APC, other opposition parties jittery —Jonathan

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...towards a better life for the people VOL. 25: NO. 61953

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FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

PDP moves against Amaechi's loyalists P.9

PRESS COUNCIL:

FG has no plans to gag the press — Maku P.48

APC, other opposition parties jittery —Jonathan

BY HENRY UMORU

•Says PDP has intimidating credentials A •Tukur urges party leaders to lead by example •Obasanjo, Amaechi, others absent at meeting

BUJA—PRESI DENT Goodluck Jonathan declared, yesterday, that the opposition political parties were already confused and scared of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, ahead of the 2015 elections.

Speaking at the 62nd National Executive Committee, NEC, meeting of the PDP, President Jonathan said that perceived opponents and enemies of the PDP, who concluded that the party Continues on Page 5

COLUMNISTS:

DONU KOGBARA •P.17

ADISA ADELEYE •P.47

Mr & Mrs

EDITORS' CONFERENCE—From left: Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim; Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State and President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors, Mr. Femi Adesina on arrival to the opening ceremony of the 9th Nigerian Guild of Editors' Conference held at the Event Centre, Asaba, Delta State, yesterday. Inset: Information Minister, Labaran Maku (left) and former Governor of Ogun State, Aremo Olusegun Osoba at the event. Photos:Henry Unini.

Shekau's death excites BRIC investors

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POCKET CARTOON

VISIT—Gov. Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State (Front row, 5th-left); President, Nigerian Guild of Editors, Mr Femi Adesina (Front row, 5th right);other executive members of the Guild and Delta State commissioners during the Editors' courtesy call on the governor in Asaba,yesterday. Photo: NAN.

2015: APC, other opposition parties jittery — Jonathan Continues from page 1 will be divided and continue in lingering crisis have been terribly disappointed. He noted that “the key thing that makes life go on is our ability to resolve our crises."

The President stressed that the ruling party, irrespective of its differences and disagreements which also occur in families, will always resolve its problems amicably, adding that those who thought that they will reap from political differences in the PDP have been shamed.

Jonathan, who de-

scribed the emergence of All Progressives Congress, APC, and the Peoples Democratic Movement, PDM, as a blessing to the ruling party, however, stressed that the opposition political parties were already jittery based on what he termed the intimidating credentials of PDP.

PDP must lead by example— Tukur Meanwhile, the PDP National Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur at the meeting, warned that

LIFEWORDS

BY PASTOR ITUAH

As long as you have breath, you have a purpose!

Trust God to order your steps. A living dog is better than a dead lion. Pursue your purpose actively.

TAKE HEART

BY ELLA RANDLE

S

O let’s celebrate our anniversaries as they arise. What we are really celebrating, though, is the present moment, the doorway into Spirit, and all there ever iss —Elisabeth Gilbert There is a fine balance between honouring the past and losing yourself in it. For example, you can acknowledge and learn from mistakes you made, and then move on and refocus on the now. It is called forgiving yourself. Or you can carry a burden of guilt for many years. You may occasionally fondly remember events, places, or people from the past and while doing so, accepting the impermanence of all things. Or you may wallow in nostalgia and see the past as more precious than the present.

The future, too, needs to be honoured, without making it more important in your mind than the present. Of course, you can make plans, and you can hold an intention in your mind of something that you wish to manifest in your life, and then take appropriate action. But the power for creating a better future is contained in the present moment. You create a good future by creating a good present.

How do you do that? By recognizing the goodness that is already inherent in the present moment, even in the midst of challenges. Discontent, blaming, complaining, self-pity cannot serve as a foundation for a good future, no matter how much effort you make.

as a ruling party, PDP must lead by example and act as a beacon of light to other political parties and Nigerians, even as he boasted that political adversaries of the party have been shamed, adding that the PDP as a party has continued to grow from strength to strength in spite of challenges being faced.

Also yesterday the PDP NEC approved and ratified the August 31, 2013 date for the Special National Convention, even as it bowed to a court injunction restraining the conduct of the South West Zonal Congress earlier slated for Saturday, August 24, 2013 and thereafter postponed the congress as part of moves to uphold the rule of law and in deference to the court ruling.

NEC directed the National Working Committee, NWC, to follow through the court process and when concluded, set a new date for the South West Zonal Congress.

The NEC was very short as it took off when the President came in at 2.42 pm and ended by 3.35pm.

Speaking further, President Jonathan said: "I want to thank all of you for finding time to attend this emergency NEC meeting. I believe some of you got this information quite late, yesterday and the meeting has to be called because of the provisions of our constitution as our chairman related.

"I was not expecting to see so many people especially our senior party

members, but when I came in and looked across and saw the faces, I thank God that though people believe that PDP will have issues, that we are divided, they will all be disappointed.

"Let me sincerely appreciate our party members for what they are doing across the country.

What the elders of the party are doing, the Working Committee. The Jerry Gana Committee, our governors and the members of the National Assembly for all they have been doing in flying the flag of the party.

PDP has intimidating credentials — Jonathan "The chairman said it all that we thought that political activities will not start so early in the country, but because of the intimidating credentials of the PDP, people started meeting, parties started coming together, and new ones are being formed which is a blessing for all of us all because people are confused about how we manage PDP and they will continue to be confused.

"Our party members, I commend you and reassure that we will carry on the mandate of the party based on our manifesto so that no matter what anybody is saying, things will be on ground for them to compare what the PDP government is doing.

"A number of things that Nigeria almost forgot about like railways, we are bringing them back. I believe that by the time we move into early next year, things will become very obvious. Even those who doubt us, will not have anything to say.

We promise that we are going to do that with the assistance of the party.

"In party politics, as I came in, the Vice President whispered something to me about some lapses somewhere.

There maybe disagreements and in all institutions even at the family level, there must be disagreements and issues.

But the key thing that makes life go on is our ability to resolve our crisis. No matter the disagreement, no matter the interests, politics they say is a game of interests.

We will resolve these differences amicably to make sure that every member of the party is happy. That is the area I commend the elders of the party via the committees set up by the National Chairman for go-

ing round to see how some of these differences would be resolved at the state level. The chairman of BoT has been meeting with various groups to make sure that we speak with one voice, and we will continue to speak with one voice.

"Those who continue to think that PDP cannot come together, that PDP cannot manage success, they will be terribly disappointed. We will go to Eagles Square and take the right decision for our party.”

On his party, the National Chairman, Tukur said: There are internal organs and mechanisms for conflict resolution in our Party. I encourage our members to explore these avenues in ventilating their grievances and to, as much as possible, avoid litigations which make a mockery of our stand on peace and stability.

"My doors and indeed those of all our Party leaders are wide open to all members of our great Party. I run an open door policy that furthers the principles of triple ‘R’ i.e Reconciliation, Reformation and Rebuilding.

"We need peace and friendly concord in our Party. We cannot reach our destination in an atmosphere of bitterness and rivalry.

"I therefore call on all our party members across the country to sheath their swords and enthrone enduring peace.

I want to commend the National Reconciliation Committee for the good work it is doing and encourage our members to take their grievances to the committee or other organs of the party entrusted with the task of restoring peace in the party.

"We must give the President our unalloyed support as he continues to implement the manifesto of the PDP to the benefit of all Nigerians - Our Railways are working again, Power Supply is improving and our Airports are wearing new looks, etc. More grease to your elbows – Mr. President!"

The Roll Call At yesterday ’s meeting, former President and past Chairman, Board of Trustees, BoT of party, Chief the Olusegun Obasanjo, governors Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State; Theodore Orji of Abia; Ibrahim Shema of Katsina; Gabriel Suswam of Benue and suspended Chibuike Amaechi of Rivers, were absent.

Fifteen governors and three deputy governors were present. They were governors Isa Yuguda of Bauchi; Idris Wada of Kogi; Sule Lamido of Jigawa; Ramallan Yero of Kaduna; Aliyu Babangida of Niger; Martin Elechi of Ebonyi; Murtala Nyako of Adamawa; Ibrahim Dankwambo of Gombe; Sullivan Chime of Enugu; Jonah Jang of Plateau; Liyel Imoke of Cross River; Saidu Dankigari of Kebbi; Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom; Abdulfatir Ahmed of Kwara and Acting Governor of Taraba, Garba Umar. Others were deputy governors of Sokoto, Bayelsa and Kano.

Also present were Vice President Namadi Sambo; Speaker, House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal; Chief Tony Anenih, Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu; Ahmadu Ali; Prince Vincent Ogbulafor, Okwesilieze Nwodo, Haliru Bello Mohammed, Ibrahim Mantu, Jim Nwobodo, Hassan Adamu, Bode George, Musa Babayo, Senator Hope Uzodinma, Walid Jibrin, Maryam Inna Ciroma, General A.B. Mamman, Senator Mohammadu Magoro, Ebenezer Babatope, Josephine Anenih, Kema Chikwe, Jim Nwobodo, Felix Obuah, Senator Margery Okadigbo, among others.

6—Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

4 docked over N5.9m theft

Lady buys 3-day-old baby for N1.2m, arrested

BY ONOZURE DANIA

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AGOS — A 32-year-old man, Ikechukwu Onyekwuo, and three others were yesterday, arraigned before an Ikeja magistrate's court, for allegedly stealing N5.9 million, belonging to Foltechs Engineering Services Ltd. The other suspects who were docked alongside Onyekwuo are Tolulope Akinyemi, 28; Olalekan Agoro, 27 and Yakus Sodiq, 26.

The defendants who were before Magistrate Eniola Fabamwo are facing a threecount charge of conspiracy and stealing.

The police prosecutor, ASP Barth Nwakoye, told the court that the defendants conspired together and gained entrance into Foltechs Engineering Services Ltd's warehouse.

He said they committed the crime on August 17, 2013, at about midnight, at Plot 4, Limca Way, in Isolo area of Lagos.

He said they stole 3000 pieces of MCB, valued N3 million; 37 pieces of GSW valued N1, 739,000; extention sockets which comprise of four gang, five gang and six gang respectively all valued N303,400.

He also claimed that they stole 32 pieces of 63A industrial pin, worth N440,000, bringing all items stolen to N5,962,400, property of Foltechs Engineering Services Ltd.

...3 remanded for alleged robbery

BY IJEOMA NATHANIEL

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AGOS— THREE men, Emmanuel Oyedepo, Jamiu Shodeinde and Kayode Adewuyi, were yesterday, arraigned before an Ikeja Magistrate's court for allegedly robbing one Adebayo Rachael of his property worth N158, 300.

The suspects docked before Magistrate A. O. Komolafe are facing a two-count charge of conspiracy and robbery.

The police Prosecutor, E. I. Nnamonu told the court that the defendants committed the offence on August 1, 2013 at Agbado area of Lagos State.

He said while armed with guns and dangerous weapons, the suspects and others now at large did rob one Adebayo Rachael of her HP laptop, recharge cards, N33,500 and also robbed one Biliaminu Fatimah of N6,000, all worth N158,300.

The magistrate, threafter, ordered that the suspects be remanded in prison and adjourned the case to November 5, 2013.

BY EMMA UNA

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ALABAR — A 42-year-old Cameroonian lady who gave her name as Evelyn Atemkeng was, Wednesday, arrested in Calabar with a three-day-old baby she allegedly bought for N1.2 million.

Mrs Atemkeng accompanied by her 70-year-old mother, Anastasia Fambong, was said to have bought the baby boy from a matron of a clinic in Delta State into whose account she paid the N1.2 million.

Commander of the Cross River State Immigration Command, Mr Samuel Ichoi, who ordered the arrest of the woman told Vanguard d in his office that his men accosted the lady while boarding a ship to Cameroon and after interrogation, she confessed that she bought the baby.

He said: “The lady came from Cameron on Friday without any sign of pregnancy but this morning (Wednesday) she was found to be carrying a baby and when my men examined her there were no signs that she just gave birth, so she and the baby were apprehended.”

According to Igoche, the lady also claimed that in May last year, she was given some herbs at Okigwe where she “miraculously gave birth to a baby girl who is now in Cameroon.”

However, the lady who said she is a teacher in the North-West region of Cameron told Vanguard that she gave birth to the baby and that N1.2 million she paid into the account of the matron was for delivery and herbs she gave to her to aid delivery.

She said: “She (matron) said my breast would start producing milk in three weeks but for now the baby is taking baby food.”

According to her, she does not have anybody in Cameroon to take care of her, that was why she came to Nigeria to deliver before returning to her country.

"I am married and my husband is in Cameroon but there is nobody to take care of me in Cameroon, that was why I came to Nigeria to deliver,” she said.

The Anti Human Trafficking Officer of the Nigeria Immigration Service at the Calabar Port, Mrs Agbor Ojong Ogar, said she took time to examine the woman and she does not have any sign that she just gave birth.

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BEOKUTA — FIVE uni versity students were, yesterday, docked at an Abeokuta magistrate's court for allegedly belonging to a secret cult.

The accused are Opeyemi Fakeye, 28; Samuel Popoola, 28; Oladejo Musiliu, 20; Christian Dada, 25; and Mustapha Disu, 28. They are from various institutions.

The accused who were not represented by any counsel, are facing a four-count charge bordering on membership of an unlawful secret society and breach of peace.

Vanguard gathered that men of the state police command arrested the five acussed persons while 15 others reportedly escaped after gathering in a bush for a meeting.

At the court, yesterday, the prosecutor, Inspector Augustine Ozimini, said the accused committed the offence on August 4 at 11.05 a.m. at Ijaiye-Obirinti area of Abeokuta.

He alleged that the students with others still at large caused a breach of peace as members of a secret society, Eye Fraternity.

Ozimini said: “The accused and 15 others at large assembled in a

back to Cameron with a baby and when we examined her she does not have any sign of having given birth recently.”

Mrs Evelyn Atemkeng, the suspect and the baby.

IKORODU KILLINGS: IG calls for calm, takes over investigation

BY KINGSLEY OMONOBI

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BUJA — THE Force Head quarters, Abuja, yesterday, reacted to the alleged killing of

Five undergrads docked for cultism in Ogun

BY DAUD OLATUNJI

She said: “The woman passed here on Friday, she left on Saturday and returned to Calabar on Tuesday and was heading

bush at Obiritin area, singing, drumming and making noise.

They were arrested by the police following a tip-off.”

They pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The magistrate, Emmanuel Adekunte, granted the accused bail in the sum of N100, 000 each with two sureties each in like sum.

Further hearing in the case

a commercial motorcyclist by a policeman attached to Rapid Response Squad, RRS, in Lagos and the subsequent protest that followed, calling for calm and promised to ensure that justice was done.

A statement signed by newly appointed Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Frank Mba reads: “Following the unfortunate death of a commercial motorcyclist, one Olalekan Ajayi on August 20, 2013 and ensuing protests embarked upon yesterday, 21/08/ 2013 at Ikorodu, Lagos by aggrieved citizens, the IGP has called for calm to enable the police authorities wade into the matter and ensure that justice is served.

A shrine at Egbeda bus-stop, Lagos. Photo: Bunmi Azeez.

“Meanwhile, the police officer linked with the killing of the late Olalekan Ajayi has been arrested, detained and is presently undergoing investigation.

“The IGP condoles with the bereaved relations, friends and colleagues of the late Olalekan Ajayi.

“While promising that the force will do its utmost best to ensure that investigation into the death is properly done and concluded in record time, the IGP calls on all aggrieved persons to remain calm and patient.

“He has, therefore, directed the Commissioner of Police, Lagos State to take proper steps to ensure that justice is expeditiously done on the matter.”

Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013—7

Lagos govt rescues 25 children from alleged child trafficker

BY ABDULWAHAB ABDULAH

BY UJU MBANUSI

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AGOS — EIGHTEEN years after it was established, an illegal orphanage home in the heart of Egbeda in Alimosho Local Government Area of Lagos State, was shut down by Lagos State government officials who also rescued 25 children from the facility.

The Office of the Public Defender, OPD, an arm of the state Ministry of Justice, which carried out the rescue mission from the purported ‘Home for Orphans and Less Privileged’ said apart from keeping the children illegally, the venue was also used for child trafficking.

A statement from the OPD said the children whose ages range between three months and 12 years were found in the illegal home located at 30/32, Abiodun Adebanbo Street, Egbeda, Lagos allegedly run by one Mrs. Rosemary Nwachukwu.

The OPD disclosed that a combined team of Director of Child Development in the state Ministry of Youths and Social Development, Mrs. Alaba Fadairo and officers from OPD clamped down on the home based on information, from which the alleged illegal activities of the home and the deteriorating condition to which the children were subjected to were exposed.

The rescued children who had since been taken to the Lagos State Government welfare institution for proper care and protection are made up of three infants who are aged between 3 and 6 months and 22 others.

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The rescued children

Whereabouts of two children unknown OPD said: “Upon investigations, it was discovered that Mrs. Nwachukwu trafficked 27 children kept in a room, using them to raise money and defraud innocent members of the public who may need assistance in child adoption. Twenty five children were rescued and the whereabouts of the remaining two children remain unknown.

“Investigation also shows that there were no record on each of the children and no evidence of how the children got to her and no form of police or security report.”

Asking Lagos residents to help the government in curbing such activities in the state, Mrs Fadairo, the leader of the operation, however, warned members of the public to be vigilant and report such cases to the media or government in order not to fall into the hands of similar organisations.

She said people/organisations that operate unapproved or illegal orphanages would be arrested and prosecuted.

The suspect, Mrs. Nwachukwu, in an interview told the officials that she had been running the home for the past 18 years purely on charity but residents and landlord association in the community said they were not aware that such home existed, adding that the children might have been brought by the woman under the cover of darkness.

The suspect, Mrs. Rosemary Nwachukwu

Tanker driver arrested for defiling 2-yr-old girl

BY EMMA UNA

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ALABAR — A 41-year-old tanker driver identified as Bashiru has been arrested in Calabar for allegedly defiling a two-year-old girl and infecting her with a sexually transmitted disease.

The incident happened in Okom Ita, Akamkpa Local Government Area, Cross River State, when the two-year old girl (name withehld) strolled from her mother’s room into Bashiru’s apartment to play with the man she calls “uncle.”

Margaret, the toddler’s mother who narrated the incident to Vanguard d said she did not stop her daughter from going into Bashiru’s room because she considered him a neighbour who could not harm her daughter.

She said: “We have been living together for some time and now, so when my daughter went into his room I did not stop her even when she later came out and complained that she was having pains in her private part. I thought it was ordinary pain until in the

How security man stole N160,000 laptop, sold it for N30,000

evening when I wanted to bath her and she began to cry when soap touched her private part.”

Margaret said when she re-

ported the incident to the police, Basiru was arrested and taken to the Akamkpa police station .

Mr Hogan Bassey, the Cross

River State Police Command spokesman confirmed the arrest of the man and said the matter was under investigation.

Panic as lunatic sets fuel truck ablaze in Bayelsa

BY SAMUEL OYADONGHA

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ENAGOA — WORKERS of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Mega Filling Station along the Sani Abacha Expressway in the Bayelsa State capital and customers who stopped by to refuel their vehicles were reportedly thrown into panic, Tuesday, following a failed attempt by a deranged man to set a fuel tanker ablaze.

The incident which caused pandemonium in the area, it was learnt, occurred at about 11 am.

The deranged man identified as an indigene of Emede in Delta State was also discovered by the

police to be in possession of pictures of prominent indigenes of the state, some kilogrammes of canabis and powdery substance suspected to be cocaine during a search carried out at a public bus stop structure he was using as a home.

It was learnt that the man popularly known as “Professor” gathered plastic and cartons to make fire and push it under the stationery lorry loaded with 33,000 litres of petroleum products.

Six fuel tankers, according to eyewitnesses, were waiting to discharge their consignment at the mega filling station.

“Before we knew it, we saw thick smoke and fire engulfing the tire of the oil tanker,” one of

the eyewitnesses said.

It was learnt that some motorists, hawkers, workers at the filling station and the nearby church took to their heels for fear of possible explosion.

However, some motorists and workers were said to have made for the fire extinguishers in their cars and others at the filling station to put out the fire.

The deranged man reportedly took to his heel and boarded a tricycle popularly known as Keke NAPEP P but was chased and apprehended.

Thereafter, angry mob descended on him but he was rescued following the intervention of men of special police patrol team, Operation Doo Akpor.

AGOS — A SECURITY man attached to a company in Sabo-Yaba area of Lagos was recently charged to the Magistrate Court sitting in Yaba, for stealing a HP laptop, after he was captured by a Closed Circuit Television, CCTV, camera situated within the company premises.

An eye witness disclosed that the 21-year-old man identified as Mike Prince was only a week old at the duty post on August 10, 2013, when he made away with a laptop valued at N160,000, after he got off duty, thinking that no one saw him.

The next day, the issue of the missing laptop led to the review of recordings by the CCTV which showed Mike as the culprit.

The incident was then reported at the Sabo Police station and Mike was arrested when he resumed duty the next day.

After interrogation, the suspect reportedly confessed to stealing the laptop and selling it to a computer engineer identified as Adamu at Sabo market for N30,000, out of which he brought a Blackberry phone for N15,000.

It was also gathered that Adamu took off when he sighted Mike in handcuff, leading a Policeman to his shop.

Man docked over alleged burglary

BY DAUD OLATUNJI

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BEOKUTA — THE Ogun State Police Command, yesterday, arraigned a 22year-old Ibrahim Soremilakun before an Abeokuta Magistrate's court for allegedly breaking into the house of one Akeem Alao and stole items valued at N 90,000.

The accused person who was not represented pleaded not guilty to a three-count charge of felony, burglary and stealing.

The police prosecutor, Inspector Augustine Ozimini told the court that the offence was committed on August 18 at about 2 a.m. at Surulere Community Camp, in Abeokuta.

According to Ozimini, the accused broke into Alao's house and stole three phones, a wrist watch, a necklace, a pair of earring and N 70,000 all valued at N 90,000.

8—Vanguard , FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

BY SOLA OGUNDIPE, CHIOMA OBINNA & MODINAT AMUSAT

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ARD times await patients seeking healthcare services in Federal tertiary health institutions nationwide as the Medical and Health Workers Union of Nigeria, MHWUN, has made good its threat to embark on indefinite strike.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Medical Association, NMA, has directed all medical doctors nationwide to remain at their duty posts to ensure uninterrupted services, particularly for emergency cases.

The strike, which began yesterday morning nationwide, took patients on appointment and on admission by surprise as many of them claimed to have had no previous information regarding the strike.

Vanguard investigations revealed that although normal healthcare services took off on schedule in some of the affected institutions in Lagos, such activities were interrupted a little after 11:00a.m. by aggrieved members of the striking unions, who claimed they were directed to enforce compliance in the various institutions.

It was gathered that lamentation and confusion from unsuspecting patients trailed the abrupt stoppage services.

It was a pathetic sight as the hopes of patients, who travelled long distances to honour scheduled appointments at the various clinics, and some of those who were booked for surgery and special diagnostic tests were dashed.

Abandoned hospitals The story was the same in all the institutions visited on Lagos mainland from the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, LUTH, to the Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital, Yaba, National Orthopaedic Hospital, Igbobi and Federal Medical Centre, Ebute Meta.

At LUTH, most of the outpatient clinics were deserted when Vanguard visited shortly after midday.

Only a few patients were seen hanging around the corridors of the clinics, discussing the development. But the entrances of the clinics were firmly under lock and key.

Although there was calm in most of the wards, only a few senior consultants were seen attending to patients.

Further investigation by Vanguard revealed that the central power supply had been shut down leaving only few isolated power generating sets to supply electricity to different units of the hospital.

Officials of LUTH’s branch of MHWUN could not be immediately reached, but were said to be within the hospital premises to enforce the strike.

It was also gathered that the health workers joined the strike after receiving a directive from the national body.

PDP'S 62ND NEC MEETING: From left— Governor Murtala Nyako of Adamawa State; Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, National Chairman; President Goodluck Jonathan and Vice-President Namadi Sambo, at the party's National Executive Council 62nd meeting in Abuja, yesterday. PHOTO: STATE HOUSE.

Patients lament as health workers' strike paralyses hospitals Further efforts to reach the hospital management were fruitless as they were said to be in a crucial meeting not unconnected with the development at the hospital.

Some of the patients who spoke to Vanguard at the hospital appealed to the hospital management and the Federal Ministry of health to wade into the matter for quick resolution.

Patients’ fate Relatives of some of the patients are considering withdrawing their sick ones should the strike continued.

They further argued that nurses are closer to the patients than doctors and since the strike began they have had to take on the responsibilities of the nurses.

Federal Medical Centre, FMC, Makurdi, said through its Chief Information Officer, Mr. Alex Ohemu that skeletal services were being provided by the hospital despite the industrial action.

At the Federal Medical Centre, FMC, Ebute Meta, and Federal Neuro- Psychiatric Hospital, Yaba, skeletal services were being offered, although many patients expressed their frustrations.

Reacting to the development, Chairman, Nigerian Union of Allied Health Professionals, Mr. Uzondu Eke, said although they were part of the union, they cannot paralyse activities and close down totally.

MHWUN's demands Chairman, MHWUN, in Lagos State, Mr. Femi Omoba, said the workers were aggrieved because of the delay in the imple-

mentation of their demands after the recent ruling of the National Industrial Court.

Also, Chief Medical Director of the University of IIorin Teaching Hospital, Prof.

AbdulWaheed Olatinwo, yesterday, confirmed that the institution was providing skeletal services to save lives.

Members of MHWUN had embarked on the strike after the expiration of a 21-day ultimatum issued to government on August 1, to accede to the 10-point demand and agreements reached on May 10, 2012.

NMA’s statement However, in reaction to the development, NMA, in a press statement jointly signed by the National President, Dr. Osahon Enabulele and Secretary-General, Dr. Akpufuoma Pemu, urged the doctors to remain committed to their God-given

responsibility of offering quality healthcare services to the toiling and long-deprived people of Nigeria, in all public hospitals.

The duo further alleged that plans by were being made by some hospital support staff to prevent Nigerian doctors from providing healthcare services in public hospitals.

According to them, “while we have nothing against the right of people to determine how best to actualise their demands, we shall, however, not tolerate any attempt to obstruct medical and dental practitioners in the course of rendering their official duties.”

They further called on all Chief Medical Directors/ Medical Directors to ensure sustained provision of clinical/ healthcare services to Nigerians in their various hospitals, by providing adequate security, and ensuring r access to hos-

pital materials, equipment and other healthcare facilities in the hospitals.

They said: “Despite the fact that NMA’s several demands for institutionalisation of best practices, strengthened public-private partnership policy, professionalism and better working conditions for her members are yet to be attended to, we assure all Nigerians that NMA shall continue to promote professionalism, patient-centred care and development initiatives with positive impact on the health of Nigerians.”

Chairman of the Kwara branch of NMA, Prof. Mikail Buhari, said skeletal services were being provided in vital areas of the hospital.

The chairman said that medical doctors, nurses and other health workers were rendering medical services at the emergency department and attending to those on admission.

Anambra guber: Soludo in court over disqualification

BY IKECHUKWU NNOCHIRI

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BUJA— —DETERMINED to participate in the forthcoming gubernatorial election in Anambra State, former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Professor Chukwuma Soludo, yesterday, went before an Abuja High Court to challenge his disqualification by All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA. The erstwhile CBN boss, in

his motion, applied for a judicial review of his disqualification by the screening committee that was set up by APGA to ascertain the suitability of candidates that applied to fly its flag in the coming election.

He is praying the court to set aside the decision of the committee denying him the opportunity to vie for the Anambra Governorship seat on APGA platform.

Justice Peter Affen, yesterday, overruled the oral submission of

Ezechukwu that the matter can be entertained in the Federal Capital Territory, being the headquarters of the party.

He ordered him to file further affidavits citing authorities of cases heard outside the jurisdiction of the cause of action and adjourned till today.

It will be recalled that APGA’s screening panel had on August 16, disqualified Soludo and five other aspirants from contesting the November 16 governorship election in the state.

Vanguard , FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013— 9

Reps welcome Ezekwesili's call for debate over ‘jumbo pay’

BY LEVINUS NWABUGHIOGU

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NAEC CONFAB: F From left— Engr. M.D. Bako, General Manager, Fronties Exploration Service, representing Engr.

Andy Yakubu, Group Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC; Mr. Mark Ward, Chairman/Managing Director, ExxonMobil; Dr. Tony Chukwueke, Director, Transcorp Energy Limited, Chairman of the occasion; Mr. Emeka Ugwuanyi, Chairman, National Association of Energy Correspondents, NAEC, and Engr. Ernest Nwapa, Executive Secretary, Nigerian Content Development Company, at the NAEC conference on PIB: Harmonisation and Implementation for Economy Growth, in Lagos. PHOTO: Bunmi Azeez.

PDP moves against Amaechi's loyalists

BY EMMANUEL AZIKEN, Political Editor, & EGUFE YAFUGBORHI

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N alleged plot to remove h e remaining traces of Governor Rotimi Amaechi in Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, commenced yesterday with the evaluation of all party members from the state in public office by the Felix Obuah-led state executive of the party.

The screening is to scrutinise all those in public office on the platform of the party, including the deputy governor, federal and state legislators, local government chairmen and councilors, among others.

As the screening commenced yesterday, the head of the evaluation committee, Osinakachukwu Ideozu, warned that attendance was compulsory for every political office holder as he warned that absence would be met with strict sanctions by the state executive.

However, loyalists of the governor alleged that the screening was a final plot to ensure that Amaechi’s loyalists were screened out of the forthcoming special national convention of the party due next weekend.

An associate of Amaechi said: “They know that no government official will attend the screening, so that will be the excuse to suspend senators, members of the House of Representatives, state House of Assembly and council chairmen from the party and ensure that they are screened out of next t

week’s convention.”

Governor Amaechi, who was suspended from the party last May, and 27 of the 32 members of the House of Assembly loyal to him, who were suspended shortly after, have not been invited for the screening.

Screened At press time yesterday, of all the invitees, only the erstwhile Deputy National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus appeared before the committee.

As he left, Secondus expressed appreciation to the Obuah executive for the initiative, saying it was bound to take the party on the right course.

Briefing newsmen on the exercise yesterday, Ideozu said: “The reason for excluding these persons is simple. The Governor and 27 house members are suspended and so can’t be invited.

“This exercise would have been held earlier, but the governor took the party to court to stop our work. We are starting now because a High Court struck out the suit on Tuesday.

“Those to appear before us include the Deputy Governor of the State, all senators and members of House of Representatives currently representing Rivers, the five members of the state assembly who are not under suspension and all council chairmen in the state.”

The list also includes the two former Deputy National Chairmen of the party from

the state, Prince Uche Secondus and Sam Sam Jaja, current state Chairman, Felix Obuah and PDP ministers and commissioners currently serving.

On those suspended On how the committee will treat those who refuse to appear, he said: “As PDP members, we don’t expect any invited person not to come. But anybody indisposed is expected to communicate to us.

“But it is strictly the place of the party executives to determine the fate of anyone who fails to conform. Ours is to do our job and submit report.”

Meanwhile, the socio-politi-

cal group, Rivers Peoples Forum, RPF, also yesterday chided the Grassroots Development Initiative, GDI, and the Obuah-led executive of PDP over their criticisms of the appointment of Justice Peter Agumagu as the acting Chief Judge of Rivers State.

The GDI is reportedly backed by the Minister of State for Education, Chief Nyesom Wike and the Obuah-led PDP, RPF. In a statement issued by its President, Charles Bekwele said: “If you look at the comments against the appointment of Agumagu, you will see one trend, one line masterminded and written by Wike. As far as Rivers people are concerned, there is no controversy over the appointment.”

Al-Bashir fled just before arrest— FG

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TTORNEY-General of the Federation, AGF, Mr. Mohammed Adoke, has told the International Criminal Court, ICC, that the Federal Government was already making plans to hand over Sudan’s leader, Omar Al-Bashir, during his controversial visit to the country in July to attend an African Union summit, before he abruptly cut short his visit and left the country.

In a letter to the registrar of ICC, Herman von Hebe, sighted by an online publication, the AGF explained that Mr. Al-Bashir left the country “at the time officials of relevant bodies and agencies of the Federal Government were already considering the necessary steps to be taken in respect of his visit in line with Nigeria’s international obligations.”

Adoke said Nigeria did not

invite the Sudanese President, who is wanted by ICC on charges of genocide in Darfur, adding that Al-Bashir was in Nigeria to “ostensibly attend” a two-day African Union, AU, Summit on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

He said Al-Bashir, in line with AU tradition, does not need an invitation from to attend the AU summit.

However, Federal Government had given the Sudanese President a red carpet welcome with a full guard of honour, while the Minister of Police Affairs, Caleb Olubolade, was at the airport to receive him.

In the heat of controversy that followed Nigeria’s refusal to carry out ICC arrest warrant against AlBashir, Federal Government, however, said it shunned the arrest warrant on Al-Bashir because of its commitment to AU position on the issue.

BUJA— —THE House of Representatives, yesterday, accepted the challenge by former Minister of Education, Dr. Oby Ezekwesili, for a public debate over members’ salaries and allowances.

In doing so, however, the House said that the former Minister must be ready to comply with certain rules and divorce what it called “an out-of-office syndrome.”

But in another stance, the House carpeted Ezewkwesili, describing her recent outburst on the National Assembly as being prompted by avarice and unrestricted ambition to re- launch herself into political space.

The position of the House was contained in a statement released by the Deputy Chairman, House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Mr. Victor Ogene.

Gunmen kill 5 vigilantes in Enugu

BY TONY EDIKE

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IVE persons were shot dead by unknown gunmen, who attacked the office of Ogwuagor Community Joint Neighbourhood Association in Enugu East Local Government Area of Enugu State, Wednesday evening.

Vanguard learnt that those killed in the attack, which followed l the arrest and detention of a suspected cultist by the vigilante group, included a member of the vigilante group, Sunday Eze, two women and two other men whose identities could not be ascertained at press time.

However, police confirmed the death of two persons namely Sunday Eze and Nebechi Mba, whose corpses were deposited at the National Orthopaedic Hospital mortuary in Enugu, while five others, Messrs Uwadiegwu Onyegwu, Anayo Ifeji, Ani Basil, Hyacinth Ugwu and Ozioma Ezekwem wounded in the attack are currently receiving treatment in an unnamed hospital.

10—Vanguard d, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

Protest by Lagos community halts activities at state secretariat

BY OLASUNKANMI AKONI

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AGOS—ACTIVITIES at the Lagos State Secretariat, Alausa, Ikeja, were yesterday, brought to a halt when aggrieved residents of the Badia communities, Apapa-Iganmu Local Council Development Area, LCDA, led by a Lagos lawmaker, stormed the State House to protest the abandonment of Lagos Metropolitan Development Governance Project, LMDGP P in the council.

The protesters, who were led by the lawmaker representing Apapa Constituency II, Mr. Olumuyiwa Jimoh, arrived the Assembly complex at about 9:00 a.m., to express their dissatisfaction over level of work on the projects.

FG not ready to end strike—ASUU

BY DAYO ADESULU & LAJU ARENYEKA

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AGOS—AFTER 10 unsuccessful meetings with the Federal Government, the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, yesterday said government was not ready to end the 8-week-old strike, lamenting that government displayed dishonesty and lack of integrity during negotiations.

At a briefing in Lagos, ASUU’s President, Dr. Isa Faggae, claimed government had declared it would not implement the agreed injection of funds to revitalise the public universities, but was only making a dubious statement of supporting some universities with N100 billion.

He said: “Government had also declared that it will not pay university academics their earned allowances which accumulated from 2009 to 2013.

Rather, it is talking about providing N30 billion to assist various Governing Councils of Federal Universities to defray the arrears of N92 billion owed to all categories of staff in the

university system.”

Narrating the union’s experience at the last meeting with the Government held on Monday, Faggae said: ASUU was shocked by the level of deceit, dishonesty, and lack of integrity displayed by the Government. Never in the history of ASUU-Government relations have we, as a union, ever experienced the kind of volteface exhibited by Government. At one stage in the interaction, the Secretary to the Government Federation ridiculed the agreement, the MoU and the Needs Assessment Report, mocking the Minister of Education to “go and give them N400 billion,” at which members of the government scornfully laughed.”

He argued that the Governor Gabriel Suswam-led Implementation Committee was being used as smokescreen to “deceive ASUU, Nigerian students and their parents, as well as other unsuspecting members of the public on the

purportedly released N100 billion for the implementation of the Needs Assessment Report. First, he said, “government plans to divert the regular yearly allocations to universities by Tertiary Education Trust, TETFund, to make at least 70% of the N100 billion.

This is unacceptable to ASUU. It is like robbing Peter to pay Paul, since the idea of revitalization took full cognizance of the intervention role TETFund ab-initio.”

“Again, contrary to subsisting operational procedures, about 75 per cent of the money meant for revitalizing universities would not be released to them as the Suswam Committee plans to hand over construction of the hostel projects to the Federal Ministry of Education and/or the National Universities Commission, for implementation.

This is illegal; neither the min-

istry nor NUC is backed by laws of Nigerian Public Universities to divert monies meant for the development of these institutions into centrally executed projects.”

Dr. Faggae questioned the committee’s motives for proposing to commit N1.6 million to a bed space, instead of N200, 000 to N400, 000, saying, “We see a continuation of outrageous contract regimes in the plan to centrally coordinate the construction of student hostels as done in the case of the 12 newly established Federal Universities with TETFund resources. The NUC has transmuted itself into a “Tenders’ board” which awarded contracts for the construction of 560 bed spaces hostel for each university at a whooping sum of 1.2 bn. This contract sum translates into N2.143 million per bed space.”

CONFERMENT: From left: Mrs. Adebisi Sosan, former Lagos State Deputy Governor; Dr. Olawale Oole, president, Nigerian Institute of Management; leader, Yoruba Conflicts Resolution Committee, Olugbo of Ugboland, Oba Obateru Akinruntan; Alhaji Lateef Jakande, former governor of Lagos State and Chief Lugard Aimiuwu, former President, Nigerian Institute of Management, at the conferment of Fellow, Nigerian Institute of Management, on Oba Akinruntan, in Lagos. PHOTO: Kehinde Gbadamosi.

PHCN sale: NCP, BPE still silent

BY MICHAEL EBOH & EDIRI EJOH

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HERE is yet no of ficial comment from the Bureau of Public Entreprises, BPE, more than 24 hours after the close of the commercial transactions for the sale of 15 successor companies unbundled from the Power Holding Company of Nigeria, PHCN. Wednesday 5 pm. was the deadline given to the 14 preferred bidders approved by the National Council on Privatisation, NCP, to pay up the balance of 75 percent of their bid values, having paid an initial 25 percent by way of commitment to the bids in

March 2013.

As at Wednesday, 12 companies met the deadline while the remaining two were caught up in international transfer challeng-

es with their respective banks, similar to what happened to Glo Mobile Network, when it bided for the Global System for Mobile, GSM network service in Nigeria.

Filani emerges top contender for PDP S-West Chair

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OLLOWING the breakdown of plans to pick a consensus National Vice-Chairman for the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the South-West in Saturday’s Special Zonal Congress in the zone, the outgoing Chairman, PDP Caretaker Committee for the South-West, Chief Ishola Filani, has

emerged a top contender for the job.

Majority of the party leaders and delegates from the 6 states in the zone are supporting Filani to continue the job he started as Chairman, Caretaker Committee, given the tremendous achievements recorded by his committee within its short stay in office.

Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013—11

Shekau’s death excites BRIC investors

BY UDUMA KALU with agency report

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BIRTHDAY AY: From left, former Chief of General Staff, Lt. Gen. Oladipo Diya (rtd), and Senator Ashafa, during Senator Adefuye's 69th birthday, in Lagos.

S-West PDP set to pick national scribe at mini-congress

BY GBENGA OLARINOYE

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SOGBO—WITH O less than 24 hours to the South-West zonal congress of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, scheduled to hold in Ibadan, Oyo state capital tomorrow, the party, yesterday, failed to comply with the order of an Osun State High Court restraining it from filling the position of National Secretary of the party at its mini-convention.

The South West zone of the party had fixed tomorrow for its congress saying representatives of the zone at the mini- national convention of the party are expected to emerge.

Former National Secretary of the party, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, had on August 1, this year, sought an order of the court stopping the election into the office of the National Secretary of the party.

Ruling on the exparte

motion, Justice Falola restrained parties involved in the matter from conducting election into the office of National Secretary of the party earlier occupied by Oyinlola before a Federal high court, Abuja, nullified his election.

At yesterday’s hearing, however, Justice Adeleke who presided over the court, declined hearing the motion exparte earlier granted by Justice Oyejide Falola who had been handling the matter before his transfer to Ikirun division of the court.

Oyinlola had claimed in his application that his removal through the verdict by Justice Abdul Kafarati of an Abuja high court on January 13, 2013, was being challenged before the Court of Appeal and hearing in the suit, according to his counsel, Realwan Okpanachi, is due to commence by September this year.

Counsel to Alhaji Ganiyu Olaoluwa, the state

chairman of the party, Mr Sunday Ojo-Williams, informed the court of an application for preliminary objection to the motion exparte stopping conduct of election for the office of national secretary of PDP. But, counsel to Oyinlola and the chairman of the party’s mini-convention committee, Professor Jerry Gana, Messrs Okpanachi and Yamta Yusuf respectively, indicated their readiness to respond to the preliminary objection.

In his ruling Justice Adeleke told the parties that the matter could not go on because it was new to him, saying he needed time to study the case file.

He then warned parties involved in the matter to maintain status quo pending the determination of the suit and subsequently adjourned the case till Wednesday, September 18 for hearing of the application.

Akeredolu urges CJN to constitute panel on Ondo guber election petition tribunal

BY DAPO AKINREFON

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OVERNORSHIP P can didate of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria in Ondo State in the last election, Chief Olurotimi Akeredolu has appealed to the Chief Justice of Nigeria Justice Aloma Mukhtar ia, to constitute a panel that will hear his appeal against the judgement of Ondo State Governorship Election Petition tribunal which affirmed the election of Governor Olusegun Mimiko.

Akeredolu’s counsel, Chief Akin Olujinmi, in a letter to the Chief Justice

dated August 8, 2013, argued that a letter had earlier been written to Justice Mukhtar on July 16 on the pendency of the appeal and it is necessary to constitute a panel immediately, as “the 60 days prescribed by the Constitution for the hearing of the appeal will expire on August, 29 2013 29, 2013.””

According to Akeredolu, in his letter, “the petition leading to the appeals concerns the Governorship election held in Ondo State on 20th October, 2012. The main appeal was filed on July 11, while the cross-appeals were filed on July, 12.

By the provision of Section

285(7) of the 1999 Constitution, the appeals must be decided within 60 days from the date of the judgment of the Court of Appeal. Reckoning from July 1, 2013, the 60 days will run out on August 29.

“Bearing in mind that the Supreme Court annual vacation usually falls between July and e early September, we find it n necessary to intimate Yourr Lordship of the pendency of the appeals so that Your L Lordship may set up a panell for the hearing and determ mination of the appeals w within the period allowed by y the Constitution i.e. before A August 29, 2013.

HE REPORTED death of Abubakar Shekau, the leader of the Boko Haram insurgency, is making foreign investors look favourably towards investing in Nigeria.

Such investors are said to be frustrated by the low level of profit they are currently making from the BRIC nations of Brazil, India, Russia and China, authoritative US journal, Forbes, has reported.

The report, published in Forbes, yesterday, said success in cracking down on security threats in the Niger Delta is also changing the security situation for the better.

And while terrorist disruption recedes, money keeps flowing into Nigeria.

In the last six months, U.S. corporations like Procter & Gamble PG have committed at least $700 million to build new factories and agricultural facilities in the country while the Nigerian government itself announced a $1 billion fund to nurture the local software industry, which officials think can ultimately capture $20 billion a year from rivals like India, the magazine continued.

The leading American business magazine said though putting Lagos on equal footing with Bombay or Sao Paulo as a global capital hub in three years would be quite a feat, the foundations for such growth are already in place.

However, Nigeria, it said, was one of the world’s four bestperforming markets last year with a 35.45 per cent gain and is the biggest and most dynamic frontier economy in Africa, with a GDP at par with global capitals like Hong Kong and Singapore.

Lagos, it went on, reminds fund managers of Houston multiplied by four times the population.

The report written by Hilary Kramer, who also writes for Wall Street Journal as equity analyst and investment manager, noted that though many investors still think of Nigeria as a dangerous market engulfed by unrest and corruption, “ the $31 billion currently moving on the Nigerian Stock Exchange represents annual economic activity of $268 billion.

To buy the same amount of productivity in Singapore, for example, would cost

nearly $737 billion, or 23 times as much.

Even in relatively mature emerging markets like Brazil and Russia that are unlikely to enjoy much in the way of future growth, have domestic equity trades at a 200 per cent to 300 per cent premium over what it would cost in Lagos.

The Nigerian economy is growing at an annualised rate well above six per cent, faster than any of the top-tier emerging markets, short of China itself, Kramer noted.

Youths invade community, set houses ablaze

BY EMMA UNA

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ALABAR — OKPOMA youths in Yala Local Government Area of Cross River State, have invaded the n e i g h b o u r i n g Igbekerokor community over a land dispute.

The youths, according to eye witness, invaded Igbekorekor community following fresh misunderstanding over the long-standing dispute over a farmland between the two communities, which several efforts to resolve had failed.

Mr. Matthias Odey, an eye-witness, said the youths with bands tied

round their heads chanting war songs, descended on the neighbouring community and set alight the houses located on their common border, daring the Igbekorikor youths to come out for battle.

“Those of us who went to work at the council secretariat in Okpoma were held up for several hours as no one dared to go near for obvious reasons,” Matthias said.

According to him, the aggrieved youths barricaded the only major road between the two communities for several hours and stopped people from crossing.

Mrs Efe Kofi dies at 44 MRS. EFE Kofi, is dead, aged 44.

She died in Warri after a brief illness on July 24, 2013.

Until her death, she was a senior teacher at Ekuigbo Grammar School, Ughelli,Delta State.

She is survived by her husband, five children and other relations.

According to the family announcement, she will be buried this Saturday family c o m p o u n d , Erhuemukohwarien in Ughelli North Local Government Area..

Late Efe Kofi

12 —Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013 — 13

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14—Vanguard d, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

9TH NIGERIAN GUILD OF EDITORS CONFERENCE IN ASABA, DELTA

Delta State Governor, Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan (left) and President Nigerian Guild of Editors, NGE, Femi Adesina during a courtesy From left: Publisher of Vanguard Newspapers, Mr. Sam Amuka; Publisher of Thisday visit on the Governor by executive of the NGE at the Government Newspapers, Chief Nduka Obaigbena and Dr. Tony Iredia, former DG, NTA during House, Asaba. the opening ceremony of the 9th Nigerian Guild of Editors Conference at the Event Centre, Asaba. Pix: Henry Unini and Nath Onojake.

From left: Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State, his Deputy, Professor Amos Utuama, President of Nigerian Guild of Editors, Mr. Femi Adesina and Professor Sylvester Monye.

From left: Mr. Oma Djebah, Senior Adviser Foreign Relations to Delta State Governor; Mr. Gbenga Adefaye, Editor-in-Chief/General Manager, Publication, Vanguard Newspaper; Mr Garbadeen Mohammed and Mr. Femi Adesina.

Mr. John Momoh, Chairman, Channels Television (left) in a tete-a-tete with Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State.

Mr Eniola Bello, MD, ThisDay Newspapers (left); Mr. Mideno Bayagbon, Editor, Vanguard Newspapers (middle); and other participants.

Cross sections of participants at the conference.

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Professor Sylvester Monye (left); Speaker, Delta State House of Assembly, Victor Ochie.

Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013 — 15

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16—Vanguard , FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

From left: Mrs Bukola Ladoja, President/Founder, Reading Awareness Society of Development in Africa, RASDA, HRM, Oba Kamorudeen Animashaun, Oloja of Epe, Lagos State and Alhaji Rasheed Ladoja, former Governor of Oyo State, at the grand finale of Read to Lead Africa Reality TV show, Season 2, at Neander International School, Epe, Lagos, yesterday.

Cross section of students at the event.

RASDA awards N2m scholarship to winner of RTLA reality TV show

BY DOTUN IBIWOYE

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AGOS—IN its effort to take reading crusade across Africa, winner of the Read To Lead Africa, RTLA, Reality TV Show, Season 2, Master Adegoke Similoluwa, was yesterday, presented with N2 million scholarship prize by Reading Awareness Society for Development in Africa, RASDA. RASDA is a Non-Governmental Organization, NGO, founded in 2007 with the aim of promoting reading culture in Africa through sustainable awareness campaigns.

Speaking, founder of RASDA, Mrs. Bukola Ladoja, said the senior secondary school students were major targets of the programme aimed at improving pass rate of the national examinations in the country through reading culture.

She said: “50 students from Osun State met the benchmark, while 68 from Rivers State scaled through. Based on simple ratio, the second stage selection test conducted, produced seven students from Osun State and nine from Rivers State. These 16 students made up the housemates for Read to Lead Africa Season 2. However, one participant did not turn up on resumption day in the House for the reality show.

“While in the House, the housemates were tutored in reading and writing skills, public speaking, leadership qualities, choosing a career and how to use a library.

Using the various learning experiences, housemates escaped eviction by engaging one another in various contests including quizzes, critical thinking, public speaking and debates, impromptu speeches, masterminds, library tasks, essay writing and many more tasks.

“Evenings and spare times were spent on recreational activities like excursions to tourist sites, sporting activities, moonlight games, and most especially reading.”

Dignitaries at the grand finale, held at Neander International School, Epe, Lagos included former governor of Oyo State, Sen. Rashidi Ladoja, Deputy Governor and Commissioner for Education, Osun State, Mrs. Titilayo Laoye-Tomori, the Oloja of Epe, Oba Kamorudeen Animashaun, Chairman, Amuwo Odofin Local Government Area, Lagos, Ayodele Adewale.

Mrs Tomori was represented by Mr. Olatunde Adebayo, Political Officer (Education), Deputy Governor’s Office, Osun State.

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Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013 — 17

Failure of Northern Elders

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Ethnic bigotry He reminisced about a time when the North was, in his view, devoid of religious or ethnic bigotry…and sadly informed his audience that the Sardauna’s dream - that Nigeria would be fully developed by l980 - had not been realised.

He claimed that Sardauna died a pauper, didn’t have a bank account or shares in any company and was so very different from today ’s “treasury looters”.

I am not sure that everything this fine Old School gentleman said can be historically authenticated. But I can feel his sorrow when he mournfully expressed a yearning for leaders who are “generous, kind and patriotic.”

I wish I could cheer Sule up by assuring him that this C M Y K

Sir Ahmadu Bello country will change significantly in the near future.

But I do not believe that a superior status quo is imminent. Frankly, the only horizon I see is a gloomy one.

And I’ve abandoned all hope of the land of my ancestors fulfilling its potential in my lifetime.

Sule is right to berate Northern leaders for messing up. But Northern leaders are not, by a long shot, the only enemies of serious, high-

,

CCORDING to elder statesman, Alhaji Yusuf Maitama Sule, who was once our Permanent Representative at the United Nations, the current Northern leadership has failed woefully because it has neglected the legacy of Sir Ahmadu Bello, the late Sardauna and Premier of Northern Nigeria.

Maitama Sule recently made these comments at a workshop for youths and claimed that the Sardauna’s ability to nurture both Muslims and Christians was one of the factors that had made the North a force to be reckoned with.

In an article that was written earlier on this week by my Vanguard colleague, AbdulSalam Muhammad, Sule was quoted as having said that he remembered the Sardauna helping to form the Northern Association of Christians of Nigeria, which later went national and became the Christian Association of Nigeria.

Alhaji Maitama Sule their energies on ultimately futile political shenanigans or irresponsible partying – as in womanising and quaffing vast quantities of insanely expensive booze. Too many of them are reluctant to doggedly concentrate on their duties and responsibilities.Too many of them allow their wives, girlfriends, cronies and relatives to massively misbehave.

Even the few who are smart, well-intentioned and willing

I am not sure that everything this fine Old School gentleman said can be historically authenticated; but I can feel his sorrow when he mournfully expressed a yearning for leaders who are “generous, kind and patriotic

octane progress.

Some Nigerian leaders are undoubtedly better than others. But ALL Nigerian leaders, Southerners included, are not doing nearly enough to drag we followers into the 21st century and enable us to enjoy the best possible existences.

The majority of Naija leaders are blatant thieves, incompetent morons, u n i n s p i r i n g mediocrities…and primitive, vision-less, plan-less or just plain lazy.

Too many of them squander

,

to control their acolytes are too easily distracted and pretty disorganised and unproductive compared to their counterparts in the Western world.

The worst thing about an amoral and toxic environment (in which integrity is in short supply and power is routinely abused) is that such societies and systems rarely reward

decency or talent, make fools of individuals who aren’t crooks or half-wits and eventually, at the end of the day, corrupt almost every citizen.

I have watched Nigerians who are not naturally dishonest, cynical, greedy or treacherous - wearily or angrily deciding, after they’ve endured multiple frustrations, that it’s best to join “Them” if one cannot beat “Them”.

I weep silently when I see poets, actresses, artists, activists and academics practically kneeling down for guys who are only “important” because they stole money that belongs to the general public or got away with rigging elections.

I have personally experienced the negative consequences of NOT stealing government funds when the chance to do so arose (please note that instead of praising me for keeping my fingers out of the till, people irritably or mockingly accused me of idiocy and refused to help me when I needed help, on the grounds that it was my “fault” that I didn’t have illgotten millions stashed away).

ANYWAY, Maitama Sule has made some valid points; and, at the risk of sounding sectional, I would like to ask

Northern leaders who have been chronically failing for decades why they think they can out-perform President Goodluck Jonathan.

I grant you that Jonathan’s regime has been disappointing. But what evidence is there to suggest that a Northerner will be any less disappointing?

Colonial authorities Why, to cut a long story short, are Northerners so doggedly convinced that they will be morally entitled to take over from Jonathan if he loses the next election?

In 2010, when Nigeria was celebrating the 50 th anniversary of its Independence from British colonial authorities, the Presidency had been controlled by Northerners for 38 out of 50 years. And I don’t recall any Northern Head of State performing spectacularly when Northerners were ruling the roost.

So what is all this sanctimonious and hypocritical wahala about how Jonathan has screwed up so badly that we need a Northerner to rescue us from misrule?!

Responses to: donzol2002@yahoo.co.uk or to 0802 747 6458 or 081 1675 9752 (texts only). PLEASE KINDLY NOTE THAT UNLESS YOU REQUEST ANONYMITY, YOUR COMMENTS MAY BE PUBLISHED, WITH YOUR NAMES AND CONTACT DETAILS ATTACHED.

18 — Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013 AN erroneous belief that the relevance of oil approximates to the life span of Nigeria’s oil reserves partially fuels the contentment with which the authorities treat the diversification of the economy. Concerns over the dependence of the economy on oil raged more than three decades ago, now the issue is total dependence on oil, yet the matter is discussed as one of several issues beleaguering Nigeria.

No, oil is about the only issue that makes and mars Nigeria with a rapacity that is lost on Nigerian leaders. Nigeria is mostly about oil and its depleting consequences on developing our national resources, some of which are in more abundance and could provide more multiplier effects on the economy than oil.

Oil devastates with a rapidity few enterprises impose on its surroundings. The billions of Dollars it heaves into national coffers kills thoughts for the perpetual penury its exploration ordains for the surroundings. Agitations for equitable use of oil resources fail too in securing renewal of the ruined environment.

Perhaps more frightening, with all the positions on laying more solid foundations for the economy, y awayy from the volatilityy of oil, not much

Nigeria’s Oily Economy has been done in the more than 40 years oil assumed podium position in our economy.

Oil could become irrelevant quicker than the most optimistic predictions. Its damages to the environment, its unpredictable high prices that task planning even for the most advanced economies, the West’s inability to control the vital resource, are increasing the pace of searches for alternatives to oil.

Plans for the Nigerian economy are primed on oil. They would have been as simple as reinvesting some oil revenue in other sectors of the economy. They have remained unimplemented.

According to the World Bank’s Nigeria Economic Report for May 2013, ““Despite the recovery in oil prices, Nigeria expanded its fiscal stimulus significantly, increasing consolidated spending by an estimated 2.5 per cent of Gross Domestic Product, GDP, and drawing down the remaining balance of the Excess Crude Account at the same time that many other oil exporters were building back their reserves.”

Oil still accounts for 95 per cent of exports and 75 per cent of consolidated budgetary revenues. its mismanagement throws the economy into a spin. When the prices dip, or more thieves help themselves to the oil, as seems to be the case now, the economy wheels almost to a halt.

The annual conference of the Nigerian Guild of Editors themed ‘Nigeria Beyond Oil’ that began in Asaba yesterday is drumming more attention to the precariousness of oil-based economy.

Without a thorough planning of the economy, an indiscernible future awaits Nigerians. Our governments should rescue Nigerians from the blight of oil.

OPINION BY Y KINGSLEY EMEREUWA

I

N one of my recent articles published in some national dailies, I did raise my discomfort with the wave of abuse which the social media via the Internet is presently enmeshed in. I took Abia as a case study. My reason for the choice of Abia is unarguably obvious. Not quite long after my position was made known, I read one of the most wicked and mindless posts courtesy of Saharareporters all calculated at maligning the government of Abia State under the stewardship of Chief Theodore Ahamefule Orji. In its latest onslaught, the gladiators in their usual manner stood the the truth on its head.

The most bizarre of all was its poisoned chalice to readers that the beneficiaries of State Youth Empowerment Scheme were made to pay for the vehicles that were issued to them. Of course such blanket lies do gain myopia believers. The Internet came alive with comments from mostly jaundiced scoundrels who love to hate the name Ochendo. While recently I sat quietly in a public gathering where commentators rose in strong discountenance of the worthless report, I felt inward joy that albeit all mundane efforts by detractors, the average Abia indigene is not unmindful of the political mixture of wheat with chaff otherwise known as “mixkogbuo” in local parlance to hoodwink ignorant masses.

What has remained a puzzle to me and should be to all discerning minds is whether Saharareporters for its obvious disdain for Abia State woke up and went to town with the story or that its reporters spoke to some

D i g the h Abia Abi assault l dogs d gs Deconstructing gs of the beneficiaries of the Scheme who made such allegation.

I was and am still one of those who believe that the government was carrying too much burden in giving out a Toyota Sienna free of charge to any person under whatever guise or considerations.

Empowerment, yes. The government owes it as its obligation to its citizens but there is also a corollary obligation on the part of the same citizens. There is no free meal any where and not even in Freetown. Even in the so-called developed countries, quite a number of our frustrated nationals rush to escape perseverance, citizenship or residency demands and obligations are non-negotiable as manifested in system and rate of taxation.

Like I stated in my expressed opinion, my knowledge of the feelings of the average Abia man does not in any way suggest that these actions syndicating falsehood have any bearing directly or indirectly on how the people of Abia see their Governor. The fellowship and follower ship are devoid of any form of adulteration.

For record purposes, there are various volunteer agents on the “Project Destroy Abia” who would leave no stone unturned to bring the state to opprobrium. They come in different styles and approaches armed with their target missiles of destruction, without any regard for their casualties. In military parlance, they are called mercenaries, while media practitioners brand them hack writers.

They write for their fee, not minding whose ox is gored. For these men, once the fee is right, they can kill their mothers and later go begging to be admitted into the nearest motherless babies home.

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ake the case of one self-styled political poet with the media identity, Odimegwu Onwumere. Each time he is doing a “damage” to “ that Ochendo man” you will see a man at pain, like the Biblical Pilate, to condemn an innocent man but will however do it since some interests must be assuaged and at the end of it all “man must wack”.

It is in the state of this moral imprisonment that the man must find fault in every action of the government, whether utopian or political. What more? Each time he writes, he dedicates space to anticipated reprisals from the government spokespersons because he knows he is being used to stir the hornet’s nest. It is not unlikely that his command is where the reporters of Sowore will likely see those unnamed sources who told them they paid for the vehicles given to them. In the course of this mission to Abia, I have read the likes of Onwumere allege what government was giving out to beneficiaries in terms of empowerment were tricycles and I laughed.

I laughed because the writer was like the proverbial bird at the bush path dancing to the tunes played by the spirits somewhere inside that bush. I laughed because if he was the poet who brands himself, he should

know more than the ignorance he advertised. And if he knew, he would have remembered that there was a time those spirit beating the drums he was dancing to were empowering the youths of the state with WHEEL BARROWS and we cheered because that was what was within the vision and resources of those in-charge then. That is if our friend as a poet knew. What many Nigerians do surely know and pretend not to is that issue of pecuniary interests in today’s writing and commentaries. Majority of the Internet scam apprentices have found an untapped revenue base in the area of using the Internet to blackmail. The negative advantages are quite unlimited since there is no minimal qualification to get on board and regulation is still elementary. All sorts of stench are now dumped on the site. Many failed writers and journalist are now successful bloggers.

But that may be another innovation towards strengthening our economy, but at what price?

Just recently, one notorious blogger was accused by no less a person than a man of God for making inappropriate financial demands in lieu of a so-called damaging story. What again is the surname of blackmail other than this from the highly sanctimonious blogger who had in 2011 made similar demands on the government of Abia State if the state wants her to softpedal on her position over the now confirmed false news of alleged gang rape in Abia State University. * Mr. Emereuwa, a commentator on national issues, wrote from Umuahia, Abia State.

9 Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013— —1 19

I

T was in the days that followed the January 1, 1966 coup that the young officers that took the reins of leadership started making some slogans popular.

These slogans included: "No Nepotism", "No corruption", “No ethnicity ". All types of "isms" filled speeches from these young military leaders, and thus, ethnicity became one of the major problems of Nigeria.

Is ethnicity the problem of Nigeria, or is it Nigerians that chose to abuse ethnicity for their individual and group selfish interests? The period after Nigeria’s independence in 1960 saw a very healthy competition between the major tribes in Nigeria, with cocoa leading in the economic growth in South West, groundnut and cereals in the North, with palm produce and root crops in the South East.

Ethnicity was an instrument of development until someone used it to garner votes for political and economic gains of one of the zones, the South West, following which, the military elevated the abuse of ethnicity to an unimaginable level. A mistake in the execution of the 1966 coup was viewed with a mind full of vengeance, and desire to take

over the ruler ship and dominium of Nigeria by some military officers from the Northern zone, such that they launched a counter-coup, followed by genocide against the Igbos in the North, leading the country to a 30-month civil war. But these officers kept blaming ethnicity as their reason.

Ever since the ‘Araba’ of 1966 in the North of Nigeria, the life of an Igbo man means very little to an average Northerner till date. That is why the Igbos could be killed in the North and nothing is done; foreigners would be killed there and nothing is done. Thus, they continued to the stage we are now where the only post a Northerner wants in any election is to fill the presidential flag bearer slot, be it in PDP, APC or PDM. This is why the deportation of Igbos by any state becomes very infuriating, because it is based in ethnic hatred. They kill you without provocation, and say if they are not made president, they will kill even more; Then they deport your weak ones, and if you cry foul, you will be reminded that you are the ethnic jingoist, you peddle trouble, you want to drag them back, or remind them of things they have forgotten. Yet, they have manifested more ethnic bias in

all they do!

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here is nothing wrong with ethnicity. It can make and create avenues for healthy competition in economic development and growth, as it did in times past. It can be used to enhance the fair and even distribution of the gains of good governance. It can be used to build a great, virile and prosperous nation state. The problem lies not in the nature of ethnicity, but in the minds and hearts of those who use and abuse ethnicity for their own selfish gains. The Bible declares that as a man thinks, so he is, thus as we have used ethnicity in Nigeria. That is how we ended up in this rigmarole of failures, and wickedness.

You just asked how? The knife and axe were invented by man,

Emerging Nigeria: Between America and China

BY YUSHAU SHUAIB

A

T a time when Nigeria’s President Goodluck Jonathan was visiting China and American President Barak Obama was rounding off his tour of selected African countries, excluding Nigeria, a new book on the economy Emerging Africa: How the Global Economy’s last frontiers Can Prosperr was released.

The book by Kingsley Moghalu, a Deputy Governor at the Central Bank of Nigeria highlights major causes of African underdevelopment from what he called “failure to develop, articulate, internalise and propagandise a world view.”

When it comes to image-building, a national leader must rise up and project the dignity of his country as a nation to be reckoned with in global politics without being too overzealous or confrontational like the late Muammar Ghaddafi of Libya, Saddam Hussein of Iraq and Roberts Mugabe of Zimbabwe. Apart from the undisclosed politics behind the Chinese tour, President Goodluck Jonathan, who led a multi-sectoral high-powered delegation comprising influential cabinet members, chieftains of industries, governors and politicians to the Asian superpower, also met and invited top executives of several Chinese conglomerates to initiate fresh investments in Nigeria.

At the end of the tour, Jonathan and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, presided over the signing of five agreements to boost financial, trade, economic, technical and cultural relations that could expand Nigeria’s domestic manufacturing capacity.

The questions on many lips are whether Nigeria is now tilting more towards Asian Tigers rather than its traditional allies in the West. Moghalu’s book points out that the idea of socialism in Asia and capitalism C M Y K

,

in the West do not really matter as most countries practice different types of capitalism. He noted that state capitalism is practiced in China; crony capitalism in Russia and to some extent, Nigeria; welfare capitalism in Europe and entrepreneurial capitalism is practiced in the United States.

An African country like Nigeria, the author insisted, must develop its clear worldview based on fundamental understanding of globalisation that will enable it to identify and protect its interests.

He also warns African leaders against turning their countries to a destination of consumers of the products of globalisation.

Nigeria as the most populous country in Africa is a strategic partner to both America and China who are recognised as military and economic superpowers. A recent report in The Guardian of London disclosed that “China’s GDP per capita was $9,100, whereas the US boasted a figure of $48,900. There is also an extreme contrast in the respective current account balance the US has the world’s largest deficit burden, while China has the world’s greatest budget surplus.

In its series of exclusive interviews with top diplomats in Nigeria, the Economic Confidentiall magazine published interviews with US Ambassador to Nigeria, Terrence P. Mc Culley and his Chinese counterpart, Ambassador Deng Boqing in November and December 2012, respectively.

The two top diplomats in the separate interviews agreed that Nigeria has enormous internal and huge regional market for foreign investors. They also admit that one of Nigeria’s most important resources, outside oil and gas, is its energetic, dynamic and diverse people who have remained together despite speaking over 250 languages by different ethnic groups.

While Amb. McCulley explained that

,

BY CLEMENT UDEGBE

,

Blame not ethnicity for Nigeria's failures

There is nothing wrong with ethnicity; the problem lies not in the nature of ethnicity, but in the minds and hearts of those who use and abuse ethnicity for their own selfish gains

to help him survive his environment as a hunter, but one bad man started by killing his own relation with the knife, and so, when a bad man handles a knife, his environment becomes dangerous for any one near him.

You cannot blame the knife. The aeroplane was invented to improve man’s transportation on earth, but one bad man decided to use the aeroplane as a weapon of mass destruction. Do you blame the plane or the man piloting it?

After the Dayton shoot out in the USA, where 18 children were brutally killed, the Gun Association in defense of the gun, came out with this slogan: "A gun in the hand of a good man can save the society". You can't blame the gun; it is the man carrying the gun who makes it a dangerous weapon.

Ethnicity has been used to fill the Federal Civil Service with officers who lacked merit and performance. An officer would be transferred from any Northern state to the Federal Service, he was quickly promoted, and is moved ahead of his seniors in the system from the other zones, especially the South East. The result is mediocrity, darkness, bad roads, poor health facilities, terrible education system, poor Prison Service. We import oil with no refineries, high unemployment, and list goes on.

In most Federal Government departments, you often find a man with just a collection of training course certificates from the North bossing men from the South East, or other zones, with Master ’s Degree and longer service years, all because the boss

Nigeria should not only look towards the East or the West, it should also create an enabling environment to attract genuine investors devoid of diplomatic rhetoric; it should also encourage more export of non-oil items

,

U.S. development assistance to Nigeria exceeds $600 million with more than $5 billion in U.S. investment, the Chinese Ambassador told the same magazine that the accumulated investment from China exceed US$10 billion while its nonfinancial direct investment was $8.7bn as at December 2012.

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urprisingly while Nigeria is the fifth largest crude oil supplier to USA, its crude export to China is relatively lower, which only constitutes 1% to 2% of Nigeria’s total crude export. Meanwhile, Nigeria is the fourth largest trade partner and the second largest export market for China in Africa. In 2011, Nigerian farmers exported 1.1million metric ton of cassava chips to China.

The United States supports Nigeria’s national priorities, especially the national security. Apart from supporting the health sector in containing malaria, eradicating polio, and helping millions of Nigerians living with HIV/AIDS, through USAID, the American government has an agric-sector programme called MARKETS, which supports farmers needing technical assistance to improve crop yield. It is also committed to assisting Nigeria’s efforts to

is from the North. Everyone is benefiting from ethnicity yet blame ethnicity.

There are disputes, conflicts, and issues within each zone in Nigeria, be it Yoruba, Hausa or Igbo, yet you still hear ethnically biased people say that the Igbo man cannot become President, because Igbos are not united. No zone is more united than the Igbo people. Their problem is that they have not learnt to play the Nigerian ethnic game.

Yor ubas have two major seaports, and airports. The North has two major international airports, while the Igbo zone had none at all. Only yesterday, Ethiopian Airlines announced flights to Enugu, 43 years after the civil war. Not one single seaport, yet over 40 percent of seaport users in Nigeria are Igbo men! Prof. Chinua Achebe rejected national honours on two occasions to protest the gang-up politics by others against the people of Anambra State. Thus, we hope that the parameters and standards used in the recent Ondo and Edo states’ gubernatorial elections will be applied in Anambra State, come November. There is no problem with ethnicity per se, the problem is with the mind and hands that are holding ethnicity as their instrument of oppression in the country.

*Mr. Udegbe, a lawyer, wrote from Lagos.

reform the power generation and hydrocarbon sectors.

On the other side, China’s wide range investment covers sectors such as petroleum, free trade zone, iron and steel, agriculture, manufacturing, pharmacy and mining. It has offered to establish three petroleum refineries in Bayelsa, Kogi and Lagos states and is committed to other projects which include railway rehabilitation, power generation, telecommunications projects as well as the provision of houses in Nigeria.

Ambassador McCulley added that “Nigeria is a country blessed with both abundant human and natural resources, and the United States seeks partnership not dependency; we seek to build capacity not undermine local initiatives.”

The Chinese Ambassador stated that “China has been an active player in economic globalization and integrated itself with the rest of the world with an open attitude, strengthened exchanges and cooperation."

While America is deeply involved in democratic or political processes in many countries, China is more concerned with business interests, especially in developing countries. As the second largest economy in the world with the foreign exchange reserve reaching US$3 trillion, China has enormous capacity to invest outside its shore. Its increasing investment in Africa is influenced by the reluctance of traditional economic partners such as US, Europe to invest in the continent due to their debt crises.

Nigeria should not only look towards the East or the West alone, it should also create an enabling environment to attract genuine investors devoid of diplomatic rhetoric and political grandstanding. It should also encourage more export of non-oil item, especially agriculture products. The government should explore pragmatic means of turning Nigeria into a major manufacturing zone in Africa.

*Mr. Shuaib, a commentator on national issues, wrote from Abuja.

2 20 0 —V d, Vanguard g 20—

Y,, AUGUST 23 3, 2 013 3 FRIDAY FRIDAY, Y 2013

*Hoodlums on rampage during an Isemo festival

Isemo: When women lose freedom of movement to tradition •Seek intervention of Lagos govt to curb excesses of adherents

BY BOSE ADELAJA

OME call it Isemo, while others call it Igbele but whatever it is called, the meaning is the same: An age-old Yoruba traditional rite that imposes a restriction of movement on women at a certain period or occasion. Depending on some factors, Isemo is an annual tradition in some Yoruba-based communities observed to appease the gods and to ward off impending danger.

At its inception in the olden days, Igbele practice or observance was the exclusive preserve of the elders in the community, though the youths were carried along for the purpose of instructing them on the rules guiding the practice and its strict adherence in line with the rigorous demand of tradition.

The practice restricts women in every capacity regardless of race, tribe or position. On such occasions, women are denied the freedom to move from one place to another and the erring ones are made to face the wrath of the gods, including being ostracised, maiming or loss of life as the event is totally a men’s affair.

During this traditional rite, which usually starts by midnight when

S

residents have returned from work, some men, especially the elderly, usually take position at strategic locations to ensure that no unpleasant incident occurrs.

This is said to account for why the practice was widely accepted, especially in the light of the protection extended to women while it lasts.

Isemo is usually accompanied

by Oro’ or Eluku festival but the bottom line is that women are restricted in every capacity as the organisers use the occasion to pray for the peace of the land as well as security of lives and property, just as the gods are called upon to fight the cause of the land.

Hijack by hoodlums In days past when the practice held sway under strict obervance, robbery, kidnapping, bombings were rare as perpetrators of such acts dread the wrath of the gods.

Nowadays, the reverse is the case, as the occasion has been hijacked by hoodlums, especially in Lagos State. Believe it or not, Igbele is now an avenue to perpetrate nefarious acts like kidnapping, robbery, rape, theft, smoking of Indian hemp or

drunkenness. Apart from coming without prior notice, Igbele e has over the years been reduced to a notorious event during which the hoodlums take the law into their

hands, unleashing terror on their victims. A case in point was in 2011 when some shops were burgled overnight around Ebute in Ikorodu. Disturbed by the ugly

development, the traditional ruler had vowed then to deal with the culprits.

In the ‘70s, my late mother, Mrs Abike Oyedele, a trader, usually embarked on a business trip to Osun and Oyo states (usually a night journey) and on one of such occasions, she took this reporter along on medical ground. On getting to a village called Elekokan, my mother and 12 other women in the lorry, who were deeply asleep were jolted awake by an unusual noise which prompted the driver of the lorry to shout on top of his voice in Yoruba language: Eewo! E d’oju yin bo’le (This is forbidden!

Please lie down and cover your face!!).

Like a divine intervention, some elders in the community intervened and assisted these travellers by leading them to the Baale’s house for shelter before they were asked to continue their journey through another route.

If it had been in Lagos State of today, the nation probably would have lost all the travellers, including children on that fateful day. In another incident in August 2012, this reporter and many other women slept on the road to avoid falling victim to hoodlums masquerading as Igbele adherents at Igbogbo in Ikorodu. Also, on June 3, 2013, many Ikorodu women were forced to remain indoors, reason being that Isemo o was ongoing in Ikorodu town.

A couple of months back, some women in Itire were forced to stay indoors when the community organised the Isemo festival for the year 2013. The same applies to places like Egan, Ajah and Ikorodu where women have raised alarm over the curtailment of their right to freedom of movement.

Iyana Ejigbo: At last, motorists heave sigh of relief

BY AZEEZ SANUSI

M

OTORISTS and other road users ply ing the Jakande/Ejigbo/Ikotun route presently have cause to sigh in relief with the on-going rehabilitation and reconstruction of the failed and flood-prone road intersection at Iyana Ejigbo that has been notorious for frequent traffic bottlenecks, a nightmare for several years.

More heartening, according to residents and road users, is the current effort to fix the drainage challenge believed to be responsible for the frequent flooding of the place any time it rains.

On why it has taken government this long to respond to the drainage problem at Iyana Ejigbo, the Local Government Chairman, Ejigbo Local Council Development Area, Lagos State, Kehinde Bamigbetan, speaking through the Council’s Information Officer, Rabiu Hassan, said that portion of the road was always water logged, thereby impeding vehicular movement.

He added that the situation was worsened by the fact that “for years now, we have been experiencing serious flooding each time we are in the raining season”.

On why major actions were not taken in the past to remedy the situation, he explained thus: “Initially, we thought the problem was a minor one; last year, we provided many palliative measures on that spot but all to no avail, it did not

yield any solution. So he (the LCDA chairman) concluded that we needed to visit the Ministry of the Environment. When he approached them, they came to inspect the place and discovered that government needed to concretize the drainage that was constructed to channel water to the Egbe bridge canal. So, we needed to dig below the drainage so that there would be more space for the water. This is the final solution or permanent solution to the problem of flood in that area”.

Rabiu also informed that: “According to the construction firm, they will use about four months to finish up the job. And since the rain has stopped, it is likely they will complete the work before that target of four months. What the company wants to do in essence is to provide a concrete channel, drainage outlet for the water to find its way into the canal. It is after they might have completed their work that the road will now be tarred so that the problem will be over once and for all”.

Bakare Akeem, resident engineer Oshodi Isolo informed that the dimension of the drain is 1.5 by 1.5, that is 1.5 meter depth and 1.5 meter width, assuring that “I am sure that this drain will actually de-flood this road because the capacity of the flood is not much compared to the capacity of this drain, it will definitely deflood Iyana-Ejigbo.”

Vanguard, FRIDAY Y, AUGUST 23, 2013 — 21

BY YINKA KOLAWOLE

T

he partnership agree ment between Master Card Incorporated and the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) for the roll out of national identity cards in the country will enhance financial inclusion and boost the cashless policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Vice President & Area Business Head West Africa, MasterCard, Omokehinde Ojomuyide, speaking at a media roundtable in Lagos, said that when the project becomes fully operational, it will be the largest financial inclusion project in Africa, adding that the company is providing prepaid card payment technology on worldwide network, and m/chip 4 standards with EMV technology for security of the National ID cards.

“MasterCard is providing brand mark to guarantee acceptance of the cards as a payment instrument in 210 countries across the world, at over 35 million merchant locations and over 2 million ATMs.” She noted that the card will be available to every registered Nigerian citizens who are 16 years old and above, and enable holders make payments without having bank accounts. “The National ID card is pre-paid. You don’t have to own a bank account to use the cards to make payment, only need to load the cards,”she added.

Ojomuyide remarked that the use of card payment technology reduces cost of cash transactions, which according to her, ranges between 0.5 per cent and 1.5 per cent of Gross Domestic Product of many cou-

National ID card’ll enhance financial inclusion — MasterCard

From left: Lazarus Angbazo, President and CEO, GE Nigeria; Darryl Wilson, Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer, Distributed Power, GE Africa; Akeem Agbaje, Chairman/CEO Entec Power and Utilities Company Limited, Nigeria during the signing of a Letter of Intent in Nairobi, Kenya. tries. These, she noted, include costs of currency printing and distribution, security and handling, as well as lost time associated with queuing to withdraw cash. She also noted that social costs associated with corruption and other vices such as robbery, terrorism financing and kidnapping are facilitated huge

cash transactions. All these she asserted would be addressed by the use of the pre-paid national ID cards, noting that the project will reduce the number of the unbanked and underbanked in the country, as well as reduce the costs associated with cash transactions. She further noted that the card can also minimize fraud because

the integrated data base will serve as a form of credit registry, with all biometric data of holders captured.

According to her, the pilot phase of the project will commence before the end of the year with the issuance of 13 million MasterCard-branded national identity smart cards with electronic payment capa-

Che vr on, Shell pull out of Olok ola LNG pr oject Chevr vron, Olokola project

By MICHAEL EBOH

F

our years after BG Group divested from Olokola LNG project, two other International Oil Companies, IOC, Chevron and Shell, have pulled out, a source has said.

Both companies have a combined shareholding of 39 per cent in the project, having 19.5 per cent stake each in the company.

According to the source, a senior official in the company, the pulling out of the oil majors is due to a number of factors, ranging from the lack of commitment onthe part of the Federal Government to pursue the completion of the project and also the non-passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB However, efforts to get the comments of the companies regarding the development, proved abortive, as Mr. Pre-

cious Okolobo and Mr. Kayode Adeboye, spokespersons for Shell and Chevron, respectively, refused to respond to enquiries put forward to them.

When contacted, both men promised to respond to the issue, but as at the time of going to press, their responses were yet to be received.

BG Group, the United Kingdom’s third-largest natural gas producer, had in August 2009, said it was pulling out from the LNG export project.

The Olokola LNG project was initiated in 2005, with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, as the major shareholder, with 46.75 per cent stake, while BG Group, which had earlier withdrawn, has 14.25 per cent.

The source said the project, which is the most cost-effective LNG project in Nigeria, if al-

lowed to come on stream, would have served as a major contributor to Nigeria’s economy development.

According to the source, a number of projects already undertaken at the site, risk being abandoned, such as the pioneer camp among others.

The source said, “The project was going ahead of schedule, all of a sudden, funding ceased.”

The Olokola Liquefied Natural Gas project is located between Ogun and Ondo States.

The project was solidified in 2007 with the signing of an MOU between the shareholders. The plan of the project was for gas producers/owners to send natural gas to the facility where it would be converted to LNG for a fee and pumped into owner ships for sale.

The source said the frustration stems from the fact that

many years after the memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed, nothing concrete has been recorded.

According to the source, the MoU and shareholders agreement were signed in 2005 and 2007 respectively, Final Investment Decision was billed for 2007, while production was scheduled to begin in 2009; till date nothing concrete is seen.

“Presently, all the expatriates have left; the only people remaining are NNPC’s staff on secondment to the company and a few contract staff.”

bility by the partner banks in the country. “All necessary protocols have been observed and the necessary technologies have been deployed for the issuers,” she said, adding that there are presently about 14 banks licensed to issue the cards while licensing procedures for other banks are ongoing, with the ultimate aim that all banks in the country will be able to issue the cards.

114.15

-0.8

2,417.00 -60.00 16.37 109.92

-0.1 -0.23

104.65 -0.46 CURRENCY BUYING CENTRAL

SELLING

154.76 155.26 242.8803 243.665 207.2701 207.9397 168.3272 168.871 1.5876 1.5927 0.297 0.307 235.1526 235.9124 25.2706 25.3527 41.266 41.3994 27.7861 27.8758 235.9007 236.6628

155.76 244.4497 208.6094 169.4148 1.5979 0.317 236.6721 25.4348 41.5327 27.9656 237.425

DOLLAR STERLING EURO FRANC YEN CFA WAUA RENMINBI RIYAL KRONA SDR

CBN Exchange rate as at 22/08/2013

2 22 2 V g d, FRIDAY Y, AUGUST 23, 2013 22—Vanguard,

Audit c’ttees should challenge managements’ conclusion

BY BABAJIDE KOMOLAFE

A

UDIT Committee mem bers should not accept management’s assertions and statements but ask probing questions and challenge their conclusions.

This charge was given by Mr. Gernot Hebestreit, Global Leader, Business Development and Markets, Grant Thornton International Limited, in a keynote address delivered at the Audit Committee Conference organised by the Audit Committee Institute in Lagos “Please allow me to conclude with one aspect which is particularly important to me, the courage

it takes to be an audit committee member and in making this statement, I draw on my own experience as a non-executive director and audit committee member. Our role is not to accept management’s assertions and statements at face value. We need to apply a critical mind set, ask probing questions and challenge conclusions. In short, we need to speak out and have difficult conversations. Only when we act in this capacity and still agree with management should we approve what needs to be approved at any given point of time,” he said.

Speaking on the theme of the conference, “The Audit

Committee as a Governance Gatekeeper”, Gernot said, “Oversight function is a key aspect of gate-keeping. Oversight involves watchful and responsible monitoring of the affairs of the entity. Gatekeepers also need to be informed because having all relevant information enables them to perform the role society expects of them. In this contex,t it is important to note that the audit committee should not just wait until it receives information from management, or external or internal auditors, but should also proactively request information from them as and when needed. Further, audit committee members should not

shy away from difficult conversations with management as part of their oversight role. It is the nature of the audit committee’s role to challenge management and only to reach a conclusion after a robust discussion of the underlying issues.

“While these are all important attributes, I believe that the most critical success factors for an effective audit committee are the competence and integrity of its individual members. In gate-keeping, competence and integrity are equally important, being multiplicative in their relationship.

It takes competence to discern financial reporting flaws. But it takes integrity

Conoil half year revenue up by N3.4bn

BY PETER EGWUATU & NKIRUKA NNOROM

C

ONOIL Plc has recorded impres sive result with a revenue growth of N3.4 billion for the six months period ended June 30, 2013.

Specifically, the company’s revenue rose to N79.6 billion from N76.2 billion, while Earnings Per Share (EPS) increased significantly from 65kobo to 230 kobo.

According to the result released on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), Conoil recorded a Profit After Tax (PAT) of N1.6 billion for the half year financial period ended June 30, 2013. This represents an increase of 255 percent over N450.9 million recorded in the corresponding period of 2012.

In a statement issued by the company, management stated that the performance demonstrated the company’s resilience to overcome the overwhelming challenges in the downstream oil sector.

The company also declared a whopping N1.98 billion as profit before tax as against N663.1 million recorded in the corresponding half year period in 2012.

Revenue rose to N79.6 billion from N76.2 billion, while Earnings per Share (EPS) increased significantly from 65kobo to 230 kobo.

The company attributed this sterling performance to the adoption of robust growth strategies, efficient management of resources and total elimination of waste in its operations.

The company assured its shareholders of its optimism to sustain and grow the impressive performance in the remaining six months of the year. It also assured juicier returns for shareholders at the end of the current financial year

Ecobank sets up department to finance SMEs President of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), Alhaji Kabir Mohammed (2nd left); Mr. Akintaola Williams, immediate Past President of ICAN (2nd right); Mr. Adedoyin Owolabi and Registrar/Chief Executive of ICAN Mr. Rotimi Omotoso during a visit of ICAN team to Akintola Williams on the occasion of his 94th birthday.

eTranzact partners MoneyGram on money transfer

BY PETER EGWUATU & MAGREGOR ZINO

A

S part of its support for the cashless initiative by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, eTranzact International Plc, a quoted company on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) has signed an agreement with MoneyGram on money transfer via mobile phone.

Speaking during the signing ceremony, the Managing Director/ CEO –eTranzact International Plc, Mr. Valentine Obi, who was represented by Mrs. Eme Godwin, Head of Legal Department of the company,

said, “ Today marks a turning point in the way we receive funds from our associates and loved ones abroad. Gone are the days when we needed to travel long distances and go through long queues to receive money sent to us by our relatives. We now have a solution that makes it possible for us to receive our money as soon as it is sent, even outside the banking hours- at night, on weekends and on public holidays.”

He noted that the money transfer via mobile phone will add exceptional convenience to how people receive mon-

ey at no additional cost.

“We have reduced extra cost you bear travelling far to receive your money and we have made it possible to receive your money at any time of the day, including weekends, evenings and nights “ he added.

Obi explained that for any person to enjoy the service, the person must register as PocketMoni subscriber with eTranzact, stressing that the process of registration is easy and that no person is required to carry any identity validation documents about to receive money.

The Business Development Manager, Money Gram , Kemi Okusanya,

in her remark said, ‘’It is the realisation that mobile phone has come to stay and will become more powerful and integrated in our lives that prodded the move for us to come out with this mode of money transfer .

“As we all know, remittances are a key aspect of our financial sector and economy. Indeed, some estimates from the World Bank indicate that we get more in remittances from friends and family than donor aids. That transfer from an aunt in London, a brother in Garbon , an aunt in the US, a friend in France is what keeps us going.”

To this extent, she encouraged Nigerians to be part of the PocketMoni in order to enjoy the MoneyGram money transfer, noting that eTransact is a household name in terms of mobile money services.

BYPETEREGWUATU

I

N its bid to boost the Nigerian econo my, Ecobank Nigeria Plc has concluded arrangement to set up a microfinance department to support small business owners in the country.

These groups of people constitute the unstructured market and are small entrepreneurs whose businesses are below the range of a million naira.

According to a statement from the bank, the Development Finance Department of the Bank would give out small loans to this category of entrepreneurs at special and flexible rates and the use of identification methods.

Ecobank Head, Development Finance, Felix Oyakhamoh who stated this during a chat with the media in Lagos, said small business owners that cut across artisans, traders, small time farmers amongst others qualify for this special window. The beneficiaries do not necessarily need collaterals, but guarantors to collect the loans.

According to Oyakhamoh, the Bank has dedicated staff in select branches of the bank in the six geo-political regions of the country to attend to customers who fall within this loan bracket. In his words “We are dedicated to rejuvenation of the wealth creation process in Nigeria. Our ultimate goal is to empower as well as provide financial services to the otherwise down trodden, being part of our financial inclusion drive.”

Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013 — 23

Aba Summit targets SMEs, infrastructure

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HE Minister of Transport, Idris Umar, has said that the Onitsha, Oguta, Baro and Lokoja River Ports would be concessioned by 2014.

Mr. Umar stated this in an interview with the Europe correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria in London.

Apart from Onitsha River Port, which has already been inaugurated, the others are still under construction.

“We have inaugurated the River port in Onitsha, and will concession it next year, while the river ports in Oguta, and Baro will hopefully be completed this year and concessioned to the private sector next year.

“Also the Lokoja Port will be completed by the third quarter of 2014, and will be given out on concession to private operators immediately,’’ Umar said.

He said that the ministry was also working on the dredging of the River Benue, and planned to construct river port in Makurdi.

Meanwhile, the minister in a presentation at the International Maritime Summit in London briefed stakeholders on government’s effort to develop deep sea ports in the country.

“This is the ultimate solution to the over stretched existing ports facility, a memorandum is being presented to the Federal Executive Council to approve the development of the Lekki Deep Sea Port in Lagos.

“While in the case of Ibaka Deep Sea Port in Akwa Ibom State, a steering and project implementation committee has been constituted.

T

RELOCATION — A male farmer, queuing to collect his cheque. INSET: Farmers queuing to collect their cheques.

Onitsha, Lokoja, Baro River ports to be concessioned next year — MINISTER “Also discussions are in progress between the Nigeria Ports Authority, Lagos State Government and the private sector to develop the Badagry Deep Sea Port.”

He also highlighted the various investment opportunities in the maritime sector, and reforms put in place to safeguard investments.

Dalhatu Tafida, Nigeria’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, U.K., in his remarks said that the maritime sector remained a key

Thailand to help Nigeria in rice, cassava production ...trade to hit $3bn

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HAILAND is to ASSIST Nigeria to improve the local production of rice so as to reduce the importation of the commodity and to add value to cassava production.

The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Kingdom of Thailand, Mr. Surapong Tovichakchaikul, has said in Abuja, while signing a Memorandum of Understanding on the establishment of bilateral consultations with Nigeria.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Olugbenga Ashiru, who signed for Nigeria, expressed the hope that the bilateral engagement would lead to closer cooperation between both countries.

The Thailand deputy prime minister was in the country in company with a trade delegation from Thailand for high level consultations with Nigerian businessmen.

Tovichakchaikul expressed

strong desire of his country to support Nigeria on rice farming, cassava and gemstone technology.

He said: “We are mindful of Nigeria’s policy to enhance rice production capacity to substitute rice import; however, I hope Nigeria will consider continuing to import Thai rice.

“At the same time, we will like to be of assistance to you by extending rice farming technical cooperation to your country as we have done in some other African countries.”

It was revealed during the signing of the agreement that the volume of trade between Nigeria and Thailand was expected to hit $3bn in the next five years.

The consultations, which will be at the level of the permanent secretaries, will centre on economic relations, security, political consultation and regional cooperation in West Africa and South-East Asia.

area of the nation’s economy.

“The sector cannot be under estimated, because without maritime sector, Nigeria as a country would have been suffocated, given the limits of rail and road transportation.’’

“That is why there is a huge development strategy by Nigeria to ensure that the sec-

tor improves, there is a growing British interest in the Nigerian maritime industry,” Mr. Tafida added.

The summit was jointly organised by the High Commission, and the Europe Branch of the Alumni Association of the Maritime Academy of Nigeria, Oron. (NAN)

Okomu Oil Palm Company assis ts Edo migr ant ffarmer armer assists migrant armerss

BY DANIEL GUMM

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HE Okomu Oil Palm Company Plc has assisted migrant farmers, who have voluntarily relocated from its Extension One concession in Ovia South-West Local Government Area of Edo State with varying sums of money to re-establish their livelihoods.

The farmers had occupied three camps namely: Sunday Camp, Olomu Camp and Oluwo Camp.

At the final disengagement ceremony, the company disbursed a total sum of N11.5 million to the 140 farmers involved.

Depending on their holdings, the farmers collected a once off ex-gratia payment varying from N30,000 to N260,000.

The ceremony was observed by the Commissioner for Agriculture, Mr. Abdul Oroh as well as other government representatives from the Ministries of Agriculture and Natural Resources and Land and Survey.

The farmers had encroached on the company’s land and

planted crops like cocoa, cassava, and plantains.

According to the Managing Director of the company, Dr. Graham Hefer, Okomu Oil Palm Company Plc had served the farmers a final notice to harvest their crops and vacate the land since 2009.

“But we knew it was not going to be easy, so we started a process of engagement with them in 2010.”

Upon passionate request by the farmers, the company granted them time extension twice.

At the final disengagement ceremony, Dr. Hefer explained to the farmers that “ what we are witnessing today is a demonstration of the corporate social responsibility of the Okomu Oil Palm Company Plc.” “In spite of the fact that the land belongs to the company, we have not applied the ‘winner takes all’ approach. Rather we adopted a ‘ win-win’ option of amicable settlement.

He thanked the farmers for conducting themselves peacefully and wished them success in their various endeavours.

HE Aba Summit scheduled to hold on November 20 to 22, 2013 in Abia State is expected to stimulate the activities of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and create opportunities for infrastructural development in the country according to the organisers.

The President, Abia Think Tank Association and organisers of the summit, Mazi Sam Ohuabunwa, explained that the nation has a high concentration of SMEs which needs to be innovatively re-invigorated to sustain, deepen and expand their competitive edge in economic and business dimensions.

The former Chairman of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) at press conference said the vision of the summit is to work for the creation of a veritable investment window to attract investors to Aba for its industrial, infrastructural and commercial transformation to a level to make Aba a distinct city with global influence that will set Abia State apart from other states and showcase the technological and commercial prowess of the city.

He added that the theme of the event, "Abia Development: Aba as a centre of entrepreneurial excellence,” was apt considering the fact that Aba remains an economic and industrial hub of Eastern states and Nigeria with great potentials yawning for exploitation.

"Left alone for government to handle, the harnessing of these economic opportunities in Aba will remain in limbo for a long time to come.

The amount of work to be done is enormous and would involve full participation of the private sectors," he stated.

He said part of the reasons, why Nigeria has not developed, is due to Federal Government's attitude towards the private sectors.

"Our first step when we conceived this summit was to partner the government which they have agreed and the role expected of them is to create an enabling environment and more importantly, to offer incentives to investors. We are believing that government can do a lot in the country through fiscal policies and incentives in place," he said.

24—Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

BRIEF VEGETABLE EXPORT:

Quarantine services lauds farmers

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Vegetable farm along LASU road n Lagos.

Nigeria releases two extra-early maturing white maize hybrids

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IGERIA has released two extraearly maturing maize hybrids with combined resistance/tolerance to Striga, drought, and low soil-nitrogen.

The extra-early hybrids, originally known as IITA Hybrid EEWH-21 and IITA Hybrid EEWH-26, are now designated Ife Maizehyb-5 and Ife Maizehyb-6. They were developed by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and tested extensively in Nigeria in partnership with the Institute of Agricultural Research and Training (IAR&T) through the funding support of the Drought Tolerant Maize for Africa (DTMA) Project.

Other collaborating institutions involved in the testing include the Institute of Agricultural Research (IAR), the University of Ilorin (UNIILORIN), the University of Maiduguri (UNIMAID), and the National Centre for Genetic Resources and Biotechnology (NACGRAB). The DTMA Project is executed by CIMMYT and IITA in 13 countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

Both extra-early hybrids have desirable grain cooking characteristics and outstanding yield and stability across environments in Nigeria ravaged by drought, Striga, and low soil-nitrogen.

The potential yield of Ife Maizehyb-5 in Nigeria is 6.0 t/ha and Ife Maizehyb-6 yields 5.5 t/ha. Local varieties yield about 1.5 t/ha.

Hybrid development and promotion is a promising strategy to appreciably increase maize production and productivity and to revolutionize agriculture in West and Central Africa (WCA).

“Seed companies and farmers in WCA have been asking for stress tolerant extra-early hybrids to reduce the instability of maize yields, especially in the savannas, as well as during the second season in the forest agroecological zone,” according to Dr Baffour Badu-Apraku, IITA Maize Breeder, who is also a member of the team that developed the hybrids.

Other researchers in the team are Drs S.A. Olakojo, G. Olaoye, M. Oyekunle, M.A.B. Fakorede, B.A. Ogunbod-

ede, and S.E. Aladele.

This is the first report on the release of extra-early hybrids with combined resistance to Striga and with genes that confer tolerance to low soil-nitrogen and to drought stress at the most droughtsensitive stages (flowering and grainfilling periods).

“The release of the two extra-early hybrids should contribute to a signifi-

cant reduction in the instability of maize yields in Nigeria as well as in other countries of WCA,” Badu-Apraku added. The adoption and commercialization of these extra-early hybrids released in Nigeria and of others presently in the pipeline for release in Ghana, Mali, and Bénin should contribute significantly to food security and lead to improved incomes and livelihoods for farmers in WCA.

FG to establish referral veterinary hospital in Abuja

BY GABRIEL EWEPU

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HE Federal Government has concluded plans to establish a referral veterinary hospital in the nation’s capital, Abuja, to tackle serious animal diseases across the country and other African countries.

This was disclosed to Vanguard by the Registrar, Veterinary Council of Nigeria, VCN, Dr. Markus Avong, who said the establishment of the hospital will enhance performance and productivity of veterinarians, and will reduce animal diseases.

Avong said the project has a three year rolling plan, which will be completed in 2015, and also captured in the 2013 budget for execution.

Avong said: “We have the drawing of the proposed referral veterinary hospital, and it is a three-year rolling plan from 2012-2015, and it was

captured in the budget of the Federal Government in 2013, and we are already working hard to meet what is required for us to obtain the approval of the Department of Development Control for the construction. The project will start in 2013, and will be completed in 2015.

“Already an allocation has been made for the project in this year’s budget because it has gone beyond mere proposal, and it is the greatest modality taken. I would not go into the details of the amount of money budgeted for the project because an advert has been placed for the project, and whatsoever we are budgeting should remain with us and I do not want to make it public for now.

“Nigeria being a country with strong involvement in veterinary services in Africa, we hope with time we will offer veterinary services to other African countries.

BOA reiterates commitment to agricultural financing

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HE Bank of Agriculture (BOA) has reiterated its commitment to ensuring that farmers have access to agricultural financing at an affordable interest rate.

The Managing Director, Dr Mohammed Santuraki, gave this commitment in Abuja on Tuesday at a three-day Agricultural Lease Financ-

ing Workshop organised by BOA and the Equipment Leasing Association of Nigeria (ELAN).

Represented by Mr Sam Eyinbe, the Executive Director (Corporate Services) at the bank, Santuraki said that agriculture lease financing was gradually becoming popular in the sector.

he Nigeria Agriculture Quarantine Services says the adherence of farmers to international standards has improved the country ’s trade with Europe.

Dr Mike Nwaneri, the Services’ Coordinating Director, who disclosed this in Lagos, said that Nigeria’s fresh vegetables were now the toast of many in Europe.

According to Nwaneri, the improvement has remained steady in the last six years.

“Before now, fresh vegetables from Nigeria were seized and destroyed because they were pest-infested.

“The international community wants from farm to table-fresh vegetables and so harps on pest-free and packaging methods.

“In the past, our farmers stored the vegetables in baskets, which was below the global standards, making the vegetables prone to pests and rot.

“As you know, the international community has standards for consumables and this shortcoming affected Nigeria’s trading relations with Europe.

FG seeks collaboration with NCS in agric sector

BY GABREIL EWEPU

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HE Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, yesterday sought for closer collaboration with the Nigeria Computer Science, NCS, to transform the sector.

The call was made by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Mrs. Ibukun Odusote while delivering a paper titled, ‘Opportunities for Investment in Nigeria’s Agriculture’, at the breakfast meeting of the College of Fellows of the Nigeria Computer Science (NCS) in Iloko-Ijesha, Osun State.

Odusote said the support of NCS would further boost the achievement and success recorded in agricultural sector under the present administration, especially in digital management of the new silos built by the federal government across the country.

She stated that such support from NCS will add more value to the performance and productivity of the silos’ management and staff in measuring content, quantity and output of grains contained in each silo, and enabling the ministry to efficiently manage and deploy the contents to the people for consumption.

Odusote said: “Our partnership with Nigeria Computer Science ,NCS, will enable us to achieve a better and faster result, that will enable us eliminate corruption in our system and empower a whole new generation of farmers who were now seduced into farming”. ” We need to continuously update the data and it is Information Technology, IT, that can help us to update and manage the data at the newly built silos.

Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013—25

I try different food when I travel—Menard arlene Menard works with the United States Government. She has worked in several countries of the world in the course of her duty.

Now, she works with the Office of Marine Conservation (OMC) in Washington DC. OMC is a part of the State Department’s Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs (OES).

Menard was in Nigeria for the first time recently as part of the team that came for re-certification Nigeria’s fishery and Shrimps industry.

In this interview with JIMOH BABATUNDE, she shares her travel experience. Here is an excerpt.

M

On how often she travels et me start by saying this is my first visit to Nigeria but not my first visit to Africa.

Before now I had been to Egypt and Tunisia, but my first time to west Africa.

I travel often in the course of carrying out my duty, I will say maybe 40 %. I work in the Marine Conservation in the US Department of States, based in Washington DC. I have worked overseas in the past 10 -11 years.

I have worked in the US embassy in Abu Dahbi, the US embassy in Argentina , the US consulate in Karachi and US consulate in Munich and now Washington DC. On her first travel memory My first travel memory was when I was 35years when I went to Europe, Paris for the first time. So, that was my first travel.

On her favorite destination It is hard to say a favorite place. The reason why I say that is that sometime the most interesting places are places that are not popular for tourism and so every place has a beauty to it, so it is difficult to say.

I have been to every continents. I have visited Africa now, I have lived in the Middle East, I have visited Australia , South America, Europe and North America. When I was in Buenos Aires , I went on a cruise to Antarctica, every place is beautiful and has its own strength.

L

On where she likes most h my goodness. I have to think about it. I don’t know , because every place is great, but I love to see the cities and also love to see the country sides. For me what makes a destination thick is the people and the food. I love to try different food.

On her best Nigerian food I have tried jollof rice and it is great. I love it. In fact, I got the recipe so I can cook it when I get home.

On what she has learnt travelling The most important thing I

O

…says Nigeria jollof rice great destination because the visit is over and there is always more to do than the time that I have.

So, the beginning of the visit, I will be looking forward and everything is great. I prefer arriving to departing.

On her best travelling companion y younger brother. We know each other so well as we grew up together. I have six brothers and sisters, but my younger brother I love traveling with. Though I have travelled with friends, I think I enjoy the company of him more as brother and sister.

On her best reading material I tried to read something about where I am. For example my recent vacation in July, I was in Galapagos Island in Ecuador , because I was there for meeting and work , I took extra time for vacation and on a sail boat cruise it was amazing and beautiful.

When I was doing that I was reading a book about choice of touring , you know something

On her best hotel igh!. I don’t know. Please can we skip this one. ( Laughter) On best airline I love Emirates airline. I think they have wonderful services . I love Air France because the food is fantastic. It is hard to say my favorite.

On her favorite city in the world My favorite city in the world is Rome , Italy. It is so beautiful , there are so many places to see in just walking around the city.

On worst traveling experience.

There was a time I received a friend in Argentina , though it was fun, but we can say it was bad as we got stuck in a mud visiting a Peninsula Island to go see the whales and it was raining, we got stuck in the mud for an hour before somebody came to help us.

Though it was okay as we had cookies and water with us.

On what she will not forget while preparing for a tour I always packed too much . I tried to pack only what I need, but I end up packing too many clothes . So, if I have my vitamins I can find everything else that I need. My vitamins is the most important thing to travel with.

On next vacation I will like to come to Africa for my next vacation, so as to spend time for tourism and go outside the cities to visit the country sides.

S

think I have learnt travelling is that even though we differ in different ways, in terms of our societies, cultures and religion that we all still have so much in common.

I think if we look at what we have in common then we can live together in peace.

M

•Marlene Menard that will make me have a better and fuller experience on my travel.

On weather she likes departing or arriving a destination Oh!. I like to arrive, because everything is in front of me. I am so sad when I leave a

Ife celebrates Oranmiyan festival T

HE an anci cien entt ci city ty o off Il Ile e If Ife e wi will ll be be agog ag og M Mon onda day y as the the tthr hree ee day day ccel el-ebra eb rati tion on of of O Ora ranm nmiy iyan an,, ar argu guab ably ly the the most mo st d dei eifi fied ed o off th the e whol whole e Yo Yoru ruba ba d dei ei-ties ti es,, be begi gins ns..

Oran Or anmi miya yan n is tthe he on only ly Y Yor orub uba a King Ki ng ttha hatt wa wass co conf nfir irme med d to h hav ave e es es-tabl ta blis ishe hed d ot othe herr to town wns, s, llik ike e Oy Oyo o an and d Beni Be nin, n, bec becam ame e th thei eirr Ki King ng a and nd lat later er retu re turn rned ed tto o hi hiss ab abod ode e an and d al also so b beecame ca me a K Kin ing g be befo fore re h his is e eve vent ntua uall tran tr ansf sfor orma mati tion on a ass de deno note ted d in tthe he Oran Or anmi miya yan n Ce Ceno nota taph ph..

The Th e Or Oran anmi miya yan n Ce Ceno nota taph ph iiss a re re-nown no wned ed ttou ouri rist st ccen entr tre e th that at h has as draw dr awn n mi mill llio ion n of v vis isit itor orss to IIle le-I -Ife fe and an d ha hass co cont ntin inue ued d to d do o sa same me..

Oran Or anmi miya yan n is a rrel elig igio ion n to m man any y in Yoru Yo ruba ba llan and d as iitt is b bei eing ng w wor orsh ship iped ed whil wh ile e th they ey vis visit it the the Cen Cenot otap aph h to pay pay homa ho mage ge a and nd rrev ever eren ence ce tto o th the e de deit ity. y.

Spea Sp eaki king ng a ahe head ad o off the the ce cele lebr brat atio ion, n, Ob a Abi Oba A bimb mbol ola a Ak Akin inye yele le,, th the e Ol Olu u of Fami Fa mia a If Ife e sa said id tthe he ccel eleb ebra rati tion on iiss to sset et the th e re reco cord rd sstr trai aigh ghtt as ssom ome e pe peop ople le a are re clai cl aimi ming ng O Ora ranm nmiy iyan an as as th thei eirs rs..

Oran Or anmi miya yan n wa wass on one e of tthe he ssev even en sson onss of O Oka kanb nbi, i, tthe he o onl nly y chil child d of O Odu dudu duwa wa,, the th e pr prog ogen enit itor or o off th the e Yo Yoru ruba ba..

The Th e le lege gend nd,, Or Oran anmi miya yan, n, d des espi pite te b beeing in g the the gr gran ands dson on o off Od Odud uduw uwa a wa wass the the pion pi onee eerr Al Alaa aafi fin n of O Oyo yo.. He w was as ffam amed ed as a sstr tron ong g en enig igma mati ticc le lead ader er who who lled ed hiss pe hi peop ople le iint nto o a pa path th o off gr grea eatn tnes esss th that at last la sted ed ssev ever eral al ccen entu turi ries es,, le leav avin ing g a he herritag it age e th that at llas asts ts til tilll to toda day. y.

Afte Af terr es esta tabl blis ishi hing ng O Oyo yo,, he llef eftt an and d conq co nque uere red d th the e Be Beni nin n pe peop ople le a and nd a aga gain in foun fo unde ded d the the Be Beni nin n Ki King ngdo dom. m. Aft After er ssev ev-eral er al w war arss an and d co conq nque uest sts, s, O Ora ranm nmiy iyan an rereturn tu rned ed tto o If Ife, e, the the ccra radl dle e of tthe he Y Yor orub uba a and an d wa wass the the 4th Oo Ooni ni o off Ife. Ife.

The Th e fe fest stiv ival al w whi hich ch h has as rrec ecei eive ved d th the e approv appr oval al o off the the Oo Ooni ni o off If Ife, e, A Ala laiy iyel eluw uwa a Oba Ob a Ok Okun unad ade e Si Siju juwa wade de,, wi will ll brin bring g alll If al Ife e in indi dige gene ness an and d th the e en enti tire re Y Yor orub uba a at h hom ome e an and d in d dia iasp spor ora a li like ke B Bra razi zil, l, Trin Tr inid idad ad a and nd T Tob obag ago, o, Jam Jamai aica ca,, Cu Cuba ba,, Unit Un ited ed S Sta tate tess of A Ame meri rica ca ttog oget ethe her. r.

Form Fo rmer er m min inis iste terr of A Agr gric icul ultu ture re,, En En-gine gi neer er Bas Bashe heer er Awo Awote tere rebo bo,, at a p pre ress ss conf co nfer eren ence ce iin n Il Ile e If Ife e we week eken end d ssai aid d diff di ffer eren entt p pro rogr gram am h hav ave e be been en llin ined ed tto o enri en rich ch tthe he ffes esti tiva val. l.

Acco Ac cord rdin ing g to h him im,, the the th the e pl plat atfo form rm of tthe he ffes esti tiva vall wh whic ich h wi will ll b be e us used ed tto o brin br ing g to tthe he ffor ore e a un uniq ique ue a and nd b bin indding in g tr trad adit itio ion n fo forr th the e Yo Yoru ruba ba p peo eopl ple, e, will wi ll ffut utur ure e a pa pape perr pr pres esen enta tati tion on w wit ith h the th e tthe heme me:: Wh What at is is th the e na name me?” ?” to to be deli de live vere red d by a rren enow owne ned d pr prof ofes esso sorr of hist hi stor ory. y.

26— —Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

PIB: IMF support reveals IOCs’ weakness

BY ABIYE MEMBERE

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HERE are two very different views of the International Monetary Fund.

One view of the IMF is positive: the IMF is an expert, trustworthy and experienced institution that has led the world economy through crises and back to stability. The other view is negative: the IMF supports international businesses and investors but leaves citizens to pay the costs of economic trouble.

The IMF, therefore, has two faces, depending on who’s looking at it. And recently the IMF made a comment on an important piece of Nigerian regulation, the Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB. The Bill is one of Nigeria’s most important pieces of legislation, because it proposes massive industry reform. Right now, it is at risk of being picked apart by opponents. For the critics and the supporters of the IMF, this statement is important.

Ultimately, of course, the IMF’s perspective doesn’t matter: the decision will be made in Abuja, not by the IMF in Washington. But the IMF comment shows the weakness of one noisy lobby that has

An offshore A ff h oil il rig i why should they, or indeed you, care?

The reason is that the IMF has been a great friend to international business. Some argue that the IMF has been responsible for undermining equality in the developing world, by encouraging countries to remove regulation that was designed to protect citizens. The IOCs no doubt expected the IMF to oppose Nigeria’s regulation, too. But it hasn’t: when the oil companies are even more

,

The fact that the Fund supports the PIB, and dismisses the oil majors’ concerns, is therefore very important. For those, like me, who take the IMF’s view as an honest and neutral analysis it is excellent to have the support of such a well-qualified body

attacked the PIB from the start: the oil producer lobby.

Throughout the PIB’s journey, several major oil corporations have criticised the PIB, arguing that it will harm Nigeria’s oil industry by making it uncompetitive. They argue that international oil corporations, or IOCs, will leave Nigeria to make more money elsewhere, where taxes are lower and where transparency doesn’t matter.

These oil corporations probably hoped for IMF support in their argument. But in fact the IMF said it “looked forward to an early passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill which would boost investment, government revenue, and fiscal transparency.”

The IMF is fully supporting the PIB - but why would this surprise the oil producers, and

,

opposed to regulation and transparency than the IMF, it’s clear they ’re being very extreme.

This is how it looks to those who dislike the IMF. But even the left-wing ŽiŽek knows the IMF is also an “agent of discipline and order,” a body with expertise that comes from its many experiences of supporting troubled economies across the world. And for the finance community across the world, the IMF’s judgments command serious attention.

The fact that the Fund supports the PIB, and dismisses the oil majors’ concerns, is therefore very important. For those, like me, who take the IMF’s view as an honest and neutral analysis it is excellent to have the support of such a well-qualified body.

But those who dislike the IMF

should also see this as good news: it shows that the oilmen have truly over-extended themselves, because they are more extreme than even the IMF. It shows just how radically self-interested the oil majors are being.

The IMF’s verdict on the PIB responds quite directly to IOC complaints, too. Although the IOCs a r e n ’ t concerned w i t h government revenue, they h a v e repeatedly warned that investment will fall if the PIB is put in place - the IMF argues exactly the opposite, as does the government of Nigeria. Some h a v e complained that the transparency agenda, too, m a k e s unreasonable demands of the industry.

The IMF believes it is worthwhile nonetheless -

But, strangely, IMF the comment hasn’t been reported in the news since it was released several months ago.

The c o m m e n t deserves to be h e a r d .

Obviously, the I M F ’ s endorsement shouldn’t encourage legislators to Petroleum minister, Deziani Madueke abandon their responsibility to improve the Bill and to judge as does the Nigerian it for themselves: we reject the government.

It’s important, too, to divine right of experts. It is a remember that the IOCs are clue, though, as to the IOCs’ demanding a neutral game: it shows us they have investigation of the PIB by the gone out on a limb, and are World Bank. The inconvenient isolated even amongst the truth is that there has been a stewards of international neutral investigation already, capital. We can now brush off by the World Bank’s sister their warnings now with organisation - the IMF. The increased confidence. ŽMembere is Group IMF’s judgment makes Executive Director for another investigation a waste of time and money. The neutral Exploration and Production at referee has spoken, and spoke the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation in favour of the PIB.

Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013 —27

The govt doesn’t want Nigerians to be happy any more — Julius Agwu

By OPEOLUWANI OGUNJIM MI

n Nigeria today, the name Ju ulius Agwu has become a house ehold name. A comedian, singer and author, he shares some of his plans and experiences in this chat. Excerptss:

I

What is it about this year’s ‘Crack Ya Ribs’?

It was something we started here in Nige eria but at some point, we just thought it was necessary to take it across to, not just Nigerians in diaspora but to th he whole world; that Nigerians have something to offer.

Some negative stories other countriess have about us should be erased. Of course, every counttry has its good and the bad side. But ours have been ov ver-celebrated.

So Crack Ya ribs is a way to let them know w that we have something worthwhile to offer. We use en ntertainment as a vehicle to celebrate ourselves.

And part of what I do is try as much •Julius Agwu as possible to use comedy not just for laughing but to teach morals and for nation-building.

When you see talents like Bovi and Funny Bones, they are those that can showcase them.

Do you already have sponsors? carry what we have to other countries We tried to get Diamond Bank because and say we are proud to be Nigerians. they just opened their UK branch. But So when is it holding?

The London show holds on the 23rd after a lot of hurdles, they agreed to of August. And by the way, it’s the first support us but it hasn’t been fully time we will be having it at the Indigo signed. Another is Cargo services, a O2. So as I clock 40, I decided to redo a company based in the UK and Liberia.

Why is Arik not supporting this year? lot of things. I just decided to re-arrange We already wrote them and we myself and re-package myself. We are doing Manchester this year and it’s going to be the first time. For the London event we have Bovi, FunnyBone, Senator, Akpororo, and another comedians based in the UK. On the side of music, we have Kcee, May D, Harrison and other artistes, some of them based in the UK. Over the years, I realized that so many talents abound and they don’t have the opportunity to showcase. So I use this platform to

Niteshift Coliseum elevates GHR for Alake of Egbaland

C M Y K

believe they might still come up to do something. But what they did is to remove N10 000 from each ticket so what it means is that we are buying tickets this time.

What about the Abuja show?

When we return from UK, we will hold the Abuja show. But Hon.Abike Dabiri who is my friend, I called her and told

I N S I D E:

Hon. Makinde marries Miss Osun State

her the importan ce of using this platform to promote e the image of the country especiallly as Nigeria is approaching centen nary. You can’t talk about laundering the t image of this country without usin ng entertainment as a vehicle. What’s ffascinating about Nigeria without enttertainment. When they want to travel, w we know how many charlatans follow tthem, people who don’t have any role e they are going to play with them over there! I’ve been saying it over the yea ars that entertainers are the ambassado ors of this country because their generation has failed us.

Our entertainment iis no.1 in Africa.

We know what we p pass through to get sponsors. Lasst year, we were stranded in A America because we decided to ig gnore other foreign airlines and patronise our local airline. We fl flew Virgin Nigeria to London. From London we flew to New w York and we were supposed tto fly back through London. W We were in New York when we heard that Virgin Nigeria ha as closed down. Till today, n obody is talking about reffunds and we can’t even su ue them, that’s Nigeria ffor you.

So I spo oke with Hon.Abike Dabiri but she hasn’t responde ed. Meanwhile, we have ma any of our artistes who sup pported us even when I haven’t paid them a dime but they’ll definitely get paid.

Why d didn’t you stage the show in Lagos?

Lagos appears to have seen it all concerning the show. So I decided to starve Lagosians wiith Crack Ya Ribs for a while and see if they will complain or not. Lagosians are too familiar with us and they seem to have seen it all so they don’t get excited about shows again n. So let me go to places where they still appreciate me and when Lagosian ns are hungry then we will come back k.

So how would y you know when to bring it back?

We will know when they start complaining. We did it forr Laff 4 Christ Sake held a couple of weeks back and it worked.

Let me say this- it is sad that we don’t have event venues. We are always at the mercies of hotels. Entertainment in Nigeria has passed the stage of lack of venue. Do you know that it costs N16m to stage a show in Eko Hotel. So if I spend that much on the venue, what

Continues on pg 28

How not to entertain the First Lady

28 — Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

I believe God is calling me

Niteshift Coliseum elevates GHR for Alake of Egbaland

Continues from page 27

By AYO ONIKOYI about adverts? The Nigerian government doesn’t want Nigerians to be happy anymore because they charge us for everything. And even when we call for sponsors we don’t get. So that was why we had to move it out of Lagos because we have loads of challenges facing us. So the Abuja show is on the 29th then we end it in Port-Harcourt.

I’m also planning the Julius Agwu Ruff,Rugged and Raw show in November. It’s going to be the last vulgar show I’ll be holding.

Why the last vulgar show from you?

Trust me, it’s something that people look forward to. I believe that God is calling me but he hasn’t called me directly because I can’t decide on my own.

Why are you into music because it doesn’t seem to be as strong as your comic side Let it be known that I’m not into music to be judged by my dexterity or be placed at par with the likes of Banky W. I do it because it’s my passion and it gives me joy. A lot of people wonder why I spend so much money on music and I tell them it’s just a way of catching fun.

I’ve come to grow with comedy and that’s how I came to meet comedians like FunnyBone. I met him at a show . Then I heard there’s a young man in Kaduna who claims to be me as a role model. So anywhere there was a show they would call him and he would go and dance Okombo for them. I didn’t know about this until I went for a show in Kaduna and after the show, someone said FunnyBone wanted to see me. By the time I saw him, he looked tattered and wore a Dunlop slippers. He wanted to faint when he saw me. And that was what an album did for me, it made me a household name.

So when he told me he wanted to do comedy, I told him to first go to school. Now he’s a Theater Arts graduate from the University of Jos. When we started the game, we were poor children trying to convince our parents to allow us because education doesn’t guarantee wealth, that we could make it with our talents.

But now, even rich men allow their children go into comedy. Now it’s easy to be a star and it was not so during our time. So we have met the standard of America.

So after my first album, some said I’m nothing without Awilo because they felt I copied his music and can’t sing. So to prove to them that I can do my thing, I had to release another track called My Style.

So I released an album Julius De Junius in 2011. In it, I have tracks with the likes of Tuface, Efya, M.I and Jesse

A

Jagz , and the album have lots of great songs in it. So I’m proud of my achievement in music.

What about your book? t’s titled Jokes Apart. If someone like King Sunny Ade can still be an entertainer at is age, then why should I give up? God knows the right time for everyone of us to blow on this job even though we have been around for so long. Some Goodluck Jonathan’s friends became rich at old age as a result of Jonathan’s influence.

So there’s no hurry in life because you’ll get to where God wants you to get to.

At this stage I should know that entertainment is my calling so I can’t change to another career.

The only thing is that more young people come into the field everyday. The only thing is to rebrand because there must be challenges in everything we do.

So the book is about everything I went through on my way to stardom.

Anybody can become a star but not everybody can manage stardom.

How do you handle your female fans?

My wife understands the kind of business that I do. I have an understanding wife and I know where to draw the line. That’s the truth. God has been the bedrock of our marriage.

That understanding that we both share; understanding of each other ’s temperament and shortcomings has been made possible by God.

I

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I’ve come to grow with comedy and that’s how I came to meet comedians like FunnyBone. I met him at a show

C M Y K

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S one of activities marking the 70th birthday celebration of the Alake of Egbaland, Oba Michael Adedotun Gbadebo, CFR, leading celebrity hangout, Niteshift Coliseum, will be hosting the respected monarch to a Grand House Reception.

The event, elevated to a 7-star, will hold on 7 September at the club arena in Opebi, Lagos.

Ken-Calebs Olumese, Guv’nor of Niteshift Coliseum, said after a long absence of GHR, the club considers it an honour having such prominent personality as Alake as guest on its return.

Olumese promised that the coming GHR will be a high profile celebration of the Alake.

“With citation, presentation of plaque, an interactive session laced with comedy and music by leading performers, the evening promises to be exciting and rewarding,” he said.

Olumese, who has since retired from night clubbing business, also assured that the GHR for the Alake will parade glamour and glitz in huge doses as it’s the custom of the Coliseum.

GHR is Coliseum’s flagship event and notable Nigerians and foreigners have been honoured during the events. They include: President Goodluck Jonathan; former Vice President Atiku

Abubakar; Former Ghanaian President J.J Rawlings; former Lagos State governor, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu; former Finance Minister Dr. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala; and Lagos State governor, Babatunde Raji Fashola.

Oba Gbadebo, the Okukenu IV, will be the first monarch to be honoured by the club’s prestigious GHR.

•Oba Michael Adedotun Gbadebo

X Factor: This is not the end for us – DNA Twins

BY AYO ONIKOYI Nigerians, Africans wherever you NA Twins declared shortly after are, watch out for DNA. Don’t be their eviction from the X Factor surprised to see us doing a song singing reality television show last with P-Square,” Blair added.

Friday night that better days are Blair and Clinton Robert turned ahead for them.

17 on June 16. The twins come from “This is not the end for us as we are a polygamous family of 13 children going to use this platform to build on and attended Madonna Model our musical dream. People should Secondary School, Owerri, Imo look out for us in the near future,” State. They had just finished the duo boasted. writing their final exams when the They said Glo had through X Factor X Factor audition started and they decided to participate at the Abuja given them a platform which has auditions. projected them to national and international audience. “We were disappointed that we have been evicted, but we believe everything happens for a purpose. we believe that God who brought us this far has a plan for ur.

For us anything is possible now,” Clinton said.

•DNA Twins with Toolz “We want to tell

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Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013 — 29

Kaffy, Dance Queen expecting baby no.2

BY OPEOLUWANI OGUNJIMI

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igeria’s no.1 dance queen, Kaffy is certainly in for another break. At the moment, we scooped the vibrant dancer is expecting her second baby with husband, Joseph Ameh.

Although before now, she’d been sighted at functions looking all preggy but trust Kaffy’s naturally flat stomach to play the perfect deceiver just like the case of her first issue.

Making to confirm the gist, a call was made to her camp and we gathered her baby bump can no longer be hidden, as she’s truly in her second trimester.

According to gist, the dance queen has kept a low key as a result of the pregnancy. She is excited and is looking forward to the birth of their second child.

Kaffy and Joseph welcomed their first child Kamal Ameh in December 2011 and got married in June 2012.

Kaffy

Hon. Makinde marries Miss Osun State

BY AYO ONIKOYI

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C M Y K

ollywood actor turned politician, Hon. Rotimi Makinde, representing the Ife Federal Constituency in the lower House of the National Assembly has taken his somewhat whirlwind romance with the reigning Miss Osun State, Miss Oyebanke Oyelami to the level as the couple is set to be united man and wife this Saturday at the Adah Golf Course, Ile-Ife, in Osun State.

Their romance has attracted some criticisms from people who believed the Honourable legislator dumped his former wife for the beauty queen. But the Honourable has come forth with a strong defence at a recent discuss where he explained why he has decided to marry the 23-year-old damsel.

“Naturally, it is not in my habit to discuss my family especially my wife who bore me my grown up kids but just for the records, people need to know that my wife has left me ever before I got elected into the federal house of representatives and I’ve since given her the benefit of doubt for reconciliation but all were to no avail, hence my decision to move ahead and not without the consent of my children...can you believe that, it took me a while to chase this lady, I have never seen her rare type before, that’s why I didn’t waste any time when she eventually gave me the chance” he said.

The wedding reception

•Hon. Rotimi Makinde

•Miss Osun

followed by a night party is billed to hold at same venue from about 6pm where top entertainers, Sir Shina Peters and Obesere are expected to thrill . Ankara Aso-Ebi which

sold for about N4000 is the uniform for the day. Top Nollywood stars and high profile political personalities are expected to grace the occasion.

Adokiye unveils new song ‘Back Up’

By IYABO AINA

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dokiye Kyrian Yvonne popularly known as ‘’Adokiye ‘’started her musical journey at an early age, after being influenced by music icons such as Onyeka Onwenu, Aretha Franklin, King Sunny Ade, Lauryn Hill and Bob Marley.

The Caritas University graduate of architecture just dropped a new single titled ‘Back up’ produced by Ik Ogbonna an ace producer.

However for the talented and energetic artiste signed to AEON Music; singing and writing songs are not the only things that keeps Adokiye busy as she flexes her talent as an entrepreneur by mastering the art of marketing and also enjoys empowering the less privileged from all works of life. In her words, ‘I’ve been on the charity movement since high school with any little thing I have . I enjoy taking it out to share with less privileged’ Adokiye disclosed that within the short period of her sojourn into professional music in 2012, she has worked with producers like Charles, Embrace, Yiseng, Preccy P, and Breezy; and artistes like Splash, Black70, Sym19, Hitmaker Tep (New York), Evil (London), Flyer (New York) and Olamide (Nigeria).

With an unflinching love for Nigerian kind of music Adokiye who adores musicians like 2face Idibia, D’Banj and Rihanna (whom she dreams of working with some day) says, ‘I wanna do music for the rest of my life’ a die-hard assertion and belief for her.

Fred Amata ends relationship with girlfriend By y OPEOLUWANI OGUNJIMI

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•Fred Amata

F the gist flying around town is anything to go by, it means Nollywood actor Fred Amata and girlfriend, Mor Okonkwo have called it quits.

The relationship which started less than a year ago, packed up just after Fred celebrated his 50th birthday in June.

According to what we heard, Fred allegedly

grew tired of Mor when he discovered her smoking habit was on the higher side than his. Upon seeing that he couldn’t cope with her anymore, he ended his affair with the single mother of two.

Fred and Mor met in the US in 2011 and started dating a few months later.

Mor, a single mother with two kids, is a Soul/Jazz artiste who contested in singing reality show - X Factor UK a few years back.

She’s currently a management consultant.

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RINCE C OSUAGWU OS GWU U With P PRINCE princeosuagwu@gmail.com 08050498513

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hursday last week, First lady, Dame Patience Jonathan attracted over 30.000 women from across Nigeria and other African countries to the Eagles Square, Abuja for a rally tagged “Nigerian Women Rally for Peace and Empowerment”.

The event was meant to sensitize women in the country on the gains recorded so far in enhancing peace and women empowerment.

The traffic snarl caused by the rally, provoked angry reactions from workers and residents of Abuja, who had to trek long distances. While the event has drawn flak from many, others also believe that it was also expected of an event of that magnitude, especially, considering the security situation in the country.

Entertainment flaw To lighten the atmosphere, the organisers laced the event with entertainment and assembled an array of popular Nigerian entertainers made up of Stand up comedians and musicians, apparently to showcase the huge talents in Nigeria, the Giant of Africa.

This was unfortunately where the major flaw of the event manifested.

Although this is not to criticise the rally, but one would have also expected that for an event that attracted such dignitaries and engaged the prime time of Nigerian Television Authority, NTA, for over an hour, the organisers would have used the latest audio/visual equipments.

For instance, in this 21stt century where everything is going mobile, it could only have been in Nigeria, that an event of such magnitude, would see the use of a wired microphone rather than a wireless system.

In fact, event or conference organisers,today decorate speakers and entertainers with Easy Talk wireless USB microphone system consisting of a belt pack transmitter, Lavalier microphone (commonly known as lapel or Clip mic) and wireless receiver.

The Clip Mic and the belt pack transmitter, interactt with the audio reinforcementt mounted somewhere in the ve enue.

While a wireless microonfidence phone will give co and ease of movem ment, the wired microphone will distort movement, distract and limit performance. And, this was exactly what happ p ened to both the entertainerrs and the lady compere who handled the day.

How they entertaiined To the credit of th he event ners like organisers, entertain Bose Ogunboye, the e famous comedienne popularly known as Lepacious Bose ; Iyanya, the popular hip- hop star of Tukere fame; renowned Hausa musician Sani Danja and delectable lady of songs, Onyeka Onwenu, performed at the event.

However, the beauty of Bose’s performance often derives from the way she moves C M Y K

•Wired Mic... distracts and limits movement

•Clip Mic... Should have been used

How not to entertain the First Lady physically challenged. With his customised wheel chair, he usually wows his audience with deft movements while performing, but not on this day. Ayefele could not do much movement, unless he was prepared for a fall.

Why poor performance

•Ayefele

•Lepacious Bose crowd never got go the dance steps.

Absence of Live L Band

•Onyeka Onwenu her big frame on stage while telling her jokes. But Bose, on that day, was a shadow of herself.

So also was the Akwa Ibom born music star Iyanya, who has attracted numerous fans to his music due to his Tukere dance steps. On this day, the

As a viewer, it appeared a that the musicians mimed to their CDs instead of performing live.

Here again, th he organisers fell short of reck koning as the play back equipm ment could not give optimum performance to some s of the CDs. For instan nce Iyanya’s CD output o on the playback machin ne was very poor, making his hi mime poor, flat and uninteresting. Meanwhile, that of Sani Danja was loud and helped his mimes to deliver sweet tunes to the ear.

However, Danja who is famed for his sonorous voice, unique,mesmerising leg movements and acrobatic dance steps, could hardly display any of these due to the long ropes of the microphone

•Iyanya limiting his movements.

Popular gospel artiste, Ayefele was another musician that performed at the event.

Ayefele has made name in the music industry despite being

All these entertainers could have given more if the audio equipment to support their acts were standard.

That this happened in the growing world of mobile technology where Nigeria is also blazing the trail, particularly in telecommunications, was worrisome. It was embarrassing that all that happened in the presence of President Goodluck Jonathan, his wife and his Vice, Namadi Sambo.

It definitely was not the best way to entertain the First Lady, nor a president that may have approved some of the huge funds that sponsored the event.

Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013— 31

32—Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

Seeds of hope and harvests of despair (2) Bashorun Randle in this installment argues that the biggest forms of corruption are at the level of economic sabotage and political corruption

BY BASHORUN J. K. RANDLE

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HERE was once a time in this country in Nigeria during the Buhari-Idiagbon regime when people normally queued up to enter the bus.

People started queuing on the streets because they knew the consequences. We need drastic measures, draconian measures even if just for five years. That is the only way Nigeria can move forward.”

This was followed by a statement by Professor Daniel Babayi, Executive Secretary of the Christian Association of Nigeria (19 Northern States): “Our country is being assailed by insecurity, particularly through the evil activities of Boko Haram Islamic sect. We object strenuously to any talk of amnesty for Boko Haram as it would be tantamount to rewarding evil doers. We urge compensation for victims of Boko Haram and we demand that Sharia Law should be expunged from the national Constitution or in the alternative Christian Canon Law should be included in the Constitution.

“The scourge and menace that is Boko Haram continues to cast long shadows over our nation’s affairs. In the second quarter of 2013, the Federal Government finally accepted the inevitable and placed the struggle against terrorism in the country on a quasi-war footing; a State of Emergency was declared in Bornu, Yobe and Adamawa states in the north-east of the country.

BASHORUN J.K.RANDLE Since the declaration of a state of emergency the terrorists in those three states have come under severe and sustained pressure and have been placed firmly on the back foot. The tales and testimonies of woe that have emanated from people of all faiths provide ample evidence of the

cancerous and debilitating nature of life under siege from Boko Haram.

A notable effect of the state of emergency is that the terrorists have targeted other soft underbellies in an attempt to keep up the pressure; they have also shown themselves no respecters of the state with some particularly outlandish attacks in Baga and Bama. While congratulating the Federal Government on taking overdue steps, we would counsel that the ambit of the use of a state of emergency be kept continually under review both in terms of its modus operandi and its geographical spread. No longer is kidnapping restricted to particular enclaves of the country; it has become the crime of preference for a growing army of misfits and malcontents.

True and enduring nationhood “Carried out with various degrees of violence, it is a new threat to the rule of law and another manifestationof a society at war with itself. It is the duty of both federal and state governments and the citizenry to shine a light into the dark corners from whence this evil and dysfunction emanates. We deliberately place the onus of responsibility on both the government and citizenry because that sense of civic duty that is an essential block for true and enduring nationhood is sorely lacking in our country and its restoration is a necessary precondition for redemption, even where we cannot be our brother’s keeper, we must be his overseer.”

The intervention of Chief Emeka Anyaoku, the former Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, was very measured and thoughtful: “Administrators in every country are the linchpin of development.

They are the very group on whose shoulders the task of implementing policies rests.

These can be the national policies of governments, or the policies of organizations in the private sector or the civil society.

In this age of technology and specialized operations managed

Map of Nigeria

•President Goodluck Jonathan and directed by appropriate specialists, there is a growing need for administrators whose task, especially at the top level, is to coordinate the multi-faceted activities of a government or a private corporate organization.

“The present structure of 36 federating units with an all powerful centre compels a disproportionate deployment of the national resources on recurrent expenditure; and worse still, compels a destabilizing competition for the control of the centre, a competition that fans the embers of the peoples’ primordial ethnic and religious sentiments.”

Religious sentiments Perhaps, it was inevitable that Dr. Reuben Abati, the Special Adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan and his colleague, Dr. Doyin Okupe, the Senior Special Assistant would jointly step up to bat for the President: “Jonathan did not create corruption. Those who say this administration is not fighting corruption are not speaking on the basis of facts. The Jonathan administration did not create corruption in Nigeria. It is an inherited problem. Corruption is also not limited to Nigeria. Even the countries and individuals who shout most about corruption, you will see that it is a challenge that they too have to deal with.

President Jonathan had admitted recently that corruption is present

in Nigeria as it is elsewhere but that is a challenge his is administration tackling. There are many concrete ways in which this administration is fighting corruption.

“This administration took up the challenge of the fuel subsidy scam headlong. People will collect allocation to bring in fuel, they will not own any vessel, they will not import any fuel and they will still collect gove ernment money. Over the yearrs, previous governments have e created a community of rent colle ectors and this administration said d this is pure economic sabotage and it must end. But the sabot propaganda machineries of the beneficiaries and their collaborators insisted that it won’t work. The biggest forms of corruption you can have are at the level of economic sabotage and second are political corruption.

“Once you allow p o l i t i c a l corruption, you will create a lot of problems. This President decided to fight political corruption by insisting that elections must be free and fair. It is only when elections are free that those elected can be accountable. The 2011 general elections were acclaimed to be free and fair. Every subsequent election conducted under this President’s watch have been free

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FREEDOM OF INFORMATION: A

unawares by the military intervention by Major-General Sam Momah (rtd), former Minister of Science and Technology under late General SaniAbacha: “As a former Adjutant-General of the Nigerian Army, it is my patriotic duty to warn against the breaking up of Nigeria. The repercussions would be too disastrous. I must make it clear that it is better for Nigeria to remain a united country despite its many contending tribal, ethnic and religious entities. Although we managed to survive a civil war (1967 to 1970), we would not be able to survive disintegration.

Unthinkable prospect “A disintegrating Nigeria is an unthinkable prospect. However, should it occur, the war that would ensue may last for over fifty years like that of Sudan which lasted for fifty-eight years.

But the glimmer of hope is that since Nigeria has survived for 100 years, what is required is for her to build on that success utilizing her enormous resources.

In doing do, Nigeria would restore hope, gain her pride and respect in Africa and the rest of the world”.

Major-General Momah pondered on the contradictions that had dogged every facet of the nation’s life, pointing out that Nigeria remained the only place where US $16 million could be spent on electricity, with the nation still wallowing in darkness. He also said it was an irony for the country to be spending a fortune on security vote only to reap more security challenges. He lamented that the

,

Jonathan did not create corruption. Those who say this administration is not fighting corruption are not speaking on the basis of facts

and fair and so adjudged by both local and international observers.

In Adamawa, Kogi, Sokoto, Edo and Ondo, there were no problems when elections were conducted in those states.

“The truth of the matter is that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission made it clear that last year alone, it secured over 200 convictions.

Nobody is noting that they are looking at the cases that have not been resolved.

“The truth is that there is a clear doctrine of separation of power.

Once the agency has initiated action, it is for the judiciary to look into those issues and we all know that in Nigeria the wheel of justice grinds slowly. Those who say this administration is not fighting corruption are not speaking on the basis of fact; they are speaking on the basis of emotion and selective reasoning.”

We were caught totally

nation was planning a centenary celebration jamboree while its N640 billion textile industry remains comatose.

The Governor of Nassarawa State, AlhajiTanko Al-Makura’s concern was directed at education: “I advocate the declaration of a state of emergency in respect of our nation’s education sector. It is a necessary step towards addressing the overwhelming problems in public schools. The level of infrastructural decay in government-owned schools has reached an alarming rate. I have said it before; those public schools are now heading towards emergency situation. I said emergency because virtually all the infrastructure needed in schools are non-existent and that is the reason there is no attainment of excellence in public schools.”

To be concluded

Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013— 33

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HIS week, we decided to bring to you the famous first and the last sermon of Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) so that we can remind ourselves of not only the duties and responsibilities of a Muslim but also reassure us of the benefits and rewards of what we do.

FIRST SERMON This sermon was delivered when the prophet (s.a.w) first arrived in Quba-Madinah and before he (s.a.w) built his mosque in Madinah.

Ibn Ishaq reported on the authority of ‘Abdur-Rahman Ibn Ka’b Ibn Malik that he said (part of the narration): “After the Messenger of Allah arrived in Madinah and he stayed in Quba’ on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday; he built a mosque, before he left on Friday, the time for Friday prayer overtook him in the land of Banu Salim Ibn ‘Awf, and so he prayed it. In the mosque which was in the middle of the valley before the building of his mosque.

Ibn Ishaq said: “It was the first sermon which he delivered; according to Abu Salamah Ibn ‘Abdur-Rahman – he said; ...and we seek refuge with Allah from attributing to him anything which he did not say – he stood up among them and praised Allah and extolled Him, then he said:

and guidelines from the last sermon (khutbah) of the prophet (SAWS). His sermons emphasized on the following:

The Prophet's first and last sermons can guide him. And I testify that none has the right to be worshipped except Allah, Alone, without partners. The best of speech is the Book of Allah. He whose heart has been beautified with it by Allah and whom He has admitted to the fold of Islam after he had disbelieved will be successful, for he has chosen it (Allah’s Speech) over that of all of mankind. Truly, it is the best of speech and the most eloquent.

Love what Allah loves; love Allah with all of your hearts. Do not become tired of Allah’s Speech, nor of mentioning His Name and do not make your hearts hard to-

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Oh People, just as you regard this month, this day, this city as sacred, so regard the life and property of every Muslim as a sacred trust. Return the goods entrusted to you to their rightful owners. Hurt no one so that no one may hurt you

“Oh, you people! Send forth for yourselves good deeds; you know for sure, by Allah, that a person among you will be struck down unconscious and he will leave his sheep without a shepherd, then his Lord will surely say to him – and there will be neither intermediary nor screen between them: “Did not My Messenger come to you and communicate (the Message), and did I not give you wealth and favor you? And what did you send forth for yourself?” And verily, he will look right and left, but he will see nothing; then he will look in front of him and he will see naught but the Hell-fire. So whoever is able to shield his face from the Fire, even if it be only by giving a piece of a date in charity, let him do so; and whoever was unable to do so, let him shield it by saying a good word, for the reward of a good deed is multiplied by ten times seven hundred times. And may the Peace, Mercy and Blessings of Allah be upon you.”

Ibn Ishaq said: “Then the Messenger of Allah, delivered a second sermon, saying: “All praise and thanks be to Allah, I praise Him and I seek His aid. We seek refuge with Allah from the evil of ourselves and from the wickedness of our deeds. Whomsoever Allah guides, there is none can misguide him and whomsoever Allah sends astray, there is none

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wards it. Hence, amongst everything that Allah creates He chooses [something]; Allah would call it: His Khaerah (best) in terms of deeds; His favorite ones amongst the servants; that which is good and useful in terms of speech; So, worship Allah and do not associate anything with Him and fear Him as He should be feared and be sincere to Allah in the righteous words which pass your lips and love one another with Allah’s Spirit between you. Verily, Allah hates that His Covenant should be broken. And may the Peace, Mercy and Blessings of Allah be upon you.”

(Source: ‘Zad Al-Ma’ad’. Mentioned by Ibn Hisham in ‘AsSeerah An-Nabawiyyah’ from Ibn Ishaq, but without any chain of narrators. See ‘Zad AlMa’ad’ vol. 1, page 374 published by Maktabah Al-Manar Al-Islamiyyah)

LAST SERMON rophet Muhammad (s.a.w) delivered his last sermon (Khutbah) on the ninth of Dhul Hijjah (12th and last month of the Islamic year), 10 years after Hijrah (migration from Makkah to Madinah) in the Uranah Valley of mount Arafat. His words were quite clear and concise and were directed to the entire humanity.

After praising, and thanking Allah he said:

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“O People, lend me an attentive ear, for I know not whether after this year, I shall ever be amongst you again. Therefore listen to what I am saying to you very carefully and TAKE THESE WORDSTOTHOSEWHOCOULD NOTBEPRESENTHERETODAY. Oh People, just as you regard this month, this day, this city as Sacred, so regard the life and property of every Muslim as a sacred trust. Return the goods entrusted to you to their rightful owners. Hurt no one so that no one may hurt you. Remember that you will indeed meet your LORD, and that HE will indeed reckon your deeds. ALLAH has forbidden you to take usury (interest), therefore all interest obligation shall henceforth be waived. Your capital, however, is yours to keep. You will neither inflict nor suffer any inequity.

Allah has Judged that there shall be no interest and that all the interest due to Abbas ibn ‘Abd’al Muttalib (Prophet’s uncle) shall henceforth be waived…

Beware of Satan, for the safety of your religion. He has lost all hope that he will ever be able to lead you astray in big things, so beware of following him in small things.

O People, it is true that you have certain rights with regard to your women, but they also have rights over you. Remember that you have taken them as your wives only under Allah’s trust and with His permission. If they abide by your right then to them belongs the right to be fed and clothed in kindness. Do treat your women well and be kind to them for they are your partners and committed helpers. And it is your right that they do not make friends with any one of whom you do not approve, as well as never to be unchaste.

O People, listen to me in earnest, worship ALLAH, say your five daily prayers (Salat), fast during the month of Ramadan, and give your wealth in Zakat.

Perform Hajj if you can afford to.

All mankind is from Adam and Eve, an Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab nor a non-Arab has any superiority over an Arab; also a white has no superiority over black nor a black has any superiority over white except by piety (taqwa) and good action. Learn that every Muslim is a brother to every Muslim and that the Muslims constitute one brotherhood. Nothing shall be legitimate to a Muslim which belongs to a fellow Muslim unless it was given freely and willingly.

Do not, therefore, do injustice to yourselves.

Remember, one day you will

appear before ALLAH and answer your deeds. So, beware, do not stray from the path of righteousness after I am gone.

Oh People, NO PROPHET OR APOSTLE WILL COME AFTER ME AND NO NEW FAITH WILL BE BORN. Reason well, therefore, O People, and understand words which I convey to you. I leave behind me two things, the QURAN and my example, the SUNNAH and if you follow these you will never go astray.

All those who listen to me shall pass on my words to others and those to others again; and may the last ones understand my words better than those who listen to me directly. Be my witness, O ALLAH, that I have conveyed your message to your people”.

(Reference: See Al-Bukhari, Hadith 1623, 1626, 6361) Sahih of Imam Muslim also refers to this sermon in Hadith number 98. Imam al-Tirmidhi has mentioned this sermon in Hadith nos.

1628, 2046, 2085. Imam Ahmed bin Hanbal has given us the longest and perhaps the most complete version of this sermon in his Masnud, Hadith no. 19774.)

One can heed words of wisdom

Sacredness of a Muslim’s life and property The importance of propagating this message to all others (A Muslim’s responsibility thus does not end by following the religion) A reminder that everyone is fully accountable for their deeds and Allah (God) will take every person into account. If everyone heeded to this fact alone, the world would be a much better place today.

“Hurt no one so that no one may hurt you.” These words of the prophet are self explanatory.

The prohibition of dealing with interest (Numerous accounts in Quran and Hadith prohibit taking, giving or being a part of any transaction dealing with interest).

“You will neither inflict nor suffer any inequity.” These words of the prophet are self explanatory.

The awareness of satan and how satan can make you to deviate us from the right path and doing evil things.

Rights of women over men and rights of men over women.

Treatment of women with kindness.

Modesty and chastity in women.

The importance of worshiping Allah (saying your five daily prayers (Salat), fasting during the month of Ramadan, giving charity (Zakat) and performing pilgrimage (Hajj).

Equality amongst all (blacks, white, Arabs, non-Arabs, etc.)

The need to do justice and be fair to others.

These are what Islam and the Last prophet have taught us. Let’s do our part by following the Prophet’s message and propagating the message to others.

Salaudeen becomes Wakeel-ul-Muslimeen of Ogun State

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HE League of Imams & Alfas of Ogun State has conclud ed arrangements to install a top Islamic cleric, Sheikh Abdul-Razak Ishola Salaudeen as the Wakeel-Ul-Muslimeen of Ogun State.

The turbanning ceremony will hold tomorrow Saturday 24 August at the hall of the Ijebu-Ode Central Mosque at 11.00 a.m. It promises to be a five star event as Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State is billed to be chief host, while royal father of the day, the Awujale Ijebu, HRM Oba Sikiru Adetona, Ogbagba II, leads other eminent royal fathers to the event.

Paramount traditional rulers expected include Alake Egba, HRM Oba Adedotun Gbadebo, Akarigbo Remo, HRM Oba Michael Adeniyi Sonariwo, and the Olu of Ilaro, HRM Oba Kehinde Olugbenle. Potentates ntates of lesser ranking will also grace th he event.

Listed as chairman of occasion is an engineer who is also Alarranse Adinni of Ijebuland, Alhaji Sikiirullai Bosun Oke, while the chairpersson expected is famous socialite, Princess Khadijat Kuburat Adebisi Edionse eri.

High point of the turbanning ceremony is a lecture to be delivered by Sheikh Habeebullahi Adam Al-Ilory, the Mudeer Morkaz Agege. Sh heikh Salaudeen's ascension to th he post m iin of Wakeel-ul-Muslim comes to few as a surprise, having devoted his entiire life to the furtherance of Islam in the immediate communities of Ijebuland, Ogun State, and NiSheikh Salaudeen geria in general.

V VANGUARD ANGUARD , F 5 FRIDAY RIDAY , AUGUST 23, 23 , 2013— 2013 —3 FRIDAY, VANGUARD, 35

Daarud-Da w atWal-Ir shaad Arabic Centre Daarud-Daw at-W al-Irshaad 40th graduation: Photos: Akeem Salau

Fasting after Ramadan

BY HARUN RAZAQ

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HE Prophet is reported to have said: “iman increases and decreases…” it increases as a result of good deeds and decreases as a result of evil deeds. One of the ways to increase our iman after Ramadan is embarking on Sunnah fasting. The recommended fasting after Ramadan are as follow: ŽFasting of six days of Shawwal as narrated by Abu Ayyub (RA) that Allah’s Messenger, (SAW), said: “He who fasts Ramadan, and six days of Shawwal, it will be as if he fasted a whole year.”

It is a misconception that these six days of fasting must be undertaken on consecutive days, as there is no hadith that stipulate so. These six days of fasting after Ramadan fasts, are equivalent to fasting “perpetually”, according to Sahih Muslim. ŽFasting on Mondays

and Thursdays (i) it was narrated from Abu Qataadah al-Ansaari that the Messenger of Allah (SAW) was asked about fasting on Mondays. He said: “On that day I was born, and on it the revelation came to me.”

(Narrated by Muslim,1162). (ii) The Messenger of Allah (SAW) said: “Deeds are shown (to Allah) on Mondays and Thursdays, and I like my deeds to be shown when I am fasting.” ŽFasting for three days in every month: (i) it was narrated that Abu Hurayrah (RA) said: “My close friend- the Prophet (s.a.w) advised me to do three things which I will not give up until I die: fasting three days of each month, praying Duha, and sleeping after Witr. It was narrated that the Prophet (s.a.w) said: “Fasting three days of every month is like fasting for a lifetime, and ayaam al-beed are the 13th, 14th and 15th.”

ŽThe Day of ‘Arafat (the days on which pilgrims stand at Mount ‘Arafa for people at home: The Prophet said: “The ‘Arafat fast redeems two years... one past and one future.” ŽThe Day of Ashura: Ibn ‘Abbas (RA) said: “I know of no other day than Ashura, which the Prophet fasted in recognition of its merits over all other days”.

The month of Muharram: The Prophet (s.a.w) was asked about the best fast next to Ramadan. He said: “al-Muharram.” ŽThe month of Sha’ban: ‘Aisha (r.t.a) said: “The Prophet (s.a.w) used to fast for a complete month only in Ramadan. Next to that he fasted most often in Sha’ban.”

However, fasting is fobidden on the doubtful day, the day of ‘Eid-l-Fitr, the day the pilgrims offer sacrifice, the days of tashriq (11th, 12th and 13th of Dhu’l-Hijjah.

From left: Prof. Muhibudeen Opeloye, Chairman of the occassion; Sheikh Mustapha Zuglool Sanusi,Proprietor/Chairman,Governing Board, Daarud Dawat Wal-Irshaad Arabic Centre; Sheikh Shamy Nushy, Director ,Wamy Nigeria and Sheikh Idris AbdulAzeez, Chairman, Old Students Association of the school during the 40th graduation of the centre, in Isolo, Lagos.

Mosque attack: ‘No community defence shield in place’

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HE President of the Association of Industrial Security and Safety Operators of Nigeria, Dr. Ona Ekhomu said that the unfortunate mosque attack in Kondugha, Borno State was possible because there was no community defence shield in place.

According to him, the Community Vigilance Defence Shield should be operated on the local government level and should involve district heads, traditional leaders, clerics and other centers of influence at the LGA, town village and community levels. The shield will also serve as a source of intelligence not only for the JTF and its counter-terrorism operations, but also for the police agency and its efforts to control crime in various rural communities.

The security expert opined that the vulnerability of Mosques and other places of worship had been highlighted further by the attack on worshippers in Kondugha which

resulted in the death of 44 Muslim worshippers.

He called for the implementation of a security initiative which he tagged “Community Vigilance Defence Shield” (CVDS), while also urging mosques and Churches to put in place y measures that will enable the detection of terrorists before they strike.

He also

commended the JTF on the elimination of Momodu Bama, the second in command to Boko Haram leader, Imam Abubakar Shekau. He said that decimation of the top leadership of the terrorist organization would lead to early victory in the war on terror and safety of Nigeria lives.

A ASK SK S K YOUR YO OU UR IMAM IM IMAM AM

Strive towards Islam, TMC urges Muslim politicians

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HE Muslim Coun cil, TMC, Eti-Osa branch has urged Muslim politicians to strive towards the propagation of Islam in their various capacities just as it commended the efforts of Hon Kazeem Ademola Alimi member, Lagos State House of Assembly, representing Eti-Osa Constituency I, who sponsored Ramadan lectures in the area.

Alhaji Harun Razaq, Director for Islamic Guide (CFIG) and member of the group advised politicians to emulate Hon Alimi even after the month of Ramadan.

The event which was held at Eti-Osa, Local Government Headquarters, Igbo-Efon, Eti-Osa, Lagos was attended by dignitaries including Fadilat Sheikh, Alhaji, Imam, Abdul Bari Y. Afinni- Chairman Council of Imam and Alfas in Eti-Osa, Prince Anofiu Olanrewaju Elegushi, Executive Chairman, Eti-Osa, Local Government; Alhaji, (Hon.) Yahyah A. Dosunmu, Seriki Adinni of Eti-Osa, Hon Ismail Azeez (Ija Omode) members of the Lagos State House of Assembly among others.

From left: Sheikh Ridwan Suenu, Senator Abdul-Ganiyu Olarenwaju Solomon and Abdul-Semiu Abdul-Hameed, Deputy Chief Imam, Ife, at the occasion.

A cross section of guests with the graduating students

36—Vanguard , FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

Okpe indigene raises alarm over abandoned road project

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N indigene of Jeddo town in Okpe Local Government Area of Delta State, Chief Dickson Obirenfoju, has appealed to the state government to ensure the speedy completion of the Jeddo/Ohorie Road project, which he said had been abandoned by successive administrations.

The Warri-based business mogul and politician in a chat with newsmen during the swearing in of Mr. Moses Ekpoke as Unuevboro of Teddo town, noted that the completion of the road project will ease the regular traffic jam on the one-way entry and exit Ekpan/Jeddo Road.

He said: “Beside this abandoned road project, Jeddo being the biggest ward in Okpe, deserves more government attention but this has not been the case.

“The DDPA housing project in Jeddo is the only uncompleted one in the entire state.

“The approved budget for these projects should be fully implemented so that the government will not get a bad name.”

Present at Edion Hall Jeddo town, venue of the event were Chief Pobert Onome (District Head), Chief D. Enami-riewan, Chief O. Obaide, Chief Efe Uko, Olotu Noble, Mr. Benson Umuokoro, Rev. Lucky Akatirika, among others.

Accord Party disowns Nalado over comments on Rivers crisis

BY GABRIEL ENOGHOLASE

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ENIN—THE national leadership of Accord Party, AC, has dissociated itself from the statement purportedly issued by one Mohammed Nalado on the crisis rocking Rivers State, stating that the said Nalado-led executive of the party had been sacked since July 29, 2010.

National Secretary of the party, Dr. Samson Isibor, said in a statement in Benin, Edo State, that the executive led

by Nalado was sacked by more than two-thirds of the party ’s National Executive Council and National Working Committee over allegation of gross misconduct.

He said: “Because Nalado wanted cheap recognition and favour from the Presidency, he impersonated and issued a statement on the crisis purported to have emanated from us (Accord Party).

“However, Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and the public are aware that since July 2010, the Nalado-led national executive ceased to exist because it was removed from office by more than twothirds of the national executive council and National Working Committee mem-

bers on July 29, 2010.”

He said that their removal, which was presided over by the chairman of the party’s Board of Trustee, Chief Augustine Maize, was done in accordance with the constitution of the party.

coalition of civil societies, The Rainbow Caucus and the Patriotic Professionals, in conjunction with National Movement of Nigeria, have petitioned the Minister of Health, Professor Onyebuchi Chukwu, over alleged abuse of office by the board of Irrua Specialist Teaching Hos-

BY EVELYN USMAN

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chieftain of All Progres sive Congress, APC, in Etsako West Local Government Area of Edo State, Mr. Abdul Saibu, has berated the Nigerian Union of Teachers, NUT, in the state for blaming the recent kidnap of teachers on Governor Adam Oshomole’s declaration that teachers in the state were well paid.

Protesting members of NUT Ovia North-East council, had attributed their members’ ordeal in the hands of kidnappers to Governor Oshiomole’s remark that teachers in the state were better paid, an utterance they said gave kidnappers the impression that they (teacher) were well off.

Taking a swipe at NUT, Saibu said that the union’s assertion and that of some musicians criti-

pital, in Edo State.

Mr. Ihimekpen, National Publicity Secretary of the National Movement of Nigeria, told newsmen that the coalition has evidence of the perceived anomalies.

He said “seizure of hospital vehicles,” was one of such anomalies.

cising the ban of motorcycles by the state government, had a hidden agenda as same was a campaign of calumny.

The Jagbe Ward 6 party leader stated that rather than applaud Oshiomole’s efforts in transforming the state into a mega city, a feat he said his predecessors could not achieve in eight years, his detractors were busy engaging in destructive criticism.

He said: “If Oshiomole’s utterances, as claimed by NUT, led to the kidnap of teachers, whose utterances led to all other kidnaps in Edo State?

“I am not in doubt about the governor’s sagacity. Have we not observed with keen admiration the developmental efforts that have positively altered the landscape of our beloved state under his watch? Edo State people have never had it so good.”

‘Urhobo must vote PDP in Delta Central election'

BY FESTUS AHON

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GHELLI—FORMER governorship aspirant in Delta State, Mr. Sunny Onuesoke, has said that Urhobo must vote for Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the forthcoming Delta Central senatorial by-election for them to be in mainstream politics in the state and national levels.

Onuesoke, who spoke when Udu Youths for Democratic Movement, paid him a courtesy call in his Effurun residence, insisted that the forthcoming by-election was an opportunity for the Urhobos to

correct the political error they made in the 2011 general elections.

Lamenting that it was the first time in the history of Nigeria that Urhobo have no member in the Federal Executive Council, FEC, he said that the only way to remedy the situation was for them to align with PDP. He said: “It will be another error if we vote for any other party other than PDP. The only party that can make us relevant at the federal level is PDP. We must not allow those who are not grounded in politics to put us in opposition for the second time.”

By Bartholomew Madukwe

PEOPLE SPEAK

08102479985

rupt Practices Commission, ICPC, which is currently investigating them.

“The same Nalado and his clique bribed INEC headquarters staff with N4.5 million for them to be recognised.”

APC chief blasts Edo teachers over Oshiomhole's comments

Coalition petitions minister over ‘anomalies' at ISTH

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Isibor said: “They were sacked for gross misconduct and anti-party activities, including misappropriation of N92.8 million of our funds.

“Nalado and his cohorts were subsequently petitioned to Independent Cor-

(nwamad@yahoo.com)

On ‘deportation' of Igbo from Lagos

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N my view, punishing a citizen because he or she is a destitute is a crime against humanity and amounts to playing God. Where would the destitute be if man were God? There is nowhere in the world that you don’t have destitute.— Miss Udeaku Nwazota, Student.

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HE hallmark of a modern govern ment, as espoused

by Thomas Hobbes, is not measured by the number of high rise buildings, tarred roads or exotic cars driven by its infinitesimal privileged class. The deportation was unnecessary.— Mr. Chucks Madueke, Web Developer.

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E should encourage our people to return home. How will a destitute be allowed to roam about when he has a place of origin? Go to MazaMaza, Ajegunle, Seme Border, Okokomaiko, Badagry, Songo-Ota, and so on.— Mr. Victor Amanchukwu, Businessman.

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HIS is a humanitarian and civic rights issue. Lagos State Government should be sued by the deportees individually and as a group for enforcement of human rights and compensation for illegal arrest, detention and imprisonment.— Mr. James Agada, Businessman.

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wish civil right groups and Nigerian Bar Association can pursue this. They should make claims of losses and ask for compensation from Lagos. Constitutionally every Nigeria has the right to stay anywhere within the federation.— Mr. Eminent Agbo, Logistics Analyst.

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HIs is no news.

Governor Fashola did similar thing to some South-Western states, Kwara and Northern states. Why is that of South-Eastern states becoming news? Some people are trying to play dirty politics here.— Mr. Jimoh Atolagbe, Selfemployed.

Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013—37

US state of Maryland, Cross River sign pact

There is no crisis in DPP —Delta State chairman

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HE State of Maryland in the United States of America and Cross River State, yesterday, in Annapolis, the capital of Maryland, signed a Sister-State agreement.

While Governor Liyel Imoke signed on behalf of Cross River, Governor Martin O’Malley signed on behalf of the State of Maryland.

This was just as Governor Imoke was given an award in recognition of reforms he introduced to land administration inhis state.

The award was bestowed on Imoke by Thompson Reuters.

The Sister-State relationship provides for each state, a legal form of partnering and utilising each another’s best practices in research, technical assistance, curriculum development, investments, among others.

With the signing of the agreement, Cross River now partners key institutions in Maryland such as the John Hopkins International Medicine, the University of Maryland, Maryland Office of Tourism, Maryland Office of Sports, Maryland Center, Bowie State University, Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development.

Group calls for transparency in governance

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RESIDENT, Rotary Club of Warri, Delta State, Mr. Joel Idiahi, has urged the political class to downplay politics of bitterness but rather embrace transparency in their dealings.

Speaking during his installation in Warri, Idiahi noted that a genuine call to services goes beyond the current trend of in-fighting both at intra and inter party levels but on ideologies and good intention any political party or persons aspiring to hold p public offices have for the betterment of the generality of the people.

“Considering our level of commitment over the years to the service of humanity, we, members of Rotary Club expects that government should emulate us for the good and benefit of all and sundry irrespective of whatever political differences that may exist among the political class in the country".

BY FESTUS AHON

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FAREWELL—President Gooluck Jonathan (right) presenting a souvenir to the outgoing ambassador of Czech Republic to Nigeria, Mr Jaroslav Siro during a farewell at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, yesterday.

Uduaghan tells police to arrest fake monarchs

BY EMMA AMAIZE & FESTUS AHON ARRI—GOVERNOR of Delta State, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, yesterday, directed the police to apprehend individuals, who parades themselves as traditional rulers without government recognition.

Uduaghan gave the order in Isiokolo, Ethiope East Local Government Area of the state during the presentation of Staff of Office to the Ovie of Agbon clan, HRM Ogurime-Rime, Ukori I. He frowned at situations where individuals ascribe king-

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ship to themselves, especially in Otu-Jeremi and Oghara areas.

He said: “Except you are recognised by the state government, you cannot be called a traditional ruler. If you are calling yourself a traditional ruler, you will be arrested and prosecuted.”

Stating that only persons who have been recognised by the state government as traditional rulers should be seen as such by the people, the governor urged the youths of Agbon clan to shun criminal activities.

“Our youths should not use criminals in the society as role models. Why do you want to be popular by carrying out criminal activities?

There is no criminal who has ended well. This kingdom has a very good name and I appeal to our youths not to give this kingdom a bad name.”

He reminded the youths that Agbon Kingdom had produced prominent indigenes that excelled in various fields of human endeavours and contributed creditably to national development.

Delta govt urged to fund rice farmers

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ELTA State Government has been called upon to provide funds for rice farmers in the state, to enable them embark on large scale farming, so as to make the commodity readily available for consumption and export.

The state government was also urged to make land available in both the riverine and the upland areas of the state to boost the production of the crop.

G25 Assembly made the appeal in the light of Federal Government’ss decision to ban the ernment importation of rice by the year 2015.

The group in a statement by its Chairman, Mr. Benedict Ebede, said “the urgency in the call became necessary when viewed from the point that other states, especially our immediate neighbour, Edo State have gone far in this important endeavour that will, in no small measure, assist in creating employment for the teeming unem-

ployed but qualified youths in the state.”

The group said that the gesture would also boost the human capital development agenda of the state government. The group which listed Bomadi, Patani, Ughelli

South, Aniocha North, Aniocha South, Ndokwa East, Ndokwa West Local Government Areas that favour the growth and production of the commodity, equally called for private partnership in this noble task.

Baptist High School old students elect exco

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APTIST High School Orerokpe Old Students Association, has elected its national executive with Dr. Solomon Osazuwa as its National President.

Also elected were Lucky Tiemo, Deputy National President; Emuobo Miller, National Secretary; Best Umukoro, Assistant National Secretary; Mrs. Grace Ejoh, National Financial Secretary; Elizabeth Eperusi, Assistant National Financial Secretary; Chief T. Ogefere, National Treasurer; Engr. Efe Oghom-

itse, National Publicity Secretary; Peter Anigoro, Assistant National Publicity Secretary and Sunnie Akporherhe, National Social Secretary.

Others are Felix Akpalikpo, Assistant National Social Secretary; G. Okoro, National Legal Adviser; Lemmy Alli, National Auditor and Mrs. Odiase Dorcas, National Welfare Officer.

Others are Pedro Atavwigho, Dickson Turtoe, D.D.D. Ogbisi Mrs. Nayo Arubi and Col. C.T. Eru (rtd), all national officio.

GHELLI—DELTA State Chairman of Democratic Peoples Party, DPP P, Chief Tony Ezeagu, yesterday, said that there was no crisis in the party and described recent media report linking Chief Great Ogboru to “non-existent” crisis in the party as misleading and mischievous.

Ezeagu said “our attention has been drawn to some reckless comments made by Mr. Olisaemeka Akamukale against our leader, Chief Ogboru. Firstly, we recognise that Akamukale is defeated and troubled on account of the failed conspiracy to destroy DPP through the ill-advised political misadventure of a gang of failed conspirators.

“Therefore, we see his meddlesome diatribes that Chief Ogboru is responsible for a non-existent problem in DPP as just hateful, malicious, petty and outright blackmail by a man, who is seeking overnight fame using the good name of our leader as a ladder to get there.

“Otherwise, why would any gainfully engaged man be so concerned about the affairs of a party that expelled him having considered him so unfit to be associated with? We categorically deny that there is any crisis or faction in DPP P This false alarm has been laid to rest by Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC. “But Akamukale and his cotravellers will not rest. Since there is no crisis or faction as confirmed by INEC, Akamukale’s claim that our leader is responsible for a socalled crisis in DPP is therefore, baseless."

Celebration

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IRST Baptist Church, Shasha, will on Sunday, August 25, 2013, celebrate 20 unbreakable and meritorious service for Revd. Noah Adigun, the pioneer pastor of the church.

Revd Adigun is currently the Director of Counseling, Lagos West Baptist Conference and also consultant of the Goodnews Baptist Association.

The moderator of Goodnews Baptist Association, Revd Titi Ajadi and Assistant Moderator, Revd. Olajide Oke will lead the association's delegation to the programme.

38—Vanguard , FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

World Bank empowers 110 Ebonyi communities

BY PETER OKUTU

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BAKALIKI— EBONYI State Community and Social Development Agency, EBCSDA, a World Bank-assisted project, yesterday disclosed that 110 communities in the 13 local government areas had so far benefitted from the scheme since it started operation in April 2009 in the state.

It also stated that more than N926 million had been disbursed by the agency to the benefitting communities till 30 June, 2013, adding that its activities with all the communities had been transparent and rewarding.

The projects implemented by the communities are in the areas of education, rural electrification, environment and natural resources, health, transport, water, and gender as 170 micro projects had been completed and made functional in the course of the exercise.

Briefing newsmen at the agency’s office in Abakaliki, the General Manager of EB-CSDA, Dr. Peter Mbam, stated that Governor Martin Elechi of Ebonyi State had approved the forwarding of a letter of expression of interest to the World Bank and IMF, Abuja, for the state to participate in the planned extension of CSDP in the country.

Passage

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VANGELIST Idudu Olotu, aged 117, is dead. She died on June 12, 2013.

The final burial rites commences on Saturday, August 24.

She was a community woman leader who lived a life of intergrity. She is suvived by Rev. V.O Muoghere (rtd) and Evang. (Dr) S.O. Olotu, JP, Chairman/CEO, S.O. Olotu Group of Companies, among others.

Late Ma Idudu Olotu

NBA wants sacked Abia acting CJ prosecuted

BY ABDULWAHAB ABDULAH &

IJEOMANATHANIEL

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He pointed out that in spite of the state of emergencies in some states and huge spending on the issue, “insecurities, killings, violence, robbery, bombing and mass murder persist all over the country; it shows that we are not employing the right prescription to

these intractable problems.”

On lecturers strike, Ubani urged the Federal Government to save Nigerians from undue embarrassment by honouring its agreement with Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, immediately to bring the strike to end.

He said the fact that the strike in the universities had kept students at home for many weeks was a blow to the education sector “which has deteriorated so much that no Nigerian University is currently listed in the top 100 universities in the world.”

AGOS—THE Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, Ikeja chapter, has called for the prosecution of sacked acting Chief Judge of Abia State for allegedly falsifying his age.

It also scored the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan low in terms of policies and measures for the development of the country.

Commending the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Aloma Muhktar on the disciplinary measure meted out on the sacked acting Chief Judge, the Bar said he was not a worthy ambassador of the Bench.

On the state of the nation, Chairman of Ikeja NBA, Mr. Monday Ubani, also berated the states and local governments for low performance.

Ubani said: “They are all guilty as the people are not feeling the impact of governance at all levels despite huge allocations collected by three tiers of government every month. ”We demand a reversal for the sake of this country and for generations unborn. The people have a role to play by understanding what is going on in the first place MEETING: Governor Theodore Orji of Abia State (right), receiving a document from Eze and demanding a change like Joseph Nwabekee, during a meeting of traditional rulers from Osisioma, Isiala Ngwa South/ other countries are presently do- North with the governor in Umuahia. ing.”

Eastern Electric moves to take over Enugu Distribution Company E

NUGU—EASTERN Electric Company, the reserve bidder for Enugu Electricity Distribution Company, has declared preparedness to pay $126 million for the takeover of the company which provides power to the South Eastern part of Nigeria.

The consortium’s willingness is contained in a statement issued, yesterday, by the communication consultant to Eastern Electric Ltd, Mr. C. Don Adinuba, following the inability of Interstate Electrics to pay the remaining 75 per cent of the bid price at the close of payment at 5pm Wednesday.

The consortium was formed by the five South East state governments; Nestoil , a major indigenous operator in the upstream sector of the Nigerian petroleum industry; Aba Power Ltd and Geometric Power Ltd, led by former Power Minister Bart Nnaji and Diamond Bank founding chairman Pascal Dozie.

Other members are NRECA of the United States which operates in Latin America, Pakistan, Sudan, Bangladesh and controls 10 per cent of the United States 1 million Megawatt grid amounting to some 100,000MW, and the NETGroup of South Africa which operated Tanzanian power and maintains a significant presence in South Africa’s electricity business.

“We have a robust and matchless combination of global best practices and the best experience of emerging economies.

“We shall not have difficulty raising the funds. The Bureau of Public Enterprises is still holding on to our $10 million bank bond raised when we were bidding for Enugu Disco.

“As all Nigerians must have known, the 141MW Aba inte-

grated power project built by Geometric Power and which cost over $450 million is about to be commissioned,” Adinuba said.

It is unlikely that the Federal Government will change its position on non extension of the deadline for payment by preferred bidders. Bids last year by both the Dangote Group and Johnson-Arumeni’s Rockson Engineering which is handling a number of power projects for two generation companies for the

government were rejected for submitting them five minutes late.

With the failure of Interstate Electrics to pay for the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company, the legal battle between Geometric Power and Interstate over the latter’s attempt to acquire Aba and Ariaria Market Business Units of the Power Holding Company, PHCN, as part of its assets may have been brought to a close.

Alleged breach of agreement: Customers owe us N700m, bank tells court

BY BARTHOLOMEW MADUKWECENT UJUMADU BA—MAINSTREET Bank Limited has told an Abia State High Court sitting in Aba that some of its customers and shareholders, who had sued it for breach of agreement, were indebted to it to the tune of N697.9 million.

Meanwhile, the claimants, in the substantive suit are arguing that they are not owing the bank in any way, contending that they had paid N50m on 10/ 7/07, another N120m on 10/12/ 07. They contended further that

A

it was the bank that was owing them N144m and N10m being accrued dividends as at May 2008.

The claimants are also praying the court to restrain the bank from publishing them as debtors with non-performing loan, in addition to N900 million as damages for breach of contract arising from failure of the defendants to sell 20 million units of their shares on or before 17/9/09.

Claimants are Singe Obi Cons. Co. Ltd, Julius Ben Cons. Co. Ltd, Inroll Interna-

tional Ltd, Obi Chinonso, Obi Stanley Ifeanyichukwu, Obi Obi Maryann Onyinyechi, Okafor Obiageli Florence, Obi Ifeanyichukwu Sylvester, Obi Celestina Orjiugo, Obi Ifeoma Glory, Obi Innocent Okafor, Obi Innocent, Afunanya Ifeoma Glory, Afunanya Uchenna, Afunanya Franklin, Afunanya Chidera, Afunanya Onyekachi, Rosent Investment Ltd, Obi Celestina, Obi Onyinyechi, Obi George and Obi Emmanuel.

Vanguard d, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013—39

VISIT: T From left, Ondo State Governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko; Minister of Communication Technology, Omobola Johnson, and Ondo State Commissioner for Information, Kayode Akinmade, during the Minister's visit to the Governor's Office, in Akure

BRIEFING: From left, Mrs. Hauwa Keri, Director, Drug Evaluation and Research; Mrs. Maureen Ebigbeyi, Director, Port Inspection Directorate, and Mr. MacDonald Garba, Director, Investigation and Enforcement, all of National Foods, Drugs Administration and Control, NAFDAC, displaying some of the fake products, during press briefing on seizure fake drugs and arrest of their importers, in Lagos. Photo: Biodun Ogunleye.

CONFERENCE: From left, Managing Director, American Porters Water group, Mr. Richard Wukish; Managing Director, Osun State Investment Company, Mr. Bola Oyebamiji; Managing Director, Safari Holding Solution, USA, Mr. Carole Obam, and Osun State Commisioner for Commerce, Mr. Jaiyeoba Alagbada, at the Osun Inter- FUNERAL: From left, Mr.. Remi Lakanu, son; Mrs. Gloria Lakanu, wife, and Mr. Tunde Lakanu, son, during the funeral mass for late national Trade and Investment Conference, in Osogbo.

Andrew Lakanu, at Holy Cross Cathedral, Catholic Mission Street, Lagos. Photo: Diran Oshe

BRIEFING: Cross-section of members of staff of 3R Technologies, during a LAUNCH: Prof. Sylvester Egwu (middle) and other dignitaries, during press briefing on Smart Campus ,in Lagos. the launch of his book entitled, 'Stop Mass Failure in Mathematics,' at the Lagos Resource Centre.

DSTV HOSTS DI MATTEO, FORMER CHELSEA COACH

VISIT: T From Left, Marketing Manager, Guinness, Mr. Obinna Anyalebechi; BBA Star, Ms Karen Igho; Guinness Football Manager Ambassador, Mr. Roberto Di Matteo, Chelsea Football Club coach, and Senior Brand Manager, Guinness, Mr. Uche Onwudiwe, during the visit of Di Matteo of Chelsea, to the DSTV Fan Park. Photo; Kehinde Gbadamosi C M Y K

From Left, Marketing Manager, Guinness, Mr. Obinna Anyalebechi; Guinness VIP Winner, Mr. Onah Augustine; Guinness Football Manager Ambassador,Mr. Roberto Di Matteo, and Guinness VIP Winner, Mr. Adeshina Uyeh.

40—Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

Nigerian students spend N100bn on tuition in Ghanaian varsities

Ogun PDP doubts Daniel's loyalty to Jonathan

BY PETER DURU AKURDI—OVER 200,000 Nigerian students studying in Ghanaian universities are reported to expend over N100billion annually as tuition outside sundry fees.

Former lawmaker and educationists, Senator David Iornem, who disclosed this yesterday at a briefing to mark his 64th birthday anniversary in Makurdi, said the figure represented a major capital flight from the country.

According to him, “available figures show that the over 200,000 Nigerians currently studying in Ghana, expend over N100 billion annually on tuition and sundry fees. This situation arose because official figures show that out of N1.7million Nigerians seeking admission into institutions of higher learning, only 500,000 find placements leaving many with no other option but to seek admission in Ghana.

The federal government should take immediate steps to unbundling the higher education sector in Nigeria by adopting the United Kingdom, American, Malaysian and German models which allows for the establishment of small university colleges by willing entrepreneurs.

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4 arraigned for alleged theft

MEETING—From left: President, Public Interest Lawyers League, Mr Abdul Mahmud; Executive Director, Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, Mr Auwal Musa and Chairman, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC, Dr Sam Amadi, during the NERC meeting with civil societies in Abuja, yesterday.

ASUU flays Okonjo-Iweala over alleged comments

BY SUZAN EDEH

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AUCHI—ACADEMIC Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, yesterday, expressed shock and displeasure with what it considered highly embarrassing the statement credited to the Coordinating Minister of the economy and Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, that the lecturers were making a fresh demand from the Federal Government.

At a briefing, Zonal coordinator of Bauchi Zone of ASUU, Dr Usman Abubakar, said contrary to the position of the minister, ASUU was not making fresh demand, but asking for the implementation of

existing agreement.

He said: “Contrary to the minister's assertion that “ASUU is demanding for N92 billion”, we wish to inform the public that the said amount is a debt, not a demand. It is a debt the Federal Government is owing staff of affected universities (both academic and nonacademic) over a period of four years. The Federal Government has to pay, if it has to show signs of a responsible and honourable government.”

He said the minister ’s pronouncement was a deliberate and calculated attempt to blackmail ASUU,

confuse the public and reduce ASUU's patriotic cause to a mere payment of allowances.

The minister’s comments, according to Abubakar, indicated that government had no intention of honouring the agreement, saying “how could the minister have made the claim of no money to honour the agreement when the finance ministry was represented throughout the negotiations in the 2009 ASUU/FGN agreement and the MoU. What could be more dishonourable and deceitful by a government than this."

....I didn't say govt's negotiating team incompetent — Gov Aliyu

BY ONOZURE DANIA

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AGOS—A 32-year-old man, Ikechukwu Onyekwuo, and three others were yesterday arraigned before an Ikeja magistrates court, for allegedly stealing N5.9 million, belonging to Foltechs Engineering Services Ltd. The other suspects who were docked alongside Onyekwuo, are Tolulope Akinyemi, 28, Olalekan Agoro 27 and Yakus Sodiq 26.

The defendants, before Magistrate Mrs Eniola Fabamwo, are facing a three-count charge of conspiracy and stealing preferred against them by the police.

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OVERNOR Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu of Niger State, has denied a media report quoting him as saying that the team of negotiators on the side of the Federal Government in the ongoing talks with members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, is incompetent.

A national daily (not the Vanguard) had in a report, on Tuesday, quoted Governor Aliyu as “doubting the abilities of the negotiators on the side of the Federal Government to achieve any breakthrough in the ongoing dialogue with the lecturers.”

But in a reaction, Governor Aliyu’s spokesman, Danladi Ndayebo, described the story as untrue, urging the reading public to disregard the report.

He said the report was

misleading and did not reflect Governor Aliyu’s comments at the National Universities Commission, NUC, in Abuja where the Niger State’s helmsman addressed a orkshop on the third Regional Centre of Expertise, RCE. The statement said: “What Governor Aliyu said was that Federal Government can afford to offer free basic and senior secondary education while heavily subsidizing tertiary education if government officials cut down on spending public funds unnecessarily.

“Governor Aliyu encouraged constant dialogue between labour unions and government, stressing that strikes were unheard of in other West African countries because there was constant

dialogue between the unions and government.”

GUN N State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has faulted former Governor Gbenga Daniel on his claim of being loyal to President Goodluck Jonathan.

The party spoke against the backdrop of a statement credited to Daniel that he was “irrevocably committed to the Goodluck Jonathan project and will support his aspirations wherever and whenever.

In a statement by the State Publicity Secretary, Mr. Waliu Oladipupo, the party said “by his comments Daniel seems to be giving another meaning to the saying ‘if you love me, love my dog.’ For, if he is truly committed to Mr. President, he would associate with him warts and all.”

The party wondered why Daniel was pledging his loyalty instead of reaffirming his defection to the Labour Party, LP P, saying if he could leave the PDP after the party made him politically, “he has already betrayed Mr. President and the entire party”.

It urged the President not to be taken in by what it described as “Daniel’s Ziggy”, adding that “his only loyalty is to himself and Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme, SURE-P, which he wants to continue to use to mobilize for the LP P The party noted that the circumstances under which Daniel defected to the LP were different from that of Governor Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo State.

It said: “While Mimiko’s decision to leave the PDP for LP was by popular demand, Daniel’s adventure is driven by ego and some parochial interests. He wants to have it his own way at all times."

NOUN reaffirms comittment to quality education

BY TAYE OBATERU

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OS—NATIONAL Open University of Nigeria, NOUN, has reaffirmed commitment to providing quality education to students through a serious quality control mechanism.

Director of the Jos Study Centre of NOUN, Professor Isaac Butswat, told Vanguard that this was been achieved by subjecting its programmes to accreditation by the National Universities Commission, NUC, and relevant professional

bodies.

He said all the university’s programmes had got full or partial accreditation from the NUC and other professional bodies, noting that the commitment to quality had resulted in a sharp rise in the number of the students.

He said the centre now had over 3,000 students as compared to the mere 300 when he joined the centre in 2008, stressing that the Jos centre had now been designated a regional centre alongside Abuja for the North Central Zone, to further boost activities at the centre.

Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013 — 41

42— —Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

people that find the airport in Enugu nearer to them would use it. So we are in a situation where people in Delta, other South South States and the North Central would use the airport.

We are confident that the impact would be great. The airport would facilitate businesses and we expect that as it grows and schedules include other parts of the world, Enugu would be the major hub in this part of the country with a spread of services that would benefit others.

The impact of an airport, therefore, cannot be limited, the uses that result from its presence would show and soon the impact would be obvious with the attendant multiplier effects of having such an important facility here.

Security Issues Enugu is rated the safest State in Nigeria, the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar said so. We are still improving

Akanu Ibiam International Airport , Enugu terminal building

Enugu ready to welcome the world—Gov. Chime

By IKEDDY ISIGUZO, Chairman, Editorial Board

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T the Lion Building, Enugu, the official quarters of the Governor of Enugu State, Sullivan Iheanacho Chime, was attending to hordes of guests - politicians, government officials and others with sundry interests. Close to midnight on Monday, he granted Vanguard d audience on the prospects that the Akanu Ibiam International Airport that would operate international flights from tomorrow hold for the city, State and the entire South East zone.

In tracing the journey that resulted in the airport, he was

one of the least honoured of our past leaders and I know that many share my joy over this honour that has been bestowed on him,” Chime said.

He also spoke about the contributions that the Enugu State Government has made in ensuring that the airport met the expectations of the users of the facility. “Enugu is ready to welcome the world,” he said.

Though he was referring to the official opening tomorrow, hours before the interview, businessman Arthur Eze terminated his flight from Dakar, Senegal in Enugu.

His was not the first international flight to the Akanu Ibiam International Airport. A

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We are witnessing the fulfilment of the promise that the President made to the South East to deliver an international airport to it

generous with credits to several parties.

According to him, Dr. Akanu Ibiam, after whom the airport is named, deserved the honour.

“He was the Governor of Eastern Region. In terms of the contributions to the development of the Region, I would rate him along with Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe and Dr. Michael Okpara. He is

,

Ghanaian government delegation to Anambra State landed there last June. Formally, an Ethiopian Airlines flight would operate from Enugu tomorrow - landing there about 1pm and taking off to Addis Ababa - and be recognised as the inaugural international flight from the Akanu Ibiam International Airport.

Governor Chime was being modest, about Enugu’s readiness. The 101-year-old city that received His Imperial Majesty Emperor Ras Tafari Makonnen Woldemikael Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia in 1972, has just become readier to welcome the world, with an Ethiopian connection, 41 years after the Lion of Judah, as he was broadly known and called.

How journey began: President Yar’Adua had pronounced the international status of the airport. Not much happened after that, but it was an important recognition. It was under President Goodluck Jonathan that the major works started. It began with the closure of the airport to permit the extension and widening of the runways for bigger planes. A new apron was also approved. The Minister of Aviation, Princess Stella Oduah, gave the project a tremendous push. She is doing a great job, not only with Enugu, the changes in airports round the country testify to her efforts.

The President flagged off the construction of the international wing last March. We are witnessing the fulfilment of the promise that the President made to the South East to deliver an international airport to it. I am happy that that has been done and I ask our people to join us in

thanking the President for keeping his word.

South East Governors’ contributions: All the governors from the South Enugu State Governor Sullivan Chime East played an important part in this project. As our security. People arriving a group, we made it a point to Enugu for business or pleasure sustain the pressure by should harbour no fears. reminding the President about We are assisting the police in the project. It was one of the the construction of facilities for important projects that we kept their air wing at the airport. It was asking the President to ensure one of the issues we settled with that the people of South East got. the Inspector General of Police The others are the Second Niger during a visit to Enugu. The Bridge and the federal roads in facility would be in use before the the zone. end of the year. It would be used for air surveillance of the South Impact of East zone.

Contributions of Enugu the airport Government We did not make any financial We spoke as one voice in the South East Governors Forum in contributions to the project. this matter and I thank my However, we have constructed brother governors for supporting new roads to decongest traffic to the project. I believe there were the airport. The roads are part of others, some unknown, whose the on-going road projects to kind words could have facilitated improve traffic management the realisation of this project. Our throughout the State.

His Message:We look forward gratitude goes to all of them.

How would airport help to welcoming you in Enugu.

Enugu: The impact of the airport Come to Enugu and benefit from would not be limited to Enugu the improvements we have made State. It would impact on throughout our State. Enugu is businesses in the South East and ready to welcome the world. beyond. Travellers and business

Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013 — 43

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44 —Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

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Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013 — 45

•Anosike

•Nwoye

•Ekwunife

•Uba

Now the final lap AFTER months of hustling, the contest to replace the two term governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi enters its final lap tomorrow with the governorship primaries of the main opposition party, PDP, while that of the ruling APGA will be on Monday. However, being Anambra State, the home of many political intrigues, tomorrow’s contest is expected to open political oddities that are bound to be exploited by Anambra’s professional politicians.

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HE Anambra political chess game enters a decisive stage tomorrow with the governorship primaries in one of the three major parties in the state, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP P. The primaries of the ruling All Progressive Grand Alliance, APGA. will take place in August 26.

The third major party in the state, the All Progressives Congress, APC it emerged may also have resolved to pick the former governor of the state, Dr. Chris Ngige, setting the stage for what promises to be the most keenly contested political contest in the state.

The road to the primaries in the PDP and APGA was undoubtedly laced with intrigues, the kinds that are resplendent in Anambra State, a state fabled for its different sorts of political oddities.

As at press time, the PDP was still embroiled in crisis emerging from the conduct of the ward congresses.

The congresses conducted in some 91 wards penultimate Monday were annulled following legal and other political considerations brought to the national secretariat which ordered a rerun in the affected wards.

The party is still faced with the spectre of a legal action from the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC which chose not to observe the congresses conducted by the Prince Ken

Emeakayi faction of the party recognized by the national secretariat of the party.

INEC has rather chosen to recognize the Ejike Ogbuebego led faction of the party. INEC’s inclination nonetheless, Emeakayi asserts the loyalty of all 15 aspirants vying for the PDP governorship ticket.

While the PDP leadership was conducting its congresses without the presence of INEC officials, the electoral umpire was supervising another primary conducted by Chief Oguebego and the supervision was done

by INEC officials from its headquarters in Abuja.

Authentic state chairman Political watchers are waiting to see what will happen tomorrow, especially as a Federal High Court in Port Harcourt has ruled that Oguebego remains the authentic state chairman of PDP P. APGA, which is the ruling party, has also had its own fair share of crisis. The party is entering Monday’s primary election with much controversy following last weekend’s disqualification of some of the party’s most credible aspirants.

Two of the most credible, Prof.

Charles Soludo and the immediate past secretary to the state government, Osalaka Obaze were disqualified under still controversial circumstances.

The disqualification of Soludo,

some allege was upon pressure from top presidency officials who were disturbed that he could win and then go on to oppose the PDP in the 2015 presidential election.

Obaze’s disqualification was based on the lack of a voter’s card. His disqualification was even more shocking given the fact that he only returned from the United States less than two years ago and had been widely tipped to be the anointed successor of Governor Peter Obi. Obaze told Vanguard d that he was sure to obtain the voter’s card last Monday following the commencement of the voter’s registration exercise in the state.

For the 15 aspirants in the PDP and the dozen or so in APGA, it is very unlikely that the primaries in the two parties would end their quest if they lose. According to custom, many of them are expected to jump to other parties to continue their aspiration.

APGA Those that made it after the screening are Mr. John Nwosu from Anambra South, Mrs. Uche Ekwunife and Chief Chukwuemeka Nwogbo, both from Anambra Central, while from Anambra North are Chief Willy Obiano, Chief Patrick Obianwu and Chief Paul Odenigbo.

John Nwosu The Nnewi –born businessman could be said to be a new breed politician. He was one of those who indicated interest in the race very early and he has manifested himself through his foundation

which focuses on the empowerment of the less privileged people in the society.

The permutation in some quarters is that Nwosu might become a running mate if a candidate from Anambra North emerges as the flag bearer.

Uche Ekwunife She is an experienced politician, having contested for the position of governor in 2010 on the platform of Progressives Peoples Alliance, PPA, and though she did not win, she had a good outing.

,

BY EMMANUEL AZIKEN, POLITICAL EDITOR & VINCENT UJUMADU

discussed aspirant. He is now generally tagged Governor Obi’s candidate especially coming from Fidelity Bank where the governor’s family is known to have substantial interests.

His chances are also boosted by the fact that he is from Anambra North, an area Governor Obi is actively supporting to produce his successor.

Chief Paul Odenigbo He was a former SSG in the state and also from the Omambala part of the state. He has been a silent operator since he joined the race and indications are that he has established tentacles in all the 326 wards of the state.

One clear fact is that all government delegates and party officials will vote for either Obiano or Odenigbo during the primaries, leaving the remaining elected delegates for grabs by the highest bidder.

The road to the primaries in the PDP and APGA was undoubtedly laced with intrigues, the kinds that are resplendent in Anambra State, a state fabled for its different sorts of political oddities

She returned to the House of Representatives after the 2010 election and was reelected to the House in 2011 on the platform of APGA where she is currently campaigning to be come governor. She has the capacity to surprise those who underrate her.

Chukwuemeka Nwogbo He is a member of the House of Representatives from Awka North and South federal constituency. He was one of the last to enter the race and permutation is that he could be considered for deputy.

Willy Obiano He was the last to enter the race, but has become the most

,

Patrick Obianwu He is from Onitsha, Anambra North. He is not known to be making so much noise, but there must be something in him that has kept him in the race.

The disadvantage he has is that he is from Onitsha town, an area dreaded by politicians from other parts of the state because of the belief that the area already has a great advantage over other parts of Anambra State in terms of development.

There is the fear that an Onitsha governor might take decisions that may adversely affect the fortunes of traders in the commercial town.

Continues on page 46

46— —Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

Continues from page 45 PDP The cleared spirants in the PDP are Senator Andy Uba, Nze Akachukwu Nwankpo, Dr. Obinna Uzor, Mr. Ugochukwu Okeke, Mr. Walter Okeke and Prince Nicholas Ukachukwu, who are all from Anambra South senatorial zone. From Anambra North are Senator Emma Anosike, Chief Tony Nwoye and Dr. Alex Obiogbolu, while from Anambra Central are Mrs. Josephine Anennih, Mr. Sylvester Okonkwo and Chief Charles Odunukwe.

Senator Andy Uba The former governor of Anambra State for 17 days is the Senate committee chairman of INEC and some allege that his position is influencing INEC's handling of the present crisis in the party. With the situation of events, Uba may become the PDP candidate without much opposition.

However, if the other aspirants decide to conduct a parallel primary and produce another candidate, PDP may have two candidates as it did during the Anambra South senatorial election when Uba and Prince Nicholas Ukachukwu claimed to be the party’s candidates and two

Now the final lap

•Okeke

•Anenih:

•Nwankpo

•Nwosu

of them were voted for, but one person was credited with their joint votes.

If this repeats itself, PDP may win the governorship election with the connivance of INEC which will likely come out later to name one person as the candidate of the party.

Nze Akachukwu Nwankpo The former special adviser to

the president on technical matters was earlier touted to be the anointed Aso Rock candidate because of his closeness with President Goodluck Jonathan. He is from Okija in Ihiala local government area of Anambra South. It is not clear if he is still enjoying that toga of being the president’s anointed aspirant, but he is making spirited effort

to win the ticket.

Dr. Obinna Uzor The great philanthropist from Ihiala has been eyeing the governorship of the state since 2003. He is also connected in high places and there are indications that he may accept whatever will happen on Saturday, especially if Uba is declared the winner of the primary. During the senatorial contest that produced Andy Uba, he worked very hard to ensure that his area was delivered to Senator Uba. Chief Ugochukwu Okeke He is also from Ihiala. He is one aspirant that has remained neutral in the face of the ongoing crisis because of his belief that as a youth, the future has a lot in store for him.

count on Saturday will be seen.

Senator Emma Anosike The Umuleri –born politician from Omambala area of Anambra North was running mate to Professor Soludo in 2010. He is a quiet operator and he has often said that the race is not a do -or die affair for him.

We're set in PDP — Emeakayi PRINCE Kenneth Emeakayi was few months ago adopted by stakeholders including national officers of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP as the chairman of the Anambra State chapter of the party. His emergence followed more than 10 years of intractable infighting that led to multiplication of factions within the party. Since his emergence Prince Emeakayi has attempted to cobble the different factions within a united body. In this telephone interview he spoke on the party’s plans and prospects ahead of tomorrow’s governorship primaries. Excerpts:

BY EMMANUEL AZIKEN, POLITICAL EDITOR

Response to journalists

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Y our constitution it is the national chairman that sends the list of candidates to the national body.

How many delegates are you expecting for the primary election?

In all we are expecting about 1,500 delegates.

So how far can you say that the crisis in the chapter is over given the continued assertions of Mr. Ejike Ogbuebego?

Just like in every other endeavour and even in families, you cannot rule out the possibility that when the entire family has agreed on something one person may still want to say, “I do not agree.”

But I know for sure and authoritatively that the meeting where the National Working Committee resolved the issue of Anambra that all of us were in attendance.

Ejike

It has been alleged that Senator Andy Uba is not participating in your primaries. Why? I cannot say so. What I mean by that is that in all the meetings I have called for gubernatorial aspirants in my capacity as state chairman, Senator Andy Uba attended all and he signed and I have records of where he signed.

Ogbuebego was there in person, his benefactor, Chief Chris Uba was there in person, Senator Andy Uba and all the factional leaders were there.

After every consideration and when the national chairman pronounced me as the legitimate chairman and asked everybody to work with me, Ogbuebego was the first to speak in that meeting and he accepted the decisions of that meeting and pledged to go back to Anambra to work with me. After him, his benefactor, Chief Chris Uba spoke in the same manner and this is verifiable.

The only function he did not attend which people read meanings into was the last rally we held in Awka, but I read his response to journalists where he said that he was part of that rally and where he said that he had flight problems.

By nature what I take from people is what they tell me.

Saturday will be there for us to know the truth. It is only when Senator Andy Uba fails to participate in that primaries that we can say otherwise.

Have you been able to link up with Chief Chris Uba on these insinuations?

Well, I have. You know because he was at that meeting where the decision was taken and he pledged to work with me, so when I heard the

Continues on page 47

New face of Anambra He has made so many inroads in all the wards in the state and other aspirants know that he is somebody to reckon with. In a recent interview, Okeke described himself as the new face of Anambra.

Walter Okeke He is a trained accountant from Nanka in Orumba North local government area. He too has enticing programmes that could help move Anambra State forward. But the problem is that with Uba and Ukachukwu who are old warhorses in the race, he has to work very hard to upstage them in the primaries.

Nicholas Ukachukwu He is one of the most experienced in the race and one of the richest too. The Evangelist –turned politician has become synonymous with Anambra politics and that explains the large followership he has.

It was gathered that he was the aspirant that was amassing the largest number of delegates in the local government congress, but whether that exercise would

Leadership of the party But one thing is clear and that is that the governorship of Anambra cannot be won without him being part of it.

Chief Tony Nwoye The former state chairman of PDP is loved by the youths and those who have associated with him say he has a large heart. He is also one of those that made great impact in the local government congress that was conducted by the leadership of the party penultimate Tuesday.

His coming from Omambala area of the state is a plus for him but with another Omambala person in the race in the person of Anosike, chances are that their delegates might be split if one did not step down for the other.

Dr. Alex Obiogbolu He is from Onitsha in Anambra North. He is also considered to be a bridge builder in the party as he is not involved in any of the controversies.

He has consistently been in touch with the grassroots and this may go for him during the primaries. If the delegates decide to stop the controversial aspirants, Obiogbolu may become the rallying point.

Iyom Josephine Anenih The former minister for women affairs is from Anambra Central.

The disadvantage she has is that she is married outside the state and knowing the way Anambra people view such issue, which is that a woman, once married, totally becomes the indigene of her husband’s place, Anenih may face tough challenges tomorrow.

Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013 — 47

F

ROM the time when Independence (with democracy) was joyfully handed over to Nigeria and Nigerians on a golden plate by the British colonial masters and to the period when the military rulers under General Abdulsalami Abubakar repackaged democracy in the 1999 Constitution, Nigeria and its people have witnessed many changes in social, economic and political spheres.

The country has seen good and also bad days. Sometimes, it looks as if Nigeria is still in those dark days of colonialism.

It is observed that the problems of the country‘s present rulers is inability to look into the past because of poor record keeping and are thereby frustrated in understanding the present environment and plan for the future. Before 1960, the British ruled us and directed our economy to their own advantage first, and then for our own survival. At independence, we became clueless in a new but complex political and extreme situation.

In post-independence Nigeria, attempts

by Nigerians to rule and understand themselves ended woefully in a classic misunderstanding which encouraged military adventurism and later, the costly civil war of 1967 to 1970.

The economic devastation of that war is yet to be reversed even with the post-war reconstruction efforts of the past military leaders and the blessings of oil money in the 1970s. It could be said, perhaps without equivocation, that oil money has made Nigerians mad – rulers and the ruled.

The acquisitive instincts of the rulers became sharper while majority of the people have turned to be money hustlers.

A fertile ground for the survival of corruption has been created and gleefully nurtured.

In the post-military era of the 1990s (1999 to be exact), the birth of democracy was born with the introduction of multiparty system – under a constitution that had a federal and central faces in its structure. Since the first President in 1999 was a former army general, the central phase of the Constitution was more pronounced in its operation.

Since 1999 one of the political parties, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has been

07059197616

Oddity in economic and political life of Nigeria in power, directing political and economic programmes of the country towards a goal of prosperity. The efforts so far have been adjudged to be a qualified success if not total success as many Nigerians would have wished in an atmosphere of free flow of oil money and lack of organized opposition (until the recent registration of All Progressives Congress (APC). Even with the registration of APC and others, some Nigerians still doubt the effectiveness of the opposition of what they perceive as “birds of the same feathers”.

Analysts are searching for ideological differences and methodology of operations on specific issues.

Of recent, President Goodluck Jonathan of the ruling party (PDP) has been on the receiving end on many woes of Nigeria.

It has become increasingly difficult to differentiate the person of the President from that of his office. As laymen would say, “when you see fire and you jump into it, what do you expect?.

It was in 2011 that President Jonathan promised through his Transformation Agenda to make Nigerians smile. The expectation is that he would use a magical wand to clear the failings of his predecessors. If at the moment, there is no full employment bur mass unemployment with its associated crimes of armed robbery, kidnappings, corruption and insurrection, then the President and

his government officials deserve rotten tomatoes being thrown at them.

What about oil money and economic development? At present, oil money which should be used to fuel the growth points of economic development through infrastructural reconstruction is shared amongst the various tiers of government (with heavy outlay on recurrent expenditure).

A part of the revenue is lost to oil thieves, pipeline vandals, and corrupt officials operating subsidy schemes. Recently, the sharp-eyed Minister of Finance, Dr Okonjo-Iweala talked about the N232 billion payments made to fraudulent marketers and how subsidy payments rose from N256 billion in 2006 to N2.1 trillion in 2011. The number of marketers suddenly rose from the familiar figures to 143 oil importers to share in the booty.

There is no doubt that the dismal failure of the present government on downstream sector of the oil industry is responsible for the confusion and the misunderstanding by the public of the subsidy scheme.

First, the government should have nothing to do with procurement and distribution of oil products; it should limit itself to the provision of infrastructures and regularization of safety procedures.

All present facilities should be sold or leased to genuine oil marketers (with international connections) and allow

I’ve not stepped down for Ngige G

U B E R N AT O R I A L aspirant for Anambra governorship on the platform of All Progressives Congress, APC, Mr Godwin Ezeemo, has refuted claims that he stepped down for Senator Chris Ngige in the forthcoming state gubernatorial elections.

He also maintained that no consensus candidate had emerged for the APC. Speaking on the purported stepping down for Chris Ngige, Ezeemo said: “I have not stepped down for anybody and will never do that. I have always believed in free and fair contest where the best candidate will emerge.

“I want to state unequivocally that I am still in the race for Anambra Governorship under the platform of All Progressives Congress; a party I and other well meaning Anambra people worked hard to build. The rumour making the rounds that Chris Ngige has emerged the flag bearer of the All Progressives

Igbo/Yoruba relations Judging by the recent reactions of some writers on the alleged deportation of some Ibos from Lagos to Onitsha, some notable commentators are not sure whether Ibo and Yoruba could live together peacefully in the “Republic of Southern Nigeria”. Yes, the two tribes have been living together in Lagos, Jos, Kano and many other areas in peace and harmony for more than eighty years without any single incidence of physical bloody combat.

What you are reading in the newspapers or media forum are what the Late T.O.S Benson, a popular Lagos Lawyer would describe (in ungrammatical fashion) as a, “farrago of nonsensical effusions”.

But my fear is: If Awolowo A was described as a killer, and Obasanjo is no good, who would lead the campaign for Ibo President in Lagos? Certainly, not Orji Kalu

—Ezeemo

final say on who governs them.”

Stating the importance of upholding internal democracy in the newly formed APC, the guber aspirant said “I have a very firm belief that a free and fair primaries for the purpose of electing a flag bearer for our great

BY DAPO AKINREFON

marketers to buy crude oil, refine to specification (according to their market requirements) and distribute products through their retail outlets at prices agreed with government (as representative of consumers).

It is folly and economic waste for an oil producing country to continue to import in a refined form a product or products from the proceeds of exported crude.

It may be necessary to point out another folly in the application of government monetary policy. It has been pointed out in this column how tight monetary policy has affected the flow of necessary credit to the real economy and thereby prevented industrial expansion. Of recent, Central Bank‘s decision to raise the Cash Reserve Requirement for public sector deposits in banks to 50% (though thoroughly justified) might make lending even more difficult to the critical sectors of the economy.

The expectation is to make it more difficult for the medium and small scale industries, in spite of the CBN‘s lifeline of N220 billion through the Microfinance Banks (with 9% interest for women). My idea of over-all industrial expansion is through the concept of easy money (4% 5% interest rate) as it is being done in developed economies.

party All Progressives Congress in the forth coming Anambra governorship elections will make our party stronger.”

He also said the APC was formed to wrest power from the ruling PDP and right the several wrongs it had unleashed on

Nigerians since the inception of this political dispensation.

“Therefore, anything that creates doubt about the sincerity of that avowed principle in the minds of the party faithful certainly does not portend good for our great party. I stand for free, fair and credible primaries.

No more, no less,” he said.

We're set in PDP — Emeakayi •Ezeemo Congress in the November 16 Anambra election is baseless and unfounded.

“The attempt to impose a candidate on Anambra people is a deceptive ploy by Rochas Okorocha who is battling to have a sound footing in APC in his own state Imo State. Those who do not want to go to the polls to test their popularity and want to take power through the back doors are clearly scared of my pedigree. I challenge them to the contest before Anambra people who have the ultimate right and

Continues from page 46 rummour about his people trying to do something different from that, I placed a call to him and he denied knowledge of it.

As I told you, I take people by what they say to me in as much as his later actions did not conform with what he told me, but I am holding him to what he told me that he stands by what he said.

But Chief Chris Uba has been laying relatively low in this election?

Well, Ejike is Chris Uba and Chris Uba is Ejike. Why did I say so? A lot of people who are

supporting me may not have liked my face but, people are supporting me because they believe that in terms of capability that I can deliver.

On the other hand people also feel that the PDP should be a public thing, not a family thing. This is because you know that the last chairman of Chris Uba’s group was Benji Udeazor, now the relationship is that the woman that gave birth to Benyi Udeazor and the person that gave birth to Chris Uba’s wife are of the same parents.

Now, Ejike’s mother happens to be the elder sister to Benji

Udeazor’s mother. What it then means is that it is the same parents that gave birth to Chris Uba’s wife, Ejike’s mother and Benji’s mother. And our people felt, no way.

You can quote me, Chris Uba after that meeting at the national secretariat, I held another meeting with Chris Uba, Senator Andy Uba, Senator Ugochukwu Uba, Chief Olisa Metuh and a few others from Anambra and at that meeting Chief Chris Uba said that one of the reasons he was happy with my adoption is that I have the capacity to drive PDP P

48 — Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

EDITORS HOLD 9TH CONFAB

Press council: FG has no plans to gag the press — MAKU zEditors 've enormous roles in shaping democracy — Uduaghan

BY AUSTIN OGWUDA

A

S A B A — INFORMATION Minister, Mr. Labaram Maku, yesterday, spoke on the controversy surrounding the formation of the Nigerian Press Council, assuring that it was not meant to gag the media as was the case during the military era.

This came as Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator Pius Anyim and Delta State governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan expressed concern that the country was shifting from an oil economy to a non oil earner.

They both spoke in Asaba, Delta State, yesterday, at the 9th edition of conference of Nigerian Guild of Editors, NGE, with the theme, Nigeria Beyond Oil: The Role of the Editor.

Maku said: “Today, the press is operating in an atmosphere of freedom, as it is free to discuss and debate any issue and that is what it should be. The freedom of Nigeria was founded by journalists such as Dr. Nnmadi Azikiwe, Chief Awolowo and several others to propagate our freedom.

“But we must also be worried about the quality of our profession and where it is going to. This is not something that can be regulated from the top but something that we must concern ourselves about.

Each time the Press Council is mentioned, there are a lot of misunderstanding, it is hard for people to understand because you know that under the military, the intentions of the Press Council were different. They were to control and ensure that you will not practice journalism.

I remember journalists were hounded into detention because of Decree 4. At a point, all the editors of New Nigerian Newspapers were in jail when Gen Ibrahim Babangida took over in August 1985.”

Anyim on his part charged the editors to look at how best to cushion the effect which non-oil approach would have on the country.

He said: “Whether we like it or not, we are transiting from an oil Nigeria to non oil Nigeria and if we fail in this duty, the society will pay for it.

What makes Nigeria thick is today found everywhere in Africa. This means that the forces of demand and supply will force the price to fall.”

Governor Uduaghan noted that the Nigeria crude oil production was facing a serious challenge that needed to be addressed.

He said: “Our oil production is threatened on two fronts. First, illegal bunkering and there is no underestimating the havoc this is causing. The International Energy Agency recently sounded the alarm that Nigeria has been losing about $7 billion annually to vandalism of pipelines, oil theft and illegal bunkering.

“The chairman of the Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparent Initiative, Mr. Ledum Mitee, said recently while presenting the organisation’s audit report of the oil and gas sector that between 2009 and 2011, the country lost about $11 billion to activities of oil thieves. The figures may differ but the sums are huge.

“Nigeria crude oil production is also facing another challenge with the discovery of alternative in Shale gas. Right now, that resource is evolving and it is believed that in future as the technology to explore it matures, it will become more commercially successful and a real competition to the crude oil in the international energy market.”

Special Adviser to the President on Performance Monitoring and Evaluation, Professor Sylvester Monye, in a paper entitled Economic Renaissance in Nigeria: A non-oil approach, said “although Nigeria’s economic growth in the last several years has been anchored on growth in the non-oil sector, President Goodluck Jonathan recognises that more work needed to be done to entrench and sustain the contributions from this

section and ensure that there is an enabling environment for private sector investments.”

At the event were Publisher of Vanguard Newspapers, Mr. Sam Amuka; Publisher of ThisDay Newspapers, Chief Nduka Obaigbena; Dr. Tony Iredia; former Nigerian Television Authority Director General; former governor of Ogun State, Chief Segun Osoba, who chaired the occasion; Mr. John Momoh, Chairman, Channels Television; Delta State deputy governor, Prof.

Amos Utuama; Speaker, Delta State House of Assembly, Mr. Victor Ochei, state commissioners among others.

Globacom commends Nigerian media Meanwhile, leading telecommunications service provider, Globacom, has commended the resilience of the Nigerian press and urged media practitioners to hold tenaciously to the ethics of the journalism profession.

In a goodwill message to the Nigerian Guild of Editors, Globacom noted that the Nigerian press had done so well that Nigerians were proud of their achievements, especially as they have contributed to the unity of the country.

The company promised to always identify with the Nigerian media practitioners in their projects that are geared towards building a better society.

The company said in a statement “We wish to congratulate our brothers of the Fourth Estate of the Realm on the occasion of their annual conference.

Globacom is proud of the achievement of the Nigerian media and we salute the courage, fearlessness and resilience of the media professionals in this country. We are particularly happy to note that the Nigerian media can compete favourably with their counterparts anywhere in the world. On our part, we will continue to identify with the media in every way possible.”

MEETING—From left: Former Head of State and Leader of APC, General Muhammadu Buhari chatting with former Ogun State governor, Olusegun Osoba, and Interim National Chairman of APC and former governor of Osun State, Chief Bisi Akande, at APC leaders meeting in Abuja. Photo: Gbemiga Olamikan.

There 'll be mayhem if Jonathan rigs 2015 polls — Junaid Mohammed

BY LEVINUS NWABUGHIOGU

A

BUJA—SECOND Republic lawmaker, Dr. Junaidu Mohammed, yesterday, lambasted the trio of Mohammed AbbaGana, Ameh Ebute and Lawrence Onoja for asking the North to tarry till 2019 before angling for power shift to the region, calling them political mercenaries.

Mohammed also stated there will be mayhem in Nigeria should President Goodluck Jonathan and the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, rig the 2015 election.

It will be recalled that Gana, a former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, and PDP chieftain from Borno State, Ebute, a former senator in aborted third republic from Benue State and Onoja who himself was a soldier and military administrator of Plateau and Katsina states, had made solidarity comments for President Jonathan’s second term in office, asking the north to wait till 2019.

Speaking with Vanguard in a telephone chat, Mohammed, who is also the National Coordinator of the Coalition of Northern Politicians, Academics, Professionals and Businessmen, said Gana, Ebute and Onoja were not speaking for the north but serving their own selfinterests to earn themselves a place in Jonathan’s Presidency.

Calling him a political mercenary and sheer minority from the Middle

North, Mohammed particularly regretted that Onoja, who had a commendable career in the military and presided over the affairs of two northern states, Plateau and Katsina, could now stoop so low to play politics of tribes and religion.

He said Onoja lacked the temerity to speak for the north, having been a serial loser of elections since he debuted into politics.

He said: “First of all, I have some respect for Onoja, he is a soldier and now trying to be a politician.

But I think it’s an insult for people with similar background, opportunity, soldiers who play like mercenaries, as a former Governor of Plateau and Katsina states, who are now rediscovering politics like a business and who can pose or could claim to speak for any part of the country".

Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013 — 49

Mubarak released from prison F

ORMER Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has been released from prison, the state television said yesterday.

The longtime autocrat was taken from Cairo’s Tora prison by medical helicopter yesterday, following a court ruling which ordered his release.

He was initially taken to a military hospital in Maadi, a suburb in southern Cairo. Footage on local television showed Mubarak transported from the helicopter to the hospital in a heavilyguarded ambulance.

Mubarak spent several weeks in the same hospital during his two-year

detention, after lawyers cited poor conditions in prison. Authorities renovated a ward in Tora where Mubarak was later held.

A small crowd of supporters gathered outside the prison and cheered as the helicopter took off.

Al Jazeera’s Jane Ferguson, reporting from Maadi, said that the scene was calmer outside the hospital than the prison, without any crowds gathered there.

The April 6 youth movement has called protests on Friday against his release.

But his release was met with indifference from many Egyptians, who are more focused on the

retrial on charges of killing protesters during the 2011 revolution, and three other corruption cases as well. But he has already spent more than

Opposition shuns Mugabe’s inauguration

O

•Mubarak country’s recent political crisis and last week’s massacre of supporters of

deposed President Mohamed Morsi.

Mubarak still faces a

France considers option of force in Syria

F

RANCE has said a “reaction with force” could be needed if Syria is proved to have used chemical weapons against its own people.

The comments from Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius come as Syrian activists say hundreds of peo-

ple were killed in such attacks in Damascus on Wednesday.

The UN has asked Syria to allow UN weapons inspectors already in country to be allowed to investigate. There is no sign as yet that Damascus will al-

two years in pre-trial detention, the maximum allowed under Egyptian law, and so the courts have ruled him eligible for release pending trial.

low this. The chances of the UN chemical weapons inspectors in Syria accessing the true site of Wednesday’s alleged chemical attack in time to make a clear judgement on responsibility are slim.

It took months to negoti-

ate permission for them to visit other sites around the country. The Syrian government, backed by Russia, is resisting calls to give them access to the eastern Damascus suburb of Ghouta where this apparent atrocity took place.

UTGOING prime minister and opposition leader Mr Tsvangirai stayed away from the inauguration ceremony of President Robert Mugabe who was sworn in yesterday for a seventh term in office as Zimbabwe’s leader.

“Yesterday was declared a public holiday to allow supporters of the 89-year-old to attend the inauguration. The ceremony had been delayed by a court petition filed by his main rival, Morgan Tsvangirai, over allegations of widespread electoral fraud.

But the Constitutional

Court dismissed the case, declaring Mr Mugabe’s re-election “free, fair and credible”.

Mr Mugabe won with 61% of the presidential vote against 34% for Mr Tsvangirai on 31 July.

Robert Mugabe’s inauguration was witnessed by thousands of jubilant supporters and invited guests in Zimbabwe’s biggest sports stadium on the outskirts of Harare, amid tight security. Many former heads of state and deputy presidents attended the event, but tellingly very few of the continent’s current leaders.

This will be President Mugabe’s sixth term as Zimbabwe president and seventh term as leader, as he was first elected as prime minister in 1980.

Fukushima nuclear leak jolts Japan

J

APAN has been jolted by the extent of the current water leaks at Fukushima which are worse than the authorities acknowledged.

The Japanese nuclear energy watchdog raised the incident level from one to three on the international scale that measures the severity of atomic accidents. But an independent consultant who has previously advised the French and German governments said the Japanese government is taking a second look at the problem.

The chairman of Japan’s nuclear authority said that he feared there would be further leaks.

The ongoing problems at the Fukushima plant increased in recent days when the Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco) admitted that around 300 tonnes of highly radioactive water had leaked from a storage tank on the site.

This was an acknowledgement that the power station was in its greatest crisis since the reactors melted down after the tsunami in 2011.

50 — Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

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OLADAPO—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Olupelumi Mary Oladapo, Now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Olupelumi Ejiro Amromare. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

ODIN—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Eseyoma Vivien Odin, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Eseyoma Vivien Igwebuike. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

O K O Y E ONONENYI—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Esther Chigolum Okoye-Ononenyi, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Esther Chigolum Oberuomor Efone. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

OGBAJIDEMUS—I, formerly known and addressed as Mrs. Douye Peggy Ogbajidemus, now wish to be known and addressed as Miss.

Douye Peggy Samuel.

All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

IKPOKPO—I, formerly known and addressed as Dr (Miss) Theresa Ikpokpo, now wish to be known and addressed as Dr (Mrs.) Theresa Ogholaja. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

CHUKU—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Chuku Dorathy, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Dorathy Martins Onyegbula. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

NDUBUEZE—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Ndubueze, Charity Akudo, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Okwute, Charles Charity Akudo.

All former documents remain valid. Abiapoly, NYSC, First Bank and general public please take note.

UKAZU—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Ukazu Juliana Nkechi, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Nwaiwu Juliana Nkechi. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

EGBA—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Egba Princess Beauty, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Martins Beauty Akaninyene.

All former documents remain valid. NYSC, Rivers State Govt., University of Port Harcourt and general public please take note.

OWUNNA—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Ezinne Pearl Owunna, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Ezinne Pearl Charles Onuoha. All former documents remain valid. N.Y.S.C. and the General public please take note.

EYO—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Eyo Edak Bassey, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. James Edak Nsikak. All former documents remain valid. Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps and general public please take note.

Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013—51

Vanguard CLASSIFIED CLASSIFIED AJUBA —I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Ajuba Angela Ebele, now wish to answer Mrs Ezugwu Angela Ebele. All former documents remain valid.

Canadian Deputy High Commission, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka and general public take note.

N WAC H U KW U — I , formerly known and addressed as Miss Chinyere Cordelia Nwachukwu now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Chinyere Cordelia Nwabuike. All former documents remain valid. Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike and general public please take note.

OKEREKE—I, formally known and addressed as Miss Okereke Sandra Onyekachi, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Ukpah Sandra Onyekachi. The general public and other relevant institutions should please take note.

EZIMMUO—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Ezimmuo Chidinma Mary Ozoemena, now wish to be known and addressed as Okafor Chidinma Mary Ozoemena. All former documents remain valid. General public take note. p

A B A D O M — I , formerly known and addressed as Miss Abadom, Nneka Phylis, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Sokei, Nneka Phylis. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

ETIM—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Felicia Asuquo Etim, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Felicia Iniobong Usanga. All former documents remain valid. Piccolo Brunelli Engineering Ltd. and Civil Defence Corps and general public please take note.

LAMBO—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Lambo Mosunmola Latifat, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Oduyebo Mosunmola Latifat. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

M U H A M M A D SANI—I, formerly known and addressed as Aishatu Muhammad Sani, now wish to be known and addressed as Hajiya Aishatu Salihu Attahiru. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

A B D U L L A H I SANI—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Amirah Abdullahi Sani, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Amirah Mohammed Bello. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

UNOGU—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Unogu Vera Uche, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Amaechi Vera Uche. All former documents remain valid. University of Lagos and general public please take note.

OLANIYI—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Olaniyi Yetunde Adewunmi, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Agunleti Yetunde Adewunmi. All former documents remain valid.

General public please take note.

CHIMEBELE—I, formerly known and addressed as Chimebele Ugochukwu Richard Abiola, now wish to be known and addressed as Chukwuedozien Ugochukwu Richard Abiola. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

AKINFOLARIN—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss A k i n f o l a r i n Omoyiwola, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. O g u n s a n y a Omoyiwola. All former documents remain valid. Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB) and general public please take note.

FEESE—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Sandra Dooshima Feese, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Sandra Dooshima Franklin-Azonabor. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

CHIMEBELE—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Chimebele Obianuju Ada Sandra Sharon, now wish to be known and addressed as M i s s Chukwuedozien Obianuju Ada Sandra Sharon. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

USIOSEFE—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Usiosefe Iguehide Juliet, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Onyeacholem Iguehide Juliet. All former documents remain valid, College of Education, Warri and general public please take note.

ETAROGHENE—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Etaroghene Onoriode, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs Kingsley Onoriode. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

OKIOTOR-TSERE— I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Martha Obas Okiotor-Tsere, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Martha Obas Adjedjor. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

AJETUNMOBI—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Kehinde Elizabeth Ajetunmobi, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Kehinde Elizabeth Lawal. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

OJOBOR —I, formerly

IZAH —I, formerly

known as Miss Ojobor

known and addressed

Ejiro, now wish to be

as Miss Franca Izah,

ASABORO—I, formerly known as Miss Asaboro Edesiri Rebecca, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Akporherhe Edesiri Rebecca. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

I M A N G B E — I formerly known and addressed as Miss Divine Egerinse Imangbe, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Divine Egerinse Eku. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

KUKU—I, formerly known and addressed as Kuku Serifat Abisola, now wish to be known and addressed as Akinsusi Serifat Abisola. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

G E G E R E — I , formerly known and addressed as Miss Ejiroghene Isabella Gegere, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Ejiroghene Isabella Ogie. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

CHIMEBELE—I, formerly known and addressed as Miss C h i m e b e l e Nkirukanma Valerie Olivia Kiki, now wish to be known and addressed as Miss Chukwuedozien Nkirukanma Valerie Olivia Kiki. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

remain valid. General

remain valid. General

public please take note.

public please take note.

CONFERENCE —I, formerly known as Miss Ejiro Conference, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Ejiro Ihunwan. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

E M A K P O R— I ,

ODELE —I, formerly known and addressed as Miss Odele Racheal Esidumi, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Onyekuru Racheal Esidumi. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

OYIBOKA—I, formerly known as Miss Christabel Oyiboka, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Christabel Umuago.

All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

known and addressed as Mrs. Essi Ejiro. All former

documents

formerly known as Miss Emakpor Enor, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Anuya Enor. All former documents

remain

valid. General public please take note.

now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. Franca

Ogun. All

former

documents

VANGUARD'S LAGOS OFFICE YOU CAN B O O K Y O U R A D V E RT S AT OU R L A G O S I S L A N D O F FI C E — VA N G U A R D MEDIA LIMITED (LAGOS OFFICE) K I O S K 4 8 E A S T PAV I L I O N T B S , L A G O S .

Labour minister condoles Gov Orji

BY VICTOR AHIUMAYOUNG

M

INISTER of La bour and Productivity, Chief Emeka Wogu has commiserated with Governor Theodore Orji and Abia State PDP Chairman Emma Nwaka, over the death of eight members of the Party in a ghastly motor accident on the Awka-Enugu Expressway.

The Minister also sympathized with members of the state PDP and the SouthEast zonal chairman, Col. Austin Akobundu, over the incident.

Reacting to the news of the death of eight PDP members, the Minister said, “I received with shock the sudden death of eight Abia PDP members who met their untimely death while on active duty for the Development and sustenance of Democracy in the South East Geo-political zone in particular and Nigeria at large ”.

The Minister noted that their death would not be in vain as PDP would continue to champion the course of democracy and good governance in Nigeria.

Group advises Urhobo stakeholders

T

HE Urhobo Political Initiative has urged Urhobos to be more cohesive in the task of engendering socio-economic and political development of the nation. National publicity secretary of the group, Mr. Mike Umukoro, who made the appeal at the stakeholders forum in Agbarho said the Urhobo nation was being shortchanged in the country and was not getting their fair share of the national cake.

Umukoro who said that the Urhobo problem went beyond courtesy visit to the President, added, however, that such visits should be very frank and straight to the point.

He said, “What have we done to deserve this kind of unjust treatment? Presently, we don’t have a special assistant, special adviser, permanent secretary, ambassadorial appointment, board chairman, junior minister, menior minister, etc. “2013 represents an election which will clearly determine where the Urhobos vote will go in 2015 election. Whoever captures Delta Central now will have a firm grip for 2015.

Hence the nation interest of PDP plugs the recent interest of APC.”

52 —

Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

Okagbare better than Eagles — Kalu F

ORMER Abia state governor Dr.Orji Uzor Kalu has threatened to embark on a One -Man protest march to the Presidency unless medalswinning Blessing Okagbare got rewarded as much as African champions Super Eagles.

Said Kalu,”I feel for Okagbare. Never in our history did anyone singlehandedly win all the country’s medals in a senior global competition.

Okagbare achieved that in Moscow, yet nobody is planning a Presidential reception for this great athlete.”

Speaking further, the ex-governor explained that the Eagles got a good deal after their Nations Cup glory, a far cry from two World Championships medals by an individual.

“Without taking away anything from our beloved Eagles, I do not think they are World class.They never won an Olympic medal, never played in the quarter-finals of the World Cup, nor in the Semis of the Confederations Cup. Okagbare is on higher ground, having won Olympic bronze in 2008, and now silver and gold.

A

PRESENTATION: Chairman of the ministerial panel on Super Eagles bonus row, Segun Adeniyi (r) presents the report of their findings to Sports Minister, Bolaji Abdullahi in Abuja yesterday. Photo Gbemiga Olamikan

M

ARIA Sharapo va kept the shocks coming on Wednesday night when she pulled out of the US Open.

The pain in her serving shoulder that has plagued her since before the French Open in May has flared again, forcing her to pull out of the final slam of the year just 24 hours before the draw on

Thursday.

The tournament director David Brewer confirmed late on Wednesday night: “Maria has in-

from the tournament. We wish her a speedy recovery and look forward to her return to New York next year.”

T

URKISH club Rizespor unveiled Godfrey Obo abona on Thursday hours after French club rushed a late but better bid for the Nigeria star.

The 23-year-old player has completed a four-year deal with Rizespor after he successfully passed the routine medical, but MTNFootball.com can specially reveal he had a chance to move to the more prestigious French league instead.

About a month ago, Bastia had come into the fray to sign Oboabona, who was a top revelation for Nigeria at the last Africa Cup of Nations in South Africa.

Reveals a top source, who was privy to the deal that would have seen the Sunshine defender start his European adventure in Lique 1: “Last month I got a call from an associate of mine in France that Bastia wanted to reinforce their central defence and had Oboabona in mind.

ticipation fees will be paid for all national team engagements.

3) Coaches will negotiate their bonuses and will be paid a lump sum as qualification bonuses henceforth and not match bonuses. This is to ensure that the coaches are more professional in the discharge of their duties and have set targets to meet.

4) A code of conduct be introduced for the national team. A draft of this has been produced by the panel.

5) The NFF must announce the match bonuses for all their matches at the start of each financial year.

6) Cash bonuses should be discouraged for the country’s junior teams with the plan for a special pension fund to be opened for these players and such monies paid into such a fund.

formed us that she will be unable to compete at the US Open this year due to a right shoulder bursitis and has withdrawn

Rizespor unveil Oboabona

Continues from BP

1) No more cash payments for match bonuses to the national teams as has been the case.

Players and officials will be paid through their banks.

2) Draw bonuses should be abolished.

Players will only be paid bonuses for winning a game, while par-

IRTEL Nigeria and organisers of the annual Airtel Rising Stars U-17 Tournament have announced a goal-foreducation incentive during the forthcoming National Championship.

The company is offering $100 for every goal scored in matches of the national finals as long as it was scored during regulation time.

At the end of the Championship, a participating team will receive the aggregated monetary value for the number of goals it scored with the liberty to choose

Sharapova pulls out of US Open

Ministerial panel Namibia.

“Keshi was part of the problem as regards the bonus saga in Namibia.

He stood to lose money if the bonus was slashed as proposed by the NFF and so he needs to be warned about his role in that ugly episode,” a top told official MTNFootball.com.

The panel submited several ground breaking recommendations to the sports minister in Abuja yesterday.

Among these revelations are –

ARS3: Airtel offers $100 per goal scored

•Sharapova

Wada warns Jamaicans over drug

W

ADA A has warned the Jamaicans to put their house in order over the perceived lack of drug testing in the country. The director

general of the World Anti-Doping Agency, David Howman, said that Jamaican officials needed to respond to accusations from a

Wenger Continues from BP ond of £40,000,001, rejected for the unsettled striker and there had been some hope at the club that the situation could somehow turn in Arsenal’s favour, despite Liverpool’s refusal to sell.

But Wenger gave short shrift to the notion after his team’s Champions League play-off first-leg victory over Fenerbahce in Istan-

bul. Asked whether the bid to sign Suárez was over, he replied: “Yes. There is absolutely no chance of that.” Wenger, who failed with a £10m offer for Newcastle United’s Yohan Cabaye, said that he remained in the market for a midfielder. “Quality-wise we don’t need anybody but number-wise we are short,” he said.

former insider who alleges drug-testing procedures are lax.

Writing this week in Sports Illustrated, Renee Anne Shirley, the former executive director of the Jamaica Anti-Doping Commission, said the island agency had no shortage of “troubling” problems during her tenure as the top official.

The commission did not have the staff to carry out rigorous anti-doping programmes, she wrote, and only one outof-competition test was done between February 2012 and the start of the London Olympics five months later.

which charity in home state or zone gets the donation.

The Goal-forEducation initiative is aimed at furthering the company’s CSR spread while enhancing the quality of living among the less privileged across its African markets.

OkonjoIweala Continues from 54 training with good nutrition and exposure. I challenge Abdullahi to do this and see if a medal will not come from boxing in Rio. And for the staff at the National Sports Commission, I will tell Abdullahi one thing. You may not sack everybody to achieve results. Those you know are the cogs, you avoid them. Those on the same page with you, you engage them. And if there’s nobody to engage from the ministry, you and the Director-General can set up a body that can execute your programmes for the Olympics. If you have the authority to hire foreign coaches or High Performance Directors, you should have the authority to hire or set up a body to execute action plans for Rio. That’s on the interim basis while you develop the structures for long term plan for our sports. I suggest this because we are running out of time for Rio. You must not allow the bureaucracy of government to weigh Nigeria down.

Bolaji may not be able to do all these without the support of Okonjo Iweala. I understand she has interest in sports. The Abuja Sports Summit, I heard, was her idea. But why she keeps on dropping envelops to sports, is what I don’t understand. I want Nigerians to begin to attribute any failures and successes to all the key factors. For us to succeed in sports, we cannot ignore Okonjo Iweala.

And that’s why I will still return to her on another date.

Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013 — 53

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54—Vanguard d, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013

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Vanguard, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23, 2013 — 55

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VANGUARD, FRIDAY, AUGUST 23 , 2013

Top stories inside

•Okagbare better than Eagles — Kalu • •Wada warns Jamaicans over drug • •Sharapova pulls out of US Open • •Rizespor unveil Oboabona •

Ministerial panel fingers Keshi in bonus row

See Centre Spread p

•No more cash payments for match bonuses •Draw bonuses should be abolished •Players will only be paid bonuses for winning a game •No more match bonuses for coaches

Suarez chase is over – Wenger A

A

probe panel on the Super Eagles bonus row has fingered coach Stephen Keshi as part of the embarrassment and said he should be warned.

The African champions almost failed to turn up for the FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil in June after they insisted they be paid more than what the broke Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) planned to pay them for two World Cup qualifiers in Kenya and Continues on Page 52

•Keshi

RSENE Wenger said that there was categorically no possibility of Arsenal reviving their interest in Liverpool’s Luis Suárez before the closure of the transfer window. He has seen two bids, the sec

Continues on Page 52

QUICK CROSSWORD

Sudoku TTODAY'S ODAY'S TODAY ODAY S

PUZZLE PU E

YYESTER ESTER AY'S S RD DAY'S DAY AY S

ANSWERSS

ACROSS 1 Compulsion (6) 5 Slang (6) 9 Bequeath (5) 10 Purify (6) 11 Lasso (6) 12 Correspond (5) 14 Rope (4) 17 Clef (3) 18 Shoal (4) 20 Stop-watch (5) 22 Wickedly (5) 23 Ardour (7) 24 Broom (5) 26 Anew (5) 29 Revise (4) 30 Skill (3) 32 Sea-eagle (4) 33 Slumber (5) 35 Reveal (6) 36 Outcome (6) 37 Furze (5) 38 Wandering (6) 39 Worn (6)

DOWN 1 Straight (6) 2 Change (6) 3 Transmitted (4) 4 Tell-tale (5) 5 Merry (5) 6 Off (4) 7 Won (6) 8 Inform (6) 13 Spare time (7) 15 Lubricated (5) 16 Storehouse (5) 18 Scope (5) 19 Puckish (5) 21 Butt (3) 22 Serpent (3) 24 Bewilder (6) 25 Metal (6) 27 About (6) 28 Roosted (6) 30 Distribute (5) 31 Curt (5) 33 Symbol (4) 34 Equal (4)

YESTERDAY'S SOLUTIONS ACROSS: 4, Stray 7, Twelve 9, Bar 10, Ave 12, Moody 13, Onus 15, Expel 17, Stance 19, Leer 20, Glean 22, Ham 24, Related 27, Won 28, Auger 31, Aged 33, Agenda 35, Index 37, Eros 38, Sieve 39, Dip 41, Axe 42, Tussle 43, Chant.

How to Play Sudoku

DOWN: 1, Strong 2, Refuse 3, Ova 4, Same 5, Troll 6, Audience 8, Even 11, Exchanged 14, Star 16, Peat 18, Anew 21, Languish 23, Mean 25, Load 26, Dude 29, Garish 30, Rasher 32, Divan 34, Exit 36, Next 40, Put

TWO WEEKS TO LIVE

P

lace a number (1-9) in each blank cell. (No line can have two of the same number).

Each row (nine lines from left to right), column, (also nine lines from top to bottom) and 3 X 3 block within a bold block (nine blocks) contains number from 1 through 9. This means that no number can appear twice in any block, column or row.

No mathematics is involved – no adding, subtraction, division or multiplication, just plain logic and your imagination.

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