New telegraph friday, september 25, 2015 vol 2 no 583 binder1

Nigeria has highest lawmakers’ turnover worldwide }5 Hope rises for treatment of urinary tract infection }6

Ported phone lines hit 338,945 Kunle Azeez

T

he introduction of Mobile Number Portability (MNP) in 2013 by the Nigerian Communications Commission

(NCC) has continued to create wider service choices for telecoms subscribers as no fewer than 338,945 of them have changed operators since the introduction of the new regime. There

are over 150 million active lines in the country.

New Telegraph gathered that the number of telephone lines ported out of one mobile network to another since the launch

of MNP in 2013 is based on the latest report released by the NCC. The total outgoing ported figure is coming even as the monthly porting hit 28,712 at the end of July,

rising from 21,153 in June.

Etisalat topped the porting table by gaining the highest number of subscribers who migrated to its network.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 4

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Friday, September 25, 2015

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/newtelegraph

Vol. 2 No. 583

FG to raise military retirement age to 62 }5

Bayelsa gov primaries: Sylva, others face sanctions }3

Sylva

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Agnes Marquis: Why I’m sharIng the African dreams onlIne }21

N150

Marquis

717 pilgrims killed in Saudi stampede

l805 injured lProtests at Ilorin praying ground lI wasn’t in harm’s way, says Senate president

}2

Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Chief Olu Falae (middle), after his release in Akure…yesterday.

Falae: I trekked for 30km, slept on the floor

}2

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News

FriDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

717 pilgrims killed in Saudi stampede Ibraheem Musa, Yekeen Nurudeen, Murtala Ayinla, Philip Nyam and Biodun Oyeleye

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his year’s Eidel-Kabr celebrations, which held worldwide yesterday, were marked by tragedy as no fewer than 717 pilgrims, including some Nigerians, were killed in a stampede in Mecca.

At least 805 others were injured in the stampede that occurred while over three million pilgrims observing this year’s hajj, who spent the night in the plain fields of Muzdalifa, began trooping to the Jamarat Complex in Mecca as early as 3am (Saudi time).

The Stoning of the Devil is a re-enactment of a story from the Quran involving the Prophet Ibrahim, which takes place during the hajj.

The Saudi Civil Defence Corps said the exact cause of the accident could not be easily ascertained.

Yesterday’s incident came about two weeks after 111 pilgrims died and 331 others were injured in a crane crash in Kaaba, Mecca, on September 11.

Six Nigerians were among the deceased while six others were injured in the incident.

A report by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), said many of the injured in the latest tragedy were in a semi-conscious state due to harsh summer weather that compounded the problem.

Sirens wailed as ambulances conveyed corpses and injured persons to hospitals, while hundreds of Saudi security forces and hajj volunteers joined the rescue team.

Most of the injured were taken to the Mina Emergency Hospital while others were rushed to hospitals in Makkah.

The Jamarat area, where pilgrims perform the symbolic stoning of the devil ritual, had witnessed stampedes in the past.

However, the Saudi authorities had expanded the area by constructing a multi-million-dollar complex to ease the flow of pilgrims.

Pilgrims had spent the night in Muzdalifa and had come to Mina to throw seven stones at one of the three wall-like structures.

The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board confirmed that a female pilgrim from the FCT was among the dead.

The Amirul Hajj for FCT pilgrims and Sarki Jiwa, Musa Idris, who

calmed down pilgrims after the incident, said two other pilgrims from the FCT were also injured and were receiving treatment in the hospital.

It was also gathered that a member of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), Professor Tijjani Al-Miskeni, was also among the dead.

Miskeni, who was a member of the commission's Committee of Ulamas, was also the secretary of Borno State Muslim Pilgrims’ Welfare Board.

Top NAHCON officials were said to have been meeting on the incident as at the time of filing this report.

A pilgrim from Sokoto State, Alhaji Muhamadu Ilela, who was at the scene, told New Telegraph that the deaths occurred because the Saudi police blocked one of the gates leading to the Jamarat area.

"For over one hour, the queue didn’ t move and we were in the scorching sun.

After some time, people started collapsing because of the heat wave, This was what caused the initial deaths,’’ he said.

The Public Relations Officer of the National Hajj Commission, Uba Mana, said the Emir of Kano and Amir of the Hajj team, Alhaji Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, and all other stakeholders were meeting on the incident.

Last Sunday, Sanusi had urged pilgrims to accept the arrangement which the Saudi authorities have put in place over ‘’the stoning of the devil’’ to avoid being killed.

According to him, 266 pilgrims had died in 1994 while 98 others were injured at the stoning site that year. Ten years later, 251 pilgrims died in 2004 and in 2006, 346 were killed.

In a reaction to the incident, House of Representatives Speaker, Hon. Yakubu Dogara, condoled with Muslims over the death of pilgrims in the stampede.

In a condolence message by his Special Adviser on Media and Public Affairs, Mr. Turaki Hassan, the speaker yesterday described the stampede as unfortunate.

He called on Saudi authorities to conduct thorough investigation into the circumstances that led to the tragedy and take necessary measures to avert future occurrence.

However, in Nigeria, the Sallah celebrations were marred in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, by protesters who disrupted activities at the praying ground where Senate President Bukola Saraki, among other dignitaries,

were in attendance.

The protesters, according to eyewitnesses, attempted to break through a security barrier erected by the police as part of measures to forestall their planned invasion.

Besides Saraki, other dignitaries at the praying ground were the Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji Ibrahim Sulu Gambari; Speaker of the Kwara State House of Assembly, Hon. Ali Ahmad and former Minister of Sports, Alhaji Bolaji Abdullahi.

Some witnesses said the protesters pelted Saraki and other dignitaries with sachet water and other missiles.

But the Senate president denied being attack, saying he was in no way in a harm’s way.

Many vehicles were damaged during the protest and their broken glasses still littered the Yidi Road, venue of the event, when New Telegraph visited yesterday.

Police spokesman, Ajayi Okasanmi, told reporters that eight people had been arrested over the development but expressed delight that in spite of the incident, the prayers still held.

The witnesses said the incident prevented the chief imam from delivering his annual sermon just as the emir also abandoned his Sallah message.

A report by NAN said security operatives who accompanied the Senate president to the praying ground had to throw tear gas and fire several shots,

which sent worshippers running helter-skelter for safety while one of emir’s horsemen was injured in the melee.

Okasanmi said the situation was promptly brought under control and the prayer resumed.

But the Senior Special Assistant (SSA) to the governor on Media and Communication, Dr. Muideen Akorede, however, said the attack was not targeted at Saraki and Ahmed.

“Gov Ahmed was not even at the Eid praying ground; he was at his home in Share where he prayed; so the attack could not be targeted at him,” he added.

Akorede, who corroborated the PPRO’s view, said the attack was carried out by miscreants who wanted to extort money from

Saraki.

The state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Esosa Amadaun, had on Monday said they had received intelligence report that some people were planning to invade the praying ground and disrupt the proceedings to protest unpaid salaries.

Although some people claimed the crisis is linked to the non-payment of salaries to local government workers, Okasanmi said it would be too early to explain the motive of the protesters as there was no civil servant or government official among those arrested so far.

A Government House source also explained that the government had been doing its best to ameliorate CONTINUED ON PAGE 4

Wife of President Muhammadu Buhari, Aisha, with her daughters and a Muslim faithful, during the Eid el-Kabir prayer in Abuja…yesterday.

Falae: I trekked for 30km, slept on the floor Babatope Okeowo Akure

F

ormer Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Chief Olu Falae, who was freed after spending four days in captivity, yesterday recounted his ordeal.

Falae, who reunited with his family in Akure and was welcomed home by a crowd, said he slept on the bare floor for four days.

The septuagenarian added that he trekked more than 30 kilometres from his Ilado farm in Akure North Local Government Area of Ondo State, where he was abducted, to a place in Owo Local Government Area where he was kept during his captivity.

The former SGF was

kidnapped on Monday by suspected Fulani herdsmen who stormed his farm in Ilado.

But yesterday, Falae returned to his home in Akure, the state capital, in company with the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Solomon Arase, who led the rescue team.

Arase and the family said no ransom was paid to the kidnappers before Falae was released.

However, Falae, who was visibly worried, said he did not sleep in one location during the four days he was in captivity.

His kidnappers moved him from one location to another to avoid being caught by law enforcement agents.

He said his abductors were monitoring media reports and were moving him from one location to another within four hours,

to avoid being detected.

He said he suspected that the kidnappers were using the proceeds from their various crimes to fund Boko Haram as they told him that the N2 million being offered by his family, instead of the N100 million they initially demanded, was not enough to do anything.

Arase, who accompanied Falae to his house, said the police had been working to free the former SGF since his abduction and he was freed without anybody paying ransom to the kidnappers.

He added that the police were working round the clock to stem kidnappings and other crimes.

He said: “A security challenge like this is a new trend; it is not only localised in Nigeria, but it is a global thing. We are going to develop a strategy

that hoodlums will never overwhelm a state. It is not possible, we are going to interdict them, we are going to degrade them and catch them.”

On whether the police swung into action because of the order by President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday that they should do everything necessary to rescue Falae, Arase said they had been on the case since Monday.

He added that some suspects had been arrested in connection with the incident, but declined to disclose how many.

Ondo State Governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, was happy that Falae was released without any harm to him.

He said the government was working with security agencies to make sure such criminality is reduced in the state.

News

NEW TELEGRAPH FriDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

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Bayelsa gov primaries: Sylva, others face sanctions Donald Ojogo and Johnchuks Onuanyim

F

ormer Bayelsa State Governor, Chief Timipre Sylva, and some chieftains of the All Progressives Congress (APC) risk being sanctioned by the party for their alleged roles in the disruption of the party’s governorship primaries in the state, New Telegraph learnt yesterday.

A top party source said the party was planning to set up a panel to probe the involvement of Sylva, one of the 19 governorship aspirants, and others in the botched primaries.

Edo State Governor, Mr. Adams Oshiomhole, who chaired the APC committee that conducted the primaries, accused Sylva on Tuesday of hiring thugs and colluding with the police to frustrate the conduct of the primaries.

However, the former governor, in a swift rebuttal, accused Oshiomhole of working to edge him out of the race.

The source said the party might summon Sylva, a member of the APC National Executive Committee (NEC), Mr. Yekini Nabena Jimoh and Bayelsa State Chairman of the party, Mr. Tiwei Orunimigha,

for questioning over their alleged roles in the now cancelled governorship primaries that proclaimed Sylva as winner.

It was also learnt that APC might push for the quizzing of the Assistant Inspector General of Police for Zone 6, Mr. Femi Adenaike, by police authorities over the role the police played in the botched primaries.

Oshiomhole, who also doubles as the returning officer, had left the venue of the primaries when he felt his life was being threatened.

The source said the Joint Task Force (JTF) in the Niger Delta, codenamed Operation Pulo Shield, would provide security in the state for the rescheduled governorship primaries.

According to the source, the party is embarrassed by the situation as exposed by the Edo governor.

“This is the most embarrassing moment of our history, aside the issue of the National Assembly, because the revelation by no other person than the comrade governor means that everything about that exercise was wrong, faulty and illegal.

“Because of time, we may not want to delay, but the truth is that what is

worth doing is worth doing well; that is why we have made efforts to ensure that the JTF provides adequate security for the exercise to hold in the state.

“We were surprised when the governor called some of us to disclose that the entire place was rancorous and chaotic and that he had been held hostage by thugs led by Sylva.

It was really repulsive and it lowered the esteem not only of our party, but it rubbished all what the former governor had laboured for in the APC. “From all indications, the party has resolved to take the appropriate step

by involving the necessary security agencies so as to prepare for and hold the governorship primary because there is no time at all.

“Most worrisome is the fact that a national officer was also accused as well as the state party chairman; it is most painful and disgusting, I must confess.

“As I speak, I know that the AIG who was in charge of the exercise has reportedly been summoned on the strength of the governor’s allegation of their complicity and connivance when the life of a sitting governor was being threatened,” he said.

However, Sylva’s supporters have accused some party leaders of not being keen to having him (Sylva) as the party's standard bearer in the forthcoming election.

They said the cancellation of the primaries was to pave the way for the emergence of Mr. Timi Alaibe, one of the aspirants, as the party’s candidate.

Alaibe, a former Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), is believed to be the preferred candidate of the party.

But two chieftains of

the party have dismissed the insinuations that the APC national leadership annulled the Bayelsa State governorship primaries because its "preferred aspirant", Alaibe, lost at the preliminary election.

Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Timi Frank and Senator John Kojo Brambaifa, in separate interviews with New Telegraph, dismissed the allegations, saying nothing could be further from the truth.

According to them, the governorship primaries in Bayelsa State were held under duress and were not credible.

Buhari leaves for New York to address world leaders Anule Emmanuel Abuja

P

resident Muhammadu Buhari yesterday departed for New York where he is expected to participate in a series of meetings and interactions with world leaders at the 70th Session of the United Nations General Assembly.

The president left his hometown, Daura in Kastina State at about 4:45p.m. in company of Governors Aminu Tambuwal (So-

koto), Nasir el-Rufai (Kaduna) and Abubakar Sani Bello (Niger) as well as the National Security Adviser.

Other members of the delegation are the permanent secretaries in the ministries of Defence, Finance, Health, Industry, Trade and Investment.

Buhari had on Monday left for Daura after hosting a meeting of ECOWAS leaders in Abuja to find a way out of the current political crisis in Burkina Faso.

Special Adviser to the President on Media and

Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, in a statement earlier, had explained that Buhari would while in New York hold talks with the United Nations SecretaryGeneral, Mr. Ban Ki Moon, President Barack Obama of the United States and President Francois Hollande of France.

He will also meet with Prime Minister David Cameron of Britain, Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany to discuss on the current security challenges facing Nigeria and other domestic develop-

ment issues.

Other world leaders that President Buhari would also meet during the trip are President Vladmir Putin of Russia, President Xi Jinping of China and Prime Minister Narenda Modi of India.

According to Adesina, the president would also engage the world leaders on bilateral relations and discuss ways of enhancing global security, peace-keeping operations, climate change and the adoption of a post-2015 global development agenda.

News

4

FriDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Troops destroy Boko Haram fuel depot –Army Emmanuel Onani

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roops of the 3 Division of the Nigerian Army in Jos, the Plateau State capital, have de-

stroyed a major fuel depot, that served the logistics needs of Boko Haram.

A statement yesterday by the Acting Director, Army Public Relations

(DAPR), Colonel Sani Usman, said the depot was located at Ladu Dumbawa ward, Guzamala Local Government Area of Borno State.

Protests at Ilorin praying ground CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2

the salary situation including a directive by Governor Abdulfattah Ahmed to council chairmen to pay at least one month of their salary arrears pending when the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) would release their own bailout package.

However, Saraki in a statement by his media office, denied he was attacked by hoodlums at the Ilorin praying ground.

The statement said he, like several other dignitaries, attended the prayers and he even spoke with the media.

The statement however acknowledged there was confusion at a point in the programme, occasioned by protest by people believed to be local government workers who are being owed salaries adding that the protest was hijacked by hoodlums but was eventually quelled by the police.

"We want to say that

TODAY’S WEATHER FORECAST LAGOS

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nothing can be further from the truth as the Senate president was never attacked nor was there any attempt made on his life to warrant him being 'whisked away' as reported by a section of the media.

"Therefore, to say that the Senate president was attacked at the venue of the prayers is totally false and a figment of the imagination of those behind the story because the protest was never targeted at him, neither was any missile hurled at him,” the statement added.

On his part, President Muhammadu Buhari observed Eid el-Kabir prayer at his native home, Daura, Katsina State.

The prayer was led by the chief Imam of Daura, Sheikh Safiyanu Yusuf, at Kofar-Arewa Eid ground around 9.30 a.m.

In his sermon, the Imam stressed the importance of sacrifice in Islam.

He said the sacrifice could be done win ram, sheep, goat, cow or camel.

But the president’s wife, Aisha and her children, observed the Eid el-Kabir prayers at the An-Nur

Mosque in Abuja.

She was received by officials of the mosque on her arrival at about 8.25 a.m.

Others who joined her in the prayer session were Dr. Hajo Sani, the Senior Special Assistant on Administration to the wife of the president, other aides and members of her family.

The statement noted that the escape of three out of seven of those kidnapped from Gajabere, led to the discovery, and subsequent destruction of the depot.

Consequently, the Army vowed that troops will identify and bring down all known and existing logistics aids of the insurgent group.

The statement reads: "Following a tip off by well-meaning citizens, troops of 3 Division on Wednesday swooped over and dismantled a Boko Haram fuel dump located at Ladu Dumbawa ward, Guzamala Local Govern-

ment Area of Borno State.

"It would be recalled that suspected Boko Haram terrorists had abducted seven persons in Gajabere and took them to the same location. Those kidnapped were three local wards heads called “Lawani” and their respective deputies, as well as the Chief Imam of the town.

"However, through sheer guts and bravery, three of them escaped and reported the matter to the security which led to the rescue of the rest and discovery of the well concealed terrorists’ fuel depot which was also destroyed by troops.

"The troops have further blocked the terrorists supply route that led to Babangida in Tarmuwa Local Government Area of Yobe State where they mostly get the supplies.

"Troops are intensifying efforts to identify and neutralise all Boko Haram logistic bases to further constrict the terrorists and hasten their total defeat. Citizens are please requested to furnish the military and security agencies with information on all known terrorists’ location, routes, suppliers of fuel, food, clothing and any good or service to the terrorists."

President Muhammadu Buhari (right); Katsina State Governor Aminu Masari and others, during the departure of the president to New York…yesterday.

Ported phone lines hit 338,945 CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

From the monthly 28,712 ported lines in July, 4,047 lines ported out of Airtel; 2,161 from Etisalat; 3,290 from Globacom network while 19,214 ported out of MTN line to other networks.

Also, of the 28,712 outgoing lines, only 22,539 of them ported into other networks of their choices.

Of the 22, 539 incoming lines, Etisalat gained the most lines, amounting to 14,125; followed by Airtel with 6,613 while Globacom and MTN attracted 850 and 951 lines respectively.

The MNP service was introduced to provide wider choices for mobile subscribers, allowing them to switch from their existing network to another competitor’s network of their choice depending on the quality of service they expect to enjoy, while retaining their numbers.

The current figure of 28, 712 represents the highest monthly ported lines since the launch of the MNP by the telecom regulator.

According to the analy-

sis of the MNP status report, following its launch in April 2013, the number of ported lines in the following month of May stood at 7,013.

In June, July, August, September, the number of ported lines rose to 5,802; 6,753 12,039 and 13,072 respectively.

In October, November and December 2013, the monthly figure also increased to 14,296; 7,830 and 5,850 in that order.

The number of subscribers porting their telephone lines also continued in the upward swing in 2014.

As at January last year, the number of ported lines were 6,880; 7,080 in February; 13,383 in March; 14,183 in April; 9,365 in May; 10,325 in June and July, 2014, the figure stood at 11,110.

By the end of August 2014, the total number of monthly ported telephone lines was 13,878; 18,980 in September; 16,697 in October; 13,578 in November; and 10,539 in December.

By January, this year, the monthly ported lines

stood at 14,330; 14,801 in February; 14, 718 in March; 15,357 in April and in May, the figure stood at 18, 071.

According to analysts, major factors driving the decision of subscribers to port from network to another is the quality of service delivery provided by the receiving network.

The NCC, in 2012, had set strict Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) on Quality of Service (QoS) for telecoms operators and has continued to sanction operators for not meeting the QoS parameters.

It said the MNP scheme was introduced to also boost competition among telecoms operators on the provision of quality of service while also providing wider choices for the subscribers.

According to the Public Affairs Director of the NCC, Mr. Tony Ojobo, MNP is a need-based value-added service for willing subscribers.

He said: “MNP is not a compulsory service that people must subscribe to.

If a subscriber sees a need

for it, he or she may switch from his or her current network to another and if not, he or she remains on its current network.

“So, you don’t expect a surge in MNP uptake since it is based on the decision of the subscribers to either port or not to port. Yet, I believe we are having impressive uptake, coming mostly from individuals who have seen a need to migrate. The beauty of porting services is freedom of choices,” Ojobo said.

Meanwhile, the Chief Executive Officer of Etisalat, Matthew Willsher, said, “MNP is now very flexible because migration now takes few hours as against maximum of three days we started with at launch.”

He noted that the network was attracting highprofile individuals in the country.

Also, MTN’s Corporate Services Executive, Mr. Wale Goodluck, has also confirmed that there is a level of flexibility and innovation that “we are building into our services

to make it attractive to subscribers.”

The President, Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), Mr. Gbenga Adebayo, told New Telegraph that with the MNP introduction, telecoms operators were being put under ‘needful pressure’ to invest more in order to improve their network quality.

He said this was major fallout of the MNP introduction.

Adebayo, however, said the porting scheme was spurring network investment by the operators.

“It is instructive to note that network operators are under intense pressure to improve their networks to keep their subscribers loyal on their networks,” he said.

Since the launch of MNP, all the telecom firms have been investing massively in improving their networks, as network providers are eager to lure customers from rival companies while making their network more attractive to retain existing subscribers.

News

NEW TELEGRAPH FriDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

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Govs, Sultan call for peace, unity at Eid el-Kabir Adeolu Adeyemo, Musa Pam, Cajetan Mmuta and Abubakari Abdul

G

overnors Rauf Aregbesola (Osun), Adams Oshiomhole (Edo), Atiku Bagudu (Kebbi) and Simon Lalong yesterday charged Nigerians to promote peace and love.

In their Eid el-Kabir messages, the governors stated that no nation could develop and attain greatness without peace and love among its citizens.

Governor Aregbesola said “without peace and love, no nation unites and no nation attains greatness in an atmosphere of disunity, singing discordant tunes.”

According to him, "The better time to promote love, tolerance, and spread the message of peace is during festive periods like this.

"I call on Muslims in Osun and the entire Ni-

gerian Muslim ummah to seize the opportunity of the Eid to reach out to people of different faiths with greetings and messages of love and peace."

He decried the rising wave of violence and insurgency across the world, saying that at no time in human political history had peace been this endangered.

"With the drums of war and violence resonating in all corners of the world, Nigeria must do everything humanly possible to douse the tension in the North-East and other parts,” he stated.

In Benin, Governor Oshiomhole commended Muslims in Edo State for showing that Islam is truly a religion of peace.

While addressing adherents of the Islamic faith, who paid him a traditional Sallah visit, the governor said he was pleased that the prayers of Muslims for peace and

progress in the state are being answered by Almighty Allah.

According to him, “I am pleased to say Almighty Allah has continued to answer your prayers for me, the government and the entire state as the state remains peaceful and has continued to enjoy rapid progress in spite of the dwindling resources as a result of the low crude oil price.

“I am proud to announce to you, my brothers and sisters, that while some states find it hard to pay salaries of workers and some owe salaries running into months, in Edo, no worker is owed any salary and in addition to that, we are meeting our obligation to contractors working on various projects across the state.

“In fact, we have paid the salaries of workers for the month of September to enable our Muslim broth-

ers enjoy their Sallah with their families.”

In Kebbi, Governor Bagudu called on the people to imbibe the spirit of Eld-el-Kabir festivity and urged both Muslims and Christians to promote unity, peace and stability in the country.

Bagudu made the call in an Eid-el-Kabir message to the people in Birnin Kebbi yesterday.

The governor called on Nigerians to show genuine love and respect for one another.

Bagudu admonished Nigerians to support the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration, especially in the anti-corruption crusade.

Also, Governor Lalong of Plateau State enjoined Muslims Ummah to preach and practice the virtue of love to humanity as taught by Prophet Mohammed.

Lalong, in his Eid el-

Kabir message signed by his Director of Press and Public Affairs, Mr. Samuel Nanle, called on religious leaders to preach the message of peace and love to their adherents and promote mutual co-existence in the society.

Lalong said true religious practice must correspond in showing love and sacrifice.

He urged Muslim faithful to extend hands of friendship to all.

Meanwhile, the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa'ad Abubakar III, has declared that all acts of insurgency are against Islam.

“Insurgency is against the tenets of Islam and it is against the cultures and norms of Muslims in Nigeria and the world over,” the Sultan said in Sokoto yesterday in his Sallah message to Muslims in the country.

Abubakar, however, said there had been tremendous achievements in

the ongoing fight against insurgency in the NorthEast.

“We must commend the various security agencies in the country for their sustained efforts in taming the menace of insurgency and other related crimes in the nation.

“These commendable efforts must be sustained to avoid complacency and to sustain the giant strides in this direction.

“We are also commending security agencies in the state for working round the clock to ensure the prevalence of sustainable peace and security,” Abubakar said.

He also commended the Federal and Sokoto State Governments for providing security agencies with the enabling environment to diligently operate.

Abubakar further noted that the prevailing peace and security in the state and Nigeria in general was due to good governance.

Nigeria has highest lawmaker turnover worldwide Philip Nyam Abuja

N

igeria has the lowest retention rate of lawmakers in the national parliament in the world, the National Institute for Legislative Studies (NILS) has revealed.

According to a research conducted by NILS, even

by African standard, Nigeria has a high turnover rate of 70 per cent as compared to South Africa with 47, Ghana 56, Kenya 64, 50.5 for Uganda and 51 for Benin Republic.

In the research document titled "continuity and change in Nigeria's elections," the legislative institute says the United States has the highest retention rate in the world with almost 100 per cent probability that a senator or member of the House of Representatives would be re-nominated by his party to re-contest elections.

"There is a 90 per cent probability that he or she would be re-elected. Reelection rate in the US House of Representatives averaged over 90 per cent.

Since 1964 while the retention rate for Senate averaged 85 per cent in the last five decades," the report said.

Nigeria has 30 per cent retention rate between 1999 and 2011, with each new legislative assembly as good as brand new.

The research shows that in 2003, only 35 out of the 109 senators in Nigeria's Senate were re-elected while 27 and 35 were

re-elected in 2007 and 2011 respectively.

In the House of Representatives, only 108 out of 360 members were reelected in 2003, while 110 and 103 were re-elected in 2007 and 2011 respectively.

"A very close observation of Nigerian politics since 1999 shows that factors such as incumbency advantage, quality of challenges, intra party procedures and structures as well as godfatherism and elections malpractice are considered as determinants of re-election rates of legislators," the report stated.

The report indicted state governors of collectively hijacking Nigeria's democracy.

"The governors are uncomfortable with the presence of high ranking legislators who developed political clout of their own.

It is clearly in the interest of the executive arm and especially governors that the National and State Assemblies continuously suffer from the weakness of high turnover," the report stated.

According to the report, working in parallel with governors are political godfathers who have the capacity to determine who is elected where and when in a given state.

"Apart from being an undemocratic system, godfatherism influence turnover negatively because of intolerance of the godfathers to any show of independence by their protégés in the National Assembly," it said.

L-R: Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji Ibrahim Sulu Gambari; Senate President Bukola Saraki; Speaker, Kwara State House of Assembly, Hon. Ali Ahmad and former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Alfa Belgore, at the Ilorin praying ground, during the Eid el-Kabir in Ilorin…yesterday.

FG to raise military retirement age to 62

lCDS inaugurates committee Our Correspondent

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he Federal Government has directed the immediate review of Harmonised Terms and Conditions of Service (HTACOS) in the Nigerian Armed Forces.

Investigation by New Telegraph revealed that the directive, when in force, will raise the retirement of officers in the Nigerian Armed Forces from the present 56 years to 62.

It was gathered that the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration feels concerned about the level of retirement of fine officers, who, ordinarily, could still be of immense value to the military, but for the ceil-

ing on retirement.

Highly placed sources in the military told New Telegraph that already, a committee has been inaugurated by the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Gabriel Olonisakin.

The committee, which was said to have been inaugurated before the holidays began, is said to be headed by a Rear Admiral, with membership from the Army, Navy and Air Force.

One of the terms of reference, according to one of the sources, is to carry out a detailed study of the militaries of Russia, Britain, Pakistan and those of other developed nations of the world, with a view to making the Nigerian Armed Forces, one of

the best in terms of global reckoning.

The committee, which is expected to begin sitting immediately, will produce a document, which will be transmitted to the National Assembly by way of an executive bill, for onward passage into law.

What could not be confirmed was whether or not, the initiative will take retroactive effect.

One of the sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said: "In order to provide better condition of service for our military officers, paramount of which is to raise the age of retirement from 56 to 62, as is the case in other advanced militaries of the world.

"The laudable decision by our incorruptible

Commander-in-Chief is meant to curb the attrition rate in our military, which is definitely on its way to restoration to its hitherto enviable position, which evidence can be seen in the number of peacekeeping missions under the auspices of the United Nations (UN), former Organisation of African Unity (OAU), which is now African Union (AU), and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS)."

He added: "The Federal Government has, by this development, mandated the Service Chiefs, to present a working document, which is to review the existing HTACOS 2012, in order to provide better condition of service for military officers."

6

News

Johnchuks Onuanyim and Anule Emmanue Abuja

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he All Progressives Congress (APC) and VicePresident Yemi Osinbajo have commended the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) for its leadership role in restoring the transitional order in Burkina Faso.

The Burkina Faso Transitional Government was last week

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

NATIONAL

APC, Osinbajo hail ECOWAS on Burkina Faso Thursday overthrown by Military officers, plunging the West African country into chaos and violence.

But the APC in a statement issued in Lagos by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, stated that the regional bloc’s insistence on the strict adherence to its Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance, which has

zero tolerance for power obtained by unconstitutional means, was a positive development for democracy, peace and stability in West Africa.

The party also commended the role played

by President Muhammadu Buhari by hosting the Extraordinary Summit of ECOWAS Heads of State and government that took the unequivocal decision to reinstate In-

terim President Michel Kafando, who was ousted by his country’s Presidential Guards, stating that it was another feather to his diplomatic cap.

Osinbajo also commended leaders of the ECOWAS region for their role in the final restoration of peace in Burkina Faso.

The Vice President on Wednesday represented President Muhammadu

Buhari at a meeting of ECOWAS leaders in Ouagadougou, who had met to mediate in the political crisis.

Praising the leaders of ECOWAS including President Buhari, President Boni Yayi of Benin, and the current Chairman of ECOWAS, President Macky Sall of Senegal alongside all the leaders in the West African region, the Vice President

said “now, we are all looking at how to advance the transition process here in Burkina Faso.”

He said while there were still difficult issues to be resolved as fallouts of the coup crisis, it was clear that progress will continue judging from the fact that the people are determined, all the groups involved are now engaged in the process and are cooperating.

FG approved 90 contracts from January to June – BPP Report

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he Federal Executive Council approved 90 contracts between January and June, the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) said in its bi-annual report.

The report, made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja yesterday stated that the contracts will be executed over three years.

It stated that contracts for the supply and installation of 753, 002 electricity meters under the Presidential Initiative to Nigerians were awarded through the Ministry of Power at the cost of N27.1 billion.

It also said that 23 contracts, ranging from the provision of solid waste collection in Abuja Municipal Area Council to the construction of sewage facilities and management services, will be executed in the Federal Capital Territory..

Lasun promises purposeful legislation Philip Nyam Abuja

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eputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Yussuff Suleiman Lasun, yesterday assured Nigerians of the House’s readiness to give legislation that would move the nation forward.

Lasun, who stated this shortly after prayer at the Ilobu praying ground on celebration of Eidel’ Kabir, said members would settle down for serious business when the House resumes from its annual recess.

He enjoined all Muslim faithful to use the occasion of the Eid-el-Kabir to pray for peace and stability in Nigeria.

Former Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola; Oba of Lagos, Oba Rilwan Akinolu; Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu; Alhaji Femi Okunnu and Baba Adinni of Lagos, Sheikh Abdul Afis Abuu, during the Eid-El-Kabir prayers in Obalende, Lagos…yesterday

PHOTO: SULEIMAN HUSAINI

Hope rises for treatment of urinary tract infections Ladoja: IGP shouldn’t wait on Appolonia Adeyemi

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rinary tract infections can be treated more quickly using a new DNA sequencing device, according to a new research.

Scientists from the University of East Anglia (UEA) said the device - the size of a USB stick - can detect bacteria directly from urine samples four times more quickly than traditional methods.

The technology could lead to faster treatment and better use of antibiotics, they said.

The findings were unveiled at a medical conference in San Diego, Carlifonia in the United

States (U.S).

A urinary tract infection (UTI), also known as acute cystitis or bladder infection is an infection that affects part of the urinary tract. UTIs occur more commonly in women than men, with half of women having at least one infection at some point in their lives.

“If you are a woman, your chance of getting a UTI is high; some medical experts rank lifetime risk of a woman getting UTI as high as one in two, with many women having repeat infections, sometimes for years on end and this is what makes this ailment an issue of major concern.

Hence, high value will be placed on any therapy

that will address it both effectively and rapidly as well.”

Prof. David Livermore, from UEA’s Norwich Medical School, said there was a need to move beyond the current “carpet-bombing” approach to treating (UTIs).

“The way to do so lies in accelerating laboratory investigation, so that treatment can be refined earlier, benefitting the patient, who gets an effective antibiotic, and society, whose diminishing stock of antibiotics is better managed,” he said.

The device can also detect resistance to antibiotics, said Dr. Justin O’Grady, also from UEA’s Norwich Medical School.

Nkire: Loyality to Nigeria paramount

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prominent member of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Chief Sam Nkire, has stressed the need for Nigerians to redouble their loyalty to fatherland.

In his Sallah message, Nkire said time had come when love for the country and one another should be placed above religious or tribal sentiments. The

APC chieftain also used the occasion to call on Nigerians, both leaders, followers in both public and private sectors, to get involved in President Buhari’s fight against corruption. Nkire said Nigeria as a country must fight corruption with the same zeal it is fighting Boko Haram for the country to succeed. He en-

joined the Muslim faithful especially, to pray for leaders who love Nigeria but hate corruption; leaders who love Nigerians but hate selfish acquisition and discrimination.

According to Nkire, any public servant whose assets are worth more that his or her career earnings must be brought to questioning.

Buhari to stop kidnapping

Sola Adeyemo Ibadan

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ormer Governor of Oyo State, Senator Rashidi Ladoja, yesterday asked Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase, to arrest the festering spate of kidnapping and insecurity in the country before it finally gets out of hand.

The Accord Party governorship candidate in the April election, and former governor of the state, who blamed the insecurity and corruption in Nigeria on the abject poverty, said yesterday while addressing journalists after the Eid-elKabir prayer in Ibadan that the Inspector General of Police should arrest the situation before the entire country becomes restless.

He said that leaders will continue to be stealing if the masses continue to keep mute on the issue, while stressing that the security agencies and the anti-graft agencies should rise up to their duties.

Ladoja noted that the Inspector General of Police (IGP) needed not to wait for Mr. President’s

order to fish out the kidnappers of the former Secretary to the Federal Government, Chief Olu Falae before he could act.

According to him, government at all levels should ensure that average Nigerians live above poverty level if we are truly serious about corruption.

“It is a statement of fact that those kidnappers are living among us. IGP needed not to wait for president’s order before Falae’s abductors could be fished out. All we need to know is that there is abject poverty in the land, and to avoid the trend, is for government to ensure that people live well”, he said.

Ladoja emphasised that salaries of workers are not being paid as and when due. Corruption and kidnapping are the outcome of the economic crisis facing the nation today.

His words: “There is need for the government to make the masses feel the impact of the change in the land. What the masses should do is to carry out their own programmes rather than talking on the wrong of the past administration.”

NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY,SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

94-year-old sibling visits Ikenne, weeps Kunle Olayeni Abeokuta

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a Festus Taiwo Adelana, the only surviving sibling of the late matriarch of Awolowo dynasty, Chief (Mrs.) HID Awolowo, yesterday visited the Ikenne-Remo residence of the deceased, weeping profusely.

Pa Adelana, who is 94-year-old, was brought on a wheelchair by a relation into the Efunyela Hall located within the premises of the Awolowo’s home.

The frail-looking nonagenarian waved his hands in the air and later bit his fingers, shouting “Ha! Ha! Ha!.”

He spoke to no one in particular as he was being wheeled into the hall, with tears cascading down his face.

Pa Adelana only managed to tell reporters that he had been dreaming about the late matriarch since the past three days.

While lamenting that his sister died during this period, the nonagenarian stated that “she (HID) has always said I would be the

one to bury her.”

“Oh, now she’s gone!” he burst out crying.

It was learnt that Pa Adelana, who resides in Lagos, was only informed about HID’s death few hours before he came visiting.

He was said to have insisted that he should be brought from his Lagos residence to Ikenne-Remo to “see things” for himself.

Pa Adelana, who recalled that the late matriarch took good care of him while she lived, signed the condolence register with the assistance of a relation.

She was example to mothers, wives –Segun Awolowo Kunle Olayeni Abeokuta

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he first male grandson of the Awolowo dynasty, Mr. Segun Awolowo (Jnr), yesterday described his late grandmother, Chief (Mrs) Hannah Idowu Dideolu Awolowo, as an example to mothers and wives.

Awolowo, who is the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC), said the deceased lived an exceptional, extraordinary life.

Speaking with reporters in Ikenne-Remo, Ogun

State, shortly on his return from a foreign trip, he noted that his grandmother was a pillar of support to the sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo.

Awolowo, who thanked God that his grandmother lived a fulfilled life, noted that she lived with the ideals of their patriarch.

He said, “For me, Mama was more than a grandmother because I actually lived here with both of them. I grew up here. They were like parents to me. She had lived a good life.

“When I reflected on the life of Mama lived, it was extra-ordinary to marry a

man like Chief Obafemi Awolowo, to live with his ideals and to support and make him strong when he was weak. She covered for him and the whole family.

“We are thankful to God for her life for protecting her. She was not sick. She was not in the hospital for years. Although, she was frail but her brain was very sharp on top of events.

“For her to pass on peacefully is a thing of joy.

We, in our own human ways and selfishness, we wanted her to be alive for her 100th birthday, which we are preparing for, but it is not to be. This is God’s wish for her life.

AfDB president, Adesina, mourns T

he president of African Development Bank (AfDB), Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, has said that the death of the Mrs Hilda Idowu Dideolu Awolowo “just before her 100th birthday, which we had all looked forward to with much anticipation”, was sad.

In a message, released through Dr. Olukayode Oyeleye, his media assistant, Adesina noted that “Mama was an epitome of resilience, tenacity and commitment in immortalizing the great and enduring legacy

NEWS

HID AWOLOWO (1915-2015)

and achievements of her husband, the late Papa, Chief Obafemi Awolowo.”

Adesina remembered, with fond memories, his growing years, pointing out that “as a boy, I benefited from the free primary education under the visionary policy of late Papa, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, ably supported by Mama.”

He noted that “the free primary education laid the early foundation for who millions of us have become today. We will remain forever grateful for the opportunities you gave

to us.”

Adesina lamented that the death of Mama HID “marks the end of a remarkable era, characterized by uncommon love and care for all, and undying dedication to the cause of helping others.” he described Mama as “a pillar of strength for her family, even in the face of adversity that would have made others crumble.”

He said he was saddened that, by her death, “Nigeria has lost a great asset who traversed generations.”

News

Military killed nationalism in Nigeria , says Ezeife

Onwuka Nzeshi ABUJA

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former Governor of Anambra State, Dr Chukwuemeka Ezeife has blamed the dwindling spirit of nationalism among Nigerians on the long years of military rule.

Ezeife said the military, which first made its incursion into the political space in 1966, did not only truncate democracy but promoted religious and ethnic divisions that eroded the faith of the citizenry on the Nigerian project.

The statesman, who was a guest on Politics Nationwide, a Radio Nigeria current affairs programme aired yesterday and monitored in Abuja, said that many Nigerians could swear

today that they can neither make sacrifices nor die for Nigeria because they were never groomed to love their country.

In discussing the issue: Nationalism and Sacrifice, Ezeife disclosed that the founding fathers of Nigeria were nationalists, who wanted the best for the people and were prepared to make sacrifices for the good of the country . He further disclosed that as governor of old Anambra State, he did not collect salaries throughout his tenure because he did not seek the office because of pecuniary benefits but to render service to his people and prepare him for even more leadership responsibilities at a higher level.

He said that such spirit of selfless service was in tune

with what obtained in the early years of Nigeria’s independence, when average citizen was proud of the country and was ready to die for its cause if need be.

“There used to be good Nigerians. This issue of people not being prepared to die for Nigeria, their country is a new development. Nigeria not being worth dying for is a product of military rule.

Military took over the governance of this country and divided us with religion and ethnicity. Otherwise before that time, your religion did not matter. I was in Lagos, part of Lagos was Muslim, part was Christian. If it was Ed el Kabir like now, I ate ram with Muslims and of course, if it was time for Christmas, we all ate rice and chicken.”

Burkina Faso: Ekweremadu applauds ECOWAS’ intervention Chukwu David Abuja

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he Speaker of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, has commended regional leaders for ensuring the reinstatement of the interim President of Burkina Faso, Michel Kafando.

Kafando was recently sacked in a military coup.

Ekweremadu, who is also the Deputy President of the Nigeria Senate,

made the commendation yesterday, when he received a delegation of the Pan African Parliament, which was on a study visit to the ECOWAS Parliament in Abuja.

He said that by unanimously rejecting the coup d’état in Burkina Faso, the ECOWAS leaders had reiterated that military coups and all forms of unconstitutional takeover of political power were absolutely unacceptable to the people, and would never be tolerated anymore in the sub-region.

His words: “Capture of power by undemocratic means is against the letters and spirit of the ECOWAS Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance as well as the provisions of the African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance. Our military officers in every part of the sub-region must understand this.

“I am glad to hear that the leader of the military coups admitted to reporters that it had been ‘the biggest mistake.”

NSCDC destroys illegal refineries, seizes 42 oil tankers Dan Atori MINNA

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he Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) yesterday said it has destroyed eight illegal refineries and seized 42 oil tankers used in diverting petroleum products to black marketers in the last two months

The Commandant General, NSCDC, Alhaji Abdulahi Gana, who was on Sallah break, disclosed this to journalists in his country home, Minna.

According to him: “On Friday last week, we destroyed three illegal refineries in River State.

Within the week, we destroyed five in Bayelsa and another two in Abia,”

Gana said that within the months under review, the NSCDC seized 42 oil tankers used in diverting petroleum products to the black market across the country.

He explained that what the country was losing to oil thieves in the country was more than the revenue accruing to the Federal Government from the oil sector.

agents for peace, security’ ‘She was ambassador for Yoruba women’ ‘Women are powerful and ECOWAS, Dr Grace of reason.”

Temitope Ogunbanke

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r. Gloria AdebajoFraser, has described the late Chief (Mrs) HID Awolowo, as an ambassador for Yoruba women and race.

In a statement issued in Lagos on behalf of her family, Adebajo-Fraser said HID’s life would always be a reference point for Nigerian women of all ethnic, religious and social status She said that the late matriarch of Awolowo’s family symbolised the ideal woman who led a purposeful life

worthy of emulation.

“Mama has been an inspiration to the Yoruba womenfolk and the Nigerian womenfolk at large. She was a good wife, mother, and grandmother not just for her children but for all Nigerians.

“Nigeria and the Yoruba race have truly lost a woman of inestimable value; an indisputable role model of integrity and dignity personified.

“She remains a guide for all responsible married women in Nigeria so as to

support our husbands and children in a Christian way through every situation in life.

“She was able to succeed in her assignment by God and we should all endeavour to do the same. Women should stand by their husbands for better or worse till death do them part,” she said.

Adebayo-Fraser also urged the Federal Government and Ogun State government to immortalise late HID Awolowo for posterity.

7

Ebere Ameh

W

omen have been recognized in conflict situations as not only victims but ‘powerful agents for peace and security in their communities, given their significant number and enormous potentials to contribute to peacebuilding efforts at both formal and informal settings.’

That was the view expressed by the UN Women Representative to Nigeria

Ongile, during the Stakeholders Consultative Forum to mark the 2015 International Day of Peace.

In her remarks at the event, which held at the Boston White Hotel, Abuja, Ongile observed that “despite the absence of women at most peace negotiation tables, it is a recognized fact that women as individuals have played critical roles in promoting inter-ethnic dialogue, providing innovative solutions and ensuring that there that there are voices

With the theme as “Partnerships for Peace, Dignity for All”, she calls on stakeholders to integrate gender dimension in peace-building and post-conflict initiative as endorsed by UN Security Council Resolution 1325, noting that emerging issues like the abduction of women and children, and their engagement as suicide bombers, especially in northern Nigeria, call for more strategic and collaborative efforts by stakeholders at all levels.

FRIDAY,SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

8

Metro

Forgive me, drug suspect begs fiancée SUSPENDED WEDDING A suspected drug trafficker says he regretted his wedding would have to be put on hold because of his arrest by NDLEA

Juliana Francis

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39-year-old waiter, who was arrested for alleged drug trafficking, has implored his wife-to-be to forgive him since he would not be able to make their planned traditional wedding anymore.

The suspect, Okpue Ernest Ifeanyi, 39, came to Nigeria from Brazil for his traditional wedding, but was arrested by operatives of the Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for being possession of suspected wraps of cocaine.

Ifeanyi confessed that he was paid N400,000 to take 59 wraps of cocaine to Nigeria.

He said that he decided to take the deal because he wanted to add more money to his already planned wedding.

The groom-to-be said that he suspected someone cast a spell on him, for he could not understand why he jeopardised his planned traditional wedding and dashed his betrothal’s happiness because of N400,000.

Ifeanyi, who has lived in Brazil for a year, said: “I work in a restaurant in Brazil. I sincerely want to get married and have a family. In the process of

Betty Sobo and Waheed Issa

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17-year-old, David Onuegbe, is unable to walk and is currently in pains. But for him to walk again and be relieved of the pains, David needs at least N1.5 million for a surgery.

According to his mother, Mrs Chibuzor Onuegbe (a reverend) she cries whenever she looks at her son, because he is going through a lot of pains.

The woman believed a sur-

ABIODUN BELLO FEATURES Editor

abiodun.bello@newtelegraphonline.com

© Daily Telegraph Publishing Company Limited

Ifeanyi. Inset: Cocaine wrapps

trying to make more money, I was given 59 wraps of cocaine to take to Nigeria for N400,000.

Now I realised I have made a big mistake. I pray my woman will find a place in her heart to forgive me. I feel I’m under

a spell.”

Arrested along with Ifeanyi are Okonkwo Daniel Anagor, 26, Lawal Monsuru Ademola, 33, Ogbonna Donatus Chigozie and Okoro Chibueze Augustine.

The Head, Media and Publicity of NDLEA, Mitchel Ofoyeju, said the suspects were caught at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, for unlawful possession of 10.255kgs of narcotics hidden in garri (West African food made from cassava) and luggage.

He explained that Ifeanyi and Augustine were coming from Brazil with cocaine, while three others were going to South Africa, Dubai and Pakistan when they were arrested.

The NDLEA Commander at the Lagos airport, Mr Ahmadu Garba, said: “Anagor was caught with 2.810kgs of Tramadol on his way to Dubai.

Ademola was arrested with 3.310kgs of methamphetamine on his way to South Africa, while Chigozie was caught attempting to smuggle 610 grams of cocaine to Pakistan.

Two other suspects, Augustine and Ifeanyi were caught with 2.575kgs and 950 grams of cocaine from Brazil.”

Anagor, who was to board Rwand Air flight to Dubai, told investigators that he wanted to spend some time after his secondary school and further his education in Dubai.

His ambition has, however, been scuttled following his arrest as well as criminal charges of drug exportation against him by the agency.

He said: “I was travelling to Dubai to spend holiday and further my studies but they

called me from Dubai that somebody will give me garri in Lagos. When I got to Lagos, the person called me and gave me the bag of garri.

“At the airport, the garri was searched and 445 sachets of Tramadol were found inside the bag. That was how I was arrested.”

Ademola, a trader selling clothes at Marina Lagos, holds a diploma in Computer Installations and Repairs from the Lagos State Polytechnic.

His journey to South Africa was aborted as 3.310kgs of crystalline substance which tested positive for methamphetamine was found in his possession.

The drug was neatly packed in 26 parcels in a false bottom of his luggage.

Similarly, Chigozie was nabbed with 610 grams of cocaine while attempting to board an Emirate flight to Pakistan.

Augustine, who was expecting N2.5 million, described his arrest as a bad luck.

He said: “I have lived in Brazil for a year and six months.

I have suffered trying to make ends meet in Brazil. I got involved in drug trafficking so as to start a legitimate business.

“I expected to have made N2.5 million from the deal.

Unfortunately, my partner who would have collected the drug in Dubai failed to show up so I had to come to Nigeria with the drug. That was not the original plan. This is a bad luck and I feel so sad.”

Boy, 17, needs N1.5m to walk gery, which would be done in Indian, would make the boy alright. She said the operation would gulp N5 million, but the family presently needs N1.5 million.

According to the minister at Assemblies of God Church, David is the third of her four children and was born hale and hearty. But he is now being carried around because he couldn’t walk or stand on his own.

Onuegbe said that David started suffering from ‘cerebral palsy’ when he was ninemonth-old.

She said: “He was admitted into Havana Hospital, where he was in coma for eight days. We stayed in the hospital for 15 days and used four cylinders of oxygen.

When he came out of coma,

he lost the use of everything.

He could not even recognise us or hear sound. He was discharged on the 16th day but his health did not return to normal.”

Onuegbe added that David had been suffering for years.

She recalled that they went for x-ray and discovered dislocated right hip. David was diagnosed with an epileptic case, which the family had been seeking solution to.

The family had already visited three hospitals in Nigeria, seeking for solution, but none of the hospitals could treat him.

After trying hospitals and traditional doctors in Nigeria with no positive changes, the family decided to go to Vikram Hospital in India.

Onuegbe said that doctors

from India the family met at Kanu Nwankwo’s Heart Foundation told them that they would be able to treat David by conducting an operation on his brain.

They said the operation would take care of the seizures. They also would carry out another operation on his hip-bone.

Onuegbe added: “We have contacted the hospital and the total amount to be spent, including international passport, air ticket and treatment is N5 million. But the church and other good Nigerians have been able to help us with some amount of money.

Right now, we are looking for N1.5 million to complete the money. We have done everything possible to relieve him

David

of the pain, but his health issue has drained our resources. We are in debts. We need help.”

Nigerians who wish to help David can send their support to any of these account numbers: Onuegbe Chibuzor N. First bank, 2018357079 or UBA, 1014495019. Onuegbe can also be reached on 08035137845.

David

Metro

NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY,SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

Notorious cultists held for robbery

Kunle Olayeni Abeokuta

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olice in Ogun State have apprehended two suspected cult members ‎for allegedly robbing some commercial motorcyclists at gunpoint at Ogijo in Sagamu Local Government Area.

The suspects, David Abulumen and Mayowa Olajide, said to be members of Eiye Confraternity, were nabbed by police operatives and members of the vigilante services about 11:30pm on Wednesday.

Ogun CP, Abdulmajid Ali The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Olu- had directed that the matter be muyiwa Adejobi, who con- handed over to the Department firmed the arrest yesterday, of Criminal Investigation and said‎ items recovered from Intelligence for proper investithem included a gun, assorted gation and prosecution. charms and two stolen motorThe PPRO restated Ali’s decycles. termination to hunt cult memIn a statement, Adejobi de- bers and hoodlums creating scribed the suspects as “noto- security threats and fears in rious members” of the cult the minds of people and curtail their nefarious activities. group.

Meanwhile, Ali has held a He said the state Police Commissioner, Abdulmajid Ali, meeting with all heads of se-

Juliana Francis

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politician, Williams Akintunde, has disclosed how four armed robbers abducted him in Lagos and the role played by police in rescuing him.

Akintunde, who is aspiring to be the next chairman of Amuwo/Odofin Local Government Area of Lagos State, said he was shocked when four armed men, appeared out of the blues as he was honking for security men in front of his office gate and took him away in his car.

They drove him around town aimlessly and finally dropped him off at Onipanu.

Before they dropped him off, however, they stripped him naked, leaving him only in his boxers.

According to Akintunde, the incident happened on Monday but on Tuesday, operatives of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), Ikeja, arrested the suspects and recovered his car.

He said: “It happened on

curity agencies to ensure effective policing of Ogun State.

Adejobi, who confirmed the meeting, said security agencies present included the Nigerian Army, Department of State Services (DSS), Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Nigeria Prison Service (NPS), Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC).

Others were the Nigeria Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and Ogun State Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Corps (TRACE).

Adejobi said: “The meeting, which lasted for two hours, was held in the office of the Commissioner of Police, Eleweran, Abeokuta, at the instance of the police boss on Tuesday, where many security issues were discussed, including fight against cultism, land speculation, restriction orders on operations of commercial motorcyclists, bars, joint and recreation centres within the state.

“While addressing the meeting, the police boss appreciated the support and understanding the police command enjoys from all agencies in Ogun State. He then urged the security chiefs to continue to assist the police in implementing its policies and strategies that are geared towards proper policing of the gateway state.

How gunmen abducted me, by politician September 14, 2015. I was on the verge of entering my office at Iyano-Isolo, when I was abducted with my car. Four men, carrying rifles, wearing regular clothes, appeared from nowhere. The time was between 5:30am and 6am. I

was honking for the security men to open the gate. Before I knew it, the four armed men appeared.”

Akintunde said that they pointed gun at him and ordered him to wind down his windscreen. They further or-

The recovered car. Inset: Akintunde

dered him to open his car door.

They dragged him from the driver’s seat and bundled him into the back seat. One of the men took over the wheels of the car and the second guy sat in front with him. The other two sat with Akintunde at the back.

Akintunde sat quietly, wondering what they wanted to do to him. He did not wish to antagonise the bandits and had quickly told them that his car had inbuilt security and could halt at any time. He magnanimously showed them how to disconnect the security.

The robbers drove through Iyano-Isolo, to Mushin and Ilupeju. They later drove into Ikorodu Road. They did not seem to have a destination in mind.

He added: “They stripped me naked, collected all my phones, laptop and other valuables I had in the car. They took all my clothes and left me in my boxers.”

Police chiefs, stakeholders meet on insecurity Betty Sobo and Eniola Jolaoso

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he Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Fatai Owoseni, and other police officers had a closed door meeting recently with some local government area executives to discuss strategies to be adopted in tackling security challenges confronting the state.

The meeting was held at the Command Headquarters, Ikeja.

The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Joe Offor, said that Owoseni and members of his management team, comprising of all Area Commanders, Principal Staff of the state Police Command and all Local Government Ex-

ecutive Secretaries of the state, held the meeting to review the security challenges and professional strategies to put in place to make the state a safe haven for citizens. The meeting was also to foster a better policecommunity relationship.

Offor said: “We deliberated on the challenges of the police, which included shortage of manpower and inadequate logistics in terms of vehicles.

“Lack of enough vehicles, technical equipment and communication gadgets are the major problems of our profession.

We have solicited the support of the Local Government Executives and they have agreed to do everything within their capacity to be supportive.”

The Executive Secretary

of Bariga Local Council Development Area (LCDA) and the Chairman of all Executive Secretaries in Lagos State, Mr David Alabi, said that the local government was at the grassroots of the state and thus, it was necessary to combat crime from that level.

He said: “The police are liaising with the Local Government Executives who are at the grassroots of the state in order to reduce the rate of crime in the country.

“The grassroots is the best place to combat crime because when crime is tackled at the lowest level, there wouldn’t be problem in the state. As much as crime can’t be fully eradicated, it can be reduced to the barest minimum.”

CP Lagos, Fatai Owoseni

According to Alabi, good parental upbringing, where kids were concerned, could reduce crime.

9

City Briefs Couple murdered in their sleep Charles Onyekwere ENUGU

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olice in Enugu State are investigating the circumstances surrounding the killing of a couple, Mr Marel Abah and his wife, Jacintha, in their sleep.

The incident occurred on Monday at Amaja in Igboeze North Local Government Area of Enugu State.

Amaja is a border town between Enugu and Benue states.

It was gathered that about 2am on that fateful day, armed men operating under the cloak of heavy rain entered the couple’s house located in an isolated part of the town and slashed their throats.

It was gathered that the couple bled to death.

The police have commenced investigations to identify those behind the dastardly act.

Meanwhile, the bodies have been deposited at the morgue of Ogurute General Hospital for autopsy.

The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Ebere Amaraizu, confirmed the incident in a statement issued in Enugu yesterday.

Ebonyi community parades two for performing rituals Uchenna Inya ABAKALIKI

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he people of Amuzu community in Ezza South Local Government Area of Ebonyi State yesterday apprehended and paraded two persons caught while attempting to perform ritual sacrifice.

The suspects, who are in their 50s, came from Ogoja, Cross River State to perform the ritual and were sited inside the community forest by a villager.

It was gathered that when the suspects were seen entering the forest with a big waterproof bag, they claimed they were going to defecate when the villager who sited them tried to inquire.

But the villager, who said he knew they were strangers, doubted their claim and raised the alarm which led to their arrest.

“I saw them go inside the forest with a bag and I asked them what they were going to do. They said they were going to ease themselves but I was not comfortable with that and knowing fully well they are not from our community I decided to raise the alarm which led to their arrest,” the villager, who claimed anonymity, said.

Items found inside the bag of the suspects included three puppies, white cloth, red cloth and other strange ritual items.

After being paraded at the village square, the suspects were taken to the palace of the traditional ruler of the community, HRH John Aloke, for a final decision to be taken.

But the traditional ruler allegedly directed the villagers to force the suspects to eat all the items found in their possession after which the community would consider whether or not to hand them over to police.

The angry villagers reportedly executed the directive promptly.

They also quizzed the commercial motorcyclist who conveyed the suspects to the area for the ritual. He, however, denied having knowledge of what they came to the forest to do.

10 News Temitope Ogunbanke

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s millions of Muslims faithful in Nigeria and across the world celebrate the Eidel-Kabir, the National Leader of All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, has urged all people of faith not to give up but hold up their faith that a better Nigeria is possible.

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Eid-el-Kabir

Tinubu urges faith to deliver Nigeria Tinubu in an Eid-elKabir message issued yesterday, expressed satisfaction that the country’s re-engineering has started in earnest and therefore urged all Nigerians to put their hands on deck to ensure that the journey ends at a destination of a functional Nigeria and a model for Africa and reference point of develop-

ment.

“Today, Nigeria is set on a new path of recovery because millions had faith in the change message and agenda of the All Progressives Congress.

They must continue to back up their faith with good works of patriotism.

“All people of faith must at this time of Nigeria’s renaissance

bound together and work together to give Nigeria that great push to a new functional society that it so deserves,” he stated.

The APC national leader also stated that Nigeria is lucky to have had another shot at greatness with President Muhammadu Buhari-led APC government.

“Our country is set

on an irrevocable path of progress and no matter how much reactionary elements try to slow down the government they will fail because Nigeria has taken full flight under Buhari and their is no shooting it down.

“On my part, I remain a firm believer in Nigeria and a committed soldier to the battle ahead against

poverty, ignorance, misgovernance and impunity.

Having labored all my political life to partner with others to get Nigeria to this station, we will not roll over for a few with a retrogressive agenda to take over or distract the Buhari government from the onerous nation building task ahead,” Tinubu stated.

Fayemi greets Muslims at Sallah

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Soun of Ogbomosoland, Oba Oladunni Oyewumi, Ajagungbade 111 (left), with the senator representing Oyo North Senatorial District, Fatai Buhari, at the Eid praying ground, in Ogbomoso …yesterday

Adamawa Muslims observe Sallah under tight security Ibrahim Abdul Yola

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n what appeared to be a move to curtail possible attack by members of the Boko Haram sect, Muslims faithful in Yola, the Adamawa State capital, had on Thursday celebrated this year Eldel-Kabir amidst tight security, as armed soldiers and police patrolled all parts of the town.

In all the Eid’s ground, the two raka’ats Ed-el-Kabir prayers were conducted under the supervision of armoured vehicles, combat helicopters and thousands of personnel of other security operatives comprising Customs, Immigration, Prisons, National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) and civil defence corps.

In Yola, the Lamido of Adamawa, Barkindo Mustapha, the state

governor Mohammed Bindow Jibrilla and other dignitaries joined other faithful at the Yola prayer ground to observe the prayer.

Unlike before, this year’s there was no the usual durbar and horse race,but in their separate messages the paramount ruler and the state governor all cautioned residents to be security conscience and vigilant.

The Emir of Mubi, Alhaji Abubakar Isa Ahmadu also cancelled the traditional Durbah and urged all district and village heads to stay at their respective domain and pray for lasting peace in the country.

Speaking on the development, the Secretary of the Mubi Emirate Council, Alhaji Tijjani Marafa, said the measures were taken in view of the prevailing security situation in the country particular in the North East sub region.

Traditional ruler escapes assassination

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he Ejeh of Ankpa and Chairman, Ankpa Area Traditional Council in Kogi, Alhaji Ahmadu Yakubu, on Thursday narrowly escaped assassination.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the alleged assassination attempt occurred at EtiAja Eid prayer ground in Ankpa, where the traditional ruler, in company of other Muslims, went to perform the Eid-el-Kabir prayer.

Narrating his ordeal to news men shortly after

his escape, the traditional ruler said that the gunmen numbering about nine were armed with guns and other weapons.

The traditional ruler said that the gunmen attempted to attack him as worshipers dispersed but his guards, who had accompanied him to the prayer ground, quickly shielded him and warded off the suspects.

Yakubu expressed gratitude to God for saving his life, saying that although he was aware that hoodlums in the town had

been plotting his downfall, he did not know they would go that extreme.

He said he had openly condemned the escalating criminal and secret cult activities in the town, adding that criminals among the youth were giving Ankpa a bad name.

“We are not bad people; we will continue to fight them; we will cooperate with security agencies to flush them out and bring them to book; we will not allow them to overrun Ankpa,” he said.

Oni felicitates with Muslims

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he Deputy National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC (South) Segun Oni yesterday tasked Muslims on the essence of Id-el-Kabir, stressing that it is a sacrifice for a spiritual rebirth and deep reflections while having unshakeable faith in Almighty Allah.

In a Sallah message signed by Oni’s Special Assistant, Mr. Ben Ogun-

tuase, he said Id-el-Kabir is a reminder that God’s promise would always be fulfilled and urged muslims to always keep faith.

He reminded Muslims that the period should not only be for festivities but the lessons of perseverance, steadfastness, trust and fulfilment of promises should be learnt, saying that Prophet Ibrahim demonstrated an uncommon courage to Allah by showing that

promise is a debt and Allah in turn gave him victory and relief by exchanging a ram for his son, Ismail for sacrifice.

“As Prophet Ibrahim fulfilled his promise to Almighty Allah so shall the Buhari-led Federal government fulfil his promise to make life meaningful and worthwhile to Nigerians and we are beginning to see this happen”, Oni added.

he immediate past Governor of Ekiti State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has felicitated with Muslims on the occasion of the Eid- el- Kabir, urging them to uphold the lessons of love, loyalty and sacrifice which the festival teaches.

Fayemi, in a goodwill message signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Olayinka Oyebode, said the Eid el-Kabir festival also offers another opportunity for sober reflection, soul searching and spiritual renewal which Allah demands from the faithful.

He advised that the lessons of sacrifice and loyalty, which Eid-elKabir teaches should not be lost to the pomp and ceremony that accompany the festival.

According to him, Allah brought victory and joy to Prophet Ibrahim and his son, Ismail, after the duo demonstrated uncommon sense of sacrifice in fulfilling his will.

Benue Speaker tasks citizens on sacrifice Cephas Iorhemen MAKURDI

S

peaker, Benue State House of Assembly, Mr. Terkimbi Ikyange has called on the people of the state to be prepared to make sacrifice for the betterment of the State and to the glory of God. Ikyange who made the call in a goodwill message to the Muslim Community in the state as they celebrate Eid-el-Kabir, also charged the Muslim Omar not to forget the origin of the festival which symbolizes the willingness of Ibrahim to sacrifice his only son as an act of obedience to God. He stated that as the Muslim Community in the state join their counterparts in other parts of the country to celebrate this Holy Festival, they should not just think of what will solely benefit them, but should also think of what will benefit their neighbors and the society at large.

NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

Stewardship

Interview

Governance

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100 days of Dogara’s leadership

Governors with backlog of salaries should be impeached – Agbaje

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Waging war against corruption

Politics

New vista of diplomatic relations President Muhammadu Buhari has just returned from a three-day official visit to France, a trip, pundits say, has the fecundity of revamping Nigeria’s economy. ANULE EMMANUEL reports

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lthough the issue of Nigeria’s foreign policy did not feature prominently in the last presidential elections, President Muhammadu Buhari may have not been oblivious of the importance Nigerians attach to diplomatic engagements, which they expect could be used to reposition the country in global politics.

Indeed, both President Buhari and his predecessor, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan whom he defeated in the March 28 presidential election focused more on local problems confronting the country to secure the votes of electorate.

At the diplomatic front, Nigeria has very little to worry except, perhaps, for the country’s quest for a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council, and some consular problems as compared to the poor state of economy.

Interestingly, tackling some of the crucial domestic issues such as insecurity, electricity, corruption and job creation is one of the bases for which the present administration would be assessed regarding its successes or failures.

During his inauguration on May 29, President Buhari again re-echoed his promises which highlighted these areas that if really attended to, have the capacity to propel speedy economic growth and the development of Nigeria.

The president’s recent three-day visit to France which was on the

AYODELE OJO

DEPUTY EDITOR, PoLITICS ayodele.ojo@newtelegraphonline.com

© Daily Telegraph Publishing Company Limited

President Muhammadu Buhari (left) inspecting a guard of honour on his arrival at the National des Invalides in Paris.

invitation of the French President Francios Hollande came out of the deliberate strategic action plan by his administration to also seek global support to the fight against terrorism especially the Boko Haram sect in the North-East whose activities have claimed several innocent lives.

France is one of the Group of Seven (G7) major advanced economies that have long indicated interest to partner Nigeria and the entire West African sub region to address the issue of insecurity.

As far back as 2011, French Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Jean Michel Dumond at a meeting with the immediate past President of the Senate, David Mark, had expressed the concern of his country about the insecurity in Nigeria, and assured that France was prepared to partner the Federal Government in the area of peacekeeping, security and stability of the West African sub-region.

He did not mince words when he said: “The French Government is worried about the recent unrest in Nigeria and would therefore contribute her quota towards arresting the menace.”

The partnership which was in two ways identified the first collaboration in an inter-state approach where France and Nigeria are third parties to the conflicts that the partnership sought then to address. The second leg of it was to have France play a third party and mediation

We have to depend on France and the other G7 countries for support to fight piracy

role to end the insurgency in the North, meaning that it would be involving in Nigeria’s internal security. Unfortunately, all these were yet to come to fruition.

Obviously, this plan by the French government to render support to Nigeria and the region appears to be gaining grounds considering recent assurances that came during President Buhari’s visit to Paris.

French President Hollande Francois told Buhari in clear terms that his government is worried over the increasing spate of insecurity in Nigeria and the entire West Africa region and ready to render support in tackling extremism.

Like the popular saying that ‘there is no free lunch in Free town’, France’s interest in the security problem facing Nigeria and West Africa would not come without a thought that the country also stands to benefit while rendering the assistance, at least with returns on investment. Nigeria after all is surrounded by most Francophone countries that France remains their major ally.

This is why France has also been behind the push for better collaboration between Nigeria and its neighbours of Chad, Cameroun, Niger and Benin Republic in the fight and last year facilitated their meeting in Paris.

When leaders of the two countries met in Paris, President Hollande and Buhari discussed new

strategies of partnership that would enable Nigeria and her neighbours of Cameroun, Chad, Niger and Benin Republic through the joint action of the Multinational Join Task Force (MJTF) to successfully fight the insurgency and restore peace.

President Hollande had explained that as an intervention approach to assist in the fight, the Regional Summit on Security in Paris which he hosted brought together the neighbouring countries to chart the way forward.

With the commitment from France, Nigeria’s next waiting shopping list in terms of support according to President Buhari would be from members of the G7.

“We have to depend on France and the other G7 countries for support to fight piracy. Our next shopping list is going to G7 in terms of intelligence and training. Another problem is the problem in the Gulf of Guinea, from Senegal to Angola, that area is endowed with resources like petroleum and other minerals but surrounded by piracy and theft,” he said.

Aside security, the president’s trip to France was tailored towards strengthening the existing bilateral, economic and trade relationship between the two countries. As it stands presently, the volume of trade between Nigeria and France is in the region of $5 billion annually. Both Buhari and Hollande CONTINUED ON PAGE 16

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Politics

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

100 days of Dogara’s leadership The Eighth House of Representatives led by Speaker Yakubu Dogara clocked its first 100 days on September 17. PHILIP NYAM takes account of activities of the House vis-a-vis its achievements and failures since inauguration

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he inauguration of the Eighth House of Representatives on June 9 was trailed by crisis occasioned by the struggle for leadership positions. The election of Speaker Yakubu Dogara and his deputy, Yusuff Lasun against the directive of their party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) unsettled the House when the party insisted on imposing its choice of principal officers on the speaker. Consequently, the House was forced to go on recess twice in succession in order to stave off the opposition mounted against the leadership as well as find a way of amicably resolving the differences.

However, after a leadership tussle spanning 49 days, peace returned to the House on July 29, when Dogara finally named his erstwhile challenger and the party’s anointed candidate, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila as House leader. Although, the speaker also appointed Hon. Ado Doguwa and Pally Iriase as chief whip and deputy whip respectively, who were all chosen by the party, Hon. Buba Jibrin, one of his loyalists emerged as deputy House leader.

In this vein, Dogara proved to be a good leader and politician by accommodating all shades of interests in the House in order to create an enabling environment for legislative work to thrive. The leadership qualities displayed by the speaker have been responsible for the stable political environment being experienced in the lower chamber unlike the Senate where some members of the ruling APC are still in court trying to unseat Senate President Bukola Saraki.

Today, the House is peaceful and enjoys tranquillity which is what is needed to deliver on the mandate given to the lawmakers

by Nigerians.

While the crisis lasted, Nigerians had expressed disappointment with the lawmakers. The ‘incessant’ recess by the lawmakers have been highly criticised in the public space. The House has been on break three times since inauguration including the annual recess, which is ongoing.

This has been a major minus on

Dogara

the part of the legislators as the electorate seem not to buy into the explanations given by the leadership that the annual recess is a statutory break enshrined in the House rules and regulations.

Another area where Nigerians have criticised the House is the non-composition of the leadership and membership of standing committees of the chambers.

This delay has been attributed to the long crisis that rocked the House shortly after the elections of principal officers. It is expected that as soon as the House resumes from the annual break, membership of the committee would be announced by the speaker. Already, the selection committee headed by the speaker with representatives from each of the 36 states including Abuja has been put in place and is working towards achieving this.

Dogara’s leadership A few days to the inauguration of the House, Dogara had launched a legislative agenda, which serves as the working document of his leadership. On becoming speaker, he set up an ad hoc committee comprising lawmakers, representatives of the civil society organisation, members of the academia and other stakeholders that finetuned the document, which was presented to the House and debated for four weeks before it was finally adopted.

The legislative agenda is a document tailored towards assisting the House to deliver effective legislation in aid of de-

The House is peaceful and enjoys tranquillity which is what is needed to deliver

velopment and reforms aimed at improving conditions of livings of Nigerians. The general principles of the agenda include to build a House with integrity and capacity to effectively deliver on its constitutional and legislative mandate; to operate a House that responds to citizen’s demands for greater transparency and accountability in the way the legislative activities of government are conducted as well as establish necessary legislative interventions that respond national economic challenges, address poverty and rebuild infrastructure.

The legislative agenda will therefore guide the processes of the House for the next four years.

The speaker has also constituted some ad hoc committees for the smooth running of the House pending the inauguration of standing committees. Earlier in the life of the Eighth Assembly, the speaker constituted a committee to review the code of conduct of members with a view to ensuring that legislators are well-guided in the way and manner they conduct themselves in and around the chamber. The House standing rules are also being reviewed and a restructuring of committees for optimum performance among other radical changes being introduced.

There is a committee on media and public affairs headed by a former president of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Hon. Sani Zorro to shore up the image of the House. An ethics and privileges committee is also in place

just as the rules and business committee led by a third-time lawmaker, Hon. Orker Jev has been functioning too.

Another important committee was inaugurated to review all laws of the federation, recommend repealing or amendment to obsolete ones in addition to drafting of bills all to be submitted to the House ready for legislation.

Dogara also blazed the trail when he became the first speaker since 1999 to step down from his seat and sponsored a motion on the rehabilitation, recovery and reconstruction of the violence ravaged North-East geopolitical zone. It was the first time since 1999 that a sitting speaker would abdicate his seat temporarily to enable him sponsor a motion.

Last month, the speaker was among the 140 Speakers of parliaments from across the world who converged on New York. He held bilateral talks with speaker of parliaments of five countries on the sidelines of the International Parliamentarian Union (IPU) conference at UN headquarters. He secured China`s endorsement for a permanent seat on UN security council. He called for the return of looted funds to Nigeria.

The House commenced work on 39 bills which has been listed and scaled first reading stage out of which the speaker himself has sponsored four. In fact, Dogara was the first to table a Bill in the Eighth Assembly. Some of the bills include public interest disclosure bill, alteration to the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria bill, pension rights of judges, tertiary education trust fund bill amongst others.

The House has also within the last 100 days passed 77 resolutions on critical motions. One of these resolutions is the motion on review of the court martial of some soldiers. This resolution has yielded results as the military authorities have reviewed the sentences slammed on the soldiers and many of them have been recalled into the army.

Other notable resolutions passed by the House was the call on President Muhammadu Buhari to forward an executive bill for the establishment of NorthEast Development Commission, convoke an international donor conference for the reconstruction, rehabilitation and recovery of the North-East among others.

The House is currently investigating the alleged non-implementation of 2015 capital budget with startling revelations.

Through the investigation, it has been revealed that the nation’s debt profile has hit $8.3 billion even as the Federal Government has already borrowed N882 billion to finance the 2015 budget.

This is the scorecard of the Dogara-led Eighth House of Representatives. It is therefore left to the electorate to assess and come out with their verdict.

The fact, however, is that though the House may not have sat for many times since inauguration, the process of lawmaking and oversight has begun.

Politics

NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

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Governors with backlog of salaries should be impeached – Agbaje Mr. Fred Agbaje is a lawyer and human rights activist.

In this interview with TEMITOPE OGUNBANKE, he speaks on President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, anti-graft war, election tribunal cases, among other national issues

What is your take on the ongoing trial of Senate President, Senator Bukola Saraki at the Code of Conduct Bureau Tribunal?

The matter is in the tribunal.

Some people are of the view that the case was initiated to witchhunt the Senate President?

It is not true. I don’t see any witch-hunting in the case. It is only in Nigeria that when a politician is being tried for offence he has committed that he will start insinuating witch-hunt as a defence. Why was I not arrested for the same offence? We were not arrested because we have not committed the offence.

I hate the argument of people talking about witch-hunt. The man should go and face his ordeal squarely. And if he has any defence, he should go and defend himself. And if his only defence is witch-hunt, he should go and tell the chairman of the tribunal that why are you witch-hunting me and see whether he will go back to his house.

But Saraki has already appeared at the tribunal and said he is not guilty of all the charges levelled against him.

If the man says he is not guilty, the onus is now on the state to further prove the allegations against him.

I see it as part of the war against corruption in this country; anybody can be arrested for graft and people should stop flying the kite of political vendetta.

Nobody is above the law. Though the president and his vice, state governors and deputy governors enjoy constitutional immunity; that does not prevent the law enforcement agencies from investigating them. They can still be investigated but they cannot be prosecuted. So, nobody is above the law. To the Saraki’s of this world, if you have committed any anti-graft offence, you should go and face the music instead of whipping political sentiments and political vendetta as a defence.

Even at present there are still some

Agbaje

ex-governors being prosecuted by the anti-graft agencies for corruption charges.

It is a question of time. It is Saraki today; tomorrow it might be Godswill Akpabio and next tomorrow, it could be anybody. The anti-corruption war has started and I am sure it is going to catch up with so many senators. Mark my words; so many senators will either lose their seats because of the verdict that is expected from election tribunals or as a result of corruption charges that they might not be able to escape very shortly.

Already, there are people calling for the Senate President to step down.

What is your take on this?

It could be morally right for Saraki to step down now but it is not legally right because in the eyes of the law, the man is still presumed innocent. The man might say I am not going to resign or step down until the charges against me are proven beyond all reasonable doubt. But on moral grounds, yes. He could say on moral ground, I want to resign because I cannot continue in the Senate as a senator and President of the Senate while this type of corrupt charges are hanging on my neck. So, base on moral integrity, he might resign.

But, how many Nigerians have ever resigned from their political office?

Some people are of the view that the constitution of the Prof. Itse Sagay-led Presidential Committee on Anti-corruption is a plus to the war against graft. Do you share same sentiment?

Sagay is my professor; he taught me in school. He taught

me at my first degree and in my postgraduate school. He is an intelligent Nigerian, well respected. He knows his onion and he is a man of impeccable character.

He is a man whose moral integrity is beyond question and I see him as part of the government’s serious war against corruption.

So, his appointment is a plus for Buhari’s government and that is why people like me are ready to work with the likes of Prof.

Sagay because we know he is an incorruptible professor of Law.

Any governor who has backlog of salaries does not deserve to be called a governor... such a governor should be impeached for intellectual incompetence

Different names are in the public domain as those that are likely to be part of Buhari’s cabinet. How do you feel about the impending cabinet?

It is the business of the president to select whoever he wants to work with. As far as I am concerned and speaking as a constitutional lawyer; we are running a presidential system of government, in which case the bulk stops on the president’s table. If the government succeeds, we will all praise him but if the government fails because of the nature of people who constitute his cabinet, we will all blame him. So, it is left for President Buhari to ensure that he goes for the best in the society.

He should not be persuaded by political inclination; he should appoint those he knows he trust and are not corrupt or prone to corruption, those he knows can defend their moral grounds and intellectual sagacity is beyond reproach. These are the type of people he should appoint. If he appoints some fools into cabinet and the government fails, we will all point accusing fingers directly at him.

How do you see the bailout fund being given to some state governments to pay backlog of workers’ salaries?

I don’t know where it is provided for in the constitution that the president should bail out states. The states are claiming to be autonomous and that Nigeria is running a federal system of government, which I agree with because under the principle of federalism, each of the state is autonomous. The states are independent of the control of the Federal Government; that is the only essence of federalism. The states government are quick to remind the federal government that it should not interfere in their affairs. But when it comes to their inability to properly manage and harness the resources of their states, they are now crying to the Federal Government for bailout. The question I want to ask is: Where is the bailout provided for in the Nigerian constitution?

It is not even under Section 162 of the Nigerian constitution. What the constitution states is that the resources of the country must be centrally pulled. In other words, all the revenues of the states must go to the federation account from where the Federal Government can dispense money. That does not mean that the Federal Government has become a Father Christmas in which case they can dispense bailout funds to the state.

Also, is the bailout fund provided for in the current budget? The answer is no. What it means is that Buhari is dangerously treading on the path of violation of the constitution and any violation of the constitution is a requirement for impeachment. What I am saying in essence is that there is no provision for bailout. The states should be allowed to leak their wounds.

But the purpose of the bailout is to help some state government to pay their workers’ salaries?

What were they doing with their own resources? What have they been doing with all the allocations they have been given to each of the states? What of the money coming from Sovereign Wealth Fund? Many of the governors have stolen the resources of their states blind and at the end of the day they now cry to the Federal Government for bailout. Any governor that has arrears of salaries has failed to manage the economy and resources of his states. What happened to their Internally Generated Revenue (IGR)? And as far as I am concerned, any governor who has backlog of salaries does not deserve to be called a governor; he does not deserve to be called His Excellency. His Excellency should be removed from his name and such a governor should be impeached for intellectual incompetence and economic mismanagement.

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Opinion Nabbing Nascent Naija Nanas Emissary EMEKA OBASI

emobas2003@yahoo.com 08094457557 (sms only)

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here is a disturbing trend among young compatriots which we all must tackle immediately or gnash our teeth later. I remain conservative to a very large degree and will make no apologies. There are so many reasons to celebrate the past.

The young ones have nothing to fear anymore, our value systems sound strange to so many of them. I find it absure when a full blown teenager looks at an older person in the face in the morning and fails to offer our usual traditional African greetings.

Sure things have changed. Our reading culture is gone and we are speedily turning out a bunch of numbskulls who have nothing but criminality to offer this country tomorrow. The internet has not set the Western world backwards, I think it may eventually end up destroying my country. Education in our nation has no standards yet many dullards boast of post graduate degrees and are occupying sensitive positions.

There is indeed a lot of stupidity going on among the younger generation. Just visit any site on the internet.

One comment by a Yoruba immediately turns the Igbo against that group, vice versa. The language is so dirty that you could throw up. It is the same thing when another reaction comes from the Hausa Fulani. Many young Nigerians from the various ethnic nationalities hate themselves like the devil hates Christianity.

I read things like Igbo kidnappers, Yoruba ritual-

ists, Hausa- Fulani rapists, Niger Delta thieves, Edo prostitutes and all that. There is so much division and hate language amongsome of our children. I call them children even if some of them are adults. They behave like big fools.

Prior to the Civil War , we had our differences but we managed them. You had people moving freely from one part of the country to the other. There was an Hausa Mayor of Enugu, there was an Igbo member of the Western House of Assembly and you had a Yoruba who was one of the wealthiest men in Jos. Children had things that brought them together. It is no secret that broadcaster Bisi Olatilo never stepped his foot on Igbo soil before he began to speak fluent Igbo. He simply became a polyglot in Kano by mixing with children from other parts of the country.

I doubt if children raised by this same man would join the band of young Nigerians abusing themselves on the net. There is just no way, quote me, a Bisi Olatilo will be harmed in any part of Igboland. Mark my words, even if he falls into wrong hands, the fact that he speaks the language will set him free.

Anytime I read Justice Mustapha Akanji, I learn a lot.

This is one man that all of us should look up to. He is Nigerian quite alright but grew up in Ghana. That exposure shows in his dealings with people. He does not treat the next person based on tribe and tongue. I was happy to learn that he once put his son in the care of a fellow Appeal Court judge from the Eastern part of our country.

Akanbi does not boast of savings and loot in different banks overseas.

I also wish I could say the same of former InspectorGeneral of Police Ibrahim Coomassie. Like Akanbi, I know he has something with the former Gold Coast. His brother, I followed right from his days as a magistrate until he became a judge. The former Chief cop also does not flaunt wealth. My grouse with him is that less words of unity come out of his system when with his exposure, I expect strong messages of one Nigeria.

There are Northerners who could make Nigeria work.

President Muhammadu Buhari’s choice of Gen. Babagana Monguno as National Security Adviser is okay. He is highly detribalized. From the Shetima Ali Monguno clan, he attended Kings College , Lagos. I understand the NSA speaks as many languages as Olatilo.

Emir of Kano, Sanusi Lamido is also in that class of Northerners that can bring Nigerians closer. I do not know why I keep seeing him as a Lagos Boy. Oh, yes. Like Monguno, he is an Old Boy of Kings College. His friends are legion and are from different backgrounds. And exVice President Abubakar Atiku.

The one that struck me recently, an elder statesman who was sacrificed by Peoples Democratic Party [PDP] hawks. Alhaji Bamangar Tukur! The former governor of old Gongola state recently turned 80 and quit the dirty game of modern Nigerian politics. I took time to watch him celebrate with family and friends on the Bisi Olatilo show.

One Nigeria was written all over the atmosphere. I saw one of his daughters, Bola Doherty. There were technocrats and politicians, business moguls and teachers. Prof.

Iya Abubakar, Obong Victor Atta, Babangida Aliyu and former NPA MD Sarumi among many others. On the band stand was King Sunny Ade himself.

There are Igbomen like Chief Emeka Anyaoku, Professor Vincent Ike, Igwe Alex Nwokedi that make us think Nigeria. In Yorubaland, one could count on the Adelekes of Ede in Osun state, from the Senator, Isiaka, to the boy superstar, Davido. We do not have to leave out Chief Olusegun Obasanjo. He is not a tribalist. We need our young ones to learn from the patriotic examples of these ones.

Enough of the acrimony, division and foul language.

Re: Mesmerising Memories of Marginalisation [MMM] Emeka, you are our Elisha of the 21st Century. PMB is beating the unification drum for Ndigbo.

– Nmeka Nwabueze, Aba.

Why Buhari's graft war must succeed Chukwudi Enekwechi

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t is no longer news that there are so many problems confronting Nigeria as a country, most of which President Muhammadu Buhari has attributed to the corruption in the system. Across the country, poverty continues to ravage the people, unemployment among youths, lack of adequate medical care; hooliganism and general discontentment among the people are all traceable to corruption.

For the first time in our history, a president has undertaken to confront the menace of corruption headlong, and there is no doubt that ultimately the derivable benefits will not only impact on the generality of Nigerians, but will help jumpstart all sectors of the nation’s economy.

Therefore, it is in our collective interest that the war against corruption succeeds, more so when issues relating to social and economic development are addressed. For example, corruption is the reason many sick Nigerians cannot afford access to quality medical attention.

The high rate of beggars on our streets is also a by-product of corruption. Our general underdevelopment in terms of infrastructural decay, unemployment and general lack among the people are concomitant effects of corruption.

There is no doubt that if corruption is eliminated from our national life, more resources will be released and made available towards ameliorating the needs of the generality of our people.

The timely intervention of President

Buhari’s administration to tackle the cankerworm of corruption has the potential to restore order in the polity. The point has been made that if we don’t kill corruption, corruption will kill us, and all the negative economic indices such as hunger, sickness, malnutrition, graduate unemployment which are products of corruption will continue to plague us.

With the level of impunity witnessed under the previous PDP administrations, no one was left in doubt that it was only a matter of time before corruption will undermine all our efforts at national development.

Our readiness to run an integritybased, transparent and global best practices economy will go a long way towards stimulating our economic growth, and attract much needed foreign direct investments.

In line with his avowed commitment to Nigeria’s economic recovery, President Buhari during his recent state visit to France was able to meet with over three hundred business people, who are potential investors in Nigeria. His personal commitment to create an enabling environment for foreign investors in Nigeria has gone a long way to boost investors’ confidence in the country.

Other areas that a successful fight against corruption will have on the economy include provision of affordable housing, water, electricity and abundant food supply, among others. In summation, the fight against graft will have multipliers in the nation’s economy and the ultimate beneficiaries will be ordinary Nigerians.

In an isolated case, it can be confi-

dently stated here that Igbos will be the ultimate beneficiaries of President Buhari’s anti-graft war, considering that they are competitive in nature, and will thrive in any economy bereft of corruption. President Buhari’s tough stance in the fight against corruption, notwithstanding the personality involved is the elixir required to eliminate the menace, as the greatest impediment in the past has been lack of political will on the part of the authorities.

Over the years, corruption has retarded the progress of the country, and no sane society can continue in that direction. The high infrastructural decay across the country is also attributed to corruption. The effects of road accidents which lead to destruction of lives and properties are also the negative impacts of corruption.

As a people, we need to build a new Nigeria founded on a solid foundation, not quicksand. It is illusionary to believe that foreign investors will risk their hard-earned capital in an economy infested with corruption and inefficiency.

President Buhari possesses the requisite knowledge and experience given his pedigree to arrest the downward slide of our country. Apart from experience, he has the tenacity, discipline and courage to make Nigeria work again for the good of all.

While it is expected that some detractors will try to undermine the efforts of this administration in restoring the country to the path of rectitude, yet it is incumbent on all Nigerians to support the administration to avoid any derailment.

In all climes and in critical periods, some gifted leaders are naturally thrown up, and in the case of Nigeria things had come to a head as corruption and impurity had permeated the system. With the “change” agenda of the APC-led administration, Nigeria is once more on an irreversible progress, and the least we can do as a people is to cooperate with President Buhari’s administration in realizing the Nigeria of our dream.

The government intervention in not sparing any corrupt practice is not only timely but desirable. With the falling oil prices, it will amount to insensitivity on the part of government not to plug all the loopholes from where public funds are usually siphoned.

Already we are beginning to witness an improvement in the fight against graft.

For instance, the federal government directive to all ministries, departments and agencies to operate a treasury single account has led to the streamlining of the over 20,000 government accounts spread in most commercial banks. Obviously, this system became an avenue for massive corruption with the direct effect that monies that ordinarily should be utilized in executing important government projects are mismanaged.

For the expected infrastructural and general economic development to take place, we must as nation straighten the institutions of government, eliminate loopholes and hold public officials accountable.

This is what the administration of "Mai Gaskiya" offers.

• Enekwechi, Journalist and Politician writes from Abuja.

NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

15

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Burkina Faso’s ember jinx

he last four months of the year are full of drama in the history of Burkina Faso.

What people call ember months always affect the presidency in the West African country. If they are not ushering in a new administration, they are mourning a beloved leader. All their presidents, past and present fall into this reckoning.

On September 17, 2015 General Gilbert Diendere led Presidential guards to sack the government of Interim President Michael Kafando. The President and Prime Minister, Yacouba Isaac Zida, were taken in just as Burkinabes were preparing for elections billed for October 11. The army general set up what he calls the National Democratic Council.

Diendere’s coup was greeted with street protests. The country exploded in an orgy of demonstrations which left 10 persons dead.

The African Union [AU] reacted swiftly by suspending Burkina Faso. Economic Community of West African States [ECOWAS] Chairman , President Macky Sall, of Senegal flew to Ouagadougou to assess the situation. President Yaya Boni of Benin Republic also travelled to the country.

Their efforts led to an Extraordinary meeting of Heads of States and Governments of the regional body at the Presidential wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport , Abuja last Tuesday.

President Sall called for a shift of the Presidential elections from

October 11, to November 21. Gen. Diendere has also hinted of plans to quit as soon as the elections come on.

However, his countrymen are not giving him any breather. They see his coup as an extension of the bloody dictatorship of former President Blaise Campaore. Diendere was indeed Chief of Staff under the former commando turned politician who is living in exile presently having been sacked by protests in 2014.

Campaore had ascended the throne in October 1987, after murdering his friend and the peoples, beloved youthful leader, Captain Thomas Sankara. Following Campaore’s ouster last year, the Sankara family called on the government of Kafando to take another look at circumstances leading to their breadwinner’s assassination. On May 25, 2015, Sankara’s remains where exdhumed on the orders of Kafando and handed over to his wife and children.

Many suspect that this post humous honour done to Sankara and the fear that Kafando could go beyond exhuming the body to even get to the root of his murder forced Diendere, one of Campaore’s Boys to strike. Ironically, he also chose the Ember period to rattle the people.

Burkina Faso has had quite a number of leaders since independence from France in 1960.

The country’s first President, Maurice Yameogo was deposed

by Sangoule Lamizana. Then

came Saye Zerbo, Jean –Baptiste Ouedraogo, Sankara, Campaore, Honore Traore, Zida, Kafando and now Diendere.

It sounds interesting that apart from Lamizana and Sankara, all the other leaders assumed office during the Ember months. Yameogo became President on December 11, 1959, a year to Independence in 1960. Zerbo sacked Lamizana on November 25, 1980 and suffered the same fate when Ouedraogo toppled him on November 7, 1982.

Campaore killed Sankara on October 15, 1987 and was forced to resign and flee the country on October 31, 2014.

Campaore’s exit ushered in the brief administration of Honore Traore who acted as Head of State from October 31- November 1 , 2014. Zida who was also in the military under Campaore, appeared on November 1 and lasted for less than three weeks before leaving on November 18. That was the day Kafando stepped in. In other words, Kafando lasted from that day until September 17, 2015 when Diendere emerged through what has become a controversial take-over.

In all these, it appears Campaore’s loyalists are trying to undermine the democratic reforms of the Burkina people. After spending 27 years on the throne, he was bent on clinging to power before organized opposition drove him into exile. The unfortunate part of his exile is that all the desired luxury may not be as free as he would have got had he fled earlier than 2014.

His best supporters outside Burkina Faso are no more available to offer succour. His father –inlaw, Felix Houphouet Boigny ,died long ago and although Campaore supported President Alhassan Quattara, the present Ivorien leader may not give out as much as the Emperor of Yamoussoukro.

Charles Taylor, the red hearted monster guerilla of Liberia is docked in Europe on account of his criminal activities during that country’s Civil War. It is widely believed that those who killed Sankara were actually trained and harboured by Taylor who was then preparing to unleash mayhem in Monrovia with his rebels that included Yormie Johnson who eventually succeeded in dismembering President Samuel Kanyon Doe. Muammar Gaddaffi joined the death crew in 2011 in the hands of dare devil fighters who not only shot him, allegedly with his own pistol but left his body and that of his son to the elements to decompose like those of common criminals.

We salute the African Union for taking a bold decision which has signalled the continent’s rejection of yet another unconstitutional government. We also commend ECOWAS for deliberating on the crisis and thinking of a way out.

And in all these, the brave people of Burkina Faso deserve honours for standing up to fight when others in the same situation would have gone to bed. We say no to any form of military intervention.

DAILY TELEGRAPH PUBLISHING COMPANY LIMITED Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief

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16

Politics

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Waging war against corruption Bolanle Bolawole

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feel strongly about the present administration’s war against corruption that I have decided to think aloud on some salient aspects of it. I wish that the right template is set for the war so that the pitfalls of our recent past can be avoided and the anti-corruption drive made a roaring success.

Fearful that the war as currently being waged could end up in acrimonies, I have chosen to take the risk of doing the unpopular here today, believing that we still have a significant section of the reading public that is discerning and which is, therefore, able to give this piece the careful consideration it deserves. But in the event that this hope is misplaced for whatever reasons, I have set my mind to travel this road all the same, even if hard and lonely, believing with the late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, that light beckons at the end of the tunnel. Ibsen, the German writer, says the strongest man is he who stands alone – especially on principles.

We should get the template of this anti-corruption war right from the very outset so it does not become so much sound and fury but signifying little or nothing in the end.

There are two sides to the anticorruption war: To block all leakages; and to recover looted funds.

The Treasury Single Account (TSA) policy is, perhaps, the central measure aimed at achieving the first objective; noble as it may look on the surface, it has drawbacks that are already sending alarming signals down the spine. It is estimated that money deposit banks will lose over a trillion Naira funds. Many of the banks have started bracing up for this eventuality by down-sizing or right-sizing, a euphemism for retrenchment, which will further worsen an already bad situation of massive unemployment.

Therefore, an adroit management of the economy that manifests in a balancing act that takes all contending issues and forces into consideration will have a more salutary effect on the economy than a one-way traffic, jack-

boot policy that may result into cutting the nose to spite the face.

It is good not only to go after looted funds but to also mete out appropriate punishment to the culprits to deter others. The other side of the coin, however, is that the processes involved are not as simple and straightforward as they appear on the surface. Stolen funds are difficult to track; expensive to locate and retrieve; and getting the support of foreign countries and international organisations does not come easy. Worse is that it is time-consuming. Fears have been expressed that Buhari is spending a disproportionate part of his time chasing stolen funds to the detriment of governance. If the trend continues, we may in the end be kobo wise but Naira foolish. Effective governance must not be sacrificed on the altar of chasing after looted funds and should one threaten to stand in the way of the other, I will suggest we adopt the time honoured aphorism that “prevention is better than cure.”

Many critical stakeholders needed to sign up for the anticorruption war are simply not doing so, leaving only noise-makers (apologies, Buhari!) to amuse themselves with public rallies and street parades all over the country.

Politicians across board are not supporting the war against corruption, save by mere rhetoric.

Evidence: They have emphatically refused to emulate Buhari and his vice, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo and declare their own assets publicly.

Buhari and Osinbajo are the twoman riot squad in their vaunted war against corruption. All Progressives Congress (APC) governors, legislators and party leaders have declined to declare their assets publicly. Yet, this is the course of action expected of them if, truly, they mean to be the true harbingers of the Change they vociferously trumpeted from the rooftop.

As things stand, Buhari and Osinbajo are like Generals without troops. If, in an APC-led government, APC leaders will not lead by example, is it All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) or Peoples Democratic (PDP) that will do? I

C O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 1 1

are interested in seeing this figure triple within the next four years.

There is no doubt that since 1902 when France first launched its presence in Nigeria with the establishment of the CFO which set up a training centre in Lagos State, successive leadership of the country had strived to step the ante trade volumes leading to increased participation of French investors in the country.

Now, with the visit to France, his first official trip to Europe since President Buhari’s inauguration, analysts believe that there would be apparently a new vista opened for economic partnership between the two nations. While in France, the president apart from holding talks with President Hollande, participated in a high level presidential business forum organised by the Movement of French Entrepreneurs (MEDEF) at its headquarters in Paris.

Over 120 chief executives of France leading companies cutting across construction, oil and gas, power, agriculture, education and the telecommunications sectors came to listen to the president who presented his government’s vision

Buhari

Stolen funds are difficult to track; expensive to locate and retrieve

therefore suggest that the following categories of officials and politicians be compelled to make a public declaration of their assets if the much talked-about war against corruption is not to end up a ruse. One: Buhari’s and Osinbajo’s spouses and adult children.

Our experience here has been that leaders hide much of their ill-gotten wealth under the cloak of friends and family members.

Two: All political appointees. In fact, this should be a condition for anyone who accepts such appointments. Three: All elected officials at federal, state, and council levels.

Four: All heads of Ministries, Departments, and Agencies of the three tiers of government. Five: All top civil servants from the level of Assistant Director. Six: All judges and judicial officers.

Seven: All heads and principal officers of the anti-corruption agencies. Eight: Heads of military and para-military forces; and, finally, all national leaders\officers of the ruling party (APC).

A new but dangerous development is the tiny group of influential

individuals that are believed to have thrown a cordon solitaire around the president. Some reports say they are the most vicious, feudal, conservative, and reactionary section of the Kaduna Mafia that someone described as the “Old School”. The hand of this group has been reportedly uncovered in many of the controversial appointments that Buhari has made. I propose that these gentlemen should take off their cloaks and emerge in the open. Lobbying is a legal and respectable professional in many democracies; the United States of America in particular. Let our own influence-peddlers and lobbyists come into the open to avoid conflict of interest. They should register with the Corporate Affairs Commission and pay taxes to the state on the kills they make. We should avoid the pitfalls of the past by not replacing the Edwin Clarks and Asari-Dokubos with, perhaps, much more vicious characters from another section of the country.

For those in leadership positions, enlisting in the anti-corruption war is not optional but a task that must be done and all hands must be on the deck to achieve this mission. Buhari’s and APC’s statements before, during, and after the last election left no one in doubt that the anti-corruption war would be an important plank of their Change mantra. APC party and elected leaders thus have not just a moral burden but also duty bound to enlist in the campaign. Any one not willing to declare his assets publicly should shun politics and public office. The anti-corruption war must be total, allowing for no half-measures. If there is the need to amend the Constitution to make this happen, so be it! The war must cut across political divides and not be reduced to a witch-hunt of perceived opponents; it also must not be sectional. It is important that, like Caesar’s wife, the drivers of the anti-corruption war must be above board; they must be the very first to submit themselves to scrutiny. He who comes to equity, as they say, must come with clean hands! It is important for everyone signing up for the anti-corruption war to walk the talk if the war is not to become ephemeral.

•Bolawole, onetime Editor of The PUNCH, writes via turnpot@ gmail.com

President’s diplomatic shuttle to Paris and how the administration plans to assist in encouraging big businesses to thrive in the country.

In this regard, France has made a commitment to invest about 130 million for the provision of infrastructure in the country. France understand that as the biggest economy in Africa and surrounded by its former colonies, the economic and political stability of Nigeria is crucial to any meaningful growth of not just these countries alone, but its portrayal as a super power that is making inroad into the black continent.

“Our ongoing economic reforms are designed to restore business confidence and block leakages and wastage of public resources. We are also focused on the recovery of stolen wealth belonging to the country,” the president told them in his address.

He said, as the number one investment destination in Africa with a blessed land, rich in agricultural and mineral resources, skilled and low-cost labour, large market, a robust and competitive private

sector anchored on investment policies and legislation to guarantee predictability and consistency with global business practices, the Federal Government is poised for double digit growth of the economy.

In the next three weeks, most of the French firms are expected to visit Nigeria under the platform of their umbrella body MEDEF to finalise discussions on business opportunities that abound in Nigeria.

While speaking at the round table Pierre Gattaz, President of MEDEF explained that Nigeria is an interesting business environment for French investors. He said: “In that light, Mr. President you can count on the French private sector to be your ally. This is the reason why as chairman of MEDEF, I have decided to lead my first business delegation on African continent to Nigeria from the 4th and 7th of October in order to broaden our relationship.”

The investors had deliberated extensively on what they called sustainable cities, renewable energies, agriculture and

services that they could venture into with favourable government policies in place.

Already, two Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) have been signed in areas of agriculture and food processing. One between the Ogun State government, the Sovereign Wealth Authority and Lafarge France which involves a forest land scape restoration project spanning about 1800 hectares.

One thing that is clear, is that President Buhari is not likely to drift away from the focus of the nation’s current foreign policy which is to take advantage of every diplomatic relationship to attract investment that would support the domestic programmes of government.

As the president therefore continues on more engagements with different countries of the world, his government’s pursuit of Nigeria’s foreign policy objectives should be long-term, with investments in human and material resources made to protect and project national interests, especially within the sub-region.

NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

Media

Tourism

19

20

MUSON School of Music, Art through young Nigerian eyes

Arts

Ebere Ameh

Y

am, popularly seen as the king of crops by many cultures, is gradually gaining recognition as the most widely celebrated food crop in Nigeria and even Africa.

Originally celebrated at the end of the rainy season by the Igbo speaking people of Nigeria in their annual (Iwa ji or Iri ji) New Yam festival, and made popular by Chinua Achebe in his renowned novel, Things Fall Apart, it is now practiced throughout West Africa (especially in Nigeria and Ghana) and some other African countries. Igbos in the diaspora now celebrate in Europe, America and other places.

It is therefore little wonder that one of the most iconic hotels in Nigeria, Transcorp Hilton, decided to have their own version of the celebration of the king of crops, lasting a whole week.

Speaking with the Public Relations and Marketing Manager of the five star hotel, Mr Shola Adeyemo, he said the week-long celebration started on Friday, the 18th of September, 2015.

“This is the first time we are celebrating the king of crops and it is basically in line with our tradition of marking culinary milestones. Over the years we have done a lot of celebration and promotion that are international. Now we just felt that charity should begin at home, and we are celebrating the new yam festival for the first time as part of our culinary promotions.

Most especially, because the new yam festival cut across Nigeria if not Africa. So we felt that if we could celebrate Italian foods, Spanish, French foods and others, we should also celebrate Nigerian food. That is why we decided to take a whole week to celebrate the new yam festival,” Adeyemo explained.

At the beginning of the festival, the people usually offer the yams to gods and ancestors first before distributing them to the villagers. Transcorp, in their own case is presenting a wide selection of yam delicacies complete with traditional twists at their Bukkah.

TONY OKUYEME Arts Editor tony.okuyeme@newtelegraphonline.com

© Daily Telegraph Publishing Company Limited

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Celebration of one billion tourists, one billion opportunities

CULTURE

Transcorp Hilton celebrates New Yam festival

“We are going to serve yam in different forms – in any form you can imagine, taking into consideration the peculiarities of the geopolitical zones of the country. So we shall have yam prepared the way the Igbo prepare it, the way the Hausa and Yoruba prepare it and a good number of other cultures in Nigeria, cutting across different zones in the country. We are also going to have different menu for the entire week, starting on Friday. We shall also have traditional dancers from different parts of the country, to add the cultural bit and colour to it. And we shall decorate our restaurant in line with the theme of the new yam festival.

“Usually our culinary celebrations last only a day but we felt that new yam festival is such a big event that we shouldn’t limit it to one day. We won’t be able to go round the country in one day. We want showcase all the elements of culture from different zones pertaining to new yam,” he said.

A very culturally based festival that symbolizes the conclusion of a harvest and the beginning of the next planting season, it is therefore a celebration depicting the prominence of yam in the social-cultural life of Igbo people.

Yam is the first crop the hotel is celebrating in Nigeria.

This is because there is this popular belief that yam is the king of crops.

Dignitaries at the festival cutting the new yam

“Yam is the first crop the hotel is celebrating in Nigeria. This is because there is this popular belief that yam is the king of crops.

We believe it because wherever you go, in Europe, America, just name it, you see yam. We have seen yam in this part of the world that is so big it weighs as much as 45kg. We have sent our procurement department out to search and purchase some remarkable yams to be displayed at our buk-

kah during the celebration,” he said, adding that Transcorp is a proudly Nigerian hotel.

“Even though we are global, we also think and act locally. We are passionate about promoting Nigerian cuisines. Even though we are international and people come and expect international cuisines, we are not oblivious of the fact that we are first of all based in Nigeria and we should be serving Nigerian cuisines too.”

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Art

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Ifa provides solution to human problems, says Adam Taiwo Jimoh

T

he annual Ifa festival organised by the Olokun Festival Foundation has come and gone, but the memories will linger in the mind of the adherents.

The venue of the festival was a behive of activities for the followers of Ifa Orunmila as they lined up in procession, dressed in white attire to depict the cleanliness of the deity there were celebrating.

The national Coordinator of Oodua People’s Congress, Otunba Gani Adams, said Ifa Orunmila is a deity whose presence transverse the universal, adding that Orunmila is a revered deity in every Yoruba speaking community in Nigeria and in the diaspora.

He said the deity is venerated and celebrated in America and some part of the Latin America, where it is called Orunla or Orula among the adherents.

According to Adams, “Orunmila is a primordial deity that was presented at the beginning of creation by Olodumare; among its peers, it is viewed as one that is endowed with knowledge and ethics.

“Ifa Orunmila is god of wisdom because it proffers solutions to any difficulties one face through eledumare.

It is also full of prophecies and divine destiny.”

Adams added that Ifa provide solutions to human problems in different form, especially in Yoruba community where it is mandatory

Oodua cultural troupe entertaining guests

to consult Ifa before picking a king, and even when there is calamity it’s the deity they would consult for solution.

He said that one of the corpuses of Ifa explained that acquisition of wealth as widely discovered recently was futile and unprofitable. He added

that one of the major problems confronting our beloved country is corruption and the only person that has the solution to the scourge is Ifa Orunmila.

“The Olokun Festival Foundation under my watch we have been able to organise event to revive and promote various

Yoruba deities and bring them into spotlight. Celebrating the festival in honour of these deities is a way of bringing back the memories of our indigenous religion and culture as a Yoruba man,” Adams said.

The guests were entertained by the Oodua Cultural troupe.

Multichoice removes One Gospel Channel from DStv, GOtv

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ultiChoice Africa has announced that from Wednesday, 30 September 2015 at 10:59pm, One Gospel on DStv channel 331 and GOtv channel 71 will no longer be available on the DStv and GOtv platforms.

It stated in a press release issued on Wednesday that the decision was made to remove this channel in order achieve a diverse variety of programming.

The statement reads in part: “MultiChoice regularly assesses the performance and viability of channels on its platform, and in order achieve a diverse variety of programming, the decision was made to remove this channel. In reviewing the offering, which is done on a continuous basis, MultiChoice ensures that subscribers continue to get a balanced variety of programming.

“MultiChoice apologises for any inconvenience caused but assures subscribers that they can still catch other religious programming such as Faith (DStv channel 341 and GOtv channel 80) and Daystar (DStv channel 344)”.

ONE Gospel is a 24- hour Christian music channel, including key content driven shows in-between. The channel has been broadcasting since November 2007 and can be found on any DStv decoder on the African continent by tuning into Channel 331. ONE Gospel is about music; music from all genres, all spheres, all denominations, all people, all countries but most importantly its music with a message.

COSON set to host Nigerian digital music summit Tony Okuyeme

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opyright Society of Nigeria (COSON) is set to host stakeholders in the Nigerian music industry at a historic event in the annals of the Nigerian entertainment industry, the Nigerian Digital Music Summit. The summit which holds on September 28 and 29 at the Eko Convention Center, Eko Hotel & Suites, Victoria Island, is in collaboration with Growth & Employment Projects (GEM) Nigeria, and it is supported by the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade & Investment and funded by the World Bank and the United Kingdom’s Department of International Development (DFID).

A line up of international music industry experts from different parts of the world are billed to speak at the summit and share knowledge with stakeholders in the Nigerian music industry and work with the industry to optimize income and investments. Most of the experts are expected to arrive Nigeria this weekend ahead of the summit.

Speaking about the ar-

rangements, COSON Chairman, Chief Tony Okoroji said, “Apart from the international experts, all the key players in the Nigerian Music Industry will participate at the Summit: the likes of Audu Maikori; President, Chocolate City Group and his CEO, MI Abaga; Mr Obi Asika of Storm 360; Sound Sultan and Baba Dee of Naija Ninja: Banky W of E.M.E; Kenny Ogungbe of Kennis Music among many other stars will be there too.

Also speaking, the Chief Executive Officer of COSON, Mr. Chinedu Chukwuji, said, “We look forward to the Digital Music Summit with great excitement. The ‘T’s have been crossed and the ‘I’s dotted. We are ready for the redefining of the music business in Nigeria.

We are certain that the aftermath of the Nigerian Digital Music Summit will be increase in investments in the Nigerian music industry because with the proper framework in place; there will be increased return in investment. I hereby call on all who have an interest in the Nigerian music business not to miss out on this very im-

portant event. All hands must be on deck to set the sail for a more vibrant music industry in Nigeria.

“Nigerian music is such a big deal internationally, our music is one of our greatest exports as a nation and it is in our best interest that this translates to wealth for the creators. We must cut our losses to the barest minimum for the preservation of our industry. COSON continues to champion the cause for better remuneration for music creators in Nigeria in line with international best practices.”

The summit which has the theme “Establishing the Basic Rules of Engagement in the Digital Environment” provides an opportunity for key players in the production and distribution of music in the digital era in Nigeria to engage with copyright experts to determine the basic rules of engagement in the digital environment in order to ensure that every person or organization in the value chain can get a fair deal, a condition necessary for stability and growth of the music industry.

Okoroji

Media

NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

Tony Okuyeme

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ith “Celebrating the School of Music – the Arts through Young Nigerian Eyes” as its theme, all is now set for the 2015 edition of MUSON Festival, which will feature series of performances – dance, drama, musical.

The selection of the theme for this year’s Festival is designed to draw attention to the significant progress that the school has made since it was established, first as a Basic School in 1969 and more especially since the Diploma School came on stream in 2005. But more especially, the choice of theme draws attention to the contribution of the school, its current students and its alumni, have made to MUSON’s core activities, concerts and annual Festival, over the past decade. This is amply demonstrated in this year’s Festival programme where the school’s past and current students have significant presence in most of the events, the chairman of the 2015 MUSON Festival Planning Committee, Arc. Kitoyi Ibare-Akinsan stated in his remark at a press conference held at the Centre’s boardroom to announce the hosting of the festival.

According to him, the Festival kicks off, as usual, on Thursday, October 15, 2015 with one of the Festival’s favourites: My Kind of Music, the personality programme where a select cast of eminent Nigerians, will provide a rare glimpse of their persona to an invited audience. “Against the backdrop of their favourite music, they will discuss their musical preferences and how they relate to aspects of their lives, personal beliefs, philosophies and more.

This year’s cast are: Ambassador M. S. Monaisa, Consul-General, South African Consulate-General, Lagos; Mr Osagie Okunbor, Country Chair, Shell Companies in Nigeria/Managing Director, Shell Petroleum Developing Company; Mrs Edna Soyanwo, Deputy Director, MUSON School of Music and Ms Rolake Akinkugbe, Head, Energy and Natural Resources, FBN Capital, Lagos.

“Andrew Lloyd Weber’s musical: Jesus Christ Super Star produced by Uche Nwokedi’s Playhouse Initiative takes the slot of this year’s Festival Drama and it is scheduled for Friday and Saturday, October 16 and 17.

“This year’s Classical Concert comes up on Sunday October 18, featuring the MUSON Symphony Orchestra conducted by its German inspirational Visiting Conductor, Walter-Michael Vollhardt,” he said.

A new item on this year’s Festival programme, the MUSON Diploma School Festival Recital follows on Monday October 19 featuring a cream of student artistes drawn from the school.

It is followed, on October 21, by MusiQuest/Youth Concert and Awards organized by the faculty of the MUSON School of Music.

It features candidates shortlisted from a talent hunt to compete at the final stage of the annual awards competition.

Ibare-Akinsan added that this year’s Jazz Night, scheduled for Friday October 23 is designed to unveil a treasure of talented groups and individual artistes in the Jazz idiom, which abound among the current students and the alumni

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MUSON School of Music, Art through young Nigerian eyes

L-R: Uche Nwokedi, Ibare-Akinsan, Sir. Louis Mbanefo, Mrs. Francesca Emanuel and Chief Femi Adeniyi-Williams at the press briefing

of the MUSON School of Musici.

“They will perform a broad repertoire of jazz favourites as well as popular and old school rhythm and blues in the jazz idiom.

“The Society of the Performing Arts in Nigeria (SPAN) an esteemed partner of MUSON is expected, once again, to contribute a Dance event at this year’s Festival. The event is scheduled for Saturday October 24.

“This year’s MUSON Day Concert and Cocktails coincide with the Festival’s Closing Choral Concert, scheduled for Sunday October 25. The MUSON Choir and School Orchestra will perform Gilbert and Sullivan’s riveting opera: Pirates of Penzance,” Ibare-Akinsan said.

Earlier, the Vice Chairman, MUSON, Louis Mbanefo, SAN, in his remark, noted that MUSON was formed in 1983 with the main object of promoting the understanding and enjoyment of classical music.

“We have tackled our objectives in two ways. First, we have held concerts with regularity over the past 32 years, with performances of the highest calibre by Nigerian and expatriate performers. And second, we have developed a School of Music to provide musical education in the theory and performance of musical instruments for Nigerians of all ages, especially the youth. From humble beginnings, the School has now become a Diploma Awarding Institution which is accredited not only by the Ministry of Education, by also the music examination Board in England. The school has already produced 200 Diploma graduates, many of whom have continued their musical education in Europe and America and attained international recognition. The School has a choir which has won gold medals at international competitions and an impressive orchestra.

The focus of this year’s Festival is the Muson School and we shall programme performances by our talented youths

The focus of this year’s Festival is the Muson School and we shall programme performances by our talented youths,” he explained.

According to him, a major event in MUSON is the Festival, and during his chairmanship of MUSON in the late 1990s, he decided that the activities of MUSON should go beyond classical music and showcase all the arts at the highest level. “I therefore instituted a two week long MUSON Festival. Apart from classical music concerts, the Festival events included jazz, traditional Nigerian music and dance, drama productions and art exhibitions.

The first Festival Planning Committee was chaired by Mrs. Francesca Emanuel (now one of our Patrons) and the Festival was very successful. It subsequently became a major event in the MUSON calendar and has continued every year since then. It is my expectation that the Festival will become a pointer to the future

direction of MUSON, namely, a centre for all the arts.

“I would like to take this opportunity of demystifying the concept of MUSON. Comments have been made to the effect the MUSON is “elitist” or that it is for Europeans. These comments are unfortunate and show myopia.

“Let us draw an analogy with Christianity. We do not describe it as a European religion even though it was introduced to us

by Europeans. It has become the religion of millions of our people because of its universal message.

Similarly, the message of classical music is universal. Indeed some of its greatest champions and performers today are from far away China, Japan and Korea.

Why should we be left out?

“I believe that the pursuit of classical music is an important discipline for our youth and a source of spiritual fulfillment, not to mention employment, throughout their lives,” Mbanefo said.

Saxophonist TJ walks for children living with cancer

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hirteen-year old Nigerian saxophonist, TJ Emore popularly known as TJ, again showed his support for kids living with cancer as well as his passion to kick cancer out of Nigeria by leading the Heart of Hope Walkathon event on Saturday September 19th 2015.

The walkathon which was arranged by the Children Living with Cancer Foundation started at about 8am started from Dowen college Lekki phase 1 through Admiralty way covering approximately four kilometres of walk before heading back down to the popular Oniru market to sensitise the public of possible cancer symptoms in children, dangers of childhood cancer and how to

manage, in case of occurrences.

While speaking to journalists on his reasons for supporting children living with cancer, TJ Emore said, “I am supporting these children because I am happy to be alive, and I want to help others stay alive and live cancer free.

They are children like me and I think they deserve the best”.

The event ended with a captivating and entertaining performance of the saxophone by TJ Sax himself while the market enjoyed the music and passersby couldn’t help but be awed by his marvelous performance.

TJ Sax started his career when he made his debut public appearance September 18, 2008, as he played the Nigerian national anthem at

a convocation ceremony. He has since then played at the Aso rock Villa Abuja, various churches, corporate events, and with significant music acts like Yemi sax, the Legend Tuface Idibia, M.I, Sasha P, Dammy Krane, Solidstar etc.

TJ released a Christmas carol medley in December 2010 and followed it with a full album and video in December 2011 to mark his 10th Birthday.

Children Living with Cancer Foundation (CLWCF) is a charity organisation dedicated to the care and welfare of children with childhood cancers and their families in conjunction with the Oncology ward of the Paediatric Department of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH).

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WORLD TOURISM DAY

Tourism

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Celebration of one billion tourists, one billion opportunities Andrew Iro Okungbowa

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ome Sunday September 27, the global attention would be riveted on the tourism sector as the World Tourism Day (WTD) is celebrated globally under the auspices of the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), the global apex body in charge of tourism development. Certainly, it would be a moment to roll out the red carpet and drums to toast to a global sector which this year is celebrating a record of over one billion international tourists.

It is instructive to note that the sector, which is regarded as one of the world’s largest employer of labour and fastest growing sector with one out of every 11 job (274 million), accounting for 10% of global Gross Domestic Product (GDP), 6% of global exports and has maintained a strong growth of +4 and above over the last one decade. This is de-

spite the various constraints that the world had to contend with especially economic downturn, wars, terrorism, natural disasters, epidemic and diseases among others.

The half year report of performance of the industry recently released by the World Tourism Barometre, a body of the UNWTO which is responsible for tracking data and growth in the industry, shows that the growth rate still average 4% recording 538 million international travellers, which represented an increase of 21 million tourists compared to the same period of 2104.

Apart from African region, which posted a decline of sort all the other regions and subregions of the world recorded a higher growth rate ranging from +6. An indication of how well the sector has performed for the period under review (January – June 2015).

The future is indeed a bright one for the sector and the global

economy especially for destinations who have over the years positioned themselves to reap from the expected windfall with forecasts of an additional 74.5 million new jobs and a contribution of over US$11 trillion to the global economy by 2025 and international tourist arrivals of two billion by 2030.

Historically, the idea for the celebration of WTD was mooted by a Nigerian, late Ignatius Atagbi who was the then secretary general of the Nigerian Tourism Board now Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC), in 1978 and was adopted by the general assembly with September 27 set aside, which is also the day the resolution for UNWTO charter was approved by the UN with the first WTD celebrated in 1979 and ever since the day has been celebrated without fail.

Essentially, the day, which is observed across the world by various countries, especially member states of UNWTO with

UNWTO leading in the celebration through the orgainsation of various activities, is geared to draw the world attention to the importance of tourism. As stated by UNWTO, “the purpose of World Tourism Day is to foster awareness among the international community of the importance of tourism and its social, cultural, political and economic value. The event seeks to address global challenges outlined by the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and to highlight the contribution the tourism sector can make in reaching these goals”.

A theme is couched yearly on which the celebration is based while each country or destination organises their celebration within their locality, while an official global celebration is also held by the UNWTO at a chosen location. The theme last year was “Tourism and Community Development” with Mexico as the location for the

global event. This year’s theme is “One Billion Tourists, One Billion Opportunities”, which actually is a reflection of the one billion international travellers mark recorded by UNWTO and the fact of the economic importance of tourism not just only in terms of job creation but for its huge potential in human development.

Therefore, taking a cue from this year’s theme, the secretary general of the United Nations (UN), Ban Ki – moon, in his message, which shall be read across the world on Sunday as the celebration is held, draws the attention of the world to the powerful tool that tourism has become in sustainable development and urged everyone to take advantage of it while the secretary general of UNWTO, Dr. Talebi Rifai, also in his message harps on the need for everyone to work together so as to explore the over one billion opportunities that tourism offers.

Nigeria: Dull sound on the horizon

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Cultural items on sale during Osun Osogbo Festival... 2015

Buhari

Talebi Riafai, Security General, UNWTO

D.G. NTDC, Mrs. Sally Mbanetor

Burkina Faso: Sorry, no celebration!

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urkina Faso is the country chosen by UNWTO to host the official celebration this year but unfortunately, the political development in the country, occasioned by the change of government and instability, being witnessed in the country may just throw spanners in the works as the celebration is not likely to be held as scheduled by the UNWTO. As of press time the UNWTO

has not issued any statement on its stance on the unfolding scenario in Burkina Faso as to whether it is going ahead to hold the celebration in the country or move it to another country while enquiries by New Telegraph on the matter sent to the communication and media section of UNWTO has gone unanswered.

If by next tomorrow the official ceremony is not held in Burkina Faso as planned or in any other

country, it would be the first time in the history of the celebration of WTD that the official celebration was canceled. When this happens it would become very instructive, even though it may portray Africa and Burkina Faso in bad light but it would actually bring to light the fragile nature of tourism and the age long fight by UNWTO for peace and stability in the world as tourism can only thrive under a peaceful and stable environment.

f the inactivity and motionless posturing that have characterised the Nigerian tourism scene since this year is anything to judge by then obviously, not many Nigerians would know that the world is celebrating one of its fastest growing sectors, tourism, as there is no indication that neither the federal ministry of Culture, Tourism and National Orientation nor the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC) are gearing up to host a benefiting celebration on Sunday.

Although the feelers from the ministry said that Enugu State has offered to host the national celebration but there is no announcement to that effect. Obviously, expect a dull sound and colourless celebration if any. While at the various states level, the situation is not any different as there is no indication or announcement to the effect that the states and local governments are prepared for Sunday’s showpiece.

This happenstance further buttresses the fact that tourism is not highly rated in Nigeria by either the public or private sector because where the government has failed and you expect the private sector to rise to the occasion but that is not happening as well as the umbrella body for the private sector, the Federation of Tourism Associations of Nigeria (FTAN) is almost a

dead body and has since lost its way due to bickering and grand standing by its members who are only interested in positions and the lucre of office while abandoning the cause of tourism.

It will take a long while for the country to wake up from its doldrums and put its tourism sector in the right path to success and development as the example of other succeeding countries has shown. Perhaps the change agenda of the new federal government can inspire hope in the sector but that is doubtful going by the body language of the president and his team as tourism appears not in his horizon because there has been no concrete statement on the direction it wants to go when it comes to tourism.

Not even when the permanent secretary of the ministry, Mrs. Nkecki Ejele and her team, recently met with the president in Aso Villa to brief him on the sector. The news that came out from the meeting was not a cheering one but rather the old song of making billions of naira out of tourism was what was sung but how exactly this would be realised was not revealed. Tourism does not work that way as a magical wand but rather there has to been work plans with datelines put in place and the mechanism for its properly distilled and sold to the general populace by way of building blocks.

NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

21 Craft

Da Cakes Master: Straddling sugar craft with showbiz

23

Entertainment Agnes Marquis:

Toyin Aimakhu throws salvo at haters

Why I’m sharing the African dreams online

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t’s no longer news that her marriage to Niyi Johnson is not smooth and her husband ran to Instagram to confess sleeping with other women, vowing to turn over a new leaf.

Toyin, who was reported to have moved out of her matrimonial home, said even those with failed unions castigate her.

69 garlands for the king of world beat

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egendary singer and percussionist, King Sunny Ade turned 69 last Tuesday, September 22. Classed as one of the most influential musicians of all time, KSA’s mellow party music known as Juju grew from Yoruba, calypso, West African high-life, and jazz influences.

Chris Brown Reacts To Drake’s Diss: He’s Just ‘Jealous’ Of Romance With Karrueche Tran

sony neme

Editor, entertainment sony.neme@newtelegraphonline.com

© Daily Telegraph Publishing Company Limited

You have finished production on the first installment of African Dreams, what is the show all about?

Basically it is showcasing how these people live their African dreams and what they perceive African dream to be.

It is easy for us looking at these people from afar to think that they are living great lives and are living the dream, but does the actual person believe that they have reached their potential in life? Do they believe they are living the supposed dream?

It is an inspirational show because we urge the people we speak to, to also give tips on how to lead a happy and successful

life. The first person we featured was Ademola Akinrele who is a young lawyer and also a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN). He gave lots of advice on law related issues, and how to invest money and how he got to where he is. Those are the kind of people we feature and those are the kind of tips and inspiration we want people to learn from.

You said you feature successful people, how do you measure success?

It is not down to money. If it is about money, there are lots of rich people we can just walk up to and interview for the show.

It is about success in terms of

achievement, reaching personal goals. For many people, goals are different. We also look at how they got to where they are today. We want people whose journey is inspiring and people can learn from.

How is the public going to get to see the show?

It is a quarterly show and that is because the kind of people we feature on the show are prominent people who are not that easy to get. We make it quarterly because we have to do a lot of research on the subject and also have time to have a lengthy chat with them in a relaxed atmosphere. In our sec-

Upwardly mobile Agnes Marquis is the Head of Production at Ndani Tv. She worked with Endemol and MTV, UK. Today, she creates top TV contents and she’s presenting one, called ‘African Dreams’. She speaks to LANRE ODUKOYA about her foray into broadcasting and sundry issues.

ond episode, for example, we interviewed Sanusi Lamido, who was the former CBN former and now an Emir. Those are the kind of prolific people we want.

It airs on the Ndani platform and it is online. Maybe later, we will look at getting in on cable and terrestrial channels.

Don’t you think that once every three months is too wide a gap?

It is a special feature. It is not an everyday show. It is not every day you listen to an Emir talk about his family and personal life. It is not every day you get C O N T I N U E D O N PA G E 2 2

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Entertainment

C O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 2 1

a top-notch lawyer giving you tips. It is a special feature. We know people will wait for that.

The style and content of the show is not really that unique. CNN has a show that features African successes; even local stations have the same. Asides the name what is different with African Dreams?

There is nothing wrong with other platforms doing the same kind of show.

In fact it’s great. It shows that there are many Africans out there who are worthy of profiling. African Dreams is different because our target audience is the youth.

We are trying to reach people from 18 to 35. The connection is the youth angle. It is about them advising the youth and giving back to the youth.

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Why I’m sharing the African Dreams online fact it helps. I know how and what to do while I’m presenting.

Why not just get a presenter?

That is a good question. It was suggested to me to present the show myself because I have the kind of profile that fits the show. I just said why not?

Don’t you think people will not be happy with some of your guests, especially those who had been in government because most of them are believed to be corrupt?

That is not the kind of people we are going to interview. It is about getting such people. We can do that easily. We look for people with reputation and it reflects in the people we already featured.

You’ve been producing for a while, why did you decide to go into television?

I have always been interested in the arts. Even as a young child, I wanted to be an actress. I am not sure about that anymore. I did drama in school as well, but I found out that I was better coordinating people instead of being in front of the stage. I went to university to study Mass Communication. And it all started from there.

I applied for an internship in MTV and I was picked. I was on the news team at the time. Then I worked my way up to a researcher, then to an assistant producer and finally a producer. I was also part of the European Music Awards.

From there, I moved to Endemol where I worked on productions like Big Brother UK. I was the edit producer there. It was a fun job and I did the overnight edit. I also ‘freelanced’ and did some work for the BBC. I also went into advertising for a while.

I later got bored and wanted a challenge. I had been to Lagos a few months back and I liked it. I had a friend who I worked with at MTV and she had moved back. She was telling me how Africa is the place to be. So I moved back in 2013 and this is where I am now.

You head production at Ndani TV, is it not difficult presenting a show by the side?

We have a good team full of dynamic young people. This is the only show I present, so it is not such heavy work. I have been behind the camera all my life and this is the first time for me in front of the camera. It was difficult for me to separate the role of a presenter and a producer at first, but I later got used to it. In

Will you say online is the future as Ndani TV is basically online and others are doing the same?

I actually believe that the future is online in terms of content space. I think a lot more TV producers will be going online. Look at Netflix and HBO, everyone wants an online platform because it is so easily accessible. That been said, I don’t believe traditional TV

The show is for the youth, but an average youth will rather watch MTV rather than an inspirational show. How do you hope to grip them to the show?

We put the trailer out for the most recent one and the show is on our platform.

The response we have been receiving has been overwhelming. These are the young people we are talking about. Yes, the youth want entertainment, they are easily drawn to it, but they also take time out to watch other shows. They are not the people who want to sit down in front of their TV all day watching entertainment shows. They are responsible people who are interested in how to better their future.

will be going anywhere soon. People will always watch TV. There has been talks that online is taking over TV completely, but I don’t see that happening. I feel that online is a very important space.

Most of your content is online, are you concerned about the Internet speed in Nigeria?

We do think about that.

A lot of the content we produce is short.

We know t h a t people do not want t o spend t o o l o n g loading c o n tents.

We

Toyin Aimakhu throws salvo at haters

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ollywood actress, Toyin Aimakhu, has poked some of those who criticize her over her troubled marriage.

It’s no longer news that her marriage to Niyi Johnson is not smooth and her husband ran toInstagram to confess sleeping with other women, vowing to turn over a new leaf.

Toyin, who was reported to have moved out of her matrimonial home, said even those with failed unions castigate her.

Her com-

ment partly reads, “Even people in their second, third, fourth or fifth sef marriage(s) are criticizing, hiss.”

Meanwhile, Niyi Johnson, in a post on Wednesday, appeared to have given up on his effort to reclaim his wife.

He shared a memo, which reads, “My observation, nobody is truly real, the only time we are real is when we are criticizing the mistakes of another only to appear better. That is why we find it easier to judge people when they mess up. But when we mess up, we always have an explanation to exonerate ourselves.

“No justification. My love for you all keeps growing as I see people who want the best for me. I love you all, God bless your hustle, God over all. If these are my last days, God be praised.”

Indications are rife that shortly after Johnson expressed public remorse, Aimakhu sauntered back into her matrimonial home.

do web series that are about six to ten minutes long. We also have some that are longer, some as long as 30 minutes.

Internet is becoming more accessible and cheaper than it used to be. It is not like it was a couple of years ago. As that improves, everyone will be online.

What is the future of Ndani?

The future is to continue to create quality contents for our viewers to enjoy. We will continue to engage with our viewers and give them what they want to watch and what they get something from. We don’t want to just be a Nigerian platform; we want the whole of Africa and, indeed the world, to be a part of this.

How has the feedbacks been like?

It has been great. People are relating to our shows.

For example, we have one called Skinny Girl in Transit, it is about a plus size girl trying to slim down, find love and keep a career. Many people we found out are relating to the story, they love it.

Are you married?

No. I don’t want to talk about that.

Oge Okoye schools women on matrimonial diligence W

ith many describing the lifestyle of some women these days as cosmetic and seemingly tireless quest for

luxurious living which constantly make many become a mere subject of ridicule, Nollywood heartthrob, Oge Okoye is asking women to lend her their ears.

The delectable actress, though enduring a failed marriage, believes that for one to be described as a strong woman, she should be

able to keep her home clean.

After having a failed marriage some years back, the actress, while pondering on life challenges as a woman, explained that in life or for one getting to a greater height in any facet, nothing would be attained without endurance.

She congratulated women who are having challenges and are able to manage it through.

According to her, “My idea of a super woman is someone who scrubs her own floor.

Nothing great was ever done without much enduring. Be that strong woman, hang on to all our strong women, strong mothers and daughters.”

Entertainment 23

NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

Da Cakes Master: Straddling sugar craft with showbiz Stories by Lanre Odukoya

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he Nigerian showbiz scene hasn’t stopped evolving, particularly with the birth of some sub-industries like stand-up comedy, modeling and sugar craft being the latest. Nicknamed Da Cakes Master by showbiz aficionados, this chap neither sings nor acts, but he remains an influencer in the league of showbiz top players for merely crafting the most jaw-dropping cakes for celebrities and their families.

His works dominated 2013 entertain-

ment events and his moniker, Da Cakes Master, was not just another flattery.

An encounter with Oke Emmanuel Oluwaseun, the C.EO. of Lagos-based Eni and Emmy Cakes and Confectioneries confirms that he truly earned the pseudonym. He’d recently returned from a weeklong seminar staged under the auspices of International Cake Exploration Society at Omaha Nebraska and sugar-craft training in New York, USA. His fraternity with Tuface Idibia, Ayo Adesanya, Pasuma, St. Janet and a host of others hinge on his dexterity in making exquisite cakes.

Da Cakes Master with 2face’s birthday cake

69 garlands for the King of World Beats

Pasuma’s 20 Years on Stage Cake

St. Janet’s Birthday Cake

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egendary singer and percussionist, King Sunny Ade turned 69 last Tuesday, September 22.

Classed as one of the most influential musicians of all time, KSA’s mellow party music known as Juju grew from Yoruba, calypso, West African highlife, and jazz influences.

He is a composer, bandleader, singer, guitarist, and entrepreneur whose importance in Lagos, Nigeria – the commercial hub of Africa’s biggest country has earned him a string of affectionate honorifics like “Chairman of the Board’’

10 QUICK FACTS ABOUT KSA 1. His birth name is Sunday Adeniyi Adegeye 2. He was born to a Nigerian royal family in Ondo, thus making him a bona fide Prince 3. Apart from KSA, he’s also known as King of Juju, Sunny Ade and Minister of Enjoyment 4. He is the first African to be nominated twice for a Grammy, his album, Syncro Systemearned him his first Grammy Award nomination in the folk/ethnic music category, while his album, Odu, a collection of traditional Yoruba songs, got him his second Grammy Award nomination.

5. His dexterity in playing the guitar and his peculiar application to jùjú music, put him in the same class as guitar musicians like Santana, a band formed by Mexican and American musician, Carlos Santana.

6. Sunny Adé was the first to introduce the pedal steel guitar to Nigerian pop music.

7. He was the first to introduce the use of synthesizers, clavinet, vibraphone and tenor guitar into the jùjú music repertoire such as dub and wah-wah guitar licks.

8. His brief recording with Island Records, which produced his Juju Music album, earned him the nickname, African Bob Marley 9. In the 1980s he embarked on a career in Hollywood. His music was featured in the 1983 film, Breathless, starring Richard Gere, and the 1986 comedy, One More Saturday Night, and he acted in Robert Altman’s 1987 comedy, O.C. and Stiggs.

10. King Sunny Ade is a polygamist and also has an African-American wife, Queen Ahneva Adegeye, born Ahneva Hilson, she’s a Los Angeles born graduate of Fashion Design from the Art Institute of Chicago.

‘Dance With Peter’ judges wowed by Lagos contestants

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KSA cheered by female admirers

udges of the Globacom-sponsored Reality TV Show, “Dance with Peter”, have expressed satisfaction with the quality of contestants, making particular reference to those from Lagos State whose performances at the auditions were rated most impressive.

Auditions for the show were held in four cities in Nigeria; Abuja, Benin, Lagos and Port Harcourt, and in Accra, Ghana, where over 30 finalists were selected by a panel of judges which comprised Peter Okoye, Don Flexx and Kaffy.

Speaking on the performance of contestants in the auditions, the dance Diva, Kaffy, stated: “So far for me the quality his evergreen single, Gongo Aso, which of contestants has been impressive. They shot the star to national attention in have shown they can surely be groomed to 2008. Arewa has a big voice that is rich be of the high standard we are looking for and entertaining, we cannot wait to hear as we progress in the show”. what she does with Gongo Aso. “Lagos surprisingly impressed me the Yemi Alade’s voice is lovely, her style most. This is because, from my experience is earthy and her smile is infectious. Jef- as a judge on many dance platforms, Lagos frey will be joining her in the remix of has always had all bark and no bite, as comher cheeky smasher – K.I.S.S.I.N.G. The mercial dancing has robbed the dancers of studio sessions saw Jeff being pulled out the zeal to work hard at improving their of his shell by Miss Alade. The live per- techniques and skill acquisition”. But this formance is greatly looked forward to! time, I feel they were more enlightened Our ‘last twin standing’ – Pearl, will and, as such, have produced most of our be singing alongside Chidinma in the finest for the show,” Kaffy observed.

Kaffy’s view was shared by anremix of the monster track – Kedike.

Ada joins Sound Sultan on the ‘Area’ other judge of the show, Peter of remix and with how she’s been known PSquare, who is the organizer of the competition. He noted: “It’s to tear up the stage performance after been impressive so far and I get performance, this is bound to be riveting. motivated by the contestants even as a judge. Lagos, for me, was Both loved by their female fans, the most impressive. The Iyanya and Deinde give off differparticipants gave it ent levels of the same soft and their all and I can sultry vibe. Oreo is a crowd favorite and if the remix by really see that Arewa they are hungry Iyanya and Deinde goes ahead to move to the to top the charts, we won’t be surprised. next level”.

More starts storm academy as PF climaxes Edwin Usoboh

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roject Fame West Africa is committed to kick-starting the careers of its winners. To this end, MTN and Ultima Limited have unveiled the critical factor in this year’s show that will raise the bar and ensure the continuous improvement of the craft of these most recent music ambassadors.

The six contestants who have made it to the end of the show will be teaming up with six A-list stars to produce remixes of six hit-songs which will be unveiled tomorrow, Saturday, September 26 at the closing gala of the Season 8.

And there, you’d see who’s singing what.

When Praiz released his hit-solo ‘Rich and Famous’, it quickly caught on and became something of an anthem on the lips of everyone who wanted to be, well, rich and famous. The booming voice of Anderson will feature on the remix of this song. With his warm personality and the notes he hits with that voice, Anderson is sure to do justice to this remix.

We hope he becomes rich and famous.

Arewa will be pairing up with 9ice, in

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Entertainment

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Chris Brown reacts to Drake’s diss: He’s just ‘jealous’ of romance with Karrueche Tran

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Brown

f you thought that Chris Brown, 26, was going to let Drake‘s (28) diss on his new track “Live From The Gutter” slide, you thought wrong. After publicly calling the rapper out on Instagram for lying and using his and Karrueche Tran‘s, 27, high-profile relationship to get people talking about his music, HollywoodLife.com has EXCLUSIVELY learned that Chris thinks Drake is just jealous of what he’s had.

“Dudes are so jealous of Chris and for the first time in his life, he knows why: Everyone wants to have what he had,” a source divulged. “Key word is ‘had!’ Chris already had Karrueche – all of Karrueche. And now Drake and The Game both want her. Pathetic!

Can’t these dudes be original like they claim to be in their music and get their own girl? Chris thinks they’re just second hand dudes who have no game or mouth piece to pull chicks. If it weren’t for the fact that Drake and Game are both famous rappers, they wouldn’t have women. But Chris gets it, he gets the finest girl on the planet and all the dudes envy him for that.”

Unfortunately, it doesn’t end

there. According to our source, Breezy is still willing to take this feud a whole lot farther should Drake continue to diss him. “Getting women is a war Drake doesn’t want to engage in with Chris,” our source continued. “Chris just might swoop on in and take Serena [Williams] from him. Chris does have a tennis court in his backyard and he’s single too. He’d love to have some one on one private sessions with her, best believe!”

In case you need a refresher, the drama between these two was reignited after Drake released his new album with Future, in which he raps, “This for my n***as on that bulls**t and that nonsense, this for my dogs who go Karrueche with the chopsticks” on the track “Live From the Gutter.” In the verse, Drake appears to be bringing up all the guys who’ve been with Karrueche, and Chris — whose latest album you can now buy— is obviously the most notable man from her past.

Drake Within hours, Chris had taken to Instagram to post a photo of him and his daughter,

Don Jazzy Drives Johnnie Walker’s ‘Joy Will Take You Further’ Campaign

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s a way of encouraging millions of Nigerians across the country to celebrate success at every phase of life, Johnnie Walker, the foremost premium Scotch whisky in the world from the stables of Diageo Brands, has unveiled its largest ever global marketing campaign tagged “Joy Will Take You Further”.

Activated in more than 50 countries simultaneously, Johnnie Walker’s “Joy Will Take You Further” campaign will reach over 350million consumers around the world within the first weeks of launch, urging everyone to recognize and celebrate personal progress they achieve on their walk to success.

Graced by Industry Heads, Chief Executives, Top Management Personnel, Newspaper Editors amongst other extraordinary achievers who share the brand’s view of how happiness in life is a fuel for success, Johnnie Walker celebrated top 100 dynamic individuals who have demonstrated the value in celebrating every step on their walk to achieving their goals, hosting them to a spec-

tacular event held at the Federal Palace Hotel, Lagos.

Guests at the event shared their personal perspectives on the impact of a joyful walk on, noting that the true way to success is not just hard work and determination but also taking time to enjoy the simple moments of the journey.

Other activities at the event included the unveiling of top music artiste, producer and CEO of Mavins Records, Michael Collins Ajereh a.k.a.

Don Jazzy as the Joy Ambassador for the Campaign.

Explaining the rationale behind the choice of Joy Ambassador, Head of Marketing, Diageo Brands, Adenike Adebola said, “Don Jazzy has experienced different phases of success in his career up till now. He is a true achiever, a game changer and a model to emulate. He is passionate about what he does and it is that passion we celebrate. We believe he will be instrumental in propagating the message of and inspiring the rest of Nigeria with our core message that Joy Will Take You Further”.

L-R: GM, Diageo Brands Nigeria, Mr. Neil Comerford_ Head of Reserve, Mr. Joe Nazzal_ Joy Ambassador, Johnnie Walker, Don Jazzy and Corporate Relations Director, Guinness, Mr. Sesan Sobowale at the launch of Johnnie Walker ‘JOY WILL T

Tran

How Kylie Jenner Will Flip Out If Tyga Gets Blac Chyna Pregnant

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f Tyga wants another baby it better be with Kylie Jenner!

The 18-year-old reality star has promised to go absolutely ballistic if he ever hooks up with his ex Blac Chyna and God forbid — impregnates her.

If Tyga, 25, has a hint of common sense in his brain he will keep his distance from ex Blac Chyna, 27. Kylie Jenner, 18, is letting it be known that if he ever has sex with his ex and gets her pregnant — there will be hell to pay!

“If Tyga cheats and sleeps with Blac, Kylie would completely freak out,” a Kardashian/Jenner source tells HollywoodLife.com. “But that will pale in comparison if he ends up knocking Blac up. If for some reason Tyga does something that incredibly dumb, he better go into the witness protection agency because Kylie will want to kill him.” Although we don’t condone violence, we can’t say that we would blame her!

Kylie isn’t taking chances though and has no plans on letting Blac see Tyga alone. Kylie definitely doesn’t trust Blac after hearing that the former stripper told Tyga she wants another child with him. “Every time Tyga and Blac meet up to hand off King [Cairo], Kylie will be right there,” a source close to Kylie reveals. “She’s not giving Blac any type of leash to manipulate Tyga or seduce him.

She knows Blac’s scandalous and would do anything to ruin her relationship. Kylie’s very territorial and she’s marking her spot on Tyga” Tyga need not have any romantic thoughts about Blac and should look the other way when he sees her. As previously reported, Kylie’s not into sharing her man. In fact, the reality television star promises to cut Tyga in all the right places if he even looks at his ‘ex’ inappropriately. “Tyga’s never, ever going back to Blac,” the source EXCLUSIVELY revealed to HollywoodLife.com. “And if he even looks at her in a way that’s sexual, Kylie would cut off their romance and be done with him!”

NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY, September 25, 2015

Labour

TSA: Labour warns against job losses

25

Agric International funding key to Nigeria’s agric growth

28

27

Business What's news

Lagos to get N500bn high-grade complexes before 2017 Lagos skyline may witness the completion of over 10 skyscrapers worth over N500 billion between now and 2016, New Telegraph has learnt.

p.26

TV viewing: 51% Nigerians desire more flexibility –Report Fifty-one per cent of Nigerian consumers want to choose when they watch television (TV) and video content rather than follow a set schedule common with most television stations currently in the country.

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L-R: Executive Director, Corporate Services, UAC of Nigeria Plc, Mr. Joe Dada; Executive Director/Chief Financial Officer, Mr. Abdul Bello; Group Managing Director/ CEO, Mr. Larry Ettah and Chairman, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma, during the company’s Annual General Meeting in Lagos.

PHOTO: SULEIMAN HUSAINI.

N106.5bn power intervention funds idle in CBN FG rejigs 2,000MW coal power generation plan

The Business Desk Ayodele Aminu

Deputy Editor (Business)

Bayo Akomolafe

CREDIBILITY

Zero credibility with gas suppliers necessitated CBN’s proactive measures

Asst. Editor (Maritime)

Sunday Ojeme

Asst. Editor (Insurance)

Tony Chukwunyem

Asst. Editor (Money Market)

Dayo Ayeyemi Property Editor

Adeola Yusuf Energy Editor

Wole Shadare Aviation Editor

Chris Ugwu

Capital Market Editor

Abdulwahab Isa

Adeola Yusuf

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bout N106.5 billion power sector intervention funds is still starched in the account of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) due to stringent key performance indicators (KPIs) attached by the apex bank, investigation by New

Finance Editor

Kunle Azeez

Senior Correspondent

Chuks Onuanyin Energy

Nnamdi Amadi Reporter

Johnson Adebayo

Asst Production Editor

Telegraph has revealed.

A total of N213 billion was set aside by the Federal Government as the intervention fund for the power sector months after the November 1, 2013, privatisation of the power sector in Nigeria.

The CBN fund is designed to settle the legacy gas debts of the sector to gas suppliers, which stands at N36 billion.

It is also targeted at executing agreed metering programmes and procurement of transformers by distribution companies as well as maintenance programmes and procurement of equipment by generation com-

panies.

Checks by this newspaper, however, showed that operators in the power sector have already accessed about 50 per cent of the N213 billion market-based intervention funds between that time and August 2015.

This came as the Federal Government rejigged its tar-

N213 billion Being the amount set aside by the Federal Government as power sector intervention fund

get to generate 2,000MW coal power.

Nigeria, a country of over 160 million, is currently generating about 4,500 Mega Watts, mainly from gas-fired plants.

The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), which disclosed government’s renewed plan for coal, maintained that the sector’s zero credibility with gas suppliers had necessitated that a proactive measure such as the CBN intervention be initiated, adding that the fund was also justified by the existence of other liquidity challenges that threatened the operations of the sector last year.

The intervention fund, according to government at its earlier announcement, would be provided by CBN in collaboration with deposit money CONTINUED ON PAGE 26

Rates Dashboard INFLATION RATE August 2015 ...........................9.3% June 2015.................................9.2% May 2015.................................9%

LENDING RATE Interbank Rate....................12.57% Prime Lending Rate...........17.93% Maximum Lending Rate...26.83%

EXCHANGE RATE (BDC as at Sept 17)

USD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N225 Pounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N344 Euro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N244

l Foreign Reserves – $30.597bn as at 17/09/2015

Source: CBN

EXCHANGE RATE (Interbank as at Sept 17)

USD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N225 Pounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N350 Euro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N255

26

Business | News

YIELDS

Average rental for prime grade office space in Ikoyi is $1,000m2 per annum Dayo Ayeyemi

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agos skyline may witness the completion of over 10 skyscrapers worth over N500 billion between now and 2016, New Telegraph has learnt.

Some of these new developments, which construction started two years ago, are already at different stages of completion, with Civic Centre Tower leading the pack as

Power intervention funds idle

FRIDAY, September 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Lagos to get N500bn high-grade complexes before 2017 its developers are sure of December 2015 delivery date.

Many of these tallgrade property, which are located in high-brow Victoria Island and Ikoyi, include N4 billion Civic Centre Tower, N14 billion Heritage Place, N165 million Alliance Place, N165 million, N24 billion Nest Oil/Victoria Tower and N22 billion wing tower.

Others are Kingsway Tower, Temple Tower, Eko Tower II, The Wings Towers, Nest Oil/Vitoria Tower, Madina Tower,

Corporate Tower and Sogenal Tower.

The increasing number of developments and decreasing number of sites available on the Ikoyi stretch could mean that the neighbourhood will become an exclusive hub for commercial activity in the future.

This may happen as these office buildings are completed and occupied by large corporates who can afford Ikoyi. Average rental for prime grade office space in this region is $1,000 metre square per

annum, similar to rates seen in established markets within the United States and Europe.

Experts have expressed optimism about these ongoing high-profile projects, saying that there would be intense competition for tenants on these buildings once they come onto the market.

However, the experts also noted that there have been over supply of office space in the high end, pointing out that oil price plunge and consequent layoff of workers have

been affecting demand by foreign oil companies.

Despite the lull in the real sector, Managing Director of Financial Derivatives Company (FDC), Mr. Bismark Rewane, stated that real estate activities would rebound in the second half of the year after the appointment of ministers.

According to him, construction would continue as government releases funds, adding that many mixed developments in the pipeline would continue.

He said: “Clarity in policy direction will bring back foreign investors.

Surplus might cause rental prices to fall slightly.”

Alliance Place is being developed by Edimara Properties Limited, a joint venture between African Capital Alliance and Samges Investments Limited. On completion in November 2016, the edifice will be the new headquarter for African Capital Alliance on Alfred Rewane Road (Kingsway Road), Ikoyi.

Kingsway Tower is yet another high rise building in the busy commercial node of Lagos, comprising offices, ground floor retail, restaurants and basement parking.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 25

banks and managed by a dedicated fund manager.

Accordingly, beneficiary companies will repay loans obtained from the fund with a first-line charge on their revenues over a 10-year period.

On impact of the intervention to power supply in the country, a document of NERC quoted Chairman of the commission, Dr. Sam Amadi, to have explained that the supply of gas to generation companies had grown from what it used to be, thus translating into improved power generation.

“When we get to 6,000 megawatts (mw), we will be quite comfortable to focus on addressing our regulatory challenges and strengthening the capacity of the sector.

“In the next couple of years, we hope that about 2000mw will come from coal power generation and from then, we should be adding an average of 2000mw annually to our capacity,” he added.

The document affirmed that operators in the power sector have already accessed about 50 per cent of the N213 billion marketbased intervention fund provided for the sector by the CBN. Speaking at a Senate probe recently on the past expenditures of previous governments in the country’s power sector, Amadi explained that due to stringent key performance indicators (KPIs) attached to the fund by the CBN, only about half of the fund has so far been applied for and obtained by electricity generation and distribution companies, as well as other participants in the value chain.

L-R:Director General, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Capt. Muhtar Usman; Chairman, Regulation Review Committee, Kayode Ajiboye and representative of the Permanent Secretary, Musa Hassan, at the stakeholders workshop, on the proposed amendment to the Nigeria Civil Aviation regulations, at the Welcome Centre and Hotels, Ikeja, Lagos. PHOTO: TONY EGUAYE

PARADIGM SHIFT

Consumers’ taste changing from analogue to digital-oriented TV programming

Kunle Azeez

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ifty-one per cent of Nigerian consumers want to choose when they watch television (TV) and video content rather than follow a set schedule common with most television stations currently in the country.

This is the outcome of a new report published by Ericsson ConsumerLab, a research unit of the global Information and Communication Technology company, Ericsson Corporation.

The report obtained by New Telegraph was the firstever TV and Media report for Nigeria, representative of the views and habits of over 24 million people across the country.

TV viewing: 51% Nigerians desire more flexibility –Report A key finding of the report is that TV and video content consumption is no longer tied to the traditional TV screen, a development that tend towards digital television where content enrichment and variety become the order of the day.

According to the report, though television screens remain the single most popular platform for TV and video consumption, it only accounts for one third of the total time spent watching videos.

Rather, 64 per cent of the time is spent watching videos on a mobile device such as smartphone, tablet and laptop.

“Today’s viewers of TV and video content in Nigeria do not want to adhere to a specific device or schedule and seek the freedom and flexibility to choose what they watch, when to watch it and on which device.

“Out of the regular TV viewers in Nigeria in the survey, only 37 per cent are satisfied with the choice and variety of available content.

“They prefer to choose and pay for the channels that they want. Current pay TV services offer limited customisation capabilities,” the reports indicate.

Commenting on the report, Managing Director, Ericsson Nigeria, Mr. Johan Jemdahl, said that the proliferation of mobile devices and availability of mobile broadband has significantly altered the consumption patterns of TV and video content in Nigeria.

“With the ownership of smartphones significantly higher than that of television and personal consumer (PCs), which include desktops and laptops and more Nigerians demanding flexibility in their

viewing schedules, the opportunities for mobile television cannot be overstated,” it said.

The study also revealed that only 27 per cent of Nigerian consumers stream videos more than weekly, compared with the global average of 76 per cent.

Respondents identified connectivity issues and restrictive data charges on mobile data as factors affecting their online streaming experience.

The study also showed that the same factors have an impact on piracy. For instance, though global research has shown a decline in file sharing and illegal streaming services when easy-to-use and reasonably priced legal videoon-demand (VOD) services are available, limitations in connectivity and restrictive data charges drive the purchase of pirated content on DVDs.

NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2015

27

Labour

TSA: Labour warns against job losses POLICY FG should formulate policies to boost employment

Stories by Sunday Ojeme

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he National Union of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institutions Employees (NUBIFIE) has vowed to resist any form of job loss among its members following the implementation of the Treasury Single Account (TSA).

The union has, therefore, called on the Federal Government to workout modalities to guard against termination of appointments in the financial sector.

National President of the union, Comrade Danjuma Musa, told reporters in Lagos that the policy was a threat to the existence of some banks as a result of poor saving culture, low income and high level of inflation, which make surplus on income impossible.

The union pointed out that rather than formulate policies that would lead to job losses, the Federal Government should think of better ways of creating jobs.

Musa observed that as laudable as the objectives of TSA

may sound, the blanket directive to warehouse its funds in Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) would have a far reaching implication on the economy.

He noted: “The policy will surely slow down business transactions because most businesses in the country depend on loans to finance their projects.

The pronouncement came as a wild fire in the finance industry due to the weak economy and the capacity of banks to cope with the policy and continue in banking business.

“As a union, we sympathise with the banking community due to the effect of the Federal Government’s decision in its daily operations. We recall during the consolidation and merger policy implementation, the effect of that policy extinguished many banks from existence and brought about serious job losses.

“Similarly, the TSA pronouncement may further threaten the existence of some banks due to poor saving culture, low income and high level of inflation, which make surplus on income impossible.

“On the part of Federal Government and its decision, it should realise that as laudable as the objectives of TSA may sound, the blanket directive to warehouse its funds in Central bank of Nigeria, will have a far reaching implication on the economy.

“TSA will surely slow down

business transactions because most businesses in the country depend on loans to finance their projects. The Nigeria economy is import-based, coupled with poor saving culture and low income earnings.”

He, however, advised operators in the financial sector to initiate policies that would forestall possible job losses, adding that the CBN should quickly think of the survival of the banks and offer possible

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Olusegun Obasanjo.

The labour union said that the policy, which was resisted by millions of Nigerians in the past, is what el-rufai was urging the Federal Government to start all over again.

ASCSN said: “We advise President Buhari to be wary of the likes of El-Rufai who wants to push him to enter into a collision course with the entire citizenry by embarking on this very unpopular policy barely four months after he assumed office.

“Besides, the Kaduna State governor himself should concentrate on carrying out programmes that will uplift the

living standards of millions of Kaduna State citizens, particularly the poor masses who roam the streets of Kaduna and its environs in search of means of livelihood instead of embarking on self-centred agenda that will make qualitative secondary education a commodity only for the rich in the country.”

According to the union, because of the divisive ethnic and religious politics in the First Republic, which still exist today, the then Prime Minister, Sir Tafawa Balewa, in 1966, conceived the Unity School idea as centres for nurturing and inculcating a sense of oneness.

Lacasera yet to reabsorb sacked workers –NUFBTE

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he management of Lacasera Company Limited has yet to comply with the order of the National Industrial Court to recall the sacked 700 workers.

Head of Education Department, National Union of Food Beverage and Tobacco Employees (NUFBTE), Mr. Mike Olanrewaju, confirmed that management had yet to comply with the court.

Management of Lacasera

had on September 14 dismissed 700 workers based on what it described as invasion of its premises by hoodlums.

The NIC had, in its injunction, restrained the management from sacking the employees and directed it to reabsorb them.

“The Lacasera management has not recalled the affected workers since the court gave the order on September 17, but they are mak-

overcoming this Federal Government’s challenge to their existence in business,” Musa said.

“They should also think of a possible means of cutting cost on their excessive expenditures of acquiring expensive vehicles and re-invest such fund. Reduce excessive travel abroad for seminars, and board meetings. The jumbo profits declaration by most banks in the dailies should be reinvested in profitable ventures.

A cross section of Citizen’s Mediation Centre (CMC), Lagos State Ministry of Justice, in collaboration with United Nations Information Centre, on a ‘Walk for Peace’, in Lagos.

PHOTO: TONY EGUAYE

Labour kicks as El-Rufai seeks sale of unity schools ssociation of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN) has decried the alleged call by the Kaduna State Governor, Malam Nasir el-Rufai, that Unity Schools across the country be put up for sale.

ASCSN in a statement by its Secretary General, Comrade Alade Bashir Lawal, advised President Muhammadu Buhari against such act, saying that besides the fact that the campaign was illmotivated and designed for personal aggrandisement, it was also an anti-education policy earlier pursued by the administration of President

ways forward.

According to him, the CBN cannot play the role of commercial banks.

He added: “Already, the fear of mass loss of jobs has been reported in the media as the effect of the TSA by Federal Government. On this premise, therefore, the Union wish to advice that it is high time for the operators in the finance industry putted on their thinking caps and devise urgent means of

ing efforts to settle issues with us,’’ he said.

Olanrewaju said that the union would hold a meeting before taking any action, while it would also wait for the court to hear the case.

NIC had granted the union its plea for an order of interim injunction restraining Lacasera management through suit no. NICN/ LA/416/2015 in the Lagos Judicial Division.

ICSAN wants Nigerians to support FG’s anti-corruption crusade

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resident Muhammadu Buhari’s anti-corruption crusade has received yet another boost, this time from the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators of Nigeria (ICSAN).

President and Chairman of Council of the Institute, Dr. Nat Ofo, who described the anti-corruption campaign as commendable, urged Nigerians to support the effort, saying that the impact of the enormous resources in the country were not being felt because of mismanagement.

Ofo said that the anti-corruption war of the present administration would not only reduce the scourge, but also go a long way in letting the resources of the country go round.

He said: “Nigeria should not be the poorest country because of our resources - oil and others. But because these resources are mismanaged, their impacts are not felt. We should have a system to ensure prudency in financial resources.

By having this, the impact will be widely felt.

“President Buhari’s fight against corruption is okay and it will make our resources have impact on the people.

Corruption is a major issue that should be dealt with so that the people will feel the impact of the resources we have in the country.

“Government should be accountable to the people so that more dividends of democracy will be felt from the little resources we get,” Ofo said.

Speaking on the Institute’s Conference, he said that it was one of the cardinal programmes of the body to promote good governance practices within and outside the corporate world, adding that the Institute considers the need for disclosure and transparency in every segment of corporate Nigeria.

“In line with the resolve of the present administration to clean the Augean stable in Nigeria, the Institute has carefully chosen the theme to showcase the importance of disclosure and transparency to national development,” he said.

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

28

Agric International funding key to Nigeria’s agric growth FINANCIAL INCLUSION Securing international funding key to Nigeria’s agric sector growth

Taiwo Hassan

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n the 1960s, agriculture was the mainstay of Nigeria’s economy. Since then, past administrations have been unveiling various policies for the agriculture industry to play a key role in the canal of the country’s economy.

But one of the key factors that have bedeviled the country’s agric sector is funding.

Government’s effort to ensure that the industry remains relevant in the economy led it to collaborate with international agencies to provide prompt funding for the industry.

Recently, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) collaborated with the Federal Government and the Bank of Agriculture (BOA) to implement the Bank of Agriculture Rural Business Initiative (BOARBI) as part of Nigeria’s financial inclusion.

International collaboration The initiative seeks to strengthen microfinance banks (MFBs) and other member-based Micro Finance Institutions (MFIs) in such a way as to enhance access of the rural population to the financial services of the institutions. This is aimed at expanding and improving agricultural productivity and Macro-Small Rural Enterprises (MSREs).

Given its mandate, IFAD had instituted the Rural Finance Institution Building Programme (RUFIN) with a loan agreement of $27.2 million between it and the Federal Government in order to alleviate poverty with a particular focus on rural poor, especially women, the youth, and the physically disadvantaged.

Speaking with newsmen in Kaduna during a stakeholders’ meeting, the Executive Director of BOA, Babatunde Igun, said that there was need for government to collaborate with international donors to sustain the nation’s agric sector development.

Igun said: “As part of ways of enhancing our resources, we partner with various organisations, government and international institutions. We are here today to witness a top-level discussion between us and one of our partners, IFAD, under a programme called Rural Business Initiative (RBI), which is anchored by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and the Central Bank of Nigeria.

“BOA is one of the key institutions providing the basics for the

Mechanised farming

implementation of this project.

Currently, we have BOARBI and we are putting plans in place, which will enable us reach the poorest of the poor in the rural areas.

“The general impression in Nigeria or anywhere is that the rural dwellers are poor–the rural poor and the urban poor.

This programme is to introduce the poorest of the poor to access micro-credit with some as low as N5,000 to N10,000 with which they can do businesses as this will help to deepen financial inclusion, which is one of the programmes of the Federal Government.

BOARBI programme The programme is being implemented alongside three participating institutions namely: the Bank of Agriculture (BOA) Limited, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Federal Department of Cooperatives (FDC).

Commenting on the programme, Igun said: “We use peer pressure that is why we are encouraging them to be in groups.”

On the interest rate, he said:

There was need for government to collaborate with international donors

“Interest rate is just about 2.5 per cent and the loan is collateral free.”

According to IFAD Country Programme Manager for RUFIN, Atsuko Toda, BOA has its usual lending operation in the rural areas.

“BOARBI is a special initiative where we promote a much more interactive interface with the rural population. We will have smaller loans as entry level and

we will work with groups ensuring we closely monitor repayment. The whole idea is to build the trust between the BOA and its clients in the rural areas through the Rural Business Initiative.

She added: “Our projection is that if we can establish a relationship with trust, using the rural business plan we can extend financial services through the rural area, as financial inclusion in rural area is still a massive challenge. There are 40 million people who are bankable at the moment and currently the bank of agriculture has 350,000 clients in the rural area, which is just a drop in the water. We believe that the bank of agriculture can play a much larger role to reach out to this rural population.”

It is important to stress here that the objective of the programme is to develop and strengthen member-based MFIs and establish linkages between them and the other formal financial institutions in order to expand and improve agricultural productivity and boost micro/ small rural enterprises.

Group warns of cassava virus

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he Consortium for Food Safety in Africa, a network of organisations involved in food safety issues in the continent, have warned African countries, particularly Kenya and Uganda, that they were being used for field trials of mutant cassava virus developed by biotechnology companies.

The organisation disclosed this at its just ended biannual conference at Nairobi Hotel, Kenya, where

issues discussed related to the cassava mosaic disease and cassava brown streak disease.

The organisation said that the idea was to develop mutant cassava viruses to attack natural cassava strains in Africa and also develop strains resistant to it as genetically modified (GMOs) cassava.

The project was funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and Monsanto

through a proxy company called Genetics Technologies International Limited.

If not properly checked, the organisation said that this will put the food security of 800 million Africans and millions in South America and China at risk.

They explained that the countries at risk include Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania and Uganda, adding that these countries were being used as test

ground for release of the very virulent cassava viruses to attack the crops.

Governments of these countries have accepted the solution offered by Monsanto owned by Bill Gates to provide them GMOs cassava.

This would mean that the GMOs cassava planted in Africa would now come from Monsanto, who would have successfully hijacked CONTINUED ON PAGE 29

Business | Agric

NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2015

AGRIC AID Farmers to benefit from World Bank aid

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he World Bank has pledged its commitment to assist Lagos farmers increase agricultural productivity and enhance market access.

State Coordinator, Commercial Agriculture Development Project (CADP), Kehinde Ogunyinka, disclosed this in Lagos before the award of certificates to participants at its women and youth empowerment training.

Ogunyinka said that 55 persons would be sponsored by the World Bank to start their businesses in areas such as rice cultivation, poultry farming and others.

He stressed that 55 persons, which include women and youths, were chosen from 125 persons who were interested in participating in the training programme.

The World Bank, according to him, will support the farmers in three value chains to create agro-business ventures

World Bank to aid Lagos farmers that will be better managed as a step towards boosting livelihoods.

According to him, the World Bank, through CADP,

the food security of African countries.

The US delegates from Wisconsin and New York reminded their colleagues that the GMOs strains purported to be virusresistant were developed at the Danforth Institute in Missouri, USA, which has lost its credibility following several highprofile scandals of scientific falsifications of research data under funding by Bill Gates.

However, the delegates from Mozambique informed the forum that there is an on-going Seed Certification Programme tied to agricredit scheme advocated by the President of the Africa Development Bank (AfDB), Dr Akinwumi Adesina.

This plot would ensure that small farmers plant only the GMOs cassava, and the scheme would be widespread across Africa.

Delegates from South Africa and East Africa criticised their governments for allowing the Bill Gates and Monsanto devised scheme to force feed Africa with toxic GMOs cassava strains while killing the natural cassava using the mutant cassava viruses.

The submissions from European delegates from Holland, Norway and Denmark also blamed the African countries for allowing the program to go on through the network of International Institutes of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and various Root Crops Institutes in Africa.

They had harsh words for the European Union authorities who quickly and correctly banned agriproducts from Africa, because of high toxicity, but should have gone further to raise alarm that these prod-

has helped to lay the groundwork for vitalisation, offering technical expertise, bringing international best practices and engaging stakeholders

on building a shared vision to renew agro business development.

To achieve this, Ogunyinka said that the bank and the state

government were determined to improve every element of the value chain, from cultivation and harvesting, to packaging, logistics and marketing.

L-R: Executive Directors, Bank of Agriculture (BoA), Muhammad Adamu; Babatunde Igun and Country Programme Manager, International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), Atsuko Toda, at a stakeholders meeting in Kaduna

Association raise alarm over virus CONTINUED FROM PAG E 28

29

ucts are dangerous foods for Africans too.

The delegate from Finland recounted a personal experience while travelling on research in the Great Lakes region, and witnessed that farmers were given the infected cassava strains to plant by foreign scientists working in the area.

The delegates from France qualified the current situation as bioterrorism and should be brought to the UN Security Council despite the fact that the United States and Britain would definitely object.

The world attention would be drawn to the matter. Activists from London advised that this should be made into major political issues as they have engaged Prime Minister, David Cameron and other European leaders on the Migration Policies. They promised to implement an information dissemination network that will get the word out to the people on these matters across Europe.

The result would transform into a politically explosive scandal. Delegates from Nigeria, Togo and Burkina Faso warned their governments that the target is Nigeria, the world biggest cassava grower.

A Nigerian human rights lawyer informed the forum that the major interest of the biotechnology companies has been to capture Nigeria’s food security.

A grand proposal has been made to Nigerian government to have large GMOs companies like Monsanto take over the agricultural sector in the country. This would render over 40 million Nigerians engaged as small farmers jobless and cause widespread malnutrition and poverty.

Experts unveil new hybrid maize in Nigeria Stanley Ihedigbo

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s part of efforts to promote agricultural activities in the country, a team at the Institute of Agricultural Research and Training (IART), Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State, has released two new maize hybrids – Ife Maizehyb-07 and IfeMaizehyb-08.

According to a statement from the institute, the team led by Dr. Samuel Olakojo, said that the new hybrids have potential yields of 7.0/ha and 8.5t/ha respectively.

They also attract preference

from most farmers, mainly because of other qualities, including early maturity.

This has an advantage during erratic rainfall, especially during second planting season in South West Nigeria.

The grain size and high starch content are also good for livestock feed mill.

For instance, the Ife Maizehyb-08the weighs better and has high energy to release from feed.

Before now, there was a real gap between production and needs of maize in the southern part of Nigeria.

This was due to demograph-

ic increase, drought, diseases, new requirements from endusers (poultry feed, livestock feed, breweries and processors, among others) and appearance of agri-business farmers who are requesting hybrids.

The humid forest ecologies of Nigeria are great potential zones for maize production, which can help to reduce this gap with the availability of high yielding adapted hybrids such as the Ife Maizehyb-07 and Ife Maizehyb-08.

Speaking on the development, Programme Officer for Crop Improvement and Variety Adoption%2.

AfDB to empower women in agribusiness he African Development tunities for women in four sub- and we as women are ready to T Bank (AfDB) has launched sectors, namely cocoa, coffee, move when given the right supa report seeking to empower cotton and cassava, in Côte port. Women provide the most women to take the lead in agribusiness.

The report: “Economic Empowerment of African Women through Equitable Participation in Agricultural Value Chains,” identifies opportunities for women that could increase Africa’s competitiveness and participation in global agriculture value chains.

“Women’s presence in the agricultural labour force is significant at 50 per cent and produces 80 per cent of Africa’s food.

There is no better overlapping opportunity to support women’s economic empowerment and to strengthen a critical sector on the continent,” said Geraldine Fraser-Moleketi, AfDB’s Special Envoy on Gender.

The study identified oppor-

d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Burkina Faso and Nigeria respectively.

These sectors account for $43 billion in production and $12 billion in export value across the four countries.

If backed by the right policies, technologies, training and access to financing, women can seize opportunities in agribusiness, says the report.

In Côte d’Ivoire which produces a third of the world’s cocoa, “land is available, but women do not have the right training and appropriate funding to modernise agricultural systems,” according to chairperson of the country’s National Federation of Croppers Cooperatives, Irié Lou Colette.

“To be active in agriculture, it requires huge investments,

labour in agriculture; therefore it is important that they are facilitated accordingly if Africa is to feed itself,” she said.

Similar support is required in Ethiopia, Burkina Faso and Nigeria, which are Africa’s largest producers of coffee, cotton and cassava, respectively.

Secretary-General of InterAfrican Coffee Organisation, Fred Kawuma, called for public-private partnerships in agribusiness targeting women’s groups with the aim of integrating them into value chains.

He said that in the coffee sector, “there is need to offer support in processing, packaging and market access in order to make women farmers in coffee-producing countries more competitive.”

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Auto Beat

Auto Policy: Nissan corners 10% market share Paul Ogbuokiri

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issan Nigeria says its market share is rising partly as a result of investments made in response to Nigeria’s new auto policy.

In the period March 1, 2014 to April 31, 2015, Nissan significantly increased its share of the automotive market segment in Nigeria from 4 per cent to 10 per cent, the firm said in a statement.

Managing Director and President of for Nissan South Africa, Mike Whitfield, said: “We have worked side by side with the Stallion Group to achieve what is a very encouraging increase in our share of the key Nigerian market.

Within Nissan we have a strong desire to make a full and lasting contribution to rebuild automotive industrialisation in Nigeria and to play an important role in the growth of the manufacturing sector.”

The global Stallion Group partnered with Nissan in April 2013, forming Stallion NMN Limited, which became the sole manufacturer, importer and distributor of Nissan vehi-

cles in Nigeria.

Since then the number of dealerships in Nigeria has increased.

The new Victoria Island showroom was the eleventh Nissan outlet in the country – a demonstration of Nissan’s long term commitment to increase brand visibility in Africa’s most populous country.

Nissan became the first automaker to build cars in Nigeria through the collaboration with Stallion Group.

Production began at the company’s Lagos plant in April last year and already four models are now

coming off the production line” Proudly Naija”, creating jobs and developing skills within the local supply chain.

Sunil Vaswani, Chairman of Stallion Group, said: “Together with Nissan we are transforming Nigeria into a notable manufacturing and distribution hub.

We will provide a comprehensive range of passenger, commercial and recreational vehicles, and a r e

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“We’re well placed in the Sub-Saharan region to meet our customers’ needs through an expanding model range, retail network and an evolving industrial footprint in Nigeria building cars ‘in’ Africa, ‘for’ Africa.

“Together with the Stallion Group, Nissan is fully committed to evolving and developing the business and playing an important part in the growth story of Nigeria’s automotive market.”

2015 Nissan Ultima

ECOWAS commissions partners NADDC on regional auto policy

he ECOWAS Commission is partnering with the National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC) with a view to evolving a framework for the establishment of a regional automotive policy in West Africa.

Towards this end, a delegation from the ECOWAS Commission Secretariat led by the Commissioner for Industry and Private Sector Promotion, Dr. Kalilou Traore was recently hosted to a meeting in NADDC Headquarters Abuja by the Director General, Engr. Aminu Jalal and Director Policy and Planning, Mr. Luqman Mamudu.

Dr. Traore remarked that the regional body acknowledged the successes recorded so far

by Nigeria in its auto industry development, especially with the establishment of numerous vehicle assembly plants; pointing out that such a laudable industrial policy should be adopted at the regional level so that its benefits could extend to other West African countries.

currently engaged in a dynamic program of new model introductions. It is our intention to progressively build Nissan’s market share in the coming years, and transform the Nissan brand into one of the largest automakers in Nigeria.”

Jim Dando, Nissan General Manager for Sub-Saharan Africa, said,

He noted that the ECOWAS Commission had adopted Nigeria’s automotive agenda at a meeting in Ghana early this year. This brought priority investment sector to four; the others are food, pharmaceuticals and building construction materials.

He said that as follow-up, the commission was planning to host a regional workshop of experts to discuss holistically matters relating to auto industry development with a view to having a common regulated market in the region in order to facilitate increased flow of investments and trade transactions among the West African countries.

According to him, issues expected to be discussed at the proposed regional workshop include common regulation and standards, rule of origin, CET, components parts manufacturing, maintenance garages, vehicle credit financing, measures to curtail inflow of used vehicles into the region, etc; with all relevant stakeholders including manufacturers, dealers, finance

institutions participating.

He was of the opinion that governments in West Africa should consider the use of Made in Nigeria automobiles as official vehicles and also for mass transit services while the other countries in the region should also benefit from investments in components parts development and establishment of auto maintenance service garages.

Responding, NADDC Director General, Engr. Aminu Jalal assured the ECOWAS Commission delegation of the Council’s support for the success of the proposed workshop and readiness to share Nigeria’s experience and expertise with other sister member states of ECOWAS. Engr. Jalal said that already, Nigeria had approved vehicle safety standards, procedures, tariff structures, investment incentives, and other elements of the Nigerian Automotive Industrial Development Plan (NAIDP) which could be modified and adopted for regional application.

VW emission scandal: Equity price dips, CEO throws in towel

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olkswagen AG dramatic fall from grace to grace last Friday over the revelation that the Wolfsburg, Germanybased company fitted dieselpowered vehicles with software that circumvented air pollution controls, then lied about it to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday consumed the Chief Executive Officer Martin Winterkorn who stepped down after nearly a decade at the helm as the automaker became increasingly isolated amid a scandal over cheating on U.S. emissions tests.

This coming as the stock price of the company plummeted 35 per cent over two days and pressure grew from the German government for quick action.

“Volkswagen needs a fresh start,” Winterkorn said in a statement Wednesday. “I am clearing the way for this fresh start with my resignation. I am doing this in the interests of the company even though I am not aware of any wrongdoing on my part.”

The 68-year-old CEO, who personally apologized for the

affair, The automaker’s supervisory board will consider successors at its meeting on Friday. Possible replacements as CEO are Matthias Mueller, head of the Porsche brand who is backed by members of the Porsche family, and Herbert Diess, who recently came over from rival BMW, a person familiar with the matter said. Mueller oversees the marque that’s a profit driver for the group. Diess, who joined in July to take charge of the VW brand, helped BMW cut billions of euros in purchasing costs during the global financial crisis.

Winterkorn, who took over in 2007, led a turnaround that propelled VW from an also-ran that had cut 20,000 German jobs under his predecessor to a global powerhouse with about 600,000 employees that included a stable of 12 brands from Lamborghini supercars to Scania heavy trucks. He expanded aggressively, boosting the number of production sites around the world to more than 100 locations, with an emphasis on China and North America.

NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

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Crime

Community in the grip of robbers

Eniola Jolaoso and Idapo Idowu

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r. Olumide Frank looked and sounded perturbed. Yes, he has every reason to be worried. In less than four months, robbers have stormed his community hree times.

He recollected: “I was sleeping when they came into my bedroom.

My wife was sleeping beside me. I later found out that they gained entry into my apartment through the sitting room window. They forced the window open. When I heard the sound of my bedroom door opening, I opened my eyes and saw two men. One was holding a gun and his partner armed with a machete. They went straight to my table and hurriedly started packing my phones. As I got up to ask, who was that; one of them pointed a guy at me and said, ‘keep quiet or I’ll shoot! Respect yourself.’”

This was the first robbery in a series of robberies on Frank and his neighbours. Even as he narrated the robbery of that fateful June 11, 2015, he still sounded shaken.

Frank and other residents of Iyanda Falola Street, Agege, Lagos State have stopped sleeping with their two eyes closed. Even when they attempt to sleep, every little noise makes them to jump up in fright.

The residents said that the three times the bandits stormed the area, there was no power supply, adding that the bandits used to enter same compounds by scaling the fence.

Continuing with his recollection of the robbery in his home, Frank said that the first thing that flashed through his mind when he saw the two men in his bedroom was that they shouldn’t hurt his wife and kids. The thought had barely crossed his mind, when his wife suddenly woke up and noticed the strange men.

She didn’t need a soothsayer to tell her that her home was being robbed. The machete and gun

JULIANA FRANCIS CRIME Editor

juliana.francis@newtelegraphonline.com

© Daily Telegraph Publishing Company Limited

Iyanda Falola Street

said it all. She started trembling in fright and muttering prayers.

Anytime Frank attempted to look at the men, one of them would flash torchlight into his eyes, blinding him He explained: “They took away our phones; my I-pad and laptop.

They even took my daughter’s earrings. That singular action showed the level of their poverty.

They took the foreign currencies which I kept as a souvenir in case I needed to travel. To worsen the matter, they took the brand new phone I bought for a friend. If I’m to calculate the worth of items taken by the men, it will be close to N700,000!”

The father of two further said: “During their operation in my apartment, which lasted more than 30 minutes, I because worried over the safety of my kids. The robbers were using my kids to threaten me.

They repeatedly said, ‘if you misbehave, we’ll injure your kids! Do you know we can injure your kids?’

Nobody in my situation could have predicted the next action of such men.”

After they were through with Frank, they visited two other apartments, before disappearing with their loot.

One of the apartments they robbed was that of the landlord.

They carted away his son’s laptop,

which he was using to type his university project.

Frank said that he was shocked when another stranger, apparently a third member of the gang, swaggered into his apartment and ordered him to mention the items carted from his home by the two men that raided it earlier. Bemused, Frank had calmly listed the items. Satisfied, the man left.

The residents had barely gotten over the shock of the first robbery, when the robbers came back for another operation.

In the second operation, the robbers came around 1: am. One of the residents mustered courage and alerted a policeman attached to Abattoir Police Station. This was the only police number with one of the tenants. Unfortunately, the policeman had travelled out of Lagos. The policeman had to call the station, before the officers mobilised and raced to the scene.

By the time they got to the scene however, the robbers had set sail with their loot, leaving the tenants frightened and angry.

Frank said when the policemen came, they moved around, saying, ‘where are they? Which direction did they come from? Let’s spread out and search all the nooks and crannies of this building!’

Frank said: “The policemen came two hours after the phone

call. They said their colleague, who travelled, just alerted them about the robbery.”

Another resident, Taiwo, who was robbed, narrated his experience.

He said: “The first attempt was on June 18, 2015. They came around 2:30 am. The robbers came to the back of my apartment and started flashing torchlight at the window of my room. I live in a tworoom apartment. My brother and I occupied one and my younger sister stays in the second room.

Quite frightened, I asked who they were and the next thing I heard was, ‘we’ll blow off your head if you don’t open the door, you know its dark and everyone is still sleeping.’ Before I knew what was happening, they’ve removed the sitting room window burglaries.

They entered my apartment and made away with all our valuables worth close to N200,000. They disappeared into the darkness!”

Taiwo said that in spite of all the valuables the robbers stole, he was glad that they didn’t rape his sister. According to him, his sister smartly locked herself inside the toilet throughout the robbery operation.

Taiwo also remembered the second robbery attack. He said: C O N T I N U E D O N PA G E 3 2

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Crime

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Lady narrates experience with ‘holy' fraudsters Betty Sobo

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20-year-old student of the Nigerian Institute Journalism (NIJ), and part time worker, Miss Ngozi Ogbolu, has revealed her encounter with some ‘holy fraudsters’ who almost hood winked her into withdrawing all the money in her account and that of her mother’s.

Ogbolu said that she encountered the fraudsters on September 6, 2015, at Church Bus Stop, Agidingbi. One of them, an old man, introduced himself as a pastor.

Determined to make sure the lady empties her mother’s account, the 'pastor' and his partners in crime, cast a spell on her and made her to chew and swallow a paper He told her intimate things about herself. His supposed power and knowledge, stunned her.

Realising he had gotten Ogbolu’s attention, the pastor said that the lady needed prayers because something bad was about to happen to her family.

This was even as he urged her to withdraw all the money in her account and that of her mother for serious prayers.

Recalling the event like it was yesterday, Ogbolu said she was returning from Liberation Hall Ministries, situated at Amara Olu Street, where she worships, when she ran into the fraudsters.

Ogbolu said: “I was returning from church and decided to use the Automated Teller Machine (ATM).

I withdrew N10,000. I was coming out from the bank when I noticed a Toyota Corolla car. The car parked in front of me. I saw two men; a young driver and an elderly man that looked about 60-year-old. The old man asked if I could direct him to Metropolitan Hospital. He said that he was going there for evangelism. I told him I didn’t know the place. A young man was about to walk pass us, when the old man asked him the same question.

“The young man said he knew the place. He acted like he was a stranger. I never knew they were working together. I was about to walk away when the old man suddenly called my name; ‘Ngozi Ogbolu.’ He mentioned my home town. I became curious. I wondered how he knew my name, state

Ogbolu

and village. He said something bad was about to happen in my family. He said that I should buy biscuits for children when I get home. He told me that he needed to pray for me first. According to him, the Almighty God instructed him to pray for me.”

Ogbolu further explained that as the old man, was speaking to her, the young man interjected repeatedly, saying the pastor’s knowledge and power were awesome.

The lady said that it was while the old man was speaking to her, that she momentarily lost her senses.

She said: “It was from that point that I didn’t know what I was doing. I was lost!”

She was ordered to enter the Toyota Corolla car and like a lamb being led to the slaughter slab, she obeyed.

She recounted that she entered the car without knowing why. The

old man, his driver and the supposed passer-bye took Ogbolu to the Victorious Army Church, located along ACME Road.

The old man said he wanted to carry out prayers for Ogbolu in the church. He later changed his mind, saying that there was no parking space inside the church.

“He asked me to bring out a plain sheet of paper, which I did.

He tore it into two and asked me to chew one part and gave the young man, the other half to chew.

I don’t know if the guy chewed his half, but I chewed and swallowed mine,” said Ogbolu.

She continued her narration: “He told me I had N10,000 in my bag and that I also had my ATM card. He further said that I had my mother’s ATM card with me. He said that my mother’s account had a lot of money. I simply nodded. He said my aunt was having a very serious issue with someone. I nodded. He said I should withdraw all

the money in my account and that of mother’s that he wanted to pray on it. He said that after the prayers, I’ll return the money to the bank on Monday which was the following day, I nodded.”

The driver drove out of the church and headed towards MoweIbafo, Ogun State. They diverted to another route. And struggling with a force that was weighing her down, which she couldn’t understand, Ogbolu managed to stutter, “I thought you said you were going to Mowe, but this is not the way to Mowe. I told him that I could only make withdrawals from the First Bank branch were I opened my account.”

The old man smiled and instructed the driver to reverse the car. They headed back to ACME Road.

When they got to ACME Road, the driver parked close to the bank. The old man ordered Ogbolu not to tell anyone what had transpired between her and them within three days or she would die.

She further recollected: “He asked me to open my right palm.

He placed his hand on mine and said, ‘go and come back in peace.’ I picked my handbag and stepped out of the car. Immediately I stepped out from the car, I started shaking. I wasn’t myself !

The only thing on my mind was to quickly withdraw the money and return to them. One of the security guards at my place of work, close to the bank asked if I was alright. He gave me a seat to sit. I was still shaking. I started shouting that I wasn’t alright! As I was narrating the story, I was getting better. Then I saw the young man, who acted like he was walking pass. He was looking for me.

I pointed him out to the security men. They tried to follow him, but he quickly went back to the car and left with others.

She said that the following day, she fell sick and had to be rushed to the hospital by her mother.

“The doctor said the content in the paper was affecting my tummy.

He said that the trauma from the incident was also affecting me. My mum took me to our church. Our pastor prayed for me and I got better.”

Community in the grip of robbers C O N T I N U E D F R O M PA G E 3 1

“The second time robbers came to our compound, I overheard them discussing behind a neighbour’s window. Since the first operation, I no longer sleep deeply. A noise woke me. As I listened to their discussion, I realised they were armed robbers.

I quickly sent a text message to my landlord and neighbours. They raised the alarm which made the robbers to take to their heels.”

He disclosed that right now, petrified neighbours were planning to move out of the area because of the frequent robbery attacks.

While many residents are planning to relocate, Taiwo said that he had started becoming more security conscious. He explained that these

days, he usually makes sure all his doors and windows were locked.

Another tenant, Abiodun, though not a victim of the robbers, said he and many others were traumatised by the experience.

He said the gang robbed all occupants who were downstairs and threatened to kill them if they didn’t co-operate during one of their operations.

Abiodun added: “We have now totally become security conscious. We no longer allow people to walk into the compound anyhow. The security guards should also be blamed for this as they are less effective and are not carrying out their responsibilities. If they are really doing their work, we wouldn’t be experiencing this frequent robbery attacks.

It seems these security men have forgotten the reason we employed them.”

Speaking further, Frank said that the community had taken measures to ensure that robbers find it difficult to come into the area to operate.

His words: “We have employed a group of well-armed security guards. Policemen now also patrol the area, especially the road leading to the major expressway. Despite the tight security, a gang of robbers tried to invade the building again, but they didn’t succeed!

This was due to the alarm raised by the security guards.”

The Chairman of Security Association in the Community, Mr. David Olusegun said he was not happy

with the situation.

Frank said: “The first time they came, I had meeting with my men on the next steps to take. The robbers came the second and third time. They go on robbery operations as if they were reporting to office duty. Despite the fact that the security guards are up to their task and very sensitive, these robbers still operated, giving residents the impression that we’re not working. I’ve had meetings with my men and the landlords of the street on the positive measures we could adopt to check this problem. This situation pains me and it shows that nobody is secured.”

Olusegun urged the residents to become security -conscious and to alert them of anything.

Feminique NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

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hose who know Nana Gbolahan well, know that she is both a woman with a listening ear and a mother figure to many. Armed with a life of wisdom garnered through relentless study and a sound upbringing, she has become one of those accomplished and cultured people who see beauty in everyone and are out to contribute their quota in helping them see the beauty.

Being a lover of knowledge, she did not end with her degrees, she is a member of a number of professional bodies and does not cease to attend courses both nationally and internationally to improve herself and make her scholarship available tothepeople.

“I do so many things but I love what I do. Anything I am interested in I go into it and try to see how I can make myself better and by extension, my society. I am a member of various professional organizations, locally and internationally. Being a member of the Society for Performance Improvement I believe every aspect of our lives need improvement. Whether it is in the area of work, home or relationship, one needs to improve one’s performance to achieve the optimum,” Nana explained.

With so many things to attend to, Nana is always busy but it is interesting to know that she does most of her consulting for free.

According to her, it is her own personal CSR. “I like to help. I like to help specifically when it comes to youth and career development because I found that the youth are the future leaders. If we can catch them at that age, we can get a feel of where they want to go, how they want to go there and guide them on how to achieve it, then we will be on the right path to getting a better crop of people in leadership if we take our responsibility of guiding the youths seriously.

“I also do things for different SMEs; a bit of consulting here and there, basically helping people out.

I do career mentorship programme for youth corpers in conjunction with some non-governmental organizations. When they require my assistance in the area of counselling for the youth or older people with respect to career, I help them. I do these pro bono, just helping out, not as a job. It’s something I like doing, so I’m happy to do it even without payment.

Maybe if I were broke, I would have been charging for it,” she enthused.

Nana is passionate about women.

So passionate is she that she established Isham Beauty Solutions to

EBEREAMEH AMEH EBERE ebere.ameh@newtelegraphonline.com ebere.ameh@newtelegraphonline.com

©© Daily Telegraph Publishing Daily Telegraph Publishing Company Limited Company Limited

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Gbolahan: Jack of all trades, mistress of all Nana Gbolahan is an HR practitioner, a performance improvement expert, a safety professional, a prorietress, an advocate for youth and women’s rights and the coordinator of Isham Beauty Solutions. In spite of her degree in Estate Management and Masters in Public and International Affairs, she has taken on all those roles, in addition to consulting pro bono for SMEs, NGOs and government parastatals in her quest to help people improve and achieve their optimum. EBERE AMEH had a chat with her during one of her programmes in Abuja and writes

help them discover who they are - their beauty, both internally and externally.

“Women need assistance everywhere – they need assistance in their home, in setting up small businesses and even big ones. They need assistance in even going out and doing what they want to do. They need assistance to just come out and be heard,” Nana said.

Ishan beauty was established to empower, educate and assist women.

“It came about because a lot of women go through a lot of things everyday but women, as my mom would say, keep a lot of secrets and things that worry them. They suppress a lot of the problems and challenges they go through because such problems have to do with their families, their husbands, their friends or even themselves. They try to look out for everybody and at the end of the day, they take out of themselves but don’t really have anywhere they put back into themselves,” she explained.

According to the elegant lady, she was rattled to action by a number of her friends who were having problems. For one, it was spousal abandonment, for others, it was unfaithfulness on the part of their partners. They didn’t just know what happened but they found themselves alone and struggling. Some got separated and when her intervention produced good results, she decided to start a platform – Intimate Matters, an offshoot of Isham Beauty Solutions, where women, and at times, men, could come together to have intimate conversations on the challenges they face and how to make their relationships work.

“We didn’t want people to fill up the hall thereby making it so large that the participants can’t talk. We always restrict our numbers. We don’t want it so large so people can feel free to discuss their intimate issues. Women interact more in informal environments, and that is why we started it. I’m happy we have great testimonies of renewed relationships and happy families.”

Talking about the government, especially the Ministry of Women Affairs and their contribution towards alleviating the plight of the Nigerian women, Nana said they need to do more for their impact to be felt.

“I actually don’t know what the Ministry of Women Affairs is doing.

I actually don’t know what the Ministry of Women Affairs is doing

And the mere fact that I don’t know what they are doing means that they are not doing much. Because if they are doing something, almost every woman should know that. They might be possibly dealing with women in the rural areas, and I’m not privy to it, or have certain group of women they might be dealing with. However, since we don’t hear much about what they are doing, they need to do more.”

A graduate of Estate Management from the University of Lagos and Masters in Public and International Affairs from the same university, Nana, who is also in-

Gbolahan

volved in a Music School, has continued to seek more knowledge, expanding her sphere of knowledge and influence.

“I work but I think I am a jack of all trades. But I believe I can be jack of all trades and master of all. I believe I can do anything and everything as long as I set my mind to do it.”

A very busy woman, one wonders how she, copes with work and family and still finds time to destress. But ever heard of one who relaxes by working? Different strokes for different folks indeed.

“I’m one of those people that love work, I love to be active. Doing all these things I’m doing is how I relax,” she enthused.

“However, I sleep, I read, I love cross word puzzles, I swim when I can, and I play with my children,” Nana said.

34

Feminique

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

The flabby truth about erectile dysfunction (weak erection)

E

rectile dysfunction (ED) is the inability to get or keep an erection firm enough to have sexual intercourse. It is also referred to as weak erection or impotence.

Who suffers from erection failure? Almost all men at some point in our lives.

We’ve been brainwashed to think that the erect penis is a reliable and strong part of us, until the first time something goes wrong. But the truth is that an erection is one of our weakest links in men.

It is susceptible to all kinds of things: a woman saying the wrong things at the wrong moment, our belief that we should be able to have sex at anytime (even when we don’t want to!), our chauvinistic belief that the man gives during sex and the woman receives (even when we want something different).and so on, and so forth.

But, having said that, some men are more likely to have erection problems than others. Are you a worrier? Do small things trouble you? Do you brood on relationships, worry over what people have said and done to you? Do you easily get depressed? Are you a perfectionist?

Or are you a happy-go-lucky kind of a guy, who doesn’t take anything too seriously and makes the best of everything?

Well, the flabby truth is that the worriers and perfectionists are the ones most likely to experience erectile failure.

What Is Erectile Dysfunction? Male sexual arousal may seem simple, but it depends on a precise, complex sequence of events inside the body. The brain activates nerves in the penis to relax muscles in the spongy tissues that run the length of the penis. When these muscles relax, blood can flow in from arteries to fill open spaces in the spongy tissue.

Increased blood pressure expands the penis. Membranes around the spongy tissue sustain the erection. Anything interrupting this sequence can cause the inability to have or keep an erection long enough for sexual intercourse.

Erectile dysfunction symptoms might include persistent: Trouble getting an erection Trouble keeping an erection Reduced sexual desire Statistics As cited by Merck in the Merck Manual for Health Care Professionals, at least 10 to 20 million men in the United States alone suffer from erectile dysfunction. Experts believe that the number may actually be higher because men aren’t comfortable speak-

ing to their doctors about their sexual problems. What many men don’t realize is that most men at some point in their life will experience some form of erectile dysfunction.

Some of the most reliable ED stats have emerged from a large data collection effort called the Massachusetts Male Aging Study. According to that data, rates of ED among men tend to correlate with their age bracket, says Tobias Köhler, M.D., chief of the Division of Male Infertility at Southern Illinois University. “Roughly 40 percent of men in their 40s suffer from ED, 50 percent in their 50s, etc.,” he says.

There are a lot of explanations for these high ED rates, some of which are psychological. “A lot of men may have an off night, and then that sticks in their head and hurts their performance for a few weeks or months,” Dr. Köhler explains.

He says anxiety stokes hormones like the fight-or-flight chemical adrenaline, which is a serious boner killer. (In evolutionary terms, it would be tough to run away from a predator with an erection.)

Getting and staying hard is like trying to fall asleep. The more you think

Fadeyi

about it, the less likely it is to happen.

But those psychogenic factors aren’t to blame for escalating ED rates, Dr. Köhler says. After all, a man’s brain isn’t any different today than it was 100 years ago.

So what explains the apparent rise in ED problems amongst us today? Here are the leading candidates: Junk food, sedentary lifestyle, stress, self-medication, Good Life (smoking, alcohol, drug abuse, excessive partying) etc.

Finally, is your ED curable? A series of standard questions have been developed by an international association on erectile dysfunction. Request for your FREE copy with your name, phone no, email or whatsapp no. To be concluded.

Dr T. A. Fadeyi. MB. BCH. Sexologist, Sex and Marriage Counselor. drtaiwofadeyi@gmail.com 08033148899 (sms only)

Ego: Diary of a happening mom

Ebere Ameh

M

y diary for the month would not be complete without including the reactions of the ladies to Prisca’s presentation on married prostitutes that I left out the other day. I just have to squeeze it in here.

Anyway, it was such a very controversial topic that she was attacked even before she made her point. However, some listened and did not mind an explanation.

My only beef with the whole idea is that it encourages a situation where women would have to give and give again, while the men sit back and enjoy. ‘Only women suffer from the pangs of childbirth, almost all forms of contraceptive are designed, majorly by men, for them, haba!’ I thought. I listened but I was too angry not to talk.

“We are here, trying to better our lives and relationships. We get resource persons who talk to us and that is very good. My question is, who talks to the men?

They also need to be told how to please us in bed to keep us from straying. Or do they have the monopoly of infidelity?” I queried, getting a resounding clap from the excited ladies. I think I said the mind of most of them.

Prisca who has been bombarded with so much questions was simply smiling as she stood upto provide answers to them. But it seems she has only one answer for the barrage of questions and barrage hurled at her.

“My sisters, what you don’t know is the fact that you need to stoop to conquer. I was as angry and naïve as most of you are. But I asked myself, am I really as crazy about that thing called sex as

Prisca and men’s mumu button

my man is? Most times we do it out of a sense of conjugal duty, don’t we? Why not make him happy and get what you want? If you do it like a pro, you get the key to his heart and his money, and what else do you want? That is why I will bring you the book written by the Obedient Wives Club so you could read and know your man’s mumu button,

and know how, when and where to press it to get what you want,” she concluded with a broad grin as she was treated to a deafening applause.

She has used that to win over the ladies to her side while encouraging that all come prepared to the next meeting for further intimate conversations that would improve relationships.

“I want our next meeting to be

very interactive. We have been listening to resource persons that talk to us about finance, investment and all but without a stable home, you can’t go far in life. We shall divulge our challenges to one another and learn how to manipulate our men while massaging their ego that they are still the head of the home,” Prisca concluded.

Just like the first time she mentioned the topic she would like to discuss, everyone is both excited and anxiously looking forward to the next meeting. Should I tell Danny about my new friends and our meetings? No, let it remain a girl’s gossip get together to him. I can’t wait to start work on his mumu button.

Just as I was crossing my ts and doting my Is, Tosin ran in with a bruised elbow. She was struggling with Lilly over a basketball when Ron pushed her down. Seeing the bruise on her sisters’ arm, Tobi, who is getting rather impulsive these days, ran and pushed him down too, and a fight ensued. She came to report both the injury she sustained and the fight that followed.

I was able to quell the fight and restore peace but this is one fight too many. I think I need to employ my father’s tactics before it is too late. While growing up, there was an unwritten and undiscussed rule that nobody fights and nobody fails exams in our house. We just grew up hearing him tell people that his children don’t fail exams and they don’t fight. With that air of ‘they know they can’t try it’ written on his face, we advised ourselves and maintained the status quo. I need to implement it, hoping they would buy into the trick.

NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2015

Oyo State Governor, Abiola Ajimobi (middle); Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education, Mrs. Aderonke Makanjuola (left) and others, during the governor’s unscheduled visit to the ministry.

L-R: General Manager, Corporate Affairs, Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Hon. Yakubu Dati; Plateau State Governor, Hon. Simon Lalong and AVM Lazarus Mshelia of Minna Airforce Base Command, at Lamingo Golf Course, Jos to the mark Governor Lalong’s 100 days in office, in Jos Plateau State.

Photo | News

35

L-R: Member Board of Directors, Kwara Commercial Micro Finance Bank (KCMB), Alex Okoh; Chairman KCMB, Demola Banu; Kwara State Governor, Dr. Abdulfatah Ahmed; member Board of Directors, Femi Ajibade; member (KCMB), Soji Oyawoye and Managing Director KCMB, Abayomi Ajayi, during the presentation of the Cheque of Year 2014 Government’s dividends in KCMB at Government House, Ilorin.

L:R: Special Project Manager, South Africa Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), Hazel Tlhabanyane; Managing Director, PRM Africa, and Executive Producer/President, All Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA), Mike Dada; Manager, Marketing and Communications, Channel Africa, South Africa Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), Mamolete Segakweng and General Manager, Channel Africa SABC, Solly Phetoe, after a business meeting between the producer of AFRIMA and South African broadcasting, in Sandton, Johannesburg, South Africa.

L-R: Author, “Activate God’s Promises In Your Life,” Dr. Caroline Umebese; state programme me manager, DFID SPARC, Kaduna, Mr. Christopher Umebese; chairman of the occasion, Mr. Olu Falohun and Book Reviewer, Dr. Paschal Mogbo, at the public presentation of the book in Lagos.

PHOTO: GODWIN IREKHE President, Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ABUCCI), Mr. Tony Ejinkeonye (left), making a presentation at a colloquium organised by the Chamber for its members in Abuja.

PHOTO: NAN

L-R: General Secretary, First African Church Mission International, Bro. Innocent Nwachukwu-Asonye; Primate, Most Rev. Emmanuel Olabode Koya; President, Christian Mothers Association of the Mission/ wife of the Primate, Mrs. Comfort Koya; Lay President, Mission world-wide, Elder Kehinde Oluwatisegun Oniwinde and Bro. Dr. Innocent Abali, cutting the 124th Anniversary cake to round off the church’s annual conference and anniversary at St. Peters Cathedral, Ahoada Diocese and Archdiocese of Orashi of the Mission in Rivers State.

L-R: Head Coordinator, WEEC, Kayode Odukoya; motivational speaker, Lanre Olusola; Radio Presenter, Tosyn Bucknor; Social Media Expert, Japheth Omojuwa and Chief Executive Officer, Curve Communications, Adeola Odunowo, at the WEEC 2015 seminar, held at the University of Lagos.

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

36

Islam

E X H O RTAT I O N “Not their (rams slaughtered for Eid) flesh, nor their blood reaches Allah, but it is the piety from you that reaches Him.” (Sura Hajj, verse 37)

11 Thul-Hijjah, 1436

UNDERSTAND YOUR FAITH

Days of Dhul-Hijjah Question What are the good acts that are recommended for Muslims during the first ten days of Dhul-Hijjah?

CONTINUED FROM LAST WEEK ANSWER This is not correct because the ruling applies to the one who is offering the sacrifice, whether or not he (or she) delegates someone else to carry out the actual deed. The prohibition does not apply to the person delegated, only to the person who is making the sacrifice, as is indicated in the hadith. The person who is sacrificing on behalf of someone else, for whatever reason, does not have to adhere to this prohibition.

This prohibition appears to apply only to the one who is offering the sacrifice, not to his wife and children, unless any of them is offering a sacrifice in his or her own right, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to sacrifice “on behalf of the family of Muhammad,” but there are no reports that indicate that he forbade them from cutting their hair or nails at that time.

Concerning the types of worship to be performed during these ten days, one should understand that these days are a great blessing from Allah to His servants, which is appreciated properly by the righteous persons. It is the Muslim’s duty to appreciate this blessing and seize the opportunity, by devoting these ten days to paying more attention to striving hard in worship.

Among His blessings to His servants, Allah has given us many ways in which to do good and worship Him, so that the Muslim may be constantly active and consistent in his worship of his Lord.

Among the good deeds which the Muslim should strive to do during the first ten days of Dhul Hijjah are: 1- Fasting It is Sunnah to fast on the ninth day of Dhul Hijjah, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) urged us to do good deeds during this time, and fasting is one of the best of deeds. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to fast on the ninth of Dhul Hijjah.

Hunaydah ibn Khalid quoted some of the wives of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) as saying: “The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to fast on the ninth of Dhul Hijjah, on the day of `Ashurah, on three days of each month, and on the first two Mondays and Thursdays of each month.” (An-Nisa’i) 2- Takbir It is Sunnah to say takbir, tahmid, tahlil, and tasbih during the first ten days of Dhul Hijjah, and to say it loudly in the mosque, the home, the street and every place where it is permitted to remember Allah and mention His name out loud, as an act of worship and as a proclamation of the greatness of Allah, may He be exalted. Men should recite these phrases out loud, and women should recite them quietly.

Allah says, (That they might witness things that are of benefit to them (i.e., reward of Hajj in the Hereafter, and also some worldly gain from trade, etc.), and mention the name of Allah on appointed days, over the beast of cattle that He has provided for them (for sacrifice)...) (AlHajj 22:28) The majority of scholars agree that the “appointed days” are the first ten days of Dhul Hijjah, because of the words of Ibn `Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him and his father): “The ‘appointed days’ are the first ten days (of Dhul Hijjah).”

Takbir at this time is an aspect of the Sunnah that has been forgotten, especially during the early part of this period, so much so that one hardly ever hears takbir, except from a few people. This takbir should be pronounced loudly, in order to revive the Sunnah and as a reminder to the negligent.

Allah almighty knows best.

L-R: Ogun State Deputy Governor, Mrs. Yetunde Onanuga; newly installed Iya Suna of Ogun State, Princess Kadijat Kuburat Edionseri Adebisi (Cash Madam) and wife of Ogun State Governor, Mrs. Funsho Amosun, at the turbanning /installation ceremony of Iya Suna in Ogun State.

Hajj: 76, 000 Nigerian pilgrims arrive Jamrah for ‘stoning’ rites EID Badmus says Eid el Kabir festival not mere merry making, but a period to imbibe the spirit of perseverance and fear of Allah Adeola Yusuf

A

bout 76, 000 Nigerians have arrived the holy site of Jamrah to perform the symbolic stoning of satan as the 2015 Hajj reaches the last stage.

The stoning is done in commemoration of the great trial of Prophet Abraham, his wife, Ajarah and son, Ismail, by Satan and the miraculous way in which Allah consoled the family of Abraham by stopping the sacrifice of his son and replacing him with a ram.

Jamrah is a site between Musdallifah and Muna-the city of tents.

The chairman, National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), Alhaji Abdullahi Mohammed Mukhtar, disclosed that the 76, 000 pilgrims were successfully airlifted for the

Hajj operations, adding that this year’s Hajj has so far been successful.

He maintained that the success recorded so far was as a result of the support and direction given to the commission by President Muhammadu Buhari.

Nine air carriers are participating in the operations, he said, adding that President Buhari who, according to Mukhtar, approved the air carriers to airlift the 76,000 Nigerian pilgrims, also ordered that the commission must comply with all regulations laid out by Saudi government to ensure the success of

2015 Hajj.

The approved air lines, which airlifted pilgrims for the journey, include Max Air, Medview Airlines, Kabo Air, Planet Air, Skypower Express, Dornier Aviation, Top Brass and Hak Air. The level of achievement for the operations, NAHCON Chairman said, showed clearly that “the preparations for 2015 Hajj was better,” adding that “Mr. President also directed that we should comply with all regulations laid out by Saudi government to ensure the success of 2015 Hajj.”

Meanwhile, Asiwaju Musulumi of Yorubaland, Asiwaju Khamis Olatunde Badmus has called on Nigerian Muslims not to see Eid el Kabir festival as mere merry making but a period to imbibe the spirit of perseverance and fear of Allah in whatever they are doing.

He made this call in a Sallah message from his media office made available to the news men on Wednesday in Osogbo and signed by his Special Assistant on Media and public Affairs, Alhaji Dawood Ajetunmobi.

Asiwaju Badmus asserted that the essence of Eid el Fitir is sacrifice, perseverance and fear of Allah.He therefore enjoins those who Allah has endowed with opportunity to afford rams to extend hands of generosity to their neighbours and the less privileged by making them feel the impact of the festival.

“As long as Sallah is on going, no family should go to bed with empty stomach”, he added.

Asiwaju also uses the occasion of this year “ festival of feast” to advise Nigerian Muslims to continue to support the administration of President Muhammdu Buhari who he said “has so far justified the mandate Nigerians entrusted him with.”

Muslim leaders, clerics extol Fountain Varsity’s late DVC’s virtues

M

uslim leaders and clerics in Nigeria have continued to extol the virtues of the Deputy Vice Chancellor of the Fountain University, Professor Mobolaji Hakeem Ishola, who died with his son, Mohammed, in a ghastly motor accident on Sunday.

The accident that claimed the lives of the University Don and muslim cleric, Ishola, occurred along the Lagos-Ibadan expressway.

The muslim leaders took to the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) website and other social media to eulogise the late Ishola who they described as a dedicated servant of Allah and human Rights activist.

“I pray that Allah should forgive all his shortcoming and accept all his dees(ameen),” Alhaja Muinat Dabiri wrote on the MURIC yahoo group.

“May Almighty Allah forgive his shortcomings and grant him Al-jannah firdausi,” she added.

Busayri ismaeel said in a “Tribute to Professor Mobolaji Hakeem Ishola” that the deceased was an “iconic figure” who means “many things to different people.”

He wrote; “Professor Abdul Hakeem Mobolaji died today at the age of 49years (28 Sept, 1966 – 20 September 2015). This iconic figure is many things to different people. I share with you his profile from his resume sent to me recently in connect with a project to be executed in Fountain University for the purpose of uplifting the university selflessly. He wrote the resume himself, not knowing he was bequeathing to upcoming generation his milestones and accomplishments.

“Mobolaji came to the world

as a Muslim activist; he worked tirelessly for Islam; he was honoured by Allah with good health and brilliant thoughts; he was honored by men who entrusted him with sensitive assignments; his brothers entrusted him with herculean tasks; he excelled to the limit of his capacities and potentials.

“His interest is not pecuniary benefits that many run after, but how Islam and the Ummah would be uplifted intellectually, ideologically and economically in order for the Ummah to be able to fulfil its mandate in Nigeria and beyond. I GOT the message of his death shocked!

“I cannot sleep because we are close. I visited him recently in Fountain; we have unfinished assignments and tall dreams on how to benefit humanity. These tall dreams and unfinished assignments may lie fallow until

Allah raises the like of Omo Alhaja. He was born an activist; he lived as activist; he was on activism assignment and he died the death of true activist along with his activist son.

“He would insha Allah be raised among the activists on the day of Judgement, amin.

“Till we meet insha Allah on the day of judgement. I pray as follows: O Allah, forgive him and have mercy on him and give him strength and pardon him. Be generous to him and cause his entrance to be wide and wash him with water and snow and hail.

Cleanse him of his transgressions as white cloth is cleansed of stains. Give him an abode better than his home, and a family better than his family.”

Take him into Paradise and protect him from the punishment of the grave [and from the punishment of Hell-fire].”

Business | Money Line

NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY, September 25, 2015

37

Fitch: CRR cut won’t boost forex liquidity FORECAST Measure does not release additional foreign currency Stories by Tony Chukwunyem

C

ontrary to the impression in some quarters, the recent cut in the Cash Reserve Requirement (CRR) by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will not lead to an improvement in banking system liquidity, international ratings agency, Fitch Ratings has said.

The agency said in a statement released yesterday that the CBN move will not increase liquidity because it does not release additional foreign currency.

According to Fitch, “Cutting reserve requirements will not add liquidity to the Nigerian banking system because it releases no additional foreign currency (FC). Substantial government-related FC deposits are exempt from reserve requirements and have already been withdrawn from the system after the government ordered all public-sector

deposits to be moved from commercial banks into the centralised Treasury Single Account (TSA) earlier this month.”

The apex bank’s rate setting body, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), at the end of its two day meeting in Abuja on Tuesday, kept the benchmark interest rate-the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR)- on hold at 13 per cent but slashed the CRR by 6 per cent from 31 to 25 per cent to ease liquidity shortages.

The CRR cut was widely expected as the directive by President Muhammadu Buhari that Federal Government Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs) should move government revenue to a Treasury Single Account (TSA) at the CBN had led to a liquidity squeeze in the banking system.

Some analysts have put the amount sucked out of the banking system as a result of the TSA at around N1.2 trillion or 10 percent of deposits. But in his press briefing at the end of the MPC meeting on Tuesday, CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele declined to specify the amount transferred, saying only people should not believe estimates quoted in newspapers.

However, commenting on the CRR cut, Fitch said, “This should provide some additional Local

CBN’s forex measures hurt firms –Report M anufacturing companies in the country making anything from soap to tomato paste could run out of raw materials and be forced to shut down due to Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) forex restrictions, according to a Reuters report.

According to the report, selected luxury items such as make-up or brown bread imported from Europe have become scarce in some shops as the apex bank denies importers dollars, seeking to stem the fallout from a crash in vital oil revenues.

The CBN has restricted access to foreign currency to import 41 categories of items to stop a slide of the naira but the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) said this in fact amounted to about 680 individual items.

The foreign exchange bans are part of a long-term plan by President Muhammadu Buhari to encourage local manufacturing, but they run the risk of pushing the economy closer to recession after growth halved in the second quarter compared with the same period last year.

Many items on the central bank list - ranging from incense and toothpicks to plywood, glass and steel products -- are not available in Nigeria in sufficient volumes.

While Nigeria grows a lot of tomatoes, transport is poor and it lacks facilities to produce the concentrate needed by factories making tomato paste, a staple in the West African nation.

The news agency quoted the Director General of MAN

, Remi Ogunmefun as saying that, “We’ve taken this matter up with the central bank and the highest authority in this country ... Fiscal authorities will also be involved, they weren’t before.”

MAN had told the central bank 105 items should be removed from the list, but the bank said it could not afford to do so and agreed to look into removing 44 items.

MAN also suggested 93 finished items that should be added to the list because Nigeria produces enough of them.

Since the central bank unveiled its controls in June, executives have had to deal with foreign suppliers worried they won’t get paid. They also struggle to convince banks to approve dollar payments.

“It takes minimum 10 days now to get dollars, before it was 24-48 hours, and sometimes when you request like $100,000, you only get $80,000 and it’s getting worse,” said an executive at a large furniture company, asking not to be named.

It’s not clear which imports are still allowed as the central bank lists only categories. He can still bring in beds and chairs to be assembled in Nigeria, but not sofas.

Some firms have defaulted on contracts and lost credit lines. “Many companies have defaulted on fulfilling foreign obligations ...even blue chip companies ...for the first time,” said Muda Yusuf, director general of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce.

Currency (LC) liquidity into the banking system but around N1.3trillion (USD6.5billion) of deposits were sucked out of the banks in September, reflecting transfers to the TSA. Publicsector deposits traditionally account for around 10% of total banking sector deposits. Lower reserve requirements will not offset the tighter FC liquidity at Nigeria’s banks. A currency

split of public-sector deposits is not disclosed but in our opinion, FC deposits are substantial, held up by oil-related deposits. The centralising of public-sector and government-related FC deposits at the TSA has made it increasingly difficult for commercial banks to meet customer demand for FC. FC availability was already strained in 2015 due to falling oil revenues, central

bank action to defend naira depreciation and heightened negative investor sentiment towards emerging markets.”

The agency further noted that, “warnings throughout the year that JP Morgan intended to remove Nigeria from its Emerging Markets index, which occurred in mid-September, also triggered heavy FC outflows as investors sold Nigerian securities.”

Most attractive investment destinations: Nigeria drops to fifth

N

igeria has dropped from the second to the fifth position on the most attractive investment destinations in Africa ranking released by Rand Merchant Bank.

The bank’s “Where to Invest in Africa 2015-16” report, launched on Monday ranked Africa’s 54 countries in terms of attractiveness to investors.

It showed that South Africa continued to be the most attractive investment destination in Africa.

According to the report, “Egypt jumped four places to recapture the number two spot from Nigeria, followed by Morocco, Ghana and Nigeria.

Also in the top 10 were Ethiopia (6), Tunisia (7), Algeria (8), Tanzania (9) and Kenya (10).”

“Nigeria’s descent to number five is attributed to a com-

bination of local deterrents and its relative economic underperformance over the last year,” it noted. “We are encouraged by the peaceful transition of power and continue to believe in the country’s long-term economic viability based on the sheer size of its economy and the prospect of a demographic dividend.”

The report noted a “seismic shift” over the past nine years in foreign investor perceptions of Africa, which accounted for 4.4 per cent of global foreign direct investment flows last year.

It cautions that in a ranking of the investment appeal of 183 countries, Africa was still a relatively poor performer despite the positive developments in the investment climate in recent years that has generated superior returns relative to most

emerging market economies.

The report stated that, “Egypt’s attractiveness lay in the size of its domestic market, its relatively low unit labour costs and the rapid uptake of technology in the country. Morocco overtook Ghana as foreign investors were attracted by the integration of value chains in the economy and the collaboration between big firms and small-and medium-sized businesses. Ethiopa’s position also improved because of its stable economic environment, strong investment guarantees, natural resources and programmes to develop skilled labour.”

Countries are rated on the basis of their gross domestic product at purchasing power parity taken together with forecast economic growth rates and their operating environments.

Economic Indicators M2* CPS* INF MPR 91-day NTB Bonny Light Ext Res**

N19,142,526.05m N18,579,219.49m 9.3 13 10.77 US$48.67 US$30,517,237,761

As at Mar, 2015 Mar, 2015 August, 2015 4/6/2015 Mar 2015 21/9/2015 22/9/2015

Source:CBN

Description 15.10 27-APR-2017 16.00 29-JUN-2019 15.54 13-FEB-2020 16.39 27-JAN-2022 14.20 14-MAR-2024 10.00 23-JUL-2030 12.1493 18-JUL-2034

FGN Bonds

TTM

Price 100.42 103.31 102.17 106.30 97.37 68.00 82.38

1.59 3.77 4.39 6.35 8.47 14.83 18.82

NIBOR

Tenor (Days) Call 30 90 180

Rate (%) 14.0000 15.7567 16.9066 18.0573

Bid Yield 14.77 14.80 14.84 14.81 14.75 15.58 14.97

Change (%) -11.13 ▼ -0.31 ▼ -0.17 ▼ -0.26 ▼

Change (%) -0.40 ▼ -0.39 ▼ -0.33 ▼ -0.38 ▼ -0.40 ▼ 0.00 ↔ -0.20 ▼

Price 100.57 103.61 102.47 106.60 97.67 68.30 82.68

Tenor (Months)

Offer Yield 14.66 14.69 14.74 14.74 14.69 15.51 14.91

NITTY

1 2 3 6 9 12

Treasury Bills

Rate (%) 11.8454 13.1212 13.4519 13.6518 14.6038 15.1857

Change (%) -0.40 ▼ -0.38 ▼ -0.32 ▼ -0.37 ▼ -0.40 ▼ 0.00 ↔ -0.20 ▼

Change (%) -0.38 ▼ 0.02 ▲ 0.19 ▲ -0.03 ▼ -0.07 ▼ -0.23 ▼

Money Market

Maturity Date Discount Bid Yield Change (%) Discount Offer Yield Change (%) Rate (%) Change (%) 11.25 11.58 -0.30 ▼ Open-Buy-Back (OBB) 11.50 -11.83 ▼ 24-Dec-15 11.50 11.84 -0.30 ▼ 24-Mar-16 13.19 12.94 13.84 -0.14 ▼ Overnight (O/N) 11.92 -14.92 ▼ 14.12 -0.14 ▼ 01-Sep-16 12.87 12.62 14.32 -0.62 ▼ 14.65 -0.62 ▼

Spot ($/N)

Bid 198.95

FX

Offer 199.05

Change (%) 0.00 ↔

NIFEX

Bid Spot ($/N) 199.0000

Offer 199.1000

Change (%) 0.00 ↔

CBN Clearing Rates of June 11, 2015 Spot ($/N)

196.00

197.00

0.00 ↔ Source: FMDQ

Business | Financial Market News

38

FRIDAY, September 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

FMDQ Daily Quotations List

23-Sep-15

The DQL contains data relating to, amongst other things, market and model prices, rates of foreign exchange products, fixed income securities and instruments in the financial market (the “Information”). The Information does not constitute professional, financial or investment advice. We attempt to ensure the Information is accurate; however, the Information is provided “AS IS” and on an “AS AVAILABLE” basis and may not be accurate or up to date. We do not guarantee the accuracy, timeliness, completeness, performance or fitness for a particular purpose of any of the Information, neither do we accept liability for the results of any action taken on the basis of the Information.

Bonds FGN Bonds

Price

Rating/Agency

Issuer

NA

NA

Description 13.05 16-AUG-2016 ^15.10 27-APR-2017 9.85 27-JUL-2017 9.35 31-AUG-2017 10.70 30-MAY-2018 ^16.00 29-JUN-2019 7.00 23-OCT-2019 ^15.54 13-FEB-2020 ^16.39 27-JAN-2022 ^14.20 14-MAR-2024 15.00 28-NOV-2028 12.49 22-MAY-2029 8.50 20-NOV-2029 ^10.00 23-JUL-2030 ^12.1493 18-JUL-2034

Issue Date

Coupon (%)

Outstanding Value (N'bn)

16-Aug-13 27-Apr-12 27-Jul-07 31-Aug-07 30-May-08 29-Jun-12 23-Oct-09 13-Feb-15 27-Jan-12 14-Mar-14 28-Nov-08 22-May-09 20-Nov-09 23-Jul-10 18-Jul-14

13.05 15.10 9.85 9.35 10.70 16.00 7.00 15.54 16.39 14.20 15.00 12.49 8.50 10.00 12.1493

581.39 480.13 20.00 100.00 300.00 351.30 233.90 331.93 605.31 599.99 75.00 150.00 200.00 591.57 718.29

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

5,338.81

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

4,858.49

Rating/Agency

Issuer

Description

Maturity Date

TTM (Yrs)

16-Aug-16 27-Apr-17 27-Jul-17 31-Aug-17 30-May-18 29-Jun-19 23-Oct-19 13-Feb-20 27-Jan-22 14-Mar-24 28-Nov-28 22-May-29 20-Nov-29 23-Jul-30 18-Jul-34

0.90 1.59 1.84 1.94 2.68 3.77 4.08 4.39 6.35 8.47 13.18 13.66 14.16 14.83 18.82

Bid Yield (%)

Offer Yield (%)

Bid Price

Offer Price

14.22 14.77 14.78 14.80 14.81 14.80 14.84 14.84 14.81 14.75 16.18 16.38 16.59 15.58 14.97

14.04 14.66 14.68 14.70 14.74 14.69 14.73 14.74 14.74 14.69 16.12 16.31 16.51 15.51 14.91

99.01 100.42 92.25 91.09 91.11 103.31 76.59 102.17 106.30 97.37 93.58 78.98 56.30 68.00 82.38

99.16 100.57 92.40 91.24 91.26 103.61 76.89 102.47 106.60 97.67 93.88 79.28 56.60 68.30 82.68

5293.806821

Issue Date

Coupon (%)

Outstanding Value (N'bn)

Maturity Date

Avg. Life/TTM (Yrs)

# Risk Premium (%)

Valuation Yield (%)

Modelled Price

03-Apr-12 09-Dec-11 20-Apr-12 06-Jul-12

17.25 0.00/16.00 0.00/16.50 0.00/16.50

1.80 112.22 116.70 66.49

03-Apr-17 08-Dec-16 19-Apr-17 06-Jul-17

0.65 1.21 1.57 1.78

2.94 1.00 1.02 1.00

17.09 15.45 15.76 15.77

100.06 100.51 108.04 104.56

Agency Bonds FMBN ***LCRM

17.25 FMB II 03-APR-2017 0.00/16.00 LCRM 08-DEC-2016 0.00/16.50 LCRM II 19-APR-2017 0.00/16.50 LCRM III 06-JUL-2017

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

297.22

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

310.21

Sub-National Bonds A-/Agusto

*EBONYI

13.00 EBONYI 30-SEP-2015

30-Sep-10

13.00

2.16

30-Sep-15

0.02

3.23

12.11

99.99

BBB+/Agusto

*BENUE

14.00 BENUE 30-JUN-2016

30-Jun-11

14.00

2.60

30-Jun-16

0.52

4.46

18.57

97.78

A/Agusto

*IMO

15.50 IMO 30-JUN-2016

30-Jun-09

15.50

3.96

30-Jun-16

0.53

3.48

17.59

98.92

A+/Agusto; ‡ /GCR

LAGOS

10.00 LAGOS 19-APR-2017

19-Apr-10

10.00

57.00

19-Apr-17

1.57

1.00

15.74

92.26

‡ /Agusto

*BAYELSA

13.75 BAYELSA 30-JUN-2017

30-Jun-10

13.75

21.24

30-Jun-17

1.06

1.00

15.31

98.49

A-/Agusto

EDO

14.00 EDO 31-DEC-2017

30-Dec-10

14.00

25.00

31-Dec-17

2.27

1.79

16.60

95.17

‡ /Agusto; A+/GCR

*DELTA

14.00 DELTA 30-SEP-2018

30-Sep-11

14.00

30.81

30-Sep-18

1.65

1.00

15.75

97.63

A-/Agusto; A-/GCR

NIGER

14.00 NIGER II 4-OCT-2018

04-Oct-11

14.00

9.00

04-Oct-18

1.66

1.00

15.75

97.58

‡ /Agusto; A-/GCR†

*EKITI

14.50 EKITI 09-DEC-2018

09-Dec-11

14.50

12.40

09-Dec-18

1.85

1.00

15.78

98.01

A-/Agusto

*NIGER

14.00 NIGER III 12-DEC-2018

12-Dec-13

14.00

9.21

12-Dec-18

1.85

4.78

19.56

91.95

A-/Agusto; A-/GCR

*ONDO

15.50 ONDO 14-FEB-2019

14-Feb-12

15.50

24.44

14-Feb-19

2.04

1.00

15.81

99.44

BBB+/Agusto; A-/GCR Aa-/Agusto; ‡ /GCR

*GOMBE LAGOS

15.50 GOMBE 02-OCT-2019 14.50 LAGOS 22-NOV-2019

BBB-/Agusto; BBB+/GCR

*OSUN

14.75 OSUN 12-DEC-2019

02-Oct-12 22-Nov-12 12-Dec-12

15.50 14.50 14.75

15.09 80.00 23.75

02-Oct-19 22-Nov-19 12-Dec-19

2.27 4.16 2.44

2.02 1.00 1.00

16.83 15.85 15.81

97.65 95.94 97.96

BBB-/Agusto

*OSUN

14.75 OSUN II 10-OCT-2020

10-Oct-13

14.75

10.46

10-Oct-20

2.87

1.00

15.81

97.69

Aa-/Agusto; ‡ /GCR

LAGOS

13.50 LAGOS 27-NOV-2020

27-Nov-13

13.50

87.50

27-Nov-20

5.18

1.00

15.85

91.85

A-/Agusto; BBB+/DataPro

KOGI

15.00 KOGI 31-DEC-2020

31-Dec-13

15.00

5.00

31-Dec-20

5.27

1.00

15.85

96.98

‡ /Agusto

*EKITI

14.50 EKITI II 31-DEC-2020

31-Dec-13

14.50

4.30

31-Dec-20

3.12

1.00

15.82

96.94

A-/GCR Bbb-/Agusto

*NASARAWA *BENUE

15.00 NASARAWA 06-JAN-2021 16.50 BENUE 27-FEB-2022

06-Jan-14

15.00

4.31

06-Jan-21

3.14

1.00

15.82

98.06

27-Feb-15

16.50

4.75

27-Feb-22

3.97

1.00

15.84

101.77

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

432.97 413.11

Corporate Bonds BBB-/Agusto

*FLOURMILLS

12.00 FLOURMILLS 9-DEC-2015

09-Dec-10

12.00

9.38

09-Dec-15

0.21

1.00

12.45

99.87

BB/GCR

*CHELLARAMS

14.00 CHELLARAMS 06-JAN-2016

06-Jan-11

14.00

0.22

06-Jan-16

0.29

2.63

14.93

99.63

A+/Agusto; A-/GCR

NAHCO

13.00 NAHCO 29-SEP-2016

29-Sep-11

13.00

15.00

29-Sep-16

1.02

1.00

15.27

97.93

A-/Agusto

FSDH

14.25 FSDH 25-OCT-2016

25-Oct-13

14.25

5.53

25-Oct-16

1.09

1.34

15.68

98.58

A/GCR

UBA

13.00 UBA 30-SEP-2017

30-Sep-10

13.00

20.00

30-Sep-17

2.02

1.00

15.81

95.29

BBB-/GCR

18.00 C&I LEASING 30-NOV-2017

30-Nov-12

18.00

0.56

30-Nov-17

1.25

1.88

16.37

102.46

Nil

*C & I LEASING *DANA#{r}

MPR+7.00 DANA 9-APR-2018

09-Apr-11

16.00

5.40

09-Apr-18

1.29

1.00

15.53

100.51

A-/DataPro†; B+/GCR

*TOWER#

MPR+7.00 TOWER 9-SEP-2018

09-Sep-11

18.00

2.18

09-Sep-18

1.71

1.00

15.76

103.17

AAA/DataPro†; A/GCR

*TOWER#

MPR+5.25 TOWER 9-SEP-2018

09-Sep-11

16.00

0.60

09-Sep-18

1.71

1.00

15.76

100.35

A+/Agusto; A/GCR

UBA

14.00 UBA II 30-SEP-2018

30-Sep-11

14.00

35.00

30-Sep-18

3.02

3.00

17.81

91.37

BBB+/Agusto; BBB+/GCR

15.75 LA CASERA 18-OCT-2018

18-Oct-13

15.75

2.10

18-Oct-18

1.57

2.29

17.03

98.32

BBB-/DataPro†; BB/GCR

*LA CASERA *CHELLARAMS#

MPR+5.00 CHELLARAMS II 17-FEB-2019

17-Feb-12

18.00

0.32

17-Feb-19

1.90

6.11

20.90

95.75

Nil

*DANA#{r}

16.00 DANA II 1-APR-2019

01-Apr-14

16.00

4.50

01-Apr-19

2.27

2.16

16.97

98.26

A+/Agusto; A-/GCR

NAHCO

15.25 NAHCO II 14-NOV-2020

14-Nov-13

15.25

2.05

14-Nov-20

5.14

1.00

15.85

97.88

BBB/GCR

FCMB

14.25 FCMB I 20-NOV-2021

20-Nov-14

14.25

26.00

20-Nov-21

6.16

1.00

15.82

93.89

A/GCR

UBA

16.45 UBA I 30-DEC-2021

30-Dec-14

16.45

30.50

30-Dec-21

6.27

1.00

15.82

102.37

BBB/GCR

FIDELITY

16.48 FIDELITY 13-MAY-2022

13-May-15

16.48

30.00

13-May-22

6.64

2.92

17.73

95.17

A/GCR

STANBIC IBTC

182D T.bills+1.20 STANBIC IA 30-SEP-2024

30-Sep-14

16.29

0.10

30-Sep-24

9.02

1.00

15.86

102.01

A/GCR

STANBIC IBTC

13.25 STANBIC IB 30-SEP-2024

30-Sep-14

13.25

15.44

30-Sep-24

9.02

1.00

15.86

87.68

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

204.86

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

196.22

Supranational Bond AAA/S&P

IFC

10.20 IFC 11-FEB-2018

11-Feb-13

10.20

12.00

11-Feb-18

2.39

1.00

13.94

92.59

Aaa/Moody's; AAA/S&P

AfDB

11.25 AFDB 1-FEB-2021

10-Jul-14

11.25

12.95

01-Feb-21

3.61

1.00

15.82

88.02

Bid Price

Offer Price

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

24.95 22.51

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION Rating/Agency

Issuer

Description

Issue Date

Coupon (%)

Outstanding Value ($mm)

Maturity Date

Bid Yield (%)

Offer Yield (%)

6.75 JAN 28, 2021

07-Oct-11

6.75

500.00

28-Jan-21

7.36

7.11

97.34

98.40

5.13 JUL 12, 2018

12-Jul-13

5.13

500.00

12-Jul-18

5.94

5.47

97.91

99.12

6.38 JUL 12, 2023

12-Jul-13

6.38

500.00

12-Jul-23

7.73

7.54

92.13

93.23

FGN Eurobonds

Prices & Yields

BB-/Fitch; B+/S&P BB-/Fitch; BB-/S&P

FGN

BB-/Fitch; BB-/S&P

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

1,500.00

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

1,436.92

Corporate Eurobonds B+/Fitch; B+/S&P

GTBANK PLC I

7.50 MAY 19, 2016

19-May-11

7.50

500.00

19-May-16

5.87

5.87

101.00

101.00

B+/S&P

ACCESS BANK PLC

7.25 JUL 25, 2017

25-Jul-12

7.25

350.00

25-Jul-17

8.90

8.90

97.25

97.25

B/Fitch; B/S&P

FIDELITY BANK PLC

6.88 MAY 09, 2018

09-May-13

6.88

300.00

02-May-18

15.61

14.77

81.81

83.36

B+/Fitch; B+/S&P

GTBANK PLC

6.00 NOV 08, 2018

08-Nov-13

6.00

400.00

08-Nov-18

8.64

8.64

92.90

92.90

B+/Fitch; BB-/S&P

ZENITH BANK PLC

6.25 APR 22, 2019

22-Apr-14

6.25

500.00

22-Apr-19

8.65

8.65

92.75

92.75

B/Fitch; B/S&P

DIAMOND BANK PLC

8.75 May 21, 2019

21-May-14

8.75

200.00

21-May-19

12.17

11.39

90.13

92.25

B-/Fitch; B/S&P B-/Fitch; B/S&P B-/Fitch; B/S&P

FIRST BANK PLC ACCESS BANK PLC II FIRST BANK LTD

8.25 AUG 07, 2020 9.25/6M USD LIBOR+7.677 JUN 24, 2021 8.00/2Y USD SWAP+6.488 JUL 23 2021

07-Aug-13 24-Jun-14 23-Jul-14

8.25 9.25 8.00

300.00 400.00 450.00

07-Aug-20 24-Jun-21 23-Jul-21

12.98 13.01 13.51

12.98 12.54 13.51

82.60 85.03 77.50

82.60 86.72 77.50

B-/S&P

ECOBANK NIG. LTD

8.75 AUG 14, 2021

14-Aug-14

8.75

250.00

14-Aug-21

12.47

11.80

83.99

86.46

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

3,650.00

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

3,253.06

**Treasury Bills^ DTM 8 22 29 36 43 50

FIXINGS Maturity 1-Oct-15 15-Oct-15 22-Oct-15 29-Oct-15 5-Nov-15 12-Nov-15

Bid Discount (%) 9.07 9.26 9.44 9.96 11.40 11.29

Offer Discount (%) 8.82 9.01 9.19 9.71 11.15 11.04

Bid Yield (%) 9.09 9.31 9.51 10.06 11.56 11.47

Money Market

NIBOR Tenor O/N 1M 3M 6M

Rate (%) 14.0000 15.7567 16.9066 18.0573

Tenor

Rate (%)

OBB

11.50

O/N Tenor

11.92

REPO

Rate (%)

Foreign Exchange (Spot & Forwards) Tenor

Bid ($/N)

Offer ($/N)

Spot 7D 14D 1M

198.95 199.44 201.14 201.76

199.05 199.81 201.57 202.10

NA

NA

NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY, September 25, 2015 TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

9.85 27-JUL-2017 9.35 31-AUG-2017 10.70 30-MAY-2018 ^16.00 29-JUN-2019 7.00 23-OCT-2019 ^15.54 13-FEB-2020 ^16.39 27-JAN-2022 ^14.20 14-MAR-2024 15.00 28-NOV-2028 12.49 22-MAY-2029 8.50 20-NOV-2029 ^10.00 23-JUL-2030 ^12.1493 18-JUL-2034

27-Jul-07 31-Aug-07 30-May-08 29-Jun-12 23-Oct-09 13-Feb-15 27-Jan-12 14-Mar-14 28-Nov-08 22-May-09 20-Nov-09 23-Jul-10 18-Jul-14

9.85 9.35 10.70 16.00 7.00 15.54 16.39 14.20 15.00 12.49 8.50 10.00 12.1493

20.00 100.00 300.00 351.30 233.90 331.93 605.31 599.99 75.00 150.00 200.00 591.57 718.29

Issuer

CONFIDENCE

Agency Bonds

FMBN

*EBONYI *BENUE

A/Agusto

*IMO

A+/Agusto; ‡ /GCR

LAGOS

‡ /Agusto

*BAYELSA

A-/Agusto

EDO

A-/Agusto; A-/GCR

NIGER

Stories

by Chris Ugwu ‡ /Agusto; A+/GCR *DELTA

T

he NSE All-Share In*EKITI *NIGER Capidex and Market A-/Agusto; A-/GCR *ONDO talisation appreciated BBB+/Agusto; A-/GCR *GOMBE Aa-/Agusto; ‡ /GCR LAGOS by 0.69 per cent to BBB-/Agusto; BBB+/GCR *OSUN close the week at 30,543.17 and BBB-/Agusto *OSUN Aa-/Agusto; ‡trillion /GCR LAGOS N10.497 respectively .

A-/Agusto; BBB+/DataPro KOGI Similarly, all the indices fin‡ /Agusto *EKITI A-/GCR higher during *NASARAWA ished the week Bbb-/Agusto *BENUE with the exception of the NSE TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE Banking and NSE Pension IndiTOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION ces that shed 0.66 per cent and Corporate Bonds 0.28 per cent respectively , while BBB-/Agusto *FLOURMILLS BB/GCR *CHELLARAMS the NSE ASeM Index closed flat.

A+/Agusto; A-/GCR ‡ /Agusto; A-/GCR† A-/Agusto

NAHCO

A-/Agusto

17.25 FMB II 03-APR-2017

14.25 FSDH 25-OCT-2016

BBB-/GCR

*C & I LEASING *DANA#{r}

Nil

A-/DataPro†; B+/GCR

R

*TOWER

#

Avg. Life/TTM (Yrs)

Risk Premium (%)

Valuation Yield (%)

Modelled Price

03-Apr-12 09-Dec-11 20-Apr-12 06-Jul-12

17.25 0.00/16.00 0.00/16.50 0.00/16.50

1.80 112.22 116.70 66.49

03-Apr-17 08-Dec-16 19-Apr-17 06-Jul-17

0.65 1.21 1.57 1.78

2.94 1.00 1.02 1.00

17.09 15.45 15.76 15.77

100.06 100.51 108.04 104.56

25-Oct-13

14.25

13.00 UBA 30-SEP-2017

30-Sep-10

13.00

18.00 C&I LEASING 30-NOV-2017

30-Nov-12

18.00

MPR+7.00 DANA 9-APR-2018

09-Apr-11

16.00

MPR+7.00 TOWER 9-SEP-2018

09-Sep-11

18.00

MPR+5.25 TOWER 9-SEP-2018 09-Sep-11 16.00 *TOWER enaissance Capital, a As part of Renaissance Cap“In 1H 2015, Renaissance 14.00 UBA II 30-SEP-2018 30-Sep-11 14.00 UBA frontier markets invest- ital’s plans to grow its MENA Capital has continued15.75 to hold 15.75 LA CASERA 18-OCT-2018 18-Oct-13 *LA CASERA MPR+5.00 CHELLARAMS II 17-FEB-2019 17-Feb-12 18.00 BBB-/DataPro†; BB/GCR *CHELLARAMS offering from its Dubai office, ment bank, has reported its annual investor confer16.00 DANA II 1-APR-2019 01-Apr-14 16.00 Nil *DANA continued to expand ences: Sixth aA+/Agusto; 20.8 per cent growth in net the Firm 1:1 15.25 NAHCO II 14-NOV-2020 A-/GCR 14-Nov-13 Pan-Africa 15.25 NAHCO 14.25 FCMB Iin 20-NOV-2021 BBB/GCR for the six months FCMB profits end- its services Egypt along Investor20-Nov-14 Conference in14.25 Lagos, 16.45 UBA I 30-DEC-2021 30-Dec-14 16.45 A/GCR UBA ed June 30, 2015. with the Gulf13-MAY-2022 Cooperation Nigeria,13-May-15 in May and the 16.48 FIDELITY BBB/GCR 16.48 19th FIDELITY 182D(GCC) T.bills+1.20 STANBIC IA 30-SEP-2024 A/GCR 16.29ConSTANBIC IBTC During the reporting pe- Council markets.

Annual 30-Sep-14 Russia Investor 13.25 STANBIC IB 30-SEP-2024 A/GCR 30-Sep-14 13.25 STANBIC IBTC riod, the firm’s net profit inThe firm said it remained ference in June.

Both events TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE creased by 20.8 per cent to $10.5 committed to developing and proved to be successful, drawTOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION million compared with $8.7 strengthening its team with ing the attention of hundreds Supranational Bond million in 1H 2014. IFC new hires and promotions in of international investors and 10.20 IFC 11-FEB-2018 AAA/S&P 11-Feb-13 10.20 A statement available fixed 11.25 income, research and corporates from across AFDB 1-FEB-2021 Aaa/Moody's; AAA/S&P madeAfDB 10-Jul-14 11.25 the TOTAL VALUE by the OUTSTANDING company’s management trading operations. world,” the company noted.

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION said continued focus on cost “Specifically, Victor Lugo Renaissance Capital CEO, management resulted in a 25 joined the firm as Director of Igor Vayn, said: “We are pleased Description Rating/Agency Issuer Issue Date Coupon (%) per cent decrease in operational FICC Sales, and Elena Kolchi- to announce strong results as FGN Eurobonds costs year-on-year. Total operat- na was appointed Director and we celebrate two decades of 6.75 JAN 28,in 2021 BB-/Fitch; B+/S&P 07-Oct-11 July. successful ing expenses declined to $73.7 Fixed Income Strategist operations in6.75 emergBB-/Fitch; from $98.3 million in 1H million In the same month, Renaissance ing and frontier markets.

DurFGN 5.13 JUL 12, 2018 12-Jul-13 5.13 BB-/S&P 2014 year-on-year.

Total operatCapital announced the appointing this time, the firm has BB-/Fitch; 6.38 JUL 12, 2023 12-Jul-13 6.38 BB-/S&P ing income reached $97.8 million. ment of James Friel as Global grown from a Russia-focused TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE The company noted that in Head of Investment Banking, bank to one of the leading inTOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION the first six months of 2015, it who joined the Firm from ternational investment banks Corporate Eurobonds initiated coverage of stocks Rothschild. In Sub-Saharan Af- in the emerging and frontier 7.50 MAY 19, 2016 B+/Fitch; B+/S&P in the new GTBANK PLC I 19-May-11 7.50 Capital’s and sectors frontier rica, Temi Popoola was hired space. Renaissance 7.25 JUL 25, 2017 B+/S&P ACCESS BANK PLC 25-Jul-12 7.25 as Head of Equities and respace, including consumer, geographical diversification is 6.88 MAY 09, 2018 B/Fitch; B/S&P FIDELITY BANK PLC 09-May-13 6.88 key factors that led cement, fertiliser and utility cently appointed 6.00 as NOV CEO of the one of the 08, 2018 B+/Fitch; B+/S&P GTBANK PLC 08-Nov-13 6.00 6.25 APR 2019 B+/Fitch; BB-/S&Pin Pakistan, ZENITH PLC firm’s Nigeria office, 22-Apr-14 6.25 to all-round positive results for to22,further companies asBANK well 8.75 May 21, 2019 B/Fitch; B/S&P BANK PLC 8.75 as the banking and DIAMOND construcstrengthen its already estab- the Firm21-May-14 despite turbulent mar8.25 AUG 07, 2020 B-/Fitch; B/S&P FIRST BANK PLC 07-Aug-13 8.25 tion sectors in widerACCESS MENA. ground.

9.25/6Mon USD the LIBOR+7.677 JUN 24, 2021ket conditions B-/Fitch; B/S&P BANK PLC IIlished offering 24-Jun-14 globally.”

9.25 BBB+/Agusto; BBB+/GCR

#

#{r}

FIRST BANK LTD

B-/S&P

ECOBANK NIG. LTD

#

Maturity Date

A+/Agusto; A/GCR

B-/Fitch; B/S&P

39

Outstanding Value (N'bn)

#

AAA/DataPro†; A/GCR

92.40 91.24 91.26 103.61 76.89 102.47 106.60 97.67 93.88 79.28 56.60 68.30 82.68

Coupon (%)

Renaissance Capital reports 21% growth in net profit UBA

92.25 91.09 91.11 103.31 76.59 102.17 106.30 97.37 93.58 78.98 56.30 68.00 82.38

Issue Date

deals; thus contributing 85.44 per cent and 66.87 per cent to the total equity turnover vol13.00 ume and30-Sep-10 value respectively .

30-Jun-11 14.00 The Consumer Goods Indus30-Jun-09 15.50 19-Apr-10 10.00 try followed with a turnover 30-Jun-10 13.75 of 38.68130-Dec-10 million shares worth 14.00 30-Sep-11 14.00 N1.790 billion in 1,895 deals.

The 04-Oct-11 14.00 third place was occupied by the 09-Dec-11 14.50 12-Dec-13 14.00with Conglomerates Industry 14-Feb-12 15.50 37.874 million shares15.50 worth 02-Oct-12 14.50 N224.69822-Nov-12 billion in 538 deals.

12-Dec-12 14.75 Trading in the top14.75three 10-Oct-13 13.50 equities,27-Nov-13 Zenith International 31-Dec-13 15.00 Bank Plc, United Bank for 31-Dec-13 14.50 06-Jan-14 15.00 Africa Plc and Sterling Bank 27-Feb-15 16.50 Plc (measured by volume), accounted for 334.012 million shares worth N3.674 billion in 1,472 deals, contributing 09-Dec-10 12.0039.29 06-Jan-11 14.00 per cent29-Sep-11 and 40.56 per13.00 cent to

13.00 EBONYI 30-SEP-2015 Thursday 24 and Friday 25 of 14.00 BENUE 30-JUN-2016 September Public Holiday 15.50 IMOas 30-JUN-2016 10.00 LAGOS 19-APR-2017 in commemoration of the Eid13.75 BAYELSA 30-JUN-2017 el-Kabir Celebration.

14.00Sallah EDO 31-DEC-2017 14.00 DELTA 30-SEP-2018 Meanwhile, a turnover of 14.00 NIGER II 4-OCT-2018 850.09514.50 million shares worth EKITI 09-DEC-2018 NIGER III 12-DEC-2018 N9.06014.00 billion in 9,414 deals 15.50 ONDO 14-FEB-2019 were traded during the week 15.50 GOMBE 02-OCT-2019 14.50 LAGOS 22-NOV-2019 by investors on the floor of the 14.75 OSUN 12-DEC-2019 Exchange in contrast 14.75 OSUN II 10-OCT-2020to a total 13.50 LAGOS 27-NOV-2020 of 1.384 billion shares valued at 15.00 KOGI 31-DEC-2020 N13.862 billion that exchanged 14.50 EKITI II 31-DEC-2020 06-JAN-2021 hands 15.00 lastNASARAWA week in 17,984 deals.

16.50 BENUE 27-FEB-2022 The Financial Services Industry (measured by volume) led the activity chart with 726.29412.00 million shares valued FLOURMILLS 9-DEC-2015 14.00 CHELLARAMS 06-JAN-2016 at N6.058 billion traded in 5,086 13.00 NAHCO 29-SEP-2016

FSDH

A/GCR

14.68 14.70 14.74 14.69 14.73 14.74 14.74 14.69 16.12 16.31 16.51 15.51 14.91

NSE All Share Index rises by 0.69% Description

0.00/16.00 LCRM 08-DEC-2016 Nigerian bourse trades ***LCRM 0.00/16.50 LCRM II 19-APR-2017 0.00/16.50 LCRM III 06-JUL-2017 850.095m shares worth TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE It was a three-day trading TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION N9.060 billion in three week as the Federal GovernSub-National Bonds ment of Nigeria declared trading days

BBB+/Agusto

14.78 14.80 14.81 14.80 14.84 14.84 14.81 14.75 16.18 16.38 16.59 15.58 14.97

5293.806821

4,858.49

Rating/Agency

1.84 1.94 2.68 3.77 4.08 4.39 6.35 8.47 13.18 13.66 14.16 14.83 18.82

Business | Financial Market News

5,338.81

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

A-/Agusto

27-Jul-17 31-Aug-17 30-May-18 29-Jun-19 23-Oct-19 13-Feb-20 27-Jan-22 14-Mar-24 28-Nov-28 22-May-29 20-Nov-29 23-Jul-30 18-Jul-34

297.22 the total equity turnover vol310.21 ume and value respectively.

Also traded during the week 2.16 were a total of30-Sep-15 11,454 units0.02 of 2.60 30-Jun-16 0.52 Exchange Traded 3.96 30-Jun-16 Products 0.53 57.00 19-Apr-17 1.57 (ETPs) valued at N449,180.74 21.24 30-Jun-17 1.06 executed in 1331-Dec-17 deals compared 25.00 2.27 30.81 30-Sep-18 1.65 with a total of 1,189 units val9.00 04-Oct-18 1.66 ued at N1.282 million transact12.40 09-Dec-18 1.85 12-Dec-18 ed 9.21 last week in 24 deals. 1.85 24.44 14-Feb-19 2.04 There was02-Oct-19 no bond trade 15.09 2.27 80.00 22-Nov-19 4.16 recorded during the week un23.75 12-Dec-19 2.44 der review. However, a total 10.46 10-Oct-20 2.87 5.18 of 87.50 3,750 units 27-Nov-20 valued at N3.299 5.00 31-Dec-20 5.27

million were transacted last week in four deals.

When the week closed for 3.23 12.11 99.99 business, twenty-nine equities 4.46 18.57 97.78 appreciated in17.59 price during 3.48 98.92 the 1.00 15.74 92.26 week, lower than 56 equities re1.00 15.31 98.49 corded week.

1.79 the preceding 16.60 95.17 1.00 15.75 97.63 On the flip15.75 side, 36 equities 1.00 97.58 depreciated in 1.00 15.78price, higher 98.01 4.78 19.56of the preced91.95 than 22 equities 1.00 15.81 99.44 ing 2.02 week, while 16.83 125 equities 97.65 1.00 15.85 95.94 remained unchanged, higher 1.00 15.81 97.96 than recorded 1.00112 equities 15.81 97.69 in 15.85 91.85 the 1.00 preceding week.

1.00 15.85 96.98

4.30

31-Dec-20

3.12

1.00

15.82

96.94

4.31

06-Jan-21

3.14

1.00

15.82

98.06

4.75

27-Feb-22

3.97

1.00

15.84

101.77

09-Dec-15

0.21

1.00

12.45

99.87

Nampak plans to invest $68m in Nigeria, Ethiopia

432.97 413.11 9.38

N

06-Jan-16 ampak Limited0.29 has 29-Sep-16 1.02 agreed with partners 5.53 25-Oct-16 1.09 to 20.00build glass-bottle 30-Sep-17 2.02 manufac0.56 30-Nov-17 1.25 turing plants to take advan5.40 09-Apr-18 1.29 2.18tage of growing 09-Sep-18 1.71 for demand 0.60 1.71 packaged09-Sep-18 consumer goods 35.00 30-Sep-18 3.02 drinks where a 2.10and bottled 18-Oct-18 1.57 0.32 17-Feb-19 1.90 quarter of Africans live in 4.50 01-Apr-19 2.27 Ethiopia.5.14 2.05Nigeria and 14-Nov-20 26.00 20-Nov-21 6.16 According to Bloomberg, 30.50 30-Dec-21 6.27 the Johannesburg-based com30.00 13-May-22 6.64 0.10pany has30-Sep-24 9.02 reached a prelimi15.44 30-Sep-24 nary agreement with a9.02 part204.86 ner for a factory in Ethiopia 196.22 and is now seeking financing for a project with a potential 12.00 11-Feb-18 2.39 million, Chief 12.95cost of $68 01-Feb-21 3.61 Executive Officer, Andre de 24.95 22.51 Ruyter, said in an interview at Bloomberg’s Johannesburg.

Outstanding Value Maturity Date Bid Yield (%) ($mm) That will help supply drinks makers including 500.00 28-Jan-21 7.36soft brewer, Heineken NV, and drinks producer, Coca-Cola 500.00 12-Jul-18 5.94 Inc, he said. Nampak has also 500.00 12-Jul-23 7.73 made good progress on a Ni1,500.00 gerian factory, the CEO said.

1,436.92 “Africa is the story for us,” De Ruyter said. “People 500.00 19-May-16 5.87 talk about Latin America, 350.00 25-Jul-17 8.90 they talk about India, China 300.00 02-May-18 15.61 or other emerging markets, 400.00 08-Nov-18 8.64 500.00 22-Apr-19 8.65 but we think the opportuni200.00 21-May-19 12.17 ty that we’ve got in Africa 300.00 07-Aug-20 12.98 is so big and this is what 400.00 24-Jun-21 13.01 we 0.22

15.00

2.63 14.93 99.63 know we can do well.”

1.00 15.27 97.93 Consumer-goods compa1.34 15.68 98.58 1.00 such as 15.81 95.29 nies US retailer, Wal1.88 16.37 102.46 Mart Stores15.53 Inc and brewer 1.00 100.51 1.00 15.76 103.17 SABMiller Plc, are expand1.00 15.76 ing in Africa to take 100.35 advan3.00 17.81 91.37 tage growth 2.29 of economic 17.03 98.32and 6.11 20.90 95.75 rising household incomes.

2.16 16.97 98.26 Many people in the sub-Saha1.00 15.85 97.88 1.00 region are 15.82 moving 93.89 ran away 1.00 15.82 102.37 from subsistence existences 2.92 17.73 95.17 1.00 becoming 15.86 consumers 102.01 of and 1.00 15.86 87.68 packaged goods for the first time, according to De Ruyter, creating a growing market for can and13.94 bottle manufac1.00 92.59 turers.

Nampak is also 1.00 15.82 88.02 the continent’s biggest maker of beverage cans.

“There’s a youth Offer bulge of Offer Yield (%) Bid Price Price people reaching drinking age” & Yields inPrices Africa, De Ruyter said. Pro7.11 98.40 ducing glass97.34 bottles and cans “makes a lot97.91 of sense.”99.12 5.47 Nigeria, with a popula7.54 92.13 93.23 tion of about 177 million, has 44 per cent of its population under the age of 15 while 46 per cent of Ethio5.87 101.00 101.00are pia’s 97 million people 8.90 97.25 97.25 below that age, according 14.77 81.81 83.36 to8.64US Census Bureau data.

92.90 92.90 8.65 92.75 That compares with 92.75 16 per 11.39 92.25 cent of the90.13 403 million peo12.98 82.60 82.60 ple in the euro area.

12.54who live 85.03 86.72

8.00/2Y USD SWAP+6.488 JUL 23 2021

23-Jul-14

8.00

450.00

23-Jul-21

13.51

13.51

77.50

77.50

8.75 AUG 14, 2021

14-Aug-14

8.75

250.00

14-Aug-21

12.47

11.80

83.99

86.46

FMDQ Daily Quotations List

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

3,650.00

23-Sep-15

3,253.06

The DQL contains data relating to, amongst other things, market and model prices, rates of foreign exchange products, fixed income securities and instruments in the financial market (the “Information”). The Information does not constitute FIXINGS Money Market Foreign Exchange (Spot & Forwards) professional, financial or investment advice.

We attempt to ensure the Information is accurate; theBid Information is provided “AS IS” and on an “AS AVAILABLE”Tenor basis and may Rate not be DTM Maturity Bid Discount (%) Offer Discounthowever, (%) Yield (%) (%) accurate or up to date. We do not guarantee NIBOR 1-Oct-15 9.07 9.09neither do we accept liability for the results of any action taken on the basis of the Information. the accuracy,8 timeliness, completeness, performance or fitness for a particular purpose of8.82 any of the Information, Bid ($/N) Offer ($/N) OBB 11.50 Tenor

**Treasury Bills^

22 29 36 43 50 64 71 Rating/Agency 78 85 92 106 113 120 127 134 141 148 155 162 NA 176 183 190 197 204 211 218 225 246

15-Oct-15 22-Oct-15 29-Oct-15 5-Nov-15 12-Nov-15 26-Nov-15 3-Dec-15 Issuer 10-Dec-15 17-Dec-15 24-Dec-15 7-Jan-16 14-Jan-16 21-Jan-16 28-Jan-16 4-Feb-16 11-Feb-16 18-Feb-16 25-Feb-16 3-Mar-16 NA 17-Mar-16 24-Mar-16 31-Mar-16 7-Apr-16 14-Apr-16 21-Apr-16 28-Apr-16 5-May-16 26-May-16

FGN Bonds

253

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE 295 316

2-Jun-16

9.26 9.44 9.96 11.40 11.29 11.73 11.32 Description 11.86 11.31 11.50 13.05 16-AUG-2016 11.53 ^15.10 27-APR-2017 11.90 9.85 27-JUL-2017 11.13 12.65 9.35 31-AUG-2017 12.64 10.70 30-MAY-2018 13.21 ^16.00 29-JUN-2019 12.81 7.00 23-OCT-2019 13.44 13.16 ^15.54 13-FEB-2020 13.24 ^16.39 27-JAN-2022 13.19 ^14.20 14-MAR-2024 13.02 13.14 15.00 28-NOV-2028 13.22 12.49 22-MAY-2029 13.91 8.50 20-NOV-2029 13.57 11.90 ^10.00 23-JUL-2030 13.06

^12.1493 18-JUL-2034 12.96

9.01 9.19 9.71 11.15 11.04 11.48 11.07 Issue Date 11.61 11.06 11.25 16-Aug-13 11.28 27-Apr-12 11.65 27-Jul-07 10.88 12.40 31-Aug-07 12.39 30-May-08 12.96 29-Jun-12 12.56 23-Oct-09 13.19 12.91 13-Feb-15 12.99 27-Jan-12 12.94 14-Mar-14 12.77 12.89 28-Nov-08 12.97 22-May-09 13.66 20-Nov-09 13.32 11.65 23-Jul-10 12.81

18-Jul-14 12.71

Bonds

12.1493 14.24

14-Jul-16

13.04

12.79

14.57

4-Aug-16

12.91 12.87

12.66 12.62

14.53 14.65

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION 1-Sep-16 344

*for the Amortising bonds, the average life is calculated and not the duration # Risk Premium is a combination of credit risk and liquidity risk premiums **Exclusive of non-trading t.bills

Rating/Agency

Issuer

Description

FMBN ***LCRMBuckets Modified Duration <3

TOTAL OUTSTANDING VALUE

3<5

TOTAL MARKET CAPITALISATION

>5 Market

17.25 FMB II 03-APR-2017 0.00/16.00 LCRM 08-DEC-2016 Total Outstanding 0.00/16.50 LCRM II 19-APR-2017 Porfolio Market Value(Bn) Volume(Bn) 0.00/16.50 LCRM III 06-JUL-2017

Tenor O/N 1M 3M 6M

Rate (%) 14.0000 15.7567 16.9066 18.0573

O/N Tenor Call 1M TTM (Yrs) 3M 6M

Outstanding Value Maturity Date (N'bn) NITTY Tenor 581.39 1M 480.13 2M 20.00 3M 6M 100.00 9M 300.00 12M

11.92

REPO

Rate (%) 16-Aug-16 11.8454 27-Apr-17 13.1212 27-Jul-17 13.4519 13.6518 31-Aug-17 14.6038 30-May-18 15.1857

351.30 29-Jun-19 233.90 23-Oct-19 331.93 13-Feb-20 NIFEX 605.31 27-Jan-22 Current Price ($/N) 14-Mar-24 BID($/N) 599.99 199.0000 OFFER ($/N) 199.1000 75.00 28-Nov-28 150.00 22-May-29 200.00 20-Nov-29 591.57 23-Jul-30 718.29 18-Jul-34

Rate (%) 10.33 Bid15.00 Yield (%) 16.00 17.33

Spot 7D 14D 1M 2M Offer 3MYield 6M (%) 1Y

0.90 14.22 14.04 1.59 14.77 14.66 1.84 14.78 14.68 :Benchmarks * :Amortising 1.94 Bond 14.80 14.70 µ :Convertible Bond 2.68 14.81 14.74 AMCON: Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria 3.77Government of 14.80 14.69 FGN: Federal Nigeria 4.08 Mortgage Bank 14.84 14.73 FMBN: Federal of Nigeria IFC: International Finance Corporation 4.39 14.84 14.74 LCRM: Local Contractors Receivables Management 6.35 14.81 14.74 NAHCO: Nigerian Aviation Handling Company 8.47 14.75 14.69 O/N: Overnight UPDC: UAC Property Development 13.18 16.18 Company 16.12 WAPCO:West Africa Portland Cement Company 13.66 16.38 16.31 14.16 16.59 16.51 14.83 15.58 15.51 18.82 14.97 14.91

NOTE:

5,338.81

198.95 199.05 199.44 199.81 201.14 201.57 Price 201.76 202.10 203.15 203.58 208.42 208.98 Bid Price Offer Price 217.02 218.08 230.48 232.81

99.01 99.16 100.42 100.57 92.40 NA :Not92.25 Applicable ^ : Market Prices 91.09 91.24 # : Floating Rate Bond 91.11 91.26 ***: Deferred coupon bonds 103.31 103.61 76.59 76.89 ‡ : Bond rating under review †: Bond rating expired 102.17 102.47 N/A :Not Available 106.30 106.60 {r} :Issuer in receivership 97.37 97.67 NGC: Nigeria-German Company 93.58 93.88 UBA: United Bank for Africa 78.98 79.28 56.30 56.60 68.00 68.30 82.38 82.68

5293.806821

4,858.49

Issue Date

Agency Bonds

Sub-National Bonds

9.31 9.51 10.06 11.56 11.47 11.98 11.57 Coupon (%) 12.17 11.61 11.84 13.05 11.93 15.10 12.36 9.85 11.55 13.23 9.35 13.26 10.70 13.92 16.00 13.51 7.00 14.25 13.97 15.54 14.14 16.39 14.12 14.20 13.96 14.14 15.00 14.27 12.49 15.12 8.50 14.76 12.84 10.00 14.32

Coupon (%)

Outstanding Value (N'bn)

BOND INDEX 1.80 03-Apr-12 FMDQ FGN 17.25 09-Dec-11 0.00/16.00 112.22 Weighting by Weighting by Mkt 20-Apr-12 0.00/16.50 Bucket116.70 Weighting Outstanding Vol Value 06-Jul-12 0.00/16.50 66.49

845.06

831.43

25.11

27.27

1,546.36

1,517.23

45.83

49.90

297.220.25

Maturity Date

Avg. Life/TTM (Yrs)

03-Apr-17 08-Dec-16 % Exposure_ 19-Apr-17 Mod_Duration 06-Jul-17

0.65 1.21 1.57 Implied Yield 1.78

# Risk Premium (%)

2.94 1.00 Implied 1.02 Portfolio Price 1.00

Valuation Yield (%)

Modelled Price

17.09 15.45 15.76 INDEX 15.77

100.06 100.51 YTD Return 108.04 (%) 104.56

11.57

14.79

132.3856

1,204.40

8.7153

0.46

45.08

14.79

128.5964

1,114.85

10.1012

43.35

15.31

94.0686

1,134.09

12.6192

100.00

15.01

119.5145

1,138.09

7.8570

707.47

962.07

29.06

22.83

310.210.29

3,098.89

3,310.74

100.00

100.00

1.00

A-/Agusto

*EBONYI

13.00 EBONYI 30-SEP-2015

30-Sep-10

13.00

2.16

30-Sep-15

0.02

3.23

12.11

99.99

BBB+/Agusto

*BENUE

14.00 BENUE 30-JUN-2016

30-Jun-11

14.00

2.60

30-Jun-16

0.52

4.46

18.57

97.78

A/Agusto

*IMO

15.50 IMO 30-JUN-2016

30-Jun-09

15.50

3.96

30-Jun-16

0.53

3.48

17.59

98.92

A+/Agusto; ‡ /GCR

LAGOS

10.00 LAGOS 19-APR-2017

19-Apr-10

10.00

57.00

19-Apr-17

1.57

1.00

15.74

92.26

‡ /Agusto

*BAYELSA

13.75 BAYELSA 30-JUN-2017

30-Jun-10

13.75

21.24

30-Jun-17

1.06

1.00

15.31

98.49

A-/Agusto

EDO

14.00 EDO 31-DEC-2017

30-Dec-10

14.00

25.00

31-Dec-17

2.27

1.79

16.60

95.17

‡ /Agusto; A+/GCR

*DELTA

14.00 DELTA 30-SEP-2018

30-Sep-11

14.00

30.81

30-Sep-18

1.65

1.00

15.75

97.63

A-/Agusto; A-/GCR

NIGER

14.00 NIGER II 4-OCT-2018

04-Oct-11

14.00

9.00

04-Oct-18

1.66

1.00

15.75

97.58

40 News

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

SOUTH-WEST

Osun gives bond certificates to teachers, LG workers Adeolu Adeyemo OSOGBO

T

he Osun State Gover nment has presented N1.47billion bond certificates to 188 retirees in Primary schools and Local Government under the

Contributory Pension Scheme in the state.

The presentation was made by the Head of Service, Mr. Sunday Owoeye, in Osogbo on Wednesday on behalf of Governor Rauf Aregbesola.

The governor revealed that his administration has increased the monthly pension from N200 mil-

lion in 2010 to N520 million in 2013.

Aregbesola remarked that “though we had started lagging behind in 2014 on pension payment, we still committed a total of #4.9 billion to pensions”.

While assuring the workers in the state of better days ahead the gov-

ernor stated that the beneficiaries were the second batch who received the bonds certificate under the Contributory Pension Scheme.

The state government had earlier given out N593 million bond certificates in December 2014 under the first batch of the scheme.

The governor, who was represented by the Head of Service, Mr. Sunday Owoeye, assured the retirees that his administration would remit all necessary dues on the scheme.

“I want to assure those who are currently in the scheme that irrespective of the challenges we are

facing now, we shall fulfill our obligations to contributory pension scheme by remitting all dues as soon as funds are available to us.

Speaking on behalf of the beneficiaries, Dr Busirat Ogundipe, commended the governor for fulfilling his promise on the scheme.

Ogun vows to eliminate malaria by 2020

T

L-R: Former Speaker, House of Representatives, Hon. Dimeji Bankole; Special Assistant on Media to Senator Bukola Saraki, Alhaji Yusuph Olaniyonu; Chairman, Ogun State Local Government Service Commission, Alhaji Olatunde Okewole and former Deputy Chief of Staff to Governor Ibikunle Amosun, Alhaji Shuaib Salisu, during the Eid El-Kabir celebration in Abeokuta. …yesterday

he Ogun State Government has vowed to tackle malaria to a standstill through strategies with the use of Long Lasting Insecticidal Net (LLIN).

The Director, Public Health in the Ministry of Health, Dr. Yusuf Quduus, revealed this at the 2015 Multi – year Training Plan (MYTP) held at Ijako in Ado – Odo / Ota Local Government Area of the State.

He said the MYTP which was supported by “Support for National Malaria Programme” (SUNMap) would cover year 2015 – 2020 on malaria elimination, adding that the MYTP was designed to discover the strength, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) in the outgone year and to further explore available opportunities for malaria elimination in the year under review.

Saraki’s trial, Ademiluyi backs Lafogido on Voters sue Oyo senator for dual citizenship of which New Telegraph Sunmonu is the im- proof that APC’s Sola Adeyemo legal action over Ooni stool obtained, the claimants mediate past Speaker Ibadan corruption free Adeolu Adeyemo OSOGBO

T

he legal action instituted by the Lafogido Ruling House against the Giesi Royal family and the town’s kingmakers over who occupies the Ooni of Ife stool deepened on yesterday as the Lafogido Ruling House got the backing of its kinsmen from the Ademiluyi Royal family, to go ahead with the legal battle instituted against the kingmakers for their support for the Giesi.

The spokesperson of the Ademiluyi Ruling House, (also from the Lafogido) Dr. Adenekan Ademiluyi, who spoke with newsmen in Osogbo, noted that, “No Lafogido No occupant for the Ooni’s stool.”

“As far as we are concern, if justice is to be done, Lafogido should rule twice before it goes back to Lajodogun but we know that that is not

feasible, so let Lafogido produce the next king and Ademiluyi family is ready to provide eminent credible direct male descendants that are directly traceable to Lafogido.”

According to him” Lafogido Ruling House has taken their grudge to the state gover nment and Ife kingmakers as the court action was instituted so that the matter do not degenerate and as well allow other stakeholders have a look on the matter.

Ademiluyi noted further, “we, Ademiluyi family, support Lafogido action based on the fact they went to court and we are ready to support that action to the last because we believe that Lafogido is the rightful owner of next Ooniship in Ile-Ife and 1994 Declaration that was done by Babalakin Commission should be upheld by the government.”

F

ollowing the allegation of dual citizenship of the United Kingdom and Nigeria, leveled against the All Progressives Congress (APC) Senator representing them, Senator Monsurat Sunmonnu, five voters in the Oyo Central Senatorial district of Oyo State have dragged her before an Abuja Federal High Court.

In some documents made available to newsmen in Ibadan yesterday, copies

sued the senator for themselves and on behalf of the electorate in the district through an originating summons filed and marked FHC/ABJ/CS/760/201. It was dated September 14, 2015.

The claimants: Wahab Abiodun, Alhaji Bola Akinyemi, Chief Emmanuel Olajide, Chief Samuel Elegbede and Chief Thomas Ajao, have sued the APC senator and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as first and second defendants respectively.

of the State House of Assembly between 2011 and 2015. Before her foray into partisan politics, she had for years resided in the United Kingdom.

According to the suit, Sunmonu, worked as Home Officer (Immigration Officer) with the UK Government for 21 years (1989-2010), before relocating to Nigeria in 2010, to join politics.

The claimants are asking the court to declare that Sunmonu, lacks the requisite capacity to hold the office of a senator.

Ekiti donates funds to flood victims Adesina Wahab Ado-Ekiti

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he Government of Ekiti State has given financial support to about 75 victims of a flood disaster whose homes and shops were destroyed recently in Ikere-Ekiti part of the state, when River Osun overflowed its banks.

In a statement in AdoEkiti yesterday by the Chief

Press Secretary to the Governor, Idowu Adelusi, the state governor, Ayo Fayose, presented the money to the people in Ikere-Ekiti.

The event was witnessed by the Deputy Governor, Dr Kolapo Olusola, who hails from the town.

Speaking at the occasion, Fayose, said the state government had to present its token to the people while waiting for the emergency agency to do its obligation

to the people.

He, however, warned people against deliberately blocking waterways and drainages or constructing structures close to river banks.

“We have already committed huge amount to expanding waterways and clearing drainages in towns across the state. But a situation whereby people want to stand in the way of nature is wrong.”

—Osun Speaker Adeolu Adeyemo OSOGBO

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he Speaker, State of Osun House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Najeem Salaam, yesterday described the on-going trial of the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, as a proof that the APC led government is a corrupt free entity.

The Speaker in a statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Goke Butika, said the trial was a clear signal to the leaders and citizens that, law has a long arm that could get at any alleged corrupt public office holder within its fold irrespective of his or her status in the country.

Salaam argued that, politicking and persecution should not be muddled-up, in the fight against corruption as long as the institutions of law are strengthened to address cases of graft.

NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

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SOUTH-EAST

Ihedioha asks Okorocha to publish Imo’s financial status Steve Uzoechi OWERRI

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ormer Deputy Speaker of the House of Repre s e n t at ive s, Emeka Ihedioha, has challenged Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo state to make public the financial status of the state since his assumption office in

2011 and to also outline the benefits of his many oversea trips to the state, to the people of the state for their judgement.

In a statement by Ihedioha made available to our correspondent by his media aide, Mr. Chibuike Onyeukwu, the PDP chieftain maintained that Okorocha’s many trips overseas were anything but business trips.

Ihedioha described as amazing that since 2011, the governor’s claim of transparency and accountable has not been substantiated by proofs like open and functional budget for the state, and has been unable to publish the state of Imo accounts as repeatedly requested by notable members of the public including the revered cleric, Archbishop An-

thony Obinna.

Consequently, Ihedioha alleged that Okorocha’s industrialization programme through which he promised to situate one factory in every community of the state was a scam used in misappropriating public fund for personal gains.

The governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), expressed reservations

that Governor Rochas Okorocha, has copied some aspects of his manifesto, to run his administration.

“Okorocha has only succeeded in affirming what we know to be true, that he has no blueprint for governance. I will advise him to copy my policy plans meticulously and endeavour not to abuse them at implementation. ”

L-R: Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Abia State University (ABSU), Prof. Elekwa; Acting Pro-Chancellor/Chairman, ABSU, Chief Chukwu Wachukwu; Abia State Governor, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu; Chancellor, Sir Francis Oji and his Vice, Prof. Chibuzor Ogbuagu, after the governor’s investiture as the university visitor in Abia State

Obiano donates gunboat to Navy G

overnor Willie Obiano of Anambra State, has donated a gunboat to the Nigerian Naval Outpost in Onitsha, to increase its response rate in the on-going efforts to wipe out crime in the state.

The governor presented the boat to Navy Capt. Dika Kwabe, the Commander of the Naval Outpost, Onitsha, at Okoti Odekpe in Ogbaru Local Government Area of the state yesterday, Obiano also donated 15 speed boats and seven water ambulances to provide ambulatory services in the coastal communities in the state.

He said that the gesture was aimed at opening up the affected com-

munities most of which had been cut off from the rest of the state by the lack of access to modern water transportation system.

The governor also said that the effort was also intended to facilitate movement across the water channels in the state and bring the communities closer to the people on the mainland.

According to him, the newly formed marine transport scheme will foster academic excellence for school children and their teachers who have endured extreme challenges to access quality education in those communities.

Obiano said that apart from the speedboats, the

Victor Mba

IPMAN denies scam allegation against exco

I

ndependent Petroleum Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) Aba depot has said there is no iota of truth in the allegation of fraud leveled against its executive members by a group known as Concerned Marketers.

In a statement signed by

the chairman of IPMAN Aba depot Prince Bobby Eberechi Dick said the allegation which bothers on bridging of the product and payment recovered from the Petroleum Equalization Fund(PEF) is not only false but a figment of their

seven water ambulances would come in handy in cases of emergency to offer respite to medical cases that required urgent professional attention.

In his response, Kwabe lauded the governor for the donation to the navy, stating that the vessel would assist the command better in confronting criminals, who used the water channels in the state to carry out their unlawful activities.

The state Commissioner for Education, Prof. Kate Omenugha, said that the launching of the marine transport scheme would facilitate the realisation of the target of education for all by the state government.

Ikpeazu, Otti felicitate with Muslims on Sallah

imagination.

According to the association the author of the alleged document Mr. Levi Amah, is a not a member of the association, as the association said the allegation was borne out of malice and a mere fabrication to

Igbeaku Orji UMUAHIA

A

s Muslim faithful all over the world celebrate the Eid-el-kabir festival, the Abia state Governor, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu, has congratulated the Abia Muslim community on the occasion, wishing them a peaceful and joyous celebration just as the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) in the last election in the state, Dr. Alex Otti, enjoined them to pray for the unity of the country.

In a good will message to adherents to the

smear the name of their member of the association.

It said also that the bridging of Petroleum Product from Aba depot to Kaduna and the payment by the Petroleum Equalization Fund does not in any way affect marketers in Aba

Islamic faith, signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Godwin Adindu, Governor Ikpeazu, expressed his love and that of the government of Abia State towards the Muslim brethrens and enjoined them to use the occasion of the eidel-kabir to preach and promote peace and harmony in the state and the country.

The governor also reminded the entire Muslim community in Nigeria to imbibe the significance of the celebration which promotes forgiveness to one another and obedience to Allah who represents love and peace to mankind.

depot; because Kaduna is the North East zone, stating that it was not the duty of an individual or an unknown body to dictate to (PEF) how the product was distributed and the payment modalities to marketers.

Ebonyi seeks amendment to capital territory law Uchenna Inya ABAKALIKI

E

bonyi State Governor, Chief Dave Umahi, has sent a bill urging the State House of Assembly to amend the Abakaliki Capital Territory Development Board Law 0005 of 2007, to conform to the developmental plan of his administration.

The letter to that effect was read by the Majority leader, Hon. Joseph Nwobashi, during yesterday’s plenary.

The governor through the letter informed the House of the need to give more legislative empowerment to the development board to enable it operate effectively.

In his contribution, the Chief Whip, Hon. Chike Ogiji, noted that the bill was timely and ought to be given speedy passage in view of the fact that the optimal operation of the board was indispensable in the transformational development effort of the present government.

Deputy Speaker Hon. Obasi Odefa, noted that the state capital territory was far from what a state capital city ought to be hence, the board should be given more power to operate.

Umahi promises donation of Ebonyi rice to IDPs

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bonyi State Government has promised to provide some rice manufactured in the state popularly known as the Abakaliki Rice for the internally displaced persons and personnel of the Nigerian military s fighting the Boko Haram insurgents in the north eastern part of the country.

Governor David Umahi made the promise when he visited the Chief of Defence Staff, Brig. Gen. Abayomi Olonishakin, at the Defence Headquarters in Abuja recently.

The governor who expresses praises to the Nigerian Army for the gallant efforts towards ending insurgency in the North- East, assured the CDS, that the people of Ebonyi State, would give necessary support to the Army at any time.

The governor assured the Defence chief that the people of Ebonyi, would continue to pray for the Army until all traces of insurgency were routed.

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FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Fayose takes on Buhari again over INEC boss’ appointment

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kiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, yesterday in Yenagoa, challenged President Muhammadu Buhari again, faulting his appointment of the acting Chairperson of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mrs. Amina Zakari.

He said it is wrong on the part of President Buhari to allegedly appoint his in-law as the chairman of the body, especially now that the nation is warming up to conduct governorship elections in Kogi and Bayelsa States.

He also urged Governor Seriake Dickson not to entertain any fear over the December 5 election, saying that the governor has all it takes to defeat the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the poll.

Speaking as the Chairman, PDP National Electoral Panel, Fayose said the party is closely monitoring the activities of INEC, submitting that at the appropriate time, its hidden agenda will be made public.

According to him, “I have complained very clearly about the choice of

the INEC chairperson. Nobody can give us an INEC boss that is his daughter or in-law. This is our country and nobody will run away from Nigeria.

“Therefore, we are watching INEC and its activities. We will not allow you to play pranks. This is an Ijaw State and so they are going nowhere. This is a PDP-controlled state. No hidden agenda will work in Bayelsa,” he said.

On the preparedness of the party for the December 5 poll, Fayose told Governor Dickson not to worry about the ranting of the APC add-

ing that; “In our place, it is one stone that scatters so many birds. Your (Dickson) stone will scatter their birds. I’ve worked with them before. I know their style and antics. So fear not.

“If you read the book of Joshua, chapter one, it says, fear not. So, don’t be afraid, but be courageous because their armies will bow to your army.

“I am conducting this PDP primary in Bayelsa transparently in line with the PDP guidelines. I am not ready to dodge out of this stadium to run away.

The truth will stand the test

of time and speak for itself.

Describing Governor Dickson as a great fighter, he assured him of victory in the next election.

According to him, “You have won the battle already.

This is not a party where they will do one primary today and cancel it tomorrow.

In this our own, there will be no cancellation. This is an authority in Bayelsa.

“Nigeria respects my voice because I am not given to frivolities and propaganda. I am here to conduct an election that will stand the test of time,” the governor said.

Edo deputy governor loses mother Cajetan Mmuta BENIN

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he mother of Edo State Deputy Governor, Dr. Pius Egberanmwen Odubu, Mrs. Imuegbeyi Odubu, yesterday passed on in her village, Ugo, in Orhiomwon Local Government Area of the state.

A statement signed by the Chief Press Secretary to the deputy governor, Kelly Odaro, on behalf of the Odubu family, said yesterday that Mrs. Odubu passed on Wednesday evening at the age of 80.

The deceased was born into the families of Osunde and Okpogheho in Ugo, Orhionmwon council area of the state.

The late octogenarian, until her death, was a trader and a community leader.

Bayelsa APC primaries: Otiotio calls for cooperation

T L-R: Former President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan; Bayelsa State Governor, Seriake Dickson and Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, during the PDP governorship primary election in Bayelsa State

Police arrest 46 suspected cult members in Edo Eid-el-Kabir: Wike, Rivers Christians pray for peace Chris Ezike, confirmed the the command on Septem-

Cajetan Mmuta BENIN

O

peratives of the Edo State police command said they have arrested 46 suspected cult members in Esan West Local Government Area of the state.

The suspects were said to have been arrested during police raid in parts of Ekpoma, in the wake of the recent clashes between rival groups in the university town.

The Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr.

arrest of the suspects in Benin, the state capital. Ezike said the raid and arrest of the suspects was part of efforts by the command to maintain law and order in the state.

He noted that the suspects were being screened by intelligence officers from the command.

The command under the new police boss had promised to make the state uncomfortable for criminals even as it also warned senior officers and the rank and file of

ber 14 against all forms of indiscipline.

According to Ezike, “Cultists are criminals; I will not allow them to operate in Edo. You know there was a cult war in Ekpoma recently. So, I directed that the situation must be brought under control.”

He said: “And since the raid, which lasted for two days, Ekpoma has been calm. We arrested 46 suspects. Pump action riffles, AK 47 and ammunition were recovered from them; we are screening them.”

We’ll create wealth to empower our people – Deputy Gabriel Choba Ughelli

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he Deputy Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Friday Ossai Osanebi, yesterday said the state will create enough wealth to empower the people of the state.

He said irrespective of the economic challenges facing the state; it must do all within its powers to em-

power the people.

According to him, “any purposeful leader must be proactive in creating wealth, so that the people can be empowered to enhance the redistribution of wealth and prosperity among the people.

The Deputy Speaker gave this charge in Ossissa and Ashaka, Ndokwa East Local Government Area while presenting N2 million to 20 women to boost

their businesses.

Thanking the people for their support for his party, the PDP, the Deputy Speaker said it is the duty of public office holders to positively affect the lives of their people and transform their areas through effective law making, purposeful representation and other processes and avenue of governance which are the essence of democracy and political representation.

Emmanuel Masha Port Harcourt

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ivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, yesterday urged Nigerians to use the Eid-el-Kabir celebration to entrench the country’s peace and stability for its continued growth.

Wike, who stated this in a statement, urged Muslims to always emulate Prophet Mohammed, who he noted “symbolised peace and tolerance,” just as he prayed “for peace and wisdom in solving the challenges facing the nation.”

While urging Muslims in the state to remain peaceful as they join their counterparts all over the world to celebrate the Eidel-Kabir, he reminded then that the celebration was all about “selfless sacrifice.”

Similarly, the Chairperson of the Rivers State Christians’ Pilgrim Welfare Board, Mrs. Biobele Odesola, has urged Muslims to always pray for peace and harmonious co-existence with other religious sects in the state and

country in general.

She said Christians in the state were felicitating with Muslims as they celebrate Sallah and prayed to the almighty God to guide, guard and bless them all through the period.

Commentingontherecent tragedy in Mecca, where a cranefellandclaimedover400 lives, she urged them to bear the incident with fortitude, wishing that the accident never occurred.

Odesola urged all Rivers people to join hands with the governor to take the state to greater heights, pointing out that tangible achievements have been recorded in the governor’s 100 days in office.

“Our dear governor is passionate about the progress of his people, and he is determined to fulfill his electioneering campaign promises, draw up realistic and realisable health, education and economic policies that will ensure security of lives and property, strong economy and job opportunity for the Rivers people through Public-Private Partnership (PPP),” she said.

he All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship hopeful in Bayelsa State, Emmanuel Otiotio, yesterday appealed to fellow aspirants to eschew bitterness and controversy and abide by the party’s directive to conduct a fresh election among the aspirants.

Otiotio, a former Nigerian Ambassador to Japan and a leading aspirant, in a statement, expressed confidence in the ability and impartiality of the APC national leadership to conduct free and fair primaries that will be acceptable to all.

According to him, “Politics and political contest should not be a do-or-die affair, but should be about service to humanity. We must imbibe the fear of God even in politics as we seek to serve the people and give our uttermost best.

“It behooves all of us in the APC to work together to rescue Bayelsa State from the precipice and uninspiring leadership. It is a task that goes beyond an individual and one which infighting and internal wrangling cannot achieve.

We must all make a commitment to have a new Bayelsa.

change of name

GAFAR

I formerly known and addressed as OLAYIWOLA GAFAR now wish to be known and addressed as KOLAPO ABDUL JELEEL GAFAR. All former documents remain valid. General public take note.

NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

News 43

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UBEC hands over N350m girl-child school to Plateau

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he Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) has handed over a N350 million girl-child school to the Plateau State government.

The school, Dengi Community Secondary School, is located in Kangm Local Government Area of the state.

The Executive Secretary, UBEC, Dr. Dikko Suleiman, disclosed this at the handover ceremony of the school yesterday at Kanam. He said the school was one of the four

girl-child Junior Secondary Schools intervention project in Plateau State.

He said it was meant for girls from eight to 13 years and was part of the 2013 to 2014 intervention

by UBEC, to improve access to learning for grassroots communities.

The executive secretary, who was represented by his deputy in charge of services, Dr. Yakubu Gambo, said such projects were also ongoing in three other local government areas of the state - Mikang, Bassa and Barkin Ladi.

He explained that the emphasis on girl-child junior secondary intervention project was to help address the large number of girls hawking in the northern part of the country.

“The emphasis on the girl-child is to be able to mop up street girls in the northern part of Nigeria, where hawking is very popular.

“These girls are exposed to harassment and other dangers because of their vulnerability.”

Suleiman urged the Plateau State government

to partner with stakeholders in the community to provide the manpower needed to make the school operational.

“The intervention programme will also provide employment opportunities for people in the community, thus improving their standard of living,” he said.

The Executive Chairman, Plateau State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Prof.

Matthew Sule, advised the community to ensure that every child of school age

was enrolled in school.

He said education was the driving force for development.

In his remarks, the Emir of Kanam, Muhammadu Muhammad II, thanked the Federal Government for selecting their community for the intervention projects.

Muhammad promised that school age girls in the area would be encouraged to enroll.

“We will discuss with parents of the girls to enable the school to have the population required

Prisons decry exclusion from Plateau security council meetings

Plateau witnesses peaceful celebration Musa Pam

Musa Pam

Jos

Jos

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he Comptroller of Prisons, Nigerian Prisons Service, Plateau State Command, Mr. Martyns Apebende, yesterday decried the non-inclusion of the Prisons Service in the state’s security council meetings.

Apebende spoke in Jos while speaking with journalists in his office. He said prisons in the state have not been given the statutory recognition it deserves that will make it part of the security council.

The prisons boss said he has written several letters to the immediate past governor of the state to see the reason why the prisons should be represented in the state security council, but to no avail.

“The Nigeria Prisons Service, an outstanding security agency with criminals and suspects alike in its custody on the one hand and with participating contingents who have excellence in the Special Task Force in Plateau State, the Joint Task Force in the Niger-Delta.

and be guided by the enrolment requirements of UBEC,” he said.

Meanwhile, the commission has also handed over a 250-capacity examination hall and an administrative block to Government Secondary School, Du, in Jos South Local Government Area of Plateau State.

Suleiman, who was represented by Gambo at the handing over ceremony, said the structures were provided to create an enabling environment for learning.

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Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar I11 (right), with the Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Bashir Garba, at the praying ground during the Eid-El-Kabir celebration in Sokoto …yesterday

PHOTO: NAN

A’Court verdict: We’ll decide next line of action, says Kebbi PDP Abubakari Abdul Birnin Kebbi

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ollowing last Friday’s Appeal Court verdict in Sokoto in which the petition of the Kebbi State gubernatorial candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was dismissed, the leadership of the party in the state, yesterday called on its

supporters to be patient as the party would meet to decide on the next line of action.

In a statement issued by the party’s Public Relations Officer (PRO), Malam Ibrahim Umar Ummai and made available to newsmen in Brinin Kebbi, the party said after a meeting of stakeholders, it will decide on what to do, as-

suring supporters that the party will bring sanity into its fold.

New Telegraph recalls that after the election tribunal’s ruling last month in Birnin Kebbi, which was upheld in favour of the APC, against which the PDP filed another petition at the Appeal Court, Sokoto, challenging the ruling of the election tribunal.

“People should remain calm as the party would meet to decide on the next line of action, we appreciate all your support and cooperation toward achieving this progress,” he added.

The statement, which also urged the supporters to be law abiding, also reaffirmed its commitment to the development of the state.

lateau State yesterday witnessed a very peaceful Eid-el-Kabir celebration as Muslim faithful in the state prayed in more than 20 Eid prayer ground in and around Jos, the state capital, without any incident.

New Telegraph monitored the celebration around the metropolis and observed that the ceremony was peaceful.

Chief Imam of Jos, Sheikh Muhammad Lawal Adam, who led other Muslims, enjoined them to be of good behaviour and exhibit the true norms of Islam as its ambassadors.

In his sermon, the Imam called on them to live their lives in obedience to the will Allah. He said Islamic teachings enjoin Muslims to be of good behaviour, be obedient to Allah and all constituted authorities.

“As you go about celebrating, you should all exhibit a high sense of respect and discipline and also use the period to assist the needy,” he said.

Saraki’s trial ill-timed, politically motivated, says Tsav NCCE trains personnel for multi-media laboratories Cephas Iorhemen MAKURDI

A

s the trial of the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, by the Code of Conduct Tribunal over false declaration of assets while serving as governor of Kwara State continues, former Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Alhaji Abubakar Tsav, yesterday described his trial as illtimed and politically motivated.

Tsav said it was wrong to resurrect what happened 13 years ago at a time the country was yearning for peace and suggested that the trial would have been

carried out at the time he was governor and not when the citizenry is waiting patiently for Saraki to superintend over the screening of ministerial nominees into the Federal Executive Council (FEC).

Fielding questions from journalists in Makurdi, Tsav, a Federal Commissioner at the Public Complaints Commission, opposed the ongoing trial of the senate president, urging those calling for his resignation to have a rethink.

“I am against his selection for trial, what is happening to the young is rather unfortunate and it means that the country is

drifting back into the days of Olusegun Obasanjo,, when he unjustly picked Dipreye Alamieseigha and Joshua Dariye among other ex-governors, for trial.

“Well, I am not supporting Saraki, but if he did something wrong why didn’t the government at that time probe him, I believe this is politically motivated, why now”? Tsav queried.

He said Saraki is not the only ex-governor with stained records, pointing out that he had written several petitions against the former governor of Benue State, now senator representing Benue North West, Senator George Akume.

Dan Atori MINNA

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he National Commission for Colleges of Education (NCCE) has trained personnel on the use of the newly introduced Multi-Media MicroTeaching Laboratories by the Federal Government in all Colleges of Education (COE) in the North Central part of the country.

Executive Secretary, NCCE, Prof. Monday Joshua, said the project was approved by the Federal Government in 2013 to equip teachers and students with multi-media micro-teaching laboratories

knowledge in federal and states’ Colleges of Education in the country.

He spoke in Minna yesterday where he said the project would also equip teachers with skills required to discharge their duties effectively.

He said: Students that graduates from colleges of education must be adequately prepared to take advantage of ICT. “They should be able to use appropriate ICT equipment and gadgets in their classroom practice.”

Joshua said 55 Colleges of Education across the country had benefited from the training programme, including the Nigeria

Army School of Education in Ilorin, Kwara State.

He added that the multimedia micro-teaching laboratories knowledge would acquaint teachers with modern technologies in a digitised world.

In his response, Provost, Niger State College of Education, Prof. Faruk Haruna, said the management of the college would ensure that the purpose of the project is put to use.

Haruna, who was represented by the Deputy Provost, Academic, Dr. Mohammed Chado, added that the college would make use of the facilities to facilitate teaching and knowledge.

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IS suicide bomber kills 25 at Yemeni mosque

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suicide bomber struck a mosque in Yemen's rebel-held capital yesterday, killing 25 worshippers during prayers for the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha. The Yemenbased Islamic State affiliate claimed responsibility for the blast, saying it was targeting the country's Shiite rebels. The explosion, which also wounded dozens of worshippers, tore through the al-Bolayli mosque in the morning hours, according to Yemeni security officials. The mosque is located in an area where many residents support the Shiite rebels, also known as Houthis, who have controlled Sanaa since last

September.

The IS affiliate's claim of responsibility came in a statement circulated on Twitter by the Sunni militant group's supporters. The Associated Press could not independently verify the authenticity of the claim.

The statement said IS targeted the Shiite rebels, whom the Sunni extremists view as heretics. The security officials said the suicide bomber placed an explosive device in his shoe, causing an initial explosion.

As worshippers rushed to the door, he detonated himself in the middle of the crowd, they said. The officials, who remain neutral in the conflict that has splintered the country, spoke

to the AP on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.

There were puddles of blood and debris outside the mosque, whose ornate facade was damaged by the blast. Police and some Houthi fighters came to inspect the aftermath.

Eid al-Adha is a major Muslim holiday, also known as the Feast of Sacrifice. Yemen has been torn by a ferocious war pitting the Houthis and forces fighting for former President Ali Abdullah Saleh against fighters loyal to President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, as well as southern separatists, local militias and Sunni extremists. The Islamic State

affiliate in Yemen has claimed responsibility for a series of suicide bombings in Sanaa targeting Shiites in the past months. American officials initially expressed skepticism that the affiliate existed, as Yemen is also home to the world's most dangerous al-Qaida offshoot. Also yesterday, four children and an adult were killed when Houthis and their allies fired mortar shells into a residential neighborhood in the city of Taiz, independent security officials and health officials said. At least 21 civilians were wounded, they said, also speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to reporters.

The war in Yemen escalated in March when the Saudi-led coalition launched a campaign involving air strikes and ground troops against Shiite Houthi rebels and their allies. More than 2,100 civilians have been killed, according to UN estimates. The coalition recently has sought to retake rebel-held Sanaa. The UN Secretary-General Ban Kimoon condemned Thursday's mosque bombing and called for the perpetrators to be brought to justice, his spokesman said in a statement."Such attacks against places of worship, or civilians anywhere, cannot be justified by any cause," Ban said.

ICC brings 60 new charges against LRA Kony's deputy

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A Shiite fighter known as a Houthi Police stands in the al-Balili mosque after two suicide bombings at the mosque during Eid al-Adha prayers in Sanaa, Yemen yesterday.

Calm returns to Burkina Faso

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eople lined up at gas stations and money machines in Burkina Faso's capital yesterday as life began returning to normal after a week-long coup. Once interim President Michel Kafando and interim Prime Minister Yacouba Isaac Zida were reinstalled, Wednesday, government soldiers who had remained loyal to the government withdrew overnight.

The presidential guard that staged the coup were confined to their barracks.

People in Ouagadougou went out early yesterday to

buy sheep at the market for slaughter in celebration of Eid al-Adha, known here as Tabaski, one of Islam's most important holidays. During prayers, Muslim leader Aboubakar Sana called for peace and dialogue that will lead to free and fair elections in this West African country. Elections had been scheduled for Oct. 11 before the coup but it is doubtful that date can be met.

Leaders with the Economic Community of West African States suggested a Nov. 22 election date and recommended that allies of former Presi-

dent Blaise Compaore, who was ousted in an uprising last October, be allowed to field candidates. It was members of the presidential guard loyal to Compaore who had mounted the coup, unhappy that the transitional government had barred his supporters from contesting the elections.

Coup leader Gen. Gilbert Diendere expressed his regrets, Wednesday. "My biggest mistake was carrying out this coup," he said. "We have seen what has happened, that the people were not in favor of it. That is why we gave it up."

Germanwings, Lufthansa heads remember France crash victims

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ix months to the day after the pilot of a Germanwings A320 jet flew 150 people to their deaths in France, the heads of the firm and parent company Lufthansa gathered near the crash scene yesterday to remember victims. Lufthansa's Carsten Spohr and Germanwings' Thomas Winkelmann laid a wreath before a memorial for those who died when co-pilot Andreas Lubitz deliberately crashed the aircraft into the

French Alps, killing everyone on board.

Both executives also visited a chapel and went on to a nearby cemetery where several unidentified victims have been buried. "It's been exactly six months since this tragic event which happened here and the Lufthansa and Germanwings groups and all its staff are still in deep sorrow," said Spohr. "I think I speak on behalf of all 120,000 staff of Lufthansa and Ger-

manwings...When this happened, something changed in the company and the company has not been the same," said Spohr, remembering the "terrible day" of the crash. He noted that "we cannot really ease the pain, but it's our obligation to try whatever we can do."

The plane was on its way from Barcelona to Duesseldorf when Lubitz, believed to be suffering from a psychological disorder, deliberately crashed it into the mountainside.

he International Criminal Court unveiled yesterday at least 60 new war crimes charges against the deputy leader of Uganda's brutal Lord's Resistance Army, including using child soldiers and keeping sex slaves. "The prosecution gave formal notice that it intends to expand the scope of the charges against Dominic Ongwen," the Hague-based court said, adding it planned to file the additional charges on December 21.

Ongwen is the first leader of the brutal Ugandan rebel army -- led by the fugitive Joseph Kony -- to appear before

the ICC, which was set up to try the world's worst crimes.

The new charges all relate to attacks carried out on camps housing people who had been forced to flee their homes in the bloody Ugandan rebellion that started in 1987. More than 100 people, many of them babies and children died in the attacks on four camps between October 2003 and June 2004. In one of the attacks at Lukodi camp in northern Uganda "many civilians including children were burnt alive in huts that LRA fighters set on fire," prosecutors said in court papers detailing the new charges.

Britain orders checks on carmakers

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ritain said yesterday that new checks would be carried out across the automobile industry to ensure that a pollution test cheating scandal at German manufacturer Volkswagen was not repeated.

"The Vehicle Certification Agency, the UK regulator, is working with vehicle manufacturers to ensure that this issue is not industry-wide," said Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin in a statement.

"As part of this work, they will re-run laboratory tests where necessary and compare them against real world driving emissions."

McLoughlin added that Britain's government "takes the unacceptable actions at VW

extremely seriously" and was backing a Europe-wide investigation. The scandal broke last week after it emerged that VW fitted up to 11 million of its diesel cars with devices capable of fooling emissions tests. Authorities in the US, France and South Korea have announced investigations and the company's chief executive Martin Winterkorn resigned Wednesday.

Yesterday, shares in fellow German carmaker BMW fell nearly 10 percent at one point after the weekly Auto Bild reported that emissions from one of its diesel models were 11 times higher than EU norms.

BMW denies cheating in pollution tests.

Migrant crisis: EU to boost aid to agencies

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uropean Union leaders have pledged another â&#x201A;Ź1bn (ÂŁ700m, $1.1bn) to help UN agencies support Syrian refugees in the Middle East, as part of renewed efforts to tackle the EU's migrant crisis. More help will be extended to Syria's neighbours, where millions have fled since the country's conflict began.

The leaders also agreed on strengthening EU exter-

nal borders. European Council President Donald Tusk warned that "greatest tide of refugees and migrants is yet to come". "We need to correct the policy of open doors and windows," he said.

About half a million migrants have arrived in Europe this year, exposing deep divisions within the EU. The emergency summit in Brussels got under way amid a bitter row over the relocation of 120,000 migrants.

NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

45

International Sport

Sport News

Football

Guardiola’s new deal irresistible - Bayern chief

Amokachi linked with Zimbabwean coaching job

Mourinho hails Mikel in Capital One Cup victory

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47

47

Sport

Did you know?

That there are five types of court surface used in professional tennis: Clay, Hard, Glass, Carpet and Wood.

AAG: Ngerem, Aliu blame performance on poor preparations

Ugochi Akwueze

F

ormer president of the Athletic Federation of Nigeria, Dan Ngerem, and former athlete, Deji Aliu, have attributed Nigeria’s poor outing at the recently concluded All Africa Games in Congo to poor preparation by the National Sports Commission.

Speaking in an interview with New Telegraph, Ngerem lamented the NSC’s attitude of investing more on competition, while neglecting preparation and welfare of athletes, which often resulted in poor performance at competitions.

“I will give Team Nigeria a pass mark for finishing second but we have to analyse the medals table, so that we don’t get carried away,” Ngerem said.

“One of our areas of specialisation was sprints, but we failed to dominate in the sprints which was very sad.

“We should stop spending heavily on performing well at competitions. Rather we should invest in the athletes’ preparation so that they can perform well when competitions start.”

He further advised the NSC to adopt a sports policy whereby athletes discovered from school competitions would be monitored and prepared to become future champions.

Aliu concurred with Ngerem regarding the country’s poor preparation for international competitions but also lamented the lack of adequate facilities in the country.

“We never prepare well for competitions which is why we have not been winning,” he said. “Let’s improve our facilities and make the athletes welfare a priority because if you don’t feed well, you won’t give your best.”

The Sport Team Adekunle Salami Group Sport Editor

Emmanuel Tobi Assistant Sport Editor

Ifeanyi Ibeh Sport Correspondent

Ajibade Olusesan Sport Correspondent

Charles Ogundiya Sport Correspondent

© Daily Telegraph Publishing Company Limited

Kelechi Iheanacho (left) of Manchester City with Sporting KC players late in the first half

Iheanacho’s time will come, says Oliseh

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uper Eagles coach Sunday Oliseh has explained why Manchester City forward Kelechi Iheanacho has not been called up to the national team.

Oliseh, according to a report posted on Completesportsnigeria.com, however insisted that the Nigeria junior international would soon be capped at full international level despite his exclusion from the squad for next month’s international friendly matches against Congo and Cameroon in Belgium.

Oliseh handed a late call-up to Arsenal FC forward, Alex Iwobi, who was on Wednesday cleared by FIFA to wear Nigeria’s colours after the 19-year-old opted to pledge his future to his fatherland ahead of England.

But Oliseh said Iheanacho might not yet be ready to make the jump to the Super Eagles.

“Iheanacho will get his time with the Super Eagles no doubt but we must not rush him into the squad,” said Oliseh.

“He’s currently nursing an injury and he needs substan-

tial time on the pitch as well.

“We acknowledge his talent but he still needs to prove that with the Olympic squad as well.

“Iwobi has just got the much awaited green light to feature for Nigeria and we need such talents in the team just as Iheanacho.

“Everybody will get his chance to showcase what they can offer the team but we the coaches will invite them at the right time so they don’t perform below what we expect.”

Iheanacho has made three Premier League appearances for City in the current campaign and was his side’s hero in the 1-0 win at Crystal Palace.

The 18-year-old was however left out of the side for Tuesday’s Capital One Cup win at Sunderland after picking up an injury a day to the game.

Iwobi, on his part, was an unused substitute for Arsenal in their 2-1 win over Tottenham Hotspur in Wednesday’s Capital One Cup clash at White Hart Lane.

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Sport

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015 NEW TELEGRAPH

Guardiola’s new deal irresistible - Bayern chief

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ayern Munich chief executive K a rl - H e i n z Rummenigge on Thursday said they have made coach Pep Guardiola a “great” offer which will be difficult for him to refuse.

Guardiola’s present contract will expire at the end of the

season and he has not shown much signs of putting pen on a new deal, sparking speculation about him quitting Bayern. But Rummenigge does not believe it will happen.

“I am optimistic about Pep’s renewal, we have a great offer on the table, which you cannot just shove

aside,” Rummenigge was quoted as saying by goal.com.

“We have a first class team, a fantastic club, a great stadium and a wonderful city to offer. We will have a serious conversation with Pep in the upcoming weeks and we will see what comes from that. I want to

win the Champions League again -- with Guardiola in charge.”

Guardiola has been instrumental in helping Bayern win back-to-back Bundesliga titles after coming on as a replacement for Jupp Heynckes in 2013, but still awaits European glory with the club.

Remy ready to fill Costa void for Chelsea

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oic Remy has said that although replacing Diego Costa is a difficult task, he will “give 100%” to fill the void left by the Spaniard.

Costa was given a three-game ban after being found guilty of violent conduct by the FA, leaving Jose Mourinho with the choice of Radamel Falcao or Remy as his striking option.

“When we play for Chelsea it’s a question of giving the best - 100% so of course I will do the best I can,” he is quoted as saying by ESPN. “I think we will miss him [Costa] because we know how important he is for the team, but we are all focused on winning games.

Whoever is on the pitch we will try to do the best we can. Of course it’s a shame for us to lose him.

“Whoever is on the pitch will give their best. It’s my old club so it’s always a pleasure to play against them. The manager will decide and pick 11 players, we’ll see on Saturday.”

Remy scored 14 goals in 26 appearances during a loan spell with Newcastle in 2013-14.

Remy

Liverpool striker Danny Ings heads home Liverpool’s opener against Carlisle on Wednesday

Liverpool board split over Rodgers’ future

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iverpool owners Fenway Sports Group have reportedly held crisis talks on the future of Reds boss Brendan Rodgers and been unable to reach a unanimous verdict on whether the Northern Irishman should be sacked.

Rodgers’ side are winless in four Premier League matches and have only scored four goals in six league games all season to lie 13th in the table.

Their form has not been much better in other competitions either. In the Europa League they started the group stage with a 1-1 draw at Bordeaux, while in the League Cup they needed a penalty shootout to beat League Two opposition in Carlisle United Wednesday night.

According to talkSPORT, the board has held talks over the manager and the directors are split down the middle on whether to end Rodgers’s three-year reign or stick by the former Swansea City boss.

If Liverpool fail to beat Aston Villa at home on Saturday, it might be the end for Rodgers with Liverpool’s next seven league fixtures a difficult run against Everton, Tottenham Hotspur, Southampton, Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Manchester City and Swansea City.

Former Borussia Dortmund coach Jurgen Klopp has been linked with the Anfield post and is reportedly interested in ending his sabbatical for a Premier League job if a suitable position becomes available.

FIFA: Investigators get access to Valcke’s emails

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IFA has given Swiss investigators access to the emails of the organisation’s suspended general secretary Jerome Valcke.

Newspaper allegations implicated Valcke, 54, in a scheme to sell World Cup tickets for above face value.

Valcke, who describes the allegations as “fabricated”, has been released from his duties pending an investigation.

His emails since May 2015 have been handed over, said the office of Switzerland’s attorney general (OAG).

Investigators will

also be given access to older emails sent by Valcke, who has held his role at FIFA since 2007.

World football’s governing body has been engulfed by claims of widespread corruption since May, when Swiss police raided a hotel in Zurich and arrested seven of its top

executives.

Blatter has urged FIFA to support American and Swiss investigations into allegations of corruption in football.

“We should co-operate, no matter how close to home those investigations get,” wrote Blatter in his weekly FIFA magazine column.”

Around the Stadia

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JOE BOOSTER

Congo 2015: The consequential realities

I

t is no longer news that the Nigerian contingent to the just concluded African Games in Congo Brazzaville, saw the beautiful and modern edifices that adorn the host city but failed to conquer.

Nigeria placed second on the overall medals table as a result of the high performances put up by the neglected Paraplegic athletes, otherwise, hurricane breeze would have blown aside the furs that covered the anus of the hen.

If that was the case, Nigerians would better have appreciated the rot that has permeated the nation’s entire sporting system.

The open secret however is that Nigeria is no longer a continental power house in any particular sports, but the paraplegic games. We have gradually lost all our opportunities over the years in circumstances that look more surreal than real.

In those days there were sports commonly referred as Nigeria’s traditional strongholds, such that even when unknown quantities were fielded, they emerged victorious, simply because of the mystique we wielded that sent jitters down the spines of our opponents.

Alas, all is gone, simply because the big masquerade can no longer dance according to the rhythm of the octave drumbeats that herald and characterise its outing.

What we now have as strategy to make up for our deficiencies is the usual last minute resort to the abandoned “disabled” team to help redeem the image of the nation at major international events. This is nothing but an outright windowdressing designed to hoodwink authorities and unsuspecting Nigerians. And the truth all the same is that all hopes appear lost, simply because of corruption and improper planning.

Nobody is prepared to work hard anymore to either discover or nurture budding talents to stardom as it used to be in most of our sporting federations. We would rather go by the usual fire brigade approach that creates room for fraud and manipulation to long term planning. I watched with dismay how our boxers, weightlifters, wrestlers and other athletic teams collapsed like pack of cards before their rivals within the continent.

The projected medal hauls in these events fizzled out right before our very eyes for the simple reason that we have lived on borrowed robes for quite a long time.

Who on earth twenty years ago would have dreamt that nations like Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, South Africa and even Kenya would relegate Nigeria’s athletics team to oblivion. These were nations we openly dominated when stars like Chidi Imoh, Innocent Egbunike,

Mary Onyali, Ezinwa brothers were still scintillating from the galaxy. It was no secret that while the Kenyans and Ethiopians dominated the long distance races, Nigeria routed others in the short distance races.

My pain becomes more excruciating when I reflect on the images of then, Kenyan President, Arap Moi being stunned by the hyperactive performance put up by the nation’s 400m athletes, particularly Innocent Egbunike, whose speed was like a bolt of lightning, and declaring that “this Innocent is not Innocent.”

While the Kenyans’ and other east Africans, still hold sway in their traditional long distance events, their Nigerian counterparts’ dominance in the sprint and short distance dash events have relapsed for no known reason. The east Africans are now making foray into Nigeria’s traditional turf, ostensibly due to motivation and planning by their authorities, while Nigeria is losing grip of almost everything A clear lesson here is that without long term and dedicated planning, nothing can work.

I find it most funny that officials of the National Sports Commission, NSC, would rather fight for the purchase of kits and money that will enter their personal pocket rather than invest in meeting the training needs of the athletes, most of whom train on their own without supervision, so as to meet up with qualification standards set by the various international bodies.

You may be amazed to know that no grant is ever given to these athletes to augment their expenses by either federations or the sports commission, even when such are budgeted for annually.

Unfortunately, these national athletes have no alternate means of livelihood, yet Nigerians expect so much from them not knowing that majority of them cannot boast of three square meals a day; as they loiter around stadium complexes training on empty stomach. For how long would we continue in this anomaly?

The truth is that our officials care less about the progress of our games. They see our participation in major international event as nothing but mere jamboree and avenue to line their pockets with filthy lucre earned at the expense of the blood of our sportsmen and women. It is not surprising that most federations hardly boost of qualified coaches or technical hands to pilot their affairs in this age and time. They would rather divert the funds meant to hire and pay them into other uses and train athletes blindly rather than do the right thing.

Sport News 47

NEW TELEGRAPH FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

Amokachi linked with Zimbabwean coaching job Ifeanyi Ibeh

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or mer Super Eagles assistant coach, Daniel Amokachi, has according to reports in Zimbabwe expressed an interest in taking charge of Zimbabwean club, Highlanders, next season.

The Bulawayo giants, also known as Bosso, are in the hunt for a substantive coach to take over from interim head coach Amini Soma-Phiri and technical director Cosmas Tsano Zulu.

Club chairman, Peter Dube, earlier in September, told a press conference that they wouldn’t wait until the end of the season to start hunting for a substantive coach.

And according to Zimbabwean newspaper, The Chronicle, a number of Zimbabwean and foreign coaches, including Amokachi, have made known their intention to become the next head coach of the former Zimbabwean league champions by submitting their CVs. New Telegraph made

Mourinho hails Mikel in Capital One Cup victory Charles Ogundiya

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helsea FC manager, Jose Mourinho, has hailed the impact of Super Eagles midfielder, John Obi Mikel, in the Blues’ 4-1 defeat of Walsall in the English Capital One Cup on Tuesday at the Bescot Stadium.

Goals from Ramires, Loic Remy, Kenedy and Pedro took the reigning English Premier League champions into the fourth round of the Capital One Cup. But despite the scoreline, the Blues were tested by the English third tier league outfit, and Mourinho had good things to say about Mikel, who was deployed in a three-man midfield alongside Ramires and Ruben Loftus-Cheek against Dean Smith’s Walsall side.

numerous attempts to get across to Amokachi, but the 42-year-old former Nigeria international who recently stepped down as coach of Nigerian Professional Football League outfit FC IfeanyiUbah, was unavailable for comments. He also did not respond to SMS messages by the time New Telegraph went to press.

Amokachi started his playing career at Ranchers Bees and briefly played for ASEC in Cote d’Ivoire before moving to Europe where he played

Susan Udeh

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Mikel

“We brought a good solid defence and the midfield was really good. Mikel and Ramires played amazingly well,” Mourinho told Westlondonsport.com.

“I analysed Walsall before. I was surprised with the quality of their play.

“They were a different team to normal in League One; not so physical, and technically fast.

They were very well organised.

“I haven’t found a team in League One playing the quality of football that they tried to play,” he added.

Mikel was cautioned in the 39th minute of the game but played for the entire duration of the match as he helped Chelsea secure a trip to the Britannia Stadium to face Stoke City in the fourth round of the competition.

West Brom hangs on to Anichebe • As striker plays as midfielder in cup tie Ugochi Akwueze

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igeria striker Victor Anichebe has rejected a loan deal to Bolton Wanderers as he has opted to stay put and fight for a place at West Bromwich Albion.

According to reports in England, Bolton Wanderers, who used to play in the English Premier League but now play in the English Championship, made enquiries regarding the availability of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games silver medallist.

They were however told that the former Everton striker was not keen on a move to the Reebok Stadium and would remain at the Hawthorns to fight for a spot in the Baggies’ first team, even if it means playing in the midfield.

The Nigerian has dropped further down the pecking order at

for Belgium’s Club Brugge from 1990 to 1994. He thereafter joined English side Everton where he spent three seasons and won the FA Cup with the Merseyside club.

Amokachi, who was a member of the 1994 Africa Cup of Nations winning Super Eagles side, as well as an assistant coach with Nigeria’s 2013 AFCON winning side, also played for Turkey’s Beskitas and Colorado Rapids in the USA before winding up his playing career with Nasarawa United.

West Brom following the arrival of Venezuelan star Solomon Rondon in the summer. But Baggies’ manager, Tony Pulis, who had to loan Anichebe’s compatriot, Brown Ideye, to Olympiakos of Greece is determined to keep all of his current squad until the January transfer window.

Anichebe has only featured twice for Albion so far this season, but Pulis surprised many by fielding the striker in a deeperlying midfield role against Norwich City in Wednesday’s Capital One Cup clash at Carrow Road.

Anichebe was played in a holding role in front of the back four, and Pulis said: “When we’ve done games in training we’ve played him in the pocket and he’s done exceptionally well.

“I just wanted to see him in a proper game and he did very well at times (on Wednesday).”

uper Eagles assistant coach Salisu Yusuf will, in the absence of Sunday Oliseh, take charge of the national team’s training session ahead of next month’s 2016 CHAN qualifier against Burkina Faso.

According to a report posted on the official website of the Nigeria Football Federation, the home-based Super Eagles are scheduled to commence training for the game against the Stallions on October 4 in Port Harcourt.

The CHAN qualifier will come up in the Rivers State capital on October 18 with the

Amokachi

CHAN 2016: Yusuf to lead home-based Eagles to camp return leg scheduled to come up in Ouagadougou a week later.

The training camp for the game was originally planned for October 11, but the NFF have now moved it forward to allow the home-based Eagles more time to prepare for the CHAN qualifier.

Oliseh will join the training camp after the friendly match against Cameroon taking place in Belgium on October 11.

The CHAN, also known as

the African Nations Championship, is a tournament exclusively reserved for players who are active in their respective national championships.

The first tournament took place in 2009, in Cote d’Ivoire, while Nigeria made its tournament debut at the last edition in 2014 in South Africa.

The Super Eagles, then handled by former Super Eagles coach, Stephen Keshi, placed third at the end of the twoweek tournament.

Sports Editors’ Guild salutes LTV’s Balogun

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igerian Sports Editors Guild, the umbrella body of the managers of sports of the country’s media outfits, has congratulated one of its members, Deji Balogun, who was recently named General Manager of the Lagos Television.

The Sports Editors Guild describes Balogun’s appointment as a demonstration of the fact that hard work and perseverance pay, adding that the astute administrator is the right man to take LTV to new heights in this age of technology-driven journalism.

In a statement signed by its president, Tony Ubani, the Guild said: “We want to congratulate our eminent

member, Deji Balogun, on his new appointment, which is a manifestation of the maxim that there is always light at the end of the tunnel.”

The statement added: “Mr. Balogun, who has gone through the mills and worked with some of the best in the profession, is an apostle of developmental journalism, who has left his marks in the profession.

“Trained by some of the best minds in broadcasting, we have no doubt in the ability of the new General Manager to reposition LTV and place it among the best television stations not only in Nigeria, but also in the African continent.

Balogun

“We pledge our willingness to help Mr. Balogun to succeed in his new appointment as Nigeria grapples with new realities in its political development.”

US, eight others, for Abuja Int’l Badminton

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he United States of America and eight other countries have confirmed their participation in this year’s Abuja International Badminton Championship which serves off on September 30 at the Indoor Sports Hall of the National Stadium.

The other countries that have confirmed their participation at the international championship are Austria, Poland, Turkey, Egypt, Uganda, Ghana, South Africa and Mauritius.

Tournament hosts, Nigeria, will also feature in the event which will have over 100 internationally ranked badminton players in attendance.

Some of the players expected

to fly the country’s flag at the championship, which has been sanctioned by both the Badminton Confederation of Africa and the World Badminton Federation, are Jinkam Ifraimu, Ola Fagbemi, Maria Braimah, Grace Gabriel and Tosin Atolegbe, while some of the international stars expected to feature at the four-day event include Kate Fookune, the Mauritian who won the women’s singles gold at the just concluded All Africa Games, and the AAG’s men’s champion, Edwin Ekiring from Uganda.

President of the Badminton Federation of Nigeria, Justice Suleiman Senci, said: “This is an international champion-

ship and our aim is to attract the best players of badminton to Nigeria so we are doing everything to make sure the championship is successful.”

Secretary of the BFN, Miriam Akande, added that all arrangements have been put in place to make the tournament a success.

She also assured that items like playing mats, shuttles and other equipment have been provided to meet international standards even as she called on corporate bodies and sports lovers to support the game of badminton and particularly the Abuja International Championship so that the desired results will be achieved.

On Marble

“The great question that has never been answered and which I have not yet been able to answer, despite my 30 years of research into the feminine soul, is: ‘What does a woman want?’”

NIGERIA’S MOST AUTHORITATIVE NEWSPAPER IN POLITICS AND BUSINESS

– Sigmund Freud

I

have spent the whole week trying to resist the temptation to go down despondency street. That’s because I have moved from scared to petri­ fied. All the horrors of terror have done things to my head and finally I can’t seem to get all kinds negative pictures out of my head. I keep seeing fire, peo­ ple running in the bush, deserted roads and even refugee camps. So I confided in a friend and colleague that I was go­ ing to write about my fears. Well, he promptly shut my idea down, telling me that kind of topic was premature and sounded more like a treasonable piece. He crowned it with a threat not to visit me if the DSS guys haul me off to parts unknown to decode my head.

That brought me back to earth. I mean, what shall it profit a columnist if she writes a good piece, ends up hung headdown-legs-up and her friends don’t visit her. Bad story and I like to write stories, not be the story, you know. So, I decided to put the idea in the fridge and believe that part of my head that is convinced that the arrival of the Super Powers in Nigeria with their gadgets will put the fear of God in the ungodly men who had been giving us nightmares.

I was still wondering what I’d do to fill this space when Bola Abass’ column popped up in my mail. Check it out in the EXPLORE pull-out inside. Yeah, the one about boobs, why some men fall for flatchested models and why most Nigerian men think ‘the bigger the better.’ Ah, and they said I’m the baad one? Bola Abass went on to trace the history of bras; the push up bra and the padded bra and the wonderbra. And how men are fixated on the solid content inside every bra.

Not that that breastful insight is new, it’s just that one tends to forget one of those things men are fixated on once in a while. And no, I do not want any man trying to excuse himself because all ob­ jections are hereby over ruled. How can any man say he does not like breasts or does not consider it in making certain choices. Fine, the shape and size of the choices may differ but when it comes to breasts, in brotherhood they all stand, all men. Own up. No lies.

Any mother who has breastfed a baby girl and a baby boy is a star witness in this case. Every mother can tell the difference.

Hey ladies, remember how the baby boy is when he’s all plugged to the breast?

Doesn’t he raise one leg and run his chubby fingers through his hair? Oh oh, how else does a six-month old show that he’s having the time of his innocent life?

And who are the easier to wean? The girls, of course. While the girls soon move on to other interests, the boys always want to be fed. They simply can’t move past those months in mummy’s arms, the warmth, the cuddle, the raised leg… you simply can’t wean a man from the two smooth things he cherishes most.

My mind still wandering, I imagine if a man discovers that the smooth things he’s been ogling and angling to grab are fake at the end of the day, what’s he gonna do? Because, there are a lot of enhance­ ment stuff girls are doing these days, from Man­chester to Arsenal. There are pads for every inadequacy. All kinds of helpful things we can wear to keep the

World Record

Sanctity of Truth

N150

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2015

America's youngest self-made female billionaire is 30 years old and a college dropout. The company she founded has the potential to change health care for millions of Americans. Elizabeth Holmes left Stanford University at 19 with a plan to start her own company.

Black market Adam’s Apple

FUNKE EGBEMODE

egbemode3@gmail.com 08055069066 (sms only)

But what if you discover your black market after the wedding ceremony?

What if you had both agreed that you would keep the marriage bed undefiled and waited until the wedding night to check each other out and then he finds out she’d been wearing wonderbra or she discovers he’s not loaded downstairs?

I heard there are solutions but I’d really like all of us to join this conversation be­ cause I know there are more than a few re­ lationships in trouble because of certain black market discoveries. However, some purchases are so bad, some unions just collapse upon certain discoveries. Take the case of Benjy and Toju. They had one of those wedding ceremonies where you just wished the day would never end.

There was so much to eat I at some point had two servers arriving my table at the same time, one bearing a steaming bowl of tuwo shinkafa and the other spaghetti bolognaise. The tables groaned under the chilled buckets of assorted wine but the music and the dancing beat the food and drinks. And the couple danced and danced … only for us to hear eight months later that they had ‘fought’ and Toju had moved back to her parents home. Before you could say black market, Benjy had gone off to America and nobody could reach him.

After a lot of rumours, the beautiful bride finally told her sister that Benjy flipped when Toju confessed that she had fertility issues and had in fact been on regu­ lar treatment because her monthly period had actually become almost quarterly un­ less she had some injections. For a man who was getting married for the first time at 39, Benjy felt he had been conned into a fruit­ less marriage.

And it is worse when the bride discov­ers that the handsome hunk she loves so much had conveniently forgotten to tell her that he has low sperm count until after the wed­ ding. As a mother, what will you tell your daughter if she tells you her husband is firing blanks or he’s impotent altogether.

• (This piece was first published on May 11, 2014)

HIGH CHIEF

FRAUDSTERS IMPERSONATE CUSTOMS BOSS ON FACEBOOK–News

With this, boys will be boys

men salivating are here from China and everywhere. Butt packs and cleavage en­ hancers are the most used. So when next you see babes shaking things in your face, well, you just might be admir­ing plenty of foam. Back to my wandering question, what will you do dudes, if behind closed doors, your babe undresses and the 34DD cup you had been itching to do justice to turns out to be 32B? Bad black market.

PHOTO: www.mirror.co.uk

Fortunately, or not, the black market thing is a two-way street. Babes also dis­ cover that things are not always what they seem. I once overheard, in a salon, a senior babe lamenting to her friend how the dark, tall, handsome guy her friends thought was the catch of the year turned out to be so unequipped. Ah. Mean girl said she simply cut her losses and cut the guy loose pronto.

- Rascals, why don't they impersonate Lagbaja?

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