Northern senators kick against emergency rule. Naira hits an all-time low. PDP grants special waiver to Kalu. Boko Haram is world number 2 terror group, says report.
Protesters at the palace of the Emir of Gwandu, Alhaji Muhammadu Bashar, over the two-week power outage in Birnin Kebbi…yesterday /newtelegraph @newtelegraph1 www.newtelegraphonline.com SATURDAY Wednesday, November 19, 2014 Vol. 1 No. 274 Naira hits an all-time low CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 CONTINUED ON PAGE 5 N 150 Northern senators kick against emergency rule Boko Haram is world number 2 terror group, says report Ayodele Aminu T he naira slid to a new low yesterday, as investors worried about the impact of fall- ing oil prices on Nigeria’s fragile finances despite the interventionist efforts by the Central Bank of Nige- ria (CBN) to prop up the currency. Further weakening of the naira came on a day international economists said that the Federal Gov- ernment’s pledge to trim spending in the face of plunging oil prices may fall short of what’s required as Nigeria, Africa’s biggest crude producer, heads into an election year. Yesterday, the naira hit a year low at N173.35 against the dollar, taking its declines for the year QUICK READ Editorial Tackling the rot in sport lJonathan writes Tambuwal on extension }2 }19 Tambuwal bows out of presidential race }5 PDP GRANTS SPECIAL WAIVER TO KALU FOUR PAGES OF MEGA CITY INSIDE NIGERIA’S MOST AUTHORITATIVE NEWSPAPER IN POLITICS AND BUSINESS Sanctity Of Truth }4 Pages 27 -30 Slave port Marina Badagry when completed. INSET: ONGOING SLAVE MARKET BUILDING, VLEKETE A way from the inglorious era of the past centuries of the slave trade, Badagry is again on the threshold of new dawn of a super tourist centre in the world. The prospect is all the more being reinforced by the ongo- ing comprehensive effort of the state government to regenerate and develop Badagry town into a viable tourist ha- ven. Badagry division, as one in the state of aquatic splendour, occupies economic and political importance for many reasons. Yet, commensurate infra- structural developments in most of the component towns scarcely exist. But the Badagry town is gradual Lagos seeks tourists haven in Badagry ing in preparation for the prospect of an enthralling tourist atmosphere. At the Boekoh Quarters, the ongoing rede- velopment of the old slave port at the marina into a grand viewing pavilion confers the prospect of a delightsome world-class tourist centre, not only in Nigeria but also in entire Africa. The Akran of Badagry’s palace just got a facelift, the completion of the first church in Nigeria – Freeman Memorial Methodist Church – which is a few from the Akran’s p atmos Badagry, the historic town is set to be liſted unto an enthralling tourist pedestal as the Lagos State Government harnesses all the complementing features within the ancient town. ELIJAH SAMUEL captures the ongoing development strides. “The slave port project has even af- fected some people negatively because all the people that were doing businesses at the ongoing construction site were all relocated. We know we all shall reap its benefits later on but the problem is how soon because it has been at the same level for a long time,” he said. The government, it seems, is awak- ening to the reality of effectively incor- porating historic Badagry town into her megacity project. Right from it entry point at the roun through Jo adequate attention so that they can have good taste of the megacity. “Let all the divisions in Lagos have a good taste of the megacity. But for the projects already embarked upon here, the prayer is that whoever comes after Fashola should continue with the works. “When we talk about the governor of a state, we talk about an individu with a mind of his own project is 27 NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 The Mega City ...for the love of Lagos MEGA CITY EVENT MY CITY, MY WORLD (Ajose-Harrison) LIFE IN THE CITY In Badagry, business is not as usual We need to bring back the peace of Lagos Fashola rewards best Com- munity at 2014 Community Day celebration B oko Haram, Nige- ria’s terror group that has killed about 15,000 people since 2009, has been ranked as the number two terror group in the world. Reuters, in a report yesterday, quoted the Australia and the United States-based Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP) in its Global Ter- rorism Index as ranking Boko Haram behind the Islamic State (IS). The report also said the number of people killed in militant attacks worldwide jumped more than 60 per cent last year to a record high of nearly 18,000 and the figure could rise further in 2014 due to an escalation of conflict in the Middle East and Nigeria. According to the re- port, the four most active
Transcript
Protesters at the palace of the Emir of Gwandu, Alhaji Muhammadu Bashar, over the two-week power outage in Birnin Kebbi…yesterday
Boko Haram is world number 2 terror group, says report
Ayodele Aminu
The naira slid to a new low yesterday, as investors worried
about the impact of fall-ing oil prices on Nigeria’s
fragile finances despite the interventionist efforts by the Central Bank of Nige-ria (CBN) to prop up the currency.
Further weakening of the naira came on a day
international economists said that the Federal Gov-ernment’s pledge to trim spending in the face of plunging oil prices may fall short of what’s required as Nigeria, Africa’s biggest
crude producer, heads into an election year.
Yesterday, the naira hit a year low at N173.35 against the dollar, taking its declines for the year
Quick ReadEditorialTackling the rot in sport
lJonathan writes Tambuwal on extension }2
}19
Tambuwal bows out of presidential race }5
PdP gRants sPecial waiveR to kalu
FouR Pages oF Mega city inside
NIGERIA’S MOST AUTHORITATIVE NEWSPAPER IN POLITICS AND BUSINESS
Sanctity Of Truth
}4
Pages 27 -30
Slave port Marina Badagry when completed. INSET: oNgoINg SlavE markET buIldINg, vlEkETE
A way from the inglorious era of the
past centuries of the slave trade,
Badagry is again on the threshold
of new dawn of a super tourist
centre in the world. The prospect is all
the more being reinforced by the ongo-
ing comprehensive effort of the state
government to regenerate and develop
Badagry town into a viable tourist ha-
ven. Badagry division, as one in the
state of aquatic splendour, occupies
economic and political importance for
many reasons. Yet, commensurate infra-
structural developments in most of the
component towns scarcely exist. But the
Badagry town is gradually transform-
CONTINUED ON PAGE 28
Lagos seeks tourists haven in Badagry
ing in preparation for the prospect of
an enthralling tourist atmosphere. At
the Boekoh Quarters, the ongoing rede-
velopment of the old slave port at the
marina into a grand viewing pavilion
confers the prospect of a delightsome
world-class tourist centre, not only in
Nigeria but also in entire Africa. The Akran of Badagry’s palace just
got a facelift, the completion of the first
church in Nigeria – Freeman Memorial
Methodist Church – which is a few yards
from the Akran’s palace brightens the
atmosphere. There is now proliferation of hotels,
businesses, banks etc. in preparation
for the time when the project finally is
completed and comes in to full opera-
tion? Oke-Tojinu, one of the museums
attendants said that the prospect is al-
ways there because there is going to be
a sea port in Badagry, but one major fac-
tor is the fact that Lagos is congested. So,
people are already coming out, hoping
that the next place to be is Badagry. Be-
sides, its proximity to the border, there
is the hope that by the time the 10-lane
Lagos-Badagry Expressway is completed,
easy access will be possible. Those are the
factors affecting the transformation of
Badagry as a town and as a division right
now, and not solely the slave port project.
Badagry, the historic town is set to be lifted unto an enthralling
tourist pedestal as the Lagos State Government harnesses all the
complementing features within the ancient town. ELIJAH SAMUEL
captures the ongoing development strides.“The slave port project has even af-
fected some people negatively because
all the people that were doing businesses
at the ongoing construction site were
all relocated. We know we all shall reap
its benefits later on but the problem is
how soon because it has been at the same
level for a long time,” he said. The government, it seems, is awak-
ening to the reality of effectively incor-
porating historic Badagry town into
her megacity project. Right from its
entry point at the roundabout, a drive
through Joseph Dosu Road and streets
within the component quarters, afford
one the knowledge of recent provision
of streetlights, tarred roads and drain-
ages in the town.Interestingly, the transforming fire
ignited by the government to illuminate
and launch the state into an enviable
landscape seems to be receiving comple-
menting support. Across the pacesetter
town, the reconstructing and renovating
of a few structures that truly is the hall-
mark of a megacity which will attract
both home and foreign visitors abound.
Chief Sehubo Ajose-Harrison coun-
selor to His Majesty De Wheno Aholu
Menu-Toyi I, the Akran of Badagry
Kingdom, remarked that Governor
Fashola has tried in his own strides,
but posited that it is only morally right
that all consisting divisions in the Cen-
tre of Excellence be given quality and
adequate attention so that they can have
good taste of the megacity.“Let all the divisions in Lagos have a
good taste of the megacity. But for the
projects already embarked upon here,
the prayer is that whoever comes after
Fashola should continue with the works.
“When we talk about the governor
of a state, we talk about an individual
with a mind of his own to decide what
project is to be done and which one to
wait or be discarded. But whoever that
is coming, we wish him well; all we are
asking is that he thinks of Badagry. At
all times, Badagry has remained loyal to
the government in power. So, let those
in power see how they can change the
skyline of Badagry.”A senior official in the state Ministry
of Culture and Tourism, who preferred
anonymity, however disclosed that the
residents are being carried along in the
project.“We have organized town-hall meet-
ings where the residents and stakehold-
ers were sensitized on all the projects
and how the projects tend to benefit the
community. Apart from this, the govern-
ment has equally organized a training
project to train the youths and other
tourist practitioners to enhance their
capacity so that they can start think-
ing on what to do when the project is
27
NEW TELEGRAPH WEdNESdaY, NovEmbEr 19, 2014The Mega City...for the love of LagosMEGA CITY EVENT
MY CITY, MY WORLD (Ajose-Harrison)LIFE IN THE CITY
Boko Haram, Nige-ria’s terror group that has killed
about 15,000 people since 2009, has been ranked as the number two terror
group in the world. Reuters, in a report
yesterday, quoted the Australia and the United States-based Institute for Economics and Peace
(IEP) in its Global Ter-rorism Index as ranking Boko Haram behind the Islamic State (IS).
The report also said the number of people
killed in militant attacks worldwide jumped more than 60 per cent last year to a record high of nearly 18,000 and the figure could rise further in 2014 due to
an escalation of conflict in the Middle East and Nigeria.
According to the re-port, the four most active
2 News WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
CONTINUED ON PAGE 4
Chukwu David, Philip Nyam and Anule EmmanuelAbUjA
President Goodluck Jonathan’s bid to extend the emer-gency rule in Ad-
amawa, Borno and Yobe States, may not get easy passage at the National Assembly, New Telegraph has learnt.
The president yesterday sent a letter to the Senate seeking approval to extend the emergency rule in the three terror-beleaguered states for another six months, but Senate Presi-dent David Mark, had to tactically defer further discussion on the matter after gauging the mood of his colleagues, many of whom opposed the bid.
Curiously, Jonathan ad-dressed the same letter to House of Representatives Speaker, Hon. Aminu Tam-buwal, whom the Federal Government had declared had lost his seat following his defection from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progres-sives Congress (APC).
A statement from Tam-buwal’s office yesterday said the House would re-convene tomorrow, ahead of its December 3 resump-tion date, to consider Jona-
than’s request.It was gathered that
senators were furious at an executive session, held behind closed doors, where the president’s request for an extension of the emer-gency rule was discussed.
Sources said at the ex-ecutive session that lasted for one-and-a-half hours, many senators, especially from the North, threat-ened to vote against it, saying the last extension in May 2014 would be the last time they would sup-port further extension of the imposition of state of emergency that was im-posed on the states since May 2013.
Senators Ahmed La-wan (Yobe North) and Ali Ndume (Borno South), in separate interviews with reporters after plenary ses-sion, said their colleagues opposed another plan by Jonathan to extend the emergency rule.
According to Lawan, “although we will continue deliberations on the issue tomorrow (today), I can as-sure you that we will not approve the emergency rule extension because the president can deploy the military to any part of the country without declaring a state of emergency.
“We have a very strong military in Nigeria and nobody can doubt their
Northern senators kick against emergency rulecapacity to handle this insurgency, except if the government is telling us that so many things are fundamentally wrong.
“Discussions on it will definitely continue tomor-row (today), but I want to tell you that I am totally opposed to it. I believe that after 18 months of the state of emergency, we should look at other avenues.
“So many options are being advanced, which would be concluded to-morrow. What we need at the moment is the mas-sive deployment of troops
to quickly launch serious attacks because we have lost so many territories already.
“And at any case, the president, under Section 218 of the 1999 Constitu-tion, has the powers to deploy the military in whatever capacity without a declaration of a state of emergency. I believe that a state of emergency ex-tension is only a waste of time because we have had a state of emergency for 18 months and the result we all know is failure.
Ndume, on his part,
also expressed opposition to the proposal because extension of the martial rule would further worsen the situation in the three north-eastern states.
He said: “The state of emergency since it was declared in the three states had taken us from bad to worse. Our fears now are that if we extend it again, we are inviting more prob-lems to ourselves because the insurgents would cap-ture more territories dur-ing the period.
“As the representa-tives of my people, my
entire constituents are totally opposed to the ex-tension of the emergency rule because it restricts movements of the civil-ian populace while the insurgents move freely and have a field day. When people are sleeping in the night, the insurgents are freely moving around. By 6p.m., the whole towns are closed, but the insurgents are busy taking control of everywhere.”
Ndume doubted the sincerity of the Federal Government to fight the
Boko Haram is world number two terror group, says reportmilitant groupings are Is-lamic State in Iraq and the Levant (now renamed Is-lamic State), Boko Haram, the Afghan and Pakistani Taliban and transnational al Qaeda-affiliated net-works.
The report blamed the escalation in terror fatali-ties on the terror groups operating in Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Nigeria, which were iden-tified as being responsible for two-thirds of the 2013 at-tacks and the vast majority of the deaths occurred in those countries,.
However, militant at-tacks are on the rise more
broadly, with two dozen countries seeing more than 50 deaths in 2013, it said.
“There is no doubt it is a growing problem. The causes are complex, but the four groups responsible for most of the deaths all have their roots in funda-mentalist Islam,” said IEP founder, Steve Killelea.
“They are particularly angry about the spread of Western education. That makes any attempt at the kind of social mobilis-ing you need to stop them particularly difficult - it can just antagonise them more,” he said. The num-ber of attacks themselves rose 44 per cent in 2013
from the previous year to almost 10,000.
Deaths in such attacks are now five times higher than in 2000, the report showed, citing analysis of data in the University of Maryland’s Global Terror-ism Database. Most but not all militant attacks were religiously motivated. At-tacks in India - the sixth most affected country - rose 70 per cent in 2013 largely due to attacks by commu-nist insurgents. The major-ity remained non-lethal.
Increased targeting of police by the militant groups makes managing the problem even harder, Killelea said, sometimes
fuelling rights abuses that compound existing griev-ances.
The report showed 60 per cent of attacks involved explosives, 20 per cent fire-arms and 10 per cent other actions such as arson, knives or attacks with mo-tor vehicles. Only five per-cent of all incidents since 2000 have involved suicide bombings.
The report showed some 80 per cent of the militant groups which had ceased their activity since 2000 did so following negotiations. Only 10 per cent achieved their goals, while seven per cent were eliminated by military action.
3NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014
4 News WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH
lNWC dissolves Adamawa, Ebonyi excos
L-R: Special Adviser on Media to the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Hakeem Bello; Electoral Commissioner of India, Mr. Harishankar Brahma and Lagos State Governor, Mr Babatunde Fashola, during the governor’s visit to the commission in New Delhi, India…on Monday.
The National Work-ing Committee (NWC) of the Peo-ples Democratic
Party (PDP) may have granted special waiver to the former governor of the party, Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu.
The body, at its meeting in Abuja yesterday, was also said to have ordered that Kalu be screened in Abuja, in the ongoing screening of the National Assembly aspirants.
The former governor, who is seeking the PDP senatorial ticket for Abia North, returned to the par-ty in 2011 and had applied to the party leadership for waiver to enable him con-test the election.
A source at the meet-ing, however, told New Telegraph that the NWC observed that since the for-mer governor has joined PDP since January 2011 and has applied for waiver, it will amount to injustice if he is denied.
“Some waivers have been granted to returnees and even to people who ap-plied this year, why should
his own be different?” the source argued.
He disclosed that the party would ensure a united front in Abia State so that its members could work as a team for its suc-cess in the 2015 general election.
According to the source, in a bid to find amicable solution to the problem, the state governor, Theo-dore Orji was given two senatorial slots as well as all House of Assembly members.
On the question of the committee that will screen Kalu since the PDP
National Assembly screen-ing committees have al-ready been constituted, the source said: “The NWC has powers to form a special committee anytime. There is no problem about that.
“Why the idea came up was to avoid any likely breach of peace between the supporters of the gov-ernor and Dr. Kalu.”
Meanwhile, the NWC has dissolved the state working committee (SWC) of Adamawa and Ebonyi states.
Also eleven governor-ship aspirants of the party from Imo State want the
party to cancel the Novem-ber 1 ward congress held in the state.
The aspirants also requested the national leadership of the party to disqualify governorship aspirants from Okigwe and Owerri zones, point-ing out that since 1999, only the two zones have produced governors of the state to the exclusion of the Owerri zone.
The PDP National Publicity Secretary, Olisa Metuh, who briefed jour-nalists at the end of the NWC meeting, said the dissolution of the state
working committees in the affected states was to main-tain discipline in the party.
The Imo governorship aspirants, after their meet-ing with the PDP national chairman, Adamu Mu’azu noted that the people who were sent to Imo State to conduct the ward con-gress, never did so.
Chief Mike Ahamba (SAN), who spoke on be-half of the aspirants, said: “The State Ward Congress Electoral Committee did not come to Owerri with the original result sheet but with coloured photo-copies.”
PDP grants special waiver to Kalu
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2
Jonathan writes Tambuwal on extensioninsurgency and urged the military authorities to adopt a fresh strategy to combat terrorism.
Other senators who also spoke on the develop-ment admitted that the declaration of the state of emergency in the affected states had not achieved the desired objectives since it was proclaimed in May 2013.
Earlier, Mark had post-poned till today the debate on Jonathan’s request for the extension of the state of emergency.
The president had asked the Senate, through a letter, approve the extension of the martial rule to enable the Federal Government to tackle the Boko Haram insurgency in the region.
The letter, entitled: “Ex-tension of the period for the proclamation of a state of emergency in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states,” reads: “May I respectfully draw your attention to the state of emergency procla-
mation 2013 in respect of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states, which was approved by the National Assembly and extended for a further period of six months by the National Assembly as con-veyed by the Clerk of the National Assembly’s letter dated 21st of May, 2014.
“By virtue of provisions of Sections 305, Subsection 6C of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Ni-geria 1999 as amended, the proclamation aforemen-tioned will elapse after a period of six months from the date of approval of the National Assembly, except the period is extended by the National Assembly.
“It is important to state that despite concerted ef-forts by this administration to stem the tide of terror-ism and insurgency in the affected states, the security challenges that necessi-tated the proclamation are yet to abate. Consequently, it has become imperative to request the approval of the Senate for extension of the
period for the state of emer-gency for a further period of six months.
“In view of the forego-ing, I most respectfully request distinguished senators to consider and approve by resolution the extension of the proclama-tion of the state of emer-gency by a further period of six months from the date of expiration of the current period.”
On its part, the House is cutting short its recess tomorrow to consider the president’s request to ex-tend emergency rule in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe States.
Tambuwal, in the state-ment from his office, said: “On Tuesday, November 18, 2014, I received a communi-cation from the President, Commander-in- Chief of the Armed Forces, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan GCFR, requesting for the extension of the existing state of emergency in Ad-amawa, Borno and Yobe states by the House of Rep-
resentatives.“Pursuant to the powers
conferred on me by Section 305 (2) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999, which re-quires me to “forthwith convene or arrange a meet-ing of the House” and in order to treat the extension before the expiration of the current state of emergency in accordance with Section 305 (6) (c) of the Constitu-tion, I hereby reconvene the House of Representatives, currently on recess...”
Meanwhile, President Jonathan yesterday met with Mark and Tambu-wal’s deputy, Hon. Emeka Ihedioha.
Although details of the meeting were not disclosed, it was gathered that it cen-tred on the fresh extension of the emergency rule in the three states.
The decision to extend the emergency rule was ar-rived at after a meeting of the National Defence Coun-cil, which held in Abuja on Monday.
5NewsNEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
L-R: Chairman, Senate Committee on Agriculture, Senator Emmanuel Bwacha; Zonal Manager, Bank of Industry (BoI), Mrs. Bisi Ajayi; Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina and Chairman, Honeywell Group, Mr. Oba Otudeko, at the handing over of equipment to master bakers in Abuja...yesterday. PHOTO: TIMOTHY IKUOMENISAN.
Naira falls again despite CBN’s interventionto 8.4 per cent, despite the CBN’s now regular daily offer of $3 million dollars to each of the country’s 21 commercial banks.
Last Monday, some lend-ers eschewed the forex auc-tion after the apex bank, in a bid to curb speculation, restricted the margins they can make from their customers when selling the dollars.
At yesterday’s auction, the central bank, which intervened on the market through all of last week, removed the margin cap, dealers said.
The naira has dropped further below the CBN’s preferred trading band of N150-160, which it burst out of in May.
The naira’s decline, which has been extended since the Federal Govern-ment, last Sunday, cut state revenue estimates for 2015 by 6 per cent following sharp declines in oil prices in the global market, also hit other local markets.
Borrowing costs on Ni-
gerian government bonds rose sharply, with the benchmark 10-year yield up 38 basis points at 13.90 per cent, while the main share index lost 1.67 per cent.
Commenting on the sell-off in bonds, one dealer said: “Investors are wor-rying about the naira, and the possibility of a rate hike at the central bank’s next meeting.”
The central bank will meet on interest rates on November 25.
Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Min-ister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, while an-nouncing the cut in bud-getary projection for 2015, had rejected calls for the government to print more naira to counter the effects of falling oil prices. But she said complementary monetary policy measures would be announced by the authorities soon.
Meanwhile, the Federal Government’s proposal to cut expenditure by 6 per cent may be insuffi-
cient to address investors’ concerns after oil prices plunged by about 30 per cent since July, said econ-omists, including Alan Cameron, of FCMB Group Plc (FCMB) in London.
The budget approval process will probably also face delays because of the 2015 elections.
“What’s being proposed here is not proportional to the decline in the oil price, so it’s probably overstating it to say this is a prelude to an austerity budget,” Cam-eron said in an e-mailed re-sponse to questions from Bloomberg.
Okonjo-Iweala said last Sunday she would pro-pose to lower the budgeted benchmark oil price to $73 per barrel next year from $78 this year. Brent crude fell to a four-year low of $76.76 a barrel on Novem-ber 14.
Even if oil prices re-main close to the govern-ment’s estimate, produc-tion is under pressure because of crude theft in the Niger Delta region,
threatening government revenue.
“The problem has been that even if the oil price scenario on which it is based has been realistic, the oil production number has not been,” David Cow-an, an Africa economist at Citigroup Inc., said by phone from London.
However, Okonjo-Iwea-la has said that the nation’s long-awaited Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) is not expected to be passed be-fore the general election in February 2015.
The bill, which is ex-pected to reform Nigeria’s oil taxes and licences, and to overhaul the Nigerian National Petroleum Cor-poration (NNPC), has dragged on for over five years because of political wrangling over its many clauses.
Okonjo-Iweala told a conference call with in-vestors that the oil sector had seen low foreign di-rect investment (FDI) due to the delay in the passage of PIB.
Tunde OyesinaABUJA
The immediate past national chairman of the Peoples Demo-
cratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, has de-clared that he was forced to resign his position.
Tukur revealed that fol-lowing the defection of the five PDP governors to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2013, pressures were mounted on Presi-dent Goodluck Jonathan to remove him to enable the governors return to the party.
Tukur made this revela-tion in a counter-affidavit he filed to a suit instituted by an aspirant to the House of Representatives in Ad-amawa State, Aliyu Abuba Gurin, seeking to unseat the present national chair-man of the party, Adamu Mu’azu, and also stop the party’s planned delegates’ convention.
In the motion on notice filed by the plaintiff, the court was asked to stop the planned national conven-tion of the PDP scheduled for December 10 and 11.
The plaintiff also con-tended that the resignation of Tukur did not comply
with the provision of Sec-tion 47(5) of the constitu-tion of the party which stipulates that a 30-day notice be given to the Na-tional Executive Commit-tee by Tukur.
The defendants in the suit are the PDP, Mu’azu and the Independent Na-tional Electoral Commis-sion (INEC).
Responding further, Tukur submitted that he had stepped aside as the chairman of the party for the defected governors to return, but to his surprise, 10 months after, the gover-nors are yet to return.
He further stated that
in the situation which he could not finish his four year tenure as the chair-man of the party, he is to hand over to the deputy national chairman as act-ing chairman, in line with the constitution of the party pending the holding of a national convention to elect new national chair-man.
Tukur further stated that the NEC of the party has no power to appoint the national chairman, adding that the votes and proceedings of NEC held at Wadata House on Janu-ary 15 and 20 which delib-erated on his resignation
I was forced to resign as PDP chairman –TukurlSays Mu’azu’s appointment is nullity
as national chairman and appointment of Mu’azu as chairman are nullity.
He added that even if he had submitted a letter of resignation on January 15 to the party, the letter did not comply with Section 47(5) of the party’s consti-tution which requires that a 30-day prior notice should be given.
Furthermore, Tukur stated that the subsequent presentation of Mu’azu to NEC as the new chairman for appointment did not comply with Section 47(6) of the party constitution, Section 85(3) of the Elec-toral Act, 2010 and Section 223(1) of the 1999 Constitu-tion (as amended).
Also, he stated that as at the time of appoint-ment of Mu’azu as the national chairman of the party, no vacancy existed in the office of the nation-
al chairman.He further stated that
Mu’azu lacked power to preside over the planned convention as such will nullify the proceedings of the convention if allowed to do so.
He, however, submitted that it will be in the inter-est of all parties if status quo ante bellum is main-tained, pending the elec-tion of a new chairman by the national convention.
In its own response to the suit, the PDP, through its legal adviser, Kwon Victor asked the court to dismiss the suit on the grounds that the plaintiff lacks the right to institute such suit.
He added that the plain-tiff in the suit did not in-dicate any injury he has suffered or would suffer by reason of which the suit was brought.
Philip NyamABUJA
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Aminu Tambu-
wal, yesterday ended the speculation concerning his political future as he formally withdrew from the presidential race to focus on his governorship ambition.
In a statement person-ally signed by the Speaker, Tambuwal said after con-sulting widely, he decided to suspend his participa-tion in the presidential race for now in order to sustain the unity and co-hesion of the party.
He said: “Having con-sulted widely, taking into consideration the con-cerns of some elders of the party, I have decided to suspend my participation in the presidential contest for now. I have done so as a sacrifice for the cohe-sion and unity of the All Progressives Congress (APC). I am suspending my participation in the presidential race for now because I do not have any inordinate ambition to oc-cupy any office.
“Nigeria is a country too great to sacrifice on the altar of partisan politics and personal ambition. What anyone becomes in life is exclusively in the hands of God. Only God gives power to whoever he pleases.”
According to him, “I have carefully considered the concerns expressed by some of our leaders, whom I deeply respect and
whose support and coun-sel I enjoy, to the effect that my entry into the presi-dential race at this point may necessitate having to rework some equations on the political chessboard of the party.”
Tambuwal explained that he “came into the APC to enhance and build, therefore in the in-terest of our great party, the APC and indeed in the overriding national inter-est, I wish to appeal to all my associates, colleagues, supporters, admirers and friends nationwide to show some understanding.
“It has not been easy coming to this decision and I very well under-stand the frustration, disappointment and dis-belief of many who have committed so much to the project including sacrific-ing not only their physical, financial and intellectual resources but indeed their personal ambitions in the 2015 electoral contest.”
The Speaker, who how-ever did not state express-ly which position he has decided to vie for, said: “I pledge my loyalty to our party, the APC, and coop-eration with my uncles and senior brothers and colleagues who are al-ready in the race for the APC presidential ticket: I refer to General Muham-madu Buhari, Alhaji Ati-ku Abubakar, Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, Governor Rochas Okoro-cha and Mr. Sam Ndah-Isaiah. There is no doubt that they are all eminently qualified.”
Tambuwal bows out of presidential race
6 News WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH
L-R: Project Lead, Social Media Awards Africa (SMAA), Mr. Femi Aderibigbe; Executive Director, Sterling Bank Plc., Mr. Abubakar Suleiman and Marketing Consultant, SMAA, Mr. Adebiyi Fashoyin, at a press conference in Lagos…yesterday. PHOTO: SULEIMAN HUSAINI
Boko Haram: Ohanaeze Ndigbo demands full-scale wararmed forces in the opera-tion.
The communique was jointly signed by a former governor of Anambra State, Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeeife; the Eze Igbo in Abuja, HRH Eze Nwosu Ibe; President of Ohanaeze Ndigbo (Abuja Chapter), Mr. Emeka Mbagha and Dr Ifedi Okwenna, Secretary of the Ime-Obi Ohanaeze Ndigbo in Abuja.
The group urged Presi-dent Jonathan to ensure that no part of Nigeria was lost to the insurgents, add-ing that all efforts should be made to recover all territories of Nigeria cur-rently in the hands of Boko Haram.
According to the organ-isation, emphasis should be placed more on secur-ing Nigeria than on con-ducting the 2015 general election as the situation on ground if unchecked may impair any political cam-
paign and election in many parts of Nigeria in 2015.
“The Commander-in-Chief should urgently reorganise the entire secu-rity apparatus of the state and remove those who are found wanting and purge the Armed Forces of cor-ruption to raise the moral of the combatants.
“It amounts to double standard where low rank-ing officers and the rank file are tried for treason for refusing to go and die in the hands of strategically placed Boko Haram while senior officers who denied them of arms, ammunition and their allowances were merely retired or at worst dismissed. We call on the Commander-in-Chief, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, to ex-tend clemency to all those found guilty and to subse-quently try all officers and men irrespective of ranks who henceforth sabotage the military operations
against Boko Haram,” the group said.
Other resolutions reached by the group were as follows: “That the Feder-al Government should pay due and adequate compen-sation to all Igbo sons and daughters who lost their lives and property during the post-election violence as an assurance that this country cares for them as well as to increase their confidence index on their leaders.
“That henceforth Ndig-bo in the North should sup-port only governments that guarantee the security of their lives and property in Northern Nigeria where they reside as the duty of any government is primar-ily the provisions of securi-ty and welfare of it citizens
“That the current grand plan to stop Ndigbo from voting in their present loca-tions in parts of Northern Nigeria in the 2015 general
election should be taken seriously by government.”
Meanwhile, Borno State Governor, Kashim Shet-tima, has called on the military and other securi-ty agencies involved in the fight against insurgency to remain focused.
Shettima spoke through his media aide, Isa Gusau, while reacting to the request for exten-sion of emergency rule in Borno,Yobe and Adamawa states.
“No election in Nigeria should be worth the live of a single Nigerian, I am sure the Nigerian military knows this and is doing everything possible to safeguard lives and prop-erty even though in the face of challenges. The 2015 general election is a major factor that all stakeholders especially security agen-cies must be very wary of so that we don’t lose focus for a minute,” he said.
Onwuka Nzeshi ABUJA
Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the socio-cultural organisation of
the South-East, yesterday threw its weight behind the Northern States Gov-ernors’ Forum (NGF) call-ing on President Godluck Jonathan to declare a full scale war on the Boko Ha-ram insurgents operating in the North-East.
It condemned the per-sistent attacks on innocent people and the seizure of towns by the terrorist group and asked the In-dependent National Elec-toral Commission (INEC) to postpone all elections in the North-East until the restoration of peace to the troubled region.
The demands came on the heels of an extraordi-nary meeting of the Ime-Obi Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the
body of elders and leaders, serving and former pub-lic office holders of Igbo extraction as well as the traditional rulers in Abuja.
The meeting was con-vened following the grow-ing security concerns in the country in the build up to the 2015 general election.
In a communique issued at the end of the meeting, the Ime-Obi Ohanaeze Ndigbo said that given the current upsurge of terror-ist attacks on communi-ties in the North-East, any attempt to hold elections there may lead to another orgy of violence and loss of lives and the displace-ment of more persons liv-ing in that region. It urged the Federal Government to take the issue of security of life and property more seriously by launching a more organised attack on Boko Haram using a bet-ter equipped and more motivated members of the
Adeola Yusuf
The failure by the Federal Govern-ment to contrib-ute its counter-
part funding to the Joint Venture (JV) between it and Shell is threatening operations of the compa-ny, investigations by New Telegraph have revealed.
Consequently, contrac-tors on the exploration and production chains of the joint venture are being owed debts running into billions of naira.
The joint venture oper-ated by Shell accounts for more than 40 per cent of Nigeria’s total oil produc-tion (899,000 barrels per day (bpd) in 1997) from more than 80 oil fields.
The joint venture par-ticipants are the Nigerian National Petroleum Cor-poration (NNPC0, with 55 per cent stake, Shell (30 per cent), Elf (10 per cent) and Agip (5 per cent). It oper-ates largely onshore on dry land or in the mangrove swamp.
The NNPC, which rep-resents the government on the Joint Venture, an industry source told New Telegraph, is, however, lag-ging behind in the contri-bution of its counterpart funding to the joint ven-ture.
He said: “The JV has outsourced most of sup-porting activities to con-tractors. From food to security to aviation and all other important func-tions are being handled by contractors who are now being owed debts running
FG defaults on joint venture funding with Shell
lWants election postponed in North-East lShettima: Military must remain focused on insurgents
into several billions of naira.
“These debts, which have piled up to over 10 digits, may soon hamper operations of this ven-ture.”
Shell was said to have sought approval of the government, which is the biggest partner in the JV, to source for funds through alternative fund-ing. The government, how-ever, did not approve this because of the fear that it could lead to over-billing through interests.
The Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs of the NNPC, Mr.
Ohi Alegbe, could not be reached on the phone but a source at the corporation, who declined to confirm or refute the funding chal-lenge, said all the challeng-es facing the NNPC would end with the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB).
He bill, he said, would transform the corporation into a fully commercial and goal-oriented National Oil Company.
When contacted by phone, the spokesperson for Shell in Nigeria, Mr. Precious Okolobo, de-clined to comment on the issue.
The Joint Operating Agreements (JOA) is the basic, standard agreement between the NNPC and the operators.
It sets the guidelines/modalities for running the operations. It is different from the Memorandum of Understanding MoU. While it contains the ba-sic understanding on the Joint Venture, the MOU is a response to the specifics of fiscal incentives.
The main pegs of the JOA are that one of the partners is designated the operator.
The NNPC reserves the right to become an opera-
tor, while all parties are to share in the cost of opera-tions.
Meanwhile, the short-fall in counterpart fund-ing is threatening the Forkados-Yokri shallow water oil field in the west-ern Niger Delta and the Southern swamp associ-ated gas-gathering project.
Shell Nigeria had ear-lier announced the Final Investment Decision (FID) on project’s development as part of its quarterly results.
According to Bloom-berg, Shell said it would invest $4 billion in the projects.
Shell owns a 30 per cent stake in both projects and will develop the field along with its Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) joint venture part-ners Eni, Total, and the NNPC.
The Forkados-Yokri project is expected to produce 100,000 bbl/d of oil, while the Southern Swamp gas project will produce 85,000 boe/d at peak production.
The projects are ex-pected to greatly reduce flaring, a serious problem in Nigeria, and the single largest carbon dioxide source on the planet.
7NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014
served, had become a threat to global peace, stressing that China was ready and willing to cooperate with any country affected by the insecurity of terrorism. He disclosed that the Chinese government, had closely followed the security situation in Nigeria and would co-operate with the Nige-rian government in this regard. He recalled that last July, when Presi-dent Goodluck Jonathan visited China, the lead-ers of the two countries held discussions on how both nations could cooperate in the securi-ty sector. According to him, the two leaders also held further talks on the issue when the Chinese Premier visited Nigeria during the World Eco-nomic Forum for Africa which held on Abuja.
He described the visit to New Telegraph as a good beginning for the mutual understanding and cooperation between the organization and the Chinese Embassy.
Managing Director, New Telegraph News-papers, Mr Eric Osagie, had earlier briefed the diplomatic delegation on the mission, operations and core principles of the news organization. According to him, New Telegraph Newspaper is anchored on the sanctity of truth and had oper-ated on the policy of non alignment and unbiased reporting since its incep-tion early this year.
Onwuka Nzeshi and Nnamdi AmadiABUJA
China yesterday expressed its op-position to global terrorism in all
its forms and ramifi-cations and pledged to support Nigeria in the ongoing fight to bring an end to the activities of the Boko Haram in-
surgents operating in the North East region of the country.
The pledge came just as economic cooperation between the two coun-tries blossomed and bi-lateral trade volume hit $13.7 billion in the first three quarters of this year. Nigeria is now the largest trade partner
of China in Africa and this has resulted in an increase in Chinese in-vestment in Nigeria.
The Chinese Minis-ter Counsellor(Deputy Ambassador) to Nige-ria, Mr Zhang Bin dis-closed these while on a courtesy visit to Daily Telegraph Publishing Company, publishers of
New Telegraph in Abu-ja. The envoy, who was accompanied on the visit by the Director, Political Section, Guanda Yang and Attaché, Political Section of the Embassy, was received by the Man-aging Director of New Telegraph Newspapers, Mr Eric Osagie.
The purpose of this
visit was to discuss the possibility of enhanc-ing cooperation between New Telegraph and the Chinese Embassy and it came barely one week after the envoy visited the Chairman/Publish-er of New Telegraph Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu at his pri-vate residence in Abuja.
Terrorism, Bin ob-
Terrorism: China pledges cooperation with Nigeria
Foluso Ogunmodede
Lagos lawyer, Mr. Festus Keyamo, has threatened a court
action against the Depart-ment of State Security Services (SSS) and the In-spector General of police should they fail to arrest, investigate and prosecute an ex-militant, Govern-ment Ekpemupolo a.k.a Tompolo for his alleged role in the last Sunday’s abduction, attempted murder and torture of seven journalists.
Besides, Keyamo threatened to expose what he described as ‘unhealthy romance’ between Tompo-lo and some officials of the police and the SSS, should they refuse to arrest and prosecute the ex-militant within 72 hours.
In a petition dated No-vember 18, Keyamo, who lamented the refusal of the SSS and the police to acknowledge his com-plaints against Tompolo
three weeks after the ex-Ijaw militant threatened to assassinate him, said he must be brought to book for the attempted murder of the seven journalists.
Seven journalists- Ey-engho B. Samuel, Tokun-bor Oluwaleye, Kelvin Tuduo Ekpen, Edema Eburajolor, Otos Lemun and Dolor Emmanuel, were allegedly abducted in Ogidingben in Delta State on November 16 and tortured to near death by Tompolo’s agents.
In the petition, enti-tled “Further acts of ter-ror (kidnapping, torture and attempted murder) by Government Ekpemu-polo (Tompolo) in Delta State: Final ultimatum”, Keyamo said: “Take no-tice that if within 72 hours of the receipt of this petition you fail to invite/arrest Tompolo, I will be proceeding to court to compel you to do your duties under the law”.
Philip NyamABUJA
The House of Represen-tatives will soon com-
mence investigation into the alleged unauthorised variation of various con-tracts in the 22 designated airports across the coun-try amounting to over N42 million.
New Telegraph gathered from the House Committee on Public Accounts, which is carrying out the inves-tigation that the action is
based on queries raised by the Auditor-General of the Federation (AGF) on the projects executed by Nige-rian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA).
Documents made avail-able to the committee by the AGF showed that some of the projects that will be investigated include con-tract for WGS-84 survey and acquisition of global navigational satellite and associated works/training of 22 designated airports across the country.
Tunde OyesinaABUJA
Justice Adebukola Ban-joko of an Abuja High
Court yesterday with-drew from the $620,000 bribery suit instituted against a former Chair-man, House of Represen-tatives ad hoc Committee on Fuel Subsidy Regime, Hon. Farouk Lawan.
Lawan is being tried along with the secretary
of the committee, Boni-face Emenalo, by the In-dependent Corrupt Prac-tices and other related offences Commission (ICPC).
Justice Banjoko vol-untarily withdrew from the case and ordered the case file to be returned to the Chief Judge, Justice Ibrahim Bukar.
Lawan had earlier withdrew an application filed seeking the judge to disqualify herself.
The judge held in her ruling that though the application had been withdrawn and the Chief Judge had cleared her of the allegation in Lawan's petition against her, the al-legation was a "scandalous challenge" of her integrity.
"In my 17 years on the bench, six years as a mag-istrate and 11 years as a judge, I have never been confronted with a scan-dalous challenge of my integrity," the judge said.
Akeem Nafiu
Justice Rita Ofili-Aju-mogobia of a Federal
High Court, Lagos yes-terday fixed February 24, 2015 for the trial of a for-mer Managing Director of Union Bank, Mr. Barth-lomew Ebong, over an al-leged approval of credit facility worth millions of naira to himself and oth-
ers, without recourse to banking rules.
Besides, Justice Ofili-Ajumogobia also ap-proved Ebong’s request to travel abroad for medical check up following his ail-ing health.
The former bank chief had at the last adjourned date asked the court to vary the bail earlier grant-ed him in 2009, so that he
could travel abroad for medical treatment.
Arguing the applica-tion, Ebong’s lawyer, Chinedu Anyiansi, in-formed the court that the application, which was filed on May 7 was brought pursuant to Sec-tion 128 of the Criminal Procedure Act (CPA) and Section 35(1) of the Con-stitution.
Keyamo petitions SSS, police over Tompolo’s attempted murder of journalists
Reps probe N42 million excess payments on airports' designation
Subsidy: Judge withdraws from $620,000 bribery suit
Court grants ex-Union Bank boss’ request for medical treatment abroad
L-R: Former Ekiti State Governor and Chairman, National Convention Committee, Dr. Kayode Fayemi; National Chairman, All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief John Odigie-Oyegun and the National Vice Chairman (North) , Senator Lawan Shuaib, at the inauguration of the convention committee in Abuja…yesterday. PHOTO: ELIJAH OLALUYI
national
l Bilateral trade hits $13.7 billion
The percentage of individuals using the internet in Botswana in 2007.
Source: Itu.int
63,000The estimated number of Americans above 65
years with Alzheimer’s in Colorado State in 2014.Source: Alz.org
25%The percentage risk of heart disease and lung cancer caused by passive smoking.
Source: Smokingstatistics.org
5.28% 31.9mThe estimated total population
of Middle Africa in 1960.Source: Un.org
8 News wednesday, november 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH
SOUTH-WEST
APC wants Fayose to name ‘strange legislators’
Ekiti Assembly’s account not frozen –Fayose’s aide
Amosun presents N210bn budget to lawmakers
L-R: Country Manager, Microsoft Nigeria, Kabelo Makwane; Chief Executive Officer, MTN Nigeria, Mike Ikpoki; Lagos State Commissioner for Science and Technology, Adebiyi Mabadeje and founder, Health Plus Limited, Bukky George at the 2014 MTN SME forum in Lagos…yesterday
Wahab Adesina
The All Progres-sives Congress (APC), yester-day challenged
the Peoples Democratic Party and Ekiti State Governor Ayo Fayose, to list the names of the 10 lawmakers that sat at the plenary session of the assembly on Monday.
The State Publicity
Secretary, Mr Taiwo Ola-tubosun, in a statement in Ado-Ekiti, challenged Fay-ose to convince the whole world that 10 lawmakers actually sat to remove the Speaker, by listing their names and the constitu-encies they represent.
He said, “If Governor Fayose wanted mem-bers of the public to be-lieve that the lawmakers who sat were actually 10 that formed a quorum,
he should let the whole world have their names and their constituencies.”
Olatunbosun, reiter-ated that only seven PDP lawmakers sat but were joined by three other strange men who dis-guised as lawmakers to de-ceive people at the gallery.
“We make bold to say that as the time the seven PDP lawmakers were holding their illegal sit-ting in Ado Ekiti, the 19
APC lawmakers includ-ing the speaker and his deputy were on a live pro-gramme on Adaba FM in Akure. There are 26 mem-bers in the House of As-sembly. If 19 were on a ra-dio programme in Akure, only seven or less will be sitting in the Assembly and if they are more than seven, it means they are rented,” he added.
The party wonders why the police who could
not provide enough secu-rity for judges to sit on the eligibility case of Fayose suddenly mobilised 300 men to provide cover for an illegal sitting.
“This is the gateway to fascism the end re-sult of which could be anarchy,”he added.
Yesterday controversy continued to trail how many members of the As-sembly attended the ple-nary sitting where certain
requests by Fayose were met by the lawmakers.
While reporters, who covered the session saw 10 persons sitting in the hallowed chamber and which was confirmed by Hon. Samuel Ajibola Oyedele (Ekiti East Two), who acted as the Leader of the Government Busi-ness for the day, the APC is insisted that only sev-en were actual members of the House.
88The sex ratio of men to 100 women in the above 60 years group in Anguilla in 2012.
Source: Un.org
N151.5mThe total capital importation value
of the Oil & Gas sector in 2007.Source: National Bureau of Statistics
188The number of refugees in Uruguay
at the beginning of 2010.Source: Blatantworld.com
1.4%The annual population growth
rate of Costa Rica in 2010-2015.Source: Un.org Adesina Wahab
AdO-EKITI
The Special Assistant to Ekiti State Gover-
nor on Information, Mr Lanre Ogunsuyi, has denied claims by the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Dr Adewale Omirin, that the account of the Assembly has been frozen by Governor Ayo Fayose.
Briefing journalists in Ado-Ekiti on Tuesday, he said rather than the leg-islative arm of govern-ment being denied funds for its operation, it was only the Assembly that was given its full subven-tion for the month of Oc-tober.
“All other government agencies were given 40 per cent of their running grants for October, but the Assembly got its full subvention. The gover-nor does not operate the Assembly’s account with them. It is left for them to manage their accounts.
Kunle OlayeniABEOKUTA
A mild drama ensued yesterday inside the
Ogun State legislative chambers as 13 opposi-tion lawmakers in the House boycotted the usu-al photograph session after the budget presen-tation by Governor Ibi-kunle Amosun to mem-bers of the assembly.
10 of the lawmakers belonged to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), while three others recent-ly defected to the Social Democratic Party (SDP) from the ruling All Pro-gressives Congress (APC).
Only the Speaker and 12 members belonging to All Progressives Con-gress (APC), as well as some traditional rulers and dignitaries joined Amosun in the photo-graph session which
took place outside the Assembly chamber.
The 13 opposition law-makers, however, joined their colleagues inside the chamber where they par-ticipated in adjourning the plenary to December 2.
The Majority Leader, Is-rael Jolaoso, moved the mo-tion for adjournment while Hon. Obafemi Olowo-Oloja seconded the motion.
The Governor pre-sented a budget propos-al of N210.354billion for the 2015 fiscal year to the state House of Assembly.
Christened “Budget of Continuity,” Amosun said the Appropriation Bill was geared towards sustaining the tempo of development and solid foundation in the past three years.
The plenary session, where the governor pre-sented the budget, was pre-sided over by the Speaker, Suraj Adekunbi, with all
members of the 26-Assem-bly in attendance.
The governor, who re-viewed the N210.29billion budget for the outgoing year, said his adminis-tration had adequately implemented it.
“Our (budget) perfor-mance as at 30th Septem-ber, 2014 was 68.34 percent, an improvement over the 64.2 percent achievement recorded in the correspond-ing period of 2013. This im-provement is largely attrib-utable to the improvements in the IGR performance, which contributed the lion share of our total actual revenue,” he added.
Amosun explained that the 2015 budget esti-mates remained signifi-cant “because it is the one that takes us into another political transition.”
According to him, the budget comprises capital expenditure of N118.26billion (56 percent) and recurrent expenditure
of N92.09billion (44 percent).The governor said
the 2015 budget would be funded through in-ternally generated revenue, N99.35billion (47.23 percent); Federa-tion Account, N53billion (25.20 percent) and Capi-tal Receipt, N58billion (27.57percent).
He said, “We are propos-ing a budget of N210.354 bil-lion for the 2015 financial year, which is about the same as the 2014 budget of N210.28billion. The ra-tionale for this is that the macro-economic outlook driven by the global oil pric-es suggests a contraction in the national economy.
“I have always main-tained that Ogun State is not immune from the wider economy. However, I am confident that we will be able to maintain our budget size by in-novatively growing our Internally Generated Revenue.”
Guber aspirant, women leader bicker over ambitionMuritala Ayinla
Emerging indications show that a fresh cri-
sis is brewing in the La-gos state chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC),as the only female governorship aspirant in the party, Mrs. Adetokum-bo Agebsanwa, yesterday accused the party South-West Women Leader, Chief Kemi Nelson of been op-posed to her ambition.
Agbesanwa, who is also the Senior Special Assistant to Governor Babatunde Fashola on School Environmental Advocacy, alleged that Nelson had on live TV programme, declared that no woman is vying for the governorship position in Lagos State, even when Nelson was fully informed of her governorship ambition.
She described the state-ment credited to Nelson,
as an attempt to humiliate and rubbish her decision to vie for the governor-ship of the state by a per-son who, according to her, should be at the forefront of giving support to a fel-low woman’s ambition.
She said: “This state-ment is grossly unwom-anly, unfriendly and our team sees it as an attempt to bring down Mrs Adetokun-bo Tobun Agbesanwa, the only female aspirant vy-ing for the position of the Governor of Lagos State under the All Progressives Congress in Lagos State.
“We believe that the State Women leader was malicious against my as-piration in making that unwholesome statement on national television even after she was duly informed officially and personally of my intention to run for Governorship of Lagos State, the Centre of Excellence!”
l10 legislators shun photo session
9NewsNEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014
Metroters had lost millions of naira to the fraudsters in their des-peration to forestall arrest and possible prosecution for unstated crimes.
He said that despite repeat-ed warnings by the commis-sion, that no genuine EFCC invitation will request the recipient to call any private GSM number or any tele-phone line for that matter and that EFCC would not invite anybody to a meeting at any place other than its known of-fices, many were still falling victims of the scam.
“The new dimension to the criminal exploits of the syndi-cates is to send text messages to would-be victims, alleging that they have pending cases before the EFCC and offering proposals for a soft landing.
This new gimmick is tar-geted at politicians, especially those who are aspiring to hold offices in the next dispensation.
“EFCC invitation letters do not bear personal telephone numbers. They are usually signed by duly authorised of-ficers and invitees are clearly instructed to report to a speci-fied officer at the commis-sion’s office.
“No EFCC invitation will require the invitee to report at any building or location outside the known offices of the commission. EFCC invi-tation cannot be traded off under any circumstance. The commission does not demand or accept payment, either to commence or discontinue an investigation.
“EFCC does not invite per-sons under investigation via text messages. Any person who receives an invitation letter should confirm the au-thenticity of such an invita-tion from the commission through the following email or telephone numbers: [email protected], 09-9044752 or 09-9044753.”
Juliana Francis
A suspected fraudster, identified as Tope Yu-nusa Mohammed, has been arrested while
trying to cash N2 million, pro-ceeds of fraud, at a new genera-tion bank in Kano State.
Mohammed, who hails from Edo State, was arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The suspect was picked up in a sting operation as he at-tempted to withdraw the mon-ey he got from the head of a Federal Government agency.
A few weeks ago, the com-
mission arrested one Olale-kan Olubunmo, who had been churning out fake invitation letters and messages to prom-inent citizens and heads of organisations alleging fraud against them from his Akure base. Investigators said that Mohammed was Olubunmo’s accomplice.
The Head, Media and Pub-licity of EFCC, Mr Wilson Uwujaren, said it had become necessary to alert the general public about the activities of fraudsters who had been im-personating officials of the commission and extorting money from people under vari-
ous guises.He said: “Despite arrests and
successful prosecution of some of them by the commission, such syndicates have continued to mushroom and changing tac-tics as soon as their latest mo-dus operandi is exposed.
“There have been of recent a worrying upsurge in the number of fake invitation let-ters purported to have been is-sued by the EFCC, which the criminals are busy sending to unsuspecting members of the public, alleging high financial crimes against them.”
Uwujaren added that pliable recipients of some of these let-
At least 2,287 people died in road crashes at differ-ent parts of Lagos State
between 2010 and 2013. The state Sector Com-
mander, Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC), Corps Commander Hyginus Omeje, disclosed this yesterday in Lagos while launching a pro-gramme aimed at reducing road crashes.
The programme, tagged: “Don’t Drink and Drive,” was organised by Nigerian Brew-eries PLC in partnership with FRSC and other stakeholders.
Omeje said that within the period under review, 17,561
Road Transport Crashes (RTC) occurred in Lagos, 1,991 of the accidents were fatal, while 8,600 people were injured.
The sector commander re-gretted that 32 per cent of the crashes resulted from alcohol
drinking and driving.He said: “Today gives us an-
other opportunity to campaign for RTC reduction in Nigeria. Drinking and driving do not go together. Alcohol affects our reaction time and mental
disposition while driving and there should be no excuse to do so with its consequences.”
Omeje added that besides drinking, all drivers must take precautionary measures before sitting behind the wheel.
“Drivers must check their vehicles. Do not over load or over speed, do not answer calls while driving, you must obey traffic lights and avoid indis-criminate packing. Let us drive to arrive alive,” he said.
Also speaking, the CSR/Sus-tainability Manager, Nigerian Breweries, Mrs Emete Tonu-kari, said her company was not only interested in market-ing its products but to ensure the safety of consumers.
2,287 die in Lagos auto crashes, says FRSC
Juliana Francis
The Economic and Finan-cial Crimes Commission
(EFCC) has arraigned one Ajayi Tope Samuel and his company, Sky TV Global Me-dia Limited, before Justice Fatu Riman of the Federal High Court Kano on a three-count charge bordering on conspiracy and intellectual theft.
The accused was arrested on August 23, 2013 at Link 26, Bawo Road, Hausawa Quar-ters, Kano, for allegedly re-transmitting signals of the pay TV, DSTV, without au-thorisation.
One of the charges reads: “That you, Tope Samuel Ajayi and Sky TV Global Media Limited on or about 23rd August, 2013 within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court of Nigeria, Kano Judicial Division illegally had in your possession Tlink, Stron, Dream, Lumin digi-tal satellite receiver, Dlink satellite receivers, AZSKY dongles with routers and mini-receiver, monitors, in-verters, Hp laptops, printer, SIM cards, DSTV cards, ca-nal cards which you use in accessing MultiChoice Nige-ria Limited (MCN) signal and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 20 (1)(c) of the Copyright Act, Cap C28 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.”
The accused pleaded not guilty to all the charges when they were read to him.
Riman granted him bail in the sum of N50 million and two sureties in like sum.
The judge adjourned the case till December 12 for trial.
Man arraigned for impersonating DSTV agent
Fraudster arrested while cashing N2m
10WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH
Ashafa empowers 2,700 constituents
would reduce rate of unemployed youths and artisans who had become jobless because of lack of basic tools that would engage them in their cho-sen vocation.
Addressing thousands
of residents and All Progressives Congress (APC) stalwarts who thronged the Centre for Management Develop-ment (CMD), Magodo, Ashafa said time had come for the wealthy
individuals in Nigeria to come to the rescue of the downtrodden to save them from the shackle of poverty.
Some of the items distributed in the em-powerment programme
in the last 24 months include four vehicles, 11 tricycles, deep freezers, generators, grinding machines, hair dryers, sewing machines, barb-ing kits, wheelchairs, computers, photocopi-ers, tyres, etc.
He said: “As at today, I have also been able to train 558 constituents in Information and Com-munication Technology (ICT) with the best three graduating students of each batch carting away desktop computers with printers to empower them.
“It is pertinent to state here that this mega em-powerment programme was launched on August 21, 2014 at Ibeju-Lekki Local Government and Lekki LCDA at Iber-ekodo Primary School, Ibeju-Lekki.
Police in Rivers State have arrested a sus-
pected fake soldier, Sam-uel Ita Ekeng, while fully dressed in military cam-ouflage uniform.
The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Ahmad Kidaya Mu-hammad, Ekeng, who paraded himself as an Army officer, was ha-rassing and extorting money from unsuspect-ing citizens.
According to him, items recovered from the suspect include one para-military identity card, one Nigeria merchant Navy identity card bear-ing his name, three cam-ouflage shorts, one mili-tary camouflage T-shirt, one military jacket, a pair of military trousers and one military cap.
Fake soldier held in Rivers
The Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG),
Lagos Province 21, Victory Chapel, Magodo, will hold her special 12 hours of praise from November 21 to 22.
The programme tagged: “The High Praises of God,” according to the convener and host pastor, Bisi Olowoyo, is put to-gether to give thanks to the Almighty for His won-drous works since Janu-ary in the church and in the lives of the members and the pastorate.
Artistes expected to perform include the RCCG National Praise Team, Pastor Kunle Ajayi, Victorious Voices, Daystar Praise Team, Tope Alabi, Ayan Jesu, Aduke Gold and Buchi.
The Guest Speaker is Rev. Steve Mensah.
RCCG Victory Chapel holds 12-hour prayer
Camillus Nnaji
Some armed rob-bers held a two-month-old baby captive during an
attack on its mother, who identified herself simply as Mrs Moshood.
The mother of two said she was petrified when armed robbers barged into her room through the window and beat her mercilessly be-cause she did not cooper-ate with them.
She said the robbers threatened to go away with her baby if she did not give them money.
Moshood, who said she begged them not to take her baby away, said she watched as the men of the underworld turned her home upside down, frantically search-
ing for money.According to he, they
eventually found N75,000 in the wardrobe and an additional N12,000 in an envelope.
The bandits also found N25,000 in her sister’s wardrobe.
The money, she said, made the robbers to re-lease her baby.
A few weeks ago, a gang of robbers attacked the residents of Okekpa area of Mowe in Ogun State and killed a man returning from a vigil. The robbers had written to the community that they would be coming to attack.
The nursing mother was one of the victims of the attack.
Moshood said she was returning from the hos-pital, where she went for treatment because of the
injuries inflicted on her by the robbers.
Recalling how the unwanted visitors paid her a visit, she said: “It all started around 3am. I heard footsteps around our house. They started throwing stones and banging on our gate. Sud-
denly, five of the robbers jumped over the fence. They used their pincers and saw blades to cut through our burglar-proof.
“Before then, the rob-bers had been shouting that they would kill me if I refused to open the
door. I was searching for the key which I did not find until they broke in through the window.
“I have been under emotional torture since then. I have lost all my money to the robbers and have just left the hospital.”
Moshood said her hus-band went out about an hour before the robbers struck.
According to her, her husband took a pregnant woman who was in labour to the Shagamu General Hospital after a nearby hospital rejected her.
She added that the pregnant woman was bleeding and there were fears that she could die.
Moshood said she was with her two kids and 11-year-old cousin when the gunmen invaded the house.
Robbers threaten to steal two-month-old baby
Fowler
payable to the Lagos State Government for
the past six years”.“The said company,
with an overwhelming staff strength, only de-clares to the tax office some staff and pays ma-jority of staff in China thereby evading tax pay-able on salaries of those staff,” the petition reads in part.
Reacting to the allega-tions, Fowler said LIRS had begun investigation into the tax records of companies even before the petition.
He said: “LIRS has begun investigation into Huawei Technolo-gies Company Nigeria Limited. We have also told them to give certain information including their monthly immigra-tion reports which every company who has expa-
triates must provide.“We are currently
still in discussion with the company on 2013. If in the next one or two months it is not resolved, then those cases will go to court.
“You may ask us how we get to N988 million. We have what we call Industry Average Rate. Base on the expatriates that they said they have here, they have 901 ex-patriates and we looked at the industry that they are in, we take an aver-age pay of what those staff earn in other com-panies.”
Fowler added that several letters had been sent to the company to comply with the tax
law, adding that LIRS would look into all the documents sent to it by Huawei Technologies Company.
He disclosed that LIRS was verifying the basis of the firm’s objection, adding that the govern-ment, if not satisfied with records provided by the company, might be forced to go to court to get the power to shut the company.
The LIRS chairman, who said that many com-panies were guilty of fal-sifying their document in a bid to evade tax or pay less than they were supposed to pay, added that over 200 companies had been prosecuted in the last one year.
Lagos probes firm over N776m tax default
Ashafa, (third right) and others at the event
Muritala Ayinla
Lagos State Gov-ernment, which accused Huawei
Technologies Company Nigeria Limited of with-holding N776 million tax in 2013, said yesterday that it had commenced investigation into the issue.
The Chairman of the Lagos State Inter-nal Revenue Services (LIRS), Mr Babatunde Fowler, who disclosed this, said the company only paid N212 million instead of N988 million as tax for 2013.
One Chief A. Giwa-Amu had petitioned Governor Babatunde Fashola, alleging that some LIRS tax officials were conniving with Huawei “to evade tax
The vandalised window
Muritala Ayinla
The lawmaker repre-senting the Lagos
East Senatorial District, Senator Gbenga Ashafa, has empowered about 2,700 residents in Ikoro-du and Koshofe areas of the state with various vo-cational equipment.
The empowerment, according to Ashafa, is to reduce the rate of un-employed graduates and artisans in his constitu-ency.
Among the benefi-ciaries was a physical-ly-challenged person, Olayinka Saheed, who hitherto earned a living through begging.
He said that the em-powerment would trans-form his life and make him self-dependent.
The lawmaker, who donated multi-million naira worth of items to the residents, said the empowerment tools
11NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 Metro
south - east
Court declares Aja Enugu PDP chairman
would amount to strain-ing the relationship be-tween them and the gov-ernor that may lead to impeachment.
But the chairman de-nied such payment, de-scribing it as the imagina-tion of mischief makers. APGA has majority mem-bers in the house.
A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja pre-
sided over by Justice E. S. Chukwu, yesterday declared Mr. David Aja, the authentic chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Enugu State chapter, pending the ap-pointment of another chairman from the area where the immediate past chairman of the party hails from.
This was even as the PDP confirmed that its nationwide November 1, 2014 ward congresses to elect three-man ad-hoc delegates indeed validly held in Enugu State.
Counsel to the national leadership of the PDP, Frederick C. Olisa, stated this in an amended affida-vit to override his earlier submission in a different suit in line with emerging facts.
Justice Chukwu, while delivering judgement in the suit filed by Aja on Oc-tober 27, 2014, granted all the reliefs sought by the plaintiff.
The defendants in the suit were the Peoples Democratic Party, Alhaji Admau Muazu, the Inde-pendent National Elector-al Commission (INEC), Chief Ikeje Asogwa and Steve Oruruo.
The court declared that following the resignation of Vita Abba, as the chair-man of the Enugu State chapter of the 1st Defen-dant (PDP), the plaintiff as the vice-chairman of the said chapter, is en-titled to act as chairman of the said chapter of the 1st defendant pending the appointment of another chairman from the area Abba hails from.
In his judgement, Jus-tice Chukwu ordered that “the 4th Defendant (Ikeje Asogwa) is not entitled to hold himself out or per-form the function of the chairman of the Enugu State chapter of the 1st defendant not having been validly appointed.”
He also ordered the setting aside of all acts performed by the 4th defendant purporting to act or carry out the func-tions of the chairman of the Enugu State chapter of the party.
Tony OkaforAwkA
Plot to impeach Anambra State governor, Chief Willie Obiano, by
the state House of Assem-bly thickened yesterday as the state chapter of the All Progressives Grand
Alliance (APGA) refused to grant the House mem-bers automatic return in next year's general elec-tions.
The House of As-sembly members had demanded automatic tickets from the All Pro-gressives Grand Alliance (APGA) to return to the House next year or see to the impeachment of the governor.
But, in a chat with New Telegraph yesterday,
APGA Chairman, Chief Mike Kwentor, said the party has no plan to grant automatic ticket to mem-bers of the assembly.
He maintained that members of the assembly must be ready to subject themselves to the party's primaries.
He dismissed as infan-tile the threat by House to impeach Obiano if they were denied automatic return next year.
The APGA boss said
the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nige-ria was clear about what constituted impeachable fences, stressing that the House lacked the capacity to impeach the governor without recourse to the constitution.
He said the members had been lobbying to be granted the privilege to return to the house next year, but according to the APGA boss, such over-ture was undemocratic.
Kwentor said he would better resign his posi-tion as APGA chairman than succumbing to such pressure. He assured the people of a level playing ground in next year's polls.
But a source told New Telegraph that members of the House paid N10 million each to the APGA leadership to retain their position in the House next year, vowing that anything short of that
Plot to impeach Obiano thickens
Steve UzoechiOwERRI
Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) Imo State chap-
ter yesterday directed the immediate closure of Obosima Secondary School in Ohaji/Egbema Local Government area of the state, following the invasion of the school by its host community, lead-ing to the brutal killing of one of the teachers.
The villagers our cor-respondent gathered, had on Thursday last week besieged the school premises with machet-es, cudgels and other dangerous weapons in retaliation of what the villagers purported to be severe maltreatment meted out one of the stu-dents by a teacher in the school.
The student was said to have reported to his
parents about the alleged maltreatment, which in-furiated the parents and in turn the villagers, who then marched to the school to avenge the alleged brutality.
The villagers on in-vading the school prem-ises attacked the teacher with different kinds of weapons, killing him in the process.
The NUT in its state-ment endorsed by the state Chairman, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Dr. Reginald Anyadike, ordered teachers in the school to stop attending classes until further no-tice.
The statement, which did not disclose the name of the murdered teacher, also directed teachers in the school to be report-ing at the state secretar-iat of NUT located along Owerri-Port Harcourt Expressway, Owerri on daily basis for briefing.
Imo NUT shuts down school over killing of teacher
L-R: Permanent Secretary, Pension and Related Matters, Anambra State, Mr. Harold Odu; Chairman, Nigeria Civil Service Union (NCSU), Anambra State chapter, Comrade Ignatus Okafor and the Medical Director, Madonna Specialist Hospital and Traditional Ruler of Ifitedunu community, Chief Chukwuemeka Ilouno, at a sensitisation seminar in Awka …yesterday
Tony OkaforAwkA
An Anambra State High Court sitting
in Aguata, presided over by Justice Peter Obiora, yesterday fined the tra-ditional ruler of Oko, Igwe Laz Ekwueme and the President-General of the town union, Cyprian Nwamuo, N200,000 for os-tracising a high chief in the community, Chief Sir Ephraim Offorma.
Justice Obiora also
nullified the banishment placed on Offormah by the Oko monarch and the president general at a meeting held at the res-idence of the traditional ruler on March 31, 2014.
It will be recalled that Offorma and twelve other indigenes of the commu-nity were banished for asking the Federal Gov-ernment to renew the ten-ure of the Rector, Federal Polytechnic Oko, Prof. Godwin Onu, in view of his unequal performance in the development of the
institution.The judge also ordered
the Oko monarch and the town union president to write an apology letter to Offormah within 14 days from the date of the judgement for violating his fundamental human rights.
He said after reviewing the evidence adduced by the plaintiff and the de-fendants, he was satisfied that the defendants had breached the fundamen-tal human rights of the plaintiff.
Igbeaku OrjiUMUAHIA
Chairman of the Abia Council of the Nige-
ria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Mr. John Emejor, has appealed to security agencies in the state to expedite action on the release of the abducted journalist, Mr. Ugochuk-
wu Eke.Speaking yesterday
when he visited the family of the kidnapped journal-ist in Aba with some mem-bers of his executive, the chairman also called on the abductors to release him without further delay.
“We know him as a gen-tleman, an easy going per-son, he has never stepped on anyone’s toes, he is
friendly with everyone,” he said, and wondered why anybody would kid-nap him for ransom.
Emejor, who commend-ed the state government for the efforts made so far to ensure his release un-hurt, added; “We appeal to security agencies and Abia State government to intensify effort for his release.”
Oko crisis: Court fines Ekwueme
Abia NUJ visits abducted journalist's family
127,149The number of fixed-telephone
subscriptions of Benin Republic in 2009.Source: Itu.int
5870.94The number of pending asylum seekers of Costa Rica at the beginning of 2010.
Source: Blatantworld.com
The number of fixed-telephone subscrip-tions per 100 inhabitants of Guinea in 2009.
Source: Itu.int
73.8%The percentage of the urban population
of Cook Islands in 2012.Source: Un.org
DANGER The red signal is on. Obiano is feeling the heat outside board room politics
12 News wednesday, november 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH
With advancement into civil rule, politicians who have held partic-ular public offices, or
those presently holding similar offices, have developed a new fad of coming together to form a com-mon front to protect their interests and project for their future, in a bid to remain relevant in the politics of the nation. So, they form and register different groups, associa-tions and forums by which to pres-ent these common fronts. They also go ahead to elect executive officers to represent them where and when necessary.
But like most things Nigerian, that have to do with politics, these forums, relevant and irrelevant are increasing daily. They have ex-ecutive members as well as secre-tariats, mostly in Lagos and Abuja, and in some cases paid staff. While the existence of some of such fo-rums has been lauded as necessary and worthwhile, some are laugh-able, tending to the ridiculous.
In many cases, state funds are spent to maintain the secretariats, and staff of these forums and asso-ciations even as the serving elected public officials among them, also make use of state funds and time to attend to the affairs of their groups, collecting allowances and pecks for trips meant to attend to their forum’s affairs.
The hierarchical arrangement of the various governors’ forums do sometimes get confusing, as a chairman of one forum, is just a member in another.
Nigerian Governors’ Forum By far, the most popular of these
forums is the Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF) which attained pop-ularity, and near notoriety when a leadership crisis within the fold produced factions, which later branched out to form other forums under different names.
Established in 1999, the NGF a coalition of the elected gover-nors of the country’s 36 states is portrayed as a non-partisan as-sociation which seeks to promote unity, good governance, better understanding and co-operation among the states, and ensure a healthy and beneficial relationship between the states and other tiers of government.
The influence of the governors stems from the fact that, among others, they control appointments into the federal cabinet and federal parastatals, an issue that hitherto, was done in close collaboration with the party’s leadership. In-deed, party officials who should be calling their governors to order, kowtow to the governors’ whims, and soon become appointees.
The battle to control the forum created a sharp divide between Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State
and Jonah Jang of Plateau State, who both claimed to be the chair-men of the forum. As things pres-ently stand, Amaechi and Jang control two factions of the forum, with each parading himself as chairman, after election to the position created so much friction, and ended up controversial.
Given the level of influence of governors in the polity, the struggle for who leads the group took a new dimension, when the presidency needed to have the leadership of the group on its side, and Amae-chi, the incumbent chairman as at then, was viewed as anti-Jonathan. This led to a scheme to unseat him, and install a more presidency-friendly candidate.
The scheme to remove Amaechi was tied to accusations that he was using his position to advance his presidential ambition as a possible running mate to Governor Sule Lamido of Jigawa State in the 2015 elections. This ambition pitched him against President Goodluck Jonathan, who is eyeing a second term.
In the crisis that trailed the NGF election, Kano State governor,
Rabiu Kwankwaso, had alleged that the presidency had given N2 billion each to the 16 governors who voted for Jang, claiming, that the 19 governors, who supported Amaechi to win the vote did not get any gratification from the presi-dency, describing the action as il-legal and unfair.
The governor said: “We are hav-ing difficulties in coming together as one forum because the Federal Government is not respecting dem-ocratic tenets. For rapid progress to ensue, governors in the country must work as brothers.”
But Jang said it was the dishon-est role played by the Kano gover-nor during the NGF election that led to the division amongst the governors. Jang declared that Kwankwaso’s act, which was aided by a few other governors, sowed the seed of discord amongst the governors, claiming that the Kano governor and his group were now finding it difficult to cope with the consequences of their action.
Kwankwaso later provided a vivid account of the politics, horse
CONTINUED ON PAGE 42
13NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014
ETAGHENE EDIRIN reports on the plethora of political groups and forums set up by various elected political office holders, and the relevance or otherwise of such groups
The hierarchical
arrangement of the various
governors’ forums do
sometimes get
confusing, as a chairman
of one forum, is just a
member in another
14 NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014Politics
Our biggest problem is that 90 per cent of our politicians
do not have employment
outside politics, and in the era of uncertainty,
they are thrown out.
That is not life
lSays I’ll resist politics of elimination
Okocha
After years in the opposition, you have returned to the Peoples Demo-cratic Party (PDP) to contest the governorship election.
I came back to the ruling PDP about three years ago. And on this platform, I will contest and win the primary election, as well as the general election; I will win and govern Delta State for eight years under PDP. Those who may be aggrieved can port to other par-ties because we are the foundation members.
I think we have passed through a process of evolution in the party, either for good or not so good. Ex-cept something is tested, you can-not condemn it. I believe that the party has learnt some lessons. It is true that in about 15 or 16 years in our rebranding effort, we have moved from point A to point B for better. So, I think that whatever happens would be a better process than what happened many years back.
What chased you away from the party in the first place?
In 2007, I was screened out by my detractors. They said I was corrupt but I have never worked for anybody. That is what I call the antics of politics of elimination of good people through unorthodox means, through things that can-not be proven, and they say party is supreme. Of course, I got angry and went to the Action Congress (AC), as it was called then where my deputy resigned, and part of the judgement was that I had no deputy. So, after two or three court sessions, I lost the case and I de-cided to go back to my business. That is what happened. Here I am again after seven years throwing myself into the political ring.
Don’t you think your romance with former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar may hinder your chances of succeeding Governor Uduaghan next year?
The fact that the former vice president is in the All Progres-sives Congress (APC) and I am in the PDP does not mean that we are
enemies; we just have different po-litical views. He left PDP because he subscribes to a different politi-cal ideology, but PDP’s ideology suits me. It does not mean that we are not Nigerians. I remain in PDP while he has moved to the APC and we are friends. It is a matter of convenience. I was never his political godson.
Yes, he is my personal friend. I was already a multi-millionaire when I met him as a Customs officer. I already owned a vessel when I met Atiku in 1982. So, how can a government official be my godfather? I don’t have any godfa-ther. Those I would probably call my godfathers are Chief Edwin Clark and Chief Samuel Ogbemu-dia because when I came back to this state as an orphan, they gave me scholarship when they never knew me at that time.
That is the kind of empower-ment that I would subscribe to and not the one of buying bikes and rice for people like our leg-islators today do. They educated my mind and that made me what I am today. Atiku is my friend to-day, tomorrow and next tomorrow, he has never been my godfather and I was never his godson, either politically, economically or other-wise. We have mutual respect for each other and we love each other. I was never Atiku’s political son as being speculated by my detractors. Atiku is just a friend.
So, after my eight years, which starts from next year, as the gov-ernor of Delta State, I will retire, not as a poor man because before I got there, I was already a multi-millionaire.
Do you think you can survive the political conspiracy of kingmakers in Delta State?
It is my passion for service, hav-ing not worked for government or for anybody and believing that only the best is good for Delta State that made me throw myself into the murky waters of politics.
Seven years ago, I was one of those, apart from Chief Godswill Obielum that started our quest for aspiration as the next gover-
nor of Delta State to take over from James Ibori. Fortunately and unfortunately, Emmanuel (Uduaghan) won and his tenure would expire in 2015. After due consultation with my friends and associates, I decided to declare and offer myself, also, as one of the as-pirants or whatever nomenclature you think for the position of the governor of Delta State.
Right now, I have embarked on consultations and I have been meeting with various stakehold-ers and opinion leaders on how best to reposition myself with what I stand for, which is what I call my roadmap to Government House, Asaba, in order that they will best judge amongst others who is the right person to lead Delta State beyond oil come 2015, or whenever the whistle is blown for the electioneering to start.
Most people would say politics is dirty and not good but politics is the only avenue through which you can reach your people and make their lives better. My con-cern generally is simple, that I am 62 and in eight years’ time I will become probably one of the oldest men around and looking back with the life that we had lived, what would we say we have bequeathed to our children.
With this rising insurgency due to unemployment and youth restiveness, if we turn 90 or 100, where would we be? Where most
of you are better than me is that my children carry three passports – British, Nigerian and American and if we don’t do things right and make this place attractive enough for them, they have the right and privilege to port out. They can go to another country and survive with the kind of education and life I have been able to give to them.
If that happens, it means I will be a lonely old man. But if we make this place comfortable enough and give them the best that life can provide, they will stay. We have the resources; our eco-system is not different from that of Flor-ida. We can transform the system just like what happened in Florida and many other places. I believe that we will probably not need se-curity vote if we make the lives of our children secured because they would be busy and at the end of the day, they would be so tired and would not have time for trouble.
I have worked all my life and I am glad to say that at the end of the day I would leave the money and property for my children whom I have given good education. But then their neighbours don’t have money, they don’t have education, they are not as privilege as my kids. That is to say whatever you leave for them, whatever legacy you have bequeathed to them to make them comfortable would still keep them uncomfortable until the man next door is also comfortable. That is my
Atiku not my godfather –OkochaChief Peter Okocha, an astute businessman, has criss-crossed the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the defunct Action Congress (AC) in his bid to govern Delta State. Having contested the governorship poll in 2007 and 2009, he has, again, thrown his hat in the race to succeed Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan. In this interview with DOMINIC ADEWOLE, Okocha speaks on the relationship with former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, Delta politics, insurgency in the North and 2015 general election. Excerpts:
15NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 Politics
I was never his political
godson. Yes, he is
my personal friend. I
was already a multi-
millionaire when I met
him as a customs officer. I
already owned a vessel when
I met Atiku in 1982. So, how can a
government official be my
godfather?
Okocha
passion; that is my concern.
If power, as it is being speculated across the state, fails to shift to Delta North, what then becomes of your ambition?
Let me make it clear that I am not an ardent advocate that power must shift because it is the turn of the north. I believe that the north has the best and the brightest that would give this state the best lead-ership that it deserves. I am not offering myself because I am from Delta North (Anioma nation). I am running for the governorship be-cause I believe I have the capac-ity to succeed the incumbent, but people say that there is an under-standing.
That understanding should be looked into. If providence and des-tiny made it such that somebody from central emerged for eight years and after that providence and destiny made somebody from south to emerge as governor, I am asking also that the same provi-dence and destiny should also make it possible for somebody in the north to emerge in 2015. But outside equity and fair play, I be-lieve that this state should be ruled by the best.
What if the providence fails to play out next year again?
Now I am in PDP, I will win my primary election there, win the election proper and govern the state
for the next eight years. If anyone encroaches on my liberty again, I will not fight and take the law into my hand, I will go to court again. In 2007, I didn’t take Uduaghan as a person to court. He is my brother. I took my matter to court because I felt I was short changed, not be-cause Uduaghan won.
But I think they should let providence play its role, after that, let it be thrown open and the best emerge because that is the only way we can grow a healthy state. Let individuals come forward and tell us what they can do and not just shouting the party slogan and manifesto. It is healthy that we have over 15 aspirants, but jour-nalists should scrutinise us so that before the primaries the number would reduce to about three.
Will you govern the state the same way you manage your business?
I probably wouldn’t have given politics full-time attention about 10 years ago because I had no busi-ness successors. Now two of my sons are my managing directors, I studied business, I have never worked for anybody; I had no fa-ther to work for. I live and breathe business, I built my own house with my own bare hands, I built my business. Ask those that were governors what they did before becoming governors; I am sure the answer is blowing in the wind.
It is easy to declare in your Code of Conduct Bureau Certificate that you have N9 billion because you anticipate to steal N9 billion. If I declare N9 billion it is N9 billion because I can show it. If I declare N100 billion it is N100 billion be-cause I have something to show. And they are physical, not imagi-nary. Mine are real, you can feel, you can touch and you can value it.
After eight years I will not be poor but I would have retired be-cause I am on my way to retire-ment. I am 62, in three years’ time I will be 65, technically I would have retired. So, the business I had run for 34 years which my children have inherited should pension me. Besides, sometimes I bring them business ideas and ask them to pay me as a consultant. When a man-ager does not manage well, his re-sources dwindle, I am a manager and I manage well.
Our biggest problem is that 90 per cent of our politicians do not have employment outside politics, and in the era of uncertainty, they are thrown out. That is not life, any politician who cannot leave office on Friday and resume in his per-sonal office on Monday and be earn-ing a living is not qualified to be in politics. When that is done, it will attract the best in politics; it will not be a do or die affair. It is a do or die affair because your breakfast, lunch and dinner are in politics.
You never had a car until you became a political office holder, you never built a house until you became a political office holder, and you never married until you became a political office holder. So, you are living in the past and by the time you get to the present the four years are over and you will end up not serving the people because you used the period to resurrect yourself economically.
That is why antecedent matters a lot in this governorship race. I al-ways classify myself as a manager of resources and not like the typi-cal politician who had no other job. As a manager of resources you can expect how I will manage
the state’s resources and its peo-ple. Let me say that out of selfish-ness for my four children, I want my next door neighbour to be able to stay in an air-conditioned house just like my children. That is what brought me into politics.
What is your take on the recent logjam surrounding the allocation of more polling units to the North?
First, I don’t work for the Inde-pendent National Electoral Com-mission (INEC) and secondly I need to know what led to that, but my lay man’s knowledge shows that until General Ibrahim Baba-gida’s time, the population of the North was more than the South. Because I travel to the north ev-ery time, my question has always been, where are the people?
In my encounter with the late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, the old man sat and we were chatting and he said that the problem of Nigeria is the North. He said look at the geography of Nigeria, the small entity of the South is carry-ing a very heavy load on its head and if they do not have a strong neck they will break.
If the North has the population they said they have, they should have more polling units. The only way it can be corrected is for us to have a genuine census because nat-urally, there are no way animals in the desert can be more than animals in the rain forest area. It is only in Nigeria that you have it the other way round. Prof. Attahi-ru Jega is not the problem; he has only relied on the statistics given to him. We need a genuine census.
What is the way out of the insur-gency in the North?
What is happening now is what has happened here with the issue of Niger Delta militancy. Kwame Nkrumah once said that it is a relic of barbarism, savagery that capital punishment should be a solution to murder cases, that no-body was born a criminal. Society makes him so.
Unfortunately for the North, the northerners have been in govern-ment longer than anybody in Nige-ria, yet the North has not developed as much as the South. Our ideas and perspectives to wealth cre-ation are different. It is only in the North that I see people innocently praying for another man’s success so that it will rob off on them. No-body does that kind of prayer in the South. Our people will say don’t mind him, who is he, does he feed me. That gives the incentive that you don’t get fed by anybody.
But when you open your arms and pray to God to give to Peter Okocha, for instance, so he would give me, you can’t move on. The North is still a feudal system which does not work hand in hand with capitalism. That sys-tem must be changed. The emirs, chiefs, traditional rulers and rich men in the North are part of the problem there. They must educate their people because it is the easi-est way out of poverty.
Boko Haram, robbery, unem-ployment existed before Goodluck Jonathan came, but he could have done better. However, it is the re-sponsibility of all citizens irrespec-tive of political, religious, ethnic, age, sex or regional inclination to arrest the situation. It is a collec-tive effort and not a one man show. Unrest has been part of our prob-lems and when you have a multi-religious and multi-ethnic popula-
tion, this thing is bound to happen.We used to have what they
called Maitasine. It came and it is gone. Boko Haram will go, it just needs containment. The ideology of Boko Haram is not sustainable and they are killing their own peo-ple. If the right indices are put in place, Boko Haram will go; all you need to do is to educate the people, and for citizens of those areas to be responsible – the emirs, chief, and the rich men in those areas know who the Boko Haram are. I cannot come from Ibusa and know what is happening in Borno. A goat was stolen last night in Potiskum, how will the man living in Ibusa know the thief? The next door neighbour to the thief saw him roasting suya, he did not ask him where the goat meat came from.
The problem is that we shy away from responsibility and we keep putting everything in the hands of God. But heaven helps those who help themselves. The president could do more but do not forget that as the commander-in-chief, he gives instructions; it is left for the executors to do per-fect jobs. If they do it shabbily, the president is to be blamed, but there is the citizen responsibility. You have the right as a citizen to make sure that something that is wrong is corrected. If we have re-sponsible citizens, the laws of the land will be obeyed; there will be law and order.
Do not blame the president too much for not being able to enforce those things he is supposed to en-force because we as citizens have not done our part.
There are indications that Governor Uduaghan has endorsed Sir Tony Obuh as his successor. Also, your name was on the communiqué re-cently signed by other governorship hopefuls in the state after meet-ing with Chief Edwin Clark kicking against Obuh’s alleged imposition. Were you at the meeting?
That meeting! I was not in-formed of the meeting. I was not at the meeting. I was only called by a friend when the meeting was in progress or when the communiqué was about to be signed. I didn’t at-tend the meeting, not to talk of ap-pending my signature in such com-muniqué. I’m sure that you have watched endorsement programmes or what they called anointment of a candidate by godfathers or the pow-ers that be, as you put it, in other democratic institutions the world over. When a candidate is endorsed, somebody will raise his hand. On the day of Obuh’s declaration in Asaba, did you see anybody raise his hand? As far as I am concerned, Obuh is like any other aspirant in the governorship race and I treat him as such on that basis.
My campaign for governorship seat is intact. I remain focused, not allowing myself to be distracted by rumours of endorsement or anointment. Come May 29, 2015, Governor Uduaghan will hando-ver to me. I think what we should be talking about at this stage is how to get our delegates’ lists right by making sure that democratic principles are adhered to, and not to be talking about somebody has been endorsed or anointed. There are processes leading to that in other climes, even in Nigeria here. Between you and I, I did not attend or sign any communiqué, maybe there was an invincible hand that wrote my name on it but failed to put my signature.
16 NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014Politics
Nwazunku Orji
CHARLES ONYEKWERE writes on the fresh leadership impasse rocking the Ebonyi State House of Assembly
In Ebonyi, there is no peace, no
democracy, no freedom
and a lot of injustice
is being perpetrated
It seems the leadership cri-sis rocking the Ebonyi State House of Assembly is far from being resolved as it played out
again last week at the hallowed chamber. Two lawmakers, Chuk-wuma Nwazunku and Blaise Orji, are laying claim to the speakership with Governor Martin Elechi throwing his weight behind the latter. The House has been divided with each of the speakers having their loyal lawmakers.
This is the second time in five months that leadership crisis will engulf the Assembly. The last time, Elechi provided the shield for Nwa-zunku when majority of the law-makers impeached him in a contro-versial manner. But the governor has distanced himself from the “impeached” speaker. He is pres-ently supporting Orji as authentic Speaker. In turn, Nwazunku has kicked against the N16.2 billion bond the state government wants to access from the Capital Market.
The latest crisis came to the fore on November 10 when Nwa-zunku suspended the Chief Whip and member representing Afikpo North West, Hon. Ogbonnaya Ikoro, and member representing Abakali-ki North, Hon. Oliver Nwachukwu, over an alleged plot to change the leadership of the House.
Moving the motion for their suspension, the acting Leader and member representing Izzi West constituency, Hon. Ogbon-naya Nwifuru, alleged that the two lawmakers were involved in a plot to impeach the Speaker, add-ing that the day before, Ikoro and Nwachukwu started gathering sig-natures of members to carry out their impeachment plot.
He addressed the House thus: “Mr. Speaker, it is regrettable and unfortunate that some members would allow themselves to be used by some unscrupulous elements in the state to cause disaffection and confusion in the state. Mr. Speaker, we cannot continue to talk about impeachment especially in our peaceful state. We are no longer interested in impeachment of anybody in the state.
“Mr. Speaker, based on this fact, I’m moving a motion for the suspen-sion of Hon. Oliver Nwachukwu and the Chief Whip, Hon. Ogbonnaya Ikoro. The suspension would serve as deterrent to others who may be plotting to destabilise the state.”
Seconding the motion, the member representing Ezza North West, Hon. Joseph Nwobashi, com-mended the acting Leader for mov-ing the motion and called on the people of the state to fight against injustice and other acts capable of destabilising the state.
The House after plenary pro-ceeded on a one month recess to reconvene on December 15.
While the plenary was going on, some youths from the 13 Local gov-ernment areas of the state and offi-cials from the Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS) of the Nigeria Police Force, numbering over 200 cordoned off the Assembly secretariat.
The youths and the policemen in the early hours of the faithful day, barricaded the entrance to the
House on the use of the first bond.“It does not appear as if the first
bond has been properly used in view of the fact that the target proj-ects the bond was meant for were scarcely attended to, to the extent that even in the next one year, the projects will never be completed.
“In view of the fact that the tar-get projects for the first bond ob-tained will still take over one year to complete, and in view also that the tenure of the present adminis-tration will be rounding off in the next six months, we respectfully in-vite your Excellency to graciously withhold your kind approval of the second bond which the Ebonyi State government applied for, pending when relevant Committee is prop-erly briefed on the use of the first bond when the House reconvenes from its recess on December 15.”
But Orji said Nwazunku’s re-action shows he is psychological imbalanced.
He said: “We need to put it in our laws that anybody who is coming for elective position should under-go psychological evaluation. And my reasons for this is very clear, you approved the bond and you are telling us you are going back to review it. Review what? And he presided over the plenary. Nobody forced him. And you can imagine the day that approval was given and now, just a few months and now he is saying it should be reviewed. So, he needs to have himself checked.”
Another member of the House, Hon. Eni Uduma Chima urged the president to disregard the petition.
Eni said: “Talking about the bond, this Assembly has had similar bond requests in the past. I happen to be part of the third as-sembly where similar bond was ap-proved and I can assure you that it was accessed and we checked the bond performance and found out that the Ebonyi State government was given A+ rating in terms of utilisation of that bond.
“Also from time to time, we have been carrying out our over-sight functions, if there is anybody who has been a hindrance to the performance of our functions, it has been the impeached speaker, Nwazunku.”
It will be recalled that on July 10 this year, the same House was engulfed in a similar crisis which plunged the hallowed chamber into turmoil.
Governor Elechi has declared support for Orji leadership. He stated that Orji remains the au-thentic speaker of the state’s House of Assembly.
Elechi spoke when he hosted a cross section of stakeholders and leaders of thought of the 13 local government areas of the state.
Assembly complex restricting the 11 members of the state House of Assembly from carrying out the purported impeachment.
The state PDP youth leader, Comrade Chinedu Ogah was ac-cused of being behind the plot to impeach the Speaker following a disagreement between some mem-bers of the state Assembly and himself over the list of delegates.
But the youths who protested at the entrance of the Assembly complex carried placards with inscriptions: ‘No impeachment of Speaker Nwazunku’, ‘We need democracy, final’, ‘We need free de-mocracy’, ‘Democracy must stand’, and ‘We don’t need autocracy’, among others.
Speaking to New Telegraph in Abakaliki, the president, Ebonyi State Youth Liberation Forum and leader of the protesters, Comrade Chidiebere Egwu said that they had to barricade the House fol-lowing reports of a plot to impeach Nwazunku by some members of the House being sponsored by the PDP youth leader.
Briefing journalists shortly after the plenary, the Speaker, Nwazunku, condemned the im-peachment plot and accused some persons of instigating the state governor, Chief Martin Elechi against members of the House.
Nwazunku stated that the state needs peace and the House would continue to strive for peace espe-cially as the 2015 general election draws closer.
Another factional Speaker of the House, Orji, few hours after sitting, lashed at Nwazunku, say-ing he needs to undergo psychiat-ric evaluation to ascertain, if he is psychologically fit to occupy any elective position.
He spoke after a meeting be-tween Governor Elechi and mem-bers of the House held at the Ebonyi Government House in Abakaliki, the state capital.
Orji was reacting to a petition by Nwazunku in which he urged President Goodluck Jonathan to withhold approval of the N15 bil-lion bond applied for by the state government, pending when the House would be properly briefed on the use and performance of the
Ebonyi Assembly: One House, two speakers
earlier N16.5 billion bond.The embattled Nwazunku was
‘impeached’ by about 16 members of the House who elected Orji, the dep-uty speaker, as their new Speaker.
But the impeachment came af-ter 10 members of the House led by Nwazunku had suspended two members of the Orji faction and declared recess till December 15.
Nwazunku, who is still laying claim to the speakership of the House backed by about 10 mem-bers, in a letter dated November 10 addressed to President Jonathan, noted that the House was yet to be properly briefed on the use and performance of the previous bond obtained by the state government.
The factional Speaker urged the president to withhold the approval of the second bond, which the state government has applied for pending when the relevant committee is prop-erly briefed on the use of the first bond when the House reconvenes from its recess on December 15.
He recalled that the state gov-ernment had in 2010 obtained a bond of N16.5 billion from the Capital Market for the purpose of financing certain capital projects in the state, which was also cap-tured by the new bond.
According to him, “since our approval of the second bond, cer-tain revelations have come to light to warrant keeping the second bond application in view pending a proper detailed briefing of the
GOvERNORS AFTER SENATORS’ SEATSSENATORIAL DISTRICTS OCCUPANTS GOvERNORS
Ikot Ekpene Aloysius Etok Godswill Akpabio
Benue North-East Barnabas Gemade Gabriel Suswam
Delta South James Manager Emmanuel Uduaghan
Kebbi North Isa Galaudi Saidu Dangikari
Niger East Shem Zagbayi Babangida Aliyu
Abia Central Nkechi Nwaogu Theodore Orji
Plateau North Gyang Pwajok Jonah Jang
Sokoto Central Muhammad Maccido Aliyu Wamakko
Ebonyi Central Paulinus Nwagu Martin Elechi
Niger East Shem Zagbayi Babangida AliyuCOrrIGENDUM: This table is being reproduced due to the error therein as published on Page 16 of Monday, November 17, 2014 edition
17NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 Politics
Minimah Sekibo
MORE STORIES ON pagES 41-43, 48
The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Kenneth Minimah, was the guest of the Senate Committee on Defence and Army last week Thursday to provide insight into the deteriorating spate of insurgency in the North-East. CHUKWU DaVID reports
CONTINUED ON PAGE 41
There is no gainsaying that the security situation in the North-East has deteriorated recently. After the abduction of over 200
schoolgirls from Chibok, Borno State in April this year, the Boko Haram in-surgency has been ravaging Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states. These three states have been under emergency rule, imposed by the Federal Government since May 2013.
President Goodluck Jonathan, while proclaiming the emergency rule, man-dated the nation’s military forces to take all necessary actions to put an end to the impunity of insurgents and terrorists in the affected states.
Unfortunately, contrary to the expec-tation of government, the insurgents be-gan to intensify their hostilities against the region, and even invaded other parts of the country including the nation’s capital, Abuja, where they carried out series of bomb attacks that killed many people and left hundreds of others in miserable and agonising conditions.
Many inhabitants of the captured cit-ies in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states are now refugees in the neighbouring Niger, Chad and Cameroon.
On November 4, the insurgents ex-tended its assault to other adjoining states like Gombe, where they launched a devastating attack on a police charge office in Nafada Local Government Area, and killed five military men and an Is-lamic scholar. The terrorists also looted its armoury before setting the station on fire.
Agitated by this worrisome trend in the nation’s security sector, the Senate Committee on Defence and Army, last Wednesday, invited the Service Chiefs to update it on the progress of military operations in the Boko Haram ravaged states and the encumbrances militating against their successful operations.
The summon was necessitated by the unabating insurgency in the area, coupled with the recent bombing of the Government Science School in Yobe State, by a suicide bomber, which killed many students of the institution and left scores of others with varying degrees of injuries.
Briefing journalists on the invitation of the military leadership, the chair-man of the committee, Senator George Sekibo, argued that the Senate had given the executive the necessary legislative support to enable it effectively combat the insurgency in the North-East, but expressed concern that the situation was being aggravated.
He expressed serious concern that elections were fast approaching while the hostilities of the insurgents contin-ued unabated in the affected states and even expanding to other territories, wondering what the inhabitants of the region would do if the war persisted till the time of elections.
He said: “I know as a Senate that we have done whatever we need to do to support the Armed Forces to combat the battle and bring insurgents to their knees. I also believe that virtually all the directives the Senate has passed on to the president, he has also honoured them including the recent $1 billion loan that
General, Directorate of State Security (DSS) Mr. Ita Ekpeyong. However, only the Chief of Army Staff, Minimah ap-peared for the meeting to represent the Chief of Defence Staff.
Speaking after a two and half hours closed-door meeting with the commit-tee, Minimah gave an assurance to Ni-gerians that the military would do ev-erything within their powers to recover all territories lost to the Boko Haram insurgents in the North East within the shortest possible time.
He acknowledged that the military had some setbacks that resulted
in the loss of some territories to the insurgents in the
states of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe but expressed optimism that the secu-rity forces was work-ing hard, and would certainly recover those areas very soon.
His words: “We had a setback in Baza that re-
sulted in the loss of territo-ries up to Mubi. Painful though
but we are working very hard to regain those territories, and very soon we will reclaim those territories and indeed other territories held by these elements.
“I want to continue to rekindle the confidence of Nigerians and particu-larly ordinary Nigerians who have suf-fered the pains of this insurgency, that the Nigerian Army will continue to do its best as to winning this war and re-claiming the lost territories,” he assured.
However, the commencement of the meeting witnessed a little disquiet when the committee members wanted the Army Chief to brief them in the pres-ence of journalists. The situation was eventually brought under control.
The Chief of Army Staff had insisted that he would not discuss military op-erational issues before the press. Sena-tor Sekibo stated that the agenda of the meeting was “very loaded.”
Sekibo stated: “I believe that we are trying our best but is our best the best we can offer? What is happening is be-coming increasingly difficult to explain to Nigerians. We want to be told what is
happening. The insurgents are having a field day.
“We are aware that they (govern-ment) are releasing your funds to you because you have not complained. We also approved $1 billion for the president to purchase arms and ammunition to fight Boko Haram. We are aware that your budget is being released to you. If you have difficulties you should tell us.
“The spate of insurgency, the way and manner the insurgents are taking areas, is getting worrisome. We want to know what is happening. We also want to know the issue of the reported ceasefire. We want to know whether there was actu-ally any ceasefire.
“We want to know whether there was a dialogue, the stage of the dialogue if any because few days after the announce-ment of the ceasefire, the insurgents struck and have continued to strike.
“At the last meeting, we were told that the insurgents have captured seven local government areas. The CDS confirmed that and asked that they should be given some time to liberate the captured areas.
“We want to know where we are. We are approaching election year, are we going to conduct election in the North East under the dire security challenge? These are our concerns and the concerns of Nigerians.”
Sekibo then asked Minimah to throw light on the issues he highlighted but the COAS, who was not very comfortable to speak, said: “I came to interface with the Senate Committee on Defence, can the press leave us?” The Army Chief maintained that operational matters were never discussed on the pages of newspapers. Therefore, he insisted that he would not talk about security matters in the presence of the press.
But Sekibo, pressurizing the military leader to talk, asked Minimah to “just reassure Nigerians that the military was on top of the security situation in the affected areas.” A member of the Committee, Senator Babafemi Ojudu,
When senators grilled army chief
was requested for. I believe that, in addi-tion to the $1 billion, through the office of the National Security Adviser (NSA), they will also be providing funds for the purchase of military equipment. But for us to wake up and hear that we are being overrun in some areas is embarrassing.
“I believe that we cannot stay here while we have not heard from the service chiefs. That is why we have summoned the service chiefs. We want to hear from them, to know areas they have problems and whatever the problems will be; we want to advise them to properly open up because Nigerians are tired of asking the same questions.
“We want to ask ques-tions different from what we had been asking. I believe everyone is wor-ried especially after the last bombing in the school in Yobe State.
“The elections are coming so fast in the next few weeks. People are go-ing for primaries and we are worried whether our colleagues in the North-East can go for primaries. Where will they start from? I believe that after the meeting tomorrow, some of these questions will be answered.
“Between the last declaration of state of emergency till now, Mr. President heeding the voice of National Assem-bly, has procured some equipment and one of the issues we are going to have at the meeting is to have an inventory of equipment we have on ground. We also want to be sure that we have competent manpower. How did the insurgents get their equipment? How did they get them through the border,” he queried.
Those invited included the Chief of Defence Staff, Air Marshal Alex Badeh; Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Kenneth Minimah; Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Usman Jibrin, and Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Adeola Amosu, to brief its members on the state of af-fairs in the North East with regard to the fight against Boko Haram.
Others also invited to the meeting included the Inspector General of Po-lice, Suleiman Abba, and the Director-
Opinion
As Nigeria marks World Toilet DayAgbo Agbo
The statistics by the United Na-tions (UN) is scary; 34 million Nigerians do not have access to toilets! This is part of a 2.5
billion (40%) global population of peo-ple without access to toilets. There is therefore no better time to beam the searchlights on this all important issue than today that the world - including Nigeria - is marking the World Toilet Day.
The road toward awareness creation and call to action started in 2001 when a Singapore an business tycoon, Jack Sim left his lucrative investment in the construction industry to establish the Restroom Association of Singapore and World Toilet Organization (WTO). In that same year – just months after -, he received the Schwab Foundation award for Social Entrepreneur of the Year for “creating good will and bring-ing the subject into the open” and “mo-bilizing national support in providing on-the-ground expertise.” Sim was also named one of the Heroes of the Envi-ronment for 2008 by Time Magazine.
With this singular act, Sim broke the global taboo of toilet and sanita-tion by making it a global event that is marked on November 19 every year. Today, WTO is a growing network of 235 organisations in 58 countries in-cluding Nigeria where a “World Toilet Day” is celebrated to create awareness towards improving the state of toilets and sanitation globally. This year’s theme is anchored around “Equality and Dignity.”
This day is significant consider-ing the fact that Nigeria was only re-
cently certified Ebola free by the World Health Organization after one of the most frightening public health scare this nation has ever witnessed. We were able to do this because of our proactive awareness which was anchored on good sanitation.
So why do we have to bother about toilets in the first place? According to the WTO, a clean and safe toilet en-sures health, dignity and well-being for people. The theme for the year seeks to put a spotlight on the threat of sexual violence that women and girls face due to the loss of privacy as well as the in-equalities that are present in usability.
Because of lack of toilets, many practice open defecation which often comes with lack of privacy, health haz-ards and environmental concerns. In some places, Women and young girls are vulnerable to attacks – like rape - when they go into open spaces to def-ecate. Equally too, toilets generally re-main inadequate for populations with special needs, such as the disabled and elderly, and women and girls requiring facilities to manage menstrual hygiene.
With the hashtag #WeCantWait, the Day provides an opportunity to inspire action and underscore the urgency needed to end open defecation, which is why all hands must be on deck to create the awareness and point to the dangers of continuing the practice.
When it became apparent that the sanitation target is the most off-target of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson - on be-half of the Secretary-General - launched a campaign earlier this year to break the silence on open defecation and spur dia-
logue as part of the UN Call to Action on Sanitation.
The initiative builds on the strong commitment already made by UN Member States. This call to action led to the “Sanitation for All’ Resolution (A/RES/67/291) which was adopted by the UN General Assembly in July 2013, designating 19 November as World Toilet Day. The Day is coordinated by UN-Water in collaboration with Governments and relevant stakeholders. This is where Harpic, as a stakeholder steps in by visiting communities in Lagos to teach people how to manage and maintain clean toilets.
The UN revealed that 1000 children died per day from diarrhea related dis-eases due to poor sanitation in 2013, most of this sanitation issues revolves around inadequate toilet facilities mainly in de-veloping countries. These deaths - unfor-tunate as they are - are preventable. It is disheartening that the 2015 goal to halve the proportion of people living without sanitation is running 150 years behind schedule as 1 billion (15 % of the world population) still practice open defeca-tion.
The lack of toilets in some commu-nities is an endemic problem. However, where there are toilets, the absence of poor management and hygienic mainte-nance are equally serious issues. A well-kept toilet will encourage proper usage and prevent deadly diseases.
As we strive to have clean toilets, it would not be a bad idea if we imbibe the “World Toilet College” (WTC) mod-el started as a social enterprise in some countries – mainly in Asia - in 2005. The “college” believes there is need for an in-dependent world body to ensure the best
practices and standards in toilet design, cleanliness, and sanitation technologies are adopted and disseminated through training and capacity-building courses, in both rural and urban areas.
The ultimate goal of WTC’s pro-grammes is to ensure the dignity of sani-tation workers and elevate the otherwise poor image (and consequent low pay) re-served to this employment category in many places around the world. In this regard, Nigeria has come a long way from the time night soil men carry hu-man feaces on their heads on the streets in some cities.
Some companies have begun provid-ing toilet caretakers with professional skills in both cleaning and performance of small repairs, thereby boosting their self-confidence by providing them with the opportunity to master a profession while at the same time enhancing their productivity. The late Otunba Gaddafi falls into this category.
From Singapore where WTC started, it gave the issue prestige by partnering with prestigious institutions including the Singapore Polytechnic which, ac-cording to reports, has trained more than 4,000 people across its various courses.
Finally, we can also imbibe the orga-nization’s approach of mixing humour with serious facts on toilet issue which often resonated with people. Again Otunba Gaddafi did this with his “S**t business is good business” tagline. By designating a special day to celebrate the importance of toilets in our lives, World Toilet Day serves as a reminder of the struggles faced by billions of people who still lack access to improved sanitation.
Two brothers were of-ten seen fighting in the neighbourhood to the chagrin of Dad. They
were not respecting their digni-ties. They welcomed violence and rejected peace, worth, man-ners, and admiration for life, and the neighbourhood. Dad had to call them for talks someday.
“Do you know what the Unit-ed Nations (UN) means?” he asked them, but they responded on the contrary.
As I sat with them in the par-lour, Dad told us that the UN was established in 1945, during the Second World War. He told us that it was perceivable that the fear of fighting another World War might have been the major compelling factor for a man like Franklin Roosevelt to commence with the UN idea, intended to create an avenue for countries to engage in dialogue first, and desist from the temptation to take up arms against each other when provoked.
To drive his point home, he also told us of the devastating World Wars and that the UN had
so far managed to avoid anoth-er World War. He stood up and walked up to the boys, touched their shoulders, and lamented: “I still remember the deaths of almost a million people in the gruesome Rwandan genocide of 1994, as well as the wars in Soma-lia, Darfur, Libya, Egypt, Tuni-sia, Cote d’Ivoire, the Biafra-Ni-geria war, the Second Congo War and, some other crises across the continent of Africa and, indeed, the world at large.”
In Dad’s judgment, the broth-ers should form an alliance like Roosevelt’s, which invariably had seen to no World War III. He sermonised that there would be no progress in the absence of peace. He also sermonized that nothing good could come out of tinkering and bickering order than annihilation and suffering. There could not be a better way to counsel us the youth order than Dad’s way.
As if we were not assimi-lating his references, he hit us again with the peace that never existed with terrorists since they attacked the United States of America on a September 11 that turned twin towers in the
country to rubbles. He fired us over-again with the salvo of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki attack, which nearly extinguished Ja-pan. As if that was not enough, Dad recalled the Berlin Wall in Germany, the Biafra/Nigeria, Afghanistan, Iraq, Mali wars...
“I want you the youth to have an agreement like The Peace of Paris (1783),” he said. “Do you know what that means?”
“Perpendicularly no,” was the response.
“It brought to an end the American Revolutionary War. America, Great Britain, France and Spain signed treaties.”
After I listened to Dad say those words some years back and the brothers left the house thanking him and never had to fight again but lived in harmony, had I come to understand that if peace is maintained among individuals, the family, village and the country will be at peace. I realised that the world needed more preachers of peace than they need preachers of religion.
Dad was a diplomat like the Indian Mahatma Gandhi who walked the souls of millions of Indians with his peaceful preach-
ments for their liberation. Dad’s approach to reconciling the brothers without any cynical measures reminded me that if the countries of the world could approach each other like Dad did and understand each other like the brothers understood Dad, the world would be free of all the unnecessary rancours that had characterised it.
Poverty, racial and religious jealousy would be sent on an er-rand and people would live with each other in harmony.
What was perceived as Roos-evelt’s paramount preconceived-notion, which was that with the creation of the UN, the tendency of US, perhaps, losing in balance again as was the case in the 1930s, could be avoided, Dad brokered peace which I have seen provides opportunity for people to relate devoid of creed, race or reli-gion. I have come to know and, as well, been telling people that with peace, friendliness and co-existence, the world is second to none.
• Onwumere is a Poet/Writer, writes from Rivers State. Tel: +2348057778358. Email: [email protected]
Franklin Roosevelt’s idea
18 WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH
Sport is in a state of ab-ject neglect. This might sound strange to many but it’s the truth. In Ni-geria, the government
and administrators of sports are used to servicing events and not developing various sport disci-plines. To develop sports, profes-sional and potential athletes need to be exposed to modern facilities to equip them in training. Youths are always encouraged to take to sports if they are exposed to mod-ern devices that will help them to excel. In this age, it is crucial to have facilities that could develop athletes and prepare them for future challenges. But what do we have in Nigeria? We have a government paying lip service to sports development. It is only when an event is coming up that the country embarks on a ‘fire brigade’ approach to prepare. The 2014 Commonwealth Games was held in Glasgow, Scotland, with-out many of the athletes travel-ling on the proposed training tour for the event. Training tours are compulsory because the country does not have good facilities to equip her athletes, especially for major global competitions. With adequate and modern facilities in Nigeria, national athletes will not need to travel abroad to prepare for events. There were plans to de-velop a games village for national athletes but it never worked. In
the old Western Region, the then governor, Samuel Ogbemudia, built the Afuze Games Village for youths to develop themselves. Notable national athletes such as Chidi Imoh, Innocent Egbunike, Mary Onyali, Yusuf Ali, Davidson and Osmond Ezinwa, Olapade Ad-eniken, Adewale Olukoju, Falilat Ogunkoya, Fatima Yusuf and a host of others made use of the fa-cilities to boost their skill in their respective disciplines. Govern-ment at the centre took over the games village but poor mainte-nance killed the Afuze dream just like many other notable projects today.
The National Stadium, Lagos was built in 1972 ahead of the 1973 All Africa Games. It initially had a capacity of 55,000 but was reduced to 45,000 in 1999 ahead of that year’s FIFA U-20 World Cup hosted by Nigeria. Today, the stadium is in a state of disrepair and dilapidation as squatters and touts have turned parts of the main bowl complex to residen-tial quarters. It is indeed a huge shame that all over the country there is no gymnasium equipped with facilities to justify it as a gym. Normal gym facilities like treadmill, ellipticals, stationary bikes, aerobic steppers, cable pul-ley machines, weight machines, free weights, abdominal crunch-ers, rowing machines and exer-cise balls are not available at the
Lagos National Stadium and even the Abuja National Stadium. The Abuja Stadium, a 60,491 capac-ity facility, was constructed to host the 8th All Africa Games that took place in October 2003. Several issues have risen concern-ing the maintenance of the sports complex. The average estimate for annual maintenance since its inauguration has been about $7 million, the amount is considered high by any standards. At a point, the stadium was in a sorry tale as weeds outgrew the playing turf. The Super Eagles were unable to play at the stadium for over one year due to the poor maintenance of the edifice.
Our findings revealed that the annual overhead budget of sports is about N3.5 billion for all the 26 sports federations. This is grossly inadequate as this amount is also expected to be used to maintain existing facilities nationwide. We can also reveal that the Nigerian government has never completed the payment of all capital proj-ects in sports. Our investigations revealed further that government has never released more than 43 per cent of the proposed capital project for sports. This does not show seriousness. For example, the hostel being built at the Package B of the Abuja National Stadium is yet to be concluded since 2005. It is one of the exam-ples of capital projects in sports.
In the 2014 appropriation act for example, N500m was budgeted for the six federal stadia. The money is not even enough to maintain two effectively and we learnt the money has never been released for the purpose in recent years. Countries like Cote d’Ivoire, Kenya, Ethiopia and Senegal have functional gymnasium. They also have proper programme for sports annually. Egypt, Tunisia, Morocco and South Africa have the same template as the Euro-pean countries in terms of sports development, and it is sad that Ni-geria cannot borrow a leaf from these countries that have proper structure to run sports effectively.
The success Nigeria has record-ed in sports over the years has been due to the doggedness of the country’s talented athletes and not as a result of proper planning or structured programming.
Only last week, President Goodluck Jonathan inaugurated the 30,000-capacity Akwa Ibom State International Stadium. His vision for the project that is one of the best in Africa today is commendable especially because a contract has been signed with a construction company to ade-quately maintain the stadium for the next 10 years.
It is time Nigeria woke up to the reality of what obtains out-side the country in the running of sports. The time to start is now.
Tackling the rot in sport
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20 WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH
Policy makers, stakeholders vote for quality education
Minister sets aside Tuesdays for school inspection
Inspection
23
UI, UNIZIK ASUU vow to sustain Iyayi’s legacies
Legacy
24
Education
The minister, who added that the government remained com-mitted to limiting disruptions to academic activities in schools, especially in areas affected by insecurity by the Boko Haram in-surgents, restated the determina-tion of the Federal Government to prioritise health issues in the system.
While adding that the gov-ernment planned to build on the success recorded in tackling the recent outbreak of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) to keep students and other citizens better in-formed, said: “The prevailing insecurity situation in the north-eastern part of Nigeria has dis-rupted academic life in a number of our public schools. Nigerian educational institutions and stu-dents have become endangered due to attacks.
Shekarau added: “We can no longer afford to under-estimate the need to map out coordinated action plan for our institutions on security alert. Keeping our schools and children safe is among my key priorities in the next few months.
“The Safe School Initiative which has the backing of our partners supports our efforts in addressing some of the challeng-es. These include the rehabilita-
tory’s Secretary for Education; Permanent Secretaries in the state ministries of education; chief executives of federal and state parastatals of education agencies; directors of federal and states ministries; directors of institutes and colleges of edu-cation, and other stakeholders.
The conference offered ample opportunity for stakeholders to address some of the reform initiatives in the nation’s educa-tion industry, in which salient issues, including the incorpo-ration of one-year pre-primary education, implementation of new basic education curricu-lum, e-curriculum in secondary schools, computer-based test for tertiary examinations, security and safety of educational insti-tutions, entrepreneurship and skills development.
Setting the tone of the confer-ence, the Minister in his keynote address during the ministerial session held at June 12 Cultural Centre, Abeokuta, highlighted some initiatives aimed at en-hancing access and equity in the nation’s education sector.
According to Shekarau, the Federal Government places pre-mium on the country’s transfor-mation, using education as the springboard.
tion of some of the schools and provision of temporary facilities for learning in areas where our educational facilities or schools were damaged.
“There is need for us to con-tinually review security issues in our institutions so as to protect our children from harm.”
The minister, while stress-ing government’s commitment to promoting access to quality education, declared the readi-ness of government to prosecute operators of illegal educational institutions in the country.
According to him, over 55 il-legal universities have been un-covered in the country with eight currently being investigated. He pointed out that relevant law en-forcement agencies have been informed for necessary action.
Shekarau urged state govern-ments to complement efforts of regulatory bodies by creating more awareness on the existence of unapproved universities, poly-technics and colleges of educa-tion in their domains.
“Parents and sponsors should also investigate the institutions their wards are attending to en-sure that they are genuine. For the avoidance of doubt, certifi-cates obtained from illegal in-stitutions will not be recognised for the purposes of NYSC, em-ployment and further studies,” he added.
At the three-day officials’ tech-nical session that preceded the ministerial session, the Perma-nent Secretary, Federal Minis-try of Education, Dr MacJohn Nwaobiala, who chaired the ses-sion noted that about 10.8 million children of school age are cur-rently not enrolled in school.
Nwaobiala said at the tech-nical session which considered matters arising from last year’s NCE meeting held in Abuja that the country was facing enor-mous challenges in the educa-tion sector. According to him, the country is grappling with low en-rolment, retention or completion and transition rates in primary schools as well as low carrying capacity in tertiary institutions.
Despite the enormous chal-lenges, the permanent secretary, however, pointed out that the Federal Government was com-mitted towards addressing the
CONFErENCEEducation highest policy-making body in the country, the National Council on Education (NCE), in its just concluded 60th meeting in Abeokuta, Ogun State set agenda to further improve access and equity at all levels of education system
Kunle olayeniAbEOKUTA
Barely few weeks after workers’ unions in the nation’s universities, led by the Academic Staff
Union of Universities (ASUU) rose from their summit, where they reviewed the state of uni-versity system and the woes be-tiding the sub-sector, the sliding fortune of the nation’s education last week again received the at-tention of some key players.
It was at the 60th National Council on Education (NCE) meeting, where policy makers, technocrats, administrators and key stakeholders in the nation’s education sector gathered to chart a fresh agenda for the sub-sector with a view to addressing the rot in the system.
Led by the Education Minister, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, the conference provided a platform to brainstorm on the way to en-hance access, standard, equity and quality control in the deliv-ery of teachers’ education in the country.
The theme: “Access and Eq-uity: Imperative for National Development,” the week-long conference, which was hosted by Ogun State at the Valley View Auditorium, Government House, Abeokuta, the state capital, was the state Governor, Senator Ibi-kunle Amosun,
Participants at the five-day talk-shop included education commissioners from the 36 states of the federation includ-ing the Federal Capital Terri-
There is need for institutionalisa-
tion of incen-tives that will
help in attracting and retaining
the best brains in the teaching
profession
r-L: Ogun State Commissioner for Education, Science andTechnology Mr. Segun Odubela, Dr. Nwaobiala and Secretary to the Ogun State Government, Mr. Taiwo Adeoluwa during the NCE meeting.
22 WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH
Programme expert at the United Nations Educational, Scientif-ic and Cultural Organisation
(UNESCO) Headquarters, Lucy Hoareau, has restated the commit-ment of the international organisa-tion in ensuring that the UNESCO Category II Biotechnology Centre at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), fulfills its mandate of im-proving food security and develop-ing tropical medicine to enhance the lives of Nigerians and other African countries.
Hoareau reiterated this when members of the Scientific Adviso-ry Board of UNESCO Category II Centre for Biotechnology of the uni-versity visited the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Benjamin Ozumba during the second board meeting of the centre held at the university.
Part of agenda for the meeting was to interview candidates for the position of Executive Director of the centre.
Hoareau, who represented the
Director, Division of Science Policy and Capacity Building of UNESCO, Prof. Maciej Nalecz, said the centre would go a long way in helping to promote high quality scientific re-search in the field of biotechnology in the country and the entire Afri-can continent.
She commended UNN for being a worthy host of the centre, stating that the choice of the university was based on its history of academic ex-cellence.
The Vice-Chancellor, while re-ceiving his visitors, thanked the members of the Advisory Board for their interest and dedication in ac-tualising the mandate of the centre.
Ozumba said: “On our part, the University of Nigeria remains firmly and irrevocably committed to this project, we will do everything within our powers to ensure that a truly international centre of excel-lence worthy of UNESCO and the global scientific community takes firm root on our campus.”
The Vice-Chancellor, who howev-er, noted that it was a tough assign-ment to build such centre of excel-lence from the scratch, expressed optimism that the project was des-tined for success given the calibre of people involved and their com-mitment towards making it work.
He enjoined members of the Board to promote activities of the centre in their respective agencies to enable it attract funding that would position it to international promi-nence.
Other members of the Board at the meeting included the Chairman of the Board and immediate past Vice-Chancellor of the university, Prof. Bartho Okolo; representative of the Director-General of National Biotechnology Development Agency; immediate past Director-General of NABDA, Prof. Bamidele Solomon; UNESCO Science Officer, Abuja, Dr Osuji Inya; Ahmed Fahim of UNES-CO; Dr. Oby Onyia, and Prof. Walter Al-Hassan of SABIMA, Ghana.
problems in the education sector, going by several initiatives already being implemented.
His words: “The concurrent ju-risdiction which the education sec-tor enjoys enables the federal, state and local governments, as well as the private sector and other stakehold-ers to own and run schools from the pre-primary to the university levels. If well harnessed, this would ad-dress the need for access and equity among Nigerians.”
In the three-page communiqué issued at the end of the five-day de-liberations, the NCE approved na-tional and zonal advocacy, sensitiza-tion and monitoring programmes on Open and Distance Learning in the country; Draft National Education Quality Assurance Policy; one-year pre-primary curriculum; printing of Blueprint and National Policy on Albinism; and draft National Policy on Special Needs Education and Guidelines for implementation by stakeholders.
The NCE also approved, among others, that all Nigerian universi-ties offering teacher education pro-gramme should include elements of special education in their cur-riculum content as a non-optional course unit; change of the Almajiri nomenclature to Tsangaya; integra-tion of birth registration at the basic education level and the conduct of UTME through only computer-based test mode from 2015.
The Council directed the federal and state ministries of education as well as FCT education secretary to adhere strictly to the admission policy of 30:70 ratio in favour of tech-nical/trade subjects.
Besides, NCE directed states to complement the efforts of National Teachers Institute (NTI) and other stakeholders by training 10 per cent of the teachers’ workforce annually to widen their scope and knowledge in the relevant areas.
Part of the communiqué directed the Federal Ministry of Education to initiate the review of process or procedures for accessing the Uni-
versal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) funds by states.
Also, the federal and state min-istries of education as well as the FCT were urged to employ and train security personnel, install surveil-lance gadgets as well as strengthen school perimeter fencing and gates in schools, even as it called on states to stop their schools from allowing their premises to be used as centres for illegal satellite campuses.
The communiqué advised states to sensitize and mobilize women and girls for increased participation in non-formal education, as well as establish a special task force that would enforce the Child Rights Act, enhance attendance, retention and completion of the basic education programme.
The NCE urged federal, states, FCT and proprietors of private basic schools to provide adequate number of personal computers and accesso-ries for practical examinations in Computer Studies in schools.
It also enjoined the concerned stakeholders to ensure the appoint-ment of professionals in education as heads of educational institutions, ministries, agencies and depart-ments.
As part of measures put in place to restore dignity and glory to the education sector, the Minister spoke of plans by the Federal Government to organise a national summit on teachers.
Shekarau, who noted that “the success of our education system and
that of the country is dependent on the availability of quality teachers,” explained that it is the teachers that have the responsibility of efficiently addressing the curriculum for us to be assured of products who will be able to contribute meaningfully to national development.
The minister said: “There is need for institutionalisation of incentives that will help in attracting and re-taining the best brains in the teach-ing profession. It is necessary that as we face the challenge of port per-formance in Mathematics, English Language and Science, we should do things that attract teachers who will be able to give the best to the students.”
However, Amosun in his remarks, said education remained the most potent tool and catalyst for socio-economic, political, scientific and technological development and na-tional growth.
He explained that “a nation that attaches the desired importance to its educational development achieves considerable socio-eco-nomic advancement to the benefit of its citizenry and contributes sig-nificantly to their wellbeing.”
“This is why countries of the world that are economically back-ward are also the most educationally disadvantaged,” the governor noted, saying it is therefore important that all efforts geared towards advancing the educational development of our nation must be supported by all and sundry.
Education
The former President of the Senate, Dr. Iyorchia Ayu, has cautioned those
predicting and agitating for the break-up of the country to have a rethink.
Ayu, who warned on the heels that the nation’s disintegration would lead to war and destabilisation of the entire West African sub-region, gave the warn-ing while delivering the fifth convocation lecture of the Adekunle Ajasin Universi-ty, Akungba Akoko (AAUA), Ondo State. In the lecture entitled: “The Break-Up of Nigeria: Myths, Realities and Implica-tions,” he said: “Those putting forward misleading constructions of our histori-cal reality and agitating for the break-up of Nigeria must tarry to look at the grim implications.”
The guest lecturer added: “It will not just be one single division of north and south, as many de-amalgamations will take place, with numerous indetermi-nate boundaries and conflicts. The re-sultant wars will generate several rivers of blood.
“Contrary to the illusion of faster growth and development, these conflicts and wars will lead to massive economic destruction and a throw-back to pre-colonial times. Should it happen, the break-up will generate a huge refugee nightmare requiring large quantities of food, shelter, and medical supplies. This mass migration will destabilize the whole of the West African sub-region and beyond. It will be a big blow to the black world. Many Africans and Africans in the Diaspora will be psychologically trau-matised.”
Ayu, while recalling that since the amalgamation of the Southern and Northern Protectorates in 1914, Nigeria, as a nation had been presented with seri-ous challenges.
NCE makes case for training of teachers
Shekarau
Ex-Senate President cautions against break-up
UNESCO restates commitment to UNN biotech centre
L-R: Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Administration), Prof Edwin Igbokwe; the University Librarian, Dr. Chinwe Ezeani; Mrs. Hoareau; Prof. Benjamin Ozumba; Prof J.C. Ogbonna and Prof. Igwe, during the board’s visit to the VC.
C O N T I N U E D F R O M PAG E 2 1
23EducationNEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014
Airtel gets SERA’s best CSR company award in educationKayode Olanrewaju
A Non-Governmental Or-ganisation (NGO) Social Enterprise Report Awards (SERAs) has named Airtel
Nigeria as the Best Company in Edu-cation CSR.
The award was bestowed on Air-tel, one of the leading telecommuni-cation operators in the country by SERAs at its 2014 awards ceremony in recognition of its laudable Cor-porate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives aimed at improving the standard and quality of education in the country.
The award presentation took place during the eighth edition of SERA, which took place at Muson Centre, Onikan Lagos.
The SERA awards also known as the Nigeria CSR Awards, is one of Nigeria’s highly acclaimed awards recognised by industry experts.
Other nominees for the awards category include Samsung, Etisalat and Oando.
The organisers in Airtel’s citation described Airtel’s Adopt-A-School programme and the Bridge IT proj-ect as some of the key initiatives of the Telcos which have contributed to the development of education in the country.
While receiving the awards, the Managing Director and Chief Ex-ecutive Officer, Airtel Nigeria, Mr. Segun Ogunsanya, explained that the Telco places high priority on CSR programmes which cut across critical areas of societal needs such as education and youth empower-ment, among other initiatives of the company.
He lauded the commitment and sacrifices of all members of staff of the telecom outfit, which according to him, has been pivotal to the suc-cesses of the company’s CSR efforts.
While reiterating the commit-ment of Airtel to give back to the society, he added that the company would not relent in its drive towards improved society.
Ogunsanya said: “At Airtel, we place strong emphasis on giving back to the society because we know
that government alone cannot con-tinue to shoulder the huge responsi-bilities in developing the society. For this reason, we prioritise our CSR fo-cus on developing education, health, environment and sports as well as empowering youths in Nigeria.”
He further praised the organis-ers of the award for identifying the Telco’s CSR efforts which makes the company exemplary.
Through its Adopt-School Initia-tive, Airtel Nigeria has contributed immensely towards improving edu-cation in several communities in the country.
Under the programme, the Telco collaborates with State Universal Basic Education (SUBEB) in vari-ous states to provide primary school pupils in under-served communities with educational materials such as note books, uniforms, classroom fur-niture and boreholes.
As part of this initiative, Ogun-sanya recalled that new blocks of classrooms have also been built by Airtel Nigeria to replace dilapidated structures in some schools across
the country, while the teachers re-ceive periodic training as part of ef-forts aimed at improving teaching quality and standards.
Some of the beneficiary schools from this initiative are Oremeji Pri-mary School II, Ajegunle, Lagos; St. John Primary School, Oke-Agbo, Ijebu-Igbo, Ogun State; Presbyterian Primary School, Ediba, Cross River and Community Primary School, Amumara, Imo State.
Airtel also recently conducted free eye-screening for teachers and pupils of these schools, and those who required corrective glasses were provided with eye-glasses to improve their sight.
Besides, Airtel in 2011 partnered with Nokia and Pearson to create the Bridge IT project, which empowers teachers in Lagos State schools to adopt innovative and effective teach-ing practices through the use of mo-bile technology and student-focused pedagogy.
Under the project, no fewer than 132 primary schools in the state have so far benefitted from the project.
Yekeen NurudeenAbujA
From the Director and Chief Exec-utive Officer of National Library
of Nigeria, Malam Habib Abba Jato, has come a call to the Nigerian jour-nalists not to relent in promoting reading culture among the people.
Jato, who made the call in Abuja after receiving an award of “Integ-rity and Good Leadership” from the Young Journalists Forum and Global Environment Outlook, pointed out that journalists in the country have promoted reading culture more than their colleagues in other parts of the world.
He explained that the National Library has been at the vanguard of collecting and preserving historical books for the future generations of the country.
His words: “It is our mandate to collect and preserve for posterity. This is the only National Library in the world that has branches. Our own is to set agenda of how good library should look like while states and local governments should take it up from there.”
Jato, while wondering that sever-al Nigerians do not understand the role of the national library, however, noted that it is a repository library that preserves the nation’s memory and history.
“Repository library is what the national library is, unfortunately, many people don’t understand this. Publications and books on Nigeria history are books that we preserve. We preserve the memory of the na-tion,” he said.
While conferring the award on him, representative of the Young Journalists Forum, Mr. Emmanuel Iriogbe, said the award was bestowed on the recipient in recognition of his commitment towards promoting reading culture among Nigerians.
He added that the exemplary style and integrity with which he has pi-loted the affairs of National Library since 2011, when he came on board, stood him out for the award.
“He has been promoting reading culture, sponsoring reading cam-paign and inspired many Nigerians to read more,” he said.
Mojeed Alabi
Education Minister, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau has directed institutions of learning across the country to
be ready for on-the-spot assessment of the institutions to be carried out by the ministry.
Under the new inspection policy, he insisted that he would no longer work with reports submitted to his office by the institutions, but to visit the institutions in order to see things for himself.
The Minister disclosed that the minis-try under his watch has set aside every Tuesdays for inspection as part of efforts to acquire firsthand information on the success recorded by the institutions and the challenges they face.
Tagged: “Impact Assessment Tour of Tertiary Institutions in Nigeria,” Shek-arau, who disclosed this during his offi-cial visit to the Federal College of Edu-cation (FCE Technical), Akoka, Lagos, commended the staff and students of
the college for what he described as their decorous conduct, orderliness and civility.
According to the Minister, having vis-ited several higher institutions across
the country either as a governor or as a minister, the conduct of the students and members of staff of the college “really reflected the standard of an education
college where proper teachers are made.”“As a teacher who is proud of this job,
I appreciate the system here and I hope others can emulate it,” Shekarau said.
He noted that the ministry’s primary target was to restore dignity to the teach-ing profession through constant training and retraining of teachers, saying invest-ment in human capital should take prior-ity above infrastructure.
At the college, Shekarau commis-sioned two major projects - a link bridge funded by the Africa Development Bank (ADB) and the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETfund) sponsored three-storey lecture theatre.
The college’s Chairman of Governing Council, Alhaji Aliyu Maska, in his re-sponse, thanked the Minister for the visit, adding that as Nigeria’s first technical college of education, it requires modern infrastructure and more land space to cope with the pressure it is currently facing.
He said the intervention of the min-istry over the disputed land between the college and the University of Lagos was highly necessary.
Promote reading culture, journalists told
Ogunsanya (right) receiving the award from business Development Manager, Paints and Coatings Manufacturers Nigeria Plc (PCMN), Mr. Greg Williams, at the event held in Lagos.
L-R: Provost, FCET, Dr. Sijibomi Olusanya; Minister of Education, Ibrahim Shekarau; Chairperson, TET-Fund, South-West Zone, Dr. Helen Kolawole and FCET Council Chairman, Alh. Kabir Maska at the com-missioning of one of the projects in the college.
Minister sets aside Tuesdays for school inspection
Some 200 undergraduates of Adekunle Ajasin University,
Akungba Akoko (AAUA), Ondo State last week became beneficia-ries of the institution’s Student Work Study Scheme (SWSS).
The scheme, which took off in July 2010, allows interested students to work for two hours daily on which they receive sti-pend at the end of every month to support themselves financially, while studying in the university.
The beneficiaries, who re-ceived their letters of appoint-ment, had been deployed to de-partments, centres, units and the university library for the work study programme.
The students lauded the uni-versity management and ex-pressed their readiness to use the platform provided by the scheme to contribute to the development of the university.
Adeola Odeyelu, a 200-Level student of Economics, who was deployed to the Senate Building, said: “It is a great initiative of the university management to give the students the privilege to work and receive a stipend to fund their education. I applied for the work study for so many reasons, which include acquir-
ing work experience and the stipend that will go a long way to assist me in completing my university education.”
Also, Olorunyomi Ayeleso, a 200-Level student of the Depart-ment of Business Administra-tion, who is to undertake his work study at the Mass Communication Department, described the initia-tive as a welcome development, even as he expressed appreciation to the Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Femi Mimiko for giving him and oth-ers the opportunity to serve the university in our little way.
The stipend, according to him, will reduce the financial burden of their parents; and as students will help them to develop mana-gerial skills.
Addressing the beneficiaries, the Acting Director of the pro-gramme, Dr. Iyabo Omoniyi, congratulated them on their appointment and thanked the Vice-Chancellor for his admin-istration’s commitment to the scheme.
She urged the beneficiaries to justify the confidence reposed in them by the university by being diligent and comport themselves responsibly in their various plac-es of assignments.
24 Education WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH
Kayode Olanrewaju
Lack of access to technological tools for effective teaching and learning process, facing the pupils and teachers of Eti-Osa
Community Senior Secondary School, Sangotedo, Ajah, Lagos and other schools in the state, is now a thing of the past.
Thanks to the 10 resource centres do-nated to Lagos schools by MultiChoice, Nigeria’s leading pay-TV operator.
Each of the centres comprise a 48 inch Plasma TV set, high definition personal video recorder (HDPVR) decoder, gener-ating set, complimentary subscription to DStv Education Bouquet, which contains BBC World, BBC Knowledge, National Geography, Animal Planet, National Ge-ography Wild, History Channel, Learn and ED channel, with ceiling fans, plastic chairs and tables.
While inaugurating and handing over that of Eti-Osa Community Senior Sec-ondary School, Sangotedo, Ajah to the management of the school, Mr. John Ugbe, Managing Director, MultiChoice Nigeria, said the resource centre project is MultiChoice’s way of promoting the use of integrated and communication technologies to raise the standard of edu-cation by deploying the imagery of sight and sound to make learning more vivid and creative.
He added: “At MultiChoice, we have a strong conviction that the technological, economic, social and political advance-ment of any country has a direct correla-tion with its level of educational develop-ment and that the future of a country is intrinsically tied to the quality of educa-tion that the youths are exposed to.”
Ugbe enjoined the beneficiary schools to maximize the use of the resource cen-tres for effective learning.
The 10 new resource centres opened in Lagos schools, brings to 18 of such centres in the state since the inception of the programme in 2004.
In its eighth phase, MultiChoice Re-source Centre project has presently
grown from four centres at inception in 2004 to 312 in 29 states of the federation.
According to the Managing Director, Innovative Technology Literacy Services Limited (ITLS), Mrs. Aderonke Bello, the implementing partner for the MRC proj-ect, technology investment in schools has been on the increase.
Mrs. Bello, who added that the deploy-ment of satellite television to enhance learning is one key initiative that has helped to bridge the digital divide in ru-ral communities, also noted that there is no way in which technology would replace teachers and textbooks in class-rooms.
While saying that research has shown that technology-mediated learning envi-ronment provides immense opportuni-ties for learners, she explained that such inevitably leads to better teaching and learning outcomes.
She lauded MultiChoice for giving back to the community and for adding value to the nation’s education sector. Mrs. Bello, however stressed that “it is expected that all the teachers trained on the use of the facilities would make good use of their acquired knowledge to bring the often abstract, distant worlds of sci-ence into close focus and within the per-sonal, meaningful realm of their pupils.”
As part of moves to effectively deploy the resource centre for use, ITLS trained 50 teachers, five each from the beneficia-ry schools as MRC Coordinators.
Under the train-the-trainers pro-gramme, the teachers are expected to train their colleagues and ensure effec-tive and efficient use of the resource centres in the schools.
Mrs. Mary Oyetunde, the Director of Co-Curriculum, Science & Technology of Lagos State Ministry of Education,
thanked MultiChoice for the initiative, describing it as complementary to the state’s efforts at providing improved facil-ities for enhanced teaching and learning. “MultiChoice Resource Centre (MRC) project will facilitate e-learning, as our pupils can now utilize the satellite TV technology to obtain relevant facts and latest development in subject areas that have hitherto proved difficult to under-stand,” she said.
She thanked MultiChoice and assured that the beneficiaries will utilize the re-source centres to raise the bar of educa-tion delivery and students’ performance in the state.
Mrs. Oyetunde said: “We shall contin-ue to evaluate the impact of this inter-vention on education in the state with a view to obtaining better results. We hope that this partnership will be sustained to guarantee the future of our children.”
Sola Adeyemo and Emeka Onwudinjo Ibadan, UnIZIK
Exactly a year after the death of former President of the Academ-ic Staff Union of Universities
(ASUU), Professor Festus Iyayi, in an auto accident, the University of Ibadan and Nnamdi Azikwe University, Awka, Anambra State chapters of the union, have vowed to sustain the legacies he left behind.
Iyayi died in the course of seeking enhanced welfare of his colleagues and end to the protracted strike in the na-tion’s university system.
Iyayi died on November 12, last year when the convoy of the Governor of Kogi State, Captain Idris Wada (retd), crashed into the vehicle in which he was traveling with some of his colleagues to Kano for an ASUU emergency national congress.
At the end of a congress held in com-memoration of the one-year anniver-sary of the death of the ‘Great Union-ist, ASUU UI chapter described Iyayi as a dogged fighter who, until his last moment, was committed to the eman-cipation of the university system and died in the course of realising a stable university environment.
Chairman of the chapter, Professor Olusegun Ajiboye, specifically noted that the late Iyayi was “not only a com-passionate man, but a dogged fighter
and a focused unionist who laid down his life for the emancipation of the na-tion and its education sector.
“We shall continue to sustain the en-viable legacies he left behind for us,” he said.
An associate of the late ASUU Nation-al President, Professor Biodun Saani, hinted that (Iyayi) his colleague excelled as a union leader and professionally as a university lecturer.
“He never compromised his disci-pline throughout his life,” he stressed.
He enjoined the entire ASUU mem-bers to keep up the sterling qualities of the late Iyayi by ensuring that they never compromised on matters of prin-ciples, but re-dedicate themselves and be pro-active to their academic and re-search works at all times.
UI, UNIZIK ASUU vow to sustain Iyayi’s legacy 200 students benefit from AAUA work-study scheme
Some of the pupils being taught by one of their teachers shortly after the opening of the centre.
Iyayi
25EducationNEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014
Mojeed Alabi
Covenant University Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Charles Ayo, has urged participants at the
just concluded 2014 edition of the ninth Nigerian Network Operators Group (Ng NOG) workshop to invest in capac-ity building.
The Vice-Chancellor, who spoke at the Ota, Ogun State main campus of the private
university noted that such capacity building would be geared towards developing human resources required to make the desired change in the nation’s socio-economic sector.
Making the remarks at the dinner organised to round-off the five-day capacity building workshop hosted by the univer-sity, the Vice-Chancellor hinted that Nigerians always thrive if given adequate training and right environment to operate.
While insisting that the major challenge facing the na-tion is lack of leadership, Ayo lemented that this has resulted in other African nations mov-ing ahead of the country.
He also noted that right net-working of the participants might be what is required to move the nation forward “be-cause what makes a nation is not the abundance of what lies under the ground, but what in-dividuals have ‘upstairs.’
The Vice-Chancellor lauded the participants, particularly the instructors, for demon-strating quality leadership in training others without any form of gratification, even as he expressed the desire of the university to host the event co-sponsored by Google Incorpo-ration again.
Earlier in his remarks, the Coordinator of Ng NOG, Mal-lam Nasir Bello, stated that the workshop was unique because
it was the first time it was host-ed by a private university.
He said the group was im-pressed by the university’s ICT facilities, noting that “this is the best in all the nine uni-versities that have hosted the event.”
The five-day workshop ex-posed the participants to sys-tems administration, Internet infrastructure, Internet servic-es as well as applications and content development.
The Vice-Chancellor, Uni-versity of Ibadan (UI), Prof. Isaac Folorunso
Adewole, has restated the commitment of his admin-istration to the university’s strategic goal of focusing more on the delivery of post-graduate studies.
He said the institution has the professional and academic personnel that could achieve such laudable academic feat.
Speaking at the congrega-tion for the award of Post-graduate Diplomas and Mas-ters’ degrees as part of the activities marking the 2014 convocation and 66th Foun-dation Day ceremonies of the Nigeria’s premier university, the Vice-Chancellor explained that with 341 professors, 118 readers, 346 senior lecturers and 768 lecturers and assis-tant lecturers, the institution has remained the flagship of postgraduate education in the country, committed to the training of high quality lecturers needed in other ter-tiary institutions.
At the event, which took place at Prof. Oritsejolomi Thomas Hall, International Conference Centre of the institution, Adewole said the 5,959 students awarded
the higher degrees (Masters and Diplomas) have attested to the continued confidence and trust candidates reposed in the Ivory Tower for quality training of students.
According to him, the graduands awarded the cer-tificates had been trained, examined and convincingly found to be worthy in charac-ter and in learning.
The Vice-Chancellor reas-sured the stakeholders that the vision of the premier uni-versity, which is anchored on the pursuit of national goals of development through knowledge creation and dis-semination, with a view to promoting national trans-formation, is still vigorously pursued by the management of the institution.
He said: “The realisation of this vision is reflected in our commitment to the develop-ment of teaching, learning and research efforts that would provide the required skills for internalising the learning process and to serve as catalyst for the political, social and economic develop-ment of the nation.”
While reeling out the insti-tution’s several accomplish-ments in academic and sus-
tainable capacity since the beginning of the academic session, the Vice-Chancellor listed some of the newly mounted programmes or courses which have continued to attract acceptability by ap-plicants.
These, he said include Ac-ademic Master’s Degree in Research and Public Policy, Programme in Gerontology, Academic Master of Science (M.Sc.) programme in Public Health, among others.
Adewole, however, la-mented that although, the acceptability and popularity of the new and existing post-graduate programmes of the premier university attracted over 16, 000 applications dur-ing the 2013/2014 academic session, only 6, 139 qualified candidates were admitted.
No fewer than 5, 959 gradu-ating students were awarded higher degrees in the institu-tion’s 13 faculties and centres.
Giving the breakdown, the Vice-Chancellor said the fig-ure comprised 46 graduands for the M. Phil; 123 for Mas-ter’s in Public Health; 4,467 academic Masters Degrees; 1,313 professional Masters Degrees and 153 students for Postgraduate Diplomas.
Mojeed Alabi
The students of the University of Lagos
(UNILAG), Akoka and the Federal College of Edu-cation, Technical Akoka, have commended one of Nigeria’s leading telecom-munications operators, MTN for introducing the ongoing Season of Sur-prise Campaign.
According to them, the initiative has linked them with models in entertain-ment industries.
They made the remark when the firm took one of its ambassadors and mu-sic star, Tiwa Sawage on a surprise visits to the two campuses.
The singer, who arrived at the institution without prior notice, was given a rousing reception by the students who trooped in large number to welcome their favourite musical icon, have a glimpse of her as well as take pictures with her.
One of the students, Ugwu Joseph Chinonso, a 300 Level undergradu-ate of Mathematics at the university who won an iPhone 6 from the singer,
thanked MTN for the sur-prise visit and gesture.
He said: “I am so excit-ed. This is awesome and absolutely unexpected. Apart from the opportu-nity to meet Tiwa Sawage who happens to be one of my favourite musicians, I am also receiving a surprise gift from her. In fact, MTN has not only surprised me, they have done it beyond my imagi-nation.”
Similarly, Shodeinde Zainat Afolashade, a stu-dent of Agriculture Edu-cation at FCE, was also re-warded with a new iPhone 6 by the singer.
Meanwhile, the musi-cian, who took time to vis-it the students in their hos-tels on the two campuses, encouraged them to face their primary assignment in the institutions and also thanked them for the sup-port they are given the Nigerian music industry.
“My friends please, always remember what you are here for, face your studies and keep your dream alive. I appreciate all of you for believing in us and also in Nigerian music,” Sawage said.
Kunle OlayeniAbeoKutA
The National Associa-tion of Nigerian Stu-
dents (NANS) and the National Association of Ogun State Students (NAOSS) have called for proper integration of the youth, especially students in governance.
Speaking at a joint press conference in Abeo-kuta, the students urged political parties to incor-porate 30 per cent of past student leaders in their programme implementa-tion.
The Secretary-General of NANS, Taiwo Apoyin, and NAOSS President, Adewale Ifemosu, who spoke on behalf of the
students, lamented that some of the nation’s po-litical office holders have failed to fulfill their elec-tioneering promises to the young ones.
The duo, therefore, contended that the youths, who constitute significant proportion of the populace, must be fully integrated as the na-tion prepares for another round of elections in 2015.
They said: “Political parties as well as gu-bernatorial aspirants in Ogun State should ensure that at least 30 per cent of past student union lead-ers are incorporated in their manifestos if they wish to enjoy the massive support of students dur-ing next year’s general elections.
Covenant varsity VC advises group on capacity building
UI renews commitment to postgraduate studies
Adewole (left) congratulating the best graduating student, Mrs. Khadijah Morhason-bello during the convocation. With them is Miss Arume Ighoroje, representative of tony elumelu Foundation
Students laud MTN surprise initiative
NANS, NAOSS seek increaseed youth participation in govt
26 WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH
Slave port Marina Badagry when completed. INSET: oNgoINg SlavE markET buIldINg, vlEkETE
Away from the inglorious era of the past centuries of the slave trade, Badagry is again on the threshold of new dawn of a super tourist
centre in the world. The prospect is all the more being reinforced by the ongo-ing comprehensive effort of the state government to regenerate and develop Badagry town into a viable tourist ha-ven. Badagry division, as one in the state of aquatic splendour, occupies economic and political importance for many reasons. Yet, commensurate infra-structural developments in most of the component towns scarcely exist. But the Badagry town is gradually transform-
CONTINUED ON PAGE 28
Lagos seeks tourists haven in Badagry
ing in preparation for the prospect of an enthralling tourist atmosphere. At the Boekoh Quarters, the ongoing rede-velopment of the old slave port at the marina into a grand viewing pavilion confers the prospect of a delightsome world-class tourist centre, not only in Nigeria but also in entire Africa.
The Akran of Badagry’s palace just got a facelift, the completion of the first church in Nigeria – Freeman Memorial Methodist Church – which is a few yards from the Akran’s palace brightens the atmosphere.
There is now proliferation of hotels, businesses, banks etc. in preparation for the time when the project finally is completed and comes in to full opera-tion? Oke-Tojinu, one of the museums attendants said that the prospect is al-ways there because there is going to be a sea port in Badagry, but one major fac-tor is the fact that Lagos is congested. So, people are already coming out, hoping that the next place to be is Badagry. Be-sides, its proximity to the border, there is the hope that by the time the 10-lane Lagos-Badagry Expressway is completed, easy access will be possible. Those are the factors affecting the transformation of Badagry as a town and as a division right now, and not solely the slave port project.
Badagry, the historic town is set to be lifted unto an enthralling tourist pedestal as the Lagos State Government harnesses all the complementing features within the ancient town. ELIJAH SAMUEL captures the ongoing development strides.
“The slave port project has even af-fected some people negatively because all the people that were doing businesses at the ongoing construction site were all relocated. We know we all shall reap its benefits later on but the problem is how soon because it has been at the same level for a long time,” he said.
The government, it seems, is awak-ening to the reality of effectively incor-porating historic Badagry town into her megacity project. Right from its entry point at the roundabout, a drive through Joseph Dosu Road and streets within the component quarters, afford one the knowledge of recent provision of streetlights, tarred roads and drain-ages in the town.
Interestingly, the transforming fire ignited by the government to illuminate and launch the state into an enviable landscape seems to be receiving comple-menting support. Across the pacesetter town, the reconstructing and renovating of a few structures that truly is the hall-mark of a megacity which will attract both home and foreign visitors abound.
Chief Sehubo Ajose-Harrison coun-selor to His Majesty De Wheno Aholu Menu-Toyi I, the Akran of Badagry Kingdom, remarked that Governor Fashola has tried in his own strides, but posited that it is only morally right that all consisting divisions in the Cen-tre of Excellence be given quality and
adequate attention so that they can have good taste of the megacity.
“Let all the divisions in Lagos have a good taste of the megacity. But for the projects already embarked upon here, the prayer is that whoever comes after Fashola should continue with the works.
“When we talk about the governor of a state, we talk about an individual with a mind of his own to decide what project is to be done and which one to wait or be discarded. But whoever that is coming, we wish him well; all we are asking is that he thinks of Badagry. At all times, Badagry has remained loyal to the government in power. So, let those in power see how they can change the skyline of Badagry.”
A senior official in the state Ministry of Culture and Tourism, who preferred anonymity, however disclosed that the residents are being carried along in the project.
“We have organized town-hall meet-ings where the residents and stakehold-ers were sensitized on all the projects and how the projects tend to benefit the community. Apart from this, the govern-ment has equally organized a training project to train the youths and other tourist practitioners to enhance their capacity so that they can start think-ing on what to do when the project is
27NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014
The Mega City...for the love of Lagos
MEGA CITY EVENT MY CITY, MY WORLD (Ajose-Harrison) LIFE IN THE CITY
In Badagry, business is not as usual
We need to bring back the peace of Lagos
Fashola rewards best Com-munity at 2014 Community Day celebration
L-R Mr. Ben Oko; Bro. Emmanuel Uwukhor; Chairman of the occasion, Arch. Gerald Umeh; Mrs. Umeh; Mr. John Edet; and Ven.S.E. Uhie giving the opening prayer.
The first church in Nigeria; Newly built Freeman Memorial Methodist Cathedral
Imo community celebrates 100 years of Christianity in Lagos
In the beginning God created heaven and earth…and dark-ness was upon the face of the
deep….” Genesis 1:1.This state of affair aptly de-
scribes Umuihi/Ihinna Com-munities (formerly one Umuihi community before Ihinna was recently carved out) in Ihitte/Uboma Local Government Area of Imo State before the advent of Christianity in 1914.
This was confirmed by the con-veners of the 100 years of Chris-tianity Anniversary and N20m Church renewal project fund rais-ing held recently in Lagos.
The event that took place at the St. Paul African Church hall, Koka road, Ilupeju, Lagos has sons and daughters of the town and their friends, in-laws and well-wishers in attendance.
In a welcome address present-ed by the chairman, coordinat-ing Committee of the event, Mr. Edmond Ogubuike, he thanked God for blessing Umuihi/Ihinna.
According to him, the people through Christianity have been blessed while the development has helped to exorcise some evils and obnoxious acts and practices in the land. He went further to trace the history of Christianity to the Church Mis-sionary Society (C.M.S) that came to the area in 1914.
According to him, the Niger Delta Pastorate (N.D.P) merged with the C.M.S in 1933 to raise a formidable C.M.S Church in Umuihi/Ihinna.
He said: “We are celebrat-ing 100 years firstly, because, we are marking the victory of light over darkness, i.e. spiritual enlightenment, exposure to the truth and justice (1John 1:5).Sec-ondly, we invited all our friends, partners and well-wishers to re-
joice with us for God’s grace to sustain, and develop the gospel in the land, (Romans 16:20).”
Also in his speech, the Presi-dent General, Umuihi/Ihinna Consultative Assembly (UICA), Lagos Branch, Mr. Vincent Uba, said Christianity brought love for one another.
According to him, that love for one another has brought prog-ress to Umuihi/Ihinna. “We have started on a good note. The foun-dation has been laid. The whole essence of life is for us to keep do-ing what our Lord Jesus Christ has asked us to do, because if you remember, our Lord Jesus Christ tells us to, ‘do whatever he asks you to do; all other things will be added unto you.”
A human Right Lawyer, Bar-rister Chinaemerem Uhuegbu, who is an indigene of the area, added that Christianity brought boldness; and helped the commu-nities abolish some fetish beliefs then, some of which are, still in practice in some other communi-ties. “It is that same boldness en-gendered by Christianity that has motivated people like me to aspire for Ikeja Ward 1 in the Lagos State House of Assembly. A plus to my community”, he concluded.
An elder of the town, Engi-neer E.U. Nwokorie, described the occasion as glorious and prayed that God will bless all that attended with a hundred years and above gift of longevity.
In his words, one of the invi-tees, Mr. Christian Onyemuwa, prayed that God will reward them abundantly. He recounted the encounter between Peter and Jesus, in Mark 10:28-31. He said: “Peter asked Jesus, we have left all and followed thee. What will be our reward at the end? Jesus answered, not only in heaven will you be rewarded, even here on earth. No one follows me and go empty handed”, he quoted.
While delivering a homily at the event, the Chief host of the occasion, a Venerable in the An-
completed. So, I think the com-munity is being carried along,” he said.
Explaining the tardiness that is seemingly clogging the prospect of early delivery of the project, the senior tourism officer disclosed that “the proj-ect was halted as a result of in-sufficient capital, due to change of commissioners. Honourable Tokunbo Afikuyomi, former Commissioner for Tourism started it but later had to pass it on to successors. When a new person comes on board, he has to take some time to familiar-ize himself with and gather information about what is on ground”. Apart from using the project to develop the town, the project seems to be driven by
the pecuniary motive to gener-ate funds for the government.
“These are capital-intensive projects but they are meant to put money in the pockets of the local community; because if tourists come around, they will need to visit restaurants and lodge in the hotels. It is a social responsibility because the government is not getting in return what is commensu-rate with what has been put into the project. It is meant to attract people to that area.
“I can tell you that more than 90 per cent of those employed in these hotels are the local people, and they derive their money from visitors. The boats opera-tors too are local people, who also derive their money from tourists, but by the completion of that project, more traffic (hu-
man) is going to be generated to that destination: this means more income for the operators.
“But for the government, the money we are generating is not even enough to pay one staff when actually there are more than five staff of the ministry working there,” he stated.
With a tone of optimism, the state official declared: “I want to believe that majority of that project will be handed over to the ministry before May next year. Apart from the slave route and the ark, other projects are near completion: the tourist in-formation centre is about 80 per cent ready; the restoration of the District Officer’s residence is ready; the slave market mu-seum, Vlekete is about 65 per cent completion; the perfor-mance stage should be ready
glican Church, Diocese of Lagos, Ven. Samuel E. Uhie, said Christi-anity came to Igboland in 1857 and his community joyfully embraced it. Today, he said, they are happy for it. He stated that Christianity brought liberty and transforma-tion to them. He said that many perceived stubborn children; who could have been sold into slavery or killed, are today useful and re-pentant Christians.
Ven. Uhie further said: “Prior to the advent of Christianity, vir-tually all Igbo land was full of idol worshiping, killing of twins and their mothers; people with tuberculosis were banished into the evil forest to die.
“But Christianity turned the darkness holding the people cap-tive to light, and that light brought liberty; it brought freedom. Many of us standing here today are twins; we could have been killed.”
Uhie, who is also the vicar of Emmanuel Parish Church, Mo-bile road, Apapa, Lagos, called
on all present to support in the raising of the N20m proposed for, among other things-renovation of their town’s Church Audito-rium, procuring modern music equipment and development of skill acquisition centre for the youths. He implored all to be part of the grand finale of the Anni-versary coming up in Umuihi.
Highpoints of the ceremony which attracted crème de la crème of Umuihi/Ihinna in La-gos and beyond were luncheon and fund raising.
The Chairman of the occasion, Architect Gerald Umeh donated the sum of N300, 000 among oth-ers, while a daughter of the town Mrs. Ada Igboanugo (nee Odim) held up the candle among the women, by donating N50, 000.
Some prominent person-alities at the event include; Dr. U.S.A Osuji, Engr. Lasbery Okeke and Engr. Emeka On-oniwu, a consultant at Edmark International among others.
by December; the reclamation of Badagry Marina should also be completed by December.
“I can assure you that if the contractors are not starved of funds, the projects all should be delivered by May, 2015.”
Irrespective of views ex-
pressed, it is expedient that the governments at all levels embrace and deploy efforts towards the comprehensive de-velopment of Badagry division into a viable socio-economic empire which will be pride of all and sundry.
28 WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH News | Mega City
The advent of Christianity, no doubt, changed the belief system, the social status and strengthened human relationship between God and man in Umuihi/Ihinna communities as EZURIKE UGOCHUKWU observed.
Women waiting for the day’s job
In Badagry, business is not as usual
Badagry, being popular for its rich cultural heritage and potentialities in tourism
has remained underdeveloped, given that it is the first town in Nigeria to come in contact with the western world. This situa-tion has seriously continued to have its effects on small busi-nesses in the town.
One out of the numerous fac-tors that have left the town un-developed is that Badagry does not have a single industry.
Taiye Akere, a tailor and fashion designer who has been into the business for over 20 years in Badagry, attributed the problem faced by small busi-nesses in Badagry to the fact that there are no industries in the town and too many tax from various governments.
She said: “We want you to
help us talk to the government to bring in industries for us here in Badagry because if there are more industries, it will definitely boost the socio-economic welfare of the people. Some years back, when some Igbo were doing busi-ness at Ijaniki, things were mov-ing fine for us until they left. The reason is that they gave us work to do and also paid us well. If we now have many companies here, it will improve our businesses be-cause those who work in these companies will have enough money to patronize us.”
“Some of our children that are trained artisans and ap-prentices are now at the bor-der working as load carriers, assisting those who buy goods across the border. This, they do because they don’t have custom-ers that will patronize them. But if we can have companies here in Badagry, more job opportuni-ties will be created.” She added. She also lamented that among other things that is affecting their businesses is poor power supply, clean water and good road network.
Furthermore, she said “the government is not assisting us at all but adding more to our or-deal. We pay too much tax and yet we do not enjoy the divi-dends of the taxes we pay. What I think they should is to help us
In the ancient town of Badagry, business is not as usual, especially for women. Investigation shows that many of the women in business are struggling and striving to keep their businesses and to also make them grow while others have changed businesses to more lucrative ones. EZEKIEL ADESAWE reports.
Muritala Ayinla
It was a carnival-like atmosphere at Ikeja Police College last Thursday as Lagos State celebrated the 2014
edition of Community Day.The event, organised by the state’s
Ministry of Rural Development in commemoration of United Nations’ Community Day, was dedicated to various Community Development Associations (CDAs), Community Development Committees (CDCs) and Community Development Advisory Council (CDAC) in the state. It was to promote harmony and chart a part to improved development in Lagos.
Hence, residents numbering about 2000, decked in predominant check-ered-blue “aso-ebi” attire to participate in the annual community festival.
There were more than enough to drink and eat. They ate, drank and danced to melodious music supplied by different local cultural groups of various local governments at the venue.
Dignitaries who graced the event included , Governor Babatunde Fashola (SAN), who led by other mem-bers of the State Executive Council; Oba of Lagos, Rilwan Akiolu, who led the council of obas and white-cap chiefs, community heads, members of the Lagos State House of Assembly, and heads of various agencies at the local councils, market men and wom-en, transport unions among others.
Addressing the residents, Fashola (SAN), congratulated Lagosians for yet another milestone in community devel-opment programmes, even as he assured that the programme would continue as long as the All Progressives Congress ( APC) remain in power in Lagos.
Fashola was grateful for all the good times they had had together, cit-ing that it was his last as the sitting governor of the state.
Fashola said: “From communities to communities, we have been there
grow our business. If our businesses are booming, we will be glad to pay the taxes.”
Another woman, who was formerly a barber and now sells food stuffs and provisions for the past 10 years, be-lieves that small businesses are not moving fine because of the scarcity of fund which she connected to the 2015 election.
Florence Folawiyo, who deals in building materials, has been living in
Badagry for over five years. While nar-rating the poor state of her business, she said “When I started this business, it was with prospect but just recently, I noticed a down slide in my business because my sales per day has reduced. On the average, I rake in N7, 000 daily but now I hardly make up that. Today, alone, I have only made N300 sales. I have young kids, who are in school and they will eat. There is nothing I enjoy about this town.”
Glamour as Lagos holds community day for residentson monthly interactive stakeholders fora, where issues bordering on gov-ernment policies, programmes and
activities particularly security relat-ed issues and tips are disseminated,” Ojelabi said.
on our part. I have made promises to you in the last seven years, and I have kept all of them; check my inaugura-tion speech. The Federal Government that collects 52 per cent of total revenue has made promises that they have not kept. Despite that, Lagos is rocking and our impact are in your communities. And it is because you are paying tax.
“If they come with promises of bet-ter life where you will not pay tax, then be careful. Allocations to state govern-ment are reducing, and price of oil is dropping. Several states are now bor-rowing to pay salaries. That is not your lot in Lagos. So, remember all these when they come with their deceptive umbrella to give you empty promises.
“This will be the last time I will stand here as your governor. But I’m optimis-tic that even a better government on the platform of APC will be here to contin-ue. You must therefore do your best to participate in the process.”
He stressed that the communities have a responsibility to ensure conti-nuity of the programme by voting the government of their choice in 2015.
The governor informed that there are threats from opposition party to oust the APC in Lagos, urging resi-dents never to be swayed by the threats and empty promises.
The governor, however, said that the people should also remember that the Federal Government had made prom-ises in the area of electricity, empower-ment and infrastructure, “all of which they have never kept,” and should be wary of empty promises now coming.
In his welcome address, Commis-sioner for Rural Development, Corne-lius Ojelabi, noted that collaboration between the CDCs and his ministry had facilitated rural development.
“Through community mobilisa-tion, no fewer than 3,360 CDAs meet
Gov. Fashola handing over a transformer to the Chairman, Ayanre Olorunda CDA, Mr. Omosanjo Olay-emi while others watch during the Year 2014 Community Day Celebration
29NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 Life | In The City
Ojokoro LCDA marching during the event
UPCOMING EVENTS
An Evening with Ericsson CEO Kamar
Abass and Airbus Group’s Kwame BekoeOrganiser: Gleehd Foundation
Date: November 20, 2014, 5:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Venue: The Dream Center, 8, Gbagada Expressway, Anthony
Find a Co-Founder in Lagos #5
Organiser: Founder2beDate: November 23, 2014, 3:30
PM - 8:00 PMVenue: Lagos Oriental Hotel, 3
Maroko Road, Lagos.
Creativity in EducationOrganiser: KEP Education
Date: November 24 - 25, 2014, 09:00
Venue: De Renaissance Hotel, 172 Obafemi Awolowo Way,
Ikeja, Lagos
Nigerian Dot Com Awards
Organiser: American Internet Business School and Afrinet
Business SolutionsDate: November 22, 2014, 4:00
PM - 8:00 PMVenue: Protea Hotel Oakwood
Park, Lagos.
MEGA CITY EVENTS
NIGERIAN BRITISH CHAMBER OF COMMERCE (NBCC) CENTENARY LECTURE AT MUSON CENTRE, ONIKAN, LAGOS.
CELEBRATION OF UMUIHI/IHINNA’S 100 YEARS OF CHRISTIANITY IN LAGOS
FASHOLA REWARDS BEST COMMUNITY AT YEAR 2014 COMMUNITY DAY CELEBRATION
Immediate Past President, Nigerian British Chamber of commerce, Mr. Akinola Akintunde (left) and Presi-dent, Prince Adeyemi Adefulu
L-R; Chairman Umuihi/Ihinna Consultative Assembly, Lagos Mr. Vincent Uba, Arch.G. Umeh; Mrs. Umeh and Chairman Anniversary Committee, Mr. Eddie Ogubuike
L-R; Mr.David Okeke; Mrs.Okike; Egnr Lasbry U. Okike (former District Manager NEPA); Prof.Emma Chibundu with kolanut and Evangelist Alex Okeke
L-R; British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Dr. Andrew Pocock; Chief Ernest Shonekan, Prince Adeyemi Adefulu and Akinola Akintunde
Gov. Fashola, (right) being presented with a horse by Chairman, Lagos State Community Development Advisory Council (LSC-DAC), Alhaji Tajudeen Quadri (2nd left) while the Deputy Governor, Hon. (Mrs) Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire (left) looks on during the Year 2014 Community Day Celebration held at the Police College Parade Ground, GRA, Ikeja, Lagos.
Gov. Fashola (left) observing the match past of the Neighbour-hood Watch men at the event
L-R; Mrs Jumoke Koleoso; Mr. Mike Purves; Mrs. Joyce Akpata and Dr. Ikenna Nwosu
L-R, Mr. Mike Asuquo; Chief Ernest Shonekan and Mr. Joe Dada PHOTOS: SULEIMAN HUSAINI
My City, My WorldWe need to bring back the peace of Lagos –Ajose Harrison
Lagos is improving
Elijah Samuel
Chief Sehubo Ajose-Harrison, the counselor to His
Majesty De Wheno Aholu Menu-Toyi I, the Akran of Badag-ry Kingdom recalled his formative in La-gos. It was when love and harmony dominated relations among residents ir-respective of background.
“I was born at a place called Iron-Gate at Tokunbo Street in Lagos, but I grew up in Yaba. In those days, all manner of people came and lived together and there was no segregation. We lived together in tremendous peace, understanding one another’s problems. When we were young and we found an Igbo man, you say kobokobo; and you call a Hausa man Gambari. It was a way of showing love and appreciating ourselves in a convivial atmosphere. But today, nobody calls any-body gambari or kobokobo because the appellation might be offensive; there hasn’t been sustained love and genuine understanding. What happened in Lagos at that time is not what is happening now.
“We were interacting and learning from other culture. We had a large compound where our friends (children) from other tribes and ethnici-ties came together and played. At 6 O’clock, my grandfather would say ‘thank you, thank you, it’s time to go; go home and meet your parents”.
Lamenting the collapse of social harmony in Lagos today, Ajose- Harrison pointed out that “we must find a way to live in peace and harmony without harassing one another. We must live in trust and honesty.
“I lived in Ibadan for 50 years. It was peaceful there. And having seen living in Lagos, it’s always in a rush and it looks we have not perfected how to consider that you and I have the right to use the same road. If I’m driv-ing and look at you and find you are not keeping to the law, I’ll leave you to have your way rather than engage in unnecessary racing. Again, the issue of love comes in.”
Ajose-Harrison
Omotunde Lawson
Oluwatosin Omoniyi
Omotunde Olayinka Lawson, works
with the Lagos State Ministry of Education; has been living in La-gos State for past 35 years, loves every-thing about the State, especially when it comes to doing things in the right way in the state, also about improve-ment. And about giving quality to lives in areas of health, transport, security and clean environment development, performance and giving attention for result. She pointed out that there is this aura of intolerance for indiscipline and incompetence in the city, because the leaders at the helm of affairs of the State is on top of situations at all times and doing things very well. “That is why the State is known for excellence,” she said. Lawson added that the structure to compete and outshine other states in the country is on ground. Lagos State, she noted, has a leader who is proactive and sensitive to the people. She explained that the State Govern-ment train Lagosians especially youths annually. “He conveniently solves and reaches situations. According to her, Governor Babatunde Fashola also has the interest of the State at heart. “As you can see, Lagos State and its environing has not only improved, it is still improving, especially in the aspect of infrastructure, education and economic development,” she said.
30 WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH The Mega City
Kunle Azeez
Nigeria and other countries around the world would attract an investment of
$355 million (about N56.8 billion) from the global technology firm, Intel Corporation, by the end of this year.
The investment is being driven through the corpora-tion’s global investment organ-isation, Intel Capital.
Speaking on the 2014 invest-ment profile of the company in smaller technologyfirms, President of Intel Capital and
Intel Executive Vice President, Mr Arvind Sodhani, said that so far, Intel had invested a to-tal of $62 million in 16 firms covering a broad spectrum of innovative technologies early this year.
He said that Intel had also invested in other companies with further plans underway
before the year runs out -all in a bid to drive its 2014 invest-ment in technology companies to $355 million this year.
Sodhani said : “Intel is fo-cused on helping innovative companies develop across this technology ecosystem and we expect to invest a total of $355 million this year.
Business
Sanctions as tool for curbing NSE infraction
The Investor
34
Asian vessels flood Nigeria, others with electronics, chemicals
Maritime
35
with the Customs will allow a customer to use the name of the Comptroller-General of Customs to scam Nigerians. You are therefore requested to urgently take all the necessary
steps to track down this crimi-nal and hand him over to us.”
Our correspondent had a chance encounter with one of the victims last week. The vic-tim, Kaila Ibrahim, who nar-
rated his ordeal, said someone had impersonated the first lady of Bauchi State and wife of the governor, Nafisat Isa Yuguda.
Abdulwahab IsaAbujA
Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) aiding illegal recruitment syndi-cate through the use
of the Nigeria Customs Ser-vice (NCS) name to defraud un-suspecting job seekers would be blacklisted by the Customs, New Telegraph has learnt.
The Customs, according to information gleaned from a top official of the Service, is miffed that some deposit money banks were culpable in facilitating transfer of funds to the fraudsters while ignoring several correspondences by Customs that such account be flagged for tracking.
For instance, the Nigeria Customs in a complaint let-ter NCS/ABJ/PR/ COR. 1/VOL.11 dated August 23, 2013 and signed by Comptroller –General of Customs, Abdul-lahi Dikko Inde, addressed to Managing Director of one of the banks that lost its bid for Enterprise Bank Limited, drew the attention of the MD to one of the bank’s customers that was using Customs’ boss name to defraud unsuspecting Nigerians.
A copy of the letter obtained by New Telegraph stated: “Act-ing on a complaint by a victim, I had requested to know the account details used by the fraudsters and she provided the details. I feel greatly dis-turbed that a bank that has a serious banking relationship
Job scam: Customs to blacklist culpable banks
Nigeria, others attract N56.8bn from Intel
CONTINuED ON PAGE 32
What's neWs
Nigeria imports N1.9 trn goods from China, EuropeNigeria imported N1.9 trillion worth of goods – majority of which can be produced locally – from Asia, Europe and America in the first six months of the year.
p.32
uNRuLINESSLenders neglect Know Your Customer (KYC) process
L-R: Head of Marketing Infinix Mobility, Peter Zhou; Head of PR & Online, Infinix Mobility, Adebayo Shobanjo; Country Manager, Nigeria Infinix Mobility, bruno Lee and Chief Commercial Officer, Konga.com, Mark Russel, at the launch of Infinix Hot smartphone in Lagos.
Falling oil prices: FG’s measures cosmetic –StakeholdersStakeholders have reacted to the announcement of austerity measures by the Federal Government of Nigeria, describing the actions as “cosmetic and nothing new but mere palliatives.”
p.32
BPE extends privatisation monitoring to seven years
FCT Watch
33
EFCC, ICPC probe 180 firms, says BPE
33
31NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014
Ibrahim, said the wife of Bauchi State governor who was his classmate in Uni-versity of Maiduguri and friend on Facebook alleg-edly in-boxed his timeline that Customs recruitment was on-going and prom-ised she could facilitate his enrollment using her link with Customs boss.
To avoid passing through the rigours of in-terview, he was requested to pay N51,000 to a dedi-cated bank account. The amount allegedly covers uniform and boots.
Ibrahim, a former staff of the defunct Pow-er Holding Corporation of Nigeria (PHCN), said he transferred the money and an appointment let-ter was mailed to him, directing him to resume at Abuja Customs Head-quarters last Friday by 1.30 pm. He arrived only to his astonishment that he had been swindled.
Customs spokesper-son, Wale Adeniyi, con-
firmed to New Telegraph that the Customs was mulling the idea of black-listing banks culpable in aiding job scam by facili-tating deposit transfer to fraudsters.
“We are beginning to see that banks are culpa-ble in perpetrating this job scam by fraudsters. Stopping such banks from collecting Customs duty is an option because they have thrown away the principle of Know Your Customer (KYC).”
Wale said that Cus-toms had written sev-eral letters of complaint to banks where deposit had been made in a bid to bring the fraudsters to book. He added that banks never bother to track and flag the ac-counts in question.
The desperation for employment in the coun-try has made many gull-ible Nigerians to fall vic-tim to job scammers, as they were made to cough out money for jobs that never existed.
32 WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH
Godson Ikoro
Stakeholders yesterday reacted to the announce-ment of austerity mea-
sures by the Federal Govern-ment of Nigeria, describing the actions as “cosmetic and nothing new but mere pallia-tives.”
Last Sunday, the Federal Government had, in a bid to shield the economy from the ripple effects of the volatil-ity in the global oil prices ,among several measures, an-nounced a cut in the 2015 bud-get to N4.66 trillion, slashed benchmark to $73 per barrel, tapped $2.05 billion from Ex-cess Crude Account (ECA) and raised the tax on luxury goods and private jets.
Reacting to the announce-ment, Lead Director, Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), Mr. Eze Onyekpere, described these measures as cosmetic.
Onyekpere, who was field-ing questions from journal-ists at the fiscal governance Tribunal held at the Eko FM seminar room in Lagos, noted that the calls for the diversi-fication of the economy and plugging of economic leak-ages had been on for many years.
Specifically, he said: “To test the seriousness or sin-
cerity of government about these cost-saving measures is to see if the National As-sembly will agree to take less than N150 billion next year, then we know that they are serious.
“The president should also cut down on the number of aircraft he has acquired. He has about 10 airplanes. If he can reduce it to eight, we will know that he is serious. They should begin to cut the costs.
“But my message and that of the ordinary common man on the street to them is that when the oil price was high, we did not partake in the loot. So, now that the earnings has reduced, all those who partook in sharing the loot should be made to vomit it.”
He said those who mis-managed the money and all the ministers who have won awards along with the presi-dent and his team should pro-vide the money from where they kept it. “They misman-aged the money and not the common man on the street,” he stressed.
Earlier in his welcome ad-dress, he explained that fis-cal governance concerned the mobilisation of public resources and their expen-diture in the public interest.
While explaining that fis-cal governance is a state of being answerable for an ob-ligation and includes judg-ment, skill, capacity and ability, he stressed that the it connotes the responsibility of the government in terms of fiscal issues and policy and how the government is
able to pilot fiscal based on national and International best practices to the advan-tage or detriment of its citi-zens.
“It is an aphorism that the rate of development in any society is inter alia directly related to the management of its fiscal and budgetary poli-cies, Nigeria’s poor develop-mental performance has a lot to do with its retarded fiscal governance system” Onyekpere said.
He contended that while budget is hardly linked to national development plans; capital budget allocation and implementation is low while corruption retards reforms.
Also reacting to the an-nouncement, the Deputy Man-aging Director, FBN Capital , Mr. Taiwo Okeowo, said that the Coordinating Minister of Economy and Minister of Finance, Mrs. Ngozi Okonjo–Iweala did not tell us anything new because since the begin-ning of the year, the oil prices have been falling. The impli-cation, he said, is that there is less money to be shared and the amount of money shared has been dropping.
He argued that the min-ister was right to say that the nation should cut the budget. But the question is where do you cut, capital expenditure or recurrent expenditure?
“If we cut recurrent ex-penditure, what should or-ganisations do? Lay off work-ers or cut back services,”? he queried.
Business | News
Nigeria imports N1.9trn goods from China, Europe
RIDICULOUS
Nigeria still imports goods that can be produced locally
Bayo Akomolafe
Nigeria imported N1.9 trillion worth of goods – majority of
which can be produced locally – from Asia, Eu-rope and America in the first six months of the year.
Items imported dur-ing the period ceramics and concrete, industrial supplies and wheat.
Others include fuels and lubricants, boilers, machinery, appliances, mineral products, vehi-cles, aircraft and parts.
A breakdown of the imports revealed that goods valued at N796.1billion or 40.3per cent of the total were imported from Asia, fol-lowed by Europe with N 758.1 billion or 38.3per cent and America with N316.1billion or 16.0per cent.
According to a report by Standard Internation-al Trade Classification (SITC), Nigeria imported goods worth N78.1billion or 4.0per cent from Afri-can countries.
Of the value of total imports from Africa, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) contributed N12.2billion or 15.7per cent.
The greatest values of imports in the second quarter of 2014 were re-corded for boilers, ma-chinery, appliances, min-
eral products, vehicles, aircraft and parts with N422.4 billion or 21.4per cent, N380.6 billion or 19.2per cent, and N232.8 billion or 11.8per cent of the total value of second quarter 2014 imports.
The report indicated that the country im-ported most of the goods from China while those from United States, Netherlands, Belgium and India imports were N426.1billion or 21.5per cent, N235.6billion or 11.9per cent, N138.7billion or 7.0per cent, N124.0billion or 6.3per cent, and N117.1billion or 5.9per cent of the total in the second quarter of 2014 respectively.
It was revealed that total imports in the first half of the year 2014 were valued at N3.527billion.
Imports classified by broad economic cat-egory revealed that the three greatest values of imports in second quarter of 2014 were recorded for industrial supplies, capital goods, and fuels and lubricants, which accounted for N536.8billion or 27.2per cent, N396.7billion or 20.1per cent, and N343.6billion or 17.4per cent of the total import value recorded for the second quarter of 2014 respectively.
Manager, Public Relations, Etisalat Nigeria, Chineze Amanfo (middle), receiving an award for best Telecom Brand of the year 2014 for Etisalat, from Executive Director, Promasidor, Kachi Onubogu, at the 2014 Marketing World Awards, in Lagos. With them is Specialist, Public Relations, Etisalat Nigeria, Obinna Chisom-Nze
C O N T I N U E D F R O M PAG E 3 1
Customs to blacklist banks
BLOW
The president should also reduce the number of aircraft he has acquired
The Bureau of Pub-lic Procurement (BPP) has recom-
mended over 180 compa-nies to the ICPC and the EFCC for investigation on fraudulent activities bordering on procure-ment breaches.
It has, however, saved the country over N528 billion, which would have been si-phoned through contract inflation between 2009 and now.
The agency’s Director-General Dr. Emeka Eze, disclosed these in Abuja, saying that the effort to block loopholes of siphon-ing public funds through contract inflation is part of its mandate to reduce the scope of corruption and improve efficiency in the system.
He spoke at the National Conference on Public Pro-curement (NACOPP), with the theme “Public procure-ment: A tool for good gov-
Abdulwahab IsaAbujA
The leadership of the As-sociation of Indigenous
Contractors of FCT has en-joined its members to sus-pend the planned protest against the over N4 billion outstanding debt owed them by the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FER-MA) with a promise to en-gage the agency to initiate action to liquidate the debt.
Vice Chairman of the as-sociation, Alhaji Moham-med Musa, urged them to sheath their swords and explore all available op-
Kenneth TyohembaAbujA
Tourism experts across the globe have ex-
pressed confidence in the growth of tourism in Af-rica following Nigeria’s successful containment of Ebola epidemic.
They have also countered the rumour making the rounds that this year’s World Travel Market (WTM) would
Abdulwhab IsaAbujA
The Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) has extended the duration for the monitoring of
privatised firms from five to seven years, a senior officer of the bureau told New Telegraph in Abuja.
The decision to extend monitoring duration by ad-ditional two years as against five years stipulated in the Share Purchase Agreement (SPA), was arrived at in the course of reviewing problems and challenges tabled by some investors before BPE post –ac-quisition monitoring officials monitoring performances of privatised firms.
A top official of BPE, who shared recent developments in some privatised firms with our correspondent, reiterated that the bureau will not hesi-tate to sanction any investor that fails to keep to terms of agreement after seven years.
Responding to New Tele-graph’s inquiry of glaring cases of sold firms perform-ing below the standard under the control of new investors, he said that BPE will not jump into wielding the big stick, but
will first establish reasons that may encumber performance of the investor.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, he said: “You have to check why those firms are not performing well under new owners. It could be that govern-ment is not doing what is ex-pected of it. Many privatised firms are having problems with the business environ-ment. If we establish cases of non-performance when envi-ronment is right, we will repri-mand them. We have five years of monitoring, but that also de-pend on if challenges that are supposed to be taken care of by government are not there.
“We have sanctioned a cou-ple of firms that breached SPA, but unfortunately, if you want to take over the firms, they could act smart by obtaining court injunction restraining you. Recall that we had cause to revoke sale of NITEL in the past and I can tell you that we never experienced cases of as-set stripping by core investor except in Daily Times plc.
Meanwhile, the bureau’s eight reforms bills are await-ing passage into law by the National Assembly.
These bills, according to BPE will abrogate monopoly laws, liberate the sectors, sepa-
rate the roles of policy formu-lation from regulation and the two from operations in the sec-tor and also set up independent regulators for the sectors.
The bills are Railway, In-land Waterways, Road Sector Reform, Road Fund, National Transport Commission, and Ports & Harbour Reform, Fed-eral Competition and Consum-
er Protection and postal Sector Reform bills.
Director-General of BPE, Mr Benjamin Dikki, at a re-cent forum, enumerated the various sector reforms cham-pioned by the bureau. These include the Power Sector Act, Telecommunications Act, Solid Minerals Act, Petroleum Industry bill, Ports & Harbour
Authorities bill, National Transport Commission bill, Federal Roads Authority bill and Roads Fund bill.
Others are the Nigeria Rail-way Commission bill, National inland water Way bill, Gas bill, Federal Competition Commis-sion bill, Postal Sector Reform bill, Industrial policy and Pen-sion Reform Act.
ernance,” hosted by the National Public Procure-ment Forum (NPPF) and being implemented by the National Planning Com-mittee, supported by the BPP.
Eze said that the confer-ence was intended to bring all states of the federation to subscribe to one set of national procedure in pub-lic procurement.
The Public Procurement Act enacted in 2007 paved the way for the establish-ment of BPP charged with the responsibility to, among others, provide legal and institutional framework and professional capacity for public procurement in Nigeria.
Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, said that the BPP was an impor-tant agency of government, adding that it was a tool for fiscal saving and transpar-ency.
She urged stakeholders to support the Bureau in the discharge of its man-date to improve efficiency in the system.
tions to make FERMA fulfil its contractual agreements with them.
Members of indigenous contractors to FERMA had recently issued public notice announcing a plan to protest both at the National Assem-bly and FERMA office due to failure by the agency’s man-agement to pay the over N4 billion outstanding contract debts owe them.
They accused FERMA of reneging on its promise to de-fray the debt which was due for liquidation since 2012.
Musa noted that the cur-rent security challenges fac-ing the country do not per-mit such extreme actions as
be marred by fears over the Ebola virus ravaging some parts of West Africa.
Speaking at the offi-cial opening of WTM in London, Head, Travel and Tourism Research, Euro-monitor International, Caroline Bremer, said that despite the Ebola outbreak and some other challenges, the continent has recorded a three per cent growth which, according to her, is not a bad development.
the planned protest may be hijacked by unscrupulous elements to cause public disaffection.
He therefore tasked the management of FERMA to fast-track the payment as most of the contractors have suffered untold hard-ship caused by prolonged payment delay.
According to him, the larger portion of the funds were sourced from the banks to execute the various projects, noting that many have fallen into bad times as most of them have been forced to forego their collat-erals as they were unable to service the loans.
“At the moment, there is a three per cent growth in the influx of tourists into Africa. This is not very bad consid-ering the outbreak of Ebola and conflicts in the continent. However, Ebola is an isolated health challenge in West Afri-can region,” she said.
Bremner also noted that for Africa to further boost its tourism industry, govern-ments in the continent needs to work towards promoting health and safety measures.
BPE extends privatisation monitoring to seven years
L-R: Regional Sales Manager (Lagos), PZ Cussons, Adewale Ayodeji; National Sales Manager, Sampson Ekpenyong; Mar-keting Director, Sandy Griffiths and Marketing Manager, Charles Nnochiri, during the unveiling of Morning Fresh Antibacte-rial dishwashing liquid in Lagos. PHOTO: SULEIMAN HUSAINI
EFCC, ICPC probe 180 firms, says BPE
Contractors to engage FERMA on N4bn debt
Tourism experts see growth after Ebola scare
33NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014
FCT Business Watch
Chris Ugwu
Capital markets in ev-ery clime are known to be a major driver of the economies of na-
tions through their activities. However, the hidden potential of the markets could only be unleashed for maximum im-pact that will induce economic growth if good corporate gover-nance is entrenched among the players in the stock exchanges. This is because the degree to which corporations observe ba-sic principles of good corporate governance is an important fac-tor for investment decision.
Nevertheless, in Nigeria, lapses in adherence to these principles have contributed ma-jorly to crisis in the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).
Over the years, many stock brokers and other quoted com-panies have been violating this important obligation, thereby keeping investors in the dark about their financial health among others.
Many ignorant investors have burnt their fingers by investing in some of the dor-mant companies, which do not furnish the market with their financials.
Investors cannot forget in a hurry the unreasonable manip-ulation of share prices, which companies, in collaboration with some stock brokers in-dulged themselves, a despicable practice that saw the market bubble to a peak on March 5, 2008, with market capitalisation and index hitting N13 trillion and 66,371.20 points respec-tively only to reverse speedily to N6.957 trillion and 31,450.78 by December, 2008.
It is worthy to note that the issue of how corporate gover-nance impacts Nigeria’s capital market development is a two-way traffic. As much as good governance practices would promote the development of the capital market, weak corporate governance practices would also inhibit its development, as it would erode confidence in the capital market with wider implications for the Nigerian financial markets and the economy in general, as seen in the 2008 financial market melt-down.
Who takes the blame?Recently, the local bourse
blamed most of market infrac-tions being committed at the Nigerian stock market on low capitalised brokers.
The Chief Executive Officer, NSE, Mr. Oscar Onyema, who spoke at a forum, said there was need to place a high barrier to entry, adding that minimum requirement would increase professionalism and make the market to become globally com-petitive.
“It is the smaller brokers that commit most of the infrac-tions because they are not ro-bust enough to do the business. This is economically non-viable due to its low scale and pricing power.
We benchmarked ourselves against other Exchanges and we discovered we have low market concentration, low retail pen-etration and low institutional
flows because of fragmented broker as against other markets that have the participation of global players,” he said.
Onyema explained that among 307 licenced dealing members, only 235 are active, noting that there was a dispro-portionate amount of broker per dollar amount of capitali-sation in Nigeria.
This, according to him, has made the market become unat-tractive to big players, as well as limited the size of the market.
Onyema said that 50-100 firms were ideal for the nation’s capital market.
Head of Broker Dealer Reg-ulation, the NSE, Mr. Olufemi Shobanjo, had also said recent-ly that the NSE in exercising its regulatory authority over dealing member firms would continue to use the utmost care and diligence.
He noted that the NSE was keen to entrench the required catalysts to stimulate and build a healthy and well-regulated market so as to stimulate in-creasing levels of investor con-fidence in the market.
Current actionIt was therefore not surpris-
ing that the NSE and the apex market regulator – the Securi-ties and Exchange Commission (SEC) have teamed up to wield the big stick by penalising some companies for market infrac-tions.
Recently, the regulatory ham-mer descended on two dealing members as the NSE announced
Sanctions as tool for curbing NSE infraction
Regulatory strength must therefore, be continually reviewed and beefed up to
match growth. Failure to do that
will undermine the attractiveness
of the Nigerian capital market and dampen its return
prospects
the expulsion of Gosord Securi-ties Limited and Lakesworth In-vestment & Securities Limited. The Exchange also revoked the duos dealing licenses.
The dealing firms were ex-pelled for regulatory infrac-tions involving unauthorised sale of clients’ shares contrary to the rules and regulations gov-erning dealing members of the Exchange.
The local bourse in a state-ment made available to news-men, said in line with its zero tolerance policy on regulatory infractions, its National Council after carefully considering the documents relating to each firm and giving each firm an oppor-tunity to be heard, reached the decision to expel both firms and revoke their dealing licenses.
It noted that the National Council acted under powers conferred on it by the Memo-randum and Articles of As-sociation of The Exchange (MEMART) and the Rules and Regulations Governing Dealing Members.
Reasons for expulsionReacting to the development,
the Head, Legal and Regulation Division, Ms. Tinuade Awe said: “NSE is committed to restoring investor confidence in the Nige-rian capital market. NSE will not hesitate to bring the full weight of its regulatory powers to bear on any Dealing Member that commits regulatory infrac-tions and does not take steps to address them as appropriate even after being given sufficient
time to do so.” She explained that of all the
penalties, expulsion and re-vocation of dealing license is usually viewed as a last resort where a dealing member fails to engage in conduct to rectify wrong doing or comply with the directives of the National Council.
“NSE received several com-plaints of unauthorised sale of clients’ shares against the both firms. The National Council found : Gosord and Lakesworth breached Article 59(v) of the Rules and Regulations Govern-ing Dealing Members of NSE by engaging in unauthorised sales of clients’ shares; they failed to buy back clients’ shares and re-solve all complaints against it, as directed by the Disciplinary Committee (which decision was approved by the National Coun-cil); and their conduct was dis-honorable, disgraceful, unpro-fessional and detrimental to the interests of NSE (by destroying investors’ confidence in the mar-ket and eroding the goal of NSE to operate a fair, transparent and orderly market).
“The expulsions take imme-diate effect and all rights, inci-dences and privileges of mem-bership automatically cease. The affected firms have been duly notified,” she said.
Awe advised the general pub-lic should not deal with the ex-pelled firms in relation to any transactions on NSE.
She said: “Investors who hold stockbroking accounts in Gosord or Lakesworth should transfer their stocks to any active licensed stockbroking firm that is a Dealing Member of NSE. A list of active Dealing Members can be found on The Exchange’s website. Investors or clients of either of the two expelled firms who may have deposited funds or securities such as share certificates with Gosord or Lakesworth are ad-vised to go and collect such as-sets directly from the expelled firm. The unresolved com-plaints against Gosord, which were either brought to The Exchange by complainants or referred to the Exchange by the Securities and Exchange Com-mission have been referred to the Investor Protection Fund.”
ConclusionAs the market grows, espe-
cially in terms of the nature and variety of players as well as in transactions size and activ-ity, regulatory vigilance must also increase. The bigger the market gets, the more real the scope for efficiency but at the same time, the greater the ten-dency for sharp practices and downside market risk. Regula-tory strength must therefore, be continually reviewed and beefed up to match growth. Fail-ure to do that will undermine the attractiveness of the Nige-rian capital market and dampen its return prospects.
Aruma Oteh Onyema
34 WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH Business | The Investor
Gearless ships of above 5,000 Twenty Equivalent Units (TEU) which ac-count for 20 per cent of
the total capacity on the Far East-West Africa route have been pa-tronising Nigerian and other West African ports in the last one year.
Electronics, cars, palm oil, fish, steel, chemicals, used vehicles, base oil, fertilizer, machinery, sugar, wheat and paper, among other goods covering industrial needs and private consumption, re-mained the dominant items being imported into Nigeria and some countries in the region.
It was learnt that most non-oil agricultural exports from Nigeria were loaded to Europe and Far East countries.
Already, Mediterranean Ship-ping Company (MSC) has an-nounced plans to run a pioneering service to the region, with ships of over 6,000 TEU as more gearly ves-sels are expected to be introduced in the next few months.
Analyst’s report
According to a shipping analyst firm, Alphaliner, this loop would only call at a single port in West Africa, Lomé, with multiple feeder connections linking the new hub port to Lagos and the rest of the ports in the region.
The company said that the size of the largest containerships de-ployed in the Far East-West Af-rica trade had increased by 87per cent since 2009, while the total capacity deployed in the trade had increased by 250 per cent, based on an Alphaliner survey of all direct services on the route.
Far East trade
The Far East-West Africa trade is the fastest growing intercon-tinental trade, contrasting with much lower volume growth in most other trades.
The company noted: “Prior to 2010, geared ships of 1,500-3,000 TEU were the mainstay of the West African trade, while the largest ships deployed in the re-gion reached only 3,500 TEU.
“In 2011, Maersk introduced the
first of its purpose-built WAF-max ships of 4,496 TEU on the West Af-rica trades. A total of 22 of these units, fitted with four cranes, were delivered between March 2011 and February 2013.
They remain the largest geared containerships ever built.
Infrastructure developments
However, ship cranes are be-coming increasingly dispensable as new infrastructure develop-ments have made most major West African ports accessible to larger gearless containerships.
The total capacity of container ships deployed in the Far East-West Africa direct services exclud-ing tran-shipment has increased from 170,000 TEU in 2009 to 590,000 TEU presently, making this trade one of the fastest growing sectors in the container shipping market.
The average size of vessels de-ployed in the trade has increased from 2,300 TEU in 2009 to 3,800 TEU in 2014, and is expected to increase further as panamax and over panamax tonnage of between 4,000 and 6,600 TEU is introduced into the trade.
Gearless ships currently ac-count for 50 per cent of all contain-er vessels deployed in the trade.
Containerised market
Before now, containerised mar-ket in Nigeria has continued to be strongly dominated by imports.
Import and export ratio re-mained at 92 per cent import ver-sus eight per cent export. Some of the exports are agricultural commodities such as cocoa, char-coal, sesame seed, cotton and some foodstuffs.
Provisional data by Maersk Line Nigeria revealed that the country’s export volumes
remained small and volatile, depending on agricultural sea-sonality. Volumes declined from 11,000 Forty Feet Equivalent (FFE) in Q2 2013 to 5,600 Forty Feet Equivalent (FFE) in Q3 2013.
Export trade
In the last quarter of the year, the export market experienced a 68 per cent leap as compared to previous quarter ending the year at 35,000 FFE which is a nine per cent increase when compared with the full year 2012.
Within a year, bulk cargo and containerised goods were ferried by 5,185 ships with a total Gross Registered tonnage (GRT) of 131,674,337 gross tons.
According to the Nigerian Ports Authority’s (NPA) Assis-tant General Manager, Public Re-lations, Mallam Musa Iliya, dry bulk cargo handled at the ports in the year was 9,537,447 metric tons, showing a decline of 6.5 per cent from 2012 full year figure of 10,205,339 metric tons.
Cargo at port
Iliya said: “General cargo han-dled at the ports in year 2013 was 11,964,978 metric tons, indicating a drop of 5.8 per cent from the 2012 full year figure of 12,702,826 metric tons.
He explained that Lagos Port Complex (LPC) recorded a Gross registered tonnage of 34,466,291 gross tons, showing an increase of 9.4 per cent over the same pe-riod of 2012, which was 31,513,987 gross tons. A total of 1,498 vessels were handled in the period under review at the port.
The NPA spokesman added: “Tincan Island Port recorded a Gross registered tonnage of 42,758,161, indicating 23.2 per cent
increase over the corresponding period of 2012 which was 34,703,547 gross tons while 1,725 ocean going vessels were handled at the port within the period.
Customs collects N973m revenue at Seme
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Seme Command, gener-ated N973.5 million in October, the highest monthly revenue col-lected by the command since the beginning of 2014.
Its Public Relations Officer, Mr. Ernest Olottah, said that the command recorded N963.7 mil-lion in September.
In a statement in Lagos, he said that the command made 24 seizures of rice, frozen poultry products and other general goods with a Duty Paid Value (DPV) of N32 million.
The Area Controller of the command, Mr. Willy Egbudin, described the revenue collection feat as a product of increased compliance by stakeholders and non-compromise by customs of-ficers.
Egbudin promised to make the border unattractive to smugglers and other perpetrators of trans-border illegalities.
The comptroller stressed that the NCS had resolved to maximally collect all revenues payable to government through customs duty with improvement in the blockage of all identifiable sources of leakages.
He added that the command had intensified patrols at the bor-der ahead of the yuletide season when smuggling activities are at it peak.
Egbudin stressed that the smug-
Asian vessels flood Nigeria, others with electronics, chemicals
The Far East-West Africa trade is the
fastest growing intercontinental
trade, contrasting with much
lower volume growth in most
other trades
Despite the influx of bigger containerships from Asian countries to West African countries, import and export ratio remained at 92 per cent import against eight per cent export in Nigeria, BAYO AKOMOLAFE reports
CONTINUED ON PAGE 36
Maersk Line vessel at the Lagos Pilotage district
35NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014
2,730 containers missing at sea, says
Shipping Council p.36
Customs dismiss 52 over graft p.37Maritime
Stories by Bayo Akomolafe
The President, Nigerian Indigenous Ship-own-ers Association (NISA), Capt. Dada Olaniyi La-
binjo, has reiterated the need to adopt all legitimate measures to bring back NISA jobs, presently in the hands of foreign opera-
tors, adding that he would also fully collaborate with relevant government agencies to do this.
He explained that the con-solidation the new executives of the association would bring about would be such that the jobs taken up by foreign ship-owners would be brought back and Nigerian ship-owners henceforth, would provide the shipping services and ancil-lary and associated maritime services to the Nigerian oil and gas communities.
He said: “We are confident
that we shall succeed in this effort as we shall be embed-ded from now in all the gov-ernment maritime agencies, particularly NIMASA and NCMB. We need them as much as they need us for the benefit and growth of the Nigerian Maritime Economy.
“This is the right time to re-cover Nigerian Shipping Ser-vices for Nigerian ships, given the dwindling fortunes and the decline in oil and gas trade and the need to develop alternative to oil and gas. It was the decline
in foreign trade that forced USA to adopt the restrictive shipping policy of Jones Act, thereby abandoning the “free ship policy” of the protagonists in the 20th Century. The intend-ment and spirit of the Cabotage Act, 2003 and Nigerian Content Development Act, 2010, are to similarly restrict the provision of shipping services to Nigeri-an shipping services providers.
“Our members and the new executives are aware that the task ahead is not a simple one. It is going to pitch us against those who are benefiting from the domination of our mari-time space by foreign shipping services providers and will not like to see a change in the status quo, even if it means undermining or breaking Ni-gerian laws.
“The good news is that we are prepared as an association to protect our investments and the maritime economy of Ni-geria. After all, Nigeria is the only country where we can undertake the shipping ser-vices as the Greeks, Indians or Americans will not admit us to come near their coasts to share in what is reserved exclusively for their citizens.
He appealed to Nigerian Ship owners and ancillary mar-itime services providers not to sit on the fence any more, but to join the association to make the maritime sector a veritable re-placement to oil and gas in the contribution to the Nigerian economy.
Labinjo urged Gregory U Og-beifun, the chairman of Starsz
An IMB member high-lighted the case after being notified of a significant weight shortage on the container, which arrived in the Far East from the Middle East.
During the investigation that followed, the member noted that the tare weight of the container, as shown on its door – and used by the ship-per was 3,680 kilogramme. The cube, also shown on the door, was 2,700 cubic feet.
The numbers displayed were entirely acceptable for a 40-foot container. Howev-er, the box in question was a 20-feet type. The shipper has since confirmed that the correct tare weight for the container should have been 2,200 kilogramme.
An examination of the photos taken when the con-tainer was loaded revealed that the part of the door on which the figures were dis-played was a slightly differ-ent colour.
This leads to the con-clusion that the door had been repainted at some point and the new (false) figures added after. It is not known when this was done. It must be stressed that the container owner has denied responsibility and the IMB member doubts its supplier
was involved.The IMB says it has not
come across a case before where a container has been repainted with incorrect weight and size informa-tion that in hindsight clear-ly cannot be correct for a 20 foot container.
It has, however, knowl-edge of a case where a label was placed over the container number of a sto-len container to disguise the theft. This would be a more logical deception since carriers tend to focus on the container numbers themselves, and rely on the shipper to provide any oth-er information required.
The IMB suggests that this is unlikely to be an isolated case and is asking others who detect similar container information tam-pering to report it. This will allow IMB to attempt to establish any pattern that might indicate who is responsible and can issue suitable warnings to the industry if it proves wide-spread in the future.
Apart from being a fraud, mis-declaring the weight of containers can also pose a danger to the vessel and crew. This remains a contributing factor to incidents involving containers lost at sea.
SafmarineMPV ship-ping company has de-clared that the multi-
purpose trade between South Africa and West Africa will grow in 2015 as South Afri-can companies strengthen their foothold in the West African market, becoming more globally competitive.
According to Saf-marineMPV’s James Lewer, intra-Africa trade of value-added and manufactured goods has grown faster than African exports to the rest of the world.
He explained that South African companies which provide infrastructure parts and manufactured goods to railway and mining compa-nies in Africa had proven
Group and Temisanre Ray-mond Omatseye, chairman of Polymaz Shipping Limited, to join him in the new effort to rid Nigerian waters of usurpers.
He described the maritime transport sector as a critical infrastructure for the social and economic development of a country, with strong impetus for influencing the pace, struc-ture and pattern of develop-ment.
Labinjo declared: “Maritime infrastructure which includes ship building and ship repair, major ports, national water-ways and inland water trans-port must be impacted by the growth in the oil and gas in-dustry,” he, noting the benefits of the stability in the manage-ment hierarchy of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) and the Nigerian Local Content Act.
“The stability in the man-agement hierarchy of the Flag Administration (NIMASA), as the DG has been re-appointed for a record second term of four years. Mr Patrick Ziakede Akpobolekemi, thus becomes the first DG to be so appointed since the establishment of NI-MASA, formerly NMA, in 1987; and the great strides Nigeria is making in the Nigerian Con-tent contribution to oil and gas development in Nigeria,” he said.
Labinjo tasked the industry stakeholders to collaborate and synergize in a bid to make the inauguration ceremony not only a memorable one, but even also the date.
their competitiveness glob-ally as well as their ability to respond to West Africa’s needs for goods and services.
He noted: “Having access to a reliable and frequent shipping service, such as SafmarineMPV’s SAFWAF service, makes it possible for companies such as Dominex to take advantage of the sig-nificant business opportuni-ties in West Africa.”
Lewer said that ship-ping company was on hand throughout the loading pro-cess and appointed a team which comprised in-house and third-party experts in rigging and lashing as well as handling and stowing to ensure the rail coaches ar-rived safely in Lobito.”
The World Shipping Council (WSC) has esti-
mated that on average, 2,730 containers are being lost at sea in the last five years.
It noted that each year, 546 containers were lost on the high sea between 2008 and 2013, not counting catastrophic events which accounted for an average 1,679 containers.
Miffed by the lost, the International Maritime Or-ganisation’s Maritime Safe-ty Committee has resolved to adopt amendments to the International Conven-tion for the Safety of Life at Sea, Chapter VI, to require mandatory verification of the gross mass of contain-ers, either by weighing the packed container or all packages and cargo items and adding the tare mass.
It was learnt that the measure was a step forward in boosting the safety of container ships and crew.
Meanwhile, the Inter-national Maritime Bureau (IMB) has flagged-up an unusual attempted fraud involving a container’s weight and size. The inci-dent involved a container of aluminium scrap in which the information outside the box was tampered with to show false weight and size.
glers who changed routes to other areas like Shaki, Oyo State and Idiroko, Ogun State, were not finding it easy.
He explained that the customs operatives at Shaki and Idiroko were matching
them strength for strength and seizing their wares.
Egbudin stressed: “In carrying out the directives of our Comptroller-Gener-al, Dikko Abdullahi, I have constantly sensitised and reminded our officers and men of the zero tolerance for smuggling stance.”
Asian vessels flood Nigeria
BUSINESS Nigerians in shipping business to provide associated maritime services to the Nigerian oil and gas communities
NISA assures local ship owners of jobs
Shipping line predicts W’African trade growth
2,730 containers missing at sea, says Shipping Council
Deputy Director/Head, Public Relations, NIMASA, Isichei Osamgbi (left), explaining a point to the Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Down Stream, Dakuku Peterside (right), with the convener of the Oil Trading and Logistics expo, Barr. Emeka Akabogu, during Peterside’s visit to the NIMASA stand at the Expo in Lagos.
C O N T I N U E D F R O M PAG E 3 5
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH 36 Business | Maritime
Stories by Bayo Akomolafe
The Nigeria Cus-toms Service (NCS) has dis-missed 52 offi-
cers over allegation of corruption. It has also resolved to tackle the in-discriminate alerts being placed on some imports whose values were found to be ridiculously low.
Its Comptroller-Gener-al, Inde Dikko Abdullahi, disclosed this in Abuja when he met with repre-sentatives of the Associa-tion of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) to resolve problems aris-ing from the Pre-Arrival Assessment Report (PAAR) and frivolous alerts at the ports.
He explained that 52 of-ficers had been dismissed over allegation of corrup-
tion at the seaports and borders.
An official of ANLCA, Mr. Tunde Sanni, stated that the customs boss said that the action was to de-ter other officials from such act.
It was also gathered that pleas for leniency on the part of the officers could not be entertained.
Sanni said: “The alerts are meant to guide field officers in the examina-
tion and release of such alerted cargos. The Cus-toms management also resolved to harmonise the alerts in such a way that multiple queries would be minimised.
The meeting was to address operational chal-lenges which the freight forwarders drawn from the Association of Nige-rian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) present-ed to the Customs boss.
Meanwhile, NCS has advised the public to be wary of fraudsters using its name to dupe unsus-pecting people on social media platforms.
Public Relations Of-ficer of the service, Mr. Wale Adeniyi, said in Abuja, that the call be-came necessary in view of the increasing frequency of the act.
Adeniyi said that the service had, indeed, be-
gun aggressive campaign on the social media as part of efforts at combating the activities of scammers.
He said that the service had launched Facebook and Twitter accounts to engage the public and stakeholders on the ways to check the activities of the fraudsters, adding that video clips of customs’ op-erations had been upload-ed onto the social media accounts to sensitise the public on the activities of scammers who often claim
to be officers of the service.He urged people to dis-
countenance facebook advertisements, especially the messages attributed to the service, on auctioning of cars and recruitment ex-ercise by the service, saying that they were scams.
“Some people even use the name ‘Wale Adeniyi or the Comptroller-General of Customs, Alhaji Dikko Abdullahi’ to attract pa-tronage from unsuspect-ing members of the pub-lic,” he stated.
The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and the Miami
County in the State of Florida, United States of America (USA), have re-solved to work together on port development and proposed deep sea port projects in Nigeria.
The authority’s Gen-eral Manager, Business Development and Joint Ventures, Mrs. Ugo Mad-ubuike, who represented the Managing Director of the agency, Mallam Habib Abdullahi, led the NPA delegation to the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA), Miami, Florida, where the agency sold the prospects of abun-dant business opportu-nities in the Nigerian Ports.
While briefing Marie Gill, the Operator and Executive Director of Minority Business De-velopment Agency, Mi-ami, Madubuike declared that the NPA was willing to open its existing ports and the proposed deep sea ports to the American in-vestors for the infrastruc-tural development of the facilities.
She educated her guests on port conces-sion exercise of the Fed-eral Government and the role of the NPA in the new dispensation.
Customs dismiss 52 over graft
NPA, USA partner on deep seaport development
IMPROVEMENT Customs to ensure smooth trade facilitation in Nigerian seaports and borders
lTo tackle indiscriminate alerts
37NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 Business | Maritime
What is your organisation, the Institute of Policy Management Development (IPMD), all about?
The Institute of Policy Management Development (IPMD) is a professional body limited by Guarantee. It was reg-istered with the Corporate Affairs Com-mission in 2008. Diametrically focused on policy and policy-related issues, IPMD promotes the recognition, understanding and application of policy management, policy practice, policy implementation, monitoring, evaluation and analysis as key elements for national bureaucratic success. Apart from tailored education, training, research and consultancy tar-geted at proffering cost-effective solu-tions to policy-related tasks, the Institute pursues the pivotal need for the drivers of the entire national bureaucratic insti-tutions to justify their existence and the huge annual budgetary allocations to the various government ministries, depart-ments and agencies (MDAs) by provid-ing result-oriented leadership that would birth positive attitudinal change and heighten productivity, cost-effective and efficient service delivery in all sectors of our national life. IPMD also promotes pro-fessionalism and leadership excellence in all facets of human endeavour. IPMD, like any other professional body, has four categories of membership namely, Graduate Member (GMIPMD), Associ-ate Member (AMIPMD), Full Member (MIPMD), and Fellow (FIPMD). Like any other professional body, IPMD has speci-fied membership eligibility criteria that border on education, work experience in government MDAs or the organised pri-vate sector (OPS) and performance in the prescribed three levels of professional examinations of the Institute. Besides attaining the fellowship of the Institute via these examinations, prospective fel-lows, based on distinguished track record of service, quality leadership, contribu-tion to humanity and national develop-ment, can either apply or be nominated and inducted. It is noteworthy to state that already, apart from a good number of people in other categories of member-ship of the Institute, IPMD has inducted some high octane bureaucratic person-ages such as Alhaji Bukar Goni Aji, the immediate past head of the civil service of the federation (HCSF), Dr. Fidelis Ugbo, the executive secretary, National Planning Commission, Mrs Anastasia M. Daniel-Nwaobia, Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Finance, Dr. Dikko Suleiman, Executive Secretary, UBEC, Dr. Abolurin Ade John, Commandant-General, NSCDC, and Chief Anyim Puis Anyim, SGF, among others, as fellows of the Institute.
We understand IPMD is organising a
three-day annual national conference on education in TINAPA, Calabar, Cross River State. What is this conference all about?
Yes, IPMD has concluded plans to or-ganise a three-day annual national con-ference on sustainable quality secondary education policy management and imple-mentation themed global best practices and secondary education in Nigeria. We are all aware that education is a prime mover of development in all aspects of civilization, the human intellect, science and technology. On this score, education, no doubt, holds the key to modern exis-tence in all its ramifications and should therefore be placed in the front burners of our national scheme of things. The quality of education in any nation de-termines, to a great extent, the rate of development therein. As a professional institute that is entirely focused on policy, policy management and policy imple-mentation, we have realised that even with good educational policy especially at the secondary level which is the focus of the conference, the quality of educa-tion is terribly on the downward slide. This ugly trend has persisted for some decades now and its urgent reversal is critical to our national development. This conference intends to examine in-depth the reasons for the pitiable state of our education especially at the secondary school level, and proffer lasting solutions. Given the calibre of the guest lectures, we are very hopeful that the conference will bring about a turning point in the targeted level of the educational sector.
Who are the expected participants?
As a way of solving the nation-wide problems in education, all the critical stakeholders have been communicated in writing to attend the conference as a matter of national rescue mission. In this regard, the Minister of Education, Alhaji Ibrahim Shekarau (CON), is billed to be the special guest of honour and to declare the conference open, with Dr. Dikko Sulei-man FIPMD, executive secretary, UBEC, as the conference chairman, while His Eminence, Edidem Ekpo Okon Abasi Otu V, the Obong of Calabar, will be the royal father of the day. His Excellency, Senator Liyel Imoke, Cross River State Governor, is the chief host. Besides these, other ex-pected participants include, federal and state permanent secretaries and direc-tors of education, UBEC, UBEBs, sec-ondary education management boards, NERDC, NECO, WAEC, NTI, NUT, AN-COPPS, and UNESCO, among others.
In view of the weighty problems in educa-tion, what calibre are the guest lecturers to be able to correctly analyse the situa-tion and proffer workable solutions?
In trying to find a lasting solution to the problems besetting secondary educa-tion, the resource persons for this annual conference have been painstakingly se-lected to critically x-ray the situation on ground and come up with workable rec-ommendations. These are highly rated and field-oriented educationists whose wealth of experience spans over decades. They are, Prof. Godswill Obioma, Nige-rian Educational Research and Develop-ment Council (NERDC), Chief Sylvester Onoja, Kogi State Teaching Service Com-mission, Prof. Florence Obi, Dean, Fac-ulty of Education, University of Calabar, Prof. Obinna Enukoha, Assistant. Prof. Genevieve Aglazor, Tarleton State Uni-versity, Stephenville, Texas, USA, Rev. Fr. Amechi Nicholas Akwanya, Univer-sity of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN), and Has-
sana Alidou, United Nations Education, and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), Abuja.
Why has it occurred to IPMD to organise the conference at this time?
Over the years, Nigeria has witnessed a progressive decline in educational standard at all levels, due, in the main, to policy inconsistency and poor policy implementation, resulting in the crisis rocking the nation’s educational sector particularly at the secondary level. One of the worrisome manifestations of this long-standing and worsening crisis is the poor performance of students in the May/June WAEC and NECO-conducted Senior Secondary School Certificate Ex-aminations, the recently released 2014 May/June WASSCE result inclusive. To help stem the ugly trend, the Institute feels strongly that as a national problem, all stakeholders must respond to the ur-gent need to find a lasting solution and reposition the badly battered secondary educational quality.
Why TINAPA as choice of venue for the conference?
Well, it could have been any other ven-ue, but Cross River State. Senator Liyel Imoke has performed very well in the area of provision of infrastructure for advancement of education in the state. Secondly, the conference of this nature where serious brain storming is required to solve the problem of this magnitude such as the one on hand, a secured, se-rene and hospitable environment will help to achieve the desired result for which the state is noted. Therefore, giv-ing the alluring ambience of Calabar and Tinapa as a tourist destination, the choice of the conference venue cannot be faulted.
Apart from the conference on education, are there any other events?
The 2014 IPMD annual conference is basically a three-pronged event featur-ing awards for excellence to deserving individuals and organisations and in-duction of fellows, besides the na-tional conference on education. Some of the personalities slated for awards of excel-lence are Governors Liyel Imoke, Godswill Obot Ak-pabio, Dr. Aliyu Babangi-da, Alhaji Sule Lamido, Dr. Emmanuel Eweta Uduaghan, Gabriel Suswan, Alhaji Ali-yu Wamako, Alhaji Umar Tanko Al-Makura, Chief Willie Madu-abuchukwu O b i a n o , Alhaji Ibra-him Dank-w a m b o , a n d Ibrahim S h e h u S h e m a , i n c l u d -ing some selected and high-ly per-f o r m e d CEOs of organisa-tions.
Do you
have any intention of releasing a commu-niqué and position paper at the end of the conference?
Yes of course. At the end of the confer-ence, a communiqué will be released. In addition, a position paper arising from the deliberations, especially as they touch on the challenges of secondary ed-ucation in Nigeria and the way forward will be officially sent to the federal and state ministries of education and other critical education policy formulators and executors. The position paper will serve as workable field-oriented inputs to future planning and execution aimed at fixing the observed anomalies in second-ary education.
What is the conference schedule like?
The 2014 IPMD annual national con-ference is scheduled to hold at the New Conference Hall, TINAPA Lakeside Ho-tel, TINAPA Business & Leisure Resort, Calabar, Cross River State, from Novem-ber 19 to 21. The educational conference proper will start by 8:00 am daily. On the last day, the conference will be concluded by 3:00 pm. The grand finale of the con-ference featuring awards of excellence and induction of fellows will commence by 5:00 pm, on November 21, into the night.
It is pertinent to remind all those nominated for corpo-
rate and individual awards for excel-
lence as well as for induction as fellows to note that the slated awards and induction c e r e m o n y will hold on Friday, No-vember 21, by 5:00 pm at the same venue.
We’ll examine pitiable state of secondary education, says IPMD bossIn this interview with select journalists, Executive Vice-President, Institute of Policy Management Development (IPMD), Chief Alicho Emmanuel, speaks on the challenges in the education sector in Nigeria, especially at the secondary level and how the Institute intends to proffer solutions to it
Emmanuel
38 WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH Business | Interview
L-R: Executive Director, Small And Medium Enterprises, Bank of Industry (BoI), Mr Waheed Olagunju; President, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Alhaji Remi Bello and General Manager, Large Scale Enterprises, BoI, Mr Joseph Babatunde, during the Industry’s day at the International Trade Fair Lagos
L-R: General Manager, GOtv, Elizabeth Amkpa; General Manager, SuperSport, West Africa, Felix Awogu; General Manager, Marketing, MultiChoice Nigeria, Martin Mabutho; Marketing Manager, Dana Motors Limited, Peter Ayewoh and Marketing Manager, DStv, Chioma Afe, after a press conference to unveil MultiChoice Super Cruise Promo, in Lagos
L-R: General Secretary, Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), Lagos State Chapter, Mrs. Bimbo Oy-etunde; former Commissioner for Agriculture, Lagos State, Chief Enoch Ajiboso and Chairman, Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Lagos State Chapter, Mr. Deji Elumoye, at a press conference on Ajiboso’s ambition to contest as a Senator in Lagos West Senatorial District in Lagos. PHOTO: TONY EGUAYE
L-R: Pro-Chancellor, University of Ibadan, Maj.-Gen. Adeyinka Adebayo; Registrar, Mr. Olujimi Olu-koya and Vice Chancellor, Prof. Isaac Adewole, at the 66th Foundation day Thanksgiving service of the University in Ibadan
L-R: Bishop of Awka Diocese, Anglican Communion, Rt. Rev. Alex Ibezim; wife of the Bishop, Mrs. Martha; wife of Anambra State Governor, Mrs. Ebelechukwu Obiano and former Vice-President, Dr. Alex Ekwueme, at a Child dedication and Thanksgiving Service by the wife of the Bishop at St. Faith Cathedral, Awka
L-R: Marketing Director, Colgate Palmolive Nigeria, Mrs. Hannah Oyebanjo; Head, Dentistry Division Federal Ministry of Health, Mrs. Bimpe Adebiyi; Minister of Health, Dr. Khaliru Al-Hassan and Ambas-sador Anthony George Manzo, at the launch of 2014 National Oral Health week in Abuja
L-R: Former Minister of National Planning, Shamsudeen Usman; Minister of National Planning, Abubakar Olarewaju Sulaiman and President/Chairman of Council, Institute of Planning Nigeria (IPN), McCarthy Ijiebor, at the 2014 annual Planners conference on Planning National Development and Globalization in Lagos. PHOTO: SULEIMAN HUSAINI
Bauchi State Governor, Isa Yuguda (right), presenting an appointment letter to the newly appointed Bauchi State Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Muktar Abubakar in Bauchi
Photo | News 39NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014
40 WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH
Ugwuanyi is superlatively
intelligent, energetic and possesses a
very high degree of integrity. If any of these
three qualities, especially
integrity, is lacking in any person, then
transformational leadership is a
mirage
Uche Nnadi
Nigeria’s main prob-lem, including Enugu State under some past leaders, has always re-
mained inept leadership. And the missing link which mili-tates against the enthronement of transformational leadership has always been the absence of inner management. That is, man-aging from outside-in instead of inside-out. The so-called leaders, or rather more appropriately called, rulers, are outer-directed because they do not have inner sense of self fulfilment.
So, they end up spending all their time, energy and resources trying to outdo every other person before them in an attempt to guar-antee the illusive sense of security for themselves, their cronies and even their children yet unborn. And what is the cause of this, if one may ask? The answer lies in the pervading or overwhelming poverty or scarcity mentality of such leaders. And what is the so-lution?
Essentially, the answer lies in total spiritual regeneration or re-awakening of such leaders, and leaders to be, especially the youth who are not only the stakeholders of today but also the leaders of to-morrow.
No matter how much such a leader, or rather a ruler, accumu-lates, he/she just cannot be con-tented. As one stand-up comedian puts it, “they do not have good address.” Perhaps, Governor Sul-livan Chime was able to perform excellently well because he, as it were, ‘had a very good address’. He was, literally, born with a golden spoon in his mouth. So, he was, ab initio, contented with his person internally; and the outside almost always mirrors or reflects the in-side. As the saying goes, you can-not give what you do not have.
Member of the House of Rep-resentatives, Hon. Ifeanyi Ug-wuanyi, though of very humble parentage, has, through a dint of hard work, conditioned on total trust in God and service to human-ity, been able to achieve greatness without trampling on the rights of others. Ugwuanyi is visibly, by all standards of measurement, a contented person and, therefore, has nothing to prove again if he takes up the reins of power and authority in Enugu State come 2015. So, he is the answer!
There are basically three traits of transformational leaders vis-a-vis conscious knowledge or awareness of his/her nature as,
principally, a spiritual being with awesome powers and capabilities to be, do or have anything in life without infringing on the rights of others. Ugwuanyi has this knowl-edge in abundance, as typified in his absolute faith and trust in God.
Another basic trait of a trans-formational leader is conscious awareness of the leader’s purpose in life. Outside his brief stint at Premier Brokers, which also in-volved assuaging the plight or suffering of the people, Ugwuanyi has all his life been involved in us-ing the instrumentality of gover-nance to serve humanity. Politics has remained for him the one and only preoccupation for the better part of the last 12 years.
Contentment is a condition sub-sequent upon one’s discovery of his purpose in life and function-ing from that consciousness. From this awareness, the lawmaker is very clear about what God has cre-ated him to do in this life and has continued to do just that, with his entire mind and all his strength.
The third basic trait of a trans-formational leader is service to humanity. For any leader to live an all-round fulfilled life, such a leader must not only know who he is, or discover his purpose as embedded in his talents, but also, must, as of absolute necessity, use such talents in the service of hu-manity.
Ugwuanyi is a Rotarian through and through. What is the hallmark of a true Rotarian? Service above self. Gburu Gburu, as he is fondly known and called, has been a typical Rotarian for the better part of his adult life. He is reputed to be one of the youngest Rotary presidents Nigeria has ever produced. True Rotarians live their life in accordance with Rota-ry ethos of ‘service above self ’ and also in line with the rotary four way test which asks the following four germane questions about the things we think, say or do: first, is it the truth? Secondly, is it fair to all concerned? Thirdly, will it build goodwill and better friend-ships? And lastly, is it beneficial to all concerned?
Ugwuanyi is a success story in all its ramifications. Let us ponder a while on the criteria for judging who is a success and who is not.
One definition of success that resonates a great deal says that it is “a progressive realisation of a worthy ideal.” There was the time past when the accumulation of money and power were the only two matrices for judging who is or not a successful person.
However, these jaundiced cri-teria have since been jettisoned. It has been proven that the accu-mulation of money or material wealth and mongering for power alone can only, almost always, lead to a perchance for tyranni-cal leadership at best, and to full blown dictatorship at worst. The foregoing two matrices of suc-cess, though very essential for an all-round enjoyment of the good things of life and reaching out, positively, to others outside the leader’s present domain; they fall flat on their face when not used selflessly in service to humanity.
As the Bible posits in John 8:32, “And you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free”. Knowing the truth, in this in-stance, is the conscious awareness of who you are and why you are having this earthly experience. And this truth can only make you free in as much as you apply it
in the service of humanity; oth-erwise you will sink abysmally into the quagmire of inordinate ambition, lack and limitation – a state of consciousness which no amount of money or material accumulation and the quantum of power wielded can obliterate. Ugwuanyi is consciously aware of these unfailing spiritual truths and he applies them in the service of humanity.
What is money and power if you lack wisdom, if you are not healthy, if you cannot relish the moment; that is, living in the now, and if you do not give?
You need to live in the pres-ent moment to be able to provide empathic leadership which is the hallmark of transformational leadership; you need to live in the now to be clear-headed enough to make creative decisions, a quality necessary for transformational leadership; you need to live in the present to avoid being over-whelmed by the quadruple evils of fear, worry, anxiety and doubt which are antithetical to quality and transformational leadership, hence, the very germane Chris-tian song, “One day at a time.”
Ugwuanyi is a man of the mo-ment. This is typified in his calm, cool and collected disposition at all times. In fact, some people, in a very positive sense, describe him as a smooth operator and a con-summate bridge builder!
The last pillar of the third ma-trix of modern and true success is giving, which is a spiritual law as opposed to tithing which is a religious command or obligation.
It will also be necessary here to state that giving is not, and should not be pigeon-holed into the mate-rial dimension alone. You can give with your thought, words and ac-tions through your time, talent and treasure. Above all, giving must be spontaneous and uncondi-tional. Everything in life produces after its own kind, and as you sow so shall you reap.
Ugwuanyi is natural when it comes to the question of giving. He is a consummate spiritual giver, and a philanthropist per ex-cellence. No wonder God is abun-dantly blessing him right, left and centre so that he can continue to be a blessing unto humanity.
Ugwuanyi is superlatively intel-ligent, energetic and possesses a very high degree of integrity. If any of these three qualities, espe-cially integrity, is lacking in any person, then transformational leadership is a mirage. It is no wonder, therefore, that Ugwuanyi is endowed with the rare trans-formational leadership qualities of total loyalty, disarming humil-ity, peaceful disposition, calm demeanour, generosity of heart and uncommon ability to not only communicate, but also con-nect with people, to inspire and motivate people towards building bridges for peace, harmony and understanding.
So, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi is the answer.
•Nnadi, an image consultant, writes from Edo State
41PoliticsNEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014
Ugwuanyi: Answer to transformational leadership
Ugwuanyi
intervened and reminded Minimah that the press is an important stakeholder in the fight against insurgency. Ojudu also told the Army Chief that Nigerians could only get to know through the media how the security agencies were prosecuting the fight against insurgency. But Minimah stood his ground.
Another member of the Committee and Deputy Majority Leader of the Sen-ate, Senator Abdul Ningi, also attempted to persuade Minimah to reassure Nigerians on what the military had done and was do-ing to win the war against insurgency but Minimah stood his ground and refused to divulge any information in the presence of journalists.
After desperate efforts to convince the military commander to speak to them without success, Sekibo promised to brief the press after the closed door meeting.
Rising from the meeting, Sekibo said: “You (reporters) were here with us when we started at about 1p.m. Now it is about two and half hours. We have deliberated on the security issues affecting our country and the Chief of Army Staff has also re-sponded on all the issues that were raised before him.
“As a committee, we have come to find out or have an opinion that the Nigeria Army is doing well. There are areas where we may have setbacks because this insur-gency is not a conventional warfare. Be-cause it is not conventional, few mistakes might come here and there and the issue
is that it will be corrected. We are also as-sured that within a very short period, some of the territories that were taken by the in-surgents will be taken back for the country.
“We are assured to inform our constit-uents that it will not go worse than what we have now. We believe from the charge we have given to them from tomorrow and perhaps the nearest couple of weeks, we are going to have better results. When a man is in a tunnel, when you are get-ting close to the end of the tunnel, you will always see light but at the middle of the tunnel, it is always very dark. I think these are our dark hours and I believe that as we are going towards the end of the tunnel we are going to see light and the military will be able to salvage Nige-ria from this problem.”
C O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 1 7
When senators grilled army chief
trading and direct negotiations that pre-ceded the chairmanship election of the NGF. According to him, “because we re-alised that they were very desperate and that even when we did the election and they were defeated they will not accept, we decided to deny them of their first choice, second choice and any choice at all. We gave them who we feel should be the minority leader of G-16.
“They refused to take us seriously that Ameachi should continue. They thought they could play games and, you see when we left the place, they went and had a meeting and accepted our nomination and at the end of the day, they brought him to the general meeting of the Nige-rian Governors’ Forum and at that Fo-rum, we told them that Amaechi should continue as our chairman. They made all efforts to frustrate voting, saying that there should not be voting….,” he said.
In his view, the election showed that the 16 governors who backed Jang did not know the art of politics, contrary to their posturing. He explained how he nomi-nated Jang as a strategy to show that some of the G-16 governors are novices in politics.
Today, the NGF has become the shad-ow of itself with two chairmen and sepa-rate secretariats.
PDP Governors’ ForumWith the leadership crisis in the NGF,
the PDP and presidency formed PDP Governors’ Forum with Governor God-swill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State as the chairman. The move was an apparent effort to whittle down the power and in-fluence of Amaechi. According to then chairman of the party, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, the formation of the PDPGF, was borne out of necessity.
To weaken Amaechi’s chances of re-turning for a second term as chairman of NGF, his South-South colleague, Akpabio was unveiled as the new helmsman of PDP Governors’ Forum after a meeting which stretched into the earlier hours of the morning, of the same day the chair-manship election of the NGF was to hold.
Akpabio said his election was borne out of the urgent need for the party to re-strategise. The meeting which held at the Presidential Villa with President Jon-athan presiding also had in attendance Amaechi, other PDP governors, and the party’s leadership. On realising the suc-cess of the operation to unseat him as chair of PDP governors, Amaechi left the venue of the meeting.
Akpabio, however, denied any move to remove Amaechi from his position, as chairman of the NGF, adding that the new body would not in any way disrupt the larger body of NGF. According to him, other political parties also had the right to form a similar organ, if they so wished.
Northern States Governors’ ForumThe 19 northern governors also
formed the Northern States Governors’ Forum (NSGF) to protect and advance the interest of the North. The NSGF is headed by Niger State governor, Baban-gida Aliyu.
Crisis also hit the body when Gov-ernor Gabriel Suswam of Benue State pulled out of the fold, and his Bauchi State counterpart, Isa Yuguda, also an-nounced a temporary withdrawal from the meetings of the northern governors. Their actions were direct fallouts from the crisis that trailed the larger NGF, in which they felt deceived and betrayed by their colleagues.
Suswam stated that with the high level of distrust and wrangling among gover-nors in the country, the meeting of North-ern Governors may have ceased to exist.
The impact of the forum has not been felt in the North even with the security challenges confronting the area with the Boko Haram insurgency.
Progressives Governors’ ForumNot wanting to be left out of the fad,
the governors who are members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) formed the Progressives Governors Forum (PGF) and unanimously elected Imo State governor, Rochas Okorocha as chairman. According to them, the elec-tion of Okorocha is in furtherance of their commitment to strengthen demo-cratic governance structures in the coun-try, with the overriding goal of rescuing Nigeria and facilitating the emergence of accountable leadership at all levels led by the APC.
The group also stated that considering how PDP has attacked the foundations of Nigeria’s democracy, and the subsequent erosion of Nigerians’ hard-won freedom, the PGF under Okorocha would mobilise citizens towards expanding and deepen-ing democratic structures, by focusing on initiatives to guarantee the development of participatory governance structures as well as the guarantee of transparent, credible and free elections.
South-East Governors’ ForumSouth-East governors have their own,
with Abia State Governor, Chief Theo-dore Orji who was elected chairman of the forum earlier in the year, taking over from former Anambra State governor, Pe-ter Obi who had held the position for sev-eral years, despite being a member of the
All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA).According to Obi, the forum was put
together to discuss issues concerning South-East, adding that over the years they have been committed to ensuring that South-East remains and works to-gether in issues that border on develop-ment of the region.
BRACED CommissionGovernors of the oil-rich South-South
also meet on occasions as South South Governors’ Forum, converging under the platform of the BRACED Commission, comprising Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Edo and Delta States; where they meet to discuss issues affecting their region.
In 2010, Ambassador Joe Keshi was appointed the Director-General of the Commission. The vision of the BRACED Commission is to ensure economic in-tegration of the region, by promoting cooperation of the geopolitical zone and accelerate socio-economic development.
Its focus is to among others address issues of integration and harmonisa-tion of policies, provide guidelines on cooperation and setting benchmarks, mobilising investment, developing pro-grammes and initiating joint projects as well as organising cultural and sporting activities of the BRACED states.
Southern Nigerian Governors Forum,Delta State governor, Dr. Emmanuel
Uduaghan, said recently that consulta-tions were on to bring the governors in the Southern part of the country into one forum, to be called the Southern Nigerian Governors Forum, to equate the North-ern Governors Forum. He gave the indi-cation at the 4th general conference of the Southern Nigeria Peoples Assembly (SNPA) in Asaba, the Delta State capital.
Uduaghan said: “We (South-South) governors and South-East governors are meeting and we are making moves to in-volve the South-West, so that we have the Southern Nigerian Governors’ Forum, if we are able to deal with our individual political differences.”
He did not however state whether with the new forum, the other existing regional governors’ fora in the south will cease to exist, or they will still be there side by side the new forum.
Northern Governors’ Wives ForumWives of state governors also seek to
be relevant in the system, under their ca-pacity as first ladies. Those in the north-ern part of the country meet under the aegis of Northern Governors’ Wives Fo-rum, and now and then add their voice to national discourse, in hopes of righting societal wrongs.
Ironically, the chairperson of the fo-rum, Dooshima Suswam, is the wife of the Benue State governor. Even though her husband, Governor Suswam has withdrawn from the fold of the North-
Dr. Joe Okei-Odumakin is the president of the Cam-paign for Democracy (CD) and Women Arise for Change Initiative
While groups like the Governors’ Forum
may not be totally strange in some other democracies across the world including the United States, I will want to say that the prolif-eration of the system with other funny political groups has begun to make a mess of it. Let me also state that the existence of the Governors’ Forum in Nigeria has lost its relevance and has not been operating in the ideal sense like other of such fora across the world.
Likewise, other similar groups that are in existence today have more or less be-come platforms for creating distractions and abdicating responsibilities by actors in
those groups.As far as these groups
particularly the Gover-nors’ Forum are concerned, there has been no single intervention that has been made into the development of the country. Like I stated earlier, the forum has been used more to further divide and unnecessarily over-heat the polity because of its lack of ideology and programmes of existence. We cannot forget that even today, the governors are shamefully divided and we now have two factions of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum.
As far as Nigeria is con-cerned, some of the fora in the country today have
never contributed to any good as it concerns promot-ing unity among public of-fice holders. The existence of such groups may not be totally alien to democracy particularly such like the Governors’ Forum and hence cannot be asked to be scrapped.
You must also under-stand that the constitution and every known conven-tion recognises the freedom of association of individu-als. I will only advise that they should not be allowed to become platforms for derailing good governance and promoting disunity among Nigerians as we currently have in most of the groups.
Okei-Odumakin: Forums have lost relevance in Nigeria
Okei-Odumakin
42 NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014PoliticsC O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 1 3
L-R: Former governors: Buka Aba Ibrahim (Yobe), Achike Udenwa (Imo), Abubakar Audu (Kogi), Jim Nwobodo (old Enugu), PDP National Chairman and former governor of Bauchi State, Adamu Mu’azu, Olusegun Osoba (Ogun), Lucky Igbinedon (Edo) and Muhammed Makarfi (Kaduna), when the former governors visited the PDP secretariat in Abuja.
Governance by forums
Mr. Fred Agbaje is a constitu-tional lawyer
The country has not seen enough of associations
yet; more would still come be-cause the constitution allows freedom of association. And since the constitution allows freedom of association, all sorts of associations would be coming out. But such as-sociations are not criminal in nature or they are not secret societies. The constitution al-lows freedom of association and that is why different kind of people are coming together to form different fora. So, don’t be surprised tomorrow if you have Association of Drinkers in Nigeria.
The question we should ask
about some of the organisations is whether they are really add-ing value to good governance in Nigeria. As far as we are concerned, in a constitutional democracy as we operate, all sorts of pressure groups would come on board. But when you look at the objectives of some of these pressure groups, they
are not even in the interest of democracy.
Some of the pressure groups we have in Nigeria, coming un-der all sorts of names, do not actually add value to democracy or deepen democracy. Some of them are anti-democratic in nature; they promote negative tendencies. They are not actu-ally propagating the wishes and desires of the people.
Most of these associations are self-centred. It is just to get political recognition, so that the political party or the major combatant in the political field will see them and give them money. Some of them instead of being a lobbying group, have be-come illegal groups in the sense that their activities are against democratic growth and culture.
Alhaji Tanko Yakassai is an el-der statesman and former Spe-cial Adviser on National Assem-bly Matters to former President Shehu Shagari
The high number of fo-rums is an indication that election is around
the corner. When there was no
election, even those who are there, kept quiet. The consti-tution guarantees freedom of association but we can’t eat our cake and have it.
I don’t think some of the fo-rums are dividing the country as being speculated in some quarters because people, who belong to one group, would re-main there. I believe the activi-ties of some of the organisa-tions are in order because the constitution guarantees every Nigerian to uphold an opinion and to belong to any group of his choice. And there is nothing we can do about it.
Yakasai: Activities of forums in order
Yakasai
Agbaje: Most of the associations are anti-democratic
Agbaje
43NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 Politics
ern Governor’s Forum, Mrs. Suswam still maintains a prominent position in the female version of the socio-political medium of the 19 northern state gover-nors’ wives to propagate the interest of her fellow first ladies.
Former Governors Forum Even after leaving office, former gov-
ernors still do not want to be irrelevant. This must have led to the establishment of the Former Governors Forum (FGF) led by its chairman, Dr. Jim Nwobodo, who governed the old Anambra State. The group has in the last few months strived to contribute to national dis-course, while also trying to be seen in the right places.
It would be recalled that the FGF was called upon by the Federal Government to take part in the just-concluded Nation-al Conference, where former Ogun State governor, Chief Olusegun Osoba led a team to represent them. The ex-gover-nors, in a statement signed by Nwobodo listed other delegates to the confab as Mohammed Goni (North-East), Fidelis Tapgun (North-Central), Saidu Barda (North-West), Achike Udenwa (South-East), and Victor Attah (South-South), while Osoba represented South-West.
The former governors recently visited the national chairmen of the PDP and APC, Dr. Adamu Mu’azu and Chief John Odigie-Oyegun respectively.
Forum of Former Deputy Governors of
Amaechi Jang Okorocha
Nigeria Deputy Governors who are mostly re-
garded as spare tyres in the polity are not left out, even after they leave office. There is also a Former Deputy Governors’ Fo-rum to project or protect their interests, as the case may be, so that they do not become extinct, as far as governance is concerned. The existence of the group came to the fore recently when it declared its decision to support the impeached deputy governor of Enugu State, Mr. Sun-day Onyebuchi, to seek legal redress in court to reverse the action.
The group founded under the leader-ship of President Goodluck Jonathan, then as vice president, also recently gath-ered in Abuja to pledge their support for the president’s re-election come 2015.
Forum of House of Assembly SpeakersLawmakers are not left out of the fad
as there is also a forum of House of As-sembly Speakers, who gather under the umbrella of Conference of Speakers of State Legislature of Nigeria, with a na-tional secretariat in Abuja.
The body was also involved in a lead-ership tussle not too long ago, when it was unable to elect a new leadership. At a marathon meeting to address the matter, it took strong voices and serious persuasion to finally dissolve the hith-erto incumbent leadership headed by Taraba State Speaker, Rt. Hon. Haruna Istifanus Gbana, who himself took over the chairmanship of the Conference
from Governor Amaechi, who was the pioneer chairman of the group.
Speakers’ ForumThe South South Speakers’ Forum is
a meeting point for House of Assembly speakers in the South South. There are six states’ speakers that make up the Fo-rum.
Also, the Northern Speakers’ Forum is a meeting point for lawmakers from the 19 northern states of the country, who claim the organisation is to deepen democratic tenets in Nigeria.
At a point in time, Hon. Olumuyiwa Ji-moh, a member of the Lagos State House of Assembly, also canvassed for the cre-ation of a Speakers’ forum amongst the progressive State Houses of Assembly, which he said will deepen and consoli-date democratic culture in Nigeria. The new forum, when it takes off, will be Pro-gressive Speakers’ Forum
Debate on forumsThe relevance or otherwise of these fo-
rums has continued to dominate debates in many quarters, with many analysts insisting that a good number of them are mainly set up to cater for the selfish interests of the members, and that they have nothing whatsoever to do with the general good of the people that such pub-lic, or former public officials were elected to promote.
In some instances, especially in the case of the NGF, many people have ques-
tioned the fact that such governors do not have the mandate of the people they claim to serve to join any such forums, or expend state funds on same. They con-tend that if it is really necessary to have such fora, they can be compressed into a single forum for all the governors, in-stead of the several as presently obtains.
This school of thought is of the view that the regional groupings create more harm than good for democracy, as it tends to highlight the differences among the regions, and encourages the promotion of regional and ethnic sentiments above the national interests.
But then, proponents contend that the meetings at the level of the geopolitical zones are not sufficient to represent the overall interests of the south or north of the country in the overall interest of all, hence the need for regional fora.
According to them, the states too have differing interests and peculiar challenges, which cannot be addressed by one overall forum, hence the need for regional fora. And that the exis-tence of various fora at the geopoliti-cal zones will help build a brotherly rapport and network among the gov-ernors, enabling them get a unifying template of best practices within their individual zones.
They also argue that the North/South dichotomy or the unitary regional for-mations are better for our democracy as it would enable developmental rivalry between the North and the South.
Interviews by TemiTope ogunbanke
44 WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH Business | Money Line
signed by the power dis-tribution and generation companies, the N36.93 bil-lion legacy debt owed gas companies, will be paid off with facility provided by the apex bank.
Speaking at the oc-casion, the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke said the agree-ment would bring about a lasting solution to the problem of gas supply in the country and also end the problems occasioned by inadequate gas supply.
With the write-off of the legacy debt, the pe-troleum minister said a new dawn has been cre-ated in the domestic gas market as all gas sold to the power firms will now be paid for.
According to the min-ister, the medium-term gas supply would now be about 2.5m cubic gas daily with 80 per cent of this daily supply going into the power sector.
Minister of Power, Prof. Chinedu Nebo, de-scribed the signing of the MoU as “grueling and time consuming,” adding that pact, Nigeria was fluctuating between 4000 and 4500 megawatts of electricity due to inad-equate gas supply.
CBN intervenes to improve power supplyNEW DAWN
All the gas sold to the power firms will now be paid for
By the end of Decem-ber 2014, he said, the Federal Government will achieve its set tar-get of 5000 megawatts of electricity because of the CBN intervention.
Earlier, the CBN Gov-ernor, Mr. Godwin Eme-fiele stated that the bank is collaborating with the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Ministry of Power and the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) to intervene in the Nige-ria Electricity Supply Industry with a view to
resolving its liquidity challenges.
In this respect, Eme-fiele said the CBN would provide the NEMSF aimed at settling certain outstanding debts in the industry and guarantee the takeoff of Tradition-al Electricity Market.
The apex bank had engaged the services of FBN Capital as Transac-tion Advisor, Meristem Securities as Fund Man-ager and Detail Solicitor and Stream Sowers as the legal team.
He said the facility
would be administered through deposit money banks at the rate of 10 per cent per annum with tenure of 10 years.
Emefiele said NERC would reset the Multi Year Tarif Order to en-sure that it provides for the loan repayment including the setting up and operating the NEMSF.
While the gas suppli-ers are to be committed to higher volumes of gas supply, the apex bank boss said the Generating Companies and Distri-
bution Companies are committed to utilising the funds for equipment/infrastructure acquisi-tion, refurbishment and or upgrade.
The stakeholders in the Ministry of Power are Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), National Elec-tricity Regulatory Com-mission (NERC) and the Federal Ministry of Pe-troleum Resources with electricity distribution companies and electric-ity generation companies operating in Nigeria.
Isa Abdulwahab and Johnchuks OnuanyimAbujA
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has signed a Memorandum
of Understanding (MoU) with relevant stakehold-ers in the power sector to improve electricity sup-ply in the country.
The MoU is expected to increase power gener-ation to 5000 megawatts by the end next month (December).
Currently, Nigeria generates between 4000 megawatts and 4500 megawatts.
The gas supply agree-ment became possible due to the intervention of the CBN in the Ni-geria Electricity Mar-ket Stabilisation Facil-ity (NEMSF), which is aimed at putting an end to perennial problem of gas supply in the power sector.
Under a separate MoU
Winners in the 2014 Social Media Awards supported by Ster-
ling Bank Plc will get $1,000, social media training and other consolidated prizes.
Executive Director, Strat-egy & Finance, Sterling Bank Plc, Abubakar Suleiman, dis-closed this yesterday at the pre-award briefing held in Lagos at the corporate head office of the lender.
He said the awards, which holds on December 6, is based on the need “to recognise and
Sterling Bank-backed social media award winners to get $1,000
celebrate excellence, creativ-ity and the impact of social media on human socio-eco-nomic development through its and platforms by individu-als and organisations across the continent.
He said the bank is in-volved in the award because it wants to capture the essence of how the world is changing. “The social media space is no longer on the fringe, as most people are increasingly us-ing it. We want to encourage people across Africa on how beneficial the platform is and ensure that the best use of it is rewarded,” he said.
The Sterling Bank ED said the lender supported the award organised by De-velopment Diaries because it wants to support proper behavior in the use of social media. “It is an initiative to reward creativity. We want to sanitise what is a chaotic stage. We want to see decency in the social media space,” he explained.
Suleiman said the lender cannot overlook the impor-tance of social media in today’s society and the increasing role it plays in the lives of people on a daily basis, hence the need to identify with the award.
Founder, Development Di-aries, Femi Aderibigbe said
a total of 923 entries contain-ing 3230 nominations were re-ceived within the two weeks window for nomination against the 700-nomination target set initially.
He said that based on the eligibility and validity of claims, a total of 491 nomina-tions were disqualified by the Virtual Council. Some of the award categories are Blogger of the Year, Social Media Per-sonality of the Year, Social Media Hero, Facebook Page of the Year, Twitter Handle of the Year, App of the Year, among others.
He said that all entries were judged on influence, originality, creativity, scal-ability and impact.
The Social Media Africa Initiative is supervised by an Advisory Board of respected individuals such as: Toby Daniels, CEO, CrowdCen-tric & Founder, Social Media Week; Tunji Lardner, Execu-tive Director, West African NGO Network (WANGONeT); Ini Onuk, Lead Consultant/CEO, ThistlePraxis Consult-ing; Abdul Tejan-Cole, Execu-tive Director, Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA) amongst others. Leading the judging process is a Jury, which includes Ken Banks.
Africa’s gross domestic product (GDP) may ex-pand by 50 percent to
$3.7 trillion by 2019, boosted by an emerging middle class and increased household de-mand, according to Deloitte.
“Rising consumer de-mand, aligned with annual growth of around 8 percent is likely to add around $1.1 trillion to African GDP by 2019, with Ethiopia, Uganda andMozambique among the fastest expanding markets,” the auditing company said in an e-mailed report yesterday.
Sub-Saharan Africa is forecast to grow 5 percent this year, driven by infra-structure investment, a buoyant services sector and strong agriculture produc-tion, the International Mon-etary Fund said last month. Middle-class households in 11 leading economies in the region are set expand to about 40 million by 2030, with the biggest growth seen in Nigeria, the continent’s largest economy, according to a report by Standard Bank Group Ltd.
Africa economy to grow 50% by 2019 –Deloitte
45NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 Business | Financial Market News
FGN Bonds
Rating/Agency Issuer Description Issue Date Coupon (%) Outstanding Value (N'bn) Maturity Date TTM (Yrs) Bid Yield (%) Offer Yield
TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUETOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION
**Treasury Bills FIXINGS
6.00 NOV 08, 201810.25 APR 08, 20196.25 APR 22, 20198.75 May 21, 20198.25 AUG 07, 20206.63 DEC 09, 2020
TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUETOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION
11.50 FEB 01, 2016
7.50 MAY 19, 2016
7.25 JUL 25, 20176.88 MAY 09, 2018
TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUETOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION
Description
FGN Eurobonds Prices & Yields
FGN
6.75 JAN 28, 2021
5.13 JUL 12, 2018
6.38 JUL 12, 2023
182D T.bills+1.20 STANBIC IA 30-SEP-202413.25 STANBIC IB 30-SEP-2024
TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUETOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION
10.20 IFC 11-FEB-201811.25 AFDB 1-FEB-2021
MPR+5.25 TOWER 9-SEP-201814.00 UBA II 22-SEP-201815.75 LA CASERA 18-OCT-2018MPR+5.00 CHELLARAMS II 17-FEB-201916.00 DANA II 1-APR-201915.25 NAHCO II 14-NOV-2020
TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUETOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION
Description
FMBN 0.00 FMB 24-MAY-201517.25 FMB II 03-APR-2017
***LCRM0.00/16.00 LCRM 09-DEC-20160.00/16.50 LCRM II 20-APR-2017
FMDQ Daily Quotations List 18-Nov-14The FMDQ Daily Quotations List (DQL) comprises market and model prices/rates of foreign exchange ($/N) products, fixed income securities and instruments in the OTC market. The use of this report is subject to the FMDQ OTC PLC Terms of Use and Disclaimer Statement on www.fmdqotc.com.
BondsPrice
NA NA
46 WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH
Stories by Chris Ugwu
The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) and London Stock Exchange
Group (LSEG) yesterday signed a capital markets agreement that supports African companies seek-ing dual listings in Lon-don and Nigeria.
The objective of the contract signed at the UKTI and the Emerging Capital event held at the NSE was also strengthen cooperation and promote mutual development be-tween the two Exchanges.
The agreement follows the implementation ear-lier this year of a new set-tlement process between the UK and Nigeria. This made significantly more efficient the listing and trading of ordinary shares of Nigerian companies listed in London, as well as those of UK companies on the Nigerian market. Seplat, the oil and gas busi-ness, which raised $500mil-lion in an Initial Public Of-fering (IPO) via this new mechanism in April, was the first company to simul-taneously dual list shares in London and Nigeria.
Commenting on the development, Chief Ex-ecutive Officer of the NSE, Mr. Oscar Onyema,
said: “Today’s agreement is another major step to-wards our goal of ensur-ing that all companies that have substantial operations in Africa are accessible to both Nige-rian and international investors. In addition, we will be ensuring that our leading companies achieve the global profile and international insti-tutional investment they deserve.”
Speaking in the same vein, Head of Interna-tional Development, LSEG, Nikhil Rathi, said the deal was a reflection of the global investment community’s strong de-sire to be a part of the Nigeria story.
Rathi noted that the world’s most interna-tional Exchange, LSEG looks forward to part-nering with the NSE in showcasing the opportu-nities the rapidly grow-ing Nigerian economy offers investors.
Country Head for the European Bank SEB, for-mer Lord Mayor of Lon-don, and Co-Chairman of the UK Government’s Ni-geria Emerging Capital Markets Task Force, Sir Roger Gifford, said: “I’m delighted to be here today to witness the signing of this agreement. This is exactly the sort of ambi-tious project the ECMT Nigeria was launched to support.
“Nigeria is without doubt one of the most promising opportuni-ties for capital markets
Business | Financial Market News
NSE signs pact with London ExchangeGLOBAL PROFILE
This will enable leading firms to achieve global profile and international investment they deserve
The Nigerian stock mar-ket yesterday lowered its momentum after
recording significant growth for some days.
The bearish transactions came on a day some sharehold-ers of Transnational Corpora-tion Plc urged the Nigerian capital market regulators to void the Initial Public Offer-ing (IPO) of Transcorp Hotels.
The slide in equities was due to profit taking by inves-tors in the wake of the cau-tious optimism that had pre-vailed in the market in the recent time.
Specifically, trading activi-ties on the floor of the Nige-rian Stock Market (NSE) closed on a negative note, as the listed equities lost points and returned to the red terri-tory following sell pressure on blue chip companies.
The twin market perfor-mance measures, the NSE ASI and market capitalisa-tion dropped by 1.67 per cent, as the market tempo fell.
At the close of trading, 23 stocks appreciated, while 29 others constituted the losers’ table.
The twin market indica-tors, the All-Share Index dropped by 586.21 basis points or 1.67 per cent from 35,488.80, the previous day to close at 34,902.59, while the
market capitalisation dropped by N190 billion or 1.67 per cent from N11.754 trillion to N11.564 trillion.
Meanwhile, shareholders under the aegis of the Inde-pendent Shareholders As-sociation of Nigeria (ISAN) called for the voiding of the Initial Public Offering (IPO) of Transcorp Hotels in sepa-rate letters to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).
ISAN said in Lagos said that their demand became imperative following serious breach of operating capital market laws by the regula-tors.
The Association in the letters signed by Sir Sunny Nwosu and Mr Adebayo Adeleke, National Coordina-tor and General Secretary respectively, and made avail-able to newsmen, described the approval for the recently concluded offer of the shares of Trancorp Hotels as “crimi-nal and the height of regula-tory impunity.”
According to ISAN, the sale of Transcorp Hotel shares was an authorised bul-kanisation of Transnational Corporation Plc.
“We are not aware of any Annual General Meeting or Extra-Ordinary General
Meeting as prescribed by law, where a special resolu-tion was proposed and passed by shareholders of Transna-tional Corporation Plc to dis-member the company.
“Spinning off and offering for sale shares of Transcorp Hotels is an unauthorised dismemberment of Trans-national Corporation Pl,” ISAN said.
The association said that they are constrained to draw the attention of SEC and NSE to the regulatory im-punity because the IPO of 800 million ordinary shares of Transcorp Hotels negates the provisions of the Invest-ment and Securities Act rules and regulations of the commission as well as the listing requirements’ of the Exchange.
The retail investors said that their quest for probity, ac-countability and due process, stemmed also from the issues raised by NOGA Hotels Inter-national (NHI) SA, a major in-vestors in Transcorp Hotels.
ISAN also said that NHI had in a subtle caveat emp-tor advertorial published on October 16, 2014 in some dailies, described the IPO as “contrived,” following unre-solved issues over ownership of Transcorp Hilton Hotels, Abuja.
Investors lose N190billion
FGN Bonds
Rating/Agency Issuer Description Issue Date Coupon (%) Outstanding Value (N'bn) Maturity Date TTM (Yrs) Bid Yield (%) Offer Yield
TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUETOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION
**Treasury Bills FIXINGS
6.00 NOV 08, 201810.25 APR 08, 20196.25 APR 22, 20198.75 May 21, 20198.25 AUG 07, 20206.63 DEC 09, 2020
TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUETOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION
11.50 FEB 01, 2016
7.50 MAY 19, 2016
7.25 JUL 25, 20176.88 MAY 09, 2018
TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUETOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION
Description
FGN Eurobonds Prices & Yields
FGN
6.75 JAN 28, 2021
5.13 JUL 12, 2018
6.38 JUL 12, 2023
182D T.bills+1.20 STANBIC IA 30-SEP-202413.25 STANBIC IB 30-SEP-2024
TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUETOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION
10.20 IFC 11-FEB-201811.25 AFDB 1-FEB-2021
MPR+5.25 TOWER 9-SEP-201814.00 UBA II 22-SEP-201815.75 LA CASERA 18-OCT-2018MPR+5.00 CHELLARAMS II 17-FEB-201916.00 DANA II 1-APR-201915.25 NAHCO II 14-NOV-2020
TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUETOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION
Description
FMBN 0.00 FMB 24-MAY-201517.25 FMB II 03-APR-2017
***LCRM0.00/16.00 LCRM 09-DEC-20160.00/16.50 LCRM II 20-APR-2017
FMDQ Daily Quotations List 18-Nov-14The FMDQ Daily Quotations List (DQL) comprises market and model prices/rates of foreign exchange ($/N) products, fixed income securities and instruments in the OTC market. The use of this report is subject to the FMDQ OTC PLC Terms of Use and Disclaimer Statement on www.fmdqotc.com.
BondsPrice
NA NA
FGN Bonds
Rating/Agency Issuer Description Issue Date Coupon (%) Outstanding Value (N'bn) Maturity Date TTM (Yrs) Bid Yield (%) Offer Yield
TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUETOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION
**Treasury Bills FIXINGS
6.00 NOV 08, 201810.25 APR 08, 20196.25 APR 22, 20198.75 May 21, 20198.25 AUG 07, 20206.63 DEC 09, 2020
TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUETOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION
11.50 FEB 01, 2016
7.50 MAY 19, 2016
7.25 JUL 25, 20176.88 MAY 09, 2018
TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUETOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION
Description
FGN Eurobonds Prices & Yields
FGN
6.75 JAN 28, 2021
5.13 JUL 12, 2018
6.38 JUL 12, 2023
182D T.bills+1.20 STANBIC IA 30-SEP-202413.25 STANBIC IB 30-SEP-2024
TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUETOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION
10.20 IFC 11-FEB-201811.25 AFDB 1-FEB-2021
MPR+5.25 TOWER 9-SEP-201814.00 UBA II 22-SEP-201815.75 LA CASERA 18-OCT-2018MPR+5.00 CHELLARAMS II 17-FEB-201916.00 DANA II 1-APR-201915.25 NAHCO II 14-NOV-2020
TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUETOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION
Description
FMBN 0.00 FMB 24-MAY-201517.25 FMB II 03-APR-2017
***LCRM0.00/16.00 LCRM 09-DEC-20160.00/16.50 LCRM II 20-APR-2017
FMDQ Daily Quotations List 18-Nov-14The FMDQ Daily Quotations List (DQL) comprises market and model prices/rates of foreign exchange ($/N) products, fixed income securities and instruments in the OTC market. The use of this report is subject to the FMDQ OTC PLC Terms of Use and Disclaimer Statement on www.fmdqotc.com.
BondsPrice
NA NA
development worldwide. An effective, transparent and well-governed capi-tal market – across all asset classes – has the capacity to catalyse a na-
tion’s quest for growth and development.
“In particular, func-tioning markets for corporate equity and debt reduce the depen-
dence on bank capital and make investment securities available to a broader range of inves-tors: institutional, pri-vate and international.
This agreement will build on existing strong commercial and eco-nomic ties between the UK and Nigeria to our mutual benefit.”
47NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 Business | Capital Market
Daily Summary as of 18/11/2014Printed 18/11/2014 15:33:03.003
Transport-Related Services Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value TradedAIRLINE SERVICES AND LOGISTICS PLC AIRSERVICE 4 1.66 10,496 16,583.68NIGERIAN AVIATION HANDLING COMPANY PLC NAHCO 14 4.72 203,476 959,140.74
Support and Logistics Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value TradedCAVERTON OFFSHORE SUPPORT GRP PLC CAVERTON 6 3.77 98,608 372,222.16
CONSTRUCTION/REAL ESTATEBuilding Structure/Completion/Other Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value Traded
COSTAIN (W A) PLC. COSTAIN 14 0.89 494,570 436,911.05Building Structure/Completion/Other Totals 14 494,570 436,911.05
Infrastructure/Heavy Construction Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value TradedJULIUS BERGER NIG. PLC. JBERGER 1 67.20 600 38,304.00
Infrastructure/Heavy Construction Totals 1 600 38,304.00
Real Estate Development Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value TradedUACN PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT CO. LIMITED UAC-PROP 16 10.96 385,196 4,221,633.16
Real Estate Development Totals 16 385,196 4,221,633.16
Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value TradedUPDC REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUST UPDCREIT 3 10.00 278,450 2,784,500.00
Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) Totals 3 278,450 2,784,500.00
CONSUMER GOODSBeverages--Brewers/Distillers Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value TradedBeverages--Brewers/Distillers Totals 237 2,722,336 400,107,037.89
Beverages--Non-Alcoholic Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value Traded7-UP BOTTLING COMP. PLC. 7UP 15 148.83 7,326 1,088,550.54
ICTIT Services Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value Traded
TRIPPLE GEE AND COMPANY PLC. TRIPPLEG 1 1.86 838 1,483.26IT Services Totals 1 838 1,483.26
Processing Systems Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value TradedCHAMS PLC CHAMS 1 0.50 1,000,000 500,000.00E-TRANZACT INTERNATIONAL PLC ETRANZACT 1 2.21 100 221.00
Processing Systems Totals 2 1,000,100 500,221.00
ICT Totals 13 1,267,841 635,155.76
INDUSTRIAL GOODSBuilding Materials Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value Traded
Integrated Oil and Gas Services Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value TradedOANDO PLC OANDO 273 23.00 9,717,857 208,860,359.93
Integrated Oil and Gas Services Totals 273 9,717,857 208,860,359.93
Petroleum and Petroleum Products Distributors Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value TradedCONOIL PLC CONOIL 1 49.23 392 18,333.84ETERNA PLC. ETERNA 24 3.46 553,106 1,841,353.76FORTE OIL PLC. FO 61 202.00 131,690 26,165,962.02MOBIL OIL NIG PLC. MOBIL 15 165.00 25,383 3,979,009.13MRS OIL NIGERIA PLC. MRS 5 56.00 5,500 292,600.00TOTAL NIGERIA PLC. TOTAL 15 165.00 44,619 7,310,589.12
Petroleum and Petroleum Products Distributors Totals 121 760,690 39,607,847.87
Exploration and Production Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value TradedSEPLAT PETROLEUM DEVELOPMENT COMPANY LTD SEPLAT 18 431.30 72,902 31,447,521.10
Daily Summary as of 18/11/2014Printed 18/11/2014 15:33:03.003
OIL AND GASExploration and Production Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value TradedExploration and Production Totals 18 72,902 31,447,521.10
OIL AND GAS Totals 421 11,055,414 280,167,711.40
SERVICESAutomobile/Auto Part Retailers Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value Traded
R T BRISCOE PLC. RTBRISCOE 9 0.78 195,938 152,722.68Automobile/Auto Part Retailers Totals 9 195,938 152,722.68
Courier/Freight/Delivery Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value TradedRED STAR EXPRESS PLC REDSTAREX 1 4.20 300 1,323.00TRANS-NATIONWIDE EXPRESS PLC. TRANSEXPR 1 1.29 100 130.00
Courier/Freight/Delivery Totals 2 400 1,453.00
Employment Solutions Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value TradedC & I LEASING PLC. CILEASING 4 0.50 175,090 87,545.00
Employment Solutions Totals 4 175,090 87,545.00
Hotels/Lodging Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value TradedIKEJA HOTEL PLC IKEJAHOTEL 43 3.60 3,990,291 14,390,099.85
Hotels/Lodging Totals 43 3,990,291 14,390,099.85
Media/Entertainment Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value TradedDAAR COMMUNICATIONS PLC DAARCOMM 1 0.50 23,040 11,520.00
Media/Entertainment Totals 1 23,040 11,520.00
Daily Summary as of 18/11/2014Printed 18/11/2014 15:33:03.003
Name Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value TradedNEWGOLD EXCHANGE TRADED FUND (ETF) NEWGOLD 1 2,019.00 462 932,778.00VETIVA GRIFFIN 30 ETF VETGRIF30 1 15.83 5 79.15
Exchange Traded Fund Totals 2 467 932,857.15
ETF Board Totals 2 467 932,857.15
ETP Activity Totals 2 467 932,857.15
Daily Summary as of 18/11/2014Printed 18/11/2014 15:33:03.003
FINANCIAL SERVICESBanking Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value Traded
WEMA BANK PLC. WEMABANK 22 0.99 1,254,016 1,235,664.81ZENITH INTERNATIONAL BANK PLC ZENITHBANK 262 21.00 17,226,615 361,408,104.14
Banking Totals 1,296 65,215,473 788,780,323.74
Insurance Carriers, Brokers and Services Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value TradedAIICO INSURANCE PLC. AIICO 29 0.80 2,438,044 1,993,023.63CONTINENTAL REINSURANCE PLC CONTINSURE 7 0.93 687,849 639,839.57CORNERSTONE INSURANCE COMPANY PLC. CORNERST 8 0.50 13,211,475 6,605,737.50GUINEA INSURANCE PLC. GUINEAINS 1 0.50 106,000 53,000.00INTERNATIONAL ENERGY INSURANCE COMPANY PLC INTENEGINS 1 0.50 12,133 6,066.50LASACO ASSURANCE PLC. LASACO 2 0.50 65,377 32,688.50MANSARD INSURANCE PLC MANSARD 4 3.00 35,334 102,795.32MUTUAL BENEFITS ASSURANCE PLC. MBENEFIT 8 0.52 569,688 293,540.88N.E.M INSURANCE CO (NIG) PLC. NEM 24 0.69 2,002,659 1,381,962.71PRESTIGE ASSURANCE CO. PLC. PRESTIGE 3 0.50 84,540 43,960.80WAPIC INSURANCE PLC WAPIC 33 0.62 1,044,327 645,001.04
Insurance Carriers, Brokers and Services Totals 120 20,257,426 11,797,616.45
Micro-Finance Banks Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value TradedNPF MICROFINANCE BANK PLC NPFMCRFBK 6 0.89 145,742 129,710.38
Micro-Finance Banks Totals 6 145,742 129,710.38
Other Financial Institutions Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value TradedAFRICA PRUDENTIAL REGISTRARS PLC AFRIPRUD 58 3.04 4,988,346 14,622,468.04CUSTODIAN AND ALLIED PLC CUSTODYINS 31 4.00 7,504,959 30,018,075.40
Daily Summary as of 18/11/2014Printed 18/11/2014 15:33:03.003
ICTComputer Based Systems Symbol No. of Deals Current Price Quantity Traded Value Traded
COURTEVILLE BUSINESS SOLUTIONS PLC COURTVILLE 10 0.50 266,903 133,451.50Computer Based Systems Totals 10 266,903 133,451.50
SOUTH-SOUTH
Tony AnichebeUYO
Political stakeholders of Uyo Senatorial district
in Akwa Ibom State, led by the elders of the area have to announced their deci-sion to only endorse a gov-ernorship candidate that would only be produced
by the Eket Senatorial district as earlier favoured by the Peoples Democrat-ic Party (PDP),National working committee.
Senator Effiong Bob, who announced this dur-ing a meeting in Uyo yes-terday said, the elders of PDP from Uyo senatorial district decided to toe the line of peace in the interest of the party since the deci-sion of the party was final.
He said although, it was a difficult decision to ar-rive at, following the pop-ularity of Obong Bassey Albert Akpan, who had already won the election, but noted that there was
nothing any memer of the party could do to win the election if the party’s flag bearer is not from EKet senatorial district based on the zoning arrange-ment of PDP NWC.
“Something happened before something hap-pened, that is why we have decided to follow Jesus, a man of peace, no turning back, this peace has cause us something, if there is provision of independent candidacy by INEC, Bassey Albert would be the next governor of this state, but since Uyo senatorial dis-trict would not want to play opposition we have decided
to follow the decision of our party.’’ he said.
He dismissed the posi-tion that Albert has dis-appointed the people by accepting to step down, saying that if the people demand apology it should not be from Albert since he did not step down on his own but forced by his party, the decision he had to obey.
“Uyo sensational dis-trict is known for peace, when we speak, others lis-ten, for the interest of peace we have decided to support Eket senatorial governor-ship zoning, Uyo had it, Ikot Ekpene has it, Eket must also have it in 2015.”
Ibibio back Akwa Ibom’s zoning formula
Gas: Uduaghan condemns attack on Jonathan
Boko Haram: SSCF warns president against northern leaders
Student sues Ekpoma varsity
Oshiomhole condoles with Ahmed, Nda-Isaiah
C’River LP warns against ‘money politics’Clement JamesCalabar.
The Chairman of the Cross River State
of the Labour Party (LP), Mr. Austin Ibok, has warned the people against allowing those he described as “money-bags” to assume power in the state, saying they would only serve their personal interest.
Ibok, who spoke yes-terday to Journalists in Calabar said the present situation where ward congress in the state elic-it so much interest and generate so much ten-sion was not in the best interest of the people and urged them to vote in “dedicated, genuine and capable” politicians in next year’s election.
Cajetan MmutabENIN
A five hundred level student of the De-
partment of Mechanical Engineering, Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma, Edo state Mr. Iyoha Eb-hodaghe yesterday said he is dragging the man-agement of the institu-tion to court over the de-cision to stop him from sitting for his final year examinations.
Ebhodaghe, said he was seeking redress by the court to compel the state owned university to explain why it pre-cluded him from the ex-aminations which was concluded recently.
According to him, the university failed to ac-knowledge and respond to the series of letters his lawyer, Abraham Oviawe, sent to it since the 13th of October 2014.
He lamented that the
action of the university made him suffer untold damages for wrongly ac-cusing him of “publish-ing some news about the institution without due authorization”.
The university alleged that the student gathered fellow students for illegal assembly and distorted facts about the University.
He explained that he approached the court to state the actual fact that he leads the group, Concerned Students and Youths on Politi-cal Advancement and National Development, COSYPAND, known and legally registered by the university.
The embattled student added that the illegal as-sembly the University alleged was part of the group’s aims and objec-tives which includes ad-vocacy for the state gov-ernment’s development of the institution.
Dominic AdewoleaSaba
Delta state Gover-nor, Emmanuel Uduaghan, yes-terday decried
the attack on President Goodluck Jonathan over the commissioning of the $16 billion gas project billed for Monday in the state saying, the threats of the Ijaw youths to dis-rupt the commissioning ceremony was ill advised.
The host communities had accused the Presi-dency of playing politics with the project, vowing to disrupt the commission-ing. The threat led to the kidnapping of 14 Jour-nalists, designated for the commissioning ceremony.
But while speaking on the development Ud-uaghan condemned the attack on the President, over the project in strong terms saying, the act of kidnapping of 14 Jour-
nalists invited for the project commissioning was unwarranted.
He stated that the incident was disturb-ing as he defended the President’s directive to security operatives to ensure the freedom of all the Journalists abducted as well as fish out those responsible for the das-tardly act.
Speaking in Asaba yesterday, the governor emphasized that the gas
city project, which has come to stay in Delta state, despite several interests, would see the light of the day.
While maintaining that the Jonathan meant well for Nigeria, and Delta state in particular, he explained that the project, which was originally billed for Koko had to be relocated to the present site at Ogidigben because of the shallow na-ture of the waters in Koko, the initial location.
Clement JamesCalabar
A group under the aegis of South South Consol-
idated Forum (SSCF), has accused Northern Elites of sponsoring Boko Haram Insurgency to truncate the government of President Goodluck Jonathan.
In a press statement signed by its President, Chief Dick Harry and
made available to the news-men in Calabar on yester-day, the group said that the Boko Haram insurgency was a result of clandestine design by the North to rub-bish the administration of President Jonathan.
“On the issue of the on-going faceless insurgence called Boko Haram, it is not out of place to say that the insurgents are being sponsored by some highly
placed desperate ambitious politicians from the North, who felt that the Presidency is their birth-right,” the statement noted.
It further said the pres-ent insurgency in parts of the North “was the handiwork of overzealous and desperate politicians from the North,” adding that the religious aspect of the war was a mere coloration.
“They do this just to dis-credit the efforts of of the Federal Government. Unfor-tunately for them, their evil plans have failed and will continue to fail,” it argued.
As far the group is con-cerned, “the Northern Leaders and Elders Forum need to tell the World the truth and rise to the occa-sion to put an end to this national genocide against innocent Nigerian citizens.’’
Deft moves by uncommon transformer, Godswill akpabio, yield results in Uyo zone
MaSTEr STrOKE
l-r: Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Women affairs and Social Welfare, akwa Ibom State, Mrs. arit Okpo; Commissioner for Women affairs and Social Welfare, Dr. Glory Edet and Commissioner for Information and Communications, Mr. aniekan Umanah, at the 2014 International White Cane and Safety Day in Uyo…yesterday
Cajetan MmutabENIN
Edo State Governor Ad-ams Oshiomhole, yes-
terday sent condolence to his counterpart in Kwara State, Governor, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed on the death of his mother, Hajia Ramotalahi Ahmed.
Also, the Governor condoled with the Mr. Sam Nda-Isaiah, Pub-lisher of the Leadership Newspaper and Presiden-tial Aspirant of the All Progressives Congress on the death of his father, Pa Clement Ndanusa Isaiah
The governor in a con-dolence letter to the Kwara State governor said, “I write to convey the condo-
lences of the people and Government of Edo State, as well as my personal com-miseration to Your Excel-lency, over the demise of your beloved mother, the worthy matriarch of the family, Hajia Ramotalahi Ahmed at the age of 90.
He said, “My thoughts and prayers are with you and the entire Ahmed family at this very dif-ficult moment of grief. While we join you to mourn her painful depar-ture, we are certain that you will find consolation in the fact that your pre-cious mother had lived a worthy life, and stood as beacon of motherhood, religious devotion and community leadership.”
48 News WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH
33,905The number of fixed-telephone subscriptions of Belize in 2007.
Source: Itu.int
76The life expectancy of women at birth in
American Samoa in 2006.Source: Un.org
4The number of Ebola virus deaths that occurred in Uganda in 2012.
Source: Who.int
Ibraheem MusaKAdUnA
The Ahmadu Bello Uni-versity (ABU), Zaria,
will confer honorary doc-torate degrees on former Minister of Petroleum and Energy, Alhaji Shet-tima Ali Monguno, retired Federal Permanent Secre-tary, Dr. Bukar Usman and a member of the Saudi royal family, Prince Talal Abdulazeez Bin Al Saud, at its 37th convocation cer-emony scheduled to take place on Saturday.
Vice-Chancellor of the institution, Prof. Abdul-
lahi Mustapha, who an-nounced the institution’s decision in an interview with newsmen, said the recipients had already been notified of their se-lection for the awards.
The vice-chancellor said elder statesman, Monguno, would be con-ferred with Doctor of Law, while Usman would receive Doctor of Letters. The Saudi prince would be given Doctor of Science, he added.
According to him, Monguno is a widely acclaimed educational philanthropist, who had established schools to as-
sist the less privileged in addition to donating text and exercise books to vari-ous schools and indigent students.
The vice-chancellor also said that Usman is an alumnus of the univer-sity, having graduated in 1969, adding that he is be-ing honored as an accom-plished administrator. Us-man had served the nation in different capacities.
The vice-chancellor further said that Saudi prince has distinguished himself as an interna-tional philanthropist, par-ticularly in Third World countries.
Yuzarsif AlhassanBAUchI
A youth group in Bauchi State, Bauchi Youths
Mobilisation Forum (BYMF) yesterday kicked against the aspiration of the former Secretary to the Government of the Feder-ation (SGF), Alhaji Yayale Ahmed, who is aspiring to
contest the governorship seat in the state.
Protesting the aspira-tion yesterday, hundreds of youths were seen car-rying placards and chant-ing slogans, against the former SGF.
Some of the inscriptions on the placards read: “We say no to Yayale Ahmed, he is not our choice,” “We are calling on Governor Yugu-
da, to make the right choice for us,” “We need someone capable of projecting the image of our people and state.”
Others include; “We don’t want him, he didn’t do anything forBauchi state,” “We do call on our people to go for the right candidate and not the party,” Sulaim-an Ahmed, the chairman of the group said.
cephas IorhemenMAKUrdI
As the row between Senator Barnabas Gemade and Gover-
nor Gabriel Suswam, over who clinches the Benue North East senatorial ticket deepens, a chieftain of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Benue State, Mrs. Felicia Tondu, yester-day called on President Goodluck Jonathan to steer clear of the crisis.
Tondu, who is the PDP woman leader based in Gboko, told journalists in Makurdi yesterday that President Jonathan has grown beyond local politics and should not cheapen himself by getting himself embroiled in such, but al-low the people to decide who their leaders should be in next year’s general elections.
The women leader, who was speaking against the backdrop of the widespread insinuation that the Presi-dent was allegedly support-ing Gemade, a former PDP chairman and may likely
impose him on the zone, said the people of the sena-torial district would not sup-port the idea.
Rather, she suggested that a level playing field be created for all aspirants in the zone during the com-ing primaries, adding that if the wish of the people favours Suswam, the Presi-dent could compensate his party's former national chairman with ministerial position.
Tondu, carpeted those in-troducing sentiments in the senatorial battle between the duo of Gemade and Suswam, saying that issues such as non-payment of civ-il servants' salaries was to discredit Suswam. She said the economic downturn was not peculiar to the state.
Sh said: “While am not happy with non-payment of workers' salaries, I think the problem should be put on the shoulder of the Fed-eral Government, with the dwindling federal allocation to states, after all, I read in the papers that some states, including Edo, are owing their workers."
Jonathan urged to steer clear of Suswam, Gemade row
Northern Christians call for UN peace keepers
cephas IorhemenMAKUrdI
Ominous signals of hostility between
Senate President, David Mark and the paramount ruler of the Tiv nation in Benue State, Dr. Alfred Akawe Torkula, played out during last Satur-day's thanksgiving ser-vice organised to mark the birthday celebration of Governor Gabriel Suswam.
The Tor Tiv, who had long seated with his wife waiting for the arrival of the visitor, President Goodluck Jonathan at the Aper Aku Township Sta-dium, was seen ignor-ing pleasantries from Mark, who had come in company of Suswam and the Chief of Staff to the President, Se-hinde Arogbofa, PDP National Chairman, Alhaji Adamu Mu'azu, Alhaji Aliko Dangote and other personalities.
Muhammad BashirLoKojA
The third term senato-rial ambition of Sena-
tor Smart Adeyemi once again suffered another setback as leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Kogi West, en-dorsed Chief Tolorunju-won Faniyi, as their sole candidate for the party's senate ticket.
The leaders, com-prising, former Senator Tunde Ogbeha, former Deputy Chief of Staff in the Presidency, Prince Shola Akanmode, former Deputy Governor, Chief Samuel Akande and for-mer SSG in the state, Hon. Musa Ahmadu, at a media conference, said their de-cision was in line with the gentleman agreement on zoning within the senato-rial district.
Speaking on behalf of the leaders, Ogbeha said there has been an exist-ing zoning arrangement
within the three federal constituencies in the zone.
“Lokoja/Kogi federal constituency presented me in 1999 to serve as senator, which I served for eight years, Kabba/Ijumu federal constituen-cy produce the incumbent senator, Smart Adeyemi, who is currently serving his second term of eight years. Based on this, it is the turn of Yagba federal constituency, which is the reason why we have unanimously endorsed Faniyi, who is from the Yagba area.
“So it would be reason-able for any politician to respect this agreement, instead of altering it."
He said the leaders of the party urged other poli-ticians to team up and sup-port Faniyi in the interest of peace and unity within the zone.
It will be recalled that Senator Smart Adeyemi had since obtained and submitted his nomination form for his third term.
churches destroyed.He continued: “We have
lost confidence in the Fed-eral Government of Ni-geria, the United Nations (UN) must intervene and declare the North East a UN territory with imme-diate effect and send peace keeping troops to secure the lives of the people."
Musa PamjoS
Christians in the northern part of the country yes-terday expressed
doubt over the ability of the Federal Government to tackle the insurgent group,
Boko Haram, in North East, saying over 8,000 people have been mur-dered and 700,000, mostly women and children, have been displaced.
Youth CAN Chairman, North Central Zone, Mr. Daniel Kadzai, said this in Jos during a press briefing. He said it is obvious that
the Federal Government has neglected the Chris-tians in the north.
According to him, “Over 700, 000 members of the church, mostly women and children, have been displaced and are now scat-tered all over the place - in places like Jos, Abuja and Kaduna.
“Over 8,000 members have been murdered or killed by the Boko Haram sect while over 270 church-es have been destroyed completely. Also, 45 out of the 50 District Church Councils (DCCs) have been affected by the crisis.”
Kadzai added: “The Church of the Brethren
in Nigeria, with member-ship strength of over five million, is the worst af-fected by the Boko Haram crisis. Also, available infor-mation from the Catholic Church shows that 3, 200 members of the church have been killed while 350, 000 members have been displaced and 215 Catholic
Saudi prince, Monguno bag ABU degrees
Bauchi youths kick against former SGF’s aspiration
Gombe State commissioner for health, dr. Kennedy Ishaya (left), vaccinating a health worker at the launch of campaign against hepatitis B Virus in Gombe …yesterday
Tor Tiv snubs Mark
Ogeha, Akanmode dump Adeyemi
north 49NewsNEW TELEGRAPH wednesday, november 19, 2014
50 News WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH WORLD | News
CJN justifies judicial reform Tunde OyesinaAbujA
The outgoing Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Mariam
Aloma Mukhtra has justified the various re-form measures she ini-tiated during her about 28-month tenure and expressed delight over their outcome.
Justice Mukhtar, who will bow out of the judi-ciary on November 20, after attaining the re-tirement age of 70, said
although not everyone is satisfied with her de-cisions and actions, she was satisfied that major-ity of those, who were not comfortable with her reform initiatives, are now happy with the outcome.
The CJN, who spoke in Abuja on Monday, while playing host to some ju-dicial correspondents, explained that her deci-sions and actions were solely driven by the urge to make a difference and to improve the system and ensure its effective performance.
She admitted knowl-edge of the fact that not every member of the Ju-diciary was comfortable and happy with her deci-sions and actions, stress-ing that it was impossi-ble to have everyone support efforts aimed at effecting a change.
Justice Mukhtar, who has spent over 47 years in government service, said although it was not easy, she had always felt internal comfort because she has always chosen the straight path and remained steadfast in all she does.
EFCC, Nnamani bicker over slow pace of trialAkeem Nafiu
The trial of for-mer Enugu State governor, Chief
Chimaroke Nnamani, yesterday took a twist as the Economic and Financial Crimes Com-mission (EFCC) accused the former governor of deliberate plan to trun-cate the justice system.
Particularly, the an-ti-graft lawyer, Kelvin Uzozie, described Nna-mani’s unending trial over allegations of fraud for over seven years with-out success as a ‘judicial
scandal’, which the judi-ciary must decisively ad-dress. Uzozie said this at the continued hearing of the matter before Justice Mohammed Yunusa of a Federal High Court in Lagos.
While lamenting the snail speed of the trial, he said it was obvious as con-tained in court’s records that Nnamani had always used ill-health as ruse to truncate his trial. Uzozie said: “It is a scandal that a criminal case that the law says must be speedily con-cluded has not even pro-ceeded to trial more than
seven years after it was filed.”
However, Nnamani’s lawyer, Ricky Tarfa (SAN) swiftly objected to the submission, and advised Uzozie to face arguments in respect of the motion for the sole trial of the former governor.
The EFCC had, in an application, urged Jus-tice Yunusa to separate Nnamani’s trial from the other accused persons, so that his frequent medical trips abroad would no lon-ger stall the trial of other accused persons, who were ready to face trial.
Austerity measures: PENGASSAN tells Jonathan to reduce appointeesYekeen NurudeenAbujA
The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association
of Nigeria (PENGAS-SAN) has called on Presi-dent Goodluck Jonathan to prune the number of the political aides at all level of governance rather than imposing what it called unneces-sary austerity measures on Nigerians in the face of falling international crude oil price.
The oil worker asso-ciation, in a statement issued in Abuja yester-day by its President, Comrade Francis John-
son, said political office holders should be ready to make sacrifice for Ni-geria by cutting down the number of their aides.
Johnson argued that the huge number of political appointees as aides to the Presidency, the ministers, state gov-ernors and their commis-sioners are simply waste of national resources and putting pressure on the economy.
He also cautioned the Federal Government, es-pecially the Federal Min-istry of Finance, against stifling the economy through withholding of funds for human and developmental projects,
but to tighten the noose around all avenues of leakages and wastages.
The PENGASSAN President stated that instead of the govern-ment to introduce auster-ity measures that would further impoverish and inflict more pains on the people, the government should consider reducing to the barest minimum, the numbers of senior special advisers, special advisers, advisers and other aides that are at-tached to the presidency, the ministers, governors as well as members of the National Assembly and state houses of as-sembly.
NERC, Abuja Disco differ on metering implementationjohnchuks OnuanyimAbujA
The Abuja Electric-ity Distribution Company (AEDC)
and the Nigerian Elec-tricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) yesterday disagreed on the modalities used in the implementation of Credited Advance Pay-ment Metering Imple-
mentation (CAPMI) Scheme.
The Executive Di-rector, Regulatory and Stakeholders’ Affairs, Engr. Abimbola Odubi-yi, who represented the Managing Director of the AEDC, speaking at the Public Consultation on Electricity Metering organized by NERC, said that the 45 days specifica-tion for the installation of meters under CAPMI
was being delayed by the installers and not the company, but NERC insisted that the 45 days must be strictly adhered to for the benefit of the customers.
NERC argued that the 45 days of meter instal-lation under the CAPMI Scheme was one of the benefits a customer was supposed to enjoy, there-fore could not be compro-mised.
Ivory Coast’s soldiers protest over benefits, bonuses
Two Palestinians armed with a gun and meat cleavers burst into a Jeru-
salem synagogue yester-day and killed four Israe-lis before being shot dead in the city’s bloodiest at-tack in years. It was a rare assault on a place of wor-ship and sent shock waves through the country, rais-ing fears that the already deadly Israel-Palestinian conflict was taking on a dangerous religious di-mension.
All four victims were Israelis with dual nation-ality, three were US citi-zens and the fourth Brit-ish, police said. Israel’s
Israeli emergency services carrying a body at the scene of an attack at a synagogue in jerusalem, yesterday
Romania: Minister resigns over expat vote fiasco
Romania’s foreign minister resigned yesterday, after
barely a week in of-fice, after thousands of citizens overseas were unable to vote in this weekend’s presidential elections.
Teodor Melescanu stepped down following the weekend’s runoff vote. His predecessor resigned last week after
similar problems with the first-round vote. Images have poured in of Roma-nians standing in snaking lines to vote all over Eu-rope. Anger at the prob-lems contributed to the surprise victory of Klaus Iohannis over Prime Min-ister Victor Ponta.
Suggesting his party could push for early elec-tions, Iohannis said the center-right Liberal Party
he leads wanted to take office next year, or in 2016 when the elections are scheduled.
Romanians see vot-ing as a hard-won right following the fall of communism in 1989. An estimated 3 million Roma-nians live abroad and they sent 3.6 billion euros ($4.6 billion) home last year, much of it supporting poor families.
Deadly Jerusalem synagogue attack horrifies Israel
Former rebels now serving in Ivory Coast’s ar my
erected barricades and blocked streets outside barracks across the coun-try yesterday in protest over unpaid benefits and bonuses, military and dip-lomatic sources said.
Ivory Coast, the world’s number one cocoa pro-ducer, is still recovering from a decade of political turmoil and a 2011 civil war that saw French- and U.N.-backed rebels topple President Laurent Gbagbo after his refusal to accept defeat in elections. Dem-onstrations broke out
at around a half dozen military bases in the com-mercial capital Abidjan, in the second largest Ivorian city Bouake as well as in Korhogo, Bondoukou and Daloa, a hub of the coun-try’s cocoa industry.
“The soldiers are on the streets,” said a Reuters witness near an army base in the northern Abidjan neighborhood of Abobo. “They used tyres, old cars, everything they could find to block the road. You can’t get in. All the shops are closed.” There were no re-ports of violence during the protests. Some of the demonstrating soldiers
were demanding promo-tions and payment of a 5 million ($10,000) CFA bonus they say each was promised three years ago while fighting for the reb-els supporting current President Alassane Ouat-tara.
Others said they have been shortchanged on benefits. Speaking on state television, Defence Minis-ter Paul Koffi Koffi urged the protesters to return to barracks. He said the gov-ernment had agreed to pay overdue travel stipends and housing allowances and to set aside money for soldiers’ health care.
leading ultra-Orthodox website said all four were rabbis. The bloodshed took place as months of unrest gripped Jerusa-lem’s annexed Arab east-ern sector, resulting in a string of deadly attacks by lone Palestinians and further enflamed by the death of a Palestinian bus driver in controver-sial circumstances. But none was as serious as yesterday’s killings at the synagogue in an ultra-Orthodox neigh-bourhood on the city’s western outskirts as worshippers gathered for morning prayers.
Four people were
killed and eight wound-ed, including two police-men, medics said. One person was in a critical condition and three sus-tained serious injuries, with eyewitnesses say-ing several had had limbs hacked off. The attack began shortly before 7 am (0500 GMT) when the assailants burst in, wav-ing meat cleavers and a gun at the synagogue in a Jewish seminary in Har Nof. Three policemen, two traffic officers and a forensics expert -- arrived and exchanged gunfire with the attackers, kill-ing them, police spokes-woman Luba Samri said.
NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 51
Cesc Fabregas has recorded nine PL goal assists already for Chelsea this season, more than any Blues
player managed last season
Did you know?
International SportOkocha backs shaky Eagles to bag AFCON ticket
and coach Stephen Keshi have an up-hill task as Nigeria confront South Africa in a crucial last qualifying round of the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations slated for Equatorial Guinea.
Interestingly, the Bafana Bafana, Eagles’ foes in this evening’s encounter are yet to beat the Nigerian team ever in a competitive game. The match starts at 6pm at the Akwa Ibom International Stadium, Uyo.
Even when the South Afri-cans play well, Nigeria always have a way of getting the goals to make the difference.
The setting is however dif-ferent in this encounter as the pressure is on Nigeria. South Africa have an unassailable lead in the group with 11 points from five games. They are already through to the Na-
tions Cup finals having won three matches and drawn two.
On the other hand, Nige-ria have seven points from same number of games and are second in the group with two wins, two defeats and one draw. Congo also have seven points but Nigeria have a superior goal difference and head-to-head advantage over Congo.
Sudan with just three points in five games are out of contention. They recorded the three points with their victory over Super Eagles in Khartoum last month.
With this scenario, the Ea-gles need just any win against a South African side that has nothing but pride at stake in this fixture. The Eagles there-fore will have to work hard to overcome the visitors who are yet to lose a game in the series.
Of note is also the fact that the Bafana Bafana have 100 per cent record in their away games so far in the qualifiers. They defeated Sudan 3-0 and
whipped Congo 2-0.Nigeria surely have better
players and a more exposed team but one cannot overlook the record of the young South African team under coach Ephraim “Shakes” Mashaba.
“We are not going to lose to Nigeria. The best the Eagles can get is a draw. My boys are ready to maintain our unbeaten run in the series,” Mashaba said.
Keshi and his boys should not take the threat of Masha-ba lightly especially because Nigeria must win to book a ticket to Nations Cup 2015. Congo also stand a chance of beating Sudan to win the second group ticket if there is any slip by the Eagles in Uyo. For Keshi, qualifica-tion is a must for him to get a contract in keeping with the agreement reached with the Nigeria Football Federation and the Presidency.
China-based Aaron Sam-uel could be the joker for the Eagles if Keshi would be brave enough to start him along with Ikechukwu Uche
in the attack. Samuel has scored two crucial goals for Nigeria in the last two games and so deserves a starting role this evening. The defence will be without Godfrey Oboabo-na and one expects Azubuike Egwuekwe to again stand in to pair Kenneth Omeruo.
Ambrose Efe is however a suspect on the right side of the defence and I believe Solomon Kwambe can do a better job.
The Eagles will not lack support at the magnificent new stadium in Uyo. The players are also expected to approach the match with confidence following their impressive away result in Pointe Noire.
On paper, the Eagles have all it takes to win this encoun-ter but they must not in any-way underrate the Bafana Bafana. They might not have star players like Nigeria, their level of understanding and great overall collective play are good enough to shock any team on the continent includ-ing Nigeria.
StIll aN uphIll taSk for EaglES tImE: 6pm
Nigeria vs South Africa:
Adekunle Salami
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH 52 SPORT
Congo coach begs South Africa to beat NigeriaOkocha backs shaky Eagles
to bag AFCON ticket Emmanuel Tobi
Congo coach Claude Le Roy has urged Bafana Bafana of
South Africa to beat or draw against Nigeria on Wednes-day to enhance his team’s chances of qualifying for the 2015 AFCON.
Third-placed Congo who lost 2-0 at home to Nigeria on Saturday are hoping South Africa can do them a big fa-vour by not losing in Nigeria and they win in Sudan, a sce-nario that will take the Red Devils through.
However, Congo, who last featured at the Nations Cup 14 years ago, could also qualify as third-best losers if they beat Sudan and Guinea
fail to beat Uganda. “We must beat Sudan
in Khartoum and I believe South Africa can beat Ni-geria in Uyo. They are the best team in this group and they must prove to the entire world they can’t lose to Nige-ria again just as they did dur-ing the first leg,” he told the local media in Pointe Noire.
Ifeanyi Ibeh
Former Nigeria cap-tain, Austin Okocha, has said that it will be a ‘sad thing’ if the Su-
per Eagles fail to make it to next January’s Africa Cup of Nations. He is however confi-dent Stephen Keshi’s side can secure a ticket to Equatorial Guinea at the end of Wednes-day’s encounter against South Africa, even though he feels the team has failed to show an acceptable level of consis-tency.
The reigning AFCON champions, following last weekend’s 2-0 win over Con-go, need to beat the already qualified South Africans on Wednesday at the Akwa-Ibom
International Stadium, in Uyo, to secure Group A’s last automatic ticket to Equatorial Guinea 2015.
Failure to defeat the 1996 AFCON champions could however see Nigeria missing out of a second AFCON tour-nament in three years after failing to qualify for the 2012 tournament.
That 2012 absence was as a result of the Super Eagles’ inability to defeat Guinea in Abuja on October 8, 2011; a loss that led to Samson Siasia’s exit as coach of the national team.
Okocha, who was at the Abuja National Stadium on that fateful day the Super Ea-gles played out an uninspiring 2-2 draw with the Guineans, said: “We are in a difficult situation but we’ve been there before.”
Discovery Air ready to fly Eagles to 2015 AFCON
Bafana Bafana must fall – Glo
Shorunmu banks on Congo spirit
Onazi (left)
Le Roy
Pinnick warns against over-confidence
Fans to pay N500, N3000
Vincent Eboigbe
Super Eagles goalkeep-ers’ trainer, Ike Sho-
runmu, has said that the players will carry forward the can-do spirit that en-sured they defeated Con-go away into the game against South Africa on Wednesday (today).
The Eagles beat the Red Devils 2-0 in Pointe Noire to revive their hith-erto floundering African Nations Cup qualifying campaign. The defend-ing champions now need to get a win against the Bafana Bafana to book a place in the finals to be held in Equatorial Guinea.
Shorunmu told our correspondent on the tele-phone that it was impera-tive Nigeria continued in that gung-ho mood to complete the job on home soil at the new Akwa Ibom International Stadium in Uyo.
“We have not arrived at our destination yet, we are still on the road and we will keep at it until the final whistle; that is the spirit in camp. It worked for us against Congo and that is what we will also take into the game against South Africa. We won’t rest until we have the ticket in the bag. We will continue to challenge our-selves,” Shorunmu said.
“Thankfully, the play-ers know what is as stake; they are united. As you know football is team-work unlike individual sports like table tennis or tennis. Everybody must pull in one direction to achieve results.”
Shorunmu who was so confident Nigeria would get a win against Congo in Pointe Noire, said his optimism stemmed from the fact that the players were fired up and ready to redeem themselves after the initial hiccups in the qualifiers.
Emmanuel Tobi
The management of Discovery Airlines has expressed its
readiness to fly the Super Eagles to the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations even as it backed the team to de-feat the Bafana Bafana of South Africa on Wednesday in the final qualifying match at the Akwa Ibom Stadium, Uyo.
The airline’s Chairman, Baba-tunde Babalola, said: “We see it as a rare privilege as a new airline in the industry to be chosen to air-lift the Super Eagles to Congo. It is confidence-building for us and that tells you about our standard. We are confident the Eagles will beat South Africa and qualify for the Nations Cup in Equatorial Guinea.
“The Nigeria Football Federa-tion President, Amaju Pinnick,
has expressed the federation’s satisfaction with the high level of professionalism in terms of hospitality and safety offered by Discovery Airline when we took the Eagles to and from Congo.”
Discovery Airlines Managing Director, Captain Abdulsam Mo-hammed, added: “We are talking to the Equatorial Guinea govern-ment to fly directly to Malabo and also open a joint venture with a local airline over there to fly to Bata.
“We also hope to expand our routes from the regular Lagos to Abuja and Lagos to Port Har-court/ Uyo to include Lagos to Enugu/ Owerri and Lagos to Abuja/Jos. With over 150 well trained staff, who are 99 percent Nigerians, our strategy of prompt delivery and good customer ser-vice has helped us to be accepted in the industry.”
Sponsor of Nigerian national teams, Glo-
bacom, has advised the Super Eagles to go for out-right victory in their last qualifying match of 2015 African Cup of Nations against the Bafana Bafana of South Africa in Uyo on Wednesday.
Globacom, in a press statement released in La-gos on Tuesday stated that the Eagles need maximum
support from 170 million Nigerians in their quest to win the match and pick the second Group A ticket.
“Like we expressed be-lief in the Super Eagles to beat Congo last week-end, we are also backing the team to pick the three points against South Afri-ca in this game. We equal-ly believe that the Eagles have rediscovered their rhythm and are on course towards featuring in Equatorial Guinea where they will defend their title in January next year,” the statement added.
According to Globa-com, “ We cannot fail to appreciate the collective effort of the team in sur-mounting the challenge in Congo as we believe the players will not take their feet off the pedal at this point in time until the AFCON ticket is secured.”
NFF President, Amaju Pinnick, observed on Tuesday that the Super Eagles cannot afford
to be over –confident going into Wednesday’s crucial Cup of Nations qualifier against South Africa’s Bafa-na Bafana.
“Pointe Noire was a bright point for us, no doubt. We went there with a strong mind to turn the campaign around and we did just that. But there are still 90 minutes to go in the qualifying race and it is critical that we maintain focus.
“The wise guys tell you that it is when a guy gets too confident that he is wide open for a sucker punch. I am a strong optimist and I know that we are as good as being in the Draw for the final tournament. But we must keep a level head for those 90 minutes, maintain focus and clini-cally take our chances.”
“I have spoken with the Head Coach and some of the players and I know that they are determined that nothing will go wrong. We have a way with South Africa but we will not un-der –rate them.”
The Confederation of African Football has already fixed the Draw Ceremony for the 30th Africa Cup of Nations for Wednesday, December 3 in Malabo.
Ticket prices for the 2015 African Cup of Nations qualifier between Super
of Nigeria and Bafana Bafana of South Africa has been released.
The match will take place at the 30,000 capacity Akwa Ibom International Sta-dium, Uyo, with tickets going for N500 (Popular Side), N1000 (VIP) and N3000 (VVIP).
Nigeria would be hoping to make it three wins in a row, having defeated Congo Brazzaville 2-0 in Pointe Noire on Saturday.
Eagles have seven points from five games, and will be without the services of Chigozie Agbim, Godfrey Oboabona and Hope Akpan.
Bafana arrived in Uyo on Monday night.
Mashaba wary of bad officiating Bafana Bafana coach
Shakes Mashaba knows that facing the Super Eagles of Nigeria in their own backyard is an unenviable task on its own, but in the midst of it all the 50-year-old believes that they stand a chance this time around, to upset the African champi-ons when they meet at the Akwa Ibom Stadium.
One thing Mashaba doesn’t want to witness, is dodgy officiating to spoil this much anticipated encounter.
“The only thing with these games is to hope that we get the best match offi-cials, that is all,” Mashaba told the Sowetan on Tuesday.
“If we get the best then we are confident of results coming our way. Nigeria are in trouble and they need
this (win). The game is also about more than just the three points because of the history between the two rival countries. Nigerians never want to lose to South Africans and that alone make this a humdinger of a match,” Mashaba said.
NIgErIa v SOUTH afrIca afcON QUaLIfIEr
Mashaba
Furman (left) and Musa
53NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 INTERNATIONAL SPORTS
Ifeanyi Ibeh
In a bid to give the game of basketball a boost in
the West African sub re-gion, the Executive Board of FIBA Africa Zone 3, led by Colonel Sam Ahmedu (Rtd), has set in motion modalities that will see its programmes become a reality.
In this regard, the body has facilitated the dona-tion of the latest table top score boards to each of the eight federations that make up FIBA Africa Zone 3.
The countries are Ni-geria, Benin, Togo, Gha-na, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Liberia and Ni-ger.
According to Musa Kida of Nigeria, who is also the zone’s vice-president and chairman of the body’s Finance, Sponsorship & Market-ing Commission: “This equipment donation is a tip of the iceberg, as the board will also encourage federations to develop their basketball facilities up to international stan-dard.”
Ahmedu, the zone’s
boss, also stated that na-tional federations within the zone would be as-sisted to create a synergy between them and pro-spective sponsors in their respective countries, add-ing that the board will also establish an efficient management structure to enhance proper adminis-tration in the zone.
In addition, the zone has created a series of new competitions aimed at boosting the sport. They include a Veterans’ League, as well as a cham-pionship for national men and women teams.
Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric is reportedly expected to be out of action
for around three months after suffering a thigh injury while on international duty with Croatia.
The 29-year-old has cemented his spot in the first team under Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti, but could now face 20 games on the sidelines after tearing the left proximal rectus femoris tendon.
While Madrid’s official state-ment did not include a timescale on Modric’s return, The Guard-ian reports that the midfielder is likely to spend at least 12 weeks on the treatment table after suf-fering the injury during Croatia’s 1-1 draw with Italy on Sunday.
Modric could miss the World Club Cup in Morocco and a po-tential last-16 clash in the Cham-pions League while he nurses the thigh problem.
FIBA reels out developmental programmesModric out for three months
David de Gea has dismissed speculations that Victor Valdes has been granted permission to train with
Manchester United with a view to replacing him as the club’s number one goalkeeper.
Following his release by Barcelo-na at the end of last season, Valdes was invited to continue his recovery from a knee injury at United’s train-ing base in Carrington by manager Louis van Gaal.
His arrival had resulted in reports that De Gea, who is thought to be a target of Real Madrid, could make way for his fellow Spaniard.
However, despite the fact that his contract at Old Trafford is due to ex-pire in 2016, 24-year-old De Gea has insisted that there is no competition for his place from Valdes.
“Yes, my contract runs out in 2016. But they didn’t sign him for that. Vic-
tor had a difficult injury, he had a bad time and the boss knows him well and has given him the opportunity to re-cover there,” he told AS.
“Yes, Victor is training over in Manchester, he’s still not 100 per cent after his injury. When he is fully fit he will start to train with us. He’s still not training in goal with us. From time to time he comes out with the goalkeeping coach but very little still.”
Valdes not at United to replace me – De Gea
De Gea
Modric
Federer, Wawrinka dismiss fallout claims
Roger Federer and Stanis-las Wawrinka have moved
to dismiss speculations that their relationship had become strained following their meet-ing at the ATP World Tour Fi-nals in London on Saturday night.
Towards the end of the con-
test, which Federer won 4-6, 7-5, 7-6, Wawrinka was seen having a heated exchange of views with some members of Federer’s box.
That was then followed by reports that the Swiss pair had argued in the locker room fol-lowing the conclusion of the match.
However, ahead of this week-end’s Davis Cup final against France, Federer posted a picture on Twitter that suggested that there was no ill-feeling between the duo.
Despite having been forced to pull out of the final of the season-ending event on Sunday with a back injury, Federer is ex-pected to be fit to represent his country in Lille.
Ifeanyi Ibeh
Fans are in for a fun-filled experience at this year’s
Eko Beach Soccer Tourna-ment which comes up on November 30 at the Elegushi Beach, Lagos.
Making this promise was the Chairman of the Lagos State Football Association, Seyi Akinwumi, who called on fans, as well as fun seek-ers, to come out and enjoy the best of beach soccer and music at the one-day event.
“The whole of Lagos should come and watch Eko Beach Soccer action. It’s go-ing to be a day they will not
forget in a hurry as a lot has been lined up for their enter-tainment,” said Akinwumi, who is also the First Vice President of the Nigeria Football Federation.
The event which will com-mence on November 30 by noon with a series of perfor-mances by a host of musical acts is supported by Airtel.
And Akinwumi ex-pressed his gratitude to the telecom operators for part-nering with the Lagos FA. He said: “We want to express our gratitude to Airtel. In a very short span of time they have come up with a support pack-age for us and for this we are grateful.”
The Most Valuable Player of the recently conclud-
ed Christ Embassy Football Fiesta, Adenekan Ladi of LLC1, has set his sights on grabbing a place in any of the country’s national teams.
Speaking at the end of the maiden edition of the com-petition that was targeted at the youths of the church based in Lagos, Ladi said: “I am happy to have won the MVP. I will love to represent my country in one of the national teams, especially the U-20.”
The two-week tourna-ment got underway last month with the duo of LCC1 and LCC2 progressing to the final where the former emerged victorious after edging LCC2 6-5 on penalties.
Nigeria, Germany, England chase Tottenham starlet Keanan Bennetts is not
a name that many in football are accustomed to but the 15-year-old has sparked a tussle between Nigeria, England and Ger-many.
Known for his blistering pace and technique, the exciting winger has been a revelation for the Spurs youth team leading them to victory at an Under-17 tournament that had Real Madrid, Juventus and Ar-senal.
The Spurs youngster qualifies for all three na-tions through his German mother, Nicole, Nigerian Father, Richard and being born in England.
He has already played for the German national Under-16 team in friend-lies including against Hol-land and thrice joined up in their training camps.
England also keen on not to be out maneuvered by Germany have respond-ed by giving Bennetts games with their youth
Eko Beach Soccer tourney holds Nov. 30
Christ Embassy football tourney MVP eyes Eagles
Representative of Globacom Limited, sponsors of the Globacom Premier League, Dr. Prince Dimkpa (left) presenting a symbolic cheque for the N15m Champions Merit Award to captain of Kano Pillars, Theophilus Afelokhai at the Enyimba International Stadium on Sunday. In white in the middle is NFF Board member, Ibrahim Gusau.
team in their recent Vic-tory Shield matches against Wales and Northern Ireland.
Nigeria were the last to sound out the teenager with manager Stephen Keshi call-ing the boy’s dad Richard to see if his son will represent Nigeria.
Although his Dad is in constant touch with Stephen Keshi, he insist Nigeria is a distant reality for now but hasn’t ruled out his son rep-resenting the Super Eagles in the future.
Federer
Bennetts
54 WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 NEW TELEGRAPH SPORT
Crowd invading the pitch after the final whistle of the Pillars, Enyimba match
Abia Warriors’ Onyekachi Peter challenging Kano Pillars’ Umar Sango Photo:shengolPixs
Enyimba players lament 27- match bonus arrears
Players have continued to complain about premier league clubs’ managements’
refusal to pay them their entitle-ments. This development persist-ed all through the entire season.
It is disheartening that de-spite the performance of players on the field of play, management of clubs continues to deny them their salaries, sign on fees and match bonuses leading to some of them embarking on strike to press home their demands. Others chose the option of matching to the government house to protest directly to state governors.
In Aba at the weekend, it came as a surprise to League Rendez-vous correspondent to discover that the players of Enyimba were still in the team camp instead of at the hotel as it was the norm in the club.
Usually, two days to a home game, the players would be relo-cated to a hotel to fully concen-trate for the match but the reverse was the case in the game against Kano Pillars.
Speaking with our correspon-dent, the players said they decided not to move to the hotel because they were not happy with the management.
One of the players said: “We are not happy, imagine they are owing us 27-match bonuses and part of our sign on fees, so we agreed that we were not going to the hotel.
“We decided to play the game against Kano Pillars because of our careers and out of respect to our opponent who just won the league, but we hope they (man-agement) meet our demands be-fore the Federation Cup final in Lagos.”
Enyimba will take on Dol-phins of Port Harcourt on Sun-day in Lagos in the Federation Cup final.
Pillars celebration goes awry in Aba
Five questions for Blatter
It was a scary moment for fans and players of both teams in Aba on Sunday when Kano Pillars lifted the 2013/2014 league trophy despite losing
3-1 to Enyimba as fans invaded the pitch in celebration.
Some 500 fans of the Sai Masu Gida as Pillars are known thronged the pitch as the players scampered for safety with the security operatives at the stadium failing to control the crowd.
A player of Kano Pillars was reduced to tears as a fan dragged him back to the field; it took the intervention of some journal-ists to rescue the defender.
Although the fans were trying to cel-ebrate with their team, Pillars, who have won the league consecutively for the past three seasons, League Rendezvous can report that the celebrations went too far.
The melee started when the state gover-nor, Rabiu Kwankwanso, arrived the stadi-um and some fans tried to force their way
to the state box all in the name of greeting the governor and his entourage.
It was in the midst of this that Kano Pillars captain, Theophilous Afelokhai, lifted the trophy. The top scorer award was presented to Enyimba striker, Mfon Udoh, who set a new record of 23 goals in a season.
The need to educate fans on the dan-gers of invading the pitch in the name of celebrating a win cannot be overem-phasised.
A female fan, Eno Obong, who trav-elled from Uyo to watch the final match told our correspondent who was present at the venue that it would be difficult for her to come out and watch a live game again due to her experience.
She said: “I was scared when those fans ran onto the pitch, if you want to celebrate it should not be in such manner. What was even more scary was when they pursued the players, was that celebration too?”
2013/2014 GloNPFL Facts
In view of the report from Michael Garcia, were there any indications of possible criminal conduct by people in relation to the awarding of the hosting rights to the 2018 and 2022 World Cups?
I lodged the criminal complaint upon the recommendation of Judge Eckert. I cannot, however, comment on any possible criminal offences. I am not a lawyer. I also was not the addressee of the investigatory report, which I have never seen. However, given Judge Eckert’s recommendation, it was my duty – as the President of FIFA – to lodge the complaint.Does that not mean, though, that the fed-eration’s bodies have performed poorly in examining the awarding of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups because state authorities are now dealing with – or having to deal with – the Garcia report?
I have every faith in the work of the inde-pendent chambers of the FIFA Ethics Com-mittee and their chairmen. They have done good work until now, and I have no doubt whatsoever that they will continue to do so. I must note, however, that the Ethics Com-mittee has certain limitations. As a body of a private institution, it does not have the same options as a public prosecutor. But when the chairman of the adjudicatory chamber of the Ethics Committee – him-self a judge – recommends calling upon state authorities after a certain point, then of course I listen to him.Does that mean that the Ethics Committee has
lEnyimba striker, Mfon Udoh, set a new record of 23 goals, the highest in a seasonlThe four away wins recorded on match day 38 were the highest victories on the road this seasonl21 away wins were recorded in the entire seasonl77 matches ended in draws in the whole seasonlEmem Edouk (Dolphins FC) scored six goals in one of the match day 35 gameslFirst away win of the season was record-ed by Abia Warriors in one of the match day 4 games against Enyimba
gone as far as it could in this matter?I have no doubt that the Ethics
Committee has done all it possibly could under the FIFA Statutes to shed light on the issues surround-ing the awarding of the World Cups.
After FIFA President Blatter lodged a criminal complaint with the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland, he spoke with FIFA.com on the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bids.
In such situations, however, the op-tions within the federation are obvi-ously exhausted at some point. Mi-chael Garcia has delivered his report, and Judge Eckert has assessed it and issued his statement on it. He has also concluded that the Office of the Attorney General needs to conduct further investigations into certain is-sues. That is no doubt correct, and I am relying upon his judgement here. Michael Garcia can of course still conduct further internal FIFA inves-tigations into individuals if he deems this to be necessary in the light of his report. Furthermore, there is no change to Judge Eckert’s statement that the investigation into the bid-ding process for the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cups™ is concluded.
Does the step that you have taken today represent a commitment towards transparency with regard to the much-discussed issues surrounding the awarding of the World Cups?
Of course. If we had anything to
hide, we would hardly be taking this matter to the Office of the Attorney General. FIFA’s internal bodies have done all they can within the scope of their capabilities, and they are con-tinuing with their work. The matter will now also be looked at by an inde-pendent, state body, which shows that FIFA is not opposed to transparency.FIFA has been criticised for exactly that reason, namely that it is not transparent because it has not published Garcia’s report...
Once again, we have examined this matter very, very carefully from a legal point of view. The result was clear: if FIFA were to publish the report, we would be violating our own associa-tion law as well as state law. The people who are demanding in the media and elsewhere that FIFA publish the re-port are obviously of the opinion that FIFA should or must ignore the law in this regard. We obviously cannot do that. FIFA’s headquarters are in a constitutional state, and we therefore have to abide by the country’s laws.
Blatter
This piece was inspired by an innocuous line I had posted on Facebook in reaction to Dele Mo-modu’s column in This-day published on Sat-
urday, November 15. Writing on the notion that Buhari lacks religious tol-erance, the publisher of Ovation In-ternational observed: “He’s perceived to be a Muslim fundamentalist, an al-legation that has not been proven by his accusers till this day... Buhari has related well with Christians all his life. His first daughter was married to an Igbo man, a Christian. Both his drivers and cook were Christians....”
In reaction, I wrote that it was wrong to “cite the fact that Buhari’s daughter was married to an Igbo man” in attempting “to dispel the notion he’s an ethnic bigot.” I drew from the Rwandan experience as a premise to buttress my point. “Many Hutus had Tutsis as wives (but) such ties didn’t stop the genocide. I’m not suggesting the general has such ten-dencies; just to point out how silly the argument is, really.”
My post may have seemed innocu-ous to me, but the vitriolic comments it generated is a further reminder of how intolerant we have become of opinions that diverge from ours. But, even more so, it highlighted an in-creasingly worrying trend I have ob-served among supporters of General Muhammadu Buhari which, to put it
mildly, is an unwillingness to accept the simple fact that their hero could be someone else’s villain. There is, of course, that other silly variant of this inclination which has also become a default reaction mode of the Buhari horde - imputing an ethno-religious motive in any viewpoint that fails to idealize the former head of state.
It is such hubris that fuels the con-ceit that has defined Buhari’s politi-cal career, one that conveys the sense of entitlement perceived in each of his outing as a presidential aspirant which began late 2002 when he was driven into the crowded convention ground of the All Peoples Party, ef-fectively truncating the ambition of Rochas Okorocha. The results, although as yet inconclusive, had clearly shown that the Imo State governor was coasting to victory. The general was not bothered by the way the party’s presidential ticket was handed out to him even if it came at the expense of due process. If he was, it did not reflect in his acceptance speech bereft of any conciliatory tone. Needless to say, that imposition sowed the seed which would later de-stroy the APP (the precursor to All Nigeria Peoples Party that eventu-ally morphed into the All Progres-sives Congress along with the Action Congress of Nigeria and Congress for Progressive Change).
What else but hubris would make a politician seeking to be Nigeria’s
Buhari’s ambition and its annoying sense of entitlement
And The Final Word
president view questions about his refusal to appear at the Human Rights Violation Investigations Com-mission (Oputa Panel) as an irritant to which he shouldn’t be obliged to respond? This dismissive tendency has also, sadly, been internalised by the retired general’s supporters who consider him beyond reproach and more or less regard past exemplary conducts of his as sufficient atone-ments for some shortcomings no matter how grave. There is, if you like, an unspoken reckoning that Bu-hari necessarily deserves everyone’s votes and so needs not commit time and effort to earn those votes. So when a voter expresses a legitimate concern about his occasionally divi-sive comments, it riles rather than serve as an opportunity to reassure; alienating the electorate further and drawing the man seeking their votes deeper into his messianic bubble.
Stripped to its essence, the under-lying message of Buhari’s politics is “vote for me, I’m a good man”. But goodness and weakness are not mu-tually exclusive. Besides, being good does not invalidate that virtue in oth-ers. I never referred to Buhari as an ethnic bigot in the Facebook post. He certainly would not have writ-ten Dora Akunyili the sort of glit-tering recommendation that paved the way for her ascent to national prominence if he had such provin-cial outlook.
Yet, such noble conduct does not suffice as a response to weaknesses in Buhari’s personality often cited by critics. The weakness cited by most critics is the ex-military ruler’s pen-chant for intemperate comments, a trait that first surfaced at the Na-tional Quranic Recitation competi-tion held at the Ali Akilu Square in Gusau, Zamfara State, in 2002.
Buhari was quoted as saying the following words: “I am hoping that Nigerian Muslims will unite because of what is ahead of us... Anyone you don’t agree with, anyone who would not protect the interest of our reli-gion and our own interest, forget him - whoever he is. If it is possible, re-elect candidates who will protect our religion and our interests.”
Of course, Buhari claimed then he had been “quoted out of context”. But about 10 years later, he would face a similar charge. The case this time was the prelude to the 2011 elec-tions when he made what seemed like a veiled admonition for his sup-porters to express their angst against those presumed to have stolen their votes. The results of that election are well known and the bloody aftermath still serves as a chilling reminder of how easily an appeal to religious sen-timents can eclipse all reason.
He may have clarified his state-ment and denied that his exhortation to supporters then was a call to arms, but we should nonetheless not resent those who would rather take his ex-planations with a pinch of salt.
Doing otherwise promotes a sense of entitlement which terribly hurts the democratic spirit and emboldens political parties to shut out other as-pirants. Credibility is not a closed shop; it is strengthened by a con-tinuing process of appraisal. Sadly, it’s a point that Buhari’s acolytes are unwilling to acknowledge.
... The Orijinal SinFew brands have had the sort of
early soar away success that Guin-ness Nigeria’s Orijin has enjoyed. But the company seems too fixated on reclaiming the ground it had lost to rival Nigeria Breweries to be bothered by the impropriety of sell-ing alcohol in the traffic. The man-tra of discretion in the beer trade has for a while been the message admonishing consumers to “drink responsibly”, but I wonder if the massive sale of the product in the traffic to commuters - a number of them behind wheels - is not an incen-tive to breach that call to prudence. Guinness may hide behind the con-venient excuse that the hawkers of the canned beer mostly sold in packs of three are not their employees, but it doesn’t make them any less culpable. How is it that the hawkers don’t sell other equally popular beer brands? But if Guinness has chosen to pay more attention to profits than propriety, can regulators be so ex-cused? How can the sale of alcohol in the traffic be permissible in a society that once operated the “on and off licence” rule which forbade the consumption of alcohol at some merchants’ outlets?
...The HypocriticalAs Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Adeyemi Ikuforiji presided at the passage of the law that barred the posting of bills on the walls of public space. The law is tenaciously implemented by the Lagos State Advertising and Sig-nage Agency whose declaration of “zero tolerance” for posters has been matched with action. However, it’s ironic that the campaign posters of the man who oversaw the passage of that law is the most conspicuous violator. LASAA has not surpris-ingly looked the other way.
... The BottomlineIt was supposed to break the inter-net, but it ended on a similarly anti-climactic note as the so-called “Mil-lennium Bug”. I’m referring to Kim Kardashian’s pneumatic derriere published by Paper, a New York-based independent magazine. The internet has since moved on to other inanities, pushing Kim’s photo to the fleeting margin. But surely, it earned several views on the internet, upped the magazine’s circulation figures and no doubt swelled the celebrity’s earning’s. That’s the meaning of bot-tomline - the creative deployment of resources to increase value.
Follow me on Twitter @AniLaurence
Buhari
55NEW TELEGRAPH WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2014 N150
Sanctity of TruthOn MarbleBut life is a battle: may we all be
enabled to fight it well!– Charlotte Brontë
Laurence AniBuhari’s ambition and its annoying sense of
entitlement
I can’t seem to get over the image of men, women, children, the old, the young, the disabled and the infirm with little or nothing of
their belongings fleeing from Mubi in Adamawa State and or trapped in the mountains with little resources and necessaries on account of the current insurgency.
Prior to the flight from Mubi, people have fled a number of villages and Lo-cal Governments in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa States. Some fled from one Local Government to the other and some simply crossed over to Niger Republic as the boundary separating Nigeria and Niger Republic is more artificial than real. But none of the flights bear the birthmarks of the Ni-gerian Civil War than the flight from the commercial city of Mubi in Ad-amawa State. I say this because I have read quite a lot of literature on the Nigerian Civil War. I have watched a couple of documentaries and films on the said civil war. I saw the image of the victims and casualties of the war. I saw the flight of people to nowhere. I saw the image of innocent children at the point of death on account of prob-lems and challenges alien to them. I saw the image of persons completely displaced in their own country and they become Internally Displaced Persons or refugees in neighboring countries. I saw the image of people traumatized. I saw the image of the hungry, the weak and the confused. These are images of the Civil War.
In the flight from Yola, I saw the same type of images of the civil war. I saw children that ought to be in school carrying loads bigger than them to no-where. I saw the aged and the infirm too weak to continue the flight sitting by the road side waiting for a miracle and or waiting to die. I saw clusters of people in the mountains waiting to be rescued. I saw thousand of per-sons in the camp of displaced persons waiting for an epidemic to break out. I saw images of Nigerians in camps in different countries who have become refugees because our country could not offer them security. These images remind me of W.H Auden’s Refugee Blues where he said:Say this city has ten million soulsSome are living in mansions, some are living in holesYet there’s no place for us, my dear, yet there’s no place for usOnce we had a country and we thought it fairLook in the atlas, you will find it there We cannot go there now, my dear, we cannot go there now.
Yet, we pretend that all is well and we are in full gear and in full throt-tle preparing for the 2015 elections with or without these persons. I am sure that the 2015 elections may not be part of the issues bothering these people that are in flight. I am sure that most of them are wondering where the next meal will come from. I am sure that the children are wondering when they will go back to school. I am sure that some parents are wondering where their children are, not knowing
whether they are dead or alive. I am sure that some children have been orphaned and are now alone in this world. I am sure that some children have seen what they are not supposed to see and what some have seen will traumatize them for the whole of their lives. I am sure that some par-ents witnessed their children being slaughtered. I am sure that some par-ents were asked by the insurgents to slaughter their own children. I am sure that some of those in flight left businesses worth millions of Naira behind and fled. I am sure that some have houses they laboured all their lives to build destroyed. I am sure that most of them know that life will never be the same again.
But these are citizens of the Fed-eral Republic of Nigeria. Most of the people in flight are registered voters who voted in the various clusters of elections ranging from Presidential, Gubernatorial to State and Federal elections. Some voted hoping that their government will offer them protection and the good life. But their government and our government has failed them at the critical moment of their need.
Presently, the country is preparing for the 2015 elections. In furtherance of this, the Independent National Electoral Commission is distributing permanent voter’s cards that will be used for the elections. Unfortunately, some of the people in flight cannot get their own cards as they no longer have constituencies. A large number of the displaced are in different households in various parts of Nigeria. A number of them are in camps for internally displaced persons in various parts of Nigeria. A large number are refu-gees in neighboring countries. These are registered voters who may never collect their cards or even vote in the 2015 elections as they are outside the territorial jurisdiction of Nigeria.
Come to think of it, there are so many Senatorial Districts, State and Federal Constituencies that will not have representation in the House of Assembly, the House of Representa-tives and in the Senate in 2015 elec-tions on account of insurgency unless something drastic is done. But that is being futuristic and taking the issues too far.
As at today, some of the members of the House of Representatives and House of Assembly from Borno, Yobe and Adamawa States represent nobody as those that voted them to power have fled and are in various households in different parts of the
Casualties of the 2015 elections
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country or in the camp of internally displaced persons or worst still in Cameroon, Chad, Niger and other neighboring countries. Some of the members of the House of Assembly, the House of Representatives and the Senate from these Local Governments under the effective occupation of the insurgents have no constituencies to represent anymore and cannot even visit their constituencies and Senato-rial Districts. Some of them are more or less displaced representatives. And we still pretend that all is well in our country. Suicide bombers strike at will in different parts of the country and we pretend that all is well. So many Nigerians are hosting victims of in-surgency and we pretend that all is well. Our children in so many of the States are out of school and we pre-tend that all is well. The pictures of dead and maimed school children no longer shock us. They are just figures and life goes on. But all of us are ner-vous. We do not know the extent and dimension of the current insurgency. We no longer know the motivation of the insurgents. Everybody seems to be a target and no one is safe. So, we are all victims and casualties of the current insurgency.
It was JP Clark in his Nigerian civil war poem that classified all of us as causalities including those that pre-tended that all was well. He surmised that: The casualties are not only those who are dead;They are well out of it.The casualties are not only those who
are wounded,Though they await burial by install-mentThe casualties are not only those who have lostPerson or property, hard as it isTo grope for a touch that some May not know is not thereThe casualties are not those led away by night;The cell is a cruel place, sometimes a heaven, Nowhere as absolute as the graveThe casualties are not those who start-ed A fire and now cannot put it out. Thou-sands Are burning that had no say in the matter.The casualties are not only those who escapingThe shattered shell become prisoners inA fortress of falling walls.The casualties are many, and a good number wellOutside the scene of ravage and wreck;They are the emissaries of rift,So smug in smoke-room they haunt abroad,They do not see the funeral pilesAt home eating up the forests.They are wandering minstrels who, beating onThe drum of human heart, draw the worldInto a dance with rites it does not know…..
We are all causalities in the events still unfolding and yet we do not seem to show enough concern and empathy for the plight of those in these special circumstances. What matters is power and it does not matter whether the 3, 178, 950, 4, 171,104 and 2,321,339 inhab-itants of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe States are in their Senatorial Districts and Constituencies. It does not mat-ter whether these persons vote or not. But the victims of insurgency are in-sisting that we must guarantee and protect their Nigerian citizenship. They are insisting that government fulfils its duty of providing for their welfare and security. That, I presume is not too much to ask for.
The first lesson in all these is that there is no alternative to planning. We refused to deal with insurgency when it was incubating on grounds that the Nigerian people love life and no Nige-rian will willingly take his or her life. We also refused to act on the abundant intelligence reports available on the incubation of insurgency purely on political considerations. Some of the political actors saw them as veritable tools to be used against opponents and or a reservoir of electoral votes. At the moment, the plight of the people is also a subject of political contesta-tion. Those that started the fire have now found that they cannot put it out. It is also clear to us that thousands are burning that had no say in the mat-ter. It is time for multi stakeholder approach to end the current insur-gency. We are all casualties and it is our responsibility to put a stop to the carnage.
