FRIDAY 30TH SEPTEMBER 2022

W’Bank Approves $750m to Strengthen Business Enabling Environment in States Says 36 states, FCT capable of catalysing private investments FG considers more policy actions to support MSMEs in 2022 finance act Ndubuisi Francis, James Emejo and Deborah Adesoba in Abuja The World Bank yesterday

approved $750 million International Development Association (IDA) credit to support the Nigeria State Action on Business Enabling

Reforms (SABER) Program-forResults.

The Washington-based institution which disclosed this in a statement

yesterday, explained that the IDA credit would help Nigeria accelerate the implementation of critical actions that will improve

the business enabling environment in states.

The approval of the credit by the multilateral institution

came on same day the federal government declared that it was Continued on page 5

Adamu Denies Writing Tinubu as APC Expands Council to over 2,000 Membership... Page 40 Friday 30 September, 2022 Vol 27. No 10031. Price: N250

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Buhari to Judges: Be Impartial Arbiters in Election Matters Deji Elumoye and Chuks Okocha in Abuja

L-R: Presidential candidates, of the Peoples Democratic Party, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar; Labour Party, Mr. Peter Obi; vice presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Kashim Shettima, and presidential candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party, Alhaji Rabiu Kwankwaso, at the signing of the peace accord ahead of the 2023 elections that was organised by the National Peace Committee in Abuja…yesterday

President Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, advised the judiciary to sustain the rule of law in Continued on page 5

2023: Tinubu Absent as Atiku, Obi, Kwankwaso, Others Sign Peace Accord Buhari: Parties should avoid insult, incitement EU, Jonathan, Police IG sue for credible poll INEC vows to monitor parties against abusive campaigns, spending limits Oyalowo: Tinubu is the big masquerade that comes out last Chuks Okocha and Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja Eighteen political parties vying for elective positions in next year’s general election, yesterday, signed an agreement for peaceful conduct before, during, and after the polls, with the presidential candidate of All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Bola Tinubu, conspicuously absent.

The peace accord was put together by the National Peace Committee (NPC), co-led by former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar; Sultan of Sokoto, Sa’adu Abubakar III; Cardinal John Onayeikan; Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Sokoto, Bishop Matthew Kukah, and other eminent statesmen. It

is a non-governmental initiative conceptualised in 2014 with the objective of supporting free, fair and credible elections in Nigeria.

All chairmen and presidential candidates of the 18 registered political parties signed the peace accord under the guidance of officials of the NPC at a ceremony witnessed by a large audience at the International Conference Centre, Abuja.

Seventeen presidential candidates personally signed the agreement along with the national chairmen of their parties, apart from Tinubu, who was represented by his running mate, Kashim Shettima.

But a member of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, Mr. Continued on page 5

PDP Refutes Allegation of Bribery, INAUGURATION OF BODY OF BENCHERS COMPLEX...

Chairman , Body of Benchers , Chief Wole Olanipekun, President Muhammadu Buhari and Chief Justice of Nigeria Justice Olukayode Says It’s Housing Allowance... Page 39 L-R: Ariwoola, during the inauguration of Body of Benchers Complex in Abuja….yesterday

GODWIN OMOIGUI

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Orji: NSIA Has Proven Itself to Be Profitable Entity Creates unit to revamp moribund assets Nume Ekeghe in Lagos, Adedayo Akinwale and Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja The Managing Director, Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) Mr. Uche Orji has disclosed that since its inception, the agency has remained a profitable entity, constantly gaining recognitions and credibility.

He also added that in line with its plans to invest in critical sectors such as motorways, healthcare, power and agriculture which directly impacts on Nigerians, the fund has set a department dedicated to revamping moribund industrial assets.

He said this when he was featured on the ‘Morning Show’ on Arise News yesterday, where he reminisced on his journey since he took the realm as the pioneer Managing Director of NSIA.

He said: “The NSIA has proven itself to be a steadily profitable entity, which is important in gaining credibility internally. The NSIA has had catalytic effects, on a number of sectors where it wanted to focus on be it agriculture, healthcare, toll roads, financial markets, infrastructure, more recently in technology and power which has been very catalytic in terms of the role it has played.

“We have also gained significant external credibility. For seven or eight years in a row, it has been ranked top quartile by the Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute in terms of transparency and governance, which I think is very important for an agency like ours to gain credibility, both at home and abroad.

“So, all of that put together to summarise how it has gone so far and being able to also win the support of our stakeholders,

particularly the federal government and the state government for me is a big mark of the fact that it is accepted domestically as well.”

Speaking on plans to revamp idle assets, he added: “We've created a unit now; the managing director will be driving that unit along with a couple of staff that are senior persons who have joined

sector development.

“Private sector investments remain the major vehicle to create more jobs, increase revenues to the states and improve social and economic outcomes for citizens.”

It noted that the program was in line with Nigeria’s National Development Plan (NDP) that sets an ambitious strategy to pursue sustained private sector-led economic growth that is aimed at generating 21 million full-time jobs and lifting 35 million people out of poverty by 2025.

SABER would support states to improve the efficiency of land administration, the regulatory framework for private investment in fiber optic infrastructure, the services provided by investment promotion agencies and PPP units, and the efficiency and transparency of government-to-business services.

The Task Team Leader for SABER, Bertine Kamphuis said: “Overall, the SABER program looks to consolidate and deepen business enabling environment reforms across more states.

“The use of the Program-forResults model, which ensures disbursement of funds after achieving results, helps the government in strengthening its own program by incentivising institutional performance at the state level through results-based financing. States will be responsible for achieving the program results and thus will be leading the implementation of the program.”

FG Considers More Policy Actions to Support MSMEs in 2022 Finance Act Meanwhile, the federal government has said it was considering further fiscal policy actions in support of MSMEs as work progresses in the preparation of the Finance Act 2022 for the 2023 fiscal year.

Also, taking into cognisance the need to ensure that MSMEs were positioned to take advantage of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) and the opportunities it presents, the government disclosed that the Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning was collaborating with the Federal Ministry of Trade and Investment, Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) and other relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to remove critical binding constraints to the entry of players in the subsector into export markets.

Also, Osinbajo, expressed concerns over the relatively low contribution of MSMEs to export trade considering their significant contribution to nominal Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

Speaking further, the vice president noted that in view of the catalytic role of the sub-sector in local production activities and

had 200,000 patients’ encounters.

“We have seen the toll roads, the second Niger bridge, the Lagos-Ibadan, Kaduna-Abuja at least the Kaduna to Zaria end is done, Abuja-Kaduna work is ongoing.

“We have seen agricultural fertilizer initiatives. We've seen investments in tech, we've seen a

lot of other investments and I think the fact that NSIA could do that tomorrow, we are commissioning a big agric project in Nasarawa state and that farm yielding about seven tons per hectare, as against two for the average Nigerian farm this is in partnership with old mutual and a Dutch investment company.”

2023: TINUBU ABSENT AS ATIKU, OBI, KWANKWASO, OTHERS SIGN PEACE ACCORD Ayo Oyalowo yesterday explained that Tinubu did not attend the peace accord signing because he was resting in London.

Oyalowo, who was reacting to insinuations that Tinubu was in a hospital in London, said: Bola Ahmed Tinubu is in London, he is not in any hospital. He is in London because they would not let him rest in Lagos; he comes into Abuja most of the time and

W’BANK APPROVES $750M TO STRENGTHEN BUSINESS ENABLING ENVIRONMENT IN STATES considering further fiscal policy actions in support of Micro, Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (MSMEs), as work progresses in the preparation of the Finance Act 2022 for the 2023 fiscal year.

The Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, who was represented by the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, at the 3rd Annual Lecture Series of the Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN), with the theme, "Thriving in the Face of Domestic and Global Disruptions," disclosed this in Abuja.

According to the World Bank, Nigeria has made progress in advancing reforms to eliminate constraints in the business environment, especially through actions driven by the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC).

However, it noted that Nigeria’s ability to attract domestic and foreign investment remains low compared to its peers.

“Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) are capable to catalyse private investment but vary significantly in their efforts and ability to do so.

Given the importance of state-level reforms, the government developed a new program—SABER—to accelerate the implementation of critical actions that improve the business enabling environment in Nigeria’s states.

“The government’s SABER program builds on the successes of PEBEC. It aims to strengthen the existing PEBEC-National Economic Council subnational interventions by adding incentives, namely results-based financing to the states, and the delivery of wholesale technical assistance–available to all states–to support gaps in reform implementation,” it stated.

The bank explained that the Program-for-Results supports the most critical state-level business enabling reforms of the government’s SABER program.

The program is open to all states in Nigeria and FCT, given their ability to take concrete steps towards addressing major business-enabling environment challenges around land administration, regulatory framework for private investment in fiber optic infrastructure, publicprivate partnerships (PPP) and investment promotion frameworks and services, and business enabling regulatory environment, the World Bank added.

Commenting on the development, World Bank Country Director for Nigeria, Shubham Chaudhuri said: “Following the significant progress made by states on fiscal reforms through the State Fiscal Transparency, Accountability and Sustainability (SFTAS) program, the SABER program endeavors to offer similar support to the states to undertake critical businessenabling policy and institutional actions that will incentivize private

the organisation to drive that.”

Also commenting on the success recorded by the cancer center at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), some of the tolled roads, fertilizer and agriculture sector, he said: “Healthcare for example, is an area of maximum impact for us. The LUTH Cancer Center alone in the last 18 months has

value-added export, government had prioritised policy support for the robust growth of MSMEs in the National Development Plan 2021-2025, across the key sectors of the economy.

While underscoring the pivotal role of MSMEs, the minister cited the International Finance Corporation (IFC), which declared that between 70 and 95 per cent of new employment opportunities in emerging economies are created

by MSMEs. To ensure their effective contribution to the economy, Osinbajo stressed that it was imperative to ensure they are supported in the acquisition of skills and tools to run their businesses efficiently, manage risks and gain access to finance at competitive and affordable rates.

He said, "The World Bank Group estimates the finance gap among formal MSMEs in developing economies to be 18 per cent of GDP with potential demand for financing among informal MSMEs as high as 11 per cent of GDP. "This underscores the important role played by the DBN in facilitating access to finance and with a total loan disbursement of N482 billion to 208,000 MSMEs in 2021, of which 27 per cent are youth-owned while 66 percent are owned by women, the DBN continues to be a major driver of MSMEs growth in Nigeria."

Citing a recent report jointly released by the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) and the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the vice president said MSMEs accounted for 96.7 per cent of businesses and contributed 46.3 per cent to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

However, he said, they only account for 6.2 per cent of gross exports, explaining that the relatively low contribution of MSMEs to exports was concerning given their significant contribution to nominal GDP. For this reason, he said urgent steps were being taken to alleviate the binding constraints limiting MSMEs' participation in crossborder trade.

Speaking further, Osinbajo catalogued a number of fiscal policy actions adopted by the government to support MSMES in the country, adding that the main policy tools utilised by her ministry in supporting the growth of the MSMEs sector were the annual Finance Acts.

He said, "We have successfully facilitated the approval and implementation of three Finance Acts and have reached an advanced stage in the preparation of the 2022 Finance Act. "The Finance Acts are an omnibus bill to amend relevant tax, excise and duty statues and we have used Continued on page 38

they would still not let him rest.

“This man (Tinubu) has been working for an average of 20 hours daily, so some people thought he needed to leave the country because they would not let him rest. As I speak to you, the issue of today (Peace accord signing) that is being made a big deal, the invitation came after he had left the country.

“Even his running mate Senator Shettima was not in town and had to leave what he was doing in Maiduguri to rush down in Lagos.”

He said the presidential candidate was not taking Nigerians for granted and while others are free to be running around the field, that Tinubu was clearly the big masquerade who would come out last. "Tinubu is the big masquerade in the field and he will come out last."

However, in his goodwill message, President Muhammadu Buhari expressed worry at the recourse to personal attacks, insults, and incitement by politicians in the build up to their campaigns. Buhari enjoined Nigerians, political parties, politicians, security agencies, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), and all stakeholders to ensure that the country was placed above all regional and sectional considerations.

The president cautioned against shifting focus from issue-based campaigns to engagement in mudslinging and provocation.

Buhari stated, "As the president, I have always reiterated my commitment to a peaceful, credible and transparent elections, and what the peace committee has been doing over the years aligns with my belief that Nigeria needs peace in order to achieve credible elections.

"However, the rise of fake news and misinformation continue to pose a significant threat to the pattern of democracy in Nigeria. It has shifted focus away from issuebased campaigns to amplifying the potential for personal attacks, insults, and incitement. It has also significantly diminished the civility and decency in public discourse and debate.”

According to Buhari, the plan undertaken by the peace committee to commit all political actors to peaceful conduct is a welcome development.

He said, "The 2023 general election is more than an election; it is an opportunity to serve Nigeria, to defend Nigeria, and to uphold her unity and progress. Therefore, I call on all Nigerians, political parties, politicians, security agencies, the election management body (Independent National Electoral Commission – INEC), and all

stakeholders to ensure that Nigeria is placed first above regional and sectional claims."

Former President Goodluck Jonathan spoke on his experiences in monitoring elections in some African countries, where he said significant improvement in their electoral processes were recorded.

Jonathan expressed the hope that Nigerians would use the 2023 general election to prove that, indeed, the country was on the part of sustainable progress and development.

Head of European Union Delegation, Samuels Isopi, said Nigeria should be seen as taking a decisive step towards delivering transparent and credible elections in 2023. She said INEC must be allowed to operate independently as provided by the constitution in respect of the organisation of the election.

Addressing the stakeholders, the Inspector General of Police, Usman Baba, urged the leadership of the political parties and their presidential candidates to abide by the provisions and dictates of the Electoral Act, as amended 2022. Baba listed the prohibitive acts, which politicians and their supporters were to avoid in line with the electoral law.

He said two major provisions of the Electoral Act critical to the election were the aspects that prohibited raising of campaign funds from outside the country and controlled donations and spending limits for parties.

Baba also spoke on Section 225 of the Electoral Act, which highlighted issues relating to the falsification of documents submitted for elections, and warned against raising of thugs or armed security by politicians and non-state actors to execute partisan objectives. He stressed that the police would not tolerate any such acts ahead of the elections.

Meanwhile, INEC, yesterday, said it was determined to vigorously monitor compliance, to ensure that political parties shunned abusive, intemperate, or slanderous language as well as insinuations or innuendoes likely to provoke a breach of peace during the electioneering period.

The commission also said it would closely monitor compliance with the limits on campaign spending under the Electoral Act, 2022, stressing that there are sanctions provided by law. INEC chairman, Mahmood Yakubu, stated this at the signing of the peace accord in Abuja.

Yakubu said political parties and their candidates should study and familiarise themselves with the legal framework to avoid any infraction of the law and the consequences that would follow such act.

The INEC chairman said it was not enough to sign the peace accord, as what was more important was to abide by its letter and spirit. He urged political parties and their candidates to pass the message to their members and supporters across the country for compliance.

According to Yakubu, “The 2023 general election will be conducted for 1,491 constituencies nationwide, made up of one Presidential constituency, 28 Governorship elections, 109 Senatorial Districts, 360 Federal constituencies, and 993 State Assembly constituencies. Every constituency is important. Every election is important.

"Therefore, the commitment to peaceful and issue-based electioneering should resonate beyond the 18 party chairmen and presidential candidates present here today.

“It is not enough to simply sign the Peace Accord. What is more important is to abide by its letter and spirit. You should similarly pass the message to all your candidates, members and supporters across the country for compliance. This will be your own way of showing appreciation for the work of the NPC and an affirmation of your contribution to electoral peace in Nigeria.

“Today, the NPC is taking another giant step by inviting parties and candidates to commit to peaceful electioneering. This is important considering the connection between peaceful campaigns, on the one hand, and peaceful and credible elections, on the other.

The commission appreciates the positive role of the NPC in the progressive improvement of our elections in Nigeria.

“The Electoral Act 2022 provides for campaign in public by political parties to commence not earlier than 150 days before polling day.

Accordingly, campaign by political parties for the 2023 general election officially commenced yesterday, Wednesday, 28th September 2022. This will continue until 24 hours before polling day i.e.

23rd February 2023 for national elections (Presidential and National Assembly) and 9th March 2023 for state elections (governorship and Houses of Assembly).

“The implication is that for the next 148 days, political parties, candidates and their supporters are free to traverse the country, holding meetings, rallies, processions and door-to-door campaigns. They will grant interviews, sponsor indoor and outdoor advertisements, and publish other campaign materials. This is often a delicate period characterised by excitement and anxiety.”

BUHARI TO JUDGES: BE IMPARTIAL ARBITERS IN ELECTION MATTERS Nigeria and ensure the integrity of participatory democracy by remaining honest arbiters in pre and post-election matters. Buhari said this at the inauguration of the Body of Benchers Complex in Abuja.

The president went down memory lane, at another event, recalling how the signing of a peace accord with former President Goodluck Jonathan and other presidential candidates in the build-up to the 2015 elections contributed to the peaceful outcome of the polls. He spoke at State House, Abuja, while receiving the National Peace Committee (NPC), led by former military Head of State, General Abdusalami Abubakar.

The president’s comments came as Delta State Governor and vice

presidential candidate of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, urged PDP members to take advantage of what he termed obvious unpreparedness of other political parties, particularly, the governing All Progressives Congress (APC), for the 2023 polls, as demonstrated by their inability to put their acts together.

Speaking while inaugurating the Body of Benchers Complex in Abuja, the president noted that the judiciary had a major role to play in safeguarding fairness in the 2023 elections and ensuring the sanctity of the democratic process.

He said, “As the 2023 general election draws near, the significance of the legal profession becomes

even more pronounced considering the vital roles you play in the electioneering process, both at the pre and post-election stages. I hope you maintain the position of an honest arbiter."

Buhari said his administration would continue to respect and elevate the rule of law, adding, “Adherence to the rule of law is critical to the progress of any society and this administration has not reneged in its commitment to this ideal.”

While congratulating the Body of Benchers, chaired by Chief Wole Olanipekun, for the successful completion of the complex started Continued on page 40

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

PEACE COMMITTEE VISITS BUHARI...

L-R: Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah - NPC Convener, Ms Idayat Hassan, Minister of Defence, Maj Gen Bashir Salihi Magashi (rtd), INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, Gen. Martins Agwai (rtd), Mr John Momoh, Head, NPC Secretariat, Fr Atta Barkindo. (Back Row): L-R: Alhaji Mahmud Yayale Ahmed, SGF, Boss Mustapha, The Sultan of Sokoto, His Eminence, Alhaji Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar III, President Muhammadu Buhari, NPC Chairman and Former Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar (rtd),; His Eminence, John Cardinal Onaiyekan, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Mr Femi Otedola, during the National Peace Committee’s visit to the Presidential Villa Abuja …yesterday GODWIN OMOIGUI

NACCIMA Hails CBN’s Resolve to Fight Inflation, Expresses Concern about High Cost of Fund Dike Onwuamaeze The National Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA) has tasked the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to carry the organised private sector (OPS) along in its effort to tame the continuous rise in inflation.

NACCIMA expressed the view yesterday in a statement titled, “NACCIMA's Position on the Raising of Interest Rate from 14 Per Cent to 15.5 Per Cent by CBN’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC).”

The association said now was the time for a multi-sector, intergovernmental agencies/ ministries, and OPS technical submissions on taming the heightening inflation rate.

NACCIMA stated, “The decision of the MPC of the CBN to raise the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) from 14

per cent to 15.5 per cent is the third move by the central bank in 2022 in response to the continuous increase in inflation rate. Indeed, this approval reflects the resolve of the MPC of the CBN to stem the rising rate of inflation.

Nonetheless, this should have been accomplished in close cooperation with the OPS.” The association noted that the increase in interest rates was merely a strategy to manage the escalating inflation rate, which might not be sufficient to reduce inflation. It highlighted the need to address its underlying causes.

The association stated that the government must ensure monetary stability, continuous electricity supply and security to promote inclusive economic growth in order to reduce inflation.

NACCIMA added, “While

we suspected that the government believed that the country's inflation could be controlled by a one-directional review, we, as the organised private sector, feel that the country's pressing inflationary condition is the result of multiple factors.

“And that relying just on monetary policy to restrain its unabated growth may be ineffective, as opposed to producing the desired outcome.

“The ramifications of the increase in the interest rate would negate the proliferation of ease of doing business, the impact of which most businesses are still uncertain about.”

It stated, “The monetary policy of raising interest rates is unidirectional and would negatively affect both businesses and individuals.

It is never the best policy to

contemplate in the current economic situation, as it is evident that there are other causes of the stunning levels of inflation.

“The encouraging approach to reduce the current rate of inflation is to conduct a comprehensive analysis of all the causes contributing to the inflation's rising trend and to implement control measures that can halt their effects.”

The NACCIMA added, “Following this policy, the majority of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) would begin to have less discretionary income because of increased interest payments, reducing their capacity to invest, reinvest, and hire additional personnel.

“Due to higher interest rates, it would be more challenging for businesses to repay their loans, and the majority could be threatened with insolvency.

Moghalu: Bill Seeking to Remove CBN Governor as Board Chair, Others Destructive James Emejo in Abuja A former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Prof. Kingsley Moghalu yesterday warned that current efforts by the National Assembly to pass a bill removing the apex bank Governor as its Chairman, Board of Directors and remove the powers of the board to fix the bank’s budget was “completely wrongheaded and should be dropped.”

He said such amendment to the CBN Act of 2007, which also seeks to set the salaries of its staff would finally destroy the apex banking industry regulatory institution by dis-robing it completely of its institutional independence as

enshrined in the Act. Moghalu added that the development if allowed would make the CBN a, “statutory corporation under the law, to become a ministry or a mere agency or department of the government,” stressing that it would also, “render the bank an open playground for politicians who are the custodians of our dysfunctional governance.”

In a statement made available to THISDAY, he contended that there were good reasons why the Governor of the Bank is the Chairman of its Board of Directors.

He said, “This is the case in most central banks around the world. This framework protects central banks from external interference.

A

central bank’s policies and its internal administration should objectively advance the interest of the national economy, not the partisan agendas of political parties or individuals.”

Moghalu also said that it was part of the required independence that the CBN creates its own budget and sets its staff pay, adding that it was no accident that the central bank, “is arguably the top repository of public sector talent in the country.”

He said, “This is because of massive investments by the bank in staff development, coupled with high standards of recruitment.”

The former deputy governor of the bank further stressed that though the CBN should

be accountable, “but let’s not throw the baby away with the bath water.”

He said, “The CBN Act already requires the bank to periodically brief the National Assembly on its operations. The President of Nigeria approves and signs the bank’s annual reports and in addition is empowered to approve any change to the legal tender and any investment by the Bank outside Nigeria.

“What needs to be done is to make these accountabilities effective, not to gut one of the most unique and important institutions in any country, and the unique nature of which requires its independence in order to work effectively for the government and the citizens.”

“Consequently, the survival of small and medium-sized businesses is threatened by the rising costs of capital and production, which result in an increase in the price of finished items. This new regulation will cause increased hardship for businesses and individuals.”

It advised government to “undertake a policy review to eliminate additional inflationary drivers. Our hope is that the government will place greater emphasis on the contribution of special industries and Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) to the economy and offer more developmental

financing to mitigate the consequences of production cost increases.”

It also lamented that the effect of the MPR on industries, particularly, the manufacturing sector, was unquestionably substantial, adding that increase in the MPR “can be devastating if too much is done too quickly, as in the instance of Nigeria, which implemented three significant rate hikes within five months.

Therefore, it is essential for Nigeria to tread carefully down this path of business closures, rising inflation, high unemployment, and slow/ stagnant economic growth.”

Afreximbank Launches Trade Payment Services African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) yesterday announced the commercial launch of the Afreximbank Trade Payment Services (AfPAY) – an intervention designed to facilitate the settlement of international trade on open account terms on behalf of identified African financial institutions and their clients.

According to a statement, Afreximbank developed the product specifically to address the banking challenges confronting African economies due to the withdrawal of many international banks from the continent.

“Over the years, financial institutions on the continent have suffered from the reduction in their access to international correspondent banking services to facilitate their international trade.

“This curtailment of trade lines effectively shut the entrance of our Financial Institutions to the rest of the world. Trade is the number one driver of growth, and banks’ inability to participate in trade

transactions will lead to reduced growth in our economies and increased poverty.

“AfPAY, which has been in a pilot phase for over a year now, currently facilitates over half a billion dollars in monthly payments across our member states. Notably, Zimbabwe has participated actively in the pilot, with twenty of its financial institutions using the solution,” the statement added.

Comenting on the launch, the Executive Vice President, Finance & Administration, Afreximbank, Mr. Denys Denya said: “African banks have, for at least a generation, been dogged by the limited access to dependable banking partners willing to support their crossborder trade transactions.

“We are pleased to introduce into the market a product which transforms this dynamic, which we believe will accelerate cross-border trade on this continent, connecting Africa with an international financial eco-system that will accelerate its development and economic growth.”

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NGF GETS NEW SECRETARIAT...

L-R: Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa state; Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State; Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti; Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, and Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal of Sokoto State while standing behind (L-R) Former governor of Zamfara state, Abdulaziz Yari; former governor of River state and former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi and the former GODWIN OMOIGUI governor of Kwara State, Dr. Olusola Saraki at the inauguration of the Governors’ Forum Secretariat in Abuja...yesterday

NLNG Alerts Govt, Stakeholders on Export of Cooking Gas by Some Local Producers Despite in-country Shortages Calls for phased removal of kerosene subsidy, introduction of favourable LPG pricing Says oil theft still hampering its production Peter Uzoho The Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited has drawn the attention of the federal government and other stakeholders to the export of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) commonly known as cooking gas by some local producers of the product despite the scarcity of the energy source in the country.

The company said the trend was going on despite its commitment to supply 100 per cent of its LPG supply into the Nigerian market to ease the shortages and hardship being suffered by Nigerians in accessing the product.

NLNG’s Managing Director/

Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Philip Mshelbila, made these assertions yesterday, while speaking at the Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers' (NALPGAM) 35th Annual General Meeting, held in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. Mshelbila lamented for the umpteenth time, that oil theft and other issues troubling the upstream petroleum sector have continued to hamper its production and LPG supply commitment.

In a statement issued yesterday and signed by the General Manager, External Relations and Sustainable Development, NLNG, Mr. Andy Odeh, the managing director, at the occasion, called on

all stakeholders to collaborate in reversing the trend.

“I think that we need some favourable government policies concerning LPG pricing. We need a utilisation policy that encourages the deepening of this market. The government will need to adopt a phased removal of kerosene subsidies. We all know the challenges that subsidies provide as a whole,” he said.

He noted that NLNG remained committed to the supply of 100 per cent of all its LPG production, which comprised butane and propane, to the Nigerian domestic market despite feedgas and market challenges.

Mshelbila stated that there were challenges that slowed the utilisation of LPG in the country, which he noted, included the inability of the market to completely absorb NLNG’s propane production, leading to its sparse export of propane to avoid tank-top situations at its plant.

He said, “When we made that commitment last year, the intention was that every molecule of butane and propane that we produce in our facility would come into the domestic market and since then we have made every effort to keep to that since January 2022. We have been successful in achieving supply of 100 per cent of our butane

Elumelu Harps on Adoption of Digital Services in Insurance Sector Calls for uniform KYC processes Nume Ekeghe The Chairman of Heirs Holdings and the Founder of the Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF), Mr. Tony Elumelu has stressed the need for operators in the insurance sector to embrace innovation and technology in their operations so as to increase the market penetration and acceptability of insurance in Nigeria.

He made the call yesterday at the Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB) 60th anniversary in Lagos, with the theme: ‘60 Years of Insurance Broking: Redefining the Practice and the Practitioners.’

He also said appropriate sanctions should be given for unethical practices in the sector so as to encourage more Nigerians to adopt insurance.

Speaking further, he said the Know You Customer (KYC) process that had been adopted in the banking sector could be applied in the insurance sector in order to accelerate the adoption of insurance.

He said: “To remain relevant in the modern business arena, the insurance broker community and

by extension, the entire Nigerian insurance industry must embrace technology fully.

“The body (NCRIB) also needs to work towards positioning its members properly for digital integration, mediating between the insuring public and underwriters digitally to embrace technology and digital adoption because the current analogue processes need to be eliminated to improve service delivery to our customers.

“The brokers industry cannot advance when the other financial services are transitioning to online real-time and we are still stuck with a system that relies on hard copy files and documents. The brokerage sector needs to drive clean data for the industry.”

Commenting on areas to improve the sector, he reiterated that unethical practices should not be encouraged.

He said: “An insurance broker must be professional at all times.

In redefining the practice and practitioners in the brokerage profession, NCRIB should lead the war against many of the unethical practices that have been the bane

of the industry for years.

“These include premium rate cutting, delayed premium remittance, unremitted premium, overloading of premium, returned premium, fake documents, fraudulent claims, collusion to defraud, mis-selling, unhealthy competition, misrepresentations, manipulation of policy conditions, self-enrichment methods disguised as marketing expenses, and many more.

“While NAICOM continues to play its role as the industry regulator, NCRIB as a body must ensure that appropriate sanctions are imposed on any of its members found using unethical practices.”

He added: “Let us talk about the need for innovation, the power and imperative need of technology in the 21st century, let's talk about how we should raise awareness of insurance in a country of 200 million people with poor penetration and as a percentage of GDP tiny.

“We need to promote and raise this awareness in our sector and how do we pursue the objective of creating a far and deeper highly capitalised industry that serves the

customers and channels long-term investment to our economy to drive and catalyse other economic activities for growth?

“How do we expand the sector by superior customer experience that helps customers or clients to improve their level of confidence in the sector thereby improving their insurance adoption?”

Speaking on the need for collaboration for seamless KYC adaptation, Elumelu said: “We have the banking sector that is being regulated and they do their KYC on customers with BVN and so many things and then the insurance sector also goes through that same KYC. “Why don’t we collaborate in a way that once a client who is a customer of a bank and can be verified, then we take it that the KYC has been done and then we leapfrog that immediately to serve the customer?

“That is a collaborative action we would need to put in place to change our sector.”

According to Elumelu, the insurance sector plays a pivotal role in any society and provides much-needed safety and security.

production.

"We have not been able to reach 100 per cent with propane, not because we don't want to but because the market capacity to absorb the propane is just not there.

“We intend that all the butane and all the propane that we produce goes into the domestic market whether propane is being used to blend with butane as cooking gas, used as autogas, or used in industry to generate power.

“Our production capacity as NLNG can supply about 400,000 tons per annum which is somewhere roughly about 40 per cent of the current national demand. This means that the balance has to be imported. Last year, we supplied about 400,000 tons per annum into the Nigerian market."

The NLNG boss said the company was able to deliver the 400,000 tons of LPG into the domestic market last year under extremely difficult circumstances where gas supply into its plant was heavily compromised by

numerous upstream factors.

Identifying the single biggest of such factors as crude oil theft, Mshelbila said as a result of the disruption this created, the company's capacity utilisation fell.

NLNG had last August disclosed that oil theft and pipeline vandalism had resulted to the company losing almost $7 billion so far in revenue in 2022 due to gas supply constraints.

The company's General Manager, Production, Mr. Adeleye Falade, who disclosed this at a conference in Lagos, had said the company’s 22 million tons per annum LNG plant’s production was at the time trending at 99.4 per cent year-to-date availability while utilisation hovered around 68 per cent.

Falade had explained that the data between the 99.4 per cent availability and the 68 per cent utilisation, which was equivalent to $7 billion revenue, was part of the effect of the critical oil and gas pipelines that were shut down due to insecurity at the facilities.

Local Refining, Solution to High Price of Aviation Fuel, Stakeholders Say Chinedu Eze Stakeholders in the aviation industry have agreed that the solution to the high price and scarcity of aviation fuel, known as Jet A1 was the local refining of the product.

Owing to this, they called on the federal government to do everything possible to rehabilitate existing refineries and give the needed support to Aliko Dangote to quickly complete his refinery so that it could come on stream and save the airlines from the continuous rise in the price of aviation fuel that is racing to N1000 per litre.

The stakeholders who spoke yesterday at the 51st Annual General Meeting (AGM) and Conference organised by the Nigerian Air Traffic Controllers' Association (NATCA) in Ibadan, Oyo state, said that the high price of the product has had tremendous

negative impact on air transport.

This, they pointed out, had forced airlines to increase fares to accommodate the cost of aviation fuel, which has risen beyond the ability of many Nigerians who hitherto were regular air travellers.

The industry experts also observed that there could be drastic slump in domestic passenger traffic in 2022; at a time the industry was recovering from the economic devastation of COVID-19.

Speaking at the event, the Chairman of the occasion, Prof.

Anthony Kila, lamented that the failure of the government to refine the Jet A1 product locally was negatively affecting the economy.

Kila noted that the aviation industry should be seen as an essential infrastructure by the government, insisting that aviation should not be treated as elitist.

Continues online

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NEWS

60TH ANNIVERSARY COLLOQUIUM AND BOOK LAUNCH BY NCRIB...

L-R: Commissioner for Insurance Mr. Sunday Thomas; Chairman, Heirs Insurance & Heirs Holdings, Mr. Tony Elumelu; President, the Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB), Mr. Rotimi Edu; and Executive Secretary/CEO, The Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB), Mr. Tope Adaramola, at the 60th Anniversary Colloquium and Book Launching of NCRIB, held in Lagos ...yesterday

Atiku: Buhari’s Administration Has Put Knife to the Fabric of Nigeria’s Unity Promises to run government of national unity

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, has blamed the current administration of causing disunity in the country, promising to run a government of national unity if elected.

In a social media broadcast he tagged: “My New Social Contract for a New Nigeria,” the former vice president maintained that the current government has made Nigeria doubt its strength

despite the enormous resources at its disposal.

The politician pledged to rid the country of ‘unprecedented’ malfeasance under the Muhammadu Buhari administration after what he described as the ‘rudderless’ All Progressives Congress (APC) government.

“Our experience of the past seven years plus shows that the government of the APC has made us doubt our strength as a people. In fact, it is safe to say that

the greatest thing that the APC government will be remembered for is how it failed to maintain the integrity of our unity and how it has put a knife between the things that hitherto held us together.

“As the flagbearer (sic) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) powered by the accumulated cognitive experience in leadership in the public service and in business from the private sector, spanning several years, I come with very strong determination

and commitment to rescue Nigeria, unify our people and rebuild our broken bridges of brotherhood, which our founding fathers laboured to erect,” Atiku maintained.

Stressing that Nigeria remains a great nation, full of resources, the PDP presidential candidate noted that this has been broken by the “malfeasance and despair, maladministration, divisive tendencies, pervasive insecurity, economic mismanagement, unprecedented corruption and

Next Administration Must Declare Emergency in Nigeria’s Power Sector, Says Century CEO Argues many Discos not bankable Insists govt must hands off sector, play regulatory role Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja Chief Executive Officer of Century Power Generation Limited, Dr Chukwueloka Umeh, yesterday said that the next administration in Nigeria must from its first day in office declare a national emergency on Nigeria’s crisisridden power sector.

In an interview, Umeh who also serves as an Executive Director of Nestoil Ltd as well as the CEO of Nesto Aviation Services Ltd., warned that the current problems in the sector would continue if the next government fails to deploy professionals to head the ministry of power and its agencies.

Nigeria’s power sector is beset with weak infrastructure, illiquidity as well as the issue of square pegs in round holes, leaving the country with over 200 million persons with just a meagre 4,000mw.

The former General Electric Company official stated that Egypt for example, with a about half of Nigeria's population is producing 57,000mw, while Nigeria continues to struggle to produce 4,000 megawatts, describing it as embarrassing and criminal.

“We should all hide our heads in shame as a country. Some years ago, Nigeria produced 5000mw and everybody was celebrating.

I was like have these people lost their minds?” he said.

Umeh stated that whoever is the next Nigerian president must understand the critical importance of the sector, cut bureaucracy and free the sector from undue government interference, except in a regulatory role.

“It is my hope that whoever is the next president will understand that they need to do something drastically different. They need to be brave. They need to show political bravery and do the right thing.

“They need to remove government handouts from the industry and just have government as a regulator. The administration needs to make sure that the person in charge of the power industry is somebody that understands the industry.

“We don't want just an administrator. We need somebody that clearly understands the industry, somebody like Barth Nnaji who was the minister of power under Goodluck Jonathan , who is a player in the industry.

“He understood the industry well, and he had the motivation to make it work. So we need somebody like that running the industry. Whoever is the president next year, needs to treat this industry as an emergency.

Which means they need to remove all the red tapes stopping

things being done quickly,” he added.

According to the Aerospace Engineer, Nigeria should go beyond mere consultations, committees and conferences to the execution of the blueprint to revamp the sector.

“We need to quickly remove the government's fingers from every part of the sector: Generation, transmission and distribution, and have those people who are not doing well either removed or they are set clear timelines for to fix the problem.

“The next administration needs to reduce the regulations that are barring new entrants from coming into the industry,” he added.

According to Umeh, the Century Power Generation Limited has for years been pursuing a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Company Limited (NBET) without success despite the ready international funding for its project in the country.

“I can tell you today. We have spent about a year or more trying to get approval to move gas on the existing pipeline. It is one meeting after the other. This thing should take about two weeks to do. It is taking over a year and we go to meetings, you speak

English, you generate minutes of meetings and reschedule for another one, just talking and wasting resources. “ So these things need to be made very quick. Remove all the red tape and allow us to do proper business. I tell people it is not rocket science, but even if it is rocket science, we have rocket scientists,” he maintained.

Today, he said that there are a lot of people in the industry that have no business being in the power industry because they don't understand the sector.

“There are a lot of supposed experts that when you speak to them for five minutes, it becomes clear that they don't really know much about the industry,” he stressed.

In the short term, he disclosed that the Century company will keep pushing to have a power purchase agreement signed and executed by the government, while working on utility scale plants that may not be as large as the 1,500mw Okija power plant owned by the company.

“They are not quite as large as Okija plant. Just about 20 to 100 megawatts to supply directly industrial clusters and Discos, this is what we've been working on doing and to make it in such a way that it will be economically viable to us and to the off-takers,” he explained.

rudderless leadership visited on us since 2015.”

According to him, Nigeria now stands on the threshold of history as the PDP begins a historic race of soliciting votes from the electorate, maintaining that the country has dipped below all known standards in social, economic and political benchmarks.

“We have therefore again picked up the gauntlet to lead Nigeria into the new horizon, where every tendency shall find accommodation. We are determined to restore hope, rebuild our broken fabrics and reverse the locust years of bleeding of our commonwealth and place Nigeria on the world map.

“This time, Nigeria shall become a productive nation, forward looking and clearly leading Africa into a new order,” the politician added.

Noting that the international economic system remains very competitive where knowledge resource is the most important tool, Atiku pointed out that those who aspire to be key players must embrace innovative capacity and competitive skills.

He noted that the there has been an overconcentration of power in the federal government, with multiple duplication of public agencies leading to the creation of parallel bureaucracies.

Atiku said that the federating units shall benefit from the devolution of powers to increase their productive capacity for synergy and collaboration with each other in the corporate world as well as create sustainability and employment for Nigeria’s teeming population.

“The organised private sector must be encouraged to lead the charge in the production process while the government is enabler and incentive provider in a conducive environment of doing business.

“The current disorder must give place to a new order where the government will provide the policy and regulatory framework.

We cannot undertake this difficult but necessary journey for the formation without the roadmap,” he argued.

If elected president, Atiku stated that his core objective of will be to unify Nigeria by ensuring that he builds a political and social

process that accommodates all and leaves no one behind.

“To this end, the first direction that our administration will take is to reinvent the principle of government of national unity which will make our administration reflect the peculiar agitations of our people.

“For me therefore, the upcoming election is not a winner takes all exercise. To the contrary, it shall be a winner wins all because I shall make deliberate attempt to win the trust of all Nigerians. We will create an atmosphere that makes all Nigerians take ownership of government and governance,” he said.

With unity restored, Atiku reasoned that it will become easier to approach the other challenges of security, economy, education and devolution of powers.

“We shall restore Nigeria's unity through equity, social justice, as well as ensure cooperation and consensus among the trade unions. We shall establish a strong, effective democratic government that guarantees the safety and security of lives and property with a strong, resilient, competitive and prosperous economy that creates jobs and wealth and lift the poor out of poverty.

“We shall promote a federal system, which will provide for a strong federal government to guarantee national unity, while allowing different federating units to set their own priorities.

“We shall improve and strengthen the education system recipients with the education and skills required to be competitive in the new global order, which is driven by innovation, science and technology to lead healthy, productive and meaningful lives,” he explained.

He pledged to enable Nigeria earn huge global capital, prestige and respect, stating that he comes prepared with requisite skills, capacity and experience.

“My history with the economic team from 1999 to 2007 enabled me to headhunt for Nigerians who have technocratic competence locally and those scattered across the globe.

“A lot of them were encouraged, deliberately enlisted and strategically recruited to come on board and help rebuild Nigeria,” he recalled.

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NEWS

SANI YERIMA VISITS ATIKU...

L- R: Former Deputy Governor of Zamfara State, Muktar Anka; former Governor of Zamfara State, Senator Sani Yerima; former Vice President and the Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar and Ambassador Abubakar Bunu, during a courtesy visit to Atiku at his Abuja residence...yesterday

Telcos Threaten to Halt Banks' USSD Services over N80bn Accumulated Debts

Emma Okonji

Telecom operators (Telcos) under the aegis of the Association of Licensed Telecom Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) have threatened to withdraw the Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) that they offer to banks following an accumulated debt amounting to over N80 billion owed the operators by the banks.

If they make do their threat to disrupt the USSD service, bank customers would not be able to carry out financial transactions on their mobile phones, while using the USSD

codes which are operated without the use of data and mobile app.

The Chairman of ALTON, Gbenga Adebayo, who disclosed this yesterday in Lagos, at a technology event organised by the Nigeria Information Technology Reporters' Association (NITRA), with the theme: 'Creating A Digital Ecosystem in Nigeria-The Hurdles, The gains,' said the banks failed to honour the payment agreement reached between them and telcos, for over two years, hence the debt accumulated to over N80 billion.

According to him, the last

NECO: 60.74% Candidates Scored Five Credits in English, Mathematics Kuni Tyessi in Abuja The National Examination Council, (NECO) has released the 2022 Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination (SSCE) (internal) results with 60.74 per cent of the candidates scoring five credits and above in both English Language and Mathematics out of a total of 1,198,412 candidates.

It stated that when compared to the 2021 SSCE figure of 878,925 which represented 71.64 per cent, the results showed a decrease by 10.9 per cent.

Announcing the results at its national headquarters in Minna, Niger State, the Registrar/Chief Executive, Prof.

Dantani Ibrahim Wushishi, said a total of 1,209,703 registered, of which 1,198,412 sat for the exams.

In a breakdown, he explained that of the 1,198,412 candidates, 630,180 were male, which represented 52.58 per

cent, while 568,232 were female, representing 47.41 per cent.

“Number of candidates with special needs is 1,031 with the breakdown as follows, 98 with albinism, 177 with altism, 574 with learning impairment and 107 visually impaired,” the Registrar stated.

He disclosed that about 13,594 candidates were involved in exam malpractice, which was 0.13 per cent of the total number of candidates that for the exam in 2022, compared to 20,003, representing 1.63 per cent cases recorded in 2021.

Wushishi also revealed that about 29 supervisors were blacklisted for various offences ranging from poor supervision, insult, aiding, and abetting during the exams.

He added, “upon the foregoing, four schools were recommended for derecognition for two years due to their involvement in mass cheating/whole school.”

option left for telcos was to withdraw the service, which the banks had been benefitting from without settling their own part of the agreement.

Adebayo said while some banks have responded and making payments, others have remained unconcerned.

He added that telecommunication operators may decentralise the USSD services based on the accumulated debts from most banks.

According to Adebayo, "When the matter first came to the fore about a year and half ago, the debt was below N40 billion, but because they refused to comply and pay as at when due, the debt continued to rise. Today, it is over N80 billion."

Adebayo threatened that the

USSD service ties may be cut off from defaulting banks.

Speaking on the challenges of multiple taxes operators were faced with in some states in the country, Adebayo said the challenge had become a major concern to the industry, saying there were over 40 different taxes being slammed on the operators.

While emphasising the need for urgent actions to be taken, Adebayo noted that the regime of national tariff should be over.

He said operators may be compelled to introduce discriminatory prices on tariff.

"I don’t see why hostile states should not be treated same way they are treating operators. States that are friendly will be treated same. Plans are on

to introduce discriminatory prices, especially those states, which see telcos as cash cow,"" Adebayo said.

Speaking about the increasing migration of core technology staff who are resigning and relocating abroad, Adebayo said lots of the relocations were indeed needless.

He said some professionals, who left the country ended up becoming social workers without necessarily getting a befitting job.

"The needless migration even become worse for those who are not professionals and most times things get tougher for them," Adebayo said.

He, however, called on governments at all levels to do something that would improve the Nigerian economy, address

insecurity and create jobs that would make Nigerians less eager to travel out.

Giving more insights into the challenges facing the banks, the Executive Secretary, Association of Telecommunication Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), Ajibola Olude, said over 2000 information technology (IT) staff of some banks have resigned and left the country.

Olude said the challenge compounded issues in the banking sector and called for support from the ICT sector.

"The ICT sector, which has contributed so much in growing the Nigerian economy, should be given the necessary backings to contribute more to the growth of the economy," Olude further said.

Yobe North APC Ticket: Lawan Accepts Defeat, Says He Won't Appeal Court Verdict Sunday Aborisade, Abuja The President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, has accepted the judgment of Yobe State High Court which disqualified him from participating in the next year's National Assembly Elections on the ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Lawan in a statement he personally signed yesterday, said he would not appeal the judgment delivered on Wednesday in Damaturu, the Yobe State capital, which denied him the opportunity to represent the Yobe North Senatorial District in the 10th National Assembly.

The Senate President said he, "has accepted the judgment of the court which disqualified his candidature and participation in the elections."

Part of the statement titled:

"Yesterday, Wednesday, 28th September, 2022, the Federal High Court in Damaturu delivered judgment on the rightful candidate for Yobe North Senatorial District for the 2023 National Assembly elections,” read: "The said judgment disqualifies my candidature and therefore my participation in the elections.

"After due consultations with my political associates, supporters and well-wishers, I have decided not to appeal against the judgement. I accept the judgement.

"At this juncture, I deem it appropriate to thank His Excellency, Senator Ibrahim Gaidam for the leadership role in the APC political family in Yobe State.

"I also thank His Excellency, Governor Mai Mala Buni for

the support and brotherhood.

To my constituents, I thank you all for your unflinching support, loyalty and unreserved commitment to the course of building our people and Yobe North Senatorial District and indeed Yobe State.

"I want to assure you that I will continue to serve you in my personal and any other capacity at all times. We journeyed together for a long time, and this journey will remain a life long journey. It has been a wonderful relationship and it can only get stronger. I am indebted to you all. Alhamdulillah."

A Federal High Court sitting in Damaturu, Yobe State had on September 28, affirmed Mr. Bashir Machina, as the authentic candidate of the APC for the Yobe North Senatorial District.

Justice Fadima Aminu,

delivered the verdict in Damaturu, on Wednesday.

She had earlier reserved judgement on the tussle regarding the senatorial ticket after a heated argument between counsels to the plaintiff and the defendants on September 25.

Machina emerged the winner of the primary election supervised by INEC officials.

The senate president did not participate in the primary election.

The suit was filed by Machina.

He filed the suit against the APC, Independent National Electoral Commission and Lawan regarding the primary election held on May 28, 2022.

At the time the primary election was held, Lawan was pursuing his presidential ambition but lost to former Lagos State governor, Bola Tinubu.

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POLITICS

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

The Nsukka Elite Gang-up against Ugwuanyi

Charles Okonkwo writes about the political conspiracy of Nsukka elite against Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State

R

ecent choreographed gang up and attacks on Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State by some Enugu North Senatorial District (Nsukka Zone) elements portray the hypocrisy that undermine Nigerian politics.

It can also be likened to the opposition’s demonisation and de-marketing of former President Goodluck Jonathan in the run up to the 2015 general election.

Reacting to the attacks sometime in March 2015, Jonathan said: “Anytime you listen to them (APC), you will see bitterness in their hearts. Bitterness, venom, anger, as if somebody has taken their properties”.

Today, hardly any day passes since the emergence of Dr. Peter Mbah as PDP governorship candidate without one reading one diatribe or the other sponsored to run down Ugwuanyi and Mbah. Whether it is express attacks or innuendos by one Enugu North politician or the other; whether it is hate-filled publications by known and faceless writers, one thing runs through them all: palpable indignation, bitterness, and venom – as if someone has taken their properties (apologies Jonathan).

If it is not the perennial governorship contestant-turned 2023 senatorial ‘candidate’ of the Labour Party, Chief Okey Ezea, alleging that Ugwuanyi has not done well for his Nsukka Zone or empowered them individually with government contracts, it is the incumbent Senator representing the zone, Chuka Utazi, claiming that Ugwuanyi is incapable of quality representation at the Senate.

If it is not Nnia Nwodo weaving perfidy and whipping up Nsukka sentiments behind the scene to make his son-in-law, Chijioke Edeoga, governor, it is Edeoga and his hatchet writers pouring allegations of misgovernance on Ugwuanyi and also claiming he didn’t allow his Commissioners to take initiatives; or Prince Emeka Mamah circulating malicious articles alleging that Ugwuanyi merchandised the Enugu PDP governorship ticket to Dr. Mbah.

The list goes on. Yet Edeoga served as Commissioner in Ugwuanyi’s two terms and didn’t bother to resign in protest until he threw his hat in the governorship ring. Also, Mamah served as Commissioner throughout Ugwuanyi’s second term and didn’t resign until his misadventure into the PDP’s House of Representatives ticket for Igboeze North/ Udenu Federal Constituency.

During a recent public lecture at the University of Nigeria Nsukka, Utazi told Nsukka people: “The Senate is not just for anybody; it is not a job for anybody, who has been a former governor.... Nsukka people must not elect somebody simply because he is leaving office as governor”.

Although he didn’t mention Ugwuanyi, everyone knew he took a dig at the governor, who is the senatorial candidate of the PDP in Enugu North.

Ironically, Ugwuanyi already had many years of experience in the National Assembly long before Utazi, whose representation of Enugu North District cannot be cited anywhere as an example of quality representation.

It will at best be remembered for his scrotum analysis on live television and the hoarded 228 motorcycles, 51 tricycles, 203 grinding machines and five transformers, etc. worth over N117 million by him, which the Independent Corrupt Practices and Related Offences Commission (ICPC) uncovered, while his constituents pined away in penury.

The hypocrisy in all these attacks is that only yesterday, these men praised Ugwuanyi to high heavens, while the likes of Edeoga and Mamah groveled before him.

Addressing a meeting of Enugu North Senatorial District PDP delegates and stakeholders on 1st May 2022, this same Utazi announced that he didn’t purchase PDP nomination form in order to give Ugwuanyi maximum support and allow him a hitch-free

that you do the things you are supposed to do.

We are here to also reassure that you have our backing. Our case is not just political. The followership and backing are also spiritual. And you have our spiritual backing too. We are going to continue this support at the voting level during the general elections”.

Utazi was not alone. The member representing Nsukka/Igbo-Eze South Federal Constituency, Hon. Pat Asadu; the member representing Nsukka East Constituency, council chairmen, women and youth groups, and virtually all the who is who in Nsukka Zone were unanimous in their endorsement of Ugwuanyi, reassuring him of their “resolute support and loyalty”.

Chief Nnia Nwodo, on his part, has always been effusive with admiration and encomiums for Ugwuanyi. During the 29th anniversary of Enugu State in August 2020, for example, Nnia Nwodo emphatically stated: “There is no other state in the country that has paid December salary two times except Enugu State. We have noticed with admiration the emphasis of your capital development. I noticed the number of primary and secondary schools, in all the local government areas of the state, renovated every year under your administration. I went to spy at what your administration did at Ekulu Primary School, GRA, Enugu. It is amazing. What progresses the world today is education. I noticed the number of general hospitals and health centres springing up in the rural areas.” passage to the Senate as a reward for the great work he said the Governor had done for Nsukka people and Enugu State.

He equally vowed that Enugu North Senatorial District would stand with Ugwuanyi or whoever he endorsed as his preferred

governorship candidate.

In his words: “We will follow our brother and leader (Ugwuanyi); we are going to be behind you; and pray that God will guide you to take these decisions. We are here to give you reassurance that it is ordained by God

-Okonkwo writes from Enugu NOTE: Interested readers should continue in the online edition on www.thisdaylive.com

Akwa Ibom at 35: Bringing in the Sheaves Deputy Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Moses Ekpo, has been privileged to serve in the first executive council when Akwa Ibom was created 35 years ago. He highlights why the state should roll out the drums in celebration

“H

e that goeth forth and weeping, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him” – Psalm 126:6.

That rhapsody of arrival and biblical “Uhuru” celebration song beautifully crafted by the Patriarch David, at once sets the tone and captures the nuances of the 35th Akwa Ibom State-Creation Anniversary, with the theme: “Moving Forward”.

The phrase, “precious seed”, is a fitting metaphor for the vision of our forebears with regards to the political and administrative self-determination which they sought. Given the depth of the agony from its birth-pangs; the unusual twists and turns of the struggle, and the stoical perseverance of Akwa Ibom founding fathers, there certainty was something mystical about the Akwa Ibom Project. It was indeed an odyssey of fate.

The story of Akwa Ibom State can be likened to the story of the Jews as captured in the Old Testament book of Exodus.

The summary of the odyssey involves the formation of the Ibibio Union in 1928, and later the Ibibio State Union in 1948, with our fathers demonstrating consistency in the quest for self-determination; first, under the banner of the COR State Movement, COR signifying Calabar; Ogoja and Rivers. This quest led to the creation of the South Eastern and former Cross River States respectively with the dream of the Mainland people yet unachieved.

On the 25th of February 1978, the then Paramount Rulers of the 10 Local Government Areas in the Mainland part of the

state: Uyo, Abak, Oron, Ikot Abasi, Ikono, Ikot Ekpene, Itu, Ukanafun, Etinan and Eket; added their Royal voices to the agitation for state creation. This and many other coalitions of efforts eventually culminated in the creation of Akwa Ibom State on September 23, 1987, by President Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida.

The newly created Akwa Ibom state expectedly presented a drab profile of a toddler in dire need of fostering-care. Apart from the Civil Service, whatever economy there was, drew its strength from the subsistent activities of famers, fishermen and other categories of small-time business people.

There was dearth of basic infrastructure; the capital city of Uyo was a rural, dusty local government headquarters. The roads were not paved; and a handful of paved roads were filled with potholes. Accommodation was a huge problem. It can therefore

be rightly said that the new state capital was a glorified village - though the hope and faith of the people in their ability to overcome these challenges were deep and infectious.

The provision of infrastructure was a critical necessity for the regimes of the Military Governors of the state: Col. Jonathan Tunde Ogbeha; Col. Godwin Osagie Abbe; the late Wing Cmr. Idongesit Okon Nkanga; Lt. Col Yakubu Bako; the late Navy Capt. Joseph Adeusi and Group Capt. John Ebiye.

So also were infrastructure and other basic human needs, the pressing necessities for the civilian administrations of the late Obong Akpan Isemin; Obong Victor Attah and Obong Godswill Akpabio.

These men deserve commendation for the strong economic, industrial and infrastructural foundation they laid as receptacle for the economic revolution, including the state-of-the-art infrastructure, made possible by the present administration; particularly so, Obong Victor Attah, a renowned Architect, who justifiably holds the patent for the airport project and the general blue-print for the development of the state.

This was essentially the situation on ground when Mr. Udom Emmanuel, an investment banker, appeared on the scene in 2015, crying out: “Hey guys, we shouldn’t eat our seeds, we plant them for more and more seeds before consumption”.

-Ekpo writes from Uyo NOTE: Interested readers should continue in the online edition on www.thisdaylive.com

17

T H I S D AY ˾ FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 30, 2022

POLITICS

EPISTLES of ANTHONY KILA

Why Celebrating Nigeria’s Trevor Noah’s Success, the Nigerian and African Independence Anniversary on October 1?

Diaspora Anthony Kila wonders if there is any need to roll out the

Chido Nwangwu writes about the exploits of South drums to celebrate Nigeria’s independence anniversary African-born Trevor Noah in the United States and ear Readers the need for Africans in diaspora to emulate him A few hours after reading

T

revor Noah personifies the new generation of recent, continental African immigrant who are fyling the flags of individual excellence and group distinction at all fields and stations of professional engagements, in the U.S and around the world.

They are the new ambassadors of next.

They’re catapulting their legit’ hustle, through their local streets and Nollywood-type studios and music production studios and all, into corporate America, borrowing from one rapper held it down in one of his hits.

The bottomline is that the sheer force and value of their creative efforts are generating billions in e-commerce transactions, afrobeat music and fashion and acting on our plenipotentiaries of success. Worthy. Savvy. Outstanding.

They’re the disciples of the three great men: MLK. Mandela. Achebe, And, in some ways, partly Malcolm X. Why not?

By all means necessary, X emphatically stated!

They have global knowledge and they are culturally sophisticated. They have quality education from international learning centers of the world. And so many of them, were trained in the African continent – when schools universities especially are in session In some African countries especially in Nigeria, universities and many public schools are shut due to usually unpaid and poorly paid teachers’ strikes.

Since, it has been a very impressive flourish and representations of artistic and comedic genius across cultures, generations and worldviews.

Trevor’s hosting of the White House correspondents’ dinner of 2022 remains, in my assessment, the most engaging intersection of comedic commentary on the politics, social and times and events here in United States. Like the great writer Chinua Achebe, in very simple and uncomplicated style, Trevor makes sense! He does not engage in obscure and convoluted comedy zingers.

He is the host, writer and executive producer of The Daily Show. Trevor Noah is among the most influential cultural and social personalities in the United States -He’s, originally, from South Africa where he was born on February 20, 1984.

His mother’s Black South African and father’s White, from Switzerland. In 2014,

Noah became the Senior International Correspondent for The Daily Show, and in 2015 succeeded iconic host Jon Stewart.

His autobiographical comedy book, Born a Crime, was published in 2016. He hosted the 63rd Annual Grammy Awards in 2021 and the 64th Annual Grammy Awards edition in 2022.

The superbly talented Trevor Noah relocated to the United States in 2011.

He’s delivered one of the better definitions and descriptions of identity — especially regarding race. I watched him during an interview by Joann Stern of The Wall Street Journal with Trevor, the production and writing team of The Daily Show.

Reflecting on the composition of the ethnic origins of the players for France national team at the last World Cup said that it was Africa that won the World Cup! Ambassador of France to the United States wrote a protest letter to him. Ambassador argued that they were all French men not Africans. He had a good laugh at that but Trevor pointed out you can be of African origin and also be a French man or person. He stated that one of the things he admired about America is the fact that In the U.S., individual identities are celebrated within Americaness!

This leads me to ask the critical question: how many African countries and societies cherish and respect the celebration of individual identities while upholding and maintaining the larger interests and diversity of the society? What is the optimal balance of the two parts? If the governments and non-governmental groups optimally engage their diaspora it would benefit the specific country and the entire African continent, simultaneously.

I do believe that the diaspora of any country is its pride and the Nigerian diaspora community have excelled in many ways and our governments should involve them through appointments and opportunities.

In the United States, the doors of history and empowerment are continuing to open at the highest levels of the governmental and corporate leadership of the United States for the Nigerian, African and African-American communities; indeed for all the communities.

For example, a major door was opened on December 1, 2020 when President Joe Biden nominated and got confirmation for the influential position of the deputy Secretary of the Treasury for the Nigerian-born Adewale Adeyemo. The president has appointed many more from the diaspora. I still remember vividly the words of Adeyemo when he said: “I’m honored to be a part of this talented team and to work with them and all the American people to build an economy that gives everyone that chance and turns our nation once again from crisis to hope.”

Is that really too much to ask of Nigeria, the African continent and its leadership?

-Nwangwu is Founder & Publisher of the first African-owned, U.S-based newspaper on the internet, USAfricaonline.com Follow him @Chido247

D

this epistle, those of you living in or connected to Nigerian affairs will be inundated with conversations about the celebration of the anniversary of Nigeria’s independence.

Easy to predict because nothing has really changed. There will be ceremonies, analysis, lamentations, accusations, justifications platitudes and promises about Nigeria.

The executive president and commander in chief of the armed forces of the celebrated republic will give a speech, some governors and other political gladiators will offer their messages too, some will do it in person others will do so via proxies or press statements, prayers will be held, event planners and entertainment impresarios will throw some gig in various shades here and there, television and radio stations will offer some roundtables and documentaries around the history and development (or shall we say trajectory) of Nigeria.

Yes, all these will happen because we are at that time of the year again that starts on the 1st day of October.

Let us be clear, October 1st is not a Fourth of July wherein Americans have for centuries voluntarily as individuals and groups celebrated the birth of a new nation based on ideas and law that in notion has no place for preference based on creed or crib.

October 1st is not a 14th July on which the French have for centuries used military parades, fireworks, folk dance and popular music organized at local government levels, celebrated the storming of the Bastille that symbolizes the triumph of people over the “Ancien Régime” and creation of nation of equals wherein altar and crown are replaced with law and reason.

For too many Nigerians, 1st October and connected days of public holidays are just days to rest from the usual rat race they have to cope with, it is an opportunity to catch up with social and private engagements such as weddings and funerals.

If you think that is apathetic or even bad wait till you see or hear those who just rain curses on government and country and express regrets and pains at the thought of celebrating the country called Nigeria.

Can we really in conscience and knowledge blame them? A look at the lives of many Nigerians will make you understand why they not feel a tremendous urge to celebrate a country where they still have to individually provide for basic needs that in every modern society should be government’s duty such as water, stable power supply, basic education, viable roads to work and trade and even security.

There are too many old Nigerians who honestly worked all their lives and saved but now see their savings worthless due to inflation in a state that has no institutional and societal regard or distinct plan for the aged.

Little wonder the old continue to compete with the young for fame, power and fortune.

There are too many young Nigerians who rather live outside the shores of the country than remain.

Unlike the generations before them, that left with hope of acquiring knowledge or maybe fortune and then return to improve the lot of family and country, these new Nigerians are leaving out of desperation, anxiety and hatred for the land that they see as barren, corrupt and corrosive. There are also too many of those who even though somehow have found the formula to remain and thrive

in the country however do not keep their most valuable treasure in the country where they make has given them wealthy.

When possible, their children study outside the country, their health is not reliant on the health system of the country, their holidays are not within the country, they even save in foreign currencies and watch foreign media more than Nigerian media.

I cringe when we see reports that compare how much corporate Nigeria spends on foreign media and how much she does on Nigerian Media. Can we in knowledge and conscience blame them though? It is easy to understand why so many are not so enthused to join in celebrating the making of Nigeria.

Truth is that the Nigeria they know is not the one that was conceived 62 years ago.

The country that was conceived, desired and laboured for and unveiled on the 1st of October, 1960 was a truly federal even regional state that understood diversity and respected the rule of law.

The founders of that Nigeria had great ideas expressed in inspiring speeches and backed by great even ground breaking projects.

The early leaders saw themselves on mission to do great things that will make Africa and the whole of the black race (if there is anything like that) proud of them.

Guess what? They did great things in the very brief period they were chanced to operate.

It is useful and enough to recall here the letter written in October 1961 on the 1st anniversary independence of Nigeria to the then Governor General of Nigeria, Dr.Nnamdi Azikwe by the then American President, John F Kennedy, who in part wrote “This first year of your nationhood has been a highly auspicious one. It has seen Nigeria take its place with distinction among the family of free nations. It has seen the emergence of wise and far-reaching plans for the social and economic betterment of the Nigerian people.

In essence, it has been a period in which firm foundations have been laid for the future of a great nation”.

The Nigeria most know today is not the one born in 1960. It is not the Nigeria that JFK wrote about, it is not the Nigeria requested for by Anthony Enahoro or the one that hosted the feats of Obafemi Awolowo, it is not the Nigeria that saw the premiership of Michael Okpara and Ahmadu Bello or the prime ministership of Tafawa Balewa. The Nigeria most know today was born in 1966 baptised in 1976, confirmed in 1983 and died in 1993.

-Kila is Centre Director at CIAPS Lagos. www.ciaps.org.

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

18

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2022 ˾ T H I S D AY

FOREIGN DESK

COMPILED BY BAYO AKINLOYE

Switzerland, US, Sweden Named World’s Most Innovative Economies

The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) cites top-ranked Switzerland, followed by the United States and Sweden, as the world’s most innovative economies.

WIPO uses some 80 indicators to rank the innovative performance of 132 economies. These include measures on the political environment, education, infrastructure, business sophistication and knowledge creation of each economy.

The latest annual report shows some interesting moves in the rankings and the emergence of new powerhouses. Switzerland, once again, comes out on top. The United States moves up one position in the rankings to second place, followed by Sweden, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands.

A co-editor of the Global Index, Sacha Wunsch-Vincent, said 11th-ranked China is the only middle-income country to have made it this far. He said other emerging economies, such as Turkey and India, have put in strong performances, and countries in Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa have made some significant upward moves.

Finland Bars Russian Tourists After Thousands Enter Country

The Finnish government announced it is closing its borders to Russians with European tourist visas effective midnight Thursday night after thousands of people recently streamed over their shared border with Russia.

At a news conference in Helsinki Thursday, Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto told reporters the government is taking action because the current situation “endangers Finland’s international relations.” He said Finland had discussed the plan with Ukraine and other nations before making a decision.

Since last week’s announcement, Russian President Vladimir Putin was seeking to “mobilise” 300,000 reservists for his war in Ukraine, nations sharing borders with Russia have seen thousands of Russian citizens entering their countries. Reuters news service reports Finland saw an 80 per cent increase in border crossings.

Vice President Harris, at DMZ, Condemns North Korea ‘Dictatorship’

US Vice President Kamala Harris condemned North Korea’s “brutal dictatorship” and “destabilising” weapons program during a visit Thursday to the demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas.

North Korea launched ballistic missiles both before and immediately after Harris’ stop at the DMZ, adding to what has already been a record number of North Korean launches this year.

Harris condemned the missile tests at the Panmunjom Truce Village that straddles North and South Korea, saying they are “clearly a provocation.”

“In the North, we see a brutal dictatorship, rampant human rights violations and an unlawful weapons program that threatens peace and stability,” she said.

Harris earlier Thursday met with South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, a conservative who has pushed to improve ties with the United States.

“Our shared goal, the United States and the Republic of Korea, is a complete denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula,” Harris said, using South Korea’s official name.

Vatican Sanctions Nobel Laureate over Sexual Abuse Allegations

The Vatican said Thursday it had imposed disciplinary sanctions on Nobel Peace Prize-winning Bishop Carlos Ximenes Belo in the past two years, following allegations that he sexually abused boys in East Timor during the 1990s.

The Vatican admission came a day after a Dutch magazine, De Groene Amsterdammer, exposed the claims against the revered East Timor independence hero, citing two of Belo’s alleged victims and reporting there were others who hadn’t come forward in East Timor, where the Catholic Church wields enormous influence.

Spokesman Matteo Bruni said the Vatican office that handles sex abuse cases received allegations “concerning the bishop’s behaviour” in 2019 and within a year had imposed the restrictions. They included limitations on Belo’s movements and his exercise of ministry and prohibited him from having voluntary contact with minors or contact with East Timor.

In a statement, Bruni said the sanctions were “modified and reinforced” in November 2021 and that Belo had formally accepted the punishment on both occasions.

The Vatican did not explain why Belo resigned as head of the Roman Catholic church in East Timor two decades early in 2002 and was sent to Mozambique, where he was allowed to work with children.

Taliban Forcefully Disrupt Afghan Women’s Rally Supporting Iran Protests

A group of women in Afghanistan’s capital, Kabul, Thursday staged what was the first demonstration in support of protests in Iran before being forcefully

dispersed by Taliban authorities.

The rally comes as nationwide protests continued in the neighbouring country over the death of a young woman, Mahsa Amini, while in detention by morality police in Tehran for failing to cover her hair with a hijab properly.

Witnesses in Kabul said that about 30 female activists in headscarves gathered outside the Iranian embassy chanting, “Women, life, freedom” — slogans used during Iranian protests. They also held banners that read, “Iran has risen. Now it’s our turn!” and “From Kabul to Iran, say no to dictatorship!”

Taliban security forces snatched and tore the banners before firing in the air to disperse the rally. Organizers later said the demonstration was held to show “support and solidarity” with the Iranian people and the women in Afghanistan.

ICC Trial of Alleged Rwandan Genocide Financier Begins

The International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague opened the trial Thursday of one of the last major suspects in the 1994 Rwandan genocide, an 87-year-old businessman and radio station owner accused of helping fund and promote the mass killings.

Confined to a wheelchair, Felicien Kabuga refused to appear in person or via video link at the start of the trial, citing a dispute regarding his lawyer, but judges ruled the case must go forward.

Kabuga’s lawyers argued unsuccessfully that he was not fit to stand trial. However, on the advice of doctors who examined him, the process will run for just two hours per day.

Kabuga was arrested near Paris in 2020 after being on the run for many years with a $5 million bounty on his head. He was extradited to the Netherlands and charged with three counts of genocide and two counts of crimes against humanity, primarily for promoting hate speech through his broadcasting business, Radio Television Libre des Milles Collines.

He is also said to have funded weapons for ethnic Hutu militias and other extremists in Rwanda’s Hutu majority, which killed more than 800,000 minority Tutsis and Hutu moderates.

US, Pacific Island Leaders Reach Partnership Deal at Historic Summit

The United States and Pacific leaders have reached a nine-point Declaration on US-Pacific Partnership as Washington hosts its first summit with leaders from Pacific Island nations.

As the historic summit enters its second day, the US is set to announce more than $810 million in expanded programs to aid the Pacific islands. According to a senior administration official, the US has provided upwards of $1.5 billion to support the Pacific Islands over the past decade.

Following appropriate consultations, the US

also pledged to recognise the Cook Islands and Niue as sovereign states. While both Cook Islands and Niue have full constitutional independence from New Zealand and act as independent countries, the US considers them as self-governing territories and has not established formal diplomatic relations.

US President Joe Biden will appoint a first-ever US envoy to the regional Pacific Islands Forum. USAID will re-establish its mission in Suva, Fiji, by September 2023.

Washington’s plan to deepen diplomatic engagement with the Pacific comes as concerns grow about China’s expanding influence in the region.

Earlier, the Solomon Islands had indicated it would not sign a joint declaration during the high-profile gathering, just five months after it signed a security agreement with China.

Pentagon Announces $1.1bn More in Military Aid for Ukraine

The Pentagon is providing an additional $1.1 billion in aid to Ukraine, bringing US military assistance to nearly $17 billion since the Biden administration took office.

The latest package includes funding for 18 more High-Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems or HIMARS, and their ammunition, weapons that US defence officials say have proven highly effective in helping Ukraine defend its territory since Russia invaded the country in February.

The US has already provided Ukraine with 16 HIMARS, and a senior defence official told reporters Wednesday that the Biden administration was starting the procurement process for the next 18 because they would take “years” to procure, build and deliver.

The latest package funds the procurement of weapons and equipment under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, which funds contracts focused on Ukraine’s long-term defence and security needs.

According to the senior defence official, other weapons and equipment in the $1.1 billion package will take anywhere from two months to two years to deliver to Ukraine.

UN Condemns Russia As Putin Annexes 4 Ukrainian Territories Today

The United Nations Secretary-General strongly condemned Russia’s plan to formally annex four areas of Ukraine in a ceremony on Friday, saying it is illegal and “must not be accepted.”

“The UN Charter is clear,” Antonio Guterres told reporters Thursday. “Any annexation of a state’s territory by another state resulting from the threat or use of force is a violation of the principles of the UN Charter and international law.”

He said any decision to annexe the four Ukrainian territories of Donetsk, Luhansk in the east and Kherson and Zaporizhzhia in the south, would have “no legal value

and deserves to be condemned.”

Guterres warned that if Russia goes ahead with its planned annexation, it will be a “dangerous escalation” and will further jeopardise the prospect for peace.

The Kremlin announced earlier it would hold a ceremony on Friday to incorporate the four areas of Ukraine into Russia officially.

The move has been dismissed as illegitimate

by Ukraine and its allies, who are readying new sanctions against Moscow in response.

India’s Top Court Legalises Abortion Regardless of Marital Status

India’s top court on Thursday upheld the right of a woman to an abortion up to 24 weeks into pregnancy regardless of marital status, a decision widely hailed by women’s rights activists.

The right to abortion has proved contentious globally after the US Supreme Court overturned in June its landmark 1973 decision in Roe v. Wade that had legalized the procedure across the United States.

“Even an unmarried woman can undergo abortion up to 24 weeks on par with married women,” said Justice D.Y. Chandrachud of India’s Supreme Court.

A law dating from 1971, the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act, limited the procedure to married women, divorcees, widows, minors, “disabled and mentally ill women,” and survivors of sexual assault or rape.

“The decision to have or not to have an abortion is borne out of complicated life circumstances, which only the woman can choose on her own terms without external interference or influence,” the court ruling said.

It added that every woman should have the “reproductive autonomy” to seek an abortion without consulting a third party.

Chinese Tycoon Richard Liu Faces Trial in Alleged Rape

A Chinese billionaire, one of the richest people in the world, is heading to trial in Minneapolis to defend himself against allegations that he raped a former University of Minnesota student after a night of dinner and drinks in 2018.

Richard Liu, the founder and former CEO of e-commerce giant JD.com, has denied raping the woman, and prosecutors did not file criminal charges. The woman, Jingyao Liu, sued in civil court, alleging she was coerced to drink before Richard Liu groped her in a limousine and raped her in her apartment.

Both are expected to testify, and it will be up to a jury to decide who is telling the truth. Jury selection starts Thursday, with opening statements Monday.

Diane Doolittle, an attorney for Richard Liu, said that the woman has changed her story and that the evidence will clear her client’s name.

T H I S D AY ˾ FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2022

19

BUSINESSWORLD R A T E S MONEY MARKET

A S

A T

REPO

Group Business Editor Eromosele Abiodun Email oriarehu.eromosele@thisdaylive.com

08056356325

S E P T E M B E R T S & P INDEX

2 9 , 2 0 2 2

S & P INDEX

EXCHANGE RATE

OPR

11.25%

CALL

10.25%

INDEX LEVEL

613.31%

1/4 TO DATE

-0.85%

N416.86/ 1 US DOLLAR*

OVERNIGHT

11.50%

1-MONTH

9.56%

1-DAY

0.16%

YEAR TO DATE

7.64%

*AS AT LAST FRIDAY

3-MONTH

10.52%

MONTH-TO-DATE

0.44%

FG Begins Strategic Moves to Further Secure Nigerian Airports from Incursions

Chinedu Eze To permanently put an end to airport incursions by unauthorised persons, the federal government has embarked on series of efforts to fortify the major and some other airports in the country.

Some of the airports include the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano, Port Harcourt International Airport, Omagwa and the Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu.

This year alone, the Lagos airport recorded two incidents due to security lapses. In January this year, an aircraft leased by Arik Air was accessed and critical equipment was stolen at the domestic terminal of the airport.

Also, in September 2022, a man boarded United Nigeria Airlines aircraft parked at the domestic section of the airport.

In response to these incidents, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has started series of security programmes to improve the security architecture of the airports.

The agency said it has improved the security patrol of the Lagos and other international airports in the country and has concluded plans to install airport security cameras that captures and follows the direction of every movement around it.

This, FAAN said, would be installed at the perimeter area of the airports in addition to close circuit television already installed at these airports.

The Managing Director of FAAN, Capt. RabiuYadudu, disclosed that the agency had also increased security and safety

within the airport environment by ensuring constant lighting through the walkways and the car park for the safety and comfort of airport users.

He said CCTV was put in place strategically all around the airports for increased security and monitoring and telephone numbers made available for the report of any suspicious movement around the airport.

In addition to these efforts, FAAN said it is also reviewing and upgrading of perimeter fencing and operational road construction and

maintenance at many airports.

Yadudu said the fortification of security at airports in the country, would include the training of security personnel, coordination of joint security operatives including the agency’s Aviation Security (AVSEC), the police, the Nigeria Air Force and other security operatives to man each airport.

FAAN added that it has also acquired and installed security equipment to add to the existing ones and also removed the obsolete ones to ensure efficient security system and to ensure that every

passenger who passed through any of the airports is captured both on domestic and international travel.

“We just installed brand new scanning machines at the Lagos airport recently. We installed about 15 at the Lagos airport alone and more will still be installed. We have installed the walk-ins security equipment. These include L3 scanning machines. I think five is number of the walk-through and additional 10 are the scanning machines. We don’t talk too much Continued on page 21

‘Nigeria May Lose Out of AfCFTA Benefits Due to Gaps in Standardisation’ James Emejo in Abuja Stakeholders in the agri-business sector have expressed concerns that the lack of a standardisation policy for the country may deny Nigeria the much-expected benefits of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement whose implementation had already commenced.

They believed that as actual trading among African countries is about to begin in

earnest, Nigerian SMEs seemed unprepared to take advantage of the opportunity presented by the agreement because they are still lagging behind global best practices.

The stakeholders at a one-day consultative workshop on the development of the national Agricultural Commodity Standards Grading System (AgCSGS) and Policy Framework, said a lot still needed to be done in terms of the quality of products and

services SMEs supply, particularly agricultural commodities.

In an interview with THISDAY, Director-General, Nigeria AgriBusiness Group (NABG), Mr. Manzo Maigari, said compliance and alignment with the global benchmark for standards and trading is currently lacking among Nigerian businesses.

He said, “But in modern business and trade today, people want to be sure of the quality, the sanitation, and the hygiene of

what you are selling and if they cannot, be sure that you cannot have access to their markets.

“We can play locally and manage and do whatever we want to do but if we want to sell internationally, if we want to be competitive in agriculture globally, then we must comply and align ourselves to global benchmark for standards and trading. And this is what does not exist currently in Nigeria.”

Maigari, however, said, as

custodians of agri-business in the country, NABG had taken the initiative to bring stakeholders together both in the public and private sectors with a view to crafting a policy that would enable Nigeria to compete favourably in Africa and across the world.

He added, “You already are aware that our efforts to export have always been frustrated because you hear rejects here and there when our products are

exported, you hear that they have been rejected and the whole idea has to do with the fact that we do not have a policy framework that ensures standards, quality, and certification.”

Also speaking at the forum, themed, “Unlocking Our Agri-Commodity Market: Setting the Appropriate Value for Nigeria’s Agri-Produce Exports”, Executive Secretary, Continued on page 21

M A R K E T D ATA A S AT T H U R S D AY, S E P T E M B E R 2 9 , 2 0 2 2 BILLS

BONDS DESCRIPTION Price ^14.20 14MAR-2024 13.53 23MAR-2025 ^12.50 22JAN-2026 ^16.2884 17MAR-2027 ^13.98 23FEB-2028

Yield

102.68

12.15

100.37

13.35

98.12

13.20

110.60

13.09

102.81

13.23

Change Updated Time (%) September -0.66 23, 2022 September 0.00 23, 2022 September 0.00 23, 2022 September 0.00 23, 2022 September 0.00 23, 2022

MATURITY NTB 13-Oct22 NTB 10Nov-22 NTB 26-Jan23 NTB 9-Feb23 NTB 9-Mar23

Discount

CPS

9.00

9.04

3.90

3.92

9.80

10.14

10.00

10.40

Change Updated Time (%) September 23, -0.01 2022 September 23, 0.00 2022 September 23, 0.00 2022 September 23, 0.00 2022

7.81

September 23, 0.00 2022

7.54

Yield

MATURITY NENL CP I 24-OCT-22 FSDH CP VII 27-OCT-22 SIBP CP III 27-OCT-22 DLMG CP IV 11-NOV-22 FDHP CP III 17-MAR-23

Discount Yield 16.46 16.69 10.57 10.67 9.72

9.81

14.08 14.35 11.52 12.19

Change Updated Time (%) 23, 0.12 September 2022 23, 0.10 September 2022 23, 0.11 September 2022 23, 0.05 September 2022 23, 0.05 September 2022

OTC F X F U T U R E S CONTRACT Current TENOR Contract Rate Updated Time ($/₦) (MONTH) NGUS SEP 28 439.60 September 22, 1 2022 2022 September 22, NGUS OCT 26 2 441.81 2022 2022 NGUS NOV 30 444.01 September 22, 3 2022 2022 NGUS DEC 28 446.22 September 22, 4 2022 2022 NGUS JAN 25 448.43 September 22, 5 2023 2022

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2022 ˾ T H I S D AY

BUSINESSWORLD

AIR WATCH

FAAN Inaugurates Automated A I R Car Park at Abuja Airport Chinedu Eze The Federals Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has unveiled activities to celebrate the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja as it clocked 40 years yesterday.

The Authority in a statement signed by its spokesperson, Mrs. Faithful Hope-Ivbaze, said the hallmark of the celebration would be the commissioning of Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport’s Park and Pay Automated Car Parking Service by the Managing Director of FAAN, Capt. Rabiu Hamisu Yadudu.

She said all was set for the celebration of the milestones that have been achieved by

one of Nigeria’s foremost airports.

Commissioned on the 29th September 1982, the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja has developed into a hub for the north-central region of Nigeria and beyond.

The Airport prides in the possession of world-class airport facilities including a brand new international terminal with a passenger handling capacity of 15 million per annum commissioned by the President Muhammadu Buhari led administration in December, 2018, a recently rehabilitated domestic terminal, as well as a hajj/ cargo terminal.

To underscore the

continuous progress that has been made by Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja over the years, the Airport was awarded the Best Airport in Safety for the Year 2018 by Airport Council International (ACI), Africa Region. It also received ACI’s Airport Service Quality Award in the year 2020, amongst several other recognitions.

As part of activities lined up for the commemoration of the 40th anniversary celebration, the airport held anniversary event yesterday, where passengers, stakeholders and former managers of the airport were honoured for their contributions to the development of the airport.

WATCH

Shrinking Flight Time for Nigerian Airlines

Maritime, Offshore Award Catalyst for Development Leading maritime law expert, Jean Chiazor-Anishere SAN says the Maritime and Offshore Award (The OMIS) is an “inspirational catalyst” and potential “leading global brand for the recognition and celebration of excellence in the Maritime Sector”.

Chiazor-Anishere, who is the Chairman of the Board of The OMIS, said this in an address at the inaugural award night held at the Oriental Hotel, Lagos on Saturday in commemoration of the world maritime day.

She congratulated the “sterling awardees” and thanked the distinguished judges for putting in the work to determine the deserving awardees.

“The OMIS as we say, is more than just an award. It’s an inspirational catalyst organized

by HSE Nations International.

“The OMIS award is set

to become the leading global brand for the recognition and celebration of excellence in the Maritime Sector; hence our quest to harness the power of leverage to aid value in this critical sector of the economy, whilst improving lives and further reinforcing the aim of your organizations to promote safe, secure, environmentally sound, efficient and sustainable shipping,” she said.

Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Board of the Nigerian National Board of Nigerian National Petroleum Limited (NNPC), Senator Margery Chuba-Okadigbo bagged the Guardian Angel award for her leading role in the advocating for policies that have helped to transform the offshore industry.

Former Minister of Interior, Captain Emmanuel Ihenacho; former President of the Nigerian

Bar Association (NBA), Dr Olisa Agbakoba SAN; Chairman, Starz Investment, Engr. Greg Ogbeifun; Pioneer Director General, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Mrs Mfon Usoro; and President/ CEO of Multimix Group, Dr Obiora Madu each bagged a Lifetime Achievement Award for lifelong dedication to the advancement of the Maritime industry.

Executive Vice-Chairman, ENL Consortium, Princess Vicky Haastrup, was recognized as the Most Outstanding Woman in Maritime 2022 for her leading role guiding her organization’s exemplary port operations.

Other Outstanding Woman Award winners include Funke Agbor SAN, Mrs Rollens Macfoy, Hajiya Aisha Ali-Ibrahim, and Mrs TemiladeOgunniyi.

Abuja Airport Manager Receives IAPCOP 2022 Award The Regional General Manager, Central Region Airports, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and Chairman Aviation Roadmap Implementation Committee, Mr. Kabir Yusuf Mohammed has won the 2022

Group Business Editor Eromosele Abiodun Deputy Business Editor Chinedu Eze Comms/e-Business Editor Emma Okonji Asst. Editor, Money Market Nume Ekeghe Senior Correspondent Raheem Akingbolu (Advertising) Correspondents Emmanuel Addeh (Energy) KayodeTokede(CapitalMarkets) James Emejo (Finance) Ebere Nwoji (Insurance) Reporters Nosa Alekhuogie (ICT) Peter Uzoho (Energy) Ugo Aliogo (Development)

Distinguished leadership award of International Airport Professional/ Community of Practice (IAPCOP).

A statement from the organisation said Mohammed was chosen as the winner of the award in recognition of his outstanding efforts and leadership

by International Airport Professional Community of Practice (IAP-COP) Board.

The award was presented at the 2022 Global ACI-ICAO AMPAP Graduation Event at the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) headquarters, Montreal, Canada.

The presentation was witnessed by the Secretary General and

Director General of ACI, Mike Nakornkhet and Luis Felipe de Oliviera respectively.

The Distinguished Leadership IAP award, according to IAP, is given in recognition of aviation professional for his/her role as a community leader and an active participant in the growth and improvement of the aviation community.

Mohammed has worked in various government and private organisations, such as the Presidency, office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation; State House, Office of the Head of State, Commander-in-Chief, among others.

Ethiopian Wins Multiple Awards at SKYTRAX 2022 The largest Aviation Group in Africa, Ethiopian Airlines, has been named the winner of four awards at the SKYTRAX 2022 World Airline Awards, at a ceremony held in London on 23 September 2022.

Ethiopian won in categories such as Best Airline in Africa 2022 for 5th consecutive years; Best Business Class Airline in Africa 2022 for 4th consecutive

years; Best Economy Class Airline in Africa 2022 for 4th consecutive years and Best Business Class Onboard Catering in Africa Moving an incredible 11 ranks up, Ethiopian has also been placed 26th in the World’s Top 100 Airlines for 2022 as voted by airline customers around the world.

Chinedu Eze Nigerian airlines have reacted to the announcement made recently by the Managing Director of the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Capt. RabiuYadudu, who stated that the agency in collaboration with the Nigerian Airspace Management agency (NAMA), has suspended the extension of time for flights that wish to land at the airports, which are normally closed by 6:00, known as daylight or sunset airports.

Most of the airports under this condition are usually the ones without airfield lighting, which enables planes to land in the night or the airports with such facility but not approved to operate in the night due to safety and security, as well as other considerations.

But airlines have complained that without extending time for them to operate to these airports after 6:00 pm, FAAN has further shrank the flight time for domestic operators, which only have 12 hours window from 6:00 am to 6:00 pm.

The airlines therefore request that the decision of the agency should be reviewed because many airports in Nigeria do not have runway lights so flights do not land or take off from these airports after 6:00 or 6:30 pm, but sometimes airlines seek from the authorities the extension of the time beyond 6:00 pm so they can operate flight to some of these airports with runway light and other night landing facilities.

Spokesman of one of the airlines who wouldn’t want to be quoted, told THISDAY that FAAN has not explained in details why they chose to suspend the extension time to the airports because some of these airports are located inside the cities and therefore do not have security threats. He identified such airports as the Calabar airport, which has airfield lighting but it is not allowed to operate into the night; the Benin airport, which also has airfield lighting but not allowed operating in the Night. Other airports are the Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport, Owerri and the AkanuIbiam International Airport, Enugu.

“Maybe airlines are not paying FAAN and NAMA well. Maybe they will have other reasons why they have chosen to stop extending time for airlines. But we know that our aircraft are under utilized and some of the airports are also underutilized. Due to operational time available in Nigeria, airlines have operational window of 12 hours and under this operational window you have to take out turnaround time, delays like VIP movement, weather issues and rotation time and you realise that airlines operate their aircraft average of seven hours a day. These are aircraft that should be maximized 18 hours a day. So we already have underutilization issues, which technically is not good for the aircraft.

“What this means is that when it is 5:00 pm and you suspend flights to these daylight airports. If you have tech issues and the aircraft is ready by 4:30 pm, you cancel the next flight if it is to these sunset airports. This will have severe implication to airlines but we have to obey the rules,” he said.

He also noted that cancelling flights will be huge discomfort to passengers but it is the airlines that suffer more, noting that an airline may schedule flight for 3:00 pm but weather may push it down to 4:00 pm to 5:00 pm under

which the airline may cancel it because FAAN would not extend its time from 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm or later than that.

“When you cancel flights passengers will be angry. It is not good for the image of the airline, but passengers are ignorant of what we go through. Airline’s flight schedule can be delayed by weather issues and even when there is time but flight time might extend beyond 6:30 pm, you cancel the flight. The passengers will suffer but everything bounces back on the airlines. We can be delayed by VIP movement, weather and other factors, but the passengers do not understand these. When you cancel flight what they know is that an airline cancelled flight. They rarely understand with you. They don’t believe you if talk about sunset airports or weather or VIP movement. As you try to explain to them they get angrier,” he said.

Industry analyst and the Managing Director of Flight and Logistics Solutions Limited, Amos Akpan advised the airlines to plan their schedule in response to the notification, scheduling their flights to daylight airports in the mornings and return flights in the early noon (if they operate more than once to such airports). He said that an airline could decide to do six rotations in a day that every rotation is too hours, which means six rotations would give the airline 12 hours.

“Every airfield has its notification, when you can operate there, so airlines should schedule their flights to dovetail with the airfield notifications. The airports operate in accordance with safety and security windows, but airports cannot depend on revenues from flights to survive. You plan your airport as a business infrastructure, not for airline flights alone. If you have shopping malls and other services they will be the reason why you can operate into the night and the cost of extension of services will be borne by the other businesses that generate revenue for you,” he said.

However, THISDAY learnt from a dependable source in FAAN that the security issues that the FAAN Managing Director gave as reason for suspension of extending flight time to sunset airports might not be the only reason; there may be another.

“They said they N100, 000 paid to FAAN and N50, 000 per hour paid to NAMA are not enough to offset the cost of extending flight time for one hour. NAMA said that amount couldn’t even offset the cost of diesel for that period they will be running their generators. And you know that workers who have finished their shift are made to wait for extra time to attend to the flight and the Air Traffic Controllers will also wait for the aircraft to arrive,” he added.

But many in the industry feel that the decision to cut down operation time for airlines is coming at a time when FAAN should have put in businesses at some airports and make them operate for 24 hours.

But FAAN said it has stopped extending such time and has also held meeting with sister agency, the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) and both have resolved to adopt the new operating standards policy by ending flight operation extension to sunset airports across the country.

T H I S D AY ˾ FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2022

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BUSINESSWORLD

AVIATION

Nigeria Air and Future of Aviation Industry With so many reactions trailing the recent announcement of Ethiopian Airlines as core investor and partner to the national carrier, Nigeria Air, Chinedu Eze looks at how the new airline with government stakes will impact on the aviation sector

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any Nigerians have been reacting to the confirmation by the Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, that the federal government has selected Ethiopian Airlines as the core investor and technical partner of the new national carrier, Nigeria Air Limited.

At a press conference held by the minister last week, he confirmed that Ethiopian Airlines Consortium had a combined score (Technical and Financial Bid) of 86.7 per cent, saying that all preparations for the establishment of the national carrier, Nigeria Air had been concluded and the airline would kick off within six to eight weeks.

According to him, “After the detailed Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) governed selection process, Ethiopian Airlines (ET) Consortium was selected as preferred bidder, offering an owner consortium of three Nigerian investors MRS and SAHCO (46 per cent), the Federal Government of Nigeria, owning five per cent and ET 49 per cent.”

On the money spent so far, the minister said, “The money spent for the launch of Nigeria Air, (about N400 million) for all the requirements to establish an Air Operator Certificate (AOC) and be admitted starting an airline operation, is well within the five per cent capital investment of the Federal Government of Nigeria, that will be overall needed to establish the national carrier initially for the AOC approval and everything else required by stringent national aviation regulations, as prescribed in the FEC approved Outline Business Case (OBC).

“No further FGN funding will be provided above the five per cent share capital of the next national carrier of Nigeria, which was provided to launch Nigeria Air.” The minister also said the national carrier would be launched with three new Boeing 737-800, (not wet lease) with a configuration that is very suitable for the Nigerian market and they will grow to 30 and 40 within three and four years.

THE DOUBTS However, the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA), which was included as being part of the 46 per cent stake, may not be on the same page with the aviation minister.

Following the minister’s press conference, NSIA issued a statement, saying that it is not involved in any way, as part of the private equity ownership of the airline, being a government establishment.

The development obviously puts to doubt the genuineness of the shareholding. Although the minister did not explain in details the shares owned by each investor, now that NSIA has explained that it does not own any of the shares, it therefore creates doubt as to how the shares were allotted. How many shares are owned by SAHCO? How many shares of the 46 per cent are owned by MRS. These doubts are automatically giving strength to critics who described the whole national carrier arrangement as a sham.

The Ministry of Aviation earlier said that it would take in three aircraft on wet lease, which means that the company that leased the aircraft to Nigeria Air would provide the crew and take care of maintenance, but the minister explained during the press conference that it would be dry lease, which means that Nigeria Air would provide the crew and maintain the aircraft. As a new start-up, which is in the process of recruiting its technical and administrative personnel and which reports indicated it had sent out some technical personnel for training, it again creates more doubt whether it would be able to operate these aircraft on dry lease.

Since the press conference by the minister, many Nigerians have expressed divergent views.

Industry expert and Secretary General of Aviation Round Table (ART), Group Captain John Ojikutu, (rtd) said the national carrier; Nigeria Air could have

2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020, and Four Star Airline Certification in 2017.

With well over 100 aircraft both narrow-body and wide-body, Ethiopian Airlines is Africa’s largest airline by fleet size. The carrier has an extremely diverse fleet of aircraft, which it uses to connect passengers from Asia, North America and Europe to Africa, and vice versa.

Aviation Minister, Hadi Sirika been established without a foreign partner.

“First and foremost, am not in support of having any of the foreign airlines and a competitor with us on the BASA (Bilateral Air Service Agreement) routes as our technical partners; the foreign airline interest in the partnerships comes before ours.

Secondly, similar partnerships with the KLM and the SAA (South Africa Airways) in the early 90s did not benefit us. We should therefore look for partnerships outside the competitors in the BASA routes in countries like Canada, Australia, etc. “However, if we must still look into the US and EU, let it not be among our competitors.

We must also not forget that these competitors including the Ethiopian Airlines belong to the various major commercial aviation alliances which our new airline may not be given access into until the World Airline Organisation like IATA (the International Air Transport Association) find us worthy and that will not come soon,” Ojikutu said.

SHAREHOLDING Other Nigerians who expressed their views pointed that that there was nowhere in the press conference where the minister stated how much Ethiopian Airlines was bringing into the partnership because, ideally, an airline that has so much controlling share ought to bring in cash to propel the partnership.

One of the aviation industry stakeholders stated that when an airline has such controlling share of another country’s national carrier, it buys over the grandfather rights of that country’s major routes. Now, Ethiopian will provide the technical support and also technical personnel for the foreseeable future of Nigeria Air Limited, it will obviously provide the equipment for the domestic and international operation of the airline and also carry out maintenance of the aircraft under the airline’s fleet, so it will get paid by the new airline.

“I know of an African airline that wanted to operate as Liberia’s national carrier, which means that it will operate to international destinations from Liberia, the Liberian government requested that the airline should pay $75 million for grandfather rights to the routes it would take over. Also when an African airline wanted to operate to one of the countries in the Caribbean, that country requested that the airline should

pay $120 million for the right to operate from that destination. So, in that vein, coming to take over Nigerian major routes in partnership with startup Nigerian airline, which is a start up under its absolute technical management, Ethiopian Airline should pay Nigeria about $700 million.

This is because Nigeria has existing lucrative routes and it has high passenger traffic both local and international. These are invaluable goodwill Ethiopian would exploit and make profits from,” he said.

ETHIOPIAN AIRLINES Despite the avalanche of criticisms that trailed the announcement of the partnership between Nigeria Air and Ethiopian Airlines, no one has expressed doubt about the competence of the East African carrier to effectively provide the technical support to the new start-up.

Ranked number one airline in Africa, Ethiopian management has always believed that for Nigeria to reap the benefits of its huge traffic, which is still growing; it needs a national carrier, which would streamline development in the aviation industry. An airline with government stakes would have training programme to develop future pilots, engineers, marshallers and others without looking at the immediate cost; just as the defunct Nigeria Airways was doing. It is expected also that a national carrier would be in a better way to negotiate commercial agreements with airlines after BASA has been negotiated; just as the defunct Nigeria Airways did. So, the former Managing Director of Ethiopian Airlines, TewoldeGrebreMariam, once told a team of Nigerian journalists in Addis Ababa that Nigeria needed a national carrier to maximise the benefits of its air transport sector and to also become more influential in the global aviation industry.

Reports indicate that Ethiopian commands the lion’s share of the Pan-African passenger and cargo network operating the youngest and most modern fleet to more than 130 international passenger and cargo destinations across five continents.

Ethiopian joined Star Alliance, the world’s largest Airline network, in December 2011.

Ethiopian is a multi-award winning airline including: SKYTRAX Best Airline Staff Service in 2013 & 2016, ‘Best Airline in Africa’ in

THE PARTNERSHIP The partnership means a lot to Nigerian airlines.

There are fears that Ethiopian Airlines would take advantage of this partnership to eclipse existing airlines, using the advantages that would be given to Nigeria Air by the federal government.

Looking at the broad implication of the new partnership, a senior executive of one of Nigerian airlines looked at the pros and cons of the partnership between Nigeria Air and Ethiopian Airlines.

Nigeria, by far is the biggest air transport market on the continent and therefore, the biggest threat to ET (Ethiopian Airlines), effectively neutralised for now. ET becomes ‘Nigeria’ and the beneficiary of the prime market. ET is advantageously positioned already as is, not to mention the added prime operating advantages it is about to receive to give the existing domestic players more than a run for their money. In other words, the domestic playing field will be ‘shaken up’ a bit, to a small or large extent, with things skewed in their favour.

On the pros, the senior official said: “Nigeria has a chance to present a world class airline with its name on it. That means you will see Nigeria’s name and flag on aircraft in many far-flung places (presumably). That should have an impact on the national image (after all, it won’t have ‘Ethiopian’ written on it)! Hopefully, proper airline management discipline will be imparted for the benefit of the local industry. (The ‘know-how’ already exists today to a large extent, but the requisite ‘broad corporate discipline’ has been the lacking ingredient). The domestic airlines are now incentivized, whether they like it or not, to dig deeper and find the right strategies to stay on and thrive in this new playing field.”

LEVEL PLAYING FIELD But considering the fact that the new airline, having government stake, has been given special places at the Lagos and Abuja airports, an industry stakeholder had noted there would never be equal playing field for existing carriers and the national carrier.

“Of course, government cannot provide a level playing field for all airlines. Already the new carrier will be operating its domestic service from international terminal in Lagos and special terminal in Abuja, so it is not equal opportunity for all. I recall in 2007 when Arik Air and Virgin Nigeria Airways were operating from international wing of the MurtalaMuhammed Airport, Lagos, a committee was set up to examine the security implications. The committee recommended that the two airlines should relocate to the domestic terminal because it is against international standard practice to operate both international and domestic service from the same facility. Today, nothing has changed but they want the new airline to break the rules they made against Arik Air and Virgin Nigeria Airways,” a source said.

The Managing Director of Flight and Logistics Solution Limited, Amos Akpan, after examining the transaction by the federal government, said: “I notice there is a determination by this government to start Nigeria Air operations before the next government comes in. Being insistent on starting operations within a set time is not bad, but let us avoid putting up something that will not be sustainable.”

‘NIGERIA MAY LOSE OUT OF AFCFTA BENEFITS DUE TO GAPS IN STANDARDISATION’ National Action Committee of the AfCFTA/Special Adviser to the President on AfCFTA, Mr. Francis Anatogu, said training and capacity building needed to be sustained for SMEs to play in the global market.

However, he noted that despite the progress so far recorded in the implementation of continental the trade agreement, actual trading among countries was yet to commence.

In the same vein, Managing Director/Chief Executive, Agri-business Innovation International Limited (AGRICON), Mrs. Stella Oraka, said, “When you talk about food safety, we are talking

about producing what we eat and sell, and what we produce. And that has been the president’s aim and objective.

Also, a representative from the Base of Pyramid Innovation Center (BOP

INC), Mrs. Mercy Mayaki, said one of the reasons why people in Nigeria live below the poverty line was because of the quality of products and services that they supply particularly agricultural

commodities.

She said, “If they don’t supply high-value commodities into the market, they are not able to optimise their income streams from the commodities that they sell.”

movement also increased by over 46 per cent from 2020 in 2021, while total cargo was about 191 Tons in 2020, but increased to about 391 Tons in 2021,” he said.

To improve on the airports, he said FAAN carried out the installation of Airfield Ground Lighting System (AGLS) at Lagos

Domestic runway, after 12 years of neglect, and provided 45 carryon baggage screening machines, 40 hold-on baggage screening machines, 15 cargo screening machines, four 3D body scanners, refurbishment of six fire tenders and full maintenance of 36 fire tenders.

FG BEGINS STRATEGIC MOVES TO FURTHER SECURE NIGERIAN AIRPORTS FROM INCURSIONS because we don’t want to be distracted as an industry,” he said.

Yadudu had while speaking at the Airlines Business Summit and Expo held at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos said there would be overall effort to provide effective and efficient service to air travellers by FAAN.

He noted that in addition to security of lives of passengers and other airport users, the agency has provided facilities to further improve the airports as service provider aimed at passenger satisfaction.

“Statistics from National Bureau of Statistics indicated

that ‘Aviation industry generated N198.62 billion, translating to a contribution of a 0.14 per cent to the GDP in 2019.’ In this light, our aviation industry is up and doing as it was recognised as the fastest growing sector of Nigerian economy in 2019, according to the report of the National Bureau of

Statistics. It gladdens my heart to say that our successes are not only seen in these infrastructural developments, but also in the growth in our airports statistics.

Our passenger traffic grew from 9,358,166 in 2020 to 15,886,955 in 2021, showing a significant increase by over 69 per cent. The aircraft

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2022 ˾ T H I S D AY

BUSINESSWORLD

BRANDS

Appraising Northern Market and its Spending Habits Raheem Akingbolu reviews a recent report by Pierrine Consulting, which gives insight into the consumption pattern in the northern market, transaction method and how the breakdown would guide businesses and investments

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ne of the major factors that lead businesses to success is market understanding. This informs why companies invest more in strategic market research at the beginning.

Equipped with valuable information about its target market, a company can develop products and create marketing campaigns that appeal directly to consumers. And the benefits don’t stop there. A brand owner can leverage the data procured through market research to propel his company to success in a variety of ways.

It’s believed that if a brand owner is not taking full advantage of market research to make data-driven decisions, he should start considering the ways it could help his company grow.

Marketers are therefore in constant search for consumer needs and always attempt to understand consumer behavioural changes in order to satisfy the customer expectation, achieve brand loyalty and deliver sustainable business success.

Any opportunity therefore that presents prospects and gives understanding of the consumer is always appreciated by marketers who are often under intense pressure to keep the company going.

OVERVIEW OF NORTHERN MARKET

The recent market report on Northern Nigeria covering the entire 19 states under the northern market cluster conducted by Pierrine Consulting therefore comes handy for brand owners who want to penetrate the Northern market. Any report on a segment of Nigeria society becomes vital for brand owners as Nigeria is emerging and has a vast economy with a consumer population of over 200 million, the largest population in Africa with dynamic consumer behaviour.

The Pierrine report which studied Northern region consumers provides insight on that market which affords marketers the opportunity to create special products and messages tailored to the Northern consumers as no single message will appeal to whole Nigerians with its varying cultures and population ages.

Speaking to THISDAY on what informed the report, the Chief Executive Officer at Pierrine Consulting, Seyi Adeoye, said the report was aimed at providing an informed view of the northern market opportunity. Adeoye also pointed out that the survey had shown that the Northern market is an exciting and profitable one for brands and businesses seeking growth at a time like this and beyond.

“It is significant that the value and dynamics of the Northern market as espoused in this research

by Pierrine Consulting will benefit marketers and brand owners in their further efforts for growth and consumer satisfaction. Reports on other regions are encouraged for not only marketers’ benefit but the Nigerian economy,” the CEO said.

There was clear understanding from the report that the Northern consumer is unique in every way, characterised by a culture-influenced lifestyle, the importance of religion in daily choices and respect for social-cultural religious institutions and roles. “The Northern region accounts for 71 percent of total land mass of Nigeria, 54 per cent of total population and about 30 percent of the national GDP”, the report stated.

As pointed out by the report, the Northern market, with its size and preferences, cannot be ignored by any discerning brand owner or business leader in Nigeria. According to the report, “The region is known as a leading market for seasoning, spices, malt, CSD, and dairy products.

The report therefore dimensioned some of the opportunity.”

BEHAVIORAL DYNAMICS

The report which provided an informed view of the northern market opportunity from consumers’ behavioral dynamics revealed that the residents of Northern Nigeria spend N322 billion monthly on personal care products. This big revelation is already an attraction to players in the personal care segment.

The report which examined the Northern market opportunities for marketers further gave an insight by providing the items the amount was spent on. It showed that the N322 billion amount was spent monthly on top seven personal care products such as toothpaste, beauty soap, perfume, body lotion, sanitary pads, deodorants and antibacterial soaps.

Though the report used Kano, one of the largest and commercial cities in the North and Nigeria as a proxy, it however gives the idea of the whole Northern consumer behaviour and preferences.

Dimensioning the monthly spend, the report also discovered that residents of the region spend N163 billion monthly on carbonated drinks.

SPENDING ON FOODS AND DRINKS

Providing a breakdown of the spend on drinks, the report said “53% of northern consumers consume some form of non-alcoholic drinks several times every single week, 66 per cent currently consume CSDs, 45 per cent consume Malt drinks, 24 per cent consume fruit-based drinks, 5 per cent take wine products and 15% are consumers of Energy drink products. Over 60 per cent have Zobo and unbranded milk products within their repertoire of drinks.”

According to the report, Northerners also spend big on branded breakfast, as monthly expenditure on cocoa-based drinks, tea, cornflakes, coffee, oats, custard and Golden Morn is about N223 billion.

As a necessity, food and food-related items constitute 55 per cent of northern consumers’ monthly household expenditure. Additionally, 10 per cent is typically spent on utilities, seven per cent on personal care products, seven per cent on clothing and accessories, six per cent on airtime, 5 per cent on transport, five per cent on medical health, three per cent on baby care products, and 2 per cent on electronics.

DIGITAL INTERPRETATION

While 58 per cent of Northern consumers have internet access, the report showed that cash transactions remain King in the region, with 91 per cent usage level. The report however discovered a considerable on-going use of USSD transactions which it put at 31 per cent.

The Pierrine report also said branded powdered milk was the most consumed of all dairy products, at 89 per cent incidence level. Evaporated milk was next at 8 per cent, sweetened yoghurt at 35 per cent and Butter at 30% usage levels. In all, Northern consumers spend N151 billion monthly on branded milk powder, N36.9 billion on evaporated milk, N35 billion on sweetened yogurt, N28.6 billion on butter, N20.7 billion on Mayonnaise, N5 billion on condensed milk.

In addition, N102 billion was spent monthly on spices, N156b on laundry, and N146 billion on baby care products.

The report also found that open markets and seven neighborhood stores remain preferred shopping points in the region, with 65% of customers making their purchases via this channel.

Other findings from the report indicate that cash is king at 91 per cent usage level amongst Northern consumers, although there is considerable on-going use of digital platforms.

“Daily use of alternative means to cash is still growing as 31 per cent of Northern consumers currently use the USSD platform and about 20 per cent make use of mobile banking apps of different financial brands, but cash is more used for daily transactions at 91 per cent.” The report said 36 per cent of consumers who are not currently using digital platforms are open to using it.

It also discovered that 65 per cent of Northern consumers patronise open markets and neigbourhood stores.

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

Examining MOJEC’s Power Solution for Estate Management Oluchi Chibuzor Paying monthly energy bills is the only time many customers really interact with their utility. While some people complain of receiving higher utility bills due to meter errors, others complain of overlapping bill periods, wrong supplier estimations, and even a mistake in invoice calculation and estimated billing. We have all been stressed out at some point in our lives, whether it was because our utility bill was much higher than we expected or because we couldn’t pay on time due to our hectic schedules.

Security issues are also of prime importance to the utility supplier and the consumer.

Critical to the successful operation of any payment system are the issues of security interoperability of equipment supplied by different manufacturers. Users have long struggled with various systems that perform the same or similar functions but are not compatible with

each other. Residential ethnographic research shows that customers want a simple bill and stress-free payment method with useful usage information.

As part of efforts to mitigate these challenges and offer a stress-free solution to energy customers, MOJEC International Ltd., an ace meter manufacturing company in Nigeria and sub-Saharan Africa, and a trailblazer in the power generation industry pioneered what is known as “Power Genie,” a premium vending power solution for highbrow residential buildings and local communities in Nigeria.

MOJEC Power Genie is a 24/7, affordable estate management vending power solution with the Standard Transfer Specification (STS) protocol-enabled token generation mechanism that allows IPPs and Estate Facility Managers to effectively manage prepaid electricity and other utilities. It is a seamless and secured message system for carrying

information between a point-of-sale and a meter. Currently, MOJEC Power Genie is deployed across over 25 estates, institutions, hotels and off-grid projects.

MOJEC Power Genie was designed for use by both the utilities and the customer, it helps utilities seamlessly collect revenue and provide customers with ease of Energy top-up. The platform is not limited to this functionality alone. Combined with the Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) it also helps property managers protect revenue by monitoring energy theft remotely with MOJEC Smart meters.

According to the group managing director of MOJEC International, Chantelle Abdul, “our Advance Metering Infrastructure (Energy Management Solution) is top-notch, and is currently hosting about 800,000 smart meters, giving room for Electricity Distribution Companies to carry out Meter Management, Tariff Management, Customer

Relationship Management (CRM), Collections, and Report Generation.

“Over time, our system has helped utilities make intelligent decisions in the management of power supply and demand for electricity from customers.

Speaking further on how the Advance Metering Infrastructure (AMI) helped Power Genie to operate seamlessly, Wole Solanke, Head IT, MOJEC International explained that “the AMI/AMR system is future-proof with options to deploy on both traditional servers and private or public cloud solutions, a fully customizable data analysis and reporting engine to realize the potential of “Big Data,” a web-based application with no need to install or update a client, support for multiple database management systems, and a single data store that contains all information.”

One major functionality of the PowerGenie application is the auto token recharge functionality as well

as Load control functionalities where customers who tamper with their meters are disconnected remotely without getting to the premises.

MOJEC Power Genie is secure as it tackles the problems of financial records, fraudulent token generation, re-use, and credit transfer, as well as the management of customers and their meters.

The AMI/AMR System is used to monitor and manage MOJEC smart meters with third-party DLMS/ COSEM compliant meters. This system makes it possible to monitor and remotely query aggregate total consumption, losses, and any other information from the meter.

The AMI/AMR system has an automated fail-over and networkbalanced cluster for high availability and auto-recovery from disasters.

It has a proven track record of high reliability and low to zero maintenance in a distributed system at the service and database level to ensure scalability, with a

service-oriented architecture to allow easy customization and third-party integration.

Mr. Solanke further stated “MOJEC International considers revenue generation very important, and our Energy Management System (EMS) provides multiple channels of payment. This increases the customer’s convenience in making payments and enables payments to be made round the clock, 24/7, from any part of the world.

Estate administrators can view all transactions on the dashboard and spool data by time, customer name, meter number, date/time, transaction reference, etc. “ The Power Genie is a good and important tool for financial reporting to accountants and financial analysts.

With Power Genie, all that is needed is a mobile phone, it combines different payment channels which ranges from USSD, Bank transfer, Card payment and POS option. It is seamless and available 247.

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GOOD NIGHT, ABDULLAHI NYAKO TUNDE OLUSUNLE pays tribute to his friend and colleague, Abdullahi Nyako

See page 25

ANAMBRA: REWRTING THE ATHLETICS NARRATIVE There is need to strengthen school athletics in the state, writes KESIENA IGHO OGHOGHORIE

See page 25

EDITORIAL

YET ANOTHER GRID COLLAPSE

" See page 26

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The media must moderate its political bias and commercial instinct in the impending campaign season, writes BOLAJI ADEBIYI

BACK ON THE POLITICAL BEAT The electioneering is here at last and politicians are about to storm the populace with their usual promises to provide heaven on earth. The veil was lifted on Wednesday by the Independent National Electoral Commission, the election management body empowered by law, to regulate electoral contests in the polity. Mahmood Yakubu, its chairman, had at several fora, including the Editors’ Forum of the Nigerian Guild of Editors a couple of weeks ago, promised to deliver what he called electoral justice to Nigerians in 2023 even as he enjoined them to shine their eyes and ensure that their votes count.

The task of ensuring that votes count is as important as engendering qualitative leadership at all levels of governance through the ballot cast by the people. What this means is that citizens need to be carefully deliberate in the choices they make because they would determine the quality of life, they would live in the next four years beginning from 29 May 2023.

The case for the thorough interrogation of the politicians parading the social landscape has always been lavishly made but it would appear from the outcomes of the past electoral exercises that they were probably not heeded by the electorate or that the powers that be succeeded in forcing themselves through. Whichever is the case, there is now another opportunity to reboot and correct the mistakes of the past.

The rebooting will have to begin with the environment for the contest. It is okay to ask the people to be vigilant but it is also important to ensure that there is a convivial atmosphere for the citizens to be able to make their decisions without fear of any harm whatsoever coming to them. So, the authorities have the responsibility to make the environment safe and peaceful enough for the citizens to be able to ask the appropriate questions without any form of intimidation by the canvassing politicians.

It is against this background that the commitment to peaceful conduct during the electioneering by the political parties and their presidential candidates on Thursday in Abuja is a commendable step forward. Guaranteed by the National Peace Committee, a nongovernmental initiative conceptualized in 2014 in response to emerging threats occasioned by the 2015 general elections, it is hoped that the political gladiators will keep to the terms of the agreement that bound to be of good conduct.

Of course, there is a basis for this hope. The NCC is an initiative made up

of eminent elder statesmen, including Abdulsalami Abubakar, a former head of state; and Matthew Kuka, the hugely respected Catholic Bishop of Sokoto 'LRFHVH ZKR XQGHUWRRN HͿRUWV WR support free, fair and credible elections as well as intervene in critical issues of national concern through highlevel mediated and alternative dispute resolution mechanisms. Since its inception, it has decisively intervened to douse the usual tension which precedes elections and the anxiety that attends post-electoral contests.

With the leading politicians committing to peaceful electioneering the other very important task is how the people will interrogate the RͿHULQJV RI WKH FRQWHVWDQWV $ WRWDO RI candidates will be on the presidential ballot and are going to be out there in WKH ÀHOG $GG WR WKDW WKH WKRXVDQGV RI governorships and federal and state legislative contestants that are jostling for the various positions. It is going to a bedlam out there? How do the candidates get their programmes and SODQV WR WKH RYHU PLOOLRQ UHJLVWHUHG voters and vice versa? This is where the media comes in.

It is the social responsibility of the media to yield its platform as the market at which both the electorate and the power seekers will converge to sell and buy ideas that will determine the next set of leaders of the country. Incidentally, a couple of laws, particularly the ones regulating broadcasting mandate the media to be even-handed in the coverage and reportage of the electioneering. So, the media both by orientation and law are saddled with the task of gathering and disseminating information on the electoral process to the people for them to be able to assess and make the weighty decision of who leads the country in the next dispensation.

There are, however, limitations to the capacity of the media to discharge this noble responsibility. First, is its pluralistic nature, which speaks to the

varied ownership and the interests they are established to protect; and the second is its commercial interest upon which its survival is based. Media ownership, be it private or government, DͿHFWV WKH HGLWRULDO EHQW 7KLV LV PRUH pronounced in outlets sponsored by politically exposed persons. And to sustain their operations many of them have business models that emphasise SURÀWDELOLW\ The implication of these is that sections of the media may be discriminatory in their coverage either as a result of political cum ethnic as well as religious bias or the need for commercial gains.

There is the possibility, therefore, that candidates without established SROLWLFDO EDFNJURXQGV RU ÀQDQFLDO muscle may have hindered access to the media. The good news though is that the multiplicity of outlets in terms of numbers and platforms, including SULQW HOHFWURQLF DQG VRFLDO PHGLD RͿHUV the chance that many contestants will still have access and the opportunities to ventilate their programmes and plans.

Whatever the case may be, the most important thing is the need for the various outlets to provide access to as many contestants as possible and ensure that their programmes and plans are lucidly presented for the electorate to grasp. This need cannot be overstated given the underperformance of the outgoing regime which has placed the country in its prevailing sorry state. Not a few people have said that any further error of choice arising from the misjudgement of the character and capacity of the political contenders will be ruinous for the nation. The media must help to prevent this from happening.

Adebiyi, the managing editor of THISDAY Newspapers, writes from bolaji.adebiyi@ thisdaylive.com

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TUNDE OLUSUNLE pays tribute to his friend and colleague, Abdullahi Nyako

GOOD NIGHT, ABDULLAHI NYAKO I chatted with Abdullahi Nyako until DERXW SP :HGQHVGD\ 6HSWHPEHU :H W\SLFDOO\ EDQWHU IURP WLPH WR WLPH DERXW SROLWLFV FXUUHQW DͿDLUV DQG VLPLODU LVVXHV :KHQHYHU , GHVLUHG WR UHDFK RU SDVV a message to Atiku Abubakar, Nigeria’s former Vice President, and presidential ÁDJEHDUHU RI WKH 3HRSOHV· 'HPRFUDWLF Party, (PDP), and I couldn’t immediately reach him, I got across to him and he acted promptly. Like Atiku, who is also known E\ WKH WUDGLWLRQDO WLWOH RI :D]LUL $GDPDZD Nyako believed in my sense of judgement and objectivity. You can imagine my bewilderment therefore, when I received a message at noon on Thursday September 22, 2022, that he was no more. “How?” I could only ask my confused self.

Nyako and I came from way back at the

beginnings of the Olusegun Obasanjo/ Atiku Abubakar government, in 1999. He was one of the experienced career civil servants who was deployed from the federal civil service, to guide and assist the new democratic administration through its settling down processes. Abdullahi Gwary his namesake, colleague and top diplomat was also one such bureaucrats assigned to the burgeoning administration. Gwary was deployed to work with the incoming president, while Nyako was assigned to the vice president. There were politicallyappointed human resource components LQ WKH R΀FHV RI ERWK OHDGHUV EXW WKH\ were complemented by the bureaucrats.

Nyako would then be formally designated *Principal Secretary*, *(PS)*, to the VP, a position of absolute trust, responsibility DQG FRQÀGHQFH +H ZDV WKH XOWLPDWH gatekeeper of his principal, a job he did very undoubtedly, to the very end. Gwary, a retired Ambassador, was named the 3URWRFRO /LDLVRQ 2΀FHU 3/2 WR WKH President.

I had other friends and colleagues in the vice president’s arm of the State House, so I was something of a regular caller there. Chris Mammah and Onukaba Adinoyi-Ojo, both colleagues with whom I worked on the 1998/1999 Obasanjo Presidential Campaign, were top on the list of appointments made by Atiku on his ÀUVW GD\ DW ZRUN 7KH 93·V &KLHI RI 6WDͿ Olusola Akanmode, a founding member of the PDP in Kogi State was also with the VP. In a manner of speaking, I had “family” LQ WKH 93·V R΀FH DQG ZH DOO EOHQGHG seamlessly based on our shared interests and mutual commitment to the success of WKH QHZ JRYHUQPHQW :KHQHYHU KH KDGQ·W heard from me in a while and I sauntered into the VP’s section, he would hail me: “My Brother Before Before!” It was his own way of complaining that I hadn’t been looking out for him. That phrase became mutually applicable to both of us, until his very end.

The magnitude of the acrimony between the principals of both of us, particularly in the twilight of the Obasanjo administration notwithstanding, we as aides and colleagues, maintained close touch with each other. Even as the Atiku segment of that original team switched over to the erstwhile Action Congress, (AC), Onukaba remained my friend, brother and regular caller in my house, for instance. En route to my hometown for social or political engagements, I characteristically stopped over in Akanmode’s country home for a chat and a drink. For us friendship and brotherhood are thicker than politics.

But give it to Atiku, he accommodated within his scheme as many of his erstwhile VWDͿ DV SRVVLEOH +H UHFRJQLVHG WKDW WKH\ were collateral casualties of the schism between him and his principal. Garba Shehu, (senior media aide) to President Muhammadu Buhari); Onukaba AdinoyiOjo, and Adeolu Akande, all pioneered WKH $WLNX 0HGLD 2΀FH $02 7KH WHDP SURYLGHG UHTXLVLWH EXͿHU IRU $WLNX and sustainably defected media tirades which characterised that dark patch of the former vice president’s career. The Buhari 0HGLD 2΀FH %02 ZDV ZKROO\ [HUR[HG from the earlier AMO template. Atiku also retained his personal bureaucracy, medical minder, protocol team, legal adviser and security aides, straightaway from the State House.

0DQ\ RI WKHVH R΀FLDOV ZHUH LQGHHG GHQLHG participation during the sale of government houses under the monetization scheme of the Obasanjo government, amongst RWKHU EHQHÀWV ,Q DV PDQ\ LQVWDQFHV DV KH could, Atiku made his personal resources DYDLODEOH WR KHOS KLV VWDͿHUV SURFXUH URRIV over their heads. Atiku’s intervention at the time, was substantial enough to get for HDFK RI WKHP WKUHH EHGURRP ÁDWV RU WHUUDFH apartments, in parts of Abuja fully serviced by infrastructure, secure and populated by homeowners. Such locations were at whistling distances from city centre. This of course was before the Buhari era freestyle cascade of the nation’s currency, which exchange rate is rapidly, unstoppably, inching towards N1000 to one USD. The last time I saw Nyako was on Friday September 9, 2022. Days before, Lucky Igbinedion, (former governor of Edo State), Kenneth Imansuagbon, (a top politician from the same state), and Tunde Ayeni, (a businessman and good friend of Atiku), were among Atiku’s guests at lunchtime. On this last occasion, Nyako left the dining table briskly, earlier than the rest of us. Mukhtar Shagari, (former deputy governor of Sokoto State); Adamu Maina :D]LUL IRUPHU SROLFH DͿDLUV PLQLVWHU Dr Azu Ndukwe (Atiku’s longserving personal physician) among others, were at table with the chief host, Atiku himself.

I asked Nyako later about his unusual, hurried disappearance and he explained to me that he had to keep an appointment at the Nigerian Immigration Service, (NIS) for data capturing, prior to having his international passport renewed. Atiku travelled out of the country on Friday September 16, 2022, after engagements in Lagos, with Nyako, typically on his entourage.

Olusunle, PhD, poet, journalist, scholar and author, is a Member of the Nigerian Guild of Editors, (NGE)

There is need to strengthen school athletics in the state, writes KESIENA IGHO OGHOGHORIE

ANAMBRA: REWRTING THE ATHLETICS NARRATIVE A book about the sport of athletics in Nigeria will be incomplete without a chapter on Anambra State. It is, arguably, one of the states in the country that has contributed VLJQLÀFDQWO\ WR WKH VXFFHVV RI DWKOHWLFV VLQFH Nigeria started participating in the sport at the global level.

Yet, when puzzling about the future it is XVXDOO\ PRVW KHOSIXO WR ORRN EDFN :KDW FDQ history tell us? The success of Anambra in Nigerian athletics dates back to some four decades ago from the old Anambra State. This period gave the state an enviable status of being one of the athletic factories in Nigeria,

at least hopeful glow, as the state has recognized that sharing solutions and SUHYHQWLRQ RI UHFXUUHQFH LV D VLJQLÀFDQW part of performance at all levels. There is, for example, the newly built eight- lane tartan track Akwa Township Stadium, aimed at promoting athletics in the state as well as the maiden Anambra State Junior Athletics Championship for Under 15 and Under 17 male and female participants from all the local government areas of the state which held between June 30th and July 1st 2022.

This is in addition to the Anambra Sports Development Commission monthly walk, etc.

Flames that distract now could lead to DQ XQFRQWUROODEOH FRQÁDJUDWLRQ :H FRXOG waste a lot of time arguing about who or what caused the dearth of athletics in Anambra, but that would achieve nothing.

Improving and rewriting the sports narrative of Anambra demands complex answers, encompassing investment and long-term planning.

There is, clearly, not going to be a single stroke that will rejuvenate Anambra athletics prowess, and not one riposte will take out the problems. Yet, school sports are the bedrock of any sports developmental programme in any nation.

Countries such as Jamaica, Great Britain with the indigenes producing some of the best and the United States that perform very performances the country has seen till date. well at the global athletics level all have an active school athletics system. Anambra, The list was quite impressive. There during the days when it was a reference was Emmanuel Ifeajuna, who became the point on athletics in Nigeria, had a very ÀUVW EODFN $IULFDQ WR ZLQ D JROG PHGDO robust and vibrant school athletics system. at an International sports event when he These competitions produced outstanding claimed the high jump gold at the 1954 athletes who went on to represent the Commonwealth Games; Innocent Egbunike, country at the International level. This is the 400m silver medalist at the 1985 IAAF FRQWUDU\ WR WKH FXUUHQW VWDWH RI DͿDLUV ZKHUH :RUOG $WKOHWLFV &KDPSLRQVKLSV LQ 5RPH there has been a huge decline in school the much celebrated ‘Golden Bronze’ of the athletics competitions in the state, which 1992 Barcelona Olympics, where Mary Onyali has impacted negatively on Anambra and her colleagues won a bronze medal athletics success. There is therefore the in the 4 x 100 metres relay; Mary Onyali’s need for the state to re-negotiate the Commonwealth Games 100m Gold in 1994; as fortune of school athletics, with a view to her 200m bronze medal at the 1996 Summer UHHVWDEOLVK DWKOHWLFV RQ ÀUPHU JURXQGV Olympics in Atlanta. There were also the likes Secondly, sports are also a vital of Mbanefo Akpom and Obinna Metu who component of education, not least as a represented Nigeria at the Olympic Games, medium to advance social cohesion and which is the biggest sporting event in the sport the sporting prowess of students. It also of athletics. They read like celebratory honours helps students develop personal and in an award ceremony. interpersonal skills and talents; and help Yet between the early 2000s and now prepare them for the challenges of life. Yet, Anambra indigenes have, sadly, become for the school athletics system to achieve its spectators in what used to be their own game. desired goal, the inter-house sports within It has, indeed, been a case of expectations schools would need to be strengthened. outgrowing abilities. This could, however, Such a move would involve ensuring be ascribed to a plethora of factors, not least that schools include inter-house sports the dearth of sports facilities, lack of adequate as part of their academic year calendar, funding, and the absence of a well-entrenched and making sports facilities available to sports developmental framework. This is schools that may not have them within in addition to limited competitions at the their premises. This approach will prepare grassroots, lack of an active base in educational the students for the schools athletics institutions, etc. competitions in the state, and ensure that The litany of problems that have greeted the sporting facilities are in constant use, as the sport of athletics in Anambra has, clearly, well as generate income for the state. had a negative impact on several areas of life Thirdly, there would be need to revitalize in the state, not least among the youths who the Anambra Schools Inter-Secondary have lost all sense of productivity, in the sense Schools Championships, cutting across that commitment to duty does not pay. The all the senatorial zones of the state. The situation has, sadly, created an outlet for the competition would be modeled along the incessant killings and other criminal activities June, 2022 Abuja Inter-Secondary Schools in the state. The economic impact could be Athletics Championship, organized by viewed through the lenses of the absence K.I.O. Consult at the Moshood Abiola, of jobs for sports personnel and ancillary National Stadium, Abuja. workers, lower tax revenue for government, Oghoghorie and lack of promotion of political and social is the Organizer, Abuja Inter-Secondary cohesion, etc.

Schools Athletics Championship, 2022 Yet amid the few bright lights, there are

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EDITORIAL

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

YET ANOTHER GRID COLLAPSE Poor electricity supply is increasingly making Nigerians more nervous than ever

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lmost a decade after the privatisation of the power sector, most Nigerians have come to the inescapable conclusion that the process through which countries like India, Singapore and a host of other contemporary emerging economies successfully used to reset their HOHFWULF SRZHU FKDOOHQJH LV SURYLQJ WRR GL΀FXOW WR EH DSSOLHG HͿHFWLYHO\ RQ RXU VKRUHV 2Q 0RQGD\ WKH whole country was thrown into darkness when the QDWLRQDO JULG FUDVKHG WR ]HUR PHJDZDWWV 0: IRU WKH HLJKWK WLPH WKLV \HDU The story of power supply in Nigeria has been that of motion and QR PRYHPHQW :H KDYH gone through layers and chains of committees; we have experienced commercialisation; we have witnessed the “unbundling” of the power VHFWRU DQG SULYDWLVDWLRQ <HW QRWKLQJ VHHPV WR KDYH FKDQJHG )URP .DQR DQG Calabar to Sokoto and Port Harcourt, there is hardly any part of the country that does not experience SRZHU IDLOXUH RQ D UHJXODU EDVLV ,Q PRVW SODFHV IRU several days and sometime, weeks, many people have no access to electricity to lighten the burden of OLYLQJ 0HDQZKLOH FRQVXPHUV DUH SD\LQJ PRUH DQG getting less power at a time the exchange rate makes ERWK JHQHUDWRUV DQG GLHVHO SURKLELWLYH Before now, the common excuse for grid collapse was always that the transmission lines could not wheel the power so generated by the generating FRPSDQLHV *(1&26 7KH PRUH UHFHQW RQH was however attributed to vandalism of some WUDQVPLVVLRQ LQIUDVWUXFWXUH %XW WKH GLVWULEXWLRQ FRPSDQLHV ',6&26 WKDW ZHUH WKH EHQHÀFLDULHV of the shambolic power sector reforms have all failed to invest in modernising and expanding WKH WUDQVPLVVLRQ OLQHV 7R DGGUHVV WKH FKDOOHQJH RI

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the sector would require addressing the perverse LQFHQWLYHV ZLWKLQ WKH V\VWHP DQG ZHDN UHJXODWLRQ Even though we have the capacity to generate about 0: WKH JULG FDQQRW WDNH PRUH WKDQ 0: Nigerians are yet to feel the impact of the billions VSHQW RQ 0DPELOOD =XQJHUX DQG LQGHHG WKH ZRUN that Siemens is doing with Transmission Company RI 1LJHULD 7&1 Hardly a week passes without either the 26 HOHFWULFLW\ JHQHUDWLRQ FRPSDQLHV *HQFRV WKH GLVWULEXWLRQ FRPSDQLHV 'LVFRV DQG WKH ORQH WUDQVPLVVLRQ FRPSDQ\ 7&1 ZKLFK LV VWLOO ZLWKLQ JRYHUQPHQW·V FRQWURO WUDGLQJ EODPH %XW ZKDWHYHU may be the excuses, it is also true that other stakeholders in the power sector, including— if not especially—the federal government, have contributed to the challenge of electricity VXSSO\ LQ 1LJHULD )RU instance, the government KDV IUHTXHQWO\ ÀGGOHG ZLWK WKH VWDWXWRU\ H[HUFLVH RI DOORZLQJ IRU D FRVW UHÁHFWLYH WDULͿ IRU WKH PDUNHW WR HQFRXUDJH IXUWKHU LQYHVWPHQWV DQG JURZWK 7KHUH are serious systemic issues across the power value FKDLQ WKDW QHHG D KROLVWLF DSSURDFK WR EHLQJ VROYHG ,Q D UHSRUW SXEOLVKHG ODVW \HDU WKH :RUOG %DQN rated Nigeria as the poorest country in the world on power supply to citizens with 85 million people not connected to the grid and a loss of $26 billion DQQXDOO\ :LWK HYHU\ERG\ VXSSO\LQJ WKHLU RZQ electricity, Nigeria is one of the toughest places in WKH ZRUOG WR GR EXVLQHVV /DFN RI HOHFWULFLW\ KDV limited access to healthcare, education, and other opportunities, including running their businesses IRU PDMRULW\ RI 1LJHULDQV 0DQ\ VPDOO DQG PHGLXP scale businesses have been crippled due to the SURKLELWLYH FRVW RI JHQHUDWLQJ WKHLU RZQ SRZHU :H FDQQRW JURZ RXU HFRQRP\ ZLWKRXW VRUWLQJ RXW WKLV FULWLFDO LQIUDVWUXFWXUH $QG DOO RSWLRQV VKRXOG EH RQ WKH WDEOH

Many small and medium scale businesses have been crippled due to the prohibitive cost of generating their own power

T H I S D AY EDITOR SHAKA MOMODU DEPUTY EDITORS WALE OLALEYE, OBINNA CHIMA MANAGING DIRECTOR ENIOLA BELLO DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTOR ISRAEL IWEGBU CHAIRMAN EDITORIAL BOARD OLUSEGUN ADENIYI EDITOR NATION’S CAPITAL IYOBOSA UWUGIAREN MANAGING EDITOR BOLAJI ADEBIYI THE OMBUDSMAN KAYODE KOMOLAFE

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T H I S D AY N E W S PA P E R S L I M I T E D EDITOR-IN-CHIEF/CHAIRMAN NDUKA OBAIGBENA GROUP EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS ENIOLA BELLO, KAYODE KOMOLAFE, ISRAEL IWEGBU, IJEOMA NWOGWUGWU, EMMANUEL EFENI DIVISIONAL DIRECTORS SHAKA MOMODU, PETER IWEGBU, ANTHONY OGEDENGBE DEPUTY DIVISIONAL DIRECTOR OJOGUN VICTOR DANBOYI SNR. ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR ERIC OJEH ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR PATRICK EIMIUHI CONTROLLERS ABIMBOLA TAIWO, UCHENNA DIBIAGWU, NDUKA MOSERI DIRECTOR, PRINTING PRODUCTION CHUKS ONWUDINJO TO SEND EMAIL: first name.surname@thisdaylive.com

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

LETTERS ZAMFARA AND PERVASIVE INSECURITY $V LQVHFXULW\ FRQWLQXHV WR FRQYXOVH 1LJHULD =DPIDUD 6WDWH LQ northwest Nigeria has emerged as one of those states that has EHHQ HVSHFLDOO\ KDXQWHG Indeed, it appears the state which takes great pride in its farming activities was where banditry recorded its very beginnings in Nigeria when the newly discovered gold deposits in the state ZHUH VDLG WR EH EHKLQG WKH XQUHVW 6RPH WUDGLWLRQDO UXOHUV LQ WKH state were even accused of working in tandem with the bandits WR WXUQ WKH VWDWH XSVLGH GRZQ :KDWHYHU LW ZDV LQ WKH EHJLQQLQJ ZKDW LV EH\RQG DUJXPHQW today is that the state has become one of Nigeria`s most volatile VWDWHV 7KHUH LV KDUGO\ D ZHHN ZLWKRXW WHUURULVWV DWWDFNLQJ RQH FRPPXQLW\ RU WKH RWKHU LQ =DPIDUD 3HRSOH KDYH EHHQ NLOOHG in their homes, their farms, mosques, markets and all the other SODFHV WKDW SHRSOH FRYHU DV SDUW RI WKHLU GDLO\ DFWLYLWLHV In a country where education, especially girl-child education, LV DW D FULWLFDO FURVVURDGV VFKRROV KDYH QRW EHHQ VSDUHG ,QGHHG ZKHQ LQ )HEUXDU\ DERXW JLUOV ZHUH NLGQDSSHG IURP the Government Girls Secondary School, Jangebe by terrorists, D PRUWDO EORZ ZDV GHDOW WR HGXFDWLRQ LQ WKH VWDWH ,Q 0D\ DQG DJDLQ LQ -XO\ WKH KHOO WKH JRRG SHRSOH RI =DPIDUD 6WDWH KDYH EHHQ SXW WKURXJK LQ WKH ODVW FRXSOH RI \HDUV

ZDV ODLG EDUHG LQ WZR GRFXPHQWDULHV WKH ÀUVW E\ 7UXVW 7Y DQG WKH VHFRQG E\ WKH %%& 7KH GRFXPHQWDULHV ZKLFK MRXUQH\HG LQWR WKH GDUN KHDUW RI WKH QLJKWPDUH LQ =DPIDUD ZDV PDGH WR ZDUQ D EHVLHJHG FRXQWU\ WKDW WKH ZRUVW ZDV \HW WR FRPH The documentary duly stung an otherwise slumbering govHUQPHQW LQWR DFWLRQ %XW XQVXUSULVLQJO\ LW UXEEHG LW RͿ WKH ZURQJ ZD\ 9DJXHO\ VD\LQJ WKDW WKH GRFXPHQWDULHV KDG WKH HIfect of glorifying terrorism, the National Broadcasting Commission which has become a considerable threat to media freedom ZDV TXLFN WR VODP ÀQHV UXQQLQJ LQWR PLOOLRQV RI QDLUD RQ VRPH PHGLD KRXVHV 7KH PHGLD KRXVHV PD\ KDYH EHHQ ÀQHG DQG WKH GRFXPHQWDULHV RQ WHUURULVP LQ =DPIDUD 6WDWH YLOLÀHG E\ WKH IHGHUDO JRYernment, but the problems exposed by the documentaries have FRQWLQXHG WR UDJH XQFKHFNHG 2Q )ULGD\ 6HSWHPEHU ZKLOH SUD\HUV ZHUH JRLQJ RQ WHUURULVWV IHOO XSRQ D -XPCXDW PRVTXH LQ =XJX =DPIDUD 6WDWH :KHQ WKH GXVW VHWWOHG WKH &KLHI ,PDP RI WKH PRVTXH DQG WKUHH RWKHU ZRUVKLSSHUV OD\ GHDG 2Q )ULGD\ 6HSWHPEHU WHUrorists again fell on Ruwan Jema, a community in Bukkuyum DUHD RI WKH VWDWH DQG VODXJKWHUHG SHRSOH

0HPRULHV DUH VWLOO IUHVK RI WKH VHYHQ IDUPHUV WKDW ZHUH NLOOHG HDUOLHU WKLV \HDU LQ 0DUDGXQ /RFDO *RYHUQPHQW $UHD RI WKH VWDWH ZKHQ WKH\ GHÀHG WKH ZDUQLQJ RI WKH EDQGLWV QRW WR JR WR WKHLU IDUPV $ORQJ WKH OLQH WKHUH KDYH EHHQ DEHUUDWLRQV ,Q -XO\ D national uproar had greeted the turbaning of Ada Aleru, a ZDQWHG WHUURULVW DV WKH 6DUNLQ )XODQL RI <DQGRWRQ 'DML (PLUDWH LQ WKH VWDWH 6R RYHUZKHOPHG KDV WKH JRYHUQPHQW RI WKH VWDWH been with the security situation that some months ago, it asked UHVLGHQWV RI WKH VWDWH WR GHIHQG WKHPVHOYHV <HW WKH =DPIDUD 6WDWH JRYHUQRU ZDV VDLG WR KDYH GRQDWHG ÀYH +LOX[ YDQV WR WKH government of neighbouring Niger Republic for security in WKH FRXQWU\ 7KH VLWXDWLRQ LQ =DPIDUD 6WDWH UHPDLQV WURXEOLQJ Those who are bearing the brunt of the crisis are the vulnerable IDPLOLHV ZKR KDYH EHHQ OHIW DW WKH PHUF\ RI UXWKOHVV WHUURULVWV Beyond imperiling those who are courageous enough to tell the story of the darkness consuming the state, the federal and the state governments must do more to secure lives and propHUW\ LQ WKH VWDWH Kene Obiezu, Twitter: @kenobiezu

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WEEKLY MAGAZINE

NEWS Nnenna Onyewuchi Assumes es Office as Board Member of iFitness See page 29

ETRENDS ‘Diiche’ Gains Praise at Private Screening See page 30

ART WEEKEND D Efua Oyofo Tells Powerful Stories of Women’s Triumphss in “Udamalore” See page 31

POTPOURRI California University Awards rds Nigeria’s Performance Strategist, Abiola Salami, Doctorate Honours See page 32

OBIAGELI AJAERO: Group Features Editor: CHIEMELIE EZEOBI chiemelie.ezeobi@thisdaylive.com

07010510430

A Decade of Showcasing Excellence in Service

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COVER

Obiageli Ajaero: A Decade of Showcasing Excellence in Service Üݲ ÌÓËÑÏÖÓ ÔËÏÜÙ ÓÝ ÞÒÏ ×ËØËÑÓØÑ ÎÓÜÏÍÞÙÜ ÙÐ Ù×ÕÙÖÍÒ ÓÑÏÜÓË ÞΘ Ë ×ËÜÕÏÞÓØÑ ËØÎ ÎÓÝÞÜÓÌßÞÓÙØ ÍÙ×ÚËØã ÐÙÍßÝÏÎ ÙØ ÌÜËØÎ ËáËÜÏØÏÝÝ ËØÎ ÚÜÙÎßÍÞ ÝËÖÏÝ ÓØ ÓÑÏÜÓ˲ ÙÜ Ë ÎÏÍËÎϘ ÔËÏÜÙ˜ áÒÙ ÓÝ ËÖÝÙ Ë ÎÓÜÏÍÞÙÜ ÓØ ÓÞÏÜËÍã ØÞÏÑÜËÞÏÎ ÙÜ×ËÖ ËØÎ ÎßÍËÞÓÙؘ ÒËÝ ÝÒÙáØ ÚËÝÝÓÙؘ ÏâÍÏÖÖÏØÍϘ ÓØØÙàËÞÓÙؘ àËÖßÏ ËØÎ ÜÏÝÓÖÓÏØÍÏ ÞÒÜÙßÑÒ ÞÒÏ ÌßÝÓØÏÝݲ Ý ÞÒÏ ÍÙ×ÚËØã ÍÙ××Ï×ÙÜËÞÏÝ ÓÞÝ ͒͑ÞÒ ËØØÓàÏÜÝËÜã ÙØ ÍÞÙÌÏÜ ͒˜ REBECCA EJIFOMA áÜÓÞÏÝ ÞÒËÞ ÑÓàÏØ ÓÞÝ ÞÜËÍÕ ÜÏÍÙÜÎ ÓØ ÌÏËÞÓØÑ ÞÒÏ ÙÎÎݘ ÞÒÏ ÐßÞßÜÏ ÒÙÖÎÝ ÚÜÙ×ÓÝÓØÑ ÚÜÙÝÚÏÍÞÝ

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are some days I say to myself is it not better I just lie down and cover my head with this duvet and sleep? It’s as if Nigeria’s tax agencies are there to make it difficult and not enable you to succeed.” Ajaero further called on the government to urgently look into the tax agencies. “They tell you they’re under pressure; they have their target.

I think it’s a very unfair scenario.”

While frowning at the discomforting acts of tax agencies, Somkolch MD acknowledged the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration Control (NAFDAC) as the “Only agency that doesn’t frustrate. I got a lot of support from NAFDAC especially when we were setting up our packaging arm. I like them because they came and saw my site, helped me draw my plan and showed me what is acceptable. So I find them helpful and that’s how it’s supposed to be because if I’m doing well I’m contributing to the country’s GDP, carrying out corporate social responsibilities. I’m employing people so you shouldn’t frustrate my business.

Other agencies should take a cue from NAFDAC.”

uesday evening of September 20, 2022 was everything anticipated – the new norm of gridlock on Apongbo bridge en route CMS and the brutal assault by the honking of vehicles.

Nonetheless, from the pleasant reception to her sense of humour through to the ambience of her home in the Lekki area of Lagos State, Mrs. Obiageli Ajaero, the managing director of Somkolch Nigeria Ltd was a delight to be with.

While we kicked off with a glass of chilled fresh melon juice to soothe the nerves, we had a repartee of how she bowed out from the banking industry in 2012. The witty conversation soon took a natural twist to her knack for solving problems and leaving an impressive legacy, an enthusiasm that birthed SomKolch.

“Somkolch was incorporated in 2011,” she recounted gleefully. “However, we kicked off operations in August 2012. 10 years down the line we are rolling out the drums to celebrate steadfastness, staying-power, dexterity and above all the divine grace that our Almighty God has shone on us all these years to weather the storm that our business terrain typified and still typifies.

We have come a long way operating with meagre resources and coming into our own office. And now we will settle in the marketplace.”

For Somkolch Nig Ltd, it is one decade down and forever to go! And Ajaero continues to match her words with action. “I also have my idea where I brought people of like minds to build Somkolch.

We started as a marketing and distribution company and we’ve grown and branched out into other aspects of the business.

“We started with purifier products, system engines and fuel purifier products. From there we branched into other products like the engine block, mostly maintenance products at first brake fluids, car and chokes things like that before we added some household cleaners like all-purpose cleaners, dashboard, furniture polish, tyre products and tyre inflators. We do projects that could be supply jobs, refurbishing a place, or mini-renovation.

We also have a project side of the business.”

PROMOTING VALUE Although Somkolch got stranded when it first presented value over volume, it pressed on and sailed through. “You know Nigeria is such a unique country,” she chuckled. “When we went into the market, buyers whined that our price was too high.

I tried to explain to them how fantastic and of premium quality it was. They said they weren’t interested in quality; they were only interested in things that would go in the market. You can imagine how much of a blow it was for us. That was my first shocker.”

But Somkolch refused to give in to low patronage.

“I had to sit with my team and restrategise. So we said if the market doesn’t want quality, we know people, corporate organisations and parastatals that want quality. It has a very scientific approach because the company groomed us very well.

We were trained properly to improve concepts.

So we went out there to do proof of concept to show how fantastic the product is and that’s still our number one selling product to date. So what we did was our strategy came for us to create the demand and when the demand was there we went into the market and did that,” she expressed.

While conceding that it is more pleasing to narrate the journey now when it was more taxing during the experience, the graduate of Biochemistry from the Imo State University said, “It was such a herculean task. It wasn’t easy; we pushed; went to companies, made proposals, and did presentations. Here we are today.” For Ajaero, 10 years is a landmark for any business person. “We are told between three and five years a business should stand. We have gone past that. We had hitches; we had pilfering; people plagiarised our products, and COVID-19 came but we’ve survived and are doing well.

We are grateful to God.” According to the Somkolch boss, resilience is essential in business despite being in a maledominated field. “For me, I don’t see impossibility.

I don’t have that mindset. When people see me, they think I’m in fashion or skincare. I have a sister business in skincare, but that’s not my major.

ACTIVITIES FOR ITS TIN ANNIVERSARY As a director in Literacy Integrated Formal and Education (LIFE), part of the activities to mark its tin anniversary includes a comprehensive cleanup of gutters on Wednesday. “We want to do a cleanup.

Lagos, especially, needs to be cleaned. The stench from the gutters is killing and overflowing, then cleaning up the street,” she emphasised. “They say charity begins at home. We will work on our streets where our company is sited so that when it rain, we don’t have floods. Then on Thursday, we will visit an orphanage home with the list of what they need.”

JUGGLING CAREER AND MOTHERHOOD Ajaero is a mother of six. She juggles career and family life effortlessly. “In my head, the way I function best is there is someone in charge of everything. I tend to shut down the office once I get home till everyone is in bed. Most of my children are grown up anyway; my first daughter is working. I have two in their final year in school,” she enthused.

Ajaero is not only rocking her role as pilot of Somkolch well, but she is also managing her role as a mum unconditionally. “One thing I learnt as a family person is that there must be time to come together and air your grievances. You would be shocked at what the kids have to say. There must be room for people to talk and say what’s right or done wrong, to do better. So we do that at home and I implement it at the office as well.”

Mrs Obiageli Ajaero It’s like limiting – a stereotype. A woman can do anything a man can do. I ventured into this line because I was looking for a unique product. I studied biochemistry in school. I like good things. I’m someone that wants to give you something that matters.

PRODUCTS AND SERVICES At Somkolch, its avalanche of products and services range from diesel cure, fuel purifier, injector cure, engine flush, brake fluid, car and choke carburettor, anti-rust, and maintenance products to brake cleaners. There are also tyre sealants which are a preventative product, shamal tools for cleaning and washing cars, windows and houses, dashboard cleaners, all-purpose cleaners, and furniture polishes.

NEED FOR GOVERNMENT TO TAKE A STEP As a marketing, distribution, supplier and services company, Somkolch wishes to have its factory in another 10 years. “I want us to have a factory in the next 10 years – if I have 16 products, 14 of them will be made here, not going out to get them. We need to reduce importation and that’s one of the reasons we said let’s finish that product here.”

Ajaero recommended, “We need to begin to manufacture things, teach the younger generation to be self-sufficient as a country,

and not have that knowledge gap. So in another 10 years, I already have the plan for my factory and all of that by God’s grace.

We will employ and teach our people.”

Meanwhile, Ajaero is concerned that a lot of people in Nigeria dont practise what they studied in school because of a lack of opportunities. “That’s not right. And that’s what I want to do. There’s a lot the government has to do for us as a people. Right now to produce here is more expensive. One of our cons is sourced here. It’s so expensive that we had to import it. The people here have such huge costs. We have to have the right government focused on helping entrepreneurs, manufacturers and the economy to flourish.

Look at where the dollar is. So discouraging!”

Despite the many hiccups, Somkolch has so much to be thankful for – its outlets in Aspanda market, Isolo and Lekki are satisfying its esteemed customers. “We have distributors as we supply nationwide. So that’s what we are doing. We are celebrating on the 1st of October. We have this and we want to appreciate those who have been there and worked with us.”

HOW TAX AGENCIES COLLAPSE BUSINESS Somkolch has had its fair share of breaking points and aha moments. “In Nigeria, there

SECRET TO SUCCESS In lending a voice, Ajaero reminded budding entrepreneurs that nothing gained, nothing ventured.

“Take that leap of faith. Another thing I encourage people is if you have a great idea, put it down on paper and sell it to people. Once you think you have something great, sell it and bring people of like minds together. You must not mix business money with personal money. Once they begin to merge, there’s a problem,” she implored convincingly.

“I earn a salary. I’m like a staff member so I get paid. In my company, if I’m broke and need money, I ask my PA to write for them to give me a loan and state the period and how I plan to pay. You can’t just say transfer. Where’s the mail and supporting document? That’s how my people have been trained. Whoever is in charge has the right to question you. Because I don’t want to run a one-man business, I’m looking beyond today.

I want something that would live beyond me.”

She also enjoined entrepreneurs to pay themselves salaries. “Have an account,” she cautioned, “where you put your business money else you won’t succeed. As long as you have huge sums of money, you would pinch yourself. When I started the business, I went down to 50 per cent of what the bank paid me because that’s what I could afford at that point. But as the business grew, we increased the salary. As an entrepreneur, you should make sacrifices.

And because of its journey of sacrifice, persistence, and distilling excellence, Ajaero said, “Everything has a gestation period. To plant, there must be a period of germination. Now we are coming out full and nice. And we are grateful to God for this feat”.

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NEWS

Nnenna Onyewuchi Assumes Office as Board Member of iFitness Stories by Mary Nnah iFitness, a leading fitness and wellness platform in Africa, recently appointed Nnenna Onyewuchi to its board of directors as a NonExecutive Member.

With over 25 years of experience in marketing and business strategy spanning 50 brands and three continents, Onyewuchi has worked across a variety of disciplines including advertising, experiential marketing, content production and distribution, paytv, and financial services.

Onyewuchi who expressed her enthusiasm for contributing to the I-Fitness journey noted, “This is an exciting time for iFitness. They are expandingtheirfootprintandtheir offering, and I’m looking forward to working with the management as they negotiate this period of transformation and growth.

I’m thrilled to join and looking forward to contributing to the mission to help more people live healthier so they can live happier.”

Onyewuchi has built a sterling reputation within the marketing industry. She co-designed a proprietary branding model, helped

pioneer a suite of non-traditional research tools and has created not just communications, but a host of solutions that include new

products, coffee table books and even video games.

Commenting on Onyewuchi’s appointment to the board,

Nnenna Onyewuchi

FounderandCEOI-Fitness,Foluso Ogunwale said, “The I-Fitness journey has been built on the value we give our relationships.

We are grateful to add another relationship to our community.

We believe we would be able to build connections, forge strategic alliances, and increase brand awareness thanks to Nnenna’s significant marketing experience and business strategy talents.”

As a founder of iFitness, Ogunwale has successfully led the brand to become Africa’s fastest-growing fitness brand. He founded I-Fitness in 2015 with the vision of building the company to become the preferred fitness chain in Africa by 2023.

Thecompany’smissionisdriven to make the culture of health and fitness common in urban areas of the country using its well-spread network. iFitnessisaleading360healthand wellness Company. With over 18 branches and 200 branches across Nigeria, iFitness prides itself in building a community of health enthusiasts. Its top-of-the-line facilities and professionally certified personal trainers provide its memberswithaholisticexperience.

TravelTank Celebrates One Year in Business

TravelTank team

In a bid to further establish its stake and contributions to the Nigerian travel ecosystem, TravelTank, one of the top online travel agencies in Nigeria, celebrated its 1st Anniversary by organising a webinar series penultimate Friday, with the title, TravelTank @1: Revitalising the post-covid online travel experience.

The business has built a stellar reputation in just one year for providing Nigerians with a huge selection of travel products online.

Since its launch in 2021, the tech travel agency, TravelTank has been on a mission to make travel planning and bookings quick, fun and affordable using technology.

Founded on September 16th, 2021, the company is contributing to the tourist environment by making travel opportunities accessible to everyone.

Within its first year, TravelTank’s business growth has extended exponentially. From five travel sharks to over 20 hungry travel sharks. From less than seven flight bookings in September 2021 to well over 10,000 bookings to date as well as an increase in its affiliate membership base from 20 to over 278 to date.

Branching out, from independent flight booking services at the beginning of 2022, to providing other travel supplementary services to its ever-growing clientele,

TravelTank now connects its affiliate members to other value-added travel services thus empowering more and more small business units within the travel industry.

CEO, TravelTank, Mr. Yemi Smith, said, “Partnership is key. We need to develop strong partnerships amongst ourselves. Yes, we need the government’s help, but at the same, we travel agents need to look inwards and develop partnerships with each other to allow inbound tourism to scale and flourish. A lot of us are distanced and in

different regions, so it will take value-laced collaboration to make local tourism truly flourish in the country”.

“It has been an incredible run, and we are thrilled that our customers value our online offerings, Smith added, noting, “Our company views the occasion of our first anniversary as an opportunity to reflect on the lessons we have learnt as a whole and to reaffirm our vision for the online travel industry for the coming year and beyond.”

As indicative of TravelTank’s anniversary theme, “Sailing the Horizons”, The online travel agency envisions a world in which travel consumers can quickly research, plan, and book their travel using the power of technological innovation while saving time and money. TravelTank’s universal goal is to ensure everyone enjoys a seamless travel experience by utilising its cutting-edge tech platforms to spearhead the country’s shift towards sustainable online travel.

Jumia Food Nigeria Kicks off Online Food Festival Jumia Food has commenced its online ‘food festival’ campaign, promoting meal ordering from top international and local restaurants.

The two-week campaign started on Monday, September 26th and will run through October 9th, 2022. Consumers will have the opportunity to buy meals of up to 50% off from their favourite restaurants such as Indomie Cafe, Burger King, Dodo Pizza, Cold Stone Creamery, Pinkberry, Yin Yang Express, Tantalizers, Scoop’d, Pizza Hut, Krispy Kreme Doughnuts & Coffee, Sooya Bistro and Boleboxx.

“The Jumia Food Festival is another opportunity to promote the adoption of meal ordering

in Nigeria. We have seen more consumers shift to online delivery platforms as a convenient and safer option to enjoy delicious recipes still.

We have partnered with the best restaurants to ensure consumers enjoy convenience and affordability while ordering their favourite meals.

This campaign also allows us to support our consumers despite the challenges related to inflation and high cost,” said Oluwafemi Ajulo, Head of Commercial, On-Demand Services, Jumia Nigeria.

“Partnering with Jumia Food for the food festival campaign is another opportunity for us to reiterate our commitment to our customers through amazing offers, so they can continue to enjoy

convenience when ordering their favourite ice cream. Jumia Food has allowed us to reach more customers that we would not typically have been able to reach in the Nigerian market, which is why we are excited to be part of this campaign.

Customers can be sure of getting the best value when they buy from the Jumia Food app during this period,” said Maruf Lamidi, Marketing Manager, Cold Stone Creamery & Pinkberry Nigeria.

Consumers can take advantage of the exciting deals during the Food Festival Campaign by simply downloading the Jumia Food App. The campaign will also feature Buy One Get One Free, Flash Sales, and more.

SEYI MAKINDE ANNUAL ESSAY COMPETITION 2022 TO EMPOWER YOUTHS

Makinde

In its quest to empower and engage youths with public discourse specifically on the administration of the Seyi Makinde-led government, a professional group, Omituntun Initiative in the Diaspora (OID), has launched its Seyi Makinde Annual Essay Competition 2022.

It was gathered that the best piece will be awarded a sum of N200,000, while the second and third prizes will attract N150,000 and N100,000 respectively. As the top 20 participants will be sponsored for digital skills vocational training and awards will be presented to top participants at an OID reception.

According to the group’s spokesperson, Barrister Ayotomiwa Adebayo, the essay is aligned with the interest of Governor Seyi Makinde in youths empowerment as well as further seeks to serve as a platform where youths are challenged to take interest in sociopolitical debates whilst using such opportunity to advance their competencies in any human endeavour.

According to the release entrants can only write one of the entitled essays: “Strengthening transparency, inclusiveness, and accountability for a peaceful and sustainable development in Oyo State”; or “Advancing the frontiers of possibilities for a safe, secured and prosperous Oyo State through citizen’s active participation in governance processes; “Re-engineering the Oyo State energy system through the newly proposed development and implementation of Oyo State master gas plan: Expectations, Possibilities, and Benefits”.

The deadline for the submission is dated November 20, 2022, by 11.59 pm. The release also noted that the exercise is open to Oyo State residents/indigenes who are students of any recognised institution in Nigeria and must be between the ages of 18 and 35.

“The essay must be written in English using Microsoft word format.

Entries must be between 800 and 1000 words (bibliography and references are excluded from the word count). Entries must be prepared in font size 12 Times New Roman with double spacing and pages numbered. Plagiarism of any kind will result in automatic disqualification.

“Participants must be ready to provide proof of students’ identification and residency if required. Names and contact details should be stated in the submitted entries. Entrants must be creative and draw practical examples from concluded or ongoing infrastructural projects in Oyo State.

“Points will be awarded to in-depth analysis and understanding of the topic, creativity, originality, depth of research, and real-life application. No submission is allowed after the deadline date as stated above. An electronic copy of your essay must be submitted through the link: admin@omituntunindiaspora.org,” the release added.

MARA CRUIZ CREATES PATH FOR ASPIRING WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS An organic hair care producer in Lagos, Mara Cruiz Ltd, has unveiled an initiative to empower about 1000 African women, giving them a structured platform to resell their products with a low entry fee.

This initiative was made known at a press briefing in Lagos.

The Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Mara Cruiz Ltd, Amara Tasie, explained that the initiative, known as the “MC 1000 Entrepreneurship Program” was the company’s way of giving back to society to commemorate her 7th year of successful business operation in Nigeria and Africa.

Tasie stated that the organization, known for producing an organic range of hair care products came into existence in 2015. She said despite the harsh economic reality, they have been able to raise over 100 business partners across 20 States in Nigeria, thus making this move to consolidate.

The Chief Executive further added that women who subscribe to this initiative through the brand website will be exposed to free hair care education, marketing strategy, and basic knowledge of business operations.

“We have developed a support system to assist the associates to become successful entrepreneurs, making great profits and impacts across the world.

A profit plan design that’ll enable them to make up to #50,000 or more in profits weekly from sales of our products is in place.”

She added.

The Entrepreneur urges the Federal Government to come to the aid of the manufacturing industry by way of favorable policies and creating an enabling environment for operators in the industry to thrive.

Taste said the success of the brand in the last seven years is due to having the right management who helped to steer the organization in the right direction.

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E-TRENDS WHAT A GRAMMYS AFROBEATS CATEGORY MEANS FOR NIGERIANS

MUSIC SHOWBIZ

…Your weekly entertainment delight

NOLLYWOOD

‘Diiche’ Gains Praise at Private Screening

Grammy award winner Burna Boy

Following the Global Citizen Festival held in Ghana recently where The RecordingAcademy CEO, Harvey Mason Jr announced the possibility of adding an Afrobeats category to the Grammys, the definition of Afrobeats has taken centre-stage.

It is believed that Afrobeats through Western lens is considered music coming out of Africa, but that definition is not accepted by all. Not a few argue that Afrobeats is a derivative ofAfrobeat, the unique sound created by the legendary Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, and as such is a sound peculiar to Nigeria.

“Afrobeats is 90 per cent Nigerian and 10 per cent Ghanaian,” said the CEO of Inspiro Productions, Ayoola Sadare.

On the seventh episode of Showmax’s ‘Journey to the Beats’, this argument took centre-stage with the older generation dismissing Afrobeats and sticking to Afrobeat. However, the middle and younger generations of music enthusiasts believe Afrobeats is an infusion of African rhythm, language, and culture blended in with influences from the Caribbean, dancehall and other genres of music. It also covers sub-genres such as Afro-pop, Afro-rap, Afro-dance, Afro-piano, and others.

They believe Afrobeat refers to the founder of the sound; music and, to some extent, the lifestyle of the genre’s founder, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti and his music. Prominent music producer, ID Cabasa has reservations about referring toAfrobeats as a genre that covers every music from Africa.

The understanding of what may be classified asAfrobeats requires thorough research by the Grammys ifAfrobeats is to be added to the body’s long genre list.

NIGERIA GAINS DOUBLE SHOTATWINNING BEST FILM AT18TH AMAA Iyke Bede Ahead of the 18th edition of the Africa Movie Academy Awards (AMAA) that will be held later in October, two Nigerian films, Walter ‘Taylaur’ Banger’s ‘Jolly Roger’, and Bolanle Austen-Peters’ ‘Man of God’ are in the lead to gain AMAAglory for Best Film.

It challenges ‘Ayaanle’ (Somalia), ‘Borga’ (Ghana), ‘Angeliena’ (South Africa) ‘Tug of War’ (Tanzania), and ‘Surviving Gaza’ (South Africa). Similarly, both films have been nominated in the Best Director category.

Gaining recognition in Best First Feature Film by a Director, Nigeria’s Ogo Okpue competes against Uga Carlini (‘Angeliena’), York Fabian Raabe (‘Borga’), and Benedict Yeboah (‘Road to My Father’s Compound’) with his directorial debut ‘ASong from The Dark’.

On the Nigerian tuft, ‘Man of God’, ‘Alaise’, ‘Swallow’, ‘Jolly Roger’, ‘Almajiri’, and ‘Money Miss Road’ are competing to clinch the honours for Best Nigerian Film.

Daniel Etim Effiong, Akah Nnani, and Deyemi Okanlanwo were nominated in the Best Actor in a Leading Role category, while Osas Ighodaro and Eniola Akinbo will represent Nigeria in the Best Actress in a Leading Role category.

Ijeoma Grace Agu, Dorcas Shola Fapson, and Nse Ikpe Etim are the triple threat vying for the Best Actress in a Supporting role. This feat was also matched by their male counterparts as Segun Arinze, Toyin Osinaike, and Josh2funny progressed to the BestActor in a Supporting role.

L-R: Executive Producer and Director, ‘Diiche’, James Omokwe; actress Gloria Anozie-Young; Head, Content and West Africa Channels, MultiChoice Nigeria, Dr Busola Tejumola; actress Uzoamaka Onuoha; General Manager, Showmax Nigeria, Opeoluwa Filani, and actress Chinyere Wilfred

StoriesbyVanessaObioha Ahead of the first episode of ‘Diiche’ that was made available yesterday on Africa’s streaming platform Showmax, the cast and crew, select media personalities, and guests convened for a private screening.

The event which was held at The Hall, Victoria Island, Lagos, offered the first look into the James Omokwe, ToluAjayi, Fiyin Gambo, and Ifeoma Chukwuego-directed limited series “One of the reasons we wanted more than one director was because we wanted a situation where different creatives came with their different styles and imagination. We combined all of the ideas into one version. It was

quite important because we are telling a very complicated story,” Omokwe elaborated on the creative process.

‘Diiche’, Showmax’s first Nigerian series, is a psychological drama thriller series about the life of anA-list actress Diiche (Uzoamaka Obioha), who becomes a prime suspect in a high-profile murder investigation over the death of Nnamdi (Daniel K Daniel), her fiancé. She must take it upon herself, race against the clock to find out who killed him, and exonerate herself. However, there is more to the case than meets the eye and a backstory of almost 30 years ago that reveals the tussle between good and evil.

Closing on a cliffhanger, the last scene of the pilot episode unearthed a

piece of exhibit originally taken away from the crime scene of Nnamdi’s murder. His demise soon places all who attend the private soiree as suspects, with Diiche sticking out as a prime suspect.

The allegation against Diiche further proves Adaure’s (Gloria Anozie-Young) suspicions about her when she disapproved of the engagement between her son Nnamdi and Diiche. Adaure eventually embarks on a quest to find answers through diabolical means.

Kesaandu (Chinyere Wilfred), however, becomes the rock that stabilises Diiche as she experiences bouts of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) episodes brought about by the events of the murder, her past

At Maiden Fiesta Pleasure Party, Oxlade, Ladipoe, Raybeka Deliver a Spectacle Iyke Bede The first edition of the Fiesta Pleasure Party can be best described as an intervention for young millennials and Gen Zs, to experience a potpourri of dance and musical expressions against the backdrop of attaining sexual education.

With the Landmark Event Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos playing host to the youth-centric event, the concert recorded a good turnout from fashion-forward and internet-savvy guests.

The event however didn’t kick off at the scheduled time, but when it commenced, it was worth the hourlong delay. For the next 45 minutes, a group of dancers engaged the audience with various dance styles from across the continent. Beautifully choreographed, they invited members of the audience to share the stage with them. Gleefully, a few people obliged, almost stealing the spotlight.

The concert, which was conceived by non-profit organisation DKT International Nigeria, showcased up-and-coming acts. One such person is Raybeka (born Rebecca Chinonso), who gained resonant applause following her adlibbed performances conveyed with pure vocals and strong stage presence.

Sandwiched between the open-

Oxlade performing at Fiesta Pleasure Party

ing and the headliners — rapper Ladipoe and singer Oxlade —exotic dancers transformed the theatre-inthe-round into a sensual space that showcased their femininity.

About an hour and a half later, the craze was turned up a notch with Ladipoe emerging on stage. Projected from an overhead panoramic LCD, the singer, who was dressed in all black and shades, engaged the audience in a call and response to some of his popular tracks, with the most notable being ‘Big Energy’

and ‘Feeling’.

Matching Ladipoe’s performance, Oxlade was accompanied by female dancers who accentuated his performance of the smash hit single ‘Away’, and recent Billboard U.S. Afrobeats Songs entry ‘Ku Lo Sa’.

On the other hand, DJ Neptune took to the wheels of steel, achieving a crescendo in the wee hours.

Confetti sprays mixed with pyrotechnics, the evening was brilliantly infused with materials of sexual education using various media formats, as well as distributing products to protect against and detect HIV/AIDS. Impressed with the engagements, Commercial Director, DKT International Nigeria, Macaulay Gory explained the concept adopted to educate youths.

“There are many means of reaching out to the youths to pass information, however, entertainment will get you there faster,” Gory asserted.

He continued: “We know the older demographic would not be here, but the youths came up in good numbers. The best way to achieve the objectives is through word of mouth: those who will enjoy the night and listen to most of the things we say here will take this news out.

It will go from the young ones to the elderly.”

Organisers of the Fiesta Pleasure Party hinted at a biannual outing

failed relationships, and the pressure that comes with her stardom.

Additionally, the episode introduces two detectives of opposite temperaments. A brash, corner-cutting inspector Samuel (Frank Konwea), and the punctilious inspector Anene (Uzoamaka Aniunoh).

Impressed with the creative angles explored, the seated guests who were treated to several rounds of drinks, finger foods, and uptempo music, gave resounding applause as the credits rolled.

Following the whirlwind of events the audience viewed, it is certain that viewers will be in for a rollercoaster ride of finger-pointing games, failed guesses, and shockers creatively curated into the six-part piece.

JIM IYKE GETS CHIEFTAINCY TITLE Mary Nnah Ezi Ndibgo in Ghana, HRH Dr. AMB. Chuwudi J Ihenetu, has conferred award-winning actor Jim Iyke with the chieftaincy title, “Ohadike 1 Of Ndigbo”, on the occasion of the 10th Yam Festival, which took place on September 18th in Accra, Ghana for his tremendous achievements and contributions to the African entertainment industry and Igbo people.

The actor, producer and entrepreneur are being celebrated and acknowledged for his dedication to the Igbo tribe over the years and this has earned him honor and dignity. He was fully welcomed and he appreciates the Igbo community in Ghana for the support rendered to him.

Jim Iyke’s servitude and dedication to the Igbo tribe over the years earned him honour and dignity, also it is in recognition of his enormous contribution and charitable works for his people. He appreciated the Igbo community in Ghana for the support rendered to him.

Jim Iyke stormed Ghana with his friends in grand style to receive the title. Of course, Jim came with Razzmatazz and Flair from takeoff from Abuja on a private jet to the venue of the occasion in Ghana.

31

T H I S D AY ˾ ͱͮ˜ ͰͮͰͰ

ART WEEKEND

…For pure art enthusiasts

Efua Oyofo Tells Powerful Stories of Women’s Triumphs in “Udamalore” Through the power of installations and multisensory storytelling, cultural storyteller Efua Oyofo celebrates womanhood and African cultural symbolism in her debut show called Udamalore, says Yinka Olatunbosun

E

fuaOyofo’ssoloartexhibitionhadaprivate showing at the Whitespace Gallery, Ikoyi.

The product of six years’ intense study of NigerianandAfricanculturalheritage,this installation highlights the role of women in history, and testifies toAfrica’s rich cultural heritage.

Oyofo played multiple roles in this exhibition: a researcher, a cultural custodian, a narrator and an artist. Udamalore articulates the stories of courageous women – across various tribes and times – namely, Moremi Ajasoro, Ahebi Ugbabe, Buchi Emecheta, Margaret Ekpo, Queen Amina and Queen Idia, in accompanying audio-visual and tactile stories.At the opening show, the Lagos audience had the first taste of a story told in a first-person narrative.

Udamalore is old-Yoruba for ‘sword of the wellborn’. “It’s a ceremonial sheath, fashioned to indicate the wealth of the owner; usually high-ranking chiefs, or court officials.

“Aswomen,muchofouridentityhasbeenannexed tothissame idea. We’re portrayed as a demonstration of men’s wealth. Whereas, women exist beyond any limitations. These women’s stories remind us that the only thing a woman needs to be, is her own kind of woman.”

By using the arts to examine the idea of womanhood and culture, Oyofo deconstructs cultural ideals, and asks critical questions about the roles women have played in the advancement of societies, irrespective of the tools made available to them at the time.

The artist also showcased different tribes’ dressing and jewellery, and used textiles that speak to Nigeria’s rich and varied cultural heritage.

Through each tableau, Oyofo showed her interpretation of these women, the themes they represent – and provided additional context to the humanity behind these historical figures.

With Moremi, the display spoke to the theme of sacrifice; however, she also questioned the definition of courage that women often have to display: the theme endurance and suffering as part of the identity of womanhood. Ahebi’s story shone a light on what happens when women subvert those expectations of how they ought to rule. Buchi’s multilayered narrative puts a spotlight on the issues of motherhood, child marriage, agony of domestic abuse survivors,

Efua Oyofo alongside other marginalized voices. Margaret’s story of creative leadership and empowerment was buoyed by the artist’s witty wordplay with the word: Salt.

With Amina, Oyofo celebrates a truly independent woman and a formidable female warrior. The story details Amina’s conquests and expansion of the Hausa Kingdom, paying homage to the preservation of her memory. Lastly, the artist told the tale of how Idia achieved immortalization due to

her role in the 16th-century Benin Kingdom’s civil war. However, details of her valour may elude anyone who has not studied history as closely as Oyofo demonstratedwiththisexhibition.

Oyofo revealed the impact she intends to make with this body of work, which is scheduled for a public exhibition in October. Incidentally, the opening show coincided with the period of resurgence around the colonial discourse on social media.

“You cannot have a conversation about

Adelakun Pays Homage to Culture, Ancestral Roots with Debut Solo Yinka Olatunbosun At Mydrim Gallery, Ikoyi Lagos, the exquisite pieces of charcoal drawings and mixed media works by Prince Saheed Adelakun are striking for a reason. The artist, in his attempt to stand out, pioneered the use of ropes in his paintings during his final year project at the Yaba College of Technology where he studied Fine Arts. In 2009, he graduated as the overall best student in painting Interestingly, this technique pays homage to his ancestral roots in Ayetoro and his surname ‘Adelakun’ which loosely translates as ‘one who untangles ropes.’ Though he ventured into full time studio practice shortly after his graduation, it took nine years to put together a solo exhibition that celebrates identity and culture while condemning harmful cultural traditions.

At a recent preview of the show which opens on October 1, the Assistant Curator, Mydrim Gallery, David Oluwatoyin revealed that the gallery has enjoyed a long standing relationship with the artists for the past one decade.

While explaining his journey into material experimentation, Adelakun told the journalists that patience and wisdom are required to complete every piece of art using ropes.

“The idea of using rope as a medium came very late to the deadline for my final year project presentation. I started with the rope used for spreading clothes in my house. I made a miniature mixed media painting

Mirror Evolution by Adelakun

and presented it to an applauding group of lecturers,’’ he recounted.

Confident in the longevity and integrity of the works, Adelakun is presenting 20 mixed media paintings and 12 drawings in this debut show titled ‘Stride.’ For him, Africa’s rich tradition constitutes raw materials for artistic expression.

“All the works were made between 2011 and 2022. It takes so long to finish one piece.

What I hope to express in this show is that there’s more need than ever to learn from the past and to forge familiar cultural visions for the future of our society. My idea of working on patterned rope work enforces the rope as a grounding symbol of strength in unity,’’ he said.

Describing his patterned rope technique as Olokun meaning ‘The Rope Bearer,’ Adelakun embraces the progressive aspects of African culture. However, in “Mirror Evolution,” he makes a powerful commentary on the practice of scarification and how culture has evolved over the years.

“My father had tribal marks,’’ he explained.

“When I was born, I was given some as well.

But I did not give the marks to my daughter.

That is the story behind the work titled “Mirror Evolution.”

Largely inspired by the scholarly works of Prof. Sophie Oluwole, the artist draws upon Yoruba proverbs and cultural ethos in the embedded messages of his works. For instance, “Positive Sacrifice’’ refers to delayed gratification as propagated in the proverb ‘’Alaaru to n’je buredi.’’ Also the piece titled ‘’Igba Oju’’ alludes to the Yoruba culture of communal child grooming while the 2020 mixed media piece titled “Winner in a Bit’’ is a reference to that moment where a winner is at the verge of being honoured or celebrated.

The rope patterns give abstract forms on the background of the painted images on the foreground of each piece. Indeed, Adelakun took the meaning of his name personally and is ready to show his well-kept pieces till October 11.

colonialism and not about nationalism,’’ she argued.

“How much do we know about ourselves? As Africans, what is our identity – and how much of it do we actually own? ’’

FASUYI UNVEILS TIM AND CAROL ART GALLERY, PRESERVES FATHER’S WORKS Wale Fasuyi, son of the veteran artist and painter, Pa Timothy Banjo Fasuyi has unveiled a state of the art gallery in GRA Ikeja.

Most of the art pieces are drawn from his personal collections and his father’s. Situated at the heart of mainland, the newly unveiled Tim and Carol of Art Gallery will be an all-inclusive Afro African gallery with resort centre, and café.

Fasuyi added, “We will also have a cafe that will service patrons and customers. We want to engage anybody that comes in to patronize us. We have also created a small resort center, a cafe and we are going to have a craft and African shop that will be stocked with African materials, bags and souvenirs you can travel with. It is more than a galley.

But the gallery is the main business.”

He revealed that the art gallery was birthed out of passion for art, and his collections over the years are now turned into investment.

“I grew up with art works, I think that has brought out the art in me. It was first the passion, then the business aspect. I grew up with most of these art pieces. And now I want to commercialise it,” he stated.

Some of the masterpieces include works

by Pa Timothy Fasuyi, Jimoh Buraimoh and Kolade Oshinowo. Other art works on display are from artists such as Balikis Audu, Okpara Mcbede, Abiodun Kafaru and other pieces

by African artists.

He continued, “Look at the growth in logistics sectors. Where you can order now and tomorrow it’s delivered to you as far as China. You don’t have to visit to patronize us, our online presence is strong and we are going to push all outlets in such a way to make it convenient for customers.”

32

T H I S D AY ˾ ͱͮ˜ ͰͮͰͰ

POTPOURRI

California University Awards Nigeria’s Performance Strategist, Abiola Salami, Doctorate Honours Esther Akinsola

D

r Abiola Salami, world-class Performance Strategist and Editor-in-Chief/Publisher of The Peak Performer Africa has been in the headline news lately for the very right reasons.

First, he was named among the ‘Global Top 100 Under 40’ by the Most Influential People of African Descent. Afterwards, he was accepted into the prestigious Forbes Coaches Council – an invitation only for leading business and career coaches.

Then he recently launched his latest book on the Magic of Emotional Intelligence that’s positively impacting lives across all spheres. And now, he has been conferred with an Honorary Doctorate by the California Metropolitan University, an-invitation based event to celebrate individuals making a difference in Africa.

Salami’s doctorate award followed swiftly on the heels of a thorough evaluation of his impact, his unrivalled consistency and sustained courage for peak performance in the workplace and the world at large. The organisers had said.

Fondly called Champ, Salami is a life coach with a peerless passion for raising extraordinary leaders, and global advocates and building brands and improving the productive capacity and brand perception of organisations and governments, top-class career professionals, entrepreneurs and politicians.

As an alumnus of Harvard University, Lagos Business School (LBS) and the American Government’s International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP), Salami has several books to his credit. They include Get MAD! Who Says It’s A Man’s World, Speak like a CHAMPION, The Magic From Boring TALES to Fantastic SALES. Having been decorated with his new mileage, Salami expressed delightedly, “I’m humbled, grateful and challenged.” He emphasised, “Humbled to have been considered for such an honour by the American University, grateful for the appreciation of the work we’ve done

Salami over time and everyone who has been in the ecosystem for the past decade. I’m challenged because a good turn deserves another. If I have been deemed fit for this it is high time to deliver splufik results on another level.”

Salami, who is also the Principal Strategist, iamaCHAMP Limited admitted that he wouldn’t be a good judge of what made

him deserving of the award. He, however, cited the testament of the President of California Metropolitan University, Sailesraj Bala Murali – “Abiola is deserving of this honour because of his commitment, competence, doggedness and passion”.

Salami’s tale is synonymous with the saying “though pressured, we remain unbroken”. Hence, he recounted that the journey has been one of giving, learning and

WAPTV Crowned Outstanding Indigenous TV Channel of the Year Stories by Tosin Clegg WapTV has been awarded the “Outstanding Indigenous TV Channel of the Year” at the 2022 edition of Marketing Edge Awards – a glamorous Media/Advertising Industry event.

The event also had several reputable Corporate Brands, Advertising Practitioners, and government officials as recipients.

This Marketing Edge award, which took place at Harbour Point Hall, Victoria Island, Lagos, on Friday, September 16 2022, comes just weeks after wapTV received two honours on 27th August 2022, at two separate events – “Best Family Entertainment TV Channel” at the Kaduna International Film Festival, and “Indigenous TV Station of the Year” at the Top Society Man of the Year Awards.

According to Wole Adenuga, Managing Director wapTV, “We are nothing without our viewers. When we became the first TV Channel with presenters speaking 100% Pidgin English, it was out of a need to reach the majority of Nigerians across

various Educational Levels, Socio-Economic Classes, Language, and other differences. We appreciate the millions of viewers who watch our channel on Satellite TV daily, as well as the over 500,000 Subscribers on our YouTube Channel

‘waptvchannel’ which accumulates over 2.8 Million views monthly”.

Launched in 2012, wapTV is a 24-hour Family Entertainment Channel showing the best TV Dramas, Comedy Series, Nigerian Movies (English, Yoruba,

growing. According to Salami, “Some doors were opened, others slammed and rejections spawned like the duckweed but we remained steadfast for the hope that tomorrow can be better. And regardless of how far people have come, they can go further”.

In his submission, the minds transformed and the lives changed to continue to reinforce the significance of the work done at iamaCHAMP Limited. The Peak Performing Africa, our publication, continues to enable individuals to attain optimum performance through their various initiatives.

On taking giant strides, Salami noted that the re-launch of their women’s initiative – The Peak Performing Woman (TPPW) is an innovative idea to celebrate the 10th anniversary of “Champ”.

“The initiative is a response to the effect of the pandemic on women and a disruptive approach to positioning them for the diverse change it has brought. It is designed to enable women to deliver excellence as career professionals, entrepreneurs and nation builders.”

For the GET MAD! author, the intervention will foster engagement and empowerment and celebrate women. “We will release a series of videos on how women can deal with their bosses, transition from a career or business, build the nation, apply emotional intelligence and how ladies can overcome public speaking.

According to the life coach, the project will also feature live sessions with a few women where we further deepen our learning from the web series and we will be rounding up with a summit and award event we are pushing through the Peak Performing Africa which is our global media platform where we build one mind at a time”.

In her reaction, the Managing Partner of GLG Communications, Omawumi Ogbe said Salami “is worthy of it because he has put in the work for many years and he continues to do that; investing in people, and growing people.”

Ogbe further highlighted also that doctoral honour is a recognition of what he has achieved and represents. “This is a validation of his work and all that he continues to do. I think what he does is very inspiring.”

555 Opulence Releases 2022 Fall Collection; CDTS Line

Igbo, and Hausa), Reality Shows, Events, Music Videos, Celebrity Interviews, Cooking Shows, Religious Broadcasts, Educational Content, Talk Shows, Entertainment News, and more; across Nigeria and several African countries.

Mansa Cole Collaborates with Molazzi in New Music Project Music businessman, Chiori Daniel Cole, aka Mansa Cole recently made his artiste debut to a legion of teeming fans and the industry that welcomed his sound with very open arms.

Having basked from that reception, his entry with a brand new single “HERO” featuring a self-acclaimed Afro-genius, Molazzi is a mood musical with themes bordering on affectionate desires.

It features the slick vocals of the sonorous Afro-genius, Molazzi. On the record, you can hear a female subject being extolled for her super fine qualities and at the same time showered with encomiums for possessing an incredible feminine prowess. Listeners will be easily carried along by the song’s

mid-tempo instrumentation and the brisk length is an additional value for replay.

Speaking about his new project he shared, “When I first heard the sound I knew it was going to be a big project for me and I immediately saved the song separately from other files.

I felt something special is about to happen with this song and yeah I went for it because of the special tone and delivery and I hope everyone enjoys the song.”

“Music is unending and I don’t want to be tied to a particular type of sound or music. I want to be involved in making different types of music from bongo flava, Rnb, Afrobeat, Afro pop, Dancehall, Reggaeton and more. I have an upcoming movie project that I am currently working on after the

release of this song for the 30th of September.

“I also have couple of tech innovations that will help upcoming music talents in Africa. As you know I am not to tied to a particular career, I can be found anywhere any time.” He added.

Before Mansa Cole delved into his music artisanship side, he was already famed for his works in executive business affairs and talent management with Achievas Entertainment.

He can be credited for executing some of the biggest music live shows for firebrand talents including Olamide, Kizz Daniel, Davido, Zlatan, Patoranking, Wizkid, 2Baba, Bnxn fka Buju and Burna Boy as well as producing some of Nollywood’s top grossing films.

The streetwear fashion brand 555 Opulence, launched its 2022 fall collection in Istanbul, Turkey on September 2, 2022.

Each piece in the CDTS collection, which includes urban wear such as t-shirts, bucket hats and trucker hats has intricate colours and fabric textures with exquisite hand-drawn artwork.

The CDTS has enjoyed online visibility, has bestsellers already and might be a limited edition collection.

The director of the brand, Favour Omokafe had this to say about the collection, “Carpe Deim that Shit collection is to remind people that the complexities of human emotions are part of who we are despite how confusing and depressing they can some-

times be.

“We have designed this capsule collection as a crucial part of emotional health awareness to help identify several emotions we experience daily.

Each piece of artwork was also drawn by hand and produced in Turkey. It is truly a special collection.”

The fashion brand also reportedly has some sizzling collaborative projects billed to happen before the year ends.

One of which includes a grand end-of-the-year popup in Lagos, Nigeria, and Istanbul, Turkey. A-listers in the fashion and entertainment industry will be in attendance as it’s going to be a one of the kind event.

T H I S D AY ˾ DAY ͱͮ˜ ͰͮͰͰ

IMAGES

33

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

L-R: Senator representing Kogi Central senatorial district in the National Assembly, Yakubu Oseni, and Senior Special Assistant to the president on National Assembly Matters, Senator Babajide Omoworare, at a workshop on Data Protection Law, to further strengthen the right to privacy, held in Abuja...recently PHOTO: AYO AJAYI

L-R: President Muhammadu Buhari, Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun; and Group Chairman, Odua Investment Limited, Otunba Bimbo Ashiru, at the United Nations 77th General Assembly in New York, United States...recently

Front row (L-R): President, Igbobi College Old Boys Association (ICOBA), Mr. Olumuyiwa Kinoshi; and Chairman, Board of Trustees (BoT), ICOBA, Mr. Maxwell Olabode Thorpe. Back row (L-R): First Vice President, ICOBA, Mr. Yomi Badejo-Okusanya; Chairman, Board of Governors, Igbobi College Yaba, Lagos, Mr. Foluso Phillips; and former President, ICOBA, Murphy Ipaye, at the completion of the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the association held at the Angus Memorial Hall of the college in Lagos…recently

L-R: University of Ilorin Governing Council member/congregation representative, Dr. Rasheed Odunola; Vice Chancellor-designate, Prof. Wahab Egbewole; and External Council member, Dr. Talmiz Usman, during the condolence visit to the family of the late Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the university Governing Council, Mallam Abidu Yazid, in Katsina...recently

L-R: Member of the Education Fund-Raising and Award Ceremony Committee and Founder of Mudiame Group, Prof. Sunny Eromosele; Special Political Adviser and representative of Edo State governor, Princess Philomena Ihenyen; wife of the Awardee, Mrs. Violet Egbadon; the Awardee, Matthew Emionsio Egbadon; and member of the Award Ceremony Committee, Mrs. RoselineAdinoyi, at the N250million Educational Trust Fundraising Award and Recognition ceremony held in Victoria Island, Lagos...recently

L-R: Protocol Officer to the director-general of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Mr. Yahuza Isa Adamu; Deputy Director, Public Relations, Caroline Embu; NYSC Director-General, Brigadier General Muhammad Kaku Fadah; Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Isiaka Oladayo Amao; Director, Special Duties, Alhaji Musa Abubakar; NYSC Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Coordinator, Mr. Suleman Abdul, and the Military Assistant to the NYSC DG, Major AK Balarabe, during Fadah’s visit to the Nigerian Airforce headquarters in Abuja...recently

34

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2022 ˾ T H I S D AY

BUSINESS/MONEYGUIDE

Fidelity Bank, SMEDAN Sign MoU to Bridge $158.1bn SMEs Financing Gap Kayode Tokede Fidelity Bank Plc and Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to bridge $158.1billion Small and Medium Enterprises financing gap in Nigeria.

According to the World Bank, Nigeria’s financing gap for MSMEs is estimated at $158.1billion.

The MoU, according to both parties is meant to help small businesses access much-needed capital and capacity development initiatives The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Fidelity Bank, Nneka OnyealiIkpe who was represented by the bank’s Executive Director, Lagos and South-West, Dr. Ken Opara, at the MoU signing ceremony

in Lagos, said the partnership with SMEDAN reinforces the fact that the bank is a leading supporter of SMEs in Nigeria.

According to him, “As a commercial bank, it reinforces the fact that Fidelity bank is an essentially friendly back. We’ve created a lot of structures to support SMEs and we have a capacity training program for SMEs, a funding scheme, and access to the market. And again, collaboration is very important and so we are signing a MoU with SMEDAN to take SMEs to the next level.”

He noted that the bank sees a lot of value in collaborating with SMEDAN, stressing that, “most of the time, small business owners think that their problem is mostly financing.

But we’ve discovered that they need to put the right structure,

knowledge and they need to understand their businesses.

And so we signed the MoU to build up capacity for SMEs and collaboration in some other key areas, they need to help them eliminate the areas that they have been having issues.”

Also speaking at the MoU, Director-General/Chief Executive Officer, SMEDAN, Olawale Fasanya stated that the agency is seeking partnerships with financial institutions to close the $158.1billion financing gap needed in the MSMEs sector.

According to him, “While banks are supposed to spearhead a funding revolution for businesses especially the MSMEs, the general trend is that most commercial banks and even development banks shy away from funding enterprises captured within the MSME space.

Over 4000 Entrepreneurs Benefit from RIF Trust’s Citizenship Investment Programme

MARKET INDICATORS

Sunday Ehigiator

MONEY AND CREDIT STATISTICS

No fewer than 4000 entrepreneurs and their families have so far benefited from the Citizenship and Residency by Investment programme currently being run by RIF Trust, a leading international residency and citizenship advisory firm and part of the Latitude Group This was made known by the firm’s Country Manager, Zuberu Kadiri, in a recent statement.

The Citizenship or Residency

by Investment programme grants second citizenship or residency in return for an investment into the government or country offering

the programme.

This is often done by investing in local real estate, or by a non-refundable contribution directly to the government.

While preserving connections to home countries, Citizenship and Residency by Investment programmes can offer entrepreneurs visa-free travel to over 140 countries, first-class education, high-quality healthcare, efficient tax regimes, and greater security, bolstering prospects for African entrepreneurs.

In addition, these programmes’ qualifying real estate investment options can double as potentially rewarding financial

investments as part of a larger wealth diversification strategy.

According to Kadiri, “having a second passport as an entrepreneur means direct access to millions of new customers and new business relationships.

Citizenship in a second country provides the potential for better business relationships and access across the globe.

“As every entrepreneur knows, a passport can either be an obstacle or the key to global trading. The opportunities dual citizenship delivers are far-reaching and so is the possibility to expand across a truly global market.

Expert Canvass Bridging Leadership Emotional Intelligence Deficit to Boost Business Survival Oluchi Chibuzor For businesses across the country to continue to boost revenue and sustain growth, it must bridge the leadership emotional intelligence deficit between the managed and the managers, expert have said.

According to him, this deficit is crumbling business models as most managers fail to recognise and work the right people needed in the businesses, thereby leading to managerial gaps that in most cases crumble the firm.

Speaking at a managers’ buffet held in Lagos, the Managing Director, Certification Edge Executive Development (CEED)

Academy, Mr. Ajibola Bamidele, explained that labour force and talent management is necessary to the survival of businesses in the country.

Addressing the cross-section of some selected managers to the event, he explained that people get managers because there is a goal they want to achieve and equally want to manage the people to achieve it.

He said, “If people are unmotivated or are not achieving, the person to blame is the manager.

If a company wants to achieve business result either profit, or be more productive; having managers that understand it and know how to harness people around you to achieve

that goal is the only way to be successful. The only reason a manager is not doing well is that he lacks capacity and emotional intelligence to manage people or himself is not ready to make the right decision.”

The event with the theme, ‘Bridging the Management Gap for Exponential Growth’, Bamidele, however explained that managers must understand that result based leadership drives business growth through effective leadership.

Using a case study to deliver his training, Bamidele, stressed that effective leaders must know how to connect leadership attributes with leadership results by understanding the kind of people working with them.

Afreximbank President Wins 2022 Margaret Demant African Art Award President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), Professor Benedict Oramah, has received in Detroit, Michigan, USA, the 2022 Margaret H. Demant African Art Award, presented by the Friends of African and African American Art (FAAAA) of the Detroit Institute of Arts.

The prestigious Award was bestowed on President Oramah in recognition of Afreximbank’s pioneering support for Africa’s creative and cultural industries

under his leadership. This support is exemplified by interventions such as the Afreximbank Art Programme and the Creative Africa Nexus Initiative (CANEX).

President, Director, and CEO of Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA), Dr. Salvador Salort-Pons, commented: “The DIA is honored to present the Margaret Herz Demant African Art Award to Professor Benedict Oramah in recognition of all that he and his team have accomplished and continue to do leading the African Export-Import Bank’s

groundbreaking arts programs.”

Oramah commented: “I am greatly honored to receive this award and pleased that Afreximbank’s extensive and ambitious programme of activities to cultivate and develop Africa’s creative and cultural industries are being acknowledged in such esteemed quarters. I am particularly impressed that the DIA is able to appreciate the link we are creating between Africa’s rich culture and the creative content our youth are taking to the market.”

(MILLION NAIRA)

JUNE 2022 Money Supply (M3)

48,865,823.53

-- CBN Bills Held by Money Holding Sectors

167,956.2

Money Supply (M2)

48,797,867.32

-- Quasi Money

28,405,330.1

-- Narrow Money (M1)

20,392,537.22

---- Currency Outside Banks

2,722,785.91

---- Demand Deposits

17,669,751.32

Net Foreign Assets (NFA)

6,242,394.29

Net Domestic Assets(NDA)

42,623,429.24

-- Net Domestic Credit (NDC)

57,267,178.05

---- Credit to Government (Net)

17,996,690.06

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

0.00

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

0.00

---- Credit to Private Sector (CPS)

39,270,488

--Other Assets Net

5,566,430

Reserve Money (Base Money

11,320,304

--Currency in Circulation

3,259,269.15

--Banks Reserves --Special Intervention Reserves

11,320,303.72 384,377.56

˾ ÙßÜÍÏ ̋

Money Market Indicators (in Percentage) Month

June 2022

Inter-Bank Call Rate

11.10

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

13.00

Treasury Bill Rate

2.45

Savings Deposit Rate

1.38

1 Month Deposit Rate

3.48

3 Months Deposit Rate

4.55

6 Months Deposit Rate

4.97

12 Months Deposit Rate

5.30

Prime Lending rate

12.29

Maximum Lending Rate

27.61

˾ ÙØÏÞËÜã ÙÖÓÍã ËÞÏ ̋ ͯͱϱ

OPEC DAILY BASKET PRICE AS AT 27 SEPTEMBER 2022

The price of OPEC basket of thirteen crudes stood at $89.50 a barrel on Monday, compared with $92.67 the previous Friday, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations.

The OPEC Reference Basket of Crudes (ORB) is made up of the following: Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Djeno (Congo), Zafiro (Equatorial Guinea), Rabi Light (Gabon), Iran Heavy (Islamic Republic of Iran), Basrah Medium (Iraq), Kuwait Export (Kuwait), Es Sider (Libya), Bonny Light (Nigeria), Arab Light (Saudi Arabia), Murban (UAE) and Merey (Venezuela).

35

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2022 ˾ T H I S D AY

MARKET NEWS

Non-interest Capital Market: SEC Announces New Rule on Shariah Advisory Services Kayode Tokede The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has exposed new rules on Shariah Advisory Services for non-interest capital market products and services.

According to the apex capital market regulating body, Shariah governance is crucial considering that compliance with Shariah rules and principles is important in

Non-interest Capital Market operations/transactions.

The commission stated that, “The provision of the rules is in line with local and international best practices.

The regulatory organization in the Nigerian Financial System such as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) had issued such guidelines to provide clear and good Shariah governance in their

P R I C E S MAIN BOARD

F O R DEALS

respective sectors.

“Making the Shariah Advisory service a registrable function in the market will assist in effective implementation of the proposed consolidation of the Shariah governance rules and will also be an additional source of revenue to the Commission.”

According to the Commission, Non-interest Capital Market activities in recent times are exponentially increasing

S E C U R I T I E S MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N )

as the market is witnessing the entrance of more asset managers, emergence of i-REIT, listing of sovereign Sukuk on the Exchanges, issuance of corporate Sukuk, emergence of shariah advisory function etc.

“These developments coupled with the necessity of shariah services for the market affirms the critical need for a framework/guideline to set a minimum standard for persons (corporate or

T R A D E D MAIN BOARD

A S

individual) seeking to provide shariah advisory services for Non-Interest Capital Market activities.

“The guideline is essential for the development of this nascent sector, as it will promote transparency and confidence, whilst creating a level playing field for all participants in the market.

Further to the above, the Commission stated that a review exercise on the its

O F

existing Rules on shariah governance undertaken by the Standing Committee of Deepening Non-interest Capital Market led to the recommendation that rules be drafted to provide for the registration and regulation of shariah advisory services in line with international best practices.

Hence, the proposed Rules for Shariah Advisory Services for Non-Interest Capital Market Products and Services.

2 9 / 0 9 / 2 0 2 2 DEALS

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N)

36

T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2022

Friday, September 30, 2022

Thisday Afrinvest Index sheds 0.33% The Thisday Afrinvest 40 index declined 0.33% to

THISDAY AFRINVEST 40 INDEX

2,436.52 index points due to losses in GTCO (1.1%), NESTLE (-10.0%), and UBA (-2.1%). CumuůĂƟǀĞůLJ͕ ƚŚĞƐĞ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ ĂĐĐŽƵŶƚ ĨŽƌ ϳ͘ϱй ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ŝŶͲ

Fundamental Performance Metrics for THISDAY AFRINVEST 40 Index

Price Previous Price Current Change Price Change Weighting Index to Change YTD Date

Current Price

Ticker

dex.

THISDAY AFRINVEST 40

2436.52

1 Airtel Africa PLC 2 MTN Nigeria Communications PLC

ŽŵĞƐƟĐ ƋƵŝƟĞƐ DĂƌŬĞƚ &ĂůƚĞƌƐ͘​͘​͘ ^/ ĚŽǁŶ 0.4% /Ŷ ůŝŶĞ ǁŝƚŚ ŽƵƌ ĞdžƉĞĐƚĂƟŽŶ͕ ƚŚĞ ůŽĐĂů ďŽƵƌƐĞ ĐůŽƐĞĚ ŽŶ Ă ďĞĂƌŝƐŚ ŶŽƚĞ LJĞƐƚĞƌĚĂLJ ĂƐ ƚŚĞ E'y ^/ ĚŝƉƉĞĚ Ϭ͘ϰй ƚŽ ϰϴ͕ϵϲϰ͘ϴϯ ƉŽŝŶƚƐ͕ ĚƌĂŐŐĞĚ ďLJ losses in NESTLE (-10.0%), GTCO (-1.1%), and

2,000.00

3 BUA Cement Plc 4 Guaranty Trust Holding Co PLC 5 Zenith Bank PLC 6 Dangote Cement PLC 7 Lafarge Africa PLC 8 FBN Holdings Plc 9 Nestle Nigeria PLC 10 SEPLAT Energy PLC 11 Access Holdings PLC

ƚŽ ϭϰ͘ϲй ;ƉƌĞǀŝŽƵƐůLJ͗ ϭϱ͘ϭйͿ ǁŚŝůĞ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ ĐĂƉŝͲ ƚĂůŝƐĂƟŽŶ ƐŚĞĚ ʬϭϭϭ͘ϲďŶ ƚŽ ʬϮϲ͘ϰƚŶ͘ ĐƟǀŝƚLJ level improved as volume and value traded inĐƌĞĂƐĞĚ ďLJ ϭϭϳ͘ϯй ĂŶĚ ϴϴ͘Ϭй ƚŽ ϮϮϬ͘ϳŵ ĂŶĚ ʬϮ͘ϮďŶ ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ͘ ͘

DŝdžĞĚ ^ĞĐƚŽƌ WĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ

ǁĂƐ ďĞĂƌŝƐŚ ĂƐ ϰ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ůŽƐƚ ǁŚŝůĞ ƚŚĞ /ŶĚƵƐƚƌŝĂů Goods and &Z-ICT ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ĐůŽƐĞĚ ŇĂƚ͘ >ŽƐƐĞƐ ŝŶ E ^d> ;-ϭϬ͘ϬйͿ͕ /Ed Z t ;-1.0%), and AIICO (5.4%) dragged the ŽŶƐƵŵĞƌ 'ŽŽĚƐ and /ŶƐƵƌͲ

109.4%

26.4%

5.0%

15.5%

19.2%

6.7%

P/BV

4.7x

Divindend Earnings Yield Yield

0.8x

6.8%

200.00

0.0%

6.9%

1.5%

-13.0%

144.8%

14.4%

12.0x

15.2x

7.2%

52.00

0.0%

4.3%

-22.4%

-27.7%

23.3%

12.1%

19.5x

4.4x

5.4%

5.1%

17.80

-1.1%

3.7%

-31.5%

-13.2%

16.7%

34.2% 39.7%

2.9x

20.00

0.5%

3.9%

-20.5%

-7.8%

20.7%

2.7%

2.5x

0.5x

15.6%

245.00

0.0%

3.4%

-4.7%

-10.9%

44.2%

15.8%

12.2x

5.5x

8.7%

8.2%

24.50

0.0%

2.8%

2.3%

-7.2%

15.6%

11.1%

6.6x

1.0x

8.7%

15.2% 46.8%

0.0%

2.3%

-12.3%

-13.8%

20.5%

1.9%

2.1x

0.4x

3.6%

2.3%

-21.9%

-13.2%

178.2%

15.1%

20.9x

33.4x

4.2%

4.8%

1,250.00

0.0%

2.5%

92.3%

-3.8%

9.9%

5.1%

9.4x

0.9x

3.5%

10.6%

8.05

1.3%

1.9%

-13.4%

-13.4%

17.9%

1.6%

1.8x

0.3x

2.5%

56.9%

6.95

-2.1%

1.5%

-13.7%

-6.7%

17.0%

1.5%

1.9x

0.3x

14.2%

52.9%

48.40

0.0%

1.2%

-3.2%

-17.7%

13.4%

4.9%

16.4x

2.1x

3.5%

6.1%

188.30

0.0%

1.3%

32.6%

-13.2%

52.6%

30.4%

8.4x

4.2x

4.1%

11.9%

11.05

0.0%

1.4%

27.0%

4.2%

20.0%

1.1%

2.2x

0.4x

6.1%

46.0%

30.00

3.4%

1.1%

-16.7%

-10.6%

18.0%

2.3%

6.1x

1.1x

11.7%

16.4%

4.95

-1.0%

0.9%

0.0%

-21.4%

-2.4%

-0.9%

18 Flour Mills of Nigeria PLC 19 Fidelity Bank PLC

30.30

0.0%

0.9%

6.9%

-6.8%

14.5%

3.7%

4.7x

0.6x

7.3%

21.3%

3.70

0.0%

0.7%

45.1%

8.2%

14.4%

1.2%

2.5x

0.3x

2.7%

39.4%

20 Guinness Nigeria PLC 21 Presco PLC

75.85

0.0%

0.6%

94.5%

-16.2%

19.1%

8.1%

10.6x

1.8x

9.9%

9.4%

142.60

0.0%

0.4%

62.4%

-13.6%

53.7%

20.2%

6.3x

3.3x

5.1%

15.9% 46.2%

22 FCMB Group Plc 23 AXA Mansard Insurance PLC 24 United Capital PLC

1.0x

-2.5%

3.29

-6.0%

0.4%

10.0%

-4.9%

12.4%

1.2%

2.2x

0.3x

6.1%

1.67

0.0%

0.3%

-28.0%

-16.5%

5.7%

1.7%

8.2x

0.5x

15.0%

12.1%

11.25

-4.3%

0.3%

13.6%

-11.8%

5.4x

2.5x

13.3%

18.6%

25 Dangote Sugar Refinery PLC 26 Transnational Corp of Nigeria 27 PZ Cussons Nigeria PLC

16.05

0.0%

0.4%

-7.8%

-1.5%

23.2%

8.7%

6.6x

1.4x

6.3%

15.2%

1.03

1.0%

0.3%

7.3%

-16.3%

19.0%

4.3%

2.5x

0.4x

1.9%

39.7%

9.25

0.0%

0.3%

51.6%

-3.6%

7.0x

1.0x

2.8%

14.2%

28 Cadbury Nigeria PLC 29 UAC of Nigeria PLC

12.55

-1.2%

0.2%

42.6%

-27.2%

7.1x

1.6x

4.0%

14.0%

10.25

0.0%

0.2%

7.9%

-7.7%

25.7x

0.7x

6.4%

3.9%

211.10

0.0%

0.2%

-4.9%

-10.0%

32 Custodian and Allied Insurance 33 Wema Bank PLC 34 Unilever Nigeria PLC 35 Jaiz Bank PLC 36 Oando PLC 37 Union Bank of Nigeria PLC 38 Sterling Bank PLC 39 Notore Chemical Industries Ltd 40 Transcorp Hotels Plc

2.4%

1.1%

1.6x

25.90

0.0%

0.2%

15.9%

-2.3%

19.1%

2.1%

5.5x

0.8x

9.7%

18.2%

6.50

0.0%

0.1%

-17.7%

-7.1%

18.2%

5.2%

3.9x

0.7x

7.7%

25.5% 11.5%

3.45

0.0%

0.2%

379.2%

8.2%

15.7%

0.9%

8.7x

1.8x

7.0%

12.30

0.0%

0.1%

-15.2%

-16.9%

7.2%

4.3%

38.3x

1.1x

4.1%

2.6%

0.83

9.2%

0.1%

48.2%

-8.8%

20.0%

1.5%

6.1x

1.2x

4.8%

16.5%

9.9x

0.7x

4.79

-0.2%

0.1%

8.4%

-15.5%

6.20

0.0%

0.1%

5.1%

0.8%

1.55

1.3%

0.1%

2.6%

2.0%

62.50

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

6.25

0.0%

0.0%

16.2%

0.0%

-21.5% 6.4%

-187.7%

0.7%

10.1%

0.3x -17.7%

-4.1%

6.5%

1.8x

-1.8%

1.0x

1.1%

T o p 10 T r a d e s b y V o l u m e

T o p 10 G a i n e r s T ic k er

Vo lum e

P ric e C hg %

P ric e

P ric e C hg %

ĚŝƉƉĞĚ Ϭ͘Ϯй ĂŶĚ ϯďƉƐ ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞůLJ ĚƵĞ ƚŽ ƉƌŝĐĞ

J A IZ B A N K

0.83

9.2%

J A IZ B A N K

85.9

9.2%

IKEJ A H OT EL

1.24

8.8%

Z EN IT H B A N K

14.2

0.5%

ĚĞƉƌĞĐŝĂƟŽŶ ŝŶ h ;-Ϯ͘ϭйͿ͕ ^^ KZW ;ϭ͘ϮйͿ͕

M ULT IVER SE

3.69

8.2%

VER IT A SKA P

11.3

0.0%

C H IP LC

0.57

7.5%

ST A N B IC

10.2

3.4%

ĂŶĚ K E K ;-0.2%).

CHA M S

0.29

7.4%

GT C O

10.0

-1.1%

M A YB A KER

3.74

6.9%

T R A N SC OR P

9.5

1.0% -0.2%

5.70

5.6%

OA N D O

7.9

30.00

3.4%

A C C ESSC OR P

7.7

1.3%

ST ER LN B A N K

1.55

1.3%

FB NH

7.7

0.0%

A C C ESSC OR P

8.05

1.3%

N GXGR OUP

7.1

0.0%

NA HCO ST A N B IC

Investor ƐĞŶƟŵĞŶƚ͕ ĂƐ ŵĞĂƐƵƌĞĚ ďLJ ŵĂƌŬĞƚ

T o p 10 T r a d e s b y V a l u e

T o p 10 L o s e r s

ďƌĞĂĚƚŚ͕ ŝŵƉƌŽǀĞĚ ƚŽ -0.03x (previously: -0.16x)

T ic k er

ĂƐ ϭϮ ƐƚŽĐŬƐ ĂĚǀĂŶĐĞĚ͕ ϭϰ ĚĞĐůŝŶĞĚ ǁŚŝůĞ ϳϱ ĐůŽƐĞĚ ŇĂƚ͘ tĞ ĞdžƉĞĐƚ ƚŚĞ ŶĞŐĂƟǀĞ ƉĞƌĨŽƌŵĂŶĐĞ ƚŽ ƉĞƌƐŝƐƚ ŝŶ ƚŚĞ ĮŶĂů ƚƌĂĚŝŶŐ ƐĞƐƐŝŽŶ ĚƵĞ ƚŽ ƚŚĞ ĂďƐĞŶĐĞ ŽĨ ĂŶLJ ƉŽƐŝƟǀĞ ƚƌŝŐŐĞƌƐ͘

Afrinvest West Africa Limited

8.3%

16 Stanbic IBTC Holdings PLC 17 International Brew eries PLC

T ic k er

KƵƚůŽŽŬ

14.0%

1.2%

-10.0%

12 United Bank for Africa PLC 13 Nigerian Brew eries PLC

ĂŶĐĞ ŝŶĚŝĐĞƐ ůŽǁĞƌ ďLJ ϯ͘Ϯй ĂŶĚ Ϭ͘ϲй ƌĞƐƉĞĐƟǀĞͲ ly. Similarly, the ĂŶŬŝŶŐ and Kŝů Θ 'ĂƐ indices

31.4% 143.7% 52.5%

P/E

10.00

30 TotalEnergies Marketing Nigeri 31 Julius Berger Nigeria PLC

Across sectors within our purview, performance

0.0%

ROA

1,215.00

14 Okomu Oil Palm PLC 15 Ecobank Transnational Inc

UBA (-2.0%). Accordingly, YTD return moderated

-0.33%

ROE

N EST LE

P ric e

P ric e C hg %

T ic k er

Value

P ric e C hg %

A IR T ELA F R I

360.0

0.0%

N EST LE

329.5

-10.0%

1215.00

-10.0%

A F R IP R UD

5.00

-8.3%

FCM B

3.29

-6.0%

ST A N B IC

306.7

3.4%

A IIC O

0.52

-5.5%

Z EN IT H B A N K

282.4

0.5%

UC A P

11.25

-4.3%

GT C O

179.6

-1.1%

R T B R ISC OE

0.31

-3.1%

N GXGR OUP

139.1

0.0%

UN IT YB N K

0.43

-2.3%

SEP LA T

75.3

0.0%

75.2

0.0%

73.1

0.0%

65.1

9.2%

UB A

6.95

-2.1%

FB NH

F ID SON

9.05

-1.6%

M TNN

C A D B UR Y

12.55

-1.2%

J A IZ B A N K

Brokerage

Asset Management

Investment Research

Adedoyin Allen | aallen@afrinvest.com

Robert Omotunde | romotunde@afrinvest.com

Abiodun Keripe | AKeripe@afrinvest.com

Taiwo Ogundipe | togundipe@afrinvest.com

Christopher Omoh | comoh@afrinvest.com

Damilare Asimiyu | dasimiyu@afrinvest.com

37

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2022 • T H I S D AY

MARKET NEWS A Mutual fund (Unit Trust) is an investment vehicle managed by a SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) registered Fund Manager.

Investors with similar objectives buy units of the Fund so that the Fund Manager can buy securities that willl generate their desired return.

An ETF (Exchange Traded Fund) is a type of fund which owns the assets (shares of stock, bonds, oil futures, gold bars, foreign currency, etc.) and divides ownership of those assets into shares. Investors can buy these ‘shares’ on the

floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

A REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust) is an investment vehicle that allows both small and large investors to part-own real estate ventures (eg.

Offices, Houses, Hospitals) in proportion to their investments. The assets are divided into shares that are traded on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

GUIDE TO DATA: Date: All fund prices are quoted in Naira as at 28Sept-2022, unless otherwise stated.

Offer price: The price at which units of a trust or ETF are bought by investors.

Bid Price: The price at which Investors redeem (sell) units of a trust or ETF. Yield/Total Return: Denotes the total return an investor would have earned on his investment. Money Market Funds report Yield while others report Year- to-date Total Return.

NAV: Is value per share of the real estate assets held by a REIT on a specific date.

DAILY PRICE LIST FOR MUTUAL FUNDS, REITS and ETFS MUTUAL FUNDS / UNIT TRUSTS AFRINVEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD aaml@afrinvest.com Web: www.afrinvest.com; Tel: +234 818 885 6757 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Afrinvest Equity Fund 185.81 186.96 11.32% Afrinvest Plutus Fund 100.00 100.00 8.45% Nigeria International Debt Fund 314.42 314.42 10.36% Afrinvest Dollar Fund 105.85 107.00 7.28% AIICO CAPITAL LTD ammf@aiicocapital.com Web: www.aiicocapital.com, Tel: +234-1-2792974 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AIICO Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A AIICO Balanced Fund N/A N/A N/A ANCHORIA ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED info@anchoriaam.com Web:www.anchoriaam.com, Tel: 08166830267; 08036814510; 08028419180 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Anchoria Money Market N/A N/A N/A Anchoria Equity Fund N/A N/A N/A Anchoria Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A info@anchoriaam.com 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 20.93 21.56 3.18% ARM Discovery Balanced Fund 507.50 522.81 12.49% ARM Ethical Fund 42.47 43.75 9.01% ARM Eurobond Fund ($) 1.09 1.09 0.49% ARM Fixed Income Fund 1.06 1.06 4.51% ARM Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 10.18% AVA GLOBAL ASSET MANAGERS LIMITED info@avacapitalgroup.com Web: www.avacapitalgroup.com; Tel 08069294653 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AVA GAM Fixed Income Dollar Fund 87.32 87.32 -9.51% AVA GAM Fixed Income Dollar Naira 1,093.62 1,093.62 9.36% AXA MANSARD INVESTMENTS LIMITED investmentcare@axamansard.com Web: www.axamansard.com; Tel: +2341-4488482 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn AXA Mansard Equity Income Fund N/A N/A N/A AXA Mansard Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A CAPITAL EXPRESS ASSET AND TRUST LIMITED info@capitalexpressassetandtrust.com Web: www.capitalexpressassetandtrust.com; Tel: +234 803 307 5048 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn CEAT Fixed Income Fund 2.10 2.10 2.95% Capital Express Balanced Fund(Formerly: Union Trustees Mixed Fund) 2.27 2.31 5.04% CAPITALTRUST INVESTMENTS AND ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED halalfif@capitaltrustnigeria.com Web: www.capitaltrustnigeria.com; Tel: 08061458806 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Capitaltrust Halal Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A CARDINALSTONE ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED mutualfunds@cardinalstone.com Web: www.cardinalstoneassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 (1) 710 0433 4 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn CardinalStone Fixed Income Alpha Fund 1.02 1.02 6.28% CHAPELHILL DENHAM MANAGEMENT LTD investmentmanagement@chapelhilldenham.com Web: www.chapelhilldenham.com, Tel: +234 461 0691 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Chapelhill Denham Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 12.24% Paramount Equity Fund 18.15 18.47 9.86% Women's Investment Fund 144.38 146.09 1.70% CORDROS ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmgtteam@cordros.com Web: www.cordros.com, Tel: 019036947 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Cordros Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 10.15% Cordros Milestone Fund 129.78 130.68 4.37% Cordros Dollar Fund ($) 111.40 111.40 5.04% CORONATION ASSETS MANAGEMENT investment@coronationam.com Web:www.coronationam.com, Tel: 012366215 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Coronation Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A Coronation Balanced Fund N/A N/A N/A Coronation Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A EDC FUNDS MANAGEMENT LIMITED mutualfundng@ecobank.com Web: www.ecobank.com Tel: 012265281 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class A N/A N/A N/A EDC Nigeria Money Market Fund Class B N/A N/A N/A EDC Nigeria Fixed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A EMERGING AFRICA ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED assetmanagement@emergingafricafroup.com Web:www.emergingafricagroup.com/emerging-africa-asset-management-limited/, Tel: 08039492594 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Emerging Africa Money Market Fund N/A N/A N/A Emerging Africa Bond Fund N/A N/A N/A Emerging Africa Balanced Diversity Fund N/A N/A N/A Emerging Africa Eurobond Fund N/A N/A N/A FBNQUEST ASSETS MANAGEMENT LIMITED invest@fbnquest.com Web: www.fbnquest.com/asset-management; Tel: +234-81 0082 0082 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn FBN Bond Fund 1509.14 1509.14 11.49% FBN Balanced Fund 193.20 194.51 10.24% FBN Halal Fund 123.95 123.95 11.47% FBN Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 10.36% FBN Dollar Fund (Retail) 126.40 126.40 6.14% FBN Nigeria Smart Beta Equity Fund 158.01 160.14 5.26% FCMB ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED fcmbamhelpdesk@fcmb.com Web: www.fcmbassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 1 462 2596 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Legacy Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 8.53% Legacy Debt Fund 3.57 3.57 -10.83% Legacy Equity Fund 1.86 1.89 6.76% Legacy USD Bond Fund 1.24 1.24 2.79% FSDH ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD coralfunds@fsdhgroup.com Web: www.fsdhaml.com; Tel: 01-270 4884-5; 01-280 9740-1 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn

Coral Balanced Fund Coral Income Fund Coral Money Market Fund

4,037.73 3,631.16 100.00

4,092.11 3,631.16 100.00

4.87% 6.32% 11.48%

FSDH Dollar Fund 1.12 1.12 4.07% GUARANTY TRUST FUND MANAGERS LIMITED 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 N/A N/A N/A Vantage Balanced Fund N/A N/A N/A Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund N/A N/A N/A Kedari Investment Fund (KIF) N/A N/A N/A Vantage Equity Income Fund (VEIF) - June Year End N/A N/A N/A Vantage Dollar Fund (VDF) - June Year End N/A N/A N/A LOTUS CAPITAL LTD fincon@lotuscapitallimited.com Web: www.lotuscapitallimited.com; Tel: +234 1-291 4626 / +234 1-291 4624 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Lotus Halal Investment Fund 1.62 1.65 14.27% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 1,173.44 1,173.44 6.84% MERISTEM WEALTH MANAGEMENT LTD info@meristemwealth.com Web: www.meristemwealth.com/funds/; Tel: +2348028496012 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Meristem Equity Market Fund 11.78 11.88 8.45% Meristem Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 10.58% NORRENBERGER INVESTMENT AND CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LIMITED enquiries@norrenberger.com Web: www.norrenberger.com, Tel: +234 (0) 908 781 2026 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Norrenberger Islamic Fund (NIF) 102.70 102.70 9.69% Norrenberger Money Market Fund (NMMF) 100.00 100.00 11.00% 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 1.61 1.65 2.48% PACAM Fixed Income Fund 11.82 11.87 5.86% PACAM Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 9.32% PACAM Equity Fund 1.41 1.42 -0.98% PACAM EuroBond Fund 120.04 123.16 5.51% 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 123.83 126.39 0.05% 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 1.07 1.07 10.04% 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 3,502.10 3,535.41 3.39% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 242.18 242.18 2.81% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 1.38 1.40 10.32% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 326.83 326.84 4.38% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 257.23 260.90 10.25% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 10.16% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 11,729.74 11,888.93 7.51% Stanbic IBTC Dollar Fund (USD) 1.34 1.34 3.88% Stanbic IBTC Shariah Fixed Income Fund 119.84 119.84 2.51% Stanbic IBTC Enhanced Short-Term Fixed Income Fund 112.64 112.64 5.89% UNITED CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD unitedcapitalplcgroup.com Web: www.unitedcapitalplcgroup.com; Tel: +234 01-6317876 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn United Capital Equity Fund 0.95 0.97 7.20% United Capital Balanced Fund 1.34 1.36 2.95% United Capital Wealth for Women Fund 1.16 1.17 11.80% United Capital Sukuk Fund 1.08 1.08 7.19% United Capital Fixed Income Fund 1.92 1.92 6.32% United Capital Eurobond Fund 123.55 123.55 5.78% United Capital Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 11.59% 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 Balanced Strategy Fund 13.55 13.67 2.74% Zenith ESG Impact Fund 15.53 15.67 6.19% Zenith Income Fund 23.14 23.14 5.42% Zenith Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 10.05% VETIVA FUND MANAGERS LTD funds@vetiva.com Web: www.vetiva.com; Tel: +234 1 453 0697 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Vetiva Banking Exchange Traded Fund 3.73 3.83 -6.86% Vetiva Consumer Goods Exchange Traded Fund 5.96 6.06 1.94% Vetiva Griffin 30 Exchange Traded Fund 17.76 17.96 0.41% Vetiva Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 10.06% Vetiva Industrial Goods Exchange Traded Fund 17.63 17.83 -11.71% Vetiva S&P Nigeria Sovereign Bond Exchange Traded Fund 140.32 142.32 -10.99%

REITS NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

119.29 52.14

5.27% 2.50%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

14.21 124.06 98.14 16.40 17.10

14.31 127.19 100.28 16.50 17.20

1.61% -2.40% -1.63% -3.08% 10.58%

NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

107.59

0.00%

Fund Name SFS REIT Union Homes REIT

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

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.

38

T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2022

NEWSXTRA

INAUGURATION OF THE NLRC/NCC BILATERAL COOPERATION COMMITTEE...

L - R: Mr. Ayanbanji Ojo, Deputy Director, Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC; Mrs Olayemi Ajayi, Director, National Lottery Regulatory Commission, NLRC; Mr. Adeleke Adewolu, Executive Commissioner, Stakeholder Mgt, NCC; Mrs Chizua Whyte, Deputy Director, NCC; Mr. Obi Iregbu, NLRC, at the inauguration of the NLRC/NCC Bilateral Cooperation Committee, at the NCC Headquarters, Abuja ...yesterday

World Bank Seeks Global Efforts to Check Flow of Arms into Africa Climate-related finance hits $31.7bn in 2022

Ndubuisi Francis in Africa The President of the World Bank Group (WBG), John Malpass yesterday identified the devastating flow of arms into Africa with the attendant political fragility as one of the development crisis requiring global efforts to address.

Speaking on 'The Crisis Facing Development' at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research (SIEPR), United States of America, Malpass said a tough reality confronts the global economy, and especially the developing world.

According to him, a series of harsh events and unprecedented macroeconomic policies were

combining to throw development into crisis, adding that this has consequences for all due to the interlinked nature of the global economy and civilisations around the world.

The World Bank President stated that the macro-economic challenges facing development were consequential and probably worsening.

He said: "But I want to take note that there are many other aspects of the development crisis that also require global efforts. These include the devastating flow of arms into Africa, the consequent political fragility, adapting to climate change, mitigating greenhouse gas emissions, the violence and

Make Your Position on Fuel Subsidy Public, Group Urges Tinubu, Atiku, Obi Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja The Centre for Transparency Advocacy (CTA) has called on political parties and their presidential candidates including Mr. Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Atiku Abubakar of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Peter Obi of Labour Party, Rabiu Kwankwaso of New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) and others to make their stands known on the issue of fuel subsidy as campaign officially commenced.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), as provided by Section 94(1) of the Electoral Act 2022 officially lifted the ban on political campaigns on Wednesday.

The Executive Director of CTA, Ms. Faith Nwadishi, while addressing a press conference yesterday in Abuja, said as the country moves into the campaign period, it was expected that the political atmosphere would be charged.

She noted that it was imperative therefore, that political parties make their campaigns issue-based and convince Nigerians to vote for their candidates based on sound proposals of alternative solutions to the issues that are of utmost concern to Nigerians.

Nwadishi called on the political parties and their candidates to tell Nigerians in realistic terms how they intend to end insurgency, banditry, kidnapping and other criminalities, adding that citizens are eager to know the solutions

that political parties are proffering to the lingering security challenges.

The Executive Director pointed out that Nigeria was a major producer of crude oil and gas that should ordinarily translate to economic blessing and energy boost, however, this year alone, the National grid has failed about seven times subjecting Nigerians to darkness.

She stated: "Political parties should consider and in fact include discussions on fuel subsidy and domestic consumption of fuel in their campaigns. Our task is that political parties and their candidates should tell Nigerians how they will cushion the effect of high energy cost, whether fuel subsidy will stay or go and how they will provide renewable energy options since that is where the world is going now."

Nwadishi said it was sad that Nigerian university students have been kept at home for over seven months due to the strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

She stressed that within this period, other unions at tertiary institutions had embarked on strike actions that are inimical to the education system in Nigeria.

Against this background, Nwadishi was of the opinion that political parties and their candidates should make it a point to tell Nigerians how they would mitigate the protracted strikes in the education system and other rots bedevilling the Nigerian education sector from the primary to tertiary levels.

deprivation facing women and girls, and the severe reversals in education, health, and debt sustainability that I mentioned earlier."

He stated that the upcoming 'Poverty and Shared Prosperity' report suggests that the deterioration in development progress began well ahead of the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to him, the report showed that poverty had steadily declined through the 1990s and 2000s, with progress slowing by 2015, and extreme poverty rising by roughly 70 million when the pandemic hit.

Malpass explained that the

report also showed a four per cent decline in global median income, the first decline since the WBG's measurements of median income began in 1990.

Noting that developing countries were being hit by more frequent and more severe climate-related disasters, he added that man-made greenhouse gas emissions were causing climate change, which he said in turn was having tragic impacts on development in multiple ways.

"The developing world is facing an extremely challenging near-term outlook shaped by sharply higher food, fertiliser, and energy prices, rising interest rates and credit

spreads, currency depreciation, and capital outflows.

"Under current policies, global energy production may take years to diversify away from Russia, prolonging the stagflation risk discussed in the World Bank’s Global Economic Prospects report from June 2022.

"These shockwaves have hit development at a time when many developing countries are also struggling in other areas: governance and rule of law; debt sustainability; climate adaptation and mitigation; and limited fiscal budgets to counteract the severe reversals in development from the COVID-19 pandemic, including

in health and education," he said.

Maplass lamented that the human consequence of these overlapping crises was catastrophic.

According to him, the RussiaUkraine war had brought loss of lives and destruction, adding that the World Bank had mobilised $13 billion in emergency financing from bilateral and development partners, with about $11 billion already disbursed through our projects and trust funds.

He disclosed the bank's financing to developing countries had expanded dramatically in recent years, especially for climate-related finance, which reached $31.7 billion in 2022.

Nine Professors, Three EFCC Lawyers, 50 Others Emerge Senior Advocates of Nigeria Alex Enumah in Abuja Three lawyers of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) are among 62 lawyers to be conferred with the prestigious rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).

The EFCC's lawyers who made it successful at the screening panel included Wahab Shittu, Mr. Sylvanus Tahiru and Mr. Rotimi Oyedepo.

Their elevation to the Inner Bar of the Nigerian Judiciary was approved by the Acting Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Olukayode Ariwoola at the 154th plenary session of the Legal Practitioners’ Privileges Committee (LPPC), held on September 29, 2022.

A statement signed by the Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court, Hajo Sarki Bello, stated that, "the rank of a SAN is awarded as a mark of excellence to members

of the legal profession who have distinguished themselves as advocates and academics."

The statement however noted that the new SANs would be sworn in on Monday November 21, 2022.

While 53 of the new SANs came from the Advocate category, the remaining nine came from the academia.

Some in the advocate category included Mohammed Abubakar, Johnson Ugboduma, Christopher

Oshomegie and Bankole Akomolafe.

Amongst the academia on the other hand included Prof Kathleen Okafor, Prof. Muhammed Abdulrazaq, Prof Amokaye Gabriel, Prof Joy Ezeilo and Ass/Prof Chimezie Okorie.

"The meeting further approved a new Guidelines for the conferment of the rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria and all matters pertaining to the rank to guide future exercises", the statement added.

W’BANK APPROVES $750M TO STRENGTHEN BUSINESS ENABLING ENVIRONMENT IN STATES them to introduce measures that reduce the tax burden on MSMEs and create opportunities for participation in export markets.

"Further policy actions in support of MSMEs are being considered as work progresses on the preparation of the Finance Act 2022 for the 2023 fiscal year.

"The administration of President Muhammadu Buhari is deeply committed to providing support to MSMEs as evidenced in the emphasis placed on ensuring their continued operations during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic which led to the temporary closing down of 53.2 per cent of SMEs and 37.3 per cent of MEs. "In the development of the Economic Sustainability Plan (ESP), some of the provisions to support MSMEs include: N250 billion grant containing a N50 billion MSME de-risking facility component; a payroll support scheme providing

up to N50,000 in monthly salaries for up to 10 staff of qualifying businesses for a duration of three months - 1.3 million jobs have been retained through the MSME and payroll support."

He also alluded to a one-off grant of N30,000 for 333,000 self-employed persons working as transporters and artisans under the Artisan and Transport Scheme; a N50,000 grant for 100,000 MSMEs, and provision of financial backing of up to N191 billion in loans to 34,144 MSMEs, among others.

However, Ahmed said her ministry would also continue to support other MDAs through programmes such as the FGN Special Intervention Fund for MSMEs under the National Enterprise Development Programme, the Government Enterprise and Empowerment Program (GEEP) and various funds and products managed by the Bank of Industry (BOI).

With the disruptive effects of the Russia-Ukraine war on the economy and its consequent impact on the cost of doing business, she observed that difficulties facing MSMEs had increased significantly.

"It is important that the DBN steps up to the plate and expand its funding windows to provide affordable financing to a wider cross-section of MSMEs. "The Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning and all its agencies stand ready to utilise the fiscal policy tools at our disposal to support the DBN and other public and private sector actors working towards the common goal of ensuring MSMEs can become key drivers of economic growth and create sustainable and livelihoodenhancing jobs for segments of the working population prone to vulnerability," the minister assured.

Also, in his address, the DBN Chairman, Dr. Shehu Yahaya assured that the bank would

continue to work towards building the capacity of MSMEs to ensure that the elimination of the financing constraints faced by the critical sub-sector of the economy, and transform them into instruments for positive and sustained change However, Managing Director/ Chief Executive, DBN, Dr. Tony Okpanachi, said disruptions on a global scale were now a reality in an increasingly interconnected global economy.

He said there was still a compelling need for businesses to continue to innovate especially as the world gradually recovers from the disruptions caused by COVID-19 pandemic which had affected every part of the value chain, from raw material sourcing to the end customer; to the suffering induced by the humanitarian crisis caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, resulting in slower economic growth and rising inflation across nations.

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NEWSXTRA

NAMING OF LADOJA CIRCULAR ROAD PROJECT...

L-R: Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Mohood Balogun; Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde; his Benue State counterpart, Samuel Ortom and Former Governor of Oyo State, Senator Rashidi Ladoja, during the flag off of Senator Rashidi Adewolu Ladoja GRA and naming of Ladoja circular road project along Lagos-Ibadan expressway, Ibadan... yesterday

PDP Refutes Allegation of Bribery, Says It’s Housing Allowance Chuks Okocha in Abuja The leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), last night, dismissed bribery allegation levelled against it by some members as mischievous, saying the money was their housing allowance and their right, which was paid through due process.

PDP, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Hon. Debo Ologunagba, said, “The attention of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has been drawn to misrepresenting reports in a section of the media, alluding strange and unfounded motives to the Housing Allowance duly approved and paid to NWC members and staff of the party.

“The NWC has noted that this misleading report stemmed from an unfounded publication by a particular media outlet, which suggested that the Housing Allowance, an entitlement duly approved and paid to national officials and staff of the Party amounted to bribery.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the PDP states in an unequivocal term that no funds were paid into the account of any member of the NWC as bribe for any purpose whatsoever for that matter.

“To set the record straight, the Housing Allowance being referred

to went through the Due Process of the Party in line with the Conditions of Service and Entitlement of the Staff and Principal Officers of the Party.

“If any individual, for any reason decides to return money duly approved and paid, such does not in any way suggest that the money was paid as bribe or indicate that it was illegitimate or unlawfully paid.

“A bribe is defined as ‘money or

any other valuable consideration given or promised with a view to corrupting the behavior of a person especially in that person’s performance as a public official…’

This is not the case in the payment of Housing Allowance duly approved for officials and staff of the Party.

“The PDP, therefore, urges all members, teeming supporters and the general public to disregard the report and misleading insinuation

which are clearly designed to malign the PDP, cause disaffection and distract our Party from our mission to Rescue, Rebuild and Redirect our nation from the misrule of the All Progressives Congress (APC),” the statement stated.

The deputy national chairman, Taofeek Arapaja; the National Vice Chairman for South-south, Dan Orbih; the National treasurer, and the woman leader, Stella Effah Atoi, had accused the party leadership

of attempting to bribe them and consequently returned the money.

Sources also claimed that the National Vice Chairman, Southeast, Dr Alli Odefa; the National Vice-Chairman, Southwest, Adagunobi-Oluwatukesi and the Deputy National Secretary, Hon Setonji Koshoedo, had equally returned their own portions of the money, but the claim has not been confirmed.

But Araphaja has allegedly

NIWA: 65% of Nigeria-bound Containers End Up in Onitsha, Aba Hints of plan to open Lake Chad waterways Partners South African firm on waterway security Deji Elumoye in Abuja The National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) has disclosed that about 65 per cent of cargo berthing in Nigeria through the Lagos ports are meant for the South-east, especially Onitsha and Aba in Anambra and Abia States respectively.

Its Managing Director, Dr. George Moghalu, who made this known at a news briefing at the State House, Abuja, said most of the consignments that berth in Lagos waters were actually meant for the south-east zone.

His words: "A good number of the consignments come through the Lagos axis. And how is it going to ease the congestion? 60 to 65 per

cent of the cargo that comes into this country ends up in the southeast, either Onitsha or Aba." Moghalu, who was providing update on the agency’s activities, noted that the current road network infrastructure could not withstand the sheer volume of traffic required to move cargo from the south-east to other parts of the country.

He said this necessitated recent efforts by the agency to provide water inroads to the northern part of the country, including plans to open up Lake Chad.

According to him, the security challenges in the Lake Chad region have reduced, adding that survey and talks were underway with

Nigerian Navy to open up Lake Chad as an inland water gateway to other African countries.

He added that an alternative such as water transportation would scale down the weight of industrial trucks on the roads and generate government revenue.

Moghalu said: “On the commencement of cargo movement to Onitsha, everything is in place!

But this point must be made clear that the person who determines the movement of cargo is the owner of the cargo.

“And we have been engaging both the Chamber of Commerce and the Importers Association because unless they have their buy-in, they can’t

move their cargo by water. So the moment we get their total buy-in, I’m sure they will start moving their cargo.

“If we can make that route viable, we will reduce the pressure from our roads and save our road infrastructure because they’re not designed to carry the weight they are carrying. By the time you remove that volume of cargo from the Lagos port, the port will be congested,” he argued.

He also expressed concern over the menace of floating debris in vital waterways saying NIWA spends a fortune annually to rid the waterways of nonbiodegradable wastes such as plastic and rubber.

“We need to get our people to

Atiku Decentralises Campaign Structures, Appoints Zonal Heads Emmanuel: Our campaigns’ll be issue-based, focus on goals Chuks Okocha in Abuja Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, yesterday, announced the decentralisation of his campaign structures and also appointed zonal heads for the council.

Also, yesterday, Chairman of the PDP presidential campaign council and Governor of Akwa Ibom, Udom Emmanuel, said the party's campaign would be focused and based on what the PDP had done and what it intends to do further.

Announcing the decentralisation of the 600 membership, National Organising Secretary, Umar Bature, said the former governor of Bauchi State, Adamu Muazu, would head

returned N36 million paid to him, while Effah-Attoe and Orbih each returned N28 million, claiming it was suspicious.

The trio, however, are members of the camp of the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, who has remained bitter and inconsolable since he lost both the presidential ticket and the slot for running mate and had since been rooting for the ouster of the PDP National Chairman, Dr. Iyorchia Ayu.

the Atiku Presidential Campaign Council for the Northeast, while the former governor of Katsina State. Ibrahim Shema, would head the presidential campaigns in the Northwest.

Former deputy speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, he said, would head the Southeast presidential campaign council.

Wife of the former leader of the PDP, Mrs Josephine Anenih, was announced as the head of the campaigns for the South-south zone, while a former national secretary and a member of the Board of Trustees (BoT), Olagunsoye Oyinlola, was appointed head of the presidential campaigns.

Chief Chille Igbawua from Kogi

State was announced as head of the campaigns for the North Central.

Speaking earlier, Emmanuel charged members of the campaign organisation to ensure that the campaigns were issue-based and focused.

He said, "This campaigns, which I am the chairman by the Grace of God will be issue-based and focused. We are going into this campaign with what the PDP has done and what it intends to do.

One thing is clear: PDP will turn around the economy in no distant time, when we come back as the ruling party.

"Our campaigns will be based on bottom to top, and not the top to bottom that has brought sorrow and crisis to the people. We intend

to turn things around for the good of all Nigerians," he stated.

Asked how the PDP planned to do this, he said, "We have the people as our main resources. There is no part of Nigeria that you cannot not find the PDP members."

He described campaigns as mere jamboree, stating that, "Whatever happens is that the people will vote for the PDP and we’ll defend our votes."

He however, PDP called on all members of the campaign to go back to their wards and polling units and campaign as elections are not won in Abuja.

In his speech, the Delta State Governor and vice-presidential candidate of the party, Ifeanyi Okowa, said there were lots of

works to be done, but explained that this will eventually birth a new Nigeria, where purposeful leadership would be guaranteed.

He boosted that with what he saw in Kano and Enugu a fortnight ago, the PDP would win convincingly in the Southeast and northwest.

The PDP vice presidential candidate appealed to the various heads of the Campaign organisation to pay attentions in the polling units and wards, as this is where elections were rigged.

"The PDP will emerge victorious as it did in Osun State, where no one gave us a chance. We will win convincingly in Southwest.

What we need is to be bold and courageous," he said.

understand how to manage our waste. It is a problem. Because, year in and year out, NIWA spends money moving out floating debris on our waterways. Most of these floating debris are rubber and bottled water, we keep throwing them, and they all end in the waterway.

“Every year, at least since I came, and from the records, it has been there. Every year, you must remove high water centres and floating debris,” the MD said.

He added that NIWA was working with state governments and the media to enlighten the public about proper waste disposal.

The NIWA boss also revealed that the federal government was finalising an agreement to secure a South Africa-sourced technology for monitoring and securing the nation’s Inland waterways.

According to Moghalu, the new piece of technology would enable NIWA monitor the movement of vessels anywhere in the waterways.

He noted that the South African tech firm, had visited NIWA, giving them a better feel of the FG’s security challenges on the waterways.

The company, he said, affirmed its willingness and ability to help as they have solved a similar challenge in South Africa.

“We visited them and they visited us and we now presented our challenge because we want to be in a position to monitor all our waterways and they have the technology.

“There is a technology they are going to deploy so that I will be in the control room in Lokoja and be able to monitor all the vessels that operate in our waterways,” Moghalu said.

40

T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2022

NEWSXTRA

INLAND WATERWAYS BRIEFING...

L-R: Managing Director , National Inland Waterways Authority, Mr. Goerge Moghalu; General Manager legal services of the authority, Danladi Ibrahim and General Manager Business Development , Adetola Olawale during the weekly State House Briefing held at the Presidential Villa,Abuja …yesterday GODWIN OMOIGUI

Osun: S’Court Affirms Adeleke's Nomination as PDP Candidate Alex Enumah in Abuja

However, the case was dismissed by the apex court The Supreme Court, yesterday, for want of jurisdiction.

The appellant had filed two affirmed the nomination of Senator Ademola Adeleke as candidate notices of appeals but had of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the just concluded governorship election in Osun State.

The apex court, in a unanimous decision, affirmed Adeleke's nomination after dismissing a suit by an aggrieved governorship aspirant, Oyedotun Babayemi, for being incompetent and lacking in merit.

According to Justice Amina Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja Augie, who led the panel, the suit of the appellant was incompetent, The National Chairman of the because it was filed out of the All Progressives Congress (APC), time duration allowed by law in Abdullahi Adamu, has denied a pre-election matter. writing to the presidential candidate Babayemi had approached the of the party, Bola Tinubu, in which apex court to set aside the decisions he allegedly disagreed with him of the lower courts, which upheld over the composition of the President Adeleke's emergence as candidate Campaign Council (PCC), even as of the PDP. the party has decided to expand Both Babayemi and Senator membership of the council to over Adeleke had locked horns in a 2,000 to accommodate all interests. legal battle over, who was validly This is as the Director General elected after parallel primaries were of the Campaign Council, and the conducted in different locations Governor of Plateau State, Simon of the state capital, Osogbo.

Lalong, has allegedly insisted on He claimed that his primary proper consultation and the buy-in was the authentic primary, which of all stakeholders ought to be recognised by INEC Since the 422-member campaign and the court, as such, should list was released last Saturday, it declare him rightful candidate has plunged the party into crisis, of the party. with the Progressive Governors

predicated his case on the one the apex court held was filed out of time.

"A pre-election matter has a period of 14 days, and like a rock

of Gibrata, cannot be moved", Justice Augie, held, adding that, there is nothing before the court to invoke its jurisdiction.

Efforts by counsel to the

appellant, Adebayo Adelodun (SAN) to convince the panel to take a look at the merits of the appeal proved abortive as the court held that it lacked

jurisdiction to entertain the matter.

The Appeal, having been withdrawn by the counsel to the appellant, the court consequently dismissed it.

Adamu Denies Writing Tinubu as APC Expands Council to over 2,000 Membership Lalong insists on proper consultation, buy-in of all stakeholders Forum (PGF), some members of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party and other critical stakeholders, lamenting that their interests were not accommodated.

THISDAY had reported that the council, though a tripartite institution, structured around the presidential candidate, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the party and the president, was originally designed to be driven by the governors, since they were expected to lead the campaigns in their respective states.

Tinubu, the party and the progressive governors, had perfected the composition of an inclusive campaign council. But the list that was eventually released caused a lot misgivings among party stalwarts.

It was based on this that Lalong directed that all campaign activities be put on hold indefinitely for more

interests to be accommodated, just as the council has decided to increase the membership to over 2,000, while other committees and sub-committees would be created.

In the initial list, 31 committees were created, while some members were given advisory role.

But, a reliable source told THISDAY that Tinubu has also directed that everyone should be accommodated in the list.

The source said, "Asiwaju says accommodate everyone. Everyone will be accommodated. They are expanding to over 2,000 members to accommodate all interests. We are still adding people."

However, another source close to the leadership of the campaign council said Lalong was trying to build a coalition, hence, his decision to put on hold all campaign

activities.

The source said, "In every system there are always different shades of opinions – those for, those against and all that which is normal, even in a family.

"But what remains is that the Director General is trying to build a coalition, that is why he personally signed a letter for the first time stopping all activities."

The source noted that the decision was to ensure that all stakeholders would be carried along, and some people who felt they were not being carried along are now receiving some kind of relief that everything has been stopped to accommodate their interest.

Nevertheless, Adamu has denied writing the presidential candidate of the party over the campaign council list that has continued to generate

crisis within the party.

Adamu, in a statement by the National Publicity Secretary of the party, Mr. Felix Morka, said the letter did not emanate from him.

"Our attention has been drawn to a “DRAFT” letter in circulation purportedly written by His Excellency, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, the National Chairman of our great Party, addressed to His Excellency, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Presidential Candidate of our great Party, expressing dissatisfaction over the recently released list of the Presidential Campaign Council (PCC).

"To be clear, the “DRAFT” letter did not emanate from the Party. An UNSIGNED letter that marks itself as a ‘DRAFT’ cannot and should not be attributed to its purported author," the statement stated.

I thank the Body of Benchers for this opportunity to identify with it on this auspicious occasion of the commissioning of this beautiful edifice."

Earlier, Olanipekun explained that the idea of the complex was mooted in 1992, and the ground-breaking ceremony was held on November 28, 2008.

“So much time, talent and treasure has been invested in this facility,” he said, explaining that the complex has a 3,000 sitting capacity hall, 240 capacity meeting room, 1000 capacity banquet hall, another 1000 capacity multipurpose hall, offices for staff and a library.

He noted that realisation of the vision of building the complex could be attributed to the foresight of 16 persons, one of whom was still alive.

He specifically commended two retired Chief Justices of Nigeria, Justice Alfa Belgore and Justice Mahmud Mohammed.

On improving the conditions of service for judicial workers, Olanipekun said, “May I publicly thank and commend Mr President for his fast response to my address that a democratic government, standing on a tripod, cannot thrive where one is not properly taken care of.”

Describing the building as “magnificent and befitting of the Body of Benchers,” the acting Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, in his remarks, said the sacrifices of past Chairmen and Presidents of the Body of Benchers had eventually paid off. Ariwoola urged the body to put the facility to good use, particularly, in hosting the call to bar.

Speaking, also, Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, congratulated Ariwoola on his confirmation, and noted that the Body of Benchers complex transcended a physical structure.

Malami said the edifice captured the essence of the body in the conscience of legal professionals and created an enabling environment for the administration of the rule of law.

While noting that the legal profession needed to purge itself of charlatans, Malami stated, “We cannot afford to lower the bar, if we must retain family confidence.” He said the president had already made improvement in the remuneration of judicial workers a priority, further demonstrating his love and respect for the legal profession.

In another development, while playing host to the NPC, Buhari declared, "You may recall that President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan and I signed the first National Peace Accord before the 2015 elections. It is my conviction that it contributed significantly to the peaceful outcome of the 2015 election."

While urging all signatories to the 2023 election Peace Accord and their supporters to abide by its content and spirit, Buhari stated that the signing of the First National Peace Accord by the presidential candidates in the 2023 election, earlier at a separate event yesterday, was aimed at committing political parties, aspirants and their supporters to conduct their campaigns in a peaceful manner, devoid of ethnic, religious and hate speeches that could mar the upcoming elections.

Buhari said, "The timing of the First National Peace Accord is significant considering political party campaigns have already commenced in the country. The initiatives undertaken by the NPC are commendable, as these efforts would ensure issue-based campaigns.

BUHARI TO JUDGES: BE IMPARTIAL ARBITERS IN ELECTION MATTERS in 2008, the president commended the body for keeping the wheel of justice turning by providing a solid foundation for the rule of law, with over five decades of proven track record.

The president stated, “I am aware that the Body of Benchers is responsible for the formal call-to-Bar of persons seeking to become legal practitioners as well as ensuring the highest standard of discipline within the profession.

“I consider this Body as critical to the legal profession. I say this, because the membership of the Body cuts across all facets of government and the legal profession, particularly, the executive, legislature, judiciary and the bar.

“Furthermore, all Justices of the Supreme Court, retired Chief Justices of Nigeria, who are alive, President of the Court of Appeal and Presiding Justices, Chief Judges of the High Courts, the Federal and state Attorneys General, Chairmen of the Judiciary Committees in the two Houses of the National Assembly, leading members of the Bar, and others constitute this Body.

“I am unaware of any other institution or organ in the legal profession that draws its membership

from all segments of the profession like the Body of Benchers. No wonder, the statute describes it as consisting of men of the highest distinction in the legal profession.”

Buhari pledged to support improvement in the welfare of staff of the judiciary after an on-going review.

He added, “I recall that on the 28th July, 2022 when I played host to the leadership of the Body of Benchers, its Chairman, Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, was very emphatic in making a case for the welfare of judicial officers in the country. I am not unaware of the passion and commitment of Chief Olanipekun in championing the cause of the welfare of judicial officers in Nigeria, as well as the commitment of the Body on this matter.

“May I restate my commitment towards this ideal. In similar vein, I have been intimated of the engagement of consultants by the Body, through its Judiciary Advisory Committee, to amongst other things, come up with a peer review of the conditions of service of judicial officers in Nigeria with other countries and jurisdictions, within and outside Africa.

“I earnestly look forward to the

completion of this peer review and the submission of recommendations, as this will assist us to review the welfare packages. A society, where justice thrives is one that can be assured of development. For Nigeria to effectively embrace sustainable development, institutions such as the legal profession must remain deeply committed towards promoting good governance.”

Buhari praised the initiative of the Body of Benchers to build the complex, and extend invitation to his office for the inauguration.

According to him, “This is a major achievement for the Body of Benchers, as this structure serves to boost infrastructure development of the legal profession. I commend the efforts of the entire Body of Benchers for being able to deliver this project, which I have been told was embarked on in 2008 and has only now been fully completed.

“From the information available to me, meetings of the Body of Benchers were hitherto held at the Supreme Court premises, both in Lagos and Abuja. Now, the Body has its own beautiful complex, which will serve for its meetings, seminars, conferences, and also bring some revenue to its coffers. Once again,

Continues online

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NEWS

BRAND INFLUENCER AWARD WINNER…

Managing Director/CEO, Citypeople Magazine, Seye Kehinde presenting Brand Influencer’s Award of the Year to Public Relations Consultant/Convener Bodex Social Media Hangout Bodex F. Hungbo, at the Female Achiever Awards in Lagos

Soludo Bans Tricycle, Bus Unions, Sacks Motor Park Touts David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka Anambra State Governor, Prof.

Chukwuma Soludo has banned tricycle and shuttle bus unions

in the state. The governor stated this in a press release by the state Commissioner for Information, Mr. Paul Nwosu, which was made available to THISDAY

Tinubu’s Daughter Sympathises with Victims as Flood Ravages Kogi The ongoing flood across the country especially states along River Niger and Benue has affected many communities. And the Iyaloja General of Nigeria Mrs. Folashade Tinubu-Ojo has expressed sadness over the flood disasters in Kanti Kwari market in Kano in Kano State and Lokoja, Kogi State.

She has therefore, extended her heart-felt sympathy to Governor Abdullahi Ganduge of Kano State and his counterpart Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi and the good people of both states over the devastating flood.

She is particularly worried because many markets have also been affected by the flood, saying that market men and women who are working hard to meets their daily obligations are now victims.

She said: “I am very distressed at the manner of the flood on these hardworking citizens who have contributed immensely to the economy of Kano and Kogi State in particular and Nigeria in general.”

The Iyaloja prayed for all the victims of the flood and wished them divine comfort.

in Awka, the Anambra State capital yesterday.

Thursday and Friday last week witnessed massive protests by tricycle and bus operators in Awka, who had complained about the N15,000 and N20,000 monthly tax imposed on them by government.

But the state government in its reaction to the protest said the union and touts masquerading as

revenue agent were misleading and over taxing the operators.

Part of the release read: “In order to forestall breakdown of law and order, the state government hereby suspends all tricycle and shuttle bus unions in the state with immediate effect for six months.

“This is pending further investigations and a possible harmonisation of the unions

which shall have a leadership known to, and recognized by, the State Government.

“This is as a follow up to government’s recent consultation with the direct representatives of tricycle and shuttle bus operators.

“Government has considered their plea and decided to offer them a convenient payment option and other fringe benefits

that could add value to their well-being.”

The state government continued that: “Tricycle operators now have the option of paying N4,000 weekly or N15,000 monthly. However, tricycle operators in the eight Local Government Areas that are affected by the curfew will pay N3,000 weekly or N12,000 monthly.

A’ Ibom Village Head, Others Arrested for Allegedly Killing Herdsmen’s Cows Okon Bassey in Uyo Police operatives in Akwa Ibom State have arrested the Village Head of Ikot Akpan in Oruk Anam Local Government Area of the state, Chief Friday Benson Udo Ekpo and others for allegedly intercepting herdsmen who use their farms for grazing thus destroying crops.

The youths in the Ikot Akpan village had reportedly chased the herdsmen away from the

community in an attempt to stop the cows from doing further damage to the farm crops.

The Youth Leader of the community, Aniefiok Amos said yesterday that the herdsmen invaded the community on Tuesday with their cows destroying cassava, yams and other valuable farms crops before the youths pursued them out to Isama village another community in the area.

“On Tuesday we saw herds

of cows that swoop on our farms in the Ikot Akpan village destroying our crops. All we did was to pursue them and they ran to neighbouring village where we left them .

“What happened to the cows in another village we don’t know. We have to protect our crops against devourers.

“We were surprised as police arrested our respected Village Head, Chief Udo Ekpo for offence he never committed. We

learnt that other persons have been arrested in the village.”

Another Youth Activist in the community, Aniekerente Abasi Akpakpan said the village head was wrongly arrested by the police and called for thorough investigation into the matter and urged the police to release the village Head unconditionally.

“We want the police to release our village Head first and continue with their investigation.”, he stressed .

Bayelsa State Deputy Governor, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, has expressed worry over the way and manner organised labour have been tackling issues bordering on the welfare of the masses in Nigeria in recent times.

He observed that the performance of labour organisations such as the Nigerian

Trade Union Congress (TUC) have not been too impressive in terms of protecting the interest of their members, democracy and the national economy.

The Bayelsa number two man, has therefore, charged the labour leaders to wake up from what he called “self-induced slumber.”

Senator Ewhrudjakpo stated this while granting audience

the Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Service Technical and Recreational Services Employees (AUPCTRE), Comrade Benjamin Anthony, and the South-south chairpersons of the Union in Government House, Yenagoa.

In a statement yesterday , deputy governor asserted that organised labour had lost the

past when the likes of late Michael Imodu, Ali Ciroma, Chief Ovie Kokori, Chief Wariebi Agamene of NUPENG and others held sway.

Insisting that the labour movement had lost much integrity, Ewhrudjakpo noted that labour’s silence in the country when most public universities had been shut for upward of seven months was unacceptable.

Prophius, Visa Partner on Deputy Gov Tasks NLC, TUC on Effective Labour Struggle Contactless Payment System Bayelsa Labour Congress (NLC) and to the National President of fervency it was known for in the Olusegun Samuel in Yenagoa

Prophius yesterday announced that its PayContactless solution has been certified by Visa on the tap to Phone payments acceptance enabling android near field communication (NFC)-enabled mobile phones and tablets to accept contactless payments in alignment with its mission to boost commerce at the storefront.

Commenting on the unveiling of the payment system, Chief Executive Officer of Prophius, Olugbenga Adams, said: “We see opportunities to help small businesses grow their businesses with the partnership with Visa by making payments more accessible through Tap to Phone payments.

“A more inclusive ecosystem

through accessible payments is critical for every economy and we are thrilled to work with banks, financial technology (Fintech) companies and merchants across the region towards this goal.”

Also speaking, Vice President and Cluster Manager, Visa West Africa, Andrew Uaboi, said: “SMEs make up most businesses operating across West Africa, and their success is a critical factor in delivering sustainable, economic growth.

The ongoing evolution of payments has opened a new, more inclusive landscape that has the capacity to improve access to consumers from all segments of society.

Capacity Building: REA Officials Visit South Korea Officials of the Rural Electrification Agency(REA) were in South Korea between September 17 and September 24, 2022 for a capacity building programme towards actualising the Korean Assisted Mini-Grid Project for four unelectrified Abuja communities.

The project is designed to objectively include technology transfer and project sustainability components through foreign and local educational sessions.

The agency said in a statement

that the project is also designed to share with REA officials the general understanding and experience of Korean Renewable Energy Technologies with expectations that lessons learnt are adopted in putting in place necessary policies in Nigeria.

“The federal government had on June 16, 2022 signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Korean Institute for the Advancement of Technology( KIAT) for Premium Grade Mini-Grade Projects.

Oyo Flags Off Construction of Rashidi Ladoja GRA, Ibadan Circular Road Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde, was yesterday joined by his Benue State counterpart, Samuel Ortom, to flag off the construction of the Senator Rashidi Adewolu Ladoja Government Reserved Area (GRA) and the 32 kilometres Phase I of the Ibadan Circular Road.

Makinde while speaking at the event held at Kilometre

8/10 Lagos/Ibadan Expressway, Ibadan, said building of GRAs in the state will provide more houses for the growing population, while also raising revenue for the government.

He declared that the GRA is being named after Senator Ladoja, because of his great contributions to the growth of Oyo State, adding that the former governor also conceived the idea

of Ibadan Circular Road.

Governor Makinde equally explained that the construction of the Circular Road has already started and that it has progressed up to 7.6 per cent.

According to him, the first phase of the project will be completed in the next 12 months, stating that when the Circular Road project is completed, it will help to eliminate congestion

along the busy Lagos/Ibadan Expressway.

He said: “Today is the day we celebrate one of our elder statesmen here in Oyo State.

He has been like a father to me, and even when we sometimes disagree as most fathers and sons would, when it comes to governance, we both want the best for the good people of Oyo State.

Insecurity: CISLAC Advocate for Accountability in Defence

Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt

Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) has called for transparency and accountability in the defence sector, a way to tackle insecurity in the country.

The non governmental organization(NGO) made the

call yesterday during a one-day civil society steering committee coordination meeting held in Port Harcourt, in collaboration with Transparency InternationalDefence, Security Programme, with support from Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands.

In his address, Executive Director of CISLAC, Auwal

Ibrahim Musa Rafsanjani noted that the gap in the country architecture was because the government failed to plan.

Represented by Board member of CISLAC, Hadiza Kangiwa, Rafsanjani said the meeting became essential for a coordinated approach to addressing the issues of defence and security

accountability, as well as human rights and civil space in Nigeria.

The CISLAC boss stressed that “The committee is important because of need for coordinated approach, there is also the need to share and exchange ideas, develop strategies and its very important for each of the stakeholders to know what others are doing.

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ACT FOUNDATION MARKS FIFTH ANNIVERSARY…

L-R: Access Bank Human Resources Head, Bolaji Agbede; Group Managing Director, Access Bank, Roosevelt Ogbonna; Board Member, ACT Foundation, Dr. Omobola Johnson; Chief Executive Director, ACT Foundation, Osayi Alile; and Access Bank Group Head of Corporate Communications, Amaechi Okobi, at the 6th ACT Foundation Breakfast Dialogue and 5th anniversary celebration in Lagos…yesterday

Insurgency: 1,500 Schools Shut in North-east, Says TRCN Boss

Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan

The Registrar/Chief Executive, Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN), Prof. Olusegun

close down in the region between 2009 and 2022.

Ajiboye made the disclosure while speaking at the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) National Delegates Conference, held in Ibadan, Oyo, describing the loss of the teachers as tragic.

According to him, about 1.2 million students require emergency education in Borno, councils and the 35 local council Adamawa and Yobe states. development areas in the state offer The TRCN boss also disclosed little or nothing in terms of service to the masses despite the fact that huge monthly allocations come to them from the federal government, lamenting that council officials have Wale Igbintadeand Segun no control over both the funds James accrued to them from Abuja as well as the internally generated The Governorship candidate of revenue since everything find their the Labour Party(LP) in Lagos way to the governor who decides State, Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, on what to do with the monies. has declared that the proposed He said: “Gov. Makinde and the #ObiDatti23 Forward Ever Rally few men around him have turned billed to hold on Saturday, October funds meant for the effective and 1 2022, in Lagos will be peaceful efficient running local government and orderly.

Rhodes-Vivour urged the people system in the state into their own personal resources which they must control as they like.”

Ajiboye, yesterday said 2,295 teachers have lost their lives to terrorism and insurgency in the North-east. He said similarly over 1,500 schools have been forced to

Makinde Urged to Reopen Closed Customary Courts in Oyo Kemi Olaitan inIbadan The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo state, yesterday, took a swipe at Governor Seyi Makinde, for crippling virtually all institutions of democracy and governance in the state, describing the development as unhealthy, dangerous and condemnable.

The party in a statement in Ibadan by its Publicity Secretary, Olawale Sadare, also berated the decision of the governor to shut down all Customary Courts across the state since May last year for inexplicable reasons denying the people access to the services of the judiciary at the grassroots level.

He said the 33 local government

The Warri Correspondents Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) yesterday appealed to the Delta State Government to urgently come to the aid of flood victims in Warri metropolis and environs on the wake of the heavy downpour that ravaged several communities in the State earlier in the week.

In the same vein, the media practitioners advised residents in flood prone areas to heed the earlier warnings from different relevant Federal Government agencies, notably the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the Nigeria Hydrological Services

Agency (NIHSA) and Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NiMET) on flood.

The NUJ, in a communique issued at the end of its congress and signed by Okies Veeky and Dele Fasan, the Chapel’s Chairman and Secretary respectively, noted that the appeal became necessary because of what residents of the affected areas are going through.

The union urged the state government to immediately intervene by coming to the rescue of the flood victims, particularly those living at flood prone areas, by possibly evacuating them to safer locations, for the fear of more heavy rains that are likely to be witnessed.

Dakuku Mourns former NIMASA Executive Director, Fashakin

Former Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) Dr. Dakuku Peterside, has expressed deep condolences on the passage of his ally and friend, Engr.

Rotimi Fashakin, who served as Executive Director, Operations of NIMASA from 2016 to 2020, during Dakuku’s tenure.

Fashakin died suddenly in London on September 24. A statement from the Dakuku Peterside Media Office said

and welfare of teachers in the country.

He said: “Government should implement fully the safe schools declaration guidelines endorsed

by Nigeria in 2015 and ratified by President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019.”

Ajiboye who lamented that over 600,000 students have lost access to education, said the “attacks on education create a ripple effect, setting in motion

range of negative impacts such as loss of education, early marriage, early pregnancy, and stigma associated with sexual violence and children’s born from rape all of which can dramatically affect female students futures.

“The presence of armed forces in and near schools can make it a target of retaliatory attacks increasing the risk to children and teachers as well as the likelihood that education will be disrupted.”

Rhodes-Vivour: #ObiDatti23 Rally ‘ll Be Peaceful

NUJ Seeks Support for Flood Victims in Delta Sylvester Idowu inWarri

that over 910 schools have either been damaged or destroyed, noting that the world is grappling with terrorism which has dealt a serious blow on every facet of the economy including education.

While urging the federal government to review its security architecture to address the deteriorating security situation because of its effect on education, he assured to continue to champion the professionalism

the ex-NIMASA director-general described the deceased as a great leader who had personal connection and affection with all whom he came in contact with.

He noted that Nigeria had lost a great son, whose leadership skills were needed at this time, when the country experienced grave uncertainty and storm.

According to Dakuku, “ Fashakin may hold strong views on issues, yet he was a people’s person, who connected well with others, no matter your opinion.

of Lagos to join the peaceful march in four different locations across the state, adding that law enforcement agents would be on ground to monitor the rally and ensure safety of all participants.

Justice Daniel Osiagor, of the Federal High Court sitting in Lagos had on Wednesday ordered the LP and its supporters not to converge on the Lekki toll gate for its #ObiDatti23 Forward Ever

Rally, but can pass through the venue to access Falomo Bridge and other venues.

The judge also directed the Inspector General of Police and the Lagos State Police Commissioner to ensure compliance with the order.

Speaking with journalists yesterday in Lagos, LP party governorship candidate in Lagos State, said efforts made by some people to scuttle the rally failed,

stressing that participants had no plan to converge on toll gate.

He said the Lagos State Commissioner of Police has assured participants of adequate security.

According to him, the rally will Kick off simultaneously in four different locations in Lagos, adding that participants will be congregating at Lekki Phase 1, Festac Town , Surulere and Ikeja by 7am respectively.

Elites Need to Sacrifice for People to Benefit, Says Osinbajo

Deji Elumoye in Abuja Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has stressed the need for Nigerian elites to make sacrifice for the benefit of the people.

According to him, to build a successful society and nation, there must be a deliberate effort to create unity, with equity, justice, the rule of law, accountability as components.

He added that the onus

particularly lies on the elites of the society, who must be prepared to make the sacrifices for the benefit of the people.

Osinbajo stated this yesterday in his speech at the “Nigeria at 62 Independence Day Anniversary Public Lecture” at the State House Banquet Hall, Abuja, where he was Special Guest of Honour.

The Vice President noted that “the story of successful

societies is quite simple. It is usually the story of how the society’s elite - its best educated, its political, religious class, influence, direct and lead their societies to progress.

“Put differently, every successful society is the product of a conscious, elite consensus: the implicit and explicit agreements of the elite to change their societies for good.

But the elite must be prepared

to make the sacrifices for the benefit of everyone.”

According to him, even though elitism confers privilege, that privilege also comes with responsibility.

He explained that “we who are the elites are a privileged class. But privilege comes with responsibility. It is the French who describe it as “Noblesse Oblige”, the responsibility of privilege.

Experts: Nigeria Must Review Agricultural Financing Architect to Curb Looming Food Crisis Oluchi Chibuzor

Despite supporting the livelihood of over 10 million peasant farmers in the country and being a source of foreign exchange earnings, experts have reiterated the need for the country to review the financing of the agricultural sector in order to arrest the looming food insecurity facing the country.

This, they believed, becomes

necessary considering the fact that the various government development programmes have failed to reflect the present realities affecting the sector.

Delivering his lecture, yesterday at the 38th annual Omolayole Management Lecture with the theme, ‘Sustainable Development Of the Agricultural Sector for National Well-Being’, the CEO, Center for the Promotion of

Private Enterprise (CPPE), Dr. Muda Yusuf, said land tenure system, low level of irrigation forming, climate change, land degradation and low use of technology have impeded the agricultural sector.

He noted that there is a “public investment bias against agriculture and the rural areas in favour of urban centers”, adding that it covers infrastructure such as roads

and electricity, low mechanisation of agriculture to weak irrigation system.

“We need to review our agricultural financing architecture to improve financing, of course there is a gap in the lending rate.

The CBN just increased the MPR to 15.5 percent and am sure some people here are receiving notices from the banks for review of interest rates.

2023 Elections: NIS to Shut Doors against Migrants Michael Olugbode in Abuja Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has said it would shut the doors against the use of migrants from neighbouring countries in next year’s election.

The Comptroller-General of Immigration (CGI), Isah Idris, made the pledge yesterday at a

meeting with top management staff of the Service, Zonal Coordinators and Comptrollers of Commands/formations at the NIS headquarters in Abuja, where operational briefing was given as part of preparatory activities for the forthcoming general election in 2023.

A statement issued by the

spokesman of the NIS, Amos Okpu, said during the meeting, the CGI reiterated government’s commitment to a free and fair electoral process for the 2023 general election, and charged Heads of Commands and Formations across the country to upscale surveillance activities in all locations, including border

crossing points to ensure successful elections.

He directed the activation and deployment of all the migration management and border security assets of the Service with a view to ensuring that ineligible persons, particularly migrants, are not allowed to participate in the electoral process.

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MARKING WORLD HEART DAY…

L-R: Managing Director/CEO, iFitness, Mr. Foluso Ogunwale; Member, Committee of Wives of Lagos State Officials, Mrs. Patience Ogunbiyi; Member, Nutrition Committee Nigerian Heart Foundation (NCNHF), Professor Olugbenga Ogunmoyela, and Member, NCNHF, Mrs Dolapo Coker, at the press conference to commemorate the World Heart Day in Ikoyi, Lagos… yesterday

Again, Lawmakers Move to Resolve FG/ASUU Dispute NANS opts for training of members on skills acquisition

Udora Orizu in Abuja and Ibrahim Shuaibu in Kano After over four hours of

deliberations, the House of Representatives was able to broker a meeting between the Academic Staff Union of Universities

ITU Gets First Woman Secretary General in 157 Years Emma Okonji withAgencyReport The International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the United Nations specialised agency that coordinates global telecom operations, yesterday, elected the first woman Secretary-General that will superintend over the affairs of ITU for the next four years.

Doreen Bogdan-Martin, who was elected yesterday in the ongoing ITU’s 21st Plenipotentiary Conference (PP-22) in Bucharest, Romania, became the first female to be elected as ITU SecretaryGeneral in its 157 years of

operation.

Bogdan-Martin, who is from the United States of America, received the majority of Member State votes, pledging meaningful connectivity as her goal.

The election had representatives of Member States voting during the meeting’s morning session.

Bogdan-Martin won the position with 139 votes, out of 172 votes cast.

“Whether it’s today’s children or our children’s children, we need to provide them with a strong and stable foundation for growth,” Bogdan-Martin said.

We ‘ve not Stopped Lagos-Ibadan Rail Operations, Says NRC Boss Sunday Okobi The management of the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has stated that contrary to rumours making the rounds, the corporation has not stopped the operation of the LagosIbadan train services; rather he said NRC operates four train services per day on the route, adding that Warri-Itakpe-Abuja rail line is operated twice per day.

The corporation further disclosed that it lost N531million to inactivity on the Abuja-Kaduna rail line between March and August

2022, after bandits attacked an Abuja-bound train in March.

While addressing journalists yesterday at its headquarters in Lagos during a press briefing, the NRC Managing, Director, Fidet Okhiria, explained that the lack of diesel has also contributed to the reduction in trips done on the Lagos-Ibadan train line.

According to him “Contrary to rumours in circulation, we have not stopped the LagosIbadan train services, rather, the route operates four train services per day. Also, on the Warri-Itakpe-Abuja line, we do two train services a day.

Bukka Hut Clarifies Brand’s Ownership The Board, Management and Staff of Bukka Hut have urged media platforms to maintain restrain in the disseminating information regarding ownership of the Lagos-based eatery.

In a statement signed by Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Bukka Hut, Mr. Rasheed Jaiyeola, the company said it had no other option than to address the gross misrepresentation of verifiable facts making the rounds on various social media platforms following the unfortunate transition of Mr. Olaolu Martins, who was an

initial investor and a minority shareholder in Bukka Hut. The company explained that Bukka Hut is run and operated solely by Jaiyeola with the support of a senior management team, adding that Jaiyeola is the majority shareholder of Bukka Hut, jointly with his family.

Media reports had largely indicated that the late Olaolu, who passed on Tuesday, was the founder and owner of Bukka Hut whereas he was simply a valued supporter of the business who was not involved in the day-to-day operations of Bukka Hut.

(ASUU), the labour ministry and office of the accountant general of the federation yesterday over the lingering strike.

Speaker of the House, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, and his colleagues who had been meeting with the union for two weeks now had enquired from the Accountant-General and National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), if the universities’ payment systems could be re-evaluated.

While the Direct-General of NITDA, Kashifu Inuwa said that all the three payment systems that included University Transparency and Accountability Solution, (UTAS) Integration Personnel and Information System, (IPPIS) and U3PS failed integrity test and as such could not be relied upon, the Accountant-General, Sylvia Okolieaboh offered for a meeting with ASUU to resolve the issues.

He said the issues would be resolved using the IPPIS payment solution and that adopting UTAS might prompt unwholesome request from other agencies to be paid in their own salary structure.

He also challenged ASUU to come up with any home-grown solution, assuring that the government would abide by it.

“If there are peculiarities in the university salaries system, what we need to do is to sit down with ASUU and identify them and

address them in IPPS, we are willing to accept if the answer is yes, then the whole of the issues would be resolved.

“What we need to do in my own opinion is to sit down with ASUU and know what the issues are and address them inside IPPIS. “One of the risks of adopting UTAS is that everybody will come and say give us our own salary.

As we speak, the military is on IPPIS, the police is on IPPIS. They have their own peculiarities. What we need to do is sit down. IPPIS is not a perfect system. In the spirit of reconciliation, if ASUU knows any fibre that can help to resolve the issues that we have, ASUU should go ahead,” Okolieaboh said.

On his part, the NITDA DG said they were waiting for further directive from the government to continue with the testing of the solutions.

“Our interactions with ASUU started 2020. We keep identifying issues. We are always willing to continue with these engagements.

We ended the last test in June 2022. “We are waiting for directive to continue. The last engagement was on the directive of the Chief of Staff to the president,” he said.

Speaking also the Director General of the Budget Office, Ben Akabueze informed the lawmakers that they were opposed to adopting multiple solutions, saying they would

expensive to fund.

He said, “There is a dimension to this discussion. Acquiring and maintaining any application based on which we will pay thousands of people will cost money. “If you decide to use any of them, you need a data center and it will cost billions of naira. There has to be backup.

We are vehemently opposed to multiple solutions because of our own fiscal situation.

“It’s still government that will fund it. It doesn’t really make sense to us. Let’s determine which one is best but let’s not do multiple solutions”.

The Head of Service, Yemi Folashade-Esan, in her contribution said, “At this particular time, the country may not afford two payment platform at this time. Running two platforms will be extremely expensive at this time. If we are using UTAS or IPPIS, let’s flush it and use it.”

Also, the Minister of Labour, Chris Ngige while commending the lawmakers for the initiative, encouraged ASUU to stick with IPPIS to address their grievances.

But the President of ASUU, Prof. Emmanuel Osodeke, in quoting the University Miscellaneous Act, said Nigeria was the only country where salaries of lecturers were paid through the office of the accountant general.

Osodeke queried why NITDA refused to make available the report of the last test on UTAS, insisting that the report must be available for them to study.

He said: “We were told exactly this same thing in 2017. They all came and told us the same time.

Are we really patriotic? They are paying money to foreign company per person. We have two options.

Use the one we have developed.

“Is there any other country in the world where the salaries of universities are paid by the office of accountant general. No country in the world will harvest the data of their university lecturers and give to a foreign company,” he added.

In his concluding remarks, the Speaker, Gbajabiamila appealed to ASUU to interface with the Accountant General in the interest of the students, assuring that the parliament would be a witness to the agreements.

He said the report of the meeting would be ready in days for onward transmission to President Muhammadu Buhari next week.

“Let me just say I believe this would be, hopefully, the last meeting we are going to have on this matter, because from here the leadership of the House will put together our reports, our recommendations and our thoughts, and take it to Mr. President.

2023: NUJ Warns Politicians against Assaulting Journalists on Duty Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Rivers State Council has warned politicians not to harass, assault or intimidate Journalists covering campaigns in the state ahead of the 2023 general elections.

In a statement yesterday, signed by the Chairman and Secretary of the Union Stanley Job Stanley

and Ike Wigodo respectively, said the union will no longer treat with kid gloves any politician in the state who harasses, assaults or intimidates any of her members, describing Journalists as the voice of the society.

The statement also charged Journalists to abide by the code of ethics of the profession by ensuring fair, balanced and objective reportage of political activities.

According to the union leadership, “during the PVC sensitisation exercise of a political party in Opobo local Government Area recently, the Union learnt that a drunk politician without character slapped and punched a Journalist for no reason.

“The union allowed it to lie low because the victim refused to report the matter”, assuring that any politician who carries out such act against any NUJ

member in Rivers State shall not go unpunished.

The statement reminded politicians that Journalists are not working for them but for the society and advised her members to refrain from reporting anything that would constitute or incite violence in the State.

It also urged political parties and their candidates to see journalists as partners in progress working in harmony for the good

BRT Murder: How Bamise Died, Deceased’s Brother Tells Court Wale Igbintade

The elder brother of a 22-year-old fashion designer, Oluwabamise Ayanwole,who was allegedly raped and murdered by the driver, of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Andrew Nice Ominikoron, Agbegunde Pelumi yesterday told a Lagos High Court sitting in Tafawa Balewa Square that his sister was a virgin and was coming to his

house on a surprise visit when she was killed.

Pelumi also told the court that his sister was severely raped by two or three men when he saw her at the morgue.

He said the lower part of his sister was damaged (private part), adding that she was a virgin and was coming to his house on a surprise visit when she was killed.

Pelumi told presided over by

Justice Sherifat Sonaike while he was being cross-examined by the defendant’s counsel Abayomi Omotubora.

He testified that the deceased was the last child of 10 children, adding that on February 27, 2022 which was on a Sunday, he received a call from his brother Daniel, who is based in Kano asking for their sister.

Pelumi said: “ When my brother called me to ask if I had

seen Bamise, I told him that I was not at home but i would make a call to confirm if she has gotten to my house because she had a spare key to my apartment.

“I called home to find out if she was there and was told that she wasn’t. And her friend Felicia told me that Bamise was coming to my house on a surprise visit in order to be with my wife, who was heavily pregnant.

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 30, 2022 ˾ T H I S D AY

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NEWS XTRA

Osun People Voted for Your Exit, Oyetola Told Yinka Kolawole in Osogbo The Adeleke Transition Committee has reiterated its criticism of mass recruitment and contract awards by the outgoing Osun State Governor, Gboyega Oyetola administration, declaring that the Osun people

voted for the governor’s exit, not his Greek gift.

Responding to the reaction of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in a statement issued and signed by Mallam Olawale Rasheed for the Adeleke Transition Committee to the alarm raised on mass recruitment

CHANGE OF NAME CHANGE OF NAME I formerly known and addressed as PROMISE OZIOMA NWACHUKWU, now wish to be known and addressed as PROMISE OZICHUKWU UWAEZUOKE. All former documents remain valid. General public should please take note.

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and contract awards, the committee insisted that the current emergency employment and multi-billion naira contract awards were in bad faith as the outgoing governor only remember such Greek Gift after he was voted out of office on July 16.

According to the statement, “Not minding that the APC’s response sounds more like motor park garbage from a disturbed mind, we are constrained to tutor the gutter writer and his club that a government that wasted three and half years on frivolities is guilty of evil agenda when it wakes up with the sole goal of expanding the state payroll and incurring crippling contractual obligations.

“With barely few weeks to go, the specialty of the administration is not preparation of handing over notes but actions in violations of due process, procurement laws and state manpower planning agenda.

“As a responsible newly elected Governor of Osun State, Senator Ademola Adeleke, and his team has the sacred duty to alert the public of anti-people, vindictive decisions of the state government.”

TGI Distri Celebrates Anniversary As part of activities to mark its 5th year anniversary, leading food brand distributor, TGI Distri Limited recently paid visits to SOS Children’s Village and Bethesda Home for the Blind in Lagos. The business also visited The Green Pasture Children’s Home Kano to felicitate and spend time with the special people in these homes.

During the visit, the business donated its quality products to the homes as part of its corporate social responsibility.

This is aimed at supporting the growth & development of the special people in these homes by providing nourishment for their wellbeing. Items donated include cartons of Golden Terra Soya Oil, Big Bull Rice and Terra Seasoning Cubes.

According to the company, arriving at the SOS Children’s Village Isolo, the team was welcomed by Justinah Ochejeni, Account Officer, Interim Store Coordinator of the orphanage.

The team commended the administrators of the Orphanage for the remarkable work being done to restore hope and positively impact on the lives of children resident there.

“Same gesture was extended to Bethesda Home for the Blind Mushin, where the team from TGI Distri were treated to a heart-warming musical performance. During interaction with the students, the team learnt of the aspirations of some of students and encouraged them to go after their dreams against all odds. With smiles on their faces, they thanked TGI Distri Limited for spending time with them and making their day much brighter,” the company said.

The administrator of the Bethesda Home for the Blind, Chioma Ohakwe, expressed delight with the visit by the team from TGI Distri and commended the management of the company for the initiative.

WORLD OF ISLAM

Edited by: MJO Mustapha Email deji.mustapha@thisdaylive.com

Manifestations of Extremism (1) Sheikh (Dr.) Yusuf al-Qaradawi

T

he first indications of extremism include bigotry and intolerance, which make a person obstinately devoted to his own opinions and prejudices, as well as rigidity, which deprives him of clarity of vision regarding the interests of other human beings, the purposes of Shari’ah, or the circumstances of the age. Such a person does not allow any opportunity for dialogue with others so that he may compare his opinion with theirs and chooses to follow what appears to him most sound. We equally condemn this person’s attempt to suppress and discard the opinions of others, just as we condemn the similar attitude of his accusers and opponents.

Indeed, we emphatically condemn his attitude if he claims that he alone is right and everybody else is wrong, accusing those who have different ideas and opinions if ignorance and self-interest, and those with different behavior of disobedience and fisq, as if he were an infallible prophet and his words were divinely revealed. This attitude contradicts the consensus of the Ummah, that what every person says can be totally or partly accepted or rejected, except, of course, the ahadith of Prophet Muahhamed (SAAS).

Strangely, though some of these people take liberty in exercising ijtihad in the most complicated matters and issues and pass notional and whimsical judgments yet they would deprive the contemporary expert ulama - singly or collectively – of the right to exercise ijtihad regarding statements which contradicts theirs. Some of them never hesitate to give ridiculous opinions on, and interpretations of, the Qur’an and Sunnah; opinions which are contradictory to those handed down to us by our forefathers, or subsequently arrived at by contemporary ulama’. This indifference is due to their presumption to be on an equal footing with Abu Bakr, ‘Umar, ‘Ali, and Ibn ‘Abbas (RA’A).

This presumption might be less grave if these people admit that their contemporaries who uphold different views or approaches are also capable of ijtihad like themselves; but they would not.

Bigotry is the clearest evidence of extremism.

An extremist seems to address people in this way: “I have the right to speak, your duty is to listen. I have the right to lead, your duty is to follow. My opinion is right, it cannot be wrong.

Your opinion is wrong, it can never be right.”

Thus, a bigot can never come to terms with others. Agreement is possible and can be reached when people hold moderate positions, but a bigot neither knows nor believes in moderation. He stands in relation to people as the East stand in relation to the West – the nearer you get to one, the further you move away from the other.

The issue becomes even more critical when such a person develops the tendency to coerce others, not necessarily physically but by accusing them of bid’ah, laxity, kufr, and deviation. Such intellectual terrifying as physical terrorism.

The second characteristic of extremism manifests itself in a perpetual commitment to excessiveness, and in attempts to force others to do likewise, despite the existence of good reasons for facilitation and the fact that Allah (SWT) has not ordained it. A person motivated by piety and caution may, if he so wishes, choose a hard-line opinion in some matters and on certain occasions. But this should not become so habitual that he rejects facilitation when he needs it. Such an attitude is not in keeping with the teachings of the Qur’an or Sunnah as is clear from the following verse: “Allah intends every facility for you; He does not want to put you to difficulties” (2:185).

The Prophet (SAAS) also said in a hadith already quoted: “Facilitate [matters to people] and do not make [things] difficult.”

He also said: “Allah loves that His dispensations [to making things easier] be accepted, as He dislikes [to see people] committing disobedience.”

It is also reported that “whenever the Prophet (SAAS) was given a choice between two options, he always chose the easiest unless it was a sin.”

Complicating matters for people and causing constraint in their lives are contrary to the most outstanding qualities of the Prophet Muhammed (SAAS). These qualities have been mentioned in earlier scriptures and later revealed in the Qur’an: “… He [Muhammad] allows them as lawful what is good [and pure] and prohibits them from what is bad [and impure], he releases them from their heavy burdens and from the yokes that are upon them” (7:157).

This is why the Prophet (SAAS) used to prolong his salah only when he was alone. In fact, he used to offer salah throughout the night until his feet were swollen. But when leading people in salah, he used to shorten it, taking into consideration the circumstances of his followers and their varying levels of endurance.

He said in this respect, “if any of you leads people in salah, he should shorten it, for among them are the weak, the sick, and the old; and

if any of your offers salah alone, then he may prolong [it] as much as he wishes.”

Abu Mas’ud al Ansari narrated that a man said to the Prophet (SAAS): “O Messenger of Allah, I keep away from salat al fajr only because so and so prolongs it.” The Prophet (SAAS) became very angry and said: “O people, some of you make people dislike good deeds [in this case salah].

Whoever leads people in salah should shorten it because among them are the weak, the old, and those who have business to attend to.”

As we have already mentioned, the Prophet (SAAS) reacted in the same way when a man complained to him that Mu’adh (RA’A) prolonged the salah.

Anas Ibn Malik narrated: “The Prophet (SAAS) said: “When I stand for salah, I intend to prolong it, but I cut it short on hearing the cries of a child, because I do not like to trouble the mother.”

It is also strict, excessive and overburdening to require people to observe supererogatory in the same way as they would observe the obligatory or hold them accountable for the things which are mukruhat as if these were muharramat. In fact, we should demand that people observe only what Allah (SWT) has categorically commanded. The extra and additional forms of ibadah are optional.

The following incident shows that this was also the Prophet’s opinion. A Bedouin once asked the Prophet (SAAS) about the obligatory prescriptions required of him. The Prophet (SAAS) mentioned only three: salah, zakah, and siyam. When the Bedouin asked if there was anything else which he must do, the Prophet (SAAS) replied in the negative, adding that the Bedouin could volunteer to do more if he so wished. As the Bedouin was leaving, he swore never to increase or decrease what the Prophet (SAAS) has asked him to do.

When the Prophet (SAAS) heard this he said, “If he is saying the truth, he will succeed or [said] “he will be granted jannah.

If a muslim in this age observes the wajibat and eschews the most heinous of the muharramat, he should be accommodated in the fold of Islam and regarded as one of its advocates so long as his loyalty is to Allah (SWT) and His Messenger (SAAS). Even if he commits some minor salawat, salat al jumu’ah (Friday prayers), siyam, etc. will expiate his small faults.

The Qur’an says: “Good deeds remove those that are evil” (11:114), and in another verse: “If you [but] eschew the most heinous of the things which are forbidden, we shall expel out of you all the evil in you and admit you to a state of great honour” (4.31).

In view of the above evidence from the Qur’an and Sunnah, how could we expel a muslim from the fold of Islam merely because of his commitment to certain controversial matters which we are not sure are halal or haram, or because of his failure to observe something which we are not certain is wajib or mandub? This is why I object to the tendency of some pious people to adopt and cling to hard-line of thought and opts for facilitation in the light of the Qur’an and Sunnah in order to relieve people of distress and undue restrictions in their religious practice.

The third characteristic of extremism is the outof-time and out-of-place religious excessiveness and overburdening of others, i.e., when applying Islamic principles to people in non-Muslim countries or to people who have only recently converted to Islam, as well as to newly committed Muslims.

With all these, emphasis should not be put on either minor or controversial issues, but on fundamentals. Endeavors should be made to correct their concepts and understanding of Islam before anything else. Once the correct beliefs are firmly established, then one can begin to explain the five pillars of Islam and gradually to emphasize those aspects which make a Muslim’s belief and practice compatible, and his entire life an embodiment of what is pleasing to Allah (SWT).

This fact was recognized by the Prophet Muhammad (SAAS) himself when he sent Mu’adh (RAA) to Yemen. He told him: “You are going to [meet] people of a [divine] scripture, and when you reach them call them to witness that there is not god but Allah and that Muhammad is His Messenger. And if they obey you in that, then tell them that Allah has enjoined on them five salawat to be performed every day and night. And if they obey you in that, then tell them that Allah has enjoined upon them sadaqa [zakah] to be taken from the rich amongst them and given to the poor amongst them”.

Notice the gradation in the Prophet’s advice to Mu’adh (RAA).

D(Being excerpt from the book of Sheikh (Dr.) Yusuf Qaradawi “Islamic Awakening between Rejection and Extremism”, prominent voice of Islam, who passed on Monday, September 26, aged 96).

To Be Continued

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BACKPAGE CONTINUATION 2023: THE OBI(DIENTS’) CHALLENGE PDP and APC, it didn’t matter that Obi had pulled out of the PDP presidential race before joining Labour, had been the PDP vice presidential candidate in the 2019 election and had served as honorary adviser in the PDP administration of President Goodluck Jonathan. It was enough that Obi consistently spoke their language - constantly railing against the political establishment in his public speeches, supporting End SARS movement against police brutality, promoting frugality and simplicity in government, and calling for full disclosure of terrorism financiers and those behind oil theft.

The Obi candidature is particularly attractive for more than one reason. One, his biggest supporters are the youths. The Obi-Dients are aggressive and impatient and self-driven. Having bought into the Obi advisory that they take their country back, they dominate the social media, organise rallies and marches for Obi independently of his Labour Party, make sacrificial donations to fund their operations, and are fiercely passionate, if not fanatical, of his candidature.

Two, Obi has not anchored his campaign on an ethnic platform. When Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the Igbo socio-political organisation, and other southeast presidential aspirants in the two major parties – PDP and APC – demanded that aspirants from other parts of the country concede the presidency to their zone, and threw tantrums when that did not happen, Obi did not join the-tribal-markpresidency campaign. Although the Igbo people, sans their establishment, appears to have made him their candidate, in what supporters of the two other major candidates interpreted as IPOB (Indigenous People of Biafra, a secessionist group) support, Obi has so far carefully avoided being entrapped as a regional candidate. Indeed, Obi has always stood for character instead of zoning; he has consistently waived the banner of competence rather than that of it-is-our-turn.

Three, in his quest to realise his 2023 presidential ambition, Obi decided to tread the narrow path. The founding fathers of the

PDP, at inception of the democratic journey into the Fourth Republic, consciously formed a big party with strong presence across the country to comfortably win the 1999 presidential election. And in 2014, a coalition of regional parties joined forces with a splinter group from PDP to win the 2015 presidential election. Obi, however, in a reverse political strategy, opted for Labour, a fringe party that has no state governor, no national assembly member, no state assembly member, no council chairman, and indeed no known presence in several states. Yet, in four months of becoming Labour’s presidential nominee, Obi has dominated the airwaves, bestrode the blogosphere, clocked many crowd-pulling rallies and marches in several cities, become a dominant issue in political discourse, won hearts and minds in unexpected places, led in three different opinion polls, and been touted one of the top three candidates. In those four months, the Obi presidency quest has become a movement, and this is not so much because, but in spite, of him. He carries the hopes of the dissatisfied and disgruntled, the frustrated and angry, the unemployed and hungry, the choked and suffocated; indeed, those who desire new ideas and fresh thinking, who want a new country, and are tired of seeing a recycling of jaded politicians in power. He has soared on the waves of the passionate support of frustrated and angry youths, those youths who could not be bothered about party platform, so long it’s not APC and PDP; nor about any other election, whether National Assembly or governorship.

There are, however, concerns. For in the aforesaid attraction and strengths of the Obi candidacy also lies its weaknesses.

In the first place, perhaps because of his penchant for frugality and simplicity, Obi appears to be working alone, or almost alone. Four months into his presidential quest, Obi should have had around him different teams or advisors on Strategy, on Finance, on Media, on Legal, on Policy, on Foreign Relations, on Economy, on Security, amongst others. Had he a research team, he

couldn’t possibly have been making those elementary errors of facts for which he has become infamous in his stomp speeches and interviews, making supporters of his competitors to weave a liar tag on him. The presidential office is too big and important to be a one-man show. Secondly, Obi is a believer in free enterprise who has been making a case, in his public statements, for market forces, limited government, heavy private sector involvement, deregulation of the downstream sector, privatisation and all that. And yet he is a candidate of Labour, a party whose philosophy is big government, limited private sector involvement, non-removal of fuel subsidy, etc. An Obi victory could possibly replicate the APC scenario when a party supposedly of progressives picked an archconservative Buhari, a man who did not even believe in the party’s manifestoes, as its presidential candidate. The result has been the disconnect, in the last seven years, between campaign promises and delivery.

To complicate matters, Labour Party is owned and promoted by workers’ unions, the leadership of which are arguably the biggest hinderance, outside of politicians, to Nigeria’s developmental progress. Since the Obi-Dient Movement is only interested in Obi’s candidature, it is unlikely an Obi victory, should it happen, would necessarily result in Labour candidates’ victory in the governorship and National Assembly elections. How a President Obi would run an effective government, or any government for that matter, in which the lawmakers are antagonistic, state governors unsupportive, and ruling party disconnected is difficult to imagine. Some have argued that the party is a mere platform, that with Obi’s victory at the polls, Nigerian politicians, as they are wont to do, would necessarily decamp to the president’s party.

Those who harbour such thoughts are poor students of power relations. It is unlikely that would happen.

Occupation of presidential office is not necessarily synonymous with possession of presidential powers. Despite the ruling PDP having a dominant majority in the

National Assembly between 1999 and 2003, President Olusegun Obasanjo had a bruising battle with the legislators and even survived impeachment attempts.

Most of the top politicians in the APC and PDP know very well that Obi plays a different kind of politics from the one they revel in; therefore, they would rather likely prefer to compromise or break him.

We’ve seen a similar thing happen in our political history. In the Second Republic, Balarabe Musa who was elected Kaduna state governor on the platform of the PRP (People’s Redemption Party) ran into a storm when he refused to compromise his governance principles with the NPN (National Party of Nigeria) dominated State Assembly members. Of course, the Assembly broke him by impeaching and removing him from office.

Lastly, the youths, whose energy and enthusiasm have been the moving spirit that has projected the Obi candidacy to the realm of possibility, also have implanted in them an avoidable hubris. In their driving passion is embedded destructive negativity. They can’t be too bothered to market their candidate’s selling points, to persuade supporters of other candidates and the undecided on why Obi is the real deal. They would rather taunt and insult and intimidate and threaten anyone they assume, right or wrong, is opposed to their candidate. They see Obi as a perfect candidate, if not some saviour, who has no faults and whose victory is assured.

My worry is their likely violent response when faced with crisis of expectation versus reality at one level should Obi fail to win the election, and at another level should he win but is unable to effectively govern for reasons internal or external to him.

Win or lose, the nation’s politics would find the Obi challenge enriching, if not revolutionary. By the time the elections are over, he would have shaken the two dominant parties, given Labour Party a lift, shown our youths the power of their collective action, and point the way to what is possible.

temptation to employ contemporary presidential contenders as a most appropriate illustration of what we now call the subversive monetization of Nigerian politics. Nonetheless (and this is not coming from me)-to the question he raised of where will the Tinubu, Atiku and Obi’s multi billion naira campaign funds come from? Festus Adedayo provided this response “It is however alleged that the bulk of his (Atiku) campaign funds will come from government money, given to him by his loyalist PDP state governors, as well as former and present occupiers of government positions. The same goes for the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu. On Friday, the Atiku Campaign Office attacked Tinubu by calling him a billionaire without a known business. This is a description similar to what Americans mean when they say, ‘we have seen the bucks, where is the shop?’

What is being alluded to is theft of the public patrimony. Till date, although the humongous wealth of Tinubu has kept tongues wagging, no one can say precisely what its source is. Like Atiku, it is said that the bulk of his campaign funds will come from state governors in charge of public money in Nigeria, especially those in his APC, and individuals who hold cash cow positions in federal and state-owned agencies and corporations. Drug monies, laundered funds and all manner of illicit funds easily find their way into election funding”.

Dr Chidi Odinkalu recently brought to the fore a little discussed dimension to the wherewithal of such slush funds.

The surprise is that the revelation has not precipitated a commensurate controversy and has become captive to a conspiracy of silence. Wrote Odinkalu “Three days before Nigeria voted in the presidential election in 2019, on Wednesday, 20 February, a little known official from Saudi Arabia dropped into Abuja to visit Nigeria’s President, Muhammadu Buhari, who was running for re-election. His name was Ahmed Qattan, described as the “Minister of State for

African Affairs” in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. His arrival was as unheralded as it was suspicious. He lingered long enough for the bowels of his corpulent aircraft to be emptied.The day after he received Sheikh Oattan, President Buhari “expressed astonishment at the huge amount of foreign currency flooding the country intended to influence the outcome of the general elections beginning on Saturday.. Yet, faced with what he acknowledged was evidence of a peril to that sovereignty in the form of possible foreign money to influence the destination of Nigeria’s presidency, General Buhari chose to become an advocacy NGO rather than live up to his oath of office. The suggestive visit of Sheikh Qattan on the eve of Nigeria’s 2019 elections touches upon the greyest of grey zones in the governance of Nigeria’s elections – the role of foreign money”.

Another layer is the mobilisation of the powers of coercion comprising the legitimate weilders (the national security forces) and its illegitimate counterpart consisting of sundry thugs, notorious crime syndicates, sorcerers and freelance muscle men. Next is the aspirational control over the media and the propaganda industry; and the emergent culture of subverting the judiciary.

You cannot build something on nothing is a popular aphorism and you cannot equally predicate truth on falsehood. The story of Nigeria is increasingly looking like the contemporary culture of collapsed multi storey buildings whose fate was foretold by flawed and faulty foundations.

To break the vicious cycle within which Nigeria is ensnared requires nothing less than a disruptor, a positive shock therapy. If Peter Obi wins he would most probably serve this utility. His rivals in the APC and PDP are the candidates of the status-quo whose presidential tickets are an advertisement of all that has gone wrong with Nigeria. It is worse. With the imperative of national unity and integration in view, these tickets are provocatively and incurably defective.

DISMANTLING THE STRUCTURES OF CRIMINALITY the census of a decade earlier because it implies a virtually impossible annual growth rate of 5.8 per cent. After the civil war of 1967-70, an attempt was made to hold a census in 1973, but the results were cancelled in the face of repeated controversy. No subsequent nationwide census had been held as of 1990, although there have been various attempts to derive population estimates at a state or local level. Most official national population estimates are based on projections from the 1963 Census’ In order to sustain an original lie, you will need to keep telling subsequent lies in a manner that is consistent with the logic of the first lie. Hence, according to the London guardian newspaper “About 10 million new voters signed up between January 2018 and early 2019 – according to data released by the Independent National Electoral Commission– twice the number that signed up in the first nine months of registration, between April 2017 and January 2018. But analysis of the data for each of the country’s 36 states and its capital shows that INEC has increased the number of new registered voters by almost exactly the same percentage across all states. The correlation is a “statistical impossibility” and does not reflect Nigeria’s demographic changes, according to data analysts working with The Guardian.

Additional data seen by The Guardian also shows irregularities in registration for the 2015 election, until now considered to have been free and fair.On average, voter registration in each state increased by 2.2% between April 2017 and January 2018, and by 7.7 per cent for the whole registration period ahead of Saturday’s election. Plotted on a scatter line graph, there is a 0.99 correlation across all the states, without a single outlier. According to three separate data analysts, the parity cannot be a coincidence. “Only God works that closely,” one analyst said The other proximate layer of this reality is the party membership register and the attribution of membership figures that

Obi

borders on the delusional. To give you an idea of the absurdity we are talking about, the governor of Yobe state who doubled as the caretaker chairman of the APC, Mala Mai Buni way back in January bore the testimony that “Today, APC parades over 41 million registered members, asserting our position as Africa’s largest political party and of course, Nigeria’s leading political party”. This is against the background that the total number of votes secured by the APC in the 2019 presidential election was 15m. If we accept but not concede that this number is authentic, the implication of Buni’s figure of 41m is that in the interim between 2019 and January 2022, 26m Nigerians have joined the ranks of the APC. We should be able to do a reality check and ascertain this improbable accretion when the results of the 2023 general elections are collated.

To the previously identified layers can be added the generation of slush funds for party activities and operations especially the general elections. I shall resist the

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FRIDAYSPORTS

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

0811 181 3083 SMS ONLY

Court of Appeal Gives Go Ahead for NFF’s AGA in Benin City Akinwunmi, Gusau, Dikko are front runners to succeed Pinnick

Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City After days and weeks of suspense, the 78th Annual General Assembly of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) where a new board to take over from the Amaju Pinnick executive will be elected today in Benin City.

A ruling by the Court of Appeal yesterday morning ordered a stay of execution of an ex parte injunction secured by some fellows a fortnight ago to put a wedge on the election.

Amongst the 10 individuals jostling to succeed Pinnick as Nigeria football’s supremo are current vice presidents, Barr. Seyi Akinwunmi (1st VP) and Mallam Shehu Dikko (2nd VP), as well as current Executive Committee Member and Chairman of Chairmen, Alhaji Ibrahim Musa Gusau and another current Executive Committee Member, Hon. Suleiman Yahaya-Kwande.

Also in the race for the top job at Sunday Dankaro House in Abuja are; an immediate past General Secretary, Barr. Musa Amadu, and Head of Safety and Security of the CAF, Dr. Christian Emeruwa.

Chairman of the FCT Football Association, Mallam Adam Mouktar Mohammed; former Nigeria international goalkeeper, Peterside Idah; former Chairman of Kano Pillars FC and respected technocrat, Alhaji Abba Abdullahi Yola and; UK-based David-Buhari Doherty complete the list of 10 persons gunning for the job.

A former NFF 1st Vice President, Mazi Amanze Uchegbulam, pulled out of the race during the week,

citing his withdrawal on ‘not wanting to run foul of the ex parte injunction.’

Mr. Paul Yusuf from Plateau State was disqualified as a result of invalid nomination; the same axe that swept Mr. Marcellinus Anyanwu from Imo State out of the race. Yusuf, a former Bendel Insurance goalkeeper has promised to fight his disqualification to any length to get justice.

Three persons, viz current Member of Board, Chief Felix Anyansi-Agwu; current Member of Board, Senator Obinna Ogba and; Mr Chinedu Okoye will battle for the post of 1st Vice President.

Current Member of Board, Alhaji Yusuf Ahmed ‘Fresh’ will replace Alhaji Ibrahim Musa Gusau as Chairman of Chairmen, as he was the only one who obtained the form, and has been cleared for the position.

Contesting for seats on the Executive Committee from the South East are: Pastor Emeka Inyama (Abia State); Mr. Chikelue Iloenyosi (Anambra State); Mr Karibe Pascal Ojigwe (Abia State); Mr. Jude Benjamin Obikwelu (Anambra State) and; Sir Emmanuel Ochiagha (Imo State).

For North Central are Alhaji Mohammed Alkali (Nasarawa State); Rt. Hon. Margaret Icheen (Benue State); Hon. Idris Abdullahi Musa (Kwara State); Mr. Daniel Amokachi (Benue State) and; Mr. Benedict Akwuegbu (Plateau State).

Current Member of Board, Ms Aisha Falode tops the list of candidates from the South South region, with Chief Kenneth Nwaomucha

Nigeria Opens U-19 Cricket WCQ Account with Rwanda Tie The International Cricket Council U19 Men’s World Cup Africa Division 2 Qualifiers will kick off at the Nigeria Cricket Federation’s twin-ovals inside the MKO Abiola National Stadium in Abuja from today with Nigeria opening her campaign against Rwanda.

The Championship will be an ODI (One Day International) with Kenya, Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique, Ghana and Sierra Leone also laying their claim to the top-three spot required to move to the next level.

Ghana and majority of Bostwana’s team landed late last night and may cause slight changes in the tournament fixtures.

The Chairman of the Local Organising Committee, Ogbonnaya Okogeri, said that a big win for Nigeria was necessary for the standard required of a host nation of this international event.

“This is the second ICC event that Nigeria will be hosting. This one is unique in the sense that it is on a higher level because of the quality of facility and personnel required to pull it off. So far, we

have been able to meet up on so many fronts and as the events gets off the ground formally, our joy will be to coast home smoothly with a successful hosting.”

William Glenwright, ICC Global developmental manager, who was around earlier in the week had said the country’s feat in cricket developmental index has been impressive and has earned a look in from the global body for more support.

Nigeria between 2018 and 2019 scaled the U-19 World Cup ticket for her maiden appearance on the global stage at the U-19 World Cup in January 2020 in South Africa and effort Nigeria team handled

by Danile Gim has assured fans they have set as benchmark.

“We have put in the hardwork and I am sure, as a team we are hungry to scale to the next stage and above all return to the World Cup,” he told the media during the team’s Press Conference yesterday and Nicon Luxury Hotel, Abuja.

The tournament is expected to come to a close on Sunday, October 9.

(Delta State); Mr. Gregory Abang (Cross River State); Mr. Roland Abu Omomoh (Edo State); Barr.

Poubeni Ogun (Bayelsa State); Mr Jarret Tenebe (Edo State) and; Rt. Hon. Essien Udofot (Akwa Ibom State) also vying for seats from that zone.

Current Member of Board, Alhaji Ganiyu Majekodunmi leads the list of contestants for seats from the South West, with Otunba Sunday Dele-Ajayi (Ondo State); Mr. Ayodeji Ogunjobi (Osun State);

Alhaji Olawale Gafar Liameed (Lagos State); Mr. Afolabi Taiwo Olugbenga (Osun State); Mr. Ayodeji Adegbenro (Ondo State) and Barr. Pelumi Jacob Olajengbesi (Osun State) also in the race.

North East candidates are current Member of Board, Alhaji Babagana Kalli (Borno State); Barr.

Sajo Mohammed (Adamawa State) and; Mr. Timothy Henman Magaji (Taraba State). Current Member of Board, Alhaji Sharif Rabiu Inuwa (Kano State) is the only candidate

from the North West.

According to the statement issued by the Chairman of the NFF Electoral Committee, Chief Aikhunegbe Anthony Malik, SAN, the elections will commence after other items on the agenda for the 78th Annual General Assembly have been dealt with. Winners would be sworn in immediately after the elections.

Already in town to observe the NFF elections are officials from both the Confederation of

THE MEN FOR THE NFF JOB

L-R (Top): Ibrahim Gusau; Shehu Dikko; Seyi Akinwunmi; Christian Emeruwa. (Bottom): David Doherty; Abba Yola, Amanze Uchegbulam (pulled out yesterday) and Peterside Idah

World Champion, Tobi Amusan, Now Glo Ambassador Nigeria’s Digital and Telecommunications services provider, Globacom, has announced the appointment of the current African, Commonwealth and World Champion in the women’s 100m hurdles, Tobi Amusan, as its latest Brand Ambassador.

Amusan was unveiled to the media at a ceremony held yesterday at the company’s headquarters, Mike Adenuga Towers, in Victoria

Island, Lagos.

The petit world record holder in the event became the first Nigerian world champion in an athletic event when she won the gold medal in the100 metres hurdles event at the 2022 World Athletics Championships.

She set a new world record of 12.12 seconds in the semifinal, and followed this up with 12.06 seconds (though not legitimate as it was

above the legal wind) in the final to take the gold medal.

Speaking at the event, Globacom’s Regional Manager, Sales, Lagos, Lawrence Odediran, said that the company’s decision to make Amusan its ambassador was not just to reward her for her sterling accomplishments, but also to promote the growth of sports in Nigeria and encourage the country’s teeming youths to aspire toward

L-R: Globacom Regional Manager, Lagos, Lawrence Odediran; New Glo Ambassador, Tobi Amusan; Director, Gloworld & Customer Experience, Mohamed Rabie; and Ag. Coordinator, Gloworld, Abdulrasaq Ande at the unveiling of World Champion, Amusan as Glo Brand Ambassador in Lagos... yesterday

Akanbi Begins Title Defence at 3rd Efunkoya Cadet Championships Girls’ singles champion, Taiwo Akanbi, started her title defence at the 3rd Dr. A. A. Efunkoya National Cadet Table Tennis Championships taking place at the Indoor Hall of the National Stadium in Lagos.

The tournament which is being bankrolled by former players and friends of table tennis is organised to honour the former President of the Nigeria Table Tennis Federa-

tion, Dr. A. A. Efunkoya whose tenure changed the fortunes of the sport in the country.

Players from 10 states of the federation and nine clubs are currently slugging it out in the singles, and doubles events as 64 boys and 37 girls are aiming to mount the podium come Saturday, October 1 at the grand finale of the three-day championships.

According to the referee of

African Football (CAF) and the world governing body, FIFA. Solomon Mudege, FIFA’s Head of Development Programmes for Africa and Gelson Fernandes, a former Swiss international player who is FIFA’s Director for Africa were in an excited mood last night.

Mudege said: “We are happy to be here and to witness another milestone in the history of Nigeria Football. We believe it is going to be an interesting Congress with the elections.”

the tournament, John Peters, the turnout of the players showed the growth of the tournament while the standard continues to improve annually.

“We are excited with the turnout of players for this year’s tournament and one unique thing about this year’s tournament is that most of the top players who have dominated the tournament in the last two editions are not competing

this year because they are above the age-limit while some of the players that have represented the country in international tournaments have been exempted from the competition,” he said.

Specifically, Peters singled out Matthew Kuti, a two-time winner of the boys’ singles who dazzled at the 2022 African Youth Championships in Tunis as one of the products of the competition

in the last two editions.

Apart from shining in Tunis, Kuti will be part of Team Nigeria at the 2022 ITTF World Youth Championships taking place later in the year in Tunisia.

An excited 13-year-old Rokibat Adeyemi of Okla Club of Maryland could not hide her joy competing against some of the best cadet players in the country.

realising their dreams by looking up to the new ambassador as mentor.

“At Globacom, we are very proud of what Tobi Amusan has achieved in her athletics career. She is an embodiment of the Nigerian spirit of resilience, hard work and enterprise which enabled her to excel irrespective of the enormity of the challenges she encountered in her quest for success. These are qualities that Globacom identifies with”, Odediran stated.

He explained that Tobi Amusan has become a testimony to the famous saying by Malcom X that “the future belongs to those who prepare for it today”, adding that “she prepared very hard in the previous years and today belongs to her.”

“Tomorrow is also waiting for other determined Nigerian and African youths who begin their preparations today. We, therefore, urge them not to be discouraged by present challenges, but to continue to strive to realise their dreams”, he concluded.

Speaking at the event, a very delighted Amusan thanked Globacom for appointing her as its ambassador.

She promised to be a good representative of the company and the youths at all times.

The new ambassador also assured the company that she would continue to project a positive image of the brand across the world. “I am proud to be associated with Glo as its brand ambassador. It is a proudly Nigerian company doing great things and empowering Nigerians. I am grateful to the Chairman, Dr. Mike Adenuga, Jr., for giving me this amazing opportunity,” she declared.

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Fury, AJ All Brits Fight Back on the Card Tyson Fury has urged Anthony Joshua to "give British fans what they want" and sign a contract for a heavyweight world-title fight in December.

WBC champion Fury, 34, had given fellow Briton Joshua, 32, an ultimatum to sign by Monday, but said on social media he has extended the deadline to Thursday.

Joshua's promoter Eddie Hearn says he is "baffled" by Fury's latest demands.

"The ball is in your court, everything is done," said Fury.

"We have (broadcasters) BT, DAZN and ESPN all on the

same page, they're happy with everything.

"If you have any dignity and pride about you, you'll get this contract signed today.

"I'm chucking you a massive bone but I know I can punch your face in so I'm willing to give you an opportunity. Let the British fans have what they want."

In an interview with BBC Radio 5 Live, Hearn responded by saying he had "absolutely no idea" what Fury was going to do next.

"I don't think we're a million miles away but I don't know really whether Tyson Fury wants this fight," added Hearn.

"I think he just wants to fight Manuel Charr on 3 December, but I don't think anyone else wants that fight. Hopefully we can keep moving forward.

"We'll carry on and while there's hope, we won't stop trying.

"From either side, I can't fault the process of trying to get done the biggest fight in British history.

The only thing I can fault is we don't really know where we stand.

"One minute the fight's off, the fight's on; one minute he's retired, one minute he's fighting Manuel Charr. He's just made another offer to Derek Chisora.

I don't know."

Amuneke Vows to Lift the Profile of Zanaco FC

Yusuf Demands Explanation for His Disqualification Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City As the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) election holds today in Benin City, Edo State, one of the presidential aspirants, Paul Yusuf, from Plateau State(North Central Zone) has demanded an explanation from the NFF electoral committee over his disqualification from the electoral process.

The NFF electoral committee was reported to have disqualified Paul Yusuf for what they called invalid nomination from his constituent Football Association (Plateau State FA).

Speaking to sports journalists at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin City, the aggrieved aspirant and Canadia-based Ex-International, said he was surprised that his name was excluded from the cleared list of aspirants without any correspondence from the NFF electoral committee decision.

“I am in Benin City for the NFF election which is expected to hold tomorrow (Friday), and my name is not on the cleared candidate list.

If I am disqualified, the reason for it should be made known to me.

Up till now, no body in the NFF electoral committee has called to tell me why I was disqualified and I need an explanation.

NFF ELECTION "They just can't knock me out of the contest without giving reasons for it. I paid to enter the contest and I feel it is natural for an explanation to be given. As a matter of fact, I followed the process as contained

in the booklet they gave to me,!” he fumed.

The former goalkeeper of Bendel Insurance FC, El-Kanemi Warriors, Enyimba FC and Rangers International vowed to drag the Aikhunegbe Anthony Malik led NFF electoral Committee to any length to seek redress.

Newly appointed Zanaco FC Coach, Emmanuel Amuneke, has said he is in the club to add his wealth of experience into the Zambian league.

The former Nigerian international was unveiled last night

by Zambian side after his engagement last week.

The former Nigeria's Flying Eagles coach was appointed as a coaching consultant to Kelvin Kaindu to strengthen the team's technical bench.

“It is my first-time coaching in Zambia. I am bringing my experience to the Zambian League and hoping to pass it on to the coaches here and hope they grow more than myself.

"I will be happy to see the players that will pass under me do better. I can guarantee you that we will work hard, at times you will see me play on the field with players so that we can give them confidence and hope they can be better than us coaches. I want to help the players grow,” Amuneke said.

Zanaco last week announced the appointment of Amuneke

Fagbenle Showers Encomiums on Odegbami @ 70 The Chairman of the Committee of Friends for the Segun Odegbami Birthday event at Ikoyi Club, Mr Tunde Fagbenle, has described the football icon as a fully committed Nigerian.

Fagbenle said Odegbami had excelled in many areas such that he is a role model to many.

The event was the 70th birthday celebration of the 1980 Nations Cup gold medallist.

Fagbenle said: "I was the one that brought him into tennis after his soccer playing days and since then he has been doing great and even beating me. Segun is a legend and a committed Nigerian. He has put so much into this country and it’s a shame that if it wasn’t a country like Nigeria, he would have been

recognised much more.

“He is absolutely committed; he has a secondary school, an academy that is for sports, he’s a serial entrepreneur of amazing talents and capabilities that surprises me. I said we had a duty to let him know that he is being appreciated even if Nigeria is not appreciating him the way they should, at least in our own small way, let us appreciate him.

That is what this whole event is about. Friends and others put their resources together and it is only by a committee of friend in the section. We are proud of him,” Fagbenle stressed.

An overwhelmed Odegbami showered praises on the organisers of the event and stressed that the event went beyond his

expectations.

“I am happy and I feel loved that some friends did all of these just to honour me on my birthday.

God bless us all. Kudos to Ikoyi Club Tennis session,” Odegbami said.

as the club consultant to assist coach Kelvin Kaindu.

The unveiling took place at the Zanaco Bank headquarters along Cairo Road in Lusaka, the capital of Zambia.

With a coaching career spanning 18 years, Amuneke was

Onome Ebi Joins Levante Las Planas at 39 Super Falcons Captain, Onome Ebi, was yesterday unveiled by the Spanish side, Levante Las Palnas, after she agreed to a one-year deal with the newly promoted club.

The seven-time African Women’s Cup of Nations participant will continue her industrious professional career journey, after putting pen to paper at the age of 39.

According to Savidnews. com, Ebi arrived at the Spanish Primera Iberdrola outfit, ending her long spell of club inactivity since she parted ways with Belarusian side Minsk in November 2020.

Announcing her signing, the Spanish club took to social media to inform fans about the acquisition of the veteran defender.

Expressing her delight, the five-time African record holder for most World Cup appearance revealed her excitement ahead

Visa Offers Cardholders a Chance to Watch FIFA World Cup Live in Qatar Visa, the world leader in payments and the official payment services partner of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™, has announced its promo campaign to reward customers for transactions performed with their Visa credentials.

The campaign will reward cardholders who spend a minimum of NGN50,000 or $1,000 using their Visa credentials in at least five transactions from September to October.

Three winners will receive an all-inclusive trip for two to the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™, while 10 winners will receive consolation prizes including washing machines,

home theatres and microwave ovens each month, subject to the applicable terms and conditions.

Vice President, Visa West Africa, Andrew Uaboi, said: “With about three months to kick-off of the FIFA World Cup™, this promotion could not have come at a better time. The promotion is not only a great way to reward Nigerian Visa cardholders but also to support the government’s ambitions of extending the benefits of digital payments – secure, convenient, and rewarding – to more consumers and businesses in the country.

“Visa is proud to bring the thrill and excitement of this exceptional

event to Nigerian fans who will be able to enjoy an experience of a lifetime. Visa will be celebrating the spirit of football in Qatar and is looking forward to showcasing the future of digital payments with fans from Nigeria and the rest of the world”.

Visa has been a worldwide partner of FIFA since 2007 as the Official Payment Services Partner of FIFA events around the world.

The partnership provides Visa with worldwide exclusive access to experiences at the FIFA World Cup™, FIFA Women’s World Cup™ and over 40 other FIFA competitions.

Assistant Coach of the Nigeria U-17 National Team which won the FIFA U-17 Male World Cup in 2013 in the United Arab Emirates and promoted Head Coach in 2015 to lead the likes of Victor Osimhen and Taiwo Awoniyi to also retain the trophy in Chile.

Onome Ebi...joins Spanish side Levante Las Planas as 39-year-old defender

of her new journey in Spain.

Before her second stint at Minsk, the veteran defender, who started her career in Nigeria with Omidiran Babes and Bayelsa Queens, won four domestic titles, having joined the former Belarusian champions from then Swedish Damallsvenskan Sunnana SK in 2013.

She also previously starred for Chinese side Henan, Atasehir Belediyespor and Düvenciler Lisesispor in Turkey as well as Swedish sides Djurgården and Pitea.

Following her arrival, she becomes the latest African on the club’s book, joining Cameroon striking legend Herriette Akaba.

Despite missing out of international scene with Nigeria since July due to injury, she will be looking to earn her debut in Spanish football in coming days after full recovery.

Friday September 30, 2022

TR

UT H

& REASO

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Price: N250

MISSILE Gov Akeredolu to Garba Shehu “The assertion of the SSA to the President on Media and Publicity (Garba Shehu) on the use of automatic weapons by State Security outfits betrays the current realities across the country. His attempt to justify the use of AK47 by the Vigilantes of Katsina State for training stands logic on its head. Where did the guns come from? Who approved their use?“ –Ondo State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, faults the Presidency’s discriminatory approach on the use of AK47 riffles by vigilantes.

ENIOLABELLO 2023: The Obi(Dients’) Challenge ENI-B

eniola.bello@thisdaylive.com

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hen he quit the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) late May 2022 and picked up the presidential ticket of the Labour Party a few days after, few people outside of the man Peter Obi, and his handler Doyin Okupe, could possibly have believed he knew what he was doing. Obi who had been cleared, with 12 others, to contest the PDP primary, and even touted to be one of the top contenders, suddenly withdrew from the contest, quit the party and joined Labour. To many observers at the time, even if he was unable to pick the PDP presidential ticket, Obi stood a very good chance of emerging the party’s vice-presidential nominee. To abandon the endless possibilities in the main opposition PDP to pick the ticket of a fringe party like Labour, many had thought laughable. Four months on, however, Obi has not only become one of the top three contenders for the 2023 presidency, he has been the symbol of a political rebellion his supporters call The Obi-Dient Movement, a rebellion capable of causing a tectonic shift in the nation’s polity, nay the structure of its power relations.

The moment Obi picked the Labour Party presidential ticket, there was a promotion, if not a celebration, of his candidacy on twitter

Obi

and other social media platforms. When he was dismissed as having only twitter supporters of mostly youths who were not even registered voters, there was a massive mobilization of, and an unusual turnout of young men and women, to participate in

0805 500 1956

the voter registration exercise. And for that, supporters of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the main opposition PDP dismissed the notion that Obi could impact, in any shape or form, the 2023 election on the platform of Labour, a fringe party they dismissed as having no structure.

In response, the Obi-Dients countered with an apt riposte that the people are their structure. To walk the talk, they have, in apparent show of strength, marched out in their hundreds of thousands on solidarity rallies in Abakaliki, Awka, Enugu, Onitsha and Nnewi in the southeast; Abeokuta, Akure, Ibadan and Ondo in the southwest; Port Harcourt in the south-south; Jos and Makurdi in the north central; Jalingo in the northeast; and in Abuja the Federal Capital Territory. As they move from city to city, the turnout at the rallies becomes larger and larger. Along the line, Obi has been on the road, answering calls for, or inviting himself to, media interviews; honouring speaking engagements organised by different professional groups in the country; and delivering stump speeches across some cities of Europe and the United States on the invitation of diaspora Nigerians.

The Obi-Dient Movement prepares for more of those rallies in other cities on the strength of the massive support for Obi in

the southeast and the generality of Igbo populace in other parts of the country, coupled with the growing support for his candidature among southern youths, professional groups, a cross section of Pentecostal Christians, and many others frustrated by years of poor governance and desiring genuine change. When about five regional parties merged to form the APC in 2014 on a bold campaign of Change, anchored on some exaggerated integrity of Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, most Nigerians tired of the corruption, mismanagement and impunity of the PDP government voted the APC candidate in the 2015 presidential election. It didn’t take long to find out that there’s much more to competence and good governance than personal integrity.

With Nigeria seemingly worse off in the last seven years under Buhari, there is a general feeling that if the APC administration brought about any change, it was one for the worse. It was therefore easy for those desiring genuine change, one free of the structures and strictures of the behemoth APC and PDP, to settle for Obi and his Labour Party. For the youths desperate for a symbol of genuine change, a politician who had not been contaminated by the Continued on page 45

AKINOSUNTOKUN Dismantling the Structures of Criminality DIALOGUE WITH NIGERIA

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esponding to the raid on his homestead the other day, I was quite taken aback at the extent to which the vocabulary of terrorist kingpin Belo Turji sought to normalise and legitimise his criminal enterprise. Quite astounding was the assumption of diplomatic equivalence he drew between his empire and the Nigerian government. He contended “There have not been any attacks in the last five months since we reached a truce with the government but now that the military has attacked our home, we feel betrayed especially after the death of vulnerable people in the airstrikes..For the past five months, we didn’t attack or kill anyone around Shinkafi. As a result, farming and other business activities were flourishing without any hitches..I feel embarrassed when my name is mentioned after attacks by other bandits and terrorists. Apart from my house that they destroyed, many other buildings belonging to innocent citizens

in the forest, were also affected. Peace is priceless and I am ready to be a peace advocate unless the government wants him to be a warmonger. I am ready for either peace or war. Whatever the government wants, we can give them a multitude.”.

Exasperated at being serially teased with the assessment that he lacks the national political infrastructural network commensurate with his escalating political profile, Peter Obi responded with the counter punch that he would rather have nothing to do with those kind of structures. “those structures are the structures of criminality and we want them dismantled now. We want to ensure that the next election is based on character, capacity, competence, commitment to do the right thing. Nigeria is, not just in a fiscal mess, it is at the last stage to collapse”.

What is generally understood as constituting these structures in which Obi is found lacking can be extrapolated from those contenders to whom such

akinosuntokun@thisdaylive.com

lack is not ascribable. The identification of this lack in Obi (within the context of Nigerian politics) is relative to the capacity of other contenders to possess this ‘asset’ in abundance. Beyond this anecdotal citation, there remains the question of how to adequately characterise the definition of Nigeria as a structure of political criminality and dysfunction. The ascription of the criminal enterprise of Bello Turji as a structure of criminality is obvious enough. Not so similarly obvious are its institutional parallels that have self-legitimised as the organising principles of the Nigerian state. This is why Nigeria merits being cited a rogue state.

This structure and infrastructure of political dysfunction and criminality consists of mutually reinforcing layers.

First (proceeding from the premise that politics is a game of numbers) is the rigged population figure of the country at the level of general inflation of the census figures across the country with

emphasis on the purpose of attributing to the North whatever figures it takes to perpetuate its political dominance.

This is the precursor to the subsequent layer of voter registration figures which is little more than a mere extrapolation from the fraudulent population census.

The history of census in Nigeria is summed up in the following excerpt: ‘Attempts to conduct a reliable postindependence census have been mired in controversy, and only one was officially accepted. The first attempt, in mid-1962, was cancelled after much controversy and allegations of over-counting in many areas. A second attempt in 1963, which was officially accepted, also was encumbered with charges of inaccuracy and manipulation for regional and local political purposes. Indeed, the official 1963 figure of 55.6 million as total national population is inconsistent with Continued on page 45

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