THURSDAY 13TH AUGUST 2020

Understanding the Economics of SAA to Vessel Owners, FG Osaro Osunbor In recent times, one issue that has dominated the centre stage of the Nigerian maritime industry is that of the Secure Anchorage Area (SAA) in Lagos Port operated by an indigenous firm, Ocean Marine

S P E C I A L R E P O RT Solution Limited (OMSL).

The seaming controversy surrounding the operation of the scheme, which was initiated to salvage the damaged image of Nigeria as it concerns the safety of

vessels travelling along the nation's coastal region has been inundated with a lot of falsehood to gain cheap publicity and sympathy in some quarters.

This is done more often at the neglect of the true economics of the reality on

the ground.

The False Economics and Narratives Anyone who has followed the debate as to the operation of the Lagos Port SAA project will realise that

the Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi, and his subordinates-the Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Hadiza Bala Usman and, to some extent, the Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety

Agency (NIMASA), have always painted a picture of "humongous" monies being made by OMSL in executing the project.

For instance, the minister, while answering questions on Continued on page 9

Nigerian Stocks Rise to Eight-week High on Oil Prices' Gain... Page 6 Thursday 13 August, 2020 Vol 25. No 9257. Price: N250

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Northern Govs Demand Probe of Member’s Alleged Backing for Terrorists Ortom wants FG to allow responsible citizens to carry arms DSS releases Mailafia Seriki Adinoyi in Jos and George Okoh in Makurdi Northern Governors’ Forum (NGF) has called on security agencies to investigate the allegation by a former deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Dr. Obadiah Mailafia that one of them is a Boko Haram commander.

The Chairman of the forum and Governor of Plateau State, Hon. Simon Lalong, in a statement in Jos, expressed concern over Mailafia's allegation and demanded an urgent probe to ascertain the veracity or otherwise of the claim.

Continued on page 8

INEC: Stopping Edo Election Recipe for Constitutional Crisis

Assembly complex unsafe for sitting, say 17 lawmakers Chuks Okocha in Abuja and Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) yesterday walked back its threat to suspend the September 19 governorship election in Edo State over threats of violence, explaining that the rethink was based

on the implication of a constitutional crisis such a decision would trigger, if the election is not conducted.

The commission also said out of 14 items required for the preparations of the governorship election, nine had been implemented.

It justified deregistration Continued on page 8

BATTLING COVID-19...

L-R: Director-General, Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation, Mr. Folarin Coker; Commissioner for Health, Lagos State, Prof. Akin Abayomi; and Chairman, Reddington Group, Dr. Yemi Onabowale, during the commissioning of Armoured Shield COVID-19 Protection and Testing Centre in Lagos... yesterday martins ifijeh

FEC Approves N8.49 Billion for COVID-19 Testing Equipment... Page 5

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Group News Editor Ejiofor Alike Email Ejiofor.Alike@thisdaylive.com, 08066066268

FEC Approves N8.49 Billion for COVID-19 Testing Equipment Plans to introduce rapid diagnostic test on virus after ongoing verification

Omololu Ogunmade in Abuja The Federal Executive Council (FEC) yesterday approved N8.49 billion for the purchase of 12 testing equipment containing large quantities of items, including sample collection material kits to fight COVID-19.

Briefing reporters at the end of the 11th virtual FEC meeting in the State House, the Minister of Health, Dr. Osage Ehanire, said the Presidential Task Force (PTF) approved the resources for the use of Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC).

According to him, plans had been made to establish sample collection centres in each of the 774 local government areas of the country with a view to ensuring that residents of rural communities are not left to their fate in the fight of COVID-19.

He said: "This memo is as a result of Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 pandemic and special intervention fund for COVID-19 which is operated by the Presidential Task Force.

It allocates these resources for NCDC's preparedness.

"So, we are procuring testing materials right from sample materials to other kits' diagnostics

in our laboratory systems, to be able to respond properly to the community transmission phase.

“We have already made plans to have at least one sample collection center in every local government, minimum of 774 and these resources will be necessary to go around the 774 local government areas, to ensure that persons in rural areas and small towns are not excluded and to ensure that not only the big cities are the ones that are being attended to. So, that is the basis for the memo. The cost is N8.49 billion to procure the items that are involved. There are a total of 12 items, the quantities involved are large numbers which will be sent out later," he said.

Asked why both the PTF and the Ministry of Health have been reluctant in introducing rapid test kits which can make results of COVID-19 tests available within 10 minutes, the minister who admitted that test kits are used all over the world, gave various reasons for not approving their use in Nigeria.

According to him, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and other medical experts are opposed to rapid test diagnosis as a result of beliefs that it is not reliable

because it produces a number of false-positive or false-negative results.

The minister who said the level of accuracy of the rapid diagnosis and otherwise, through the use of rapid test kits, is between the ratio of 60:40, said a diagnosis which produces a 60 percent accuracy rate and 40 percent inaccurate results call for caution.

Submitting that the results of polymerise chain reaction (PCR) tests, on the other hand, are reliable, the minister, however, said the Medical Laboratory Science of Nigeria is currently verifying the rapid diagnosis with a view to ascertaining whether it is reliable or not He, nevertheless, expressed optimism that as efforts are being made to improve on a rapid diagnostic test, in a matter of months, it will eventually, be introduced into the system.

He said: "It is not that nobody

is thinking of rapid diagnostic test, it is being used all over the world even in Nigeria today but the World Health Organisation (WHO) and other experts have said that this test is not very reliable and that it also delivered a significant number of falsepositive or false-negative results.

"So, if you go to a place where a percentage of test results can give you the wrong result, then you have to be careful.

Whereas the PRC test, that is, the polymerise chain reaction test is accurate and reliable. So, if you want to know how accurate a person is positive, that is the test you ought to do, that is the recommendation of the World Health Organisation.

“Now, science is never certain.

There are many ways and avenues by which the quality of the rapid test is still being improved. And as I speak to you now, the Medical Laboratory

Science of Nigeria, which is responsible for validating this test, for telling us whether they are reliable or not, whether we should use it or not, they are verifying such test now and they will give us their result, whether it is reliable enough or not reliable enough.

“There is also the anti-body rapid test and the anti-gem rapid test. So, I believe that within a matter of weeks and months, there will be one that will be accurate enough for us to rely on.

“So, those who do the rapid test now, if it is positive, you have to go and confirm with the PRC because the accuracy is questionable. Some of them, their accuracy is 60 percent, which means that 40 percent will be wrong.

"Others are 20 percent wrong which is why rapid diagnostic test (RDT), is not yet officially used in Nigeria. But, I personally

believe that as they continue to improve on it, within some months, we shall be able to use it. Meanwhile, we use only the most reliable one, which is PCR.” Ehanire also spoke on the failure of politicians to observe COVID-19 protocols as shown in the current campaign venues in Edo State and the funeral of the late Senator Buruji Kashamu in Ogun State last weekend, saying concerned authorities look up to politicians to do what is right.

Also echoing Ehanire, the Minister of Information, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said: “As a matter fact this matter came up at the last PTF briefing, and the coordinator said that we will continue to advise social distancing in whatever gathering.

It has been proven that wearing a mask saves many lives and we will continue to harp on it that people should take personal responsibility."

Diri Urges Oil Firms to Locate Headquarters in Bayelsa Says state safe for investors Alike Ejiofor Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, has called on oil companies benefiting from its resources to relocate their headquarters to the state.

The governor, who allayed fears of insecurity, which had been the narrative of the oil companies, promised that his administration would ensure round the clock security of assets beneficial to the national and state economy.

He made the call yesterday when he received the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Mr. Simbi Wabote, and his board members on a courtesy visit to his office in Yenagoa.

The governor was quoted in a statement by his Acting Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Daniel Alabrah, as saying that with the completion of the NCDMB 17-storey building and citing of other major ongoing projects by the board, the state was ready to take over the oil and gas industry.

He said: “Let me restate our earlier call for oil companies to please come back to the Niger Delta and site their headquarters here, particularly in Bayelsa. We are set by virtue of what the NCDMB is doing and what the state government is doing and will continue to do. Let me invite you to expand your offices in Bayelsa.

“For those yet to have offices, please come and build your headquarters in Bayelsa. That way the issues of capital flight

from where the golden egg is being laid will be reduced. Even the issue of militancy, which has subsided, will be brought to its barest minimum.

“As a government, from the beginning, we have emphasised that we are ready to work peacefully and in an environment that is free of rancour with the oil companies and ready to dialogue with the oil companies that the era of militancy is over.”

Diri expressed his government’s gratitude to President Muhammadu Buhari for continuing with developmental policies inherited from previous administrations, which has seen the completion of an edifice next to none in the Niger Delta and operational in Bayelsa.

“I thank Mr. President, who has continued with policies that are development-oriented. We are aware that the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board was established by an act of parliament in 2010 and with the headquarters now in Bayelsa, the president would have thought otherwise. The building was started before he came on board and through his support to the board it is now completed.

“So let me on behalf of the people of Bayelsa appreciate Mr. President and say a very big thank you for giving the opportunity to our son and our brother, who is the Executive Secretary of NCDMB, to complete this edifice, which, as he has mentioned, is first of its kind in the South-south and the South-east.”

COVID-19 COMPLIANT...

L– R: Minister of State for Health, Senator Olorunnimbe Mamora; Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Mr. Olamilekan Adegbite; and National Security Adviser to the President, Maj. Gen. Babagana Monguno (rtd.), during a virtual meeting of the Federal Executive Council in Abuja…yesterday godwin omoigui

PGF DG Alleges Plot to Return Oshiomhole as APC Chairman Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja The Director-General of Progressive Governors Forum (PGF), Dr. Salihu Lukman, has accused some influential All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftains of plotting to return Mr. Adams Oshiomhole as the national chairman of the party.

The National Working Committee (NWC) of the party, led by Oshiomhole was dissolved at an emergency National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting on June 25, 2020, after a protracted leadership crisis within the ruling party.

Lukman, in a letter, addressed to the National Chairman of APC Caretaker/Convention Working Committee and Governor of Yobe State, Mai Mala Buni, a copy of which was made available to journalists yesterday, said: "Just like before

the June 25, 2020 emergency NEC, issues of Edo State are dominating public discussions and considerations of issues concerning the party. This is being foisted on the party as a strategy to weaken the initiative of the caretaker committee from taking steps that could facilitate the resolution of the leadership crisis through ensuring that the forthcoming extraordinary national convention to elect a new national chairman and other members of the National Working Committee for the party different from [Mr.] Adams Oshiomhole is blocked.

"In other words, everything is being done to ensure that the internal politics of the party is manipulated to create situations whereby [Mr.] Oshiomhole is forcefully made a contender for the position of the national chairman at the extraordinary

APC national convention."

According to him, “Ordinarily, this should not be a problem, but given that unacceptable strategies are being deployed to blackmail and bully all leaders of the party to make Edo election the only priority of the party makes it very disturbing.”

Lukman noted that even more disturbing was the clear indication that the ruling party was not prepared to approach the Edo State election based on fair contests.

He said everybody in the APC was being blackmailed to accept the way the Edo governorship campaign was being organised as the best way to win the election.

He said this was wrong, warning that in the long run, it would be injurious to the electoral viability of the party.

He stated that the Edo election

and its management should be reviewed by the party.

Lukman called on the caretaker committee to take every necessary step in order to achieve reconciliation and peace-building in the party.

He added that some of the steps required included encouraging internal debate without intimidating members with divergent views from those held by leaders.

Lukman said there is a need to convene a dedicated session of the national caucus to review the 2019 general election, including Kogi, Bayelsa States’ elections and now preparations for Edo and Ondo States’ governorship elections.

He equally urged the caretaker committee to convene a NEC meeting to consider and approve the proposed activities of the caretaker committee.

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Nigerian Stocks Rise to Eight-week High on Oil Prices’ Gain Goddy Egene with agency report Nigerian stocks climbed to an eight-week high yesterday lifted by gains in shares of energy companies after global oil prices rallied.

Recovering after two days of losses, the main share index (Nigerian Stock Exchange) All-Share Index rose 1.04 per cent to 24,141.48, while market capitalisation gained N134.5 billion.

Brent crude was up 68 cents, or 1.5 per cent, at $45.18 per

barrel yesterday, after falling around one per cent on Tuesday.

Oil’s rally followed an industry report showing United States crude inventories last week fell more than analysts had expected, bolstering expectations that fuel demand in the world’s biggest economy can weather the COVID-19 pandemic.

Seplat Petroleum Development Company Plc, which is also listed in London, rose by 10 per cent, - the maximum allowed on the

Workers in DPR, PPPRA, Others Begin Warning Strike over IPPIS

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja

Senior oil workers attached to agencies under the Federal Ministry of Petroleum yesterday embarked on a three-day warning strike over the failure of the federal government to pay their salaries in the last three months.

The workers under the aegis of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association (PENGASSAN), in their protest, said they were stopping work following the authorities' insistence on compelling them to join the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS).

The striking workers said the government had not done enough to convince them that the IPPIS was robust enough to handle the peculiarities of the environment they work, noting that it is wrong to lump them up with civil servants on the IPPIS platform.

Members of the union, who protested at the Abuja headquarters of the ministry, were drawn from the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA), Petroleum Equalisation Fund (PEF), Petroleum Trust Development Fund (PTDF), Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory Agency (NNRA) and others.

National Public Relations Officer (PRO) of PENGASSAN, who is also the Rivers State Secretary of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Mr. Fortune Obi, told THISDAY that if after three days the demands of the protesters are not met, it would become a nationwide issue to be handled by the national body of the union.

There was no immediate response from the government, although the union said almost all avenues for negotiation had been explored without success.

President Muhammadu Buhari, during the presentation of 2020 budget proposal to the joint session of the National Assembly in Abuja had said all federal government workers not captured on the IPPIS platform

by October 31, 2019, would not be paid their monthly salaries.

But the PENGASSAN’s spokesman stated that apart

from the fact that the IPPIS platform was not secure, it had failed to consider the difference between regular civil servants and oil workers.

He said: “It’s a three-day warning strike by members in the government regulatory agencies under the Ministry of Petroleum, basically because of their inclusion in the IPPIS system, which we have rejected ab initio due to the various challenges we have had with it and the associated inefficiencies.

“PENGASSAN resolved about the system long ago.

We want assurance that this system is robust enough to handle the challenges. We are saying we work in a peculiar sector where our members earn some allowances different from the civil service structure.

“Therefore, lumping us into that platform without capturing the peculiarities is unacceptable.

Because of that, for the past three months, our members in these agencies have not been paid their salaries.

“We have said clearly that we work in a peculiar environment, where earned allowances are different from the civil service payment system. In the civil service, they don’t work offshore; they don’t work in tank farms; they don’t work in haulage system; so for personnel from the peculiar agencies, there are earned allowances. These are not captured in the IPPIS system.

“We need the guarantee that this system is robust enough to capture these issues. You can’t just go and implement something on a platform that is generally for civil servants and their structure. They must consider us as peculiar operators within the system.”

He stated that there was no problem with the existing platform, suggesting that the government has ulterior motives for insisting on moving the workers to the new platform.

“We work in circles in certain locations; in the civil service, it’s not circle driven. So, if I am working in an FPSO (Floating Production Storage Offloading vessel), located in the Gulf of Guinea and my work circle is 28 days in, 28 out, as I return, how am I going to get my earned allowances.

Lagos bourse.

Equally, Oando Plc and Total Nigeria Plc rose 1.2 and 1.1 per cent respectively.

As a result, the index of Nigeria’s top five oil and gas companies, the NSE Oil & Gas Index, climbed 5.24 per cent, the highest appreciation by sectoral indices.

The NSE Insurance and NSE Consumer Goods indices trailed, gaining 0.6 per cent and 0.2 per cent, respectively.

Month-to-date, the Nigerian stock market has appreciated by 1.8 per cent, compared to 0.8 per cent gain recorded in the month of July.

Market operators had said

one of the factors that would determine the market direction for the second half (H2) of the year would be the corporate results for six months to June 30, 2020.

They had advised discerning investors to take advantage of the current low prices and increase their investments in the market.

For instance, a stockbroker, Mr. Ayo Oguntayo, said: “Just like the scenario that occurred after the decline in Q1 when investors swooped on shares due to their low prices, the decline in June has provided an opportunity for discerning investors to come

in ahead of the release of H1 financial performance of companies. "Although there are some apprehensions that the COVID-19 pandemic may have an impact on the results, there are possibilities of some companies still coming up with positive results because many of them activated their business continuity plan that helped to mitigate the negative impact of the lockdown.”

Similarly, the Chief Executive Officer of Wyoming Capital and Partners, Mr. Tajudeen Olayinka, said stakeholders now had a better understanding of the pandemic and the fact that

everyone would have to live with it.

He added that it is unlikely that the market will go through a repeat of the experience it had at the onset of the pandemic.

“However, the market needs to analyse H1 results that are being awaited, to determine the impact of the pandemic on listed companies before taking further investment decisions or charting a way forward. More importantly, how the various measures put in place by the government would impact the economy as a whole. On a balance of probability, we may see a better market in H2 2020,” Olayinka said.

REPORTING PROGRESS...

L-R: Managing Director, Wapic Insurance Plc, Mrs. Yinka Adekoya; Chairman, Mr. Mutiu Sunmonu; and Company Secretary, Ms. Mary Agha, during the company's 61st Annual General Meeting in Lagos…yesterday

Reddington Inaugurates Testing Lab, COVID-19 Hospital To deliver test results within 24 hours

Martins Ifijeh

Reddington Hospital Group has become the first private health facility in Nigeria to inaugurate a state-of-the-art Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) laboratory facility for COVID-19 testing and Armoured Shield Hospital for treatment and management of the disease.

It said the PCR test, which is the World Health Organisation (WHO)’s recommended type of testing for COVID-19 due to its low error margin would ensure the delivery of results to clients within 24 hours.

Other PCR laboratories in Nigeria deliver results within two to five days.

Speaking yesterday during the inauguration of the twin facilities in Lagos, the Medical Director of Armoured Shield Medical Complex, Dr. Sola Oluwole, said the facility was the only private hospital in Lagos accredited by the government both for testing and treatment of COVID-19.

Oluwole added that the facility will be complemented

by Reddington ZaineLab, a new molecular biology laboratory that has a class

three biosecurity technology that promotes efficiency and the highest level of protection for laboratory staff and their environment.

He said: “The new medical centre built in phases offers a 50-bed facility with isolation wards, high dependency and level three Intensive Care Unit (ICU) with ventilators, organ life support machines, CT scan, X-ray, laboratory, telemedicine, emergency response ambulances among other equipment and seasoned medical personnel required to treat all cases of COVID-19 in both adults and children.

“The centre, which is established to complement the efforts of the Lagos State Government in fighting the pandemic is situated in four different locations across Lagos with an Incident Command Office in Victoria Island. The isolation treatment centre offers a well-furnished en-suite single bedroom, mini office and lounges, and is targeted at corporate community and discerning clientele who desire a private and serene environment during the period of the management of the infection. The laboratory

will detect and diagnose COVID-19 within 24 to 48 hours of testing to avoid long waiting for results.”

Besides, the medical centre also provides facility for children, pregnancy care and theatre to operate COVID-19 patient with acute emergencies.

Oluwole said, Shell Nigeria and Seplat Petroleum Plc were just two out of the corporate organisations that had subscribed to the Armoured Shield Medical Scheme, which was the most attractive comprehensive care package offered by any private hospital in Lagos for COVID-19 management.

On his part, the Commissioner for Health, Lagos State, Prof. Akin Abayomi, said the facility scored 100 per cent at the end of the inspection for accreditation, adding that every equipment and other protocols put in place by the hospital management met all requirements set out by the state government.

He said: “Shield Medical Centre will go a long way in complementing the efforts of Lagos and federal governments in winning the war against the ravaging global pandemic.

“Lagos State as the epicentre of COVID-19 in Nigeria has demonstrated commendable leadership through the Governor, Mr. Babajide SanwoOlu, in curbing the spread of the virus. We have provided a working template which other states are now running within the management of the disease.”

He identified the apathy of most people to testing, stigmatisation of infected and treated persons, refusal to adhere to non-medical protocols such as social distancing, wearing of a facemask in public places and the general cynicism among the populace that COVID-19 is a “big man disease", as some of the challenges facing the fight against the pandemic in Nigeria.

The Reddington Hospital Group has been a pacesetter in providing affordable, world-class healthcare in Nigeria, scoring many firsts in the process.

Only recently, it became the only independently-owned private hospital in Nigeria to successfully perform a complex open- heart surgery on a 66year old Nigerian gentleman.

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MPC Member Urges FG to Amend Fiscal Responsibility Act Obinna Chima A member of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), Prof.

Mike Obadan, has advised the federal government to amend the Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA) 2007.

He suggested that Section 22(1) and (2) of the FRA that requires Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to deposit at least 25 per cent of their revenue into the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) be amended.

Obadan, in his personal statement at the last MPC meeting, a copy of which was posted on the CBN’s website yesterday, said his suggestion if implemented, would ensure an effective method of determining remittances by MDAs to the

CRF. He stated that in the present environment of weakened economic activities and provision of tax reliefs by the government to SMEs to bolster economic activities, the space for enhanced non-oil revenue has been limited.

“However, one area of reform that the government needs to look into seriously relates to remittances from the operating surpluses of government departments and agencies, which at present are underestimated by the agencies.

“The government should initiate actions to amend the FRA 2007 to provide for an effective method of determining remittances by MDAs to the CRF. “To this end, one suggestion is to amend Section 22(1) and

(2) of the FRA to require MDAs to deposit at least 25 percent of their revenue into the CRF instead of 80 per cent of their operating surplus which they arbitrarily determine.

“This will improve the availability of funds for financing government activities and reduce fiscal deficits and massive borrowings.

“Secondly, the reforms to reduce fiscal deficits must especially be on public expenditure. This is one key driver of the high cost of governance which stakeholders have continued to decry,” he said.

According to the economist, inefficient spending and high cost of governance should be addressed by the government.

Obadan noted that the interventions and measures by

both the fiscal authority and the CBN to contain the coronavirus pandemic, stimulate economic recovery as well as avert recession were encouraging under the circumstance of serious financial resource constraint.

In her contribution, the Deputy Governor, Financial System Stability Department, CBN, Mrs. Aisha Ahmad, said a total of 22 commercial banks had submitted requests to restructure 35,639 loans for their individual and corporate customers whose economic activities had been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The number of banks that submitted applications for such request as at May was 17 and the number of loans then was 32,000.

Ahmad said the financial

system remained resilient albeit with regulatory support.

“As at July 20, 2020, 22 banks submitted requests to restructure 35,639 loans of businesses impacted by the pandemic, representing 41.92 per cent of the total industry loan portfolio.

“This has partly reflected in improved industry risk profile, as non-performing loans ratio declined from 6.6 per cent in April 2020, to 6.4 per cent in June 2020.

“Net interest margin remains robust despite lower interest income, perhaps due to much lower industry interest expense, as market deposit rates continue to decline,” she added.

According to the deputy governor, the Loan-to-Deposit Ratio (LDR), Global Standing

Instruction, streamlining of access to open market operations securities and other complementary measures have been strong tailwinds, which have strengthened intermediation via increased lending to the key sectors such as manufacturing, agriculture and consumer markets.

“Gross credit grew by an additional N300 billion from N18.6 trillion to N18.9 trillion between end-April and endJune 2020, respectively) and lower market lending rates, which have insulated the financial system from the worst impact of the pandemic,” she said.

On his part, the Deputy Governor, Economic Policy Directorate, Dr. Kingsley Obiora, said the economic fallout from

by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Terver Akase, titled, ‘National Security: Gov Ortom Proposes The Way Forward,’ urged the federal government to grant licences to responsible citizens to carry sophisticated weapons to deter criminals from attacking innocent and helpless Nigerians.

He said the policy should be backed by a strict legal framework to prevent illegal possession of arms by the citizenry without exception.

His recommendations were part of his submission in a paper Ortom presented yesterday during the virtual meeting convened by Centre for Values in Leadership, CVL, in collaboration with Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF).

In the paper titled: ‘Insecurity and Governance Challenges in the New Normal,’ the governor said governments at all levels must come to terms with the fact that insecurity is a real threat to development of the country and be willing to sincerely tackle the menace.

He also recommended

adequate funding of security agencies and continuous training of their personnel to enable them to be abreast of global dynamics in the fight against insecurity.

The governor urged the federal government to embrace ranching as it is the global best practice of animal husbandry and enact a law to end open grazing, which often comes with attacks on farming communities by armed herdsmen militia.

Ortom also advocated improved educational standards and enhanced public enlightenment campaigns to give the people, particularly youths the needed orientation to shun negative acts and become more patriotic.

He called for the repositioning of National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) through training, funding and logistics to successfully confront drug barons and peddlers; a move he said would stop illegal drugs from entering and circulating in the country.

government to desist from such act of vandalism of the building.

"The relevant security agencies - AIG, Zone 5; Commissioner of Police, and DSS are hereby mandated to evacuate the hoodlums before they turn the state and the assembly premises into a lawless state."

He said the lawmakers also received three petitions brought before it through the law firm of Ehiogie West-Idahosa Law Chamber, signed by Mr. Emos Osawaru, over what he described as the unlawful removal of the Chairmen of Etsako East, Mr. Oremiyu Momoh; Esan West, Mr. Patrick Aguinede; and Etsako West, Mr. Yakubu Musah.

According to him, "The petitions described the removal of the three elected council chairmen as an infringement of their fundamental human rights and abuse of office and political victimisation on the part of Governor Godwin Obaseki "The speaker, having listened to the content of the letter, set up a five-man committee to investigate the matter and report back to the house within two weeks before adjourning to Tuesday, August 18, 2020."

The member, representing Uhumwonde State Constituency, Hon. Washington Osifo, is the chairman of the committee.

Other members are Hon.

Ebenezer Okaka, Owan East; Hon. Nosayaba Okunbor, Orhiomwon East; Hon. Dumez Ugiagbe; and Hon. Christopher Okaeben, Oredo East.

As at press time, efforts to get Edo State government and of the state police command’s reactions proved abortive as their officials did not take their calls or reply the text messages sent to them.

NORTHERN GOVS DEMAND PROBE OF MEMBER’S ALLEGED BACKING FOR TERRORISTS Mailafia, who was invited by the Department of State Services over the allegation, was, however, released yesterday after six hours of interrogation.

In a related development, Benue State Governor, Dr. Samuel Ortom, has urged the federal government to allow those he described as responsible citizens to bear weapons such as AK-47 rifles to protect themselves as part of measures to curb the rising insecurity in the country.

Mailafia, who was the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in 2019 presidential election, in an interview with a broadcast station, whose video later went viral, had said he had a chat with two repentant Boko Haram members who named a northern governor as a commander of the terror group.

He said the terrorists and bandits were one and the same, adding that the terrorists moved weapons even during the lockdown imposed by the

federal government to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The ADC, however, described as mischievous the reproduction of Mailafia’s audio interview, saying the interview was misrepresented and reproduced without his consent.

The party added that while it was its position that the Buhari administration seemed to be paying lip service to combating crime on all fronts, Mailafia's remarks were sensationalised.

The Department of State Services (DSS), however, invited Mailafia over the allegation.

In the wake of the DSS' invitation to Mailafia, the governors tasked the security agency to thoroughly probe the allegation.

Lalong said: “The forum, which has been working with the federal government, security agencies, community, civil society, traditional and religious leaders as well as development partners to defeat terrorism, banditry and other forms of criminality in

the region finds the allegation

by Dr. Mailafia very weighty, which deserves further investigation.

“We as Northern governors have met severally to discuss insecurity in the Northern region and the nation at large where we did not only condemn the activities of terrorist groups such as Boko Haram, bandits, armed robbers, kidnappers, and other criminals, but also engaged the president and all heads of security agencies in finding solutions to the problem. To now say that one of our members is leading Boko Haram in Nigeria is a serious allegation that cannot be swept under the carpet. We demand an immediate and thorough investigation.”

The northern governors also urged Mailafia and all citizens with useful information on the activities of criminals and terrorist groups to assist security agencies and governments at all levels with such intelligence for proper action.

The governors also wondered if “such allegations are not smear campaigns or attempts to discourage the Northern governors who are putting in their best to bring an end to insecurity in the region.”

Lalong added that the governors do not, and will not support the activities of any criminal group, adding that governors and their families are also not spared as was recently witnessed when the convoy of Borno State Governor, Prof.

Babagana Zulum was attacked.

Ortom Wants FG to Allow Responsible Citizens Carry AK47 Rifles The Benue State Governor, Dr. Samuel Ortom, has urged the federal government to allow responsible citizens to protect themselves with weapons such as AK-47 rifles as part of measures to curb the rising insecurity in the country.

The governor, in a statement

INEC: STOPPING EDO ELECTION RECIPE FOR CONSTITUTIONAL CRISIS of some political parties, explaining that they have no verifiable addresses while their telephone lines were traceable to business centres.

Speaking on a television programme yesterday, the INEC National Commissioner for Information and Chairman of Voter Education, Mr. Festus Okoye, assured the electorate that the September 19 governorship election will go ahead as planned as the political parties have complied with INEC's notice over threats of violence.

"INEC is progressively moving ahead with the September 19 Edo State governorship election. There are fourteen items for the election and nine of them have been implemented and none sensitive materials have been deployed.

We are proceeding with the election as planned.

"The political parties on their own are complying with the commission's warning on violence and we have also observed a change from the threats of violence. So, we are moving ahead with the election," Okoye stated.

According to him, there will be a constitutional crisis if the election is not conducted because Section 178 (2) stipulates the timeline for the election to be conducted.

He stated that the Edo State governorship election must

be conducted before October 13, or else, there would be a constitutional crisis.

He added that the political parties are "pulling out of their threats of violence and INEC is, therefore, going ahead with the governorship election as planned."

Okoye, who explained why some of the registered political parties were deregistered, said in November 2019, the commission wrote the political parties but discovered that they had no verifiable addresses.

"When INEC put a telephone call to their registered telephone numbers, we discovered that the lines were ringing as telephone lines of some business centres and some of them have no verifiable office addresses," he said.

He said most of the political parties were deregistered because they did not meet the constitutional requirements of Section 225(a), which states that any political party that did not score a 25 per cent vote in one local government election, or 25 per cent in any local government during a governorship election breached the law.

He said the law prescribed that it should be on votes scored by the political party and not the capacity to win votes, adding that capacity to win votes is futuristic, while the extant laws are insisting

on actual votes scored.

He denied knowledge that INEC deregistered some of the political parties despite court orders barring the commission from doing so.

He denied that INEC deregistered any political party that is in any tribunal challenging the outcome of any election.

According to him, "INEC allowed for a full circle of the tribunals to be finished before it commenced the deregistration processes of the defaulting political parties."

He said there was no record before it that one of the deregistered political parties, KOWA Party, could win a councillorship seat in any part of the country.

Edo Assembly Complex Unsafe for Sitting, Say 17 Lawmakers The group of 17 members of Edo State House of Assembly, yesterday met in an undisclosed location and condemned alleged destruction of the legislative complex, describing it as unsafe for them to sit.

They also called on security agents to evict hoodlums from the complex in order to create a conducive atmosphere for the conduct of legislative business.

They, however, set up a five-

man committee to investigate the removal of three local government chairmen by the state Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki.

They described the sacking of the chairmen as an infringement on their fundamental human rights, abuse of office and political victimisation.

Their speaker, Hon. Victor Edoror, said the presence of the hoodlums was a desecration of the House of Assembly, making it unsafe for them to sit.

According to the resolutions of the lawmakers sent to journalists via WhatsApp, the lawmakers called on the police to sack all those they said were occupying the Assembly complex.

The lawmakers also passed a resolution, mandating the Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG), Zone 5, Mr. Dibal Yakadi; Edo State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Johnson Kokumo; state Director of Department of State Services (DSS) and other relevant security agencies to evict the said hoodlums from the legislative complex.

Edoror said: "The state government under the guise of consolidated renovation has destroyed the roof of the building, making the place inhabitable to the extent that the hallowed chambers have been messed up and valuables carted away.

"We hereby ask the state

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THURSDAY, ͹ͻ˜ ͺ͸ͺ͸ ˾ T H I S D AY

SPECIAL REPORT UNDERSTANDING THE ECONOMICS OF SAA TO VESSEL OWNERS, FG national television on the SAA recently, described the project being operated in full collaboration with the Nigerian Navy as one “laced with fraud.”

Answering a question on why he thinks security services being offered by OMSL under the chairmanship of Captain Well Hosa Okunbo, via the SAA is not important, in response, Amaechi asked the reporter rhetorically, "What security was he providing?

He charges each vessel on the waters $2,500, then after that $1,500 everyday. He doesn’t pay back that money to the federal government.

“He makes $17million from that activity. Who approved it?

Nobody!"

Speaking of the alternative solution he has to offer, he said, "As Minister for Transport, I said no; we can provide that security. $195 million was approved by the federal government to a company that is training Nigerians that will take over the waterways, and take care of the security; then Okunbo is now saying: no, no, I must do it; he can’t. I wonder why our personal interest will override national interest. I wonder what kind of country we belong to."

While doing all he can, to fault that project, the minister challenged the OMSL chairman to come forward with the approval letter, he got from the federal government to provide maritime security on the nation’s waterways.

“If you said Captain Hosa was doing it, how come we are currently ranked number one in the world in terms of insecurity in the maritime sector? When we came, we were number three, but now we are number one in the world."

The Real Facts Meanwhile, even as the focus of this write-up is not to fault the minister's choice on the acclaimed financial gain, his refusal to go ahead and explain to his viewers what it takes to maintain the ship involved in the project may not have been deliberate, but perhaps an expression of his ignorance of how companies are run.

Again, while the minister's proffered solution appears to be very economical and cheap on the surface, after all, the country just has to spend $195million in training personnel for his preferred Israeli company, Messrs HLSI Security Systems and Technologies, he failed to tell Nigerians the long-run financial implications of such deals.

While one is not canvassing the idea that the government should have a way of benefiting from OMSL's financial gains if it, indeed, does exist, we must not forget that huge investment was first put in place before the perceived returns.

Those familiar with the SAA project, which is a partnership between OMSL and the Nigerian Navy say the vessels acquisitions and operational logistics are at no cost to the government and never mandatory for the ship; rather, it involves ship that desires the service (A willing buyer- willing seller arrangement).

Amaechi, a man who was once quoted to have said that he did not like money, seems to have now changed his mind and has refused to understand that the money being charged by OMSL which he believes should be shared is used for operational costs as well as to provide bunker fuel.

Furthermore, it would seem very irrational for the minister and NPA MD not to, at the least, investigate and understand the security architecture under their purviews by inviting all stakeholders (and not) to unilaterally award a contract without knowing or understanding the implications for national security and local investment which was already on the ground.

These may have motivated operators who are also vocal to state vehemently that the economic value of the SAA operation cannot be overemphasised.

Reacting to the recent threat

by the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, to scrap the security initiative, which a joint committee of the National Assembly had applauded after investigation of its activities, some key players in the industry charged all the parties involved in the dispute to resolve the matter amicably in the interest of the nation's maritime economy.

One of those who expressed concerns over the threat to scrap the service of OMSL on the SAA, while opting for a foreign security firm, is Dr. McGeorge Onyung, President of the Ship Owners Association of Nigeria (SOAN).

To this end, it is best stated that SAA, as an economic benefit, should be replicated on other locations and why OMSL should be encouraged to even take over and manage the deep blue project because of the humongous investment by the federal government, which might be another failed project.

Real Economics Interestingly, the operators of the Lagos SAA, OMSL has always pointed to the fact that its main objective behind the initiative is "National Interest." To this end, the company has modestly offered it by charging a minimal cost to cover operations and maintenance.

Recall, the company's chairman, Captain Hosa Okunbo, during his presentation at the hearing by the National Assembly joint committee that investigated its activities, said, "The company has always operated on the charges incurred by funds collected from a ship operating under the SAA." Meanwhile, an investigation has further revealed that it costs vessels that patronise OMSL-operated SAA an average of $11,500, which works out to be $2,500 for the first day and $1,500 for the remaining days in a seven-day period, which is a maximum period that most vessels berth at SAA for the service provided.

This is against having three mercenaries costing the shipping company a whopping $225,000 on a one-month voyage at a cost of $2,500 per mercenary, which works out to at least $7,500 a day over a total one-month voyage of 30 days from Europe and much higher from farther destinations like Singapore and the United States and the Far East.

To this end, it leads to saving of at least $213,500 as against an initial whopping cost of $225,000 before the SAA was introduced by the Navy and OMSL. It should also be noted that the SAA traffic in a day has not been more than 20 vessels at any particular time. At each vessel paying a stipend of an average of $1,650 per day, it works out to be $33,000 per day as earnings to OMS and with eight vessels operating in the SAA. To this end, operational cost and that of hiring these vessels average $4,150 per vessel if the vessels were to be hired by NPA or the relevant Agency.

These same vessels are hired to the oil companies for at least $8,500 per day.

It will interest stakeholders to understand that NIMASA, under the supervision of Federal Ministry of Transport is hiring similar vessels with a contract running at $10,500 for each vessel per day and they currently have six of such vessels working with NIMASA for enforcement at a total cost of $63,000 which has no security bearings, and coming at almost double the cost of OMSL in rendering this very critical and security arrangement. This brings to fore the fact that, indeed, OMSL is on a national assignment rather than perceived misconception of profit-making as the cost of $4,150 per vessel earned is to enable OMSL offset its running cost.

The said amount can best be seen as a stipend compared to costs of attacks and import losses that may occur from pirate attacks, which led the shipping companies to embrace the idea

of SAA operation.

Therefore, while the SAA operations continue to undergo criticisms by government agencies, they (the concerned agencies) refuse to accept the obvious and clear fact that the operational and maintenance costs must be offset, and such fund has to be included in the charges.

Unfortunately, what is more worrisome in the developing situation is the fact that before the decision to sack OMSL was carried out, stakeholders were not consulted; otherwise, it would not be in the interest of any(one) to suggest the latter.

Concerns are constantly brewing over the fact that, Nigerian waters are vast and ports such as Port Harcourt, as well as other coastal areas, are constantly being ravaged by sea pirates and operators are unavoidably in need of SAA replication to weather the storm, which is costing Nigeria not only an economic disadvantage but also reputational snares across international mention (frontiers).

Operators, however, call for the need to set up similar services in Warri and Port Harcourt axis to reduce piracy and increase revenues to government as well as decongest the Lagos Port, which is now a safe haven for ships because of OMSL. The benefit of the SAA is also in reducing the exorbitant price of shipping.

The Need to Encourage Local Entrepreneurs Globally, specifically in nations where the desire for economic development and growth is the driving force behind national policies, prominence is given to local entrepreneurs who venture into terrains that have to do with security.

For instance, the Nigerian Local Content Act (2010) was enacted to encourage the same. If this truly is the case, why is the Minister of Transport more interested in getting a foreign firm to come and take charge of Nigeria's territorial waterways instead of encouraging a local investor who staked as much as $400million in purchasing vessels? Better still, the deal has the blessing of the Nigerian Navy whose mandate it is to secure the waterways. If the Navy is satisfied with the business offerings just as the owners of vessels patronizing the SAA are, why should we go for a foreign alternative at an initial cost of $195 million to the government for mere training?

Who are going to be trained by the Israeli company, the Navy or NPA security staff members? After the training, who will acquire the vessels and warship that will be required for their operations? Why place emphasis on the termination of the contract between OMSL and the Nigerian Navy, which is at no cost to the government when there is no immediate alternative?

If money is the issue, why not dialogue with the parties involved to work out something (agreeable terms of expanded collaboration)?

Many questions keep surfacing while trying to probe the rationale behind the quest to destroy the existing maritime security structure that has worked well for Lagos Ports.

However, one cannot but submit that those opposed to SAA must consider the economic benefits of encouraging local entrepreneurs over and above foreign ones. Where else can Nigerian businessmen gather the necessary skills and experience to grow? Practice, they say, makes perfect. There is no better time to practice than now.

The example of Aliko Dangote is proof that, given the opportunity, Nigerian entrepreneurs, against all odds, can excel. This is why the government must ensure that willing and competent local investors are encouraged to venture into critical sectors of the economy.

That way, employment, capacity building, invention, research and other components that bring about economic development would be

achieved. Just as it is becoming obvious that the government alone cannot provide everything, the government must not be driven by the falsehood of looking for money (and) kill initiatives that can substantially support the growth of the maritime sector.

Operators React Speaking on the issue via telephone with our reporter, Dr. McGeorge who is also the Managing Director of Jevkon Oil & Gas, Nigeria Limited, said his association was very concerned about the safety of the nation's waterways.

He stated that if the nation's waterways were not safe, we would lose business, stressing that the country remained a very important vessel destination in Africa.

He, therefore, called the parties involved to come to a roundtable discussion and tackle the grey areas with a view to resolving them in the national interest.

Responding to the question of his associates' position on the issue, he said, "Our position has always been that we need a sustainable solution to security in our waters."

On the danger of the absence of definite security outfit and impact on his members, he said, "We are ship owners; we have high tickets bank transactions on... and we carry heavy loans to acquire our ship and we do not want our business disrupted by hoodlums, charlatans, and pirates; so, we would support any action by whoever, whether it is government, whether it is private, public that is going to ensure that our waters are safe from pirates so that we can conduct our businesses properly."

Expatiating on why it's vital to ensure safety for the sector's operation, he said, "Shipping is 90 per cent of global trade transactions; and, without shipping there is no shopping."

Dr. McGeorge, who stated that the association had written to President Muhammadu Buhari, explained that they called his attention to the need to resolve the "confusion going on in our waters and that the president should intervene urgently. That he makes sure he calls all warring parties to order so that we can have a safe ocean to do our business."

SAA- A National Service Provider Speaking further, he said, "What I am trying to tell you is this: Ocean Marine Solution is a member of our association. We are Ship Owners Association of Nigeria. He is one of our key members and that is what is stated in that letter and they are providing a service for which we are benefiting and we have taken a position with the Senate in a public hearing and that position is that they are doing a good job and the Senate agreed with us.

"So that’s our position; they have put an investment of 400 million dollars in a shipping domain where we are still struggling in financing kits and so on. So, we should not allow such a business to die because if it does, so many people will be out of work and the progress we have made in shipping development will be lost.

"As a president of ship owners association, all I can say is that let everybody calm down, and let everybody come to the drawing board and proffer a proper solution.

"I am not ignorant of the fact that NIMASA and Ministry of Transport had invested money to bring another set of security apparatus; we are still waiting; we have heard about the news and we welcome that news but we are saying that if the aim is for security, then they should be an integrated security arrangement that will not be marred with any kind of confusion. In other words, it will be straight forward for everybody so that all parties

can dialogue.

"Security is security; the aim is to make sure that our waters are secure with everybody and I don’t think it is what only Ocean Marine Solution can do and I want to say categorically that Ocean Marine Solution is not the only company that is providing security arrangement for especially the oil-servicing industries with an arrangement with the Nigerian Navy.

"There are many other security agencies that have the same arrangements with the Navy. It's not only Ocean Marine Solution that has that arrangement; so, I can't see why they cannot allow all the security agencies involved to work together.

"For me it is the Navy who initiated the strategy and then leveraging with NIMASA and Ministry of Transport, they can as well now integrate a proper security structure in our waters and I don’t think it is rocket science it is something that can be done."

According to him, if our waterways are not safe, the country will lose business. He warned that Nigeria is a predominantly an importer- nation, stressing that apart from crude oil, the country hardly exports anything.

His words: "Everything that comes to us here comes through the ocean and it is those ships that bring us all those goods that we are thriving on here. Traders or any kind of persons doing any business rely on shipping; so if we are not able to have those ship come, then even our economy will be (negatively) impacted."

Also speaking in the same vein, Chief Executive Officer of First Planet Energy, Mr. Kennedy Rhima said that the continuous engagement of Ocean Marine Solution Limited would bring about the safety and security of vessels in the Lagos Pilotage district.

He however called for closer collaboration between the Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA, the Nigerian Navy and other stakeholders involved in the matter.

Rhima was of the opinion that any attempt to stop the security services being provided by Ocean Marine Solution could spell doom for ship calling at the Lagos ports.

He said: "The matter has been controversial; the safety and security of both vessels and personnel manning these vessels should be the goal of parties involved.

"I will urge Captain Okunbo to liaise with the relevant agencies involved and straighten whatever needs to be straightened."

US Travel Advisory on Nigerians Meanwhile, last week, the United States warned her citizens of what it called the risks of travelling to Nigeria.

The warning tagged: "Reconsider travel to Nigeria," listed proposed threats its citizens are likely to face if they visit the country to include, "crime, terrorism, civil unrest, kidnapping, and maritime crime."

The US Embassy then went ahead to list the areas with increased risk potential in the coastal region as follows: Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross Rivers, Delta, and Rivers states (with the exception of Port Harcourt), adding the restriction in this area was due specifically to crime, civil unrest, kidnapping, and maritime crime.

Interestingly, Lagos which is the commercial capital of Nigeria and a coastal city was exempted from the list even though it habours the largest seaports, a situation some experts have attributed to the SAA initiative that has reduced the cases of maritime crime in the region since its implementation.

National Assembly Exonerates OMSL of Fraud Once again, to challenge the Minister's claim of fraud, late

last year, a joint committee of the Nigerian Senate and the House of Representatives on the Nigerian Navy, Marine Transport and Finance investigated claims of the illegality of the operations of OMSL at the SAA in Lagos seaport.

The committee came out with a clean bill of health for OMSL and offered useful suggestions on how to advance the sector.

The committee recommended among others, "That Ocean Marine Solution Limited (OMSL) should be commended for its genuine national interests in investing over four hundred million ($400,000,000) dollars into the security at the Secured Anchorage Area (SAA) in particular and the Nigerian waterways in general by providing the needed platforms and logistics for the Nigerian Navy to effectively perform 24/7/365 patrol operations as well as to provide the required protection for vessels waiting to berth at the Lagos ports."

On the issue of defrauding the nation, the committee said, "That since no fraud is found in the operations of the OMSL and is operating at no cost to the government, OMSL should be allowed to continue its operation at the SAA until such a time when a better and more cost-effective system is put in place by the government.

And, "That the Nigerian Navy should be properly funded to enable it to procure needed vessels to clear the over one hundred and fifty (150) vessels deficit to enable them to carry out their constitutional responsibilities without over depending on Private Maritime Logistics Support Companies (PMLSC)."

Looking at the Mirror While it is pertinent to reflect at decisions before taking them, some industry watchers have attributed the unfolding scenario to a lack of understanding of the importance of the service(s) being rendered by OMSL to the nation's maritime industry in particular and the Gulf of Guinea in general, others believe that it is propelled by the Nigerian factor.

Those who hold the latter view wonder why some individuals after the decision by the nation's Senate, are insisting that it is not bound by such.

What this portrays in its entirety is an attempt to create a face-off between the agency and the National Assembly.

Those knowledgeable about such confrontations argue that the outcome is usually not favourable to the national interest.

Interestingly, the management of OMSL has remained calm over the controversy as it has refused to join issues with anybody except for the invitation of the National Assembly it had to honour.

Moreover, in what some has described as working for national interest, OMSL has continued to provide security service at the anchorage to the admiration of ship owners and operators that anchor their vessels at the designated area.

Hence, recent happenings are perceived as despising the National Assembly and trying to flex muscles with the lawmakers, as the move is a violation of the stand of the lawmakers as reflected in the committee's submission.

As advised by operators in the maritime industry, there are indications that the management of OMSL is willing and ready to partner the Nigerian Ports Authority on the Secure Anchorage Area for the greater interest of the nation and its economy.

Stakeholders are however of the opinion that if the security arrangement in the Lagos Pilotage District is replicated in the Eastern and Southern ports, it will curb the issue of insecurity currently being experienced in that axis and boost the economy of both flanks and, in turn, benefit the Nigerian economy as a whole.

So, why threaten what is saving the economy?

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THURSDAY AUGUST 13, 2020 •T H I S D AY

THURSDAY AUGUST 13, 2020 • T H I S D AY

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T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY AUGUST 13, 2020

POLITICS

Group Politics Editor NSEOBONG OKON-EKONG Email nseobong.okonekong@thisdaylive.com (08114495324 SMS ONLY)

‘I Will Never Work with Tinubu’ The leader of the Peoples Democratic Party in Lagos state, Chief Bode George speaks with Segun James on politics and his relationship with the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress, Senator Bola Tinubu

W

hat is your relationship with Asiwaju Bola Tinubu?

Why is everybody saying that the two of you are now working together?

To do what? We have nothing in common.

Maybe there is a clone body that looks like me.

To go and do what with APC? Is that a political party? I am sorry, ‘my Oga’ is their leader.

However, we call Bola Tinubu the leader but we have a president. That doesn’t happen in our own party. The constitution we are running is tied to American the system. The leader of the Republican Party is the president of the United States. Tinubu is sitting on a chair that has a false seat.

I have always criticised the APC, that it is a political party with strange bedfellows. I come from a solid family in Lagos. My great grand uncle was a leading Nigerian politician, Baba Herbert Macaulay. He started a political party in the 1920s and kept on struggling, going from the north to the east and everywhere trying to pull Nigerians together against the colonial people.

I come from that stock. What I’m I looking for that will put Tinubu and I I’m the same corner? In which house? In fact we have never made any statement to have a meeting. They should come to let us save Nigeria. We have seen their style of management. We have seen the weakness in their management. We have seen the kind of attitude they have in a political party. It is not a private company.

That is why we are fighting now in our party so that we don’t drift to that kind of direction, where the party will now be held as a private enterprise.

Let’s follow the laws of the party. In our party, we cushioned up and once the governor says look this is the South west zone, of course he is no more the governor today, he is the leader.

He is not saying to everybody today that he has the absolute power. He is the leader and if he can come and say, sir, please lets come down a little bit, correct the ills, ameliorate the pains created by the mistake made at the higher echelon. It is not my private company.

Sir you have not been active in the PDP in recent times. According to some people, since the so called rebels rebelled against you, you have not really done anything in the party and it seems you are very distant, so that makes the party in Lagos State kind of moribund?

Let me tell you what I have done. You know we are trying to sort out the mess they created.

We took an action, went to court. They sent the governor to come and see me and I asked what is the problem? They came and said, ‘Sir please stop, we will try and see how to mend things up.’ We went to Ibadan, there was peace, we enjoyed ourselves, we did that and that.

But you have forgotten that there is also this enemy that you cannot see physically, but it is ravaging the land.

The Coronavirus has overtaken every political issue and it is deadly. Only a foolish man now will want to break the government law to start going around for politics. That is why it looks like everybody is quiet, unless you have Madagascar drug and I don’t believe in African juju, let the vaccine be developed or ensure what the scientists are saying, social distancing, and wearing of mask and stay clear of crowd. I am a scientist.

That is what is causing the delay in any political activity. Where have you had any other political activity, even those in government in Lagos State. Every day you see the governor talking or the deputy. What they talk about is how they are going to solve this or how they are going to do testing. No single equipment is made here, they have to be imported, as we are asking for importation of the same equipment, so America is, everybody is heading to China.

So that is what is delaying everything, even, how many of you people are in the office now?

I came to the office today because of you, that is what should be. I pray that the vaccine

George should be quickly made and then you are sure of whatever else they will do to reduce the impact on human beings. They did for AIDS, they still haven’t found a vaccine for AIDS but they have been able to control it. it is an epidemic and it is becoming a pandemic. The British Prime Minister caught the virus, and I have a lot of respect for the British people, the same in America.

Look at France, look at Putin, this is not nuclear warfare. His spokesman is in the hospital, Prime Minister in the hospital, himself is hiding in a bunker now. How many times have you seen our Oga going everywhere? So give us time but definitely, to stir the course for me even on my death bed. We are not enemies, what is the major difference is the style of management, the concept of the way we see political activities and political management and policies. We are not on the same platform, we are not enemies, if he comes and changes his style to be on our own pathway, it is not my private company, those are the laws of our own party. If he decides that he wants to obey the laws and give respect to each other, not like where people will come, so I am not looking for anything.

What we are hearing from the APC side is that the PDP is dead in Lagos. What is your take on this Sir? First of all I think that is what they are praying for in their mind. You know those who are

card carrying members of political parties are less than those who are not members of any political party. And they are the ones wanting to decide for the House of Representatives, state house of assembly, governorship elections, presidential and all that, they would decide.

Now, we have seen the management style of the opposition party, the party in government, compared with ours. They will decide on that day, by another two years now, we will start getting back to the political election.

Yes, there is no association anywhere in the world that you will not have one friction or the other. Even you alone as a human being, you will have problems either with yourself or with some physical part of your body or something. That is the way life is. There is no free highway in life.

Yes, PDP has friction but it is not to the extent of devastation.

It is not to the extent of a collapse of the party. The party is still there, those internal friction happened because it is artificial and based on human greed and human ambition, so it can be managed. Because you see when you have people, you congregate yourselves, you form a political party, you have your constitution. The constitution is the grand norm that everybody must abide by. You don’t start to work or treat people outside the constitution, it is the guideline. You have the laws there and are made to guide us in our daily interaction in decision making and

Some of us will fight to the bitter end to make sure that nobody can pocket this party. The founding fathers laid down their souls and commitment to setup for the first time a national party and in doing so there were certain fundamentals they agreed upon, how to manage this massive complex called Nigeria. I read their concept, modus operandi and I see it is reasonable and is good, that this will assist Nigeria. And no matter what anybody says, it was that concept of operation that saved Nigeria from total collapse. It saved democracy and made sure that democracy has been sustained continuously on unbroken civilian administration for 20 years

if you feel so bad about any particular section, you wait till the convention time to change things. Once they are sealed at convention, you must obey the laws.

But because democracy is just growing in our country some people see political appointment as an absolute power, that they can do and undo, they can put anybody anywhere without following the due process. It doesn’t help, it becomes absolute lawlessness. And if you do anything outside the constitution no matter who you are, even National Chairman you will be brought to book. If you don’t want a constitution then make it a jungle and everybody can do what they want. So I am trying to itemize the issues that lead to friction, they are not fundamentals.

They are personal ambition, lack of commitment to the growth of the party and total interest in commitment to that for that organisation.

If you don’t like the heat, please get out of the kitchen. You find some people they roll from one party to the other, in the end, you find out that where there is organisation, where there are laws, they are much better than the ones that they are in the private company of some people.

PDP is not like that. Some of us will fight to the bitter end to make sure that nobody can pocket this party. The founding fathers laid down their souls and commitment to setup for the first time a national party and in doing so there were certain fundamentals they agreed upon, how to manage this massive complex called Nigeria. I read their concept, modus operandi and I see it is reasonable and is good, that this will assist Nigeria. And no matter what anybody says, it was that concept of operation that saved Nigeria from total collapse.

It saved democracy and made sure that democracy has been sustained continuously on unbroken civilian administration for 20 years. With respect to the minority and the majority, both in the north and in the south. In a restructured Nigeria, in a manner that they will give everybody that sense of oneness. You have majority in the north and minority in the north, majority in the south and minority in the south.

There are six regions, you have three zones in the north and three zones in the south, and then they brought in this concept of rotation.

The British in their wisdom conceptualised our country in their own horizon of the United Kingdom. They have been in existence for over 300 years. About a few years ago the United Kingdom started to crack up, when Margret Thatcher and other peoples saw the political tornado coming, they now came up with a concept called devolution.

In United Kingdom now you have Scotland with their governance, you have Wales with their governance and Northern Island and of course England doesn’t have a separate parliament but all those people who have devolved are still members of the federal government that still manages them. But they have devolved powers, having existed for over 300 years. So what I am trying to do, is that at that time, it was a concept, there is no fixation about it.

When the British left, the military came in and the only management they understand is top to bottom. Once the boss gives an order, you obey. But in a democratic setting the power is at the base. When they elect you to represent them, they are telling you to go and manage the resource of A, B, C, D for the benefit of us.

There is no super leader there, you must be a servant leader because you are elected. The military setting is completely one hierarchy down to the bottom, you are to listen to the order. What the British left here, this regional thing, that worked, everybody developed according to their wealth, the capacity and there is no part of Nigeria that God has not endowed with one resource or the other.

NOTE: Interested readers should continue in the online edition on www.thisdaylive.com

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T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY AUGUST 13, 2020

POLITICS

‘Akeredolu Not Interested in Bringing Capacity and Knowledge Around Himself’ James Sowole holds a conversation with the African Democratic Congress candidate for the October 10, 2020 governorship election in Ondo State, Mr Dapo Adelegan

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The four years is the constitutional term.

The second term is just a grace. No governor can give himself the second term. If the people are now saying you should go it would be very clear that they do not want to give you the second term. But if you became desperate that you must have the second term, it means you failed in the first term.

Four years is what we have and that is what we are going to spend.

ho is Dapo Adelegan?

Dapo Adelegan is an Ondo State indigene. My father is from Ijebu Owo and my mother is from AjowaAkoko. I have been in business for 32 years.

Why did you decide to run for the governorship of the state, particularly, when the incumbent, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu is your kinsman from Owo? I am in the race for two reasons. One, the kind of grace I received considering the fact that my entrance into business was an asset of fortune 32 years ago when I was 25 years old as a Youth Service Corps member serving in Lagos State.

The Lord led me to discover Lekki for the establishment of Lekki Sunsplash. Five years later, God led me to pioneer revolutionary changes in the outdoor services. I have organised several exhibitions all over the world and later became President of the Nigeria British Chamber of Commerce. The grace we received compelled the need to pay back because we know with this kind of grace, God wants to send us an errand.

I have been very much involved in social economic lives of Ondo State and I recognize the fact that we have spent almost 30 years playing politics with the lives of our people without governance. We now say we should put our leg into that race, to offer our totality to our people and that is first reason.

The second reason is to restore the damaged pedigree and heritage of Owo, my fatherland. You should remember that the gold standard of politics in Ondo State and governance was an Owo man, Pa. Adekunle Ajasin. He was governor and in four years, he set up a university, set up Owena Bank, built about seven major industries and even the secretariat he built in Alagbaka not one block has been added by any government or governor and we still have an Owo there again, my brother, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu and he has spent four years now basically fighting his party members, fighting opposition, and basically not achieving anything significant for Owo, Ondo north and for Ondo state at large. The major thing that comes out of Ondo state is the volatile politics and the combative nature of the governor and that itself cannot be attractive to investors.

So the condition is that we have no job, our boys are being frustrated, we have the situation whereby students cannot pay their school fees, we have no water, no roads, no hospitals, we have no industries. Those are the principal reasons for my emergence.

If you are elected as the governor what are the programmes you intend to execute?

In all fairness it is basically difficult to explain the programmes. However, we will immediately set up about three things. One, social welfare package for our people. Loan will be available for our students that met the criteria and we are working on the structure to ensure that two years after NYSC they can begin to pay.

Two, we will change the curriculum of our education. We will move about 60% of our educational budget into technology education because the future is about capacity in technology. We intend to do transportation across the length and breath of our local government areas. Our people must be provided an effective transport system within our state.

We have no health facilities. We will equip our health facilities, build a teaching hospital in each senatorial districts to provide First Class training. In the area of industrialisation, we want to declare Ore as our economical monument. We want to make Ore our Chicago and improve our economy. Ondo State has geographical advantage and we are going to use that advantage. In the area of tourism, we are going to globalise Ondo State so that t would attract international investment in tourism. We will make sure

In terms of performance, how will you score the incumbent governor?

A man cannot give what he did not have, I think Akeredolu has done what he could do within his capacity. He should voluntarily allow another Owo man who has the capacity to take over from him so that Owo can have a beautiful second term. He should allow us to develop and provide good leadership for this state and give hope for the future and to bring a political culture that Ondo State is open for a business rather than being economically volatile state.

Adelegan within the two years, there will be water, good transportation and we will glamorise our agriculture.

You mentioned some things that your brother, Akeredoou did not do well. Was there any time you approached him to advise him on how to do certain things, which he refused?

At the time Akeredolu became the governor, I was President and Chairman of Council, Nigeria British Chamber of Commerce, Chief Gbento Farotimi from Ondo was the President and Chairman of Council of Nigeria America Chamber of Commerce, Yemi Akeju from Ijare was the President and Chairman of Council of Institute of Directors.With the three of us, 65 per cent of Nigerian economy was in our hands. In terms of capacity, the governor did not even ask us for lunch or dinner to discuss how we can assist. When he was setting up his economic council, some people suggested my name as Chairman but instead, Akeredolu made himself as the chairman. As a matter of fact, there are prominent people, Obas, who mentioned my name to Arakunrin, I even met him at a book launch of Gen. Alani Akinrinade and I went to greet him. He even gave me an appointment but it never happened. So it was clear to us that Arakunrin was not interested in bringing capacity and knowledge around himself and we left him. But the most important thing is that Ondo State has political culture that every senatorial district will

produce a governor. Dr. Olusegun Mimiko of the Central Senatorial District did eight years. After him, it turned to North, Owo. Owo has not had two terms, and its quite unfortunately that about 10 people from Owo rose up to contest agaiinst him. He lacks human relations. Our first major issue is to ensure that North, Owo and Akoko should have another four years to complete their term. Since he has not been able to, we will ensure that we take that back from him and develop the North, Central and the South and restore the credibility and heritage of Owo and build on the legacy of Ajasin. So we are fighting as two brothers and Owo is very lucky to have children on the two platforms.

If I have the opportunity to meet him today I will wish him well and I will tell him too to wish me as well.

Can’t you work with him to ensure the power remains in Owo? We are working together. It is a strategy.

If two of us are on the different platforms, it is better than on the same platform. He was given an opportunity, He is not the best Owo person, he just has the grace and if he has mismanaged that grace, I am ready to take it from him to complete the eight years term of Ondo North.

Should they put it to you that you should just spend four years, will you accept?

Some are saying now that Akeredolu cannot be their governor again and that whatever he wanted to spend they will collect it because this is about their future. We are not going to win this election with money. We are not going to bribe our people. We will go door-to-door, sell our vision, show them the future, what is coming and explain our capacity. I don’t have the money but I have God on my side. Wait and see what will happen on October 10, 2020 and you will see the hand of God manifest

Nigerian politics is money consuming.

In view of the resources available to APC and the PDP candidates, can you match them?

I will rather say it in two ways. When Dr. Olusegun Mimiko was contesting, we had a very powerful governor then, Late Dr Olusegun Agagu. It was the platform of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) that brought him into forefront of the governorship of Ondo state. People sold their land, cars because they believed it was the time for change and another revolution was about to happen. Some are saying now that Akeredolu cannot be their governor again and that whatever he wanted to spend they will collect it because this is about their future.

We are not going to win this election with money. We are not going to bribe our people.

We will go door-to-door, sell our vision, show them the future, what is coming and explain our capacity. I don’t have the money but I have God on my side. Wait and see what will happen on October 10, 2020 and you will see the hand of God manifest.

Before you emerged the ADC candidate, you were once in APC. Why did you leave APC? With the 12 aspirants then, with a lot of crises, at the state and national level, it was clear to many of us one month to the primary of APC that we did not stand the chance, that the governor may likely emerge the candidate of the party through the indirect primary and indirect primary is a gift to any governor because he owns the excos.

The reality is that darkness has gone, while light has come.

The people of Southern Senatorial District, have been complaining of neglect over the years, how would you address this?

I have talked to our people from the south and I still tell them that I will be the first governor in the state that will develop the Southern part of the state. One of our first projects is to declare Ore as state’s economic hub. We will create a Chicago at Ore. We will work very hard with the Federal Government to develop our port, we will invite back the international investors.

What plans do you have on insecurity and other issues?

If there is no job, there is no security. The first thing is to give jobs to our people, provide them the skills that industries are looking for. Our education will be rejigged towards technology. For example, we have University of Science and Technology and what we will just do is to convert Rufus Giwa Polytechnic to University of Science and Technology. We will skill our educational policy. Once you can give skills to our people, things would be okay. We need to encourage our youths to go into farming.

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T H I S D AY Ëž Ëœ ÍŻÍąËœ 2020

COMMENT

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

ETHIOPIA’S PAN-AFRICA DAM

Okello Oculi writes that Ethiopia’s Renaissance Dam holds a lot of promise

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n 2013 I read a brochure in Ambassador Hotel located near the airport at Addis Ababa. The brochure had a propaganda narrative about a project named the ‘’People’s Renaissance Dam’’.

Its call was for all citizens to become owners of the project by buying shares, no matter how small the piece of the government bond one could afford. Here was something starkly different from most construction economics in Africa where only foreign investors, bureaucrats and politicians ‘’own’’ the show.

Prime Minister Meles Zenawe, the brain-box from which the dam had popped, had won power after a protracted guerilla war against Mengistu Haile Mariame’s military socialist dictatorship. Guerilla warriors know that support and participation of the people, in various ways, is the anchor and lifeblood of revolutionary bleeding to win power. The conception of a ‘’people’s financial dam’’ was a flow of a river of people’s military power into an infrastructure project.

There was also a salute to the Pan-African heritage of the River Nile.

While the ‘’WHITE Nile’’ dropped down from a lake on a plateau between Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda, the ‘’BLUE Nile’’ cascaded from the Ethiopian mountains into lowlands in south-eastern Sudan. The two water bodies met in Khartoum, now Sudan’s capital.

Each branch carries loads of fertile soil into Sudan and Egypt. The Black African Pharaohs had on the Nile’s patient back built irrigation systems to support agriculture, and constructed grand pyramids, in Egypt.

The White Nile loses a lot of water in the ‘’SUDD’’ – a vast swamp whose grass has for centuries supported millions of livestock when less water comes down during the dry season in East Africa. It is remarkable that Egypt and Sudan have paid little engineering attention to this hydrological phenomenon.

Ethiopia’s Renaissance Dam promises to trap 19.5 trillion gallons of water behind a wall 1,800 feet high. It is expected to cost 4.6 billion American dollars. Over the last decade of construction rumour mongers have thrown charges of corruption at its builders. These ‘’bad beles’’ (evil stomachs) may have driven the dam’s chief engineer, Semegnew Bekele, to his death. Egyptian intelligence operatives, political rivals of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, or contractors unhappy with his commitment to perfection may have gunned him down in the centre of Addis Ababa.

The dam’s expected generation of 6,400 megawatts of electricity has the pan-African target of selling power to Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda,

PRESIDENT EL-SISI WOULD BE THE NEXT CANDIDATE FOR THE NOBEL PRIZE FOR PEACE TO COME FROM THE BANKS OF THE NILE IF THE TROIKA WOULD TOGETHER OPEN GATES OF THE PAN-AFRICAN RENAISSANCE DAM

Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan, Sudan and onwards into the bowels of West Africa. It would fulfill Meles Zenawe’s dream of changing the shameful image of Ethiopia as a land of BBC television documentaries of emaciated children dying from starvation as hopeless mothers stare into indifferent horizons.

Instead, Ethiopia would export hydroelectric light, hope, aspirations and ambition across Africa.

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, Emperor Haile Selassie had awarded scholarships to students from other African countries to study at Addis Ababa University. Their influence incited student protests against his imperial tyranny and ruthless exploitation of his people. Meles Zenawe would be a distant beneficiary of student radicalism. The Renaissance Dam will pay back that debt of progress.

The Nile also has other legacies. Professor Cheik Anta Diop has published pictures of women inside pyramids in Egypt with hairstyles and features similar to those found in Eastern and Central Africa. Ethiopians also fought and ruled in Egypt of the Black African Pharaohs.

Two traditions of migration have been carried strapped on the patient back of Mother Nile. The Renaissance Dam is entangled in this legacy of Pan-African migration and diplomacy. Egypt has sought to earn veto power over the use of waters from the Nile. Since the 1970s, there has emerged a growing irritation and impatience by governments at the source of the White Nile. It is rain water and soils from their sovereignty travel north into the Mediterranean Sea. Egypt’s current fury was expressed at the United Nations by foreign minister Sameh Shoukry, as follows: ‘’Survival is not a question of choice, but an imperative of nature’’. Egypt insists that 90 per cent of its agriculture and household needs use Nile water. 60 per cent of Ethiopia lacks electricity.

President Yoweri Museveni (who rules the source of the White Nile), Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (at the source of the Blue Nile), and President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi (at the end of the river), have each worn military salutes. Military threats yield smoke out of their noses. Each has seen wasted blood in their countries, and dreams of peace‌ President el-Sisi would be the next candidate for the Nobel Prize for Peace to come from the banks of the Nile if the troika would together open gates of the Pan-African Renaissance Dam.

THE NORTH-SOUTH IMBALANCE Ă“Ă‘Ă?ĂœĂ“Ă‹ Ă“Ă? Ă“Ă˜ Ă‹ Ă?ĂœĂ?Ă? Ă?Ă‹Ă–Ă– ÞÙ Ă?Ă?Ă–Ă?Ě‹ĂŽĂ?Ă?ĂžĂœĂ&#x;Ă?ĂžËœ Ă?Ă™Ă˜ĂžĂ?Ă˜ĂŽĂ? Michael Owhoko

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raying for Nigeria’s redemption from its current woes is like asking God to prevent a building with defective foundation located in the Lekki area of Lagos from collapse.

Even intercessions by best of prayer warriors cannot save such a building. As long as Nigeria continues with its current inapt political structure, its descent to self-destruct is definite.

The ominous signs are there for any discerning mind to see except those with impaired vision and beneficiaries of the prejudicial system.

If indeed Nigeria is a product of amalgamation of two separate “countries�, comprising Northern and Southern protectorates up till 1914, it infers there should be a balance between the two regions in the distribution and management of the country’s resources. This was the intention of 1963 Constitution.

The 1963 Constitution was painstakingly negotiated and tailored to address the country’s heterogenous and multiethnic peculiarities for equity purposes, encouraging representatives of the regions to transfer part of their sovereignty to federal or centre at the time.

Abrogation and replacement of the 1963 Constitution with a unitary system (Decree No 34 of 1966) was therefore a very costly political mistake made by General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi.

Rather than reverse this anomaly, the counter coup by northern elements in the army that brought General Yakubu Gowon to power sustained this same inappropriate structure that was partly responsible for their vengeance. This is the genesis of Nigeria’s unending woes and steady free fall into abyss and self-destruct.

No matter the inherent flaws of the 1963 Constitution, the features of federalism in the constitution guaranteed equity and would have been left to evolve. By now, Nigeria would have been a more stable country, offering leadership to the rest of Africa and enjoying global respect outside the continent.

To have retained this unitary system till date through the current 1999 Constitution, is dishonesty and unhelpful to the country’s unity. This constitution which was indolently generated from

the 1979 Constitution and foisted on Nigerians, was predetermined, draped in pseudo-federalism and inimical to a plural society like Nigeria.

Indeed, the 1999 Constitution is not a product of serious negotiation as it was deliberately framed to put the Northern region at advantage over the South. It gives the North more opportunities in federal bureaucracy than the South through the application of quota system or federal character principle, a policy meant to hold down the South for the North to catch up.

If this special waiver (quota system) deliberately imposed by this constitution was put in place to correct the educational and employment imbalance, among others, between the North and the South in public sector, for how long will this system be sustained? Is it in perpetuity? It has been in place even before 1960, and was given legal and official cover by the 1979 Constitution, and later the 1999 Constitution.

For equity purposes, why was the quota system not applied to the Igbo at the end of the civil war to facilitate their reintegration into society, under the 3Rs of Reconciliation, Reconstruction and Rehabilitation. The Igbo were left to fight their way into economic, social and political relevance to catch up with the rest of the country.

The North has obviously caught up with the South, and it is high time the country got the federal character principle reviewed and discarded. A system where Southerners with higher marks cannot get admission into federal schools while those with lower scores from the North are admitted cannot be a fair system, neither the recruitment of Northerners with lower qualification into public service while Southerners with higher qualification are ineligible on grounds of the quota system, is impartial.

Besides the disparity in favour of the North, the 1999 Constitution is the root cause of corruption in the country. It concentrates power and resources in the hands of one man, promotes nepotism and encourages leaders to take total control of governmental instrument to pursue ethnic and sectional agenda. This explains the attendant desperation by the various ethnic groups or regions to capture power at all costs at the centre, making

it practically impossible, for example, to conduct accurate census and free and fair elections, as they are incidental to power and resources.

The unitary system is an aberration and provokes discontent within the polity resulting in national and diplomatic deficit. One of the consequences is Nigeria’s dwindling respect, influence and honour within and around the world. The country has been on a descent from its hitherto enviable height, indicative of system anomaly, institutional mismatch and structural failure. Even Africa countries which used to be Nigeria’s sphere of influence in foreign policy matters, now see Nigeria as a weakling.

This was not the dream of Nigerians at independence when the structure and system of government guaranteed national equity with each region having the autonomy to grow at its pace through unique local administration that was suitable to the needs and aspirations of the respective ethnic groups and regions.

It is the unitary nature of the 1999 Constitution that has given impetus for the entire organs of government, namely, the Executive, Legislature and the Judiciary to be headed by Northerners, besides service chiefs and heads of strategic ministries, departments and agencies of government that are also dominated by Northerners.

Even for a blind man, this is obviously an unfair system that leaves the other partner, the South, disadvantaged.

Allowing the North to get away with this power sharing disparity suggests the North is the superior partner of the union. Implicitly, while political and economic opportunities are shrinking in the South, the North is experiencing increase. This is manifest in recruitment pattern in ministries, departments and agencies of the federal government, among others.

Thus, in response to dwindling prospects, Southerners now flee and migrate to other countries to take up demeaning jobs for survival, and sometimes, resort to all kinds of vices at home and abroad, including internet fraud and prostitution.

Southerners prefer to be strangers in foreign land with sense of liberty than remaining in a

country where dreams cannot be fulfilled through decent and legitimate process of hard work and honesty. Identifying oneself as a Nigerian has become a burden because of the negative public perception, particularly in transnational circles.

Nigeria’s miseries are further compounded by prevailing political uncertainty and leadership vacuum fueled by the eccentric 1999 Constitution.

Any country that is destined for greatness is known by the demeanor of those charged to manage its affairs. How far such a country can go in meeting the aspirations of its citizenry is determined by the quality of leadership thought process. When those thoughts are driven by narrow and selfish motives other than national interest, what you get is futility.

Leadership from the bottom rung of the ladder to the top have veered the country from the course of greatness with no hope of attaining unity of aspiration. Who will the youths look up to as reference group when all you hear, see, feel and experience from those at the helms of affairs is theft, nepotism, insincerity and lies as encapsulated in corruption?

Nigeria has become a metaphor for corruption and a country without direction. Citizens no longer believe in the country, as the texture of atmosphere in Nigeria reflects direct opposite of the country’s national motto of “Unity and Faith, Peace and Progress�. Nigeria is currently disunited, faithless, tumultuous and regressive, and this also accounts for the unrestrained massive corruption going on in the country.

Obviously, the 1999 Constitution does not encourage Nigeria to fulfill purpose of a united country devoid of prejudice aimed at transforming its human and natural resources into advantage for the collective good of citizens. Rather, opportunistic ideology holds sway. Get to power, screw policies in favour of your ethnic interest, particularly with projects and appointments, grab or steal as much wealth as you can, and get out.

Leaders see Nigeria as a project with an expiry lifespan because of skepticism over its continuity as a country.

Michael Owhoko is a journalist, author and public relations consultant.

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T H I S D AY ˾ THURSDAY, AUGUST 13, 2020

EDITORIAL THE ALLEGATIONS AGAINST NNPC There is need for proper investigation into the alleged oil theft

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n oil and gas trading company, Samano SA DE CV, recently accused officials of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and other personnel of the federal government of stealing a whopping 48 million barrels of the country’s Bonny Light crude oil, for sale illegally. According to the claim, Samano’s top officials, Messrs Marco Ramirez Ramirez and Jose Salazar Tinajero contacted senior officials of the federal government, offering to buy the alleged stolen oil which it said was abandoned by some unknown persons. They further claimed that they were subsequently edged out of the deal.

Although the NNPC has dismissed the allegations as spurious, we believe the federal government should wade in.

Reports of oil theft in the country have for decades remained ubiquitous and worrying. The scale of the theft is equally enormous which is why we do not consider NNPC’s NEITI, IN LATE 2019, response to Samano’s INDICATED THAT A claims adequate.

We also do not WHOPPING $42 BILLION want this to end WAS LOST TO OIL AND PRODUCTS THEFT IN THE with allegations and counter-allegations LAST 10 YEARS as it appears to be heading. Specifically, we want a proper investigation of the allegations. The current NNPC leadership has shown its commitment for transparency and accountability and it is in its interest to deal with this issue in such manner.

Nigeria’s oil resources are managed by the NNPC on the basis of trust. This trust must be adhered to at all times and in all circumstances. Therefore, there is a need for full disclosure on this particular case. This is more so given recent official reports. For instance, Nigeria, according to the NNPC in August 2019, lost as much as 22 million barrels of oil to theft in the first half of last year. A statement released by

Letters to the Editor

the corporation’s spokesman then, Ndu Ughamadu, explained that the stolen oil amounted to more than 120,000 barrels per day (bpd), or roughly six per cent of Nigeria’s daily production.

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T H I S DAY EDITOR BOLAJI ADEBIYI DEPUTY EDITOR YEMI AJAYI, DAVIDSON IRIEKPEN, MANAGING DIRECTOR ENIOLA BELLO DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTOR KAYODE KOMOLAFE CHAIRMAN EDITORIAL BOARD OLUSEGUN ADENIYI EDITOR NATION’S CAPITAL IYOBOSA UWUGIAREN MANAGING EDITOR JOSEPH USHIGIALE

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Reopen The People’s House Now

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et all the legislators return to the legislature together and perform their legislative duties. Governor Godwin Obaseki must stay away from the 24 lawmakers as the legislature is an independent arm of the government.

This is not really about the 24 names; it is morally, electorally and legally about the electoral constituents who sent them.

At a sensitive time like this I strongly pray that the issue of impeachment does not arise as the election day is almost here. The recently announced Speaker and the old Speaker should withdraw their titles and let the house revote.

There is no way they can continue to meet in different latrines or kitchens or hotels when there is the people’s house, whether under real or fake repair: let them move in now.

I understand Governor Obaseki’s bitterness but he can’t successfully fight the Constitution in the coming hours or days. Obaseki must not put the lives of the citizens (your ardent supporters) out there under fire or risk.

Sir, you must tell them not to disturb the legislature. Sir, listen less to any external influence at this time. Talk and listen to self now.

We have laws; not even the President or the

he NNPC has at various times identified oil theft as a threat to the country’s economy, just as Godwin Obaseki, the governor of Edo State and chairman of the ad-hoc Committee of the National Economic Council on Crude Oil Theft, Prevention and Control, explained then that the 22mbd stolen figure could double by the end of the year if left unchecked. Similarly, the NNPC disclosed in its April 2020 operations report that between April 2019 and 2020, about 1,182 vandalised points were recorded on its oil pipelines. The corporation added that products theft and vandalism have continued to destroy value and put it at disadvantaged competitive position.

Meanwhile, the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), in late 2019 indicated that a whopping $42 billion was lost to oil and products theft by Nigeria in the last 10 years. NEITI, which urged the government to embrace oil fingerprinting technology, comprehensive metering infrastructure for all oil facilities, as well as other creative strategies to combat the growing menace of theft of the country’s crude oil and refined petroleum products, explained that $38.5 billion worth of crude oil alone was stolen from the country within the period, with an average of $11 million lost daily. NEITI also noted that government’s figures claimed that between 150,000 and 250,000bpd of oil was stolen from the country daily, while data from private studies estimated that the case was between 200,000 and 400,000bpd stolen.

Without prejudice, we believe that allegations of oil theft such as that raised by Samano should not get a cynical dismissal but firm consideration and reviews by the NNPC. Beyond bringing a satisfactory closure to the allegations, the federal government must, as a matter of urgency, face squarely the threat of crude oil theft not only to the economy but national security.

court system can interfere with the constitutional authority and duties of an independent arm of the government. The legislature is actually stronger than the executive and judiciary. Obaseki, Sir, please stop it.

Take my indirect psychological counsel. Just stop it. This is not good for your spiritual, emotional and mental health. This is my psychological prediction: should Obaseki continue to interfere with the legislature he risked constitutional crisis and he risked personal and official headaches with no immediate reduction.

So I say as a son of Edo State, Sir, calm down or the headache will get worse. I beg you sir. Calm down. This is not about Adams Oshiomhole or others; it is about the Constitution. Period.

Mr Okiye should use his power to ask for the immediate clearance of all the repair materials or put them aside. We are not a nation of goats. This open assault on the people’s legislative house within our historic Benin Kingdom must stop now.

Reopen the house in the next few days. I am on my knees.

Prof John Egbeazien oshodi, American based forensic/clinical/legal psychologist

Covid-19, Telcos And New Subscribers

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espite the global Covid-19 pandemic, telecommunication companies in Nigeria have continued to connect more subscribers, according to the latest reports released by the industry regulator, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).

Between January and June 2020, there were about 11.68 million new telecom subscribers, raising the total number of mobile subscribers to 196.38 million from 184.69 million in January 2020, representing a 6.32 per cent increase within the period.

Figures show that MTN Nigeria led with 8.06 million new subscribers within the period, bringing the total number of the company’s active subscribers to 78.8 million, indicating a 7% increase from Q4 2019. Airtel followed with 2.46 million subscribers while Globacom gained 818,346 subscribers during the same period. 9mobile on the other hand lost 1.05 million subscribers, bringing its total number of active subscribers to 12.1 million by the end of June 2020.

Growing demand for a digital lifestyle due to the restrictions posed by the COVID-19 pandemic drove the number of active internet subscribers for the first half of 2020 to 143.32 million from 128.37

million users in January. Total internet subscribers grew by 5.51% within the period.

MTN gained 2.56 million new internet (data) subscribers bringing total active internet subscribers to 60.6 million. This represents 42.3% of the total data subscribers gained within the period.

Glo followed with 734,774 new subscribers, Airtel added 248,784 while 9mobile lost 945,840 data subscribers at the end of June 2020.

MTN currently leads the telecom industry with 40.17% market share, while Glo and Airtel have close margins at 26.82% and 26.76%, bringing their total active subscribers to 52.6 million and 52.5 million respectively. 9mobile trails with 6.18% market share.

In its report for the first-half earnings, MTN showed that data revenue grew by 57.6%, revenue from digital and FinTech services by 121.8% and 29.6% respectively while voice revenue grew by 2.8%. This growth was recorded amidst a “challenging operating environment”, according to MTN Nigeria CEO, Ferdi Moolman.

While the extent of the impact of COVID-19 remains uncertain, key players in the telecoms sector continue to diversify and position to offer improved services to subscribers, all in a bid to increase market share and improve revenue.

Michael Orodare, Lagos

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THURSDAY AUGUST 13, 2020 •T H I S D AY

THURSDAY AUGUST 13, 2020 • T H I S D AY

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T H I S D AY ˾ ͯͱ˜ 2020

FEATURES

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

Restoring Value System in Nigerians Solutions aimed at contributing positively to the restoration of the seemingly lost value system amongst secondary school students, emerging young leaders and leadership in private and public sectors in Nigeria, was the focus at the recently held AkinjideAdeosun Foundation Leadership Colloquium- Chapter 5, Sunday Ehigiator reports

"I

ntegrity is an essential building block to building a prosperous nation”. These were the words of the Chairman AAF, Akinjide Adeosun, in his opening remarks at the Akinjide Adeosun Foundation Leadership Colloquium- Chapter 5, themed, ‘Integrity, a sine qua non to building a prosperous nation’ held on August 4, in Lagos, an annual event. This year, the event also coincided with his birthday.

According to Adeosun, “truthfulness, honesty, respect for people, hard-work, and humility are traits of Integrity. Recently PwC warned that unless corruption was tackled comprehensively, it could cost Nigeria up to 37 per cent of GDP by 2030. This is money that can be used to fuel free education and free health.

“An educated healthy mind is a productive body fired to high productivity which begets a prosperous nation. I’m an avid advocate of free and compulsory education and free and compulsory health care. Chief Obafemi Awolowo did it, and it can be replicated if we collectively stop the bleeding of our dear country.”

The event was graced virtually by the Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, and the Chairman, First Bank Nigeria, Mrs. Ibukun Awosika, among other panelists.

Other panelists who also graced the event virtually were Chairman, Women in Business (WIMBIZ), Mrs. Ifeyinwa Ighodalo; Head of Secondary, Lagos Preparatory, and Secondary School, Ms. Mags Saba, and Executive Director, JV Districts, Total Exploration and Exploration Nigeria Limited, Engr. Victor Bandele.

In his remarks, Governor Makinde condemned the politicising of government institutions and the use of the same as a tool for hunting political enemies amongst leaders.

"There is a large trust gap between the citizens and leaders of this country due to lack of transparency on the part of the political class.

When we talk about integrity in governance, it entails honesty, transparency, accountability in governance.

"Integrity is tied to prosperity of any nation in so many ways. And as a leader, you have to be very honest. No integrity when politicised institutions are used to hunt political enemies by leaders. When a leader is honest, it means he can be trusted, and the citizens can close their two eyes while sleeping.

Wife of the Managing Director, Megamound Investments, Mrs. Desiree Osunsina; Chairman, The Akinjide Adeosun Foundation, AAF, Mr. Akinjide Adeosun; Secretary to the Oyo State Government (SSG), Mrs. Olubamiwo Adeosun and Managing Director, Megamound Investments, Otunba Olumide Osunsina at the 2020 AAF’s 2020 Leadership Colloquium in Lagos

their money instead of improving their lives.

"Lastly, we cannot grow as a nation without putting structures in place for checks and balances.

We must put in place systems that would strengthen openness, truthfulness and transparency."

Also speaking on the theme as it relates to business, Mrs. Awosika said there wouldn't have been need for the services of a lawyer to facilitate a business contract if all men were very honest to their commitments "Lawyering services are part of the contract because of the fear that the other party may not keep to their ends of the agreement, hence there is a need for a legal binding document.

"A good way to bring about integrity is to stop celebrating dishonorable people as if they were honourables. Also, we must hold people truly responsible for their actions, especially when they are discovered to have lacked integrity in their actions."

Guest Speaker, Governor Seyi Makinde, during a virtual In a brief remark, Mrs. Ighodalo defined session at the 2020 Akinjide Adeosun Foundation's (AAF’s) Leadership Colloquium- Chapter 5, held virtually integrity as “being true to oneself in all aspects of life, especially when no one is watching. The in Lagos currency of your words must be trust. We must "It begins with leaders owning up to their be able to bank on your words.”

For Ms. Saba, while linking the theme ‘integrity’, manifestos after being elected. Because a nation that has an honest leader would definitely prosper. to the school‘s perspective, she said “it must be Citizens will not be willing to pay their taxes based on transparency and consistency. There when they see that their leaders are lavishing needs to be binding rules, and those rules need

to be clear and consistent.

“No one must be above the rules, because if you are biased in melting out disciplines to any offender, you are only encouraging more corruption in the system as others are watching and would imitate or reference your actions years after.”

For Bandele, “Consistency in character and being true to oneself, totally describes what it means to be of integrity. Integrity is the sole of every business.

"It takes you to the borders that not many have attained. Show me a business that has lasted over three decades and I’ll tell you it couldn’t have lasted so without integrity.”

The highpoint of the occasion was the conferment of the ‘Excellence in Integrity Award’ on the First Managing Director of the Shell Nigeria Exploration & production Company (SNEPCO), Engr. Olufemi Lalude (PhD), for his exemplary show of integrity while in active service.

Secretary to the Oyo State Government (SSG), Mrs. Olubamiwo Adeosun, while reading the citation of Engr. Lalude, referenced how he rejected a bribe offer of $6 million while he was still working with SNEPCO. “The organisation that offered him the bribe moved against him. However, he refused to be cowed and stood his ground. He was sued with his employer but triumphed."

Mentoring Her to Connect Female Mentors to Mentees Stories by Rebecca Ejifoma A not-for-profit organisation, Mentoring Her, is set to launch in Nigeria this October in a bid to connect female mentors and mentees to help develop relationships and grow the younger ones in various areas of their lives.

The organisation, which is solely an online social platform, helps mentees enhance

in areas like education, career, entrepreneurship and economic empowerment.

Speaking during a virtual press conference, the Founder and CEO, Mentoring Her, Dr. Lolade Adeyemi, said the vision of the initiative is to mentor, inspire and guide women to reach their full academic and career potentials.

Adeyemi, a physician and

entrepreneur, added: “I realised that a lot of women do not have mentors to help inspire and guide them through their career paths, hence, Mentor Her aims to give them access to mentors that will guide them.”

Having been operating in the US for a year now, the CEO said it was time to bring it home to Nigeria. “Nigeria is home. I am a Nigerian. We are launching

now for people to benefit from our resources.

“Mentor Her is a one-stop shop to meet women that can impact mentees life. We don’t meet up. It’s all virtual. This is meant to build the young ones up. We are here to change the narrative and make other women have access to education,” she noted.

For interested mentors and

mentees it is simply a click to show interest for free of charge.

“Everything is for free. Our 92 mentors do this for the passion and their way of giving back”.

The Country Programme Coordinator, Seyi Bamidele, said there are currently 391 mentors and mentees and counting.

“The platform is opened to females aged 13 and above and mentors aged 21 and above.

Teenagers can join but with parental consent”.

She noted also that the foundation uses technology to break down the barriers of access that girls and women face by creating a powerful network that empowers them to succeed through connections, communication and community in a way that prioritises their health and safety.

MediaReach OMD Employs Data on Media Consumption MediaReach OMD, a frontline marketing and media agency, had during this period of COVID-19 pandemic, guided media planners, buyers, and businesses in their investment bid.

This was done through with data-driven newsletters on media consumption habit to maximise profits and increase productivity and to navigate the new normal.

Published in THISDAY Newspapers and titled “COVID-19 and Media Consumption Habit, What

has Changed?,” the newsletters are a culmination of the sequence of information aimed at examining the potential impact of the pandemic on audience behaviour and media consumption in Nigeria. It also contains thought starters and needed actions regarding adaptation of the definition of the new normal posed by the pandemic.

Against this backdrop, the Managing Director of the agency, Nitinchandra Nandekar, said

the firm has been monitoring changes in media consumption and adapting to innovative ways of connecting with the target audience, through data-led approaches to guide clients' investments during the COVID-19 lockdown/post lockdown.

Nandekar avowed that while businesses, especially the marketing and media ecosystem waits for an end to this deadly disease which has dealt a hard blow on world economies, the journey to

success will continue to be guided with key principles, including being ready for the day after.

The foremost media agency with presence in Nigeria, West, and Central Africa, posits that media consumption which is in favour of the TV continues to be stable with much attention on genres like news and entertainment, while businesses are now adopting a more creative and innovative form of operations with adaptation to the new normal.

Commending the media agency for these initiatives, the Chairman and Managing Director of Expand Global Industries Limited, Rajat Kapur, said as a global partner of Henkel for Media Investment Solutions, MediaReach OMDhelps not only in the normal ways but regularly releases data-driven media intelligence information newsletters which ensure that Henkel is prepared to deal with the new normalcharacterised by the pandemic. This, he

said, contains the changing consumer habits, the higher need for hygiene-based products and the changing media landscape, all highlighted for a better clearer and stronger media investment leading to best in class equity development of Henkel’s brands.

In his remark, the President of the National Institute of Marketing of Nigeria (NIMN), Tony Agenmonmen, said the breakout of the pandemic has been a defining moment for the world.

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T H I S D AY ˾ AUGUST 13, 2020

BUSINESSWORLD R A T E S

A S

MONEY MARKET OBB OVERNIGHT

A T

REPO 6.33 % 7.17 %

CALL 1-MONTH

7.50 % 6.75 %

A U G U S T S & P INDEX INDEX INDEX LEVEL 1-DAY

Group Business Editor Obinna Chima Email obinna.chima@thisdaylive.com 08152447875

7 , 2 0 2 0 S&P

586.61 % 0.21 %

1/4 TO DATE YEAR TO DATE

EXCHANGE RATE 4.23 % 21.92 %

N381/1US DOLLAR* *AS AT LAST FRIDAY

Quick Takes 9mobile Crashes Call Rates

9mobile, through the re-launch of its Morelife Complete package, has crashedbothlocalandinternationalcallrates.

Morelifeisavoice-basedprepaidpackagethatallowscustomerstomake callsat11k/stoallnetworksinNigeriaandtotopinternationaldestinations including UK, USA, Canada, China, Norway, Puerto Rico and Bangladesh withadailyaccessfeeofonlyN5billedalongwiththefirstcalloftheday.

Subscribersonthepackage,accordingtotheActingDirector,Marketing at9mobile,LayiOnafowokan,wouldfurtherenjoyanexclusivedataoffer ofawhopping11GBforjustN3000andotherexcitingbenefits.

Commenting further on the revamped offer, Onafowokan said: “We are responding to our customers’ need to stay in touch with their friends and family both locally and around the world without worrying about expensive call rates especially with the varying degrees of physical and socialrestrictionsinplaceatthistime.”

Morethaneverbefore,Nigeriansnowrelyheavilyonefficientandaffordable telecomservicestocommunicatewithlovedonesaroundtheworld.That is why we are introducing this most affordable uniform voice call rate of 11k/secforalllocalcallsandselectinternationaldestinations, Onafowokansaid,addingthattheMoreLifeCompletepackageunderlines 9mobile’sdesiretocontinuetooffermeaningfulandaffordableservices toitssubscribers.

HedisclosedthatsubscriberscouldactivatetheMoreLifeCompletepackage bydialling*620*1#andgetthesuper11GBdataofferbydialling*230*1#.

MEDIA BRIEFING

L-R: Managing Director, Integrated Cash Management Services Limited (ICMS), Mr Fidelis Omachonu; Head of Corporate Services, Ms Doris Ibekwe; Board Chairman, Mr Charles Nwodo Jnr, and Head of Security, Emmanuel Onyebadi, after a media briefing held at the company’s head office in Lagos…recently

FG Urges Telcos to Resist Increase in RoW Charges Stories by Emma Okonji The Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Pantami has called on telecommunications operators to resist any rise in the cost of Right of Way (RoW) imposed by state governments.

He insisted that any attempt by state governments to increase the cost of RoW would negate efforts of the federal government in bringing down the cost of telecommunications services.

According to Pantami, “The federal government is keen at bringing low the cost of telecoms services in order to achieve its digital economy drive much faster.

It is for this reason that the federal government, in 2013, had an agreement with telecoms operators to implement a flat

TELECOM rate of N145 per linear metre on RoW charges.”

Pantami who spoke during a virtual forum organised recently by the Association of Telecoms Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), emphasised the need for state governments to keep RoW charges low and to maintain the agreed rate of N145 per linear metre across states.

Responding to questions on RoW charges, Pantami allayed the general concern that only seven states have reversed to the agreed rate of N145 per linear metre.

“After I met with the Nigeria Governors’ Forum on the RoW charges early this year, their chairman, Governor Kayode

Fayemi of Ekiti State, promised to ensure that all states would reduce RoW charges to N145 per linear metre and since then, several states have complied and the number of states that have complied is increasing,” Pantami said.

He expressed optimism that more states would comply with the N145 rate and strongly advised telecoms operators to resist any increase in RoW charges. The minister further assured that the federal government would continue to protect telecoms infrastructure for the benefits of telecoms operators and subscribers. He was hopeful that the Critical National Infrastructure Bill would soon be signed into law, having pushed the copy of the Bill to President Muhammadu Buhari for final approval.

Pantami added: “In order to create an enabling environment for both investors and consumers, we have addressed the lingering issue of the cost of Right of Way (RoW) to the barest minimum and also put measures in place to eradicate illegal or multiple taxation.

“Prior to the resolution of the RoW issues, many operators noted that they spent as much as 70 per cent of their investment in paying for RoW charges. Examples of amounts charged for RoW per linear metre in the past include N4,500 and N5,500, some states even charged about N16,000.

“To give a better illustration, for a particular state, the estimated cost of connecting two Local Government Areas Continued on page 20

Fresh Focus Required to Fight Cyber-fraud, Says Expert The Risk Manager, Visa West Africa, Aribidesi Lawal, has cautioned that the change in consumer habit that has led to increased online shopping among consumers also comes with the attendant risk from fraudsters who are beginning to trail shoppers online, with the intent to defraud them.

He said as the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic impact were likely to extend into 2021 and beyond, consumers and merchants must begin to adapt to safe and reliable digital commerce, which he said would address the threat from online fraudsters who seek to defraud shoppers that have found online shopping as a convenient channel to trade on goods services.

According to him, nearly every part of daily life of

TELECOM consumers has changed as the world continues to fight back against COVID-19.

Most observers agree that the increased focus on digital commerce by consumers and merchants will likely remain even after a vaccine is found and the economy rebounds, he said.

“It is therefore important for merchants and financial institutions to adapt now to support consumer behavior through safe, reliable digital commerce, Lawal said.

He explained that the pandemic had forced more consumers to shop online, but cautioned that the shift to online channels by consumers has also triggered a shift by

the fraudsters.

Citing the global increase in the number of consumers that shop online Lawal said: “In Nigeria, more consumers turned to online shopping for the first time with 42 per cent of shoppers starting to purchase food via e-Commerce platforms.

“In South Africa, in-store physical activity greatly dwindled, with 63 per cent consumers visiting physical grocery stores less often. In Kenya, consumers’ preference for digital solutions is fast increasing as customers turned online for shopping. About 43 per cent of consumers started purchasing from pharmacies online.

“In the United States, Visa credentials active in spending on e-Commerce channels, excluding travel, were over 12 per cent

higher in June than in January.

Moreover, when you examine the active credentials who tend to be more significantly engaged in e-Commerce, the spend per active credential increased by over 25 per cent. In the United Kingdom, active e-Commerce credentials increased 16 per cent, while spend per active credential increased 3 per cent.”

He, however, said where consumers go, fraudsters follow and Visa’s Payment Fraud Disruption (PFD) team had seen a similar shift in fraudulent activities/fraud attempts from in-store to online.

According to him, “Between March and April 2020, there was a rise in fraudsters establishing short-term “COVID”Continued on page 20

NIS to Discuss Innovation

The Nigeria Innovation Summit (NIS) is set to hold its one-week long virtualeventknownasNigeriaInnovationWeek.Theeventbringstogether stakeholdersfromdifferentsectorsoftheNigerianeconomy.Itisbilled to hold between October 6th and 8th, 2020, with a focus on ‘Innovating inCriticalTimes’.

The event will include activities such as innovation exhibitions, Nigeria Innovation Summit, Nigeria Innovation Awards, and the yearly report of theStateofInnovationinNigeria.

Attheevent,ideas,trends,opportunitiesaroundtechnology,innovation, andentrepreneurshipdevelopmentinNigeriaarediscussed.

Speakingabouttheevent,theLeadConvenerandtheFounderofInnovationHubAfricaandResourcesLimited,KennethOmeruo,saidinnovation inthe21stcenturywasputtingnationsaheadofothers.

According to Omeruo, “Nigeria Innovation Week is a week set aside to showcaseinnovativebusinesses,ideas,productsandservicesfromNigeria.

It will also review the state of innovation in Nigeria, where we are today andhowwecanmoveforward.

“Participationinthisweek-longeventisopenedtolocalandinternational businesses,organisations,governmentagencies,start-ups,entrepreneurs, research centres, tertiary institutions, and all the stakeholders in the innovationecosystem.”

Omeruosaidtheeventwouldalsoshowcaseinnovativebusinesses,ideas, productsandservicesfromNigeria.

NISProgrammesDirector,TonyAjah,saidthesummitwouldbeattended by delegates from local and international businesses, organisations, government agencies, states and representatives, embassies and high commissions, investors, CEOs, start-ups, entrepreneurs, research centres, tertiary institutions, business leaders/decision makers, and all thestakeholdersintheinnovationecosystem.

Techvibes Supports SMEs

Techvibes International Limited has said it is providing its revolutionary businesssoftware,VeitexBusinessSolution(VBS)freeofchargetosmall andmediumenterprises(SMEs)aswellasnon-profitorganisations.

Itsaidaccesstobusinessautomationtoolswillhelpcompaniesrecover fromtheeffectsoftheCOVID-19pandemic.

Inastatement,ManagingDirector/ChiefExecutive,Techvibes,Mr.Michael OglegbasaidtheVBSwasdesignedtoimproveinternalprocesses,acquire, satisfy,andretaincustomers,improvereporting,andguaranteesustainable returnoninvestments.

Accordingtohim,thesoftwarerepresentsaone-stopshopbusinesssolution thatempowersandequipsentrepreneursandnon-for-profitorganisations withthetoolstomanagetheirbusinesseswithoutbottlenecksevenwhen employeesareworkingfromhome.Hedescribedthetoolascosteffective, easytoimplementanduseandbuiltwiththepeculiaritiesofthebusiness environmentinNigeriaandAfricainmind.

“As COVID-19 crisis continues globally, carriers need to be prepared in four areas of network construction and business development to quickly unleash network potential and inspire business growth. Carriers should focus on user experience and build the best 5G networks” Executive Director, Huawei Technologies,

Mr. Ryan Ding

T H I S D AY ˾ ͯͱ, 2020

20

BUSINESSWORLD FG URGES TELCOS TO RESIST INCREASE IN ROW CHARGES was a staggering N560 million before the implementation of the RoW resolution and now it costs just N150,000.

“President Buhari also approved the designation of relevant telecommunications infrastructure across the country as Critical National Infrastructure (CNI). We have also provided input for an Executive Order to give a policy backing for the protection of CNI. We updated the initial draft Executive Order with input that we received from relevant stakeholders like the Office of the National Security Adviser and the Honourable Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation.

The revised Executive Order document has already been forwarded to Mr. President.”

Pantami, therefore urged telecoms operators to reciprocate the efforts of government by recognising the customer as king and treating them as such. “We expect you to enhance customer experience by improving service quality, reduce the cost of service and increase broadband penetration, in line with the National Broadband Plan (2020 – 2025), among other things,” the minister said.

FRESH FOCUS REQUIRED TO FIGHT CYBER-FRAUD, SAYS EXPERT named merchants and using these fraudulent merchants to perform account testing and enumeration.

“This is where fraudsters use merchants or financial institutions to guess account numbers, expiration dates and CVV2/security codes through automated testing. This activity is often marked by high volumes of low-dollar declines.

“Our Visa team also saw an increase in ecommerce skimming attacks, where fraudsters inject malicious JavaScript code into the websites of merchants and service providers to digitally harvest payment information such as billing address, account number, expiration date, and CVV2 from the checkout forms on ecommerce pages.

“In April 2020 alone, PFD identified 90 merchant websites compromised by multiple variants of eCommerce skimmers.”

Group Business Editor

NEWS

Report: Closing Gender Divide Will Save Lives in Pandemic Stories by Emma Okonji A new report from International Telecommunications Union (ITU), the United Nation’s specialised agency in charge of global telecommunications regulation, has stressed the need to close the global gender gap, in order to save lives during emergencies and pandemic outbreak.

The ITU report, which was recently presented in conjunction with the Emergency Telecommunications Cluster (ETC), highlighted that equal access to information and communication technology (ICT) can save lives in emergencies, including during pandemics.

Conversely, the digital gender divide is blocking women from becoming equal stakeholders in society, putting entire communities at greater risk during emergencies.

According to the report, in the wake of disaster, women are more vulnerable and more likely to die than men. The COVID-19 pandemic has devastating social and economic consequences for women and girls because they comprise the majority of healthcare workers, are over-represented in the informal economy and take on most domestic work —significantly compounding pre-existing inequalities.

“At the same time, women

are critical partners in building disaster resilience, however, a range of existing barriers limit their ability to protect themselves and to participate in disaster decision-making throughout the phases of the disaster risk management cycle.

“A woman’s ability to access accurate information not only has a direct impact on her own survival and disaster resilience, but also on that of the wider community,” the report added.

Analysing the report, ITU Secretary-General, Mr. Houlin Zhao, said: “This joint report will go a long way towards integrating women’s needs into national disaster risk reduction frameworks.

“The good practices put forward in the report, such as including women in all aspects of ICT development and disaster risk reduction, aim to help decision-makers ensure that they get access to the digital tools that

can play such an important role in their own safety and security, and that of their families and communities.”

According to the report, women are still 17 per cent less likely to use the internet than men, with an even wider gap in least developed countries.

Women in low- and middleincome countries are also 10 per cent less likely to own a mobile phone than men. The global gender gap in mobile

ownership is at its widest in South Asia.

Chief Information Officer and Director of Technology for the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and Chair of the ETC, Enrica Porcari, said: “Access to communication technologies plays a central role in managing disasters and emergencies. It’s vital for people to receive early warnings, accurate information and humanitarian assistance or even just to contact loved ones.”

STAKEHOLDERS’ MEETING

Sarkin Shanun Kano, Alhaji Shehu Mohammed (left) and Chairman, Solid Minerals Development Fund, Dr. Uba Saidu Malami, during a meeting with Kano gold stakeholders, at the Kano Gold Durbar... recently

Ericsson Identifies New Measures for Benchmarking 5G Networks Ericsson, a global network company has identified key measures for benchmarking 5G technology.

The Chief Technical Officer, Ericsson Middle East and Africa, Mr. Zoran Lazarevic, who listed the key measures, based on Ericsson’s research, said regulators across the Gulf countries have done an excellent job in supporting Communication Service Providers (CSPs) with an efficient spectrum allocations process for 5G deployments.

According to him, as a result of regulators’ work on 5G spectrum allocations, some

of the first 5G deployments globally were executed by CSPs in the Gulf countries and these CSPs are now global leaders in 5G deployments.

“One year after the first 5G deployments, regulators in the Gulf countries are now starting the benchmarking of 5G coverage, to ensure that CSPs are meeting conditions for spectrum allocations. However, there are challenges in terms of how measurements are done.

The methodology that is typically used for the benchmark measurements in 2G/3G/4G networks might not be suitable for 5G networks and might not

provide accurate benchmark results. The preferred way for 5G networks benchmark measurements is to conduct the end-user performance driven benchmark measurements. “These benchmark measurements should be based on the throughput as the main performance indicator that defines end-user experiences when using network services,” Lazarevic said.

He explained that the network team at Ericsson conducted several benchmark measurements between 5G networks with different configurations for common channel and

the results demonstrate that it is not accurate to compare 5G networks based on the common channel measurements.

The benchmarking results conducted by the Ericsson team, presented the following insights: Benchmark measurements in Gulf Country A: Measurements are conducted for the two CSPs that use different configurations for the common channel in idle mode; CSP “A1” has a control channel configuration with beam sweeping while CSP “A2” has a control channel configuration with a wide beam.

Benchmark measurements in Gulf Country B: Similarly to the first example, the two CSPs have different configurations for the common channels in idle mode. The result showed that CSP that typically has lower signal strength as well as lower signal to interference ratio, CSP “B2”, has a better downlink and uplink throughput.

Lazarevic said: “The throughput measurements are more complex to conduct than signal strength based measurement and the network traffic level at the time of measurement has an impact on the measurements.

New Research Identifies Key Metrics to Explore E-mail Marketing Raheem Akingbolu The 2020 edition of ‘Banking Report: How Nigeria reads Emails,’ a research compiled by the Netcore Solutions, a global marketing technology company, has highlighted the key metrics that brands should track to get the best out of their customer emails. The email channel was said to have played a major role in 2019 as over two billion emails were sent out from the platform in Africa alone.

According to the Client Success Manager of the company, Chukwudi Nwokike, the urgent need for Nigerians to deepen their understanding the place of email marketing in today’s business environment informed the research.

He said: “In Nigeria, there is a growing need by organisations and brands to communicate with customers via emails because, unlike traditional marketing and texts, a clearer and more specific message can be disseminated directly to the

target audience on their devices.

The beauty of emails is that there are integrations and tools put in place to seamlessly track customer engagement through open and click rates.”

The report highlighted important metrics that were reviewed and used as a yardstick for monitoring the email behaviour in Nigeria, including but not limited to exclamation marks, question marks, subject line length, and others. It also pointed out the two important metrics which

brands should take cognizance of before sending out emails to prospects and customers. They are open rates and click rates.

“Why do people open emails?

It is an important question of relevance every brand must understand before sending out emails. In this comprehensive report, one billion emails are analysed in various ways which matter to businesses and user behaviors, including the subject line in emails, the category of emails sent, the best day of the week to send out emails and

the best time to have emails sent out to the target audience which will, in turn, boost the open and click rates,” it stated.

According to Regional VP – Africa, Nisham Chhabra, “We at Netcore solutions value every business relationship and we are dedicated to help our clients succeed by leveraging data and technology. By helping clients globally create one-on-one customer experience across multiple channels, we are revolutionising customer communication.

Obinna Chima

Capital Market Editor

Goddy Egene

Firm Launches New Initiative to Boost Food Security

Comms/e-Business Editor

Nosa Alekhuogie

Senior Correspondent

Green Eagles Agribusiness Solutions Limited, has unveiled an initiative called ‘The GreenWealth Project.’

The agricultural initiative, which is aimed at ensuring food security, economic diversification and sustainable wealth for all stakeholders, was launched at a media briefing in Lagos, recently.

According to the company,

Emma Okonji

Raheem Akingbolu (Advertising) Correspondents

Chinedu Eze (Aviation) Eromosele Abiodun (Maritime) James Emejo (Finance) Ebere Nwoji (Insurance) Chineme Okafo (Energy) Reporters

Nume Ekeghe (Money Market) Nosa Alekhuogie (ICT)

“The project is designed to enhance profitability for stakeholders across agricultural value chains, as well as facilitate easy and profitable entry for small-holders into agriculture.”

The Chief Executive Officer, Green Eagles Agribusiness Solutions Limited, Mr.Taiwo Oluwadahushola, in his opening remarks said: “Food security has become a more serious issue than ever, and as a nation, we

must bridge the local deficit in the production of critical food and cash crops to avert a major food crisis.”

The launch of the GreenWealth Project is expected to help in creatively restructuring the nation’s agribusiness space in order to achieve the goal of shoring up the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) through agriculture.

“In achieving this goal, we

will facilitate the establishment of Integrated Farm Estates in 774 Local Government Area across the federation to drive a rapid increase in crops and livestock, which is produced round-the-year at significantly lower production costs, until we achieve equilibrium of demand and supply at consistently lower prices.

“This will provide sustainable livelihoods for millions of

rural dwellers and unemployed youths as well as sustainable returns for sponsors,” he added.

On her part, the Managing Director, Adebola Adetayo explained that the project would provide sustainable livelihoods for millions of rural dwellers and unemployed youths as well as sustainable returns for sponsors, while stirring up unprecedented economic prosperity in and around rural communities.

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Samsung to Address Next Upadhyay: Governments Need to Support Innovation Normal with Galaxy Ecosystem Venture Partner at Flourish, a global fintech firm with portfolio investments across Africa, Mr. Ameya Upadhyay, speaks on the recent survey carried out on a particular set of digital skill workers as well as the challenge of startups development across Africa. Emma Okonji presents the excerpts:

by COVID-19 in the gig economy to be similar across many countries in Africa, and for that matter across emerging markets. This is because people face similar risks to their safety and have responded in comparable ways. It is interesting to note that we discovered similar disruption caused by COVID-19 when we conducted a study similar to the one in South Africa and in Brazil. Therefore, we believe Nigerian Gig workers are also likely to face income contraction, lack sufficient financial cushion and be concerned about financial security in the future, like their counterparts in South Africa.

Upadhyay

F

lourish recently released its 2020 survey report carried out on a particular set of digital skill workers known as Gig workers, with plans to extend the survey to more countries of the world. What was the overriding objective of the survey?

Flourish is a global Fintech investor committed to helping people achieve financial wellbeing. In pursuit of that goal, we want to better understand the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Gig workers, who are a group of specialised digital skill workers and how their livelihoods are changing, as well as how financial technology (Fintechs) developers can better serve this population.

Through our findings, we hope to amplify the voice of Gig workers and inform decisions that improve their financial health.

What informed the choice of countries where the spotlight 2020 reports were carried out?

So far, we have completed research in Brazil and South Africa. Our next focus is United States and India, before going to other parts of the world.

We believe that these markets provide a good sample for our survey owing to the robust nature of the gig economy in these markets. We hope our multi-country research will allow us to identify challenges that are common to Gig workers across national boundaries. Consequently, we hope to extract lessons that have a global relevance.

What was the outcome of the survey on South African Gig workers and what are the lessons for other African countries?

The survey revealed that Gig workers, who are online workers with specific digital skills that were employed on contract to serve the clients of a company for a period of time that the project lasts, largely live by borrowing to make ends meet.

This is despite the fact that they are workers on monthly salaries. The South African survey is part of a bigger study carried out in May this year, tracking the experiences of Gig workers across the globe. The survey seeks to reveal the impact of COVID-19 on Gig workers and their experience across the globe. With each of its country-specific studies, Flourish aims to help Fintech entrepreneurs connect with the people most in need of aid and better understand their needs. The report tracks the experiences of Gig workers, including those who use digital platforms such as e-hailing or delivery apps, to learn more about how they are faring during the COVID-19 pandemic. By tracking Gig workers’ experiences in South Africa and elsewhere, we hope to open conversations about how Fintech companies can build lasting solutions for the vulnerable population of citizens.

What are the key learnings from the South African Gig workers’ survey that you think might also apply to their counterparts in Nigeria?

We need to emphasise that Nigeria and South Africa are very different markets in many respects.

At the same time, we expect the disruption caused

Flourish has vested interests in Africa, with six out of the 11 portfolio companies being Nigerian. Why Nigeria?

Nigeria is home to some of the world’s best entrepreneurs building solutions for a large and underserved population. This aligns well with Flourish’s mission to back entrepreneurs that have a bold vision for transforming the lives of millions of people. It is not surprising that over the last few years, we have seen the venture space in Nigeria take off with several promising startups and several global investors. We feel privileged to have backed some of the pioneers such as Paga and FlutterWave.

In your experience, what will you say is the major challenge of startups in Africa, with Nigeria as a focal point?

I believe the biggest challenge facing African and Nigerian startups is inadequate talent pool.

We think Africa has some of the world’s best talents. However, because startups are still a young phenomenon, many capable individuals are understandably reluctant to join them. We think this situation will change as the venture space matures. In Nigeria, we have already seen the talent pool expand as a consequence of the success of pioneering startups.

What role can government policies play in sustaining and growing the digital ecosystem in Nigeria?

I think policy-makers have a crucial role in supporting the growth of digital infrastructure.

Regulations need to strike a delicate balance between supporting innovation, while ensuring that dividend of technological growth accrue equitably and that individuals’ privacy and data ownership are respected. Creating forums for open dialogue between innovators and policy-makers is crucial in achieving this goal. It was with this objective in mind that we issued a seed grant to the Association of Financial Services Innovators, which, among other things, seeks to catalyze conversations between the financial regulators and fintech startups in Africa.

Most of your portfolio companies in Nigeria are tech companies. Is that the major criterion for your choice of investments?

Yes it is. This criterion is driven by the belief that technology offers the best route to reach the widest customer base and to deliver high quality, personalised services at the lowest cost. Most of our investments leverage the power of the cell phone to reach their customers. At the same time, we recognise the importance of personal interaction. Therefore, several of our investments combine digital and physical aspects to deliver the most effective service - a model often termed ‘high tech and high touch’.

What does your job as Venture Partner at Flourish entails?

As a Venture Partner at Flourish, I back and serve entrepreneurs with a bold vision to create economic opportunity for under-served individuals in emerging markets. I focus on our investments in Africa where our portfolio includes Pagatech, Flutterwave, Lendable, Lidya, Pula, SeedSpace Dar Es Salaam, FairMoney, Apollo and Association of Financial Services Innovators.

Emma Okonji Samsung Electronics recently hosted its first-ever Galaxy Unpacked virtual event live streamed from Korea, where it introduced the Galaxy Ecosystem that will address the next normal.

Managing Director, Samsung Nigeria, Mr. Caden Yu, who spoke during the global launch, said: “Technology has shown a great influence in enabling our current work environment especially the need to work from home. Working remotely seems to be creating longer worker hours and throwing a nail in the workings of work-life balance principle. Thankfully, Samsung is set to bring this to an end with a new reality; the ability to seamlessly switch between work and play. “At the core of the ecosystem is the Galaxy Note20 and Note20 Ultra, which builds on Note’s legacy as the most powerful

Note series yet by bringing PC power and the best Galaxy mobile experience to the palm of one’s hand.�

According to Samsung, the Note 20 series remains an ultimate power phone for work and play. Samsung however said with the Galaxy buds live and Watch 3, it opens consumers’ world to a whole new possibility, with no disconnection and reconnection required. These powerful devices deliver new connected experiences across fitness, health, entertainment and more.

For fitness and health balance, the buds live is ergonomically designed to comfortably fit into the ears providing audio sounds deep and rich so you can enjoy music the way the artist intended. “While you are on a run, the active noise cancellation of the buds live keep the honking horns of the passing cars and

revving sound of the engines away immersing you into your favorite exercise tune. “For those that do not run, you can still enjoy clear sounds from the buds live while you make a choice from the 120 home training programs on the Galaxy watch 3, tracking your work out progress and monitoring your health status with the new Samsung health Monitor app. Whether you are in the office or working from home, the watch 3 helps you maintain a healthy balance,�

Yu said.

He explained that the smartphone videography had just been taken a notch higher with the combination of the Note20, Note20 Ultra and buds live. When paired with these devices, the buds live can be used as a wireless microphone delivering crystal-clear audio while minimizing noise in the background.

Airtel, Avaya Partner on Remote Work for Organisations Airtel Nigeria has partnered Avaya Holdings Corporation to enable organisations in the country to implement remote working and learning initiatives.

Through the partnership, Avaya will offer organisations in Nigeria full-feature access to its flagship collaboration app, Avaya Spaces, on a complimentary basis, through Airtel Nigeria.

Avaya Spaces changes the way work gets done, bringing together globally distributed teams instantly with immersive, 24/7 collaboration. And seamless integration makes Avaya Spaces easy to use with the cloud solutions that organizations already use.

Commenting on Airtel’s partnership with Avaya, Head, Enterprise Division, Airtel Nigeria, Oladokun Oye, said Airtel remained committed to exploring opportunities and possibilities that would drive learning and enterprise operations while empowering entrepreneurs, enterprises and students to become more productive and successful. “Our partnership with Avaya supports key sectors by enabling organisations to maintain the safety of workers, students and customers as their top priority, while

ensuring minimum disruption to everyday business. We have invested in building a robust telecommunications network as an enabler of business continuity. Today, this investment will support the continued delivery of services as well as sustaining economic activities, regardless of location and physical spaces,� Oye said.

Avaya Spaces is how to handle usual tasks, but also the unplanned and new-priority work that arrives nearly every day. Users can launch ad-hoc HD video conferencing meetings to bring everyone together, share and collaborate ‘in-person’. With automated alerts when someone chats or posts an item within Spaces make it easy to stay on top of fast-moving projects and stay in touch with team members anywhere. “With obvious use cases for schools, it enables teachers and administrative staff to reliably communicate with parents, students and each other to minimize learning disruption amid the school closure. Using the app, students will be able to participate in virtual classrooms from any location, with the ability to download study materials and send assignments to teachers

electronically,� Oye said.

Since January, Avaya has seen an increase of more than 3,200 per cent in video collaboration traffic on the Avaya Spaces platform.

Several hundred universities, schools and other organizations worldwide have engaged Avaya to gain the connectivity and collaboration capabilities Avaya Spaces provides as they address the challenges of COVID-19 pandemic.

Thousands of businesses have also moved online with Avaya Spaces, using the app to conduct virtual events, launch magazines, keep teams engaged, and enable business continuity.

Director, Service Providers for Middle East, Africa and Asia Avaya, Nour Al Atassi, said: “As the COVID-19 crisis has developed, we have reacted quickly and decisively in providing collaboration technology on a complimentary basis to help those most affected. We are proud to be able to do the same in Nigeria in partnership with Airtel Nigeria, which has shown its commitment to social obligations. Together, we aim to help Nigerian organizations minimise the disruption caused by COVID-19 and begin building a brighter future.�

FG, UK to Host Conference on Right of Way The United Kingdom (UK) Prosperity Fund’s Digital Access Programme and Greenfields Law, in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy and the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), are set to host the national technical conference on Right of Way (RoW) and Site Build Permitting.

The technical conference is part of the UK government’s technical assistance package in advancing policy and regulatory reforms on RoW in the telecoms sector, with the aim of promoting inclusive and sustainable digital access in the country.

Findings and recommendations from the virtual conference which is scheduled to hold

today, is expected to be presented to industry stakeholders.

The conference will examine the technical study on Effective RoW Administration and Issuance of Planning Permits for Masts and Towers for instituting reforms by state governments and other agencies of government, which was commissioned under the UK Government Prosperity Fund’s Digital Access Programme and undertaken by Greenfields Law. The Honorable Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr. Isa Ibrahim Pantami; the Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta; state governors and chief executive officers of tele-

communications companies are among the stakeholders expected to participate at the technical conference.

The Managing Counsel of Greenfields Law and a leading telecommunications policy, law and regulation practitioner, Mr. Osondu Nwokoro, said: “The study consulted widely, obtained and processed information from virtually all segments of the telecommunications industry including service providers, policy advocacy groups, consumer associations, relevant agencies and officials of state governments across the six geo-political zones while also noting best practices around Right of Way and site build permitting in other countries.�

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Nigeria’s Economic IPC, MRA Train Journalists Sustainability and Presidential on FOI Act Quarterly Business Forum Ugo Aliogo

Chukwuemeka Uwanaka

T

he Economic Sustainability Committee (ESC) of the federal government recently submitted the Nigeria Economic Sustainability Plan (NESP). The ESC was established by President Muhammadu Buhari on March 30, 2020, due to the impact of COVID-19 pandemic and the crashing of oil prices in the international market, as both events were bound to have significant effects on the Nigerian economy. With Vice President Yemi Osinbajo as chairman, the Committee had a mandate to develop with clarity, an economic sustainability plan that will identify fiscal and monetary measures to enhance oil and non-oil revenues in order to fund the plan. Also to be developed by the committee is a stimulus package, as well as measures that will not only keep existing jobs, but also create more jobs.

The NESP which was developed in consultation with Cabinet Ministers, Heads of Federal Agencies, the Presidential Economic Advisory Council (PEAC), State Governors and the National Assembly, was submitted on June 11, 2019. The plan has local content and self-reliance; economic stimulation; job preservation and creation; and pro-poor focus as its main principles. Some of the key interventions contained in the plan are a Mass Agricultural Programme (MAP), which intends to ensure the cultivation of between 20,000 and 100,000 hectares of new farmland in every state; an infrastructure programme for extensive public works and road construction programme, mass housing programme, installation of solar home systems and investment in healthcare infrastructure; informal sector support through low-interest loans, and the easing of procedures for registration, licensing, obtaining permits; and business support for MSMEs. Other major interventions under the plan are technology expansion for digital identification and broadband connectivity; expansions of the National Social Investment Programmes; reducing non-essential spending through rationalization of government agencies; and support for state governments.

The NESP has since been approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) on June 24, 2020, and it can therefore be said to be awaiting implementation. A large part of its recommendations dwelt on policies and plans that will provide jobs and opportunities for economic sustainability, given that the global health pandemic could lead to the loss of 39.4 million jobs in Nigeria. The COVID-19 pandemic has by some estimates, caused more global economic harm than the Great Depression of 1929.

One of the lessons drawn from countries that have better managed this pandemic is the need for close interaction between government and the private sector, as a means of ensuring that policies of government are best suited for private sector recovery and sustainability. Such interaction will allow for periodic comparing of notes and assessment of policies to ensure that desired outcomes are met. With this in mind, as well as an understanding of the attitude of government to sometimes poorly implement well developed policy plans, the question then arises – “what approaches can be adopted to enhance the chances of successfully implementing the Nigeria Economic Sustainability Plan?�

In attempting an answer to this question, the Presidential Quarterly Business Forum (PQBF) readily comes to mind. As the ‘quarterly’ in the name implies, the PQBF was conceived by the current administration as an avenue for public-private sector interactions towards speedy attainment of the economic goals of government, with a lot of bias for economic stability through the promotion of the non-oil sector.

Following complaints by the private sector about gaps in policy making that do not allow for economic optimisation, the PQBF has provided a periodic opportunity for government and private sector to interact, allow for complaints and feedback, as well as enable input for economic development, especially in the real sector of the economy.

As economic stimulation and job creation in the private sector are at the core of the NESP, the PQBF on the face of it should provide the federal government with the required platform to periodically assess the outcomes of the plan, as a means of ensuring its successful implementation. Economic plans are usually informed by projections, and the quarterly forum is well suited for periodic analysis of outcomes, as a means

Osinbajo

of making required amendments- where required.

Nine quarterly business fora have taken place since its commencement in 2016. The first forum, which took place on September 19, 2016, had an “Overview of the Nigerian Economy� as its topic. While the second forum on January 23, 2017 had “Interaction

by OPS and Government on the state of the Economy� as its topic, the third in the series was captioned “The Creative Sector and the Digital Economy�, and took place on May 8, 2017. “The Power Sector and Public Revenue Generation� on July 11, 2017 was the theme of the fourth forum, with “The Enabling Business Environment and Regulatory Frameworks� held on September 11, 2017 and “Agric Sector Export Incentives� held on November 27, 2017 constituting the fifth and sixth in the series.

March 19, 2018 was the date for the seventh forum themed “Revenue Collection Initiatives ERGP, EoDB, Industrial and Competitiveness Council Update�, while “Trade and Investment� on July 16, 2018 and “Job Creation� on October 8, 2018 made up the eighth and ninth fora.

These fora which normally consists of the Vice President, federal ministers and heads of MDAs on the part of government; and the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) members of different chambers of commerce, industrialists, MSME operators and the Organised Private Sector (OPS) on the part of the private sector; may have contributed to Nigeria coming out of recession quickly in 2017, as well as the improvement in the country’s business environment, evidenced by progress from 169 out of 190 countries in 2016, to 131 in 2019 on the World Bank Ease of Doing Business Index.

The fragility of the Nigerian economy, especially with the effect of COVID-19 requires that all efforts that can enable the resurgence of the Nigerian economy be made. Clearly, the PQBF, which has not taken place since 2018, needs to be reconvened. The forum will go a long way in complementing the implementation of the NESP of the federal government as chaired

by Vice President Osinbajo.

Given the ambitious nature of the plan, a resumption of the PQBF will contribute in ensuring that the Nigeria Economic Sustainability Plan does not end up being either poorly implemented or nonimplemented, as has been the case with many plans and policies of government.

The key interventions and principles of the plan are in themselves, topics for different quarterly fora.

Perhaps, it is worth reiterating that periodic assessment and evaluation is an integral part of successful strategic plan implementation, and controlling for the need to avoid creating new or overlapping governance avenues, the PQBF is perhaps one of the more efficient governance approaches for evaluation and assessment towards the successful implementation of the NESP. As the ESC is expected to monitor implementation of the plan while the Vice President will regularly brief President Buhari on progress made, the PQBF when reconvened, will provide the opportunity for objective assessment, as well as preventing the critical stakeholders of government and the private sector from working at cross-purposes. The task of making the economy of Nigeria’s 200 million people resilient is a task that must be done.

-Uwanaka, a policy analyst, writes through chukweks@yahoo.com

The International Press Centre (IPC), Lagos, in partnership with Media Rights Agenda (MRA) has organised a twoday media training workshop on the use of the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act for investigative reports on campaign finance and COVID-19 accountability issues.

The training workshop was supported by the European Union through Component 4b: Support to the media of the EU Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGN) Project being implemented by the International Press Centre (IPC).

Speaking at the event, the Executive director of IPC, Mr. Lanre Arogundade, said the goal of the workshop was to sensitise journalists towards improving the accountability of governments across all levels, to the people through the use of the FOI Act. He noted that it became imperative for journalists to understand the importance of usage of the FOI Act to build capacity of journalists/ media agencies. “It is in the above context

that the programme for this workshop has been designed to examine some dimensions to the issue at stake including the role of the media in ensuring good governance, the understanding of the frameworks and issues in campaign finance and the best practices in investigating political and campaign finance issues,� he pointed out.

Arogundade also said the workshop was designed to equip journalists with the required skills in highlighting issues of democratic accountability in order to check impunity in the electoral process and ensure that elected politicians are made to account for their campaign promises.

In his presentation, the Executive Director of Media Rights Agenda (MRA), Edetaen Ojo, explained the rudiments of the FOI Act and the need for journalists to apply the legislation in sourcing and reporting stories as well as highlighting issues bordering on transparency and accountability in governance. “I urge you to sharpen your investigative reporting skills and build the confidence and ability of those of you for whom the Freedom

of Information Act is still new, to use it as a tool for facilitating transparent, free, fair and credible elections as well as monitoring how funds received and allocated for the COVID-19 response are being managed and utilised,� he said.

He stated that transparency and accountability were imperative for the effectiveness of the measures taken by governments at federal and state levels in order to curtail the spread of the disease and to mitigate the negative economic impact on citizens brought about by both the virus itself and the government’s measures to check its spread.

In his remarks, the Executive Director of OJA Development Consult, Mr. Jide Ojo, in his presentation titled, “Understanding and Reporting Campaign Finance and Political Expenditure Frameworks and Issues,� highlighted the various laws governing electoral campaign financing and the importance of Journalists seeking and researching knowledge on campaign finance to enable them report factually and accurately.

NAPPSA to Introduce O-Care Face Masks in US The Nigerian Association of Pharmacists and Pharmaceutical Scientists in the Americas (NAPPSA) has expressed its readiness to help Transgreen Nigeria Limited create a path for the introduction of its World Health Organisation (WHO)-standard O-Care medical face masks in the United States. Transgreen recently commissioned the first medical face masks factory in Nigeria with the capacity to produce 240,000 masks daily.

NAPPSA revealed this in its goodwill message sent by its President, Dr. Anthony Ikeme, to Transgreen Nigeria Limited during the unveiling of the O-Care medical face mask factory in Lagos.

NAPPSA said its proposed support for Transgreen was in line with its objective to help Nigeria build local capacity for the manufacturing of pharmaceutical and medical products in the country

thereby ensuring less reliance on medical supplies from China and India. “We commend the staff and management of Transgreen on the commissioning of a factory to produce medical face masks in Nigeria, the first in the country. NAPPSA considers this a huge accomplishment not just for Transgreen as a company but for Nigeria as a country,�

Ikeme said. “NAPPSA is committed to create a pathway for this product and other such products to be marketed in the US to help create foreign income earnings for these companies and also grow the sector,� he added.

Ikeme expressed delight that the inauguration came shortly after NAPPSA reiterated the call for Nigeria to look inwards for its medical and pharmaceutical needs.

At the donation of COVID-19 diagnostics, PPEs and other medical consumables

to the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) in Abuja last month, the association had called on stakeholders to “facilitate the creation of a national strategy for medical and pharmaceutical manufacturing in Nigeria� as a way to prepare for future health emergencies and also position the country “to earn foreign revenue as an alternative source for medical and pharmaceutical supplies.�

According to the NAPPSA president, the net effect of local production capacity is to guarantee the nation’s health security by making available much needed medical and pharmaceutical products, boosting employment generation and foreign exchange earnings from exportation. “We are very proud to see that there is an industrialist in Nigeria who is well ahead of this curve by setting up a medical face mask factory,�

Ikeme said.

Mamador Unveils Actor, Chef as Brand Ambassadors Raheem Akingbolu PZ Wilmar has unveiled Nollywood actress, Ufuoma McDermott, alongside chef and food blogger, Ifeyinwa Mogekwu, also known as Ify’s Kitchen, as ambassadors, for its premium master brand, Mamador.

Following the announcement, the new ambassadors would now represent the Mamador brand, across its marketing campaigns.

Speaking on the signings, the marketing manager, PZ Wilmar, Chioma Mbanugo, disclosed that the partnership with Ufuoma McDermott and Ifeyinwa Mogekwu, was borne out of the brands commitment to further promote tasty cooking and healthy nutrition, as

well as the brand’s desire to foster family bonding and togetherness in Nigeria. “As a Masterbrand, Mamador exists to inspire tasty nutrition for everyone, every day of the week,� Mbanugo said, adding, “We believe tasty meals have the magic to foster family togetherness by involving, bonding over meals and connecting with family members through new dishes, sharing recipes, cooking together and enjoying good food. “These women, Ufuoma and Ifeyinwa, have proven to be strong and passionate women, with admirable talents and principles, whose positive lifestyles inspire many, each and every day. “Ifeyinwa as a chef, inspires

many, not just on how to enjoy tasty meals but also how to prepare them. “Ufuoma inspires many career moms, as she manages the work-life balance to bond with her family and sustain an excellent family unit. For this and many other attributes, Mamador is happy to be associated with them,’’ she said.

An excited Ufuoma during the signing, said, “I am pleased with the opportunity to partner with the Mamador brand my family and I are already used to and enjoy, so it is quite an honour to now represent the brand, this means a lot to me and I look forward to promoting family togetherness through making, sharing and enjoying tasty and nutritious meals with Mamador.�

T H I S D AY ˾ ͯͱ˜ ͰͮͰͮ

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IMAGES

Photo Editor ÌÓÙÎßØ ÔËÖË Email ËÌÓÙÎßØ˛ËÔËÖË̶ÞÒÓÝÎËãÖÓàÏ˛ÍÙ×

L-R: Usman AbdulRazaq (grandson); First son of AGF AbdulRazaq SAN, Dr Alimi Abdul Razaq; wife Mrs Foluke AbdulRazaq and Kamal AbdulRazaq ( grandson) at the Ilorin Airport to receive the body of the late AGF AbdukRazaq SAN, recently

L-R Gov Mai Mala Buni of Yobe State , Gov Abubakar Sani Bello of Niger State and Gov AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara on condolence visit to AbdulRazaq on occasion of the passage of his father in llorin... recently

L-R; Director Media & Publicity of the Federal Ministry of Health, Mr. Olujimi Oyetomi; Director of General Services of the Federal Ministry of Health, Mrs. Abiodun Olubunmi; Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Health, Mr. Abdulaziz Mashi Abdullahi and P&G Sales Manager,Mr. Oke Kehinde at the official handover of P&G handwashing stations to the Federal Ministry of Health in Abuja...recently

L-R: Team Architect and Visualizer, Mr.Olumide Omoyele; Team Architect, Mr. Ifeoluwa Akande; Chief Executive Officer, ENYO Retail and Supply, Mr. Abayomi Awobokun and Team representative, Mr. Tobiloba Babalola, during the presentation of cheque to winners of Enyo Inaugural Open ldeas Competition in Lagos...recently

Commander, Lagos State Rapid Response Squad (RRS), Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), Olatunji Disu (right) addressing his men during 2019/2020 award for Outstanding Officers in RRS, held in Lagos...recently SUNDAY ADIGUN

Southern Kaduna people carrying out peaceful protest over incessant killings in their communities, in Abuja...recently

R-L; Governors of Adamawa- Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, Gombe- Mohammed Inuwa Yahaya, Borno- Prof Babagana Umara Zulum, Bauchi- Sen. Bala Mohammed, Deputy Governors of Taraba- Engr Haruna Manu and Yobe, Idi Barde Gubana at the second meeting of northeast governors’ forum in Maiduguri...recently

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T H I S D AY ˾ AUGUST 13, 2020

HEALTH & LIFESTYLE

ÜÙßÚ ÏËÞßÜÏÝ ÎÓÞÙÜ˝ ÒÓÏ×ÏÖÓÏ äÏÙÌÓ ×ËÓÖ chiemelie.ezeobi@thisdaylive.com, Tel: 07010510430

Flattening COVID-19 Testing Curve and the Lure of False Hope for Nigerians While many may believe Nigeria’s COVID-19 curve is flattening due to reduced numbers of cases recorded daily compared to weeks ago, indications show that the country is actually flattening testing capacity curve hence creating a false hope among Nigerians. Martins Ifijeh

Slow COVID-19 testing hampering fight against pandemic

M

any Nigerians were greeted with surprise last week when the Director General, Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu said the decline in COVID-19 cases experienced in the country was due to the decline in the number of samples collected across the states.

This was against the initial belief by Nigerians that the country has started experiencing a decline in the COVID-19 pandemic as daily recorded cases moved from around 800 to within 300 within weeks.

Ihekweazu had said during a press briefing in Abuja that, “We had a decline in the number of samples collected across states between the July 31 and August 2. This may be associated with the public holiday which led to a reduction in activities across the country. It is still too early to interpret a decline in new cases as flattening the curve. We are learning from countries in Europe and other parts of the world that a decline in new cases does not translate to being at the end of the pandemic. In most of these countries, they are experiencing an increase in cases again.”

While this has come as a surprise, especially since NCDC has said it has now grown its laboratory capacity for testing to over 60 across the country, the decline in sample collection calls for a serious concern as the daily decline of cases might be

interpreted to Nigerians to unconsciously mean their approach to the pandemic protocol is just fine.

Sharing his thoughts on this, former Vice Chancellor of Redeemers University, Osun State, Prof. Oyewale Tomori said the country was far behind the pandemic instead of flattening the curve.

Speaking on Arise News Channel, the broadcast arm of THISDAY Tuesday, he said Nigeria was flattening the truth by not engaging in the number of testing needed to reveal the actual state of the COVID-19 burden in the country.

He said: “We are not flattening the curve. What we are doing is that we are flattening the truth. You remember the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 said during the Sallah celebration that there was no testing. A week before Sallah, Nigeria tested about 11,000. What is more worrisome is that the number of positivity rate was even higher than before the Sallah. We are not making any progress as much as we should.

“The situation where Nigerians get their testing done and have to wait eight to 10 days until they see their result is ridiculous. Can such Nigerians remember where they have been to and who they have met? There are certain basic issues we need to tackle. For instance, if you have about 500 samples, when did you collect the samples?

We are behind the epidemic because some of the results came in four days after testing.

“The low testing we are doing is because we

don’t have enough laboratories. This is because we did not prepare for it. There are about 300 to 400 laboratories in Nigeria that have been in existence that could have been repurposed, but rather we started building new ones, and right now we have 60 of such laboratories, where as we have about 400 old laboratories just lying there.

Whatever we are experiencing now is the effect of the years of neglect of the health sector. For 60 years we have neglected all those things, and now we are reaping the repercussion.”

He stressed that the earlier Nigeria gets COVID-19 results out, the faster patients can be isolated and managed adequately.

Tomori also stressed that Nigeria’s COVID-19 data was adding to the problem, noting that the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) does not know where 75 per cent of cases in the country came from if information on its website is to go by.

He said: “Nigeria’s data does not even help us in knowing where we really have problems.

For instance, if you go to the NCDC website, you will see that two per cent of the cases came from abroad, while 20 per cent of them had contacts with those who travelled. It does not have a clue where 75 per cent got the infections came from.

“So this means something is wrong somewhere.

If you don’t know where the infection is coming from, how are you going to do contact tracing?

We need to be able to pin point who and who

is getting the infection. When your record show that 75 percent of cases do not know where their infections came from, it makes mockery of the whole thing.

“The numbers are rising. The attitude of people to the disease is worrisome. The locking and easing down has not helped. The numbers just keep going up. The solution to this is with the people.

It is not the government. It is the people that will get COVID-19, not the government. Government won’t die from COVID. It is the individual that will die from COVID-19. Until we agree that we are the most important players, we will not see the need to address this burden.

“Lockdown or no lockdown, if Nigerians do not play their roles, the lockdown will not make any difference. What will help mostly is what the individual does mostly. Are we washing our hands? Are we keeping the distance?” he added.

Suspecting Nigeria’s COVID-19 cases announced daily does not reflect the actual numbers on ground, major airlines have added COVID-19 certificates to requirements before flying Nigerians out of the country, when airspace is eventually opened.

For instance, Qatar Airways listed Nigeria and 10 other countries as nations that must meet the criteria before airlifting them out of Nigeria. The other countries are; Bangladesh, Brazil, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, India, Nepal, Nigeria and Russia.

Ohuabunwa Donates Ambulance, Drugs to Enhance Healthcare in Arochukwu Emmanuel Ugwu Healthcare delivery in Arochukwu, Abia State has received a boost following the donation of a brand new ambulance and drugs to hospitals in the area

by Senator Mao Ohuabunwa.

The General Hospital Arochukwu received the ambulance fully equipped with state -of -the -art life-saving equipment

in addition to medical supplies, while Aro USA Medical Centre got a generating set and large consignment of basic drugs and hospital disposables.

Ohuabunwa who represented Abia North senatorial district in the 8th Senate handed over the items to the management of the beneficiary health institutions through the leadership of Nzuko Aro Worldwide (a pan socio-cultural organisation of the

Aro nation).

The immediate past voice of Abia North people in the Senate said he was moved to make the donations to help boost medical services in Arochukwu and environs. He decried the deplorable condition of Arochukwu General Hospital which.

According to him, the facility has served as referral hospital not only for Aro people but also neighbouring communities across

the border with Akwa Ibom State.

The former Senate Committee Chairman on Primary Health and Communicable Diseases said the ambulance and medical supplies worth over N35 million were meant to improve the quality of healthcare services in Arochukwu.

Ohuabunwa said it had always been his desire that efficient and affordable medical services be made readily available in his home town, hence the inter-

vention. He explained that he used Nzuko Aro Worldwide (a social-cultural organisation of Aro people) to pass the donations to the recipient hospitals for effective supervision.

The former Speaker of ECOWAS Parliament pledged to do more to assist in healthcare delivery efforts in the ancient kingdom of Arochukwu.

He advised Nzuko Aro to prioritise the doctors’ quarters

in its proposed renovation of the general hospital.

The president of Nzuko Aro represented by the 1st Vice Chairman, Mazi Dozie Udensi, in his response commended Ohuabunwa for the “unprecedented gesture”, describing him as a huge asset to the Aro nation. He assured judicious use of the items by carrying out oversight on the management of both health facilities.

T H I S D AY ˾ AUGUST 13, 2020

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HEALTH

IHVN,ISNCommenceResearchonNCDsamongPLWHA Martins Ifijeh The Institute of Human Virology Nigeria (IHVN) and the ISN Medical have commenced research to ascertain the burden, prevalence and incidence of NonCommunicable Diseases (NCD) among people living with HIV in Nigeria.

The research which will be done in five sites across the Federal Capital Territory, including Kubwa General Hospital, will

have 200 PLWH registered, alongside another 200 people living without HIV, and they will be tested periodically for NCDs over a period of two years.

In a statement made available to THISDAY recently, the Acting Regional Sales Manager for ISN Medical, Vitalis Echebiri said Nigeria will benefit from the innovative scientific findings.

He said: “ISN, which sponsored the study, donated premium laboratory instruments

and reagents worth over N25 million to the Kubwa General Hospital to further the research and promote quality medical diagnosis at the facility.

“Some of the instruments donated include Cobas c111 and AVL, with capacity to run over 40 tests including electrolytes, renal function, liver function, lipid profile, blood glucose, proteins and critical care.

“The Mindray BC5150 (a fully automated hematology analyser),

Merck Lab Water unit and BD consumables were also donated.

All the equipment will be stationed at Kubwa General Hospital and will become property of the hospital once the research is completed.”

Starting with Kubwa Hospital as the first site, the research is expected to expand to other sites including University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, Nyanya General Hospital, Asokoro District Hospital and Police Clinic.

Sharing her thoughts, the Executive Director, IHVN, Prof.

Alash’le Abimiku said the aim was to characterise the burden, prevalence and incidence of non-communicable diseases in people living with HIV, adding that, “‘people living with HIV are living longer, getting to that age when they develop non-communicable diseases”.

Abimiku is the Executive Director of the International Research Centre of Excellence (IRCE), an

arm of IHVN, conducting the study. She spoke through Dr. Elima Jedy-Agba, the coordinator of IRCE and co-investigator on the research project.

The Medical Director, Kubwa General Hospital, Dr Lasisi Muideen said,”It is a multicentered study happening in many of our facilities. The research will provide data that can help in more pro-active and effective management of these non-communicable diseases.”

COVID-19: Novo Nordisk Donates PPE to 12 Hospitals Martins Ifijeh Novo Nordisk Nigeria has donated medical supplies containing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to 12 tertiary and secondary hospitals in Nigeria as part of efforts to support the fight against COVID-19 pandemic.

Since February 27 when the first case of COVID-19 was recorded in Nigeria, over 47,000 people have been infected with the virus and more than 800 deaths have occurred.

The PPE includes 216 boxes of face masks, 216 boxes of surgical gloves and 180 boxes of surgical head covers.

The company’s Country Manager in Nigeria, Mr Jude Abonu, said the donation was in line with the its global resolve to work closely with countries, especially where it operates, as they strive to halt the spread of the virus.

“The donation is our modest way of supporting the government’s efforts to protect health workers who are in the frontline of the COVID-19 battle. This is in addition to our traditional role of ensuring that our life-saving drugs are available nationwide especially during the pandemic,” Abonu said.

Beneficiary institutions include Federal Teaching Hospital, Gombe, University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, National Hospital, Abuja, Barau-Dikko Teaching Hospital, Kaduna, Niger Foundation Hospital, Enugu, University of Benin Teaching Hospital, University of Uyo Teaching Hospital, University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital, University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, Lagos University Hospital (LUTH), Idi-Araba, Lagos Island General Hospital and Gbagada General Hospital, Gbagada, Lagos.

Biotechnology Will Reverse Nigeria’s Dependence on Imported Food, Says DG NABDA Ȋ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ ȱ Ȭ Ĝ ¢ Martins Ifijeh The Director General, National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA), Prof. Alex Akpa has stated that biotechnology can reverse Nigeria’s dependence on imported foods, as well as help curb hunger among Nigerians.

He also called on journalists to support initiatives geared towards self-sufficiency, as Nigerians were in dear need of information to prevent food crisis.

Stating this during an interaction with science editors in Lagos recently and organised by the Open Forum on Agricultural Biotechnology (OFAB), he said the country cannot continue to import food and other staples when it has over 15 agricultural research institutes that have mandates to scientifically improve their crops.

“For the research institutes to fulfilltheir mandates and contribute meaningful to the nation’s quest for self-sufficiency in food production, the media must support and protect them from anti-technology lobbyists.

“You must be aware of misleading information and news circulated in the media by a group of arm-chair critics telling the people to avoid Genetically

Modified Food (GMO), that they can cause cancer, make humans grows horns, can kill, among other.

The aim of all this campaign is to instill fear in our farmers and populace and ensure that our farmers and people remain food insecure, poor and backward.

“As media practitioners, I urge you to look at the ages of our farmers currently, mostly in their 60s how long are we going to rely on this age group and how can we get the younger ones interested in farming.”

Akpa said no nation has been able to develop without integrating science and technology into its development agenda, adding that this was the path Nigeria is following now, as the era of hoe and cutlass farming was over.

“As a nation we must be conscious of our environment. We are acknowledged as the most travelled people in the world, superstore have started establishing their chains in the country. All the advanced countries of the world today have been eating GMOs for over two decades and there has not been any report of adverse impact on health or environment,” he said.

L-R: Public Relations Officer, Gbagada General Hospital, Mr. Adeniji Adele; HOD, Health Information Management, Gbagada General Hospital, Miss Fagbenro; Consultant Endocrinologist, Gbagada General Hospital, Dr Mrs Fasanmade; Chief Medical Officer, Gbagada General Hospital, Dr Oluseyi Temowo; and Key Account Manager, Novo Nordisk Pharma Ltd, Mr Olatunbosun Odutayo, at the presentation of the PPE to General Hospital, Gbagada in Lagos recently

What to Do with Nigeria’s COVID-19 Button Charles Iyore Hope and opportunities are the greatest tools of recovery, after a dislocating encounter.

COVID-19 is a dislocating encounter for the world. However, leaders and countries who can give hope to their people and offer them fresh opportunities to rebuild, will ride the storm. These countries will not waste the pain of the crisis by making excuses, but will instead make the best use of it to improve resilience.

The opportunities that emerge from the global crisis will only be visible to the prepared leaders. The unprepared will be retreating in despair, until they are overwhelmed.

The events of the past few months have revealed the inadequacies of our leaders at all levels, the fragile state of our institutions, and the continuing absence of direction for many of our hopeless citizens. This has not been helped by the many distractions of graft and abuse of office, in their various episodes, that leave many on-lookers wondering: what will they think of next?

Against that background, you cannot help but wonder what home rule has brought to the country, in development gains, since 1960. The markets do not work well, and the underclass is at 100 million and growing.

Compliant graduates risk a lifelong experience of never being gainfully employed. So who really, is benefiting from this format of self-rule? This format must change.

COVID-19’s Challenge of Bread and Blood The COVID-19 protocols for containing the spread and managing infection had with it a heightened challenge for families to provide food as economies shut down. Countries that were prepared rolled out plans to deal with food first.

With community based intervention fundholding, it has been easy for them to check abuses which are common with traditional service delivery channels. Canada is a case in point. All expenditure heads are audited independently at the point of delivery.

In an early interview on the COVID 19 Pandemic, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair charged country leaders to be strict with their procurement and logistics administration. I also forwarded an intervention and response protocol document to the national government and sub-national. You can imagine my amazement when the service

delivery logic at a national covid-19 briefing, was about how far the treasury reserves will go to meet each individual’s cash need, if distributed.

Such an analysis could only have come from a mind-set that sees all government activity as contracting and budgeting. The fear of private sector partnership perceived as interference in an exclusive public sector intervention is worrisome.

The concept of money, it would seem, is totally lost on us all. The government needs to be reminded that she is the currency issuer and can determine its value stored.

Economic Production Profile The UN SDGs were designed as destination statements to help build resilience in every community and through such units build the overall resilience of countries.

They are goals but each country must design her own road map for arriving at those destinations.

There is therefore convergence between the SDGs and our national COVID-19 response.

We are challenged to pick up the pieces and build resilience in our communities.

Given the circumstances, how much extra does it cost us to run, with at least, a situation room headed by a medical doctor, in all the local governments in the country?

What does it cost to build a proper need register in those communities without using new ministries, departments and agencies?

What does it cost to establish uniform testing criteria, for assessing food banks?

What will it cost to set up and update farm and farmer’s register in all the local governments? What percentage of the fruits and vegetables purchased by the food banks, can be locally sourced? How much data can be mined with these engagements to guide governance processes?

Can our processes establish regional protocols for COVID-19 response? This is the expectation of the sub-region which has appointed President Muhammadu Buhari, to lead the regional response.

Our national conversations do not seem to be going in that direction as MDAs in all three tiers of government, scramble for budgets to opaquely disburse.

The situation room, is only the first rung of the ladder and it doesn’t require a massive budget outlay; just variations in job description.

National Ledger With the situation rooms up and running in the local governments, the presidency will have developed a national ledger of needs, and could begin the process of filling up the books with supply innovations. This tidy arrangement will offer the presidency numerous opportunities to review development progress nationwide. This will help the Presidency monitor the new directive on payments of statutory revenue allocation.

The innovations that come with generating supplies will bring about clustering of the local governments to meet shared challenges.

Budget line items will emerge from their experiences and not from the wild imagination of public servants, sitting in their sinecure offices, at the Federal and State capitals.

Smart Commerce Without smart commerce, it is difficult, if not impossible to combat crime. Smart commerce allows the state to track spending and deny criminals the proceeds of crime. All crimes are oiled by the proceeds and benefits which can come by way of violent exchange of ownership, client execution contracts, or serious fraud. If by client contract, payments can come from local or external sources.

All proceeds, however, find expression in consumption. The first sign of our failure in smart commerce was when the military began to introduce commodity price controls, and the government of the day was too proud to find out from the Royal Niger Company in its successor UAC, how price band equilibration was achieved by them.

Food security and smart commerce are very complimentary tools of national security, along with military and police actions.

A Unique Seminal Moment As the world pauses for a breadth in COVID-19, we have an opportunity to redress 60 years of drift, by starting from first principles. We need to cover all 774 local governments equally, challenge and monitor them equally, as well as demand storehouses of all equally, encourage clustering to create production assets, complete deregulation by actively promoting private sector participation, through appointing reputable community leaders to town halls, among others. ...Iyore is a partner of DNA Capital, and he wrote in from England.

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T H I S D AY Ëž ÍŻÍąËœ 2020

BUSINESS/MONEYGUIDE

CAMA: Minister Seeks Friendlier Regulations for MSMEs James Emejo Ă“Ă˜ ĂŒĂ&#x;ÔË The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Mr. Adeniyi Adebayo has advised the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) to ensure that new regulations emanating from the recent passage of the Companies and Allied Matters (CAMA) Bill, 2020 does not hamper efforts by the present administration to support the micro, small and medium sized enterprises (MSMEs) in the country.

He spoke against the backdrop of efforts by the commission to unveil new regulations for business registration processes following President Muhammadu Buhari’s recent assent to the

amended legislation.

The minister said even though the new regulation was expected to improve the country’s standing in the World Bank’s ease of doing business index, it must not, “put hardship of the practitioners�.

Speaking when he received the Chairman of CAC, Mr. Ademola Seriki, alongside the Registrar-General, Mr. Garba Abubakar, who paid him a courtesy visit, Adebayo said at this sensitive point in time when the government was trying to help SMEs to flourish by removing all impediments in the sector, consideration should be given to them, “when talking about issues of fees�.

He added: “With the signing

of CAMA which has been long awaited, once the National Assembly has passed CAMA, it brought a lot of relief. “We received a letter from the presidency asking for our comments and I replied immediately that we are more than happy with what has been passed and that the president should not hesitate to append his signature on it. “We are very happy that it has finally been signed, something that is long awaited. And it is something that will also improve our standing in the World Bank’s ease of doing business index.�

Abubakar, however, said the commission was ready to ensure that the full letter of the laws are given effects.

GTBank Cuts Monthly Dollar Spending to $100 Guaranty Trust Bank Plc has slashed the monthly dollar spending limit on its customers’ naira Mastercard to $100, for international transactions.

The bank made this known in a

text message it sent to customers yesterday.

The bank had in February this year, reduced the monthly spending limit to $500, from the $1,500 it was previously, due to

Nosak Group Appoints Oloriegbe GMD The management and board of Nosak Group has announced the appointment of Mr. Thomas Oloriegbe as its new Group Managing Director (GMD).

According to a statement, the new GMD brings on board his wealth of experience and vast knowledge along with his exceptional track record of immense success in manufacturing operations.

As the new GMD, Oloriegbe is expected to oversee the business operations of the Group while providing strategic guidance and direction for the various businesses. He will be saddled with the responsibility of driving

concerted efforts towards attaining the Group’s short and long-term goals.

Prior to his appointment, Oloriegbe served in the capacity of the Group Chief Operating Officer (GCOO) for a period of four years, where he was responsible for coordinating administrative and operational functions of the various Strategic Business Units (SBUs).

Speaking on the appointment, the Group Executive Chairman, Dr. Toni Ogunbor, expressed confidence in Olorigebe’s leadership style, saying he was looking forward to future contributions and growth of the Group in his

new role. “A highly revered, seasoned consultant and project manager with over 21 years of work experience across business consulting, mortgage banking and real estate management. He is a graduate of Accounting and he holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Management and a Master’s certificate in Business Administration. In addition, he holds a certificate in Advanced Management from IESE University of Navarra, Barcelona, Spain. He is a Fellow of the Certified Institute of Cost Management of Nigeria and an Alumnus of Lagos Business School.

Ecobank Nigeria Launches Business Banking App Ecobank Nigeria has launched an application for businesses.

Known as Omni Lite App, the solution is targeted at enhancing the banking experience of its large pool of commercial banking customers.

A statement from the bank explained that the Ecobank Omni Lite App is a highly secure, worldclass and integrated electronic banking platform designed to help clients manage their business accounts online in a secure, flexible, efficient and convenient manner. “It is a fully integrated multi-geography, multi-lingual and multi-currency online, webbased cash management platform. “The app is being launched by the Ecobank Group across 33

countries in Africa where the bank operates,� it added.

Speaking in Lagos, Executive Director, Commercial Banking, Ecobank Nigeria, Carol Oyedeji, said the new app is in line with Ecobank’s policy direction to meet and surpass customers’ expectations, noting that it will bring flexibility, safer and convenient banking to the users.

She disclosed that it is available to existing Omni Lite users, urging them to download it from the Apple Store (IOS) or the Play Store (Android). “With the new Omni Lite App, users can view their accounts and transactions in one place, make payments and pay bills with ease, set up multiple users

with different access launch, make and manage loan payment, book time deposits and view exchange rates. “This electronic portal also allows customers manage all their online business, banking transactions and information 24/7. With easier navigation and experience that is perfectly suited to smartphones, clients can enjoy features similar to the desktop version,� she stated The Ecobank Omni Lite App enables faster processing of instructions with loading option or file import for mass payments. It also features a customisable environment with choice of language, time zone and comprehensive user-friendly navigation menu.

IBEDC Creates 13 Additional Customer Care Centres Kemi Olaitan Ă“Ă˜ ĂŒĂ‹ĂŽĂ‹Ă˜ As part of its commitment to improve customer experience, the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company Plc (IBEDC), has created 13 new Customer Care Offices in Ogun State.

The Chief Operating Officer (COO), of the company, Engr. John Ayodele, in a release made available to THISDAY, said the newly created offices are to ensure easier accessibility and convenience for customers, stating that this would

lead to stronger interactions/ feedback and facilitate robust / quick responses to customers’ enquiries and complaints.

Ayodele, while speaking at the launch of the offices, noted that the expansion of its customer care offices was a deliberate attempt to bring services closer to the customers.

He said “As a customer-oriented company, we are constantly developing initiatives and services that deliberately bring us closer to the customers, right where they live or do business.�

Oloriegbe

the reduced forex inflow in the country.

The move which is aimed at conserving the greenback is also in response to the present economic realities

He explained that the offices are strategically located across Ogun state - Owode-Yewa, Itele, Ilogbo, Magboro, Ogijo, Ilaro, Ifo, Mowe, Imo, Ago- Iwoye, Ijebu- Ife, Ashimolowo and Olumo communities He said the offices are located far from the regional office at Abeokuta to remove the stress of travelling long distances to get complaints resolved, urging customers to take advantage of the Customer Care office nearest to them to enjoy better and faster service.

MARKET INDICATORS MONEY AND CREDIT STATISTICS

(MILLION NAIRA)

SEPTEMBER 2019 Money Supply (M3)

35,029,779.72

-- CBN Bills Held by Money Holding Sectors

7,374,356.91

Money Supply (M2)

27,655,422.82

-- Quasi Money

116,533,891.21

-- Narrow Money (M1)

11,121,531.60

---- Currency Outside Banks

1,625,047.69

---- Demand Deposits

9,496,483.91

Net Foreign Assets (NFA)

13,911,335.83

Net Domestic Assets(NDA)

21,118,443.89

-- Net Domestic Credit (NDC)

35,918,179.45

---- Credit to Government (Net)

10,452,199.38

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

11,007,422.79

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

25,465,980.07

---- Credit to Private Sector (CPS)

-14,799,735.56

--Other Assets Net

7,000,253.07

Reserve Money (Base Money

2,005,600.83

--Currency in Circulation

4,677,530.81

--Banks Reserves

317,121.43

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Money Market Indicators (in Percentage) Month

March 2018

Inter-Bank Call Rate

15.16

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

14.00

Treasury Bill Rate

11.84

Savings Deposit Rate

4.07

1 Month Deposit Rate

8.82

3 Months Deposit Rate

9.72

6 Months Deposit Rate

10.93

12 Months Deposit Rate

10.21

Prime Lending rate

17.35

Maximum Lending Rate

31.55

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OPEC DAILY BASKET PRICE Ëœ ÍŻÍŻ Í°ÍŽÍ°ÍŽ

The price of OPEC basket of thirteen crudes stood at $45.21 a barrel on Tuesday, compared with $45.01 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations.

The OPEC Reference Basket of Crudes (ORB) is made up of the following: Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Djeno (Congo), ZaďŹ ro (Equatorial Guinea), Rabi Light (Gabon), Iran Heavy (Islamic Republic of Iran), Basra Light (Iraq), Kuwait Export (Kuwait), Es Sider (Libya), Bonny Light (Nigeria), Arab Light (Saudi Arabia), Murban (UAE) and Merey (Venezuela).

SOURCE: OPEC headquarters, Vienna

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T H I S D AY Ëž ÍŻÍąËœ Í°ÍŽÍ°ÍŽ

Stockbrokers Call for Suspension of Planned Increase in Share Capital Goddy Egene The President, Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers ( CIS), Mr. Olatunde Amolegbe, has called on regulators to halt all plans to increase the minimum share capital requirement for capital market operators (CMO), saying the current operating environment would not support such a move.

Amolegbe made this call on behalf of other stockbrokers,

shortly after his investiture as the 11th president of CIS in Lagos. “We will continue to work in close partnership and cooperation with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Association of Securities Dealing Houses of Nigeria (ASHON) and all the registered securities trading platforms in the country and may I at this juncture make a strong plea that any plans to increase minimum share

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capital requirement for CMOs be suspended for now. It will simply not be right in the face of the gargantuan operational and revenue challenges currently facing the industry,� he said.

Amolegbe, explained that the essential need of the Nigerian capital market, especially the stock trading at this moment, is access to trading liquidity. “It was liquidity that enabled our stock market to grow in quantum leaps during

S E C U R I T I E S MARKET PRICE

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the historic bull market run of 2005 – 2007, and that in turn galvanised the primary market where several companies and governments at various levels were able to raise massive capital for expansion and development projects. We will work assiduously to return the market to that level, albeit with a more effective, stronger and coordinated regulatory mechanism,� he said.

According to him, the Nige-

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rian capital market has proved its resilience and world class structures by carrying on its major day to day operational activities unhindered since the pandemic started. “It is an easily verifiable fact that many investors have received dividend income and earned capital gain even during the lockdown period. My team will ensure that CIS queues in maximally on the new world defined by high technology and

O F

enlarged business horizons. “The covid-19 pandemic has worsened an already bad operating environment for Stockbrokers and Securities Dealing Firms, and that is the reason why we shall redouble our efforts in the area of advocacy; to get government and key players in the economy to accept the fact that the capital market holds the key to the long term economic sustenance of Nigeria as a country.

1 2 / 0 8 / 2 0 2 0 DEALS

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THURSDAY AUGUST 13, 2020 •T H I S D AY

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THURSDAY, AUGUST 13, 2020 ˾ T H I S D AY

MARKET NEWS

CardinalStone Partners Limited Raises N5bn Commercial Paper Goddy Egene CardinalStone Partners Limited, an

independent, multi-asset investment management firm, is seeking to raise up to N5 billion in the first series of

A Mutual fund (Unit Trust) is an investment vehicle managed by a SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) registered Fund Manager.

Investors with similar objectives buy units of the Fund so that the Fund Manager can buy securities that willl generate their desired return.

An ETF (Exchange Traded Fund) is a type of fund which owns the assets (shares of stock, bonds, oil futures, gold bars, foreign currency, etc.) and divides ownership of those assets into shares. Investors can buy these ‘shares’ on the

its N10 billion Commercial Paper (CP) Programme in order to support its short term financing requirements. The CP has

floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

A REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust) is an investment vehicle that allows both small and large investors to part-own real estate ventures (eg.

Offices, Houses, Hospitals) in proportion to their investments. The assets are divided into shares that are traded on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

GUIDE TO DATA: Date: All fund prices are quoted in Naira as at 11Aug-2020, unless otherwise stated.

an effective yield of 7.0 per cent. The offer opened on Tuesday, August 11 and will close on Wednesday August 19, 2020.

The company and its subsidiaries are licensed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to operate as an Issuing

House, Fund Manager, Broker/Dealer and Registrar; and by the Central Bank of Nigeria to operate as a finance company.

Offer price: The price at which units of a trust or ETF are bought by investors.

Bid Price: The price at which Investors redeem (sell) units of a trust or ETF. Yield/Total Return: Denotes the total return an investor would have earned on his investment. Money Market Funds report Yield while others report Year- to-date Total Return.

NAV: Is value per share of the real estate assets held by a REIT on a specific date.

DAILY PRICE LIST FOR MUTUAL FUNDS, REITS and ETFS MUTUAL FUNDS / UNIT TRUSTS AFRINVEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD aaml@afrinvest.com Web: www.afrinvest.com; Tel: +234 818 885 6757 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Afrinvest Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A Afrinvest Plutus Fund N/A N/A N/A Nigeria International Debt Fund N/A N/A N/A ALTERNATIVE CAPITAL PARTNERS LTD info@acapng.com Web: www.acapng.com, Tel: +234 1 291 2406, +234 1 291 2868 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn ACAP Canary Growth Fund 0.92 0.93 1.85% ACAP Income Funds 0.78 0.78 10.03% AIICO CAPITAL LTD ammf@aiicocapital.com Web: www.aiicocapital.com, Tel: +234-1-2792974 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AIICO Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 6.04% AIICO Balanced Fund 2.98 3.06 21.36% ANCHORIA ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED info@anchoriaam.com Web:www.anchoriaam.com, Tel: 08166830267; 08036814510; 08028419180 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Anchoria Money Market N/A N/A N/A Anchoria Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A Anchoria Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A ARM INVESTMENT MANAGERS LTD enquiries@arminvestmentcenter.com Web: www.arm.com.ng; Tel: 0700 CALLARM (0700 225 5276) Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn ARM Aggressive Growth Fund 14.30 14.73 -6.67% ARM Discovery Fund 338.59 348.80 -1.98% ARM Ethical Fund 30.34 31.26 4.33% ARM Eurobond Fund ($) 1.14 1.15 14.27% ARM Fixed Income Fund 1.07 1.08 7.66% ARM Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 4.55% AXA MANSARD INVESTMENTS LIMITED investmentcare@axamansard.com Web: www.axamansard.com; Tel: +2341-4488482 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AXA Mansard Equity Income Fund 96.28 96.96 0.21% AXA Mansard Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 4.77% CAPITAL EXPRESS ASSET AND TRUST LIMITED info@capitalexpressassetandtrust.com Web: www.capitalexpressassetandtrust.com ; Tel: +234 803 307 5048 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn CEAT Fixed Income Fund 2.17 2.17 16.75% Capital Express Balanced Fund(Formerly: Union Trustees Mixed Fund) 1.84 1.87 3.76% CHAPELHILL DENHAM MANAGEMENT LTD investmentmanagement@chapelhilldenham.com Web: www.chapelhilldenham.com, Tel: +234 461 0691 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Chapelhill Denham Money Market Fund 0.05 0.04 5.41% Paramount Equity Fund 11.23 11.43 -10.29% Women's Investment Fund 110.19 111.15 -0.21% CORDROS ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmgtteam@cordros.com Web: www.cordros.com, Tel: 019036947 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Cordros Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 4.95% Cordros Milestone Fund 2023 104.43 104.76 Cordros Milestone Fund 2028 108.42 108.72 Cordros Dollar Fund ($) 101.59 101.59 CORONATION ASSEST MANAGEMENT investment@coronationam.com Web:www.coronationam.com , Tel: 012366215 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coronation Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 3.57% Coronation Balanced Fund 0.95 0.96 1.96% Coronation Fixed Income Fund 1.55 1.55 16.30% EDC FUNDS MANAGEMENT LIMITED mutualfundng@ecobank.com Web: www.ecobank.com Tel: 012265281 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class A N/A N/A N/A EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class B N/A N/A N/A EDC Nigeria Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A FBNQUEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD invest@fbnquest.com Web: www.fbnquest.com/asset-management; Tel: +234-81 0082 0082 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn FBN Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A FBN Balanced Fund 150.97 152.13 2.83% FBN Halal Fund 106.83 106.85 6.83% FBN Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 4.58% FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Retail FBN Nigeria Smart Beta Equity Fund FCMB ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED Web: www.fcmbassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 1 462 2596 Fund Name Legacy Money Market Fund Legacy Debt Fund Legacy Equity Fund Legacy USD Bond Fund FSDH ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.fsdhaml.com; Tel: 01-270 4884-5; 01-280 9740-1 Fund Name Coral Growth Fund Coral Income Fund FSDH Treasury Bills Fund GREENWICH ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED Web: www.gtlgroup.com ; Tel: +234 1 4619261-2 Fund Name Greenwich Plus Money Market Fund Nigeria Entertainment Fund

119.23 113.63 Bid Price 1.00 3.80 1.12 1.11

119.72 2.69% 115.42 -12.68% fcmbamhelpdesk@fcmb.com Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn 1.00 3.87% 3.80 4.06% 1.14 -0.92% 1.11 3.11% coralfunds@fsdhgroup.com

Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn 3,116.05 3,150.02 2.47% 3,180.18 3,180.18 3.40% 100.00 100.00 4.52% assetmanagement@gtlgroup.com Bid Price N/A N/A

Offer Price N/A N/A

Yield / T-Rtn N/A N/A

GROWTH & DEVELOPMENT ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmanagement@gdl.com.ng Web: www.gdl.com.ng ; Tel: +234 9055691122 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn GDL Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A INVESTMENT ONE FUNDS MANAGEMENT LTD enquiries@investment-one.com Web: www.investment-one.com; Tel: +234 812 992 1045,+234 1 448 8888 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Abacus Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 4.03% Vantage Balanced Fund 2.32 2.36 6.03% Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund 1.00 1.00 8.68% Kedari Investment Fund (KIF) 149.35 149.97 4.16% LOTUS CAPITAL LTD fincon@lotuscapitallimited.com Web: www.lotuscapitallimited.com; Tel: +234 1-291 4626 / +234 1-291 4624 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Lotus Halal Investment Fund 1.24 1.26 6.23% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 1,126.99 1,126.99 6.48% MERISTEM WEALTH MANAGEMENT LTD info@meristemwealth.com Web: http://www.meristemwealth.com/funds/ ; Tel: +234 1-4488260 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Meristem Equity Market Fund N/A N/A N/A Meristem Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A PAC ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD info@pacassetmanagement.com Web: www.pacassetmanagement.com/mutualfunds; Tel: +234 1 271 8632 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn PACAM Balanced Fund 1.39 1.42 13.90% PACAM Fixed Income Fund 11.90 11.96 5.65% PACAM Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 3.29% PACAM Equity Fund 1.07 1.08 PACAM EuroBond Fund 106.65 109.13 SCM CAPITAL LIMITED info@scmcapitalng.com Web: www.scmcapitalng.com; Tel: +234 1-280 2226,+234 1- 280 2227 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn SCM Capital Frontier Fund 115.45 117.61 -5.44% SFS CAPITAL NIGERIA LTD investments@sfsnigeria.com Web: www.sfsnigeria.com, Tel: +234 (01) 2801400 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn SFS Fixed Income Fund 1.01 1.01 6.08% STANBIC IBTC ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD assetmanagement@stanbicibtc.com Web: www.stanbicibtcassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 1 280 1266; 0700 MUTUALFUNDS Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Stanbic IBTC Balanced Fund 2,521.35 2,532.80 2.21% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 210.33 210.33 0.75% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 0.88 0.89 1.72% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 273.87 273.95 0.92% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 154.92 156.64 0.31% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 4.44% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 7,674.15 7,756.30 0.40% Stanbic IBTC Dollar Fund (USD) 1.16 1.16 0.57% Stanbic IBTC Shariah Fixed Income Fund 118.18 118.18 0.00% UNITED CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.unitedcapitalplcgroup.com; Tel: +234 803 306 2887 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn United Capital Balanced Fund 1.14 1.16 -4.60% United Capital Bond Fund 1.84 1.84 6.36% United Capital Equity Fund 0.65 0.66 -8.37% United Capital Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 4.85% United Capital Eurobond Fund 113.82 113.82 4.19% United Capital Wealth for Women Fund 1.02 1.03 -2.69% QUANTUM ZENITH ASSET MANAGEMENT & INVESTMENTS LTD service@quantumzenithasset.com.ng Web: www.quantumzenith.com.ng; Tel: +234 1-2784219 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Zenith Equity Fund 10.26 10.37 -0.20% Zenith Ethical Fund 11.61 11.67 -0.28% Zenith Income Fund 24.49 24.49 10.00% Zenith Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 4.20%

REITS NAV Per Share

Fund Name SFS Skye Shelter Fund

Yield / T-Rtn

117.23

4.56%

53.32

2.44%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

9.04 85.48 66.53

9.14 87.29 67.73

3.87% 0.58% 0.80%

Union Homes REIT

EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS Fund Name Lotus Halal Equity Exchange Traded Fund SIAML Pension ETF 40 Stanbic IBTC ETF 30 Fund

VETIVA FUND MANAGERS LTD Web: www.vetiva.com; Tel: +234 1 453 0697 Fund Name Vetiva Banking Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Consumer Goods Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Griffin 30 Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Money Market Fund Vetiva Industrial Goods Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva S&P Nigeria Sovereign Bond Exchange Traded Fund

funds@vetiva.com Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A

N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A

N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A

NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

108.03

15.02%

INFRASTRUCTURE FUND Fund Name Chapel Hill Denham Nigeria Infrastructure Debt Fund

The value of investments and the income from them may fall as well as rise. Past performance is a guide and not an indication of future returns. Fund prices published in this edition are also available on each fund manager’s website and FMAN’s website at www.fman.com.ng. Fund prices are supplied by the operator of the relevant fund and are published for information purposes only.

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THURSDAY AUGUST 13, 2020 ˾ T H I S D AY

NEWS

Ohakim Denies Fraud Allegations, Accuses Amuchinwa of Blackmail Davidson Iriekpen A former Governor of Imo State, Mr. Ikedi Ohakim, last night denied in its entirety, the allegations levelled against him by a businesswoman, Mrs. Chinyere Amuchinwa.

Amuchinwa in a petition dated July 20, 2020 and addressed to the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Mohammed Adamu and the Department of State Services (DSS), had accused the former governor of defrauding her of N500 million.

But in statement issued last night by his Political Adviser, Mr. Emmanuel Chukwu, the former Imo State governor described the allegations as most ludicrous and laughable.

Ohakim also described the allegations as an elaborate and audacious scheme by Amuchinwa to blackmail, extort and otherwise defame his person.

Accusing the businesswoman of concealing the facts, the former governor dared her to reveal the nature of her enterprise and business address, if she has any.

He said the businesswoman had filed a counter-petition against him as an after-thought to an ongoing investigation of her conducts towards him, based on a petition he had filed against her upon which she was arrested on January 20, 2020, seven months before her petition.

Revealing that he was aware of her sponsors, the former governor faulted her claims that she supplied luxury goods worth N110million to him, wondering why she did not state the exact nature of the goods, evidence of request for the goods, acknowledgment receipt and the address of transaction.

Threatening that in the coming days, the world and Amuchinwa would be hearing

more from him on the matter, the former governor noted that her petition constituted a disingenuous lie concocted from hell.

The statement read: “The allegations are, to say the least, most ludicrous and laughable.

They all together constitute an elaborate and audacious scheme

by Ms Amuchinwa to blackmail, extort and otherwise defame the person of Dr. Ohakim.

In the THISDAY story, Ms Amuchinwa presented herself as ‘businesswoman’, but did not state the nature of her enterprise and her business address, if any.

And to be sure, Ms Amuchinwa had filed this counter-petition as an afterthought to an ongoing investigation of her criminal conducts towards Dr Ohakim, based on a petition Dr. Ohakim had filed against her and upon which she was arrested as far back as 20th January, 2020, seven clear months before she was recruited to file her false petition. We are fully aware of her nefarious sponsors.

“In purporting to have supplied luxury goods worth N110million to Dr. Ohakim, she did not state the exact nature of these goods, evidence of request

for the goods, acknowledgment receipt and the address of transaction. And why would her fake invoices be in foreign currency, especially in Euros when she does not have any shop in Europe?

“Third, in claiming to have made N500million payment to Dr Ohakim for purchase of land, she dishonestly left out whether such was made through the banking system.

As of a fact, if such payment ever existed, it is very easy to track money trail through the banking system. Did she make the payment in cash, foreign

currency or how really? Even at that, N500million is certainly a huge sum; so, she certainly would require a large bullion van making multiple trips to convey such quantum cash.”

Ohakim boasted that he would go to any length to prove his innocence and ensure that Amuchinwa is brought to justice alongside her enablers and co-conspirators.

“If she had gotten away with blackmail in the past, now she has met her waterloo.

As the sages say: ‘To be toss is nothing but to be safely toss,’” he concluded.

Nigeria Records No COVID-19 Death as Cases Rise By 453 Martins Ifijeh

Nigeria has recorded 453 new cases of COVID-19, bringing to 47,743 the number of confirmed cases in the country.

However, for first time in two months, the country did not lose any patient to the pandemic-related deaths since the last 24 hours.

Announcing this yesterday, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) said Lagos

recorded 113 new cases; Federal Capital Territory (FCT), 73; Plateau, 59; Enugu, 55; Kaduna, 38; Ondo, 32; Osun, 26; Ebonyi, 20; Ogun, nine; Delta, eight; Borno, seven; Akwa Ibon, six; Oyo, five; while Bauchi, Kano and Ekiti recorded one each.

It said: “Nigeria has so far recorded 47,743 cases of Minister of Foreign Affairs, Chief Geoffrey Onyeama, resumes duty after testing negative for COVID-19 in Abuja…yesterday COVID-19. 33,943 patients have been discharged, while 956 persons have lost their lives.”

RELIEF AT LAST…

OMSL: Our Position on Secured Anchorage Area Controversy

Telecoms’ Workers Issue 14-day Ultimatum to MTN Ugo Aliogo The Telecommunications and Communications Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PTECSSAN) has expressed frustration over what it described as demoralising anti-labour activities by MTN Nigeria and issued a 14-day ultimatum for the company to address the concerns raised.

The President and Secretary of PTECSSAN, Opeyemi Tomori and Okonu Abdullahi, respectively in a joint media briefing yesterday said the Chief Executive Officer of the company whose priority should be organisational growth and sustainability, has abandoned this vital responsibility.

They also stated that the

CEO has rebuffed several calls by the workers and their union to meet with him on critical issues facing workers in the company.

They further explained that all attempts to address the concerns with the CEO of the company had failed, noting that such actions portend great danger to the industrial relations within MTN Nigeria.

They remarked that issues relating to remuneration of workers, exit packages for long-term staff, employee relations practices, and abuse of expatriate quota, and others are the burning issues, adding “that the company should change its way towards the union and its members in the organisation.”

Ex-US Envoy to Nigeria, Walter Carrington, Dies at 90 A former United States Ambassador to Nigeria, Walter Carrington, is dead.

His wife, Arese Carrington, announced the death yesterday in an email titled, “Press Release – Ambassador Walter C. Carrington, former US Ambassador to Nigeria and Senegal.”

She wrote: “It is with a heavy and broken heart but with gratitude to God for his life of selfless humanity that I announce the passing of my beloved husband Walter

Carrington, former U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria and Senegal. “He passed away peacefully, surrounded by loved ones at the age of 90 years old on Tuesday, August 11th, 2020.

“Further announcements will be made shortly.

“Walter was a loving husband, father, grandfather, cousin, uncle, friend and in-law.

“Ralph Waldo Emerson said…

It is not the length of life but the depth of life.

“Walter was fortunate, his life had both length and depth.”

Eromosele Abiodun

The management of Ocean Marine Securities Limited (OMSL) has denied reports in a section of the media that its operation of the Secured Anchorage Area (SAA) in the Lagos anchorage is laced with fraud.

The company said the controversy surrounding the operation of the scheme which was initiated to salvage the damaged image of Nigeria as it concerns the safety of vessels travelling along the nation’s coastal region has been inundated with a lot of falsehood to gain cheap publicity and sympathy in some quarters.

In a statement yesterday, OMSL said a joint committee

of the Nigerian Senate and the House of Representatives on the Nigerian Navy, Marine Transport and Finance has investigated claims of illegality of the operations of OMSL at the SAA in Lagos seaport.

The committee, it added, came out with a clean bill of health for OMSL and offered useful suggestions on how to advance the sector.

“The committee’s recommended among others, ‘That Ocean Marine Solution Limited (OMSL) should be commended for its genuine national interests in investing over four hundred million ($400,000,000) dollars into the security at the Secured Anchorage Area (SAA) in particular and the Nigerian

waterways in general by providing the needed platforms and logistics for the Nigerian Navy to effectively perform 24/7/365 patrol operations as well as to provide the required protection for vessels waiting to berth at the Lagos ports.’”

OMSL added that its main objective behind the initiative is national interest.

“To this end, the company has modestly offered it services by charging the minimal cost to cover operations and maintenance. Recall, that our chairman, Captain Hosa Okunbo, during his presentation at the National Assembly joint committee that investigated its activities said, ‘The company has always operated on the charges

incurred by fund collected from ships operating under the SAA.” The company revealed that it cost vessels that patronize its operated SAA an average of $11,500, which works out to be $2,500 for the first day and $1,500 for the remaining days in a seven day period which is a maximum period that most vessels berth at SAA for the service provided.

This, it added, is against having three mercenaries costing the shipping company a whopping cost of $225,000 on a one month voyage at a cost of $2,500 per mercenary which works out to at least $7,500 a day over a total one month voyage of 30 days from Europe, “and much higher from farther destinations

Boko Haram: After Six-hour Grilling, DSS Releases Mailafia Seriki Adinoyi in Jos Following his revelation on Boko Haram insurgents in Nigeria, and allegation of the involvement of a serving northern governor, a former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Dr. Obadiah Mailafia was yesterday quizzed for six hours by the Department of Security Services

(DSS) in Jos and later released on bail.

Mailafia arrived at the DSS office located on West of Mines Street around 12:30 pm in an ash-coloured Range Rover vehicle marked: Abuja 843 LX and was later released a few minutes past 6pm.

On arrival at the DSS, he was ushered into one of the offices alongside his lawyer,

Mr. Pius Akubo (SAN), while other people who came with him in solidarity were barred from entering the premises.

Speaking to journalists shortly after his release, Mailafia said he was treated with respect and decorum during his interrogation by the security operatives, warning that all the killings in southern Kaduna and indeed other states

in the country must stop.

He said that every Nigerian child either from Daura in Katsina or Manchok , in Kaduna must be treated with respect they deserve, as they are all Nigerians, adding that he was not talking politics, but like Nelson Mandela, he was in the struggle for the emancipation of the people.

Onyeama Returns to Office after Recovering from COVID-19 Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Geoffrey Onyeama resumed work yesterday after testing negative to COVID-19 pandemic.

Onyeama who had been in isolation for three weeks initially had throat irritation, which forced him to go for

COVID-19 test the fourth time and came back positive.

He had tweeted: “Did my fourth COVID-19 test yesterday at the first sign of a throat irritation and unfortunately this time it came back positive.

That is life! Win some lose some - heading for isolation in a health facility and praying

for the best.”

The minister announced the latest COVID-19 result yesterday in his verified Twitter handle.

Onyeama tweeted: “By the very special grace of God my latest #COVID19 test result came back negative after three weeks isolation.

“I am eternally grateful to

my family, the Commander –inChief, President Muhammadu Buhari, and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, the medical team, relations, friends, colleagues, religious leaders and numerous well-wishers, who through their care, prayers, fasting, messages of support and encouragement never let me walk alone.”

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THURSDAY AUGUST 13, 2020 ˾ T H I S D AY

NEWS XTRA

Kano Court Sentences another Man to Death By Stoning Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kano Barely three days after a Sharia Court in Kano State sentenced man to death for allegedly

committing blasphemy, another Sharia Court has sentenced one Mati Abdu, 60, to death by stoning for raping a minor.

The upper sharia court is

Police Arraign Two Brothers over Death of First Female Combatant Pilot John Shiklam inKaduna Nehemiah Adejo and David Adejo, the two brothers who were detained for killing Nigeria’s first female combat helicopter pilot, Flying Officer Tolulope Arotile, were yesterday arraigned before a Kaduna State Magistrate Court on four-count charge.

Nehemiah was charged for causing death by dangerous driving, driving without due care and attention, driving without driver’s licence and driving without authorisation of the owner.

David was charged with negligent conduct while causing danger to person and property.

Both accused persons pleaded not guilty to the offence.

Police prosecuting counsel, Mr. Martins Leo urged that Nehemiah be remanded in prison, arguing that there is pending investigation of culpable

homicide against him.

However, counsel, to the accused, Mr. Ibrahim Omachi argued that his clients are first-time offenders and had spent more than four weeks in detention The Magistrate, Mr. Benjamin Hassan, after hearing arguments from both counsels granted bail to the accused in the sum of N1 million with two sureties who must be residents within the jurisdiction of the court and possess Bank Verification Number (BVN). The case was adjourned to 24 and 25 of August for hearing.

Arotile was killed by a reversing vehicle at the premises of the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) Base, Kaduna.

The vehicle was driven by the Nehemiah, one of the accused persons who is said to be a former classmate and was reversing to greet the deceased.

FG Evacuates 429 Stranded Nigerians from UAE, Ukraine, India, Ethiopia 200 prisoners in Saudi Arabia to be repatriated Chinedu Eze in Lagos and Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja The federal government has revealed that 429 stranded Nigerians would arrive in the country yesterday and today (Wednesday and Thursday).

Saudi Arabia has also notified the federal government that it wants to repatriate 200 Nigerian prisoners because they want to decongest their prisons.

The Spokesperson of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Ferdinand Nwonye, in a statement issued yesterday said the stranded Nigerians would be evacuated from Ukraine, India and Ethiopa.

He said: “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs wishes to inform that in continuation of the evacuation of Nigerian

nationals from different parts of the world, three evacuation flights are expected in the country on Thursday 13, August 2020.

“Ukraine Klasjet Airlines is expected to convey 100 Nigerians from Kiev, Ukraine to Abuja. The flight will depart Kiev at 1.00am (local time) and the estimated time of arrival in Abuja is 8.00am.

“More so, Air Peace Airlines is expected to convey 313 Nigerians from New Delhi, India to Lagos, and the estimated time of arrival of the special flight is 11.00pm.”

Nwoye noted that Ethiopian Airlines had departed Tel Aviv, Israel, enroute Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to Lagos, with 16 Nigerian nationals on board, adding that the flight is expected to arrive Lagos Wednesday afternoon.

20 LGAs in Kano under Threat of Flooding, Says NEMA Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kano The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) yesterday raised the alarm that 20 local government areas in Kano State are classified to be under high risk of flooding this year.

The Coordinator of NEMA, Kano Territorial Office, Mr. Sanusi Ado, disclosed this in Kano at a stakeholders’ meeting on flood awareness campaign and implication of 2020 seasonal rainfall prediction.

According to him, “Kano is among the states expected to experience flash and urban flooding according to the annual flood warning released by the Nigeria Hydrological Services

Agency (NIHSA) in its annual flood outlook for 2020.

“Those areas predicted to be affected by the flood are Tarauni, Garun Malam, Rimin Gado, Gaya, Gezawa, Gwale, Shanono and Gabasawa.

“Other areas are Gwarzo, Ungoggo, Warawa, Dawakin Kudu, Dambatta, Bebeji, Kano, Wudil, Kura, Nasarawa, Kano Municipal and Kumbotso LGA.” He said according to NIMET, the expected flood can threaten agriculture, water resources, health, transport and infrastructure sectors in the state.

He said in 2012, unprecedented flooding led to the displacement of thousands of people, deaths and loss of millions of naira.

situated at Kofar Kudu near the Emir of Kano palace within the city.

Mati was arrested by the Police in 2019 after an alleged rape of a 12-year-old girl at Farsa village in Tsanyawa Local Government Area of the state.

The Presiding Judge of the court, Justice Ibrahim Sarki Yola, after hearing from witnesses and the suspect, sentenced him to death by stoning because he was married.

Public Relations Officer of Kano Courts, Mr Baba Jibo,

confirmed the sentence to journalists yesterday.

According to him, the prosecuting counsel, Badariyya, tendered all the evidences before the court.

Jibo said the convict confessed to have committed

the crime.

Last Monday, an Upper Sharia Court at Hausawa quarters of Kano metropolis presided by Khadi Aliyu Muhammad Kani sentenced one Sharif Yahaya to death by hanging over for blasphemy.

ALL EYES ON THE YOUTHS...

L R: Representative of the Minister of Special Duties, Dr. SimonTyungu; President of National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN), Mr. Solomon Adodo; and spokesman of the Department of State Services (DSS), Dr. Peter Afunanya, representing Director General of DSS, during the International Youth Day 2020 in Abuja...yesterday ENOCK REUBEN

UNILAG Governing Council Removes Vice-Chancellor I remain VC, says Ogundipe Uche Nnaike, Funmi Ogundare in LagosandKuniTyessi in Abuja The Governing Council of the University of Lagos (UNILAG) has confirmed the removal of Professor Oluwatoyin Ogundipe as the Vice-Chancellor of the institution.

But in a swift reaction, Ogundipe has described his purported sack from office as a figment of the imagination of those peddling the news, insisting that he remains the vice chancellor of the university.

According to a statement signed by the Registrar and Secretary to Governing Council,

Mr. Oladajo Azeez, the VC was removed at an emergency meeting of the council held yesterday, August 12, 2020.

“The general public is hereby notified that at an emergency meeting held on Wednesday, August 12, 2020 and in accordance with the statutory powers vested in it by law, the Governing Council of the University of Lagos removed Professor Oluwatoyin Ogundipe from office as Vice-Chancellor of the university with immediate effect.”

The statement said the decision was based on the

council’s investigation of serious acts of wrongdoing, gross misconduct, financial recklessness and abuse of office against Ogundipe.

However, Ogundipe in a statement he signed, has described his purported removal as the figment of the imagination of those peddling the news, insisting that he remains the vice-chancellor of the institution.

“The attention of the University of Lagos (UNILAG) management has been drawn to the ‘Notice to the General Public on the Removal of the Vice Chancellor, University of

Lagos’; dated August 12, 2020 and signed by Oladejo Azeez, Registrar and Secretary to Council, stating that the current Vice Chancellor, Professor Oluwatoyin T. Ogundipe has been removed from office with immediate effect.

“This is untrue and a figment of his imagination. Therefore, stakeholders of UNILAG and the general public are advised to disregard this mischievous disinformation about the sitting Vice Chancellor of UNILAG, contained in that notice. Professor Ogundipe still remains UNILAG’s ViceChancellor.”

FG Moves against States over Illegal Taxation in Mining Sector Omololu Ogunmade in Abuja The federal government yesterday accused some states of the federation of imposing illegal taxes on investors in the mining sector and consequently asked the Ministry of Finance, Budget, and National Planning to deduct such illegal taxes from their federal allocations.

Briefing reporters yesterday in the State House, Abuja after the 11th weekly virtual Federal

Executive Council (FEC) meeting, Mohammed said illegal imposition of taxes on companies engaging in mining activities in the states is scaring investors awway.

According to him, FEC’s decision was the fallout of the memorandum presented by the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Mr. Olamilekan Adegbite, during which he highlighted the various challenges threatening

the mining sector.

Mohammed listed such challenges to include insecurity, particularly in the North-west, which he said had resulted in the suspension of mining activities in the region as a result of activities of bandits and kidnappers, conflicts between stakeholders and traditional rulers, as well as double taxation by the governors.

He said the mines and

steel minister also told the council that investors are being scared away from the mining sector as a result of previous government’s decisions on the storage of explosives being used on mining fields.

The minister said Adegbite who advocated the creation of special facilities for storage of explosives also highlighted the challenge of extortion on mining sites as well as the issue of illegal mining.

FCTA Demolishes 25 Illegal Structures Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja The Department of Development Control of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has demolished no fewer than 25 structures in Destiny Estate in Kyami district for allegedly abusing the Abuja Master Plan.

The Director in charge of the department, Muktar Galadima, who supervised the demolition exercise, disclosed yesterday that other reasons why the

affected structures were pulled down were to correct the infractions created by land grabbers and racketeers.

He assured the FCT that the exercise would continue leading to the removal of all illegal structures across the territory.

“Abuja is a planned city, and you cannot just wake up and cut a chunk of land for yourself and start selling or building for whatever purpose.

We will find out and surely

remove such illegalities and also punish those involved,” Galadima said.

Two weeks ago, the department supervised similar demolition exercise leading to the removal of structures in Lugbe, where the developers were alleged not to be in possession of allocation papers or development approval plan to embark on such developments.

The development department also issued a 14-day ultimatum

to occupants of an illegal building materials market on N16 road corridor in Karsana district, near Gwarinpa district, that was encroaching on a road under construction.

Galadima advised the tenants in the market to relocate to the international building materials market in Dei-Dei, as the bulldozers will demolish all structures in the market at the expiration of the ultimatum, with the exception of indigenous structures.

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NEWS XTRA

Army Probes Soldiers’ Alleged Involvement in Illegal Fishing, Farming Michael Olugbode in Maiduguri The Nigerian Army has commenced investigation into the allegations that soldiers involved in its counter-insurgency in North East, Operation Lafiya Dole, are engaged in illicit fishing and farming activities in Borno State.

The allegations surfaced after the recent attack on the convoy of the Borno State Governor, Prof. Babagana Zulum in Baga, over a week agod.

The governor, who had to turn back from his schedule visit to the shores of Lake Chad, which is rich in fish after his convoy was attacked, had alleged sabotage and accused

soldiers of involvement in illicit farming and fishing in the state The Deputy Theatre Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, Major General Felix Omoigui led a panel of investigation on a two-day facts-finding mission to Baga, to verify the allegations.

The panel visited the 130 battalion, Baga, a forward operational base at the centre of the allegations against the Army since the attack on Zulum.

The panel interrogated the Commanding Officer of the 130 Battalion, Baga and the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF).

The Commanding Officer, Lt. Col. Umar Abdulmajid while responding to questions vehemently denied the

allegations saying “there is nothing like that, farming or fishing from either civilian or military, nobody is farming and nobody is fishing. In fact from Monguno to Baga there’s no civilian and there’s no civilian vehicles coming to Baga.”

Omoigui told journalists that: “There was an allegation that soldiers are involved in farming activities and trading of fish and other farm produce from here to Maiduguri and other places and the Chief of Army Staff got wind of this and being that he has zero tolerance for infractions like this, he mandated us to come for a fact-finding mission to ascertain whether the allegations are true.”

EFCC Investigates Two Lebanese over Possession of $890,000 Kingsley Nwezeh inAbuja The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) said it has commenced the investigation of two Lebanese, Dina Jihad Khali and Chamseddine Waell Mohmmed, who were arrested by officers of the Customs Area Command, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, for attempting to smuggle a total sum of $890,000 out of Nigeria through the Port Harcourt International Airport.

A statement by the anti-graft agency said the suspects

were arrested yesterday and handed over to the Port Harcourt Zonal office of the EFCC for further investigation.

Speaking while handing over the two suspects, Customs Area Controller, A.B Mohammed Olayinka, disclosed that Khali with Passport Number LR152975 (Republic of Lebanon) was arrested with $670,000 while Mohammed with Passport Number LR0356598 (Republic of Lebanon) had $220,000. They were both arrested while trying to board a flight to Lebanon.

He further disclosed that

the money recovered from the suspects, which they failed to declare to customs was deposited with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Rivers State Branch, for safe keeping.

Principal Detective Superintendent Macaulay Olayinka, who received the suspects on behalf of the zonal head thanked officers of the Customs Area Command for the synergy that exists between the command and the EFCC. He assured that investigation will commence in earnest, adding that the suspects would be charged to court as soon as investigation is concluded.

Osinbajo to Unveil New Ecosystem for Access to Justice Today Peter Uzoho Vice President Yemi Osinbajo will today unveil a new ecosystem for access to justice and legal services in Nigeria, at a virtual legaltech conference organised by Law Pavilion Business Solution and Telnet Nigeria.

The two-day conference, according to the organisers, will feature a keynote lecture, panel discussions and breakout session on the role of an efficient justice system in driving the wheel of innovation and economic growth.

Some of the participants include a Supreme Court Justice, Hon. Olukayode Ariwoola; Attorney General of Ekiti State, Mr. Wale Fapohunda; Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN),

Dr. Babatunde Ajibade; Group Managing Director of Telnet Nigeria Limited, Mr. Folorunsho Aliu; and Dr. Ayodele Akenroye, Judge of Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Dr Ayodele Akenroye; amongst others.

Briefing journalists in Lagos, the Managing Director of Law Pavilion Business Solutions, Mr. Ope Olugasa, said it has become imperative to leverage technology to accelerate access to justice for Nigerians and organisations interested in doing business in Nigeria.

According to Olugasa, “if there is no predictable and reliable framework for allocation and execution of power, humans have the tendency to overstep their bounds, and this will also

in turn be meted out with unsavoury reactions or revolts which could be expressed in many forms.”

He stated that while the general public tends to think of the judiciary as the least visible or important arm of government, the role of the judiciary comprising judges, lawyers, arbitrators, mediators and legal institutions in economic growth and development was so critical, that where the justice system was fraught with inefficiencies and inadequacies, economic growth was stunted.

He pointed out that, “in today’s global market, true wealth is no longer in only expansive real estate or tangible cash, but in holding intangible intellectual property.

NIPSS DG Tasks Stakeholders on New Ways of Doing Things The Director General of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, Professor Habu Shuaibu Galadima, has declared that new and innovative thinking are required to tackle the challenges facing Nigeria and the rest of Africa.

Galadima made this statement at a virtual ceremony on Wednesday to mark the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between NIPSS; the Dantiye Centre for Good Leadership and Journalism (DCLJ)

and the JS Centre for Governance and Security Policy Initiative (CGPSI).

He said: “We must dig deep within ourselves and reach beyond our comfort zones for useful, practical and beneficial solutions.

“With the insurgency in the Sahel impacting parts of Nigeria and a number of other countries in the region; political tensions, often related to elections; disputes over trade and regional protocols; significant climate changes affecting the largely agrarian economies of the region; not

to mention the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic disease and its ramifications for public policy, particularly public health, safety and the economy, the world is indeed going through a period that tasks the creative energy, innovative spirit and imagination of institutions such as NIPSS.” He said the problems confronting the world also presented unique opportunities, adding that the MoU would provide the framework for the National Institute to seize the opportunities.

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Military Court Sentences Soldier to 55 Years Imprisonment for Murder Ejiofor Alike A General Court Martial (GCM) sitting in Abuja yesterday sentenced a soldier serving with the Nigerian Army to 55 years in prison for culpable homicide,

theft and house-breaking.

The soldier, Lance Corporal Babangida Ibrahim was accused of robbing and killing one Bello Abdullahi Aliyu in Gidan Darib, Anka Local Government Area of Zamfara State on August 11,

OPEC Raises Non-members’ Supply Forecast for 2020 Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja with agency report The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has revised upwards its forecast for non-OPEC members’ oil supply this year, leading to a fall in the projected call on its own members’ crude oil.

The cartel also lowered its forecast for global oil demand this year in its latest Monthly Oil Market Report (MOMR) for July, notifying that demand to decrease by 9.1mn b/d to 90.6mn b/d this year is down by 100,000 b/d from last month’s projection.

The OPEC’s report also showed that Nigeria may have started meeting its quota as agreed by the organisation in April after initially defaulting, with production falling to approximately 1.5 million in

May, 1.4 million in June and 1.4 million in July in apparent compliance with the production cut.

The downward revision reflects weaker-than-expected demand in the second quarter from some non-OPEC countries and a decline in global GDP in 2020 to 4pc, from 3.7pc last month, leading to lower oil demand expectations for the second half of the year.

Argus, an independent provider of price information, also reported that OPEC’s forecast for oil demand growth in 2021 is unchanged at 7mn b/d on the year, with consumption projected to reach 97.6mn b/d.

The organisation assumed that the COVID-19 pandemic would be largely contained and that economic activity will increase by 4.7pc on the year.

2014.

He pleaded guilty to the four-count charge preferred against him and was sentenced in line with the provisions of the Armed Forces Act. Delivering the judgement, the President of the Court, Major General Priye Fakrougha advocated the need for members of the Armed Forces to adhere

strictly to rules and regulations guiding the conduct of military personnel in and out of uniform.

While reiterating the determination of the Army under the command of the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Buratai, to discharge its constitutional responsibility in a professional manner, Fakrougha warned that

defaulters will be made to take responsibility of their actions “Having listened to the plea of litigation of the Defence Counsel and the submission of the Prosecution Counsel, this General Court Martial finds the accused soldier guilty as he earlier pleaded of all the four-count charges,” he said.

“In this particular case

before this court, there is no amount of sentence that will be commensurate to the life that has already been lost.

“Therefore, this General Court Martial, having found the accused soldier 2008/ NA/61/2672, Lance Corporal Babangida Ibrahim guilty as he earlier pleaded, hereby sentence him as follows:

DEEPENING COLLABORATION...

L-R: Political Adviser, British Deputy High Commission, Mr. Wale Adebajo; Head of Prosperity Section, Mr. Guy Harrison; British Deputy High Commissioner, Harriet Thompson; Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu and Chief of Staff to the Governor, Mr. Tayo Ayinde, during a courtesy visit by the British Envoy to the governor at the Lagos House, Marina...yesterday

Buhari Inaugurates Police Mobile Lagos APC, PDP Bicker over Sanwo-Olu’s Headship of Ondo Campaign Council Training College in Nasarawa KingsleyNwezehinAbuja President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday inaugurated the newly established Police Mobile Force (PMF) Training College in Ende Hills in Nasarawa State.

President Buhari, who was represented at the ceremony by the Minister of Police Affairs, Alhaji Muhammad Maigari Dingyadi, said the construction of the college was part of the unwavering determination of his administration to meet the needs for capacity building and training of tactical squads for the ever expanding operations and deployment needs of the Nigeria Police Force.

He said the training college would further address the manpower needs of the newly created PMF Squadrons across the country.

Earlier in his remarks, the

Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, said the college is a critical national security asset established as part of the strategic approaches of the Nigeria Police Force to strengthen the capacity of the special and tactical operations arms of the force in dealing with present and emerging security threats in the country on a sustainable basis.

The IG also noted that the new PMF college would complement the existing PMF training colleges in Gwoza, Borno State and Ila Oragun, Osun State, and would also serve as a training ground for police personnel to be deployed for local and international assignments such as the UN/AU peacekeeping operations as well as support for counter-terrorism training programmes.

Lagos Lawyer, Banjo Joins Race for Lagos East Senatorial Seat Sunday Okobi As political actors in Lagos State warm up for the Lagos East senatorial seat contest after demise of Senator Bayo Osinowo, who represented the district on the platform of the All Progressive Congress (APC), a grassroots politician and seasoned lawyer, Wasiu Banjo, has declared his interest to vie for the vacant position.

He made his intention known to the public through a letter submitted before the APC leadership recently in Lagos.

According to a statement issued by his camp, Banjo’s interest for the senatorial seat must have been driven by a Lagos-based group, Lagos Frontliners Initiative, which declared support for the lawyer cum politician to contest

for the Senate seat to replace late Osinowo. The aspirant, according to the statement, through his letter to the party leadership, described himself as most qualified and experienced politician suitable for the seat.

He said with his educational qualifications and as a legal practitioner, “his wealth of experience would be beneficial to the state and his constituency if he is given opportunity to serve the state as he had truly demonstrated.”

In the statement, Banjo, who is an alumnus of the University of Lagos, said: “Lagos State needs experienced and grassroots politician who can represent the state at national level where interest and priority of the state would be well represented and protected.

Segun James

The All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have engaged in war of words, following the appointment of the Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, as the head of APC’s National Campaign Council for Ondo

State governorship election.

Reacting to the appointment of the Lagos State governor, the main opposition party yesterday alleged that the state government would likely divert the state funds to sponsor the APC in the Ondo State governorship contest.

In a swift reaction, the

APC described the allegation as blackmail, baseless and characteristic of the wild and reckless talk associated with the opposition party.

The PDP statement, which was signed by the state Publicity Secretary, Mr. Taofik Gani, in its allegation said that “the selection of SanwoOlu as head of the APC

Ondo State governorship campaign council cannot be for his political experience but because the APC intends to use Lagos State funds to run the Ondo election.”

He also alleged that the governor has also approved money to support the APC candidate in Edo State, Pastor Osagie Ize Iyamu.

Sanwo-Olu Pledges to Revive Badagry’s Agricultural Potentials Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State has promised to revive the agricultural potentials of Badagry, particularly, the Avia Organic Farm and others, which have been abandoned with some of the facilities already moribund.

Speaking to journalists when during a recent visit to the Lagos community, the governor listed some of the agricultural projects

to be developed for commercial production in the Organic Farm include fishing, poultry, piggery and agro-forestry, among others.

Sanwo-Olu expressed the readiness of his administration to revive Badagry organic farm to boost food security in the state, adding that the government is fully ready to revive the abandoned farmland for the take-off of

the State’s Food Production Park project. The governor also disclosed that Lagos State would be engaging private sector to secure an investment into the project, which, when completed, would create thousands of direct jobs and improve the wellbeing of the residents.

He said: “I have been fully briefed about this project but I

considered it necessary to personally embark on this journey to Badagry in order to take assessment and see what exactly we need to do in terms of intervention. After taking a tour of the project site, what I observed is that the entire project looks more as a job that has not been completed. Therefore, we need to improve on the interventions to the Ministry of Agriculture.

Man Bags 25 Years for Raping 11-year-old Girl in Ogun An Ogun State High Court yesterday sentenced a 36-year-old man, Mr. Ugochukwu Obiakor, to 25 years’ imprisonment for raping an 11-year- old girl.

Obiakor had pleaded not guilty to the single charge.

He was convicted for forcefully having sexual intercourse with the 11-year-old.

The Chief Judge of Ogun, Justice Mosunmola Dipeolu, held that all evidences presented before the court by the prosecution were tenable and found the convict guilty as charged. Dipeolu consequently sentenced Obiakor to 25 years imprisonment with hard labour.

The prosecution counsel

and Director of legal drafting in the state, Mr. James Mafe, had earlier told the court during trial that the convict committed the offence on September 4, 2017 at Omu-Aleku village in the Mowe area of Ogun State.

He added that the medical results conducted revealed that the victim’s hymen and vagina

laceration was broken.

He said the victim was in her mother’s shop when the convict came to make purchases.

The prosecutor said the convict later came back when the mother left the shop.He said Obiakor told the girl that her mother owed him money, adding that he wanted to collect the sum.

Transportation Commissioners Seek Restriction of Movement of Heavy-duty Vehicles Sunday Okobi The Nigeria Transportation Commissioners Forum (NTCF) has lent its support for the restriction of movement of heavy-duty vehicles during the day to reduce the upsurge in road accidents reported across the country.

This is coming on the heels of the unfortunate incident of

July 26, 2020, where two young people, Miss Chidinma Ajoku and Mr. Chima Nnaekpe, who both worked in the commercial department, Hajj and cargo terminal at the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), died while three others were injured when a 20-feet container fell on a commercial bus at Ilasamaja on the Oshodi - Apapa expressway, Lagos State.

In a statement issued by the Publicity Secretary of NTCF, Hon. Mustapha Jika, the forum observed with dismay the increase in road accidents caused by defective/ poorly modified heavy-duty vehicles and unruly drivers, adding that “this is why today, we are requesting for a policy document to stop these vehicles from plying the roads during the day.

“It is in consideration for the motoring public and the protection of our shared assets; the roads and the environment that we address this issue of public safety concern. This call has been made to prevent these dangerous but preventable accidents by requesting support from the President Muhammadu Buhari and all state governors in the country.

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THURSDAYSPORTS Pulev Accuses Joshua of Been Scared to Fight Outside London

Group Sports Editor Duro Ikhazuagbe Email duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com 0811 181 3083 SMS ONLY

B O X I N G H E AV Y W E I G H T S H O W D O W N

Bulgarian Kubrat Pulev has reignited the war of words with Anthony Joshuaahead

of their heavyweight title showdown in December by claiming the Sagamu-born,

Mikel Admits He’s Open to a Return to England Former Super Eagles Captain, John Obi Mikel has left the door open to a return to English football.

The 33-year-old, who won the Champions League with Chelsea in 2012, is currently without a club having left Turkish side Trabzonspor by mutual consent in March.

“Yes, there are interested clubs and England is a strong possibility and why not,” Mikel told BBC Sport Africa yesterday.

“We are currently in talks with clubs and there is absolutely no hurry. I can only wait to see what happens.”

He refused to confirm or deny media reports in England linking him with newly-promoted West Bromwich Albion and Championship side Stoke City.

Mikel, who captained Eagles to a third place finish at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt, has previously played in Norway and China, but

achieved success in England with Chelsea.

The midfielder made 249 Premier League appearances for Chelsea in an 11-year spell, which ended when he left Stamford Bridge in 2017.

He also won two league titles, three FA Cups and the Europa League in 2013.

Before a stint with Chinese side Tianjin TEDA and brief spell at Middlesbrough followed in the Championship during the 2018/19 campaign, featuring 19 times, scoring once.

Mikel won a total of 89 caps for Nigeria, playing for Eagles in the past two World Cups and helping the Super Eagles win the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, before announcing his retirement from international football last summer.

He was also one of Nigeria’s three over-age players as the African side won a bronze medal at the 2016 Olympics in Rio.

British heavyweight champion is ‘scared’ to fight outside of London.

Pulev is desperate to dethrone the unified world champion who he claims is struggling psychologically since he was handed his first defeat

by Andy Ruiz last year.

According to UK’s DailyMailonline, Pulev has insisted that he has no problem with where he fights Joshua and is confident of handing him a second knockout defeat of his career, once they finally go toe-to-toe inside the squaredcircle.

In an interview via the Betway Insider blog, Pulev said: “We have one heavyweight champion (Joshua) and he is too slow all the time to agree a date. “We understand the world

pandemic and everything but I think we can fight this year and I prepare to do this – it does not matter where, which day, I’m ready, we are training and I wait for the date.

“December 5th is what we’ve heard and I hear London is favourite to host.

“We think London because maybe he is scared and he wants to fight there. Normally we can fight anywhere in the world not only in London - but for me it’s no problem, I can fight anywhere. I’m ready, I’m hungry, and I know I am going to win.

“He is a very good boxer for sure, a world champion... and he has had a lot of good fights.

“But I see a lot of problems in his style and his boxing and

I think I can use every small opening and I can beat him.

I do think he has a problem with psychology,” stressed the Bulgarian.

The pair were due to slug it out in 2017, but the Pulev had to withdraw from the bout with a ‘strained pectoral muscle’, leading Joshua to fight – and subsequently beat – Carlos Takam instead.

Joshua was ‘p***ed off’ that Pulev withdrew from their fight three years ago, which led the Brit to claim that he would’ve went ahead with the fight if he had sustained the same injury.

But Pulev, now fit and raring to go, claims not everything was so black and white.

When asked why the fight fell through, Pulev said: “I stopped training because I was

injured and he didn’t believe me, he was a little bit arrogant.

He said: “If I was Pulev I could box with this injury”, but it’s not so easy.

“God showed us it’s not good to speak too much and that’s why he is now injured with his leg. I wait patiently and when he is ready and healthy, we can fight.”

While in lockdown, AJ and Tyson Fury reached an agreement over a sensational two-fight deal for 2021, with the pair hoping to unify the heavyweight division should they overcome what’s put in front of them in the meantime.

News of this mega-deal irked Pulev, who is promising to inflict a second knockout on the British heavyweight champion.

Nigeria’s U-15 Boys’ National Team Coach, Nasidi, Passes on Olawale Ajimotokan inAbuja

Head Coach of Nigeria’s U-15 Boys’ National Team (Future Eagles), Mr. Danladi Nasidi is dead. The Coach died in the early hours of Wednesday and was buried same yesterday according to Islamic rites.

Nasidi, who was born on 1st January 1952, hailed from Niger State, and was among the elite corp of coaches in the country who had the CAF ‘A’ Licence.

In 1994, he rescued Lagos darling team, Stationery Stores from certain relegation, and was Head Coach of the National Team of Gabon in 1986. He coached Niger Tornadoes of Minna for several years before he was appointed a national youth team coach.

He led the country’s U-15 boys to silver medal finish at the African Games in Algiers two years ago. He was First Assistant to Head Coach Ismailia Mabo as the Super Falcons reached the quarter finals of the FIFA Women’s World Cup in USA in 1999.

In a condolence message to the family of the late Coach, Chairman of the NFF Technical and Development Committee, Alhaji Yusuf Ahmed ‘Fresh’ paid glowing tributes to the one-time assistant coach of the Super Falcons, saying “Nasidi gave his all for the nation and served passionately, diligently and creditably in every role he found himself.

“It is a very sad day for Nigeria football, because Nasidi has been playing a huge role in grassroots development programmes for our football.

He was very passionate about youth football and has moulded our U15 boys into a solid and formidable unit over the years. We will surely miss him. “He was someone who evinced passion for youth and development everytime and everywhere you met him. I am crestfallen. When I started my journey into football administration, Nasidi was one of the coaches who spurred me into investing in grassroots development.

PSG Through to UCL S’final PSG produce two late goals to end Atalanta’s tantalising run in their debut season in the UEFA Champions League in Lisbon on Wednesday night.

It’s the first time the

Parisians will reach the last four of the Champions League since 1995.

They will now face either RB Leipzig or Atlético Madrid who are meeting this evening in the semifinal.

Kubrat Pulev (right) has resorted to mind games with Anthony Joshua ahead of the heavyweight title fight in December

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

Atletico Unfazed by Covid-19 Positive Tests ahead Clash with RB Leipzig Atletico Madrid have overcome the shock of two players testing positive for Covid-19 ahead of their trip to the Champions League ‘Final Eight’ and are fully focused on today’s quarterfinal with RB Leipzig, goalkeeper Jan Oblak said.

Atletico were forced to travel to Lisbon for the mini-tournament a day later than planned after forward Angel Correa and defender Sime Vrsjalko tested positive for the virus.

The pair have been ordered to isolate at home and will undergo further tests today to determine whether they can join the squad should Atleti reach the semifinals.

“It’s a strange situation but we’re here and we’re

Jan Oblak...Atletico Madrid goalkeeper

going to play a match. It’s something new for everyone, it’s a difficult situation all around the world but we’re professionals,” Oblak told a virtual news conference yesterday. “We’ve come here to play and we’ve got a very

important game and so we’re not thinking about anything else other than the game.

What happens on Thursday is all that counts.”

Atletico have reached the Champions League final twice in the last six seasons while Leipzig have never got to the last eight before, but Oblak said he did not think that gave his side any edge over the German outfit. “We’re surprised that people think of us as favourites. We’re expecting a very difficult game and I don’t think anyone is the favourite here, anything can happen in one match,” added the Slovenia international.

“This competition is something new. It doesn’t matter how experienced you are in the Champions League, this is something else, everything is decided

in one game.

“You can have a good day or a bad one, both sides have as much chance as the other and that’s how we’re going to approach the game.”

Atletico coach Diego Simeone sent his best wishes to his two absent players and said everyone on the pitch would be fully focused.

“I hope we can get Correa and Vrsjalko back if we stay in the competition. They have given their hearts for the team whenever they have been called upon,” he added.

“We want our players to take the game by the scruff of the neck to try and harm our opponents. This is a beautiful competition and we are very excited to be in it.

“In a game like this winning isn’t just important, it’s the only thing that matters.”

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MISSILE Innocent Ujah to Enugu Doctors “It is a show of shame that an ordinary state NMA election would result in monumental destruction of properties and social dislocation of the society even at this time that we are at the forefront in the containment of Covid-19 pandemic in Nigeria. The Enugu event of 6th August, 2020 clearly portrayed a bad image of our noble profession” – Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) President, Prof Ujah on the disrupted Enugu State branch election.

OLUSEGUNADENIYI Oke-Afa and The Message from Beirut THE VERDICT

olusegun.adeniyi@thisdaylive.com

I

t is a measure of the collective amnesia that defines our country that Nigerians are hardly paying attention to what is happening in Lebanon. Perhaps more significant is the response from the two countries. A similar tragedy 18 years ago in Lagos actually claimed more fatalities, but no one was held accountable. In Lebanon, the entire cabinet led by Prime Minister Hassan Diab, has already resigned amid widespread protest. No fewer than 16 officials have also been taken into custody pending completion of the investigation into their roles.

For those who may not fully understand what I am talking about, let me cut to the chase. Last week, Beirut experienced a huge explosion at the port resulting from 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate that had been stored for six years without safety measures. As at Tuesday evening, the death toll had risen to 171, according to the outgoing Lebanese Health Minister, Hassan Hamad who also confirmed that “the number of missing people ranges between 30 and 40.” As huge as that number of casualties may be, it is still far less than what we had on 27th January 2002, when Lagosians were greeted by series of explosions later traced to a large quantity of ‘high calibre bombs’ carelessly stored at the Ikeja Cantonment.

As windows were being shattered and roofs blown off in several axis of the Lagos mainland on that fateful day, residents unsure of what exactly was happening began to run out of their homes in different directions. In the process, stampedes resulted with children trampled upon on crowded streets. But the real tragedy occurred at the Oke Afa canal along Oshodi - Isolo Expressway. Without knowing what was pursuing them, many jumped into the lagoon that had been covered by water hyacinth. By the next day, local divers were carrying out hundreds of dead bodies in a heart wrenching scene that still haunts us today.

In its 29th January 2002 edition, The Guardian of London reported: “...as the sporadic explosions gave way to artillery shells and mortars raining down over thousands of homes, these longsuffering Nigerians began to think it was a war. In the panic, as thousands streamed on to the streets not knowing which way to run, a few asked if America was bombing. If it had been a coup or an air strike, the death toll among the residents of sub-Saharan Africa’s biggest city would not have been nearly as large...The bulk of the victims did not die under the exploding shells. Most were hauled from canals into which they jumped or were driven - some still in their cars - by the huge crowds fleeing the shrapnel descending from the sky...”

While the exact number of the dead has never been ascertained, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs stated in its 7th February 2002 report that “over 1,000 people are known to have been killed, but local sources estimate that this figure could range as high as 2,000”.

Most of the victims, according to the report, ran to their death, “with around 800 bodies pulled from the canal site so far and more bodies are suspected to be in the deep mud at the bottom of the canal.” The UN report painted a graphic picture of the tragedy: “As the explosions continued and the area affected increased, still more people joined a rush to escape in darkness and without guidance on

Lebanon Prime Minister, Hassan Diab where to go. Many perished when crowds spilled over into the Oke-Afa canal some three kilometres from the cantonment; many small children were pushed into the deep mud in the canal and drowned. Others were injured because of jumping from height or being trampled underfoot, and some were killed or injured by heavy traffic whilst trying to cross the main Ikeja dual carriageway.”

Most Lagosians will never forget that black Sunday and the explosions that shattered the peace of the state. But just as we are now learning from Beirut, an investigation conducted at the time by the federal government revealed it was an accident that should never have happened, because there were several warnings that went unheeded. The military admitted as much after the tragedy. Investigations revealed that following a mild fire that nearly triggered explosion a year earlier, the Army had been directed to decommission the base but failed to do so. “These are old ammunition depots

The problem of Nigeria can be located in the lack of accountability that cuts across all sectors and all spheres of our national life. And it is also clear that where lives of citizens don’t matter to people in authority, it is futile to expect that there would be fidelity in managing their resources

and there are high-calibre bombs in there.

Efforts have been made in the recent past to try and improve the storage facilities,” said the commander of the cantonment, BrigadierGeneral John Anda. “Unfortunately, I think this accident happened before the higher authority could do what it is supposed to.”

The UN report described the Lagos tragedy as “a typical example of a technological, or man-made, incident when hazardous materials are located in densely populated areas without the necessary prevention and preparedness arrangements for surrounding populations.”

Yet nobody was held accountable for what happened. All that Nigerians got was a terse apology from the Commander of Ikeja Cantonment, not even from the Chief of Army Staff or the then Commander-in-Chief, President Olusegun Obasanjo whose intemperate “I don’t have to be here” retort to an angry crowd at the cantonment became the defining jibe. “On behalf of the military, we are sorry … efforts were being made in the recent past to try to improve the storage facility, but this accident happened before the high authorities could do what was needed.” That statement from the army commander at the Ikeja Cantonment tells a compelling story about our country.

In the aftermath of the tragedy, President Obasanjo pledged that the federal government would construct a link bridge between Ajao Estate and Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) depot in Ejigbo. That promise is yet to be fulfilled. With thousands of people injured and displaced, victims did not receive any support from the government either. Even today, there are several families who cannot account for their relations who may have been buried alive at the Oke-Afa canal. But more significant is the lack of accountability. It is perhaps only in Nigeria that such a monumental tragedy could happen and not a single person would be sanctioned for criminal negligence. I must also add that in Lebanon the people did not just resort to sharing jokes on WhatsApp or throwing tantrums on Twitter; they have been demanding accountability of their leaders for the port tragedy.

In democracies, nothing matters more than accountability which simply means that operators recognize that in any position involving public trust, there are consequences for bad behaviour.

The reason is simple: Accountability not only benefits citizens, it ensures that when things go wrong, there are people to hold responsible. Even with all its challenges, Lebanon’s recognition of this has resulted in officials being detained and the government resigning. In our climes, officials entrusted with onerous responsibilities, including those involving the lives of ordinary citizens, are never held to such standard by their superiors or the public they are supposed to serve. Two examples will suffice.

In April this year, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt General Tukur Buratai, in a public display of bravado, said the war against Boko Haram had “lingered for too long.” After announcing to Nigerians that he was moving to the theatre of the war against insurgency, he told the troops at Ngamdu, a border town between Borno and Yobe States, that he would “not leave this camp until we substantially degrade these criminals...We will be with you in the valleys, on the hill, in the jungle, in the river and so on…We are here and we make sure that we

get ourselves properly motivated, properly equipped and I assure you will have the best of time.”

Not only has Buratai since left the warfront for his cosy office in Abuja, Boko Haram insurgents have in recent weeks regained strength to the extent that in one fell swoop last month, they killed 37 soldiers. We now hear that the insurgents are trying to strike a strategic alliance with international terror networks to expand their base to the North-West.

But Buratai, who has overstayed his tenure, knows he will not be held accountable for the promise he made to the fighting troops or his stewardship in the war against insurgency, despite recent damning allegations from Borno State Governor, Babagana Zulum.

Perhaps it is on the issue of graft that we see the clearest absence of accountability--in both the private and public sectors. While banks now credit the accounts of some clerics to the tune of N573 million in ‘error’, the acting Managing Director of the Interim Management Committee (IMC) of the grossly mismanaged Niger Delta Development Commission (NCDC), Prof. Kemebradikumo Daniel Pondei has told us that he illegally paid out billions of Naira from the public treasury to contractors ‘under duress’ from the National Assembly. There are several other allegations against lawmakers by the IMC whose members also admitted taking “care of ourselves” from the public till. Today, Nigerians are being treated to a multiplicity of in-your-face scandals because the accusers and the accused are well aware that we are running a system that is devoid of accountability and that nothing will happen to them.

From the foregoing, it is clear that what we are dealing with right now are crimes for which there is a collective guilt given the way we have all conspired to elevate elected (and appointed) officials over and above the law. Therefore, whichever way one looks at it, the problem of Nigeria can be located in the lack of accountability that cuts across all sectors and all spheres of our national life, including the secular. And it is also clear, as I once argued, that where lives of citizens don’t matter to people in authority, it is futile to expect that there would be fidelity in managing their resources.

Accountability results in those who work for the people adding value to what they do and being aware that negligence has a cost.

When those in positions of public trust know there are consequences for the choices they make or refuse to make, there is a level of commitment and responsibility that goes into how they perform their roles. If they also know they can get away with any infraction, then where is the incentive to do right? Against the background of what is now happening in Lebanon following the Port explosion, we can see the contrast between their country and Nigeria in terms of both public and official response to tragedies or matters of transparency.

The serial lack of accountability in our system on issues of financial probity or those involving lives of citizens is a subversion of democracy which presupposes that the government represents the people and accounts to (and for) them. Outside that accountability, public officers become outlaws and government becomes nothing but a huge burden. That is a challenge we need to collectively deal with.

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