36 ministers not compulsory - BUHARI

...towards a better life for the people

N150VOL. 25: NO. 62620

ONLINE | www.vanguardngr.com

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015**

CMYK

•P.31

Why we don'tspeak Igbo atour meetings—Ohanaeze

See Inside

COLUMNISTS:

There must bejustice: Politicalsubversion and theN-East •P.17

She ignores menow she's hadour baby

Dear PresidentBuhari, you do nothave to appoint 36ministers!

Mr & Mrs

•P.19

Of unfit soldiersand obeselegislators

•P.19

Continues on Page 5

By EmmanuelAziken, PoliticalEditor, Charles

Kumolu, GbengaOke & LevinusNwabughiogu

ABUJA—ANXIETYamong the 36

ministers-designateheightened, yesterday,after PresidentMuhammadu Buharireiterated that thenation’s economy can notsupport 36 ministerswith portfolios.

The tension among theministers-designate was

36 ministries notcompulsory— BUHARIThe constitution certainly said there must be one member of the cabinet

from each of the states, but the constitution did not say I must have 36ministries — PRESIDENT BUHARI

CONFIRMED MINISTERS—President Muhammadu Buhari (right) receiving a list of confirmedministers-designate from the President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki at the State House, Abuja,yesterday. Photo: Abayomi Adeshida.

FRC didn't followdue process,says CBN

Stanbic IBTC:

Peterside(Stambic IBTC)

DMOwarns ofloomingdebt crisisin thestates

Falsedeclarationof assets:Sarakigoes toSupremeCourt

Courtokaysex-NSA,Dasuki formedicaltreatmentabroad

See storyon Page

43

Obazee (FRC)88

9

2— Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015

CMYK

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015— 3

CMYK


CMYK

POCKET CARTOONVanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015—5

IT'S UP TO YOUBY AYO ADIO

TAKE HEARTBY ELLA RANDLE

36 ministries not compulsory— BUHARI

SAYINGS OF OUR PEOPLE

Continues from Page 1

Happiness is largely a matter of choice—Marlena Bielecka

WHAT makes you happy? If you’ve askedyourself how to become a happier person, this

is already a good sign. Happiness is not somethingthat happens to us by chance? Being happy is anachievable and learnable skill,which requiresconstant work on your attitude and it depends onhow you interpret your life situation.

THAT we can't reach the stars never keepsa wise man from trying.

NOTHING in life is more satisfying thansharing bread with the hungry and helping

the needy. That is a sure path to true happiness. It'sup to you.

also being com-pounded by the dither-ing on the inaugurationof the new federal cabi-net.

No date has beenscheduled for theinauguration of thecabinet, and many of theministers-designate,Vanguard gathered, arehanging around Abujafor the call from thePresidency to assumeoffice. High rankingpresidency officials keptmum on when the newcabinet would beinaugurated.

President Buhari, wholast week said that someministers would not haveportfolios, during hisvisit to India, reiteratedthat point, yesterday, ashe affirmed that hewould not shy away fromsaying that the economycannot support 36ministers with separateportfolios. The

President’s assertion,however, received mixedreactions from someformer ministers andother politicalstakeholders, yesterday.

Among those whospoke on the issue wereSenate President BukolaSaraki; the NationalPublicity Secretary of thePeoples DemocraticParty, PDP, Olisa Metuh;former labour leader,Chief Frank Kokori andthree former ministers,Chief Don Etiebet, ChiefSegun Babatope andChief Ken Gbagi.

Economy and 36ministers withportfolios

Speaking when hereceived the list ofconfirmed ministerialnominees from SenatorSaraki at a briefceremony at thePresidential Villayesterday, President

Buhari said:“If I can remember,

there must be a memberfrom each of the 36 states.That was why I limitedthe number of mynominees to that number,36. The Senate workedextremely hard, and theyhave passed all thenominees. I think therewas some enthusiasm insome parts of thePresidency today thatportfolios were to begiven to the 36.

“The constitutioncertainly said there mustbe one member of thecabinet from each of thestates, but theconstitution did not say Imust have 36 ministries."

Dismissing speculationsin some media outlets onthe portfolio to beassigned to the ministers-designate, the Presidentsaid:

“I think that theeconomy as I have seenit now since my sittinghere for the last fourmonths, was so muchbattered. Although somepeople are saying I amgiving bad publicity andscaring away investors.Any investor who isinterested in investing inNigeria will want toknow more about theeconomy more thanourselves.

“But I am confirming tothem that we are truthful,that we need them tocome and help us helpourselves by getting ini n d u s t r i e s ,manufacturing andservices. They know ourneeds. The economy ofhuman resources, Ibelieve, will make themeventually come and helpus. I assure you that wewill follow the

constitution and all the36 will be sitting in thecabinet as the constitu-tion stipulates.”

Ministerswithoutportfolio notnew — SarakiSpeaking to State

House Correspondentsafter his meeting withthe President, Sarakisaid the designation ofministers withoutportfolio was notsomething entirely newto the nation. His words:

“Well I think beforeyou had ministers ofstate in the past, I don’tthink there is anythingnew, there wereministers for specialduties which reallydidn’t have portfolios. Ithink the key issue isbeing in cabinet, isbeing part of thegovernment and thosethat would have theresponsibilities ofministering are thosethat at the end of theday would do that.

“We have thechallenges of revenuedrop, challenges intrying to boost revenueand create jobs and youknow we have some ofthese issues which wereally need to address.

"I think that it is timefor us to address themand these are some ofthe issues we looked atas a Senate, that it istime for us to givesupport to the executiveto move the countryforward.”

Asked why he had todeliver the namespersonally to thePresident, Saraki saidhe had other issuesbesides presenting thelist of ministers to thePresident. He, however,robustly denied

engaging the Presidenton his on-going trial atthe Code of ConductTribunal.

Mixedreactions trailBuhari'sassertionThere was, however,

mixed response fromsome former ministersand others on thePresident’s assertion thatsome ministers would nothave portfolios.

While Etiebet, Metuhand Kokori accepted thePresident’s stance on notassigning portfolios to allministers, describing itas his style, Babatopesaid it was not idealwhile Gbagi said themeasure would not saveany money as envisagedby the President.

Metuh, who againquestioned the rationaleof the president’s motivein ascribing his action toa battered economy said:

“It is his style, and it ishis prerogative. We are notstruggling for space withhim, and the constitutiondoes not require him toassign portfolios to all 36ministers.”

Chief Etiebet, whoserved as Minister ofPetroleum in the SaniAbacha regime and untilrecently a member of theBoard of Trustees of thePDP said:

“There is nothing wrongwith Buhari running hisgovernment with a leancabinet if he can achievehis aims. He is thePresident and has aherculean task of savingthis country fromcollapse. I believe thebuck stops on his tableand not on any minister’sdesk.”

He was supported byerstwhile Secretary-General of the NationalUnion of Petroleum andNatural Gas Workers,NUPENG, Chief Kokoriwho said:

“It was like that in thepast. In the First Republic,we had ministers withoutportfolios. They were likeministers of specialduties. There are so manyjobs to be done, and theycan be assigned to do anyof them by the Presidentwithout necessarilyhaving portfolios.

“Buhari knows what heis doing because the rotin the system is not quan-tifiable. As it is, we shouldwatch him and see whathappens. It will not be fairto condemn the movewithout seeing if it willwork or not.”

Former Minister ofTransport in the Abacharegime and presentmember of the PDP BoT,Babatope, however,disagreed saying:

“I think we have muchto quarrel with Buhariover what he said. If hedecides to do that, wehave to accept it as hisstyle but it is not the idealthing. This is not the firsttime such will happen inNigeria. Let us watch andsee how it works. It is fromwatching that we willknow whether he is doingit in the interest of Nigeriaor not. We saw this in thepast. For us in theopposition, our duty is towatch so as to hold thegovernment accountableand we have been doingthat in the interest ofNigeria. If it succeeds, wewill give him kudos.”

On his part, formerMinister of State forEducation, OlorogunGbagi said: “I expect hisadvisers to guide him onthis to avoid goingcontrary to the positions ofthe constitution. How willhaving ministers withoutportfolios make anydifference on the cost ofgovernance? Whateverthe President decides todo, he should ensure thatwe have ministers asstipulated in theconstitution because theabsence of ministers istaking a toll ongovernance.”

Buhari declaresopen three-dayretreat forministerialdesignates

Meanwhile, PresidentMuhammadu Buhari isexpected to declare opena three-day retreat for theconfirmed ministerialnominees later this morn-ing. The retreat whichwould run from todaythrough Friday wouldhold at the presidentialvilla in Abuja. It is be-lieved that the exercisewould herald the inau-guration of the ministers.

VICTORY—Governor Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia State (middle), flanked on the left by his deputy,Ude Oko Chukwu and on the right by the state PDP Chairman, Sen. Emma Nwaka celebrating with thegovernor after the tribunal affirmed his victory in Umuahia, yesterday.

6—Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015

LAGOS—A 45-year-oldbusinesswoman, Rabi

Shado, and two others,were, yesterday, arraignedbefore an Igboseremagistrate’s court foralleged kidnap.

The other defendants areEdwin Ubba, 43,businessman, and JohnAgba, 47, a civil servant.

They were docked beforeMagistrate AbimbolaKomolafe on a three-countcharge bordering onconspiracy, unlawfulconfinement, kidnap andstealing preferred againstthem by the police.

The prosecutor, InspectorStephen Molo, told thecourt that the defendantsand others, who are still atlarge, committed thealleged offences sometimein August 2008.

He said the incident tookplace at E4, Satellite Town,Ijegun area of the state.

Molo alleged that the triounlawfully confined anddetained one Jude Odionuagainst his will and alsofraudulently obtainedN300,000 from one OnyekaOdionu, under thepretence of treating JudeOdionu’s mental illness.

Magistrate Komolafegranted the defendantsbail in the sum of N200,000each, with two sureties eachin like sum; the suretiesmust show two years taxpayment and verifiedaddresses.

The matter was adjournedtill November 17.

3 arraignedover kidnap,N300,000fraud

MEN of the InspectorGeneral of Police Special

Task Force on PipelineVandalism have arrested a 35-year-old driver, Phillip Isaac, forbeing in possession of 8,500litres of Premium Motor Spirit,PMS (petrol), loaded in 170 50-litre jerry cans, allegedlysiphoned from a Nigeria

National PetroleumCorporation, NNPC, pipeline atArepo, Ogun State.

Vanguard gathered that luckran out on the suspect when hisVolvo truck, with number platesXU 819 KSF, used intransporting the products toIjebu-Ode in the state, raninto a ditch on Shagamu-OreExpressway andsomersaulted.

The operatives, who were ona patrol, were said to havearrived the scene when thejerry cans were beingoffloaded into another truck.

Sources said that the driverof the truck confessed duringinterrogation that he loadedthe truck at Arepo, currentlybeing secured by soldiersdeployed to check pipelinevandalism and militancy.

Police recover 8,500ltrs of petrol from accident scene

OSOGBO—A middle-agedrefrigerator repairer and

father of five, identified asMoshood Majoko, wasyesterday morning electrocutedin Osogbo, behind Ilesa MotorPark, Osun State.

Sources said that thedeceased was, as he usually

did, assisting his community inelectrification work and was upa pole when power wassuddenly restored to the area.

He was said to be working ona line that overlapped alongZone C, Road 7, Ago Ayo, whenthe incident occurred.

According to an eyewitness,before climbing the pole,Majoko had told his wife to

bring hand gloves, but did notwait for her to return before heset to work.

Vanguard gathered that whenthe deceased was electrocuted,he fell from the pole and wasimmediately taken to ahospital where he later died.

Some residents of thecommunity said the deceasedalways helped in electricity-

related work with thepermission of the managementof Ibadan ElectricityDistribution Company,IBEDC.

Reacting, Public RelationsOfficer of IBEDC, Osogboregion, Miss Kike Owoeye,said the company had beenenlightening residents on theneed to report faults.

Father of 5 electrocuted in OsunBy Gbenga Olarinoye

OWERRI—ONE MissOnyinyechi Okegbulam

of Egbu in Owerri North LocalGovernment Area of Imo Statehas allegedly been killed byher boyfriend for refusing hismarriage proposal.

A source, who spoke ongrounds of anonymity, toldVanguard that the girl wasshot in the head at close rangeby her supposed boyfriend inthe village.

The source recalled that thedeceased was, last Saturday,lured out of her family homeby the boyfriend at about7p.m.

“Some people, who wereclose to the scene of the crimethat night, reported that assoon as the boy saw the girl

approaching him, he fired ather,” the source said.

Another source claimed thatsoon after shooting the girl, theyoung man tried to smuggleOnyinyechi’s lifeless bodyinto his car but scampered forsafety when a woman raisedalarm, which attracted severalpeople to the scene.

‘He paid forthe girl’s education’

Another story, however, hadit that the boyfriend wasresponsible for the entireeducational expenses of thegirl, who later ditched him.

A resident of the area said:“We heard that the boy pickedthe bills for the girl’seducation, but that the girllater abandoned the boy andopted to marry another man.

“We have even heard that themarriage has been fixed beforethe boyfriend struck.”

The 22-year-old Onyinyechiwas, until her untimely death,a final year student of FederalPolytechnic, Nekede, OwerriWest Local Government Areaof the state.

Although the Police PublicRelations Officer, Mr. AndrewEnwerem, a deputysuperintendent of police,could not be reached at presstime, a reliable source in thestate police headquarters,Owerri, confirmed that policehad waded into the matter.

The police source said:“Police have startedinvestigating the incident andthe late girl’s parents arecooperating with us. Policewill get to the root of the case.”

Man kills girlfriend for rejectingmarriage proposal in Imo

By Chidi Nkwopara

CALABAR—TWO men,who assisted two

nursery school children,Etido Asuquo and NtiaAsuquo, cross the roadwhile they were returningfrom school, Mondayafternoon in Calabar,ended up abducting them.

The children, aged fiveand three years,respectively, were studentsof Holy Child ConventPrimary School located at5, Efut Abua Street,Calabar South LocalGovernment Area.

A young man, Edet, toldVanguard that the childrenwere taken away by twomen, who disguised as‘good Samaritans’ to assistthem cross the road, butended up putting them intheir car and sped off.

He said: “I saw somemen standing at the schoolgate, while I was at myshop. I saw the men tryingto assist the children tocross the road.

“At first, I thought theywere parents of thechildren, but later in theevening news broke outthat two children weremissing. That was when itdawned on me that thechildren were taken awayby the two men.”

The distraught mother ofthe kids, Nyeti Etim, 28, awidow, said yesterdayafternoon that she had notbeen contacted by thepeople who abducted thekids.

She said: “I do not knowwhether the kidnapperswould demand ransom orthey had an ulterior motivefor their mission.”

Headmistress of theschool, Mrs. Asari Eta,said the incident occurredaround 12p.m., addingthat the school hadcontacted police.

‘GoodSamaritans’abductsiblings inCalabar

By Emma Una

F U E LSCARCITY:Q u e u e sreturn as fuelscarcity hitsL a g o s ,y e s t e r d a y.P H O T O :K e h i n d eGbadamosi.

By Ifeanyi Okolie

OUR story with theheadline Blogger in

prison over publication onbank boss, published onPage 10 of November 3,2015 edition Vanguardnewspapers, erroneouslyalluded that GMD/CEO,UBA Plc, Mr. PhillipsOduoza, and his wife aredivorced on account of themalicious and falsepublication by the bloggerDesmond Ike-Chima, whohas been remanded inprison by the Federal HighCourt.

This is not true as wehave since found out thatboth of them are stillhappily married.

We regret theembarrassment the reporthas caused the person ofMr. Phillips Oduoza andwife and do hereby tenderour unreserved apology.— Editor

APOLOGY

By Onozure Dania

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015—7

LAGOS—POLICE inLagos have arrested a

20-year-old lady, whoadmitted to setting up herfriend to be gang rapedafter a misunderstandingbetween them.

The victim (nameswithheld) was reportedlyambushed by six armedmen, suspected to becultists, at about 8p.m.,around OlaosebikanStreet in Somolu area ofLagos.

The gunmen, said tohave earlierpropositioned her, whichshe rejected, took turns onher for over four hoursinside an apartment atElewure’s House, aroundBajulaiye Compound,where she was taken.

The suspected cultists, itwas gathered, accused thevictim, a computeroperator, of accepting amember of a rival cultgroup as a lover.

The victim, who gave thenames of the suspects(withheld) to policemen atAlade Division, said twoof them saw her off to astreet close to hers, fromwhere she walked home.

Police frees suspectVanguard gathered that

one of the suspects wasarrested at a hotel locatedoff Bajulaye Street, butwas released.

It was gathered thatduring investigation, thevictim’s friend, identifiedas Vera, allegedlymasterminded theincident and was arrestedlast Saturday.

Police sources hintedthat Vera admitted to theclaim, saying she did itout of bitterness.

The police source said:“She said it was after anargument that shethreatened to deal with thevictim. A few days later,the victim was raped.

“The victim will beinvited here tomorrow(Thursday), where both ofthem will sit face-to-face,during the interrogationsection.

“We are also on the trailof the suspected rapists.Thereafter, they will all becharged to court.Currently, the victim is ingood condition afterundergoing treatment.”

Womanarrangesfriend'sgang-rape

By Faith AkeLAGOS—NO fewer than 25families were rendered

homeless yesterday, followinga fire outbreak that engulfedthree buildings in Lagos.

The popular EbanoSupermarket in the highbrowLekki metropolis, some shopsand the popular IdumotaMarket, are among the affectedstructures.

Two of the affected buildingswere located in the densely-populated Ajegunle area ofLagos, one of which was thepalace of the Baale (traditionalruler).

However, no life wasreportedly lost in any of theincidents. But properties worthmillions of naira weredestroyed.

The Ajegunle inferno wassaid to have been caused bypetroleum products stored inone of the buildings by a blackmarket dealer. Some occupantsof the affected buildingssustained varying degrees ofinjuries during the ensuingstampede.

Reports said an explosionoccurred at 1, Freedom Street,at about 10.30a.m., while awelder, simply identified asIsrael, was constructing an ironcage for the storage ofpetroleum products.

Efforts to contain the firefailed as it reportedly engulfedthe entire building and spreadto 171, Orodu Street.

Fuel dealer escapesThe black market dealer,

whose identity could not beascertained, escaped onnoticing the wreckage.

When Vanguard arrived thescene, the fire was still raging,with occupants in mourning.

One of them, a pregnantwoman, was said to havecollapsed.

An eyewitness, who simplygave his name as Saidi, blamedthe tragedy on the welder,pointing out that if the jerrycans filled with petroleumproducts had been moved awayfrom the spot, the spark of lightfrom the welding machinewould not have ignited.

Residents told Vanguard thatfire service officials who arrivedthe scene to contain thesituation, left for more water.

An eyewitness, who spoke oncondition of anonymity, said:“Had the owner of house on171, Orodu Street been alive,this incident would not havehappened because he wouldhave kicked against the sale ofpetroleum products.

“The woman, who caused allthis, has been warned several

times to change business, butshe did not heed the advice.

“Only last week, a prophetwho came to warn that dangerwas looming and that everyoneshould beware of fire outbreak.This woman was cautionedagain. But she got moreproducts because of therumoured fuel scarcity.”

We received 4 differentdistress calls— Fadipe

Director, Lagos State FireService, Mr. Rasaq Fadipe, saidwhen they received the distresscalls, fire trucks from Illupejuand Isolo were drafted to thescene.

Also at the scene werepolicemen from AjeromiIfelodun Division.

Fadipe said that distress calls

were also received at “Oko-Babain Ebute Meta area of the stateand Ebano Supermarket atLekki at about 6.05p.m.

“Two fire trucks were deploredto each of the locations. At about6.20p.m., another call about fireoutbreak was received at Oju-Olobun, Idumota, where someshops were affected.”

Building collapsesMeanwhile, two unidentified

construction workers narrowlyescaped death yesterday, whenan uncompleted building,where they were working, closeto St. Triumph Primary Schoolat Olagunju Street, Magbon,Badagry, suddenly collapsed.

The incident, as gathered,occurred at about 12.45p.m.

The building was said to have

been marked by officials ofLagos State Building ControlAgency, LASBCA, whichordered that work should stop.But the developer allegedlyignored the directive.

General Manager, LagosState Emergency ManagementAgency, LASEMA, MichaelAkindele, said: “LASBCA hadmarked the building forongoing construction to stop.

“Two construction workerswere injured and treated byLASAMBUS officials at the spot.The primary school beside it wasnot affected. Investigation is stillongoing to ascertain the causeof the collapse.”

Rasaq Fadipe told Vanguardthat the Fire Station fromBadagry responded to theincident.

25 families homeless as fire razesbuildings, supermarket in Lagos

Black market dealer’s hoard caused fire—Eyewitnesses

As two escape death in building collapse

By Olasunkanmi Akoni,Franklin Alli, Ufuoma

Tiveruahor & LuckyNwanekwu

The building thatcollapsed at OlagunjuStreet, Magbon,Badagry (left).Baale's house, one of

the two buildings razedby fire in Ajegunle(below).Idumota fire

(bottom).


Stanbic IBTC: FRC did not followdue process—CBNSays action capable of causing financial instability

By Clara Nwachukwu &Nkiruka Nnorom

LAGOS — THE Central Bankof Nigeria, CBN, has

condemned in strong terms recentsanctions approved by theFinancial Reporting Council ofNigeria, FRCN, against the boardand management of Stanbic IBTCHolding, SIBTCH, saying thecouncil did not follow dueprocess.

The FRCN had, amongst others,sacked four directors of StanbicIBTC, including its Chairman,Mr. Atedo Peterside, for allegedinfractions, while also calling forthe withdrawal of its financialstatements for the years endedDecember 31, 2013 and 2014.

But in a five-page letter, dated,November, 2, 2015, and signed bythe CBN Governor, Mr. GodwinEmefiele, which was obtained byVanguard, the apex bank alsosaid the FRCN action was capableof eroding investors’ confidenceas well as causing financialinstability in the system.

After a careful review of theissues, apart from bluntly turningdown FRCN’s request to takedisciplinary action againstStanbicIBTC, the CBN alsoadvised the board of theembattled bank to discountenancethe FRCN’s sanctions.

The CBN said: “In the light ofthe foregoing facts, which clearlyshow that FRCN did not followdue process, the bank regrets toinform you that it is unable toaccede to your request to takedisciplinary action againstSIBTCH. Indeed, the CBN doesnot see any reason to advise/compel SIBTCH to obey thesanctions metted to it by theFRCN.”

The letter was addressed to theExecutive Secretary/ChiefExecutive Officer, FRCN, and wasentitled: Re: Regulatory Decisionin the Matter of FinancialStatements of Stanbic IBTCHoldings Plc for Years ended 31stDecember 2013 and 2014.

The CBN letter with referencenumber: GVD/GOV/CON/DGF/93/113, also read in part: “We areseriously concerned that such adrastic regulatory decision couldbe taken on an entity under theregulation and supervision of theCentral Bank of Nigeria (CBN)without any form of consultationwith the bank, especially as theCBN is responsible for promotingsafe, stable and sound financialsystem. Yet, such a regulatorydecision and the manner of theannouncement is not only capableof eroding investors’ confidencebut also inimical to the financialsystem stability.”

To underscore the implicationsof FRCN’s action on Nigeria’sfinancial system stability, the CBNfurther noted: “Indeed, the FRC’saction has already precipitated afall in the value of the shares ofStanbic IBTC by about 18 per centsince the announcement of theRegulatory Decision.”

CBN observationsThe CBN in a 13-point

observation faulting the FRCN’s

actions also observed as follows:Contrary to the allegation of

the FRCN that Stanbic IBTC(SIBTC) did not obtain approvalfrom the National Office forTechnology Acquisition andPromotion (NOTAP) for thepayment of affiliate softwarelicense, our review revealed thatthe bank actually obtained thenecessary approval from NOTAPto pay affiliate software licensefrom the Standard Bank SouthAfrica (SBSA), for a period ofthree years covering June 2012to May 30, 2015. The remittancefrom June 2015 to date is stillawaiting approval from NOTAP.With regards to the

allegation of non-disclosure ofintangible assets in SIBTC’s2013 and 2014 financials, we notethat the bank adequatelyrecognised the software as anintangible asset in its 2011financials and sufficientlydisclosed the disposal of thesoftware in the 2012 financials.Consequently, the said softwarecould not have been reported asan intangible asset in thesucceeding years 2013 and2014.

·With respect to the allegationof lumping several expenseitems under “Others”, we are ofthe view that the items were notmaterial enough to appear as lineitems in the Income Statementand that the non-disclosure ofthe items did not materially affectthe true and fair view of thefinancial statements.We agree with FRCN that

SIBTC erred in the classificationof some line items. However, theidentified misclassifications didnot understate or overstate itsassets and liabilities, neither didit increase nor decrease itsincome or expenditure, such aswould have caused a materialmisrepresentation of thefinancials.SIBTC used its judgment to

capture the donation of M275million under “Others” becauseit was of the opinion that it wasnot a charitable donation but amandatory contribution towardsthe victims of terrorism in thecountry. For the avoidance ofdoubt, this contribution wasagreed at a Bankers’ CommitteeMeeting, with the share for eachbank clearly spelt out. Therefore,we agree with SIBTC’ s position,as presented.Contrary to FRCN’s

conclusions, our review of lAS37 and lAS 32.19 indicate thatSIBTC had an obligation toaccrue the relevant provisionstoward the settlement of thefranchise and management feesas agreed between it and SBSA.Without prejudice to the

foregoing financial issues, theCBN is concerned about theapparent failure of the FRCN tofollow due process as laid downby its own FRCN Act andRegulations, in arriving at theRegulatory Decision. In thisregard, the bank wishes to makethe following observations:ln conducting investigation

into possible breaches of theFRCN Act and/ or the

Regulations, the FRCN isrequired to give the Entityconcerned sixty (60) days fromthe service of Final Notice torestate its accounts where boththe Panel and Entity agree onthe need for restatement. In thiscase, our understanding is thatFRCN called a meeting with theboard of SIBTCH at 11.00 a.mon the 26th October 2015. Butrather than holding the meeting,FRCN went ahead to convene apress conference at 8a.m on thesame day to announce itssanctions against SIBTCH. Ourreview further indicates that bothFRCN and SIBTCH did notagree on a need for restatementof the accounts before thesanctions were announced.According to the FRCN Act,

an entity is only punishableunder the Act upon convictionby a court of competentjurisdiction. Yet, in issuing the

Final Notice, the FRCN hadalready meted out somepunishments to the affectedentity, without any convictionby a court.While FRCN may,

following approval of theminister, review applicablefines, there is no power forcompounding offences andimposing penalty in lieu ofconviction as was done in thiscase.Both the FRCN Act and the

Regulations provide for theoutcome of the investigation tobe made known to a registeredprofessional or a public interestentity and a right of appeal tothe Technical and OversightCommittee before resorting toprosecution. In this case,however, there is no evidencethat time was allowed to elapsefor the appeal process beforethe imposition of sanction.

The Regulation provides that ifthe Entity fails to accept FRC’ sposition at the end of a Noticeperiod, the Council shall institutelegal action against the entity,rather than mete out sanctions. Yet,in this case, sanctions have beenmeted out without evidence thatlegal action has been fullyexhausted.A combined reading of both the

Act and the Regulations shows thatthere are three types of sanctionsthat may be imposed forcontraventions by Entities. These are: lmposition of

monetary penalty/fine;Imprisonment for a term of years;Deregistration of a professional orissuance of a Warning Notice.There is however, no authority

for suspension of registration of aprofessional as was done in thiscase.

States’ bail-out, temporary solutionto debt crisis — DMOSays economy requires N5trn annually to diversify

By Emeka Anaeto,Economy Editor

LAGOS — AMIDST theweakened revenue inflow

from federation account, theDebt Management Office ofthe Federation, DMO, has saidthat the recent bail-out fundingto state governments was onlya temporal solution to theirdebt crisis, warning thatunless the governmentschange their fiscal strategies

they would return to trouble.The Federal Government

had in the wake of PresidentMuhammadu Buhari’sassumption of office in Junethis year ordered a specialdistribution of $2.1 billion(N440 billion) to the variousstates as well as additionalspecial loan of between N250billion and N300 billion toeach states from the CentralBank of Nigeria, CBN.

DMO also created a loan

restructuring for 23 highlyindebted states owing 15 banksa total of N700 billion of whichN575.5 billion was restructuredby DMO between August andSeptember 2015 to give relief tothe states.

Director General of DMO, DrAbraham Nwankwo, stated thatthere is still serious revenue gapsgiving the continued decline inoil

Continues on Page 43

LAUNCH: From left, Mrs Bridget Oyefeso-Odusami, Head, Sponsorship & Events,FirstBank Nigeria Limited; Prof. Linus Asuquo, Dean, Faculty of Engineering, Universityof Uyo; Prof. Comfort Ekpo, Vice Chancellor, University of Uyo; Mr John Iyioha, GroupHead, Retail, Akwa Ibom/Cross River, FirstBank Nigeria Limited; Prof. Enefiok Essien, VCDesignate, University of Uyo and Mrs Regina Ekpat, Deputy Registrar, University of Uyo atthe launch of the FirstBank Endowment in Petroleum Engineering at the university.


Court okays ex-NSA, Dasuki, for medicaltreatment abroadVaries bail conditionAs ex-gov Boni Haruna signs undertaking, quizzed

By Ikechukwu Nnochiri

ABUJA — THE Abuja Division of the Federal HighCourt, yesterday, gave

the former National SecurityAdviser, NSA, Col. SamboDasuki (retd), the nod to travelabroad for medical treatment.

In a ruling yesterday, trial Jus-tice Ademola Adeniyi hingedhis decision to give Dasuki threeweeks medical leave abroad onhis “deteriorating health condi-tion.”

Justice Adeniyi dismissedfears by the Federal Governmentthat the former NSA, who is fac-ing a five-count charge border-ing on alleged illegal possessionof firearms and money launder-ing, could go into hiding onceallowed outside the shores ofNigeria.

The Federal Government had,through the Director of PublicProsecution, DPP, Mr. Moham-med Diri, opposed Dasuki’s ap-plication to be allowed to go formedical checkup abroad.

The DPP told the court that thegovernment had already com-menced a fresh investigation onanother money laundering caseinvolving the erstwhile NSA, say-ing the application was onlyaimed at frustrating his trial.

Besides, the Federal Govern-ment contended that the Na-tional Hospital in Abuja is wellequipped to handle whatever ail-ment Dasuki is suffering from.

However, while dismissingFederal Government’s objec-tions, yesterday, Justice Adeniyiheld that “every citizen has aright to choose the medical fa-cility he wants to be treated in,whether in Nigeria or abroad.”

Placing reliance on decidedcase law in Abacha vs State, 2002,5-NWLR, the court further heldthat ill-health constituted a spe-cial circumstance that a court

should take notice of to exer-cise its discretion in favour ofan accused person.

Justice Adeniyi said the Fed-eral Government failed to per-suade it with the argument thatDasuki is currently a subject ofa fresh criminal investigation.

He said: “Presently, thiscourt is seized of only theamended charge against thedefendant which involves al-legations of money launderingand illegal possession of fire-arms, to which the prosecutiondeposed an affidavit that it hasconcluded all investigations.”

On his internationalpassport

On Dasuki’s application forthe release of his internationalpassport and Federal Govern-ment’s opposition on theground that it was the onlydocument he surrendered tosecure bail on self recognition,the court dismissed the argu-ment by the Federal Govern-ment as “misconceived and nottenable in law.”

The court stressed that thefact that the accused was onSeptember 1 granted bail onself recognition, meant thatthere was no condition at-tached to his release.

Maintaining that every ac-cused person, in line with sec-tion 36(5) of the 1999 Consti-tution, as amended, ought tobe presumed innocent untilproved guilty, the trial judgesaid his decision to grantDasuki’s request was also for-tified by a decided case law inIbori vs FRN, which he saidwas on all fours with the in-stant case before him.

“Accordingly, the applicationof the defendant succeeds andI hereby make the following or-

ders:“An order is hereby made by

this court releasing the appli-cant’s international passport toenable him to travel abroad forthree weeks for medical treat-ment owing to his deteriorat-ing health condition.

“The Deputy Registrar of theFederal High Court is herebydirected to release the interna-tional passport to the defend-ant.

“It is also ordered that the de-fendant, upon his return to thecountry, should surrender hisinternational passport to theDeputy Chief Registrar Litiga-tion, within 72 hours upon hisreturn.”

Court varies bail condi-tion

More so, Justice Adeniyi, yes-terday, relied on section 1 75of the Administration of Crimi-nal Justice Act, 2015, and var-ied the bail it earlier grantedthe former NSA to include thathe should provide a surety.

The court directed that thesurety must sign a written un-dertaking to guarantee that theaccused person will return toNigeria after his medical treat-ment to face his trial, “failingwhich the surety will take theplace of the defendant pend-ing when he makes himselfavailable for trial.

“Alternatively, any of the law-yers to the defendant can en-ter an undertaking to producehim on the trial date.”

The matter was subsequentlyadjourned till November 26and 27 for trial, even as JusticeAdeniyi ordered the FederalGovernment to ensure that itswitnesses are in court that day.

Ex-gov Haruna signsundertaking, quizzed

Meantime, shortly after theruling, yesterday, the formergovernor of Adamawa State,Mr. Boni Haruna, signed un-dertaking to take the place ofthe ex-NSA should he fail toreturn to the country afterthree weeks to continue histrial.

Mr. Haruna was laterinvited for questioning by theDepartment of SecurityServices, DSS, over whattranspired at the courtaccording to a security source.

Specifically, Dasuki was inthe charge before the court,alleged to have kept in hispossession, funds that wereproceeds of an unlawful act,an offence the Federal Gov-ernment said was contrary tosection 15 (2)(d) of MoneyLaundering Prohibition Act2011.

The Federal Governmentalleged that he was on July17, 2015, at his house situ-ated at 13, John KhadiyaStreet, Asokoro, Abuja, foundto be in possession of variousrange of firearms without req-uisite licence, an offence pun-ishable under section 27(1)(a) of the Firearms Act CapF28 LFN 2004.

He was further accused ofretaining $40,000, N5 millonand another $20,000 in thesame house and same date,contrary to section 15 (2)(d)of Money Laundering Prohi-bition Act 2011.

The Federal Government toldthe trial court that the ex-NSAhad on July 16, 2015, at his resi-dence at Sultan Abubakar Roadand Sabon Birni Road, SokotoState, retained another $150,000and N37.6m, being part of pro-ceedings of unlawful act, con-trary to Section 15 (3) of theMoney Laundering Act 2011.

Meanwhile, the court will onthe next adjourned date rule onwhether or not eight witnessesthat are lined up against himshould be allowed to wearmasks.

Court slamsEFCC overfresh chargeagainstOronsaye

By IkechukwuNnochiri

ABUJA — JUSTICEGabriel Kolawole of the

Federal High Court in Abuja,yesterday, slammed theEconomic and FinancialCrimes Commission, EFCC,for engaging in what hetermed “shoddy investigationsand untidy trial of cases.”

Justice Kolawole said he wasdisappointed that the anti-graft agency chose to amendthe charge it preferred againstthe former Head of Service ofthe Federation, Mr. StephenOronsaye, barely 24 hours tothe commencement of full-blown trial on the matter.

“This is a very untidymanner of handling criminalprosecution and goes to furtherbuttress the observation thatthe Chief Justice of Nigeriamade recently to the effect thatcriminal trials in this court aredelayed by the fact that theprosecuting agencies alwaysresort to arresting accusedpersons first beforeinvestigation, rather thanproperly investigating casesbefore rushing to court.

“The question anyreasonable person will ask iswhether while the allegationin the former charge was beinginvestigated, issues thatformed the crux of this newcharge were not there?

“Indeed I am deeplyconcerned that the state onlyrealised 24 hours to hearing,that it needed to bring anamended charge.”

The court had originally fixedyesterday for the EFCC toopen its case against Orosanyewho was hitherto answeringto a 24-count criminal chargealongside his allegedaccomplice, Mr. OsarenkhoeAfe.

Meantime, at the resumedsitting on the matter yesterday,EFCC lawyer, Mr. AdebisiAdeniyi, notified the court ofthe intention of the commissionto file fresh charges against theaccused persons.

Adebisi told the court thatthe agency has amended thecharge from 24 counts to 35,saying additional 11 freshallegations were added to theoriginal charge against theaccused persons.

Besides, EFCC, through itslawyer, told the court that ithas also increased the numberof accused persons in thematter from three to six.It saidthe new accused personscomprised of some corporateentities that the former HoSand his accomplice allegedlyused to divert public funds.

BRIEFING: From left: Mr Lookman Animashaun, Head of Engineering, Med-View Airline; Alhaji Muneer Bankole,MD/CEO and Captain Geoffrey Ogbogu, Head of Flight Operations, during the Med-View Airline press briefing to announcethe commencement of its Lagos-London flight, in Lagos. Photo: Lamidi Bamidele.

10—Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4 , 2015

INSECURITY: Lagos to revokeabandoned buildings approval

Firm suesPDP, Alli,others overpresidentialcampaigndebt

ECOWAS directorate canvasses regional businesshouse establishment

EMISSION SCANDAL: CPC issues7-day ultimatum to Volkswagen

By Abdulkwahab Abdulah

By Monsuru Olowoopejo

BRIEFING: Dr. Cristopher Kolade (2nd right), Sir Remi Omotosho (left), Mrs Tutu Adeleke (2nd left), and Mrs KemiNelson, during the briefing by the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy in Nigeria, CECP,) on the launching of#GivingTuesday Ng activities running from December 1 to15 in Lagos and Abuja, at Eko hotel in Lagos, yesterday. Photo:Biodun Ogunleye.

LAGOS—THE Lagos Stategovernment has said it will

henceforth revoke approvalsearlier issued to owners ofabandoned buildings in the stateto avert their conversion intocriminals’ hideout.

This came barely a month afterthe state government warnedowners of such buildings tooccupy them or face sanctions.

Briefing newsmen after themonthly State Security Councilmeeting chaired by GovernorAkinwunmi Ambode, the stateCommissioner of Police, Mr. FataiOwoseni said that action takenby the government and thesecurity agencies in the state wasto ensure reduction in crime rate.

He said that the securityagencies have raided abandonedbuildings in the last one monthto rid them of miscreants who hadconverted them to their hideout.

His words: “If you go to Falomo,one of the areas that we identifiedlast month, that was onceoccupied by miscreants it hasbeen rid of the bad elements.

‘’Some uncompleted buildingsin other areas have been raided,including Ebutte-Meta. They arenow free of miscreants. The stategovernment is working to getowners of abandoned buildingswhere approvals issued earlierwould be revoked.’’

Aside this, Owoseni warnedthat armed robbers terrorizing thestate will soon be crushed by thesecurity operatives, even as hedebunked the insinuation that thepolice lacked the capacity tocombat crime in the state.

The commissioner noted thatthe security operatives have

changed their tactics against therobbers.

According to him, the stategovernment has declared zerotolerance for criminal activities,adding that the problem of trafficrobbery will soon be a thing ofthe past.

On the meeting, he said; “Welooked at the security challengeswe are facing in the state and theneed to rededicate ourselves andcommit our personnel to them. Aswe approach the Yuletide, wewant to ensure that we are able

reduce the crime rate in the state.We want to reassure residents ofLagos that the government iscommitted to their safety.

“We have appraised the activitiesof the security agencies in thestate. We concluded that within thepast few weeks, we have seen thereduction in some of the incidents.And we do not want to rest on ouroars. We have decided to recommitourselves and be more visible onthe roads. And ensure thatenforcement is decisively carriedout.”

He debunked the insinuationthat the police had beenoverwhelmed and lacked thecapacity to combat crime, saying,”We have not beenoverwhelmed in personnel orequipment. You have seenincreased presence of police onthe roads. If we areoverwhelmed, you will not seethose personnel on the roads;if you go on the Eko Bridge now, orThird Mainland Bridge, you will findout that we have increased policepresence there.”

LAGOS—VOLKSWAGENNigeria has been given

seven-day ultimatum to provideinformation on the status of itsvehicles in relation to theemissions cheating software,which has reportedly affected 11million cars worldwide.

The ultimatum was handeddown by the Consumer ProtectionCouncil, CPC, sequel to a petitionwritten earlier by the Socio-Economic Rights AccountabilityProject, SERAP, calling for cautionover emission cheating software.

The CPC, in a letter to theautomaker dated October 26,2015, signed by its DirectorGeneral, Mrs. Dupe Atoki, said;“The attention of the Council hasbeen drawn to some publicationswherein Volkswagen hasadmitted the allegation thatcertain illegal “defeat device”

software was installed inVolkswagen vehicles to cheatemission test.

Expressing fear on thedevelopment, Atoki noted, “theresultant effect of this on theenvironment and quality of thesecars is of great importance to theCPC.

“The publications also indicatedthat Volkswagen had admitted that

vehicles with 1.2, 1.6, and 2.0litre EA 189 engines are allaffected, (i.e. Golf, Beatle, Jettaand Passat models),” it added.

Around 11 million vehicles worldwidemanufactured between 2009 and 2015,including 5 million VW cars, 2.1 millionAudi, 1.2 million Skoda, 700,000 Seatand 1.8. million vans, are confirmed tohave been built with these so-called“defeat devices.”

LAGOS—THE EconomicCommunity of West African

States, ECOWAS, Private SectorDirectorate, yesterday, noted thatseveral years after regionalism,intra-regional trade in ECOWASremains at about 12 per cent butthat the ECOWAS BusinessHouse, EBH, has the potential to

By Naomi Uzor shore this up significantly.Speaking at the technical

meeting on EBH, held atNACCIMA house, thetechnical team which consistsof private and public sectorsfrom Nigeria, Benin, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Liberia andSenegal, came to the conclusionthat the EBH is a very

important initiative that hasenormous potential to upscaletrade and business in the regionand should be established withoutfurther delay.

According to the team, any EBH maycommence operations as for profit or notfor profit, which is easier but ultimately itmust graduate to profitability as a privatesector initiative and that it should beestablished as a multilateral structurestarting with the countries that are ready.

By AbdulwahabAbdulah

LAGOS—ALMOST ayear after the former

President GoodluckJonathan was defeated ina general election, thecampaign processorganised to actualise his reelection is now a subject oflitigation.

Silicon Concepts Limited,one of the companies thatprovided electroniccampaign services duringthe electioneering processhas dragged the PeoplesDemocratic Party, PDP andtwo others before a FederalHigh Court sitting in Abuja,demanding a sum of N70million as balance ofpayment for the services itrendered to the party’sPresidential CampaignOrganisation, PCO.

Joined as defendants ina motion on notice filed bythe plaintiff in a bit to recoverthe said funds are DrAhmadu Alli and SenatorNenadi Esther Usman, whowere sued in their capacityas the Director-General,PDP presidential campaignorganization and Director,Finance, of the organizationrespectively.

Apart from asking for theorder of court for thepayment of the fund, thecompany prayed for a leaveof court granting Dr. TonyAkabuno, a technicalpartner and consultant tothe company to be listed aswitness against thedefendants during the trialof the case.

However, the defendantsthrough the statement ofdefence from the thirddefendant deniedplaintiff’s claim, stating itnever owed the N70 milliondemanded, adding that theplaintiff company neverexecuted the contractawarded it in any way.

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4 , 2015—11

Afenifere to pick Fasoranti's successortoday

By Dayo Johnson

Fayose apologises toteachers for underpayment

Oodua Invesment shares N150mdividend among owner states

By Rotimi Ojomoyela

By Gbenga Olarinoye

LAND USECHARGE:OsunAssemblyholds publichearing

Pastor SamuelOrogun passeson

PASTOR SAMUELBamidele Orogun of Idogun,

Ondo State is dead.He died after a brief illness on

Saturday, September 19, 2015.There will be a Christian wake-

keep/service of songs on Tuesday,Nov. 10, at C.A.C. Ajewole ZonalHqtrs., Osogbo, Osun. Funeralservice/interment holds thefollowing day at C.A.C. IdogunDistrict Hqtrs. and Orogun’scompound, Ugbe, Idogun, Ondo.

Late Pastor S.B.Orogun

AKURE—LEADERS ofAfenifere, the Pan Yoruba

socio political group will todaymeet in Akure, the Ondo Statecapital at the country home of itsformer chairman, Pa RuebenFasoranti on the choice of a newhelmsman.

All things being equal a newchairman will today take over fromPa Fasoranti who resigned threedays ago, citing old age.

The group is also expected tochart a new course for the Yorubanation after looking critically atthe alleged disloyalty and otherinternal wrangling within thegroup.

Vanguard gathered that thoseexpected at the meeting are coreleaders of the group as farreaching decisions on the wayforward are expected to be taken.

A leader of the group, whospoke on condition of anonymity,with Vanguard said that theoutcome of the meeting will bemade public and all insinuationsabout the resignation of its leaderPa Fasoranti, laid to rest.

Confirmingtoday's meeting

Contacted, Secretary General ofthe group, Asiwaju SehindeArogbofa, tacitly confirmedtoday's meeting.

Arogbofa, however, said thepublic will be informedappropriately.

He said; “The meeting is strictlyfor members of the group only.We will make our decisionsknown to you after the meeting.”

The scribe also assured that theresignation of Pa Fasoranti willnot affect the struggle of theYoruba race.

Pa Fasoranti remainedincommunicado yesterday as oneof his children said he was notprepared to talk to the press.

She said that the leaders of thegroup would soon make pubicthe next line of action of the Sociopolitical group.

Former chairman

indisposedAnother leader of the group who

spoke in confidence said that theformer Chairman is actuallyindisposed and on medication.

His mobile telephone remainedswitched off since Sunday after hisresignation was made public.

Pa Fasoranti in his resignationletter said that “Considering my

age, efforts and selflessdedication to my country, mystate (Ondo), my politicalparties, my past leaders and mymembers in Afenifere both inNigeria and in Diaspora, Ihereby wish to inform you allthat I have decided to stepaside as leader of our greatorganization, Afenifere.”

ADO-EKITI—THE OduaInvestment Company

Limited has paid a dividend ofN150 million to the five ownerstates of Oyo, Ogun, Osun, Ondoand Ekiti.

Although Vanguard could notascertain how much other statesreceived, Ekiti State got N30million from the money.

In a statement yesterday inAdo-Ekiti by his Chief PressSecretary, Mr Idowu Adelusi,Governor Ayodele Fayose said thepayment of the dividend afterabout six years that theconglomerate failed to giveanything to the owner-states wascommendable.

Meantime, the Ekiti Stategovernment, yesterday, chargedthose in the building industry toalways use standard measuresand quality materials in puttingup structures, in order to guideagainst building collapse in thestate.

The state Commissioner forEnvironment, Chief BisiKolawole, who handed down thewarning during a chat withVanguard, said this becomesnecessary to guide againstnegative effect of rainstorm onweak houses.

He listed the affected

O S O G B O —FOLLOWING the

dwindling revenueallocation from thefederation account to OsunState Government, theState House of Assemblyyesterday held a publichearing on the Land UseCharge bill with anassurance to maintain alevel playing field forprofessionals involved inthe bill that would soon bepassed to law.

The Speaker of the house,Hon. Najeem Salaam,apparently speaking onmemoranda submitted byconcerned professionals inthe bill sued forunderstanding saying thatthe essence of the publichearing was to enableprofessional bodies and thepeople of the state maketheir contributions in thelegislation process.

Professional bodies likeNigeria Institution ofSurveyors and Valuers,Nigeria Institute of TownPlanners and Architectswhile presenting theirmemoranda in response tothe bill expressed diverseviews and concerns on thebill.

Speaking on behalf of theMinistry of Land, PhysicalPlanning and UrbanDevelopment in the state,the Permanent Secretary ofthe ministry, Wale Ojo saidcemetery, burial grounds,churches, palaces, retirees,pensioners, old people andother non-governmentalorganisations that are non-profit oriented should beexempted from paying anycharge.

But the Nigerian Institution ofSurveyors and Valuers saidreligious bodies that own schoolsand other institutions that areprofit oriented should be taxed.

Speaking on behalf of the body,Prof. Bioye Tajudeen advised theHouse of Assembly to re-visit thebill with the aim of involving theservices of professionals thatwould bring a turn around to thestate’s economy.

The public hearing held at thepremises of the Osun state houseof Assembly in Osogbo also hadin attendance traditional rulers,market men and women, artisans,landlords, lawyers among others.

Governor Rauf Aregbesola inhis speech appealed to taxablepeople of the state to pay theirtaxes in order for the governmentto continue numerous projects ithas embarked upon in the state.

ADO-EKITI—GOVERNORAyodele Fayose yesterday

apologised to primary schoolteachers in the state over the mix-up in the payment of their lastmonth’s salary.

According to a statement by theChief Press Secretary to theGovernor, Idowu Adelusi, thegovernor said; “Even though themix-up was from the StateAccountant General’s office but asthe state governor, he takesresponsibility.

“I want to apologise for theinconsistency and problemsencountered in crediting theaccounts of some primary schoolteachers, it was after my broadcast

PUBLIC HEARING: Deputy Governor, Osun State, Mrs. Titi Laoye-Tomori (2nd right);Speaker, Osun House of Assembly, Hon. Najeem Salaam (2nd left); Deputy Speaker, Hon.Akintunde Adegboye (left), and Chairman, House Committee on Lands, Physical Planningand Urban Development, Hon. Nureni Adebisi, during a public hearing on Osun Land UseCharge Bill, at the House of Assembly complex, Osogbo, yesterday.

professional to include: architects,town planners, contractors,bricklayers and carpenters amongothers.

He also cautioned them againstaccepting building constructionjobs in forbidden sites such asthose located close to waterchannels or canals.

He noted that some of thehouses usually affected byrainstorm or flood were either tooold, wrongly designed or locatednear where they will be

susceptible to disasters.“We will not fold our arms as

government and watch peopleignore all known safetyregulations in the siting ofstructures in any part of thestate.

“This administration is puttingthese measures to pro-activelypre-empt the springing up ofslums through haphazard andillegal building constructionacross thorough fares, set backor water ways,” he said.

few days back that I got a lot oftext messages from someteachers that were affected.

“I sincerely want to apologise,I have gotten to the root of thematter, I have found out thatthere were mix-ups here andthere, the accounts werecredited and later withdrawn forcarelessness in the accountantgeneral’s office, for whatever itis I take responsibility, Iapologise and want to assureyou all the lapses will becorrected.

“My teachers at the primary schoollevel, this money will be credited to youraccounts between now andWednesday unfailingly. My apologies.”


By Sebastine Obasi, withAgency report

Shell failed to clear Nigeria's oil spills—Amnesty International, CHRD

Constructionfirm dragged tocourt overalleged failureto pay N3.9mrent

Okowainauguratesc'ttee oneducationsummit

By Festus Ahon

By Festus Ahon

Rights groups accuse Customs of impoundingSaro-Wiwa's sculpture

A S A B A —FOLLOWING

alleged refusal of aconstruction firm, to pay itsrent, a Warri-basedbusiness woman, Mrs.Victoria Oteheri, hasdragged the firm (namewithheld) to the HighCourt sitting in Ughelli,Delta State, seeking thepayment of N3.9 millionrent for the period betweenthe January 2012 and May2015.

She is also seekingpayment of N13.4 millionas assessment of damagesallegedly done to theproperty, a six flat storeybuilding at Amekpa Street,in Ughelli metropolis,which the firm allegedlyrented in 2005 to house itsexpatriate workers.

In a statement of claimprepared on her behalf byher solicitor, Mr. T.C Ubini,in the suit no UHC/63/2015, the claimantexplained that the companyhad taken possession of theproperty on June 1, 2005,after agreeing to lease it fortwo years for N1, 728,000.00 at the rate of N72,000.00 per month.

AGM: From left: Mobol Nnang, Teamlead, Commercial Banking, Heritage Bank; Mr.Charles Beke, Chairman, Rivers/Bayelsa, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria; GloriaAnwana, Teamlead, Public Sector, Heritage Bank and Chief Nabil Saleh, 2nd Vice Chairman,Rivers/Bayelsa, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, during the 31st Annual GeneralMeeting of the Association/1st Nigerian Made Exhibition, sponsored by Heritage Bank, inPort Harcourt. Photo: Nwankpa Chijioke.

AHEAD of November 10,marking the 20th

anniversary of the death ofrenowned environmental activistand writer, Ken Saro-Wiwa,Amnesty International, AL,London-based human rightswatchdog and the Centre forEnvironment, Human Rights andDevelopment, CEHRD, yesterdayin a report, accused ShellPetroleum DevelopmentCompany, SPDC, of failing in itslegal obligations to clear up oilspills it caused in Nigeria’s oil-rich Niger Delta region.

The report titled, Clean it up:Shell’s false claims about oil spillsin the Niger Delta, documentsongoing contamination at four oilspill sites that Shell said it hadcleaned up years ago.

AL said the report waspublished to mark the 20thanniversary of the execution of theenvironmental activist and writer,Ken Saro-Wiwa.

Saro-Wiwa, who campaignedrelentlessly against damagecaused to the Ogoni area of RiversState, was executed by the SaniAbacha junta on November 10,1995.

“By inadequately cleaning upthe pollution from its pipelinesand wells, Shell is leavingthousands of women, men andchildren exposed to contaminatedland, water and air, in some casesfor years or even decades,” saidMark Dummett, Business andHuman Rights researcher atAmnesty International.

“Oil spills have a devastatingimpact on the fields, forests andfisheries that the people of theNiger Delta depend on for theirfood and livelihood. Anyone whovisits these spill sites can see and

smell for themselves how thepollution has spread across theland,” he said.

The report also highlightedthe failure of the Nigeriangovernment to regulate the oilindustry.

According to AI, the NationalOil Spill Detection andResponse Agency, NOSDRA,the government’s watchdog,was under-resourced andcontinued to certify areas visiblypolluted with crude oil, as clean.

“As people in Nigeria andaround the world remember KenSaro-Wiwa and the eight otherOgoni leaders who wereexecuted in 1995, Shell and thegovernment of Nigeria cannotignore the terrible legacy of theoil industry in the Niger Delta.

For many people of the region,oil has brought nothing butmisery,” said StevynObodoekwe, CEHRD’s Directorof Programmes.

AL said the findings of a 38page report were based onresearch conducted in theBoobanabe, Bomu Manifold,Barabeedom swamp andOkuluebu areas of Niger Delta’sOgoniland region, between Julyand September this year.

According to AL , spills inthose areas dated back severalyears.

The report stated that ALresearchers found waterloggedareas with an oily sheen,“patches of oil-blackened soil atseveral locations” and, in somecases, pollution “spreading intoneighboring land and

waterways”.Consequently, AL said SPDC

should change its approach tothe way in which it cleans upafter oil spills and urged thegovernment to publish detailedinformation relating to suchoperations.

When contacted, thespokesman of Shell, PreciousOkolobo, said: “Without havingaccess to the report it is difficultto respond to these issues in athorough manner.Implementation of the UNEPreport is part of a widerprogramme of remediation,pipeline protection, communityengagement and socialinvestment activities beingundertaken by the SPDC JVwith its government,community and civil societypartners in Ogoniland."

By Jimitota Onoyume

PORT HARCOURT—FIVEcivil society groups,

yesterday, in Rivers State accusedNigeria Customs Service, NCS,Apapa, Lagos, of impounding asculpture made in livingmemorial of Ken Saro-Wiwa.

According to Ogoni SolidarityForum, Friends of the Earth,Social Action, EnvironmentalRights Action and Home ofMother Earth Foundation, thesculpture was seized onSeptember 8, and all efforts to getit released had been fruitless tilldate.

The group said the sculpture wason display in several places in theUnited Kingdom before it wasshipped into the country.

A statement by Ogoni SolidarityForum, Friends of the Earth,Social Action, Environmental

Rights Action and Home ofMother Earth Foundation saidthe sculpture was to drawattention to the environmentalchallenges faced by Ogoniarising from pollution of theirarea.

According to the groups:“This statement is issued to drawpublic attention to the seizure bythe Nigeria Customs Service ofa “living memorial” to Ken Saro-Wiwa donated by Platform -friends and colleagues in theUnited Kingdom - to the Ogonipeople.

The memorial is a sculpturemade in remembrance of thestruggles of Ken Saro-Wiwa and8 other Ogoni environmentalrights activists who weresentenced and killed by amilitary tribunal in November1995. It calls attention to theenvironmental degradation and

economic deprivation, in whichthe Ogoni people live, despitebeing naturally blessed withenormous deposits of crude oil.The people of Ogonilandcontinue to fight for remediationof their lands and compensationafter the devastation caused byoil multinationals such as Shell.

“After being on display atvarious places in the UnitedKingdom for 9 years, at therequest of Nigerian partners, thesculpture was shipped fromLondon to Nigeria via LagosPort. On arrival in Lagos, it wasimpounded by Customs officialson September 8, 2015, whoclaimed that it had ‘politicalvalue’, due to Saro-Wiwa’swords which are inscribed on theside: ‘I accuse the oil companiesof practising genocide againstthe Ogoni’. The sculpture alsodisplays the name of Ken Saro-Wiwa on a white steel banner,and the names of the other 8

Ogoni men on sculpturalbarrels, currently stowed insidefor transportation purposes.Every attempt to get it releasedto the Ogoni people has provedabortive. No further reason hasbeen given for the continuedseizure of the gift to the Ogonipeople.

Similarly, a box of flyers andreports commemorating the20th Anniversary of the murderof Ken Saro-Wiwa, sent byfriends Platform in the UnitedKingdom through DHL, wasalso seized for no justifiablereason by the State SecurityService. To date the box has notbeen returned. We havesubmitted letters of appeal tothe Customs boss, Col HameedAli (retd), upon receipt of theletter by his Personal Assistant,we were assured that thesculpture would be released.That has not yet happened."

ASABA—AS partefforts towards

boosting the standard ofeducation in Delta State,Governor Ifeanyi Okowa,yesterday, inaugurated a six-man committee to organise aneducation summit to be heldin the first quarter of 2016.

Inaugurating the committee,which the formerCommissioner for Secondaryand Basic Education, Prof.Patrick Muoboghare, asChairman, and Mr VincentMagboma, as secretary,Okowa said the educationsummit became necessary tocheck the falling standard andnoticeable deficiencies in thepresent education system inthe state and the country ingeneral.

Other members of thecommittee include: ChieduEbie, Jude Sinebe, Mrs PatEjeteh, Professor MaryEdema, and Mr JacksonEkwugum.


Tension in Bayelsa over looming clash betweenDickson, Sylva's supporters

By Samuel Oyadongha

Edo LG pensioners, Oshiomhole's media aide bicker over payment

Buhari’s waragainstcorruption,not selective—Ikpomnwen

By SimonEbegbulem

By GabrielEnogholase

B E N I N — L O C A LG o v e r n m e n t

Pensioners Association,LGPA, in Edo State,yesterday, traded wordswith the Special Adviser toGovernor AdamsOshiomhole on MediaAffairs, Prince KassimAfegbua, over the paymentof pensions to localgovernment pensioners.

While the Edo StateLGPA, claimed the lawestablishing PensionBoards made it mandatoryfor the federal, states andlocal governments to jointlyfund the Local GovernmentStaff Pension Board,LGSPB, Afegbua insistedthat the state governmenthad nothing to do with thepayment of councils’pensioners benefits as theywere not its employees.

LGPA, in a statement byits state president andSecretary, Mr.J.U.Obakpolo, and Mr.T.E.Uwagboe, respectively,in a response to an earlierstatement credited to

Afegbua, argued that by theprovisions of Section 210 ofthe 1999 Constitution asamended, stategovernments weremandated to take charge ofpensions in their states.

The body contended thatit was the “stategovernment that collectslocal governmentallocations from the federalgovernment monthly aswell as controls allparastatals including theEdo State LocalGovernment Staff PensionBoard.

It also argued that it wasthe responsibility of the stategovernment to pay the

pensions as it wasresponsible for constitutingany board of inquiring intothe affairs of each localgovernment when the needarose.

However, reacting to theclaim, Afegbua, said that

his statement on the issuewas to set the recordstraight that the stategovernment had nothing todo with the payment ofcouncils’ pensionersbenefits because they werenot its employees.

He said, “They shouldchannel their protests to theappropriate quarters. Ifthey are saying thatGovernor Oshiomholeshould intervene, that canbe noted and not that thestate government shouldpay their pension arrears.They are not ouremployees. The Edo Stategovernment cannot forinstance go to the Federalgovernment to pay thepension arrears of itspensioners."

BENIN—FORMERProvost Marshal of

the Nigerian Army,Brigadier-General IdadaIkpomnwen (retd), hasdescribed as damagingdistraction, the allegationby the Peoples DemocraticParty, PDP, that PresidentMuhammadu Buhari’s waragainst corruption isselective, urging theleadership of the party toshut its mouth in shame.

Ikponmwen, a chieftainof the All ProgressivesCongress, APC, in EdoState, said: “I think all thoseaccusing the President ofselective justice, such as thePDP, that he is only dealingwith perceived opponentsand people of rival parties,are just detractors. It is anunacceptable anddamaging distractionwhich Nigeria cannot affordat this time. I believe thatthe best for Nigeria now isMuhammadu Buhari. Themost outstanding qualitythat made Nigerians go forhim is his incorruptibilityand transparent life pattern.He obviously is the manwho can change Nigeria byinfusing selflessness andtransparency into all facetsof Nigeria's life both publicand private.

“The PDP should shut itsmouth in shame. It hadopportunity to move thiscountry forward over oneand a half decades, but didnot do it. Rather, a cabalgrew within the group,growing in misrule thatworsened from day to dayand leaving nothing butanger and frustration toNigerians. We have startedmoving forward even bymere presence of a leaderthat is known to be genuineand committed to theprogress of this country."

YENAGOA—BARELY amonth to the December 5

governorship election in BayelsaState, fear of possible violent clashbetween supporters of GovernorSeriake Dickson of Bayelsa State,candidate of Peoples DemocraticParty, PDP, who is seeking re-election, and Chief Timipre Sylva,his All Progressives Congress,APC, governorship candidate,counterpart, now pervades thestate.

But for the timely interventionof security operatives, there wouldhave been a clash at Swali marketwhen APC supporters came faceto-face with the governor’s men.

Tension mounted when APCgovernorship candidate, Sylva/Igiri campaign organisation andofficials of Bayelsa StateSanitation Authority, met whileeach camp trooped out to evacuateheaps of refuse scattered acrossthe state capital.

The APC supporters hadtrooped out in their hundreds asearly as 7am to converge at theSylva/Igiri campaign organisationhead office, before proceeding tothe refuse receptacles backed bybulldozers and trucks to evacuatethe wastes.

The APC operation tagged“Sylva Cleans Bayelsa,” first portof call was the refuse dump closeto the Kpansia market on the IsaacBoro expressway, a developmentthat caused serious gridlock on theusually busy road.

The Syla/Igiri APC train latermoved to Community Secondary

School, Kpanisa, while the stategovernment, through itsEnvironmental SanitationAuthority, also deployed itsbulldozer and trucks to evacuatethe receptacles.

The state government's teamwas sighted evacuating thereceptacle close to OkakaPrimary School on the MelfordOkilo expressway.

However, the atmosphere wastense at the Swali market areawhen the APC train came faceto face with the GovernorSeriake Dickson’s convoy on

“Community-to-Communitymeet the people” tour.

But security operativesreportedly prevented thesituation from degenerating intoa clash between the supportersof the APC and the PDP.

The APC exercise which wasled by the Directors of Publicityand Mobilisation, Chief NathanEgba and Selekaye Victor-Ben,had hundreds of APC womenand youths engaged inevacuating refuse from Kpansia,Swali and Opolo areas of thestate capital.

While Nathan Egbadescribed the Keep BayelsaClean exercise by the APC asstrategic and means of savingthe state from epidemic,Selekaye Victor-Ben said theevacuation was a show of careby the APC against theperceived failures of the PDPto keep the state clean.

It was however alleged thatsome of the women involved inthe exercise were attacked at theTombia dump site, resulting toaccusation and counteraccusation from APC and PDPcamps.

MEETING: Cross River State Governor, Professor Ben Ayade (left) and the Presidentand Representative Director, Japan Gas Corporation (JGC), Mr. Koichi Kawana, during ameeting in Tokyo to discuss plans for a modular refinery in Cross River.

CMYK


CMYK


CMYK

16—Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVENBER 4, 2015

Tribunal affirms Gov Ikpeazu’s electionBy Anayo Okoli

UMUAHIA—ABIA StateGovernorship Election

Petition Tribunal sitting inUmuahia has affirmed Dr. OkezieIkpeazu of the PeoplesDemocratic Party, PDP, asproperly elected during the April11 governorship polls.

Delivering judgment that lastedtwo hours in the petition broughtbefore it by Dr. Alex Otti of AllProgressive Grand AllianceAPGA, chairman of the three manpanel of Justices, Justice UsmanBwala said that the petitionerfailed to prove beyond reasonabledoubt, the allegations ofcriminality and over voting inthree local government areas.

According to Justice Bwala, thepetitioner ’s prayer for thecancellation of the results of theelection in three local governmentareas of Osisioma, Obingwa andIsiala Ngwa North based on thegrounds that the returning officerfor the election in the state hadearlier cancelled them but laterreversed himself was notsubstantiated.

The tribunal also faulted thepetitioner for praying that he bedeclared winner of the electionwhich result he said the returningofficer cancelled, saying it wascontradictory.

“The petitioner cannot ask forcancellation and at the same time

want to be declared winner”, anddismissed the petition, saying,“the petition failed and is herebydismissed” but awarded no costagainst the petitioner.

In his reaction to the judgment,Governor Okezie Ikpeazu thankedGod and the entire people of Abiastate for their support for him,saying that the judgment would

give him the impetus to developthe state faster.

“What happened today wasthat the tribunal affirmed ourvictory because we were

Abia House launches investigation into alleged FulaniRepublic in Ohafia •Pardons suspended member

By Anayo Okoli

UMUAHIA—THE AbiaState House of Assembly

has ordered an investigationinto the reported putting up ofa sign post with the inscription“Fulani Republic” near the 14Brigade Army Barracks, OhafiaCouncil Area of the state.

The House also recalled itsformer Minority Leader, SirAbraham Oba, who wassuspended about three monthsago following the position of his

party on the N30 billion bondsthe government wanted tosecure.

The investigation by theHouse followed a petitionbrought by the memberrepresenting Ohafia Southconstituency, Chief UchenduIfeanyi, which drew theattention of the House to thealleged “Fulani Republic” signpost mounted by Fulaniherdsmen.

According to Uchendu, thesaid sign post “posed threat topeace in his constituency”

because it created theimpression that the herdsmenhad taken over that portion ofland where they grazed theircattle.

The committee, which hadChikwendu Kanu representingIsiala Ngwa SouthConstituency, as Chairman, wascharged with the responsibilityto establish if the said “FulaniRepublic” land was part of theArmy land and how the Fulanicame into its alleged occupation.The committee is to submit itsreport next Wednesday.

Activities of Fulani cattleherdsmen in some Abiacommunities had become a sourceof great worry to the peoplebecause the cattle cause hugedamage to crops and farmlands inthese rural communities where thebreeders illegally and brazenlycolonize as grazing grounds anddared the land owners for ashowdown when challenged.

Besides the damage on cropsand other farm produce, theaggressive nature of the Fulanicattle guards was more of concernto any community they invade.They were always armed to theteeth with dangerous weapons,including AK47, charms anddeadly daggers and machetes andwere ready to attack the farmowners at the least provocation.

There had been reports ofclashes between the herdsmenand farmers in some Abiacommunities of Uzoakoli in BendeLocal Government Area, Ebemand Akanu in Ohafia andUmuchieze in Umunneochi.

In Ozuakoli for instance, a manpopularly known in the areas asAjambele sometime in the pastreceived a deadly attack when heconfronted Fulani cattleherdsmen, who invaded hisfarmland with their cattle and hemet the cattle destroying his farmin the Over Rail area of thecommunity.

Fuel scarcity bites harder in Enugu...sells at 110 per litre

By Francis Igata

ENUGU—MOTORISTS inEnugu State are gnashing

their teeth following the suddenhike in the price of PremiumMotor Spirt,PMS,otherwiseknown as petrol which now sellsat N110 a litre against theFederal Government’s approvedpump price of N87 per litre.

This development hasoccasioned long queues at majorfilling stations where PMS is soldat N87.

Although the Nigeria NationalPetroleum Company, NNPC, hasrepeatedly assured Nigerians of

adequate supply nationwide,checks revealed that the increasestarted two days ago.

When Vanguard roved aroundEnugu metropolis, major fillingstations that had PMS witnessedlong queues while mostindependent marketers were outof supply. Further checksrevealed that some independentmarketers shut their gates tomotorists during work hourswhile they open to blackmarketers in the evening whodispense at suffocating prices tostranded motorists.

At one of the major fillingstations located on Rangers

Avenue,a motorist,Mrs. UcheLevi lamented that N1,000which used to purchase morethan ten litres of PMS for hervehicle could barely afford eightlitres following the prevailingsituation.

“The situation has been likethis for long now. Look at thequeue. I have spent one hourhere because they sell atapproved pump price. If you goto other independent marketers,it sells for N110 or more. Thequality of the PMS is also asource of worry. We try to buyfrom major marketers becausethere is quality control here."

MRS. CHRISTIANAOhiaeriaku, a

devoted Christian, whodied on October 2, 2016,aged 85, will be buried onNovember 12, 2015, at Mr.Augustine Ohiaeriaku’sresidence in Umunabochi,Umuhu Okabia, Orsu LGA,Imo State.

Service of songs will beheld at St. Joseph’sCatholic Parish, UmuhuOkabia.

She is survived by fivechildren, 20 grand children,among whom is aVanguard reporter,Kelechukwu Iruoma, andfour great grand children.

Mrs ChristianaOhiaeriaku forburial

Late Mrs. Ohiaeriaku

By ChimaobiNwaiwu

Chemicalexplosion sets3 buildingsablaze

N N E W I — Achemical depot

located at Nkporjunction in Idemili NorthLocal Government areaof Anambra State,yesterday evening setthree buildings: a five-storey, three-storey andanother ablaze when thechemicals stored indrums in the depotcaught fire andexploded.

Properties estimated atseveral millions of nairawere lost to the infernodespite the efforts ofmen of the fire servicewho were on hand to stopthe fire.

Two of the affectedbuildings were SummerHill Clinic and aresidential home locatednear it. It was gatheredthat because the threebuildings were clusteredin one place, the infernowas able to affect themeasily.

Contacted, the OgidiDivisional Police Officer,DPO, Mr. Hassan Musaconfirmed the infernostarted from the chemicaldepot, however he said nolife was lost and no bodyhad been confirmed injured.

CONFERENCE: The Deputy President of the Nigerian Senate, SenatorIke Ekweremadu, receiving the Nigerian national flag, during the openingof the 15th Commonwealth Speakers and Presiding Officers Conference,in Accra, Ghana.

declared winnerssince May. I thankGod for the victoryand Abia people fortheir support.Victory today isvictory for Abia andvictory for service.

“There is novictor, novanquished, as it isa victory for all. Iwant to call onthose who lost tocome forward andjoin hands with usto develop the stateto an enviableheight”, theGovernor said.

But in hisreaction theN a t i o n a lChairman ofAPGA, Dr. VictorOye described thejudgment of thetribunal as what theparty had longexpected.

“We neverexpected to getjudgment from themembers of thetribunal,” Oyesaid.

Vanguard,Vanguard,Vanguard,Vanguard,Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015 — — — — — 1717171717

[email protected]

Tabia Princewill is astrategic communicationsconsultant and publicpolicy analyst. She is alsothe co-host and executiveproducer of a talk show,WALK THE TALK whichairs on Channels TV.

There must be justice: Political subversionand the North-East

“A reformer should be ex-empted from the suspicion of in-terest, and he must possess theconfidence and esteem of thosewhom he proposes to reclaim”-Edward Gibbon.

THIS is one of the reasonswhy reformers fail:

perception is indeed every-thing. I’ve mentioned beforethat those who speak for Presi-dent Buhari do him no favours:from his spokesmen to the im-promptu zealots and sycophantswho make such strange and ab-surd claims as the President’s“shyness” around women.

It is evident that those in chargeof his communications strategyare destined to commit the sameerrors as the likes of Reuben Abatiand Doyin Okupe whom theyonce criticized. By merely react-ing to events and onslaughts bythe opposition, by refusing todetermine and lead the conver-sation towards certain salienttruths about power, corruptionand the way governance hasbeen practiced in Nigeria, thosewho are supposed to be aidingthe President by marketing hisagenda to Nigerians (in order tocarry them along) are failing theircountry and their president.

There is a propaganda war athand and its byword is “witch-hunt”. However, there is some-thing greater at stake, greaterthan the disjointed rants and fi-nal spasms of an expiring politi-cal faction or even class, who seesits livelihood compromised bychange.

A war is coming. A war becausemost Nigerians now believe thatpredatory politics is the norm, thatselfish political action can benefitthem and that some are simplyless deserving of any advantag-es. It should be every media andcommunications practitioner’saspiration to fight the war againstthe root cause of terror andinsecurity in Nigeria: greed andsocial injustice, the acceptancethat rent-seeking is a communalbusiness within which we allgleefully consent to be trapped.

Public officeholders

The idea that in truth, corrup-tion profits only public officeholders is one we must teach: itis neither obvious nor clearly un-derstood by the masses who hailtheir despoilers and write folktales, modern myths in their de-fense. Thomas Jefferson, 3rd USPresident, wrote in 1784: “man-kind soon learnt to make inter-ested uses of every right and pow-er which they possess, or may as-sume. Public money and publicliberty will soon be discovered tobe sources of wealth and domin-ion to those who hold them; Withmoney we will get men, saidCaesar, and with men we will getmoney. They should look forwardto a time when corruption in thiscountry will have seized theheads of government, and bespread by them through the bodyof the people; when they will pur-chase the voices of the people,and make them pay the price”.The price Nigerians all over thiscountry are currently paying isBoko Haram.

The former governor of Borno

Chad basin’s oil reserves cannotbe exploited on the Nigerian enddue to the Boko Haram menace.They can, however, using 3D oildrilling technologies be garneredby Chad. As far back as 2002, thengovernor Mala Kachalla said con-flicting border claims in the lakeChad region between Nigeria(Borno State in particular), Chadand Cameroon meant Nigeriawas losing island villages to itsneighbours.

Island villages which like in theBakassi case, are rich in petro-leum resources. The alarm wasalso raised regarding the Sam-bisa forest where years later theChibok girls would reportedly beheld,as it had been identified asa hideout for Chadian rebels,arms and child trafficking.

Governor Kachalla’s recommen-dations, made to the presidentialcommittee on national security,including aerial surveillance andimmigration reform, wereseemingly ignored or in the usualNigerian fashion, haphazardlyimplemented.

The rest is history. But the in-teresting question is why Pres-ident Obasanjo and his succes-sors would allow Nigeria to loseboth oil-rich Bakassi and thehuge potential revenue and re-sources from the lake Chad ba-sin which extends throughYobe, Borno and Adamawastates, the very states hardesthit by Boko Haram. In the Ni-gerian political game, there isonly one set of winners and oneset of losers, the latter being the

Nigerian people. Remnants ofrebel armies in Chad and Ni-ger have been formenting po-litical instability in those coun-tries (Chadian President IdrissDeby was himself brought topower by one such rebel groupin the early '90s) for years andare responsible for banditry inthe North. The so-called Fulaniherdsmen who often trgger vol-atile situations in the Middle-belt are probably not even Ni-gerians, in which case, whoknows if the men who report-edly recently kidnapped OluFalae are citizens of this coun-try. But it is most dishearteningto see how political greed, vot-er apathy or disinterest, a lackof education and empowermenthave seemingly enabled somepowerful groups to covertly de-cide Nigeria’s future withoutmuch input from the masses.

In any society, when things goawry, fingers are first pointedat the media. Who educated thevoter on his choices? Who toldhim he had a choice at all?Rather than joining politiciansto analyse or support real orimagined witch hunts, Nigeri-ans need to start asking ques-tions.

Alleged terrorsponsors

What did then PresidentJonathan mean when he saidthere were Boko Haram spon-sors in his government, in themilitary?How is it that allegedterror sponsors and former Ni-gerian presidents, are ru-moured to have interests inChadian oil companies tappinginto oil on Nigerian soil? If it istrue, is this not treasonous, anact of grand larceny and sabo-tage against the Nigerian stateand people?

Who would willinglydestabilize a region for financialgain? And if there are some outthere who know of this, whatwill it take to bring them toheel? Are over 13,000 deathsworth protecting a few individ-uals?

What ever happened to theAustralian negotiator, StephenDavis, reports? In other climesthe Senate would havedemanded an immediate en-quiry into his allegations thattop Nigerian politicians andmilitary personnel were spon-sors of the Boko Haram sect.What happened to the UsmanGaltimari panel report that rec-ommended Goodluck Jonathanshould investigate politicianswho own private militias usedin the 2003 elections, some ofwhom became today’s insur-gents, recruiting the “illiterates”Ali Modu Sheriff seemingly de-rided?

May the protection of violent,politically connected personsend with this new presidency.

ANOTHER week, anotherset of strange claims. I have

often said that many of our politi-cians inherited the current sys-tem from their military big broth-ers. Most know or care to knowlittle about democracy and its realworkings.

It’s also pretty ironic, given thehorrendous, planted stories abouthim, that a former military man,President Buhari, is the one to de-fend freedom of information byexplaining why the electorate, de-serves to be informed.

How can revealing salienttruths be seen as sullyingNigeria’s name or “de-marketing” the country like thePDP’s spokesman claims? “Weask how can any reasonableinvestor still have the confidenceto invest in a country where the

De-marketing NigeriaPresident himself continues toalert that his country reeks ofcorrupt people and that the gov-ernment is broke to the extent itcannot pay cabinet ministers?”Olisa Metuh says.

The question Nigerians shouldbe asking is: who made it so? Whocreated this situation and why arethey still walking free? TheNigerian treasury has beenconsistently plundered and theproblem with Nigeria is the un-willingness to call a spade aspade: can’t we all agree thatstealing is corruption no matterwho is found guilty?

There is always an excuse whya spade shouldn’t be called aspade but instead be considereda wheelbarrow when it is insomeone’s interest for the truthto be subverted or for it to remain

•Ali Modu Sheriff •Olusegun Obasanjo...former President

•Olisa Metuh

hidden. Wheelbarrows masquer-ading as spades and engagingin goat and yam politics mightjust be the ones who are in factde-marketing Nigeria.

In other climes theSenate would havedemanded animmediate enquiryinto his allegationsthat top Nigerianpoliticians andmilitary personnelwere sponsors of theBoko Haram sect

state, Ali Modu Sheriff, alleged-ly once said that the criticismsleveled against him meant noth-ing because most of the residentsof his state were illiterates. The

OPINION

18 — Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015

In Nigeria, education is both a debt and death sentenceBy Hassan Taiwo Soweto

THE Education Rights Campaign, ERC,applauds the victory of South African

students over attempts to impose a steep rise inregistration, tuition and accommodation feesranging from 8% to 12%. Playing active role inthis important struggle is the Socialist YouthMovement, SYM, – the ERC’s sisterorganisation in South Africa that alsocampaigns for free and democratically-managed public education as the ERC does inNigeria.

The #FeesMustFall protests started as aspontaneous movement from below of angrystudents who could not tolerate the pro-richpolicy of university managements and thegovernment any longer. After ten days ofstruggle, the African National Congress, ANC,government of Jacob Zuma was forced to agreeto 0 % fee increase in the year 2016. Althoughthe demand for free education remainsunachieved yet, this concession is no doubt ahumiliating defeat of a government whose pro-rich policies have contributed to making SouthAfrica one of the most unequal countries in theworld.

This victory in South Africa should serve asan inspiration to students all across Africa andespecially in Nigeria where education isgradually being turned to the preserve of thefew rich through anti-poor capitalist policiesof underfunding and commercialisation.

Just like South African students, Nigerianstudents have a lot of reasons to declare anational boycott and mass protests on the scale

of the sort of nationwide mobilizations ofstudents were known for in the 80s under thethen vibrant National Association of NigerianStudents, NANS. Now despite over more than10 years of economic boom when Nigeriamade millions of dollars from daily crude oilsales (with the exception of the decline duringthe 2007/2008 global economic crisis), fundingto public education declined while feesincreased. The result is a big financial burdenon working class parents who have to sufferuntold hardship to scrape together money topay high fees at the beginning of everyacademic session. Apart from those who faceautomatic exclusion and do not even bother tomake the effort to apply, thousands more dropout of school after their first or second yearwhen their poor parents’ savings suddenly rundry, there is a sudden increase in fees or familymembers lose jobs or fall sick. For instance,after the Babatunde Raji Fashola-led Lagos

State government in 2011 jerked up fees at theLagos State University, LASU, from N25, 000to an alarming N350, 000, the full-timestudents’ population of the university droppedfrom about 20, 000 to around 12, 000 over thecourse of the next three years. It took a massivestruggle involving students, education workersand groups like the ERC and the Joint ActionFront, JAF, for the fee hike to be reversed inAugust, 2014.

As a result of government pro-capitalist policyof turning public education into a profit-making venture, funding of essential facilitiesin tertiary institutions are being cut. Whilegrants given to faculties and departments arenever enough to cover their most basicoverhead costs, essential facilities like hostels,water, electricity supply and medical clinicsare rarely allocated enough funds.Government’s mantra is that universities andtertiary institutions should find creative waysof improving their Internally GeneratedRevenue, IGR, through increasing fees,application for grants from donor agencies andprivate bodies and setting up profit ventureslike “pure water” and bottled water business,distance learning programmes, etc. While theidea that tertiary institutions should engage inbusiness and other ventures aside their coreobjectives often lead to wastage of time, energyand resources on activities that have nocorrelation to improving quality of educationin the respective institutions, this practice alsoexposes students and members of staff to horriblewelfare and working conditions.

In fact, so terrible are the conditions of study in

Nigeria that students are dying in droves acrossthe country due to the negligence and inadequacyof functional facilities and relevant personnel.But while attention has rightly been focused onthe terrible conditions of hostels where studentslive like pigs without any good sanitary provisionsand the lecture theaters, libraries and laboratorieswhich are often denuded of the relevant materialsfor learning, it is only recently that the reality hasbegun to dawn that so underfunded, under-provisioned and understaffed are the healthcentres that they have now turned to death centresinto which many students have gone, never toreturn.

Many of the health centres are so understaffedthat while a doctor or nurse is attending to apatient, over 30 others are waiting on the queue.The drug dispensary units are often without themost essential drugs such that many asthmaticstudents and students having similar ailmentsare known to have died at the health centres.Under the pressure of cut in allocations and theneed to ensure that only properly registeredstudents benefit from medical attention, theinstitutions have now adopted a ridiculous policythat authorises medical personnel to withholdtreatment unless an identification is producedby students in need of medical attention regardlessof their state of consciousness. This has led to atleast five deaths this year alone. Examples areMayowa Alaran at the University of Ibadan, Kelat the University of PortHarcourt, Oluchi Anekweat the University of Lagos, Akintaro Raphael atthe Polytechnic Ibadan and Maria Atere at theFederal University of Agriculture Abeokuta. Theywere all neglected at their respective institution’shealth centres and died in the process.

North East rehabilitation plan

AS the deadline for the ongoingmilitary operations to clear the NorthEast of the menace of Boko HaramIslamist terrorists draws nearer, theFederal Government is set to empanela national conference to generateideas, strategies and momentum forthe reconstruction and rehabilitationof the nation’s embattled frontier.

The conference, tentatively set forDecember 7, 2015, according to thePresidency, will involve stakeholdersfrom the government, private sectorand international partners.

It is expected that the North EastMarshall Plan (NEMAP), which willbe designed to tackle the immediateand long term strategies for therestoration of the broken human andinfrastructure of the North East, willgulp over N200 billion.

It is noteworthy that the nation ispreparing, well ahead of time, to helpits embattled citizens wracked byviolent insurgency which has claimed

nearly 20,000 lives and displaced overtwo million people, to their feet asquickly as possible, rather thanleaving them to their own deviceswhen, hopefully, the enemy isdefeated.

We, however, hope that a thoroughjob is done in ending the insurgencyfirst before rushing to awardcontracts. The insurgents must bedecisively flushed out and preventedfrom infiltrating the law abidingpopulace or else the returninginternally displaced persons will nothave the protection they need to settledown and rebuild their lives.

It does not make sense for peopleto go back to their communities onlyto live in fear of suicide bombings andhit-and-run attacks.

To keep the insurgents at bay, aneffective strategy for maintainingvigilance and communal partnershipwith the security agencies must be putin place. We must banish the notionthat only the law enforcement agenciescan protect us from insurgents.Everybody has a role to play. Perhaps,it is time to give the much talked aboutidea of community policing a chance.No one can police a community morethan members of that community.

While we wait for the laws to beamended to accommodate communitypolicing, we suggest that the existing“Civilian JTF” networks, which haveusefully partnered with the troops inthe North East campaigns, should bestrengthened.

The reconstruction efforts shouldfocus mainly on restoring brokensocio-economic amenities such asschools, healthcare facilities, markets,motor parks and road networks.Particular attention should be given tofarmers and small-scale businesses torejuvenate economic activities.

The people must be kept gainfullyemployed to avoid an upsurge ofviolent crimes which usually come atthe end of most wars and conflicts.

The conference to rebuild the NorthEast should be a comprehensivepackage to ensure that insurgencynever comes back, while the peoplevictimised by the conflict are fullyreactivated.

* Mr Taiwo Soweto, National Coordinator,ERC, wrote from Lagos

In Nigeria education isgradually being turned tothe preserve of the few richthrough anti-poor capitalistpolicies of underfundingand commercialisation

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015—19—19—19—19—19

Send Opinions & Letters to:[email protected]

Dear President Buhari, you do nothave to appoint 36 ministers!

ONE of the qualities that recommended,even endeared, President Muhammadu

Buhari to a majority of the electorate overand above former president GoodluckJonathan in the last election was that ofresoluteness. His first coming as militaryhead of state had left no one in doubt that hismind, once made up, can be as unbending ashis steely spine. His character profile saidsimply: Buhari means what he says and sayswhat he means. In general, this is anadmirable quality, especially in a leader, butit can also prove to be a flaw, as candidateBuhari learnt during the campaigns whensome of his less carefully guarded statements— borne of righteous indignation at the bare-faced robberies misnamed elections in at leasttwo of his previous tries for the presidency —were hurled back at him with glee by hisopponents.

But that enviable characteristic, it wouldappear, has deserted the president in thematter of the number of ministers to appointinto his cabinet. Convinced, as we all are, ofthe crying need to reduce the size ofgovernment, Buhari would prefer to appointonly 18 ministers. But the constitution, hesays, ties his hands. Specifically, Section147(3) which enjoins the president to “appointat least one Minister from each state.” It is awell-intended but woolly-headed offering tothe Moloch altar of federal characterenshrined in Section 14(3) of the constitution.Here it is in all the glory of its purblind vision:“The composition of the Government of aState, a local government council, or any ofthe agencies of such Government or council,and the conduct of the affairs of theGovernment or council or such agencies shall

be carried out in such manner as to recognisethe diversity of the people within its area ofauthority and the need to promote a sense ofbelonging and loyalty among all the peopleof the Federation.”

The president who wishes, however, toappoint only 18 ministers, laments that he“cannot work outside the constitution” as“there must be a cabinet representative fromeach state.” But is the president trulyhamstrung? Actually, no. All that Buhari needsis the political will to do that which is notonly rationalbut also constitutional. Section147 which purportedly fetters him beginsthus: “There shall be such offices of Ministersof the Government of the Federation as may

taken care of by the legislature which, lest weforget, is an arm of the government! In anycase, the mere appointment of an individualfrom a state does not in any way guaranteefairness to every individual or groupinhabitant of that state. For instance, theIsoko people have never had a ministerappointed from their midst in all of the 55years of Nigeria’s independence!

My good friend and comrade, Jiti Ogunye,has brilliantly exposed the fallacy of thethinking that the constitution binds thepresident hand-and-foot to a prescribednumber of ministers in his article entitled“Must Nigeria have at least Thirty-SixMinisters of the Federation?” published bythe online newspaper Premium Times (26October 2015. I commend it to the president,particularly as he seems to base his desire fora leaner and justifiable cabinet more on aninability to pay the salaries and emolumentsof 36 ministersin the face of the current fiscalcrisis — “There use[d] to be forty twoministers but I think we can barely keep halfof that now because we cannot afford it” —than on the sheer absurdity of a narrow andbackward interpretation of the constitution.What the constitution enjoins is fairness inthe appointment of any number of ministersthat a president might deem necessary foreffective governance and the realisation ofthe manifesto or programme for which hewas elected. With 36 states and counting, aliteral interpretation of Section 147 only

produces a very costly absurdity. Such asimpelled the president to contemplateappointing ministers without portfolios butwho would nonetheless “sit in the cabinetbecause that is what the constitution said andwe can’t operate outside the constitution.”No, I repeat, the constitution does not insiston that. At the very least, it is ambiguous,leaving the way open for a liberal andpreferable interpretation.

As every sophomore law student knows, theGolden Rule of statutory interpretation is tobe preferred where the literal or strictconstructionist approach would lead toabsurdity; or when the intention ofparliament — which as a rule cannot beabsurd or deemed against equity, naturaljustice and good conscience —cannot beeasily discerned; or, where discernible, itwould be impossible to implement. Toappoint 36 ministers when no more than 18are needed is simply to worship the letterwhile profaning the spirit of theconstitutional goal of fairness and nationalsense of belonging. It is to perpetuate theunacceptable status quo. And it is to prolongthe material and moral vandalisation of thenation of which President Buhari speaks sopassionately. He must now bring his fabledresoluteness to bear on the problem.

That would be a true measure of the changewe all yearn for and which he swears touphold without fear or favour.

THE fortunes of the NigerianArmy have of late been

going down precipitously. Amilitary force that was for a longtime the pride of the country, andwas deservedly celebrated for itspeace keeping skills across thecontinent and beyond, hassuddenly descended intodisgrace. To be sure, theresponsibility for the illfortune ofthe Nigerian military as a wholeand the Army in particularly lieswith the military. It is the outcomeof the aggravation of the un-healthy introduction of politicsinto what ought to be an essen-tially professional calling. If themilitary’s entry into politics wasat some point justified, if not in-evitable, its continued stay inpolitics, in fact the determinationof some within its hierarchy toengage in politics even while inuniform and at the expense of thedemands of their profession,downgraded the status of the Ni-gerian military as a fightingforce.

Having tasted the forbiddenfruit of power, the militaryresisted the urgency to return tothe barracks. It became a gameof musical chairs as one group

Of unfit soldiers andobese legislators

of armed adventurers misnamedsoldiers plotted the ouster ofanother via coups that were oftenbloody and retrogressive inoutcome. At least two of the lastthree regimes that Nigeria hadand that were able to stay thecourse before the return tocivilian rule in 1999 have beencredited (or is it discredited?) forthe destruction of the military, bytheir deliberate policy of keepingit under-resourced and illequipped. Those individuals thatfunctioned either as Chief ofArmy Staff and/or head of statein the series of regimes that werein power between 1985 and 1999have a lot to answer for the stateof our military today.

The damning admission by thelast Chairman of the Joint Chiefsof Staff under GoodluckJonathan, the man whosehometown was sacked by BokoHaram- Alex Badeh’s admissionthat the military found it hardfighting the insurgency forces inthe North East because it had notbeen equipped for long is a strongconfirmation of theresponsibility the military bearsfor its fall into something of aragtag outfit. The President

would also repeat Badeh’s com-ment on the neglect of the mili-tary on different occasions dur-ing the campaigns for the March28 polls.

Following the rot that had tak-en over the military at the top, itwas no surprise that it becameanything but a fighting force. Theincrease in the activities of theBoko Haram insurgents thatpeaked with their declaration ofa caliphate only served to furtherhumiliate the military, especiallythe Nigerian Army that had noanswer to the wanton attacks ofthe insurgents. Reports ofsoldiers sent to the war frontvirtually barehanded desertingtheir posts were to further throwcold water on any hope of themilitary routing Boko Haram.With very little by way ofweaponry to prosecute itsoperations in the North East, ourmilitary personnel werereportedly forced into thecowardly position of destroyingtheir own equipment. They wouldrather feign injury or actuallytook themselves out of action byinflicting injuries on themselvesthan take on Boko Haram. Fromthis time on the systemic rot inthe military had begun tomanifest its long ignored effectson individual members of the

military. Many would be court-martialled while others would bedismissed as a consequence evenif they could hardly be blamedfor the situation in which theyhad found themselves.

With its new found vigour undera new set of commanders, themilitary has in the last fewmonths been able to turn backthe hand of the clock in its NorthEast operations. Of this there isno doubt. It is therefore not sur-prising that the Nigerian Armyis beginning to take a close lookat its personnel as it has an-nounced a plan to clamp downon unfit soldiers. By unfit the mil-itary refers to that segment of itspersonnel that has lost the bear-ing of a soldier either because ithas grown too fat or generallylacks the mental fitness requiredin the profession. The effect of thelong years of neglect of the mili-tary was not just limited to a pal-pable lack of hardware. No lessaffected was the training of mili-tary personnel for fitness. But fortheir uniforms, many of our sol-diers don’t look the part of sol-diers. Their fierceness is only aput-on to harass civilian mem-bers of the public. Some are ei-ther too fat to look smart or tooanorexic they appear underfed.

Soldiery is not just a matter ofname. Nor is it a matter just ofuniforms alone. There is a lotmore by which to identify asoldier. The physical and mentalfitness of a soldier is far moreimportant, arguably, than simplyproviding them with weaponsand pushing them into battle.Fitness is required to properlyand maximally use availableweaponry. The military cannotoverlook this aspect. A lot of thehuman rights abuses for whichour military has been culpableare not unconnected to the poormental and physical state of oursoldiers. A trigger-happy soldier

or police officer cannot be saidto be mentally or physically fit.Soldiers who engage policeofficers or, worse yet, civilians inpublic brawls and set fire topolice stations cannot beconsidered mentally fit. Suchneed to be retrained for mentalfitness. As should be legislators,like those Peoples DemocraticParty senators, that staged awalkout in the Senate followingthe confirmation of RotimiAmaechi as minister-designate.

As Nigerians we need to beconcerned about the appearanceof those who speak in our nameeven if many of them got intooffice by fraudulent means. Theconcern is not that our legislatorsdress poorly or in the wrongclothing. On that score manywould do better than models paidto catwalk. Most are expensivelyoverdressed in fact. But they veryoften appear drowsy where theydon’t look distracted or lost inthought. Their minds could be onanything and anywhere but theissues at stake in the NationalAssembly. Many of theselegislators as those who stagedthe walkout look physically –andto the extent of that- mentallyunfit. Those who don’t look obeseappear lethargic in their longrobes. Many of them could havebeen taken for sumo wrestlers.This bad physical state may beresponsible for the frequencywith which many of them can beobserved either snoozing orsleeping in their seats. Theirsituation is compounded by theireagerness to go on recess ever sooften. But like other Nigeriansour legislators in Abuja andelsewhere need to be mentallyand physically alert, even if onlyfor them to be able to do a littleof the job for which they areovercompensated.

be established bythe President.” Inother words,Buhari is free todecide thenumber ofministries, and sothe size of hiscabinet. If fairrepresentation ingovernment is thegoal, then that ismore perfectly

A lot of the humanrights abuses forwhich our militaryhas been culpableare not unconnect-ed to the poor men-tal and physicalstate of our soldiers

To appoint 36 ministerswhen no more than 18are needed is simply toworship the letter whileprofaning the spirit ofthe constitutional goalof fairness and nationalsense of belonging

20—Vanguard, 20—Vanguard, 20—Vanguard, 20—Vanguard, 20—Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015

By Ebele Orakpo

Stingy and selfish Arabs

“THE world as know itseems to be ending oo.Haba, everyday is one

wahala after another. Itused to be one week, onetrouble. Now, it is oneminute, two troubles. Itlooks like the Holy Bible isbeing fulfilled right in ourday. When you think it can-not be worse than what wehave witnessed, a moreterrible event takes place,”said Monica, a commuterin the Lekki-bound com-muter bus as the discus-sion centred on the Syrianrefugees that drowned, es-pecially the little innocentboy that was washedashore.

“My God, I wept when Isaw that photo. It was heart-rending. Any real humanbeing would be touched bythat photo. An innocentlittle child died a horribledeath for no fault of his.That was what madeEurope throw open theirdoors to receive the refu-gees,” said Agnes.

“Exactly! But some do notreally want to take so manyand I don’t blame thembecause they too are strug-gling with bad economy,”said Eddy.

“But why go all the wayfrom Middle East to Eu-rope? Why didn’t they goto their neighbours likeSaudi Arabia, Iran, Qatar,Oman,, Bahrain, Kuwaitand UAE?” asked Monica.

Replied Ameh: “Ah, Ithink they would want toget as far away as possiblefrom their region becausethey may be afraid that theevil ISIS will eventually getto those seemingly safecountries.”

“So are you saying thatEurope is safe? The truthis that if we go by what theBible says about the end-time, there is no safe placeon earth except in God,”argued Monica.

“What I think is that theirneighbours were not will-ing to take them, probablybecause they fear that ter-rorists may move in withthem disguised as refu-gees,” said Eddy.

“So the Europeans arethe fools? There is no ex-cuse for refusing to helpsomeone in need whenyou have the wherewithalto do it. Abeg make weleave that matter,” saidAgnes.

“I don’t believe theirneighbours are afraid.They are simply selfish andstingy, especially SaudiArabia which I heard hasover 100,000 unused air-conditioned tents withkitchen and bathroom fa-cilities that can accommo-

date three million people.What stops them from ac-commodating these help-less people? Instead, theyallowed them to go anddrown in the ocean, try-ing to find refuge in Eu-rope. To me, that is theheight of wickedness,”said Monica.

Said Ameh: “That is noteven the end of the story.Some Arab leaders hadthe guts to criticise Europefor not doing enough tohelp the refugees; can youbeat that?”

“I no blame them at all.I believe we should all dowhat we can to help oneanother. No single humanbeing has it all. We allneed one another. As theIgbo would say, you can-not be shorter than meand be taller than me atthe same time. It is impos-sible. I read somewherethat a line in a good-byeletter found in the pocketof one of the Syrians whodrowned while fleeing toEurope after all the othercountries rejected them,went thus: “Thanks tothe sea who welcomed uswithout a visa... Thanks tothe fish who will eat onmy body without askingme what’s my religion, orpolitical status.....” saidEddy.

“Oh dear! So touching,”said Agnes.

“The Europeans startedhaving a second thoughtwhen the Saudigovernment offered tofund the building of 200mosques for the refugeesin Germany. They did notoffer to help the countriesthat received the refugeesin the area of food andshelter, education etc, butto build mosques forthem,” said Monica.

Replied Agnes: “Andyou want to tell me theyhave no sinister motive?So the issue is not thatthey are selfish and do notwant to help their broth-ers in need. I see a grandplan to spread to Europe.That is evangelism. MakeEurope shine their eyesoo.”

“I thought of that too butthere is no way you willsee the condition of thoserefugees and refuse tolend a helping hand. Eu-rope should be vigilant;watch the refugees likehawk to ensure terroristsdon’t take advantage oftheir kindness to attackthem,” said Eddy.

“I heard there wereblack Syrians among themwho claimed they werefleeing from BokoHaram. You can’t beat ourpeople,” said Ameh.

By EmmanuelElebeke, Abuja

IDPs to Buhari: We want to go home•Task him on his December deadline promise•Receive donations from APAAC

I N T E R N A L L YDisplaced Persons in

Kuchinggworo camp,Abuja presently have oneburning desire: To returnto their various ancestralhomes from where theywere dislodged by therampaging andmurderous Boko Haraminsurgents. And this iswhy they have taskedPresident MohammaduBuhari to keep hispromise of endinginsurgency in the war-torn north eastern part ofthe country for peace toreturn to the area.

The IDPs who made theappeal when theAdvertising PractitionersAssociation AbujaChapter, APAAC, visitedthe camp to makedonation of some reliefitems to them, said theywere willing to go backhome once it is safe to doso. They argued that itwould be unwise forgovernment to expectthem to leave the campwhen peace is still inabeyance.

They, however, urgedthe government not torenege on its promiseof ending the BokoHaram onslaught byDecember this year.

Making thepresentation, theCoordinator of APAAC,Mr. Chris Tion, said thetheir visit was informedon the need to lessen thepain and agony of theIDPs in various camps inthe country.

“The insurgent attackshave resulted in the armyof IDPs in various campsacross the country. As aresponsible organisation,we felt that it is nice weshow concern to theseIDPs, especially thecamps in Abuja, whichgovernment does notrecognise officially. Wefelt that we should reachout to them and give themsome relief, ” he said.

Some of the itemsdonated by the APAACinclude food items,clothing and shoes.

The group was wellsupported by TommyTommy Food Industries,Nnewi, with lots of

eastern noodles.“We have also visited

different IDP campsbefore coming here. Wesaw them in conditionsthat almost made themsubhuman,”saidtheAPAAC Coordinator. Hecalled on relevantauthorities to act fast inrehabilitating the IDPssince their conditions arenot human and friendly.

“The earlier govern-ment takes action bytaking them back to theiroriginal communities thebetter. The environmentis so unhygienic; if thereis an outbreak disease, itcould result in a calamity.

“We urge everybody to

support the less-privileged in the societyand hope that govern-ment which has theprimary responsibility ofsecuring lives andproperty will act fast sothat this kind of disasterwill not repeated in thefuture.”

In her remarks, therepresentative of NEMA,Mrs. Chinwe Opara,commended APAAC forthe visit and urged othercorporate organisations toemulate APAAC.

“We appreciate thiskind gesture of APAAC tothese people. We knowgovernment cannot do italone; that is why we areencouraging corporateentities and individualsto come to their aid sothey can meet up withtheir CSR.”

She, however, assuredon government’sdetermination torehabilitate the IDPs andtake them back to theiroriginal states.

“Government is tryingto relocate them, but wecannot force them out; weare trying to encouragethem to come out in theirown volition to indicateinterest of going back totheir home communitiesor original camps set outfor them. We have noofficial camp in Abuja, buthave about 30 set up bygovernment in the NorthEast. We will keep onencouraging them.

“With the mandategiven to us bygovernment through theinter-agency committeeon proliferation of IDPs,we will, any moment from

now, before the end ofthis month, begin toprofile all the IDPs inAbuja,” she stated.

Leaders selling relief

itemsMeantime some of the

IDPs yesterday made arevealing and disturbingaccusation against theirleaders whom theyaccused of selling someof the items donated tothem by well-meaningNigerians and corporateorganisations.

One of the IDPs, whopleaded anonymity, saidthe act had been the casesince the beginning ofthe camp. According tohim, the leaders,especially from theGwoza camp, usuallytake advantage of thedistance of IDPs camps tohoard their share of thedonations and sell themto food sellers andsometimes to the realowners when they arefaced with food scarcity.

His words: “It is truethat most of the donationsmade to us are not gettingto us. They sell some ofthe gift items to people.For instance, the Bauchipeople usually do notcome out during thesharing. Some arecollecting while some arenot collecting.

“What the leaders do isthat they sell some of thefood items to food vendorsand those that care to buy.Some IDPs too sell theirsafter collecting theirshare when they needmoney.”

It is true thatmost of thedonations madeto us are notgetting to us; theleaders sellsome of the fooditems to foodvendors andthose that careto buy

*Some IDPs queuing for relief items at their Abuja camp

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015 — 21

CMYK

NNPC discontinues OPA, adopts directtrading of Nigeria’s oil

THE Nigerian NationalPetroleum Corporation,

NNPC, yesterday, said it hasdiscontinued the OffshoreProcessing Arrangement,OPA, and has replaced it withDirect Sale-Direct Purchase(DSDP) programme.

The NNPC, in a statement byits Group General Manager,

Group Public Affairs Division,Mr. Ohi Alegbe, stated thatreplacement of the OPA withthe more efficient DSDP wasaimed at enshriningtransparency and eliminatingthe activities of middlemen inthe crude oil exchange forproduct matrix.

To this end, the NNPCdisclosed that the call forcommercial bids issued to the

revealed that most of the 44companies earlier shortlistedfor the next stage of the tenderprocess only had affiliations torefineries abroad, a situationwhich introduces toll on thevalue chain.

It added that if allowed tosubsist, the developmentwould in turn constitute asignificant value loss to theFederation by way of accruals.

The NNPC said, “In thisregard, only bona fide ownersof refineries identified in theongoing OPA TenderEvaluation process will befurther engaged. The identifiedrefineries will be subjected todue diligence and analysis byNNPC appointed consultants

By Michael Eboh to confirm suitability in linewith international best practice.”

The NNPC, had last month conducted the public openingof bids tendered by a total of101 Nigerian and multi-national companiescompeting for the award ofOffshore ProcessingArrangements, OPA.

In the OPA, the NNPCundertakes to allocate adedicated volume of crude oilfor refining at offshorelocations in exchange forpetroleum products at a pre-agreed yield pattern.

Speaking at ceremony, theGroup Managing Director ofthe NNPC, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu,had noted that theCorporation had taken the painto make the process leading upto the award open to publicscrutiny to demonstratebefore all members of thepublic that NNPC has nothingto hide.

“At the end of this exercise,we must be able to engagecompanies that are known toeverybody and not shroudedin mysteries. We must haveterms that are verytransparent and comparativeto terms anywhere else in theworld where OPAs are beingdone,” Kachikwu said.

44 shortlistedbidders, made up of34 internationalfirms and 10i n d i g e n o u scompanies havebeen withdrawn.

According to theNNPC, the DirectS a l e - D i r e c tP u r c h a s ealternative allowsfor the direct sale ofcrude oil by NNPC aswell as directpurchase ofpetroleum productsfrom crediblei n t e r n a t i o n a lrefineries.

The NNPC furtherexplained that itcame to thisinformed positionafter the evaluationexercise of pre-qualified bidders

Localengineersproposeconcrete roadconstruction

LOCAL engineers underthe umbrella of Nigerian

Institution of StructuralEngineers (NISTRUCTE) havecalled on the Federal and Stategovernment to switch over to theuse of concrete for roadconstruction.

The engineers made thissubmission in Abuja during the28th edition of their annualconference with the theme:Structural EngineeringExcellence in an Environmentinundated with collapse.

President of the Institution,Engr. Samuel Ilugbekhai, said“concrete pavements have beenfound durable and last longerthan bitumenous roads”

According to him: “The timehas come when Nigeria shouldstep up the use of concrete forroads especially now that thecountry has increased itspotential to produce cement atlower prices and even exportingto other countries.’

He regretted that thecountry’s dilapidated roads havebecome death traps and theeconomic cost to the nation isbecoming too high.

In his speech also, VicePresident of the Institution, Engr.Eddy Atumonyogo, stated:“Concrete pavements are verygood because they last longerand can be used for busy roads,especially in the state capitals.

Speaking in the same vein,the Deputy President, Engr.Oreoluwa Fadayomi, saidconcrete pavements have beenin use all along but that thedifference now is that theconversation may shift toadopting it to replace bitumentotally.

Engr. Aliyu Aziz Abubakar, aVice-President of the Institutionsaid the viability of concretepavements should be looked atas the country’s manufacturingsector now produces cement thatexceeds the average nationalneed.

Speaking earlier, theChairman of Sea DredgeConstruction Company Engr.Ayo Folorunsho said concreteroads are the future and the wayto go, even though the cost maybe high on the short run, it willbe economical in the long termgiven the increasing capacity ofcement companies in Nigeria.

He said more people die frombad roads than collapsedbuildings, urging the country totake the issue of concretepavements more seriously.

Theidentifiedrefineries willbe subjected todue diligenceand analysisby NNPCappointedconsultants

By Franklin Alli

LAUNCH: From left: Operations Manager, Travelbeta.com, David Asuku; Chief Commercial Officer, Mr OnyekaAkumah; HR Manager, Miss Toyin Omotosho and Chief Technology Officer, Wale Ayorinde, at the official launch ofonline travel booking company, Travelbeta.com, in Lagos.

120.15 1.35$3,293.00 -2.00

$15.43 0.32

CURRENCY BUYING CENTRAL

CBN Exchange Rate as at 3 /11 /15

49.76 0.97

47.10 0.01

DOLLAR 195.98 196.48 196.98POUNDS 303.1811 303.9546 304.7281EURO 215.872 216.4227 216.9735FRANC 198.5211 199.0276 199.534YEN 1.6242 1.6284 1. 6325CFA 0.31 0.32 0.33WAUA 273.0915 273.7883 274.485RENMINBI 30.9225 31.0018 31.0812RIYAL 52.2502 52.3835 52.5168SDR 273.9408 274.6397 275.3386KRONA 28.9359 29.0097 29.0836


CMYK

INSURAN ,

,Government buy-in intoinsurance will assist strategicagencies of government to benefitfrom opportunities of riskmitigation provided by theinsurance industry.

Stories byRosemary Onuoha

CONFERENCE: From left: Director, Lagos/West Directorate, Royal Exchange GeneralInsurance, Mr Benjamin Agili; Coordinator, Foundation for Youth Education, Mr. Patrick Ajogwu;Mrs Ram- Edozien Olalade, Angus Memorial Senior High School; and Head Counselling/LearnerSupport Unit, Distance Learning Institute (DLI) University of Lagos, UNILAG, during the 8thAnnual Royal Exchange Leadership Conference for Secondary School Prefects in Lagos State.

AS part of the changemantra of the current

administration, there is needfor Ministries, Departments,and Agencies, MDAs, ofgovernment to tap into thebenefits of insurance throughcreation of insurance unitsand subsequent and regularpurchase of insurance coversfor staff and assets.

Accordingly, experts are ofthe opinion that governmentbuy-in into insurance willassist strategic agencies ofgovernment to benefit fromopportunities of riskmitigation provided by theinsurance industry.

President of the NigerianCouncil of RegisteredInsurance Brokers, Mr.Kayode Okunoren said thatsuch action will further growthe insurance industry inNigeria.

Recall that the NationalInsurance Commission,NAICOM, called on allMinistries, Departments andAgencies, MDAs, of

NAICOM to instituteinsurancecommittee

THERE are indications that the NationalInsurance Commission, NAICOM, is putting

modalities in place to institute an InsuranceCommittee for the sector just like the BankersCommittee of the banking sector.

According to Vanguard investigations, theInsurance Committee when instituted is expectedto serve as a platform for regular interaction betweenthe regulator and operators and any decisionemanating from such interaction will be binding oninsurance practitioners.

The Bankers’ Committee is a regular andcompulsory meeting between the Central Bank ofNigeria (CBN) and all the managing directors ofcommercial banks operating in Nigeria.

An insurance operator who spoke on the conditionof anonymity said, “For the first time, theCommissioner for Insurance will institute aninsurance committee similar to the BankersCommittee. With such in place we expect to see morepositive engagement and change in the industrybecause we will have a platform where our regulatorsits with us the operators and we take decisionstogether and everyone ensures that all agreementsare implemented. The Bankers Committee is whatgives bankers the edge over other sectors becausethey sit with and engage the Central Bank of Nigeria,

government to set upinsurance desks or units intheir various offices and thatthe insurance desks should bemanned by qualifiedinsurance professionals tohandle the insurances of theirassets.

Commissioner for Insuranceand Chief Executive ofNAICOM, Mr. MohammedKari who made the calladvised that such move isnecessary by all MDAs ofgovernment to ensurecompliance with theprovisions of extant laws in alltheir insurance activities.

Kari said that advising thegovernment and all itsagencies on insurance mattersis one of the key functions ofthe Commission and wasprepared to offer this serviceto ensure adequate insuranceand protection of allgovernment assets by virtueof the provision of Section7(F) of the NAICOM Act1997.

Meanwhile, Okunorenstated that such dedicatedinsurance desks should bemanned by qualifiedinsurance practitioners.

Okunoren said, “Theprudential disposition of thecurrent administration wouldnot be complete withoutadequate attention directed atengaging the insuranceindustry, in order to return theeconomy to vibrancy.”

According to Okunoren,there is need for governmentto address the buggingchallenge of late paymentand non budgetaryallocations by some MDAs forinsurance placement, addingthat other large non-governmental organisationsneed to also create insurancedesks that would be mannedby qualified insuranceprofessionals.

Accordingly, NAICOMcharged all MDAs to explorethis window of opportunity byensuring that they complywith the provisions of the lawin all its insurance activities.He pledged the full supportof NAICOM to MDAs in theinsurances of assets andliabilities.

On the way forward, GroupManaging Director ofStandard Alliance InsurancePlc, Mr. Bode Akinboye said,

Why MDAs need toset up insurance units

CBN. At such meetings, ideas are analysed,sometimes they are given to committees to go andstudy and report back and where decisions aretaken, the CBN then ensures that they areimplemented for the overall interest of the bankingsector.

“So I believe that with positive engagement withthe regulator through the insurance committee,the insurance industry will witness significantchange,” the operator stated.

Recall that in 2013 the Insurance IndustryConsultative Committee, IICC, was inauguratedby Mr. Fola Daniel, Commissioner for Insurancethen. However, the objectives of the IICC is torepresent the industry’s voice in national andglobal discourse; guarantee a collective mediumfor dialoguing; provide a clearing house for vitalindustry policies; engender a firm anchorage forinsurance industry growth agendas; constitute apowerful lobby group for governmental relations,and act as a veritable tool for conflict resolution.

Membership of the IICC consists ofrepresentatives of NAICOM, Chartered InsuranceInstitute of Nigeria, CIIN, Nigeria InsurersAssociation, NIA, Nigerian Council of RegisteredInsurance Brokers NCRIB, Institute of LossAdjusters of Nigeria, ILAN, as well asdistinguished elders and leaders of the insuranceindustry.

The IICC meets quarterly to deliberate onemergent issues and to foster its objectives. Thecommittee is chaired by the sitting President ofCIIN.

With such in place weexpect to see morepositive engagementand change in theindustry


CE & YOU ,

,Send comments & enquiries to

[email protected]

The prudential disposition of thecurrent administration would not

be complete without adequateattention directed at engaging the

insurance industry, in order toreturn the economy to vibrancy

TRAINING: From left: Mr Willemstad van den Andel, Consultant to the United Nations IndustrialDevelopment Organisation (UNIDO); Mr Matthias Tempi, Consultant to UNIDO; Mrs Tas Nilgun,UNIDO’s Project Manager; Director-General, Industrial Training Fund (ITF), Dr Juliet Chukkas-Onaeko and Mr David Tommy, Country Representative of UNIDO at a four-day skills trainingprogramme organized by UNIDO and ITF, in Abuja.

“Our regulator shouldcontinue to lead the way byhaving regular positiveengagement withgovernment. We expect thatgovernment will walk its talkby being the number oneinsurance compliant customerin Nigeria and enforceparticularly the compulsoryinsurances, then enforceregulatory issues withoperators to ensure thatmarket conduct is ethical andsustainable.

“Based on that, we expect tosee bigger companies, stableinstitutions that are innovativeand ready to give much moreto the customer in terms ofservice delivery and at the endof the day we expect to see anincrease and growth inpremium income that willperculate into other sectorsthrough renewed investmentactivities and helping toaddress unemployment andenhance economic growthgenerally.

We expect to see biggercompanies, stableinstitutions that areinnovative and ready togive much more to thecustomer in terms ofservice delivery and atthe end of the day weexpect to see increaseand growth in premiumincome

SINCE the launch of theNational Financial

Inclusion Strategy in October2012, there has been a rapidscaling up of initiatives by awide range of players aimedat improving access to anduptake of formal financialservices in Nigeria.

As a result, increasingattention is being paid tofinancial literacy in clearrecognition that it is acrucial component ofincreasing financialinclusion.

Against this background,the Financial LiteracyExcellence Awards (FiLEX)is being launched byDevelopment InitiativesNetwork (DIN), one ofNigeria’s leadingdevelopment sectororganisations, to supporteffective policy and market

responses on financialempowerment.

Speaking at the launch, Dr.Bola Fajemirokun, DIN’sCEO, stated that the FiLEXAwards aim to showcase and

celebrate leadership andinnovations that haveimproved financial literacy inNigeria.

She stated that for thewinners in the three Awards

categories, the FiLEX Awardswill be a prestigious platformfor demonstrating theirstrong commitment todelivering brand or socialvalues relating to theempowerment of financial

consumers in Nigeriaparticularly given the riseof digital finance, that is,the cashless revolution.

The FiLEX Awards shenoted will celebrateleadership andinnovations that haveimproved financial literacyin Nigeria.

Nominations for theAwards, which can only bemade online at

www.filexawards.com, openedon 30th October 2015 and willclose on 30th November 2015.

Winners will be announced inDecember 2015 and the winnerswill be presented with theirAwards at the inaugural FiLEXAwards Conference in January2016, which will be attended byhigh-level governmentrepresentatives and majorcorporate and civic leaders.

DIN has been working onfinancial literacy issues since2006 and pioneered advocacyfor a National Strategy tosystemize activities in this field.DIN is an affiliate of theInternational Network onFinancial Education.

DIN initiates platform to promote financial inclusion

Managing Director of Custodian & Allied InsurancePlc, Mr. Wole Oshin has said that the absence of

local technology companies that can create technologyplatforms peculiar to the Nigerian environment has continuedto impede business growth in the country.

Oshin who stated this at the Professionals Forum of theChartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria, in Ogun State,said that the situation whereby no major local company cancreate such technology for Nigerian businesses is a majorchallenge to the insurance sector.

Oshin said, “The challenge in information gathering inNigeria is affecting business growth and it as a result of thisthat most available statistics in Nigeria is always two yearsbehind. There is no reason why we should not be able to getquarter on quarter data. There should be statistics thatenables us to come up with adequate and proper pricing ofrisks.”

He said that when foreign companies are contacted to buildIT platforms for Nigerian companies, the foreign companiesdo so at their convenience to the disadvantage of Nigerianbusinesses.

Oshin cited other challenges confronting the insurancesector to include negative perception which still persists;information technology below par; industry-wide datagathering and document management is poor whichinvariably affects proper product pricing and development;as well as industry is highly fragmented and competitive,thereby affecting the pace of growth in overall market size.

Others are challenges in the enforcement of compulsoryinsurances; scarcity of human capital in certain specializedareas e.g. Actuaries as well as rise in fraudulent claims.

On opportunities, potential and gaps in the sector, Oshinsaid that the industry has recorded a year-on-year turnoverof 18.4% and 17.4% compounded average growth (CAGR)between 2007 and 2013 respectively; the Life businesscontributes 25% and growing with a potential to surpass thegeneral business within 10 years; shift in focus to retailbusiness would largely unlock hitherto uninsured risksthrough product channels such as mobile phones and retailoutlets as well as the bottom of the pyramid and low incomemass market holds a huge potential for the industry albeitin the medium to long term e.g. agricultural insurance.

Dearth of local technologycompanies hampersinsurance growth —Oshin

CMYK

24—VANGUARD, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015

DIARY

Gartner Sympo-sium/ITxpo2015

Cape Town,South AfricaNovember 8-12,2015

PreviewPreviewPreviewPreviewPreview

Cyber Securityin BankingConference,2015

Indaba Hotel,JohannesburgOctober 21 – 22, 2015

Cloakingdevice cansave soldiersfromexplosions

By Prince Osuagwu

ARMED with a whopping$1.2 billion specifically

mapped out to turn around thefortunes of first National carrier,NITEL and its assets, newowners, NATCOM may beplanning to pip existingoperators to market leadership atlaunch.

This is as the operator whichplans to roll out services beforethe end of the year, under thebrand name nTel, revealed thatit was going to launch serviceson the fourth Generation, 4Gplatform. Existing operators areeither on 2G or 3G platforms.

However, thetelecommunications companyalso said it was ready to shareinfrastructure with existingoperators to reduce its Capitalexpenditure, CAPEX.

Rural telephony: Meanwhile,in a unique fashion, the operatorrevealed exclusively to Hi-Tech,that it has made anunprecedented investmenttowards rural inclusion,acquiring no fewer than fivesatellite companies which itintended to strategically deployto complement otherinfrastructure that will carryservices to the rural areas.thelocal satellites companiesaccording to the operators wouldbe deployed across the countryto strengthen backbone networkinfrastructure.

Networkinfrastructure

Although, it is not particularlycost effective to use satellite topropagate services, the companysaid that why it was not botheredwas that the satellites nowbelonged to them and would helpreduce the bottlenecks aroundright of way when deployingservices with fibre optic.

However, the company warnedthat it was not a plan that wouldtake off with the snap of thefingers as its DNA supportsconsistency and strategicplanning before services aredished out to Nigerians.

In a press conference last weekin Lagos, to herald its launch,Managing Director of thecompany, Mr Kamar Abass, toldHi-Tech specifically, that inrelation to rural telecomopportunities, his company hadtwo option: “one of the strategiesis to build ultra low base stations.These are base stations that costbetween $15,000 and $20,000 tomake and to equip. Thesecompare to $200,000 to $250,000for urban base stations. The ultralow cost base stations have a costof operation of around $1000 amonth or less compared to the$4000 to $5000 or more for theurban set up.

The other option is to usesatellite coverage; and I knowthat social Organisations likeFacebook and others, aresponsoring satellites to deliverbroadband to rural communities.We are talking to companies inboth domains to explore theopportunity of gaining access tothe 40 million Nigerians who areliving far away from traditionalmacro network sounds”.

Abass also revealed a lot ofother plans the company has tomake triumphant re-entry to thejuicy Nigerian market.

Real 4G is here: “NTEL willlaunch a pure play 4G LTE mobileservice, the service will offer highspeed data, high definition voiceand video, the first phase ofnetwork roll out will begin with800 sites, increasing to 2000 sites

as we move on.Data centre: We are also

building tier 111 data centrewhich gives us opportunity tohave double layer redundancybecause with the capacity of this

Data centre we are only allowedto have not more than 24 minutesdown time in a year.

However, we are ready tocollocate with existinginfrastructure by other operatorsand that helps to reduce ourcapital expenditure, CAPEX”.

The operator which legallyacquired NITEL, its mobile armMTEL and other assets last year,says it was aware of the massiveinvestments existing operatorshave made and their strong holdsin the market but promised togive a fight that would make itdifficult for anybody to dismiss itin the history of Nigerian telecomdevelopment”.

Fixed network serviceAbbas also said the company

would roll out successful fixed

Telecom sector to witnessfresh mobile competition

Continues on page 26

One of thestrategies is tobuild ultra lowbase stations.These are basestations that costbetween $15,000and $20,000 tomake and to equip

A researcher at a Defense

company in Boeing hasfiled a patent for a sci-fi-esquecloaking device that wouldprotect soldiers from intenseshock waves generated byexplosions. The deviceworks by stopping shockwaves using a veil of heated,ionized air such as “shield”to dampen the force ofexplosion. It doesn’t build aninvisible wall of force, butrather makes shock wavesbend around objects, just assome high-tech materialsbend light and make things

invisible.

. Telecoms mast

NATCOM acquires 5 satellite companies to boost ruraltelephony•Plans to pip existing mobile operators with 4G launch•Rolls out nTel services before year end

VANGUARD, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015—25

RECENTLY, the UnitedNations summit for the

adoption of the post-2015development agenda was heldin New York with a high-levelplenary meeting of the GeneralAssembly.

The summit was also meantfor governments to make theirfinal assessment of the UNMillennium DevelopmentGoals (MDGs), which globalleaders agreed upon in theyear 2000. It is evidentthat in the past 15 years, theICT revolution has not onlyimpacted on the MDGs butdriven global development inan unprecedented way.

According to ITU study onICTs, the report indicated thatICTs will play an even moresignificant role in the post 2015development agenda and inachieving future sustainabledevelopment goals as theworld moves faster and fastertowards a digital society.

Experts say technologicalprogress, infrastructuredeployment, and falling priceshave brought unexpectedgrowth in ICT access andconnectivity to billions ofpeople around the world. Forinstance, statistics have shownthat in 2015 alone, there aremore than 7 billion mobilecellular subscriptionsworldwide, up from less than 1billion in 2000. Out of thisnumber, 3.2 billion people

globally are said to be usingthe internet of which 2 billionare from developing countries.

Internet penetrationGlobally, the ITU study

showed that 3.2 billion peopleare using the internet andexpected to do so by end 2015,out of which 2 billion are fromdeveloping countries.

For every internet user in thedeveloped world, the reportsaid there were about two inthe developing world.However, about 4 billionpeople from developingcountries are said to haveremained offline, representing2/3 of the population residingin developing countries.

Of the 940 million peopleliving in the least developedcountries (LDCs), only 89

million use the Internet,corresponding to a 9.5 per centpenetration rate.

Specific achievements in thelast 15 years of ICT growth

Mobile cellular subscriptionsThe report postulated that by

end 2015, there will be morethan 7 billion mobile cellularsubscriptions, corresponding toa penetration rate of 97 per cent,up from 738 million in 2000, anindication that global internetpenetration grew 7 fold from 6.5per cent to 43 per cent between2000 and 2015.

Mobile broadbandIn a similar trend, mobile

broadband is said to be themost dynamic market segment;globally, reaching 47 per centpenetration in 2015, a value thatincreased 12 times since 2007.

How ICT impacted MDGs in 15years

By Emmanuel Elebeke

BIG businesses are smart.That’s probably how they

became big. Many of themhave Chief Technology Officerswho not only have many yearsof training and experience butare paid the big bucks to usetechnology as a gateway toeconomic success. It is nosurprise then that many bigbusinesses have mobile appsavailable to their customers.But as a small business owner,your budget might not evenhave room for an intern, howmuch more a CTO?

But the amazing thing is thatyou don’t need a CTO to tellyou to develop an app for yourbusiness, and you don’t needa huge budget to develop anapp. In actual fact, if yourbusiness constantly relates withcustomers in the main stream

and is open to even morecustomers, building an app isthe way to go.

The reasons are endless.Nigeria has over 160 millionmobile phone lines inoperation. It is also a haven forsmart phones, eighty fourpercent of which are connectedto the internet. This means thatmore and more people can haveaccess to your goods andservices than ever before.Having a mobile app doeswonders for your brand, givingit more prominence andcredibility.

To get started, put all yourideas down on paper,answering the most importantquestions. What good or servicedoes your business provide?What is the target market ofyour app? Would you like tolimit the app to existingcustomers or would it be open

don’t know a developer, thereare lots of reliable sites that canhelp with your app.

Another thing you must do ishave a database of your alreadyexisting customers. People whoalready know your business aremore likely to use your app than

Why your business shouldgo for mobile ‘Appy-ness’

those who do not. Be sure tomake your app free. You’remore likely to improve yourratings on google, android andapple stores when you do.Besides, why should people

pay you for the opportunity todo business with you. Beyondthat, reward customers fordownloading and using theapp.

By Laju Iren to potentialcustomers as well?Would you like theapp to have acommunity? Whatexactly do you hopeto achieve with yourapp? What featuresin the app would bebeneficial to yourbusiness? Be sure toput down everythingyou have in mind.Next, speak to anapp developer youknow to discuss theworkability of yourideas. In case you

COMMITTED to fast track digital switchover and bridgethe digital divide in the country, Media Concepts

International, MCI, a Set Top Box, STB, manufacturer licencedby the National Broadcasting Commission, NBC. in partnershipwith South Korea, KAON will commence building of a massiveN197 billion ($1bn) manufacturing plant in Abule Egba, LagosState.

KAON is the the world’s number three set top boxmanufacturer from South Korea

MCI is one of the thirteen indigenous companies licencedby the NBC for the manufacturing of STBs in the country.

The STBs will be used to convert analogue television sets toshow digital channels at the homes of millions of Nigerians.

The construction of the manufacturing plant, according tothe Managing Director and the Chief Executive Officer, MediaConcepts International, Mr. Babatope Michael Agbeyo duringthe signing of Memorandum of understanding in Lagos isexpected to begin in January 2016 and will be completed bythe end of December with manufacturing activities taking offthereafter will kick off.

He said that the manufacturing plant is expected to employover 1000 technical staff that will be trained on local assemblyin the first instance and full manufacturing of set top boxeslocally. Nigeria’s digital switchover (DSO) driven by the privatesector will lead to production of set-top boxes and viewing ofdigital channels by TV viewers in line with the directive of theInternational Telecommunications Union (ITU).

Already, MCI and South Korean firm, KAON had signed aMemorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the establishmentof a N197 billion ($1bn) Set Top Box (STB) manufacturingplant, the first by any company in Nigeria.

This development is expected to help Nigeria to realise itsdigital switchover milestone of June 2017.

Agbeyo told Technology journalists during the briefing thatNigeria will be the hub for local manufacturing of set-up boxesfor other African countries. Stating that the price will beregulated by the NBC, he said that MCI will make the productfor Nigerians, adding that DSO is a reality.

“We cater for about twenty six million TV household in Nigeria.Local production of set up box is a technology transfer. It willcreate jobs. It will not be capital flight. We we will producing iswhat is available in the international market. The consumerswill get value for their money.

“The site for the plant will be ready by January. We areimporting technology. The plant will cost not less one billiondollars, ($1 billion)”he said.

$1bn set top boxmanufacturing plantcoming soon in Nigeria

By Emeka Aginam

CMYK

26—VANGUARD, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015

DESPITE the constraints andhuge burden the N1.04

trillion fine by the NigerianCommunications Commission,NCC may have brought to MTNNigeria in the past two weeks,there are two cheery sets of newsthat just might make thetelecommunications operatorY’ello again. One is that the sameNigerian CommunicationsCommission, NCC, has approvedthe renewal, and consequentextension of the tenure of itsoperating spectrum in the900MHz and 1800MHz frequencybands.

With this renewal and extension,MTN’s operating spectrum whichwas issued along with the DigitalMobile License (DML) in 2001(with an original expiry date of 31August 2016), has now beenextended to 31stAugust, 2021.

The second is that many of theoperators’ subscribers acrossNigeria have expressed the will-ingness to stick by its networkdespite the burdens of the fine onits operations.

Double honours for MTN...as NCC renews digital mobile license•Subscribers express brand loyalty

Many of the subscribers whospoke to Vanguard Hi-tech, ex-pressed brand loyalty, sayingregardless of the fine, they wouldstick with the MTN through thickand thin as long as the telecomsgiant remains constant in itsdelivery of quality service.

The commission imposed awhopping sum of $5.24 millionon the telecoms operator, penul-timate week, over what it de-scribed as non-compliance in thedeactivation of improper regis-tered subscribers. In a latterdevelopment however, MTNrevealed that the commission hasin a letter dated November 2,2015, signed by the actingExecutive Vice Chairman of theNCC, Prof. Umaru Dambatta,extended its operating license.

MTN quoted part of the letterto have read: “MTN will, howev-er, be required to pay the sum of$94,225,152.75 (ninety fourmillion, two hundred and twentyfive thousand, one hundred andfifty two dollars, seventy five cents)as Spectrum fee for the 5 yearextension period.”

Recall that in February 2001,pursuant to one of the most trans-

parent mobile license auctions inthe world, the NCC issued DigitalMobile Licenses, DML, to threepioneer mobile operators. Thelicenses were bundled withspectrum in the 900MHz and1800MHz frequency bands.Amongst other authorisations,MTN also holds a Unified AccessLicense and a 3G SpectrumLicense through which it providesa full bouquet of digital servicesto its esteemed customersthroughout Nigeria. An excitedCorporate Services Executive ofMTN, Akinwale Goodluck,speaking on the extended licensesaid: “We view this extension as

a demonstration of confidence inMTN’s capacity to continue toprovide ground-breaking and in-novative services to its customers,and another milestone in theevolution of the Nigerian commu-nications industry.”

Subscribers’ loyaltyApparently corroborating good

luck, MTN subscribers across thecountry have expressedconfidence in the network sayingthe fine would not make themmove to another network. Someof them who spoke to Vanguardsaid that as long as they aregetting preferable services fromthe network, the fine makes littlemeaning to them.

One subscriber, who gave hisname as Mr. Akin Akintayo, said:“Interestingly, the fine will not inany way affect my patronage ofMTN because I am sympathetic tothe brand. I feel the penalty givento the company is too grevious.What offence could they havecommitted to attract a 1.4 trn dollar

fine? The only reason I’ll ever leaveMTN is if there is a collapse in thenetwork’s services that will beobvious to all.”

For Mr Christopher Akponome,another MTN subscriber, thesituation is similar. “I don’t reallyknow much about the fine and thecircumstances surrounding it,” hesaid, “all I know is that I still useMTN and will continue to use itbecause I’m alright with theservices.”

Mrs. Ogochukwu Mba ia an-other subscriber who says she isonly interested in the quality ofservice provided by the companyand nothing else. Her words: “I’m indifferent about the wholething. The most important thingis the service." If I see that theyare having issues with theservices provided on the network,then I can leave. But as long as Ican call, text, browse and doeverything else without hitches,I’m fine.”

We view this as ademonstration ofconfidence inMTN’s capacity tocontinue toprovide innovativeservices to itscustomers

SLIMTRADER, one oftheleading e-commerce

solution providers for businessesin Sub-Saharan Africa, hasreceived a US$1m investmentfrom Interswitch, an Africa-focused integrated digitalpayments and commercecompany that facilitates theelectronic circulation of money aswell as the exchange of valuebetween individuals andorganisations on a timely andconsistent basis.

The additional fundingprovides the clearest sign yet ofthe power of SlimTrader ’sflagship e-commerce platform,MoBiashara as it expands intothe hospitality sector. With thefunds from Interswitch,SlimTrader will now be able toramp up operations and helpmore hotels expand their marketreach.

The investment comes from theInterswitch e-payment GrowthFund, a new US$1m fundintended to serve as a catalyst forinnovation and disruptivebusiness concepts within theAfrican payment industry. TheInterswitch fund collaborates withentrepreneurs and start-upbusinesses developinginnovative products and servicesthat empower Africans toparticipate in the emergingpayment ecosystems currently

SlimTrader receives million-dollar boostfrom Interswitch

transforming businesses on thecontinent.

According to Mitchell Elegbe,Founder and Group ManagingDirector of Interswitch “SlimTraderis a dynamic and ambitiousbusiness dedicated to growingAfrica’s e-commerce sector. Thismakes them an ideal candidatefor investment from the InterswitchePayment Growth Fund. We arecommitted to encouraginginnovative ideas in the digitalpayments and commerce space inAfrica and are excited to beworking with SlimTrader toexpand MoBiashara services intothe hospitality sector.”

With massive potential in theAfrican market, over 1500 hotelsacross sub-Saharan Africa usedSlimTrader ’s online hotelmanagement platform –

MoBiashara for Hotels to increasevisibility and sales. The platformallows hotels to manage theiroffline and online reservation withmajor exposure through strategicchannel partners such asTripAdvisor and hotelnownow.com.

Speaking on the newinvestment, Slim Trader’s founderand CEO, Femi Akinde stated, “Weremain committed to our missionof unlocking the potential inAfrican businesses. This fundingputs more hotels a click away fromtheir own free propertymanagement system, websitebooking engine and channelmanager; connecting them tomultiple local and internationalonline booking sites. We see thisas transformational to the sub-Saharan Africa hospitalityindustry.”

From left: Yemi Adegoke (SlimTrader), Femi Akinde(SlimTrader), Mitchell Elegbe (Interswitch) and Jonah Adams(Interswitch) at the event.

network services because it has the right platform to make it thrive.According to him,the problem with others who have the license buthave not been able to roll out the service was because they operateon 2G platform with a lot of subscribers squeezed into the small pipethe spectrum provides.

He promised to make a total turn around of the case because nTelwas going to operate on the 4G platform which is spacious since ithas no subscriber at the moment.

For him, “research findings of respected institutions like Pyramidand OVUM have stated that there is still space in the Nigerianmarket. According to these agencies, between 200 to 230 millionSIMs will be added to the market by 2019. This is an over 100 millionincrease from today’s figures as published by the NCC.

Innovative andmodern service

NATCOM will position itself smartly to harness the market byproviding Innovative and modern service offerings as yet not seen inNigeria. Roll out plans have been concluded and network equipmentare currently being built for NATCOM by Ericsson and Huawei witha view to rolling out mobile services before the end of the year”.

The last statistics recorded by the Nigerian CommunicationsCommission (NCC) said that mobile operators in the country added2.1 million new subscribers in June 2015.

According to the report, the total number of mobile subscribers hadrisen from 144 million in May 2015 to 146 million in June 2015. Thestats revealed that GSM networks remained the key drivers of theNigerian telecommunications industry as other operators contributedminimally to the surging growth of the subscriber base.

According to the report, subscriptions to fixed networks increasedfrom 181,625 in May 2015 to 182,643 in June 2015; however, this islower than the 187,028 subscribers recorded in June 2014. The totalnumber of subscriptions to all telecommunications network in thecountry had risen from 146.56 million in the month of May to 148.8million in June. This compares with 132.19 million in July 2014.

Meanwhile all telecommunications networks added 16.59 millionlines or 12.54 per cent within the one-year period even as CDMAsubscriptions increased marginally from 2.02 million in July 2014 to2.11 million lines by the end of June 2015.

Continues from page 24

Telecom sector to witness

fresh mobile...

By Juliet Ebirim

. MTN service centre

By Prince Osuagwu &Laju Iren

CMYK

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015—27—27—27—27—27

CMYK


CMYK

FIFA TSG commendsEaglets

*Eaglets

The FIFA TechnicalStudy Group(TSG) saddled with

the responsibility of‘monitoring international matches and identifyinglatest footballing trends’ has applauded the tacticalsavvy of Coach EmmanuelAmuneke-led GoldenEaglets after they easily reached the semi finals ofthe FIFA U-17 World CupChile 2015 with aplomb on Sunday. Desmond (Desi)Curry, Member of the TSGhad sought out Amuneke

ahead of their trumping ofthe A Selecao of Brazil atthe Estadio Sausalito toexplain briefly his seeminglyobstructive tactics which haveconfounded opposing teamsat this tournament.

The team, according toTSG’s elderly man fromNorthern Ireland, has broughtto bear a new trend withvaried styles and deploymentof players when ‘having ornot having the ball,’ hencethe need for clarification.“Sincerely, we (TSG panel) have tried to understand the

tactics you are using but it isconfusing,” Curry toldAmuneke matter-of-factly. “Ihave done some of yourmatches here but it is unusualto see a Number 10 (KelechiNwakali) playing deep asmuch as we have seen yourplayer here.

“This is a new trend and weare going to include some ofyour explanations in theTechnical Report of thechampionship because thetactical approach of yourteam stands out,” henoted. The TSG was

introduced 49 years ago byFIFA at the 1966 FIFA World Cup England and currentSuper Eagles’ Head Coach, Sunday Oliseh was on thepanel at the last FIFA U-17World Cup in the UnitedArab Emirates. “Our (TSG)main goal is continualimprovement of the game,”

notedJean-Paul Brigger,head of FIFA’stechnical divisionwhile revealing the

identities of TSGfor Chile 2015.

Over 200 golfers fromacross the country and

some neighbouring WestAfrican States have signifiedinterest to participate in the12th Elizabeth Wuraola OjoMemorial Golf Tournamentbilled for this weekend at theSmokin Hills Golf Resort,Ilara Mokin, Ondo State.

Organisers have promisedthat this year’s edition wouldbe the best ever, as the thesponsors, Toyota NigeriaLimited (TNL) have put inplace mouth- wateringincentives for the golfers andespecially for the women witha special prize for the AmiableWoman Of The Tournament.This platform is to furtherextol the virtue and vision ofthe deceased for the game ofgolf,” according to thesponsors, the prize issymbolic of the amiable natureof the departed woman ofsubstance.

According to Bayo Aderinto,manager Marketing andPromotions, Smokin Hills GolfResort in charge of thetournament, ElizabethWuraola memorialtournament is one of thebiggest events in theNigerian golf calendar.

He said, “ the tournament isone of the biggest events inthe golf calendar. Themomentum is high as therehave been serious pressurefrom golf enthusiasts fromacross the country and evenfrom some West Africancountries like Ghana wantingto play in the tournament, butthe championship is onlylimited to invited golfers. Weare expecting 100 golferswhile already over 200 golfershave indicated interest to playat Smokin Hills Golf Course,

“In line with the desire of Chief Michael Ade. Ojo OONto make this year ’stournament more of womenbecause the person in whosememory the tournament wasinstituted was a woman, outof the 100 golfers expected toplay at the tournament, 20 arewomen as against five invitedlast year. Again, out of thetotal entries those that cannotbe accommodated in thistournament will be givenpreference in other events tobe organized by the club.

“ We are grateful to thecontributions of the founder ofthe Smokin Hills Golf Club,Chief Ade. Ojo OON formoving the golfing capital toIlara Mokin in Ondo State”.

By SOLOMON NWOKE

Wuraola golftourney:Large entriesoverwhelmorganizers

Returning to the ChampionsLeague after a three-year

hiatus was expected to be achallenge for Lyon. Yet thingsweren’t expected to go thisbadly for the seven-time Frenchchampions.

With just one point from threematches, Lyon is last in GroupH going into tonight’s homegame against leader Zenit St.Petersburg at the Stade Gerland.Hubert Fournier’s side will beeliminated if it can’t beat theRussian side and Valencia

Lyon looking to shake offC/League troubles

*Milicevic

wins against Gent in thegroup’s other match.

Following a superb seasonmarked by AlexandreLacazette’s emergence as atop striker, Lyon has beenstruggling this term. Theplayers hired during thesummer have yet to gel withthe rest of the squad,Lacazette is going through aconfidence crisis and Fournierhas been dealing with a spateof injuries. As a result, Lyonis lagging 10 points behind

Paris Saint-Germain in theleague with its futureon the European stage intatters. With just two wins fromits last eight domestic leaguegames, Zenit’s chances ofretaining the Russian titleare slipping away. But theside has a knack ofhitting good form at justthe right time inEurope.

Top of Group H withthree wins from threegames, Zenit willadvance to theknockout stageswith anothervictory againstLyon today.


CMYK

Jose Mourinho could usea win. Chelsea has lost

its last three matches, includingits sixth of the Premier Leagueseason on Saturday againstLiverpool. The team’s nextgame is against Dynamo Kievtoday in the ChampionsLeague.

‘’It’s a big game,’’ Mourinhosaid. ‘’It’s a game that wecannot lose.’’

Because of the team’sstruggles, many havespeculated that the players areworking against Mourinho.

Chelsea midfielder CescFabregas, however, wrote onTwitter that he was not involvedany revolt.

‘’I am extremely happy atChelsea and have an excellentrelationship with themanager,’’ Fabregas wrote.‘’There may be certainindividuals from the outsidetrying to destabilize this clubbut I strongly believe that wewill bounce back and comegood again.’’

Elsewhere in Group G today,Maccabi Tel Aviv hosts FCPorto.

Here are some things to know

*Chelsea

Chelsea, Mourinho in needof a win against D/Kiev

about today’s matches:The pressure is intensifying

around Mourinho, and itshows.

After the English championslost to Liverpool, leaving themin 15th place in the standings,Mourinho answered everyquestion during a televisioninterview with, ‘’I have nothing

to say.’’ With Dynamo visiting,Mourinho needs to galvanizea squad which has already lostnine times in all competitionsthis season.

Another loss today would

leave Chelsea with a difficulttask to progress to the knockoutstage of the ChampionsLeague and could see hissecond spell as manager atChelsea come to an end.

AA GENT V VALENCIA 8:45PMBARCELONA V BATE BORISOV 8:45PMB/MUNICH V ARSENAL 8:45PMCHELSEA V DYNAMO KIEV 8:45PMLYON V ZENIT 8:45PMMACCABI TEL AVIV V FC PORTO 8:45PMOLYMPIACOS V DINAMO ZAGREB 8:45PMROMA V B/ LEVERKUSEN 8:45PM

Today’s Champions League Fixtures

Bayern Munich willbe looking to avenge its

first defeat of the season whenArsenal visits the Allianz Arenafor the reverse fixture in theChampions League today.

Arsenal beat the Bundesligaleader 2-0 in London lastmonth, putting itself back incontention for a knockout berthafter losing its opening twogames in Group F.

Greek champion Olympiakoshosts Dinamo Zagreb in theother group match, where a winfor the home side would firmlyboost its chances of qualifyingfor the second round.

Here are some things to knowabout the games:

After making a blistering startto the season with 10 straightwins in the Bundesliga -improving the record they hadset themselves in the 2012-13season - Bayern dropped itsfirst league points of thecampaign in a goalless drawwith Eintracht Frankfurt onFriday.

Pride was the biggestcasualty, with Bayern’s playerscomplaining about Frankfurt’sdefensive tactics despite beingunder intense pressure for aperiod during the second half.

While defeat to Arsenal was

Wounded B/Munichhope to restorepride againstArsenal

written off as a freakoccurrence - ‘’I can’texplain it,’’ said coach PepGuardiola - Friday’s drawwas an altogether differentmatter.

Bayern looked tired, shortof ideas, far from secure atthe back, and wasteful upfront.

Another poor performancewill have alarm bells ringingin Bavaria.

Arsenal has a good record inMunich, where the side isunbeaten in its last two visitsfollowing a 1-1 draw in March 2014 and2-0 victory in March 2013.

Including playoffs, Arsenal has wonseven and drawn two of its last 12 away gamesin the Champions League.

Another win today would pull Arsene Wenger’sside level with Bayern on six points.

*Lewandowski

Barcelona’s Camp NouStadium will be fully

decked out in party mood as itwelcomes BATE Borisov, notleast because it is celebrating10 years since Lionel Messi scored his first ChampionsLeague goal.

A decade after an 18-year-oldMessi netted the third ofBarcelona’s five goals againstPanathinaikos on Nov. 2, 2005,the club is the defendingchampion, having won fourEuropean cups since.

A knee injury has sidelinedthe Argentine star with in-formattacking duo ofNeymar and Luis Suarez charged withsupplying the fireworks againstthe Belarusian club.

Fears that Barcelona wouldlack finishing power withoutMessi have proved unfounded,with six wins and one draw inthe eight matches played sinceMessi’s absence and the teamsharing 24 points with RealMadrid at the top of theSpanish league.

Barcelonawelcome BATEwithout Messi

LLTC to host 2015Quadrangular games

The 2015 QuadrangularGames have been slated

to hold between November 15and 21 at the Lagos LawnTennis Club, Onikan.

The games which is open onlyto the four premier social clubsin Lagos involves the LagosLawn Tennis Club, Ikoyi Club1938, Lagos Country Club andthe Apapa Club. Ikoyi Club arethe defending champions.

Chairman of the LocalOrganising Committee, PrinceBowo Olateru Olagbegi said inLagos yesterday that this year’sgames would introduce a

number of innovations thatwould make a lot of differencefrom previous editions.

“The games will, for the firsttime, witness cultural nightswhich will showcase our richcultural heritage,” he said,adding that children from thefour clubs will compete amongthemselves thereby makingthem part of the fun which theweek-long event represents.

Sports to feature includeTennis, Table Tennis, SquashRacquet, billiards and snooker,Chess, Tug of War, amongothers.

CAF officials, others for VCNSports soccer final

Top Confederation ofAfrican Football (CAF)

and FIFA Official PaulBassey, will lead someNigeria ex-football greatslike Victor Agali, Austin J.JOkocha, Kanu Nwankwo,Tajudeen Disu, Etim Esin andHenry Nwosu to the legacypitch of the National StadiumSurulere, Lagos on SaturdayNov 7, 2015 for the grandfinale of the second editionof the VCN Sports LimitedU-15 soccer challenge

involving Fortune FootballAcademy and TAO FootballAcademy.

Other special guestsexpected at the occasioninclude the immediate pastchairman of the Surulere localgovernment council, HonTajudeen Ajide, Chief MartinMuoghara, Chief CasmirEmenim, Chief Idowu Egbojeand former Super Eagles goalkeeper trainer, Joe Ericopopularly referred to as“Jogobonito.”

30 —30 —30 —30 —30 — Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015

CMYK

VVVVVANGUANGUANGUANGUANGUARD, WEDNESDARD, WEDNESDARD, WEDNESDARD, WEDNESDARD, WEDNESDAAAAAYYYYY, NO, NO, NO, NO, NOVEMBER 4, 2015—31VEMBER 4, 2015—31VEMBER 4, 2015—31VEMBER 4, 2015—31VEMBER 4, 2015—31

She ignores me now she's hadour baby

Was I used and dumped?

I regret sleeping with my boss

My man's dad smacked my bum

Dear Bunmi,

THERE’S THIS man I’dhad a crush on for ages

but he hardly noticed me.About two weeks ago, hesuddenly appeared at ourtable during a friend’sbirthday party.

The friend warned I shouldstay clear of him as he was aloser. Yet I jumped at thechance of a lift from him. Hesaw me to my flat and we hadsex. It was after he left that Irealized he didn’t leave hisnumber though I gave himmine. It’s two weeks now andhe hasn’t called.

I thought he liked me, so

why haven’t I heard from him?Dupe, by e-mail.

Dear Dupe,I doubt you’ll hear from this

man again because all hewas interested in was sex. Ifyou hadn’t been so desperateto hook him, ou’d haverealized that. Having sex withsomeone soon after you metthem doesn’t suggest you’relooking for a relationship. Infuture get to know a manproperly before having sexwith him. Then you’re in abetter position to judge if youtwo could become an item.

Dear Bunmi,

AFTER TRYING for a baby for three years, my

wife and I now have a four-month-old child.

As much as I love our newdaughter, I didn’t expect ourmarriage to be affected in the wayit has. We used to be extremelyclose and were very muchinvolved in each other’s lives, butnow I barely get involved in thescheme of things. I don’t justhave a rival for my affection, Ifeel replaced - it’s almost like shestopped being my wife once shebecame a mother.

For us, sex is almost non-existent. This I xpected, but whatI wasn’t prepared for was justhow much she’s gone off it,Whenever I initiate sex, it’srejected and it’s like she hatesme for even thinking about it. Isthis how it’s now going to be? I

don’t want to live my life like this.Audu, by e-mail.

Dear Audu,Yours is a common problem.

After childbirth, you believe youshould now have your wife backwhilst she wants her life back!This is why the overridingemotion most women feel fortheir partners in the early weeksand months of parenthood isresentment.

Her life is now utter chaoswhile yours seems (to heranyway), sort of the same. Thereyou are, feet up on the couch,channel surfing as usual withprobably a chilled drink in frontof you. She walks past withbaby in one arm and dirtywashing in the other; you laughat a cheesy comedy on the boxand she hates you, When shestaggers wearily out of bed to

breast-feed and you roll over andcontentedly snuggles back intoyour pillow, she hates you a littlemore!

On top of this, your peniseagerly prods her in the backmay-be on the one day she couldsleep; she hates you so muchyou’re lucky she doesn’t turnaround and rip it right off, withher bare hands! Running side byside to her anger is anoverwhelming love for this newlife . She used to be besotted withyou, now she can’t take her eyesoff her child. Be rest assured thatall the caressing, squeezing andkissing hasn’t disappeared, it’sjust directed at the baby - and itdoesn’t switch off during sex -when you have it. Lots of womensay they find it completelyimpossible to stop being a mum- one part of her is alwayslistening, always alert to herchild.

Here’s the good news though:it gets better. You both just needtime to get used to being three,rather than a cosy twosome. Youcan help speed this process byassisting her as much as youpossibly can with the chores andthe baby - especially if you don’thave any house help. The moreyou help out, the more energyand love she’ll have left for you.

Sleep is more precious to herthan sex right now, so the moresleep you can help her get, themore sex you’ll get. Be restassured that this phase shallpass. Help her out and in sixmonths or so, both of you will bein a much happier place.

Dear Bunmi,

I’M A secretary and madean irrational decision

nine months ago to sleep withmy boss. He was years olderbut extremely sophisticatedand sex with him was good.So was sex with my husband.My lover is happily married,so what we had was a fling.But why was I attracted toanother man when I love myhusband? My boss has sincebeen promoted and he nowheads a branch office. Theaffair is more or less dead.But why did I have it?

Does it mean my marriageis doomed? Please help.

Abah, by e-mail.

Dear Abah,To be faithful “till death do

us part” might be a wonderfulidea, but there is plentystruggle - and slip-along theway. While an affair isn’tpleasant, it doesn’tnecessarily mean that youhave a dreadful marriage.Sometimes, we’re temptedsimply because we wantsomething new. It doesn’tnecessarily mean we’re not

Dear Bunmi,

I KNOW I get on well withmy boyfriend’s family.

We’ve been an item for a fewyears now, but at a recent party,his dad tried to kiss me aftergiving me a playful smack onthe bum. We’d all had too muchto drink but I told my boyfriendabout it right away. In themorning, I didn’t make anissue of it as it looked as if bothfather and son had forgottenabout the incident.

Thinking it was a one-off, Iput it all behind me butsometime later, he madeanother pass at me. This time,we were both sober and I wasindignant. He apologized andpromised it would neverhappen again. I was stunnedby his behaviour to say theleast. I

know I should havementioned it to my boyfriendbut I was too shocked to thinkstraight. How should I handlethis?

Uju, by e-mail.

DearUju,Honesty might be the best

policy but I don’t believe itapplies here. Telling yourboyfriend now would achievenothing. He’s bound to beterribly hurt, leading to a full-scale warfare within the family,father versus son, husbandversus wife; even boyfriendversus girlfriend. It must behorrible trying to fend off theadvances of a drunken oldleech and even though youshould alert your boyfriendagain that his dad is not to betrusted, the fact he did nothing

the first time should be arestraint.

For now you should keepquiet and see if yourboyfriend’s dad can keep hispromise.

If he can’t, you’ll have to saysomething - either to him oryour boyfriend. Then again, ifyou tell your boyfriend, it maycome down to being your wordagainst his dad’s and who

will be believed. No son likesto doubt his father. You needto confide in someone you

know you can trust. Gettingit off your chest might help youput it behind you and move

on. Don’t forget however, togive this old git a finalwarning. Tell him if he does itagain, you’re going to tell hisson and wife.

happy with what we have noris an affair anyone’s fault.

It’s impossible to make apartnership affair proof. Nomatter how loving, sexy orbeautiful you are, everyone isprone to temptation at somestage.

This doesn’t mean yourpartner is no longer in lovewith you. Most of the menwho admit to having affairsclaim to be happier in theirmarriages than other menwho say they had never hadone. Women are more likelyto cheat on their men ifthey’re not happy at home,but that still doesn’t meanthey don’t love their partners.Your fling seems to be amomentary and stupid lapseof judgment and thankgoodness your boss is nolonger around to make yourfling marriage - threatening.Some marriages even end upstronger after an affair. Youlove your husband and thisguilty conscience that’stearing into you means youwon’t make the same mistakeagain.

I need the will-power toleave him

Dear Bunmi,I have been seeing my

Ghanaian boyfriend for fouryears and I told him we shouldbe living together by now. Ilater asked him forcommitment but he says shecan’t tell what’s going tohappen in future. We don’tlive together and because ofwork, we only see each otherat weekends.

Recently, we got talkingagain about the future and hesaid one day he’ll go backhome to get married and havekids- and I’m not in thepicture. I’ll soon be 30 and itseems I’m wasting my time ona relationship that is goingnowhere. My head tells me to

leave him but l love him to bits.What do you think?

Jade, by e-mail.

Dear Jade,After four years, your

relationship certainly shouldhave developed intosomething more permanent.The fact that it hasn’t and thathe doesn’t include you in hislong-term plans, suggests thathe sees your relationship aslittle more than a dalliance.Tell him you need more thanhe is prepared to give you,and get out now. You’ll getover him with time.

This will leave you free tostart a new relationship thatmight be more fulfilling.

Most of the men who admit to havingaffairs claim to be happier in their

marriages than other men who say theyhad never had one. Women are more

likely to cheat on their men if they’re nothappy at home, but that still doesn’t

mean they don’t love their partners. Yourfling seems to be a momentary and

stupid lapse of judgment...

Share your problems and releaseyour burden. Write now to

Dear Bunmi,Vanguard Newspapers,

P.M.B 1007, Apapa, Lagos, [email protected]

EVERY human beingdesires progress.

Sometimes, the desire is anindividual one. At other times, itis collective. When it is collective,it can be for the family, thevillage, an ethnic group or anyother coalition of people withshared hopes and future. Thus,over the decades, it became wellestablished that the desire forprogress among the people ofAkwa Ibom is a keenly felt one.Anyone who is familiar with thecollective history of AkwaIbomites within theagglomeration of the peoples ofNigeria should easily recollectthat a conscious effort was madeto redirect the orientation of thepeople away from the occupationof domestic servants in the homesof wealthy Nigerians to morerespectable professions.

The resounding success of theeffort can be clearly seen in theenviable status of many proudsons and daughters of the statewho are leaders in their ownrights in every sphere of life inthe Nigerian nation today.Providentially too, in the midstof this effort, the fortunes of thestate took a turn for the better asit joined the ranks of oilproducing states and laterbecame a major beneficiary fromthe 13 per cent derivation fundreserved for oil producing statesin the sharing formula of revenuefrom the sale of crude oil by theFederal Government everymonth. In the pursuit of progress,the bounty was utilized bysuccessive administrations totransform the state from thebackwaters to a powerhouse inthe Nigerian federation.

Powerhouse inNigerian federation

Uyo, the capital of the state, hasmost graciously evolved in thelast 28 years from a glorifiedvillage to a modern metropoliswith perhaps the most modernroad network in Nigeria. If thepace of development was at snailspeed during administration ofsuccessive military regimes, itaccelerated in 1999 under Obong(Arc) Victor Attah and turned intoa gallop from 2007 when SenatorGodswill Akpabio assumed officeas governor of Akwa Ibom State.By May 2015 when SenatorAkpabio completed two terms offour years each in office, he hadstarted the march towardsindustrialization of the state byconcentrating on the constructionof the infrastructure backboneneeded for the state’sdevelopment.

But the struggle for power inthe state is threatening to unravelthe dream of turning Akwa Ibominto a destination of choice forNigerians and tourists fromacross the world. The JusticeSadiq Umar-led Akwa Ibom StateGovernorship Tribunal has ruledthat a rerun of the April 11

Akwa Ibom and the question of progressBy Adewale Okoya

governorship election must takeplace in 18 out of the 31 localgovernment areas in the state. Ifit is true that “all politics is local,”then the fate of the state willdepend on the candidate who isable to effectively appeal to thesimple, mundane and everydayconcerns of the electorate. Theprinciple presupposes that mostpeople will not decide who tovote for in local elections simplyas a means to act on feelingsabout national politicians. Theemotional tie of the people to thePeoples Democratic Party (PDP)cannot be ignored. Their intensedesire for progress is also a factorthat will urge them on to vote forcontinuity in the governance ofthe state. Fortunately, a closerlook at Mr. Udom Emmanuel’scareer in the private sector willreveal that he is well placed toprovide a purpose-drivenleadership in his newassignment as the governor ofAkwa Ibom State.

Mr. Udom Emmanuel servedas the secretary to the Akwa IbomState Government after which heassumed the role of governor ofthe state in May 2015. BySeptember 2015 when Udommarked 100 days in office, thelong list of his accomplishmentshad become a testimony to thegood judgement of the AkwaIbom electorate. Under him, thestate government started work on137 kilometres of road building,some of which include:dualization of Uyo-Etinan Road;construction of Etinan-Ndon EyoRoad with two bridges and spur;construction of Ikot Ebekpo-IkotEbidang Road for easy access to

a clay refining factory; andconstruction of Ikot Udom Roadwith 15m span bridge in IbionoIbom Local Government Area,among others.

Work has also resumed on thedualization of Eket-Ibeno Roadjust as urban renewal projectswithin Eket and Oron townshipsare ongoing. In addition to these,the construction of a secondrunway at the Ibom InternationalAirport and construction of threecollapsed bridges and internalroads in Obot Akara LocalGovernment Area are projectsthat are quietly transforming theface of Akwa Ibom. Progress has

Communications broadcastcomplex at Abak. At the sametime an electric meter assemblyand clay processing plant areunderway in Onna LGA.

Important to note is theunderlying ideology of Dakkada- the call for Akwa Ibomites to risein the cause of moraltransformation and spiritual re-birth which the Governorlaunched and is very popularwith the people. The foregoingis merely a glimpse at theachievement of Mr. UdomEmmanuel in his first 100 daysin office. Clearly, Mr. UdomEmmanuel has brought his more

than 23 years experience inmanaging the investments andlife savings of diverse customersto the service of the people ofAkwa Ibom State. He is morethan qualified and equipped tofulfill the yearnings andexpectations of Akwa Ibomites forprogress. Mr. Udom Emmanuelwas educated at the Universityof Lagos where he graduated in1988 with a 2nd Class UpperDegree in Accounting. He alsostudied at the LeedsMetropolitan University wherehe graduated with M.Sc inCorporate Governance. He ishighly-regarded within thefinancial services industry as aleading authority in corporategovernance and related issues.

Mr. Umana Umana, on theother hand, is an establishmentman who worked in the publicservice for decades. His trackrecord in the public service is noteasily verifiable. This is whyAkwa Ibomites will do well toensure that the person whooccupies the government housein Uyo as governor is one withthe relevant training andexperience to manage theresources of the state and utilizethem in the best interest of thepeople. The governor that AkwaIbom needs in the coming daysof lean resources from thefederal purse is one that has amastery of expertise includingfinancial management and notone that will use the office of thegovernor as an avenue to providecompensation to careerpoliticians for their long years inthe system.

32—Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4 , 2015

The governor thatAkwa Ibom needs inthe coming days oflean resources fromthe federal purse isone that has amastery of expertiseincluding financialmanagement

not beenconfined toconstruction ofroads andbridges alone.The stategovernmenta l s ocommissionedthe waterreticulationand head-works in IfaAtai and IduUruan, in Uyoand UruanL G Arespectivelywhile an ultra-m o d e r ngynaecologyward namedafter Dr.(Sister) Annw a scommissionedin the 78-yearold St. Luke’sHospital Anua.T h egovernmentalso renovatedmale andchildren wardsin the hospital.

Efforts toindustrialisethe state andp r o v i d eq u a l i t yemployment tothe people sawt h erevitalisation ofPeacock Paintsand provisiono finfrastructurefor the car

Map of Akwa Ibom StateAkwa Ibom State Gov Udom Emmanuel

manpower developmentby providing trainingfor a thousand youths inoracle technology.Youths have also beensent to Israel to acquireskills in agriculturewhile another set will besent for power sectortraining. The listcontinues with theg r o u n d b r e a k i n gceremonies of a fertilizerplant and the Daar

assembly plant in Itu LGA as wellas the Low Energy Display(LED) manufacturing plant atItam. The Ibom deep sea-portproject is on course and severalsubstations were built to improveelectricity supply. The state hasinvested heavily in skill and

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015VOL. 1 NO 48

CMYK

-PAGE 3

ENUGU — THEumbrella associationof all Igbo cultural

unions, Ohanaeze Ndigbo,has given reasons for Igbolanguage not being spoken atIgbo gatherings by Ndigbo.

Former National Secretary ofOhanaeze, Professor BenNwabueze, SAN, who spoke,lamented that Ndigbo do notspeak the Igbo language tothemselves because most ofthem were promoting theirvarious dialects instead ofspeaking the centralIgbo. There are as many Igbodialects as there arecommunities.

Nwabueze, who spoke at anIgbo language programmeorganized by the Igbo YouthMovement, IYM, forsecondary school students inEnugu, said that OhanaezeNdigbo once decided that itsmeetings and activities would

Why we don't speak Igbo at ourmeetings —Ohanaeze

be conducted in Igbo, but thisdid not work because therewere several Igbo dialectsspoken in various parts ofIgbo nation unlike Hausa orYoruba which had acceptablecentral language.

“We once said at anOhanaeze meeting that allour meetings would beconducted in Igbo because werealized that our languagewas dying, but this did notwork. The first day wedecided that we must speakIgbo in our meetings, the lategovernor of Anambra State,Chief C. C. Onoh spoke hisown brand of WAWA Igbo.

“Onoh spoke at length andmost people did notunderstand what he wassaying. Every other personspoke his own dialect and atthe end, nobody spoke Igboagain at Ohanaeze becausenone of us understood oneanother’s dialect,” he said.

Also contributing, the formerRegistrar of the West African

Examinations Council,WAEC, and now traditionalruler, ProfessorChukwuemeka Ike, blamedthe inability of Ndigbo tospeak Igbo on themissionaries who establishedschools in Igbo land.

Ike said that when he wentto the then GovernmentCollege, Umuahia in thepresent Abia State, it was anoffence to speak Igbo in theschool premises.

“When I went toGovernment College, it wasan offence to speak Igbo inthe school then. When I leftthe college, I travelledoverseas for further studies.Writers should publish theirbooks in both English andIgbo languages …,” headded.

Also speaking, the formerVice President, Dr. AlexEkwueme, said that Igbolanguage should not beallowed to die.

On why Ndigbo do not

speak their language,Ekwueme said that this wasbecause, “English languageis a predator to Igbo,” just asHausa is the predator toAngas, spoken by the formerHead of State, GeneralYakubu Gowon’s people.

“Gowon’s father was theleader of his people in theAnglican Church. The Biblewas first translated to Angaslanguage, but nobody read itbecause Hausa is predator toAngas. Igbo Bible is not readbecause English is thepredator to Igbo.

“The Hausa Bible whichwas translated after the AngasBible is widely read, but thatof the Angas did not sell,” hesaid. John Okafor, aka Ibu, anactor, also lamented that theaverage “Igbo child cannottell you where he comes from.He will tell you that his/herfather has not told him thename of his village. This is notgood. We must speak ourlanguage,” Ibu said.

•Igbo chiefs at a meeting.

ABA:Traderscry to Abiagovt overfailedNgwa Rd

Ndigbo do notspeak the Igbo

language tothemselves becausemost of them were

promoting theirvarious dialects

instead of speakingthe central Igbo. There are as many

Igbo dialects asthere were

communities.

BY CHINENYEH OZOR


ENUGU — THEmanagement of a leading

road transport company,PeaceMass Transit,PMT,hasconducted compulsory free eyetests on over 4,000 drivers in itsvehicle fleet responsible forconveying 24 million Nigeriansyearly,to various locations in thecountry.

This came as the company, aspart of its Cooperate SocialResponsibility,CSR,policy, doledout N2 million on its esteemedcustomers, drivers/staff for theiroutstanding patronage andservices respectively in its annualCSR scheme designed toappreciate their contributiontowards uplifting the company.

One hundred customers drawnfrom various locationsnationwide received arechargeable unit, remotecontrolled, standing fan worthN9,000 while 100 staff smiledhome with the same householdappliance.

Founded by Dr. SamuelMaduka Onyishi, the companyhad since 2009, entrenched anannual one-week exercise ofcustomer appreciation anddrivers training aimed atboosting customer relations andimbuing the culture of safety fordrivers manning the buses in itsfleet.

South East Voice checksrevealed that the exercise servesas a feedback mechanism to themanagement as it strives toexpand its business frontiers toWest Africa and other sub-Saharan countries.

•Mr. Callistus Nwocha,beneficiary of rechargeable remotecontrolled standing fan.

•PMT MD, Mr. Amaechi Ezegwu

•Doctors performing eye tests on drivers

PMT conducts freeeye tests on over4,000 drivers...splashes N2m on customers,drivers/staff as part of CSR

BY FRANCIS IGATAMD,DIRECTOR Operation/

maintenance speaksIn a chat at his office,the

Managing Director,PMT,Mr.Amaechi Ezegwu noted that thecustomers who benefited from thecompany largesse were productsof a painstaking exerciseconducted to ascertain thedegree of patronage on thecompany.

According to the MD,”its ourway of saying thank you to ourcustomers for their dedication

and patronage over the years. Itsan annual ritual but this time,wewant to give customerssomething tangible they can seeand feel in their homes. We havebeen performing the CSRthrough free rides that benefitcustomers, donations toorphanages and the vulnerable,scholarships to students intertiary institutions among others.“We are dedicated to improvingour customer care policy in sucha manner that we can access thecompany services through theexercise to enable us know areaswhere to give attention to. It alsogoes to trigger optimalperformance from drivers andstaff bearing in mind that a giftawaits deserving personnel at theannual exercise. Its has injected

staff/drivers efficiency in ouroperations.

On the free eye test fordrivers,the ExecutiveDirector,Operations andMaintenance,PMT,Mr. TimothyChidubemu explained that theeye test was a mandatory exercisewhich every driver in thecompany must undergo toensure optimal vision being thatthe drivers convey over 24 millioncommuters yearly, to theirvarious destinations across thecountry.

“The policy of the company ishinged on commuter safety. Weconduct free eye tests on ourdrivers annually to ensure thatthey do not suffer from visualimpairment. As you know,theember month is here. Over 2,000buses in our fleet will be on theroad this period. Issues of badweather and deplorableconditions of roads needs a driverthat does not have any form ofvisual impairment to navigatethrough these challenges.

BENEFICIARY ELATEDMr. Callistus Nwocha who

benefited from the rechargeableremote standing fan vowed tocontinue his patronage of PMTadding that the gesture servedas a tonic to spur improvedpatronage anytime he is totravel to locations across thecountry.

THERE IS tension in thesleepy community of Urum

in Awka North local governmentarea of Anambra State followingthe demand by the people of thearea that their traditional ruler,Igwe Benedict Nweke beremoved by the state governmentfor allegedly selling theircommunal land andappropriating the proceeds tohimself.

The issue had lingered for sometime and prominent people in thearea had attempted resolving thematter amicably to no avail. Toexpress the way they feel aboutthe matter, hundreds of peoplefrom the community stormed theGovernment House, Awka, to laytheir complaint to GovernorWillie Obiano.

Their allegation was that theroyal father allegedly sold theover 800 plots of communal land

Anambra community asks gov to remove monarch overcommunal land sale

BY VINCENT UJUMADUvalued at millions of naira,thereby denying them theirinheritance. But the traditionalruler denied the allegation,saying that the land in questionwas revoked by the AnambraState government many yearsago following the inability of thepeople to develop it.

The protesters, who weredriven to the Anambra Statecapital in several buses,displayed placards some of which

read, ‘The future of our peopleis bleak with the sale of this land’,‘We have no other source ofsustenance’, ‘Igwe don’t sell ourcommon heritage’, and ‘We sayno to land fraudsters’.

The people also accused IgweNweke of using iron hand onthem and urged the stategovernment to strip him of thetitle as the traditional ruler ofUrum community.

They demanded investigation

into what they described as thefraudulent acquisition of theirOchiokwa farmland by the stategovernment through thechairman of Awka North localgovernment area, a private EstateSurveyor and Valuer andAnambra State HousingDevelopment Corporation, withthe connivance of Igwe Nweke.

The statement, which wassigned by the President Generalof the town, Mr. DominicUmeadi, the patron of the town,Professor Ephraim Aniebona,among others, urged the stategovernment to nullify the landacquisition and recover thepublic funds allegedly paid tothose involved.

But Igwe Nweke dismissed theaction of his subjects, insistingthat he never sold any landbelonging to his community.According to him, the Certificateof Occupancy, C of O, of the saidland was revoked by the stategovernment, thereby paving theway for government acquisition.

•Protesters

According to theMD,”its our way ofsaying thank you toour customers for

their dedication andpatronage over the

years.

CMYK


ABA — TRADERS at the OchendoModern Market, located at Ngwa

road, Aba, Abia State have sent a Save OurSouls, SOS, message to the state governmentover the dilapidated state of the road leadingto the market.

The market popularly known as ‘’goodmorning market’’ is the major hub of thetomato, onion, fresh pepper and vegetablebusiness in the city.

South East Voice gathered that wheneverit rained, some traders and residentsengaged youths who use buckets to scoopflood water from the road and throw it intothe gutters to enable vehicles access the area.The section from Ngwa road by East junctionto the market can best be described as ajourney through hell, even as truck driversdread it.

A cross section of the traders who spoke toSouth East Voice, lamented that the situationhad adversely affected their businesses ascustomers find it difficult to access the market,whenever it rains.

The problem of the traders was worsenedby the failed state of most of the roads whichserve as alternative routes like Etche, Danfodio and Pepples, among others.

Worst hit in the situation are trucks bringingin goods from the Northern parts of thecountry which often fall into the flood as aresult of its poor state. Most truck drivers

•A lorry stuck in muddy water on the road to the market

•Youths hired to bail out water to enable vehicles access the market.

ABA: Traders cry toAbia govt overperilous Ngwa Road

OWERRI — RESIDENTSof Agwa Community in

Oguta Local Government Areaand Amakohia- Ubi Communityin Owerri West LocalGovernment Area of Imo State,have called on the Imo Stategovernment to reconstruct theroad linking the twocommunities.

The road which they said wasstrategic to both economicgrowth and social relationshipof the two communities, neededurgent attention as itsdilapidated condition washindering the people's socio-economic growth.

South East Voice learned thatthe impassable nature of theroad had made it impossible forthem to reach out to one anotheras in the past.

The road served the people ofIzombe, Obudi, Ngbala,Nwaorie, Mbano, Umuopocommunities among otherswho travel through it toAmakohia-ubi Community aswell as Umuoka, Umujam,Umuike, Obiokwu and otherAgwa areas.

Other local markets in therespective communities such asthe Orie Obudi market in Agwaand the Eke Amakohia inAmakohia-ubi Community havealmost been closed downcompletely due tolack ofpatronage by nearby residents

prefer offloading goods at a safer location toavoid their trucks getting stuck in the muddywater.

A trader who sells tomatoes at the market,Mrs. Ngozi Ejike said, “We have continued torecord losses because of the dilapidatedcondition of this road; you know we deal onperishable items like vegetables and tomatoeswhich will get rotten if not sold on time. Thisrainy season is usually a bad period for usbecause even trucks bringing in goods find itdifficult to access the road. We are appealing tothe state government to urgently repair this roadto end the suffering of traders and residents.”

By UGOCHUKWU ALARIBE

Community asks forrehabilitation of link road

By CHINONSO ALOZIEfollowing the poor state of theroad.

South East Voice observed thatdue the poor road network, thepeople of the area now visit oneanother on bicycles which havebecome the only means oftransport.

One of the stakeholders in thearea Deacon Jacob Onuigbo from Izombe Community whospoke to South East Voice onthe condition of the road, said thatthe only way the governmentcould get the people of Agwa tolike it was to provide basic socialamenities such as good roads,water and electricity as they havealways felt marginalized andneglected.

He said, “if our governmentsteps into this road and beginsconstruction the present situationof these villagers will startchanging for the better.”

Onuigbo further regretted thatthe retrogression so far recordedin the area is due to the bad stateof the road adding that thesituation could have been averted,if the government had listened tothe cries of the people andrehabilitate the road.

Speaking also, Elder LinusAmadi, a community leader, saidthat he trekked to Amakohia- UbiSecondary School to take part insporting activities, as a boythrough the Agwa road, pointingout that it was no longer possiblefor children to go to the sameschool these days from thecommunity due to the poor roadnetwork.

•Road Linking Agwa and Amakaohia-Ubi Community.

Another trader,who simply gaveher name asOjiugo, said;"Sales have beenlow as ourcustomers nolonger come tothe market due tothe dilapidatedstate of the roadsin the area. Youcan see that thecondition of theroad hasworsened. Theg o v e r n m e n tshould come toour aid beforeb u s i n e s s e scollapse.”

Worst hit in thesituation are

trucks bringingin goods from theNorthern parts of

the country

CMYK


THE UNIVERSITY of Nigeria TeachingHospital, UNTH, has so far, performed 108

open heart surgeries since the services resumedin 2013 after 10 years of being suspended.

The Chief Medical Director, CMD, of thehospital, Dr Christopher Amah, made this knownsaid that such surgeries would henceforth beperformed regularly to reduce medical tourismabroad and save foreign exchange for the country.

According to him, the latest surgery wasperformed in the hospital on one Chiaha Chinyere,25, adding that it started at about 8.35 am andended by 11.32 am.

Chinyere was treated for mitral-valve disease,MVD, leading to the replacement of his mitral-valve, MVR.

Amah further said that the hospital startedperforming open heart surgeries with mainlyforeign doctors pointing out, however, that “thesedays 80 perc ent of the team of medical personnelare Nigerians.”

The foreign doctor, Vikram Aerra Parlapelly wholed the team that treated Chinyere was assisted bya doctor in the hospital, Nwafor Akpan with otherNigerian nurses.

Other patients, who were recovering after theiropen heart operations in the hospital, told SouthEast Voice that the symptoms included swollen

UNTH has performed 108 open heart surgeriesso far —CMD

legs, inability to climb upstairs and fast breathing.Those who spoke on their hospital beds included

John Okafor, 59, (from Onitsha), Peter Ibenemeand Rose Nwafor, 57, from Arondizogu, Imo State.

However, the CMD further said that the cost ofan open heart surgery was about N2.5 million butstressed that those assisted by Rotary Internationalpaid only N300,000 while others who came throughthe National Health Insurance Scheme, NHIS, paid

NNEWI — SMALL scaleindustrialists at Osakwe

Industrial Cluster, comprisingthose at Ezeiweka Road andEkene Dilichukwu PolytheneProducers and Allied Products,off Ezeiweka Road Awada Obosinear Onitsha are grumblingagainst poor electricity supply aswell as what they described as unjustified disconnection of thecluster from electricity supply bythe Enugu ElectricityDistribution Company, EEDC.

The industrialists whoembarked on a peaceful protestover the issues shut down theirbusinesses in the cluster andordered all their workers to trekto Awada Obosi area where theOgidi Business Center of EEDCwas located to register theirgrievances against the generaldisconnection, even whenmajority of them were not owingelectricity bills.

The protesters also, hired over50 busses to convey the over11,000 business owners and theirworkers to storm the EEDCBusiness Centre at about 9amand disrupted vehicularmovements in the area.

The presence of the businessowners and workers, mainlyyouths, between the ages of 18and 30 years set, to lose their jobsdue to poor power supply,elicited the sympathy of otherpassers-by and residents of thearea as the joined the protestersin solidarity by chanting anti-EEDC songs.

They also carried placardssome of which read, “OsakweSmall Scale workers dey work,EEDC dey chop; EEDC has gotus angry we will not take it; wewill not agree, President Buhariwithdraw EEDC license now;EEDC Managing Director: isit the way industrialists aretreated in your country; EEDCrefund us the N2 billion we usedin buying transformers; We ownwires and other electricalinstallation we use in installinglight EEDC, what is yourcontribution?”

Others included, “GovernorObiano you have providedsecurity, do not allow EEDC todrive youths back to crime”“President Buhari save us fromthe hands of EEDC that is benton killing our businesses.”

Addressing his members at theEEDC office later, the Chairmanof the small scale industrialistsin the cluster, Mr. Johnson Okolosaid they were not informed byEEDC that they were going tobe disconnected, as stipulated in

•Mr Johnson Okolo middle with T shirt addressing the cluster operators and newsmen.

•Osakwe industrial cluster operators and workers during the protest at EEDC Ogidi Business Office.

Osakwe Industrial Clusteroperators protest poorelectricity supplyBy CHIMAOBI NWAIWU

the Nigerian ElectricityRegulatory Commission, NERC,Connections and DisconnectionsProcedure for Electricity Services.

“What EEDC does is that anytime it feels like, it disconnectsus for us to come and beg, so thatit will give us all sorts ofconditions, because the peopleknow we need the light andmust come to see them forelectricity to be reconnected.They have been doing it, and

now they resorted todisconnecting the whole clusterinstead of the few individuals thatare owing them.

“So we are here today to registerour protest against suchintimidation and disconnection ofthose who are not owing. Sincethey want us to work here in theirstation, we will do so and theywill pay us. We are not here forviolence, but for EEDC to employus. Let us see if they can employover 11,000 of us here.

“EEDC officials are protectingtheir work illegally and in theprocess, killing our businesses.They want to terminate our jobs,and we know that before they dothat, they must have madeprovisions for where we will workin their offices and so we are hereto work for them. They must payus our wages.

“There are rules fordisconnection, and if we are notpart of Nigeria where the rulesapply, let them tell us, they aresupposed to write us and it is ourduty to fish out the debtors andensure they pay, but because theysee us as their slaves they didnot care. They have been treatingus inhumanly like slaves, buttoday we refuse to be their slavesanymore but their employees,”he said.

Also speaking, the Secretary ofthe Cluster Mr. George Chukwusaid that the EEDC was owingthem over N2 billion forpurchasing the transformers inthe cluster as EEDC did notcontribute anything towardsbuying the transformers, wiresother electrical materials or eventheir installation as well asmaintenance even as theycollected their bills.

“EEDC is owing us over N2billion, they are claiming that weare owing them N700 million,they should pay us our N2 billionfirst or they will deduct the N700million from N2 billion and giveus the balance. We are here todayfor them to go and reconnect ourlight,” he said.

Mr. Nnamdi Ezeji whileaddressing the protesters saidOsakwe Industrial Cluster wasthe largest employer of labour inall the industrial clusters in Africaand has provided employmentfor teeming Nigerian youths andhence should not be treated likeslaves.

Efforts to speak with officials ofthe EEDC staff at the BusinessCenter proved abortive as theylocked themselves inside,watching the protesters throughtheir windows. Two membersof staff of the EEDC, who laterran back into the office whensighting a television camera manlocked themselves inside thebuilding.

The Managing Director of theCompany, Mr. RobertyDeckerman declined commentson the issue when South EastVoice called on the telephone,saying that he had not beenbriefed. Deckeman promised tocall the Ogidi office to know whathappened before commenting,even as he stressed that EEDCalways took “customers’complaints very serious. “Welove them and try as much aspossible to satisfy them by solvingtheir problems, I will find outwhy they engaged in that massdisconnection,” he added.

N1.5 million.On water and

electricity in thehospital, Amah saidthat 13 new boreholeprojects were startedout of which sevenhad been completed.He also said thatthe two sets of 350KVA transformerswere dedicated tothe cardiac unit inthe hospital aselectricity was notexpected to go offduring delicateoperations.

The hospitalstarted performing

open heartsurgeries withmainly foreign

doctors pointingout, however, that

“these days 80 percent of the team ofmedical personnel

are Nigerians.

CMYK


THE TEAMSupervising Editor:Chioma Gabriel, Lagos(08052201257)Editor:Emeka Mamah - Enuguemail:[email protected])

Anayo Okoli, Umuahia

Vincent Ujumadu, Awka

Austin Ogwuda, Awka

Chidi Nkwopara, Owerri

Peter Okutu, Abakaliki

Chimaobi Nwaiwu, Nnewi

Francis Igata, Enugu

Nwabueze Okonkwo, Onitsha

Ugochukwu Alaribe, Aba

Enyim Enyim, Onitsha

Chinoso Alozie, Owerri

Chinenye Ozor, Nsukka

Eric Ugbor, Aba

ONITSHA — WHEN theFederal Government

announced the takeover of theOgba Ukwu Cave and WaterFalls, now known as Owerre-Ezukala Cave and Water Falls, inOrumba South Local GovernmentArea of Anambra State in 2010,there were wild jubilations all overthe place as both the natives, thelocal government council and theentire state believed then that thecentral government’s presencehad been attracted by the cave.

The community, the local counciland the state also had theimpression that within a space oftime, the area would be bubblingwith life as tourists from all overthe world would be visiting thecave from time to time andpatronize their local products andboost their earnings.

However, there is nothing yeton the ground to justify theeuphoria that greeted theannouncement of the take- overby the Federal Government.

Up till this moment, the cavehas remained as bushy as it wasduring the celebrated handoverceremony, five years ago.

The community had in 2010,formally handed the cave over tothe Federal Government, throughthe then Director-General of theNigerian Tourism DevelopmentCorporation, NTDC, OtumbaOlusegun Runsewe, OON, aspart of the activities marking itsannual cultural festival. Duringthe ceremony, the community hadnoted that the essence of handing

Owerre-Ezukala cave,waterfalls remain abandoned5yrs after FG’s take-over

BY NWABUEZEOKONKWO

over the cave to the governmentwas for proper refurbishment,marketing and promotion to attracttourists to the area.

Speaking at the ceremony, thechairman of Mbido Igbo (Originof Igbo) Associations, MaziOkafouzu Ugochukwu, said thatboth the federal and AnambraState governments hadconcluded arrangements topromote the cave and thecommunity’s festival to a nationalfestival to serve as a tourismcentre within the South East geo-

political zone, adding that thetakeover of the cave was basedon the recommendation of a 12-man fact-finding team that visitedthe South Eastern states in searchof a natural site that should bepromoted internationally.

Okafouzu further said that aftervisiting Ogbunike and othercaves in the South East zone, theprevious year, the team settled forOgba Ukwu cave as the besttourism site in the zone.

However, the cave has

remained undeveloped andabandoned; a situation which hasbeen generating angry reactionsfrom the indigenes.

Among them include anOnitsha – based rights activistand lawyer, Jezie Ekejiuba, whocautioned Governor Willie Obianoof Anambra State against what hetermed as discriminatory policy ofhis administration, as itconcerned the Owerre-EzukalaCave and Waterfalls.

Ekejiuba, who is the presidentof the Voters Rights Internationalsaid that as a native of Owerre–Ezukala his rights to freedom fromdiscrimination had been flagrantlyviolated by the discriminatoryactions of the state government,in connection with thecommunity’s cave and waterfalls.

“Sometime in July 2015, thisyear, I discovered to my greatestshock that Owerre-Ezukala Caveand Waterfalls which is reputedto be the biggest in the WestAfrican sub-region has beendeleted from the official websiteof Anambra State Governmentunder the sub-title: Tourism inAnambra State… “

Earlier in March this year, theGovernment of Anambra Statesigned a Memorandum ofUnderstanding, MOU, with aproject partner for thedevelopment of Ogbunike Caveinto a world-class Theme Park andResort at the cost of N250 million,while completely feigningignorance of Owerre-EzukalaCave and Waterfalls.”

Ekejiuba noted that duringformer Governor Peter Obi'sadministration, contract sum wasawarded for the development ofAgulu Lake via construction of afive-star hotel complex which wasstill on-going under Obiano’scontinuity agenda,.

He added: “The policy ofdeleting Owerre – Ezukala Caveand Waterfalls from the officialwebsite of Anambra StateGovernment Tourism site andfavouring Ogbunike Cave andAgulu Lake with developmentprojects while completelyneglecting Owerre-Ezukala Caveand Waterfalls which is the biggesttourist site in Anambra State is thehighest degree of discriminationagainst me and my fellow citizensof the border community ofOwerre-Ezukala.”

In his own complaint, theNational Treasurer of Owerre-Ezukala Development Union,Anayo Emejue described the caveas one of the oldest within abeautiful terrain with water fallsand natural swimming pool andprivileged tourist centres in Africa.

Emejue stated that Nollywoodactors had often besieged thecentre for shooting films andtrainings, adding, “however, wethe people of Owerre-Ezukalaespecially the town union arepassionately appealing for thetarring of the access road leadingto the cave, extension of therecreational facilities in the caveespecially the natural swimmingpool and provision of indoorgames and relaxation points.”

He also mentionedelectrification of theappurtenances to the cavethrough street lighting,completion of the Nollywoodvillage, construction of a guesthouse and a pavilion at the arena,among others.

•Ogba Ukwu Waterfall

•Barr. Ekejiuba

Eziobodo community mourns leader, Pa Okenwa

INDIGENES OF Eziobodocommunity, Obinagu-Uwani

in Akpugo, Nkanu West LocalGovernment Area of Enugu Stateare trooping home to mourn thedemise of their leader, Pa JohnOkenwa Egbo, a.k.a Okalu Igbo,who died, recently.

A statement from one of themourners resident in Lagos,Afam Mba, said there will be a

custodian of tradition andbelieves in the tradition of OkaluIgbo na ihe mere (the one thattells people that somethinghappens)

"Papa was also the leader ofOganga cultural group, a famousNkanu traditional music. Hedied on June 11, 2015, at the ageof 81.”

Activities marking his burialwill kick off on Thursday,November 5, 2015, with a wake-keep at his residence, Okenwabe Nnona’s family compoundwhile interment and funeralceremonies follow the next day.

He is survived by wife, childrenand many grand children,including Engr. Paul ChijiokeOkenwa, the Chairman,Electrical Dealers Association ofNigeria, Alaba InternationalHeadquarters and thePresident, Alaba InternationalAmalgamated TradersAssociation.

Late Pa John Egbo

massive return of people from thearea in recognition of the positivecontributions of the octogenarianto the growth of the community.

According to Mba: “Late PaJohn Okenwa Egbo was born inthe year 1934, and he travelledto Equatorial Guinea where heworked with the white man.Papa speaks three differentforeign languages. After severalyears of sojourn, he came backto Nigeria in 1960, got marriedand started farming in NdikeliOnwu, Orumba North LocalGovernment Area of AnambraState.

“He was the community leaderof Eziobodo in Obinago -UwaniAkpugo in Nkanu West localGovernment Area of Enugu Statefor 14 years. He was also theChairman of the famous andancient Umuegboani clan till hisdeath.

"In his life time, Papa wasknown for his straightforwardness, fearlessness,honesty and sincerity. He was a

Ater visitingOgbunike and othercaves in the South

East zone, theprevious year, the

team settled for OgbaUkwu cave as the best

tourism site in thezone.


EKWULOBIA — THEAnglican Diocese of

Amichi in Nnewi South LocalGovernment Area of AnambraState, weekend, hascommissioned its Sure AnchorMicrofinance Bank Ltd,established by the diocese.

Commissioning the project, theBishop of Amichi, Rt. Rev.Ephraim Ikeakor said the churchembarked on the banking projectto encourage the culture ofbanking habit in the lives of therural populace and discouragethe attitude of living withoutsaving for the rainy day.

He also noted that the bank

•Bishop E.O. Ikeakor commissions the Sure Anchor Microfinance Bank at Amichi.

Bishop Ikeakorcommissionsmicrofinancebank in Amichi

By OBIALUNAMMANWADIOGBU

would encourage the ruraldwellers, who werepredominantly farmers by givingthem “soft and micro credit loansfor small and medium scalebusiness enterprises with thehope of achieving economicboom in the area.”

While assuring them that ATMmachines would be installed inno distant time on the bankpremises, the prelate also askedthem to open accounts with thebank, promising that it would notfold like other banks thatcollapsed in the community.

“This bank is offering to providesavings and credit facilities andassist you to grow your businessesand improve your standard ofliving. So, this is not AnglicanChurch bank alone, but for

everybody within and aroundAmichi.

“I also want to let you know thatyou have nothing to fear aboutfolding as we have experiencedpersonalities as members of theBoard of Directors and CentralBank of Nigeria, CBN, will bemonitoring our activities, havinggranted us the banking licence.

In his remarks, the ChairmanBoard of Directors, Dr.Ugochukwu Nzewi , who wasvisibly elated for the landmarkachievement, noted that the SureAnchor Microfinance Bank would offer the followingservices: regular savings, dailycontribution scheme, micro loansamong other services.

The Managing Director of thebank, Uchenna Udensicommended Bishop Ikeakor forhis efforts in bringingdevelopment to the door steps ofthe people of Amichi, adding thatthe promoters of the bank wereworried because the absence ofbanks in Amichi communityexposes indigenes to the risks ofcarrying cash to neighbouringcommunities.

“It also exposes them to the risksof keeping money at home, risksof financial planning difficultiesin their various businesses andthe hardship of travelling farbefore they receive money frompeople living outside Amichi,” hesaid.

THE ANAMBRA StateHouse of Assembly

Committee on Education at theweekend lauded the rectorfederal polytechnic Oko, Prof.Godwin Onu over theinfrastructural transformation ofthe institution in the last fiveyears.

The Chairman of theCommittee, Hon. VivianOkadigbo who led othermembers of the committee onan over sight function to thePolytechnic said they wereimpressed with thedevelopment agenda of themanagement of the polytechnic,adding that the rating of thepolytechnic has continued tosoar under the presentleadership.

Speaking after the inspectionof over 22 buildings started bythe current administration,Okadigbo said “I want to thankand commend you for doing thismuch in the polytechnic.Federal Polytechnic, Oko israted very high today in thecountry and it shows that youhave done wonderfully well.When you look round the school,you discover progress. Youdiscover development and youdiscover transformation”.

“This Institution should beone of fastest growing in thecountry, it takes sacrifices toachieve this much result withinthese few years and I urge younot to relent.

Anambra legislators laud Oko Poly on infrastructure, discipline

She further commended therector for the revolution inInformation CommunicationTechnology (ICT) and thehuman capacity development inthe polytechnic, adding thatwith such infrastructure bothphysical and human in place,the institution will continue tosoar.

The Chairman pledged thesupport of the State House ofAssembly to ensure that thepolytechnic continues to movefrom strength to strength,adding, “we are here to partnerwith you and if there is any waywe can assist you do your dutiesbetter; do not hesitate to informus. We can assist in terms of billsand motions. And we shall notbecause your institution is a

was the first time any committeefrom the Anambra Statelegislature was coming to hispolytechnic and thereforecommended the leadership ofthe committee for the gesture andfamiliarization with itsconstituencies.

According to the Rector, “onbehalf of the polytechniccommunity let me commend theentire leadership of the Houseof Assembly. I want to alsocommend the state governor forhis leadership qualities.Leadership is not an easy thing.For a long time now AnambraState has witnessed a great dealof security and people are freeto go about their businesses andsleep with their eyes closed. Iwant to commend the Stategovernment for giving ussecurity and other dividends ofdemocracy. There are challengesof course. Roads are collapsingbut more importantly we implorethe House of Assembly to findways of bringing the FederalGovernment to look at thecollapsed federal roads in theSouth East. In the State, thegovernment should make effortsto decongest some of the roads,especially the Eke-Awka marketroad.”

On the state of affairs at thepolytechnic, the recto noted thatthe Institution complements theefforts of the state government inproviding security by introducingnovel courses and programmesaimed at clearing the streets ofunemployed youths.

He said that plans have beenconcluded by his polytechnic tointroduce the NationalInnovative Diploma andNational Vocational certificatewhich is aimed at enrolling inschools those who could notmeet up with admissionchallenges of the JointAdmission Matriculation Boardand added that the programmewas designed to make thegraduates employers of labour.

In a vote of thanks, HonIkemefuna Uzoezie praised thepolytechnic management for thewarm reception, adding thatsince they started suchfamiliarization tours they havenot received reception theyreceived at the kind ofpolytechnic.

He also commended themembers of the schoolmanagement reminding therector that it was because ofdedicated members of staff thathe was able to attain such featsin terms of development.

He urged the schoolmanagement not to lose sight ofthe place of education indevelopment of nations urgingfurther that they should notrelent in their good works.

Hon. Uzoezie expresseddelight with the rate ofdevelopment and transformationin the last three years since hevisited the polytechnic, pledginghis support and that of themembers of their committee tocontribute positively in furthertransforming the polytechnic.

From left, Chairman Anambra State House of Assembly Committeeon Education, Hon. Vivian Okadigbo, Rector Federal PolytechnicOko, Prof. Godwin Onu and some members of the HouseCommittee on Education, Hon. Ikemefuna Uzoezie and BeverlyNkemdiche during a facility tour of the polytechnic after a courtesycall on the Rector at the weekend.

federal one abandon youbecause over 80% of studentsand staff of the polytechnic arefrom this part of the country”.

The Rector Prof. Godwin Onuin his response described thevisit as historic, adding that it

The Chairmanpledged the supportof the State House ofAssembly to ensurethat the polytechniccontinues to movefrom strength to

strength

While assuringthem that ATM

machines would beinstalled in no distant

time in the bankpremises, the prelatealso asked them toopen account with

the bank

BY ENYIM ENYIM

CMYK


UMUAHIA —OHUOHIA OBI-

IBERE community in IkwuanoCouncil Area of Abia State byall standards qualifies as atypical government neglectedrural community. It lacksvirtually all public amenities.The only road to the agrariancommunity is in a horriblestate. In fact, on a rainy daynobody dares leave thecommunity to any other partof the state, unless the personwants to be trapped on theway. Though the contract forthe road was given to NigerDelta DevelopmentCommunity sometime in thepast, the contractor did lessthan two kilometers andabandoned the road. So a tripto this community is almost ajourney to hell, especiallyduring rainy season.

The only visible governmentpresence in the communitywhose indigenes are mainlybased in Gabon, in CentralAfrica, is a secondary school,Ambassador ’s ModelCollege, which was attractedto the rural community byChief Sam Onuigbo, now themember representingIkwuano/Umuahia FederalConstituency, when he servedin the American Embassy inNigeria.

Granted that it is now aState Government owed

•Outgoing and incoming Corps members being hosted by Chief Sam Onuigbo.

BY ANAYO OKOLI

Lawmaker, communityfete Corps members

school, much is still requiredto upgrade it. Though it islocated less than 50kilometres from Umuahia, theAbia State capital, but due tothe deplorable condition ofthe road, a journey fromUmuahia to Obuohia Obi-Ibere takes over three hoursto make. This has direeconomic consequences onthe people as the farmers fromthe area no longer conveytheir farm produce toUmuahia and surroundingcommunities to sell and makemoney. Ask a commercialdriver that you are going toIbere, and he will give anexorbitant bill as his transportfare and brazenly tell you thatif you are not ready to pay youforget it. You can’t blame himbecause any vehicle that takesa trip on the road sufferscollosal wear and tear.

Because of abject neglectthe community suffers,members of Youth Corps whoaccept to serve there areadored and highly cherishedby the community. They areloved and treated very well.In fact, it is said that the ruralwomen in the communityusually provide with foodstuff they use. Besides, inappreciating them, Chief SamOnuigbo organizes sendoffand welcome get together foreach batch of Corps membersthat serve in the communityand welcomes new ones to thecommunity.

According to residents of the

community, the corp memberswere treated this way toencourgae them to remain inthe community and serve“because once you are postedhere it is like you are cut offfrom the rest of the world. Sowe try as much as we can tomake them feel at home andbe happy and help to teachour children in this school”.

For Chief Sam Onuigbo,whose efforts brought theschool to the communityaround 2001, it is paramountthat the youth corp memeberswho serve in the communityfeel accepted, loved and caredfor.

According to him, the zealto establish the school was

fired by the quest to ensurethat children from thecommunity acquire educationin a less painful conditionunlike what he sufferedduring his time. He said theestablishemnt of the schoolhas helped to “ammelioratethe pains of our people whoused to trek very longdistances in their quest toacquire education”.

For both the corp memebrsand the management of theNYSC in the State the gestureof the community is awelcome development and anencouragement for corpmembers to remain in thecommunity and feel accepted.

ABA — MEMBERrepresenting Aba North/

Aba South federal constituencyof Abia State in the House ofRepresentatives, Hon. OssyPrestige, on October 1, 2015,marked the country’s 55thindependence anniversarywith inmates of the NigerianPrisons, Aba and fivemotherless babies homes in the

•Hon.Prestige and wife, admiring a baby during the visit toa motherless baby home. •Hon.Prestige and Wife with the Aba Prisons officials

How Abia lawmaker marked 55th independence anniversary withmotherless babies, prison inmates

By UGOCHUKWUALARIBE

city.The visit which started at Joy-

Rita Motherless Babies Homealong Aba - Owerri road, Abayi,took Prestige through theSeventh Day AdventistMotherless Babies Home,Ogbor Hill; Ngwa RoadMotherless Babies Home;Father Basil Motherless BabiesHome at Tenant road andNwamaka Motherless BabiesHome, Faulks road before theNigerian Prisons.

Items donated to the

motherless babies’ homes andthe prisons included bags ofgarri, rice, toiletries, diapers,beverages, and cash to supportthe upkeep of the inmates,respectively.

Speaking with South EastVoice on why he marked theanniversary with the prison’sinmates and motherless babies,Prestige said that he had beeninvolved in such activities evenbefore he became a lawmaker,stressing that he decided to usethe opportunity to assure theinmates that they had not beenforgotten by the society despitetheir circumstances.

While receiving the items in

the respective babies’ homesMrs Ann Ibekwe (Joy Rita) MrsGeraldine (Nwamaka), Rev. Fr.Basil Ejike Obi (Father Basil),described the lawmaker as adefender of the downtroddenand prayed God to bless himthe more, assuring that theitems would be used for thebenefit of the babies.

At the Aba Prisons, Prestigewas received by the DeputyComptroller in charge of thearea, DCP Stephen Ugba whotook him round to inspect theclassrooms, skills acquisitionworkshops; carpentry andtailoring sections as well as thebarbing salon.

The law maker who wasvisibly touched by theinfrastructural decay ofinfrastructure and inadequateaccommodation for the inmatesand prison officials promised topresent the matter on the floorof the House ofRepresentatives.

He further lamented thatmost of the inmates wereawaiting trials because theydon’t have money to hirelawyers to pursue their casesin various courts and thenpromised to establish a freelegal aid unit in hisconstituency office, where hewould engage the services ofexperienced lawyers to renderlegal services to those whocannot afford legal fees.

Presenting the gift items andcash to DCP Ugbah, Prestigesaid he made the donation toenable the prison inmates joinother Nigerians in celebratingthe country ’s 55thIndependence anniversaryand promised to make his visitto the prisons a yearly exerciseuntil the end of his tenure.

According to ChiefSam Onuigbo, the

zeal to establish theschool was fired bythe quest to ensurethat children from

the communityacquire educationin a less painfulcondition unlikewhat he sufferedduring his time.

CMYK


ENUGU — RESIDENTShave lauded the medical

unit of the state policecommand for offering free eyecheck for over 300 participantsto mark this year ’s WorldSight Day at the policeheadquarters in Enugu.

During the exercise, policeopticians examinedparticipants and gavesolution that would go a longway to prevent suddenblindness and other relatedproblems.

This was even as thecommand has also, organizedthrough its Police PublicRelations Department, thefirst ever programme aimed atbringing school pupils andchildren closer to the police

However, according to thestate Coordinator of the PoliceMedical Unit, Dr. Ituko Ogie,the programme was aimed atcreating awareness onblindness and visionimpairment.

Ogie however, said that thisyear’s programme with thetheme, Vision for All wasunprecedented in the historyof the command.

She stressed that the aimwas to reach out to themembers of the public as partof the police command’s

By CHIAKA OPARA

Participants laud Enugupolice medical team on

community service

community service.Earlier, the state Police

Commissioner, AbubakarAdamu Mohammed said thatthe free eye check was amongthe laudable programmesinitiated by the InspectorGeneral of Police, SolomonArase to reach out to themembers of the publicthrough the Police Force’sMedical Services Unit underthe Assistant InspectorGeneral of Police, AIG, GraceOkudo and enjoined the

organizing the programme,saying it had afforded thosewho could not afford suchservices the opportunity tocheck the status of their eyes.

Meanwhile, tagged: 'SchoolChildren/pupils Handshakewith the Commissioner ofPolice,' the state policeSpokesman, DSP EbereAmaraizu, said the event wasto bring children and pupilscloser to the police with a viewto making them appreciatetheir police and arouse theirinterest towards enlisting intothe service in future.

Amaraizu also said that theprogramme was aimed atdispelling fears and negativethoughts created in the mindsof some of the children bytheir parents and guardiansabout the police and who usedsuch thoughts to threatentheir children/pupil just toinstill fear in them to do theright thing, not minding thatthey were leaving wrong andnegative impression about thepolice in the minds of suchkids would eventually growswith the perception that theirpolice was frightening oneand perhaps unfriendly.

Those in attendance at theprogramme hosted by thePolice Commissioner, Adamu

Mohammed included headteachers, principals as well asother top governmentofficials. The programmewould further be run inbatches so as to cover all theschools in the state.

TWO MONTHS after electricitywas disconnected in the whole of

Afikpo North Local Government ofEbonyi State, following attacks on thepersonnel and facilities of the EnuguElectricity Distribution Company, EEDC,the state Governor, Chief David Umahi,has appealed to the distribution companyto restore electricity to communities onor before Monday next week.

Umahi spoke at the GovernmentHouse, Abakaliki when the managementand board of the EEDC led by theirChairman , Chief Emeka Offor paidhim a courtesy visit, noting that, thepeople of the area had shown remorseover the attacks by their youths on EEDCfacilities and personnel.

He also expressed satisfaction with thehumility demonstrated by Chief Offorin handling the disagreement betweenthe state government and the electricity distribution company, overbilling.

According to the governor, thegovernment was being billed N35million monthly instead of N18million.

“Ebonyi people have suffered so muchin the hands of the EEDC over the issueof metering,” he said and enjoined thecompany to supply meters to consumersin the state without further delay.

He however, promised that hisgovernment would give the company 100percent cooperation in recovering thedebts owed by some individuals, andinstitutions hitherto paid for by the state

ELECTRICITY: Umahi directs EEDC to reconnect Afikpo communitiesgovernment.

Umahi said that the governmenthad procured 25 transformers forAbakaliki Urban, and urged the companyto refund the cost of the transformersand all other funds invested in the sector.

He assured that the government would

pay for any electricity consumed saying,“if we consume electricity, we must pay”.

The governor appealed to the people ofthe state to pay their bills and to continueto be patient with the company as it hadpromised that the problem of metering would soon be over.

He stated that the government wouldsoon meet with the Chairmen of LocalGovernment Areas to work out ways ofprotecting EEDC facilities across thestate, from vandalism and theft, addingthat a bill to that effect would soon besent to the state House of Assembly forits consideration.

Earlier, Offor had said that histeam was in the state to solicit thesupport of the government in theoperations of the company and to resolve all areas of disagreementbetween them.

“From today onwards, we will makesure that we do things together aspartners in business,” he added,assuring that the EEDC would notengage in anything that would defraudthe government.

He further said that the companywould by December, roll out its plan formetering in the state.

The EEDC boss then appealed to

Free eye check for a patient

residents and members of thepolice community to makeeffective use of the one dayfree eye check to discover thestatus of their eyes since theywere important organs of thebody.

One Mrs Ogechi whoparticipated in theprogramme told South EastVoice that she was happy tocheck the status of her eyesduring the exercise.

A father of four, Patrick Eze,also praised the police for

State PoliceCommissioner,

Abubakar AdamuMohammed saidthat the free eye

check was amongthe laudableprogrammes

initiated by theInspector General

of Police, SolomonArase to reach outto the members ofthe public throughthe Police Force’sMedical Services

Unit

Umahi to assist thecompany by talking to thepeople on the need toprotect EEDCfacilities against theft andvandalism.

The Managing Directorof EEDC, Mr. RobertDickerman, assured thegovernor that electricitysupply would be restored in Afikpo North areabefore Monday nextweek.as well as improvedpower supply to all partsof the state.Gov. David Umahi

"Ebonyi people havesuffered so much in thehands of the EEDC overthe issue of metering,”

Governor Umahi said, andenjoined the company to

supply meters toconsumers in the statewithout further delay

BY PETER OKUTU

One of the electricity supply facilities

CMYK

VANGUARD, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015 —33

CMYK

WHAT do you really wishto be remembered for in

life?Let me be remembered for

education; training of the youngones. That is what gives mefulfilment. You see, I started schoolbusiness in 1977 with three childrenbut today, we have a crèche,kindergarten, nursery, primaryschool, college and then a centrefor advanced studies.

How do you combine being aneducationist with the Iyalode titlewhich requires you steeringcommercial activities in yourenvironment?

For any journey God preparesyou, He gives you the ability. Icannot explain it. My foray intoeducation was by divine will. Itcame when I met some pupilsconversing at Queens Park inLondon. Immediately, I shelvedevery ambition of becoming anactress and registered at theSt.Nicholas Montessori College ofEducation. My testimonials signedby two great white educationists gotme excited about the great things Iwould do with that training backhome. My school is 37-years-oldnow and we will be 40 in 2017. Wehope to mark it in grand style.

You began with three pupils, towhat extent has this number

grown?You just need to see for yourself. I

am mother and even grandmotherto most of my present pupilsbecause 70% of them are childrenof those that started the school.

In 2017, you may emerge thefirst female President ofNACCIMA. Do we expect yourtenure to champion policies thatwill ease women entrepreneurs’access to finance?

I have started that already. Presently at NACCIMA, we areworking on the review andmonitoring of policies guidingaccess to loans. This we are doingat the Federal House of Assemblyand also planning what we call the‘Legislative Alert’, a sort of lobbywhich will help government knowwhen loans are not serving theirpurposes due to policy.

But by the time I emergepresident, you’ll all hear me all overthe world, pushing forward thewomen agenda and championingthe cause of women entrepreneurs.That’s one of the reasons behindthe Nigerian WomenEntrepreneurs Exhibition 2015coming up at the MKO AbiolaTrade Fair Complex here in OgunState in December. It’s an initiativeof NAWORG and through it, wewant to show the world whatwomen entrepreneurs can do.

Oil price is crashing all over the

world, making the urgent di-versification and overhaulingof our economy a necessity;how can women come in?

We can come in through variousmeans, particularly through ourvarious SME platforms. You see,all over the world, SMEs are thebedrock of the economy butgovernment has a role to play toensure continuous growth forSMEs. It has to provide theenabling environment and thatbrings us again to policies. Wehowever do hope that with this newgovernment, both at the Federaland some of the state levels, thesepolicies, particularly on access toloan, will be reviewed.

Obviousbusiness

On diversification, we are nowlooking at women going intoagriculture because it is obviousbusiness should no longer be strictlybuying and selling. A nation thatcould feed its people is wisebecause everything revolves roundagriculture; from the cloth you wear(cotton) to the food you eat, as wellas its production.

Talking about women inagriculture, as a traditional titleholder, what are you doing tohelp rural women beatcustomary laws that deny themaccess to lands?

My association involves thegrassroots as well. About land, whatwe do is parley with localgovernments to help them accesslands to work on within their

community. For farmers amongthem, we secure the backing ofgovernment at the state level tomake sure there is no hitch overthe land at any point. We meet oncea month and meet with grassrootswomen once in three months tolisten to their challenges and seewhere we can come in. They havetheir own periodical meeting. Also,when there is an emergency, theyknow how to get across to us.

As the Iyalode of Egba andYoruba lands and as one whoresides amongst her people, whatlandmarks has the Ogun Stategovernment achieved for womenentrepreneurs?

Ogun State has done extremelywell because it gave the Bank ofIndustry, BOI, 500 million naira forit to add its own 500 million naira tomake 1billion naira, to give toentrepreneurs. Personally, I havewitnessed so many women

entrepreneurs grown considerablyand employed one or two persons,through this financial support. Andit may interest you to know thatthese women are really paying backthis loan. Above all, the loan is beingdisbursed at single digits interest,through the Ogun State Ministryof Commerce and Industry.

Has this loan been quite easy forthe average woman to access?

Yes, and that’s because it is a stateinitiative, and the state reallymonitors to make sure the fund getsto its women and other maleentrepreneurs as well. Unlike whatobtains with the usual loans, likesome of our members would testify.

Purchase ofequipment

One of our members told us howshe went through hell just to accessBOI loans. They asked her for 35documents and it took her one yearto get them, and after that, she wasdirected to another company withinBOI, where the interest was raisedto 24 percents instead of 7% onnine-ten digits. Not only that.Instead of giving her the money,the money was used to purchaseequipments for her business. Youcan imagine having equipmentswithout working capital? She stillcannot go into production butalready, interests areaccumulating.

So, you see, we have to look intopolicies and make sure those thatare to implement do the right thing.That’s where the monitoring teammust come in.

SMEs are thebedrock ofevery economy— Iyalode Alaba Lawson

Chief Alaba Oluwaseun Lawson, MRF, is always aninterviewer’s delight. The Iyalode of Egbaland andYorubaland, this dynamic educationist andentrepreneur abhors gender stereotype. This is crystalclear in the operation of her 37-year-old group ofschools: Lawson International Private School, AlabaLawson Royal College and Alaba Lawson School ofAdvanced Studies, all in Ogun State.

Her exploits as Iyalode and in the NigerianAssociation of Chambers of Commerce, Industry,Mines and Agriculture, NACCIMA, where she iscurrently 1st Deputy National President, also speakvolume of her leadership skills. Alaba who hopes toemerge the first female President of NACCIMA by2017 is Chairperson, Nigeria Business Women Group,NAWORG, the women’s wing of NACCIMA andChairman, Governing Council, Moshood AbiolaPolytechnic, Ogun State.

We were with her at the Ogun State capital and inthis interview, she speaks on access to loans andNAWORG’s upcoming exhibition for womenentrepreneurs amongst sundry issues.

One of ourmembers told ushow she wentthrough hell justto access BOIloans. They askedher for 35documents and ittook her one yearto get them

By Josephine Agbonkhese

•Iyalode Alaba Lawson

34 — VANGUARD, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015

WHAT is your reaction to thejudgment of the tribunal on the

Rivers State governorship election?Any lover of true democracy and

justice, who witnessed what happenedwill not be surprised with the judgment.I belong to that group. The electionswere neither free nor fair nor credible,so they can’t stand honest scrutiny. TheAPC won the case for all of Rivers State,kudos to them. In 2007, I fought PDP toa standstill and the same people in theAPC today were the beneficiaries of myfight. It is not about persons or politicalparties. It is about the state. I did notsay I am celebrating the judgment. Isaid I am not surprised by it. But inRivers politics, the analog politicianscannot understand the difference.

But you confused people by notcontesting the results that declaredWike as winner, so won’t your supportof the judgment raise questions?

Why? In my post-election statementin April, I clearly highlighted mydispleasure in the outcome of theelections. I said, it is no longer in doubtthat the election in Rivers State wasneither free nor fair nor credible. Iadded that rather than the jubilation ofa victory or the recriminations of adefeat, I and my team prefer to keep

I wonder why PDP islosing sleep overAmaechi --- PrincewillTONYE Princewill, Labour Party governorship candidate for RiversState at the 2015 general election, in this interview, among others,shares his views on the Election Petitions Tribunal judgmentnullifying the election of Nyesom Wike as governor of the state.

By Ayo Onikoyi searching for peace. I lamented on thebloodshed and just wanted it to stop.No matter how much we find justice, ifso many people in Rivers State arekilled, who will be left to lead? This did

not only show my disappointment in theconduct of the election but also myconcern over peace in my state. It is notabout taking sides with PDP or APC, itis about the truth.

But the Labour Party in the State hasdisassociated itself from your statementpraising the tribunal’s judgment, on thepremise that you are on suspension?

To the best of my knowledge we havefreedom of speech and right of opinionin Nigeria. My statements have alwaysbeen my opinion and until recently, myparty has always fallen in line with mythinking.

Do you see yourself doing better thanyou did earlier should you partake inthe anticipated re-run as LP candidate?

I am yet to take a position on the roleto play in the rerun; but even if I dopartake, it’s really not about me. It’sabout the decision of the people. Theyall know the political players in the state.They all know the possible after effectof a PDP or an APC victory.

PeacefulRivers State

Politics is not war. There must be awinner and a loser. I am comfortablewith either, because I am not desperateto be Governor; PDP and APC are. Howthat will produce a peaceful RiversState, I am yet to find out. If Rivers Peoplewant unity, peace, a Government theycan reach and believe that their votes

waited so long for this, and are eager tosee the difference it will make. And likeI always say, President Buhari is thepresident, whether his administrationis moving the nation fast or slow, weshould focus more on helping him, thanpulling him down. I know Amaechi; andI know his abilities. He worked seriouslyfor the APC and if he missed the VPslot and the SGF slot, why should PDPlose sleep if he becomes a minister?

I was praying we don’t disgraceourselves before the world. I am gladwe did not totally disgrace ourselves. Iam not sure his inclusion did thePresident any huge favours inperception ratings, but perception issubject to the individual and so we willleave each to their own. PDP gave usWike.

APC has given us Amaechi. Riverspeople are watching. I believe thoughthat with the right motivation, crossparty support and a little prayer, he canbe a useful tool in Buhari’s cabinet.

Do you regret not defecting to theAPC way before the 2015 elections?

Why should I? The ideology of the APCat that time was, “Bring downJonathan”, and I was on a totallydifferent wavelength. So, regretting isnot a possibility. I am also happy I leftthe PDP.

You can’t mistreat a man with amandate and expect him to stay silentand clap for you. Not me. I havesupporters. I have a caucus and I donot act alone. We listen and we learn.Of course we make mistakes. That’swhy pencils have erasers.

What is your take on the ongoinganti-corruption campaign?

The anti-corruption campaign was thefoundation of the Buhari campaign, soit is expected that a lot would behappening in that area. So far, so good,but it is yet to enjoy the confidence ofall sides. The reason for this is obvious.Not a lot of APC people are in the dock.I suggest we stay tuned, there is stillplenty time for that.

No man who is just settling in will fighton too many fronts. Besides it is for theagencies charged with theseresponsibilities to do their work, unlessthere is evidence to show, thePresidency is interfering, let us awaitthe results.

I knowAmaechi; and Iknow hisabilities. Heworkedseriously forthe APC and ifhe missed theVP slot and theSGF slot, whyshould PDPlose sleep if hebecomes aminister?

•Princewill

BAYELSA DECIDES

THE Restoration CampaignOrganisation of Governor Seriake

Dickson has advanced reason for nearlow key campaign activities by thePeoples Democratic Party citing therecent demise of the first civiliangovernor of Bayelsa State, ChiefDiepreye Alamieyeseigha.

Director of Media and Publicity of theRestoration Campaign Organisation,Hon. Jonathan Obuebite, stated thisduring an interactive session withnewsmen in Yenagoa.

He said though the campaignorganisation led by a member of theHouse of Representatives, Hon. FredAgbedi, the PDP and the Governor,Seriake Dickson are meeting andgetting endorsed by the variousstakeholders in the state ahead of todaywards and local government campaigns,the decision to embark on low key and

Stories by Samuel Oyadongha

How Alamieyeseigha death temporarilyhindered us — Dickson Campaign

strategic campaign was due tothe love and respect for lateChief Alamieyeseigha.

According to him, thedecision to suspend the earlierscheduled campaign was tohonour the late pioneer civiliangovernor of the state.

“Alamieyeseigha was theclosest to the Governor, Hon. SeriakeDickson and as a true Ijaw son, weappreciate him for that,” he said.

Obuebite said though the decisionmay have effect on the scheduledcampaigns, “no matter how it hurts, wewill engage in a quiet and effectivecampaign with verifiable achievementsbased on truth.

“The only thing Alamieyeseigha wantPDP to do is to win second term for him.He was a fearless leader and want usto stop them (APC) from leading us intoanother era of holocaust.”

He, however, announced that theRestoration Campaign Organisationand the PDP have fixed today(November 3) as the date for thecommencement of campaign activitiesin the 105 wards of the state and thelocal government areas.

“We are telling the people thatGovernor Dickson is the best thing thathas happened to Bayelsa. This is agovernment that cannot take from stateaccount and help itself. All loopholescreated for fraudulent spending havebeen blocked,” he said.

will count, Ibelieve mystyle ofpolitics willhave ab e t t e rchance.

What canyou sayabout thecontroversysurroundingthe Senatescreeninga n dconfirmationHon RotimiA m a e c h if o rministerialappointment?

W e ’ v e

VANGUARD, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015 — 35

IT was a sort of triumphant homecoming for Arc. Yomi Awoniyi, the

deputy governor and governorshiprunning mate of the PDP on Mondaywhen the people of Mopamuro LocalGovernment Area trooped out toreceive him and the governorshipcandidate, Captain Idris Wada at arally at the Baptist Primary Schoolfield, Mopa.

Addressing his people at the rally,Awoniyi highlighted the numerousachievements of the Wadaadministration especially in ruraldevelopment and healthcare delivery,assuring the people of consolidationif Wada is re-elected.

“I thank the people of Mopamuro forthis great show of solidarity. I knowyour resolution to give PDP your totalsupport on November 21. I also assureyou of greater days ahead for ourpeople as we consolidate on our

2015: KOGI DECIDES

Mopamuro people assure Awoniyi oftotal support

By Kingsley Fanwo achievements in the past four years. Iam your son and I am sure you willmarch out on November 21 to endorsethis administration”.

Also speaking at the rally, formerPolitical Adviser to the governor, Hon.Eric Fiki assured the audience that allPDP leaders are united behind the re-election project of Capt Wada. He saidthe victory of the governor isinevitable.

A ranking member of the House ofRepresentatives, Hon. Sunday Karimithrilled the audience with his Yagbaoration, saying the PDP is not readyto be in the opposition in Kogi State.He charged the Mopamuro people tovote massively for the party.

The rally was graced by eminentparty leaders such as the immediatepast governor of the state, Alh.Ibrahim Idris, Prince OlusolaAkanmode, Hon. Ojo Nathaniel, Hon.Kolawole and Rt. Hon. Momoh Jimoh,among others.

•Wada & Awoniyi

Quality Education is Possible inKogi—Ozigi, PPA Guber Candidate

•Ozigi

THE governorship candidate of the Progressive Peoples Alliance, Enesi Ozigihas promised to ensure improved quality of education if given the mandate to

govern the state from January 2016.Addressing a support group in Okene, Tuesday, the business mogul said he has

a blue print to rebound the education of the state in order to empower Kogi studentsto favourably compete with their counterparts anywhere around the world.

According to him, it has become imperative to embrace the use of Information andCommunication Technology in the educational sector. He said every school in thestate will have the benefit of an ICT Centre under his administration.

“We have been paying attention on the mundane without looking at the educationof our children. School infrastructure are in shambles while teachers are owedsalaries running into several months.

“I owe the current generation of students in Kogi the best education we can offerbecause our future as a state rests on the level we can attain educationally in thenext twenty years. With what is on ground now, we have not started yet.

“I am not sure our government is aware that the University MatriculationExaminations and Post UTME are now conducted with the use of ICT. That theyhave failed to put these in schools is scandalous against a generation that must beequipped to compete.

“Our government will ensure that every secondary school in Kogi has an ICTcentre for training. We will prepare Kogi students for any examination around theworld. We owe them a legacy of educational excellence”.

Ozigi also promised to ensure prompt payment of teachers in the state as well asexpose them to modern techniques of teaching, saying the return to the glory of theclassrooms will ease out the pandemic examination malpractice that is prevalent inall the schools across the state.

He called on all lovers of quality education, excellent healthcare delivery andinfrastructural development to vote PPA on November 21 in order to liberate thestate from corruption and cluelessness.

GOVERNOR Idris Wada hasassured workers in the state that

he has applied for the FederalGovernment bailout to enable him payworkers in the state.

Governor Wada spoke in Mopa duringthe PDP rally in the town where he saidthat he has fulfilled his promises to thepeople even as he sought the supportof the people for a second term in orderto complete his ongoing projects andstart new ones.

Assuring that he will soon secure thebailout fund in order to offset salary

By Kingsley Fanwo

I have applied for bailout to pay you, Wadaassures workers

arrears of civil servants, he said:“I was surprised when some people

said we didn’t apply for bailout. If wedidn’t apply for bailout, why did theFederal Government publish theamount approved for our state?

“I am aware that some people areplotting against our access to the bailoutfund for political reasons. But I want toassure you that President Buhari is aman of integrity who would not yield tothe antics of those working against theinterest of the Kogi workers. OurPresident is the president of the FederalRepublic of Nigeria”.

Stop blaming Audu, pay workers their due — Youth group chide Wada

By Marie-Therese Nanlong

YOUTHS from Kogi State residencein Jos, the Plateau State capital,

under the aegis of Kogi Liberation Grouphave tasked their State Governor, IdrisWada to find a way of accessing the bail-out funds and settle workers’ salariesinstead of blaming his woes on the AllProgressives Congress, APCgovernorship candidate, PrinceAbubakar Audu.

The youths urged the governor tosearch himself and find out why he isunable to access the funds like other

states and remedy the situation ratherthan putting the blame of the delay inrelease of the fund on Audu.

In a statement issued in Jos yesterdayand signed by the group’s NationalCoordinator, Malami Ibrahim and PressSecretary, Ogu Idegu they said,“Governor Wada should be ashamed forhis failure to secure the fund approvedfor the state just as he has failed inproviding dividends of democracy tocitizens of the state since assumption ofoffice.

“The bailout fund was approved forall the 36 state governors by the federal

government and most of thegovernors have successfullyprocessed theirs and have alreadytaken care of the welfare of their civilservants.

“From our findings from the CBNheadquarters, Gov Wada has notsatisfied CBN on why Kogi Statedeserves the N50.8 billion which isthe highest amount requested by anystate governor. Meanwhile othergovernors have been able to justifythe release of their funds and theyhave be given without delay by the

same CBN.“In a manner to prove that Gov Wada

has no concern for the welfare of civilservants, the government neglected theprocess at CBN and chose toconcentrate on his campaign for hissecond term election at the expense ofthe state’s civil servants.

“Rather than Gov Wada accepting thedelay as his own failure just as he hasfailed in governing the state, he decidedto politicize his own incapability asgovernor by putting the blame on Auduand the CBN governor.”

[email protected]


RESPITE recently came theway of the less privileged residents of

Palmgrove area of Lagos as Rotary ClubDistrict 9110 in collaboration with RotaryClub of Palmgrove Estate, held a FamilyMedical Camp which offered freeconsultations, diagnosis and treatment formalaria, cancer and diabetes among others.

For Janet Biodun, one of the 300beneficiaries of the programme, it was adream come true as her little daughter whoalmost died the previous night was treatedand given drugs. Janet confessed shewouldn’t have been able to afford thetreatment but for the medical camp.

“I prayed to God all through last nightto keep my daughter and He answeredmy prayers” she told Health & Livingamidst tears.

According to Janet, her little daughterhad developed fever a day earlier but therewas no money to take her to the hospital.Sadly, she was not able to control the feverwith paracetamol.

“I was in deep thought on what next todo when a neighbour who came tosympathise with me said there wassomething going on here. I decided tobring her here and we were treated free ofcharge.”

PovertyIn a recation to the crowd already at the

medical camp before 10am, President,Rotary Club of Palmgrove Estate, PradeepPahalwani noted: “One thing is that thesepeople cannot afford treatment in a clinicor hospital settings and that captures theobjective of the family camp.”

He said the camp had shown thatpoverty remains a major factor why manypeople do not take their health seriously.Wehave seen people with undetectedhypertension, diabetes and these peopleare walking and going about their daily

TODAY, as a follow up to last week's article on cancerpain, I wanted to talk about certain cancers

start that in a place (the primary) and are carried by variousmethods to another place ( thesecondary), especially bone.

I was going to say how these cancers can presentconfusingly as low back pain. Sometimes when thesepatients are investigated with scans, the cancer may bemissed or overshadowed by disc problems. The back painis then attributed to the disk problems and treatmentdirected towards that.

My plan today was to identify these major culprits asbreast, prostate, lungs, kidney and thyroid cancers.Backpain can also be referred pain from other cancers. Referredmeaning: the pain comes from one location but is carriedby nerves to another location; in this case the low back.

Today I wanted to explain that such referred low backpain can come from bowel, pancreatic, stomach cancers.Low back pain can also be referred pain from cancers ofany of the female pelvic organs.

However, today, I will not say a word about low backpain and cancers. I want to discuss SUDDEN DEATH;those seconds or minutes when life ceases; those secondsor minutes where immortality is preceded by a gasp, ayell, an unsteady gait, a fall...or just silence.

Which writer was it that said "death comes like a thief inthe night...." ?

Death, indeed, is an inevitable part of life. From theminute we are born, our cells start to die. Skin and bloodcells are replenished after weeks. Hair grows and fallsoff. So do nails. As we grow, repeated inflammation and

Why people die suddenly

By Chioma Obinna

MEDICAL SCREENING: Beneficiaries during Rotary Family Health Camp.

regeneration kills cells which in turn kills tissues whichthen cause organs to fail.

What causes sudden death?Sudden death by natural causes is almost always due

to problems with the heart and the blood vessels. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HOCM) One in 500

people have some form of HOCM which causes the wallsof heart muscle to thicken and lose their pumping power.Approximately 1 percent of people with the disorder diesuddenly each year, usually because of a too-rapidheartbeat-and many of them are young and unaware theyeven have heart issues. HOCM is the most common causeof sudden cardiac death in people younger than 30. Ifyou hear of an athlete falling dead on the field, thiscondition often takes the blame.

Faulty heart wiringAnother group of heart issues affects the electrical

system that controls and synchronizes its beats. Rare butserious conditions such as Brugada syndrome, long QTsyndrome, and WolffParkinson-White syndrome scramble

Succour for Palmgrove residents as Rotary holdsmedical camp

the signals that direct the heart to beat normally.You might not have any signs until your heart's lower

chambers, the ventricles, start quivering instead ofpumping properly-and you keel over.

Brain aneurysmAbout 3 to 5 million Americans have one of these

abnormal bulges in the wall of a brain blood vessel.Most show no symptoms. About one third of the

aneurysms eventually rupture-an event that proves fatalabout 40 percent of the time.

Don't ignore a sudden, severe headache-especially if itoccurs with strange symptoms like a droopy eyelid, doublevision, or a single dilated pupil. That might signal theaneurysm pressing against nerves in your brain.

Aortic dissectionDoctors aren't sure exactly what causes these rips, but

they can trigger blood to flow where it shouldn't-or evena complete rupture of the aorta, which typically provesfatal. Aortic dissection occurs in only about two in every10,000 people, but most are men ages 40 to 70.

Sudden and excruciating pain in your chest or back isthe main sign of aortic dissection.

Pulmonary embolismHalf of people with these blood clots in their lungs have

no symptoms at all. But for 100,000 Americans per year,the clots block blood flow, jack up blood pressure in thelungs, and work the heart so hard it can't keep up.

In fact, sudden death serves as the first symptom of apulmonary embolism about a quarter of the time.

Why, as the title asks, do people die suddenly?What and how, I can answer. Why, is for God only.

activities without any sign. This is a timebomb. They feel they are healthy becausethey are still moving about. These diseasescan be nipped in the bud and easier tomanage if detected early. “Today we aredoing this in collaboration with RotaryDistrict 9110, Lagos State College of HealthTechnology as an NGO to fill in the littlegap from our own side and complimentwhat the government is doing.”

Speaking, the incoming President of theClub, Tarun Sanghvi, said the objective

GAIN lauds newMNCH guidelines inNigeria

THE Global Alliance for ImprovedNutrition (GAIN), has described the

new food fortification guidelines for flourand allied products recently launched bythe Standard Organisation of Nigeria,SON, as a panacea to the country’smaternal newborn and child healthchallenges.

GAIN Nigeria Country Manager, DrFrancis Aminu said in Abuja, that the newguidelines have effectively reviewed thelevels of folic acid, zinc and vitamin Ainclusion in flour and flour products to meetacceptable international standard.

Aminu said the development will helpto reduce the worrisome trend of iron-deficiency anaemia in millions of under-five children while the inclusion of folicacid in micronutrients premix will reduceproblems of birth defects in Nigeria.

He said substantial compliance to thenew standards will help eradicatesubstandard products, stressing that GAINwill continue to collaborate with relevantstakeholders to implement and sustain therevised standards for flour with a viewalso, to improving social awarenesscampaigns and consumer awareness onthe benefits of fortified foods.

The SON, in partnership with GAIN andthe National Fortification Alliance (NFA),recently launched the new fortificationstandard in Lagos.

Also unveiled were four new certificationlogos: the Mandatory ConformityAssessment Programme, the SONCertification Assessment Programme, theNigeria Industrial Standard Quality Mark,NIS and Nigerian Quality Award, NQA.

of the medical camp was to promote goodhealth among the less privileged.

“Today we are carrying out freeconsultations, diagnosis for malaria,typhoid, breast and cervical cancerscreening, free checks for hypertension,blood sugar, HIV testing and counselling,Body Mass Index, and eye tests amongothers.

Gratitude: Expressing gratitude toparamedics from the Lagos State Collegeof health technology, he noted that most ofthe tests being offered free today can costup to N100, 000 in the hospital.

The doctor in charge, Dr Ajit Kumar, saidmost people presented with uncontrolledblood sugar and high blood pressure aswell as eye-related problems. At least 300were registered.

Kumar, an Internal Medicine specialistlamented that most people lack information

Poverty remains amajor factor whymany Nigerians donot take their healthseriously

about their health. “Apart from treatment,we are educating them on how to take careof their health. For children and pregnantwomen after treatment we ensure they gohome with treated mosquito nets.”


Oshiomholeassures EdoCentral onfulfilment ofcampaignpromises

Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital records medicalfeat in surgery

By Emman Ovuakporie& Johnbosco Agbakwuru

By GabrielEnogholase

Reps probe JTF over burning of illegal refineries

By Gabriel Enogholase

Bayelsa moves to save Izon language fromextinction

By Samuel Oyadongha

B E N I N — F E D E R A LGovernment-owned Irrua

Specialist Teaching Hospital,Irrua, Edo State, has recorded amedical feat after it successfullycarried out medical surgery onhips and knees replacement onsome of its patients.

The hospital's surgical teamleader, Dr. C.O Nwokike, whomade these achievements publicyesterday during the hospital’squarterly seminar, presentedgraphic details of how thesurgery which lasted over ninehours in the case of the kneereplacement, was carried out.

He told the audience whichincluded the Chief MedicalDirector, Dr. SylvanusAkhalufo Okogbenin, and othersenior management staff, howthey succeeded in the operationdespite constraints of lack ofmodern equipment.

Nwokike explained that whenthe total hip surgery was carriedout, it took almost the same effortto avert errors, saying at the endof it all success was recorded.

Earlier, Professor S.O. Abbah,a consultant in Public Health and

Professor J.E. Onuminya, aconsultant Orthopaedic Surgeon,expressed delight over theachievement.

Supervising Physician incharge of the UbiajaComprehensive Health Centre,donated by Senator Odion Ugbesia, to Irrua SpecialistTeaching Hospital, as an

extension of the hospital, Dr. A.Ajekwene, told the audience thatthe hospital had been developedto an enviable height.

He said that the confidence thehost community and adjoiningcommunities had on the HealthCentre spoke volumes because ofthe hospital's quality servicedelivery.

Those present at the eventwere the Chief MedicalDirector, Dr. Sylvanus Akhalufo Okogbenin; Chairman, Medical AdvisoryCommittee, Dr. WilsonOvienria; the Director ofAdministration, Mr. Tony Edekoand the Deputy Chairman,Medical Advisory Committee,Dr. Christopher Afusin.

YENAGOA—BAYELSAState Government has

employed 30 teachers to teach theIzon language in primary schoolsin the state to save the languagefrom extinction.

Commissioner for Culture andIjaw National Affairs, Dr. FelixTuodolo, announced thisyesterday in Yenagoa, during theformal presentation of Izonlanguage books to themanagement of schools in thestate.

Tuodolo, who explained that

several books had been written inIzon dialects to actualise thegovernment’s determination ofpreserving the language, said themove was informed by thedeficiency in effectivecommunication of Izon languageamong the various age groups inIjawland.

According to him: “A situationwhere Pidgin English now takesthe place of the Izon languagefrom individual families is adanger signal which, if notdecisively handled now, may leadto the extinction of the language.In order to revive the language,

Governor Seriake Dickson'sadministration embarked on thetraining of Izon languageteachers, 30 of whom passedout successfully and wereautomatically engaged by thestate government.”

The teachers, he said,specialized in the teaching ofEpie/Atissai, Nembe, Ogbiaand Kolokuma which formedthe Izon traditional language.

Tuodolo said the stategovernment had met all therequirements of the NationalCouncil for Education for Izonto be taught in primary schools.

Employs teachers to teach Izon in primary schools

ABUJA—THE House ofR e p r e s e n t a t i v e s ,

yesterday commencedinvestigation into the activities ofthe Joint Task Force, JTF, in theNiger Delta, over burning anddestruction of equipment seizedfrom operators of illegalrefineries.

Consequently, the ad hoccommittee raised for the purpose,headed by Sule Nasir Garo, (AllProgressives Congress, APC,Kano), summoned theleadership of JTF, managementof the Nigerian National

Petroleum Corporation, NNPC,Nigerian MaritimeAdministration and SafetyAgency, NIMASA, National OilSpill Detection and ResponseAgency, NOSDRA, as well as theaffected communities, to submitmemoranda.

One of the aims of the Houseresolution is to bring an end tothe despoliation of the Niger Deltaenvironment through the burningof equipment confiscated fromillegal operators of refineries.

Others invited by the committeeincluded the Federal Ministry ofHealth and the Ministry ofEnvironment, to intimate thecommittee with the steps taken to

forestall further pollution of theNiger Delta environment.

While setting up the committee,the House noted that communitiesin the Niger Delta “routinely sufferfrom the effects of wanton burningand destruction of oil tools andequipment sized from operators ofillegal oil refineries which areusually done without recourse tointernational best practices.”

The House also said the actionsof the JTF “have greatly pollutedthe environment and waters in thearea and in the process, destroyedfarm lands and killed fish, therebyjeopardizing farming and fishing,which are the mainstay of thepeople of the Niger Delta area.”

The committee was alsomandated by the House toinvestigate the fire outbreak inAzuuama Community inBayelsa State on July 9, 2015which was allegedly caused bythe use of dilapidatedinfrastructure and equipment byNigeria Agip Oil Company,and resulted in the death of 14persons.

It was also mandated to investigate the activities of AGIP“with a view to ensuring that itcarries out improvement of itsfacilities to forestall any suchfurther incidents in the futureand also determine thecircumstances that led to thedeath of the 14 persons inAzuzuama Community.”

Invite NNPC, AGIP, NIMASA, others

INAUGURATION: From left: Chairman of the occassion, Prof Nick Ezeh; Anambra State Deputy Governor, Dr. NkemOkeke; Enugu State Governor, Mr Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi; Executive Chairman, Enugu Sports Club, Mr. Obum Arum and wife,Ifeoma, during the inauguration of 2015-2016 Executive Committee of the Club in Enugu.

BENIN—GOVERNORAdams Oshiomhole of

Edo State has assured thepeople of Edo Centralsenatorial zone that he iscommitted to thedevelopment of the area aspromised during hiselectioneering campaigns.

Oshiomhole, who wasrepresented by his deputy,Dr. Pius Odubu, at the 11thEsan EconomicEmpowerment Workshop,at Igueben, said the themeof the Workshop, EsanCultural Values andPractices, could not havecome at a better time whenthe state cultural valueswere being debased.

While advising Nigeriansto go back to theirtraditional values as theywere not inferior to those ofthe colonial masters, hesaid, “Our everyday life istailored around our cultureand values and if properlyfollowed, we will all growup to be responsiblecitizens. We are all thesame, we are from the samesource. Our commonancestry is traced to thePalace of the Oba of Benin.So, we should be ourbrother ’s keepers.” Hethen commended the Esanpeople for their support tohis government.

In his address, chairmanof the Association of EsanProfessionals, Mr. MatthewEgbadon, commendedGovernor Oshiomhole forthe invaluable support theassociation had receivedfrom his government in theexecutions of its variousprogrammes.

He also commended thegovernor for thedevelopmental strides hisgovernment had made inEsanland and called onhim to do more for thepeople of the senatorialzone before the expirationof his tenure.

During the summit, twoprominent Esan sons werehonoured and they werethe late Dr. ChristopherOkojie, a former Ministerin the First Republic andSecretary for Health duringthe interim government ofChief Ernest Shonekan,and Chief IgbereaseUmuoburie, an Esanmusical legend andfolklorist.


PEOPLE SPEAKBy Bartholomew Madukwe

(08102479985)[email protected]

The PDP as a party is fullof double standard.

The party quickly forgotwhat happened in Marchwith Obanikoro’s nomina-tion as a Minister of theFederal Republic of Nige-ria. So it is now that theyare starting their own walkoutMr Dan-Asabe AluNyatse, Administrator.

PDP seems to forget sosoon, the Obanikoro’s

confirmation, despite theopposition. Can some-one tell me where isformer senate president,David mark? Maybe heshould remind his col-leagues. Mr EtayokhaiNasiru Oshiokhai, .Busi-nessman.

The standard for judgingthe APC must not be

what the PDP did or did notdo but the standard that itset for itself during its cam-paign “Change” for which15 million Nigerians votedwhile a little more than 12million voted for the PDP.Mr Austine Okoro,Worker.

What goes aroundcomes around.

They are all bird of thesame feather. The lasttime APC staged a workout because of Obanikoro, now the PDP is payingback by staging a work outbecause of Amaechi. MissEzenwanyi ChimezieEzembu, Broadcaster.

I am not a politicianbut PDP forgot too

soon that similar thinghappened on the floor ofthe senate duringscreenig of MusiliuObanikoro and yet hewas confirmed. Revengeis what happened now.Mr Peter Jatau Barde,Self Employed.

APC has not changedanything but simply

degraded the whole sys-tem into an open batch-ing of Nigerians. If theCourt case goes againstAmeachi, would theAPC shun the court?That is just my view.Mrs Morayo Simeon,Self Employed.

On PDP senators walk out over Amaechi's confirmation as MinisterOn PDP senators walk out over Amaechi's confirmation as MinisterOn PDP senators walk out over Amaechi's confirmation as MinisterOn PDP senators walk out over Amaechi's confirmation as MinisterOn PDP senators walk out over Amaechi's confirmation as Minister

By Jacob Ajom

JUSUN STRIKE:

AnambraCJ movestodecongestPolice cells

Ugwuanyi extends ban on collectionof traffic fines

By Francis Igata

Ikpeazu engages investors formarkets redevelopment

By Chimaobi Nwaiwu

N N E W I —FOLLOWING

the strike by the Judicialstaff Union of Nigeria,JUSUN, that has lastedfor three months so far,the Chief Judge ofAnambra State, JusticePeter Umeadi has set upa mobile court to helpdecongest the policecells now filled withsuspects.

Making this disclosureto newsmen, the provostof Idemili branch ofNigeria Bar Association,NBA, Pat Agbata, said:“It is now three monthssince the judiciary wenton strike in the state andit is affecting us and ourclients.

“We live based on whatwe get from the court.Suspects are languishingin police cells because there isno fair hearing on their matter.Based on that, a mobile courthas been set up to decongest thepolice cells and they startedabout a week ago in Awka,Onitsha and Nnewi.

That of Awka was at the CIDheadquarters, followed byOnitsha and t hen Nnewi andthey were being presided over bythe administrative magistrates inthe zones.

“Those with capital matterswere sent to prisons and otherswith minor offences were notgiven fair trial because lawyerswere not there to defend them,"he said.

UMUAHIA—THE ongoingefforts to redevelop and re-

position markets in Abia State gota fillip when the state Governor,Dr Okezie Ikpeazu approved theformal engagement of foreignand local investors for selectmajor markets.

This was in fulfilment of his pre-election promise to, among otherthings, “transform Abia State intoa functional private sector-driveneconomy; create betteropportunities for her citizens;improve the quality of their livesand shape the state into a hubfor regional entrepreneurshipthrough good governance,appropriate developmental andenvironmentally sustainablepolicies.”

Subsequently, the Abia StateMarkets DevelopmentCommittee, ASMDC, the state’sspecial purpose vehicle forengaging various stakeholders toremodel, upgrade and manageexisting markets for viableeconomic activities, hascommenced a rigorous process ofevaluation and shortlisting oflocal and foreign investors for theredevelopment of select marketsin the state.

The ASMDC had earlierrequested for the expression of

ENUGU—GOVERNORIfeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu

State has ordered the indefiniteextension of the one month banon the collection of fines fortraffic offences by officials ofgovernment in the state.

A statement signed by hisSenior Special Assistant onMedia, Mr. Louis Amoke,stated that the governor ’sdirective was contained in acommuniqué issued at theend of the State ExecutiveCouncil meeting of October30, 2015 which was presentedby the Commissioner forInformation, Dr. GodwinUdeuhele.

The statement disclosed thatthe governor opted for theextension to enable the statemore time to conclude itsplans to streamline theactivities of enforcers of trafficlaws in the state as well asunderstudy the models oftraffic operations in LagosState and other states acrossthe country.

The earlier ban expired atthe end of October; hence thedirective to extend itindefinitely.

It would be recalled thatGovernor Ugwuanyi in a swiftresponse to the persistentcomplaints of extortion andincessant harassment of roadusers as well as visitors to thestate had ordered theimmediate suspension of thecollection of fines for trafficoffences in Enugu CapitalTerritory for a period of onemonth.

The governor stated thatsuch practice was inimical tohis administration’s efforts tosustain the peaceful andserene environment of thestate and his promise to

provide good governance tothe people of the state andmake their lives better.

He also frowned at theN25,000 fine being collectedas punishment for a trafficoffence, stressing that “a

situation where for example,a civil servant who may beearning about N25,000 amonth, is asked to pay thesame amount as punishmentfor a traffic offence” was totallyunacceptable.

interests and proposals frominterested, qualified andcompetent investors/developers.

The investors will be selectedafter completion of the evaluationof their proposals and duediligence to ascertain the

pedigree, integrity and ability ofthe potential investors/developersto undertake the massiveinfrastructural re-engineering ofthe select markets in the state inline with Governor Ikpeazu’svision.

College of Education Umunzeends crisis with host community

By Enyim Enyim

ONITSHA—THE age-longconflict between the Federal

College of Education (Technical),Umunze and their hostcommunity was yesterdayresolved at a crucial meetingbetween both parties.

For several years, thecommunity and the pastmanagement of the college hadbeen at loggerheads over theright of the community in theinstitution.

The crux of the matter had beenthat indigenes of the area werenot being offered admission asa catchment area; unemployedyouths from the area not beingemployed by the insitution;contracts not being awarded toqualified indigenes and lack ofcollaboration with community

vigilante for provision of securityand non regular meetings withcommunity to avoid crisis.

The community had alsodemanded that N98 millioncompensation be paid them bythe federal government for thepossession of their land as wellas the relocation of the collegefrom the temporary site they leasedfor 10 years to the permanent sitethat is near completion.

Speaking to journalists after themeeting, the traditional ruler ofUmunze, Igwe Promise Eze saidthe crisis was all over because theProvost of the institution, Prof.Josephat Ogbuagu agreed toaddress and implement theirdemands.

He praised the Provost formaking sure that the college wasupgraded to a degree awardinginstitution.

The statement further notedthat the governor wascommitted to the fullimplementation of thedirective and a reformprogramme that wouldguarantee an accident-freeand orderly transportationsystem in the state.


GOV POLL: Police warn striking Kogiworkers against blocking of highways

Benue toestablishtribunal to trytax evaders

By Kingsley Omonobi

ABUJA — AS the date fortheKogi State governorship

election draws nearer, the policeheadquarters has warned strikingworkers protesting non-paymentof salaries and allowances todesist from blocking highwaysand causing obstruction anddanger to travellers.

In a statement signed by theForce Public Relations Officer,Acting ACP Olabisi Kolawole, thepolice threatened to dealdecisively with law breakers whoput public peace at risk.

The statement read:“Information available to theNigeria Police indicates thatworkers’ leaders in Kogi State areplanning to block highwaysleading to and out of Kogi toadvance their labour disputeswith state government.

“While the police recognizeand respect the constitutionalrights of labour force in Kogi topeaceful assembly and lawfulprotest in furtherance to theirdispute with their employers, theNigeria Police wish to statecategorically that extending theirprotest to blocking highways/roads in the state in a manner thatwill cause major traffic andsecurity threats, is not only over-reaching the extension of theirgrievances but also intolerable.

“As such, the Nigeria Police,hereby, warn striking workers inKogi State to desist from hatchingsuch provoking plans and restrictthemselves to due legal andlabour procedures that will not inanyway, cause discomfort toinnocent citizens.

“Failure to adhere strictly to thiswarning, the Force will mobilizemaximally, to deal decisively withanyone or group trying tothreaten the security or publicpeace under any guise of protest,and will not hesitate to bring suchpersons or group to justice.”

It will be recalled that theInspector-General of Police,Solomon Arase, last week orderedthe deployment of additionalmanpower to Kogi and Bayelsastates to ensure crime freeelections in both states.

The Police leadership also

directed the deployment ofFederal Special Anti-RobberySquad, FSARS, to complimentthe Safer Highway Patrol toensure proper policing of thelength and breadth of thenation’s highway.

DONATION: From left: The Senator representing Kaduna Central, Shehu Sani (left)presenting a cash donation of $3,000 to Alhaji Abdulkareem Albashir, a former Vanguardcolumnist, to enable him purchase an artificial limb at his Kinkinau residence, Kaduna.Photo: Olu Ajayi.

Simba Groupwins award

ABUJA — SIMBA Group,one of Nigeria’s foremost

companies in the power andalternative energy sector, wasrecently conferred with theNigeria Energy Award in theCommercial Category at thejust concluded 2015 NigeriaAlternative Energy Award inAbuja.

Speaking on thisachievement, the MarketingManager, WandelInternational Nigeria Limited(a subsidiary of Simba Groupof Companies), RajneeshGupta, expressed thecompany’s gratitude to theorganizers of the event forrecognizing the efforts beingmade by both individuals andprivate organizations to thedevelopment of sustainableenergy and power sector inNigeria.

Gupta noted: “We are veryhonoured to have received theNigeria Energy Award -commercial category in thisyear’s Nigeria AlternativeEnergy Expo. This awardclearly demonstrates thecompany’s commitment for abetter environment and itseffort in promoting clean,affordable and equitableenergy sufficiency in Nigeriathrough its luminous range ofinverters, static UPS andbatteries, along with itsinnovative and highperforming renewable energysolutions under its brand nameof Simba Solar.”

Accord Party adopts Wada for second term inMopamuro LG •Council chairmen not defecting to APC— PDP

By Kingsley Fanwo

LOKOJA — MOPAMUROLocal Government chapter of

Accord Party has adopted thegovernorship candidate ofPeoples Democratic Party, PDP,Capt Idris Wada, ahead of theNovember 21 guber polls in KogiState.

This came as the Media andPublicity Committee of the Wada/Awoniyi Campaign Organizationdismissed ongoing rumours thatthe recently reinstated councilchairmen across the 21 localgovernment councils in the statewere planning to defect to the AllProgressives Congress, APC.

Addressing a PDP rally inMopamuro, leader of AccordParty in the local governmentarea, Commodore Folusho Daniel(retd,) said the decision of theparty was occasioned by thetransformation agenda of Wada’sadministration and the need toensure fairness in powerdistribution in the state.

According to the formerinstructor with the National War

College, it is pertinent to work forWada’s emergence in order toallow him complete ongoingprojects across the state.

He said: “As a party inMopamuro Local GovernmentArea, we have considered the twocandidates and come to theconclusion that Wada is the bettercandidate of the two. He is aleader that is humane, humbleand genuinely committed to thedevelopment of the state.

“As an advocate of powerrotation, I believe PrinceAbubakar Audu lacks the will andcapacity to effect power rotationin 2020. The PDP has shown abetter framework for theactualization of power rotation inthe state.”

Speaking in the same vein, theSecretary of Accord Party in thelocal government area, Mr.Emmanuel Remi Owotunse, saidthe decision to work for thesuccess of PDP in thegovernorship election wasreached after series of meetingsto arrive at a popular decision.

Council chairmen notdefecting to APC — PDP

Meanwhile, the Media andPublicity Committee of Wada/Awoniyi Campaign Organizationhas dismissed ongoing rumour thatthe recently reinstated councilchairmen across the 21 localcouncils in Kogi State wereplanning to defect to the oppositionAPC.

In an exclusive chat withVanguard in Lokoja yesterday,chairman of the committee, PrinceBode Ogunmola, said the rumourunderscored the desperation ofthe opposition party to spreadfalsehood for political gains.

Ogunmola said: “The recentreinstatement of the councilchairmen has been a nightmareto the APC who are desperate touse falsehood to win the sympathyof the electorate that hascontinued to reject their candidatesince 2003. Falsehood andunintelligent propaganda won’tsave Prince Abubakar Audu fromanother defeat on November 21."

“ The reinstated chairmen have

By Peter Duru

MAKURDI— IN a bidto boost its dwindling

revenue profile, BenueState government is to setup a Tax Appeal Tribunal totry all defaulting tax payersin the state.

Executive Chairman ofthe state’s Board of InternalRevenue Service, BIRS,Mrs. Mimi Adzape-Orubibi, made this known,yesterday, at a town hallmeeting with executives oftraders associations andmarket unions in Makurdi,the state capital.

She said though all thelegal framework for theestablishment of thetribunal had been put inplace by the government,the move to set up the panelwas put on hold to allow theboard enough time tosensitize the people on theexisting tax laws.

North-East: Stakeholders demandstrengthening of disaster mgt structure

M A I D U G U R I —STAKEHOLDERS in

the troubled North-East of thecountry have called for the

strengthening of disastermanagement structure inmanaging humanitarian crisis inthe region, following the

insurgency challenge facingthe area.

The stakeholders, who madethe call at the just concludedtwo-day engagement forum inMaiduguri, Borno State, saidthere was the urgent need tostrengthen the existingdisaster managementstructure in the country.

In a communiqué jointlysigned by representatives ofthe Office of the Vice-President, International andLocal NGOs, GovernmentMinistries, Departments andAgencies as well as securityagencies, the forum agreedthat coordination ofhumanitarian efforts by thelead government agenciesneeded to be developed to fitinto the overall coordinationmechanism of the country.

They also noted that StateEmergency ManagementAgencies and LEMCs werenot effective and visibleduring emergencies andneeded to be strengthened towork better.

The stakeholders harped onthe need for bettermanagement ofcommunication in emergencysituations, just as theyrecommended the need forregulations as well asstandards for monitoring,evaluation and transparency.


DONATION: Senior Project Manager, Mr. Wale Bishi (left); Manager,Media and Communication, Mr. Chukwudi Egbuta, both of ExxonMobil Nigeria(2nd left); Mr. Charles Emembolu of Crestsage Ltd. (2nd right) and others,during the handing over of three e-learning centres to Ansar Udeen Nursery &Primary School, Ebute Meta; Awoyaya Nursery & Primary School and ObalendeNursery & Primary School, Ikoyi by ExxonMobil in Lagos.

SHOPCITY: From left— Executive Director/Manager, ShopcitySupermarket, Aramide Aikpitanyi; Associate Pastor, The Fountain of Life Church,Ilupeju, Olakunle Soriyan; MD/CEO, Shopcity Supermarket, Bright Aikpitanyi,and Kingsley Arida, MD/CEO, DOOH Int’l Ltd, at the commissioning of ShopcitySupermarket in Ifako, Gbagada, Lagos.

KNIGHTS' INVESTITURE: From left (front row)—Noble GrandMaster, Knights of St. John, Sir Peter Eloji; Bishop of Enugu Diocese, HisLordship, Most Rev Calixtus Onaga; Supreme Subordinate President, Nigeria,Sir Anselm Okafor, and Spiritual Director, Enugu Grand Commandery, VeryRev Fr. Clement Obasi, both of Knights of St. John, at the Noble Degreeinvestiture in Enugu.

NIMN ON BAYELSA POLL: From left— Registrar, Mr. SidneyOgodo; Director of Corporate Affairs, Mr. Tunde Oyeyode, and President,Mr. Ganiyu Koledoye, all of National Institute of Marketing of Nigeria, NIMN,during a briefing on opinon poll on Bayelsa election by the institute in Lagos.PHOTO: Kehinde Gbadamosi.

HONOURS: From left— Chief Uko Umana, Mrs Folorunsho Alakijaand Senator Ita Enang, all honorary degree graduands, at the 21st convocationof the University of Uyo.

SOUTHERN SUN GOLF: From left—Head, Client Coverage,Stanbic IBTC Nigeria, Anton Marais; GMD, SO&U, Udeme Ufot; GeneralManager, Mark Loxley, and Deputy General Manager, Cliff Shiridzinodya,both of Southern Sun Ikoyi, at a briefing on the 5th annual Southern SunGolf Day tournament in Lagos. PHOTO: Akeem Salau.

MEETING: From left— Special guest, Mr. Georgi Umunna; Guest Speaker,Mr. Tony Ojobo; MD of NICCI, Mrs Nkechi Alli-Balogun, and President, PublicRelations Consultants Association of Nigeria, PRCAN, Mr. John Ehiuguese, atPRCAN's monthly breakfast meeting in Lagos.

OATH-TAKING: From left— President, Nigerian Institution of EstateSurveyors and Valuers, NIESV, Olorogun James Omeru; Dr. OghenerukevweOmeru; Chief Omeru; and NIESV Assistant Publicity Secretary, Sir Charles Ebiai,at the oath taking of foreign-trained medical and dental graduates, organizedby Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria in Abuja.

CMYK


Reactions trail arrest, detention of Radio Biafra bossBy Anayo Okoli

UMUAHIA—REACTIONShave continued to trail the

arrest and detention of NnamdiKanu, the Director of Radio Biafrawhich has been broadcasting andhyping the struggle for theemergence of a Republic of Biafrafrom the Eastern part of Nigeria,a struggle being championed bythe Movement for Actualizationof Sovereign State of Biafra,MASSOB, and IndigenousPeople of Biafra, IPOB.

The Federal Government hasfor long without success beentrying to nail the radio station andthe promoters.

Members of the MASSOB andIPOB were die-hard listeners ofthe radio station and adore thosebehind its operation.

So when the news of the arrestof the main man behind RadioBiafra, Nnamdi Kanu broke,members of IPOB and MASSOBspontaneously trooped to thestreets and embarked on protestsin some parts of the Eastern partof the country, notably inAnambra, Abia, Imo, Rivers andDelta States with securityoperatives chasing after them.

In Umuahia, the capital of AbiaState, a group of women whogathered to embark on

demonstration were instantlydispersed by the police withteargas with some of themclaiming to have lost theirhandsets.

But government officials in theState refused to be drawn into thematter. An aide of GovernorOkezie Ikpeazu who pleadedanonymity said that thegovernment was not aware of anyprotest and pleaded that thegovernment be left out of thecontroversy to face governancewhich he said Ikpeazu wassettling down to do.

But Comrade Uchenna Madu,the spokesman for a faction ofMASSOB swiftly condemnedwhat he called “the cowardly

arrest and detention of NnamdiKanu, director of radio Biafra.

In a statement, the MASSOBfactional spokesman said “we seethe arrest as part of the price topay for our non violence struggle.No agitation is complete withoutarrest, detention and prosecution.It shapes the minds of activists,drawing sympathy from internaland external observers; it alsoshows that Nnamdi Kanu andRadio Biafra have become a factorof reckoning in Nigeria.

“The arrest and detention ofNnamdi Kanu by DSS will assistimmensely in reviving theconsciousness and sympathy forBiafra actualization in higherdimension which was temporarily

halted by Ralph Uwazuruike’sdeviation and lust for wealth. Thissingular arrest will cause morediplomatic harm for Nigeriaimage than good.

“Before Nnamdi Kanu’s arrest,he has succeeded in rooting theBiafra struggle in about 78countries including Biafra landthrough Radio Biafra,international tour and secretdiplomatic build-up. MASSOBwarns government to quicklyrelease Nnamdi Kanu now or facean eruption of Biafra world widedemonstration and protest whichwill endanger the alreadybattered image of Nigeria beforethe International communities."

AWKA—THE SouthEast candidates of All

Progressives Congress,APC, during the lastgeneral elections under theaegis of Forum of South-East Assembly candidates,have sent Save a Our Souls,SOS, to PresidentMuhammadu Buhari to dosomething on thedeplorable condition offederal roads in the zone.

Rising from a meeting inAwka, yesterday, theexecutive committee of theforum listed some of theroads to include Oba-Arondiuzogu-Okigwe;O n i t s h a - E n u g uexpressway and Enugu -Aba- Port-Harcourtexpressway, among others.

The meeting wasattended by representativesfrom Anambra, Abia,Enugu, Ebonyi and Imostates. The participantsargued that if the roadswere rehabilitated, theywould help to boosteconomic activities, easetransportation andevacuation of commoditiesand reduce the frequentroad mishaps in the zone.

By VincentUjumadu

SOUTH EASTROADS: APCForum sendsSOS to Buhari

COMPETITIONS: From left, Akinboyewa Tobi, Anani Mayowa and BelloOmotolani, winners of the dancing competitions, at the Glo Slide 'n"Bounce concert, Ikeja edition, at Water Parks Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos,weekend.

Rivers, Akwa Ibom states strategic forAPC —Okorocha

By Chidi Nkwopara

OWERRI—THE Chairman ofAll Progressives Congress,

APC, Governors’ Forum, ChiefRochas Okorocha, has said in clearterms: “Rivers and Akwa Ibom Statesare very strategic to the APC”.

Okorocha, who made this known

while fielding questions fromjournalists in Owerri, also claimedthat the electorate in the two statesvoted overwhelmingly for the APC.

“Rivers and Akwa Ibom States arevery strategic to the APC. Theelectorate in the two states votedoverwhelmingly for the APC buttheir votes were stolen by thePeoples Democratic Party, PDP,

through various forms of electoralmalpractices”, Okorocha said.

Although he resisted thetemptation of disclosing thestrategies his APC political platformintends to use in sacking PDP inRivers and Akwa Ibom States, ChiefOkorocha however said that planswere on to actualize the target.

Answering another question,

Okorocha said he standsvindicated, following theeventual victory of PresidentMuhammadu Buhari dur-ing the last general elec-tion.

“I appeal to Ndigbo toavoid unnecessary bicker-ing and antagonism withthe North, West and otherparts of the country, so as tobrighten the prospects of apresident of Igbo extractionin future”, Okorocha said.

On why his administra-tion was yet to appoint com-missioners and special ad-visers, the Governor said ithas enabled him savemoney for the state, for capi-tal projects.

“If I appoint them now,they will start demandingfor imprest, traveling allow-ance, hazard allowanceand this is outside theirmonthly pay. This has ena-bled me save some moneyfor the state, for capitalprojects”, Okorocha ex-plained.

Asked why all public tapsin the state have dried up,the Governor said he pre-ferred sinking waterboreholes for communitiesinstead of procuring chemi-cals, maintaining machinesand other facilities.

ABUJA—The face off between the parties over the Sen- ate confirmation of former Governor Rotimi Amaechi

as a minister continued in the Senate yesterday as PeoplesDemocratic Party, PDP senators disowned the exercise.

In an open display of their disapproval of the confirmation,PDP senators refused to endorse the Senate Votes and Pro-ceedings of last Thursday when Amaechi and 17 other min-isterial nominees were confirmed.

The development came as President Muhammadu Buharirequested the Senate to approve a $200 million loan fromWorld Bank for Lagos State.

Following the motion for the adoption of the votes and pro-ceedings of last Thursday moved by Senator Isiaka Adeleke,APC, Osun West, a request by the Senate President, Senator

Ebonyi House to issue warrant of arrest on 3commissionersABAKALIKI—THE cordial

relationship that existsbetween Ebonyi state House ofAssembly and the Executive armled by Governor David Umahimay have soured following theinsistence of the House membersthat three commissioners ofUmahi’s cabinet should appearbefore it over what it termedobnoxious taxation imposed onthe people of the state without theapproval of the House.

But Governor Umahi during a

Bukola Saraki to Senator PeterNwaboshi, PDP, Delta North to sec-ond the motion was flatly rejected.

Nwaboshi retorted: “Mr President,am sorry I will not be able to secondthis motion because I was not there”.

With PDP senators apparently notwilling to second the motion, Sena-tor Saraki beckoned on another APCsenator, Ibrahim Gobir, APC, SokotoEast who eventually seconded themotion against the practise of hav-ing senators from different partiesmove and second motions to adoptvotes and proceedings.

The drama continued at the pointof the voice vote on the adoption ofthe votes and proceedings. WhileAPC senators thundered aye, thePDP senators shouted nay. In theend, Saraki who presided ruled inthe favour of the aye, a decision thatfinally affirmed the confirmation ofthe ministerial nominees.

Following the Senate session, thePDP senators entered a caucusmeeting where they reportedly re-viewed their actions during the con-firmation process of the ministerialnominees.

Meanwhile, President Buhari hassought the Senate’s approval of a$200 million loan request from theWorld Bank for Lagos State.

The request was subsequently re-ferred to the Senate Ad-hoc Com-mittee on Local and Foreign Debtswith a mandate to treat and reportback in two weeks.

In another development, the Sen-ate sent a nine-man delegation toAdamawa State to commiserate withgovernment and victims of the re-cent bomb blasts in the state.

This was sequel to a motion movedto that effect by Senator AhmaduAbubakar,APC, Adamawa South.

press conference on the same daydisagreed with the Houseinsisting that the House cannotsummon his commissionerswithout going through him ordirect the executive on how to runthe state saying " they shouldrather resign as lawmakers andtake up the duties of theexecutive.”

The House on Tuesday convened a plenary to receive thethree Commissioners itsummoned.

After other proceedings, themember representing Ezza SouthConstituency, Hon. Chris Usulorrose to remind the House aboutthe commissioners that weresummoned since it was notcaptured in the order paper.

Immediately, the Speakerordered the Sergeant at Arm tobring the commissioners insidethe chambers but it wasdiscovered that none of thecommissioners honoured theinvitation.

Amaechi: PDP senators disownlast Thursday’s sitting

By Henry Umoru & Joseph Erunke


CMYK

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVENBER 4, 2015 — 43

CONFERENCE: From left, Chairman, Publicity Secretary Committee, Four Square GospelChurch, Pastor Benson Osieme; National Secretary, Rev. Ikechukwu Ugbaja, and Chairman,Diamond Jubilee Convention Committee, Dr. Muyiwa Afe, at a press conference to announcethe Church’s Diamond Jubilee celebration, entitled, 'Greater Things,' in Lagos.

EFCC arraignsSuswam overN3.1bn fraudtoday

By Soni Daniel,Northern Region

Editor

A BUJA—BARELY 48 hoursto the commencement of

full blown-trial on the 13-countcriminal charge that was enteredagainst him by the FederalGovernment, the SenatePresident, Dr. Olubukola Saraki,yesterday, approached theSupreme Court, begging it toarrest the proceeding of the Codeof Conduct Tribunal, CCT.

Saraki, is praying the apexcourt to set aside the judgmentof the Abuja Division of the Courtof Appeal which had on October30, okayed the criminal chargeagainst him.

He urged the Supreme Courtto halt further proceeding on theallegation against him pendingthe determination of the appealhe formally lodged before ityesterday.

In the appeal he filed throughhis team of lawyers led by Mr.J.B. Daudu, SAN, a copy of whichwas sighted by Vanguard, lastnight, Saraki, specifically soughtfor: “An order staying furtherproceedings in Charge No: CCT/ABJ/01/2015 between FederalRepublic of Nigeria vs Dr.Olubukola Abubakar Saraki fixedfor hearing on November 5 and6, 2015 pending thedetermination of the appeal

pending before the SupremeCourt against the judgment of theCourt of Appeal dated October 30,2015.”

In his seven grounds of appeal,Saraki prayed the court to set asidethe judgment of the Court ofAppeal, the entire proceedings ofthe CCT and the chargespreferred against him before thetribunal by the FederalGovernment.

He contended that the appellatecourt panel led by Justice MooreAdumein, erred in law when itaffirmed the competence of the

proceedings of the CCT, which saton the appellant’s case with onlytwo members as against the threeprovided for in the provisions ofParagraph 15(1) of the FifthSchedule to the 1999 Constitution.

Saraki’s lawyer, Daudu, alsofaulted the majority decision ofthe appeal court where it held thatthere was lacuna regarding thequorum of the tribunal.

He argued that the applicationof the Interpretation Act to holdthat two out of three members ofthe tribunal could validly sit “is tocircumvent and reduce the

number prescribed by theconstitution for the duecomposition of the CCT.”

He also faulted the majoritydecision of the appeal court whereit held that the CCT was a courtof limited criminal jurisdictionand that the charges were validlyinitiated by a Deputy Director inthe Federal Ministry of Justice,Mr. M.S. Hassan, in the absenceof a substantive Attorney-Generalof the Federation.

Saraki also challenged thedecision of the appeal court whichheld that Saraki had been

States’ bail-out, temporary solution to debt crises — DMOContinues from page 8

revenue and distributablefunds from the federationaccount, a situation which,according to him, mean thatthe bail-out funding can onlycontribute to short term fiscalstabilization of the states,adding that measures for longterm fiscal stabilization arenecessary to guarantysolvency of the states.

Addressing capital marketoperators on the fiscalstabilization, Nwankwo saidat the backdrop of the currentpoor revenue inflow, asustainable fiscal measureshould involve adiversification andindustrialization of theeconomy and activation ofopportunities in theagriculture, manufacturing,solid minerals andpetrochemical sectors.

He stated: "Every stateshould work towardsdependence on InternallyGenerated Revenue, IGR,while considering FederationAccount AllocationCommittee, FAAC, funds asexceptional inflows.”

Capital marketoperators expressworry

However, whileacknowledging the ingenuityof the DMO’s states’ bank loanrestructuring, many capitalmarket operators at thequarterly lunch meeting of theAssociation of Issuing Housesof Nigeria, AIHN, yesterdayexpressed worry at the bail-outportion of the states’ fiscalstabilisation funding.

Managing Director of UnitedCapital Investment Banking,Mr Kayode Fadahunsi, said"the states’ debt crisis was notaverted, it was just postponed.The resources, the debt fundcannot be tied to any revenueyielding investments orprojects and the bail-outs didnot tie the beneficiaries toproductive application of thefunds.”

While agreeing to theseconcerns, Nwankwo arguedthat there is a regulatoryauthority for that, adding thatfiscal responsibility actprovides good grounds forcitizens, the civil societygroups and professionalassociations such as AIHNhave responsibility to checkabuses.

Also, Mr Ayo-OluwaAderibigbe of FBN CapitalLimited lamented of lack oftransparency in the states’debt profile and management,

adding that "hitherto the debtprofile of the states wasunknown until DMO’s deal.”

On lack of information andtransparency on states’ debtprofile, Nwankwo said DMOhas data of all states’ debtthough the details may have afew gaps, adding: "DMO is aone-stop-shop for Nigeria’sdebt profile.

Other observers complainedthat the Federal Government’sbail-out programme poses amoral hazard in public financewhere it was possible forprofligate politicians to alwaysexpect bail-outs whichencouraged them to misusepublic funds.

Economy requiresN5trn annually todiversify

Giving details of what wasrequired for a stable publicfinance, Nwankwo said therole of infrastructure such aspower, roads and railways arecritical to support a globallycompetitive industrialization.

In this connection, he statedthat a $25 billion (N5 trillion)investment was required perannum over the next five toseven years to make thishappen.

According to him, there was

need for an articulated systemof motivating the private sectorto play their role of providingtheir 48 per cent share of thetotal investment requirement.

He also identified the needfor the public sector to map outa strategy for marshallinghuge investment capital alongwith the need for regionalalliance among states for jointprojects to achieve fiscal andeconomic viability.

At the federal level, headvocated a deliberatecounter-cyclical, counter-tidal,reflationary policy asimperative with robust macro-economic programming forachieving growth, jobs andprosperity

According to him, "withappropriately structuredfinancing, Nigeria should beable to programme a trajectoryof long-term fiscal stability andself-sustaining growth

"Needless to say, havingsquandered the opportunityprovided by easy oil moneyover several decades forphysical and human capitalformation, we have no optionnow than to prospect forrelatively harder financing.This economy can boomremarkably within three to fiveyears.”

AFTER SEVERALdays of extended

interrogations, theEconomic and FinancialCrimes Commission willtoday arraign the formerBenue State Governor,Mr. Gabriel Suswam, formoney laundering andembezzlement.

The arraignment ofSuswam, who ruledBenue State from 2007 to2015, follows the filing ofa nine-count chargelargely bordering onmoney laundering to thetune of N3.1 billionagainst him at the FederalHigh Court Abuja onOctober 2.

Suswam and his formerfinance commissioner,Omodachi Okolobia werealleged to have divertedthe proceeds of the sale ofshares owned by theBenue State governmentand Benue Investment andProperty Company Ltd.

The offence is punishableunder section 15(3) of theMoney Laundering(Prohibition) Act 20111 asamended in 2012.

ALLEGED FALSE DECLARATION OF ASSETS: Saraki begsS-Court to stop CCT proceeding

By IkechukwuNnochiri

properly served with the charges,at a time when his legal team onlyfiled motion for conditionalappearance before bench warrantwas issued against him by theCCT.

Daudu argued that the court ofappeal erred in law for refusingto hold that the tribunal violatedthe order of the Federal HighCourt in Abuja, which he saidordered the tribunal to appearbefore the court to show causewhy its proceedings againstSaraki should not be halted.

According to him, the appealcourt erred in law when it heldthat the Administration ofCriminal Justice Act 2015 wasapplicable to the proceeding ofthe tribunal.

It will be recalled that theappellate court had in two-to-onesplit decision, dismissed Saraki’sappeal against the ruling of theJustice Umar Danladi-ledtribunal.

Whereas the duo of JusticesAdumein and MohammedMustapha dismissed Saraki’sappeal and ordered him t osubmit himself to the CCT for trialon Friday, another member of thepanel, Justice Joseph Ekanem,held that the 13-count charge wasincompetent, even as hedischarged the accused person.

CMYK


By Clara Nwachukwu &Ediri Ejoh

FG’s indebtedness to oil marketers now N470bn

THE FederalG o v e r n m e n t ’ s

outstanding indebtedness tooil marketers has risen to N470billion, arising from a backlogof unpaid subsidy claims sinceAugust 1, 2014 till date.

This is even as the marketerssay they require in excess of$2 billion dollars to pay offtheir foreign suppliers,otherwise they will not be ableto continue to import morepetroleum products into thecountry.

Marketers, who spoke toVanguard in confidenceyesterday, lamented thatgovernment has not been ableto fulfil its promise to offset alloutstanding marketers’ claimsbetween October and secondweek in November. This is justas the promise by the CentralBank of Nigeria, CBN, toassist marketers in accessingdollars to pay off their foreignsuppliers has also not yieldedfruit.

One of the marketers said:

“We had another meetingwith the Vice President (YemiOsinbajo) two weeks ago andhe promised that they wouldpay us. Right now I can tellyou that no marketer has anymoney or line of credit toimport even one litre of fuel.

“The last time any marketerwas paid claims was July 31,2014. Since August 1, 2014,no marketer has receivedanything. The totaloutstanding claims betweenAugust 1 and now are aboutN470 billion.”

Besides, he added, “Evenif they paid all the N470billion, it will still not beenough to pay off our foreignsuppliers because the dollarvalue of what we require tooffset matured debts is over$2 billion. The CBNGovernor promised to helpus, but nothing hashappened.”

90 workers sackedAnother marketer also

disclosed on telephone thatthe situation is so critical thatin the last one week, two oil

marketing companies havesacked 90 workers, addingthat others are laying offsecretly on daily basis,thereby compounding analready saturated labourmarket.

“If marketers continue to layoff workers, soon the unionswill soon swoop down on usand begin another crisis.”

Sealing outlets sellingabove N87/litre

Meanwhile, the NigerianNational PetroleumCorporation, NNPC,yesterday called on theDepartment of PetroleumResources, DPR, to swinginto action and shut downany retail outlet sellingPremium Motor Spirit, PMS,otherwise known as petrol,above the official price of N87per litre.

The call comes as longqueues resurfaced in theLagos metropolis onMonday, and other areas inthe country, with manyoutlets taking advantage ofthe scarcity to sell petrol

above the governmentapproved pump price.

NNPC’s spokesman, Mr.Ohi Alegbe, in a telephoneconversion with Vanguard,said: “There is supply ofpetroleum products from theNNPC and as such thereshould not be scarcity.However, DPR should shutdown any outlet foundselling this product abovethe regulated price of N87per litre.”

NNPC said last week, ithad deployed 306 truckloadsor about 10 million litres ofpetrol to some northernstates.

The long queues ofmotorists waiting to buy thescarce product have led totraffic gridlocks along someof the major roads in Lagos,even as motorists lament thearbitrary hike in fuel prices.

Vanguard investigationshowed that petrol stationsalong the Badagry area,Agbara and its environs soldfuel at between N100 andN120 instead of N87 perlitre.

The Director, DPR, Mr.Mordecai Ladan, in astatement, against the backdropof the purported resurgence offuel scarcity in some parts of thecountry, warned oil marketersagainst products’ diversion,hoarding, pump manipulationand selling products abovegovernment approved prices.

According to Ladan, anymarketer found to be under-dispensing or selling productsabove the governmentregulated prices shall besuspended for a minimum oftwo months.

He said: “Marketers caughtdiverting or hoarding theproducts for profiteering shallbe sanctioned with a fine of twomillion naira and have theiroperating licence revoked andbe prosecuted for national eco-nomic sabotage.”

Ladan also said the DPR iscollaborating with thePetroleum Equalisation Fund(PEF) and the PetroleumProducts Pricing RegulatoryAgency, PPPRA, to ensure thatdefaulters are sanctionedaccordingly.


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THE announcement of a bailout package for states

that could no longer meet theirstatutory financial obligations,by President MuhammaduBuhari came as a big relief toNigerians who were alreadybearing the brunt of thefinancial crisis in Nigeria.

But hardly had the euphoriatriggered by the prospects ofreceiving the funds from theFederal Government fizzledout, than stories that somestates had embarked onborrowing moves amidalarming indebtedness,started emanating.

For most Nigerians, applyingfor loan when the current debtprofile of most states is veryscary, amounted to amisplaced priority. A fewothers with deep knowledgeof the economics ofgovernance, however, hold adifferent opinion.

State governors who haveinitiated such borrowingmoves maintained that theyhave no option thanborrowing on account of thequantum of debts they met onground.

Other reasons adduced forthe borrowings according tochecks by VanguardFeatures,VF, include the needto improve on theinfrastructure and pay backlogof civil servants salaries.

Economicdevelopment

The merit of these reasonsnotwithstanding, concernshave been raised about therate and manner some statechief executives are goingabout fresh loans. Accordingto those who raised eyebrowson the development, moredebts would be incurred at theexpense of economicdevelopment.

Many discerningcommentators have actuallyqueried the rationale behindborrowing at a time when therevenues accruable to thestates have plummeted.

RiversFor example, the borrowing

of N30 billion in two trancheswithin one month by GovernorNyesom Wike of Rivers State,raised an outcry in the state.

The State House of Assemblyhad approved the Governor’srequest to secure a N10 billion

loan from Zenith Bank in thefirst week of assuming officeand another 20 billion weekslater.

The House approved theloan after deliberating on theGovernor’s request letter readby Speaker Ikuinyi Ibani.

According to the letter, thefund would be used torehabilitate roads and someother projects.

The State chapter of AllProgressives Congress ,APC,described the development asa plot by Governor Wike toplunge the state into an abyssof debt and economicservitude.

BenueGovernor Samuel Ortom of

Benue State on assumption ofoffice, announced plans toborrow N10 billion to payworkers salaries.

Part of the money, accordingto him, will be for the smoothtake -off of his administration.This will involve the purchaseof cars for the legislature,commissioners and specialadvisers.

His words: “When weapplied to the State Assemblyfor approval to borrow themoney, we gave details ofwhat it was intended for. Isaid it was going to be usedto pay two months salariesbecause on the average, weexpend N3.7 billion on thepayment of monthly salaries”.VF gathered that theopposition in the state hassince accused Governor Ortomof mismanaging the N10billion he borrowed.

NigerThe Niger State Government

was not left out in theborrowing spree as theGovernor, Alhaji AbubakarSani Bello wrote to the State

state as well as dredging ofAba River.

Other developmentalprojects include theestablishment of industrialclusters, a modern hospital ineach senatorial zone as wellas other developmentalprojects.

Like others, controversiestrailed the decision in Abiawith the All ProgressivesGrand Alliance, APGA,condemning the approval ofthe loan.

OgunIn Ogun State, Governor

Ibikunle Amosun in June, saidhe would borrow additionalloans to complete on-goingdevelopmental projects acrossthe state.

The Governor stated thisduring his ‘’Work-in-Progress” assessment tour.

The opposition in the statehad questioned the borrowing,alleging that the state wouldbe left in debt after Amosun’stenure.

But the Governor justifiedthe borrowings, stating that heborrowed money earlier andrepaid substantial part of itwhen due.

Justification ofborrowing

Given the furore generatedby these borrowings, manyNigerians have questionedthe role of the DebtManagement Office, DMO,which is mandated to, amongother things, prepare andimplement a plan for theefficient management ofNigeria’s external anddomestic debt obligations atsustainable levels compatiblewith desired economicactivities for growth anddevelopment.

In the light of thesemisconceptions, DMO tried toclear the air about thecountry ’s debt profile andmanagement. The agencywhich was established by theDebt Management Act of2003, convened workshops inEnugu,Lagos and Kaduna forthe civil society, media andstudents.

At the events attended by VF,the message was simple: tofurther the understanding ofNigeria’s debt profile andmanagement among everysegment of the Nigeriansociety.

Prominent among thequestions that came up duringinteractive sessions was therationale behind currentborrowings in the face ofmounting debt profile.

The Director General of

mobilise enough money to payworkers salaries and arrearsled to the borrowing.

The Speaker of the House ofAssembly, Mr. Marafa Ahmed,read the letter from theGovernor requesting for a loanthat will make up for theshortfall in the 25 localcouncils’ 2015 budget.

PlateauIn Plateau State, the

Governor said there was needto borrow money to addressinsecurity and financialchallenges facing his state.

He had said there wasurgent need to get a loanbecause the debt he met onground was more than N104billion. According to GovernorLalong, borrowing becameinevitable in order to meet upwith the state’s financialobligations.

AbiaThe story is also the same in

Abia State where GovernorOkezie Ikpeazu got the nodto borrow N30 billion fromcommercial banks,

The N30 billion loan wasmeant to be channeled intoconstruction andrehabilitation of roads andbuilding of bridges across thethree senatorial zones of the

Managing debts amid alarmingdebt profile

Continues on page 49

Concerns havebeen raised aboutthe rate and mannersome state chiefexecutives are goingabout fresh loans;according to thosewho raisedeyebrows on thedevelopment, moredebts would beincurred at theexpense ofeconomicdevelopment

By Charles Kumolu

House Assembly asking for anapproval of N1.85 billion loanto pay workers salaries.

According to him, theinability of the localgovernment councils to


DMO, Dr. AbrahamNwankwo, who responded tothe posers, noted thatborrowing is an acceptablepractice in governance. Hewas however quick to statethat it is unconstitutional forany state government toborrow funds externallywithout approval by theFederal Government.

At each fora, he pointedlystated that DMO is notresponsible for thedisbursement of moneyneither is it saddled with theduty of knowing how themoney is spent.

Public debt knowledge: InLagos, Nwankwo said theDMO found it imperative toreach out to all stakeholdersin the country because publicdebt management knowledgeshould not remain mysterious,rather it should bedemocratised.

Such, he said, would helponline publishers who are ina position to monitor, shapeand influence the thoughts ofthe people to become well-equipped with informationand data of public debtmanagement.

Nwankwo explained thatDMO has built a longstanding tradition where theycreate platforms forinteractions with variousgroups. “We started visitinginstitutions of higher learningto interact with students toensure that they haveadequate knowledge of debtmanagement in Nigeria,” hesaid.

Continuing, Nwankwo said:

“This is because we looked atthe job, not from the angle ofjust earning a living only, butto use our job in a way tocontribute to nation building.We are concerned with thefuture of the country,especially the youths, andhow we can help them to reachtheir full potentials.

“We also have a longstanding tradition ofinteracting with editors oftraditional media, such asnewspapers, because as theworld is evolving, newstakeholders are evolving; sowe are committed tomonitoring these stakeholdersand interacting with them,thereby democratising publicdebt knowledge.”

Available to corroborate theposition of the DMO boss,were some Directors of theagency, who presentedvarious papers aimed atdeepening the understandingof public debt management.

The Director, MarketDevelopment, Mrs. PatienceOniha, highlighted theprocesses involved in theIssuance of Eurobonds in theInternational Capital Market,ICM.

She said that the aims forissuing the Eurobond were todiversify the sources ofborrowing.

‘’Nigeria’s activities in theInternational Capital Market,ICM, anchored by the DMOhave been very successful interms of subscription recordedand other objectives for theirIssuance,” she noted.

Head of PortfolioManagement, Mr. DeleAfolabi, also explained theprocesses and procedures forborrowing either from bilateralor multi-lateral sources.

Procedures forborrowing

On her part, the DirectorStrategic Programmes, MrsA’smau Mohammed,highlighted the benefits ofestablishing DebtManagement Departments,DMDs, in all the 36 states andthe FCT.

Going down memory lane,she recalled that after the exitof Nigeria from the Paris andLondon Club of Creditors in2006, the DMO in a bid toguard against relapse into un-

sustainable debts, came upwith the initiative of ensuringthat the sub-nationals becamesustainable.

To her, the DMO has madea formidable impact ininstitutionalising debtmanagement practices at thesub-national level.

That, she said, is in additionto the existence of acomprehensive and up-to-date domestic debt data of allthe states, and FCT which isbeing published annually.

At a similar event in Kadunawhich was convened forstudents of tertiary institutionsin Nigeria, the DMOexplained that despite thenation’s huge debts, theeconomy had remainedresilient and diversifiable.

In his remarks, Nwankwoexplained that the statesaccounted for 18 per cent ofthe domestic debts while theFederal Governmentaccounted for 82 per cent.

Misconceptions about debtmanagement: He explainedthat the decision of bringingthe students together aroseas a result of the need toaddress some isconceptionsabout debt management inNigeria.

Nwaknwo noted that beforenow, the DMO had engagedthe students by visiting theirvarious schools with samemessage, adding that the needto deepen such informationnecessitated the workshop inKaduna.

He added that the studentswere assembled to sensitisethem on how to monitor howsuch borrowed funds are

spent.Nwankwo said: “Presently

Nigeria owes domestically,about N11 trillion andexternally about N11 billiondollars. Let me emphasise thatthe debt matter is not just thequantum, what is important ishow these resources aredeplored to encourage growth,development, generateemployment and reducepoverty.

“It matters whether what youborrowed you are in a positionto pay back, to service it as andwhen due. And in Nigeria’scase, I want to assure you thatNigeria’s debt remainssustainable.

“As you know, based oncurrent global economicproblems, particularly thecollapse of oil prices, all of usshould be aware that this ishaving significant impact oneconomies all over the world.

“But even at that, I canassure you that the Nigerianeconomy is very resilientbecause the government is incontrol, and Nigeria willcontinue to remainsustainable.

“The debts figure is the totaldebt of the federation,including all the statesgovernments, and thedomestic debts of the FederalGovernment and all the stategovernments. So, the debts Imentioned is comprehensive;it is the total debts of Nigeria.

Totaldebts

“Let me emphasise to youthat Nigerians shouldcongratulate the governmentand the Central Bank ofNigeria, CBN, who in spite ofthe shock occasioned by thevery drastic fall in the oilrevenue, have continued tomaintain a healthy reserve,and have continued to stabilisethe Naira exchange rate,” hesaid.

Dr. Chuka Ifediora of theMarketing ConsultancyDepartment of University ofNigeria, UNN, gave what wasakin to a pep talk to thestudents on the subject.

He was emphatic on why thestudents should mainstreamwhat they learnt at the forum,in order to disseminate theinformation to their peers.

Of particular note, was hiscall on the students to avoidbeing used by any one orgroup to propagate wrongfulmessage about debt profileand management in Nigeria.

Making their contribution, arepresentative of the studentsunions, Salahudeen Lukman,advised both the state andFederal governments toensure that all funds borrowedfor development of theeducation and other criticalsectors of the economy werejudiciously utilised in order toensure growth anddevelopment.

Managing debts amid alarming debt profile

Continues from page 48

The debt matteris not just thequantum, what isimportant is howthese resourcesare deplored toencourage growth,development,generateemployment andreduce poverty

Director General of Debt Management Office, DMO, Dr. Abraham Nwankwo, some Directors of the agency and membersof the media at a workshop organised by the DMO in Lagos.

50—WEDNESDAY Vanguard, NOVERMBER 4, 2015

End of road forone chanceswindlers in Aba

FOR those who thoughtthat ‘one chance’ robbery

incidents take place only inLagos, this is an eye-opener.Members of a three-man gangwho specialized in swindlingunsuspecting traders andbusiness people going to theAriaria International Marketand Alaoji Motor Spare PartsMarkets, Aba, Abia State, mettheir waterloo, penultimateThursday when they werenabbed by soldiers in the city.

Crime Alert gathered that thegang operated betweenOsisioma Ngwa Motor Park toAriaria Junction on the Enugu-Port Harcourt Expresswaywhere they trailed traders andindividuals going to the twomarkets, particularly those whoprefer boarding cabs along theexpressway to using the motorpark.

Femalevictims

The gangsters, Udo Mba, anindigene of Amavo-Ukwu,Osisioma Ngwa LGA, IfeanyiEnwereji of Obuda Village, AbaSouth LGA, and Phillip Nwuluof Rivers State, were arrestedwhen one of the female victimsthey were alleged to haveswindled identified them andraised alarm which alertedpassers-by who swiftly wentafter them.

Recovered from the gang werea blue coloured Peugeot 504 carwith registration number OyoAA 851 EGB, suspected fake USdollar bills and other items.

NemesisCrime Alert gathered that

members of the gang who werealready waiting for their would-be prey, on sighting the girldrove off, but luck, however, ranagainst them when their carran into a ditch on theexpressway.

According to sources, beforethe gang could get out of theircar to escape, a mob caught upwith them and was trying aboutto lynch them when a group ofsoldiers of the 144 Battalionstationed at Ngwa HighSchool, Aba, stormed the sceneand rescued them.

Victim’s account: Speakingwith Crime Alert, the victimwho simply gave her name asMiss Chidinma, a cosmeticsdealer at the Umuahia MainMarket, said she came to Abato buy goods at the AriariaInternational Market andboarded a taxi at OsisiomaNgwa Junction, where she fellvictim to the gang whoswindled her of N15,000 andother items.

Her story: “It was about lastmonth when I came to Aba tobuy goods at the AriariaInternational Market. When ourbus stopped at OsisiomaJunction, I entered their carbecause I was in a hurry andwanted to shop as fast as Icould and return to Umuahiabefore evening.

“The driver drove off with amale passenger and laterpicked another woman on theroad. I didn’t suspect anything.We got to a point where thewoman brought out dollars andwaved it at my face. At a point,I lost consciousness and didn’tknow what I was doing but Ican remember they said that Ishould give them money to buychemical which they would useto produce more money.

“I declined but later told themthat I had N15,000 on me. Afterthat, they promised to pay me

same spot she boarded theircab at Osisioma Ngwa Junctionon the expressway

She continued: “Armed with

•The suspects

the ugly experience I had thelast time at Osisioma NgwaJunction, I was on my way toAriaria Market to makepurchases. Immediately Ialighted from the bus atOsisioma Ngwa Junction, I sawthem (gang) at the same placewhere I entered their car onthat fateful day andimmediately they saw me, theydrove off, but I started shoutingand people who were aroundpursued and caught up withthem. After the crowd beatthem to a pulp, they evenconfessed to the crime andpleaded for pardon, promisingto turn a new leaf if they weregranted pardon.”

One chancebusiness

Crime Alert investigationsrevealed that there has beenan upsurge in ‘one chance’swindlers along theexpressway, where commutersare being dispossessed of theirmoney and other items. The‘one chance’ business is saidto thrive mostly during the‘ember’ months when thereare many commuters on the

By Ugochukwu Alaribe

•Three suspects arrested

back the money. Thetwo male passengerswho I suspectedwere members of thesyndicate, left andthe woman later leftleaving me alone ina particular placethat I can’tremember.

This is how I lostN15,000 to them. Agood Samaritanhelped me back toUmuahia because Ihad no money leftwith me.”

How they werecaught

Luck, however, ranout of the swindlerswhen Chidinmareturned to Aba,p e n u l t i m a t eThursday and metthe gangsters at the

road.According to a bus driver

plying the Osisioma NgwaJunction–Alaoji flyover route,Uchenna Williams, “most ofthe victims of the ‘one chance’swindlers have been tradersand individuals who arealways in a hurry to get to theirdestination by boarding cabson the expressway.

“Many people have fallenvictim to this ‘one chance’ taxidrivers along this expressway.We have always warned themto board cabs or buses at themotor parks, but they seem toalways be in a hurry. Many ofthe victims have beenheartbroken after they wereswindled by the gang. Peopleshould be careful of the type ofvehicles they board because weare now in ‘ember’ monthswhen the swindlers and othercriminals thrive.”

Commanding Officer of the144 Battalion, Lt. Col. KasimUmar Sidi, could not be reachedat the time of filing this report,but a soldier at the unit said thesuspects have confessed to thecrime and would soon behanded over to the Police.

We got to a pointwhere the womanbrought out dollarsand waved it at myface. At a point, I lostconsciousness anddidn’t know what Iwas doing but I canremember they saidthat I should givethem money to buychemical which theywould use to producemore money


CMYK

52 — VANGUARD, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 201552 — VANGUARD, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 201552 — VANGUARD, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 201552 — VANGUARD, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 201552 — VANGUARD, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015

C HIMAMANDANgozi Adichie’s

Half of a Yellow Sun hastopped a list of the lastdecade’s winners of theBaileys Women’s FictionPrize.

She won the “Best of theBest” award as part of thecelebrations to mark 20years of the annual£30,000 prize.

Nigerian author Adichiewon in 2007 for her story,her second novel, setduring the Biafran War ofthe 1960s.

Adicihie said she was“grateful and happy”,adding: “This is a prize Ihave a lot of respect andadmiration for.”

The 38-year-old novelistcontinued: “Over theyears it’s [the BaileysWomen’s Prize for Fiction]brought wonderfulliterature to a widereadership that might nothave found many of thebooks.

“I have a lot of respectfor the books that have wonin the past 10 years andalso for the books that havebeen shortlisted - I feel Iam in very goodcompany.”

Other winners of theBaileys Prize from the lastdecade include Zadie

Smith for On Beauty, RoseTremain for The RoadHome and EimearMcBride for A Girl is aHalf-formed Thing.

The winner of Best of theBest of the prize’s firstdecade in 2005 wasAndrea Levy ’s SmallIsland, which won themain title in 2004.

Established in 1996, theBaileys Women’s Prize forFiction - first known as theOrange Prize for Fiction -

is awarded to the bestnovel of the year writtenby a woman. Baileys tookover Half of a Yellow Sunwhich tells the story of theNigerian war through theeyes of three characters:Olanna, a young womanwho abandons herprivileged lifestyle to livewith her universityprofessor lover, the shyEnglish writer Richardand the poor village boyUgwu.

US detects heat flash aroundRussian jet before crashA US infrared satellite

has reportedlydetected a heat flash at thetime a Russian passenger jetwent down in Egypt’s SinaiPeninsula, a US official hassaid, as the investigationinto the deadly plane crashcontinues.

The official saidyesterday that the USintelligence communitybelieves that it could havebeen some kind of explosionon the plane itself, either afuel tank or a bomb.

The same satellite imageryruled out a surface-to-airmissile attack, the newschannel reported.

“The speculation that thisplane was brought down bya missile is off the table,” theofficial told NBC News.

The jet crashed onSaturday, killing all 224passengers and crew onboard.

Investigators areexamining all possiblecauses as part of an

Egyptian-led probe into thedisaster that also involvesexperts from Russia, Airbus,and Ireland, where theaircraft was registered.

Analysts have dismissedclaims that the jet was shot

down by a group affiliatedwith the Islamic State of Iraqand the Levant (ISIL) if itwas flying at a cruisingheight of 9,000 metres, butdid not rule out that a bombmight have been planted onboard.

RUSSIA says it is notcrucial for Syria’s

President Bashar al-Assad to stay in power,saying it is up to the

Russia says keepingAssad not crucial

Late Saudi King Fahd’s ‘secretwife’ wins £25m payout

A WOMAN who saysshe was the “secret

wife” of the late King Fahdof Saudi Arabia has won amultimillion-pound claim atthe High Court.

Janan Harb, 68, allegedone of the king’s sons hadagreed she would be lookedafter “for the rest of my life”.

The court ruled she wasentitled to more than £15m,plus the £10m value of twohomes in Chelsea, westLondon.

Ms Harb claimed to havesecretly married the king in1968 before he ascended tothe throne.

The case could now go tothe Court of Appeal.

Judge Mr Justice PeterSmith said Ms Harb’s claimthat the king’s son PrinceAbdul Aziz, had met her atLondon’s Dorchester Hotelwhen the king wasseriously ill two years beforehis death in 2005 was“credible”.

Syrian people to decide, theRussian foreign ministryhas said.

When asked if saving theSyrian leader was a matterof principle for Russia,spokeswoman MariaZakharova said: “Absolutelynot, we never said that.”

“We are not saying thatAssad should leave or stay,”she added.

Russia is supporting theSyrian government with airstrikes on rebels.

Ms Zakharova said onthe Ekho Moskvy radiostation that whether MrAssad stayed or steppeddown was not critical forRussia, but that it was up tothe Syrian people to decidehis fate.

Turkey detains supporters ofrival politician

TURKISH police havearrested 44 people

suspected of having links toan exiled Islamic clericaccused of seeking tooverthrow the government.

Top bureaucrats and policeofficers were among thoseheld in a crackdown on

supporters of Fethullah Gulen,the state-run Anadolu agencysaid.

Mr Gulen is a rival ofPresident Recep TayyipErdogan, whose AK partyregained its majority inSunday’s election.

European observers saidviolence and media restrictionsmarred the polls.

On Tuesday, left-wingmagazine Nokta said two ofits editors had been chargedwith plotting a coup in thegovernment’s latest moveagainst opposition mediaoutlets.

Cevheri Guven and MuratCapan were arrested over amagazine cover criticising theelection results that read: “Thestart of civil war in Turkey.”

An Istanbul court laterordered that the magazine’slatest edition be withdrawnfrom the shelves, accusing itof inciting the public to commita crime.

India gives taxi driver life term forDelhi rape

AN Indian court hassentenced an Uber

taxi driver to lifeimprisonment after he wasfound guilty of raping afemale passenger last yearin Delhi.

Shiv Kumar Yadav wasalso convicted of criminalintimidation andkidnapping.

The 26-year-old womanwas taken to a secluded

area and raped afterbooking a journey homewith Uber in December.

Delhi later banned Uberand several other web-based taxi firms for manymonths, accusing them offailing to carry out adequatedriver checks.

The company apologisedfor the incident at the timeand acknowledged that it“must do better”.

Adichie wins top women’s fiction honour

S/African prosecutors appeal OscarPistorius murder verdict

SOUTH African judgeshave heard an appeal

on whether athlete OscarPistorius should beconvicted of murderinstead of culpablehomicide.

The Paralympian wastransferred to house arrestlast month after servingone year of his five-yearterm for killing hisgirlfriend Reeva

Steenkamp.Pistorius, 28, shot her

her through a locked toiletdoor in 2013 but insists hethought she was anintruder.

No date was set for thejudgement that could seePistorius return to prison.

Pistorius and his familydid not attend the hearingat South Africa’s Supreme

Court of Appeal inBloemfontein.

Ms Steenkamp’smother, June, waspresent, as well as somewomen activists of thegoverning AfricanNational Congress whosaid they came to showsolidarity with her.

The proceedings werebroadcast live ontelevision.

State prosecutor GerrieNel outlined the state’scase for the verdict to bechanged to murder fromculpable homicide, ormanslaughter.

The five appeal courtjudges did not considerthe facts but theapplication of the law, ina highly technical case.

What is on everybody’slips is what Pistorius’lawyer Barry Roux wasoverheard saying at theend of the hearing. “I’mgoing to lose”, he isreported to have said in aconversation with Mr Nelwhile their microphoneswere still open.

But the context in whichhe made the comment isunclear so it would bewrong to conclude that heconceded victory to hisrival.

Zambia raises interest rates to 15.5%

ZAMBIA’S centralbank has pushed up

interest rates from 12.5%to 15.5% in an effort tocurb soaring inflation.

Consumer prices nearlydoubled in October to14.3% from 7.7% inSeptember as Zambia’scurrency weakenedsharply.

Zambia’s kwacha hashalved in value againstthe dollar this year aslower copper prices havehit Africa’s second-biggest producer of themetal.

In October the countryheld a national day of

prayer to try to counteractits economic crisis.

The increase inZambia’s benchmarklending rate was the firstby the southern Africannation since November2014.

“In arriving at ourdecision the committeetook into account theinflationary outturn.Keeping inflationexpectations anchored insingle digits is critical,”central bank governorDenny Kalyalya said.

The kwacha rose around0.6% against the dollarfollowing the announcement.

•Chimamanda

•Russian President, Vladimir Putin welcoming SyrianPresident Bashir Al-Assad to Moscow recently.

•Janan Harb,


CMYK


Yakmut meets Mikel in London over Eagles crisisBy Jude Opara,

Abuja

DESPITE denials bythe Nigeria Football

Federation (NFF), that itwas not aware of anyinvestigation by theNational SportsCommission (NSC) intothe sudden retirement ofsome Nigerian playersfrom the Super Eagles, theNSC yesterday confirmedthat it has alreadycommenced the saidinvestigation.

Director General of theNSC, Mallam Al HassanYakmut told journalists inAbuja yesterday that theCommission has startedan underground inves-tigation into the issues toforestall further untimelyexit from the nationalteam.

He stated however, thatinvestigation does notwarrant the involvement ofsecurity agenciesespecially at the early Women AFCON: Super Falcons face Guinea, Senegal test

By Ben Efe

AFRICAN womenchampions, the

Super Falcons will faceGuinea or Senegal in thesecond round qualificationfor the 2016 Women AfricaCup of Nations billed forCameroon.

Guinea and Senegal willplay in the first roundqualification matches andthe winner of the tie, willplay Nigeria to determinewho gets the ticket toCameroon. Ghana,Equatorial Guinea, SouthAfrica and Cote’d Ivoireare the other nations thatdrew bye into the secondround. The first leg of thepreliminary roundmatches are billed for theweekend of March 4-6,

while the second roundqualifiers will be decidedin the weekend of April 8-10

Nigeria won the 2014edition in Namibia,without losing or draw asingle match in thetournament. They beatCameroon 2-0 in the finalto win their ninth AWCtitle.

But the Falcons weredemystified at the 2015 AllAfrica Games, where theyfailed to win a medal losingthree matches in a row. Thiswas after they failed toqualify for the 2016Olympic Games in RioBrazil.

However, one of theSuper Falcons players saidonline yesterday, that therewas still hope for the team.

“All we have to do is startpreparations early. Weexpect that a new coach willbe employed and thatshould happen soon, sothat the team can getorganised again,” said the

defender.Midfielder Ngozi Akobi

also called on the NigeriaFootball Federation to getthe team going in the offseason. “In my opinion Ithink the solution is to re-

Enyimba players keeping a levelhead—Ikhana

ENYIMBA are in goodstead to win the

Nigeria Premier League onSunday, if they can get aresult against visiting WarriWolves

But coach Kadiri Ikhanastated that his players arenot carried away, they arekeeping a level head untilthe job is done.

Enyimba, moved six pointsclear of Warri Wolves at thetop of the table on Sundaywith a narrow 1-0 victoryagainst Abia Warriors inUmuahia for their 19th winof the season.

“It has been a good seasonand everyone’scooperation has reallymade the team so tick. Weare still working very hardbecause it is not over yet,” Ikhana said.

“No one has won theNigeria Premier Leagueyet. We have to keep ourfeet on the ground to seethat we are not dethronedfrom the top of the table.

“Until our last game wewon’t celebrate yetbecause as it stands,anything can still happen.But then, we have greathope and we will continueto remain positive till weare crowned champions.

“And after that, we willfocus our attention on howdo well in next season’sCaf Champions League,”he concluded.

Klopp has fired up Liverpool, says Ibe

LIVERPOOL managerJuergen Klopp has

helped instil a never-say-die mentality among hisplayers to believe a gamecan always be won regard-less of the situation, wing-er Jordon Ibe has said.

The charismatic 48-year-old German took over fromBrendan Rodgers, whowas sacked after just eightPremier League gamesthis season, last month andhas set about adjusting hissquad’s approach to ad-versity.

Klopp won his first leaguegame as Liverpool manag-er on Saturday againstchampions Chelsea, theReds fighting back for a 3-1victory after conceding with-

in the first four minutes.Ibe, who has made 12

appearances for the clubthis season, said the gameagainst Chelsea was theperfect example of howKlopp had already influ-enced the squad.

“It was one of the mostimportant things the newmanager has said — weneed to be a team who canbe 2-0 down and knowthere is still time for us toget a goal,” Ibe told theclub’s website(www.liverpoolfc.com).

“It could be in the last 10minutes, so it’s just abouthaving a mentality that islike ‘it’s now up to us to goand get two goals and thena third one’.

Capello backs Arsenal to do well in UCL

FORMER England manager Fabio Capello be-

lieves Arsenal can be oneof the surprises of theChampions League thisseason as the summer sign-ing of Petr Cech fromChelsea has boosted theconfidence of the wholeside.

The Italian boss, who ac-cording to The Sun is oneof the main candidates toreplace Chelsea managerJose Mourinho if the Por-tuguese boss is sacked, be-lieves the Gunners are one

of the strongest team inEurope alongsideManchester City, BayernMunich and the three LaLiga giants, Barcelona, RealMadrid and AtleticoMadrid.

Capello won the Cham-pions League in the 1993-94 season during his suc-cessful spell at AC Milan.And the former RealMadrid boss believes thatdespite Arsenal starting thetournament with defeatsagainst Dinamo Zagreband Olympiakos, the north

London side are one thestrongest candidates follow-ing their impressive 2-0 winagainst Bayern Munich.

stage.The former national

athlete who said that hewas in London where hemet with some Nigerianplayers also disclosed thathe had discussions withmanagers of some SuperEagles players as a way offinding an end to thedisturbing development.

Yakmut confirmed that hemet with Super Eaglesplayer, Mikel Obi as wellas Nigerian born JordanIbe after watching theEnglish premiership gamebetween Chelsea andLiverpool at the weekend.

The NSC boss equallystressed that thecommission will continueto maintain a very cordialrelationship with the NFF,because it will continue tocarry out its role as thesupervisory body over thefederation as well as forother sports.

“It was great for the teamto come back from 1-0down because it is difficultto do that and beat Chelseaat Stamford Bridge.

•Alex Iwobi

•Ibe

•Mikel

group during the off sea-son after the super 6, theNigeria Football Federa-tion should try and organ-ise two to three weekscamping when there areno competitions."

•Digging...Desire Oparanozie in action during the FIFA women world cup in Canada. Can the Super Falconsreturn to winning ways in 2016.

•Ikhana


have had a strainedrelationship during theChelsea manager’s tur-bulent three-year spellat the SantiagoBernabeu.

The former Manches-ter United star has madeno secret of his attitudetowards Mourinho andrevealed last year thathis compatriot created a‘bad atmosphere’ duringhis troubled reign.

And it appears theirrelationship reachedbreaking point during aCopa del Rey quarter-fi-nal clash with league ri-vals Valencia in January2013.

Mourinho was left in-censed at Ronaldo’s fail-ure to track back duringthe second half of thegame, where they werewinning 2-0, and thepair were involved in anexchange of words afterthe match.

In the new bookCristiano Ronaldo: The

RonaldoContinues from BP Biography, written by

Spanish journalistGuillem Balague, it hasbeen revealed that a fu-rious dressing-room con-frontation occurred.

As quoted in the newbook, Balague wrote:‘Mourinho, whose bloodwas no longer boiling bythe time he reached thedressing room, re-minded Cristiano of thereason for the instruc-tion on the pitch: “Ifthey get a goal againstus…”

‘The player, unable tocontain his fury, got upfrom the bench where hewas changing and be-gan shouting, “After eve-rything I’ve done foryou, this is how youtreat me! How dare yousay that to me?!”’

As written by Balague,there have been sugges-tions that a number ofReal players - some ofwhom were present dur-ing the confrontation -wanted their team-mate

to defend more.But the argument fol-

lowing the 2-0 victory inthe Copa del Rey, wherethey went on to reachthe final but lost out torivals Atletico Madrid,intensified to the amaze-ment of the team.

The journalist added:‘The situation escalatedto the point whereCristiano had to be heldback (some sources sayby Casillas, others sayby Arbeloa and Khedira,or even Sergio Ramos)to prevent the pair fromcoming to blows.

‘Ronaldo took whatshould have been un-derstood as a tacticalcomment as a personalattack. The relationshipbetween Mourinho andRonaldo would never bethe same again.’

Mourinho also re-vealed last year that hisrelationship withRonaldo is ‘non-exist-ent’ since he left Madridand returned to Chelseain 2013.

Mexico

towards our prepara-tions,” Siasia said.

“We don’t have a planB right now. We need toget out of this place andmake sure we go overthere and focus very welland prepare.

“Even though thingsare not working well as wewant it to be but we haveto do the best we can tomake sure we qualify forthe 2016 Olympics footballtournament. We have toqualify. We are bound toqualify.

Siasia also revealed thathis team still lacks the goalscoring instinct despiteplaying quality footballbut he assured that areawould be improved onbefore departing for Sen-egal.

Continues from BP “We are trying to playgood football but we stillneed to improve. The lastgame we played in PortHarcourt everybody ex-cited and very happyabout how we playedeven though our biggestproblem is scoring,” hecontinued.

“That is the area weneed to work on. Tobring in new players willbe a difficult job again forus to make sure that theseguys can blend togetherlike we did the last time.

“Hopefully the ones thatwill come in will try tocatch up on time so thatwe can play well, not onlyto play well but to scoregoals too,” he concluded.

Nigeria U23 did notqualify for the 2012 Olym-pics staged in London.

Chile 2015 with eight ofthe 14 goals by theGolden Eaglets as theyromped to their seventhU17 World Cup semis.

“Nigeria are a very goodteam and we will prepareourselves better to face theirexcellent attack,” said coachArteaga after his team setup a mouth-watering re-match with the four-timeworld champions.

Mexico beat Germanyand Chile on their way tothe last-four.

The North Americanswere worthy 2-0 winners

Siasia

Continues from BP over Ecuador on Mondaynight to advance to thesemi-finals.

Arteaga said his teamacquitted themselves verywell against the SouthAmericans.

“The match went as weexpected, very tight be-tween two teams with thesame level. But my teamhave managed to stay verycalm and very well com-posed in this game withimpeccable behaviour,” hepraised.

“My players were goodtactically, physically andmentally.”

Federation (NFF) says itis anxious to present thetrophy to PresidentMuhammadu Buhari.

General Secretary of theNFF, Dr. MohammadeSanusi told SportsVanguard that thefederation was lookingforward to a possiblerepeat of history when in1985 Nigeria won the firstedition of thechampionship in Chinaunder the regime ofPresident Buhari.

Sanusi while reacting onthe impressive run of theCoach EmmanuelAmuneke led GoldenEaglets, said even as theNFF did not give anyspecial target to the teamit is however hoping thatthey will successfullydefend the trophy theywon last week.

“What we told the boysis to respect and not to feartheir opponents . I am nota soothsayer but I knew wewere going to defeat Brazilbecause we played anddefeated them at theSuwon invitationaltournament in SouthKorea. Also we beatArgentina who almost playlike Brazil in a friendlymatch. “History is about torepeat itself when in 1985General Buhari then as amilitary Head of Statereceived the U-17 trophy.Again, it will happen thatas a civilian president hewill receive it because evenas we know that Mexicowill not be easy. TheGolden Eaglets will beequal to the task.”

SanusiContinues from BP

JOSE Mourinho hasdeclined to reveal if

discussions had takenplace with Chelsea ownerRoman Abramovich overhis future, instead hedecided to point to hislengthy contract.

The embattled Bluesboss is under pressurefrom all angles - not leastto retain his place asmanager amid amiserable run of results.

Mourinho said: “I don’thave to answer you if Iwas with the owner ornot.”

Asked how much timehe thought he had,Mourinho, who signed anew contract until June2019 on the eve of theseason, said: “Four years.In this case, three yearsand seven months.”

Mourinho’s problemsare piling up after he wasgiven a one-matchstadium ban and becamethe subject of a personallegal claim from formerfirst-team doctor EvaCarneiro.

His side have lost nineof 17 games in allcompetitions this seasonahead of Wednesday’sChampions League GroupG clash with DynamoKiev.

He was subject of thefirst managerial vote ofconfidence in RomanAbramovich’s 12-yearownership on October 5,but Chelsea have one winin five games since, againsta free-falling Aston Villa.

Mourinho expects to see out deal

L-R: Mr. Godwin Kienka, Director International Tennis Academy, Prof. UmarDanbatta , Acting Executive Vice Chairman, Nigerian Communications Com-mission (NCC), Engr. Sani Ndanusa, President Nigeria Tennis Federationand Mr. Reuben Muoka, Head Public Relations NCC at the semi-final matchof the maiden NCC Tennis Championship in Abuja, Sunday.

Ballon d’Or:

A N D R I YShevchenko

believes Lionel Messi isahead of CristianoRonaldo in the Ballond’Or running, and noplayer comes close to theBarcelona-Real Madridpair.

“Ronaldo and Messiare favourites again, ofcourse. The last fiveyears they have evolvedinto superlative players,the quality of footballthey produce isfantastic,” heacknowledged.

“I think Messi, havingwon the ChampionsLeague, is in poleposition to win theBallon d’Or. There arestill a lot of games toplay and I’m sure he’llscore between 50 and 70goals this season.

“It’s hard to see[anyone competing withMessi or Ronaldo]. EdenHazard had a great

Shevchenko tips Messito beat Ronaldo

season with Chelsea andwon the PremierLeague. He’s not had agood start but I’m surehe’ll be back. He’s oneto consider for the nextfive or six years. I’msure he can win it.”

•Messi

ATLETICO Madridand Astana played

out a drab and ratheruninspiring goalless draw intheir Champions Leagueencounter.

Fernando Torres hadperhaps the game’s bestchance in the first half whileAtletico also hit thewoodwork more than once,but they rarely looked likeunpicking the dogged hosts.

Astana meanwhile mademuch of the running in thefirst half and got at theAtletico defence with the kindof regularity that should have

Atletico scoreless in Astanaconcerned Diego Simeonebut created few real chancesand ran out of steam in thesecond half.

Simeone made threechanges from the side thatdrew with Deportivo LaCoruna, bringing inGuilherme Siqueira, SaulNiguez and Torres for FilipeLuis, Yannick Ferreira-Carrasco and JacksonMartinez.

Jan Oblak was the firstgoalkeeper really tested,clutching on to DmitriShomko’s well-hit drive,while most of Atletico’s threat

came from corners, and thehaphazard way in whichAstana goalkeeper Eric dealtwith them

Printed and Published by VANGUARD MEDIA LIMITED, Vanguard Avenue, Kirikiri Canal, P.M.B.1007, Apapa. Phone: Newsroom: 018773962. Deputy Editor: 01-4548355. Advert Dept Hotline: 01-4544821. Abuja Advert Hotline: 09-2921024. E-mail: [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]. Advert:[email protected]

Website: www.vanguardngr.com (ISSN 0794-652X) Ag.Editor: EZE ANABA. Phone: 01-7742861, All correspondence to P.M.B. 1007, Apapa Lagos.

How to Play Sudoku

Place a number (1-9) in each blank cell. (No line canhave two of the same number).

Each row (nine lines from left to right), column, (alsonine lines from top to bottom) and 3 X 3 block within abold block (nine blocks) contains number from 1through 9. This means that no number can appear twicein any block, column or row.

No mathematics is involved – no adding, subtraction, divisionor multiplication, just plain logic and your imagination.

YESTERDAY'S ANSWERSTODAY'S PUZZLE

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2015

CMYK

QUICK CROSSWORDQUICK CROSSWORDQUICK CROSSWORDQUICK CROSSWORDQUICK CROSSWORD

YESTERDAY'S SOLUTIONS

AA Gent v Valencia 8:45pmBarcelona v BATE Borisov 8:45pmB/Munich v Arsenal 8:45pmChelsea v Dynamo Kiev 8:45pmLyon v Zenit 8:45pmMaccabi Tel Aviv v FC Porto 8:45pmOlympiacos v Dinamo Zagreb 8:45pmRoma v B/Leverkusen 8:45pm

Today’s Champions League Fixtures

Mexico plot Eaglets’ fallWe’ll present U-17 trophy toBuhari — Sanusi

Ronaldo nearly ‘came to blows’with Mourinho in Real MadridC R I S T I A N O

Ronaldo andJose Mourinho wereonce involved in aheated exchange in theReal Madrid dressingroom where they almost‘came to blows’, a newbiography has revealed.

Ronaldo and his formerReal boss are believed to

•Mourinho •RonaldoContinues on Page 55

Siasia wants Moroccocamp for U-23

HOT SHOT: Oshimhen

•Buhari

•Siasia

BY JUDE OPARA,Abuja

AHEAD of the semi finals of the

ongoing FIFA U-17World Cup betweenNigeria and MexicoThursday night, theNigeria Football

Continues on Page 55

MEXICO U17team coach

Mario Arteaga hasrevealed they will stopthe rampaging Nigeriaattack led by VictorOsimhen when bothteams clash on Thursdayin the semi-finals of FIFAU-17 World Cup inChile.

Kick-off for this WorldCup showdown inConcepcion will beThursday midnightNigerian time.

Osimhen has been themost lethal striker atContinues on Page 55

Yakmut meets Mikel inLondon over Eagles — Pg.54

U23 coach SamsonSiasia believes

preparing for the AfricanU23 championship inMorocco will be a rightstep for his team as theyaim to pick a ticket to Rio2016.

The Dream Team VIwill face Egypt, Algeriaand Mali in Group Bwhen Senegal 2015 kicksoff on November 28.

“Anything apart fromgoing to Morocco for the Continues on Page 55

camping exercise will bea big disappointment

ACROSS1 Shut (5)5 Talented (6)8 Enlist (5)10 Show (6)11 Parched (4)14 Character (6)15 Peaceful (7)18 Vitality (3)19 Vehicle (3)21 Adroit (4)23 Spree (5)24 Needy (4)27 Tease (3)29 Favourite (3)31 Baby-clothes (7)32 Trader (6)34 Thoroughfare (4)35 Escaped (6)38 Tree (5)39 Guard (6)40 God (5)

DOWN2 Meadow (3)3 Seek (3)4 Finish (3)5 Family (4)6 Left (6)7 Reiterate (6)9 Regain (7)12 Knock (3)13 Cheat (4)16 Singer (4)17 Marine (5)20 Denied (7)22 Even (4)24 Cushioned (6)25 Gemstone (4)26 Tell (6)28 Obtain (6)30 Number (3)33 Peruse (4)36 Guided (3)37 Newt (3)

ACROSS: 1, Ledger 5, Melt 8, Eased 9, Arc10, Turn 11, Aged 12, Atone 13, Horrid 16,Lees 18, Emit 20, Ate 22, Set 23, Rip 24, Tier25, Clip 28, Cuttle 30, Magic 32, Heat 33,Bask 34, Kin 35, Sited 36, Disc 37, Stance.

DOWN: 1, Loathe 2, Decorate 3, Entail4, Fantastic 5, Member 6, Edge 7, Tidy8, Era 14, Described 15, Sip 17, Eel 19,Mistaken 20, Aim 21, Erratic 26, Packet27, Seance 29, Shed 30, Mass 31, Cad.

Documents

36 ministers not compulsory - BUHARI