MAY 19TH, 2023

Electricity: Nigeria targets 30GW by 2030 as Buhari commissions dam

UKPONO UKPONG

President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday inaugurated the Kashimbila Multipurpose Dam, 40MW Hydropower Station and Associated 132KV Switchyard, Transmission Line and Distribution Substation (Phase I) Project, locat-

ed at the Kashimbila Dam site in Taraba State.

Speaking at a virtual ceremony held at the Council Chamber, State House, Abuja, the President underscored the importance of the project, highlighting its role in his administration’s commitment to achieving the target of 30GW

of electricity in the country by 2030, under the Electricity Vision 30:30:30.

President Buhari, while inviting the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mohammed Bello, to unveil the project on his behalf, noted that the Electricity Vision initiative aims to have renewable

energy contribute at least 30% to the energy mix, thereby expediting the expansion of electricity access.

Furthermore, the President said the implementation and completion of the Kashimbila projects align with his government’s policies to alleviate poverty, gener-

ate employment opportunities, enhance healthcare services, and improve the overall standard of living of Nigerians.

‘‘The Kashimbila Multipurpose Dam in Taraba State, with storage capacity of 500million cubic metres, was conceived principally to

NECO’s N6.5bn illegal contract deal irks Senate

…EFCC urged to implement NASS’s recommendations

Senate has indicted the National Examination Council (NECO) for illegally awarded N6.5 billion contracts for the printing of security materials.

Meanwhile, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Federal Civil Service Commission, Secretary to the Govern-

ment of the Federation backed a bill seeking for strict implementation and enforcement of the National Assembly recommendations on the Annual Report of the Auditor General for the Federation.

The decision to endorse the enforcement of National Assembly recommendations on Audit report

was taken at the public hearing organized for the stakeholders on the bill by Senate Public Accounts Committee (SPAC) chaired by Senator Mathew Uhroghide.

The representative of the EFCC, Director of Finance , Mohammed Hammas, the representative of Office of Secretary to Government of

the Federation, E.O Ayoola and Dr Mary Ogbe Permanent Secretary of Federal Civil Service Commission agreed with the provisions of the bill but pleaded with committee to give till next week to make written submissions.

On the indictment of NECO , the Senate upheld the recommenda-

tion of the Senate Public Accounts Committee after the NECO failed to defend the allegations.

The NECO stated that the contract was awarded through selective tendering which was done to avoid leakage of examination questions.

Secretary to the Government of the Federation, (SGF) BOSS Mustapha has stated that

INEC, Tinubu oppose live broadcast of PEPC’s proceedings

…Court reserves judgment

It's expected that a crack is expedient amongst aggrieved Speakership aspirants in the 10th House of Representatives otherwise, known as the Group of Seven (G-7) following withdrawal from the race.

The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, President-elect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress, APC, have kicked against the request of the

former Vice President, Abubakar Atiku for live broadcast of his petition challenging the declaration of Tinubu as winner of the 2023 presidential election.

In their separate objections on Thursday, the trio insisted that

solemn nature of the court would be put in jeopardy if granted.

Tinubu in his vehement objections argued by Chief Wole Olanipekun SAN on his behalf said that Atiku's request was not only surprising but dangerous as

it was capable of prejudicing the Court itself.

Olanipekun told the five Justices that Atiku should not be allowed to turn the Court to a football stadium, a crusade ground

Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Idowu Owohunwa (right); a victim (2nd right) and others, on Thursday visit okada rider, who was assaulted by some police officers in a viral video recently.

TUNDE OPALANA, ABUJA

Nigerians, global community desirous of supporting our democratic transition process -FG 10th NASS Leadership: LP’s Osuntokun says APC criminalising Nigerian politics with nominees

TOM OKPE, ABUJA

TOM OKPE, ABUJA

ANDREW OROLUA, ABUJA

Again, JAMB remits N2billion as its interim surplus to FG

DOOSUUR IWAMBE, ABUJA

Again, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation (JAMB) has remitted N2billion as its interim surplus for the 2023 operating year, more would be remitted as its operations for the years are completed.

This was contained in a statement by Dr Fabian Benjamin, Head of Public Affairs and Protocol of JAMB on Thursday.

According to the statement, The development was in furtherance of the pledge by the Prof. Is-haq Oloyede-led management, on assumption of duty, that it would leverage on technology and discipline to manage the affairs of the Board.

The statement explained that Prof. Is-haq Oloyede-led since assuming office the management has remitted over N55billion to the Federal Government coffers.

This is far above the less than the N60million remitted by the Board in the 38 years of the existence of the Board prior to the appointment of Prof. Oloyede.

On assumption of office of the current Registrar, he had come up with a policy which holds that whatever would be done, must be on the table. This has changed the narratives such that JAMB now posts humongous returns to the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF).

The statement explained that these returns were bolstered by the Board’s expanded internal capacities for its operations achieved through direct execution of its processes and procedures, which instantly resulted in, for instance, a savings of N1.2billion being paid annually to a service provider and a downward review of the N1.2billion being annually paid to another to about N400million with the same old service provider.

This it said is in addition to the recovery of over N1.2billion in both cash and estates in choice areas of Abuja, in 2016.

The statement read; "It was these steps and many

lSays, DE, UTME candidates can now sit for same exam

others, which had ensured that a Board, which had remitted cumulatively in its 40 years of existence about N55 million to the national treasury, rendered N7.8billion in the first year of the assumption of office of Prof. Oloyede and has since contributed over N27billion directly into the national treasury.

"The remitted amount is without prejudice to the 30% reduction in its application fee (N10.8billion in 4 years since the reduction), Capital Fund (N11billion including N6billion, which is yet to be committed), Annual Awards/Grants to Tertiary Institutions for Capital Projects (N1billion) and Special Staff Welfare Scheme (N2billion). This would aggregate the cumulative surplus to about N54billion over the last six years".

In another development, the Board has expressed its commitment to press ahead with its efforts to reposition the conduct of public examinations in Nigeria.

In a statement issued at the end of its management committee meeting held to appraise the recent crisis witnessed in the conduct of the 2023 Direct Entry registration, the Board stated that the seeming crisis was birthed by the implementation of some of its newly-adopted processes aimed at

curbing infractions in the admission value chain given our national peculiarities.

Another major policy change also to be implemented by the Board to holistically address all loopholes giving rise to abuses in the Direct Entry

admission processes is that all DE candidates, which comprise those seeking to be in Year Two in the universities, would henceforth be required to sit the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination UTME along with other candidates for them

to justify the possession of their A’level certificates.

This policy is to be situated within the ambit of the Board's relentless efforts aimed at enhancing the growth of the nation’s education sector as it would promote transparency, ac-

countability and good governance.

It also underscores the Board's commitment and determination towards changing the negative narrative of A’level admissions into higher institutions in Nigeria.

Buhari tasks diplomats on respect for traditional institutions

UKPONO UKPONG

President Muhammadu

Buhari yesterday ad -

vised the High Commissioner of the United Kingdom, Richard Hugh Montgomery, to always uphold the noble standards of diplomacy, like his predecessors, by respecting the traditional institutions in Nigeria.

The President, who received Letters of Credence from the United Kingdom High Commissioner, and his counterpart from the Democratic Republic of Sri Lanka, Velupillai Kanana -

than, noted that relations with both countries will be further consolidated, with their consideration for local culture, traditional rulers, and institutions.

“I like the way our traditional rulers and institutions are being respected, in spite of the changing times, education, and rising materialism.

“There is a lot to learn from our culture, and the traditional institutions are the custodians, and they should be respected by all,’’ President Buhari told Ambassador Montgomery and Ambassador

Kananathan, in separate meetings.

The President told the High Commissioner of the United Kingdom that the diplomatic relations, spanning many years, had been sustained on mutual respect for cultures, assuring that all courtesies will be extended to him to make his stay in Nigeria memorable.

President Buhari said the cultural exchange, through education and training, with Britain had been on for many years, recalling that he had military training at Mons Officer

Cadet School in Aldershot in England, from 1962 to 1963, and Mechanical Transport Officer's Course at the Army Mechanical Transport School in Borden, United Kingdom, 1964.

The President told the British diplomat that a good understanding of cultural differences, and respect for institutions paved the way for most of the successes of the United Kingdom, noting that previous diplomats had established relations with the Sultan of Sokoto, Emir of Kano, Shehu of Borno, and

NECO’s N6.5bn illegal contract deal irks Senate

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But, the committee observed that the council did not follow due process in the award of the contract

The Committee therefore recommended that the tender board that awarded the contract should be held liable in line with financial regulation 3117(1)&11. Which states , " where the award is by a tender board , all members of the board shall be sanctioned individ-

ually or collectively. The query reads, "Examination of records and documents revealed that the Commission’s Tenders Board approved the award of contract for printing of security materials in the sum of ₦451 million to a company in March 2017 in contravention of provisions of Federal Government Circular No.SGF/OP/I/S.3/ XI/849 of 16th January, 2016 which reiterated the approved revised thresh -

olds for service wide application, for which the Parastatal Tender Board can only exercise authority on works whose value is less than ₦250 million while any sum above this, is to be referred to the Ministerial Tenders Board for approval.

"We sought for the authority for the above approval including the Ministerial approval but none was provided.

"The above unilateral award of contracts without

following due process may lead to awarding contracts to unqualified contractors.

Recommendation The Registrar/CEO should be sanctioned in line with provisions of Financial Regulation.

Also the second query reads, "Examination of contracts awarded for the printing of Security and Non- Security Documents valued at ₦6,166,405,407.42 revealed that the contracts were awarded without compliance with the pro -

visions of PART VI, Section 24 (I) of the Public Procurement Act (PPA) 2017 as amended, which states that except as provided by this Act, all procurements of goods and works by all procuring entities shall be conducted by open competitive bidding.

"The following irregularities were also noted, Quotations were not collected from three bidders as required by PPA 2007, Taxes were not deducted

Emir of Ilorin, the ancient gateway to the North.

"In one of my meetings with King Charles III, he asked me an interesting question if I had a house in England, and I replied that I don't have a house, not an inch, anywhere outside Nigeria,'' he said.

The President told the Sri Lankan diplomat that the participation of women in politics and governance in Nigeria had steadily increased over the years while referring to the first female Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, Sirimavo Bandaranaike.

from some of the contract payments. iii. There was no Technical and Financial evaluation, Evidence of placement of advertisement was not attached to either payment vouchers or contract files. The amount expended was above the threshold of the Council, The contracts were split as some contracts were awarded to same contractor with LPO and work order issued on the same date."

Commissioner for Insurance and Chief Executive Officer of the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), Nigeria OLORUNDARE SUNDAY THOMAS receiving an award from the College of Insurance Supervisors of West African Monetary Zone (CISWAMZ) at the ongoing 5th meeting of the College in Abuja.

Nigerians, global community desirous of supporting our democratic transition process -FG

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Nigerians and the global communities are desirous of supporting the nation's transition process.

Mustapha, who is also Chairman, Presidential Transition Council, at a world press conference in Abuja on Thursday, preparatory to inauguration and handover ceremony of the President-elect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu on the 29th May, 2023 said the upcoming event is historically significant to this great nation and the international community, particularly, Africa because of the democratic values and lessons in nationhood.

"I welcome you all to the World Press Conference organized to brief Nigerians and the entire world on the program of activities planned for the 2023 Presidential Inauguration.

"The presence of both local and international media houses here today is an indication that Nigerians and the global community are desirous of supporting the process of democratic transition of power from one administration to the other.

"For these reasons, we have chosen, ‘Nigeria: Better Together,' as the theme for the 2023 transition.

"I am delighted to inform you that May 29, 2023 will mark the 7th consecutive democratic transition of power in Nigeria and on that day, we shall all be ushering in the 16th President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

"The significance of the above is underscored by the desire of this administration to lay a solid foundation for seamless transition of power by institutionalizing the process through legislation.

"In February 2023, the President through Executive Order 14, approved the establishment of the Presidential Transition Council (PTC).

"The 24-member Council inclusive of two representatives of the President-elect was inaugurated on 14th February 2023.

"The Council is charged with responsibility of facilitating and managing Presidential Transition. In the course of this process, the PTC established three main Committees namely: Inauguration Committee, under Chairmanship of the SGF; Transition Documents Committee under the Chairmanship of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation; and Security, Facilities and Intelligence Committee under the Chairmanship of the National Security Adviser." He stressed that the PTC will also, interface with leading democratic nations including the United States of America and the Republic

of Kenya, as part of its learning efforts to pick up useful lessons in line with international best practices.

"Let me once again, assure Nigerians and indeed the global community of President Muhammadu Buhari’s commitment to seamless transfer of power to President-elect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the 16th President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

"In demonstration of this commitment, the President has directed all relevant government institutions to cooperate with, and support the transition process through engagement with the President-Elect’s Team.

"It is for this reason that President Buhari amongst other things, approved the inclusion of the team as part of the Federal Government delegation to the World Bank/IMF Spring meetings in Washington DC in April, 2023'" he stated.

He therefore, unveiled schedule of activities marking the 2023 Presidential Inauguration as follows:

Thursday, 18th May, 2023 World Press Conference which was held yesterday in Abuja.

"Tuesday 23rd May, 2023, Regimental Dinner in honor of the Commander in Chief, Armed Forces Officers Mess at 7:00pm. Wednesday, 24th May, 2023, Valedictory Federal Executive Council Meeting Council Chambers, Presidential Villa, Abuja.

"Thursday, 25th May, 2023; there will be Investiture of the President-elect and Vice-President-Elect with the National Honors of Grand Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic, (GCFR) and Grand Commander of Order of the Niger, (GCON) respectively and, 'Handover of Transition Documents' at the State House Conference Centre, 10:00am.

"There will be public lecture on Friday, 26th May, 2023 and Jumaat Prayer at the National Mosque by 10:00am and 1:30 pm.

"Saturday 27th May, 2023

Inauguration Lecture on the topic: Deepening Democracy for Integration and Development by Uhuru M. Kenyatta, former President of Kenya at the International Conference Centre, Abuja by 10:00am, while Saturday, 27th May, 2023 will be Children’s Day Program, Parade and Children’s Party, which will hold at the old parade G ground, Abuja by 10:00am, State House Conference Centre at 2:00pm, respectively.

"Sunday, 28th May, 2023;

Inter-denominational Church Service at National Christian Centre by 10:00am and Inauguration Dinner/Gala Night at State House Conference Centre by 7:00PM.

"Monday, 29th May, 2023 will be inauguration Parade/Swearing-In at Eagle Square by 10:00am.

All Guests to be seated by 8:30am while post inauguration luncheon holds at State House Banquet Hall at

1:30 pm.

"He noted that all events will be strictly on invitations and will be broadcast live on all major stations and streamed on various social media platforms."

Troops arrested 116 terrorists, killed 42 others in encounters, says military spokesman

The Defence Headquarters said on Thursday that ongoing intense military clearance operations in terrorists enclaves and camps in Sambisa forest and a number of villages within Bama, Damboa, Gwoza and Kaga Local Government Areas of Borno State have led to the arrest of 116 terrorists and the recovery of huge arms and ammunition.

Director, Defence Media Operations (DMO), Major General Musa Danmadami Made this disclosure while briefing the press on the ongoing military operations against insurgents and criminals between May 4-18, 2023 across the country .He said that not less than 48 terrorists were neutralized.

He said that the operations had forced 511 terrorists with their families to surrender to troops while 29 kidnapped victims including one Chibok School girl were rescued. The girl Saratu Dauda was among those kidnapped in 2015 with serial number 10 of the list .She was rescued on May 6, 2023 by troops on fighting patrol had said that the pressure was highly unbearable in their make shift camps.

Major General Danmadami said that recent pockets of attacks in North Central and Kaduna state could be

traced to terrorists elements who migrated from Sambisa forest and terrorists enclaves in the North East.He assured that there would be no hiding place for them . He appealed to the public to report unusual movements of persons to the military for immediate action.

According to him, troops operations in the last two weeks in Borno State have led to the recovery of 10 AK47 rifles, 8 SMGs, 15 grenades, 2 pump action guns, 1 LMG gun, 1 Ma rifle, 2 AA barrel, 12 dane guns, 25 AK47 magazines, 2 double barrel guns, 3,896 rounds of .50 inch, 1,802 rounds of 12.7mm x 19, 1,475 rounds of 9mm, 86 rounds 12.7mm x 108mm API, 183 rounds of shilka, 60 rounds of 40mm BGL, 2 rounds of 7.62mm x 39 B/SP, 34 cartons of sig pistol ammo

Other weapons recov-

ered are 124 RPG bombs, 50 x 36 hand grenade, 5 SMK bombs, 13 RPG tubes, 8 x 76mm bombs, 130 smoke grenades (teargas), 13 x PG 42 grenade and 247 rounds x 38mm SMK bombs. Others include 15 RPG tail pin, 245 rounds of 7.62mm special, 148 rounds of 7.62mm NATO, 1 G3 skeletal weapon, 2 AK47 working parts, 2 mortar bombs, 2 x 60mm mortar tube, 1 shoulder grenade launcher, 8 propeller charge (155 gun), 2 vickers MBT bore sighting equipment, 1 charger for 125mm, 4 RKT 73mm PG9 base, 3 fuse for 105, 2 scrap for AK47 rifle (police type),

The rest weapon and ammunition include 1 scrap FN magazine, 194 fuse for 122mm D30 HW bombs, 41 fuse for 155mm bombs, 20 fuse for 82mm mortar, 5 illum fuse, 1 tripod stand, 6 non electric detonator, 1

tool box containing several weapon parts, 1 SPG stand, 1 lister generator, 1 welding machine, 1 water heater, 1 exhaust, 3 mortar base plates, large quantities of Improvised Explosive Device making materials and terrorist flag.

The Director said that troops operations in the South South Zone of the country also yielded huge results including the destruction of 38 illegal refineries, 24 wooden boats, 169 storage tanks, 152 ovens and 19 dugout pits .

The soldiers who are fighting economic saboteurs and crude oil theft recovered 551,500 litres of crude oil, 394,500 litres of Automotive Gas Oil, 16 vehicles, 4 motorcycles, 1 tricycle, 2 pumping machine, 1 outboard engine, 1 generator, 1 speed boat, 4 weapons and 132 assorted ammunitions.

Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu flanked by his Deputy, Dr Obafemi Hamzat (left), Mrs Sukanmi Oyegbola (right) and the newly appointed as Permanent Secretaries during the swearing ceremony at the Lagos House, Aluasa, Ikeja, on Thursday, 18 May 2023.

ANDREW OROLUA, ABUJA

Electricity: Nigeria targets 30GW by 2030 as Buhari commissions dam

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checkmate the threat of the imminent collapse of the structurally weak and poisonous Lake Nyos, located at the line of volcanic activities in Cameroun Republic, which collapse could result in flooding and affecting millions of lives and properties.

‘‘Even though the Dam was meant to serve as a buffer to contain possible discharge of water of Lake Nyos, the engineering design maximized the benefits of the Kashimbila ecosystem by incorporating a 40MW Hydropower Station, 60,000 cubic metre per day Water Supply Scheme, 2,000 hectares of Irrigation System, an airstrip, fishing activities and tourism potentials,’’ he said.

According to the President, the Phase I of the Power Evacuation Component of the Project includes the 132KV Switchyard, four substations at Takum, Wukari, Rafin Kada, Donga, and the rehabilitation of the existing 132KV Yandev substation.

It also involves the installation of a 245km, 132KV Double Circuits line from Kashimbila to Takum, Wukari, Yandev, as well as a 45km, 33kv Double Circuits line from Wukari to Donga through Rafin Kada, he

added.

‘‘I understand that the Water Supply component that is intended to service Takum and environs has reached about 65% progress, while the engineering design for the 2000 Hectare Irrigation Scheme has been fully completed, and physical works will commence in due course,’’ he said.

The President assured Nigerians that other projects aimed at boosting electricity supply, such as the 40MW Dadinkowa Hydropower Plant in Gombe State and the 700MW Zungeru Hydropower Plant in Niger State, are also ready for commissioning.

He commended the Federal Ministry of Water Resources and the Federal Ministry of Power for their efforts in delivering the Kashimbila Project, expressing his anticipation for increased collaboration among various Ministries, Departments, and Agencies in infrastructure development.

The President also praised the host communities and the individuals affected by the Kashimbila Multipurpose Dam Project for their cooperation, understanding, and support during the implementation of this significant undertaking.

INEC, Tinubu oppose live broadcast of PEPC’s proceedings

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a theatre or film grounds where all manners of telecast could be permitted.

The Senior lawyer said that the Court should not grant an order that cannot be enforced or supervised adding that the present moment is not the best time for such a request to be granted.

Olanipekun warned that the request if granted could expose judicial officers to

Buhari approves Governing Board for FERMA

UKPONO UKPONG

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the dissolution and renewal of the Governing Board for the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA).

The new Chairman of the Board is Mr James Akintola, who succeeds Mr Tunde Lemo, after the latter voluntarily stepped down. Other members of the old Board have their terms renewed.

Mr Lemo conveys his appreciation to President Buhari for the opportunity giv-

en him to serve the country.

Mr Akintola, the new Chairman, had occupied similar positions in many States. A multi-skilled construction professional, he had been Senior Special Assistant Infrastructure in Ogun State, Consultant to Kwara State, Special Adviser Infrastructure, Oyo State, Executive Chairman, Lagos State Public Works Corporation, among others. He holds a B.Sc Architecture from University of Lagos, and an M.Sc in the same field from the then University of Ife, now Obafemi Awolowo University.

LP National Chairman, Abure, restored by A’Court

ORIAKU IJELE

The National Chairman of Labour Party, Julius Abure, yesterday, in Abuja declared that he was back as National Chairman, and that the LP was united and has no faction in its rank.

He also disclosed that the suspended Deputy National Chairman of the party, Apapa Lamidi, failed in its attempt to create a fac -

tion in LP.

Abure also revealed that the FCT High Court in Abuja ceases to have jurisdiction over a suit praying for a restraining order over him.

The LP National Chairman who spoke in a press conference at the party’s Secretariat, told journalists that earlier restraint by the FCT High Court has been set aside by “our appeal at the Appeal Court ”.

avoidable dangers and demanded that heavy cost be imposed on Atiku for making the request.

Lateef Fagbemi ,SAN , who opposed on behalf of APC also faulted the request adding that the facility and policy documents are not there for the application to be granted.

He said that Atiku failed to disclose injuries he would suffer if the request was not granted adding that at the moment, nobody, including Atiku had not complain of inadequate coverage of the proceedings so far.

Fagbemi insisted that Atiku did not deserve to be granted the request

The electoral body in its own objections by its counsel, Abubakar Balarabe Mahmoud ,SAN, said that Court room is for serious business and not a market place where anything goes adding that the request for live coverage is unnecessary and uncalled for and should not be granted.

Meanwhile, Chairman of the Court, Justice Haruna Simon Tsammani has reserved ruling on whether to grant the request or not.

Atiku had approached the Court hearing his case against the outcome of the February 25 presidential polls, for an order allowing live broadcast of the day to day proceedings regarding his petition because of its monumental importance.

Atiku and the PDP in the application specifically prayed the tribunal for "An order Directing the Court's Registry and the parties on modalities for admission of Media Practitioners and their Equipment into the courtroom."

The application filed on their behalf by their team of lawyers led by

Chief Chris Uche, SAN, is predicated amongst other grounds that: "The matter before the Honourable Court is a dispute over the outcome of the Presidential Election held on 25th February 2023, a matter of national concern and public interest, involving citizens and voters in the 36 States of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, who voted and participated in the said election; and the International Community as regards the workings of Nigeria’s Electoral Process".

They contended that being a unique electoral dispute with a peculiar constitutional dimension, it is a matter of public interest whereof millions of Nigerian citizens and voters are stakeholders with a constitutional right to know what transpire at the hearing of the petition.

Meanwhile, the Presidential candidate of the People's Democratic Party PDP, Alhaji Abubakar Atiku and the President-elect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu have agreed not to oppose all documents that emanated from the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC in the conduct of the February 25 presidential election.

The documents must however be certified as true reflection of the original copies in line with the provisions of the law guiding admissibility of documents.

These resolutions were on Thursday conveyed to the 5-man panel of Justices of the Presidential Election Petition Court hearing the joint petition of Atiku and PDP challenging the declaration of Tinubu as winner of the disputed election.

Chief Chris Uche SAN

leading the legal team for Atiku conveyed the decisions of the lawyers to the Court at Thursday's proceedings.

Tinubu, represented by Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, corroborated the position of Atiku not to object to all certified documents from the electoral body.

The senior lawyers said that they jointly agreed to allow the documents to be freely scrutinized by the Court in order to arrive at just and fair conclusions in their judgment.

Leader of the legal team for the All Progressives Congress APC, Prince Lateef Fagbemi SAN confirmed the same position to the Court.

He explained that they agreed to the decisions to allow the documents be tendered unhindered so as to make hearing of Atiku's petition seamless.

The electoral body through its counsel, Mr Abubakar Mahmoud said that his client would be ready to make all the required documents available at the appropriate time as a way of ensuring speedy and expeditious hearing of all the petitions challenging the presidential election.

Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu presents Oath of Office to Mr Obadina Akinbode as Permanent Secretary, Local Government Service Commission at the Lagos House, Aluasa, Ikeja, on Thursday, 18 May 2023.

Gender-Based-Violence and the Nigerian woman

DAVIDA OLEH

Gender-Based Violence can be described as any acts of violence that are directed at a person or a group of people based on their gender. It is deeply rooted in patriarchy and gender inequality and can be in the form of rape, physical assault, female genital mutilation, emotional assault, etc.

In Nigeria, there’s an eerie silence surrounding gender-based violence. This silence is because the Nigerian society, its justice system, cultures, customs, and religions encourage the normalization of gender-based violence and subjugation of women in the society.

The institution of marriage in Nigeria has helped ‘normalize’ Gender-based violence; we see situations where a woman gets physically assaulted by her husband and is being told by the police to solve it within her family, as it is a private matter. She goes to the church for help and they offer ‘thoughts and prayers’ and send her back to her abuser since they both spoke the words “for better and for worse” on the altar and somehow physical assault counts as the ‘worse’. Her family members and in-laws see it as a corrective measure they believe that since her husband paid her bride price, he has the right to “discipline” her because talking to her about it like an adult seems to be off the table and also because society believes the husband is the head and the wife is the neck, backbone, spinal cord, hands, ribcage, shoulders, and legs but certainly NOT the head.

In cases of rape, we see the victims while seeking help from the police being asked demeaning questions like “what were you doing there?” “What did you wear?” “Why did you wear it?” and hearing statements like “she probably asked for it”, shows once again how the Nigerian justice system has failed survivors of Gender-Based Violence.

In the case of marital rape, it is overlooked because the Nigerian criminal justice system believes that a woman after getting married has given consent to all future sexual activities with her husband, so in a situation where a woman goes to report a case such as marital rape, there is literally no case. Nigerian cultures and traditions back this up by stating that if a husband pays his wife’s bride price, he has everyright over your body and can have sex with her whenever he pleases.

Section 1 and 2 of the Penal Code states that “sexual intercourse by a man with his wife is not rape if she has attained puberty” meaning that, men who marry underage girls cannot be accused of rape since the girls have attained puberty.

Child Marriage is very rampant in Nigeria especially in the northern states in Nigeria. We see cases of 10-15-year-old girls married off to 40, 50 or 60-year-old men, and that is seen as normal in some states in Nigeria because their cultures and religion agree with it. It is the year 2020 and some states (particularly the Nigerian northern states) have refused to

sign the Child Rights Act because it prohibits Child Marriage and defines a child as someone under the age of 18.

We see the Nigerian media, in their thirst for headlines to use as clickbait, using headlines such as “53-year-old man sleeps with a 13-year-old girl”, “primary school teacher caught having intercourse with student” “man forcefully sleeps with 3 months old” which gets me wondering: why are they shying from the word “rape” and “sexual assault”? These are ways the Nigerian media downplay the gravity of these crimes and make it seem like it’s not that serious a crime.

Nigerian women face Gender-Based Violence in the workplace, at home, in school, in the marketplace, and even in places of worship where that are supposed to be safe havens.

First of all, the silence that surrounds Gender-Based Violence needs to be stopped, people need to speak up about the menace that is gender-based violence and stop treating it like a private issue but as the serious crime it is.

Educating people, young and old, and sensitizing them on gender-based violence and why it is wrong, is a step in the right direction.

Going to schools and educating children from nursery schools on gender-based violence will greatly help stop this menace.

Social Workers that are put in positions to help victims of gender-based violence should be properly evaluated upon recruitment and should go through

extensive training because it is evident that some of these social workers are rape apologists or just plain insensitive. Social workers are supposed to help victims by creating a safe space for them to talk about their trauma and work through it, work closely with law enforcement to obtain justice for victims as well as recommend services for rehabilitation, which is why said social workers in Nigeria need to undergo extensive training so they can understand the basis of their jobs and perform effectively. Proper evaluation upon recruitment is also very important because it helps determine if the candidate is fit, not only physically but mentally and emotionally, to handle their duties with the right amount of sensitivity needed. We see that most social workers operate with little to no sensitivity or empathy towards the victims they are supposed to protect which is why most victims prefer to stay silent because if their individual fear or society does not discourage them from speaking up, the lackadaisical attitude of these social workers will.

There is also the problem of ‘purity culture’ which is ingrained into our brains from when we were little kids. Purity culture teaches people that women are responsible for men’s sexual urges that lead them to sexually assault women. Under this same umbrella, if a woman is not a virgin, she cannot say that she was raped because she has already been defiled, this is why when women come out to say they were sexually assaulted they are treated like damaged goods and

are not believed 95% of the time.

We as a society need to unlearn these harmful beliefs that have been ingrained in us over the years and stop treating Gender-based violence with the levity we do but instead with the total amount of seriousness it deserves.

We should also work on creating safe spaces where victims of sexual assault can feel comfortable sharing their experiences knowing that they will be listened to and will receive the appropriate help they truly need.

People also need to speak up against gender-based violence and report cases of gender-based violence to ensure that the perpetrators of these acts face punishment for their actions.

How strangers I met aboard a flight almost strangled me

MARSHALL ISRAEL

Ileft Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja. While I was going to Barcelona to attend the International Ombudsman Institute Workshop on Artificial Intelligence and Human Rights, they were going to Madrid in Spain.

I never shared this experience with anyone apart from my friend, Onyeyirim Oguzie and a few persons that I can't remember. But I think it's very expedient and necessary to share it for people to be on alert when traveling out of the country.

Three of them are from Edo State. Two men and a lady. We sat at the same row in the aircraft and had a lot of conversations. When we landed in Cairo Egypt, they delayed the flight and gave us transit visas to sleep in a hotel at the expense of the airline.

After refreshing in our rooms, we came out to observe the beauty of Cairo. These guys met me where I was relaxing and we started talking again. I ordered drinks for them and paid in dollar equivalent of Egyptian money. They told me they were from Edo State.

When we entered our

rooms, at exactly 1am, one of them came knocking on my door. I didn't open the door. He said that his friend and the lady were fighting and that I should come and join him to separate them.

I told him to call the hotel security or room service. As we were talking through the door, I was hearing noise and squabble as the lady was shouting. I didn't know it was a set-up for me to open the door so they can come in and murder me silently and leave with my belongings. They thought I had plenty of dollars.

I told him I was going to call the hotel security if he knocks on my door again. I was saying all these from the door. He started pleading. I told him to give me few minutes to wear my clothes. While he was waiting, I called the hotel security and they landed in less than two minutes and knocked on my door reassuringly.

Unfortunately for the man, they saw him at my door at 1.30am. While I opened the door and started explaining to them, the man wanted to go back to his room but security stopped him. He had no opportunity to inform his colleagues that security was around.

Since it was just next door, security told him to knock on his colleagues' door by himself. He knocked and his friend opened the door without knowing that security and myself were behind. The first thing that came from his mouth when he opened the door was "Oboy how far. The guy don open him door. Maybe him don code". I heard him clearly and I told security men who also heard him. We entered the room, lo and behold, the lady that was shouting and calling for help was watching TV in a relaxed mood.

They took us downstairs to explain. I told the security that apart from boarding with them at Abuja International Airport and sitting with them at the hotel's lobby, I never met them before nor encountered them in my entire life. They were not my relatives, nor friends, and we were going to different locations in Spain.

Hotel security told us that in some hotels near the airport, passengers on transit visa had been robbed and killed inside the room by fellow passengers. Usually, nobody will know what happened and the airline won't wait for anybody when it’s time to board.

The security told me to go back to my room but engaged the gentlemen and lady in a serious question and scrutiny. They took their passports and fingerprints. I left for my room and when it was time to board in the morning, I left the hotel but I can't tell what happened thereafter.

Lessons: Do not trust the people you meet onboard a flight. Forget the fake decency. People pretend a lot.

Do not keep or carry anybody's bag or luggage at the airport or inside the aircraft. They could be carrying drugs or banned substance. Many have gone to jail innocently abroad.

Do not reveal much about yourself to the people you meet at the airport or onboard a flight. You could be traced by criminals you meet on board without knowing.

DAVIDA OLEH

Marshall Israel

“

Hotel security told us that in some hotels near the airport, passengers on transit visa had been robbed and killed inside the room by fellow passengers.

Need for federalism characterised by fiscal autonomy

In 1990 the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) adopted, as a proxy indicator of the wellbeing of countries, the Human Development Index (HDI). It is a statistical tool derived from three components or dimensions which, geometrically amalgamated, helps in determining not simply the economic prosperity of nations, but more crucially, the far more important question of the prosperity and wellness of its nationals. This extremely useful metric has since then been used as measuring stick and magic wand for transforming and optimizing the utility of social policies and programmes worldwide.

Expectedly, it is a composite metric that indicts Nigeria, the world’s most populous black country. One of the three dimensions is the HDI, life expectancy, assessed via the average life expectancy at birth. Another is the education dimension measured via both the mean years of schooling of adults 25 years and above and the expected years of schooling for primary school entrants. The third is the standard of living index, a logarithmic function of the Gross National Income (GNI) per capita.

They are three socioeconomic domains in which the country’s managers have failed woefully to improve upon. Infant mortality is unacceptably and persistently high at 54.7 per 1000 live births, a function of perennially poor access to health care in the country. Sundry primary school registration data, the World Bank’s among others, reveal a stagnation trend, since the ‘70s, of enrollees, worse still in some northern Nigeria states where the data shows declining trends. The story on the mean Nigerian income is no better with unemployment rate in double digits (33 % in 2022 and projected by the Nigerian Economic Summit Group to hit 37 % in the current year) vis a viz galloping inflation.

The UNDP publishes its HDI report annually. Nigeria currently ranks at 163 out of 191. This is a ranking that places her in the bottom, Low HDI, quarter of the four quartered scale. While her position has not changed much since entering the scaling system in 2005, improving minimally at an average of 0.80 annually, she remains resolutely in the low HDI class in spite of her abundance of natural and human capital. This is a loud and clear indicator of the failure of the state in its duty to its people, with all prejudice to the endless stream of self-glorifying political rhetoric flowing from the pulpits of power.

Nigeria’s diverse potentials if well harnessed should see her on the top quarter of the HDI. What precludes this Cinderella transformation is the persisting culture of rampant corruption in the polity. And until we can devote ourselves to a systemic change to this narrative the human properity index for the Nigerian population will continue down the slippery developmental slope of no return.

In an article on Nigeria’s 2023 outlook, a DTN contributor forsaw Nigeria in 2023 being shaped by upheaval fueled by miseries and hopelessness if its systemic anomalies are not satisfactorily addressed.

He listed the primary triggers to include the country’s pathetic economic indices, including growing unemployment, cynical gross domestic product (GDP), inflation and the undiversified weak mono-commodity economy, lacking leadership and managerial oxygen.

Secondary triggers are the dampened economic opportunities induced by nonchalance over worsening corruption, mounting debt burden, crude oil and foreign exchange manipulation, macroeconomic flux, insecurity, hunger, poor electricity supply, as well as lack of constitutionalism and rule of law.

A tertiary trigger is the unresolved national question pertaining to incompatibility of the country’s political system and its diverse ethnicities, which is negatively impacting on

Nigeria’s fundamentals.

Put differently, the country’s unitary system is antithetical to a multiethnic society like Nigeria, which undoubtedly, is the root cause of its regression and despairs.

He added that these concerns will increase immediately after power transition in May 2023 with increased build-up towards the end of the year and beyond. This unprecedented development will mark a watershed in the history of Nigeria.

Indeed, the youths will be more concerned about their dimmed future, which they believe, has been sacrificed on the altar of greed by politicians and those in position of authority. Impaired vision of the country’s leadership and lack of capacity to design programmes and set priorities to lift the country from its current dark clouds are believed to be chiefly responsible for the deteriorating living conditions of Nigerians.

The reality is that no amount of rejigging of the country’s unitary constitution can make Nigeria work, except it is replaced with a federal structure characterized by fiscal autonomy, where every state or region can freely aspire in line with its capacity and resourcefulness. The current system cannot unite and hold the various nationalities together.

What is fundamental is the real search for “solution to the disillusion”, to borrow from the great reggae artist, Peter Tosh. It is not about elections and leadership change but about disillusion in the land. The syolution is total restructuring based on the 1963 Constitution. This constitution had been tested, and it worked.

The current unitary structure breads corruption, ethnicism, nepotism and misery. That corruption has become au way of life in Nigeria, permeating all strata of government and society, is a proof of the country’s chronic and irredeuyyyyconsciousness among frustrated youths of the ineffectuality of internet fraud (yahoo, yahoo), betting, gambling, drugs and other pseudo-revenue generation mechanisms. There will be a complete emotional shift based on new reality that these vices are not solution to their problems, and may elicit a resolve to take their destinies into their hands.

Indeed, the youths will be more concerned about their dimmed future, which they believe, has been sacrificed on the altar of greed by politicians and those in authorities. Impaired vision of the country’s leadership and lack of capacity to design programmes and set priorities to lift the country from its current dark clouds are believed to be chiefly responsible for the deteriorating living conditions of Nigerians.

The reality is that no amount of rejigging of the country’s unitary constitution can make Nigeria work, except it is replaced with a federal structure characterized by fiscal autonomy, where every state or region can freely aspire in line with its capacity and resourcefulness. The current system cannot unite and hold the various nationalities together.

What is fundamental is the real search for “solution to the disillusion”, to borrow from the great reggae artist, Peter Tosh. It is not about elections and leadership change but about disillusion in the land. The solution is total restructuring based on the 1963 Constitution. This constitution had been tested, and it worked.

The current unitary structure breads corruption, ethnicism, nepotism and misery. That corruption has become a way of life in Nigeria, permeating all strata of government and society, is a proof of the country’s chronic and irredeemable state of decay. Undeniably, the current political structure cannot even pass the Rotary Four Way Test, if used to measure the sincerity of purpose. Is it the truth? Is it fair to all concerned? Does it build goodwill and better friendship? Is it beneficial to all concerned? The answer is a resonant NO.

we seek to be called Your Excellency, then the process through which we are elected should also be excellent or sufficiently credible to generate the required confidence and moral authority to govern and lead”.

Nigeria, Ireland boost relations on Diaspora engagement

UKPONO UKPONG

The Chairman/CEO, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, says Irish Diaspora Engagement should serve as strategic partnership for Nigeria's

sustained engagement with her Diaspora.

Dabiri-Erewa stated this when she received Irish Ambassador to Nigeria Mr Peter Ryan in her office in Abuja against the backdrop of Irish Diaspora pulling their country out of recession.

Murdered Ebonyi couple: Umahi fulfils Varsity scholarship promise to victims' children

a promise that Ebonyi State Government would bankroll their university education when ever they were due.

The NiDCOM Boss added that the Commission can tap into their wealth of engagement with the Diaspora to bring the Nigerian Diaspora closer to the country, saying that NiDCOM has created Diaspora-centric activities since its establishment 4 years ago.

Dabiri-Erewa wished the Ambassador the best in all his endeavours, while assuring him of the Commission's unwavering support

and partnership with the Irish Diaspora Ministry and by extension, the Irish Government.

Irish Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Peter Ryan, expressed delight on the visit to NiDCOM, agreed that the two countries have enjoyed betterDiaspora relationship, Educational and Cultural connections via the Diaspora agencies of both Ireland and Nigeria.

The Ambassador explained that his coming was

to compare notes and share ideas for a more robust diaspora engagement, stating that there is still more to learn in this area of focus and find ways of collaboration.

He noted that the Irish Government recognises the power of the Diaspora and the need in engaging with its people outside the shores of their country through various channels as the Irish Diaspora are proud of their homeland.

Mr. Ryan went further to say with the Irish 40% Diaspora, they have 25% younger population in Africa and they have the resilient spirit as Nigerians, as they perform excellently well in their various fields.

Mr Ryan applauded the NiDCOM Boss for her show of care to Nigerians during the Ukraine and Sudan Crises, saying, "the Diaspora is the greatest treasure to any country in the world."

Governor David Umahi of Ebonyi State has fulfilled his promise to the orphaned children of the late Mr and Mrs Darlington Uzonwa, an Umuahia, Abia State-based Ebonyi couple brutality murdered by robbers.

The couple who were popular poultry farmers and major egg distributors in the Abia State capital, were shot dead in a broad-day- light on January 25, 2020, along BCA Road Umuahia but their children who were driving with them in their family car when they came under attack escaped by providence.

The attention of Governor Umahi was later drawn to the dastardly incident through a letter by the Correspondent Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, Abia State chapter for possible intervention to mitigate the plights of the traumatised victims' children.

Gov. Umahi later invited the children and their family representatives over to his office for a meeting, and promptly gave some palliatives to assist their secondary education with

All three children of the couple were still then in the Secondary School but two have now graduated remaining the last born child who is currently in Senior Secondary one (SS1).

Meanwhile, the Correspondents Chapel in a follow-up letter dated May 11, 2023 informed the Governor that the first daughter of the couple had been offered admission to study Economics at the Federal University Ndufu Alike (FUNAI).

The family of the victims, had in a separate letter jointly signed by Mr Gregory Uzonwa, and Mrs Joy Ifeanyi-Sunday, also reminded the Governor of his earlier promise.

Few days later, he monetised the cost of university education for the orphaned children of the Uzonwas, and caused same to be transferred into a dedicated bank account as agreed by the family.

Meanwhile, the family has expressed their profound gratitude to Gov. Umahi for the gesture which according to them is a huge relief and succour.

NYSC is best youth programme in Africa, Bayelsa SSG

AMOS OKIOMA, YENAGOA

The Secretary to the Bayelsa State Government, Alabo Gideon Ekeuwei, has said the National Youths Service Corps (NYSC), is the most vibrant and best youths programme in Africa in the last 50 years.

According to Alabo Gideon Ekeuwei, despite the challenges faced in the last 50 years, the NYSC programme has outlived every other youths scheme initiated in Nigeria and continent of Africa.

Ekeuwei, who is also the Chairman, NYSC State Governing Board, described the NYSC as a key factor for national development and integration.

Alabo Gideon Ekeuwei, who made this

known during the NYSC @ 50 Anniversary lecture at the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Secretariat, Yenagoa, Bayelsa state, the corps members who have become major elements in the Youths scheme have become an indispensable factor in the areas of education, health care, agriculture and infrastructure as they carry out their primary and secondary assignments.

Ekeuwei, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary General Services, Mr. Anthony Ichobo congratulated the Service Corps for its 50th Anniversary celebration and said he looked forward to the next 50 years of the scheme as the champion of national unity, cultural integration and religious tolerance.

Sanwo-Olu appoints eight Perm Secs, tasks appointees to raise bar of service

BENJAMIN OMOIKE

Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Thursday, appointed eight Permanent Secretaries across Ministries and Departments, bringing the number to 59.

The Governor swore in the new Permanent Secretaries at a ceremony held at the State House, Alausa.

Sanwo-Olu told the appointees that their selection for the positions, after undergoing rigorous screening procedures, was approved based on the knowledge, commitment, dedication and professionalism they brought to bear in the service of the State.

Mr Adewuyi Moshood Adewale was appointed as Permanent Secretary and Auditor General of the State. His appointment is, however, subject to the clearance and confirmation by the House of Assembly.

The Governor, who described the screening process as merit-driven, said the established standards instituted by his administration for the appointment of Permanent Secretaries had continued to bring out the best among the personnel within the State’s workforce.

Sanwo-Olu charged the Permanent Secretaries, who he said will be driving the machinery of government, to bring additional levels of commitment, loyalty and service to the State in their respective capacities, stressing that the new responsibilities placed higher expectations on them to justify their appointments to the positions.

He said: “With your appointment to the position of Permanent Secretary, what is expected of you is an additional level of loyalty, commitment and service to the citizens of Lagos. Given your pedigree and professional experience, I expect nothing less than excellent and result-oriented leadership in your respective posts. Your work must speak excellently for itself. I urge the new appointees to discharge their duties with minimal supervision.

“As a Government, we will continue to identify and reward public servants who give in their best in service of our State. We are in service to ensure Lagos continues to thrive for businesses and habitable for people. Our citizens must get these dividends in whatever areas we are

discharging our responsibilities. You must know too well that our service must be for the benefit of tax payers, who will be measuring the government’s overall performance.”

Sanwo-Olu pledged that his administration would continue to support the State's workforce in the areas of capacity building, motivation and reward system in order to enhance efficiency and sustain the civil service as one of the most effective in Africa.

The Governor said the rapid elevation of personnel in the top cadre had created a pathway for career advancement for young people in the civil service, noting that his Government would not relent in creating opportunities for the youth in service to attain their career aspirations.

“To citizens who see public service as a place to grow their career, Lagos remains the best choice to start a career in public service. We will continue to produce the best quality of civil servants that are service-oriented. We will not stop until our citizens feel the impact of purposeful governance across areas of service. The Greater Lagos we are about will happen

and it is what we are committed to. We are on track and it will happen in our lifetime.”

The Governor, again, projected gender balance in the latest appointment. Of the eight Permanent Secretary appointees, four are women, while the rest are men.

The Head of Service (HOS), Mr. Hakeem Muri-Olu, said the process for appointing Permanent Secretary, as instituted by the Sanwo-Olu administration, was not only fair and transparent, but also rigorous and at par with best practice across the world.

Represented by Mrs. Olasunkanmi Oyegbola, Permanent Secretary, Public Service Office, the HOS said the Governor should take full credit for the merit-driven procedures instituted in Lagos public service.

The Governor, Muri-Okunola said, was impressed with the performance of medical doctors in the screening exercise for Permanent Secretary position and agreed in principle to the proposed reforms in the health sector, which will further pave the way for the appointment of more medical doctors into the body of Permanent Secretaries.

...We’ll continue to reward loyal, dedicated workers - Gov

EMEKA OKAFOR, UMUAHIA

UNICEF, NGF celebrate remarkable achievements in PHC

...Dish out about $6m in awards poll

DOOSUUR IWAMBE, ABUJA

The Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF), in collaboration with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), have announce that Borno State was awarded as the overall champion in the inaugural Primary Health Care Leadership Awards.

The Awards honour strong leadership and commitment of Governors who have made significant investments in Primary Health Care (PHC).

A statement from the UN body noted that the investments have been instrumental in transforming the lives of women, girls, and children across Nigeria.

According to the statement, the best-performing state in the country, Borno, will receive $700,000, a testament to the transformative power of its effective leadership and strategic investment in Primary Health Care (PHC).

Zonal prizes go to Kwara for North central, Jigawa for Northwest, Borno for Northeast, Ebonyi for Southeast, Rivers for South – South, and Ondo for Southwest.

The first runners up in these zones are Bauchi, FCT, Zamfara, Abia, Edo, and

Ogun. Each zone's winner will be awarded $500,000, and the first runners-up in each zone will receive $400,000.

Reacting to the development, Cristian Munduate, Representative of UNICEF Nigeria said; "The courage, vision, and dedication shown by the leadership in the winning states is truly inspiring.

"Their commitment to improving Primary Health Care has brought about significant and positive impact on the lives of its constituents, particularly women, girls, and children. Borno State's double victory underscores the power of strategic investment and collaboration in building a healthier future for Nigeria. I congratulate all the winners for their exemplary commitment to Primary Health Care."

On its part, the Director of Nigeria Governor’s Forum added, "This is an important moment to acknowledge the governors' dedication to Primary Health Care.

"Their initiatives serve as a testament to the power of collaboration and strategic investment in building a healthier future for Nigeria."

The PHC Leadership Challenge, which culminated in these awards, was born from a historic gathering in

APGA state congress 2023: Debate group set to grill Anambra chairmanship candidates

Ahead of APGA's State Congress, the Anambra Independent Media Support Group, AIMSG, has concluded arrangements for a debate where the candidates would be grilled on Integrity, Party Loyalty, Fraternity, Competence, Experience, Credibility, and Transformational Leadership Imperatives.

Addressing Journalists today in Awka, the Director General, AIMSG, Dr. Chuma-Odili Harris who noted that the initiative is geared towards ensuring that APGA delegates are better informed on the political policies of the Chairmanship candidates and take informed decisions as they go to polls on Tuesday May 23, 2023, to elect the new Chairman of the party.

Chuma said, “It is against the preceding that the participants of the APGA state Chairmanship debate are expected to share their insights on how the ruling party in the state can sustainably grow its member-

Two arrested in connection with attack on US Embassy officials in Anambra

NKIRU NWAGBO

Anambra State Police Command says it has raided a camp occupied by hoodlums operating in Ogbaru Local Government Area, and arrested two persons, in connection to the killing of two US Consulate officials on Tuesday in the area.

The state Police Commissioner, CP Echeng Echeng, stated this on Thursday, during a press conference in Awka, Anambra State.

Echeng said police operatives moved swiftly immediately the command got the information of the attack. He said the operatives combed the area and also raided a camp used by gunmen in the area and found that it had been totally deserted, but was able to arrest two persons, who are now helping police in their investigation.

He said: “As you are probably aware, a team of officials from the Lagos Consulate of the United States of America and their police escorts (USA) were ambushed on 16/05/2023.

Consequently, a joint team of Mobile Policemen and troops of the Nigerian Navy stationed in Onitsha

was immediately deployed to the area. Upon arrival at the scene of the incident, the joint security team sighted and engaged the assailants in a shot-out but they escaped through a nearby forest.

“Yesterday – 17/05/2023, joint security forces comprising police tactical teams from the command and troops of the Nigerian Army as well as the Nigerian Navy

raided a camp in Ogwuaniocha community of Ogbaru LGA, which was suspected to be the hideout of the assailants, but discovered that it had been deserted. Two persons of interest were arrested and they currently assisting the police in the investigation. The criminal camp was razed down by the joint security team.”

The CP said the arrested men have had their contacts

traced through their phone conversation, and that the command is gradually closing in on the killers.

When he was asked the level of cooperation the command has received from the US government since the incident, Echeng said the US embassy has been cooperative, and has also helped the command with needed information on the officials and their mission to Anambra.

He said this was not the best time to apportion blames about whether the officials sought security clearance from the command before coming into the state or not, adding that the priority now is to get the perpetrators to face the law.

He stated that: “The preliminary investigation conducted by the command, following the incident, revealed that five male officials of the USA consulate and four armed Mobile Police escorted from Lagos on a mission to assess the impact of erosion in Ogbaru LGA were travelling in a convoy of two vehicles when they suddenly came under attack by armed men who targeted them with gunfire and set their vehicles ablaze.”

NUJ advises FG on peace building among Nigerians before transiting to new govt

IDRIS AHMED, LOKOJA

ship while addressing core issues of governance.

The Director General who disclosed that the debate would be broadcast by all Social media platforms, both online and terrestrial television networks, said that dozens of journalists, bloggers, social media influencers have been invited to the event.

According to him, the debate would last for a duration of 120 minutes and it is scheduled to hold 21st of May 2023, at Best Western Meloch Hotel, Awka.

The Chairman, Nigeria Union of Journalists, Kogi State Council, Comrade Adeiza Momohjimoh, has urged the Federal Government to embark on aggressive sensitisation and mobilisation of the citizens towards peace and national unity.

What the country need now is effective mobilisation of the citizens especially before, during and after the transition processes ushering in the new administration.

Comrade Adeiza Momohjimoh gave the advice on Thursday when he received a delegation from National Orientation Agency (NOA), in his office at the NUJ press centre Lokoja.

The state Council Chairman of the NUJ, warned Nigerians against derogatory and divisive utterances that are capable of inciting violence, disunity and confusion.

He therefore advised Politicians to consider Nigeria first before any other consideration as without the nation none can forward him or self for any appointment or seek positions.

Earlier, the State Director, National Orientation Agency, Kogi office, Mrs Florence Yemisi Oloronnmisihola, represented by Mr. Patrick Edogbanya, the state Deputy Director of the agency, said the delegation was at the NUJ in compliance with the directives of Director General, Garba Abari, to embark on peace building of the people.

The Director informed the Journalists that the agency's mandate is to mobilise Nigerians for peace building so as to re unite them especially after the keenly contested general elections.

According to the Director, the agency has so far reached out to traditional rulers, religions leaders and followers as well as busi-

ness and social groups in the bid to disseminate the message of peace building among Nigerians.

The NOA boss in the state who appealed to the press for their usual cooperation with the agency also commended the Journalists over the ethical and professional conducts in the discharge of their duties.

FG appoints Raji-Mustapha as Director-General, National Productivity Centre

UKPONO UKPONG

The Federal Government has appointed Dr Nasir Olaitan Raji-Mustapha as the Director General of the National Productivity Centre (NPC).

The Minister of Labour and Employment, Sen. Chris Ngige, presented the letter of appointment to the new NPC Director-General today in his office.

The letter, dated May 2, 2023 and signed by Ngige, read: "Appointment as the Director-General of the National Productivity Centre.

"In accordance with the provisions of Section 5 of the National Productivity Centre Act, Cap 70, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria (LFN), 2004; Mr President, Muhammadu Buhari has approved your appointment as the new Director-General of the NPC.

"You shall hold office for four years and shall be eligible for re-appointment for a period of four years. Your current appointment takes effect from May 19, 2023 when the tenure of the incumbent Director-General is expected to expire."

Accepting the appointment, the new DG thanked the President and the Honourable Minister for finding him worthy of the appointment and promised to take the centre to greater heights

in order to realise its mandate.

Until his new appointment, Raji-Mustapha was the Director of Procurement in the Centre. He was at different times, Deputy Director and Assistant Director under various capacities, during which he handled numerous important and strategic assignments, geared towards enhancing national productivity.

Raji-Mustapha joined the Centre in 1994 as a Senior Productivity Research Officer, Agriculture and Rural Productivity Department, Abuja.

Before entering the public service, he was a Lecturer at Alemaya University (Now Haramaya University), from 2002 to 2004 under the Ethiopia-Nigerian Technical Aid Corp Volunteer.

His academic qualifications include a Masters Degree in Business Administration (MBA), Master of Science (M.Sc.) in Applied Entomology and Parasitology, Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (D.V.M) and West African School Certificate. As a scholar, he published three books and no fewer than six articles in both local and international journals.

The institutions attended by Raji-Mustapha include University of Jos, Plateau State, Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, Nassarawa State

University and Olalomi Comprehensive College, Offa, Kwara State, among others. He has also attended numerous local and international trainings and workshops.

Raji-Mustapha has equally won numerous prizes and awards, including the

National Productivity Merit Award of the National Productivity Centre, Best M.Sc. Student in Applied Entomology and Parasitology in Unijos(1995) and Best MBA Student, Nassarawa State University Keffi (2019), among others.

Ebonyi lawmaker, Ununu fights dirty over alleged involvement in rice fraud

CHIJIOKE NJOKU, ABAKALIKI

The lawmaker representing Abakaliki

South State Constituency, Mr Joseph Ununu, has reportedly engaged in a dirty fight with the management of the Abakaliki rice mill, over his alleged involvement in rice fraud at the company.

Ununu, a two-term former chairman of the rice mill company, in the early hours of the day, had resisted a team of taskforce during a routine check on the activities of individuals who are selling rice with bad scale.

The lawmaker allegedly threatened to remove the incumbent chairman who was duly elected, when he eventually becomes a deputy speaker of the State House of Assembly.

Trouble started when Mrs Nnena Ununu, one of the wives of the lawmaker, was discovered to have imposed illegal levies on women's wing as their leader and encouraged them to use the bad scale for customers.

She boasted that the rice mill chairman would

do nothing to stop her, because of the protection of her husband, and when the team of taskforce arrived at her shop, she called the lawmaker who came with a team suspected to be thugs and dispersed the.taskforce.

An Eyewitness who spoke to newsmen in Abakaliki on the condition of unanimity said:

"On the 13th of March, it was discovered that Mrs Nnena Ununu, the wife of the Honorable member representing Abakaliki south, who happens to be the head of the market women imposed an unauthorized levy on them.

"She asked them to pay

the money forcefully to amend their scale, by making sure that anybody who is coming to buy rice in Line C buys 17 kg instead of the 25 kg standard measurement.

"When it got to the attention of the rice mill chairman, he swung into action and dissolved the executives of the union and told her not to pilot the affairs, he then appointed a 7-man committee to confiscate those adjusted scales." She said.

The chairman of the rice mill company Mr Linus Obeji, who confirmed the incident described it as unfortunate,

that a former chairman of the company who is now a lawmaker would abandon his legislative function to encourage his wife who allegedly sponsored the bad practice and create bad image for the State.

"We summoned all the market women and told them that such evil cannot prevail in Abakaliki rice mill, that we are determined to make things right.

"Nobody whatever, no matter how highly placed you are can do such evil against the people of the rice mill, against our customers, and the government of Ebonyi State who stands against corruption.

"Today, the committee went to confiscate those adjusted scales and were attacked by Chidinma Ununu, (daughter of the lawmaker) who took the phone of the pressmen that came to Cover the event.

"The wife immediately called her husband who came with his boys and chased them out, bragging that he would use his gun and kill anyone that comes to his shop.

Friday, May 19, 2023

Oil & Gas sector drop behind Agric, Trade, Telecomms, others in 2021-2022 GDP, says Wabote

sation of Nigeria.

OKIOMA, YENAGOA

AMOS

As the 2023 Nigerian Oil and Gas Opportunity Fair (NOGOF), kicked off, the Executive Secretary of Nigerian Content Development And Monitoring Board ( NCDMB), Engr Simbi Wabote, has said that the oil and gas sector between 2021and 2022 steadily dropped behind Agriculture, Trade, Telecommunications/ ICT, and Real Estate in terms of sectors that contributed the most to Nigeria’s GDP.

He said these are signs of a dying sector, saying everybody must all join hands to stop the decline so that we can return oil and gas contribution to GDP to double digits levels similar to other major oil producing countries.

Wabote handed down this at the 2023 Nigerian Oil and Gas Opportunity Fair in Yenagoa the BAYELSA state, at the Nigerian Content Tower with the theme; The Oil and Gas Industry: Catalyst and Fuel for the Industriali-

According to him, "This year theme reflects the pivotal role the oil and gas industry is expected to play in driving the economic growth and development of Nigeria.Of late, this role expected of the oil and gas industry has been dwindling due to missed opportunities as a result of policy inconsistencies, deferred decisions, and investments apathy."

"Just to set the context, I would like to draw your attention to the nation’s GDP growth rate between the years 2021 to 2022 as released by the National Bureau for Statistics (NBS). Over this period, the growth of the nation’s GDP has been marginal, but the reality is that we need to drive the growth rate to double digits for us to achieve the level of economic advancement and development that we desire."

"The NBS report noted that the total annual contribution of oil to aggregate GDP in 2022 was 5.67% compared to 7.24% in 2021.

Oyo Govt introduces app to monitor waste management

STEPHEN GBADAMOSI, IBADAN

The Oyo State Government has introduced a mobile application for improving and tracking the collection of waste in the state.

This was revealed by the management of the state Waste Management Consultant, Mottainai Recycling in Ibadan, on Thursday.

Chief Strategy Officer, Mottainai Recycling Limited, Ms. Uloma Airhienbuwa, said the new step was geared towards simplifying waste management in the Pace-Setter State, adding that “the easy-to-use application will help in tracking the movement and management' of hazardous and other solid wastes.”

According to Ms. Airhienbuwa, the waste management app, which could be downloaded on all smart devices, was designed with user convenience and sustainability in mind, “offering several key features to facilitate waste and recycling pickup requests.”

“The app also offers clarity on when your waste is picked up, and by whom; and an ability to pay your waste bill,” she said.

Speaking further, Ms. Airhienbuwa hinted that the development also had “a fun and transparent way of

incentivising waste sorting. The app has a user-friendly Interface: The app provides an intuitive and user-friendly interface that allows waste generators to easily navigate and make pickup requests with just a few taps.

“Users can initiate waste pickup requests through the app by specifying the type of waste, quantity and preferred pickup date and time. Users can either make this an on-demand request or create an ideal pickup schedule for themselves.

“This feature enables efficient scheduling and coordination between Mottainai and users.”

She also said “the app incorporates GPS technology to enable users to locate their specific waste-pickup location.

“To incentivise waste sorting, the app incorporates a points-based system. Users earn points based on the accuracy of their waste sorting and responsible disposal practices. Accumulated points can be redeemed for various rewards, such as discounts on waste management services, or donation to a charity organization of your choice.”

Ms. Airhienbuwa added that the app was continually being developed to ensure users a seamless experience for pickup requests, tracking the progress of pickups and payments and receiving rewards.

PDP alleges plot by Umahi to influence return of election petition tribunal to Ebonyi

CHIJIOKE NJOKU, ABAKALIKI

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ebonyi State chapter, has accused the Governor of Ebonyi State, Engr David Umahi, of sinister plots to influence the relocation of the Ebonyi State election petitions tribunal currently sitting in Abuja back to Abakaliki.

The PDP in a statement issued on Thursday in Abakaliki alleged that Governor Umahi had been boasting that he had lobbied powerful judicial officers in Abuja to ensure that the Ebonyi State Elections Petitions Tribunal is relocated back to Abakaliki.

The party added that Gov. Umahi publicly boasted about this on 13th May, 2023, at a burial ceremony in Amangwu Edda in Edda Local Government Area of the State, where he was quoted to have allegedly said that nothing on earth can stop the Election Petition Tribunal from being relocated back to Ebonyi state.

But the party has, however, urged the election petitions authorities, especially the President of the Court of Appeal, Honourable

TITUS AKHIGBE, BENIN

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Ambrose Alli University (AAU), Ekpoma chapter, has described the interim report by the University’s Special Intervention Team (SIT), as falsehood, misinformation, incorrect and misleading.

While presenting an interim report on May 11 to Governor Godwin Obaseki, a member of the SIT, Mr. Austin Osakue had announced the unravelling of a N2 billion tax fraud, massive certificate and transcript racketeering and other nefarious acts by the authorities and staff of the state owned tertiary institution.

In a joint statement in Ekpoma by the Chairman, Dr. Cyril Oziegbe Onogbosele, and the Secretary, Dr. Willams Odion, insisted that the report, in its entirety, is a direct admittance of failure in the administration of the university in the past two years and a confirmation of the position of the union earlier canvassed that the SIT, as constituted, lacked the adequate knowledge, exposure and experience in university administration to manage and administer a university in the 21st century.

Onogbosele and Odion maintained that the damning allegation of a N2 billion tax fraud is a ploy by the SIT to win itself more into the mind or heart of the Visitor so as to maintain its grip on the administration of the university and a desperate attempt to cover up for its on-going malfeasance.

Besides, the union viewed the interim report of the SIT as political, deceptive, uninformed, misleading, mischievous and a

need to ignore Gov. Umahi's antics. We urge the Judicial Authorities to remain steadfast and sustain the Relocation of the Tribunal from Abakaliki to Abuja.

"We are convinced as an interested party that the sustenance of the Tribunal at Abuja would guarantee justice, Peace, equity and fairness. We are equally convinced that the decision to relocate the Tribunal to Abuja was a welcome decision as it provides a level-playing ground for all the parties involved in the cases before the Tribunal. The decision was hailed and celebrated by all the parties and the politically conscious citizens of Ebonyi State and beyond," the party noted.

MHWUN pleads with Otti against using external personnel for HMB appointment

EMEKA OKAFOR, UMUAHIA

Members of the Medical and Health Workers Union (MHWUN), at the Abia State Heath Management Board, has pleaded with the incoming administration under Dr Alex Otti not to consider appointing external personnel into top management of the Board.

Finance as it described as before this administration came into power in 2015,” it noted.

Justice Monica Dongban-Mensen to ignore Governor Umahi's antics in the interest of peace, justice, fairness and equity.

"Based on this development, the PDP in Ebonyi State hereby wishes to alert the Election Petition Authorities, especially the President of the Court of Appeal on the

The party further alleged that Ebonyi State Government is notorious for masterminding violence and terror-related acts, insisting that allowing the elections petitions tribunal to be relocated back to Abakaliki as allegedly boasted by Governor Umahi would open a new window of opportunity for the reign of impunity and terror, adding that such an ugly scenerio should not be allowed to play up in the State.

The Chapter Branch Chairperson, Comrade Wokoma Chidinma Mary and Secretary, Comrade Echeta Chikezie, in a signed passionate letter to the incoming governor of the State and made available to Journalists in Umuahia, Thursday, described the emergence of Dr Otti as an answered prayers to God by the people of the State.

“Indeed your election was a confirmation of the age long desire of Abians from 2015 to date.”

The union then pleaded with Dr Otti to “End sending of external personnel as Chief Executive, Director of Administration and Director of Finance to HMB as it has highly contributed to the unproductive and stunned growth of HMB since 2015.”

“Whereas HMB has directors who are qaulify in those positions as Chief Executive, Directive of Administration and Director of

The union revealed that the outgoing administration owe its members at the HMB 16 months salary arrears while enjoined the governor elect to bring his magic “Magic of positive administrative success would be brought to bare in government of the State and improve the welfare of workers for in HMB.”

The MHWUN branch expressed it’s readiness to negotiate with the incoming administration for the utmost welfare of HMB who have been enslaved for many years now, ranging from short payment of salaries to complete non-payment of salaries and allowances.

grand ploy to deceive the public and Edo State Governor Godwin Obaseki, the visitor to the university, in particular, to believe that the school is experiencing the purported “government’s vision of repositioning the institution to meet global standards.”

They queried: "Are the lecturers in charge of tax collection for the government? Who are the government appointees responsible for tax collection and remittance? Why were they not named? It is not true that the staff unions in the university resisted the university authorities in payment of tax? In fact, professors in AAU, Ekpoma pay one of the highest tax as much as N78,000 per month. Considering the serious criminal nature of tax evasion or fraud, why have they not been arrested and charged to court?"

The chairman and the scribe explained that what is obtainable in the school is that taxes are deducted at source of payment of salaries, noting that as such, there is no escape route for any staff because the tax due against each member of staff must be deducted by the authorities before effecting the payment of salaries.

With an estimated annual internally generated revenue of over N5.5 billion exclusive of government subvention, the unionists explained that the huge amount is never accounted for as it goes into the private accounts of some top officials of the university, adding that the Staff Audit exercise authorised by the Omokhodion-led Council even found cases of unknown staff and falsification of records in the files of both academic and non-teaching staff just as efforts to discipline the culprits were cu -

riously crippled by certain government officials

They expressed their surprise that the report is also silent on the immense sums of money being collected by the members of the SIT under the guise of seating, travelling and other bogus allowances.

They added: "The SIT should avail the Visitor to the university and the public the total amount of money it spent for allowances and activities in its two years in the university. What is the total amount of internally generated revenue, including school fees in the university during the period under review? Has SIT attracted any fund outside the university for the infrastructural development of the university during the period under review?"

They continued: "They should publish this report to assist in the appreciation of the so-called achievements of SIT, particularly for being able to offset “the loan of N330 million collected to pay salaries in 2021 and another N20 million which was meant for the purchase of special vehicles.”

As a way forward, the unionists called for the stemming of undue government interference in the day-to-day administration of the institution so as to allow the Governing Council, the free hand to run, manage and administer the school in strict compliance with the rules and regulations as well as the law of the university.

Onogbosele and Odion want a marching order to be given to the Governing Council to deal with all outstanding problems in the university in a time-frame of six months and a restoration of the annual state budgetary allocation and the monthly subvention.

Man, 29, strangles 6yr-old boy to death in Adamawa

Aman identified as Abubakar Kawu, has been arrested by the Adamawa State Police Command over allegations of kidnapping and culpable homicide.

The 29-year-old Kawu of Unguwan Tutayera or Amare in Jada Local Government Area, allegedly abducted a 6-year-old boy known as Abdulhafiz Buba Aliyu and strangled him to death.

Kawu, whose business is dry cleaning and based in Jada, whisked away the boy into the bush on the 12th of May 2023 and demanded N3.5 million from his father as ransom.

The father of the boy, Muhammed Buba Aliyu, told the accused that he could only afford

the sum of N50,000. The suspect became provoked and strangled the boy to death after spending two days with him in the bush.

He confessed to having killed the boy while being interrogated by the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), of the Command, SP Suleiman Yahaya Nguroje, on Wednesday.

The PPRO extended the condolences of the Commissioner of Police, Afolabi Babatola, to the father of the deceased and other family members.

SP Nguroje assured that the Command will ensure the prosecution of the suspect upon completion of the investigation, and advised parents and guardians to monitor the movement of the children.

TOM GARBA

AAU crisis: Lecturers dismiss N2bn tax fraud, insist report is hoax, political

10th House Speakership: Cracks in G-7 as Doguwa, two other aspirants back Abbas

because I'm also a beneficiary of the same kind of arrangement.

"I have benefited from party arrangements, I have personally benefited from this zoning arrangement. That was what gave me the position of the Chief Whip of the 8th House of Representatives even when there were issues, the zoning helped me.

"Today I am the Majority Leader of the House of Representatives, courtesy of the National Working Committee of my party. My great brothers and sisters, courtesy demands that it's only fair that I also, stand by the position of the NWC of my party.

"It's not like the table is turning against me. It's just that time has come for me to also pay back, and I think, paying back in this circumstances is a great responsibility that I must oblige.

"I rise before you this evening my colleagues and Rep Gbajabiamila, standing by me are Rep Abdulraheem Tunji Olaoye and Rep Makki Abubakar Yalleman. We are here individually and collectively stepping into the shoes of this great campaign.

Omo- Agege lost woefully to Oborevwori - PDP Spokesperson

NOSA ÀKEÑZUA, ASABA

Spokesperson of Delta State Campaign Council of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Olorogun Barr Fred Latimore Oghenesivbe, said the Delta APC governorship candidate in the just concluded, Senator Ovie Omo- Agege elections is yet to come to terms with the reality staring at him in the face that he lost the Delta State Governorship election to Rt Hon Sheriff Francis Oborevwori of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

He said in reaction to claims by Omo- Agege that he won the March 18 governorship election in the state and that he is ready to reclaim his mandate .

Recall that Wednesday, some members of Delta State Chapter of the All Progressives Congress, APC, from Ndokwa/Ukwuani Federal Constituency paid a scheduled visit to Deputy Senate President, DSP, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege in Abuja, wherein he claimed that he won the 2023 Delta governorship election "clean and clear."

Oghenesivbe, who is also the Executive Assistant on Strategic Communications to Delta State Governor, Senator Dr Ifeanyi Arthur Okowa, advised Senator Omo- Agege to congratulate the incoming governor of the State, His Excellency, Rt Hon Sheriff Francis Oborevwori, and move on, because genuine evidence abound to repudiate his false and fraudulent claim to victory.

He noted that Senator Ovie OmoAgege's electioneering campaigns did not attract the major stakeholders and party bigwigs of Delta APC, which was a clear indication that he failed the governorship election long before it was held, adding that one of the core leaders of the APC, Dr Cairo Ojuogboh and several others gave vivid account of Senator Omo- Agege's unpreparedness, moral decay, lack of visionary leadership and gave cogent reasons why he performed abysmally in the just concluded governorship election in the state.

TOM OKPE, ABUJA

It's expected that a crack is expedient amongst aggrieved Speakership aspirants in the 10th House of Representatives otherwise, known as the Group of Seven (G-7) following withdrawal from the race by Majority Leader of the 9th House, Rep Alhassan Ado Doguwa.

The Majority Leader announced his withdrawal from the race in support of the All Progressives Congress, (APC) ordained candidate, Rep Tajudeen Abbas, alongside two other aggrieved aspirants, Rep Abdulraheem Tunji Olaoye, from Kwara State and Rep Makki Abubakar Yalleman, Jigawa State.

This was at the second meeting of the Tajudeen Abbas/Benjamin Kalu campaign group, organized by the 'Joint Task' -10th Assembly, a coalition of all 8 political parties with seats in the incoming House of Representatives when inaugurated.

While addressing the gathering, chaired by the outgoing Speaker of the

House, Rep Femi Gbajabiamila, Doguwa said time has come for him to act to a good party and established man who also benefited from the system.

He said: "My respected colleagues and brother the Prince of Zazzau, Rep Tajudeen Abbas; this year will be highly eventful for the Zazzau Emirate.

"Don't imagine that my appearance here is by accident. Don't think you are day dreaming, you are not day dreaming this is reality. Before you is Alhassan Ado Doguwa, the Chief Whip of the 8th Assembly and by the leave of my colleagues and the chief leave of the art.

"I am here to put on record that not just from today, that right from day, the National Working Committee, (NWC) of my patty, the APC, put it on the table that they have come up with zoning arrangement, and after zoning with all sense of morality, micro-zoned to the North West, and to my brother, Tajudeen Abbas, representing Zaria Federal Constituency of North West Nigeria, I called my bid to contest for the speakership of the 10th House of Representatives off.

"I had to do that because I'm a man of the establishment. I had to do that

"We all wanted to be Speakers not because we knew there could be so many Speakers at every given point in time, there can be only one Speaker and we have individually and collectively decided to come and surrender our bids to be Speaker to our great party, and we also defer on record to our great gentleman that was picked by the party to run for the Speakership, officially on behalf of our great party, Rep Tajudeen Abbas.

"We are also of the opinion that the selection process of the Art, Abbas, was not in any way bias. We are also quite aware that the person of Tajudeen Abbas and his running mate, are qualified to hold their respective offices."

Recall that the G7 group, comprising the outgoing Deputy Speaker, Ahmed Idris Wase, (Plateau), Muktar Aliyu Betara, (Borno), Aliyu Sani Jaji, (Zamfara), Yusuf Adamu Gagdi, (Plateau), Miriam Onuoha, (Imo), Alhassan Ado Doguwa, (Kano); Sada Soli Jibia, (Katsina) and Makki Abubakar Yalleman, (Jigawa) with the exception of Olaoye all swore to back one aspirant amongst them to run as Speaker of the House.

Describing Omo- Agege's claim as laughable, Ogbenesivbe said the APC candidate is known to have large appetite for media propaganda and spread of spurious allegations.

"He blamed the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, over his woeful performance at the polls, alleging that some officials of the electoral umpire were compromised, but he failed to disclose their names," said the PDP chieftain.

Oghenesivbe noted that Senator Agege's acute desperation to be governor was responsible for his reckless statements and fraudulent claim to victory which the INEC declared in favour of Delta State Governor-Elect, Rt Hon Oborevwori, who won in twenty one, out of twenty five Local Government Areas in the state, leaving Agege with four LGAs.

The PDP spokesperson further asserted that prior to the 2023 governorship election, he (Oghenesivbe) predicted in several articles and media engagements that Elder Oborevwori will retire Senator Agege and Olorogun Kenneth Gbagi of the Social Democratic Party, SDP, from active politics in the State, a political prophesy that has been fulfilled.

"It's laughable and at the same time comical for Senator Agege who struggled and managed to win in four local government areas out of twenty five LGAs to shamelessly lay claim to victory. So shameful and highly despicable.

"Multifaceted evidence abound of how Agege illegally detained some INEC officials and party agents on election day, indulged in all manner of manipulations to win in four local governments. Agege must be reminded that he that comes to equity must come with clean hands.

"I dare to say, without prejudice, that no Tribunal or competent Court of Law in Nigeria, would declare Senator Agege winner on account of four local governments which he won after extensive crude scheming and manipulations.

"It's obvious that the outgoing Deputy Senate President is lost in woeful defeat. It's time for him to wake up from his deep slumber and accept the fact that Rt Hon Sheriff Francis Oborevwori, JP, shall be inaugurated governor of Delta State on May 29, at the Stephen Keshi International Stadium, Asaba, for a tenure of four years.

"Should Agege decide to run in 2027, Oborevwori shall defeat him again with a wide margin," Oghenesivbe assured.

10th Senate Presidency: Nasarawa Governor hails APC's endorsement of Akpabio/ Barau

The Governor of Nasarawa State, Abdulahi Sule, has said that Northern Governors who championed the call for the Presidency of Nigeria to be zoned to the southern part of Nigeria, could not be seen opposing the choices of the party and President-elect, Bola Tinubu, on those to occupy the office of the Senate President and his deputy.

Adressing members of the Stability Group, a body campaigning for the emergence of Senators Godswill Akpabio and Jibrin Barau, as Senate President and Deputy Senate President respectively for the 10th Senate who were on a thank you visit to him, in Abuja, he thanked the group under the chairmanship of the Governor of Ebonyi State, Dave Umahi for the visit and charged them to, apart from consulting major stakeholders of the party, should also talk to their colleagues who are still out of the group.

He specifically thanked the DG of

the group, Senator for supporting and working for the success of Akpabio/ Barau ticket despite that fact that he had tried twice to occupysame office, saying, "that you have already 70 of your colleagues in your group and you you are still going around soliciting for votes, shows humility."

According to the governor, "the northern governors took the decision to zone the position of this country to the south, in the overall interest of its unity. At the end of it all, God gave us the best in Asiwaju Bola AhmedTinubu. We cannot therefore be seen opposing his choice and that of the party, for the office of the Senate President.

"When he returns from his oversea trip, we will meet with the President-elect and think outside the box inorder to have something for our zone. Senators Akpabio and Barau, have my blessings. All the Northern governors are with Akpabio on this a d we will consult widely to ensure that they emerge the Senate President and Deputy Senate President."

"The country, he noted, is facing a lot. The incoming president will need

somebody like Akpabio, as the chairman of the National Assembly, to enable him push through his plans for Nigerians. Senator Akpabio to the best of my knowledge, has paid his dues, and that is why we are supporting him.

"Let me also encourage you to visit your colleagues and show them how important they are and once you do that, they will come on board. You have a lot to do. We must work very hard to reunite this country and I know Akpabio has what it takes to achieve that because he has a Pan Nigerian spirit."

Earlier in his speech, Senator

Ndume had informed the governor of their mission in his official residence, saying, " we are here to thank you and further solicit for your support. There are people that are yet to come on board especially your former colleagues and friends. Your Excellency, you can do a lot for us in this regard because you are one of the very many respectable voices in our party and beyond.

In his comment, the Senate Presidential hopeful, Senator Akpabio said, " Your Excellency, we are very appreciative of the decision of our party to zone the Senate President to the South. I be-

lieve this was done after due consultations and as a stakeholder of our party, your input must have been sought.

"We are going round talking to stakeholders across party lines because the next Senate has eight parties making up its membership and this is the first of its kind since 1999. We are currently building bridges across the country. I ask for more of your support as we forge ahead in our resolve to make Nigeria a better place. Please talk to your colleagues to support this ticket so that we can move ahead in the overall progress of Nigeria and Nigerians.

TUNDE OPALANA, ABUJA

Viral tribute: Saint Obi’s family disowns Zik Zulu Okafor

You remember that viral tribute penned by producer, Zik Zulu Okafor, where he insinuated that Saint Obi must have died from ill treatment from his wife? It is generating some more buzz so much that the sisters of Saint Obi have jointly rubbished, Zik Zulu’s position, calling it malicious. According to their joint statement, “Our attention has been drawn to the publication by one Mr. Zik Zulu Okafor concerning the death of our son, Mr. Obinna Nwafor, popularly known as Saint Obi, and the accompanying negative commentary in social and other media portraying his widow in an unfair and most defamatory manner. This is in no way, shape or form an accurate portrayal of the Lynda that we know and re -

late with. The Nwafor family also views the said article by Mr. Okafor as sad and most unfortunate. It was neither written in consultation with any member of the family nor authored with our consent or authority. We totally disassociate ourselves from it. The views and allegations

contained therein are entirely the opinion of the writer. They are false, malicious and insensitive to the wife, children and entire family he left behind. This is a mourning period for the family, and while we appreciate the condolences of friends, fans, and well-wishers,

we ask that the family’s privacy be respected at this time. The funeral rites will be communicated to the public in due course. May the soul of our dearly beloved brother, son, father and husband, rest in perfect peace. Amen. Signed, Ugoeze Edith Chinyere Obichuku Mrs. Freda Nwachukwu Eldest Sister (Texas, U.S.A) Elder Sister (Jos, Nigeria) For: The Nwafor Family of Umuezealaeze, Alaenyi, Ogwa, Mbatoli L.G.A, Imo State"

The heat is not only coming from Saint Obi’s family it seems. Zik Zulu confessed that his life has never been the same after that article. He told a close friend in Nollywood, “I’ve been called by nearly all the major publishing houses (names withheld by us)…all for interviews. I told them sorry, I am not Saint’s relative neither do I know him beyond Nollywood. I told them that I wrote about how getting married affected his relationship with us.

Kingsley Okereke’s ‘Mr Baby Daddy’

Sexual harassment: Ada Jesus says it’s prevalent in Nollywood

Famous content creator, Ada Jesus, has opened up about how her journey into Nollywood was cut short due to constant sexual harassment from movie producers.

Ada Jesus, in an interview on Instagram, stated that she was forced to leave Nollywood when it became obvious that producers would not cast her in movies if she refused to let them have their way.

Tracing her journey back to what led her into skit making, Ada Jesus recalled that the harassment came in different forms from different people, adding that some people would just start telling others in the industry that “this is my girlfriend. Then you will be shocked thinking that you got into a relationship you knew nothing about.”

Speaking further, she stated

that in some cases, some producers would demand money from up-and-coming actresses to feature in their movies. “They will collect N50,000 and they will give you a role. That’s how you will see some Nollywood movies and the person will be acting rubbish and you will be wondering who cast the person in the role.

“You can’t go home and tell your parents about these things because they will stop you from going the next day. So, I kept all these things in me but when I saw that it was becoming a consistent trend in Nollywood, I just washed my hands and said I was not doing it again.”

Ada Jesus also reacted to the rumour that linked her and her friend, Ash Mushy, having an affair with a former senator from a North-Central state, saying she had never met the senator let alone be

in a private space with him.

“The blogger just cooked up a story because her blog was dying and needed to revive it with our names. It was a terrible time but it made me more famous.

You have heard ‘baby mama’ and all those…well there is also ‘baby daddy’, and movie producer, Kingsley Okereke has unveiled the antics of this class of humans in a new film, ‘Mr Baby Daddy’. In the flick, Mava John Joshua happily married with his wife and only daughter, life was going on good until his mother came in with the demand for a son. The battle to keep his mother at bay as well as make her realize how important children are irrespective of the gender, formed the theme of the movie. At the end, the daughter in-law and her grandchild had to contend with the wrath of the mother. The movie was Directed by Emmanuel Ekaemen and Produced by Kingsley Okereke.

Winners emerge at 2023 NCC’s National Creative Writing competition

Winners have emerged at the Nigerian Copyright Commission’s 2023 National Creative Writing Competition for Secondary School Students across the country.

The winners emerged from Short Story, Poetry and Essay Writing Categories on Tuesday in Abuja.

Google celebrates Africa Day with arts, African music

Google says it will unveil a range of programmes and activities to celebrate Africa’s diverse cultural heritage and provide opportunities for people all over the world to mark 2023 Africa Day.

Google Nigeria, Interim Lead, Olumide Balogun in a statement on Wednesday said Africa Day marks the founding of the African Union (AU) and celebrates the continent’s quest for unity.

According to him, the programme included six new pocket galleries on Google Arts and Culture.

Balogun said the galleries where curated by esteemed partners from Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa, adding that the pocket galleries would offer an immersive experience of virtual exhibitions.

It will also provide a 360-degree view of artworks and artefacts, effectively allowing people to step into the heart of Africa’s cultural scene from wherever they were,” he said.

Balogun listed some of the partners as the Yemisi Shyllon Museum and Terra Kulture from Nigeria, the Mohammed Amin Foundation and National Museums of Kenya, and the University of Pretoria from South Africa.

He disclosed that each partner would present unique exhibitions

that celebrate their respective regions, providing a diverse exploration of Africa’s rich cultural heritage.

“In previous years, YouTube Music has held the Africa Day Concert, showcasing present and next-generation African music talents.

“This year, YouTube Music will unveil an Africa Day playlist, featuring popular and trending songs from various African artists.

“This initiative will also involve the public, who will have the opportunity to submit their favourite African songs via YouTube Shorts for a chance for it to potentially feature on the playlist,” he said.

Balogun explained that the celebrations would also highlight

African storytelling traditions through the “Stories and Storytellers of Africa”, an initiative on YouTube which would spotlight an extensive collection of African movies and series, celebrating the creators who bring these narratives to life.

According to him, alongside this, the “Showcase Your Africa” initiative would see YouTube partnering with content creators to share their perspectives on Africa, providing a glimpse into the continent’s diversity.

“Africa Day is a celebration of progress, unity, and the vibrant cultures that define the continent.

“We are excited that we can amplify these stories and experiences on our platforms,” he said.

In the Short Story category Kamarachi Ibeneme of St. Augustine College, New Nyanya, Karu Local Government Area of Nasarawa State emerged as the winner.

While Bello Beraccah Morolay of St. Anthony Secondary School, Ilorin in Kwara emerged second, Egbung Serah of St Augustine College, New Nyanya came third.

For the Poetry Category, Kelsey Chibuike of St. Augustine College, New Nyanya clinched the first prize and Salihu Abdullah of Essence International School, Kaduna came second.

Sa’Ada Yahaya of Jewel Model School in Kubwa, FCT clinched the third position.

Similarly, on the Essay Category, Fridapus Ikeoluwa of Muslim Model School, Ibadan emerged over all winner and Egwu Onyekachi of Government Secondary School, Kurudu, Abuja came second, while Angel Mbaya of Olumawu School, Abuja came third.

The event was supported by Multi-Choice, Nigerian Publishers Association, Association of Nigerian Authors, Musical Copyright Society of Nigeria and Deejays Association of Nigeria.

Speaking, the Director-General of NCC, Dr John Asein said the competition got over 600 entries from different schools across the federation.

“I went through some of them and the experience was awesome. These students are talented in creativity. I am sure that such creativity will take them to places.

“There is a need to ensure that copyright is not just in the bush, but is brought to life and it is made to touch lives, that is why we embarked on this National Creative Writing Competition for secondary schools.

“I promise you that this, being the first edition, will not be the last. We will do it again next year and we will start early.

“We will not leave the works of these students to be discarded; we will publish the best. And before the end of this year we will come out with the publication,” Asein said.

Meanwhile, in his address the Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu commended the initiative and believed it would promote creativity among secondary school students in the country.

“I am hopeful that this will be beneficial to our young students and facilitate the growth of creative writing skills and promote national development”.

NGX relapses, down 0.90% as market cap sheds N256.69bn

Aviation ministry now Aviation and Aerospace as FG concessions Abuja, Kano airports

CHUKWUEMEKE IWELUNMO

The Federal Government at the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting held on Wednesday approved the change of nomenclature of the Federal Ministry of Aviation to the Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace with immediate effect.

ria, is globally recognized for its superior technical expertise in the design, construction, management, and operation of infrastructure.

TEMITOPE ADEBAYO

The equities market of the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) on Thursday halt its three days consecutive bullish run, as market index shed 0.90 per cent, while capitalization declined by N256.69 billion.

Specifically, the local bourse yesterday, erased accumulated gains for the first three day trading sessions earlier this week, as the benchmark index shed 0.90 per cent to close at 52,109.43 points.

Also, the market capitalization which had been having positive run since the beginning of the week had bullish run relapsed, closing at N28.37 trillion, compared to N28.63 trillion declared on Wednesday and N28.54 trillion recorded on Tuesday.

Latest figure obtained from the NGX closing statistics for the day, indicated that the market's loss was primarily driven by the decline in telco heavyweight, AIRTELAFRI (-6.00%).

Consequently, the decline puts the index on track for another week of loss,

while the Year-To-Date (YTD) return fell to 1.67 per cent.

However, analysis of yesterday's market activities showed trade turnover settled lower relative to the previous session, with the value of transactions down by 34.77 per cent.

A total of 334.24m shares valued at N5.15billion were exchanged in 5,350 deals. ACCESSCORP (+0.50%) led the volume chart with 64.69m units traded, while GTCO (+0.19%) led the value chart in deals worth N1.34billion.

AfDB closes infrastructure financing gap in Nigeria with $15m

MOTOLANI OSENI

The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved a $15 million subordinated loan to Infrastructure Credit Guarantee Company Limited (InfraCredit) to strengthen its capital base and help close Nigeria’s infrastructure financing gap.

The financing will enable InfraCredit to leverage domestic capital markets to bolster access to long-term local currency infrastructure financing in Nigeria.

This development would complements a 2019 investment into InfraCredit made by the AfDB and other part-

ners to help unlock domestic institutional capital for infrastructure.

The loan comes at a time when InfraCredit is seeking to raise capital to finance an additional $375 million in infrastructure over the next few years, primarily by leveraging private-sector financing.

Lamin Barrow, director general of the Bank’s Nigeria Country Department, said, “The African Development Bank is pleased to continue to support an innovative financial institution – InfraCredit –which has objectives that align closely with our priorities to mobilize institutional fi-

nancing for the delivery of infrastructure for Nigeria in key sectors including transport, energy, water, agriculture and infrastructure.”

The company’s green finance track record and commitments under its Clean Energy Transition Strategy and Roadmap and Green Finance Framework fit with the African Development Bank’s commitments to promote low-carbon development and mitigation, leveraging climate finance from private sector sources, Barrow said.

Chinua Azubike, InfraCredit CEO said, “We are delighted and very pleased with the con -

fidence that AfDB has demonstrated in the opportunity ahead for InfraCredit to scale its development impact of unlocking domestic institutional investments for long-term local currency infrastructure finance in Nigeria that will create jobs and support local economic growth. This second round investment will strengthen our guarantee issuing capacity and bring AfDB’s total investments in InfraCredit to $25 million, which is a strong signal of commitment to the longterm growth of InfraCredit and the Nigerian economy.”

Operator lauds NAICOM’s new guidelines, says it will drive insurance inclusion

MOTOLANI OSENI

The Managing Director of GOXI Microinsurance, Shina Gbadegesin, Nigeria’s first licensed microinsurance institution, has praised the recent release of the regulatory sandbox guideline by the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM).

In a statement, he described it as a commendable initiative that would promote innovation and drive insurance inclusion at the grassro Gbadegesin noted that regulatory sandboxes were guidelines that al -

lowed operators to seek a relaxed regulatory environment to test innovative ideas such as products, services, business models, or distribution channels.

The guidelines, he noted, set parameters that had the potential to improve inclusion and efficiency.

According to him, the initiative by NAICOM would go a long way in promoting innovation and driving insurance at the grassroots, especially by licensed specialised microinsurers in Nigeria.

The statement said,

“GOXI Microinsurance has invested significantly in technology since its inception, collaborating with various aggregators such as microfinance banks, cooperatives, fintechs, and community-based associations to drive insurance inclusion in Nigeria.

“The company sees the new initiative by NAICOM as an opportunity to further embrace technology innovation and drive all aspects of its operations.”

The managing director expressed optimism that the regulatory sandbox guidelines

would inspire insurance companies to be more innovative in their approach to driving insurance inclusion in the country.

He urged the insurance industry to take advantage of the opportunity provided by the guidelines to enhance their operations and improve the industry’s overall efficiency.

“The regulatory sandbox guideline by NAICOM is a commendable initiative that will promote innovation and drive insurance inclusion at the grassroots,” he said.

This is just as the Federal Government has concluded the concession of Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA) Abuja and Aminu Kano International Airport ( MAKIA) Kano.

The developments were contained in a media statement issued by the Media Special Assistant on Public Affairs to the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace, Dr. James Odaudu.

Odaudu said the new nomenclature is in line with the nature of the sector, being under the exclusive management and regulation of the Federal Government.

The statement which described the decision of the FEC on the industry as notable achievements milestone in steadfast commitment towards revitalizing the nation’s aviation sector said: “In alignment with the Aviation Roadmap, approved by Mr. President on October 18, 2016, the Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace is delighted to inform all stakeholders, both local and international, and the media, that the concession of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja, and Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA), Kano has been approved by the Federal Executive Council.”

It added,”Following a thorough and comprehensive evaluation process that commenced with the Request for Qualification (RFQ) advertised in local and international media on 16th August 2021, and subsequent rigorous evaluation of technical and financial bids, coupled with due diligence visits conducted from December 27 – 29, 2022 and 9 January 9- 10, 2023, the Corporacion American Airport Consortium has emerged as the preferred bidder.”

The consortium, according to the statement, composed of The Corporation American Airports, Mota Engil Africa, and Mota Engil Nige -

The Corporation American Airports, a New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) listed airport operator, has presence across three continents, managing 53 airports in six countries and serving approximately 82.4 million passengers in 2019.

The statement added that the concession of NAIA and MAKIA will considerably enhance the operational efficiency and profitability of the airports, repositioning them to operate optimally and competitively.

The agreement, a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement, will be effective for twenty (20) years for NAIA and thirty (30) years for MAKIA.

In addition, the Corporacion American Airport Consortium is committed to making upfront payments of USD 7 million for NAIA and USD 1.5 million for MAKIA. During the concession period, total projected nominal revenues accruable from the combined Concession of NAIA and MAKIA exceed $4 billion United States Dollars. Over 70 per cent of these projected revenues will be payable to the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), thereby generating additional revenue sources for the Federal Government.

Reacting to the approval, coming same day as signing of the Memorandum Of Understanding (MoU) for the commencement of the African Aviation and Aerospace University (AAAU), Minister of Aviation and Aerospace, Senator Hadi Sirika said the period is momentous for Nigeria’s aviation industry.

The partnership with the Corporacion American Airport Consortium, he said, underscores the Administration’s dedication to improving the standards of the nation’s airports, providing worldclass services to all travellers and generating considerable economic benefits for the country.

According to him, the concession will herald a new era of excellence in Nigeria’s aviation industry, saying that he eagerly anticipates a successful partnership with the Corporacion American Airport Consortium.

Terminal operator invests $440m in Apapa ports

grade terminal equipment such as Mobile Harbour Cranes, Rubber-Tyred Gantry Cranes, and many others as well as civil works including a world-standard administrative building with full information technology capacity.

Meanwhile, the Managing Director of Nigerian Ports Authority, Mr Mohammed Bello-Koko, in his goodwill message delivered by NPA’s General Manager, Monitoring and Regulatory Services, Seyi Iyawe, thanked the terminal op-

erators for fulfilling its concession agreement with the Federal Government and for delivering efficient service at the port.

“You have transformed the port business and have become a force to be reckoned with. Through APM Terminals, NPA has been able to upgrade the port facility. We must also acknowledge the fact that you have been compliant with all the rules and regulations guiding the port. We celebrate your uniqueness and expertise,” Bello-Koko said.

Nigerian Customs intercepts N1.8bn tramadol in Lagos airport

TEMITOPE ADEBAYO

Following the port concession in 2006, APM Terminals said it had invested over $440 million in the Apapa ports.

The Country Managing Director of APM Terminals Nigeria, Mr Frederik Klinke, said this recently, while celebrating the 17th anniversary of the port concession agreement it signed with the Federal Government in 2006.

Klinke disclosed that the firm also used the occasion to honour its founders and 76 pioneer employees.

He, therefore, thanked the Federal government for granting the port concession and acknowledged the contribution of its shareholders, staff and partners to the

modernization of the terminal.

According to him, the concession enabled APM Terminals to develop the critical port infrastructure for the benefit of the Nigerian economy.

“Importantly as well, it offers us an opportunity to recognise the men and women, who through their daily efforts in the terminal, ensure cargo keeps flowing to and from importers and exporters, consumers and producers in the country. Since 2006, the employees of APM Terminals Apapa have been responsible for this critical task and while doing so, not only contributed to the economy by facilitating growing trade with the rest of the world but also through the more than $440million worth of foreign direct investment done

in the terminal.

“And most importantly, through the training and development of young Nigerians to take on increasingly senior roles in the company and further in the industry,” he said.

Also, the Terminal Manager of APM Terminals Apapa, Mr Steen Knudsen, said the substantial investment made by the company in facility upgrade, training, equipment and technology had boosted service delivery at the port.

“For APM Terminals Apapa, it has been a success story of transformation, improved efficiency, innovation, and value-added service,” Knudsen said.

He said the investment by APM Terminals Apapa has led to improved terminal infrastructure, including the acquisition of high-

Ecobank Transnational Incorporated profit declines by $73m in one year

MOTOLANI OSENI

Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI), the parent of the Ecobank Group, has reported a decline of $73 million in its profit for the 2022 financial year, when compared $222 million recorded in 2022 with $295 million declared in 2021.

Although, the Group’s Profit Before Tax (PAT), net revenue and total assets increased by 13 per cent, 6 per cent and 5 per cent, to $540 million, $1,862 million and $29,004 million, respectively.

Also, the return on tangible equity of 21.1 per cent in 2022 is the highest Ecobank has achieved in the last decade.

The pan-African bank with a presence in 35 African countries, held its 35th Annual General Meeting (AGM) and an Extra Ordinary General Meeting, recently in Lomé, Togo.

For the first quarter of 2023, the group’s performance results are showing momentum as it continue to benefit from its pan-African and diversified business model, efficiency, balance sheet stability, deep customer relationships and the hard and smart work of all Ecobankers.

At the meeting, shareholders approved the accounts and the appropriation of profits for 2022.

Shareholders, also, voted for the re-election of Mr Simon Dor-

noo, Professor Enase Okonedo, Dr George Donkor, Mr Deepak Malik and Ms Zanele Monnakgotla as directors of ETI. The co-option of the Managing Director, Mr Jeremy Awori, as a director, was also ratified.

Furthermore, shareholders approved the resolution authorising to raise senior-ranked debt, additional Tier 1, Tier 2-qualifying subordinated debt or a combination of any of these forms of instruments as the board of directors may deem appropriate.

Alain Nkontchou, Ecobank Group Chairman, said: “Ecobank is a powerhouse in the African banking landscape and is positioned to support and facilitate the growth and

The Murtala Muhammed Airport Command of the Nigeria Customs Service seized 23 packages of tramadol worth N1.8 billion between January and March.

The Customs Area Comptroller, Mohammed Yusuf said that the pharmaceutical products were imported from India and Pakistan.

He listed the seized items to include 22 packets (225mg) of tramadol and 12 packets (120mg) of tramadol tablets.

development of African businesses as they grasp the immense single market opportunities created by the African Continental Free Trade Area. Quite simply, Ecobank is the solution for SMEs and corporates. The strength of our borderless payment, collection, working capital and financing solutions exemplifies this.”

Jeremy Awori, Chief Executive Officer, Ecobank Group, commented: “In 2022, Ecobank demonstrated strong financial results and performance, despite the challenging economic conditions of high interest rates, inflation, and Ghana’s debt restructuring. This success can be attributed to the bank’s di-

Speaking while addressing newsmen in Lagos on Wednesday, he said the command also recorded good exports worth N100.93 billion.

“These exported goods include non-commercial and commercial foods with a total weight of 653 tonnes and Free On Board (FOB) value of N4.81 billion. The command is working hard to promote export businesses to boost forex earnings for the country,” he said.

He said the command generated N21.4 billion as revenue in the period under review.

versified business model, digital expertise, innovative approaches, growth momentum, and efficiency. These strengths allowed the bank to navigate the adverse economic environment, absorb the impact of the debt restructuring, and continue to thrive.”

Ecobank is one of the leading banking groups in Africa and the largest in terms of countries of presence. The bank, over the time has significantly invested in its digital capabilities, including mobile banking, internet banking and payments infrastructure. This focus on digital banking enables it to reach more customers, reduce costs and improve efficiency.

Sovereign Trust Insurance grows GPW by 20% to N15.2bn in 2022

MOTOLANI OSENI

Sovereign Trust Insurance Plc, has grew its Gross Premium Written (GPW) by 20 per cent to N15.2 billion in 2022, as against the sum of N12.7 billion that was written in 2021, the company’s audited financials revealed.

In spite of the challenging operating environment that characterized opera-

tions of most businesses in the country in 2022, the Underwriting Firm maintained its growth trajectory remarkably in the period under review when compared with the performance of year 2021.

The Firm, in a statement by its DGM/Head, Corporate Communications & Investor Relations, Mr Segun Bankole, the Managing Di-

rector and Chief Executive Officer of the Underwriting Firm, Mr Olaotan Soyinka said the performance of the company in 2022 is quite encouraging considering the various business challenges that the insurance Industry had to deal with in the past year. He said there is definitely room for improvement in the days ahead and that,

the Underwriting Firm is poised to take advantage of the opportunities that are inherent in the insurance marketplace.

It is quite interesting to note that the Company also recorded a 9 per cent increase in its Profit Before Tax (PBT) of N962 million as against N885 million recorded in year 2021. Equally of note is the increase in

the company’s Total Equity which also grew by 9 per cent from N9.6 billion in 2021 to N12.4 billion in 2022.

The MD/CEO said the Management of the Company is committed to meeting and surpassing the expectations and aspirations of its shareholders and stakeholders alike.

“These performance

levels are a confirmation of the management’s determination to effectively and strategically position the Company as one of the leading and vibrant insurance companies in the country while also making conscious efforts at propelling the Company to a profitable height for shareholders’ delight in the years ahead”.

TRANSPORTATION

Over 40,000 Nigerians die yearly in road traffic crashes, says FRSC

Dangote Refinery Commission: LASG charges LASTMA, others for effective traffic management

STORIES BY TEMITOPE

ADEBAYO

The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has disclosed that more than 40,000 Nigerians die in road accidents every year.

FRSC Corps Marshal Dauda Biu, said this in Abuja during activities marking the 7th United Nations Global Road Safety Week, said road traffic crashes and injuries are the leading causes of death and disability.

Globally, 1.3 million people are killed and 50 million get injured each year, he added, stressing the greatest threat to people aged 5-29 years is road traffic crashes, as one in every four deaths occurs among pedestrians and cyclists.

“In Nigeria, over 40,000 per-

sons die annually as a result of this avoidable scourge,” Biu lamented.

He reiterated the United Nations has developed a global plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030, which he described as an ambitious target to reduce road traffic deaths and injuries by 50 per cent by 2030.

Biu said the 2023 edition of Global Road Safety Week with the theme, “Sustainable Transport” would last from May 17 to May 24.

“FRSC is partnering with the World Health Organisation, Federal Ministry of Health, and United Nations Decade of Action on Road Safety and Injury Prevention to mark the event with various activities,” he explained.

He stressed the need to take action to ensure safe roads, vehicles, and behaviors as well as to improve emergency care is paramount.

“The 7th UN Global Road Safety Week is focusing on sustainable transport with the slogan #RethinkMobility, which necessitates the urgent need to shift to walking, cycling, and using public transport.

“The key messages of this year’s event centre on the need for governments and their partners to rethink mobility.

“Ensuring safety must be at the core of efforts to re-imagine mobility and thus road networks must be designed with the most-at-risk in mind.”

Southwest NURTW rejects Baruwa as National President

The National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) in Southwest has rejected the National President, ’s bid for a second term in office.

Stakeholders in the zone rejected a purported endorsement by a group of elders for Baruwa to continue in office.

The stakeholders, in a statement signed by Kazeem Agoro of Ondo State Council and Taofeek Ayeni from Osun State Council, “condemned attempts by some people to impose Tajudeen Baruwa for a second term.”

It said: “Baruwa has destroyed the union, especially in Southwest which he claimed to be representing.

“Presently, no state NURTW in the zone is operating. The activities of our union have been proscribed by state governments as a result of the arrogance of the leadership of the union.

“All state councils have been taken over by government-owned Parks and Garages Management Committee. Our union is non-existence in Oyo, Ogun, Osun, Ondo, Ekiti, and Lagos. And our members are suffering…”

The stakeholders are reacting to a report said to emanate from the caretaker committee chairmen, led by Olalekan Folorunsho from Osogbo, Osun State, pledging his support for Baruwa.

But the stakeholders said, “It is surprising and unfortunate that despite this gloomy and terrible situation, some people because of

their selfish interest are talking of endorsing him for a second term in office.

“It is unfortunate we made the mistake of presenting Baruwa to represent our zone.

“This is the time to correct mistakes of the past. We need to stop Baruwa before he destroys what is left of the union.”

Ahead of the proposed commissioning of the Dangote Refinery by President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday, the 22nd of May, 2023, the Lagos State Government has charged the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) and other traffic enforcement Personnel to ensure effective management and control of traffic.

A statement released by the Lagos State Ministry of Transportation, duly signed by the Commissioner, Dr. Frederic Oladeinde noted Motorists should cooperate with the enforcement agencies for seamless flow of traffic.

The commissioner also urged residents to plan their movement in and out of the Lekki-Epe corridor between 8.00 am and 2.00 pm.

According to him, it becomes imperative for the State Government to alert the public, particularly regular road users in the Lekki-Epe zone, due to the high vehicular movement that will be witnessed in the axis as a result of the commissioning.

The Statement further urged residents to plan their journeys around the axis, in order to forestall avoidable delays in travel time.

FG shuts Apapa-bound lane after miscreants vandalised Ijora Bridge

The Federal Ministry of Works on Wednesday shut down the Apapa-bound lane of the beginning of Marine Bridge at Ijora, Lagos after it was damaged by vandals.

As of Thursday, Lagos State traffic control officials had install crash barriers to barricade the damaged portion of the busy bridge.

An Assistant Director of Federal Highways, Olukorede Keisha, who visited the scene, said the vandalised section of the bridge caved in on Tuesday evening.

She said investigation revealed that the vandals had set fire underneath the bridge to gain access to iron rods and other steel components.

“On inspection, we discovered that the place was set on fire to expose the reinforcement for them to cut it off and

that is what they have done. And the concrete alone without the tension cannot cope with the pressure. It needs to be assisted with reinforcement. Once reinforcement is taken away, concrete alone cannot do the job, hence the collapse.

“For overriding public safety, there is a need to shut it down immediately. We have looked at it; the contractor has critically assessed the situation. So, we are going back to the drawing board to evaluate it and look at the possible quick way to resolve it. But meanwhile, we are going to close this and divert traffic to alternative routes,” she said.

Keisha appealed to road users to be patient as the Federal Government was doing everything possible to fix the damaged portion of the bridge.

Senate Presidency: Izunaso makes case for South East

TUNDE OPALANA, ABUJA

Aleading contender for the office of President of the 10th Senate, Senator Osita Izunaso has pushed strongly for the ruling All Progressives Congress APC to zone the senate presidency to the South East geo-political zone.

He explained that the South - East deserves the position in the power configuration of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) since its inception.

The Senator-elected to represent Imo West senatorial district in the next senate as well said he is the best candidate from the geo- political zone to occupy the seat.

He said these in an interview monitored on Channels Television Network Wednesday night.

Izunaso posited that in 1999 despite the South West voting massively for AD with Chief Olu Falae as the presidential candidate, the Olusegun Obasanjo government went ahead to appoint the people of the area with several juicy ministerial posts ranging from power, communications, justice, finance, defence, special duties.

He also stated that the South-South, which has been erroneously pencilled down by the leadership of APC for the seat, had occupied the chairmanship position of the APC twice with Chief Odigie Oyegun and Comrade Adams Oshiomele as beneficiaries.

He also recalled that South-South had occupied the position of the party’s national secretary .

He urged the leadership of the party to have a rethink on the zoning of the senate president as the only zone that deserves it, and with the most capable, competent and suitable person among all the

aspirants is the South-East. Senator Izunaso stated that the zone played a significant role in the emergence of Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the president-elect.

The journalist-cum politician who had served in the two chambers of the National Assembly said that he has confidence in the President-elect and the leadership of the party to do justice in the race for the leadership of the National Assembly by zoning the position of Senate President to

the South-East.

The frontline senate presidency aspirant maintained that he has the wherewithal to effectively rebrand the National Assembly to meet the yearnings of Nigerians.

" What the country needs now is a clean and rebranded National Assembly. An assembly with a clean image and reputation. An assembly that would be a source of pride to all the senators, members of the House of Representatives, and all Nigerians.

Delta APC blasts Okowa over N71bn supplementary budget

NOSA ÀKEÑZUA, ASABA

The Delta State chapter of the All Progressives Congress, APC, has lambasted Gov. Ifeanyi Okowa as having no basic moral rectitude to request from the State House of Assembly an approval of N71 billion supplementary budget, less than 13 days to the end of the governor's second tenure.

In a statement signed by the Publicity Secretary, Valentine Onojeghuo, the party expressed shock at the request by the outgoing governor, describing such as the height of moral bankruptcy and wickedness against Deltans.

While condemning the State Governor for having secured an alleged third term agenda by imposing his surrogate, Sheriff Oborevwori as the next governor through political subterfuge, the party noted that the present request by Okowa amounts to adding insult to injury with the request of such humongous amount.

"The attention of the Delta State APC has been drawn to several media publications concerning the recent request by the State Governor, Dr Ifeanyi Okowa seeking approval for a supplementary budget of 71 billion naira by the State House of Assembly.

"The APC considers this request by the State Governor Dr Ifeanyi Okowa seeking parliamentary approval for a

supplementary budget of 71 billion, as the height of moral bankruptcy and wickedness by this administration against the people of Delta State. Not satisfied with securing a third term agenda through the installation of his surrogate Sheriff Oborevwori with questionable character as Governor of the State against the popular wish of the people, he has now brazenly decided to add salt to injury by seeking to obtain such humongous amount of money as a parting gift to the people of the State.

"While the people of Delta State are yet to come to terms with the news of the lavish multi billion naira retirement package recently approved for him by the same State House of Assembly as a soon to be former governor of the State, this has done little or nothing to satiate his unquenchable thirst for filthy lucre, as he has now applied for another N71 billion with the resultant effect of driving the economy of the state further into the cauldron of bad debts and underdevelopment.

"This request by the State Governor is a confirmation of the fact that the State Governor suffers from a severe case of moral deficiency syndrome.

"The APC like every sane Deltan, finds this request shocking to say the least that a governor who has less than 2 weeks to the end of his tenure, will be asking for such an amount of money.

It is highly unfortunate and smacked of sinister motives and given the track record of this administration for such shenanigans, we in the APC are not surprised by this latest attempt to further impoverish the people of Delta State", the party stated.

The statement called on financial institutions not to allow themselves to be used as conduit pipes for Okowa to allegedly continue siphoning the state resources, adding that the APC Governorship candidate in the State, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege had continued to warn against connivance with the governor in obtaining unwanted loans.

"The Delta State APC would want to seize this opportunity to further remind financial institutions not to allow themselves to be used as a conduit pipe of siphoning resources of the State and also to reiterate its earlier warnings issued by our gubernatorial candidate HE Sen Ovie Omo-Agege CFR that such loans would not be honoured by the APC administration", the statement noted.

"The Delta State APC notes with grave concern particularly with regards to the well being and economic health of the State, that in this electoral circle only, the Okowa PDP administration has gotten approval for such suspected loans that have been used for other ulterior motives other than the purpose for which it was actually obtained.

PDP

stakeholders back retention of Adamawa SSG

by Gov Fintiri

TOM GARBA, YOLA

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) stakeholders in Adamawa North local government area have thrown their weights behind continuous service of the Secretary to the State Government,Mallam Bashir Ahmed in the administration of Governor Umar Fintiri.

The Daily Times recalled that a few days ago the media was agog with a demand by some people in Jimeta, Yola North local government area of the state who called on the State Governor to sideline the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Mallam Bashir Ahmed over alleged non- charlatan attitude.

But their agitation seems to fall on deaf ears as PDP stakeholders in Yola North, the SSG's immediate constituency issued a press statement distancing themselves from any purported call to remove Bashir.

Alhaji Mohammadu Kawu Wandala who is the Chairman Yola North

PDP Stakeholder Forum in the press statement called on the general public to be wary of those feeding on theb party's feud.

The stakeholders forum also called on the media to desist from amplifying the lies of suspending the SSG because they never do so.

According to them, they have not organized a meeting to sack anyone and does not have any intention of doing that.

"The Forum has no issue with the SSG and therefore cannot request the Governor to sideline him.

"The Forum request the sponsors of the crisis to personally confront their anticipated enemies without involving the respected PDP stakeholders forum,"the statement read While calling on the residents of Jimeta, to give maximum support to the Governor of the State, Rt Hon Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri to continue his urban renewal mandate project, they asked the people to be careful of those cashing on crisis to survive.

Uncertainty trails Abia council polls as IPAC declines interest

EMEKA OKAFOR, UMUAHIA.

The Abia State Local Government Council Election scheduled to hold weekend may have been plunged into hiccups following the withdrawal of Major Political Parties in the State from the Election to be conducted by the State Electoral Commission, (ABSIEC).

As at the time of filing this report on Thursday afternoon, the State Electoral body is yet to give detailed process, procedures to the election as well as give the number of political parties that have indicated interest to the election to be conducted one week to hand over to another administration in the State.

However, the Chairman of the Commission, Prof. Mkpa Agu Mkpa is yet to give clarification on the pending Court order restraining the Commission from conducting the election as well as the ad-hoc staff to be used for the conduct of the election even as the civil servants including staff of the Commission are currently on indefinite strike.

Recall that a High Court sitting in Arochukwu Judicial Division of the State and presided over by Justice Benson Anya had on March,2023 restrained ABSIEC from organizing or conducting election or acting on any election time table or programme scheduled for May, 19,2023, pending the determination of the suit.

Justice Anya granted the order in a suit filed by Engr. Nwabueze Onwuneme against ABSIEC , Attorney General of the State and Governor Okezie Ikpeazu.

Bearing the position of his Party on the scheduled Local Government Council Election, the State Chairman of the Labour Party and State Chairman of Inter Party Advisory Council (IPAC), Chief Ceekay Igara while speaking with journalists including The Daily Times in Umuahia, Thursday evening, said the Party was not aware of the Local Government Election.

“We are not aware of the election. As law abiding Party, Labour Party is a law abiding Party, we have seen the Court Order restraining ABSIEC from conducting the Local Government Council Election. We have also realized that, if it is true that there is no law establishing ABSIEC, we need to know if there is a law establishing ABSIEC.

On the inauguration of the Party’s Governorship candidate during the 2023 Governorship Election, Dr Alex Otti on 29th May,2023, the LP State Chairman enjoined people of the State to pray for the incoming administration,”Dr Alex Otti is not God, he is not a magician but he is somebody God is going to use in putting Abia in putty Abia in proper perspective,, therefore he needs time, support in order to get the vision and the direction on what God has asked him to come and in Abia State.”

Ogun: Badmus debunks alleged apology to expelled NNPP chair, Oginni

STEPHEN GBADAMOSI, IBADAN

South-West Zonal Publicity Secretary of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Kilamuwaye Badmus, has debunked writing an apology letter to the former chairman of the party in Ogun State, Comrade Sunday Olaposi Oginni, saying the current happenings in the party in the state is a collective struggle to rescue the party from“the political mediocrity and dishonesty of the expelled former party chairman.”

He also warned the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led administration in the state, under Governor Dapo Abiodun, to steer clear of the NNPP matters “which they are trying to dabble into to frustrate the ongoing petition against the APC, Abiodun and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for the omission of the party’s name on the ballot papers used in conducting March 18th governorship election in the state.”

Badmus stated this on Thursday in a statement he personally signed while reacting to an alleged apology letter orchestrated by one Bamigbade Ahmid, who was allegedly trying to impersonate him.

The South-West zonal Publicity Secretary of the NNPP said he had never, for any reason, written an apology letter to the former chairman of the party in Ogun state, Comrade Oginni.

“I, Honourable Kilamuwaye Bako Badmus, have never, for any reason, written an apology letter to the former chairman of NNPP in Ogun State, Comrade Sunday Olaposi Oginni. The action taken on the ongoing matter is a collective fight to rescue the NNPP

faithful members within and in the Diaspora from the political mediocrity and dishonesty of the said former party chairman.

"I fervently call all our faithful members in Ogun State to keep calm, because this struggle is a rescue mission and together we will win. And to the former Ogun State chairman data boy, Bamigbade Ahmid, who is trying to impersonate Badmus Kilamuwaye, he should be extremely careful and be warned.

"I want to also call on the APC-led administration, under Governor Dapo Abiodun, to steer clear of the NNPP matter, which they are trying to dabble into to frustrate the ongoing petition against the APC, Dapo Abiodun and the INEC for the omission of our party’s name on the ballot papers used in conducting the March 18th elections.

"Thank you very much, the good people of Ogun NNPP; NNPP Ogun State guber candidate, His Excellency, Olufemi Ajadi Oguntoyinbo; the South-West Zonal leadership, led by Prince Ayoade; NNPP National Executive Council, led by Abba Kawu Ali; and our indefatigable national leader, His Excellency Senator Dr. Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, for their unrelenting efforts to rescue Ogun State NNPP from the hands of political armed robbers," he said.

Recall that crisis erupted in the party after the national leadership of the party expelled the former chairman, Oginni, over alleged anti-party activities.

The crisis took another dimension on Tuesday while Oginni was alleged to have connived with the police to frame up Kilamuwaye on frivolous allegations; hence, he was arrested, detained, but granted bail on Wednesday

Equitable resource allocation key to sustainable peace says Okowa

NOSA ÀKEÑZUA, ASABA

Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta has said that equity and fairness in allocation of projects to upland and riverside communities by his administration has contributed to peace and stable oil production in the state.

According to him, our administration's commitment to sustainable development in oil-bearing and riverside communities is largely accountable for the pervading peace and harmony among ethnic groups in the state.

Okowa stated this while inspecting the multi-billion naira Trans-Warri road and bridges in Warri South Local Government Area of the state on Wednesday.

He expressed regret that the project couldn't be completed under his tenure, but commended the contractor for its commitment to the project.

"The Trans-Warri roads and bridges is a worthwhile project; it is something that is sensitive to the Itsekiri nation.

"We are committed to delivering on this project and we have continued to plough resources into the upland and the riverine.

"I know of so many communities in the riverine that when you visit them, you will be surprised that there are paved roads. Within the Ogulagha stretch, we have 20 kilometres of road that we had to construct; and that has given us a lot of peace.

"A lot of the oil is actually produced

LP chieftain Osuntokun says APC criminalizing Nigerian politics

TUNDE OPALANA, ABUJA

Amid concerns by most Nigerians that the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC was on the verge of foisting a corrupt leadership in the upper chamber of the National Assembly, the Director General, of the Labour Party Presidential Campaign Council, Chief Akin Osuntokun has condemned the seeming criminalization of Nigeria’s politics by the ruling party with the promotion of senators with criminal cases.

In a television interview monitored in Abuja, Osuntokun who spoke on the infiltration of the Labor Party by ‘strange elements’ and the resultant crisis which led to a squabble at the sitting of the Presidential Tribunal in Abuja Wednesday, referred to the aspirations of former Governors of Akwa Ibom and Abia states, Senator Godswill Akapabio and Orji Uzor Kalu respectfully jostling for the position of Senate President of the 10th National Assembly

In his submission, Akintokun frowned at the aspiration of the duo based on their records which he said have been tainted with corruption. He specifically noted with concern the purported endorsement of the former Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Godswill Akpabio by the NWC of the APC and the President-elect, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu of Senator Akpabio for the leadership of the nation’s legislative arm of government.

He upbraided the APC leadership and Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu for micro-zoning the senate presidency to Akpabio who he noted has” tonnes of corruption cases at the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission”.

President-elect and the leadership of the All Progressives Congress did not consider a fresh and untainted senator for the coveted office.

The fear of having a senate president whose record in office is inundated and tainted with allegations of corruption has dominated the discussions on the mainstream and social media with most Nigerians expressing grave concern that rewarding such malfeasance with a high office of senate president will not only project Nigeria negatively in the comity of nations but will elevate sleaze in government offices to a new level.

to rub it on our faces that the man is coming to be the Senate President. He has tons of cases at the EFCC. You see this is the new normal in Nigeria. It is an aspect of the criminalization of politics in Nigeria and it has several manifestations.

“His co-contestant, Kalu, do I need to tell you his story again, he was convicted and was in jail and the Supreme Court again in its wisdom said that because the man who gave the judgment has been promoted somewhere (not on the substance of the case). It was on that basis that he was nullified.

in the riverine areas. So why should they be neglected? Yes, we spend a lot more money, probably, five times more than you do in the uplands to build roads.

"But, they are also human beings and they are part of the state. And, if they actually produce a lot of the oil, why would you spend the oil money on the uplands alone and ignore them?

"We thought that was not right. As we continued to build roads in the upland areas, we had to take roads and other developments into the riverine areas," he said.

The governor explained that the project was prioritised because it was dear to the Itsekiri people and would help open up other communities along the corridor.

"We prioritised this road and we generally believe that whatever you are able to do in the uplands, you should also spend such resources to get to the riverine communities.

"So if you watch through, you will find that in the last eight years, we have paid a lot of attention to the riverine communities; and this project is one of them.

"The terrain is quite challenging and with what we see here today, a lot has been done, both by the state government and Setraco itself.

"We have continued to finance the project within the limits of our resources. We are happy that Setraco is on site now and we will continue to do the best that we can," he said.

Condemning the endorsement of the former Akwa Ibom Governor and the aspiration of Orji Uzor Kaalu, the Labour Party leader said the elevation of such persons to important leadership positions would further taint the image of the country and hamper the fight against corruption in the land.

Chief Akintokun wondered why the

He described the plan by the ruling party as the new normal in Nigeria’s political environment.

His words: “We are going to have a Senate President if APC were to be believed, who became a Senator by an unprecedented judgment of the Supreme Court.

"He was contesting for the Presidency and Senate at the same time. After scaling that, now you are bringing it

“He was a sore thumb condemning or castigating the idea of conceding the presidency to the South-East. He was championing the course you know of not entertaining it at all it’s not their turn. Now he wants to be Senate President he has made a 360-degree U-turn. He said well it will amount to cheating, and injustice against the Igbo people if he is not made Senate President. So you see all these types of things, the criminalization of politics.”

Frank files criminal complaints against Sylva

TOM OKPE, ABUJA

Former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, (APC) has filed a criminal complaint case against the immediate past Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva at the Chief Magistrate Court Abuja.

In the suit filed by his Counsel, Edward Omaga Esq of Graylaw Practice LP chambers, Frank urged the Chief Magistrate of the Federal Capital Territory, (FCT) to cause a direct criminal compliant to be issued against Sylva over alleged inconsistencies in his name and doubts over participation in the National Youth Service Corps, (NYSC) scheme.

Frank, who is the United Liberation Movement for West Papua, (ULMWP), Ambassador to East Africa and Middle East, averred that based on documents before him, the actual identity of the former Minister seems to be in doubt.

The suit reads in part:“Over the years, the complainant (Frank) has also shown his resolve in fighting and exposing corruption in public places and holding public officers accountable to their

oath of office.

“The defendant, (Sylva) on his part once served as the Executive Governor of Bayelsa state between2008 till 2012 and recently resigned his position as Minister of State for Petroleum Resources sometime around 30th March 2023.

“Facts and documents available to the complainant reveal that the actual identity of the aforesaid defendant is in serious doubt.

“Recently, the complainant while undertaking a private investigation visited the United States District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania where Chief Timipre Sylva instituted a libel case against one Jackson Ude.

“In the course of hearing, Chief Timipre Sylva signed a verification of interrogatories answers dated April 1, 2022 and attached various documents in proof of his identity.

“The said academic documents include a First School Leaving Certificate with No. 092915 dated 1st July, 1976 issued to Anagha Timipere who finished from Ajeromi Central School, Araromi-Apapa, Lagos State.

“Also, the defendant claims to hold a West African Examination Council

(WAEC) General Certificate of Education with certificate No. PO851528 and Candidate No. 21735215 dated December 1981 issued to Marlin Anagha Timipre.

“The complainant equally discovered that the erstwhile Minister of State for Petroleum Resources parades a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English with Second Class, (Upper Division) from University of Port Harcourt dated 19th August, 1986 issued to Anagha Timipre Marlin.

“The defendant equally holds a Doctorate in International Relations, (Honoris Causa) from UBIS University in Geneva, Switzerland, dated 22nd September, 2011 and issued to Chief Timipre Sylva.

“The certificates mentioned above have visible anomalies and do not depict the true identity of Chief Timipre Sylva. It is confusing as to who Chief Timipre Sylva is.

“There is no evidence anywhere showing that Chief Timipre Sylva ever changed his name from Anagha Timipre Marlin to Timipre Sylva in 1986 after he purportedly graduated from University of Port Harcourt.

Clues suggest children survived Colombian jungle plane crash as officials race to find them

AColombian government official said she was “very confident” four children have been found alive more than two weeks after their plane crashed in the Amazon jungle – but was awaiting further proof.

The director of Colombian Institute of Family Welfare (ICBF), Astrid Caceres, said her team received second-hand confirmation that search teams rescued and identified the children, who have been missing since the crash of a small airplane in southern Colombia on May 1.

Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro initially tweeted that the group were found alive, but later noted that official confirmation had not yet been received. What would be an extraordinary survival story is yet to be fully confirmed, with government officials battling poor communications and yet to make direct contact with the children.

According to the ICBF, the children, aged between 11 months old and 13, were found after the Colombian Armed Forces followed a trail of small objects such as hair scrunchies, plastic wrappings and baby bottles that led them to the missing group.

When asked why the police and military were continuing search efforts despite reports that the children had been rescued, Caceres, the government official, said: “It’s hard to communicate in the jungle and yesterday it was raining, too.”

“The information I have is that they are fine, we also understand they had very hard days, but these are kids who moved around the area, and they seemed ok,” she

added.

“We are still missing that very, very last link that confirms all our hopes. Until we have the photo of the kids we won’t be stopping. We are not underestimating the information we received but we want to confirm [directly] ourselves.”

The Colombian Civil Aviation Authority said in a statement earlier that they found a “shelter built in an improvised way with sticks and leaves.”

Rescuers have been searching for the remnant of the Cessna plane since it crashed on May 1 in the country’s southern region of Guaviare in the Amazonas province.

While the children were said to be found alive, Aerocivil said they found another three bodies inside the small aircraft.

The plane crashed over two weeks ago in Colombia's southern region of Guaviare, in the Amazon jungle.

The Colombian Armed Forces

launched a massive search operation, supported by dog units, local indigenous communities, planes and helicopters, which flew over the region broadcasting a message recorded by the childrens’ grandmother.

The charter company whose aircraft crashed told CNN they are still waiting to contact the children, reiterating they have not received proof of their arrival.

Giselle Lopez, co-owner of Avianline Charters SAS said the bodies of the three adults who were killed in the crash are yet to be recovered.

“We just pray (to) god that in a few hours we all have the news we are waiting for, and see these kids: you must understand, the storms there are really strong, sometimes we lose radio contact for over an hour due to the electrical storms, and with these rains the navigation over the river is difficult, there are debris and strong currents on that river,” Lopez added.

Xi Jinping says no to ‘street stall economy’ in

Chinese President Xi Jinping has opposed the lifting of curbs on street vendors in Beijing, signaling splits within government over a policy shift aimed at tackling rising unemployment.

In a recent tour of the Xiongan New Area, a city south of Beijing, Xi unusually revealed his personal views about the “street stall economy,” according to a report earlier this week by China’s state-owned Xinhua news agency.

“The capital city is first and foremost a political center, not a ‘hodgepodge’, where ‘factories in alleys’ and the ‘street stall economy’ are not allowed,” he said.

It’s the first time the top Chinese leader has spoken out publicly against recent efforts to revive the “street stall economy,” a policy that many cities have touted as a way to reinvigorate small entrepreneurship and create jobs as urban youth unemployment hits record highs.

It’s unclear whether the capital must now comply with Xi’s views and outlaw street vendors once again.

Beijing, a mega city of 22 million people, is one of dozens of major cities including Shenzhen and Shanghai, that have relaxed curbs on street vendors over the past few months after years of sometimes violent campaigns against hawking. City authorities are encouraging people to set up street stalls or carts

in certain areas, where they can sell local specialties, snacks, clothes or toys.

The lifting of restrictions came after Zibo, a formerly little known factory town, became a viral sensation for its outdoor barbecue stalls, inspiring other cities to try to copy its success.

A shop owner shows grilled meat during a barbecue festival on April 29, 2023 in Zibo, Shandong Province of China. The city Zibo became a tourism hot spot after videos of its barbecue went viral online.

When China was in the midst of a pandemic-induced economic slump in 2020, then Premier Li Keqiang touted the idea of creating jobs by encouraging street vendors to set up shop across the country. That pitch was quickly shot down by close associates of Xi, who characterized the traditional trade as “unhygienic and uncivilized.”

Public discussion about street ven-

More than 20 rivers have burst their banks in Italy, leaving 13 people dead and forcing thousands from their homes after six months' rainfall fell in a day and a half.

More bodies were found on Thursday after almost every river flooded between Bologna and the north-east coast 115km (70 miles) away.

Some 280 landslides have taken place.

"It was a very bad 48 hours. Water and mud took over our whole village," said Roberta Lazzarini, 71.

Her home of Botteghino di Zocca, south of Bologna, was hit by a torrent on Wednesday. Streets, houses and gardens were inundated and Roberta said she was still scared.

"I've never seen anything like that here. We were stuck and didn't know what to do. I just hope it doesn't happen again."

Firefighters helped residents flee their houses, including a 97-year-old woman who had to leave her bedroom in a rubber dinghy.

"Our community is broken," said Roberta's daughter, Ines, who runs the local cafe in the central square. "We felt completely cut out, isolated, some of us were truly terrified."

Beijing

"We've had floods before, but it has never been this bad as far as I can remember," said Lamieri, 74, as he removed mud from his basement, where his son stores products to sell at the souvenir shop he runs in central Bologna.

"The street turned into river. We lost all of our stuff which was stored down here. We estimate thousands of euros in

damage."

This is one of many villages and towns flooded in the province of Emilia-Romagna, not just from rivers, but overflowing canals too.

More evacuations took place west of Ravenna on Thursday and more bodies were found, including a couple in a flat in the village of Russi, which was flooded hours before.

Many are warning that Italy needs a national plan to respond to the effects of climate change.

Civil Protection Minister Nello Musumeci said tropical conditions had already reached Italy, with 20cm of rain falling in 36 hours, and in some areas up to 50cm.

"Soils that remain dry for a long time end up becoming cemented, drastically limiting their capacity to absorb water," he said.

No regional dams had been built for 40 years, he said, and a new approach to hydraulic engineering engineering was needed.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's government has called a crisis meeting next Tuesday.

Many factors contribute to flooding, but a warming atmosphere caused by climate change makes extreme rainfall more likely. Already, the world has warmed about 1.1C since the industrial era began, and temperatures will continue to rise unless governments around the world make steep cuts to emissions.

Antonio Francesco Rizzuto, a 55-year-old lawyer who lives by the river with his wife, was forced to leave on Tuesday night and is now living at his daughter's in a nearby village.

Tunisia a ‘ticking time bomb’ as Saied cracks down on opposition

dors also faded after major cities, including Beijing and Shenzhen, made clear that hawkers were not welcome there.

Analysts said then that street hawking was something Xi did not like, as it was seen to tarnish the image of a successful and modern China. The idea of vendors flooding the streets of metropolises was also at odds with his vision of China as an advanced, hightech superpower.

But the recent policy reversal was made against a backdrop of growing challenges facing the world’s second largest economy. The country’s jobless rate for 16- to 24-year-olds hit a record high of 20.4% last month, after three years of pandemic restrictions hit small businesses hard. A regulatory crackdown has also wiped out tens of thousands of jobs in the education and tech industries.

Tunisia’s intensifying crackdown on opposition leaders and critics imperils society and risks the return of autocracy, years after demonstrations in the North African country were credited with setting off a revolutionary chain reaction across the region, a group of experts, activists and relatives of those detained have warned.

On Monday, Rached Ghannouchi, the Ennahdha president who was arrested in April, was jailed in absentia after being found guilty on charges of incitement.

His party, a self-styled “Muslim democrat” movement, had emerged in 2011 as the largest group in the first parliamentary elections following the removal of protest-hit Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, winning 37 percent of the vote.

But since seizing power in 2021, President Kais Saied, who ran as an independent social conservative, has pressured Ennahdha politicians

and his critics.

Since February, more than 20 dissidents, activists, journalists and opposition figures have reportedly been arrested.

Those detained have been accused of various charges, some relating to security, but campaigners and experts have said the charges are often trumped up and that Saied is simply pursuing his critics with abandon.

Anas Altikriti, head of the Cordoba Foundation think tank which focuses on relations between the Muslim world and Western nations, said at Thursday’s forum in London that while the socalled Arab Spring was one of the “most transformative moments of this century”, events now in Tunisia are “killing off” its last remnants.

Ghannoushi’s daughter, Soumaya, attended the discussion and said Saied has “devoured” Tunisia’s democracy bit by bit.

Italy floods leave 13 dead and force 13,000 from their homes

Sport Minister charges Scrabble Federation on grassroot development

bright with the passage of the National Sports Industry Policy (NSIP) which has reclassified Sports as Business and not Recreation, noting that it outlines an effective means of improving the funding of sports, obligations of the different tiers of government as well as participation of the private sector and other stakeholders in sports

He therefore called on the Federation to create more awareness on the forthcoming competition as they prepare to host the first ever edition of the Pan-African Scrabble Championship that will be held in Nigeria in August 2023.

Earlier, the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Sports and Youth Development, Alhaji Ismaila Abubakar thanked the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Administration for its commitment to the development of sports in the country.

Rafael Nadal out of 2023 French Open, hints on retirement plans

Rafael Nadal will miss the French Open for the first time in 19 years after a hip injury ruled out the record 14time men's singles champion.

The 36-year-old Spaniard, who has won 22 major titles, also said he plans to retire after the 2024 season.

"I didn't make the decision, my body made the decision. To play Roland Garros is impossible," he said.

"Next year will probably be my last year, that is my idea. If I keep going now I won't be able to make it happen."

Nadal holds the joint record number of men's major triumphs alongside Serbia's Novak Djokovic. He has won 70 other ATP titles and spent 209 weeks at world number one - the sixth longest amount in ATP history.

in recent weeks, but was not fit enough to play a tournament in the run-up to Roland Garros.

The French Open starts in Paris on 28 May and runs until 11 June.

"I was working as much as possible every single day for the past four months and they have been difficult because we were not been able to find the solution to the problems I had in Australia," he added.

"I'm still in the position where I am not able to feel ready to compete at the standards I need to be to play at Roland Garros.

"I am not the guy who will be at Roland Garros just try to be there and in a position where I don't like to be."

UKPONO UKPONG

The Minister of Sports and Youth Development, Mr. Sunday Dare has charged the Scrabble Federation of Nigeria to hunt for talents at the grassroots with a view to retaining their present status at global competitions

QThe Minister gave the charge yesterday in his Office in Abuja when he received a delegation from the Federation

who came to present the PAN African Scrabble Championship Trophy on Maiden Tour of Africa, to him

He stated that Nigeria was proud of the Federation for standing out as the Number one Scrabble-playing nation in the world and urged them to hold unto the position through the discovery and nurturing of players from the grassroots.

"I am glad to receive the trophy, and as the trophy makes

its tour, I know that it will come back to Nigeria after the Tournament", Dare said

The Minister who commended the 8-year-old Master Saviour Onazi, National Junior Scrabble Champion, for the feat he had achieved for the country, assured that the Ministry will support his education and tournaments as part of its Talent Hunt Programme.

Dare stated further that the future of sports in Nigeria is

While calling on sports loving Nigerians and philanthropists to key into the NSIP for a more robust partnership in the sector, he assured that government will continue to create an enabling environment for both athletes and investors to thrive in the field of sports.

Also speaking, the President, PAN African Scrabble Association, Mr. Adekoyejo Adegbesan thanked the Ministry for its support to the Federation, stressing that they will deploy their technical expertise so as to solidify their dominance in the game.

Jurgen Klopp receives two-match ban for referee comments

Liverpool manager Jurgen

Klopp has received a twomatch ban for comments he made about referee Paul Tierney after his side's 4-3 victory over Tottenham in April.

It means the German will miss Sunday's match against Aston Villa at Anfield.

The second game is suspended until the end of the 2023-24 season, meaning Klopp will not miss the final game of this campaign against Southampton.

Klopp suggested Tierney had "something against" the Reds after the Spurs game.

He has also received a £75,000 fine having admitted improper conduct and saying he regretted making the comments.

Klopp was shown a yellow card for celebrating Liverpool's 94th-minute winner in front of the fourth official and later claimed what Tierney said to him was "not OK".

The refereeing governing body, Professional Game Match Officials Limited, said at the time it "strongly refutes" any accusation Tierney's actions were "improper".

Liverpool sent a letter in response to the charges

three days after the match, suggesting emotions were heightened during a tense fixture and that while Klopp had not intended to "question Tierney's integrity", the referee had been involved in a number of "questionable decisions" involving the club.

However, the FA said the comments were a "particularly serious example of misconduct" and it was "disturbed by the very aggressive nature" of Klopp's behaviour towards fourth official John Brooks.

Klopp also wrote a letter of apology, saying the words he used in the post-match interview were "inappropriate" and "driven by emotion".

The FA has also released the transcript of what Tierney said to Klopp when he booked him, which the Liverpool boss deemed to be "unacceptable".

After being told by Brooks about Klopp's behaviour and having sought confirmation from the video assistant referee (VAR), Tierney said: "Right, I

have to show you yellow... it could be red, but I am going to show you yellow.

"He [VAR] said yellow. We will give you the benefit of the doubt, don't do anything more."

Klopp was previously given a one-match ban after he was sent off against Manchester City in October for berating an assistant referee and the independent commission acknowledged his "poor disciplinary record" when deciding on the sanction.

Known as the 'King of Clay', Nadal has won 112 of his 115 matches at the French Open.

However, the Mallorcan lefthander has not played since sustaining the hip problem at the Australian Open in January.

Nadal has been practising

Nadal said he needs to stop playing for the foreseeable future in order to make a full recovery and complete a planned farewell season in 2024. His participation at this year's Wimbledon remains in doubt. The Championships, which Nadal won in 2008 and 2010, start at the All England Club on 3 July and run until 16 July.

Brentford striker, Ivan Toney to face worldwide ban

Brentford striker Ivan Toney would be blocked from any attempt to get around his eight-month football ban by joining a club outside England.

Toney was suspended until January 2024 and fined £50,000 by an independent panel after admitting 232 breaches of Football Association betting rules.

The ban, which the FA will enforce, only applies in England.

But it is understood the governing body will apply for the 27-year-old's suspension to extend worldwide.

That would prevent the striker from moving elsewhere on loan to serve his punishment.

The FA is still to see the independent panel's written reasons for Toney's ban.

It is understood if Toney did

move away from England, the FA would be required to hand over the 27-year-old's registration.

At that point, it would tell world governing body FIFA and the buying or loaning club's football association that Toney was banned, which would trigger the suspension to be applied worldwide.

The FA did apply to FIFA for a worldwide extension in the cases of two other English players banned over betting rule breaches - Kieran Trippier and Daniel Sturridge.

More recently, FIFA accepted an application to extend a ban imposed by the Italian federation on former Tottenham managing director Fabio Paratici, a decision which prompted his resignation from Spurs.

Toney's suspension starts immediately, but he will be allowed to return to training on 17 September, four months before the playing ban expires. His breaches took place between 25 February 2017 and 23 January 2021, during which time he represented Scunthorpe United, Wigan Athletic, Peterborough United and Brentford.

Toney has scored 20 goals in 33 Premier League appearances this season, helping Brentford into ninth place in the table.

He will miss Brentford's game at Tottenham on Saturday (12:30 BST) and the final match at home to league leaders Manchester City on 28 May (16:30).

Toney, who has one England cap, is under contract at Brentford until 2025.

UCL semi-finals win banishes pain of last year - Guardiola

Swiatek awaits update after retiring in Rome

World number one

Iga Swiatek says she is waiting for "more info" on the thigh injury which forced her to retire from her Italian Open quarter-final against Elena Rybakina.

Swiatek, 21, needed treatment before retiring at 2-6 7-6 (7-3) 2-2 on Wednesday.

The reigning French Open champion hopes to be fit for this year's tournament, which begins on 28 May.

"The diagnostic is in progress," said Swiatek. "More info in the following days."

She added later: "A couple of days off for sure. And booking my flight to Paris, so fingers crossed, please."

The three-time major winner was in tears as she left the court for a medical timeout during the second-set tie-break against Kazakhstan's Rybakina, and returned with strapping on her right thigh.

Swiatek won the previous two Italian Opens and was on a 14-match winning streak in Rome.

Wimbledon champion and world number six Rybakina has now registered three wins over Swiatek this season.

In the semi-finals she will face Latvian 20th seed Jelena Ostapenko, who beat Spain's former world number two Paula Badosa 6-2 4-6 6-3, winning the first set in just 19 minutes.

Manchester City's stunning Champions League semi-final win over Real Madrid banished the "pain" of last year's defeat, says manager Pep Guardiola.

City produced a relentless performance at Etihad Stadium to beat Real 4-0 - and 5-1 on aggregate.

At the same stage last year Real overturned a 4-3 defeat in the first leg with a remarkable late comeback in the second before winning the final.

"When the draw was Madrid, I said, 'yeah, I want it'," Guardiola said.

"I had the feeling these last days that we had a mix of calm and tension to play these type of games.

"After 10 or 15 minutes, I was feeling all the pain that we had [with] what happened last season.

"It was really tough, losing the way we lost and I think in the moment we had to swallow poison.

"But during one year we showed how special a group of players these are."

City, who have never won European football's biggest competition, will play Inter Milan in the final in Istanbul on 10 June.

Their unbeaten run at home in Europe now stands at 26 games, stretching back to September 2018.

Forward Jack Grealish told BT Sport: "I don't think a lot of

teams would do that to Real Madrid, but when we are all together, and especially playing here, we feel unstoppable.

"I don't know what it is, whether it is our fans or the pitch, we just feel unstoppable. Even in the league we feel noone can beat us. It is unbelievable."

City were utterly dominant from the first minute against Real and only two superb saves by Thibaut Courtois to deny Erling Haaland prevented them from taking the lead earlier than when Bernardo Silva struck in the 23rd minute.

From then on, it felt only a question of how much City would win by and Silva made it 2-0 in the 37th minute before

second-half strikes by Manuel Akanji and Julian Alvarez wrapped up an emphatic win.

BT Sport pundit and former Manchester United captain Rio Ferdinand said: "Pep text me, 'Believe me, we beat them two years ago; we will beat them again'. That was two or three hours before the game. That is pure confidence.

"It was like they were stamping on their throat, positioning where they wanted them and then bang, goal.

"That man is an absolute genius. They have destroyed, battered, pulverised a giant of European football and have done it at a canter, with ease, with loads in the tank, without even sweating."

Taylor vows to make history in Dublin homecoming

event to be held in the country ever since.

Taylor turned professional just nine months after the gangland shooting that claimed the life of David Byrne.

"We're turning a new leaf for Irish boxing," undisputed lightweight champion Taylor said.

"Hopefully this is the first of many nights in Ireland. Young girls are looking up to myself and Chantelle. It's absolutely fantastic.

"They're going to grow up with big dreams as well."

Daniil Medvedev beats Hanfmann to reach Italian Open semi-final

Daniil Medvedev secured his first semi-final spot at the Italian Open with a straight-sets win over Yannick Hanfmann.

The Russian, 27, had never won a match in Rome before this year but eased past Germany's Hanfmann 6-2 6-2.

The world number three has only dropped one set during the entire tournament.

He will face either third seed Stefanos Tsitsipas or

Croatia's Borna Coric, who play each other later.

2021 US Open champion Medvedev came into the match off the back of a win over Alexander Zverev, while qualifier Hanfmann was in his first ever ATP Masters 1000 quarter-final.

Both players broke each other's serve in the opening three games, but Medvedev dominated from then on and won in 80 minutes to reach his seventh semi-final so far this season.

Lucas Moura to leave Tottenham after five years

Tottenham forward Lucas Moura will leave at the end of the season, after five years at the club.

Moura, 30, scored a memorable hat-trick away to Ajax to send Spurs into the 2019 Champions League final.

But the Brazilian has suffered with injury this season and Tottenham have decided not to extend his contract.

In a message on social media, Moura said: "My Spurs. Wherever I am, my heart will always be here. You are my

club. This will always be my home."

Moura signed a five-year deal when he joined Spurs from Paris St-Germain for £23m in 2018.

He has scored 38 goals in 219 appearances for the club.

In recent weeks, he has stepped in to play for Tottenham's under-21 squad.

"We should like to thank Lucas for his tremendous service to our club and wish him the very best for the future," said a Spurs statement.

Katie Taylor vowed to produce the best performance of her career against Chantelle Cameron in her first fight in Ireland as a professional.

Taylor, 36, moves up to light-welterweight to challenge undisputed champion Cameron in Dublin on Saturday. Speaking at a news conference on Thursday, Taylor said her main aim when she turned pro was to fight at home.

"It's amazing to bring big-

time boxing back to this nation where it belongs," the Irishwoman said.

"I have a chance to make history and nobody is going to take that away from me."

Cameron, Britain's first female undisputed champion, accepted a call-out from Taylor on Instagram when the Irish star's rematch with Amanda Serrano fell through.

The Northampton fighter said she had no reservations about accepting the fight.

"For me this fight is bigger than becoming undisputed champion," Cameron said.

"It will definitely be hostile. But it'll be tunnel vision. Focus on the job at hand and that's to win."

There have been no major boxing events in Ireland since the shooting at a weighin at Dublin's Regency Hotel in 2016.

Security concerns and associated costs have made it near impossible for a major boxing

When Serrano pulled of their scheduled rematch on 20 May, Taylor said she felt like her long-anticipated homecoming was "slipping away" from her.

She could not have picked a tougher task as a replacement than Cameron, who is undefeated in 17 fights and a history-maker in her own right.

Taylor last fought in Ireland as an amateur and although she has been her usual reserved, calm self for much of the build-up her excitement to be back on home turf has shown at times.

Our thick skin to economic strangulation

Isaw a video online the other day, whose setting was definitely Europe. Someone asked a lady what she did for a living, a sort of vox pop. The lady responded. “I am a Nigerian”. The interviewer looked on in awe, obviously wondering how this was a job, so the lady threw some more light: “Being a Nigerian is a full time job; it is a feat to get by daily”.

Although it was designed to be a joke, truth is embedded in that. Resilience has become a crucial part of life in Nigeria; so much that adaptability practically reminds one of the Igbo term, ‘Onyirionwu’, comically employed by hawkers to get attention for their wares in long buses and trains in those days. The hawkers would tell the story of Onyirionwu, who is an ‘old baby’ full of mischief; he has refused to grow, refused to talk or walk, refused to do anything meaningful, apart from eating and inflicting pains on other children in the neighbourhood through biting. His demeanours are so frustrating for his parents that they sometimes would wish he was dead to save them the frustrations, but Baby Onyirionwu ‘would refuse’ to die. His ‘chi’ is always awake.

This analogy has become pertinent in the face of the unfolding frustrating scenarios in Nigeria, because the political leaders seem to have clearly marked the citizens as Onyirionwu , those who have refused to capitulate in the face of threatening hardship. They have continued to brandish toothy smiles on empty stomachs. The citizens are willingly presenting their backs to be pushed against the wall with the firm belief that it would not kill them.

It is worrisome that in the face of the harsh economy, the leaders have remained undaunted about inflicting further hardship on the citizens. From north to south to east, it is the same story

WEEKEND ARENA

with

NGOZI EMEDOLIBE

of policies that are making the average Nigerian poorer. While aiming to bring about the kind of development that built western economies, the leaders must be mindful of the fact

that most of the amenities available to ‘oyibos’ are non-existent here.

From the look of things, subsidy on petrol would go eventually in the coming months, if not weeks, and if the analyses are anything to go by, the price of petrol may hit N500 per litre. Someone could justify this with the price of petrol in New York, as lame as it sounds, but they have forgotten that New Yorkers can afford not to buy petrol and still live very comfortable lives unlike the average Nigerian, who do not have trains to commute between points nor electricity to power their homes. While the FG claims the money being expended on petrol subsidy is unsustainable, it is appalling that the government has not done much to reduce Nigerians’ dependence on petrol, which will drastically reduce consumption and drive down the subsidy figures. One does not need to be a Harvard-trained economist to know that our petrol consumption would come to half if Nigerians are sure of 12 hours of power supply strategically made available at productive hours daily. But the Discos are more interested in getting money for what was not supplied while the FG seems unconcerned about the trend. Perhaps, they feel the people will always adapt.

And they are right be -

cause the average Nigerian is so much consumed with the battle to survive than with what is responsible for his struggles. Tell them bus fares have gone up by 300%, they would struggle to get the money and struggle to pay the difference without sparing a thought about what is responsible. This kind of tolerance is lacking in most African countries, where riots could break out over slight increases in the price of ordinary bread. But Nigerians will swallow the pill (or is it pride?) to present a façade of wellbeing.

Over the years, Nigerians have grown to embrace okada as a means of transportation. Yes, it is absurd… very so, but that is the reality here. Some people are quick to compare Lagos to New York, but they are not the same. Abuja, Port Harcourt Kano and Onitsha are anything but not New York or Brussels, so let us not go there to force people to comply with New York standards with Onitsha realities. The ban will ultimately end hundreds of thousands of jobs that are connected to the okada business which has been providing the livelihoods of people along the value chain like motorcycle spare parts dealers and even the policemen who extort the riders and resort to beating them when they fail to comply, as exemplified in the video that trended earlier in the week.

A humane approach would have been to restrict them to certain routes, where they can at least eke a living while the government continues to pursue the dream of being like Shanghai and Toronto.

But Nigerians are a resistant species. They will survive whatever comes their way. They have developed thick skin to economic strangulation. Every Nigerian deserves a certificate, Certificate of Survival.

And they are right because the average Nigerian is so much consumed with the battle to survive than with what is responsible for his struggles.

Tell them bus fares have gone up by 300%, they would struggle to get the money and struggle to pay the difference without sparing a thought about what is responsible. This kind of tolerance is lacking in most African countries.