TUESDAY 2ND APRIL 2024

EASTER CELEBRATION...

CPPE Commends CBN’s Banking Recapitalisation Policy

Calls for minimum disruption in sector

Dike Onwuamaeze

The Centre for the Protection of Private Enterprise (CPPE) has described the move to recapitalise the country’s banking institution as one in the right direction and called for minimum disruption of the banking system in the implementation of the proposed new minimum capital requirements for banks.

The call was made yesterday, by an Economist and Chief Executive Officer of CPPE, Dr. Muda Yusuf, in a statement titled: “Implications of the Proposed Recapitalisation of Nigerian Banks.”

Yusuf, noted that, “The proposed recapitalisation of banks should be done in a manner that would minimise shocks and disruptions to the banking system and the economy at large.

“We commend the CBN for giving a timeline of 24 months for banks to comply. This would minimise disruptions and dislocations in the financial system.

“It would also ensure a smooth transition to the new capitalisation regime for banks.”

He added: “With the current approach and timeline given by

the CBN, the risk of banks collapse or hasty mergers and acquisitions should be minimised.

“It is also laudable that the current categorisation of banks with differential capital requirements has been maintained – international, national and regional.

“This is necessary to allow for inclusion and reduce the risk of dominance of the banking space by a few big banks.”

He also stated that it was imperative for the CBN to assure depositors of the safety of their funds in the banking system, irrespective of the current level of capitalisations of banks.

“It is important to sustain the confidence of the banking public about the soundness and stability of the Nigerian banking system, especially because of the perception and vulnerable risks of smaller banks,” Yusuf said.

According to him, the apex bank should caution all players in the banking sector against predatory and other anti-competitive practices in the industry on account of the recapitalisation policy.

He also implored the CBN to ensure minimum risk to shareholders and employees in the banking

system and guide against elevated concentration of risks and the deepening of oligopolistic structure in the banking system.

Yusuf, however, expressed concerns around the large interest rate spreads in the Nigeria banking system between deposits and lending rates, which are sometimes as

high as 20 per cent that which is one of the highest globally. According to him, “the tenure of funds in the banking system is extremely short. Over 80 per cent of funds are of one-year tenure or less, which explained the high level of assets and liability tenure mismatch in the banking system.

“Access to credit by small busi-

nesses remains a major inhibition to economic growth and economic inclusion. Small businesses account for over 50 per cent of GDP, but get less than 5.0 per cent of credit in the banking system,” he said.

Yusuf, pointed out that the financing gap in the Nigeria SME space is about $32.2 billion (over N40 trillion), according to IFC estimates. He, therefore, argued that derisking the credit space for small businesses should be accorded high priority in the new dispensation.

“This is essential to boost growth, create jobs and deepen economic inclusion,” Yusuf said.

ljaw Group Petitions FG over Inactive Seaports in N' Delta, Demand Reactivation

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

The ljaw Progressive Union of Aborigines has petitioned the federal government through the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Abubakar Momoh, demanding the urgent reactivation of the ports in the Niger Delta area, including Warri, Sapele, Burutu and Calabar Ports.

The petition is contained in a letter signed by Ikhide Ehighelua of the Ikhide Ehighelua & Co Chambers, which was addressed to the minister.

It was also and copied representa-

First Lady Urges Youths to Align with Government’s Programmes, Vision

Deji Elumoye in Abuja

The First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, has urged the Nigerian youths to align with government’s programmes and vision to enable them maximise the various opportunities currently available for their good.

Mrs. Tinubu, who spoke yesterday while receiving in audience at the State House, Abuja, Executives and members of the Youth Wing of the Christian Association of Nigeria (YOWICAN), pointed out that the association and the church need to preach the gospel of unity more.

“We should promote our ‘Nigerianness’ rather than ethnicity or culture. Yes, we are not saying we should not recognise these but we should realise and promote

our togetherness. We are first and foremost Nigerians. We need that place of unity.

“There is a need for you, youths, to have role models, who will teach you what to do and how to do them, just as the Bible talks about in Titus 2 and 1 Timothy that the older ones should teach the younger ones”

She also admonished the guests to share the message of investing in lives, saying “Technology is very good but we must let the youth know that they should use it positively.”

She shared some of the programmes of her office through the Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI), which included the Unity Fabric competition with a N25 million prize money and the Every Home A Garden competition with a prize

money of N20 million. She also prayed for the guests and Nigerian Youths in general.

Earlier, the National Chairman of YOWICAN, Enwere Belusochukwu, applauded the various initiatives of the first lady especially through the Renewed Hope Initiative.

He also asked for her inputs on the proposed quarterly breakfast prayer meeting of both Christian and Muslim youth as well as the proposed National Christian Youth Resource Center that would include a skill acquisition center, among other facilities.

The first lady was later presented with an Easter card and the uniform of the Association by the Executives. In addition, Mrs. Tinubu also decorated as the Grand Patroness of the Youth Wing of the group.

tives of the people in the National Assembly, including Senator Ede Dafinone, Senator Joel Onowhakpor, Senator Ned Nwoko, Hon. Benedict Etanabene, Hon. Francis Waive and Hon. Nicholas Mutu.

Others that were copied imcluded: Hon. Julius Pondi, Thomas Ereyitomi, Nnamdi Ezechi, Ngozi Okolie, Victor Nwokolo as well as the Managing Director, Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).

The documented stated that successive governments had neglected and undermined the development of Warri and environs, stressing that neglect appears to be replicated across the Niger Delta region.

"We are solicitors acting on behalf of the registered trustees of ljaw Progressive Union of Aborigines hereafter referred to as our client and we write on their instructions as follows:

"Our clients are major stakeholders in the Niger Delta Affairs, especially as it relates to Warri and environs in Delta State.

"It has been observed by our

Deji Elumoye in Abuja

President Bola Tinubu will depart Abuja on Tuesday, April 2, 2024, for Dakar, Senegal, to attend the inauguration of Senegal's Presidentelect, Bassirou Diomaye Faye. According to a release issued yesterday by presidential

clients that over the years, successive governments have neglected and undermined the development of Warri and environs, which same neglect appears to be replicated across the Niger Delta region,” the group stressed.

It argued that the contribution of the region to the economic wellbeing of the nation cannot be overemphasised, explaining that yet it appears that their reward has been neglect and more degradation.

"In time past, Sapele, Warri, Burutu and even Calabar used to be bustling port cities with thriving focal economies associated with movement of goods in and out of those ports.

"As we write, there is hardly any motorable road in and out of Warri, Sapele, and Burutu towns in all directions, which further worsens the state of the economic activities in these towns.

"Beyond these towns, there are smaller communities both on land and offshore locations which have become extremely worse off because of the neglect of the region,” the

Ijaw group noted.

According to the group, the essence of the petition was to bring to the notice of the authorities the plight of the region, demanding that there was need for action to alleviate the sufferings of the people of the region.

"The object of our client in their correspondence is to draw your attention to the sore state of affairs in the area and to further demand immediate action aimed at alleviating the sufferings of the people in the region.

“It is aimed at reviving the region by the prompt refurbishment and reactivation of the various ports in the Niger Delta Region, to wit; the Sapele, Warri, Burutu, and Calabar ports.

"This call, according to our client, has become imperative because the non engagement of youths and local populace gainfully is a recipe for restiveness and strife.

"We count on you for your usual cooperation that in the next three months, we will begin to see positive changes in the regions," it added.

spokesperson, Ajuri Ngelale, the President’s trip is on the invitation of the Republic of Senegal. President Tinubu, who is the Chairman of ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, will join other regional leaders to witness the inauguration at Diamniadio Exhibition Centre today. The President will be accompanied on the trip by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, and other top government officials. President Tinubu is expected back in Nigeria after the conclusion of the inauguration.

L-R: Governorship Aspirant of Labour Party Lagos State, Mr. Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour with Fanty Compos Queen, Ms. Adebola Daniel to mark Easter Monday celebration held in Lagos Island, Lagos... yesterday PHOTO: MUBO PETERS

At the InternAtIonAl WomAn leAdershIp ConferenCe...

MAN Advocates Protecting Manufacturers from Social Media Trial, Upholding Consumers’ Rights

dike onwuamaeze

Following a recent experience involving Erisco Foods and a dissatisfied customer, the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) has called for a balanced regulatory environment that would protect manufacturers from defamation and social media trial and at the same time safeguard the interests of the general public.

MAN made the call yesterday, in a statement titled, “Manufacturers Association of Nigeria Advocates for Balanced Regulatory Environment,” which was issued by the Director General of MAN, Mr. Segun Ajayi-Kadir.

Ajayi-Kadir, urged regulators and the buying public to “engender an atmosphere that promotes objectivity and fairness, whilst safeguarding the interest of the consumer and protecting the business and integrity

Ramadan:

of the manufacturer.”

He also emphasised, “the need for intentional steps to protect manufacturers from the adverse effects of social media trial and defamation and ensuring fairness for all stakeholders,” adding that “manufacturers should be protected from the adverse effects of unverified negative claims about locally manufactured products.”

The director general made the appeal while addressing the, “Impact of Social Media Defamation,” which he argued could significantly affect manufacturing businesses and even threaten their existence.

He added that there was need for measures that would recognise challenges faced by manufacturers in Nigeria and at the same time encourage consumers’ patronage and empathy.

The director general acknowledged and encouraged consumers'

right to voice legitimate complaints through appropriate channels, but underscored the significance of holding consumers accountable for spreading false information about local products and attempting to vilify local manufacturers in the public opinion place.

He pointed out that a recent experience between Erisco Foods and its dissatisfied customer highlighted the need for equal protection of manufacturers and consumers’ rights.

“The case underscored the importance of diligent investigation as carried out by the Lagos State Consumer Protection Agency and the Standards Organisation of Nigeria, which exonerated the manufacturer of the said product.

“The two agencies should actually be commended for unraveling the truth of the case,” he said.

MAN highlighted the challenging business environment in Nigeria

Bauchi Emir Flags off Distribution of Dangote Palliatives to Under-privileged Persons

segun Awofadeji in Bauchi

The Emir of Bauchi Alhaji Rilwanu Adamu has flagged off the distribution of palliatives donated by Aliko Dangote Foundation to the state.

Speaking yesterday in his palace during the event, the Emir who was represented by the District Head of Bauchi, Alhaji Nuru Jumba, called on other philanthropists to emulate the gesture.

The Emir said prior to the commencement of the Ramadan fast, there was great concern on the challenges to be faced by many families.

In his remarks, the representative of Dangote Foundation, Alhaji Sani Suleiman, disclosed that 10 kilogrammes of 25,000 bags of rice were donated to the state by the Foundation for onward distribution. Suleiman assured of more support to the state after the Ramadan period.

Also speaking, the Chief Imam of ATBU Mosque, Prof. Mansur Yelwa, called on the Aliko Dangote Foundation to use Islamic organisations in reaching out to the needy across the state.

In his remarks, the representative of Dangote Foundation partners from

Cancer Care Nigeria, Mr Zakariah Paul, pledged sustained collaboration with the Foundation to improve the wellbeing of the people.

Earlier in his remarks, the Chairman of Bauchi Muslim Coalition (BMCC) who is spearheading the exercise, Prof. Salisu Shehu repre-

sented by Dr Muhammad Alkali, explained that BMCC came into being during the COVID 19 pandemic to assist the people during lock down.

He thanked the Aliko Dangote Foundation for the gesture and assured of continued collaboration towards providing succour to people.

and emphasised the critical role of consumer patronage in maintaining the viability of local manufacturing businesses.

MAN also stressed the negative impact of unverified statements on businesses, even when product validation has confirmed their quality, and urged government agencies to take deliberate steps

to protect manufacturers while protecting the right of the consumer. It also called for a shift in consumer behavior towards patronising domestic goods and showcasing their quality to the global market. The association underscored the importance of mutual accountability between manufacturers and consumers to foster economic growth in

NACCIMA to Engage

Nigeria. Furthermore, MAN added that its advocacy has always underscored the importance of balanced regulatory policies that would protect manufacturers while upholding consumer rights in order to foster a conducive environment for sustainable business growth in Nigeria and the wellbeing of its people.

Organised Private Sector, Others on Bank Recapitalisation

Awaits complete framework for planned exercise

emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

The Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), has said it will engage with relevant stakeholders over the new guidelines by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on its recapitalisation policy for banks in the country.

In a statement on NACCIMA's stance on the recent CBN policy directive to raise Tier 1 and 2 banks' capital base to N500 billion and N200 billion respectively, the National President of NACCIMA, Dele Oye, said the was approaching the matter with caution, prudence, and a thorough analysis.

Noting the significance of the policy shift within the banking sector and its potential implications on the broader macroeconomic landscape,

Oye said NACCIMA will also await the release of the complete policy framework by the CBN and the government.

“It is imperative to highlight NACCIMA's approach to this matter as one of caution, prudence and thorough analysis. As such, we intend to engage in consultations with our stakeholders and await the disclosure of the complete policy framework from the CBN and the government.

“This approach is essential to ensure a well-informed response that considers the intended macroeconomic objectives that the capitalisation increase seeks to address,” he stated.

“NACCIMA’s dedication is to safeguarding the interests of private citizens and promoting the public good remains unwavering. NACCIMA refrains from offering a definitive opinion on the policy at this moment until a thorough understanding of the objectives and implications are outlined by the regulatory authorities.”

Oye pointed out that the organisation stands ready to engage constructively with all relevant parties to facilitate a ‘nuanced and informed’ discourse on the critical issue.

According to him, NACCIMA acknowledges the significance of the policy shift within the banking sector and its potential implications on the broader macroeconomic landscape. He added: “While recognising the importance of maintaining a robust banking system, we are currently unable to provide a comprehensive commentary on the policy without access to the full details and context surrounding the CBN’s decision.

Tinubu's Economic Recovery Policy Slowly Yielding Fruits, Says Kogi Senator

sunday Aborisade in Abuja

The Senator representing Kogi West Senatorial District in the National Assembly, Sunday Karimi, has argued that the proactive economic recovery policies introduced by President Bola Tinubu, were gradually yielding fruits.

He, therefore, pleaded with Nigerians to exercise patience with the administration, claiming that Tinubu inherited a very bad economy on assumption of office on May 29 last year.

Karimi, stated this while speaking at the maiden edition of Igbaruku Day organised by Igbaruku-Okeri Community Development Association (ICDA) in Igbaruku-Okeri,

Yagba West Local Council, Kogi State, yesterday.

He said, "Nigerians, irrespective of political affiliations should be patience with the ongoing reformation agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

"The administration inherited the worst economic challenges so far in the anal of the country. The President's long-term vision driven by proactive policy towards achieving sustainable economic recovery, is slowly yielding fruits."

The Senator, who is the Chairman, Senate Services, assured Nigerians that the Tinubu's administration had shown commitment towards rebuilding the economy and make it strong and self-sufficient.

He added, "The process of achieving economic recovery should be seen as a collective effort both by government and the citizenry since government alone cannot make all that is good for the people happen.

"I urge our people to be patriotic and committed to the development of their communities."

He said if the citizens play their parts, the economic challenges being faced by the current administration would be reasonably addressed with major successes in the short-term.

Karimi said, "The government of President Tinubu inherited a bad, in fact the worst situation, so far. Tinubu met the average gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate of 1.8 percent. The

four years average preceding the administration of Tinubu was 15.1 percent.

“Nigeria was so bad that government printed money without activities to back it up. It is still our government, All Progressives Congress(APC). We admit that. Nigerian Naira was almost turned to paper, where one US Dollar equated N1,900 but the Tinubu's government is not resting on its oars.

“It is working tirelessly every day to find solutions to the problems. Today, one Dollar equals N1,300. Port Harcourt refinery is back; Warri refinery is back. With patience with President Tinubu, we will live to see the Nigeria of our dream, in the short-term.”

Karimi, stated that the purpose of gatherings like Igbaruku Day was to bring people together to work towards a common goal of improving the quality of lives and standards of living in their communities.

While also reiterating his resolve towards the infrastructural development of Kogi West, the Senator informed the people of his effort towards ensuring that the Iluhagba-Egbe Federal Trunk A Road was given a facelift. He promised that the palliative repairs ongoing would resume very shortly so as to help ease the transportation of farm produce as well as improve the economy of the area.

L-R: Chief Operating Officer, SAS Textiles, Toyin Adedeji-Bakare; Executive Coach and Chief Executive Officer, BMO Advisory, Bola Matel-Okoh; former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the 14th Emir of Kano, HRH Sanusi Lamido Sanusi; and Managing Director, Covenantplus Cinemas and Sorite Ventures, Tolulope Fashola, at the International Woman Leadership Conference (TIWLC) held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates...recently

OkOnjO-IwEala, natasha talk tradE In GEnEva...

Keyamo: FG Will Reciprocate Obstacles to Frustrate Nigerian Carriers on International Operation

Assures of govt support for local airlines to have long term aircraft lease agreements

Chinedu Eze

The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has stressed that the federal government would do everything possible to help Nigerian carriers lease aircraft on long-term agreement at competitive rates like most other airlines in the world.

The Minister also said the government was committed to supporting domestic carriers succeed on international service and would retaliate any obstacles meant to frustrate them on any route they operate.

The Minister made this known in an interview he granted during the inaugural ceremony for Air Peace Lagos-London flight at the weekend.

He said providing Nigerian airlines easy access to long term leasing and bringing down the premium on aircraft insurance were some of the Key Performance Indicators (KPI) of his Ministry to support domestic airlines and curb the exploitation of Nigerian travellers by international carriers.

“This is very significant, because it is has been very difficult for our local operators to service international routes and to take advantage of our Bilateral Air Service Agreements (BASAs), which give reciprocal rights to our local airlines,” he said.

He explained that BASAs was established on the principles of reciprocity in which a country’s airlines would be allowed to fly to another country and airline of that country also allowed to fly to the other, noting that the details of the flights were agreed upon in the

BASA.

Keyamo, regretted that over the years, Nigerian carriers have been denied opportunity to utilise the BASA agreement and reciprocate the flight operation of some airlines from different countries to Nigeria because of aeropolitics in which aviation authorities of these countries use to deny Nigerian carriers the opportunity to fly to some of those country whose airlines fly to Nigeria.

He also pointed out that Nigerian airlines largely lacked capacity because of the hindrances in acquiring aircraft, which was largely done in two ways: by outright buying of the equipment or by leasing.

Keyamo, noted that because of issues of the past, Nigerian airlines were not allowed to lease aircraft on the long term; rather, they are only conceded to lease aircraft on the short term at huge cost by lessors which cite country risk and alleged repudiation of past agreements by some Nigerian carriers in the past.

“What BASAs normally say is that when you have 14 slots into my country, they also give you 14 slots into their country. But there is politics of BASAs also because after giving you the 14 slots into their country, in most cases they play politics with it in such a way that they frustrate your own airlines from being able to take advantage of that.

“But beyond that too, our local operators are handicapped because they don't have access to aircraft that international airlines have on the same terms. For example, the terms upon which they lease these aircraft. There is no airline in the world that buy their fleet 100 percent. It is not

possible. “Statistics says that out of a 100 aircraft flying around the world, about 70 percent of those aircraft are on dry lease from leasing companies and from aircraft manufacturers. So, why can't we take advantage of these lease arrangements to empower our local operators. And that is the key to also servicing these international routes because you cannot compete with someone who has access to aircraft on better terms than you,” the Minister explained.

Keyamo also explained that what his Ministry was trying to do was to ensure, “we support our local operators to have access to these lease arrangements like what Air Peace is doing today and that is what we can start to use to crash prices on international routes.”

Keyamo, further disclosed that Nigeria was on the blacklist against securing dry leases around the world, adding that he had undertaken diplomatic shuttles to remove Nigeria from the blacklist so that Nigerian carriers could lease aircraft at cheaper cost and affordable terms.

“This is the diplomatic visits I have undertaken since I came. I have been trying to assure aircraft manufacturers such as Airbus and aircraft leasing companies that we can protect their assets if they bring them into Nigeria because what they want is the commitment from government that when these assets are brought into Nigeria, we can allow them take the assets away if there are breeches to these agreements.

“The problem we always face is that when they bring in their assets into the country and there is a breech, sometimes because of

court injunctions and politics, they are no longer able to take their aircraft out and that is a huge loss for them.

“So what they want is that if they bring their aircraft into the country on dry lease, they can take them out when there is a breach.

“It is government that will assure these leasing companies and creditors to bring in their aircraft,” he said.

The Minister said for him to achieve this, “I have been engaged with the diplomatic shuttle. Beyond that, there is a lot of things under the Cape Town Convention (which deals on movement of mobile equipment like aircraft and ship from one country to another) and the requirements. We also need to comply with the Cape Town Convention so that to have access to dry lease aircraft.”

On the Air Peace flight to London, the Minister said passenger comfort was already guaranteed but beyond passenger comfort, “we are going to have competitive prices on international route. We are seeing that already. Other airlines have opened up their lower fare tickets to Nigerians now because Air Peace has come in.”

He pointed out that the advantage of patronising indigenous carriers on international flights was that there would be no problem with foreign exchange because passengers pay in naira and not only that; dollars are not repatriated from Nigeria, adding that airlines repatriating their earnings in dollars mount pressure on the naira.

“This is a very bullish approach to breaking the monopoly on this route. UK has 21 slots into our country every week. BA alone has 14 weekly

Angola Opens Visa, Investment Centre in Port Harcourt

Michael Olugbode in Abuja

The Embassy of Angola in Nigeria is opening a visa application centre in the oil-city of Port Harcourt to boost the relationship between the country and Nigeria in the hydrocarbons business.

“As part of the activities to celebrate the 4th of April, Day of Peace and National Reconciliation in Angola, a Visa Application Centre will be inaugurated this Tuesday, 04/02, in the Nigerian city of Port

Harcourt, in order to obviate the need to travel to Abuja and Lagos.

“The centre, a partnership between the Embassy of Angola in Nigeria and the company Akwa Helmes International LimitedAHIL, has facilities for applying for visas, increasing investment attractiveness, supporting the oil and gas industry, as well as promoting sun-sea and adventure tourism,” a statement from the embassy said.

It explained that the embassy’s services will extend to hotel reserva-

tions, ticket sales and air connectivity to destinations operated by Angola's national airline, TAAG.

“H.E. Siminalayi Fubara, Governor of Rivers State, is the special guest of H.E. Ambassador José Bamóquina Zau to witness the inauguration of a centre for economic, cultural and tourist rapprochement between Angola and Nigeria,” it added.

The city of Port Harcourt, in Rivers State , with a population of about 10 million, is located in the heart

of the vast Niger Delta, where the main petroleum and petrochemical industries, two large state-owned refineries, two seaports, universities and scientific and technological institutes are located.

“Most of the businessmen and technicians working in Angola's oil and gas industry come from this region, but the local authorities want to intensify academic cooperation with training institutes and technical internships in the oil and gas industry,” it added.

slots. “So, Air Peace will compete on this level. The most important one is that there would be no problem of trapped funds because it is a local company that will not have to repatriate money through the CBN. What we experience is massive repatriation of funds that puts pressure on the naira because they have to seek for dollars to repatriate revenues from the sale of tickets.

“So, it eases the pressure on the naira because this is a Nigerian company that deals in naira. The only problem is that they still have to go abroad to do their aircraft maintenance. One of our major focus

is to bring in the MROs (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul) into Nigeria.

“The key to unlocking this country is to ensure that the maintenance, repair and overhaul facilities come into the county as quickly as possible,” Keyamo emphasized.

On the establishment of MRO, the Minister said that that the Chinese, Arabs and Americans are talking to the Ministry and that they want to do this on a PPP (Public Private Partnership) basis.

“Everybody wants to invest in Nigeria because of the new approach of government to international investors,” he said.

Air Peace Plan Commencement of Flights to New York, Houston

Funmi Ogundare

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Air Peace Airlines, Mr. Allen Onyema, yesterday, disclosed that the airline was planning to begin flights to New York and Houston by the end of 2024.

Onyema, who was a guest on ‘The Morning Show’ on ARISE News Channel, spoke on the backdrop of the airline's Lagos- London route launch.

He stated that the company was in the process of purchasing more aircraft for this purpose.

According to him, "Air Peace is ready and prepared to take on more flights. Already, there are seven Air Peace flights going into Gatwick Airport from Nigeria daily.

“Nigeria has a balance of about 14 to do. We are ready, if the government gives us Abuja-London, I will do it, because we are expecting more aircraft into the country purchased by Air Peace. If we get it, we will do it."

The airline, he added, was planning to hit New York or Houston towards the end of the year, as it was working on bringing in more 777s.

"As I speak to you, my staff are in California, the engineering technical services department, are in California inspecting some three 777s we want to acquire and buy. So, if we could get them in the next two or three months, then of course, we are good to go anywhere,” he added.

Onyema, however, emphasised on some of the challenges faced by his airline in trying to achieve the long-awaited Lagos-London flights.

He said: "You suffer what I call both internal and external conspiracies. It took us seven years. We got the designation I think about six and a half years ago to go into London. Since then, it has been cat-and-mouse game.

“We actually procured our three 777s because of this route, not for any other route. However, we were not allowed to go.

“Whether you like it or not, there is what is called international aero politics which is very dirty. We applied for the TCO. TCO means Technical Country Operators permit, you must get that one before you start going into any European country, UK inclusive. “And the TCO organisation from Europe wrote our Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA). Do you know Air Peace? Do you know about their designation? And we were denied. My own country denied us, so they threw it back.”

Onyema, called for the support of the federal government for Nigerian airlines saying, “In our own country, what we are pleading; I like when you said support, the ease of doing business, let them even do that for the indigenous airlines and see us blossom, instead of badmouthing these airlines that pass through all manner of problems.”

Director General, World Trade Organisation, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala (L) and Senate Committee Chairman on Local Content, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, met at the sidelines of the 148th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) which held at the International Conference Centre, Geneva, Switzerland...recently

How Rail Passengers' Traffic Fell 50% in 2023 over Rising Insecurity

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

The number of Nigerians who patronise the few available rail networks in the country fell by almost 50 per cent in 2023, ostensibly on the back of the rising general state of insecurity in the country.

Latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed that compared to the previous year, revenue generated from passengers also fell from N4.5 billion in 2022 to N4.4 billion in 2023.

But according to tables of activities in the rail sector released by the NBS, in Q1, 2023, revenue from passenger traffic fell from N2 billion to N768.4 million, but increased from N598 million to N1.1 billion in Q2, as well as in Q3 when it increased to N1.4 billion from N715 million the previous.

However, it again fell from N1.1 billion in Q4 of 2023 from a high of N1.2 billion in the same quarter

Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja

Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, yesterday, declared that the military establishment remained committed to defeating insurgents, armed bandits, and other non-state actors troubling the country.

of the previous year.

Nigeria operates mainly three major rail lines from Lagos to Ibadan, Warri to Itakpe in Kogi state as well as the busy Abuja to Kaduna route.

In March 2022, kidnappers struck at the popular Abuja-Kaduna, sending fear into commuters and resulting in the suspension of the line for about nine months.

Even after it was reopened in December of that year, passengers who were wary of the activities of bandits stayed away from patronising the rail line.

Also, kidnappers attacked the Warri-Itakpe line around Igueben, Edo state, resulting in the shutting down of the line, about two weeks after the passengers were forcibly taken away, with the announcement of a derailment by the locomotive.

“In Q4 2023, a total of 672,198 passengers travelled via rail system relative to 1,337,108 reported in the

indicating a growth rate of -49.73 per cent.

“The volume of goods/cargos transported in Q4, 2023 stood at

“In terms of revenue generation, N1.07 billion was received from passengers during the reference

period, showing a decrease of 7.51 per cent from the N1.15 billion recorded in the same quarter of the previous year,” it stressed.

But the volume of cargoes increased during the period, from 157,024 tonnes to 317, 244 tonnes form 2022 to 2023.

In Q1, if rose from 39,379 tonnes to 59,966 tonnes, while in Q2, Q3 and Q4, 2023 it was 56,029 tonnes, 81,963 tonnes and 119, 286 tonnes respectively.

Revenue generated from goods stood at N1 billion in 2023, compared with N441.7 million in 2022, shared between Q1 (N181 million); Q2 (N188 million); Q3 (N286.7 million) and Q4 (N423,2 million).

“Similarly, N423.22 million was collected from goods/cargos conveyed in Q4 2023, up by 169.16 per cent from N157.23 million received in Q4 2022.

“In addition, other receipts amounted to N393.72 million,

indicating an increase of 3.02 per cent in Q4 2023 from the N382.17 million collected in Q4 2022.

“The revenue received from passengers declined by 2.64 per cent in 2023, while volume of cargo and revenue from cargo rose by 102.04 per cent, and 144.32 per cent respectively relative to 2022,” the NBS data stated.

It also showed that in the first quarter of 2023, 441,725 Nigerians were transported by rail; in Q2, it was 474,117; in Q3 passengers ferried were 594,348, while in Q4, it rose to 672,198.

According to the report, other sources of income generated N34 million in Q1; N18.7 million in Q2; N119.2 million in Q3 and N393.7 million in Q4.

Nigeria’s rail system still remain largely underdeveloped, with investment still low, while major connecting axes in the country are still waiting to be built.

His comments came as troops sustained the onslaught against armed bandits in Zamfara and Katsina states, killing 11 bandits.

Lagbaja, in his goodwill message at Easter, said the military was committed to routing non-state actors unsettling the country.

Lagbaja reiterated the loyalty of the Nigerian Army to the country’s constitution and President Bola Tinubu.

bring the capacity to 435 MW after the purchasing of the plant.

“Right now, we have invested another 100 million Euro to bring us to 200 Million Euro and including the purchasing altogether, we have invested 430 Million Euro.

“Now, we are planning to invest much more because we hope to increase the capacity of the power station to 1300 MW once the issue with the federal government is resolved.”

He noted that the present administration was doing what was necessary to revive the power sector, stressing that the management of Geregu Power was watching at the federal government’s direction before taking necessary actions.

At the AGM, the shareholders approved the board of directors N20 billion dividend payout for 2023 financial year, re-election of two directors retiring by rotation and authorised the directors to fix the members of the auditors, among other resolutions.

Speaking to shareholders, Chairman, Geregu Power, Mr. Femi Otedola, stated that the N20 billion dividend payout was a testament of the company’s strong financial position and dedication to delivering shareholders value.

“This dividend declaration is not just a distribution of profits; it is a signal of our confidence in the company‘s future and our commitment to sharing our success with those who have invested in us,” he said.

He noted that 2023 was a year of solid financial performance for the company, underpinned by strong commercial momentum and strategic operational efficiencies.

“Our financial results reflect not only our resilience in the face of a challenging economic environment but also our commitment to continues growth and value creation.

“We experienced remarkable growth in our financial metrics, a testament to our robust business model and the effectiveness of our strategic initiatives. Our revenue saw a significant increase of 58 per cent, reaching N82.9 billion.

“This growth was driven by a combination of factors, including increased foreign exchange rates in

the tariff components, energy rate & capacity charges and operational efficiencies,” Otedola stated.

On outlook for 2024, he said the company remains cautiously optimistic despite the challenges faced in the previous year.

“In 2024, Geregu Power aims to align our business operations with the global trend toward affordable, clean and efficient energy systems.

“This involves incorporating renewable energy sources into our power generation portfolio, a move to that not only aligns with our sustainability goals but also positions us to capitalise on emerging market opportunities.

“Our commitment to innovation and sustainability, along with our strategic initiatives, positions us well to navigate the challenges and seize the opportunities that lie ahead,” he said.

On his part, the Chief Executive Officer, Geregu Power, Mr. Akin Akinfemiwa, stated that the company’s 2023 accomplishment underscored the management to operational excellence and financial prudence, positioning the company as a key player within the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry and West African Power market.

He expressed that the company was looking forward to a brighter future as the management doubled down on operations and embarked on a journey to reposition itself beyond a power generation company to a total energy solutions provider.

“Our short-medium growth objectives are very clear; creating a sustainable power hub in the Ajaokuta axis with a combined capacity of circa 1300MW through aggressive acquisitions and deployment of technology to ramp up capacity with reduced volumes of natural gas as feedstock,” Akinfemiwa explained on the company building a more resilient future.

According to him, with that the new government’s policies, including the Electricity Act of 2023 is expected to foster a more viable Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry offers vista of opportunities across the entire value chain.

He added, that, “This Act

He stated, "The Nigerian Army remains committed, determined, and focused on ensuring the total defeat of insurgents, marauding bandits, and all other forms of external and internal aggressions disturbing the peace of the country."

He said the Easter celebration "reminds us of the duties and sacrifices we must make

enables us to leverage our competences and capabilities to the transmission and distribution sub-sectors and promotes our drive towards our vision of becoming a total energy solutions provider.

“As you may be aware, we have started the process of engaging states in key economic areas for this purpose.”

Speaking earlier, the National Coordinator, Progressive Shareholders Association (PSAN), Mr. Boniface Okezie, commended the N20 billion dividend payout to shareholders, stressing Geregu Power as the first listed power generating company to list on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) has attracted another power generating company to list on the bourse.

He noted that the management has shareholders support, commending the staff for the outstanding 2023 financial year results.

award serves as a powerful affirmation of our resilience and tenacity despite headwinds and a very challenging macroeconomic environment. Indeed, it is a testament to our status as the leading financial institution in Nigeria, dedicated unwaveringly to delivering exceptional value to our stakeholders.”

He expressed profound gratitude to the founder and chairman, Jim Ovia, CFR, for his exceptional vision and foundational role in establishing a resilient and enduring financial institution.

He also lauded the board for their astute insights and exemplary leadership, the staff for their steadfast commitment and unwavering dedication, and the customers for their staunch loyalty to the Zenith brand.

Publisher and Editorial Director of Global Finance, Joseph D. Giarraputo said: “Banking has reached another watershed moment with the debut of generative artificial intelligence, which promises to rewrite the industry playbook.”

towards God, humanity, and our beloved country.

"It also provides an opportunity to appreciate the love of God displayed through the sacrifices of our Lord Jesus Christ for the salvation of mankind."

Lagbaja said the welfare of military personnel remained his priority.

He said, “ln line with my command’s philosophy, to transform the Nigerian Army into a well-trained, equipped and highly motivated force towards achieving our constitutional responsibilities, I have ensured the implementation of quality training and equipping toward combating the myriads of security threats confronting the nation.

"Under my leadership, the Nigerian Army has continued to record tremendous successes in various operations at home and abroad. You all can attest to our achievements so far, especially in the ongoing Operation Hadin Kai in the North-east and other internal security operations nationwide.

"As we continue to push towards the final onslaught on the adversaries troubling our nation, I assure you that the welfare of officers and soldiers, including training and provision of the needed

He added that: “In this ever-changing environment, the Best Bank Awards recognise the financial institutions that offer the broadest range of services, long-term reliability, and technological innovation.”

Global Finance’s “Best Banks Awards” are recognised amongst the world’s most influential banking/finance and corporate professionals as the most coveted and credible awards in the banking industry, with winners chosen in 150 countries and territories across Africa, AsiaPacific, the Caribbean, Central America, Central & Eastern Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, North America and Western Europe.

Founded in 1987, Global Finance regularly selects the top performers among banks and other financial services providers, and the awards have become a trusted standard of excellence for the global financial community.

Zenith Bank’s track record of excellent performance has

equipment, will always be prioritised to enable us to discharge our constitutional responsibilities effectively."

Consoling the military on the recent death of their colleagues in Delta State, he urged them to remain committed to the discharge of their duties.

Lagbaja said, in a statement he personally signed, "While still grieving the recent unwarranted and gruesome murder of our colleagues in Okuama community of Delta State, which occurred on 14 March 2024, I urge you all to remain steadfast, diligent, and committed to the discharge of our constitutional responsibilities.

"I encourage you to continue to pray for the repose of the souls of our departed colleagues, who paid the supreme price for the noble cause of keeping our beloved country safe.

"I will continue to prioritise the welfare of our officers, soldiers, and families, including those of our departed colleagues."

Meanwhile, troops sustained the onslaught against armed bandits in Zamfara and Katsina states killing 11 bandits.

A separate statement by Nigerian Army Headquarters said troops deployed for counterterrorism, counterinsurgency

earned the brand numerous awards, including being recognised as the Best Bank for Digital Solutions in Nigeria in the Euromoney Awards 2023, being listed in the World Finance Top 100 Global Companies in 2023; being recognised as the Number One Bank in Nigeria by Tier-1 Capital, for the 14th consecutive year, in the 2023 Top 1000 World Banks Ranking published by The Banker Magazine; Best Commercial Bank, Nigeria, for three consecutive years from 2021 to 2023, in the World Finance Banking Awards; Best Corporate Governance Bank, Nigeria in the World Finance Corporate Governance Awards 2022 and 2023; Bank of the Year (Nigeria) in The Banker’s Bank of the Year Awards 2020 and 2022; Best Bank in Nigeria, for three consecutive years from 2020 to 2022, in the Global Finance World’s Best Banks Awards; Best in Corporate Governance’ Financial Services’ Africa, for

operations in Katsina and Zamfara states, in a series of coordinated operations, raided terrorists' enclaves, resulting in the elimination of 11 terrorists.

The statement signed by army spokesman, Maj Gen Onyema Nwachukwu, said, "In an operation in Zamfara State, on March 29, 2024, troops successfully raided the den of a notorious terrorists' kingpin, Hassan Yantagwaye, in Tsafe Local Government Area.

"Yantagwaye and his group have been responsible for kidnappings and acts of terrorism in some parts of North-west Nigeria.

"During the operation, troops overpowered the terrorists in an ensuing gun battle, neutralising three of them and recovering a large cache of arms and ammunition. Troops also destroyed the terrorists' camps."

The statement further said that in Katsina State, the troops, on March 30, 2024, engaged in a fierce gun battle with terrorists in Shawu Kuka, Shinda, Tafki, Gidan Surajo, and Citakushi in Kabai I and Kabai II within Faskari Local Government Area.

It said, "The troops neutralised eight terrorists and recovered three locally fabricated guns, military uniforms and a large quantity of stolen grains."

four successive years from 2020 to 2023, by the Ethical Boardroom; Most Sustainable Bank, Nigeria in the International Banker 2023 Banking Awards; Best Commercial Bank, Nigeria and Best Innovation in Retail Banking, Nigeria in the International Banker 2022 Banking Awards. Also, the bank emerged as the Most Valuable Banking Brand in Nigeria in the Banker Magazine Top 500 Banking Brands 2020 and 2021; Bank of the Year 2023 and Retail Bank of the Year for three consecutive years from 2020 to 2022, at the BusinessDay Banks and Other Financial Institutions (BAFI) Awards. Similarly, Zenith Bank was named Bank of the Decade (People’s Choice) at the ThisDay Awards 2020, Bank of the Year 2021 by Champion Newspaper, Bank of the Year 2022 by New Telegraph Newspaper, and Most Responsible Organisation in Africa 2021 by SERAS Awards.

Email: deji.elumoye@thisdaylive.com

Controversy Trails Abure’s Re-election as Labour Party Chairman

National Chairman of Labour Party, Julius a bure, was recently re-elected for a second term at a convention held in Nnewi, a nambra State. David-Chyddy Eleke reports that the convention was not without hassles and also remains controversial.

Grand Season Hotel in Nnewi, the venue of Labour Party national convention which held last week was like the proverbial needle’s eye, which would be much more easier for an elephant to pass through than a journalist. The venue was policed heavily by stern looking, gun totting security operatives who denied everyone entry, except those duly identified by party officials. As early as 7am, the venue has been cordoned off by the security men.

During the convention, journalists were barred from entering the Grand Seasons Hotel in Nnewi, Anambra State where the convention held. There was heavy security presence at the venue, and attempts to get the spokesman of the party, Obiorah Ifoh, to identify and usher journalists into the venue was rebuffed. A source said it was deliberate that the party refused to allow journalists entry into the convention venue.

“As at the last minute, we were not sure if the convention will still hold after it was moved from Abia State to Anambra. We needed to take steps to ensure that the venue remained secret, and only known by all those who will participate”.

To underscore the security consciousness of the party at the convention, and vigilance to thwart any unforseen circumstances, five persons who were branded hoodlums were arrested at the venue and taken to the police headquarters for questioning. The men were arrested for simply distributing leaflets said to be inciting and critical of the leadership of the party and the convention.

Much later the same day, Julius Abure was in a voice vote by delegates re-elected as the National Chairman of the party for a second term. He was declared elected by the chairman of the National Convention who is also the Deputy Governor of Abia State, Mr. Ikechukwu Emetu.

Controversies have, however, continue to trail the convention.

One is the absence of key stakeholders of the party during the convention, including the party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 general elections, Mr Peter Obi, Governor of Abia State, Dr Alex Otti, the two senators of the party from Anambra State where the convention was held; Senators Victor Umeh and Tony Nwoye and other elected officials.

Another is the denial by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), that it was not duly informed about the convention, and as such did not monitor it. This is one of the criteria for the convention to be deemed authentic.

INEC in reaction to the convention by the Chief Press Secretary to INEC Chairman, Mr Rotimi Oyekanmi, said in Abuja that the conduct of the convention was not monitored by INEC, but declined to state further why it was not monitored.

INEC is not the only party opposed to the convention. The factional leadership of the party in Anambra, which is loyal to Alhaji Lamidi Apapa has also disproved of the convention. The chairman of the faction in Anambra, Mr Peter Okoye, dismissed the convention as a sham.

Okoye who spoke to journalists in Anambra said: “This is not a convention. We are

on top of the matter. It’s purely illegal. There was no ward congress, no local government congress, no state congress, and now who and who elected the delegates that are electing the NWC members? The NLC is not there, TUC is not there, the owners of the party and members of the NEC and BOT members are not there too, so who is holding the convention?” the state factional chairman wondered.

Despite the rancour and disapproval, the party has gone ahead with validating the outcome of the convention, which is recognizing Abure as the national chairman of the state.

A communique circulated after the convention, which was signed by Mr Julius Abure and Alhaji

Controversies have, however, continue to trail the convention. One is the absence of key stakeholders of the party during the convention, including the party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 general elections, Mr Peter Obi, Governor of Abia State, Dr Alex Otti, the two senators of the party from Anambra State where the convention was held; Senators Victor Umeh and Tony Nwoye and other elected officials.

Another is the denial by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), that it was not duly informed about the convention, and as such did not monitor it. This is one of the criteria for the convention to be deemed authentic. INEC in reaction to the convention by the Chief Press Secretary to INEC Chairman, Mr Rotimi Oyekanmi, said in Abuja that the conduct of the convention was not monitored by INEC, but declined to state further why it was not monitored.

Umar Farouk Ibrahim, National Chairman and National Secretary respectively gave a long list of its party officials elected. They include Deputy National Chairman, Mr. Clement Ojukwu; Deputy National Chairman, Dr. Ayo Olunrufemi; National Vice Chairman, North Central, Abraham Idoko; National Vice Chairman South East, Ceekay Igara; National Vice Chairman South South, Anthony C. Ezeagwu; National Secretary, Alhaji Umar farouk Ibrahim; Deputy National Secretary, Rotimi Kehinde Adekunle; Deputy National Secretary, Innocent Okeke.

Others are National Treasurer, Mrs Ngozi Doga; National Financial Secretary, Dayo Ekong; National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Ifoh Obiora; National Organizing Secretary, Comrade Yahuza Ahmed; National Legal Adviser, Kehinde Edun; National Women leader, Mrs. Dudu Manuga; National Youth Leader, Prince Kennedy Ihanotu; Assistant National Youth Leader, North West, Abdulrahman Chindo; Assistant National Youth Leader South South, Barry Auotu.

Three positions were however left unfilled. They include Deputy National Chairman (NLC), Deputy National Chairman (TUC) and Deputy National Chairman.

The party said: “The Conventionin-session empowers the National Working Committee (NWC) to fill existing vacancies in the NWC and NEC.”

In the communique issued after the convention, the party also said: “Based on the antecedents of the Presidential candidate before, during and after the 2023 General Election recommend that the 2027 Presidential ticket of the party be solely reserved for Mr. Peter Gregory Obi, the National leader of the party.

“The National Convention reviewed the state of the Nation and concluded that it is not grabbing power that matters but what you do with it. After the 2023 general election, the security situation of the nation has not improved as there is a geometrical increase in numbers of lives lost and the economy has worsened as the standard and conditions of living of the Nigerian populace has continue to deteriorate.

“Inflation is sky rocketing, unemployment rate is high, this has led to massive hunger and poverty in the land. This is a result of the continuous devaluation of the currency and increase in petroleum product prices.

“The Convention is session therefore call on the President and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of Nigeria, President Bola Tinubu to quickly take drastic and proactive steps to save the economy from total collapse to revive the economy and put it on the path of growth and development.”

The party also assured its members across the country of an optimistic and bright future. They equally appreciated all forums, groups and others for the steadfast support in the 2023 General election and onwards.

It said: “Now that elections are over, the Convention in session encourages all groups to collapse their structure at the ward, local, and National levels into the already existing structure of the party.”

Abure

As N’Assembly Moves to Approve New Salaries for Judicial Officers...

If there is one thing the judiciary and indeed the litigating public in Nigeria would commend and celebrate the 10th National assembly for, is the speedy move being taken to approve new salaries and allowances for judicial officers in the country, writes Alex Enumah

The Judiciary is the third arm of government in Nigeria’s democratic system of government. Although, its primary function is the interpretation of laws made by the legislature and how such laws are to be executed by the executive.

The Judiciary, however, over the years has played and continue to play the role of sustaining the peace as well as democracy in the country, especially since 1999, when this current democratic dispensation came into being.

However, unlike the other two arms of government whose emoluments have continued to be envied by many people, that of the Judiciary has not only continued to be the lowest but has remained static for nearly two decades. Sadly, the situation had remained pathetic over the years despite public outcry and failed promises of previous administration.

Like a former Justice of the Supreme Court, Muhammad Dattijo (rtd) said, the stagnated salaries and allowances of judicial officers is “unjust and embarrassing”, especially when the Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court earns more than the justices there.

Dattijo, while speaking at a special valedictory court session held to commemorate his retirement from the bench of the apex court had claimed that the Chief Registrar “earns N1.2 million per month” while justices “take home N751,000 in a month”.

He said: “That the unjust and embarrassing salary difference between the justices and the Chief Registrar still remains intriguing to say the least”.

However, all these are about to change now, and kudos to the 10th National Assembly, for its speedy move to pass the bill for the increase of the emoluments of judicial officers.

The approval is highly commendable because it is coming 16 years after the judges’ salaries and allowances were last reviewed by past administrations. Despite several strike actions embarked upon by Judiciary workers and court actions, the last administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, could not bring smiles on the faces of the justices, who have continued to give their all in the dispensation of justice in the country. Not even a court order on Buhari in 2022, to commence the immediate payment of new salaries and allowances of judicial officers, could change their fortune.

Recall that Justice Osatohanmwen ObasekiOsaghae, of the National Industrial Court, Abuja, had in a judgment delivered in July, 2022, held that the current salaries and allowances of judicial officers in the country is not only abysmally low but embarrassing and accordingly ordered the federal government to put machinery in place for the immediate

review of the salaries and allowances of the judicial officers.

Justice Obaseki-Osaghae subsequently ordered the federal government to commence a monthly payment of N10 million to the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), N9 million to other justices of the apex court, President of Court of Appeal, N9 million while other justices of the appellate court N8 million, Chief Judges of both Federal and States High Courts N8 million while judges of the Federal and States HIgh Courts N7 million, Heads of Sharia Court of Appeal and its counterpart in the Customary Court, N8 million and N7 million for the judges in both courts.

The judge in addition held that the federal government shall continue to carry out yearly or once in two years review of the salaries and allowances of the judicial officers. According to Justice Obaseki-Osaghae, the refusal of the government to review the judicial officers’ salaries and allowances for 14 years was unconstitutional, unlawful, adding that the Industrial Court has the power to compel the government to do the needful.

Obaseki-Osaghae, lamented that it is unfortunate that justices and judges who are ministers in the temple of Justice have become “victims of great injustice” in the country.

Her judgment was in a suit filed by

a senior lawyer, Chief Sebastine Hon (SAN) who claimed to be an aspiring Justice.

Hon had in 2022, dragged the National Assembly and the Executive arm of government to court over the poor pay of judicial officers, which he noted had remained the same in the last 14 years despite the harsh economic conditions in the country. His main plea was for an order compelling the defendants to forthwith increase the salaries and allowances of judges in Nigeria.

The National Assembly, Revenue Mobilization and Fiscal Allocation Commission, Attorney General of the Federation and National Judicial Council are 1st to 4th defendants respectively.

In a supporting affidavit to the originating summons, plaintiff stated that as a legal practitioner, “who has practised in all the levels of courts in Nigeria, I know that poor pay for judicial officers is seriously affecting the quality of judgments and rulings those officers are delivering and the discharge of other functions associated with their offices.”

He argued that the current economic reality in the country requires that the salaries and allowances of judges be urgently improved upon.

The plaintiff noted that the highest-paid judicial officer in Nigeria – the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) – currently earns about N3.4 million per annum, far below what is earned by such an officer in other countries.

Hon, who quoted what all judicial officers currently earn as provided under Part IIB of

True to his words, President Tinubu last month asked the National Assembly to consider and pass a new bill seeking to provide new salaries and allowances for judicial officers in the country. The Executive Bill forwarded by the President was titled: A Bill for an Act to Prescribe the Salaries, Allowances and Fringe Benefits of Judicial Office Holders in Nigeria and for Related Matters. The President, in the letter read at plenary penultimate Tuesday, by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Abbas Tajudeen, said the bill seeks to end the prolonged stagnation of the remuneration of judicial officers. The judicial office holders salaries and allowances bill seeks to prescribe salaries and allowances and fringe benefits for judicial officials to end the prolonged stagnation in their remuneration and to reflect contemporary socio-economic realities, the letter read in part.

the Schedule to the Certain Political, Public and Judicial Office Holders (Salaries and Allowances, etc) Amendment Act 2008, said the paltry sums have discouraged him from aspiring to become a judge.

Justice Obaseki-Osaghae, who agreed with the plaintiff faulted the federal government for expecting judicial officers to negotiate their salaries with their employers from time to time. The judge held that by constitutional provisions while the National Assembly has powers to enact laws guiding the remuneration of judicial officers the RMFAC is bound to determine such amount and charge same to the consolidated account from which judicial officers are paid.

Justice Obaseki-Osaghae however, stated that where they failed to carry out their constitutional duties, the court has the power to compel them to do so.

The court described the failure of the federal government to do the needful as a deliberate effort to alter the salaries and allowances of the judicial officers. While the judge noted that the RMFAC has powers to review the judicial officers’remuneration from time to time and in tune with current realities, she said the non review amounts to financial embarrassment and harassment as well as a national shame.

“No doubt it has affected their job, and inspite of that they have continue to do their job without fear or favour”, the judge held. She further held that the 1st and 2nd defendants does not have unbridled, whimsical powers to refuse, fail to review the remuneration of judicial officers.

The court while holding that the current salary paid by the 2nd defendant through the 4th is embarrassingly low and unrealistic with the current economic conditions as well as global standard for judicial officers, accordingly ordered the federal government to immediately put in place legal and administrative machineries for the review of the remuneration of judicial officers.

According to the judge, the failure of the RMFAC to review the remuneration of justices and judges for the past 14 years notwithstanding the challenges of present time is unconstitutional and unlawful.

Although, the administration of former President Buhari in response to the judgment of the court, four months later had announced an immediate approval for increment in the salaries of judicial officers, however, no increment was effected up till when he bowed out of office in May, 2023.

Ariwoola

Akpabio

Abass

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BUHARI AND THE CURRENT ECONOMIC HARDSHIP

Aisha W. Ibrahim argues that the Buhari administration did not print money arbitrarily as being touted

See page 21

OMIYI: THE EXIT OF A VETERAN

Dan Aibangbe pays tribute to Basil Omiyi as he bows out of Seplat Energy

See page 21

EDITORIAL BEYOND BETTER REMUNERATIONS FOR JUDGES

See page 22

LET’S PLAY BY THE BOOK

Chidi Anselm Odinkalu argues the need for Judges to be seen as manifestly independent

“Some judges have achieved a considerable degree of expertise….in displaying an immunity from contemporary knowledge and concerns.”

– David Pannick, KC, Judges, p. 32 (1987)

Emmanuel Araka was 60 years old when Allison Madueke, then over 20 years his junior, a Navy Captain and military governor of Anambra State, terminated his judicial career in March 1985. At the time, Araka had been the Chief Judge of Anambra State for six years and a judge for double that. At the time also, the retirement age of judges in Nigeria was 65.

Araka’s crime was that he took the job of the judge too seriously and believed that a judge should be manifestly independent of political and executive influence.

Araka, was born in 1925 to a father from Onitsha who worked as head-teacher in a primary school in Agbor in present day Delta State, where he was born. His secondary education took him through Hope Waddel Institute in Calabar, now in Cross-River State, where one of his teachers was Eni Njoku (the famous “Teacher Nwanjoku”), who was to become the first Vice-Chancellor of University of Lagos.

Following successful studies at the Trinity College, Dublin, Araka was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1951. Over the next two decades, he built a formidable career in private practice and in politics. 12 years after becoming a lawyer, in 1963, he became Queens Counsel, the equivalent of today’s Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN.

Two years before that, in 1961, Chike Obi, who represented Onitsha Federal Constituency in the then House of Representatives, had to quit parliament after being convicted of the political crime of sedition. In his place, Onitsha people elected Araka to represent them in the Federal House.

The onset of military rule in 1966 interfered with Araka’s career in politics but did not entirely derail his availability for public service. At the end of the civil war, he returned to legal practice but not for long.

In 1972, Administrator of the East Central State, Dr. Ukpabi Asika, appointed Araka a judge of the High Court. When in 1976, the East Central State was split into Imo and Anambra States, Araka naturally became a judge in his home state, Anambra. Two years later, in 1978, Anthony Aniagolu, the first Chief Judge of Anambra State was appointed a Justice of the Supreme Court and Araka succeeded him in office, becoming the second Chief Judge of the State.

Around the time of Araka’s appointment as a judge in East Central State, something happened over in Lagos State which made an impression on many judges and judicial wannabes. The then military governor of Lagos State, Mobolaji Johnson, had extended an invitation to the Chief Justice of the State (as they were then known), John Idowu Conrad (JIC) Taylor, to attend a state dinner.

It was reported that Chief Justice Taylor, “after reading it, endorsed a brief note to the governor at the back of the invitation card, informing him that he would be unable to

attend, because the Lagos State government had several cases pending before him and it would therefore, in the circumstances, be most inappropriate for him to honour the invitation.”

In doing so, JIC Taylor didn’t just underscore the institutional value of judicial independence, he also underlined its reliance in large measure on the moral fibre of the individual judge. This was the state of affairs when Araka arrived the Bench. Some 14 years later, Allison Madueke, a member of the First Regular Course at the Nigerian Defence Academy, arrived as military governor in 1984 with no hint of having received the memo. Having settled in, the military governor summoned the Chief Judge to a meeting in the government house in Enugu. Araka, demurred. Madueke later complained in his memoirs that he “had not reckoned that I was dealing with a law administrator that had a mind of his own.”

That was Araka’s crime. The invitation was renewed unsuccessfully twice, whereupon Captain Madueke “applied for his retirement.” Madueke narrates that he later met the then second-in-command to General Muhammadu Buhari, General Tunde Idiagbon, while the latter was on an official visit to Owerri and secured Idiagbon’s authorization to terminate Araka’s judicial career for being independent.

In March 1985, Madueke fired Araka.

Madueke, who has just turned 80, whoops that this was “something of an earthquake in Anambra State.” It was more than that in the judiciary, where it established a norm that independence was costly. Judges re-calibrated.

Today, cavorting with the executive has become a judicial past-time. In his controversial memoirs, The Accidental Public Servant, former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nasir El-Rufai, recalls that one of his first moves in that role was to visit the then Chief Judge of the Territory to secure the support of the judiciary. He exulted that thereafter, “the FCT judiciary supported us strongly throughout my tenure.”

In November 2023, the current Chief Judge of the FCT, Husseini Baba Yusuf, went one step further, corralling the FCT judiciary to visit the current Minister of the Territory, Nyesom Wike, to pledge judicial allegiance to his rule. There, the Chief Judge promenaded somewhat naked before the Minister, pleading that “[a]s a judiciary, we are part of the government and

we should be able to do things that will make govt work."

Three months later, the list of new nominees to the bench of the FCT High Court included an in-law of the Minister, Lesley Nkesi Wike, who only became a Senior Magistrate in Rivers State in 2023, appointed by the Minister when he was Governor of Rivers State.

One year earlier, in November 2022, Olukayode Ariwoola, the Chief Justice of Nigeria, had kicked up a firestorm when he traveled to Port Harcourt and at a reception hosted by the same Nyesom Wike who was then the Governor of River State, stepped into the political minefield to offer judicial support to Wike and four other governors who were at odds with their political party, the Peoples’ Democratic Party, PDP. The Chief Justice, a devout Muslim, was not under the influence of anything that he should not have consumed but, despite the febrile political season, many were willing to give him benefit of the doubt.

This past week, Chief Justice Ariwoola bettered himself. Under the guise of the traditions of the Muslim holy month of Ramadhan, he led the Nigerian judiciary supposedly to break the fast with the president. The team accompanying the Chief Justice included two of his immediate predecessors, each of whom left office under a cloud. Walter Onnoghen, one of the two, is Christian.

No one had ostensibly warned the Chief Justice about the perils of turning into a prayer warrior for politicians. At the visit, the Chief Justice took the microphone and under the guise of prayers offered to the president intoned: “May the Lord continue to bless you and your administration. Let your ship land and berth beautifully. We shall continue to pray for your administration because there are many good things in the pipeline for Nigerians.”

It is possible that Olukayode Ariwoola has always had a secret career as a clairvoyant which would equip him to know what will happen in future. What is clear is that after these lines, few people can approach the court that he presides over with any expectation of even handedness in any case in which the administration is party.

Lawyers and judges speak glibly about judicial independence, often treating it as something material, guaranteed by constitutional provisions and by large swathes of money. It is, of course, important that judges are provided for so that they have no excuses to fall prey to bribery or material importuning. Official emoluments are usually not enough competition, however, for the kinds of blandishments that can be deployed in pursuit of the favours of a senior judge.

For that reason, the job requires a lot of skill, patience, and balance. But more than any other thing, it requires persons willing to defend independence. Of all the many virtues that he surely must possess, being an Araka is not a charge that can be levied against the current occupant of the office of Chief Justice of Nigeria.

A lawyer and a teacher, Odinkalu can be reached at chidi.odinkalu@tufts.edu

AISHA W. IBRAHIM argues that the Buhari administration did not print money arbitrarily as being touted

BUHARI AND THE CURRENT ECONOMIC HARDSHIP

The propaganda aimed at taunting the erstwhile Muhammadu Buhari administration and exonerating the Tinubu administration of its missteps in governance has been unending. By attributing the current economic drought to the policies of the past administration, the current economic managers and their media contractors have displayed utmost lack of substance, sincerity and intelligence. Of course, where the aim is to mislead the masses, as it is in this case, such venture into mischief is understandable. One such glaring claim that deserves to be addressed is Mr. Wale Edun's assertion that President Buhari's handling of financial and monetary policies is responsible for the

current high rate of inflation.

In an appearance before the Senate Committee on Finance chaired by Senator Sani Musa, Nigeria's Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, claimed that the Buhari administration "aimlessly printed” trillions of naira without corresponding productivity. Edun’s “aimlessly” connotes that trillions of naira were printed for no purpose, or were misappropriated, or were stolen outright. These, no doubt, is a severe accusation.

While blame-shifting is not uncommon in political discourse, such posits often oversimplify complex economic issues and fail to consider the nuances and contextual factors at play.

Despite his experience and position as Minister of Finance, it is worrisome that Mr. Edun would make such sweeping statements. With his firsthand knowledge of economics and the nation’s economic struggles, the reasonable and truthful path of engagement would have been for him to properly contextualize the actions taken by the Buhari administration in response to the prevailing economic challenges of the time. His claim grossly fails to acknowledge the circumstances that necessitated the measures implemented, the potential outcomes they aimed to achieve, and the numerous positives that were bequeathed to the Tinubu administration. The backdrop behind Edun's stance is not far-fetched.

Wale Edun's position, along with the echoes of other proponents of this agenda to blackmail the Buhari administration, may not be entirely disconnected from personal disappointments or grievances against the Buhari administration. It is worth noting that Mr. Wale Edun was nominated twice to be the Minister of Finance during Buhari's tenure but was rejected on both occasions. Such experiences could potentially influence one's perspective and objectivity. He and several others paddling the boat of propaganda still seem to be smarting from being snubbed in terms of appointments by the Buhari administration.

Moreover, if we are to scrutinize the printing of money as a cause for concern, it would be equally necessary to extend the same level of scrutiny to the current administration of President Bola Tinubu. If the printing of money under the category of Ways and Means is deemed wasteful under

the Buhari regime, as Edun suggests, then it is only fair to examine whether similar actions by the Tinubu administration can also be termed wasteful. Mr. Wale Edun, as the Minister of Finance in the current administration, should tell Nigerians how much this administration has printed in 10 months and to what end.

While dismissing the misleading claims of Mr. Wale Edun, it is also necessary to address the question: "Did the Buhari administration actually print money aimlessly?" The Buhari administration sure had its imperfections and shortcomings, but it is no gainsaying that the administration made numerous recognizable and worthy strides. Like every other past leader, Buhari came into power to grapple with a lot of challenges. Nigeria faced significant challenges when Buhari took over in 2015, battered by low oil prices, insurgency in the North, and depleting foreign reserves. His administration had to grapple with funding shortfalls for infrastructure, security operations and social services. Exceeding the commended limit of the Ways and Means financing from the CBN was an emergency measure that kept the government running when revenue fell critically short, and in a period of unprecedented emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic, economic recession and the EndSARS riots.

In September 2014, the then Finance Minister, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, told Nigerians that with the dwindling oil revenue, the federal government may soon be unable to pay workers’ salaries, except something drastic was done. Nothing was done, and the Jonathan administration with Okonjo-Iweala as Finance minister resorted to borrowing to pay salaries. In 2014, government borrowed to pay workers’ salaries. In 2015, the Jonathan administration borrowed to fund the budget and to pay federal government workers’ salaries. FG borrowing was already at about a trillion naira for the 2015 budget when the Buhari administration came on board. In spite of the borrowings that had already been done, most state governments could not pay salaries. Nigerians across the country needed Buhari to bail out their states so that they could take care of themselves and their families.

Was that what Wale Edun meant by “printing money aimlessly”? Hence, it is quite dishonest to dismiss this context and make such a claim, especially when every administration has always concerned itself with bringing policies to life to address these issues, but these have, in one way or another, had a compounding effect on the Nigerian economy. While criticisms and blame-shifting are commonplace in political discourse, it is essential to look beyond rhetoric and examine the tangible achievements and challenges of each administration. In the case of the Buhari administration, we cannot overlook the vast difference in the Nigerian economy between Buhari's tenure and the ones that preceded it.

Despite unprecedented challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, global recession, the Russian-Ukraine war, and the EndSARS situations, which none of the previous governments had to contend with, the Buhari administration managed to maintain a reasonable exchange rate, leaving the exchange rate at N460: $1. He also did not remove the fuel subsidy despite enormous pressure to do so and still prevented an overexplosion of fuel prices by leaving it at N187. His tenure also recorded positive outlooks from global actors like the IMF and World Bank, who attested to Nigeria's commendable strength in maintaining a stable economy.

Ibrahim is with the Buhari Truth Collective and can be reached via: aishawibrahim24@gmail.com

DAN AIBANGBE pays tribute to Basil Omiyi as he bows out of Seplat Energy

OMIYI: THE EXIT OF A VETERAN

There are always things to say and memoirs to document, whenever a veteran military General is pulled out of service! Aside from the usual 21-gun salutes and general funfair, there is the official handover notes to guide the new commanders as well as the polishing of medals and decorations won in the course of the retiring veteran’s meritorious service. These elements may seem mundane to the uninitiated, but are crucial for setting standards, upgrading protocols and motivating the new generation.

The chequered history of how Seplat Energy emerged to become one of the foremost indigenous International Oil & Gas Companies (IOC) in Nigeria with bias for onshore assets is in public domain. How it came to embed itself in the premium board of the Nigeria Stock Exchange (NSE) and simultaneously in the London Stock Exchange (LSE) after it successfully transmuted from Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc incorporated in 2009 to Seplat Energy Plc in May 2021, headquartered in Lagos, is also well known. The company also transitioned from the initial management board to the current board under the able hands of its out-gone Chairman, the distinguished gentleman, Mr Basil Efoise Omiyi, CON.

Mr Basil Omiyi has bowed out as Non-Executive Chairman of Seplat, a position he ascended in May 2022. His emergence in succession to the erstwhile founding Chairman was not without a protracted corporate wrestle (in which he eventually prevailed).

Mr Omiyi spent five decades of his illustrious career traversing the length and breadth of the oil and gas world. The landmarks are too many to enumerate here. His chequered career is littered with milestones in technical and leadership responsibilities. At the Royal Dutch Shell Group, he held various technical and leadership positions in Nigeria, the UK and the Netherlands. On return to Nigeria in 1992, Mr Omiyi was again involved in leadership roles as Production Manager, Director of External Relations and Environment and later Country Production Director. He would later be appointed the Managing Director of The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Ltd in 2004 thus becoming the first indigenous Managing Director of an International Oil Company in Nigeria and later, Chairman of Royal Dutch Shell Companies in Nigeria until his retirement in 2009.

Senior Management expertise gained in the large-scale multinational organisation were quite invaluable. Without any iota of doubt, Omiyi’s wealth of experience will be sorely missed at Seplat, except the organisation finds an ingenious way to make its executives tap from his wealth of experience. His tenure as Chairman saw him achieve the key objectives of streamlining the Corporate Governance function, accentuating productivity by more than 80% within a twoyear span (with commensurate increase in dividends to shareholders), expertly riding the tidal waves of boardroom subterfuge and successfully weaning the company from the apron-strings of devourers. He also succeeded in fashioning out a smooth succession protocol in line with corporate best practices. Thus, he fully demonstrated his crisis management skills with equanimity. Mr Omiyi demonstrated zero-tolerance for corruption and corrupt practices and thus commands respect from friends and foes alike.

As the ultimate father-figure and epitome of inspirational leadership, Mr Omiyi is always interested in team bonding and capacity building towards bringing out the best in colleagues and subordinates alike. His tenure in Seplat witnessed unprecedented improvements to employee compensations and benefits in terms of welfare, remuneration, career development and growth opportunities, so much so that when senior officers retire, replacements were no longer sourced from outside the company! His simplicity, kindness and humility are unparalleled. He is completely detribalised and humane, an equal opportunity advocate. He advanced the lot of the female gender in Seplat under the aegis of Seplat Awesome Women.

Right from his early school days, his alma mater at Esan (Ishan) Grammar School, Uromi could swear by his loyalty and total commitment to the common cause. Once he gets personally involved in any noble cause, Mr Omiyi will neither relent nor look back to count the cost. He is the ultimate champion of the indigent.

Mr Omiyi who is also currently the Chairman of Stanbic IBTC Holding Plc, and TAF Nigeria Homes Ltd, is a Fellow of many professional bodies, including The Petroleum Institute, UK, FEI, The Nigerian Mining and Geoscience Society, FNMGS, The Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists, FNAPE, and The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators of Nigeria, FCIArb. He was awarded the National Honour of Commander of the Order of the Niger in 2011 in recognition of his pioneering role in Oil and Gas Industry leadership in Nigeria.

Mr Basil Omiyi studied at the University of Ibadan from 1965 to 1970 where he obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry and a Post-graduate Diploma in Petroleum Technology in 1970 after which he joined the then Shell-BP Petroleum Ltd in 1970 as a Wellsite Petroleum Engineer.

He gained extensive insights and experience in the global oil and gas industry, particulars of which he brought on board to Seplat Energy. His detailed knowledge and understanding of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Sector, together with

Engineer Basil Omiyi, born on January 17, 1946 a devout worshipper, just as his dear wife, May, together with him raised a vibrant family. Everywhere he went, his humility, gentility, advocacy, diplomacy, deep knowledge, dexterity, empathy, oozed effortlessly to pervade his entire milieu. Most of Mr Omiyi’s colleagues, contemporaries and subordinates would readily attest to his effortless leadership and mentorship.

Mr Omiyi’s spirituality is given full expression in the comfort of the Catholic Mass environment, where he finds necessary solace. This is also complemented in his love for the keyboard, through which he follows the footprints of the Masters on the Piano. He is a well-practiced and skilful connoisseur of good pianist and one would not be surprised to find this demonstration one of these days.

As the giant oak quietly steps aside, we are hoping his good works will continue to be watered by his successors, while we wish him many more years in good health and relevance to the society.

Farewell, dear gentle giant!

Aibangbe is a Media and Public Relations Consultant

Editor, Editorial Page PETER ISHAKA

Email peter.ishaka@thisdaylive.com

EDITORIAL

BEYOND BETTER REMUNERATIONS

FOR JUDGES

Besides good welfare package, the recruitment process must be above board

The decision by President Bola Tinubu to increase the salaries of judicial officers is in the right direction. The last time the judges’ salaries and allowances were increased was in 2007 following the enactment of the ‘Certain Political, Public and Judicial Office Holders (Salaries and Allowances, Amendment) Act of 2008’. That law repealed a 2002 Act to create room for the increase of judges’ basic salaries, allowances, and fringe benefits in 2007. Before he left office as the chairman of the Body of Benchers, Wole Olanipekun, SAN made frantic efforts to persuade the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari to raise the salaries of judges to no avail.

According to the current executive bill, the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) will receive a monthly salary of N5.4 million, amounting to N64.8 million per annum. The breakdown of the remuneration reveals that the CJN will receive a monthly basic salary of N1.1 million, and N4.3 million in regular allowances. The annual pay includes various components such as personal assistant allowance, hardship allowance, entertainment allowance and suchlike. The bill also proposes N61.4 million annually for justices of the Supreme Court. All judges of courts of records will benefit from the latest review. Apart from the fact that the review is long in coming, the rising cost of living justifies the latest decision.

But the question now is, will this impact positively on justice administration in Nigeria? Many are not convinced that improved remunerations would

he process of appointing judges should be reformed to ensure that only the best legal minds make it to the bench

make any appreciable difference. And it is difficult to fault their pessimism. The problem in the judiciary goes far beyond judges' wages. In many courts, facilities are either out of date or in a state of disrepair. Similarly, better remunerations will not reduce the length of time it takes to determine cases if the judiciary refuses to embrace modern technology. Many judges still write in long hand.

No one should expect a positive delivery from a bench that is populated by judges who got the job because of their filial affiliation. No one should expect an efficient judiciary where senior judges lower the criteria for appointment for their sons and daughters to be appointed as judicial officers.

That much was confirmed by Justice Adamu Dattijo at a recent valedictory session to mark his retirement from the Supreme Court last year. “It is asserted that the process of appointment to judicial positions is deliberately conducted to give undue advantage to the ‘children, spouses, and mistresses’ of serving and retired judges and managers of judicial offices,” he said. Such appointees can hardly be independent-minded, a crucial element for a judge. Therefore, the process of appointing judges should be reformed to ensure that only the best legal minds make it to the bench.

Nigeria needs judges who will apply the law and not bend it to favour some litigants as was the recent outrageous decision against the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Plateau State. To that end, it is wishful thinking to hope that better pay for judges will restore public confidence in the judiciary. But it is nonetheless a commendable gesture.

Letters in response to specific publications in THISDAY should be brief (150-300 words) and straight to the point. Interested readers may send such letters along with their contact details to opinion@thisdaylive.com. We also welcome comments and opinions on topical local, national and international issues provided they are well-written and should also not be longer than (750- 1000 words). They should be sent to opinion@thisdaylive. com along with photograph, email address and phone numbers of the writer.

WLetters to the Editor LETTERS

GOVERNOR UBA SANI AND BURDEN OF DEBTS

hen governor Uba Sani's administration was inaugurated on 29 May,2023, the question on the lips of many people in the state was whether he will be able to fit the big shoes his predecessor left behind. The eight years of Malam Nasir El-Rufai was dogged by controversy arising from his local government reforms in which thousands of civil servants were sacked; demolition policies that witnessed the pulling down of many structures considered illegal and above all, insecurity. After the successful handover, Uba Sani's government was slowly kickstarted in comparison with other states. Little surprise, the governor turned to be a frequent visitor of Abuja. His inability to stay in office amidst pressing state's matters has pitched him against many people. The governor was nicknamed Abuja governor because he barely spends two days in office in a roll in Kaduna.

On Saturday, last week, the governor during a town hall meeting with stakeholders, raised the alarm that his administration inherited a huge debt burden of $587 million, N85 billion, and 115 contractual liabilities from the previous

administration, making it difficult for him to pay workers’ salaries. He explained that N7billion out of the N10billion federal allocation due to the State in March was deducted to service the debt. With this shocking revelation, one can understand the reason why he hardly stays in the state. By this statement, the governor is indirectly saying Kaduna State is broke, with little or nothing left to run the government. For state government to be servicing N7billions public debt monthly, it will very difficult to meet up with its financial obligations. Before the 2023 general elections that produced governor Sani, El-Rufai was trumpeting how he cut the cost of government through restructuring and improving the state's revenues for optimum performances.

Unfortunately, what Kaduna State people witnessed since El-Rufai left office contradicted his much-talked about reforms and the acclaimed gains. While he deserves a pat on the back for the urban renewal programs across Kaduna, Zaria and Kafanchan towns, the loans he incurred to implement those projects need more explanation. With the state being insolvent, what will Uba Sani do to change this ugly

narrative? Will governor Uba Sani use his power to summon the ex-governor to explain how the loans were spent? Will he collect other loans or improve the state's revenue generation? Governor Uba Sani's revelation has received heavy knock from different angles. For instance, Bashir El-Rufai, son of the former governor, through his tweeter countered the allegations against his father. He described Uba Sani as incompetent, and surrounded by incompetent aides. Other people wonder why it took the governor this long to reveal the true financial position of the state. Besides, he is being accused for facilitating the loans when he was the Senator representing the state in ninth assembly.

The cold political war brewing in the state should be tamed for peace, unity and development of the state. The APC stakeholders should quickly intervene, call the duo to a negotiating table and prevail on them to sheath their swords. This unhealthy development will slow the pace of socio-economic development of the state.

• Ibrahim Mustapha, Pambegua, Kaduna State

Are Ex-Governors’ Pensions

Illegal and Immoral?

PReSIdeNT BOLa aHMed TINUBU, GCFR

SeNaTe PReSIdeNT, GOdSwILL akPaBIO

aBIa STaTe GOVeRNOR, dR aLeX OTTI

Quotable

‘Each year, therefore, Nigerian States spent over N130 billion as pension to former Governors and Deputy Governors, amounting to N46.4 trillion since 2010. Yet, Nigerian civil servants’ pensions are contributory, and their salaries are usually unpaid for months in many States.' - Chino

Edmund Obiagwu,

SAN

PROF MIKE OZEKHOME, CON, SAN, FCIArb, PH.D. LLD Constitutional Democracy, means a system of government, in which political and governmental power, is defined, limited and shared by a grundnorm called the Constitution, which provides inbuilt checks and balances.

This column seeks to fiercely discuss constitutional, legal and political issues, with a view to strengthening, deepening and widening the plenitude and amplitude of democracy and good governance, without fear or favour.

The writer of this column, Prof Mike Ozekhome, SAN, is a Constitutional Lawyer, Human Rights Activist, Pro-Democracy Campaigner, Notary Public and Motivational Speaker. He co-founded the Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO), Nigeria’s pioneer human rights league, on October 15, 1987, the Universal defenders of Democracy (UDD), in 1992, and with Chief Gani Fawehinmi and others in 1998, the Joint Action Committee of Nigeria (JACON), to push out the military. In his early days, he lectured at the University of Ife. Prof Ozekhome is an author of many books. He is also a Special Counsel at the International Criminal Court (ICC), at The Hague.

After the Kuriga Kidnapping

The Kuriga Kidnapping

Thank God that the children who were kidnapped from the Primary and Secondary School in Kuriga, Kaduna State, have returned physically safe. Their mental health must however, be taken care of, having suffered such a traumatic experience. I’m not sure that the one or two days of psychotherapy that was given to them, is sufficient; they need more attention. I watched an interview of Journalist, Donu Kogbara on Arise TV’s Perspectives last weekend, where she narrated how her kidnap experience traumatised her, and the lasting psychological effects it had on her late Mother and herself. While Ms Kogbara admitted that being kidnapped has different effects on different people, from the insight she gave from her experience, it appears that the nasty experience could have a lasting effect on victims. Ms Kogbara mentioned a man who kidnappers forced to sleep between the corpses of his two colleagues that were kidnapped along with him, and murdered. Because he lay between them as their corpses started to decompose, he now suffers from a condition of which he cannot forget the smell of their decomposed bodies.

Unfortunately, Kuriga School Teacher, Mallam Abubakar, didn’t survive. One of the students who was interviewed, said their Mallam Abubakar was beaten (the children were beaten too) and tortured, and this led to his death. May God have mercy upon his soul.

While the controversy rages on about the actual number of children that were kidnapped, 287 or 137, and whether it seems incredible/fishy to some that the rescued or released children were all adorned in asò èbi (family cloth aka uniform) sewn in 24 hours (people shouldn’t forget that the Government already has aso èbi tailors on standby, as they have been on hand to sew matching outfits for bandits/insurgents who are forgiven), the details of the children’s return which seem sketchy with many unanswered questions, may not be particularly sinister. And, for one, the details of their return being shrouded in secrecy could be for security reasons - that Government has decided to keep the details of the children’s return close to its chest, particularly if it is a winning formula that can be used again, and is better left unpublicised, so as not to give criminals a sneak preview/heads up that may assist them to further their nefarious activities.

Sections 11 & 12 of the Freedom of Information Act 2011 (FOA) provide for exceptions in which public institutions can withhold information from the public in certain circumstances, like in those that may be injurious to the defence of the country, or to ongoing criminal investigations or proceedings, or can interfere with law enforcement agency proceedings; where the injury that will be done in revealing the information, outweighs the public interest of knowing the facts. Maybe these provisions may be applicable to the details of the Kuriga kidnapping release.

Erosion of Trust

Unfortunately, because over the years, the trust between Government and the governed has been seriously eroded, and rightfully so too, some people are quick to condemn President Tinubu, tarring his administration with the same brush of lollygagging, lack of will and the wherewithal to tackle insecurity like the administration of President Buhari. I cannot say that this negative rating about President Tinubu’s administration vis-à-vis insecurity is correct, though I must admit that the choice of some of the persons occupying some key positions with regard to State Security may leave one wondering why they were even put in those positions in the first place. For example, I saw a news report on social media the other day, in which it was alleged that the Governor of Zamfara State, Dauda Lawal, accused the Government of being in secret negotiations with the Terrorists in his State, without his knowledge. Was Mr Lawal, in a roundabout way, trying to complain that his predecessor who failed woefully in the area of security in Zamfara while he was Governor and is now the Minister of State for Defence, is behind this negotiation that he disapproves of? After all, it was during the tenure of Governor Maitawalle in 2022 that notorious terrorist gang leader, Ado Aleru was conferred with the chieftaincy title of Sarkin Fulani of the Yandoton Emirate in Zamfara State.

Fallout from the Kuriga Incident

Following the Kuriga incident, my attention was drawn to two particular issues - 1) our warped security operatives and 2) our so-called Governors and their under-performance.

1)Our Warped Security Operatives: The Anjarwalla Escape Example

Call it tautology, reiteration, repetition, reduplication, echoing or ceaselessness, I have always maintained that some of our security operatives across all the law enforcement agencies, are compromised and complicit in all that has gone wrong concerning security, and if this administration doesn’t find a way to get rid of them and complete the rejigging of our security architecture, achieving the primary purpose of government, that is, the security and welfare of the people will be impossible - see Section 14(2)(b) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended in 2023)(the Constitution). Also see the case of Tanko v State (2009) LPELR-3136 (SC)

“As a matter of urgency, just as Government has set up several Task Forces on the issue of Nigeria’s economy, so also should there be a similar initiative on Security….The Security Task Force(s) should include retired officers and operativesthose who were known to be the best hands in the security sector when they served the country, whose knowledge and experience can be brought to bear on this insecurity wahala…”

per Pius Olayiwola Aderemi, JSC. Playing ostrich, or the Tinubu administration burying its head in the sand instead of facing this fact, will only result in more kidnapping and a more heightened state of insecurity.

The escape of Africa Regional Manager of Binance, Nadeem Anjarwalla, from a safe house in the custody of the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), said to be guarded by soldiers, is a prime example of the compromise, corruption, and lack of accountability that unfortunately, exists amongst some of our law enforcement agents. And, it is incidents like this that surely make the people view our law enforcement agencies and agents with suspicion, and also lose confidence in them. How was Mr Anjarwalla able to escape, if not with the connivance of some of the operatives supposed to be guarding him?

Furthermore, allowing religion to play a role that it doesn’t have, in matters where it shouldn’t feature, has also been the bane of Nigeria’s problems. See Section 10 of the Constitution. If Christianity, and more so, Islam, had not been exalted to positions that the Constitution certainly does not accord, a detainee would not be able to use going to the Mosque for Ramadan prayers as an excuse and means of escape. Meanwhile, we all thought that detention means a temporary loss of liberty/ freedom of movement. See Sections 35(1)(c) & 41(1) of the Constitution, particularly Section 41(2) (a) which permits the imposition of restrictions of movement on a person who is reasonably suspected to have committed a crime, in order to

prevent the person leaving Nigeria. Also see the case of Lufadeju & Anor v Johnson (2007) LPELR-1795(SC) per Walter Samuel Nkanu Onnoghen, JSC (later CJN). Soon, with a little bit of motivation to the Prison Guards, inmates of Ikoyi Prison will be allowed to troop across the road to the Syrian Mosque for Jumat Prayers or to celebrate Eid!

Again, in the USA and many other countries, telephone conversations between those in custody and the people that they speak to outside are monitored, and sometimes, it is through these monitored conversations that the authorities obtain confessional statements and proof beyond reasonable doubt to augment their thorough investigations, and not by means of torture and intimidation as is the practice of the Nigeria Police and other law enforcement agencies here - see the toothless Anti-Torture Act 2017. How is it that, in a safe house where detainees are held, they have limitless access to their phones? And, in the event that for some unknown reason they are given such access, should it be ongoing unfettered access, and should their conversations be unmonitored?

I think not. Furthermore, if Mr Anjarwalla speaks a foreign language not understood by the security operatives, should they not have insisted that he carried on his conversations in the English language? Carelessness, ineptitude or compromise? This is only one example of how our law enforcement agents are prepared to compromise, bend the rules, or outrightly commit crimes, if the price is right. My point? As a matter of urgency, just as

Government has set up several Task Forces on the issue of Nigeria’s economy, so also should there be a similar initiative on Security. Section 153(h) & (k) of the Constitution establish the National Economic Council (NEC) and the National Security Council (NSC) respectively. Despite the fact that NEC exists, the President saw it fit to establish Economic Task Forces. I submit that it is just as necessary to establish Security Task Force(s) even though the NSC exists, as the importance of security, the first leg of the primary purpose of government cannot be overemphasised. While the economy can be put under the umbrella of welfare of the people, security was put in the first position by the framers of the Constitution, to underscore its position as the most important purpose of government. The Security Task Force(s) should include retired officers and operatives - those who were known to be the best hands in the security sector when they served the country, whose knowledge and experience can be brought to bear on this insecurity wahala, and some who are presently serving. Seeking help is not a sign of weakness, but collaboration for the greater good. A few years ago, Transport for London (TFL) employed the ‘Train Daddy’, former New York Subway boss, Andy Byford to come and run TFL. The French are seeking assistance from other Governments in the area of security, for the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris this summer. Mark Carney, a Canadian (British and Irish citizen too) who was the Governor of the Bank of Canada from 2008 - 2013, also became the Governor of the Bank of England from 2013 - 2020.

2) Governors’ Failure

When anything goes wrong, we blame only the President. What about the Governors? Why are they never held accountable, when Section 5(2)(a) of the Constitution vests the executive powers of the States in them, just as the executive powers of the Federation are vested in the President? After all, the responsibility of Governors are simply those of the President for the Federation, replicated on a smaller scale in the States. Let me explain. When I saw the videoclip of the Kuriga School where the students were kidnapped from, I was appalled. The so-called School resembled a group of dilapidated uncompleted buildings, with one building particularly looking like a dangerous hazard, as if it can collapse at any time. How can anyone learn in such a horrible environment? While Section 18 of the Constitution sets out the Educational Objectives of Government, and Items 29 & 30 on the Concurrent Legislative List put education in the hands of the States as well, the Governors provide sub-standard education for pupils and students in their States, while their own children are trained in private institutions in Nigeria and abroad. Nobody questions them. Why? For example, former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello who was known for owing workers salaries for years, stands accused of paying a large amount of money, allegedly in excess of $700,000, to American International School, Abuja, for his children’s school fees, years in advance until their graduation. A Governor who clearly has no confidence in the educational system of the State which he runs, preferring to opt for the American system because he knows fully well that the education he is providing for the indigenes of his State, is sub-standard. If the State Governments spent the scandalous Pension packages paid to Governors and Deputies on their schools and education instead, not only will the institutions be in better physical condition complete with modern equipment and facilities, Teachers’ salaries and their conditions of service can be improved thereby attracting a better crop of Teachers and raising the standard of education, instead of continuing with the many Teachers who are unqualified and have been proven themselves to be little more than semi-illiterates, à la the Teacher who couldn’t read her age declaration certificate and was caught out by Senator Adams Oshiomhole while he was Governor of Edo State. Apart from Governor Zulum of Borno State, how many Governors have paid all their outstanding pensions to their retired workers?

Concluding Questions

Is Government just going to sit around and wait until the next kidnap extravaganza, or are they going to take proactive steps to prevent the reoccurrence of such ugly incidents? Is Government going to wait until Nigerians die of starvation as a result of the inability of Farmers to access their farms or cultivate their crops because of insecurity, before decisive action is taken against marauding criminals? What does it matter if the Herdsmen, Bandits or Insurgents that are causing all this mayhem are from Chad, Ibadan, Enugu or London, as long as they are annihilated? The issue of kidnapping and banditry in Nigeria, is totally out of hand. Terrorism and the Herdsmen forcibly grazing their cattle on people’s farmlands, is also just as bad. I ran into someone who owns a farm in Ogun State, last week. She said she hadn’t farmed in years, because the Herdsmen regularly burn the grass in her farm, so that there can be new growth for their cattle to feast on! Show me a country that is suffering from this level of insecurity, and is thriving economically! Nigerians are placing a lot of hope in the Tinubu administration, to extract the country from the worsened, weakened and highly dysfunctional state she finds herself in. The previous administration’s somewhat lukewarm lackadaisical attitude towards insecurity and corruption, must not be carried forward. onikepo braithwaite

Justiciability of Political Party’s Complaint on the Nomination Exercise of Another Political Party

Facts

The 1st Appellant together with the 3rd, 5th and 7th Respondent and 15 other candidates contested the election for the office of the Governor of Abia State that held on 18th March, 2023. The 1st Appellant contested as the candidate of the 2nd Appellant. At the end of the election, the 1st Respondent declared the 3rd Respondent, who contested as the 2nd Respondent’s candidate, as the duly elected candidate having attained the majority of lawful votes cast the election, as well as not less than one quarter of the votes cast in each of at least two thirds of the Local Government Areas in Abia State.

Dissatisfied with the declaration and return of the 3rd Respondent as the winner of the said election, the 1st Appellant who came 4th at the election with 24,091 votes, initiated a petition against the 3rd Respondent, the 5th Respondent who came 2nd with 88,529 votes and the 7th Respondent who came 3rd with 28,972 votes. The grounds of the 1st Appellant’s petition were that the 3rd, 5th and 7th Respondent were at the time of the election not qualified to contest the election, and that the 3rd Respondent was not duly elected by the majority of the lawful votes cast at the election.

At the hearing of the petition, the Appellants called three witnesses. The last two witnesses of the Appellants, testified based on a subpoena issued by the Tribunal. The Respondents however, objected to the Appellants’ application for the use of the subpoenaed witnesses’ statements, on the basis that they were not frontloaded with the Appellants’ petition, but filed later on in the course of proceedings. The 2nd and 3rd Respondent also raised preliminary objections that the Election Petition Tribunal lacked the jurisdiction to inquire into the nomination and membership of the 3rd Respondent, and that the Appellants lacked the locus standi to challenge same.

The Tribunal, in its ruling on the preliminary objections, struck out certain offending paragraphs of Appellants’ petition, and their answer to the 3rd Respondent’s reply to the petition. The Tribunal held that Ground 1 of the petition challenging the qualification of the 3rd Respondent was founded on his membership of the 2nd Respondent, over which the Tribunal had no jurisdiction. The Tribunal found that, not being members of the 2nd Respondent, the Appellants had no locus to ventilate that particular grievance.

Thereafter, in its overall decision on the merits of the Appellants’ petition, the Tribunal held that the witnesses’ statements on oath of the Appellants’ subpoenaed witnesses, not having accompanied the Appellants’ petition were incompetent. The Tribunal disregarded the said witnesses’ statements together with the exhibits referred to by them, and found that the Appellants failed to prove that the 3rd, 5th and 7th Respondent were not qualified to contest the office. The Tribunal further held that the Appellants’ equally failed to prove that the 3rd Respondent was not elected with majority of lawful votes cast at the said Governorship Election, having failed to lead evidence on the same. The Tribunal thus, dismissed the Appellants’ petition.

Aggrieved, the Appellants filed an appeal at the Court of Appeal. The Court of Appeal however, upheld the finding of the Tribunal and dismissed the Appeal. Thereafter, the Appellants filed a further appeal at the Supreme Court.

Issues for Determination

The Supreme Court considered the following issues in its determination of the appeal:

1. Whether the lower Court’s treatment of the Appellants’ appeal on the issue of competence and locus standi was correct.

2. Whether the Court of Appeal was right to conclude that the Appellants did not establish that the 3rd, 5th and 7th Respondent were not qualified to contest the election.

In the Supreme Court of Nigeria Holden at abuja

On Friday, the 12th day of January, 2024

Before their lordships

John Inyang Okoro uwani Musa abba aji

Helen Moronkeji Ogunwumiju adamu Jauro

emmanuel akomaye agim Justices, Supreme Court SC/CV/1252/2023

Between

1. HIGH CHIeF IKeCHI eMeNIKe

2. aLL PROGReSSIVe CONGReSS aPPeLLaNTS

And

1. INdePeNdeNT NaTIONaL eLeCTORaL COMMISSION

2. LaBOuR PaRTy

3. dR aLeX CHIOMa OTTI

4. PeOPLeS deMOCRaTIC PaRTy

5. CHIeF aMBROSe OKeCHuKWu aHIWe

6. yOuNG PROGReSSIVeS PaRTy

7. HON. CHIMa eNyINNaya NWaFOR ReSPONdeNTS

(Lead Judgement delivered by Honourable Uwani Musa Abba Aji, JSC)

Arguments Arguing the 1st issue, Counsel for the Appellants argued that the Court of Appeal did not determine the merits of the appeal before it, and the order of the Court of Appeal striking out the Appellants’ appeal against the ruling of the trial Tribunal on the preliminary objection against the petition was perverse as the Court of Appeal was bound by law to determine the merit of the appeal.

All the counsel for the Respondents argued in opposition that the matters presented in

“…..where the qualification of a candidate for election is predicated on the validity of his nomination by his political party vis-à-vis the provisions of the Electoral Act, it is a preelection matter which cannot be adjudicated upon by an Election Petition Tribunal“

Grounds 1 and 2 of the Notice of Appeal and issue 1 of the Appellants’ issue for determination are academic, and would serve no utilitarian benefit in the just determination of the appeal.

On the 2nd issue, Counsel for the Appellants contended that the pleadings and evidence showed that the Appellants proved on the balance of probability that the 3rd, 5th and 7th Respondent were not qualified to contest election as Governor of Abia State, because they were not validly sponsored by the 2nd, 4th and 6th Respondent by reason of their names not being on the register of members submitted by the 2nd, 4th and 6th Respondent to the 1st Respondent before their respective primary elections, in violation of Section 177(c) of the 1999 Constitution.

In response, respective Counsel for all the Respondents argued that the basis of the Appellants’ case is outside the contemplation of Section 177(c) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended). They argued further that the Court of Appeal had rightly held that the issue of membership in a political party, cannot be ventilated at an Election Petition Tribunal.

Court’s Judgement and Rationale

On the 1st issue, the Supreme Court held that where the determination of an issue in favour of a party who raised it will not affect the result of the appeal, the issue is of no value and it would be an academic and useless venture. The Court referred to its decision in OKEREKE v NWANKWO (2003) 9 NWLR Pt. 826, Pg. 592. The Court held that the trite principle of law is that an issue that is not crucial in an appeal, and which even if determined in favour of a party may not end the controversy, ought not to be formulated for determination, as it may serve no purpose even if the complaint is upheld in favour of the Appellants. The Apex Court found that even though the Court of Appeal agreed with the finding of the trial Tribunal that the grounds and paragraphs in support of the petition were incompetent, it duly considered the Appellants’ complaint on the decision of the Tribunal on the merits of the petition, when it found that the Tribunal still proceeded to determine the merits of the petition giving consideration to the averments in the paragraphs that were struck out, notwithstanding its ruling that the petition was incompetent. Therefore, contrary to the Appellants’ contention, the Court of Appeal did in fact endorse the holistic consideration of the allegation in the petition by the Tribunal. Both the Tribunal and the Court of Appeal proceeded and considered the issue of locus standi and jurisdiction to entertain the facts on which the issue of qualification was hoisted and determined the same on the merit.

Deciding the 2nd issue, the Apex Court held that although the law requires political parties to submit their register of members to the 1st Respondent thirty days before their primary elections; there is no such law in existence to the effect that a person’s membership in a party is determined by the presence of his or her name in the Register of Members submitted to the 1st Respondent before the primaries. The Apex Court endorsed the finding of the Court of Appeal that where the challenge is that the candidate was not a member of the political party and was not sponsored by the political party as its candidate in the election for Governor as required by Section 177(c) of the 1999 Constitution, it is a postelection matter; but where the qualification of a candidate for election is predicated on the validity of his nomination by his political party vis-à-vis the provisions of the Electoral Act, it is a pre-election matter which cannot be adjudicated upon by an Election Petition Tribunal.

The Apex Court upheld the findings of the Court of Appeal that it was evident, from the pleadings of the Appellants, that it was not the case of the Appellants that the 2nd Respondent did not nominate the 3rd Respondent or that the 4th and 6th Respondent did not nominate the 5th and 7th Respondent as their respective candidates at the election; their complaint was that the 2nd Respondent and the 4th and 6th Respondent could not have validly done so, because the name of the 3rd Respondent was not contained in the 2nd Respondent’s membership register submitted to the 1st Respondent thirty days before the holding of its primary election, and the names of the 5th and 7th Respondent were also not in the respective register of members submitted by the 4th and 6th Respondent. The Court held that the complaint of the Appellants was thus, a political question which is not justiciable.

Appeal Dismissed.

Representation Abubakar Malami, SAN with others for the Appellants. J. O. Adesina, SAN with others for the 1st Respondent. Tobechukwu Nweke with others for the 2nd Respondent. Omosanya Popoola with others for the 3rd Respondent. Udochi Iheneacho with others for the 4th and 5th Respondent.

C. N. Nwigwe with another for the 6th Respondent. Nnamdi Ahaaiwe with others for the 7th Respondent.

Reported by Optimum Publishers Limited, Publishers of the Nigerian Monthly Law Report (NMLR)(An affiliate of Babalakin & Co.)

Honourable Uwani Musa Abba Aji, JSC

NCC Chairman, Dr Aminu Maida

Data Protection in Legal Practice Very Important, Lawyers Reminded

Stories by Steve Aya

Lawyers have been advised to take Data Protection as a very important part of legal practice and therefore, do all they can to protect it. This view was expressed by speakers at the Nigeria Bar Association Section of Legal Practice (NBA-SLP) one-day a well-attended webinar titled ‘Data Protection in Legal Practice: The Dos and Don'ts’,

on Thursday, 28th March, 2024.

The Speakers, Mr Olumide Babalola, a Lecturer at the University of Portsmouth, and Mr Ridwan Oloyede, co-Founder of Tech Hive Advisory, said that Lawyers should understand data protection impacts on law practice, and do all they can to uphold confidentiality (attorney/client privilege), as this will create a relationship based on trust that will benefit

both parties.

They also spent time focusing on educating Lawyers, on handling client data in the digital age. Lawyers were reminded that, data protection goes beyond traditional confidentiality concerns. Olumide Babalola emphasised protecting documents from unauthorised access, theft, and even destruction. He discussed data minimisation practices, securing client consent for

Court Issues Bench Warrant Against Former Punch Employee, Others

A bench warrant against a former employee of Punch Nigeria Ltd, Olusegun Ogunbanjo and others, charged over a N950 million fraud case has been issued by an Ikeja High Court.

The trial Judge, Justice Justice Ismail Ijelu, ordered the bench warrant against Olawunmi Ogunbanjo, Vaneloo International Ltd., Valeco Global Ventures, Bagco Garba, Taofeek Ogunbanjo, Ifeanyi Odogwu, Bound Media Ltd and Godwin Benson, as well.

Ijelu made the order of arrest after the Director of Public Prosecutions, Dr Babajide Martins, prayed the court to issue a bench warrant against the Defendants following their non-appearance in court.

A Counsel, one Ms Ugochukwu, who held brief for her principal Counsel, (the first defence Counsel, Mr Charles Jiakponna), did not oppose the request, but prayed for a short adjournment for her senior colleague to be in court.

The Judge, in his ruling, said the first defendant had been served with proof of service since December 12, 2023 in which Jiakponna had been appearing as his counsel in the case. He said Jiakponna had made a passionate plea to the court in the previous proceedings to avail all the Defendants in court at the next adjournment date, but failed to do so.

According to him, a general rule in criminal proceedings is that when a Defendant is aware of criminal charges against him but wilfully stays away without a valid reason, his attendance could be secured by a bench warrant.

He said: “The law empowers the court where it is sacrosanct that the Defendant is absent without a valid reason, to issue a bench warrant against him to ensure his presence in court.

“I have considered the antecedent of this case, and I find out that the first Defendant was aware of this case, the counsel appeared for him on December 12, 2023, and told this court that he received the proof of service on his behalf.

“I, therefore, find and hold that the first Defendant is fully aware of the criminal charges against him.

“Consequently, a bench warrant is hereby issued for the arrest of the first Defendant and other Defendants in this case.”

Ijelu adjourned the case until April 30, for arraignment.

The arraignment of the Defendants on March 19 suffered a setback, due to their absence in court. The court had on February 26, 2024 overruled the objections of the first Defendant, that it lacked the jurisdiction to hear the case.

The Lagos State Government had on March 10, 2023, arraigned Ogunbanjo before a Sabo-Yaba Chief Magistrates Court for alleged N950 million fraud, and Magistrate Adeola Olatubosun, granted him bail in the sum of N10 million with two sureties in like sum, following his not guilty plea to the three-count charge of obtaining by false pretences, forgery, and stealing.

Ogunbanjo was alleged to have obtained N450 million from one Mr Olusola lkuyajesin, and N500 million from one

Mr Durodola Balogun, under false pretences of using the money to buy stationeries. He is also alleged to have forged the organisation’s Local Purchase Orders to carry out the acts, in contravention of Sections 287, 314, and 365 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.

data use, and the importance of following data retention regulations established by the Nigerian Data Protection Commission (NDPC).

Mr Babalola also spoke on the need for Lawyers to promote data minimisation, seek consent when required, understand data retention periods, include data protection considerations in letters of engagement, and demonstrate compliance with the Nigerian data protection laws (accountability), while Mr Oloyede reminded Lawyers of the need to be careful handling data due to the constant attack of sites owned by law firms.

“Law firms and other legal service providers that hold sensitive and confidential data, have increasingly faced cyber security attacks involving their clients' data and their own business information.”

Oloyede stressed the need for meticulous data handling, proper recordkeeping, and encryption for

sensitive documents. He also addressed concerns related to international data transfer and the legal implications of poor privacy practices, while urging law firms to constantly update their sites for the security and protection of the data in their possession, be it data belonging to their clients or staff.

The session featured interactive discussions on practical data protection measures. Participants learned about secure data disposal, CCTV usage with proper notification, and proactive breach prevention strategies. The importance of software updates, CCTV legalities, and potential legal actions for data breaches were also addressed.

The webinar concluded with plans for future sessions, focusing on AI and IT policies with robust privacy provisions.

The webinar received positive feedback from attendees, with many praising the speakers for

delivering an insightful and informative session. Lawyers expressed appreciation for the opportunity to learn more about their responsibilities under the NDPA, and gain practical guidance on data protection practices.

The NBA-SLP's commitment to Lawyer education on data protection, demonstrates a positive step towards a more secure legal environment in Nigeria. The high participation rate and attendee feedback, suggest a strong interest among Lawyers in staying up-to-date on data protection regulations and best practices.

The session kicked off with opening remarks from Fernandez Marcus-Obiene, Chair of the Committee, and Boma Alabi, OON, SAN, Chair of the NBA-SLP. With a total of 1,945 registrants, the session attracted a significant audience, with 746 participants joining at various times, eager to learn more about data protection in the legal field.

Court Urged to Jail NCC Boss, All Telecoms CEOs, Others, for Contempt

A Lagos Federal High Court has been asked to commit to prison, the Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) Dr Aminu Maida, and the Chief Executive Officers of the telecommunication companies in the country, for alleged disobedience to a court order that stopped them from deactivating sim cards that were not linked to National Identification Number (NIN)

A Lawyer and human rights activist, Olukoya Ogungbeje, at the resumed sitting on Wednesday, urged the court that to be committed to prison alongside Dr Maida are Mr Karl Olutokun Toriola, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, MTN Nigeria; Mr Karl Cruz, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Airtel Nigeria; Dr Micheal Adenuga Jr, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Globacom; Mr Juergen Peschel, Managing Director and Chef Executive Officer, 9 MOBILE; and Mr Gbenga Adebayo, Chairman of Association of Licensed Telecommunications

Operators of Nigeria.

It would be recalled that Justice Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa, on February 22, 2024, restrained Dr Maida, NCC, and other telecommunication service providers, from going ahead with the then-proposed deactivation and barring of sim cards that are not linked to NIN. Justice Lewis-Allagoa made the order, while delivering judgement in suit number FHC/L/CS/677/22, filed by the Lawyer against the alleged contemnors.

During the pendency of the suit, none of the alleged contemnors filed any counter or objection to the suit.

However, due to the alleged failure and refusal of all the contemnors to comply with the court’s order and judgement, Ogungbeje filed both Form 48 (notice of consequences of disobedience to court orders/ ruling) and Form 49 (notice to show cause why order of committal should not be made) before the court presided over by Justice Ibrahim Ahmad Kala, asking the court to commit the

alleged contemnors to prison, for disobeying a court order.

Ogungbeje, while moving both Form 48 and Form 49 on Wednesday, told the court that the motion is pursuant to Section 72 of the Sheriffs And Civil Process Act; Order 35 Rules 1, 2(1)(2) of the Federal High Court Civil Procedure Rule 2019; Order IX Rules 13(1)(2) of the (Judgement Enforcement) Rules; Order 26 Rule of the Federal High Court Procedure Rules 2019, and under the inherent jurisdiction of the Honourable Court Preserved By Section 6(6),(A)(B) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

The Lawyer, therefore, asked the court for the following reliefs: “a declaration that the contemnors sought to be committed are bound to obey and comply with the Court Order granted on the 22nd of February, 2024 in Suit No: FHC/L/ CS/677/2022, between Mr Olukoya Ogungbeje v Federal Government of Nigeria & Ors, against the contemnors upon

findings by this Honourable Court wherein the Court Order granted by this Honourable Court against the contemnors is still valid, subsisting and binding on the contemnors until it is set aside

“An order of this Honourable Court that ALL the contemnors SHALL be remanded, committed and incarcerated in the Nigerian Correctional Services Ikoyi Facility/prison custody until they purge themselves of contempt of court. And, For Such Order Or Orders as this Honourable Court may deem fit to make in the circumstances of this case.” Ogungbeje supported the motion with a 21 paragraphedaffidavit.

Meanwhile, after listening to the Plaintiff/Applicant, Justice Kala ordered all the alleged contemnors to appear before the court and show cause why they should not be imprisoned.

The Judge has however, adjourned the hearing of committal applications against all the alleged contemnors to April 17, 2024.

NBA-SLP Chair, Mrs Boma Alabi, SAN

CROSSFIRE!

Are Ex-Governors’ Pensions Illegal and Immoral?

For over 14 years, the controversy has raged over the dispute of whether former State Governors and their deputies are entitled to their full salaries for life as pension. Some States like akwa Ibom, Lagos and abia had surreptitiously passed such laws that entitled their former Governors to collect their full salaries for life, after their exit from office. The angst and recriminations which trailed this, prompted some human rights groups to go to court to challenge what many see as obnoxious, immoral and legally indefensible. These cases are still in court, and on appeal. But, the present Bill before the National assembly, seeking to abolish these jumbo life pensions for Governors has again, given the controversy a new life. In this Cross-Fire, Chinonye Obiagwu, SAN argues stringently that ex-Governors and their deputies are certainly not entitled to such immoral and illegal pensions. On the other hand, Dr Richard Oma Ahonaruogho, SAN counters that life pension for ex-Governors is not only legal, but that the State Houses of assembly are constitutionally empowered to make laws to guarantee life pensions to ex-Governors. This is the Cross-Fire!

Ex-Governors’ Pensions Are Illegal and Immoral

Governors’ Pension Laws: Illegal, Immoral, or Both?

Chinonye Obiagwu, SAN

Since 2010, Nigerian civil society has campaigned against the laws granting huge pension for life to Governors and their Deputies, in almost all the States. That year, following squabbles about the Akwa Ibom State Governors Pension Law, Nigerians were shocked that many States had secretly passed these laws, starting with Oyo State in 2004 and Lagos in 2007.

“….. Nigerian States spent over N130 billion as pension to former Governors and Deputy Governors, amounting to N46.4 trillion since 2010. Yet, Nigerian civil servants’ pension are contributory, and their salaries are usually unpaid for months in many States”

No, They’re Not!

Bill Stopping Payment of Pensions of Former Governors/ Deputies that are NASS Members

Dr Richard Oma Ahonaruogho, SAN

I find this Bill and the debates thereon at the National Assembly (NASS), as an unnecessary attempt to usurp the powers of the Houses of Assembly of the States to make laws, including the laws on pensions of former holders of the office of Governor and Deputy Governor of a State of the Federation.

Once a law exists for the payment of pensions of former holders of the office of Governor and Deputy Governor of a State of the Federation, the resources to implement that law is budgeted for

by the State Government and NASS has no power to legislate thereon, or to prevent the payment under the law of the State Government.

Chapter 1, Part II of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, (as amended) (hereinafter called “the Constitution”) provides for the Powers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Section 4, which is of interest to this discuss, deals with the legislative powers which are vested

CROSSFIRE!

Ex-Governors’ Pensions Are Illegal and Immoral No,They’re Not!

Bogus Pensions

The average pay-out for all former Governors and Deputy Governors under this scheme in each State is over N1.6 billion annually, and average of over N4.5 billion is used in each State to build and furnish the residential buildings for former Governors and Deputy Governors in the State capitals and in Abuja. Each year, therefore, Nigerian States spent over N130 billion as pension to former Governors and Deputy Governors, amounting to N46.4 trillion since 2010. Yet, Nigerian civil servants’ pensions are contributory, and their salaries are usually unpaid for months in many States. By 2015, almost all the States have similar laws, and in many States, nearly all former Governors and Deputies are still alive, drawing the bogus pension.

In most of the laws, such as Lagos, former Governors and their Deputies are entitled to pension for life at the rate of the full salary of the incumbent Governor or Deputy !Governor, in addition to the building expansive houses in the State capital and Abuja, at location of the person’s choice, free lifetime overseas medical treatment for all dependants and family members in any foreign country of the person’s choice, brand new SUV and escort vehicles every three years, up to 6 full-time pensionable domestic staff, 100% of salary as furniture allowance, 30% of salary as car maintenance allowance, 25% as administration allowance, 10% of salary entertainment allowance, etc.

Resistance & Legal Challenges

The resistance against the Governors’ Pension laws, is being mounted by civil society organisations through social action as an immoral bad governance law, and through legal action in court on the basis that the 1999 Constitution gives the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) the exclusive powers to set the ‘remuneration’ of public officers, including those of the Governors and

their Deputies. Therefore, a State House of Assembly has no legislative power to make such law for pension of any public officer, beyond the amount set by the Commission.

While the legal challenges continue to rage in the courts, many NGOs working on good at the State levels continue to mobilise under the Human Rights Agenda Network (HRAN), to raise public outcry against the large pensions that the former Governors allocate to themselves.

In 2014, 75 NGOs asked the Federal High Court in Abuja to determine whether pension and out-of-office allowances of a Governor and Deputy Governor constitute “remuneration” and “condition and welfare of employment” in terms of Section 32 (d) of the 3rd Schedule to the 1999 Constitution and Item 34 of the 2nd Schedule to the 1999 Constitution respectively. Section 32(d) of the Third Schedule provides that the RMAFC shall have the power to: “determine the remuneration appropriate for political office holders including the President, Vice President, Governors, Deputy Governors, Ministers, Commissioners, Special Advisers, Legislators and the holders of the offices mentioned in Section 84 and 124 of this Constitution”.

Item 34 of the Second Schedule Part 1 provides that the National Assembly shall have the exclusive legislative power in respect of “Labour ,… Conditions, Safety and welfare of Labour”.

The key legal question was that if ‘remuneration’ includes “pension” or ‘allowances’ within the meaning of Section 32 (d) of the Third Schedule to the Constitution, then the State House of Assembly lacks the legislative power

“….the National Assembly cannot validly enact a law that will interfere with the powers of the House of Assembly of any State to enact its law for pensions, gratuities and other-like benefit payable out of the Revenue of a State, so as to prevent a person who was elected into any office under the Constitution at the State level from enjoying the pensions, gratuities and other-like benefit provided for in the applicable laws of the State….”

in the National Assembly for the Federation, which consists of a Senate and a House of Representatives by virtue of Section 4 (1) and in the House of Assembly of a State of the Federation, by virtue of Section 4 (6).

The National Assembly is vested with power to make laws for the peace, order and good government of the Federation or any part thereof with respect to any matter included in the Exclusive Legislative List set out in Part I of the Second Schedule to the Constitution, to the exclusion of the Houses of Assembly of the States; and, in addition and without prejudice to the powers conferred by subsection (2) of the section, the National Assembly shall have power to make laws with respect to the following matters, namely: (a) any matter in the Concurrent Legislative List set out in the first column of Part II of the Second Schedule to the Constitution to the extent prescribed in the second column opposite thereto; and (b) any other matter with respect to which it is empowered to make laws in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution.

The Houses of Assembly of the States are vested with the power to make laws for the peace, order and good government of the State or any part thereof with respect to the following matters, (a) any matter not included in the Exclusive Legislative List set out in Part I of the Second Schedule

to the Constitution, (b) any matter included in the Concurrent Legislative List set out in the first column of Part II of the Second Schedule to the Constitution to the extent prescribed in the second column opposite thereto; and if any Law enacted by the House of Assembly of a State is inconsistent with any law validly made by the National Assembly, the law made by the National Assembly shall prevail, and that other Law shall, to the extent of the inconsistency, be void.

Item 44 on the Exclusive Legislative List provides for pensions, gratuities and other-like benefit payable out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund or any other public funds of the Federation. This, in my humble view, means that the National Assembly can enact laws to provide for the for pensions, gratuities and other-like benefit payable out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund or any other public funds of the Federation in respect of Federal Civil Servants and Public office holders, including members of the National Assembly, the Executive and indeed, the Judiciary.

It therefore follows, that the National Assembly cannot validly enact a law that will interfere with the powers of the House of Assembly of any State to enact its law for pensions, gratuities and other-like benefit payable out of the Revenue of a State, so as to prevent a person who was elected into any office under the Constitution at the State level from enjoying the pensions, gratuities and other-like benefit provided for

Cont'd on page VIII

Cont'd from page VI

CROSSFIRE!

Ex-Governors’ Pensions Are Illegal and Immoral No, They’re Not!

to make any pension law for the Governor and his Deputy, or any public officer named in the provision.

In 2019, after 5 years of adjournments, Justice Mohammed of the Federal High Court ruled that the suit ought to be have been filed at the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, and transferred the suit there. At the same time, a similar case was instituted by the then Attorney-General of Adamawa State challenging the legality of the Adamawa State Governors’ Pension Law passed in the previous regime of the State House of Assembly. This was the case of Mr Bala Ngilari v Adamawa State Government Suit No NICN/ABJ/356/2015. Both the NGOs case and the Adamawa case, were decided together in 2020. The President of the National Industrial Court, Kanyip J, dismissed both suits, and held that the pension and allowances of former Governors or their Deputies do not form part of their remuneration, because remuneration only covers salaries and allowances of a public officers while he is in office, while pension refers to payment made when the person is out of office. The court further held that the RMAFC’s mandate only covers remuneration of public officers while they are still in office. In other words, the pension that a public office holder is to earn upon his retirement or leaving office, is not part of the remuneration of that officer upon employment or assuming office, and thus, does not fall within the jurisdiction of RMAFC. The State

Governors’ pension laws are therefore, valid, according to his Lordship, who stated, to our utter shock, as follows: “… the Claimants’ case is that the 1999 Constitution gave the 74th Defendant, that is, the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) the exclusive power to set the remuneration of Governors and Deputy Governors, and that pension is part of the remuneration of public officials. Therefore, any law especially by the State Houses of Assembly that stipulates pension of such public officials already covered by the constitutional mandate of the RMAFC is ultra vires, null and void. The question, therefore, arises whether pension is part of remuneration as the Claimants argue. We cannot answer this question, unless we first understand what ‘remuneration’ and ‘pension’ mean. The New Oxford American Dictionary defines remuneration as ‘money paid for work or a service’ and the Thesaurus gives the alternate words to be ‘payment, pay, salary, wages, earnings, fee(s), rewards, compensation, recompense, reimbursement, contingency, fee, formal emolument(s). The same Dictionary defines pension as ‘a regular payment made during a person’s retirement from an invest-

“Pensions and gratuities, are earned. Once there is no law preventing a person from aspiring to serve at more than one level of the three tiers of government - Federal, State and Local Government, any law made to interfere with earned pensions and gratuities, will not be a law validly made”

in the applicable laws of the State, which that person had earned by reason of having been first elected at the State level, from subsequently enjoying salaries, benefits, entitlements and other perquisites of office by reason of a subsequent election into any office under the Constitution at the Federal level. The National Assembly does not have any such power and any such law will be a misadventure, and a State Government will be within her rights to gladly ignore any such law and or to challenge it in court.

If for example, Richard Oma Ahonaruogho, SAN was elected into the House of Assembly of Delta State and served as the Right Honourable Mr Speaker; he completed his tenure in that behalf, he will be entitled to benefit from the law for pensions, gratuities and other-like benefits payable out of the Revenue fund of Delta State applicable to the Office of Mr Speaker. Now, the same Richard Oma Ahonaruogho SAN is now elected into the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, he will in addition to receiving his earned pension from the Delta State Government, be entitled to all his salaries, benefits and entitlements together with the perquisites of office as a Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria!

Pensions and gratuities, are earned. Once there is no law preventing a person from aspiring to serve at more than one level of the

three tiers of government - Federal, State and Local Government, any law made to interfere with earned pensions and gratuities, will not be a law validly made.

The cases of former Governors and Deputy Governors who have been elected into the National Assembly, should be no different. The electorates knew that they had served as Governors and Deputy Governors before electing them into the National Assembly, and they should not be unnecessary or unduly stigmatised.

Lastly, it must be remembered that Section 4(8) of the Constitution has expressly removed the powers of the Legislature to oust the jurisdiction of the courts or judicial tribunal from inquiring into the validity of any law passed by the National Assembly or by a House of Assembly, in the following terms –

“Save as otherwise provided by this Constitution, the exercise of legislative powers by the National Assembly or by a House of Assembly shall be subject to the jurisdiction of courts of law and of judicial tribunals established by law, and accordingly, the National Assembly or a House of Assembly shall not enact any law, that ousts or purports to oust the jurisdiction of a court of law or of a judicial tribunal established by law”.

Dr Richard Oma Ahonaruogho, SAN

Cont'd from pageVII

CROSSFIRE!

Ex-Governors’ Pensions Are Illegal and Immoral

ment fund to which the person or their employer has contributed during their working life; a regular payment made by the government to people of or above the official retirement age and to some widows and disabled people’. And the Thesaurus gives the alternate words to be ‘retirement benefits, superannuation, social security, allowance, benefit, support, welfare. … the term pension is payment a person receives upon retirement, usually under pre-determined legal or contractual terms’. A global look at these definitions will show that pension and remuneration are not one and the same, as to make pension part of remuneration as argued by the Claimants. While remuneration relates to payments made while in employment, pension relates to payments made while in retirement. So, if by the 1999 Constitution the RMAFC has power to fix remuneration (without pension being specifically mentioned), it cannot be said that that power include that of fixing pension. Section 124(1) of the 1999 Constitution, which empowers the RMAFC to fix remuneration of constitutional office holders actually talks of ‘salaries and allowances’. The section provides thus: ‘There shall be paid to the holders of the offices mentioned in this section such salaries and allowances as may be prescribed by a House of Assembly but not exceeding the amount as shall have been determined by the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission’. It must be noted that the power of RMAFC under Section 124(1) is one that relates to ‘salaries and allowances’. Pension is not mentioned at all, and the ‘salaries and allowances’ talked of are those ‘paid to the holders of the offices mentioned in this section’. Section 124(4) then lists the offices including Governor and Deputy Governor (not former Governors and former Deputy Governors). It is paragraph 32(d) of Part 1 of the Third Schedule to the 1999 Constitution that mentions the word ‘remuneration’. It provides that the RMAFC shall have power to: (d) determine the remuneration appropriate for political office holders, including the President, Vice-President, Governors, Deputy Governors, Ministers, Commissioners, Special Advisers, Legislators and the holders of the offices mentioned in Sections 84 and 124 of the Constitution.’ The question that, therefore arises, is whether a Governor or Deputy Governor who left office is a holder of the office of Governor or Deputy Governor, as the case may be. The answer must be a resounding NO.”

This decision of the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, appears to have turn the interpretation of relevant terms on its head, by relying on whether the public officer is still in office and if he is no longer in office, then the remuneration mentioned in Section 124(1) does not apply to him. In other words, the court is saying that when a public officer is employed or gets into office, the pension he will receive on retirement or on leaving office is not part of the remuneration of that

office. That interpretation, is with respect, overstretched.

The attention of the court in the NGO’s case was drawn to an earlier decision of the Court of Appeal of 20th May, 2019 in Appeal No CA/A/810/2017, in which the Court decried the situation where ‘despite the huge monthly perquisites of office and opulence of political office holders, and the fact that, in contrast, civil servants who are subjected to contributory pension schemes with many others are not even paid their pension, political office holders who did not work as long and hard as civil servants quickly get paid huge severance benefits upon leaving office’.

Clearly, the governance logic of huge pension and allowances to former Governors and Deputy Governors is a clear manifestation of the corrupt political practices in the country. There have been attempts to extend the Governors’ pension laws to other public officers including Legislators (as in Lagos in 2019) and to spouses of Governors and Deputy Governors (as in Taraba in 2022).

There is no basis in law and also in political morality, for a Governor or his Deputy who served for only 4 or 8 years, to receive pension that its value is more than the remuneration of the incumbent. In some States, there are so many former Governors and Deputy Governors who are still alive and therefore, entitled to the huge pension. It is worrisome how the States’ resources will be funnelled every month to this extravagance.

It is important that the courts seriously

“In some States, there are so many former Governors and Deputy Governors who are still alive and therefore, entitled to the huge pension. It is worrisome how the States’ resources will be funnelled every month to this extravagance”

consider their roles in the Nigerian society, as truly the last hope of the common man. Where the court will validate a law or system that impoverishes the ordinary people at the detriment of the rich political office holders, who have already been living in opulence, and while in office were entitled to huge security votes, which are not accounted for, will leave office, and most time, assume other offices such as in the Senate or Ministerial appointments, and yet collect huge pension from the States, is a system that calls for the courts’ positive and fair intervention, and not for the court to use semantics to justify such impunity.

Such positive role of the court was demonstrated in the case of Alhaji Garba Umar v Taraba State Government unreported Suit No NICN/JJOS/26/2016, delivered on December 9, 2019 judgement of Amadi J (as he then was) at the National Industrial Court of Nigeria Jos division, in which the Taraba State Governors and Deputy Governors’ Pension Law 2015 was considered. The Applicant in that case, brought the action to claim entitlements under the Pension Law for being the Acting Governor of Taraba State for a short period of time. The Applicant, Alhaji Garba Umar had occupied the office of Deputy Governor, after the erstwhile Deputy Governor, Alhaji Sani Abubakar Danladi was impeached, and then became Acting Governor after the substantive Governor had an aircraft accident. But, in a challenge by the erstwhile Deputy Governor, the Supreme Court in Alhaji Sani Abubakar Danladi v Bar Nasiru Audu Dangiri & 6 others (Appeal No. SC416/2013), the judgement delivered on November 21 2014, nullified the purported impeachment of the erstwhile Deputy Governor and ordered his reinstatement as the Deputy Governor of the State, and hence, the Acting Governor, given the ailing Governor’s inability to resume work. Consequently, Alhaji Garba Umar vacated office following the said Supreme Court judgement on November 21 2014. Out of office, he then claimed at the National Industrial Court of Nigeria that by virtue of the Taraba State Governor and Deputy Governor’s Pension Law 2015, he was entitled to gratuity and other entitlements (post-tenure benefits) for being the Acting Governor. Even though in the case the legality of the Taraba State Pension law was not raised by any of the parties including the counter-claim of the State Government,

his Lordship, now Justice of the Court of Appeal, raised the issue suo muto as to the legality of the State Governor and Deputy Governor’s Pension Laws. In determining the constitutional validity of the 2015 Taraba State Pension Law, his Lordship stated that ‘remuneration’ is the same as pension, or that pension of a public officer is part of his remuneration. And then given item 44 in the Exclusive Legislative list, ordinarily, the implication is that only the National Assembly has the legislative powers to make laws on matters associated with Pensions and other rewards to Public officers.

In his subsequent judgement in the NGO case referred to above, the President of the NICN, Kanyip J, tried not only to distinguish the Taraba Pension case, but to sit on appeal over the judgement of his learned brother, Amadi J. His lordship, in dismissing the decision in the Taraba Pension case as being without legal reason, taunted that “his Lordship (referring to Amadi J) would use the word ‘ordinarily’ means that his Lordship acknowledges that the National Assembly is not the only body with legislative powers to make laws on matters associated with pensions and other rewards of public officers.

Conclusion

We respectfully opine that State Houses of Assembly have no powers to legislate on any matter in the exclusive legislative list, and if under concurrent list, cannot legislate on such matter if there is already an enactment by the National Assembly. This is the principle of covering the field. Thus, even if the National Assembly and the State Houses of Assembly share the legislative powers over pensions, (which is not the case, in our view), the State Assemblies will not be permitted to legislate on the same matter, in so far as there is already a legislation by the National Assembly. This is the principle of covering the field, which has been given stamp of authority in many decisions of the Supreme Court. It is appropriate for the State Houses of Assembly to re-consider, for purpose of repealing, the Governors and Deputy Governors’ pension laws in their States, and to save the States from the greed and avarice of these over recycled political office holders, who continue to bleed this county dry for their own personal interests and enrichment.

Chino Edmund Obiagwu, SAN, Lead Counsel, Legal Defence & Assistance Project, and Chairman, Human Rights Agenda

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The Independence of the Judiciary in a Democratic Dispensation (Part 5)

Introduction

In our last discourse, we considered the notion of political independence in the judicial process, and the imperatives of insulating the Judiciary from such pressures. We also took a look at the importance of economic/fiscal and intellectual independence for Judges, as well as how to sanitise the process of their appointment. This week, we shall continue and conclude the process of appointment and then move on to the training and re-training of Judges, and the role and importance of the rule of law in a democracy.

Appointment

By virtue of Sections 250(3), 256(3) and 271(3) Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999, a person shall not be qualified to hold office of Chief Judge or a Judge of the Federal High Court, Chief Judge or a Judge of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory and a Judge of a High Court of a State, respectively:

“Unless he is qualified to practice as legal practitioner in Nigeria, and has been so qualified for a period of not less than ten years”.

We are not really concerned here, about the procedure for appointment of High Court judges. What has threatened the system with collapse is the bare assumption in these constitutional provisions that tends to imply that once a person has spent ten years on earth since he/she was called to the Bar, the person automatically has all the intellectual capability to be appointed a Judge.

More than anything else, judicial incompetence (encompassing law intellectually, law productively etc) has contributed to rob the Judiciary of the necessary intellectual freedom it needs to assert and guard its independence. According to Schewart:

“The quality of justice….depends more upon the quality of the men who administer the law then on the content of the law they administer.” 41

In his keynote address at the recent Bar Conference at Enugu, Chief Afe Babalola, SAN, observed on the constitutional qualification for appointment as a Judge as follows:

“This allows great latitude for the appointment of ‘any Lawyer’ who has met the ten years requirement, regardless of where he is prior to his appointment. This explains why a new wig from the Nigerian Law School who, immediately after his call (and probably Youth Service) went straight to work in a company, multinationals and the life without any experience whatsoever in practice could be and are being appointed as High Court Judge”.

At the swearing in of the new Senior Advocates of Nigeria on Monday, September 8, 2003, the Honourable Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Chief Akin Olujinmi, SAN hinted that more stringent criteria for appointment of Judges would be introduced. According to the then Chief Law Officer of the Federation:

“We will propose that only those who can furnish evidence of contentious cases they handled in the Supreme Court, Court of Appeal and the High Court within, say, three years preceding their application should be considered for appointment. By so doing, it will be possible to select only seasoned practitioners to occupy positions on the Bench”.

The plan is absolutely welcome! It has been suggested that the list of proposed Judges should be made public, to enable members of the public who know the prospective Judges to object to a

proposal with ‘proven documents’. Our only concern here, is the yard stick for determining the competence of lower court Magistrates and Area Courts who do not practice law. We suggest that a certain number of highly contentious cases they handled with analytical judgements delivered therein, be used as a yardstick.

Training and Re-Training

Also critical to the issue of intellectual independence of the Judiciary, is the assurance of training and continued training. This because the National Judicial Institute (NJI) takes the issue of continued judicial training even more seriously, the high toll on the nation as a result of the blunders of ignorant Judges can only be imagined. It manifests in the erosion of public confidence in the Judiciary. As Professor Oluyede rightly observed.

“A gullible public is too ready to jump to the wrong conclusion that a bad judgement delivered by an innocuous Judge who has done little or no research, must have been influenced by an overbearing Executive” .

in his recently published “Agenda for Justice Sector Reform”, the Honourable Attorney-General of the Federation hinted at plans to make constitutional provisions for an independent body to be known as, Judicial Performance Commission to monitor the work and activities of the entire judicial system. This plan is in the right direction, because it has the potential to improve the depth of

“…. it is indubitable that democracy without rule of law is tantamount to wholesale arbitrariness”

intellectual independence of Judiciary and ultimately, to enhance the realisation of an independent and impartial Judiciary.

The Rule of Law

The rule of law means ‘the absolute supremacy or predominance of regular law, as opposed to the influence of arbitrary power. It excludes the existence of arbitrariness, or prerogative or even discretionary authority on the part of government. According to A.V. Dicey, renowned cerebral Professor of English Law, we must be ruled by law and law alone. He went further to categorise the doctrine into three aspects. The first aspect, according to him, means.

“The absolute supremacy or predominance of regular law as opposed to the influence of arbitrary power, and excludes the existence of arbitrariness, or prerogative or even of wide discretionary authority on the part of government..”

The second of aspect of Dicey’s theory may be summarised as meaning “equality before the law”, and that law is no respecter of person, rank or status. He wrote thus:

“Equality before the law, or the equal subjection of all classes to the ordinary law of the land administered by the ordinary law courts; the rule of law in this sense excludes the idea of any exemption of officials or others from the duty of obedience to the law which governs other citizens or from the jurisdiction of the ordinary tribunals”.

Finally, the third meaning of the rule of law, according to Dicey, is expressed as follows:

“a formula for expressing the fact that with us the law of the constitution, the rules which in foreign countries naturally form part of a constitutional code, are not the source, but the consequence of the rights of individuals as defined and enforced by the courts”.

The rule of law thus, envisages the existence of the constitution or some sort of law which shall be bestowed with absolute supremacy overall persons, whether governor

or governed. The Supreme Court of Nigeria, in simple prosaic terms, expressed this doctrine in the case of Governor of Lagos State v Ojukwu when it held that:

“The law is no respecter of persons, principalities, governments or powers and the courts stand between the citizens and the government alert to see that the state or government is bound by law and respects the law”.

The Role of the Rule of Law in a Democratic Setting

In our contemporary world, the term “Rule of law” is now a convenient short hand for the full complement of our civil and political rights. That term now denotes the minimum condition of existence in a free, open, humane, civilised and democratic society. It encompasses the following:

a. The supremacy of the law including judicial decisions over all persons and authority in a State

b. The supremacy of the Constitution

c. Independence of the Judiciary

d. The right to personal liberty

e. Observance of democratic values and practices including’ the freedom of speech, thought, association and the press and regular, free and fair elections as the basis for assuming power in government.

Democracy, which is the indispensable Siamese twin of the rule, is based on two key principles:

i. Popular control over collective decision making and decision makers; and

ii. An equal right to share in the control, that is, political equality.

However, those key principles require in the modern State, a distinctive set of social components for their realisation. They are:

a. Free and fair elections, to provide the platform for popular control over government;

b. Open and accountable government, guaranteeing continuous public accountability;

c. Sanctity of the rule of law, upheld by independent courts;

d. Civil and political rights and freedoms, enabling citizens to associate freely with others, to express divergent or unpopular views and to find their own solutions to collective problems;

e. A democratic society, or societal conditions for democracy:

• Agreement on nationhood within the current national or state boundaries.

• Independent and accountable institutions of civil society.

• A democratic culture.

From the above, it is indubitable that democracy without rule of law is tantamount to wholesale arbitrariness. This much was admirably captured by Professor Nwabueze when he subjected the concepts of constitutional democracy and arbitrary rule to considerable thoughts. According to him:

“Constitutional government recognises the necessity for government, but insists upon a limitation being placed upon its powers. It connotes in essence therefore, a limitation on government; it is the antithesis of arbitrary rule, its opposite is despotic government, the government of will instead of law”.

In Nwabueze’s view, a constitutional, popular government connotes not just a government under constitution, but rather government under a constitution which has force of a supreme, overriding law, and which imposes limitations upon it. He went further to conclude that, “in practical terms, constitutionalism, democracy and the rule of law are practised in a country where the government is genuinely accountable to an entity or organ distinct from itself, where elections are freely held on a wide franchise at frequent intervals, where political groups are free to organise in opposition to the government in office, and where there are effective legal guarantees of fundamental civil liberties enforced by an independent Judiciary”.

THOUGHT FOR THE WERK

“The judicial wheel is rounded with equality, oiled with honour and functions smoothly with honesty – principally when both members of the Bench and Bar shoulder their responsibilities seriously”. (Munindra Misra)

Chief Justice of nigeria, Hon. Justice olukayode ariwoola

L-R: Chief Legal and Regulatory Affairs Officer, Airtel Nigeria, Shola Adeyemi; Group Chief Executive Officer, (GCEO)-designate, Airtel Africa, Sunil Taldar; Chairman, Airtel, Sunil Bharti Mittal; Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani; GCEO, Airtel Africa, Dr. Segun Ogunsanya; CEO, Airtel Nigeria, Carl Cruz; and Director, Corporate Communications and CSR, Airtel Nigeria, Femi Adeniran, during the Airtel Team meeting with the minister in Abuja...recently

Gubernatorial aspirant on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ondo State, Chief Sola Ebiseni (right), receiving Clearance Certificate from the Chairman of the state Gubernatorial Election Screening Committee and former Governor of Ebonyi State, Sam Egwu (left), ahead of the Ondo State gubernatorial election, held in Abuja...recently

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L-R: Chief Medical Director (CMD), LASUTH, Prof Adetokunbo Fabanwa; Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Fayoade Adegoke; and his wife, Kemi Adegoke, during commissioner’s courtesy visit to the CMD of LASUTH in Lagos...recently

L-R: Country Marketing Manager, ALX Nigeria, Seun Babajide-Duroshola; Country General Manager, ALX Nigeria, Ruby Igwe; Commissioner for Youth and Sports, Enugu State, Lloyd Ekweremadu; and Partnerships and Sponsorships Lead, ALX Nigeria, Adebimpe Odulana, during the press conference to announce the partnership between ALX Nigeria and Enugu State Government in Enugu...recently

Acting Chief Medical Director, Army Command and NAOWA Hospital Abuja, Brigadier General I.A Enwochola (left), receiving a souvenir from the Director-General of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), BrigadierGeneral Yusuf Ahmed, when the former paid a visit to the NYSC National Directorate headquarters, Maitama, Abuja...recently

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Asharami Synergy's Quest for Cleaner Energy, Environmental Sustainability

In its quest for cleaner energy, Chiemelie Ezeobi writes that Asharami Synergy, a leading Sahara Group Downstream Company, recently reiterated its dedication for environmental sustainability in Nigeria’s downstream operations across the sector’s value chain. At last week's 2024 Customers Forum, it partnered the Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, NMDPRA to educate its customers on delivering exceptional fuel solutions responsibly

In compliance with the provision of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021 which limits the sulphur content in Gasoil/Diesel to 50ppm (parts per million), Asharami Synergy boasts of being one of the energy companies that are spearheading the quest for environmental sustainability in Nigeria’s downstream operations across the sector’s value chain.

The company has since this year commenced the supply of low sulphur fuels in line with the Afri-5 specifications prescribed by African Refiners and Distributors Association (ARDA), which is also in compliance with the provision of the PIA 2021.

Reiterating its commitment to promoting the adoption of cleaner fuels in the sector, Asharami Synergy, a leading Sahara Group Downstream Company, has been working in collaboration with regulatory authorities and delivering exceptional fuel solutions responsibly.

Spearheading Quest for Environmental Sustainability

Speaking at Asharami Synergy 2024 Customer Forum last week, Managing Director, Foluso Sobanjo said the company remained dedicated to spearheading the quest for environmental sustainability in Nigeria’s downstream operations across the sector’s value chain.

Sobanjo told the company’s customers that Asharami was delighted to serve as their preferred energy solutions provider, adding that Asharami had since commenced the supply of low sulphur fuels in line with the Afri-5 specifications prescribed by African Refiners and Distributors Association (ARDA) and in compliance with the provision of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021 which limits the sulphur content in Gasoil/Diesel to 50ppm (parts per million).

He said: "Given our track record of transparency, integrity, and service excellence in the sector, we are using this forum to keep our esteemed customers abreast of new developments in the sector, especially the switch to the AFRI-5 low-sulphur specification which makes diesel appear lighter.

"This does not reduce the quality or performance of the product as all parameters remain the same as specified by the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON)."

NMDPRA's Stamp of Approval

Also speaking at the forum, Engr. Oluwakayode Oyegoke, Head, Distribution System Storage Infrastructure, Lagos SW, Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), reassured the public that the new directive would help reduce pollution and promote the well-being of Nigerians.

He stated: “The NMDPRA would like to commend Asharami Synergy for providing this platform to help create more awareness and educate the buying public about the new fuel specifications. The Authority would also like to assure all stakeholders that the products in circulation meet all requirements for safety, quality, and environmental sustainability.

"The industry is evolving, and we have to move with the world towards cleaner energy. Economically, the transition to low-Sulphur fuels can attract investment, create jobs, and reduce the country’s carbon footprint.”

In an interview afterwards, Oyegoke, emphasised the importance of reducing pollution and promoting public health through such initiatives.

He said: "When up have cleaner fuel, the environment is healthy, we have healthy living, and we are more productive.

We will spend less time on sick bed, we will spend less time treating illness, so we

are able to be more productive.

"Remember I reiterated that all African countries or ECOWAS countries had agreed that we implement the AFRI-5 and so, we want to fully implement it as stated in the PIA. Henceforth, every product that comes will meet that specification of (50 Part Per Million Sulphur contents). This is because Sulphur pollutes the environment. So, with less Sulphur, we have less emission and cleaner fuel."

Leveraging Sahara's Global Footprint, Strategic Investment

Chief Marketing Officer, Asharami Synergy, Adeoti Onabolu, while speaking, said Asharami leverages Sahara Group’s global footprint and strategic investments to deliver exceptional fuel solutions and expand its operations across sub-Saharan Africa.

She said Asharami Synergy’s vertically integrated downstream business encompasses the entire value chain from top quality product sourcing to the final sales to the end consumers.

“We build, own, operate, maintain, and manage multiple storage facilities across several locations to the best international standards and manage an efficient, safe, and technology-driven logistics and supply operation via vessels, trucks, pipeline and rail to ensure product integrity and safety.

Our International Standards Organisation (ISO) certifications reinforce Asharami’s distinctive mark of service excellence, quality, safety, innovation, and environmental sustainability,” she said.

Asharami Synergy’s ISO certifications include the Quality Management System (QMS) ISO 9001:2015,

Environmental Management System (EMS) ISO 14001:2015 and Occupational Health and Safety Management System (OHSAS) ISO 45001:2018.

Commitment to Driving Quality

The company’s Chief Operating Officer, Adekanmi Adesola said Asharami commits to driving product quality and availability, competitive pricing, and service excellence as it continues to work with customers to co-create value responsibly.

Where Customer is King

If the 2024 forum was anything to go by, it was obvious that Asharami Energy has been treating its teeming customers with premium service.

At the Radisson Blu in Ikeja, Lagos, where the event held, the customers were not just fed with the necessary product information, but were also bombarded with gifts.

On the need to carry its customers along to educate them on the new cleaner fuel they were distributing, Onabolu also commended the company’s customers for their patronage, stating that “serving you is a privilege we hold dear, and your satisfaction is the ultimate success factor and motivation for us to diligently and unceasingly work towards bringing energy to your lives and businesses responsibly".

In an interview with THISDAY after the forum, Alhaji Ismail Abodurin from El-Alan Construction Company shared insights from the customer's perspective.

He commended Asharami Synergy for their efforts in introducing cleaner energy solutions and highlighted the positive impact of these products on both equipment lifespan and environmental emissions.

Another customer commended the company for enlightening them about the product, its impact of the new products in the environment

The industry is evolving, and we have to move with the world towards cleaner energy. Economically, the transition to low-Sulphur fuels can attract investment, create jobs, and reduce the country’s carbon footprint

as it gives no or little emissions into the environment. "The session was nice, how I wish other products suppliers can emulate Asharami Synergy".

Adesola also stated that in promoting cleaner energy solutions, the forum aimed to educate participants, including clients and industry stakeholders, about the latest specifications and regulations for Automotive Gas Oil (AGO), noting that the transparent approach reflects Asharami Synergy's commitment to customer satisfaction and continuous improvement.

Expressing satisfaction in the positive response from customers and end-users, the MD in an interview with THISDAY afterwards, noted that informed acceptance of these changes is crucial for industry-wide progress.

He said: "Today, we decided to listen to our customers and we also decided to bring to their notice, the new development in the industry. Regarding the PIA that was passed in 2021, the inherent implementations for the product specification for diesel in our country.

"It has been seamless, but trying to change the perception of what people were used to, was part of why we needed to have this forum where we brought the regulator, and also a qualified chemist, to come and explain to people, because people are used to a certain characteristics, color of diesel.

"The take home is that at least the customers and the end users are well informed that we are bringing energy responsibly and driving the issue of cleaner fuel in Nigeria. When the customer is well informed and accepts it, we hope that they will go and educate other people and citizens.

"We have been doing this for the last three months, bringing cleaner fuel, and our prices have been so far competitive and it won't have a major effect on the prices," he assured.

As the partnership between Asharami Synergy, regulatory authorities, and customers underscores collective effort towards achieving cleaner energy and sustainable development in Nigeria's downstream sector, it evolves the industry and paves way for economic growth, job creation, and reduced carbon emissions

L-R: Chief Operating Officer, Asharami Synergy, Adekanmi Adesola; Senior Regulatory Officer, Distribution System Storage Infrastructure, Lagos SW, Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Abisala Faniran; Head, Distribution System Storage Infrastructure, Lagos SW, NMDPRA, Engr. Oluwakayode Oyegoke; Chief Marketing Officer, Asharami Synergy Adeoti Onabolu; and Managing Director, Asharami Synergy, Foluso Sobanjo at the Asharami Synergy 2024 Customer Forum in Lagos

Providing Relief to the Underprivileged

As Nigeria’s economy continues to bite harder and more people are continually thrown at the bottom of the poverty pyramid, Sunday Ehigiator who recently attended the ‘Ramadan Lecture and N200 Million Fund Raising’ event, held by the ‘Sisters in The Deen Foundation Orphanage’, writes on how the foundation has been providing succour to the underprivileged

With the current inflation rate now over 30 per cent and a currency in freefall, Nigeria is facing one of its worst economic crises in years, provoking nationwide outrage as hunger is now on rouge in the country.

Amidst all these, the ‘Sisters in Deen Foundation (SIDF)’ has remained a beacon of hope and a nurturing ground to the less privileged, especially orphans, as they now seek to acquire a bigger space, to widen the number of children in their care.

The ‘Sisters in Deen Foundation’

The foundation consists of a group of wellmeaning pragmatic Muslim women desiring to make a difference in society by supporting vulnerable youths, most especially orphans.

According to the Secretary of the Foundation, Fatima Bakare Monguno, “Sisters in the Deen is a foundation set up to take care of orphans and vulnerable children in society.

“The foundation began from a WhatsApp group, and we started with visiting orphanages during Ramadan. Later, we decided to open an orphanage also. So, 11 of us came together from different walks of life to set it up with our monthly commitments before going to register at Alausa.

“We established the orphanage out of the need, which was lacking in society. For example, we only had one Muslim orphanage we were opening, so we saw it was very compelling to at least have another Muslim orphanage, and that was why we established the orphanage.

“We have our home here in Ogba, and it has been there for 2 years. The home was donated to us by one of our trustees for a couple of years, but it has become small for us right now because we have growing boys and girls most of whom are now teenagers. Hence, we embarked on this fundraising event to solicit support from all well-meaning Nigerians.”

The fundraising event

In the spirit of Ramadan, on Saturday, March 16, dignitaries converged at the Ifako-Ijaye Local Government Headquarters in Lagos to raise funds to the tune of N200 million for the continuation of the good works of the ‘Sister in the Deen Foundation Orphanage’, just as a lecture was held by Guest Lecturer, Sheikh Muhammadu Taofik Akeugbagold, to further position humanity to seek peace in all ramifications.

Dignitaries and members of the initiative, who were present at the event, included the Chairman of the Board of Trustees (BOT), Prof. Fatima AbdulKareem; President, Dr. Nurat Akinlabi-Babalola; Vice President, Hajia Binta Adisa; Secretary, Hajia Fatimah Monguno; Welfare Secretary, Hajia Basirat Oladosu; and the Treasurer, Hajia Abisola Aminat Dina.

Others include the Chairman of the Occasion/ Group Managing Director, Courteville Business Solution Plc, Alhaji Ismail Adebola Akindele, represented by Alhaji AbdulAzeez Adewale Abdullahi; Guest Lecturer, Sheikh Muhammadu Taofik Akeugbagold; Alhaji Kamorudeen Oladesu; Alhaji Olori Aje and Hajia Yinka Kareem, among others.

Need to simplify processes of adopting a child

In his speech, Chairman of the Occasion, Alhaji Ismail Adebola Akindele, who is also the Group Managing Director of Courteville Business Solution Plc, Lagos, expressed delight in the programmes and activities of the organisation, while also speaking on the need to address every bottleneck discouraging citizens from adopting a child in Nigeria.

Represented by the Chief Strategist and Head of Risk Management of Courteville Business Solution Plc, Alhaji AbulAzeez Adewale Abdullahi, the Chairman said, “What we are doing here today is to support what ‘Sisters in the Deen’ is doing to take the vulnerable in the community away and support them to become someone or something very useful to the society and this is why this programme is ongoing here today.

“People have this notion of the process of adopting a child; seems to be difficult, seems to be tight and some are very afraid to go into that because of some kind of issues that come afterwards.

“So, we think that if Sisters in the Deen can come together, bring up processes that will be seamless and easy, we have more capable Muslims that can adopt the children and help them reduce their burden at the same time to do a lot for the society.”

He said, “Currently we do not have many Islamic bodies that are into orphanage homes, adoption of children, taking care of the less privileged apart from the Bab-Salam at Ikeja GRA.

“So, I commend the organisers for what they are doing and they should come more prominent to let people know about them. There are lots of people, Muslims that want to be part of a success like this. They should reach out more, align with some organisations that could be of help in having this as a reality.”

Establishing a peaceful society

Speaking on the topic, ‘Establishing a Peaceful Society: A Compulsory Duty of All Muslims’, Oyo State bases guest lecturer, at the lecture themed, ‘Expansion for Greater Positive Impact’, Sheikh Taofeek Akeugbagold, harped on the need for the Muslims to unite with every member of the society and stop finding faults or make enmity against one another.

He listed four ways to achieve peace in society including love, the spirit of forgiveness, justice and respect for human dignity.

According to him, “There are 4 things required to attain peace. The first thing is love. Until you love your neighbours as you love yourself, you cannot have peace. Love the Christians in your house. love to the traditional religion practitioners in your environment as you love yourself even though you have no business together.

“One of the major problems of Islam in Yoruba land is the misinterpretation of verses of the Holy Quran. Some prophets existed during the war era., just as some existed after the war era.

“Just like a war commander, if those that existed during the war era want to address their subordinates when going to war, he doesn't talk peace. He speaks about war and killings. But those that existed when there were no longer wars were also recorded by the Holy Quran. But here in Yoruba land, they misrepresent both.

“They referenced the ones for war during peaceful periods, instead of the ones that

existed during peaceful periods. This cannot work.

“As a good Islamic student, it's not everything the Alpha teaches you that you should follow. Learn to sieve out messages that you don't feel comfortable with, especially when they are not in line with the true Islamic teachings and doctrines. Learn to read your Quran and learn the truth yourself. Islam does not teach us to be foolish.

“The second thing needed to attain peace is to have a sense of forgiveness. We must learn to forgive irrespective of who offends us without retaliation. However, there must also be justice, which is the third thing needed to attain peace.

“We must not say because we want to forgive someone and then allow justice to suffer. If every offender evades justice, there will be more crime in society. Offenders must first be made to realise their mistake and make them face the consequences according to the law of the land before you can then forgive them.

“The fourth and last thing needed to attain peace is respect for human dignity. We must respect each other. Christians should respect Muslims and their religion, and Muslims should likewise do the same. People in the same community must learn to respect one another if they want to coexist.”

Appreciating the orphanage home, the Sheikh said, the effort of ‘Sisters in the Deen Foundation’ was one of the duties that Muslims of Nigeria had reneged from carrying out but which the NGO has now taken up to do.

He therefore urged the rich among the faithful to invest in uplifting the orphans and the less privileged being done by the organisation as, according to him, “they will be leaders of tomorrow”.

President’s remark

In her remark, the President, ‘Sisters in The Deen Orphanage Foundation’, Dr. Nurat AkinlabiBabalola, described the project being raised money for as one that is divine.

According to her, “Sisters in the Deen Foundation was established in 2021. Allah has blessed the efforts, and the foundation is full, our children are grown teenagers now, both boys and girls, and there is a need for us to separate them in line with the Sharia standard.

“So we need to move them to a more genderspecific accommodation, and that was what birthed this quest for fundraising, 'Expansion for Greater Positive Heart'. For every organisation, you have your short-term goal, medium, and long-term goal.

“We have already fulfilled our short-term goal while we established the foundation at its current

Amidst all these, the ‘Sisters in Deen Foundation (SIDF)’ has remained a beacon of hope and a nurturing ground to the less privileged, especially orphans, as they now seek to acquire a bigger space, to widen the number of children in their care

location. Now, we are aiming for our medium-term goal, which is to separate the boys from the girls.

“To achieve this, we need a facility within our domiciled estate in Ogba that can afford us that. Our long-term goal is to move to our permanent site in Epe.”

Significance

of funding

Speaking on the significance of the funding to the day-to-day running of the home, the Foundation’s Treasurer, Abisola Aminat Dina, noted, “We realised that there was so much need for more money to run the home. From educating the children, and feeding them to paying the staff, caretakers, cooks, security, etc. all of these cost so much money.

“So, we began to seek donations from individuals to support the home. Fortunately, we had some people who supported their education and some who usually brought foodstuff to the home.

“Despite this, there were still other needs to be met, such as paying for utility bills, staff welfare, hospital bills, etc. Recently, we just had a major surgery done on one of the children through the support of a Muslim woman, and it was quite successful.

“Be that as it may, there is still a lot of funding gap that needs to be filled. To get more impact, we need to start to develop our Epe site. The Epe site has been there long before we fully opened the orphanage here in Ogba.

“We are calling on well-meaning Nigerians and individuals from all over the world to help us develop our permanent site. We are open to partnerships. People can come up to help develop segments of the site such as the mosque, hostels, admin block, school, vocational skills centre, recreational centre, etc.

“The plan for the place is to integrate everything the children need to develop well. So we are aiming for a more encompassing home that has everything within it.”

Adding her voice, the Foundation’s Welfare Officer, Hajia Basirat Oladosu noted that presently, the foundation has 11 children but has the capacity for 17 children. She added that the foundation’s projection is to expand to be able to accommodate at least 50 children comfortably.

According to her, “There are other vulnerable children and orphans out there who need our assistance, and from time to time, we get calls from the ministry that they need to bring in more children. But as it is now, space will not allow us.

“We have grown up children between the ages of 12 and 14 years and the likes which we don't want to put them together for too long so we don't give room for things we wouldn't like to happen. Hence, we need to expand. We want to space them out, if possible, the boys should be separated from the girls, because now they are growing up.

“We are hoping to be able to accommodate over 50 children if we have the space we require, and funding is very important to achieve this. Hence, we are seeking support from all well-meaning Nigerians.”

L-R: Chairman Board of Trustees, Sisters in the Deen Foundation Orphanage, Hajia Olukoya Sekinat Iretiola; Secretary, Sisters in the Deen Foundation Orphanage, Prof. Fatimah Abdul-Kareem; Chief lmam, Oluwole Ogba Central Mosque, Sheikh Saadallah Bello, President, Dr. Nurat AkinlabiBabalola, Guest Lecturer, Sheikh Taofeek Akewugbagold and Alhaja Kudirat Ope during the 3rd Annual Ramadan Lecture themed: Expansion for Greater Positive Impact, and Fundraising organised by Sisters in The Deen Foundation Orphanage held recently in Lagos

FOREIGN DESK

Compiled

Israeli airstrike flattens Iranian Consulate in Syrian Capital Damascus

An Israeli airstrike flattened Iran’s consulate in the Syrian capital, Damascus, on Monday and killed several people, including a senior Iranian commander, Syrian and Iranian media reported.

The attack could signal a further Israeli escalation in targeting Iranian military figures, but Israel said it had no comment about reports of the Damascus attack.

The strike killed Iranian military adviser Gen. Ali Reza Zahdi, who led the elite Quds Force in Lebanon and Syria until 2016, according to the Iranian Arabic-language state television Al-Alam and pan-Arab television station Al-Mayadeen.

Iranian Ambassador Hossein Akbari condemned Israel for the attack, saying as many as seven people were killed, although rescue workers were still searching for any other bodies under the rubble.

Akbari vowed revenge for the strike “at the same magnitude and harshness.”

US Tries to Stop Israel from Rafah Attack

U.S. and Israeli officials are holding virtual talks Monday about Israel’s plan for a ground invasion of Rafah in southern Gaza to root out more Hamas fighters, a prospective attack the U.S. opposes for fear it would endanger more than 1.3 million Palestinians sheltering there.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that “there is no victory without entering Rafah and there is no victory without eliminating the Hamas battalions there.” Netanyahu has approved a military operational plan for an attack.

But U.S. officials, led by White House national adviser Jake Sullivan, are looking to convince Israeli officials that there are other ways neutralise Hamas elements in Rafah without a ground invasion. Most of the Palestinians sheltering in the area were ordered to move there by the Israeli military to escape clashes in northern Gaza in the earliest weeks of the six-month-old conflict.

Israel has said it would protect the Palestinians from new warfare in Rafah, located just north of the Gaza-Egyptian border, but has given no public indication where it would move them.

The high-level U.S.-Israeli talks are occurring a week after Netanyahu at first called them off in protest of the U.S. failure to veto a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire. The U.S. abstained from the vote on the resolution a week ago, allowing it to pass, after previously vetoing other similar resolutions.

Ex-Taiwanese President Visits China to Build Social, Cultural Links

Former Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou is visiting China to help build social and cultural links on a trip that might include a meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping despite heightened tensions.

Ma left Taipei with a student group Monday on an 11-day trip that underlines continued interactions in education, business and culture despite Beijing’s threat to use military force against the self-governing island democracy to achieve unification.

Toward the end of his second term in 2015, Ma held a historic meeting with Xi in Singapore, which has close contacts with both sides. The meeting — the first between the leaders of China and Taiwan in more than half a century — produced few tangible outcomes and Ma’s Nationalist Party lost the next presidential election to Tsai Ing-wen of the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party.

Current Vice President Lai Ching-te, despised by Beijing for his opposition to unification, was elected as Tsai’s successor in January, although the Nationalists recovered a narrow majority in the legislature.

Ma’s itinerary includes a visit to Beijing, where there is heavy speculation he might meet with Xi, who says he remains open to Taiwanese politicians who proclaim that the island and the mainland, which split during a civil war in 1949, belong to a common Chinese nation.

Taiwan’s official Central News Agency quoted Hsiao Hsu-tsen, who directs Ma’s foundation, as saying he hopes Ma will have the chance to meet with “an old friend,” but gave no details.

Turkish Local Elections Deal Blow to President Erdogan’s Party

Turkey’s main opposition party, the Republican People’s Party, won major victories in the mayorships of Istanbul and Ankara, dealing a blow to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party.

Erdogan’s party, known as AKP, had hoped to regain control of the cities less than a year after he claimed the presidency of the country for a third term.

With more than 90% of ballot boxes counted Monday, incumbent Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu of the Republican People’s Party (CHP) was leading by a wide margin in Turkey’s largest city and economic hub, according to the state-run Anadolu Agency.

“The period of one-person rule has ended as of today,” Imamoglu, 53, told thousands of jubilant supporters on Sunday evening.

The former businessman, who entered politics in 2008, had defeated Erdogan’s candidate in the local election five years ago, ending 25 years of rule in the city by AKP and its Islamist predecessors. He is now touted as a presidential challenger.

CHP’s Mansur Yavas, the mayor of the capital Ankara, retained his seat with a stunning 25-point difference over his challenger, the results indicated.

Pakistani PM Promises Better Security for Chinese Workers

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif has promised the “best possible” security for Chinese nationals working in his country as Islamabad repatriated the remains Monday of five workers from China, killed last week in an attack.

On March 26, five Chinese workers and their Pakistani driver died when a suicide bomber rammed an explosiveladen car into their bus.

The workers were travelling to the Chinese-funded Dasu hydropower project in the remote region of Kohistan in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province when they came under attack in Bisham, about 4-hours north of the capital Islamabad.

In a visit to Dasu, Monday, with Jiang Zaidong, Beijing’s ambassador to Islamabad, Sharif met the Chinese workers at the hydropower project and assured them of “fool-proof” security arrangements.

After the attack last Tuesday, Pakistan quickly put together a joint investigation team to probe the incident as well as an inquiry committee to examine security measures for Chinese citizens working in the country.

France Presses China on Trade, Ukraine Ahead of Xi Jinping Visit

The French foreign minister pressed China on trade issues and the war in Ukraine on

Scam compounds have flourished in Myanmar, staffed by citizens from China and other countries who are often forced to work swindling their compatriots in an industry analysts say is worth billions.

Beijing — a major ally and arms supplier of Myanmar’s isolated junta — has repeatedly asked the military to crack down on such operations.

Chinese law enforcement provided input to their Myanmar counterparts, who launched raids around Muse city, a major trade hub in northern Shan state, the embassy said on its WeChat channel.

Myanmar police arrested 807 people “who committed cross-border crimes” and seized computers, mobile phones and “fraud scripts,” it said in a statement.

Among those arrested in the late March operation were 352 Chinese citizens, who were transferred to China on Sunday, the statement said.

The remainder were Myanmar nationals, it added.

A junta statement released late Monday said 352 Chinese citizens had been arrested in the swoop and handed over to Chinese authorities.

Monday ahead of a planned visit to France by Chinese leader Xi Jinping later this spring. Stéphane Séjourné, in talks with his counterpart Wang Yi in the Chinese capital, largely echoed positions that have been laid out by European leaders, including Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on a visit to Beijing last week.

“The rebalancing of our economic partnership is a priority, as it is for our European partners,” Séjourné said at a joint news conference with Wang. “The European Union is a very open market, the most open in the world. But the current deficits with a certain number of countries, including China, are not sustainable for us.”

Trump Media Shares Plummet 21% Days After Debut

Shares of Donald Trump’s social media company plunged 21% on Monday, wiping out the gains from its debut last week, after disclosing millions in losses and saying it would struggle to meet its financial liabilities going forward.

Trump Media & Technology Group lost more than $58 million in 2023, it said in a filing, sending shares reeling less than a week after the Truth Social parent went public through a high-profile blank-check merger.

The stock surged in its March 26 debut to close at nearly $58 a share on retail buyer enthusiasm, including supporters of Trump, the likely Republican nominee in 2024’s presidential election. But Monday’s disclosure reversed that trend, sending shares down $13.30, or 21%, to $48.66.

“Truth Social was overvalued and that reality is dragging down the stock. Because the service does have not have a clear path to profitability and its revenues are meager, its high debut was unsustainable,” said Ross Benes, analyst at Insider Intelligence.

Trump owns 78.75 million shares, which could result in a big windfall for the former president, depending on their value. At the stock’s peak last week, his stake would have been more than $6 billion, but after the selloff it would be valued at about $3.8 billion. Trump is not allowed to sell or borrow against any of his shares for six months – and any move by him to try to alter that agreement would likely trigger more selling.

807 Suspected Scammers Arrested in Myanmar- China Joint Operation

More than 800 people suspected of being cross-border scammers were arrested in a joint police operation by Myanmar and China, the junta and Beijing’s embassy in Yangon said Monday.

It said 486 Myanmar nationals had been arrested.

Channel Opened for Vessels Clearing Wreckage at Baltimore Bridge Collapse Site

The U.S. Coast Guard has opened a temporary, alternate channel for vessels involved in the clearing of debris at the site of the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, part of a phased approach to opening the main channel leading to the vital port, officials said. Crews are undertaking the complicated work of removing steel and concrete at the site of the bridge’s deadly collapse into the Patapsco River after a container ship lost power and crashed into a supporting column. On Sunday, dive teams surveyed parts of the bridge and checked the ship, and workers in lifts used torches to cut above-water parts of the twisted steel superstructure.

Officials said the temporary channel is open only to vessels that are helping with the cleanup effort. Authorities believe four workers plunged to their deaths in the collapse. Recovery of their bodies is a key part of the ongoing salvage operation.

Officials earlier said the channel would have a controlling depth of 11 feet (over 3 meters), a horizontal clearance of 264 feet (80 meters) and a vertical clearance of 96 feet (29 meters). A video released Sunday showed the Coast Guard dropping buoys in the water.

Netanyahu vows to ban Al Jazeera broadcasts in Israel

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday vowed to ban Al Jazeera broadcasts inside Israel.

“The terrorist channel Al Jazeera will no longer broadcast from Israel. I intend to act immediately in accordance with the new law to stop the channel’s activities,” Netanyahu said in a post on the social media platform X.

Earlier in the day, parliament passed a law allowing the government to close down foreign news outlets viewed as threatening state security.

The measure, which passed by a margin of 70 votes to 10, gives the prime minister and the communications minister the power to close foreign media outlets in Israel if they are believed to pose a threat to Israel’s security. Under the law, targeted outlets can also have their broadcasts banned.

Netanyahu announced earlier in the day that he would be reviving efforts to shut down the news channel in Israel.

The White House called Netanyahu’s vow to ban the channel concerning.

Doha-based Al Jazeera did not immediately reply to VOA’s request for comment.

Stories by Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

In spite of dwindling power supply nationwide, Nigeria’s electricity Distribution Companies (Discos) raked in an additional N62.63 billion in revenues in the last quarter of 2023, compared to Q4, 2022.

New data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), showed that compared to the previous Q4, 2022, Discos’ revenues increased from N232.32 billion to N294.95 billion during the period under review, a growth of over 23 per cent.

Almost all of Nigeria’s 11 electricity distributors have in the past been accused of underinvesting in infrastructure to boost

power supply to over 200 million Nigerians, who currently depend more on self-generated power for their homes and businesses, instead of the national grid.

Some experts have opined that the Discos remain the weakest link in the electricity distribution value chain, with just a peak capacity to distribute 5,500mw at a time, while the Generation Companies (Gencos) can generate 13,000mw and the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has the capacity to wheel 8,000mw at any point.

But the Discos have at various times also complained that they are not allowed by the government to collect cost-reflective tariffs, a development that has hobbled their ability to markedly raise investment

in the sector.

Recently, the federal government approved the return of subsidy payment, which was initially pegged at N1.6 trillion for the whole of 2024. However, this is expected to increase significantly above the projection this year, with rising gas prices and other inputs.

The NBS electricity report for the period showed that in terms of revenue collection, Ikeja Disco (IEDC) was by far the highest, with a revenue of N59.75 billion, followed by Eko Disco (EKEDC) with N50.18 billion.

Abuja Disco (AEDC) came third in terms of total revenue during the period, with N46.23 billion and was trailed by Ibadan Disco (IBEDC), which generated N31.81 billion as

revenue for the three months under review, while Enugu Disco (EEDC) raked in N23.3 billion.

Benin Disco (BEDC) was next with N22.37 billion, followed by Port Harcourt Disco (PHEDC), which made N20.18 billion during the period and Kano Disco (KEDC), with a revenue of N14.31 billion.

Jos Disco (JEDC) had a revenue of N10.96 billion, Kaduna Electric (KEDEDC) raked in N9 billion, while Yola Disco came last with N6.71 billion as revenue for Q4, 2023.

During the Q4 period under consideration, the total customer number stood at 12.12 million from 11.71 million in Q3, 2023, showing an increase of 3.46 per cent .

A breakdown of the number of customers saw Ibadan leading

with the highest, with 2.42 million, Abuja with 1.42 million customers, Benin had 1.34 million customers in Q4, 2024, while Enugu, Ikeja, Kaduna and Yola had 1.32 million, 1.12 million, 838,371 and 814,653 customers respectively during the period.

The rest customers were shared by Jos (734,222), Port Harcourt (724,470), Eko (690,032) and Kano (681,960).

On a year-on-year basis, customer numbers in Q4, 2023 rose by 9.59 per cent from 11.06 million reported in Q4, 2022, the NBS report indicated. Similarly, metered customers stood at 5.61 million in Q4, 2023, indicating a decrease in the metering growth rate of 1.32 per

cent from 5.68 million recorded in the preceding quarter.

Low metering rate remains a major problem in the power sector, with government having to directly intervene by funding the provision of metering devices to Nigerians through various programmes.

Data available shows that the Discos have only funded 10 per cent of total meters supplied to electricity customers in the country since 2013 when the sector was partially privatised.

On a year-on-year basis, this grew by 9.38 per cent from the figure reported in Q4, 2022 which was 5.13 million, it added.

The oil industry will need cumulative investments of $11.1 trillion in exploration and production by 2045 to keep pace with growing energy demand and ensure stable supply.

Secretary General of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)

Haitham Al Ghais told Emirati news agency WAM in an interview, oilprice.com reported.

“Allocating more investments in the oil industry will contribute to promoting the sustainability of the global energy sector, securing sufficient and reliable supplies for the world as a whole, and ensuring secure supplies for future generations,” OPEC’s chief told the news agency. Investment in oil is critical for the global energy security, Al Ghais added, re-echoing his

earlier position that abandoning fossil fuels will be catastrophic for the world.

OPEC’s latest annual World

Oil Outlook from October 2023 calls for $14 trillion in cumulative investments in the oil sector by 2045, including in the upstream, midstream, and downstream segments.

In November, OPEC and its Secretary General, Al Ghais criticised the International Energy Agency (IEA) for vilifying the industry and for playing down energy security and affordability.

Days earlier, IEA had said that the oil and gas industry faces “a

The annual investments need to be around $610 billion on average, the bulk of which should go to the upstream segment, the cartel said, rebuffing calls for a halt in investments in new supply.

moment of truth” in choosing between fuelling climate change and becoming a part of the solution.

“If oil disappeared tomorrow, millions of jobs would be lost. Tax revenues would be depleted. Industrial production would crimp. Economic growth would go into reverse. The plight of the fuel poor would be worsened.

“We need to be cautious of endangering the present, in the name of saving the future,” Al Ghais wrote earlier.

Last month, Al Ghais said that OPEC stands firmly behind its latest long-term outlook on oil demand from October, when the cartel raised significantly its long-term demand estimate and now expects global oil demand at around 116 million bpd in 2045, up by 6 million bpd compared to the previous assessment from 2022.

FMSTI Seals Deal with US-based Tech Firm to Launch Cloud Migration

A United States of Americabased tech consulting powerhouse, Afri-Tech United, sealed a major deal with the Federal Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (FMSTI) to deliver a monumental cloud migration initiative to the country.

The Afri-Tech United lead partner and Nigerian USbased IT expert, Mr. Jacob Uwah, who disclosed this in a statement, explained that the partnership is aimed at developing a Master Cloud Platform, a strategic move designed to catapult Nigeria into a new age of cyber sophistication and global tech leadership.

Uwah disclosed that the Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Chief Uche Nnaji, had spent several months discussing the best approach for Nigeria’s groundbreaking transformation alongside the Afri-Tech United team, which ultimately led them to design the framework for the Master Cloud Platform.

“This project is a testament to the power of collaboration, paving the way for a new era of cyber excellence,” he said.

An ostensibly excited Nnaji said: “This initiative aims to modernize our infrastructure, optimize public and private sectors, and revitalize many

of our traditional revenuegenerating ventures, through highly sought-after strategic partnerships.”

The minister also said that what was central to Afri-Tech partnership is

the current President Bola Tinubu administration’s goal of producing two million tech jobs each year, adding that, “the visionary effort to combat unemployment and open doors to countless Rewane:

Emmanuel Addeh in abuja Managing Director, Financial Derivatives Company Limited (FDC), Bismark Rewane has posited that with the commencement of diesel

production at the Dangote Refinery, the price of diesel per litre could fall below N1,000 from the current price of N1,500.

Rewane spoke during an interview with a television station in Lagos, where he

Afreximbank, Italian Financial Institution Commits €100m to Boost Food Production in Africa

Gilbert Ekugbe

Afreximbank and the official financial institution for international development cooperation, Cassa Depositi e Prestiti S.p.A (CDP) Italy, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to commit a €100 million facility to boost food production in Africa.

According to a statement issued by the Manager, Communications and Events, Afreximbank, Mr. Vincent Musumba, the new financing facility would support Afreximbank’s initiatives on climate-smart agriculture in Africa.

The statement said that the partnership was announced during the inauguration of CDP’s new office in Cairo, the first operational headquarters of the Italian institution in Africa, adding that the financing adds to an initial commitment from CDP of 100 million euros, lifting the total financing from CDP to 200 million euros.

The statement, which was

Emmanuel Addeh in abuja

Housing and Urban Development Minister, Ahmed Dangiwa, has charged the newly inaugurated board for the registration of Quantity Surveyors Registration Board of Nigeria (QSRBN) to ensure the promotion of integrity, transparency, and fairness in the course of performing their professional duties.

Dangiwa gave the charge during the formal inauguration of the 10th constituted board of the QSRBN in Abuja.

The board is a professional regulatory agency for quantity surveyors under the supervision

signed by the Executive VicePresident, Afreximbank, Mr. Haytham ElMaayergi, and the Chief Executive Officer of CDP, Dario Scannapieco, pointed out that the new financing from CDP would be used to provide support, either directly to eligible African enterprises, or indirectly through local financial intermediaries.

Some of the projects that would be financed included those related to local production and import of essential soft commodities such as cereals and fertilisers.”

The statement quoted ElMaayergi as sayingn that “the facility will support Afreximbank’s drive to increase food production in its member countries. It would also help Africa to achieve food security through private sector intervention.

“Additionally, it will support the development of alternative food channels, including increasing investments in climate-smart agriculture.”

ElMaayergi said this would help increase food yield and provide

resilience to businesses in the food and agriculture space.

He said that the MoU would promote collaboration between Italian and African enterprises and would bring Africa and Italy closer with the aim of promoting intra

Emmanuel Addeh in abuja

More than a fifth of global oil refining capacity is at risk of closure, energy consultancy, Wood Mackenzie, has found in its analysis, as petrol margins weaken and the pressure to reduce carbon emissions mounts.

Of 465 refining assets analysed, the consultancy ranked about 21 per cent of 2023 global refining capacity at some risk of closure, Reuters

and extra-African trade.

ElMaayergi said that the collaboration included co-financing of eligible transactions with sovereigns, corporates and financial institutions in Afreximbank’s member countries.

opportunities for Nigeria’s youth was highlighted by Vice President Kashim Shettima, during an earlier interview at this year’s World Economic Forum with Arise TV,” where he stated that “230 million

people, 75 per cent, are below the age of 30… We need to change the dynamics, come to terms with global realities… and position our nation in its rightful place in the comity of nations.”

of the housing ministry, a statement from the Director Information and Public Relations in the ministry, Salisu Badamasi, said.

The 15-member board comprises six appointees of the ministry in accordance with Section 2 (1)b of the Act, five appointees representing the Nigerian Institute of Quantity Surveyors (NIQS) in accordance with Section 2(1) c of the Act and Four appointees representing institutions of higher education in accordance with Section 2 (1)d of the Act.

Dangiwa stated that the appointment of the board members was a call to national

service, saying that they have a critical role to play in fixing the challenges facing the housing sector through the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, as intended by President Bola Tinubu.

Responding on behalf of the new board, Obafemi Onashile, pledged that the board would work without prejudice in the discharge of its duties, and also work in collaboration with the federal government, the NIQS and other stakeholders to upscale the impact of the quantity surveying profession on the national economy of the nation.

reported.

Europe and China house the greatest number of high-risk sites, putting about 3.9 million barrels per day (bpd) of refining capacity in jeopardy, Wood Mac found, based on its estimate of net cash margins, cost of carbon emissions, ownership, environmental investment and strategic value of refineries.

There are 11 European sites that account for 45 per cent of all high-risk plants, the report found. About 30 European

also reviewed the recent hike in interest rates by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

“Fiscal measures will complement monetary control tools and diesel prices will fall further below 1000 naira, thanks to Dangote,” he said.

He stated that if the price of diesel eventually drops, it will impact the current inflationary trend in the country.

Nigeria generally deploy the fuel in transportation of goods, transportation of other fuels like petrol, gas and kerosene and also use it to power their generators.

“Well, on the retail side, it’s N1,500. Dangote refinery has

refineries have already shut down since 2009, data from industry body Concawe showed, with nearly 90 still in operation.

Meanwhile, Nigeria’s huge Dangote oil refinery could bring to an end decades-long petrol trade from Europe to Africa worth $17 billion a year, heaping pressure on European refineries already at risk of closure from heightened competition, Reuters said.

However, the Dangote

already started putting diesel in the market and people are buying that. If it stays at N1,100 and continues to go in that direction, this will help to bring down inflation significantly.

“The bakers for one, because they are funding their furnaces and their ovens with diesel, you are going to see that improve. So for cement manufacturers and bakers, this is good news,” he added.

On other matters, he said that things may now begin to look up, with the clearing of the verified $7 billion of foreign exchange commitments said to have been cleared by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

refinery, with capacity of up to 650,000 bpd, began production in January but was not included in Wood Mac’s analysis. The seven high-risk sites in China are small-scale independent refineries. Sometimes called ‘teapots’, the refineries are subject to more stringent government regulations and compete with larger integrated sites that are typically state-owned and more complex.

Gilbert Ekugbe

In a bid to resolve the ongoing dispute between fish farmers and a dredging company, Renecon Limited, over fish mortality rate in Epe Local Government Area of Lagos State, the Mineral Resources and Environmental Management Committee (MIREMCO) has stepped in to mediate the situation ordering both parties to return to their business activities while the matter is being thoroughly investigated.

This followed allegations in viral social media video reports by Tilapia fish farmers in Epe that implicated Renecon’s activities as the cause of the fish deaths in Ebute Afuye Cluster of Epe Local Government Area in Lagos State.

The mediation process that took

place in Lagos was chaired by the Chairman of MIREMCO, Mr. Sesan Olanrewaju, who stated that the meditation was not to apportion blames, but to address the concerns raised by both parties and find a mutually acceptable solution.

The committee, as well as the Lagos State Commissioner for the Ministry of Waterfront Infrastructure Development, Honourable Yacoob Ekundayo Alebiosu, who was also present at the resolution meeting urged everyone involved to return to work while awaiting the outcome of the investigation.

Speaking to journalists after the close door meeting, the Agbon of Epe, Mr Dada Yesiru, disclosed that the state government has issued a directive that urged all parties to resume work pending the outcome

of ongoing investigations.

Yesiru emphasised the government’s commitment to resolving the dispute amicably and noted that the ministry responsible for overseeing the matter has assured both Renecon and the fish farmers that their grievances would be addressed fairly.

Speaking on behalf of the dredgers, the President of Dredgers Association of Nigeria, Mr. Akpomejero Batare, emphasised the need for a scientific investigation to determine the cause of the fish mortality.

Batare also highlighted the importance of impartiality and urged for a thorough examination of some critical factors such as water poisoning and toxicity amongst other likely causes of the unfortunate fish mortality.

Makanjuola: Caverton’s Partnership with LASG Will Transform Water Transportation

In this interview with select journalists in Lagos, the Chief Executive Officer, Caverton Offshore Support Group, Mr. Olabode Makanjuola speaks on Caverton’s partnership with the Lagos State Government to ensure a thriving local boat manufacturing sector and their effort to transform water transportation in the state and beyond, Excerpts

We will like to start by asking you to tell us about Caverton Marine boats?

Actually, we started out as a shipping company in 1999. This was sequel to the aviation business which we started in 2004.

I am not going to really talk much on the aviation aspect of our business but on the marine side in spite of the fact that we are obviously own our helipad, which is the first site as far back as 2004 along this Ozumba Mbadwe Road. For those of you who remember this site, it was actually a refuse dump zone. If you remember well, there were two lanes and the refuse dump before we came here.

Obviously, this is a lagoon close to the waters and we said, “why not look at this water transport?” And because I actually have a marine background, I was very passionate about it. However, the response was poor. Not a few asked, “water transport, what is your business with water transportation? How much do you want to make out of this?” At the time, obviously there were all these flying boats. So successive governments came, starting with Babatunde Fashola who built Ikorodu Jetty and a few others. He also bought one or two boats. Subsequently, Akinwumi Ambode was elected as governor after him and his administration bought a few more boats. It was during Ambode’s administration that I took a keen interest. I said to my team, and myself “why don’t we try to work with the Ambode government?” I always dread going to Ikorodu whenever we have a few family functions.

This is due to the fact I cannot afford to stay in the traffic for 3 hours. I just realised that it just took me only 20 minutes to get to Ikorodu by water. However, by my knowledge and experience, you cannot promote water transport by just building jetties. You have to address the means of actual transportation from one point to another through the waterways. We were in a fix at the time. Obviously, building river crafts was not our thing.

So we told Lagos State Government, “why don’t we look at building boats?” There were boats they bought that were being built by a Dutch company called Damian. They came and gave a presentation. After the demonstration, they gave us their bill. Even the governor said, “Bode, how much is this transport business that we are going to spend on this?” Obviously, the economy nosedive and that was what now forced us to look inward. I was now asking myself that the Dutch that built this boat, what did they do to build it. What do we need to do to build it here and why are we not doing it? If they can do it, why can’t we do it? Fortunately, there was one gentleman that I know.

His name is Mr. Mohammed. He was in the oil and gas industry. I called him and told him that I want to do a small project. Thereafter, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu came in and built this huge building and I just went to him and said, look, we pay lip service to water transport. It is always nice to talk about it. We call ourselves the state of aquatic splendor but our waterways are completely deserted. There is really nothing tangible on it. And the only reason is because there is no viable means that will give anyone comfort to get on the waterways. The governor saw reason in my assertions. So the first thing I did was to assemble the team to work with me. The first thing I said to the team, “Look, build me a boat that I can get on. Don’t build me a boat that people like me will not like to get on board.” I meant a boat that people will not be afraid of getting in the waters.

A boat that decent people will willingly abandon the roads and their vehicles and board it from Lekki to Ikorodu and stop travelling for 3 hours, waking up at 4am just to get to work. If you can build that, then at least we have made progress with that. We contacted the governor through a phone call and he said, “Okay, fine, go and build it and let us see.” That was where Mr. Olakunmi Agbaje, a naval architect and a few other young people came in. It was quite impressive because he now found young people that were not just interested in information technology (IT) and fintech alone. These are people that actually want to use their hands to actually create and build something. We got a whole bunch of people from Port Harcourt, Rivers State who were in the boat building industry but morale was low. We found out that there was actually a very robust, vibrant, built, boat building industry in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

At last, we succeeded in building the first boat.

It is a 40-passenger boat. And the government now says, okay, fine. Do you know what, let us do it together. And I said to the government, water transportation is not just about buying boats, commissioning them and you will say I have done something. No. It makes no sense. If you have to find external ways to finance it, let us look at it as infrastructure finance and solve the problem. It is not enough to say, oh, during my time, I gave him ten boats. What are you going to do with that? It was not a big deal. And that is one of the things you hear from the operators that they always complain about. We hear about the boats. We hear about the buses. You can build as many bridges as we want. We can sand fill as much as we want. The water is not going anywhere. All we are doing is that we are transferring one problem to another. Take Third Mainland Bridge as an example, how much traffic is on it and how long it takes? How long does it take to get from Iyana Oworo to Oworoshoki to Unilag? Is it 15 minutes or what? So those are the things that we sort of now trying to get to understand. If you are going to spend billions or trillions of Naira on bridges, you can spend millions and achieve great things on water.

You just need to make people feel comfortable using the water. That is one thing that we found out the few times that we take people out in our boats. If they get on, they are always initially afraid. But by the time they are coming back on the trip, half of them are actually at peace or sleeping. That is really what we are trying to do. Our plan for today is to go across to the Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA) to see what they are doing. They have a command center, which sort of captures the entire waterways. After that, we will do a short boat ride to Badore. Then we will take you through our boat building processes from start to finish.

How much have you invested in this?

I don’t like talking about money, but all I can say is that we have spent a lot.

Can you put a specific figure to this amount?

This is not the forum for that, we will let you know about that when the time is right. However, we have been commissioned to build 25 boats for the state government. One of the interesting things I think is that the state government is in the best position to discuss that. I think what we try to do is support them by delivering quality boats and also see how we can support their maintenance. The

structure behind the operational boats, unlike the past where we have just the government doing it alone, is to encourage the private sector to operate. So there will be a process whereby the private sector will be invited and then they will lease or franchise whereby the operators will operate themselves.

How much does it cost to build a boat?

It depends on the type and size. So basically, we have two or three different kinds of boats here. The boats we are building right now are water bottom. It is flat bottom boat. It is built for Lagos routes so it is very safe. We are also building security boats as well. We have the designs. Interestingly, we have the design studio in our head office where you have about three architects and one engineer. They are all Nigerians. I was surprised how many architects went to study architecture and then there is nowhere to practice it. We build for all types of people right now. Apart from Lagos State, we build for other states as well.

These include Edo State, Anambra State and Akwa Ibom State. Last year alone we had over 900 people died on just random issues. Yes, everybody stresses for people to wear a life jacket, but I think, can we just build a good boat for them. In some clime, they do not even bother wearing the life jackets. You wear a life jacket in case of an emergency. Your life jacket is under your feet. When there is an emergency, you pull it up. The fact that you have to wear a life jacket when you are already on the boat already tells you that what you are getting on is not too safe.

Are you working with the federal government to take this further?

Yes. We have actually discussed with the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) and the Nigerian Navy. We are looking at public, private partnership. On other hand, we have been maintaining aircraft for the Air Force for long.

How do you source your raw materials for the building of the boats?

That is the sad part about it. While you are ready to move into manufacturing, you now find that the raw materials are not available. I am talking about the basic raw materials. When you look at manufacturing, without even going deeper into it, you are missing the point. For instance, we import plywood. I could not believe it. So those are some of the challenges. One thing is that when you set out to build a quality product for somebody, you find these sorts of challenges. The resin that we use on the boat we had to

import. This is due to the fact that the resin that is produced locally does not meet our requirements. It is moving and it does not fit. The boats are built according to specifications, so we cannot compromise on our standards.

As a matter of fact, we have people from Veritas in our boat yard who came to certify the boats. And they were very specific. They will ask questions. Where did you get these materials from? Who did this? Who did that? Everything has to be certified. We even tried getting resin from a local manufacturer. They put it on a test and it failed. What they did was a thing called panel testing. So they will watch your process and how you produce the hull. They will take it to their laboratory and they will test it. If it reaches a certain threshold, as long as you are above that threshold, it is not an issue. Because basically if you think of a boat, the idea is that there is a certain amount of pressure that is exerted on the hull. If it is below it, at some point, it will break. And that is where you have in some cases boats are moving and it just cracks. As a result, 80% of what we use as raw materials are imported.

Going forward, it will be very expensive unless we can get our hands on some materials locally. Obviously, the main important component is the engine and the engine comes from Japan, Yamaha specifically. Although, we are now looking at various other options. We are very excited about it. We will see whether we can actually use electric engines. That for us is the next phase. Some of the major off head issues is the cost of petrol. It is extremely high these days. That is what a lot of the operators actually have an issue with. It is tough. In fact, it has been very, very tough.

You are one of the leading players in the aviation industry, what brought you to the maritime industry? Specifically, what kind of service do you provide?

Now, because of the exchange rate, like I mentioned before, we now have a local manufacturing firm, which will see that the employment that has been transferred outside Nigeria will now come back into the country. Take the boats we are building now. Why am I building the boats? We are building the boats because the government said we cannot afford to import these boats. And that really is where we are. To be fair to you, the state of the economy, as bad as it is, could possibly be a blessing in disguise. Just last week, I said to Bidemi, see, I don’t know where this dollar is going.

Those people that are manufacturing, show them the template that we have produced and tell them this is what I want. And ask them if they can do it. I’m just saying, look, you want the business, this is what I want. And so they are like, Okay, we will go and look at it. I said if you have a problem let me know. This is because we are ready to deal with them. If you have a factory here, I will support you, provided you give me what I want. If you don’t give me what I want, I won’t work with you. And if they are able to produce, then we raise the standards of their own production. That is the same thing we are doing with plywood. There have been so many times that Architect Olakunmi Agbaje would reject our local sourced plywood for not meeting the required standards.

With what you have achieved locally, why do we still spend huge scare foreign currencies on importation?

Like I mentioned earlier, we have people from Senegal, Russia and even from India come on a facility tour in Ikeja. Why? This is because it is the same that you will get in United Arab Emirates (UAE) or anywhere else in the world. But people still go overseas due to the fact that they want to collect estacodes in their travels overseas, which will not be case if it is done locally. But eventually, all that will change. You need one person to say, look, I support you. Give me what I want. I don’t want to have to import and then face Nigeria Customs Services if I can the same thing locally.

The same boats that we use our hands to build, that VERITA come from Europe and certified as perfect, it makes no sense to go and build another boat that nobody is surviving. Why would I fly outside to buy a boat when I know I have people that I can do it here? I think one of the things that we are very happy

Makanjuola

Women in Oil and Gas Advocate Inclusion for Economic Growth

Mary Nnah

As part of the celebration of International Women’s Day, the Women in Energy, Oil and Gas (WEOG) has called for better inclusion of women in the industry to foster growth in the Nigerian economy.

WEOG, during its Strategic Women in Energy, Oil and Gas Leadership Summit and Awards programme held in Lagos, emphasised the need for more support for the female folk.

In her speech, the National President of WEOG, Dr Oladunni Owo stated that investment in women will bring about progress not regress.

Owo said WOEG was birthed to close the gender gap in the sector, the energy poverty gap and the natural resources gap which influences the economy.

She said, “We all know that Energy, Oil and Gas are critical to Nigeria because oil and gas

are part of the key resources driving our nation’s economy. We have three major gaps we intend to close— the gender gap, and the energy poverty gap to meet the energy supplied needs once this is fixed, the nation will be 70% fixed as there would be more production. Just like the word– Let there be light. As soon as the light comes, every other thing takes form. It’s our way of fostering lightening up Nigeria.

“Also, we aim at closing the huge gap between the volume of the Natural resources the nation is blessed with vis a vis the economic effects, transformational effects on the people and other resources. We are blessed with so many resources but it is not transforming our human resources. There is a huge economic gap. Other countries maximizing their oil and gas don’t have two heads. We want Nigeria to do better.”

“The theme of this year’s IWD celebration is Invest in Women: Accelerate Progress” with the hashtag, Inspire Inclusion. The objective of the walk is to let people know that when they invest in women, daughter, women in your organisation and across the world, it will bring progress not regress,” the Oil and Gas entrepreneur noted.

On her part, the keynote

speaker at the event, Mrs. Uju Ifejika, the chairman of Britiana U Group urged the women in the oil and gas sector to be creative and focused as the industry is a competitive one with much regard for the men.

Ifejika charged the government to create financial capacity for women who have genuine business in mind for the actualisation.

In her words, “When you

involve women, poverty will be reduced in the family and nation. Increase funding for women and include them in the digital world.”

However, Mrs. Lucy Onoriode Okeke who is the Chairperson IWD 2024 Southwest and Chapter Secretary WEOG called on the women in the energy sector to take a moment to reflect on the inspiring conversations,

insights, and connections made throughout the time of International Women’s Day

According to her ‘’Together, we’ve celebrated the remarkable achievements of women in the energy sector, from breaking barriers to leading innovation. We’ve highlighted the importance of diversity and inclusion in driving industry growth and sustainability.

Don Berates Dearth of Dairy Farms in Nigeria

Gilbert Ekugbe

A Professor of Human Nutrition and Hospitality at Redeemer’s University, Ede, Osun State, Professor Paulina Adeniji, has expressed concerns over the dearth of diary farms in the country.

Delivering a lecture

Technovation Launches Ogun State Chapter

Tosin Clegg

Since its inception in 2010, Technovation Girls its mission to bridge the gender gap in the technology and entrepreneurship remains the same as the NGO seeks to push more inclusivity for the girl child. Accompanied with this goal is to inspire and educate young girls to become tech innovators and entrepreneurs.

In a bid to expand its reach the NGO expanded its operation into the heart of Ogun State it held its unveiling in

Sagamu, Ogun State and featured Wisdom College of Excellence, Muslim High School, Oba Adeniyi Sonariwo Nursery and Primary School and Odu’a Comprehensive High School. Special Adviser on Education to the Ogun State Governor, Mrs. Ronke Soyombo, encouraged the beneficiaries of the first phase of the initiative to focus on their aspirations and not be hindered by their background. She emphasized the importance of determination in achieving success in their endeavors.

Technovation Girls Chapter Ambassador, Yetunde Olasoji, expressed that the movement is determined to assist the underprivileged female students to thrive in the world of technology. And also bridge the gap between the number of girls compared to their male peers in technology driven development, “We want to empower girls to be tech leaders and innovators. Also to pursue a career in technology which would be a viable option for them as well.”

with the theme, “Give Us Adequate Food in Due Season: Establishing a Path to Healthy Living,” at the 12th inaugural lecture of the university in Ede, Adeniji said that it is worrisome that Nigeria does not have enough and well-establiahed dairy farms to meet its dairy needs despite having the capacity to be one of the exporters of dairy products on the continent.

She said: “The World Health Organisation (WHO), and Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) recommended that the total daily protein should be 67 grammes for average Nigerians.

“Of this, 58 per cent, that is 39 grammes should be of animal origin, but survey showed that only 20 grammes (30 per cent) was fulfilled. It is a setback that we do not have enough well-established dairy farms in Nigeria to supply our needs. The few

dairy farms have seriously suffered neglect in the recent past. In most cases, only the local people rear cattle mainly for meat and little dairy products.”

She, however, warned against nutritional deficiencies among Nigerians, which she said could lead to a range of health problems.

The university don said that nutritional deficiencies occur when the body does not receive an adequate amount of essential nutrients needed for the proper functioning of the body.

Adeniji said that apart from proper nutrition for healthy living, regular physical activity is also very important.

“Regular physical exercise activity is one of the most important things you can do for your health apart from eating a properly prepared balanced diet.

“Physical exercises can improve your brain health, help manage weight, reduce

the risk of disease, strengthens bones and muscles,” she said.

Adeniji also urged the National Universities Commission (NUC) to increase nutrition education and awareness in schools as a way of promoting a healthy lifestyle.

She also said that Nigerians should be encouraged to secure a space in their various house for home gardens to afford them fruits and vegetables.

Earlier in his remarks, the Vice-Chancellor of the Redeemers University, Prof. Shadrack Akindele, said that the lecture was significant because it was the first to be delivered since his assumption of office.

Cassava Production: Kogi State to Engage 1000 Extension Workers

Gilbert Ekugbe

The Kogi State Government has announced plans to engage over 1000 extension workers in its bid to boost cassava production in Nigeria.

The Commissioner for Agriculture, Kogi State, Mr Timothy Ojoma, during the inauguration of the State Executive Council of the Cassava Cottage Processing Marketing Association (CACOPMAN) in Lokoja, stated that the move is to ensure that extension workers have up to date information on cassava.

clearing the land.

Ojoma said that the state government would provide 80 per cent of the work by bringing in tractors, improved stems, fertiliser, chemicals and

“We have already mapped out about 48 areas in the three senatorial districts of the State for this purpose. “We are also providing extension services by engaging over 1,000 extension workers to ensure that our farmers have up to date information on the cassava.

“We are also intervening in rice and maize production,” he said.

He said that the extension

services will include translating the information into the three main languages in the state so people to understand the best practices and up-to-date information about climate change for them to do the right thing for the desired results.

“Our farmer-friendly Gov. Usman Ododo, is very much interested in food production and security, which explains why his first engagement in the office was on agriculture,”

Salon Africana to Unveil Fabric of Courage

Ugo Aliogo

Salon Africana will unveil the Fabric of Courage, a salon-style multidisciplinary exhibition that aims to reconstitute the fragmented archive of FESTAC ’77 (The Second World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture), while exploring the ways in which the event continues to reverberate in Nigeria’s cultural imaginary and historic sites of cultural production.

In a statement, it noted that the exhibition, which is produced in partnership with African Artists Foundation, Center for Art Research and Alliances, and The Africa Center (NYC) would take place on Sunday April 7, 2024 at the historic Old Printing Press located on Broad Street, Lagos Island.

The event which is conceived and curated by Grammy-nominated jazz vocalist, writer, and scholar Somi Kakoma, would feature large scale images of celebrated American FESTAC photographer, Marilyn Nance from her critically acclaimed book LAST DAY IN LAGOS.

Some of the features that will be included in the exhibition are sound installations, film, and text excerpts from renowned literary figures Audre Lorde and Ama Ata Aidoo, illuminating the often-obscured contribution of women who participated in FESTAC.

The statement revealed that Somi’s deeper interest in FESTAC began while researching Makeba’s performance history at major cultural events across the African continent, adding that

it soon became very clear to her that the entire FESTAC archive deserves to be celebrated more widely.

The statement added: “By revisiting the history of FESTAC while activating the Old Printing

Press, I hope to incite other artistic methodologies and contemporary narratives that might help reconstitute the unheralded yet rich cultural memory of one of the most important pan-African gatherings on the African continent.”

he said.

The commissioner also said that the state government has concluded training of enumerators for a forthcoming biometric capturing of all farmers across the state for useful data. He challenged the new leadership of the CACOPMAN to encourage members to key into the state government’s food production programmes for the attainment of food security in the state. Earlier in his Speech, the CACOPMAN National President, Mr Segun Ilori, tasked the new executive council to live up to expectations in boosting cassava production in the state. Ilori said that there were several incentives from the government and NonGovernmental Organisations

(NGOs).

Also speaking, the State President of All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Mr. Salihu Adobauji, encouraged the cassava farmers to ”weather the storm” of the economic hardships and produce food in the farming season.

In his acceptance speech, the new state CACOPMAN Chairman, Mr. Ufana Hussein, said that cassava has the potential to industrialise Kogi and Nigeria as a whole. Hussein said: “From cassava processing, we can have some industrial inputs such as starch, for both edible and non-edible grade, cooking gas, organic fertilizer, animal feeds from the peels, gari, fufu (wet and dry).”

Farmers Association Seeks Makinde’s Intervention in Akufo Farm Settlement

Funmi Ogundare

Farmers association of Akufo

Farm Settlement in Ido Local Government area of Oyo State have called on the Oyo State Governor, Oluseyi Makinde’s to intervene in the alleged take-over of the settlement by estate agents and developers.

The association made the call during a peaceful protest at the Oyo State Agribusiness Development Agency (OYSADA), Agodi, Ibadan, after several attempts to reach the government without a response.

The protesters bore placards,

Millionaires Emerge in FirstBank Promo Final Draw

Ugo Aliogo

FirstBank of Nigeria Limited has rewarded six customers across the nation with a million Naira each in the 4th and final edition of its Win Big Promo draw, which started on October 23, 2023.

Speaking at the event, the Chief Executive Officer, Adeshola Adeduntan, explained that to qualify for the N100,000 monthly draw, customers would have to maintain a minimum deposit balance of N5,000 monthly and make a minimum of five transactions on any of the Bank’s digital channels.

The CEO said the event was important to First Bank and an opportunity to demonstrate its ability to give back to society.

Adeduntan, who was represented at the event, the Executive Director, Treasury and International Banking, Mr. Ini Ebong, said in October 2023, the bank devised the promo to reward customers’ loyalty, stating that the bank had the largest ecosystem of savings account holders in the nation.

He noted that the grand finale of the draw was coinciding with the bank’s 130-year anniversary, which comes up on March 31, 2024.

He listed the rewards categories

while lauding customers for their participation in the last four months in the promo.

“The curtains will be drawn today, but FirstBank will continue to position itself through its digital platforms to deliver value,” he said.

The Head, Personal Banking, Mr. Ikemefula Nwachukwu, said that 1,240 winners had won N100,000 each in the four draws.

He averred that six most lucky Nigerians were the ones that won a million Naira each while 40,000 customers each got N1,000 airtime.

Nwachukwu remarked that judging by what is going on in the economy, it is obvious that

FirstBank is adding a lot of value to the lives of people. He said a million Naira could start any business in the nation.

“We are very glad, and customers have been very positive. In fact, they are expecting us to do more. This is indeed the biggest CSR initiative that you can see from any bank in this country, and we are proud of what we are doing at First Bank. A hundred and thirty years old, and we are still doing this, and we will be here, I am sure for another hundred and thirty years and counting. The promo was to reward loyalty and thank customers for sticking with the bank,” he added.

which read, ‘Save Akufo Farm Settlement, ‘Housing cannot Feed the Nation’s, ‘ Say No to Housing Estate, Yes to Agriculture’, among others.

In his remarks the President of the Association, Mr. Adesola Oludare, explained how it had written a letter to OYSADA, which is their supervising agency for a meeting, but their letters were met with silence,

He said the farmers had met with some people who claimed that the settlement would be used for a housing estate, adding that the government should not have handed the land to developers, especially during this period of food insecurity. According to him,” there are several other lands that could have been used for development. There are housing estates that are only bearing names with nothing been done on them.

“We expect that the government should make food available. Unfortunately, what we heard is that about 40 hectares have been earmarked for housing estate.”

The immediate past President of the Association, Mr. Johnson

Alapelode stated that part of the agenda of the President Bola Tinubu’s administration is food production, but it is ironic to snatch their lands from the farmers to build houses.

“Maize, soya and wheat are expensive, but the government is not even planning on how to give us the necessary farming input such as tractors,” he stated, adding that government need to dialogue with the farmers.

In their remarks, the Chairman, Cattle Farmers Association of the settlement, Mr. Fabayo Rasaki, lamented that they were suddenly stopped from paying rents for the land without prior notice and official communication; while another farmer, Mrs Sehinde recalled that it was Chief Obafemi Awolowo who initiated the site as a farm settlement.

“We have not received any help from the government we voted for. We have seen other housing estates that are only inhabited by goats. This is not the time to build houses on farm settlements. The government should help us and not make us suffer.”

L-R: Group Chief Risk Officer, Sterling Financial Holdings CompanY, Olufunmilayo Lewis; Executive Vice President, Global Trade Bank at African Export-Import Bank, Haytham El-Mayeergi and Director & Global Head Trade Finance at African Export-Import Bank, Ms Gwen Mwaba, at the launch of the Afreximbank TradeLink digital SCF solution in Lagos ...recently

This Week In Tech

Unleashing the Power of Artificial Intelligence: A Global Perspective

Esther Oluku explores the future of AI, its pros, cons and how it poses global security threats.

Since ancient times, humanity has marvelled at the idea of streamlining processes for more efficient societies. From agrarian societies to the industrial revolution, machines have played an increasingly vital role, propelling the global economy forward and revolutionising industries, shipping, manufacturing, and banking.

ArtificiAl intElligEncE And thE futurE

Today, the world stands on the brink of another monumental shift, driven by advancements in artificial intelligence (AI).

AI, a branch of computer science, aims to imbue machines with human-like thought, reasoning, and learning capabilities. The potential for highly automated systems to perform tasks previously exclusive to humans looms large on the horizon.

Investment in AI is skyrocketing, with forecasts by Statista predicting global investment to reach approximately $126 billion by 2025. This surge is fuelled by the adoption of autonomous features in robots, empowering them to function independently and revolutionise various sectors.

EvOlutiOn And cOncErns

AI traces its origins back to the early 1950s when Alan Turing presented a groundbreaking paper on the subject. Since then, AI has evolved into a topic of intense debate and controversy among global technocrats. Two influential figures in this discourse are Elon Musk, the founder of Tesla and X honcho, and Bill Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft, each offering contrasting perspectives on AI’s trajectory and impact.

Gates expresses optimism about AI’s potential to revolutionise productivity and technological advancement. He views AI as a catalyst for global progress, emphasising its role in addressing critical shortages, such as the lack of teachers and data in developing countries like those in Africa. Gates advocates leveraging AI to provide tailored solutions in local languages, promoting equity and enhancing societal well-being.

Musk, on the other hand, warns of AI’s potential existential threat to humanity, cautioning that a future where machines surpass human intelligence could lead to unforeseen consequences.

In Africa, the integration of AI presents both opportunities and challenges. While there is a growing interest in AI among African startups and innovators, concerns about potential technological colonisation loom large. Experts emphasise the need for a unified African approach to AI development to ensure that the continent harnesses AI’s potential while preserving its cultural identity and sovereignty.

Concerns about AI on a global scale encompass a wide range of issues that have garnered attention from various stakeholders, including policymakers, technologists, ethicists, and the general public. These concerns revolve around several key themes that highlight both the immense potential and potential risks associated with AI adoption and advancement.

Ethical and bias concerns are significant, as AI systems can exhibit biases based on the data they are trained on, leading to discriminatory outcomes in areas such as hiring, lending, and criminal justice. Ensuring fairness, transparency, and accountability in AI algorithms is crucial to addressing these concerns.

Job displacement and economic impact are areas of concern, as the widespread adoption of AI technologies has raised fears about job displacement and its impact on the labor market. Automation and AI-driven processes may lead to the loss of certain jobs while creating new opportunities in AI-related fields. Managing the transition and upskilling workers to adapt to AI-driven industries is essential for mitigating these concerns.

Privacy and data security are also critical issues, as AI systems often rely on vast amounts of data to function effectively. This reliance raises concerns about data privacy, security, and the potential misuse of personal information. Safeguarding data and ensuring robust cybersecurity measures are crucial to addressing these privacy and security concerns.

Concerns about an AI arms race and autonomous weapons are also significant, as the development of AI for military purposes has raised fears about an AI arms race and the potential use of autonomous weapons systems.

The recent conflict between Israel and Hamas has highlighted AI’s use in military strategies, with the Israel Defence Force (IDF) leveraging AI technologies for target generation and face recognition. This development raises significant security concerns globally, as AI’s capabilities in warfare continue to evolve.

Ensuring responsible and ethical use of AI in warfare, as well as establishing international norms and regulations, is crucial for preventing the misuse of AI technologies in armed conflicts.

Concerns about AI’s impact on human behaviour, societal norms, and cultural values highlight the need for thoughtful and inclusive AI development that considers diverse perspectives and societal impacts.

Addressing these global concerns requires a multi-stakeholder approach involving collaboration between governments, industry leaders, academia, civil society, and international organisations. Developing ethical guidelines, regulatory frameworks, and best practices for AI deployment is essential to harnessing AI’s potential while mitigating its risks and ensuring that AI technologies benefit society.

The debate surrounding AI’s trajectory reflects broader concerns about technological advancement and its implications for society. As AI continues to evolve, finding a balance between innovation and safeguarding against potential risks remains a paramount challenge for global leaders, policymakers, and technologists alike.

thE intErsEctiOn Of Ai And cOntEmpOrAry wArfArE

The integration of AI into modern warfare has introduced a new dimension to conflict resolution, impacting human societies profoundly. While historical conflicts often found resolution through dialogue, compromise, and diplomacy, the rapid advancement of AI has shifted the balance of power and readiness for diplomatic solutions.

AI’s capabilities offer unprecedented potentials for both good and evil, leading to an uneven power distribution among nations. In the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict, AI has emerged as a significant tool employed by the IDF, contributing to the devastating impact on civilian populations, including women and children in Gaza.

The IDF’s use of AI is exemplified by an artificial intelligence factory capable of generating up to 12,000 targets, a groundbreaking development in modern warfare. This AI system’s face recognition capabilities pose considerable security risks globally, highlighting the complex ethical and security challenges associated with AI in warfare.

Senior IDF officials have articulated plans to leverage AI intelligence at various operational levels, aiming to enhance military efficiency and strategic decision-making. However, concerns have been raised by countries and organisations regarding the extensive damage caused by AI-enabled military operations, particularly in conflict zones like Gaza.

Despite international outcry and calls for restraint, the IDF’s AI-driven target generation machinery continues to operate relentlessly, contributing to the ongoing conflict’s escalation. The utilisation of AI in warfare underscores the urgent need for comprehensive ethical guidelines, regulatory frameworks, and international agreements to govern AI’s military applications and minimise harm to civilian populations.

The intersection of AI and modern warfare raises complex moral, legal, and strategic considerations, shaping the future trajectory of conflict resolution and international security in an increasingly AIdriven world.

thE impAct Of Ai On futurE humAn sOciEtiEs

Both Musk and Gates raise critical concerns about the future implications of AI on human societies. Musk underscores the potential risks posed by smarter robots, emphasising the need for robust regulations to prevent abuse and protect public safety. He advocates for government oversight similar to agencies that oversee public safety to address potential harms from AI technologies. Musk’s strong stance on AI regulation reflects his belief in the necessity of proactive measures to mitigate risks associated with AI advancements.

Similarly, Gates emphasises the dual nature of AI as a powerful tool for productivity but also a potential avenue for malicious activities. He highlights the risk of AI empowering malicious actors to conduct cyber attacks and develop advanced weaponry, stressing the importance of ensuring that AI intelligence is used for positive causes. Gates emphasises the need to prioritise the responsible deployment of AI technologies, ensuring that they benefit society while minimising potential negative consequences.

Both Musk and Gates’ perspectives underscore the complex ethical and security considerations surrounding AI’s evolution. Their insights highlight the urgency of establishing regulatory frameworks and ethical guidelines to steer AI development in a direction that aligns with societal values and priorities. Balancing innovation with accountability is essential to harnessing the full potential of AI while safeguarding against unintended harms and ensuring its beneficial impact on human societies.

Ai AdAptAtiOn in AfricA

And EmErging thrEAts

The integration of AI into Africa’s technological landscape is a topic of growing concern and opportunity. Seydina Ndiaye, the African

representative to the United Nations’ High-Level Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence, has underscored the need for a unified approach to AI adoption across the continent. In an interview with the United Nations, Ndiaye stressed the importance of developing a panAfrican strategy for AI to accelerate adaptation and foster partnerships tailored to Africa’s unique characteristics.

While some African countries have begun crafting dedicated strategies for AI implementation, Ndiaye advocates for a broader continental vision that encompasses diverse sectors and stakeholders. He acknowledges the increasing interest among African youth in AI-related fields and believes that international collaboration can further fuel this enthusiasm and knowledge acquisition.

AI’s potential to address critical challenges in areas like agriculture and healthcare is another aspect highlighted by Ndiaye. He recognises AI’s capacity to solve problems, such as personnel shortages in healthcare, and sees opportunities for AI-driven innovations to drive positive change across various sectors in Africa.

Moreover, Ndiaye sees embracing an African approach to AI as an opportunity to strengthen the continent’s cultural identity and carve out a distinct role in the global community. By leveraging AI technologies in ways that align with Africa’s values and priorities, Ndiaye envisions Africa emerging as a unique brand, contributing significantly to global technological advancements.

However, amidst these opportunities, Ndiaye raises concerns about potential threats, particularly the risk of a new form of colonisation through AI. He notes that Western countries currently possess the technical expertise needed for AI development, raising the possibility of multinational corporations imposing their solutions on Africa without considering local contexts and needs.

Another worrisome aspect highlighted by Ndiaye is the intersection of AI with other emerging technologies, such as biotechnology, within the context of the fourth industrial revolution. He warns of potential risks, including unethical testing practices on humans and the lack of effective regulatory frameworks to govern AI’s applications.

The overarching concern voiced by Ndiaye underscores the complex landscape of AI adaptation in Africa, where opportunities for innovation coexist with challenges related to technological dependency, ethical considerations, and regulatory gaps. The future trajectory of AI in Africa will require careful navigation to harness its potential while safeguarding against unintended consequences and ensuring inclusive and ethical development.

In conclusion, Africa stands at a pivotal moment in its AI journey, with the need for strategic planning, international collaboration, and robust regulatory frameworks to steer AI adoption towards positive outcomes that benefit African societies and contribute meaningfully to global technological progress.

SuStainability awareneSS SeSSion...

Amid Shortages, Complaints of Dollarisation, NMDRA Raises Gas-to-Power Base Price to $2.42

Govt’s subsidy to rise significantly without cost-reflective tariff New development contradicts FG’s effort to sell gas in naira

emmanuel addeh in Abuja

The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has increased the base price electricity Generation Companies (Gencos) buy gas from Gas Companies (Gascos) by 24 cents.

While it hiked gas-to-power price to $2.42, from the previous $2.18, the authority further increased the rate the commercial sector got the product to $2.92.

The increments were despite com-

plaints of shortages and undersupply by the Gencos as well as massive “dollarisation” of the product sold in Nigeria, whereas power produced in the country with the gas was priced in naira.

A statement announcing the new rates, titled, “Announcement on Establishment of the Year 2024 Domestic Base Price (DBP) and Applicable Wholesale Price of Natural Gas for the Strategic Sectors,” was signed by NMDPRA Chief Executive, Farouk Ahmed.

It said the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, assented to by the then President Muhammadu Buhari, on August 16, 2021 and gazetted on August 27, 2021, provided a clear regulatory framework for the determination of a market-based pricing regime for domestic gas market in Nigeria.

In line with Section 167, the third and fourth schedule of the PIA 2021, NMDPRA said it was mandated to determine the domestic base price and the marketable wholesale price of

natural gas supplied to the strategic sectors.

It listed the categories as: power, commercial as well as gas-based industries, which used it for the production of ammonia, urea methanol, polypropylene, low sulphur diesel and others as NMDPRA deemed fit.

The domestic base price at the marketable gas delivery point under Section 167 (1) and other provisions of the PIA, the statement said, shall be determined based on regulations, which incorporated certain principles.

Rivers PDP Describes 27 Lawmakers as Ingrates

Says legislators operating an illegal Assembly

blessing ibunge in Port Harcourt

The Rivers State chapter of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has described the 27 state House of Assembly members, who recently defected to All Progressives Congress (APC), as ingrates. PDP said the legislators took the mandate of the party to APC without consulting their constituents.

PDP cautioned the 27 legislators to stop disturbing the peace of the state but allow Governor Siminalayi Fubara to concentrate on delivering his mandate to Rivers people.

One of the principles, it said, was that the price must be of a level to bring forward sufficient natural gas supplies for the domestic market on a voluntary basis by the upstream producers.

With the new price, the subsidy to be paid by the federal government in 2024, which was pegged at N1.67 trillion in January this year, was expected to increase markedly.

Besides, NMDPRA explained that the price to be set shall not be higher than the average of similar natural gas prices in major emerging countries that were significant producers of natural gas. NMDPRA stated that another principle was the deployment of the lowest cost of gas supply based on three-tier cost of supply framework as well as market-related prices tied to international benchmarks.

domestic gas market and creating investor-friendly business environment, as we dutifully implement all the provisions of applicable regulatory frameworks.”

In July 2021, the then Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, announced that the federal government had approved the downward review of gas-to-power for Domestic Supply Obligation (DSO) by 32 cents to $2.18/MMBtu, from $2.50/mmbtu, with immediate effect. At the turn of this decade, the federal government had said it was embarking on the “decade of gas” that would extend to 2030.

However, four years into the decade, it appears nothing substantial has been achieved, apart from the usual rhetoric.

Gbara said the 27 lawmakers, who defeated to APC following a political dispute between the governor and his godfather, Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, had continued to make retrogressive laws and utterances that were inimical to the growth and development of the state.

He stated that while other Houses of Assembly were making laws for the development and good government of their states and supporting their respective governments, the Rivers State Assembly was busy displaying selfish interest.

The PDP publicity secretary urged

In a statement by PDP State Publicity Secretary, Sydney Gbara, the party told the lawmakers to first address their legal status before threatening the governor on impeachment.

the state lawmakers to bury their heads in shame, for resorting to acts of destabilisation and destruction.

He stated, "Those people were the first beneficiaries of the magnanimity and peaceful disposition of Governor Fubara by signing the lopsided peace accord, despite (that) a court of competent jurisdiction had recognised Rt. Hon Edison Ehie as the speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, which gave them a lifeline to still operate, because having defected to APC without any crisis in PDP, their seats were vacant constitutionally.

“But now that they show how ungrateful they are, the several court cases querying their legality, seeking the interpretation of section 109 1g

of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended, will settle the dust around them in due course.

“No matter how long they try to run away from it, justice must be served because they no longer represent their constituencies. Their actions are a total embarrassment to Rivers people and a complete show of public shame.

“The people elected them out of their good will, but they let those constituents down by pursuing selfish agenda that has further plunged the state into crisis. The threat of impeachment is empty and cannot stand. It is selfish and their pursuit of personal aggrandisement, which will be resisted by Rivers people."

It stated, “Accordingly, after due consultation with key stakeholders and taking into cognisance the provisions of the PIA, as well as the gazetted gas pricing and domestic demand regulations, the NMDPRA hereby establishes the Year 2024 domestic base price as $2.42/mmbtu and wholesale prices of natural gas in the strategic sectors.”

While lauding investors in the local market, NMDPRA assured of its commitment to ensuring transparency in the gas market as well as deepening operations in the sector.

It added, “We thank and appreciate all investors in the domestic gas market sector and assure you of the Authority’s commitment to continuously ensure transparency, deepening of the

Ogun to Conduct Human Development Index Survey to Assist in Planning

The Ogun state government is to conduct household surveys to develop a framework that will assist in planning, management, and evaluation of the multi-dimensional poverty human development index.

The survey is expected to go one step further than the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) multidimensional poverty index, a statement from the government said.

The survey will allow the government of Dapo Abiodun to assess the impact of the various policies it has been implementing in the last four and half years in such areas as education, health, job creation, empowerment and other social

interventions, the statement added.

Already, a consultant, e-services Nigeria Limited, has been contracted by the state government to carry out the survey for a 27-week period. The General Household Survey will produce indicators needed for the design and monitoring of the implementation of various State Development Plans (SDPs).

The consultant commenced work on March 6 and is to work in liaison with the Ogun State Bureau of Statistics.

According to the Commissioner for Budget and Planning, Mr. Olaolu Olabimtan, the survey will enable the state government to properly

establish baselines on different data points in the state and allow for the implementation of the various strategies already earmarked for execution.

"This is in line with the “Building Our Future Together” mantra of the Prince Dapo Abiodun-led administration, which over the years have executed and implemented various strategies cutting across the ISEYA development agenda.

"In the past five years, under the pillar of infrastructure, our administration has brought development to every ward in the 20 local government areas of the state.

“ We have constructed, reconstructed, and rehabilitated over 500 kilometres of roads across all regions in the state in line with the administration’s policy of inclusiveness and determination to abolish erstwhile practices of prior administrations of developing one section of the state at the expense of other sections.

"Similarly, in the energy sector, the administration has installed over 500 transformers across communities through its community electrification project and has improved power supply in the 20 local government areas,” Olabimtan stated. He said the state has also

provided solar street lights, solar boreholes for potable water, and the distribution of solar home kits to rural dwellers.

"The administration has also rehabilitated the Arakanga Wa- terworks in Abeokuta to ensure a reliable supply of potable water and constructed new water storage facilities as well as expanded the water supply and reticulation network to many streets and neighbourhoods in the city of Abeokuta.

“These completed projects, which are already in use and being enjoyed by residents, will soon be formally commissioned.

Completion dates for ongoing gas projects have been variously deferred, putting into doubt the seriousness of the government to keep to announced timelines. The power sector uses more than 60 per cent of the gas currently produced in the country to generate electricity.

But the statement increasing gasto-power prices in foreign currency conflicted with a comment by Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, that the government was working to ensure that gas was sold to power generators in naira.

On his X handle in February, Adelabu had stated that government was proposing for gas producers to sell gas to local power plants in naira to solve the problems of dollar shortage.

Although Nigeria has roughly 26 gas power plants with a combined output capacity of about 13,000mw, it only delivers around 4,00mw of its capacity to the grid due to issues with gas supply.

"Proposing domestic gas payment in naira is a key step toward stability, aligning with our economy's needs and promoting sustainable energy production," Adelabu had said. He added that he planned to create legislative measures that would mandate naira payments for domestic gas supply, even though the gas producers had always argued that the product was sold in dollar to power plants because investments tied to building gas plants and pipelines were priced and paid for in dollar.

However, local operators have had difficulties making dollar payments since the currency crisis, which has seen the naira lose significant value. The currency weakness is expected to force the price of gas in the domestic market sharply higher.

L-R: Manager, Sustainability,Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Group, Fatimah Dalhatu; Head, Planning and Commercial, NNPC, Adetutu Olukanmi; and Chief Executive, CSR-in-Action, Bekeme Olowola, during the Sustainability Awareness Session for NNPC Group's Sustainability Champions in Ikoyi, Lagos ... recently

OLUSOLA OKE PICKS EXPRESSION OF INTEREST FORM AT APC...

L-R: Vice President, Omoluabi Coalition Group, Talabi Abiodun; Oba of Karamajiji FCT, Abuja, Oba Abdulrazak Lawal; Oba of Durumi, FCT, Akinpelumi Adebisi; Representative of the Aspirant, Prince Idowu Ilara; Oba Leto of FCT, Chief Musbau Owolabi and Oba of Mpape FTC, Abuja, Chief Musbau Olarewaju, during the collection of Nomination and Expression of Interest Forms for Chief Olusola Oke (SAN) at APC Secretariat in Abuja ... recently PhOTO ENOCK REUBEN

Obi-Datti: LP’s Convention Not Inclusive Because Abure Ignored Peter Obi’s Advice

Cautions Tinubu's aide over comment on ethnic politics Says he should stop insulting Nigerians’ collective intelligence

Chuks Okocha in Abuja Spokesperson for the Obi-Datti Campaign Organisation, Yinusa Tanko, has said the national convention of Labour Party (LP), held recently in Nnewi, Anambra State, was not successful because the embattled national chairman of the party, Julius Abure, dismissed the advice of the party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, to conduct an all-inclusive convention.

Tanko, who spoke on a television programme in Abuja, said the current crisis rocking the party could have been prevented if the leadership had taken Obi’s advice.

He stated, “His Excellency, Peter Obi, made concerted efforts in trying to intervene at any point we have this particular issue and trying to improve.

“When the issue of the national convention came up, he (Obi) suggested to the national chairman that, because we are bigger now, we need to have a wider consultation.

“We need to meet with responsible and interested people, such as the TUC and NLC, stakeholders, the Obidient group – young generation people – who are interested in seeing Nigeria work. Meet with leaders who have different ideas that can midwife us into a greater height.

“All of these were the suggestions that he (Obi) made. And not only did he make those suggestions, he practicalised them because he met with the members of the National Assembly.

“He met with the leadership of the party recently in Asaba, trying to give them ideas on how he thinks certain things could be done and you could improve our situation.

“’If we can't change them, we'll leave,' Peter Obi speaks on Labour Party crisis.’”

Tanko added, “But, of course, you know how politics is. Sometimes, people may be trying to encourage people, but they do something different.

Refuse Burning Triggers Explosion on Farmland in Ikeja Cantonment

Chiemelie Ezeobi

A farmer yesterday, triggered a minor explosion near the Mammy Market within Ikeja Cantonment of the Nigerian Army (NA) in Lagos, when he set some refuse on fire on his cultivated farmland.

Although no life was lost, the Nigerian Army Engineers from the Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) were said to have cordoned off the area of the farmland to conduct a thorough investigation into the cause of the explosion.

THISDAY gathered that the damage was limited and contained to the particular spot because the cantonment was recently cleared and certified free of unexploded ordnances.

Reacting to the explosion, Director Army Public Relations, Major General Onyema Nwachukwu, urged residents not to panic as the situation was already contained.

In a press release made available to THISDAY late last night, the Spokesperson said: "This is to notify the general public that today Monday 1 April 2024, a minor explosion occurred within the Nigerian Army (NA) Cantonment in Ikeja, Lagos. "The incident occurred on a farmland near the Mammy Market within the Cantonment.

"The explosion is suspected to have been triggered by the burning of refuse and other inflammable debris by a farmer who cultivated the farmland.

"Fortunately, no casualty was recorded in the incident. However, given that the Cantonment was recently cleared and certified free of unexploded ordnances, we understand that there could be concerns among the general public as a result of the historical antecedent of explosion within the Cantonment.

“You can only take a horse to the river, but you cannot force it to drink water. So, that’s exactly what Peter Obi has done. He has done so greatly to see if we can find a solution to some of the problems we find ourselves in.”

He stressed that though Abure had the right to contest the national chairmanship position again, "it is only proper that the right things are done by opening the door for more people to be part of the process.”

Tanko said Abure went outside an initial agreement to have an all-inclusive national convention, which ought to start from the ward, local government and state levels before the national level.

The Obi-Datti spokesperson said the convention held in Nnewi, which returned Abure as the party’s leader, did not conform to that agreement

and, therefore, was not acceptable to most people within the party. When asked if the crisis in the party could be a problem for Obi in the next election, Tanko said Obi was a brand of his own, adding that he and other people would always move with him wherever he goes.

Meanwhile, Tanko berated Special Adviser on Information and Strategy to President Bola Tinubu, Bayo Onanuga, and advised him not rewrite history with his narrative that Obi introduced religion and ethnic politics during the 2023 elections.

Onanuga had while speaking on a television programme claimed that Obi was the first to introduce religion and ethnicity into presidential elections in Nigeria. He had claimed, “What I know about the campaign of Obi was

that for the first time in a very long while in our country, we had a candidate who was inflaming ethnic passions.

"And that was the way the election went at that time. He was inflaming ethnic passions, religious passions, bringing two dangerous things to our politics – ethnicity and religion. That is what he did. And those things were dangerous to our Nigerian politics.”

But in a statement, Tanko said Onanuga was trying to rewrite history by making false claims against Obi.

Tanko stated, “Mr. Onanuga must stop this insult on our collective intelligence. He, like his principal and the All Progressives Congress (APC), were the worst culprits, when it came to the issue of inflaming ethnic and religious passions.

“Was it Peter Obi that used ‘Emilokan, Yoruba lokan’ and Muslim/Muslim ticket as a battle cry for the elections? What is he talking about? Was it Peter Obi that organised attacks on innocent Nigerians, whose only offence was attempting to exercise their civil duties by voting for candidates of their choice in Lagos and elsewhere?

“Where was Onanuga when his principal, now President Bola Tinubu, instructed supporters in a widely circulated video to ‘grab, snatch and run’ with power? What was more inciting than that?

“I challenge Mr. Onanuga to come out with one shred of evidence to prove that Mr. Peter Obi did any such thing before, during and after the election. I think he lives in the illusion that Nigerians have forgotten so soon.”

FRSC: 13 Passengers Die, Two Others Injured in Kogi Auto Crash

Corps marshal seeks probe, driver’s prosecution

Ibrahim Oyewale in Lokoja and Kasim Sumaina in Abuja

No fewer than 13 passengers have been confirmed dead,while two others received varying degree of injuries in a ghastly auto crash that occurred at Onajana, along Obajana -Lokoja Road in Lokoja Local Government Area of Kogi State on Sunday.

The state Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Mr Samuel Oyedeji, who disclosed this yesterday, confirmed that 13 persons died while two others were

injured in an auto crash in Kogi.

He explained that the accident involving a commercial Sharon Bus and an articulated Cement Truck, occurred at Obajana Market along Obajana-Lokoja road.

He pointed out that the Sharon bus had packed behind a truck around the market for passengers to buy some things, when the cement truck lost control as result of brake failure and subsequently rammed into it from behind.

The bus was reportedly heading to Abuja from the southern part of the country.

UBEC Develops Curriculum for Bilingual Education

Kuni Tyessi in Abuja

The Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) in collaboration with key stakeholders, has commenced the process of developing a "smart" curriculum for bilingual education in Nigeria.

Head, Public Relations and Protocol, UBEC, Mr. David Apeh, in a statement on Monday in Abuja, disclosed that the commission recently held a workshop for curriculum adaptation for the bilingual schools where experts had brainstorming sessions on coming up with the best curriculum for

the unique schools.

Deputy Executive Secretary (Technical) of UBEC, Prof. Bala Zakari, who doubles as the project supervisor for the bilingual education programme in Nigeria, called for a standardised approach in the development of the bilingual education curriculum.

He highlighted the role of UBEC so far towards ensuring the success of the bilingual education programme, right from the construction of the schools in the nine focal states, to the engagement of experts in series of programmes.

Zakari said Nigeria is very unique given the peculiarity of the nation's population where the country has more than 7 million learners at the Early Childhood Care Development Education (ECCDE) alone and more than 47 million at the primary level.

Earlier, Project Coordinator, Islamic Development Bank, Mansir Idris, said the purpose of the workshop was to examine the existing national curriculum alongside the Tsangaya among others and to see how they could be adapted to fit in for the bilingual education programme.

“As soon as the truck rammed into the bus, it immediately went into flame and burnt virtually all the passengers inside it. Also burnt were the bus, two trucks and a motorcycle.

“Our personnel, who were on rescue operations with Red Cross Nigeria and Police officers, couldn’t save the situation due the fierceness of the fire.

“But the charred remains of the affected persons were collected while the two injured persons have been taken to Fisayo Hospital, Obajana for medical attention.

Oyedeji expressed worry that no hospital in Kogi agreed to take the charred bodies for keep, which might force the authorities to give them a massive burial if no relation came around.

The sector commander, who described the incident as “very sad and unfortunate”, cautioned motorists against speeding and poor maintenance of their vehicles.

Meanwhile, the Corps Marshal, Federal Road Safety Corps, Dauda Ali Biu, has directed Kogi State Sector Commander of the Corps to commence a detailed investigation that would lead to speedy prosecution of all the drivers responsible for the crash.

According to him, with the recent collaboration between the Corps, the Nigeria Bar Association as well as State Judiciaries, the drivers responsible for the occurrences

would not go scot-free.

Biu noted: "They are going to be prosecuted in accordance with the provisions of the National Road Traffic Regulations 2012 and those found guilty will bear the consequences of their actions."

Biu, in a statement, yesterday, by the Assistant Corps Marshal, Corps Public Education Officer, FRSC Headquarters, Jonas Agwu, hinted preliminary reports indicated that the crash involved a total of 4 vehicles comprising of 2 Dangote Trucks, 1 Sharon bus and 1 motor bike.

"One of the Dangote Truck's breaking system failed while on excessive speed and crashed into 3 stationery vehicles including a bus carrying 12 passengers.

"The impact of the crash resulted in a fire outbreak that killed the 12 passengers in the bus and the motor bike rider.

"On the whole, the crash involved 15 people comprising 8 male adults and 3 female adult, 3 male children and 1 female child. Unfortunately, 13 persons comprising of 6 male adults, 3 male children, 3 female adults and 1 female child were killed while the remaining 2 victims got rescued by FRSC operatives without injuries.

"The 13 victims whose lives were claimed by the crash were burnt beyond recognition and their corpses deposited at Specialist Hospital, Lokoja.

As Curtain Falls on This Year’s Easter, Yobe Gov, Buni, Urges More Prayers for State, Nigeria

Obi takes ‘one Nigeria, one people message’ to Onitsha mosque Uzodimma, Emmanuel speak on love, protection of public utilities

Chuks Okocha in Abuja, Michael Olugbode in Damaturu and Amby Uneze in Owerri

Yobe State Governor, Hon. Mai Mala Buni, has urged the Christian faithful to use the Easter period to pray more for the state and the country as a whole.

This was as the presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, at Easter, visited Onitsha Central Mosque in Anambra State, to pray with them for a united Nigeria.

Buni made the call in a message felicitating with Christians on the occasion of the Easter period, saying, "We should pray for peace, unity, and prosperity of Yobe state and Nigeria.

"The Easter is coming at a time when the Muslim faithful are observing the Ramadan fast, this provides us with an opportunity to pray for our dear state, the nation, and our leaders," the governor said.

He urged the clergies and their followers to preach and spread the message of love and sacrifice as contained in the lessons of the Easter.

"We should concentrate more on the issues that unite us in spite of our individual and collective differences to move forward and prosper as a state and country," Buni added.

He expressed gratitude to God for the improved peace enjoyed across the state, saying, "We should always pray and support, the security agencies in the continued fight against insurgency and crime generally.

"I wish the Christian community a very peaceful and memorable Easter celebration with a touch of love and sacrifice on the lives of your neighbours, especially those in need of care and support," he said.

Obi Takes His One Nigeria, One People Message to Onitsha Mosque Presidential candidate of the

Labour Party in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, on Easter day celebration visited Onitsha Central Mosque in Anambra State to pray with them for a united Nigeria. Obi said the visit became necessary to show the commitment of all religions to the oneness and growth of Nigeria.

Writing on his X handle, Obi said, “In continuation of my Easter activities today, after sharing the Easter joys with the inmates of Onitsha Correctional Centre, earlier in the day, I was also at the Central Mosque, Onitsha to pray with the Muslim Community in the City who are in the last ten days of the Ramadan fasting.

“It was heartwarming to see how they were able to judiciously deploy the little resources I gave them last year for the renovation of their mosque.

“I took time to remind them, and indeed every Nigerian, of the need to transcend above religion

and tribe, but in unity and brotherly love, continue to work hard for the development of our dear nation.

‘Our many challenges in our nation can be conquered by our unity of efforts, collaboration, and mutual respect. As I have always maintained, no religion, tribe, or political party buys food cheaper anywhere in Nigeria. We must, therefore, join hands in moving our nation from consumption to production, for the good of society.

“I shared my little Easter gifts with the community and appreciated them for their kind words, encouragement, and prayers. Together as one, we will build the New Nigeria," he stated.

Uzodimma to Youths: Embrace Peace, Love, Shun Kidnapping, Killings

Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma, has appealed to the youths of the state to stop indulging in criminal activities

and embrace peace and love in the spirit of Easter.

Addressing the congregation at the St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church, Ozuh Omuma in Oru East local government area of the state on Easter Sunday, Uzodimma sought security to return to the state as such move would usher in massive development.

According to the governor, “Easter is the foundation of Christianity. Jesus brought salvation to humanity, so, if Christ has not risen, there would not have been any basis for Christianity.

“Therefore, the cardinal message of Easter is love because Christ died for the love he has for us. God brought his son as a ransom, which is the greatest love demonstrated ever in the history of humanity.

“As humans we may not on our own demonstrate the highest degree of love towards one another, but if we profess as true Christians, we must try to emulate our Lord Jesus

House Member Lauds Nwifuru's Infrastructure Development in Ebonyi

Benjamin Nworie in Abakaliki

The member representing Ezza North and Ishielu Federal Constituency in Ebonyi State, Hon. Joseph Nwobasi, has commended Governor Francis Nwifuru of the state for his numerous infrastructure projects and human empowerments in the state.

The lawmaker, who spoke with THISDAY in Abakaliki, noted that the ongoing construction of Ezillo and Ezzagu road was a legacy project, which when completed would further advance the economic fortunes of the state.

He further lauded the governor for his numerous reforms in the state civil service and other life-touching policies and programmes that have lifted many Ebonyi people out of poverty.

He said, "First of all, I want to felicitate with my constituents on the celebration of the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. It's a time that calls for sober reflections both in our Christian Faith and how we can advance the fortunes of humanity.

"For me, I will continue to struggle on how to offer quality

Titus Sardine Enters into Strategic Partnership with Ex-BBN Housemate, Cee-C

Mary Nnah

Titus Sardine, Nigeria’s leading canned fish in oil brand, has entered into a strategic partnership with Cynthia Nwadiora, popularly known as Cee-C, an ex-Big Brother Naija housemate, to serve as its brand ambassador.

The objective of the collaboration is to leverage Cee-C’s influence and reach to connect with a larger audience and reinforce Titus Sardine's commitment to quality and excellence.

Cee-C is widely recognised for her charisma, confidence, and

strong personality, making her a perfect fit for the Titus Sardine brand. Her large and engaged fan base brings a fresh and dynamic energy that aligns seamlessly with the brand's values. The partnership involves Cee-C's involvement in various promotional activities, including advertising campaigns, social media engagement, and public appearances for the brand.

The Brand Manager of Titus Sardine, Chukwuebuka Jacob, expressed enthusiasm about working with Cee-C, citing her influence and appeal as key factors

representation to the people of my constituency at the National Assembly. In the coming months, we shall be embarking on massive empowerments and other skill acquisition programme.

Christ who is our true role model.

"It is most painful that as a state that is predominantly Christians, we have not been more involved in the way of the Lord. Yes, we have more Churches yet our hearts are still far from Christ and by extension from God.”

Emmanuel Seeks Public Utilities’ Protection

A former governor of Akwa Ibom State, Udom Emmanuel, during Easter service at the weekend, said beyond the need to live in peace was the imperative of protecting public utilities and amenities for collective good.

Speaking at a thanksgiving service at the United Evangelical Church, Awa, in Onna Local Government Area of the state, Emmanuel explained that the facilities were provided in the interest and wellbeing of the people and, as such, must be protected against vandalism, misuse, theft, and abuse.

in the partnership. He emphasised the brand's commitment to continuous innovation and customer satisfaction, with Cee-C playing a pivotal role in driving brand awareness and loyalty.

With Cee-C on board as its brand ambassador, Titus Sardine said it aims to strengthen its position in the market and connect with consumers on a deeper level.

“The partnership is expected to increase the brand's visibility and awareness while also enhancing its reputation for quality and excellence,” it said.

"Beyond this, I must commend my governor, Chief Francis Nwifuru on his numerous infrastructural projects, human empowerments and succour in the State. To a substantial points, Governor Nwifuru has shown that he loves all parts of the state and do not discriminate.

Emmanuel, who was accompanied by his wife, Dr. (Mrs) Martha Emmanuel and other members of his family, said as Christians, the people in the state must learn to live as one and eschew needless biases and ethnic sentiments that are inimical to development.

"As a direct beneficiary of his project, I must say that the construction of Ezillo and Ezzagu road was a legacy project which will promote agricultural and economic activities of the state.

He prayed the special blessings of the season on the people and expressed optimism that Nigerians would live according to the virtues of Jesus Christ whose resurrection from death was being marked.

Six Killed by Cultists on Easter Day Clash in Awka as Police Arrest Man with AK 47 Rifle

David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka

At least six youths were reportedly killed in Awka, the capital of Anambra State on Easter Sunday, during a clash by rival cult groups.

It was gathered that while some were felled at Okpuno area, some others were killed around Dike Street, near Eke Awka market, while another happened at Obinagu area.

This came as the police arrested a man in Awada, Idemili North Local Government Area, with an AK 47 rifle, concealed in a bag, said to have been procured by a sponsor of a cult group, to tackle rivals.

According to sources, the Sunday incident happened in the afternoon at Eke Awka area, and also escalated to the other parts of Awka, where some more persons were gunned down by the cultists.

It was gathered that one of the persons hit by bullet was a staff of the Anambra State Judiciary, identified as Mr. Nwofor, believed to be going about his normal business before the cultists struck.

Easter day shooting in Awka was the first, after a very long while. Awka is notorious for cult clashes, but through police efforts and recent threat of arrests by police authorities in the state, cult killings had disappeared.

A video trending on the social media, showed bodies of two of the persons gunned down in the clash. While one of the victims was seen still struggling in pains for his dear life in the pool of his blood beside his motorcycle where he fell, passersby were seen scampering to their safety.

Meanwhile, police in the state have arrested a man carrying a bag containing an AK 47 rifle in Awada, Idemili North Local Government Area. The man, who was arrested during the Easter holiday, on sighting the police, took to his heels and was chased, apprehended and searched.

OlUrEMi TiNUBU FOODBANk...

L-R: Chairman, All Progressive Congress (APC), Lagos Island Local Government Area, Alhaji Ganiyu Sodiq; Member, Lagos State House of Assembly, representing Lagos Island 1, Hon. Omolara OyekanOlumegbon; and Chairman, APC, Ward B1, Lagos Island Local Government Area, Hon. Akanni Fatai, at the maiden subsidised food bank market tagged "Senator Oluremi Tinubu Food Bank'' organised by Hon.. Omolara Oyekan-Olumegbon, held at Oluwole car park in Lagos Island… yesterday.

PHOTO: ETOP UKUTT.

BOOK LAUNCH...

North Central PDP to Announce Ayu’s Replacement, Asks Damagum to Return to Position

Mutfwang tasks elders on party’s unity

Seriki Adinoyi in Jos and Segun

James

As part of efforts to get the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) back in shape ahead of the National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting slated for April 18, 2024, the North Central Caucus has concluded plans to present a replacement that would serve out the term of the former PDP National Chairman, Senator Iyorchia Ayu.

This was as the Plateau State Governor, Caleb Mutfwang, has urged elders of the party in the state to uphold its values and contribute to promoting peaceful coexistence, unity, tolerance, and cooperation within the party.

The PDP National Working Committee (NWC) has fixed the NEC meeting for Thursday, April 18, 2024, after a national caucus meeting slated for Wednesday.

Whereas the position of the national chairman of the party is allotted to the North Central, the Deputy National Chairman, (North) Amb. Illiya Damagum from Yobe State, North East zone, has been acting as National Chairman for over a year.

THISDAY gathered that there have been calls on the Damagumled NWC to approve a substantive National Chairman from the zone.

Party leaders from the North Central were said to have held a crucial meeting in Abuja last week where they reportedly insisted that a substantive National Chairman, should without further delay, emerge from the North Central while Damagum should revert to his original position as Deputy

National Chairman in line with the provision of the Constitution of the PDP.

The meeting, which had in attendance members of the PDP North Central Zonal Executive Committee and respective State Chairmen of the party from the six states of the zone and Federal Capital Territory (FCT), insisted on producing a replacement for Damagum.

A source at the meeting hinted that the leaders mandated Muftwang, to convene a decisive meeting of the Zonal Caucus that would come up with the nomination for the party's substantive National Chairman from the North Central Zone.

"With the exit of the former National Chairman, Senator Iyorchia Ayu, our zone was expected to produce a successor, but this was delayed. The National Chairmanship is zoned to the North Central, and the PDP Constitution provides that a successor must come from the North Central. So the Constitution should be followed.

“We have held a series of meetings on the issue. This was also the reason State Chairmen from the North Central met in Abuja on last Wednesday. We are unanimous in seeking a credible nomination. I can confirm to you that names are being discussed; we are narrowing our selection and stakeholders will reach a conclusion on their choice before the April 18 meeting.

"We have mandated the governor (Muftwang) that he should call a caucus meeting of our zone to enable us to come up with a replacement to take the mantle from Ambassador Damagum.

“We have raised this with Gover-

nor Muftwang in our meeting. The Constitution of our party needs to be followed so that our Zone (North Central) can serve out its term. The position is for the North Central and we insist on taking back our position at the NEC meeting,” the source said.

However, the Plateau governor at a breakfast meeting with stakeholders and members of the party's Elders' Forum at his residence at the old

Government House in Little Rayfield, Jos, sought unity. He emphasised the importance of wise guidance and counsel from the elders in ensuring the party's stability and respecting the popular wishes of the people, especially at the grassroots level.

Speaking on the upcoming congresses to elect party officials, Mutfwang cautioned against actions that could lead to conflicts within

the party and stressed the need for inclusivity and consensus-building.

"PDP belongs to the people of Plateau; it is a platform they have identified with since 1999. It is imperative to have the body of elders functioning, as their wisdom is invaluable in guiding the party."

While assuring the people that the party would soon commence the congress process, the governor urged the elders to demonstrate leadership

and provide good counsel for peace to prevail.

Chairman of the PDP Elders’ Forum, Chief Raymond Dabo, expressed gratitude to the Governor for the leadership he has shown and reiterated the elders' commitment to supporting the party.

In attendance were former governor Jonah Jang, and Amb. Yahaya Kwande as well as former Ministers and stalwarts of the party.

Edo: We are Promoting Business Growth with Land Administration Reforms

The Edo State Government has said it is leveraging technology to boost investment inflow into the state, facilitate ease of doing business, and promote business growth through the land administration reforms by the Governor Godwin Obaseki-led administration.

Speaking to journalists in Benin City, Managing Director of the Edo Geographic Information Service (EdoGIS), Grace Aihie, noted that the ease and convenience in processing title documents for landed property and the improved land administration system has opened the state for economic growth and attracted several investors.

“We have done so much to enhance the ease of doing business through our reforms in land administration. Ease of doing business comprises that the investors should have a fair playing ground and the people should be carried along to understand what the investors have

come to do.

“ So, what we do is sit together and discuss. Where there are problems, we look at the problems and look for a solution and everybody agrees, then we go on. That is the ease of business we are talking about.

“We have ensured that businesses and investors don't have bottlenecks that are stopping them from doing their business. We also make the people understand that if they cooperate with the investors, they are likely going to get employment and other benefits,” she said.

The EdoGIS MD said since the beginning of the new technology that the state has deployed, many things had changed.

According to her, land grabbing has reduced drastically and there’s no more loss of investment or capital.

“ Before now, some people would just go and buy land without conducting a search and when

Second Edition of Triangle Media International Award to Hold in London

Triangle Media International Award, an event aimed at celebrating individuals and corporate organisations from Nigeria and Africa who have excelled in both public and private endeavours, is set to take place in May 2024 in London, United Kingdom.

The announcement was made by the Publisher of Triangle Media, Femi Salako, who emphasised the significance of recognising outstanding achievements within the African community.

“The forthcoming event promises to be a grand affair, serving as a platform to honour those who have made remarkable contribu-

tions to various sectors, ranging from governance, business and entrepreneurship to arts and culture, education, healthcare, technology, and more.

“It represents an opportunity to showcase the diverse talents and accomplishments emanating from Nigeria and the broader African continent,” a statement from the organisation said.

Speaking about the awards ceremony, Salako stated: "The Triangle Media International Award is not just a ceremony; it is a celebration of excellence and innovation.

“ It is our chance to shine a spotlight on the outstanding individuals

and organisations whose hard work and dedication have positively impacted their communities and industries."

The awards, the planners said, will be presented across different categories, reflecting the multifaceted nature of achievements within Africa.

From visionary leadership and corporate social responsibility to innovation and creative arts, each accolade, it stressed, aims to highlight exemplary performances and inspire others to strive for greatness.

According to the organisers, the lecture at the event, will focus on “Addressing Economic Challenges In Nigeria; Strategies for Sustainable

Growth and Development” and “The Challenges of Insecurity in Nigeria”.

It added that they will will be delivered by Prof. Ojo Ademola and Dr Nathaniel Oyinloye, stressing that the address will be delivered, by Dr. Kingsley Kuku, a former Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta Affairs and Chairman of the Presidential Amnesty Programme.

Triangle Media International Award according to the organisers, is poised to make it a memorable occasion that honours the achievements of individuals and corporate entities, while promoting a sense of pride and unity within the African community.

they come to EdoGIS, they see that the property is either mortgaged or does not belong to the person who sold it to them. There is a loss of investment there.

“But what I keep saying is that you should conduct a search. If you are going to buy land for N100 million, you just need N25,000 to find out if that land is free from all encumbrances.

“ If you do that, and we tell you, ‘Yes, it is John that owns the land, then you are good to go. Then, if

there is already a C-of-O and you come for the same land, there is an overlap and we cannot continue. We stop there and call those involved, communities even come,” she added.

She explained that for issues that cannot be immediately resolved, they are referred to the court to decide who the owner is.

“When they send in the judgement, we accept and implement it. Because of all this, the issue of double-dealing has been drastically reduced,” she added.

Kwara First Lady, Others Seek Women Empowerment for Sustainable Development

Olusegun Samuel in Yenagoa

First Lady of Kwara State, Prof. Olufolake Abdulrazaq, the Deputy Governor of Cross River State, Peter Odey, and other developments experts have called for an increased empowerment for women to sustain the country’s development.

They made the call during the recent Global Sustainability Summit held on March 30, 2024 at the House Of Lords, London, United Kingdom, which was organised by the CleanCyclers to address pressing environmental challenges and promote sustainable solutions.

The Kwara first lady, who spoke during the summit, said that the event presented a unique opportunity to move from marginal changes to transformative redevelopment using the people, planet and profit framework.

She said that this would help make better decisions and build on opportunities to bring about sustainable development with a more equitable distribution of wealth

by combining public sector with private sector expertise.

"We can empower women and drive solution towards achieving sustainable development. It is in line with this, however, that I want to once again commend the organisers of this event for taking and as well sustaining this dialogue with a view to promoting gender parity in the quest for socially and environmentally sustainable communities and societies," she said.

In his address, the founder/ CEO of CleanCyclers, and convener of the Global Sustainability Summit, Otto Canon, expressed his concern regarding the unsustainable practices of corporations and governments around the world while calling for actions that inspire others to embrace sustainability as a way of life.

He said: "The summit served as a platform for dialogue, igniting a collective passion for sustainable action. Participants exchanged knowledge and experiences, addressing urgent climate action, renewable energy revolutions, and sustainable finance.

L-R: Igwe-Elect, Akama oghe Community in Enugu State, Chief Onyeka Ofodile; Representative of Special Guest of Honour, Chief Chidi Onovo; Chairman of the occasion, Prof. Emeritus Albert Alos; wife of the Author, Mrs Ify Ofungwu; Founder, ISN Products Nigeria Limited/the Author, Mr Ben Ofungwu (Snr); Commissioner for Information and Communication, Enugu State, representing his Governor, Mr Aka Eze Aka and Chief Launcher, Chief George Agu, during the launch of the book "Reminiscences: Life and Times of Ben Ofungwu (Snr), an Autobiography" held in Lagos... recently

OPENING OF AMINA OLUFUNMI FASHION HOUSE …

L-R: lmam Ratibi of Egbe Central Mosque, Alhaji AbdulWaheed Ramiyau; The Grand Chief lmam of Egbe Central Mosque, Sheikh Adisa Lukmon Olalekan; Founder, Ibeji Foundation, Alhaji Rafiu Adisa Ebiti; the celebrant, Amina Olufunmi; Chairman, Egbe Central Mosque, Chief Ganiyu Olakunle Osegbere, and Chief Mufasir of Egbe Central Mosque, Alhaji Ahmadu MusaTijani, at the official inauguration of Amina Olufunmi Fashion House at Egbe, Lagos…yesterday

Unilorin Expels Six Final Year Students, 13 Others over Alleged Examination Malpractices, Misconduct

Hammed Shittu in ilorin

Management of the University of Ilorin(Unilorin), Kwara state has approved expulsion and rustication of six final year students and 13 others over alleged examination malpractices and various misconduct.

A statement issued in Ilorin yesterday signed by the institution’s Director Corporate Affairs, Mr. Kunle Akogun,stated that the approval of expulsion/ rustication of the affected students by the Vice Chancellor, Wahab Egbewole,was sequel to the recommendations of the Students’ Disciplinary Committee at its 220th/221st meeting.

malpractice, hostel bed-space racketeering and extortion, beating a fellow student, admission racketeering, extortion

The statement said that the affected students were penalised for offences ranging from misconduct, theft, examination

COAS Inaugurates Multiple Projects in Sokoto

Onuminya Innocent in Sokoto

The Chief of Army Staff (COAS)

Lt. Gen. Taoreed Abiodun Lagbaja, has inaugurated multiple projects in Sokoto.

Lagbaja explained that the CivilMilitary Cooperation (CIMIC) projects that the Nigerian Army is executing across the country are part of the army’s non-kinetic approaches in combating security challenges facing the country.

The projects were executed under the Chief of Army Staff’s Special Intervention Projects in Sokoto South Local Government Area of the state.

Lagbaja, who was represented by the General Officer Commanding, 8 Division Nigerian Army, Major General Godwin Michael Mutkut, noted that it is heartwarming to say that Sokoto State has enjoyed relative peace, despite the activities of bandits and other criminal elements in

the North-west.

He attributed the achievements to the cordial relations the Nigerian Army has enjoyed over the years with the good people of the state.

He further stated that the people’s support to the Nigerian Army has contributed immensely to the successes of operations within Sokoto State.

He, therefore, implored the general public to keep faith with the Nigerian Army and reaffirmed the army’s commitment to discharging its constitutional responsibilities of ensuring peace and security through kinetic and non-kinetic operations.

Earlier in his welcome address, the project executor, Major General Maikano Abdullahi, thanked the Chief of Army Staff for approving and funding the intervention projects, which he said would go a long way in ameliorating the plight of the people.

Salon Africana to Unveil Fabric of Courage

Ugo Aliogo

Salon Africana will unveil the Fabric of Courage, a salon-style multidisciplinary exhibition that aims to reconstitute the fragmented archive of FESTAC ’77 (The Second World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture), while exploring the ways in which the event continues to reverberate in Nigeria’s cultural imaginary and historic sites of cultural production.

In a statement, it was noted that the exhibition, which is produced in partnership with African Artists Foundation, Centre for Art Research and Alliances, and The Africa Centre (NYC) would take place on April 7 at the historic Old Printing Press located on Broad Street, Lagos Island, Lagos State.

The event, which is conceived and curated by Grammy-nominated jazz vocalist, writer, and scholar, Somi Kakoma, would feature large

scale images of celebrated American FESTAC photographer, Marilyn Nance, from her critically acclaimed book: ‘Last Day In Lagos’.

Salon will also mark Nance’s first return to Nigeria since 1977. The exhibition will also be complemented by a singular photograph of FESTAC by the legendary Tam Fiofori of Nigeria.

Some of the features that will be included in the exhibition are sound installations, film, and text excerpts from renowned literary figures Audre Lorde and Ama Ata Aidoo, illuminating the often-obscured contribution of women who participated in FESTAC.

There will also be an intimate panel discussion of artists and writers led by beloved arts journalist, Jahman Anikulapo, to foster a deeper understanding of FESTAC’s enduring relevance in contemporary discourse.

and assault.

It also said that penalties for the offences committed by the students included rustication

for either one semester or one academic session, including expulsion.

The statement therefore said that, the affected students were in various academic levels such as 100, 200, 300 and 400 Levels.

Bishop Adeoye: Nigeria’s Land Polluted, Defiled, only God Can Heal It

Yinka

Kolawole in Osogbo

The Lead Bishop of Worldwide Anglican Church (WAC) in Nigeria, Bishop Seun Adeoye, yesterday stated that the unending shedding of innocent blood in Nigeria has negatively impacted the country.

Mild drama continued at the Kogi Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja yesterday as some witnesses disowned their depositions before the panel.

Four witnesses from Adavi Local Government Area of the state gave their evidence for the Social Democratic Party (SDP) before the

The Founder and General Overseer of Sufficient Grace and Truth Ministries (SGTM) and the Director of Information of World Bishops Council (WBC) in Africa, spoke on April 1, 2024 during the conclusion of the four days 2024 Passover Celebration held at Rehoboth Arena, Okinni, Osun State.

“polluted as defiled.”

Bishop Adeoye who took his message from the Book of Numbers 35: 30-34, noted that the shedding of innocent blood constituted grievous offence before God while such land is declared by the scripture as

The cleric said that God specifically in verse 33 warned that “we shall not pollute the land” because “blood defileth the land” and that “the land cannot be cleansed of the blood that is shed therein, but by the blood of him that shed it.”

Kogi Poll: Confusion at Tribunal as Witnesses Disown Depositions

three-member panel of justices, led by Justice Ado Birnin-Kudu.

The witnesses, when called, gave virtually the same narration regarding what transpired where they voted even though they were in different polling units during the Nov. 11, 2023 governorship poll.

The four witnesses, like the

previous ones, adopted their witness depositions on oath.

However, during crossexamination by the defence counsel, they made claims different from what was in the witness depositions.

When shown their deposition, they disowned it, saying it was not written by them while also

confirming that they were not polling agents but random voters. According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), one of the witnesses, Rufai Muhammed, who said he was from Adavi Local Government, stated in his deposition that there was no validly accredited voter for the said election.

Osun SSG Prays for Economic Restoration, Peace, Prosperity at Easter

Yinka Kolawole in Osogbo

As Christians in Nigeria join other faithful worldwide to celebrate this year Easter, Secretary to the Osun State Government (SSG), Hon. Teslim Igbalaye, has assured Nigerians of the restoration of peace, economic buoyancy and a more prosperous future for all regardless of current challenges.

He said: “My message is really a prayer. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is a defining moment for all Christians. And one of the most important things to bear in mind is the resuscitation of hope.

“Where there is despair, I pray that hope would be restored, and where there is fear, I pray that there is courage and confidence. Where there is deprivation, I pray that there is prosperity, and there is abundance.”

The SSG added that “there

may be things that appear dead but the power of the resurrection is one that assures us that life will come after death, so we are completely confident, especially for our country that everywhere we suffer deprivation, there will be restoration, and that is the promise of the resurrection.”

Delta Gov Harps on Peaceful Coexistence among Nigerians

Omon-Julius Onabu in asaba

Delta State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, has said that peaceful coexistence engendered by sacrificial love and unity should be at the heart of Easter reflection, especially among Christian faithful

in the state, and indeed Nigerians at large.

The governor made the assertion in a special Easter message issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Sir Festus Ahon, in Asaba.

While urging Delta citizens and all Nigerians to use the occasion of the Easter celebration for sober reflection on what is required of them as individuals and as a people to ensure sustained peaceful coexistence to fashion a better future for all Nigerians.

According to him, “The spirit of love and sacrifice Easter represents and transcends religious denominations and persuasion.

“As Christians, we must reflect on the import of Easter celebrations in our dealings not only with other Christians, but with people of other faiths and convictions.

JAMB Registrar, Others Urge Muslim Men to Treat Wives as Equals

Sunday Okobi

The Registrar, Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), Professor Is’haq Oloyede, has advised Muslim men to treat their wives as equals, and with respect, kindness and fairness.

The former Vice Chancellor, University of Ilorin, stated this while delivering this year’s National Ramadan Lecture of the Muslim Association of Nigeria (MAN) in Ibadan, Oyo State.

Oloyede, while speaking on the topic: ‘The Man in

Woman: An Exploration of the Responsibility of Muslim Male in the Emancipation of Womanhood’, said one of the most valuable deeds a man could do is to treat his wife in a way that transforms him into a virtuous person.

The JAMB Registrar, while

addressing the gathering, said this could be achieved when a man understands his wife’s behaviour and desires.

According to him, “Provide accommodation for your family, the same style as your own; not that your wife will be living in the boys’ quarters.

Easter: Nasarawa CAN Urges Sacrifice for Nigeria’s Development

Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Akwanga Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, Rev. Paul Makama, Chairman, has called on Nigerians to imbibe the spirit of sacrifice for development to thrive in the country.

Makama made the call during a rally organised by the association to mark Easter celebration in Akwanga yesterday. He pointed out that the country could only experience the desired growth and development when all citizens – both the leaders and

the led become sacrificial in the interest of others as exemplified by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

According to him, Christ made the ultimate sacrifice by dying to save mankind from death occasioned by sin.

“Easter marks the resurrection of Jesus Christ three days after his death by crucifixion. We are celebrating the real essence of Christianity.

“We should learn to be sacrificial in all that we do,” he said.

Declare State of Emergency in Judiciary, CSOs Tell CJN Ariwoola

Demand complete overhaul of Nigerian judiciary

Wale Igbintade

Seven civil society organisations(CSOs) and campaigners have raised the alarm over the state of the Nigerian judiciary under the leadership of the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, and called for a declaration of a state of emergency in the judiciary to pave way for needed reforms. The groups lamented “the increasing damage which the continuing missteps, alleged misuse of authority and a general failure to undertake effective

EFCC: Our Anti-corruption Fight ‘ll Spare No One

The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr Ola Olukoyede, has pledged to lead a broad-based and holistic anti-graft war that would not spare anyone linked with any form of economic and financial crimes.

EFCC spokesperson, Mr. Dele Oyewale, in a statement issued yesterday quoted Olukoyese as having said this during a concert in Abuja.

According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the anti-corruption concert was organised to create awareness and public involvement in the fight against internet crimes.

Olukoyede reaffirmed his commitment to an all-embracing, fully-integrated war against corrupt practices.

“We will not spare anyone. We will not spare the mega thieves. As we are doing the mega, we will also do those at the lower end.

“In the last two months, we have arraigned two former governors. So, it is not true that we are only focused on

internet fraudsters.

“Of course, internet fraud is bad enough but our focus is on every form of economic and financial crimes”, he said.

He cautioned youths against indulging in internet-related offences, pointing out that the consequences of being convicted for such crimes are grave.

“Youths need to know that being ex-convicts has career limitations. Ex-convicts can’t run for public offices, the stigma alone is even terrible.

“I urge you to avoid internet crimes by all means. Your future is more important than any immediate gains from such crimes,” he said.

Olukoyede said EFCC under his watch was deeply interested in giving youths a glorious and sustainable future. To this effect, he said, a Cyber Crime Research Centre was being planned at the EFCC Academy.

“The centre will involve youths in indepth research about the issue of cybercrime. Their energies will be deployed toward profitable engagements,” he said.

reform is doing to the judiciary.”

In a joint letter dated March 28, 2024, addressed to the CJN, the CSOs said that against the background of the decline the judiciary suffered prior to the CJN’s appointment, it was expected that the CJN

would upon his appointment be “acutely conscious of the extreme urgency of reforming the judiciary and its administration, arresting its downward spiral in public trust, and reinforcing its capacity to promote and protect the rule of law.” The letter was

jointly signed by the Convener, Access to Justice, Joseph Otteh; the Chairman, Human and Constitutional Rights Committee, Sonnie Ekwowusi; Convener, Fight Against Corruption in the Judiciary, Bayo Akinlade; the Director, FundELG Africa, Dominic E. Obozuwa; the Convener, Open Justice Alliance, Prof. Chidi Anslem Odinkalu; the Executive Director, Rule of Law and Accountability, Okechukwu Nwanguma, and the Executive Director, Sterling Law Centre, Adedeji Ajare.

North Group Holds Special Prayers for Tinubu, Laments Buhari’s Presidency’s Impact

John Shiklam inKaduna

The Arewa Think Tank (ATT) has regretted that former President, Muhammadu Buhari, spent eight years in office without much impact on the North.

The Convener of the group, Muhammad Yakubu, stated this in an interview with journalists yesterday in Kaduna shortly after a special prayer session organised by the ATT to mark President Bola

Tinubu’s birthday. He said the North had hope that Buhari would tackle the challenges of insecurity during his eight year tenure, regretting that the situation got worst under his watch.

Yakubu said considering the enormity of challenges facing the North, the region does not need political power for now.

He said: “We must put our house in order and tell ourselves the bitter truth. Security challenges

which we hoped that former President Buhari would have dealt with, got worst.

“The North does not need political power, but infrastructural and educational development by a leader who cares for the region.”

Yakubu noted that since assumption of office, Tinubu has demonstrated that he has the capacity to address the challenges he inherited from the Buhari administration.

He said the prayer session was for God to guide and give him the wisdom and courage to steer the affairs of Nigeria.

According to him, “The northern part of the country cannot stop President Tinubu if he wants to run for a second term in 2027.”

Yakubu said the North needs infrastructural and educational development by a leader who cares for the region.

Cement Prices: Block Moulders Call for Lower Import Duties

The National Association of Block moulders of Nigeria (NABMON) has urged the federal government to reduce import duties on cement manufacturing components to attract more foreign investment in the sector.

The National President, NABMON, Mr Adesegun Banjoko, gave the advice in a statement issued yesterday in Lagos.

He said the price of one bag of cement in Nigeria, currently in the region of N7,000 and N8,000 was still considered too expensive.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the federal government and cement manufacturers had in February, in Abuja agreed on a N7,000 to

Aregbesola’s Life Under Threat, Says APC Omoluabi Caucus

Yinka Kolawole in Osogbo

The Omoluabi Progressives Caucus of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State, has raised the alarm over threat to the life of the immediate past Minister of Interior, Mr. Rauf Aregbesola.

The APC group said that there was a clear threat to Aregbesola’s life and freedom in an article released by Ismail Omipidan, the media aide to former governor of the state, Mr. Adegboyega Oyetola.

In a statement signed yesterday in Osogbo by the Organising and Publicity Secretary of the Omoluabi caucus, Mr. Abosede Oluwaseun, the group said that the threat to Aregbesola’s life could not be overlooked going by the previous attacks on the former governor

of the state and his loyalists in the recent past.

The caucus quoted Omipidan as saying: “Yet with the feeling of self-importance, he continues to wage war against the structure which brought him into limelight.

“But let me say for the umpteenth time that if Aregbesola continues his political war against the party and persons that brought him to political reckoning, he may not survive it.”

The caucus called on security agencies in the state to investigate Omipidan’s statement and prevent any attempt on Aregbesola’s life.

A copy of the statement made available to THISDAY yesterday reads: “An article came out recently from Ismail Omipidan, the media aide to Mr. Gboyega Oyetola, the immediate

past governor of Osun State, titled ‘What Does Aregbesola Want from Oyetola?’

“We urgently draw the attention of the law enforcement agencies and all responsible individuals to the evident and explicit threats against the life and freedom of Mr. Rauf Adesoji Aregbesola, clearly expressed in this hostile narrative.

“Omipidan’s assertions betray a deeper and more insidious conspiracy and subterfuge by his sponsors.

“For context, Omipidan and his sponsors are not only playing God which they are grossly incompetent and unqualified to do, they are certainly hatching a very dangerous, sinister and diabolical plan against Aregbesola, which must not be overlooked.

Six Millionaires Emerge in First Bank Win Big Promo Final Draw

Ugo Aliogo

First Bank of Nigeria Limited has rewarded six customers across Nigeria with a million naira each in the 4th and final edition of its Win Big Promo draw, which started on October 23, 2023.

N8,000 price range for one bag of 50 kg cement. However, cement manufacturers said the cement price reduction wasn’t guaranteed, indicating that the sustainability of the price decrease was dependent on the government following through on its promises to address certain industry challenges.

Banjoko in the statement said the threat by the government to open up the borders to increase supply had also not brought down the prices.

“Of recent, the issue of our key raw material, cement, attracted front burner attention nationwide, and the dust is yet to finally settle

as far as we are concerned because the N7000 to N8000 offer is still on the high side.

“The government has threatened to open the borders to increase supply.

“Please also reduce import duties on imported components for manufacturing cement and also invite more global investors into the sector so that ‘the market can determine fair prices’”, he said. The NABMON president also advised the government to discourage cement smuggling to neighbouring countries.

Banjoko said that Nigeria had a larger population and presumably a higher demand for cement, yet

it lags behind South Africa in production facilities. He suggested the need to invest in building more cement factories to meet the country’s domestic needs and become a potential exporter.

“South Africa, with a population of 60million, has 15 cement factories, and Nigeria with a population three times larger has only three cement factories, then there is still much work to be done,” he said.

Banjoko, therefore, expressed optimism that ongoing research efforts would find alternative materials for cement production in Nigeria.

He listed the rewards categories while lauding customers for their participation in the last four months in the promo.

“The curtains will be drawn today, but First Bank will

Speaking at the event yesterday, the Chief Executive Officer of the bank, Adesola Adeduntan, explained that to qualify for the N100,000 monthly draw, customers would have to maintain a minimum deposit balance of N5,000 monthly and make a minimum of five transactions on any of the bank’s digital channels. The CEO said the event was important to First Bank, and an opportunity to demonstrate its ability to give back to society. Adesola, who was represented at the event by the Executive Director, Treasury and International Banking, Mr. Ini Ebong, said in October 2023, the bank devised the promo to reward customers’ loyalty, stating that the bank had the largest ecosystem of savings account holders in the country. He noted that the grand finale of the draw was coinciding with the bank’s 130-year anniversary, which came up on March 31, 2024.

continue to position itself through its digital platforms to deliver value,” he said.

Also, the Head, Personal Banking, Mr. Ikemefula Nwachukwu, said that 1,240 winners had won N100,000 each in the four draws.

He averred that six most lucky Nigerians were the ones that won a million naira each while 40,000 customers each got N1,000 airtime.

“We are very glad, and customers have been very positive. In fact, they are expecting us to do more. This is indeed the biggest CSR initiative that you can see from any bank in this country, and we are proud of what we are doing at First Bank,” he stated.

Super Eagles’ Osayi-Samuel Faces Lengthy Ban for Role in Trabzonspor, Fenerbahçe Fans Fight

Osayi-Samuel joins three other Fenerbahçe players and officials who are under scrutiny for their ignoble roles during the fans fights that followed the ill-mannered clash between Trabzonspor and Fenerbahce just before the last international break.

Banyana Target Draw or Upset of

first match at MKO Abiola Stadium in Abuja.

The incident unfolded on March 17th at Trabzonspor’s Papara Park in Trabzon, where chaos ensued as jubilant Fenerbahçe players celebrated their 3-2 away victory.

Amidst the post-match frenzy, Osayi-Samuel reportedly punched a masked supporter who had breached the field, an act that swiftly landed him in the disciplinary spotlight.

Aside from Osayi-Samuel, Fenerbahçe’s Dutch defender Jayden Oosterwolde was also summoned for allegedly kicking the same supporter, as reported by French media outfit, RFI.

Adding to the fray, two club employees from Fenerbahçe are also being called to account for their involvement in the altercation.

In a broader context, the ramifications extend beyond Fenerbahçe’s camp, as an assistant

coach from Trabzonspor has also been summoned in connection to the incident, further entangling both clubs in the disciplinary process.

The repercussions of the violence have reverberated throughout Turkey, drawing stark comparisons to a previous incident just three months prior, where a club manager’s assault on a referee rocked the Süper Lig.

FIFA President, Gianni Infantino, minced no words in condemning the recent violence, denouncing it as “absolutely unacceptable.”

In the aftermath, law enforcement detained 13 Trabzonspor supporters, with five facing pre-trial detention.

However, the general secretary of Trabzonspor has called for their release, asserting that they were unjustly apprehended.

Fans Banned from Buying German Jersey with Nazi Symbolism

Adidas has banned football fans from buying German football kits customised with the number 44, after media raised its resemblance to the symbol used by World War Two-era Nazi SS units.

"We will block personalisation of the jerseys," an Adidas spokesman said. SS units were the most responsible for crimes against humanity committed by the Nazis.

The newly released kit has also caused controversy with its choice of pink for the away colours.

The issue was first raised by historian Michael König, who said the design of the kits was "very questionable".

The SS rune was designed for use by the Nazi units in 1929. Members of the SS ranged from Gestapo agents to concentration camp guards. SS duties included administering death camps where millions of Jews and others were put to death.

Adidas spokesman Oliver Brüggen denied that the kit's resemblance to the Nazi symbols was intentional.

(DFB) and its partners had designed the numbers on the shirts.

In a post on X/Twitter, the DFB said the shirt designs had been submitted to UEFA for review during the design process and that "none of the parties involved saw any proximity to Nazi symbolism".

They added that an alternative design for the number four would be developed.

The same kit has met additional controversy for its choice of bright pink as the away colour. Supporters say the colour represents the country's diversity. But critics claim it is untraditional and has been introduced in order to raise money for the DFB.

Adidas has manufactured German jerseys since the 1950s.

Banyana Banyana's Coach, Desiree Ellis, was reported by South Africa media yesterday as planning

a draw or out-rightly upset of the senior Nigerian women’s team. Both teams are clashing in Abuja on Friday in the first leg of their Olympic Games qualifiers with the return leg to hold in Pretoria on April 9 to decide which team will feature in Group C of the Paris 2024 Women’s football event.

“Playing the second leg at home at Loftus Versfeld on April 9 gives us the advantage in the tie. It means we can try for a win or draw in the away leg on April 5 in Abuja that will put us in a strong position coming back to South Africa.”

Ellis, though, stressed her team should not look further than the

“The first leg will be key. Getting a positive result in the first leg will take a lot of pressure off our team because the travelling is long and there’s little time to prepare for the second leg.

“We arrived in Nigeria early on Sunday to prepare there as well. We want to get home with little pressure and we’re also urging the fans to come out in their numbers because when we play away the stadiums are packed,” observed the Banyana coach.

Goalkeeper Andile Dlamini will miss the match for medical reasons but Ellis is confident of the cover she has in goals.

"We as a company are committed to opposing xenophobia, anti-Semitism, violence and hatred in every form," he said.

Adidas separately told the BBC that the German Football Association

But a decision by the DFB to drop German company Adidas in favour of the American giant Nike as the manufacturer of German football kits from 2027 has been blasted for lacking "patriotism" by Economy Minister Robert Habeck.

Germany will host this year's European Football Championship, which will be held in 10 different cities.

Juan Carlos Garrido, has expressed displeasure that the ongoing Ramadan fasting cost

Rivers United edged past defending champions USM Alger of Algeria 1-0 in a CAF Confederation Cup quarterfinal first-leg clash at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium in Uyo.

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) had announced a change in time for the game from the initial 5 pm to 2 pm, a decision that did not go down well with the Algerian side.

Garrido says the timing of the game affected his team’s

performance.

“As we expected, it was a very difficult match because of the quality of our opponent (Rivers United), who we respect a lot. We also played this game in Ramadan without eating or drinking, which wasn’t a good condition for my team.

“To play at 2 pm in this weather condition is not ideal. I know the home team has the right to choose when to play, but in my opinion, in this situation, the organisers (CAF) have to respect our position. I’ve to congratulate my players for playing

in such a condition.”

Garrido, however, expects his team to overturn the 1-0 deficit, in a much better condition, when they welcome Rivers United in Algeria.

“Rivers United were better than us. But anyway, no excuses, congratulations to them for winning. I believe we’ll be in a much better condition when we play the return leg in Algeria. At our stadium, we’re going to play to win."

The return leg is slated for the Stade du Juliet in Algiers next week Sunday.

Kaylin Swart cast aside doubts with her strong performances as Banyana became the first senior South African football team to progress past a World Cup group stage in Australia last year when she was controversially played between the posts by Ellis ahead of Dlamini.

“It doesn’t affect us much. We have a group of players to step in if somebody steps out. It allows someone else to raise their hand,” Ellis said.

The team has been buoyed by crucial players returning from injury, including midfield captain Refiloe Jane and defenders Bambanani Mbane, Sibulele Holweni and Bongeka Gamede.

Light welterweight boxer, Adeyemi “Spirit” Adekanla, has declared that he would snatch the West African Boxing Union (WABU) title from current champion, Segun “War” Adeyemi, when they confront each other at GOtv Boxing Night 31 on May 1.

The 10-round title fight is one of the seven bouts scheduled for the boxing event at the Molade Okoya-Thomas Indoor Sports Hall of Teslim Balogun Stadium, Lagos.

Speaking about his preparation for the fight, ‘Spirit’ said he aims to keep his unbeaten record by claiming the WABU title. “I am preparing really hard for this fight. It is my turn to have the WABU title, so no more ‘War’. I've never lost a fight in my career, and I will keep that record on May 1,” he said. Both boxers are undefeated in their professional careers. 'Spirit'

has a record of 12 wins with four knockouts, while ‘War’ has a record of 10 wins, one draw and seven knockouts from 11 fights.

In the other clashes, Raheem “Baddo” Animashaun and Samuel “Apata Roro” Moses will face-off in a national welterweight challenge; Hammed ‘Ese’ Ganiyu will confront Yusuf Ogunbumi in the light welterweight category; Sikiru “Omo Iya Eleja” Shogbesan and Arabambi “Power” Ojo will slug it out in the super featherweight category; Afikun Gbenga will square up against Adewale Oladeji in a super welterweight challenge fight; Emmanuel Abimbola will face Azeez Ayobami in the national lightweight category, while the national flyweight champion, Sifon ‘Best’ Iwatt, will take on Sikiru Ogunyaju in a national challenge bout.

Olawale Ajimotokan with agency report Super Eagles full-back, Bright Osayi-Samuel, has been summoned by the Turkish Football Federation over his role in the violent scenes that marred a championship match.

Bright Osayi -Samuel (right) caught on camera pummeling a Trabzonspor supporter who invaded the pitch to celebrate their 2-3 away win at Fenerbahce last month. Now, Osayi faces lengthy sanctions for his indiscretion

US-Based Nigerian Author to Immigrants

“There is a general situation those travelling abroad will face because it is a general principle of life. Some of us are at a crossroads; that is why I want to tell people planning to relocate abroad to do their research very well. It is not in my position to discourage those who want to leave...Some of our children are now caught in between two cultures, while some of them do not even know where they belong” --US-Based NigerianAuthor,ClinicalNurse,Mrs.MaggieOffoha,advisesaspiringImmigrants.

TUESDAY WITH REUBEN ABATI

abati1990@gmail.com

Nigeria, OPL 245 And Citizen Adoke’s Travails

Isympathize with Mohammed Bello Adoke, referred to above simply as Citizen Adoke. Not necessarily because I know him personally, he and I, having served this country during the tenure of President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, former President, Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, Adoke from 2010 – 2015, and this writer from 2011 – 2015. I sympathize with him because of what Nigeria has done to him and how he has now become another living example of how many technocrats would rather shun the arena of public service because of how badly Nigeria has treated them, thus making it difficult for the best and the brightest to step forward to contribute to their nation’s development. I recall that many years ago, shortly after the annulment of the June 12, 1993 Presidential election, and the return to civilian rule in 1999, one of the major arguments put forward by civil society was that the military having messed up the country so badly, the return to politics and governance, as the military took their exit, never again to return, should be built on the involvement and participation of distinguished Nigerian technocrats in politics – men and women who have been tested in the field of practice and who could bring their experience to the public field.

This encouraged a significant number of persons – academics, lawyers, Nigerians at home and in diaspora, medical experts, engineers and accountants to elect to serve their country, if only to prove to the soldiers that the civilian populace could govern and that democracy is the best form of government. President Olusegun Obasanjo emerged from the residue of the 1993 – 1999 crisis as Nigerian President. In fairness to him, he bought into this logic and recruited personnel from across the spectrum. There were many Nigerians abroad who were persuaded to pack their luggage and return to serve their country. Other leading professionals at home joined the government, having been called upon to serve, many of them personally by Obasanjo.

President Yar’Adua (2007 – 2010) also followed Obasanjo’s example. It soon became normal to have popular persons who had done well in professional practice serving in government, on the executive side and even more so in the legislature at all levels. Under President Goodluck Jonathan, the tradition continued. He had a team of bright technocrats, including some of the very best in their fields.

However, the sad part of the recruitment of the best and the brightest into the governance of Nigeria is that many of these talented persons often end up either being frustrated out of the system, or they end up being set up for infractions, or at worst, as is common, they are left with bruised hearts and egos. I once heard the story of an accomplished engineer who had worked in a top engineering company in the United States who was brought home to re-design some structures for the Nigerian electricity network. He came up with his designs which he thought would be cost-effective and deliver on the objective, but what he proposed would result in the demolition of some houses belonging to very powerful Nigerians. He was promptly advised to change his design to save those houses. He put up a spirited argument about engineering, cost and credibility. He was told that in this country some persons and spaces are untouchable. He quoted engineering expertise. He had to be reminded that Nigeria is not the United States. Out of frustration, the fellow packed his luggage and left. He would rank as one of the luckiest.

Many others who thought that they could join the post-military train and help save Nigeria were not so lucky. There are examples of Nigerians who have tried to save Nigeria but have paid with their lives, or the lives of their relatives, or who remain scarred for life. When they are invited to serve, it is natural for them to see that as a special

form of recognition, out of a large population of more than 200 million people. But Nigeria is like a stockfish: when you think you can bend it with bare hands, you may end up bending your hands in the process. Many who tried did so in vain. The stories are many, and I do not want to delve into too many individual tales, because every example has its own peculiar details, true and fictional, real and imagined, since those we identify as the best and the brightest have their own individuality and moral peccadilloes.

I started with Citizen Adoke and it is his story that I want to tell as I know it. He has himself told a better part of his story in his partly biographical book, Burden of Service (Clink Street, 2019) in which he reported that having attained the esteemed rank of an SAN, he dreamt of becoming the AttorneyGeneral and Minister of Justice of the Federation. He shared that dream with his mother, and they both prayed over it. He not only attained the silk, he also became Nigeria’s 21st Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice – a call of destiny for a poor, little boy from Nagazi, who read law by accident, and had to borrow a jacket for his university matriculation, only to be de-robed and humiliated publicly by the owner of the suit, and who in addition had to survive university education with the benevolence of friends who helped him with a 0-1-0 regime. Those who know, know what it means to go through university as an indigent student. After his Law School Education, Adoke even had to attend his Call to Bar ceremony in borrowed robes. He had no family or relative in attendance. But he was one of those who survived the odds. He practised law in Kano, acquired more education in Switzerland, and the UK, struggled to get to the top of the game and he ended up as a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN). His book, Burden of Service basically tells the story of how he got to the very top of his profession, across the ranks and in public service. He gives an account of his dedicated service and the reforms and the innovations that he brought to bear as Nigeria’s 21st Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice. It was an achievement that he loved and that he was proud of. But there were burdens and none was more punitive, like the Cross, than the experience he went through after leaving office. The Jonathan administration under which he served lost the 2015 Presidential election to an

opposition party, the All Progressives- Congress (APC) which has been ruling Nigeria since then till date. As soon as the PDP lost the election, the APC even before assuming office went after the Jonathan officials. Adoke was one of the main targets. In August 2015, he left Nigeria for further studies at the University of Leiden, the Netherlands. In November 2015, he was invited for questioning by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). He was accused of having collected bribe in the implementation of the OPL 245 Settlement Agreement, and that he waived taxes to get some personal settlement and used the proceeds of the same illegal settlement to buy property. He was traced all the way to the Netherlands where his apartment was searched for money laundering and corruption investigation reasons. His house in Abuja and in his home town of Okene, Kogi State were also searched. He received reports that there was a plan afoot to eliminate him, and that the whole matter was not just about allegations of a felony. He offers further clarifications and details in Chapter Eight (The Witch-Hunters) and Chapter Nine (The Mischief) in Burden of Service (2019).

In December 2016, he and eight others were formally charged at the Federal High Court, Abuja in respect of the OPL 245 transaction. His name was mentioned in two out of the nine charges, bordering on conspiracy, aiding and abetting and money laundering. His name was further mentioned in cases in other jurisdictions – Italy and London, involving the Italian oil giant, Agip-Eni, Shell and Malabu Oil and Gas. In 2020, the EFCC again filed another case against Mohammed Bello Adoke in the Federal High Court of Abuja accusing him of collecting N300 million gratification from the OPL 245 Transaction.

In Burden of Service, Adoke has argued that the allegations against him were malicious, because as he put it: “Ididthebestformycountry.Isavedmy countryfromacertainliabilityofa$2billionclaim byRoyalDutchShellattheInternationalCentrefor theSettlementofDisputes(ICSID),anorganofthe World Bank. More so, the $210 million signature bonus paid for OPL 245 by Shell and Eni is the highestinthehistoryofNigeria.Ididnothingwrong. I did not take a bribe, not even a cup of water, or a slice of cake.Along the line, the narrative about my role has been severely twisted, but the dust willsettlesomedayandthewholetruthwillcome out as straight as an arrow. Truth is so stubborn it refuses to give up until it triumphs.” Adoke did not fold his arms. He fought every challenge to his integrity in every court and in every jurisdiction. In the Nigerian courts, he and his lawyers made a “no case submission”. In January 2024, the EFCC eventually admitted that it indeed had no evidence against Mohammed Bello Adoke and that it had no objection to his “no case submission”. This was after the EFCC had presented its case for three years and after calling 10 witnesses. Last week, on March 27, the Federal Capital (FCT) High Court ruled definitively in the matter with Justice Abubakar Kutigi chastising the EFCC for filing frivolous charges against Adoke and six others. He commended the prosecution for conceding that it had no credible evidence to oppose the no-case application by Adoke and others but complained that the agency simply wasted four years and that the defendant should not have been charged in the first place. The prosecution failed to prove the essential elements of the offences for which the defendants were charged. His Lordship dismissed the EFCC case, and admonished the EFCC not to file such frivolous charges in the future. In effect, the Nigerian government has lost all the cases it filed or in which it was joined in Italy, the UK and even here in Nigeria with regard to OPL 245. This is scandalous.

It must be noted that in 2016, Adoke sought an

order of the Federal High Court, Nigeria declaring that his involvement in the negotiation, execution and implementation of the OPL 245 Resolution Agreements was in line with Section 5 of the 1999 Constitution and that he could not be held liable on personal grounds. The Court, notably, found in his favour. In 2021, the Italian Court in Milan, discharged and acquitted all defendants in the OPL 245 case. Adoke was not on trial in Milan but his name was mentioned - another victory for him nonetheless. In 2022, the Federal Government further lost its case against Adoke and JP Morgan at the Business and Property Courts of England and Wales Commercial Court. At every turn, the Nigerian Government could not establish that any fraud had been committed in the OPL 245 transaction.

This is why this is a major triumph for all the defendants in the case. The full story of OPL 245 is in the public domain. Truth has now prevailed. Justice Kutigi spoke of the waste of four years by the EFCC. This is more than that. The EFCC and the Nigerian Government spent four years on a wild goose chase around the world from Italy, to London and here in Nigeria, on the frivolous pursuit of a case in which they lacked evidence. Even when courts in Italy and London dismissed the OPL 245 case, Nigeria kept at it, looking for every opportunity to nail persons they had condemned before any trial. The justice system should not work like that. This is a very bad commentary on our justice administration system. Our justice system must never be used to settle personal or political scores. In other parts of the world, before a person or an entity is charged to court, there would have been a diligent attempt to find and establish evidence and a prima facie case. Where this does not stand in the court of law, the matter is promptly dispensed with as seen in the handling of the OPL case in Italy and the UK.

In Nigeria, politics is more important than the law. Cases are delayed and you could be on trial for years even when you are innocent. Once you are marked out by the state as an adversary, the evidence does not matter. Mohammed Bello Adoke and others must count themselves lucky indeed. It is now possible to see reason in Adoke’s argument that he considers himself the target of a witch-hunt by the Nigerian government. I have singled him out to praise his resilience to get justice and prove his innocence. He serves as an example of why many Nigerians would rather stay away from public service. Justice Kutigi spoke of the EFCC wasting four years. I think that has to be calculated in real terms: the EFCC wasted the time of the court and wasted all the Nigerian resources spent in pursuit of a case that has now failed from one court to another.

The falsely accused lost more than four years. OPL 245 was such a cause celebre in which members of the public took positions. For more than four years, Adoke could not even return to Nigeria. He was in exile, away from work, family and friends. In December 2019, he was intercepted in Dubai, UAE by Interpol and detained for five weeks before he was brought back to the country. Nigeria had placed the name of its former Attorney General and Minister of Justice on an Interpol list of wanted persons! And now the same country says the same man has no case to answer. Nigeria must learn to be fair and more diligent and professional in the prosecution of allegations of misdeeds. The Federal Government owes Adoke and all others in the OPL 245 case an apology. The FG must also compensate them. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu must personally put a closure to the defamation by giving the necessary directives to address this gross embarrassment and ensure that under his watch, the EFCC and other agencies do not engage in any form of gross misconduct.

Mohammed Bello Adoke