WEDNESDAY 17TH JANUARY 2024 by THISDAY Newspapers Ltd

FG: Cutting Budgetary Expenditure Not Feasible Option for Nigeria Now Rewane: Nigeria is at mercy of its creditors, investors, others

Dike Onwuamaeze The Director General of Budget

Office of the Federation, Mr. Ben Akabueze, has stated that reducing budget expenses was not a feasible

option for the federal government of Nigeria. Akabueze, stated this yesterday

at the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s (LCCI) 2024 Economic Outlook and Budget Analysis with

the theme “Building Economic Resilience in 2024: Strategies for a Sustainable Future.”

The President of LCCI, Mr. Gabriel Continued on page 10

Atiku Faults NNPCL Planned Private Sector Operatorship of Port Harcourt Refinery... Page 10

Wednesday 17 January, 2024 Vol 28. No 10507. Price: N400

www.thisdaylive.com TR

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& RE A S O

Tinubu: Buhari Courageously Took Over Power When Terrorism Peaked in 2015 Vows not to relent until agents of darkness are eliminated Buhari declares readiness to account for his tenure

Deji Elumoye in Abuja

President Bola Tinubu openly acknowledged the efforts of his predecessor, Muhammadu Buhari,

yesterday, saying he courageously took over government at a time when terrorism was at its peak in the country. Tinubu spoke as Chief Guest

at the launch of a book, "Working with Buhari, Reflections of a Special Adviser on Media and Publicity (2015--2023),” authored by erstwhile presidential spokesperson, Femi

Adesina. The president said he inherited the job of securing every inch of the country’s territory, and assured that he would not relent until every agent

of darkness was finally eliminated. Buhari, who was visiting the nation’s capital for the first time since leaving office on May 29, 2023, said he kept record of everything done

under his watch and was aware he might be required to give account of his stewardship. Continued on page 10

Shell Strikes Landmark Deal to Sell All Onshore Nigerian Oil Assets for $2.8bn

Consortium of four local firms, one foreign coy to take over operations Assets include 15 onshore, three shallow water OMLs of 458m barrels Shell to focus on deepwater, integrated gas operations Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja and Peter Uzoho in Lagos Oil giant, Shell, has agreed to sell its Nigerian onshore oil assets to Renaissance, a consortium of four Nigerian firms and one foreign company, for $2.4 billion. A statement from the London office of Shell, yesterday, said with the deal, its onshore subsidiary, the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC), will now be operated by ND Western, Aradel Energy, First E&P, Waltersmith, and Petrolin, a Swiss firm. However, Shell stated that the completion of the deal was still subject to approval by the federal government. Shell, which has operated in Nigeria for over six decades, noted that its offshore and deep-water operations will continue in the country. According to the global oil and gas company, the transaction will also preserve the full range of SPDC's operating capabilities, including its management and staff. Continued on page 10

Profiles of Renaissance Energy Leadership who Bought Shell Nigeria

Mr. Samuel Dossou-Aworet,

Chairman, ND, Western/Petrolin Group of Companies

Mr. Gbite Falade,

Managing Director/CEO, Aradel Energy

Dr. Layi Fatona,

Co-founder and Pioneer CEO, Aradel

Mr. Eberechukwu Oji,

Managing Director, ND Western

Mr. Abdulrazaq Isa, OFR

Chairman, Waltersmith Group

Engr. Tony Attah (Fnse),

Managing Director/CEO, RAEC

Mr. Ademola Adeyemi-Bero,

Managing Director, FIRST E & P

Engr. Bayo Bashir Ojulari,

Eecutive Vice President, RAEC

WEDNESDAY JANUARY 17, 2024 • T H I S D AY

T H I S D AY • WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2024

NEWS

Group News Editor: Goddy Egene Email: Goddy.egene@thisdaylive.com, 0803 350 6821, 0809 7777 322, 0807 401 0580

Cutting of cake in celebration of Akande’s 85th birthday...

L-R: Governor of Ondo State, Mr. Lucky Aiyedatiwa; his Oyo State counterpart, Engr. Seyi Maknide; the celebrant and former interim National Chairman of APC, Chief Bisi Akande; State Governors, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu (Lagos); Mr. Abiodun Oyebanji (Ekiti); Prince Dapo Abiodun (Ogun) and the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Mr. Gboyega Oyetola during the cutting of cake in celebration of Chief Akande’s 85th birthday, at the International Conference Centre in Ibadan, Oyo State, ... yesterday

Adeniyi: Customs Only Aligned with CBN FX Rates, Didn't Raise Import Duty Says service has raised revenue by 37% Plans upward salary review to boost employees' morale

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja, Gilbert Ekugbe and Laleye Dipo in Minna The Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Adewale Adeniyi, yesterday clarified that the service only aligned with the new foreign exchange (FX) rate prescribed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and did not wilfully raise duties paid on imports. Speaking on Arise News Channel, THISDAY’s broadcast arm, the customs boss explained that the decision was part of the “repercussions” of the CBN’s effort at enforcing a single FX window. In December, the federal government increased import duties by as much as 22.24 per cent, a development that operators said could worsen the inflationary trend in the country. The increase, the third in 2023, reportedly drove the cost of clearing a 40-foot container from N7.3 million to N8.9 million. But Adeniyi argued that customs could not independently or unilaterally use new exchange rates without recourse to the merged FX window. “The new administration has not made any pretension towards the fact that it was going to take a number of very bold decisions and reforms aimed at repositioning the Nigerian economy and reforms that will bring sustainable change over a long period of time. “So one of the reforms that have been undertaken is the merger of the

forex markets, the various segments of the forex markets, which have been merged in the very few days of the new administration. “And so this has repercussions or effects on our operation. So what it means is that we cannot use rates independently that are not tallied or that are not specified through this merged window. So what we do is just to update our system. “So it is not about costumes increasing the rates. We have nothing to do with whether the rates go up or whether the rates go down. We follow what is prescribed for us by the regulatory authority for monetary affairs, which is the Central Bank of Nigeria,” he maintained. He stated that the deployment of technology was being used to address very complex and knotty issues confronting customs administration, stressing that some of the issues in the sector include the issue of port competitiveness and port efficiency. “I'm also coming to office after eight years of the tenure of my predecessor who had a very strong personality. So this raises a number of challenges for me, coming in as an insider. “So, expectations are quite high, that is the pressure to perform. And I must say in the last six months, we've given this challenge our best. We've raised revenue by about 37 per cent. And the remaining challenge would be for us to have a process to engage our officers and our stakeholders,” he stated.

Adeniyi argued that the job of the customs service had gone beyond just mere revenue collection, describing it as a narrow view. He added that it now includes trade facilitation, security and others. He said that trade facilitation also gives an advantage as it gives the opportunity to increase revenue generation. Speaking on the directive by the Minister of Finance that import duty on steel and electric vehicles be removed, the customs CG stressed that the service wouldl implement all fiscal policies directed by the federal government, especially those

meant to engineer development in the various sectors of the economy. Adeniyi said the welfare of officers was very paramount to meeting the target of the NCS, including insurance cover and timely promotion of staff. “We are making provisions for insurance cover for those that come to any form of injury while discharging their official duty. This is critical to officers’ welfare, and most importantly, career progression also comes under officer welfare. “This and others, we have made very conscious attempts as CG of customs alongside my management

The President/Chairman of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria(CIBN), Dr. Ken Okpara, has reiterated the commitment of the council to the future of banking and finance education in Nigeria. Okpara stated this at Kwara State University (KWASU), Malete, yesterday, during the ninth groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of ultra modern legacy CIBN hall for the institution. The project is being collaborated between the CIBN and KWASU to advance the academic learning and teaching of the students of the

university. The CIBN said, "the zeal became imperative as a world characterised by rapid technological advancements and dynamic shifts in the financial landscape., the need for a well-equipped and forward-looking educational infrastructure cannot be overstated." He said, "In 1998, the Linkage Programme was conceived by the Institute with the foresight that education is not just a means to an end but a journey that shapes the future. "The Linkage Programme, now spanning decades, has been a beacon of positive change in the narrative of banking education in Nigeria.

According to him, over 2,400 customs officers benefited from the promotion exercise, stressing that the target to generate N5.1 trillion remains achievable in 2024. He also announced plan to review the salaries and allowances of its staff to achieve the N5.1 trillion revenue generation target for 2024. In his words, "In 2024, we have the target to generate N5.1 trillion which we believe is quite doable, but we need to motivate our officers a little bit more and the last salary review we had was over five years ago and I think we are due for another review.

Edun: Tinubu Will Lead By Example, Make Deeper Cuts in Cost of Governance Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun, has said that President Bola Tinubu will embark on further cost-cutting measures, days after the president announced he slashed persons on his official entourage by 60 per cent. Speaking in an exclusive interview with Arise Television on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, the minister noted that the measure

was important to rebuild trust in government. He noted that the COVID-19 pandemic and the global economic downturn that followed had seen people’s confidence in government wane globally, explaining that key steps were being taken to regain the trust of the citizenry. The areas that this should happen, he said, include : Prudency in government expenditure, streamlining where taxpayers’ monies should be deployed and how Nigeria’s common patrimony from oil sales

Okpara: CIBN Remains Committed to Future of Banking, Finance Education in Nigeria

Hammed Shittu in Ilorin

to ensure all is done. If you talk about motivation through career development, we have organised massive capacity programmes both locally and internationally. “In the second half of 2023, we had over 6,000 customs officers that went for different capacity programmes at home and abroad. “The promotion exercise that we used to roll over into the third, fourth, or sixth month, we ensured we started it in the third quarter of 2023, and by the end of the fourth quarter of 2023, the promotion exercise had been completed,” he noted.

"Our vision for the Linkage Programme was to bridge the gap between theory and practice, academia and industry. "We aimed to infuse a professional element into the teaching-learning process, enriching the educational experience of students and, in turn, enhancing the quality of graduates produced by our higher institutions. "The Linkage programme, which currently has on board seventy-seven (77) tertiary institutions in Nigeria, commenced on this campus on November 21, 2017, with the execution of a Collaboration Agreement between The Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) and Kwara State

University. The collaboration has fared well, and Kwara State University has performed creditably well on the scheme. "To extend the frontiers of this giant strides, the Governing Council of our highly revered Institute resolved to institute a learning legacy project in selected Linked institutions across the six geo-political zones in Nigeria. "After a rigorous and painstaking evidence-based appraisal exercise, I am pleased to announce that Kwara State University was selected as one of the beneficiaries in acknowledgement of the role the University plays in fostering an environment conducive to academic excellence..

should be spent. “The effects of COVID and the downturn that that caused, naturally within that context , means there's less trust in government in particular, relative to even the private sector and the corporations. “So government needs to do a lot to rebuild the trust and of course in Nigeria, the administration of President Bola Tinubu has had to take some key reforms or measures. “It is also in the middle of trying to rebuild the trust of all, particularly in terms of government expenditure, how people's tax revenues are spent, how the oil revenues and how the patrimony of the country is handled. And I think some important steps have been taken in that direction,” he stated. According to Edun, at the end of it all, apart from trying to implement very important measures, Tinubu has attempted to further build the trust of the people in government, by trying to eliminate wasteful expenditure and reduce the cost of governance. He stressed that aside these, he had been showing empathy by intervening on behalf of the vulnerable in recent times. “He has cut the cost of his own entourage, and so on and so forth, and down the line, I'm sure it's just one of many measures to come,” he stated. Tinubu had before now been criticised for operating a large government, having unwieldy convoys, taking large entourage

to events, among others. Edun explained that Nigeria needed to be present in Davos as the largest country in Africa and one of the biggest economies on the continent to give its own perspective and enhance its drive for investment. He added that the intention of the government at the event is to showcase what it has done to encourage investment. “And I think, really, that is one of the key reasons why we are here today. At a time when you have this fragmentation, at a time when you have these geopolitical tensions, it is important for people to come sit around the table and dialogue and try and find solutions. “And so I very much support the fact that the theme of this year's Davos is “Rebuilding Trust”, and it's a work in progress, it is something that the whole world has to work on. And I think it's important that Nigeria is here. And as I was saying, the president has an important role to play in rebuilding trust in Nigeria, leading by example. “And I think that is what he's now beginning to do, with all the measures that we see which indicate that he's willing and able and ready to sacrifice and lead by example,” he added. Edun noted that Nigeria was putting its foot in front of the whole world and showcasing a whole series of reforms that the country remains an important destination for investment.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2024 • T H I S D AY

NEWS

BOOK PRESENTATION ON WORKING WITH BUHARI...

L -R : Former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo; former SA media to President Buhari and Author of the book, Mr Femi Adesina; President Bola Ahmed Tinubu; former President Muhammadu Buhari; his wife, Aisha; former Head PHOTO: GODWIN OMOIGUI. of State, Yakubu Gowon and Gen Ibrahim Haruna, during the public presentation of book title “Working with Buhari” by Femi Adesina held at Transcorp Hilton Abuja.....yesterday

Tinubu: Education is Antidote to Nation’s Insecurity, Poverty, Other Problems Says incessant kidnappings, banditry ungodly IG meets DIGs, AIGs, CPs, tactical squads Wike meets security chiefs Sani, Afenifere, AI, HURIWA, CSJ, others condemn devt

Chuks Okocha, Kingsley Nwezeh, Olawale Ajimotokan, Michael Olugbode, Sunday Aborisade, Kuni Tyessi in Abuja and John Shiklam in Kaduna President Bola Tinubu, yesterday, condemned the recent spate of kidnappings and bandit attacks, in the country, saying the antidote to Nigeria’s problems, including poverty, was education. The president, however, described the development as disturbing, ungodly, and sinister. Also, yesterday, the InspectorGeneral of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, convened a crucial meeting with the force management team and tactical squads, to address the rising insecurity in the country. At the same time, the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, and the Service Chiefs, yesterday, met over the security situation in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. Similarly, the Kaduna State Governor, Senator Uba Sani, has decried the return of bandits in seven local government areas in the state as well as the Kaduna-Abuja highway. In the same breath, pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, has urged the various security agencies in the country to fish out individuals and groups aiding the activities of kidnappers and bandits in the numerous communities currently experiencing the menace. Senator Ireti Kingibe, the Senator representing the FCT, has equally deplored the worsening security situation in Abuja, the nation’s capital. Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), on its part, has lamented that the country’s security situation had degenerated to the extent that it could be stated that the government has failed its primary and constitutional duty of guaranteeing the security of Nigerians and residents in Nigeria Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA),has asked Tinubu and the service chiefs to look inwards for solution to the resurgence of insurgency because the federal government has concealed the identities of key sponsors of terrorism. However, speaking when he received a delegation of an Islamic Movement, Jam’iyyatu Ansariddeen the State House, in Abuja, the president said while security agencies were acting with dispatch to immediately address the current challenge, all required resources, policies and plans would be rolled out soon for the massive education of Nigerian youths.

Tinubu maintained that education was the antidote to the troubles agitating the nation, adding that, "There is no weapon against poverty that is as potent as learning. "I can assure you that we are here to change the lives of our people. We are here to promote peace, stability, and economic prosperity. "We are dedicated to building a lasting peace with a focus on the comprehensive education of our children. We will get our teachers and their owners involved in an education process that will be relevant to the future of this country. “It is important. Knowledge brought me here with your prayers and your support. Without knowledge, there is nothing to generate hope for mankind," the president said. He emphasised that it was important to promote updated knowledge through existing Islamic learning institutions for youths in Northern Nigeria to speed up development in the region, in Nigeria, and throughout Africa. "Please embark on special prayers. Embark on proper education for our youths. Kidnapping and banditry are not the way of God. Shedding each other’s blood is bad. “And there can be no development without peace. It is only in the area of peace that we can eliminate poverty. We must work for peace in order for our economy to grow better," the president stated. Earlier, leader of the Jam'iyyatu Ansaridden, Sheikh Muhammad Lamine Niass, encouraged the president to continue implementing his reform initiatives while affirming that his movement, reputed for its promotion of peace and tolerance, would continue to pray for Nigeria's peaceful development.

IG Meets DIGs, AIGs, CPs, Tactical Squads Following the spate of kidnappings in the Federal Capital Territory and other similar incidents across the country, the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, yesterday, convened a crucial meeting with the force management team and tactical squads, to address the rising concerns surrounding insecurity in the country. The IG expressed concern over the unfortunate events and emphasised the need for decisive action to curb such heinous crimes. During the meeting which centred on a comprehensive review of current security challenges, strategic planning, and the deployment of tactical resources to tackle emerging threats,

the IGP emphasised the need for a coordinated and intelligence-driven approach to address the evolving security landscape. Tactical squads were briefed and directed to intensify efforts on the deployment of proactive measures to prevent criminal activities and protect citizens. A statement by the Force Public Relations Officer and Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), Olumuyiwa Adejobi, said the IG, while reassuring Nigerians, especially residents of the Federal Capital Territory, of improved security, ordered the Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Department of Operations, to personally coordinate the upscaled security strategies emplaced to decimate kidnappers and other criminally minded individuals in the FCT and immediately restore normalcy. In addition to operational strategies, the IG underscored the significance of community engagement and collaboration with relevant stakeholders to gather information, enhance trust, and foster a collective effort in combating criminal elements.

Wike, Service Chiefs Meet The FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, and the Service Chiefs, yesterday, met over the security situation in the Federal Capital Territory. The parley which also had in attendance the six Area Council Chairmen was held at the FCT Administration Secretariat. Tension has been high in Abuja, the nation's capital of late on account of banditry unleashed on Bwari Area Council by criminal elements, who abducted 10 residents of Sagwari Estate, Dutse. Three of the captives were killed while the bandits placed N700 million ransom on the remaining seven victims to regain their freedom. Wike, who addressed the media before the meeting went into a closed session, assured the residents of Bwari Area Council not to panic, saying the team was taking every step to make sure that the security challenges were tackled. "We are all aware of the security situation in the Federal Capital Territory, particularly Bwari and some other areas that we have witnessed security challenges. I am also aware that sometimes the press overblow what is happening but indeed we owe a duty to make sure that FCT is safe. "We will do all we can and we assure Nigerians who reside here that there is no need for panic. We

are taking every step to make sure that those challenges are things that we must have to resolve. "So, this meeting is practically to look into such challenges and see how we will be able to resolve the problems and that is why we invited all the Council Chairmen because they also have a responsibility in their various Area Council," Wike said. The minister, however, assured the people that they would put heads together and come up with a solution. "For the press, this is just for you to know that we are not sleeping, security also are not sleeping. We will require every support that they require in order take away the fears of the citizens or residents." Wike, who also fingered the Area Councils Chairmen as part of the problem, accused them of abdicating their responsibilities by traveling out of their domain at will. He, therefore, warned that, "This time around we will not be happy, where Area Council Chairmen will leave their responsibilities and travel out. We have gotten reports that council chairmen travel anytime and then, if anything happens, they will not call anybody's name except the FCT Minister. "Recently NUT has embarked on strike and it is not our fault but the Area Councils. Primary schools are under the body of the Area Councils but again, it will look as if the ministers are doing nothing but that is not our responsibility. “However, we can't fold our hands and we have invited them to this meeting to see how we can resolve the problem. So Council chairmen should know that, they must live up to their responsibilities. “It is not everything that happens, they would say it is the ministers that have not taken steps. So for your information, we are doing everything we can to resolve the security challenges we are recently facing,” he said.

Sani Decries Resurgence of Banditry Kaduna State Governor, Senator Uba Sani, has decried the return of bandits in seven local government areas in the state as well as the Kaduna-Abuja highway. The governor expressed the concern yesterday while addressing a security meeting attended by traditional rulers and the 23 council chairmen at the Government House, Kaduna. While lamenting the attacks along the Kaduna- Abuja highway and in

some parts of the state in the past few weeks, the governor hinted that the state government was considering establishing a Security Trust Fund to enhance material and logistic support to security forces. He said the sudden return of bandits in Kauru, Kajuru, Birnin Gwari, Igabi, Chikun, Kachia, and Kagarko LGAs were unfortunate. “You are aware of the attacks on citizens and military personnel along the Kaduna-Birnin Gwari Road and in the Birnin Gwari general area. "Bandits and terrorists have exploited gaps, particularly around Maganda, Kuyello, and other villages surrounding Buruku, Udawa, Damba, Kuriga, Polewire, and other flash points, to carry out ambushes on citizens, as well as security forces attempting to respond to distress calls. "Chikun, Giwa, and Igabi have become areas of concern as well. From Maraban Rido and Kudendan axis in Chikun, Sauran Goma, Kerawa, and Dunki areas of Igabi have also witnessed attacks and killings. I also followed the developments in Giwa from Kidandan, Kaya, Sabon Layi, and Idasu," the governor said.

Afenifere to Security: Fish Out Collaborators in Communities Pan-Yoruba socio-cultural and political organisation, Afenifere, has urged the various security agencies in the country to fish out individuals and groups aiding the activities of kidnappers and bandits in the numerous communities currently experiencing the menace. Afenifere, in a statement by its Publicity Secretary, Jare Ajayi, said the steps to end kidnaping and terrorism threatening to overrun the country were within the ambit of the stakeholders. The group insisted that the stakeholders had what it takes to put an end to “or at least drastically reduce the incidents of terrorism in our midst if they are truly committed to doing so." It explained that the stakeholders included the government, security agencies and the people. Afenifere urged President Bola Tinubu to issue a Presidential Order to encourage states and local government councils wishing to set up local policing systems to do so. The statement also noted that the network providers in the communication industry should also be involved in the fight against insecurity. “We start from the seemingly weakest yet very significant sector,

the telecommunication. A few years ago, Nigerians were stampeded to register for the National Identification Number, Bank Verification Number as well as registering their telephone numbers. "The argument put up then was that doing so would make it easier for criminals to be nabbed by security agencies. Years after the registrations had taken place and years after virtually every person using or owning telephone number(s) are in the database accessible to the government, criminality and terrorism are not only still with us, they are also festering with unprecedented ferocity!” The group added that failure to use tracking method to nab criminals, especially those using telephone sets to communicate, was a serious indictment on those meant to include such in their intelligence gathering and criminal fighting strategies.

Amnesty International: Tinubu Should Declare Emergency on Kidnapping Global human rights group, Amnesty International, has tasked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to treat the growing rate of kidnapping in the country especially the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja, and declare an emergency on the issue. Amnesty International joined the growing list of Nigerians and other critical stakeholders expressing anger following heinous attacks by kidnappers and their accomplices against innocent citizens and residents. In a statement by its Director Amnesty International Nigeria, Isa Sanusi, the global rights organisation specifically called on Tinubu to use lawful measures to end the cycle of violence and fear which Nigerians are living in today. The statement read: “Last week, over 45 people travelling between Otukpo in Benue State and Enugu were kidnapped and nothing has been heard about them yet. “Also, last week, Nabeeha – a student was killed in captivity because her family could not urgently meet the kidnappers’ demand for a N60 million ransom. “Her siblings are still in captivity with the kidnappers. Also, one of the 10 people kidnapped at an estate in Dutse near Abuja was killed over failure of her family to pay ransom. “We are now facing an epidemic of kidnapping. People in Nigeria are now living on the knife edge. Widespread insecurity and the chaos Continued on page 37

WEDNESDAY JANUARY 17, 2024 • T H I S D AY

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2024 • T H I S D AY

NEWS

Inauguration of reform task teams for Housing Sector...

L-R: Mr Ugochukwu Chime, Chairman, Land Reforms Task Team; Adedeji Adesemoye, Chairman, Housing Institutions Reform Task Team; Dr Marcus Ogunbiyi, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Housing & Urban Development; Ahmed Dangiwa, Minister of Housing & Urban Development; Abdullahi Gwarzo, Minister of state for Housing and Urban Development, Nuhu Wya, Chairman, Building Materials Manufacturing Hub Task Team and Brig. Gen. PMO Reis, Chairman, Multi-Agency Delivery Task Team in a group photograph shortly after the inauguration of the reform task teams by the minister in Abuja ... yesterday.

Stock Market Gains N2.7tn in Two Days as NGX All-Share Crosses 87,000 Kayode Tokede The domestic stock market appreciated by N2.7 trillion as investors' trading activities surged over build-up towards the release of 2023 corporate earnings by listed companies. The market capitalisation gained N2.7 trillion or 5.9per cent to close yesterday at N48.139 trillion, from N45.442 trillion the stock market opened for trading this week. A breakdown of the numbers by THISDAY revealed that the stock market on opening trading this week gained N875 billion, driven by the investors' surge demand for Geregu Power Plc and 67 others. The stock market extended its bullish streak in yesterday’s trading session, largely influenced by position-taking activities from which investors saw approximately N1.822 trillion in gains. The Nigerian Exchange Limited All-Share Index (NGX ASI) crossed 87,000 basis points yesterday. The stock market that opened for trading this week at 83,042.96 basis points has gained 4,928.14 basis points or 5.9 per cent to close yesterday at 87,971.10 basis points. However, the stock market's positive momentum yesterday was driven by price appreciation in large and medium-capitalised stocks among which were Dangote Cement, BUA Cement, Dangote Sugar Refinery, NASCON Allied Industries and Julius Berger.

As measured by market breadth, market sentiment was positive, as 77 stocks gained relative to 10 losers. Berger Paints, Dangote Sugar Refinery, Flour Mills of Nigeria, FTN Cocoa Processors, Honeywell Flour Mills, Lafarge Africa, NASCON, Nigerian Breweries, Transnational Corporations (Transcorp), Universal Insurance and Sterling Financial Holdings Company emerged the highest price gainers of 10 per cent each to close at N15.40, N81.40, N45.10, N2.20, N4.40, N47.30, N71.50, N41.25, N15.95, 44 kobo and N7.59 per share respectively.

Unity Bank, Wema Bank and BUA Cement followed with a gain of 9.96 per cent each to close at N2.98, N10.60 and N112.65 respectively; while Jaiz Bank and Consolidated Hallmark Holdings advanced by 9.94 per cent each to close at N3.65 and N1.77 per share respectively. On the other side, Royal Exchange led the losers’ chart with 8.16 per cent to close at 90 kobo, per share. Multiverse Mining & Exploration followed with a decline of 6.59 per cent to close at N17.00, while Ellah Lakes shed 4.79 per cent to close at N3.38, per share.

Oando lost 3.60 per cent to close at N12.05, while UACN depreciated by 3.13 per cent to close at N15.50, per share. The total volume traded advanced by 34.8 per cent to 1.09 billion units, valued at N16.05 billion, and exchanged in 14,835 deals. Transactions in the shares of Jaiz Bank led the activity with 150.639 million shares worth N508.443 million. AIICO Insurance followed with 99.057 million shares valued at N129.127 million, while FCMB Group traded 67.597 million shares valued at N814.174 million.

Sterling Financial Holdings Company traded 55.838 million shares worth N417.078 million, while Transcorp traded 48.921 million shares worth N774.642 million. Analysts at Cordros Research said, “In the short term, we expect market performance to be dominated by the bulls, as positioning for 2023FY earnings releases and accompanying dividends declarations should outweigh profit-taking activities. “Notwithstanding, we advise investors to take positions in only fundamentally justified stocks, as the

weak macro environment remains a significant headwind for corporate earnings.” Looking ahead, analysts at United Capital Plc said, “We expect positive sentiment to drive the market, as bargain hunting continues. We expect the local bourse to record a positive performance this week. Investors are expected to continue to cherry-pick stocks with strong fundamentals, (value or growth) for dividend scouting investors, ahead of full year, 2023 earnings season. At different intervals, we expect profit booking and mild sell-offs.”

Edo Guber: APC Says No to Zoning, Adopts Direct Primary Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja Ahead of Edo State Governorship Primary Election scheduled for February 17, the National Working Committee (NWC) of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has shut down the clamour for zoning. The Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the party, Duro Meseko, disclosed this at a news conference yesterday in Abuja, while briefing journalists on the outcome of the meeting with Edo State APC stakeholders held at the national secretariat of the party on Monday night. He added that the party has

also adopted the direct mode of primary for picking its candidate for the Edo election. Meseko stated: "In view of the large number of aspirants, 29, as of last night, the NWC urged stakeholders to unite and see to how we can achieve some reasonable number of aspirants. "The stakeholders were urged to devise methods to agree on some form of consensus to trim the number of Aspirants. "The NWC urged aspirants to be disciplined and shun the temptation of rushing to the courts immediately after primaries. There will be no zoning. Not at all." Meseko noted that the ruling

party would attach a letter of undertaking to its nomination forms which aspirants were expected to sign to indicate that whatever the outcome of the primary election, they would not go to court. "Only one of the 29 aspirants has picked his Expression of Interest and Nomination Forms, urging stakeholders to work towards pruning the number to a manageable size," he said. Earlier, the National Chairman of the party, Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje, said the meeting was to discuss important issues about having an election in September this year.

"Edo is an APC state. You know one of us went on sabbatical leave, and he decided to take up a permanent appointment. "Since we were sworn in as the new or reformed NWC, we said it would not be business as usual because our party as a progressive party is supposed to be a party with clear-cut objectives. "Now we have to take Edo back. We have only one state from the South-south for the greatest party in Africa. It is not acceptable. “We were able to get only Cross

River State. After crossing so many rivers we succeeded in getting Cross River State. But Edo State, we must get it by the grace of God." Meanwhile, the leader of the party in the state, Senator Adams Oshiomhole, has said he and other stakeholders were determined to reclaim Edo. He said democracy based on popular participation might be more difficult but could not be faulted, saying, “it allows us to build consensus.”

Confusion as Explosion Obaseki, Chinese Govt Seal Deal to Rocks Ibadan Boost Vocational, Technical Education Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan

Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City

The Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, yesterday sealed a tripartite deal between the State Government, the Chinese Government, and Yongxing Steel Company based in Edo State to boost vocational and technical education in Edo State. Obaseki had before signing the deal at the Government House, Benin City, attended a virtual meeting with the state and partner’s representative, including the Edo State Commissioner for Education, Dr. Joan Oviawe. Other attendees were: The Rector of Edo State Polytechnic, Usen, Sylvester Omoruyi; the Chinese Consular General in Lagos, Ms Yan Yu Qing and the Management of Fuzhou Polytechnic in China, led by Prof. Chen Niandong.

The agreement is expected to enhance vocational skills, and cultural and educational exchange and create opportunities for Edo youths to study in China. The management of Edo Polytechnic, Usen and the management of Yongxing Steel Company were present to sign the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), while Niandong signed virtually. Speaking at the signing ceremony, Obaseki said the deal was aimed at preparing youths in the state to work with Chinese firms and access quality technical and vocational training from the Chinese Polytechnic. He said: “We were in China in November and had the privilege of visiting your campus and left a deep and emotional relationship between me and your school as the only Nigerian in your school told me how you gave him a scholarship

to study in your polytechnic. “This has made me ask myself if I will be able to get Edo youths to be trained in your school which is a world-class polytechnic offering technical and vocational training. I am happy today that we are signing a tripartite agreement.” Obaseki added, “I am happy and glad today that we are signing this tripartite agreement as it is significant to us. We are not just sending our people to China to study but also preparing them for work with the support of a Chinese company already invested in Nigeria. We assure you of our support to ensure this relationship becomes very successful.” On her part, the Chinese Consular General in Lagos, Qing commended Obaseki for his commitment to technical and vocational education, noting that the tripartite agreement

will boost Nigeria-China relationship and open more opportunities for more Nigerian youths to study in China. She said: “I am here in Benin City to witness the signing of the MoU. I remember the governor led a team to China where he promoted cooperation between the two institutions. “I am here and hope to further facilitate the implementation of the relevant cooperation and contribute to technical education and talent development in Nigeria and China. “There is much we can do to achieve from the cooperation between the Edo state government and Chinese government in the area of talent development, especially in the implementation of Chinese Language, skills development, talent training and cultural exchange programmes.”

Confusion enveloped parts of Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, late yesterday over an explosion that shook the city. The explosion happened in Bodija and reportedly led to loss of lives and property,, but the powerful explosion was heard in Agbowo, Eleyele, Orogun, Oke Itunu, Omi Adio, Apete, University College Hospital (UCH), Mokola and Idi Isin. While details were still sketchy last night, social media users shared videos and pictures of large-scale destruction affecting filling stations, malls, fast food outlets and residential buildings. The exact location of the explosion had not yet been ascertained; however, the UCH School of Nursing, where hostel windows were shattered by shockwaves, was one of the areas most affected by the explosion. In the meantime, the Oyo State government has implored citizens to

be calm and rest assured that their interests were being looked after. A statement by the state Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Dotun Oyelade, said Governor Seyi Makinde, had deployed security operatives to the affected areas. The statement read: "Residents of Ibadan and immediate environs experienced an uncommon explosion about 8pm this evening. "There are various interpretations of the incident but it is important for us to state categorically that the state government has taken over. Government has deployed all that is required to mitigate the unfortunate incident. "All security service chiefs, including paramilitary chiefs and fire operatives have been deployed by the governor to rein in the spillover from the explosion. "His Excellency, Governor Seyi Makinde therefore implores citizens to calm down and rest assured that their interests are being looked after."

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Atiku Faults NNPCL Planned Private Sector Operatorship of Port Harcourt Refinery Argues plant ought to have been privatised before rehabilitation

Chuks Okocha in Abuja Former vice-president and the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 general election, Alhaji Atiku Abubukar, has faulted plan by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) for a third party to manage the Port Harcourt Refinery after its rehabilitation. Atiku, argued that the federal government ought to have privatised the refinery instead of commencing the rehabilitation. In a statement yesterday, posted on his verified X handle, Atiku said he had always supported and had the agenda to privatise

state-owned refineries. He explained that to avoid issues of debt, the federal government through the NNPCL ought to have resolved to privatise the operations of Port Harcourt refinery rather than incur huge debt in its rehabilitation. Atiku argued: “I have always advocated for far-reaching reforms to reposition Nigeria’s oil sector and, indeed, other sectors of our economy. “In particular, I had consistently called on the Buhari's administration to break its monopoly in all infrastructure sectors, including the refineries, and give investors, both foreign and domestic, a larger role in funding and management.

“My position has been well laid out in The Atiku Plan (2018) and My Covenant With Nigerians (2022). But our suggestions fell on deaf ears. First, they refused to privatise the refineries. They left them idle for years while paying humongous staff salaries. “Then, they contracted a loan of $1.5 billion for rehabilitation. Now, the current administration wants to turn the rehabilitated refinery to private concerns for operation and maintenance! “Without prejudice to the terms of the agreement between the NNPC and the private operators, it would undoubtedly have been better if the NNPC had sold the refinery, pre-rehabilitation, to avoid

the burden of debt.” The former vice president urged the NNPCL to explain to Nigerians “what benefits its newly discovered approach to privatisation will confer on Nigeria and Nigerians”. On March 17, 2021, the federal government had approved $1.5 billion for the rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt refinery in Rivers state. Speaking after a meeting, former Minister of State for Petroleum, Timipre Sylva, had said the rehabilitation would be done in three phases of 18, 24 and 44 months. He had said the contract would be awarded to Tecnimont SPA, an Italian company.

Two months later, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation now NNPC Limited, said it had commenced the rehabilitation of the refinery. Now under the administration of President Bola Tinubu, the NNPCL, on December 21, 2023, said it had completed the mechanical phase of the turnaround maintenance at the plant, adding that operations would commence before the end of the year. Prior to this, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, during an inspection tour of the facility in August 2023, had assured of the commencement of operations by

Shell Strikes Landmark Deal to Sell All Onshore Nigerian Oil Assets for $2.8bn Shell disclosed that it was divesting SPDC for $1.3 billion and expected to receive additional payments of as much as $1.1 billion. This would total N2.4 billion. If the deal succeeds, it would rank as the first landmark asset sale and purchase transaction to be recorded in the Nigerian oil and gas exploration and production sector in 2024 and one of the biggest under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA). The SPDC JV is an unincorporated joint venture comprising SPDC Limited (30 per cent), Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (55 per cent), TotalEnergies Exploration and Production Nigeria Limited (10 per cent), and Nigeria Agip Oil Company Limited (five per cent). It holds 15 oil mining leases for petroleum operations onshore and three for petroleum operations in shallow water in Nigeria, with

total reserve of approximately 458 million barrels of oil equivalent. The statement added, “Shell has reached an agreement to sell its Nigerian onshore subsidiary, The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC), to Renaissance, a consortium of five companies comprising four exploration and production companies based in Nigeria and an international energy group. “Completion of the transaction is subject to approvals by the Federal Government of Nigeria and other conditions. Transaction will preserve SPDC’s operating capabilities for benefit of joint venture,” For decades, Shell has been at odds with local communities over oil spills and accusations of human rights violations, something that increasingly clashed with its broader efforts to become cleaner and greener.

There have been agitations by the host communities, some of which are currently in court with the oil giant, that before the exit of the company, it must pay compensation and do some remediation work on the environment, which has been negatively impacted for over 60 years. “This agreement marks an important milestone for Shell in Nigeria, aligning with our previously announced intent to exit onshore oil production in the Niger Delta, simplifying our portfolio and focusing future disciplined investment in Nigeria on our deepwater and integrated gas positions,” Shell’s Integrated Gas and Upstream Director, Zoë Yujnovich, said. Yujnovich added, “It is a significant moment for SPDC, whose people have built it into a high-quality business over many years. Now, after decades

as a pioneer in Nigeria’s energy sector, SPDC will move to its next chapter under the ownership of an experienced, ambitious Nigerian-led consortium. “Shell sees a bright future in Nigeria with a positive investment outlook for its energy sector. We will continue to support the country’s growing energy needs and export ambitions in areas aligned with our strategy.” According to the agreement, at closing, Shell will provide secured term loans of up to $1.2 billion, to cover a variety of funding requirements. Shell noted that it was providing additional financing of up to $1.3 billion over future years to fund SPDC’s share of the development of the SPDC JV’s gas resources to supply feedgas to NLNG, and its share of specific decommissioning and restoration costs. The multinational said this

FG: Cutting Budgetary Expenditure Not Feasible Option for Nigeria Now Idahosa, explained that the economic outlook and budget analysis was an annual event designed to review key policy developments and macroeconomic performance in the previous year and discuss the outlook for the year ahead, focusing on risks and opportunities. Speaking during the panel discussion, Akabueze said, “cutting expenditure is not a feasible option currently. In the first place, we are not even spending enough. If you look at our public expenditure-to-GDP ratio it is one of the lowest even on the continent. So, spending less is not an option for us. Spending more efficiently? Yes, in some areas! “We compose the budget between what we call discretionary and non-discretionary components. The non-discretionary expense in the budget do not give you room to spend less in terms of debt service because we have got the debt to service. “The possibility of debt rescheduling is something the market does not want to hear. Even a mention by the former finance minister last year that Nigeria could consider debt rescheduling spelt mayhem within 24 hours in the pricing of Nigeria’s instruments. So, it is a very sensitive option for discussion. “But the point is that the scope to reduce our debt service is a risk, which is currently almost a third of the budget. “Then you look at the personnel cost, which is another 30 per cent and there are the basic cost of even maintaining the security architecture. So the discretionary component of the spending is not a whole lump. So, cutting expenditure is not. “The scope of even saving by greater efficiency is not much. So we have to basically continue with a deficit budget to give us barely adequate level of public expenditure.” Akabueze emphasised that low public revenue against the background of ever increasing

demand for public goods and services in the midst of rapidly growing population had constrained the federal government to continue to run a deficit budget for nearly more than two decades. He said the budget deficit was funded through debt consistently for over two decades. “The truth is that it (debt) has been accumulating. Now we are at a point where there are concerns about public debt sustainability. So, we cannot continue at (high) deficit range. The resort to deficit also has an inflationary impact. We have adopted the philosophy that we have to act counter cyclically in a situation like this,” Akabueze said. Speaking at the LCCI’s 2024 economic outlook, the Chairman of the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee, Mr. Taiwo Oyedele, estimated that more than 90 per cent of diaspora remittances do not get to Nigeria in dollars or any other foreign currency. Oyedele said: “The World Bank said in October 2023 that our Diaspora remittance was $20 billion. We estimate that more than 90 per cent of that did not get to Nigeria. They were being externalised. Nigerians in The UK and USA use apps to transfer their dollars to a fintech that will credit their Naira account at the parallel market rate without bringing in the dollars into Nigeria. “Secondly, even exporters are not bringing in their foreign currency proceed. They also externalise it because if they bring it in at CBN’s rate of N850. When they will need FX to buy inputs they will not find it at that rate and have to patronise the parallel rate. So, they keep it abroad.” He added that the removal of petrol subsidy and the floating of the Naira saved N8 trillion for the government. “What we are saying to the government is: can we be intentional in spending this N8 trillion to make sure that it impacts the people most

positively? “We have had extensive interactions with stakeholders, including multinationals and rating agencies. In all of these, many of them said to us that if all the challenges in Nigeria combined, exchange rate alone is more than 50 per cent of them, which means it is a major thing we have to address,” Oyedele said. In his contribution, Chief Executive Officer of Financial Derivatives Company, Mr. Bismarck Rewane, who was the keynote speaker at the 2024 economic outlook, said Nigeria was at the mercy of its creditors, investors and others. Rewane said the smart thing for Nigeria was for the country to do

the right things in small doses and sequencing in order to send, “the right signals to the market, especially to our creditors because we at the mercy of the investors, we are at the mercy of our creditors, we are at the mercy of our consumers and we are at the mercy of our voters.” He said that Nigeria must make known the true level of its net external reserves. “It is better to say what it is than to allow the market to speculate on it. Also, make the exchange rate market more efficient and transparent. Thirdly, begin to move your interest rates in a manner that showed that you are serious and that you are taking it in a sequenced deliberate manner.”

additional financing will only be drawn down when these costs were approved and incurred by the SPDC JV. The statement said the net book value of the entity subject to the transaction was at approximately $2.8 billion as at December 31, 2023. The statement said, "However, Shell will continue to consolidate SPDC until control transfers at completion. Although any amounts will depend on the future financial performance of the business, we expect to recognise impairments in respect of the business up to the date of completion, including to the extent that the net book value of SPDC exceeds the expected consideration at completion." The statement further explained that the amounts above will be adjusted to reflect any shareholder distributions, above $200 million, made prior to completion. Other contingent payments, according to the transaction, including those related to gas supply to the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Limited (NLNG), may become payable depending on business performance and fluctuation of product prices. In a separate statement announcing the deal with Shell, Renaissance said it had signed a landmark transaction with Shell to enable it acquire the oil major's entire shareholding in SPDC. But unlike Shell, the buyer did not mention the worth of the deal in financial terms. Renaissance said the acquisition marked a significant milestone for it, establishing its strategic position in the Nigerian market. It aligned with Shell that the completion of the transaction was subject to the

Atiku December of the same year. But, on January 15, 2024, the national oil company announced that it was seeking credible operations and maintenance (O&M) companies to operate and maintain the Port Harcourt Refining Company.

requisite regulatory approvals. Renaissance stated, "We are pleased to announce the signing of a landmark transaction with Shell to acquire its entire shareholding in SPDC. "This acquisition marks a significant milestone for Renaissance, establishing its strategic position in the Nigerian market. We are committed to ensuring a smooth transition and look forward to leveraging our expertise, in partnership with SPDC’s industry-leading staff and working in partnership with all the stakeholders in the SPDC-JV to drive continued growth and success in Nigeria and beyond.” Commenting on the acquisition, one of the companies that formed Renaissance consortium, Aradel Energy Limited, said in a statement that the acquisition marked a significant milestone for Aradel. It stated that this will bring enormous benefits to its shareholders, further strengthen its financial outlook, and consolidate its strategic positioning in the Nigerian energy market. Aradel maintained that it was committed to working in partnership with all the stakeholders in Renaissance and SPDC JV to ensure a smooth transition and drive continued growth and success in Nigeria and beyond. Aradel’s Chief Executive Officer/Managing Director, Mr. Adegbite Falade, said, “This successful acquisition represents a key step in our journey to becoming a leading energy company in Africa and aligns with our long-term strategic growth plans. It also demonstrates our commitment to our ‘3R’ Strategy of Resilience, Robustness, and Redundancy."

Tinubu: Buhari Courageously Took Over Power When Terrorism Peaked in 2015

Emphasising that the task of governing the country was not an easy one, Tinubu said Buhari assumed office at a very difficult period, when the economy was spiralling into recession and Boko Haram had taken over swaths of territory in the North-east. He stated, "At a point, it appeared even Abuja, the seat of government, would fall into the hands of Boko Haram, with the bombing of the UN Building, Banex Plaza, Nyanya, and other locations within the Federal Capital Territory. "We cannot easily forget how our armed forces battled the Boko Haram terrorists under the leadership of President Buhari to reclaim our territory and push them to the fringes of Lake Chad, where they no longer pose existential threat to our sovereignty.” The president boasted that his government would stamp out the remaining vestiges of Boko Haram, banditry and kidnapping gangs, adding, "We won't rest until every agent of darkness is completely rooted out. "I must say the job of securing every inch of our country is yet to be

finished. My government will stamp out the remaining vestiges of Boko Haram, banditry and kidnapping gangs. We won't rest until every agent of darkness is completely rooted out." Speaking further at the wellattended book launch, Tinubu said he was elated to receive his predecessor in Abuja. The event had in attendance Alhaji Mohammed Indimi, who was chief launcher, former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, as well as former ministers, who served in Buhari's government, According to the president, "We are all here today to honour a great man, a patriot, a dedicated public servant, who offered his best in the service of our country since he joined the army in 1962 at age 18. "President Buhari served our country with dedication and uncommon zeal. First as a military officer, who offered unblemished service, manning important commands and political positions, and crowning it as military Head of State on 1st January 1984. “Second, as a politician, who ran four times for the highest office

until he was elected President in 2015. The authors of the book we are here to present to the public have done justice to the essential Muhammadu Buhari, especially on his tenure and legacy as the 15th President of Nigeria." Tinubu also hinted that he had adopted a policy of non-interference, which, he observed, was the hallmark of Buhari. He stated, “After handing over, you said, ‘I will be far away in Daura but if you need me, contact me. But I won’t intrude in whatever you are doing. I won't interfere or breathe down your throat.’ “We’ve partnered to make democracy flourish in Nigeria. President Muhammadu Buhari, thank you. Except when I call you to say how are you doing? Are you in the farm? We don’t hear from you either to nominate or intrude the cabinet or complain about anything. Thank you for being who you are. “Well, I've emulated you, one of those things is non-interference, being a democrat, responsible for nation building. Staying on course, I am determined to do just that. Because I campaigned for this job.

“And you told me in our discussions it's not easy. But I went out there dancing for it, making promises, doing Kokoma, doing all collabos, making music. So, I cannot complain. We will be there." Tinubu said history will be kind to Buhari for promoting local production of goods to grow the economy as well as infrastructure development. Buhari, while noting the efforts of the authors of the books to document his administration’s achievements, said, “Without documentation, revisionism wins. Human beings often have short memories, and unless events are recorded in cold print, some people would come and attempt to either distort, or even obliterate recent history. “But the fact in our favour is that nothing was done under the veil of secrecy. We were as transparent and accountable as possible, being aware of the fact that posterity was the ultimate judge. “We kept records of our stewardship, knowing that we would always be required to account for the trust Continued on page 12

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NEWS

Signing agreement to boost vocational and technical education...

L-R: Edo State Commissioner for Education, Dr. Joan Oviawe; Rector, Edo State Polytechnic, Usen, Engr. Sylvester Omoruyi; Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki; Chinese Consular General in Lagos, Ms Yan Yu Qing, and Protocol Secretary to the Consular General, Xie Yijim, after signing of agreement to boost vocational and technical education in Edo State, at the Government House, in Benin City, ... yesterday

Paediatric Association of Nigeria: Nigeria Has 6.2m Zero-dose Vaccination Children Accounts for highest child death burden globally, with under-5 mortality of 1 in 10 children Says Alimosho LGA tops chart of zero-dose children in Nigeria Urges states to adopt domesticate Child Rights Act 2003 fully

Sunday Ehigiator The Paediatric Association of Nigeria (PAN) has revealed that Nigeria now has an unacceptable total of N6.2 million children who have never received any form of vaccination (zero-dose), with Alimosho Local

Government Area (LGA) topping the chart. Also, the country's under-5 mortality rate is presently now 1 in 10 children, the highest globally Speaking during a press conference held ahead of the 2024 PAN Conference scheduled to be held

today, at Oriental Hotel, Lagos, PAN President, Prof. Olufemi Ogunrinde, likewise urged state governments, especially, Adamawa, Bauchi, Gombe, Kano and Zamfara to fully adopt and domesticate the Child Right Act (2003). According to him, “Unfortunately,

we do not have all the time in the world to tweak them and point them and the nation in the right direction. So, when we talk about poor health indices such as high newborn, infant, and under-5 mortality, we have an idea of the significantly little time we have to play around with.

Fubara Swears in 16 New Permanent Secretaries Rivers Assembly screens returnee commissioners today

Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt The Rivers State Governor, Mr Siminalayi Fubara has sworn in the newly appointed 16 permanent secretaries to man the affairs of various ministries at the state secretariat. They include: Hebron Wisdom, Dede Friday, Briggs Karibo, Nyempe Gregory, Ndah Emmanuel, Ngochindo Epobari, Ishmael Tomonialadieokuma and Wakama Boma George. Others are: Nweke Kelvin, Okereuku Chinedum, Ndukue Patrick, Ichemati Mbadiwe, Iwarilama-Brown Sabina, Ogolo Eric, Kejeh Chinedu and Jacob Francis. Swearing in the permanent secretaries yesterday, at the Government House Port Harcourt, Fubara directed the Head of the Rivers State Civil Service, Dr. George Nwaeke to hand over official cars to the 16 of them. Addressing them, the governor urged them to be apolitical in their

discharge of duties so that the civil service can operate more professionally in serving the state effectively. Fubara told the permanent secretaries that they were chosen not because they were lucky, but they have been found competent in their various ministries and can be trusted to offer greater service to the state. He noted that most ministries were without proper administrative heads with some of them playing supervisory roles, but with their appointment, it is expected that they chart a proper course while committing to do the right things always. Promising a conductive environment that will enhance their productivity, Fubara reiterated that his administration has promised Rivers people better welfare with thriving security, saying they are required to key into his policies to ensure better service delivery. "It is not just being lucky to be among the ones that are chosen

Tinubu: Buhari Courageously Took Over Power When Terrorism Peaked in 2015 entrusted to us. This event today is part of accounting for our two terms in office, and I thank those who have laboured day and night, to ensure that this history is recorded for now and the future. “Government is a continuum. It is like a relay race. You run your course, and hand over the baton to the next person. This we have done. President Tinubu administration has my support and confidence, in the quest for us to have a country of our dreams, where there is emancipation for our teeming population.” The former president added,

“With the cumulative achievements of government after government, I believe we will get there in no distant time. In our journey to the desired destination, there will be hard decisions taken, and the people would bear some costs. “We can only seek their understanding, and state that there was no intention to deliberately inflict pain and anguish on anyone. This is why I apologised to such people at the end of our time in office. Sacrifices are still being made now, and will continue to be part of our national life and development.”

to be permanent secretaries at this critical time of our government but living up to it. Know that it is not just an appointment, that after two or three months, your faces will start to change but to see it as a call to duty. "We have a lot to do for our people and your responsibility as permanent secretaries is so much. We have a lot of ministries that are not manned by adequate authority for a while now. "That is the reason why we have to appoint this number so that all the ministries will have administrative heads pending when they will have political heads. So, we are doing this because we want to chart a proper course for this government." Meanwhile, the Rivers State House of Assembly will today screen and confirm commissioner

nominees approved by the state governor. The nine nominees loyal to the Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike were formerly commissioners who resigned from Fubara's cabinet during the heat of the political crisis in the state. The release sent out by the Clerk, Rivers State House of Assembly, Emeka Amadi, said the nominees include: Zacchaeus Adangor (SAN), Dr Jacobson Mbina, ⁠Dr Gift Worlu, Mrs Inime Chinwenwo-Aguma, Chukwuemeka Woke, Prof Prince Mmom, Dr George-Kelly Alabo, Isaac Kamalu and Austin Chioma. According to the release, the screening will be held at the legislative quarters, on Aba Road, Port Harcourt, where the 27 lawmakers presently carry out legislative activities.

“Now is the time to act. The year 2030 is around the corner when we should have lowered under-5 mortality to a maximum of 25 child deaths per 1000 live births, and neonatal mortality to a maximum of 12 newborn deaths per 1000 live births. “Presently, the number for under-5 mortality is 102 and that for newborns is 34. We have an uphill, albeit not insurmountable task ahead. “We implore all the states in the country to domesticate the Child's Rights Act now. I feel uncomfortable that we are still pleading about this crucial issue. Child's Rights Act (2003) is the law that guarantees the rights of all children in Nigeria. “We urge the states of Adamawa, Bauchi, Gombe, Kano and Zamfara to adopt and domesticate the Child's Rights Act immediately. It is heartwarming that 31 states have adopted the Act. PAN implores these states to implement the provisions of the Act to the best of their abilities. “Brain drain is putting extreme pressure on our healthcare system and health workers remaining in the country. The situation is dire, and I want the nation's leaders to urgently work out pragmatic solutions to produce a national environment that is conducive to growth, development, and productivity. “I dare say that some of these solutions are staring us in the face, requiring only political will to act decisively. We should not leave

it until we reach the elastic limit, the point of no return, the state of irreversible shock. “We have an unacceptable 6.2 million children in Nigeria who have never received any vaccine or missed almost all their vaccines. I was shocked to find out this morning that Alimosho LG is topping this chart. “These so-called zero-dose children are one of the main reasons we are having outbreaks, such as diphtheria in some parts of the country. It will also interest you to know that Nigeria now has the highest burden of child death globally, and the high zero-dose rate could be majorly attributed to it." Ogunrinde added: “We need to reach every child in the country, irrespective of their location with vaccination and health care to guarantee the optimal wellbeing of each Nigerian citizen. “This will require that we play catch-up with the vaccination programme, spread awareness about the immeasurable benefits of vaccination, and counter all misinformation and disinformation that are designed to keep the Nigerian child from getting vaccinated. “All hands will be needed onboard, our traditional and religious leaders, community mobilizers, social influencers, and security personnel. PAN will continue to do all within its power to encourage our colleagues to remain in the fray to promote the health of the Nigerian child.”

Insecurity: Obaseki to Host Southsouth Governors' Council Meeting Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City The Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, will on Thursday, January 18, 2024 play host to the governors of the South-south States of Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa-Ibom, Cross River, Edo and Delta otherwise called the 'BRACED' commission. In a statement, the Edo State Commissioner for Communication and Orientation, Mr. Chris Nehikhare, said the meeting which will be held in Benin City will

be attended by the governors of the six South-south states. The BRACED commission was established in 2010 under Article 14 of the BRACED Agreement and signed on June 13, 2011 with the objective to promote economic cooperation and regional integration, among the South-south States, contributing to the increasing standards of living of the people of the region. Nehikhare noted: “The six governors of the South-south region will be meeting in Benin

City, the capital of Edo State on Thursday 18th January 2023 under the auspices of the BRACED Commission.” “As the chairman of the BRACED Commission Governors’ Council, the Edo State Governor, His Excellency, Mr. Godwin Obaseki will host his colleagues, the governors of Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, and Delta states alongside their commissioners of Budget and Planning.” According to Nehikhare this

first meeting of the South-south governors in 2024 will focus on how to revive and strengthen the BRACED Commission and the region’s aspiration for collective economic development and integration. He added: “Issues that will be deliberated on are issues relating to the security of lives and property of the region and how to effectively embed its knowledge sharing and peer review mechanism. At the end of the meeting a communique will be issued.”

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politics

Acting Group Politics Editor DEJI ELUMOYE Email: deji.elumoye@thisdaylive.com (08033025611 SMS ONLY)

Mutfwang’s Long Walk to Victory in Plateau

The Supreme Court last Friday finally put an end to the legal tussle surrounding the election of Governor Caleb Mutfwang of Plateau state. In this piece, Seriki Adinoyi traces the various legal hurdles scaled by the governor.

he Friday judgement of the Supreme Court which restored the mandate of Governor Caleb Mutfwang marked the sweet end to the legal journey of the Governor that began from the governorship primary election. Delivering the judgement, a five-member panel of the court reversed the decision of the appellate court for being perverse because the issue of the primary election that produced Mutfwang was outside the jurisdiction of the lower court. The apex court also pointed out that the validity of nomination and sponsorship were no grounds to void an election, noting that, “the Court of Appeal lacked jurisdiction to entertain such.” Justice Emmanuel Agim, who read the judgement reiterated that the petitioners not being members of the PDP had no locus to challenge the primary election of the PDP. “Since they are not members of the PDP, the tribunal and Court of Appeal have no right at all to look into the issue.” Agim also pointed out that contrary to the claim of the petitioners and the judgment of the appellate court, the order of the Plateau High Court was not disobeyed by the PDP as evidence showed that a fresh primary was conducted. He then cautioned the legal profession, especially “the bar and bench to wake up,” or else would soon render itself irrelevant. According to him, “The judgment of the Court of Appeal is set aside, the election of the appellant is restored and the judgment of the tribunal affirming the election of the appellant is hereby affirmed.” Meanwhile, Presiding Justice, Okoro also reacting, lamented that “a lot of people have suffered” because of the wrongful judgments of the appellate court which had sacked several legislators who won elections under the platform of the PDP. On the issue of whether the order of the Plateau State High Court could affect the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the Peoples Democratic Party, the apex court held that the appellate court was wrong in holding that the order affects the NEC. He also stressed that the issue of primary was an internal matter of political parties which both the tribunal and Court of Appeal lacked jurisdiction to entertain. President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem, who incidentally is from Plateau state, must be feeling terrible over the avoidable disrepute that the Appeal Court judges have brought upon the court that has warranted a stern caution from the Supreme Court. From the outset, the Governor had said he was determined to end the circle of distrust and violence that have held down the state and unite the people. This campaign endeared him to Plateau people and had seen him through the PDP primary election down to the general election which he eventually won in March, 2023. During the primaries, several other aspirants contested and allegedly induced delegates to vote for them, but it didn’t work as Mutfwang overwhelmingly carried the day. He immediately began to reconcile with aggrieved aspirants, which he largely succeeded in doing. The legal issues of structure and conduct of congresses had nothing to do with the Governor. It was about the PDP internal crisis which it eventually resolved with a repeat congress that saw the leaders congratulating one another. Heading towards the general elections, Mutfwang’s campaign and agenda were focused towards uniting Plateau against all forces that had hitherto bedeviled the state. He insisted that there was no better time, hence the campaign slogan, ‘The Time is Now!’ Going by the failure of the opposition party in the past administration, the people naturally tilted toward him. Mutfwang won

Mutfwang their hearts and votes. It was therefore not a surprise that he defeated Dr. Nentawe Goshwe of the APC with as much as 525,299 votes, against 481,370 votes. Unfortunately, in Nigeria, people never really accept defeats until they meet a brick wall. There shouldn’t have been any legal issues at all because the defeat was clean and the issues were quite clear. As usual, the APC and Goshwe dragged the Governor to the election tribunal claiming that the PDP had no valid structure and that the Governor was not validly nominated. However, in a unanimous judgement by the tribunal, a three-man panel led by Justice Sunday Olorundahunsi dismissed the petition saying “No matter how dissatisfied a party feels on the conduct of another party’s primaries, it must keep mum as it is not a member of that party. Such a person (party) therefore, lacks the locus to challenge such a congress or primary election.” Justice Olorundahunsi metaphorically said that a man cannot leave his compound to begin to peep into another man’s compound to see how

they live their lives. This explanation seems simple enough for anyone to comprehend, but APC in Plateau state would not agree. The party described it as a temporary setback believing that there’s always a light at the end of the tunnel, but unfortunately, in this case, there was no light. Goshwe and his party again approached the Appeal Court sitting in Abuja to seek their declaration as winners on the ground that Mutfwang was not validly nominated by his party since, according to them, the party has no structure. They lured the Court of Appeal into believing their cause and the court fell for it and went ahead to sack the Governor, declaring Goshwe as the validly elected candidate on November 19, 2023, albeit temporarily, as Mutfwang immediately appealed the judgement at the apex court. With the recent ruling of the apex court dismissing the judgement of the Court of Appeal and affirming Mutfwang as the Governor, the opposition party in the state has finally got to the end of the road. It had no choice but to accept the verdict and congratulate the winner. In his congratulatory message, an APC chieftain, Mr. Yusuf Gagdi, who had repeatedly boasted that he could influence everyone and everything in the country, finally agreed that an end

Going by the failure of the opposition party in the past administration, the people naturally tilted toward him. Mutfwang won their hearts and votes. It was therefore not a surprise that he defeated Dr. Nentawe Goshwe of the APC with as much as 525,299 votes, against 481,370 votes. Unfortunately, in Nigeria, people never really accept defeats until they meet a brick wall. There shouldn’t have been any legal issues at all because the defeat was clean and the issues were quite clear. As usual, the APC and Goshwe dragged the Governor to the election tribunal claiming that the PDP had no valid structure and that the Governor was not validly nominated.

has come to the struggle. In his preaching, Gagdi said, “We might differ in our political views and beliefs, but the brotherly cord that binds us as citizens of Plateau State shall never be broken. Our utterances and actions while the struggle lasted might have offended one another, but despite all that, we must strike a balance for the benefit of Plateau people, whom we seek to lead; if our struggles are genuinely anchored on the well-being of the populace. “It is on this premise that I wholeheartedly extend my sincerest felicitations to the Governor, Caleb Mutfwang, on his victory at the Supreme Court and wish him a prosperous tenure, as he braces up to better the lots of Plateau People who entrusted him with their mandates”. Also, in his humble acceptance of the verdict, Goshwe congratulated the Governor. He said: “Finally, we have reached the final destination of the 2023 general election process, and we accept the decision of the Supreme Court with humility and gratitude to God. “While I congratulate my elder brother, His Excellency Caleb Mutfwang, I must appreciate and commend the peaceful and calm disposition of our supporters. I still appeal to the citizens of Plateau and our numerous well-wishers to ensure we keep the peace of our state. Let us collectively work toward a secure, united, and prosperous Plateau of our dreams because our resolve to build a cohesive and peaceful community is non-negotiable.” Immediate past Governor of the state, Hon Simon Lalong, also sent in his congratulatory message saying, “the final decision of the apex court provides the opportunity for him and all politicians to work for a united, prosperous and inclusive Plateau”, adding that the long legal hurdles leading to the decision of the Supreme Court are part of the democratic process that should be cherished irrespective of the outcome, as they have allowed all players to ventilate and seek redress through courts as provided under the law. He appealed to all citizens to close ranks and shun all divisive rhetorics because the interest of Plateau state remains paramount. Thanking God for the victory of his candidate and his party, a former Governor of the state, Senator Jonah Jang, in a statement signed by his media consultant, Mr. Clinton Garuba, said, “Indeed, the governor’s victory at the Supreme Court is a victory for democracy and against the wishes of antidemocratic forces. We recall with sadness how anti-democratic forces tried as much as possible to manipulate the will of the people without success. “We must thank the justices for upholding the Rule of Law thereby affirming the long-held belief that the judiciary is the last hope of the common man. We thank them for not allowing themselves to be manipulated because we are aware that the same forces of darkness, in their usual manner, had wanted to thwart the mandate of the people, plunge the state into disarray, and set us years backward. But we thank God because that evil intention was not allowed to stand as the voice of the people is the voice of God. “We especially thank President Bola Tinubu for not interfering in the judicial process despite the pressure from the same forces of darkness. We thank him for his concern in the affairs of Plateau state. The people are indeed grateful and want him to do more on the issue of genocidal war that has been declared on the state and its people by some forces of darkness who are hell-bent on appropriating, albeit forcefully, our God-given heritage.” The journey has been a long one, but now that the battles are over, it is incumbent on the Governor to mend fences, unite the people as he has always campaigned, and work to build the Plateau that everyone will envy. The time is now!

T H I S D AY • WEDNESday JANUARY 10, 2024

politics

Makinde: Changing Fortunes of Workers in Oyo

Kemi Olaitan writes that civil servants and by extension some Nigerians have continued to applaud Governor Seyi Makinde, for his gesture of paying 13th month salary to workers in Oyo state since the last five years.

Makinde

n the recent past and of recent, most states in the country have always been in the news no thanks to the crises they often found themselves over regular payment of salary to workers. Indeed, in these states the leadership of the labour unions often engaged in ‘war’ with some of the governors who owe the workers salary arrears running into months. The war which has not abated has led workers embarking on strike actions in some of the states. However for workers in Oyo State, they have been having what can be described as a chummy relationship with Governor Seyi Makinde since his administration came into office on May 29, 2019. Apart from ensuring that workers and pensioners in the state receive their pay which many regard as mandatory for any government on or before the 25th of every month, Makinde has also been paying 13th month salary for all workers in the state since December 2019 with that of this year not an exception. Indeed, the governor has assured that his administration will pay the 13th month salary to workers in the state for the fifth year running, noting that workers will receive the payment before December 31. Makinde, while speaking at the State’s 2023 Christmas Carol Service and Nine Lessons Service, held at the Remembrance Arcade, Government House, Agodi, Ibadan, with the theme, “Unto us a child is born”, said this was in spite of the fact that the government had earlier paid the December 2023 salary and the December wage award of N25,000 to workers and N15,000 to pensioners. He maintained that his administration will continue to prioritise the welfare of workers, infrastructure development and other critical sectors in the state, noting that whatever success his government has achieved was due to the contributions of all members of his team and the civil servants. According to him, “To my team, I want to say thank you for your support throughout the year and even for the civil servants. Whatever we might have achieved were jointly achieved. For four years running, we paid 13th month salary. And again, we will pay the 13th month salary before

the end of the year.” Makinde who took delight in what he was doing to make the workers in the state happy, disclosed on his authenticated X account, “Tonight, we celebrated the 2023 Festival of Carols and Nine Lessons under the theme ‘Unto Us a Child is Born.’ It provided us with another occasion to express gratitude to God for His mercies and faithfulness throughout this challenging year economically. “Consistent with our practice since 2019, I want to assure the civil servants in Oyo State that, once again, we will be disbursing the 13th-month salary before the close of this year.” One of the leaders of the labour unions in the state while speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the gesture by the governor to pay workers 13th month salary is a welcome development which has made workers in the state to see him as a gift to them. According to him, paying the 13th month salary which is the fifth since Makinde became governor in 2019 has ensured that workers continued to celebrate Christmas and new year with joy that they would have money to spend. He said, “Governor Makinde has made himself a delight to workers in the state with the payment of 13th month salary for five years running. This action of his has

gone a long way to ensure that workers in the state celebrate the yuletide season with the confidence that they have extra money at hand.” On his part, a civil servant, Mr. Gbenro Ogunyemi, lauded the governor to high heaven, describing Governor Makinde as the best thing to happen to the state as he is a leader that cares about the interest of not only the workers but the entire people of the state. His words, “The administration of Governor Seyi Makinde has kept its promise of payment of 13th month salary despite the economic crisis and has not defaulted from its responsibility while some state governments are defaulting regarding prompt payment of their workers. Kudos to Mr Governor for being faithful to the workers. “For me, this is exactly what we get when we have competent hands at the helm of affairs as we have never had it this good before in our dear state. The other name of Governor Makinde is Omoluabi and this is not because of any other thing but his godliness and commitment to serve the people. The governor has continued to exhibit quality leadership as he is simple yet strategic; disciplined and visionary, progressive-minded and a bridge-builder. He is a man with consummate and exemplary personality and I pray that God will continue to strengthen him for us so that the state can have more of his good governance and kind gesture.” Nigerians have also taken to the social media in reaction to the action of Governor Makinde to pay workers in the pace setter

For political watchers in the pace setter state, for Governor Makinde to consistently pay the 13th month salary to every worker across the state for over four years is nothing but a reflection of his committment and understanding of the importance of rewarding and motivating the workforce. Indeed, to them by announcing that the payment will be made before the end of the year, he is ensuring that workers can plan and enjoy the holiday season without financial stress.

state 13th month salary. These include Odunharry, Good one. Other states should do same; Rejouir, How is this even news? Should workers jubilate over this. The level of illiteracy in this country is so shameful and Olarewaju89, Good gesture people’s governor. Other reactions are UnknownT, 13th month actually belongs to the workers. It is a part of their salary deducted monthly and paid in bulk in December. God will punish employers (Governors included) who deduct it and don’t pay it; Bliss52, Since Ajimobi started it, it has been annual; Isaaczik, Alex Otti was the first Governor to pay 13th month. PDP continue to cry there is no free money for you. Jason, Delta State no carry last o. Follow Governor Makinde of Oyo State; Kosiebe, Delta my state, what are you waiting for. Clueless Governor. Are you not seeing other Governors; Israelmao, Makinde is doing well in regular payment of pensions and salaries; LegendHero, This has been happening in Oyo state for over 12 years or so. From Ajimobi, they have always paid 13month salary. Makinde also continued the legacy which is great. God bless Makinde, God bless Oyo State.” For political watchers in the pace setter state, for Governor Makinde to consistently pay the 13th month salary to every worker across the state for over four years is nothing but a reflection of his committment and understanding of the importance of rewarding and motivating the workforce. Indeed, to them by announcing that the payment will be made before the end of the year, he is ensuring that workers can plan and enjoy the holiday season without financial stress. Similarly, the decision to pay the 13th month salary for the fifth year running showcases the commitment of Makinde to the welfare of workers in Oyo State as the announcement made during the Christmas season, will undoubtedly bring joy and relief to the hardworking employees. With Governor Makinde having over three years to the end of his tenure, analysts however believed that time would tell whether he would pay the 13th month salary for the entire duration of his tenure as two- term governor of the pace setter state.

T H I S D AY • WEDNESday JANUARY 17, 2024

FEatures

Group Features Editor: Chiemelie Ezeobi Email: chiemelie.ezeobi@thisdaylive.com, 07010510430

Day Nigeria Stood Still for Deputy Speaker, Benjamin Kalu

Members of the Peace In the Southeast Project, PISE-P, in collaboration with the good people of Bende, in Bende Local Government Area of Abia State, on December 29th 2023, organised a homecoming grand reception for the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon Benjamin Kalu. The occasion also witnessed the formal unveiling of PISE-P, an initiative of the members of the 10th National Assembly from the Southeast, led by the Deputy Speaker. The grand reception held at the Bende Sports Ground was a resounding success, symbolising the unity, pride, and appreciation of the community for their dedicated son. It underscored the importance of recognising and celebrating the contributions of individuals who play a pivotal role in shaping the destiny of their communities. Writes Mary Nnah

aturday, December 29, 2023, left an unforgettable experience in the lives of the people of Bende, in Bende Local Government Area of Abia State. Nigerians from across the divide, from all tribes and religions - politicians, members of the Executive Council at the federal and state levels, captains of Industries, the clergy, cultural personalities and traditional rulers of all classes, the military, the police, other security operatives, national and state lawmakers, past and present, former governors, past and present, and the media, and so on, came from far and near to witness this day surely created by divine powers in honour of Rt. Hon. Benjamin Okezie Kalu, a Nigerian politician who is the current deputy speaker of the House of Representatives of Nigeria, represents the Bende Federal Constituency in the House. In the history of Bende, a sprawling ancient town in Abia State, no such gathering has happened before, not of this magnitude. The gathering was also in recognition of the essence of peace replacing the ongoing blaze in the Southeast ‘who is who’ in Nigeria turned out in huge numbers to be part of this history. How else can one explain the attraction and the physical presence of some of the best breeds amongst the most powerful and influential individuals in Nigeria? The roll call was almost endless. Kalu was not well-known among prominent figures at the highest level in Nigeria until he began to show his sparks at the 9th National Assembly. Over the last 10 years, his meteoric rise at the Green Chambers has established him as an excellent lawmaker, a pragmatic leader, and an endearing personality. His presence has become almost irresistible. Within his years as a lawmaker, and considering his restlessness in producing relevant legislations that promote Nigeria’s democracy and the general well-being of the country, Kalu is fast becoming a shining light of our time. His dedication to lawmaking, care, and attention to his people added the impetus for organising this programme. It was, therefore, no wonder that when the trumpet sound of his formal reception by his people was blared, the heraldic boom vibrated majestically across the country. “Who is who” in Nigeria responded by momentarily relocating to his hometown to be part of this homecoming. For the notable personalities, the gatherings provided an opportunity for networking, socialising, and showcasing their support and recognition for this Bende prominent son. The event, organised by the Peace In the Southeast Project (PISE-P) team, in collaboration with the Bende community, was so widespread that the reception ground, Bende Sports Arena, luxuriously decorated, struggled to accommodate the attendees. Those in attendance were the Vice President, Kashim Shettima, who represented President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. The Deputy Senate President, Senator Jubrin Barau who was there on behalf of the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, along with the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Tajudeen Abbas. Others present were all the Governors of Southeast, past and present, Traditional Royal fathers, such as the Obi of Onitsha, Igwe, Nnaemeka Alfred Achebe (Chairman of the Occasion); the Ooni of Ife, Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, the Sultan of Sokoto represented by the Emir of Bichi, Nasiru Ado Bayero, and Oba Rufus Olarewaju, Ajayi Ogidi Olu Arilewola 11, Oba of Ogbomina Ekiti Tapa kingdom, Ekiti State. Similarly, in attendance were the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume and other notable figures from various sectors including Alhaji Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, the National Chairman of the All-Progressive Congress, Senator Ajibola Basiru, National secretary of the All Progressives Congress, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, the President of Ohaneze Ndigbo Worldwide, and past and present members of the National and State Assemblies. The gathering also included successful business magnates, with over 10 billionaires

L-R: Hon. Adewumi Onanuga; House Chief Whip and Deputy Chief Whip, Hon. Bello Kumo; Deputy Speaker, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Kalu and wife, Dr Ezinne Chinyere Kalu; Gov. Alex Otti of Abia State; Governor of Imo State, Senator Hope Uzodinma; Vice President, Kashim Shettima; Speaker, House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas and Sen. Barau Jibrin at the event present, such as Mr Allen Onyema, the Chairman of Air Peace; Oil and Energy Magnet, Chief Emeka Offor; Prof Obiora Okonkwo, Chairman of United Nigeria Airline; Chief SC Okafor, Chairman and founder of Chicason Group of companies; Dr. Godbless Iruani, Owner of Azikel Group; Sir Godfrey Nnamdi Ohuabunwa, fmr Chairman of BON; the Managing Director of Nepal Energies, Ngozi Ekeoma; Chief Atan Achonu, Senator Chris Adighije and Senator Mao Ohuabunwa. Other attendees were former Chief of Army Staff, General Azubuike Ihejirika; fmr. Governors of Imo State, Sir Emeka Ihedioha, Senator Rochas Okorocha, Senator Osita Izunaso, Mazi Sam Ohuabunwa, Senator Nkechi Nwogu, former Minister of State for Mines and Steels Development, Dr. Uchechukwu Sampson Ogah, former minister of state for Science and Technology, Chief Henry Ikoh; former Minister for Labour, Emeka Nwogu; members of the Abia State Executive Council and Traditional Rulers, top Military brass and Police officers of the country, the Media, amongst others. At his local government level, they came in their hundreds from the 99 autonomous communities that make up this oldest and largest undivided Local Government Area in Nigeria, comprising their leaders and followers. For the first time, many of them saw in person those personalities they had previously only seen on TV or in magazines and newspapers. Some had only heard their names and activities on the radio. The homecoming reception for their illustrious son gave them a rare opportunity to meet these high-level personalities face-to-face, providing some of them with bragging rights

among their peers who were unable to attend the function. The community was filled with excitement as everyone joined the celebrant in thanksgiving. They hailed him, and danced with him in the arena, in an expression of their deep love, pride, and appreciation for their son who is doing a lot for them in terms of welfare, the attraction of development infrastructure, job creation, and above all, being Nigeria’s number six citizen, which is a significant position in the national leadership hierarchy. Several times, cannons loaded with gunpowder were fired in a gun salute fashion to welcome dignitaries. During the occasion, PISE-P and its eight pillars were formally unveiled. The Project is an initiative of the members of the 10th National Assembly from the Southeast, led by the Deputy Speaker. The project, which is a transformative five-year initiative seeks an end to the persistent insecurity in the Southeast that the end should come through a non-kinetic approach. Again, PISE-P is a response to the detrimental effects of agitations, economic downturns, and security issues hence adopting a multistakeholder approach to restore peace and stimulate the region. A thanksgiving service preceded the reception where the presiding Pastor Jerry Eze of Streams of Joy International in his sermons admonished Igbos to collectively fight to change the narrative of insecurity in the region. He called for an end to blood spills on the streets of Southeast and extolled the virtues of the Deputy Speaker for not only driving the PISE-P initiative but also for his enormous contributions to the people of Southeast. He prayed for the return of an enduring peace in the region. The reception had several speeches and conferment of Chieftaincy titles on President Ahmed Bola Tinubu, and Vice President, Kashim Shettima, amongst others. In his address, the Chairman of the occasion

The journey towards peace is not a destination. It is an ongoing process that requires our unflinching commitment and dedication. We must continue to foster inclusivity, promote social justice, and empower our youth. We must invest in education, healthcare, and infrastructure

and Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Nnaemeka Achebe, praised Kalu for his role in initiating and driving the Southeast project, clarifying that the greatest desire of the people of Southeast is peace. “The greatest desire of the people of Southeast is peace because peace is a basis of development. Peace and reconciliation start today”, the revered traditional leader declared, while calling for a collective effort to end the crises. “We just have to join forces and make things happen. We want peace and reconciliation in Igboland. Our strength is in what we can do for ourselves”, he added. The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt Hon Tajudeen Abbas praised Kalu, his Deputy, for initiating PISE-P describing the project as a “historic and patriotic endeavour” He said that peace in the South-East was invariably, the peace and progress of entire Nigeria; noting that the project was borne out of his deputy’s deep love for the zone and profound concern over the rise of insecurity, “which has cast a dark shadow over the region.” President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, was also full of praises for the Deputy Speaker. Iwunayanwu, who pledged the commitment of the Ohaneze Ndigbo worldwide to PISE-P, thanked President Tinubu and VP Shettima for their disposition toward restoring peace to the South-East. According to him Ndigbo “are not asking for too much but equity and justice.” He then appealed to President Tinubu and his administration to speedily address all the causes of agitation and tension in the South-East to ensure a lasting peace in the region. In his vote of thanks, Kalu said that the PISE-P initiative, “ultimately canvasses the adoption of a non-kinetic approach to resolving the problem of insecurity in the zone”, adding that the project was also aimed at promoting reconciliation among communities and individuals affected by past conflicts. He counselled Igbo youths to renounce violence and embrace peace, promising that the Government would give them attention. “The journey towards peace is not a destination. It is an ongoing process that requires our unflinching commitment and dedication. We must continue to foster inclusivity, promote social justice, and empower our youth. We must invest in education, healthcare, and infrastructure. We must create opportunities for economic growth and sustainable development. And above all, we must cultivate a culture of peace, respect, and understanding”, Kalu had said.

THISDAY •WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2024

polity Gov Bago’s Litany of Howlers in Public Domain

Ayoola Ajanaku

he recurring decimal of errors reared it’s ugly again as the helmsman of North Central sub national entity, Mohammed Umar Bago in a bid to position Niger State as the most productive in agricultural terms as well as leverage its vast resources and potential for growth via attendance of an Agribusiness Seminar at Harvard Business School, Boston Massachusetts. The photo-op’s from this latest installment of howlers is one too many from the number one citizen of the largest state in the country by land mass. Before the army of yes men aim their vitriol towards this author, it’s important to highlight some salient points to elucidate on the elements that constitute blunders in public domain. The latest sojourn to the prestigious citadel of knowledge in the United States is a laudable initiative on face value, but when a third party takes a cursory look at the leveraging of the lone image of Governor Bago projecting the academic touchpoint of HBS Executive Programme - One is forced to ask where’s the presence of the Honourable Commissioner of Agriculture, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Special Adviser of Agric, if one exists therein? These key figures are the policy drivers of food security at that level. According to the African proverb that states: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together. This key element of governance was lacking in this latest jamboree and this factor was there for all and sundry to witness. Governor Bago craves for media attention like bees to nectar and he never fails to let any opportunity to slip by when it presents itself. Earlier he dropped ‘His Excellency’ for Farmer Governor - Whatever that means with no commensurate output to match the newfound appellation(s) so far even when one considers the gestation period of the agricultural cycle. Bago stated this during the presentation of the 2024 budget to the House of Assembly said that the name is to reinforce the priority of the government on agriculture. The governor said he should no longer be called ‘Excellency’ or ‘Honourable’ or ‘Mr Governor’, but be called ‘Farmer Governor.” He said, “I want to inform the people of Niger state that from today, my nomenclature has changed and I wish to be addressed as Farmer Governor Bago from henceforth.” Bago, who wore a tee shirt and a trouser during the presentation, however, said that he has not banned the wearing of “agbada” attire by civil servants, as reported by some media platforms. He explained that he only emphasized the need for civil servants working in the ministries of works, agriculture or other ministries that require physical functioning to dress in outfits that would enable them function properly. Lest we forget, if the much heralded stance of Bago

Governor Bago is to optimize the value of the agricultural value chain in Niger State as he trumpets then he should know that the civil service is an engine room to foster these initiatives. Like they say in local parlance, “Wetin dey for Sokoto, you go dey find am for Sokoto.” All it takes to maximize the value of the rich laden Niger State agro values is to engineer roundtable with leading agro firms such as Dangote Group, Flour Mills Nigeria (FMN Plc) – (They are present in Kontagora with their much touted backward integration initiatives for sugar and wheat amongst others), Folawiyo Farms – (They are also present in the North Central state) BUA Group, Olam Group, TGI Plc amongst others to engineer agricultural initiatives to foster crop and livestock development in the State. All the state needs is to offer equity via land holdings that would be leveraged via well-honed

SPV’s therein. It’s interesting to note that Governor Bago stated earlier that his administration will likely hit N1 trillion in revenue through the Niger Food Security and Logistics Company, in the next five years - One needs to remind His Excellency that his tenure is based on four year term as enshrined by the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and governance takes a backseat during electioneering season. Lest we forget, the howler where Niger State had to hastily deny allegations that it did not issue any directive to ban the sale of alcohol in any part of the state. It followed alleged reports that NGSG, through the state state’s Liquor and Licensing Board, had prohibited the sale of alcohol in nine LGA’s of the state, including Suleja. The quick turnaround constituted an embarrassment for the reputation of the state in public domain.

This development came to life following governor’s appeal to Federal Government to allocate 13 per cent derivation to the state for power generation to Nigerians through the four hydropower generating dams situated in the state. Bago made the appeal when the Federal Commissioner, National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally-Displaced Persons, Tijjani Aliyu Ahmed, paid him a courtesy visit at the Government House in Minna. The governor, who decried the rate at which Nigerlites have been ravaged and displaced every year due to overflow of water from the hydro dams, described the situation as absurd. Bago suggested a round-table discussion on the way out, or the state might cut off the supply of power from the hydro dams until its demands are met. He also stated that commercial entities such as Abuja DISCO and NNPCL should equally pay the state for the hydrocarbon exchange. The governor further said that the state had done a lot for the country, including the ceding of its land for the creation of the nation’s capital, Abuja, hence the need for the Federal Government to compensate the state for it. He, however, expressed dismay over the Suleja-Minna Road dualisation project awarded in the last 12 years, and it is yet to be completed even though the state is a gateway between the northern and southern parts of the country, describing it as unacceptable. The governor noted that the state would no longer allow itself to be marginalised, stressing, “enough is enough.” He reiterated the state government’s willingness to continue to press its demands until the FGN gives it the desired attention. It’s imperative to point out the legislative background of the governor at the NASS where laws of the land are made at the hallowed chambers. He should know better than any average smart Alec on the streets that laws govern such fiscal appropriation and not bombastic braggadocio cum bravura to press home points. In a nutshell, his Excellency penchant for making highfaluting and grandiloquent statements in public domain leaves a sour taste in the mouth. Public policy dissemination is the forte of the ministry of information and communication - At this rate; the commissioner is redundant with his role usurped by the helmsman of the state so far. The governor should act more and say less, as these constitutes the key block to drive governance that delivers democratic dividends to the masses. The lord of the manor locomotion needs to stop and if one disputes this the helmsman’s pugilistic and militaristic stance came to the fore recently when he made declarations at the Emir of Lapai’s palace that he would crush and deal with anyone who dares his policies in Niger State - The statement(s) are in circulation for contextual alignment. “For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.” •Ayoola Ajanaku is a Communications and Advocacy Specialist based in Lagos, Nigeria….

NEWS

Police Recruitment: 136,177 Candidates Screened, Says PSC Arase laments poor quality of ‘outstanding’ candidates

Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja

The Police Service Commission (PSC) said yesterday that a total of 136,177 candidates for the ongoing police recruitment exercise were screened just six days after the commencement of the exercise on Monday, January 8, 2024, throughout the federation. But the Chairman of the commission, Solomon Arase, raised the alarm that field reports showed a curious development where many

candidates with outstanding Senior Secondary School Examinations (SSCE) certificates and National Examination Council (NECO) certificates could not write their names or ordinarily introduce themselves. He wondered how they acquired such excellent certificates adding that aptitude tests coming as a first stage of the recruitment process will help eliminate obviously unqualified candidates and reduce the size of persons that would subsequently

appear for screening. The commission, through the police recruitment board, is currently screening 416, 270 Nigerian youths who have shown interest and applied to be considered for a career in the Nigeria Police Force. A statement by the commission said the candidates were subjected to physical and credentials screening, a prelude to an aptitude test and other processes including medical examination. With the ongoing recruitment

exercise, it said, the agency had upgraded and automated the processes to ensure its credibility and create a measurable standard for final selection of successful candidates. It said the results and outcome of the screening exercise were uploaded in real time to the commission’s portal and monitored by the situation room set up and led by commission’s Chairman, Solomon Arase, a retired Inspector General of Police.

It affirmed that “out of the 136, 177 candidates screened, 108,768 were successfully uploaded; the difference being problems/challenges from fluctuating network”. The PSC Chairman, who is the national co-coordinator for the recruitment exercise expressed his satisfaction with the commitment of both the commission’s staff, the police officials and other members of the police recruitment board. He confirmed that there was a commendable improvement

NSCDC Arrests Father at Point of Selling 8-year Old Son for N20m Michael Olugbode in Abuja Operatives of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has arrested in Abuja one Chinana Tali at the point of selling his eight year old son, Ushafa Tali for N20 million. Speaking during the parade of the suspect in Abuja the NSCDC FCT Commandant, Olusola Odumosu said that the child trafficking suspect was arrested after being lured to Abuja from Benue. He said the arrest of Chinana who was with his son, followed an intelligence tip-off of his quest to get the highest bidder to sell off

Ushafa to. Odumosu said: “We booked an appointment with the suspect at a garden where we had one of our men pose as a buyer while we had our men surround them. “He came all the way from Benue to sell his supposed child to a buyer without caring about what might befall the child afterwards. “To arrest his accomplice, we had to send transport fare to him after he was being deceived that the deal had been settled.” He said that the father who was initially offered N12 million refused and insisted that the boy who he referred to as a “He-goat” during

his conversation on phone be bought at the rate of N20 million. “He also offered to sell his girl child whom he referred to as a She-goat for N15 million, if he didn’t get a buyer for the boy. “We are not sure of the paternity yet but more will be uncovered during further investigation as he claimed that the mother, his wife, had no idea of the transaction.” The Commandant said that the Corps was dedicated to ensure the protection of lives and property and will continue to take drastic measures in ensuring that crimes were nip in the bud. He however warned persons who

may have such evil intentions as that of Tali and his accomplices to desist as child trafficking was a serious offence. Odumosu said he would be handing over the father, son and one accomplice to representatives of National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) for further investigation and possible prosecution. Chinana while being interrogated said that he is a father of six children and had decided to sell one of his children to help raise money to take care of his large family. He said: “It is because of hardship and no money so I needed to find a way to train my other children.”

NAPTIP Senior Intelligence Assistant, Mrs Chinyere Oseafiama, who was on hand to take possession of the father and son and the other suspect assured that the case will be thoroughly investigated for appropriately actions. “We are happy for what the NSCDC has done and we are assuring that NAPTIP will do the needful and get back to the public with a positive report regarding the case,” Oseafiama said. The Commandant also said a young man was recently arrested after being caught vandalising armored cables along Idu Railway Line in the territory.

in both screening and uploading rates and a complementary daily reportage of figures. Arase congratulated the field work force and charged them to sustain the momentum. “Let’s maintain this momentum and strive for even greater achievements”, he said. He assured the candidates that they should not panic and be rest assured that they will all be screened before the end of the screening exercise, adding that he was aware of the heavy traffic at the screening centres. The PSC boss said the commission is giving the nation a new and credible platform for recruitment into the public service insisting that the ongoing police recruitment will surely meet all known international standards devoid of any manipulation. He repeated that the nation will be proud of the products of this exercise. He however said the commission may review the sequence of the exercise where the aptitude tests may come first. He noted that reports from the field showed a curious development where many candidates with outstanding Senior Secondary School Certicates (SSSC) and National Examination Council certificates cannot write their names or ordinarily introduce themselves.

T H I S D AY WEDNESDAY JANUARY 17, 2024 20 TR

UT H

& RE A S O

Amarachi's decision reflects personal life struggles, mental health challenges, and harsh economic realities, contends CHRIS UCHENNA AGBEDO

See page 21

LONG ROAD TO DIGITAL ECONOMY SONNY ARAGBAAKPORE lists the challenges to attaining the goal

See page 21 EDITORIAL

AJAOKUTA: MORE MONEY FOR THE DRAINS

opinion@thisdaylive.com

www.thisdaylive.com

'A TRIBE CALLED JUDAH' AND THE POWER OF CREATIVE ECONOMY

Wednesday January 17, 2024 Vol 27. No 10505

It helps when nominees are properly screened, argues JOSEF OMOROTIONMWAN

ESSENCE OF SENATE CONFIRMATIONS There is every reason to believe that when the time came for the Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar junta to beat a retreat to the barracks it simply pinned together relevant parts of the Reports of past Constitutional Conferences, and came up with a document which it called THE CONSTITUTION OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA, 1999. Some of us also came to the understanding that those Constitutional Conferences were self-succession bids of the military leaders who impaneled them. This became rather glaring in the case of the President Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida Conference of 1988/89 when we were considering Senate confirmation of the President’s nominations. The Draft Constitution placed before us consistently maintained that the President was to appoint people into those positions “in Consultation with the Senate”. This sounded rather strange. I led the fight to change the idea of consultation with the Senate to the confirmation of the Senate. The fight for this seemingly innocuous change was fierce, to the extent that at some point, I got some anonymous midnight calls, warning me to soft-pedal on such issues. This is one way of explaining my personal attachment to the confirmation clause, particularly after seeing how it works in other parts of the world. This also explains how nauseating it gets today when we see our senators working the noble idea of Senate Confirmation of the President’s nominees on its head. They are constructively engaged in destroying the President in the name of helping him. Unknown to the Senators, they actually exist to save the President from himself. The president cannot be ubiquitous. He is just one man who can only be in only one place at a time. But the 109 Senators are from 109 Senatorial Districts scattered across the nooks and crannies of the entire country. They are placed in such a way that they readily see around the country, things that the President can never see in the single spot where he stands. People are referred to the President for appointment from all over the 109 Senatorial Districts of the country. By the arrangement in our Constitution, the Senate is central in the recruitment process. The President forwards the names of the nominees to the Senate for screening and confirmation. This is where the Senators should bring their superior knowledge of the people so nominated to bear on the selection process. A good Senate would use the advantage of its nearness to the people to dig deep and help him to pick the best people to help in carrying out the enormous responsibilities before him. A thief that

has been recommended to the President is fished out in the process and removed from the pack. You destroy him by just rubber stamping every list that he forwards to the Senate. When the Senate does a shoddy job, it soon shows in the output of the appointees. Such an administration soon gets consumed by corruption and ineptitude everywhere. You will soon find that the “Take-A-Bow” procedure adopted during the confirmation process was not really what the President wanted. Instead, he really wanted strong men and women who would help him weather the storm. Apparently, many Senators do not know the real essence of the Senate Confirmation Process. Some see it as mere comic relief as obtains in the Literary World. Such would be fixated on the “Take-A-Bow” level where they just clap and get entertained. Yet, others see it as a way of helping the President by rapidly rubberstamping whatever names he submits for appointment. In all, they fail to see the process as a potent agent of change in society. In their docility, they would rather let the spoilt world spoil! Everyone today is complaining that our electoral system is the bane of our society. In the abstraction, everyone asserts that Nigerians will remain problematic for as long as we refuse to get our electoral system right. Still, when there was an opportunity to begin the process of getting it right by appointing upright State Resident Electoral Commissioners, we opted to go the wrong path. People who should have gone through the due process of appointment were taken through the “Take-A-Bow” mill and quickly appointed. Dubious cronies must be appointed through dubious methods even if the heavens fall! When an administration is confused and does not know what to do, it begins to do everything. That is where the loss of one genuine purpose leads to the pursuit of a dozen pseudo purposes. We once believed in this country that the Judiciary was the last hope of the common man. All that is now history. Sadly, eleven

Justices have just passed through the “TakeA-Bow” mill to the Supreme Court in what looks like doing in 11 minutes what ought reasonably to be done in more than 11 days! The list of nominees got to the Senate in the evening of December 20, 2023 and by the morning of December 21, the Senate was done with them. That’s rapid result, isn’t it? It is also a world record of progressing in error. When it suits us, we are quick to point to the examples of other countries. For all we know, the confirmation of a Supreme Court Justice in America would take one to two full days of rigorous interrogations - thorough in its entirety! By the time the Senate Judiciary Committee is through with the Confirmation Process, every American knows the ideological stand-point of that nominee on every important issue. The grand merit here is that the Senate Judiciary Committee laboriously and painstakingly x-rays all the cases that the nominee has decided since coming into the Bench. Incidentally, this is the type of process that we are busy bastardizing in Nigeria and in the end, we expect to have an upright Judiciary! In all things, one bad turn deserves another. Which country in the world would in peace time, allow 50 per cent of the Justices of its apex court to fall vacant? Nigeria is alone in this category! And, where the Senate Leadership owes its existence to a warped Judiciary, should that Judiciary not have pay-back-time when the upliftment bell rings? That’s what we are experiencing here. Unfortunately, Nigeria is the worst for it all! Who can stop this dangerous descent on a slippery slope? Essentially the President’s appointee is only as good as the Senate that confirms him. This 10th Senate is uncaring and it is beginning to show. At just seven months in the life of the administration, everywhere already stinks with filthy lucre, no thanks to an unaccountable Senate that would rather ask nominees to take a bow instead of digging deep. For instance, during the screening of the ministerial nominees, the Senate only needed to dig slightly beyond the surface on the Minister of Interior, Olubumni TungiOjo, to find that he had been immersed in the web of Conflict of Interest in the past as exemplified by the “off microphone” episode when he was the Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on the NDDC. Apparently, it is yet morning in the life of this Administration and the future looks bleak and dismal. But who can tell the senate to wake up to its responsibilities? Omorotionmwan writes from Canada

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SONNY ARAGBA-AKPORE lists the challenges to attaining the goal

LONG ROAD TO DIGITAL ECONOMY Towards the last days of the previous regime, sometime in 2023, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and the immediate past Communication & Digital Economy Minister, wrote off N70billion debt owed for Spectrum fees (debt forgiveness) by a Mobile Network Operator (MNO) believed to be terminally ill. While industry stakeholders frowned at this, describing it as nepotism taken too far, the Minister and the NCC looked the other way. And this set dangerous trend in the sector especially when many operators and players are struggling with one challenge or the other to provide services to subscribers. Digital Economy is possible only if all players live up to their billings, the operators insist. The country does not have a national carrier that was supposed to stand the gap of taking services to the rural areas seamlessly. NITEL suffered a fatal fate after many failed attempts to sell it and repositioned for optimum performance and the company named 21 years ago as a Second National Operator (SNO) by the NCC is yet to actualise that component of its license and the NCC has pretended as if nothing is wrong. In other climes, the regulator will rise up to its responsibilities by calling operators to order. The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA), Britain’s Office of Telecommunications (oftel), America’s Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Ghana’s National Communications Authority (NCA) are truly independent and no respecters of persons, but in Nigeria, it’s the other way round. Personalities first. Nigeria is perhaps the only country in the world where everyone hooks on to mobile telephony services in homes, offices and on the road if they must communicate. Fax machine services that were powered by fixed lines are not readily available. Only a few service providers like IPNX, 21st Century Technology, VGC Communications among others provide pockets of services with very limited spread. And we want to create a Digital Economy. How especially when underserved and unserved areas of the country are increasing by the day and even where services exist, the quality is nothing to write home about. The NCC has been unusually quiet and seemingly inactive and it is not clear how government intends to actualise the Digital Economy Agenda that was heavily hyped by the immediate past Communications & Digital Economy Minister. Although, the Current Minister, Bosun Tijani has tacitly inherited the agenda and planning to run with it, what is clear despite his good intentions, is that the race will be very long and may take a lifetime to end. For one thing, technology is not native to Africa let alone Nigeria despite the manifest growth recorded so far in terms of connectivity in telecommunications. In reality, it is not going to be a tea party especially since it is out of place to legislate on technology like a policy document. Nigeria has recorded growth in telecommunications not technology. On the eve of the Digital Mobile License (DML),auction in 2001,the NCC management then led by Engineer Ernest Ndukwe avoided a needless controversy spewed by a particular influentia Nigerian who was the country representative for Motorola Inc .This Nigerian who was also a major shareholder in a Private Telephone Operator (PTO) that was deploying its telephone services with the Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)

technology made frantic efforts to impose that technology on Nigeria and campaigned spiritedly for its acceptance not only by the NCC but also by the government. But Ndukwe and his team were very smart, they suggested to government technology neutrality saying the auction was not going to be based on Global System of Mobile Communications (GSM) but that whoever won a slot was at liberty to deploy any technology of their choice. And the bidders went into the auction with this in mind. Today, we all know which technology is thriving and what fate befell CDMA. So in building a digital economy, we suggest to Minister Tijani to have an open mind in its pursuit and avoid the hype associated with those whose stock- in- trade is grandstanding, and sometimes with tongue in cheek attitude to government and governance. How are we going to actualise the Digital Economy agenda when for instance, there are grave access gaps in terms of those areas that are without telecommunications services? Internet connectivity is still very poor especially in semi urban and rural Nigeria. There are bottlenecks all over the country where there are clear multiple regulations across the land. There are issues of Right of Way where state governments have seen it as their oil wells and opportunity to milk Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) to pay heavily for every linear of space they excavate in the process of providing quality services to subscribers thereby making consumers suffer like the proverbial grass that suffers when two elephants are involved in a brawl. And so quality of services nosedives especially in areas that the MNOs are unable to pay the prohibitive fees imposed by state governments. Strangely, the Right of Way issue was resolved by the National Economic Council in 2013 where it prescribed workable solutions that were supposed to guide everyone including the NCC but today, the regulator is incapacitated and unable to provide a direction in this regard. So how do we grow a Digital Economy in the face of these challenges? On the contentious fifth generation (5G) technology which is now a global race, immediate past Minister, Isa Pantami and the immediate past Executive Vice Chairman (EVC),Umar Danbatta were excited to introduce it to Nigeria. There was no problem with that except that both men sold a dummy to the government more so using it as a political weapon to increase government income and pay a percentage as a fee to some phoney consultants. Aragba-Akpore is a member of THISDAY Editorial Board

The box office success of the film has revealed a huge opportunity for private sector to invest in the industry, writes TEMITOPE AJAYI

'A TRIBE CALLED JUDAH' AND THE POWER OF CREATIVE ECONOMY While extolling Funke Akindele, the Nollywood filmmaker for her recent box office accomplishment, President Bola Tinubu lauded the growing contribution of the Nigerian creative industry to the economic growth of the country. He acknowledged its pivotal place as, not just a medium for artistic expression but also a source of enormous soft power and viable cultural export. In his effusive praise of the industry; creative ingenuity, and enterprising spirit of young Nigerians, President Tinubu said that, "the creative industry is one of the highemployment sectors, providing jobs for our able and talented youths. It is an industry that is crucial to my administration. I salute Nigerians for their enduring support and patronage of home-grown creative efforts. We will provide the conducive environment for the industry to thrive further." On the heels of that generous presidential endorsement, it is worthy to say that, regardless of what anyone says, Funke Akindele has cracked the code for successful Box Office run in Nigeria. Her films, till date, have remained

the highest grossing in cinema runs in Nigeria's film industry. Her recent flick, 'A Tribe Called Judah', grossed over a billion naira in revenue, a landmark of no mean feat. The interesting twist to this number is the fact that within a month, Akindele's film grossed the unprecedented amount in a country with 91 cinemas and 303 screens. For clearer understanding, available data shows that as at 2022, China has 65,000 cinema screens followed by United States (35,280), India (11,962) and UK (3,402). It is very easy to see the link between the number of screens and the material prosperity of Americans in Hollywood and Indians in Bollywood. By comparison, English-speaking West African countries, including Nigeria, as at December 31, 2023, have 95 cinemas with 321 screens. Out of this number, Ghana has four cinemas with 18 screens. For a country of Nigeria's size and population, the third largest film producer in the world after United States and India, the paltry 303 screens reveal a huge opportunity for private sector investment, which the newlycreated Ministry of Arts, Culture and Creative Economy is poised to drive. Akindele's 'A Tribe Called Judah', was watched by film lovers in 71 cinemas across Nigeria during the holiday season. Despite these limited screens, the title still raked in N1.3 billion as at January 10, according to promoters. It was not only Akindele's ATCJ that recorded massive box office hit. During the same period,

Toyin Abraham's film, 'Malaika' grossed over N250million, while 'Ada Omo Daddy' by Mercy Aigbe made over N140 million. In series of well-deserved commendations for her extraordinary achievements, some of Funke Akindele's colleagues in the movie industry showered encomiums on her for blazing the trail in box office revenue. United Kingdom-based Nigerian filmmaker, Obi Emelonye praised Funke and her team: “First of all, let me congratulate Funke Akindele and her team, including my brother and friend JideKene Achufusi. What they have achieved with ‘A Tribe Called Judah’ is unprecedented in our history. I don’t want to get bogged down in the crass argument whether the N1 billon plus figure is inflated, padded or not. The important thing is that the film has galvanized Nigerian cinema audiences. “And if we are arguing about the billion marks, which is double what the previous record is, then we are talking uncharted territory here. For that Funke and her team deserve respect and praise. Whichever way you look at it; it is great win for the industry that no one believed can make cinema work when we pioneered it 13 years ago. If Funke can do N1 billion with the number of cinemas in Nigeria today, just imagine the possibilities for our industry." Kunle Afolayan, award-winning Director and actor whose films are also known for their artistic and commercial success, attributed the runaway success of 'A Tribe Called Judah' to hard work. “I congratulated her and the team when the film was released and encouraged people to watch it. She and her team really worked very hard with the promotion of the film," Afolayan said. Describing the recent commercial success of Nigerian films at the cinema as the 'golden era', Deputy Managing Director of Filmhouse Group, Moses Babatope noted in a statement, “We are witnessing a golden era for Nigerian cinema, and Funke Akindele’s ‘A Tribe Called Judah’ reaching the one billion Naira mark is an indication that the creative industry despite the stiff competition from international streaming platforms, our local content continues to thrive, engaging audiences on a grand scale.” If nothing else, the revenue from the three movies that exhibited, during the yuletide, hints of huge potential for the industry. We can imagine what the industry can make with having, in Nigeria, just 1000 screens, not to talk of 3000 screens. The possibilities are truly huge for filmmakers and other players in the industry. This is apart from the multiplier effect on the economy. With the right infrastructure; more collaboration among government; private sector players and the motion picture practitioners, Nigeria can actually produce billionaire and multimillionaire film makers and allied professionals like their counterparts in Hollywood. Funke Akindele and some of her colleagues have shown us that this is possible. Ajayi is Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity

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T H I S D AY

WEDNESDAY JANUARY 17, 2024

EDITORIAL

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

AJAOKUTA: MORE MONEY FOR THE DRAINS

It’s time to stop the drain by concessioning the steel plant

t an All Progressives Congress (APC) campaign in Lokoja, Kogi State, early last year, then presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu, pledged that if elected, he would revive the Ajaokuta Steel Complex—a project that has drained the economy for almost five decades. Last week, after conferring with the president, Minister of Steel Development, Shuaibu Audu, said reviving the Ajaokuta Steel Mill would cost the nation between $2 and $5 billion. And he pledged the administration’s commitment despite the humongous debts Nigeria is now saddled with. The president, according to the minister, has approved fundraising locally to restart and rebuild the light steel mill of the plant estimated to cost around $80 million. The mill reportedly will produce about 400,000 tonnes of iron rods out of the seven million tonnes needed for the federal road construction project. “The Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, has already written a letter to me, guaranteeing that they will be off-takers in the iron rods that are being produced,” said Audu. But the bill that perhaps raised more questions, including from the minister, has to do with electricity. Ajaokuta Steel Company has been disconnected from electricity supply over unpaid debts totalling N30 billion. But why should a company that is moribund be consuming so much electricity? Almost half a century after it was conceived as a critical tool to the country’s industrialisation aspiration, the Ajaokuta Steel Mill remains a drainpipe. This is a sad commentary for a project that was said to have been 84 per cent completed as far back as 1983, and on which between $8 billion and $11 billion had been spent, depending on whose statistic is being quoted. In 2014, then Director of Steel and Non-ferrous Metals Department, Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, Mr. Also Abdullahi, said the federal government had spent about $6 billion

on the plant, and that only $513 million was needed for completion. The estimates, according to him, were from the report of a technical committee set up by the federal government. Same year, another committee headed by Daniel Maddo said it would require $1.2 billion for the steel complex to come on stream. Former President Muhammadu Buhari started the concession process of the Ajaokuta Steel Complex by first rescuing it from “legal disabilities.” He stated that the process had cost the federal government over $400 million, adding that after the 'legal rescue', the federal government was looking for a private investor that fits the “right profile.” It rankles that the country had to cough up a princely $400 million 'to rescue' the moribund national asset from 'legal disabilities’. On the face value, President Tinubu, like his predecessor, has listed some of the expected benefits of the Ajaokuta project, which include the creation of over 500,000 jobs and some billion dollars in annual income to the Nigerian economy. But will Ajaokuta ever come to fruition? Not only are we concerned on how the federal government will give practical expression to these high expectations but also by the proclivity to the waste of scarce resources in the country at a time the economy is in tatters. We feel that such national assets on which jumbo sums of money have been spent without results should be handed over to entities that can make the most of them so they can create jobs for our people. On that note, we support all efforts to concession Ajaokuta. We urge the relevant agencies to ensure that the terms of the concession already agreed upon are clearly defined and spelt out. With billions of naira being expended to pay thousands of redundant workers, it is important that a solution be found to Ajaokuta Steel, which has since become a metaphor for waste.

With billions of naira being expended to pay thousands of redundant workers, it is important that a solution be found to Ajaokuta Steel, which has since become a metaphor for waste T H I S D AY

EDITOR SHAKA MOMODU DEPUTY EDITOR WALE OLALEYE MANAGING DIRECTOR ENIOLA BELLO DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTOR ISRAEL IWEGBU CHAIRMAN EDITORIAL BOARD OLUSEGUN ADENIYI EDITOR NATION’S CAPITAL IYOBOSA UWUGIAREN THE OMBUDSMAN KAYODE KOMOLAFE

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

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LETTERS NASARA DABO’S OLYMPIAN HEIGHTS

Amidst the insecurity turmoil Kaduna, Nasara Dabo, a 14-yearold student of deal International College, Kaduna recently scaled Olympian heights. Nasara, a student at Ideal College International in Kaduna, gained attention for her exceptional performance at the International Mathematical Olympiad. She solved 34 math problems in just 172 seconds, averaging an impressive five seconds per question, earning her a gold medal in the junior category. Outshining 150 competitors worldwide, Nasara secured a total score of 145 and claimed the Olympiad champion title. Kaduna State in Nigeria’s Northwest is easily one of Nigeria’s most volatile states. The state, which maintains proximity to Abuja has always been torn by religious strife. In the early 2000s, the state witnessed what turned out to be some of Nigeria’s fiercest political clashes. When terrorism took a virulent turn in the country in 2009, Kaduna began to witness a string of terrorist attacks. By the time banditry emerged as a vicious form of terrorism, the state quickly became one of the most affected. During the presidency of Muhammadu Buhari, some attacks witnessed in the state shook Nigeria’s very foundations. While

Kaduna State was impacted, Southern Kaduna was more affected than any other part. In the Southern part of Kaduna State, entire communities have been laid to waste by rampaging terrorists. As terrorism has struck Southern Kaduna with venomous velocity, students have formed a large part of its victims. Multiple attacks have been recorded against schools. In the past few years, dozens of students were abducted in schools within the state and held for days until hefty ransoms were paid. What makes Dabo’s feat even more impressive is that Nigeria is rather notorious for its falling education standard. It is amidst these uncertainties that Nasara Dabo’s feat is doubly impressive. Her example offers young Nigerians who are doing all they can to acquire an education under notably difficult circumstances a lot of hope. At a time when many Nigerians are fleeing their country like rats jumping a sinking ship, it is heartwarming to know that there may yet be life here. Not long ago, Nigerian education received another heavy blow. But that time around, it was not a strike action that made the blow so heavy. Rather, it was the specter of illegal universities, all the shenanigans they perpetrate and enable.

The National Universities Commission may have contrived to shut down some illegal universities, but the fact that the body had to wield the big stick betrayed the fact that the universities had been allowed to ruin education in Nigeria for a while. Nigeria may have close to 20 million out-of-school children, but in Nasara Dabo’s groundbreaking performance, the prodigious potentials that lie within young Nigerians can be glimpsed. That Dabo is still a child and a girl is doubly impressive and inspirational. Her feat shows what the girl- child can do if provided the opportunity. In a country where girls face multiple challenges from birth, she represents what is possible for the girl- child in Nigeria. Nigeria has not had such an inspirational story coming from its schools in a while. In fact, the last time a Nigerian girl was in a big news item because of her education, it was Mmesoma Ejikeme who went to extraordinary length to fabricate her jamb result and deceive millions in the process. Nigeria is a land of possibilities. There is no telling what is possible if the conditions in the country are made right. Kene Obiezu, keneobiezu@gmail.com

T H I S D AY • Wednesday, January 17, 2024

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Amid Macroeconomic Challenges, Banks’ Lending to Govt, Private Sector Tumbles by 11% to N64.9tn

Kayode Tokede Following macroeconomic challenges, banks’ lending to governments and the private sector dropped by 11 per cent or N8.06 trillion to N64.9 trillion in November 2023 from N72.96 trillion in October 2023, according to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) latest Money and Credit statistics. Analysis of the CBN data revealed that credit to government closed October 2023 at N9.39 trillion, dropping by 45 per cent to N5.16 trillion in November 2023, while

credit to private sector moved from N63.57 trillion in October 2023, representing a decline of 6.03 per cent to N59.74 trillion in November 2023. The CBN data also showed that credit to the private sector recorded its first decline in November amid double-digit inflation rate, weakened Naira against other currencies, hike in operating expenses, insecurity, among others. In January 2023, the CBN revealed that credit to the private sector stood at N41.54 trillion, increased to N41.75 trillion in February and crossed the

N43 trillion mark to N43.01 trillion in March 2023. The statistics showed that credit to private sector increased to N43.66 trillion in April 2023, hits N44.8 trillion in May 2023 and closed June 2023 at N52.81 trillion. Between July and August 2023, credit to the private sector stood at N56.46 trillion and N56.95 trillion, respectively. It, however, rise to N59.51 trillion in September 2023. The lending to government reached a peak of N31.23trillion in June 2023. Analysts have expressed that

cost of production, coupled with scarcity of foreign exchange, played a significant role in banks credit to the private sector. Speaking with THISDAY, CEO, Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE), Dr Muda Yusuf attributed the decline to macroeconomy challenges. “With the present challenges in the foreign exchange market, cost of production, and high energy cost, investors will not want to take credit from banks. Banks can only finance projects that are doing well. If any project is

having challenges, it will affect the demand for credit. “The decline in credit to the private sector is because of the challenges in the economy. The present challenges are affecting a lot of business and you do not expect them to take money from the banks.” He explained that interest rate in the banking sector has also witnessed an increase amid 18.75 per cent Monetary Policy Rate (MPR). According Yusuf, “MPR has remained at 18.75 per cent but rate on lending has increased significantly in

the banking sector. For SMEs today, the interest rate is over 25 per cent. Some banks’ interest rate is over 30 per cent. If the interest rate is high, people will be reluctant to borrow money from banks.” On the 45 per cent decline in lending to the government, he expressed that President Bola Tinubu administration is focusing on borrowing less from the banks. “Because of the inflationary effect of borrowing from the banks, there is a deliberate policy by this present administration to reduce government exposure to bank’s credit, ”he added.

FG Moves to Enhance Genuine Farmers’ Access to Agro-input Interventions James Emejo in Abuja The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator, Abubakar Kyari, has said the availability of credible farmers’ data and accurately geo-referenced farmlands are germane and key to the federal government’s support for farmers across the country. The minister said this was to ensure that agro-inputs get to real farmers who have the requisite hectarage to cultivate. By implication, only genuine farmers, especially the smallholders are expected to get input support from the government going forward, he said.

He said gone are the days when genuine farmers would be at the mercy of portfolio farmers who hijack agro-inputs and later roundtrip to the economic detriment of genuine farmers. Kyari spoke over the weekend at separate meetings with the Governor of Ekiti State, Mr. Abiodun Oyebanji, and his Kebbi State counterpart, Mohammed Nasir Idris, both of who paid him a courtesy visit in his office, as part of efforts to achieve the food security agenda of the present administration. He said, “There is no doubt that the collective steps we are taking to boost food production,

reduce food inflation, and more assuredly guarantee our national food security, are matters of urgent engagement that require increased inter-governmental interactions. “In November of 2023, we flagged off the Wheat Dry Season Farming across 15 states that are in the wheat-producing belt of the country. “As a reminder, the flag-off was intended to ensure that we rely less on rain-fed agricultural production during the wet season, and instead have all-year round farming.” The minister said in addition to boosting the volumes of crops cultivated, taking advantage of

both dry and wet season farming will increase job opportunities, reduce poverty, de-escalate food inflation. He said these would further enhance inclusivity, which are goals highlighted in President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda. Specially, the minister said the agricultural landscape of Ekiti had experienced notable and some unprecedented achievements since Oyebanji’s administration came into office especially in the area of land preparation to open up more cultivable land for the farming populace.

He said the Ekiti State Youth in Agriculture Programme was already creating jobs and wealth for the teaming youths in the state, including various interventions in provision of inputs for the farmers in the production of crops and other agricultural value chains alike. He said the federal government was further ready to collaborate and partner with the state in recognition of these efforts and consequent upon your “efforts evident in the mobilisation of farmers and other resource available at the state level towards the Renewed Hope for Food Security Agenda of the federal government.”

Responding, Oyebanji said commended the minister for openly admitting the incident of round-tripping and taking steps to address it in order to enhance access of genuine farmers to agroinput palliatives by the federal government. Among other things, he called for the federal government’s assistance in providing tractors to aid the state’s mechanisation drive. Similarly, the minister said Kebbi remained one of the states chosen for the dry season farming across irrigable farmlands. The story continues online on www.thisdaylive.com

M a r k e t d ata A s at F r i d ay, J a n u a r y 1 6 , 2 0 2 4 BONDS Description Price Yield Change Updated Time (%) ^13.53 23January 101.49 12.10 -0.01 15, 2024 MAR-2025 ^12.50 220,00 January 99.40 12.84 15, 2024 JAN-2026 ^16.2884 17January 109.01 12.72 -0.01 MAR-2027 15, 2024 ^13.98 23January 103.01 13.00 0,00 FEB-2028 15, 2024 ^14.55 26January 104.60 13.29 -0.01 APR-2029 15, 2024

BILLS Maturity

Discount Yield

Change (%) Updated Time

Maturity

NTB 25-Jan24 NTB 8-Feb24 NTB 7-Mar24 NTB 11-Apr24 NTB 9-May24

1.08

0.00 January 15, 2024

6.52

6.54

1.25

1.26

0.00 January 15, 2024

RMBL CP VI 31-JAN-24

8.96

9.04

1.61

0.00 January 15, 2024

CRSL CP II 18-FEB-24

10.37

10.50

2.06

2.07

0.00 January 15, 2024

FLOURMILLS CP III 29-FEB-24

7.78

7.89

2.43

0.00 January 15, 2024

UACN CP VI 19-MAR-24 LFZC CP IV 16-APR-24

8.74

8.94

2.41

OTC F X F U T U R E S

CPs Discount Yield

Change (%)

Updated Time

0.00 January 15, 2024 0.00 January 15, 2024 0.00 January 15, 2024 0.00 January 15, 2024 0.00 January 15, 2024

Contract Current Tenor Contract Rate ($/₦) (Month) NGUS JAN 13 – 29 2025 NGUS FEB 14 – 26 2025 NGUS MAR 15 – 26 2025 NGUS APR 16 – 30 2025 NGUS MAY 17 – 28 2025

Updated Time

January 15, 2024 January 15, 2024 January 15, 2024 January 15, 2024 January 15, 2024

Wednesday, January 17, 2024 • T H I S D AY

BUSINESSWORLD

Interview

Ogeah: Hospitality, Tech, Agriculture Will Be Economy’s Mainstay in Nearest Future The Managing Director/CEO of Mac-Folly Hospitality Limited, Chike Ogeah in this interview with Chinedu Eze, predicted that as against the current over-dependence on crude oil, the hospitality industry, agriculture and technology will soon be the mainstay of the Nigerian economy. While calling on the federal government to focus on the sectors, he pointed out that the Marriott Hotel owned by the SIFAX Group is redefining hospitality in Nigeria. Excerpts: When Marriott opened in Ikeja, it kind of redefined the location of a good hotel in Lagos. Prior to that time, the best hotels were said to be in the Lagos island. So, what has been the experience so far? thank you very much. You see, in relation to that question, you must understand that the location of this Marriott was strategically done, in the sense that we already have, like you know, an aviation company that operates at the airport. And the visioning of this particular Marriott, we wanted to marry hospitality with aviation. And that is why if you come into the Marriott, you will find out that possibly this is the only hotel of that class in Nigeria that have cabin crew lounges that was designed into the building of the hotel. So, we actually had the airlines in mind in building the hotel. We wanted a number of airlines that would stay in the hotel in their long stay, which means you will have crew there 24-7 because you know how it works, when you fly for a certain amount of hours, you have to do your lay-by, then the new crew will take over. So at every point in time, we always have cabin crew. We have Lufthansa, we have Emirates when they were coming, until they stopped. We have Delta Air Lines; we have United Airlines. And in fact, what we really wanted was just two, we ended up having five at some point, which really, from the point of business, is not very good for us because we only have 250 rooms. And when you have those long stay crew, you have to give them special rates because it’s a long-term contract and all of that. So, to that extent, it has been a roaring success because we were able to now capture that airport clientele which is very, very important. We even have people that live on the island who come over to sleep in the hotel when they have early morning flight the following day. This is because they cannot vouch for the traffic, especially those that live way beyond Lekki, Chevron and all that. We have many of them that come and stay in the hotel before their flight, whether it’s local, whether it’s international. So like you rightly said, we totally redefined and built up a new level of clientele, which we are handling now. And that is why, as I speak with you now, we are about to embark on an extension, an extension in the sense that, if you look, we have a land, big piece of land, which is ours next to the hotel. And what we have decided to do is to put in a Marriott Courtyard. The Courtyard is a bit of a lower brand than the premium we have on ground now. But in the way we are going to do it, we are going to connect it to the same hotel. So it’s going to be like one same hotel, but the Courtyard will have its own distinct characteristic, which is beautiful and very different from this. It will be a sight to behold, I assure you, by the time we finish it in 24 months or so. At least we are going to get additional 100 rooms there because right now we are always full. We don’t have to take guests all the time to our sister hotel which is the Sheraton. You know Sheraton is now part of the Marriott brand. So, we work in synergy with the Sheraton, Protea, because you see the Marriott has their brands in different categories, luxury, premium budget and all of that. So, but the whole brands, including Regis, The Ritz-Carlton, JW, those are the very highest of levels. And how do they get this categorization? Basically, due to things like how big your rooms are, what kind of conference, convention center, conference room you have, and all of that. So, what we have done is that we have done the best, I mean everybody can see it.

has a mechanism, it is called the guest GSS, the guest response and all that. Like I said to you, in sub-Saharan Africa, we are number one in the Marriott Group. And Marriott, as you know, is the largest hotel group in the world by miles. Nothing comes close to Marriott. So, to that extent, we are happy. It’s not easy, of course, we have a lot of threats. We have a lot of challenges, like in Nigeria where power is a major issue and we spend so much money to keep it running. Because there are people out there having fun, they don’t understand what it is to power that place 24/7. There are times when we have all this downtime in the grid and we are just running different kinds of forms of generators back to back for 72 hours non-stop. That is challenging financially but the ultimate is to provide absolute comfort to our guests. You know what it means to keep the chillers in the hotel going. You can imagine.

You started few years ago and you have been able to earn this goodwill. Why do people prefer Marriot? We have been there I think since 2021 basically two years. And then like I said, even the Marriott headquarters acknowledged and success so far. We relate with them in Dubai, we relate with them in Johannesburg and, of course, we relate with them in the global headquarters in America and all of them are of the view that never have they seen both the kind of numbers and the kind of reviews they are getting from this particular brand in sub-Saharan Africa, which is our Marriot. So, to that extent, we thank God, we thank Nigerians. It has been a roaring success. And I thank God because it was a very difficult decision when I made up my mind that we are going to go fully into

Ogeah this. It took us seven years to build that hotel, pain stakingly. Once I finished as a commissioner in Delta, I came back and said, okay, it is time for me to walk away from the public sector. If you can recall, you know my relationship with the SIFAX Group. With what you have achieved so far with Marriot here in Lagos, the brand now knows that there is huge market in Nigeria. Do you think another Marriot will come up? No, we are Marriott in Nigeria and Marriott is us. And I can assure you that as we are speaking now, aside from trying to get these additional keys, because when you talk about rooms, that is what you call them, keys; these hundred keys that we are trying to get, we will have more rooms for our spa, we will have more recreational facilities. There will also be a banquet hall. Everything will also be there. It will have its own check-in place, but you can also check in from the main hotel because it will be connected with ramparts and all of that. Aside from that, this is just a short-term plan or immediate plan that we are doing. We are also envisioning that once this takes off, somewhere down the middle, we want to build a convention center which most likely will be somewhere on Island. And we also want to build most likely a St. Regis or another higher luxury brand in Abuja. What is the level of the utilization of your conference halls here? The conference halls are always fully booked. The demand is high. I am always having problems with getting them for clients; even as I speak with you now, four or five people are the demanding the conference halls on the same day. People are coming and we are talking about big clients, big governmental agencies, both Lagos state, federal government mand many others. They want to do their conferences. We have to adopt first come, first served method to overcome the pressure. But what is the timeline for notice? Well, you see, it is up to the person that wants to use the facility. You know when you want to do your event but it’s obvious that the sooner you let us know the better. So if you have an event in a month’s time, there is nothing wrong talking to us now so we can start blocking those dates for you. We have events we block three months

before. We even encourage people that way. Most times one week to the event, you see some other people will come to demand for conference halls. By then it will be late because we are already committed to another client. With state-of-the-art hotel you built in Ikeja, it is obvious you have diminished competition because your hotel stands above others around it. Well, I don’t know about diminishing competition, because you see the good thing about this sector, this hospitality sector, now, when I talk, I talk like an expert, but you know, I learn quickly. The uniqueness of the sector is that it creates its own market. Do you know that, up until when we were doing the Marriott, so many people were wondering what we were doing. How can you build a hotel like this here, who is coming here in Ikeja. But since we did it, how many hotels have come up? Of course, you know when the big man stays with us, the Minister or whoever, he has SAs, he has directors, all that. So they all cascade to all these other new hotels around us. So it’s fantastic, and they are all there. And even aside from that, one or two others of such hotels will still come up. So, what I am trying to tell you is that this market is elastic. Hospitality creates its own market. You will be surprised where people just come out from to books rooms in the hotel. When I was looking through the books at some point, I realized that even families in GRA, Ikeja here will come at the weekend and check in just to have that experience and they will spend the weekend. And they can walk from their house to the hotel because they live close by. You understand? There are different levels of clientele and they are just different, you know. They are all varied and wide and ever expanding. In Lagos the demand for hotels is very high. , I don’t know how many keys (rooms) there are in all the hotels on the island, even if we say, let’s call it 10,000 for reasons of argument, and maybe 5,000 in Ikeja, or wherever, there is still room for more hotels because demand is unendingly high. So, Lagos is still looking for more hotels. There is an increase in population, economic activity and other things and people are doing new things, new projects. I want you to rate your rooms? It’s not even for me to rate our rooms. I can’t be a judge in my own case, Marriott

They said that cost of hotel rooms is high in Nigeria because of the input of the cost of power generation. How much you pay to generate power? Well, not really. If you ask me, it is a total package. The whole ambiance is what you are selling. Number one, you have to give your guests a secure environment where they come in and feel absolutely safe. And you see, security as people should know by now, is not about carrying gun, you go to our hotel, you don’t see policemen with guns and all that, but I can assure you that in the four corners of that hotel, nothing can get past them. Because of the way the hotel was built, with the kind of security input we have, with the overall CCTV footage and cameras we have there; they are impenetrable. We have had situations where people picked other people’s phones and immediately the alarm was raised, we closed down that place and we got the persons that did it. We get them because we go to the CCTV. We have different command centers all over the place. We have the latest technology there. So it’s really a different world out there with what is going on with the world of hospitality now. And I am happy that Nigeria is catching up with it, but I am proud and I am happy to say that we at Mac-Folly and our brand which is the Ikeja Marriott Hotel, we are frontrunners in breaking new grounds. Do you still import some of your food items? Well you see, let’s be sincere, Nigeria has some of the best and natural and organic food items in the world. Our soil is the best in the world. So whatever you want, vegetables, oranges, fruits, we are also the best. But we have different clientele we cater for. So don’t forget, it’s an international hotel. Like, for instance, there is a loyalty program of the Marriott called the Bonvoy. Now that Bonvoy, you have to be a member of that club. It’s a worldwide club. And what it simply means is that once you are a member of that club, there are different categories, ambassadors, different classes of it. Once you get to those higher classes, and even once you become a member, it means that once you go to any country in the world that there is a Marriott, most likely that is where you would stay. Because you get points and those points help you to get free rooms over time and so many other freebies you can get from the hotel. So, what that means is that whatever we do, we always have to encourage foreign clienteles by giving them what they want. We have people who come and say to us they just want the South African steak, which is a different type of lamb or different kind of meat that we use from Nigeria. Of course, that will be more expensive. But we always have them. Like I told you, thank God for our operations at the airport. We have a way making these things available by importing them. Even grapes, there are some of them that want the grapes that are coming from Europe and others. So we have these things, you know, almost coming in and out all the time. So we cater for those ones. Oh yes, so whichever one you want we endearvour to meet the taste and need of our guests. NOTE: The story continue online on www.thisdaylive.com

T H I S D AY • Wednesday, January 17, 2024

BUSINESSWORLD

Insurance

Insurance Contribution to GDP:Tasks Before NAICOM The need for insurance industry to grow and improve the sector’s contributions to the national GDP is a mojor task before NAICOM in 2024, writes Ebere Nwoji

s the new business year begins with various sectors of the economy strategising to navigate through the year and achieve optimum growth, insurance sector has been pointed among the sectors in need of this all important growth. Sector analysts said stakeholders needed hard work and innovate to succeed through the year just as they said there was need for positive changes that would accelerate growth, enhance sector appeal to Nigerians and ensure its meaningful contributions to the nationa’s gross domestic products (GDP). On negative factors currently plaguing the industry, analysts said insurance contributions to the GDP is still less than 1 per cent and many Nigerians don’t have single insurance policy, whereas many have more than three bank accounts. They observed that some Nigerians don’t even have common compulsory policy like the Motor Third Party Insurance; yet their motor vehicles ply Nigerian roads on daily basis while their businesses are sitting on pool of risk without the least insurance cover, just because of their high level of ignorance of value of insurance. In their view, many investors are averse to staking their investments to insurance stocks while those who did, complain of poor returns on investments. The operators themselves can hardly handle high ticket businesses; they rather act as conduit pipes through which such businesses as aviation insurance , oil and gas insurance are flown to foreign insurers. Members of the insuring public still don’t have full confidence in operators because of piles of delayed, repudiated, outstanding and denied claims. They said even among operators, misbehaviors and infractions which end in using investors’ money to pay penalty abound; some vehemently flout laws like “no premium no cover” which implementation was enforced by the regulator some years back.

Expectations from NAICOM

All these they observed have their overall effects on the annual premium income of the industry; whereas pension assets stand at N17.65 trillion, insurance assets is still N2.8 trillion while overall industry’s annual premium is expected to hit the N1 trillion target which the industry set for itself since 2009. Against this backdrop, as the new business year runs on, a lot is expected of the regulator, NAICOM, which has over the years stood as the chief marketer and driver of the sector. Observers said ability of NAICOM to meet these expectations determines the mileage which the industry would cover during the year in its continued journey towards growth and development to meet its counterparts in other climes. NAICOM was established in 1997 by the National Insurance Commission Act 1997 with responsibility of ensuring the effective administration, supervision, regulation and control of insurance business in Nigeria and protection of insurance policyholders, beneficiaries and third parties to insurance contracts. The commission through its past and present chief Executive officers have been doing a lot to live up to the above responsibilities. Their efforts have no doubt yielded results but there are still grounds to cover to make the insurance sector prominent part of the finance services sector and the economy in general. On their part, the insuring public from whom these expected streams of premium is to flow for the realisation of these positive dreams, equally expects nothing short of quality, satisfactory and innovative services marked by quick claims processes and payment from the insurers.

Expectations from insuring public

Indeed, members of the insuring public, going by their behaviours and countenance last year seem not ready to accept anything any insurance firm decides to offer in terms of service delivery that is short of their expectations this year. The situation has been compounded by the continued shrinking of the disposable

income of the masses occasioned by the fuel subsidy removal and continued weakness of Naira to dollar which has forced prices of goods, especially consumer goods to hit the roof tops. The implication of this is that as insurance has always occupied the last column in the scale of preferences of the masses, this year if they are not convinced on the possibility of getting value from any insurance products, the insurers have offered to them there is every likelihood that the few people buying insurance may decide to spend their limited resources elsewhere. Already, insurance agents marketing life insurance to market men and women are dropping their jobs to sell tangible goods because according to them the traders are no longer ready to put insurance into consideration due to lack of funds. This has emphasised the need for NAICOM and all arms of the industry to contribute their quota towards ensuring maximum satisfaction and pleasing of these few available customers . Among high expectations from the regulator is the proposed publication of notice on outstanding claims which the commission late last year said it would mandate the umbrella body of insurance underwriters, the Nigeria Insurers Association(NIA) to publish inviting members of the public who have outstanding claims with any insurance firm to come up with the necessary documents for payment of such claims. The development according to former Chairman NIA, Gus Wiggle, is first in history in the industry and is a cheering news for both Nigerians and the insurance industry itself if well handled. According to him, it was a cheering news because never in the history of insurance practice in Nigeria has it been heard that insurance firms invited policy holders to come for their claims. According to him, what is common in Nigeria is situations where insureds file claims and some insurance companies sometimes reject the claims giving one reason another why the claims should not be paid . The Executive Secretary Nigeria Council of Registered Insurance Brokers(NCRIB), Mr Tope Adaramola, said if NAICOM implements this, it would go a long way to build confidence of the industry in the minds of Nigerians. There is the proposed Risk Base Capital policy which the regulator proposed to achieve during the year. It is on record that for some years now, the commission has tried to conduct capital increase programme but has not been successful because of resistance from the operators but with high inflation rate in the country, it is obvious that the present capital level which was instituted since 2007 can no longer work. Finance experts said if at the present level of inflation the commission fails to implement a successful capital increase, with time, the industry cannot insure even the least comprehensive motor insurance let alone insurance of oil and gas and aviation which operators are struggling to take control from their foreign counterparts. According to them, this time, given the high rate of inflation, operators should allow the next round of recapitalisation to hold smoothly by shunning any form of litigation otherwise they will shoot themselves below the belt.

Furthermore, some underwriters complain that brokers were far from complying with the “no premium no cover” rule in insurance contract which the commission implemented since January 1,2013. According to the underwriters the policy only applies in direct businesses not with businesses brought by brokers. Industry stakeholders,especially shareholders said the commission should join hands with the umbrella body of insurance brokers, NCRIB in its bid to fish out and punish brokers who hold underwriters’ premium beyond the stipulated period of 30 days. Also the commission has been advised

by industry observers to ensure uniform implementation of the new rate on Motor Third Party Insurance premium in all the states of the federation and ensure that activities of fake motor insurance certificate sellers are clamped down. Otherwise, they said certificate fakers will seize the opportunity of the over 200 per cent increase, which NAICOM effected on the popular policy in January last year, to rip off genuine insurers by charging peanut instead of the official N15,000 premium. NOTE: Interested readers should continue in the online edition on www.thisdaylive.com

T H I S D AY • WEDNESday JANUARY 17, 2024

Property & environment Sand Filling of Lagos’Waters Threatens Coastal Communities, Businesses There is an ugly rash of sand filling of the Lagos Lagoon and the Atlantic Ocean going on that should concern Lagos residents, particularly homeowners and businesses in the neighbourhood of these disturbing activities. Bennett Oghifo writes

or what it is worth, some believe it is a good business decision to create land from the Lagos Lagoon or from the Atlantic Ocean for real estate development. However, once the paperwork is done and necessary permits are procured it is important to conduct an appropraite environmental impact assessment (EIA) and regular environmental impact auditing by the government to ensure the sand filling and reclamation do not create avoidable problems for the environment that could ruin lives and livelihood. Already, businesses and homeowners on the coastline of the Atlantic Ocean, particularly those on the Oniru/Water Corporation Road, are gravely apprehensive that the new sand filling being done at the Eko Atlantic City could put them under water and have appealed to the Lagos State Government to rescue them from an imminent disaster. Adding his voice to the call is a renowned environmentalist, Desmond Majekodunmi who told THISDAY there is an urgent need for a comprehensive environmental impact assessment (EIA), considering the massive sand filling being done by the investors to expand the city. According to Majekodunmi, “The only effect of the sand filling and the rock groins of Eko Atlantic is to protect the Victoria Island coast from being totally eroded. But the erosion continues where the groins stop and does require very urgent intervention otherwise the Lekki coast and many other coastal areas will soon be catastrophically impacted because of the global warming ocean rise and surges. “However a comprehensive EIA must be done before any more sand is dredged off the coast.” Another environmental nuisance in this axis of Victoria Island is stress caused by street youths/ miscreants who ‘govern’ the Water Corporation/ Oniru stretch of Lagos, making this mainly tourism enclave hellish and unsafe for visitors.

Sand filling of the Atlantic Ocean

Interestingly, this area is packed wall-to-wall with prime real estate –high-quality homes and sturdy tourism facilities, one of which is the iconic Landmark City that has built its own shoreline protection unlike other businesses and homes on the Atlantic coast. The owners and investors have every reason to worry about the future of their investments if the Lagos State Government does not intervene. The Landmark Village, for instance, is a place for business, leisure and education and has emerged as the most visited leisure destination in Lagos, attracting up to 60,000 domestic and international visitors weekly. And over four million people annually in footfall, according to the Chief Executive Officer, Paul Onwuanibe. Landmark, in its 27 years of existence, has over $250 million property investment and over 14 properties have been developed.

The company is building a 28-storey facility, known as Landmark Waterview Apartments that will have 306 premium homes, with stateof-the-art accessories to enhance live, work and play spectrum for residents. Landmark Village hosts over 290 events annually and over 25 of these are international events. It contributes N530 million in federal and state taxes annually, according to Onwuanibe. In all of this time it has won over 23 awards. Landmark owns 220,000 sqm of land with over seven industries, 81 businesses in the ecosystem, 44% of them are first time business owners, and 41% of these are women-owned businesses. There are over 100 rooms managed by the Landmark Hotel and Beach Resort. It employs 4,000 people directly and 12,000 indirectly- 75% are between the ages of 18-35. Tourism facilities, like the Landmark Village,

need government support, he said and appealed to governments to provide financial incentives to stimulate private sector investment in tourism. In Singapore, the government offers grants and tax incentives to businesses in the tourism sector, encouraging their growth. Besides attending to the issues of sand filling and the miscreants to ensure these investments sustainably add the nation’s GDP, “The government should invest in curating well-documented data that would help guide tourism strategies, trends and visitor preferences. Developed nations use data analytics to understand tourist behaviour and preferences. Australia, for instance, employs data-driven insights to tailor tourism strategies and allocate resources effectively,” he said. According to him, “Successful tourism development often involves collaboration between the government and the private sector. In New Zealand, public-private partnerships are established to jointly invest in and manage tourism-related projects. “Governments in developed countries facilitate private investments through partnerships, recognising the mutual benefit of a thriving tourism industry. “Developed countries invest significantly in transportation infrastructure, including airports, roads, and public transit which in turn increases revenue generation and income in the economy. For instance, data from the OECD indicates that countries like Chile, Sweden, Germany and China allocate substantial funds to enhance their transportation networks, facilitating tourist accessibility. “Good infrastructure includes a range of accommodation options. Developed nations often support the construction and maintenance of hotels and resorts. In the United States, for example, the Travel and Tourism Satellite Accounts show a consistent increase in investment in accommodation-related infrastructure.”

African Stakeholders Join Global Industry Specialists at World of Asphalt Show, Conference in Tennessee, U.S Bennett Oghifo Nigeria and Africa’s professional stakeholders are fully poised as the World of Asphalt Show & Conference and the co-located AGG1 Academy & Expo, held at the Nashville Music City Center in Nashville, Tennessee, United States, scheduled for March 25-27, 2024, is around the corner. Nigeria’s engineers, asphalt manufacturing companies, National Road Transport Owners Association, NARTOA, the Nigerian Institution of Highway and Transportation Engineers, NUPENG, Contractors, Federal Roads Maintenance Agency, FERMA, Federal/State Ministries of Works, Transportation and Infrastructure Development, NBBRI, Researchers and Public Works Agencies are all set to attend.

According to World of Asphalt Show Director Brittany Schmidtke, “With more than 400 exhibitors and more than 200,000 square feet of exhibits, the 2024 show is expected to be among the biggest in its history. This year’s event will bring the asphalt and aggregates industries together again to showcase the latest products and innovations all in one place.” “Additionally, we are expanding this year’s show to include more networking and educational opportunities than were available at the recordbreaking previous show,” he added. For the ultimate World of Asphalt and AGG1 experience, attendees are encouraged to opt for the All-Access badge, granting daily entry to both World of Asphalt and AGG1, along with

access to up to 10 concurrent education sessions. Education topics include people, plants, paving, pavement preservation and environment, health, safety and sustainability (EHS&S). More than 400 exhibitors within just three days are expected to explore everything. Attendees are consequently encouraged to organize their schedule for World of Asphalt and AGG1 ahead of their arrival in Nashville, Tennessee. The 2024 AGG1 Aggregates Academy & Expo will foster a unique environment of professional networking along with the latest in industry education,” said Michael Johnson, President & CEO of the National Stone, Sand and Gravel Association (NSSGA). “Everyone should have AGG1

on their calendars, since the show creates the largest annual gathering of industry producers and those in the manufacturing and services space,” he noted. Attendees will be able to download the World of Asphalt & AGG1 mobile app prior to the event after registering. The app will seamlessly connect with the online show planner, offering show maps and real-time notifications. “This World of Asphalt is poised to be the most crucial one yet with all the advancements going on in the asphalt pavement industry,” said Dr. Audrey Copeland, President and CEO of the National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA), co-owner of the show. His words: “That’s why we’re offering asphalt paving professionals and business owners in

the industry more to see and learn than ever before.” The National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA), is the only trade association in the United States that exclusively represents the interests of the asphalt producer/contractor on the national level with Congress, government agencies, and other national trade and business organizations. World of Asphalt, held every year, is the leading trade show and conference focused on the asphalt and paving industries, whose most recent edition was recognized by Trade Show Executive as one of the “Fastest 50” growing trade shows. The show features the best education, and latest equipment, products, services and technologies for the asphalt and paving industries. The Show is co-located

with AGG1 Academy & Expo (AGG1), the aggregates industry’s leading exposition and education resource. AGG1 features in-depth industry-focused educational programming and comprehensive exhibits that showcase the latest technologies and innovations in aggregatesrelated equipment, products and services.

Iyitor

Ipesa Aircraft Maintenance Engineer Turns 60 Years Fadekemi Ajakaiye

Ipesa

Afeez Ipesa-Balogun, a licensed aircraft maintenance engineer, former chairman, Oshodi Isolo/Local Government and membership, Lagos State House of Assembly will be 60 years of age next month. To celebrate the diamond jubilee, his family, friends, and associates. have lined up a series of events for him,

including a book, entitled: AFEEZ IPESA-BALOGUN : MR SPEAKER... exploration of the archives, for launch. The book chronicles his unique political journey, capturing the story of progressive politics in Lagos State over the last 30 years. It is also an insider’s account of what is today the most powerful movement in Nigeria, largely the political family of

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. As part of the events to mark the birthday also, Ipesa is giving 25 scholarships to secondary school students in a grand design to stimulate the interest of youths to study the country’s third Republic contemporary political history and beyond. To that effect, the first 25 students in Lagos State public secondary schools to correctly

answer six (6) quizz questions correctly will be rewarded with N50,000 each in scholarships. Though all the quiz issues and answers are in the book, it’s public presentation is scheduled for the 6th of February, 2024, after the emergence of the quiz winners at the Nigeria Institute of International Affairs, Victoria Island, Lagos, after which there be a Jummat prayer Services on February 9,

2024, at the Masjid Monsurat Ipesa-Balogun, Awoyaya, IbejuLekki, Lagos, a Mosque built in honor of his late wife. The celebrations will be rounded off on February 10, 2024 with a Charity Walk to end with free medical services and distribution of foodstuffs to community members at the Oshodi/ Isolo LG Secretariat, Oyetayo Street, Oshodi.

T H I S D AY • WEDNESday JANUARY 17, 2024

images

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

L-R; Branch Manager, FCMB, Ijebu Ode, Ogun State, Mr. Adegbenle Oluwatosin Joseph; Chief Executive Officer, Klulead Garden and Suites, GRA, Ijebu Ode, Dr Olushola Adekoya; and his wife, Mrs Opeyemi Adekoya, during the grand opening of Klulead Garden and Suites in Ijebu Ode…recently

Director-General, National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Brigadier-General Yushau Dogara Ahmed(left), presenting a souvenir to the Director-General of National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), Abisoye Coker-Odusote(right), during Ahmed visit to the commission’s headquarter in Abuja…recently

L-R: Former General Manager, Public Affairs, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Mr. Sam Adurogboye; his wife, Mrs. Adeola Adurogboye; and Chairman, League of Airport and Aviation Correspondents (LAAC), Mr. Segun Koiki, during the immediate-past General Manager, Public Affairs, NCAA, and his wife’s Thank You visit to the LAAC’s secretariat at the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Ikeja, Lagos...recently PHOTO: KOLAWOLE ALLI.

Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde (right)); state Commissioner of Police, Adebola Hamzat(left); and others, during the inauguration and distribution of operational vehicles to security agencies by the governor in Ibadan…recently

General Overseer of The Lord’s Chosen Charismatic Revival Ministries, Pastor Lazarus Muoka (standing), with a cross-section of the Lord’s Chosen members during the church annual International Workers’ Conference and Convention held at the church headquarters in Lagos…recently PHOTO: ETOP UKUTT

L-R; Daughter of the deceased, Wami Awopeju; Son-in-law, Mayowa Awopeju; Daughter-in-law, Folake Martins; National President, Mayflower Old Students Association (MOSA), Wale Abdul; son of the deceased, Jide Martins Jr.; friend of the family, Mrs Yemi Osho; associate of the deceased, Omo Oba Muyiwa Osho; Daughter-in-law, Atolagbe Martins; and son of the deceased, Bunmi Martins, during the service of songs by Mayflower School, Ikenne, Ogun State, in loving remembrance of the 5th MOSA President, late Omo’ba Jide Martins, held in Lagos…recently PHOTO: ABIODUN AJALA

T H I S D AY • WEDNESday JANUARY 17, 2024

Education Don Seeks Improvement EKSU VC Recommends Vocational Training for Undergraduates in Nigeria’s Democracy Funmi Ogundare

An emeritus professor of Philosophy at the National Open University of Nigeria, Godwin Sogolo, has called for the constant reformation and reworking of the country’s democratisation process, saying that such a move will lead to the desired perfection. Sogolo said this during the maiden virtual seminar of the Nigerian Academy of Letters (NAL) recently, titled ‘The Impact of Democracy on the Lives of Nigerians’. He described democracy as an organic process expected to continue evolving and improving. “There is always hope that relentless democratisation will lead to the perfection that we all desire. There is no perfect democracy anywhere in the world. Even more significant is the fact that there is no better alternative to democracy.” According to him, democracy in the country has failed due to poor leadership, as democratically elected politicians hardly disregard the electorate’s interests. “Nigerians are rooted in an authoritarian culture, tied to our traditional attitude of leadership and respect for elders; and more importantly, millions of Nigerians are mere spectators and peripheral participants in the drama of governance,” said Sogolo. “In fact, a

majority of Nigerians are onlookers.” He regretted the impunity in the country’s laws, rules and regulations, which were blatantly violated. He added that political leaders have increasingly become unaccountable to the electorate, and there is an increase in the general latitude towards criminality. “The pillage of our commonwealth has gone ballistic in the last 23 years. Corruption has been unrelenting in upward march, as Nigeria leaders no longer steal in millions (except foreign currency), but in billions of naira,” Sogolo stressed. He stated that the country’s leadership was self-serving and expressed concern about the pernicious consequences of poor governance in Nigeria, which has led to the rise of terrorism, banditry and the spread of kidnapping, saying that former Presidents Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari were powerless to deal with the Boko Haram insurgency in the NorthEast, that had constituted a threat to the sanctity of the country’s sovereignty. He also described the system of local government administration in Nigeria as a charade, accusing the governors of violating the Constitution by dissolving local government executives at will and putting their cronies in charge to hijack their monthly allocations.

Gbenga Sodeinde in Ado Ekiti

The Vice-Chancellor of Ekiti State University (EKSU), Prof. Edward Olanipekun, has advised undergraduates in Nigerian tertiary institutions, particularly universities, to undergo vocational training before completing their academic programmes to make them self-reliant. He also canvassed for establishing more universities in the country, urging the government to ensure they are well-funded. Speaking during a media chat in Ado Ekiti, the professor of industrial Chemistry said the country needed more universities with its increasing population, pointing out that funding has always been the problem. According to him, less than 10 per cent of students writing UTME yearly are lucky to secure admission into the available institutions. He said other challenges confronting universities include inadequate accommodation for the students on campus and a dearth of infrastructure, among others. Speaking further on the undergraduate entrepreneurship programme, Olanipekun said, “In terms of entrepreneurship, we are ensuring

Deputy Governor Mohammed Jatau has congratulated Governor Bala Mohammed on the successful organisation of the education summit in Bauchi. Jatau acknowledged and recognised the outstanding efforts and commitment of the governor towards the development of education in Bauchi. “Our governor has demonstrated unflinching commitment towards the development of education in Bauchi state by providing necessary support, investments, and resources to ensure that our education system is of world-class standard,” stated the deputy governor. Jatau added, “The governor has also shown a deep understanding of the critical role education plays in the economic and social development of our state. Our administration’s investment in improved infrastructure, provision of quality learning materials, and enhanced teacher training programs is a testament to the governor ’s unwavering commitment to the development of education in our state.”

Jatau explained that education must be a transformative experience, equipping the children with essential skills, knowledge, and values necessary to thrive in the 21st century, and assured stakeholders that the present administration will continue to invest in education, including the professional development of teachers. He disclosed that the governor recently assigned him to lead a committee to identify the basic challenges affecting basic education in the state to provide better education for all by conducting an assessment exercise to provide the committee with a unique opportunity to not only identify the key issues hindering effective learning in schools but also to develop sustainable solutions that will set the state on a path towards educational excellence. Jatau applauded the governor for his unwavering support for initiatives to improve access and quality of education in the state and stressed the need for collective commitment to education development through building a brighter future for the children.

round the clock for the past two months. Returning and new students will resume for the 2023/2024 academic session.” He added, “We are pleading with the state government to also extend to our people whatever palliatives are available to cushion the effects of fuel subsidy removal.”

Firm Urges Educators to Bridge Educational Divide with Artificial Intelligence Funmi Ogundare

developer at Microtutor. Jatau Lauds Gov Mohammed’s Lead AI and GPT-Desk Project, Tomiwa Adefokun, has called Commitment to Education on schools and educators to adopt innovative AI soluSegun Awofadeji in Bauchi

that all our graduates master one skill or the other before they leave the university. The university is ready to support them to acquire facilities that would enable them to set up their own businesses after graduation. “It is compulsory that all the students, including medical students, learn one skill depending on their time. Some can even learn two or more.” Olanipekun noted that research costs a lot of money and called on the government to set aside some funds for universities to conduct research. Reeling out some of his achievements in over four years of his administration, Olanipekun said “inherited promotion arrears” of staff had been settled, sacked staff by the institution’s governing council recalled, Prof. Olanipekun and salary arrears “are also being paid with the support Olanipekun said, “We of the proprietor, Governor provided buses taking our staff from town to campus Biodun Oyebanji.” The EKSU vice-chancellor and at the close of work, commended Governor Bio- they were also taken to the dun Oyebanji for approving town. The university will not the university’s connection be resuming academic work to Ekiti’s independent power until the 29th of January. plant. This is to allow our staff, Speaking on how the particularly the academic institution responded to staff, enough rest because fuel subsidy removal, the they have been working

tions that will drive social change through learning and enhancement of educational experiences. Adefokun, in a statement, explained that Microtutor.ai is a pioneering conversational learning platform that offers AI tutors to assist human educators and integrates the capabilities of generative AI and microlearning capabili-

ties, providing learners with personalised, adaptive, and focused bite-sized content. “Microtutor is part of a bigger project, GPT-Desk, that aims to empower human creativity with AI. By harnessing the power of Artificial intelligence, Microtutor is designed to enable personalised education and also aims to bridge the educational divides, making learning accessible and effective for all, regardless of their social or economic background,” he stated. The lead developer stated that AI redefined education, and integrating it has opened

new avenues for personalised learning while leveraging technology to transcend traditional one-size-fits-all teaching methods. Microtutor, he added, played a pivotal role in bridging the educational divides due to socio-economic disparities by providing high-quality, personalised education. Adefokun said, “Through AI, Microtutor makes quality learning experiences equitable and accessible to all, irrespective of their background. This approach is vital in addressing the imbalances in educational opportunities and outcomes.

“Microtutor also empowers educators with tools to reach and engage a diverse student population and enables them to generate customised learning materials.” This functionality allows teachers to create content in various formats and styles, aligning with their teaching methodologies and the unique needs of the target learning audience, according to Adefokun. For learners, Microtutor provides access to education tailored to individual preferences, fostering an inclusive learning environment.

MHSIOBA Holds First Reunion, Advocates Alumni Takeover of Schools Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan The Old Students’ Association of Methodist High School, Ibadan (MHSIOBA), has expressed its committment to the development of the school, appealing to the Oyo State government to hand over the school to it for effective management. The National President of the association, Dr. Lekan Abioye, said this during the gala night to round-off the mega re-union of the old boys with the theme, ‘Education, innovation and possibilities for a better nation’. He stated that government alone cannot shoulder the responsibility of running its schools, adding that the association has committed a lot to make the

school a source of pride to its members and deserves to be appreciated by the government. He disclosed that since he assumed leadership of the association in 2019, the association has executed several projects such as renovation of legacy building by the 1982 set and construction of a befitting entrance gate by the 1981 set, among others. While unveiling the medium/ long term development plan for the school in terms of infrastructural development, Abioye maintained that the association is all about giving back to humanity and working towards making the lives of members better. He said, “the Oyo State

government has been doing its best to add more support to give quality education, however the government alone cannot do it and that is the more reasons it becomes so important that the alumni associations come to the aid of their schools to revive and manage them. “With our investment, support and care for our alma mater, we know that very soon the government will be looking at handing over our own school to the Methodist High School Old Boys Association to manage and grow because we love our school with passion.” Abioye, who noted that the association will continue to work as partner in progress with the government and the

Methodist Church to move the school forward and not looking for who to blame, enumerated the projects that the association desires to have in the school. The projects include coastal school van; standard science laboratories for Physics, Chemistry, Biology and Introduction to Technology; renovation of hostel buildings; renovation of teaching staff residential buildings; and construction of standard lawn tennis/basketball lawn. Others are internet connectivity to the school; completion of event hall; standardization of ICT centre; completion of library and equipping it with latest books to match the present curriculum and completion of the perimeter fence.

T H I S D AY • WEDNESday JANUARY 17, 2024

education

The World in 2030

Daniel Prince

The world, in its phenomenal revolution, has changed many people to having the instinct feeling of making the earth more sustainable and suitable for human and plant living. In human history, wars, bloodshed, backbiting, and race discrimination and bias have reversed into love, care, humble acts and relational financial support. These things are now what move the world away from what would be called ‘a generational crisis’. The state of the world has changed remarkably, since doctors have made people all around the world stay in an uneasy peace because of the vaccine that was injected into people over Coronavirus, that has abated over the years. The disease has stopped suddenly, but the fact that it could attack again keeps revolving around peoples’ heads. However, the vaccine is unrealizably strong, due to the advanced pharmaceutical chemicals made five years ago that continued till the present age. Also, the wars are over, thanks to the truce made with all countries of the world. USA, Germany, France and Russia have sustained peace with neighboring countries, to comply with the multi-international truce. Wars are just designed to create destruction, chaos and confusion which people never understood ten years ago, but has revolved back into the people of “ignorant minds and corrupt morals”. But now, countries are conforming and accepting and valuing peoples’ beliefs, norms and customs, which has resulted into “a global peace”. In the aspect of dietary living, food is usually cheap, caused by humanly living by growing of fruits and other activities which have improved the ecosystem and its inhabitants. Because of the act of a clean person and the heart of ‘planting to make a green world’ has made earth preserve superhealthy foods that have resulted into people being immune to any disease or infirmity. In the economy, food is now referred to as an ‘essential commodity’ that is surprisingly coming up fast, with easier purchases. Food is ultimately cheap enough for people of any category to afford and to ensure long life and a healthy lifestyle. In addition to the present state of the world, immoral activities have stopped mysteriously, could be something spiritual, I guess. adultery, polygamous marriages, bestiality and so on are one of the things that were rethought among

the doers of these abominable acts and turn to good living. I don’t mean to go religious or spiritualistic, but for Bible scholars, in the story of Sodom and Gomorrah, the city got punished for their immoral activities. I don’t mean to stereotype or be religious-bias, but all these have turned out to be good to peoples’ character, making them to sustain karma and good morals. In the aspect of peoples’ living and lifestyle, unbalanced and race discrimination, along with self-centered personalities have stopped and turned into love and care with people of different races along with a good sense of humility. In a world in the past, where tribal, racial and color passion and interest in all races have resurrected into human hearts. Discrimination, the intended or accomplished differential treatment of persons or social groups for reasons of certain generalized traits, is what blinded the hearts of many to see love ten years ago. Ten years after 2020, we are beginning to see and realize the meaninglessness of our daily riots over peoples’ races and tribes. What I do in this world matters, so making the world better is the first thing on my checklist, but, technology would be involved. I don’t want to be those people that wake up every morning, take the morning cereal, bath, sit down and think that where I am is comfortable, that means you’re selfish. I want to wake up, thinking of how to make the world more habitable and comfortable to live in. Also, keeping mother nature safe from viral threats, that could develop into diseases, like the one that occurred globally ten years ago. Unlike, ten years ago, where people want to survive but cannot take care of nature, here, people care for the world by keeping it clean and tidy. Other things that might be of great importance to tell you is the feeling of unity amongst nations, tribes and races in each denomination of the world; doing social gatherings together, relating thoughts and opinions to one another, as a result of love, which is continuous in our present era. All meaningless thoughts of conflict have stopped in the mindsets of all mankind. Truly, if love and unity abide with a nation, then, in this present era of ours, nothing is difficult to conquer. -Prince is a senior secondary two student of Providence Height

21st Century Fever: Decadence in The Reading Culture of Students Meg Smith

Reading is the act of understanding or interpreting a written text. According to the Cambridge definition of reading, “It is the skill or activity of getting information from written words.” Reading as a skill should be mastered, and if it is not, the skill has not been acquired. This means that information cannot be thoroughly processed if a given text is not comprehended, and effective reading can only be comprehended through incessant practice. Unfortunately, the zeal to read or the motivation to develop the reading skill has gone down the drain. Children, particularly students have lost the interest and determination to open, flip, or even glance through any type of books, text, or magazines. The fact being that their interest is only diverted on any thing other than books. Thus, they are only addicted to phones and intoxicated with social media. Their newly found habit of careless and unnecessary use of phones to practice immoral acts and text unimportant messages have affected them immensely. The immense effect has basically affected an average student’s academic performance, sense of reasoning or communicating in both oral and written English. For instance, a typical student will coin up words orally without using the proper pronunciation and type in formulas as words in WhatsApp messages as a well-written English. Clear, concise, and proper use of words to make correct sentences have become a thing of the past. Thus, the decline in the reading culture of a typical Nigerian child or student in today’s society. However, this adverse effect and many more have affected many students. And, some parents shifted the blame to teachers, while some teachers also shifted the blame to the parents. But, still, both parents, students, and teachers have in one way or the other contributed to the decadence in reading culture.

The quest for wealth, career growth and material interest of most parents have contributed to the decadence of students’ reading culture. Most parents today, would rather dedicate more time to money-making, acquiring gigantic properties, and developing their careers than inculcating the priceless habit of reading quality and educative books in children. Moreso, the excessive pleasure or luxury some parents lavish on children with material gifts have brought about a decline in this invaluable habit. The intellectual growth and the general well-being of any student who aspires to become a great future leader may not be enhanced if the parents do not dedicate time to encourage the student. Some students would have developed this good habit if it had been introduced to them earlier from a younger age and at the right perspective. Paradventure, a parent decides to inculcate the reading habit, very little time is given, and as such, the student looses interest and focus to reading. Most parents relegate their duties to the school teachers with the notion that the teachers will perform miracles, but disaster looms when their great expectation becomes a total disappointment. Yet, it hasn’t occurred to some parents that the foundation of building the blocks of reading begins at home. Indeed, it’s disheartening at the rushing speed at which this good culture is rottening. This is because some parents have neglected their roles, and it’s time they realized that the quest for wealth and material possession will not purchase the joy, growth and academic motivation of developing the reading skills of a child. Therefore, parents should do the needful, for a time wasted can never be regained. Teachers are the great pillars that hold parents and students strongly together, and, without the involvement and contributions of parents to aid teachers in imparting great knowledge to students,

the student’s potentials might not be achieved. Teachers endeavor to inculcate the habit of reading among students as much as they can through assignments and activities that cover a wider range of reading with the objective of establishing a reading skill on students with or without assistance form the parents. But, a close observation of the methodology and pedagogy applied to teach this skill proves that while a certain number of students master the skill, most are denied access or totally excluded. The fact being that, some of these students lack attentiveness, focus and full participation as a result of their different learning styles and background experiences which certain teachers and even parents fail to put into consideration. Such perception hinders effective reading with understanding and lingers mastery of the skill. In addition, decline in the reading culture of students shows that most schools have failed to provide the relevant books, texts, novels, encyclopedias, newspaper articles and journals in a classic library to enable teachers teach the 21st century students. And, when various quality books that reflect the present situations, occurrences or events which relate to the students’ life experiences are not provided or available to ignite reading, students lose interest in reading, as such, it becomes difficult to inculcate the reading culture. Subsequently, decadence in reading culture can also be blamed on certain students with lackadaisical attitude who failed to perform their role. Decline in reading culture among students will continue, if the lackadaisical attitude of certain students isn’t curbed or addressed both in school and at home. In today’s world, most students have lost the enthusiasm and determination to read due to the distractions which surround them. Some are distracted by peer pressure and certain trends on social media, fashion, and entertainment industries. Challenges like loss of a close

relation, health conditions, and bullying also contribute to decline in reading culture. Students with serious medical conditions or minor disability find it difficult to comprehend a particular concept or remain focused in class, talk more of studying a given task or reading. And, conditions such as anxiety, emotional disturbance, stress, conduct disorder, Autism Spectrum Disorders, Dyslexia, Schizophrenia, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), and Cerebral Palsy may affect building a reading culture. This is because the students in question, are restricted to full participation in class based on their medical conditions. A close observation from experience shows that most students with such conditions or disabilities might not inculcate the habit of reading or master the skill. Because they are not properly placed, as many are in main stream schools rather, instead of special schools. And, this is due to ignorance or lack of information about their background, and failure to access their medical records. Therefore, mastering the skill of reading could possibly become difficult without the involvement of parents and the full participation, interest or determination of a student to learn. In other words, students may not acquire the skill without the encouragement or motivation from parents to keep them on track. Moreover, if teachers and parents fail to take note of the challenges, background experiences, learning styles, behavioral attitudes, pains and struggles of each child, as well as the learning environment of the 21st century child in the society today, their objectives and goals might not be achieved. Conclusively, parents and teachers need to collaborate for students to achieve greater goals. As the development of a student is shaped by them to reach their potentials, and without the collaboration from both stakeholders, decadence in the reading culture of the student will reach its peak.

R-L: Leader of the Senate, Opeyemi Bamidele; Chief Executive Officer, Havilah Group, Chief Olarewaju Adesuyi; Deputy Vice-Chancellor in charge of Administration, Federal University, Oye Ekiti, Prof. Tajudeen Bolanle; and Senior Special Adviser to FUOYE Vice-Chancellor, Dr. Adedayo Shobowale at the presentation of letters of invitation for the award of honorary doctorate degrees to the senators in Abuja... recently

T H I S D AY • WEDNESday JANUARY 17, 2024

CITYSTRINGS

Group Features Editor: Chiemelie Ezeobi Email chiemelie.ezeobi@thisdaylive.com, 07010510430

BESDA: Improving Literacy Level in Katsina

The Better Education Service Delivery for All, BESDA, programme has enrolled 361,525 out-of-school children in schools and improved literacy level in Katsina State. Francis Sardauna writes

ocio-economic disparities stand as a primary hurdle in ensuring children’s enrolment and retention in schools. Poverty-stricken families often struggle to prioritise education due to financial constraints, compelling children to leave school to support their families. The cyclical nature of poverty orchestrated by insecurity exacerbates this situation especially in Northern Nigeria, trapping generations in a cycle of limited opportunities and perpetuating educational disparities. Cultural norms and practices also contribute significantly to this educational imbalance, especially for girls. Deep-rooted beliefs such as early marriage customs, religion and societal expectations limit girls’ access to education. This complex interplay of the nation's socioeconomic, cultural and infrastructural factors has perpetuated this issue, leaving a substantial portion of the children population without access to education, a fundamental human right. While undermining the importance of education for children, these aforementioned stumbling blocks often lead to disproportionately low enrolment rates and hinder children's overall development and empowerment in the country, especially in the northern region. But in Katsina State, the story has changed following the successful implementation of a five-year Better Education Service Delivery for All (BESDA) programme in 13 Local Government Areas of Batagarawa, Bindawa, Daura, Dutsin-ma, Funtua, Ingawa, Kafur, Katsina, Kurfi, Mai'Adua, Malumfashi, Musawa and Sandamu. The programme which commenced in the state in 2019 with the inauguration of a Steering and Technical Committees, was committed to ensuring that all children, especially those who are out-of-school, have equal opportunities to access quality education in the state. As the programme is winding off, it has succeeded in removing almost all the bottlenecks and providing education for every child and promoting an inclusive learning environment for all children in the state irrespective of their geographical areas. Funded by the World Bank with support from the Federal Government, BESDA has increased equitable access for out-of-school children, improved illiteracy and strengthened accountability for results at the basic education level in the state. For instance, the BESDA programme has successfully enrolled 361,525 to different schools across the 13 selected local governments in the state which represent 36 per cent of its set target. It has enhanced literacy skills among these learners and provided them with a strong foundation for future success. Through innovative teaching methods and engaging learning materials, the BESDA programme empowered the pupils with essential reading and writing abilities because 27,680 children who were attending only Qur’anic schools had been integrated into formal schools across the state. Also, 255 Qur’anic schools were integrated into the formal education sector in the state while 25,922 mats have been procured and distributed to 55 Integrated Qur’anic Schools (IQS) in order to provide conducive learning environment and hygiene to the Al-majirai. The programme engaged master trainers and school support officers for effective and efficient service delivery. Thus, 7,378 personnel, including technical team, management, head teachers, centre facilitators, mentors, SBMC and teachers had been trained and retrained on capacity building. Specifically, 3,928 SBMC chairmen were trained on how to validate Annual School Census (ASC) data collected. They were able to demonstrate excellently, those skills required to conduct on the spot checks. Data collection, entry and analysis process of the annual school census were digitised in the state. This was achieved through the use of 100 customised monitoring tablets. 394 proprietors of integrated Qur’anic schools as well as mentors, have received N15,000 each as monthly allowances throughout the duration of the programme to ensure effective and efficient service delivery in the education sector. In order to achieve the literacy aspect of the programme, 224 master trainers and mentors were identified, screened and trained on Reading

Pupils of Abukur Model Primary school receiving lesson and Numeracy Activity pedagogy and on how to step down the knowledge gained or acquired to 5,161 teachers across the state. These teachers have transmitted the knowledge to their colleagues in their respective schools across the state through step-down training. The result, according to pundits, has boosted the standard of education. Thus, 402,492 RANA textbooks, 51,844 exercise books and 147,377 teacher's guides were purchased by the implementers of the programme and distributed to the 255 Integrated Qur’anic Schools (IQS) learners which had significantly improved literacy rates in the IQS centres. Similarly, 6,000 copies of Code of Conduct for Integrated Qur’anic schools (IQS) facilitators and proprietors were produced and distributed to the centres. 145 Samsung (Tab A7 lite) tablets were also distributed to 34 LGAS regulating teams by the BESDA programme in the state. To avert the damage of the reading and writing materials distributed to the IQS pupils, 90,000 school bags were procured and distributed to them. In addition, 30,000 school uniforms and 30,000 foot wares were also provided to the pupils for improved learning to thrive in the hitherto Qur’anic schools. Supply of 2,000 white boards and markers for the 255 IQS Centers; examination

and certification of 33,898 IQS learners for cohort I in the integrated Qur’anic schools as well as the monitoring of examination and mainstreaming of 30,000 IQS pupils in the 255 schools topped the BESDA activities within the period under review in the state. In order to improve hygiene and provide portable drinking water for pupils and students, 25 boreholes were constructed at some strategic IQS centres in the state. Also, 43 Gender-friendly latrines were constructed in some of the Integrated Quranic Schools. The BESDA programme has provided grants of N362,944 to 945 selected schools across the state while 60 one-block of two classrooms with 2,856 furniture, office and store were equally constructed and provided to 60 schools. 43 blocks of four cubicle toilets were built in 55 integrated Qur’anic schools. Taking into cognizance the importance of monitoring in implementation of any project, the BESDA implementers procured two Hilux vehicles to superintend the programme. 250 sets of first aid boxes were also distributed with supplement to learning centres across the benefiting local governments. To boost e-learning and monitoring of the programme, two dynamic websites were established at SUBEB and the state’s Ministry of Education, while 1,500 monitoring tabs, 40 laptop computers were procured and shared to the BESDA’s monitoring team. 400 copies of admission registers were equally distributed to schools in the state.

The implementation of BESDA in Katsina is not just an eye opener but a deliberate effort that brought to bare sane educational policies and programmes that encouraged standardisation of education and literacy in the state

Training of 100 gender, legal, zonal coordinators and six GBV service providers on school related gender-based violence, response mechanism, referral and pathways channels, child rights and code of conduct were also carried out in the state. Meanwhile, the implementation of the BESDA Programme in the state has recorded a huge success in all thematic areas, and the number of out-of-school children by gender in the state has been reduced drastically through the IQS module of the programme. Literacy rates of learners in primary levels (1 - 3) in the state have strikingly improved through the adopted intensive literacy programme. It has also succeeded in implementing the Annual School Census which is near completion in terms of publication. The programme also developed and reviewed the Katsina State Medium Term Basic Education Strategic Plan (SMTBESP) for 2021-2024. This will go a long way in ensuring the enrolment, retention and completion of out-of-school children in schools. Ergo, the implementation of BESDA in Katsina is not just an eye opener but a deliberate effort that brought to bare sane educational policies and programmes that encouraged standardisation of education and literacy in the state. But the numerous achievements or successes attained will come to nought if the Better Education Service Delivery for All programme is not sustained in the state. Therefore, the state government, through the Ministry of Education, should devise all revolving means to uphold the Integrated Quranic Schools module by sustaining those on board and at the same time continue integrating more Quranic schools into basic education. Withal, intensive literacy programme should be continued with new entrants (primary 1) and the current beneficiaries followed up to primary six. The government should also utilise the lessons learnt on Strengthening Accountability for results and Environmental and Social Safeguards of the BESDA.

WEDNESDAY JANUARY 17, 2024 • T H I S D AY

T H I S D AY

WEDNESday, JANUARY 17, 2024

business/MOnEYGUIDE

Yuqing: China, Nigeria Can Jointly Achieve Prosperous Future

Kayode Tokede

Consul General of the Peoples Republic of China in Lagos, Ms Yan Yuqing, has said her country and Nigeria can jointly achieve prosperous and glorious future. She expressed that the fulfillment of national development and the well-being of all people is not only the dream of China but also the common pursuit of all countries. Yuqing made this assertion while reacting to the result of the election in China’s Taiwan region. She said that Taiwan belongs to all the Chinese people, saying that moves to separate Taiwan from China represent the serious crime of secession, and undermine the common interests of compatriots on both sides. Yuqing stated that there were some external forces using Taiwan as a pawn to undermine China’s development and progress, and obstruct the rejuvenation of the Chinese

nation. She said, “They are doing so at the cost of the interests, wellbeing and future of the people of Taiwan rather than for their benefit. This runs counter to the underlying global trends of peace, development and win-win cooperation, and goes against the wishes of the international community and the aspiration of all peoples. China is firmly committed to peaceful development. At the same time, it will not flinch under any external interference, nor will it tolerate any infringement upon its sovereignty, security and development interests. Relying on external forces will achieve nothing for Taiwan’s separatists, and using Taiwan to contain China is doomed to fail. “Tranquility, development and a decent life are the expectations of our Taiwan compatriots, and the common aspiration of those on both sides of the Taiwan Straits. Under the strong leader-

ship of the CPC, the Chinese people and the Chinese nation have stood upright, won prosperity, and grown in strength. A moderately prosperous society in all respects has been built on the mainland, where a large population once lived in dire poverty. We now have better conditions, more confidence, and greater capabilities. We can complete the historic mission of national reunification, so that both sides of the Straits can enjoy a better life. The wheel of history rolls on towards national reunification, and it will not be stopped by any individual or any force.” “The fulfillment of national development and the wellbeing of all people is not only the dream of China, but also the common pursuit of all countries including Nigeria. Having experienced a history of colonization and national division, Nigeria shares a common historical memory with the Chinese people, “said Yuqing.

ND Western, Optimera Energy Signs 20-year Gas Infrastructure Development Agreement ND Western, one of Nigeria’s leading energy brands, has showcased its gas-to-power commitment and push to harness Africa’s natural gas for industrialisation through its affiliation with Optimera Energy LFZ Enterprise’s 20-year Gas Infrastructure Development Agreement in partnership with Lagos Free Zone. This was highlighted at the groundbreaking ceremony of the project, which took place in Lagos. The project by Optimera Energy. which is aimed to connect off-takers to its gas distribution infrastructure and

strengthen the development of energy infrastructure within Nigeria in the race towards Net Zero, brought together industry stakeholders at the groundbreaking ceremony to showcase the affiliation of other energy firms within the country in actualizing the project. ND Western displayed its commitment to the affiliation through its core goals to play a pivotal role in the energy transition within Nigeria, leveraging its expertise and resources in gas to power supply to contribute to the enhancement of power

production capacities. The Chief Executive Officer of ND Western, Mr Eberechukwu Oji, highlighted ND Western’s commitment to powering Nigeria’s industrialization through gas. In his statement, he highlighted, “Power is a critical component of the industrialization of our great country, and Africa at large. This strategic initiative is designed to facilitate the distribution of natural gas to companies operating within the zone, addressing crucial energy needs in Nigeria.”

Abiodun, Uzoka-Anite Inaugurate TGI’s Expanded Sagamu Factory Complex Tropical General Investments (TGI) Group, a global conglomerate and leading contributor to the Nigerian economy, has completed and inaugurated the expansion of its state-of-the-art Sagamu Factory Complex housing WASIL Limited and WACUB Limited. Eminent guests, including the Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Doris Uzoka-Anite, and other industry stakeholders. Leading the delegation during the commissioning, Group Managing Director of TGI Group, Rahul Savara said

receiving the Governor and the Minister was an honour. He said, “It is our distinguished honour and privilege to have the two of you together today to see what is happening here formally and also to commission some of our expansions that have happened in the recent past. Thank you very much for coming. We appreciate your visit.” Speaking at the ceremony as he commissioned the second phase of the WASIL factory where Golden Terra Soya Oil is made, Governor Abiodun congratulated the TGI Group for being a classic example of the success of Ogun State.

He said, “You are a reference point in the Industry. A shining example of Foreign Direct Investment coming to Nigeria and doing things excellently.” He added that the project attests to the state’s vision to create an enabling environment for private investors, leading to an improved state economy and the people’s standard of living. The Minister, who inaugurated the new extension of WACUB Limited, makers of Terra Seasoning Cubes, commended TGI for its significant contributions to employment and Nigeria’s economic development.

Renaisance to Acquire Shell Petroleum Development Company Renaisance Africa Energy has announced the signing of a landmark transaction with Shell to acquire its entire shareholding in The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC). Renaissance is a consortium consisting of ND Western Limited, Aradel Holdings Plc. the Petrolin Group, FIRST

Exploration and Petroleum Development Company Limited and the Waltersmith Group. “This acquisition marks a significant milestone for Renaissance, establishing its strategic position in the Nigerian market. We are committed to ensuring a smooth transition and look forward to leveraging our expertise,

in partnership with SPDC’s industry-leading staff and working in partnership with all the stakeholders in the SPDC-JV to drive continued growth and success in Nigeria and beyond. Completion of the transaction is subject to the requisite regulatory approvals, “the company said in a statement.

L-R: Emir of Lafia, Justice Sidi Bage (RTD.); Executive Director, The Alternative Bank, Garba Mohammed and Head, Federal Establishment, Sterling Financial Holdings Company (Sterling HoldCo), Baba Mohammed during the opening of a branch of the bank in Lafia, Nasarawa State...recently

MARKET INDICATORS MONEY AND CREDIT STATISTICS (MILLION NAIRA) August, 2023

Money Supply (M3)

65,445,154.2

-- CBN Bills Held by Money Holding Sectors

552,553.58

Money Supply (M2)

64,892,600.61

-- Quasi Money

40,870,301.28

-- Narrow Money (M1)

24,022,299.33

---- Currency Outside Banks

2,295,309.10

---- Demand Deposits

21,726,990.23

Net Foreign Assets (NFA)

7,144,158.92

Net Domestic Assets(NDA)

58,300,995.27

-- Net Domestic Credit (NDC)

87,273,966.81

---- Credit to Government (Net)

32,511,333.17

---- Memo: Credit to Govt. (Net) less FMA

0.00

---- Memo: Fed. and Mirror Accounts (FMA)

0.00

---- Credit to Private Sector (CPS)

54,762,633.63

--Other Assets Net

13,347,376.27

Reserve Money (Base Money

19,429,603.25

--Currency in Circulation

2,660,138.92

--Banks Reserves --Special Intervention Reserves

16,769,464.34 428,519.21

• Source - CBN

Money Market Indicators (in Percentage) Month

August 2023

Inter-Bank Call Rate

3.89

Minimum Rediscount Rate (MRR) Monetary Policy Rate (MPR)

18.75

Treasury Bill Rate

5.13

Savings Deposit Rate

5.26

1 Month Deposit Rate

7.31

3 Months Deposit Rate

7.55

6 Months Deposit Rate

8.30

12 Months Deposit Rate

8.13

Prime Lending rate

13.99

Maximum Lending Rate

27.59

• Monetary Policy Rate - 13%

OPEC DAILY BASKET PRICE As At 29th September , 2023

The price of OPEC basket of thirteen crudes stood at $97.48 a barrel on Thursday, compared with $97.08 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations. The OPEC Reference Basket of Crudes (ORB) is made up of the following: Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Djeno (Congo), Zafiro (Equatorial Guinea), Rabi Light (Gabon), Iran Heavy (Islamic Republic of Iran), Basrah Medium (Iraq), Kuwait Export (Kuwait), Es Sider (Libya), Bonny Light (Nigeria), Arab Light (Saudi Arabia), Murban (UAE) and Merey (Venezuela).

T H I S D AY •WEDNESday, JANUARY 17, 2024

mARKET NEWS

Ellah Lakes Gets Shareholders’ Approval to Raise N5bn via Private Placement Kayode Tokede The shareholders of Ellah Lakes Plc, yesterday approved the management’s decision to raise up to N5 billion by way of private placement. The fully indigenously owned and diversified Agribusiness company listed on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) in 2023 had raised N2.9billion from its investors as the company intended to build storage silos, capable of storing up to 100,000MT of Rice,

Soybean and Maize. Speaking to shareholders at the company’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Lagos, the Chairman, Ellah Lakes, Mr. Olumide Akpata expressed that, despite challenges, the management is confident that it would emerge stronger to deliver on its long-term growth and profitability strategy. The Chairman who was represented by Ms Osaro Oyegun, the Chairman, Statutory audit committee, Ellah Lakes stated the

P R I C E S MaiN Board

F O R DEALS

company intends to continue to deliver value for its shareholders, in a practical manner through gradual growth. “However, we do know that the years immediately ahead of us will be considerably more challenging for many businesses due to the insecurity situation, rising inflation, supply disruptions, amongst others,” he said. He noted that in overcoming challenges, the company received approval of the Securities & Exchange Commission

S E C U R I T I E S Market Price

quantity traded

(SEC) for a N2.9 billion rights issue. According to him, “On the completion of our rights issue, we intend to deleverage the company’s balance sheet as well as position it for its next phase of growth. Whilst we finish completion of the installation of the CPO Mill, we also intend to cultivate soyabean and maize in the very near future. We expect to commence our mill operations in 2024 and to commence planting of soybean within the year.”

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value traded ( N )

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According to him, “Similarly, a lot of work has gone into operationalizing the collaboration with the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA) in Ibadan, and USAID Trade & Investment Hub, on improving industry access to soybean seed across Nigeria, by planting highyielding (3.5t/ha) soybean seed varieties. “With regards to security, we are taking all the necessary actions to ensure the safety of our

J A N U A RY DEALS

farms and workers to prevent and minimize the risk of crop loss, so that our business continues to grow. We have engaged security personnel to secure our farm and are working with the local community to ensure the safety of our crops and workers.” The Managing Director / Chief Executive Officer, Ellah Lakes, Mr. Chuka Mordi disclosed to shareholders at the AGM that the N2.9 billion rights issue was completed and successful.

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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2024 • T H I S D AY

MARKET NEWS 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

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 15Jan-2024, unless otherwise stated.

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 aaml@afrinvest.com Web: www.afrinvest.com; Tel: +234 818 885 6757 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Afrinvest Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A Afrinvest Plutus Fund N/A N/A N/A Nigeria International Debt Fund N/A N/A N/A Afrinvest Dollar Fund N/A N/A N/A AIICO CAPITAL LTD ammf@aiicocapital.com Web: www.aiicocapital.com, Tel: +234-1-2792974 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AIICO Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A AIICO Balanced Fund N/A N/A N/A ANCHORIA ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED info@anchoriaam.com Web:www.anchoriaam.com, Tel: 08166830267; 08036814510; 08028419180 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Anchoria Money Market N/A N/A N/A Anchoria Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A Anchoria Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A ARM INVESTMENT MANAGERS LTD enquiries@arminvestmentcenter.com info@anchoriaam.com Web: www.arm.com.ng; Tel: 0700 CALLARM (0700 225 5276) Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn ARM Aggressive Growth Fund N/A N/A N/A ARM Discovery Balanced Fund N/A N/A N/A ARM Ethical Fund N/A N/A N/A ARM Eurobond Fund ($) N/A N/A N/A ARM Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A ARM Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A ARM Short Term Bond Fund N/A N/A N/A AVA GLOBAL ASSET MANAGERS LIMITED info@avacapitalgroup.com Web: www.avacapitalgroup.com; Tel 08069294653 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AVA GAM Fixed Income Dollar Fund 107.95 107.95 872.00% AVA GAM Fixed Income Naira Fund 1,193.82 1,193.82 1193.00% AXA MANSARD INVESTMENTS LIMITED investmentcare@axamansard.com Web: www.axamansard.com; Tel: +2341-4488482 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn N/A N/A N/A AXA Mansard Equity Income Fund N/A N/A N/A AXA Mansard Money Market Fund CAPITAL EXPRESS ASSET AND TRUST LIMITED info@capitalexpressassetandtrust.com Web: www.capitalexpressassetandtrust.com; Tel: +234 803 307 5048 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn 2.24 2.24 10.22% CEAT Fixed Income Fund 3.41 3.50 295.80% Capital Express Balanced Fund(Formerly: Union Trustees Mixed Fund) CARDINALSTONE ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED mutualfunds@cardinalstone.com Web: www.cardinalstoneassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 (1) 710 0433 4 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn 1.02 1.02 8.77% CardinalStone Fixed Income Alpha Fund CHAPELHILL DENHAM MANAGEMENT LTD investmentmanagement@chapelhilldenham.com Web: www.chapelhilldenham.com, Tel: +234 461 0691 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Chapelhill Denham Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A Paramount Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A Women's Investment Fund N/A N/A N/A CHD Nigeria Bond Fund N/A N/A N/A CHD Nigeria Dollar Income Fund N/A N/A N/A CORDROS ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmgtteam@cordros.com Web: www.cordros.com, Tel: 019036947 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Cordros Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 10.68% Cordros Milestone Fund 185.93 187.35 7.53% Cordros Fixed Income Fund 107.99 107.99 6.60% Cordros Halal Fixed Income Fund 109.80 109.80 9.06% Cordros Dollar Fund ($) 114.75 114.75 7.15% CORONATION ASSETS MANAGEMENT investment@coronationam.com Web:www.coronationam.com, Tel: 012366215 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coronation Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A Coronation Balanced Fund N/A N/A N/A Coronation Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A EDC FUNDS MANAGEMENT LIMITED mutualfundng@ecobank.com Web: www.ecobank.com Tel: 012265281 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class A N/A N/A N/A EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class B N/A N/A N/A EDC Nigeria Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A EMERGING AFRICA ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmanagement@emergingafricafroup.com Web:www.emergingafricagroup.com/emerging-africa-asset-management-limited/, Tel: 08039492594 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Emerging Africa Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A Emerging Africa Bond Fund N/A N/A N/A Emerging Africa Balanced Diversity Fund N/A N/A N/A Emerging Africa Eurobond Fund N/A N/A N/A FBNQUEST ASSETS MANAGEMENT LIMITED invest@fbnquest.com Web: www.fbnquest.com/asset-management; Tel: +234-81 0082 0082 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn FBN Bond Fund N/A N/A N/A FBN Balanced Fund N/A N/A N/A FBN Halal Fund N/A N/A N/A FBN Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A FBN Dollar Fund N/A N/A N/A FBN Smart Beta Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A FBN Specialized Dollar Fund N/A N/A N/A FCMB ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED fcmbamhelpdesk@fcmb.com Web: www.fcmbassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 1 462 2596 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Legacy Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 7.88% Legacy Debt Fund 3.58 3.58 0.82% Legacy Equity Fund 3.07 3.13 10.70% Legacy USD Bond Fund 1.32 1.32 3.50% FSDH ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD coralfunds@fsdhgroup.com Web: www.fsdhaml.com; Tel: 01-270 4884-5; 01-280 9740-1 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coral Balanced Fund 6,444.16 6,497.57 N/A Coral Income Fund 4,011.74 4,011.74 7.97% Coral Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 11.63% FSDH Dollar Fund 1.20 1.20 0.00%

GUARANTY TRUST FUND MANAGERS LIMITED enquiries@investment-one.com Web: www.gtcoplc.bank; Tel: +234 812 992 1045,+234 1 448 8888 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Guaranty Trust Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A Guaranty Trust Balanced Fund N/A N/A N/A Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A Guaranty Trust Equity Income Fund (VEIF) N/A N/A N/A Vantage Dollar Fund (VDF) - June Year End N/A N/A N/A LOTUS CAPITAL LTD fincon@lotuscapitallimited.com Web: www.lotuscapitallimited.com; Tel: +234 1-291 4626 / +234 1-291 4624 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Lotus Halal Investment Fund N/A N/A N/A Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A MERISTEM WEALTH MANAGEMENT LTD info@meristemwealth.com Web: www.meristemwealth.com/funds/; Tel: +2348028496012 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Meristem Equity Market Fund 20.89 21.06 13.72% Meristem Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 12.58% NORRENBERGER INVESTMENT AND CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LIMITED enquiries@norrenberger.com Web: www.norrenberger.com, Tel: +234 (0) 908 781 2026 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Norrenberger Islamic Fund (NIF) N/A N/A N/A Norrenberger Money Market Fund (NMMF) N/A N/A N/A Norrenberger Dollar Fund (NDF) ($) N/A N/A N/A 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 2.59 2.63 11.24% PACAM Fixed Income Fund 12.04 12.29 46.69% PACAM Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 0.00% PACAM Equity Fund 2.51 2.54 16.35% PACAM EuroBond Fund 131.32 134.55 -0.44% SCM CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT 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 The Frontier Fund 181.32 185.99 8.29% 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 N/A N/A N/A 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 5,409.33 5,457.12 8.66% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 256.24 256.24 3.62% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 2.29 2.31 11.11% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 356.02 356.27 0.79% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 425.08 430.44 12.70% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 11.50% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 21,186.25 21,451.92 16.82% Stanbic IBTC Dollar Fund (USD) 1.47 1.47 7.00% Stanbic IBTC Shariah Fixed Income Fund 128.67 128.67 6.66% Stanbic IBTC Enhanced Short-Term Fixed Income Fund 126.41 126.41 8.72% Stanbic IBTC Absolute Fund 5,029.94 5,029.94 8.18% Stanbic IBTC Aggressive Fund 6,351.84 6,428.51 18.03% Stanbic IBTC Conservative Fund 5,676.54 5,706.04 7.43% UNITED CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD unitedcapitalplcgroup.com Web: www.unitedcapitalplcgroup.com; Tel: +234 01-6317876 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn United Capital Equity Fund 1.61 1.62 18.15% United Capital Balanced Fund 2.05 2.07 11.10% United Capital Wealth for Women Fund 1.57 1.58 10.03% United Capital Sukuk Fund 1.18 1.18 9.31% United Capital Fixed Income Fund 1.96 1.96 7.38% United Capital Eurobond Fund 124.60 124.60 5.30% United Capital Global Fixed Income Fund 1.09 1.09 10.12% United Capital Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 10.16% Web: www.quantumzenith.com.ng; Tel: +234 1-2784219 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Zenith Balanced Strategy Fund 20.27 20.53 9.96% Zenith ESG Impact Fund 23.93 24.15 9.83% Zenith Income Fund 25.42 25.42 0.35% Zenith Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 11.84% VETIVA FUND MANAGERS LTD funds@vetiva.com Web: www.vetiva.com; Tel: +234 1 453 0697 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Vetiva Banking Exchange Traded Fund 10.30 10.40 147.90% Vetiva Consumer Goods Exchange Traded Fund 12.78 12.88 117.85% Vetiva Griffin 30 Exchange Traded Fund 30.49 30.69 63.02% Vetiva Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 10.38% Vetiva Industrial Goods Exchange Traded Fund 29.35 29.55 22.54% Vetiva S&P Nigeria Sovereign Bond Exchange Traded Fund 147.83 149.83 3.05%

REITS

NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

N/A 59.38 101.79 11.76

N/A 12.00%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

N/A 600.00 899.99 25.49 39.80

N/A 600.00 899.99 25.88 40.27

N/A 20.00% 25.52% 8.46% 5.69%

NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

N/A

Fund Name

SFS REIT Union Homes REIT Nigeria Real Estate Investment Trust UPDC REIT

EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS

Fund Name Lotus Halal Equity Exchange Traded Fund SIAML Pension ETF 40 Stanbic IBTC ETF 30 Fund MERGROWTH ETF MERVALUE ETF

I N F R AST R U CT U R E F U N D

Fund Name Chapel Hill Denham Nigeria Infrastructure Debt Fund

N/A

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.

T H I S D AY • WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2024

NEWS

Setting Buhari's Record Straight...

L-R: National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Abdullahi Ganduje; former Special Adviser Media to former President, Mr Femi Adesina; Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume; President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio; former Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo; former President, Muhammadu Buhari;; Speaker, House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas and former Senate President Ahmad Lawan, during the launching of books chronicling the activities of former President Buhari, at the Transcorp Hotel, Abuja...yesterday

FG Moves to Reform Housing Sector, Sets Up 4 Task Teams on Building Materials, Others

Dangiwa promises swift implementation of reports Ministry says only 30% of Nigerians are homeowners

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja The federal government through the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development yesterday ramped up its planned reforms in the housing sector, with the inauguration of four separate task teams. The teams include: The housing institutions reform task team, multiagency project delivery task team, land reforms task team and the building materials manufacturing hubs task team. Speaking at the event in Abuja, the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Mr Ahmed Dangiwa, stated that for over the 60 years of Nigeria’s independence, it had witnessed successive governments roll out series of housing development plans and policies. Despite the many plans, the minister noted that the country had failed to meet the housing needs of Nigerians as the country still grapples with a huge housing deficit. According to him, the housing sector’s contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) hasn’t moved in any significant way over the past several decades, with housing development institutions still only functioning at sub-optimal capacities, and the enabling housing laws still obsolete. “Researchers and experts have stated clearly that most of the housing plans and policies since independence failed to deliver the expected results due in large part to a lack of political will on the side of the government,” he stated. But the minister said that President Bola Tinubu recognises that to achieve the “Renewed Hope” vision target of building a $1 trillion economy, the housing sector must be prioritised. The housing institutions reform task team, he said, is expected to

develop a robust framework for ensuring that housing agencies under the supervision of the ministry are optimised to deliver effectively on the the provision of quality, decent and affordable homes to Nigerians. “This includes a thorough review and facilitation of necessary legislative amendments of relevant housing industry laws including the National Housing Fund (NHF) Act,1992, Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) Establishment Act, 1993, Federal Housing Authority (FHA) Act,1973, and PenCom Act (to allow for increased investment in housing). “The team will also map out strategies for driving the nationwide adoption and passage of the model mortgage foreclosure law in states,” he stated. For the multi-agency project delivery task team, Dangiwa said the aim is to ensure that all housing agencies under the supervision of the ministry work collaboratively towards optimising their strengths to deliver decent and affordable housing to Nigerians. “They will outline frameworks for synergy between the ministry, FMBN, FHA and Family Homes Funds Limited (FHFL) and propose processes to eliminate bottlenecks in housing development to increase the national housing stock, amongst others,” he stressed. Part of its terms of reference, Dangiwa said, includes developing a comprehensive strategy and roadmap for the construction of at least 50,000 new houses per year for a start through multiple funding sources. On the land reforms task team, Dangiwa said it is tasked with developing a blueprint that will aid sustainable implementation of much-needed reforms necessary for streamlining land administration and ensuring easy, cost effective and

efficient access to land in Nigeria. Comprising state governments, traditional rulers and other stakeholders, the minister noted that the team will draw from the extensive work of the Presidential Technical Committee on Land Reforms (PTCLR) which had been working for the past 14 years. “Fourth is the building materials manufacturing hubs task team. The ministry is setting up the building materials manufacturing hubs task team in line with the Renewed Hope

Agenda to boost building materials manufacturing in the country towards ensuring economic growth, creating jobs, reducing dependency on imports, and lowering the cost of construction materials and housing delivery. “Primarily, their job is to conduct a thorough assessment of the current state of the building materials manufacturing sector in Nigeria, including existing facilities, capacities, and key players. They are to also

identify challenges and opportunities within the sector. “The result will be a blueprint that will ensure sustainable implementation of reforms for the sector and the establishment of building materials manufacturing hubs in each of the six geo-political zones across the country. This may include feasibility studies on the most viable locations for the hubs within each zone for siting of housing projects,” he added In his remarks, the Permanent

Amnesty Int’l: Shell Must Address Oil Pollution in N’Delta Before Selling Assets Wale Igbintade

Amnesty International (AI) has urged the Nigerian government to require Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC) to provide a full assessment of existing pollution and the current state of its infrastructure before sale of its onshore oil business in Nigeria Reacting to Shell’s sale of its onshore oil business in Nigeria for up to $2.4 billion, Mark Dummett, Amnesty International’s Head of Business and Human Rights, said that for decades oil spills had damaged the health and livelihoods of many inhabitants of the Niger Delta.” In a statement issued by the Media and Communications Assistant, Michael Christian, he stated that Shell had earned billions of dollars from its business in Nigeria and must make sure that its withdrawal does not have negative human rights and environmental consequences. “Shell has earned billions of dollars from this business and it

must make sure that its withdrawal does not have negative human rights and environmental consequences. We are calling for effective remedy for people whose rights have long been abused. “Shell should not be allowed to wash its hands of the problems and leave, and we urge the Nigerian government to require Shell to provide a full assessment of existing

pollution and the current state of its infrastructure. This information needs to be shared with affected communities. “Nigeria’s government must ensure local inhabitants’ concerns about the sale are fully appraised and addressed, and uphold and protect the human rights of its citizens, including their rights to an adequate standard of living, clean water and

"Ugo, titled after Antetokounmpo’s Nigerian birth name, offers exclusive and unparalleled access into the journey of one of the world’s most decorated basketball players of all time. "This intimate fly-on-the-wall documentary chronicles Antetokounmpo's inaugural visit to his homeland, accompanied by his mother, who emigrated from Nigeria to Greece 35 years ago. Together, they delve into their family's heritage and Nigerian traditions, fostering a profound bond as Antetokounmpo strengthens his connection to his culture." Antetokounmpo was quoted to have said: “Growing up in Greece, my Nigerian culture was something my

mother made sure we carried with us, but I was never lucky enough to have a direct experience in my homeland. "Thankfully WhatsApp helped me stay connected to my family and roots, allowing me to create my own unique version of heritage. "To be able to travel back to where she was born, and build a new Nigerian family, has been one of my most rewarding experiences, and only made me more proud of the many cultures that make me who I am. I’m proud to share this journey which I hope many around the world can connect to, showing us that we all have a different meaning of ‘home,’ even when we’re far away

health,” the statement said. Shell had agreed to sell its Nigerian onshore oil business to a consortium of local companies for more than $1.3 billion, a historic shift in a crucial yet controversial part of the energy giant’s global operations. The deal would fulfil Shell’s longterm goal of extracting itself from a challenging operating environment in the Niger Delta.

...ERA/FoEN to FG: Hold Shell Accountable for Environmental Crimes in Niger Delta Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt

The Environmental Rights Action/ Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/ FoEN) has urged the federal government to ensure that Shell takes responsibility for the environmental crimes in the Niger Delta before its divestment. Executive Director of ERA,

Mr Chima Williams, who made the call yesterday, faulted Shell for trying to run away from its responsibility even with the uproar that had greeted its divestment plans in affected communities and among civil society organisations. The demand was informed by SPDCs plans to sell its onshore facilities to a conglomerate of five

WhatsApp Releases Ugo, Documentary Featuring Giannis Antetokounmpo WhatsApp and Giannis Antetokounmpo yesterday released Ugo, an original documentary that takes fans of the Greek-Nigerian NBA superstar along on the journey to his homeland of Nigeria for the first time. Ugo, a Homecoming Story, directed by Rick Famuyiwa, is available on YouTube and in select markets on Prime Video. In a statement yesterday, it explained: "It is WhatsApp’s new feature-length documentary, and its latest original content feature following the 2022 short film Naija Odyssey. Both projects vividly portray the power of familial connection, cultural discovery, and personal identity.

Secretary in the ministry, Dr Marcus Olaniyi, said the much-needed reforms will tackle the multi-faceted problems in the sector, stressing that just about 30 per cent of Nigerians are homeowners. The housing institutions reform, multi-agency project delivery, land reforms and the building materials manufacturing hubs task teams have Adedeji Adesemoye, Brig.- Gen. PMO Reis (rtd), Rev. Ugochukwu Chime and Nuhu Wya as heads.

from it.” Chief Brand Officer at WhatsApp,Vivian Odior, a Nigerian descent said: “Witnessing Giannis, with his mother no less, on his first journey, to connect with his homeland - Nigeria - in such a deeply personal manner evokes emotions shared by many of our billions of users on a daily basis. It's a powerful reminder that the quest for identity and roots resonates universally, fostering a connection that transcends boundaries.” Rick Famuyiwa, the NigerianAmerican director of the documentary whose previous directing credits include The Mandalorian and Dope, said: “The first steps you take in your

homeland are absolutely unforgettable. They’re life-changing. It was an honor to work with WhatsApp to capture that moment for Giannis and to share a story that not only I can relate to, but so many people across the world can see themselves in, too.” Ugo is the latest in the partnership between WhatsApp and Antetokounmpo, since the partnership was initially unveiled at the NBA All-Star Game in February 2022. Ugo features appearances from key global Nigerian creatives including Grace Ladoja, entrepreneur and founder of Homecoming; Stephen Tayo, photographer; and Yeni Kuti, the daughter of Fela Kuti.

oil companies. In the statement signed by Communication Officer of ERA, Elvira Jordan, ERA stated that as an organisation that has tracked the activities of multinational oil companies for decades, the decision of Shell to sell off its onshore facilities to domestic companies, with the intention of remaining in Nigeria to conduct their business offshore, was a deliberate attempt to evade the liabilities the company has incurred overtime. It pointed out that Shell should not be allowed to abandon its onshore facilities to domestic companies without cleaning up the alleged damage they had caused on the environment, and the cost to locals who had been impoverished by their business activities. “These communities who have played host to Shell for decades have been left in abject poverty, with several degrees of damages to their health and environment, while Shell explores their resources to enrich foreign coffers. Shell should not be allowed to sell off its facilities and abandon the liabilities they owe these communities,” the organisation added.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2024 • T H I S D AY

NEWS

Keyamo tours Victor Attah International Airport...

L-R: Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mr Festus Keyamo; Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Mr. Umo Eno and others, during the inspection tour of the ongoing developments at Victor Attah International Airport in Akwa Ibom State by the minister...on Monday.

Terror Financing: General Ali-Keffi Writes Tinubu over Arrest, Detention, Compulsory Retirement Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja A former General Officer Commanding (GOC), 1 Mechanised Division of the Nigerian Army, Maj Gen Ali-Keffi, has written to President Bola Tinubu over his arrest, detention and compulsory retirement. This, he said, followed the revelations of a presidential investigative taskforce that he headed, which exposed the involvement of senior government officials, a top banker and top military brass in terrorism financing as head of Operation Service Wide (OPS) set up by former President Muhammadu Buhari to investigate those involved

in terrorism financing. Ali-Keffi said he headed a presidential instituted Board of Inquiry (BOI) convened by Major General BM Monguno (rtd), the former National Security Adviser (NSA), which sat in the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) for five weeks from early January to late February 2020. "I was the President of the BOI with members/secretary drawn from the NCS, NIS, DSS, NIA, ONSA, NFIU as well as from the the Board of Inquiry, which largely conducted its work as an investigative body tasked to investigate circumstances surrounding the ilegal smuggling of

petroleum products contained in 168 oil tankers into Benin Republic through through a single smuggling route in Ilesa Barbara in Kwara State. He said the BoI went further to uncover 295 oil tankers that conveyed Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and the major smugglers identified," he said. The petition stated that the BoI made a significant discovery regarding the relationship between the smuggling racket, the terrorism besetting the North-east, the banditry/kidnapping for ransom which was at its formative stage in the North-west and parts of North-Central geo-political zones.

This, he claimed, included the illegal mining of minerals in the North-west and North-central and large scale laundering of mostly funds meant for counterterrorism/ insurgency operations that was ongoing mostly in the Northern regions of the country. "A syndicate which had extensive network in the country as well as being affiliated to international criminal network was as the center of moving finances for terrorism for other criminal activities stated above. "The most worrisome aspect was that some of the individuals involved in terrorism financing of Boko Haram terrorists and who were also involved

Centre Advises Tinubu on How to Tame Soaring Inflation Michael Olugbode in Abuja The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), yesterday advised President Bola Tinubu to take a holistic approach to taming the soaring inflation in the country. A press statement by the Lead Director of the CSJ, Eze Onyekpere said it had become imperative that Nigeria’s economic managers embrace increased productivity, especially in the tradable and export-oriented sectors, including oil and gas. It also called for the removal of export trade barriers in the agriculture sector in the short run, stressing that it can shore up Nigeria’s foreign exchange earnings which will improve the value for the naira against major international currencies, thereby limiting import-induced inflation. “Improving security of lives and property through the right political will that guarantee value for money in the provision of security services in Nigeria. It should be recalled that security has been given the highest budgetary allocations at the federal level in the last 10 years. “This will also improve agriculture’s contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and food production thereby limiting food inflation which has been the major driver of inflation over the last one year. Improved security will further lead to increased oil and gas production for export and local refining. “(Government should ) limit ways and means of funding of the federal

budget to the statutory limit of not more than 5 per cent of previous years’ actual revenue in accordance with S.38 of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Act 2007. “It should implement a Nigeria first local content policy in federal and state public procurement to ensure that capital budget implementation do not put undue pressure on the Naira. Rather, capital budget implementation should create jobs, enhance local productivity and grow the economy,” the group stated. The group urged the government

to stop denying Nigerians access to their money and in banks as a means of mopping up what is considered excess liquidity. “This is a fundamentally flawed measure for the reduction of inflation,” it stated. CSJ noted that rising prices is a symptom of the overall negative macroeconomic fundamentals and strong headwinds besetting the Nigerian economy, adding that beyond inflation, the naira was losing value, poverty and unemployment is increasing. “ There have been massive factory

closures, increasing insecurity and population growth figures that almost outpaced economic growth. “Furthermore, the short term and medium-term impact of economic reform measures (fuel subsidy removal and exchange rate unification) have not been properly articulated. “The reforms were not accompanied by an evaluation/projection of their impact on the economy as well as countervailing measures necessary to limit their harsh effects on prices and other macroeconomic indicators,” it added.

in procurement and movement of arms and ammunition for BH and other criminal organisations had links with the military. "It was thus apparent that terrorism and insurgency in the North-east, North-west and North-central were a criminal enterprise and were largely undertaken with profit rather than any ideology, as the primary motive. "Thus, we, at the BoI arrived at the obvious conclusion that progress cannot be achieved except the financiers, collaborators, supporters and the leadership of the terrorists and insurgents groups are identified and the network dismantled," he said. The petitioner said recommendations on the findings were made and submitted to the presidency. The petition said the operation successfully infiltrated the leadership of terror groups in the North-east, which culminated in their decimation, adding that, key terrorism financiers, were linked to the individuals convicted for terror financing in UAE The petitioner noted that trouble started when the task force became "victims of unfair attacks" including starvation of funding of its operations. "This substantiates the argument that some powerful persons in and outside government as well as from the military were uncomfortable with the task force and specifically my humble self as commander," he said. The petitioner said the death of Lt Gen Ibrahim Attahiru, under whose

tenure he served as GOC, dealt a blow to the task force as the new army chief, Lt Gen Faruk Yahaya, removed him as GOC 1 Mechanised Division, Kaduna. He noted that subsequently, the presidency, the AGF became "less helpful". According to him, the entire episode culminated in his arrest, detention for 64 days in solitary confinement, where he slept on the floor with consequent health implications. He lamented that the most painful part of his experience was that President Buhari, who approved his headship of the taskforce did not come to his rescue. He, therefore, sought the intervention of President Tinubu on the matter. He prayed the president to "kindly cause an investigation into the circumstances surrounding my arrest, detention, maltreatment and compulsory retirement from the Nigerian Army. He also sought a review of his compulsory retirement from the army and commute it to voluntary retirement as well as approve compensation for the expenditure incured by the taskforce in hiring of vehicle and quarters. Ali-Keffi further wanted compensation for the pains and injuries suffered while incarcerated and and approval of personal security.

Soyinka: I Nearly Renounced My Nigerian Citizenship on Four Occasions Wale Igbintade Nigeria’s foremost playwright and political activist,Professor Wole Soyinka, has revealed how he almost renounced his citizenship of Nigeria on three or four occasions. Speaking at the 20th Anniversary of the Gani Fawehinmi Annual Lecture, the Nobel Laureate cited two instances when he felt he could no longer be at peace being a Nigerian. He cited the case of a women sentenced by a Sharia Court to be buried up to her neck and stoned to death, and the case of Ken SaroWiwa, and his companions, who were found guilty and hanged in 1995. Speaking on the theme “Right to Self-Determination and Agitation

for Secession in Nigeria,” Soyinka said if he, as an individual could be pushed to the point where he decided to renounce his nationality, it could happen to other segments in the country. “I have always asked myself the question way back in the experience of this nation. What is it that leads a section of a society to secede from any national entity. What are the avoidable ones, and what are the unavoidable ones? I can only go by personal experience “At least, there are three or four occasions when I felt like I cannot with any peace of mind continue to be a member of so-called Nigerian nation. One of it was when a woman was sentenced, to be buried up to her neck and stoned to death.

“I was in Italy delivering a lecture in a University, and I began to look for a new place to continue and end my existence. I felt I could not continue to be a member of any country, which is so cruel and so unjust. If that had taken place, I would have Japa long time ago. “The second one is my sense of total impotence and bewildness when the structure of law and justice were so manipulated, so debased and so rubbished during the trial of Ken Saro-Wiwa, and his companions that even lawyers like Gani Fawehinimi had to withdraw because they did not want to lend their names to what was going to be judicial butchery. "I said to myself, if those men were hanged, I will leave and not

return to this nation. So, I made up my mind to secede,” he said. Soyinka, who chaired the occasion added that, "It is not one society when you have different gradations of law, different gradations of sensibilities towards that institution, that entity called justice and therefore eliminates one of the critical causes why units within the national entity choose to secede. “It is issues like that which after a critical mass, a momentum of its own in which people say listen, let's get out of this mess and form our own community." The guest speaker, comrade Femi Aborishade, observed that the current foundation upon which Nigeria was hoisted was characterised by pervasive poverty, insecurity, injus-

tice, impunity, corruption, organised violence and underdevelopment According to him, neither secession nor restructuring alone, without more, was the ultimate solution to the problems of poverty and physical insecurity. Aborishade submitted that the fundamental solution to the problems of poverty and physical insecurity “is paradigm shift in the philosophy of governance,” adding that, “unless there is a paradigm shift in the philosophy of governance, the problems of poverty, and by necessary implication, the problem of physical insecurity would merely be replicated in the emerging Republics or in the restructured Nigeria.” Continues online

T H I S D AY • WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2024

NEWS

FSI Innovation Showcase Contest...

L-R: Business Development Manager, SystemSpecs Technology Services Limited,Mr. Stanley Urhobo; Director, NITHUB, University of Lagos, Dr Victor Odumuyiwa; Executive Director, Financial Services Innovators (FSI), Dr. Aituaz Kola-Oladejo; Group Managing Director, FinTrak Software Limited, Mr. Bimbo Abioye; and Head of Marketing, Branch Nigeria, Mr. Oluwaseyi Onibudo, at the FSI PHOTO: ETOP UKUTT Innovation Showcase Contest, held in Lagos, ... recently

Buhari on Emefiele: Unless There Was Firm Evidence, It Would Be Unfair, Act of Injustice to Remove Him Insists only people with too much money kicked against Naira redesign policy

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

Former President Muhammadu Buhari has defended the erstwhile Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Godwin Emefiele, insisting that only those who had too much money had issues with the controversial naira redesign policy. It is perceived that the current travails of Emefiele may be connected with the policy which the Buhari administration implemented in the run-up to the general elections in 2023. Coincidentally, President Bola Tinubu had taken serious exception to the policy, maintaining that it was specifically targeted at him and was meant to stop his presidential bid at the time. Ironically, a recent report released by the special investigator into the activities of the CBN under Buhari led by Jim Obazee had indicated that the former president did not specifically approve of the redesign policy. However, the former president’s remarks in the book contradicted the report. In chapter 12 of a memoir titled: “Working with Buhari: Reflections of a Special Adviser, Media and Publicity (2015 – 2023)”, written by his former Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, which was publicly presented yesterday, Buhari stated that the policy helped to ensure that the elections were not hijacked by money bags. “There is no denying that the naira redesign policy gave us cleaner elections. It was people who had too much money that had problems with it,” Buhari stated.

“The scarcity of money was not deliberately done to punish Nigerians. Democracy allows people to express their will, and we did not attempt to control them. People understood the implications of their choices, and we did not force them,” he added. Buhari maintained that he treated everyone fairly when he was the Nigerian leader, explaining that he expected that whoever took over from him, should also treat him the same way. He further said that he did not sack Emefiele when there were speculations about his presidential ambition, because at no time did the former CBN governor discuss it with him and it would therefore be unfair to take action on mere hearsay. “I met Emefiele in office when I came, and unless there was firm evidence against him, it would be unfair and an act of injustice to remove him, acting on hearsay. “If you punish a man unjustly, it could dog his footsteps throughout life, so if you would punish, you must have evidence and you should know that yourself wouldn’t be there forever. You would leave one day. “I’m very conscious about the morale of people who serve with me. I also expect whoever succeeds me to be fair to me. I have family, friends, who will feel it. I’m very conscious of fairness. “When he was linked with campaign for 2023 presidency, I did not ask him, because he told nobody he was getting involved. Otherwise, I would have removed him and told the nation why,” he added.

Still on the naira redesign matter, the former Nigerian president noted that to buttress his point about the rich and wealthy hijacking the elections, a large amount of the scarce currency at the time was found with a banker during the period. “When it was said that the new notes were not available, over N260 million was found with one bank

packages, as they benefited from the tier-down offer which allowed them to view our premium AM Showcase channel. “The tier down has ended, and the Step Up offer is a great opportunity for customers to get more value.” the statement said. It further explained that DStv and GOtv customers who upgrade or reconnect on the next higher package will get a further boost to a higher package within 48 hours. The offer is open to new and active customers, while disconnected customers can also reconnect and benefit from the offer. With Step Up, the firm stated that customers on the DStv Yanga package who upgrade to the Confam package would get boosted access

anybody, but it is up to them and their conscience. I want to continue to conduct myself with clear conscience, so that when I go to bed, I sleep off immediately,” he said in the book. According to him, due to the policy, many of the contestants sat up instead of waiting to buy voters and their conscience during the polls.

“My state, Katsina, showed the beauty of the whole system. In the presidential poll, the All Progressives Congress (APC) lost, but they came back to win the governorship. “Maybe they took things for granted earlier because it was my state, and they thought they would win easily. People do not like being taken for granted,” he added.

Tinubu: Education is Antidote to Nation’s Insecurity, Poverty, Other Problems it causes have been exacerbated by routine kidnapping, as armed groups tighten their stranglehold on the country. Nigerian authorities must immediately stem the tide of kidnapping now. “Many families choose not to report cases of kidnapping after paying ransom for fear of reprisals and as a result many incidents go undocumented. The current epidemic of kidnapping highlights the utter failure of the Nigerian authorities to effectively protect lives.”

Kingibe: Worsening Security Unacceptable The Senator representing the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Ireti Kingibe, has deplored the worsening security situation in Abuja, the nation’s capital. Kingibe, who was reacting to the killing of Nabiha Al-Kadriya, a 400 Level Biological Sciences student of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, by kidnappers, said the rate and ease with which criminals abduct and kill innocent Nigerians in the federal

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chairman. Did I take on the Supreme Court on the issue? No, I could not have. “Some APC governors went to court. I refused to judge people by my own standard. I am not materialistic, but it will be too much to expect all Nigerians to be the same way. “ It is not fair to condemn

to the Compact package. “ Similarly, those on the Compact package who renew on Compact Plus will get boosted to experience DStv Premium. On the GOtv platform, customers who upgrade from Jolli to Max, will automatically get boosted to the Supa package, while those who upgrade to Supa, will be upgraded to Supa +,” it stated. Upgraded customers, it stressed , will enjoy world-class sporting action such as AFCON, Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, UEFA Champions League, Europa League, FA Cup and Carabao Cup. “Also available is an array of Africa Magic original drama series, shows, international movies, series, telenovelas, music shows, news and kids’ entertainment,” it added.

capital was not only unacceptable to her as the representative of the people of the FCT but more importantly an embarrassment to the nation. Nabiha, her father, Mr. Mansoor Al-Kadriya and her five sisters were kidnapped in Zuma town in Bwari, Abuja on January 2, 2024. Her father was freed by their captors to enable him raise the N60 million demanded by the kidnappers. A few days later, Nabiha, the second daughter of Mr. Al-Kadriya, was murdered by her captors and the ransom demand increased to N100 million. Kingibe, in a statement by her Senior Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Nana Kazaure, said the murder of Nabiha and those of many others killed in similar and other situations, was a blight on the national conscience and a slap on the face of government, whose primary responsibility was to secure lives and properties. According to Senator Kingibe, “The death of Nabiha and others who have died at the hands of kidnappers, bandits and other criminal elements, offends our most basic values of decency. It questions the raison d’ eter of government. “At the very minimum, it is the duty of government to protect it’s citizens and ensure an atmosphere conducive for them to enjoy the fundamental freedoms guaranteed them by the Nigerian constitution. “It is unfortunate to note that in this regard, FCT residents and indeed, millions of other Nigerians who live on perennial fear for their safety, are being denied these constitutionally guaranteed rights.”

CSJ: Govt May Have Abandoned Its Duty Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), has lamented that the country’s security situation has degenerated to the extent that it could be stated that the government had abandoned, failed, refused or neglected to enforce its primary and constitutional duty of guaranteeing the security of Nigerians and residents in Nigeria The Centre, in a statement by its

Lead Director, Eze Onyekpere, said it was regrettable that there was recent upsurge of insecurity exemplified by the late December 2023 killings in Plateau State, incessant killings in Katsina State, 45 passengers kidnapped as gunmen attacked transporters along Otukpo-Enugu Road and the ongoing kidnap and murder of innocent Nigerians in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory. CSJ lamented that, “In all the foregoing, Nigerians are yet to hear concrete and reassuring words from the president and commander-in-chief of the armed forces or high-level officers of state on the way forward. “In FCT, the minister in charge, instead of addressing the challenge seems more interested in continued fueling of a political crisis in his home state, Rivers State.” It recalled that in the last ten years, security has enjoyed the highest allocation in federal budgets to cater for the armada of security agencies maintained at the tax payers expense. “Budgetary allocations have been proposed and spent on personnel, arms and ammunition, aircrafts and vessels, vehicles, equipment including intelligence gadgets. We are worried at the seeming cluelessness and inability of the security agencies to deploy intelligence to prevent and nip in the bud the insensitive acts of criminal elements who have no regard for human lives. “We are further worried that when these crimes have been committed, the security agencies have been unable to investigate, arrest and bring the perpetrators to justice.”

HURIWA: Tinubu Must Look Inwards on Upsurge of Insecurity Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has asked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the service chiefs to look inwards for solution to the resurgence of insurgency because the federal government has concealed the identities of key sponsors of terrorism. The civil rights group said it had become necessary for Nigerians to protect themselves as heads of the

military institutions have collectively accepted to live with the reality that they can't uproot internal moles and saboteurs, who are in the military forces but collaborating, conspiring and working actively with terrorism masterminds. The group also appealed to President Bola Tinubu "to act fast and decisively before the kidnappers start going from house to house in Maitama, Asokoro, Garki and Wuse to pick and choose whomsoever they wish to kidnap or the kidnappers and terrorists may even introduce monthly freedom from and Kidnappers tax on residents of Abuja metropolis and families will comply since there is a collapse of political administration in Nigeria at the moment. In a statement by the national coordinator of the group, Emmanuel Onwubiko, the group said, "The President is lackadaisical about the issues of insecurity and the frightening dimensions that terrorists have carved franchise and sophisticated and well-organised criminal networks of kidnappings and have infiltrated the Federal Capital Territory because the president, his cabinet members, legislators at the national Assembly are protected round the clock at public costs by Brigades of Guards. "And because of the perceived invincibility of these political elites within the corridors of power, the security and wellbeing of everyone else known as commoners does not count as a priority subject of interest to Mr. President, hence the seeming overruling of Abuja by terrorists masquerading as kidnappers for ransom payments. "Mr. President needs to feel the apprehensions, the pains and pangs and the unending anxieties of Nigerians and then do the needful because if this heightened state of insecurity continues, the political office holders will lose legitimacy and chaos and anarchy would be let loose and the entire country will be like a wasteland because everyone is looking for his or her own security because the government has lost the monopoly of organised, legitimised violence," the group lamented.

wednESday JANUARY 17, 2024• T H I S D AY

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TRAINING FOR ARTISANS…

L-R: National Director, Training, Cobblers and Leathers Artisans Association of Nigeria, Comrade, Fashina Akorede; Media Assistant, Office of the Senior Special Assistant (SSA) to President on Technical, Vocational and Entrepreneurship Education (TVEE), Mr. Babajide Fadolu; SSA to President, TVEE), Abiola Arogundade; Managing Director, Yikodeen Company Limited, Mr. Atunde Shamsideen, and National Chairman, Cobblers and Leathers Artisans Association of Nigeria, Mr. Mosaku Ayodele, during the opening ceremony of free leather works training programme in Ejigbo, Lagos… yesterday ETOP UKUTT

NSCDC Arrests Father for Selling 8-year-old Son for N20m in Abuja Michael Olugbode in Abuja

Operatives of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) have arrested one Chinana Tali at the point of selling his eight year old son, Ushafa Tali for N20

million in Abuja. Speaking during the parade of the suspect in Abuja the NSCDC FCT Commandant, Olusola Odumosu said that the child trafficking suspect was arrested after being lured to Abuja from

Ekiti University Teaching Hospital Suspends Strike Gbenga Sodeinde inAdoEkiti

The members of staff of Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital, Ado Ekiti, have suspended the strike embarked upon since yesterday as a result of assault on the medical personnel while discharging their duties. The Chief Medical Director(CMD) of the Hospital, Professor Kayode Olabanji, who gave the information during a meeting with the Union leaders, said about 20 people who were involved in the molestation and vandalism of Hospital facilities are now in the Police net.

According the him, the perpetrators are already writing statements at the Police Station and will be taken to court soon. The CMD therefore, commended the workers’ unions in the Hospital for their understanding and timely suspension of the ongoing strike for the sake of many citizens who are in need of medical attention. He noted that security issue is one of the reasons responsible for “Brain Drain” - (Japa) in the country. According to him, the management will do everything possible to ensure a safe and conducive working environment for our workers.

Benue. He said the arrest of Chinana, who was with his son, followed an intelligence tip-off of his quest

to get the highest bidder to sell off Ushafa to. Odumosu said: “We booked an appointment with the suspect

at a garden where we had one of our men pose as a buyer while we had our men surround them. “He came all the way from

Benue to sell his supposed child to a buyer without caring about what might befall the child afterwards.

PenCom Ranks Top on ICPC’s Integrity Scorecard James Emejo in Abuja

The National Pension Commission (PenCom) has secured top position in the 2023 Ethics and Integrity Compliance Scorecard (EICS) among 50 regulatory agencies in the country. The evaluation conducted by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences

Commission (ICPC) remained a significant milestone for the apex pension regulatory body. In the assessment, PenCom also emerged the overall 14th position out of 404 Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) on the comprehensive scorecard. Notably, the commission achieved a commendable score,

which was described by the ICPC as “substantial compliance.” In recognition of this achievement, the anti-graft agency conveyed its commendation to PenCom, acknowledging the organisation’s commitment to upholding ethics and integrity in its operations. The ICPC particularly commended PenCom for its

well-established structures and processes that promote efficiency, as it encouraged management to maintain high service delivery. The annual deployment of the Ethics and Integrity Compliance Scorecard by the ICPC is aimed at assessing MDAs’ compliance with existing ethical, integrity, statutory, policy, and regulatory standards and practices.

of those who lost their lives in the boat mishap. Five of those confirmed dead are women while the others are men. According to the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA), local divers in partnership with officials of

the agency are still searching for more bodies in the river, but could not confirm if anyone has been rescued alive. “I cannot say all of them died, because some of them could swim,” a source at NSEMA told THISDAY yesterday. However the NSEMA Public

Relations Officer, Abdul Hussaini, said a high-powered team from the headquarters has headed to the scene of the accident to get a first-hand information. Meanwhile Governor Bago has sympathised with the Borgu Emirate and its residents over the incident.

8 Bodies Recovered from Boat Mishap Scene in Niger Laleye Dipo in Minna

So far eight corpses have been recovered from the river where a boat conveying 100 passengers capsized last Monday in Niger State. This is just as the state Governor, Alhaji Mohammed Bago, condoled with families

Rotary Provides $14m Grant to Hearing Resumes in 2018, Offa Armed Robbery Case in Ilorin Policeman, Michael Adikwu trial in the case which began nine policemen. Nigeria for Polio Eradication Hammed Shittu inIlorin (deceased), Ayoade Akinnibosun, on November 11, 2018. The five suspects, Ayoade Onyebuchi EzigboinAbuja

Rotary International has given $14,037,787 to Nigeria to eradicate polio. Speaking while receiving the grant yesterday in Abuja, the Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof Ali Pate, said it would assist the country to eradicate all variants of polio by 2030. According to the minister, the grant came as a result of a comprehensive, sector-wide strategy aimed at revitalising the health sector, a direct outcome of

the partnership forged between the Nigerian government and its development partners. He said the approval of the grant is to strengthen polio surveillance and in recognition of the strides made by the country over the years in ending the disease. Pate, who expressed delight at the grant, noted that since the country has been certified polio-free, the new grant would go a long way towards efforts to eliminate the poliovirus variant that has been recorded in some parts of the country.

Hearing in the April 5, 2018 deadly Offa bank armed robbery case resumed yesterday before Justice Halimat Salman of the Kwara State High Court, after about a year since it was adjourned.

Azeez Salahudeen, Niyi Ogundiran, Ibikunle Ogunleye and Adeola Abraham were arrested in connection with the bloody armed robbery. Ayoade Akinnibosun and four others are currently standing

On April 5, 2018, some suspected armed robbers attacked five commercial banks in the ancient Offa town in the Offa Local Government Area of Kwara State, killing over 30 persons in the process, including

Akinnibosun, Ibikunle Ogunleye, Adeola Abraham and two others were charged to court by the Police for criminal conspiracy to rob the banks, murder of nine policemen and other citizens, and illegal possession of firearms.

Flooding: Ikoyi: Residents Urge Sanwo-Olu to Stop Illegal Dredgers Sunday Okobi

Concerned residents of Ikoyi, Lekki and Victoria Island in Lagos State, yesterday called on the state government to rescue them from being submerged by the ocean “as land speculators

dredge and indiscriminately sand-fill the lagoon.” They argued that the situation would aggravate the perennial flooding in some neighbourhoods in the area. Speaking to journalists yesterday, the Coalition of

Concerned Residents of Lekki, Ikoyi and Victoria Island in Lagos called on the state Governor, Babajide SanwoOlu-led administration to rescue them from being submerged by the lagoon due to the illicit activities of land speculators.

An architect, and representative of the group, Olusegun Ladega, exposed the distortion of the Lekki drainage regional master plan, stressing that it was “caused by the indiscriminate sand-filling of natural waterways.”

in the state. He made the request in a letter forwarded to the state legislature, which was read yesterday by the Assembly Speaker, Hon. Adebo Ogundoyin. Makinde in the letter said the request became necessary to enable the state government complete

the 104km road project and others like it in the state. The Assembly, while deliberating on the loan request, directed its Committees on Finance, Appropriation and State Economic Planning as well as that of Works to investigate the loan request.

It urged the two joint committees to come up with a comprehensive report on the loan request and the mode of payment Ogundoyin, in his submission, stressed the need for the committees to get all necessary briefs on the request and report to the Assembly in one week.

Group Pays JAMB Fees for 100 Students in Rivers Makinde Seeks N150bn Loan Approval for Ibadan Circular Road, Others BlessingIbungeinPortHarcourt

Apressure group, The Dynamic Elites Forum, has offered to pay for the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) form for 100 indigent students of Ogoniland in Rivers State. The Deputy Speaker of Rivers State House ofAssembly, Mr. Dumle Maol, who is a member of the group, made the promise after he was presented an award at the 18 get-together event of the group held in Bori, Khana Local Government Area. Maol said the incentive would help the indigent students of Ogoni who want to further their education to achieve that. Another youth-friendly leader in Ogoni and a friend of the group,

Nwinadum Wey, also supported the project with some undisclosed amount of money. Wey, who described the forum as a leadership academy, promised to organise a free leadership training for the youths and students of Ogoni. Presenting the award to the Deputy Speaker, the leader of the forum, Ledibabari Mon, said the group decided to honour him with an award of excellence in recognition of his “philanthropy, distinguished leadership, and extraordinary passion for students and youth development.” He described Maol as the pride of the forum in the student community and Ogoni at large.

Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan

Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, has sent a request to the state House of Assembly to access a loan of N150 billion to finance the ongoing Senator Rasheed Ladoja Circular Road in Ibadan, the state capital, and other infrastructure

Edo 2024: Ogbeide-Ihama Vows to Win Guber Election if PDP Gives Him Party Ticket

Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City

Ahead of the party primaries to select candidates to fly party flags in the September governorship election in Edo State, one of the frontline aspirants, Omoregie Ogbeide-Ihama, has boasted that

if the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) makes him its candidate, the September election would be walk over, as he has been a member of the party since 1998. The two-time member of the House of Representatives, who represented Oredo federal

constituency, stated this in Benincity, Edo State, after purchasing the Expression of Interest and nomination forms from the party secretariat in Abuja, also promised free healthcare for the elderly in the state. He said: “This is a formal notification

and a passionate appeal to the leadership of the party to support me on my governorship ambition in 2024. “There have been speculations and questions if Ogbeide-Ihama is interested in the governorship race or not.”

T H I S D AY • WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2024

WEDNESdaysports

Group Sports Editor: Duro Ikhazuagbe Email: duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com

0811 181 3083 SMS ONLY

AFCON 2023...AFCON 2023...AFCON 2023...AFCON 2023...

Ekong Calls for Total Support Against Côte d’Ivoire Femi Solaja Ahead of Thursday’s must-win clash with hosts Côte d’Ivoire in the ongoing 34th Africa Cup of Nations, Super Eagles On-field Captain, William Troost-Ekong, has appealed to Nigerians to rally round the team despite the opening 1-1 draw with Equatorial Guinea last Sunday.

“We went all out to pick the three points against Equatorial Guinea, but it didn’t happen. We live to fight another day. From our side, we are appealing to Nigerians from all over the world to keep supporting and believing in the team,” began the Greek Super League Club PAOK centre-back. Côte d’Ivoire’s Elephants currently

...Elephants’ Coach Boasts He Know’s Super Eagles Strength Head Coach of Côte d’Ivoire, Jean Louis Gasset, has hinted that his wards know where the strength of the Super Eagles lies. The Elephants of Cote d’Ivoire defeated Guinea-Bissau in the opening Group A fixture last Saturday, thanks to goals from Jean-Philippe Krasso and Seko Fofana. The Ivorians will take on Jose Peseiro’s Super Eagles on Thursday afternoon, with both sides hungry for all three points to gain further ground in their race for qualification to the knockout phase. With both sides set to lock horns, the Ivorian coach highlighted that he knows as the strength of the Nigerian team, especially since

at the Stade Alassane Ouattara in Ebimpe, Abidjan. “Our objective is to first reach the knockout rounds and then we push strongly from there,” stressed the former Watford and Udinese central defender. Eagles created opportunity after opportunity against theNzalang Nacional but poor finishing up front ensured a 1-1 draw and a share of the spoils on Sunday afternoon.

match. With Tunisia defenders quick to cover their goal line, the Brave Warriors were unable to make the most of their early chances. Elsewhere on the night, Mali also stunned South Africa’s Bafana Bafana with two unreplied goals. The early part of the encounter started on a very fast pace as both teams tried to dominate play. South Africa could have taken the lead in the 19th minute but Percy Tau failed to convert his penalty. This upset is a follow up to Cape Verdes’ shocking defeat of Ghana’s Black Stars and the near upset of seven-time champions Egypt who needed 12 added minutes to pull a face saving equaliser against Mozambique. Nigeria and Algeria were also held by Equatorial Guinea and Angola respectively. Cameroon also kicked off their campaign with draw against Guinea.

also contended, grossing 161 for the fourth position. In his victory speech, the newly crowned Champion said winning the trophy didn’t come as a surprise stressing that he planned for it and it came to pass. . “It didn’t come to me as a surprise because I prepared for it and I had a game plan and it worked out fine”, he said, adding that, he hopes to successfully defend the trophy. Other winners in the keenly contested tournament include Oladotun Isiaka who won the net category while Oranye Ezekwugo with a net score of 149 came second. Satisfied with the outcome of the outcome of the competition, Golf Captain, Wahab Aminu-Sarumi thanked the organising committee for a job well done while describing the Club Championship as the sections number-one tournament.

morning in the gym before the evening training session, which was open to the media. The stature of Thursday’s encounter has been enhanced by current realities around the two teams, but it was always going to be a game to behold since the draw was made, as matches between both countries at senior level have been furious and feisty on the terrain, and even outside it.

AFCON RESULTS B’Faso 1-0 Mauritania Tunisia 0-1 Namibia Mali 2-0 South Africa

Today Morocco v Tanzania DR Congo v Zambia

Deon Hotto celebrating his famous goal against Tunisia last night at the ongoing AFCON 2023 in Cote d'Ivoire

Sadiq Umar: NFF’s Medical Team Under Spotlight for Wrong Diagnoses Sociedad list the “injured” Nigerian for Copa del Rey clash with Osasuna tonight

The last-minute withdrawal of Sadiq Umar from the AFCON 2023 squad of the Super Eagles has continued to trend for wrong reasons following reports that his Spanish LaLiga team, Real Sociedad, have listed the forward for tonight’s Copa Del Rey clash with Osasuna. Umar was decamped at the weekend in Abidjan after NFF’s medical team ruled him out of the tournament with swollen left knee and was replaced by Trabzonspor

striker Paul Onuachu. However, barely 24 hours after the gangling forward reached Spain, he was spotted in a trendy video, training alone at Sociedad ahead of Wednesday’s Copa del Rey clash with Osasuna. Umar didn’t show any sign of injured knee as he trained vigorously. Several users of the social medial dragged the NFF’s medical team for wrong diagnosis and called for proper investigations of why Umar

Ayomike Wins 2023 Ikoyi Club Championship Title Playing like someone infused with the winning bug, Tim Ayomike, added yet another trophy to his already overflowing trophy cabinet when he emerged winner of 2023 edition of the famous Ikoyi Club Championship. Playing off handicap-5, Ayomike grossed a total of 151 over 36-holes to defeat other contenders for the coveted trophy. Ayomike shots an opening 4 -over par 75 and closed with 5-over 76 to win the coveted trophy by 4-shots over former champion Peter Eben-spiff; who closed with a 75 for 155-over two days. Akeem Lawal was further down on the winners list after grossing 160 over two days. His score was 5-shots adrift from the second placed Eben-spiff and 9-shots off the Club Championship winner. Perennial winner, Remi Olukoya

However, with the arrival of both Kelechi Iheanacho and Terem Moffi in Super Eagles camp in Abidjan, Coach José Peseiro has now been provided with options in the attack. “We expect a tough game because the Ivorians are the hosts and they are also top of our group. But we have our aspirations as well and we believe in ourselves,” defender Kenneth Omeruo said on Monday. Half of the squad spent Monday

Eagles have the best African player in the squad. “Regarding our second match, we know the strength of Nigeria. They have an impressive offensive armada, and they have the best African player in their squad, but against them, we will have to raise our cursor, and I know my players will do it because I know you had to win that first game to be released,” the 70-year-old French coach said. Both teams have five African Cup of Nations trophies between them and are set for a scintillating clash at the Stade Olympique Alassane Ouattara tomorrow, with the hosts having the advantage of playing on home soil.

Namibia Shock Tunisia, Mali Down Bafana Bafana

The drama of supposedly ‘minnows’ shocking big football countries continued last night as Namibia recorded a shock 1-0 win over Tunisia in their Group E opener while Mali also stunned South Africa’s Bafana Bafana 2-0. Deon Hotto kept Namibian supported celebrating inside the Amadou Gon Coulibaly Stadium when he headed the Brave Warriors ahead. Tunisia looked lively at the start of the game and were awarded a corner during the first five minutes of the game. With a ball whipped into the area, Lloyd Kazapua was forced to make a reaction save as a result from a glancing header on the edge of the six-yard area. Despite the Carthage Eagles early spell of possession, Namibia continued to probe and created a couple of scoring opportunities during the first 15 minutes of the

lead the Group A standing with three points while Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea have one apiece. Guinea Bissau are at the bottom of the log with no point yet. But Ekong who knows that another draw or defeat for Eagles will put Nigeria’s dream of a fourth AFCON title in jeopardy, insisted that the three-time continental champions will push for all three points tomorrow when they confront Côte d’Ivoire

was decamped . But in s statement put out midnight on Monday, the NFF explained the circumstances leading to Umar’s exit from Eagles Abidjan camp. “The camp of Nigeria’s senior men football team, Super Eagles has decried reports in sections of the media that have continued to garnish the medical case of Spain-based forward Sadiq Umar with conspiracy theories, incorrect assumptions and unbecoming insinuations. In the statement released by the Communication Director of the federation, Ademola Olajire, the NFF stressed: “The camp has released a statement with regards to how the player was withdrawn from Nigeria’s squad for the 34th Africa Cup of Nations finals ongoing in Cote d’Ivoire. “We are surprised at the news trending on social media concerning Sadiq Umar and how he was

withdrawn from the team camp. “The fact is that our medical team meticulously abided by the best medical procedures and were diligent in their processes and conclusions before advising Head Coach José Peseiro that the player be withdrawn from the squad. “The player, Sadiq Umar, was okay when he arrived at camp; he had to undergo the standard pre-competition medical assessment and he was good. He started to train with the team. “Unfortunately, he copped an injury on the back of his left knee during our friendly match against Guinea in Abu Dhabi on 8th January, which led to a penalty against our opponents. “The medical team advised that he substituted, as a cautionary measure, but he said he was fine and could continue the game. At half-time, he said he reiterated that he was good to continue playing, and he played the entire 90 minutes.

Roma Sack Mourinho, Appoint De Rossi L-R: Vice Captain, Golf Section, Ikoyi Club 1938, Tade Adekunle, Tade Adekunle; 2023 Club Championship winner, Tim Ayomike and Golf Captain, Ikoyi Club 1938, Wahab Aminu-Sarumi at the prize presentation ceremony at the weekend

Jose Mourinho has been sacked as Roma manager and replaced by the club's former captain Daniele de Rossi. Mourinho, 60, took over in May 2021 and led Roma to the Europa Conference League title a year later and the Europa League final in 2023. But they are ninth in Serie A, five points off the Champions

League places, and last week were knocked out of the Coppa Italia by city rivals Lazio. Former midfielder De Rossi will replace Mourinho until the end of the season. The club legend, 40, came through Roma's academy and played 616 times for the first team between 2001 and 2019.

Wednesday, January 17, 2024

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& RE A SO

Price: N400

MISSILE Lawyers to Nigerian Police

“We are making a case through him(Olumide Sonupe), that Nigerian lawyers will no longer allow the brutalisation of lawyers and indeed, other citizens. The NBA wants a full investigation of the incident in the station, and the Commissioner of Police announced that hyper investigation is already ongoing. Lawyers in Lagos State decided to come together today to protest against police brutality, because of the recent maltreatment meted out to one of our colleagues” --NBA protest, led by human rights activist, Femi Falana, seeking end to police brutality.

PatUtomi

guest columnist

Ijewere and John, Great Patriots

t has been a season of sad news. During this holiday season just past I lost as many as eight close friends and associates. Among them were two remarkable gentlemen I chatted with almost every Sunday. Their passing means the car park for the church of Assumption in Falomo, Lagos will miss plenty hearty light banter after refreshing worship. Dr Thomas Asuquo John and Mr Emmanuel Itoya Ijewere and I attended the same Mass on Sundays, for decades. The last holiday season we did not get to say Merry Christmas or Happy New Year. Both men had exchanged parishes from the church militant where we chose same place and time for Sunday worship, to the church triumphant where my imagination is too limited to comprehensively contemplate. All I have on this side are memories from two great lives. Dr Asuquo John’s career peaked as Group Managing Director of The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation(NNPC). Ijewere on the other hand was a highly regarded professional accountant and Tax Consultant who had been President of ICAN and provided leadership to the IOD and service organizations like the Nigerian Red Cross. He had a noble heart for social causes. These were transitions that translated into yawning chasm in the social firmament. A time to mourn and a time to be sober coming down as a heavy veil seperating a time of car park laughter from a time to question the purpose of being. Dr John is captured forever on the pages of two books I authored twenty years apart. The first book titled Managing Uncertainty - Competition and Strategy in Emerging Economies was published in 1998. My research for the book had started three years before. It’s focus was on the competition doctrine and sustainable superior performance of the firm given the social, political and economic pressures in the environment. For me a troubling case of underperformance because of state monopoly was the NNPC and I scheduled to interview some former NNPC executives. When I arrived to interview Dr John who a few years earlier was Group Managing Director of NNPC I braced myself for a defensive rationalization of the group as a public monopoly. Outcome was dramatically different. When I posed the question of the need to privatize NNPC and seperate its regulator role from the operator one Dr John feigned surprise for one brief minute and said ‘what do you mean by privatizing NNPC. Is it not privatized already.’ It was time for me to be the one looking

Late Emmanuel Itoya Ijewere

surprised. I must have missed the privatiztion. Could they have done it so suickly that I missed it. He laughed and said NNPC has always been privatized. The problem is that those who own it did not pay for it. Twenty two yers later I reported in the book Why Not - Citizenship, State Capture, Creeping Fascism and the Criminal Hijack of Politics in Nigeria; a conversation with Chief Sony Odogwu at the the 70th Birthday of Dr John’s wife. Dr John was the consummate professional and business leader fondly hailed by his team by his initials TMJ. But Dr Thomas Maurice Asuquo John was a simple and modest man who accomplished without fanfare and attention to himself. Some people I know say of him that he is the only one who built a rffinery and returnd change to the Treasury. He was serious yet jovial, frank yet diplomatic and circumspect on certain matters. He was thus able to serve on the NNPC Board in latter years as alternate chairman. That did not stop car park chitchat about what I called the trouble of the week or the wahala of the day. Always the gentleman he would sigh

Late Dr Thomas Asuquo John

and urge God’s will. His driver pulls up early and his car is hardly out of sight when the Puff Puff man arrives with puff puff still hot from the giant frying pan with which women from a church Women’s league earned money for their charity work by wrapping the flour dough with TLC so that the people who patronize them neither think of cholesterol nor their tongue needing airconditilng to welcome the hot snack, not to talk of the actual street value of the puff puff they were payng a premium for. Mr Emmauel Ijewere always had more than one pack of the Sunday treat for me. I showed my gratitude by voraciously consuming them. Ijewere was a man of the people and several others got their own priced puff puff. He had been Vice Chairman of the Parish Pastoral Council for many years and greeted all, young and old, big man and small guy with a smile comparable to an American running for Mayor in a small town. Yet this ssme man was a policy wong chairing several national committees on issues in the economy. He worried so much about Nigeria and

how poor leadership was doing harm to young people and their future. This led him to supportkng the founding of a Think Tank that would be part of the Big Tent and ultimately he served as Chairman of the Big Tent Presidential Campaign Council for Peter Obi. I am so diminished by the passing of these two men whose humanity was expressed in the many deeds of their every day life. I once fillipantly said in a 1991 interview that the essence of being is the pursuit of immortality. This immortality was of two forms - material and spiritual. Material immortality I said came from a prolonged place in the memory deposited in the heads and hearts of men from the work of brave souls departed. And spiritual immortalty was to see God face to face and get that wecome good and faithful servant embrace. My wish andvprayer for them both is the double immortality of the material and spiritual They have taken there final bows on the stage if life, as we sll will, someday. We know the bows were deep triumphant bows. May the wind from the bows power them to a place of peaceful rest.

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