May 8, 2015 by The Nation

Newspaper of the Year UK election

•Supreme Court stops Constitution amendment •Shut down as UI students protest colleague’s death •Private varsities rise to 61, says Education minister •Fuel scarcity bites harder as NNPC allays fears

Exit poll favours Page 2 Conservatives

•Nigeria’s widest circulating newspaper

VOL. 10, NO. 3208 FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

•www.thenationonlineng.net

TR UTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM TRUTH

Mu’azu to Fayose: your allegations are baseless

LL efforts being made to halt the raging post-poll crisis within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) seem to be futile. The verbal war goes on, despite the warning by Senate President David Mark that the party risks death, given the bickering among its leaders. Yesterday, National chairman Adamu Muazu took a swipe at Ekiti State Governor Ayodele

•AND MORE ON PAGES 4,5,7&53

By Precious Igbonwelundu

Fayose for alleging that his betrayal contributed to the abysmal failure of the ruling party and its candidate President Goodluck Jonathan at the presidential poll. Fayose, calling for the sack of the National Working Committee (NWC) members, said he had evidence that Muazu worked for the All Progressives Congress (APC) candiContinued on page 4

N150.00 •Aviation Minister Osita Chidoka (second right), Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Ltd. (BASL) Chairman Dr. Wale Babalakin (third right), his Vice, Chief Kola Akinbami (left) and BASL Chief Executive Officer Mr. Christophe Pennick at the Inauguration of the Common User Passengers Processing System (CUPPS) yesterday at the Murtala Muhammed Airport-2, Ikeja, Lagos. PHOTO: ISAAC AYODELE

•STORY ON PAGE 5

•INSIDE: OHANAEZE LEADERS TO BUHARI: JONATHAN FAILED SOUTHEAST P5

Presidency, APC in row over May 29 transition Party: teams yet to meet ‘Sambo, Joda have met’ From Yusuf Alli, Abuja

LL is not well between the transition committees set up by the Presidency and the incoming All Progressives Congress (APC). The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)-led Federal Government has “bluntly refused to co-operate with us in ensuring a successful transition”, the APC said yesterday in a statement issued in Abuja by its spokesman Lai Mohammed. Bu the Presidency dismissed the allegation as untrue. The APC urged President Goodluck Jonathan to rein in his aides who are “overheating the polity with their incautious statements, especially relating to the transition of power”. Mohammed said “while the PDP may be deeply traumatised by its loss in the last general elections - and the party itself has said it is indeed suffering from ‘post-election (defeat) trauma’ - that should not be a reason WILL THE for it to disrupt the CHIBOK GIRLS nation’s peace by disKIDNAPPED ON playing crab mentality”. APRIL 15, LAST

YEAR EVER RETURN?

Continued on page 4

•IN TRA UMA TRAUMA UMA: Nigerians from the Republic of Niger at the stadium transit camp in Geidam, Yobe State ... yesterday.

PHOTO: NAN

‘Nigerien soldiers drove us out’

•Nigerians deported from Niger Republic relive ordeal

NEWS – PAGE 57

•AMCON CHIEFS CAN’T BUY ACQUIRED ASSETS P11 •’PEF SAVED $2B FOR GOVT’ P11

THE NATION FRDAY, MAY 8, 2015

NEWS •UK ELECTIONS

Four Nigerians in r From Habib Aruna and Mojeed Jamiu, Bromley, Kent

T •Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola presenting a suvenir to American Consul-General Mr. Jeffery Hawkins when the envoy visited him at the Government House, Osogbo...yesterday. With them are: Political Officer of the American Embassy in Lagos, Mrs. Erica Chiusano (right) and former Senior Assistant to the Governor on Federal Matter, Mrs. Idiat Babalola.

•Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO), FBN Holdings Plc, Mr. Bello Maccido sounding the closing gong after the presentation of the “Facts behind the figures” on the floor of the Exchange in Lagos...on Wednesday. With him from left are: Group Managing Director/CEO, FirstBank Plc., Mr. Bisi Onasanya; Executive Director, Business Development, Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), Mr. Haruna Jalo-Waziri and General Manager, Listings, NSE, Mrs. Taba Peterside.

HE chances of four Nigerians vying for seats in the House of Commons dominated discussions among their compatriots resident in the United Kingdom (UK), as the British went to the poll to elect a new Prime Minister yesterday. Those contesting are: Chuka Umunna, Chi Onwurah, Kate Osamor and Helen Grant. Umunna, who is the current Shadow Business Secretary, is vying to represent Streatham, a constituency seen as a Labour Party (LP) stronghold and Onwurah, a current Labour Member of Parliament (MP), who is seeking reelection from Newcastle. Osamor, a serving MP is seeking reelection from Edmonton and Grant, a British-Nigerian MP and a member of the Conservative Party, who is seeking reelection from Maidstone and Weald constituency in Kent. Reports said none of the quartet has a formidable opposition they are contesting safe seats.

Chuka Harrison Umunna is a British Labour Party politician who has served Streatham as Member of Parliament since 2010. Umunna, 36, has been the Shadow Business Secretary since 2011. Born in Streatham on October 17, 1978, was born to Bennett and Patricia Umunna. He graduated from the Nottingham Trent University in 2002. •Umuna

Umunna is one of the rising stars of the LP and commands a lot of respect from his party and residents in his constituency. “Chuka is not likely to have problems being re-elected because his constituency is a Labour

United Kingdom and its enduring parliamentary system ANALYSIS

UESTION time in the Commons is one of the widely watched parliamentary sessions in the world. It indeed, has more viewers in the United States than in the United Kingdom, where this practice has existed for centuries. The plenary session provides opportunity for members of the House of Commons to ask the Prime Minister questions on cogent, crucial national and international issues. The Prime Minister in turn used the platform to project his/her party and government. What makes it more interesting and appealing for more than casual observers is the incessant interface that usually takes place among the •From left: Executive Director, Lagos and South West Banking, Fidelity Bank Plc., Ikemuefuna Mbagwu; Managing Prime Minister, front-benchers, Director/Chief Executive Officer, Nnamdi Okonkwo; Chairman, Board of Directors, Chief Christopher Ezeh and Company shadow cabinet members and opposiSecretary, Ezinwa Unuigboje at the bank's twenty-seventh Annual General Meeting in Lagos...yesterday. tion leader. Even though it takes the form of a debate, the issues raised and the passionate way they are discussed go a long way to show that politicians are individually and collectively responsible for their actions. Thus, the question time in The Commons, in large measure, has brought to fore the practice of parliamentary system and why it has not only endured for so long, but became the envy of many countries all over the world. The system presupposes that for you to be a minister or cabinet member, you must first of all be a member of parliament. The Prime Minister, who is also a member of parliament, is only first among equals. In other words, the government is formed by members of the party with the largest seats in parliament. In this respect, accountability is largely a collective one and not individual. Once a government is unpopular, the cabinet would have to collectively bear the cost and a vote of confidence would be tabled before the par•Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Access Bank Plc., Herbert Wigwe flanked by his deputy, Obinna liament. If the outcome is negative, the Nwosu and Chairman, Gbenga Oyebode, at the bank’s twenty-sixth Annual General Meeting (AGM) at Lagoon Restaurant, government would resign and call for Victoria Island, Lagos...yesterday. PHOTO: MUYIWA HASSAN new election. If however the outcome

By Habib Aruna

is favourable, it would reinforce the powers of the Prime Minister and he might as well leverage on it by restructuring his cabinet and government. In modern times, the Prime Minister has become more powerful that some are comparing it to imperial presidency in the United States. Tony Blair, a former PM was so powerful that most of his policies were hardly challenged. Some attributed this to the landslide victory that brought him to power in 1997, while others argued that it was due to his adroitness and savvy in handling matters of state. Currently, David Cameron, the Prime Minister, cannot be said to be that powerful, largely because of the way he came in. He had to form a coalition with Nick Clegg of the Liberal Democrats five years ago to be able to govern. And now that the country is yet again going to the poll on Thursday to elect a new government, there are signs that there is not going to be a clear winner of the elections. Rather, pundits are already saying that there is likely going to be a Labour government in coalition with one of the smaller parties. For now, the race is between Labour, whose candidate, Ed Miliband surprised many with his resurgence in the polls, and Cameron of the Conservative Party. And issues that are dominating the campaign, ranging from immigration to Britain’s involvement in the European Union; from Pension to minimum wage; from the economy to Climate Change. Observers had expected Cameron to have an easy reelection, but there is a lot of disenchantment among the voters, most of who are not happy with the widening gap between the rich and poor. For someone who has been following this system for so long, it came as a surprise that unlike the American

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

•UK ELECTIONS

race for re-election into House of Commons

•Grant

stronghold”, Sunday Olanipekun, who has lived in the UK for 14 years as an ardent Labour supporter said. He went on: “Apart from that, many of the members see him as a potential leader of the party in the

future and so will do everything to make him get re-elected.” Besides, the predominance of large minority groups in their neighbourhood has been identified as of the factors that will work in favour of the

presidential campaign, where there is so much blitz and razzmatazz, British politicians are less fuzzy and still very conservative in their approach to selling their messages to the electorate. There is less noise; even TV commercials are measured. It’s even unlikely that a first time visitor to London would notice that election is taking place on the 7th of May. The atmosphere does not suggest that there may be a new Prime Minister by the weekend. It all re-enforces the truism that this is the society where democracy has its roots. But it appears this traditional way of doing things is what is endearing a system described as first-pass-the-postto many countries. Both the ones colo-

nized by the British and others that saw it working and not so expensive to operate. While Canada, Australia, India, Pakistan amongst others, have not deviate from this path, Nigeria, Ghana and some others have shifted their focus to presidential system. Thus, as the British goes to the poll tomorrow, the world would be watching the event closely, but credit must go to an electorate that, even though there is no written constitution, have put those in authority on their toes, by making sure they are accountable for their deeds. •Aruna, the Managing Editor, Upshotreports,is in the UK to cover the elections.

Exit polls show Conservatives as biggest party •Labour, Lib-Dems could lose seats •Tories, SNP make big gains

Chi Onwurah is a British Labour Party politician, who was elected at the 2010 general election as the Member of Parliament for Newcastle upon Tyne Central. The 50year-old fellow Labour MP Jim Cousins, who decided to step down. Onwurah, who was born in Wallsend on April 12, 1965 and he attended Imperial College, London.

Osamor has lived in north London her whole life. She has worked for the NHS for over 15 years and currently works as a GP Practice Manager at an Enfield GP Surgery. A wellknown community and trade union activist, the 46-yearold Nigerian-born Kate is a trustee on a women’s charity based in Edmonton Green.

Helen Grant is a British Conservative Party politician and solicitor. She is the current Member of Parliament (MP) for Maidstone and The Weald in Kent and the current Minister for Sport, Tourism & Equalities. Born in Willesden, London on September 28, 1961, Grant attended the University of Hull.

ONSERVATIVE Party looked set to win 316 - just 10 short of an overall majority - according to exit polls last night. The poll put Labour on 239 seats, the Liberal Democrats on 10, the Scottish National Party (SNP) on 58 and United Kingdom Independent Party (UKIP) on two as counting began across the country. If the predictions were true, the Conservatives would gain more seats than in their 2010 results and Labour would lose 19 seats on their result last time - with the SNP were taking all but one seat in Scotland. The exit poll of about 20,000 voters was dramatically at odds with polling during the election campaign, which suggested right up to the last day that Conservatives and Labour were heading for a dead heat. But the Liberal Democrats dismissed the exit poll forecast, insisting it did not tally with the information they had received from their activists. A party spokesman said: “This exit poll does not reflect any of our intelligence from today or in the run-up to polling day. We will wait for the final results.” The spokesman added: “No opinion poll to date has shown the numbers in this exit poll.” SNP Leader Nicola Sturgeon was also cautious about the exit poll. She tweeted: “I’d treat the exit poll with HUGE caution. I’m hoping for a good night but I think 58 seats is unlikely!” If the exit poll proves correct, it would be the first time that a ruling party has increased its tally of seats since 1983, with Conservatives increasing their strength at Westminster by 14. It will give Mr. Cameron the option of attempting to form a Conservativeonly minority government without having to offer ministerial posts and a role in framing legislation to coalition parties. Although a tally of 316 is lower than the 326 threshold for an absolute majority, it is very close to the lower figure of 321-322 needed for all practical purposes, assuming Sinn Fein MPs do not take up their seats. A minority Tory government may hope to get its legislation through with the support of Northern Irish unionists, who are likely to win around eight or nine seats. The arithmetic could even hand the balance of power in key votes to a pair of UKIP Members of Parliament (MPs), who could be expected to use any leverage this gives them to put pressure on the Prime Minister to bring forward his planned in/out referendum on Britain’s membership of the European Union (EU), currently scheduled for 2017. If borne out by results, the polling figures would raise large questions over Mr Miliband’s future as Labour leader.

•Osamor

Nigerians, who may likely benefit from bloc votes. Another Nigerians, Mr. Olawale Olagunju, said: “We need to understand that most voters here vote in line with party affiliation and do not

•Onwurah

really care about the candidates. Unlike other climes where candidates determine the outcomes of elections, people vote for parties in the UK.” Olagunju, who did not rule out the likelihood of other British-Nige-

rians contesting under smaller parties, identified the quartet as the ones that are of utmost concern to Nigerians in the UK. He said many Nigerians hold top political positions in the country too.

•Conservative Leader Cameron and his wife Samantha after voting in Spelsbury, Oxfordshire... yesterday.

•SNP Leader Sturgeon voted with her husband Peter Murrell, at Broomhouse Community Hall in Glasgow... yesterday.

Millions vote in general election

FTER six weeks of campaigning and debate, Britons yesterday cast their ballot at about 50,000 polling stations in the United Kingdom (UK). Polls were expected to close at 22:00 BST(10pm Nigerian time) with results from the first constituencies expected before midnight and the final result due by noon today. More than 9,000 council seats are being contested across 279 English local authorities in the general election. Mayors were to be elected in Bedford, Copeland, Leicester, Mansfield, Middlesbrough and Torbay. United Party Independent Party (UKIP) Leader Nigel Farage, Labour leader Ed Miliband, Greens leader Natalie Bennett, Scottish National Party (SNP) Leader Nicola Sturgeon, Conservative leader David Cameron, Liberal Democrat (LD) leader Nick Clegg and Plaid Cymru’s Leanne Wood all cast their votes yesterday. In Northern Ireland, Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) Leader Peter Robinson and Sinn Fein’s Martin McGuinness in Northern Ireland have voted, as have Social Democratic & Labour Party (SDLP) Leader Alasdair McDonnell, Alliance Party (AP) Leader David Ford and Ulster Unionist Leader Mike Nesbitt. A total of 650 Westminster Members of Parliament (MPs) would be elected by about 50 million registered voters. The weather was dry and mild across much of the UK, with isolated showers in some parts of north of England. The local votes taking place meant that nearly every voter in England excluding London where there were no local elections – would have been given at least two ballot papers when they entered polling stations. Some votes had been cast before Thursday through postal voting, which accounted for 15 per cent of the total electorate at the 2010 general election, when the overall turnout was 65 per cent. For the first time, people have been able to register to vote online.

•LP Leader Miliband and his wife Justine on their •LD Leader Clegg and his wife Miriam Gonzalez way to the polling station at Durantez outside a polling station in Sheffield... Sutton Village Hall in Doncaster... yesterday. yesterday.

•UKIP Leader Farage casting his vote at a polling station in Ramsgate, Kent... yesterday.

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

NEWS

•President-elect Muhammadu Buhari (fourth left) with Director, MTN Nigeria, Mr. Gbenga Oyebode, CEO, MTN Nigeria, Mr. Michael Ikpoki, Director, MTN Nigeria, Col Sani Bello (Rtd), Chairman, MTN Group, Mr. Phuthuma Nhlekho, Chairman, MTN Nigeria, Dr. Paschal Dozie, CEO, MTN Group, Mr. Sifiso Dabengwa when the MTN Group visited the President-elect in Abuja ... yesterday.

Supreme Court stops Constitution amendment

HE Supreme Court has stopped the National Assembly from taking any steps to override President Goodluck Jonathan’s veto of the Constitution amendment by the Legislature. The court, in a ruling yesterday, restrained parties to a suit by the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), from taking any step to alter the position of things in the subject matter of the case. The AGF, who initiated the suit for the President, is challenging the legality of the procedure adopted by the Legislature in passing the last amendment to the Constitution, termed the Fourth Alteration Act 2015, and urged the court to, among others, declare the amendment unconstitutional. Yesterday, the court was to hear the plaintiff’s motion for interlocutory injunction, but could not, in view of some anomalies identified in the suit. Although the court was satisfied that the National Assembly (listed as defendant in the suit) was served, but was not represented and yet did not file any response. The plaintiff’s lawyer, Bayo Ojo (SAN), could not move

•Parties to maintain status quo From Eric Ikhilae, Abuja

his motion in view of the issues raised by the court. The court’s seven-man panel, led by the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Mahmud Mohammed, queried the composition of the suit. It wondered whether it ought not to have been filed in the name of the President as against the AGF. It noted that by virtue of the provisions of the Supreme Court Additional Jurisdiction Act, 2004, the President could initiate a case and could be named in any dispute involving the President and other institutions listed in the Act. The court also queried the exclusion of states’ Assemblies from the suit when they also participated in the Constitution amendment. The seven-man panel agreed to allow Ojo sufficient time to address the issues raised and adjourned till June 18. In a short ruling, the CJN said: “To allow the learned counsel to the plaintiff time to address the court on salient issues surrounding the case, regarding the proper parties, and having regard

to the requirement of the Supreme Court of Nigeria Additional Jurisdiction Act, CAP F16, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004 and Section 232 of the 1999 Constitution, prescribing the original jurisdiction of this court and the party that can invoke that jurisdiction, this case is further adjourned to June 18, 2015 for the parties to address the court on these salient issues. “Meanwhile, pending the hearing of the parties on the 18th of June 2015, status quo shall be maintained in the matter. In other words, no further steps shall be taken to alter the current position of the subject matter of the suit by the defendants or the plaintiff,” Justice Mohammed said. The plaintiff, by the motion for interlocutory injunction, is seeking to restrain the National Assembly and its members from proceeding to give effect to their alleged threat to override the President’s veto in view of his refusal to assent to the Fourth Alteration Act 2015 Bill despite that the

suit was pending before the court. Among the grounds on which the applicant hinged the application was that the National Assembly was determined to proceed with passing the constitution by overriding the veto of same, despite the fundamental nature of the issues raised against it. He stated that it is more in the interest of the country that the issues in the substantive suit are resolved one way or the other before the National Assembly can proceed further on the proposed alterations to the constitution. The applicant stated in a supporting affidavit that the Minority Whip of the House of Representatives, Samson Osagie, reportedly vowed at a press conference, that the Legislature will override the President’s veto despite the suit. The plaintiff’s argument in the main suit is that the purported Fourth Alteration Act 2015 was not passed with the mandatory requirement of four-fifths majority of members of the National Continued on page 60

Mu’azu to Fayose: your allegations are baseless Continued from page 1

date Gen. Muhammadu Buhari. He threatened to make the evidence public. A bitter Mu’azu on his twitter handle yesterday, taunted the governor. In a series of tweets, he said: “Fayose: I have evidence that Mu’azu worked for APC. We hope it’s not the kind of evidence he once said he had that Buhari was dying? “We challenge Governor Fayose to come out with the evidence that shows National Chairman worked for APC during the elections. “On Governor Fayose’s allegations, they are baseless & unfounded. We will continue to support him and the good people of Ekiti State. “We must provide a responsible and credible opposition to the incoming government. Together Nigeria will be great. “I am willing to work with all members and organs of our great party to begin a new journey of trust and sincerity with the Nigerian people. “In our desire to correct all wrongs & negative impressions about our party, I am

Presidency, APC in row over May 29 transition Continued from page 1

The party’s strong stand seems to have been provoked by what it called a “provocative and ill-intentioned statement credited to the Special Adviser to the President on Political Affairs, Prof. Rufai Alkali, that the APC should talk less and plan more for the nation, and that the party (APC) is seeking to stampede the President out of office. Mohammed said: “Prof. Alkali doesn’t know what he is saying. How does he expect us to plan when the PDP-led FG has bluntly refused to cooperate with us in ensuring a successful transition? As we write, the Transition Committee of the FG has yet to hold a single meeting with our own Transition Committee, neither have they given us a line of handover note. “As a matter of fact, the Jonathan Administration has said the handover notes will not be ready until the third week of May, meaning just a week before the handover. What time then do we have to scrutinise the handover notes? How can we plan

when we don’t even know which projects they have, which ones they have completed and which ones are outstanding? How can we plan when we don’t even know how many barrels of oil are sold per day?” To the APC, that “Prof. Alkali does not know the difference between Inauguration Committee and Transition Committee is a reflection of mediocrity that permeates the Jonathan Administration and led to its downfall”. “While their Inauguration Committee has been meeting with ours, their Transitional Committee has yet to even meet with ours. How then can Prof. Alkali justify his statement that the Jonathan Administration has been in a ‘transition mode’? “Is it part of their transition mode that President Jonathan has been engaged in a rash of feverish last-minute appointments that, though may not have breached any known law, are patently in bad faith, morally repugnant and indecorous. They say they are in office until May 29th, but pray, are appointments the

only function of a government? Are there no problems crying for attention, such as the intractable fuel scarcity, the worsening power situation, the grounded economy and the missing Chibok girls? ‘’Is it part of their transition mode that Jonathan’s minister of power has virtually been reading the riot act to the incoming government, condescendingly warning it not to even consider reversing the power sector privatisation because its gains are “very obvious?”. Do they understand the implication of their gratuitous and unsolicited advice? If their power sector reforms have been so successful, would Nigeria’s power situation have hit perhaps its lowest point in a long long time as we have it now?” APC said in as much as the Jonathan Administration is bent on provoking the incoming Administration, creating confusion and even sabotaging the transition, the party (APC) has decided not to fall for their antics in the interest of peace. The party reiterated its earlier advice to the PDP to shake off the trauma of defeat and gear

up for the challenging task of being in opposition. “They must however realise that being in opposition is not a walk in the park but like running a marathon in the desert where there are no oases or shades. The sooner they realise that the better for them,’’ it said. But the Presidency said Vice President Namadi Sambo has met with the Chairman of the APC Transition Committee, Ahmed Joda. It said Joda came for two or three sessions with Sambo. With him was a member of his team, Mallam Muhammad Hayatudeen. A source in the Presidency, who spoke in confidence last night, said: “It is not true that the Federal Government has refused to cooperate with the APC Transition Committee. “We have it on record that Vice President Namadi Sambo has met with the Chairman of the APC Transition Committee, Ahmed Joda and another member, Hayatudeen, for about two or three times. “Maybe Lai Mohammed was not aware of these sessions and he ought to have crosschecked

calling on Nigerians to partner with us. But things will change now. Power truly belongs to the people and we are giving it back to them.” Debunking speculations that he may dump the PDP for the APC, Mu’azu said: “I am too principled to betray my party. I have been here since 1999”. Fayose had wondered why Mu’azu, the Minister of the Federal capital territory Bala Mohammed and Governor Isa Yuguda – all from Bauchi State - failed to deliver the state to President Jonathan. But Mu’azu responded: it’s the people that vote. “I have repeatedly reminded many that I, Ahmadu Adamu Mu’azu, have been in the PDP since 1999 as a matter of principle and strong ideology,” he said.

‘

Fayose: I have evidence that Muazu worked for APC. We hope it’s not the kind of evidence he once said he had that Buhari was dying?

’

Jonathan, Buhari meet again at Aso Rock From Augustine Ehikioya, Abuja

•Jonathan

his assumptions before going to the press.” The source said the government had directed the National Publicity Secretary of PDP, Chief Olisa Metuh, to respond to APC’s allegations. He said: “The government does not want to dignify APC and its spokesman. Since it was not Joda that accused the government of not cooperating with the APC Transition Committee, we will also limit our response to party level. “We have asked Metuh to reply APC accordingly so that we can handle the issue at party level.”

RESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan and President-elect Muhammadu Buhari met again on Wednesday at the Presidential Villa in Abuja. The meeting, said to be private, was held without the media presence inside the Villa. It started around 9pm and lasted just 30 minutes. No statement was issued on the discussion and its outcome. Buhari twice last month, made similar visits to the seat of power.

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THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

NEWS Private varsities rise to 61 Ohanaeze to Buhari: Jonathan failed Igbo •Two more get provisional licences

RESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan failed the Southeast, the pan Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, said yesterday. The body said contrary to claims during the campaigns, the Igbo got a raw deal drom the Jonathan administration. It urged President-elect Muhammadu Buhari to reverse the trend. Ohanaeze also alleged that the last elections were rigged in the Southeast because the region was “targeted by the rigging machine”. It demanded reparation and restitution for the “abandoned property” belonging to the Igbo, which their hosts refused to return to them after the civil war. Besides, the organisation lamented the failure to implement the report of the Oputa panel. Ohanaeze Caretaker Committee Chairman Chief Ralph Obiora spoke when he visited the Gen. Buhari with his team in Abuja. Obiora said contrary to clams by the Jonathan administration, no work was going on at the site of the Second Niger Bridge. He said no financial arrangement had been made for the project. He urged the President-

From Tony Akowe, Abuja

elect to ensure equitable distribution of positions in his administration by applying the principle of necessity to give the zone the position of Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) and a top position in the House of Representatives. Obiora said: “During your campaign tour, you saw things for yourself and it is needless reminding Your Excellency that the Southeast is an emergency case. You drove through the badly neglected and impassable Enugu-Awka-Onitsha Expressway and the Enugu-Umuahia-Aba expressway. “Needless to mention the Oba-Okigwe highway; contrary to the election claims by the out-going government, no appreciable work is going on. ”Information has shown that no financial arrangement has been firmed up for the second Niger Bridge. “The Oputa panel report has been gathering dust and Ndigbo have pleaded for the revisitation of the so-called abandoned property in Nigeria and its collateral reparation and restitution demanded. “You are aware that the Southeast was targeted by the PDP rigging machine, which

produced election results that denied the zone a single senator and only three non-ranking House of Representatives members. “Ndigbo request that you adopt the principle of necessity to give the zone the position of Secretary to the Government of the Federation, which is your prerogative and in addition, a position of one presiding officer in the House of Representatives.” After his meeting with Buhari, Obiora told reporters: “This is a visit on behalf of the Ohanaeze Ndigbo caretaker committee from the Southeast. We have come here to show solidarity with the Presidentelect and also ask him and inform him that actually what comes up at the last election doesn’t actually reflect the true feeling of the people of the Southeast. “The Igbo vote with great conviction that we needed the President-elect to commence the difficult and doubting part of correcting a battered economy, an inproverised nation, a nation that is drifting and we are the representative of that body. He assured us that Nigeria is his constituency and that is very reassuring. “We must humbly and respectfully request that because

of the outcome of the election, there is a creation and a feeling of an imbalance in the political equation that the core analyst set up here, that there must be a tripod in the political equation of Nigeria; that tripod seems to be missing one leg. “He gave us the assurance that he is going to treat the entire nation as his constituency for all and we believe him.” Senator Chris Ngige said the Southeast was pushing for SGF, but were yet to submit names to the President-elect for consideration. He added: “The import of what is happening in the executive branch now is that the Southeast is not represented at all and in the legislature we will not be represented because we have no senator from the Southeast. “We have two House of Representatives members who are not ranking.” He dismissed claims that the region is already fighting over who gets the SGF position, saying: “We have a caucus and that caucus has met on that position. We are only waiting for the party to officially tell us this is your position and we will submit names.”

WO new private universities - Edwin Clark University, Kiagbodo, Delta State and Hezekiah University, Umudi, Imo State - were yesterday awarded provisional licences to operate, thereby bringing such universities to 61. Provisional approval for the universities to operate is intended to create room for effective mentoring and qualitative growth within the first five years of operation. During the period, the universities will be affiliated to older generation universities for academic and administrative mentoring to be moderated by the National Universities Commission (NUC). The Minister of Education, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, who issued the certificates, said: “Substantive licences can only be issued to well-managed institutions after the three years of probation, following their respective performance and growth within guidelines stipulated by the NUC.” He said the problem of access to university education continued to be a serious challenge, calling for concerted effort from the private sector. But, the minister warned that this should not been seen as

From Gbenga Omokhunu, Abuja

investment alone, but a contribution to the growth of education sector. The minister said prior to this approval, Nigeria had 138 universities, servicing a population of over 170 million people, compared to other countries with smaller sizes in population, but with over a thousand universities. “Private universities have contributed to the opening up of admission space for the swelling population of candidates seeking university education. “The growth of private universities has created an environment for health competition that stimulates improvement in quality service delivery in the system,” he said. The Executive Secretary of the NUC, Prof Julius Okojie, during the presentation, reminded the proprietors of the institutions that a daunting task lies ahead as “infrastructure and human capacity must be in place before approval was made.” He said it makes no sense to be awarded licences only for the institutions to fizzle out.

Electricity supply drops to 2,817.05MW

•From left: Chairman, Centre of Excellence, University of Lagos Prof Ralph Akinfeleye; Deputy Vice Chancellor, Management and Service Prof. Duro Oni; Chairman, Nigeria Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) Joseph Okonmah, at the NIPR, Lagos State Chapter’s Second Stakeholders Conference at Julius Berger Hall at the university...yesterday. PHOTO: ABIODUN WILLIAMS

Chidoka hails MMA2 on world-class facilities

I-COURTNEY Aviation Services Ltd (BASL), operators of the Murtala Muhammed Airport 2 (MMA2), yesterday inaugurated the Common User Passenger Processing System (CUPPS), the first self-checkin facility in Nigeria. Speaking at the event, Aviation Minister, Chief Osita Chidoka, who inaugurated the facility and other technology-driven projects, said MMA2 had set the pace for others to follow in terminal operations in the country. The event marked the eighth anniversary of MMA2. Chidoka noted that in dealing with issues in the aviation industry, the passengers, processes and technology were key factors to make travel seamless for the passengers. He lamented that domes-

By Kelvin Osa Okunbor

tic airlines lacked good passenger services, noting that in April alone, activities in the aviation industry dropped to 17 per cent. He added that one of the problems could be as a result of fuel scarcity that has bedevilled the industry. According to him, with the deployment of facilities that aid easy travel experiences by Bi Courtney Aviation Limited, the company was maintaining its status as the best airport terminal in the country. “MMA2 has offered a template to the Nigerian government to improve our airport, adding that apart from passengers rating the MMA2 as one of the best airport terminal in Nigeria, ground handlers, pilots and other operators also said that MMA2

was a befitting airport terminal,” said Chidoka. Expressing his gratitude, Chairman of BASL Dr. Wale Babalakin said the company would continue to improve the terminal with adequate facilities to ensure seamless travel experiences of the passengers. Babalakin said he was impressed that the minister acknowledged the fact that MMA2 “is the best airport terminal in the country”. He said: “Aviation is global and Nigeria will strive to compete favourably in the international scene. “We thank the minister of aviation for his sincerity for acknowledging that MMA2 is the best airport terminal in Nigeria. Aviation is international, we must seek to comply with international standard and even exceed it.” Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of BASL Mr. Christo-

phe Pennick said the company had taken a big step to improve flying experience. He added that using a self-service machine would enable the passengers to do their check-in speedily without having to go through long queues. His words: “We have invested heavily in equipment like the elevator, the paxtrack system and we have an automated car park which can handle about 800 cars per day. We have increased check-in counters from 21 to 45, and put in place Baggage Reconciliatory System (BRS) as recommended by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). “By August, we are going to have 21 Automatic Teller Machine (ATM) compared to what we have now, which is 6. We are going to create our own Ambulance and clinic.”

OWER supply from the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) has dropped from 2,979.06 Mega Watts (MW) recorded last Sunday to 2,817.05MW on Tuesday, the Federal Ministry of Power said. Supply by Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry, according to the power statistics which the ministry posted on its website yesterday, dipped by 162.01MW in the period under review. Of the 2,880.72 MW that the Electricity Generation Companies (Gencos) produced, the TCN wheeled 2,817.05 MW to the Electricity Distribution Companies (Discos), leaving 63.67MW stranded in transmission. The electricity market, however, reached a peak of 3,114.60MW from the 2,893.7MW recorded last Sunday, showing an increase of 220.9MW. The Group Executive Director, Gas and Power, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. David Ige, explained that the loss of 400 million standard cubic feet per day (mscf/f) of gas and reduction in water level at the hydro plants was responsible for the decline in power supply. According to him, some major pipelines were out of operation because they were vandalised as generation from Shiroro hydropower plant dropped to about 300MW due to inadequate water level. Ige assured that once the water level hits about one billion cubic feet a day (bscf/ d), the electricity market would record a significant improvement. The NNPC chief was quoted as saying: “At the moment, gas supply to power stations

From John Ofikhenua, Abuja

is about one billion cubic feet a day (bscf/d). Before the end of this year, we expect to see a significant increase as well. Cumulatively in the country, we are producing about two billion cubic feet of gas per day. Some of the gas we produce are available, but is probably stranded because some of the plants are not ready. For example, we have got gas at Gbarian-Ubie power plant, commissioned shortly. We have gas at Omoku, which is awaiting the power plant. We have gas at Egbema power plant. When you bring all these volumes together, we have close to two billion cubic feet per day.” But, the management of Abuja Electricity Distribution Company yesterday explained the reason for the loss of electricity supply to some parts of its franchise area, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). In a statement, the firm said the loss of power supply was as a result of the sharp drop in the quantum of power made available to it by the System Operator, which it said was attributable to a (partial) system collapse. The company, however, said all concerned players in electricity supply industry, especially the generation and transmission companies, were already working on the system with a view to restoring supply as quickly as possible. Pledging that it would immediately distribute the load allocated to it by the System Operator, the management appealed for the understanding of its customers.

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

NEWS Akpabio donates N50m, ambulance to NYSC

Delta elections tribunal gets 40 petitions From Okungbowa Aiwerie, Asaba

THE Delta State Elections Petitions Tribunal said yesterday it has received 40 petitions challenging the outcome of this year’s general elections. The tribunal said it received petitions from three aggrieved governorship candidates challenging the victory of Dr Ifeanyi Okowa of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The tribunal’s Secretary Al’Sadiq Abubakar said the Labour Party (LP), All Progressives Congress (APC) and another party filed the petitions challenging PDP candidate’s victory. Abubakar noted that while one petition was received on the senatorial election, seven petitions were received from aggrieved candidates on the House of Representatives seats on the March 28 National Assembly elections. According to him, 29 petitions were received from aggrieved candidates on the April 11 House of Assembly election. Abubakar said the tribunal had also received three petitions from aggrieved candidates on the April 11 governorship election. He said the petitions were received between April 17 and May 3, adding that the inaugural sitting of the tribunals would soon take place.

NYSC hails Amaechi From Rosemary Nwisi, Port Harcourt

THE Rivers State Coordinator of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Ngozi Nwatarali, has hailed Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi for supporting the scheme throughout the period of his tenure. Nwatarali spoke yesterday at the swearing-in of this year’s Batch ‘A’ Corps members at the NYSC permanent orientation camp at Nonwa-Gbam, Tai Local Government Area. She noted that the governor considered the safety and welfare of youths a priority during his tenure. The coordinator said he also ensured adequate provision and improvement of the orientation camp for the comfort of Corps members. Nwatarali said: “...I want to appreciate Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi for making the safety and welfare of Corps members a priority.” The NYSC coordinator said 2,680 Corps members had reported to camp by midnight of Wednesday. Of the figure, she said 1,165 were men and 1,515 women. She said the government set up the NYSC orientation programme to equip Corps members on their roles during their service year. Nwatarali said the programme was a forum for the Corps members to have a better understanding of the environment, culture and the people of the state.

From Uyoatta Eshiet, Uyo

•Minister of Education, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau (left) presenting a certificate to the representative of the proprietor of Edwin Clark University, Amb. Akponode Clark in Abuja...yesterday. With them are: Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Education, Suleiman Aminu (second left) and Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education, Dr. Macjohn Nwaobiala (right) at the presentation of provisional licences to the new private university. PHOTO:ABAYOMI FAYESE

IVE persons have been killed and one other critically injured in a communal clash in Tai Local Government Area of Rivers State. Riot policemen have been deployed in the area. The affected Ogoni communities are: Wakama and Kpor. Property valued at millions of naira were destroyed in the clash. Deputy spokesperson for

Five killed, one injured in Rivers communal clash From Bisi Olaniyi, Port Harcour

the Rivers State Police Command, Grace IringeKoko, an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), in a telephone interview last

night, confirmed the incident. She said the police had begun investigation on the incident. But the spokesperson said no arrest had been made as at press time.

Iringe-Koko urged Rivers State residents to remain law-abiding and always report criminals in their midst to the nearest police stations. She assured that the identities of police informants would be well protected.

Hoodlums attack The Nation Port Harcourt office

OME criminals the Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi administration chased out of Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, particularly from the Njemanze waterfront, have promised to take over the city after May 29. The hoodlums spoke yesterday when they attacked The Nation office opposite Njemanze waterfront. A worker of the newspaper was shot after the hoodlums robbed him and his colleagues of their belongings. The Njemanze waterfront is among those demolished by the Amaechi administration when the government discovered that it had became a criminal hideout. But the hoodlums, who attacked The Nation workers, said they would come back when the incoming government takes over on May 29. They barricaded the gate to The Nation office with native charm. The hoodlums said Njemanze was their territory, which the government, which they called their enemy, demolished. According to them, they might get angry and kill The Nation workers in one day. The newspaper’s Security Officer Moses Abimbola, who was almost killed, said: “They shot one of our workers and broke my head with their gun, after collecting my money and phone. They said they lost their territory under the Amaechi administration, that it was time to reclaim the Njemanze waterfront.” Abimbola said The Nation

KWA Ibom State Governor Godswill Akpabio has donated N50 million and an ambulance to the state directorate of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC). The governor spoke at the opening of this year’s Batch ‘A’ orientation camp of the NYSC. He said the donation was meant to assist the scheme to start work on the structures at its permanent site. Akpabio urged the Corps members to shun all vices. The governor said his administration would ensure the comfort of the Corps members. He said the ambulance would be handy to them during emergencies. Akpabio also promised to donate one of the housing estates under construction to the Corps members. The governor urged the Corps members to be careful at the Ibeno Beach to avoid having another member drowning, as it happened in the last batch. He stressed that the beach is near an ocean. President Goodluck Jonathan, whose address was presented by the governor, congratulated the Corps members for successfully completing their academic pursuits and their patriotic response to the service of their fatherland. The President noted the contributions of NYSC to the development of the country in the last 42 years. He said it had exposed millions of youths to the cultures and traditions of the nation’s pluralistic society. Jonathan said the Corps members contributed to nation-building, especially their involvement in the last general elections.

Windstorms destroy over 100 houses in Zamfara

•A charm tied to the gate...yesterday

•Abimbola...yesterdayt

•Threaten to invade press house after May 29 From Precious Dikewoha, Port Harcourt

workers were at the front gate when three hoodlums, with a locally made gun, surrendered them. He said: “It was in the morning when the three gunmen met us. But when we discovered that they were after us, we attempted to escape. When we heard gunshots, we surrendered to them. Although I made the second attempt to run, it was then they broke my head.” But The Nation General Manager in-charge of Southsouth/Southeast, Mr. Olatunde Olasogba, noted that apart from the daily attacks

on The Nation workers at the press house, its drivers had been confronted by robbers, almost daily, on the Port Harcourt route. The manager urged the police to deploy their patrol team at Njemanze waterfront, where The Nation office is located. He said: “I want the Rivers State Police Command to look into our plight. The hoodlums have promised to attack us regularly, claiming that they were chased away by Governor Amaechi. “Our drivers are now scared to carry out their lawful duties due to the nefarious activities of armed rob-

bers on the Port Harcourt route.” The Nation drivers have identified Ebola Junction, in Emohua Local Government Area, Ahoada and Ozuhia– Ubima roads in Ikwerre Local Government Area as robbers’ territories. They said the hoodlums usually robbed without showing any fear for the police. Police spokesman Ahmed Mohammad, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), did not answer the calls to his mobile phone. He also did not reply to a text message sent to him on the incident at the time of going to the press last night.

VER 100 houses were destroyed by windstorm in Daki-Takwas village in Gummi Local Government Area of Zamfara State. The local government’s Sole Administrator Aliyu Muhammad confirmed the incident yesterday to News Agency of Nigeria (NAN). Muhammud, who said it was not the first time the people had experienced a storm, added that windstorms had been a threat to the lives and property in parts of the state. The sole administrator said the state government, through the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), had assisted the victims of such incidents at different times. He urged the victims to take the incident as an act of God, adding that the damage done would be assessed for possible assistance to the victims. Muhammed said: “I will make sure the area is assessed very well and assistance will be given to the victims to reduce tension.”

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

NEWS

UI students protest colleague’s death •School shut down •Reporter assaulted

HE University of Ibadan (UI), Ibadan, Oyo State, was yesterday paralysed by a massive students’ protest over the death of their colleague. Mayowa Alaran was a 200Level student in the Department of Human Kinetics Education. He reportedly died due to the “negligence” of the university’s health centre management. At 8am, the university’s four gates were locked as the students moved around, disrupting lectures. According to them, Alaran was asthmatic and was watching the European Champions League match in Independence Hall on Tuesday night, when he fainted. It was gathered that calls were made to the University Ambulance Service to pick him but there was no response. He was taken to the health centre, Jaja Clinic, a few metres to Kuti Hall. The Students Union President, Odesola Olufemi, alleged that rather than start treatment, the health centre workers asked for Alaran’s health centre card. This, he said, caused the student’s death. Odesola said the students want better welfare and

From Tayo Johnson, Ibadan

proper emergency service from the authorities. He added that the “management’s irresponsibility” had been affecting them. His words: “Because of the inadequacies of the clinic and the workers’ slowness in acceding to emergencies, Alaran died. “Now we are demanding for a total revamping of health emergencies in Jaja and for other amenities, such as water, electricity. “We are tired of the management’s irresponsibility and we shall use this struggle to fight for our rights. “We have been speaking to the management over time on this issue and nothing was done, but now we are tired. “We lost a colleague and friend and the university management should be held responsible for his death.” The Vice-Chancellor, Prof Isaac Adewole, addressed the students at Jaja Clinic. He set up a five-man committee to harmonise their demands and assured them that the university would investigate the matter. But the angry students were not convinced; they blocked major roads on the campus. Those who had businesses to do on the campus climbed

•

•The students...yesterday.

fences and trekked. During the protest, a correspondent of the New Telegraph, Sola Adeyemo, was assaulted. It was learnt that the reporter attempted to take the photograph of a university official, who was addressing the students, when his phone was seized. Despite identifying himself as a reporter, the students “roughened him up”, insisting that he delete the pictures he took.

He said: “An elderly policeman asked for my mission and I told him I am a reporter. But while I was explaining, the students started beating me, hitting me on my head. “One was pulling my shirt from behind, another my trousers till the belt snapped and the trousers came down. “A younger policeman insisted on collecting my phone and I handed it over to him. “He had the tag Oladepo Ebenezer on his uniform. I re-

Court accepts Ekiti APC lawmakers’ request

FEDERAL High Court in Lagos yesterday accepted the application for discontinuance filed by 19 All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmakers of the Ekiti State House of Assembly, challenging the impeachment of Speaker Adewale Omirin. Justice Saliu Saidu awarded N100,000 cost in favour of the defendants. The plaintiffs had on April 7, filed an application through their lawyer, Norrison Quakers, seeking to discontinue their case against Governor Ayodele Fayose, the seven Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) lawmakers and others, over the ‘unlawful’ removal of Omirin and his deputy, Adetunji Orisalade on November 20, last year. Also joined as defendants were the Inspector General of Police, the Commissioner of

•Awards N100,000 in favour of PDP By Precious Igbonwelundu

Police and the Department of State Service. Others include the three commissioners cleared for appointment by the PDP lawmakers in the House. The plaintiffs, among other things, sought an order restraining the factional Speaker of the House, Dele Olugbemi, and his deputy, Olayinka Abeni, from either parading themselves as or executing duties as leaders of the House. The plaintiffs’ move to discontinue the suit was objected to by the defendants, who argued that the matter should rather be dismissed, since it has filed its statement of defence.

The defendants’ counsel, E.O. Afolayan, representing his principal, Femi Adesina, urged the court to dismiss the suit because “it is the proper thing to do”. He prayed the court to dismiss the case to foreclose any future representation of the matter by the plaintiffs. But the defence lawyer represented by Onyeka Ofoegbu said their prayer was for the court to strike out the matter. Justice Saidu held that he was cautioned in a democratic setting to dismiss a suit, as that will mean shutting the door of justice against a litigant. He said: “I have gone through the notice of discontinuance filed by the plaintiffs in this case and the objection

of the defendants that they have taken steps in this matter by the processes filed and that this case ought to be dismissed and not struck out. “The issue of what is to be done in a situation like this where the defendants have taken steps is left at the discretion of the court.” Citing plethora of legal authorities, Justice Saidu said the court was urged not to take the cruel and lonely path of shutting the door of justice against a litigant. “In the present democratic setting in this country, I am seriously cautioned to take the path of striking out rather than dismissal. I hereby strike out this case with a cost of N100,000 against the plaintiffs, and in favour of the first to eighth defendants, and 12th to 14th defendants in the case,” he said.

Salaries: Ekiti workers to be screened before payment

KITI State civil servants have to wait longer before receiving their April salary. This is because of the government’s decision to carry out a verification before workers receive their pay. The action is already causing disquiet in the civil service. The Nation learnt in AdoEkiti, the state capital, yesterday that the screening will take place between May 11 and 15. A panel set up to conduct the screening is expected to submit a report and no worker should expect any salary, until the panel turns in its report.

From Odunayo Ogunmola, Ado Ekiti

All civil servants have been served copies of Staff Verification Forms from the Office of the Accountant General in which they are expected to supply some information and data. Information to be supplied include staff biometric identification number, ministry/agency, surname and other names, date of birth, date of first appointment, date of last promotion, grade level and step. Others are salary pay point, salary account details to include bank and account number.

The form is expected to be endorsed with signature of the officer and date, thumb print, head of department’s signature and accounting officer’s signature. Workers willing to collect their April salary are expected to supply the screening panel with some documents. The documents include two certified passport-size photographs, birth certificate/ declaration of age, letter of appointment, letter of last promotion, bio-data form and all educational certificates. A civil servant said: “A screening will hold before we collect our April salary

and it has been scheduled for May 11 to May 15 after which the screening panel will submit a report to government. “The implication is that the earliest period workers can get their pay is late May because nobody can receive salary when verification is going on. “To add insult to injury, we are expected to even spend money to take passport photographs and make photocopies of credentials. “No worker can spend less than N500 to make all these materials available and this is happening at a period we have not been paid.”

leased the phone to him, believing that it was safer with him than with the students. “The elderly policeman tried to whisk me away from the place but the students will not let him. “Eventually, two of the students took me away to a safe place. “When I made an official compliant, I was directed to the security post. The guards followed me back to retrieve my phone. “On meeting the police-

man, he told us that the students had collected the phone from him.” The Registrar, Olujimi Olukoya, described the incident as unfortunate, adding that the ViceChancellor had addressed the students. “The issue of student going outside the campus to block the main road is uncalled for and I find it hard to believe that these are the same students the VC addressed,” Olukaya said.

‘Inspector’ held for vandalism

SUSPECTED pipeline vandal parading himself as a police inspector has been arrested at Sagamu by officials of the New Age Global Surveillance and Security. According to the firm’s spokesman, Lateef Lawal, Godwin Omolua was caught at a pipeline point on Wednesday. He had a ‘police identification card number’ PCM/576/2010 with tag bearing “Warrant Card”. Before his arrest, he had claimed to be a member of the Inspector General of Police surveillance team and an informant to the Chief Security Officer (CSO) of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), both of which were found to be false.

By Kelvin Osa Okunbor

An officer in the office of the CSO refuted the suspect’s claim. Upon further interrogation, he said he had just lost his mother and that he was at the vandalised point to look for wetin I go chop. When he was taken to the Sagamu Police Station, the DCO also noted that Omolua’s identification card was not issued by the police. He has been detained. Two-trailer load of fuel and 50 pieces of 50 litres jerry cans have been seized from vandals at various points of the pipeline in Sagamu. No arrest was made as the vandals fled on sighting the guards.

Olasope clocks 78

RIENDS and relations will today converge on EfonAlaaye, Ekiti State, for a breakfast prayer to mark the 78th birthday of veteran broadcaster Otunba Kunle Olasope. Born in Ibadan, Oyo State in 1937, Olasope is the first newscaster to appear on television in Africa as he was a pioneer member of staff of the Western Nigerian Television set up by the Premier of the defunct Western Region, the late Chief

Obafemi Awolowo. The eminent journalist is also the pioneer Chairman of the Broadcasting Service of Ekiti State, recipient of the Member of the Order of Niger (MON), Ekiti State Government Award of Distinguished Son of Ekiti (DSE), the National Broadcasting Commission Award of Distinguished Veteran Broadcaster, and a member of the the Efon Alaaye Hall of Fame. Olasope also holds the honorary title of the Otunba Agunsoye of Efon Kingdom.

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

NEWS

We’ve delivered on our promises, says Fashola

AGOS State Governor Babatunde Fashola yesterday sought for forgiveness from those he might have offended during his eight-year tenure. Fashola made the request at a programme to commemorate his 2,900 days in office. The Fashola-led administration, since inception, has always reviewed its activities every 100 days. The 29th edition, held at the Blue Roof LTV8 Ikeja, is the last, as the administration will end its tenure on May 29. The governor said he was called upon to take decisions in the morning, afternoon and sometimes late in the night and he took those decisions based on the information available to him. He said his decisions were always made in the best interest of the state, though some people might have felt hurt in the process. Fashola urged those who might have been offended to forgive him since he is human and liable to make mistakes. The governor said he had promised Lagosians during his inauguration in 2007 that he would revolutionise critical sectors, such as health, education, infrastructure, agriculture and transportation. “I cannot pretend and say that I have done it all but I am here to tell you that my successor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, will build on the legacies that we are leaving behind. “I made a contract with Lagosians eight years ago. The summary of the

•Governor seeks forgiveness from detractors •Urges LASU teachers to sheathe sword By Miriam Ekene-Okoro

contract was contained in my inaugural speech on May 29, 2007 and I crave your indulgence to repeat what I said on that day. “ I said `fellow citizens, in seeking to meet your aspirations within the shortest possible time, my administration would pay attention to the core areas of education, public transportation, infrastructural development, job creation, healthcare, crime fighting and the environment’. “That was the promise I made. Ladies and gentlemen, my task as your governor is almost done. “In the next 21days, our governorelect will take over from where I stopped as I would have reached my destination,” he said. Reeling out some of the achievements of his administration, Fashola said his administration had built 362 new roads within the period. He said his administration had built Okota Link Bridge, LekkiIkoyi Link Bridge and other bridges within the period to ease traffic in the affected areas. The governor said government had employed 20,000 people into the civil service. Fashola said the government had installed 28,456 street signs to enhance easy navigation. According to him, the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) has revolutionised

public transportation. Fashola said the creation of over 196 parks and gardens has also beautified the environment. He said the massive investment in schools had raised standards and improved the pass rate. The governor said new health institutions have reduced mortality rate. Fashola thanked residents for making his development agenda a reality through their understanding and compliance with laws. He appealed to lecturers of the Lagos State University (LASU) to sheathe their sword. The governor said the continued closure of the school was as a result of the desperate moves by some lecturers, who are in a hurry to become vice-chancellor. Fashola said it has become a practice among LASU lecturers to always foment trouble anytime a VC’s tenure is coming to an end. Fashola said it is not the prerogative of lecturers to say when to remove the VC. “That is not their prerogative. Their prerogative is to teach,” he said. The governor also lamented the continuous gridlock in Apapa axis, saying it is a sad story of our nation. “ I apologise for the inconveniences that the residents of Apapa go through daily due to the traffic caused by the tankers who come to

that axis to lift fuel. “If you can avoid going to that axis, please do so. I urge you to listen to Traffic Radio and get an update as you plan your journey.” In his remark, Oba Akiolu, who spoke in Yoruba, thanked the governor and his team for “performing excellently”. He said: “On the day Asiwaju Bola Tinubu handed over to Fashola, the Chief Imam of Lagos prayed for him. “He prayed that God would not take away his honour and respect. He prayed that Tinubu will never suffer. “He said Fashola, who took over from him, would not mislead the people. “We are happy today because Fashola and his commissioners have made us proud.” The monarch affirmmed that he is not into partisan politics but a politician of Iga Iduganrano. “I am not afraid of any person or anything. I can only fear God. I am not afraid of death, but I will not die now. “When there was controversy between Tinubu and Fashola, all the nation’s elders and monarchs called on me to intervene. “They said I served the Police Force for 32 years and could not settle a dispute between my sons. “In your party, there are people, who are agents of conflict. Such agents would go to my elder son and advise him against making peace with my younger son. “The same people would go to my younger son and instigate him

against my elder son. “But God will never be put to shame. So, I called the two of them separately. I told them they have to listen to me and that if they refused, I will hands off but to God be the glory, they listened to me. “I am happy today. Babatunde the Lord will continue to be with you. “Ambode will soon take over. We should pray for him. I have told him not to seek revenge. “I told him not to resume office with a vengeful heart. He should forget the past and move on. Among the people here, there are people, who never wanted Ambode to emerge governor. Most of you are sycophants. “But I told them Ambode was my candidate. All Lagos residents should pray that Tinubu’s labours will not be in vain. “A lot of things have been happening now. Some people have been telling Buhari all sorts of things. “Awujale and I have decided to meet Buhari because Lagos and the Southwest states must benefit from the Buhari administration. “People, who are telling Buhari all sorts of things, are sycophants. They don’t want Buhari to emerge winner in the election. These people know themselves. “When push comes to shove, I will name them. I am not afraid of any human being.” Former governors- Lateef Jakande and Sir Mobolaji Johnsonwere some prominent people who attended the programme.

One killed, nurse kidnapped in Ekiti

HERE is uneasy calm at the Federal Teaching Hospital, Ido Ekiti, Ido/Osi Local Government Area of Ekiti State, following the killing of a yet-to-be identified indigene and the kidnap of a theatre nurse. Some youths attacked the hospital complex on Wednesday, demanding more employment slots for indigenes. They pelted the traditional ruler, Oba Ayorinde Ilori Faboro, with sachets of water. Addressing a briefing yesterday, the Chief Medical Director (CMD), Dr. Majekodunmi Ayodele, called on the police and the military to assist in protecting the workers “at this critical period”. Ayodele identified the kidnapped nurse as Mrs. Margaret Aladenika, who was seized on Sunday while in a car with her husband. The mother of three is said to be in her early 40s. The hospital chief said no contact has been established with Mrs. Aladenika and her captors. According to him, the gunmen reportedly killed the third occupant of the car. Speaking on the invasion, Dr. Ayodele revealed that the youth, led by Kester Layokun, who claimed to be chairman of Ido Youth Vanguard, stormed the hospital at 7am armed with charms, weapons and kegs of petrol.

Ondo Tribunal holds inaugural sitting From Damisi Ojo, Akure

THE National and House of Assembly Election Tribunal for Ondo State will today hold its inaugural sitting in Akure, the state capital. The inaugural session will hold at 9 am at the premises of the Industrial Court, Akure. The Tribunal was relocated from the High Court, Akure to a courtroom at the Industrial Court because of the ongoing strike by the Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN).

From Odunayo Ogunmola, Ado Ekiti

The CMD claimed that the violence was masterminded by a House of Assembly member-elect. He added that the irate youths locked the gates leading to the hospital and barricaded the main road leading to the complex. Dr. Ayodele disclosed that the youth demanded letters of employment for at least 100 graduates of the community. He said the hospital has filled the employment quota given to the community. The CMD said he contacted the Ido Divisional Police Officer, Okechukwu Ogbonna, who mobilised policemen to the scene but they were unable to tame the youth. The CMD explained that the hospital is not a local government or state institution but a federal institution which must respect the provisions of the Federal Character Commission (FCC) Law on the employment of other Nigerians in its catchment areas of Ondo, Kwara, Kogi and Osun.

•From left: Commissioner for Information and Strategy Ibirogba; Oba Akiolu; Deputy Governor Mrs Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire; Fashola; his wife, Abimbola and State Chairman, All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Henry Ajomale…yesterday. PHOTO: NAN

Supreme Court fixes May 27 for judgment in Omisore’s appeals

HE Supreme Court yesterday fixed May 27 for judgment in the appeal by the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the August 9 governorship election in Osun State, Iyiola Omisore. Omisore is challenging the April 2 decision of the Court of Appeal, affirming the judgment of the Governorship Election Tribunal, which upheld the victory of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its candidate, Governor Rauf Aregbesola. Yesterday, parties made their final arguments and adopted their processes, following which the court adjourned till May 27 for judgment. Omisore, dressed in white native attire, witnessed the proceedings that lasted about three hours. Alex Iziyon, who led five

From Eric Ikhilae, Abuja

others for the appellant, urged the court to set aside the concurrent judgments of the two lower courts (the tribunal and Court of Appeal) and allow the two appeals filed against the Court of Appeal’s decisions on the main appeal and the cross-appeal. Iziyon argued that both the tribunal and the Court of Appeal identified irregularities in the election but refused to make the proper findings concerning them. Former Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) Akin Olujinmi, who led Kola Awodein for Aregbesola, urged the court to dismiss the appeals, but to uphold the cross appeal he filed. He argued that there was nothing on which the appeals by Omisore could be assessed because all the evidence he led

at the tribunal punctured and his witnesses thoroughly discredited. He argued that the appellant failed, before the tribunal to discharge the onus of proving its case beyond reasonable doubt as required. Olujinmi, who also raised objection to appeals, urged the court to dismiss them on the ground that the appellant changed the name of a party to the case, APC to All Peoples Progressives Party, without the leave of the court. “This is a case in which the appellants called 43 witnesses and only seven were party agents. The rest were called supervisors. The PW15 and PW35 which they called experts said ‘we derived our evidence from what our agents told us’. “The evidence is clearly hearsay and there was no way

the tribunal could have made any use of it other than to treat as a mere hearsay. The seven party agents called were discredited. PW1 who was their star witness, said he was told what he told there court. “The so called experts admitted that their reports were false. My lordship, there is no evidence to rely on in order to sustain the petition. My question is that is there any element of evidence to rely on to get this court allow these appeals? My answer is none,” Olujinmi said. APC’s lawyer Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, who argued in similar vein, contended that the judgment of the courts below could not be faulted as the Court of Appeal held in its judgment that the reports of the appellant’s purported expert witnesses could not pass as expert report. “In rejecting their reports,

the Court of Appeal held that there was no expertise and that any literate person could make the deduction. They were not experts. There is no technical or scientific deduction in the reports. The findings of the court below cannot be faulted. “No portion of the judgment where the court agreed that there were irregularities. There is no such finding on record at the tribunal or at the court of appeal, “he said. Lawyer to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Adegboyega Awomolo also urged the court to dismiss the appeals and uphold the findings of the tribunal and lower court. He contended that, as against the argument by Iziyon, INEC needed not to have led evidence when the entire petitioner’s evidence was discredited.

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

CITYBEATS

CITYBEATS LINE: 09091178827

Fuel tankers stall Apapa traffic

LONG column of cars. People trecking and sweating. Fuel tankers all over the place. This was the scene on Oshodi-Apapa Expressway in Lagos yesterday. Some motorists abandoned their cars to join the long walk. Hard hit were workers who had to get to work early. They alighted from buses to trek as the road was jamparked. According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the arteries through which motorists could manoeuvre were blocked, leaving passengers and drivers in agony. A trader, Mrs Blessing Eze, said the road congestion disrupted her plans for the day. Mrs. Eze said: “It is not good at all; thousands of Lagosians have resorted to trekking because the roads are blocked. Our driver took all alternative routes but met all blocked. “I disembarked from the vehicle which I boarded at Surulere and took to trekking to Lagos Island, which you know is a good distance’’. She said she spent about 90 minutes trekking from Surelere to Costain, stressing that she does not know when she would get to her shop. A graduate, Miss Victoria Mbamara, described the gridlock as bad and boring. “I started trekking from Surulere to Lagos, this is very bad. I do not know what could have caused this pain on all of us. “Our leaders should be proac-

tive in arresting a situation like this that is capable to subjecting citizens to hardship. It’s bad,’’ Mbamara said. A businessman, Wale Ola, said: “This horrible traffic started yesterday; it is disheartening and highly discouraging’’. Another businessman, Christopher Ogucha, said: “This kind of traffic makes Lagos a boring place to live in. “I don’t know the cause, but the government should have proffered solutions; it is affecting us and our businesses,’’ Ogucha said. A civil servant, Mrs. Stella Obiora, described the traffic as terrible and painful. “It is terrible. If this is allowed to continue, wahala de niye, meaning trouble has come. It is quite bad and can earn one a query in the office,” Obiora said. Motorists are complaining about government’s inability to find a lasting solution to the problem. A motorist, who simply identified himself as Peter, said: “It’s a lot of stress to the good people of Lagos who left their homes to search for what to eat. “We have been trapped in this traffic and merry-go-round a lot without getting to our destination. It is quite painful that our leaders are not proactive. A driver, Sakiru Gbada said: “It is serious. I have spent about three hours on my way to Lagos Island. “The old woman I am taking to Lagos for medical examination is tired of the traffic situation.’’

NUPENG explains gridlock

HE National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) yesterday appealed to Lagosians to bear with it over the Oshodi-Apapa Expressway gridlock. NUPENG’s South-West Chairman, Tokunbo Korodo told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that its members were not responsible for the problem. “Most of the tankers responsible for the traffic jam came from the north to load petroleum products in Lagos. “They were programmed to get the products here (Lagos), but when they got here most of the depots owned by Independent marketers refused to load the tankers. “The Independent marketers are aggrieved they were not carried along with the major marketers on the recent subsidy payment by the Federal Government. “Now that the tanker drivers are here, it is difficult to return to the north without the product because it will not make economic sense. “For them to go back to their stations (empty) is economic loss; so they will continue to wait till they get the products. “This is coupled with an early morning accident along Ikorodu Road. “The union is working with officials of Lagos State traffic unit to manage the situation,” he said. He said the gridlock would ease immediately majority of the tankers load and leave. Korodo said the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) should decentralize the loading of petroleum products to reduce traffic gridlock on Lagos roads. He said only three out of over 50 depots currently had petroleum products, adding that this was mainly responsible for the traffic jam. Korodo said the three depots were Capital Oil and Gas Tank Farm, Ibeto Oil and Gas Tank Farm and Integrated Oil and Gas Tank Farm, all in the Apapa.

The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) and the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), say they are on top of the situation. FRSC Lagos Sector Commander, Hyginus Omeje said police, LASTMA and the Corps are cooperating to arrest the situation. “We have been working end-

lessly since we noticed the gridlock; we have tried to restrict all the tankers that trooped into Lagos to load fuel from all other states to one lane. “It has really been difficult because they are the ones causing the congestion and it is difficult to tow them, especially when they are loaded to avoid fire.

Wife urges court to dissolve 10-year-old marriage

‘Armed robber’ held in Lagos church

35-YEAR-OLD wife, Mrs Sarah Ogunde, yesterday in Lagos urged a Somolu Customary Court to dissolve her 10-year-old marriage to her husband, Tolani Ogunde, over an alleged threat to her life. Sarah, a civil servant, accused her husband of threatening her life, being fetish, not being trust worthy, regularly beating her, and lack of care and love. She said though the union was blessed with a child, the husband was yet to pay the bride price. The petitioner also alleged that her husband was fond of leaving their matrimonial home at 5a.m. daily, only to return at midnight, and on some occasions, he would stay away for days. Sarah said that she had found some substances suspected to be fetish objects with her husband, stressing that she had decided to leave as she no longer loved him. However, Tolani, in his defence, told the court that he still love his wife. He said that the fetish objects his wife found in his possession were for his personal security. The president, Mrs Oluremi Ekundayo, advised the parties to maintain peace while she requested that the blood relations of the couple to appear in court on May 12, the next adjournment date for counselling.

•‘I pay my tithe after each operation’

N attempt by a suspected armed robber to operate in a Lagos church has been foiled by the police. Kelvin Ajomagberin, 23, was arrested by operatives of the Lagos State Police Command after a gun was found inside his bag. Ajomagberin, who said his father was a pastor, went to a Celestial Church of Christ (CCC) located at Mafoluku, Oshodi on April 26, to consult the prophet ahead of an operation he was to execute same day. He, however, ended up in police net after the guards at the church found a ‘toy gun’ in his bag. He was said to have dropped the bag at the reception and proceeded to see the cleric for ‘spiritual cleansing’. Oblivious that the church’s security agents had discovered his bag where it was hidden and searched, the suspect initially denied ownership of the bag, but he later admitted. It dawned on Ajomagberin that he was in trouble when the church workers raised the alarm, which attracted other worshippers screaming: “Where is the armed robber?” The angry mob allegedly pounced on the suspect, who confessed to have robbed thrice and was in the church for a blessing before carrying out an-

By Ebele Boniface

other operation. But for the intervention of security men from nearby Makinde Police Station, the suspect would have been lynched. He was subsequently handed over to the policemen, who transferred the matter to the Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS). Upon interrogation at SARS, Ajomagberin disclosed that he had solely operated within Ajah, Ikorodu and Oshodi, adding that he was resident in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, but usually came to Lagos for operations. “My mother is late and my father is a pastor based in Spain. I usually work with bricklayers as a labourer and earn N1, 500 daily. I completed my secondary school education in 2009 in the State High School, Alimosho in Lagos. There was no money for me to get more education. It was the bricklayer I was working with that suggested that since bricklaying was no longer lucrative, we should look for other means of survival. “I left him and went to Ajah and later, Oshodi. I became stranded because I had no money. I slept in a shop behind Oshodi market. I knew the man who owns the shop. When I woke up one morning, I wanted to go and rob but my spirit told me to go and see the pastor

“This is always the aftermath of the fuel scarcity as many tankers come to lift petroleum products from tank farms that do not have loading bay,’’ he said. According to Omeje, with the concentration of tank farms in Apapa, there should be checks on farms without loading bays before the issuance of certificates. He urged the Federal Government to open other tank farms in Ijebu-Ode (Ogun State) and Benin (Edo) as part of the solutions to the perennial Apapa gridlock. LASTMA General Manager, Babatunde Edu told NAN that his men worked all through the night to restrict the tankers to a single lane. “I have not had sleep since yesterday (Wednesday), I have been here working with my men to ensure that the problem is resolved and people can enter Lagos. “Tankers and other articulated vehicles entering or leaving Apapa should not lock down Lagos, they should obey traffic managers’ directive by restricting their operations to a single lane. “We are working assiduously to ensure Ikorodu road is gridlockfree, and that no tanker is allowed on Eko Bridge except on Oshodi/ Mile 2 road,’’ he said. Edu blamed the gridlock on the bad roads along the axis, saying though the Federal Ministry of Works worked on a portion of the road the unfinished part was a problem. According to him, for such experience not to recur, the issues of infrastructure decay and lingering fuel scarcity have to be addressed. He urged motorists without business in Apapa to avoid the road.

Lagos chief greets Ambode, Amosun

LAGOS chief and secretary, Onitetiku-Owode Ota Welfare Council, Prince Adesegun Ogungbayi yesterday congratulated Governor-elect Akinwunmi Ambode. He also hailed Ibikunle Amosun on his re-election as governor of Ogun State, describing their victories as reward for hardwork and loyalty to All Progressives Congress (APC) national leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu. Ogungbayi, urged the duo to be magnanimous in victory and ensure development of their states was paramount.

Group marks anniversary

•Ajomagberin

for spiritual cleansing for a successful operation,” he said. The suspect added: “They finished service by 4pm and I went into the pastor’s consulting room. The security men there saw my bag and opened it. When they saw a gun, they started beating me. I could not see the pastor because I was told to come back the following day. “I had operated in three

places before I was arrested. At Ajah, I got N3,500 and I also robbed a woman at Ikorodu where I got another N3,500. The third place was at a church in Oshodi. My visit to the CCC was the fourth time I would have robbed. I learnt how to attack people with a toy gun in Ghana. It was one Tope who taught me. I usually paid my tithes and offerings after each operation.”

GROUP, the International Association of Lions Clubs will today, kick-start its annual free eye test for Lagos residents. The test which will begin at 10am, on Adeyemi Street, Wasimi Village, Maryland in Ikeja, is part of activities lined up to commemorate its ‘Knights of the blind in the crusade against Darkness’ Day. A statement by the group’s chairperson, Elizabeth Coker, said members will on May 16, walk for life in memory of Helen Killer, the initiator of the crusade, who attended the Lions Clubs International convention in 1925 and challenged the group. The walk will take off from Immaculate Junior School by 7am, and a lecture on prevention and care for eye diseases will be delivered by Prof. Bukola AdefuleOsitelu.

THE NATION FRIDAY MAY 8, 2015

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

BUSINESS THE NATION

E-mail:- bussiness@thenationonlineng.net

Commercial banks are not manufacturing-friendly as their interest rates are usually very high; therefore, commercial banks remain a major challenge to the sector. Even the Bank of Industry’s (BoI) framework, which pegs interest rate at nine per cent, only finances machinery acquisition; it does not cater for working capital. -MAN President, Dr Frank Jacobs

‘E-payment is the future’

Minister urges surveyors to embrace entrepreneurship

By Lucas Ajanaku

HE Managing Director of SystemSpecs, Mr John Obaro, has dimissed fears of people about the security of electronic or e-payment platforms as baseless, adding that it is the future of the economy. Obaro who spoke on the sideline yesterday in Lagos during the unveiling of this year’s edition of Remita Corporate Champions Draws at the firm’s corporate head office, said the future of electronic payment is bright. He identified weak awareness level and ignorance as some of the challenges drawing the embrace of e-payment back, adding that this will however fizzle out with time. Speaking on why the IT firm ventured into the sponsorship of the championship, he said it was designed to make people in the corporate world relax, stressing that life is not all about wearing suits and resuming at work at 8am and closing 5pm. In the draws unveiled by the championship’s ambassador, Super Eagles’ former goalie, Peter Rufai, Unilever will do battle with Swipha while UBA will square it up with MTN Nigeria. Etisalat was drawn with Nestle while Leadway will meet Ecobank on the football pitch.

NCP okays partnership funding for NRC From John Ofikhenua, Abuja

HE National Council on Privatisation (NCP) has directed the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) to commence collaboration with the Nigeria Infrastructure Advisory Facility (NIAF) which has committed to funding the consultancy for the development of the roadmap and framework for the concession of the rail tracks of Nigeria Railways Corporation (NRC). This was one of the decisions reached following the presentation of the Director-General of the BPE, Mr. Benjamin Dikki at the meeting of the Council yesterday at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. The Public Enterprises (Privatisation and Commercialisation) Act, 1999 scheduled the NRC for privatisation and the NCP in 2002 approved that the enterprise be concessioned to private operators to provide freight and passenger railway services using the vertical integration model. The decision to reform the railways was borne out of government’s desire to avoid the collapse and eventual shut down of the railways, generally regarded as a loss making but socially and economically imperative to the nation.

From Kolade Adeyemi, Kano

• From left: President, Business Education Examinations Council (BEEC), Mazi Mike Okereke; Director-General, Industrial Training Fund (ITF), Dr. Juliet Chukkas-Onaeko; and Senior Management Consultant, The Management School, London, Dr. David Demetrius, during the presentation of “The Best Performing Government Parastatals’ Award for Excellence” to the ITF’s chief by BEEC, in Lagos.

AMCON’s board members, others can’t buy acquired assets

HE Senate yesterday passed the Asset Man agement Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) amendment bill. Chairman, Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and other Financial Institutions, Senator Bassey Edet Otu, who sponsored the bill said the amendment of the AMCON Act became necessary in order to strengthen the operations of AMCON and to make it to serve the statutory purpose for which it was created. The AMCON Act was enacted in 2010 to enable the Corporation to buy over toxic assets of mostly distressed banks in the country. The amended sections of the Act included Sections 2(3), 16(5), 34(1), 34(2), 35, 46(2), 48,60, 61 and 62 which aimed at enhancing the ability of AMCON to effectively carry out its statutory mandate. Otu noted that the amendment will enable and sustain the banking sector’s contribution to the economy.

• Senate passes AMCON Bill From Onyedi Ojiabor, Asst. Editor and Sanni Onogu, Abuja

He said for instance, since the establishment of AMCON, Nigerian banks have been able to provide substantial funds towards privatisation and enabling environment for greater profitability in the key sectors of the economy such as aviation, oil and gas, manufacturing leading to a larger tax base and higher taxes to the Federal Government. Senate President, David Mark, had at the public hearing for the bill stressed that the amendment of AMCON Act is to clarify and remove certain ambiguities in the extant law that inhibits the operations of the corporation to carry out its mandate. A major thrust of the amendment is the amendment of Section 16(5) which now states that “a member of the Board or any employee of the Corporation

shall not either directly or indirectly be involved in the purchase of the asset acquired by the Corporation as part of, or in pursuant of, the acquisition of an eligible bank asset or enforcement or realisation of any right relating to an eligible bank asset acquired by the Corporation.” Clause 4 provides for the effect of acquisition of eligible bank assets by the Corporation. The amendment aimed at deleting the language in Section 34(1) of the Act which inadvertently suggested that loans related obligations of selling eligible financial institutions will pass on to AMCON with the acquisition of eligible bank assets. Clause 6 deals with redemption of debts securities issued by the Corporation. The amendment of this subsection deletes Section 46(2) of the Act and inserts a new Part IX (61-85) immediately

after Section 60 of the Act which provides for the creation of a sinking fund and matters related thereto based on: that a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) had already been signed between all the Deposit Money Bank (DMBs) and Central Bank of Nigeria resulting in the establishment of a Banking Sector Resolution Cost Fund; That since the fund had already been established and operationalised by agreement within stakeholders in the banking sector, the bill seeks to codify Industry Agreemnt; That based on the MoU, the DMB’s will be required to make contributions of 50 basis point of their total assets to be the fund based on their audited financial statements and N50 billion from the CBN annually for 10 years. Otu said the committee observed that the total contribution to the fund stood at N293.41billion as at 31st December, 2013.

PEF saved $2b for Fed Govt, says ex-boss FORMER Petroleum Equalisation Fund (PEF) boss Mrs Adefunke Kasali yesterday said the agency saved more than $2billion through Project Aquila. She spoke in Abuja while handing over to the new Executive Secretary, Mr. Asabe Ahmed . Project Aquila is a high-tech electronic loading and delivery system introduced by PEF to check leakages in the system, as well as enthrone transparency and due process. According to her, PEF has been able to check fraudulent activities among petroleum marketers and ensured transparency in the system through the project. She said: “The new initiative, also known as ‘e-loading’ ensures the delivery of petroleum products to the

From John Ofikhenua, Abuja

right destination. ‘The process has checkmated the annual loss of N15 billion to the activities of some unscrupulous petroleum tanker drivers who engaged in some unethical activities such as diversion of petroleum products.” Kasali said the agency had taken a bold step to eliminate corruption and ensure prompt payment of bridging cost through ‘Project Aquila,’ adding that through the initiative, PEF had detected and stopped payment of more than N847million in fictitious claims by petroleum marketers. Kasali said the project had also been able to remove encumbrances that normally caused distortions in the supply chain such as the issue of

prompt payment of bridging claims. “Just look at the way we designed the business. We saved $2billion upfront because we wrote the codes inhouse and how about all the 10s of billions we have saved by people that used to claim them. “There was a time when we stopped N847 million worth of fake ticket and all the ones we have been saving ever since,” she said Kasali also refuted claims that the board was underpaying some marketers or delaying their payment, saying the PEFMB had been consistent in paying the right claims due to marketers. This, she said, was in accordance with their capacity as approved by the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR).

She said: “Those who are complaining are those that the robust Project Aquila has blocked their old ways of “milking’’ the system and are uncomfortable with the new measures imposed to check past abuses. “If any marketer said he was not paid, it means we could not confirm that they were loaded so if somebody said his claim has been stocked, it means that they were not loaded.” The new Executive Secretary, Mrs Asabe Ahmed lauded the achievement of Kasali and promised to build on the achievement. “I can see a team of highly motivated professionals and the efficiency I have seen in the system is due to all of you. I have come to carry on from where she has left off,” she said.

INISTER of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, Dr. Akon Etim Eyakenyi has urged quantity surveyors in the country to brace up to the growing challenges of the profession. She said these challenges could only be addressed when surveyors’ embrace entrepreneurial revolution that meets with the global best practices. Represented by a Federal Controller in the Ministry, Mr. Abdulyekini Akara, at Kano Federal Secretariat, she said there was need for quantity surveyors to diversify beyond the professional firms. She spoke at a workshop organsied by the Nigerian Institute of Quantity Surveyors (NIQS) in collaboration with the Kano State government with The Professional As An Entrepreneur as its theme. She said: “The professional should begin to see himself as a business man, particularly in contemporary times of huge commercialisation. “He needs to free himself from every confinement of past tendencies and leverage into the new spirit of entrepreneurship. The drive for new spirit of entrepreneurship forms the bedrock of success stories in today’s business concerns. “The quest for new skills and competencies in management of business in the corporate world calls for total transformation of professional practices for sustainability.”

Samsung digital village in Cross River From Nicholas Kalu, Calabar

AMSUNG Electronics West Africa in collabo ration with United Nations Educational, Scientific Organisation (UNESCO) yesterday launched its Digital Village in Oban Community in Akamkpa Local Government Area of Cross River State - the first in Nigeria. The Digital Village is expected to provide access to the world’s most advanced information and communication technology (ICT), education and health services to under-resourced areas, bridging the digital divide and serving as a catalyst for local business development and government service delivery. Managing Director of Samsung Electronics West Africa, Mr Brovo Kim, said a sizeable proportion of rural areas across the continent do no have electricity, resulting in isolated communities with limited access to education, health care and connectivity, which are necessary components of socio-economic development.

THE NATION FRIDAY MAY 8, 2015

FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

THE NATION

BUSINESS SHOPPING

E-mail: toniaitose@gmail.com

sms : 07035302326 Website:- http://www.thenationonlineng.net

Fuel scarcity frustrates shoppers Operators in the retail shopping industry lament that fuel scarcity is affecting their businesses as sales and traffic to these places have been low, report TONIA ‘DIYAN, OCHU OHUNENE LATIFAH and EKEOWA PATIENCE.

HIS last week has seen shopping activities almost paralysed at shopping places within the Lagos metropolis. No thanks to the present scarcity of the petroleum product which has been out of stock since last week. Operators of shopping places say they have been witnessing low sales because of the frustrating situation and customers do not patronise them like before. Managements of malls visited have shown dissatisfaction with the present fuel situation , describing the situation as highly unacceptable and very disappointing. They said it is a major setback to economic activities in the country and have advised the government to do everything necessary to see that the situation is normalised as soon as possible. The Nation Shopping visited some shopping places to observe how the present fuel scarcity is affecting sales. At Ikeja City Mall in Alausa, Ikeja, Manager of Poise store, Mrs Temitope Olaopa, said the present fuel situation has affected sales for her and her colleagues negatively. “With the present scarcity of fuel which has been ongoing since last week, we are recording very low sales. The situation is worse than the election period when we had to work half day. This time around, our customers • Continues on Page 14

• An almost empty car park at Ikeja City Mall.

Many businesses pursue corporate social responsibility (CSR) that can best be termed pet projects. One big company that has taken a bold move to improve the condition of its host community is Intercontinental Distillers Ltd (IDL) who has fully keyed into the initiative, TONIA ‘DIYAN reports.

IDL takes CSR to next level

ORPORATE social responsibility (CSR) has become more mainstream as forward-thinking companies such as Intercontinental Distillers Ltd (IDL) producers and marketers of such leading quality drinks that satisfy the needs of its customers as Chelsea London Dry Gin, Squadron, Eagle Aromatic Schnapps, London Dry Gin, Samba Coconut Liqueur, Veleta Sparkling Fruit Drink, Teezers, Action Bitters among others has embedded CSRinto its core values to create shared value for organisations in its host community. Giving back to a receptive community such as Ota in Ogun State was not a difficult task for IDL when it recently donated a block of four classrooms and two offices to Ilogbo Asowo Community High School, Ilogbo in Ota, Ogun State , as one of its many contributons to improve the standard of education in the school and the community at large. The initiative was facilitated by the Onilogbo of Ilogbo, Samuel Olufemi Ojugbele, after a passionate appeal to IDL to provide more classrooms and offices for the school to cater for its ever increasing population. Since the inauguration of the block of classrooms coincided with the 72ndbirthday celebration of the Onilogbo, it was as like a special birthday gift to him. With this, the company has displayed its commitment to giving back to its host community in a special way. The project was completed on schedule in spite of prevailing economic difficulties and constraints. Managing Director, IDL, Chief Patrick I. Anegbe said the company

believes that business is not just about making profit but also touching the lives of the communities where it operates in a positive way, hence its involvement in various CSR initiatives over the years. He said: “The gesture is a way of identifying with the progress of the Ota community. It is our hope that the project would go a long way in improving the standard of education in the community.” He however, advised the students to take care of the building, stating that it is theirs and that of their future generations.” The Oni-logbo of Ilogbo, Oba Dr Samuel Ojubele, who facilitated the project for the school, expressed gratitude to IDL. “I am happy and fulfilled that my wish for this school has become a reality. I felt for the children when I visited the school. Their classrooms were crowded with more than 100 of them, I decided to invite Chief Anegbe, IDL boss who asked me to relax that his company will award the contract and then the contractor came and this is the result. The project took only three weeks” he said. The monarch added at the tape cutting ceremony that he couldn’t have wished for a better birthday gift and that he is sure that with the new block of classrooms, pressure would be eased from the existing structures. Thanking the organisation for the love it had shown, he urged other companies to emulate gesture, stating that there are other needed facilities like toilet, library and a standard laboratory.” In the same vein, the principal of the school, Pastor Femi Awosode expressed gratitude to the firm, adding that he was pleased with the new development in the school. “This is a wonderful development happening in my time as principal of this

• From left: Head of Sales, Mr Hope Gbagi, Chairman Ogun State Teaching Commission Otunba Timothy Adebowale, Oba Ojugbele, Chief Anegbe, at the the inauguration of the new block of classrooms donated to Ilogbo Community High School.

school, IDL is a very responsible cooperate organisation and I am happy with their contribution to the school.” he said. An elated Olowolafe Abimbola, an SS1 student, thanked IDL and the monarch for building a beautiful structure for the students. “This is the only beautiful structure we can boast of. We are indeed very grateful to the company who has done this for us,” she said. Abimbola added that the challenge of having to learn with 299 more students under the same roof has been overcome. “The learning condition here has not been friendly; sometimes some of us who sit at the back do not hear what the teacher is saying. Our Kabieyesi has promised to help us talk with more people that will transform our school and make it conducive for learning. I pray that the company that has started this good work will not collapse,” she added. For Afolabi Samuel, a JSS3 student

of the school, this is one of the best things that has happened in the school. “Nobody has ever thought of doing this for us before now. At least, this building is going to make our school compound beautiful. I want to thank God for making this a reality for our school, IDL and the Kabiesi himself,” he said. Before now, findings have it that the community was in a deplorable state and wasn’t functioning well enough to meet the needs of its residents, then IDL immediately went into action, providing extension of treated drinking water from the factory to Igboloye Community in Ota and a borehole. The company donated a 500 kva transformer to the same community, a block of three classrooms and computers to Iganmode Grammar School, renovated a block of five classrooms for St. Michael Primary School, and renovated a block of three classrooms for St. Peters Primary School 2, all in Ota commu-

nity. Apart from these donations, the company has succeeded in completing an assembly hall for Customs Secondary School, Idiroko, it has donated a set of computers and printers to the Special Marshal Unit of the Federal Road Safety Corp, Ogun State Command, a 5.5 kva generator to the National Identity Management Commission, N250,000 to Ogun State Sports Council towards the National Sports Festival. Now, the Ota community has been upgraded with the help of IDL. Today, IDL has grown to become the market leader in wines and spirits sub-sector of Food and Beverage industry in Nigeria employing over 800 staff directly and many more indirectly. The Chairman, Ogun State Teaching Service, Otunba Timothy Adebowale, has asked the students to take advantage of the new learning facilities to better themselves.

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

SHOPPING N EWS

Firm unveils online store I

N a bid to leverage on the rising opportunities of online businesses, Rothschild Resources and Services Ltd, a firm that is into sales of goods and services has unveiled its online storerothschild.com.ng. Speaking during the event which was held at the ‘TFC Place’, Festac town, Lagos, the Chief Executive Officer of the company, Igwe Stephen Nwatu, said that they are prepared to position themselves in untapped areas of online markets. “Rothschild shopping mall will provide a wide range of product from home needs to industrial needs. Our delivery pattern is strategic with focus on exceeding customer’s expectation. Whatever the customer needs and whenever it is needed, the company would provide it,” he said. Asked why he decided to go into online shopping, he said first he discovered that other online stores

LOBAL leading teaching solution developer ROBOTEL Inc. has unveiled a technological solution that improves digital classroom management systems. Robotel Inc Canada partnered Topteck Nigeria Ltd, a world class IT firm, to launch Robotel SmartClass+ products in the country. Robotel, in partnership with Topteck, will offer hundreds of Nigerian educational institutions a world-class digital classroom and language labouratories. Executive Director, Europe, Africa and Latin America, at Robotel, Yanick Demers, during a townhall meeting tagged ROBOTEL SmartClass+ - The 21st Century Digital Classroom, in Lagos expressed delight at having the opportunity to showcase the technology to the country. With over 30

By Medinat Kanabe

have not fully utilised the service and second he wants to be among the pioneer online stores in the country. In addition, he believes that rothschild.com.ng will be number one in Nigeria very soon, saying if Nigeria telecommunication sector can witness a 140 million lines sale between 2001 and 2015, rothschild.com.ng will also witness tremendous growth within a short time. While calling on the government to come to the aid of business men and women by providing regular power supply, the traditional ruler from Enugu State noted that power is a great challenge for the company as it has to procure fuel to keep the business going for 24 hours. He assured his customers of posting the best online quality goods for the consumer and retail

• A performance at the event

use, saying that it is their ultimate goal to ensure a wonderful experience for customers. “Our delivery pattern is strategic in nature with focus on exceeding customer’s expectations. Whatever you need and wherever you want it, we would provide

and get them to you. Prompt customer care and real on time delivery would be our watch word. We promise not to take our customers for granted. ‘’We are backed by a crop of highly competent and skilled staff with varied experience. We are

very hopeful that our workers with the right attitude, right skills and the right perspective will be at the right place, at the right time for the right business, presenting the right product from the right vendor to the right customer,” he said.

Robotel, Topteck bring smartclass+ to Nigeria By Lucas Ajanaku

years experience, Demers said Robotel has developed computer classroom labouratories, with more than 10,000 systems installed in more than 75 countries across the world. He said: “Our exclusive partnership with Topteck Nigeria allows us to nurture an ‘axis of content excellence’, as well as to more clearly differentiate our value proposition, which in turn gives us the means to deliver the very best of 21st Century Digital Classroom to institutions in Nigeria and West Africa. “Over the past 15 years, I received many potential partners; none of them was as convincing

as Topteck. It came with a plan, describing the needs of the education sector in Nigeria, and how Robotel and Topteck could work together. He obviously described the many challenges of introducing new educational technologies in Nigeria and West Africa but showed me passionately, that he had a clear vision about the development of ICT for the education sector. “Today, I feel grateful to him, to be here with him on this stage to share my passion and knowledge in supporting institutions, teachers and students in a better usage of ICT with any device, any place at anytime.” Chief Executive Officer, Topteck Nigeria, Olu Babatunde,

said the partnership is an exciting milestone for his company. According to him, the increased broadband access in West Africa, especially Nigeria, has paved way for Robotel to bring innovative products to the sub-region last year. He said: “Today, Topteck Nigeria has installed Language Laboratories in Adeleke Univerity, Ede, Osun State, which is the pioneer Robotel installed Laboratory in Nigeria with 10 +1 workstations; Babcock University, Ilisan, Ogun State, with 30 +1 workstations. We recently delivered the Redeemer’s University Language Laboratory, also 30 + 1 workstations.” He said many other univeristies

have shown interest in adopting the Robotel brand of technoloy to ease teaching and learning. Babatunde said: “Uthman Fodio University, Sokoto; University of Nigeria, Nsukka; Nnamdi Azikwe University, Awka; Moshood Abiola Polytechnic, Abeokuta, Ogun State and host of others within the country have shown interest “We are also expanding our tentacles beyond the shores of Nigeria. We have received orders from University of Sao Tome & Principe and many orders from Ghana. “The list is fast growing. These would not have been possible without the tremendous support from ROBOTEL in Montréal Canada and Mr. Demers.”

shopper, think people will be affected especially, those with their private cars and the motorists. She said: “if these people are affected, the Mall and other shopping places will also be affected because when there is no transport then people won’t be able to come to the Mall.” Some shoppers who were at Apapa mall said they stay close to the mall and can afford to stroll down, that is why they can still be found in the mall. Andrew Omoh said he didn’t come from a far place, “I live nearby, and the only people I think it will affect more are those coming from a distance and those with private cars who won’t be able to get fuel for their vehicles. But for few shoppers who came from a distance, the fuel scarcity has done

them more harm than good. Tayo Oshoba visited the mall from Oshodi, he lamented on how difficult it is to get to the mall, “Ordinarily, getting to Apapa mall is hell because of the bad road. Now the burden has increased. Before now I spent about N300 from my house. Today, I have spent N600 after waiting at the bus stop for a longer period For Thomas Omokaro, “I have packed my car because i can’t surfer to buy fuel at a high price and end up wasting it in traffic. For now, I am thinking of holding on on my shopping here for the main time, I will rather go to a nearby open market to get the things I need until this frustrating scenario is over’’.

Fuel scarcity frustrates shoppers • Continues from Page 13

are not showing up the whole day” she said Like Olaopa, Julie Akum, another store owner at the Ikeja mall laments last weekend and Workers Day also were bad days for them because of the fuel scarcity situation. “We had thought sales would pick at the weekend and on May Day, but nothing changed. We hardly made sales. Car owners preferred to reserve the fuel in their cars to go to their work places during the week rather than visit the mall, they argue that they might not find fuel to buy” The story is not different with Ms Ayodele Abimbola, a sales representative at Party Perfect, a store that sells party items and gifts. “With the increase in the price of the little fuel in circulation and also the increase in the price of transportation, it has really made it difficult for people to make it to the Mall to shop. Like me, the price of transportation from my home to the shop has been doubled .I used to pay N70 per trip, now it is N150.” At the Apapa mall in Park Lane, Apapa, Lagos, the scarcity has forced store owners to cut down prices of items at least by 10 percent, they say they have realised that foot traffic to the mall has dropped drastically, and they appeal to the government to address the problem as soon as possible so that they will be left with the bad road and traffic jam they have been battling for long. According to them, they have lost enough customers already; and plead that the government doesn’t

inflict more pains on them. A store representative with PEP store, Cassandra Okafor said, the fuel scarcity situation has become a bone in the neck and it is affecting everybody in the country not only those at the mall “ One thing we have done since the fuel scarcity began is to count our losses. When our customers are unable to come in to shop, we stand the risk of losing and not being able to pay our workers. We are hoping that the situation will be normalised before the end of this week.” The owner of Essenza, a perfume store, Malarki Adoga, said the scarcity of fuel has affected his business badly “I find it is very difficult to come to my shop on a daily basis since the fuel scarcity began. I am displeased with the present situation in the country. So far, we have lost many customers, those we call on phone will complain that they are tired having spent the whole day at the filling station queuing to buy fuel” A sales representative at Accessories 2 die 4, a store which stocks all kinds of ladies accessories, said she didn’t know if the fuel scarcity affected sales at her shop “ I don’t know if the present fuel situation has affected business here, since we do not use petrol for anything in the shop but one thing for sure is that, fuel scarcity comes with scarcity of transportation and if there is no means of transportation, how will our customers make it to the Mall.” Few shoppers seen at Adeniran Ogunsanya and leisure mall said they live around the mall and could afford to take a walk to the mall for their shopping. Miss Ifunaya Clement said she was at

• Inside view of a scanty mall

the mall because she lives few streets away from both malls who are neighbours. “Ordinarily, I will take a bus or tricycle to the mall, but I decided to ignore the high fare these days and take a walk. It is a stone throw”. Another shopper, Mr Samuel Ibikunle said “I have been finding it difficult to get fuel for my car because filling stations don’t have and those that have are usually • crowded. The only alternative for me is the black market and it is very expensive that is why I cannot waste my fuel to the mall, except it is very necessary like it is now that I am at this mall for official purpose, I am here to attend a meeting with my boss” he said. Mrs Abigel Kehinde also a

THE NATION FRIDAY MAY 8, 2015

‘

They (the Yoruba) have a nature kind, affectionate, confiding, hospitable, most forgiving character, moulded after the tradition, laws, customs and usages of their fathers and consequently affected by the religion, debasing in its tendency, which they have inherited; genius, far more than supposed, and latent, because every avenue for its exercise and development has been closed, yet it is continually manifested in the transaction of their own affairs

’

Nigeria: Political power imbalance: The bane and chain down of Nigeria’s progress and development •Excerpts from a 261- paged book by Sir Olaniwun Ajayi ...Continued from yesterday.

EARING in mind Rita Hinden’s remarks, two books had been written by two leading politicians namely— Chief Obafemi Awolowo, who later became Premier of Western Region of Nigeria in the First Republic, wrote ‘Path to Nigerian Freedom’ in 1947, and Dr. Nnamdi Azikwe, Premier of Eastern Region of Nigeria during the First Republic, wrote ‘Renascent Africa.’ The second statement which gave a lot of inspiration was by William Pitt in 1792, made in the House of Commons on the slave trade and recorded in Sir Alan Burns’ book. He said: “If we listen to the voice of reason and duty... some of us may live to see the reverse of that picture from which we now turn our eyes with shame and regret. We may live to behold the natives of Africa engaged in the calm occupation of industry, in the pursuit of a just and legitimate commerce.” Flowing from the epochal, eternal and timeless words of William Pitt, we shall deal, in the next chapter, how, by providence, the various tropical regions in Black Africa, especially Nigeria, have evolved in literary philosophies, socially, politically, economically and educationally. For the purpose of our next chapter, attention will be on Nigeria. In the first place, the British tropics during the material period consisted of two groups—The Western and the Eastern, of the Western group which consisted of Nigeria, Cameroon, Gold Coast, Togo, Serria Leone and the Gambia: Nigeria led in population of 21,822,793 by 17,587,000 whilst the Eastern group comprising the Sudan, Somaliland, Kenya, Uganda, Zanzibar, Tangayinka, Nyasaland and Northern Rhodesia had a population of 16,149,626, of which the Sudan had 4,000,000. Similarly, in trade, with respect to the two groups, Nigeria with 25,442,370 million pounds, led each of the fourteen countries in the two groups. Secondly, in regard to British policy in the tropics which was to colonise, to trade and to govern— the balance of overall benefit was on the side of Nigeria. It is considered apposite therefore to present Nigeria as a leading tropical country with special accounts of the three main ethnic nationalities making up the country, while less attention, if any, is paid to the minor ethnic groups in the country. Chapter 2 The Yoruba race: Their origin My purpose in this Chapter is to show how racist ideas about Africans were wrong. Using the Yoruba, my own people, as an example, I will point out the history and culture of a successful people before, during and after the slave trade that dehumanised Africans. Their Origin Yorubaland lies between the area of Badagry to Warn I area to near Niger around latitude 90N, and the area close to Nupe. From latitude 50N, it spreads westwards cutting across Dahomey reaching towards the East of Togo. In number, the Yoruba people will be well over thirty million, occupying Ekiti, parts of Kwara, and Kogi, Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Osun and Oyo states. Quite a number of these people are in the Republics of Benin and Togo. In reckoning the Yoruba numerical strength, it will be appropriate to include the Igala and Itsekiri whose languages are closely related or similar to Yoruba. Yoruba diaspora are found as well in Brazil, Cuba, Trinidad and Tobago. The Yoruba race is apparently one of the largest homogenous ethnic nationalities among Africans. A cave at Iwo Eleru near Akure in Ondo State yielded a skeleton with a radio carbon date of about 9000 BC. In his introduction to War and Peace in Yorubaland 1793- 1893, Professor J.F. Ade Ajayi stated that linguistic evidence suggested that the Yoruba language had been spoken continuously within Yorubaland for upwards of 4000 years... 27 The publication in the Nigerian Tribune of Wednesday 20 August, 2014 threw more light on the account of the finding in Isarun Ile-Owuro. In 1965, an English archaeologist, Professor Thurstan Shaw, with his team went to Isarun, five kilometres from Igbara Oke near Akure in Ondo State and excavated bones of a stone age man in a cave. The findings reveal that skulls and bones of human beings found there were subjected to radiocarbon dating instruments pointed out that Stone Age activities took place in the forest 13000 years ago. Another team lead by Professor Katerina Harvati of the University of Tubingen, Gemany, and Professor Christ Stringer, human origins expert followed up the work of Shaw. James S. Coleman, in his 'Nigeria: Background to Nationalism,' stated that: "...the Yoruba people might rightly claim to be the largest cultural aggregation in West Africa with a history of political unity and a common historical tradition..." 28 From time immemorial, the Yoruba as a nation has several distinguishing features and characteristics peculiar to it. One striking feature of the race is a large scale of political organi-

•Sir Olaniwun

These kingdoms founded by ‘ Oduduwa's offsprings were several, numbering about sixteen or seventeen. However, in succeeding years, when an account of those who claimed to be direct descendants of Oduduwa was taken, the number was much higher

’

sation which has been with the Yoruba ethnic nationality centuries before the advent of the British. Indeed, one important aspect of Yoruba system is characterised by checks and balances and it is noteworthy that the overall structure is principally constitutional (Obaship) monarchy. With all these special and arresting features, where have they come from?From where did they get there? For several years, opinions regarding the origin of Yoruba race have been diverse. Decidedly, the solution to the problem with respect to the origin of the Yoruba would appear to belong to a future age. It is apposite, however, to observe, in line with the opinion of William Henry Clarke, the question when such a people as the Yoruba, who, in mental, moral and physical conditions so superior to the coast tribe, originated. Involved in the greatest obscurity as the origin, rise and progress of most African tribes are, it would be little less than vanity and presumption to attempt to give anything more than vague conjecture as to the country whence emigrated the Yoruba, or the epoch when that emigration took place. the Yoruba, who, in mental, moral and physical conditions 29 In any event, it will be appropriate to examine the various views of historians and archaeologists regarding where the Yoruba historical consciousness started. One view, which has its origin in the history of the Yoruba as recorded by Reverend Samuel Johnson is to the effect that the Yoruba originally came from the north-east of Africa with slim reference to Egypt or Yemen who were the inhabitants, originating from the remnant of the children of Canaan who were of the tribe of Nimrod. 30 They eventually settled in Ile-Ife after a long journey taking decades or centuries. Along their journey, they left colonies of themselves along the way. Of these colonies was Gogobiri, of present north of Nigeria, to which reference is often made by the Yoruba and the Gogobiri themselves. The tradition has it that one group of these emigrants reached Ile-Ife under the leadership of Oduduwa who, according to the accounts, established a big growing Kingdom at Ife. Subsequently, he organised his sons and grandsons to

found several Yoruba Kingdoms. These kingdoms founded by Oduduwa's offsprings were several, numbering about sixteen or seventeen. However, in succeeding years, when an account of those who claimed to be direct descendants of Oduduwa was taken, the number was much higher. In this connection, I.A. Akinjogbin, in his Dahomey and Its Neighbours, 1708- 1818, Page 9, tells us that at the end of 18th century, fourteen kingdoms, all founded by the sons of Oduduwa, appeared to be large and prosperous. Indeed, from the Government Gazette Lagos of 18 February, 1903, we learnt that Oba Adelekan Olubuse 1, the Ooni of Ife, named twenty one kingdoms, excluding Ife, which derived their crowns from Ife. In like manner, Oba Sir Adesoji Aderemi, the Ooni of Ile, mentioned twenty-six such kingdoms deriving their crowns from Ife. The other version which scholars and historians have generally noted is that Ile-Ife was the centre from which the world was created. This version tells us of a period when the whole world was covered with water and God sent messengers to go and create farmland out of the liquid mass. According to this tradition, the group comprise Obatala, (at times called Orisa Nla or Orisa Alaso) as the leader with sixteen Oye (immortals). Members of the party were given five pieces of iron, a lump of earth tied in a white piece of cloth and a cockrel. The tradition has it that somewhere along the way, Obatala got drunk with palm wine and Oduduwa seized the paraphernalia of power and authority from him and eventually led the delegation to the world. The place where the delegates landed is traditionally identified as the Oke Oranfe in Ife. Here, the five pieces of iron were set down, the lump of earth placed on them, and the chicken made to spread the earth with its toes. Following this, farmland appeared, and it gradually spread to cover the whole earth. From that event, the town probably took its name-Ile Ife (the house of spreading). It would appear that the foregoing two views are contradictory, although on careful consideration, they might be reconcilable. For one thing, the two views have, common to both, the acknowledgement of Oduduwa as leader. But it is observed that in the case of the second version, the origin of Ife is much older than Oduduwa period, which, accordingly succeeded Obatala period. Additionally, lfe tradition would appear to remember some Ife kings such as Kutukutu Oba Igbo and Osangangan Oba Makin who were much ahead in time than Oduduwa.31 However, it is impossible to say, when exactly the period of Oduduwa, the acknowledged progenitor of the Yoruba race began. Therefore, there is not yet an 'authorised version' of when Oduduwa Kingdom was established nor what the actual origin of the Yoruba is. It will therefore be sufficient to rest here our discourse of the origin of Yoruba race and the precise period when the era of the great ancestor, Oduduwa, started. Therefore, an intriguing diversion to the generous remark of William Henry Clark about the Yoruba race may, perhaps, be of interest as indeed, they may be noteworthy. Reflecting on the unclear and uncertain origin of the Yoruba, and nontheless, extolling the virtues of the race, William Henry Clark said: "They (the Yoruba) have a nature kind, affectionate, confiding, hospitable, most forgiving character, moulded after the tradition, laws, customs and usages of their fathers and consequently affected by the religion, debasing in its tendency, which they have inherited; genius, far more than supposed, and latent, because every avenue for its exercise and development has been closed, yet it is continually manifested in the transaction of their own affairs, the government of themselves, and the retaining of so many of their rude arts that tradition has left them. They are a people, without a doubt, of mind and thought and show it on nearly all occasions whenever they enjoy the opportunity. Their children are apt to learn, quick, intelligent and sprightly, while there are many instances now living in their capability of acquiring knowledge to any extent, even after the years of maturity." 32 The exact and precise origin of the people so well spoken of as did W.H. Clark, still lies to a great extent, in obscurity or, perhaps, in stimulating conjecture. Highly impressed with the culture, tradition and general agreeable traits of the Yoruba, Clark said: "For the sake of perspicuity, I shall often speak of the Yoruba as the genus of which the surrounding tribes are mere species."33 Finally, William Clark asserted: "The solution of the question as the origin of the African race very likely belong to a future age, when by the development of exploration and increased and extensive acquaintances, a greater and more intense light shall have been thrown on their history."34 It is interesting to observe however, that in addition to language, culture and tradition, there is a common thread that binds Yoruba people together as ethnic nationality in their old patriarchal life which renders them a people fond of society and so increases their attainment which tend continually to develop and strengthen the social feelings of many a Yoruba man. Families live together for years under the same roof and the same parental authority, however they may grow in size, without ever thinking of the west or east or any other point that may bear for a moment on the idea of their removal from the family circle. • To be continued...

THE NATION FRIDAY MAY 8, 2015

The PDP must acknowledge that the general elections were keenly ‘contested by the APC and the PDP... the best approach is for the party to put its house in order for future elections ’

Senate presidency: Southeast group backs Lawan

Former Lagos State Resident Electoral Commissioner Moses Ogbe is the Chairman, Delta State Independent Electoral Commission (DSIEC). He speaks with OKUNGBOWA AIWERIE on the recent general elections and the need to reform the state’s electoral bodies.

‘Politicians must stop bread-and-butter politics’

ITING consistency in character, capacity and competence, a group, the Southeast Chapter of National Coalition for Good Governance, has pleaded with senators-elect to "unanimously” elect Ahmad Ibrahin Lawan as Senate president. The group described Lawan as a man of consistency, good character and competence. In a press statement released in Abuja at the end of a post-general elections forum said, the nation would require a stable, visionary and purposeful National Assembly, which “the Senate presidency of Senator Ahmed Lawan will guarantee” In an apparent analysis of all contenders for the post, the group declared: “Having scored so high in the areas of consistency, character and competence, we therefore strongly appeal to the APC and the senators-elect to please do the needful for the sake of posterity by electing unanimously, distinguished Senator Ahmed Ibrahim Lawan as the president of Senate” The group, in the statement signed by its Southeast Coordinator, Eze Odiri, said Lawan had exhibited consistency in many areas, especially in party membership, stressing that he “has consistently been a member of ANPP until it merged with other parties to form APC” “Consistency in political party affiliations points to character and dependability, which are critical to the person who will occupy the office of the President of Senate” stressing that “this means that the person has no excess luggage or encumbrance which can bring a smear on the office and institution”. It added that “Since the return to democratic governance in 1999, he has consistently been in the Na-

•Lawan

tional Assembly, viz House of Reps 1999-2003, 2003-2007; Senate 20072011, 2011-2015, and 2015-2019", listing his various committee membership as including “ Chairman, House of Reps on Agriculture-2003-2005; Chairman, House of Reps Committee on Education-2005-2007 and Chairman, Senate Committee on Public Accounts-2007-2015” While stressing that Lawan’s “academic consistency also speaks volumes”, the statement said. Senator Lawan, who holds BSc in Geography, Msc in Remote Sensing and PHD in Remote Sensing/GIS, “is among the few politicians who despite his consistency has no dent”. “This outstanding attribute qualifies him for the Office of the President of Senate/Chairman of National Assembly in a regime that has promised to fight corruption”, it noted, adding that “his consistency and character has been brought to bear in the outstanding manner he has managed all the committees he has chaired since entering the National Assembly” The group urged the senatorselect to recognise the fact that Senator Lawan’s chairmanship of Committees on Agriculture, Education and Public Accounts and membership of other Committees for a consistent period of 16 years in the National Assembly has exposed him to critical issues in National Development and good governance.

‘Badagry deserves more appointment’

Lagos State group, the Badagry Development Movement (BDM), has called on the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to consider the people of Badagry for political appointments. The group said, for the first time, Badagry delivered all the elective positions to the APC at the recent elections. In a statement by its Chairman and Secretary, Rahman Saka and Ovi Manuel Kuponu respectively, the group said it has confidence in the leadership of the APC. The statement reads: “The mere thought of the APC winning at all levels in Badagry seemed a herculean and impossible task before the elections. But, now we have done it. We voted for the progressives in Badagry because we are thirsty for development and the people have seen what the APC-led administration in Lagos State and other Southwest states have done and are still doing. That confirmed to us that Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and the leadership of the APC are men and women of their words. “We know they stand for equity, fairness, development and justice. These are the reasons the people of

By Jeremiah Oke

Badagry were convinced to dump the PDP and opted for change. Before now, the voting pattern of Badagry has plunged the region partially into the hands of the PDP – a party that never keeps its promises. “We therefore want to commend the contributions, commitment and leadership sagacity of the new apex leader of Badagry politics, who facilitated 100 per cent victory for the APC in the elections. “The victory is not a fluke. One major factor is the leadership quality demonstrated by our number one leader of the APC in Badagry Division, Hon. Sunny Akinsanya Ajose. But, now that Badagry has changed for the better and voted 100 per cent for the APC at all levels, the expectation of the people of Badagry is high. They want to experience a sharp deviation from the dark days of voting for the PDP. The group called on the National Leader of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, to ensure that the people of Badagry are rewarded for voting for the APC. “This is pertinent for the APC to retain and sustain this victory pattern in subsequent elections,” it added.

HAT is your assessment of the recent general elections? I wish to commend INEC for the 2015 general elections. Nigerians and the international community were unanimous in saying that the 2015 election was an improvement on the 2007 and 2011 elections. The use of card readers, which is an innovation, is a laudable idea and it brought much credibility to the system. People believe that since it passed through that system the outcome is better. In all the areas where I monitored there was nowhere the card reader failed, except in a polling unit which was due to human error. But, it is left for INEC to perfect those problems. One must also say after the presidential elections there was a remarkable improvement on the usage of smart card reader during the governorship and legislative elections. What lessons have DSIEC learnt from the elections conducted by INEC? I think all state independent election commissions should introduce the smart card reader, so that all the electoral management bodies can be on the same template. Many may wonder how to go about it, but state electoral commissions can pass through INEC because they are the owners of the card and they introduced the smart card reader. When state electoral commissions conduct their elections, it is either INEC obliges us with the smart card readers since we are using the same registers or we can place order for their own through INEC. INEC also introduced the use of RAC by making sure that the units are further broken down. You see a situation where you have three voting points in a unit thus decentralising the process and having additional manpower. For instance, in Delta State, we have 3,624 polling units and the areas with 500 voters are many and if we are going to do what INEC did we need more hands. We also need to train adhoc staff, then training should not just be limited to election periods. INEC and state commissions should have a data base of dedicated and committed adhoc staff. DSIEC has two years to prepare for elections and we hope to set up a data base and train adhoc staff from time to time. Also in the appointment of returning officers, we need to consider this area, so we do not run into the problem of choosing partisan returning officers. During our last elections we selected personnel from the ivory towers and clergy. The successes we recorded in the last election were partly due to this move. It is curious you scored INEC so high, even with allegations of ballot box snatching, violence, intimidation and falsification of results in some units. Do you think your assessment is justified? All these vices you mentioned were very low in Delta State, but I must say in all elections there must be allegations. Although there was violence in some areas across the country, NEC in its own wisdom

•Ogbe

problem ‘isThe that opposition parties would never believe that a state commission will not dance to the tune of the government of the day

’

saw that the incidence of violence was not sufficient to cancel the elections. The important thing is that INEC was able to safely navigate despite the turbulence in the air and safely landed the passengers. How credible are elections conducted by state electoral commissions? The problem is that opposition parties would never believe that a state commission will not dance to the tune of the government of the day. But, from experience, it is always true? Elsewhere, we have seen this happen. But, because of that perception they fail to even campaign. In all such cases you will see the ruling party campaigning and going out to convince the electorates. I have observed elections in many states of the federation, we have a situation where some days to the elections some persons will try to scuttle elections by asking the court to stop an election. But, often times, the elections are held and these same people, after expending their time trying to stop the elections, will turn round and accuse the electoral body of bias. Some will even choose to boycott the elections. The people of Delta State have implicit confidence in DSIEC. Nobody went to court to stop the last elections. The political parties did their jobs, in the areas where they won they were so de-

clared and the area were they feel that they won but were not declared they approached the elections tribunal. Recently, a tribunal in Sapele upturned one of our results. We are a human institution and are bound to make mistakes. We do not have any reason to favour one political party over another, DSIEC treated every one equally. But SIEC’s across the country often go cap in hand soliciting for funds from the party in power. Won’t this affect their independence? We do not go to the political party in power, rather we go to the government of the day. Let me state categorically, we submit our proposals to the government of the day. In Delta State, it was a different thing compared to some other states. When DSIEC needed funds for the elections, the government released funds... But, what is your position on the need for autonomy for state electoral bodies? Yes, state electoral bodies need autonomy. I have called on civil society organisations, because they all came together to say that INEC should have autonomy; that it should be on first line charge on the federation account. There are some calling for the scrapping of SIEC. That should not be the idea. Must we throw away the baby and that bath water? The question that should agitate our minds is how to make sure that SIEC is reformed to make sure they perform their duties as spelt out in the Electoral Act or laws made by the state governments. The first thing to be done is for SIEC to be on the first line charge of the consolidated account of the state government. I must give credit to the Delta State government for we did not experience some of the things other SIECs are experiencing. I hope under the new new dispensation, state electoral commissions would be given priority. Why was the incidence of voided votes high in the last general elections? Let me say that there are many factors responsible. One, ballot papers have been printed may be for specified number of political parties and some of the political parties are not fielding candidates and people sometimes will thumbprint on the spaces of political parties not fielding candidates. Those are void votes. The political parties, apart from the electoral management bodies embarking on enlightenment programmes on these issues, I think enlightenment campaigns should be kick-started after the swearing-in ceremony of the new government. It should be on a continuous basis. Political parties also have a responsibility to sensitise their supporters and enlighten them on what to do. The electorates must avoid thumb printing votes for parties that are not fielding candidates. The high number of voided votes is really worrisome. A situation where the number of void votes in some states is more than the number of votes scored by some candidates cannot be tolerated.

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

COMMENTARY LETTER

EDITORIAL

Waiting for IGP Arase

Who bombed Tao FM? •Whoever did must be caught and sanctioned

HAT yet-to-be-known gunmen bombed the premises of Tao FM, Okene, Kogi State, leaving a casualty figure of no less than four dead, is atrocious. It is wanton waste of human life and material asset. Those involved, either as direct perpetrators or masterminds, should be caught, tried and punished, according to the laws of the land. In a land that suffers high unemployment, it is doubly sad that some felons, for whatever reasons, would destroy others’ means of livelihood: the station owners’ investments; and the employees’ opportunity to earn a living. Besides, bombing a facility, when it is not a war situation, is cold, premeditated terrorism. That must be visited with the harshest punishment possible under the law. The pathos, of craving for peace, security and serenity, could be gauged from lamentation of a local who relocated from Borno State, no thanks to Boko Haram ter-

‘Even if Tao FM had been deficit in professionalism, the punishment is certainly not a recourse to self-help. This is because one criminality does not just cancel out another. It rather builds the stock of criminality, endangering the law-abiding majority. If not confronted and defeated, it portends nothing but looming anarchy’

rorism, only to witness the Tao FM bombing. “Here I am in my own town where I thought I would find peace,” he told The Guardian, “the same fear of the heavy sound of bombs is tormenting me again.”! But even as the attack is condemnable, the reported tardy response of the police is no less so. A news report claimed that as the invading gunmen arrived the premises, the station’s head of news reportedly rushed to alert the police, at the neighbouring Kuroko Police Station. However, the policemen on duty allegedly spurned the complaint, reportedly telling the complainant to route his distress to the Kogi State Commissioner of Police, some 65 kilometres away in Lokoja! Now, what was this — intra-police dissonance? Sabotage of constituted authority, causing avoidable fatality and grief? Police-invaders’ conspiracy? Or plain culpable negligence? Whichever it is, the Kogi police authorities must investigate the police officers on duty when that complaint was lodged and, if found culpable, deal with them accordingly. It is travesty of unimaginable proportions for a policeman to turn his back on the call of distressed citizens — the sole reason the police are in business — which resulted in deaths that could, maybe with prompt intervention, have been averted. But why was Tao FM bombed? From news reports, the station had not been deficit in its professional responsibilities, as the National Broadcasting Corporation (NBC), Nigeria’s broadcast regulators, a week after the 2015 elections, wrote it a letter of commendation, for its fair coverage of the polls. This is a feat most government media, federal and state, could not achieve. Neither could some more

popular but tragically misguided private broadcast houses. But even if Tao FM had been deficit in professionalism, the punishment is certainly not a recourse to self-help. This is because one criminality does not just cancel out another. It rather builds the stock of criminality, endangering the law-abiding majority. If not confronted and defeated, it portends nothing but looming anarchy. In anarchy, everyone — perpetrator and victim — loses. But beyond self-help and due process, attacking a media house, with the motive of knocking off its operation, is a cavalier attack on the Constitution. The Constitution has guaranteed media practice, just as some agencies of state are set up to regulate the media. This is the civil way to bring any erring media house to book. So, while media houses themselves must keep strictly to their professional oath and code of practice, nobody, no matter the level of provocation, has the right to bomb a media house, the way Tao FM was. However, in these times of escalating insecurity, media houses too should become more security conscious. But the first step to security is being fair to all. It is a pity Tao FM, reported to be a good corporate citizen that has impacted well on its community, had to be bombed. We empathise with the host community, now temporarily denied of the station’s laudable efforts. But it is not the end of the world. The community, backed by the Kogi State government, should do everything to resuscitate the station and restore its glory. That is the surest and sweetest way to defeat criminality and terrorism.

Mindless exploitation •The call on inmates of Kirikiri Maximum Prisons to pay for transportation to courts is obnoxious and should be reversed immediately

EPORTS that inmates of the Kirikiri Maximum Security Prison awaiting trial in courts in Lagos are being made to pay the cost of transporting them whenever their cases come up for mention shows how callous the system has become. The inmates, already deprived of their freedom sometimes for years, are not only dehumanised and traumatised, but treated as if they were already convicts. Authorities of the prisons see the inmates as criminals and fail to admit the legal maxim that any accused remains a mere suspect until proven guilty by a court of law, and should be accorded the respect due every citizen. Wide-ranging prison reforms are due if the unlucky ones remanded there are to be seen as mere suspects and even those convicted treated as people being made to undergo rehabilitation. As it is today, by the policy of inflicting more punishment on those being tried, justice is being denied them. They are cut off from their means of livelihood and yet made to make payments. Where are they expected to raise the money in an unfriendly economy? Many of the inmates have been abandoned by friends, associates and families. The trauma is enough to make them lose their minds; and then this iniquitous policy. The inhuman treatment being meted to these inmates is responsible for the grow-

ing incidence of jailbreak. In 2014 alone, prisoners and prison inmates broke loose in Lokoja, Ado-Ekiti and Kirikiri, Lagos, among others. The reasons could not be far from the poor welfare and sanitation systems in the prisons. In Lagos, the awaiting trial cells are always bursting at the seams, yet the Federal Government saddled with the responsibility of maintaining the prisons and caring for inmates has been doing nothing. In some cases, female prisoners are known to have been impregnated while in custody and infants are in other cases found with their mothers in the very unfriendly prison environment. We find it unacceptable that innocent persons sent to prison pending when the overcrowded courts would be able to accommodate them are being turned to hardened criminals by the same state expected to administer justice. We, therefore, call on the in-coming Buhari administration to accord a special place to a reform of the entire justice system. It is a system that remands people in prison custody sometimes for more than five years before taking them to court. Some die in the process and the prerogative of mercy exercised by governors and chief judges have proved grossly inadequate in ensuring that justice is dispensed, the guilty duly punished and the innocent freed.

It is a hallowed maxim that ‘justice delayed is justice denied’. The new policy can only prolong the time cases spend before overworked judges. And, rather than resolve such delayed cases in favour of the accused in accordance with the philosophy that the innocent must be protected at all times, they are presumed guilty until proven innocent, and the burden is stacked against them by legal procedures and technicalities. We suggest that the state be made to pay good compensation to accused wrongly remanded in prison as a way of reducing the abuse being suffered by citizens.

‘Reports that inmates of the Kirikiri Maximum Security Prison awaiting trial in courts in Lagos are being made to pay the cost of transporting them whenever their cases come up for mention shows how callous the system has become. The inmates, already deprived of their freedom sometimes for years, are not only dehumanised and traumatised, but treated as if they were already convicts’

IR: If the comments credited to Solomon Arase, the newly appointed acting Inspector General of Police, (IGP) is worth its weight in gold, Nigerians can begin to sing Hosanna. However, there is the need to reappraise previous promises or grandstanding of former police henchmen who shouted “Police Reform” and deafened themselves unto the bargain thereafter. The Acting Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase, has been quoted as saying that police road blocks breed corruption. He warned that any police personnel caught mounting road blocks anywhere in the country would be made to face the law. Arase went further to say that Commissioners of Police, Area Commanders and Divisional Police Officers in whose jurisdiction illegal road blocks are detected will be personally held liable and strict disciplinary actions will be initiated against them. The Nigeria Police Force, over time has earned incredible appellation as the most untrained, dirtiest, underfunded, brutal and reprehensible force across the globe. They have, at the snap of the fingers dispatched lawful citizens into early grave without provocation. If policing in Nigeria is what those who preside over its management is what they said it is, then we will, as a people have reasons to applaud the force for living up to expectation. Because we are aware of what they are and do exactly opposite of what they claim they are, they can’t escape the people’s outright rejection or denunciation. From Louis Edet as IGP, 1964–1966, Kam Salem 1966–1975, Muhammadu Dikko Yusufu 1975–1979, Adamu Suleiman 1979 –1981, Sunday Adewusi 1981–1983, Etim Inyang 1985– 1986, Muhammadu Gambo-Jimeta 1986–1990, Aliyu Atta 1990–1993, Ibrahim Coomassie 1993–1999, Musiliu Smith 1999–2002, Mustafa Adebayo Balogun 2002–2005, Sunday Ehindero 2005–2007, Mike Mbama Okiro 2007– 2009, Ogbonna Okechukwu Onovo 20092010, Hafiz Ringim 2010 Jan 2012, Mohammed D Abubakar 2012 2014, Suleiman Abba 2014 - 2015, till now, the Nigerian Police have remained a brutal force and still visiting gruesome terror on the people. Today, the Nigeria Police still parade streets and highway with guns without uniform like armed robbers! No wonder these officers easily find their way to highways and mount road blocks against the instructions as a survival strategy since salaries are in arrears of several months. Imagine Police officers who supervised the 2015 general elections being required to pay N2,000 for a worthless tag they used in supervising elections? Is it not the duty of Police to print and pay for election tags? If this is not corruption I wonder what else it is. Mr Arase needs to also seek a way of resolving the Nigeria Police Pension Fund in the larger interests of the force. For now, we can only but wish him a successful tenure. • Erasmus Ikhide, Lagos

TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief Victor Ifijeh • Editor Gbenga Omotoso •Chairman, Editorial Board Sam Omatseye •General Editor Adekunle Ade-Adeleye •Editor, Online Lekan Otufodunrin •Managing Editor Northern Operation Yusuf Alli •Managing Editor Waheed Odusile

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THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

CARTOON & LETTERS

IR: Not many countries on earth are as divinely blessed as Nigeria. So, it is not for nothing that Nigeria is being called the giant of Africa. But, I feel that the characterization of Nigeria as the giant of Africa is a hyperbole. But the truth is, Nigeria has the potentialities to become the true giant of Africa. Is our economy truly bigger than that of South Africa? Are we more technologically advanced than the rainbow nation, South Africa? Nigeria is a potentially great country, what with its large arable landmass, waters (rivers, lakes, seas, and ponds), equable weather conditions, and humongous human population. But sadly, Nigeria has not attained a great technological and economic height owing to our inept and corrupt political leadership. It is an indisputable fact that the PDP’s leadership of Nigeria for the past 16 years has brought woes and underdevelopment to Nigeria rather than better living conditions. As our leaders’ perception of political leadership is warped,

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Waiting for Buhari’s magic wand they cannot take Nigeria to a great economic and technological height. The erosion of ennobling family values among us is the reason why they have imbibed twisted perceptions about political leadership and other things. Now, the consequences of bad and inept political leadership in Nigeria are rutted thorough-fares, dysfunctional educational system, collapsed health institutions, terrorism, and youth unemployment. So, the masses who are shortchanged in the scheme of things revenged themselves on the ‘goslow’ president, Dr Goodluck Jonathan. President Jonathan’s electoral loss is an indictment of his unimpressive political leadership

A word for President-elect and others

IR: On behalf of all Nigerians, I urge our President-elect, General Muhammadu Buhari (retd), and other elected officers not to disappoint Nigerians. They should collectively strive to provide good governance to justify the mandates Nigerians gave them. Most Nigerians are aware that the challenges that lay ahead are enormous; but with hard-work, perseverance and selfless service to our fatherland and with prayer from all of us, the Muhammadu Buhari-led government will overcome and move the country forward. Nigerians yearn for good governance, freedom of expression and conscience; opportunity to participate actively on how they are governed. General Buhari is expected to hit the ground running from May 29, and to live up to expectations of many Nigerians who crave for change. The international community will also be watching Buhari to see how he would fare in his second-coming. The most critical tasks ahead include the fixing of the energy sector, which has defied successive regimes, the

shoring up of value of the naira, development of infrastructure, education and health, diversification of the economy as well as security and job creation. Since governance is a continuum, the President–elect should continue with his predecessor’s good programmes and complete them. The bane of governance in Africa is lack of continuity of good programmes from one administration to another. I advise the President-elect to unite the country that has been fractured by ethnicity, religion and politics. He should give every Nigerian a sense of belonging in the Nigerian project and lay to rest all divisive tendencies that have worked against the growth and progress of the country. I also urge him to bear in mind that he is now the President-elect of Nigeria and not APC, hence, he should treat all parts of the country as his constituency, and to also choose the people that will work with him carefully and closely monitor them. • Prophet Oladipupo FunmiladeJoel, Lagos.

by indignant and short-changed Nigerians. Now, Mohammadu Buhari is our President-elect. He is being projected as the messiah, who will put an end to the reign of corruption in Nigeria. Corruption is the canker- worm that is choking life out of Nigeria. Corrupt political leadership is the reason why Nigeria is stuck in the mud of underdevelopment. Buhari is well – intentioned and poised to fight corruption in Nigeria. But will APC’s political

stalwarts lend Buhari a helping hand in his drive and efforts to curb corruption in Nigeria, fix our multifarious national problems? Today’s Nigeria is battered and bruised from maladministration by its past leaders. Education is the cornerstone of national development; however, our universities, which ought to be centres for carrying out educational researches and scientific experiments, are underfunded. There is infrastructural rot in the country.

demic Staff Union of Universities, Benue State University Chapter has been on strike for more than two months, and there is no hope of when the strike would be called off. Workers in the state have not been paid salaries for more than eight months. The state is at a stand-still, and the governor feels good about it. When the issues of salary payment is brought to the fore, the governor and his retinue of political aides who are feeding fat on the resources of the state will cry out that there is no money. What has been happening to the monthly allocations? The governor spent billions of naira on the greater Makurdi water works project. Sadly, until this day, there is no running tap in Benue State. The people live and depend on well water. Those who can afford it, buy water from water vendors. This is the harsh condition the people of Benue State are exposed to. All the industries in the state have wound up since he came on board. The Taraku Oil Mills, Otobi Burn Bricks, Tomatoes Industry at Tarka and the Plastic Industry at the Industrial lay out Markurdi, are all in comatose. The impact these companies would have had on the economy of Benue State, and in the lives of the people

Our naira is devalued owing to the steep fall in global oil prices. And our hospitals have morphed to morgues as health workers are being given raw deal. The President-elect, Mohammadu Buhari, should urgently address these ills that have bedeviled Nigeria and held it down for so long. And he should formulate and implement economic policies that will place Nigeria among the top economic players in the world. More so, he should curb the scourge of terrorism in Nigeria, and unite the ethnic groups that are antagonistic of one another as one people. We are waiting for Buhari’s magic wand. • Chiedu Uche Okoye Uruowulu – Obosi, Anambra state

Suswam: Good riddance

IR: One of the governors who will be handing over on May 29, Benue State’s Gabriel Suswam. His eight years as governor is one the people of the state will never forget in a hurry. Corruption, dishonesty, disregard for the people are common features of his administration. The governor prides himself as Mr. Infrastructure, yet, there is hardly any infrastructural development under his watch. With the coming of the rainy season, most of the roads in Benue are impassable due to flooding; farm produce are wasted because there are no roads to transport harvest to the market. This is a state where 95% of citizens are farmers; little wonder there is massive poverty in the state. The educational sector suffered immensely under Suswam’s administration. At some point, all arms in the educational sector were on strike for one reason or the other. Primary school teachers went on strike for close to nine months. The Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union COEASU) embarked on strike for about eight months. They called it off after they got tired of staying at home without any response from the state government. Right now, the Aca-

are tremendous. Under the Gabriel Suswam administration, the debt profile of Benue State has blossomed to an unprecedented level. In 2011, the governor secured a N13 billion bond; in 2014, he obtained another bond of N11 billion. With few months to the expiration of his tenure, the governor sought to obtain a bond of N6 billion, which was thankfully turned down by the House of Assembly. With barely three weeks to the handover date, the governor is busying employing workers. What he hopes to achieve with this, remains to be seen. One expects the outgoing government to keep itself busy with preparing handover notes, and not issuing out employment letters to people; people he denied jobs for the past eight years. As things stand today, the people of Benue State regret voting for Gabriel Suswam as their governor. In fact, the few days left to handing over is too far to most of them. The exit of Suswam from the political scene is good riddance as far as the people of Benue State are concerned. • Frank Ijege frankijege@yahoo.com

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015 16

COMMENTS

Femi Fani-Kayode...the shame Email: tunji_ololade@yahoo.co.uk 08038551123, 08111845040

EMI Fani-Kayode, Doyin Okupe, Reuben Abati, Olisa Metuh and company earnestly asked Nigerians to vote for Goodluck Jonathan. In their gratuitous quest to feather their nests, they declared and perpetuated with unusual gusto, a harmful war against new President-elect Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC). They lured Nigerians to wage infinite wars with truth and wisdom, asking us to establish ageless monuments to Jonathan in the spirit houses of flaws. These comic characters and presidential court jesters prayed that Nigerians re-elected their principal at the March 28 polls. Simply put, they wanted us to save their jobs. Thank God we didn’t. We listened to their eloquent drivel, incoherent rants and wanton justifications of President Jonathan’s reelection bid with a stunned combination of stupefaction and physical revulsion. It was a daemonic aria, a flight of decadent will and imagination. Of this pathetic gang of vanishing minds, Fani-Kayode was simply a cipher. Shamelessly, he imposed himself in our psyches and the travesty that passed as Nigeria’s government of transformation. Fani-Kayode thus

particularised his contributions with terrible and uncanny detail, threatening our sympathy for his plaintiff principal, President Jonathan. No doubt, the former aviation minister is a gifted propagandist of the chthonian order, a metamorphosist adept at clothing dross as gold and masking terror as succour. The scene prefigures the transition or ‘transformation’ if you like, of the Nigerian citizenship from gradual decline to irredeemable degeneracy. Few days to the presidential elections, Fani-Kayode and company urged that we forget the Chibok girls. They wanted us to forget the NNPC scam, $9 million illicit arm deal, immigration job scam and death of innocent, jobless graduates. They wanted us to overlook their principal’s tacit approval of Stella Oduah’s aviation cash fraud. They wished that we forget Otehgate, devaluation of the Naira, rising PMS pump prices and scarcity of fuel. They urged that we applaud the shady sale of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN, declining standards of education and health services, bloody bomb blasts, thousands of unaccounted corpses and the persistent scourge of Boko Haram. In this prevalent osmosis of death

‘Fani-Kayode, tangled with President Jonathan’s reelection dream, perpetuated a piteous portrait of President Jonathan as a pregnant mother gasping to deliver a dead embryo through tentacles of mental and physical complications’

HE incoming administration won the election with the mantra of change and has aptly summarised the task before it as tackling the issues of security, economy and corruption. Since the conclusion of the presidential election, a lot of suggestions have been made on how to go about this. Most of these suggestions border on probe and recovering of what past government officials have stolen, and ensuring persons of proven integrity and probity are put at the helm of affairs in the new government. The president-elect has said public officers will be required to declare their assets. While these suggestions will give a sense that something is being done, it is not deep enough as to completely uproot the ghost of corruption and the danger that corruption poses to our corporate existence. Moreover the analysis and contribution so far has not identified the reason corruption thrives, persists or grows in our society and how we can remove it from our public life. If we can understand the nature or characteristics of corruption and what fertilizes it, then the solution preferred will fit the purpose. This is more so that we have always had probes, task forces to recover government property. In this process some people were caught, tried, indicted and thrown into jails. Yet, corruption not only persisted but actually thrived. Solving this issue shouldn’t be a rocket science. If we can get a handle on the cause of this problem, it will be easy to solve. I visited a friend at a major federal ministry in Abuja sometime ago and we started discussing the issue of contract awards in the ministry. My friend told me that 75% of contracts was given to the top three persons in the ministry (the Minister, the Minister of State and the Permanent Secretary). 20% of the contracts was usually shared by the Directors in the Ministry and the remaining 5% will be made available to members of the public through the procurement Director. The parastatals under the ministry must also reserve certain quota of contracts to their Minister or his nominees. At the state level, governors spend public funds as they please in utter disregard of financial regulations and the budget system. The state budget is worthless as an instrument for controlling public expenditure as some governors spend money in whatever manner they like and award contracts to only those who will bring back “returns” or to god-fathers and cronies. Governors give themselves what is called security vote to the extent that almost all the principal officers of government handle security vote which often runs into billions of Naira even when the states cannot pay salaries. The local government administration is far more worrisome. The money allocated to the local government councils never gets to them as the state government officials hijack the money under the guise of Joint Local Government Accounts. I am told that in some states, the local government is given just enough money to pay salaries and even deductions made in favour of primary education into the various state Primary Education’s Board never get to the primary schools; as all deductions are further taken out through phantom payments for contracts that don’t exist or for services that are never delivered.

and despair, Fani-Kayode attempted to justify that which is unjustifiable: he mounted the soapbox, garnishing prevalent ills with bouquets of insolence and desolate wit. His love of grandstanding and pretensions to candour rankle an ominous note even in retrospect. Fani-Kayode, tangled with President Jonathan’s reelection dream, perpetuated a piteous portrait of President Jonathan as a pregnant mother gasping to deliver a dead embryo through tentacles of mental and physical complications. The vain and narcissistic borders of the reelection dream eventually burst through and the delivery’s tragic essence springs from the brutal contrast between President Jonathan’s pitiful vanity and Fani-Kayode’s catastrophic melding with his dream, till it got delivered as stillborn. It’s like the holocaust and the apocalypse. Thus President Jonathan today, stands at ground zero, incinerated by the hate flames frantically fanned by Fani-Kayode and the presidential gang of apologists and petty loyalists. It was instructive to see FaniKayode brazenly tow the path to infamy to a pathetic end; even as Nigerians joined the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to count the votes and it became glaring that his principal was being trounced, Fani-Kayode continued to propagate a pitiful campaign in defense of President Jonathan claiming the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) candidate was leading by about three million votes. It defies common sense and wisdom still, that, at that point Mr. President hadn’t seen through the bluster and deceit of Fani-Kayode and his gang of loyalists. Now that President Jonathan has lost the election, it will be interesting to see what will become of FaniKayode. Will he truly stay put in the PDP and keep faith with the party in its feeble quest to bounce back or will he resort to his usual ways and pitch his tent with the new political power

bloc, APC? Fani-Kayode is a poseur. No doubt he has a sense of persona and becomes visibly embarrassed particularly when reality punctures his bauble as was the case when he suffered widespread condemnation and ridicule over his misguided utterances about Igbo women; not to forget the shame and regret that coursed through him when the APC released a mosaic of his passionate denouncement of the PDP presidency and the party in general. Having failed to insinuate himself within the ranks of the APC, enjoyed a lifeline when President Jonathan, for reasons that defies logic, appointed him as the Director of his Media and Publicity campaign team. Predictably, he let go of reason and launched himself as a missile severally, against new President-elect Buhari and the APC. There is no use reproducing the hate campaign he propagated against the APC and Buhari, what is noteworthy at the moment, is his silence. Fani-Kayode has lost steam, his mortifying zeal and irrationality. It is even more instructive to see top chieftains of the PDP come out to denounce him and his appointment as President Jonathan’s campaign chief on national TV. Hence for Fani-Kayode, the dissembling begins. As he frantically await the Federal High Court ruling - which has been adjourned till June 18 - on the money-laundering charges instituted against him, Fani-Kayode will continually dwell in a jailhouse he witlessly sauntered into, goaded by his fantasies of invincibility and delusions of grandeur. In Fani-Kayode’s pitiful fate subsists valuable lessons for all seeking to tow his path. Nothing corrupts; nothing disintegrates a man’s character as the principle of moral agnosticism. That is, the idea that one must be tolerant of anything and that ingenuity consists in never distinguish-

ing good from evil and taking sides. It is obvious who profits and loses by such a precept, isn’t it? Fani-Kayode put himself on trial every time he opened his mouth to speak yet he failed to devise a measure of checkmating every propaganda and irrationality he so desperately projected in the interest of his principal. Bolstered by the culture of amorality and intellectual hooliganism that the outgoing presidency shamelessly perpetuated, FaniKayode arrogated to himself, the freedom to utter any sort of irrational judgment and expected to suffer no consequences. He failed to understand that the things he condemned or extolled actually exists in the objective reality that is open to the independent appraisal of others. The values he projected has overtime become the essence of his socio-politics and being. In the long run, Fani-Kayode, though he was employed to do the PDP’s filthy job, ended up as a dirty liability to the PDP. The most prescient portrait of President Jonathan is found in the tantrums of men like Fani-Kayode. Fani-Kayode shamelessly validated the vicious obsessions, violent impulses, moral weakness, hubris and inevitable self-destruction of the outgoing presidency via his unguarded vituperation. His distressing executions were variously punctuated by flashes of delusion as he tiresomely posed as an intellectual, to imbue the same ruling party and presidency he once castigated, with hollow sophistry and pretensions to wittiness. Few years from now, in his twilight to be precise, it would be amazing to know the thoughts that would run Fani-Kayode’s mind amok as he mounts a feeble struggle to tame or make peace with the demons he joyously summons today. He would probably wish he heeded the subtle counsel of morality and the caveat of objective reality.

How Buhari can curb corruption By Momoh Obaro All these evil activities are perpetuated through friends, family members and several accomplices in the private sector that are always handy to help them funnel slush funds. Now what is the implication of all these? Projects execution is expensive. Goods and services paid for are not delivered. Money earmarked for projects diverted. Salaries of soldiers, police and other civil servants are either delayed or not paid for months on end. Roads are not built. Hospitals are not working. Public schools are virtually gone. Most of our young people have no jobs. Imagine defence money spent where contract for military hardware were paid for and not delivered or substandard ones delivered, how will our security personnel secure the country? It is the same reason that we are running our economy on mobile phones and generators. Our markets are filled with fake goods (building materials, electrical equipment, furniture, vehicle parts, cutleries, pirated books, clothing, drugs and even food to mention a few) from countries that don’t consume such goods or services. Most of these items hardly work and they break down immediately you put them to use because organizations saddled with the responsibility of controlling and checking standards are riddled with corruption. The relevant questions to ask at this stage are how did we come to imbibe this culture and accept this behaviour as normal? But more importantly how do we kick out this behaviour from our public life? Looking at our system, it is not that we do not have the laws or policies to curtail these behaviours but they are simply ignored. There is the rule of impunity. These laws are observed in their breach. People saddled with enforcing the laws are the first to break them. Somehow people have accepted this as normal. So how do we deal with this? First thing is to convene a conference in the form and format of a truth commission to bring together public officers of the ranks of President, Vice President, Governors, Deputy Governors, Ministers, Commissioners and Permanents Secretaries, Local Government chairmen, Vice Chairmen, Directors of Local Government, Heads of other government agencies and parastatals, leadership of National and State Assemblies; the Judiciary, government contractors both local and foreign; private sector collaborators including but not limited to their friends and families to come and say something before the commission. The objectives and purpose of this conferences is for participants to explain their role in the management of public finance from 1999 to date, to amongst others determine the extent of leadership, management or systemic failure (s) within the period

under review. The conference will enable the participants to see the linkage between their actions and the state of our economy and security and the victims they have created. This conference might establish the fact that if they had acted differently, unemployment would have been say 20% instead of 60%, power generation will be say 10,000 megawatts instead of 4000MW, infant mortality rate would have been reduced by certain percentage, public schools might not have been in its present comatose state etc. This is because from May 29, 1999 to May 29, 2015 we have 16 years and taking our daily oil production as 2 millionbarrels per day at an average price of $50 per barrel, this will give a total earning of $586.6 billion dollars or 87.8 trillion Naira. The truth and reconciliation commission should establish how this money has been spent. Truth and reconciliation commission is often held where people fought bloody wars, where people have suffered persecution and oppression for a long time. But the situation in Nigeria: the agonizing poverty, the bleak future of young people who have been made to live without employment, the displaced people and victims of insecurity (insurgency, kidnapping, armed robbery, trafficking in persons, prostitution etc.) are all consequences much worse than genocide. This kind of conference will make us to tell the bitter truth to ourselves and it is a strong signal that we are willing to unearth the stinking body of corruption for everyone to see. It is also a strong signal that whatever you do now, you will be called to account someday. The outcome of the conference will be to give some people amnesty after they return part of their rip-off back to the state and if possible rehabilitated to join in the building of a new Nigeria. The advantage of this is huge; it will raise our public image as a country that we are serious about dealing with corruption head on and a country that is open for business as this will raise investors’ confidence. This will bring real and lasting investment to Nigeria. Instead of our leaders’ globe-trotting chasing elusive foreign investment, investors will find Nigeria a natural destination. Finally let’s educate. Create a curriculum to teach the effects of corruption in our schools to save future generation from its scourge. In all schools from primary to university, in churches and mosques, at the level of ethno-social groups, trade associations etc. this training should take place. People should be taught that they must be able to explain the source of the money they have. Remove all safe-havens that give rise to corruption at government, private sector and individual level. People must realise that income illegally acquired harm others and deprive the people a vital resource to develop their lives and their communities. •Obaro lives and work in UK as Governance, Capacity building and information technology specialist

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

COMMENTS ‘We thought, because we had power, we had wisdom.’ ——Stephen Vincent Bennet (1898 - 1943) (US poet & short story author)

IME is of essence in life. It is what keeps everything from happening at once. Every living being has own time or better put-magic moment. For individuals in power, it is pertinent to ask how best they have they deployed it. Is it used for egocentric purposes or for more enduring ventures? Whether you are president, governor, minister, commissioner, local government chairman or occupier of any powerful appointive positions, in 21 days time, your days in office would come to an end. You become lesson in the page of history for those newly elected and others that were re-elected. The crowd of people you see around you today would have embraced the new man holding the lever of power. This is because, unknown to you while still in the saddle, they throng around your position, not your person. Now that another person is taking over your seat in three weeks time, you automatically become a relic of history and what you live on subsequently is your good deeds/ bad deeds or better put legacy. Have you, despite your present position, ever given this inescapable looming reality any deep thought in the midst of privileged reverence that you are daily accorded by virtue of your position? Let us all remember in whatever grandeur it might currently please God to place us that there comes a time when the world gets quiet and the only thing left is our own hearts- the ultimate judge of human conducts. The earlier we learn the sound of our hearts, the better so that we can correctly decipher what it is saying and, advisedly follow it. The problem with powerful men is that they have avoidably failed to be loyal to their conscience and have failed to discern inevitable change and challenge when about to occur. The saddest words that could ever come out of the mouths of onceupon-powerful-fellows are: ‘It might have been.’ As the next inauguration day gets closer, do whatever you still can to redeem and re-shape your today and the future. Whatever part you deliberately chose, whether of malicious self-perdition or sentence to irreverent political oblivion should not be subsequently called mistakes? Remember that there have been tyrants

08110000117

Reminder for Tenants in power

•Jonathan

•Buhari

and slayers, and for some time, they can seem insuperable, but in the end, they always fall. Remember that it is your actions, not the fruits of your actions that would count against or for you on judgement day, which is why you must endeavour to always do now what is importantly right. Let your action not be informed by malice or personal gains because that may not be in your power to decide. God in His infinite mercy might decide to let your actions or inactions benefit humanity and not even you can stop that? But you would be remembered, long after you have gone as the harbinger of that good or bad action, and would be duly celebrated or castigated one day. But that doesn’t mean you should stop doing the right thing because there may not be immediate personal gains. You may never know what results come from your actions. But if you do nothing, there will be no result to celebrate in the world. As the inauguration day draws closer,

T is beyond accident that the recent change in power in Nigeria was so resounding. It came as a reflection of the wishes of the people as expected in a thriving democracy. Nigerians in their multitudes clamoured for change and change they got, effectively resting the reign of the People’s Democratic Party and in its place the All Progressives Congress (APC) to be inaugurated on May 29. But beyond the ritual of handing over power is the critical issue of delivering on its manifesto. So much have been promised and Nigerians are eagerly waiting to see the manifestation of the lofty promises made to them which we must acknowledge were clear premises for the election of the APC. And this is the challenge confronting the party: Is APC ready to deliver on its campaign promises or will the party go down as a huge flop? God forbid! The wave of support and enormous goodwill which brought it to power are just too important to be so deemed and with the leadership integrity and reputation of the President-elect, General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) and other accomplished leaders, we should have a paradigm shift that could realistically birth a new dawn in our nation. What will count so much here is the sense of purpose by the APC leadership to see to it that it runs an efficient administration that can deliver on its manifesto as early as possible. The honeymoon won’t be that long! One major factor that will help the president and the party is the choice of men and women in critical leadership positions like the National Assembly and the executive arms of government. The prime position of the National Assembly in galvanising the needed support for the president not only in the passage of vital bills but also in the strategic mobilisation of its members and those in the opposition to support the executive is key. Still a crux: the filling of the principal officers of the National Assembly which must be done in a manner that can help the party to make its change mantra a possibility. For if

‘Much as debutant senators should be dissuaded, officers who have been in the house without record of major contributions in the past should also hands off their ambition for the office of the Majority leader’

remember that yesterday is but today’s memory, and tomorrow is today’s dream. What dreams do you have as a leader- for the country as her directing mind and the world at large so that there can be a peaceful global village for all to co-habit? Do not be deceived by the false friends or deterred by true enemies that success usually attract. Just make sure you put in your best in all you do in whatever position you might presently be privileged to occupy. Having gone this far, it is pertinent to remind our privileged men of power on the need to engage in pertinent self reexamination. The outgoing president and governors in particular, and other political appointees, by now would be buying time in power. The incumbent president and governors would have become lame duck in their positions since fresh hands are waiting to take over after the conclusion of the March/April general elections. That has been the tradition in the game of CHANGE of baton in the political firmament. They should reflect on approvals denied in a raw show of vindictive malice and think of whether if the next person takes charge the injustice will not be corrected. How many of them have betrayed their benefactors at a point they thought the day of handover would erroneously never come? What is their relationship with their successor? If you are in the same party with your successor, did you make as much sacrifice as was done for you before you won your own mandate? What is the impression of subordinates and the larger percentage of people about you?

These, amongst others, will help you know how far you have fared. How would our current crop of elected and appointed public officers want to be remembered? What future have they built for their families through their handiwork while in government? Is it one that will invite scorn or approbation from members of the public? It is probably too late for them to remedy their avoidable pitfalls of the past now that the inauguration day is around the corner? And for Nigerians: It is certain that they are not ready to tolerate the misfits in government anymore. And for the lucky re-elected individuals and new entrants into the corridors of power, they can only hope and pray for the best. This is time for sober reflections on how far they fared in power and in meeting set goals; for self and society? They have ample time to make amends and should not become victims of excuses like most out-going president and governors; they should strive to be nothing but conqueror of objectives: And by objectives, this column mean those deeds that could stand the test of time and benefit humanity. We should continue to fervently pray for God’s special grace in Nigeria so that the inauguration day of May 29, 2015 would be hitch free. This column believes in such prayers and would continue to do everything to seek divine protection and blessings for the country. Let us all do things in this political season with moderation and more importantly, love our neighbour as we love ourselves. We thank God that in most states and at the centre, the people’s votes truly count.

‘We should continue to fervently pray for God’s special grace in Nigeria so that the inauguration day of May 29, 2015 would be hitch free. This column believes in such prayers and would continue to do everything to seek divine protection and blessings for the country. Let us all do things in this political season with moderation and more importantly, love our neighbour as we love ourselves’

Gaya and Senate leadership question By Tony Olutomiwa caution is thrown to the wind in electing principal officers of the National Assembly for the 8th Senate and House of Representatives, that could send a wrong signal. It is a clarion call to all concerned that the jostling for positions of the principal officers in the National Assembly should be done to serve this onerous purpose above. Chapter 2 of the Senate standing rule states that “a senator re-elected into the chamber has preference over a member who is newly elected into the chamber.” Chapter II (2) of the same rule specifically remove any uncertainty about the status of senators in the chamber. The rule 2, sufficiently said, “the following order shall apply: (i) senators returning based on number of times re-elected; (ii) senators who had been members of the House of Representatives; (iii) senators elected as senators for the first time.” It is therefore not in contention as the rule states that only senators who have been returned based on number of times re-elected should form the nucleus of the leadership of the red chamber. The outgoing majority party held sacrosanct to this rule and was able to withstand the storm at its time of trials. It is therefore vital that the APC put its house in order so that it does present the nation with a senate that can really make a difference. Arguably, there is wisdom in the zoning formula for offices of principal officers in the forthcoming National Assembly but the struggle for the offices by some elected politicians debuting at the hallow chambers should be checked by the party. The fear that engulfed the land when the party conducted its primaries but ended smoothly indicates that the party is mature in handling its internal issues. Thus as the office of Majority Leader of the APC is zoned to the NorthWest, the Senate standing order should be strictly applied. The Majority Leader characteristically sets the floor agenda and oversees the committee chairmen. It is obvious that it is not an office for new comers in the Senate. Much as debutant senators should be dissuaded, officers who have been in the house without record of major contributions in the past should also hands off their ambition for the office of the Majority leader. The effectiveness of the office now that the APC is taking over needs tested and experienced hands.

In as much as I’m not holding brief for any senator, an argument I read in one of the dailies in favour of former governor of old Kano State, Senator Kabiru Ibrahim Gaya (Kano South) presented by Alhaji Ibrahim Sabon-Birnin, a leader of an NGO, League of Concerned Patriots (LCP), caught my fancy. Sabon-Birnin had argued: “As the senator representing Kano South, Senator Kabiru Ibrahim Gaya is aspiring for the office, the APC will only be justified for supporting him for his loyalty to the party and untiring effort to see that the party came into being. Affording him, the office of Majority Leader will enable him to give Nigerians their wish with specific regard to his ability, experience and his cherished workaholic nature.” As chief spokesman of the APC in the National Assembly, Senator Gaya would come to the job with the right moral upbringing, fine personality imbued with good character as a bridge builder, holding firmly both the Senate and the House of Representatives to ensure President Buhari can successfully navigate difficult courses and accomplish his agenda. This is very important. Senator Gaya has the pedigree without question. He was never an absentee senator but one devoted to duty. His invaluable experience as a third term ranking senator should ordinarily be litmus test among the pack of possible contenders because a fresher in the senate without the right experience in the upper legislature will be a misnomer with consequences for the president’s legislative agenda and many more. No other experience can ever be a substitute to this criterion. He has the attribute of being so shrewd in party discipline, collective responsibility, always there at the low and high moments for party and leaders. He has earned his trust and reliability spanning the last 30 years of political participation and due relevance. For those who are familiar with him and his antecedents, to say that Senator Kabiru Ibrahim Gaya is a perfect match for the next Senate Majority Leader is to hit the nail on the head. Sabon-Birnin’s close look at the wise man is true. He has the wherewithal to provide effective leadership. A third term ranking senator, he has the calmness of thought, maturity and clear depth to be so considered not only in the pursuit of reason but also that of our national interest. •Olutomiwa writes from Lagos.

THE NATION FRIDAY MAY 8, 2015

Newspaper of the Year

AN 8-PAGE PULLOUT ON SOUTHEAST STATES

Evolution of Federal Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki

Communities groan over abandoned road

•PAGE 26

•PAGE 37

FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

PAGE 25

Why House wanted me impeached, by Chime •PAGE 40

•Deputy Governor, Eze Madumere gets the first cut during the festival

HE fish festival or Emume Azu, in local parlance, sits prominently on the calendar of the residents. Once in three years, the people of Obazu Mbeiri in Mbaitoli Local Government Area of Imo State gather to celebrate, dressed up as though it were Christmas. The traditional ruler and the elderly come out in their colourful reach-down attires topped off with hats. The women are no less gaily clad. For it is the Fish Day. The Emume Azu is a unique event among the Obazu. The people, at home and in the Diaspora, attend in their numbers, with quite a sizeable number of tourists joining them, some from far beyond the borders. Why will a land-locked com-

A unique fish feast in Imo Everyone else just sinks their teeth in its tasty flesh but residents of Obazu Mbeiri in Mbaitoli Council of Imo State, believe there is much more to fish. OKODILI NDIDI reports on a rare celebration munity without any river or pond choose to honour an aquatic animal? The answer is not farfetched. The community derived its name Obazu or calabash of fish, from the huge fish trade that flourished there during the pre-colonial era. Obazu was a fish port and the founders were great fish merchants, making great wealth from the

trade. Such was prominence the business brought that they dedicated a particular day to fish. That day is one to be merry, eat giant fish and savour not just its nourishment but also the fame that has come with it. In the latest edition, a mammoth fish lay on a dressed table and no less than son-of-the-soil Deputy Governor of the state, Prince Eze

Madumere, was on hand to relish the feast. The festival is a seven-day event that is characterized by visitations, kindred meetings, cultural dances and masquerade display. During the period, issues bordering on the security, welfare and development of the community are discussed and possible solutions proffered. On the day of the festival cli-

maxes, people from the seven families that make up the Obazu Mbieri assemble at the village square various delicacies made of fish are served. Different sizes and species of fish are prepared and one’s affluence and generosity is measured by the size of fish •Continued on page 26

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

THE SOUTHEAST REPORT From catering to the health of WWII soldiers to serving the Eastern Regional Government, the Federal Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki has weathered every storm to become a leading health institution. OGOCHUKWU ANIOKE reports

T has come of age. First, colonial authorities once shipped wounded soldiers in the Second World War to the hospital. In time, the Eastern Regional Government took it over before passing it to the East Central State Government. Ebonyi State authorities have since taken over but even though the hospital occasionally came under rough weather, it has earned its prime position in the health sector. As wounded soldiers on the Cameroon flank of the WWII have lain on its beds, so have ailing residents of the Eastern Regional Government, and health workers of the hospital have catered to them all. Established in the l930s under the British colonial administration, its name has changed from Casualty Control Centre to Abakaliki General Hospital and then to Federal Medical Centre. By 1973, the hospital had the full complement of consultant staff and was approved for training of House Officers. It later went into limbo. Facilities deteriorated and consultant staff fell short as the East Central State was split into many states. It almost became moribund. The hospital became a Federal Medical Centre in March, 1991 following the agreement between the

•Minister of Health, Mr. Fidelis Nwankwo inaugurating the projects

Evolution of Federal Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki

Federal Government and Enugu State Government. With the takeover, the Hospital made modest progress. But the best was yet to come. Things continued to look up from 2007 when Associate Prof. Paul Olisaemeka Ezeonu, then Head of Clinical Services in the Medical Centre, became Chief Medical Director. Since then, there has been remark-

campaign tour to Ebonyi State in 2011, President Goodluck Jonathan promised to upgrade the Federal Medical Centre to a Teaching Hospital. On December 7 of that year, the President fulfilled his election

promise by proclaiming the Centre a Federal Teaching Hospital. He further directed that Ebonyi State University Teaching Hospital be ab•Continued on page 27

A unique fish feast in Imo

•Continued from page 25 he presents. The fish is served in diverse forms; some are simply smoked, while others are grilled, fried or cooked and there is always enough of it that the visitors will eat to their satisfaction and still have enough to take home.

able growth in virtually every department of the hospital. Outpatient patronage has risen to about 5,000 monthly. Accreditation for training of House officers has been restored. During his election

Every three years, the people look forward to this festival with great expectations, not just for the joy of eating assorted fish but it affords them the opportunity to re-

unite with other family members and friends. There are also the side attractions, sharing a drink being one of them. Speaking about the festival, Chief

Obioma Nzemere said that it is a culture inherited from their forebears, who were reputed fish merchants. He said, the Emume Azu is a rich

cultural event that tells the history of the people, with focus on the adventures of their predecessors, their occupation, way of life and leisure. He said, “The emume azu is a significant festival in Obazu Mbieri. It reminds the young ones of the life time of our forebears and it affords us the opportunity as one large family to come together every three years and eat and reason to•Continued on page 39

The emume azu is a significant festival in Obazu Mbieri. It reminds the young ones of the life time of our forebears and affords us the opportunity as one large family to come together every three years and eat and reason together to move the community forward

•Some women performing at the festival

•Continued from page 26

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

THE SOUTHEAST REPORT

Pardoned Biafra soldiers plead for pension From Chris Oji, Enugu

pealing to Jonathan that we be paid our money before he hands over,” he said. Ossai also lamented that since the money was approved for them, many of their members have died without getting the money. He also regretted that their members wounded during the NigeriaBiafran Civil War were still languishing at Okwe, Imo State. The National Commander pointed out that they had submitted their nominal role to the Secretary to the Government of the Federal (SGF) and that they promised to gazette it, “so that we will be receiving our monthly pensions. We are appealing to the Federal Government to make sure that we are given the money which has accumulated for five years before we start waiting for pension.” Ossai said that some groups are claiming to be the authentic group the Federal Government should pay the money. But he also said that such claimants were causing confusion because before Ojukwu died, it was he (Ossai) that he anointed to lead the veterans. He said there were other groups formed by Nwobosi, Okonkwo and

ORMER soldiers of the Biafran Army who were pardoned in 2011 by former President Olusegun Obasanjo are yet to receive their pensions, The Nation learnt. The ex-soldiers said that they were yet to receive the retirement fund said to be over N1 billion. The National Commander of Pardoned War Veterans Social Association, Col Emmanuel Osita Ossai (rtd), alongside his commanders from various commands in Imo, Enugu, Anambra, Delta, Abia, Cross River, Rivers, Bayelsa, Ebonyi, and Akwa Ibom states, said the war veterans were granted presidential pardon in 2011 and that N1,584,992,100 was approved for their pensions. He added that since then, not one kobo has been released to them. “I, Col. Emmanuel Ossai, a veteran commander, am hereby telling you that since we were pardoned in May 2011 till today, we have not been paid the approved amount. The Federal Government scheduled to be paying us the amount yearly but 2011 passed, 2012, 2013, 2014 and this 2015, five years now, Federal Government is still owing us the money,” Col. Ossai lamented. He called on President Jonathan to see that they get the money before he hands over power to the incoming administration. “Now, I and my members are ap-

Since we were pardoned in May 2011 till today, we have not been paid the approved amount. The Federal Government scheduled to pay us the amount yearly but 2011 passed, 2012, 2013, 2014 and this 2015, five years now, Federal Government is still owing us the money. We are appealing to Jonathan that we be paid our money before he hands over

Njokanma at Ogwashi-Ukwu, Delta State, but pointed out that all of them were trying to throw the spanner into the work because it was his group that got the blessing of Ojukwu before he died. He showed evidence that his organisation has been registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission hence it is the authentic group. Ossai intimated that Ojukwu that actually blessed and authorized him to lead the pardoned war vet-

erans. He said: “Many people have been struggling to claim the money but God did not allow them, knowing full well that we are the right people. As my Chief of Staff earlier said, I am the General Officer Commanding. Ojukwu handed over the staff of office to me to lead others. After the handover, he embraced me and advised me that I should ensure that my men always obey the Federal Government. That we should not do anything that

will provoke the Federal Government. Since then, we kept to this advice. “The organisation was the only one recognised by Ojukwu. Let others show evidence that they were given powers by Ojukwu,” Ossai said. The National Commander however congratulated President Jonathan on behalf of his members for the bold stand he took by conceding defeat with honour. “We congratulate the president-elect, Gen. Buhari and we promise to work sincerely with the government of the day.” Chief of Staff of the veterans, Lt. Col. Mbina- Mbina confirmed that Ojukwu did authorise Ossai to lead them. “Obasanjo in 2011 went on air and granted ex-Biafran soldiers presidential pardon. Sequel to this, in September 2009, the veterans asked Ojukwu who would lead them after his passing and Ojukwu said it was Col. Emmanuel Ossai. Ojukwu said, this is your commander and he gave him the staff of office. That was how we continued the struggle and in May 2011, Federal Government in conjunction with the Senate approved N1,584,992,1000 for the monthly pension of all exBiafra soldiers,” Mbina said.

Evolution of Federal Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki

•Continued from page 26 sorbed into the new mega Teaching Hospital comprising FETHA I (former FMC) and FETHA II (former EBSUTH). The handover process was completed the same month including the absorption of the staff of the defunct State University Teaching Hospital. The mega teaching hospital concept fitted in exactly with the vision of the CMD, Associate Prof. Paul Ezeonu. German-trained and imbued with a passion for excellence and hard work, Dr. Ezeonu has laboured long to take FETHA to the top among teaching hospitals not only in Nigeria but indeed across the world. On assumption of office as CMD, he had created a lofty vision to make the hospital a global player. He went on to initiate what have aptly been described as “transformational projects” that have indeed catapulted the hospital to the global league in the industry. The new Federal Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki FETHA, under Prof. Ezeonu has indeed become mega and world class with a retinue of over 4,000 staff comprising over 200 Consultants in various specialties, 602 beds ward complex distributed in various departments, 500 doctors undergoing residency training and a capacity for training of over 250 House Officers every year. Furthermore, the hospital is now relocating to its new multipurpose building complex designed as a onestop shop complex to accommodate the various units and departments such as children’s emergency units and wards, Obstetrics and Gynecology (O&G) wards and units, Accounts department, administration department, consulting rooms and wards among others. These projects were commissioned recently by President Goodluck Jonathan. Also completed and commissioned by the President who was represented by the Minister of State for Health, Mr Fidelis Nwankwo are buildings for Resident Doctors’ and House Officers’ quarters comprising several units of self contained accommodation, medical records blocks, laboratories, dental clinics among others.

The new multipurpose hospital complex is designed as a one-stop complex to accommodate various units in the departments of Paediatrics, Obstetrics and Gynaecology; administration department comprising consulting rooms and wards among others

•Libraries, lecture halls, theatre complex and auditorium buildings under construction

At the occasion, Prof Ezeonu said the “new multi-purpose hospital complex is designed as a one-stop complex to accommodate various units in the departments of Paediatrics, Obstetrics and Gynaecology; administration department comprising consulting rooms and wards among others”. “The Medical Records and Medical Laboratory Complexes have also been completed; all interwoven as one complex to reduce distance, waiting time and stress on patients and staff”. “Construction of ongoing projects include an ultra modern auditorium with five hundred sifting capacity, a lecture hall with a two-hundred desk sitting capacity, an E-library and a conventional library as well as an ultra modern theatre and several other facilities with modern ancillary amenities located within the new site and FETHA II”. School of basic nursing and school of basic midwifery hostels. Perhaps, the icing on the cake of both the histry of FETHA and the transformational achievements of •Continued on page 28

•Ambulances in front of Children’s Emergency and Obstetrics/Gynaecology complex

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

THE SOUTHEAST REPORT

Why House wanted me impeached, by Chime E

NUGU State Governor Sullivan Chime has explained that some members of the state House of Assembly wanted him impeached because he refused to yield to their financial demands. He said the allegation of impropriety against him was false, as the issue for which they moved against him was a loan for the development of the state. He said: “They felt the administration was coming to an end and it is time for them to make money. They came shamelessly and said that I should give them money. They thought I was asking for the loan as a parting gift. This nonsense started when they could not get me to give

From Chris Oji, Enugu

them money outside their allowances.” He was reacting to the impeachment notice he was allegedly served by the House. Just less than three weeks to its last sitting, some members of the Enugu State House of Assembly, to the chagrin of residents woke up as early as 4:00 a.m. on Monday and marched to the Assembly Complex located at the Independence Layout for the day’s legislative business. What surprised the entire people of the state was the timing of the sitting–the wee hours when the first cock crows. The legislators who were led by the

Speaker of the House, Hon. Eugene Odoh (who was later impeached) included the suspended House Leader, S.K.E. Ude Okoye, Okechukwu Nwoke, Ikechukwu Ezeugwu, Elochukwu Ugwueze, Iloabuchi Aniagu, Nze Michael, Onyeze Anichukwu, John Nwankwo, Theresa Egbo, Nkechi Omeje Ogbu, Chika Eneh, Mathias Ekweremadu, Paul Okechukwu Ogbe, Anthony Ogidi and Nelson Uduji. The reason for sitting at an unusual hour of the day was principally to pre-empt another group of the legislators, said to be loyal to the governor that planned to sit and use the platform to dissociate themselves from the N11 billion loan saga be-

tween the House and the governor. Governor Chime had, last year, requested the House to approve for the executive a loan of N11billion for the execution of some ongoing and new projects. The House, in November last year, approved the loan which was put to use. Governor Chime explained that the bank which granted the loan requested some further additional endorsement from the House. The leadership of the House capitalised on the bank’s request to get a “parting gift” from the governor. They insisted that they must be given some amount of money before they would give their approval. But the governor stood his ground, insisting

that he was not going to tamper with public funds because he could not account for any money taken from it. Angered by the governor’s refusal to yield ground, some of the members, led by the then Speaker, started some manoeuvers to arm-twist the governor into yielding to their demand. They started investigating the various ministries and parastatals of the state, particularly those that have much to do with finance. The commissioners were summoned one after the other to be “interrogated” by members of the •Continued on page 40

Evolution of Federal Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki Assoc Prof Ezeonu is the establishment of the school of Basic Nursing and School of Midwifery. Conceived in 2011 following the upgrade of the hospital to a teaching hospital, the school constitute a story of hope as well as a child of circumstance. The story is told of how it came to the notice of the Chief Medical Director, Assoc. Prof. Ezeonu, that minor illnesses were being referred to the federal teaching hospital because there were insufficient health personnel to manage the various primary health care centers in the state. Acting in concert with other members of the management the CMD took up the challenge of selling up the school. The school was thus conceived to fill a critical gap, namely, the lack of trained and qualified basic nursing and midwifery personnel in primary health care institutions in Ebonyl State and environs. According to Ezeonu, the school is the first Government-owned nursing training facility in Ebonyi State since inception. “The schools have commenced having obtained accreditation from the Nursing Council of Nigeria in 2014. The schools are fully operational with state-of-the-arts accommodation; transport and educational facilities. We are currently seeking collaboration with Canadian Universities in the areas of exchange programmes and manpower training”. Speaking at the occasion, the Minister of State for Health, said the commissioning is a land mark event in line with the president’s determination to ensure access to quality and affordable health care for the citizens. He said, “I see much more than the physical structures. What I see is the satisfaction on the faces of patients who would access services from this one-stop shop, the clinical complex and the high morale of the young doctors in their new quarters”. “I want to reiterate this administration’s commitment to providing world class health care services to Nigerians through adequate Funding, provision of modern facilities and well trained personnel ensuring an enabling environment for healthcare workers as well as institution of people-oriented policies”. “Providing modern health care infrastructure such as the New Compact Hospital Complex. School of Nursing and Midwifery ostels. House Officers’ Quarters, Resident Doctors Quarters, cological Drainage and Roads are among the card inal objectives of Mr. President’s Transformation Agenda as prioritized under the National Strategic Health Development Plan. “Under this plan, government is motivating existing local health manpower and encouraging Nige-

•Continued from page 27

I see much more than the physical structures. What I see is the satisfaction on the faces of patients who would access services from this one-stop shop, the clinical complex and the high morale of the young doctors in their new quarters

rian health experts based abroad to return to ensure that Nigerians get easy access to high quality health care and more importantly, minimise medical tourism”. “I am particularly impressed with the establishment at the Schools of Basic Nursing and Midwifery in the Hospital, which will go a long way in providing well qualified nurses and midwives not just for this hospital but for other hospitals in the state and its environs. In the past four years, Nigerian health care system has witnessed remarkable improvement as Government has invested heavily in strengthening human resources by scaling up the Midwifes Service Scheme (MSS) providing health facilities and instituting the maternal and Child health (MCI-I) component of SURE-P”. “The government is modernising medical diagnostics and upgrading several tertiary health care facilities to meet the standard existing in those countries where Nigerians seek foreign medical treatment”. “As such, it has so far modernized and reequipped to international standard in phases, 14 Federal Tertiary Hospitals across the country to deliver quality health care. The Government is in the process of modernizing the remaining Teaching Hospitals, FETHA inclusive, and the revamping of the 14 already modernized Teaching hospitals through Public Private Partnership with VAMED Nig Ltd”. “I must commend the Chief Medical Director (CMD) and the Board of Management of FETHA for their vision of re-engineering and restructuring the hospital. The Management of the hospital has been the driving force behind the building projects that I am about to commission to-

•Quarters for Resident Doctors and House officers

•A fuel station at the facility day.” The chairman, Board of Management of the Hospital, Alhaji Suleiman Abdulahi Dawaki Kudu expressed hope that the laudable projects will, in no small measure, spur the Federal Government towards the replication of the projects in other states and localities of the Federation for the provision of excellence in our healthcare delivery services. With the unfolding success story of the teaching Hospital, it is little wonder that it is fast becoming the destination of choice for local, national and international scientific and medical conferences, Annual General Meeting of medical associations, medical and health related workshops as well as the celebrations to mark United Nations Special Days connected with health issues.

Hardly a month passes without one of such event. Fifteen of such events actually held in the Hospital last year including the Scientific Conference & Annual General Meeting of National Health Reform Foundation of Nigeria, Medical Women Association of Nigeria Dialogue etc. This is in line with Ezeonu’s vision for the institution. In his words: “Our plan is to move to an international standard teaching hospital so that Nigerians can stop going to India, England and other places for treatment because these people in India are not better than us, and they do not come to Nigeria for medical treatment That is our target in FETHA. We have all it environment” ”Our motto is Excellence in Health Care Delivery. I want people in this

state and the entire Nigerians to know that FETHA has come to stay, to serve and deliver world class medical services to the people. And apart from delivering medical services as a teaching hospital, we shall continue to train younger ones for better performance, we shall also be offering practical and theoretical teaching to both the Federal University at Ndufu Alike Ikwo, the Ebonyi State University and our own School of Nursing and Midwifery. People should know that we are here to work and give in the best we can to better the society.” With such reassuring pledge from the CMD, it can be said that things can only get better at FETHA as the Management seeks to break new grounds in climbing to the top of the league of global players among the teaching hospital world community.

Newspaper of the Year

AN EIGHT-PAGE PULLOUT ON THE SOUTHSOUTH STATES

FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

PAGE 29

CR OSS RIVER CROSS

DELSU

ITSEKIRI

WHEN Cross River State Governor Liyel Imoke’s 850-unit civil servants’ housing project in Akpabuyo Local Government Area was conceived, the vision was to ensure that civil servants retire into decent and affordable houses. Now, the vision has spread faster

DELTA State University (DELSU), Abraka, last Saturday held its ninth convocation and award of certificates for regular and weekend graduates during the 2013/2014 academic year. The event was unique in many aspects.

WARRI and other parts of the Itsekiri nation in Delta State were agog last weekend as the Itsekiri rolled out the drums to celebrate the annual Oyo-Ekero festival, which marks the ascension of the Olu of Warri, Ogiame Atuwatse II, to the throne.

•Imoke

•PAGE 35

•Uduaghan

•PAGE 31

•PAGE 32

•Olu of Warri

Bayelsa monarch, women take on NDDC over abandoned project

• The monarch and his subjects protesting against NDDC

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We are in a big problem. Houses are being washed away daily by erosion. If the hide tide comes, many indigenes will disappear and homes washed away •The women protesting against NDDC

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• YOU HAVE STORIES FOR US? PLEASE CONTACT US ON 07066954441 OR 08123521990

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

NIGER DELTA REPORT COVER

NIGER DELTA REPORT FEATURE

Bayelsa monarch, women take on NDDC over abandoned project T

HE ‘gods’ of Agge community in Ekeremor Local Government Area, Bayelsa State, are no doubt enraged. They are unhappy with the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC). Their anger was on Tuesday demonstrated by the Paramount Ruler of the community, His Royal Highness David Isiayi, who is regarded as the custodian of their conventions. Isiayi abandoned his palace and shook off the orthodoxy of royalty to march the street in protest against NDDC. His participation in the protest is viewed by many people as a serious indictment against NDDC and the contractor which abandoned a N4bn shore protection job in the community. His involvement invoked a lot of sympathy from passers-by who cursed NDDC and the contractor for subjecting a nonagenarian king to such level of frustration. Others marched behind their dogged monarch. Elderly men and women, chiefs, community leaders and youths were not left out in the demonstration. The abandoned project is a shore protection contract. The contractor, Beks Kimse Nigeria Ltd was hired by NDDC to sand-fill and reclaim about 2. 9Km of the community’s land washed away by an ocean surge. Agge which is at the fringe of the Atlantic Ocean has been under threat by water current. Large chunk of the community’s land had been swallowed by the ocean surge. Following series of complaints and mournful incidents, NDDC stepped in to award the controversial shore protection contract to the company. The monarch said: “The situation in Agge is threatening our existence as a people.The ocean has claimed half of our homes and people. “I have ruled the community for over 41 years and the deceit and failure of the company awarded the contract to do the job is a shameful act. We don’t want to die, we only want the contract awarded completed.” The protesters were not happy that instead of demonstrating seriousness to complete the job, the contractor tried to sublet the contract

From Mike Odiegwu, Yenagoa

to another firm, Kameala Consult Services Company. After failing to sublet the job, the contractor reportedly tried to move its equipment out of site but was resisted by the community. The protesters who lamented their helpless situation said the contractor had refused to execute the job which was designed to save the community from extinction despite their peaceful demeanor. Some of their placards further suggested an attempt by the contractor to intimidate them using the operatives of the Joint Task Force (JTF), Operation Pulo Shield. Some of the placards said, “JTF should not be used to intimidate Agge people”; “NDDC, Beks, come and finish the job you were paid for” and “Agge project money should not be used for politics”. The Chairman of the Community Development Committee (CDC), Steven Fiopare, said the contractor has always complained that NDDC awarded the contract but failed to pay the firm Mobilisation fees. Fiopare, also added: “The community has, over the years, lost people and houses to the ocean surge and the initial dredging work by the company has added to the problem of the community with incessant erosion into homes. “We are in a big problem. Houses are being washed away daily by erosion. If the hide tide comes, many indigenes will disappear and homes washed away.” Also speaking ,the Vice Chairman of the Community Development Committee (CDC), Joseph Iboh, said the contractors abandoned the project at the phase of sand filling and pilling with an excuse that he had not been paid. He said the community would no longer fold its arms and allow the project to linger without completion. He vowed that the company would not be allowed to move its equipment out of the project site adding that youths had been mobilised to keep vigil of the equipment. He said the firm had earlier tried in vain to move its equipment. “We

•Some of the houses in the estates

I NDDC officials during an inspection of the Ekeremor shore protection project

‘ ‘has, over the The community years, lost people and houses to the ocean surge and the initial dredging work by the company has added to the problem of the community with incessant erosion into homes

‘‘

A soldier standing at the site of the Ekeremor shore protection project

stopped him from moving his equipment”, he said. The company is not new to controversy. In August 2013, five of its workers were kidnapped by gun-

men along the creek of Opuama in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of Bayelsa. The kidnappers later demanded N30 million ransom to release their

victims. The incident happened when it was handling another NDDC-sponsored shore protection and reclamation work at Opuama. A resident of Opuama, who sim-

ply gave his name as Ebiware, said the gunmen stormed the dredger where the men were working on a speed boat.

Itsekiri groups seek Amnesty Programme’s review

Respite for civil servants in Imoke’s estates

HE leaderships of two Itsekiri ethnic organizations in Delta State, the Itsekiri National Development Initiative, and Itsekiri Amnesty Beneficiaries, have written to President-elect Muhammadu Buhari and Vice President-elect Prof Yemi Osinbajo, on the need to review perceived unfair policies of the outgoing President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration. The groups called for the review of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, which they perceived as being unduly skewed in favour the President’s Ijaw kinsmen at the expense of other groups in the region. INDI, in the letter by Comrade Dennis Mene and Tsaye Edeyibo, Chairman and Secretary, congratulated Gen. Buhari and Prof. Osinbajo “on their merited resounding and well-deserved victory” in the March 28 election. They said the incoming Number 1 and 2 citizens represent the virtues of integrity and consistency which the nation and all Nigerians needed at such a critical time as they facing. “We are confident that under your leadership, Nigeria will once again enthrone equity, justice and fairness so as to make room for peaceful co-existence. We pray that God would grant Gen. Buhari and his team the wisdom and understanding to elevate Nigeria to enviable heights among the comity of nations.” The group condemned perceived selective implementation of the amnesty programme by the outgoing administration, particularly its slant towards the president’s kinsmen to the detriment of other ethnic groups, particularly the Itsekiri ethnic group. “We frown at the selective implementation of the presidential Amnesty programme especially as it concerns the Itsekiri beneficiaries. The Itsekiri were

From Shola O’Neil, Port Harcourt

programme into the hands of credible managers and persons of enviable integrity and moral rectitude. We do hope the remaining Itsekiri beneficiaries both educational and vocational yet to be trained will be trained in your given just 500 slots and less than 100 have been sent for their studies. administration.” “We have over 100 Itsekiri students with admissions to study in the United Similarly, the group kicked against the purported expulsion of their kinsmen, Kingdom for their Masters and PhD as well Dr Alex Ideh, Hon Temi Harriman and as 300 skilled and vocational, which up till Sunny Mene from the All Progressive date are yet to be sponsored; while it is on in Delta State, describing it as record that the Ijaws are regularly being ‘We have no doubt that the incoming Congress witch hunting of their kinsmen. sent for their studies/training overseas. administration will entrust the programme “We warn those behind this dastardly to “Among the beneficiaries 73 of them are their steps against the Itsekiri ethnic yet to receive their monthly stipend from into the hands of credible managers and retrace nationality.” January to December 2013, although this Tidi and Bokhan Otone of the Itsekiri persons of enviable integrity and moral Peter has been brought to the attention of the Amnesty Beneficiaries while facilitating Amnesty office, they have remained mute rectitude. We do hope the remaining Itsekiri with Buhari and Osinbajo, on their well about it,” they added. victory, also called for a review beneficiaries both educational and vocational deserved Consequently, the INDI urged that “the of the amnesty programme to stop incoming Buhari-led administration to yet to be trained will be trained in your “victimisation of the Itsekiri amnesty investigate, review and restructure the beneficiaries. administration’ current Presidential Amnesty Programme “We appeal to the incoming government with a view to ensuring fair play, equity to ensure full implementation of the and justice for all beneficiaries under the Presidential Amnesty programme based programme so that maximum dividend on equity, justice and fair play. This is of the programme will rebound to the advantage of the Nigerian Society. because the Itsekiri ethnic group has been unduly victimized in the programme “We have no doubt that the incoming administration will entrust the so far.”

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N 2008, when Cross River State Governor Liyel Imoke’s 850unit civil servants’ housing project located at Atimbo, Akpabuyo Local Government Area, was conceived, the vision was to ensure that the state’s civil servants retire into decent and affordable houses of their own. Imoke’s idea of a housing scheme for civil servants was that they should no more should they continue to live like squatters after their productive years in service to the state. For the governor, every retiring civil servant should be able to own their own house. It was against this backcloth the idea of a comfortable and affordable housing scheme was commenced seven years ago to enable the state civil servants actualize the dream of owning their own houses with the launch of 850 housing units in Atimbo. With the second phase consisting of 250 blocks billed for commissioning on May 25th, four days to the exit date of Governor Imoke’s administration, these houses have come to many a lucky beneficiary as a saving grace and a rescue project, as some who were evicted by their landlords have already found succour in them. Even with work at fever pitch to achieve its completion and commissioning on the stipulated date, there is heightened pressure from applicants to take possession of the property. For instance, Mrs. Theresa Binang, a widow and mother of three could be seen preparing in what could be described as a race against time to move into her three bedroom bungalow, having been thrown out of her rented apartment by her landlord. For her, it was as if Imoke had foreseen her ordeal coming. Expressing her excitement at how lucky she was at securing her own house, Theresa said she is not only grateful that Imoke wiped away her tears as a widow, she is particularly thankful for helping her escape the shame of destitution. Seen putting a last minute touch, preparatory to moving in, she declared: “I am in a hurry to move in. Just a week ago, my landlord threw me out of his house because I could not renew my tenancy a month after it expired. As a widow, I don’t know how I would have been able to contemplate building a two or three bedroom bungalow, given the additional challenge of raising my children and seeing them through school. “If I was not a beneficiary of this

From Nicholas Kalu, Calabar

housing scheme, I truly do not know where I would have been living with my three children today. I am grateful to our governor, Senator Imoke for helping to wipe away my tears of not only losing my husband but also helping to avoid the shame of being rendered squatter. Not many governors would have cared about the plight of civil servants, but in his policies and programmes, he has ensured that even civil servants are taken care of. If Theresa’s ordeal was pitiable, then, that of Mrs. Lydia Omgboche, a staff of Cross River Agricultural Development Project was even more so. For her, she was forced by the harsh reality of her situation to move into her apartment even with no windows in place. Also a widow and mother of two, Lydia was equally a victim of a vicious and capricious landlord. She was driven to extremity and forced to embrace harsh elements in a last-ditch search for succor. According to her, “I moved in with no windows or burglary proof in place. The first thing I did was to fix the burglary proof and shield the windows with cellophane bags and move in. I lived like that for good three weeks without windows. And to the mercy of God, there was no rain during the period. That was when I knew that God, indeed, was husband

my children’s tuition. For Mr James Emechi, a lawyer with the state Ministry of Justice, his plan of building his own house would have remained a pipe dream. Speaking amidst joy, Emechi said, “I dreamed of owning my house a long time ago, but it has never been that easy to save to start a project like this. But the government, under the able leadership of Governor Liyel Imoke has ensured that our dream of owning our own houses did not die with us. And today, I am a proud owner of a three 3-bedroom bungalow. “I cannot describe the peace that comes with owning my own house. There is one thing I am so certain about and that is that I am no longer at the whims and caprices of any landlord. Have you ever experienced a landlord asking you to use your money to fix a leaking roof in his house and promising to factor the cost into your next rent and refusing to do that when your next rent is due? That was some of my ordeal in the hands of my landlord. “Finally, all I can say is a big thank you to our amiable governor, Senator Imoke for making such a huge impact in the lives of civil servants in the state. Civil servants have never had it so good.” Mr. Asuquo Bassey Ekpo, lecturer, College of Health Technology, Calabar, who lost out on the first phase of the 400 units of the two and three

‘

In order to make the scheme affordable, we use the most affordable labour and materials, all in a bid to drive down the cost for our civil servants. At the end, the house must be conducive, livable and affordable of the widows. My rent had expired in December and my landlord was on my neck to pay. However, I felt there was no need paying the huge amount that was being demanded by my landlord to renew my rent, hence I had to channel it to fix this three bedroom apartment I got from the state government housing scheme in Atimbo for civil servants. I am most grateful to Governor Imoke for initiating a project such as this for people like us. Where would I have gone from here when my landlord was putting pressure on me? I can now sleep with ease in my house and I can channel the money I would have used for rent into

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bedroom housing scheme, said: “I had earlier applied for the first phase, but I was not so lucky. But that disappointment did not dash my hopes as I continued to hope that the opportunity would come for me to own my own house. And today, thank God that I now have a roof over my head that I can call my own. I remain eternally grateful to His Excellency, Governor Imoke for his housing vision for civil servants in the state. But for him, I don’t know how I would have been able to save to build a 3-bedroom bungalow for myself. My ultimate happiness is that I will no longer be under pressure from any landlord.”

With the infrastructure at the state at 90, 75 and 80 per cent completion for electricity, water and roads respectively, Mr. Edward Ogon, Special Adviser, Mortgage Finance to Governor Imoke, spoke of the project and how the sprawling estate has transformed the socio-economic landscape of the Atimbo community and its environs: “The second phase of the civil servants Housing estate Atimbo, Akpabuyo Local Government Area is made up of 250 blocks. The access road has achieved 75 percent completion. Any moment soon, the water cooperation should be moving in to reticulate water in the estate. Electricity is also at 90 per cent completion. Already, we have about ten civil servants who have moved in while we are still installing doors and windows and over a hundred who have collected keys to their own 3-bedroom apartments. We have in the range of 2-bedroom semidetached, 2-bed room detached and 3bedroom bungalows. So we are under a lot of pressure to deliver. In all, we have over ten thousand applications, but what we can deliver for now is eight hundred and fifty. Over all, there is an ongoing plan to deliver about ten thousand houses to civil servant across the state. “The goal of this administration is to provide houses in a sustainable and affordable manner. To achieve this, the state has keyed into the National Housing Found (NHF) Act as a contributor. To qualify for the scheme, every civil servant contributes 2.5 per cent of his or her monthly salary to the NHF for up to 10, 20 and 25 years, depending on the years of service. The demand has been astronomical. The government has a Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement with First Bank mortgage. “The emergence of the sprawling estate has also resulted in some sort of economic boom in the area with the corollary spinoff in related activities such as vulcanising, petty trading, among others. “I am very pleased to say that the Department of Mortgage Finance has done a lot in providing and growing small scale enterprises in this area. Under the Imoke Housing policy, the same initiative is to be replicated in Ogoja, Ikom and Obudu with about 500 in Ogoja, 250 in Ikom and another 250 in Obudu as well as 100 units in Yakurr. “In order to make the scheme affordable, we use the most affordable labour and materials, all in a bid to drive down the cost for our civil servants. At the end, the house must be conducive, livable and affordable.”

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

NIGER DELTA REPORT FEATURE

DELSU VC reels out institute’s feats, trials at 9th convocation ceremony T

HE Delta State University, Abraka, last Saturday held its ninth convocation and award ceremony for regular and weekend graduates during the 2013/2014 academic year. The event was a unique in many aspects, particularly as it marked the end of the usual long and endless wait by graduands for collection of their certificates after completing their studies. The Institute’s Vice Chancellor, Prof Victor Peretomode, disclosed that for the first time, it was possible for those who graduated to get their certificate on the same day without hassles. He used the occasion to highlight some of the other milestones achieved by DELSU since its inception and under his leadership. The Vice Chancellor, who addressed newsmen at the main campus of the university, elaborated on, not just the ceremony, but the activities of the university, its achievements, setbacks and its plan towards achieving excellence through the use of technologies. “We are constantly reviewing standards to enable us be at par with international standard. We have a vision of using multiple technologies in teaching, learning and innovation”, he said, adding that plans were afoot to ensure that lectures delivered at the main campus in Abraka are received simultaneously by students in Oleh and Asaba campuses. He spoke of plans to provide wireless internet facilities at the staff quarters and hostels as part of effort to make information easily assessable for staff and students alike. “It will also reduce the risk associated with lecturers driving from one campus to the other to deliver lectures,” he added. The VC, who was accompanied by deputy vice chancellors in charge of Administration and Academics, Prof Mrs R.O Aziza and A.E Anigala respectively; Ejiroghene Udjor and Mrs R B Oki, Registrar and Librarian as well as the Rectors of the Oleh and Asaba campuses among others, said the most important “‘First’ achieved by the present management of DELSU was an upgrade that ensured that all 9,607 students who passed out at the Saturday’s convocation got their certificates immediately.” He said, “Using technology, for the first time we are doing something very innovative. Graduands would pick up their certificates at convocation. Certificate will be given to all those who are receiving awards while others can pick theirs immediately after the ceremony. “Most of our students after NYSC will be engaged in their own jobs and be employers of labour. The university has come a long way and is achieving the purpose for its establishment,” he enthused, adding, “With effect from next year, if a final student fails a course he will just come and write that course, not the present practice of asking them to take up to 15 course units; we feel that is not necessary. “We are also looking at the possibility of changing a situation where students who fail a second semester course are asked to wait for a year. In the alternative, they can take a similar course being offered in the next semester so they can complete their courses and go for the NYSC without the unnecessary delays.” “We have also awarded contracts for the procurement of vehicles and our deans would soon be riding in brand new Toyota Hiluxes and we

•Uduaghan, Prof. Sam Oyovbaire, Pro-Chancellor, DELSU, Hon. Charles Emetulu, and Prof. Victor Peretomode. From Shola O’Neil, Southsouth Regional Editor, Warri

have procured vehicles for principal officers of the institute. We have also awarded contract for the procurement of waste crunch and disposal vehicles. Also, we awarded contract for physiotherapy lab (fitness lab) and an indoor sports hall. We have procured X-ray machines and we are expecting additional three.” And to improve relationship between the university community and its Abraka host, the VC disclosed that the institute, working with one of its contractors, resurfaced the main road leading from the Eku-Agbor expressway to its Campus (Site) II. He said a similarly work was ongoing in another part of the town, including the realignment and dualisation of the windy internal road network of its Main Campus (III). He said the institute was also looking inward to tackle manpower challenges in critical areas by absorbing some of the brightest students in key areas like medicine, pharmacy, accounting and engineering, adding that one of the beneficiaries was Mr Lawrence Uche, who was given automatic employment after his graduation. “As in the case of Mr Lawrence Uche, we will repeat that but we will have to look into areas of need. We have to be very careful because we don’t want inbreeding, especially for students who have lived here all their lives, who had their basic, primary and secondary education in Abraka and other campuses. Despites the strides recorded by the institute, Prof Peretomode noted that several challenges were militating against management achieving its set objectives. He particularly lamented the challenges of electricity power, cultism and examination malpractices and incessant abduction of lecturers and other staff of the institute. Specifically, he noted that the institute spends up to N12million naira monthly on diesel used to generate electricity for its activities. As a result, he said it was not possible to achieve 24-hour electricity supply until the university community is connected to a dedicated electricity supply line from the national grid. Meanwhile, events leading to the ninth Convocation Ceremony commenced on April 24 with a Jummat service and an interdenominational

•The Senate building

Christian service held at the Our Saviour Chapel on 26 April. There were also drama presentation by the Department of Theatre Arts and art exhibition by the Department of Fine and Applied Arts. The Convocation lecture, titled “Catalytic Metamorphosis of Nigerian university education”, was delivered by a visiting professor to Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Prof Samuel Oyebandele. The VC described the lecture as very enlightening and beneficial to the staff and students. The State Governor, Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan also inaugurated projects executed by Prof Peretomode and his successor, Professor Eric Arubayi. They included the Senate Council Chamber, Postgraduate Student hall and firefighting trucks. The projects were financed through the Tertiary Education Trust Fund and internally generated revenue. The VC explained that the firefighting trucks were procured to

stem recent fire incidents, which ravaged property worth several millions of naira. He further disclosed that the gesture was being replicated in the Asaba and Oleh campuses of DELSU. The Governor, in his address at the event joined the call against proposed scrapping of weekend programmes by the NUC, saying, “The NUC (Nigeria University Commission) should first evaluate the advantages of weekend programmes before scrapping it. I stand here to lend my voice to those calling on NUC not to scrap weekend programmes not because of financial benefits to the universities but, because there is a lot of people out there who will not have the opportunity of having education without weekend programme.” Meanwhile, giving a breakdown of 9,607 graduands at the ninth convocation ceremony, Prof Peretomode said, “Of the 8,148 first degree students, 13 made First Class and they are three from the Faculty of Arts, while four each came from the facul-

ties of Science and Management Science and two from Basic Science. “Eight hundred and fifty-nine students made Second Class Upper (2-1) while 4,199 made Second Class Lower (2-2). There were 2,824 while 184 are leaving with Pass. “There are also 248 unclassified degrees, those from Medicine and Surgery etc. their results are not classified even though there are some that would have made distinction because of their result,” Prof Peretomode added. Similarly, he disclosed that there were 560 Masters’ Degrees and 206 Postgraduate Diplomas as well as 848 diploma certificates of which 151 came out from the Faculty of law, where 37 graduated with credit, 99 merit and 15 passes. Of the 37 students that graduated from the Engineering Faculty three had distinctions while there are 20 and 14 with Credit and Merit passes respectively.

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

NIGER DELTA REPORT FEATURE

NIGER DELTA REPORT PERSPECTIVE

Pomp, pageantry as Warri monarch celebrates 28th coronation anniversary Warri and other parts of the Itsekiri nation in Delta State were agog last weekend as the Itsekiri people rolled out the drums to celebrate the annual Oyo-Ekero festival, which marks the ascension of the Olu of Warri, Ogiame Atuwatse II, to the throne, writes SHOLA O’NEIL HE oil city of Warri, Delta State and other parts of the Itsekiri nation were agog last weekend as the Itsekiri people rolled out the drums to celebrate the annual Oyo-Ekero festival, which marks the ascension of the Olu of Warri, Ogiame Atuwatse II, to the six-century-old throne. The 28th Anniversary of Ogiame Atuwatse II Oyo-Ekoro was one of the most memorable in recent times, as it drew Itsekiri groups, organisations and NGOs from all over the world to the monarch’s palace (Aghofen) and other parts of the city were carefully selected events were held. Speaking on the import of the ceremony, the Chairman, Publicity Sub-committee of the 28th Coronation Anniversary Ceremony, Mr Emmanuel Okotie-Eboh, who is also the Chairman of Itsekiri Cultural Renaissance, explained that the importance of the festival was tied to the role of the monarch as the unifying factor and foundation of the Itsekiri ethnic group. He said, “For an Itsekiri man, the Olu is only next only to God in our order of importance; he is even first to us before the government. That is why whenever it is time to honour the Olu, we spare no effort. He is the base and foundation of our culture, tradition and pride as a people.” The activities marking the anniversary started on Friday with a praise and worship services held at the monarch’s palace in Warri. The service attracted gospel acts that joined the Foursquare Gospel Church, Olu Palace to sing praises to God. There was also free medical service by a team of Itsekiri medical personnel from the United Kingdom, led by the chairman of Ugbarajor (UK), Dr Mogba Eyeoyibo. The team carried out diagnosis and proffered treatment to hailing members of the tribe. However, arguably the most memorable event of the first day was a command performance of the drama, ‘Oba Akengbuwa’, which was produced and directed by renowned Itsekiri journalist and film producer, Mr Alex Eyengho. The drama, which featured notable Nigerian actors, including Ejike Asiegbu, who played the role of Oba Akengbuwa, Omagbemi Omonukarin (aka Okerengbelebe) and Norbert Young, among others, chronicled the life and times of the 16th Olu, whose death in

between the mysterious deaths of his two sons threw the kingdom into a leadership crisis that later led to a 88year interregnum in the monarchy. The command performance, held at the auditorium of Federal Government College, Warri, was preceded by a 25-minute documentary on the history and evolution of the Itsekiri people. The documentary afforded some of the younger Itsekiri audience an insight into their history, the monarchy and achievements of renowned Itsekiri leaders like Chief Festus Okotie-Eboh, Dore-Numa and Nana Olomu among others, who recorded several feats and firsts in their times. The highpoint of the drama presentation was the presentation of the Itsekiri Award of Excellence to deserving Itsekiri sons, including Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan, Chief Ayirimi Emami and Thomas Ereyitomi, among others. The drama presentation was witnessed by prominent members of the Warri Council of Chiefs, including Chief Emamanuel Tetsola, who was Chairman of the 28th Coronation Anniversary Organising Committee, Chief Rita Lori-Ogbebor, and the Regent of Gbaramatu Kingdom, Chief PT Oyeagha Heavens. Governor Uduaghan, in a brief speech after the ceremony, noted that the drama exposes the intrigues, the ambition and the treachery of individuals”. He said it was a lesson for everyone to learn on the need to be careful and mindful about the future. On Saturday, May 2, the monarch delivered his annual address to the Itsekiri nation. The focus of the 28th national address was on the need for all incoming elected political officeholders to perform their duties with the fear of God and to bring peace and development to the nation. He said: “The people we have elected, some (were) as we wished, some not as we wished, but we thank God for them all. We pray that through them, there will be prosperity and progress for us all. We hope too that those elected will learn to do better in office so that our burdens in the nation may be made lighter and for life to be better for us and our children.” The monarch also used the occasion to commend President Goodluck Jonathan for the establishment of the $16 billion Delta Gas City Project and Export Processing Zone in his

•Cross section of guests with HRM Atuwatse II

•Ejike Asiegbu as Oba Akengbuwa during the command performance of the drama "Oba Akengbuwa"

Humanity is plagued by injustice

By Loveday Jaja HIS Synod is very special not only because it is coming imSome weeks ago, the world woke mediately after the March and April general elections but also be- up to the sad news of how over 150 cause of its theme "Go Forward" which Christian students in Garissa, a university town in I consider very fitKenya were bruting. tally murdered in At this critical their sleep by matime of our nationrauding Islamists hood, particularly who are members in our dear Rivers of the murderous State, no theme Al-Shabab group would have been in Somalia. more apt. Therefore We are also witas a people, we must nesses to the xeno"Go Forward" in phobic madness justice, truth, faithin South Africa fulness, fairness, that has led to the and love. Anything brutal murder short of these Godly and destruction of virtues will not properties of peoonly be counterprople of colour in ductive but also anthe former aparttithetical to God's heid enclave. As commandment. we speak, more The social dimenblack Africans are sion to our country's still being killed political crisis was in South Africa. never more evident •Jaja You are therethan during the last fore gathering general elecat a most austions when viopicious time lence, deliberin the history ate falsehood of mankind. and misinformation took a ‘As human beings, we share The world needs healing dangerous turn. But for a common humanity. It is, and as men of God and inyour prayers, I therefore, in our best tercessors, I am not too sure we would all interest, irrespective of race, urge you to be gathered colour or creed to build a spare sometime at this here today. But more free, safe and progressive Synod and significantly, world. I am confident that pray for peace in the world. the whole I need not world is trou- the peace and progress we overemphabled. Today, seek as a nation will be size the fact humanity is plagued by in- accelerated with your that as human beings, we justice, intimishare a comdation, oppres- intervention’ mon humansion, impunity, ity. It is thereeconomic chalfore in our lenges of very high dimensions, hopelessness, social best interest, irrespective of race, colstrife, anarchy, avarice and unprec- our or creed to build a free, safe and edented hatred of man by fellow man. progressive world. I am confident that Almost every part of the world, from the peace and progress we seek as a the Gulf States, Latin America and Eu- nation will be accelerated with your rope to Africa and Asia, mankind faces intervention at this Synod. In conclusion, I wish to congratuthe most fearsome challenges ever. Every day, we wake up to gory tales late Opobo Archdeaconry for the rare of natural and manmade disasters eve- opportunity of hosting the 1st Session of the 22nd Synod. May the blessings rywhere. In Nigeria, we know how our peo- of this august gathering abide with us ple, particularly in the North East have in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. •Excerpts of a speech delivered by fared under terrorists. This same tragedy orchestrated by Islamic terrorist Jaja, caretaker chairman of Opobo/Nkoro, groups is also playing out in the Arab at the 1st Session of the 22nd Synod of the Church of Nigeria, Niger Delta. world.

Ex-militant under threat over Buhari

•Members of the Warri Council of Chiefs

kingdom and thanked the president for performing the groundbreaking ceremony. The Olu assured that “the good from it (the project) will be for our people and for all Nigerians”. He admonished the host communities to provide conducive environment for the project and other businesses in the kingdom to thrive, emphasizing that the benefit of the project could only be enjoyed in a peaceful atmosphere that is devoid of rancor. To this end, he enjoined all, “especially the younger ones, to think more of honest work and doing only that.”, just as he admonished that “older people should show good examples for the younger ones to

•ChiEf Ayiri Emami with members of the Itsekiri guard

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The people we have elected, some (were) as we wished, some not as we wished, but we thank God for them all. We pray that through them, there will be prosperity and progress for us all. We hope too that those elected will learn to do better in office so that our burdens in the nation may be made lighter and for life to be better for us and our children follow.” The monarch also received his

people who came from across the state and other parts of the world to pay

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homage to him at the palace. There was also dance by various groups as

well as the eye-catching dress event, popularly known as kueke, where young men, women and elderly are garbed in their traditional and ceremonial Itsekiri and Victorian attires. The National Association of Itsekiri Graduate, led by Ms Alero Tenuma, as well as the Itsekiri National Youth Council and other groups took time to render obeisance to the monarch. From the Aghofen, the 2nd day party moved to the Warri Club, where the 4th Edition of the Grand Patron Lawn Tennis Competition was organized by Hon Vincent Uduaghan, President of the club in honour of HRM Atuwatse II on his 28th coronation anniversary.

The competition was witnessed by Uduaghan, who was represented by the state Head of Service, Mr Patrick Origho; Senator James Manager’ President of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, and his wife, Helen; Chief Richmond Macgrey, and Mr Amah Agbajoh, among others. The ceremony was rounded off with a thanksgiving service at the Foursquare Gospel Church, Olu Palace (Aghofen) with special prayers for long life for the respected monarch, his family and the Itsekiri nation. Prayers were also offered for the peace and stability of the nation.

HE National President, National Coalition of Niger Delta Ex-Agitators, (NCNDE-A), Israel Akpodoro, has said his life is under threat over his support for Presidential-elect Mohammadu Buhari. Akpodoro said he ran into an ambush by the suspected gunmen last Wednesday. The ex-militant was on his way from Port-Harcourt shortly after Mbiama junction where the Coalition held a proBuhari meeting. His aide, Bernard Ochuko, who spoke to our correspondent, the Urhobo-born ex-militant leader was rescued by some truck drivers who ran to the scene. He stated further that his boss has gone into hidden while receiving treatment from native doctors. Akpodoro’s travail, according to Bernard, began shortly after a meeting of the ex-militant leaders in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa capital where Governor Seriake Dickson was the chairman. At the meeting, he stated that, Akpodoro expressed a divergent view as against the directive by senior officials of President Goodluck Jonathan’s admin-

istration that all ex-militants must gear up for war should General (rtd) Muhammadu Buhari win. He further stated that the Coalition leader vehemently opposed the general consensus as he was bullied out of the meeting with threats from other notable ex-militants at the meeting. Akpodoro, he said, has escaped assassins’ bullets on more than three occasions. “He receives anonymous calls at odd hours telling him that his life was in danger.” As a result of the incessant threats, Akpodoro’s aide said his boss had to relocate his children out of their home into hidden and in hidden he said they were to date. “This recent attack is one in a series of such attacks that my boss, Israel Akpodoro, has been subjected to since the Yenagoa meeting and subsequent adoption of General Muhammadu Buhari, by the National Coalition of Niger Delta Ex-Agitators.”

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

NIGER DELTA REPORT PERSPECTIVE

Excitement as winner emerges in RTC lottery A

FTER six months of waiting anxiously for a winner to emerge in the Rivers State Transport Company (RTC) Board and Win promo, a lucky winner finally became the proud owner of a brand new 2014 Kia Picanto car in the Project Xperts 360 Limited-sponsored raffle. The winner is Mr. Hopeson Ikeagwu, a native of Erema in Ogba/ Egbema/Ndoni Local government of the state. Apart from the star winner, the promo conducted at the RTC Waterlines park, also produced the a second and third winners who went home with N100,000 and N70,000 respectively, after their tickets were picked from among thousands of others during the grand finale of the draw. Apart from the prize given to the first, second and third winners, about 2,000 pens, GSM telephone handsets, branded umbrellas and T-shirts were also given out as consolation prizes in the raffle which was monitored by the representative of the National Lottery Commission, led by Mrs. Kate Ibekwe/ Niger Delta Report man who witnessed the draw said it was very difficult to get across to the ticket owners who had boarded RTC buses six months earlier. Some could not remember that they bought a ticket when they were contacted; others mistook the caller for fraudster, while few others either switched off their phones or had a network problem. But when the ticket of the star winner, Mr. Hopeson Ikeagwu, he immediately picked as if he was expecting a special call and when the representative of the NLC, Mrs. Ibekwe told him: “Sir, you are the star winner of Kia Picanto for the ‘Board and Win’ promo” he joyfully replied, “Oh my God are you sure! I am glad that the Lord has done it again. Can I come now to take my car,” the winner asked. Ikeagwu who recently received the car key in the presence of the organizers, Project Xperts 360 Limited, the representative of NLC and RTC, disclosed that when he boarded the vehicle at RTC park and the ticket was given to him he immediately ask God for favour. He described his fortune as God’s favour saying, “When I received the call that I am the winner, I felt very happy. I never entertained any doubt

• The winner with his prize

• The draw to pick the winner From Precious Dikwoha, Port Harcourt

in my mind because the background was noisy, I had people cheering and shouting as my conversation with the organizers was going on. When the call dropped they called back again to say you are the winner.

“When I was boarding I didn’t pick the ticket reluctantly, I boldly picked the ticket. I actually knew that I was going to win the star prize. Because I committed it to God when I picked the ticket, this is not my first time I have been trying my luck in several promos including the Glo promo where I was shortlisted but I didn’t

win. What motivated me is that I watched promos a lot on television, so when I bought the ticket I told God to do something in my life. To God be the glory, I have emerged the winner.” Mr. Philemon Okeke, Director, Legal Administration and services, Project Xperts 360 Limited said the Board and Win promo was embarked

upon due to the company’s desire to give back to the society. He said the promo was one of the company’s policies which have to do with community service. “What prompt us into the promo was because we wanted to give back to the community, and we believe that we can’t give to God when we have not given to our neighbor. When we came in contact with Rivers State Transport Company, we discovered that they are about to do something that could reward their customers. Of course, they are the biggest transport company in Rivers State and with their idea; we said we are ready to partner with them. We consulted the National Lottery Commission to legalize the whole process. That was how we bought car and hung it in the park for customers to see that we are serious. “With the draw today, we gave 1,000 branded shirts, umbrellas, pens and phones for consolation winners. But we thank God today that the winner of the star prize has emerged successfully. We have also hung another car for second edition; we want to thank the National Lottery Commission for assisting us from the beginning of the project till the end.” Declaring the lottery fit, satisfactory and transparent, Mrs. Kate Ibekwe of the lottery commission, said the organizers met the requirements of National Lottery Policy. “The organizers today made us proud because they have showcased what we have been preaching at the national lottery. We encourage people to participate in the lottery because it has been used for developmental project. I am satisfied and every customers or participants present will testify on the transparency of the lottery. “We are against fraudster and we are aware that some people hide under one lottery or the other to extort money from the public. If anyone wants to legally organize a lottery, the procedure is to come to National Lottery Commission. And all you need is to pick a form it is a letter of intent, we don’t tell you what to do, you will tell us what you want to do in writing. We will tell you what it will take you to get the permit. And when you have done this, we will ensure that the winner must get their prizes. We go by the rules of the game; we don’t tell you what to give to the winner you tell us what you will give them.”

Southsouth youths warn against NDDC’s scrap

OUTHS of the Southsouth, under the aegis of Southsouth Youth Patriotic Movement for Ultimate Peace and Justice (SSYPAM), have advised against the scrapping of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC). They also expressed their unalloyed supports for the in-coming administration of Gen. Muhammadu Buhari. The youths, who prayed for God’s directives to the President – elect to successfully bring the needed change, peace and stability in Nigeria, warned those clamouring for the dissolution of the NDDC to desist forth-with in the interest of sustained peace in the country. The group, in a statement in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, congratulated the General for his victory at the polls and also asked him to ignore the calls against the commission, noting that those calling for the scrapping of the agency do not mean well for his government and the Nigerian’s oil-rich region. In the statement signed by their National President, Chinagorom Nwonkwo, they explained that the establishment of the Commission re-

From Rosemary Nwisi, Port Harcourt

sulted in the peace being experienced in the region and safety of Federal Government’s investments/ oil installations in the area, stressing that the interventions being provided by the commission in the hitherto neglected area and their youths was responsible for the militancy and youth restiveness witnessed in the region before. Nwonkwo gave pass mark to the managers of the commission, especially the present Board but noted that the commission is being crippled by under -funded and even heavy debts. “We are calling on those demanding for scrapping of NDDC put a stop to it and give support to the commission to achieve the mandate of developing the region that produces the wealth which the nation enjoys. “NDDC from its inception has performed very well but due to scarcity of funds, it has continued to face the challenge of the level of performance as expected by the people. “The commission from the time of set-up has initiated and completed several structural projects in the re-

gion and also engaged in human development and empowerments programmes for the people of the region, both locally and internationally, despite the challenge of under-funding and huge debt being owe it by the Federal Government, “Presently the commission is being owed a cumulative sum of N700 billion, if this amount is released to the Commission, it will go a long way in meeting the yearnings of the people of the region to the admiration, appreciation of the entire country.” They said. Speaking on the gains of the establishment of the agency has made said, “We also want to state that those calling for the scrapping of NDDC to first ask themselves, how youth restiveness in the region was drastically reduced?, how militancy became a thing of the past in the region among other. “The existence of the commission for the marginalised and abandoned region has made it possible for youths from the region to get small ticket jobs, contracts which they execute and get empowered to boost their economic well-being and that of their family members.

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The existence of the commission for the marginalised and abandoned region has made it possible for youths from the region to get small jobs, contracts which they execute and get empowered to boost their economic well-being

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“We are therefore calling on wellmeaning Nigerians to support NDDC and its good works, instead of condemning it. We are also using this medium to call on President-elect to ignore the call and map out strategies for effective and adequate funding of the commission as soon as he assumes office next month to enable the commission deliver on its mandate.” They appealed. •Dan Abia

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

NIGER DELTA REPORT COMMENT & DEB ATE EBA

HE time was some minutes past nine when I read the last lines of The Dame of Our Time. I had never read it in such a record time of three hours, being a particularly slow reader. I soon went into some sort of day-dreaming and as I was coming out of it, my mobile phone came alive. First, I was startled. Later I picked it up and my guess about the caller’s identity was right. “What is it again?” was the first thing I said to this friendly voice. “Nothing much. Just to remind you of the deal…” “I have told you times without number that I have got no deal with you…” “My friend,” he shouted, “this is an important call, and it will be in your own interest not to trivialise it. I’ve called you to lend you the only money I’ve got. A word, they say, is enough for the wise. And whatever you do after now will tell me whether you are wise or not. I am giving you a last chance. The last chance to name your price or allow me to force one on you.” He paused. Perhaps for emphasis. I was not moved by anything he had said. And not until later in my life did I truly understand the purpose of this particular call. “So, what is your price?” I felt he was insulting me. How could he assume that he could put a price on my intellectual property? I just did not answer him. And he got furious. “In the part of this country where I come from, there is a wise saying that when you are trying to save a hen from death, it feels you are robbing him of the right to feed from the garbage dump. I can see clearly that you are not different from the hen. You are still blind now. But time will heal you of your blindness. And then it will be too late,” grunted the unfriendly voice. As far as I was concerned, he was only trying to threaten me so as to sell my conscience. And I was not ready to do that. Not now and not later. “Bye. Good-bye.” And the phone was hung. By now darkness had enveloped everywhere. The whistle of the nightwatchman could be heard from some distance. The weather was cool. And gentle breeze was ruling. My eyes were beginning to play some tricks on me when the phone rang. Who could it be again? After all, my tormentor had told me that he would never call me again. Perhaps he forgot to tell me something. I was convinced he was the one on the line. But I was dead wrong. The next morning, a group of men from the Department of State Security came for me. I was accused of trying to blackmail the First Dame. I was charged to court and they made sure the case dragged on for months while I was remanded in prison. After months of time wasting, I was discharged and acquitted. But it took some weeks later before it became clear to me that there was a link between my months in jail and my novella The Dame of Our Time. It never crossed my mind that my months in

OLUKOREDE YISHAU

ABOVE WHISPERS

•A weekly intervention on Southsouth people and matters

olukoredeyishau@gmail.com

No end yet to my dilemma (2)

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After months of time wasting, I was discharged and acquitted. But it took some weeks later before it became clear to me that there was a link between my months in jail and my novella The Dame of Our Time. It never crossed my mind that my months in prisons had anything to do with my ex boss who lied and committed all kinds of atrocities prisons had anything to do with my ex boss who lied and committed all kinds of atrocities. But the link was established one day in my house shortly after I regained my freedom. A young man I could not place his face came asking for me. I was damn sure I had not seen that face before but his voice sounded very much ‘familiar’ to me. I knew I had heard it before. But whose? I could not answer that question until this

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young man started spinning the yarn, or more appropriately, spilling the beans. He told me that he was the mysterious caller who was bombarding me with strange calls shortly before I was arrested and tried for a sin I knew nothing about. If that revelation shocked me, what followed left my mouth agape. He revealed to me that it was my refusal to co-operate with them by insisting on publishing the novella that made Mama

LAST WORD

Peace implicate me. And more terrific for me was his revelation that the pictures, which led to the end of my relationship with my fiancée were his handwork. He told me how they had trailed Kaira and me to that restaurant, taken the shots without our knowledge and how they had got my fiancée’s address and mailed them to her. According to him, they did all these to break me, to put pressure on me so that I would not be able to publish The Dame of Our Time which he told me Mama Peace felt would tarnish her image and deplete her followers. At this stage, I could not but ask him how they got to know about the book. And this was another shock to me. He told me someone told them. When he mentioned the person’s name, it turned out to be the same person who had told me of Mama Peace’s many misdeeds. Why he had gone back to them was a mystery I would never be able to unravel. Perhaps he was afraid Mama Peace would find him out. Perhaps he discovered he had a stake in the First Family. Perhaps. And a whole lot of perhaps. The young man would not leave my office until I told him I had forgiven him. Forgive, yes but would I ever forget? Certainly not! •This article, first published on March 27, is reproduced because of technical mix-up.

The evil men do

HE Chidi Odinkalu-led panel on politically-motivated killing in Rivers State began sitting in Port Harcourt, the state capital on Monday. Not a few were taken aback by this development given reports that a court had stopped it from going ahead with the probe of the death of several people before, during and after the elections in the oil-rich state. When the panel began its sitting, Odinkalu explained that no member of the panel had been served. Only a handful of witnesses gave their testimonies that day. One key case that came up that day was that of the Adubes and their friends who were killed by yet-to-be identified men. Adube, a former council chair, his three children and five others ‘related’ to him one way or the other were killed in his house. He was obviously the target. But the killers did not want to leave any trace. They perhaps also wanted to teach him a lesson by wiping out almost his entire family. The sort of evil that men do should not just live after them, it should catch up with them while they are still on this side of the earth and make sure they pay serious restitution for their sins against God and humanity. The men who killed the Adubes and others should not go scot free. They must be found out and made to face the music. There should be no hiding for the wicked. Chikena!

BY MIKE ODIEGWU

Ijaw/ Itsekiri’s stand on Amnesty Programme beyond May 29

HEIR kinsman, President Goodluck Jonathan, lost his second term bid to retain the juiciest political position in Nigeria, but the exmilitants and their leaders are determined not to go down with him. They have resolved to work with the President-elect Muhammadu Buhari. Instead of resorting on their initial threats to destabilise country, the umbrella body of the exfreedom fighters, Leadership, Peace and Cultural Development Initiative (LPCDI), was among the groups that congratulated Gen. Buhari and pledged to work with him. But the former creek warlords predicated their support on the sustenance of the Presidential Amnesty Programme. They said they would not dream of returning to the creeks or disrupting oil production as long as the incoming President retain the Amnesty Office and allow it to maintain the status quo. In fact, that was the idea behind the congratulatory message sent to Gen.Buhari by the National President, LPCDI, and former notorious militant leader, Pastor Reuben Wilson. The ex-militant leaders through Wilson hailed

Buhari for his victory at the poll, but begged him not to abandon the amnesty programme of the Federal Government. He warned that there would be no peace in the region if the Presidential Amnesty Programme is neglected or abandoned. He further stated that, if the Niger Delta is neglected as it was in the past, the ex-militant would use every resource at their disposal to stop oil production. But few days after LPCDI presented a serious case backed by the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) in favour of the continuation of the Amnesty Programme, a former Itsekiri warlord, Chief Ayiri Emami, urged Gen. Buhari to stop the programme. He even demanded a thorough probe of the operation of the programme. Emami argued that the use of arms in the name of a struggle should be treated as terrorism. He said: ”If the layman’s understanding of the word amnesty is anything to go by, then it presupposes an arrangement where militants who genuinely turn in all their arms and ammunition are rehabilitated, re-oriented and trained with a view to reintegrating them to everyday

societal living. “In the ordinary sense of it, any person or group that picks up arms in the name of struggle or agitation ought to have been treated as terrorists, hence nobody or group should take the gesture of the federal government for granted. “Amnesty should not be continuous; partially giving out money to youths from a particular ethnic nationality is wrong, sending some of them abroad for training without any visible impact on the Niger Delta and the nation at large is counter-productive.” Undoubtedly, Emami stirred the Hornets’ comb. His counterparts are up in arms against him. Wilson, who represents the interests of many of the formerly dreaded ex-militants, immediately replied him. He appealed to Gen. Buhari to ignore him. He insisted that the call by Emami that the amnesty should be discontinued was made in bad faith and premised on his pathological hatred for the Ijaw nation. He insisted that the call was based on a misconception that the programme was benefitting

only the Ijaw. Wilson, however, explained that the amnesty programme was designed for all the Niger Delta ex-militants. He said: “The amnesty is for all ex-freedom fighters, and if the Ijaws are in majority, it then means they were more actively involved than any other tribe in the Niger Delta liberation struggle. “Moreover, the Ijaws are in majority in the Niger Delta and the fourth largest ethnic nationality in Nigeria. Therefore, it is natural for the Ijaws to dominate the Presidential Amnesty Programme for ex-militants in the Niger Delta, owing to their population and active involvement in the Niger Delta struggle.” The way things stand, Gen. Buhari, except for a change of heart, may not scrap the programme. What may happen may be some form of re-organisation, which Wilson and others appear against. They seem to think the programme is perfect finish and should be left as the way it is. Post-May 29 will determine the programme’s fate.

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

THE SOUTHEAST REPORT

•The bad road under reconstruction

Communities groan over abandoned road From Nwanosike Onu, Awka

ing good road like other communities in the state have given way for lamentations, agony and pains. When The Nation visited some of the communities, there were mixed reactions over the project. The lamentation was more as a result of probable dashed hope on the two bridges; one at Ndi-ubani that connects Awa community and others and the other at Amansea end which they say may hinder free and smooth movement among them. This is because the two bridges are in bad condition. Commenting on the issue, Mr. Okezie Awa Nwike, from Awa community in Orumba North Local Government Area, told our correspondent that no single person from their area is happy with the situation. “That contract is not ongoing. We are not sure whether the problem is from the contractor or the state government. The situation of the

HEN the contract for the Amansea-NdikpaNdiukwuenu-AwaUfuma road was awarded by the administration of former Governor Peter Obi to Stanutti–stocks Construction firm about two years ago, there was jubilation by members of the communities through which the road passed. The contract was over N8 billion. The completion date was 18 months. Moved by what the communities perceived as government’s care for their well-being, the communities vowed to give total allegiance and support to the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) during the 2015 general elections. However, their joy was shortlived as they noticed that the road which has suffered over 150 years of neglect is about to be abandoned after contract for its construction was awarded. The road traverses six communities namely, Amansea, Ndikpa, Ozu, Forest Reserve, Ndiukwuenu, Awa and Ufuma all of which are food baskets of Anambra State. The fascination and dream of hav-

That contract is not ongoing. We are not sure whether the problem is from the contractor or the state government. The situation of the road has worsened. We voted for APGA during the just-concluded elections with the hope of being repaid through the construction of this road. But that dream is dead…We have been gnashing our teeth because the road has been abandoned and we are neglected again. This is unfortunate

road has worsened. “We voted for APGA during the just-concluded elections with the hope of being repaid through the construction of this road. But that dream is dead. “We have been gnashing our teeth because the road has been

abandoned and we are neglected again. This is unfortunate,” Awa Nwike said. However, the President-General of Ndiukwuenu community in

PHOTO: OBI CLETUS

•Continued on page 38

Community threatens power project over compensation

•A match past by the Nigerian Union of Local Government Employees, Enugu State chapter at Okpara Square

Orumba North Local Government Area, Hon. Chidozie Okoli expressed divergent view from Nwike’s, adding that the project is ongoing. He told The Nation that the duration to complete the road was 18 months, lamenting that already, 24 months had elapsed without its completion. However, he said if the road is completed, it would be a new horizon in the communities as there was no easy means of evacuating their agricultural produce as a result of the dilapidated road. He said: “We feel happy because we had been going through lots of difficulties for lack of access road in these areas, but the intervention of the state government has given us a glimmer of hope. “But the pace is slow. The expec-

HE National Integrated Power Project (NIPP) power line project from Enugu to Akwa Ibom states which is expected to provide constant power in almost three states is under threat by the protest of the Nnono Oboro community where the line is expected to pass. Nnono Oboro community in Ikwuano Local Government Area of Abia State is claiming that the contractor handling the project has not paid them adequate compensation to those whose houses are on the right of way of the project and marked for demolition. The members of the community, including men, women and youths who carried placards to protest the situation by the NIPP contractor, called on the Federal Government to intervene to forestall possible breakdown of law and order. The spokesman of the community who doubles as the youth leader, Anthony Chinedu, told our correspondent at Nnono that: “Our protest was not against the project, which he said was borne out of government’s good intention and for development. Chinedu said though the project is

From Ugochukwu Ugoji-Eke, Umuahia

expected to bring even development, “which we are not against but against the nonchalant attitude of the NIPP contractor who has ordered the helpless villagers to vacate their homes within two weeks”. He said the contractor created fear among the people by intimidating them with army personnel who they alleged patrol the community every day to ensure that the people do not ask for their rights. In his speech, the chairman of Oboro Clan Council of Traditional Rulers, King Larry Ogbonnaya Agwu, corroborated Chinedu’s views; that they were not against the project, noting that if the contractor did not have enough money to pay compensation, he should have diverted the transmission line away from people’s homes. King Agwu lamented that rather than direct the power transmission line through the forest, he decided to run it through the community where he would collect money for compen•Continued on page 40

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

THE SOUTHEAST REPORT

•The cattle market along the road

Communities groan over abandoned road tation of its completion is not being realized. The South African company should be serious on the construction of the road for the communities to heave a sigh of relief.” Some of the community leaders such as 78-year-old Chief Michael Nwafor, 75-year-old Andrew Nwankwo and Pa Christopher Okeke were of the same view. For the elders in the Ndiukwuenu community, they rolled out their drums to celebrate the award of the contract, but the government is trying to make them regret their actions. “All we want our Governor Willie Obiano to do is to look towards the direction of our people because he will lift our spirits with the completion of the road. “Nobody had remembered us in this area before now, but since we have entered the book of the government, all we are saying is that the sense of belonging that has been extended to us should be seen to be real,” he said. Pa Andrew Nwankwo said: “It

•Continued from page 37

What we want is a modern market where all the food stuffs such as tomatoes, onions and carrots from the North will be assembled, while people will come to the place to buy them in quantities instead of allowing them to go to the town and spoil the roads the more will not be good if our governor allows us again to rot in jail, because staying in this area without movement is akin to imprisonment. Therefore, we plead with him to assist us. Let him not abandon us the more.” Though, members of Hausa community who do their cattle business

along the Amansea end of the road in Awka North Local Government Area, claim the road is still good, they also believe that the state government should hasten up the project. The road traverses the cattle market at Amansea where over 1,000 members of Hausa community live

and transact their businesses. For the former chairman of cattle sellers in the area, Hayatou Kojeli, the place they occupy now was not carved out by the state government. Rather, by the community. He believes that if the road is put in good condition, it would help them explore other areas in the state like Orumba North and South respectively. However, he believes that if the state government could relocate the cattle market while the road stays like this, it would not help them in their business. Kojeli said: “What we want is a modern market where all the food stuffs such as tomatoes, onions and carrots from the North will be assembled, while people will come to the place to buy them in quantities instead of allowing them to go to the town and spoil the roads the more.” Also, the Vice-Chairman of the cattle sellers, Alhaji Ali Hamadama, told our correspon-

Why House wanted me impeached, by Chime •Continued from page 28

PHOTO: NAN

House. Among those summoned was the Accountant-General of the state, Paschal Okorie who was asked to explain why the executive has refused to release monthly subventions to the House and other ministries since March. After his appearance, he was asked to submit to the House records of funds received and disbursed from April this year. The House, during the period, also alleged a contract scam at the Enugu State Universal Basic Education Board (ESUBEB) and asked the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to probe activities of the board. But the EFCC did not see any merit in that direction. All these were part of the armtwisting tactics that the governor refused to yield to which led to the build-up of Monday’s action which claimed Speaker Odo’s position. At their early morning sitting on Monday in the absence of the Clerk of the House, they commenced the process of impeaching Governor Sullivan Chime. After forcing their way into the Assembly premises by

•Area Controller of Customs, Federal Operations Unit, Zone C, Mr Victor Dimka (left), presenting 1,225 cartons of fake Mebendazole Tablets (Drugs) to NAFDAC Coordinator for Benin Zone, Mr David West, in Owerri...yesterday.

•Kojeli at the cattle ground along the road dents that the condition of the road is not affecting their businesses. He, however, called on the government to fast-track the construction work on the road to help the rural men and women from different communities, adding that the road is not all that bad.

overpowering security men, they made for the office of the Clerk of the House and broke into it and took the Mace. Among the allegations leveled against the governor was the issue of allegedly forging the N12 billion 2012 Supplementary Budget. They also accused the governor of allocating reserved government lands to members of his family and some individuals for erection of private houses, especially within the three-arm zone and seriously condemned the act. The impeachment notice was signed by 14 members of the House, including the Speaker. The Clerk of the House; Christopher Chukwurah was directed to serve the notice on the governor immediately. At the sitting, the anti-Chime legislators suspended the Deputy Speaker, Chime Oji, nephew of the governor, who was recently elected to represent Enugu North/South Federal Constituency, Hon. Emeka Ogbuabor and Deputy House Leader, John Kevin Ukwuta for al•Continued on page 40

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

THE SOUTHEAST REPORT

A unique fish feast in Imo •Continued from page 26 gether to move the community forward. “The emume azu has continued to attract wide attention from within and outside the country over the years and it has great tourism potentials that can put Imo State in the global map”. Nzemere however pointed that that, “emume azu is not associated to any form of idol worship as erroneously believed by many. It is just a day to remember how our forefathers built the community from the proceeds of the fish trade. And being a community without any kind of river it is remarkable that the community was the hub of fish trade in the pre-colonial era”. Another community leader, Chief Samuel Ibezim disclosed that the festival has remained a unifying factor among the people over the years, adding that, “the emume azu is a constant reminder of the genealogy of our people. It reminds us also that we are one family with one ancestral lineage and it has assisted us to form a common front at all times, especially in dealing with challenges and other issues bothering on communal development”. He added further that, “today religious belief is beginning to affect the scope and acceptability of the festival. Most people, especially Christians stay away from the event because they have been made to believe that it is associated with

•Some dancers at the festival idol worship. But the truth is that there is nothing fetish about the emume azu festival”. A tourist, Mr. Tunde Kuteyi, who witnessed the last edition of the festival in December 2014, described it as one of the most colourful events he had ever witnessed. He said: “It was a wonderful event. I have never seen such a large quantity of fish; there were different kinds of fish delicacies and we had enough to eat and the people were quite generous.

“Varieties of dishes made from fish were set on long tables and the people served themselves according to the measure they could take. “Another aspect of the festival that held me and other spectators spellbound was the colourful display of the various masquerades and dancing groups that were on hand to entertain the people while they enjoy the fish delicacy”. A prominent son of the community and Deputy Governor of the state, Prince Eze Madumere, who

was one of the distinguished guests at the 2014 edition, affirmed that the ‘emume azu’ festival is a rallying point of the Obazu people. He said that the festival is a reminder of the enterprising spirit of the forebears of the Obazu people, while challenging the people to continue in the spirit of their forefathers. Madumere advised further that “we should continue to rekindle the spirit of enterprise that our forefathers were known for. We should

also continue to uphold the communal spirit that our people are identified with. Obazu has always approached its development challenges through self help instead of waiting for the government and we should continue in this vein to move our community forward”. He however promised that the government will partner the possible on the possible ways of harnessing the full potentials of the ‘emume azu’ festival and other rich cultural heritage of the people”.

From left: Head, Social Mobilisation, National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NPHCDA), Chief Chris Elemuwu; Recipient, Multple Birth Ambassador, Mr. Akpos Anthony Dixon; Director-General, National Orientation Agency (NOA), Mr. Mike Omeri; •Secretary to Jigawa State Government, Alhaji Lawal Abdu (left) handing over docu- Recipient, Multple Birth Ambassador, Mr. Andos Andrew Dixon; Director, Mass ments from ministries to the Chairman, Transition Committee and Deputy Governor- Mobilisation, National Orientation Agency (NOA), Hajiya Umar Tani and the Chief Communication for Development, UNICEF, Abuja, Mr. Arthur Tweneboa-Kodua during the elect, Alhaji Ibrahim Hassan, in Dutse investiture ceremony held in Abuja

•From left: Minister of Mines and Steel, Alhaji Mohammed Sada; Minister of Transport, Senator Idris Umar; FCT Minister, Senator Bala Mohammed and Minister of Special Duties, Alhaji Kabiru Tanimu Turaki during the Federal Executive Council meeting at the State House Abuja...Wednesday. PHOTO: AKIN OLADOKUN

•Chairman, Conference of Former Speakers, State House of Assembly, Friday Itulah (right), former Speakers, Delta State House of Assembly, Omatsore Jude (middle) and Emmanuel Okoro during a meeting of the Former Speakers, State House of Assembly at a PHOTO: ABAYOMI FAYESE press briefing on the state of the Nation in Abuja

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

THE SOUTHEAST REPORT •Continued from page 38

•Hon. Nwamba (second left, front row), in a group photograph with other members of the State Assembly

Why House wanted me impeached, by Chime

of the letter written by the State Attorney-General, Anthony Ani, informing the lawmakers that they had no powers to investigate the Enugu State Universal Basic Education Board (ESUBEB), saying the freezing of the account of the board was a legislative recklessness. He said the members of the House should be seen as lawmakers and not law-breakers. He therefore moved a motion that the freezing of the account of the ESUBEB was erroneously done and should be lifted immediately. Hon. Emeka Ogbuabo seconded the motion, saying the House erred by freezing the account of the board, stressing that the petition against the chairman of the board was not properly handled. They subsequently lifted the order freezing the account of the board and directed that the account be immediately de-frozen, while the board was asked to continue dealing with the chairman of ESUBEB. At 7:50 a.m., the House adjourned sine die and the factional Speaker, Hon. Nwamba directed the police officer in charge of the House security to ensure that nobody was allowed into the Assembly till further

leged anti-House activities. The Speaker and the 13 members arrived at the House at 4:00 a.m. but were able to enter the legislative chamber at 6:28 a.m. and held the sitting after fierce altercation with the police. The lawmakers had complained that the governor was using some members of the House to disrupt its activities because they refused to approve the N11 billion loan requested by the governor. Immediately after their sitting which lasted for 30 minutes, another group of eight legislators; led by the Deputy Speaker, Chime Oji, including the Deputy Governor-elect, Hon. Cecilia Ezeilo walked into the chamber with another mace and conducted another sitting. Another member, Joseph Agbo Ugwumba who represents Enugu East Rural, later joined them. After a short prayer, Hon. John Kevin Ukwuta moved a motion to the effect that Hon. Johnbull Nwagu who was suspended by the House be recalled. The motion was seconded by Hon. Chinedu Nwamba. The pro-Chime lawmakers, however, lifted the suspension slammed on Nwagu for misconduct and invited him to join the group bringing their number to nine. Ukwuta, thereafter, moved another motion calling for the suspension of the Speaker, Eugene Odoh and seven other members in his group, who included Anichukwu Nwankwo, Okechukwu Nwoke, Paul Ogbe, Nze Michael Onyeze, Theresa Egbo, Chika Eneh and S.K.E. Udo-Okoye. The motion was approved by the nine members. The principal officers among the suspended members were also stripped of their positions and benefits. Ukwuta further moved for the nomination of other colleagues to fill the vacancies created by the suspension. He nominated Chinedu Nwamba, representing Nsukka East State Constituency to be sworn in as Speaker of the House. The motion was approved by other members and Chinedu Nwamba was sworn in as Speaker by the Clerk of the House, Dr. Chukwurah, who was present throughout the nearly one hour sitting. Nwamba thanked his colleagues for the confidence reposed in him to preside over the affairs of the House as Speaker. He directed the Clerk of the House to inform the governor of the decision of the House. The group also elected Donatus Uzoagbado, Oji River Constituency as Leader of the House and Hon. Emeka Ogbuabo as Chief Whip of the House to replace the suspended principal officers. Ukwuta informed the lawmakers

They felt the administration was coming to an end and it is time for them to make money. They came shamelessly and said that I should give them money. They thought I was asking for the loan as a parting gift. This nonsense started when they could not get me to give them money outside their allowances

notice. Reacting to the said impeachment notice by the suspended Speaker’s group Governor Chime said: “These are just people, characters who are frustrated for not getting what they bargained for. I know what they are doing will not see the light of the day but I want my defence to see the light of the day.” The governor, who appeared un-

ruffled by the unfortunate development said in the first place they are not up to two thirds majority and the timing was not in their favour. He asked: “Please who are they investigating? Is it me or Gburugburu who is coming in as the governor in a few days time?” Chime dismissed the N12 billion supplementary budgets alleged to have been forged by him in 2012 and

displayed the signed and published document. “All they want to create is the impression that I have been milking this state dry,” he said, adding, “and the issue of the said forged supplementary budget happened when I was ‘dead’. When you people (press) reported that I was dead. I am hearing this allegation of forgery for the first time today.” On the issue of the N11billion loan, Chime explained that the loan was already in use based on the approval by the House in November last year. Displaying the resolution of the House dated November 18, 2014, the governor said: “This is the resolution approving the loan by the House of Assembly.” The governor further said: “They felt the administration was coming to an end and it is time for them to make money. They came shamelessly and said that I should give them money. They thought I was asking for the loan as a parting gift. This nonsense started when they could not get me to give them money outside their allowances. “I won’t give them any money. It is public money. I can’t account for it. And I have no regrets for what I am doing.”

Community threatens project over compensation •Continued from page 37

•Managing Director, Bank of Agriculture, Mr Babatunde Sadiku (left), presenting prize to winner of the Bank of Agriculture Secondary quiz competition, Mr Laran Usman, a student of De-Brain Foundation Model Schools, in Kaduna

sation and not pay same to the affected families. The traditional rulers said: “What do they want these old people to do, to go and live in the bush? Are we going to enjoy the light in our graves, and instead they are using army to intimidate us.” However, the traditional ruler called on the Federal Government to come to their rescue by reviewing the contract so that adequate compensation would be paid to members of the community to enable them to get alternative accommodation. Some of the people, whose houses are affected by the project said the funds they are being given are not enough to buy a piece of land, let alone build a house. Others said they are being given two weeks to vacate from their ancestral homes. A 76-year-old Madam Nwegeruo Chimbuo said they were given two weeks to vacate their homes even when compensation had not been paid. Elder Ukanna Ogbonna and Peter Ekpemiro said the money they were paid as compensation was too small to buy a piece of land let alone build a house. At the work camp of the NIPP, some military personnel said they were there on official duty to provide security for the workers. But the workers refused to talk to the press, saying they do not have the authority to speak to the press on the matter. Some of the placards the protesting community members carried read: “We are homeless, settle us”, “Stop using the military to intimidate us”, and “Demolition without compensation”.

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

THE NATION

BUSINESS BRANDS & MARKETING

e-mail: adedejiademigbuji@yahoo.com /mobile line: 08131075667

With the lack of global recognisition for Nigerian advertising industry, experts are worried that some of the challenges hindering the rise of the industry to global status are yet to be addressed and tasked stakeholders to borrow a leaf from India and Brazil, whose industries are as old as Nigeria’s, reports ADEDEJI ADEMIGBUJI.

Nigeria’s advert industry lacks global competitiveness T

HE gathering brought back the memory of the past when Lintas Advertising, Ogilvy Benson and & Mather (OBM), Grant Advertising with foreign affiliations, bestrode the industry like a colossus. With the great stride recorded then, it was thought that by this millennium, the advertising industry in Nigeria, wh ich prospect was further enhanced by the second generation agencies, will be on the world reckoning, but the position of the industry in global competitiveness today is giving industry stakeholders a serious concern. During a marketing summit organised by MarketingEdge, a marketing publication, the Lead Speaker, Mr. Lanre Adisa, lamented that despite the efforts of second generation ad agencies that made the biggest impact on the industry by transforming it into a multibillion naira industry, it cannot compete effectively at the international advertising market space. He said India and Brazil whose advertising industry started the same year with Nigeria’s, are top global advertising brand name. Adisa who is the Managing Director of Noah’s Ark, said the industry needs a shift from its present comfort zone. “We need to plant our feet on the globe in a manner that celebrates the Naija spirit that drives our everyday life,” he said, adding that the spirit has found its voice in music, filmmaking, writing and comedy. Sadly, he lamented that the world “is yet to feel us the way it has come to feel and appreciate Brazilian and Indian advertising. It may interest you to know, he pointed out, that advertising started in Nigeria and India in 1928 and later in 1929 in Brazil. Today, we cannot stand up to both of these countries as far as international reputation goes.” Comparing these countries with Nigeria, he said both Brazil and

• Adisa

India were able to set their agenda for competing with the world. “We are quick to talk about adopting the Brazilian model in our reform, but we fail to realise that Brazil was in a better position talent-wise at the time of embarking on its reforms. Let us face the reality; we have a big talent problem in this industry. We cannot hope that the next generation will make a shift if we don’t create the environment that allows them to grow and compete,” he said. Adisa noted that while it is easy to see the immediate gains of the Indigenisation Decree of the 70’s, which brought the likes of Biodun

Airtel narrows media business search to top agencies

HE multi-million naira Airtel Nigeria creative and media accounts pitch has been narrowed down to top agencies. In a report by marketingedge.com.ng, it was gathered that Media specialists’ Starcom Media, MediaReach, Universal McCan, BrandEye Media and incumbents on the account, STB McCan and Centrespread are still in the race to retain the deep pocket brand. Although, the Airtel advertising account experienced hiccups in transmission at its stop-over in Prima Garnet, the Ogilvy/Scanad break needed the hallowed chambers of the court of law and APCON to resolve the matter. Since then, every party has since moved on and the ‘reds’ are growing qualitatively and quantitatively. The telco has transformed from Celtel to Zain and now Airtel Nigeria. Through dogged repositioning and huge investment in building the brand, it has now be-

come the envy of its peers with over 40 million subscribers and holds approximately 25 per cent of the mobile market share as at last year. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Indian telecom operator group, Bharti Airtel. Bharti Airtel Limited has operations in 20 countries across Asia and Africa. With headquarters in New Delhi, India, the company ranks amongst the top five mobile service providers globally in terms of subscribers. In India, the company’s product offerings include 2G, 3G and 4G services, fixed line, high speed broadband through DSL, IPTV, DTH, enterprise services including national and international long distance services to carriers. In the rest of the geographies, it offers 2G, 3G mobile services. Bharti Airtel had over 264 million customers across its operations at the end of July 2012.

• APCON Chairman Udeme Ufot

Sobanjo’s Insight Communication; Akin Odunsi, Tunde Adelaja and Steve Omojafor’s Rosabel Advertising Limited, to the era of international affiliations, the essence of new reform in the industry has not been felt. It has not been seen as driver for the industry incursion into global advertising phenomenon either. “While it is easy to see the immediate gains of the Indigenisation Decree of the 70’s, one finds it difficult to see the immediate benefits of our new APCON Reforms. The reforms are meant to be sacrosanct. “With regard to how it sanitises the industry to enable agencies become more resourceful to plan for the future, there’s little or nothing to show. On the other hand, it has created an isolationist industry that keeps international players at bay,” he said.

In a globalised economy, where Nigeria is supposed to be playing a leading role economically in Africa, he said the advertising industry cannot afford to isolate itself. “What we risk is an environment devoid of serious competition. The present conditions for foreign participation in our industry cannot take us anywhere. Like Brazil and India, we need to engage the world on our own terms. However, those terms must be a win-win for local and foreign players. There’s an urgent need to review the APCON Reforms to enable a more competitive environment in a manner that protects the interest of Nigerians while encouraging the foreign partners to invest more in our people and our industry. We have seen this in other sectors of our economy, where Nigerian interests are protected while encouraging the foreign partners to take

the game more serious,” said Adisa. He suggested that advertising business concerns should look beyond being a local champion and go global to be champion. He said this is the only way to become an industry that has a global feel in terms of creative spark, investment and recognition. “Why should this be of importance to us? You cannot claim to be in the business of advertising if you choose to stay a local champion all your life. I have been at advertising forums where countries are celebrated not for their geographical sizes but for the size of their ideas. When Ecuador won its first Cannes Lion, the statuette was donated to the National Museum. It was a big national affair; a thing of pride. Ask George Weah what it feels like to be celebrated as a talented footballer without competing at the World Cup. “Let me share with you the story of a Nigerian agency. I was told that when it won its first international award, it went to its regional office in Paris. The head of the subregion congratulated its Nigerian affiliate and entered their name into a register with a particular number of points attached to it. After so many years of being with the network as an affiliate, that was the first time that network would accord it the respect other agencies who have been winning laurels for the network were receiving. “The moral of the story? Our business is about reputation and the currency and consistency of our reputation matter a great deal. When Noah’s Ark was recently listed among the 16 leading independent agencies in the world, not only did we get a lot of commendations from our peers and clients, we equally attracted positive business enquiries from offshore,” he said. In addition, he advised stakeholders not to worry about a generation taking over from another but to should build an industry where ideas competes for the attention of clients. He said: “the path to that future is talent development and a more open attitude to business that embraces the world on our own terms. It’s only then that we can be sure of effecting the much shift our industry urgently needs.”

ICCO admits PRCAN as member

HE Public Relations Consultants Association (PRCAN), the umbrella body of PR consultancy firms operating in Nigeria, has been admitted into membership of the International Communications Consultancy Organisation (ICCO). PRCAN’s admission was announced by the ICCO Chief Executive, Francis Ingham, at the organization’s bi-annual Board of Management meeting which held in Vienna, Austria, on April 16-17, 2015. Following PRCAN’s inclusion, its President, Mr. John Ehiguese, has also been appointed to the Board of Management of the Organisation, for a maximum tenure of four years. By this appointment, he joins 30 other members

in ICCO’s highest decision-making authority. Ehiguese said: “I am very excited at this development, because it means that Nigerian PR has finally joined the global mainstream. ICCO is the largest global PR body, representing over 2,000 consultancy firms from 31 countries. It is heavily involved in training, events, industry updates, CMS and Global reports, areas in which I believe PRCAN members will benefit tremendously. “With my admission to the Board of ICCO we also now have a voice on the world stage. I intend, not only to be a worthy ambassador of Nigerian PR practice, but to also encourage our members to participate fully in the activities of ICCO so that we can bring ourselves up

to speed with current global best practice, enabling us to attain higher professional standards and deliver more value to the clients we work for.” ICCO is the voice of PR consultancies around the world. Its membership comprises national trade associations in 31 countries across the globe: from Europe, Africa, Asia, the Americas and Australasia. Collectively, these associations represent over 2,000 firms. It provides a forum for senior management of the world’s best PR consultancies to meet and address issues of mutual interest and concern. Members work together to raise standards of quality, address ethical issues, harmonise professional consultancy practice and share knowledge.

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

PEOPLE THE NATION

A SIX-PAGE SECTION ON SOCIETY

Delta State Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan has been honoured as Silverbird Man of the Year 2014. Other notable Nigerians were also recognised at the ceremony, which was held at the Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos. NNEKA NWANERI was there.

•From left: Murray-Bruce; governor Uduaghan; his wife Roli and governor Fayose

ALL it a valedictory award, you won’t be wrong. In three weeks, Delta State Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan will complete his second and final term. Last Sunday in Lagos, he was honoured as Silverbird man of the year 2014 He was not the only honoree. Minister of Agriculture Dr Akinwunmi Adesina and Chairman, Innoson Group of Companies Chief Innocent Chukwuma bagged Silverbird Extraordinary Achievement Award. For their efforts in battling the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) which hit the country last year, Medical Director First Consultant Hospital, Dr Benjamin Ohiaeri, Lagos State Commissioner of Health Dr Jide Idris and his Rivers State counterpart Dr Sampson Parker picked Silverbird Special Recognition Award. The late Chief Gani Fawehinmi (SAN), the late apostle of “politics without bitterness”, Alhaji Ibrahim Waziri and former Imo State governor the late Chief Sam Mbakwe got Silverbird Posthumous Award. Three senior citizens-Alhaji Maitama Sule, former Nigerian Permanent Represenative to the United Nations (UN), former Secretary of Petroleum Dr Philip Asiodu and former presidential adviser on budget Dr Gamaliel Omosode carted away Silverbird Lifetime Achievement Award. It was at the 10th Silverbird Television Man of the Year award held at Eko Hotel and Suites in Victoria Island, Lagos. Uduaghan got the award for restoring peace and security in Delta, infrastructural development, free medical care for children and elderly and his micro

Parting award for a governor credit scheme. Former Minister of Petroleum Resources Odein Ajumogobia (SAN), who chaired the event, said the honorees deserve the awards. There were documentaries on the awardees. The late Fawehinmi’s first son, Mohammed, received the award on behalf of the family. His mother and sister were with him. The late Mbakwe’s award was received by his daughter and Imo State Commissioner for Education Lady Patience Mbakwe. She said with the award, she was proud to be called her father’s daughter. She dedicated the award to the re-elected Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, for keeping her father’s legacies. Waziri’s daughter, Hajia Aisha Umar, said the award was timely, adding that her father would be smiling in his grave to know the country is upholding his philosophy. Chief Chukwuma’s Innoson is the first private company to assemble motorcycles and cars in Nigeria. It is the producer of the first made-in-Nigeria car. Chukwuma’s dream is to make new cars affordable for Nigerians instead of them going for second-hand vehicles. On receiving the award, Chukwuma said: “I will keep making Nigeria proud.” Adesina said his achievements did not come because he is an extraordinary person, but as a public servant called to serve his country. He said he is from a poor back-

ground, adding that he worked with his father on people’s farms till he turned 15; went to Lagos and learnt to read and write. “What motivates me is service to the poor because I came out of it and I know there is no comfort in it. Other awardees are real heroes of our country. Only God can reward them for making Nigeria a spotlight for other countries to emulate.” Onosode, it was noted, began the Good News Baptist Church in his living room. The church has grown to having many branches across the country. Onosode’s son, Spencer, received the award on his behalf. Quoting the Bible, he said with the award God has anointed his father’s head with oil. Asiodu said: “I take this award as a rejuvenation of our Civil Service which was destroyed since 1975 because it is necessary for us to rebuild our country with hardwork and diligence.” The hall stood still for the Ebola conquerors as they made their way to the stage. There was a documentary on the Ebola virus that put the country on edge on last year. In the documentary, tributes were paid to those who paid the ultimate price. Ohiaeri said his hospital lost four of its staff. In all, 12 died nationwide. He thanked the late Dr Stella Adadevoh for her sacrifice to the country. Chairman of Silverbird Group and Bayelsa East Senator-elect Ben Murray-Bruce drove into

the hall in an electric powered Kia Soul mini jeep. He showed the audience how the car is powered by a chargeable battery that can last for eight hours. Murray Bruce urged manufacturers to produce solar-powered cars that need no fuel or diesel to run, but has zero tolerance for pollution. He said the battery can last 300 kilometers. He added: “The world has changed and we must change with it. But for the change to take place, we must understand what drives our people. The problem with Nigeria is the rich versus the poor. We need to control our consumption behaviour and care for the least of us by conserving and shrinking the way we spend.” The high-point of the night was when Uduaghan was called out. He wore white suit and a black bow tie; his wife Roli wore a black dinner gown. Delta State born aristes Sammie Okposo and Daddy Showkey sang a song to usher him to the podium. Also in attendance were: Senator Annie Okonkwo; Ekiti State Governor Ayo Fayose; President, Nigerian Guild of Editors Femi Adesina; Editorial Board Chairman of The Nation Sam Omatseye; ace broadcaster Chief Bisi Olatilo; Senator Florence Ita-Giwa; Publisher Vanguard Newspaper Sam Amuka-Pemu Delta State Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Richard Mofe-Damijo; Nollywood act or Fred Amata; Comedians Basket Mouth, Bovi and Emeka Smith. •More pictures on page 44

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

SOCIETY

Sixty garlands for a VC Vice Chancellor of the Federal University in Otuoke, Bayelsa State, Prof Mobolaji Aluko, turned 60 on April 2. Last Saturday, his friends hosted him to a dinner in Lagos. NNEKA NWANERI was there.

OLAJI Aluko, a professor and son of the renowned economist, the late Prof Sam Aluko, turned 60 on April 2. Last Saturday, his friends, hosted him to dinner in Lagos to mark the milestone. Looking resplendent in immaculate white agbada and green cap, Vice Chancellor, Federal University in Otuoke, Bayelsa State, was all smiles as he welcomed guests to Protea Hotel Ikeja GRA Lagos. Those from his alma mater-Christ’s School-AdoEkiti, the Ekiti State capital, made up highest number. It was a small gathering – of close associates and friends. His wife and children could not make it to the event, but his brothers and cousin were there with their children. His brother- in-law was also there. His face wreathed in smiles, Aluko identified his classmates and some of his seniors to whom he said he was always rude to. There were also those from his undergraduate days at the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University) OAU and his United States and Otuoke affiliates, including members of the staff of the university. They took turns to take pictures with him as he cut his birthday cake. The cake had the portrait of a man, sitting behind a table with many books. The host, Mr Kayode Osho, decided on the theme inspired by Prof Aluko’s love for academics. At the ceremony were Professor of International Law Akin Oyebode; lawyer-activist Femi Falana (SAN); Prof Steve Nwabuzor and Prof Yemisi Dayo. They spoke glowingly about the celebrator, how they met him and his growing days. Oyebode recalled when Aluko came into Christ’s School at 10. “I asked him series of questions and was impressed with the sharp honest answer he gave me. It was then I concluded that he was a star.” Prof Dele Makanjuola said couldn’t remember ever beating Aluko in a chess game. Osho was grateful they all passed through the school, a rallying point for many of them from various backgrounds. The celebrator’s younger brother, Olufemi, brought blessings from his mother, who he said has always had reason to be proud of him for always being on the right side. “He has always carried the family with respect and pride since the death of our father who though opened doors for us, Bolaji will open more for us.” Falana described Aluko as a great friend who left Ife as he was joining the university. He described him as “a polite but stubborn reliable ally” recalling that they worked closely together during the dark Sani Abacha administration. Falana noted that Ekiti State has produced many professors just like the celebrator’s father. He prayed for Aluko: “Bolaji, Igba Odun, odun kan. We your friends are

•The birthday ‘boy’ flanked by, from left: Falana; Bayo Osibo and wife Dele; Prof. Nwabuzor and Prof Oyebode to cut the cake

•Mr. Kunle Jinadu and wife Sayo

•Mr Osho and wife Adekumbi

•Mr Adegoke Oyefin and wife Bosede

•Tosin Ofuya (left) and Olufemi Aluko

•Muyiwa Sobo (left) and Kola Bankole

•Prof Makanjuola and wife Ayinke

proud of you. Keep doing those things that have made you great,” Falana said. The birthday ‘boy’ said he did not feel 60, though he has started cautioning himself as he grows older. He is also happy he had been privileged, having no serious health, economic or educational challenges. He remembered being told by his parents that unlike his father, he was, born with a silver spoon. Aluko said he learnt he could not be intimidated at Christ’s school.

He said his membership of the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO), the group that led the battle against the late Gen Sani Abacha’s dictatorship, took a toll in his close relationship with his father who he noted never abused the late Abacha. Aluko said he never lobbied for the Otuoke varsity job, adding: “I have never in my days as VC felt threatened or the president intruding in my work despite me serving in his home state. In all, God has given me grace.”

•Prof. Akin Osibogun (left) and Dipo Famakinwa

PHOTOS: DAVID ADEJO

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

SOCIETY PARTING AWARD FOR A GOVERNOR

•Dr Asiodu recieving his award from Ajumogobia( left) as Mrs Asiodu looks on

•Dr Adesina and Senator Ita Giwa

•Chief Chukwuma (left) and Mr Sam Amuka-Pemu

•Alhaji Lawal Abubakar (left) and Guy Murray Bruce

•From left: Dr Parker, Jonathan Elendu and Awele Okolie •Mideno Bayabgon (left) and Mr Adesina

•Senator Okonkwo (left) and Chuka Odom

•Dede Mabiaku

•Uneku Atawodi (left) and Paul Loomis

•Omatseye

•Bisi Olatilo (left) and Zaki Adze

PHOTOS: SOLOMON ADEOLA

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

SOCIETY The remains of the wife of former Nigerian statesman, politician and Minister of Health and Information, Ayotunde Rosiji, Mrs Gbemi Rosiji, were interred in Lagos last Wednesday after a funeral service at the Cathedral Church of Christ, Marina NNEKA NWANERI writes.

VEN in death, she was a celebrity. This is not unexpected. Her children and grandchildren are captains of industries and trailblazers in their professions. Madam Rosiji was the wife of former Nigerian statesman, politician and Minister of Health and Information, Ayotunde Rosiji, who died on July 31, 2000. He was one of the founding members of Action Group (AG). The late Rosiji matriarch died on April 8 at 89 years. Her children gave her a befitting burial. To them, she deserved nothing less, saying she lived all her life for them. Her rites of passage began last Wednesday with a funeral service at the Cathedral Church of Christ, Marina, Lagos. Though it was a weekday and the scarcity of fuel was already biting hard in the metropolis, sympathisers, family members and friends of the Rosijis were there in their numbers to bid her bye. They filled the church auditorium. Her remains were laid in a simple brown casket and positioned on the central aisle before the altar. Bouquets of fresh white flowers were placed by every pillar of the church. After the gospel reading from John 14:1-14, a sermon was delivered by a former provost of the cathedral, Very Rev Yinka Omololu (rtd), who spoke on the outstanding qualities of the late Mrs Rosiji, which qualified her as a true Christian. She was a giver, he said. He urged all to live close to Jesus, since it is in giving that we receive. He urged the family members of the late Rosiji to keep her memory active. One of the granddaughters of the late Rosiji, Mrs Muffy Dargery, rendered a solo Italian song written by Francesco Sartori and Lucio Quarantotto titled: “Time to Say Goodbye”. Others took turn to render special tribute songs around the casket. They were: choir of the Cathedral of Holy Trinity, Ifo; Cathedral Ladies League; Women’s Guild Auxiliary; Cathedral Torch Bearers and Old Students of St Ann School. In an 80-page brochure, pictures and testimonies of her generosity displayed. Notably, that of the National Cancer Prevention Programme (NCPP), written by its National Coordinator Dr K.O. Egwuonwu was outstanding. He described the deceased as a woman who did not pander to applause or gave to be noticed; but simply out of sacrificial love and generousity. “She was generous almost to a fault and it is through the generousity of people like her that the programme has been able to play its key role.” A reception in honour of the late Mrs Rosiji was held at Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island with comedian Tee A livened up the gathering with his jokes. Demola Olota and his band dished out songs in praise of mothers. Their music ushered the children of the deceased dancing in celebration of their mother. Second son of the deceased and Chairman/ Chief Executive Officer of Lexcel Group, owners of Nigerian Distilleries Limited, Olajide said his mother lived a good life and died without pains. He said he could recall his mother thanking any of her children for doing or giving her something. All she will say is ‘good boy’. “Maybe she never thanked because she was a teacher. I miss her love, advice and many a memory that has shaped the man that I am today,” Olajide said. The last son of the deceased and former president, Performing Musicians Employers Association of Nigeria (PMAN), Bolaji, had fond

Fond memories of a giver •Children of the deceased from left: Mr Olajide; Mrs Bomi Rosiji; Bolaji; Mrs Tokunbo Doherty and Adekunle Rosiji

•From left: Mrs Dargery; Mr Pierre Dargery and Mrs Esi Sogay

•Joke Silva

•Chief Francis Sotunde and Mrs Fashola

•Chief Chris Ogunbanjo (left) and former President of NACCIMA Chief Kola Daisi

•From left: Olu Jacobs, Chief Yemi Oduntan and Mr Wole Adeleye

•Mrs Mopelola Rosiji and Mrs Ogunlesi

•From left: Mr Olayode Delano; Chief Yetunde Animashaum and Mrs Funlola Delano

•From left: Mr Rajiv Kapoor; Rajasekar Rajavelas and Anirudh Raghjvanshi

•From left: Desmond Majekodumi; Mr Gbenga Adezusuyi and Tee Mac PHOTOS:NNEKA NWANERI

memories of his mother teaching him everything, including being an anonymous giver who had eye for details and never liked lazy people. “As a young boy, I used to run from Mamani because whenever we had guests, I will have to go upstairs and pack those gifts. Everyone had to

take something home. Today, that lesson she taught me by the example of making sure no one goes home hungry and empty handed is what I cherish the most.”Bolaji said. Those who attendance were: Lagos State first lady Dame Abimbola Fashola; Nollywood icons Olu Jacobs

and his wife Joke Silva; retired Bishop of Ifo, Rev Akin Odejide; Bishop of Egba Rev Dr M.O.Owadayo (rtd); Bishop of Ifo Rt Rev Nathaniel Ogundipe; Diocesan Bishop of Lagos Mainland, Prof Adebayo Akinde; both the Alake of Egbaland and the Owu of Ifo sent

their staffs of office; Mrs Francesca Emmanuel; flutist Tee Mac; former President of NACCIMA Chief Kola Daisi; CEO, Adam and Eve Gifts Shop Mrs Dupe Ogunlesi and former Minister for National Planning Chief Rasheed Gbadamosi.

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

S OCIETY

‘I made the right choice’ The joy of Sir Odafe Othihiwa, a former General Manager with Daily Times and Africa Independent Television (AIT), knew no bounds last Saturday when he gave his daughter, Victoria out in marriage to a banker, Mayowa Tiwo, in Lagos. OLATUNDE ODEBIYI reports.

T was a day they had longed for and when it finally came, they were happy. Last Saturday Mayowa Tiwo and Victoria, daughter of Dr Odafe Othihiwa, a former General Manager with Daily Times and African Independent Television (AIT) got married in Lagos. Victoria is a business woman and Mayowa son of the late Otunba Benjamin Tiwo, works with Zenith Bank. They were joined in holy matrimony at St John’s Anglican Church in Satellite Town, Lagos. Victoria was all smiles in her white wedding gown; her chief bride’s maid wore a long orange dress. Mayowa and his best man were in blue suit, white shirt and black bow tie. The groom’s mother, Mrs Esther Tiwo, who retired from Lagos State Ministry of Health, and the bride’s mother, Mrs Iyabo Othihiwa, wore uniform orange buba and iro with green gele and ipele. Sir Othihiwa was in grey blouse and blue wrapper with grey design; representative of the groom’s father, Mr Akinbode Tiwo, wore cream agbada and a green cap. The choir began the service with the hymn, “Praise my soul the King of Glory”. Mayowa and his best man were already seated in church. Sir Othihiwa led his daughter into the hall and handed her over to the groom. Rev Olakunle Oluwadimite, Rev Peter Falusi and Rev Olusegun Oyawale officiated. In his sermon, the Vicar/ Archdeacon, Rev Ebenezer Adewale, said marriage is meant to boost one’s relationship with God and not to destroy it. “Marriage is to make you follow God more and serve Him better. Any relationship or marriage that will take you away from God is to be avoided. Marriage is to strengthen your relationship with God.” The cleric said marriage is a gift of God, a means of his grace and it cannot be separated from God. “Marriage is to draw you closer to God to enable you fulfill God’s vision for your life. If you remove God from your marriage, you cannot get it right,” he added. He asked; “Do you still see God as a partner in your marriage? Is he in your home? What role is he playing?” He described marriage as a triangle where God is at the upper edge and the couple at the lower two edges. He urged the people to observe a family altar no matter how busy they are. “Be prayerful, because prayer will help you to run away from sin, obey God, be relevant in his kingdom so that God will be manifest in your marriage,” he added. He told the couple to talk and not fight

about money, recognise each other’s weakness, concentrate on improving themselves, talk, listen to each other and do not assume. Bishop of Lagos Diocese, Anglican Communion, Most Revd Ephraim Ademowo, who was represented by Venerable Jide Adebayo, joined the couple. The reception held at Anna Hall, FESTAC Town, Lagos. Dr Brem Herdert (aka Praise Machine) kept guests laughing with his rib-cracking jokes as the Master of the Ceremony. The couple’s mothers were the first to be ushered into the hall in company of their friends and family members. They danced to songs from Ade Flavour and his gospel juju world of music band. The fathers followed. The couple’s entry caught guests’ attention; many stood while others struggled for space to take their photographs with phones, iPad and camera. The groom was still on the same outfit but the bride had changed to a silver glittering dress. They danced to songs from DJ Frakaz. The chairman on the occasion, Sir Ayodele Othihiwa, told the couple that marriage is a school for life. “From today you will start learning new things and you will continue to learn.” The MC led the couple to cut their four-step white cake after spelling JESUS. The couple fed each other with cake and wine; they later had their couple dance and other guests joined them on the dance floor, dancing and spraying new naira notes. The bride’s father, said he felt great, describing the wedding as a dream-fulfilled to give his daughter out in marriage. He told the couple to tolerate each other, adding that marriage is not easy but a matter of give and take. The groom’s mother, told the couple to avoid intruders; they should settle all quarrels among themselves. “They should not allow me to know what is going between them nor the wife’s parent; they should corporate and show love to each other,” she said. The groom, Mayowa, said he was happy because the day was one he had been looking forward to. “This is the beginning of my new life with my wife and I believe it will be exiting.” He described his wife as energetic, hard working, intelligent and everything a woman can be. “I didn’t make a wrong choice; I analysed who she is before deciding to marry her.” The bride said she felt exited, describing her husband as matured, understanding, caring and religious.

•The couple, Mayowa and Victoria

•From left: Mr Othihiwa; Mrs Tiwo and bride’s mother Mrs Iyabo Othihiwa

•Former editor of Sunday Times, Mr Tunde Awobiyi (left) and Mr Akinbode Tiwo

‘Marriage is to draw you closer to God to enable you fulfill God’s vision for your life. If you remove God from your marriage, you cannot get it right’ •Ayodele Othihiwa and Lady Sally Othihiwa

•Prof Alfred Kasunmu (SAN) (right) and Tunde Kasunmu •Otunba Deinde Banjo and Mrs Kemi Banjo

PHOTOS: ABIODUN WILLIAMS

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

SOCIETY The wedding of Olakunle, son of Bjeg Ventures Nigeria Limited chairman Mr Bankole Jegede and Tumininu, daughter of a Lagos State civil servant Mr Oluwadayo Olaitan, at the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Victory Centre Parish in Agege, Lagos.

•From left: Alhaji Adeitan; Remi Shittu; Fred Ologuntoye and ‘Marshal Akomolede

•The couple,Tumininu and Oluwadayo

•Alaba Ajanaku (right) and Kunle Aladeranmi

•Businessman Mr Akin ‘Tafak’ Afuye and Mr Ojo Popoola (right)

•Ajibola Ayeni (left) and Sola Ajakaye

A gathering of shepherds The Good Shepherd Society of the Archbishop Vining Memorial Church Cathedral has celebrated its 43rd anniversary at the Rotary Club Hall, Ikeja, Lagos. SAFIYYAH ABDUR-RAZAQ reports

HE Rotary Club Hall in G. R. A. Ikeja was decorated in green and white, with blue spring lights. The high table glittered against a silver backdrop. The chairs and tables were also decorated in white and green. The tables had white and yellow overlays. It was for the reception of the 43rd anniversary of the Good Shepherd Society of the Archbishop Vining Memorial Church Cathedral. Members of the society trooped into the hall after a thanksgiving service and rededication of 21 new members at the nearby Archbishop Vining Memorial Church Cathedral. They were all dressed in white and green. Their President, Mr Ossie Nwankwu congratulated the new members on their rededication, saying he looked forward to the light they would re-ignite in the society.

•From left: Mr Nwankwu; Sir. Mike Ezeh and standing behind (from left) is Mr Ray Agu; Mr Daniel Nzekwe and past President of the society, Sir Chito Ezeani

The event Chairman, Mr Femi Olutayo, praised the members for their good work saying: “You have been wonderful, futuristic and sharp but you have to step out of the convenience zone to become good shepherds. You have gotten to the point where, am sure, God has seen your society and you need to step out to the world”, he said. Dr Uchechukwu Sampson Ogah spoke on moving forward as good shepherds, urging the members to always give so as to make the fellowship move forward and receive God’s blessings. “Giving out is a sign of your trust in God.

Put all your trust in Him. Allow Him to use you for all He wants Good Shepherd Society to do” Ogah said. The other guest speaker, Mr Emeka Madubuike, also urged them to always give out in order to fulfil God’s assignment. He highlighted 10 points that would assist them in moving forward as good shepherds. He said: “You have to help those in need, pray for your flock when they are struggling, strengthen your flock when they are weak, lift them up up when they are down, encourage them, give hope to them when they are hopeless, forgive them when they hurt you, rejoice with them when

•Kayode Olusemire

they are succeeding, do not publicise their faults and lead an exemplary life for them to emulate.” Oxbridge College proprietor Dr Femi Ogunsanya proprosed the toast. She said: “We have made good progress but a lot still needs to be done. Rejoice Good Shepherd Society for you have succeeded.” The president, his secretary and those on the high table cut the white and green cake with red and green flowers on it. Guests were treated to music and sumptuous lunch. Nwankwu told The Nation he was elated at the success of the event. “After the amount of time that went into the planning, and having people turn up, I am so happy. Our guests were here and it was fun. We heard the word of God from different people; it was really enjoyable”, he said. He urged members to live up to the name of a good shepherd. “A good shepherd does not mean any other thing than being a good neighbour. If your neighbour is in distress, pay attention and help. Lend your shoulder for people to cry on. One thing I learnt today is that offering subdues suffering. When you give, you would be given back. When you lend your shoulder for people to lean on, God would provide one for you. To the new members especially, as they are coming with new fresh ideas to move the society forward, all of us should rededicate ourselves to moving this society forward and to living the name of Good Shepherd in our everyday life”, Mr Nwankwu said. The chairman of the anniversary committee, Mr Evans Okeke, urged members to live up to Christ’s attitude as a good shepherd and to put to practice all they learnt at the event.

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

Markets in the United States, Europe and Asia have been attractive to Nigerians because some firms and individuals have exported their produce, including fruits and vegetables, to these markets and made huge profits. But things are fast changing with stringent requirements on quality, safety and health standards which has led to the rejection of agro produce. Efforts are in progress to address this, reports DANIEL ESSIET.

Reducing agro-exports rejection in global market

VER 15 per cent of agro and food exports grown in Nigeria and other West African countries are rejected by buyers in Europe, Asia and the United States because they do not meet minimum quality standards. Sometimes, whole consignments are rejected because they contain produce with defects. The Chief Executive, Anjorin and Sons, Mr Sunday Anjorin, is one such farmer. His produce suffered rejection. According to him, agro exports are facing stringent requirements because of attempts by the European Union (EU) and other countries to secure a high level of protection for public health and consumer interests with regard to food products. Anjorin’s produce was rejected because of inability to provide sanitary standard compliance documentation. Anjorin said though soem exporters are making it big exporting their produce to these markets, some are subjected to stringent conditions by major markets such as EU. The concern, however, is that the requirements keep changing and as such would-be exporters need to be aware of them before launching into export business. There is also the case of a Ghanaian food exporter whose products to the United Kingdom revealed that it had got contaminated with a toxic substance following routine microbiological and chemical sampling. Consequently, his stock was seized and destroyed in addition to several tonnes of maize meal being held at his industrial unit. His economic losses were further compounded by damage in reputation as a product recall was announced resulting in every business he supplied being contacted to ensure products were taken off the shelves. The cause of this turn of events was linked to imported maize meal contaminated with fungal toxins known as aflatoxins. This not withstanding ,Anjorin said EU is an attractive market for African exports. This is because the region imports 40 per cent of all of sub-Saharan Africa’s agricultural exports, including nuts, tea, coffee and citrus fruits. Though there are amazing opportunities to export food produce,Anjorin said there are also challenges of regulatory requirements. One of these areas are sanitary and phytosanitary requirements which have presented a barrier to many companies wishing to export food products into the region. Some cocoa exporters have been rejected due to high levels of chemicals caused by drying practices. While large quantities of yam exported to the United States have been rejected as most were found to be unwholesome on arrival. In some other countries, the dream of mango farmers to go commercial particularly for export has been marred by the prevalence of fruit-flies ,resulting in infestation of the fruits, making them unsuitable for the international market. Exported mango containers are often rejected at the entry ports of the international markets due to fruit-fly infestation and other sanitary issues. Right now, farmers involved in horticultural exports are going through difficult times owing to a ban by the EU on

• Agro commodities for export

imported produce containing dangerous chemicals. Member-countries of the EU have been testing all produce from developing countries to ensure strict adherence to specified levels of maximum residue limits. This has forced farmers to use lower quantities of chemicals on crops. It has also led to huge losses for farmers because of the expensive tests conducted locally and abroad. So far, Nigeria has had its fair share of product rejections. The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, OlusegunAganga said over 103 Nigerian export products have been rejected at the global market in the last five years for not meeting acceptable international quality standards. He attributed the development to lack of accredited laboratories where the products could be tested before being shipped abroad. According to him, since the internationally accredited microbiology lab of the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) in Lagos meets international best practice, any product tested there would be acceptable anywhere outside the country, thereby saving the millions of dollars being lost by the manufacturers due to product rejection. He said: “For decades, the country has lost significant amount of revenue and our exporters have suffered heavy financial losses because of the number of rejected export items from Nigeria. “The situation became so bad that Nigeria, the number one economy in Africa had to export its products through Ghana.” SON’s Director-General, Dr. Joseph Odumodu, said his organisation is going to reduce agro-export rejection with the commissioning of a world class food processing laboratory. He said SON has received a lot of support from the minister to get the laboratory up and running. He said going forward, there would be more laboratories to complement the effort of the new laboratory. “I want to invite you to avail yourself of the laboratories we have here and the more that will come in

the future,” he said. Odumodu said the two laboratories – chemical testing and quality management laboratories – accredited by the American Association for Laboratory Accreditation would restore confidence in the market place for Nigeria’s food export commodities as they would have scaled the hurdles of acceptable standards. On the cost of accessing the services of the laboratories, Odumodu said government agencies involved in exports would access the services of the labs at no cost as part of government’s policy, while private sector operators would have to pay a token. He observed that current exporters in the country pay as much as 10 per cent of the total value of their exports, adding that when they bring their commodities to SON’s laboratory, they would pay less than one per cent of the total value of their exports. The Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), SegunAwolowo said some of the factors responsible for the rejection of exported food item include non-compliance with regulatory requirements for processed and semi-processed commodities, non-compliance with documentation requirements, incorrect filling of information for entry, inadequate information and know-how on the entry requirement for food imports to the EU and the United Kingdom. He noted that developing countries including Nigeria seem to face considerable problems in meeting basic food safety and hygiene requirements for exporting food items to developed countries, saying that a recent World Bank report estimated that developing countries will lose about $6.9 billion this year to rejections of their exported food items. “It is, therefore, of immense challenge to meet standards requiring more sophisticated monitoring. The trend in food safety and quality management is a shift from end product testing to a systematic preventive approach that employs the identification of hazards and establishment of

‘As stakeholders in the nation’s industrial sector and indeed other non-oil productive areas, we have been under the negative effects of overdependence on oil and imported goods while our local products continued to experience market resistance locally and internationally’

• SAVED ON MAC 70 as Agric Business 08-05-15

preventive measures to reduce or eliminate such hazards during food processing,” he said. The President, Federation of Agricultural Commodities Association of Nigeria (FACAN), Dr Victor Iyama, said the nation needed laboratory to address the huge amounts of rejections which translates to high economic losses. He said exporters have had their commodities rejected as a result of the presence of hazards from both chemical and microbial origin. He said the industry is facing new challenges and needs to continue to adapt and upgrade its capabilities to meet export requirement. Chairman, Honeywell Group, Dr. Oba Otudeko, noted that the food lab was pivotal to Nigeria’s rapid economic development, particularly at a time when manufacturing and agriculture were being emphasised in the country’s national development discourse. Otudeko said: “For a long time, we have suffered from the absence and lack of internationally certified facilities to serve as impetus for the country’s efforts towards economic diversification and export promotion. “As stakeholders in the nation’s industrial sector and indeed other non-oil productive areas, we have been under the negative effects of overdependence on oil and imported goods while our local products continued to experience market resistance locally and internationally.” One issue that has affected exports is indiscriminate use of pesticides by farmers. Some farmers are finding it harder to sell fresh produce to its key markets in the EU as major supermarkets implement new pesticide regulations. The new regulations announced sharply reduced allowed residue limits in pesticides. National Coordinator,West Africa Agricultural Productivity Programme(WAAPP), Prof Damian Chikwendu, said Nigeria is home to an uncontrolled market of outdated, sub-standard and unscrupulous pesticides, which he said are mostly peddled and used by people with no real expertise on them. Of 360 farmers that were interviewed in 57 local government areas across the nine states (Abia, Benue, Edo, Gombe, Imo, Kaduna, Kano, Niger and Oyo), the WAPP-Nigeria National Coordinator said about 92 per cent of them use pesticides a. This, however, comes with a worrying trend. Chikwendu said: “One noticeable trend is that most of the people who sell and use these pesticides have little knowledge of them. They don’t even know how to use.”

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

‘Price changes affecting profitability’ A

SIGNIFICANT drop and rise in commodity prices is causing a fall in profitability in the farming sector, the Director,AfricaRegion,Cassava Adding Value for Africa (CAVA), Prof Kola Adebayo, has said. He told The Nation that the susceptibility of the agricultural industry to increased volatility is affecting profitability of farmers. In the year, he said the industry had seen farm-gate prices across all

Stories by Daniel Essiet

commodities falling and rising attributed to overabundance of certain crops causing glut and surplus in the market. Following bumper harvests, he said lower prices for the commodities were expected,adding that it will substantially reduce the profitability of crop producers. Such market volatility, he noted, underscores the need for crop pro-

ducers to address strategies to minimise price risk at various times. Adebayo stressed the need for key crop prices to be moderated. He said this was necessary in the face of rising costs of input prices and it resulting in tighter profit margins for producers. He explained that when farmers chose to plant at the same time and harvest at the same time, they produce more enough for a certain time and cause scarcity in later

months when the harvest is exhausted. To address this, he said his project is encouraging farmers to stagger planting to enable them record all- year round harvests to cope with demand. According to him, producers are in business to produceand sell them at a profit. He explained that many variables, including production costs, growing conditions and the uncertainty of future

pricesaffect profitability. He saidfarming’s contribution to the wider economy has increased cent. With the right conditions, he saidfarmers can continue this impressive long-term performance. He wants the next government to create the right environment to encourage investment, growth and innovation, therefore securing the future of the country’s food and farming industry.

Poor infrastructure, farming practices impede productivity

OOR infrastructure and practices by farmers are hindering agro productivity, experts said. They spoke at the BusinessDay CEO Forum in Lagos. They said developing the sector entails establishing key infrastructure enablers as well as creating best practices for farmers which in turn would help boost productivity. In a paper titled: “Growth opportunities in Nigeria’s new normal”, Christian Wessels, Deputy Group Managing Director, TGI Group of Companies, said: “Agriculture’s poor farming practices means it is persistently inefficient in Nigeria.” He said Nigeria will to continue to suffer from low productivity due to infrastructural deficit. He also said as a result of the deplorable state of roads, farmers grow only what they can eat or the extra they can carry on their heads to nearby markets. He noted that most of the highways, particularly in the rural areas are impassable after heavy rains, which cut off some communities, adding that the result is increased fares.

But even when commuters offer to pay higher fares, many commercial motorists refused to go to such communities for fear that their vehicles would sink, he added. According to Titus Awokuse, chair, Department of Applied Economics and Statistics, University of Delaware’s College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, “A big challenge to agricultural productivity and food security in Nigeria is the lack of adequate infrastructure to support food production and distribution.’’ He further said despite policy reforms by the Goodluck Jonathan administration, such as the one which tackled corruption in the seed and fertiliser sector within 90 days through the Growth Enhancement Scheme (GES), poor farming were still being carried out by many farmers. “Nigeria is not making use of its arable land and the land it is using is not properly prepared or utilised – fertilisers, equipment and improved seedlings are not being used in sufficient quantities; as a result, yield per acre is very low,” according to a leading Economist, he said.

Fed Govt, FARA partner on funding

HE Federal Government ha signed an agreement with the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA) to assist the forum in some areass. The Director for Monitoring, Evaluation and Research, Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr Aminu Nabegu, said the deal was aimed at Nigeria’s commitment to take ownership of its supra-national institutions which depends on external sources for their funding. He said agriculture is the mainstay of Africa’s economy and food security and as such the performance of the continent’s economic growth towards eliminating hunger. He called on other African countries to emulate the example set by Nigeria in taking pro-active steps to secure African ownership and long term sustainability of the continent’s strategic institutions in the domain of agricultural research and innovation. He said deal would strengthened the investments of FARA. Earlier, the Federal Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr AkinwunmiAdesina, pledged support for FARA and institutions with similar mandate during the FARA’s 15th anniversary in Johannesburg, South Africa last November. Executive Director of FARA, Dr YemiAkinbamijo, described Nigeria’s gesture as unprecedented. The FARA-DTAC agreement stipulates Nigeria’s secondment of three experts to the FARA Secretariat. The expertise is in communication, data analysis and management

and information and communication Technology (ICT). The secondment will be for two years and it is renewable. The seconded staff are expected to report for duty this month. Nigeria has bilateral agreements to provide technical assistance to 109 countries with support provided as far afield as the Caribbean islands and all across the Africa-Caribbean and Pacific states.

•Adesina

•Akinbamijo

• From left: Enugu State Commissioner for Agriculture, Michael Eneh; Permanent Secretary, Mr Samuel Onyiaji, and Director, Agric Extension, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development,Dr Aminu Babandi, during a West Africa Agricultural Productivity Programme(WAAPP) workshop on reforming the extension system in Enugu.

South African firm to invest in foods

SOUTH African firm, Agric-Vie, is seeking opportunities in the food subsector. The firm, which has investments in 12 African food businesses, plans to target companies involved in the processing of grains, dairy, fruits, poultry and fast food in Nigeria, its Executive Director Avril Stassen, said in Lagos. He said Nigeria’s 170 million people provide a major market for processed food. “There are a lot of locally produced foods in Nigeria, with limited processing,” he said. “It is also

an area our team has skill and experience in. The scope for growth is wide.” Agri-Vie, based in Cape Town, plans to more than double the size of its investment fund next year to $285 million from $110 million and reach $500 million in the next decade, Stassen said. Its focus will spread to West African countries, including Ghana, Senegal and Ivory Coast. Other investments include South African salad producer Dew Crisp and Ethiopia’s Africa Juice. The company will invest about $12 million in each business, without setting a specific number

of targets. “We are interested in companies that are already profitable,” Stassen said. “Companies that will add value to local production and by that promote food security,” he added. Nigeria’s economy probably expanded 6.4 percent in 2013 and services, trade and agriculture will continue to drive growth this year, the Washington-based International Monetary Fund (IMF) said March 7. “As the Nigerian economy grows, we expect more companies here to require growth capital,” Stassen said.

AFDB reviews Strategic Crops in Africa project

HE Support to Agricultural Research for Development of Strategic Crops in Africa (SARD-SC) project, funded by the African Development Bank (AFDB) is holding its Mid-Term Review this month. In a statement the project said the Mid-Term Review (MTR) conducted by AFDB officials is to assess the progress made midway in the implementation of the project. Focus is on the achievements of the four mandate crops ( rice, wheat, cassava and maize) and the impact of the value chains on enhancing food and nutrition security in 20 of the bank’s regional member-countries in Africa. Two teams from AFDB are undertaking the review. One of the teams led by Principal Agricultural Economist at AFDB, Dr. Jonas Chianu, will commence the mission in ICARDA (International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas), Tunis office, Tunisia. ICARDA is the implementing centre for the wheat value chain of the project. The second Bank team led by Chief Agricultural Economist and Task Manager for

the project, Dr. Ibrahim Amadou, is scheduled to visit Benin and Nigeria. They will first travel to Benin Republic to review progress on AfricaRice activities on the rice value chain. The Project Implementing Unit of AfricaRice, the implementing center for the rice value chain, will make presentations and hold discussions on status of project implementation, critical issues and challenges. From May 13 to 14, a Stakeholders Consultation Workshop will be held in International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan; expected at the event are partners, scientists, researchers, and other stakeholders. The workshop will enable the various stakeholders of the project to listen to the review findings and recommendations and contribute through group discussions to shaping the draft review report presented at the workshop. The draft MTR report and Aide Memoire for the mission will be finalised by the Bank team and the Project consultant. The SARD-SC project is a multinational, CGIAR-led project

launched in December 2012, at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, Ibadan, Oyo State, with an overall objective to enhance food and nutrition security and contribute to poverty reduction in the African Development Bank’s low income Regional Member Countries (RMCs). The target RMCs are: Benin Republic, Cote d’Ivoire, DR Congo, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The project is a research, science and technology development project targeted at improving the productivity of and income from cassava, maize, rice and wheat. These are four of the six commodities that African Heads of States have, through the Comprehensive African Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP), defined as strategic crops for Africa. Consequently, the project would enhance the productivity and income of the four CAADP’s priority value chains.

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8 2015

COMMENTARY

“D

ELIBERATE collectively; surely collective deliberation is full of advantages for the Muslims”. Hadith of Prophet Muhammad (SAW)

A workshop on Islam and Fiscal Governance was organised by Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) with the support of the Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA) on April 29 and 30 at Grand Ibro Hotel Annex, Abuja. Participants in the workshop drawn from various geographical zones of Nigeria included Islamic Scholars media experts and non-governmental organisations. The Christian counterpart of the workshop had earlier been organised by the same CSJ. The workshop was aimed at building Muslim scholars’ capacity in public finance management with emphasis on link between good fiscal governance and the teachings of the Qu’ran and Sunnah. The objective was to strategise on the means of spreading the message of fiscal governance in Islam across the length and breadth of areas in Africa, particularly Nigeria, where Muslims interact with other religious adherents. Following extensive deliberations and debates at the workshop, participants issued the following concluding statement addressed to the incoming Federal Government being led by General Muhammadu Buhari:

FEMI ABBAS ON femabbas756@gmail.com 08115708536

Muslim workshop on fiscal governance

Insecurity The experience of the last two months in which Nigerian military forces, in collaboration with their colleagues from neighbouring countries, dealt serious blows to the insurgents in the north-east of Nigeria shows that the Boko Haram challenge is quite surmountable. The workshop therefore recommends as follows: That the government should intensify the military campaign against the insurgents without relenting; rehabilitate and rebuild the destroyed communities. The government should also launch a poverty alleviation programme in the affected areas; set out a de-radicalisation process that can soften the minds of radicalised groups with a view to curbing the spate of extremism in the country; proactively attend to security challenges across the federation as soon as such challenges arise and overhaul the security architecture to make it more effective.

• President-elect Muhammadu Buhari

tional Assembly, the Presidency and MDAs as well as official overseas trips and medical tourism. The workshop also recommended improved fiscal transparency in public budgets to income and expenditures of government on capital projects. In ad dition, the government should set up a National Council on Public Procurement, reduce the number of aircraft in the presidential fleet and scrap public funding of pilgrimages.

Niger Delta and envi- Government revenue ronment Apart from incomes from the oil secThe government should continue to solve the environmental and poverty challenges in the Niger Delta region through continued funding of the NDDC; evaluate and review the value for money on federal programmes in the Niger- Delta for enhanced transparency and accountability in the expenditure of resources accruing to the region. Government should take steps to mitigate the effects of climate change including desalination and erosion.

tor and other public enterprises, the government should standardise revenue collection and public accounting using the Lagos State model that improved Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) from less than N5billion a month some years ago to the current N23billion a month thereby making the state a viable one. Thus, all incomeearning Nigerians are brought into the tax net through sensitisation even as blockade on leakages is imposed.

Cost of governance

Corruption

With regard to the Niger Delta region, the workshop recommended as follows: That the incoming administration should review and implement the recommendations of the Steven Oronsaye-led committee on restructuring of federal Model Driven Architecture (MDAs) and Agencies while retaining agencies like the Fiscal Responsibility Commission review the formal and informal income of political office holders so as to bring them in line with societal standards. The government should cut down the cost of bureaucracy in the Na-

Government is seriously urged to break the myth of corruption by tackling impunity in public and private life through linkage of crimes to punishments. In this direction, while the seeking rejuvenation of the anti corruption agencies and their Codes of Conduct the workshop implores the government to ensure public declaration of assets by all public officials while special courts should be set up to try corruption. As a sign of seriousness in its determination to curb corruption, government should stop national awards and honour to people of questionable character, block the current leakages in oil theft which is projected in the region of 400,000

Power, employment and infrastructure The workshop also deliberated extensively on the situation of power, employment and infrastructures in the country as well as their implications for general security and concluded as follows: That the Federal Government should reform the energy sector by decentralizing the national rig and taking advantage of the abundant gas available in the country to partner with some serious private investors in putting the Nigeria on the path of industrialisation with a view to generating jobs for the multitude unemployed Nigerians. That as an oil-producing country, Nigeria’s establishment of petro-chemical industries as a major booster of modern economy is now a sine qua non especially at the States level. And the populace should be encouraged to buy locally made products to serve as incentive for the local industrialists and entrepreneurs. An example should be drawn from Saudi Arabia, a fellow OPEC member in this sphere. That with stable electric power and effective utilisation of oil and gas to turn Nigeria into an industrial nation the problem of unemployment will automatically be solved and the fear of insecurity will become a forgotten issue especially if agriculture is formally put on the front burner of the national economy.

‘Apart from incomes from the oil sector and other public enterprises, the government should standardise revenue collection and public accounting using the Lagos State Profile Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) is a model that im- non-governmental, non-profit and proved Internally non-partisan organisation registered with the Corporate Affairs Generated Revenue sion as a Company Limited Commisby Guar(IGR) from less than antee. It was established to introduce proN5billion a month fessionalism in civil society work and use social entrepreneurship to prosome years ago to to vide cutting edge services to enhance the current and deepen economic, social and pochange. N23billion a month litical It is a Company Limited by Guaranunder Nigerian law. Its vision is thereby making the tee that of a Nigeria where social justice state a viable one’ informs public decision making. And to 600,000 barrels per day and launch a cultural orientation against corruption in partnership with faith-based organisations.

Economy As a matter of urgency, the Federal Government should diversify the Nigerian Economy vertically and horizontally away from sheer concentration on oil and gas sector and assist the legislative arm to pass the Petroleum Industry Bill into law as a way of overhauling the oil and gas industry. Also, it is necessary to invest heavily in gas gathering for domestic and export markets especially by taking advantage of the West and Central African regional markets which may involve appropriate pricing of gas to motivate investors and stoppage of gas flaring.

Education That the government should endeavour to refocus the country’s educational system towards national building rather than the current meal ticket that it stands to be. For education to entail the valued modern day utility it must be tied to productivity rather than mere bureaucracy and Nigeria must key into this.

Agriculture To add value to agriculture and drastically reduce hunger in the country there is dire need to intensify governmental approach to the value of raw farm products before export by providing necessary incentives for small scale farmers who are helpless in their endeavours. This will ensure commercial agriculture and guarantee food sufficiency and security in the land.

its mission is to mainstream social justice in all facets of public life.

Objectives The main objectives of CSJ are to:contribute to the development and implementation of national laws and policies on social rights and justice in accordance with international best practices;promote accountability, transparency and value for money in public finance management;monitor the extent of Nigeria’s compliance with ratified international standards on social rights and justice;provide a resource base and enhance the exchange of information on matters related to social justice;promote popular participation and gender mainstreaming in public decision making;promote wealth creation and poverty reduction strategies as tools for social justice;broaden the constituency of professionals interested in development, wealth creation and poverty reduction by maintaining a multi disciplinary network of professionals committed to work for the realisation of these objects. The key programme focus of the Centre include: Public Finance Management; Fiscal Responsibility; Public Procurement; Audit Reforms; Pro-Poor and Rights-Based Approaches to Budgeting; Political Finance Reforms; Power Sector Reforms and Rights Enhancement. A responsible government must be for the people and not for the ‘peckers’.While wishing the incoming administration a pleasant tenure the workshop reminds the President-Elect of the promises he made during his campaigns and urged him to fulfill those promises with the fear of God in mind. The Communiqué was jointly signed by Eze Onyekpere, Lead Director, CSJ Alhaji Femi Abbas, Chairman Media Committee, Nigerian Supreme Council of Islamic Affairs (Resource Person), Mallam Umar Rufai (Author of the Islam and Fiscal Governance Manual) published by CSJ.

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

NEWS Five killed as Boko Haram attacks Niger Republic village

O fewer than five people were killed when militants from Boko Haram Islamist group attacked a village in southwestern Niger, two Niger military officers said yesterday. The attack occurred overnight Tuesday to Wednesday in the village of Koukodou near the Nigerian border in Niger’s Dosso region. “The terrorists killed five villagers and burned houses and two vehicles,” said an army officer deployed in the region, who asked not to be named as he was not authorised to speak to the press. A second officer said the raiders looted homes and shops before withdrawing back across the border into Nigeria. Boko Haram, which is seeking to establish an Islamist

emirate in northeast Nigeria, has killed thousands of people during a six-year insurgency, but attacks in Niger are relatively rare. The governor of Niger’s Diffa region ordered the evacuation of thousands of people living on islands on Lake Chad last week follow-

ing a deadly attack there by Boko Haram militants late last month. A coalition including Nigeria and neighbours Chad, Niger and Cameroon has recorded a string of significant military victories against the Islamist group in recent months.

Nigeria’s military has rescued hundreds of women and children who had been kidnapped by Boko Haram and were being detained in Sambisa Forest, where the army is attempting defeat the Islamist group in one of its final strongholds.

Fuel scarcity bites harder

S the scarcity of petroleum products continued to bite harder across the country, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and its downstream subsidiary, the Pipelines and Products Marketing Company (PPMC) yesterday said it has 1.2 billion litres in stock. The figure translates to

•NNPC: we’ve 1.2b litres From John Ofikhenua, Abuja

31 days sufficiency going by the 40 million daily consumption of the product in the country. The Managing Director of PPMC, Prince Haruna Momoh spoke in a statement through the corporation’s Group General Manager, Group Public

Affairs, Mr Ohi Alegbe in Abuja . He said that 21 additional vessels laden with petroleum products are offshore Lagos waiting to berth. He said the NNPC had made adequate arrangements to ensure energy sufficiency in the country and reassured motorists that the noticeable queues at the filling

Police seek owner of recovered huge cash in Abuja building

HE Special AntiRobbery Squad (SARS), of the Police has recovered a large sum of money in a bag hidden in an uncompleted building in Abuja. Spokesman for the command, ASP Anjuguri Manzah, announced this in a statement in Abuja yesterday. The statement said the money was recovered in a building located on Zuba-Giri axis of the territory. The statement did not disclose the amount recovered. It asked anyone who might have connection with the money to come to the Public Relations Officer of the command with proof of ownership for collection. “Such persons should come with proof of ownership, including stating the exact sum

of money, the denomination, the colour of the bag and the circumstances that led to the loss”, it said. The statement said the recovery was evident that the command was alive to its responsibility and that its proactive crime fighting measure was yielding desired result. Manzah, in another statement, warned the public against obstructing police personnel from carrying out their duties. The statement reminded the public that obstructing police personnel from carrying out their lawful duty constituted a criminal offence contrary to Section 148 of the Penal Code. It described as unacceptable attempt by some persons to stop policemen from carrying out their lawful duty at “Pan Taker’’ in Mpape on Wednesday. “To forestall future occurrence, the Commissioner of Police has ordered a full scale investigation into the incident and to bring the perpetrators to book’’, it said.

WAEC cancels results

HE National Examina tions (NEC) Commit tee of West African Examination Council (WAEC) yesterday said it had cancelled results of candidates involved in examination malpractices at the 2014 examinations. Mr. Damianus Ojijeogu of the Public Affairs Department of WAEC spoke in a statement in Lagos. He said the decision was taken at the 59th meeting of the committee. The statement noted that the committee reviewed a report on irregularity and special and clemency cases arising from the conduct of the May/June 2014 West African Senior School Certificate (WASSCE) at the meeting. The statement added that the committee considered a report on the conduct of the November/December 2014 WASSCE, including irregularity cases arising from the conduct of the examination.

Amosun mourns Adebanjo

GUN State Governor Ibikunle Amosun has described the late Otunba Olu Adebanjo, a Special Adviser to former President Shehu Shagari, as a notable pillar of the progressives at both state and national level. Amosun, who was accompanied to the Idowa home of Pa Adebanjo in Odogbolu Local Government by top government functionaries in less than two hours after his transition, said the deceased apart from his notable role as a father, community and religious leader, was a force to be reckoned in the All Progressives Congress (APC). He said that the Ijebu high chief who died at 84, left lasting legacies in his service to humanity, pointing out that, “Papa contributed immensely to his second term victory at the polls.” “One of the notable pillars of the progressives in Ogun State and Nigeria is gone. He stood solidly with us despite his old age and contributed immensely to my second term victory.”

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

EQUITIES NIGERIAN STOCK EXCHANGE

DAILY SUMMARY AS AT 07-05-15

Access Bank’s shareholders laud N13.7b dividend payout

HAREHOLDERS of Access Bank yesterday approved the recommendation by the board for a distribution of N13.73 billion as cash dividends for the 2014 business year as the management of the bank assured that the bank is well placed to brace industry headwinds and deliver better returns to shareholders. At the annual general meeting in Lagos, shareholders commended the directors’ decision to distribute about one-third of the year’s net profit as cash dividends, noting that the directors balanced the shareholders’ interest with future growth need. The board of the bank had recommended distribution of additional N8.01 billion as cash dividends for the 2014 business year, bringing total dividend for the year to N13.73 billion. Accordingly, shareholders would receive a final dividend per share of 35 kobo in addition to interim dividend of 25 kobo paid earlier, totaling a dividend per share of 60 kobo. The company had paid the same rate for the 2013 business year. The final dividend

•Access Bank promises better returns

Oyebode, assured that the bank would continue to drive its growth by maintaining became payable immedi- strong capital and liquidity ately it was approved yester- and ensuring effective risk day. management to reduce cost. President, Association for According to him, Access the Advancement of Rights Bank remains committed to of Nigerian Shareholders the goal of reaching the pin(AARNS), Dr Farouk Umar, nacle in Nigeria and Sub-Sacommended the improve- haran Africa financial marment in the performance of kets. the bank in 2014 in spite of Managing director, Access industry-wide headwinds oc- Bank Plc, Mr Herbet Wigwe, casioned by tight regulatory said the bank’s $400 million policies. Eurobond and recent N58 bilHe noted that the total divi- lion rights issue would put the dend payout of 60 kobo was bank in good stead to stay comparatively better than in- ahead of regulatory changes dustry average, expressing and implementation of new optimism that the ongoing standards. growth initiatives including He said the bank was proacbranch expansion and diver- tive with its capital raising sification of businesses would plan in the immediate past increase performance in the year adding that the bank future. would maintain strong risk In his remarks, president, management strategy to conProgressive Shareholders As- tinue to ensure a healthy fisociation of Nigeria (PSAN), nancial institution. Mr Boniface Okezie said the He said the bank would 2014 performance was com- place more emphasis on remendable and urged the bank tail business and continue to to sustain the growth tempo. improve customer satisfacIn his address to the share- tion across all business lines holders, chairman, Access to enhance stakeholders reBank Plc, Mr Gbenga turn on investment. DAILY SUMMARY AS AT 07 -05-15 By Taofik Salako Capital Market Editor

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

MONEYLINK

CBN auctions N150.6b in Treasury Bills •Stanbic IBTC to raise N24b

HE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) raised N150.60 billion ($756.78 million) in Treasury Bills, with yields mixed compared with the previous sale last month, the apex bank said yesterday. The yield on the threemonth bill was stable at 10.09 per cent, the same as at the April 22, auction. The CBN sold N45.17 billion in the three-month paper. A total of N23.43 billion was sold in the six months paper at 12.89 per cent, higher than the 12.80 percent yield at the last auction, while N82 billion worth

Stories by Collins Nweze

of the one-year paper was sold at 13.39 per cent against 12.99 per cent last month. Investors - mostly domestic banks and pension funds - submitted bids worth a total of N329.97 billion against N669.66 billion at last month’s auction. Meanwhile, Stanbic IBTC Holdings to raise N24 billion in a rights

issue once shareholders approve the transaction, the lender said. Stanbic IBTC, majority owned by South Africa’s Standard Bank , said it would seek approval at a general meeting on June 3. The bank’s first quarter pretax profit fell 46 per cent to N4.81 billion ($24 million) versus the same period last year. Stanbic did not give a reason for the decline in profit but said in a statement that revenue rose to N33.73 billion for the period to end-March from N30.22 billion a year ago.

Wema promises to do better

•CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele

Fidelity Bank pays 18 kobo dividend to shareholders

IDELITY Bank yesterday ob tained shareholders’ endorse ment to pay 18 kobo per ordinary share of 50 kobo dividend to investors whose names appeared on the bank’s Register of Members as at the close of business on April 17. The bank’s directors have proposed the dividend for the financial year ended December 31, 2014. This makes it a decade the lender has consistently paid dividend to shareholders. Speaking yesterday at the bank’s annual general meeting held in Lagos, its Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Nnamdi Okonkwo noted that the 2014 performance is a positive reinforcement of the medium term strategic objectives anchored on improving the efficiency of the balance sheet; growing the retail and SME businesses; focusing on niche corporate banking segments; increased migration of customers to electronic channels and improving the customer experience across all service channels.

He explained that the bank has a solid platform for growth, underpinned by strong customer loyalty and significant investments in physical and electronic distribution channels. “Our retail banking strategy gathered increased momentum in 2014 with the bank acquiring over 471,000 new retail customers, consumer loans growing by over 21 per cent and core low-cost retail deposit by 18 per cent which

lowered our average cost of customer deposits,” he said. The bank chief said that operational efficiency improved as the bank leveraged on alternative electronic channels to reduce the cost of operations adding that the efficiency gains saw operating expenses, excluding regulatory costs, grow by just three per cent in 2014 which was significantly below the inflation rate. On sustaining efficiency and cost

effective service quality, Okonkwo explained that the bank communicated and implemented a service programme centered on building a superior customer service franchise on the back of product innovation and service turnaround time early in 2014. He stressed that the programme was designed to improve the quality of services by speeding up processes and reducing response time to customer enquiries/complaints.

Diamond Bank sharpens entrepreneurs’ skills

IAMOND Bank Plc yesterday held its 51st BusinessXpress Enterprise Series during which its executives and other facilitators helped Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs’) operators in horning their entrepreneurial skills. Retail Manager, Diamond Bank Plc, Aisha Ahmad told the participants that the bank provides proposition for every of its customers on how they can succeed in the business. She said issues the lender takes access to capital, improved human capital devel-

opment and people’s skills very seriously. She said SMEs operators are expected to keep proper accounting to enable them have access to the right funds that will drive their businesses. Ahmad said seminar is an opportunity for participants to share ideas and learn from strengths and weaknesses of each operator. “Diamond Bank continues to improve what it gives to customers. We have listening earns and I therefore urge you to keep faith with us,” she advised.

Co-Founder & Executive Director, Falcon Corporation Limited, Mrs. Audrey Joe-Ezigbo who was the keynote speaker, said most companies started as SMEs and that it is the small companies that grow to become multinationals in the future. She advised the participants to be resilient and committed to their businesses ensuring that they build solid pillars on which the enterprise stands. She said that working and having a determination to succeed makes one to succeed.

EMA Bank Plc has as sured the shareholders the lender will make more profit in 2015, its Chairman, Mr. Adeyinka Asekun said. He said the bank will consolidate last year’s successes this financial year. He said the 2014 financial year was an eventful one, as the first half of the year went on well, with buoyant growth and a stable Nigeria economy. However, by the second half of the year, the nation was initially faced with a viral epidemic that was eventually contained. He said despite the regulatory tightening and sociopolitical headwinds, the bank was able to make progress during the year. Asekun said the bank will continue to evolve even in the coming months as it explores new frontiers in business development, service delivery and settlement platforms. “We will expand our footprint in 2015 in an efficient manner in order to get maximum returns on investment,” he said. He said the bank remained focused on its core areas of expertise especially the retail and commercial segment of the market as it navigated the systematic headwinds of the second half of the year. Specifically, the Coordinator Ibadan Shareholders Association, Mr. Shola Abodunrin said, “We want dividend for our investments. We cannot be investing our money without anything to show for it. We have exercised patient enough and we want the bank to do all it can to pay us dividend next year,” he said.

MEMORANDUM QUOTATIONS AFRINVEST W. A. EQUITY FUND ARM AGGRESSIVE GROWTH BGL NUBIAN FUND BGL SAPPHIRE FUND CANARY GROWTH FUND CONTINENTAL UNIT TRUST CORAL INCOME FUND FBN FIXED INCOME FUND FBN HERITAGE FUND FBN MONEY MARKET FUND FIDELITY NIG FUND • UBA BALANCED FUND • UBA BOND FUND • UBA EQUITY FUND • UBA MONEY MARKET FUND

126.04 9.17 1.12 1.19 0.63 1.39 1,744.73 1,104.77 112.34 121.16 1.67 1.1978 1.3117 0.7319 1.1349

125.82 9.08 1.12 1.19 0.62 1.33 1,744.73 1,104.00 111.75 120.30 1.62 1.1912 0.7203 0.7203 1.1349

ETI CILEASING FIDSON HONYFLOUR CAP ASHAKACEM MAYBAKER COSTAIN INTENEGINS AFRIPRUD

O/PRICE 22.28 0.56 3.00 3.61 37.44 19.50 1.63 0.79 0.53 2.89

C/PRICE 24.55 0.60 3.15 3.79 39.31 20.47 1.71 0.82 0.55 2.99

CHANGE 2.27 0.04 0.15 0.18 1.87 0.97 0.08 0.03 0.02 0.10

LOSERS AS AT 07-05-15

SYMBOL

O/PRICE

C/PRICE

FOREX RATES (NairaVs Dollar) April 1, 2015

Inflation: Febraury

8.4%

Monetary Policy Rate

13.0%

Foreign Reserves

$28.2b

Oil Price (Bonny Light/b)

$67.91

CHANGE

Interbank ($/N)

199.00

Black Market ($/N)

215.00

London Inter-bank Offered Rates (LIBOR)

Money Supply (M2)

GAINERS AS AT 07-05-15

SYMBOL

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

N16.42 trillion.

Credit to private Sector (CPS)

N17.2 trillion

Primary Lending Rate (PLR)

16.5%

Tenor 1 Month 2 Months 3 Months 6 Months 12 Months

April 31

May 6

Rate)%

Rate (%)

0.1735 0.2147 0.2615 0.3841 0.6709

0.1715 0.2108 0.2626 0.3857 0.6744

Nigerian Stock Market Indices NIGERIAN INTER-BANK OFFERED RATES (NIBOR)

Tenor

12-02-15 Rate (%) Rate (%) 13-02-15

Overnight (O/N)

14.683

76.583

15.033

15.977

15.809

17.177

16.493

17.908

Statistics All Share Index Mkt Cap (NGN’bn) Deals Volume (mn) Value (NGN’mn)

4 May 34,649.3 11.8 3,385 564,28 6,087.80

5 May 29,383.93 9,804.36 3,714 377,75 6,568.66

GOVT. SECURITIES YIELD – SECONDARY MARKET

UNITYBNK

3.04

2.75

-0.29

ABCTRANS

0.60

0.57

-0.03

169.00

160.56

-8.44

T-bills - 91

12.44

11.00

10.50

-0.50

T-bills - 182

13.85

MCNICHOLS

1.55

1.48

-0.07

T-bills - 364

13.92

NASCON

8.94

8.55

-0.39

Bond - 3yrs

15.92

CUSTODYINS

4.38

4.20

-0.18

NESTLE

935.75

900.00

-35.75

Bond - 5yrs

17.22

WAPIC

0.55

0.53

-0.02

Bond - 7yrs

16.59

GUINNESS CCNN

Transaction Dates 03/02/2015 3/12/2014 1/12/2014

Amount Offered in ($) 500m 400m 350m

Amount Sold in ($) 499.93m 399.97m 349.96m

Tenor

Feb. 13, 2015

Rates

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

NEWS Card Readers: police question six INEC workers in Abia From Ugochukwu Ugoji-Eke, Umuahia

HE zone 9 police command in Umuahia has invited six Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) workers for questioning for allegedly attempting to remove sensitive materials from the office on Monday. Two workers were arrested on Tuesday for unlawful possession of seven Card Readers and result sheets. This brings the number of INEC workers in custody to eight. The suspects in custody include the Information Communication and Technology head, Herbert Ejiofor and Nnamdi Nwabuko. The new workers, who were invited, are Amauche Dike, Charles Mba, Nkem Ichita, Uche Enyioma and Innocent Dire, workers in the ICT department and secretary to the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Mrs. Esther David.

Ebonyi govt accuses lawmakers of embezzlement T HE Ebonyi State government has accused members of the state House of Assembly of embezzling constituency allowances released to them by the state government. This is part of resolutions reached at this week’s state executive council meeting. Commissioner for Information, Commerce and Industry Dr. Ifeanyi Ikeh briefed reporters after the meeting in Abakaliki that the lawmakers refused to utilise

•Lawmakers shun 2015 budget From Ogochukwu Anioke, Abakaliki

the funds for the benefits of their constituencies. “Government observed with dismay that the constituency allowance approved for the lawmakers to initiate projects and develop their

constituents and constituencies were mismanaged. “The lawmakers have not demonstrated any level of improvement in the lives of both the constituents and constituencies in the past years.” He urged the incoming governor, Chief Dave Umahi, to start his much

talked about corruption fight from the House, if his administration is to be fair on the war against corruption as, according to him, over 80 per cent of the lawmakers were re-elected. The commissioner described as ineptitude, the refusal of the lawmakers to pass the 2015 budget. “The actions of the lawmakers in recent past had cost the state a lot of damage,” Ikeh said.

Anambra Tribunal begins sitting •We won’t pervert justice, says chairman HE Anambra State Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Awka has warned that any attempt to sway the panel into perverting the course of justice will be resisted. The chairman of the threemember panel, Justice Joseph Aganaba, gave the warning during the tribunal’s first sitting. Other members of the panel are Justice I.B Garba and Justice N.K Hamidu. It was observed that four petitions were filed for the senatorial election, 12 for House of Representative election and 14 for the State Assembly elections. Justice Aganaba said proceedings would be guided by the Electoral Act and the Constitution. The decisions of the Tribunal would be based on facts and evidence before it. “Election matters are seri-

•The Brigade Commander, 32 Artillery Brigade, BrigGen Aliyu A Momoh presenting a souvenir to the General Manager, Positive 102.5 FM Mr Olushola Adewale during his visit to the Brigade Headquarters in Akure, Ondo State

From Nwanosike Onu, Awka

ous matters that cannot be treated with levity, and I wish to state that any attempt to sway us will not work. “It is the quality of the evidence and what the constitution says that will determine who wins or loses. We shall discharge our duties in line with the constitution and the law. “The tribunal is set up to ensure that those who won the election were elected,” Aganaba said.

‘Election matters are serious matters that cannot be treated with levity, and I wish to state that any attempt to sway us will not work.’

Nnaji caught in primitive power show •Continued

from back page

Since then, the management of EEDC has refused to let go and the Federal Government would not take a stand and affirm Aba Power’s agreement and legitimacy over Aba metropolis. Hear it from Prof. Nnaji: “…The painful fact is that this critical issue has been left festering since November 2013. It costs the company $3.5 million in bank interest charges alone; plus more than N30 million for insurance coverage; and other operational expenses every single month to carry a project that is not yielding any revenue due to deliberate, hostile and crippling action of Enugu Disco and the BPE over 15 months ago.” He noted further that about eight committees, including committees of the National Council on Privatization (NCP) and the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) and the Ministry of Power have investigated the matter and came up with the same recommendation: government should respect its agreement with Aba Power. “This travesty has been cruel to us all,” Nnaji cries out in his piece. “We have made all efforts to get the BPE to correct what (for choice of a better word) may be called an “error”. So far, they have not yielded to doing the correct thing. Rather, they have sought to justify this error and have sought to justify this error and have continued to politicize the situation unnecessarily…” Recall that Prof. Nnaji, acclaimed to be the best of President Goodluck Jonathan’s ministers was ‘removed’ unceremoniously as Power Minister over the privatization of Nigeria’s power assets. Recall also that the EEDC was controversially awarded to the current owners in spite of vehement protests by stakeholders from its zone of operation. EEDC has the entire five state of the southeast under its control – a very large expanse which it has managed very shoddily so far. Why would it illegally hold on to Aba which had been ceded to another if it has over a dozen other major cities of the southeast to tend to? It is sad that the Jonathan administration chose to grow a reputation as a government that breaches it agreements and makes light of serious matters of state. Petty politicking and impunity almost became its brand identification signature. If a man of Prof. Nnaji’s caliber could be meted with this manner of treatment one can only wonder what happens to ordinary Nigerians in the course of their routine relations with government. One is only at a loss as to why Nnaji and his group did not drag the Jonathan administration to court over this blatant show of primitive power.

•Scenes of multiple accidents on Otedola Bridge that left three persons severely injured...yesterday.

Assets forfeiture: Appeal Court reserves judgement on Nwude’s case

HE Court of Appeal in Lagos yesterday reserved judgement in an appeal filed by Chief Emmanuel Nwude, challenging his conviction by an Ikeja High Court for fraud. The High Court ordered his assets forfeited to the victim. Justice Joseph Oyewole, convicted Nwude and two others Mrs. Amaka Anajemba and Nzeribe Okoli for defrauding a Brazilian banker, Nelson Sakaguchi, in a scam described as the biggest heist ever in the world. They were sentenced to imprisonment for the fraud, following a plea bargaining with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). Justice Oyewole ordered

By Precious Igbonwelundu

Nwude and his companies Emrus Nigeria Ltd and African Shelter Nigeria Ltd - to make a restitution of $110 million to the Sakaguchi. Also, some properties in Lagos and Abuja, vehicles and corporate stocks belonging to Nwude and his companies were ordered forfeited to the victim. Dissatisfied, Nwude in his appeal filed by his lawyer, Dapo Olanipekun, prayed the appellate court to set aside his conviction. Nwude argued that his sentence was unknown to law and not contained in the

Act establishing the offence. He said he was made to forfeit assets that he acquired before the offence was committed, urging the court to overrule the lower court. But EFCC counsel, Rotimi Jacobs (SAN) urged the court to dismiss the appeal, saying Nwude decided to change his plea to “’guilty’’ after the prosecution had called six witnesses. Jacobs told the court that the appellant voluntarily pleaded guilty and forwarded lists of assets to be forfeited. According to him, the appellant signed on each document containing the assets, adding that the properties have been handed

over to the Brazilian. Jacobs argued that the fact that Nwude’s lawyer in his allocutus told the lower court that his client forfeited properties allegedly acquired before the offence was committed was not sufficient. In his submission, counsel to Leo Wallace Cochrance and Leo Wallace Cochrance Junior (3rd and 4th respondents) respectively Ebun Sofunde (SAN) argued that there was no evidence that any of the assets forfeited was acquired before the offence was committed. He urged the court to dismiss the appeal and uphold the lower court’s verdict.

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

NEWS

STF is at war with militia in Plateau, says spokesman

HE Special Task Force (STF) keeping the peace on the Plateau has said it is at war with a militia group and not civilians. “We are at war with a militia group that killed six of our men a week ago. We have no quarrel with any civilian populace,” STF spokesman Capt. Iweha Ikedichi said in Wase. Ikedichi told the News

Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in a telephone interview that the militia group had allegedly killed six soldiers at Kurmi, a border town between Taraba and Plateau states. He said three soldiers were missing. According to him, men of the STF and fighters from the 3 Division of the Nigerian Army at Rukuba are engaged

in the fight with the armed group. Ikedichi said: “It is not true that we are fighting civilians or that we went to Wase to sack any community. The fight is between our men and the militia group. “Wadata and Kadarko communities in Wase were only asked to vacate for security purpose. That does not

translate to sacking the communities, as is being insinuated.” The STF spokesman added: “For some time now, there have been series of attacks at Kurmi settlement, where innocent civilians, particularly women and children, were killed.” He recalled that it was last Tuesday’s attack, which affect-

One feared dead in Kogi cattle market attack

N unidentified cow dealer was killed on Wednesday by suspected Fulani herdsmen at the Adavi Cattle Market in Adavi Local Government Area of Kogi State.

From James Azania, Lokoja

It was learnt that the money belonging to the cow dealer, said to be an Ebira, was stolen by his attackers. In what appeared like a reprisal, those sympathetic to

the cow dealer allegedly attacked Fulani herdsmen in the area and burnt the cattle market. Police spokesman Shola Collins Adebayo, an Assistant Superintendent of Police

(ASP), said the trader was ambushed by the gunmen and injured. Though the spokesman did not elaborate, it was learnt that the cattle dealer died from the injury he sustained in the attack.

•Gombe State Governor Ibrahim Dankwambo (right), presenting the key to a new bus to the Chairman, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Gombe State, Malam Haruna Kamara, duringa solidarity visit to the governor in Gombe ...yesterday.

ed nine soldiers, that forced the STF to engage the militia group in a fierce fight. Ikedichi said: “As we speak, our men are in a serious fight with the militia group at Kurmi. This is being handled professionally and in accordance with military ethics. “Some of our men have been stationed to watch over

civilians within these communities so that they are not hurt in anyway.” The STF spokesman urged the public to remain calm because the task force was on top of the situation. He assured that the task force would uproot the militia group and restore peace to the affected communities.

Court stops Niger Assembly from impeaching Aliyu From Jide Orintunsin, Minna

IGER State Governor Babangida Aliyu, on Wednesday evening, got a Minna High Court interim injunction restraining the House of Assembly from impeaching him. Justice Idris Evuti granted the three prayers as deposed to in an affidavit by the Commissioner for Justice, Abdullahi Bawa Wuse. The suit was filed by the governor against Speaker Isah Kawu, the Clerk, the Assembly and two others. The Executive has thus recognised the leadership of Kawu, who was elected on Monday, following the impeachment of Adamu Usman and three other principal officers by 19 of the 25 lawmakers in the Assembly. The applicant, in a motion ex parte moved by his lawyer, Rotimi Ojo, prayed for an order of interim injunction restraining the defendants jointly and severally from setting in motion any process of impeachment of the applicant, pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice. He also prayed that the defendants be restrained from impeaching and accepting any nomination of any purported candidate for the position of Acting Governor of Niger State. The court has fixed May 27 for hearing of the substantive case. Efforts to get Kawu last night were unsuccessful. The Assembly was still under lock and key yesterday. Clerk Mohammed Kagara said he had not been served the court order. The governor, on Wednesday, exonerated himself from the crisis at the Assembly. He said the face-off “is internal”.

Deportees: Nigerien soldiers drove us out From Duku Joel, Damaturu

HE Nigerians from the Republic of Niger have said they were chased out by the Nigerien soldiers. But the National Emergency Agency (NEMA) said they were evacuated by the government of Niger Republic. NEMA also said it had recorded over 6,000 Nigerians fleeing Niger to Nigeria. NEMA’s Director of Search and Rescue Operation, Air Commodore Charles Otegbade, spoke with our correspondent at Geidam in Yobe State, from where the fleeing citizens were entering Nigeria.

Second NYSC batch to resume June 2 From Bukola Amusan, Abuja

Chairman, Lagos State Local Government Service Commission, Alhaji Oluwole Moshood Ojikutu (middle); Executive Secretary, Amuwo Odofin Local Government, Deaconess Modupe Ajibola-Ojodu (left) and the Council Manager, Mr. Segun Ajayi, while inspecting the clearing of the drainage system at Raji Rasaki Estate road, Amuwo Odofin area...yesterday.

Long queues of motorists at Kaduna fuel stations

ESIDENTS of Kaduna State have continued to witness long queues at filling stations, following continued scarcity of petroleum products in the area, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports. NAN reports that the scarcity of fuel had been experienced in the state since November 2014, with only a few outlets selling the product at the official rate of N87 per

litre. A check by NAN revealed that some filling stations outside the main town sold the fuel at N120 to N130 per litre. Malam Dauda Ibrahim, a motorist on the queue in the Total filling station, NEPA Roundabout, said he spent five hours to buy fuel at the official price of N87. He said: “It is unfortunate that this issue of fuel scarcity

has not been addressed by the government even when the citizens are suffering.” Malam Abubakar Shehu, another motorist, said he bought the product at N120 at the Shema filling station in Tudun Wada. Shehu described the situation as “dubious”. He called for the intervention of the relevant government agencies. Enoch Usman, a motorist,

blamed outlets for hoarding the products to create artificial scarcity. He said: “When they have supply, they sell for just three to four hours; later, they divert the products to fuel vendors, popularly called black marketers.” Usman said even when there was scarcity in the fuel stations, the vendors always had fuel to sell to motorists at a higher cost.

HE management of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has said the second batch of corps members posted to Benue State for this year’s Batch ‘A’ will resume at the camp on June 2, instead of May 5 in their call-up letters. In a statement yesterday in Abuja by its Director of Public Relations, Bose Aderibigbe, the NYSC said the orientation course at the Benue camp, like in some other states, was planned to hold in two streams. The statement said the Stream I is scheduled to take place from May 5 to 25 and Stream II from June 2nd to 22. It explained that the Corps members assigned for the Stream II in Benue reported at the Camp between May 5 and 6, instead of their scheduled date of June 2 because of an error on their call-up letters. The NYSC added that the affected Corps members, who were originally scheduled to participate in the Stream II of the orientation course in Benue State, had been paid their transport fare to and fro the orientation camp, in line with their entitlements in the present circumstance. It said: “This is to enable them travel back home and return to camp on Tuesday, June 2.

Niger Assembly’s Clerk, others work under tree as police siege continues

HE police siege to the Niger State House of Assembly since Tuesday has forced the Clerk, Mohammed Kagara, the management and administrative workers to sit under a tree in front of a hotel near the Assembly’s complex. Over 200 armed policemen,

From Jide Orintunsin, Minna

agents of Department of State Security (DSS) and officers of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) have been occupying the Assembly’s complex. They locked out the lawmakers and the workers. But the police claimed that

nobody was denied access to the complex. They said their presence on the premises was to protect lives and property from attackers. As early as 10am yesterday, Kagara, two of his deputies - Shidu Salah and Bala Isah Ibrahim - were sitting under a

tree in front of Nothing Pass God Hotel, away from other |Assembly workers. Also under another tree was a set of senior workers, including the Director of Legal Services, Sheidu Rofia; Head of Legislative Department, Idris Adamu Kuta; Head of Budget and Planning,

Ahmed Musa and Head of Library Services, Ibrahim Gana. Others are: the Head of Information and Protocol, Sabo Adamu and the Head of Editorial, Shehu Moh’d Bida. Junior workers were discussing the development as they moved about. Some of them complained

that the police occupation denied them access to their personal effects, which were locked in their offices. Asked why he relocated to his new “office” under the tree, Kagara said: “We are all here just because of what we are seeing now. We hope it will soon be over.”

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

NEWS

Retirees to Jonathan: pay our arrears before May 29

UNDREDS of pensioners poured into the secretariat of the Ogun State Council of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Oke-Ilewo, Abeokuta, yesterday protesting alleged 10 months pension arrears owed them by the Federal Government. The retirees, who protested on the platform of Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP), appealed to President Goodluck Jonathan to

CTIVITIES in Abuja came to a halt yesterday, as President Goodluck Jonathan commissioned and inspected some projects. The exercise caused gridlock on major roads in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). Residents and commuters had to wait in heavy traffic for almost an hour because of the road blockage by security operators as the president inspected and commissioned Lugbe roads and tested the train at the Abuja light rail terminus. Other multi-billion naira projects inspected include the Abuja Light Rail project, the Abuja Airport Road and Kubwa Expressway in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). Jonathan said the projects have improved Abuja tremendously, expressing confidence that the incoming administration of President-elect Muhammadu Buhari would continue with government’s efforts at reviving and expanding the nation’s railway network. Jonathan said he would brief the President-elect on the issue before May 29 handover date. He harped on the need for a robust railway network to ease and reduce the cost of transportation in Nigeria.

From Ernest Nwokolo, Abeokuta

prevail on PENCOM to settle their arrears before he leaves government on May 29. They lamented that the non-payment of the arrears was affecting their survival, adding that over 20 of their members died from hunger and health challenges. The union’s National

Chairman, Samuel Kajusola, who spoke on behalf of the members, said they have noticed some aspects of the Pension Reform Act 2014, which the National Pension Commission (PENCOM) failed to implement. Kajusola, who expressed suspicion that their arrears might have been used to fund 2015 polls’ campaign, said such areas include computation and compilation of retirement benefits, review

of pension and non-payment of retirement benefits. According to him, pensioners across the country, who retired under the contributory pension scheme since August 2014 till date, were yet to have their “lump sum or monthly payment settled by PENCOM”. He said: “What do they want the retirees to be eating after serving Federal Government of Nigeria for 35 years meritoriously? We

•Road contractors owed N15b

•Jonathan (extreme left) and other officials test-riding a train during inspection of Abuja Rail Mass Transit Project...yesterday. From Augustine Ehikioya, Gbenga Omokhunu and Grace Obike, Abuja

The President thanked the FCT authorities and the Chinese Civil Engineering and Construction Company (CCECC) for bringing the project to fruition. He also congratulated Abuja residents who will enjoy the facility. He said: “I emphasise the need to develop an effective mass transit system in the

country. We cannot talk about mass transit using taxis, small cars and small buses even the luxury buses.” “It will be too expensive, until our rail system works; that is why we are emphasising on inter-city rail and intra city light rail systems.” “Of course, this government is leaving on May 29, but definitely, the incoming government will have to continue. This is a noble project; it

will benefit Nigerians , especially residents of the FCT.” Before the President and his entourage embarked on a train ride to Idu terminus, Minister for FCT, Bala Mohammed, said the entire stretch of the rail line will be completed in August. He said: “This project is driven by your grace with a robust financial plan that you bonded N150 billion for the project and that is why the time

From Okodili Ndidi, Owerri

that the Buhari’s administration should fight corruption headlong. Eze Obiefule, who is also the traditional ruler of Umudioka kingdom in Orlu Council Area of Imo State, observed that “when Buhari became the Head of State in 1984, the naira was at par with the dollar”. “In that respect, we are believing that his administration will better the economy of the state and put an end to corruption,” the traditional ruler said. He added that Jonathan’s administration was ruined by sycophants and aides with questionable backgrounds,

line has been easy to comply with and we have been able to take it to 98 per cent.” “The only remaining portion that is not completed is the bridge behind the Aso Villa. Otherwise, everything has been delivered and we are trying to look at the challenges of financing because we are owing the contractors about N10 to N15 billion on the two roads.” The President promised

From Uyoatta Eshiet, Uyo

He, however, urged him to, in the same spirit, take steps immediately to address all the 15-point demands of the Joint Health Sectors Union (JOHESU), which he had agreed to. Faniran said if their demands were not met, they might be forced to resume the suspended strike. The NUAHP President said they were determined to establish consultancy status for the union’s members as well as pursue the post of chief executive

that government would fulfils its obligations on the debts. “These projects have improved the face of Abuja tremendously and people who come to Abuja are full of praises because the roads are really making Abuja to look like a real modern city. “We are quite pleased with the progress of work; we will do our best to see that the commitments of government are met,” he assured.

I-G sets up Judges Protection Units (JPUs)

noting:”If Buhari wants to succeed, he should do away with sycophants and praise-singers and concentrate in rebuilding the nation so as not to disappoint millions of Nigerians that stood for change”. According to him, “after our emergency meeting, we have congratulated the President-elect and the All Progressives Congress (APC) leaders, especially Ogbonnaya Onu, John Sagaya and Babagana Kingibe, among others, and we urge Nigerians to rally round the incoming administration for effective results. “We are disturbed by the alarming rate of corruption in the country. It is simply unac-

ceptable to us that as an oil producing nation, we still import oil products while our refineries lie in ruins. We want the Buhari administration to address the rot in the oil sector and the power sector. The monarch, however, called for specific roles for traditional rulers in the constitution.

officers of Nigeria’s tertiary hospitals for them. He said the union would pursue court cases, agitation and negotiations to get what its members want. “The hopes of many allied health professionals, which had been dampened before now, are being resuscitated. “Attempts are now being made to establish consultancy status for our members, payment of specialist allowance and participation in the post of chief executive officers of our tertiary hospitals are being

pursued vigorously,” he said. Faniran, however, regretted that National Health Act did not mention the existing registered traded unions or recognising their roles in the healthcare services. According to him, the Act did not also provide for composition of Federal Ministry of Health despite the union’s strong position on the matter. He asked that the Federal Ministry of Health to reflect the various healthcare professional groups in the health sector with creation of directorates.

•Buhari

HE Acting Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Solomon Arase, has directed Command Commissioners of Police to immediately establish “Judges Protection Units (JPU)” for the protection of judges and courts in their respective areas of jurisdiction. This is contained in a statement by the Force Public Relations Officer, Mr. Emmanuel Ojukwu, yesterday in Abuja. The statement said the units were to ensure that the judiciary had adequate security to carry out their duties. It also said that the I-G had directed the commissioners to assign Assistant Commissioners of Police in charge of Training and Development to conduct training and orientation for personnel designated for the JPUs. The statement emphasised that personnel for the assignment must exhibit high sense of professionalism, courage, integrity, discipline and respect for human rights.

FRSC to provide additional 71 drivers’ licence centres From Bukola Amusan and Kehinde Ore, Abuja

T Health workers may resume suspended strike over demands T

HE Nigerian Union of Allied Health Professionals (NUAHP) has threatened to resume their suspended strike nationwide unless the Federal Government look into their 15-point demand and implement them. In his welcome address yesterday in Uyo during the opening of its 6th Triennial Delegates Conference, NUAHP National President, Felix Olukayode Faniran, appreciated President Goodluck Jonathan for taking steps to ensure the stability of the nation, even at a cost to his personal ambition.

“Pension Reform Act 2004 section (4) stipulated that retirees will ha v e n o t l e s s than 50 per cent of their last pay as monthly pension as at the date of their retirement. “None of the retirees enjoy this amount since the inception of the Act till date. Unfortunately, the portion has been expunged from the new Pension Reform Act 2014. What have we done to deserve this ugly treatment?”

Jonathan inspects rail, other projects in Abuja

Traditional rulers urge Buhari to probe missing $20b NNPC fund RADITIONAL rulers, under the aegis of the Association of Traditional Rulers of Nigeria, have called on the President-elect, Muhammadu Buhari, to investigate the missing $20 billion Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation’s (NNPC) fund to ensure that those behind the shady deal were brought to book. Its National President, His Royal Majesty, Eze Dr. Thomas Obiefule, who addressed reporters in Owerri, the Imo State capital, noted that the outgoing administration of President Goodluck Jonathan was not firm in the fight against corruption, advising

suspect that our money with PENCOM has been used for 2015 election campaign. “Retirees have been complaining seriously on meagre amount paid as monthly pension, either as monthly withdrawal or annuity. Contributory pensioners received only 20-25 per cent of their last pay as monthly pension, while a pensioner in the old pension scheme receives 80 per cent of his last pay as monthly pension.

HE Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) yesterday said it will soon create additional 71 centres for drivers’ licence to increase them to 200. The move, according to the Corps Marshal and Chief Executive of the FRSC, Boboye Oyeyemi, will assist in tackling some of the challenges encountered by people waiting to be captured. Oyeyemi, who spoke at a sensitisation programme organised in partnership with Cleen Foundation on the drivers licence application and renewal procedure, said the corps has renewed its commitment to the reform in the licensing system by investing more in workers’ capacity and development He, however, stated low uploading of data, racketeering and slow collection of printed original drivers licence cards as some of the challenges affecting the efficiency of the system. He, however, said the corps is also taking measures to address the isssues. “In tackling some of the observed challenges within the system, especially in the area of congestion of people waiting to be captured, we are creating additional 71 centres across the country to the existing 129,” he said. The Corps Marshal added that a more efficient distribution system is being put in place in other to ensure that printed permanent licences did not remain at the motor licensing offices without their owners promptly claiming them.

THE NATION FRIDAY MAY 8, 2015

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

FOREIGN NEWS

US, Saudi Arabia announce Yemen ceasefire

AUDI Arabia and the United States said yesterday a renewable, five-day cease-fire in Yemen's war would start soon to facilitate aid to millions of civilians in need, if Iranbacked rebels and their allies also agree to stop fighting. At a joint news conference, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said the kingdom would halt airstrikes in Yemen because it is determined to expand relief assistance to the Yemeni people. Saudi Arabia will provide $274

million in new assistance, he said. Secretary of State John Kerry said the so-called "humanitarian pause" wouldn't start for several days, enough time for diplomatic efforts to convince the Houthi rebels and their backers to accept the terms of the deal. He said aid organizations also needed time to coordinate the best strategy for getting food, fuel and medicine into and around the country. The announcement was made after Kerry met King

Salman and other top Saudi officials in Riyadh. Kerry praised the king for seeking a peaceful resolution to Yemen's war and for inviting "all relevant parties" to an upcoming peace conference in Saudi Arabia. Kerry said the cease-fire would mean "no bombing, no shooting" and no repositioning of forces. But he and al-Jubeir insisted the feasibility of the plan depended on the Houthis and the Iranians agreeing to it and not trying to exploit the

lull in fighting. They said they would provide an update Friday in Paris, where they will gather with the foreign ministers of other Arab countries. The cease-fire pledge comes as the rebels and supporters of former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh consolidate their hold over parts of the southern port city of Aden. The rebels captured the area's presidential palace, officials said Wednesday, in another sign of their resilience in the face of Saudi-led airstrikes.

Cote d’Ivoire, Mexico appoint Nigerians as honorary consuls

R. John Olatunde Ayeni, a Nigerian businessman has been appointed Honorary Consuls General of Cote d’Ivoire. His appointment was in recognition of his contribution towards the improved business relations between both countries. Also, another businessman, Adebayo Abayomi Adeyemo presented his letter of Commission as the Honorary Consul of Mexico to Nigeria. Ayeni who spoke shortly after presenting his letter of Commission to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Aminu Wali said that his responsibility is to promote continued mutual relations between Nigeria and Cote d’ivoire. He said he has been saddled with the responsibility of fos-

•Presents letters of commission From Vincent Ikuomola, Abuja

tering economic and cultural advancement and also to keep diplomatic relations open between both countries. He said: “For me it is an opportunity to serve and I am always in the service of humanity to encourage re?lationship between Nigeria and our other brother countries, especially our Francophone brother countries. “There lots that we can develop and derive from our union. It’s time for Africa to trade within Africa. We have the population, we have the resources and we have people who have the intelligence to make this continent great and that is the duty and the responsibility on the shoul-

ders of people like us who have been given the chance to encourage and build this bridge and create the avenue for cross border trading effectively. That is one of the pivotal reasons why I have been given this responsibility and I promise to do my best.” He also noted that one of the barriers to free trading among African states was the lack of information. He described multiple trade as another obstacle to free trading within the African continent. He therefore said that African countries have what it takes to emulate the European Union, explaining that African countries have the same heritage, history and culture. The Honorary Consul of Mexico who also spoke to

journalists said his responsibility is to promote mutual relations between Nigeria and Mexico. Adeyemi who is the first honorary consul of Mexico to Nigeria said “it is my responsibility to promote continued, mutually beneficial relations between Nigeria and Mexico: to foster economic and cultural advancement and to keep diplomatic relations open between both countries.” In the same development, Mrs. Hanna Einarsson, a Swedish also presented her letter of commission as a honorary consul of Sweden to Nigeria. In his remark, the minister of Foreign Affairs assured the honorary consuls of the government cooperations and also wished them well in their assignment,

Turkey,Saudi Arabia to help anti-Assad rebels

ASTING aside U.S. concerns about aiding extremist groups, Turkey and Saudi Arabia have converged on an aggressive new strategy to bring down Syrian President Bashar Assad. The two countries - one a democracy, the other a conservative kingdom - have for years been at odds over how to deal with Assad, their common enemy. But mutual frustration with what they consider American indecision has brought the two together in a strategic alliance that is driving recent rebel gains in northern Syria, and has helped strengthen a new coalition of anti-Assad insurgents, Turkish officials say. That is provoking concern

in the United States, which does not want rebel groups, including the al-Qaida linked Nusra Front, uniting to topple Assad. The Obama administration worries that the revived rebel alliance could potentially put a more dangerous radical Islamist regime in Assad's place, just as the U.S. is focused on bringing down the Islamic State group. A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issues, said the administration is concerned that the new alliance is helping Nusra gain territory in Syria. The coordination between Turkey and Saudi Arabia reflects renewed urgency and impatience with the Obama administration's policy in the region.

Luggage handler naps in plane's cargo hold

MERGENCY operators get lots of crazy calls, but few start like this. Caller: "Hello, I'm trapped in this plane and I called my job, but I'm in this plane." Operator: "You're where?" Caller: "I'm inside a plane and I feel like it's up moving in the air. Flight 448 can you please tell somebody (to) stop it." The frantic 911 call came just as the Alaska Airlines flight had taken off from

Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on Monday afternoon. The caller was a ramp agent who fell asleep in the plane's cargo hold. The cell phone call soon broke up, but the man was making himself known in other ways as the crew and passengers reported unusual banging from the belly of the Boeing 737. The pilot radioed air traffic control and said he would make an emergency landing.

NEWS

Buhari: Nigeria’s problem is corruption not ethnic, religious

RESIDENT-ELECT Muhammadu Buhari said yesterday that Nigerian leaders should practice what they preach. He said his government will rather kill corruption than allow it to kill Nigeria. He spoke when he received a delegation of All Progressives Congress (APC) leaders from Akwa Ibom State. It was led by the governorship candidate Obong Umana Okon Umana, who alleged massive inflation of results of elections in the state. Gen. Buhari said Nigeria’s major problem is neither ethnic nor religious but corruption which has remained endemic and entrenched. He recalled that in 2007, it was his fellow Muslims and fellow Fulani, who Justices of the Supreme Court, upheld the election of the late President Umaru Yar’Adua,

•Akwa Ibom votes were inflated, says Umana From Tony Akowe, Abuja

while those that said the election was flawed were not Fulani. He expressed confidence in the judicial system, saying: “I’m glad that you have gone to court too because you believe in the system as the right place to fight for your right and the right of the people you represent. I have gone to court three times and reached at the Supreme Court. “Not because I believe the system has changed, but this time around, in your own case, you were still denied even with the use of PVCs and the card readers. “That means they will never stop lying because the essence of the system itself is to protect the interests of the parties and the candidates whether it is the local govern-

ment elections, house of assembly, governorship, house of representatives, senate etc. “There is the need to go to the constituency, educate them, beg for their support and understanding, let them know the real essence according to law and to choose who they want to choose. Otherwise, we are wasting our time. I stand for that and that is why I chose to go to court, ending up at the Supreme Court. “I didn’t go to court because I could afford it financially or physically, but people who believe in stabilising the system helped me along the line. “Now the records are very clear, anybody who wants to study the political development of Nigeria cannot do that without getting the Supreme Court’s judgment of

those years, 2003, 2007 and 2011. “If you could recall in 2007, the Supreme Court was split into two. A six-man panel of justices was divided. Six justices led by Justice Oguntade, a Christian, a Yoruba man, Justice Aloma Mukthar and another Justice from Delta State said the election of 2007 was null and void because it was not conducted according to the law. “But former Chief Justice Dahiru Musdapher, a Fulani from Jigawa and another Justice from Taraba, also a Fulani said the election was not flawless but all the same, the PDP won and then the Chief Justice, a Muslim and a Nupe Man cancelled the votes with them so it was four against three. The point I want to make here is that the problem of Nigeria is not eth-

Supreme Court stops Constitution amendment Continued from page 4

Assembly (defendant) and the mandatory due processes provided for under the relevant sections of the extant Constitution. The plaintiff argued that the said purported Fourth Alteration Act 2015 contains many proposed amendments inconsistent with the spirit of federalism, separation of powers and checks and balances, all of which constitute the hallmark of the Constitution and democracy.

He also added that most of the provisions of the purported Fourth Alteration Act 2015 are contrary to public policy and good governance. The plaintiff, in its originating summons, asked the court to nullify and set aside Sections 3, 4, 12, 14, 21, 23, 36, 39, 40, 43 and 44 of the Fourth Alteration Act, 2015 purportedly passed by the defendant. The plaintiff also asked the court to determine two questions:

•Whether the proposed amendment to the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (hereinafter referred to as the Constitution) by the Defendant through sections 3, 4, 12, 14, 21, 23, 36, 39, 40, 43 and 44 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, ((Fourth Alteration) Act 2015 (hereinafter referred to as The Fourth Alteration Act 2015) which purportedly altered sections 8, 9, 34, 35, 39, 42, 45, 58, 84, 150, 174 and 211 of the Constitution with-

out compliance with the requirements of Section 9(3) of the Constitution is not unconstitutional, invalid, illegal, null and void? and •whether in the absence of compliance by the Defendant with the mandatory requirement of section 9(3) of the Constitution in the passage of the Fourth Alteration Act, 2015, the defendant can competently exercise its powers under section 58(5) of the Constitution to enable the purported Act to become Law?

nic or religious. It is corruption. “This is what we are fighting and that is why corruption is number three in my campaign. The first one is security, the north east, the Delta area where people are kidnapped and ransom are being demanded which people cannot afford. “The second one is unemployment, sixty per cent of Nigerians are youths, most of them, whether they went to school or not are unemployed and that is dangerous. So we have to get the issue of the economy right to make sure the jobs are made available and we should try to kill corruption before corruption kills Nigeria. “Let us practice what we preach as well, because corruption is fast becoming a culture and to try to control people is not an easy task but it must be done.” Umana said the hope of the people of the state for a free and fair election was frustrated by the state government, leading to loss of lives. Umana said: “The desire of our people for change was a natural outpouring of their disappointment with and neglect by the PDP-controlled Federal Government for 16 years, during which there was no federal presence in the state. Even the muchtalked about East-West Road could not be completed in those long years.

“During the campaigns, the people also complained of gross under-representation in federal appointments, even in the oil industry, where the state leads in crude oil and gas production. “While mentioning some of the developmental challenges facing our state, we would like to request that the Ibaka Deep Seaport should be treated as a priority project and completed by your administration to help ease the problem of unemployment facing youths in the state and the country at large. “The people had hoped that there would be free and fair elections in Akwa Ibom State for them to vote and bring in APC government at both the state and federal levels, so that the lot of the people of the state would change for the better. “However, it is a matter for regret and a point of great frustration that our votes for you in Akwa Ibom State were not allowed to count during the presidential election because of massive vote fraud and wanton violence. “We would like to report that the gubernatorial and house of assembly elections held in the state on 11 April 2015 witnessed even worse degrees of electoral fraud and violence, leading to many deaths and injuries. “All the violence and electoral malpractices were perpetrated by a private army set up and funded by the state governor, Chief Godswill Akpabio.”

THE NATION FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015

SHOWBIZ

Plans begin for AFRIFF 2015

My size not threat to my career, says Moji Oyetayo

•As organisers seek entry in five film categories

IDING on the success of last year’s edition, organisers of Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF), have commenced activities for the 5 th edition of the event, inviting filmmakers across Africa and the Diaspora to send in their movie entries. The festival is scheduled to take place from November 8th to 15th, 2015. Speaking on the festival’s prerequisites for would-be entries, AFRIFF’s Artistic Director, Keith Shiri noted that only films produced after January 1, 2014 and are yet to be officially screened to an African or Global audience will be eligible to compete in the five categories of AFRIFF Awards. “This year again, we are expecting to receive fantastic Feature Films, Documentaries, Animation, Short Films and Student Short Films, which is a category geared towards appreciating the efforts of upcoming and talented student filmmakers,” he said, adding that entry submissions will close on July 24th, 2015. Keith who emphasized that AFRIFF would continuously be in the forefront of the drive for excellence, by giving inclusive

By Victor Akande

expression to African cinema, urged intending participants to visit the festival’s website, www.afriff.com, for comprehensive information on the guidelines and procedures for film submission and other relevant information. AFRIFF is amongst the select film festivals worldwide that award monetary prizes for the best films in their competitive categories with the winning Feature film entry receiving $6,000; Documentary, $5,000; Short film $3,000; Animation, $3,000 and Student Short, $2,000. Commendation is also received for Best Screenplay, Best Director, Best Actor and Best Actress, all under the Feature film category while the winning entries for the eclectic Special Jury Award For Outstanding Film and Audience Choice Award could be films from any of the categories. Founded by Ms Chioma Ude, AFRIFF is a world class showcase that presents a complete immersion into the world of filmmaking with participation from local and international, actors, directors, scriptwriters, cinematographers, sound

By Dupe Ayinla-Olasunkanmi

• Ms Chioma Ude, Founder, AFRIFF

engineers, musicians, editors, light engineers, students, equipment manufacturers and businessmen. The last edition of the festival took place in Tinapa, Calabar,

Cross River State, attracting huge participation of filmmakers, film students, facilitators, enthusiasts and corporate sponsors to the different sessions of the weeklong event.

AFRIMMA plans allexpense-paid trip dance winners

• Obiagwu flanked by 2face and Iyanya

N its bid to encourage artistic endeavors, organizers of African Music Magazine Awards (AFRIMMA), are staging a dance competition which will guarantee a winning dancer or dance group an all-expense paid trip to the next edition of the award scheme, taking place in Dallas,

United States, later in the year. According to in the founder of the Award, Anderson Obiagwu, the largesse, which is in appreciation of a successful maiden edition, last year, will include a round trip flight ticket, hotel and VIP Access to perform live in Dallas at the 2015 AFRIMMA ceremony,

AVF set to premiere four new movies

By Innocent Duru

UDIO Visual First (AVF) is set to premiere four new movies this Sunday. The works will be released at the Filmhouse Cinema, Park Lane, Apapa, Lagos. According to the Executive Director of the company, Adeyinka Oduniyi, the four movies: Beneath Her Veil, One Minute Man, Where Does Beauty Go and Night of Sex are must watch movies. “We are inspired to make qualitative movies available to mass audience. With as little as N200, a movie lover will have access to our movies as they used to do during the days of Ade Love and other old actors. Back then, all classes of individuals could go to the cinemas, but that’s not how it is now. “We are trying to change that by producing 18 movies each year. We are open to partnership and sponsorship to enable average

for one lucky upcoming artist and one lucky dancer/dance group from anywhere in the world. The reward, according to Obiagwu, the contest which is being bankrolled by Big A Entertainment in conjunction with African Muzik Magazine, requires participants to record a

• Clarion Chukwurah

Nigerians to come into the cinema and watch films.” Commenting on what determined the choice of cast, Oduniyi said: “We featured Clarion Chukwura, Biola Segun Williams, Tony Umez, Yeni Kuti, Wole Ojo, Olumide Bakare, Kunle Coker, Kalu Ikeagwu, Mary Njoku and other top artistes. These members of cast were shortlisted because of their pedigree and talent. It is a combination of old and new actors, a lot of us have missed these old actors and want to see them again.”

video of them performing a song or dance and log on to http:/ /afrimma.com/set-the-stage/ to upload their video to the website. The contest, he said, starts on the May 4th will end on August 8th, 2015. “The last day to enter your submissions is July 20, 2015. Five finalists will be announced at the end of every month. At the end of the contest, 20 finalists will be compiled; these finalists will have their work uploaded to the website for a voting process to start,” said Obiagwu, adding that participants should tag their video and everything related to it with the hashtags#STSAfrimmaand#AFRIMMA2015.

IG, bold and beautiful actress, Moji Oyetayo has said that being a plus-size is no barrier to her career. According to the actress who is prominent for her role in Papa Ajasco, “I am very selective when it comes to the role I play. That is because I do not want to be stuck to one character. And with that, I have played different roles, from a cultist, to a village maiden, young girl, soldier and others. “I just try to play with different characters because, in Nollywood, you will only be given one role that you seem to play very well. So I keep changing my character, and most time I get away with it.” On her size, the actress goes philosophical when she said that everything in life has its advantages and disadvantages. “The plus-size is restricted in the industry, because they want to see a fair complexion woman. But when you are a plussize, the role you can play are streamlined. But my advantage is that I have a face that you can play with. So what I do is to transform my expression to the character that I play. And the makeup industry has also advanced,” she revealed. The graduate of Lagos State University is famous for her role in the Papa Ajasco and Company family sitcom, a series of Wale Adenuga Production. Aside being an actress, she is also a voice-over artiste and the PRO of Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Lagos State Chapter.

• Moji Oyetayo

Bollywood Salman Khan bags five years jail term

NDIAN movie superstar, Salman Khan, was sentenced to five years in prison by an Indian court on Wednesday after being found guilty of culpable homicide in a hit-and-run incident in Mumbai, more than ten years ago, lawyers said. “The court accepted Salman Khan’s fault,” Pradeep Gharat, a special public prosecutor in the case told reporters outside the court Wednesday. Just hours later, the Bombay High Court granted him bail for two days, according to Mr. Khan’s lawyer, Shrikant Shivade. He said his client had appealed for bail in the Bombay High Court “just an hour” after a lower court in Mumbai convicted Mr. Khan of homicide. Earlier Wednesday, the lawyer said his client would appeal the conviction. Mr. Khan, 49, is one of the biggest names in Indian showbiz. He is being accused of

running over a group of people sleeping on a sidewalk in the Indian financial capital in 2002, killing one and injuring four. He then ran away from the scene, prosecutors said. After m o r e than 12 years of c o u r t hearings, a Mumbai c o u r t found the actor had committed culpable • Salman Khan homicide, a charge t h a t carries a maximum penalty of 10 years

in prison, according to his lawyer, Shrikant Shivade. The court also found Mr. Khan guilty of rash and negligent driving, causing hurt by endangering life and drunk driving, Mr. Shivade said. Khan pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

THE NATION FRIDAY MAY 8, 2015

TODAY IN THE NATION

FRIDAY, MAY 8, 2015 TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM

VOL.10 NO. 3207

COMMENT & DEB ATE EBA

LECTION is to democracy what oxygen is to life. Without periodic elections a democracy cannot survive. But while nobody resents oxygen because of its indispensability to life, the opposite appears to be the case with regard to elections and democracy. Many “democrats” would wish elections were not that essential. Without worrying about seeking voters’ periodic endorsement, many politicians would probably still deliver the proverbial dividends of democracy. But they would not have the mandate of the electorates. Not a problem for those politicians claiming to know better than the wearer where the shoe pinches. Too bad, therefore, democracy demands citizens’ input. When a candidate loses an election which he or she was sure of winning because of assurances of campaign aides, party leaders, and a strong conviction of having out-performed others in office, it can be a humbling and traumatic experience. This is especially true in the case of an incumbent with enormous powers and material resources to dispense. But it does happen. Elections are to be won and lost. Losers just accept the verdict of the people and move on, either to come back at a later time, as Buhari did on three occasions, or to retire into the role of an elder statesman, as Jimmy Carter did in 1980 and the world has been a lot better for it. This latter option is even more glorifying when it is approached without leaving behind any baggage of political actions and activities that may raise moral eyebrows. President Jonathan gracefully accepted his defeat and heroically averted disaster for the country. He deserves a lot of credit for this. Though some would argue that it is what is expected, I learnt in my Sunbeam class a long time ago that people deserve credit not because of the good they perform but because of the evil that they avoid. For avoiding the evil of a sittight-till-heaven-falls loser, I give him credit. Now, I am disturbed by two developments. One is from the President’s activities since the elections. The other is from his supporters’ actions. Let me start with the second, an aspect of which I touched on a couple of weeks ago in “Conspiracy Theories.” Since the end of the elections, there has been a civil war within the Peoples Democratic Party. It is natural and reasonable to ask the question “why?” after such a disastrous thumping of the largest party in Africa. So I perfectly understand the rationale behind the call for a post-election assessment. What worries me is that even before the beginning of such an assessment, some party members and presidential aides have been

SEGUN GBADEGESIN gbadegesin@thenationonlineng.net

Disturbing developments

•Jonathan

able to identify the answer to the question “why?” and they laid it squarely at the doorstep of the leaders, especially the Chairman. Of course, we have to be fair and accept the truism that the buck always stops at the desk of the leader. But in the run-up to the election, PDP had two parallel leaders—the NWC and the Campaign Organisation with its Chairman and Directors of different departments. If there was no coordination between the two such that the Party Chairman was the overall head of both, how is he to blame for what the campaign did or didn’t do? And how will the call for his head now solve the major problem of disconnect between the party and the electorate which was the reason for its loss? The Chairman has identified the major mistake that the party made over which he appeared to have no control again because the campaign team was different from the NWC which he led. The campaign team ran a campaign that was fit for the 60s. It was a hate campaign; it was a campaign of crude power reminiscent of the NNDP days in the old Western Region.

IG-headed impunity: On March 20, this column had picked on a two-page advertorial by Chams Consortium Limited in a national newspaper. One had been moved by the plaintive cry of Chams, a foremost indigenous technology firm over the shoddy treatment meted to its consortium by the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) to which it had a contract to work on Nigeria’s identity cards. In the Chams’ “Open Letter to the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, His Excellency, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, the firm had cried out that NIMC management had converted its “concession agreement into segmented contracts to ‘selected’ third parties”, among other infractions to legitimate agreements. Most touching was that every avenue for settlement, including sending of emissaries, mediations and even the law courts were rebuffed by the NIMC. The public outcry to the president was the only option left to Chams at that point to fight what seemed to have become a leviathan. One had been moved by the sheer injustice of the situation (in the face of it) to join in weeping for Chams. Though one is not certain how the Chams-NIMC rift eventually panned out, a similar scenario of primitive power show plays out in the matter between Professor Bathlomew Nnaji, President Goodluck Jonathan and his power ‘reform’ cabal. A prophet without honour at home: Prof. Nnaji, twice minister of the Federal Republic and winner of the Nigerian National Order of Merit (2004) cried out bitterly in a half page article in national newspapers April 20, 2015. Any man of conscience may not be able to hold back tears after reading Nnaji’s piece. To think that Nnaji, a world renowned

PDP campaign failed to realise that we are now dealing with Millennias, and it didn’t count on the pledge of INEC to use technology to block rigging. When INEC didn’t buckle under threats of fire and brimstone, the game was over. Why should we all be concerned? We want a democracy with at least two strong parties that present candidates with real choices. Let PDP go back to the drawing board and learn from its corporate mistakes. It cannot do this with finger-pointing that only escalates the civil war and promotes fratricide. I am aware that President Jonathan is still in charge until 12am on May 29 and his presidential powers are still enormous. But he can use it for good or for ill. Certainly, he can use it to cement his newly found image as a statesman and a graceful loser. On the other hand, however, he can use his remaining days in office to confirm the belief of many that voted against him as a crafty and divisive leader. I am worried that the latter image may stick with his new actions and activities. When we woke up to the announcement that IGP Abba had been relieved of his position, many had an ambivalent attitude to the news. What does it matter? He was used and dumped. Too bad, but Abba didn’t deserve any pity. What goes round comes round. That was the general feeling. It wasn’t that the President was right or wrong. People just didn’t care because of Abba’s inglorious record as a partisan law enforcement officer. Then more shocking news about firing and hiring followed. First, was the hiring of former Governor Peter Obi as Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) barely a month to the end of the President’s term in office. Obi had defected from APGA to PDP in 2014. Is this payback for his support before and during the elections? We recall the role played by Obi in the infamous Nigerian Governor’s Forum

STEVE OSUJI

EXPRESSO

steve.osuji@yahoo.com

•Columnist of the Year (NMMA)

Nnaji caught in primitive power show Hon. Jude Idumogu: softly, softly

“W

ISDOM is better than strength”, say the holy book. And deep, deep wisdom do I commend to all the non-indigenes who won parliamentary seats in Lagos both at the state and federal levels. I will speak especially to Jude Idumogu who is the Lagos House of Assembly member-elect for Oshodi-Isolo constituency 2. A few days ago, I received several text messages from some ardent readers of this column informing me that Idumogu upon receiving his certificate of return started hollering Igbo kwenu! When I confirmed this after putting through a few calls, my heart sank. Here we go again, I thought. Non-indigenes who have won assembly seats in Lagos need to realize that theirs is a peculiar phenomenon that requires utmost sense and sensibility. They must realise that they are pioneers of Nigeria’s unfurling new democracy; they are pioneers of Nigeria’s great new dawn. There is a huge responsibility upon them to ensure that this great good does not go awry. Nigeria and indeed all of us will be greater for it when good citizens can win election wherever they reside; when the true will of the people prevails. But victory, especially of this hue comes with enormous responsibility. Indeed, managing it sensibly is the greater victory. If I were Idumogu, I would seek wise counsel by creating a multi-ethnic team of advisers; I would court the stakeholders of my constituency – the obas, the chiefs, the opinion leaders. I would set up quality constituency office and serve ALL constituents in a manner they had never been served. I will always bear in mind that my victory is for the edification of Nigeria and not for any ethnic group.

professor of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering who won the US Secretary of

State’s Distinguished Public Service Award in 2005 is the same one being messed up by

election. Still, what does this political appointment mean? Does the President expect that a President Buhari will retain Obi to appease the Southeast? Is it a sort of booby trap? What was the motive? On the same day the announcement of Obi’s appointment was made, the firing of Femi Thomas, the Executive Secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), was announced and Olufemi Akingbade was tapped as Acting Executive Secretary. The same questions as above arise here. How is the public to take this hiring and firing at the dusk of life in Aso Rock? There is more. On April 29, the announcement was made of the appointment of Sanusi Lamido Ado Bayero as the Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and the firing of Habib Abdullahi who had served in that position. There was no reason offered for the change. That wasn’t all. On May 5, the Presidency announced the Presidential approval of the appointment of a serving Minister of State for Agriculture and Rural Development, Asabe Asmau Ahmed as the new Executive Secretary of the Petroleum Equalisation Fund (PEF) and the firing of Sharon Adefunke Kasali who had been in that position since 2007. A second appointment that was approved on the same day was that of Denzil Amagbe Kentebe as the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Management Development Board (NCDMB) and the firing of Ernest Nwapa who has been in that position since 2010. For each of these new appointments, the President’s expectation is that the appointees will be in their posts long enough to (as he is reported to declare in the case of the new Secretary of PEF) put their years of public service to good use in “re-engineering, repositioning, and re-invigorating” their various agencies “for present and future challenges.” These are relevant questions: Did President Jonathan confer with President-elect Buhari before making these appointments? If not, is Buhari morally and politically obligated to retain these new hires? I would think not. If the President made these appointments because he believed that he had the power, then Buhari also has the moral authority to reverse the appointments when he takes over power unless he believes, not only in their abilities to perform, but also in their loyalty to his mission. Thankfully, Nigerians didn’t elect a naïve President.

•For comments, send SMS to 08111813080 his home government. The story in a nutshell is that Prof. Nnaji in collaboration of the Aba business community, the United State Agency for International Development (USAID) and a consortium of banks had nearly ten years ago gotten a concession from the Federal Government to supply electricity power to Aba (including Ariaria areas), Abia State. The big idea was to build an integrated power project for this commercial area; a business model for power development in Nigeria that can stand alone, be self-sustaining and can be easily replicated in other major industrial and commercial cities of Nigeria. With a Federal Government concession agreement in its kitty in 2005, began work on the 141megawatts Aba Integrated Power Project (AIPP or Aba Power). Some of the infrastructure built, according to Nnaji, include 141MW power plant with standard equipment from General Electric; rehabilitation of the entire distribution network in Aba and 105km of overhead transmission lines in Aba metropolis. Aba Power also built numerous substations of varying sizes, new control building and 27km of gas pipeline among other gas infrastructure to ensure a reliable and no down-time fueling of the power plant. All of these cost about $500 million or N100 billion according to Prof. Nnaji. So why wouldn’t Aba Power be switched on if it was ready to go since November 2013? It is said that at about this time, power privatisation was completed and the entire Southeast zone was ceded to the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC) including Aba metropolis.

•Continued

on page 56

•For comments, send SMS to 08111526725

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