2016 rose to four per cent year-on-year, up from 3.6 per cent a year ago due to increased oil production, the statistics office said on Wednesday.

Reuters reported that for years Ghana’s economy grew at eight per cent annually on the back of its gold, oil and cocoa exports.

But it has slowed sharply since 2013, in part because of lower global commodities prices.

We saw the resumption of oil production from the Jubilee field ... and this contributed to the increase in GDP for the quarter,� acting government statistician

Baah Wadieh said, adding that the start of oil from the TEN Field also boosted growth.

The growth is subject to slight changes as the statistics office agrees on a final number.

The government of outgoing President John Mahama set a full year 2016 GDP target of 4.1 percent and said growth would jump to around 8 per cent next year as new offshore oil and gas comes on stream.

Mahama lost a December 7, 2016 election to Nana AkufoAddo, who will take power next month. Many voters said they chose the opposition because of dissatisfaction with the government’s economic record,

particularly on unemployment and inflation.

Akufo-Addo’s New Patriotic Party said it aimed to achieve double digit growth for every year of its four-year rule. The current government said the economy was hurt by a fall in global prices for the country’s gold and oil exports. Ghana is following an International Monetary Fund programme to reduce inflation and the deficit and restore fiscal balance.

Ghana’s producer price inflation, a major component of consumer inflation, rose to 11.9 percent year-on-year in November, from a revised 9.7 percent the month before.

MARKET INDICATORS MONEY AND CREDIT STATISTICS

(MILLION NAIRA)

JUNE 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

2,893,190.01

---- 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 Ëž Ă™Ă&#x;ĂœĂ?Ă? Ě‹

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 % )

Ëž Ă™Ă˜Ă?ĂžĂ‹ĂœĂŁ ÙÖÓĂ?ĂŁ Ă‹ĂžĂ? Ě‹ ͯͲϹ

OPEC DAILY BASKET PRICE AS AT WEDNESDAY 21, DECEMBER 2016 The price of OPEC basket of fourteen crudes stood at $52.25 a barrel on Wednesday, compared with $51.99 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

44

T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍłËœ 2017

MARKET NEWS

Market Sheds 1.4% in Two Days on ProďŹ t Taking Goddy Egene and Nosa Alekhuogie The Nigerian equities market has shed 1.41 per cent in the first two trading days of 2017r as some investors lock in profits while others await government’s economic policy direction for year.

The market was highly bullish in the last weeks of the 2016 on the back of activities of

bargain hunters who swooped on highly discounted stocks.

However, the year-end gains were not enough to reverse the losses recorded earlier in the year. Consequently, the market closed 2016 with a decline of 6.17 per cent.

But as the New Year commenced, investors have been taking profits and this has dragged the market down by 1.41 per cent in two days. The

T H E

Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) All-Share Index (NSE) ASI went down by 0.46 per cent yesterday to close at 26,495.04. Similarly, market capitalization shed N41.9 billion to close at N9.1 trillion.

A total of 17 stocks declined while 14 stocks appreciated.

Commenting on the performance, analysts at Meristem Securities Limited said: “The performance can be ascribed to profit taking activities on some

N I G E R I A N

counters that rallied towards the close of the prior year.

For the rest of the week, we expect a continuation of today’s trend, hence, we posit that the market may close the week on a negative note.�

Ashaka Cement Plc, which is on the process of being delisted, led the price losers with 4.9 per cent, followed by Guaranty Trust Bank Plc with 4.5 per cent, just as Diamond Bank

S T O C K

Plc declined by 4.4 per cent.

Cement Company of Northern Nigeria Plc and Oando Plc shed 4.2 per cent and 3.8 per cent respectively.

On the positive side, Vitafoam Nigeria Plc led the price gainers with an appreciation of 4.9 per cent. Livestock Feeds Plc and UACN Property Development Company Plc garnered 4.7 per cent apiece.

The Managing Director of

E X C H A N G E

Vitafoam Nigeria Plc, Mr. Taiwo Adeniyi early this week unfolded new strategic focus for optimum operation under recession and assured the shareholdersof payment of dividend for the 2016 financial year.

Adeniyi expressed optimism that his company’s board and management had learnt how to operate profitably under recession.

45

Ëœ Í˝Ëœ ͺ͸͚Ϳ Ëž T H I S D AY

MARKET NEWS

Vetiva Fund Managers to Rebalance Exchange Traded Funds Suite Goddy Egene Vetiva Fund Managers Limited yesterday said it would rebalance  its Exchange  Traded Fund (ETF) suite. Vetiva Fund Managers Limited has funds that track the price and yield performance of the various indices in the market. But the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) has rebalanced the indices effective January 3, 2017.

Vetiva said in line with

the action of the NSE, it will also make adjustment to its ETF suite. “As the investment objective of the Vetiva ETF Suite is to track the price and yield performance of the relevant indices, any change to the underlying indices will require the ETF Trusts to make corresponding adjustments to the portfolios on rebalancing in line with the changes to the relevant indices. The key changes

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

include, but are not limited to, the exiting of Diamond Bank Plc, Fidelity Bank Plc, Sterling Bank Plc from the Vetiva Griffin 30 ETF portfolio. Also, relevant weightings adjustments will be made to portfolios in line with the review of the relevant indices,� the firm said.

The NSE reviewed the NSE-30; NSE Consumer Goods; NSE Banking; NSE Insurance;Â NSE Industrial; NSE Oil & Gas; NSE Pension

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 03-Jan-2017, unless otherwise stated.

and the NSE Lotus Islamic Indices.

These indices are normally reviewed bi-annually (June and December) except for NSE Pension index that is reviewed once in the year (December).

The review process will see the entry of some major companies and the exit of others from the various indices.

Following the latest review for last December,Â

three new stocks came into the NSE 30 Index and three exited. Okomu Oil Palm Plc, Presco Plc and Conoil Plc came while Diamond Bank Plc, Sterling Bank Plc and Fidelity Bank Plc exited.

There were no changes in the NSE Consumer Goods and NSE Banking, NSE Industrial, and NSE Oil/ Gas indices.

The NSE Insurance Index saw the entry of Prestige Assurance Plc, Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc and

Unity Kapital Insurance Plc, just as Equity Assurance Plc, Linkage Assurance Plc and Universal Assurance Plc exited.

Ecobank Transnational Incorporated, Dangote Flour Mills Plc, United Capital Plc joined NSE Pension Index, while Beta Glass Company Plc, International Breweries Plc and Skye Bank Plc left.

Forte Oil Plc entered the NSE Lotus Islamic Index, while Lafarge Africa Plc exited.

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 126.02 Nigeria International Debt Fund 213.89 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 0.69 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 127.13 -0.59% 215.40 0.47% info@acapng.com Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn 0.70 12.54% ammf@aiicocapital.com Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

100.00

17.32%

enquiries@arminvestmentcenter.com Bid Price 12.51 290.95 22.57

Offer Price 12.88 299.72 23.25

Yield / T-Rtn 2.63% 4.10% 2.35%

1.00

1.00

17.06%

investmentcare@axamansard.com Bid Price 105.71

Offer Price 106.45

Yield / T-Rtn 6.08%

1.00 1.00 15.69% investmentmanagement@chapelhilldenham.com Bid Price 2.14 9.19 83.57

Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn 2.20 0.93% 9.43 0.65% 85.71 1.14% invest@fbnquest.com

Bid Price 1,089.90 111.55 100.00 $103.79 $103.05

Offer Price 1,091.10 112.33 100.00 $104.50 $103.79

Yield / T-Rtn 6.24% 5.83% 15.34% 7.59% 6.86%

114.17

13.41%

112.64

fcamhelpdesk@fcmb.com

LOTUS CAPITAL LTD ďŹ ncon@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 1.00 1.02 0.13% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 1,011.19 1,011.19 0.13% 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 9.58 9.67 -0.81% Meristem Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 14.98% 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 1.05 1.07 6.76% PACAM Fixed Income Fund 10.37 10.47 4.19% PACAM Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 15.09% 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 109.19 109.96 7.18% 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 1.25 1.25 10.28% 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 1,837.83 1,848.06 0.36% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 154.39 154.39 0.28% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 0.77 0.78 0.65% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 187.43 187.43 0.29% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 131.51 133.25 1.31% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 17.41% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 7,570.33 7,668.98 -0.10% 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 1.12 1.13 7.13% United Capital Bond Fund 1.23 1.23 17.13% United Capital Equity Fund 0.67 0.69 1.89% 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 9.85 10.03 3.19% Zenith Ethical Fund 11.13 11.24 -2.78% Zenith Income Fund 17.16 17.16 6.96%

REITS Bid Price 0.92 2.58

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Coral Income Fund 2,104.26 INVESTMENT ONE FUNDS MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.investment-one.com; Tel: +234 812 992 1045,+234 1 448 8888 Fund Name Bid Price

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2,104.26 11.21% enquiries@investment-one.com Offer Price

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1.00

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1.68

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11.58 123.97

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8.78 75.59

8.88 76.97

0.00% -0.27%

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 GrifďŹ n 30 Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Industrial Goods Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva S&P Nigeria Sovereign Bond Exchange Traded Fund

funds@vetiva.com Bid Price

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2.72 7.09 12.23 15.85 129.88

2.76 7.17 12.33 16.05 131.88

18.88% 10.89% -1.35% -17.40% -

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.

46

THURSDAY JANUARY 5, 2017 ˾ T H I S D AY

NEWSEXTRA

We’re behind Buhari, Tinubu, Says Kogi APC Party berates group over statement on ministerial nominee The Kogi State All Progressives congress yesterday lashed out at those behind the report purportedly credited to the state wing of the party which disparaged Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

The masterminds were described as fifth columnists in the party, who lacked the locus standi to speak for it but out to cause disharmony among members.

In the report, the leadership of the party reportedly vowed to clip the wings of APC chieftain Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the running mate to the late Prince Abubakar Audu in the November 21 governorship election in the

Confluence State, James Faleke.

Alhaji Suleman Ejibunuq and Chief Richard Asaje, who signed the purported report, said the party would frustrate Tinubu’s support for Faleke as replacement for the former Minister of Labour & Productivity, James Ocholi, who died in a road crash.

But the party in a statement by all members of its State Executive Council led by the Chairman, Alhaji Haddy A. Ametuo, said that APC members have no reason to disparage Tinubu and that President Muhammadu Buhari will be supported to pick anybody, including Faleke, into the Federal

Sokoto Panel: N10.7bn Required to Put 40 Schools in Shape Mohammed Aminu in Sokoto The Chairman of the Technical Committee on the State of Emergency on Education in Sokoto State, Prof. Riskuwa Shehu, yesterday said at least N10.7 billion is required to put back 40 primary and secondary schools covered by a pilot survey in shape in the state.

Speaking when he presented the second interim report of the committee to Governor Aminu Tambuwal in Sokoto, Shehu said the money is required to rehabilitate existing dilapidated structures in the schools.

According to him, the money includes the construction of additional 331 classrooms, provision of furniture, ICT materials and communication, as well as instructional materials, among others.

He stated that this was apart from the funds needed for the recruitment of additional teachers in the 40 schools.

Shehu recommended the strengthening of Schools Based Management Committees and Parents Teachers Associations.

In the same vein, he explained that, robust, ethically guided guidance and counselling offices and officers were required. ‘’There is also the need to sustain inspection visits to schools, as well

as proper keeping of records in the schools. ‘’One of the major challenges is for the government to ensure the quality execution of contracts, as with recession, there should be value for money.

“This has become necessary as we have recommended the demolition of schools due to their serious state of dilapidation,’’ Shehu said.

He commended Tambuwal for giving them the opportunity to contribute to revamping of the education sector in the state.

Responding, Tambuwal stated that, civil and public servants would contribute over N 1 billion annually to the state’s education development fund The governor also disclosed that, machineries would be put in motion to garner more money to the fund, from worthy individual and corporate partners, within and outside Nigeria.

“Government is prepared for the task ahead to transform our schools to better schools. We are also ready to train our teachers to better teachers, and with the facts and figures now at our disposal, we will do what is supposed to be done ‘’The council of the state of emergency on education will meet tomorrow and what we need to do will be done immediately,’’ he added.

FG: AIRPORTS SECURITY AGENTS TO BEAR ARMS, NATIONAL CARRIER TO START THIS YEAR Nigerian flights to go to Ghana.

“The Ghanaian airport is doing 450,000 people per annum and Nigeria is doing 15 million passengers per annum that is 30 times Ghana.

“So we knew from the outset that it is not the solution, it is only temporary. It doesn’t make sense for someone coming from Dubai into Abuja to proceed to Ghana.

“Going to Ghana is one hour twenty five minutes and coming back is same plus taxing and taking off and so on, that is additional three hours flight added to the cost of seven hours flight. It doesn’t make sense, it is out of necessity,” he stated.

Also speaking, the Minister for Interior, Abdulrahman Dambazau, said FEC approved N4.6billion to

procure firefighting equipment.

He said the last time equipment was procured for firefighting was in 1996.

He said: “The last time equipment was procured was in 1996, so the equipment in the inventory we have today were procured between 1985 and 1996, and since then, there was no procurement.

“So on assumption of duty, I went round their stations and I discovered surprisingly that there was a dearth of firefighting equipment. And with our experiences on fire incidences all over the country, we discovered that such a situation should no longer hold and therefore we reflected that in the 2016 budget and it with the aim of equipping the fire service and also improves its capacity.”

Makinde Oyebode (Zonal Youth Ejibunuq and Chief Richard without consulting anyone Leader, West); Nuhu Akwu (Zonal Asaje are ghost members of or group and if he so decides Youth Leader, East) and Jone One our great party. They, therefore to choose Hon. Faleke as (Zonal Women Leader, East) among have no ‘locus standi’ to speak his minister nominee, we strongly support his choice. Hon. James for the party at any level. others.

“Chief Richard Asaje worked Faleke has been a strong financier Their statement reads: “Our pillar of our party in the state attention has been drawn to for Accord candidates in the and a publication in the Punch state and National Assemblies since inception. the entire members of the Newspaper of the 3rd of elections, President Jonathan “We January, 2017, page 18 by some in the presidential election and state exco respect the power of the self-styled APC leaders of the the PDP’s Capt. Idris Wada in president to freely choose whoever he wants to serve in his cabinet, western senatorial district of the governorship election.

“This same Asaje sold his Hon. Faleke inclusive.

Kogi State threatening to cause “We also respect the national crisis in the party if the president church building in Kano only nominates Hon. James Abiodun to use the proceeds to build leadership of Asinaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu whose support and Faleke as the replacement for a hotel in Obajana. This man does the late Ocholi as the minister not have the moral credibility influence traverses the national structures of the party. representing Kogi State in the to be taken seriously.

“We the undersigned members “President Muhammadu Federal cabinet.

“From our records at all levels Buhari has the constitutional of Kogi State exco of APC strongly to choose whosoever condemn the purported publication in the state, these self-styled power

by these ‘ghost members of APC.” leaders – Alhaji Suleman he deem fit as his cabinet member

Executive Council (FEC).

Other signatories are: Shaibu Osune (Deputy Chairman); Adejoh Abdusalam (Secretary); Isah Daniel (vice Chairman, East); Gbenga Asagun (Vice Chairman, West); Ibrahim A Ahovi (Vice Chairman, Central); Isah Abubakar (Organising Secretary); Ghali Inda Usman (Publicity Secretary); Joseph Molemodile (Legal Adviser) and Abubakar Adamu (Welfare Officer).

Others are: Sekpe Daniel (Financial Secretary); Ismaila Ade Yahaya (Deputy Deputy Treasurer); Abdulkadir Yahaya (Deputy Treasurer); Yusuf Okara (Asdsistant Welfare Officer); Bozi Attai (Assistant Financial Secretary); Muhammed S. Lawal (Assistant Organising Secretary); Zakari Adamu (Assistant Youth Leader);

NEWHIGH CHIEFS

L-R: AkinrogunofIjuOgundimu,ChiefAdegboyegaOguntayo;AgbaAkinofIjuOgundimuland,ChiefKamoruOgundimu;and AremoObaofIjuOgundimu land, Prince Gbolahan Ogundimu, during thier chieftaincy titles ceremony to mark the 10th coronation anniversary of the Oniju of Iju Ogundimu land, Oba ElijahAdisaOlanire,inLagos...yesterday DanUkana

What is Wrong if Faleke is Appointed Minister, Demands Group Yekini Jimoh in Lokoja The Audu/Faleke Political Organisation yesterday said there won’t be anything wrong if President Muhammadu Buhari appoints Hon. James Faleke as a minister from Kogi State.

This was contained in a press statement signed and issued to journalists in Lokoja yesterday by the Director, Media and Publicity of the Faleke group, Hon. Duro Meseko.

Meseko described as the height of vile and political rascality a report in a section of the media attributed to some some people who claim to be members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) that any attempt by the federal government to nominate Faleke to fill the vacant ministerial slot would be resisted.

“One Suleiman Ejibunu and Richard Asaje who claim to be leaders from Kogi West senatorial district had been reported in a section of the news dailies to have issued a statement to that effect.

“Ordinarily we would not have bothered ourselves to respond to these characters claiming to be leaders while they cannot even lead their units but the undiscerning public might be unwittingly misled by the hate report aimed at achieving the laughable ambition of their failed paymasters.

“What is wrong if President Muhammadu Buhari nominates Faleke for the Ministerial position?

Or is Asaje and Ejibunu saying that Faleke was not instrumental to the victory of the APC in Kogi States, especially Kogi West that had never been won by the Progressives until Faleke came on board? It is no secret that at a time when Asaje and Ejibunu were busy working for Accord party, Faleke was busy breaking grounds for APC,” the statement added.

“Though we are very much aware that Asaje and Co were recruited by their treacherous paymaster who has shamelessly lost out in his quest for political relevance, we nevertheless state

unequivocally that a thousand vile newsletters and press statements from any disgruntled member of the party will not stop President Buhari from picking the best hands from Kogi to be part of his cabinet.”

According to Faleke group, “we are glad that the State Exco of the party has passed a disclaimer notice on Asaje and his co-traveller while expressing confidence in the ability of Faleke to fill the Ministerial slot if nominated.

“Indeed there is no responsible member of the APC in Kogi State that should be seeing hawking the dirty water of hate across the state and within the party especially at this time when all hands should be on deck to reposition the party to deliver on campaign promises.

“We urge the hungry lazy lots who are willing tools in the hands of mischief makers to desist forthwith or face the inevitable judgment of posterity.”

Buhari Approves Redeployment of Permanent Secretaries President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday approved the redeployment of three federal permanent secretaries.

A statement by Haruna Imrana, Director of Communications, Office of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF), said a circular conveying the deployment was signed by the HCSF, Winifred Oyo-Ita. Imrana said Folashade Yemi-

Esan, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education was moved to the Office of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation.

Jamila Shu’ara, Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources, was moved to Federal Ministry of Education.

Christian Chineyekka Ohaa of the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports was deployed to Office of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation.

THURSDAY JANUARY 5, 2017 ˾ T H I S D AY

47

NEWSEXTRA

Ogoni will Feel Impact of Voting for Me, Says Abe PDP: People now know their real enemies Ernest Chinwo in Port Harcourt Senator representing Rivers South East senatorial district, Senator Magnus Abe, has assured Ogoni people that they would soon feel the impact of the mandate they gave him in the last rescheduled rerun election.

But the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state has also said Ogoni people now know that their real enemies were those who used security agencies to rig the rerun elections in the area.

Abe spoke in a goodwill message to Ogoni people on the 2017 Ogoni Day celebration signed by his spokesperson, Parry Benson.

He said he was happy for the support Ogoni people gave him and that he had commenced initiatives in realising his campaign promises.

Abe said the Ogoni made him proud by their unflinching support and vote cast for him on the December 10 re-run election and that by their votes, they had

made a statement and drawn the respect of the entire Rivers people on their principled stand to go to the centre.

He noted that there were people who took pleasure in instigating crisis in Ogoni communities in order to affect their unity and urged the Ogoni people to come together in unity to find lasting solution to the current wave of inter and intra communal crisis that has bedevilled the area.

He said plans were underway to end the bloodshed in Ogoni communities, pointing out that never again would they allow external interference to come in between them and their fellow Ogoni brothers and sisters.

The Senator enjoined them to ensure that peace prevailed in Ogoniland in order to create an enabling environment for the $1 billion-clean-up-project.

He assured them of the political will of the federal government led

by President Muhammadu Buhari to implement the UNEP report.

But in a statement issued

in Port Harcourt yesterday on the Ogoni Day celebration, the state Chairman of the PDP, Felix Obuah, said: “The real enemies of the Ogoni people are those who used army, other security agencies and armed political thugs to hijack election materials and rigged the December 10, 2016, re-run elections in the area.”

While congratulating the Ogonis

for successfully marking the 2017 Ogoni, Obuah urged the people to be vigilant, “as these same persons would in the coming days, also hijack the process of the Ogoni Clean-up, and divert it for their private use part of the $1 billion clean-up project fund to recover their political campaign expenses.”

He expressed regret that several Ogoni sons and daughters had been

killed by desperate APC politicians in the area to win elections.

The PDP state chairman called on Ogonis to reflect on those killed and the manner the military and other security agencies hijacked election materials and rigged elections in favour of the APC candidates in the area with a view to appropriately labelling them real enemies of the Ogoni people.

Obuah also restated that the PDP has gone to the Elections Petitions Tribunal to challenge the purported elections of APC candidates as winners of the December 10, 2016 re-run elections following the use of the army and other security agencies and armed thugs to hijack election materials and rig the elections in their favour.

Ignore Ekweremadu’s Opinion on Gambian Political Crisis, APC Tells Buhari, ECOWAS Christopher Isiguzo in Enugu The All Progressives Congress (APC) has asked President Muhammadu Buhari and his colleagues Heads of State within the ECOWAS sub-region not to be swayed by the opinions of Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, to the effect that the commission should avoid military action in resolving the brewing political tension in Gambia.

The party urged the subregional body to save Gambians from the clutches of unbridled and brutish Yahaya Jammeh’s dictatorship.

In a statement by the party’s Publicity Secretary in Enugu State, Mrs. Kate Offor, and made available to journalists yesterday, the party said it was in total support of any move that would help in sustaining democracy in The Gambia.

Ekweremadu had in a statement through his media assistant, Uche Anichukwu, warned against military action against in The Gambia, following the presidential election, saying such could threaten the security of the entire sub-region.

Instead of adopting military action to remove the brutal dictator, who stained his hands with the blood of innocent Gambians, Ekweremadu called for sanctions in line with the traditions and relevant protocols of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). Jammeh who has been in power for 22 years had lost the December 1, 2016. presidential election, but vowed not to hand over to the winner, Adama Barrow.

Reacting in the statement by Offor, Enugu APC condemned in its entirety the anti-democratic, unconstitutional and unstatesman-

like mercenary statement of Ekweremadu,to the effect that military option should be shelved in an effort to save the good people of Gambia from the bondage-shackles of Jammeh’s dictatorship.

Offor said: “We are making this statement because we are witnesses of how the antidemocratic unconstitutional and self serving advice of Ekweremadu contributed in no small measure in the less than glorious regimes of Dr. Chimaroke Nnamani and Dr. Goodluck Jonathan.

“Otherwise, how can Ekweremadu on one breathe admit that ‘I am aware that several high level meetings have been held and several missions undertaken to The Gambia as a way of finding solution to the problem’ and on another breathe fully aware that Jammeh who is not only defiant but takes himself as the sole owner of Gambia, will ever vacate office without force, but canvas kid glove rapprochement?

“Is Ekweremadu as a former Speaker of ECOWAS Parliament not aware that up to this moment that Jammeh’s hand is stained with blood of innocent Gambians? Or that at this moment, people are in droves fleeing The Gambia and if the country is not saved by ECOWAS Authority Heads of States under the genuine Protocols which in no way violates the sovereignty of Gambia, the country will finally slide into a failed state. Which rule of Law is he talking about when the Supreme Court of Gambia under Jammeh has only one justice?”

Offor therefore called on President Buhari and his colleagues Heads of State to disregard the ranting of mercenaries like Ekweremadu and save Gambians from the clutches of unbridled and brutish Jammeh’s dictatorship.

WELCOME TO THE NEW YEAR

L R: Senator Monsurat Sunmonu; Secretaty to the Oyo State Government (SSG), Mr. Olalekan Ali; Justice Adeyemi; state Deputy Governor, Chief Moses Adeyemo; Governor Abiola Ajimobi; and his wife Florence, during the 2017 annual inter-religious service to mark the beginning of the new year in the state, at the governor’s office, Agodi, Ibadan.....yesterday Felix Ademola

CSOs Urge AGF to Dismiss Frivolous Petitions against Buhari Government Officials Sunday Okobi A coalition of Citizens Watch Nigeria (CWN), Transparency Centre Network (TCN), and Good Governance Project Initiative (GGPI) under the auspice of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have berated the Civil Society Network Against Corruption (CSNAC) for what they termed as “frivolous writing, self-serving, time wasting and ill-motivated petitions” to the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) against some top government officials in President Muhammadu Buhari administration.

In a statement signed and issued by the Executive Secretary of CWN, Omoba Kenneth Aigbegbele; National Convener of TCN, Umar Faruk, and National President of GGPI, Innocent Okadigbo, the groups described some of the CSNAC’s petitions as malicious, wicked and defamatory aimed at resolving personal grievances.

The groups alleged that the petitions are just ways to settle old scores, probably seek revenge on perceived enemies “because some of the said petitions have been handled severally by anti-graft agencies and found to have lacked merit and subsequently dismissed.”

The trio maintained that this matter has gone beyond anti-

corruption war but has become highly political and unpatriotic aimed at distracting President Buhari government and later accuse him of achieving nothing.

“All the accused are patriotic Nigerians and key players in Buhari government and their mischievous aim is to dampen their enthusiasm to work for the government,” the statement added.

According to the statement, CSNAC had recently mentioned Abba Kyari, the Chief of Staff to the president; Army Chief of Staff, General Tukur Buratai; Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah; Chairman, Police Service Commission, Mike Okiro, and the Interior Minister, General Abdulrahman Danbazau (rtd), in its petition to the AGF as public officials to be investigated but “we insisted that some of the mentioned persons had no case to answer but CSNAC and its paymasters have some axe to grind with them.”

The statement added that this is a case of witch-hunting from CSLAC for pressurising an anti-graft agency to indict a government official but after examining the case, the anti-graft agency found nothing against him and exonerated him of any wrong doing but CSLAC is curiously insisting on the case.

The trio therefore urged Malami,

to be vigilant and cautious of blackmailers and mischief makers who might be hell-bent to smear the good reputation of honest and hardworking Nigerians working tirelessly for the good of Buhari government because of past disagreements.

According to the statement, “President Buhari should ignore the antics of these unpatriotic and disgruntled elements masquerading themselves as activists and move

forward as a former American President said: ‘If you are running and looking back, its either you fall or slowdown’.”

Meanwhile, the CSO has endorsed the present anticorruption war by Buhari administration as it hailed the AGF for being at the forefront, but cautioning him against its being hijack by people on revenge mission to blackmail others and achieve their selfish agenda.

Niger Govt Warns against Hoarding, High Food Prices Laleye Dipo in Minna Despite the bumper harvests recorded by farmers throughout the state in the ongoing harvests of farm produce, the Niger State Government has decried the high prices of agricultural produce in the open markets attributing it to hoarding.

The government has therefore appealed to farmers to resist the temptation of selling their produce to Shylock middlemen who will end up hoarding the commodities to create artificial scarcity consequently causing high prices.

The government position was made known in a statement

made available to journalists in Minna yesterday by the state Commissioner for Information, Mr. Jonathan Tsado Vatsa.

Vatsa cautioned against nefarious acts of middlemen who specialise in buying and hoarding food items to cause artificial scarcity saying government “is worried that such act will cause untold hardship for Nigerlites and prevent them from enjoying the bumper harvests recorded in the state.”

The commissioner therefore appealed to farmers and other Nigerlites to be wary of such middlemen and put the interest of the state above profiteering.

THURSDAY JANUARY 5, 2017 ˾ T H I S D AY

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NEWSEXTRA

Leadership Tussle Tears Edo Central APC Apart Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City Crisis of confidence has enveloped Edo Central Senatorial District of All Progressive Congress (APC) in Edo State following the disagreement over who becomes the party leader and rally point for party faithful in the area.

The incident THISDAY learnt, occured during an end-of-year party hosted by the Vice Chairman of Edo Central Senatorial district, Henry Okoror, at Uromi in Esan North-east Local Government Area of the state.

The gathering ended in chaos as most of the leaders in attendance walked away from the party when the issue of who should be the senatorial leader came up.

Before the development, a source close to the venue but craved anonymity, said several speakers including the APC local government chairmen from the zone spoke of the need for the senatorial zone to have a leader who would be the rally point to attract government development to Esanland.

Trouble was however, said to have began when the state chairman of the party, Mr. Anslem Ojeazua, snatched

the microphone from a former Commissioner in the state and deputy Chief of Staff to ex-governor, Adams Oshiomhole, Ken Ihensekhien, who had moved a motion nominating Chief Francis Inegbineki as the senatorial leader of the party in the zone.

The state chairman was quoted to have said that he was averse to the issue of having a senatorial leader for the zone which did not go down well with the youths, some men and women leaders who insisted that the issue of the leader must be settled once and for all.

At this stage, the youths reportedly locked the gate to ensure that nobody left the venue of the party and thereafter, the youth leader from Esan Central Local Government, Anthony Ibhafidon, seconded the motion moved by Ihensekhien nominating Chief Inegbineki as the leader which was greeted with a loud ovation.

Following this development, most of the party members walked out and refused to eat or consumed the drinks provided by the host.

When contacted however, Ojeazua said the position of a senatorial leader was unconstititional and at the same time unknown to the party.

Ondo Guber Poll: ACPN Impeaches Chairman over Anti-party Activities James Sowole in Akure More than a month after the November 26 Gubernatorial Election in Ondo State, the Chairman of the Allied Congress of Nigeria (ACPN), Ondo State, Mr. Bosun Omosunle, was yesterday impeached by members of the party for allegedly getting involved in anti-party activities during the election.

Omosule was alleged to have worked for the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and winner of the election, Mr. Rotimi Akeredolu, at the expense of the candidate of the ACPN, Mr. Adetuwo Ogunjumelo.

The decision to impeach the embattled chairman was taken at a meeting held in Akure, the Ondo State capital yesterday.

The meeting was presided over by the secretary of the party, Mr. Alex Akindele, as Omosule was absent In a letter sent to the national secretariat of the party, a copy of which was made available to journalists in Akure, the embattled chairman allegedly held several meetings with Akeredolu at a hotel in Akure where he declared support for him.

Omosule was also accused of embezzling some money that belonged to the party and was also alleged to have stolen some party’s property at the state secretariat of the party in Akure. “ He ( Omosule) was sighted alongside with Mr. Akinrenwa Olatunji, his deputy at Royal

Park Lane Hotel (Akure) holding a meeting with the APC candidate, Akeredolu on November 23, 2016 .

“After receiving N165,000 from the governorship candidate (of the ACPN) under the guise of providing security for the flag off ceremony of our party which was scheduled to hold in Okitipupa, he refused to pay the money. He refused to come to the flag off neither did he allow some members to attend.

“Omosule phoned the party’s candidate in the presence of the Campaign Committee Chairman, Mr. Akintoye Cornelius that he would sell the ACPN’s votes on the election day. “ In this regard, we are tired of his anti-party and fraudulent activities, we therefore seek the removal of Mr. Bosun Omosule with immediate effects “, the letter read.

Reacting to the action of the party, Omosule denied all the allegations saying those that were at the meeting were aggrieved members of the party insisting that he remains the chairman of the ACPN in Ondo State.

“What they are doing was illegal, at their meeting you can’t find members of the state executive. Those people are ordinary members of ACPN. Some of them are not even our members”, he said.

Omosule said he would hold senatorial meeting of the party today (Thursday) at Ore, headquarters of Odigbo Local Government as the chairman of the party in the state.

Ojezua who noted that the invitation to party members

by Mr. Henry Okoror was supposed to be an end of year party, briefing of party members,

and not for enthrownment of a zonal leader.

“That was the impression.

Nobody told us that we were going to discuss the issue of

party leadership for the zone.

“The position taken by some members in favour of a particular person as a leader has the potential of dividing

the party, that is why the get together did not hold and most of those who were supposed to be there were not there,” he declared.

A VISIT TO THE GOVERNOR

Ebonyi State Governor, David Umahu (middle), with the Chairman of the state Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Rev. Emmanuel Nshi (left); and Bishop of Ikwo Anglican Diocese, Bishop Kenneth Ifemene, when a delegation from the association visited the governor in Uburu...recently

Orji Rallies Kinsmen to Sustain Support for Ikpeazu’s Govt Emmanuel Ugwu inUmuahia As the legal tussle for the Abia State governorship seat lingers, the senator representing Abia Central in the National Assembly has called on the people of Ibeku clan of Umuahia North Local Government Area to sustain their support for Governor Okezie Ikpeazu.

He made the clarion call yesterday when he received the newly elected members of Ibeku Egwuasa Development Association led by the President General, Mr. Emeka Enyeazu, who came on courtesy visit at his Umuahia home.

Orji, who handed over the reins of power to his successor following the successful implementation of power shift to Abia South zone, reminded his kinsmen

that Ikpeazu’s government was a product of the collective mandate of Abia people hence the need to support him to succeed.

He regretted that the governor is the only governor who is still in court fighting to retain his mandate due to the vile politics that some people play in Abia, adding that Ikpeazu should have by this time focused his attention on governance like other governors instead of dissipating energy fending off detractors.

Orji recalled the diatribes that he has been facing from among some of his kinsmen during the period he was Abia governor and which has continued even after he has left office and moved on to the National Assembly, adding that he has done his best to uplift

the people of Ibeku.

“What I want people to appreciate is what God has done for them through me,” he said, adding that the level of development seen in Ibeku land (Umuahia capital territory) today was of my own making”.

The former governor said that he has left “visible things” that should make his kinsmen to be proud of him and challenged them to come out from the delusion that because their land hosts the capital city they should therefore be getting things on a platter of gold.

Earlier the president general, Enyeazu, told the Abia Central senator that their visit was to introduce the members of the new executives of Ibeku Development Association and assure him that the

people of Ibeku are behind him.

He said that apart from the leadership of the association the chairman of the Ibeku council of traditional rulers has also affirmed that the royal fathers and all the autonomous communities were supportive of the leadership status of Orji in Ibeku land and the quality representation he has been giving his constituents.

Enyeazu said irrespective of the level of distractions from some disgruntled persons the people of Ibeku would remain united behind Senator Orji, adding that the former governor did a lot to develop Ibeku land.

He asked Orji to disregard the antics of ingrates and not use their actions to judge the rest of Ibeku people.

Expert: Buhari will Fail if He Relies Solely on Hydro Electricity Generation Victor Ogunje in Ado Ekiti A businessman and expert in the oil and gas business, Prince Olusegun Aderemi, has declared that President Muhammadu Buhari’s quest to give Nigerians a stable power supply would be a mirage if the country depends solely on hydro power as the only generating source.

Aderemi said time has come for Nigeria to diversify by investing heavily in solar and wind energy sources to generate more megawatts for Nigerians to drive the economy and create employment in terms of small and medium scale enterprises development.

He spoke in Aramoko Ekiti, headquarters of Ekiti West Local

Government Area yesterday during a N50 million fund raising for community development in Glory Quarters and empowerment of 200 widows in the town.

The business mogul said: “No country can develop under a circumstance whereby over 150 million people are relying on power generation that stands at 3,000 megawatts.

“President Buhari must invest in solar and wind energy like we have in Asia countries. We have enough sunlight and power, and that is what we need. So, time has come for our country to bring in expatriates to really boost our knowledge in these areas.”

He also appealed to the

federal government to check the menace of vandalism of oil installations in the Niger Delta region to revert this colossal economic loss being suffered

by Nigerians.

Lamenting the two years power outage in that section of the town, Aderemi said he would partner Special Adviser to the President on Political Matters, Senator Babafemi Ojudu, to donate a transformer to the community in order to shore up power generation.

Aderemi said: “As an entrepreneur and a community leader, I understand that the government can’t do it alone, so we have to also contribute our own quota and that is why we are

empowering these widows. It is our responsibility to make them happy because they are being neglected by families and government, and in most cases, leaving them to bear the burden solely.

“Today, we are giving them food and clothing materials, and the next stage which we are doing the feasibility studies on will be the financial empowerment for them to have their own businesses, so that the level of poverty in the state can be reduced.”

The Chairman of the council, Mr. Kolawole Omotunde, and an oil and gas expert, Mrs. Sade Awe, called on well-meaning Nigerians to continue to contribute to their states to reduce the pressure on government.

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NEWSEXTRA

Oyo will Survive This Period, Says Ajimobi Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State has said his administration is engaging in survival strategies to meet its obligations to the entire citizens and workers of the state, promising that the government will use its share of the Paris Club over deductions funds when it is paid for the workers’ welfare as recommended by the federal government.

Ajimobi at the 2017 Inter-Faith Service of the Oyo State government held at the Governor’s office, Ibadan, noted that every cost saving measure is a disservice to certain groups of people, adding that his administration is deploying the necessary machinery to survive, by blocking loopholes, restructuring of the public and civil service, improved Internal Generated Revenue (IGR) and cut unnecessary government wastage.

He explained that government as an enterprise requires funds to serve its citizens and the government is looking for ways to cut cost and meet its obligations to the people despite the dwindling revenue being realised by the government.

According to the governor, “We are looking for ways to reduce our cost and every attempt to reduce it, is disservice to a certain group of people. We have suspended car loans, subventions to higher institutions, allowances, assistance to organisations/ individuals among others.

All these, are without uproar from the people and we are all aware of the criticisms that trailed the withdrawal of subventions to higher institutions.

“Maintenance of our infrastructure and executing new ones have been extremely difficult. Oyo State is a big state. Ibadan alone is bigger than seven states and to govern the state is a big responsibility with big problem and difficult to manage.

“Our IGR is still abysmally low and allocations from federal allocations continue to dwindle. Over 50 per cent of our IGR is from PAYEE and our average monthly allocation from FG is N2.5billion while salaries, subventions, pensions, overhead cost and allowances still stand at about N5.2billion.

We need survival strategies to block loopholes, renewed IGR drive and restructuring of the public and civil service for optimal performance so that the government will meet its obligations to the people,” he pointed out.

The governor reiterated that the state has not collected its share of the Paris Club over excess deduction funds, stressing that the government is hopeful that the state would also get its share and whatever the state gets, would be used for the welfare of the workers.

Ajimobi said President Muhammad Buhari was passionate about the people, adding, “President Buhari wants to help the people, he wants us to stop the sufferings

in the country and he has introduced so many poverty alleviation programmes to ameliorate the sufferings in the country. The president has suggested that we use 50 per cent of the Paris Club fund for workers’ welfare and we are ready to do that whenever we get our share of the funds as we did with the bailout funds given to us by the federal government.”

He described the workers as the engine room of the government, saying that the government would not renege on its promise to use 100 per cent of the allocation from federal government for workers’ salaries and consequently assured that his administration is ready to give the civil servants a percentage of the excesses of its IGR whenever the government reaches the threshold set for good governance in order to appreciate their dedication and commitment to service delivery in uplifting Oyo State.

“If I deliberately punish the workers, God will ask us. We will do everything humanly possible to ensure we give the

people of the state the best. I am passionate about Oyo State, I want a state that will be the best in the country. I have nowhere to go, Oyo State is my state and I will continue to strive to make it great,” the governor emphasizsed.

The governor tasked the workers to be committed and dedicated to their work and show appreciation to government’s goodness, explaining that the government has started a system that encourages, recognizes and appreciates productive performance by creating an efficiency unit to appraise and grade workers on their output.

He charged the labour leaders in the state to always embrace dialogue and help the government to seek ways to meet its obligations to the workers instead of being confrontational with the government, noting that the era of table banging unionism should be a thing of the past.

He appealed to the entire citizens to work with the present administration in

the state, promising that his administration would continue to prioritise citizens’ welfare.

Speaking at the service, the Oyo State Head of Service, Mr. Soji Eniade, commended the state governor for his w ise and bold decisions that has kept the state afloat despite the present economic situation in the country.

He said: “Even in the face of the present harsh economic condition, Governor Ajimobi, under no influence and pressure, decided to commit 100 per cent of the monthly allocation from the federation account to pay salaries and pensions.

The governor even directed that the free bus service for workers among other existing welfare schemes should under no condition be stopped. All the past kind hearted decisions of His Excellency, that were in favour of workers, must be appreciated while we all work hard and pray that the present situation be positively turned around.”

The HOS charged workers

in the state to be diligent, dedicated, devoted, committed and work assiduously towards ensuring financial sufficiency for the state, stating that the ongoing restructuring exercise in the civil/public service was embarked upon to clean and sanitize the system.

Highlights of the programme included prayers and praise worship from Muslim and Christian leaders as the Chief Imam of the Government House, Sheik Bello Rufai prayed for a successful year for the workers and the Ajimobi-led administration.

Rev. John Adika of the Providence Baptist Church, Iyana Church, Ibadan in his own sermon, reminded the workers that all leaders were chosen by God for the special attributes they possess which according to him would make possible the delivery of succour to their people.

He also prayed for the state and its workforce to be prosperous in the new year while admonishing workers to do their best in delivering their best.

Ahmed Pledges Support for FG’s Efforts to Digitalise Broadcast Industry Hammed Shittu in Ilorin Kwara State Governor, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed, has expressed his administration’s support to the federal government efforts at digitalising the nation’s broadcasting industry.

Ahmed gave the pledge while receiving the DirectorGeneral of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), Mallam Ishaq Kawu Modibbo, in his office yesterday.

He said the Digital Switch Over (DSO) not only provides enormous opportunities for dissemination of information, education and entertainment to a vast audience, but also offers job opportunities for content producers and other supporting staff.

Ahmed stressed that the digital transition will elevate broadcasting in Nigeria to global standards.

The governor further noted: “It is heartwarming that the digitisation is taking place at a time the government has concluded plans to reposition all the state-owned media houses, starting with the procurement of digital equipment for Kwara State Television (KWTV).

The governor congratulated the NBC DG on the achievement so far recorded under the DSO project and pledged his support for the actualisation of total digital switch over in the state.

Speaking earlier, the DG of NBC, Modibo, explained the DSO process and highlighted the opportunities it would create for producers, camera operatives, make-up artists, and technicians among others.

He added that digital broadcasting offers additional advantages for operators, regulators and the end-users.

According to him, “DSO will also facilitate more accurate ways of measuring audience size and ensure improved feedback from the public.”

He added that a digitalised broadcast industry in Nigeria will feature state, regional and national stations.

Kawu noted that more jobs will be created for the youths with the take-off of digitisation project across the country.

He therefore solicited the support of the state government for the imminent flag-off of DSO in the Northcentral zone

MAY SUCCESS COME YOUR WAY

Baba Laje of Odolewu, Ogun State,Senator Anthony Adefuye, blessing the chairmanship aspirant of Itire-Ikate Local Council Development Area (LCDA), Hon. Toyin Fafiyebi, at the annual LEWU day celebration in Odolewu, Ogun State....recently

Longest Serving Monarch Endorses Ayade for Second Term Nigeria’s longest serving monarch, paramount ruler of Obudu, Uti J.D. Agba, has endorsed Cross River State Governor, Professor Ben Ayade, for a second term in office.

The paramount ruler, who is the father of All Progressives Congress (APC) stalwart and former governorship aspirant, Goddy Jedy Agba, said the northern senatorial district of Cross River state gave the position of governor to Ayade, who he described as their son, with their whole heart.

The monarch also added that in the same manner the district

supported former Governors Donald Duke and Liyel Imoke, who were from the southern and central senatorial districts respectively, for eight years each, Ayade will also be governor for eight years.

Uti JD Agba was speaking at an event in Obudu recently when he led the sons and daughters of the town to pour libation and perform traditional rituals to cleanse the land and pray for Ayade.

In a message captured on video, the monarch said,

“There is a proverb in Bette (Obudu) Language that the new generation should be better than the old generation. We pray for our son who is governor, it is our own son whom we gave birth to. We have given him (the governorship) with all our hearts. He will be on that seat, just as we supported others (Southern senatorial district, and Central senatorial district).

“Wine is what God gave to our ancestors to drink. We pour it to them (pours palm wine on the ground) and pray that

in the morning, afternoon and evening, we should stand together and ensure that all of us enjoy the benefits of having a governor from our land. When we are through with the governorship, we will be taking a shot at the Presidency. Is that not so?” The crowd gave a loud shout of approval.

The Obudu paramount ruler is reputed as Nigeria’s longest serving monarch having been on the throne for about 57 years dating back to his days as a member of the Eastern House of Chiefs during First Republic.

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CRIME&PUNISHMENT Army Kills Five Suspected Cultists in Rivers Ernest Chinwo in Port Harcourt The Nigerian Army in Rivers State has said its men yesterday shot and killed five suspected cultists during a fierce gun battle in Omoku, headquarters of Ogba Egbema Ndoni Local Lovernment Area of the state.

The General Officer Commanding, 6 Division, Port Harcourt, Major General

Kasimu Abdulkarim, confirmed the incident to journalists in Port Harcourt yesterday.

He also disclosed that five AK 47 riffles had so far been recovered by the army from hoodlums in the local government area since the new year.

“The army has recorded appreciable success in its bid to rid the local government of cultists and brigands. We have recovered a total of five

AK47 riffles from cultists in the area since January 1,” he said.

Abdulkarim said the army had overwhelmed hoodlums in the local government area.

A source in the community said the army responded to a distress call in Omoku on Tuesday night when the cultists stormed the town shooting sporadically.

The cultists were said to have killed two young men in the community before the

arrival of the soldiers who engaged them in a duel.

THISDAY gathered that the corpses of two of the cultists recovered on Palace Road in the area were displayed at the police station in Omoku.

The other three were found at the end of the battle with the soldiers.

It would be recalled that the army recently launched an operation to clean up the local government of hoodlums and brigands.

The Nigerian Army, in the new year, said it recovered one AK47 assault rifle and uniforms belonging to DSP Mohammed Alkali and his police orderly who were beheaded by suspected cultists in Rivers State during the December 10, 2016 rerun elections.

The police officer and his orderly were ambushed and killed by suspected cultists while on routine duty in Omoku, Ogba/Egbema/

Ndoni Local Government Area (ONELGA) of Rivers State during the rerun election in the state Addressing journalists in Port Harcourt last Sunday, Abdulkarim said troops from the Division made the recovery during a raid on four militant camps and cultist hideouts in Ujju community near Omoku in ONELGA. He said troops also recovered assorted types of arms and ammunition stashed away by bandits in the area.

Police Arrest 15 Suspected Cultists James Sowole in Akure Not less than 15 suspected cultists were arrested by men of the Ondo State Police Command in Akure, the state capital during the Christmas and new year festivals.

The Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Demi Joseph, who disclosed the action of the police said the suspected cultists were arrested at different locations within the Akure metropolis.

The suspects according to him, included; Olamiju Abioudun, 25, Adejuyigbe Josua, 22, Tayo Agboola, 22, Orebe Boluwaji, 33, Oluwadar Akinbobola, 17, Oluwaseun Olajide, 21, Adesina Olasunkanmi 18 and Alaba Raji, 19.

Others are: Ajibola Olanrewaju, 25, John Isaac, 18, Haruna Friday 18, Omotoso Shina, 26, Ekene Ereozo, 25, Mathew Ogu, 36 and Uche Odoh 30.

The police spokesman said:

“The suspects were arrested at different locations in Akure.

During the routine patrol of our men to ensure that we had peaceful Christmas and new year celebration, the suspects were arrested in their different hideouts in the town, “Some of them were arrested during the initiations of new members into their cult groups while some were arrested while holding their meetings.”

Joseph further disclosed that various dangerous weapons were recovered from the suspects which he said included : axes, cultlases, matchetes, cut-to-size locally-made pistols, charms among others.

He stated that the suspects had been charged to court and had been remanded in prison custody.

He appealed to parents to always monitor the movements and the friends of their wards, reiterating that the command would not relent in making Ondo Some inmates released from the Kano prisons....yesterday.

State crime-free.

GO AND SIN NO MORE

Two Killed in Bayelsa Market Raid Emmanuel Addeh in Yenagoa Two persons were killed by suspected hoodlums yesterday after a gang of gunmen invaded the popular Swali Market in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, and shot their victims in a bid to dispossess them of their belongings.

It was gathered that one of the victims, was a Raymond Agada, who was said to be in possession of a large sum of money which he meant to deposit in the bank.

The incident which occurred at about 4p.m. reportedly threw the market into confusion as sellers and buyers ran for their lives, leaving their wares which were looted by some youths in the area.

A source said the hoodlums operated with sophisticated weapons and other dangerous tools and had ostensibly got information that the victim was in possession of some cash.

While one of the victims died on the spot, Agada was said to have breathed his last immediately he was rushed to the hospital.

Petty thieves in the area were also said to have carted away

items from shops in the market after the owners fled in the wake of the pandemonium.

However, it was learnt that a team of policemen that arrived on the crime scene following phone calls by some witnesses, apprehended one of the suspects who is now telling the police what he knows about the robbery incident.

Asinim Buswat, Police Public Relations Officer t the state command, confirmed the incident, but said that only one person was killed in the attack.

He added that the gang of four that carried out the operation did so with pistols and “attacked one Raymond Agada ‘m’ of Swali community.”

Butswat said the hoodlums dispossessed the victim of the sum of N120,000 which he was given by his brother to deposit in the bank before he was shot.

The state police command Spokesman said: “Policemen were quickly dispatched to the scene and the victim was rushed to the hospital, where he later died. The culprits have been identified and efforts have been intensified to arrest them.”.

Kogi Police Arrest Three for Kidnapping, Killing Female Lecturer

Edo Council Officials, Private Revenue Collectors in Bloody Clash over Revenue Collection

Yekini Jimoh in Lokoja

Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City

Kogi State Police Command has arrested three men who allegedly kidnapped and gang raped a female lecturer, Miss Christiana Agbulu, to death in Lokoja.

The decomposed body of Agbulu was found in a shallow grave along LokojaAbuja road with efforts of Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS).

Agbulu, Lecturer 1 of the Biological Sciences department, Federal University of Agriculture Markudi, Benue State, was declared missing between Benue and Kogi States on November 26, 2016, by ASUU-FUAM. THISDAY reliably gathered yesterday from ‘A’ division Police Station in Lokoja that the leader of the gang was arrested through Automated Teller Machine (ATM) of one of the commercial bank in Lokoja where he had gone to withdraw N100,000 as part of the N150,000 ransom they asked for.

Sources at the Police Station further confirmed to THISDAY that it was through the ATM that the arrest was made after some weeks as they were able to identify him.

According to the source, the arrest of the gang leader led to the arrest of the remaining two members who later gave useful information to the police on how they kidnapped, raped her to death and then buried her in a shallow grave along Lokoja-Abuja road.

Miss Agbulu was on a visit to her friend, one Mr. Levi Asambe, staff of Obajana Cement company, before the incident occured.

Confirming the arrest to journalists yesterday in Lokoja, the state Police Public Relation Officer, Mr. William Ayah, said so far, they have arrested three persons in connection with the kidnapping and killing of the lady.

He also confirmed that the phone of the lady was recovered from the suspects as he further mentioned that the police command was working round the clock to make the state free of crimes.

A bloody clash occured yesterday in Benin City, capital of Edo State betweem officials of Oredo local government council and men of the State Professional Drivers on Wheel over revenue collection.

Governor Godwin Obaseki had during his new year message, invalidated all forms of arrangements on collection of taxes, levies entered into by the state or local government councils with agencies, saying only employees of the state government or local governments were authorised to collect taxes and levies.

However, in what appeared to be fragrant disobedience of the state government directive, men of the State Professional Drivers on Wheel came out to collect revenue which resulted to the bloody clash.

Trouble it was gathered, started when the men of the Professional Drivers On Wheel resisted and stopped the local government officials, accompanied by security agents in an attempt to give effect to the state government directive on revenue collection precisely

in Ekpenede and Ebo streets Speaking, Head of Service (HOS), Oredo Local Government, Osagiator Ojo, told journalists that officials of the council were injured, assaulted and molested by the group, adding that the uproar degenerated when the thugs invaded the council secretariat with one of them arrested by the police He said the state government directives banning illegal revenue collection will boost the council revenue base, noting that the council is at the verge of putting in place a mobile court to sanction violators of government directives.

In a swift reaction however, State Chairman, Professional Drivers On Wheel, Adams Rotimi ( aka Shabba), said the state government was yet to give further directive as to who will collect revenue having banned all forms of levies and taxes collection by private agencies.

He threatened that the union will resist the council officials with their last blood, adding” tomorrow let them come out, we will fight them with our last blood.”

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CRIME&PUNISHMENT RTEAN Boss, Member Arraigned for Exchanging Blows at Police Station Victor Ogunje in Ado Ekiti For disrupting the peace within the Ekiti State Police Command in Ado Ekiti, the state Chairman of Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN), Rotimi Agbede, was yesterday charged before an Ado Ekiti Chief Magistrate Court.

Agbede was arraigned alongside a member of the union, Olaoye Oba, for exchanging blow at the police headquarters over seemingly irreconcilable crisis brewing in the union.

The charge sheet, according to the Police prosecutor, Oriyomi Akinwale, reads: “That you, Samuel Agbede and Olaoye Oba, on December 23, 2016, at the state police headquarters premises under the Ado Ekiti magisterial district did engage yourself in fight.

“You thereby committed

an offence punishable under Section 83 of the Criminal Code Laws of Ekiti State 2012.”

However, the embattled RTEAN chieftain pleaded not guilty to the charge after which his lawyer, Tajudeen Lamidi, urged the court to grant him bail on liberal terms considering his status in the society.

After listening to the argument of the defendant’s counsel, Chief Magistrate Idowu Ayenimo granted the two accused persons bail in the sum of N20,000 with one surety each in like sum who must be resident in Ado Ekiti with a verifiable address.

The presiding magistrate subsequently adjourned the case to January 20 for further hearing.

It was reliably gathered that Oba had gone to the police station to report the RTEAN boss on December 23, when the RTEAN chairman

A’Ibom Communities Want Justice over Communal Feud

Accuse state govt, police of complicity Okon Bassey inUyo Stakeholders of Amazaba clan in Eastern Obolo Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State have cried out for justice saying almost 10 years after a communal crisis sacked them from their villages, the state government and the police were blocking their resettlement back in the communities.

While their rivals, the people Ikot Akpan Udo, had since 2012 resettled in their villages, the people of Amazaba claimed that the Police have always frustrated several efforts towards their returning to the villages. In 2008, Amazaba clan, comprising eight villages, had engaged in a bloody clash with Ikot Akpan Udo village in Ikot Abasi local government of the state resulting in massive destruction of lives and property on both sides.

To prevent further loss of lives and property, the state government had issued an order for the warring parties to vacate their communities pending the resolution of the crisis.

The Amazaba leaders lamented a total lack of political will, sincerity and fairness by the state government in bringing about an amicable settlement of the lingering feud between the two warring communities.

Relating their plight, the Chairman Amazaba Community Development Council, Mr. Ekekiel George Tiligbor, said it was very obvious that the state government and the police were taking sides with Ikot Akpan Udo village against his people.

“We have taken series of steps towards the government to inform

them that we are eager to return to our home but the government of Akwa Ibom State has done nothing as regards our quest.

“But what we keep seeing is that each time we make efforts to go back to our place there would be accusations of we going back to fight with our neighbours. But since this incident happened our neighbours in Ikot Akpan Udo have been enjoying government support.

“The government has been releasing police security to the Ikot Akpan Udo people and they have been staying in their homes since 2012 while we have been crying, making series of efforts to go back but all our efforts proved abortive.”

Tiligbor regretted that the Amazaba people and by extension the entire Obolo Nation in the state are being treated as second class citizens by major ethnic groups in the state.

His words: “We are crying to the federal government and the international community that we are tired of living in other people’s communities.

“In fact, if you go to where my people are staying you will shed tears because you will begin to ask if we are really from this state”.

Reacting, the police in the state have denied any complicity with the Ikot Akpan Udo and the state government against the Amazaba people.

The State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), ASP Cordelia Nwawe described the allegation as untrue, saying the police have being fair and non-partisan in the almost 10-year old Amazaba and Ikot Akpan Udo communal crisis.

who is an ally of the state Governor, Ayo Fayose, has been locked in conflict with Oba who is a supporter of an

All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship aspirant, Femi Bamisile.

Oba had written a petition

to the police accusing Agbede of spearheading attacks on APC members and other RTEAN members who support

Bamisile shortly after the aspirant held a political meeting with his backers on the same day-December 23.

SAY NO TO CULTISM

Some suspected cultists who were arrested in Omoku by the police being paraded at the Rivers State Police Command in Port Harcourt.... recently

NAFDAC Seeks Stakeholders Collaboration to Tackle Drug Abuse Wole Ayodele in Jalingo The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has appealed to the Association of Community Pharmacists of Nigeria (ACPN) and other stakeholders to help it tackle the menace of substance abuse in Taraba State.

The Agency, in a press statement released by its Taraba State Coordinator, Mr Suleiman Muyideen, in Jalingo on yesterday decried the alarming rate of substance abuse and general non compliance with the Agency’s

enabling laws and regulations in the state.

The NAFDAC boss, who was recently deployed to Taraba from Katsina State solicited the support of the critical stakeholders in ensuring only genuine, effective and safe drugs and products are manufactured in the state.

According to him: “We took four consecutive days to hold series of meetings with all the stakeholders, where we solicited their support in ensuring that only genuine, effective and safe regulated products are manufactured in the state” “We deliberated on several issues especially the alarming

rate of substance abuse as relates to cough syrup with codein, tramadol as well as mobile authentication of anti malaria drugs and antibiotics.

In the same vein, Muyideen noted that the Agency held several discussions on banned drugs such as nimesulide, analgin (Dipyron), gentamycin 280mg, phenylpopanolamine among others at the meetings with a view to getting the stakeholders assist it in stopping drug abuse in the state.

Among the critical stakeholders involved in the meetings, according to him are the National Association

of Patents and Proprietary of Medicine Dealers (NAPPMED) and National Association of Nigeria Traditional Medicine Practitioners (NANTMP).

Others, according to Muyideen were Herbal and Islamic Medicine practitioners, Non-Pharmacists Operators of Pharmacies and Veterinary Drug Dealers.

He however warned that the Agency, which has the mandate to safeguard public health would no longer tolerate any act of non compliance with its enabling laws by any individual or group saying it would no longer be business as usual.

Foundation Secures Release of 26 Inmates in Kano Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kano A non-governmental organisation (NGO) based in Kano State, Jamu Foundation, has secured the release of 32 inmates with civil cases from the Goron Dutse and Central Prison in the state.

The Chairman of the foundation, Mohammed Jamu Yusuf, said the step was taken in a bid to decongest the prisons and offers freedom to inmates in order to celebrate the new year with their families.

Yusuf who was at the prison yesterday to check the level of the inmates’ crimes discovered that

some of them with civil cases had no means of meeting their bail terms.

Yusuf then asked for the permission of the foundation’s lawyer and got the approval to pay for the bail of some inmates.

Among those granted freedom were six women which include an elderly woman who was taken to court because of N15, 000 debt.

Speaking to the ex-convicts after their freedom, Yusuf urged them to be law abiding in the society to avoid future reoccurrence.

He said the foundation would rehabilitate the freed inmates and train them on various skills to

enable them integrate into the society.

Yusuf further stated that the foundation would continue to ensure that the youths in the state are adequately reoriented to become leaders in their given profession.

The inmates were very happy to regain their freedom and pledged to be of good behaviour in order to forestall a reoccurrence.

The foundation also donated transport fares to the freed inmates for them to transport themselves back to their various destinations in the state.

In his remarks, the Deputy Controller of Prison in charge of

Goron Dutse prison, Labbo Ibrahim Maradun, said the prison congestion is worrisome.

He said the prison had 1,625 inmates and among the figures, only 670 were convicted, while the remaining are awaiting trials.

Maradun thanked Jamu Foundation for the kind gesture to free 26 convicted inmates which include females.

One of the freed inmates, Hadiza Jibrin Murtala, expressed gratitude to the foundation for securing her release.

Hadiza urged wealthy people to emulate the same gesture to other inmates, and have them freed.

T H I S D AY Ëž ÍłËœ Í°ÍŽÍŻÍľ

43

Nigeria’s top 50 stocks based on market fundamentals

4-Jan-17

3-Jan-17

% Change

Capitalisation

EPS

P/E

P/S

Div. Yld

Price/ Book Value

01 Dangote Cement Plc

173.99

173.99

0.00%

2,964,877,883,395.95

9.20

18.90

5.22

4.60%

3.96

02 Nigerian Breweries Plc

142.00

142.00

0.00%

1,125,932,326,096.00

4.03

35.19

3.73

2.54%

6.87

03 Guaranty Trust Bank Plc

22.90

24.00

-4.58%

673,974,004,229.60

4.90

4.67

1.68

7.73%

1.37

810.00

810.00

0.00%

642,051,564,120.00

8.81

91.92

3.72

3.58%

20.34

14.55

14.40

1.04%

456,818,984,586.30

3.91

3.72

0.96

12.37%

0.66

379.99

379.99

0.00%

210,252,385,836.87 -44.58

-8.52

2.71

4.19%

0.53

40.00

40.95

-2.32%

182,196,072,400.00

-9.39

-4.26

0.85

7.50%

0.90

08 Ecobank Transnational Incorporated

9.54

9.77

-2.35%

175,054,718,591.10

0.68

14.10

0.30

6.50%

0.28

09 Access Bank Plc

5.85

5.81

0.69%

169,228,634,041.35

2.59

2.26

0.48

9.40%

0.38

10 United Bank for Africa Plc

4.51

4.45

1.35%

163,620,663,712.22

1.75

2.58

0.49

13.30%

0.38

11 Presco Plc

40.10

40.10

0.00%

159,216,129,504.50

0.03

1,371.42

2.23

3.24%

3.81

12 Stanbic IBTCÂ Holdings Plc

15.63

15.69

-0.38%

156,300,000,000.00

2.04

7.67

1.11

0.64%

1.33

04 Nestle Nigeria Plc 05 Zenith Bank Plc 06 Seplat Petroleum Dev. Co. Ltd 07 Lafarge Africa Plc

13 Unilever Nigeria Plc

35.00

35.00

0.00%

132,415,368,750.00

0.69

50.57

1.99

0.14%

14.11

14 Guinness Nig Plc

83.05

83.05

0.00%

125,064,014,013.40

-3.06

-27.16

1.21

3.85%

3.17

15 FBN Holdings Plc

3.33

3.40

-2.06%

119,531,324,997.36

0.21

16.05

0.22

4.50%

0.19

83.60

84.22

-0.74%

108,887,420,210.80

3.31

25.29

0.71

4.13%

2.52

17 Total Nigeria Plc

299.00

299.00

0.00%

101,517,029,263.00

38.02

7.86

0.38

4.68%

4.46

18 Mobil Oil Nig Plc

279.00

279.00

0.00%

100,606,078,098.00

19.32

14.44

1.11

2.58%

5.43

19 7-Up Bottling Comp. Plc

129.00

129.00

0.00%

82,636,156,827.00

-0.05 -2,824.30

0.89

1.71%

3.72

20 Dangote Sugar ReďŹ nery Plc

5.99

6.11

-1.96%

71,880,000,000.00

1.03

5.84

0.50

8.35%

1.15

21 International Breweries Plc

18.50

18.50

0.00%

60,943,611,680.00

0.02

821.05

2.29

1.35%

5.56

4.30

4.47

-3.80%

51,748,861,244.20

-3.15

-1.36

0.20

17.44%

0.33

23 Julius Berger Nig. Plc

38.58

38.58

0.00%

50,925,600,000.00

-2.95

-13.09

0.44

3.89%

2.68

24 Flour Mills Nig. Plc

18.49

18.00

2.72%

48,522,145,587.63

-1.19

-15.50

0.12

10.82%

0.49

25 Okomu Oil Palm Plc

40.17

40.17

0.00%

38,318,564,700.00

4.82

8.33

5.83

0.25%

2.37

0.87

0.87

0.00%

33,687,267,759.75

-0.47

-1.87

0.64

0.00%

0.46

16.90

16.90

0.00%

32,462,608,140.30

3.37

5.01

0.43

5.92%

0.43

28 Fidelity Bank Plc

0.85

0.83

2.41%

24,618,197,838.20

0.39

2.20

0.16

18.82%

0.13

29 Custodian And Allied Insurance Plc

3.89

3.89

0.00%

22,880,451,718.55

0.76

5.10

0.63

3.60%

0.80

30 National Salt Co. Nig. Plc

8.50

8.50

0.00%

22,520,226,213.00

0.85

10.01

1.20

6.47%

3.05

32.00

32.00

0.00%

22,400,000,000.00

2.28

14.01

3.36

3.59%

13.09

32 FCMB Group Plc

1.11

1.10

0.91%

21,981,008,966.91

0.61

1.81

0.13

9.01%

0.12

33 Wema Bank Plc

0.54

0.55

-1.82%

20,830,211,683.74

0.06

9.06

0.41

0.00%

0.44

34 Sterling Bank Plc

0.71

0.73

-2.74%

20,441,196,869.46

0.29

2.47

0.19

12.68%

0.25

35 Diamond Bank Plc

0.86

0.90

-4.44%

19,917,934,512.48

-0.29

-2.93

0.09

0.00%

0.09

15.75

15.75

0.00%

18,835,054,686.00

-2.98

-5.28

0.67

1.90%

2.14

37 Cadbury Nigeria Plc

9.78

9.78

0.00%

18,368,815,951.20

0.50

19.59

0.65

13.29%

1.80

38 Mansard Insurance Plc

1.69

1.69

0.00%

17,745,000,000.00

0.28

6.07

0.89

2.96%

0.84

39 PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc

14.50

14.50

0.00%

14,500,000,000.00

5.69

2.55

1.01

0.69%

0.39

40 Honeywell Flour Mill Plc

1.30

1.30

0.00%

10,309,256,955.40

-0.40

-3.22

0.21

12.31%

0.31

41 Continental Reinsurance Plc

0.96

0.99

-3.03%

9,957,834,539.52

0.42

2.29

0.45

12.50%

0.53

42 Skye Bank Plc

0.50

0.50

0.00%

6,940,150,705.00

-2.93

-0.17

0.04

60.00%

0.07

43 Wapic Insurance Plc

0.51

0.52

-1.92%

6,825,196,508.52

0.18

2.83

0.87

5.88%

0.41

44 Unity Bank Plc

0.58

0.57

1.75%

6,779,816,006.36

-0.10

-5.66

0.10

0.00%

0.08

45 Cement Co. Of North.Nig. Plc

4.55

4.75

-4.21%

5,717,883,835.30

0.22

20.78

0.51

2.20%

0.53

46 Resort Savings & Loans Plc

0.50

0.50

0.00%

5,664,866,202.00

0.03

17.71

3.72

0.00%

1.94

47 Nigerian Aviation Handling Company Plc

3.16

3.16

0.00%

5,132,531,250.00

0.15

20.91

0.64

6.33%

0.86

48 UACN Property Development Co. Limited

2.75

2.75

0.00%

4,726,562,486.25

0.30

9.19

1.12

25.45%

0.13

49 AIICO Insurance Plc

0.61

0.60

1.67%

4,227,424,732.80

0.22

2.74

0.15

8.20%

0.41

50 Fidson Healthcare Plc

1.33

1.33

0.00%

1,995,000,000.00

0.24

5.65

0.30

3.76%

0.31

16 Forte Oil Plc.

22 Oando Plc

26 Transnational Corporation Of Nigeria Plc 27 U A C NÂ Plc

31 Cap Plc

36 Glaxo Smithkline Consumer Nig. Plc

TOTAL

8,551,984,039,446.02

TOTAL MARKET CAP

9,158,242,792,415.32

% OF MARKET CAP Annotation - MA* = Simple Moving Average

93.38%

Table 1 Market Statistics Mkt Indicators

Open 3-Jan-17

NSE All Share Index NSE Market Cap (N'Trillion)

26,616.89 9.16

26,495.04 9.12

-0.46 -0.46

110.36 8.59

109.83 8.55

-0.47 -0.47

Thisday BGL 50 Index Thisday BGL 50 Market Cap (N'Trillion)

Close 4-Jan-17

Change %

Table 3 Top 5 Gainers Stock

Open 3-Jan-17

Flour Mills Nig. Plc Fidelity Bank Plc Unity Bank Plc AIICO Insurance Plc United Bank for Africa Plc

18.00 0.83 0.57 0.60 4.45

Close 4-Jan-17

Change %

18.49 0.85 0.58 0.61 4.51

2.72 2.41 1.75 1.67 1.35

Table 4 Top 5 Losers Stock

Open 3-Jan-17

Guaranty Trust Bank Plc Diamond Bank Plc Cement Co. Of North.Nig. Plc Oando Plc Continental Reinsurance Plc

24.00 0.90 4.75 4.47 0.99

Close 4-Jan-17

Change %

22.90 0.86 4.55 4.30 0.96

-4.58 -4.44 -4.21 -3.80 -3.03

Market closes negative as Index loses 0.46% consecutively Market pulse on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) today – Wednesday, January 4th, 2017, ended on a bearish note compared to the previous closing as market closed red. This was further highlighted by negative performance from the NSE Subsectors: Consumer Goods and Banking (Save Insurance and Oil & Gas). Trading activities decreased in volume as 602m shares worth of N1.20 billion in 2,150 deals exchanged hands today. This is a decrease from the 3.37 billion shares worth of N3.76 in 2,033 deals which exchanged hands on Tuesday. Topping in volume terms are: Omoluabi Savings And Loans Plc, United Bank for Africa Plc and United Capital Plc, while Nigerian Breweries Plc and Guaranty Trust Bank Plc ended trading as the most active stocks in value terms.

The All Share Index (NSEASI) closed negative with 0.46% (-121.85) increase to close at 26,495.04 from 26,616.89 the previous trading day. Market Capitalization appreciated in tandem to N9.12 trillion from N9.16 trillion of prior trading day. Similarly, the Thisday BGL 50 Index followed suit with a decrease of 0.47% to close at 109.83 from 110.36 recorded at the end of the previous trading day, while its market capitalization stood at N8.55 trillion from N8.59 trillion of the previous trading day.

A total number of 14 stocks gained on the bourse today while 17 stocks declined, leaving 68 stocks unchanged. Flour Mills Nig. Plc emerged as the day’s toast of investors as it topped the Thisday BGL 50 Index gainers’ list with a gain of 2.72% to close at N18.49 per share. It was followed by Fidelity Bank Plc with a gain of 2.41% to close at N0.85 per share.

Others on the gainers list include: Unity Bank Plc, AIICO Insurance Plc and United Bank for Africa Plc; while on the decliners’ list, Guaranty Trust Bank Plc emerge with a loss of 4.58% to close at N22.90 per share. It was followed by Diamond Bank Plc with a loss of 4.44% to close at N0.86 per share. Others on the decliners list include: CCNN Plc, Oando Plc and Continental Reinsurance 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 ďŹ rm may have a conict 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

T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY JANUARY 5, 2017

52

THURSDAYSPORTS

Group Sports Editor Duro Ikhazuagbe Email duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com

2 0 1 6 G LO - C A F AWA R D S

Who Wears the Crown as Africa’s Best Tonight?

Mahrez Duro Ikhazuagbe with agency report Despite the absence of any Nigerian player in the most prized category of the Glo-CAF Awards, Abuja is already feeling the buzz of the silver jubilee edition of the continent’s football Oscars taking place at the International Conference Centre.

Winner of Africa’s Best Player of the Year 2016, Gabon and Borussia Dortmund forward, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, has two challengers for the coveted crown in Leicester City of England and Algeria player, Riyad Mahrez and Senegal and Liverpool attacking midfielder, Sadio Mane.

With the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and West Africa’s leading telecommunication company and title sponsor of the event, Globacom, throwing in everything to make this 25th edition of Glo-CAF Awards a grand event, it promises to be a night to remember in Abuja. Globacom has been sponsoring the Glo-CAF Awards since 2005.

Already, top sports administrators, special guests and government functionaries

Aubameyang from different parts of Africa and beyond have converged on the capital city for the ceremony.

CAF President, Mr. Isa Hayatou and his delegation have already arrived Abuja for the event which will be covered live by global media.

All the three top nominees for African player of the year award have already confirmed their attendance.

Similarly, all the nominees in other categories are delighted to be rated among the best footballers in the continent.

About two weeks ago, CAF pruned down the final list to three players for the awards.

Other categories also include African Player of The Year (Based in Africa), National Team of The Year, Club of The Year, and Coach of The Year.

Other categories are Women’s National Team of The Year, Women’s Footballer of The Year, Most Promising Talent, Referee of The Year, Legend of The year, Fair Play Award, Platinum Award (which has only one nominee), and Africa Finest XI. From 1992 to 2015, from Ghana’s Abedi Pele to Gabonese Aubameyang, 15 players have laid claim to the most prestigious individual

Kalu Replaces Ndidi at KAA Gent Nigerian winger Samuel Kalu has signed a threeand-a-half-year contract with former Belgian Champions KAA Gent from Slovakian side AS Trencin for an undisclosed fee.

Kalu will join his compatriots Moses Simon, Anderson Esiti, Rabiu Ibrahim and William Troost-Ekong at the Belgian side.

The 19-year-old will also be the third Nigerian who has moved from Trencin to Gent after Rabiu Ibrahim and Moses Simon.

Kalu, who can play from

the wing or as a second striker, joined Trencin in January 2016 and won the Slovakian league title with them as well as the Slovakian Cup. The pacy winger played 42 matches for Trencin, scoring six goals and providing eight assists in his debut season in Europe which prompted Gent to sign him on.

Kalu, like Moses Simon, is a product of GBS Academy in Jos, Nigeria, and will continue his football education with the Buffaloes until 2020.

honour in African football.

Cameroonian Samuel Eto’o was the first to be crowned on four occasions - 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2010; a record since equalled by Toure, who made it four on the trot (2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014). Former Senegal forward, El Hadji Diouf won the award twice in a row; 2001 and 2002.

However, the first player to have been named CAF African Player of the Year on two occasions was ex-Nigeria captain, Nwankwo Kanu, in 1996 and 1999 before Ivorian Didier Drogba replicated the feat in 2006 and 2009.

Winners of the prestigious honour have come from either the midfield or attack; and that tradition will be respected yet again this time, with the three contenders being attackers.

In addition, the 15 players to have been decorated since 1992, have and continue to remain amongst the foremost African ambassadors of the world’s most popular sport.

There are also several others who were so near and yet so far, including Ivorian goalkeeper Alain Gouamene in 1992; Moroccan defender Noureddine Naybet (sixth in 1993); Nigerian Daniel Amokachi, who regularly featured among the top ten

Mane (10) whilst Chadian Japhet N’Doram was virtually handicapped by the nonpresence of his national team at the final phase of a major continental championship.

South African defender, Mark Fish also settled for sixth position in 1996. Ghanaian defender Samuel Kuffour narrowly missed out on two occasions, 1999 and 2001.

Others are Michael Essien of Ghana, who made the final three an unprecedented five times in a row - 2005 (third), 2006 (third), 2007 (second), 2008 (third) and 2009 (third); Asamoah Gyan, also from Ghana, 2010 (second); Andre Ayew (Ghana), 2011 (third) & 2015 (third) and Malian Seydou Keita, 2011 (second). So are Nigerian duo, John Mikel Obi and Vincent Enyeama, who finished second and third in 2013 and 2014 respectively.

When the roll call for the laureates is launched, there is one noticeable observation.

Cote d’Ivoire is the country which has the biggest number of triumphs, six in total, Toure (four) and Drogba (two); followed by Nigeria on five titles, two for Kanu, one each for Emmanuel Amuneke, Rashidi Yekini and Victor Ikpeba.

Patrick Mboma won it once coupled with Eto’o’s four also gives Cameroon five titles.

Diouf is responsible for the only two titles in the name of Senegal. One-time winners include Ghana – Abedi Pele, Liberia – George Weah (the only African player to have been crowned FIFA World Footballer of the Year), Morocco – Mustapha Hadji, Mali – Frederic Kanoute and Togo – Emmanuel Adebayor and Aubameyang on the ticket of Gabon.

Another common feature is that all winners plied their trade in Europe at the time of their coronation.

For the last decade, the Awards Gala has been sponsored by Cellular Telecommunications outfit, Globacom, who have raised the bar of excellence with splendid ceremonies in cities such as Abuja, Accra, Lome, Lagos and Cairo.

This year, the Gala will take place for the third time in Abuja. The Nigerian capital hosted for the first time in 2004 and lately the 2015 edition.

PAST WINNERS 1992 Abedi AYEW PELE (Ghana) 1993 Rashidi YEKINI (Nigeria)

1994 Emmanuel AMUNEKE (Nigeria) 1995 George WEAH (Liberia) 1996 Nwankwo KANU (Nigeria) 1997 Victor IKPEBA (Nigeria) 1998 Mustapha HADJI (Morocco) 1999 Nwankwo KANU (Nigeria) 2000 Patrick MBOMA (Cameroon) 2001 El-Hadji DIOUF (Senegal) 2002 El Hadji DIOUF (Senegal) 2003 Samuel ETO’O (Cameroon) 2004 Samuel ETO’O (Cameroon) 2005 Samuel ETO’O (Cameroon) 2006 Didier DROGBA (Côte d’Ivoire) 2007 Frederic KANOUTE (Mali) 2008 Emmanuel ADEBAYOR (Togo) 2009 Didier DROGBA (Côte d’Ivoire) 2010 Samuel ETO’O (Cameroon) 2011 Yaya TOURE (Côte d’Ivoire) 2012 Yaya TOURE (Côte d’Ivoire) 2013 Yaya TOURE (Côte d’Ivoire) 2014 Yaya TOURE (Côte d’Ivoire) 2015 Pierre-Emerick AUBAMEYANG (Gabon)

ACCESS/LAGOS MARATHON

Nigeria’s Marathon Queen Seeks Top-five Finish The number one Nigerian female runner at the maiden edition of the Access Bank Lagos City Marathon, Oluwaseun Olamide, has set a higher target for herself in the fast approaching 2017 edition.

Olamide who is now a celebrity thanks to Governor Akinwunmi Ambode initiative of starting the Lagos Marathon, sponsored by Access Bank was the first Nigerian female runner to cross the finishing line last year .

Her goal this time is not just to retain her status as the country’s female number one runner but break into the overall top five athletes in the female category.

“I finished in 18th position overall last year but this time I want to be at least in the top 10 or even in the top five” the 19-year old stated Seen sweating it out at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos on Wednesday, Olamide said she is leaving nothing to chance even as she revealed that she began intensive training over a month ago in other to fulfil her mission at the 2017 Access Bank Lagos City Marathon.

“I have been preparing since last year December and I am confident it is going to good again in 2017, I have not run in any races in recent times because I am fully focused on the Lagos marathon,” she said

Regardless of the starstudded cast of athletes expected across the world to feature in the 2017 Access Bank Lagos City Marathon, the Nigeria Marathon Queen said she is undaunted but actually excited that she will be rubbing shoulders with the very best in the world.

“I have heard of the big names coming again for this year’s race but I am not bothered, for me there is nothing special about the Kenyans or Ethiopians, once you believe in yourself and train as hard as they do then you can be sure to rub shoulders with them” Olamide submitted.

While it was a big surprise

for many to see the pint-sized Olamide going the whole mile at the 2016 Lagos Marathon, the fast rising marathoner said she hopes to spring more surprises in the 2017 race “It was a big surprise to some people that I am an athlete due to my small stature, a bigger surprise when people realised that I am into long distance race but with my performances I have made them to understand that it is not just about bragging but training and your inner strength as an athlete.

Many are keen to see how far the ‘inner strength’ in Olamide will take her this time at the 2017 Access Bank Lagos City Marathon

53

T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY JANUARY 5, 2017

THURSDAYSPORTS

AFCON 2017…. AFCON 2017…. AFCON 2017….

Egypt’s El Hadary Could Make Cup History Veteran goalkeeper Essam El Hadary has been included in Egypt’s final 23-man squad for the Africa Cup of Nations.

El Hadary turns 43 this month and could become the oldest player in Nations Cup history, beating the 2006 record of 39-year-old compatriot Hossam Hassan.

Coach Hector Cuper trimmed four players from his provisional list.

Al Masry defender Hamada Tolba and midfielder Ahmed Gomaa, Zamalek midfielder Mohamed Ibrahim and Ismaili goalkeeper Mohamed Awad were dropped.

Last month, Cuper sprang a surprise by omitting Zamalek striker Bassem Morsi, who had been in the starting line-up for Egypt in their last two World Cup qualifiers in October and November.

Only four of the squad remain from Egypt’s last participation in the finals, when they won the title for the third time in a row in 2010. They are El Hadary, Ahmed Elmohamady, Mohamed Abdelshafi and Ahmed Fathi.

Egypt, who have missed

out on the last three Nations Cup tournaments, play in Group D in Port Gentil and open their campaign on 17 January against Mali.

The tournament in Gabon runs from 14 January to 5 February.

EGYPT SQUAD: Goalkeepers: Sherif Ekramy (Al Ahly), Essam El Hadary (WadiDegla), Ahmed El Shennawi (Zamalek) Defenders: Mohamed Abdelshafi (Al Ahly Jeddah), Ahmed Dwidar(Zamalek), Ahmed Elmohamady (Hull City), Ahmed Fathi (Ahly),Omar Gaber (FC Basle), Ali Gabr (Zamalek), Karim Hafez (RacingLens), Ahmed Hegazy, Saad Samir (both Al Ahly) Midfielders: Mohamed Elneny (Arsenal), Abdallah El Said (AlAhly), Mahmoud Trezeguet Hassan (Royal Mouscron-Peruwelz), TarekHamed, Ibrahim Salah (both Zamalek), Amr Warda (Panetolikos) Forwards: Mahmoud Abdelmoneim Kahraba (Al Ahly Jeddah),Ahmed Hassan Kouka (Sporting Braga), Marwan Mohsen (Al Ahly),Mohamed Salah (Roma), Ramadan Sobhi (Stoke City).

WINTER TRANSFER

Ancelotti Rubbishes Vidal Transfer Talks Bayern Munich coach Carlo Ancelotti has labelled talk of Arturo Vidal moving to Chelsea as nonsense.

Vidal, who played under Chelsea manager Antonio Conte at Juventus, fuelled speculation over a switch from the Bundesliga champions to the Premier League leaders when he liked an Instagram post from a Chelsea fan page regarding

rumours of a transfer to Stamford Bridge.

But, asked about the possibility of Vidal leaving for Chelsea at Bayern’s training camp in Doha, Ancelotti replied: “This is absolute nonsense.”

The Chile attacking midfielder has made 21 appearances in all competitions for Bayern this season, scoring three goals.

Veteran goalkeeper Essam El Hadary has 147 caps

Mourinho Unhappy with Cote d’Ivoire over Bailly Manchester United Manager, Jose Mourinho, is unhappy with Cote d’Ivoire after the African champions refused to delay Eric Bailly’s arrival, which would have seen him face West Ham. Bailly, 22, played a full game as United recorded a hard-fought 2-1 win over Middlesbrough in the Premier League on Saturday.

However, he missed the trip to West Ham on Monday after

Cote d’Ivoire was unwilling to delay his arrival for the Africa Cup of Nations by 24 hours – much to Mourinho’s displeasure.

“Bailly goes to the national team. He has to be in the national team on the 2nd of January. We asked them for him to be (there) on the 3rd,” he said.

“They refused, so he cannot play against West Ham. “I wish Ivory Coast (Cote

d’Ivoire) to be champions again because with these kind of decisions it’s because they are controlling every second, so for sure they are going to win the African Cup.” Mourinho is confident he has enough depth to cover for Bailly’s departure for the tournament, at which Cote d’Ivoire faces DR Congo, Morocco and Togo in Group C. “I know that I lose Bailly

Sunderland Rejects West Ham’s £6m Bid for Defoe Sunderland has rejected West Ham’s £6m bid for striker Jermain Defoe. It is understood the Hammers will raise their offer for the player who began his career at the east London club.

Defoe, 34, has scored 11 goals in 21 appearances

for the Premier League strugglers this season.

His latest goals came on Monday as Sunderland twice fought from a goal down to draw 2-2 with in-form Liverpool, which left manager David Moyes’s side in 18th position.

Defoe’s senior career began at West Ham before he moved to rivals Tottenham in a £7m deal in 2004, with striker Bobby Zamora going the other way. A £7.5m move to Portsmouth followed in January 2008 before he

Vidal

Forsberg Agent Hints at RB Leipzig Exit Emil Forsberg’s agent, Hasan Cetinkaya, has suggested his client could leave RB Leipzig this month amid speculation Liverpool is looking to sign him.

The Swede has been linked with a move to the Premier League on the back of his impressive form

in the Bundesliga and his representative is not promising he will stay.

The 25-year-old has been one of the revelations of the season in Europe and a key part of Leipzig’s fine start to the 2016-17 campaign, scoring five goals in 15 Bundesliga outings.

for a month, and I know I’ll have (Chris) Smalling, (Marcos) Rojo and (Phil) Jones,” he said.

“That’s three players for I think eight matches.”

Mourinho added: “I decided to play Eric today (Tuesday), and in the end it was good to have him on the pitch, because he’s the fastest one, and to play one against one at the back, he’s the best because he’s very fast.”

Jermain Defoe scored twice in the 2-2 draw against Liverpool on Bank Holiday Monday

returned to Spurs the following year for £15m.

Defoe made a surprise move to Canadian team Toronto FC in 2014 before he was lured to Sunderland in 2015 by former Black Cats boss and ex-Spurs team-mate Gus Poyet.

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T H I S D AY ˾THURSDAY JANUARY 5, 2017

THURSDAYSPORTS

Serena Bows out of Auckland Classic Serena Williams suffered a shock second-round defeat at the Auckland Classic yesterday following her sister Venus’s earlier withdrawal with an arm injury.

Top seeded Serena blamed the wind for a string of unforced errors in her first event after a four-month layoff as she was sent packing 6-4, 6-7 (7/3), 6-4 in a two-hour, 14-minute arm wrestle with world number 72 Madison Brengle.

“I’m trying to think of a word that’s not obscene but that’s pretty much how I played,” Serena told reporters.

“I just couldn’t get used to the wind. My opponent played in the exact same conditions so obviously she was used to it and her game was more suited to it but it was just really annoying me for whatever reason.”

Second-seed Venus decided to quit after suffering a sore right arm during her struggle to a 7-6 (7/2), 6-2 first-round victory over 18-year-old New Zealander Jade Lewis playing in her first WTA tournament.

Serena, playing in her first tournament since losing in the semifinals of the US Open in September, was looking for a bold showing in Auckland, both to prepare for the Australian Open and to celebrate her New Year engagement to Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian.

After blaming rust for her sluggish first-round win over Pauline Parmentier on

Tuesday, she succumbed in abject fashion a day later with a double fault on match point at 4-5 in the third set in the blustery conditions.

“I didn’t hit any returns in the vicinity of the court,” lamented Serena. “I’ve never returned like that in my life – a little frustrating especially since I worked so hard in the offseason.

“I can take solace from the fact conditions won’t be like this in Melbourne.”

Brengle dropped her second service game but at 4-1 down reeled off five consecutive games to take the first set.

In the second set she saved five set points before losing the tie break to Williams and in the final set she held her nerve as games went with serve until Williams double faulted on match point.

“Probably my least favourite conditions I’ve ever played in,” said Serena. “I really abhorred the conditions. It was way too much for me.

This is almost not a great opportunity to assess your game.

“At this rate at least I can get out of these conditions and get to somewhere better, some warm weather.”

Brengle goes through to meet seventh seed Jelena Ostapenko in the quarterfinals while Venus’s withdrawal gifted Japanese teenager Naomi Osaka a berth in the final eight where she will play eighth-seed Croatian Ana Konjuh.

Injured Bolasie May be Out for One Year Everton’s Yannick Bolasie damaged his right knee in a challenge with Manchester United’s Anthony Martial Everton winger Yannick Bolasie could be out for a year with a knee injury, says manager Ronald Koeman.

Bolasie, 27, injured his right knee during the Toffees’ 1-1 draw with Manchester United on 4 December.

Manager Koeman said on Wednesday: “It will be around 11-12 months before he is back.

That is a big disappointment but he will come back.”

Bolasie is due to have a second operation - on his anterior cruciate ligament - in the coming weeks.

The DR Congo international signed for Everton from Crystal Palace in a £25m deal in August, and had played in every league game this campaign up until his injury.

Manchester United’s Memphis Depay could be brought in to fill the position in attacking midfield, with Koeman having this season expressed his desire to sign his fellow Dutchman.

Dele Alli’s Brace Ends Chelsea’s Unbeaten Run In-form midfielder Dele Alli scored two near-identical headers as Tottenham Hotspur beat Chelsea 2-0 in London last night to torpedo the Premier League leaders’ hopes of a record 14th consecutive victory.

Chelsea were bidding to become the first team to win 14 successive games within the same English top-flight season, but Alli’s goals, both set up by Christian Eriksen, brought them down to earth.

“We were competitive against a team in very good form, one of the best in Europe, and we feel very proud and pleased because the performance was very solid,” said Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino.

Antonio Conte’s Chelsea must content themselves with

having equalled Arsenal’s season record of 13 wins in a row from 2001-02 and they remain five points clear of second-place Liverpool.

But the end of their winning streak will give hope to their pursuers, not least Tottenham, who rose above Manchester City and Arsenal to third place in the table, seven points below the leaders.

“It is a pity to stop this run, but Tottenham is a good team, a really strong team and I think is for sure one of the teams that can fight for the title until the end,” Conte told Sky Sports.

“My team are top of the table because we are working a lot. This league is very tough and it is important to continue to work.”

In the other two quarterfinals, third-seed Caroline Wozniacki, now the top-ranked player remaining, will meet Germany’s Julia

Goerges, and Barbora Strycova of Croatia, the fourth seed, plays American Lauren Davis.

The 36-year-old Venus Williams had complained of

“feeling old” after dropping her serve four times and serving eight double faults against Lewis who was half her age.

“The first match of the year is never perfect,” she said after the match but before deciding to pull out. “I’m just feeling old.”

Bolasie on the turf during the Everton versus Manchester United clash

AFCON 2017

Zimbabwe Set for Surprises in Gabon Zimbabwe, dubbed “The Warriors” by home fans, return to the Africa Cup of Nations for the third time hoping to shrug off their minnows tag after failing to make it beyond the group stages in 2004 and 2006.

The southern African nation is pinning its dreams on players like Belgium-based striker Knowledge Musona, who is leading scorer at top-flight side KV Oostende, and South Africabased Khama Billiat who had a strong season at Mamelodi Sundowns.

Zimbabwe, who ranks 102 in the world and 29 in Africa, won four of their six qualifying matches for the top African football showcase in Gabon next month despite being dogged by financial woes.

The country’s football association is saddled with debt and has at times failed to pay players’ allowances and often relies on well-wishers to cover wages for players and coaches.

An economic crisis and cash shortage has seen football match attendance figures plummeting.

Last year the country was expelled from the 2018 World Cup preliminary competition over non-payment of a $67,000 debt to former coach Jose Claudinei Georgini, better known by his nickname Valinhos.

Zimbabwe face formidable opponents in Group B, which includes Senegal who are perched on the top rung on the continent, and Tunisia and

Algeria who are third and fifth respectively.

Veteran Harare-based football analyst Stanley Katsande said the team has the potential to shine at the 16-team tournament despite being counted as continental underdogs.

“Zimbabwe had a very impressive record during the qualifiers,” Katsande told AFP. “They may not be the group winner but the boys will definitely leave a huge impression at the tournament despite being lowly-ranked.

“While many think they will be the punching bag of the group, I am not expecting

an early flight back home.

They face the best teams on the continent and they certainly need to concentrate 110 percent.”

Nigel Matongorere, sports editor at the Daily News newspaper, said coach Callisto Pasuwa hoped to employ tactics to beat “African giants who do have their flaws and weaknesses.”

“In their previous two appearances, Zimbabwe failed to progress to the quarterfinals of the tournament,” Matongorere said in a review ahead of the tournament.

“This time around, Pasuwa has the players and with a bit of organisation coupled

Zimbabwe... set for srrprises at AFCON 2017

with luck, the Warriors can cause an upset.”

The team, combining local and foreign-based players, has been compared to the side which shone on the continent in the 1990s winning 13 matches unbeaten under German coach Reinhard Fabisch.

Key players heading to Gabon include striker Musona (KV Oostende, Belgium), midfielder Khama Billiat (Mamelodi Sundowns, South Africa), defender Costa Nhamoinesu (AC Sparta Praha, Czech Republic), striker Matthew Rusike (Helsingborgs IF, Sweden) and Tinotenda Kadewere (Djurgardens IF).

T H I S D AY THURSDAY JANUARY 5, 2017

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Price: N250

MISSILE Femi Falana to President Buhari “Whenever killings occur in any part of the world arising from terrorist attacks or natural disasters, the Presidency is always quick to condemn such dastardly acts. But whenever Nigerian citizens are killed either by armed personnel, terrorists or thugs, no official statement is issued by the Presidency. In many instances, the silence of the Presidency has been given ethnic and religious interpretations” – Mr Femi Falana, SAN, decrying the seeming insensitivity by the Buhari administration to internal conflicts.

OLUSEGUNADENIYI THE VERDICT

olusegun.adeniyi@thisdaylive.com

Tony Rapu: More Than a Pastor D

espite the fact that many Nigerians may not have heard of him, Tony Rapu, medical practitioner and Pastor, is without any doubt, one of the most remarkable men in our country.

And as he clocks 60, it is important to examine the impact he has had on the career of so many people in positions of authority in both the public and private sectors and they include Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Chinedu and Oby Ezekwesili, Bola Adesola, Remi Morgan, Onari Duke, Ituah Ighodalo, Babatunde Fowler, Ben Akabueze, Agu Irukwu, Ghandi Olaoye, Sola David-Borha, Imoh-Abasi Jacob and several others.

The story started in 1991 when Pastor Tony was sent out along with 50 workers by the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adejare Adeboye, to start one of the two Model Parishes (English speaking without Yoruba translation) in Lagos. Tunde Bakare, lawyer and respected Senior Pastor at Latter Rain Assembly, was actually the first person that received the mandate to seek out the upwardly mobile professionals and bring them to Christ from Pastor Adeboye. But shortly after, Bakare left RCCG and that assignment fell on Tony Rapu.

Pastor Tony started the parish at Roxy Cinema in Apapa before moving to Jimoh Odutola Street in Eric Moore, Surulere.

It was there that I joined other young professionals trying to find meaning to their lives. It was also at Surulere that the Parish expanded even though it retained the name Apapa within the RCCG structure.

A charismatic bible teacher and mentor, Pastor Tony had a peculiar way of training his workers. First, each batch was regarded as a Class and had a name: Pioneers, Reformers, Elisha, Front-liners etc. Before each group would take off, an announcement was usually made in church for applications and after the selection process, the trainings were always very rigorous with such Pastors as Ayo Adeloye (now in RCCG, Zambia) and Dr. Okey Onuzo most often invited for some of the sessions.

As the Church grew, over 300 members of congregation applied to be accepted in the “Government Workers Class” and next, the “Territorial Workers Class”. Only 30 were eventually selected for each those classes, most of them from business and the professions. The “Government Workers” Class is considered the most prophetic set that Pastor Tony trained because of the number of them that went into public service at different levels. Pastor Tony taught members of this class that they were called

by God to establish “governmental order” in a broken down society. He demanded of them a commitment to a lifestyle of “repairing the breach” and “rebuilding the ruins of a society entrapped in morality and value crisis”. And this was more than 20 years ago!

In a recent recollection of that era, Prof.

Osinbajo recounted the impact of Pastor Tony on his life and ministry. “As a professor

Pastor Tony Rapu of the law of evidence, everything must be demonstrated by scientific proof and logic.

But Pastor Tony led me to understand the evidence of things that are not seen. In 1993, I came to the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Apapa Parish. I was in a workers group. Guess what he named that workers group? Government! It was prophetic. Oby Ezekwesili was in the same group with me. She of course became Minister in two different departments”, said Osinbajo in reference to Ezekwesili’s time as Minister of Solid Minerals and later, Education under President Olusegun Obasanjo.

However, the greater tribute was paid by the man who, by all account, is Pastor Tony’s spiritual father. At a recent event to mark the 25th anniversary of the Apapa Family, Pastor Adeboye spoke about the exceptional talent and spiritual zeal of Pastor Tony. “If you give me 1000 Pastor Tonys, I will capture the whole world for Christ”, he said of the man who, 26 years ago, ran with his (Adeboye’s) vision and became one of the catalysts for the phenomenal growth of the RCCG. But Pastor Tony’s impact is more to the larger society through the thousands of men and women whose faith he helped to inspire and nurture.

The message of Pastor Tony was always that Christians who cannot make a difference within their societies have no testimonies and for that reason, most of his preaching centred around integrity in the workplace, leading by example, restoring order, breaking down systems and rebuilding walls. Applying Biblical principles, Pastor Tony taught his congregation about purpose and how authority could be used to do good. Those were the ethos that made Apapa Parish different in those days.

With the conclusion of the training of the Government Workers set in 1994, Pastor Tony established the Social Reformation Department which went on to pioneer the

numerous social intervention programmes of the Apapa Parish at the time. Out of that vision came Hope Hospital, a full-fledged medical centre run by professionals in the church; Hebron House, a drug rehabilitation clinic that help many junkies out of their addictions; Camp Gilgal in Ikorodu, the first ever rehabilitation programme for “Area Boys” in Lagos in the 90’s; Redeemers International Secondary School that birthed the church education mission; an orphanage by name Green Pastures, etc. It was about the same time that the Parish established what is now Haggai Mortgage Bank which boasts of N5 billion shareholders fund and has become a big RCCG financial institution (being managed by my egbon, Richard Olubameru), helping in the expansion of what is now the Redemption City.

With the theme, “Preparing a People” which was more or less the motto of Apapa Parish, Pastor Tony challenged members to be different and to aspire for excellence in whichever area we found ourselves.

The admonition for the Christian to be “the salt of the earth and the light of the world” was not a sermon to be heard but a way to live, he insisted. And as he trained the workers, Pastor Tony also trained the whole church.

What made Pastor Tony endearing to members of his congregation was the fact that there was no hypocrisy in his ministry.

He practiced what he preached. And so did his lovely wife, Nkoyo, herself an upwardly mobile lawyer at that time. Because he was young, then in his thirties, Pastor Tony was also approachable to many of the early members who were within the same age group with him. To them, he was either PT or Pastor Tony (not Pastor Rapu) and with that tradition, which he established, RCCG Pastors from what is now known as Apapa Family (comprising more than a thousand parishes spread across the world) till today are addressed by their first names.

In laying a solid foundation, there were various training programmes that members of the church had to go through but the emphasis was always about making a difference in whatever little corners we found ourselves. He was always challenging members to find worthy causes and pursue them. The words he kept emphasizing were Brokenness, Values, Service, Sacrifice, Character, Excellence, Influence, Nationbuilding, Authority and Leadership. Those were the kernels of Pastor Tony’s teachings in the last days of Apapa Parish, as it then was.

However, by 1995, it was becoming evident that there was some form of tension within RCCG and at the centre of it were members of the Apapa Parish led by Pastor Tony. We were deemed to be flamboyant and “still in the world” aside the fact that we were also considered “different” from the RCCG mainstream at the time. Yet this was a parish led by a Pastor who tolerated no form of carnality or compromise; a church where prayers and fasting were articles of faith; a parish

where undiluted word was preached and where discipline was the watchword. But many of the members were also relatively young and were doing well in their chosen professions. So, from what I could see as a reporter, the main problem was envy.

It is, however, to the eternal credit of Pastor Adeboye, and a testimony to his Prophetic Ministry, that he was able to manage what was tending towards a crisis for the church with so much dexterity. And he protected Apapa Parish from what could have been an implosion. It was his idea in the first place to start the model parishes but there were evidently people within the old order who saw Apapa Parish as a disruptive force. They apparently could not see what Pastor Adeboye saw and were ready to throw the congregation to the wolves.

In the midst of that turmoil, Pastor Tony went on a long mission work to London to start Jesus House UK, one of the first groups of foreign missions of the RCCG outside Africa. With the late Eskor Mfon, (another firebrand Pastor and disciplinarian who brooked no nonsense) in charge, there was no change in direction in Apapa Parish. But on the day Pastor Tony returned in September 1996 to preach his unforgettable sermon, “The night is far spent”, the church was not only filled to the brim, it was also evident there was going to be a serious shaking. It was a loaded sermon that hinted of the change to come; as he admonished that “the red sea has already closed behind us”. He made it clear that there was no way back in our Christian journey, no matter what the future held.

What that message did was to reinforce the fact that the calling of members transcended any pastor; as he challenged Apapa Parish members to contend for their faith. Not long after, he left RCCG in a quiet manner that left room for so much speculation about what was going on since he would not talk. And it took him more than a year to start “This Present House” where he is now the Senior Pastor.

Apparently because he had prepared the minds of members that he was only an instrument in the hands of God and that his job at RCCG was done, the congregation remained, following a seamless transition to the leadership of the late Pastor Eskor. I am almost certain Pastor Tony discouraged people from leaving RCCG with him. In any case, he had already prepared a congregation grounded enough to understand that the race to which Christians are called is not about any pastor.

Although I have not seen Pastor Tony in almost a decade, he is a man many of us can never forget because he, like his favorite Bible character, King David, has impacted our lives and his generation. As he therefore clocks 60, I wish Pastor Tony many more years of productive service in the Lord’s Vineyard and to the building of a New Nigeria.

Let me also wish all my readers a most prosperous year 2017!

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