B'Haram scare shuts Lagos-Ibadan highway

...towards a better life for the people VOL. 25: NO. 62129

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ONLINE | www.vanguardngr.com

N150

THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

ABDUCTED SCHOOLGIRLS: CONFAB: North, South 9 •Boko Haram threatens to kill girls if... delegates disagree on •Women to storm Sambisa forest 8 Presidency, resource control

B'Haram scare shuts Lagos-Ibadan highway •Panic as security checks paralyse expressway •Afenifere warns against attack on any S-West state •It's mere rumour — Army, Police, NEMA

BY LEKE ADESERI, Regional Editor, South West; EVELYN USMAN, OLA AJAYI, MONSURU OLOWOOPEJO &BOSE ADELAJA

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AGOS—THERE was panic in some parts of Ogun and Lagos states, yesterday, over reports that 18 suspected Boko Haram members Continues on page 5

COLUMNIST:

Between President and Governors: A dip in the gutter •P.17

Mr & Mrs

SCARE —Traffic caused by the Boko Haram scare on Lagos -Ibadan Expressway, yesterday. Photo: Lamidi Bamidele.

2 — Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014 — 3

C M Y K

4 — Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014—5

POCKET CARTOON

BOKO HARAM—Arrested herdsmen, who confessed membership of Boko Haram operating in the Middle Belt, yesterday. Inset: Their confiscated arms and ammunition.

Boko Haram scare shuts Lagos-Ibadan highway Continues from page 1 had invaded the LagosIbadan Expressway, killing 11 civilians and nine police officers.

This came 24 hours after the Afenifere Renewal Group, ARG, on Tuesday sent a strong warning to the Boko Haram insurgents that any attack on any part of the South-West would be considered a declaration of war on the Yoruba people.

“ARG would like to warn that being visited with a terror attack would amount to a declaration of war on the peace loving people of Yorubaland, in as much as the Yoruba people have always been peaceful and are not, whether directly or indirectly, complicit in the collapse of development and security factors which have been labelled as responsible for the rise of terrorism.

LIFEWORDS

BY PASTOR ITUAH

Time decides who you meet in your life, your heart decides who you want in your life, and your behaviour decides who stays in your life. Life depends on where you see it from.

TAKE HEART

BY ELLA RANDLE

Leading yourself well means that you hold yourself to a higher standard of accountability than others do — Dr. Maxwell

D

R. Maxwell surmises that learning to lead yourself well is one of the most important things you’ll ever do as a leader. His many years working with people have taught him an important truth: People seldom see themselves realistically.

Human nature seems to endow us with the ability to size up everybody in the world except ourselves.

If you don’t look at yourself realistically, you will never understand where your personal challenges are coming from.

He says, that most people use two totally different sets of criteria for judging themselves and judging others. We tend to judge others according to their actions. It’s very cut-and-dried. However, we judge ourselves by our intentions. Even if we do the wrong thing, we let ourselves off the hook if we believe our intentions are good. Dr Maxwell’s advice is to get a more objective look at yourself. List all of your major goals and objectives, then mark each as either “achieved” or “not achieved.” Now show the list to someone you know and respect, and tell the person you are evaluating a candidate for a job.

Ask them what they think based on the “candidate’s” achievements and failures. How does that person’s evaluation jive with your own? This will tell you a lot about your self-perception.

“We need to add that the Yoruba people will neither fold their arms if attacked and will be forced to respond in whatever shape or form deemed fit,” the group warned in a statement signed by its National Chairman, Hon. Olawale Oshun.

Vanguard gathered that the rumoured message which spread on several social media, yesterday, left many residents of both states shaken.

Sources said that residents whose relatives either travelled out or were coming into Lagos made worried calls to know if they were safe.

The message on Facebook reads: “If you are on the Lagos/Ibadan Express Road going towards Ibadan, please turn back as 18 suspected Boko Haram members with AK-47 riffles are on the highway now displaying their skills. Nine policemen and 11 civilians had been confirmed dead while trying to stop the gunmen from shooting.

Please re-broadcast to save lives. May God help us in Nigeria.”

With this text, Vanguard gathered that Mobile policemen, officers of the Department of State Services, DSS, members of the Joint Task Force, JTF and others from Lagos and Ogun states were immediately deployed to comb the stretch of the road and possibly arrest the insurgents.

Police aerial helicopter was also deployed in search of the group. They both carried out searches

and surveillance in different ways but their efforts yielded no result.

Mr. Timothy Efe, whose wife was returning to Lagos from Edo State, where she had gone to celebrate the Easter, told Vanguard that he had made calls to his wife to ascertain her location.

Efe said: “When the vehicle left the motor park, she alerted me, and immediately I heard the news, I called her but she is yet to pick her calls. I want to know if she is safe."

Another resident who spoke under anonymity, whose wife travelled this morning on the expressway told our reporters that he had made several call to his wife’s phone but that she did not pick the calls, saying that he had been so worried since he got the rumour that Boko Haram had invaded the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

They were relieved when it was confirmed that it was all a rumour and that somebody sent a false alarm which sparked off the rumour that has spread like harmattan fire.

Commuters trying to enter Lagos had a hard time doing that for the better part of yesterday, as security was beefed up at the Berger entry point with heavily armed policemen on stop and search duty.

The traffic gridlock at the time of this report had extended as far as Magboro area in Ogun State.

A businessman who expressed frustration at the development, Mr. Sola Oyedokun, said he would definitely miss the appointment that brought him to Lagos as a result of the heavy traffic.

It was a rumour – NEMA

South West spokesperson for National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, Mr. Ibrahim Farinloye said that the rumour started spreading on Facebook yesterday morning and that NEMA also received the false alarm but added that it was a mere rumour.

He said: “The rumour had it that nine policemen and 11 civilians had been killed by Boko Haram on the expressway", saying that after the police and soldiers combed the expressway, nothing was found.

“This is to inform the general public that NEMA received false alert about a purported Boko Haram attack along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway. It's a complete lie and unfounded.

“Security agencies

have combed all routes and beyond without any trace of such incidents.

“Mischief makers broadcasting this evil machination are strongly warned to desist from circulating unfounded messages in the country.

“The public should disregard and discourage further circulation of such inciting messages against the nation,” Farinloye said in a text message.

Oyo Police refute rumour

Also, the Oyo State Police Command, yesterday, dismissed rumours of the attack.

Reacting to the comments, the State Police Command described the report as false and ‘a concoction of demented souls’.

The police through Superintendent of Police, Olabisi OkuwobiIlobanafor, said: “It has come to the knowledge of Oyo State Police Command, the vicious rumour making rounds through social media and text messages that 18 suspected Boko Haram members had laid siege to Lagos-Ibadan Express Road with AK47 rifles where it was claimed they killed nine policemen and 11 civilians.

“The rumour is not only untrue but is a concoction of lies that emanated from the minds of demented souls.

“Members of the public are advised to discountenance the web of wicked lies and desist from assisting the rumour mongers to spread falsehood through their phones or social media.

Lagos-Ibadan Expressway is safe and devoid of any violent attack.

“There was an occurrence of a lone auto accident involving a trailer loaded with bags of wheat and policemen, Road Safety, Op-Mesa and other security officers were at the scene only to control traffic and clear the gridlock caused by the accident”, she said.

No Boko Haram

in Lagos – Manko

The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Mr Umar Manko,in his reaction said: “There is no truth about that. There is no Boko Haram in Lagos. What happened was that early this morning there was a truck loaded with wheat and at a village called Fidiwo in Ogun State. It was involved in an accident and some hoodlums wanted to steal part of the wheat. They had an encounter with the Police in Ogun State and that was what people saw and said it was an attack from Boko Haram in Lagos.

"Lagosians should go about their lawful businesses without any fear of any attack by Boko Haram .We are at peace here and we will continue to have peace,” Manko stated.

It’s a lie – Army

On his part, spokesperson for the 81 Division of the Nigerian Army, Lieutenant-Colonel Ochagwuba Omale also described the text message as untrue. He however, added that the division was on red alert, adding that “ we are working with other security agencies to ensure that the state is secured.

“As I am talking, I have not received any information of Boko Haram invasion in Lagos. We are on red alert. As you can see, we were all over the state during Easter to ensure Lagosians celebrate Easter in a safe environment.”

We didn’t lose any officer – Ogun Police Also debunking the claim, the Ogun State Police Public Relations Officer, Mr Muyiwa Adejobi, a Deputy Superintendent of Police, DSP, stated emphatically that the command did not lose any of its men yesterday.

Said he: There is no iota of truth in the statement, as nothing of such happened along the expressway or any part of Ogun State."

6—Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

Conductor docked for stealing dead man's handset

BY ONOZURE DANIA

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AGOS— A 31-year-old conductor, Saheed Yekinni, who allegedly stole two handsets belonging to a deceased man, was yesterday arraigned before an Ikeja magistrate’s court.

The defendant who resides at 5, Akinlabi Street, Agbotikuyo, Agege area of Lagos, was docked before Magistrate Margaret Dan-Oni. He is facing a two-count charge bordering on conspiracy and stealing preferred against him by the Police.

The prosecutor, Inspector Edet Okoi, told the court that the defendant and others at large conspired to commit the alleged offence.

He said the offence took place on March 8, 2014 at about 6am along Oke-Koto, Agege in Ikeja area of the state.

Okoi said the value of the two handsets that were stolen is yet unknown and that the stolen items were property of one late Abass Adeyemo, who was involved in a motor accident.

Earlier, the defendant had pleaded not guilty to the charges.

However, Magistrate Dan-Oni granted him bail in the sum of N20,000, with one surety in like sum.

She adjourned the case till April 25, 2014 for mention.

Workers queue for security check at the entrance of the Federal Secretariat in Abuja, yesterday. Photo: NAN.

Mob sets ablaze suspected ritualist in Abeokuta

BY DAUD OLATUNJI

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BEOKUTA — RESI DENTS of Abeokuta, capital of Ogun State yesterday, ignored police warning not to take laws into their hands in Saje area of Abeokuta North Local Government area when an unidentified man, suspected to be a ritualist, was set ablaze by irate mob.

He was said to have charmed a school girl and made her insane before he was caught and set ablaze.

An eyewitness, who simply identified himself as Godwin, told our correspondent that the man was not a resident of the area, but had been loitering around there for the past two days.

He said: “We have been seeing him around here since Sunday but we thought he came to celebrate Easter with someone.

HIV patient, 63, sentenced to death for raping, infecting minor

BY ABDULSALAM MUHAMMAD

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ANO— KANO was jolted, yesterday, when an Upper Sharia court in the state sentenced to death by stoning a 63year-old HIV positive for raping and infecting a minor with the deadly virus.

The convict, Ubale Saidu Dotsa, was found guilty by the court following incontrovertible evidence tendered by the prosecution counsel for raping Hauwa Muhammad Saidu, who has been standing trial over the last two months for raping a 12-year-old (names withheld), confessed to have raped her at Dotsa village in Kumbotso, a suburb of Kano, after inducement.

Medical report tendered by the prosecution counsel indi-

cated that the Primary 6 pupil has been inflicted with the deadly virus after the forceful penetration by Ubale.

Ubale is said to being living with HIV in the last two years.

He lost his first and second wives to same virus in 2011.

According to record before the court, the wives died in six month interval.

Delivering the judgment, Khadi Faruq Ahmed further ordered that N36 million be paid as compensation to the parents of Hauwa Mohammed if their daughter eventually dies.

Khadi Farouq also directed that the judgment should be forwarded to the Ministry of Justice which is expected to forward same to Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso for assent.

"But around 6:35pm,we were relaxing when we heard the noise from the bridge side. When we got there, the man had been attacked by some boys.

“We were told that he sprayed a perfume onto the a lady's face, whom we met wriggling in pains and behaving abnormally. We asked him to give the young girl the antidote but he re-

fused.

“The action infuriated the boys who were still worried over the arrest of some boys yesterday by the police at Ijaiye area. So, they decided to deal with him before the arrival of the policemen.”

Vanguard, however, gathered that the girl is a secondary school student and was with her elder sister when the man approached them, ask-

ing directions to a street and in the process, allegedly hypnotised the girl. When policemen from various stations arrived the scene, the remains of the man was still burning.

It was revealed that the lady was yet to regain sanity as she was taken away by some relatives.

At press time, security agencies were seen in the area to avoid a reprisal attack.

Ferry mishap: Lagos deploys signs on waterways

BY LEKE ADESERI

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AGOS —TOWARDS im proving water transportation and implementation of general safety and security on its waterways, the Lagos State Government has completed dredging and channelization of Ijegun-Egba and Ebute-Ojo axis.

According to the Managing Director, Lagos Waterways Authority, Mr Olayinka Marinho, "Marker buoys (waterways ‘road’ signs and lights) were also provided to aid navigation and passage along the channel.

"What this means is that the channel along this axis is with adequate water depths, signs and lights which is now safer for boat users.

"To navigate safely using the marker buoys which are placed in pairs, boaters should pass between the red and green buoys. All waterways users will be educated on the appropriate use of the marked channel and the importance of the placement of the marker buoys."

According to him, the public has also been notified that it is a criminal offence

LASWA marker buoys to cause any damage or hindrance to the proper operation of any navigational aid.

He said: "Alteration, defacement, movement or destruction of any navigational aid as well as tying a vessel to a buoy, marker or light structure are prohibited.

"Anchoring so close to an aid such that the aid is obstructed (hidden) from sight of another vessel should also be avoided. All intentional or unintentional collisions with navigational aids must be reported to Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA).

"Efforts are also being made to improve safety and secu-

rity on other major waterway routes.

However, the channelization of Ikorodu axis (including marker buoys) would be completed by end of third quarter this year.

"The state is providing safer and navigable routes to improve the socio-economic activities along the state’s waterways.

"People on water need to realise that a life jacket is their only lifeline on the water. Always wear your life jackets— your ‘Seat Belt’— on the water. So, travel water, travel safe."

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014—7

How fake NGO members beg with cancer-stricken baby •Make N30,000 daily, give mother and child N1,000 L

BY EVELYN USMAN

AGOS — EMOTION ran high, yesterday, at the Oduduwa office of the Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Ikeja, after an indigent woman revealed how she was raped by members of a non existing Non-Governmental Organisation, NGO, which promised to help treat her two-andhalf year-old daughter of cancer.

The woman, identified as Victoria Anakor, told newsmen that members of the non-existing NGO approached her in her home in Okija, Anambra State last August, assuring that they could raise money with which to carry out a surgery on her baby in Lagos.

She reportedly followed them, with the consent of her husband, to Aba. However, the true mission of the men, numbering seven, according to her, became clearer as they reportedly started soliciting alms on the streets with the child.

According to her, "from Aba, we moved to Uyo, then Umuahia and Calabar. We left Calabar and went to Abakaliki and then Lagos.

"They would ask me to stand on the road with my child. People are usually moved with pity on seeing my baby with a swollen face.

"On several occasions, I have asked them to give me the money realised in order to carry out surgical operation on my baby. She has eye and mouth cancer, but they kept assuring me that they would do that at the right time."

On daily basis, it was gathered that the syndicate realised a minimum of N30,000, but gave N1,000 to the mother and child for feeding.

The rape

In the course of the illicit business, the woman claimed that one of the men forcefully had carnal knowledge of her, in the aftermath of which she got pregnant. She disclosed that she had to terminate the pregnancy with her money.

Several attempts to convince her husband to allow her go back home failed as her husband, according to her, always encouraged her to stay.

Unknown to her, member s of the syndicate had bought him a motorbike and remitted N10,000 into his account every month.

I abandoned cart pushing for this lucrative business —Suspect One of the arrested suspects, Chukwuka Eze, said he abandoned his cart pushing business for alms begging with children.

Describing the business as very lucrative, Eze said: "I used to be a cart pusher. I abandoned it when

Money recovered from the suspects

Victoria Anakor and her child.

I met my master, Samuel Ekpendu.

"He told me we could make a lot of money by using children with ailments such as cancer, epilepsy, burns and growths in any part of the body to beg.

"We use children with health conditions that will move people with emotion. We do not use blind children because people do not respond to them.

"We started by going into remote villages in the east to search for poor parents with ailing children.

We came across two-year-old Chinasa, who has eye and mouth cancer. We convinced the parents that we were working for a

Non-Governmental Organisation which cares for the sick and the girl’s father allowed the child and mother to go with us.

N30,000 daily "We took them to Onitsha where we lodged in hotels. We made so much money but before people would start suspecting us, we moved to Imo State from where we moved to other places such as Uyo, Calabar, Abakaliki down to Lagos before we were arrested.

"We made an average of N30,000 a day and paid N20,000 into our director’s ac-

count. The business is lucrative because we paid N6,000 each day for hotel accommodation and gave the child’s mother N1,000 everyday for feeding."

However, N35,000 was recovered from the suspects, yesterday.

The arrest Lagos State police spokesperson, Ngozi Braide, who paraded the suspects before newsmen, said they were arrested by policemen attached to Area ‘E’ Command following a complaint from the National Coordinator of a Non Governmental Organisation, The Hands that Care Foundation, Jacinta Okorie, that she suspected the syndicate.

"What they do is to convince parents of these babies by giving them promises of medical

aid in the city. When they eventually bring the babies to the cities, they use them to beg for money on the streets just to enrich themselves and they will never render the medical aid as promised. The woman here and her child are victims. Her baby was diagnosed of cancer of the eye.

"They brought them from Okija, Anambra State promising to take them to the hospital since last August. They have been using this two-year-old baby to make money without taking her to the hospital as promised.

"They put the mother of the baby in a hotel and they would carry the baby to the market place begging for alms from unsuspecting Nigerians."

The suspect, she said, would be charged to court for child trafficking, contemporary slavery and other related charges, adding that effort was on to arrest a fleeing member.

DPO accused of rape still in detention — Lagos CP

BY EVELYN USMAN, ESTHER ONYEGBULA & KINGSLEY NDIMELE

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AGOS — THE Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Mr Umar Manko, yesterday, assured Nigerians that the panel investigating the alleged rape of a mother of three by a Divisional Police Officer, DPO, in Lagos was working hard to unravel the truth behind the claims.

This is just as the command has debunked reports that the DPO had been released from custody. Rather, it maintained that the DPO was still in the cell.

Also, the command debunked reports that robbers, Monday, raided for several hours unchallenged in Mushin area of Lagos.

Answering questions from newsmen on the DPO and another policeman posted on YouTube battering a woman,

Manko said the command would not shield anyone, be he a civilian or policeman, that committed a crime.

"Anyone who offends the law faces the wrath of the law, policemen inclusive. Investigation is still ongoing by the panel set up by the Inspector-General of Police.

"Also, the policeman that was posted on YouTube battering a lady, has been arrested and is still being detained."

Mushin clash not robbery He, however, clarified that the Mushin reported robbery was not true after all. Rather, he explained that it was a fight among rival groups over supremacy.

He said: "There is no way robbers can come and hold Lagos to ransom for seven hours without Police being

there.

"What happened in Mushin was a disagreement between two groups that were fighting for supremacy.

One group took money from somebody and refused to share for the other one.

"It was in this process they had an encounter. It happened in the morning and at night. They had a carnival and used the opportunity of the night to launch attack on each other.

"The Police were there and the situation was brought to normalcy. Robbers cannot rob for seven minutes without police responding, let alone for seven hours."

DPO still in cell Spokesperson for the Lagos State Police Command, Ngozi Braide, a Deputy Superintendent of Police,DSP, said: "The DPO is still in our

detention. He is in the cell at Area 'F'. It is not possible to release a man with such magnitude of allegation bothering on rape.”

Braide said the Police High Command investigating panel set up to look into the matter has not submitted its report, arguing that the DPO would not have been released when the panel has just commenced investigation.

In another development, Manko commended Lagosians for partnering with the command to fight crime. He gave the commendation during the inauguration of a training and administrative building built by the Lagos State Police Traffic Division, Awolowo Road, Ikeja.

Represented by the Area F Commander, Mr Tunde Adagunduro, he described the building as a manifestation of police relations and friendship with members of the public.

8—Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

BY BY JIMITOTA ONOYUME, JOHNBOSCO AGBAKWURU, NDAHI MARAMA & UDUMA KALU, with agency report

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OBEL Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, yesterday, called on the Federal Government to ensure the release of 230 students of Government Girls Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State, who were abducted by members of the Islamic sect, Boko Haram.

Professor Soyinka made the call on a day a coalition of women’s rights in Borno expressed their readiness to mobilise thousands of women to embark on a voluntary search and rescue mission into the notorious Sambisa forest, to ensure the release of the abducted students.

Senate President, David Mark, on his part described the abduction of the girls as sacrilegious.

Meanwhile, members of the Islamist sect, Boko Haram, have threatened to kill the abducted students, should the search to recover them continue.

They also warned that they would kill the parents if they carry out their search in Sambisa forest, according to a report carried by the Hausa service of the Voice of America, VOA, yesterday.

Soyinka tasks FG

Professor Soyinka, who gave the keynote address in Port Harcourt at the opening ceremony of declaration of Port Harcourt as UNESCO World Book Capital 2014, said the focus of the event was for the Federal Government to ensure the safe release of the students.

He said he had expected President Goodluck Jonathan to convene an emergency security meeting over the ugly development in the school after the abduction of the students.

He noted that the ongoing book fair in Port Harcourt was a national rejection of Boko Haram, adding that the Islamic sect does not reflect the teachings and values of Islam.

Minutes after his address,

ENTERTAINMENT CONFAB: From left— Mr. Gbenga George, entrepreneur and panelist; Professor Pat Utomi, guest speaker; Mr. Obi Asika, Founder/CEO, Storm 360 Degrees, and Mr. Bright Okpocha (Basketmouth), panelists, during the 2014 Nigerian Entertainment Conference on Creating Pathways to the Future, in Lagos, yesterday. PHOTO: Bunmi Azeez.

ABDUCTED SCHOOLGIRLS: Borno women to storm Sambisa forest zBoko Haram threatens to kill girls if search is not stopped z Ensure their release, Soyinka urges FG former Minister of Education, Dr. Oby Ezekwesili and the Project Director, Rainbow Book Club, Mrs Koko Kalango led the gathering to make a collective demand for the girls’ release.

Storming Sambisa forest

The Borno women, under the auspices of BAOBAB Women’s Right, have said they were ready to storm the major hide out of the insurgents in Sambisa forest, where the abducted girls were believed to be held.

Spokesperson for the group, Professor Hauwa Biu, told newsmen that they resolved to embark on the rescue mission when it was

evident that no reasonable progress was being achieved in the rescue efforts.

Biu said: “We are ready to go into the forest and search for the girls. In fact, we are prepared to risk our lives and get up to Boko Haram camp and appeal to them to release the children to us so that they can re unite with their parents.

“There is nothing extraordinary in our quest to enter the dangerous forest. We learnt that some men in Chibok had earlier embarked on such mission, which later turned out to be fruitless.

“We felt that as mothers, we are in a better position to have the sympathy and concern over the fate of the missing girls.

“Our target is not to fight the

Labour threatens to shut 8 DISCOs over tariff

BY VICTOR AHIUMA-YOUNG

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NDICATIONS emerged, yesterday, of an imminent blackout across the country as organised labour vowed to shut down Eko Electricity Distribution Company, EKEDC; Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company, IEDC, and six others, including power plants, tomorrow over electricity tariff without power supply, among others.

Other affected DISCOs and power plants are Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company, IBEDC; Benin Electricity Distribution Company, BEDC; Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution Company, PHEDC;

Jos Electricity Distribution Company, JEDC; Transcorp Electricity Ughelli; Egbin Power Plc; Geregu Power Plc and Olorunshogo Power Plc. Other grievances of labour are perceived de-unionisation of workers and victimisation of labour leaders by the new investors.

The leadership of Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, in Lagos, Oyo, Ogun, Osun, Ekiti, Ondo Edo, Akwa-Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross Rivers, Delta, Kwara and Kogi states and the leadership of the National Union of Electricity Employees, NUEE, issued a seven-day ultimatum, April 16, to the Federal

Government, owners of affected DISCOs and power plants to address their concerns or face industrial action.

The ultimatum expired yesterday without any of their grievances addressed.

Vanguard gathered that a meeting with government, owners of the affected companies and labour leaders earlier scheduled for yesterday was shifted to today in Benin.

Chairman of Delta NLC and his Ondo counterpart told Vanguard that irrespective of the outcome of today’s meeting, workers in the affected states had been directed to cripple the activities of the companies tomorrow.

abductors, but we want to beg them to release the girls in the name of the God that we all worship.”

The group urged security forces to expedite action in their search and rescue mission of the students so that their parents can have rest of mind.

Biu appealed to security agents to make use of sophisticated weapons in detecting the location of the abductors for easy rescue operation.

She described the abduction of the school girls as inhuman, abuse of human rights, capable of scuttling efforts for enhanced girl child education in the state and the country at large.

She said: “The abduction of the innocent girls violates their human rights, and it is a crime against humanity and prohibited under international humanitarian law.

“Women in Borno strongly condemn this act in its totality as it deprives children their right to learn in a safe environment, thereby jeopardising their future.”

Appeal

Biu also appealed to the insurgents to lay down their arms and hold dialogue with the government.

She said: “We wish to appeal to the insurgents to lay down their arms and embrace dialogue. We assure them of our motherly support toward rehabilitating them when the need arises “We condemn all other attacks in form of bomb blasts and serial killings all over the

country and commiserate with the families of those who lost their relations during the unfortunate incidents.

“We commend the efforts of Borno and Federal governments as well as youths and vigilantes in addressing the current insurgency in the country.

“However, bearing in mind the continuous attacks on schools, we appeal for the provision of adequate security to all schools so as to have a safe learning environment for our children.”

It's sacrilegious —MARK

Meanwhile, Senate President, Senator David Mark has described as sacrilegious the abduction of the female students and called for their release.

The Senate President, in a statement by his Press Secretary, Paul Mumeh, in Abuja, yesterday, said the abduction was embarrassing and that no nation that had the desire to develop would indulge in such dastardly act.

He pleaded with the captors to listen to the voices of reason and release the teenagers.

According to the statement, “Senator Mark imagined the harrowing experience the students had been subjected to by their captors and the mental and psychological torture parents and guardians of the students had faced.”

He said no nation could justify the abduction of the children whose only offence was that they chose to go to school to better their lots and contribute to the socio economic and political development of their fatherland.

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014 —9

FOR SECURITY: From left— Mr. Boni Haruna, Youth Development Minister; Alhaji Abduljelil Adeshiyan, Police Affairs Minister; Governor Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo State; Oloye Olajumoke Akinjide, Minister of State FCT, and Dr. Doyin Okupe, Senior Special Assistant to the President, arriving for the rescheduled security meeting with President Goodluck Jonathan in Abuja, yesterday. PHOTO: Abayomi Adeshida.

CONFAB: Nor th, South delegates disagree on Presidency, resource control z It's total control or nothing— SOUTH zIt's our last chance on unity— ADEBANJO

BY HENRY UMORU, JOSEPH ERUNKE & LEVINUS NWABUGHIOGU

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BUJA—REGIONAL sentiments and emotions took centre stage, yesterday, during contributions on resource control by members of the National Conference Committee on Devolution of Powers.

Delegates almost had a freefor-all as they hurled abuses at one another. At a stage contributions were suspended.

It took ceaseless and desperate attempts by the committee’s co-chairmen, former governor of Akwa Ibom State, Obong Victor Attah and former Inspector General of Police, Alhaji Ibrahim Coomasie to calm frayed nerves.

Trouble started when a delegate from Kano State, Dr. Junaid Mohammed, kicked against agitation for resource control and asked delegates not to support it.

Mohammed linked Nigeria’s problems to bad and improper management of her abundant human and natural resources.

He decried the high level of unemployment in the country, saying unless immediate and drastic actions were taken to address the situation, the country was sitting on a time bomb.

Muhammed said the level of unemployment in the country had reached an unbearable level, saying those affected may not hesitate to take to revolution just as he cited young graduates in other countries, among them, the Cuban leader, Fidel Castro,

to have staged revolutions due to similar circumstances.

He said: “I don’t envy this committee simply because the decisions are determined by mindset. As a democrat, I believe fundamentally in the rule of law.

We are not compelled to have a nation.

“We have the issue of unemployment in the North. We must have a way of moving the finances of this country in a very equitable manner. Graduates are being pushed into revolutionary situation because they have no jobs.”

Host states, agitation

Another delegate, Jack Tilley Gyado, from Benue State, while corroborating the position of Mohammed, said the existing 13 percent derivation formula being used to share proceeds of mineral resources to host states be maintained, warning that host states or zones be careful the way they were going about the agitation.

Gyado, who noted that the southern part of the country was pushing too much, asked the region to bury their agitation as the North would not give them the approval.

He said his position was informed by the simple fact that the country’s present political power was in the hands of the South.

He said: “The South that is pushing for this resource control should also know that they are presently controlling the Presidency of this country.

“They cannot have Presidency and resource control at the same time. I advise that we should be

very slow in asking for more to be given.

“If Niger Delta states are asking for 100 percent resource control and want to pay taxes to the Federal Government, I believe that the timing for that request is wrong.

“We all know that we have serious security challenges that are ravaging this country. The monies being distributed to the Niger Delta are enough to make every Niger Delta person a millionaire. It has to be a winwin situation.

“I advise for status quo to be maintained in the resource control. Let’s remain where we are now.”

On his part, Alhaji Usman Farouk, another northern delegate, said the conference must look towards ensuring that the country does not amend the portion of the constitution which approved only 13 percent derivation to the mineral producing areas.

He said: “Resource control is against the spirit of 1999 Constitution. These mineral resources are natural and we must see it that the mineral in Zamfara State belongs to the person in the Niger Delta and the one deposited in the Niger Delta is for the person in Zamfara.”

His counterpart from Borno State, Dr. Haruna Yerima, noted that the natural resources deposited in the country belonged to the Federal Government.

“How can communities or states be laying claims to having natural endowments? We should fight to ensure that resources of this country belong to every citizen and not individuals,” he said.

Alhaji Tanko Yakassai, a

delegate on the platform of Elder Statesmen, urged the committee to ignore the call for resource control because those canvassing for the control had no right because they did not create the resources.

He said: “All the resources we are talking about belong the Federal Government. You do not control what you don’t own.

This committee does not have even the right to discuss resource control.”

We must discuss, says Attah

But the co-chairman of the committee, Victor Attah cautioned him, saying, “the constitution was drafted by Nigerians and so we will discuss.”

At this point, Yakassai continued: “The colonial masters handed Nigeria to all of us not to any particular region. We should avoid a situation where things are cornered by individuals.”

On his part, Dr Tunji Braithwaite, said: “The problem of Nigeria has been basically corruption. Nigeria is a rich country.

“It is the issue of corruption that has narrowed it to resource control. We cannot go by what the Nigerian constitution is giving us. The 1999 Constitution is not the people’s constitution. It was made by the military’s Decree 24.”

Adebanjo

The committee was thrown into confusion when Chief Ayo Adebanjo, on the platform of Elder Statesmen, took his turn to speak.

Adebanjo said during the era of groundnut pyramid, the North was getting up to 50

percent as derivation and remitting a paltry percentage to the centre.

He said: “If we really want to keep this country together, we must address the inequalities among some sections of the country. It was the military that gave us the present 13 percent derivation formula. How did they arrive at that?

“If we want peace, we should discuss that and if we are serious to be together. This is the last chance for Nigeria to remain together. Those who hold the property of this country should be in control of their resources.”

His position was corroborated by a delegate on the platform of the Federal Government, Chief Asara Asara, who said the Northern delegates’ position on resource control was a threat, saying their zone was contributing noting to the country’s table.

He said instead they were waiting to share what was coming out of the South, noting that if the vast oil mineral deposit in the South was in their territory, they would not have agreed to share it with any zone.

Asara said: “My people are ready for anything. We want total control of our resources. If derivation formula was up to 50 percent during the groundnut pyramid era, why the difference now?”

Commotion

At this point, Northern delegates in the committee, led

by Dr. Junaid Muhammed and Alhaji Usman Farouk, became agitated and started hurling insults on the promoters of resource control in the committee.

The Southern delegates immediately received support from their colleague, Ms Ann Kio Briggs.

Briggs’ support to the contributions of Adebanjo and Asara further infuriated Dr Mohammed, who almost got up to hit the lady as he rained abuses on her.

Briggs returned the insults, asking Junaid, “who do you think you are? How many heads have you that you think if you abuse me, I won’t retaliate?”

The development temporarily affected the progress of work at the committee, as Attah hurriedly adjourned for lunch.

The committee could not do anything either when members returned from lunch break, as it adjourned to today for further deliberations.

1,400 illegal borders

Meanwhile, the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Immigration Service, NIS, David Parradang, yesterday honoured the invitation by the committee on Immigration and Related Matters, where he disclosed that over 1,400 illegal borders exist in Nigeria.

He added that Adamawa State has 80, while Ogun State has 83, among others.

10— Vanguard , THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

Boko Haram: Cleric tasks FG on intelligence gathering BYAUGUSTINA ANYAEGBU

T

HE Archbishop of the Metropolitan See of Lagos, His Grace, Most Rev. Alfred Martins has called on the Federal Government to step up its intelligence gathering ability, as a way of addressing the increasing spate of Boko Haram attacks in Nigeria.

Martins said this in Lagos at the 2014 Chrism Mass held at Archangels Catholic Church, Satellite Town, Lagos.

According to him, ‘’The bomb blast was quite a pain in the heart that such a thing could happen again.

I call on our security agencies to make efforts in forestalling such occurrences. I am sure that with adequate intelligence

by God’s grace it won’t happen again. But beyond intelligence gathering, we also need to attack the root cause of this problem.

Lagos opens up on Al-Mustapha appeal, Ejigbo assault, others

BY ABDULWAHAB ABDULAH, OLASUNKANMI AKONI, & MONSUR OLOWOOPEJO

L

AGOS—LAGOS State Government, yesterday, said police report was delaying prosecution of those arrested in connection with the case of two women severely tortured over alleged theft of pepper in Ejigbo area of the state.

This came as it said it was still pursuing the appeal it filed at the Supreme Court against the judgement of the Court of Appeal which discharged and acquitted Major Hamza Al-Mustpaha and Alhaji Lateef Shofolahan, over the the murder of Alhaja Kudirat Abiola.

Attorney-General and Commissioner of Justice, Mr. Adeola Ipaye, at the 2014 Ministerial briefing to commemorate the seventh year in office of Governor Babatunde Fashola's administration, said no fewer

than 2,595 offenders had been sentenced to various terms of community service across the 12 magisterial districts of the state in the last one year.

The state government however assisted aggrieved residents to recover over N479 million through payments of debt and compensations by its various agencies; and paid N99.6 million to the next of kin of deceased public servants.

Ipaye said “Between April 2013 and March 2014 a total

of 2,595 offenders were sentenced to various terms of community service across the 12 Magisterial Districts of Lagos State.”

The Attorney General also said the state government established a first ever Pro Bono Trust Fund in Nigeria to enable indigent residents access free legal representation to be provided by private legal practitioners, asking Lagosians to take advantage of the many free legal services being offered by the State Government to address their grievances for

Create jobs to end violence, NBA tells FG Oyebode, who during a

BY INNOCENT ANABA

L

A G O S — CHAIRMAN of Nigerian Bar Association, Section on Business Law, NBA-SBL, Mr Gbenga Oyebode, yesterday, called on the Federal Government to create jobs for the citizens as a way of ending violence in the country.

briefing spoke on the section’s 8th Annual Business Law Conference, slated for May 26 to 28 in Lagos, with theme ‘Exemplary governance – Enhancing economic development in Nigeria,’ said “if wealth was created for the majority of Nigerians, insecurity would be reduced.”

Expected at the conference are the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Aloma Muktar, Speaker of House of Representatives, Mr Aminu Tambuwal, who will deliver the keynote address, and Lagos State governor Babatunde Fashola, SAN. Oyebode said the conference would explore how good governance could be translated to development, which Nigeria needed, adding “Nigeria is fraught with all kinds of challenges, be they corruption and lack of transparency, be it security-type issues, infrastructure deficiency. Those are the evils that bedevil our society. We want to highlight what needs to be done to change these.''

the purpose of obtaining justice.

It will be recalled that the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar, had ordered Force Headquarters to take over investigations into the torture of the two women accused of stealing pepper in a market in Ejigbo with a view to bringing the culprits to justice.

One of the women allegedly, died from injuries sustained from the torture which led detectives from the Force Criminal Investigations Department from Force Annex to commence fresh investigation into the dastardly act.

According to Ipaye,: “At the moment, we are awaiting the police report because there are certain aspects of the investigation they are still working on. Immediately we get the report, we will be going to court to prosecute the accused persons.”

On Al_Mustapha’s case, Ipaye said, “What is happening is that we have filed an appeal and the rules require us to file a notice of appeal which we did. And we did it at the court where the case was delivered and it has a time limit.

If the court of appeal is unable to hear ones application within that time, one has to make the application at the Supreme Court.

“There is a window within which the court of appeal must hear the application and it is because we couldn’t get it heard within that period and we had to get out of the Court of Appeal by withdrawing our application and refilling it at the Supreme Court.

“At the moment, we are awaiting the hearing date from the Supreme Court. What we have done is not to withdraw the appeal,the appeal is still subsistent.”

Ogun APC members in free-for-all at Appeal committee sitting

BY DAUD OLATUNJI

A

B E O K U TA— I T was a free-for-all yesterday in Abeokuta, Ogun State capital when members of the two factions of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in the state clashed during the inaugural sitting of the appeal committee set up by the party.

The crisis, which escalated after the commencement of the sitting prompted the Chairman of the committee Ikra Bilbis and other members to adjourn the sitting.

The party has been embroiled in an internal wrangling over who controls the party structure in the state.

The party is divided into two with both the governor of the state, Senator Ibikunle Amosun and his estranged political godfather, Olusegun Osoba

leading the factions.

The atmosphere was tensed when supporters of the two political gladiators engaged one another in shouting match during the appeal committee proceeding which was looking into the complaints of some aggrieved members over the last wards congresses held in the state.

Vanguard gathered that, a senator representing Ogun East, Senator Adegbenga Kaka was almost beaten by an aggrieved member of the party following his alleged utterances against the governor.

It was learnt that attempt by a former Speaker, Tunji Egbetokun to stop Kaka from going ahead with his submission before the committee members triggered the uproar.

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014— 11

Ekiti, Osun guber polls’ll be rig and roast – TINUBU

BY OLAAJAYI

I

BADAN—FORMER Lagos State Governor and National Leader of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Asiwaju Ahmed Tinubu, yesterday threatened fire and brimstone over any plan to rig the forthcoming governorship elections in Ekiti and Osun states fixed for this year's June and August, warning that “It will be rig and roast.”

He spoke at his investiture as the Chancellor of Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso and award of honourary doctor of science in Management Science.

Apparently reacting to an earlier statement credited to the Vice President Namadi Sambo, that the elections of the states would be a warfare, he said, “We are prepared not to go to court but to drive you out. We will not take it anymore. If you mess up in Ekiti and Osun states, you will see our reactions. For every action, there must be a reaction.”

He urged electorates in the affected states and across the country to protect their votes, saying “No government that wants people's votes will be doing what they are doing. They are planning to rig the elections but be ready to protect your votes. It is going to be rig and roast.”

On the comments of President Goodluck Jonathan in Kano, where he accused the state governor, Alhaji Rabiu Kwankwaso of mismanaging the money meant for his campaign in 2011, Asiwaju Tinubu asked the President where he got such huge amount of money, having said during one of his political campaigns that he had no shoe.

Tinubu, who spoke on the topic, “Two faces of despair: State of the Nigeria nation,” also faulted President Jonathan’s administration on the Gross Domestic Product, GDP that government released, economy and insecurity in the country.

While speaking satirically, he said, “Nigeria has magically leaped over South Africa to become the largest economy in Africa. Too bad the magical statistics do not translate into a magical improvement in the people’s economic condition. The recent rebasing putting Nigeria ahead of South Africa has raised more doubts about the objectives of those in charge of economy.

From a modest of 305 billion dollars, Nigeria’s GDP ballooned to 488 billion dollars.

“The GDP mathematics is an offensive sideshow, given the real hardships Nigerians face. This is another variant of the vision 2020 gimmick and to make the government look good prior to the World Economic Forum meeting in Abuja next month. It is

propaganda not progress.”

Rather than fight corruption, Tinubu alleged that the PDP administration was married to corruption.

“Can this government step forward and tell Nigerians why 20 billion dollars in oil revenue remains unaccounted for? What have become of the kerosene subsidy scandal and the nearly one trillion naira that disappeared?”, he asked.

Before presenting the speech, he urged the crowd at the ceremony to have a minute silence for the female students that were kidnapped in Chibok.

He condemned the response of the Federal Government to the plight of the kidnapped students

and their traumatised parents, claiming that “They lied to us.

They cannot even account for their number. How many hours did the Boko Haram insurgents spend in that school to pack those students? Just the following day, when parents and all Nigerians were in grief, the President was dancing in Kano. We are not serious.”

Speaking on late Moshood Abiola, Tinubu said, ”I need say no more than this man was the president Nigeria elected in the fairest election ever held.”

While commending the Vice Chancellor of the institution, Professor Adeniyi Gbadegesin, he said he was very proud to become the fourth chancellor of

the university, promising to work with his team leaders to make the institution a first class university.

On the entourage of Asiwaju Tinubu were the Acting National Chairman, APC, Chief Bisi Akande, former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, former Head of State, Gen. Mohammed Buhari, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, Oyo State Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State, his Osun and Kwara counterparts, Rauf Aregbesola, and AbdulFatah Ahmed, Lai Mohammed, Acting National Publicity Secretary of the party, and former Police boss, Mr. Sunday Adewusi.

Also in attendance were the Deputy Governor of Osun State, Mrs. Titi Laoye-Tomori and Mrs. Bisi Fayemi, Mrs. Abimbola Fashola, Mrs Florence Ajimobi and Alhaja Serifat Aregbesola.

RECEPTION: Kwara State Governor, Dr. Abdulfatah Ahmed (left) welcoming All Progressives Congress, APC chieftains, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and former Head of State, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, to Ilorin at the Ilorin International Airport, yesterday.

Ekiti won't accept Abuja-imposed gov – FAYEMI ... As Fayose promises not to ban okada

BY GBENGAARIYIBI

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DO EKITI – GOVERNOR Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State, yesterday declared that the people of the state would resist any move from Abuja to impose a governor on the people in the forthcoming governorship election.

Fayemi, spoke at Ipoti-Ekiti while addressing his supporters during the second leg of his campaign tour to communities in Ijero Local Government area of the state.

The towns visited include Iloro, Ijurin, Odo-Owa, Erijiyan, Ipoti, Ikoro and Ijero.

The governor called on the electorate to be firm and resolute on election day and not be intimidated by external forces and their local collaborators He insisted that the people of the state would determine their

next governor through their votes in the June 21 gubernatorial poll, Fayemi said the electorates were too wise and intelligent to be fooled by falsehood being peddled by the opposition.

I wont ban Okada – Fayose Meantime, The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, governorship candidate, Mr Ayodele Fayose has assured the commercial motorcycle operators otherwise known as okada riders in Ekiti state of freedom to operate without fear of being proscribed if he becomes the governor.

Fayose who stated this at Ire Ekiti in Oye Local Government Area of Ekiti State during ward to ward campaign tour urged the commercial motorcycle

operators not to vote for a party which after forming government would throw them into unemployment market.

According to a press statement issued in Ado Ekiti by Fayose’s spokesman, Mr Idowu Adelusi, the PDP candidate claimed that the APC had reputation of using Okada operators to win election, only to proscribe their operation later, adding that he would not proscribe okada operation, but provide enabling environment to make the work decent and reduce accident to the barest minimum.

He told the Okada operators

Meeting

S

AINT Peter ’s College, Abeokuta Old Students Association (SPOSAN) will meet at the institution on Saturday, April 26, beginning from 1.30pm.

Ladoja vows not to return to PDP

BY OLAAJAYI

I

BADAN–AS preparations for 2015 governorship elections hot up in Oyo State, a former governor of the state, Senator Rashidi Ladoja, yesterday said no amount of overtures would make him return to the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. Ladoja, who is now the leader of Accord Party, AP, and its possible governorship candidate, said his decision to remain in AP was no longer negotiable.

According to him, his decision to leave PDP five months to the 2011 general elections for Accord was based on sound political analysis and judgment without any regret whatsoever.

There had been intense pressure on him by notable chieftains of the PDP in the South West including the former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo to have a rethink on his decision to dump the PDP. Though, there was mutual agreement between Ladoja and the PDP initially, he later accused the party of insincerity.

Osun PDP warns members over attending meetings

BY GBENGA OLARINOYE

O

SOGBO–OSUN State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has directed its members to seek clearance from its secretariat before attending or convening meetings.

Its Chairman, Alhaji Gani Olaoluwa, gave the directive in a press statement in Osogbo yesterday.

The directive came on the heels of Monday’s visit to the former governor of the state, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola at his Okuku country home, for Easter get-together by some prominent leaders of the party, including two governorship aspirants of the party, Senator Isiaka Adeleke and Hon. Wole Oke, an action described as anti party activities..

12—Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

Dickson warns opponents against early campaigns

Pa Pemu for burial

P

A. Akomire Obebe Pemu of Oboghoroh and Dibofun of Jakpa Town, both of Warri North Local Government Area of Delta State, aged 110, will be buried on April 26, at his residence, 54, Obire Street, Warri.

Traditional burial rites and entertainment of guests will take place at the same venue.

He is survived by two widows, children and grand-children, among whom is Pa. Amatserundagheyin Pemu and Oritsegbubemi Pemu.

BY SAMUEL OYADONGHA

Y

E N A G O A — BAYELSA State governor, Mr. Seriake Dickson, yesterday, warned opposition politicians interested in the state's 2016 governorship election against early campaigns and political intrigues, saying that they will get tired before the campaigns begin officially in 2015.

The governor said though the opposition politicians have allegedly started mobilising youths in secret with a view to causing disturbances, his administration was focused and made up of tested politicians ready to pick up the gauntlet.

Dickson, at the monthly State Transparency Briefing at the banquet hall of the Government House in Yenagoa, said those involved in the political campaigns ahead of the 2016 governorship election are jokers and weak politicians involved in past failed administrations in the state.

“It is unfortunate that those who should know appear to be embarking on wasted political adventure," he said.

MEETING: Governor Godswill Akpabio (right) and Akwa Ibom Peoples Democratic Party, PDP Chairman, Obong Paul Ekpo, during the state Executive Council meeting of the party in Uyo.

Uduaghan links terrorism to poverty

BY EMMANUEL AZIKEN & AUSTIN OGWUDA

G

OVERNOR Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State, yesterday, identified poverty as a major cause of violence in some parts of the country and pledged his administration’s commitment not to give the malaise a foothold in the state.

Speaking at the launch of an insurance scheme for beneficiaries of the state’s micro-credit scheme, the governor enjoined the country’s elite to consider the poor, saying that the N20,000 some spend on beer monthly could lead some poor persons out of poverty.

The insurance scheme

was conceived to be a bulwark for beneficiaries of the state’s micro-credit programme, the state Commissioner for Poverty Alleviation, Dr. Anthonia Ashiedu, said. She said the need for the scheme arose from the setbacks suffered by some beneficiaries of the scheme, following the flood that ravaged the country two years ago.

The insurance scheme was flagged off with a N6.5 million premium paid by the state government and underwritten by Mutual Benefit Assurance. The company promised that proven claims would be paid within three days.

On the nexus between violence and poverty, Governor Uduaghan, said: “One of the things that peo-

Power generation hits 4,105 MW —FG

BY CHRIS OCHAYI

A

BUJA—THE Federal Government claimed, yesterday, that the country’s generation capacity has picked up, hitting 4,105.90 megawatts as at Tuesday, this week.

This was even as the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC, approved and signed into law the rules for the interim period between completion of privatisation and the start of the Transitional Electricity Market, TEM. Special Assistant, Media, to the Minister of Power, Prof. Chinedu Nebo, Kande Daniel, in a statement in Abuja, said the current generation status was arrived at after

Grid Information was released early, Wednesday.

She said Nigeria’s power generation is coming up again with the current generated megawatts, hitting over 4,000 as at Tuesday.

The release further reveals a breakdown of how generated capacity was shared, with the industrial nerve-centre, Lagos and environs, getting the highest, a maximum load totaling 985.0mw, while the maximum load allocated to Abuja through Katampe and Gwagwalada power line was 410.80mw.

The nation’s generation capacity as at early Wednesday, stood at 3,795.30mw, and figures for the past few days indicate an averaging of

about 3,800mw.

The statement, however, re-affirms government’s resolve to consolidate efforts at removing all bottlenecks to sufficiency in power supply.

NERC approves interim rules

On the interim rules for the power sector, the order which was signed by the Chairman and Chief Executive of the NERC, Dr. Sam Amadi, provides for regulation which shall apply to energy produced and delivered as well as associated services during the interim period.

The rules are in exercise of the powers conferred on the Commission by section 96 of the Electric Power Sector Reform Act (2005).

ple seem to stress is that over the years, we have ignored poverty, we have not paid attention to people at that lower end and what has happened, is that today, a lot of those youths, because

they are not doing anything, have become a pool of people who are easily recruited to carry arms and ammunition either as criminals, armed robbers or terrorists."

Late Pa T. Pemu

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014 — 13

OPENING CEREMONY OF PORT HARCOURT AS WORLD BOOK CAPITAL

PH WORLD BOOK CAPITAL: From right: Dr. Oby Ezekwesili; Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka; Mrs. Koko Kalango, Project Director; former Head of State, Abdulsalami Abubakar, Chairman of the occasion; Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State and his wife, Judith.

From left: Mr. Amorn Kitchawenghul, Deputy Governor of Bangkok; Governor Amaechi, his wife, Judith; Nobel Laureate, Prof. Soyinka and Mrs. Kalango, Project Director. Photos by Nwankpa Chijioke.

Soyinka warns against tax on imported books

BY JIMITOTA ONOYUME

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ORT HARCOURT—NOBEL laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, yesterday, called on the Federal Government not to impose tax on importation of books.

Professor Soyinka spoke in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, at the opening ceremony of Port Harcourt as United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, UNESCO, World Book Capital, 2014.

Former Minister of Education, Dr. Oby Ezekwesili, had earlier expressed hope that Port Harcourt as UNESCO World Book capital 2014, would stimulate interest in reading.

In his remark, Chairman of the ceremony, former Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalami Abu-

bakar (rtd), harped on the need for peace and security of lives in the country. He also congratulated Port Harcourt for emerging as the World Book capital for the year.

On her part, the Project Director, Rainbow Book Club, Mrs Koko Kalango, appealed to government at all levels in the country to set up functional libraries in all the local government areas, stressing that the campaign to get Nigerians reading should be in schools and in the homes.

She appealed to government to make education available to all, noting that a thriving book culture was among the needed tools to move the country forward.

Governor Chibuike Amaechi, who was host at the event, said his administration started holding the Garden City

literary festival since 2008 as a way of reversing the economic decline in the state, which he blamed on militancy and other related challenges.

Governor Amaechi lamented the low literacy level in the country, stressing that his administration was working towards getting all children back to school.

Assuring that the state will make good use of opportunities created for hosting the World Book Capital, Amaechi said his administration was building standard libraries and a Port Harcourt Book Centre to serve as home for writers.

The high point of the ceremony was the formal handover to Port Harcourt as UNESCO World Book Capital 2014 by a team from Bangkok, led by the state deputy governor, Mr. Amom Kitchawenghul.

14—Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

Mrs Eudani passes on

Oko crisis: Youths storm Government House ...say removal of Igwe Ekwueme would restore peace ...as Igwe appeals to Gov Obiano over threat to his life

BY VINCENT UJUMADU

A

Late Mrs. Eudani Mrs. Tonia Eudani, 40, is dead. She died after a brief illness.

She is survived by her husband, Mr. Victor Eudani, and son, Kelechi Glory Eudani.

She will be buried on April 25, 2014.

JOGS 74/79 meeting The monthly meeting of Ijebu-Ode Grammar School Old Boys Association, JOGS 1974/79 set, will take place on Sunday April 27, 2014 at Unity Estate, Ajagbala Layout, Erin, Ijebu Ode, Ogun State - home of Dr. Olufowobi Adeolu, medical director, General Hospital, IJebu Ife North, Ogun State.

C M Y K

WKA — HUNDREDS of placards-carrying youths from Oko in Orumba North Local Government Area of Anambra State, yesterday, stormed Government House, Awka, demanding the removal of their traditional ruler, Igwe Laz Ekwueme, who they accused of undermining peaceful coexistence in the community.

But the traditional ruler in a quick reaction, accused some people in his community, including elders, of flouting the ban placed on the activities of masquerades, thus causing crisis in the community.

The protest was a fallout of the crisis that had engulfed the community, following the recent shooting of a masquerade in the town by soldiers allegedly invited by Igwe Ekwueme to stop masquerades from performing during the town’s Afia Olu festival.

Chanting war songs and waving the placards, some of which read, “Governor Obiano, please, use your good office to restore peace in Oko,” “Igwe Ekwueme has defiled our culture,” “Our

Igwe ordered the shooting of our youths,” “Dethrone Igwe Oko and there will be peace,” among others.

Led by the president of Oko Youths Assembly, Evangelist Hilary Ezeokafor, the youths said their once peaceful community had become crisis-ridden because of the activities of the traditional ruler and the President General of Oko Progressive Union, OPU, Mr. Cyprian Nwamuo.

The youth leader said: “Our traditional ruler and the PG are causing so much trouble in our area.

He is fighting the youths, banishing people for no reason, using the army to terrorise the community, defiling our culture and even fighting the Rector of Oko Federal Polytechnic, Professor Godwin Onu, who has worked very hard to improve the infrastructure facilities in the institution.

“We believe that the only thing that can bring back peace in Oko is for the government to dethrone him because his continued stay as the traditional ruler will continue to create tension in our town.

Addressing the youths, the Senior Special Assistant, SSA, to Governor Obiano on Media, Mr.

James Eze, commended them for being peaceful, noting that government was aware of the happenings in the community.

Describing Obiano as a listening governor, Eze said the state government would fully address the problem and urged them to articulate all their grievances and submit same to government for necessary action.

Meanwhile, Igwe Laz Ekwueme has alleged that his life was being threatened by those he said were out to undermine his authority as the custodian of the culture and tradition of the peo-

ple.

Speaking in his palace, Ekwueme appealed to Governor Willie Obiano to provide him security as he no longer moved freely in his domain.

He said some people in his domain, including some elders, flouted the resolution banning masquerade in the town, adding that they overwhelmed the police; hence soldiers were brought in to maintain law and order.

He said it was when one of the youths dared the soldiers that he sustained injuries, adding that this led to the youths burning some cars in his palace.

...Army denies killing masquerade

BY NWABUEZE OKONKWO

O

NITSHA — THE Com mander of 302 Artillery Regiment, Onitsha, Col. Jibrin Fagge, has described as malicious reports that a soldier shot a masquerade at Oko, Anambra State, last weekend.

Fagge, who reacted to the report said: “Soldiers were never there when the incident of masquerades clashing happened.

While I personally contacted the DPO, DSS and President-Gener-

al of the community, they confirmed that there was no such incident.

“So, I keep wondering where the report, which although has no attributable source, must have emanated from and who must have sponsored such.”

Fagge noted that as an institution, the Nigeria Army respected religion and traditional-cum cultural institutions, adding that no officer or soldier would leave his professional duty to meddle in religious and tradition affairs.

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014—15

Nyako’s allegation, height of irresponsibility—Maku

BY BEN AGANDE & SALISU MARADUN

G

USAU — EVEN as the furore generated over his allegation that the Federal Government was involved in acts of genocide against the north was yet to end, Governor Murtala Nyako of Adamawa State, yesterday, launched a fresh attack on President Goodluck Jonathan, saying that he had a hand in the security challenges facing the north in the country.

Nyako spoke in Gusau, capital of Zamfara State, while addressing thousands of All Progressives Congress, APC, supporters at the premises of state College of Arts

and Science.

However, reacting to the accusations, yesterday, the Minister of Information, Labaran Maku lambasted Nyako over the issue, describing his statement as not only divisive but highly irresponsible.

“This nation deserves security at this time. Even in the heat of crisis, you hear some irresponsible comments coming from highly placed people, including a governor.

"Now this nation is in need of unity, but the way we are playing to the gallery, we are making irresponsible statements. We are making statement that will divide the country; statements that are setting the citizens against secu-

rity services and government,’’ Maku said.

Maku said such a statement should not come from an elected leader, not to talk of one who was once a military officer.

“When these statements come from people we believe should be leading the course of unity, appreciating the great job the security are doing, it is very unfortunate.

"If only Nigerians understand that as we sit in this hall, our security people are out there sleeping in the bush, day and night and getting killed in the course of maintaining the security of this country... ”But what we see is that people who have little knowledge on

how security services are rendered, will just open their mouths and make statements that create panic in the country, and this is very unfortunate. ”The kind of things being said by the governor of Adamawa State at this period is very unfortunate.

Nyako is the former Chief of Naval Staff, he is someone that had worn the uniform before. For him to publicly incite the people against the security forces of this country is the height of irresponsibility. ”When people reach a certain age they should watch their utterances. For people that have known the difficulty this country is going through and the kind of effort being made by the Federal

Terrorism: Rep urges Jonathan to apologise to victims of Nyanya bombing, abduction CHAIRMAN OF the House Committee on Diaspora Affairs, Mrs. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, yesterday, asked President Goodluck Jonathan to apologise to families of victims of Nyanya bomb blast and parents of the 234 students abducted at Government Girls College in Borno State by Boko Haram insurgents.

She also urged the Federal

Government to seek internal and external help in efforts to checkmate the acitivites of the Boko Haram sect.

Dabiri-Erewa, who gave the charge at a “Girls in ICT Day” workshop in Lagos, said the apology became necessary because the President chose to engage in political rally in Kano State in the face of these incidents.

Dabri-Erewa, who represents

the Ikorodu Constituency of Lagos State, in the House of Representatives, said she was worried that there was no compassion in governance in Nigeria anymore, considering the decision of President Goodluck Jonathan to participate in a rally in Kano, a day after the bomb blast that claimed the lives of innocent Nigerians.

She described President

Jonathan’s visit to Kano to sing and dance a day after the Nyanya bombing and on a day 234 girls were abducted in Borno as insensitive, callous, pre-posterous and annoying.

She called on President Jonathan to apologise not only to the families and victims of the Nyanya bombings, but also to the families of the abducted girls and all Nigerian women.

Government, to come out to make those statements that divide the country at a point that we need national unity and national healing, is grossly irresponsible.

“People grandstanding, people playing to the gallery, people making inflammatory statements that divide public opinion, that cause confusion are people that are anti-Nigeria. Divisive statements must be condemned at this time and I think that we all have a responsibility to this country,” the minister said.

On the abduction of the female secondary schools students in Borno State, Maku said that everything possible was being done by security agents to rescue them.

He described the abduction as a national tragedy, adding that “it is unimaginable that a group of people under whatever guise will take hostage of young girls who were just in school to write their examinations.

According to him, the abduction of the school girls “goes to show the level of depravity, and the lack of human feeling that is going on with this crime of terror in this country. ”The security forces are still on the heels of these kidnappers and every efforts are being deployed to ensure that they are safely rescued."

16—Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

APC'll not form

next govt in Adamawa — Marwa

BY UMAR YUSUF

Y

OLA — FORMER Military Administrator of Lagos, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (rtd), has said that the All Progressives Congress, APC, lacked ‘’what it takes to form the next government in Adamawa State.’’

Marwa, who defected from the APC to the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, recently spoke, yesterday, at a press briefing in Yola, the Adamawa State capital.

He said Governor Murtala Nyako and the current APC members in the state had lost most of those who constituted the backbone of APC in the state to PDP. ”Nyako and his APC cannot and will never form the next government in Adamawa. We were the roots, trunk, branches and leaves of APC and now we are gone. Nyako only has the shell. Believe me, in a matter of weeks, even the shell will be gone, leaving him with nothing except the letters APC,” Marwa added.

Take over Taraba State security, House of Assembly urges FG

BY JOHN MKOM

J

ALINGO —.THE Taraba State House of Assembly has asked the Federal Government

to take over the security of the state following the massive loss of lives, destruction of property and displacement of people as in the state.

The development was as a result of the violence between the Fulani herdsmen and the people of Wukari which had engulfed the southern and some parts of cen-

Soldier, 4 others killed in Hyambula village ...as Police arrest Indian hemp, arms dealers in Adamawa

BY UMAR YUSUF

Y

OLA — UNKNOWN Gunmen have attacked Sabongari Hyambula village, bordering Gwoza in Borno and Madagali Local Government of Adamawa, killing a soldier and two civilians including a mad woman.

Two of the attackers were also killed just as two of their vehicles were seized.

This was even as the state po-

lice command announced the arrest of over 30 suspects over alleged possession of Indian hemp and illeagl arms in the state.

However, an eyewitness said the gunmen struck at the area late last night and attacked a military checkpoint which led to the death of a soldier and two civilians who were caught in cross fire.

“The attackers came in a large convoy and launched attack on the military checkpoint with the intention of routing them before pro-

National prayer breakfast tomorrow

T

HE TRUSTEES of the Christian Laity Association of Nigeria will hold the 34th yearly National Prayer

Breakfast tomorrow at the MUSON Centre, Onikan, Lagos, by 7.00a.m.

ceeding to the town,’’ sources said.

But parading the suspects before newsmen in Yola, yesterday, the Commissioner of Police, John Abakasanga, said the arrests were made during intensive raids carried out at both Yola and Jimeta.

He expressed concern over the way Indian hemp was being sold openly in some major areas in Yola and Jimeta towns and assured that criminals would no longer have hiding places in the state.

Similarly, he said three suspects were arrested over unlawful possession of arms and ammunition and fake currency (Naira) notes at Ganye town in Ganye Local Government Area, pointing out that all the suspects had confessed their involvement in the crime.

tral Taraba in the last few days.

In a motion jointly sponsored by the Speaker of the House, Josiah Kente, representing Wukari I, Ishaya Gani- Wukari II, Haruna Gbana Donga, Mark Useni Takum II Daniel; Tsokwa- Takum I, Muhamed Abdulkarim Ibi and Yohana Adaki Ussah, the House also asked the state government to send enough relieve materials to the affected victims.

Earlier in their separate contributions during their plenary, the former Speaker of the House, Haruna Gbana said both the legislature and the executive arm of the government should be humble enough to apologise to the people of the state for not being proactive to avert the crisis.

Gbana said instead of being sensitive to the issues that would have averted the crisis in the neighbouring state of Taraba, both parties were busy displaying posters of elections and beating campaign drums on the streets for the 2015 polls.

He said Taraba State government had failed in its responsibilities of providing security to the people, adding that there was no reason to hide the fact that Taraba State was under siege.

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014 — 17

L

AST week, I argued that in moments of crisis, the political elite must unite the country, to ward off a nation endangering process. However, the vicious rivalries characteristic of neocolonial politics as we have in Nigeria, can make it difficult to find the unity of purpose we are talking about. In the past week, Nigeria’s political leaders have treated Nigerians to a macabre display of rascality, irresponsibility, and a frightening insensitivity, at a time of serious danger to the national weal. Just when Nigerians were hurting at more heightened levels of exposure to the dangers of the Boko Haram insurgency, those who expected to use their occupation of the mantles of leadership went AWOL; they chose to dip in the gutter of politics. The sheep of the Nigerian state suddenly lost the shepherd! Our leaders were not only fiddling while their Rome burned. They removed their dresses in the public arena,

loathing that has crept into their relationship. And what is most frightening is that the public display of obscenities has come at a time of serious security challenge, that should have rallied the political elite across party lines, in order to bring the whole country together.

Unhealthy rivalries

Between President and Governors: A dip in the gutter followed. The day after the rally, Governor Kwankwaso led members of his cabinet to the Polo Ground, to sweep off the “bad luck” of the previous day’s rally!

The Kano storm had not settled, when Governor Murtala Nyako of Adamawa, another political opponent of President Goodluck

,

The bitterness displayed on all sides by these individuals reveal the depth of the crisis within the ruling class and the break down engendered

revealed ugly and unsightly figures and wrestled themselves into the gutter. The serious business of leadership was not only irresponsibly ridiculed, these leaders reduced their own esteem, and helped to endanger their ruling class project, by a significant notch.

The frightening display started last week Sunday in Kano, when Governor Kwankwaso told party elders that Kanawa will not welcome President Goodluck Jonathan in the state last Tuesday, as he had not done much for the people of the state. The governor added further that he regretted voting Jonathan in 2011; while under Jonathan, Nigerians have witnessed corruption, embezzlement and corruption.

He added to the mix, the controversially missing $20Billion.

Massive car bombing Two days later, on Tuesday, that is the day after the massive car bombing which killed 75 people and injured over a hundred in Nyaya, President Goodluck Jonathan entered Kano, to formally receive former governor, Ibrahim Shekarau, into the PDP. At the event, Jonathan issued Kwankwaso a riposte: “Only yesterday…Kwankwaso was saying he regretted voting for me in 2011…When I was about to emerge as PDP candidate Kwankwaso was bitter and walked out of the venues of the election, and I later found out that he did not vote for me in that election.

The money I set aside for Kano delegates during the 2011 convention was not given to them.

Kwankwaso pocketed it. And the money I later sent to Kano PDP to campaign for me in 2011 was also pocketed by the governor”.

Other accusations about the mismanagement of LG funds

,

Jonathan, issued a letter accusing the president’s administration of being “bent on bringing wars in the North between Muslims and Christians and within them and between one ethnic group and another or others in various communities in the region”. There were other weighty accusations, bordering on genocide and

impunity, which received an immediate reply from the presidency through the SSA on Public Affairs, Doyin Okupe. He described the letter as “an unmitigated leadership disaster and a sad betrayal of trust by a major beneficiary of the Nigerian nation”. Nyako, according to the presidency, “definitely defies common sense and portrays Mr. Nyako as unfit for the hallowed position of a state governor”. By extension, even the Nigerian military was dragged into the fray, with the Director of Defence Information, General Olukade dismissing allegations of ethnoreligious biases, contained in Nyako’s letter as baseless and untruthful.

In a two week period, some of the most important pillars of the Nigerian state, the president and two governors, C vacated the hallowed responsibilities of their M

offices to publicly trade weighty accusations against each other.

They forgot just how important their speeches and conduct are, to the overall health of the country.

It is normal for politicians to trade banters, in order to gain political advantage.

Afterall, those are some of the fine points of politicking, especially in the lead to the electioneering process. Politics is literally war by other means but the needs of class solidarity and the survival of the state and the class project, obliges individual political actors to set invisible lines that they will refuse to cross, in order not to jeopardize the entire political process.

The bitterness displayed on all sides by these individuals reveal the depth of the crisis within the ruling class and the break down engendered. It is not usual to see such a public display of the

Y K

As we come closer to the 2015 elections, such expressions of unhealthy rivalries will become even more common place, unless the more level-headed members of the ruling elite can find means to blunt the bitterness that has eaten deep into the political rivalries between different factions of the Nigerian neocolonial ruling class. They have to self-preserve and stop the indecent and ugly dips in the gutters of politics.

The situation in Nigeria today calls for utmost sense of responsibility all round. Nigerians are dying in thousands as a result of various anti-state acts of resistance; these range from the bombs of Boko Haram to the ethno-religious killings that are recorded around the country.

Where the ruling elite cannot guarantee security of lives and property of the citizenry, but is consumed in ugly fights inside gutters, they will sooner, rather than later, destroy the legitimacy of their ruling class hegemony in the society in general. They had better be forewarned, because Nigerians are watching with disgust, disbelief and angst!

Who is against democratic structures in the North-East?

O

N Monday, April 21, 2014, LEADERSHIP newspaper’s lead story said that plans were afoot to suspend democratic structures in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states. The plan is supposed to be an item of discussion at a Security Council meeting scheduled for Wednesday (yesterday); but I am writing on Tuesday night. The story quoted a faceless “top ranking officer in the military”, who accused “top politicians and elite in the Northeast” of “sabotaging the ongoing operations against the insurgents”. That faceless top-ranking officer nevertheless wanted governors and Houses of Assembly in the affected states suspended “while the operation lasted”.

LEADERSHIP quoted its source further, that “the political elites, including the governors in those states, are working against our programme; their unguarded utterances are daring the insurgents”. The military officer was said to have “made reference to Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno and Murtala Nyako of Adamawa and a serving senator as being part of the alleged sabotage”. The ridiculous and obviously deluded and antidemocratic ranting went on and on.

But it became clearer to me, that the LEADERSHIP story was part of an elaborate, anti-democratic kite flying, when THISDAY newspaper of Tuesday, April 22, 2014,carried a similar request to set aside democratic structures in the states under a state of emergency. The request this time came from a legal practitioner called Oghenejabor Ikimi, who leads a nondescript body called Forum for Justice and Human Rights Defence. This human rights defender and lawyer, wants the Federal Government “to stop foot dragging” on “taking the appropriate step that would decisively address the menace of Boko Haram

insurgency”. And what was his “decisive step”? Well, it is the most anti-democratic suggestion that an alleged defender of justice and human rights can ever think of: “the respective state governors should be temporarily relived of the functions and military administrators should be appointed to oversee affairs in the states as a measure against the insurgency”!

Deluded military officer and lawyer These individuals are clearly deluded: the faceless top military officer and the legal practitioner. In the first place, the people of the states concerned have democratically elected the governors in power in the states in question, so to suggest their removal because of the security situation is an absurdity. Besides, in what ways have the elected representatives of the people of the three states hamstrung the operations of the security forces in the fight against the insurgency? Are these individuals aware of the amount of financial and other forms of support that these states have continued to put at the disposal of our forces fighting the insurgency?

What would military administrators achieve that they are unable to, with the extensive powers they already wield with the state of emergency? The truth is that there is much more mischief embedded in this ridiculous demand and all democratic forces in our country should stand up without ambiguity against any surreptitious plan to impose military administrators in the states of the Northeast.

In the first place, these are states controlled by the opposition; and since 1999, especially in Borno and Yobe, the PDP has

been defeated in every election. So any plan to impose military administrators, on the eve of the 2015 elections, leaves room for suspicion that the Federal administration is trying to “capture” these states by subterfuge. It is clearly unacceptable.

Secondly, if a faceless military officer is interested in ruling a state, the simple thing to do is to resign his commission in the Nigerian armed forces, join a political party and contest elections. That is the lawful manner of winning power in a democratizing country, as Nigeria is today.

As for the legal practitioner who leads a Forum for Justice and Human Rights Defence, what is consonant with his declared vocation, is to stand for the defence of the tenure of democratically elected governors, not advocate the truncation of their rule. And at a time when children have been abducted in Borno, as much as the extensive destruction of the infrastructure of these states and the killing of thousands of innocent Nigerians, our human rights campaigner ought to be with the people of these states.

It is not by advocating for the suspension of democratic structures and the imposition of the rule of jackboots that the insurgency will be exorcised. The Federal Government should adequately make provision for our gallant armed forces; improve their morale; co-ordinate more proactively with the leadership in these states and improve intelligence gathering as much as working out a comprehensive plans of reconstruction and rehabilitation in the states. These are the steps we should be emphasising, not harebrained, dictatorial and anti-democratic delusions of removal of democratically elected structures of power in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe.

C M Y K

18 — Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014 MONDAY, April 14, 2014, the Supreme Court voided the Igbo customary law, which denies daughters inheriting their fathers’ estate. The Supreme Court said it was discriminatory and in conflict with the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

It is a verdict that would have far-reaching effects in addressing a dehumanising tradition, which can no longer be excused in a modern, democratic society such as ours. It is a practice that regarded women as lower than men.

The judgment was given in a family dispute between Gladys Ada Ukeje, who was disinherited from the estate of her deceased father, Lazarus Ogbonna Ukeje.

She sued her step-mother, Mrs. Lois Chituru Ukeje and her son, Enyinnaya Lazarus Ukeje.

A Lagos High Court, the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court all reached the same decision.

BYADEWALE KUPOLUYI

W

HAT has now become a public issue is the sale of babies - a menace which has been on for some time - as teenage girls become victims of unwanted pregnancies and the children produced are sold out for adoption to couples who want babies at all cost.

At the baby making factory, young girls are encouraged or forced to become pregnant and after delivery, the newborn babies are be sold out, usually between N500,000 or more, depending on the sex of the child. The main concern of this piece is how to eliminate or reduce to the barest minimum, the continued demand and supply of these babies under the guise of lucrative ‘business’. Who patronize the baby factory? The answer is simple - it is either couples who badly need children, which they cannot get biologically or mischievous persons who require human parts for mischievous reasons. Nowhere is selling of adult human beings or children not a concerned the world over. For instance, Article 3 of the United Nations Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons especially women and children, Section 50 of the Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition) Law Enforcement and Administration Act, 2003 of Nigeria defines trafficking as including “all acts and attempted acts involved in the recruitment, transportation within or across Nigerian borders, purchase, sale, transfer, receipt or harbouring of a person involving the use of deception,

Inheritance Rights For Girl Child They confirmed that Gladys was qualified under the laws of Nigeria to inherit her father's estate. The verdict should settle this matter forever in favour of all daughters in all corners of the country to claim their birthright, which they had been denied. It is a resounding victory for human rights and equality, which Nigerians should applaud for the hopes it creates for families without male children.

Justice Bode Rhodes-Vivour, who read the lead judgment matter the stated, “ No circumstances of the birth of a female child, such a child is entitled to an inheritance from her

late father’s estate. Consequently, the Igbo customary law, which disentitles a female child from partaking in the sharing of her deceased father ’s estate, is a breach of Section 42(1) and (2) of the Constitution, a fundamental rights provision guaranteed to every Nigerian”.

Civil society, the media and human rights advocacy groups should enlighten the public that this discriminatory customary practice has been annulled. The law enforcement agencies must ensure that it is enforced as part of the laws of the land.

The traditional institutions that had insisted on the practice should

OPINION Ending the bab or babyy fact factor oryy menace coercion or debt bondage for the purpose of placing or holding the person whether for or not involving servitude in force or bonded labour, or in slavery-like conditions” while the Childs Rights Act (Cap 198) Laws of the Federation of Nigeria also criminalises exploitative child labour and other forms of child abuse hitherto left unpunished by the Criminal Codes.

In many African countries, a couple’s inability to give birth to children few years after marriage is often frowned at by family members and even the extended family members, culminating into family members trading blames and pointing accusing fingers at wives for the inability to bear children. This social problem will continue to fester unless drastic steps are taken to address the contending issues surrounding the spread of baby factories. To begin with, our adoption laws should be reviewed without further delay as this will give those who seek after having children when they cannot produce biologically, the clean option.

Apart from the fact that married people still contend with the challenge of covering up the tracks of the origin of the children who should necessarily be integrated into the family, some establishments and government institutions reel-out age limits for the needy couples and for those who are more than 50 years, their applications may not be treated at all. Another obstacle is that the adopting couples are

usually inundated with rigorous demands by child-adoption agencies.

Again, official adoption procedure that is managed by state governments, are excessively bureaucratic such that the adoptive parents are expected to meet and fulfil the basic rights and duties of the adopted child. And in the process of disbursing of wills and settlements, the adopted child must be treated as a lawful child of the adoptive parents, the same way as the biological child and not as a stranger.

Usually, when a couple wants to adopt a child, they are first expected to have obtained a temporary custody of the child. The child would then have to live with them for a couple of months on a trial basis to ascertain if they are fit to take care of the prospective adopted child. Next, if the couple meets with the requirements, then the court allows adoption to take place, although it reserves the right to revoke any adoption process if it receives reports of any foul play along the line. A single parent too is not permitted to adopt a child of opposite sex, except in an extreme circumstance. Genuine adoptions should, therefore, be simplified to curb buying of babies.

Another factor that still encourages the booming trade, is the huge cost required in seeking medical assistance to have children. Whereas there is great advancement in medical sciences for barren couples to be assisted through the InVitro Fertilization, IVF, the

embrace the changing times by according women their places, other than the kitchen, in society.

Gladys’ courage is commendable. Laws are meant to protect us, but they only do when we take refuge in them. Other obnoxious customary practices that dehumanise widows and deprive them of their husbands’ possessions should be addressed too.

The role of women in modern society is changing. They are now assuming more leadership responsibilities than the traditional society envisaged.

With more access to education and opportunities, women are making more contributions to the society.

Discriminatory practices against them are destroying some families, which still focus on male children, neglecting the female.

We applaud the judiciary for rising up to the defence of human rights and the Constitution.

process is usually out of reach of the ordinary. Going by the prevailing economic situation, it is a reality that only a few couple can afford the cost, which is not less than N1million for each attempt. Government should provide the leeway by coming in and seek ways of helping needy couples.

Another point of concern is the need for effective monitoring of several organisations that engage in nefarious activities that are largely unknown to the government. It is surprising that virtually all the organizations involved in the baby factory saga claimed to be duly registered. These ‘factories’ were found to have been registered as nongovernmental organizations, which allows them to carry out their unofficial activities through the back door. A suspected operator of one of the factories was reported to have taken the police to court for daring to challenge him.

Unfortunately, he later obtained a court judgment by restraining the police from prosecuting him. In the light of this, government should tighten its registration and monitoring of the NGOs. More importantly, not many culprits have been caught and punished. We only get to read about what transpired without any mention of what sanctions were meted-out to the offenders. What resultant effect of such double standards is that some of these suspects will continue to compromise the system and escape punishment.

•Mr. Kupoluyi, wrote from Federal University of Agric., Abeokuta, Ogun State.

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014— 19

A

BUNCH of Nigerians was watching the final of the African Cup of Nations; and, against all odds, with the wobbling and fumbling of the country's team, Nigeria won the cup, after a very long while. Some Nigerians hit the streets to celebrate. In other African cities the next day, they walked tall, especially in cities of South Africa, where they are usually despised and looked down upon, amidst persecution.

The common man on the streets of Nigeria did not get a kobo for the victory; neither was the price of fish in the market affected the day after the finals, but it felt good to be a Nigerian; and show once again that with proper planning and getting our acts together, we could rule the black world, if not the whole world.

As a reputable newspaper crafted the story of the re-basing, it read like we just won another African Cup of Nations in the economic sphere. This national newspaper wrote on Monday, April 7, 2014: "Nigeria’s economy may have emerged the largest in Africa and the 26th biggest in the world, going by the rebasing of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) data Sunday.

"Under the rebasing exercise carried out by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the forecast for the nominal GDP for the country in 2013 was put at $509.9 billion, up from $264 billion under the old rate in 2012. South Africa, hitherto considered the biggest

Is it not an achievement to have much more reliable statistics to plan and work with than the false ones that had been in place for nearly a quarter of a century?

,

to suggest there was nothing to celebrate.

N

othing can be farther from the truth. Some economists, who are known more for theoretical expositions that do not affect the price of fish, also tended to want to discountenance the fact of the country being the largest economy in Africa. These same dyed-in-the-wool economists will never fail to cite China as world's next economic power despite the excruciating poverty in that land.

What is most painful is the gloating denigration of these new statistics that put Nigeria in an enviable bracket, by even some political office holders. But I dare ask; is it not an achievement to have much more reliable statistics to plan and work with than the false ones that had been in place for nearly a quarter of a century?

What is bad for these wet blankets and television economists like Bismark Rewane to have better figures to quote?

And what is wrong in knowing that my country, with one out of every five black persons on earth, is the largest economy with

Illegality fuelled by insensitivity

A

S soon as the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, issued what it called the time-table for the 2015 general elections, there were, expectedly, general outbursts about some items on the programme. The opposition parties cried blood on the ordering of the elections in which the presidential election was placed first, with the attendant band-wagon effect accruable from such.

While the opposition parties were yet repining and licking their INEC-inflicted wounds, President Goodluck Jonathan and his co-travellers had hit the road running.

They had embarked on the first leg of their planned serial violations. Whereas Section 99 of the Electoral Act, 2010, provides: “The period of campaigning in public by every political party shall commence 90 days before polling day and shall end 24 hours prior to that day”, they had beaten the gun by kick-starting their campaigns almost one year ahead of schedule!

By INEC’s time-table, the presidential election is slated for February 14, 2015, which means that the campaign can only start on November 16, 2014 and end at midnight on February 12, 2015; apparently not for the PDP, which is presumably above the law.

For all we know, when the king carries the stick, the palace attendants need not be told what to do. The credibility of the 2015 elections is already in doubt, being borne out of illegal campaigns. Standards are already compromised — PDP is beating the gun while the electoral umpires and security agents look the other way.

Who is today still remembering anything about the timing of the presidential election? They have long shifted our attention away from there. Very soon, we

might hear that PDP is printing the ballot papers at Ajegunle. We will then forget the old issue and migrate to the new zone. That is their plan to constructively engage us until the elections will come and go.

Elsewhere, nations are known to have gone to war because of the killing of a single citizen but here, human life is not worth a kobo! On Monday, April 14, 2014, a generation of human souls was destroyed at the Abuja multiple bomb blasts. A few hours later, precisely around midnight leading to Tuesday, April 15, 2014, criminal elements broke into Government Girls’ College, Chibok, Borno State and abducted another generation of innocent little girls.

At dawn on that same Tuesday, April 15, 2014, our President proceeded to Kano where he was later shown on television, dancing political azonto at an illegal campaign gathering, apparently unperturbed by the earlier mishaps.

What a cruel irony; and the very height of insensitivity!

On December 14, 2012, towards the peak of President Barack Obama’s campaigns for the last presidential election, there was the incident of shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School, Newtown, Connecticut, which resulted in the death of 27 people, including 18 children.

Obama quickly cancelled all his political engagements for the day and proceeded to make a nation-wide broadcast to Americans.

We find no space too big to devote to the action of such a noble leader. Accordingly, the text of Obama’s address is reproduced here: "… I spoke with Governor Malloy and FBI Director, Muellor. I offered Governor Malloy my condolences on behalf of the nation and made it clear he will have every single resource that he needs to investigate this heinous crime, care for the victims, and counsel their families.

statistics that can titillate investors? Come on; let me gloat over that alone! Let me also applaud the present administration under Goodluck Jonathan for being the one that did this. After all, there have been those who have told us that they love Nigeria more than us and were not able in all their stay in power, either in the States or at the centre, to give us statistics to work with. If nothing, it pays to have a well-educated leader who works quietly and systematically, against those we now know were noisome patriots.

Two All Progressives Congress (APC) Governors, Fashola of Lagos and Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun, faulted Nigeria Bureau of Statistics (NBS) work which rated the country’s economy as the 26th largest in the world, saying; “The new statistics does not truly reflect the real worth of the country’s economy."

Fashola said, “If the Nigerian economy has been stated on 1990 figures, it makes imminent common sense to restate them on much more contemporary figures that capture sectors that were hitherto omitted; like telecommunications, entertainment, arts, music, Nollywood and so on. The reality is that size only matters if it is efficient size. If it’s big and suboptimal or inefficient, it really doesn’t achieve the purpose. How to put that size to work is really the key and it’s a no brainer that power will be defining for it.

“The estimates that suggest themselves by assessment, is that the power demand here (Lagos) is in the region of 10,000megawatts and more at a snapshot and an economy that is giving 25 percent to the GDP with 1000 and below megawatts just shows what we can unleash if we ramp up power

" W e ’ v e endured too many of these tragedies in the past few years.

Each time I learn the news, I react not as a president, but as anybody else would as a parent. And that was especially true today. I know there’s not a parent in America who doesn’t feel the

,

BY MATTEW ADEJOH

economy in Africa, has a GDP figure of $384.3 billion in 2012, while that of Egypt was put at $262 billion during the same period.

"However, the rebased GDP figure may not have, in real terms, put the nation’s economy ahead of South Africa, according to experts.

For instance, they said with the nation’s population, the per capita GDP still ranks lower than that of South Africa with a population of 51.19 million.

"Besides, they noted that with the lingering parlous infrastructure crisis rocking the nation’s economy and higher poverty headcount ratio, South Africa and indeed several offer other African economies remain more competitive than that of Nigeria."

But this writer wonders now that more reliable figures are out whether competitors will not want to do business with Nigeria over and above the others within the continent and outside of it? A few days ago, we were told by the World Bank that we were in the same category with China, Brazil and India, three of the fastest growing economies of the world, for the wrongest of reasons. We were told by the World Bank that we harbor some of the poorest of the poor.

What a company; and what an irony!

Shortly after, the news hit the air that with the re-basing of the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP), some wet blankets think it is not cause for celebrations. Even the Minister of Finance and the CoordInating Minister for the Economy, Dr. Ngozi OkonjoIweala, also sought to dampen the spirit with a remark that tended

,

The GDP re-basing that should be celebrated

There are groups in Nigeria that feel permanently alienated by the insensitivity of their leaders; and when such leaders brazenly break the law, the future becomes bleak and dismal

same overwhelming grief that I do.

T

,

he majority of those who died today were children – beautiful, little kids between the ages of 5 and 10 years. They had their entire lives ahead of them – birthdays, graduations, weddings, kids of their own.

Among the fallen were also teachers, men and women who devoted their lives to helping our children fulfill their dreams.

"So our hearts are broken today for the parents and grandparents, sisters and brothers of these little children, and for the families of the adults who were lost.

"Our hearts are broken for the parents of the survivors, as well, for as blessed as they are to have their children home tonight, they know

supply. At this moment, the electricity sector has been liberalised; it is now for state governments to engage useful, sensible and mutually rewarding partnerships with investors and owners of the electricity assets.”

Amosun stated, "On the new GDP, something you will notice from the statistics released is that, it may say that we are the largest and whatever we are 26th largest economy in the world. And if one looks at the component of the GDP, one will realize that truly it isn’t the real GDP that the country has done well in. Look at services alone, I think it is over 50 percent while manufacturing is under 10 percent.

“What does that tell us? It shows that something is missing. That isn’t the best way. I would have been happier to see to the thing swap and to see maybe about 50 or 60 under manufacturing. That will mean real growth. And we cannot achieve all of these without power. Indeed the key to solve the challenge that we have today is power. Everyone needs power to do his or her business. And that is why the theme of this summit is better at this time. And until we solve power challenge, we will continue to have this GDP that is more of service based. And that is why the current GDP doesn’t translate into reducing unemployment and outing food on our table.”

I really do not accept that both men are shooting down the work of the NBS, because they seem to be suggesting that now that we have these new figures, let us move up the next rung of the ladder and put it to good use; and that to me is a much better way to go .

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

that their children’s innocence has been torn away from them too early and there are no words that will ease their pain.

"As a country, we have been through this too many times. Whether it is an elementary school in Newtown, or a shopping mall in Oregon, or a temple in Wisconsin, or a movie theater in Aurora, or a street corner in Chicago, these neighborhoods are our neighborhoods and these children are our children. And we’re going to have to come together and take meaningful action to prevent more tragedies like this, regardless of the politics.

"This evening, Michelle and I will do what I hope every parent in America will do, which is hug our children a little tighter, and we’ll tell them that we love them, and we’ll remind each other how deeply we love one another. But there are families in Connecticut who cannot do that tonight, and they need all of us right now. In the hard days to come, that community needs us to be at our best as Americans, and I will do everything in my power as president to help, because while nothing can fill the space of a lost child or loved one, all of us can extend a hand to those in need, to remind them that we are there for them, that we are praying for them, that the love they felt for those they lost endures not just in their memories, but also in ours...".

There are groups in Nigeria that feel permanently alienated; more so by the insensitivity of their leaders; and when such leaders brazenly break the law, the future becomes bleak and dismal. That’s where we are now!

C M Y K

20--Vanguard, THURSDAY THURSDAY,, APRIL 24 , 2014

Some of the refugees with members of the NCFRMI, LIONS Clubs at the Town Hall meeting in Lagos.

For refugees in Nigeria, an appeal for integration R

BY SAM EYOBOKA

EFUGEES from some neighbouring African countries recently, at a town hall meeting organised by the South West zone of the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Dis-

placed Persons, NCFRMI, appealed to the Federal Government to assist them by integrating them into the society.

The town hall meeting, cosponsored by five Lions Club in Lagos, also served as an avenue to distribute relief mate-

rials including food stuff, multivitamins and clothing material to the refugees.

Mr. Kolinda Natir, a representative from the Congolese community said they were happy about the relief materials and called on the NCFRMI to hold

regular meetings with the people to find out challenges facing them with a view to meeting their needs.

Natir suggested that the next town hall meeting should be held in a wider environment to enable the refugees integrate

Windstorm displaces 8,000 in two months

BY BOSE ADELAJA

N

O fewer than 8,000 people who reside in South West parts of the country, have been rendered homeless by wind and rainstorms which ravaged the areas within a space of two months.

Of the figure, over 5,000 people were affected by both wind and rainstorm disasters in Ogun, Osun, Ekiti and Oyo states which took place between

February and March 2014.

Also, about 3000 were said to be displaced, while 600 houses were destroyed when rainstorm sacked some parts of the country on Sunday April 13. Affected communities include Idogo Community near Ilaro in Yewa South Local Government Area of Ogun State.

Also, as a result of penultimate Sunday’s rainstorm, no fewer than 500 pupils are likely to be stranded during the next aca-

demic season as the windstorm had affected three schools in the community.

Speaking with Vanguard Metro on phone, officials of the National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, which conducted an ‘’on the spot accessment’’ of the affected communities, said about 55 houses were destroyed, while about 527 people were affected at Ipake Community of the LGA. NEMA South-West Informa-

*One of the buildings destroyed by rain storm in Idogo Community, Yewa South LGA of Ogun State.

C M Y K

tion Officer, Ibrahim Farinloye, said the vulnerable victims have been given attention by both state and Federal governments which provided food and other items to cushion the effect.

Cushioning the effect As regards the affected schools, the Information Officer said alternative study centres will be provided before resumption in two weeks time. Meanwhile, the Agency has advised Nigerians to embark “on tree planting as precautionary measures to wind and rainstorm. ‘’ This, according to the Agency, serves as breakers against the devastating effects of climate related disasters that are daily evolving in the society. Other safety measures, he said, are avoiding taking refuge under make-shift structures as well as sending children on errand during odd hours. ‘’States and local governments should embark on extensive awareness campaigns against the new phase of evolving disaster in d country,’’ he added.

into the society and interact freely with Nigerians.

Ms Mawa Dabo, a Malian, was of the opinion that the people needed assistance to send their children to schools as some who even registered their wards had to withdraw them because of lack of funds.

Ms Fanta Rowmoi, an Ivorian, appealed to the Commission to provide better accommodation for the refugees, adding that a number of them are yet to get a place of abode.

Assisting the immigrants Many others urged the NCFRMI to assist them with grants to start some small scale businesses to enable them cater for their families.

Eariler, Mrs. Hadiza SaniKangiwa, the Commissioner and Chief Executive Officer of NCFRMI, advised refugees in Nigeria to be law abiding.

Sani-Kangiwa who was represented by the South West zonal co-ordinator, Ms Ngozi Ukaegbu, said that the Commission was aware of the challenges facing the migrants and would endeavour to assist them.

Mrs. Aderonke Elegushi, president of the Ikate-Elegushi Lion’s Club who also addressed the refugees, said they were not at a disadvantage even though they were foreigners.

Elegushi advised the refugees to respect the nation’s laws, noting that every registered refugee has a right to be employed regardless of their background.

The refugees numbering about 100 are from Mali, Chad, Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo and the Central African Republic.

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014 — 21

Nigeria receives $23m to implement environmental projects N

IGERIA has so far received $23 million in four years from Global Environmental Facility (GEF) to implement climate change, biodiversity and land degradation projects.

Mrs. Halima Mohammed, GEF’s Desk Officer in the Federal Ministry of Environment, disclosed this at a two -day National Steering Committee meeting in Abuja.

She said the allocation was under the 5th replenishment circle, covering July 1, 2010 to June 30, 2014. According to her, the allocation is under the System for Transparent Allocation of Resources (STAR), which allows GEF to allocate funds to countries to implement projects in specific focal areas.

Mohammed said Nigeria had implemented all its projects under the fifth cycle with the exception of two awaiting approval from the

GEF council. She listed ongoing GEF projects in the country to include Conservation and Sustainable Management of Niger Delta Biodiversity; Sustainable Urban Transportation; and Setting up Mini- Grids based on Photo Voltaic (PV), Hydro and Biomass Sources. Others are Promoting Energy Efficiency in Public and Residential Sectors; Less Burnt for a Clean Earth; Minimisation of Dioxin Emission from Open Burning Sources, and Small Grant Programme for Civil Society Organisations.

She said that GEF had three funding windows, namely the full size, the medium size and the small grants. According to her, small grants component of GEF is a grant below $50,000 dollars, medium size is between $500,000 and $2 million dollars, while the full size is from $2 million dollars and above. Mohammed, who

From left: Mr. Omotunde Ogunbiyi,Solutions Manager, Mobility Solutions, Weco Systems, Mrs. Morenike Alder, Partner Marketing Manager, Cisco Systems, Mr. Nnamdi Onyebuchi, COO, Weco Systems, Mr. Charles Idusogie, Sales Manager, Mr. Uzo Atugbokoh both of Cisco Systems and Mrs Nnenna Nnachi, Product Manager, Infrastructure Solutions, Weco Systems at the Weco – Cisco Unified Access Solution (Bring Your Own Device, BYOD) workshop in Lagos. is an Assistant Director in the Ministry of Environment, said Nigeria could benefit more from GEF by building the

capacity of its staff. In addition, she suggested that project proponents should forward well-articulated

Misplaced value system, driving unemployment in Nigeria — CBN

BY MICHAEL EBOH

T

he Director, South-South Entrepreneurship Development Centre of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Gbenga Owolabi, has lamented the high rate of unemployment in the country, blaming the situation on the abandonment of certain value systems.

Speaking at the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management’s, CIPM, 2014 career/entrepreneurship fair in Lagos, Owolabi observed that unemployment is a global phenomenon, noting, however, that Nigeria is one of the countries worldwide with an army of unemployed youth.

According to him, the concept of value has been highly misplaced in our society, saying, “In Nigeria today, starting business is no longer fashionable among our people.

Nobody wants to go into teaching business, yet these are some of a whole lot of job opportunities out there. What has changed is our societal perception of the concept of value” He noted that entrepreneurship is about creating value and creating jobs, adding that a successful entrepreneur is one who understands that jobs are

created to meet a need or accomplish a purpose through routine process and performed in exchange for value or payment.

Also speaking at the fair, which has as its theme; ‘Job Seeking to Job Creation,’ Mrs. Sola Oworu, Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Lagos State, disclosed that the state government is playing its role in reducing unemployment.

Oworu, who was represented

by Hakeem Adeniji, Director of

Commerce in the ministry, harped on the Lagos State Government policy thrust which is targeted at empowering teeming unemployed youths through training programmes that help them develop technical, vocational, managerial and business skills for entrepreneurship and employability, in partnership with the Afterschool Graduate Centre (ASGC).

Speaking in the same vein, Mr

Victor Arabome, Vice President, CIPM, said the main objective of the fair is to provide a veritable platform for job seekers and potential entrepreneurs interested in self employment; to access information, resources and opportunities available, and also enable recruiters and employers to disseminate information to their target audience about career prospects and opportunities’ in their sectors.

concept to the GEF Operational Focal Point for Endorsement.

“The project proponent, in collaboration with the operational focal point, should ensure that prompt comments on the proposals are made by relevant offices of the GEF focal areas. The comments should be reverted to the project proponent for incorporation and further development.

Project proponents should also explore the opportunity offered through the implementing Agencies,” she added.

The implementing agencies, she said, are UNDP, World Bank, FAO, UNIDO, ADB, UNEP and IFAD, among others.

Novartis, GSK strike $16bn merger deal

N

ovartis and GlaxoSmithKline, two of the world’s top drug makers, have struck a multi-billion-dollar deal to join forces and reshape their businesses. The deal involves swapping assets and combining their consumer health units.

Novartis will acquire GSK’s cancer drugs business for $16 billion (£9.5 billion) and sell its vaccines division, excluding the flu unit, to GSK for $7.1 billion. In a separate deal, Novartis has agreed to sell its animal health division to Lilly for nearly $5.4 billion.

Novartis said the moves would help the firm focus on its key businesses. “The transactions mark a transformational moment for Novartis. They also improve our financial strength, and are expected to add to our growth rates and margins immediately,” Joseph Jimenez, Chief

Executive of Novartis, said in a statement.

The deals are a part of Novartis’s review of its business as it continues to face sluggish growth.

Novartis and GSK said that combining their over-the-counter (OTC) units would help boost the fortunes of both companies. The combined unit will have annual revenues of £6.5 billion.

“Opportunities to build greater scale and combine high quality assets in vaccines and consumer healthcare are scarce. With this transaction, we will substantially strengthen two of our core businesses and create significant new options to increase value for shareholders,” Andrew Witty, chief executive, of GSK, said in a statement.

211.1

14.4

2,990.00

+3.00

17.0

0.16

109.07 102.10

-0.88 -2.27

CURRENCY BUYING CENTRAL SELLING DOLLAR STERLING EURO FRANC YEN CFA WAUA RENMINBI RIYAL KRONA SDR

154.73 155.23 260.3487 261.19 213.775 214.4658 174.9746 175.54 1.5085 1.5134 0.3071 0.3171 238.6882 239.4595 24.8043 24.8849 41.2569 41.3903 28.6288 28.7213 239.6922 240.4668

155.73 262.0313 215.1566 176.1054 1.5183 0.3271 240.2308 24.9655 41.5236 28.8138 241.2413

CBN Exchange rate as at 23/04/2014

22 — Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

Wema Bank sustains profitability with N590m PBT in Q1 Stories by BABAJIDE KOMOLAFE

W

ema Bank has sus tained its return to profitability in 2013 by recording profit before tax of N590 million in the first quarter of 2014.

During the quarter, the bank recorded Operating income of N5.9 billion, representing 48 percent growth when compared with the N4 billion recorded in the first quarter of 2013. The bank also recorded 60 percent increase in net-interest income to N4.26 billion from N2.66 billion in the same period of 2013. Similarly, netinterest revenue rose by 33 percent to N1.9 billion from N1.4 billion.

Though the bank recorded improved performance when

compared with its result for the first quarter of 2013, the bank’s balance sheet however shrank when compared with its result as at December 31st 2013. Total Assets dropped marginally to N322.7 billion from N330 billion as at December 31st 2013, while loans and advances, and customers deposits also dropped to N95.2 billion and N206.3 billion respectively from N98.6 billion and N217.7 billion.

Commenting on the bank’s performance in the first quarter of the year, Mr. Tunde Mabawonku, Chief Financial Officer of the bank said, “Backed by a resurgent franchise, our loyal stakeholders and a commitment to strong corporate governance and risk management frameworks, we have continued to maintain our steady

growth drive with focus on growing our top line income and commitment to cost reduction. This has resulted in a profit of N590 million in the period under review, having previously recorded a loss in the first quarter of 2013.

“Our income position is also improving with both interest and non-interest income jumping 60 percent and 33 percent year on year. With a cost of funds at 5.3 percent and a growing net interest margin of 7.7 percent, we are maintaining the course of sustainable growth.

“Our strategic transformation plan, Project Leap, aims to transform our position from a regional banking industry player to a prominent retail bank with national authorisation. The goal is to expand or-

ganically and establish our presence in areas that have significant growth potential. Project Leap is expected to run until December 2015 and covers all areas of the Bank’s operations, with particular focus on improving efficiency, growing market share, improving our footprint, increasing the capital position, re-engineering our workforce and repositioning the WEMA Bank brand.

“The Bank has made significant investments in delivering best-in-class alternative channels, product offerings and in brand building initiatives as we remain committed to increasing our market share in the near term.”

riSefs BIT B Lagos govt commends Ecobank, others over support for tourism

T

he Lagos State govern ment has commended Ecobank and some other corporate organisations for their consistent support for the development of tourism in the state.

Speaking at the 2014 Lagos Water Regatta at the weekend, the Commissioner for Tourism and Intergovernmental Relations, Lagos State, Mr. Disun Holloway, said the sponsors of this year’s Water Regatta, among which is Ecobank, must be commended for supporting tourism development in the state.

He noted that it was an opportunity for the supporting corporate organisations to showcase their brand to millions of people home and abroad through the branded boat and exhibition stands. The Commissioner explained that the Regatta is a fun filled water-based cultural sporting and recreational activity put together to showcase the aquatic splendour of the state.

Speaking in the same vein, Chairman, Planning Committee, Otunba (Engr.) Olusegun Jawando, said the decision of private sector to support the good initiative of the Lagos State Government in the development of tourism in the state was a welcome development.

Strong Euro’ll make 2014 challenging

R

From right: Fatai Baruwa,Head,E-Business & Payment Union Bank;Chuks Iku,Group Head,E-Channels Skye Bank;with Simi Osinuga,Deputy General Manager,GTBANK,and Adeleke Adekoya,Head,E-Business, Stanbic IBTC Bank.At the Press Conference of Committe of E-Banking Industry heads[CeBIH] held in Lagos. PHOTO BY AKEEM SALAU.

CeBIH calls for public support as cashless goes nationwide

C

ommittee of E-Banking Indus try Heads (CeBIH) has called for public support and understanding for the cashless policy scheduled to go nationwide from July 1st.

Chairman, CeBIH, Mr. Chuks Iku made this call while addressing a press conference in Lagos. Iku said that in preparation for the extension of the policy to other parts of Nigeria, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), has commenced sensitisation campaign in the form of town hall meetings and seminars aimed at enhancing public awareness about the policy. He said, while these efforts are commendable, it is also important that members of the public support the apex bank by attending these meetings.

He said, “The CBN in preparing for the nationwide roll-out among other initiatives has engaged consultants to create awareness for the cash-less drive who have been involved in public sensitization, market awareness and engagement in various parts of the country in order to enlighten citizens about the cash-less policy. These consultants have worked in various states such as Niger, Kwara, Kogi, Lagos, Ogun etc.

This will continue until all the states of the federation are covered. It is worthy of note that statistics gathered from these various locations signify that Nigerians are receptive towards the cashless policy. The Committee of e-Banking Industry Heads has provided support for this awareness creation drive and is proud to be associated with the

success recorded so far” Iku said that CeBIH as a body is committed to ensure the delivery of excellent e-payment services throughout the country and are prepared to continuously support the cash-less drive of the CBN even as the apex bank is concluding plans to ensure the successful nationwide roll-out of the policy.

He said as part of efforts to promote excellent e-payment services, CeBIH has initiated moves to enhance competence of its members through international certification training. “It is our belief that the quality of service provided by our members will depend largely on the quality of their exposure to current global trends and trainings available in the e-payment industry.

oyal Philips NV said the strength of the euro will make 2014 a “challenging” year after the world’s biggest lighting manufacturer reported first-quarter earnings that missed analyst estimates. The stock declined the most since June 2011.

“The euro has become stronger,” Chief Executive Officer Frans van Houten said on a conference call on Tuesday. The effect of currency movements on the Amsterdam-based company was bigger than expected in the first quarter, he said. Philips joins other companies such as decorative paints maker Akzo Nobel NV and software company SAP AG in saying that the strong euro is weighing on its growth as sales from outside Europe are worth less when brought home. That makes it more difficult for van Houten to revamp Philips and focus the 123-year-old company on more profitable businesses such as LED lighting, healthcare equipment and wellness offerings, while selling the DVD and multimedia divisions that are its heritage.

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014 — 23

Why used tyre market thrives in Nigeria

By FAVOUR NNABUGWU

BRIEFS NACCIMA, Namibia sign MoU on business cooperation

S

TANDARDS Organisation of Nigeria (SON) penultimate week renewed its determination to clean the Nigerian market of substandard tyres. At the training of its staff on the distinct features of quality tyres it organised with Infinity Tyres in Abuja, Director-General of the agency, Dr. Joseph Odumodu, noted that substandard tyres are responsible for the increasing number of road accidents in the country.

He declared a total war on fake and substandard tyres, swearing: “This is a total war, it has never been like this and it will never be like this again.”

The problem of used tyres was compounded by the closure of the few tyres manufacturing companies in the country due to unfriendly business environment which opened the flood gates to all manner of tyres.

Today, used tyres are coming in from Asia (China, Thailand, South Korea, India) competing against the entrenched European tyre manufacturers (Michelin, Dunlop, Pirelli, Infinity, Goodyear, among others) for market share. Used tyres make their ways into the country through smuggling routes (Cotonou, Lome) and thus it is difficult for the SON to certify their quality before they are sold in the market.

Funny enough, every manufacturer claims that their tyres are the best.

Odumodu said in spite of efforts of the agency and other collaborative bodies to rid the

By NAOMI UZOR

T

Heap of used tyres eas. It says vehicle tyres should have a minimum thread depth of not less than 1.6 millimeters for all categories of road users while vehicle tyres of more than four years old counting from the date of manufacture, should not be fitted on vehicles.

Infinity Tyre’s General Manager (Technical), Mr. Asghar Palavkar, said tyres are essential and strategic safety components of the automobiles adding that tyres are contact points between the vehicle and the ground in which it is either running or standing and therefore, quality should not in anyway be compromised.

Palavkar said a good tyre must be new and should contain requisite marks on its side walls. The marks are its date of

In spite of the agency’s efforts to rid the country of substandard tyres, only about 10 million out of 50 million have been impounded and removed from the shelves

,

country of substandard tyres, only about 10 million out of the about 50 million in the Nigerian market have been impounded and removed from the shelves.

Represented by the Director, Operation, Engr John Achukwu, Odumodu regretted that even some of the so called brand new tyres are not good enough for use because some unscrupulous Nigerian find ways to smuggle them as substandard tyres into the country.

The Federal Road Safety Corps, FRSC 2012 traffic regulation section 62, LI 2180 provides that vehicles should be fitted with pneumatic tyres manufactured for use in hot and normal weather conditions labeled A or B and not labeled “C” that are meant for cold ar-

,

manufacture, name of the country of manufacture, brand name and “R” for retreaded tyres, adding “ Other information users must know about their car tyres include tread wear number, temperature resistance, speed symbol, maximum load capacity and traction. ”The date of the manufacture of a tyre is important for the buyers to determine their expiry dates which are normally four or five years depending on the brand. The manufacturing date is represented by four figures on the side wall of the tyre.

The first two digits indicate the week of the year while the last two digits stand for the year”.

He continued, “Tread wear number indicates the tyre’s wear rate. The higher the tread wear number is, the longer it should take for the tread to wear

down. For example, a tyre graded 400 should last twice longer than a tyre graded 200.

The temperature resistance, which is represented by letters “A,” “B “or “C,”indicates a tyre’s resistance to heat. Letter “A” is suitable for hot climate.

Letter “B’ is meant for normal weather areas and while “C” is for cold areas. M+S is used to indicate that a tyre is suitable for mud and snowy terrains. It is popular in Nigeria and the SON said that it is appropriate for the Nigerian roads”. ”A tyre in Europe is meant for snow, if you bring that particular type of tyre into this country definitely it is not going to work. They need to work on a certain temperature, the components are different from that in Europe or Russian tyres. Russian tyres which work well in snow conditions if brought here will not work well”. ”Taking appropriate care of tyres is done by carrying out adequate wheel balancing, alignment and gauging of tyre pressure. It is only when these are done that one would be confident that he has taken good care of his vehicle’s tyres.

These activities are so essential that automobile manufacturers now equip their products with sensors notifying drivers when to carry them out”.

Chief Umejiaku Chimezie, Chairman, Zuba Tyre Dealers Association, explained that tyres dealers cannot force costumers to buy quality tyres if they do not have the money to do so except to persuade them and make them understand the inherent danger in going for cheaper ones.

According to him, the tyre market in Nigeria is divided into two major categories. The first category is the premium market, which is made up of

Dunlop, Michelin, Good Year, Perilli and Firestone tyres.

“These categories commands better quality and meet the international standard and are expensive. Their prices range from N16, 800 to N30, 000 depending on the size. They are sold in the country by accredited distributors of respective manufacturers. “The second category comprises of tyres from Asian countries like Indonesia and Thailand. They are of fairly good standard. However, tyres that are made from China are considered untouchable because of their very low quality. This segment of tyre markets is patronised by different tiers of customers ” T h e premium tyres are patronised by the rich and middle class people who can afford their high and considerable prices w h i l e those who cannot afford them make do with the second category or used tyres.

The used tyres market thrives because many car owners cannot afford to buy quality tyres.”

he Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA) and the Namibia Chamber of Commerce & Industry (NCCI) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding aimed at promoting mutual business cooperation between the two countries.

In a release by the Director General of NACCIMA, Dr. John Isemede, said that the MoU which was signed at the Nigeria-Namibia Business and Trade Forum held in Windhoek, Namibia, would consolidate business deals that would be beneficial to both countries.

The President of Namibia Chamber of Commerce, Martha Namundjebo-Tilahun, said the Memorandum of Understanding is expected to yield joint venture partnerships for the private sector of both countries.

She further appealed for exchange of relevant knowhow where appropriate for the promotion of economic cooperation.

Areas of collaboration identified during the discussion are mining, tourism; oil and gas.

24 — Vanguard, THURSDAY THURSDAY,, APRIL 24 , 2014

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014 — 25

WASSCE performance: Students decline in English, Gen Maths •improve on Arabic, Igbo, CRK

BY DAYO ADESULU & LAJU ARENYEKA

A

Ikuforiji tasks Nigerian youths on national devt Pg. 26

Fulani herdsmen and threat to the Nigerian economy

*Students writing examinations & 3, Yoruba, Chemistry 3, Physical Education 1, Applied Electricity 2, Electronics 1 and Further Mathematics. Members also noted the report that performance declined in English Language, Economics, Geography 1B, History, Music 2B, Visual Art 1, Agric. Science 2, Biology 2, Chemistry 2, Physical Education 2, Clothing and Textiles 2, Foods & Nutrition 2, Home Management 2, Electronics 2, General Mathematics, Auto Mechanics 2, Building Construction 1 & 2 and Woodwork

Young Nigerian makes chair, stool from waste paper

Pg. 30

ticeable increase in the use of programmable calculators by

Other weaknesses of candidates mentioned in the reports included: inability to marshal their points and answers to questions that required detailed explanations, inability to spell technical words correctly, poor graphical analysis and poor quality diagrams

expressed concern at the high incidence of malpractice in examinations. “In view of the no-

,

candidates during examinations,” the communiqué read, “in contravention of the rules and

regulations guiding the conduct of its examinations, the Committee mandated the Council to introduce WAEC- branded, nonprogrammable calculators, and mathematical sets for use by candidates, with effect from November/December 2014 WASSCE. Some of the strengths of candidates mentioned in the reports included, adherence to rubrics and good interpretation in some subjects, originality in reason-

Continues on page 26

Why UTME performance keeps dropping…

Pg. 29

RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

3.”

The Committee also strongly

,

RECENT report of the last West African Se-nior School Certificate, WASSCE, showed a decline in students’ performance in English Language and General Mathematics but an improvement in the performance of candidates in Arabic, Igbo, Islamic Studies, and CRK. This was made known in a communiqué issued at the end of the 57th meeting of the Nigeria Examination Committee (NEC) of the West African Examinations Council (WAEC), by the Public Affairs Officer, WAEC Nigeria, Mr. Yusuf Ari. Yusuf said: “The Committee noted the observation in the Reports that there was improvement in the performance of candidates in Arabic, Igbo, Islamic Studies, CRK, Government, Music, Visual Art 2, Agric. Science 3, Biology 3, Health Science 1 & 2, Physics 2 & 3, Applied Electricity 1, Metal work 1, Technical Drawing 1 and Woodwork 1 & 3.

They noted the report that there was no significant change in French 1c, Hausa, Lit-in-Eng. 2

BY LAJU ARENYEKA

I

N 2011, 2,892 candidates scored above 300 in the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examinations, UTME. In a sad turn of events, the performance has nosedived drastically since then; only three candidates scored 300 and above in 2012

with the number increasing slightly to 10 in 2013. Although, the Computer-Based Test, CBT is still ongoing, the recently released results of candidates who wrote the Paper Pencil Test, PPT and a percentage of those who wrote the CBT, is worrisome.

Compared to the 33,753 candidates who scored above 250

marks in 2013 based on available data, only 47 scored above 250 this year. In 2012, there were 72, 243 of such students.

In the light of these alarming figures, one question begs to be answered: Who is responsible for this mass failure? Is the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, the body responsible for conduct-

ing the UTME? Is it the failing education system? Lazy students? Non-committed teachers? Vanguard Learning spoke to the different stakeholders, and they all had different views about the situation.

A candidate in this year’s UTME who did not want her

Continues on page 27

26 — Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

Ikuforiji tasks Nigerian youths on national development

BY EBUN SESSOU

N

IGERIAN youths have been called upon to make a positive change that would reflect on the country’s fortune and be ready to wrestle power from the aged so as to make the country a better place.

The call was made by the Speaker, Lagos State House of Assembly, Mr. Adeyemi Ikuforiji while delivering a paper entitled: 100 years of Nationhood: the Roles of the Youth in Politics and National Development, as a guest lecturer at the Public Lecture & Award of Excellence organised by the Students’ Union Government, University of Ibadan at Trenchard Hall, Ibadan, Oyo State.

While addressing the youth on national development, he said the youths must possess the needful knowledge and skills required for them to save the country from its present predicament, adding that the present status of Nigeria and its antecedents call for highly skilled professionals that would steer the development of the nation.

According to him, “the ability of a nation to rise and consolidate the gains of globali-

sation lies in training and educating the youths, particularly in leadership and development programmes.

Ikuforiji who admitted that Nigeria enjoyed the best leadership during the period when the youths were in control es-

pecially during the era of the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo, Nnamdi Azikiwe, Sir Ahmadu Bello and Festus Okotie-Eboh among others, noted that the youths cannot be isolated from governance and national development.

The Speaker who wondered

where the trend of youth engagement in proper develoment of the country went wrong, said there is urgent need for the youth to retrace their steps and redirect the current system.

EXT-NG offers free online results verification services for schools

BY DAYO ADESULU

D

ESIROUS of helping

certifying bodies and institutions maintain their integrity and prestige by eliminating the chances of irregularities and frauds in their credentials, EXT-NG has introduced electronic systems that will help ensure reliable and trustworthy verification processes that will safeguard testimonials.

With the new Electronic Transfer Transcript for Nigeria, institutions and professional bodies like ICAN, COREN and LBS can now develop an online database of their current certificate holders for free and provide same to corporate organisations at a fee.

ETX-NG “CertVerify Partner-

ship” provides organisations and institutions with a simple, free and almost immediate method to verify the certification status of their members by closing the loop between the programme, candidates and employers, with a centralized, standardized system for authentication.

Speaking to stakeholders during an enlightenment session on the benefits derivable from the ETX-NG offerings, the Managing Director, ETX-NG, Mr Hillary Obomighie stated that organisations and bodies could convert existing records to electronic format and create an online database of certificate holders and members at zero cost to

the body.

EXT-NG, he further stated could help the organisations create an interface from their systems to the online database such that access is fully managed by the certifying body. This ensures an additional income stream to the certifying body; since corporate organisations pay a fee when a verification search is required, this fee will be determined and shared.

Corporate organizations he added can perform the verification of the documents presented by the employees with ease, securely and quickly by visiting www.e-verifyng.com or sending an email to verifications@etx-ng.com.

WASSCE Performance: Students decline in English, Gen. Maths Continues from page 25 ing in others, proper use of terminologies in some subjects, good layout of their responses in others, demonstration of the skills required for performing tasks involving sketches in some subjects, proper organisation of ideas in others, and appreciable mastery of the subject matter in some subjects.”

The Committee also noted the general weaknesses of candidates in various subjects as outlined in the reports.

Illegible handwriting These included, inadequate preparation and rote memorisation, illegible handwriting, poor choice of questions, failure to answer the required number of questions, vague or irrelevant answers, inadequate division of time between questions, grammar and spelling errors, misinterpretation of the demands of the questions and difficulty in framing their responses due to poor command of the English Language.

Other weaknesses of candidates mentioned in the

reports included: inability to marshal their points and answers to questions that required detailed explanations, inability to spell technical words correctly, poor graphical analysis and poor quality diagrams, inadequate exposure to laboratory work coupled with inability to perform Mathematical operations correctly.

Others included inability to take measurementsproperly and state their units correctly, inability to present answers to the required degree of accuracy and inadequate familiarity with the set texts which explains the sketchy answers given to some questions.

In the light of the above challenges, the WAEC-Nigeria committee provided some solutions and called on stakeholders to: Make effort to improve upon their understanding and use of the English Language in order to appreciate the requirements of the questions and make their responses appropriate and coherent; strive to cover the syllabuses for the subjects they wish to sit before the commencement of examinations; make greater use of online resources and read the prescribed texts in the vari-

ous subjects rather than depend solely on commentaries; read the questions and rubrics, carefully focusing on the task to ensure that they understand the meaning of the key words in the questions before attempting them.

Mathematical computations The committee also called on students to practice answering questions from past papers under timed conditions as it demystifies examinations and helps candidates to be focused; developing the necessary knowledge and skills for averting the common pitfalls; learn how to plan their responses and manage the time allocated to the examination papers efficiently; learn the basic principles and concepts in the various subjects and apply them to solving simple everyday problems; engage in practical activities and improve on their skills in basic mathematical computation, drawing and labelling of diagrams; ensure that terms and definitions associated with the various subjects are correctly understood; and endeavour to write legibly and ensure that their work is clearly laid out.

WAEC Nigeria also expressed deep concern that Nigerian candidates had won very few of the international awards being g i v e n u n d e r the aegis of the WAEC Endowment Fund, for outstanding performance in the Council’s examinations in recent years.

The unimpressive performance of Nigerian candidates at the sub-regional level, the Committee believed, was due to lack of essential inputs - human, material and otherwise - required to drive a sound educational system and the lack of continuity in the system.

The Committee implored the federal and state governments, as well as other stakeholders in the education sector to articulate policies and programmes which would help improve the standard of education in the country.

These include the provision of appropriate manpower, adequate infrastructure and teaching aids, which would facilitate proper teaching and learning so as to adequately prepare secondary school of students for WAEC examinations.

Students charged on entrepreneurship at BrandiQ Club launch

A

CALL has gone out to N i g e r i a n undergraduates - particularly students and practitioners of Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) - to endeavour to develop their intellect and creative minds during their formative years in higher institutions in a bid to acquire the entrepreneurship drive needed for the job market as a way of tackling unemployment and its attendant socio-economic problems.

This charge was given by Mrs Adesuwa Onyenokwe, broadcaster and publisher of Today’s Woman magazine, and CEO of Trends Insight Intelligence Network, Mr Franklin Ozekhome during the inaugural launch of the BrandiQ Campus Club at PanAtlantic University (PAU), Lekki, Lagos.

In a welcome address delivered by the Dean, School of Media and Communication, PAU, Professor Emevwo Biakolo,described the gathering as a forum for cultivating imaginative ideas for the good of the society;“the small ideas of yesterday have become the great institutions of today.”

Chain of learning Referring to the motto of BrandiQ – Vision Powered by Intellect, he said that the occasion provided a platform to “create a chain of learning,” noting that the time has come for BrandiQ to move on to higher goals.

Setting the tone for the dominant subject of discussion, the Editor-in-Chief, BrandiQ Magazine, Mr Desmond Ekeh, described the occasion as a “watershed.” He stated that he conceived the idea of a brandfocused magazine right from his days as student of journalism, he announced the intention to move the BrandiQ Campus Club train to other major campuses across the federation.“We have spoken to industry experts who are poised to mentor students in the area of their endeavour. This will involve the use of conferences, workshops, seminars, symposiums and other professional windows and mediums of supporting the academic world.”

Citing the reasons for establishing the club, he said that it would enable students “to report the industry and activities of players in the industry."

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014 — 27

Yaba Tech’s ERG holds 3rd biennial conference on environmental issues

our environment a better and safer place to live.”

Keynote speaker on the theme; Professor Anthony O. Nwafor, Professor of Law, University of Verda, South Africa, highlighted the need for soft power diplomacy by governments and organisations to achieve environmental growth. “Of soft power, monetary, hard power and public diplomacy, the most peaceful diplomatic solution that would lead to reversal of environmental problems and appeasement of communities whose interests are not adequately factored or outrightly disregarded in the course of corporate operations

over the years, is soft power diplomacy.”

Soft power approach would require coming together of the people, government and organisations in decisionmaking. Nwafor explained that “soft power diplomacy is seen as the ability to attract and coopt rather than to coerce, use force or give money, as a means of persuasion.”

The conference, which had presentations and exhibitions on environmental issues from scientific researchers ranging from undergraduate, postgraduate, HND students to PhD holders, had as its host, the rector of Yaba College of Technology, Dr M.K Ladipo.

ECOWAS students recognise Ehimiaghe *From left: Mr. Godwin Ovioma, Mr Martins Nzekwe, Dr. Loretta Ofodile, Mr Banji Okesoto, Mr N.M.C Nwakanma, Mr Kayode Oluyo and Dr Funmi Doherty, members of ERG, Yaba Tech.

BY TARE YOUDEOWEI

L

EARNING never stops.

Amidst ongoing strike in polytechnics and colleges of higher learning, the Environment Research Group (ERG), of Yaba College of Technology; comprising members from environment, engineering, science and technology departments of the school, has held her 3 rd International Biennial Conference on Environmental Issues.

The two-day conference under the chairmanship of Professor Babatunde A. Rabiu, Director and Chief Executive, Centre for Atmospheric Research, National Space

Research and Development Agency (NASRDA), was themed: International Diplomacy, the Environment and the Government.

Professor Rabiu, in his opening speech proclaimed that, “occasions like this are opportunities to reflect on current practices, cross breed ideas, harvest research results and project resolutions capable of driving our society towards sustainable development. The theme of this conference is a tripod; international diplomacy, environment and governance in Africa. Our understanding of the interlink between this tripod shall provide the needed synergy required to leap us forward in

our quest for national transformation amidst present continental challenges.

“International co-operation rooted in international diplomacy is a sure way to harness our environmental resources to ensure sustainable development and good living which are by- products of good governance. It is our goal that this meeting will present to our policy makers, an effective blueprint on how to manage our environment under effective governance in Africa, through the potent opportunities in international diplomacy. It is high time we hooked up with international partners to enshrine appropriate legislation to make

Why UTME performance keeps dropping…

Continues from page 25 name in print, was not too happy when she checked her UTME results. One of the 115, 456 candidates who scored between 160-169 marks in the last exams, she said: “I don’t know what happened. I studied hard and did my best during the examinations. I make sure I didn’t cheat, but in spite of all that, my result still came out like this.”

Mr. Mark Okoh, the Principal of Caro College in Lagos, told our reporters in a phone interview that only JAMB can truly answer the questions as to why students failed. “JAMB is the umpire in this situation,” he said “it is JAMB that sets the questions and marks the scripts. In conducting an examination, there are rules to be followed. If the candidates follow these rules, then there shouldn’t be much of a problem. But if students are not

aware of the rules they are being judged by, then, that is not fair conduct of examinations.

For example, The West African Examination Council, WAEC, gives students an idea of what to expect from the examination, but JAMB doesn’t do that. No wonder students are confused.”

The JAMB boss, Prof. Dibu Ojerinde, however, refuted claims that JAMB is not clear on its criteria for judging students’ performance. “We are professionals,” he said, “ we know what we are doing and we have always been clear about it. It is just that a lot of times, candidates do not listen.

They rely on stuff they find on the internet. This year, because we wanted to promote reading culture in the country, we prescribed two books for all the students to read. But a lot of them did not touch it. How can they pass? Fifty questions came from those books alone. Instead they

depended on the internet to give them fake information, and imputed such information when they came into the examination hall. All is not lost, and we cannot conclude yet; there are still quite a number of candidates who have not yet done the CBT. When they do, we will know for sure, and make plans from there.”

The National Coordinator of the Education Rights Campaign, ERC, Mr. Hassan Soweto, however said that the Federal Government is to blame. In a statement to Vanguard Learning, he said: “This year ’s UTME has again exposed the rot in Nigeria’s public education sector. From the breakdown of the result, out of 1,015,504 candidates that sat for the exams, only about 108,488 candidates scored between 200 and 249 points. This is a dismal performance. But the candidates are not to be blamed.

F

ORMER American President, Harry S. Truman once said: “Do your duty and history will do you Justice.” This statement summarized why the West African Students Union Parliament (WASUP) recently decorated Reverend Rosemary Ehimiaghe, the Proprietress of Ostra Private School, Ago, Okota, Lagos with 2013/2014 Kwame Nkrumah exemplary leadership honour for work and dedication to human capital development.”

Conferring the award on Mrs. Ehiamiaghe, was majority leader and speaker, WASUP, Saint Solomon, University of Ghana, Legon, who said that the recipient has a longstanding trademark of hard work and diligence in every undertaking.

Her painstaking resolve to leave a legacy in the education system has seen her groom a pre-school to a state-of-the-art college, Solomon maintained.

Ehimiaghe is a seasoned educator, administrator; counsellor and ordained minister of God. She had her secondary school education at Bishop Phillips Academy, Iwo Road, Ibadan in 1975.

Thereafter, she worked briefly with NEPA (now PHCN) Dugbe, Ibadan. Her deep love for teaching motivated her to enroll at UMC Teacher Training College for Women, Molete, Ibadan for one year, where she obtained her TC II in 1979.

She then proceeded to Oyo State College of Education, Ilesa (an affiliate of University of Ibadan then) where she had her NCE. She proceeded to University of Nigeria, Nsukka for her Bachelor of Arts (BA Ed) in English Language in 1982.

She later did her National Youth Service in Air Force Secondary School (AFSS) NAF Base, Ikeja that same year.

Her dedication saw her subsequently employed by the same institution as an English Language teacher in 1983. She was awarded the best female teacher of the school in 1988, remarked Solomon.

*Rev (Mrs.) Rosemary Ohio-Ehimiaghe, Proprietress, Ostra Private School, Ago-Palace Way, Okota, Isolo, Lagos (middle) with Mr. James Dedume, the school coordinator (left), and Mr. Ale Martins Babatunde, Manager, Ostra Halls and Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos, during the presentation of the Kwame Nkrumah Exemplary Leadership Honour by the West African Students Union Parliament (WASUP) to the proprietress for hard work and dedication to human capital development, in Lagos.

28 — Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

SUCCESS RECIPE WITH UDEME ARCHIBONG successrecipe2009@gmail.com 08035095243

Change the man! change his world!

IT was a rainy Saturday morning; a minister was trying to prepare his sermon.

His wife was out shopping and his little son felt restless and bored and did not give his father a chance to concentrate on his work. Out of desperation, the minister picked up an old magazine and thumbed through it until he came across the map of the world on one of its pages.

He tore the page from the magazine, ripped it into little bits and threw the scraps all over the floor and said, “Son, if you can put this all together, I’ll give you a quarter.” In about 10 minutes, his son reached out to the father with the pieces of paper neatly arranged and the map of the world back in order. The preacher asked in amazement, “Son, how did you get that done so fast?

“Oh”, said Johnny, “it was easy.

On the other side there was a picture of a man. I just put a piece of paper on top, and then

turned it over. I figured that if I got the man right, the world will be right”. The minister smiled, and handed his son a quarter.

“And you’ve given me my sermon for tomorrow, too.” He said. “If a man is right, his world will be right.”

Has life been unfair to you? Is your world falling apart? Have you been beaten, battered and shattered by the vagaries of circumstance? Has the current of life eroded your life into the depth of hopelessness and despair?

By default, life may not always be fair. But we can take life on, and make out of life what we designed it to be. In the longterm, we can look back on life and say, “Wow! Life’s mysterious hands were actually fair to me.”

However, if we permit ourselves to be ruled by negative attitudes; blaming attitudes; complaining attitudes and playing the part of the victim; we drown ourselves

in the ocean of failure. The enemy without cannot stop us if we overcome the enemy within.

If things consistently go wrong in your life, it may be that there is a wrong slant in your thinking pattern. Jack Canfield reveals, “It is not the external conditions and circumstances that stop you-it is you! We stop ourselves! We think limiting thoughts and engage in self-defeating behaviours. We defend our self-destructive habits with indefensible logic. We ignore useful feedback, fail to continuously educate ourselves and learn new skills, waste time on the trivial aspects of our lives, engage in idle gossip, eat unhealthy food, fail to exercise, spend more money than we make, fail to invest in our future, avoid necessary conflict, fail to tell the truth, don’t ask for what we want-and then wonder why our lives don’t work.” If you want things to turn out right then you must tune up your attitude. If you want your world to be right, your attitude must be right. To get your attitude right, you must get your thinking right. If you want to change your world, you begin by changing your thoughts; beliefs; expectations and your attitudes.

The starting point of a successful life is having a clear

and concise mental picture of what you want of life; definiteness of purpose based on a sound plan; whipping up that aim or purpose into a burning desire by devoting a major portion of your thoughts and efforts in accomplishing that purpose. Your definite purpose or your goals will become a reality to the extent you exercise control over your mind in eliminating thoughts of fear, doubts and self-imposed limitations. Great success be-

longs to those who assume great responsibilities. Vision, selfreliance and initiative are the marks of the successful. Most people are not really clear and definite about what they want of life. And they constitute those who live in the failure-domain of life. Dare to be different! Dare to believe and succeed! Dare to take action! Dare to discover and maximize your talents! Dare to achieve the “impossible”.

Change You! Change your world!

Six lecturers get UK research travel grants

BY CHINYERE ABIAZIEM

S

IX Nigerian university professors have been awarded research travel grants by the British Council to facilitate visit and partnership with UK universities.

According to the Researcher Links Travel Grants, the initiative is to provide financial support for early-career researchers to enable them undertake international research placement to strengthen links for future collaboration, build research capacity in Nigeria and enhance the researchers’ career opportunities.

The awardees as made known

by the council are: Professor Benjamin Aribisala of Lagos State University, Dr Temitope Olomola of Obafemi Awolowo University Ife, Dr Ayodeji Johnson of Olabisi Onabanjo University Ogun, Dr Athanasius Manji of Modibbo Adama University of Technology Yola, Dr Taiwo Bamigboye of Obafemi Awolowo University Ife and Prof. Murtala Sagagi of Bayero University Kano.

The UK universities they are to partner with are: Heriot-Watt University, University of Southampton, University of Nottingham,Bangor University, University of Bradford and University of Wolverhampton.

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014 — 29

BY DAYO ADESULU

J

JA Nigeria targets one million students for e-learning

Don appointed Anambra Commissioner for Education

By IKENNA ASOMBA

T

HE second Nigerian female Professor of Mass Communication, Prof. Kate Azuka Omenugha, has just been appointed the Anambra State Commissioner for Education, by Governor Willie Obiano.

Ever since the news filtered in, members of her primary constituency, trainers of journalists, have continued to express joy and high optimism that the vociferous and elegant viva will further take Anambra State education to higher pedestal.

Prof. Omenugha’s appointment is however, coming in the wake of the great performance recorded by the state in the 2013 West African Senior Secondary Certificate Examination, WASSCE and the Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination, SSSCE, conducted by the West African Examination Council,

WAEC and the National Examination Council, NECO respectively.

Born in the mid 60’s in Neni, Anaocha Local Government Area of Anambra State, Prof.

Omenugha before her appointment was the Director, UNIZIK 94.1 FM, a Campus Community Radio of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, which won the 2013 Best Campus Radio Station in Nigeria.

Prof. Omenugha, an old girl of Maria Regina High School, Nnewi, holds a National Certificate in Education (NCE), from College of Education, Nsugbe, Anambra State (1984); B.A. English (Second Class Honours - Upper Division), from the prestigious University of Nigeria, Nsukka (1987); M.A. Mass Communication, UNN (1997) and Ph.D. in Gender, Media and Cultural Studies, University of Gloucestershire, United Kingdom (2005).

LG boss restates commitment to reposition education

By BOLUWAJI OBAHOPO

T

HE chairman of Ajaokuta Local Government Area, Aloysius Adeiza Okino has reiterated his commitment to uplifting the standard of education at the council area and repositioning it for optimal performance.

The chairman who stated this in Adogo, headquarters of the council during a quiz completion sponsored by him for students of the local government area stressed the need for governments at all levels to invest heavily in the education sector.

Okino who is also the chairman of Kogi State chapter of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria, ALGON, said his administration will do everything possible to reverse the downward trend of education in the area, saying that no society can make progress without proper education.

He noted that the quiz competition was aimed at creating a forum for stimulating academic competition, healthy rivalry and stronger ties of friendship among the students of the area.

According to him, the scheme was put in place in 2013, assured that the quiz competition will hold every two years as all logistic arrangements have been put in place.

Fulani herdsmen and threat to the Nigerian economy

N

OTE: THE INHERITORS – LAWSON GROUP OF COMPANIES will continue soon. At the moment, we have an emerging catastrophe on our hands in Nigeria which, more than the Boko Haram war, could escalate into another civil war engulfing the whole country. Nigerians in at least, 17 states are up in arms against the Fulani herdsmen/women and children. Something must be done urgently before they are wiped out. LAWSON can wait.

“The proposal which emerged at the end of the National Economic Council meeting presided over by Vice-President Namadi Sambo, is another grand design to Islamise the nation. Fulani herdsmen are another chapter of Boko Haram.

If President Goodluck Jonathan accepts the proposal, he should be ready for the consequences.” Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, CAN President, NATION, March 30, 2014.

The warning by the CAN President came after Dr Adewunmi, the Minister for Agriculture, had announced that on Wednesday, March 25, 2014, the National Economic Council (NEC), chaired by the Vice-President, had decided to set up a committee to determine the modalities for establishing grazing reserves for the Fulani herdsmen and their livestock across the Unless care is country. This is the first time that Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor taken, whatever would publicly disagree policies are with the Jonathan eventually adopted administration on a major policy decision. might be too little; Unfortunately, Oritsejafor based his objections to the and too late; proposal on religious another civil war grounds – when indeed it might have started is not. Cattle driven by their shepherds into farmlands don’t discriminate between farms and crops belonging to Christians and non-Christians. To a cow or goat, an ear of corn is food; it does not ask who owns it. In all honesty, I think the Pastor had introduced an element which should not come into the matter.

Like a cancer, which had been benign, the escalating and increasingly violent conflicts between Fulani heardsmen/women and farmers nationwide, has suddenly exploded on us in a startling way. Like somnambulists, we had woken up tottering on the edge of a precipice. Unless care is taken, whatever policies are eventually adopted, might be too little; and too late. Another civil war might have started.

One reason accounts for that pessimism. Cattle, like human beings don’t eat in the long run. They must have grass and water today; otherwise they go on a rampage.

The proposed reserved grazing lands are still many years, or at least months, down the line. The war for the land on which the cattle will graze had started in earnest and hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of lives – cattle and human – are already at stake. Once again, President Jonathan has my sympathies. He is at the end of a long chain of events, not created by his government – dating back to as long as 1914 or before – which have suddenly created the grounds for conflict and, possibly, all out war NOW. However, before the shooting (verbal or guns) starts, in earnest, it is necessary for all of us to get familiar with some facts which will not suddenly change and which might guide us when making collective and individual decisions on this matter. These might be called the Iron Laws of our economic (read FOOD) life in Nigeria today. Any rash step and we topple into the abyss – the end of which nobody knows.

The first was made known to me by a retired Professor of Animal Science, from the University of Ibadan, Professor B.K. Ogunmodede. If you want to be intelligent, first ensure that one of your senior brothers is a professor. I was lucky in that respect.

,

UNIOR Achievement Nigeria (JAN), a nongovernmental organisation has reiterated its commitment to inspire and educate young people to become conscientious business leaders. Speaking at a press briefing held at Kakawa Discount House, in Lagos to launch an e-Learning platform of the JAN, the Executive Director, Mrs Kunbi Wuraola disclosed that the *Executive Director, Junior Achievement Nigeria, Mrs. Kunbi Wuraola aforementioned mission could (2nd right); MD, Kakawa Discount House, Lanre Jayaola (middle) be achieved by implementing MD, Accenture, Niyi Yusuf (2nd left) and other members of JAN with economic education programme children of Army Day School, Dodan Barracks, Lagos dring a press briefing for e-learning, in Lagos. that will develop attitude and skills necessary for personal success and social responsibility.

According to her, the E-Learning platform which is expected to be launched by the Calabar, Uyo and Enugu. She, however, Minister of Communication Technology, Mrs maintained that JAN projection is to reach one th Omobola Johnson at the organisation’s 15 million students in the next few years. anniversary slated for May 22, will attract Also speaking, Managing Director, Kakawa all and sundry.

Discount House, Lanre Jayaola said that the series She explained that the e-learning scheme of events during the anniversary will aim at is another platform dedicated to inspiring celebrating educational and entrepreneurship young lives, stressing that it was designed excellence. “I am sure JAN will showcase 15 to reach students outside the classroom Nigerians who mirror the JAN philosophy; and environment and its curriculum will have been role models for current and future demonstrate the power of technology. beneficiaries of the organisation’s programs over Since inception in 1999, Kunbi pointed out the years," he said. that JAN has reached about 500,000 students At the event, he added, “JAN will recognise in approximately 650 primary and secondary deserving individuals and organisations who have schools in Lagos, Ibadan, Abeokuta, Abuja, been outstanding in their support for JAN in the Kano, Kaduna, Bauchi, Port Harcourt, Jos, last 15 years.”

,

Continues next week Visit: www.delesobowale.com or Visit: www.facebook.com/ biolasobowale C M Y K

30 — Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

it is properly ground, it binds strongly. So we hope as we make progress, that we will keep coming up with different items and improved quality.” : Stages involved: “First of all, you gather your papers, soak them in water for about three to seven days so that the grinding will be easier.

After soaking the paper, you grind it into very fine particles (pulp). Once it is properly ground, you form it into desired sizes. The next step is to dry it after moulding. When it is dry, you go straight to construct what you want.

That is where artistic skills come in. The next step which is the binding, I do with sawdust mixed with top bond glue, so as to prevent chipping.

*Chair made from waste paper. Apart from the foam and the iron stand, other parts are made from waste paper.

I only bind with sawdust but to get a higher quality, we employ body filler used for automobiles. We use it to smoothen the body of the product. The body filler makes it very smooth and gives it that straight edge and some other qualities.

“After that, you go for the polishing which is the spray.

"We hope that with time, we can improve the quality.

The chair is very strong; that is one good thing about it. We only use white paper because it binds better. Newsprint takes a longer time to soak and it does not bind like white paper so it is better with white paper but we hope with time, we can find a solution, then any other paper will do,” he said.

Young Nigerian makes chair, stool from waste paper Recycling, which is the conversion of waste into reusable material or new products, helps to reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, air pollution and water pollution by reducing the need for conventional waste disposal. A young Nigerian, Mr. Zege Aondofa, a 2012 Mass Communication graduate from Benue State University, says he is in love with the word ‘recycling’ and has, therefore, taken paper recycling a notch higher.

Currently awaiting his call-up letter for the compulsory one year national service to his fatherland, Zege has made chairs and dressing tables from paper. In this chat with Vanguard Learning in Yola, Zege speaks on his passion for recycling and what he has been able to achieve so far.

Excerpts:

W

HILE waiting for his call-up letter for the NYSC, Zege went to do a temporary job at the American University of Nigeria (AUN) and while there, he came up with something innovative, encouraged by the institution’s Office of Sustainability.

How the idea came about: “There was a particular evening I was alone in the room watching television; they were talking about recycling and I fell in love with that word, recycling. It got me thinking 'what is it that I can do to recycle something?' Coincidentally, I came to AUN and we started a job. Usually, they would ask us to pack used papers and throw them away and I just wondered why we would be throwing away papers just like that. I decided to try and see if there was any way I could recycle it.

I thought of recycling it into a kind of take-away plate but along the line, that idea died but the idea of recycling was

still alive. I started thinking again that since I couldn’t make plates, what else could I make?"

And then it happened. “One day in Church, I sat quietly, thinking about paper recycling and something just came into my mind that look, I could recycle the papers into a One day in Church, I sat quietly, chair and I had the faith thinking about the paper that I could recycling and something just do that. came into my mind that look, I How? I never knew but I could recycle the papers into a was inspired chair and I had that faith that I into action. I went out and could do that got papers which I ground with mortar get to grinding and drying. and pestle. After drying the “Once we have these two pulp, I formed it into different major items, others will follow, shapes. I made a chair out of like the binding strength; we paper and it was very good. could add some chemicals that When I did that little chair, my would bind them more firmly faith grew. If I could do this because right now, we are not small one, it means I could do using anything to bind it. a bigger one. Thereafter, I People keep asking what we made another one and then a use to bind the pulp and I tell bigger chair. When I did that them we use nothing. One one, I looked at it critically and secret about paper is that once

,

BY EBELE ORAKPO

said: ‘Ok, let me do one that will be big enough and strong enough for someone to sit on.

By the grace of God, I was able to achieve that and I am gradually making progress,” he stated.

From this point on, there was no stopping Zege as he made a dressing table and is thinking of making office equipment such as file holders.

There are, however, some challenges as according to Zege, “I can do so many things with paper but the challenges are limiting production. The process involves about eight stages but the two challenging aspects are the grinding and drying, very long processes. It takes about three weeks sometimes to dry after moulding. We are trying to see if there are machines we could

,

*Zege Aondofa posing with two of his products

UK varsity scholarship triples success in developing countries

BY VERA SAMUEL ANYAGAFU

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HE United Kingdom Chevening University scholarship programme, a Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s flagship global scholarship programme, which is aimed at educating future leaders, influencers and decision-makers, has tripled its success record in over 144 developing countries and territories across the world.

The scholarship programme which expects to support over 600 individuals in a wide range of courses at a variety of universities in the UK, including, but not limited to economics, finance, human rights, law, international relations, journalism, engineering and development studies, is fully committed to ensuring that the majority of Chevening eligible scholars achieve their desired career goals in life.

A recent study on the value of international students to the UK on study through the

Chevening scholarship scheme, outlined strong evidence that the aims of the Chevening scheme were based on providing quality education to the increasing number of individuals from developing countries, in addition to working with them on mutually beneficial activities and events to help grow the economies in their home countries.

According to the Foreign Commonwealth Office spokesperson, “Chevening Scholarships are an important element in supporting Britain’s work overseas. The increase in Chevening scholarships for 2015-16 will boost the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s reach and efforts to engage in developing countries and emerging powers. It will increase the number of outstanding young professionals, who have already displayed exceptional leadership talents, studying in the UK.”

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014 — 31

32—Vanguard, THURSDAY,

APRIL 24, 2014

Employees Compensation: Where we are — NSITF boss

BY FUNMI KOMOLAFE

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HE Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund( NSITF) is charged with the responsibility of implementing the Employees Compensation Scheme which ensures that workers secure some monetary compensation.

Pension and You met with the managing director of NSITF, Alhaji Umar Munir Abubakar. He spoke on the implementation, challenges and prospects of the scheme.““First we took him up on the issue of Compliance. His explained that there are two sides to the issue of payment.

Alhaji Munir Abubakar said the federal government has complied to the tune of about N5billion but that NSITF is still working with the Budget office and that of the accountant gener-

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al of the federation to reconcile the exact figures of employees involved and the no of Ministries , Departments and Agencies . He explained that another category of payment from the federal government is from MDAs that are not “ treasury funded”. For this category , the MDAs pay on their own. A third category are those who are working towards compliance. Some of these are willing to make their remittance including arrears.

So generally what has been the response of state governments?

NSITF managing director said, a significant number of state governments have keyed into the scheme while others are being encourage to do so. The management of NSITF in its drive to attract more state governments were in Edo and Taraba states recently.

In Edo, he said, “ Governor Adams Oshiomhole assured us that he will do everything within his powers to ensure that the State embraces the Employees Compensation Scheme”. Apart from this, he said, NSIFT has been having consultation with Governors of States such as Lagos and Akwa- Ibom, Bayelsa and Cross River. He said the management of NSITF will also reach out to other States.

Challenges: Alhaji Munir Abubakar threw some light on why NSITF had to engage some experts to facilitate the remittance of contributions.

He explained, “The collecting Agents we appointed are firms and individuals that have experience in this type of business.

They have operated for several years as tax consultants/collectors, financial experts, professionals in

Umar Munir Abubakar

their own rights, etc. no matter what happens, we cannot on our own, collect in certain difficult areas”. He said, management noted that the experts “ through

their connections, professionalism and many years of experience, etc have been doing very well in that regard.”.

Besides, he explained, they are complimenting the efforts of NSITF staff.

Alhaji Munir Abubakar said while the experts concentrate on remittance especially in difficult areas, the staff of the organization are expected to focus on areas such as enlightenment , inspection, rehabilitation and payment of benefit which are core areas of the scheme.

Computerization – NSITF management appreciate that computerization is an important aspect of its service delivery. Hence the managing director said, “ under the NSITF Scheme that operated between the period 1994 and 2004; we had serious ICT challenges that negatively affected our image and functions.”.

But that is past said the chief executive. Now he said, “ The employees’ compensation scheme we are running today is principally IT driven. I am equally happy to state that the NSITF Board of Directors right from day one, identified Information Technology as key to the success of the scheme”, so, he said, management has prioritized this aspect of its function . According to Alhaji Munir Abubakar, “ The employers we are serving have insisted that we ought to have a comprehensive computerization programme that will take care of our collections, benefit payments and registration among other tasks” and we have been working towards that. We have created jobs- The NSITF managing director explained that its recent recruitment was essentially to enable the organization meet up to its responsibilities nationwide but it has also created job opportunities.

He said staff recruitment is an on-going exercise.

Alhaji Munir Abubakar said, new offices are being opened and require human capital to facilitate its operations. According to him, though the scheme is still at an infant stage, “. Nigerians are eager for us to take Employees Compensation Scheme to them.”.

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014 — 33

34—Vanguard, THURSDAY,

APRIL 24, 2014

BITS Bits NASU laments worsening insecurity in Nigeria

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As ASCSN seeks tougher action against terrorists

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SSOCIATION of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria, ASCSN, has called on the Federal Government to take a tougher action against the Boko Haram insurgents, saying the association is alarmed by April 14 Nyanya Motor Park, Abuja bombing by suspected Boko Haram terrorists which claimed about 100 lives.

In a statement by its President and Secretary General, Bobboi Kaigama and Alade Lawal respectively, the body expressed disgust over the attack on defenceless citizens who were going about their normal duties at Nyanya Mass Transit Park, by the insurgents, stressing the need for all the security agencies in the country to intensify intelligence gathering.

According to the association, “improved intelligence surveillance will assist a great deal to unveil sponsors of the group so that they and the murderers who masquerade as religious crusaders can be brought to justice the International Criminal Court. As we noted in our previous press statement on the killing of 30 innocent students at Federal Government College, BuniYadi, Yobe State in February.

C M Y K

TUC President, Comrade Bobboi Bala Kaigama

Upheaval looms in TUC as 13 affiliates kick •TUC officials, affiliates trade blames

BY VICTOR AHIUMA-YOUNG

A

MAJOR crisis is brewing in the Trade Union Congress, TUC as no fewer than 13 affiliates have petitioned the leadership of the labour centre questioning the leadership of style of its President.

Among the aggrieved affiliates are Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, Chemical and Non-Metallic Products Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, CANMPSSAN, Food, Beverage and Tobacco Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, FOBTOB, Hotel and Personal Service Senior Staff Association, HAPSSSA, Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, ATSSSAN, Precision, Electrical and Related Equipment Senior Staff Association, PERESSA, Automobile, Boatyard, Transport, Equipment and Allied Senior Staff Association, AUTOBATE, and Pulp Paper and Products, Printing and Publishing Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PPAPPAPSSAN. In a resolution by leaders of the aggrieved affiliates at a meeting in Lagos, on March 31, 2014, they stated , “We the undersigned, affiliates Trade Unions of the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria, TUC, having appraised events and activities since the present national leadership of the TUC came into office in June 2013, the meeting observed with great worries that the provisions in the Constitution of the TUC on the decisions making process which stipulates that the administration and operations of TUC shall be taken through its appropriate organs are being flagrantly flouted."

They claimed that efforts to bring their concerns particularly, alleged constitional breaches to the President and the Secretary General were ignored.

The meeting stressed the urgent need to call the meetings of the key organs of TUC namely, National Administrative Council, NAC, Central Working Committee, CWC, and National Executive Council, NEC, "to deliberate on, and address the following

issues: TUC national housing project, programme of activities of TUC under the current leadership, irregularity of meetings of the various organs of TUC, TUC transport business its representation and position to the National Conference, NC. “Consequent upon the above observation, the meeting collectively resolves as follows; that the President should convey a meeting of the key organs of TUC namely, NAC, CWC and NEC to deliberate on the issues listed above on or before Tuesday April 8, 2014, that in the event that the meetings are not convened as requested, the concerned affiliates may be compelled to take whatever legitimate trade union action deemed appropriate to challenge the observed irregularities in the administration of TUC.”

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ON-ACADEMIC Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions, NASU, has called on the Federal Government to live up to its responsibilities of protecting the lives and property of Nigerians, lamenting that the wanton destruction of lives and property by Boko Haram and other insurgent groups can no longer be acceptable.

NASU in a statement recalled the April 20, 2014 bombing at Nyanya Motor Park, Abuja, which claimed about r 100 lives with over 250 others injured, and the abduction of several female students from a Government Girls Secondary School, GGSS, in Bornu, Bornu State, 24 hours after the Nyanya’s bombing.

Speaking through its General Secretary, Prince Peters Adeyemi, NASU said, “Nigerians should not trivialize this madness with ethnicity, religiousity, regionalism or worse still politicize it. We must come together because these monstrous individuals are not taking any of these into consideration before ordering the carrying out of the dastardly and cowardly acts. When the bombs are detonated, they do not sort out their victims, neither do the bombs segregate ethnic groups, religion, region or political parties before killing or injuring."

Construction and Civil Engineering Senior Staff Association, CCESSA, Senior Staff Association of Universities, Teaching Hospitals, Research Institutes and Associated Institutions, SSAUTHRlAI, Textile, Garment and Tailoring Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, TGTSSAN have been consistent in their discharge of their financial obligations to the Secretariat.

“National Association of Aircraft Pilots and Engineers, NAAPE, paid for 12 months arrears from April 2013 to March 2014 only on Friday 14th March 2014. PENGASSAN's last payment was April 2013 before payment of N10 Million each in February 2014 and March 2014 reducing the debt to N29, 325,000:00 representing 8 months of arrears.

In obviously pathetic discharge of financial responsibility to the centre, it is near impossible to carry on day to day activities of TUC. “Even at that, remarkable progress has been made in housing project, Transport business etc., and we have set up an efficient up-to-date modern office in Abuja, to ease the administrative machinery.

Administrative machinery We however appeal to all those who are concerned about the progress of the centre to discharge their basic obligations to engender mutual rights and obligations to the benefit of all." Debunking claims of no meetings of NAC, CWC and NEC meeting, Musa stressed that several meetings had been called with the aggrieved affiliates appropriately notified, but many of them refused to attend.

According to him, there was the inaugural meeting and handover to the new leadership on July 22, 2013, held at TUC secretariat in Lagos. Similarly, NAC meeting was held on September 24, 2013, at Airport Hotel, Lagos, NEC meeting for housing development for members which had NAC, CWC and State Councils officials held on October 23, 2013, at NUT End Well Hotel, Kaduna.

He said there was also a NAC meeting preparatory to the courtesy visit to President Goodluck Jonathan on December 2, 2013, at ASCSN secretariat, Close, Abuja and this was followed by a visit to President Jonathan by all NAC members on December 2, 2013, at Aso rock, Abuja.

According to him, there was the flag-off of

The aggrieved affiliates especially PENGASSAN had been undermining TUC since the last Delegates Conference held in June 2013 and are accused for not paying affiliation dues to TUC since then

TUC leadership response Responding, Secretary General of TUC, Musa Lawal, lamented that the aggrieved affiliates especially PENGASSAN had been undermining TUC since the last Delegates Conference held in June 2013 and had not been paying affiliation dues to the TUC since then.

Musa who detailed what he termed “subscription arrears as at March 2014”, claimed that “More importantly, is the fact that many of the affiliates have not been discharging their financial responsibilities to the centre .”

In his explanatory note of the table, Lawal said “Only Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria, ASCSN, Association of Senior Staff of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institutions, ASSBIFI, Senior Staff Association of Communication, Transport and Corporation, SSACTAC, SSACTAC,

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the housing policy on December 6, 2013, at Abuja and was attended by all NAC , CWC, and State Councils officials, adding that, this was the familiarization visit to affiliates by NAC members which started February 2014.

On allegations that Kaigaima single-handedly selected representatives of TUC at the NC, Lawal said: “When the issue of NC came up, all affiliates especially those who at critical period abandoned their responsibilities to TUC began to ingratiate themselves to TUC leadership, all in an effort to get a nomination.”

He added that after consultation with affiliates of good standing, nominations were submitted to the Presidency for the conference, saying nomination went to affiliates that had been alive to their responsibilities.

Labour Vanguard however gathered that meetings of TUC's NAC, CWC and NEC have been fixed for May 2 and 3, in Abuja.

Vanguard, THURSD AY, APRIL 24, 2014 —35 THURSDA

DISCOs operating PHCN’s billing model This is the second instalment of our special report on power. In the first edition, yesterday, we observed that transformers, pillars and other machines that have been installed and in use for the past 15 to 20 years are due for replacement

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E said: “The introduction of a tariff system driven by market forces ignored the fact that Nigeria’s economy is import dependent and that there would always be of fluctuation of prices arising from the cost of sourcing foreign exchange and other charges that were paid at the port of entry, bribes and other levies which the electricity generation and distribution companies are made to pay before they come up with the final product”.

This would be pushed ultimately to the consumer of the electricity product and there would be ripple effect on the general price level in the economy.

He said “We are not in transparent business environment where we could easily determine the unit cost of electricity generation and the per capita consumption”. For instance, “We also know that government institutions and agencies, public office holders at the national and state levels, who live in designated estates, military barracks, residencies of security agencies are usually obstinate and reluctant to pay their electricity bills.“

Business practices “Consequently, the power companies let them be, either to buy protection from them or to avoid trouble. There is no level playing field as those who have a responsibility to ensure good corporate governance and business practices are compromised and socially corrupted by the power companies.

NERC: Regulator or strangulator?

“Also worrisome is a development within the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI), where the Nigerian Content Policy is heavily skewed in favour of the investors whom the NERC is introducing the legal framework to guide their operations and to ensure that their investments are secured and made profitable.

Top among the list of the discontent are the: zDrastic drop in the level of power generation in the country, attributed to acts of vandalism on gas pipelines and electricity C M Y K

•Construction workers at power plant site. infrastructure; zUnilateral suspension of the pre-paid metre scheme which was a pre-condition set by NERC for privatisation; zReliance on the practice of estimated billing system which

Source NERC

gives the DISCOs the leeway to collect revenue for services not rendered; zEmergence of an electric power cartel which arbitrarily manipulates the billing system; z Use of market forces to

determine electricity tariff under the Multi Year Tariff Order (MYTO), and zDearth of qualified manpower arising from the massive engagement of staff from defunct PHCN.

zDisregard for consumers rights and complaint of poor services arising from massive drop in capacity generation.

‘Appropriate power pricing an issue’ In an exclusive interview, Minister of Power, Professor Chinedu Nebo said “the issue confronting the new power companies is how to ensure appropriate pricing for electricity consumption for the low income earners and the elites, through appropriate metering”.

Another critical factor is how to stop the leakages that occur from the points of generation to transmission, through reliance on obsolete transmission lines, acts of vandalism of of electricity equipments ang gas pipelines.

Professor Nebo attributed problems in the power sector to the system, and bad attitude of some Nigerians who are known “to deliberately flout laid down rules and violate every operational guidelines in order to satisfy their selfish desires”.

According to Nebo, the actions of these unscrupulous persons find expression in their

Continues on page 36

REFORMS TO RE-JIG THE SECTOR

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n May 1999 when General Olusegun Obasanjo assumed office, the power supply system in the country was in a very terrible state of disrepair and neglect. The generation availability was down to 1,600MW from the installed capacity of 5,876MW. This was far below the estimated national demand of about 3,250MW. But Nigerians are distrustful and skeptical about timelines. On assumption of office in 1999 as Minister of Power, late Chief Bola Ige promised to end the nightmare of electricity supply in six months. By the time of his death in 2001, the situation had worsened considerably.

Nigeria’s power infrastructure

Egbin Electric Power Station with an installed capacity of 1,320 MW is being upgraded to 1,870 MW. Egbin is reputed to be the biggest and the most modern power station in the West African sub region. The 20-year old thermal station is being expanded with the installation of additional units which is expected to increase the generating capacity of the station.

Kainji Power Station is a hydro power station established in December 1968; with a capacity of 760 MW. The ongoing reforms in the power sector have resulted in the utilization of seven out of the eight installed units.

Oji River Power Station is the only coal powered steam turbine station in Nigeria. After years of neglect and under-utilization, rehabilitation work commenced on July 19, 2003. The total

production capacity is 30 MW. The rehabilitation covers work on five boilers, four steam turbines, and reactivation of the coal handling equipment. By July 17, 2004, the steam turbines were successfully tested at a synchronized speed of 3,000 rpm and loaded to 2.5 MW Calabar Thermal Power Station was commissioned in 1935 and serves as booster station to Afam and Oji power stations. Like the other power stations, it also suffered years of neglect. But the Obasanjo administration began rehabilitation works on the station which was expected to inject just 7MW into the national grid.

For instance, it was observed that only 19 out of a total of 79 generating units were in operation. The available radial transmission lines were old and did not cover most parts of the country.

Many power transformers and circuit breakers were not maintained for years and were overloaded, insufficient and broke down regularly.

Also, overloaded distribution transformers, unmaintained lines characterized the distribution system.

This abysmal poor state of affairs in the power sector was due to many reasons that include the following: zCapacity loss suffered by the system due to poor maintenance and overhaul schedules of the generating plants for over the last 20 years. z Prolonged neglect and nonmaintenance of the transmission lines and the distribution sub-stations; zNo new power plants were built

since 1990 and no new 330kv and 132kv transmission lines were built since 1981; zSeasonal fluctuations in the water levels in the lakes of the hydro stations at Kainji, Jebba and Shiroro.

This informed the formation of a Technical Board which was inaugurated in March 2000 with a mandate to increase generation to 4,000MW. By 2000, average daily generation was between 1,700MW and 1,900MW from 17 generating units.

The mandate of the Technical Board was: zOptimal utilization of resources for the provision of electricity services; zmaximize access to electricity services by promoting and facilitating connection z Adequate supply of electricity to consumers; zAvoid exploitative billing by private operators; zThat regulation is fair and balance for Licensees, consumers’ investors and other stake holders; zEstablishment of appropriate operating codes on safety, security and quality standards; z Promote and preserve efficient electricity industry and market structures zCreate efficient distribution system; zLicense and regulate persons engaged in the generation and transmission of electricity.

It also resulted in the creation of successor companies to PHCN. These included 11 Distribution companies (DisCos), six Generation companies (GenCos) and one Transmission Systems Company (TranSysCo) in November 2005.

36— Vanguard,

THURSD AY, APRIL 24, 2014 THURSDA

‘Appropriate power pricing, an issue’ Continues from page 35 deliberately overloading the transformers and over stretching their functional capacities, manipulation of metres to underread actual consumption, using one phase metre to carry heavy load in homes and offices, using substandard cables to connect electricity to residential premises and offices, without regards to the safety of the buildings and to the power infrastructure.”

According to him, “these actions have caused extensive damage to the power infrastructure and loss of revenues to investors in the sector.”

Since the enactment of the Electric Power Sector Reform Act 2005, Nigeria’s electricity landscape has witnessed major changes resulting in the emergence of private sector led Nigeria Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) as the Federal Government realised that it could no longer meet up with the financial requirement of funding the capital intensive power sector.

Erstwhile chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Power, Hon Ndudi Elumelu in an interview said the Obasanjo administration did much to tackle the problem of Electricity Power Sector, but in the end the result was not commensurate with the massive effort and financial commitment.

It was the Obasanjo administration that initiated the Electricity Power Sector Reform

zDr. Sam Amadi, NERC Chairman

zHon Ndudi Elumelu to subscribe to its shares. zUnbundling the business units of the defunct NEPA into incorporated successor companies. z Guarantee private sector participation in power generation, transmission and distribution.

A major component of the EPSR was the setting up of the National Energy Regulatory Commission (NERC) to regulate the electricity market. The NERC

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NERC has not shown seriousness in educating consumers on their rights under the new dispensation where the new companies are using Nigerians as guinea pigs to test World Bank policy on power sector privatisation Law (EPSR) 2005, to liberalise the sector and break the existing monopoly of NEPA. This was followed by the incorporation of successor companies of defunct NEPA. The EPSR was to achieve the following objectives: z Ensuring improved and sustainable supply of electricity. zEfficient metering and billing system to improve revenue generation capacity. zGuarantee overall customer satisfaction in delivery of quality and reliable service. zRehabilitation of neglected Infrastructure & Expansion. zRestructuring; deregulation; privatization of the electricity sector. zKey infrastructure expansion projects by the Federal Government. z Transforming NEPA to a Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) to be floated on the stock exchange for the public C M Y K

was inaugurated in October 2005 with a mandate to regulate all activities in the Electricity Sector.

NERC is expected to provide the frame work to develop competitive electricity market with the breaking up of the monopoly of NEPA. Apart from the legal framework that empowered the electricity power sector reform, it is important to state here that the emergence of a regulatory agency, the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), is to ensure: z Optimal utilization of resources for the vprovision of electricity services; zmaximize access to electricity services by promoting and facilitating connection; zAdequate supply of electricity to consumers; zAvoid exploitative billing by private operators; zThat regulation is fair and balanced for licensees, consumers, investors, and other

stakeholders.

It also resulted in the creation of successor companies to PHCN. These included 11 Distribution companies (DisCos), six Generation companies (GenCos) and one Transmission Systems Company (TranSysCo) in November 2005.

Vanguard was at the headquarters of NERC to speak with management of the Commission who claimed they could not entertain media enquiries. The visit however yielded fruitful result as our reporters attended the stake holders session brainstorming on

the National Content Policy being put together by the commission to regulate the operations of the new companies and investors in the power sector.

Apparently, there was no enabling legal framework to guide the relationship between the new power companies, the regulator, and the consumers, prior to the privatisation. What was in existence was the laws that protected PHCN as a public sector power monopoly.

Majority of the stakeholders are CEOs of the new companies that emerged from PHCN, suppliers of electricity equipment, metre manufactures, producers of transformers, cables, semiconductors, lawyers, Nigerian Society of Engineers, etc.

Vanguard discovered that NERC was silent or pretended to be unaware of the complaints of consumers about the inefficiencies associated with the operations of the DISCOs which are relying on the old technology and manpower left behind from the former power supply company which could not raise its capacity beyond 3,500MW before it was shoved aside.

Engr. Badejo said: ”What is generally presented to Nigerians as privatization of the power Continues on page 37

THE NIPP AND GAS SUPPLY CHAIN

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HE NIPP project as conceputalized by the Obasanjo administration was to tackle the problem of infrastructural development in the Niger-Delta region. Five of the seven of the proposed new power stations were located in Bayelsa, Delta, Cross Rivers, Edo and Imo States where they were expected to add 2,000 MW to the national grid. But the supply of gas to the power stations has remained a major challenge owing to the growing acts of vandalism and sabotage.

THE NIPP (National Integrated Power Project) PROJECT The NIPP was unprecedented in the history of Nigeria and was expected to significantly ease the power supply problem in the NigerDelta region and beyond. The seven power stations were to cost N33 billion and to be completed over a period of 18 months.

Over 86 contracts valued at N305 billion were awarded to consortia of local and foreign contractors. The Geregu Power station located in Kogi State has a capacity of 414 MW, and was to be the biggest among the new power stations. It comprises three units of 94.2 gas turbines and ancillary equipment.

The Gbarain / Ubie power station with the gas turbine will cost N24.8 billion and is expected to generate 225MW. The Egbema Gas Plant with a capacity of 388 MW will be constructed with the gas supply turbines for an estimated cost of N26 billion. This will serve communities within a radius of 5km.

The Omotosho community in Ondo State will host another power station with a

capacity of 335 MW. The Papalanto Gas Power Station located in Ogun State has an estimated capacity of 335 MW. This Power Station is being built in two phases and jointly financed by the Federal Government and its Chinese counterpart.

Former president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo performed the ground breaking ceremony of 561 MW Calabar Gas Plant in December of the same year. The first phase of the project was to have been commissioned in July 2007 while the entire project was to come on stream in November 2007. This informed the optimism of the Federal government to declare that it would meet a target to deliver 10,000MW by the end of that year.

Scope, structure, conception of the National Integrated Power Project To achieve this target, the Federal Government embarked on the following strategies: zLicense new Independent Power Plants (IPPs) z Embark on N33 billion National Integrated Power Project, NIPP zDeregulate the electricity industry to attract more investment from local and offshore sources; Nigeria’s requirement in foreign investment in this sector is put at 60%.

The Integrated Power project was conceptualized in December 2004 , by the Obasanjo administration as a plan to ensure sustainable development of the power sector.

Vanguard, THURSD AY, APRIL 24, 2014 —37 THURSDA

NERC: Regulator or strangulator? sector is transfer of public monopoly to private and profit seeking individuals who have connections in high places and at the same time, using the instruments of government to protect them.”

Secretary-General of National Union of Electricity workers, Comrade Joe Ajaero, told Vanguard that “what is unfolding in the power sector is a grand plan by the forces that control the oil and gas sector that were favoured to purchase the electricity companies to systematically enslave Nigerians who would be spending 25% of their income on electricity supply.”

Discriminatory billing system The arbitrary, discriminatory billing system based on estimation is illegal and excessive extortion as consumers are denied any form of redress when they complain about the exorbitant bills which do not take into consideration other costs of living, namely transportation, education, medical expenses, fuel for generators at home and other life sustainers.”

According to Ajaero, this situation would lead to further impoverishment of Nigerians and systemic enslavement as Nigerians who earn their income based on local economic determinants are forced to pay international prices for goods and services produced by cheap local labour, just because we want to satisfy the IMF and the World Bank.

According to Ajaero, “there is a 2013 landmark decision aimed at eliminating corruption and inefficiencies in the power supply chain”.

But Power Minister, Prof.

Chinedu Nebo said, in reaction to Ajaero’s assertions that “President Goodluck Jonathan

zComrade Joe Ajaero, Secretary-General, National Union of Electricity Employees

has taken the right step with the privatization of the Electricity power sector although 40 per cent, is still held by the Federal and State governments, workers and host communities of power generating companies”.

The minister argued “that in no distant time, Nigerians would be delivered from the scourge of perennial power outages as it is the intention of government to ensure that 75 per cent of the population have access to electricity by 2020. “.

The National Electric Power Policy (NEPP), which gave birth to the privatisation stated that its objective is “to establish in the long term an electricity market structure in which multiple operators provide services on competitive basis to the broadest range of consumers”.

It further stated that “under a competitive regime, competitive market forces would be the best determinant of appropriate and sustainable level of tariff charged by the various carriers of their

services” Nigerians have been skeptical and distrustful of setting of time lines and the avalanche of promises that are not kept. In fact, they have seen series of failed promises in the past.

It was seen as a fast-track approach to improving the nation’s electric power supply through generation, transmission, distribution and gas supply projects to and from thermal power stations.

Among the high points are: zConstruction of 7 new power stations with a capacity generation of 2,774 MW; z Distribution network expansion of 250 new lines comprising of 4,367 km and 22,598 transformers; z Gas pipeline associated transmission infrastructure from Adanga to Calabar estimated to cost N15 billion.

All the power plants are to be fueled by gas. The Joint Venture Partners in synergy with NNPC will supply all gas from associated

and non-associated gas sources.

Gas transmission pipelines will be constructed to convey the gas from new and existing gas sources to the power station sites.

The idea of concentrating on the use of gas powered stations is to reduce gas flaring in the NigerDelta Area.

Experts told Vanguard that about 748 million metric standard cubic feet per day (MMSCF/D) will be consumed by the power plants.

Hon. Ndudi Elumelu told in an interview said that the Federal Government and the new investors in the power sector must learn from the mistakes of the past administration which sank over $13.5 billion into the power sector only to achieve nothing.

According to Elumelu, the Obasanjo administration meant well when it embarked on the NIPP project but it was later discovered that some Nigerians had used the scheme to defraud the nation. Vanguard checks at NERC revealed that the National Electricity Regulatory Commission was still fleshing out what it called National Content Policy which is expected to provide a legal frame work to guide the relationship between the NERC, the GENCOs, the TranSysCo and DISCOs. It will also safe guard the consumers

,

Continues from page 36

11,000km of 330KV and 110KV, would not cope in evacuation of the power generated as they have been struggling to cope with a capacity of 4,600MW and have been incurring huge power losses along the transmission process, besides power theft.

He said: “What is required now is updating the obsolete and dilapidated generation and distribution equipment, appropriate metering and billing, rationalizing the billing system”.

Prof Nebo, believes that Nigeria is on the right track with the privatisation programme in the power sector. .

Public monopoly Comrade Joe Ajaero, Secretary General of National Electricity Workers said “the privatisation policy of government was putting the cart before the horse as government ought to have created the enabling environment before putting up the companies for sale”.

According to Ajaero, “what the government has done was to transfer public monopoly to private monopoly entities and armed them with instruments to milk the consumers by denying them the legal instruments to check excessive and arbitrary

The new owners of power companies in major business districts like Lagos, Port Harcourt, Kano and Abuja are working on the assumption that if a low income consumer on R1/R2 category could afford to part with N500.00 on fuel per day to run their generators, they could pay N15,000, on electricity once it is available, consequently, they are pushing to get a minimum average of N15, to N25,000.00 per month

,

from what Prof Nebo reports across the country.

The Chief Executive Officer of Sahara Group, Tonye Cole doused whatever optimism Nigerians may have on steady and stable electricity supply when he told Vanguard that “it will take at least five years from now for Nigerians to enjoy steady power supply “.

According to Cole, “the private companies still have to work with the government and the regulators to achieve realistic results as the power sector requires investment capital to replace obsolete and dilapidated equipment in the generation and transmission sectors.”

Experts in the industry told Vanguard if the GENCOs can produce up to 10,000MW as expected by Nigerians, the present transmission lines which were installed in 1987, which consists of approximately

tariff hikes.

He said electricity consumers in Nigeria have over the years been serially enslaved by the power companies which have over the years, relied on legal protection from government to extort consumers through estimated bills for electricity not supplied.

Participants at a Vanguard Conference Hall on Power Supply in Nigeria strongly canvassed for protection of consumers from unbriddled exploitation by the private companies that are in a hurry to recoup the funds they sourced from banks to purchase the successor companies of PHCN. Prof. Pat Utomi is of the view that “the habit of government always wanting to fleece Nigerians in order to have more money at its disposal to spend will continue to breed To bepoverty continued corruption, and social discontent in the country”.

38—Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

GCGT's Season Four enters quarter finals Above: A contestant at the God’s Children Got Talent (GCGT) reality competition 4th season quarter final. Below; Another contestant.

•partners Cadbury, FirstBank, others

By SAM EYOBOKA

T

HE fourth edition of God's Children Got Tal ent (GCGT), an initiative of RCCG's City of David parish, aimed at recognising and celebrating God-given talents in children and providing a platform for young Christians to shine forth the Light of God in furtherance of the Gospel on Saturday entered its quarter final stages.

The programme, the pioneer Christian Children’s talent hunt programme, which started in 2011 is expanding in scope and several corporate organisations are beginning to indicate interest.

Making the announcement following series of auditions, Head of Apapa family of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pastor Idowu Iluyomade, explained that the mission of

L-R: Head, God’s Children Got Talent (GCGT) reality competition coordinators, Mrs Sola David-Borha, brand manager Coca Beverages, Cadbury, Mr. Mobolaji Alalade and GCGT co-ordinator, Mrs. Adedoyin Odunfa, at the media conference to mark the 4th Season Quarter-Final of GCGT, initiative of City of David parish of the RCCG Province 4 at the Nigerian Law School, Victoria Island, Lagos on Saturday.

the project is to provide a credible platform for the celebration of talent in God’s children.

His words: “God’s Children

Got Talent was born out of the need to help identify and nurture the diverse talents available in children across the

province”.

The scope of talents being judged includes a variety of musical instruments, arts, singing, dancing and others.

In its fourth season, God's Children Got Talent which has a cumulative attendance in

thousands has over the past couple of years attracted both multinational and national sponsors across various segments.

Sponsors of the 2014 edition includes Cadbury, First Bank, RCCG The City of David, Dove Media, The Riverbank School, Digital Jewels, Access Bank, Stanbic IBTC Asset Management and several others.

Marketing consultant and chairman, Advertising Practitioners Council, Lolu Akinwunmi who gave the opening remarks at an earlier event to unveil the opportunities within Season Four said: "GCGT tells a powerful story by stimulating and harnessing children’s talents and bringing their dreams to fruition. In my view, this is another tool for social development and I encourage many brands to participate”.

Pastor Iluyomade contended that; "two of the major differentiators for the 2014 edition of GCGT is the scope of coverage, as Season Four had other UK and US-based RCCG Apapa parishes participating. Also, winners of the 2014 GCGT competition will get up to 22 million prizes including cash prizes, talent development packages and musical equipment.

Some of the judges include foremost music and media personalities such as Joke Silva, Sir Nwokedi of MUSON centre, Tosyn Bucknor and others.

Uduaghan's wife prays for journalists

By SAM EYOBOKA

I

T was a unique and spe cial encounter with mem bers of the Pen profession in Delta State on Monday, April 14, as a horde of journalists drawn from different Media houses played host to the wife of the state governor, Deaconess Roli Nere Uduaghan in Asaba.

The Delta State First Lady, accompanied by an army of prayer warriors, stormed the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) permanent site on Maryam Babangida Way, in the state capital, for a continuation of an intercessory programme she initiated tagged; "Solemn Assembly".

Addressing executive council members of the NUJ led by the state chairman, Norbert Chiazor, chapel chairmen and secretaries as well as correspondents drawn from different print and electronic media establishments, Mrs. Uduaghan informed them that God

the journalists, pledging to build a befitting Press Centre for them before the end of his tenure.

Preaching on a theme titled; "Redeeming our lost glory", M r s .

Uduaghan advised the journalists to always verify their facts before publishing L-R: Wife of Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, Dame (Mrs.) Edith Okowa, NUJ chair- their reports.

She said fair man, Norbert Chiazor and Mrs. Roli Uduaghan at the Solemn Assembly. and balanced was about to heal their land and NUJ by the Ibori administration stories had enhanced peace for the construction of a Press and development while false position them for attention.

The First Lady drew sponta- Centre was seized and re-allo- reports had caused pains to inneous acclamation from the cated to powerfull individuals. dividuals, people and families Gov. Emmanuel Uduaghan and tarnished the image of cornewsmen as she interlaced her speech with biblical references. had in response to a passion- porate bodies and governThe message was obviously not ate appeal from the current ments.

Mrs. Uduaghan maintained lost on the journalists, given NUJ leadership, approved a the past bitter experiences, Certificate of Occupancy (C of that; "when journalists know where the land allotted to the O) for a new plot of land for God, born again and Holy Spirit-filled, they would be equipped to say the truth and such truth would redeem their lives and God would not disappoint them in all their enmanded a robust response from bishop Adewale Martins urged deavours. the Federal Government to President Goodluck Jonathan She noted that NUJ was the forestall what they described as to make haste and take first non-governmental profesdecisive measure to arrest the sional body to embrace the Sola festering war.

In separate reactions, continued acts of violence cur- emn Assembly and expressed NOSCEF’s chairman and Sec- rently rocking the nation, es- optimism that the programme retary-General, Elder Olaiya pecially the terror attacks by the would bring transformation and Phillips and Emmanuel Boko Haram sect and Fulani restore the glory of journalism Subilim respectively and Arch- herdsmen. in the state.

Nyanya blast: NOSCEF, Martins call for a robust response

F

OLLOWING the bomb explosion that rocked Nyanya Motor Park killing over 70 commuters in the Federal Capital Territory, the Christian Elders’ Forum of Northern States (NOSCEF) and the Catholic Archbishop of Lagos Metropolitan See, have de-

In a short exhortation, a Pentecostal cleric, Evangelist Nelson Orisa said the primary obligation of journalists is to present accurate and unbiased report that speaks truth to power and the collective national conscience.

He opined that there is war for the soul of Nigeria, noting that when journalists do not compromise their position and promote truth Boko Haram, Fulani herdsmen, armed robbery, kidnapping and prostitution would be a thing of the past and they would become blessing in the land for all and future generations.

Chairman of Delta State NUJ, Mr. Norbert Chiazor, thanked Mrs. Uduaghan for her deep interest in the spiritual well being and affairs of journalists, who, according to him, labour for the nation but often remain unsung.

The NUJ chairman described Gov. Uduaghan as the most media-friendly governor in the nation, acknowledging that no journalist had been killed, maimed or detained under his almost eight years in office; while media practioners in the state have been empowered by the state government through oversea training, working tools and a conducive atmosphere to practise among other benefits.

Mr. Chiazor appealed to the governor through his wife to expedite action on the building of the Press Centre, as it would stand as a lasting legacy of his administration.

VANGUARD, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014—39

By IKECHUKWU NNOCHIRI

defendants’ father and the plaintiff ’s husband). Trouble started when the plaintiff was asked to vacate her own portion of the land.

The plaintiff said that she inherited the portion given to her late husband upon his death shortly before the civil war. She further told court that the defendants asked her to vacate the house on the grounds that she had no male child in the house, adding that she had six female children.

She bluntly refused to leave the land, insisting that according to the customs of Akwa people, a woman, could inherit the property of her husband whether she had a male child or not. The plaintiff averred that the Ozo Awka society arbitrated in the dispute and agreed with her that she had a right to remain on the land.

Nevertheless, the defendants, disagreed with her. Their contention was waved aside by both the trial and appellate courts which ruled in favour of the plaintiff. Dissatisfied, the defendants appealed to the Supreme Court. Though the defendants acknowledged the fact that the plaintiff had six female children, it was their argument that a woman without a male issue in Awka had no right of inheritance of any land except the one she purchased with her money. In dismissing the appeal, Justice Clara Ogunbiyi said the issue to be decided was “whether the respondent (plaintiff) who had no male child can inherit the property of her late husband?”

C

ULTURE they say is the charac teristics of a particular group of people, defined by everything from language, religion, social habits, music and arts. It is the totality of a people’s way of life. Tradition on the other hand serves as the vehicle through which elements of culture is passed down from generation to generation.

Rules made by government are called “laws.” Laws are meant to control or change our behaviour and unlike rules of morality, they are enforced by the courts.

Law basically is aimed at ensuring fairness by recognizing and protecting basic individual rights and freedom, such as liberty and equality.

It was in the light of the foregoing that the Supreme Court, in two recent judgments, abolished the ancient culture in Igboland that denies women the right of inheriting property in their father’s house.

Specifically, a 5-man panel of Justices of the apex court, held that the practice conflicted with section 42(1)(a) and (2) of the 1999 Constitution.

Culture and custom According to the court, “Any culture that dis-inherits a daughter from her father’s estate or wife from her husband’s property by reason of God instituted gender differential should be punitively dealt with”. The Supreme court which described the culture as discriminatory, maintained that, “The punishment should serve as a deterrent measure and ought to be meted out against the perpetrators of the culture and custom.”

The first judgment was on an appeal marked: SC.224/2004 which was filed by one Mrs. Lois Chituru Ukeje, (wife of late Mr. Lazarus Ogbonna Ukeje) and her son, Mr. Enyinnaya Lazarus Ukeje.

The duo entered the appeal against Mrs. Gladys Ada Ukeje who is a daughter to the deceased. The origin of the case was that Gladys sued the appellants before the Lagos State High Court, claiming that as

•Bode Rhodes Vivour JSC

Inheritance: How Supreme Court voids discrimination against females in Igboland

inheritance.

Justice Bode Rhodes-Vivour, who read the lead judgment, stressed that “no matter the circumstances of the birth of a female child, such a child is entitled to an inheritance from her later father’s estate. “ Consequently, the Igbo customary law, which dis-entitles a female child from partaking in the sharing of her The said discriminatory customary law deceased father’s esis void as it conflicts with Section 42(1) tate is breach of Section 42(1) and (2) and (2) of the Constitution of the Constitution, a one of the children of the deceased, she fundamental rights provision guaranteed said she ought to be included among those to every Nigerian. “ The said discriminatory customary law to benefit from the family estate. In its verdict, the trial court, found that she was is void as it conflicts with Section 42(1) indeed a daughter to the deceased and and (2) of the Constitution. In the light of that she was qualified to benefit from the all that I have been saying, the appeal is estate of their father who died in1981. dismissed. Other justices that also Dissatisfied with the decision, Mrs. Lois concurred to the verdict were Justices and Enyinnaya Ukeje took the case before Walter Samuel Onnoghen, Clara Bata the Court of Appeal in Lagos, where the Ogunbiyi, Kumai Bayang Aka’ahs and John Inyang Okoro. lower court judgment was also upheld.

In another case on the same sub The case was later taken before the apex court for adjudication. In a judgment de- ject, the apex court, held that Nigerian livered Friday April 11, the Supreme customs which disinherit women are Court, affirmed the decisions of the lower repugnant to natural justice, equity and courts and voided the law and custom of good conscience and should therefore not Igbo’s that deny the girl-child the right of be allowed to stand. Thus, the court,

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Governors can’t appoint, remove CJ without NJC recommendation (2) — Page 40

declared as repulsive the custom of the Awka people in Anambra State which allows married women to be disinherited upon the death of their husband because they could not produce a male child for the late husband.

The decision followed a case of a widow, Mrs. Maria Nweke, who in 1991, instituted a case at the Awka Division of the Anambra State High Court. She had among other things, prayed the court to declare that she was the person entitled to statutory right of occupancy of a parcel of land situated at Amikwo village.

She also urged the court to restrain the defendants from trespass on the said land.

The defendants in the matter, Onyibor Anekwe and Chinweze, were the descendants of Anieke Nwogbo, the half brother of the plaintiff’s husband, Nweke Nwogbo. The court was told that their father, Nwogbo Okonkwo Eli, had died outside the home town of the parties. Consequently, his two widows who had a son each (the plaintiff’s husband and the father of the appellants) went to stay with Eli’s half brother, Obiora Okonkwo Eli. Obiora, subsequently built two separate houses at No 19 Ogbuagu Lane Amikwo Village, Awka and shared them between the two sons of Nwogbo Okonkwo Eli (the

Male dominance She held that the appellants had not given any credible evidence to over turn the judgments of the two lower courts. “I hasten to add that the custom and practices of Awka people upon which the appellants have relied is hereby out rightly condemned in very strong terms.

“A custom of this nature in the 21st century societal setting will only tend to depict the absence of the relatives of human civilisation. “It is punitive, uncivilised and only intended to protect the selfish perpetuation of male dominance which is aimed at suppressing the right of the women folk in the given society."

“One would expect that the days of such obvious differential discrimination are over.

“Any culture that disinherits a daughter from her father’s estate or wife from her husband’s property by reason of God instituted gender differential should be punitively dealt with., “The punishment should serve as a deterrent measure and ought to be meted out against the perpetrators of the culture and custom.

“For a widow of a man to be thrown out of her matrimonial home, where she had lived all her life with her late husband and children, by her late husband’s brothers on the ground that she had no male child, is indeed very barbaric, worrying and flesh skinning”, Justice Ogunbiyi held: The apex court went ahead and awarded the cost of N200,000 against the appellants.

Though the apex court has given its verdict on the issue, will it change anything among the people? Only time will tell!

Attempted DSS jailbreak: The truth needs be told

— Page 41

40—VANGUARD, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

Governors can’t appoint, remove CJ without NJC recommendation — Supreme Court (3)

Disciplinary control (d) recommend to the Governors the removal from office of the judicial officers specified in sub-paragraph (c) of this paragraph, and to exercise disciplinary control over such officers. It is quite plain from the provisions of paragraph 21 sub-paragraph (c) and (d) of Pan i of the Third Schedule to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, that the National Judicial Council is the body that; had been assigned the dun and responsibility of recommending to the Governors of the States of the Federation suitable persons for appointments to the offices of Chief judge of the States and other judicial officers in the states. In addition to its role in the appointment of Chief Judges of the States and other judicial officers, the same National Judicial Council is also empowered

EDITORIAL TEAM Dayo Benson (Editor) Innocent Anaba ( Head) Wahab Abdulah Ikechukwu Nnochiri

AAT THE SUPREME COURT OF NIGERIA 1. HON.JUSTICE RALIAT ELELU-HABEEB (CHIEF JUDGE OF KWARA STATE) 2. NATIONAL JUDICIAL COUNCIL VS 1. THE HON. AT TORNEY- GENERAL OF THE FEDERATION 2. THE HON. ATTORNEY-GENERAL OF KWARA STATE 3. THE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY OF KWARA STATE (PANEL OF JUSTICES) MAHMUD MOHAMMED JSC (PRESIDED AND READ THE LEAD JUDGMENT) WALTER SAMUELNKANU ONNOGHEN JSC CHRISTOPHER MIT CHELL CHUKWUMA-ENEH JSC MUHAMMAD SAIFULLAH MUNTAKA-COOMASSIE JSC OLUFUNLOLA OYELOLA ADEKEYE JSC MARY UKAEGO PETER-ODILI JSC OLUKAYODEARIWOOLA JSC

under sub-paragraph (d) of paragraph 21 to recommend to the Governors of the States, the removal from office of the Chief judges of the States and other judicial officer of the State, and also to exercise disciplinary control over such Chief Judges of the States and other judicial officers of the States.

Therefore, from these very clear provisions of the constitution which are very far from being ambiguous, the Governors of the States and the Houses of Assembly of the States cannot exercise disciplinary control touching the removal of Chief Judges of States or other judicial officers in the States.

Going back to section 271 (1) of the 1999 Constitution, it is also glaringly clear that the National Judicial

Council has been given a role to play in the appointment of Chief Judges of the States where the section states: “271 (1) The appointment of a person to the office of a Chief Judge of a State shall be made by the Governor of the state on the recommendation of the National Judicial Council subject to the confirmation of the appointment b}’ the House of Assembly of the State. It can be seen here again, although the Governor of a state has been vested with the power to appoint the chief judge of his own state, that power is not absolute as the Governor has to share the power with the National Judicial Council in recommending suitable persons and the State House of

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i) The Federal Judi cial Service Commis sion, persons for appointment to the offices of the Chief Justice of Nigeria… (b) Recommend to the President, the removal from office of the judicial officers specified in sub-paragraph (aj of this paragraph and to exercise disciplinary control over G such officers. (c) Recommend to the Governor from among the list of persons submitted to it by the State Judicial Service Commissions persons for appointment to the offices of the chief judge of the States and judge of the High Courts of States, the Grand Kadis and Kadis of the Sharia Court of Appeal of the States and the Presidents and Judges of the Customary Courts of Appeal of the States.

The court came to the conclusion that the trial Federal High Court lacked the jurisdiction to adjudicate upon the case of the plaintiff

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Assembly in confirming the appointment. It is in the spirit of the Constitution in ensuring checks and balances between the three arms of government that the role of the Governor in appointing and exercising disciplinary control over the chief judge of his state is subjected to the participation of the National Judicial Council and the House of Assembly of the stale in the exercise to ensure transparency and observance of the rule of law.

The cross-appellant has made heavy weather on the interpretation and application of section 292 (1) (a) (ii) of the 1999 Constitution which is said to have conferred unfettered powers on the Governor of Kwara State and the House of Assembly of Kwara State to remove the Chief Judge of Kwara State from office on an allegation of misconduct.

The relevant section of the Constitution states:

Justice Aloma Mariam Mukhtar “292(1) A judicial officer shall not be removed from office or appointment before his age of retirement except in the following circumstances: (a) in case of: (i) The Chief Justice of Nigeria... (ii) The Chief Judge of a State, Grand Kadi of a Sharia Court of Appeal or President of a Customary Court of Appeal of a State, by the Governor acting or, the address supported by twothirds majority of the House of Assembly of the State praying that he be so removed for his inability to discharge the functions of his office or appointment (whether arising from infirmity of mind or of body) or for misconduct or contravention of the code of conduct.”

The provision of section 292(1)(a)(ii) of the Consti-

tution above also deals with the power of the Governor to remove the chief judge of a state in conjunction with the House of Assembly of the State.

Although it is true, as argued by the learned senior counsel to the cross-appellant that, the above section 292(1) made no provision for the National Judicial Council to play any role in the removal of a chief judge of a state, the fact that the Council has a vital role to play in the appointment, removal and exercising control over a chief judge of a state under section 271 (1) of the Constitution and also under paragraph 21 of Part 1 of the Third Schedule to the same Constitution is not at all in doubt.

To be concluded

Female SANs task govt on security challenges

A

mid growing uncer tainty over the faith of the remaining abducted school girls in the custody of armed men in Borno state, Female Senior Advocates of Nigeria have called on the government to combat the security challenges in the country and ensure adequate protection for citizens.

They made this call in a press statement on the heels of the Abuja motorpark bombing and abduction of over 100 girls in a secondary school in Borno state.

According to the Senior female lawyers, “These acts of terrorism, particularly against children, are increasing daily. They show the highest disregard for human lives, dignity and the law. They raise germane issues that border on the rights guaranteed people by the Con-

stitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the duty of the Government to protect these rights. The Government must urgently protect the basic rights of citizens and provide adequate security for them.”

“The Government must also intensify her efforts at combating the growing

security challenges in our dear country. It is most unfortunate that certain parts of our dear country have turned into war zones where human life is extinguished on a regular basis by these faceless persons who appear to evade prosecution”. The statement added.

The Senior Advocates

recalled that “ On the 15th of April, at least 80 people were killed and over 200 persons injured in an early morning bomb blast in Abuja.On the 16th of April, over a 100 innocent school girls were abducted by persons unknown from the Government Girls Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State. We ve-

hemently condemn the abduction of these innocent school girls who are our daughters, granddaughters, sisters and nieces.We urge all Nigerians to speak out against these acts of terrorism irrespective of their gender, religion or other circumstances of their birth.”They said.

VANGUARD, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014—41

Attempted DSS jailbreak: The truth needs be told to some extent, delegitimizing what ought to be a credible fight against terrorism.

There is some advocacy to take government forces to the International Criminal Court (along with

By JOSEPH OTTEH & RITA PATRICK

O

BY AWA KALU, SAN

B

EFORE we advert to the decisions of the Supreme Court on those crucial issues in the 1979 Constitution which have since continued to reverberate by virtue of similar provisions of the 1999 Constitution, a reflection on the facts of John Agbo v. The State, (2007) 2 NCC 158 and the decision of the Supreme Court thereon, will guide the discerning in appreciating the likely turn of events in Oscar Pistorious’ trial to the deceased and asked him why he blocked the road with his car.

An argument ensued between the Appellant and the deceased. It was in the course of the argument that the appel-

To be continued.

NIALS honours media houses, practitioners Nigerian Institute of Advance Legal Studies, NIALS, recently held a media award in Abuja. Some media practitioners and organisations honoured, include Vanguard Newspapers, The Nation Newspapers, Daily Trust Newspapers, the Nigeria Television Authority, NTA; and Channels Television.

DSS operatives shortly after the jailbreak DSS or its operatives, or, who, in fact made no attempts to escape from detention were fired at to prevent them from even contemplating the possibility of fleeing! Is this what happened? Preventive shooting, or, actually, preventive killing!

No clear justification has been provided by the DSS or the Nigerian State for the killing of such a multitude of vulnerable detain-

,

N Sunday March 30, 2014, about 21 persons suspected of belonging to the Boko Haram sect were killed and many others wounded during the a reported jailbreak at the Asokoro headquarters of the Department of State Security in Abuja.

The official account of the incident as reported in the media is that a detainee struck an operative who had brought breakfast, with his handcuff. The report did not say whether the handcuff had been locked around the detainee’s wrist or had been unlocked. It did not say the extent to which the actions of the detainee threatened the life or safety of the operative, and whether the detainee succeeded in dispossessing the operative of his weapon if s/ he carried one. The statement further said that bullets were fired at the detainee, but did not say what other detainees did to deserve being fired at or killed. Some media reports quote Ms. Marilyn Ogar, Deputy Director, Public Relations, of the State Security Service, Ms. Marilyn Ogar as saying that “… the attempt by the detainee to escape made other SSS operatives on guard to fire shots to prevent others from escaping.”

A literal interpretation of this statement is that other detainees who posed no danger to the

Boko Haram fighters) because our government will not rein in wayward, illegitimate violence meted to innocent victims by its security forces.

Did they all die immediately after the shooting or were injured persons given medical assistance?

There has been no clear, forthright, convincing and consistent statement from the DSS, SSS or government to justify this massacre.

Anyone associated with the Boko Haram sect would ordinarily face considerable public prejudice given the horrifying atrocities attributed to the

Anyone associated with the Boko Haram sect would ordinarily face considerable public prejudice given the horrifying atrocities attributed to the group

,

ees. We pose many questions to the SSS: Where were the detainees when they were fired at? Outside of their enclosures or within? Within the precincts of the DSS facility or outside? At what point were they fired at, and with what purpose? To restrain their flight or to annihilate them? Then, who fired at them? The DSS/ SSS or the soldiers who came to assist them? Were they fired at to avoid political embarrassment?

group; yet, it is this negative perception that renders both them (as well as those wrongly associated with them) so vulnerable to persecution, to being silenced, brutalized or violated capriciously.

The death of anyone associated with this sect must be subject to the toughest scrutiny to avoid people getting away with clear homicides only by the sheer unpopularity of the victims’ ascribed label.

And yes: Nigerian law

enforcement and security agencies do understand how to leverage on unpopular stereotypes and how little sympathies exist for people associated – truthfully or falsely – to reviled groups.

We see this every time, every where. They abound with the Police routinely saying those they extrajudicially killed were armed robbers who were trying to flee from the law, and to refresh our memory with a notorious piece of history, we recall the Apo 6. We see the Joint Task Force (JTF) saying that those it killed in Baga, Maiduguri last year were terrorists, when it fired indiscriminately at unarmed civilians in revenge for the killing of an Army Lieutenant or Lance Corporal. Our security forces, overwhelmed by the escalating affront of extremist groups are, no doubt, under pressure, and have repeatedly acted with impunity and committed grave crimes against many innocent people, in a largely unchallenged way.

Reports of extrajudicial, summary executions by government forces are clearly intensifying and,

Oscar Pistorius trial (3) lant was said to have shot the deceased with his pistol which he was carrying with him. The Appellant gave evidence for himself and called no witness.

The Appellant’s case was that there was a struggle, between him and the deceased and it was during the struggle, that the deceased wanted to take possession of his pistol and in the process, his gun was accidentally fired and the bullet from his gun, hit the deceased. In effect, his defence was “accidental discharge”. The learned trial Judge held that the prosecution had proved their case beyond rea-

sonable doubt. His Lordship rejected the defence of accident. He convicted the Appellant and sentenced him to death by hanging. Dissatisfied with the conviction and sentence, the Appellant appealed to the Court of Appeal which the decision of the High Court.

Aggrieved by the said decision of the Court of Appeal, the Appellant further appealed to the Supreme Court”.

Crucial principles The crucial principles of criminal law which the Supreme Court confirmed (and of which a

lot will be heard later in the Oscar Pistorious trial are that: (a) “A piece of evidence contradicts another when it affirms the opposite of what that other evidence has stated, not when there is just a minor discrepancy between them.

It is useful to bear in mind the fact that the word “contradict” comes from two Latin words contra (opposite) and dicere (to stay). Two pieces of evidence contradict one another when they are themselves inconsistent.

On the other hand, a discrepancy may occur when a piece of evidence stops short of, or contains a little more than, what

From left: Mrs Victoria Awomolo, SAN; Prof. Ignatius Ayua, SAN and Prof. Epiphany Azinge, SAN.

From left: Prof. Yinka Omoregbe; Institute Secretary, Mr James Bathnna and Ag. Institute Busar, Mr Augustine Odukoma.

From left: Prof. Bambo Adewopo, Prof. Paul Idornigie and Prof. Charles Iloegbune, SAN. the other piece of evidence says or contains a little more than, what the other piece of evidence says of contains some minor differences in details” (b) Proof beyond reasonable doubt, does not mean proof beyond a shadow of doubt, as stated by Denning J, in the case of Miller v. Minister of Pensions 1947 2 All E.R. page 372 when he said.

“Proof beyond reasonable doubt does not mean proof beyond the shadow of doubt. The law would fail to protect the community if it admitted fanciful possibilities to deflect the course of justice. If the evidence is so strong against a man as to leave only a remote possibility in his favour which can

be dismissed with the sentences “of course it is possible, but not in the least probable,” the case is proved beyond reasonable doubt, but nothing short of that will suffice.” (c) Situations like this whereby policemen rashly bright out their guns, (Albeit to merely threaten or frighten citizens) is rapidly becoming rampant.

They are meant to use the guns to safeguard the lives of the citizenry they are paid to protect, but the reverse is the case. A policeman will not hesitate to pull the trigger of his gun at the slightest provocation, and would indeed do that with relish but fatal. The incident in the instant case is a locus classicus”.

42 — Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014—43

44—Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

Teachers' Institute begins degree programmes

Don advocates part-time parliamentarians to cut cost

T

Y

BY SAMUEL OYADONGHA

HE National Teachers’ Institute, Kaduna State, has concluded plans to introduce Bachelor ’s degree programmes in various fields of education.

Director-General of the institute, Dr. Aminu Sharehu, disclosed this at the just-concluded 2014 matriculation of fresh students.

Aminu said the degree programmes will be the best in teacher-training in the country, going by the course content and the general preparation on the take-off of the programmes.

He said that the orientation for course facilitators was geared towards upgrading their knowledge in methodology and subject areas with reference to the open and distance education for an improved performance.

Sharehu said that part of the institute’s fivepoint target of capacity building of its regular and part-time staff could be achieved through regular training, which would improve the quality of personnel that would in turn produce quality graduates in all its programmes nationwide.

He advised the students to commit not less than four hours daily of selfstudy to their works, engage themselves in tutorials and ensure faceto-face contact with facilitators at the centres.

E N A G O A — A university don, Professor Gesiye Angaye, has advocated a drastic reduction in the executive and legislative arms of government at every tier to cut cost and conserve funds for capital projects, describing as ‘too expensive’ Nigeria’s presidential system of government.

Angaye, a former Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning in Bayelsa State in an interview in Yenagoa, said that apart from the Speakers and Deputy Speakers, all other parliamentarians should be part-time members as it was in the First Republic.

This, according Angaye, a lecturer with Bayelsa Stateowned Niger Delta University, will help improve the quality of legislators as only those

interested in the development of the country will volunteer to serve.

Describing the country as a

case of over-governed rich but poor nation, he said: “Nigeria seems to be wasting her rich oil wealth on

Delta employs 1,450 under SEEFOR scheme

BY EGUFE YAFUGBORHI

W

ARRI— DELTA State Government has engaged additional 1,450 jobless persons in public works opportunities under the State Employment and Expenditure for Result Project, SEEFOR, scheme.

The state Commissioner for Finance and Chairman, Implementation Committee on SEEFOR, Mr. Kenneth Okpara, said the empowerment opportunity was a collaboration between the state, World Bank and civil society towards stemming mass unemployment in the state.

Okpara, who spoke at the

orientation for engaged persons, said: “The initiative is part implementation of the Delta Beyond Oil policy.

“It is geared towards shifting the state’s economy from over-dependence on oil revenue and its limited opportunities to a diversified market at empowering as many unemployed as possible.

A

Lagos High Court has adjourned till April 28, further hearing in the trial of an oil subsidy fraud suspect, Oluwaseun Ogunbambo, who is being prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, before Justice Adeniyi Onigbanjo.

Ogunbambo was absent at the last hearing in the matter.

It was, however, gathered that his absence was because he was in critical condition at an undisclosed hospital, after being attacked by four gunmen operating on a

motorcycle on April 5.

According to a police report, the assailants allegedly ambushed Ogunbambo in his jeep near his house in Ikoyi, Lagos, at 8p.m.

The attackers pulled him out of his car, shot sporadically into the air during the operation, and physically assaulted him.

Ogunbambo was left unconscious and rushed to an undisclosed hospital by passersby, where he was admitted following severe injuries.

Ogunbambo had, through his counsel, expressed fear in a petition he sent to the Chief Justice of the Federation, Justice Mariam Aloma-Muktar and

U

GHELLI—A group, Delta Fresh Vision, has urged Chief Mike Uwaka, a prominent chieftain of

Chief Judge of Lagos State, Justice Ayotunde Philips, last year, claiming that some influential people, among them a major oil marketer, were behind his travails over allegation of fuel subsidy scam, for which he is standing trial.

At the hearing on April 10, EFCC’s counsel told the court that the information at the commission’s disposal was that the suspect had fled to Canada but Ogunbambo’s lawyer, Raphael Oluyede, dismissed the EFCC’s claim, saying that his client was absent from court because he was recently attacked by some gunmen, who had wanted to abduct him.

People’s Democratic Party, PDP, in Delta State to run for the 2015 governorship election in the state.

Coordinators of the group, Mr. Chugaby Onwuka and Fred Akpewe hinged their plea on what they described as Uwaka’s antecedents as a visionary politician, philanthropist and political leader whose profile, they said, fits into the picture of who would take the state to the next level.

The group, made up of youths, elders and political stakeholders in the state, visited the residence of Chief Uwaka in Kwale, Ndokwa West Local Government Area of the state, yesterday, and promised to draft him into the guber race.

Responding, Chief Uwaka promised to consult extensively with his people and political stakeholders and get back to the group.

By Bartholomew Madukwe

PEOPLE SPEAK

08102479985

“We started with 400 persons in Asaba last year. We will spread across the state. Each beneficiary gets one year of pay to engage in tasks, including road repairs and rehabilitation, environmental sanitation, waste management and other public works as may be assigned by accredited contractors and supervisors.”

...as group urges Uwaka to contest 2015 guber

OGUNBAMBO: Hearing on subsidy scam for April 28

BY ONOZURE DANIA

unproductive, undemocratic political structures and institutions, rather than building a wealthy nation.”

(nwamad@yahoo.com)

On P-Square's brouhaha

P

LEASE, P-Square should not break up.

You should also know that together you stand, but divided you will fall.

No one should believe that he is better than the other. We, your fans, do not believe any one of you is better than the other.— Ms. Akpos Wari, Businesswoman.

T

HE girl that just entered their family is key to this rumoured break-up between the twin brothers. All they need now are our prayers as fans and lovers of good music.

Otherwise, the break-up is inevitable.— Mr. Dan Dollars, Marketing Manager.

P

-SQUARE needs to agree on how to strike a balance. All these quarrels are bringing to the public domain what should be kept secret. People believe P-Square is always a collective effort from all parties involved.— Mr. Olakunle Victor, Auditor.

I

see no wisdom in PSquare bringing their family issue before the public. It is a family business, irrespective of whosoever sings or dances. That is no issue at all. I think the problem is too much money in their hands.— Mr. Kelvin Ndukwo, Footballer.

M

Y candid advice is that P-Square should know that majority of us, the fans and music lovers, honestly do not know or care who sings or who dances and so they should never make an issue out of it.— Mr. Stanley Chukwu, Worker.

M

AY God help PSquare. God is with you guys and he will keep you together forever, Peter and Paul.

That is all I think we should be doing for them; they need our prayers more now than ever to survive this trying time.— Mr. Blessed Wilson,Commentator.

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014 — 45

Gbaramatu crisis: Group wants genuine reconciliation

Senator urges suppor t for Jonathan

BY JIMITOTA ONOYUME

P

ORT HARCOURT— SENATOR Cyrus Nunieh has enjoined Nigerians to re-elect President Goodluck Jonathan for a second term.

The second republic politician, who spoke in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, at a forum of Making Nigeria Really Great Association, MNRG and Oriental Peoples Movement, said President Jonathan was already making meaningful impact in several sectors of the country.

“There is evidence to show that the government of Nigeria under President Jonathan is beginning to make Nigeria really great,” he said.

He added that there was need to allow Jonathan to continue in office for a second term since he had acquired more experience in governance as a first term President, explaining that his group, MNRG, was formed to contribute to making the country a great nation.

A-Ibom PDP stakeholders threaten litigation over alleged exclusion

S

OME members of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Akwa Ibom State have threatened court action to enforce the fundamental rights of every qualified party member to contest the party’s governorship primaries ahead of the 2015 governorship election.

This is in line with the decision of PDP elders and stakeholders who recently met in Uyo and called for a free and open contest in the forthcoming governorship primaries of the party.

Speaking on the issue, a notable member of the group and former Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in the state, Mr. Victor Inyanam, said that the option of a legal action was on the card if Governor Godswill Akpabio and his appointees insist on zoning, power shift or go against the party’s declaration to have an open contest.

A

WORKSHOP: From left: Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State; Senior Special Adviser to the governor on Foreign Matters, Mr. Oma Djebah and Ambassador Sola Omoregie, during the Preparatory Workshop for the United Nations Assessment of key sectors of Delta State economy, held in Government House, Asaba, yesterday.

Community threatens Shell's operations in Bayelsa I

NDIGENES of Letugbene community, an Iduwini clan in Ekeremore Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, have issued Shell Petroleum Development Company, a 14-day ultimatum within which to accord them ownership recognition of its Tunu flow-station operations or face their wrath.

The community, in statement by its chairman, Mr. Jonah Toikiri and Mr. Job Azosibe, secretary, in Warri, Delta State, yesterday, expressed reservation over Shell management's continued violation of court judgments, which accorded them ownership status to the flow-station since 2012.

Calling for total compliance to the judgments in the interest of peace, the people noted that failure to act on the ultimatum to reach out to them within the specified 14 days, the company should be prepared to either

vacate their land or engage all its military might to commit genocide in the community, as they would not hesitate to fight with their last blood to defend their land.

The statement said: “It will be recalled that on July 30, 2012, a Bayelsa State High Court, sitting in Yenagoa and presided over by the Chief Judge of the state, Justice Kate Abiri, entered judgment in favour of the Letugbene community against Shell and others in the suit No. YHC/ 31/1994, declaring Letugbene community as the owners of all the lands and areas bordering the Tunu Flow-Station location operated by Shell after more than 18 years of trial.

“The appeal filed by Shell at the Court of Appeal, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, was dismissed for want of prosecution on June 11, 2013, sequel to the community's motion filed by its

counsel, Nnamdi Ugwuka, at the same Appeal Court in Port Harcourt.

“Since these landmark judgments were delivered, all efforts made by the community through letters and other correspondences to reach out to Shell to accept the verdict of the courts and recognise Letugbene community as the host to the said Tunu Flow-station location and accord the community their due right and benefits as host community had proved abortive.

“Having exhausted all peaceful means to reach out to Shell to accord us our due recognition and rights without success, the people have resolved to take their destinies in their hands to ensure the enforcement of the judgments of the two courts and this we will do with everything we have including our blood."

2015: We never endorsed Wike as PDP guber candidate —Ijaw elders in Rivers

BY GBENGA OKE

I

JAW elders in Rivers State have distanced themselves from the alleged endorsement of the Supervising Minister of Education, Mr. Nyesom Wike, as the governorship candidate of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the state in 2015.

The elders, under the aegis of Andoni-Opobo-Nkoro Leaders of Thought, said it was the turn of the riverine area to lead the state.

In a statement by Prof. Dagogo Fubara, Alabo Biekpo Jack, Amaopusenibo Diri, Dr. Francis Minimah, Capt Paul Akins, Sunday Paul, Chief John Egongh, Mr. Ubokineme Owor and Gilbert Mkparo, the elders

said Wike pulled together a few self-serving politicians in the two local government areas of the state to endorse him for the governorship position.

According to the statement: “What we have seen is an orchestrated plan by lovers of underdevelopment to plunge the peace loving areas into political upheaval, with the active connivance of outsiders. We shall resist any such attempt at turning the two local government areas into a theatre of war. Andoni, Opobo and Nkoro people are too sophisticated to mortgage their future for a pot of porridge. No amount of money can make us sell our right to the Brick House, come 2015.

“Any political aspirant who feels he or she is worth the salt should come forward through the appropriate and legitimate means rather than go through the back door to induce endorsement.

“While we do not begrudge any person or group in Andoni, Opobo and Nkoro communities from taking any political position, it is our unequivocal stand that such a position should have the colouration of the majority of the people. The quest for pecuniary benefit by a few selfish politicians in the area leaves a sour taste in our mouth and such elements are willing tools in the campaign for divisive tendencies."

PRO-JONATHAN group, Nigerians Project for Goodluck Jonathan 2015, has urged Chief Government Ekpemupolo aka Tompolo and Chief Michael Johnny to opt for genuine reconciliation and pursue the development of Gbaramatu Kingdom.

Spokesman of the group, Mr. Musa Yakubu, said in Abuja yesterday: “We are delighted to know that respected Ijaw leaders in Delta State are already handling the matter to reconcile Tompolo, Johnny and others.

“Johnny is our national coordinator, but that does not stop us from advising him and Tompolo to shelve any plan or stop further action that could cause disaffection between them.

“Tompolo and Johnny should focus on the development of Gbaramatu rather than unnecessary dispute for any reason whatsoever.

“However, we appreciate Tompolo and Johnny for their respective contributions to Gbaramatu, and that is why both of them should ensure that the reconciliation process yields positive result."

Pa Ugbechie for burial

T

HE remains of the late Pa Gabriel Ugbechie, aged 92, of Isho village, Ubulu-Uku, Aniocha South Local Government Area of Delta State will be laid to rest on April 25, in his compound.

Christian wake and service of songs will hold in the same venue on April 24, followed by interment next day.

He is survived by a widow, 16 children, numerous grand-children and great grand-children among whom is Mr. Ken Ugbechie, Editor-inChief of Political Economist magazine and former Editor of Daily Times and Post Express newspapers.

Late Pa Ugbechie

46— Vanguard , THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

Ndigbo to honour Obi, Ihejirika, Nnaji, others

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AGOS State chapter of Ohanaeze Ndigbo has concluded plans to honour former governor of Anambra State, Mr Peter Obi; ex-Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Azubuike Ihejirika, and former Minister of Power, Prof.

Barth Nnaji, for their outstanding contributions to nation building.

The group said Obi and the others were among nine eminent Igbo people carefully selected to be recognised for sustaining the core Igbo values of excellence while in office.

The former public officers are being recognised for their diligence, hard work, sense of purpose, and for excelling in service delivery during their tenures in office.

Also to be honoured are Mr Reginald Stanley, the immediate past Executive Secretary of Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency, PPPRA, and retired Admiral Dele Ezeoba, a former Chief of Naval Staff.

Addressing newsmen in Lagos, President-General of the group, Prof. Anya O. Anya, said the group had resolved to give “a pat on the back” to Igbo people in various fields of human endeavour, who showed high ethical values while in leadership positions.

Okorocha's aide decamps to PDP

BY CHIDI NKWOPARA

O

W E R R I — S P E C I A L Adviser to Imo State governor, Rochas Okorocha, on Inter-Party Affairs, Chief Okey Dike, has resigned his appointment and defected from All Progressives Party, APC, to Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. Dike’s exit came on the heels of a similar action by the former APC state chairman, Prince Marshal Okafor-Anyanwu and woman leader, Lady Chidinma Akasike.

Dike announced his exit from APC yesterday, when the Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, Chief Emeka Ihedioha, attended PDP rally in Isu Local Government Area.

FG has infiltrated our rank — ASUP

BY LAIDE AKINBOADE

A

BUJA—IN view of the recent suspension of 10month old strike by some chapters of the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics, ASUP, National President of the union, Dr. Chibuzo Asomugha, yesterday admitted that the Federal Government had infiltrated its ranks.

Asomugha, who stated in an interaction with journalists in Abuja, said the union had already scheduled a massive rally that would involve students, parents, Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, civil society groups and Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union, COEASU for April 29, 2014, and condemned the insincerity and lack of commitment of the Federal Government.

He said: “ASUP is supposed to have suspended the strike about three weeks ago but we haven’t heard from the Federal Government.

“The Federal Government, since we had the last meeting with them, hasn’t bothered to reach out to us. So, with this kind of development, we don’t even think there is any measure of sincerity on the part of the government. ” We have been driven by desperation to get to this state and we are at the last stage of planning the rally and it is going to involve every stakeholder in the

…Schedules nationwide protest for April 29

PRESS BRIEFING: From left — Mr. Dolapo Ashiru, Head, Stockbroking Services, Lead Securities & Investment Ltd; Mr. Muyiwa Adeyemi, CEO, Lead Securities & Investment Ltd; Mr. Wale Adewunmi, Group MD, LeadCapital Plc and Sadiq Waziri, Head Research, Lead Securities &Investment Ltd at the LeadTrader Product demonstration press briefing held in Lagos. sector, the students, market women, parents, lecturers, and every concerned Nigerian. And we are planning it in conjunction with ASUP, Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, COEASU and civil society organisations.

“Now we are having the final meeting on the proposed rally with NLC and other stakeholders.

In fact we are planning on the 29th and if it doesn’t come up on the 29th, then it would be immediately after May Day. We have been waiting for the

Federal Government.”

He lamented that government was piling pressures on some chapters of the union to break the strike, warning that the union would be compelled to invoke provisions of its constitution to deal with cases of betrayal.

“Naturally, we expected government to come up with its own strategy to break the strike but we trust the character and resilience of our members to carry on until a conclusion is reached,” he said.

Nyako’s statement targeted at pulling down Jonathan’s govt, South East PDP alleges

BY PETER OKUTU

A

BAKALIKI—THE leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, South East zone, yesterday, alleged that the recent comments made by Adamawa State governor, Alhaji Murtala Nyako, over the state of the nation was targeted at pulling down the President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration.

In a statement by the zonal Publicity Secretary of PDP, Ali Odefa, the party described Governor Nyako’s statements as misleading and unfortunate, assuring that the party would remain stronger and better, despite the challenges facing the nation at present.

The statement reads: “We want to assure the APC that power and position comes from God and only the Almighty determines the fate of all mortals.

“We urge Nigerians to remain vigilant and watchful of these elements even as we assure that President Jonathan and the ruling party, PDP will neither be deterred nor derailed by these few who have reached their political menopause, but will continually

work towards building a country united by the goal of peace, progress and prosperity.

“The attention of the Peoples Democratic Party, in the Southeast zone has been drawn to the highly unfortunate and misinforming letter written to the governors of the 19 northern states by the APC Governor of Adamawa State, Alhaji Murtala Nyako.

“The said letter, which was published in a national daily, is a

clear manifestation of frustration and a twisted mind, whose sole aim is to once again cause disaffection amongst the people of Nigeria and ultimately plunge the country into crises and summarily pull down the current government of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, led by the President and Commanderin-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan.

Power Minister to commission new power cable plant in Nnewi

M

INISTER of Power, Prof. Chinedu Nebo, will, on Saturday, April 26, commission a new power cable plant at Cutix Plc (Power Cable Plant), 17 Osita Onyejianya Street, Umuanuka, Otolo Nnewi.

The Chief Executive Officer, who is also the President of the Cable Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, noted that the event would mark a turning point for cable manufacturing and the fight against imported

substandard cables in Nigeria.

The event is being organised by the management and staff of Cutix Plc. A statement co-signed by the founder, Dr. Gilbert Ajulu Uzodike, co-founder, Amb. Odi Nwosu, Chairman, David Ifezulike and CEO, Cutix Plc, Mr. Ifeanyi Uzodike, indicated that reception would hold at Conv-Aj Events Centre, Okpuno, Otolo Nnewi, after the commissioning by the minister.

Divorce census from politics, NPC boss pleads

BY CHIDI NKWOPARA

O

WERRI—THE Chairman, Nigerian Population Commission, NPC, Sir Eze Duruiheoma, SAN, has appealed to Nigerians to divorce politics from the forthcoming national census.

Duruiheoma, who made the appeal when he addressed the management staff of the commission in Owerri, also disclosed that preparations for the 2016 census would commence in earnest, consequent upon a Presidential proclamation to this effect.

“Census is of paramount importance to the nation and the world at large. Census is not all about revenue sharing; it is a system that generates data with which development could be planned and executed.

“The population of any country is primarily meant for planning, stressing that census should not been seen as a measure for revenue that should accrue to any part of the country. ”Let me make it abundantly clear that census is not all about revenue sharing but a method that generates data with which development can be planned. We should therefore de-politicise census,” he said.

The NPC boss identified poor funding, poor remuneration, dilapidated blocks and equipment as some of the problems facing the commission.

“I am aware of the existing salary disparity facing our staff.

I will take up the matter but you should let me have the data of other commissions and how much they earn, which will serve as the basis for comparison,” Duriheoma said.

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014—47

PRESENTATION: From left, President, Women in Technology in Nigeria, Mrs. Martha Alade; winners of International Traffic Application Competition, Joy Olufemi, Mary Okoro; Chairman, Diaspora Committee, House of Representatives, Mrs. Abike Dabiri-Erewa; other winners, Chikodili Ozoagu, Adeola Fasan, and Abisola Jegede, during presentation of certificates, on '2014 Girls in ICT Day,' in Lagos.

LAUNCH: From left, Marketing Manager, Information Technology and Mobile, Ms. Olajumoke Okikiolu; Director, Information Technology and Mobile, Mr. Emmanouil Revmatas, both of Samsung Electronics West Africa; Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Samsung Electronics Africa, Mr. George Ferreira, and Managing Director, Samsung Electronics West Africa, Mr. Brovo Kim, at Samsung's Galaxy S5 Premiere launch, in Lagos. Photo: Emeka Aginam

AWARD: From left, Frederick Udoaka, Oracle Systems Sales Director, West Central AfCARNIVAL: From left, Marketing Manager, Non- Alcoholic Drinks, Nigerian rica; Andy Nwani, Managing Director, DATAFLEX Nigeria, and Janusz Naklicki, Vice Breweries Plc, Sampson Oloche; Senior Brand Manager, Maltina, Wole Adedeji, President, A&C, General Business Eastern Europe, CIS, Middle East & Africa, at the presand Assistant Brand Manager, Dekoye Oyeyinka, at Lagos Carnival, spon- entation of Specialised Oracle Partner of the Year Award for Servers and Storage to DATAFLEX, in Accra, Ghana. sored by Maltina.

ANNIVERSARY: Pa Adesola Akerele and his wife, Madam Mojoyinola Akerele, cutting their 75th and 70th birthday, as well as their 50th wedding anniversary cakes, flanked by Dr. Victor Akerele, and his wife,Esther.

HAND-OVER: Chief Christopher Ominimini (right), Bishop Cyril Odutemu (left), and Sir Kenny Okolugbo, during the hand-over of keys of Toyota Hiace bus, bought by Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission, DESOPADEC, for the Ughelli Anglican Diocese, to Bishop Odutemu.

AWARD: From left, Shahar Oren, General Manager; Mr. Benson Tugbobo, Executive Director; Mr. Tombri Kimbai and Mr. Somefun Ishola, all of ETCO Nigeria Ltd, during the long service award and presentation of certificates to beneficiaries, in Lagos.

CONFERENCE: From left, Section of Business Law of the Nigerian Bar Association, SBL-NBA, Council member, Mrs. Olajumoke Bakare, Mr. Gbenga Oyebode, SBL-Chairman, and Mr. Seni Adio, CPC chair of SBL at the media briefing on 8th Business Law Conference of SBL, slated for May 26-28, 2014, in Lagos.

ACTIVATION: From left, Brand Manager, Absolut Vodka, Akintayo Akinseloyin; Marketing Director, Sola Oke, both of Pernod Ricard Nigeria, and a consumer, Miss Elinor Esowe, during the Absolut Easter activation, at Elegushi Private Beach, in Lagos.

48—Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

Jigawa farmers laud FG over distribution of fertiliser, seeds

D

UTSE— SOME farmers in Hadejia, Jigawa State, yesterday commended the Federal Government for the timely distribution of fertilisers and seeds, saying the gesture would accelerate paddy rice production.

The News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, reports that the government earmarked 48,000 hectares of farmland for rice cultivation this dry season in the state.

The government also distributed fertiliser, seeds and chemicals to the over 150,000 registered farmers under its Growth Enhancement Support, GES, programme, otherwise called e-wallet scheme.

NAN also reports that each of the benefiting farmers received three bags of the commodities from the programme.

A cross section of the farmers told NAN in Hadejia that the programme has enhanced access to fertilisers and encouraged production.

Alhaji Maiunguwa Jaga, Financial Secretary, Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria (RIFAN) in the state, described the scheme as a ‘step forward’ towards transforming agriculture in the country.

Tobacco control bill: BATN supports balanced regulation

L

AGOS — BRITISH American Tobacco, BAT, has reacted to the decision by the Federal Executive Council, FEC, to send an executive bill to the National Assembly, saying it supports a balanced regulation of the tobacco industry.

According to Mr. Freddy Messanvi, Director for Corporate and Regulatory Affairs for West Africa, the company’s position on regulation remains the same.

He said: "BAT supports effective regulation of the tobacco industry. For regulation to be effective and achieve its objectives it must be balanced and enforceable.

"BAT has always stated its support for tobacco regulation.

In the past, however, the company had asked that the drafting of tobacco control bills must be clear of ambiguities in other for it to be enforceable.

"The company had also maintained that tobacco control laws must ensure that the legal industry is not affected by such laws to the undue advantage of criminal tobacco smuggling rings.

Court stops Bauchi APC congress

BY SUZAN EDEH

B

AUCHI— A DISTRICT court in Azare, Bauchi State has stopped the ongoing local government and state congresses of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in the state.

Azare is the headquarters of Katagum Local Government Area of the state.

The Principal District Court 1, presided over by Judge Isa Mohammed, gave the order, yesterday, after listening to an application filed by counsel to 10 APC members, Mr Usman Baffa Darazo, praying the court to stop the congresses pending the determination of a motion

on notice on the issue.

Those joined in the suit were the APC, the Bauchi State Congress Committee of the party as well as its Chairman, Dr Almajiri Geidam.

The plaintiffs had alleged in the suit that there were fraud and other irregularities during the last ward congresses conducted by the congress committee in the state and asked the court to order all the parties to maintain status quo ante until the determination of the motion on notice.

In his ruling, Justice Mohammed also restrained the defendants from proceeding with local government and state

congresses and asked the respondents to maintain status quo and stop all activities on the result of the ward congresses conducted in the state between April 6 and April 9, 2014, pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.

He also adjourned the case till April 28, 2014.

In his reaction, the state acting Publicity Secretary of the party, Abubakar Suleiman, said he was not aware of the court order, adding that they had just finished their stakeholders meeting and did not have any knowledge of the ruling.

From left: One of the Nigerian Idol top 12 contestants, Paul Enoma; Director, Brands & Communication, Etisalat Nigeria, Enitan Denloye; another Top 12 contestant, Elvis Ejiro and Anthony Akpan, at the unveiling of the Etisalat sponsored Nigerian Idol Season 4 Top 12 contestants, in Lagos.

Rep calls for decisive action against insurgency

BY MARIE-THERESE NANLONG

J

OS — AS President Goodluck Jonathan meets with the 36 governors and security chiefs today over security challenges across the country, the member representing Jos South/Jos East Federal Constituency, Plateau State in the House of Representatives, Bitrus Kaze has called for more decisive action against all forms of insurgency.

The lawmaker decried the insecurity measures so far adopted in tackling insurgency and corruption, saying a more drastic measure would bring the current situation under control.

Kaze, who spoke with Vanguard in an interview in Jos, said President Jonathan should be decisive in tackling insecurity to curb frequent loss of lives and property to the insurgents who were bent on wreaking havoc on innocent citizens.

His words: “When something happened in Odi and Zaki/Biam, former President Olusegun Obasanjo went full blast over the matter. The international community and Nigerians condemned him but that was the end. I am

not suggesting the Odi/Zaki Biam solution but the fact that Obasanjo hit the nail on the head right on time.

“I am not seeing that with the Jonathan Presidency. He tries to show that Obasanjo was too harsh; did not consider the human rights of the people he faced forgetting also that the insurgents in our case as we have it today do not have respect for human rights and do not deserve their

human rights to be respected.

“We need to see a forceful Presidency much more than what we have seen; one who will go all out and face these people wherever they are.

“The time of cajoling, persuasion, dialogue or amnesty is long gone and we need to face terrorists for who they are. Nigeria is in a full blast war waged by the terrorists and we need to go full blast against terrorism.”

6 policemen get certificates of commendation in Yobe

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AMATURU — THE Yobe State Police Command, yesterday, presented special certificates of commendation to six policemen for bravery.

The six policemen were honoured for foiling an attempt by gunmen to attack the Mobile Police Base, Damaturu.

Alhaji Rufai Sanusi, the Police Commissioner, while presenting the certificates, said one inspector and five others uncovered plans by gunmen to attack the mobile police base.

He said: “On February 16, 2014, the suspected gunmen were spotted on surveillance,

spying the mobile base. The policemen uncovered the nefarious plan and gallantly engaged them in a gun battle but they escaped.

“The certificates are in recognition of their alertness, courage and gallantry in confronting the suspects.”

Sanusi said the command would recommend their promotion to the Inspector General of Police.

He noted: “We are modelling after the Inspector General of Police’s policy of recognising excellence to encourage efficiency in the police."

Bauchi receives N10bn World Bank loan to resuscitate water sector

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AUCHI — THE Bauchi State Government is to receive N10 billion loan from the World Bank to resuscitate its water sector, the former state Commissioner for Water Resources, Alhaji Sani Bura, has said.

Bura made this known, yesterday, in Bauchi while handing over the affairs of the ministry to his successor, Alhaji Bappa Azare.

He said the money would be used for the upgrading of the main water treatment plant, construction of additional reservoir, extension and distribution of pipelines to new layouts in the state.

He said the loan would also be spent on the provision of dedicated electricity line to the water works and setting up of laboratories at the Bauchi and Azare Treatment Plants.

Other projects include the computerisation of billing and collection system, logistics for commercial activities and capacity building for staff.

Bura said water supply to Bauchi Metropolis and its environs would be improved upon when the projects were fully executed.

The outgoing commissioner urged his successor to use his wealth of experience and utilise the fund judiciously to boost the water sector for the benefit of the people of the state.

Responding, Azare commended the efforts of his predecessor, which according to him, helped to transform the sector.

He urged the staff of the ministry to give him the necessary support to enable him to excel in his assignment.

The News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, reports that Bura was redeployed to the works and transport ministry while Azare was formerly in charge of special duties ministry.

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014 — 49

50 — Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

In season of crisis, NTN chorale sings for peace STORIES BY JAPHET ALAKAM

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ESPITE the state of insecurity in the country, events in and around the country reveal that Nigerians are fun loving people and this they demonstrated last Monday when they trouped out en mass to the Cinema Hall 2 of the National theatre for the much advertised special Easter Chorale performance tagged Peace and Unity.

The chorale performance which was put together by the National

the President's transformation agenda to put the nation as one.

The country remains unshakable so we should dwell much on the things that bind us together than those things that divide us."

As early as 3. pm, people were already seated in the hall and when the event actually kicked off around 4.pm the entire hall was filled to the brim and even as the event was been rounded up, many people were still entering into the hall, an indication that they were actually interested in such things that bring people together than the

,

The same group that jump, dance and roll on the ground during drama were the same people that were quite and solemn like angels with their voices dishing out melodious tones

Troupe of Nigeria,(NTN) a body responsible for showcasing the rich cultural heritage of Nigeria through dance, music and drama was according to Martins Adaji, the Artistic Director of the NTN aimed at preaching peace at this trying time of the country through music. “No other time than now that we need peace and unity than this time. We do not want the nation to remain solemn and that is why we are keying into

,

war, kidnapping, killings, bombings and others that divide the country.

Divided into three segments, after the few remarks by the Artistic director, the National troupe chorale group led by Dapo Omidiyi mounted the stage for the first presentation.

Dressed in white top and black trousers with solemn voice, the group sang and performed many songs that harped on peace. It

* National Troupe chorale group performing at the event includes such songs like, Lay down your sword and shield down by the river side; I lekam, me I like country, everything dey for Nigeria, mak we join hands …... to make Nigeria better. It was indeed a very modest way of preaching peace through song.

One unique thing about the first presentation was the fact that the same group that jump , dance and roll on the ground during drama were quite and solemn like angels with their voices dishing out some melodious tones that made one who had not been to church before to remember the choristers of the local churches.

In the second segment, the group came out with traditional wears representing the various tribes in Nigeria like Igbo, Hausa, Yoruba, Niger Delta and

Loud ovation After that the lead singer came with his songs and followed by three young men that choreographed it before others finally joined them as they rendered many songs that celebrates the mothers for their great role in the family.

Finally, they came out again with their Nigerian attires and rendered some known songs that celebrates the unity and rich

cultural heritage of the country like Nigeria Ikwo wa, Nigeria na we own; For a better Nigeria, united we stand and other songs that celebrates the unity of the country. And they rounded it up with some old tunes like If you want to marry taxi driver; Sisi eko; Onidodo oni maimai and the audience joined them as they danced in celebration of one Nigeria.

It was indeed an evening of great songs rendered in such a special way that made many pray for peace of the country as it is only in a peaceful environment that such things can take place.

And credit must be given the National Troupe of Nigeria for providing such opportunity for Nigerians to celebrate and enjoy themselves while reflecting on the importance of peace especially at this period.

I wasn't expecting to win—Anjola, 2014

Olu Jacobs, Ozokwor, Aki read at PH World Book Capital

VOTC painting winner

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Master’s Hand Academy Badagry who emerged the winner of the third edition of the Vision of the Prof.Wole Soyinka (middle),1st place winner Anjola Olarenwaju Child painting (left) and 2nd place winner Okey Ogunjiofor (right) at the presencompetition, a tation component of the Lagos Black Heritage Festival.

WASN'T expecting to win In an exquisite gala night, the organisers the competition.My painting was all crowned 11 year-old Anjola Olarenwaju, about the tree which stands for the law of winner and she went home with the impunity, and the land stands for the rule N250,000 cash prize for her outstanding of law where things are meant to grow painting which vividly and impressively but the law of impunity just uprooted from captured the theme of the painting compethe ground and started stepping on all tition “The Rule Of Law And The Law Of those things that are meant to grow like Impunity”. education, economy, banks, aviation The second position went to Okey which are meant to be growing to make Ogumjiofor Joseph (Apostolic Faith SecNigeria better. But impunity is waxing ondary School Anthony Village): N200,000 stronger over them so that they can’t while third position - Hodonu Mawuton grow.” These were the words of eleven Mayowa (Beulah Comprehensive College year-old Anjola Olarenwaju, a student of

I

the conductor with a shining long Niger Delta attire with a hat led the group as they rendered many songs in Hausa and Yoruba, like Babalawo m, obe le wa, Yari ya yee... etc and this time it was performed with dance and the audience responded with a loud ovation.

Badagry): N180,000.

According to the festival consultant, Professor Wole Soyinka, the theme was a deliberate effort to stretch the creativity of these young talents. “When we embarked on this project, some thought that the theme was very challenging and that we were pushing the children too far. From time to time, we give them an opportunity to express themselves in a unique way and to hone their creativity skills. The theme is indeed challenging but sometimes you give them a near impossible theme. It is deliberate because it stimulates them to do more and they have proved that they are equal to the task.”

The well attended event had prominent personalities such as the Lagos state commissioner for tourism and intergovernmental relations, Disun Holloway, Hon. Tola Wewe, executive director of regional business of Diamond Bank Victor Ezenwoko, HRH Erelu Abiola Dosunmu among others.

VARIETY of Nollywood ac tors and actresses read to school children in Port Harcourt as part of activities to mark the UNESCO World Book Capital 2014 Opening Ceremonies.

Amongst the lineup of actors are veteran Olu Jacobs, serial mum – Patience Ozokwor and Chinedu Ikedieze popularly known as Aki. The readings were part of a campaign tagged “Celebrities Read” aimed at using popular role models to inspire children to develop a reading culture. The readings with Nollywood actors is took place on Tuesday April 22, 2014 at the Main Banquet Hall of Hotel Presidential,the Opening Ceremonies for the Port Harcourt World Book Capital 2014 which took place between 22nd April and 26th April, 2014.

Highlights of the ceremonies include an international literature and culture exhibition, readings with authors, drama performances and panel discussions.

Y

ES, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan has given hope to the development of Art in Nigeria.

So let’s design the set before we switch on the footlights. We start the countdown to ‘the Build Up’ of Nigeria’s Entertainment industry.

President Goodluck Jonathan has laid the financial foundation by giving vivid hope for a viable entertainment industry. There is no medicine like hope they say, no incentive so great, and no tonic so powerful as expectation for something tomorrow. Hope is the dream of a waking man.

Let’s wake up to the start of the building of a broad based and vibrant entertainment industry.

Keeping the artists employed, building auditorium, Hall of fame, Training schools for stage and movies performers, build an Arrowhead like Camwood City with Tinapa as the nucleus to beef up the tourism industry.

Welfare: Over the years, Nigerian artists have been clamouring for Endowment fund to provide security and dignity for practitioners. Now is the time to build the foundation, starting from the welfare of the practitioners. Indeed, for well over two decades, artists have been advocating for endowment fund for the practitioners while several federal ministries of Arts and Culture wallow in ‘their game of musical chairs’ taking turns to trip out and around the country making no meaningful changes or even to recommend to the government to make it possible for such security to be effected, so that artistes can look forward to some financial benefits at old age; though artistes don’t retire.

Also in case the worst comes to the end, such as death, they could at least have decent burials.

Artists like the great Orlando Martins, the first Nigerian actor

to perform in Hollywood America, and alongside great actors like Ronald Reagan who later became America’s president, came home and died unsung after a few years.

He could not get a decent burial because such happenings were not provided for. Nigeria’s first pop music Ambassador, Ambrose Campbell, who played Nigerian pop music in ‘West End’ in the fifties and sixties, in fact he was the guest artist invited home officially at Nigeria’s independence in October 1960.

He was sent back to London from a sick bed. He recovered and played High life in London and America until he was 84 when he started to appeal to the Nigerian government to help him come home. I personally spoke with him in his dinky little apartment in Hollywood where i visited him in company of Afro beat musician Orlando Julius and

actor/musician Jimi Solanke, and wrote in my column ‘stage and screen’ in the Vanguard Newspaper consistently for 3 years that he said ‘’i want to come home”. Ambrose Campbell died at 87 and was buried in America.

No Nigerian minister or government official knew his grave or sent a wreath. There was no means nor funds to help convey his remains home.

Another great Nigerian Fela Sowande, the first classical musician to score a Nigerian folk tune into a classical music in America also died unsung and equally buried in America. Here at home, great actors like Garuba of Village Headmaster, Toun

Oni, Funsho Alabi, to mention but a few, died and families and friends had to rally round to buy coffins and manage to give them artists’ funeral rites with candlelight procession. Despite the fact that the late Toun Oni popularly known as ‘Mama T’ was awarded national Honors, her corpse was tossed from church to friends and to family and delayed for days before finally sending it to her grave. It was a national embarrassment.

When footballers and athletes go and win one game and return with a medal, they come home to rewards of houses, and naira handshakes and streets named after them.

National awards Ben Enwonwu deserves a hall or city named after him, so too Ogunde, Fela E.t.c.. The government should in fact take cognisance of the fact that when artists achieve recognition high enough to merit national awards; it is not the same as governors, politicians, successful businessmen or civil servants being honoured.

The artist only has the sweat of his toil over the years to show and therefore should be helped to be comfortable. If therefore the Endowment fund was in place, some of these miseries and disgrace would have been taken care of by the Art forum.

Since 1963 when the national Honours exercise started. There has not been up to 10,000 awardees neither had there been up to 100 artists so honoured.

It wouldn’t have been too much for such awards along with the medals that caused them more enemies than friends to be followed with financial support.

Already such dedicated artists were ostracized from families and friends and what could have reconciled them would have been the magnet of money, to cushion their relationships with friends and neighbours, and encourage the younger generations of talents.

Artists are parents and they pay rent but medals don’t pay rent, nor school fees. National Honours to artists should at least relieve them of such burdens as homes, transportation, their children’s school fees, and save them hawking paintings to pay their rents or hopping on buses to performance venues.

J fi g e

,

Hope for Nigeria entertainment industry

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014 — 51

52—Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

Iceland and Nigerian asylum seekers

BY VERA SAMUEL ANYAGAFU

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HE rate at which many Nigerians, mostly women, apply for asylum in Iceland is rather high, and this, according to the acting director of the Directorate of Immigration, Þorsteinn Gunnarsson, is a huge challenge to the Iceland immigration authority.

At the moment, about 75 per cent of the women asylum seekers are accompanied by their children or are pregnant and do not have the original

papers to back up their requests from the Iceland government.

Although, many of the requests granted them are done in compliance with the United Nations rights to treaty, tackling the issue appears cumbersome, especially when it involves dealing with children.

It is imperative for asylum seekers to disabuse their minds of the misconception that an asylum application guarantees automatic residency in the host country. In other words, intending immigrants must ensure that they have legal documentation to back up their

stay in the country to avoid any kind of harassment and or deportation.

Notwithstanding the challenges the Iceland immigration authority is facing while dealing with the large number of illegal immigrants, including asylum applicants who throng the country, they still provided them with healthcare and medical services. Those who are pregnant were also attended to during periods of ante-natal and post-natal processes in accordance with the Iceland asylum principle.

Cost for servicing one asylum

•Iceland Immigration director, Kristín Völundardóttir Estimates show that applications for asylum in the country from Nigerian immigrants might number

above 120, and the direct cost for the Icelandic state for servicing one asylum seeker for one year is approximately ISK 2.6 million (USD 22,000, EUR 17,000).

As the case may be, the surge in asylum seekers in the country recently is such that it has out numbered the number of legal immigrants in the country, as compared to previous years.

According to a source, (names withheld), the Directorate of Immigration’s lawyer, who is solely responsible for the affairs of asylum seekers in the country can process more than two applications per month.

Asylum seekers It was noted that the Immigration director, Kristín Völundardóttir, once predicted that asylum applications in the country might number over a 100 individuals by the end of the year. Source also told Vanguard Consular Advisory (VCA) that the immigration directorate was earlier criticised for slow evaluation of applications from Nigerian asylum seekers.

Consequently, many of the Nigerian asylum seekers attempted to leave the country through dangerous routes. In view of the foregoing therefore, there is urgent need for responsible Nigerian authorities to address the rate at which many Nigerians migrate illegally to various countries of choice abroad through dangerous routes.

Also, it is important to examine reasons behind the mistreatment of Nigerian asylum seekers in Iceland, and suggest a more humane method of dealing with such asylum seekers.

V anguard Vanguard anguard,, THURSDAY, APRIL 24 , 2014 — 53

Weak institutional capacity may retard growth prospects in Nigeria —IMF

By OMOH GABRIEL

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HE International Monetary Fund, IMF, has said that despite recent strong nonoil growth in Nigeria, poverty and income inequality has remained high and social and governance indicators are below averages.

It also said that Structural reforms under the Transformation Agenda are ongoing, but that

significant infrastructure gaps and weak institutional capacity still retard growth prospects.

IMF Director in charge of Nigeria in a statement said “At the same time, vulnerabilities are rising in the buildup to general elections in 2015 and fiscal buffers have been reduced. Meanwhile, GDP is being rebased and structural shifts may suggest a refocus in some policy areas.

According to the IMF; “Growth is expected to remain strong driven by agriculture, trade, and services.

Inflation should continue to decline, in line with a tight monetary policy, and a lowering trend in food prices from higher rice and wheat production.

Key downside risks are persistently lower oil revenue from changing global dynamics and lower domestic produc-

tion; less prudent fiscal policy through the ongoing political cycle; ongoing security problems in the North; uncertainty about the pace of global recovery; and capital flow reversals from the expected unwinding of unconventional monetary policy in the advanced economies or increased domestic political risk”.

The statement said “Transparency and gov-

ernance in the oil sector should be enhanced, including by strengthening the regulatory framework through the passage of a sound Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) featuring stringent enforcement clauses.

It said that a multicountry partner strategy could also improve oil sector oversight. The fiscal framework should continue to be improved, with an appropriately conservative 2014 budget. Monetary policy should remain supportively tight, given the potential for capital flow reversals and fiscal slippages. It counseled that in the event of persist-

ent pressures, the naira should be allowed to adjust and reserve adequacy maintained.

Improving competitiveness and productivity to generate inclusive growth will require wide-ranging structural reforms. It said that three key areas could help promote inclusive growth—increasing the delivery of power, broadening the agricultural production base, and increasing access to finance for SMEs. Support for sectoral growth should be underpinned by improvements in competitiveness rather than by protectionist measures.

Committee on Labour, Civil Society sacks Chairperson *As Issa Aremu takes over

BY HENRY UMORU & JOSEPH ERUNKE

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BUJA —THERE was a mild drama and what could be described as a palace coup at the on- going National Conference as Committee on Civil Society, Labour and Sport yesterday sacked its chairperson, Mrs. Bola Ogunrinade Mrs Ogunrinade, a delegate representing Osun State who does not belong to the Labour or Civil Society family, was replaced with the ViceChairman, Mr. Issa Aremu in a unanimous decision by members.

Speaking with Journalists on the issue, Comrade Issa Aremu who is the Vice-President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC explained that it became imperative for the woman to be removed, “because of persistent nonappearance of the chairperson, the committee members have asked me to take over as the chairman and we intend to communicate this to the secretariat.

“The chairperson has not reported formally and the committee has taken off. It is going to be difficult to drive a committee which you don’t know the concept and the idea we have been running.”

Aremu who noted that the committee had been discussing all the four thematic issues: Civil Society, sports, youths and labour, said, “On labour we have had a robust discussion, we are coming to a conclusion that labour is a critical partner in the development process. It is the creator of wealth, if we motivate labour very

well, it can become good partner in development of Nigeria.”

Aremu who lamented however that there were many poor workers in Nigeria because their remuneration could not sustain them, said, “We have to address remuneration so that you don’t have workers who become working beggars because their income can hardly take care of them.”

Stating that victims of last Monday ’s Nyanya bomb blast were entitled to claims under labour laws, Issa Aremu said, “people are giving charity to victims of Nyanya blasts, but under our laws, they have legitimate claims because that accident happens to them at work.”

Aremu who argued that religion was not the problem with Nigeria because only three percent of the delegates indicated interest to serve on Committee on Religion, said, “that means the so called religious divide is artificial; it doesn’t exist. Delegates want to discuss issues that affect all of us. Issues like devolution of power, resource control, labour, they don’t want to discuss on whether you go to the church or mosque.”

Expressing confidence that government can use sports to create jobs to take youths out of criminal activities he said youths must first be developed before they can be empowered. He said, “There is a lot the political class can learn from this conference. Regardless of our reservation and sectional interest we are having common ground for development.

54—Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

•Professor Bolaji Akinyemi and Justice Idris Kutigi at the confab

We 'll review plea bargain — Delegates

BY LEVINUS NWABUGHIOGU

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HE concept of plea bargain in the Nigerian Judicial system might be expunged from the criminal justice system or at best reviewed to adequately

punish persons who run foul of the law.

This is the position of the National Conference Committee on Law and Judiciary.

The matter dominated discussions of the committee, yesterday when it deliberated on

“Law and Order.”

Members however got divided on whether the present status quo should be maintained or expunged from the legal system.

While some said the concept favours the rich, who get soft landing after stealing huge sums

of money others submitted that it subjects the ordinary Nigerian who had stolen a negligible item like a mobile phone or a goat to more years of imprisonment thereby creating an impression of injustice.

Speaking to Vanguard, Mr. Femi Falana (SAN), a member of the committee, said the position of the committee would be to review the law to accommodate everyone.

He said: “It is not plea bargain that is the problem. It is abuse of the use of plea bargain, more importantly, because it is limited and applicable to issues involving the rich and powerful members of the society whereas the ordinary people who run foul of the law are not entitled to such practice. It is a special arrangement for now. It is for the rich to have some sort of soft landing and this why the public is totally opposed to it.

“Ordinarily, because of the enormous cost of prosecuting a case, the state or the court would want to feel compelled to temper justice with mercy if an accused person comes forward to say I want to change my plea from no guilty to guilty. I want to save the time of the court. I don’t want to waste the resources of the state. Any Judge would want to be lenient but the problem in our

Why we want diaspora voting — Udechukwu MR. Christian Udechukwu, a London-based Nigerian is a delegate to the ongoing National Conference representing Nigerians in the Diaspora. In this interview, he, among other things told Vanguard that Nigerians in Diaspora need a voting right. the patronages and so on that

BY LEVINUS have become entrenched in NWABUGHIOGU Nigeria are not evident abroad.

So a politician who is coming N the cravings of to US or London or anywhere Nigerians in Diaspora at else to campaign will think the conference What Nigerians abroad crave seriously about what he is for are a nation that protects and offering the people.

Where a group of Nigerians cares for them as citizens living abroad, that stands up for them may have become used to not against foreign countries or asking questions, the ones that agents of other countries that are living abroad that are used to citizens asking politicians want to impede their progress.

They want a nation that offers questions and holding them to them great opportunities to be account will have a different the best they can be and approach. They will ask contribute the best they can questions.

They expect politicians who contribute to sustain the future make commitments to fulfill them and development of Nigeria. and deliver on them. And if they They want a nation that is fully don’t, then they will actively work functional, that defines their role in each development that to make sure that those enables them to access politicians don’t get re-elected.

So, It is for this reason that a lot opportunity to contribute in those of Nigerians abroad are roles and they seek to have opportunity to actually vote and canvassing for Diaspora voting perhaps, through that external because this is their homeland. vote which comes from abroad, Regardless of those who live which is not subjected to a lot of abroad and have become suspicions that surround local Americans or UK citizens, they election to use that as a way to still see Nigeria as their force politicians to think about homeland and they want to be their agenda for Nigeria because able to see that Nigeria has a functional first rate political

O

•Udechukwu: Federating units must look inwards for more revenue system. That is what we are going on now by both the state and private individuals to try and craving for.

On Nigerians in the Diaspora help channel those energies and perception of Nigeria that is of course through dealing The perceptions of Nigerians with issues of unemployment abroad are that we are extra and so on because when jobs are ordinary clever people. We are a created, those creative mind people endowed with high level become preoccupied but when of intelligence and extreme jobs are not there, it might capacity for creativity and this is become an excuse. The other an energy which Nigerians who thing is that Nigerians abroad have channeled it positively have are so perceived as extremely hard working. Therefore, it is not become global icons.

There is a whole lot of work surprising that Nigerians abroad

own system is that when a big guy in town steals billions of Naira, he is charged for money laundering by the EFCC. Meanwhile, before you launder the money, you would have stolen it. So if you committed stealing, which attracts seven years imprisonment, you simply brush that aside and charge him with money laundering which sentence is two years. In the same environment, a man who has stolen a goat is charged with stealing, he is not entitled to plea bargain and if convicted, he is sentenced to seven years imprisonment. No society can allow that for two long.”

Similarly, retired Justice Abdulahi Mustapha said, “it is the abuse that we should abolish.

I am not in support of the idea of abolishing plea bargain. It has been in the United States for years.”

In her own contribution, Benue State delegate, Dr. Duru Magdalene, disagreed, saying she would keep on pushing for the abolition of the concept.

Reason: Plea bargaining is more than armed robbery because these people who have stolen billions may have killed many people. This whole idea of plea bargain should be taken away. It shouldn’t be in the constitution.”

remit $21 billion annually into the Nigerian economy.

As Nigerians living abroad, we show the greatest of confidence in Nigeria by sending that money home every year. With that, when foreigners, the world Bank, IMF and all those who keep tab at remittance flows, see that Nigerians are remitting $21 billion every year into the economy, they are a bit more careful about what they say because if we have the confidence to invest in our homeland, then there is very little effort that we need to make to ensure that foreigners come in because we are doing it ourselves. However, we should make sure that our business environment is friendly because that is the only way we can get foreigners to come.

On issues raised by the President in his speech The speech captured some of the foundational issues that challenge the speedy development of Nigeria. Some of the issues that are challenging Nigeria essentially are fairness, justice, equity, access to resources, revenue sharing formula and compelling us to look inwards into how the federating units or the states in Nigeria can look inwards to ask themselves what natural resources, human and materials, that exist in those states that they can develop so that there’s more coming into the purse which is then to be shared.

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014—55

Fayose defends Sambo

STORIES BY DAPO AKINREFON

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T

HE All Progressives Congress, APC, has accused the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of allegedly unleashing terror on Egbe-Ekiti community in Gbonyin Local Council during a campaign rally of the party’s gubernatorial candidate, Ayo Fayose, on Monday.

The party also accused the Labour Party, LP, of carrying out attacks on its supporters in IpoleIloro, Ekiti West Local Council.

However, the PDP and LP have described the allegations as untrue.

Vanguard gathered that a house belonging to a chieftain of the APC, Chief Dapo Awojolu, was allegedly hit by the rampaging thugs.

According to eyewitnesses, the thugs, who came in a truck were armed with guns, cutlasses and axes.

When contacted, Chief Awojolu, said the attack was unprovoked and that he had reported the incident to the Police. He said the opposition considered him a threat in Gbonyin Local Government and were therefore all out to destroy him.

The spokesperson of Kayode Fayemi Campaign Organisation, Dimeji Daniels, said "the PDP should know that guns will not win this election. Only records of excellent performance will and Dr. Kayode Fayemi has that in abundance. Having seen his giant strides, our people have made up their minds on reelecting him. That is a red card to the PDP and its co-traveller,

•Fayemi

•Fayose

•Bamidele

How PDP, LP attacked us — APC •The attack was provocative — PDP •It’s mere fabrication — LP Labour Party. They can amuse themselves for as long as they want. The truth is that Ekiti people have red-carded them.

The attack was provocative — PDP Reacting to the allegation, spokesperson of the PDP, Pastor Kola Oluwawole, told Vanguard that “it is unfortunate and malicious that the APC went to organise a parallel programme against a PDP campaign, which was officially granted by the Nigeria Police.”

Oluwawole said “It was a deliberate act of provocation. The APC had no programme at all in that local government area because the PDP was granted official permit to organise a rally there but Chief Dapo Awojolu deliberately organised a parallel programme in his house where

he said he wanted to kill a ram.

The DPO in that local government warned him not to do such. He organised the parallel programme deliberately to provoke the PDP. For the APC to allege that it was the PDP that first attacked them, is malicious, ridiculous and unfortunate.”

Ipole-Iloro attacks Also, the APC accused t he Labour Party of allegedly carrying out violence against its members in Ipole-Iloro, Ekiti West Local Government area of the state.

The party, which alleged that campaign billboards of Dr. Fayemi in the community were shredded in a most venous manner, fingered LP supporters in the attack.

It’s mere fabrication—LP

In its reaction, the Labour Party described the APC's allegations as “mere fabrications.”

In a statement by its Media and Publicity Secretary, Mrs Bolanle Olatunde-Bruce, the party said: "These allegations are mere fabrications typical of the APC and its goons. They are totally false and a figment of someone’s imagination. We do not harbour thugs in our party, we go about our campaign rallies peacefully. It is a known fact in Ekiti today that we run the most scientific and issue based governorship campaign devoid of name calling, violence and/or arson", it stated.

The party added that “On the contrary, it is the APC and its thugs that have continued to unleash terror on our party members."

Fayose gathers support, recruits Senator Ola, former dep

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R. Ayo Fayose’s campaign for the governorship election has got a boost after a one-time loyalist of the All Progressives Congress, APC, former Senator Bode Ola switched parties to support Fayose.

Another former antagonist that has come on board is the erstwhile deputy governor of the state, Dr. Sikiru Lawal, who at the peak of the controversies that trailed Fayose’s governorship sided with those against the governor.

Senator Ola, who served for one term and did not win the party’s endorsement for a second term in 2011, claimed he was jumping ship because he believed Fayose would win the election.

He formally declared his support for the former governor during a courtesy call on the PDP gubernatorial candidate.

Welcoming Senator Ola, Fayose said PDP was a

democratic party and not a cult, adding that its umbrella was very wide enough to accommodate as many as possible including his main rival in the contest, Governor Kayode Fayemi.

Besides Ola, 45 prominent PDP leaders in Ado Local Government Area have also pledged support for Fayose.

The PDP leaders were led by former Deputy Governor, Ekiti

State, Dr Sikiru Lawal; former Ado Local Government Chairman, Mrs Tosin Aluko and the Ado Local Government PDP Chairman, Hon Kola Lawal.

We're not with you, Oyebode replies Bamidele

BY EMMANUEL AZIKEN

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R. Yinka Oyebode, official spokesman of Governor Kayode Fayemi has debunked assertions that majority of the governor ’s cabinet was secretly backing the Labour Party candidate, Opeyemi Bamidele.

Oyebode who spoke at a campaign forum in Ido-Ile Ekiti also pooh-poohed claims by the PDP candidate, Ayo Fayose that he influenced the first term election of Governor Fayemi.

Bamidele, a one time a pal of the governor, had recently claimed that a majority of

Governor Fayemi’s cabinet was backing his bid against their boss.

Debunking the claim, Oyebode described the allegation as not only puerile but also illogical.

“How can you have majority of the exco members on your side and they are ashamed to identify with you publicly? That is a badly concocted lie, quite idiotic,” Oyebode replied.

Successful election The fact is that Fayose was still in self –exile while Dr Fayemi

contested the April 2007 governorship election which he won but was denied. It was the successful challenge of the outcome of the 2007 election at the tribunal and Appeal Court that led to the re-run election of April 2009.

“You will recall that a good number of former governors also supported Fayemi in the general and rerun elections, so for Fayose to claim that he made Fayemi governor is ridiculous and is nothing but an attempt to identify with a success story by any means possible.

HE Fayose Campaign has dismissed insinuations by the APC that Vice President Namadi Sambo claimed that the Ekiti and Osun gubernatorial elections would be prosecuted like a war.

The Director-General of the Ayo Fayose Campaign organisation, Chief Dipo Anisulowo told Vanguard that the vice-president never made the statement attributed to him even as he flayed the Kayode Fayemi campaign for allegedly importing foreign hands to bolster its campaign.

“The Vice President is a responsible person and he never used the word ‘war’. I am very much aware of that and he did not use the word capture,” Ansulowo said.

“They should disabuse their mind. We are going to win but I can assure you that it is going to be through a free and fair election.”

I've no pact with anybody or group — Bamidele

T

HE Michael Opeyemi Bamidele Campaign Organization has debunked insinuations of an alliance between its candidate and any other candidate in the contest.

Rebuffing this in a statement, Mrs Bolanle Olatunde-Bruce, the Labour Party publicity secretary said the claim was the handiwork of rival campaigns afraid of the towering image of the Labour Party candidate.

“Politics of lies and deceit will not help our dear state, hence it should be discouraged,” she said.

Fayemi flaunts legacy projects

T

HE grant-in-aids scheme to Community Development Associations in the state is undoubtedly one of the legacies of the incumbent governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi.

Under the scheme the 132 communities and farmsteads in the state identify projects to their liking which the state government finances. Under the scheme, several abandoned projects in various sectors have been completed and where not, initiated.

In a move to further entrench himself in the minds of the citizenry, the governor has now moved to release the second tranche of aids for the execution of self-help projects.

Dr. Fayemi in a meeting to review projects being funded under the scheme with officials of the CDAs promised that the releases would be made before the end of the month.

56 — Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014 — 57

58—Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

My long journey to healthy eating

BY HAKEEM JIMO

I

USED to eat like everybody else. I proudly called myself an omnivore, boasting about being able to eat any and everything. My body and stomach would cope with all.

Similar to the Chinese saying: We eat anything out of the sea except ships, anything from the sky except planes and anything with for legs except chairs and tables.

When I was a teenager, I was proud that I can gobble down ten scoops of ice-cream and ask for a waffle after. Then I traveled for the first time to America. For the first time I was able to do justice to those 'All-You-Can-Eat' restaurants.

BY ABDULWAHAB ABDULAH

U

Growing up When I was still in my early twenties. I felt like 'All-You-CanEat' is all you could wish for and it was annoying that I never saw this offer in Germany where I grew up or in Nigeria.

Growing up in Germany can be strange in many ways, especially regarding food. You won't believe how many ways there are to prepare potatoes. I have eaten enough irish potatoes for two lives and always accompanied with a hearty serving of meat. Fridays was traditional fish day. I grew up partly in the countryside in Northern Germany - on a farm to

UBA promotes cancer awareness

• SuyaDedah: Healthy eating be precise. Once a year our household slaughtered an entire pig with our neighbor and the meat was shared. It filled up the entire huge freezer and took months just to even devour half.

During this period, I started cutting down on meat. I felt it was simply too much. German cuisine, sausage on bread in the morning, smoked pork loin or cutlet with potatoes and few vegetables for lunch, sausage on bread in the evening , is meat intense.

Decision

I just more and more settled simply for the vegetables, potatoes and sauce. Even though it was a deliberate decision, it was not yet based on a conviction or knowledge. Rather it was an intuitive or natural decision. The concept behind a meat free diet came then at the university in Hamburg, Germany. At the cafeteria I discovered a new food stand. They called it the 'Alternative Dish': it was vegetarian. I found myself often

choosing this option.

Then I found my partner, an African-American and a vegetarian in the fourth generation due to her native American nation heritage. She explained to me they stopped eating flesh when some of the Cherokee realized that the natural cycle and co-existence of humans, nature and animals was broken by the settlers from Europe. Through her I got my first real background of eating without using animals.

NITED Bank for Africa Foundation, held a an awareness drive on the importance of screening for prostate cancer as part of the bank’s annual prostate cancer awareness initiative, held alongside the ‘Jogging to Bond’ initiative of the UBA Group.

The employee engagement sports event, was flagged off by the Deputy Managing Director, Mr. Kennedy Uzoka, and senior management staff of the bank.

Managing Director, UBA Foundation, Ms. Ijeoma Aso, said prostate cancer in men is curable if detected early. “We are committed to promoting Prostate Cancer awareness so that men above 40 years can get screened regularly and seek treatment if they test positive.

This year ’s ‘Cycling for Prostate Cancer’ follows a minimarathon for Prostate Cancer held in 2013. Dr. Olalekan Osineye of the Marina Medical Services (HMO), described prostate cancer as a disease that develops in the prostate gland, which is part of the male reproductive system (produces fluid for semen) and is located in front of the rectum and below the urinary bladder.

COMMON SEXUAL PROBLEMS AND THEIR NOVELTY BASED SOLUTIONS (ADVERTORIAL)

M

Y wife cheated on me recently. I have been so heartbroken and I can’t eat or sleep well. We have been together for nine years. I had to ask her why she did it and the only thing she could say was that I am boring. I never expected that and I don’t know what to do. A part of me wants to divorce her but there is also a part of me that does not want to lose her to her lover because then, he would have won.

But what if I stay with her and she cheats again? After all according to her, I am boring? Daniel Dear Daniel, I am sorry for your predicament. Infidelity is always unpredictable territory because you never know how deep the affair is. What if you forgive her and she cheats again? That happens sometimes. And what if you choose to divorce her and it turns your lives upside down?

Divorce is complicated and messy and there is no such thing as a clean break from your past, especially if you had children with your ex. And even when parents move on and find new lovers, the kids find it harder to move on and always suffer the most even years after the divorce. So this is a tricky situation and frankly, any decision you take is a gamble.

Telling you to leave your wife is easy but it might not be the best advice. If you choose to stay, you might actually end up having a happier future. So I will leave that decision to you but if you choose to stay with her, here is what I suggest.

First, you must find out from her whether she wants to stay with you and work on your marriage. If she is remorseful and wants to stay, that can be a good sign although most people will pretend to be sorry when they get caught.

Secondly, try to find out what her experience of being married to you has been like. Ask her what she means by you being boring. The answer to this can be the key to your future. Making changes like traveling, eating out at different restaurants, an occasional weekend at a hotel, a change of wardrobe,

redecorating your house, shopping, renting movies and going to the theater can make life more exciting. Adding variety to the sex you have with her can also help.

Simply put, a change of routine works wonders for a marriage. So try to get answers from her. That can give you clues to the areas in your life that need change. I wish you luck. Infidelity is hard to deal with – Uche I have been married for eleven years and I am very depressed. I don’t remember ever enjoying sex. Which of these novelties can help me? Thanks – Bolanle A vibrator, orgasm gel and some adult movies can work wonders for your love life. The Extreme Tri Twister Rabbit vibrator is a top of the range vibrator for women that rotates in two different directions and is capable of simultaneous penetration, clitoral stimulation and internal G spot stimulation. I recommend it. And for orgasm gel, take the Spot On G Spot Orgasm Gel. Massage it on the clitoris minutes before intercourse or when using your vibrator. This will help you enjoy intercourse or your vibrator. And most of all, tell your husband that you don’t enjoy sex. That should motivate him to be better at it – Uche I have started using my Explosive Thunder supplement for hard erections and performance and it is working but I also want a penis enlarger. Can I combine Explosive Thunder with Max Size? Fred Hello Fred, both products are similar and cannot be combined. However, you can combine your Explosive Thunder with a Penis Enlargement Pump or an enlargement cream like Maximus Enlargement Cream – Uche That’s it for today. Adults in need of these treatments/ novelties can reach us on 08191978308 or 08027901621 to order or they can order online at www.zeevirtualmedia.com. Zee Virtual Media delivers to you wherever you are in Nigeria. For enquiries email us at custserv@zeevirtualmedia.com - Uche Edochie, MD, Zee Virtual Media.

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014 — 59

60 — Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

Ferguson to choose Moyes’s successor • Van Gaal, Ancelotti are the leading candidates • Moyes unhappy at the way his sack was handled

Yobo fit for Norwich relegation battle

S

N

IR Alex Ferguson will be asked to take a prominent role in deciding Manchester United’s next manager despite an acknowledgement within the club that he was responsible for choosing the wrong man last time.

United are deliberating between Louis van Gaal and Carlo Ancelotti to replace David Moyes after the former Everton manager was sacked in a 7.40am meeting with the club’s chief executive, Ed Woodward. Diego Simeone, the Atlético Madrid coach, is also being considered but United are leaning towards a more experienced candidate and their initial discussions, involving Ferguson, have concluded that the job has come too early for Ryan Giggs, even if he exceeds expectations in his four games as interim manager.

Laurent Blanc has also been ruled out, despite Ferguson’s close ties with the Paris Saint-Germain coach, and it has been made clear that the final say this time will belong to Woodward, supported by the United’s American directors, rather than the most successful manager in the club’s history.

Ferguson will, however, still be an influential voice because the club consider it would be foolish to discount him, even though there is now an acceptance at boardroom level that he made a serious error of judgment choosing Moyes last year when José Mourinho was available.

United’s directors have fleetingly discussed Mourinho’s position at Chelsea but are also acutely aware that they would almost certainly be wasting their time trying to extract him from Chelsea and their attentions are on Ancelotti’s position at Real Madrid and Van Gaal’s availability after leading Holland at the World Cup. “There is not a vast pool to choose from,” a high-level source at Old Trafford admitted.

While it counts against Van Gaal that he would

CHOSEN ONE: Ferguson hands over Moyes to Man U. not be able to start until mid-July, the 62-year-old is still regarded as the leading candidate and has already let it be known he wants the job.

However, it is not true that anyone from Old Trafford has already met him. The process of speaking to prospective managers will begin in the next couple of weeks and one of the reasons Moyes was removed now, rather than waiting until the end of the season, was that the club did not want to do it behind his back and risk the embarrassment of being caught in the way, for example, that happened with Manchester City in the changeover from Roberto Mancini to Manuel Pellegrini.

United now privately accept it was a mistake bringing in someone with Moyes’ inexperience and believe it is mandatory the next manager has worked at the highest level. Simeone’s record this season makes him difficult to ignore, although he is not a frontrunner. Jürgen Klopp has said he does not want to leave Borussia Dortmund and United intend to respect that position. Antonio Conte, the Juventus coach, has been learning English, with a desire to work in the Premier League, but has not featured prominently in United’s discussions so far.

ORWICH defense stalwart, Joseph Yobo has not been ruled out for the rest of the season. In fact, he should be available for this weekend’s Premiership fixture.

According to Chiedozie Nwabueze, a close associate of the player, his injury was not as serious as earlier thought and he should even have featured for the club last weekend. ”I was shocked when I read in the media that he was out for the rest of the season. I spoke with Joe and he was equally surprised over the news. He was ninety percent fit for last weekend’s game and was left out only as a precautionary measure”, our source said. ”He has been properly checked by the Norwich medical team and should play this weekend. He is such an important player for the player and in his absence, the club has slipped further down the table. Most of the memorable results Norwich had were the days Joe was on top of his game and the club knows how important he is to their survival given their tough fixture schedule”, he added.

Mourinho threatens to play Chelsea’s kids at Liverpool amid fixture fears J OSÉ Mourinho is threatening to rest virtually his entire Chelsea team and potentially hand Liverpool the Premier League title after revealing he will seek permission from Roman Abramovich to pick a deliberately weakened side in protest at being made to play the game on Sunday.

Mourinho’s plan is likely to infuriate the Premier League and also has serious ramifications for Manchester City, who are relying on Chelsea to beat Liverpool and throw the title race back open.

However, Mourinho is furious that the game was not switched to Friday or Saturday when Chelsea have the second leg of their Champions League semifinal against Atlético Madrid at Stamford Bridge the following Wednesday and is willing to risk sacrificing their slim chance of the title unless Abramovich, the owner, blocks him.

The Chelsea manager was speaking after learning that Petr Cech dislocated a shoulder in the goalless first leg at the Vicente Calderón and that John Terry suffered an ankle injury that is likely to end his season unless they reach the final.

“I can’t decide by myself,” Mourinho replied when

asked how the injuries would influence his team selection at Anfield. “I have to listen to the club. I’m just the manager and I have to listen to the club.

“The fact that the match is on Sunday, I think that puts the problem not in my hands but in the hands of those who decide the game should be Sunday, not Saturday or Friday. We represent English football and are the only [English] team in European competition.

•Mourinho

Simeone: We’ll see if the result is a good one next week

S

IMEONE felt that the evening’s game against Chelsea had been “difficult, hard and typical of Champions League semifinals”.

They ’re games that leave the playoff wide open and we’ll see if the result is a good one next week”, the manager said.

Regarding the defensive strategy adopted by Mourinho’s side, Simeone said that “ you choose your strategy in line with the players that you have. Chelsea come away with a good result for them because they have the second leg at home and winning will

qualify them”, he observed.

For the game in London, the Argentine expected “an intense game with everyone fighting to the bitter end. They have the situation whereby if they win, they’re through.”

•Simone

Schwarzer made history

C

HELSEA keeper Mark Schwarzer made Cham pions League history on Tuesday, stunning Blues fans with his faultless performance against Atletico Madrid and proving that at the age of 41, it is still possible to achieve success in the highest ranks of football. In the 15th minute of last night’s semi final first leg clash at the Vicente Calderon Stadium, Chelsea’s primary stopper Petr Cech suffered a shoulder injury, seeing him taken out of the game just minutes later.

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014 — 61

Brazil World Cup:

Intelligence ’ll determine Eagles’ altitude — Obiku

BY TONY UBANI

E

X-INTERNA TIONAL, Mike Obiku is not worried with the group opponents of the Super Eagles in the World Cup as he said that the Eagles have no reason not to fly into the second round in a group that has Argentina, Iran and Bosnia Herzogovina. ‘’I’m not losing sleep in the group matches because Nigeria and Argentina will qualify from the group’’, Obiku who is Head coach of Feynoord soccer Academy said yesterday at the Teslim Balogun Stadium.

He is in Nigeria on a

•Obiku three-man Feyenoord Rotterdam youth coaching team for the partnership with NNPC/Shell Cup. The others are Jan Gosgens, Senior coach of

Keshi, NFF Continues from BP committee.

The whole country had waited for the list. Speculations on possible invitees had kept everybody in suspense.

Would Ikechukwu Uche and Osaze be on the list? What about out-ofform goalkeeper, Chigozie Agbim?

The list would be released by Paul Bassey the spokesman of the committee or Demola Olajire, the Director of Communications of the federation, the reporters outside the building hoped. They waited.

And Paul Bassey stepped out and announced that the federation would consult on the list which they would now release in a week’s time. There were speculations that the federation would tamper with the list to include the likes of Ike Uche if Keshi did not include them.

And when Keshi said that he submitted the list and Bassey followed up with the consultation theory on the list they painted a picture of a deadlock. Could they have had issues with some names which they intend to sort out in a

week’s time?, many imagined and speculated Tuesday night.

We can report to you this morning that the statements from Keshi and Bassey were merely planned to manage a bad situation, a disappointment the officials felt would paint both them and Keshi in bad light. Keshi, representing the technical crew and Bassey representing the federation did not tell the nation the truth. The truth was that Keshi did not submit any list and pleaded to be given time to do so. This, we gathered, was apparently borne out of fear that the federation might tamper with his list. He wanted nerves to calm down. That appeared irresponsible to some members who argued that Keshi knew of the meeting and the expectations of the whole country. But Keshi, we also gathered, was executing a ploy to be in control of the team he would announce, a team capable of walling off external influences and producing result in Brazil. However, that didn’t appear to make sense to

Feyenoord and Gido Vader who is Manager International Relations. ‘’The Eagles will do well at the World Cup if they play with intelligence. Football is no longer brute and force.

It is all about intelligence’’, Obiku who played for a cocktail of Clubs – Flash Flamingoes, Iwuanyanwu Nationale, before moving to Cyprus and then to Feyenoord Rotterdam where he became a cult hero because of his knack for scoring goals.

Recalling his early days in Europe, Obiku said that when a striker in Nigeria scores up to 10 goals, he instantly becomes a hero. It was with such high hopes that he was asked how

many goals he could give in a season in one of the many clubs he played in Europe. ‘’Proudly, I told them 10 and they were shocked’’, he said yesterday. ‘’They said they were looking at 27 to 35 goals.

I asked them if those goals will include the ones in training’’. He laughed again saying that football in Europe is big business.

Obiku also dismissed fears that Nigerian players are not playing regularly in their clubs. ‘’It is not peculiar to Nigerian players. So many players going to the World Cup are not getting enough times but I think that Keshi can bring out their best before the game starts’’.

officials since it was still a provisional list of 30 players which would still be pruned to 23 after the camping in USA. But Keshi was said to be employing delay tactics to avoid interference.

“Keshi did not submit any list. He pleaded for time. Everybody was shocked. The whole country knew of April 22 date and now he says the list is not ready on the grounds that he was still making last minute search for players,” a source close to the Technical Committee said, adding “the committee was totally disappointed that Keshi wasted their time, money and energy by coming without the list. He could have informed the federation in time that his list was not ready and the meeting could have been rescheduled. He did not show respect to the federation.”

But a source close to Keshi said that Keshi felt that ensuring adequate preparation was more important than the list which would still be released.

“Keshi went to the meeting with preparation more in his mind than a list everybody

thought wiould be submitted in good time,” the source said.

The federation source revealed that the federation considered sanctioning Keshi but was worried about the interpretation of their action by the Nigerian media which has doggedly backed Keshi whether he was wrong or right on any issue. They also felt that it was better to avoid heating up the football scene few days to the World Cup. Keshi’s source defended his action, saying that “all he is doing is geared towards doing well at the World Cup and you will see that the end will justify the means.”

Taribo Continues from BP round.”

Continuing the once dreadlocked defender but who is now clean shaven said, “in our time we had a fantastic team with exceptional players. This team is different. Their strength is that they play as a unit and they have a lot of self belief. In South Africa last year, very few gave them any

AFRICAN CHAMPIONS — Super Eagles

NNPC/Shell Cup: Feyenoord coaches drill teams

A

team of coaches and officials of Feyenoord Rotherdam Football Club of Holland, who arrived in Nigeria early in the week, will this morning at the National Stadium, Lagos, begin a three-day training session with the coaches and players of the four teams in the 2014 All Nigeria Secondary Schools Football Championship, also known as NNPC/Shell Cup. The four semifinalists are St. Thomas Basic Secondary School, Benin, Brightville College, Ibadan, Government Model Secondary School, Kotangora, Niger State and Government Day Secondary School, Bangudu, Zamfara State.

According to the

Feyenoord coaches’ itinerary, the training session will begin this morning with the students of the four schools, while the coaches will have their turn in the evening.

After tomorrow’s semifinals of the NNPC/ Shell Cup, the team will return to training pitch on Friday first with the players in the morning and their trainers in the evening.

Speaking during an interactive session with journalists yesterday, Feyenoord’s International Relations Manager, Gido Vader, said he was excited to be in Nigeria to help develop players of the future, adding, “Feyenoord Youth Football Academy has a big bank of professional skills to impart to the teams."

Moses Continues from BP this season.

The Nigeria international has managed one goal in a total of 18 topflight appearances for the Merseyside club – and the attacking midfielder has expressed his intention to return to Stamford Bridge at the end of the current campaign.

“I’m a Chelsea player.

I came to Liverpool to do a professional job but come the end of the season I will be going back to Chelsea to fight for my place,” Moses told Sky Sports.

Moses has scored one league goal in 23 appearances for Chelsea since joining the Blues from Wigan Athletic back in August 2012.

chance in the tournament but they went ahead to win it, the first by a Nigerian team since 1994. That winning aura is still very much present in the team.

The former defender who is now a Pastor said he did not like the pressure being exerted

on the coach to invite certain players to the team. “The noise about whether Keshi should invite Ike Uche and Osaze Odemwingie to camp is uncalled for.

The coach knows what he is doing. The team has been doing well without these two players."

62 — Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

Vanguard, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014 — 63

C M Y K

VANGUARD, THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014

Moses expects Chelsea return V

ICTOR Moses has underlined his desire to fight for a firstteam place at Chelsea next season when his loan spell at Liverpool comes to an end.

The 23-year-old joined the Reds from Chelsea on a temporary deal back in September but has started just six Premier League games for Brendan Rodgers’ men

Revealed:

Keshi, NFF lied to Nigerians

Continued on Page 61

•Moses

Brazil World Cup: Taribo passes judgement on Eagles

•NFF not consulting on list as Keshi did not submit any

BY ONOCHIE ANIBEZE

EXCLUSIVE

S

TEPHEN Keshi was the first to step out of the meeting with the Technical Committee of the Nigeria Football Federation Tuesday.

He told the press that he had submitted a provisional list for the 2014 Brazil World Cup to the

Continued on Page 61

•Maigari

BY JACOB AJOM

F

ORMER Nigeria international Taribo West is confident, the Super Eagles will do so well at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil that at the end of the tournament, their performance will shock the rest of the

•Keshi

•Green

football world.

Taribo, a veteran of two World Cups – USA ’94 and France ’98 – told Sports Vanguard at Campos mini-Stadium in Lagos yesterday, during launch of the MTN Football Scholar programme that “there is something very unique going for the present squad of the Super Eagles and that is what will make them shock the world.”

Looking back, he acknowledged that Nigeria had never gone beyond the second round in her three

•Taribo previous appearances at the quadrennial global showpiece, Taribo said, “This time it is going to be different because I see this team breaking that jinx. They will go beyond the second Continued on Page 61

QUICK CROSSWORD

Sudoku TODAY'S

PUZZLE

YESTER DAY'S YESTERDAY'S

ANSWERS

ACROSS 1 Go by (4) 4 Lie (3) 6 Yielding (4) 8 Posture (6) 9 Frank (6) 10 Moose (3) 12 Twist (5) 14 Deserve (5) 15 Royal (5) 18 Consent (6) 20 Colour (6) 24 Sum (5) 26 Like (5) 28 Put (5) 30 Unusual (3) 32 Alive (6) 33 Disputed (6) 34 Staunch (4) 35 Consume (3) 36 Moist (4)

DOWN 2 Garret (5) 3 Honest (7) 4 Liberate (4) 5 Reverse (4) 6 Because (5) 7 Defect (7) 11 Meadow (3) 12 Ocean (3) 13 Marry (3) 16 Obtain (3) 17 Fate (3) 19 Prisoner (7) 21 Knock (3) 22 Maintained (7) 23 Stretch (3) 25 Elderly (3) 27 Hatred (5) 29 Best (5) 30 Monster (4) 31 Dash (4)

YESTERDAY'S SOLUTIONS ACROSS: 2, Ideal 7, Fool 8, Ace 9, Leapt 11, Tab 13, Sty 15, Eden 16, Vie 18, Ache 19, Tarnish 20, Peri 22, Seer 23, Omnibus 25, Shop 27, Die 28, Cede 30, Tom 31, Dual 33, Clamp 38, Armada 37, Inch 38, Pleat.

DOWN: 1, Nomad 2, Ill 3, Era 4, Let 5, Ape 6, Truth 10, Pair 11, Tempest 12, Bedroom 13, Schemed 14, Yearned 16, Valid 17, Ensue 18, Ass 21, Imp 24, Bill 26, Hoard 29, Dunce 32, Bad 33, Cap 34, Awe 35, Pit.

How to Play Sudoku

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.

Printed and Published by VANGUARD MEDIA LIMITED, Vanguard Avenue, Kirikiri Canal, P.M.B.1007, Apapa. Phone: Newsroom: 018773962. Deputy Editor: 01-4548355. Advert Dept Hotline: 014544821; Abuja: 09-2341102, 09-2342704. E-mail: editor@vanguardngr.com, news@vanguardngr.com, letters@vanguardngr.com. Advert:advertproduction@yahoo.com Website: www.vanguardngr.com (ISSN 0794-652X) Editor: MIDENO BAYAGBON. Phone: 01-7742861, All correspondence to P.M.B. 1007, Apapa Lagos.