The Nation April 13, 2014

Newspaper of the Year

N10bn jet scandal: Pressure mounts on Jonathan to sack Diezani House panel writes NNPC, NCAA, NAMA; hearing begins April 28 –Page 4

Disquiet in military over Obanikoro’s use of soldiers –Page 5

FG to ban use of candles, Kerosine lamps in homes –Page 9

Nigeria’s widest circulating newspaper

Vol.08, No. 2810

TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM

SUNDAY

APRIL 13, 2014

N200.00

AREGBESOLA, FAYEMI EMERGE APC GUBER CANDIDATES IN OSUN, EKITI

Page 5

2015: Plot to dump Sambo as VP thickens –Page 4

IN THE FRAME

•Aliyu

•Sambo

•Yuguda

OLADIPO DIYA

•Lamido

•Shema

'Why I refused to sign Abiola's detention paper' –Pages 10-12

Boko Haram kills 19 in Borno villages Death toll is 217, Senator claims

–Page 6

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, APRIL 13, 2014

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Military helicopter crash kills four in Namibia

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OUR people including a threeyear-old boy have died after a military helicopter crashed in north-east Namibia, the defence ministry and military sources said Saturday.

The helicopter crashed shortly after take-off early Friday, killing three of the 10 people on board instantly and injuring the toddler, who died later in hospital, military sources said.

All six surviving passengers are being treated for serious injuries.

Defence minister Nahas Angula said the helicopter failed to gain altitude and crashed at the end of the runway and burst into flames.

The minister refused to confirm or deny reports the helicopter was en route to the capital Windhoek to pick him up and take him to an air force graduation ceremony.

A peaceful handover The final lap of the crosscountry nuptials between President Goodluck Jonathan’s daughter, Faith Sakwe and Godswill Edward finally came to a climax yesterday in Abuja with the formal handing-over of the bride. The President (2nd right) is seen here cheerfully releasing Faith into the safe hands of the officiating minister and Prelate, Church of Nigeria,Anglican Communion, Most Revd. Nicholas Okoh. Left is the bridegroom, Mr. Godswill Edward.

Photo: NAN

Jonathan's doleful re-echo of 2007 elections E ARLY last week, former Senate President Ken Nnamani presented the report of the National Stakeholders Forum on Electoral Reform to President Goodluck Jonathan. While receiving the Nnamani delegation, President Jonathan spoke of how the 2007 polls caused him great embarrassment. But he pulled his punches, and refused to accept blame or moralise. Though he did not clearly condemn a perverse election in which he was a major beneficiary, the import of what he had to say, however, doubtless showed his true opinion on the discredited poll.

Said the president: “I was embarrassed when the international observers complained that there were certain breaches in the 2007 polls. Even though after taking oath of office and the Supreme Court declared us winners, but each time one travelled abroad, people asked all kinds of questions that even got one angry. That was when I promised myself that if I had an opportunity to oversee elections in Nigeria, no other President or Vice President should suffer that can kind of harassment by the international community. That is

BAROMETER

why the 2011 elections, even though I was candidate, I said nobody should manipulate elections for me. My ambition and the

sunday@thenationonlineng.net

fate of the country are two different things; the interest of the nation is much more superior to any other ambition and I kept faith with that.

At least at the end of that election, it was accepted by observers locally and internationally. I promise that 2015 elections will be better.”

President Jonathan's resolve to ensure a better 2011 elections no doubt presupposes his low opinion of the 2007 polls. And by promising that the 2015 polls would even be much better, he logically indicated that of the three polls, he was determined to have that of 2007 considered the worst. While 2011 polls were in some respects better than those of 2007, there is nothing to indicate that next year's polls will be better than any of the two preceding polls, not with his undisguised lethargy towards democratic precepts, his increasing desperation to secure an unde-

served second term, and his sinister and constant desire, together with the late President Umaru Yar'Adua, to safely keep all that they indirectly stole through the collusion of the Obasanjo presidency and the electoral commission.

More crucially, however, President Jonathan's embarrassment is an indictment of the amoral politics former President Olusegun Obasanjo subordinated his entire life, theology and politics to. But Chief Obasanjo, who presided over the horrendous 2007 elections, will simply snort at this effusive and familiar display of hypocrisy by the Jonathan presidency.

After all, judging from Dr Jonathan's reprehensible attitude towards the judiciary, he has appeared to regret the penance that saw him surrender Edo, Ekiti and Osun States to the opposition.

Osun APC celebrates too early

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F things were normal, the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State should indeed be in celebratory mood considering the odious election of Senator Iyiola Omisore as the governorship candidate of the PDP for the August governorship poll. According to the party's publicity and media director, Kunle Oyatomi, the APC believes that given the widely held view that Senator Omisore is hated for his rough tactics in elections, as well as the burden of allegations he bears over former Minister of Justice Bola Ige's assassination, his rejection in the poll would be a formality. But it is precisely Mr Omisore's negative image that makes him dangerous and unscrupulous. He will not consider any tactics too low or contemptible to embrace.

Osun APC should in fact be worried rather than celebrating.

Dame Patience and Nyesom Wike's guber ambition

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HE Minister of State for Education, Nyesom Wike, is the First Family's battering ram in Rivers State. In the past few months, especially in alliance with the erstwhile police commissioner in the state, Mbu Joseph Mbu, Mr Wike made himself eagerly available to carry out the First Family's bidding in ruffling, nay, singeing, the feathers of Governor Rotimi Amaechi. Mr Wike, it must be admitted, carried out his tasks with the utmost servility and aplomb. He ranted, raved and poked his fingers angrily in the eyes of the governor, while rhapsodising the feats and accomplishments of President Goodluck Jonathan and his wife.

Now is payback time for the officious junior minister, perhaps the reward he schemed for all along, the kind of quid pro quo his fawning, ingratiating mind is used to. Responding to allegations of meddlesomeness in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) affairs in Rivers, Dame Patience Jonathan, through his press secretary, denied an omnibus agenda to impose PDP governorship candidates in some states, but acknowledged she had always supported Mr Wike whom she described as popular. Said Dame Patience's press secretary: “In the case of Rivers State, the First Lady

wishes to state categorically that the Supervising Minister of Education, Chief Nyesom Wike, is the leader of PDP in Rivers State and he enjoys the followership of the people of the state. The First Lady is solidly behind Chief Wike. The people of Rivers State are also solidly behind Chief Wike and are prepared to follow him…It is also imperative to state that the First Lady is always with the people and will continue to go with the wish and expectations of the people.”

Political pundits need not wander far afield in their analyses of Rivers State's PDP selection processes for the 2015 elections: Dame Patience intends to have her way in addition to having her say. And given the uniquely brusque nature of candidate selection in the PDP, such as were witnessed recently in Ekiti and Osun States, the process will be backed fully by presidential power and resources. Indeed, where Dame Patience goes, there her husband will be. Virtue, as Samuel Richardson indicates in his novel Pamela, has its reward. Looking at Mr Wike's infamous politics, so does vice, as Henry Fielding juxtaposed in his parody Joseph Andrews, and more succinctly in his picaresque novel The History of Tom Jones.

By ADEKUNLE ADE-ADELEYE

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, APRIL 13, 2014

COLUMN

The siege of the light brigade A

S a prelude to the “democratic” war of succession that will make or mar Nigeria, irrespective of the outcome of the ongoing National Conference, the old west is being gradually militarised. The entire region appears to have been placed on the political equivalent of a war footing. The siege is on. It is the kind of shock and awe military terror that will turn Stormin Norman Shwarzkopf to a whimpering old bugger.

A pincer movement is unfolding with the major strategic objective of paralysing the dominant political tendency in the region, or at the minimum render it hors de combat in the bid to capture power at the centre.

You cannot be advancing when your stronghold has been set on fire.

Militarily, it is known as a bridge too far.

With Musiliu Obanikoro, the newly appointed Minister of State for Defence, war-gaming from Lagos all the way to the Ilaje coastline, with Iyiola Omisore and Jelili Adesiyan sadistically probing the heart and plexus of the old region in Osun state, and with a column of reaction heading from Ondo to link up with joyous thugs and fifth columnists already in place in Ekiti-land, once again the Yoruba nation is being turned into a theatre of war and strife.

This time around, it promises to be the mother of all political wars.

But it is the charge of the light and light-headed brigade, and once again, they shall not pass. After the rubble might have cleared, Nigeria will never be the same again. No politician or political group will ever be allowed to come to the western sphere again with the threat of war as the antidote to peace and progress. Even for a libertarian and seemingly carefree people, there is time for everything.

This is not an idle intellectual speculation, but a conclusion reached after a rigorous interrogation of the unfolding political process in the region. It is either the dawn of a new era or darkness forever. The reasons for this stark conclusion are threefold, and they are historical and sociological in nature. It is proper to delve into recent history first.

After the annihilation and political obliteration of the PDP from the region, the whole place has experienced a period of development and accelerated modernity. It is not a perfect state but the fruits are showing for all to see. Not even personal hatred for the individual actors involved or animus towards the chief motivator can remove the fact. From Benin to Ekiti, through Osun, Oyo, Ogun and unto Lagos, the old West is experiencing a developmental resurgence akin to a religious revival.

The people are grateful for the relative peace and stability that being relatively well-governed has brought unlike many other places in the country that have degenerated into hell-holes before our very eyes.

You cannot give what you don’t have.

At the federal level at least, the ruling party has shown itself to be ideologically bereft and politically bankrupt.

As a party, the PDP is beyond soap and water.

You cannot confront light, however imperfect, with darkness however perfect. In order to make a dent in the evolving political consciousness of the sophisticated electorate of Western Nigeria, the PDP will have to come up with a superior paradigm of development and progress. It will have to come up with a visionary blueprint for the radical amelioration of the suffering and biblical misery which have plagued this land and turned Nigeria into the world capital of cannibal capitalism.

But after fifteen fruitless years in power, it is clear that the PDP lacks the intellectual cadre, the political discipline, the psychological stamina, the

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nooping around With

Tatalo Alamu

moral magnitude and imagination to come up with a transformative blueprint. As its body language reveals, it is obvious that it relies mainly on force and thuggery, when it is not fanning the ember of religion and ethnicity in a dangerously polarised polity like Nigeria. The kind of murderous and misbegotten individuals its primaries have thrown up in western Nigeria shows its contempt for the feeling and sensitivity of the Yoruba people.

The PDP is relying on old tricks where only new techniques will suffice. It will meet more than its match in the old West. You cannot fight a modern battle with ancient weapons, particularly a battle also joined at the level of an intellectual contestation for human consciousness and the greater good of the greater community. Unlike the old guard progressives who were sold on law and order, the hazards of the Hansard and other parliamentary canards, the new generation of progressives cut their teeth on the streets and in the trenches fighting against military despotism.

There is always a tide in human affairs. Anybody who witnessed the dogged ferocity, the relentless commotion with which Oshiomhole, Aregbesola and Fayemi and even the normally urbane and debonair Abiola Ajimobi fought to reclaim their stolen mandate will be living in a fools’ paradise to ever imagine that they will allow themselves to be flushed out of

their respective gubernatorial mansions like terrified mice, more so when they have the might of the multitude behind them.

Anybody who mistake Oshiomhole’s gamey gambolling for complacency, Aregbesola’s steely sangfroid and diligent defiance for loss of concentration, or Kayode Fayemi’s donnish demureness for loss of power appetite will have themselves to blame when real political hostilities commence.

It is curious that despite all the information available to him on the disposition of the region, President Jonathan has allowed himself to be sold the impossible betise that all he needs to do is to spring some politically expired thugs on the region and the people will scatter. We hope the federal collaborators and their new recruits take note of this show of love and admiration.

The people of the west have never scattered before bullets. As their tormentors always find out to their peril, when they retreat it is usually to gather momentum for the next determined push against the bastion of reaction. In the history of modern Nigeria, the west has never sought to dominate anybody, but it will resist domination, whether internally or externally inspired.

All the west had tried to do is to extend its vision of modernity and life more abundant for everybody,

irrespective of race, region and religion. In this seemingly quixotic venture, it has met impossible and impregnable impedimenta, not to talk of an iron road block, and it has paid terrifying price in the loss of many of its golden children.

But whenever these moderate ideals of human emancipation are brutally suppressed such as happened during the First Republic, the repressed always return with greater vigour and ferocity such as we witnessed in the Second Republic and the aborted Third Republic when an impossible coalition headed by M.K.O Abiola won a presidential election that was summarily annulled. In the Fourth Republic, the very same ideals have turned out to be the most potent threat to a clueless Federal Government.

We cannot try to hang the messenger while ignoring the message.

There must be something about this progressive ideal of an emancipated community which must explain their durability and persistent eruptions.

What Jonathan and his henchmen should do is to study this ideal of governance, interrogate it intensely and see whether there are no lessons to be learnt.

There is no harm in picking the brains of your political adversaries.

As old Abe Lincoln famously demonstrated, there are immense political advantages accruing from converting political adversaries to principled collaborators. The Nigerian project, or whatever remains of it, is too important to be left at the mercy of small minds.

Having said all this, it is also time for our progressives to engage in intense soul-searching and deep introspection about the tortured trajectory of progressive politics in contemporary Nigeria and the kind of progressive ideals they want to bequeath to coming generations. There can be no successful externally induced plot without a successful internal conspiracy.

Yoruba modern history is steeped in internal treachery, betrayals and

HESE are strange and very interesting times in Nigeria. It is becoming increasingly difficult to separate living from a permanent nightmare and horrible reality from realistic horror. Even for a Stone Age society, there are some horrors that are simply unimaginable. But they are for real. The widespread trading in human parts induces a suspension of reality in the sane and sober.

Is this an official scam to turn everybody into compulsory vegetarians? At least in Ancient Rome when African gladiators were trotted out to fight animals unto death, they were given the chance of a honourable exit. But this new Negro necrophilia on the Equator suggests a vast cuckoo’s nest from which no one can escape.

Increasingly, snooper finds himself taking to bed to avoid the seemingly inevitable. But it turns out that even the bed is no longer a bed of roses. The bed is a bedlam in its own right. Last Friday as snooper lay in bed ruminating about the heinous crimes in the land, particularly the recent idiotic nonsense about the Nigerian economy overtaking South Africa, the phone suddenly rang. It was Okon sounding agitated and dis-

traught.

“Okon, where are you?” snooper bellowed.

“Oga, katakata don burst.

Agaracha don….” the boy mumbled.

“I say: where are you? You’ve gone to the market for over five hours now”, snooper screamed, cutting him off.

“Oga, monkey don go market and he no go return. Dem kidnapper don get man”, Okon replied.

“If they like let dem keep you forever”, snooper raved. At this point a voice in the background demanded the phone from Okon and then began in clear crisp English.

“This is General Constitution Iponkiri. We have your boy”, the voice announced.

“And you can keep him forever”, Snooper screamed.

“Send us five million before evening or we shall cook one of the boy’s legs and send it to you as pepper soup”, the general announced calmly and without any fuss or funfair.

“Oga, if I be your son…” Okon whined in the background.

“You can do whatever you like with him. I don’t negotiate with

criminals” snooper cursed with much distemper.

“You see, it is you we actually want, and we know how to get you. I can tell you that you are wearing blue pyjamas and lying on the bed with lots of books”, the general continued as fear crept up the spine of yours sincerely.

“What?” Snooper exclaimed in disbelief.

“I can also tell you that there is an unfinished bottle of beer under your bed”, the poker-faced terrorist continued.

“E la tanran ooo!” snooper screamed in acute distress as he lapsed into ancient Ife dialect. The force of the exclamation was such that he hit his head against the bed and woke with a searing headache. And there was Okon bringing tea with a devilish smile.

“Oga, abi you be kidnapper sef? I been dey hear you speak to dem”, the mad boy chortled with satanic relish.

“Get lost!” snooper screamed in alarm.

“Oga, if you be kidnapper, I get business” Okon noted with a wink, Snooper leapt at the mad boy who fled shouting, “Oga wan kidnap me oooooo!!!”.

•Aregbesola

Okon in kidnap nightmare T

perfidy. It may be due to the libertarian nature of the people which abhors despotism and unwarranted domination. In post-colonial Nigeria, the cloak and dagger politics have accentuated rather than diminish. This may be due to the epic sweepstakes of a predatory economy. But the question the progressives need to ask themselves is why since independence and up till now, the people who have always given them the worst troubles and headaches are people who have at one time or the other been part of the progressive umbrella.

In the First Republic, the Action Group fractured irretrievable as a result of external plots and internal rebellion. In retrospect, it can be seen that the Action Group was a disaster waiting to happen, being an ersatz and unstable coalition of modernists, monarchists and outright rightwing reactionaries. But a firm lid could be placed on the simmering cauldron as long as there was a strong and charismatic leader like Obafemi Awolowo at the helm.

In the Second Republic, the party fissured as a result of the jostling and jockeying for position among Chief Awolowo’s closest aides and lieutenants. In retrospect, it can safely be said that it was ironically the military bell that saved the UPN from catastrophic implosion. Awo himself hinted at this in his last epistle to the faithful in which he made an allusion to a coming Hegelian synthesis.

Just before the Third Republic could be properly inaugurated, the entire party machinery seceded to the waiting military thus sealing Abiola’s fate. From that moment, the Republic died in vitro, as they say.

Now in the Fourth Republic, we are witnessing a wearisomely familiar script with so many falcons deserting the falconer. Take a count of the following and find out where and how they originated: Omisore, Obanikoro, Dayo Adeyeye, the late Wahab Dosunmu, Gbenga Daniel and now the young and youthful Michael Opeyemi Bamidele.

The situation calls for a candid evaluation of the following: the mode of leadership recruitment to the progressive fold, the pattern of political preferment and the process of consensus building among the progressives. It is in human nature for those who have been given undue and premature preferment to develop outsize appetite for power and glory.

While those who are sworn to the progressive ideal as a lifelong commitment to fundamental principles could afford to be sidelined or treated with brutal disregard, it should now be obvious that the political wayfarers and those who have not reached the level where individual ego can be subordinated for communal good would have none of that. Bar a few sublime souls, the anarchic ego is an outgrowth of anarchic and inchoate human societies.

These are the historic demons the progressive leadership would have to grapple with as they seek to protect their political stronghold even while making a bold pitch for the centre. It is going to be a tough call, particularly given the cultural anxieties and markers of political incompatibilities the coalescing factions bring to the alliance. But it is not an impossible task. As for the light Brigade, perhaps it is time to retrieve their history books from roasted plantain hawkers.

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

NEWS

HE plot to dump Vice President Namadi Sambo as running mate to President Goodluck Jonathan ahead of next year’s election is far from being over, according to indications last night.

The fresh plot is the brainchild of some political heavyweights from the North who believe that for the PDP to make the desired impact in that part of the country in the election, it must have a presidential running mate that is widely acceptable and politically savvy across the region.

Sambo, in their view, is too far removed from the realities of the politics of the region and therefore incapable of either addressing the issues or galvanising support for Jonathan ahead of the 2015 election.

Although the president is yet to publicly announce his intention to seek re-election, political watchers believe that his political machinery is already in place as he meets with different political interests across the nation on a regular basis.

A reliable source said in Abuja that the decision to

2015: Plot to dump Sambo as Jonathan’s running mate thickens

•Four serving governors favoured From Yomi Odunuga, Deputy Editor, Nation’s Capital

drop Sambo was reached at a high level meeting and that Jonathan’s body language on the proposals must have influenced the decision of two of the PDP governors, who are at loggerheads with the President, to drop the idea of joining the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC).

Accordingly, four governors were pencilled down to replace Sambo.

These are Aliyu Babangida of Niger State, Sule Lamido of Jigawa State, Isa Yuguda of Bauchi and Ibrahim Shema of Katsina.

Some of the governors had, in the past, dissociated themselves from the alleged plot to replace Sambo who

was the governor of Kaduna before he was picked by Jonathan as vice president after the death of President Umaru Yar’Adua.

The source said the political heavyweights behind the plot include some retired but influential Army generals from the region, emirs and an ex-president who is pushing for Lamido.

The source said: “Don’t be deceived by the denials and counter-denials. Would you have expected them to publicly accept the plot? What I know is that these persons have been meeting and Sambo might as well be on his last tour of duty as vice president unless something drastically changes the run of event.

“I can tell you that the

strategic choice by Aliyu and Lamido to remain with the PDP was due to the promise extracted by some political heavyweights in the party to make one of them, preferably Lamido who is considered to be highly disciplined and with impressive political savvy in the North, to be nominated as vice president after Sambo has failed to command the kind of respect expected of anyone in that position in the North.”

Asked if the president would not be inflicting a grave injustice on his loyal deputy should he accept the suggestion, the source said the reality is that the president would have to analyse the options before him and take a decision that would positively affect his future.

“First, it was understood that the failure to bring the Boko Haram menace to an end or even try to talk to its leadership to stop the carnage and come to the roundtable for a peace talk was due to the fact that most persons in the North still do not recognise Sambo as a Northern leader. They see him as a businessman who knows little or nothing about the politics of his domain.

“What if I told you that Shema is also scheming to be vice president in spite of his repeated denials and there is a belief that former President Ibrahim Babangida might not support Babangida Aliyu as vice president due to some reasons?”

It was gathered that the

political heavyweights rooting for a Lamido vice presidential ticket have been holding talks with Jonathan and may soon reach an agreement that would seriously endanger the political fortunes of Sambo in 2015.

The source said former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s sudden silence on the Jonathan presidency might not be unconnected with how far the political discourse has gone.

It is believed that Lamido should be able to garner support to match whatever threat the Buhari or APC strategy in the North might engender.

However, it was learnt that Sambo is not taking the matter lying low as he was said to have been meeting with some of the northern governors excluding those interested in his seat, in order to garner support for his candidacy.

•L-R: Deputy Governor, Ekiti State, Prof Modupe Adelabu; Osun State Governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola; Managing Director/E-i-C, Champion Newspapers, Mrs Nwadiuto Iheakanwa; Ekiti State Governor/ Awardee, Dr Kayode Fayemi; his wife, Erelu Bisi Fayemi; Speaker, House of Representatives, Hon Aminu Tambuwal; and former Ekiti State Governor, Otunba Niyi Adebayo , during Fayemi's investiture as Champion Newspapers' Governor of the Year (2013) in Lagos….on Friday.

N10b jet scandal: Probe panel writes minister, agencies

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HE House of Representatives’ planned probe of the N10 billion incurred on chartered jet by the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani AlisonMadueke, is taking shape.

The House Committee on Public Accounts has summoned five key agencies to appear before it to testify.

The inquiry may commence on April 29, although some forces in the Presidency are believed to be mounting pressure on the House to shelve the probe.

The forces, sources said in Abuja yesterday, were the brains behind the recent proAlison-Madueke rallies in Abuja.

They were allegedly aimed at intimidating the reps.

But the House appears resolute to go ahead with the probe.

It was gathered that some volunteers have reached out to members of the House committee to testify in public.

Investigation also showed that there may be a resort to

•Public inquiry begins from April 29 From Yusuf Alli, Managing Editor, Northern Operation

litigation by forces sympathetic to the minister, with a view to scuttling the probe.

The pro-litigation forces are of the opinion that Section 88(1) (2) of the 1999 Constitution is being abused.

They may ask the court to restrain the House from probing Diezani until the determination of the substantive suit.

Investigation by our correspondent confirmed that the House panel has notified the minister of Petroleum Resources and others to appear before the committee as from April 29.

The notice contains a list of documents the respondents are to bring along to assist the committee’s investigation.

Summoned are: the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency

(NAMA), and the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN).

A reliable source in the House said: “We have put the minister and all these agencies on notice on why they have to appear before the House committee and documents expected from them.

“For instance, we are expecting from NNPC all transaction documents on the chartered Challenger 850 aircraft.

We have taken note of its defence that chartered jets are used for operation purpose.

“The public should know whether there had been precedence and how much NNPC has spent within a given period on chartered planes.

“If we have a clearer picture, the amount involved might be more than what we are looking into. The list of beneficiaries of chartered jet service might even not be only the minister whom they say the House is trying to crucify

for performing its constitutional duties.”

The aviation agencies are expected to produce relevant data, flight logs and evidence of payment of required fees.

The data will be verified with those already in the possession of the committee.

Responding to a question, the source said: “There is pressure on us by some forces to shelve the probe but there is no going back by the House.

“We hope to be fair to all.

If the allegations against the minister are frivolous, we will give her a clean bill of health.

We have no prejudice against her.”

A second source said the investigation will start from April 29.

“The probe becomes interesting as some volunteers have applied to the committee to appear during the public hearing.

“We have also written some of these volunteers for

relevant documents.”

Meanwhile, there were indications last night that some forces loyal to the minister are planning to halt the probe through a court process.

The forces may join issues with the House on Section 88(1) (2) of the 1999 Constitution.

They are alleging that the said Section 88(1) is being abused by both chambers of the National Assembly.

It was learnt that the forces may ask the court to restrain the House Committee on Public Accounts from going ahead with the probe until the determination of the substantive suit.

Another source added: “I think these forces have realised that sponsored protest marches or rallies have not had the desired impact to stop the probe.

“They are planning to go to court to ask it to determine whether the committee has the powers to conduct the investigation in the light of

Section 88(1) (2) of the 1999 Constitution.

“The real plot is to obtain a perpetual injunction to halt the probe until the determination of the substantive suit.

And you know the culture in the National Assembly is to stay action once a matter is sub judice.

“The argument of proDiezani is that Section 88(1) (2) of the 1999 Constitution is not absolute.

“But the position of the House is that the constitution is explicit on such an inquiry.”

A pro-Diezani force said: “The National Assembly has really been abusing this section of the constitution to ridicule government officials.

“It is now time to seek the correct interpretation of the section in court and the limit of the powers of the National Assembly.

“Some of us think the intendment of the constitution is different from what the National Assembly is using it for.

It is time to call a spade a spade.”

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

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OVERNORS Rauf Aregbesola of Osun State and Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State are on course for a fresh mandate.

The two of them were yesterday picked unopposed at the APC congresses in their states to fly the party’s flag in the governorship elections scheduled for June 21 in Ekiti and August 9 in Osun.

The Ekiti congress which took place at the Trade Fair Complex, Ado-Ekiti, capital of the state, was attended by the Governor , his deputy, Prof. Modupe Adelabu, wife of the state governor, Erelu Bisi Fayemi; Speaker of the State Assembly, Dr. Adewale Omirin; the Interim State Chairman of the APC, Chief Jide Awe and the Chief of Staff to the Governor, Mr. Yemi Adaramodu.

It was conducted by a team of National officers of APC led by the party’s National Organising Secretary, Senator Osita Izunaso Other members of the team

Fayemi, Aregebesola win APC gurber tickets

From Sulaiman Salawudeen, Ado-Ekiti/Adesoji Adeniyi,Osogbo

were Alhaji Abubakar Suleja (Secretary), Isah Maduto, Capt Bala Jubril (rtd), Alhaji Yemi Sanusi, and Steve Asimoke.

Also in attendance were the representatives of the Independent National Electoral Commission and men of the Nigeria Police and the State Security Service.

Senator Izunaso, before presenting the certificate of return said that only Governor Fayemi obtained the nomination form at the headquarters of the party in Abuja.

He said that the party held the primaries “based on the

enormous respect the party has for the constitution and internal democracy within it” and urged the people of the State to cast their votes for Fayemi.

According to him, Fayemi emerged candidate after polling 192,767 votes of delegates across the 16 councils and 177 wards in the state.

He described the APC as not just a party but “a movement that will change our country from poverty to affluence, from corruption to cleanliness and liberate the people from the misrule of the Peoples Democratic Party”.

In his acceptance comments, Fayemi described APC as a democratic party founded on the credo of internal democracy.

According to him, his emergence as the flag bearer of the APC showed him as having the supports of the party members and the people of the state.

He added: “If what we got today is what we get on the day of election, then the victory is sealed and delivered. But we have to do more than that. We have to go out and propagate the APC to Nigerians as the best party for our people.

In the Osun State primary, Gov Aregbesola got the backing of 269, 631 out of the 355,729 eligible party members to seek reelection.

The congress was conducted by party officials led by former minister of the FCT, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai.

He described the nomination of Gov. Aregbesola as a testimony to his yeoman performances in the last three and a half years.

He said Nigerian and African leaders should borrow a leaf from the governor’s people’s oriented leadership trait.

Speaking on Aregbesola’s legacies, the former Minister said; “By the special grace of God after APC form the government at the federal level by 2015, we are going to adopt O-Meal, OYES and Opon-Imo across the nation to give better living condition to Nigerians as Aregbesola has done for the people of Osun.”

Aregbesola, in his acceptance speech, thanked party

Nigerian arrested for tweeting jail break photos freed

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HE State Security Service (SSS) yesterday released a man who was arrested for tweeting pictures of an attempted jail break at the headquarters of the intelligence agency in Abuja, his younger brother said.

Yusuf Siyaka Onimisi, who works for a national electricity firm, was arrested and held incommunicado for at least 11 days after tweeting the pictures.

“I confirm that my brother has been released. I spoke with him earlier today and our mum is with him in Abuja,” Sanusi Onimisi told AFP on telephone from Kano.

“I thank all Nigerians, the media and human rights organisations within and outside the country who stood to fight for the release of my brother,” he said.

•L-R: Member representing Oron Federal Constituency in the House of representatives, Hon Robinson Uwak, Speaker of the House, But he gave no details of the Hon Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, representative of Akwa Ibom First Lady and state Commissioner of Women Affairs, Dr. Glory Edet, at the constituency empowerment programme held in Oron, Akwa Ibom State, yesterday. release.

“All I can say is that he has been freed by those who arrested, detained and held him incommunicado for about 11 days. I have not slept well since his arrest,” Sanusi said.

Onimisi’s case sparked concern from human rights groups, From Augustine Ehikioya, But don’t depend on your horse-carriage, cut the cake RESIDENT Goodluck with Amnesty International on Abuja parents to solve your matri- under the direction of the Jonathan took time off Friday urging the Nigerian sehis busy schedule yesHe said of his mood yes- monial problems. If you wife of the Senate President, curity forces to disclose his terday to offer some advice terday: “A day you are giv- have disagreement with your Mrs. Helen Mark. whereabouts.

The 32-year-old was as- to his newly wedded daugh- ing out your daughter out in husband…., don’t always At the wedding recepmarriage is a day of glorious run to parents or get advice tion yesterday were former signed to a sub-station within ter, Faith, on marital life. the presidential compound in Faith was married to sadness. My advice is that, of your mother or father. President Olusegun Abuja.

Godswill Edward at a cer- today is a very special day: Sometimes, they will not give Obasanjo, the Speaker of The compound is near the emony in Abuja. we are all smiling and danc- you the best advice. Because the House of RepresentaDirectorate of State Services President Jonathan told ing but also note that there your parents are analogue tives, Aminu Tambuwal, (DSS) headquarters where the the couple at the wedding will be periods when the re- people while you are digital Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Mr. agency said there was an at- reception in their honour at lationship will not work generation.”

Femi Otedola, Chairman of The Chairman of the oc- PDP Board of Trustees, tempted jail break on March 30, the International Conference smoothly. That is a part of sparking a gun battle that killed Centre, Abuja to try as much the life of husband and wife. casion and former military Chief Tony Anenih.

21 detainees.

“There is no couple that head of state, General as possible to solve every Governors at the recepReports suggested Boko matrimonial problem that will not have some moments Yakubu Gowon said mar- tion included Rotimi Haram militants were among might arise in the course of when their faces will not be riage is all about give and Amaechi of Rivers, Jonah the detainees trying to escape, time. too bright, but it depends on take.

Jang (Plateau), Emmanuel but there has been no official “No matter the problem Uduaghan He said their parents how you reach out ……. and (Delta) confirmation of the group’s in- should be left out of such really find time to under- that may come your way, Theordor Orji (Abia), volvement. stand themselves. And we never allow the day to pass Gabriel Suswam (Benue), problems.

According to AFP, Nigeria’s He said that parents, pray that you have a really without resolving the prob- Godswill Akpabio (Akwa security forces, including the generally, should leave happy married life and we lem through prayers and Ibom), Ibrahim Shema SSS, have frequently cited na- couples to sort out them- will continue to pray for you love,” he said.

(Katsina) Liyel Imoke tional security concerns to jus- selves as parents and their as your parents.”

“It is only you that can (Cross Rivers) and Secretify arresting people who pub- children belong to different Continuing, he said: make it a success. Look at tary to the Government of lish sensitive material.

“Our duties as parents is to your parents and emulate the Federation (SGF), generations.

DSS spokeswoman Marylin He described the par- continue to pray for you, to them.” He said Anyim Pius Anyim .

Ogar did not respond to phone The new couple, who ents’ period as ‘analogue’ encourage you and if there Guests were entertained calls seeking comment on and that of their children as are some issues you feel we were conveyed from the by Iyanya and D’Banj Onimisi. can solve, you can tell us. church to the reception on among other artistes. ‘digital’.

Don’t depend on me to solve your matrimonial problems, Jonathan tells daughter

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members for their support and pledged that his second term would be the beginning of a new era for the state and the people.

Responding to a statement credited to the National Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Ahmadu Mua’zu, that ‘it is difficult but not impossible to unseat Aregbesola in Osun’, the governor said; “it is difficult and impossible to unseat Aregbesola in Osun.”

Present at the event were the state’s Deputy Governor, Mrs. Grace Titilayo Laoye-Tomori, members of the state’s House of Assembly led by the Speaker, Najeem Salam, APC National Assembly member from Osun, members of APC National Working Committee, APC State Working Committee led by the Interim Chairman of the party in the state, Elder Adebiyi Adelowo, members of the state Executive Council and members of the APC Osun Governorship Primary State Collation Officers led by its Chairman, Professor Siyan Oyeweso.

JAMB holds UTME exams in Yobe amidst tight security From Duku JOEL, Damaturu

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HE Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination was held without any security breach across all centres in Yobe State yesterday, 24 hours after another round of attacks in neighbouring Borno State by members of the Islamist sect, Boko Haram.

One target of the attacks was a secondary school in Dikwa where six teachers and some students were killed.

Similar attacks took place in Kala-Balge towns and near Dalwa, according to Senator Ahmed Zanna, who represents the area in the National Assembly.

No fewer than 19 people are feared dead in the attacks.

Yesterday’s JAMB exam however took place in major towns in Yobe like Damaturu, Gashua, Potiskum, and Geidam.

Security was tight as the examination got underway with candidates screened by security personnel before being allowed into the exam hall.

Some centres in the state were collapsed to accommodate candidates from particularly volatile areas.

A candidate, Hafsat Abdullahi, said that though she attends school in Maiduguri her father registered her in Yobe for fear of Boko Haram.

Another candidate, Musa Mohammadu said that he was “just happy that Allah has seen us through”.

No official of JAMB was ready to speak with the press as many of them that were approached turned down the reporter’s request.

It was gathered that insurgents stormed the Dikwa school in the early hours of Thursday, killing six teachers and two security guards.

They also abducted an unspecified number of women, residents said.

A witness, Modu Kakarimi, who fled Dikwa to Maiduguri, the state capital, said he and some others ran away to safety when they heard sound of gunshots.

NEWS

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

Boko Haram kills 19 in Borno villages

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HE Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination was held without any security breach across all centres in Yobe State yesterday, 24 hours after another round of attacks in neighbouring Borno State by members of the Islamist sect, Boko Haram.

One target of the attacks was a secondary school in Dikwa where seven teachers and some students were killed.

Similar attacks took place in Kala-Balge towns and near Dalwa, according to Senator Ahmed Zanna, who represents the area in the National Assembly.

No fewer than 19 people are feared dead in the attacks, but the senator put the death toll at 217.

He said the 217 were killed in six villages.

Of this number 60 were killed in Kala-Balge and 150 in three other villages.

Yesterday’s JAMB exam

•Senator puts death toll at 217 From Duku JOEL, Damaturu

however took place in major towns in Yobe like Damaturu, Gashua, Potiskum, and Geidam.

Security was tight as the examination got underway with candidates screened by security personnel before being allowed into the exam hall.

Some centres in the state were collapsed to accommodate candidates from particularly volatile areas.

A candidate, Hafsat Abdullahi, said that though she attends school in Maiduguri her father registered her in Yobe for fear of Boko Haram.

Another candidate, Musa Mohammadu said that he was “just happy that Allah has seen us through”.

No official of JAMB was ready to speak with the press as many of them that were approached turned down the

reporter’s request.

It was gathered that insurgents stormed the Dikwa school in the early hours of Thursday, killing six teachers and two security guards.

They also abducted an unspecified number of women, residents said.

A witness, Modu Kakarimi, who fled Dikwa to Maiduguri, the state capital, said he and some others ran away to safety when they heard sound of gunshots.

“Our fear was heightened when we saw the boarding school (college) in flames. We later gathered that they have killed eight there. We fled together with our women and children,” Kakarimi said.

Senator Ahmed Zanna confirmed the Dikwa killing to journalists but he said he could not provide full details.

“There was a siege on one of the schools in the town just after midnight... They also

razed the school library and escaped into the night through the bushes,” he said.

A group of insurgents also attacked Kala-Balge town, killing three people and setting many houses ablaze, some local officials said on condition of anonymity.

On Friday, suspected Islamists blocked MaiduguriBiu highway near Dalwa village and shot dead eight passengers, a passer-by Mustapha Ali, said.

Ali, who passed through Dalwa on his way to Maiduguri said the insurgents stormed the highway in broad daylight.

There was no immediate confirmation of the attacks by security agencies but a top security officer, who demanded anonymity, confirmed them.

“There were various attacks in the state ...It is sad,” he said.

Violence in the Northeast has already killed some 1,500 people this year.

Apc members being counted by a returning officer at Ayobo Ipaja Local Council Development Authority during the party’s Local Government congress in Lagos yesterday.

PHOTO: NAN

Disquiet in military over Obanikoro’s use of soldiers

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HE military high command is increasingly becoming uncomfortable with recent alleged actions by the Minister of State for Defence, Senator Musiliu Okanikoro.

Specifically, the occupation by soldiers drafted to the disputed parcel of land (Ilubirin) in Lagos on the orders of the minister, has continued to generate concern among the top hierarchy of the nation’s Armed Forces.

One of the military chiefs, who spoke to our correspondent in confidence at the weekend, expressed disgust about the minister’s actions, saying it would serve the interest of the Armed Forces if the minister refrained from dragging soldiers into partisan matters.

The highly placed military source, who spoke with our correspondent on telephone on Saturday, deplored the use of soldiers by the minister over what he described as purely a partisan issue.

He said: “The minister’s action is indecent and inconsistent with the regimented tradition of the military. There is no reason why some politicians would want to pocket the military in the name of politics.

“By tradition, the military is bound to restrict itself to the protection of the nation’s territorial integrity, so involving soldiers in this type of exercise tends to create the wrong impression that the military is being partisan, which must not be so.”

Defending his action in drafting soldiers to the parcel of land, Obanikoro, in response to the objections raised by the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, had stated among others: “I made an unscheduled visit to the land on the fateful day in

From Gbade Ogunwale, Assistant Editor, Abuja question to take a physical assessment of the land. Perhaps, the presence of the military men attached to my convoy is what was termed ‘commando-like’ by the Lagos State Government, but one would expect that the Governor should know better if his intentions are genuine.”

“Governor Fashola has objected to getting an approval from the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN). He does not even want the consent of the Federal Ministry of Works.

“The location of his site breaks all the laws on set back requirements for highways and roads”, adding that “as a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), I expect him to know that the construction is illegal.

“He needs to stop using the name of Alhaji Femi Okunnu to legalise his illegality. It only shows the recklessness and impunity that he governs with”.

Obanikoro was also quoted in the report to have said that the Lagos State government lacked all necessary documentation for the project, adding that “efforts to make the government do the needful had consistently been rebuffed by state officials.”

But the military source reminded the minister of the existence of relevant Federal Government ministries and agencies charged with the responsibility of handling such matters.

Confirming media reports on the recent altercation between Obanikoro and the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Air Marshall Alexander Badeh, shortly after resumption of duties, the source maintained that the CDS truly expressed his objections to what he considered the minister’s indiscretion.

Probes: Pressure mounts on Jonathan North doesn’t have to to sack Petroleum minister depend on oil, says Lamido

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RESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan is under increasing pressure to sack the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani AlisonMadueke following fears within the Presidency and the top echelon of the ruling party that the various committees of the House of Representatives currently investigating her and the activities of her ministry may pronounce her guilty.

Madueke is facing probe by the House of Representatives over her alleged expenditure of N10 billion on a chartered jet.

A couple of weeks back, aviation experts under the aegis of the Concerned Aviation Professionals (CAP) sent a petition to President Goodluck Jonathan over what they described as the worrisome spate of plundering the nation’s resources by the Minister. They accused the minister of spending not less than N10 billion of public fund on maintaining a private aircraft in the last two years.

The aviation professionals asked the presidency to immediately institute a probe into the ownership, maintenance and usage of the aircraft marked OE-ILA,

By Dare Odufowokan, Assistant Editor

domiciled at one of the private hangers in a Nigerian airport in the last two years.

The Budget Office recently added to Madueke’s headache when it said it was never aware of any approval and or directive in writing from a higher authority mandating NNPC to import kerosene on behalf of the nation, and subsequently collect subsidy.

Following with the insistence of the House of Representatives to probe the embattled minister and with criticism of the government daily increasing, sources said President Jonathan’s associates and the leadership of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) are urging him to remove Madueke to save the reputation of his administration and ensure that the party’s chances during the 2015 general elections are not adversely affected by the impeding probe of the minister.

And while the Presidency was still wondering how it could save the Minister, the Reps passed another resolution to the effect that the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas had not remitted

revenue to the Federation Account since 2004. It resolved that its Committee on Gas Resources should investigate the issue within three weeks as well.

Sources said that with the House of Reps out of control of the PDP,it would do the party and the Presidency a lot of good to remove the minister thus taking the initiative from the Reps who may indict her.

Even the leadership of the party is calling for a decisive action to be taken so as to save the party further embarrassment.

Recently, Ahmed Gulak, President Jonathan’s special adviser on political matters, has said that the presidency would not shield the minister but added that the president would not take a decision based on media reports but on verifiable facts.

Madueke is said to have paid the sum of 500,000 Euros (N130 million) every month on the maintenance, meaning that, over the last two years, a total of N10 billion has been expended on payments of allowances to the plane’s crew, hangar parking and rent based on a lease agreement.

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HE Lamido of Adamawa, Alhaji Mustapha Bakindo yesterday threw another bombshell, saying the North can be self sufficient if it decides to do so.

He said agriculture and tax are enough to sustain the region as against the present over reliance on oil.

The Lamido who recently caused a stir at the National Conference in Abuja when he said he would not hesitate to lead his people to join their kith and kin in Cameroun should Nigeria break up, said on the Hausa Service of BBC that some Northern leaders were not representing their people well with their beggarly disposition.

This, he said, was responsible for the low esteem some Nigerians had for them.

He said yesterday that many countries in the world were developing without oil money and that the oil producing states are allowed to take as much as they want.

He said delegates to the ongoing National Conference must be

From Tony Akowe, Kaduna

prepared to tell the nation the home truth if it must succeed.

He said: “ since we started (the conference), for three days I have sat down and observed how some people were talking with arrogance, they talk authoritatively ….they see the North as beggars, or Almajiri who have nothing to do.

“That’s the reason why I spoke. I told them that mine is a warning to the people because from the way we were going, the conference will disperse without achieving anything, and if we don’t do anything, many things will happen including the disintegration of Nigeria. “ But I said God forbid. I said if Nigeria disintegrates, those people shouting at this conference, they will have anywhere to go. But I and the people of Adamawa, and some other people in Nigeria, have somewhere to go.

“I also explained to them that my kingdom, stretches across three countries…Nigeria,

Cameroun and Chad. In all these countries, whichever one I go to, nobody will look at me as a stranger, and I will remain there comfortably. So it was a warning that I have sounded to the people.

“If a person of my calibre can’t talk like that at the conference why was I brought there? Why did they call me to attend the conference? Should I just sit down and watch people…, for them to talk and I should just say yes?

“Since they brought me here, I will tell the truth, I will say the fact anywhere and in front of anybody. It’s sad the people of Nigeria don’t like the truth, once you are saying the truth, they brand you as “controversial.”

He took exception to the misconception some Nigerians have about Northerners.

He said: “these people the from oil producing states are looking at us as if we are beggars, gold diggers who have nothing to do. That is why I said the non oil producing states are not cowards, they don’t fear anybody.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

Soyinka advocates secular Nigeria From: Adesoji Adeniyi, Osogbo

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HAIRMAN of the Black Culture and In-

ternational Understanding, Prof. Wole Soyinka, has advocated for secularism of the nation.

He maintained that religion should be a private affair that must never be allowed to influence policies of government.

Speaking at a press conference in preparation for a 3-day programme by BCIU tagged: All-Comers Colloquium at the NUJ Press Centre, Osogbo, Soyinka said clerics in the religious circles should stay away from governance.

Speaking through the chairman, Planning Committee of the colloquium, Prof. Wale Adeniran, the Nobel Laureate stated that religious leaders should only pray for those in power and not to be seen participating in governance.

He said: “Religious practices should be based on individuals and should not be brought into public domain to prevent conflict or religious war in governance that will eventually lead to disintegration of the society.

“Many leaders in governance use religion to perpetrate atrocities and use it to manipulate and divide followers to achieve their aims but if every individual practices his/her religion privately there will not be such.

“They use it deliberately to disintegrate and cause confusion in the country and if this is personalised such things will be discouraged”.

Committee on grazing reserves, stock routes inaugurated From: Frank Ikpefan, Abuja

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HE Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, at the weekend inaugurated a technical committee to develop grazing reserves and stock routes to address the problems between farmers and herdsmen in the country.

Adesina, at the inauguration in Abuja, said that President Goodluck Jonathan had also set up an inter-ministerial committee to address the issue.

He said that government was working hard to find a solution to the clashes between herdsmen and farmers in the country.

The minister stressed the need to integrate the state governments for a multi-dimensional and permanent solution to the challenges.

He expressed optimism that the committee would proffer lasting solutions to the crisis and tasked the committee members to deliver their report in two weeks.

Adesina said: “To address this problem, we need short term, medium term and long term solutions and this committee should also look at best practices across the world for solutions.

“Giving the urgency of this matter, the committee has two weeks to deliver their report.”

NEWS

PDP has done nothing for South West, says Aregbesola

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HE ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has not brought any meaningful development to the South West region since the return of democracy, Osun State governor, Rauf Aregbesola, stated yesterday.

He spoke in Iwo, headquarters of the Iwo Local Government where he was endorsed for second term at the weekend by thousands of supporters of the All Progressive Congress (APC).

The supporters thronged the playing field of the District Council Elementary School, Araromi, where they waved the broom symbol of the party.

Aregbesola assured that all the remaining roads projects around the town and those linking Iwo to the state capital and the neighbouring

Oyo State would be reconstructed.

He said Iwo remains critical to the economic reconstruction of Osun, stating that the indigenes have been known in history as enterprising people.

According to the governor: “The road from Papa boundary to Iwo will be done. We always stand by our promise because we are not like the people who ruled the state for seven and half years without anything to show for it.

“We thank our people for having confidence in us; for displaying the conviction that we hold our promises with tenacity. There is nothing we promised that will not be delivered”.

He added: “At a time in this state, they were the occupants of the three tiers of government: the Federal, State and

Local government and they couldn’t do anything positive for the state, they are supposed to hide their heads in shame,” the governor stressed.

“We should all begin to tell ourselves that it is only the APC that can deliver good governance in the country. We should not leave the campaign to politicians alone”.

Former Commissioner for Information, Alhaji Bola Asafa, who is the Ekerin of Iwo land, noted that though Osun is poor in terms of financial resources, the degree of performance noticed so far has ranked Aregbesola among some of the best managers of resources in Nigeria.

The Secretary to the State Government, Alhaji Mushood Adeoti, urged the people of Iwo and entire state to continue to support the government and

the party.

He stressed that it is only the APC that can move the state and the country forward in the right direction.

The SSG said: “Look at our roads, look at the new schools he is building, a lot of our jobless youths are now gainfully employed as a result of the OYES scheme put in place by our governor.

“This government is feeding our elementary school pupils every day. The PDP cannot do it, don’t be deceived by their lies”.

He moved a motion for the adoption of the governor for a second term, which was immediately seconded by Alhaji Liadi Ganiyu, another leader of the party in the local government area to a loud applause from the teeming supporters of the party.

•L-R: Osita Chidoka Corps Marshal and Chief Executive of Federal Road Safety Corps Nigeria with Dr Ernest Bai Koroma President of Sierra Leone…recently

Dickson: Only people, God can decide my second term B AYELSA State governor, Seriake Dickson, has said his political future belongs to God and indigenes of the state.

Apparently alluding to alleged moves to scuttle his chances for a second term in 2016, Dickson insisted that ruling the state again is entirely the decision of God and the people.

He spoke while admitting new commissioners into his cabinet at the weekend.

He said though he and members of his team are not perfect, they must leave a legacy of performance in the state.

The governor regretted that “some persons who ought to know better”, were flying the kite of division in the state.

He urged his cabinet to counter such divisive tendencies by maintaining a healthy relationship with their constituencies.

Addressing the commissioners, he said: “We may not be perfect, but let it be said that we came and saw the problem of our people and we did our best to address them.

“In that context, to us, serving our people is the call to duty and anything more than

From: Mike Odiegwu, Yenagoa

that is a call to service to God. “You are coming in at the middle of our tenure, the first term of four years as you all know what happens thereafter belongs to you the people and God”.

The governor warned the commissioners against selfishly enriching themselves reiterating his earlier position that none of his cabinet members would be a millionaire.

He said gone were the days when people amassed stupendous wealth, buy exotic cars and build mansions with the commonwealth in the name of serving the people.

Dickson, who said his administration has been fighting very hard to address such mindset, observed that such entrenched mentality was also fighting back.

He insisted that people serving in his cabinet must be contented with the honour of service, urging them to take the business of governance seriously.

While charging them to

follow the laid down principles, Dickson implored the commissioners to deliver on the restoration mandate.

The new commissioners were sworn in to fill the vacancies created by the recent sacking of eight cabinet members.

Dickson scrapped the Ministry of Capital City Development and orderd that the functions of the ministry should be transferred to the Capital City Development Authority (CCDA).

He said all the ongoing projects in the deleted ministry should be transferred to the Ministry of Special projects in the Governor’s office.

The governor further divided the Ministry of Energy into two by creating ministries

of Power and Mineral Resources.

He also split the Ministry of Local Government into the ministries of Community Development, Chieftaincy Affairs and Local Government Administration.

The new Commissioners are Mr. Kemasuode Wodu, Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice; Dr. Ayibatonye Owei, Health; Mr. Kemela Okara, Trade, Industry and Investment and Mr. Iniruo Wills, Environment.

Also, Chief Martin Agbede heads the newly created Ministry of Community Development and Chieftaincy Affairs; Mr. Inditimi Komonibo, Science, Technology and Manpower Development; Chief Jim Ogbolo Partner-Edward, Ministry of Power and Hon. Ebikitin Diongoli, Sports Development.

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NDLEA confiscates drugs worth N240million

By Kelvin Osa Okunbor

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FFICIALS of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have seized illicit drugs valued at N240million at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Lagos.

The drugs weighing 95.93kg were seized between January and March 2014.

A total of 19 suspected drug traffickers were also apprehended.

They include 16 males and three females.

The NDLEA Commander at the Lagos Airport, Mr. Hamza Umar, disclosed this at the weekend in a chat with reporters.

He said: ”Within the first quarter of 2014, the Airport command seized cocaine 9.060kg, heroin 16.950kg, cannabis 27.235kg, methamphetamine 3.4kg, ephedrine 2kg, morphine 14.96kg,apresoline 3.505kg, pethidine 10.82kg and diazepam 8kg”.

The agency observed that there was a reduction in quantity of drugs seized in the first quarter of 2014 compared to 2013.

In 2013, total drugs seized at the Lagos airport was 172.145kg.

While the quantity of drugs reduced by 76.215kg in the period under review, the number of persons arrested also reduced by one.

The Chairman/Chief Executive of NDLEA, Ahmadu Giade, said that the agency will continue to intensify security checks at all exit points in the country.

“The reduction in the quantity of drugs seized is an indication that we are making progress in our search operations.

“We shall continue to improve on our counter-strategies through the use of latest technology in drug control,” he stated.

Oguejiofor for burial

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HIEF Mrs. Sabina Oguejiofor is dead. She was 74.

The deceased was a renowned church and community leader.

A vigil mass holds on April 30 while the burial service is on May 1 at St. Francis Catholic Church, Enugwu Ukwu, Anambra State.

Interment follows immediately.

She is survived by her husband and only son, Chief Austin Oguejiofor, Chairman/ CEO First Rotech Group of Companies.

Manna Prayer Mountain’s revival service

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revival programme organised by the Manna Prayer Mountain, an inter-denominational ministry at OriokeOgudu Lagos, holds from April 16 to April 20.

The General Overseer of the ministry, Bishop (Dr.)

Chris Kwakpovwe, assured that the service with the theme I shall rise again would usher participants into breakthrough and greatness.

He added there would be salvation and deliverance for those who dare to attend the revival.

•Late Mrs. Sabina Oguejiofor

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

NEWS

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APC congress: Officials emerge in Alimosho

By Oziegbe Okoeki

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HE All Progressives Congress (APC) local government congress at Alimosho was conducted under a very peaceful atmosphere on Saturday at Ipaja with officials emerging for all the 29 offices contested.

At the end of the exercise, Mrs. Toyin Onileyan emerged as chairman with Prince Adeniran Alao as vice chairman. Hon. Dele Ojo was elected as general secretary, Alhaji Ganiyu Ogungbade as Assistant Secretary, while Mr. J.A. Adeyemi emerged as treasurer.

Officers for other positions like financial secretary, organising secretary, auditor, women leader, youth leader, welfare officer and their assistants, amongst others were also elected.

The lawmaker representing Alimosho 1 Constituency at the Lagos State House of Assembly, Hon. Bisi Yusuf, who was excited at the orderliness and peaceful conduct of the exercise, called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) "to come and learn from the political structure of Alimosho and how the election turned out peacefully and successfully".

Reacting to the allegation of imposition of candidates that trailed the ward congress last week, Yusuf said the allegation was baseless and unfounded.

Oyo APC LG Congress peaceful From Oseheye Okwuofu, Ibadan

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HE local government congress of the All Progressives Congress (APC) held yesterday in 31 out of 33 local councils in Oyo State.

The election, which was well attended by party faithful, was generally peaceful though there were unconfirmed report of skirmishes in Iseyin and Ibarapa areas of the state.

It was learnt that the congress could not hold in Atiba and Oyo West Local Government Areas where ward congress was disrupted last week.

It was observed that the congress was over in most of the councils within 40 minutes, while majority of the candidates were elected by consensus.

However, security was beefed up with regular police and members of the state security outfit, "Operation Burst", strategically positioned in all the centres used for the congress.

At the Ido Local Government Area, the 24-member executive for the party in the council were elected less than 30 minutes after their names were announced, the development which the council chairman, Professor Joseph Adeniyi Olowofela, attributed to the strategies put up by the party elders in the council to ensure that members of all the component political parties that merged to form APC were represented in the new executive.

Police arrest two ladies, three others with human heads, flesh

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OLICEMEN attached to the Ogun State Police Command on Friday arrested two ladies-Kubura Salami, Kafaya Poopola, and three men-Tantolorun Abimbola, Wahid Ibrahim and Adamu Rafiu, for allegedly being in possession of human heads and some pieces of human flesh.

The five suspects were apprehended in Joju area of Ota in Ado Odo Ota Local Government Area of Ogun State in a joint operation

From Ernest Nwokolo, Abeokuta

conducted by the A team from Ota Divisional Police Headquarters led by Mr. Gabriel Dibie and the Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS) from the Lagos State Command.

It was gathered that the police team from Ota assisted the SARS operatives who got the information of the activities of the suspects at the Joju area, where they were arrested following a tip- off.

According to the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Ogun State Command, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, the "exhibits recovered from the suspects include one complete human head and pieces of human flesh in a container stained with liquid substance suspected to be human blood."

Adejobi, a deputy superintendent of police (DSP), said the State Commissioner of police, Mr. Ikemefuna Okoye, have ordered that the

case be handed over to SARS Lagos for discreet investigation since it's a follow-up to an ongoing investigation, while the Ogun State Command will complement their effort in the course of its separate investigation.

Okoye also assured residents of the state that the police will not condone any act of criminality in the state as it is ready to harness all available resources to reduce crime to the barest minimum.

•From right: Osun State Governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, addressing a mammoth crowd during the endorsement of his second term in office by the Iwo community at the weekend.

Ondo PDP faults Nwanyanwu on Ilaje bye election

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HE Ondo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has criticised a statement credited to the national chairman of the Labour Party (LP), Chief Dan Nwanyanwu, that the LP candidate in the April 5 by-election into the House of Representatives, Mr. Kolade Akinjo, was the winner of the election.

The party therefore called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)

From Damisi Ojo, Akure

to declare the PDP candidate as the lawmaker-elect.

The PDP through its State publicity secretary, Wale Ozogoro, said, "Indeed, the desperation of the LP chairman is pardonable, as his in-depth knowledge of the Electoral Act is questionable.

"His vituperation and uncultured allegations that INEC in connivance with the PDP want

to get victory through the back door is uncalled for, unfounded and the deceptive tendencies the party is known for."

The party pointed out that INEC reserves the right to declare an election inconclusive or cancel such out rightly, adding that any party that is not satisfied with the decision is free to seek redress at the electoral tribunal or the law court.

The statement said, "The LP chairman should have sought

legal advice from senior members of the Bar before going bare to the press with his ignorance.

The explanation offered by the returning officer was explicit, straightforward and concise enough for a deciphering mind to understand that the election is inconclusive and, therefore, no winner has emerged."

The PDP urged the LP to desist from blackmailing INEC to declare Akinjo as the winner of the bye-election.

Address OSRC workers' plight, NUJ urges Mimiko

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OLLOWING the alleged poor working conditions at the Ondo State Radio Vision Corporation (OSRC), the four-man panel set up to look into the crisis between the management and its workers has commenced its sitting under the chairmanship of the former Head of service (HoS)in the State, Mr. Ajose Kudehinbu.

The aggrieved workers of the corporation had recently protested against the harsh

From Damisi Ojo, Akure

conditions under which they operate in the state-owned media outfit.

The development led to the arrest of five leaders of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (OSRC Chapel) by the Police.

The NUJ was particularly disturbed with the level of decadence of the facilities ranging from the complex housing the OSRC, studio and the FM radio arm.

Sources alleged that in the

last five years, the management of the OSRC has not added any value to the existing facilities at the organisation.

The NUJ, therefore, urged the panel to look into the myriad of problems facing the corporation and proffer enduring solutions.

One of the national officers of the union said, "We are alarmed that training and retraining is now a thing of the past in the establishment in the last four years.

"It is lamentable that the NUJ chapel of the OSRC has to purchase chairs for the use of the newsroom due to the abdication of the management's responsibility despite government's enormous financial commitment and the huge IGR profile of the corporation."

One of the board members, who spoke to The Nation in confidence, assured that all the complaints would be addressed after briefing the state governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko.

I have no plan to join PDP, says Boroffice

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CHIEFTAIN of the All progressives Congress (APC) and the senator representing the Ondo North District of Ondo State, Prof. Ajayi Boroffice, has debunked rumours that he is planning to defect to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The lawmaker said he remains a committed member of the APC. Borofice spoke with reporters on Friday in his residence at Oka Akoko in Akoko South West Local

From Damisi Ojo, Akure

Government Area of the state.

According to him, the rumour was based on his rapport with the Senate president, David Mark, whom he described as his boss.

His words: "This is not true; it is a rumour and it will remain a rumour. I have never dreamt about defecting to PDP. It will not happen and it can't happen. I am very loyal to my party. I am happy with our manifestos, philosophy and I believe this

is a party that can bring a change."

Reacting to speculations in certain quarters that the APC is planning to present a Muslim/Muslim presidential ticket for the next general elections, Borofice urged Nigerians to exercise patience till the party conducts its national convention and subsequent primaries.

According to him, the party is currently busy conducting its ward, local, state and national congresses.

The senator said, "Let me

tell you, no Christian is pulling out of APC. I think people were just jumping the gun.

The electoral law is clear on how to select a presidential candidate and the running mate. It is a process, it is not an event and that process has not started. I think the people should wait and see the party complete its process before they react."

Boroffice predicted that the APC will form the government at the centre next year and also produce 26 governors.

Ogun APC congress inclusive, free and fair-Amosun

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HE Ogun State Governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, has described the Local Government Congress of the All Progressives Congress (APC) held on Saturday across the 20 local councils in the state as successful, inclusive, free and fair.

He said the exercise was conducted in a peaceful atmosphere as all electors exercised their right of franchise without let or hindrance. He also expressed satisfaction that there was no single report of a parallel congress in any local council in the state.

Amosun spoke yesterday in Abeokuta, the state capital after monitoring the exercise at the Obafemi Owode, Abeokuta South, Ado/Odo Ota and Abeokuta North Local Government Areas.

"What we have seen today is a testimony to the fact that free and fair elections are possible in Nigeria if we all abide by the rules. Reports from all the local councils bear eloquent testimony to the 'can do' spirit of our people. Once we resolve to get things right, we can achieve our goal," the governor said.

He explained further that whatever minor hitches witnessed in the conduct of the poll could only be "because we are human, not angels," adding, that "The good thing is that there was no deliberate action on the part of the officials to disenfranchise anyone. All tendencies in the party were fully represented. Either as winners or losers in the congress of today, we are all one in APC. "Yes, we could disagree as members of one family but we only disagree to agree. I will continue to work with our leader to ensure harmony in the party. Our goal is one, so is our aspiration in Ogun APC," Amosun enthused.

Princess Felicia Oyadele goes home

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HE family of Pastor and Pastor (Mrs.) Ade Oyadele has announced the death of their mother, grandmother and great grandmother, Princess Felicia Gbelewele Oyadele (nee Oyewale Alabi), who slept in the Lord on the 4th of December 2013.

Aged 120, the late Madam Oyadele was buried on the December 2013.

Outing service and thanksgiving are billed for April 19, 2014 at the Saint Moses Orimolade Cherubim & Sheraphim Church, Ijabe Odo-Otin Local Government Area, Osun State, while reception follows immediately at the Aladura Primary School, Ijabe Odo-Otin, Osun State.

•Madam Oyadele

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

NEWS

9

UTME 2014

FG to phase out candles, kerosene lamps

Fewer centres for UTME paper exams in Lagos

By Kofoworola Belo-Osagie

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tions.

Reacting to reports of an attack in Borno where many people, including UTME candidates were said to have been killed, Ojerinde said there was nothing like that.

He said: “They were not JAMB candidates, although there was an attack. JAMB candidates who were supposed to go to Borno to write their exams have decided to stay at home.

“There are about 400 of them. We have told them we will cater for them. They are afraid of what will happen to them. We got information from Bauchi, Lagos, Ilorin, Kaduna.”

Nwaobiala corroborated: “No child coming for JAMB examination was attacked. There were some challenges that came up and the feeling was that since there were disturbances in that area, it might affect student’s movement.

“What we are doing now is to ensure we have an opportunity. The CBT is coming up so they will have the opportunity to write the exam. There will be

no disenfranchisement of the candidates”.

In Yobe, there was tight security as the exercise held across all the centres.

The exam held in major towns like Damaturu, Gashua, Potiskum and Geidam.

Our correspondent, who monitored the exams in Damaturu and Potiskum, observed that heavy measures were taken to prevent security breaches.

Candidates were screened at the gates by stern-looking security men before they got to their venue.

Many were seen patrolling the environments as the examination lasted.

Investigation revealed that some centres in the state from Buni Yadi were collapsed into others.

The centre at Federal Government Girls College Potiskum was also merged to Federal College of Education (Technical)Potiskum.

Most of the candidates, who spoke with Sunday Nation, were grateful to God for seeing them through the exams.

No official of JAMB was ready to speak.

HERE was significant reduction of centres for the conventional Paper and Pencil Test (PPT) option of the 2014 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) held yesterday across the country.This may not be unconnected with plans by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) to migrate the examination to the online platform completely by 2015.

In Lagos, checks showed that the public and private secondary schools that usually served as centres for the yearly examination were not used this year.

The few PPT centres were for far flung areas like Ikorodu, Agbado, Epe and Badagry.

It was observed the examination went smoothly.

JAMB’s Assistant Director, Corporate Services, Mr. Babatunde Ifesanmi, who was the Centre Supervisor of the Chams City Dual Based Test (DBT) option Centre Ikeja, said the board recorded more candidates for the DBT this year than last.

He said 350 of the 360 candidates assigned to his DBT centre sat for the examination, which started by 9.30am and ended 1pm.

Ifesanmi explained that the board had taken extra care to ensure that power would not disrupt examinations in the DBT centres.

Ifesanmi also said the Computer Based Test (CBT) option of the 2014 UTME will begin May 17 and may last for up to two weeks. He said the advantages of the e-examination far outweigh the conventional one and expressed confidence that the migration would be possible next year all over the country.

“From next year, there will be no PPT or DBT option, only CBT. There will be no problems with access because there are tertiary institutions in all parts of the country that have ICT facilities. Most of them are partnering with us for the examination,” he said.

One of the candidates, Barakat Abidemiu, said the examination went smoothly despite her limited ICT skills.

“The exam was okay. I don’t know much about using the computer and I was worried before the exam. But it posed no problem because it was not difficult to use,” said the SS3 pupil of Mahmud Ahmadiyya College, Ijede in Ikorodu.

undeterred by the presence of the state Commandant of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Mr. Desmond Agu. Agu, who toured many of the centres in Yenagoa and Otuoke, Ogbia, was disappointed with the conduct of the policewomen.

The policewomen insulted the commandant who tried to remind them the guidelines governing UTME and the roles of security operatives.

He said to them: “Security operatives including my men are not allowed to enter into the exam halls. They are only asked to stay outside and secure the centre.

Are you not aware of that?”

But Okonkwo replied:

“Our DPO sent us here. He told us to come here and that is why we are here. Nobody not even you can ask us to leave”.

While the commandant was still addressing them, the two policewomen walked out on him.

Agu’s efforts to call them back proved abortive as Appiah particularly ignored the commandant and walked away.

The men of the NSDC who escorted their commandant were furious at the attitude of the women and wanted to pounce on them.

Agu intervened to prevent what could have led to an inter-agency clash.

He said the conduct of the examination in the state was generally peaceful

apart from the excesses of the policewomen.

“Other schools we visited show that the conduct of the students are good. The guideline of the examination does not allow people in uniform including men of the NSCDC to enter inside the classrooms.

“They are only to guide the people outside. Supervisors have been told not to allow them to enter and that was why they had problems with the policewomen”, he said.

He added that the policewomen must explain their mission in the school.

The principal decried the attitude of the policewomen and asked the police authority in the state to call them to order.

From: Frank Ikpefan, Abuja

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HE Federal Government will replace the use of domestic candles and kerosene lanterns in most homes next year with clean solar energy lamps.

The Minister for Environment, Mrs. Laurentia Mallam, disclosed this in Abuja when senior officials of the Total Group paid her a courtesy visit.

She said that the old household beams would be replaced in 12 months with clean solar energy lamps that are more environmental and ozone- friendly.

Mallam said solar lamps offer a credible solution to clean and renewable energy that are favourable to global requirements for positive actions against climate change.

The minister noted that the candles and lamp phase out process would not come by way of legislation but through the introduction of a superior product.

She assured that the new solar energy lamp technology would be distributed by the Total Group at affordable prices, especially to the rural poor.

The minister expressed concerns over environmental hazards and avoidable deaths from fire outbreaks by the use of candles and kerosene lanterns.

She explained that the switch would slash the price of kerosene and possibly eliminate the use of candles, making Nigeria more ozone-friendly.

The minister said collaboration with other ministries including Trade and Investment, Finance, Health and Education would ensure success of the solar initiative.

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•Candidates writing the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination(UTME) at Yaba College of Technology centre Lagos... yesterday PHOTO: MUYIWA HASSAN

JAMB exams hitch- free in Abuja, tight security in Yobe

•Minister backs cancellation of PPT in 2015 •Ojerinde, Perm Sec deny killing of candidates in Borno

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HE conduct of the 2014 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), Paper Pencil Test (PPT) and the Dual Based Test (DBT) was hitch- free in Abuja yesterday.

The Supervising Minister of Education, Nyesom Wike, who monitored exercise alongside JAMB registrar, Prof.

Dibu Ojerinde and the Permanent Secretary Ministry of Education, Dr. Mac-John Nwaobiala, welcomed the decision to cancel the PPT in 2015 as best for the education system.

Nigeria, Wike said, cannot afford to lag behind other developing countries of the world.

The CBT holds on Saturday May 17 in various centres within and outside the country.

Wike said: “The CBT will eliminate exam malpractice and the issue of depending on anybody to give you answers does not arise.

“What JAMB is doing for

From: Gbenga Omokhunu, Abuja and Duku JOEL, Damaturu

me is a good development and from what we are seeing now by next year we will only have Computer Base Test (CBT). I think we are moving on well”.

On the 10- month old Academic Staff Union of Polytechnic (ASUP), strike, the minister said: “We are discussing with ASUP and the colleges of Education. We believe they will make some sacrifices for us to move forward.

“Education is important to everybody. No government will be happy that students are roaming the streets. We must promise what is practicable.

“Not just making promises without fulfilling them. Be rest assured that it will be resolved”.

Few candidates, who arrived the centres late, were not allowed in.

It was also observed that some of them did not know how to use computer to answer ques-

Police disrupt exam in Yenagoa centre

HE Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), which held nationwide yesterday, was disrupted at the Community Secondary School, Agudiama-Epie, Yenagoa Bayelsa State by the police Trouble started when a team of the police arrived the centre and insisted on gaining entry into the classrooms where students had sat for the examination.

Two of the policemen, Corporal Okonkwo Sarah and Ethel Appiah, told the principal of the school and other supervisors that they had the mandate of the District Police Officer (DPO) to enter the classrooms.

It was gathered that there was no breach of the peace and security issues in any of

•Civil defence kicks

From Mike Odiegwu, Yenagoa

the classrooms when the police arrived the centre.

The explanations of the Principal, Mrs. John-Adumo Caroline, that the guidelines governing UTME does not allow security operatives to enter examination halls were met with violence by Appiah and Ethel.

They pushed the female principal aside and marched to the classrooms.

Appiah caused panic among the candidates when she hit one of the supervisors, Mr. Emmanuel Amagbei and stripped one of his buttons.

Amagbei had tried to stop the policewomen by asking them to heed the advice of the principal, explaining that their action was illegal.

But they mistreated him and insisted that as members of the police force, they must be given unfettered access to any part of the school.

The duo also engaged officials of the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) who came to monitor the examination in a shouting match.

It was gathered that their actions forced candidates who wanted to catch a glimpse of the scene to abandon the examination.

The policewomen were

10 SUNDAY INTERVIEW

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, APRIL 13, 2014

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, APRIL 13, 2014

SUNDAY INTERVIEW 11

Ropo Sekoni

13

Page 14

Femi Orebe Page 16

SUNDAY, APRIL 13, 2014

Okonjo-Iweala’s hour tunjade@yahoo.co.uk 08054503906 (sms only)

Let’s celebrate our debasing; sorry rebasing

“A

PROPHET is without honour in his own land.” This is true of our Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Mrs. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala. Some readers took me up on why I excluded the minister when two weeks ago I lambasted our legislators, particularly the House of Representatives, for always willing to ask every beautiful woman in President Goodluck Jonathan’s cabinet to resign over (sometimes) flimsy reasons. I did not know how to respond to their queries. However, less than two weeks after, the answer came, even if somewhat fortuitously. I must have excluded the finance minister then because something bigger was in stock for her. In other words, her hour had not come when I wrote the piece, “Diezani here, Diezani there, wetin dis Diezani do”.

I deliberately avoided saying‘ her hour finally came last week Monday’ because the present glory could just be the beginning of the ‘positive reports’ that the finance minster would get, despite criticisms by Nigerians that we are not doing well economically. Whatever they meant by that. Anyway, the present ‘endorsement’ came through a six-letter word – rebasing - that is so innocuous and easy to pronounce, but has led to damning reactions since Monday when the report was made public.

I do not know why Nigerians are not happy with the rebasing report that is making waves in government circles. Are the reasons given for the achievement not convincing? With the rebasing, our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as at 2013 is now estimated at N80.3trillion ($509.9billion).

An elated Okonjo-Iweala noted; “Nigeria has moved to be the largest economy by GDP size in Africa and has moved to be the 26th largest economy in the world; it notched 10 points up. On a per capita basis, Nigeria is number 121 in the world, so we have the total GDP size of $2,688 per capita now and moved up from 135”. This has pushed us ahead of South Africa as the continent’s largest economy. Factors responsible for the new development include sectors like telecoms, information technology, music, online sales, airlines and film production that we did not reckon with when last we did the rebasing.

And we say this is not worth celebrating? Even the president’s most unrepentant critics know that we have gone far in these previously neglected sectors between 1990 when we last did rebasing, and now. The icing on the cake for me is that we are even ahead of South Africa in terms of the size of our economy. For once, we are ahead of the South Africans in something good. Again, I ask, isn’t this worthy of celebration?

The man who made the glory known, Nigeria’s Statistician-General, Dr Yemi Kale of the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS), said with the development, Nigeria is close to being in the league of the top 20 economies by 2020. This is one other good thing the rebasing has done. Auditor-general, we know; attorney-general, we know; accountant-general, we know. But I am convinced many Nigerians do not know

•Okonjo-Iweala ... Congrats, ma’am our statistician-general. In spite of that, we are not even ready to give him the benefit of the doubt. May be this is because even though we have always known there is an agency called the NBS, we never knew by what title its head is known. But the bureau’s boss has been thrust into limelight, courtesy of this rebasing report. We used to take whatever statistics the then National Office of Statistics (NOS) released with a pinch of salt not necessarily because its men were inherently incompetent but because when we saw its equivalent in other countries and the state-of-the art equipment they paraded, we knew that our own NOS was just not there. It would seem Dr Kale realised we still nurse this fear and that was why he took the pain to explain to us that the bureau spent two years to complete the report, with the release date changed twice to get the numbers right. What the statisticiangeneral is saying is that he is cock sure of the figures released by the bureau.

I can see critics of the Jonathan presidency trying to remind Dr Kale that even the Federal Government had before now doubted the possibility of our joining the first 20 economies in the world by the year 2020. So, the government must have been talking nonsense.

With Dr Kale’s rosy picture, what we have been unable to achieve through deliberate planning is now to become reality by playing with figures (statistics). In which case President Jonathan can now go to sleep; rest assured that the country,on auto pilot, will arrive the 20-20-20 destination in one piece and in no time. If we can come this close to the top economically despite our epileptic power supply, Boko Haram and what have you, then why have critics been telling us all these years that we must fix power supply and address our other challenges, as if we cannot make progress even in darkness and with insecurity as our companion?

Critics of the rebasing say it does not put more money in the bank; that it does not put more food on the table or in their stomachs.

Despite the rebasing, the people keep asking

“If we can come this close to the top economically despite our epileptic power supply, Boko Haram and what have you, then why have critics been telling us all these years that we must fix power supply and address our other challenges, as if we cannot make progress even in darkness and with insecurity as our companion?”

the same old questions about what some of them see as the latest ‘scandal’. All this while, Mrs Okonjo-Iweala has not been linked with any scandal. How come it is through a mere rebasing that some people will now be talking about scandal?

Some others say the revision is ‘a vanity’; yet some say we are ‘a troubled giant’. As far as I am concerned, ‘troubled’ is an adjective; we remain a giant, troubled or untroubled, period.

Some people are asking, why now? What political point do the minister and government want to make of it? And I say, why not now? Some others are saying the rebasing could lead to an increase in 2014 budget deficit by about N400billion, and that this is “very tempting to politicians in pre-election mood”. So what? Is election time not the only time our people have direct access to the pockets of politicians seeking votes here?

For once, our caring President Jonathan said he would not celebrate the feat even though it calls for celebration. I hope he is not pandering to critics, particularly the opposition, that have made up their minds not to see anything good in his government. Hear the president in a Facebook message: “…Our Gross Domestic Product was rebased to give an accurate picture of where we are as a nation … While this calls for celebration, I personally cannot celebrate until all Nigerians can feel the positive impact of our growth.

There are still too many of our citizens living in poverty”. Says who, Mr. President?

Isn’t this too a question of perception?

Come on, Mr. President, let’s celebrate this feat because it is not easy for a country to post this kind of statistics. Remember also Mrs Okonjo-Iweala’s pedigree. The truth is, it is one thing for a country to post impressive figures, it is another for this to reflect on the people’s lives. They are two different things; so, we shouldn’t mix Genesis with Exodus, as one of my former lecturers would say. It is Nigerians who do not know what the mantra of the administration – transformation - is that are saying nonsense about the rebasing. The president should not be celebration-weary. After all, the hang-over of the centenary celebration is over now.

So, I hereby move that President Jonathan should cause a process to be put in motion to enable us ‘wash’ this rebasing.

Those opposed to celebrating rebasing should pray for debasing as their portion.

I can’t wait for the invitation because I am already salivating in anticipation of the new experience I am sure the bash, being a Nigerian affair, will always offer. Continental Dishes I have tasted; I am also fed up with Intercontinental Dish/es. As a matter of fact, the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) men are so used to some of these intercontinental dishes like ‘kus-kus,’ ‘pok-pok’; not to talk of ‘shawarma’ that ‘Iya Shawarma’ takes to them at their duty posts daily to make their stay on the roads pleasurable. The only dish I have not tasted is this one that everybody talks about everyday - Satellite Dish. So, I won’t mind to have it for a change when the president sees the need to change his mind and allow us celebrate this major achievement. On the D-Day, I’ll take Satellite Dish.

(It should not be an exclusive preserve of the rich). And wash it down with an exotic wine.

We don’t have to reduce everything to bread and butter. We must roll out the drums and celebrate Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala’s fine hour. We need to vote billions for something again.

Or what is the essence of our big economy?

What a developed country is

F

ORMER Mayor of Bogota in Columbia, Enrique Penalosa must have a ‘weird’ sense of reasoning. His definition of what a developed nation is intriguing and thought provoking.

While many would prefer to simply describe a developed nation as one where the standard of living is very high Penalosa’s definition is graphically apt.

According to him, a developed nation is not where the poor have cars, but the country where the rich use public transportation. If the number of likes on this definition on my facebook is anything to go by, many obviously wish our leaders have this kind of understanding of what development should be.

Penalosa is definitely not against the poor having their own cars if they so desire and can afford it, what he simply wants and did during his is the provision of enough infrastructure and other facilities that will ensure that majority of the people are not denied basic necessities of life.

He is obviously against the situation where citizens are classified as rich or poor based on what kind of facilities they utilize.

The government has the responsibly to provide basic infrastructure which everybody should find good enough to utilize. Unfortunately this is not the situation in the Nigeria presently.

While in some developing and developed nations, top government functionaries and even rich members of the public can use public transportation, the dream of everyone in Nigeria is to own their cars even when they cannot afford to maintain one and the roads are not good.

Our transportation system has continued to degenerate despite the billions allocated to the sector. The Rail which used to be a reliable means of transporting people and goods across the country is yet to be restored to its good old days.

Due to lack of good rail system as in other nations, Nigerians who cannot afford the exorbitant airfare have to resort to dangerous long journeys either with their own vehicles or commercial transport. The high rate of accidents on our roads is avoidable if our rail system is in order and the roads are in good condition.

For the super rich in Nigeria, some of whom their source of wealth is questionable, buying their own jet has become a fad.

Instead of widening the gap between the poor and the rich, government policies must result in improve standard of living as defined be Penalosa.

The citizens must feel the effects of economic policies in concrete terms that give them a sense of a leadership that cares and a country they can be proud of. The government should not be claiming to be implementing a transformation agenda which majority of the citizens cannot attest to.

The recent controversy over the outcome of the rebasing of our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by the National Bureau of Statistics which puts our economy the first in Africa and the 24th in the world is a good example the progress we are supposed to be making without much movement.

The federal government can celebrate positive economic indicator if it wants, but like many have noted, what is the benefit of increased GDP to the ordinary citizens if they still have to battle with poverty, unemployment and myriads of other challenges that make daily living a miracle?

14

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

COMMENT

Devolution or federalism: which way for Nigeria?

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HE conference modalities passed by the Secretary to the Federal Government to delegates and the day-to-day response of delegates to the modalities continue to deconstruct the unitary constitution upon which the central government and the President derive their powers to discuss the problems that have made the country’s unity and peaceful development precarious over the years.

Delegates are not freely chosen representatives of their people; they are nominated by the President and governors at the instance of the federal government. They cannot determine number of committees nor choose chairpersons of committees. More importantly, delegates are not free to determine what they deliberate on; they are handed a list of topics to consider by the agency that convenes and sponsors the conference. The rules to guide the conference include what they cannot discuss: dissolution of the federation. They also include what delegates can discuss: devolution, federalism, regionalism, etc.

Exercising control of the power of signification characteristic of unitary governments, the federal government even chooses concepts that delegates should examine. An example of such semiotic or semantic confusion or control is the listing of federalism under Devolution of Power and also under Political Restructuring.As trivial as this may sound or look, it has the capacity to create confusion for delegates and reduce their focus on what should be the matter at hand: freeing the country from unitary model of governance and endowing it with a federal system. It is important for citizens observing the proceedings of the conference and

Proper relationship between national and subnational governments in a federal system should be a case of give-and-take between the two levels in a context of free negotiation between the two tiers waiting for some results to know ahead of conference deliberations that Devolution is not synonymous with Federalism. It should not even serve as a set that includes federalism as subset.

Devolution does not automatically lead to federalism. It is, simply put, the shedding of functions by any central government – unitary or federal— to subnational government levels. A unitary government that feels overburdened or over-pressured can choose to transfer some of its functions to any subnational government without losing its superintending authority. So can an existing federal government devolve new functions to subnational governments to carry out in compliance with whatever standards the central government establishes for performance of such functions by the tier of government to which new responsibilities have been devolved. Such devolved functions are funded through grants or special allocations from the central government. France is a good example of a unitary government that devolves a lot of functions to other levels of government.China is another example.

Closer to home, Ghana operates a unitary system that delegates some functions to provincial governments that are seen as subordinate to the central government. An abiding aspect of devolution without federalism is that the central government reserves the right to take back whatever functions it delegates to subnational governments. Such devolution is generally not embedded in the constitution and is not subject to negotiation between federating units.

If delegates had been elected as representatives of communities, they would not

have been under any obligation to base their discussion on the paradigms handed down by the central government. They would have been given issues to negotiate by their communities. Elected delegates would have been briefed that the crux of the matter and raison d’etre for the conference is federalism, not mere devolution of responsibilities by an overarching central government. It is still not too late for delegates to be reminded of citizens’ assessment of the cause of the failure of the central and most state governments to deliver public goods that can enhance the quality of life of citizens. It is obvious that communities have no power to hold delegates accountable, having not had a hand in how they get to the conference. But it is proper for delegates to know that citizens are capable of detecting subtle efforts (via modalities handed to and adopted by conference leaders) at constraining discussion at the conference.

What was taken away by military autocrats and sustained by post-military constitution and rulers is proper relationship between the central government and subnational governments. Federalism has been removed since 1979 from the form and content of government in the country. This cannot be remedied by mere devolution. It can only be restored through establishment or re-establishment of federal system of government. Whether this is called political restructuring or restoration of federalism, what is at issue is having a proper share of powers between the central government and regions or states as federating units.

Proper relationship between national and subnational governments in a federal sys-

tem should be a case of give-and-take between the two levels in a context of free negotiation between the two tiers. Thus, the relationship between national and subnational units must be framed as constitutionally guaranteed interaction and transaction between coordinates, rather than superordinate and subordinate. The two levels are not to share just functions; they are to share sovereignty including resource sovereignty. It is not the incumbent central government that should determine unilaterally which power to transfer to regions or states.

It is both levels of government that should negotiate which powers to leave for the central government for the common good and which to leave for regions or states for effective delivery of public goods and services to citizens.These are the central issues that pertain to constructing a federal polity.

Knowing that the ongoing national conference is not sovereign and does not have the power to determine what to discuss and how to turn the outcome of discussion into a constitution, the only thing left is to appeal to delegates to find time to listen to members of their respective communities about what to do to re-launch Nigeria.For example, agreeing to just transfer a few functions from the current Exclusive list of the central government to regions or states and adding 5% to funds from the federation account to subventions to states may not solve the problem that stimulated convening of the ongoing conference. Creation of states is not as much of a problem as sharing of powers between the two principal levels of governance: central and state. Turning an essentially local matter, the role of traditional rulers into a federal matter is not necessary. Nigeria as a unit does not have traditional rulers. It is local communities that have traditional rulers. Delegates must avoid spending precious time on such distractive topics as local government administration. Local government administration, like traditional rule, is a matter to be determined by states in their own constitutions. What should take delegates’ time is sharing of responsibilities and powers between federal and regional or state governments.

COMMENT

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

15

Sinister signs Underhand tactics in Ekiti and Osun PDP primaries, and Obanikoro’s bullying campaign in Lagos send alarming signals in the run-up to 2015

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YODELE Fayose (Ekiti), Iyiola Omisore (Osun), Jelili Adesiyan (Osun) and Musiliu Obanikoro (Lagos) — what does this quad have in common? They are the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) South West battling rams for the 2015 general elections.

It might be early days yet. But if the morning truly shows the day, there is ample cause to worry.

The pair of Mr. Fayose and Senator Omisore do nothing wrong to aspire and win the gubernatorial tickets of their party, PDP. The elections are fixed for June 21 (Ekiti) and August 9 (Osun). It is a constitutional injunction that they face up to the incumbents of their respective states, no matter how brilliant or parlous their performances have been.

Still, the mode of their emergence simply confound many. Mr. Fayose emerged from a primary election that all his opponents boycotted, alleging a sleight of hand from “Abuja”, a euphemism for PDP national and the Jonathan Presidency’s alleged collusion.

Mr. Fayose is a politically damaged product. For starters, he was impeached during his first stint as Ekiti governor, and the jury is still out there whether he is indeed legally qualified to run, so short after his 2006 impeachment debacle. Aside, he is currently docked for alleged sleaze; aside from murder charges, all throwbacks from his 2003 to 2006 governorship days. Indeed, his legal defence team even told the court to defer his trial until the election, to allow him concentrate on his electioneering.

But the court demurred.

Yet, in spite of the albatross on his neck, the PDP wasted no time in endorsing his candidacy and dismissing the protest of his opponents. What might the PDP motive be, in its alacrity to push such a damaged good? A manic effort to self-destroy or frenzied mischief not to play by the rules?

In Osun, Senator Omisore’s emergence was even more sinister. Isiaka Adeleke, a former governor of Osun, made a hasty withdrawal from the Osun PDP primaries. This came after he was allegedly assaulted and physically manhandled to apparently scare him out of the race.

Newspaper reports quote Alhaji Adeleke as alleging

T

HE candid and plausible advice given by ex-Georgian President, Mr. Mikhail Saakashvil, to Nigeria on the way forward in surmounting the myriad of problems being faced by the country such as corruption, poor power supply, terrorism, just to mention a few is for Nigeria to be prepared to toe the example of the Republic of Georgia which had to disband its police and customs before gaining economic and political stability. The advice coming at a time when the National Conference is ongoing in Nigeria is indeed timely.

According to him, for three months that Georgia did not have police force following the sacking of all police personnel, crime rate came down drastically and that this was an evidence that the police were part of the security problems which faced Georgia. In addition to disbanding of the police force personnel who were replaced through new recruitment of patriotic Georgians, he also said the entire customs service was sacked owing to corruption coupled with the scrapping of many agencies and that many agencies owing to idleness. In conclusion, the ex-Georgian president attributed the step taken to make the

that the pair of Omisore and Jelili Adesiyan, Minister of Police Affairs, beat him up, using an ensemble of policemen Mr. Adesiyan allegedly cobbled together from Abuja; and perhaps some allied thugs. Before his own alleged assault and battery, Alhaji Adeleke also claimed he saw policemen point guns to the heads of some men laying face down, alleging the men were thugs. But they later turned out to be Adeleke supporters, who the former governor prevailed on the police to free, before meeting his waterloo.

Despite all of this alleged arms-twisting, the PDP has endorsed the process that produced Senator Omisore.

Again, this seeming uncritical acceptance beggars belief, despite the grave allegations and the baggage Omisore carries to the fray, despite his non-conviction in the Bola Ige assassination case. That much seemed to be getting to the former senator, when he declared his intention was not to shed blood but to serve the people.

By embracing Mr. Fayose and Senator Omisore (controversial at best, damaged at worst), the PDP appears to have given up on reason and settled for sheer brawn. With its disastrous record when the party ruled the roost in the two states, and its enduring parlous record in the past 15 years as the federal ruling party, such vote for brawn sits pat in his seeming determination to take the two South West states by force, in the run-up to 2015. But even as battering rams, the two candidates enter the race with heavy baggage. The electorate should do the needful.

But it is in the area of free and plausible elections that

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the spectre of Messrs Adesiyan and Obanikoro looms.

Both, by the way, have lost no time in making news for all the wrong reasons.

Mr. Adesiyan, an Omisore ally and minister of the federal republic, stands rightly accused of grievously abusing his office, if the allegation is true that he amassed policemen to harass the supporters of Alhaji Adeleke and beat up the prime rival to Senator Omisore, in the bid for the PDP Osun gubernatorial ticket.

How a man who became minister virtually yesterday could pull off such alleged recklessness is a sad reminder of how frail our institutions of state are. It is even more shocking that there is no reported presidential outrage at this alleged criminalisation of the police for partisan purposes. From our experience in the past, such were the roads that led to Golgotha in the First and Second Republics.

The Obanikoro campaign is even more sinister, for it involves corralling the military for partisan wars. Mr. Obanikoro, a Lagosian and Minister of State for Defence, has been reported by newspapers to draft soldiers to seize lands on which there are ongoing construction works by the Lagos State government, claiming such parcels of land belong to the Federal Government.

From history, this is a very dangerous manoeuvre. The First Republic faltered partly because the powers-that-be back then unleashed soldiers on the dissenting Tiv, in what was known as the Tiv riots but which some insisted was some genocide. Now, Mr. Obanikoro has been reported, aside from his escapade in Lagos, to have carted soldiers to the byeelection in Ondo State to fill a vacant House of Representative seat. The gloomy road to 2015 is all too clear, except if checked and both Obanikoro and Adesiyan called to order.

President Goodluck Jonathan must rein in his misbehaving ministers. The president too must resist those who might be instigating him to clear disaster. Brazen abuse of state security organs, especially the military, for partisan purposes, is an ill wind that blows no one any good. It should never be tolerated under whatever guise.

Taking the South West by force has been the political grave of many. Jonathan must be wary of such a fatal mistake.

LETTER

Disband Police, Customs

percentage of people below the poverty line to less than 18 percent and that “Today, Georgia is almost without corruption.”

The million dollar question is: Will Nigerians be prepared to take the plausible advice as given by the ex-president at the backdrop of resistance that the powerful bourgeoisie class, power recyclers, the corrupt elite, beneficiaries of the spoils of office and corrupt public officials (both past and present) will

put up against the seeing the light of the day of this advice which can aptly be described as long overdue?

Your guess is as good as mine!

It would be recalled that when the plausible idea of denomination of our Naira currency was mooted by ex-Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Prof.

Charles Soludo in 2007, the idea, laudable as it was, was never allowed to come to fruition for selfish reasons.

There is no doubt that the oldest problem in Nigeria is corruption. Going down memory lane, I did mention in my write up titled “Bravo to Niki Tobi and Abubakar Tanko on their views on corruption” published on page 4 in the P.M. News edition of Monday, April 5, 2005 and in other major Nigerian dailies that “If I have my way as a Nigerian and should I be saddled with the responsibility of drawing up an agenda for the National Po-

litical Reform Conference, I will list corruption as the only topic for discussion during the 3-month duration of the conference.” It would be recalled that during the NPRC that was midwived by the Olusegun Obasanjo administration in 2005, the conference chairman, Justice Niki Tobi (rtd.) in agreeing with the view of Alhaji Abubakar Tanko said “I support you.

Most people who spoke said the problem with the country has to do with its

structure but you are saying it has to do with corruption. You are right. The problem is that there are too many rogues in this country.”

One thing is certain, with God, nothing is impossible. If the steps taken to check corruption and societal ills worked for the Republic of Georgia nobody can stop it from working in Nigeria if that will pave the way for the emergence of an egalitarian society where life will be made more meaningful for helpless teeming impoverished masses. Long Live Nigeria.

Odunayo Joseph Mopa Kogi State

Killing internal democracy in Labour Party

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OLLOWING the cancellation of Labor Party Ward Congress in the FCT recently tongues started wagging as regarding the rationale for such act of betrayal of peoples trust in democratic process. The ward congress which held on 22nd March 2014 had comrade Baba Aye the Deputy National Secretary of labor party as retuning officer.

Investigation revealed that the reason given for the cancellation was that the congress did not hold in many wards. Therefore the exercise

was termed inconclusive. Further investigation revealed that three members of labor party in Kubwa ward of Bwari Area Council, Karu ward of Abuja Municipal Area Council and Quarters ward of Gwagwalada Area Council respectively had petitioned the National Chairman of labor party. They petitioned against the activities of Mr. Peter Adejobi which was termed worrisome, a threat to the growth of the party and internal social democratic norm.

They further alleged that Mr. Peter Adejobi is defraud-

ing the party by refusing to allow aspirants purchase nomination forms for the FCT congresses. They equally had it on good authority and called on the National Chairman to investigate Mr. Peter Adejoji for giving out nomination forms free of charge to the following Comrade members of the party; Baba Yakini FCT Treasurer, Ben Anyanwu FCT Auditor, Isa Likita FCT secretary, Honest Emetola Admin staff of labour party and all incumbent six Area Councils Labor Party’s Chairmen. They con-

cluded that this act has robbed the party of thousands of naira that could have been used to build the party. That, this flagrant abuse of the guideline for ward, local government and state congresses 2014 is calculated by Mr. Peter Adejobi to curry favor from these men to enable him manipulate the election process ahead of the state congress; an act that runs against the avowed provision of labor party’s constitution and the cardinal philosophy of equal opportunity and social Justice.

One of the FCT labor party chairmanship aspirants, Comrade Ashimole Felix said that, the cancellation is painfully regrettable, but a welcome development as it shows that the national leadership of the party is instilling internal democracy in labor party. It is better late and well done than a hurriedly half baked preparation that ends up inconclusive, he concluded.

Comrade Ogbu A. Ameh; onwaters2011@gmail com

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COMMENT

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, APRIL 13, 2014

2015: Jonathan’s ambition irretrievably edging Yoruba Land to Golgotha The PDP, under President Jonathan’s lead, wants to turn Ekiti, no Yoruba land, to a battle ground

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LL things considered, there is every indication that President Goodluck Jonathan has decided to shatter the peace subsisting in the only part of the country where there remains a modicum of peace as opposed to the horrifying bloodletting, armed robbery, kidnapping and piracy that have completely overwhelmed other parts of the country. In the only section of Nigeria where children’s throats are not being slit while asleep or where the president’s own uncle and godfather’s children are not being kidnapped, the President, who has appropriately been likened to Nero, is irretrievably edging Yoruba land into war. This president, who has failed to secure the lives and property of Nigerians but who, instead, has justifiably been accused by some Northern leaders of trying to profit from the horrendous and ghoulish mayhem in the North, is doing everything to cause chaos in Yoruba land. Some three months ago, I drew attention to his outflanking and, surreptitiously surrounding the Southwest. Today, he has succeeded in procuring, like merchandise, a minor but respected section of the Yoruba leadership which has, in turn sold him the national conference agenda and donated one of its own to kick start the process. The result is that while the extravagantly funded talk show is ongoing, the hard-headed and vocal section of the Yoruba intelligentsia, the Femi Falana’s, Akin Oyebode’s, the Bisi Adegbuyi’s, not

to mention Wale Oshun, who by now would have shouted themselves hoarse about Jonathan’s serpentine designs on Yoruba land, are at peace with the President’s men in Abuja.

No, I am not by any shred of imagination suggesting that the president and his party should not wish to have a reasonable showing in the coming elections in Ekiti and Osun or, indeed, strive to conjure another Jonathan victory in Yoruba land, come 2015; but for the president to want to inflict this species of Yoruba politicians on us; persons whose antecedents are an open book to Nigerians in general and to us, in particular, should ordinarily be beneath him. We were recently told in Ibadan that what he wants in Yoruba land are not politicians but ‘soldiers’ of fortune and we have since seen some of them. But if we may ask: what does Jonathan want with ‘soldiers’ if not to turn Yoruba land into a war zone? After all, there is no evidence to suggest that this President will faint at the sight of more blood.

He is not known to squirm at those daily slaughters up North; not even a whimper. Rather, our President embarks on joyous trips to the places like Jerusalem and Rome, in an apparent show of religiosity which Nigerians now know is hollow. It will matter nothing therefore, if a few thousand Yoruba men and women, children in particular, get needlessly slaughtered. His 2015 ambition is enough motivation, he must have surmised.

The President may wish all these and more for us but it is we, the larger, un purchase-able Yoruba, that must think deeply. We must remember that it was during a no less grim circumstances like this that the Yoruba legend, Hubert Ogunde, composed his timeless Yoruba Ronu, a song which our governors must immediately contract the Ogunde family to reproduce in millions for distribution all over the Southwest just as Tunde Kelani’s epic musical film of that song must be shown all over; even in churches to which the President has taken his political tourism. Yoruba must refuse to be led again into a second slavery. Some unthinking Yoruba politicians, out of envy and jealousy have decided to: SE RA NWON NITORI OWO, ATI NITORI IPO. NWON TUN FE SO YORUBA DI BOLU FUN JONATHAN GBA. SUGBON O, ENI BA DALE A BALE LO meaning they want to turn Yoruba to a ball to be kicked anyhow

by President Jonathan. Waterloo awaits them.

Nigerians must have seen what the PDP is already making of both the Army and the Police. While we have Senator Adeleke’s word as to how, on the orders of Jonathan’s Police Affairs Minister, seven A.K 47’s were trained on his head, Musiliu Obanikoro, the Minister of state, Army, was reported in newspapers to have led soldiers to Ilaje Ese Odo, Ondo state, last Saturday even as a legislative bye election was ongoing.

Till now, a supposedly independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has not been able to announce

the result of that election. We can only imagine how many battalions, a President who has no faith in the ballot box, will inundate Ekiti and Osun states with on their respective election day. As a Christian, we hope he knows the story of David and Goliath. It would have been interesting, if not calamitous, that the President went all the way to his South-South region to zero in on a man Nigerian courts declared to be above trial in a massive corruption case, at the instance of EFCC, to do his wish in the PDP primaries in Ekiti.

Need we any further evidence of his designs on Ekiti and its people?

We hope they will not be led by the Satan itself to self destruct. It is our hope that they will not resort to the Oyinlola strong arm tactics of 2007 in Osun state which saw many of our people to their early graves. Those pictures are forever engraved in our subconscious in Yoruba land. Their game is up and the Presidency, INEC, the Nigerian Army and the Police should know that this clarion call is not only being read all over the world but it could very well be part of dispatches from several embassies to their home governments. The most interesting thing, however, is that his armada will not meet Ekiti or Osun people with our hands tied behind our backs. Before that D-Day, however, we, Omoluabi Yorubas, have work to do. I quote below how aptly this work was captured on ekitipanupo during this past week: “There is a gang up to force a regime change in Yoruba land which is being backed up and is fully and massively funded

Of books, bookworms and illiteracy Congratulations government; you are now presiding over one of the brightest illiterate societies in the world

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READ of someone saying during the week that if the poor in Nigeria benefit from a Nigerian government’s policy, it is completely accidental, or something to that effect. I’m sure you and I agree with that statement, if you know what it means. On my part, I interpret it to mean first and foremost that Nigerians (both government and people) have ways of conceiving ideas that benefit only a small number of people, say the government’s men (and women too). So, in this country, the uniform of, say the police or traffic wardens, is changed for some government relative’s sake. Even the president’s diet is changed so that someone close enough can make the supplies.

Don’t let us take this interpretation thing further, or else I might begin to think the statement may also mean that the roads you and I have been travelling on have not been meant for us but since we are such good thieves that the government cannot get rid of... Worse, even the education you and I have received so far have not really been aimed at us but we somehow stood in the way.

Really, government’s policies have never been directed at improving the lot of the poor; everything it has done has been for itself. Talk of anyone being self-serving.

You know of course that the converse will also hold true: that every-

by the presidency - remember the stolen billions. If we don’t want them to take us back to their inglorious past of infamy and bloodletting, then all hands must be on deck. Our elite must step out of their cocoon and go to their respective towns and villages to reach out to the electorate. The real village square meetings of the people must hold publicly at which the people, especially the impressionable youths, who have voter’s cards and are eligible to vote, will be properly counseled on the communal position on fundamental political issues”, especially the need for Ekiti never to become a colony of stranger elements. Ekiti has forever sealed her freedom with the blood of its citizens shed at the KIRIJI war.

These men should poignantly remind us of U.S President Bush 11 when he wanted a regime change in Iraq. He ferociously battled Iraq, and today, on a daily basis, Iraq loses not less than 20 or double that number of its citizens to suicide bombing. The PDP, under President Jonathan’s lead, wants to turn Ekiti, no Yoruba land, to a battle ground. There would have been no problem if they believe in the ballot box, but they don’t since, even in cahoots with their lackey in the Labour party, PDP cannot garner 40 percent of the votes in either Ekiti or Osun state. Therefore they intend to suborn INEC to do the unthinkable and the impossible. They will forever regret the day as Jonathan would have thereby sounded Nigeria’s death knell. And his 2015 ambition, the leitmotif for all these shenanigans, would have gone with the winds.

We can only hope he will be better advised and will not dare.

thing the government has failed to do has also been for its own benefit.

Take the failure to revive and develop the railways, for instance. That is one colossal failure for which the government needs to cover its face in deep and great shame. The wonderful thing is that I can never for the life of me fathom out the benefit it is deriving from that failure when many nations in the world are being sustained by such social services. All I know is that one of the greatest benefits of modern living is still the train, and it is being denied us the poor in this country. But we are not here to repeat ourselves today; let’s leave that for a rainy day.

Oh yes, I remember, the rainy days are here again. How do I know?

Oh, because I can see various governments scampering around trying to fix leaky potholes and blocked drainages. You thought I would say because I can hear the rains falling down, down this way? No, I can’t say that because most times when it’s raining, I am too busy wading through flooded roads. When I’m not on the road, however, I pick something up and read. That is how I have come to read so many things: newspapers, comics, drug literatures, books, dog’s teaks (sorry, that’s counting), stars... I would willingly have read the dog’s liver (just to know the signs of the times) but the dog refused to oblige me. Yeah, that’s

what bookworms do: read anything that comes to hand. That’s why the dog now runs away when he sees my hands coming.

Bookworms, goes my Encarta, are enthusiastic readers; people who love reading. The good news is that I am not alone. Indeed, I pale into insignificance when I consider a friend of mine who says he can out-read a reader. Now, that is something. Just mention any title in the classics, he’s at home. Even bestseller lists do not go past his door step. And he lives in Nigeria. And he is an engineer. Once, I teased him that I quite believed if he lived in Britain, he would have been one of those who would camp all night in front of some bookshop just to be able to get a copy of a Harry Potter book. He said he got someone to do that for him. I rested my case, but not before I was struck by two things.

One, I reflected on the rise and rise of Harry Potter and why it has not happened here. To begin with, the book publishing industry in Nigeria is suffering from a grave disease inflicted on it by the government. All over the world, it has been known that revolutions in literacy and information can be accelerated only through making books and newspapers cheap and affordable. I remember being sent to buy newspapers for three pence when I was young. That was some big money then, but I believe that it made news and information to be within the reach of more people than it is now at a whopping one hundred and fifty Naira – daily feeding money for many people now.

Somewhere in the seventies, the

trend of information affordability failed and I believe it was entirely the government’s fault: first it introduced SAP, and then it raised importation duties on printing materials.

Book and news industries practically crumbled under the weight of the government’s wickedness. So, dear reader, even though Harry Potter is possible here, it will not come in a long while because publishing houses are more interested in fighting for survival than in aesthetics or altruism. Now they work very closely with schools’ curricula.

Unfortunately, those among us who can really afford to finance publishing houses that would not be too desperate for survival are not ready to do so. They are the people who have had easy access to the government’s money. Those are more inclined to quickly take that loot abroad where they hope it cannot be traced rather than invest it in something as trite as making the economy grow. After all, it is not their responsibility to help people improve in their reading and thinking habits; let other people do that. Truly, only a foolish rich ‘un will keep his stolen money lying around long enough for detectives to find or for banks to give as soft loans to publishers.

The second thing that struck me was that the government might have deliberately been trying to keep the literacy level down, much the same way you would keep the noise level down in the house. If I didn’t know the government better then, I would have said it was trying to stifle the people from seeking knowledge, wisdom, information and understanding. Perhaps it was; and well has it suc-

ceeded. Congratulations government; you are now presiding over one of the brightest illiterate societies in the world, and you did it all by yourself.

That Nigerians are bright and intelligent, there is no doubt. Just look at the array of their activities: ‘419’ scams, intractable Boko Haram and Niger Delta insurgencies, ‘Yahoo Boys’’ scams, kidnapping businesses, and yes, more 419 scams. These are the efforts of brains put to work. True, these organs are now run by graduates and undergraduates but they were not started by graduates. You see, a dysfunctional society like ours where everything is upside down would sooner than later cause a malfunction of the brain even in the strong breeds.

The present low level of literacy in Nigeria is causing havoc in every way. People are dying every day because they really do not know the difference between uniforms in health care institutions. I hear that general hospital attendants have been known to divert patients to their own home dispensaries because the patients do not know any better. Believe me, a nation’s economic and political survival has everything to do with the amount of knowledge and literacy its citizens have between them. If you don’t believe me, just look at the farming business in Nigeria today: how many mechanised farms can you count? Well, there’s mine, and mine, and mine; that’s all.

Seriously, there is a strong connection between the government’s ‘Vision 2020202020’ or whatever name it goes by, the development of books and reducing the level of illiteracy in the country. That connection is political will. If the government wants a literate Nigeria by 2020, it’s will be done.

COMMENT

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, APRIL 13, 2014

17

(60)

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Will it be watched at home with fresh eyes and open minds?

T was with great expectations and even much greater anxieties that on Wednesday this week I went to a private screening of Biyi Bandele’s film adaptation of Chimamanda Adichie’s prize-winning novel on the Nigeria-Biafra war, Half of a Yellow Sun. The “expectations” can be quickly or summarily expressed. Both the filmmaker and the novelist rank very high in my estimation. Adichie is now one of the most deservedly world famous authors in contemporary literature and Half of a Yellow Sun is one of her best works. The occasion of its adaptation for the big screen of cinema in the highways and upper levels of popular culture and not the alleyways and side streets of video films is therefore an occasion that excites great expectation. Add to this the fact that though Biyi Bandele who adopted the novel for the screen is an accomplished playwright, this is his debut film, his first venture into the rarefied world of movies optioned by very influential producers and made with big-name actors. [For truth in public discourse, I must state here that Biyi Bandele was my student at the University of Ibadan in the mid1970s] For these reasons, I was immensely pleased that my great expectations were not disappointed and I left the cinema on Wednesday night very glad, very gratified that the film version of Adichie’s great novel is also a delightful and absorbing work. I understand that it will premiere in Lagos next week and bearing this in mind, I strongly recommend that everyone reading this piece should see the film if they happen to be in Lagos during its run there. It is precisely on the basis of this “recommendation” that I now go to the matter of the anxieties with which, side by side with the expectations, I set out to watch the film last Wednesday, especially since even after watching the films, the anxieties still remain. But before dealing with this issue, permit me to briefly discuss the things that I found delightful and compelling about the film.

Most of those who watched the private screening of the films at Harvard on Wednesday had all almost certainly read Adichie’s novel.

But in the marketplaces of popular cinema in the world at large, the vast majority of those who will see the film will not have read the novel. For this reason, the film must and will stand or fall on its own and cannot bank on the celebrity status of the novel and its writer. I am glad to report that it succeeds in doing this wonderfully, so much so that I expect that after watching the film, many of those who have not read Half of a Yellow Sun will be sufficiently piqued by how close to or different from novel is Bandele’s film that they will rush to read the novel. They will of course discover, either to their pleasure or disappointment, that the novel is far more complex than its film version.

But that is beside the essential point

[On watching Biyi Bandele’s film adaptation of “Half of a Yellow Sun” at Harvard]

•Chimamanda

being argued here. With very few exceptions, nearly all film adaptations of great works of literature do not match the depth and complexity, the unique perturbations and intimations in the original literary works. This is why, in the last instance, film versions of works of literature must stand or fall on their own. Not paying sufficient attention to this categorical imperative, many adapters of literary works for film use the reputation of the work or its author as a crutch to lean on and in the process fail woefully.

Perhaps the most notorious example of this phenomenon is Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart and its many film adaptations, not one of which is successful as film, as a work dependent on the mastery of the medium of film and its demands and satisfactions.

Perhaps at the base of Bandele’s success in his film is his recognition that though its subject is an epochal historical event, Adichie’s novel is not a historical novel. This is because though it is fiercely faithful to depicting the harrowing and unforgettable effects of the historical event of the Nigeria-Biafra war on those who had to live through the war, the real strength of Adichie’s novel lies elsewhere. It lies in its ineffable ability to both capture the quotidian realities of life in the midst of devastating war and to plumb the depths of the conflicting inner drives and motivations of characters in whom the war brings out the best and the worst in them.

In Bandele’s film these two aspects of the novel – the terrifying banality or ordinariness of the ravages of war and singularly driven characters for whom the war serves as a backdrop to who they really are and who they are striving to become – are realized powerfully without the slightest hint of exoticism, the bane

•Half of a Yellow Sun

of films made from novels on Africa or by Africans. Thus, where films on such novels as Things Fall Apart (Chinua Achebe), Cry the Beloved Country (Alan Paton), A Good Man in Africa (William Boyd) and Out of Africa (Karen Blixen) all failed to rise above the level of cliché and exoticism in depicting Africa as background and Africans as human subjects, Bandele’s film is, in my opinion, the first film in the genre to soar exultantly into the realm of unforced plausibility and warm, funny, intriguing and compelling presence of all the characters, African and European. Nollywood directors and actors will find a lot to learn from this film. This, in fact is the point of departure for the anxieties that I had about this film, anxieties that have not disappeared with the great pleasure and delight that I had in watching the film.

If Bandele’s film succeeded in assuaging my anxiety about the tendency in Hollywood or British films based on novels on Africa or by Africans to exoticize the continent and its peoples, alas it did not allay my worries concerning the baleful effects of the popularity and influence of Nollywood on cinema audiences in Nigeria, the African continent and the Diaspora. At the screening of the film at Harvard where slightly under half of the audience was African or black, this influence of Nollywood was very palpable, very disconcerting. Every time that the Mother of Odenigbo, (the main male character in the novel and the film played by Chiwetel Ejiofor) spoke, the majority of the Africans in the audience either burst into raucous laughter or tittered uncontrollably, even though how she spoke and what she spoke about did not entail comedy. In time, I became very conscious in the “racial” division in the audience response to this character’s role in the film: blacks laughed all the time;

•Bandele

the whites were silent or perhaps mystified and querulous about the laughter. Personally, I was greatly inconvenienced by the fact that one of the loudest of the laughers was sitting right next to me! It did not matter that this role of the Mother was played

by Onyeka Onwenu with verve but also with nuance and with dignity in the second half of the film; every time the Mother appeared laughter erupted. There is not the slightest doubt in my mind that the voluble, completely unselfconscious laughers did not and could not see Onyeka in the role; what they saw was Patience Ozokwor, the Nollywood essence of Mothers and Mother-in-laws as insufferable shrewish termagants.

Let me hasten to say that I am not making too much of this laughter around one single character. What I saw, what troubled me was the fact that, as soon as she appeared in the film, this character’s presumed essence became the benchmark for the response to the whole film. Laugher, loud comments, voluble talking back to characters became commonplace in the response to the film. And in nearly all cases, these responses trivialized the film and its brilliant, compelling probing of existential and social issues of great moral and psychological weight that the war bequeathed to us, as represented by Adichie’s novel and Bandele’s adaptation of it for film.

In this particular case, my anxiety is this: after Nollywood, can serious and engaging cinema in our country hope for and get popular audiences who will watch films with fresh eyes and open minds?

This question, which indeed provides the title for this piece, is all the more vital given the fact that the film is after all about the Biafra-Nigeria civil war which is second to no other historical event or crisis in postindependence Nigeria in causing wrenching divisions between us con-

cerning both its prosecution and its legacies for the present and the future.

The concrete terms in which this pertains to Bandele’s film can be gauged by the controversies that erupted after the publication of Achebe’s last book, There Was A Country. Thus, following those controversies around Achebe’s book, the question that is the title of this piece can be applied to the film: will it be watched at home in Nigeria with fresh eyes and open minds where Achebe’s last book failed to produce such freshness and openness? I certainly hope that it does.

Like Adichie’s novel, Bandele’s film is pro-Biafra. But also like Adichie’s novel this film cannot be reduced to a pro-Biafra tract. As in Adichie’s wonderful novel in which only the most narrow and intractable anti-Biafra and anti-Igbo zealot will fail to respond to the evocation and probing of common, universal failures and strengths, Bandele’s film takes us beyond narrow and intractable divisions of ethnicity, religion and region to inner recesses of the heart and the mind that are common to all of us. If this film can take its audiences at home to these regions of the heart and the mind, perhaps, but only perhaps we might be able to seriously begin to engage the legacies of the civil war with fresh eyes and open minds.

But then, first of all, Bandele’s film has to get past the invisible but impregnable obstacles set up by Nollywood. Oh, Patience Ozokwor and your countless Nollywood partners-in-cinema-yamayama, what great obstacles thou hath all unwittingly wrought in separating complexity from healthy laughter, depth from comic frivolity and nuance from mindless joviality!

Biodun Jeyifo bjeyifo@fas.harvard.edu

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The politics of size

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N terms of population, land mass and mineral endowments, Nigeria is massive relative to most countries in Africa. Our population of over 150 million people – if they were truly economically empowered – would make this nation a powerhouse. So the controversial recent rebasing of our gross domestic product (GDP) is only stating the obvious in book form.

Unfortunately, our high numbers are made up largely of very poor people who cannot afford much. Instead of squabbling about whether the rebasing is right or wrong, we should rather be scandalised that given our huge population we are only generating so much.

Over the last 53 years, a succession of leaders have failed to harness the natural advantages our size offers either on the economic front locally, or diplomatically on the continental and global stage. That is why today millions of Nigerians have become economic refugees fleeing to unlikely places like South Africa, Libya or Cyprus – anywhere would do!

It is the same failure of leadership that has seen smaller African countries run rings around us as we have contested for things on the international stage. They have little or no respect for our size – pre or post rebasing. Their reaction is a function of how we’ve squandered our potentials.

It isn’t that size doesn’t count. There are obvious advantages that being identified as the biggest economy in a region or continent confer on a country. Were it not so, many would not have paid any attention to last weekend’s landmark.

Size does count for something. For many years the South Africans basked in the honour of being described as Africa’s biggest economy. They were certainly not too thrilled at seeing the title slip out of their grasp - no matter how untidy the process of Nigeria’s emergence on top may have been.

The official reaction from Pretoria was very proper and welcomed the fact that African countries were rising on the global scene. However, unofficial tweets that circulated in the country in reaction to the new GDP figures were more revealing.

Most were keen to emphasise that while Nigeria may have a larger population, the rebasing didn’t change the fact that South Africa had the more prosperous and advanced economy.

One commentator, Dr. Martyn Davies,

A

LONG with secession, restructuring and the appropriate titles by which self-important confreres may be addressed, media reportage is turning out to be another hot topic for discussion at the ongoing National Conference.

Clearly, some delegates are not thrilled with the less-than-laudatory slant of reports published each day. Instead readers are still being served stories about goings-on that only those with a trained reportorial eye would see.

At onset, the media set itself on the collision course with some after it published mirth-inducing pictures of some delegates succumbing to sleep after being assaulted by a couple of soporific presentations. Of course, there were those who had to take a nap on account of their advanced age.

For this category it was understandable – after all, the Holy Scriptures say that our old men would dream dreams! So they were doing what comes naturally!

But rather than see the funny side of

•Jonathan CEO of Frontier Advisory, argued that the new label didn’t amount to more than underlining the fact that Nigeria had a larger population. “No country became rich through buying consumer goods.

They become rich through saving, investing, innovating, embracing technology, driving productivity… Not GDP.” “Three things create wealth in successful economies – obviously considering clean, effective government as a given… its innovation, its productivity and its technology… And I don’t see really any of the three coming out of Nigeria at all. It’s purely a numbers game.

Fast moving consumer goods facing numbers game. That is it,” he said.

One advantage of being branded the biggest is that it is now a reality investors looking for opportunities on the continent must deal with. The challenges and cost of doing business here notwithstanding, they would think hard about sidestepping the immense opportunities offered by our huge market.

•Zuma On the home front, the largely negative reaction to Nigeria’s overnight emergence in the ranks of the world’s 30 largest economies can be understood from two perspectives. Firstly, it represents one of the few bits of good news on the economy for President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration in a very long while.

He and his team would naturally want to take credit for the new labelling because it has happened under his watch. It doesn’t matter whether his policies or those of his predecessors are what triggered the quantum leap.

But what really riles people is that no attempt is being made by the government to put the rebasing in perspective. The suggestion somehow seems to be that the new GDP figures mean life for the average Nigerian has become better under Jonathan because his statisticians tapped their calculators – releasing a batch of impressive new numbers.

Worse for the government, the results have been unveiled against the backdrop

The confab and the media things, some individuals with outsize egos began to push for withdrawal of accreditation of any newspaper which reported proceedings in unflattering light.

Thankfully, more perceptive delegates quickly snuffed out this clumsy attempt at censorship.

This breed, however, die hard. Last week they reared their heads again with the same old complaints. Rather than push for outright expulsion of offending reporters they now want them excluded from covering certain sessions.

It is amazing how quickly people begin to see themselves as special. If you are discussing Nigerian issues why lock yourself away from media scrutiny? I doubt if there’s any idea that is so novel being discussed at this conference that has not come up in past constitutional conferences in the last 50 years. Even the most dreaded

prospect – secession - has been broached.

So what else is new under the sun that has to be discussed away from the hearing of Nigerians?

I would suggest that delegates at the conference should make every effort to be humble. They are not elected representatives of the people. They are not recognized by the Nigeria constitution. They are a creation of the president without legal underpinning.

The constitution confers upon the Nigerian media the right to report and inform the people. They don’t have to report to please delegates, but do their jobs as they judge professionally correct.

Rather than try to constrain reporters from carrying out their duties, these touchy delegates might as well scrap press coverage so that the conference officially becomes a secret society. Who cares really?

of the tragic Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) recruitment exercise a few weeks back which left 19 dead across the country. As of today millions of able-bodied, educated citizens are pining away in the ranks of the unemployed. Indeed, one of the defining images of the Jonathan years would be the cavernous Abuja National Stadium overflowing with desperate jobseekers.

It is hard to be impressed with the rebasing when it is happening at a time Nigerians are feeling the pinch of the absence of the most basic public infrastructure. The bulk of our people live in the dark – without hope of power any time soon.

The same frustrated ones who have to pay through the nose to provide their own electricity are supposed to crack open bottles of champagne to celebrate some new statistic that has no bearing on their lives.

Here is one statistic that shows why many are so cynical. South Africa which we have just ‘overtaken’ generates over 45,000 megawatts of electricity; Nigeria with her grand GDP figures can only manage a little over 3,000 megawatts.

Still, we should be grateful for little mercies. The ongoing numbers storm has focused attention on what is important: the state of the economy and the ability to turn it around - rather than mundane matters like religion and ethnicity. It should now be the key test as we edge towards electing a new set of leaders in 2015.

Former United States President Bill Clinton rode into office in 1992 hammering on the parlous state of the economy.

Jonathan’s leadership over this critical area of national life should come under scrutiny. So also should the credentials of his potential rivals who think they can do a better job.

A Mugabe tongue-lashing

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IGERIA has finally protested to the Zimbabwean government remarks by the country’s president, Robert Mugabe, a few weeks ago about corruption in Nigeria.

He had sparked by outrage on March 15 when, when in speaking of deepening corruption in Zimbabwe at an event marking his 90th birthday asked his audience: “Are we now like Nigerians where you have to reach into your pockets to get anything done?”

I suspect that Nigerian officials who protested didn’t do so over the veracity of the assertion seeing as there’s nothing new in what the ancient dictator said they we don’t tell ourselves every day. It just rankles when it comes from an outsider.

That said, no one should be too surprised about the broadside. Mugabe is a notorious loose-cannon whose victims include everyone from former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, former United States President George W. Bush and even the incumbent, Barack Obama.

For 34 years he has ruled his country with an iron hand – destroying its economy in the name of land reforms which were actually just a political ploy to secure his position. Using brutal means he has emasculated the opposition. He brazenly plays base tribal politics just to strengthen his grip on power.

Mugabe is a disgrace to the continent.

But he has managed to survive for more than three decades because timid and cowardly African leaders – wary of being at the receiving end of his acidic tongue - have not stood up to him. No surprise that he has turned that tongue on his one-time benefactor – Nigeria.

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

Mimiko’s administration a huge failure PAGES 20

Osun 2014: ‘Aregbesola deserves a second term’.

Rumpus in Akwa-Ibom PDP over SSG’s guber ambition

PAGE 23

PAGE 24

•Shekarau

•Shagaya

Intrigues, power play stall appointment of new ministers

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HE high expectations that trailed the defection of former Kano State Governor, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is seemingly giving way to a feeling of frustration.

Some weeks ago, Shekarau was formally admitted into the PDP by the national leaders of the party, led by President Goodluck Jonathan and the National Chairman, Adamu Muazu, at a zonal rally held in Kaduna.

Plans by President Goodluck Jonathan to appoint new ministers from the ranks of new members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) appears not to be sitting well with some old stakeholders of the ruling party, reports Assistant Editor, Remi Adelowo His defection to the PDP came on the heels of a similar exercise held in Sokoto during which a former governor of the state, Attaihiru Bafarawa, also a former chieftain of the APC, formally declared for the ruling party.

The unexpected decision of the duo to leave APC followed their irreconcilable differences

with the leadership of the major opposition party over the control of the party in their respective states.

The Nation gathered that two of the agreements allegedly reached between the Presidency and the two former governors include their appointment as ministers and their recognition as

leaders of the PDP in Kano and Sokoto respectively.

But weeks after their entries into the PDP, some stakeholders of the party are allegedly kicking against their being made leaders of the party in the concerned states, sources disclosed.

Findings by The Nation revealed that the situation in Kano

is more complicated, a development that is allegedly giving the Presidency and national leadership of the party a serious concern.

Intrigues and power play among leading stakeholders of PDP in the North West state, it was gathered, is said to be stalling the appointment of Shekarau, who, reports claim, has been penciled down as the substantive Minister for Education.

Many of the old PDP mem•Continued on Page 20

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POLITICS

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Intrigues, power play

‘Mimiko’s administration a huge failure’ Labour Party chieftain in Ondo State and immediate past commissioner of the state on the board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Barrister Benson Enikuomehin, is worried over his party’s abysmal performance reports Assistant Editor, Dare Odufowokan

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LEADER of the ruling Labour Party in Ondo State, Barrister Benson Enikuomehin, has described the five years of Dr. Olusegun Mimiko in charge of the state’s affair as a huge failure given the total absence of meaningful development in most parts of the southern senatorial district of the state.

Speaking on the inconclusive House of Representatives byeelection in Ilaje-Ese Odo Local Government Area of the state, Enikuomehin, who hails from the local government area, said the only thing that will prevent the area from witnessing crises over the election is if the wishes of the people is allowed to prevail.

“What I can see from what happened on Saturday is that the people are determined to see their votes count,” he said.

Enikuomehin, a legal practitioner and immediate past commissioner of the state on the board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), said the inability of the ruling party to register an outright victory during last weekend’s bye-election in IlajeEse Odo was because the people of the area are dissatisfied with the current administration over the many unfulfilled promises made to them in the past.

The LP chieftain said in spite of the about N800million that should accrue to the council monthly as an oil producing area, there is nothing to show to the people as the dividends of the same democracy they have diligently supported with their votes and efforts in the last five years.

“Billions of naira come to the state as derivation on a monthly basis. 40 percent of this should come to Ilaje Ese Odo as an oil producing area in the state. If you calculate that in five years, that is a lot of money. The question the people are asking is where is this money? They are asking because there is nothing on ground in terms of development to show that such huge amount was spent anywhere near our locality.

“It is this situation that the people revolted against on Saturday by not voting for our party the way they used to do. I am a member of the Labour Party. We have complained severally but nothing came out of our complaints. We urged the governor to d o something about

•Enikuomehin

the neglect of the area. He didn’t do anything. He only came around on Thursday to flag off the campaign for the election. Just two days before the election. That was why we lost in my ward.

“Government must put in effort to persuade the people of our area. The hen that lays the golden egg shouldn’t be abandoned this way. The inability of the party to win is the reaction of the people to the inaction of this administration in the area. I am not saying the governor, but the government. This government has failed the people of Ilaje Ese Odo. “I pray we win the re-run election but if the people of the area decides otherwise, we should see it as a lesson for us as a party.

We should simply accept it as a message from the people that they are unhappy with our government and our party. That will help us to correct our mistakes. Our chances in this election is similar to that of a dying man on life support with the gas running out,” he said.

Enikuomehin said in spite of the fact that the governor practically relocated to the area to canvass for votes, his party could only manage a 1,000-vote lead margin closely followed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

According to him, this is a sign that the party is no longer popular amongst the people of the area.

“I will tell you this, from what I know of politics, it is largely about development of the people and about things accruing to the personalities involved. No single footbridge has been constructed in my place in five years by this administration. I know some people will say this is anti party, but I don’t care. They may say I am working for the PDP. But I ask, what will the PDP give me? Money or what? Without being arrogant, I am a modestly successful person.

“I know what I am saying although I am also aware of what this can cost me . But I cannot help saying these because I am used to saying the truth. The LP in Ondo State today is a government o f one man for one man by one man.

This i s the truth.

As I speak, the secretariat of our party in Akure is under lock and key. Who do we complaint to?

“Apart from the market in Igbokoda, the OSOPADEC House at Igbokoda and the mega school at Igbokoda, let somebody come and show me any other project anywhere else from Araromi to Odoebihan and the likes.

Igbokoda is just one ward out of 12 wards. We need to tell ourselves the truth. I owe it to my conscience and my people to speak the truth,” he said.

He also expressed sadness that “the national leadership of our party is part of all these. I am disappointed and frustrated by this administration’s failure to develop our communities. This government has failed us. We have nothing to show for many years of supporting the Labour Party all these years. It is so bad that in 2012, as the election was approaching, I gave people from Akingboye, Obefenhin, Obe-Iji etc money to go and mend existing footbridges while hoping that the government will do something after the election. Nothing has been done ever since.

“I want the OSOPADEC chairman to confront me on all these things I’ve said. I respect the person and office of the governor but with what has happened to my people in Ilaje in the last five years, I say this administration is a wash out. We are lucky to still have some votes at the bye election. We should have scored zero. Promises made to the people are not fulfilled,” he lamented.

Speaking further, the LP chieftain said he is not afraid of being suspended or expelled from the ruling party over what he said about the state government.

“The young man contesting on the platform of our party is very close to me. I am an ardent supporter of his aspiration but I wouldn’t rig the election for him.

H e was unable to win last Saturday because, as a party, we have failed the people. The people are aggrieved and they have told us so in clear terms. It is left for us to adjust ourselves.

“If the LP is angry over what I have said here, they have just two options. They can summarily throw me out of the party or summon me and question me. But if they don’t do any of these two, I remain a member of the Labour Party in Ondo State. If they throw me out, I have options too. We have the APC there and we have the PDP. Any other party that I feel will advance the cause of my people is a choice I will gladly follow,” he added.

•Saraki •Continued from Page 19 bers in the state, led by a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Ghali Na’Abba, are alleged not to be comfortable with the proposed appointment of Shekarau as a minister and are alleged to be doing everything possible to stall the move.

Sources disclosed that the defection of Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso from the PDP to the APC had initially ended the internal wrangling in the party, as members of his Kwankwasiya group followed him to his new party.

The development, it was learnt, closed the chapter of rivalry between his group and those loyal to Ambassador Aminu Wali, who was recently appointed as the minister for foreign affairs.

Shekarau’s defection to the party has, however, ignited a fresh crisis in the party, with some of the leading members alleging that the former governor is being accorded a preferential treatment by the Presidency.

Some members, it was further gathered, are also happy that Shekarau is being positioned to replace another nominee from the state, Hajia Jemila Salik, who was dropped two days after her nomination was announced.

The crisis got to its peak sometime ago when nine, out of the 11 members of the caretaker committee of the party, announced their resignation.

In a letter addressed to the National Chairman of the party, the deputy chairman of the caretaker committee, Alhaji Shehu Wada Sagagi, said members of the caretaker committee had unanimously resigned their appointments to, in his words, “provide a platform of the integration of new and old members of the party.”

He added that they resolved to resign their appointments at a meeting attended by all members of the committee, excluding the caretaker committee chairman, Dr. Hassan Kafayos.

But contrary to the reason advanced, it was learnt that the mass resignation of the party’s interim executive may not be unconnected to the battle for control and clash of interests between Shekarau, Aminu Wali and Mohammed Abacha, son of the late dictator, Gen. Sani Abacha, who sometime last year defected to the party from the defunct Congress for Progressives Change (CPC).

The current scenario in the Kano State chapter of PDP has subsequently delayed Shekarau’s appointment as a member of the Federal Executive Council (FEC), with not a few of the old members preferring Na’Abba or Salik.

Like Kano, like Kwara The intrigues currently prevailing in the Kano PDP is also playing out in the Kwara State chapter, it was gathered.

The selection of a businesswoman, Hajia Bola Shagaya, who is also one of the closest associates of the First Lady, Patience Jonathan, as the Leader of the party in the state, has thrown the party into a crisis.

Allegedly uncomfortable with Shagaya’s leadership is a returnee member of the party, Gbemi Saraki, with other stakeholders, including the Senator representing Kwara South, Simeon Ajibola, Prof.

Abdulrahman Oba and former Minister of Transport, Ibrahim Isa Bio. Those opposed to Shagaya’s role in the party believe she wields so much power because of her closeness to the seat of power at the centre despite not being known to be a politician.

The wealthy businesswoman was the chief host at the reception of the President during his recent visit to Kwara State – a development believed to have angered old party members and supporters of Simeon Ajibola – the only PDP Senator in the state.

Again, Shagaya was alleged to have selected members of the state delegation that visited the President at the Aso Rock Villa some weeks ago, and allegedly leaving out key members of the party.

Beside the issue of leadership tussle, top Kwara PDP members are also alleged to be at daggers drawn on the 2015 governorship election and who fills the state’s slot in the federal cabinet formerly held by Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the erstwhile Minister of Sports.

“The PDP has tripod problems. It’s not only about the ministerial slot, their problems are in three folds; they have leadership problem, they are also engaged in-fighting over the 2015 governorship ticket as well as the ministerial slot. I wonder how the party can work together. Unlike PDP, APC has a clear-cut leader,” a source close to affairs of the party said.

While Gbemi Saraki is being touted as Abdullahi’s replacement, other stakeholders like Bio and Oba are also allegedly scheming for a ministerial position.

Bio’s argument, it was learnt, is that Kwara North, where he comes from, should fill the ministerial slot rather than another party member from the Central senatorial zone where the immediate past minister, Abdullahi, Saraki, Oba, and a new defector into the party, Mr. Dele Belgore, (who is also allegedly lobbying for a ministerial position) hail from.

The Nation also gathered that the fear among those kicking against Gbemi Saraki’s appointment is that she may use her position to hijack the party structures in the state to advance her governorship ambition.

How the Presidency and the PDP national leadership resolve the imbroglio in its Kano and Kwara states chapters remains a matter of conjecture.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

POLITICS

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AT THE NATIONAL CONFAB THIS WEEK

Restructuring, census debate and other matters

•Nnamani OME of the major issues that caught the attention of delegates this week at the ongoing National Conference include restructuring of the country, the seemingly unending census debate and the ever touchy isue of resource control.

Former Senate President, Ken Nnamani, former Minister of Foreign Affairs, General Ike Nwachukwu (Rtd), former Minister of Justice, Bayo Ojo, and former Deputy Speaker of House of Representatives, Chibudom Nwuche, amongst others, canvassed restructuring of the country.

In his contribution, Nnamani said Nigeria should be restructured so that federating units wll become the geo-political zones and not states.

This, according to him, will imply that the power for creation of local government areas should cease to be that of the federal government. In this arrangement, the states would be given the power to create local government areas. He said the “Conference must focus on the future of Nigeria by ensuring that the burden of power currently placed on the federal government was reduced and given to the federating units, the states and the local government areas.”

Nwuche pointed out clearly that Nigeria and Nigerians have exhibited signs of a failed state for a long time and that it was time to arise and build. He chal-

S

•Ojo

•Yakassai

•Mustapha

the census controversy when he said the population of Northern Nigeria has always been higher than that of the South.

The elder statesman told delegates that the issue of unending controversy on the actual census figures of the Northern and Southern parts of the country should have been put to rest since there is incontrovertible evidence that the North is greater in population than its Southern counterpart.

According to him, the reason for the unending argument has so much to do with “political representation and resource allocation, among other things,” adding that the prevailing situation “portends unhealthy rivalry that is inconsistent with the spirit of unity and collective cooperation that should be indelible hallmarks of our continued coexistence.”

Chief Ajibola Ogunshola from the SouthWest cautioned against excessive population growth which when not counter-balanced with adequate productivity is a major cause of massive unemployment and other social problems. He supported the restoration of local, state and zonal policing which was abolished during the military era, and said the possible fear of abuse could be reduced by appropriate legislation. He said under devolution of power the federation should no longer fund local councils directly and

that zones, as the federating units, could have as many states and local government areas as they needed.

Resource control and other matters His Royal Highness, Dr Muhammadu Barkindo Mustapha, the Lamido of Adamawa, whose contribution and threats to walk out from the conference at the outset of the conference raised dust in the polity, also shocked other delegates and other Nigerians monitoring proceedings at the conference this week when he said on Thursday, probably sarcastically, that oil bearing states should be allowed to receive 100 percent revenue accruing from their resources.

Apparently rebuking southern delegates that have been canvassing for resource control, the royal father added that states that do not have oil should have 100 percent of their land, or, as he explained, 100 percent revenue from the use of their land resource.

Making references to the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja and commercial areas in the north, Mustapha warned that if oil producing states receive 100 percent resource benefits, then non- indigenes in any part of the country may have to pay rents for use of properties.

Like his contribution and threat to walk out of the conference, this contribution is likely to elicit more reactions next week.

It was another week of drama, intrigues, and hot exchanges at the confab reports Sam Egburonu lenged delegates to ask basic questions: Where did we go wrong? At what point did we take the wrong turn? As an answer to these questions, the former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives traced the cause of the problem to what he described as “a faulty structure,” adding that “Nigeria needs a structure that would enable its best to step forward and provide the required leadership.”

Former Minister of Justice, Bayo Ojo, spoke in support of devolution of power, emphasising the advantages of evolving a weak centre and strong geo-political zones.

Also supporting this call for restructuring, retired Major-General Ike Nwachukwu emphasised that the purpose of the conference was to negotiate for a new Nigeria.

He insisted that “restructuring the country would provide national security, employment for youth, women’s rights and economic development.”

Other delegates that spoke in support of devolution of power include Chief Jim Nwobodo and Professor A. B. C. Nwosu.

Population and census debate Perhaps the most dramatized issue at the conference this week bothers on the age old census debate. Alhaji Tanko Yakassai, a former Presidential Political Adviser during the President Shehu Shagari’s era, reignited

‘Shema’s government has brought succour to Katsina people’

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t has been four years since you were elected as the chairman of Peoples Democratic Party, Katsina State chapter. How has it been ?

We thank God, but running the party has by no means been an easy task, it has simply been challenging. For one to say everything has been good and fine will amount to deceiving oneself, but then, on the aggregate, I want to state that the PDP has been solidly rooted in the state since my assumption of office. The party has, through the leadership of the governor brought succour to the people of the state through various programmes and policies geared towards alleviating poverty.

So in Katsina State, I used to say that it is the people that are talking and not the government like we have everywhere. Essentially, the concept of practical politics has been introduced by the party leadership to make sure that the ordinary person in Katsina State embraces no other party but the PDP. But in the 2011 election, the party lost some seats in the House of Representatives and the Senate. Is that not a sign that the PDP is gradually losing grips in the state?

That is what some people would say but in politics you cannot assume that you must win in all cases. Nevertheless, internal challenges caused the party to lose some seats in the National Assembly elections in 2011. And what we did apparently and quickly too was to go back to the drawing board to critically look at what went wrong? In politics, you have to make amends here and there. This explains why despite the large votes they got in the National Assembly elections, when the governorship election came, we won by landslide.

And you will agree with me that the gover-

Alhaji Rabiu Gambo Bakori is the Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party, in Katsina State. He speaks with Adetutu Audu on the challenges of his job, Governor Ibrahim Shema’s achievements and other national issues. Excerpts. norship election is the most important of all the elections in the state. It tells how popular the party is in the state. Even then, the so-called opposition party in the state is neither here nor there. Even among the members of the opposition party in the National Assembly, there is crisis. And many of the people in the opposition returned to the PDP during and after the 2011 elections.

With the emergence of APC (a coalition of several parties) in the state and the party parading eminent people like Major General Muhammadu Buhari, many people believe that winning the governorship election in 2015 would be very difficult for the PDP? PDP has been and still everywhere in the state, just like there is nowhere in this country that you will not find PDP. PDP is a national party; other parties, are regional parties. In Katsina, for instance, you can talk of only PDP and CPC. If you go to Yobe and Borno, you talk of only ANPP. If you go to Lagos, you are talking about ACN. Everywhere there is APC, the dominant party there would be the party the people knew before the emergence of APC. So for us here it is CPC. It is easy to know the dominant party in Katsina. Go to the streets and ask people about the dominant party in the state and the benefits they have derived since the Shema administration came in. Make your findings. It is not because I am here; the fact is that you cannot change the truth. It is constant. The development

•Bakori this state has witnessed in the last seven years is unprecedented.The kind of transparency in government of Katsina State is hardly anywhere else.

Tell me which state government would be open and transparent such that the proceeds of its investment would be used to build the seat of government, that is, the Government House and the Governors Lodge in Abuja. The cost of these two projects is more than N6b, and this is just profits

from investment. The investment is still there.

Internal democracy challenge is one of the reasons some of your members at the state and national levels are leaving the party?

What are you doing about it?

That is relative. It depends on how you look at it. Where they are going, is it better?

If it is better, why are some of their members joining us, the PDP? So that suggestion is debatable. Though there is nobody that would be happy that its members are leaving the party, any right thinking leader would do everything possible to have more members than losing them.

Do you think this administration has done enough to warrant PDP returning to Government House again?

This is very important. We need to do some comparative analysis for us to have a clear picture of the situation on ground. The governor has been very lucky because he was part of the purposeful government of the late Musa Yar’Adua when he was governor of the state. Initially when he became governor in 2007, some were sceptical if he would be able to meet up with the standard of his predecessor, but we were all surprised by the amount of work he has done and still doing now.

Do you think the national chairman can go far in his reconciliation effort before the next elections?

The chairman started on a very good note. Whichever way you want to look at it, he is reaching out to everybody. He is all out to ensure reconciliation. He cannot get it done alone. We must all support him to make the effort a success.

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

Ekiti 2014: From Fayose to mysterious third opponent

HE intrusion, or should we call it emergence, of Ayodele Fayose, as PDP’s governorship candidate in the Ekiti governorship elections coming up in June, has compelled the dynamics and the equations of Ekiti politics to be reconfigured. Ekiti has become the latest theatre of the absurd where peace itself is calling for help and protection Before Fayose’s “victory” in the PDP primary, all attention was on the incumbent Kayode Fayemi and Opeyemi Bamidele of the Labour Party. The stakes were indeed very high and the whole world was looking forward to an exciting political contest between two erstwhile friends.

Those who understand the dynamics of Ekiti politics felt that at last, Ekiti State will continue to be governed by a reasonable, responsible, educated and civilised leader should anyone of these two emerge.

Kayode Fayemi is a Ph.D holder who has distinguished himself as an international scholar of outstanding and remarkable talents. He has the advantage of using his achievements and excellent performance to boost his electoral value at the polls. Opeyemi Bamidele is a brilliant lawyer, a former commissioner, a member of the House of Representatives and a dignified gentleman of complex character. His passion and zeal for progressive politics galvanised his relationship with people like Bola Tinubu, Bisi Akande, Rauf Aregbesola, Kayode Fayemi, Femi Ojudu, Femi Falana, Lanre Arogundade and Adams Oshiomole. But his dramatic switch to the Labour Party was an anti-climax to an already complicated political profile riddled with a history of perfidious grandstanding. Notwithstanding, Opeyemi’s intellectual profile is still a sufficient credential for the position of a governor in a state like Ekiti.

Suddenly, a dramatic twist was introduced into Ekiti politics when, against all expectations, Fayose became the gubernatorial candidate of PDP, the ruling party at the centre. On behalf of the people of Ekiti, I felt scandalised and embarrassed that the PDP assaulted and insulted their cultural ego and collective pride by asking them to vote for a man like Ayo Fayose and even went to the extent of celebrating him in Abuja.

It may be true that politics in Nigeria has indeed declined in quality and character, it is the height of immorality and irresponsibility to take it to the level of a Fayose. But that is the situation in Ekiti.

Now that he is in the race, Fayose’s rascality, not his profoundity (does he even have it?) has pushed him into limelight with analysts assum-

By Dapo Thomas

ing the ridiculous that the election is going to be a very tough and straight battle between the two Ifas-Fayemi and Fayose.

My good friend, Opeyemi Bamidele, is no longer being factored into the whole equation. It is a shame that even some members of the elite in the state are also anticipating the possibility of a Fayose triumphing over both Fayemi and Bamidele, alluding to his defeat of Femi Falana in 2003. Since when did the people of Ekiti degenerate into Okada and Kerosene politics?

If Fayemi has his performance as the governor of Ekiti State to flaunt, and Opeyemi Bamidele showcases his legal and political pedigree, what does Fayose have to show? Yet, some elite are joining okada riders to celebrate a man with a puzzling profile.

But the greatest puzzle of Ekiti politics is the existence of a faceless opponent that is more dangerous and harmful than Ayo Fayose.

In his maiden rally/campaign in Ado-Ekiti, Opeyemi Bamidele disclosed to his supporters that half of the members of Fayemi’s cabinet, that is Fayemi’s commissioners and special advisers, are h i s

strong supporters. He confessed that they are not ordinary supporters but financiers of his governorship project. One, there is the possibility that Bamidele is playing mind games. Two, there is also the possibility that he (Bamidele) is only using that to destabilise the government and cause friction and confusion within the cabinet. Three, he may be saying this to create the impression that Fayemi is not only unpopular in the state but that even his cabinet members do not like him.

I know that politics is full of betrayals and disloyalties. And if Bamidele is saying or implying that some aides and commissioners of Fayemi are his secret supporters, I advise Fayemi to take the disclosure very serious.

Judging from his antecedents, Bamidele understands betrayal when he sees one.

Though this is a very dangerous situation, it can be well managed if there are no sentiments and sympathy for those who indulge in perfidy.

It is unfortunate that every member of the cabinet has to be treated as potential suspect. Everyone of them should be under the searchlight because nothing kills easily than the death that resides in the house. Nothing could be more wicked than having people who sit at the supper table with you plotting your fall and your death. Jesus Christ knew who Judas Iscariot was and still tolerated him

•Fayose

and even allowed him to sit at the same supper table. He encouraged him to go ahead with his evil machinations knowing that it was the only way that nations and humanity could receive their salvation. The difference is that Jesus was not a politician but Fayemi is. The only way the poor people of Ekiti can be salvaged from their poverty is if Fayemi remains the governor of the state. For Fayemi to remain the governor of the state, he needs to be alive. For Fayemi to be alive, he needs to be alert to the clandestine intrigues and machinations of the Fifth Columnist in his cabinet. Most politicians are “gambling investors”; they are here and there scheming to eat their cake and still have it. They are working with Fayemi, plotting for his fall with Bamidele and romancing and flirting with Fayose, so that whoever emerges victorious at the polls will still be their friend. One needs wisdom from above to be able to unmask them.

From experience, I know that Fayemi, as a perceptive leader, knows those in his cabinet who fall into this category but he needs to be very careful. I must let him know that from my interactions with a cross section of people in the state, he is well loved by the people but some people dislike him because of his liberal attitude to some members of his cabinet whose excesses the people abhor with a passion. Some of the people I spoke to in Ekiti commended him for his humility, hard work and love for the poor. But the same people condemned some of his close aides for their arrogance, selfishness, irrational behavior and lack of respect for the people. All these people are those I conveniently refer to as the third opponent.

Ayodele Fayose is opponent number one.

Opeyemi Bamidele is opponent number two.

The unidentified Judas in Fayemi’s government (and they are legion) is the opponent number three.

I agree that Fayemi has been very outstanding and unique in terms of governance. I agree that his achievements in less than four years of being the governor of the state are sufficient credentials to guarantee him victory at the polls.

I agree that Fayemi deserves another term as a kind of appreciation for his hard work and rapid transformation of the state. I agree that Fayemi has a massive advantage over Fayose and Bamidele in the coming elections but this can only come to play if he can pray for wisdom to conquer the opponent within. My dear friend, remember Artemidorus’ letter to Julius Ceasar?

May the good Lord help you.

Lagos 2015 guber race: Ikorodu stakeholders lobby Dabiri The forthcoming general election in Lagos State has been generating heat with groups and individuals angling for ascendancy in the build-up to the polls. In this piece, Remi Adelowo appraises the agitation of Ikorodu Division to produce the next governor of Lagos State.

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OR so long, the issue of the alleged marginalisation of the people of Ikorodu in the politics of Lagos State has been on for some time with the affected people discussing the issue in the comfort of their homes and offices until recently when a member of the lower legislative chamber provided a platform to accentuate their misgivings.

Honourable Abike Dabiri, the Chairperson of the House of Representatives Committee on Diaspora stirred the honest nest when her move to empower her constituents soon turned to a forum for agitation by the people.

Their specific request was that the ruling party should look at the direction of their division for the next occupant of Lagos Government House when the tenure of the incumbent governor, Babatunde Raji Fashola, runs its full course next year.

No doubt, the three-term lawmaker is facing yet another challenge in her political career.

The challenge has to do with the calls from her constituents for her to take a shot at the plum office.

For those not too familiar with the political configuration of Lagos, the state is divided into three senatorial zones, among the five administrative divisions, namely Lagos Island, Epe, Ikeja, Badagry and Ikorodu divisions.

Of all the divisions, only the Ikorodu

and Badagry divisions are yet to produce a governor for the state since its creation in 1967. The only time an indigene from Ikorodu mounted the office was during the military administration of late Group -Captain Gbolahan Mudasiru in the short lived Muhammadu Buhari-led military junta.

Citing the perceived injustice, stakeholders from the area are alleging that the leadership of the APC may have accepted to zone the office to the area.

The case of Ikorodu division has further been boosted by the fact that their kith and kin in Epe had produced Micheal Agbolade Otedola in the Third Republic. Ironically, this presumption that the zone may produce the next governor of Lagos State has already pitched the people of Ikorodu Division against their Epe kith and kin.

To give vent to their aspirations, the traditional rulers in the zone have been mobilising their subjects towards realising the objective.

With the field wide open to sons and daughters of Ikorodu Division to take a shot at the plum job, some prominent indigenes had approached Abike Dabiri-Erewa to join the Lagos State governorship race.

The right occasion provided itself during the recent empowerment of her constituents in Ikorodu Town Hall last Saturday when the call for her candidature became more deafening with the preponderance of opinion asking her to contest, saying the state

was ripe for a female governor.

Present at the event, which took place at the Ikorodu Town Hall included a former Deputy Governor of the state, Chief Abiodun Ogunleye and a former Secretary to the State Government, Chief Olorunfunmi Bashorun.

The traditional ruler of Ikorodu land, Oba Salaudeen Oyefeso, was represented by his wife, Hajia Muibat, who set the tone for discussion on the occasion by calling on DabiriErewa to consider the possibility of joining the race.

Speaking on behalf of her spouse, Oyefusi s a i d , “DabiriErewa has all it takes to be a capable governor.

She has our supp o r t a n d w e urge t h e

party to give her the ticket.”

Oyefusi commended the lawmaker for her outstanding gifts and empowerment scheme, which have provided means of livelihood to many families.

“Abike Dabiri-Erewa has, no doubt, distinguished herself in her current political assignment and it will not be out of place to place in her a higher responsibility.

What more, Lagos State, being the centre of excellence, will be scoring another milestone if it elects the first democratically elected female governor in Nigeria in 2015.”

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

POLITICS

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Osun 2014: ‘Aregbesola deserves second term’ In this brief encounter, Dr Charles Onuoha, a chieftain of the All Progressive Congress (APC), current chairman, Imo State Housing Corporation and governorship aspirant in Imo State ahead 2015, lauded the achievements of the Osun State Governor, Rauf Aregbesola, explaining why the governor should be re-elected. Sam Egburonu reports

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t is alleged that you are aspiring to contest the governorship election in Imo State on the ticket of APC in 2015. Is Governor Rochas Okorocha in support of your aspiration?

He has a policy in Imo State which I truly understand and can analyse.

It is only somebody who can analyse it that will sustain it and I am surethe governor knows that, so the issue of weather he is backing me or not does not arise at all because the governor is the father of all in Imo APC and I am sure he will back any eminently qualified candidate in APC who really understand his policies to succeed him and by the grace of God, I am eminently qualified, mentally sound and has been following his policies that have changed Imo State positively. I am also a loyal party man of APC, so why won’t he back my aspiration? Let me tell you, his interest is to make sure that it is only the right person who really understand what is going on in Imo State that will succeed him.

Being so close to Okorocha and acknowledging that he has done well in Imo, your aspiration to succeed him in 2015 suggests he would not contest for re-election then. Are you saying Okorocha will not contest for reelection in 2015?

I have told you how close I am with my governor. Come to Imo State today and see for yourself what he has done. Every man and woman in Imo, irrespective of political association or party, are very happy with him. In fact, since late Chief Sam Mbakwe ruled Imo State, we have not had it so good. His policies has changed the old face of Imo State which the PDP government messed up in the state.

Don’t you agree with me that I am very close to him and have really worked with him to put those wonderful policies in place. So, if I succeed him, I will sustain his vision.

Now, there is free education in Imo State, can somebody who don’t know the policy of free education in Imo State sustain if? No. I am from Ogbe in Ahiazu Mbaise L.G.A. I aspired to be the governor of Imo State in 2011 under the plafform of Labour Party.

When Owelle Okorocha came campaigning, I have already put in place a very solid structure that would have made the change in Imo State then.

But the governor heard of me and he approached me. We had an agreement and so, I collapsed my structure into his own and from there we moved on. Of course you know the result today in Imo. When we sacked PDP, he appointed me Commissioner for Housing and Urban Development, and also Commissioner for Special Duties.

I also served the governor as his SSA, MDGs and currently, I am the chairman, Imo Housing Corporation.

Why did you leave banking for politics?

When I was in the banking industry, I was a general manager. Many people have asked me, on many occasions, why I left banking for a game like Nigerian politics? My answer has been that I have a call from God to go and serve the public as a leader. So, when I was leaving the banking sec-

•Onuoha

tor, I did not have any regret and truly, till tomorrow, I did not have any regret leaving banking for Nigerian politics which people always describe as dirty. I always disagree with those who say Nigerian politics is dirty. We are learning. It is a gradual process.

We have joined to sanitise it.

I learnt you have strong views about the politics of Osun State and the performance of Governor Aregbesola, do you still consider his achievements good enough to warrant his re-election?

Governor Aregbeshola deserves a second term. You don’t change a winning team. I am not saying this because I am a member of APC, no, rather since I know him when he was the works commissioner in Lagos State under the then governor of Lagos State, Asiwaju Bola Almed Tinubu, he has been an achiever. Even when he was elected as governor of Osun State, I knew he will perform.

What he has done so far in Osun State has proved me right.

Aregbeshola has done wonderfully well as the governor of that state.

I used to go to Osun some years back when PDP government was in charge. What Osun is today, under Aregbe, is not what it used to be then.

As an Imo State indigene, would you say Aregbesola’s government has favoured non indigenes in the state?

The report from Igbo indigenes in Oshun State is very encouraging.

They are very happy living in Osun State and the governor has been so friendly with non-indigenes in that state. There has been no marginalisation, according to them.

So from the bottom of my heart, I can say he has developed Osun State; he has created value in that state economically and other wise. People can easily visit Osun State now than before because he has put in place things and activities that can attract

other people from other states and country to Osun State.

What is the future of APC, given PDP’s resolve to fight back ahead 2015?

APC has come to stay. In case you don’t know, APC is the peoples party in Nigeria. By the special grace of God, APC with Aregbeshola will definitely win massively when Osun people will go to the poll, no doubt about that.

Which party can stop APC? The party is very much on ground in Osun and in every state in Nigeria generally. Our victory in Osun is not negotiable. They said iron sharpeneth iron. APC is a sharp iron and Aregbeshola is a sharp iron too. Do you think the two combination will not fly? They are flying already.

Come 2015, APC will surprise all the doubting Thomoses in Nigeria. I can tell you PDP is afraid of the potentials of APC. Wait and see what the performance of APC will be in Ekiti and Osun this year. The party knows there is a political battle ahead and they are bracing up for the challenges.

Though you are not from Osun State, what special message would you give Osun people and government?

Although I am not from the state, the achievements of Governor Aregbeshola has really moved me. So, I am publicly commending him for the good works he is doing in his state, the reason he deserves to come back.

As an Igbo man, I am using this opportunity to tell non-indigenes in Osun State, especially the Igbos in Osun, to massively support Aregbeshola’s reelection bid. Non-indigenes in Osun, especially the Igbos, should support him because he has been very friendly with them there, according to their report. I see him as a detribalised Nigerian who believes in one Nigeria. So, the Igbos living in Osun State, I want to tell you that Aregboshola is gold which cannot be replaced with any bronze and so I recommend him for a second term.

Morning shows the day

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he most important events on the political calendar this year are the governorship elections in Ekiti and Osun States. They point the way to the general elections next year. The signs emerging show that the ruling party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), might have decided to adopt strong arm tactics in a bid to record victory somehow and somewhat. In Lagos, Musiliu Obanikoro who was recently appointed Minister of State for Defence recently mobilised troops to stop a housing project being executed by the state government at Ilubirin. The minister, who was a former commissioner in the state before he defected to the PDP, would not be swayed by arguments that, in a democratic setting, whenever there is a disagreement between governments, institutions or officials, the appropriate organ of government to turn to is the judiciary that has the sole duty of adjudicating disputes and interpreting laws.

Obanikoro has maintained that the said parcel of land belongs to the federal government, while the state government insists that it was only recently reclaimed by it and thus belongs to it. The conflicting claims ought to have been taken to court for adjudication. It is either Obanikoro does not understand this or believes that the mill of justice grinds too slowly for him. In either case, it is unfortunate that such a person is handed such a sensitive assignment at a time the country needs men of knowledge and honour to handle the security challenge confronting it. He took recourse to self help and challenged the state government to head for court. This is an example of brigandage and utter disrespect for the rule of law.

The same script was acted in Osun State where Jelili Adesiyan, the Minister of Police Affairs, was reported to have used police men to harass leading aspirants known to be contending for the party’s governorship ticket just before the primary. Isiaka Adeleke, a former governor of the state and also a former Senator, complained that he was assaulted by Adesiyan who chose to turn himself into a terror in the buildup to the primary selection scheme. Backed by the infamous federal might, Adesiyan was said to have got his men to train their guns at Adeleke. The ex-governor could not stand what things had turned to and eventually withdrew from the race before the selection.

If, in the internal selection process adopted by the PDP, Adesiyan could be so desperate to get his godfather adopted as to pounce of opponents, it is best imagined what he would do during the election. The same mindset informed the use of soldiers by Wole Oke during the 2007 poll. The ex-lawmaker chose to abuse his office as chairman of the House of Representatives committee.

So early in the day, President Jonathan’s appointees are showing why they might have been appointed to the defence and Police Affairs Ministries. The Nigerian Police Force is funded by the Nigerian state and is supposed to be impartial in discharge of its functions. In previous elections, we had seen police men used to illegally thumb-print ballot papers, aid the snatching of ballot boxes and perform other criminal acts. Soldiers had been deployed in some states to terrify the people away from the polling units and provide cover for those altering figures at the collation centres. The signs are that nothing has changed. It must however be noted that such practices would be resisted by the governments and people of the Western states.

The people are politically sophisticated and would not suffer fools gladly. These are early days yet. We hope that the right questions would be asked in days ahead. All candidates must be held to account. In Ekiti State where Governor Kayode Fayemi and ex-Governor Ayo Fayose are the main contenders, both men should be asked to report what they contributed to growth of democracy, good governance and provision of infrastructure. Fayose’s regime ended abruptly. Why? He must explain, especially since the government at the centre was also elected on the platform of the PDP. How did confusion break out with the state having the dubious distinction of the only one in the history of Nigeria of having about three governors, two House of Assembly Speakers and two Chief Judges at the same time. What could have led the federal government to post a military agent as Administrator in a democratic setting? These are questions that must be answered.

In Osun, Mr. Omisore had been deputy governor. What prompted his termination of his tenure? Was he impeached or did he resign? If, as he has continued to claim, he resigned, why? The former Senator must also be asked all he knows about the murder of Chief Bola Ige. It is a dark chapter in the history of the West and anyone who has ever been linked to it should be grilled before he is handed a bigger assignment.

The combination of Adesiyan and Omisore could be deadly ominous.

It in my hope and prayer that Omisore gets the opportunity to fully explain his role. The PDP choice of Fayose and Omisore is pregnant with meaning, but I hope it does not portend evil.

I hope it does not suggest that the PDP elected to go for warriors for a civic exercise like contesting for executive role in a democracy. It is my prayer that the conditions that forced operation wet e on the old western Region is not replicated.

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POLITICS

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

Rumpus in Akwa-Ibom PDP over SSG’s guber ambition

RESH crisis appears to be rocking the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Akwa Ibom State following disquiet in some quarters within the party over the alleged gubernatorial ambition of Udom Gabriel Emmanuel, the Secretary to the State Govrnment (SSG).

Like in most of the states across the country, the most talked about thing in Akwa Ibom State today is the political battle for the coveted seat of the governor, which would be vacant in May 2015 when the current occupant, Governor Godswill Akpabio, would have completed his second term in office.

While it has been widely rumoured before now that the governor may have brought Udom into his cabinet to prepare him as a successor, trouble started when some chieftains of the party accused the SSG of campaigning to be elected as governor while still in office.

The chieftains alleged that the governor is working clandestinely with the leadership of the party in the state on a plot to endorse the candidature of the SSG as the PDP governorship flag bearer in the 2015 general election, which they described as against internal democracy.

It was also alleged that while the governor orchestrated the ouster of the immediate past SSG, Umana Okon Umana, from office on the excuse that he caused distraction in governance by working towards his 2015 governorship aspiration, he is looking the other way now as his new SSG’s governorship campaign efforts grow bigger and bolder by the day.

Speaking on the crisis threatening to tear the state chapter of the PDP apart, a chieftain of the party, Edward Ekah, who is also the leader of the Coalition for Good Governance (CCG), said by his actions, the state governor has shown that he is not to be trusted to allow for a level playing ground in the political battle to choose who flies the party’s banner in 2015.

“The current issue which some of you have chosen to call a fresh crisis has to do with the glaring political activities of the current SSG while still in office. These are obvious campaign activities showcasing his interest in the 2015 governorship race. One would expect that he would have been cautioned by the governor or removed.

“We are saying this not because we think it is wrong for him to play politics while in office but because we believe there is a precedence.

You will recall that up till this moment, the only excuse given for the sudden sack of Umana Umana from office to pave way for the emergence of Udom as SSG was that he distracted governance with his political activities.

Governor Godswill Akpabio’s alleged support for Udom Gabriel Emmanuel’s governorship ambition is creating fresh tension in Akwa Ibom State, reports Assistant Editor, Dare Odufowokan

•Akpabio

•Udom

•Umana

“The same government that said that is not only condoning same activities by the new SSG but in fact, promoting them. To us, this is double standard and undemocratic. If Umana cannot stay in office as SSG and aspire to be governor, we think Udom shouldn’t do the same. With this singular act, Governor Akpabio has shown that he will not allow a free and fair contest for the party’s gubernatorial ticket in 2015.

“This is why we are calling on party elders to speak out against this undemocratic norm before it is too late to tame these people,” Ekah said.

It would be recalled that on July 31, 2013, Akpabio, administered oath of office on Udom as the new Secretary to the State Government (SSG), to replace Umana, who was said to have officially resigned a day earlier, in order to pursue his 2015 governorship ambition in the state. Udom, until the appointment, was Executive Director of Zenith Bank Plc. Before his announced voluntary resignation from office, Umana and the governor had been at loggerhead over what sources claimed was the former’s gubernatorial ambition. It was alleged that the governor, who before then had been in support of Umana’s ambition to succeed him, had developed cold feet about the project following his resolve to back someone from Eket for the job.

The development created bad blood between the two erstwhile friends and political allies of many years. Soon, the bad blood grew into rivalry that soon gave birth to altercations.

In no time, pressure was allegedly mounted on the former SSG to quit the administration or risk being thrown out. His governorship ambition was described as a distraction for the administration.

After weeks of holding out and vowing not to abandon his governorship ambition, even after the governor reportedly nominated him as the Managing Director of the NDDC, Umana’s resignation was announced by the government and Udom, who hails from Eket district of the state, was appointed to replace him.

Administering the oath of office to the new SSG at the state banquet hall, Uyo, Akpabio noted that both Emmanuel and Umana posed intimidating credentials needed to run the state. He said the changes were in response of meeting the demands and challenges of the uncommon transformation of the state, urging the people to accept changes now in the interest of the total transformation of the state.

“Today as you witness the change in the office of the SSG of Akwa Ibom State, you must remember that change is part of life and to sustain the momentum of what we are doing,” he admonished. The governor praised the immediate past SSG for his meritorious service to the state, saying: “Mr Umana Okon Umana, goes down in history as the longest SSG in the state.”

The governor said, the state government and people of the state really acknowledged Umana’s contributions and service to the state, especially his roles in government, starting as a career civil servant that culminated in his appointment as permanent secretary, also elevation as the Commissioner for Finance and finally as SSG from 2007 to July, 2013.

“Umana, to me is a brother and not just a friend. He has displayed exceptional competence in the discharge of his official duties and contributed significantly right

from the former regime of Obong Victor Attah to the present administration.”

Noting the credentials of the new SSG, the governor said he would bring very strong skills in the discharge of his duties.

He also charged the new SSG to avoid any form of distraction while still serving the people of the state in his current position.

But some party sources said hardly had Udom settled down in his new position before posters and flyers announcing his governorship ambition flooded the state. “Campaign offices and vehicles heralding his ambition are also all over the state as we speak,” Ekah added.

Also, the governor has been accused of being personally involved in the ongoing struggle to ensure the emergence of Udom as the next governor of the oil-rich state in the 2015 gubernatorial election.

According to a Edidiong Akpan, a chieftain of the party, “I heard that the governor recently said he will spare no cash in ensuring that Udom becomes the governor in 2015.

I was told the governor made the declaration at the inauguration of a 31-member steering committee which he set up to coordinate the campaign of Udom Emmanuel across the state.

“By the inauguration of the Campaign Steering Committee, which membership is drawn from the 31 local government areas of the state, the governor as far as I am concerned, is telling us where his interest lies ahead of the 2015 gubernatorial election in the state.

“Information reaching us indicates that governor Akpabio is bent on making Udom Emmanuel, who has been his long-time business partner, and whom he recently

appointed as the Secretary to the Akwa Ibom State Government (SSG), the governor of the state in 2015.

“However, I can tell you that the governor’s decisions have not gone down well with most of our leaders in the PDP. And I know that other political stakeholders in the state are ready to confront the undemocratic plot with stiff rejection. This is why you can see that the governor is having a running battle with interested parties who feel that such an imposition may not augur well for the growth of the party in the state.

“Recently, we formed a coalition in our resolve to resist the attempt of the governor to foist his stooge on the people. This is the reason for the current tension within the party. If Ukpabio could sack Umana for having govrnorship ambition, we think he should not be supporting Udom to promote his own ambition with tax payers’ money,” Akpan said.

Chief Edet Nkpubre, a former South-South national vice chairman of the ruling party, while reacting to insinuations that the governor may have settled for Udom as his successor, recently said the governor cannot choose a leader for the people.

“Well, I don’t know who the governor is supporting.

He has not told us who he is supporting. The day he tells us we will tell him no. He has not told Akwa Ibom people who he is supporting. All we are hearing are rumours. The day he tells Akwa Ibom that he is supporting Udom Emmanuel or that Udom Emmanuel is his candidate, you will see the reaction of the people both from Annang and Oron. There is Law of Succession.

“When Judas was removed as one of the disciples when he betrayed Jesus; when they were looking for a replacement, what did they (disciples) say? Look for a person who has been with us for some time; who has been coming in and going out with us.

They didn’t go to bring an outsider. If the governor is looking for a successor, he should look around those who have been working with him and there are so many of them in Oro Nation.

“Democracy without fairness is not democracy.

We don’t want a democracy that is not inclusive, which discriminates against other ethnic groups because you are the largest and you want to lord it over other ethnic groups forgetting that they are the bread winner of the state. That is a democracy based on injustice. It is a democracy that would create crisis. A democracy that is based on injustice is a democracy that would create crisis,” Nkpubre said.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

POLITICS

25

Nyako and Adamawa’s emancipation project

T

HE likes of Admiral Murtala Nyako, the governor of Adamawa State, are not easily found in the present Nigerian society where tribal jingoism has become the order of the day.

This explains why he is receiving accolades for making the state proud with so much achievement in spite of the peculiar circumstances .

Since he crossed over to the All Progressive Congress (APC), Nyako has been receiving commendations from people like Engr Markus Gundiri and General Buba Marwa who later left the All Progressive Congress to the PDP but former minister of State for Internal Affairs and an APC stalwart Alh. Abdulrahman Adamu, told journalists that Gundiri and Marwa left the APC on personal interest not because of any impunity in the party.

Abdulrahman Adamu said Nyako is likened to the great late Nelson Mandela, as he chose to bring only two executive party members instead of five as provided by the APC Party guidelines.

Before the selection of the APC Interim executive in Adamawa State, there were fears that Nyako will dominate the party but when he opted for only two exco members as a state governor, many people, like Boss Gida Mustapha, B. B Lawan and Hajiya Fati Balla, poured encomiums on Nyako for standing out as a politician that is not self centered but considerate.

It is this attribute that boost belief that he has the capacity to realise the task of emancipation of Adamawa State. So far, the list of achievements has become so long and impressive.

Under land expansion, more than 28 very large new layouts were created and adequate land for development has been allocated to the

Aside the security and political challenges in Adamawa State, Barnabas Manyam in Yola reports that the Governor Murtala Nyako’s government has recorded so much developmental strides general public in the state capital alone while the state government also created 28 additional layouts in 21 local government areas to give industrial development and residential plots to the people.

Nyako also established the Adamawa Geographic Information System (AGIS) to handle all land related matters. The Greater Yola Master Plan was reviewed alongside the Greater Mubi Master Plan to accommodate the teeming populace.

The government has successfully allocated arable land to farmers, grazers developers and other industrial concerns. Within the same period, the Ministry of Land and Survey realised more than N8billion as revenues on N50, 000 development levy on residential plots allocation, which has surpassed the previous 20 years revenue put together in the ministry. This is another achievement of the Nyako government.

The governor also ordered security surveillance equipments which were supplied to all security units in Adamawa while motorcycles were banned in some local governments to curb the security breaches.

The governor’s quest to lead the North East in terms of development is broadened with the establishment of the Nigerian Law School in Yola, where he provided land, infrastructures and adequate assistance for the school to take-off; the state government within the period of Nyako’s

administration also established the Adamawa State Court of Appeal Complex by providing the needed land and infrastructures for the Appeal Court to take-off, the court has since commenced its operations in Yola.

From 2007 to date, Nyako spent about N40 billion on roads development alone to reposition Adamawa State.

Today, Shagari Housing Estate is a beautiful place to behold as the governor has since built state of the art roads constructed world class drainages in all the streets in Shagari Estate. Nyako also provided adequate construction of the General Gibson Jallo and that links the Gibson Jallo Cantonment in the 23 Armored Brigade, Nigeria Army Barracks, Yola.

He also provided 21 ambulances in the 21 Local Government General Hospitals and he also constructed the world class Adamawa State German Diagnostic Centre which comprises of orthopedic unit, x ray unit, CT scan and MRI units as well as VVF Centers among other sophisticated facilities at the Adamawa State German Diagnostic Centre the best of such in the North East.

The governor also established the Adamawa State Health Insurance Scheme for the workers of the state. He also employed 52.000 jobless youths as (SA) Special Assistants. These 52,000 aides live and worked mostly in the rural areas and earn about N10, 000 monthly each from the

•Nyako

(SA), Assistant Programme. The programme is to curb the unemployment level of the state, besides, youths who are benefiting from the programme are more in number than the entire Adamawa Civil Service package.

Apart from the political scene which has portrayed Adamawa State as a turbulent pandemonium there is concrete development introduced

by Nyako since he assumed duty as the state governor in 2007.

‘Fayose must conclude court case before contesting elections’

W

HAT is your take on the forthcoming governorship election in Ekiti State?

When I see PDP fielding people that have cases as candidates, for me it doesn’t speak well. Take for example Fayose, you have a case, you were a governor and then you were alleged of stealing by the EFCC and the matter is still in the court. Over the years you have been the one foot dragging so that the case is not concluded. If tomorrow you become a governor, what happens to that case? People that have moral problems should not go near public office. You have a criminal case that is still pending and then, you want to become a governor again. I told Muazu that all those that have criminal cases should not be allowed to take over the party in any part of the country. It will not work well. It is even a warning to even Mr. President and the PDP. South West is the only place where we don’t allow money bags to dictate politics to us.

The chance of PDP in the forthcoming election in Ekiti is zero. It will not sell. I know Jonathan for one thing because of my closeness to INEC, he does not interfere with elections. I served INEC as a board member during an election and I know Jonathan does not interfere with election results. So, if anybody wants to use the power of the Presidency to win elections, it will not work.

Today Nigerians are wise, especially here in the South-West. You don’t bring controversial people that have problems to be leaders of the people. If you go to the obas in Ekiti State, Fayose has problem with them, with the elites, he has problem and so it is with every other group. If they believe that he can use violence, it will not work.

The PDP has simply lost the election in Ekiti. If you want to have a free and fair elections, you start from the nomination with people that are credible. The PDP did election in Ekiti and people complained bitterly. These people that are aggrieved will work against the party.

In normal circumstances, we should make sure that the case against Fayose is completed and have the court set him free before he can contest elections.

Yes, he is innocent until proven guilty but if I were him, I will make sure the case is concluded. Today nobody can call Chief Bode George an ex -convict because he allowed the process to take its cause and had his name cleared by the court.

How do you think INEC would fare in

Mr. Olufemi Aduwo, the National Coordinator of Rights Monitoring Group (RMG) in this Interview with Adetutu Audu and Innocent Duru, advises Ayo Fayose, the Peoples Democratic Party’s candidate in the forthcoming governorship election in Ekiti State, to jettison his ambition and wait till the case of corruption filed against him by the EFCC is determined. Excerpts:

•Aduwo

the coming elections?

I think that with what happened in Ondo State House of Representatives elections, the majority of the people that went out to vote found their names at the appropriate places.

Rigging elections starts from a process whereby people cannot find their names.

This time around, permanent voters’ card are being distributed in Osun and in Ekiti.

They are going to display it in the next one month or so. If a voter does not find his name, you go back and have it corrected. The major

challenge of INEC is about logistics but they are improving in that regard now. Jega has made sure that INEC staff go for one training after the other to learn how to handle election issues. When it comes to election management, INEC is a major stake holder.

The other stake holders, like the police, the political parties also have roles to play.

When ballot box is snatched on an election day, it is not INEC that should be blamed.

The electoral law says that the policeman at

the polling unit must not carry arms and ammunition but those elements that are coming to snatch ballot boxes are armed. I have said it long ago that armed Nigerian army should be allowed to guide the polling units. I believe Jega would do something wonderful in the coming elections.

The National Assembly is trying to divest INEC of the power to determine the time of election. What do you make of this?

The National Assembly is looking at how they can remove the power to appoint the secretary of the commission from the chairman. Before, that was the position. The government appointed anybody to fill that position but Yar’Adua gave the commission the power to do so. It is a wonderful step and part of the autonomy that we are talking about. The secretary of INEC is even more powerful than the chairman because he is the chief accounting and administrative officer of INEC. We don’t want interference from politicians. They should allow INEC to appoint the secretary.

Coming to the issue that elections should be done in one day, that is immaterial. INEC does not have the power. It is not possible for logistic reasons. I was in the UK as an election observer with the INEC and we saw the mess that happened in a very developed democracy. If they have been able to do what we asked them to do, there would not have been any need for the National Conference.

What results do you think the on-going National Conference will produce?

Two-third of the people that went for the National Conference lobbied to get there.

Today, Jonathan is lamenting that Anyim messed up the list of delegates. The conference is a talk shop for people to just come, talk and go. Nothing will come out of it. For the past weeks, they have been discussing Mr. President’s letter. The issues that they are meant to discuss, they have abandoned. They will only talk for three months and go. You will see that some of them would be walking out one by one in the next two months. They just wanted to collect the allowance for this month and the next. What is Clark at the age of 86 doing in that conference? He was indicted as a minister. Murtala and Obasanjo government seized 14 properties from him. It was IBB that later gave them to him. Today, he is talking as an elder statesman. That conference will not end in the next three months. Those guys will foot drag so that the money will continue rolling in.

26 POLITICS

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, APRIL 13, 2014

ripples

Ihedioha formally Why Alaibe is declares for off the scene governorship

T

hat the former Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Timi Alaibe, has been off the political scene for some time now is no longer news. Ripples can reveal that the former presidential aide's obscurity from politics, either in his home state of Bayelsa or at the national level, may not be unconnected to his alleged cold relationship with President Goodluck Jonathan. It was learnt that the President, then the sitting governor, is yet to forgive Alaibe for his insistence on contesting against him (Jonathan) in early 2007 for the governorship ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Sources say it took the intervention of the then President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo and Chief Anthony •Alaibe Anenih, who prevailed on Alaibe, to step d o w n f o r Jonathan. Alaibe, sources claim, may be paying for that alleged 'indiscretion' now, as he seems no longer relevant in the politics of his party.

Presidency settles for Akala as Oyo PDP candidate

A

Akinlabi wins round one T

•Akinlabi

he plan to stop the election of Hon. Kamil Akinlabi into the House of Representatives for a third term may have suffered a setback if the results of the ward congresses of the All Progressives Congress (APC) held a week ago in the ancient town of Oyo are anything to go by.

The results came like a jolt for supporters of Prince Akeem Adeniyi Adeyemi, the Chairman of Atiba Local Government Area, whose candidates were trounced at the polls by Akinlabi's nominees. This setback notwithstanding, Adeyemi, who was recently endorsed by his father, the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, to replace Akinlabi in the House of Representatives is however not losing hope of realising his ambition.

Opponents of Chime's COS kick

T

•Akala

n alleged decision by the Presidency and the national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to field a former governor of Oyo State, Adebayo Alao-Akala, as the party's 2015 governorship candidate is presently causing ripples in the state. Akala's endorsement, a s o u r c e

F

ollowing the completion of his •Ihedioha consultations within and outside his party, PDP, the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Emeka Ihedioha, has finally unveiled his ambition to contest the Imo State governorship in 2015. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, the federal lawmaker is highly favoured to win the PDP primaries in spite of the alleged interest of other formidable aspirants, including Senator Ifeanyi Araraume, Hon. Bethel Amadi, to mention but a few.

alleged, is in sticking to an alleged script to field candidates that can ruffle the feathers of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in some South-West states. It is, however, not yet clear whether major stakeholders of the PDP in Oyo will key into the Presidency's plot.

he senatorial ambition of Mrs. Ifeoma Nwobodo, the Chief of Staff to the Enugu State Governor, Mr. Sullivan Chime, is not going down well with some players in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state, sources have revealed. The opposition to the ambition of Nwobodo to contest the Enugu East senatorial seat in 2015 stems from her alleged powerful status in Chime's cabinet. Her critics say Nwobodo is the de facto deputy governor of the state and that she has allegedly used her immense powers to step on a lot of powerful toes. Worried by Chime's unshakable trust on Nwobodo, some of her opponents within PDP are kicking and allegedly threatening to decamp to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

•Nwobodo,

Between Kuku and Mimiko S

pecial Adviser on Niger Delta to President Goodluck Jonathan, Kingsley Kuku may not have openly declared his ambition to succeed the Ondo State Governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko in 2016, but the youthful presidential aide has been quietly putting his political structures in place ahead of the future battle. At the last bye-election in Ilaje Federal Constituency, Kuku practically relocated to the town to coordinate the PDP campaign and the election proper. Kuku's active involvement in the entire process has further heightened speculations that he is seriously eyeing the Ondo State governorship seat.

•Imiko

•Kuku

IN VOGUE

By Kehinde Oluleye

Tel: 08023689894 (sms) E-mail: kehinde.oluleye@thenationonlineng.net

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

GLAMOUR

31

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32 GLAMOUR

ADETUTU AUDU

crownkool@yahoo.com

08023849036, 08112662587

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, APRIL 13, 2014

GLAMOUR 33

34 GLAMOUR/OUT & ABOUT

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38 MAGAZINE

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MAGAZINE 39

40 MAGAZINE

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MAGAZINE 41

42 MAGAZINE

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

Train,

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

MAGAZINE 43

thy name is nostalgia

44 MAGAZINE

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

ms Pharrell Willia 's 2013 wrote three of nd has biggest tunes, a h made music wit Daft everyone from Cyrus.

Punk to Miley think So why does he ig as sb he'll never be a on Jay Z? By Sim Hattenstone.

‘My music is so much

bigger than me’

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

ETCETERA

56

SUNNY SIDE

Cartoons

By Olubanwo Fagbemi deewalebf@yahoo.com 08060343214 (SMS only)

POLITICKLE

No small challenge •.Or ‘Little Joe’

CHEEK BY JOWL

OH, LIFE!

THE GReggs

THE senior master contemplated the latest challenge in an eventful career. Two weeks into the new session and while his Junior Secondary One (JS1) classmates were quite advanced in the routine of private secondary school life, Joseph Kuba marched into the school premises in front of an elder brother. Young Kuba was the last boarder to arrive. Admission formalities completed, he was left in the senior tutor’s care.

Something about his new charge – a diminutive figure with a forlorn look – unsettled the senior master. The boy might as well have come with a ‘Fragile, handle with care’ sign dangling from his neck. After mentally tapping into his wealth of experience for a few seconds, the senior teacher shrugged. The fresher looked delicate but not impossible.

But what a test Joseph presented. 10 minutes into his first lesson, he excused himself from class and walked into the Administrative Office holding his head.

Bleary-eyed, he said to the senior master: “Sir, my head. I’ve got a serious headache.”

Glad to go to work on the boy so soon, the senior master offered to take him to the school clinic, but the boy refused. In tears, he asked: “Sir, can I go home?

Our family doctor will take care of me.”

Ah, homesickness. It came rather quickly for Joseph, but the senior master didn’t doubt that the lad’s plea for exeat had little to do with the doctor. He managed to return the little deserter to class, but teary turns on a daily basis drove him to the edge until one morning, the senior master’s patience snapped.

“Look, I’ll send for your parents so that you can leave the school if you want!” he said. “I’m tired of your antics. See how responsible the other students look. Pull yourself together!”

Whether in fitting response to his guardian’s reaction or in sympathy with his plight, Joseph relaxed. He took to school activities as well as the others.

While his grades were not outstanding, he excelled in drama and debate.

With a cheerful disposition, the chubby-cheeked 12 year-old became a universal teacher’s pet. Affectionately called ‘Little Joe’ by all, his exploits enlivened the school, especially during the Friday afternoon extra-curricular activities. You couldn’t miss the twinkle in his eyes or mistake the tilt of head as he recited his lines or argued a point. Even classmates seemed charmed by Joseph’s smile and infectious laughter.

Yet, the boy had a way with finances that often left the senior master’s purse in a poor state. Complemented by sharp wit, the mathematical aptitude enabled Joseph to stretch his allowances with minimum effort. He would usually request more than needed from the sum in his guardian’s care and return the change afterwards. Then, he would reclaim the change and proceed to add and subtract figures until his guardian strained to keep up with the ‘scamming’.

“Sir,” Joseph would say. “I’m thirsty.”

“Then drink water,” the senior master would say.

“Please, give me money to buy cold pure water.”

“Here, take.”

“But it’s from your money, not my money, o!”

“Come here. Give the money back to me!”

“Okay. Okay. It’s my money.”

Minutes after, Joseph would return with the change.

“I thought you needed all of it,” would say the senior master.

“No, sir. I don’t want my money to finish in time.”

As he became more dexterous with the mathematical sleight of hand, Joseph managed to secure endless contribution to his funds. Whenever the tutor thought he was free of trickery, the pupil inevitably turned up to say: “Sir, I want to buy …”

But Joseph never quite shook off the longing for home. In contrast to the crestfallen look on the first day of term, the thought of returning to parents, siblings and friends on the last day revved his spirits beyond measure. By his second year, speculation on his eventual adaptation gained currency. Would he or would he not settle?

The outcome depended, in the end, not on the lad’s disposition but the mismanagement of school affairs. The institution closed down and Joseph moved back to a government school in his preferred hometown. In character to the end, he laced his parting speech with regret, but the accompanying toothy grin belied his true feelings.

The senior master smiled at the parting shot. Off marched Joseph with his good nature and a good deal of his guardian’s money.

Jokes Humour

Urban Biology “MISTER, why doesn’t this cow have any horns?” asked the young lady from a nearby city. The farmer cocked his head for a moment, then began in a patient tone, “Well, ma’am, cattle can do a powerful lot of damage with horns. Sometimes we keep ‘em trimmed down with a hacksaw.

“Other times we can fix up the young ‘uns by putting some drops of acid where their horns would grow in, and that stops ‘em cold. Still, there are some breeds of cattle that never grow horns.

“But the reason this cow don’t have no horns, ma’am, is ‘cause it’s a horse.”

Two Fools TWO fools were working on a house. The one nailing one side of the house would reach into his nail pouch, pull out a nail and either toss it over his shoulder or nail it in.

The other numskull, figuring this was worth looking into, asked, “Why are you throwing those nails away?”

The first explained, “If I pull a nail out of my pouch and it’s pointed toward me, I

throw it away ‘cause it’s defective. If it’s pointed toward the house, then I nail it in!”

The second got completely upset and yelled.

“You moron! The nails pointed toward you aren’t defective! They’re for the other side of the house!”

Fortunate Demise AFTER being with her all evening, the man couldn’t take another minute with his blind date. Earlier, he had secretly arranged to have a friend call him to the phone so he would have an excuse to leave if something like this happened.

When he returned to the table, he lowered his eyes, put on a grim expression and said, “I have some bad news. My grandfather just died.”

“Thank heavens,” his date said. “If yours hadn’t, mine would have had to!”

QUOTE You can learn many things from children.

How much patience you have, for instance.

—Franklin P. Jones •Adapted from the Internet

D

Writer’s Fountain EALING with the The ambitious writer would do one or pain of writing: Does the enormity of more of the following to clear the clutter in writing a book sometimes threaten the his mind and recharge his batteries. writer’s sanity?

- Deal with the pain when it comes, and How does the writer push through to the fight through the sadness, and embrace the other side, to where literary light and joy. You may come out the other side with an refurbished enthusiasm await? amazing story to tell.

Or how does he cope with those dark - Get away from the keyboard and hold a moments of self-doubt or the occasional sense long conversation with someone. of futility?

- Learn a skill that a planned book character How, indeed, does he deal with the needs or uses. For a war story set in the 19th umpteenth rejection slip? century, for example, the writer may learn how to make primitive arrows from Light and lightning: materials in the bush. Be careful not to •Developed in the 1950s and 1960s, ‘Laser’ overstep the boundaries of decency or the law, stands for ‘light amplification by stimulated however. emission of radiation’.

- Read. And read some more. The writer •Minus forty degrees Celsius is exactly the may find priceless the cheer that comes from same as minus forty degrees Fahrenheit. reading one of his early stories and realising •Light travels at the rate of 186,200 miles a how bad it was compared to current work. second.

- Always remember that getting a book •Lightning strikes the Earth 100 times published is like fishing. It’s a numbers game every second, from the 1,800 thunderstorms and the more times you cast your line, the in progress at any given moment. Lightning higher the chance someone will take the bait. bolts, which put 10,000,000 tons of nitrogen Does it work, you ask? Sometimes it does. into the earth each year, can sometimes be Sometimes it doesn’t. It’s a cruel literary hotter than the sun. (About 50 000º F). world.

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-- Page 53

Nigeria still poor at 54 •Okonjo-Iweala

Page 58, 59

‘Publishing industry in Nigeria is under-funded’ •Akinsoto

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Giant strides of NEXIM Bank •Orya

Page 62

urges farmers to Fitch rates Nigeria BB- Authority utilise irrigation facilities •says Nigeria's FDI of 1% of GDP, amongst the lowest T P O demonstrate that the country is on the right economic trajectory, Fitch Ratings has affirmed its robust 'BB-' sovereign rating of Nigeria with a stable outlook.

The agency also stated that the Boko Haram terrorist insurgency is assumed to remain contained and not to have serious consequences for economic performance.

It cited several current positive features of the economy to support its position, these include, improving stability in the economy after the suspension of CBN Governor Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, the recent boost in the Excess Crude Account, rising oil production and improved efforts to tackle pipeline vandalism.

Also Fitch noted that Nigeria's sovereign and overall external balance sheets, current account surplus, debt service ratio and external liquidity are all stronger than

From Nduka Chiejina (Assistant Editor), Abuja

'BB' category medians.

"However, the current surplus has been declining (4.1 per cent of GDP in 2013) and may be overstated given large errors and omissions. FDI is less than 1 per cent of GDP, amongst the lowest in the region."

Fitch Ratings Agency said it has "affirmed Nigeria's Longterm foreign and local currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDR) at 'BB-' and 'BB', respectively. The Outlooks are Stable. The issue ratings on Nigeria's senior unsecured foreign and local currency bonds have also been affirmed at 'BB-' and 'BB', respectively. The agency has also affirmed Nigeria's Short-term foreign currency IDR at 'B' and Country Ceiling at 'BB-'.

The key rating drivers Fitch said are "the foreign exchange

market and international reserves are stabilising after the shock of central bank (CBN) governor Sanusi's suspension on 20 February. Demand for Foreign Exchange (FX) in the official auction reverted to normal levels in March and CBN intervention in the interbank market has fallen away.

The inter-bank naira/US dollar rate has strengthened from its lows although it remains outside the upper limit of the 155 plus or minus 3% band."

Fitch added that "official reserves rose in March, helped by an increase in the ECA fiscal buffer (Excess Crude Account).

Although reserves have fallen appreciably over the past year, they remain in line with 'BB' category peer medians at a Fitch projected 4.6 months Current Account Payments (CXP) at end 2014, although weaker than similarly rated oil exporters

(Angola and Gabon)."

Fitch said it believes that as an institution, the CBN has been strengthened in recent years and should retain its autonomy over monetary and financial policy, notwithstanding the suspension of the former governor. It noted that on 25 March the Monetary Policy Committee continued the gradual tightening of liquidity seen over the past year, with an increase in the private sector cash reserve requirement to 15 per cent.

Inflation fell to a new low of 7.7 per cent in February, within the target range of 6 per cent to 9 per cent.

Oil production Fitch said remains volatile but rose in the first quarter of 2014 to average 2.25mb/d, in line with the trailing 12-month average, and above the recent low of 2.1mb/ d in November/December 2013.

ROF. Paul Marley, the Managing Director, Upper Niger River Basin Development Authority, Minna, over the weekend urged farmers to form cooperatives and utilise the irrigation facilities provided by the authority in parts of the state.

Marley made the call while fielding questions with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Minna.

He said using the irrigation facilities would ensure allyear-round farming activities and food security in the state.

He said that although the authority had 22,165 hectares of land in the state, only 3, 375 hectares were under cultivation. ``In Niger, significant achievement has been recorded in our irrigation schemes. The authority has 22,165 hectares but only 3,375 hectares are under cultivation.''

He said the land under cultivation was producing 10,125 tonnes of paddy rice per planting season.

The managing director said the authority had rehabilitated five kilometres of secondary canals, expanding to 300 hectares for rice cultivation between 2011 and 2012. ``We are hoping that in 2014, we shall optimise this scheme to its potential of 900 hectares of irrigated land.

He said the irrigation schemes were located at Tunga kawo, Tafa, Jere, Swashi, Wuya, Doko, Nasarawa, Jebba, Badeggi, Edozhigi and Gusoro.

Naira appreciates against dollar at official, black markets

T

HE naira appreciated against the dollar at the three segments of the foreign exchange over the weekend, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.

At the official market, the naira was N155.68 to the dollar on Friday against the N155.74 rate on Monday, indicating a gain of 6 kobo.

At the bureau de change, the naira was traded at N168 against the dollar compared to N168.50 on Monday, up by 50 kobo.

At the black market, it was N168.50 against the N169 that it traded against the dollar on Monday, a gain of 50 kobo.

Also, the Naira appreciated against the pound sterling and the euro.

At the official market, the pounds sterling was exchanged at N243 compared to N261 at the beginning of the week.

The pound sterling was traded at N250 at the black market where it remained stable throughout the week.

Traders attributed the appreciation to efforts of the Central Bank of Nigeria in tightening liquidity in the financial system.

Economic experts ask FG to build capacity of Nigerians

•From left: Mrs. Ibukun Odusote, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture, Mr. Chris Onyenenam, Director General/CEO National Identity Management Commission and Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina displaying his slip shortly after enrolling at the NIMC Enrolment Centre in Lagos...recently

T

HE Minister of Environment, Mrs Laurentia Mallam, said at the weekend that the ministry would meet with all stakeholders in oil exploration to end the scourge of oil spillage in the country.

This is contained in a statement issued in Abuja by Mr Ben Goong, the Deputy Director (Press), in the ministry and made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.

The statement said the minister gave the assurance when leaders of the shoreline communities affected by the

Bonga oil spillage: Minister seeks stakeholders' collaboration to end scourge Bonga oil spillage, paid her a courtesy visit.

According to the statement, the minister assured those states, especially shoreline communities of Rivers, Delta and Bayelsa, of the government's determination to address their plight, saying that relief would soon come their way.

She also sympathised with them over the devastating impact of the spillage on farm lands, marine and aquatic life.

Mallam also said that she would meet with all stakeholders including Shell Petroleum Development Corporation (SPDC) to find an amicable solution to the challenge posed by the spillage.

The minister called for the sustenance of the prevailing peace in the region.

The Minister also stressed the need for all communities of the Niger Delta region affected by the Bonga Oil

Spillage to work together towards finding a lasting solution to the problem.

The statement said Mr Francis Amoma, the leader of delegation, commended the efforts of Shell in the overall development of the region. ``Shell has done well in the area of provision of amenities and infrastructure such as roads, schools and hospitals as well as electricity and potable water in our region."

S

OME economic experts have urged the Federal Government to ensure that citizens' capacity building formed the cornerstone of its development agenda.

The experts made the call in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria over the weekend in Abuja.

They said that the government must place the people at the centre of its development plans in order to improve living standards.

According to them, the World Bank report that listed the country among the poorest nations of the World must not be discountenanced.

It will be recalled that the World Bank President, Dr Jim Kim, recently announced that Nigeria was among the world's extremely poor countries.

However, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the Finance Minister, expressed the country's reservation on the rating, adding that it was only based on the large number of poor people living in the country.

The minister had said the country had recorded 89.22 per cent growth in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2013.

NAN reports that the study places the country as the largest economy in Africa and 26th in the world.

Mr Sylvester Ambrose, the Managing Director, Pay-Cash Bureau De Change, said that the government must be humble enough to accept the deficit pointed out by the two reports.

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Nigeria still po The rebasing of the value of the nation's Gross Domestic Product by the National Bureau of Statistics has placed Nigeria ahead of South Africa. But the irony however, is that majority of the populace pine under the yoke of poverty, a development, analysts have argued, is nothing to cheer about. Ibrahim Apekhade Yusuf and Joe Agbro Jr., in this report, examine the growing poverty crisis afflicting Africa's biggest oil producer

I

F the recent rebasing of the nation's GDP by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) is anything to go by, it may be correct to say that Nigeria's economy is on a steady rebound considering the fact that Nigeria is now ahead of South Africa and close to Austria and Thailand in the World Bank's global league table.

The Bureau settled for 2010 as the new base year replacing the hitherto 1990, which had been in use for the last 23 years.

The rebasing process boosted the GDP by 89.3% to US$509.9bn (N80.3tn) from US$253.0bn (N40.0tn) making the Nigerian economy the largest in Africa and the 26th largest economy in the world.

What rebasing portends The rebasing exercise increases Nigeria's ranking globally on Per Capita Income (PCI) which currently stands at approximately US$2,999.9 per individual with an estimated population of 170.0m, a development, analysts say, signify increased purchasing power parity and should be an attraction for manufacturing companies especially the consumer goods companies.

Poverty survey changed narrative Quite contrary to the NBS' hyped profiling, the recent poverty survey by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), analysts agree, is a sad commentary on the so-called clean bill of health by the government spin doctors.

World Bank president Dr. Jim Kim, announced that Nigeria was among the world's extremely poor countries. The survey shows that 61 percent of Nigerians were living on less than a dollar a day in 2010, up

from 52 percent in 2004. In the desert north, where Amnesty International estimates more than 600 people have been killed this year as the government struggles to quell a violent Islamist insurgency, poverty even bites harder.

The Washington-based group noted that due to the wide income inequality gap in the country, (with an estimated 112.0m people living below the poverty line and on less than US$1.25/day), the impressive PCI figures may not be a basis for making an investment call in the country.

Worry over growing poverty rate The IMF, an organisation of 188 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade and promote sustainable economic growth, acknowledged the fact that unemployment and poverty are high in Nigeria despite significant job creation and identified continued weaknesses in labour markets, lack of adequate supply of electricity, high cost of doing business, and lack of SMEs access to finance as factors that have militated against a more robust and inclusive growth path.

The report predicates the increase in economic growth to a boost in agriculture, trade, and services with a decline in inflation resulting to a lower food prices from higher rice and wheat production. This, it says, will be further supported by "a tight monetary policy and a budget execution that maintains medium-term consolidation objectives."

The IMF said there were risks to its projections, including the uncertain pace of the global recovery, lower oil prices and production, slow

•Percentage population of people living on less than $2 per day. Source: UN

implementation of reforms and the continuation of a bloody Islamist insurgency in the north.

Speaking at a meeting with the Director General of the National Directorate of Employment (NDE) and the management staff, a Senior Economist in the African Department of the Fund, Chiekh Anta Gueye noted that in spite of the growth of the Nigerian economy in the last eight years, there had not been enough employment or reduction of poverty that the growth has created in the country.

According to him; "We have seen that in Nigeria, the economy has grown in the last seven-eight years.

At the same time, unemployment has been sticky.

"So in this case, it is normal for us to try to ask questions on why this growth has not created enough employment to the citizenry. That is why we are particularly interested.

"We need to understand how the economy is growing and unemployment is sticky. Poverty is growing too. That is why we are here to understand this issue."

Reality bite While Nigeria's economy has expanded 6 percent a year since 2006, according to the World Bank, the nation's power supply is less than a tenth of South Africa's.

Nigeria's benchmark stock index has dropped 12 percent since the beginning of the year, after surging 47 percent in 2013. The currency fell 0.1 percent to 164.82 per dollar in Lagos, the commercial capital, extending this year's losses to 2.7 percent.

Joblessness among young Nigerians may undermine economic progress in a nation where 23.9 percent of the working population is unemployed, according to data from the Central Intelligence Agency's World Factbook. It estimates that 62 percent of the nation's 177 million people are below the age of 25.

"The large number of underemployed youth is a serious threat to the economic and political stability of the country. The median age in Nigeria is 14, and the population continues to grow at a rate close to 3 percent" a year, John Litwack, the World Bank's lead economist for Nigeria, said by e-mail.

Recall that on March 15, over 15 young jobseekers were killed in a stampede at an immigration service recruitment day in Abuja. Another eight people died in crowds at recruitment drives in three other cities.

The north is particularly vulnerable with poverty rates estimated at about 80 percent, according to Oyin Anubi, a sub-

Saharan Africa economist at Bank of America Merrill Lynch in London.

"Unequal distribution of this oil wealth has contributed to a persistent inequality problem," Anubi said in an e-mail response to questions. Poverty poses "a risk to the stability of that region."

"It's a bit of a conundrum," W. Scott Rogers, the senior resident representative of the IMF in Nigeria, said in an interview last year in Abuja, the capital. "Income per capita has gone up yet poverty isn't improving and we're having a difficult time understanding why that is or how that could be."

"This is one thing we've learned over the last decade or two, that it's not just the rate of growth in the aggregate that matters, it's where it's coming from and who's enjoying it," said Rogers. Still, "in Nigeria the growth is everywhere."

"While the economic outlook remains favourable, key risks include continued lower oil revenues from oil production losses and lower oil prices, the impact from the unwinding of unconventional monetary policy in advanced economies, and domestic political and security uncertainties."

The World Bank's most recent Ease of Doing Business survey in June ranked Nigeria at 147, only marginally better than Iraq and Sudan. By contrast,

'Lack of planning mad

W

HAT is your view about the recent rebasing of the Nigerian economy and what does it portend to us as a nation?

There is nothing wrong about rebasing an economy if some of the statistics used before does not actually reflect the current situation of the economy. There are some services that have not been captured correctly. When you look at the IT, it has contributed immensely to the country, even the petroleum sector.

When you look at the number of people Nigeria is feeding (160 something million people). Well, you can say they are underfed but Nigeria is sustaining them. If they have been undervalued in terms of capturing the food intake of all these people, there is nothing wrong in putting everything in correct perspectives. I support the rebasing of the Nigerian economy to actually know where we are and what actually we need to focus our attention on.

But the issue is that it is not the volume and value of the GDP that matters in an economy. How come Nigeria is so poor when the GDP figure is so high? And that is the

Dr. Jonathan Aremu, renowned economist and former Deputy Director of Research and Planning at the Central Bank of Nigeria, is currently a consultant to multilateral agencies like the Economic Community of West African States, United Nations, among others. In this interview with Joe Agbro Jr., he gives insight on Nigeria's socio-economic status and offers a prognosis of the growing poverty challenge afflicting the country. Excerpts: real question. Another way of looking at this thing is to say that Nigeria is a rich economy where poor people are living. It is a wealthy economy inhabited by the poor. It is a terrible paradox. And that brings us to a conclusion that the distribution of the wealth is not good. And that is a serious challenge.

Instead of jubilating and singing hallelujah about rebasing the economy, I think what the government needs to think about is how they can actually reach to the people. Look at the number of people looking for jobs that we have to lose close to thirty of them out of 500, 000 people. And then, let nobody come out to come and sing their praises that the economy is big - big for nothing, big that you cannot take care of the people.

How did we become so poor because there was a time when people lived well and the country's currency

was more valuable than the US dollar?

That is a very big question that should capture the attention of everybody because the Nigerian economy in terms of standard of living of the people is not as terrible.

That actually brings us to the work of our government to perform what they need to perform. God has been so fair to this country. God is interested in re-distribution. When He gives a very big economy like Nigeria the volume of wealth he gave us, he had the idea that this should equally be re-distributed. At a time, the population was not as much as this, the economy was not as rich as this. So when the population is as much as this, the GDP figure is as high as this, which means that if this thing (wealth) go round equally, then we shall be okay. So, simply put, the question is 'how did we get to this place?' It is

lack of planlessness. We have planned to fail and that is why we are seeing the result of the failure.

The power doesn't have to drop to zero before you start planning ahead.

People wake up each morning and we're giving birth to children, you know that these children would go to school. It is not until the time when the school is chaotic that you'll start building schools. Factories are coming up to be able to take care of Nigerians, then you should be able to take care of equally the roads and every other infrastructure including water supply and everything that these people need. So, that is where we got it wrong.

The attention has not been paid to the service sector, to the infrastructural sector, as well as to some of the key economic sector that will boost the economy. So, the money that has been coming in has actually, most of the time, been

•Aremu

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

59

poor at 54

•Okonjo-Iweala

• Nweze

South Africa was at 41 and Ghana 67.

Nigeria was also listed at 144th out of 177 countries on Transparency International's Corruption Perception Index last year.

"The greater economic visibility should place more pressure on the Federal Government to undertake economic reforms, infrastructure, job creation, necessary to sustain the current trajectory of GDP growth," Adewale Okunrinboye, an analyst at

Lagos-based ARM Asset Management, which manages the equivalent of about $2.7 billion in assets, said in an e-mail response to questions.

The rebased GDP, Okunrinboye maintained, further shrinks the proportion of Nigerian Capital Market to GDP from 18.5% to 14.5%, adding, this is relatively small in comparison to South Africa (formerly the largest economy in Africa) and the BRIC economies.

Why are we so poor?

A combination of factors are said to be responsible for the nation's unending struggle with poverty.

According to Funmi Akinluyi, investment director at Silk Invest, a frontier markets specialist based in London, "One reason why tens of millions of Nigerians still live in poverty is that growth has been concentrated on sectors that are less labor-intensive, such as oil, telecommunications, and banking.

Development of agriculture, the biggest employer in the economy, has been largely ignored by the government until recently."

"Growth in Nigeria has not been inclusive in decades," she said in an email. "Once agriculture gets the traction it needs we will have a stronger and a more diverse economy."

Corroborating her, Dr. Austin Nweze, a political economist at the Pan Atlantic University, Lagos, in an interview with The Nation over the weekend, observed that laziness of initiative and sheer abdication of responsibility on the part of the leadership is to blame for the parlous state of the economy.

Going down memory lane, he recalled that "In 1996 when Clinton visited Nigeria, they recorded then that 40% of Nigerians lived below poverty line. When she came back some years ago, they discovered that 71% of Nigerians lived below poverty line. What that translates is that even as the nation seems to be growing....the people are getting poorer. So, as a result of several factors - government policies and the fact that unemployment is also growing.

"So, it is possible for the economy to grow without attaining accompanying development. You know, the economy grows when the oil prices go up. Oil price is above $100 right now. So, it has impacts on

the general economy. When the Yar 'Adua administration took over in 2007, I engaged one of my colleagues, Dr. Doyin Salami who incidentally was a consultant to the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG). So, he was one of those that worked on Nigeria being one of the 20 biggest economies by the year 2020. And to be able to achieve that, Nigeria needed to have a GDP of $900bn to grow at a rate of 15% per annum."

"Reducing poverty and inequality requires not just economic growth but also job creation and investment in improving the productive capacity of the economy and its people," Giulia Pellegrini, sub-Saharan Africa economist at JPMorgan Chase & Co. in London, said in an e-mail.

Way forward And in the view of Nweze, the best way Nigeria can get out of the poverty trap is for government to focus on industrialization and device right policies as well.

Government, he advised, should be ready to diversify the economy. "It is decentralising the economy in addition to diversifying the economy.

And then look at other areas, something like outsourcing. I keep talking about outsourcing. It is one way Nigerians can create jobs for its people. So, the industrial policy is not well-coordinated. It's like every sector of the economy, there are just different things and there is no synchronicity.

They need to synchronise the whole system."

Dr. Jonathan Aremu, renowned economist and former Deputy Director of Research and Planning at the Central Bank of Nigeria, is currently a consultant to multilateral agencies like the Economic Community of West African States, United Nations, is also on the same page with Nweze.

"The employment situation is chaotic. If the private sector is actually given a lot of prominence in the agenda, it can employ so much - not everybody going to line up at immigration or everybody wanting to enter Central Bank or NNPC. The numbers of people that are looking for job are more than the number of positions that are available in all those places. But private sector can be encouraged to create jobs through formulation of policies that would engender such."

made us poor' skewed to few number of people.

And that is the problem.

Looking at this gloomy present we are in, would you say there is any hope for that Nigeria can be lifted out of poverty?

I think there is hope. I am not among those people that will say there is no hope. There is serious hope. Ordinarily, when an economy is rebased, it finds its root and then discovers that people are poor that is giving government a challenge that they need to plan well now. And any investor that wanted to come and invest will have to invest in a big economy. The rebasing of the economy is an attractive factor to foreign investors because Nigeria is a big market.

So, if the investment climate of the economy is improved, then investors can come in and we would be able to generate substantial employment. And then, before you know it, GDP will continue to rise and citizens would be employed and the circular flow of money begins to move in a positive direction. And the economy will be to the benefit of the development of the people.

Again, I look at government programme on recent, they actually,

in terms of pronouncements anyway and some of the stories we are hearing, there seems to be a very good green light of success. We are told that we are going to selfsufficient in rice production. If we are, look at the volume of money that would be saved from importing rice. That money that will be saved can be diverted to other things to be able to make sure the economy is better. If the transport system, like they are doing it now and the railway is back and then roads are actually put in place, the economy will be better.

Now, you've painted the scenario for government, what are the steps that must be taken by government as priority?

Well, the rebasing of the economy is a signal that government needs to be more serious. So, since agriculture actually employs a substantial part, then they should see what they can do to make sure that agriculture is given a serious attention, as well as the industrial sector of the economy. And I think that the Director General of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry said something like that. The rebasing alone is not something we

should be rejoicing. We need to pay attention to so many things like the factories and industries. As it is now, we are only hearing something. It has not been felt in the pockets of the people, neither is it felt in their mouth. And until it is felt in their pockets and in their mouths that they will know they are in an economy that is great.

The employment situation is chaotic. If the private sector is actually given a lot of prominence in the agenda, it can employ so much - not everybody going to line up at immigration or everybody wanting to enter Central Bank or NNPC. The numbers of people that are looking for job are more than the number of positions that are available in all those places. But private sector can lead to a lot to multiplicity of employment. So, if they can create a sort of situation in which the private sector is given prominence in the agenda, then it will have a multiplier effect in the economy because if the agriculture sector is doing fine, then the service sector is doing fine. If industry is doing fine, then the other sectors will equally do fine. Greater attention must be paid to the real sector of the economy.

•Tiwa Savage thrilling fans at the concert

Nigerian Breweries kicks off Star Trek with fanfare Stories by Ibrahim Apekhade Yusuf

N

IGERIAN Breweries Plc, organisers of the famous twin music talent hunt shows, Star Quest and Star Trek, flagged off the 2014 edition of the popular Star Trek last week with pomp and pageantry in Lagos, an event, keen observers described as a showstopper of sorts.

The event, now in its thirteenth year, is unarguably the country's most popular multi city concerts, through which the brewery giant grooms raw talents across Nigeria.

Expectedly, the official unveiling of Star Music Trek 2014 was graced by top management staff of Nigerian Breweries, members of the press and a coterie of other guests from brand loyalists, members of the diplomatic corps, to mention just a few.

Justifying the brand's commitment to the talent hunt initiative thus far, Corporate Media and Brand PR Manager, Nigerian Breweries, Edem Vindah, said the brand recognises how powerful music is, as such always strives to ensure that it positively promotes the strong values the brand is well known for using the medium.

"Over the years, Star Music Trek has evolved rapidly with exciting facets to appeal to its ever-burgeoning youth market. This year, we chose an exciting theme, 'My City Rocks', reflective of the great diversity within the country and the fascinating things that make each city unique and endear them to young Nigerians," he said.

Expatiating, he said: "The impressive response has been gratifying; it's inspiring to know that young Nigerians are so in tune with their cities and are willing to proudly represent them any way they can.

"This year, we're even more inspired by our theme My City Rocks as we tour areas within the country that this immensely popular music platform has never visited before. It is a significant opportunity to once again connect with our fans and we look forward to It." he added.

Corporate players and celebrities, including: Chief Marketing Officer MTN, Larry Anetts, Olisa Adibua, Bolanle Okhiria, Toni Kan, Tee-Y Mix, Gbemi, Olori Supergal, Peju Akande, D'Tunes, Tunde Ednut, Uti Nwachukwu and a host of others gave the event a touch of panache.

The highpoint of the occasion was command performance by Alist artistes across the genres who invited to the podium to append their signature and take bows before hundreds of fans. At the rollcall was 2face, Tiwa Savage, M.I, Olamide, Davido, Wizkid and Wande Coal, Sound Sultan, Pasuma, Mr. Raw, Dr Sid, Naeto C, KCee, Sean Tizzle, Phyno, May D and a few others.

The pan Nigerian concert, which has been in existence since early 90's, has become the country's most anticipated yearly music festival with Nigeria's biggest artistes offering exciting performances every year to the delight of thousands of fans across the country.

With several years of consistently delivering on its platform the brand has been able to reach millions of young Nigerians all across the country, furthering reaffirming its brand values and successfully dictating the pace of music entertainment. Among other cities, the Trek 2014 will perform in Nsukka, Makurdi, Onitsha, Benin and Ado Ekiti.

Since 2006, the combined power of Star Quest, Star Trek and Star Mega Jam has placed Star's promotional strategy ahead of its advertising and media marketing campaign. Consequently, its advertising platform took a cue from the promotional efforts and developed the concept of "Music in Every Bottle" against the peculiar background of live entertainment. Star Lager's brand managers and marketing communications gurus should be hard at prayers and strategy meetings to push the fortunes of its brand ambassador bands. Having found an exciting promotional direction for the brand, it behooves them to keep up the momentum or Star Quest will lose its shine. The other option, of course, is to drop the quest as a dream unattainable.

A cursory look at the entertainment industry reveals that some of today's biggest music stars have passed through the Star platform at one point or the other. Previous winners like the Star Quest cowinner KCEE, finalist Mr. Raw, finalist Klint De Drunk, contestant Asa, and many others, are today making waves in the industry.

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

BUSINESS

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HE Apapa Area Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) over the weekend said it recorded N19.1 billion as revenue in March.

The command's revenue profile showed an increase of N2.1 billion over the N17 billion generated in February.

The Area Controller, Charles Edike, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that it generated N9

Apapa Customs Command generates N19bn in March billion, the same amount it earned as revenue in February, under the federation account.

He said the command was able to generate N10 billion into the non-federation account as against the N7 billion it generated into the

account in February.

Edike said that while the command did not collect any duty on rice in February, it collected N1.9 billion in March.

A further breakdown showed that N600 million was collected as port levy as

against the N649 million collected in February.

The controller said the command did not collect any Negotiable Duty Credit Certificate (NDCC) in March.

The NDCC is a payment document for the importation of raw materials.

Oyo State.

Tagged: 'Oyo State: Right for Business' is organised to highlight the various opportunities that are abound in the state for both local and foreign investors, as well as identifying practical solutions to develop key

strategies that will serve as an integrated road map to achieving the economic transformation of Oyo State through a framework of private sector partnership.

Among guests expected at the summit include: Oyo State governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, South

African Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. J. N. K. Mamabolo, Nigeria's foremost businessman, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Group Chairman, FBN Holdings Plc, Dr. Oba Otudeko, Dr. Oby Ezekwesili and Mr. Bismarck Rewane.

Ajimobi, Dangote, Ezekwesili, others for summit

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IRSTBANK is set to host a two-day economic summit in partnership with the Oyo State government beginning from Monday and Tuesday.

The event is scheduled to hold at the Ibadan Civic Centre, Idi-ape, Ibadan,

Jaiz grows investments by more than 380% From Nduka Chiejina (Assistant Editor), Abuja

J

AIZ Bank Plc has grown its investment portfolios in the last two years to more than 380 percent.

A statement from the bank said its Chairman, Alhaji Umaru A. Mutallab, disclosed this in Sokoto during the commissioning of the bank's branch in the state.

Mutallab was quoted to have said that, "we have grown our Investments by more than 380 percent from N1.9 billion to N9.4 billion. Our Customer Deposits took a massive leap of more than 460 percent from N3.2 billion to N18.6 billion. In terms of profitability, your Bank grew its total earnings by more than 750 percent during the year."

He said the bank was able to achieve this progress and achievements through the use of a "unique and robust IT platform in delivering exceptional customer services to our clientele."

Jaiz bank commenced business on Friday, 6th January, 2012 and is licensed by the Central Bank of Nigeria as a regional, noninterest and ethical financial institution with an authorized share capital of N13billion.

With just three locations when it started in 2012 in Abuja, Kano and Kaduna, the Bank has expanded its operation to 13 locations. The bank now has branches in Gombe, Sokoto, Maiduguri, Katsina, Gusau, three branches in Kano, and additional two in Abuja - Wuse and National Assembly with more branches scheduled to open soon.

"Our plan is to be at every State capital of Nigeria before the fifth year of operation, I have the privilege of informing you that we have as at December, 2013, submitted our application for National Banking License to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and am hopeful that this will come through before the end of the second quarter," the Chairman said.

The Managing Director of Jaiz, Muhammad Nurul Islam, said the bank has made tremendous progress in just two years of its operation and "the potential for your Bank is very bright and we are confident that we will achieve our notable vision of being the dominant non-interest financial service provider in sub-Saharan Africa."

Institute urges professionalism among secretaries, administrators

By Biodun-Thomas Davids ROM the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators of Nigeria (ICSAN), has come a charge to professional secretaries and administrators: "Be professional in all your dealings."

Giving this charge was the former Director General of Security Exchange Commission (SEC) and Chairman and President of Council, ICSAN, Dr. Suleyman Ndanusa.

The event was at the 13th induction ceremony of the institute in Lagos.

According to Ndanusa, "To salvage the Nigerian Project is a joint effort by all of us. We have high hope in Nigeria and we will surely get it right."

Expatiating, Ndanusa who was represented by his Vice President, Dr. Nat Ofo, stressed that: "As professionals, we should not allow or entertain any form of corruption to taint us or affect our sense of judgment at all times. We must remember that we are Corporate Governance Soldiers that have been commissioned into the society to fight that which is evil and ensure that good is crowned victorious at all times."

Speaking earlier, the Registrar/Chief Executive, ICSAN, Dele Togunde, hinted that the institute has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with its parent body, ICSA London.

According to him, the MoU, among others, "sets out proposal for ICSAN and ICSA to work together to develop and establish an ongoing process for accrediting Nigerian students qualifying under ICSAN's professional examinations for ICSA membership."

F •From left: Mr. Dele Togunde, Registrar/CEO, Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators of Nigeria (ICSAN), Dr. Nat Ofo, Vice-President and Mrs Ebun Falaye, Executive Secretary, Lagos State Co-operative Federation a newly inducted Associate member at the 13th induction ceremony of the institute in Lagos...recently

I

N its quest to unravel the alleged fraud in the execution of a warrant and certificate of execution of a Supreme Court judgment over a prime landed property located in Lekki-Peninsula, Osapa Village, Ajah, in Eti-Osa Local Government Area, the Lagos State has directed enquiry into how representatives of Gbadamosi Bandele Eletu family obtained an "irregularly procured warrant."

The state's intervention is sequel to a petition by a firm, Suncity Properties Limited, developer of classic Milverton Flats and Friends of Colony Estate, both located at Ajiran area of Lekki in Lagos State.

Under native law and custom the Ojomu Chieftaincy family had exclusive and undisturbed possession of the vast area of land in the Lekki axis and also exercised rights of ownership over the said land.

The Supreme Court upheld this claim in its decision in Suit No. FSC 1268/1963.

The Ojomus had also from time immemorial sold portions of the land to many individuals including late Mr. Gbadamosi Bandele Eletu and had instituted customary tenancies as well.

In the exercise of their rights of ownership over the area of land, the Ojomus alienated 254.558 hectares of land to the late Mr. Gbadamosi Bandele Eletu, a transaction documented in a Deed of Conveyance ("Deed") in favour of late Mr. Gbadamosi Bandele Eletu dated 23/8/1977 and registered as No.36 at page 36 in Volume

Lagos, family square up over irregular warrant

By Okwy Iroegbu-Chikezie

1648 of the Lands Registry in the office at Lagos.

The Lagos State Government however in the exercise of its powers under the Land Use Act and extant laws, vide Revocation Notice No 10 published in the Lagos State Official Gazette No 8 Volume 14 of 19th February, 1981 and Revocation Notice No 14 published in Lagos State Official Gazette No 9, Volume 14 of 26th February 1981 respectively, revoked all rights and interest in land in Lekki Peninsula and Ibeju Lekki including the 254.558 hectares of land earlier acquired by late Mr. Gbadamosi Bandele Eletu from the Ojomus.

The Nation learnt that the successors of late Mr. Gbadamosi Bandele Eletu did not challenge the right of revocation exerted by the Lagos State Government, while the Ojomus did via Suit No. ID/1883/89 and the High Court decided that they were entitled to the vast expanse of land on which they had exercised acts of ownership from time immemorial.

But the Lagos State Government while acknowledging and accepting the validity of the judgment of the court in Suit No. ID/1883/ 89, still went ahead to publish in the Lagos State Official Gazette

No 20 Volume 26 (Revocation Notice No 34) of 13th May 1993, the revocation of all rights of occupancy granted to the Ojomu Chieftaincy family by virtue of the suit for overriding public interest. Thus the revocation affected all other existing rights to land in Lekki Peninsula and Ibeju Lekki and had remained unchallenged till date.

Expectedly, the Lagos State Government entered into negotiations with the Ojomus and in view of the judgment in Suit No. ID/1883/89, a portion of land measuring 604.19 hectares (approximately 7 per cent of the total land formerly owned before the acquisition by Lagos State) was subsequently excised to the family.

Following allegation of trespass committed by the successors of late Mr. Gbadamosi Bandele Eletu, on the excised landed property to the Ojomus, the family decided to institute a court action against the Eletus.

Both the trial and appellate court decided in favour of the Ojomus.

Rejecting the Court of Appeal verdict, the Eletu family subsequently appealed to the Supreme Court.

In his lead judgment, Justice Kumai Bayang Aka'ahs awarded 10 hectares to the successors of Eletu in July 12, 2013. Still displeased, the Eletus headed back to the apex court

for a review of its earlier decision claiming the 254.558 hectares of land earlier purchased from the Ojomus.

Subsequently, the apex court in its ruling last month awarded 216.758 hectares of land to the Eletus.

But shortly after the initial Supreme Court judgment, the Eletus, who claimed to have secured a warrant of possession and certificate of execution of the warrant had invaded premises of Suncity Properties Limited and in the process demolished some structures.

In a petition by Suncity to Lagos Attorney General, the company, which earlier got a court order setting aside the purported warrant and its certificate of execution, claimed that it was voided on the basis of gross documentary irregularity and not based on any subsisting order of a court of law.

The Nation however gathered that Suncity has filed a fresh suit at the Lagos High Court seeking a determination whether or not the revocation of land at the Lekki Peninsula Area by Notice No.20 published in the Lagos state Government official Gazette No. 20 Volume 26 of 13th May 1993 in Eti-Osa Local Government of Lagos is still valid and subsisting among others.

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MasterCard, firm host Restaurant Week

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ESTAURANT Week, a programme designed to bring menus of most exclusive restaurants in Lagos State to the residents at highly discounted prices is set to commence.

The two week-long programme which kicked off last Monday, ends on Thursday, 17th April, 2014.

The event, organised by Lost in Lagos, an online premiere guide in conjunction with Master Card, according to Tannaz Etebarian Bahnam, the founder of Lost in Lagos, was the company's way of supporting food tourism.

Expatiating, she said: "The selected restaurants will offer set prix -menu for lunch and dinner at affordable prices. This would not include Saturdays. This will enable visitors to try new restaurants or go back to favourites that they save for special occasions. All restaurant menus during the week-long event will be offered at the same price. "Restaurants will also gain additional exposure throughout the promotional period with the 'Snap it Photo' context. The contest will allow diners submit photos of their best dishes where they will be put in Lagos site and the best photo will win iPad, a spa day and a meal voucher to their favourite restaurant. In addition, Lost in Lagos will offer customers who book for Restaurant Week special taxi rides together with transit."

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

Nkem Akinsoto, also known as Myne Whiteman is a blogger, writer, and publisher. In this interview with Joe Agbro Jr., she talks about her transition from writer to publisher and how she hopes to promote reading in Nigeria

BUSINESS

'Publishing industry in Nigeria is underfunded'

How to create a marketing plan

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AIJASTORIES is a frontline platform for showcasing contemporary Nigerian writing. Can you share the inspiration behind Naijastories?

NaijaStories.com came as an idea from my experience sharing excerpts from my first novel on my blog, and later coordinating an online interactive story. I found out about other writing sites like Authonomy, joined some of them and then realised that Nigerian aspiring writers could benefit from such a platform as a way to improve and network.

Today Naijastories.com is the leading community for Nigerian writers and book lovers, combining elements of a writing critique website and a social networking site. The mission of Naija Stories is to use community networking to encourage and support aspiring writers to improve their writing and feel more confident sharing stories from a Nigerian perspective. We also aim to encourage reading amongst the general public by making such engaging stories available on Naijastories.com, on other available partnering channels, and in anthologies. With our mix of content and activities, Naija Stories is especially versatile, attracting a diverse crop of readers, writers, and those with general interest in Nigerian literary affairs. We're committed to telling fresh Nigerian stories; and we also promote authors, and book publishers by sharing publishing news, events and literary opportunities. Naija Stories has now become the first imprint of the newly established NS Publishing Ltd. You started blogging about romance relationships, how important are such relationships to you?

Very important. Along with other life experiences, the books I've read in my life have made me realise that most times, the closest bonds and relationships we're able to form are what determine our life outcomes. I have been able to separate the real from the fiction, but also merge them if you see what I mean. I decided to aim for the ideal and I think right now, I am living it. I am indeed lucky to have met and married the love of my life.

Do you think Nigerians as a people are much into romance?

I would say that when I read romance novels as a young adult, most of them were foreign, and I realised they were an ideal, something to aspire to rather than what everyone had. Even in the books, this was made very clear. Some made an effort to be balanced by featuring heroines and heroes who had experienced dysfunctional or abusive relationships before having another opportunity to find real love. Living in Nige-

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•Akinsoto

ria back then also, the method of showing love was very different.

But I won't say Nigerians •Akinkuotu are not into romance, they just understand and show it in other ways.

Romance issues are widespread. Is there anything you would not share on your blog?

I'll probably share anything that is sent to me as long as I verify that it is true and the person passing through the issue will benefit from a discussion on my blog.

You founded NS publishing.

What informed that decision?

NS Publishing Ltd is a new publishing and marketing company dedicated to developing and distributing Nigerian written content through eBooks, paperbacks, audio, websites, mobile apps and other channels. We believe that by nurturing writers and readers, we will help develop engaged, empowered and educated Nigerians, as well as contribute to the economy through our business. Reading, we believe, has the ability to change people, creating a thirst to know more, and to better oneself and NS Publishing aims to satisfy the demand for books among Nigerians with our special branded Naija Stories genre series. I feel the publishing industry is desperately under resourced and under-funded like most things in Nigeria. Everyone decries the abysmal reading culture in Nigeria. The biggest gap I see is in the industry currently is in the sparse number of publishing houses, and the distribution channels available to get books to readers.

Again, in 2010, President

Jonathan launched a campaign to Bring Back the Book but no one has begun to fully explain how to grow a culture of reading in Nigeria when books are so expensive and there is virtually no exciting or relevant reading material for the majority of Nigerians. NS Publishing aims to bridge this gap. We will produce literary content targeted at a broad base of emerging and established readers, and across different age groups and mid/ low income communities. Our paperbacks will be pocket size and pocket friendly, and we make a promise never to sell a book more than N500.

How would you describe the type of writings you get to see in the course of your work as a publisher?

The rot in the educational sector becomes immediately obvious as a publisher receiving manuscripts from a wide variety of writers. We get the good but also the bad and ugly. What is in no doubt is that a lot of Nigerian have stories to tell and want to write them down for a larger audience to access.

What is your take on selfpublishing?

I think having a blog was the first step, especially because I shared excerpts of the WIP as a series. This led me naturally to consider self-publishing and it has been great so far. I always feel excited receiving the proof copy of my books and then I have it cover to cover. I have become a better writer.

How many employees do you have?

We are currently working with seven employees.

How has the experience of using social media for your business been like?

The internet also makes it easier to explore and be exposed to different places and different cultures. I believe this experience has made my work richer and more nuanced. Also having a blog really helped me with my writing especially with the feedback and critique I got from my readers. Also it was through the support of bloggers that I did my first blog tour for A HEART TO MEND and all the publicity that came with that.

Overall, how has the transformation from writing enthusiast and romance blogger to owning a publishing firm been?

I'm still in the process of transition. Like any business, there is a lot of dedication involved, a lot of sacrifices to be made, but the hope is that the end result will make it all worthwhile.

Every publisher wants people to read more. How do you think Nigerians' reading culture can be improved?

We need more popular books and a way to get it to the readers and excite them about reading through promotions and other relevant activities.

What is the next thing for Myne Whitman?

There are two books taking up space in my head now. I hope one of them is ready next year.

Also I will continue to work to promote the Naijastories.com website as a means to raising an army of readers among the young people in Nigeria, as well as band of authors to supply that market.

IRMS that are successful in marketing invariably start with a marketing plan. Large companies have plans with hundreds of pages; small companies can get by with a halfdozen sheets. Refer to it at least quarterly, but better yet monthly.

Leave a tab for putting in monthly reports on sales/manufacturing; this will allow you to track performance as you follow the plan.

The plan should cover one year. For small companies, this is often the best way to think about marketing. Things change, people leave, markets evolve, customers come and go.

You should allow yourself a couple of months to write the plan, even if it's only a few pages long. Developing the plan is the "heavy lifting" of marketing. While executing the plan has its challenges, deciding what to do and how to do it is marketing's greatest challenge. Most marketing plans kick off with the first of the year or with the opening of your fiscal year if it's different.

Who should see your plan? All the players in the company.

Firms typically keep their marketing plans very, very private for one of two very different reasons: Either they're too skimpy and management would be embarrassed to have them see the light of day, or they're solid and packed with information . . . which would make them extremely valuable to the competition.

You can't do a marketing plan without getting many people involved. No matter what your size, get feedback from all parts of your company: finance, manufacturing, personnel, supply and so on--in addition to marketing itself. If you're essentially a oneperson management operation, you'll have to wear all your hats at one time - but at least the meetings will be short!

A marketing plan provides you with several major benefits.

Let's review them.

Rallying point: Your marketing plan gives your troops something to rally behind. You want them to feel confident that the captain of the vessel has the charts in order, knows how to run the ship, and has a port of destination in mind. Companies often undervalue the impact of a "marketing plan" on their own people, who want to feel part of a team engaged in an exciting and complicated joint endeavor. If you want your employees to feel committed to your company, it's important to share with them your vision of where the company is headed in the years to come.

People don't always understand financial projections, but they can get excited about a well-written and well-thought-out marketing plan. You should consider releasing your marketing plan--perhaps in an abridged version--companywide. Do it with some fanfare and generate some excitement for the adventures to come.

Chart to success: We all know that plans are imperfect things.

How can you possibly know what's going to happen 12 months or five years from now? Isn't putting together a marketing plan an exercise in futility . . . a waste of time better spent meeting with customers or fine-tuning production? Yes, possibly but only in the narrowest sense. If you don't plan, you're doomed, and an inaccurate plan is far better than no plan at all. To stay with our sea captain analogy, it's better to be 5 or even 10 degrees off your destination port than to have no destination in mind at all.

Company operational instructions: Your child's first bike and your new VCR came with a set of instructions, and your company is far more complicated to put together and run than either of them. Your marketing plan is a step-by-step guide for your company's success. It's more important than a vision statement.

To put together a genuine marketing plan, you have to assess your company from top to bottom and make sure all the pieces are working together in the best way. What do you want to do with this enterprise you call the company in the coming year?

Consider it a to-do list on a grand scale. It assigns specific tasks for the year.

Captured thinking: You don't allow your financial people to keep their numbers in their heads. Financial reports are the lifeblood of the numbers side of any business, no matter what size. It should be no different with marketing. Your written document lays out your game plan. If people leave, if new people arrive, if memories falter, if events bring pressure to alter the givens, the information in the written marketing plan stays intact to remind you of what you'd agreed on.

Top-level reflection: In the daily hurly-burly of competitive business, it's hard to turn your attention to the big picture, especially those parts that aren't directly related to the daily operations. You need to take time periodically to really think about your business--whether it's providing you and your employees with what you want, whether there aren't some innovative wrinkles you can add, whether you're getting all you can out of your products, your sales staff and your markets. Writing your marketing plan is the best time to do this high-level thinking.

Some companies send their top marketing people away to a retreat.

Others go to the home of a principal. Some do marketing plan development at a local motel, away from phones and fax machines, so they can devote themselves solely to thinking hard and drawing the most accurate sketches they can of the immediate future of the business.

Ideally, after writing marketing plans for a few years, you can sit back and review a series of them, year after year, and check the progress of your company.

Source: www.entrepreneur.com

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EFORE the discovery of oil, Nigeria made greater advancements in textile, agricultural, solid minerals and manufacturing sectors.

It is then mindboggling that Nigeria's compatriots, such as Malaysia and Indonesia, which sustained the tempo of their economic growth, are now ranked among global economic heavy weights while Nigeria remains a consuming and importing nation.

But there seems to be light at the end of the tunnel. A key concept in the Jonathan transformation agenda is the diversification of Nigeria's other economic endowments.

So far machineries are in motion to make Nigeria realize its economic potentialities in various sectors.

It is against this backdrop that the efforts of the Jonathan administration in reforming the power sector are commendable. The power sector remains the flagship of Nigeria's economic growth. It is the purveyor upon which other sectors of the economy can grow.

President Goodluck Jonathan took the bull by the horn by unbundling the Power Holding Company of Nigeria, PHCN. Hitherto every effort made to reposition the power sector did not yield the desired results. But with the electricity sector moved to the private sector, it is expected that investors will cash into the opportunity.

The Nigeria Export-Import Bank, being a key player in the diversification of Nigeria's economy, has championed the platform in encouraging the private-sector driven ventures in Nigeria. It is against this background that Nexim Bank, established by Act 38 of 1991 as an export credit agency to promote diversification of the Nigerian economy and deepen the external sector through the provision of credit facilities in both local and foreign currencies, risk bearing facilities, business development, financial advisory services and trade, and market information services, has initiated a working blueprint, spanning from 2010 to 2015, to propel the non-oil sectors of Nigeria's economy to a grand-level. The bank, in its bid to finance nonoil export, has supported Nigerian exporters mainly the small and medium enterprises (SME's) with some engaged in Greenfield projects, to the tune of N23.33 billion and issued guarantees valued at $27.3 million between 2009 and August 2012.

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

HE Delta Government has earmarked six billion naira for the ongoing Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) lane project in Warri.

The Deputy Governor, Prof. Amos Utuama, made this known at the Palace of the Olu of Warri, Ogiame Atuwase 11 over the weekend.

Utuama, accompanied by some members of the ad hoc committee on state sanitation, said the project would help to reduce traffic congestion being experienced in most parts of Warri metropolis.

He said the BRT lane would start from Effurun and terminate at the Nigerian Port Authority (NPA).

The deputy governor added that government had engaged 750 people to fortify its traffic control mechanism in the ancient city.

Utuama also said the visit

Giant strides of Nexim Bank

•Orya

The bank, which was voted the best development bank in Africa recently, has deepened its commitment to the course of stronger performance of the Nigerian external sector. Nexim Bank, under the able-leadership of Mr Roberts Orya, has budgeted about N42 billion for the manufacturing sector's financing requirement, or six per cent of the manufacturing sector's financing needs, while accounting for at least 3.71 per cent of the nation's gross domestic product (GDP) by 2015. Nexim Bank is aware that the only way to harness the potentialities attendant to the private sectordriven economy is regular power supply. To this end, it has scaled up its interventions in the manufacturing, agro-processing, solid mineral and service sectors.

According to Mr Orya, "These sectors play the important game of numbers; they hold the opportunities for creation of possible highest number of sectoral jobs, and they have huge potentialities for foreign exchange earnings."

With the support of Nexim Bank, Nigeria's manufacturing sector has been growing, thus giving the hope that the level of unemployment currently pervading the country will soon be a thing of the past. Ac-

cording to Yomi Tokosi, MD/ CEO, Riggs Ventures W/A Plc, "Nexim Bank played a pivotal role in the actualization of the expansion of our polypropylene sacks manufacturing company by providing the guarantee we needed to obtain the dual tranche facility from African-Export-Import. Nexim Bank also provided us with a medium-term facility for the expansion and renovation of our factory."

The National Bureau of Statistics has also attested to the fact that the performance of the manufacturing sector has been strengthening. According to the NBS, the sector grew by 8. 41 per cent in Q1 2013. The record of the NBS is not far from the fact that NEXIM Bank has been working closely with some manufacturers in Nigeria through its mass agenda. Echoing the words of Nexim Bank's CEO, "We thought that the manufacturing, agro-processing, solid minerals and services sectors were very important frontiers of job-rich growth that the country needed to give welfarist meaning to the impressive GDP growth Nigeria has experienced since much of the last decade. … Our interventions usually assist manufacturers to adopt new technology in the form of new equip-

ment and machinery. … By 2015 Nexim Bank aims to provide about N42 billion in short and long-term financing to the manufacturing sector. … With this, we hope to directly mediate about 4 percent of total production value in manufacturing, and create and support over 70, 000 jobs."

In the entertainment industry, the bank under Mr. Roberts Orya is not resting in its oars. It is no more news that Nigeria's entertainment industry is growing by leaps and bounds. President Goodluck Jonathan is the champion in encouraging the entertainment industry which globally Nigeria has a comparative advantage. This informed his launch of the Entertainment Industry Fund in 2011. The management of the fund is under the saddle of Nexim Bank in line with its mandate to support businesses including the creative and entertainment sector, which has capacities to create jobs and earn foreign exchange for the country. Through its management of the Nigerian Creative and Entertainment Industry Stimulation Loan Scheme, the bank has helped in raising the international profile of Nollywood. For example 'Dr Bello', an international film financed with the fund was pre-

Delta earmarks N6bn for BRT lane in Warri was to intimate the Ogiame of the activities of the ad hoc committee saddled with the responsibility of cleaning up the state and solicit for his support. ``I apologise that we could not visit the Ogiame before the commencement of our operation in Warri South. ``We are on environmental restoration mission in Warri South, Uvwie and Udu Local Government Areas of Delta. ``Itsekiri are decent people but due to urbanisation, we now have all sorts of people in our midst generating environmental disorders all in the name of trade. ``Government is committed to beautifying the city but the

only way we can achieve that is for all hands to be on deck. ``Street trading, illegal markets, granite markets as well as illegal motor parks in the Warri metropolis are now prohibited,'' he said.

Utuama said that the government had put up machineries that would ensure the sustainability of the programme. ``We will not turn our back to the project, we have put things in place to sustain the momentum. ``The government has instituted two incinerators, one in Ibuzor and the other in Orhonworho, to convert the refuse into fertiliser and other wealth and by implication

creating jobs for the youth,'' he said.

Chief Mene Brown, who spoke on behalf of the Ogiame, commended the deputy governor for the visit, and urged the government to put in place measures to sustain the programme. ``It is gladdening to hear that incinerators had been put in place to convert the refuse, until we convert them to something else they will still be waste,'' Brown said.

The deputy governor was accompanied by Mr Solomon Funkekeme, Commissioner for Works; Mr Patrick Ferife, Land and Survey; Dr Joseph Otumara, Health; Mr Mofe Damijo, Tourism.

miered in Washington DC at the Kennedy Centre in 2012.

In the environmental sector, Nexim Bank has been proactive in ensuring sustainable environment in the country.

The bank has been investing in knowledge acquisition. It is currently seeking technical collaboration with other development agencies to help develop carbon finance and climate change mitigation in the country. Although hope of a global agreement for trading carbon credit from emission cuts will probably not crystalise, experts believe that funding continues to flourish. Furthermore, investments in environmental sustainability can generate enough returns in preservation of the natural environment and endangered species apart from slowing down global warming and reducing environment pollution.

In the solid minerals sector, Mr. Orya has not minced his words in making the impacts of Nexim Bank felt in the transformation agenda of President Goodluck Jonathan. According to him, "Nexim Bank's intervention in the solid mineral sector is structured as is the case with other three sectors of focus. We combine funding with capacity-building. We engage stakeholders to identify

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HE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) at the weekend said commercial banks in Omu-Aran, headquarters of Irepodun Local Government Area, Kwara, closed to customers in May 2013, might be re-opened soon.

The state's Branch Controller of the Apex bank, Mr Monday Olotewo, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ilorin that the latest commitment by the Omu-Aran community was laudable.

NAN recalls that series of robbery attacks between January and May 2013, led to the indefinite closure of more than three commercial banks in the ancient town.

The closure had created hardship and forced residents to travel more than 60 kilometres for their banking transactions in adjoining communities.

Olotewo told NAN that

obstacles to the growth of the solid mineral sector. And we look at efficient ways to remove the barriers."

The development of Nigeria's solid mineral sector is a global challenge. It involves not only making the sector merely open for investors but providing the atmosphere for such operations to be conducive. This Nexim Bank has come to fill the gap in conjunction with other stakeholders.

In the words of Nexim bank boss: "Once we have the initial local private investment in place, with government approval, I am pretty confident that foreign capital will follow.

Like the oil and gas sector, we can attract global companies to come here (Nigeria) and invest in the solid mineral sector."

The Sealink initiative is another landmark of Nexim Bank. The concept is in tandem with the project of the Economic Community of West African States for free movement of persons, goods and services within the sub-region.

According to Mr. Orya, the Sealink project offers a unique and compelling investment proposition in the fast growing West and Central African region. Inter and intra-regional trade in West and Central Africa has been hampered by the poor state of transportation infrastructure. Introducing a direct coastal link between the two regions is expected to have a multiplier effect on the rate of economic growth in these regions, thus providing adequate returns for investors.

The Sealink project is currently endorsed and supported by various regional bodies that identify with the project. It is also a private sector initiative which has gained the full support of various supranational bodies across West and Central Africa including ECOWAS Commission, FEWACCI, and the Maritime Organisation of Central Africa (MOWCA). This is expected to enhance funding and assist the company to navigate the maritime regulatory regime in the region.

To move and sustain the current tempo in the economy of Nigeria, more is expected from Nexim Bank as well as other specialized institutions.

More funds should also be appropriated to performing agencies to enable them to perform maximally.

•Robert Orya is Managing Director of NEXIM

Banks in Omu-Aran to re-open soon - CBN Kwara Bankers Committee was in Omu-Aran recently, where the community donated two Hilux vehicles to security operatives to assist in proper policing of the town. ``The committee believes that the donation will go a long way to help the police to patrol the town effectively. ``It also means that the community is concerned about the security of the town. ``It is a precarious situation for us in the banking sector, particularly the CBN, to continue to witness indefinite closure of bank branches as a result of incessant armed robbery attacks.

THE NATIO N ON SUNDAY, APRIL 13, 2014

BUSINESS 63

The Lagos tax revolution

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AGOS State generates about 70 per cent of its annual income internally, a state of affairs that makes the Lagos State Internal Revenue Service the example to copy.

Back in 2005, a big shake-up in government finances was launched in Lagos State. The shake-up, a product of sturdy political will and ingenious thinking, would revolutionise tax administration in the state, provide a template for other states in the country and make Lagos State the example for the whole of Africa. The seed for this was planted by the administration of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu. In 1999, Tinubu, an accomplished accountant with a private sector background, inherited a state with an internally generated revenue profile of N600million monthly.

For a state with the population of Lagos and with acute infrastructural challenges, the amount generated was way below what was required. Something needed to be done.

And urgently, too. Through an enhancement of the collection process, notably marked the creation of many more tax stations and plugging of holes from which resources dripped, the Tinubu administration achieved an exponential jump to N3.6billion monthly by 2005. By the time the Tinubu administration completed its tenure in 2007, the internally generated revenue of the state had risen to N6billion monthly.

The yield it got convinced it that there was a chance to harvest more bountifully. Two years before it left office, it sent a bill to the state legislature seeking to reform the Lagos State Board Internal Revenue and its administrative arm, the Lagos Internal Revenue Service.

The administration also got the man it believed could drive the process, appointing Mr. Babatunde Fowler, a US-trained economist and banker, as the Chairman, Lagos State Board of Internal Revenue and Chief Executive. The bill sent to House was passed in 2006, effectively making the Lagos State Board of Internal Revenue an autonomous and self-accounting vehicle of government. It was the first of such in the country.

Eight years after the bill was passed into law and the first expressions of Fowler’s reformatory zeal, internally generated revenue of Lagos State has topped the N20billion monthly mark, thereby making Lagos the highest non-oil revenue earner in the country. The implication of this is that it currently earns over 70 per cent of its annual income from non-oil tax. Even the Federal Government is dwarfed in this regard, as its non-oil income does not exceed 20 percent. Between 2006 and

Kano commits N100bn to road projects

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ANO State Government at the weekend

•Lagos State Goveror, Babatunde Raji Fashola

2013, Lagos State raised its IGR by N7billion monthly, leading to a steady budgetary progression. Unlike other states, which have wobbled badly on account of the dip in statutory allocation from Federation Account, Lagos is inoculated through its hefty monthly IGR. It is a development of which the Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, is immensely proud. At the Seventh Annual Taxation Stakeholders’ Conference in Lagos last January, Fashola praised the level of tax compliance in the state, describing it as an evidence of “the undying spirit of the people” of the state.

“This year, more than N467 billion was budgeted and about 70 per cent of that is now being funded by you individuals (tax payers),” the governor said proudly.

The governor’s words are ringing endorsement of the strides LIRS has made as the major revenue collector for the government.

Among the taxes collected

by LIRS are personal income tax, capital gains tax, stamp duty and business registration fees. How has LIRS gone about its job? A major step the agency took was in breaking down the barriers to voluntary tax compliance. This entailed the establishment of mintax stations in markets to bring in taxable adults in the informal sector. Currently, there are 38 of such offices across the state. By January 2008, more of those in the informal sector were captured by the tax net through the innovative Self Assessment Filing System. Through the system, taxable individuals outside the Pay As You Earn net got the chance to pay their taxes based on their income. Payment was also made easier because it could be made at any of the 1, 200 branches of banks designated for the purpose or at LIRS tax stations. The ease, naturally, encouraged voluntary compli-

ance.

Confidence in the system was also boosted by the transparency with which it was operated, as tax payers began to have payment receipted within 72 hours of payment because the designated revenue collecting banks and tax stations are linked to databases that issue electronic receipts to tax payers. LIRS’ decision to introduce personal electronic tax clearance cards (eTCC), the first of its type in the country, was another winner. It further imbued the process of tax collection with transparency by offering tax payers access to their payment records via the internet.

A great amount of effort was expended on the fight against tax avoidance. A major plank of this was the education of Lagos residents on how tax compliance and development are closely related. To achieve this, LIRS launched publicity campaigns, using celebrities resident in Lagos for testimonial adverts highlighting the need for tax compliance and the benefits derivable. Between 2008 and 2012, the average monthly IGR of the state rose from N18.9 billion to N29.9billion. Currently, about 70 per cent of Lagos State government revenue is derived from internally generated revenue, freeing the state from absolute dependence on proceeds from the Federation Account. The success of LIRS could also be gleaned from success of the state government in providing infrastructure and service to the people. The Lagos State government is widely regarded as the performance standard all around the country.

Further confirmation of the LIRS as an to emulate was, last December, jointly delivered by the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, and the Joint Tax Board.

Figures released by the two bodies showed that Lagos State generated more revenue than any other state of the federation between 2010 and 2012. The state re-

corded N185.9 billion in 2010, which increased to N202.76 billion in 2011 and rose further to N219.2 billion in 2012.

Of the N219.2 billion in 2012, Lagos earned the highest revenue of N172.44 billion from PAYE. The sum of N4.36 billion came from road taxes, N1.89 billion from direct assessment of companies in the state, while N40.513 billion came from other revenue sources.

About N120.25 billion was earned from PAYE in 2011; N7.97 billion from direct assessment, and N74.54 billion from other sources, while N104.681 billion came from PAYE in 2010; N7.51 billion from direct sources, and N73.704 billion from other sources.

Oil-rich Rivers State came a distant second. It earned about N49.59 billion in 2010; N57.19 billion in 2011 and N66.28 billion in 2012. The state earned N55.1 billion through PAYE in 2012; N485.9 million through road taxes; N22.075 million through direct tax assessment and N10.668 million through other revenue sources.

Delta State, which recordedN106.4 billion within the three years under review, came third. It earned N26.1 billion in 2010, N34.75 billion in 2011 and N45.57 billion on 2012.

PAYE fetched Delta State over N42.565 billion in 2012.

Also, N244.195million was earned from road taxes, N123.4million from direct assessment, while N2 .635billion came from other sources.

Delta State, unsurprisingly, is one of the states aspiring to have its revenue collection agency become a clone of the LIRS. Delta Beyond Oil, an initiative designed to reduce reliance on oil revenue, aims, among other things, to earn as much as possible from internally generated revenue. To achieve this aspiration, a team from the state has visited the LIRS to study its model. Others states taking a leaf from the LIRS book are Ogun, Oyo, Ekiti, Edo Bayelsa and Kano.

said it had committed more than N100 billion on the construction and rehabilitation of some roads in Kano metropolis in last three years.

Alhaji Mohammed Yahaya, Commissioner for Lands and Physical Planning, disclosed this while briefing newsmen in Kano.

“The state government has constructed about 20-30 different roads and in addition to four new major ones that are being constructed in the city centre.

“Some of the roads have been completed while others are still ongoing and will be completed before the end of this year,” he said.

Yahaya said the new roads, which included the five kilometres road in each of the 44 local government areas of the state, would also be completed before the end of 2014.

“The roads are dual carriage way with street lights and they have a total distance of over 150 kilometres from Kano to Kaduna,’’ He assured that all the road projects would be completed before the expiration

of the tenure of the administration in May 2014.

He disclosed that the state government had recently set up a task force to ensure that the projects were completed on schedule and in accordance with specifications.

Yahaya said the construction of the two major parking lots for articulated vehicles at Gundutse and Dawanau was also on course as the state government had already paid compensation to land owners.

“Because of the enormity of the projects, the World Bank has agreed to come in and provide some technical advice on how best the projects can be done.

“They have already mobilised to site and by early next week, works will commence’’, he said.

He said work at the three new cities of Kwankwasiyya, Amana and Bandirawo had reached between 70 and 90 per cent completion stages.

“The state government has created over 13,500 new plots that will be allocated to people with 50 per cent to be given to the original owners,’ he said.

Board, stakeholders collaborate to close gaps in film industry

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HE National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) is collaborating with stakeholders on the need to bridge the ‘noticeable gap impacting negatively’ on the sector, a statement said.

The Director General of NFVCB, Ms Patricia Bala, announced the measure at an interactive forum with stakeholders in the movie industry in Abuja, Mr Caesar Kagho, Acting Head and Corporate Affairs of the board, said in a statement.

“The meeting examined some of the concerns about noticeable gap impacting negatively on our collective desire to attain a structured and enviable movie sector in the Nigerian economy,’’ it said.

The statement said the board was concerned over the contents of some movies and urged various artists’ guilds to check their members involved in unwholesome films and video

works The director-general decried the attitude of some movie markers of not complying with guidelines and regulations of the board on movie production.

She warned that NFVCB would no longer tolerate any stakeholder involved in the sale of unwholesome video materials.

On his part, Mr Zike Zulu, the President of the Association of Movie Producers, said there was near breakdown of communication between the board and the operators in the industry.

It listed notable stakeholders at the forum as Mahmud Ali Balogun, Teco Benson, Alex Eyengho, Nobert Ajaegbu, Gab Okoye.

Others were Victor Ashaolu, Toyin Uthman, Peddy Okao, Chris Ekejimbe, Kene Mkparu and Iyen AgbonifoObaseki.

Arewa LG earmaks N10.6m for rural water supply

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HE Arewa Local Government Area in Kebbi, over the weekend said it had earmarked N10.6 million for the drilling of 28 bore holes to boost rural water supply in the area.

Alhaji Ahmed Tanko, the Chairman of the council, disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kangiwa.

He said the boreh oles would be drilled in Bui, Gumundai, Madamfara and Jaffeji districts, stressing that four bore

holes would be provided in each of the districts.

He said the project would ensure provision of safe water to rural communities and prevent avoidable outbreak of water bone diseases.

Tanko said the council, in collaboration with the state Ministry of Water Resources, had sunk 100 boreh oles in the area in the last two years.

The chairman commended people in the area for maintaining existing water facilities provided them.

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

BUSINESS

How far can transfer pricing go?

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NE of the greatest economic undoings of Africa has been traced to capital flights from the continent.

This development, economic experts have stressed, is a big issue.

A study conducted by Global Financial Integrity and the African Development Bank last year further confirmed this when it revealed that the continent lost between US$597 billion and US$1.4 trillion in net resources transferred away from the continent between 1980 and 2009.

Available records show that this illicit transfer of funds was primarily achieved through transfer mispricing and this goes to show that African countries, including Nigeria, must take practical steps to plug the massive leakages of economic resources from the continent.

However, one way of addressing this is probably what led the Federal Inland Revenue Service to introduce the transfer pricing regime in the country through the Income Tax law (Transfer Pricing) Regulations No 1 of 2012.

What the law seeks to achieve Among other things, the law seeks to ensure that Nigeria is able to tax on an appropriate taxable basis corresponding to the economic activities deployed by taxable persons in Nigeria, including in their transactions and dealings with associated enterprises.

It also seek to provide the Nigerian authorities the tools to fight tax evasion through over or under-pricing of controlled transactions between associated enterprises; reduce the risk of economic double taxation; provide a level playing field between multinational enterprises and independent Enterprises doing business within Nigeria and provide taxable persons with certainty of transfer pricing treatment in Nigeria.

The law provides rules for pricing, documenting and disclosing transactions between 'Connected Taxable Persons who is an individual, partnership, joint venture, company, trust, association or any other entity which may influence or be influenced by another person by reason of ownership, control or management. It covers every

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Tony Akowe writes on the pros and cons of transfer pricing

form of exchange of goods, properties (tangible or intangible) or the furnishing of services carried out between an entity that is subject to tax in Nigeria and any person connected with it.

It covers every transaction between connected taxable persons irrespective of the product, industry, value, or the jurisdiction where the transaction took place.

Transfer pricing is viewed as the pricing of goods, services, intangible assets, or financial transactions between related entities or those transactions deemed controlled. Related entities are the parties under common control. Thus, in related party transactions, the assumption is usually that normal market rules between third parties may not apply.

While giving an overview of the transfer pricing regime in the country, the Federal Inland Revenue Service noted that the overall objective of every business organisation is to maximize profits, but was quick to admit that some companies may be tempted to seek ways of reducing its overall tax burden. This may entail manipulating prices of intra-group transactions to shift profits to affiliated entities located in low tax jurisdictions.

As the profits in the low tax jurisdiction increase, the total aggregate tax paid by the group is significantly reduced.

These intra-group transactions in many cases do not reflect arms length prices (prices that are consistent with what would be agreed by independent /unrelated parties under similar circumstances) and as such, the transactions are said to be mispriced.

It said further that "one of the most challenging issues that arise from international tax perspective is the establishment of arm's length transfer prices for controlled transactions.

The global community has made concerted efforts at tackling these challenges by issuing guidelines on how related party transactions are to be priced. Transfer mispricing is a form of tax avoidance, and this has been recognised as an area of concern and several countries including Nigeria have expressed concern over this issue.

Safety nets provided by

dispensation that cross border businesses are on the increase, the share of the apple should not be allowed to be skewed against Nigeria.

The international community requires certainty in our tax system to meet one of the canons of taxation and to gain the investors' confidence in Nigeria, we must work to the direction the TP regulations."

However, it is important to say that while tax policy pronouncements exist in various documents in the country there is the need to harmonize them into a documented tax policy that clearly articulates how to use taxation to drive development at the various levels in the country.

A visit to any industry in the country reveals one major complaint, multiple taxes. Companies are made to pay various forms of tax which they always claim affects their income level annually.

Indeed, it must be said that the challenges of multiple taxation which is not only unconstitutional, but exacerbates the problems of the tax payer and electorate who increasingly get frustrated at the numerous amount of taxes borne formal and informal for which a clear solution needs to be articulated and implemented by all.

In its final report on transfer pricing in developing countries, European Commission said that developing countries often encounter particular problems when dealing with transfer pricing.

They concluded that local tax administrations are often inexperienced with regard to transfer pricing and lack basic understanding in the field. In addition, there are no databases which allow information to be extracted on comparable transactions or companies in order to verify transfer pricing between related parties.

Interestingly, Nigeria has always been found wanting when implementing policies and when one views the basic preconditions set out by the European Commission report, one may be compelled to conclude that the nation may not be able to successfully implement the transfer pricing regulations.

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•Acting Executive Chairman, FIRS, Kabir Mashi law

In the Nigerian context, the anti-avoidance provisions in the Principal Tax Laws (Companies Income Tax Act, Petroleum Profit Tax Act, Personal Income Tax Act, and Capital Gains Tax Act) empower the relevant tax authorities (RTAs) to make adjustments to any transactions they consider artificial or fictitious. This is achieved through adjustment of transfer prices to ensure fairness and equity in pricing.

However, the laws do not stipulate proper documentation of relatedparty transactions or recommend transfer pricing methods to be used in determining appropriate arm's-length prices for these transactions.

However, many have raised questions about the applicability of transfer pricing in Nigeria which goes beyond just monitoring transaction prices among multinational related entities.

The application of the policy must include tracking possible harmful tax planning among affiliated companies where some of the entities are enjoying significant tax incentives or holidays.

While it may be correct to say that mission of

multinational companies are always different from those of the host countries, effective transfer pricing rules would be crucial to developing economies like Nigeria.

How far can FIRS go with transfer pricing?

Interestingly however, the FIRS has told Nigerians that it is prepared to comprehensively implement the policy in the country.

The service which is saddled with the responsibility of generating internal revenue and implementing all tax laws in the country has said it was prepared to work with the business, community and multinationals to smoothen, rough edges and explain grey areas.

Acting Executive Chairman of the service, Kabir Mashi said at a brainstorming session aimed at forging collaboration among stakeholders that the country will not go back on the implementation of transfer pricing given its importance achieving Nigeria's economic prospect of vision 202020.

He said: "We are not here to discuss whether there will be transfer pricing or not because there is going to be transfer pricing. We are not even going to discuss when

to start implementation because we have agreed that it will start at the beginning of this year. We are here to talk to ourselves on the progress we have made on the implementation of transfer pricing and assure ourselves that we are ready to work with the business community."

He noted that so much effort has been put into the Transfer Pricing project in the country and urged the drivers to work hard to surmount any challenge on the full realization of the TP. Director, Large Tax Department (Oil and Gas) Ajayi Bamidele believe that the TP regulations have come to stay in Nigeria and also urged tax administrators and taxpayers to collaborate an ensure its success by avoiding avoidable disputes.

According to him, "the way countries seek to implement transfer pricing issues impact on the dispute resolution process and Foreign Direct Investment, hence the issues have to be properly identified and addressed. Nigeria, an integral part of the larger world that wants to be one of the 20 most developed countries by the year 2020 cannot afford to be left behind in tax development. In this

‘FG's claim on economy an illusion’

HE Deputy Whip of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Rotimi Abiru has described the claim by the Federal Government that the economy of Nigeria is now the best in Africa as the biggest illusion of the century.

Abiru, who was reacting to the development, said the rebased Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the country, which showed that the Nigerian economy has overtaken that of South Africa's, is nothing that should excite Nigerians.

By Oziegbe Okoeki According to him, "the new GDP is nothing to be happy about because it is not in terms of per capita income. What is the essence of becoming Africa's biggest economy when it doesn't translate to improved standard of living for the common man?

"What is the essence of the new GDP figure when it doesn't translate to reduction in unemployment in the country? There is virtually nothing to be happy about.

"Nigeria has earlier been

rated as one of the poorest countries in the world by the World Bank, and as a matter of fact, it was rated with countries that are either over-populated or ravaged by war like Bangladesh, China, India, Democratic Republic of Congo whereas our dear country does not suffer such fate", he said.

Querying the indices on which the rating of Nigeria as the biggest economy in Africa was based on, the lawmaker said the new GDP and the World Bank rating are parallel things.

He pointed out that an

average Nigerian citizen does not have access to the basic things of life, which according to him, include, potable water, decent accommodation, good healthcare delivery system, electricity, among other basic necessities.

Abiru explained that life expectancy is below 50 years, "while infant mortality rate is 78 per 1000 live births; under-five mortality rate is 124 per 1000 live births and Nigeria is the seventh highest infant mortality rate in the world.

"Nigeria boasts of the

richest man in Africa and it also parades the poorest people in the world. One out of seven poorest people in the world is a Nigerian.

"Basically, the new GDP does not translate to good living condition for the mass of Nigerians when about 80 per cent are living below poverty line. As a matter of fact, out of that, more than 60 per cent are actually living below 1 dollar per day, which means the country harbours the poorest of the poor.”

He said that it is misgovernance that allows the

lopsided and the inordinate correlation between the economy growth and the per capita income.

"The economy of the country has been put in the stronghold of less than 1 per cent of the population," he added.

It would be recalled that the Federal Government, while presenting the outcome of the preliminary estimates of the GDP, said that the country's real GDP for 2011 and 2012 now stood at 5.09 per cent and 6.66 per cent, while the economy grew by 7.41 per cent in real terms last year.

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Marketing tips for small business Page 66

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HAT informed the move to reward SME operators for excellence by your organisation?

The initiative, christened Nigeria Small and Medium Enterprises Awards for Excellence (Nsafe Awards), is primed as the focal awards for small and medium scale businesses and will benchmark the progress of small businesses in Nigeria in line with the country's developmental agenda. SMEs have been fully recognised by government and development experts as the main engine of economic growth and a major factor, by extension, in promoting the realisation of the financial systems strategy Vision 20:2020. This is because the development of this sub-sector is an essential element in the growth strategy of the world's economies. SMEs are seen as the catalysts for achieving equitable and sustainable industrial diversification and dispersal. In many countries, SMEs account for well over half of the total share of employment, sales and value added. Notwithstanding the gargantuan role SMEs play in economic development, and the challenges they invariably face in the course of carrying out their activities, however, we do not have a process geared exclusively at rewarding excellence in this important segment of the economy.

That is the vacuum we intend to fill.

We want to promote the cause of SMEs by rewarding excellence so that operators can do more to contribute to economic development. We need all hands on deck during this period of President Goodluck Jonathan's Transformation Agenda so that every sector can contribute significantly to national growth. Don't get me wrong.

I am not saying we do not have pockets of awards for SMEs operators. Nsafe is coming as a project that will hand awards exclusively to SME operators. It is geared at providing an outlet for SMEs to thrive in Nigeria. The awards will encourage the growth of SMEs; find creative solutions to the peculiar challenges that confront them while doing business

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HE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has put the total amount disbursed to beneficiaries under the Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme (CACS) as at the end of the first quarter 2014 at N228.093 billion.

The Central Bank disclosed this in its Development Finance Department (DFD) report for January- March 2014.

According to the report, the amount was utilised for 299 projects.

The CACS was established to finance large ticket projects along the agriculture value chain. The

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, APRIL 13, 2014

'SMEs can turn around Nigeria's economy' Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) have the potential to boost the nation's economy. One organisation which holds the view and very strongly too that SMEs are indeed engine of growth is Lakewhyte Communications, a firm with interest in brand development and management, marketing communications, among others. The company is already perfecting plans to organise the maiden awards to recognise excellence in Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), tagged Nigeria SMEs Awards for Excellence (Nsafe Awards), later this year. Mrs. Taiwo Talabi, a top management staff of the company in this interview with Adetutu Audu, speaks on efforts at encouraging the SMEs. Excerpts: and open up access networks to these fledgling businesses.

The awards will serve an advocacy role in the SMEs business terrain and act as a nexus between operators and government. The awards will also follow well-honed credibility and transparency pathways and renew hopes of entrepreneurs in a challenging Nigerian business landscape.

What makes the Nsafe Awards different from others?

These are not your everyday kind of awards. These are awards to celebrate SMEs and we are doing everything humanly possible to make it a grand awards ceremony. We are not sparing any effort to make it the flagship awards for SMEs in the country. The maiden ceremony holds in October. To leave a long lasting impression and build on the momentum the inaugural awards will inevitably signpost, a lot of planning and brainstorming is being done by Lakewhyte Communications with various stakeholders and opinion leaders in the larger Nigerian society.

Who are your partners?

Government is our chief collaborator because this project touches on the economy. There is no way you want to engage a large segment of the operators in the economy without involving the government. We are well aware that there is an agency of government charged with the responsibility of promoting the activities of SMEs in the country. This only shows how large the interest of government is in SMEs as the catalyst for economic development. We must, as a matter of necessity, collaborate with this government agency.

There are other stakeholders in

xxx •Talabi

the economy who have one thing or the other to do with SMEs. We must also collaborate with them. We know, as a matter of fact, that there are many banks out there promoting SMEs. This is a good time to partner with them. It's like everybody is interested in SMEs‌.possibly because of the vital role they play in the economy. For instance, some telecommunication firms are involved with SMEs; there is no way we will run away from these stakeholders in rewarding excellence in SMEs through Nsafe Awards. Even state gov-

ernments are in the picture because you now find many of them giving the requisite attention to SMEs as a way of empowering their people and addressing the challenge of unemployment facing the nation. It is such a wide range of stakeholders that you have on SMEs that we will be dealing with.

Are the awards open to all SMEs in the country?

Participation in Nsafe Awards will be open to all SMEs in Nigeria. A "Call for Entry" form will be made available through various mainstream and online media channels for

organisations, individuals and businesses who intend to participate. The form will detail the criteria for selection of winners in each award category. Communication channels will thereafter be opened between Lakewhyte Communications and all interested participants.

How will the Nsafe Awards winners emerge?

A shortlist of participants will ensue and the jury put together for the purpose of the awards will decide winners in line with the benchmarks and criteria for selection of winners in each award category. Winners who emerge after the jury sittings will be announced at the Nsafe Awards gala night.

The Nsafe Awards verification team will visit projects and offices cited by organisations in their entry documents to have a first-hand feel of the stated projects and documents sent, in readiness for the jury sittings. All projects cited in the entry documents will go through a stream of video and still- photography and beneficiaries and/or employees of the organisation will be on the record. Most of the video evidence collected on the field during the verification process will be streamed (documentary) to the audience during the awards gala night. The jury has been constituted into a governing and decision-making organ for the Nsafe Awards. Selected jurors will be intricately involved in the various processes and provide input into the annual processes that determine the design, thematic focus and implementation of the Nsafe Awards.

The Jury will sit on three occasions covertly; sifting meticulously through a stack of entries and matching indi-

CBN disburses N228bn agric credit funds

By Bukola Afolabi scheme is being administered at a single digit rate of nine per cent to beneficiaries for a period of seven years. State governments, including the FCT can access a maximum of N1 billion each for on lending to farmers' cooperatives or other areas of agricultural intervention.

A breakdown of the amount showed that it comprised N199.831 billion released from the CACS receivable account for 273 projects and the sum of

N28.262 billion released from repayment account.

It also showed that 30 state governments and the Federal Capital Territory accessed the sum of N39 billion from CACS fund from inception to March, 2014, while N1.304 million was recorded as repayments by four banks in respect of five projects during the period under review, bringing the total fund repaid to N32.928 billion in respect of 68 expired projects.

Therefore, the balance of CACS receivable account fund as at the end of March, 2014 was

N169 million, while the balance in the CACS repayment account stood at N4.665 billion.

"From inception in 2009 to March 2014, 165,510 jobs were created; two out of the 269 private projects are owned and managed by women," it explained.

Under the Nigeria Incentive-based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL), the report showed that one Credit Risk Guarantee (CRG) valued N2 billion was issued during the

review period. That took the total value to N16.272 billion in respect of 45 CRG cover issued from inception to date.

On the other hand, seven Interest Drawback Programme (IDP) claims valued at N57.250 million were processed and paid during the review period under the NIRSAL. That made the total IDP claims paid under NIRSAL to N124.769 million in respect of 22 projects.

The NIRSAL is a mechanism designed to provide farmers with affordable financial products,

vidual entries against agreed criteria. The panel of judges for the Nsafe Awards will be primarily comprise of eminent and distinguished Nigerians who have left indelible footprints in the business, advocacy and communication terrain in the course of time.

The impeccable men and women who make up the Nsafe Awards Jury will decide award winners for the gala night of glitz and glamour.

What are the categories of the awards?

The awards will recognise excellent SMEs in categories such as agriculture, agro-allied products, packaged foods, INFOTECH, furniture, textile products, oil and gas, metal works, among others. We will also have the most innovative SMEs category, the most improved SME category, the best governor in SMEs category and the best SMEs promoter category.

Has the award gotten any backing from stakeholders?

Sure. Let me quickly add that we have some eminent Nigerians who are backing us in this project because of their belief that the country's accelerated industrial growth is guaranteed if adequate attention is paid to the SMEs, and that there should be a process to reward excellence in the sector. The eminent Nigerians include Alhaji Kankia, the Chairman of Katsina State Investment Company and a member of the Board of Directors of First Bank, and Pastor P. Z. Aginighan, one time acting Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC). reduce the risk of financial institutions that grant them loans, build capacities of banks to lend to agriculture, as well as develop an incentive mechanism for Nigerian banks based on their commitment to agricultural financing.

Some of the challenges encountered during the period included the validity of information provided by counter parties for CRG, review of the existing CRG guidelines to reflect the 12.5 per cent first loss principle in place of the face value currently being issued; and the low public awareness and poor perception of NIRSAL.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, APRIL 13, 2014

66 BUSINESS

Marketing tips for small business

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ARKETING is essential, if you want to get your business noticed by potential customers. These top tips will help give you some valuable ideas. If you're just starting your own business, you will hopefully have a marketing plan. If not, then you need to get busy - here are some helpful tips to get you started.

Business plan + marketing plan Even the most simple of enterprises needs a business plan, setting out how your business will operate and grow, importantly defining what you are selling, who to and why.

This may all seem startlingly obvious but it is surprising how many seemingly good ideas fall down because of lack of demand or customer engagement. Whatever the business proposition it must be unique or special enough to create customer demand. The basis of any good marketing plan is defining the 'customer need' you are targeting with your product or service (and of course the competitive landscape).

Do your research, define your target audience, then think about your marketing plan.

•From left: Mr. Sanjeev Kapoor, Vice Chairman, Vital Products Plc, Dr. Paul Orhi, Director-General, NAFDAC, and Alj. Bashir Aminu, Chairman, during the commissioning of the company’s production plant in Lagos recently.

PHOTO RAHMAN SANUSI

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HE Governor of Ogun State, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, is to launch a 10 hectare cassava pilot farm promoted by Caterina de' Medici Africa Projects Ltd (CDMA) at Ikenne, Ikenne Local Government Area of the state on April 9.

The pilot farm, which is private-sector driven, will serve as a prelude to a bigger 4,000 hectare cassava farm to be supported by Thai Farms International Ltd and other investors. It is supported by the USAID- Nigeria Expanded Trade and Transport Program (NEXTT) and several local banks.

Foluke Michael, principal partner of CDMA, said the project will adopt modern farming methods, conduct training for local farmers, supply the farmers with agrochemicals to improve farm yield, and provide other extension services to all its partners.

"The partnership with the

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HE Abia Commissioner for Agriculture, Dr Kenneth Nwosu, has urged farmers in the state to support the government's resolve to promote agriculture and food production, to ensure food security.

Nwosu, who made the call in a statement on Friday, noted that the state

Ogun to launch private-sector owned 10ha cassava farm state will also help to build public infrastructure changes in agricultural policy," she said.

The Ogun State government is supporting the programme with a total of 4,000 hectares of land, which it has allocated to CDMA, in the belief that the large population of smallholder farmers and entrepreneurs in the state will benefit directly from the programme.

Senator Amosun is currently encouraging wide participation of farmers to ensure continuous engagement of youths in the host communities.

Ms Michael said the programme, tagged "CDMANEXTT INITIATIVE (CNI)," will contribute to food

security and poverty reduction in Nigeria. The project seeks to generate massive employment - especially of youth in the immediate community; creates wealth though investment facilitation and opportunity for export of farm produce.

The Initiative will also support regional trade and transportation objectives, by facilitating trade flows and compliments agricultural productivity improvement efforts under the United States' Government's food security initiative Feed-the-Future.

The US Initiative has three program activities, which NEXTT is implementing on behalf of the USAID. These include improvement along the Lagos - Kano -Jibiya

Abia farmers urged to promote food security government would not achieve progressive results in the sector without the maximum input of farmers. ``The importance of farmers in the achievement of food sufficiency cannot be over emphasised, hence the need for your total

cooperation. ``Agriculture has the capacity to provide a good window of opportunities, which can in turn, yield economic growth for farmers, the communities and the state at large,'' the statement said.

It called on farmers in Abia

Ebonyi rice goes international

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OV. Martin Elechi of Ebonyi over the weekend said that rice produced in the state had moved into markets in Europe and the United States.

Elechi said that the rice was being produced from "Satake Mills" established by the state government at the cost of N1.29 billion.

He made the disclosure when he spoke at Ebonyi Day at the ongoing 24th Enugu International Trade Fair in Enugu.

(LAKAJI) agro-investment corridor; and reform of government policy to aid investment and trade.

"The CNI is an example of development we would like to encourage along the Lakaji corridor," Alf Monaghan, Chief of Party for NEXTT, said.

CDMA was incorporated to promote Agribusiness and Investments in Nigeria by partnering with government bodies and local communities to develop agricultural productivity; helping youth to see agriculture as a profitable business; develop solid relationship with end-buyers through established markets; and sourcing funds locally and internationally to support Agriculture.

He said that the rice was being sold in large quantities in London, Canada, Florida and other parts of Europe.

The governor described it as a ``breakthrough which has enhanced the glory of the state in rice production".

Represented by Dr Ifeanyi Ike, Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Elechi said that the quality of the rice produced from the mills facilitated its acceptance in the global market.

He said that three mills

were established under the "Satake" mills which the state government imported from Japan and cited in each of the three senatorial districts.

He said that the mills had a combined production capacity of 15 tonnes of milled and packaged rice per hour ``at full capacity".

Elechi said that the state government had distributed high-yielding varieties of rice, along with necessary agroinputs to rice farmers ``in order to sustain the mills at

to join hands in ensuring massive food production and encourage people to engage in agricultural ventures.

It said that the benefits of practising agriculture were enormous and could make relevant impact on the socioeconomic growth of a nation. full capacity".

He also said that the government had established a tractor-hiring centre, and announced that ``our government has opened all frontiers that will enable genuine investors to come to the state''.

The governor said that the Ebonyi International Market, which he described, as the ``longest high-rise building" in the South-East had attained 98 per cent completion. ``We also constructed 34 'bridges of unity' to link all local government areas to the state capital," he added.

World Bank-assisted project boosts farmers' income in Kaduna - Report

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HE World Bank has said that its Rural Access and Mobility Project (RAMP) in Kaduna impacted positively on the income of farmers in the State.

The bank’s assertion is contained in report released to newsment on Friday in Abuja.

It said that the project, which led to the completion of

about 400 kms of roads, had boosted the livelihoods of more than 200 rural communities in the state.

The report stated that some World Bank officials who visited the state, noted the significant impact of the programme on the farmers' income It also quoted the Gov

Ramalan Yero as saying: “I am pleased with the progress made in the implementation of the Rural Access and Mobility Project in Kaduna.

“The government is particularly encouraged by the positive impact the project is having on the lives of over 200 communities within the state.

“We pledge the state’s

continued commitment in partnering with the World Bank to deliver developmental objectives of the project.”

It also quoted Mr Olatunji Ahmed, a Transport Specialist with the World Bank and Task Team Leader of the project, to have commended the innovative performance of the project.

So what's in it for your customer?

Make sure you communicate a clear proposition to the customer and keep their needs in mind. Where's the benefit?

What value will this deliver to them? Who else is selling to them and why are we different? Keep content and marketing messages clear and to the point and answer those needs.

Targeting Set down key characteristics of your target audience, demographics are key and will help you determine how best to communicate with them. Gender, age, profession, location, lifestyle are just some of the important factors you need to consider when positioning your product or service.

Twitter can be a hugely successful profile raising tool, but only if your target audience are using it.

Getting started does not necessarily mean big budgets and big websites So many people invest heavily in developing expensive websites or big products before they have started engaging with potential customers. Of course, sometimes this is core to your business, if it is a web based company, for example.

But as a general rule, start talking to customers as soon as possible. Always manage your costs carefully and minimise your risks, start small if you can to test your business concept and grow in proportion with your customer base and incoming finances.

Marketing mailings Using direct marketing is a great way to launch your business and stay in contact with your target customers.

Think about whether your customer would respond well to email, hard copy or a mixture of both. However, keep it targeted and carefully controlled. You will need a direct marketing mailing list and use a specialist company to help you gather the right data for your marketing efforts. This is where your customer research and demographics will prove useful.

Show me results!

Marketing results can be difficult to measure but always ensure you use tracking tools in email marketing software and where possible, keep things controlled. Use tools such as Google Analytics to help you monitor visitors to websites and blogs. Don't embark on expensive advertising or logos unless you really need to. If you do, make sure you research your customer base and product positioning thoroughly before committing.

Culled from www.smallbizpod.co.uk

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY, APRIL 13, 2014

‘Art collection is big investment’

Although he is a trained Economist, Toni Phido, the Managing Director of Investment Trust Company Limited, a subsidiary of the Bank of Industry is an avid patron of visual art in Nigeria. He speaks to Edozie Udeze on how the journey began and why it is good for Nigerians’ to begin to invest in the art and lots more

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N avid art lover, Toni Phido, the Managing Director of Investment and Trust Company Limited, a subsidiary of the Bank of Industry, has been one of the greatest patrons and collectors of visual art works in Nigeria.

Known for his versatility in the business of art collection which he began to indulge in since 1985, Phido says that his love for the art has equally brought him closer to the creme of Nigerian artists whose works in his custody range from mixed media to paintings, surrealism and realism.

But why the love for the visual? He was asked. “You see, I am an art collector, a patron of the art. As at today, I have an extensive art collection which began way back in 1985. I think it has been a wonderful experience for me to be involved in this. But you have to realise also that Nigerian artists produce some of the best works in the world that a good art lover may find difficult to resist”.

He went down memory lane on how the journey began when he was in secondary school. “It was way back in secondary school. I was indeed one of the best Fine Arts students in my school then.

I used to have one of the best grades in Fine Arts that even in my Advanced Level Examination, I had a B. However, I did not pursue it further. I had to take a degree in Economics but then that natural love I have for the art did not fizzle out; or rather I did not allow it to die.”

To Phido, an imaginative art that has plenty of beauty in it, holds his attention most of the time. “For me, I love an imaginative art with a composition that is irresistible; an art that would immediately capture your essence. For me, art has to have a lot of life in it, where the issues of landscape come into play. Above all, I love art that has a lot of economic activities in it. This appeals to me because it helps me to look at the people, to see what they are involved in, in their day-to-day activities.

It is just because art itself is life; life in its totality, in its ability to mirror man, to show what the society itself can offer to man.”

Such economic-based works which appeal to him include Fulani cattle herdsmen, life at the beach, the commercial life style of fishermen and so on. “You see, I have a lot of works based on cattle herdsmen, market women involved in their economic activities. When I look at these works, they bring me back to the reality of life itself in our society. They make realism not only believable and true, but helps to make one see the profundity of visual in life. In all, these works have to be pleasing to the eyes; they have to be catchy and spectacular.”

Justifying his commitment to the art, Phido stressed the need for art patrons to do more in terms of encouraging more people to do art works thereby enriching the sector. He, however, mentioned the works of Biodun Olakun as one of the artists that has held him spellbound over the years. “Olakun’s migration, a work that is full of realism and conviction still remains one of my most cherished works to date. There is another one he did on life at Badia in Lagos which, for me, is a spectacular painting. It has very deep and colourful seaside background and these trip me a lot” He reiterated the need for artists to be real in their works so as to capture the essence of the people. In this wise, he drew people’s attention to the contentious issues

• Phido

PHOTO: MUYIWA HASSAN

•GRA extension oil on canvas by Olakun

of the Niger Delta and why art can be used to explore some of them. He said: “I also love works that explore the Niger Delta.

They show the people and their environment. Well, it is good to note too that Nigerian artists have done well over the years. When we took some of them to the Nigerian House in London for an international exhibition many years ago, they did quite well. I think they need more encouragement and recognition to continue to forge ahead”.

Phido, who hoped to hand over his array of collections to his children, stated

that Nigerian brand of the art is unique; it is peculiar to the people and to the environment. “But first of all, Nigerians themselves have to begin to appreciate the art. We need to have a steady market or outlet where we can go and view and buy art works at auction sales. This is one of the ways we can begin to see and experience more art auctions and then this can help the sector to grow bigger and create economic base for everybody. Also, we need to have specialised institutions responsible for the sale of the art. For example, if I need the work of a particular

artist, I can go there for it. Anyway, we are getting there. We are not there yet,” he said, smiling.

As an economist, Phido said he discovered many years ago that art is a good investment. He regretted, however, that not too many Nigerians know this fact.

“Yes, art is a good investment. An art work you bought say N50,000 10 years ago, can be auctioned for over two million naira years after. But it is not the roadside art we are talking about here. When we talk art in this regard, we mean serious artists and their works. The art we have can appreciate from time to time. And what you have today that makes little or no meaning to you, can be of bigger value tomorrow. We need to move to the level where art is considered as valuable as real estate or stock market, because all of them amount to real investment for the future.

But above all, you have to love the art, you have to see it as a big business concern where you can put in your money.”

Owing to all these, Phido said he is not in a hurry to dispose of his rich collections. “Ah”, he exclaimed, beaming with smile, “all my collections have to be kept intact for my children. Yes, I will bequeath them to my children. I can’t even tell you now how much the works are worth in the market. But I can tell you how much I have spent on art works so far. That will also tell you how much I am leaving for my children. May be one day, I’ll call members of the Guild and say to them this is my collections, how much can I sell them? But this can only be done when the proper structure is in place.”

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ARTS

HEN the Guild of Professional Fine Artists of Nigeria (GFA) was formed 10 years ago, the primary concern of those behind it was to curry for the total promotion, protection and projection of professionalism in the visual art profession.

The main objective was to bring together seasoned studio art practitioners who have given all their time and energy to the sustenance of fine arts.

This set of professionals are those who toil day-in-day-out to ensure that the standard of art products are kept afloat and that the art market is ever kept alive for the purposes of attracting art patrons and seeking for government attention.

Last weekend, the guild met to induct into its fold a set of new members. These members who were 20 well-tested artists went through series of tests and trials before they were accepted into the fold. The event, which was graced by the members of the board of trustees of the GFA led by Ede Dafinone, brought out the total beauty and place of the art industry in the economic spheres of the nation. It was an occasion to show the world that art has indeed come to occupy an integral part of the nation’s economy.

Like Dafinone noted, the Nigerian art is doing well in both the local and international markets today. What it means is that more efforts need to be made to ensure that both the output and the standard of the profession reach its pinnacle.

A seasoned art collector, Dafinone charged artists to be at their best in order to keep the tempo ever high. While inducting the new members he advised them not to be in a hurry to churn out art works. “Your works go a long way to say who you are.

Creativity is an everyday affair and no society can ever do without its crops of creative minds. You’ve come this far because you’ve chosen to give the society what it needs. Your stories tell the history of our nation.”

The chairman of the occasion, Toni Phido, was particularly intrigued by the crop of senior professionals who made the list of new members. He said that some of them had been elusive due to their busy schedule, “But today we have come face to face with you guys. It is such an impressive assemblage of the best in the sector. It is, therefore, time for you to give out the best you can to ensure that visual art continues to play a vital role in the economy of the nation”.

Phido, however, reminded the artists that standard should not at any point be compromised. “Thanks for the good works

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, APRIL 13, 2014

For the sake of visual art

•Members of GFA and Board Members at the induction ceremony.

By Edozie Udeze

you’ve been going. You are great artists. But don’t forget that to whom much is given much is expected. Therefore, strive to promote the level of professionalism and ethical standard for which the GFA was formed. If you continue to go on like a group, well committed to the profession, you’ll surely attain greater heights in the future”.

In his welcome address, the president of the guild, Abraham Uyovbisere, commended members for being able to make the list. He noted that a journey that began few years ago has metamorphosed into a bigger dream where members have consistently given their all for the good of fine arts in Nigeria.

“As much as the birth of GFA calls for celebration, it is not without its recurring encumbrances. Every sector of the economy is statutorily supported by the government to contribute for national development”.

Uyovbisere noted, however, “that the visual art sub-sector has been badly neglected so

far as if it has nothing substantial or relevant to offer. This inclement attitude, in itself, has to change because the visual art industry which could easily be a strong, alternative income earner for the country as recent history has revealed, in being slowly asphyxiated through the lack of implementation of existing government policies.”

Uyovbisere’s utmost concern was for artists to work and also seek a plausible synergy with the private and public sectors for the sake of their works. “Yes, artistic glory and honour, as a matter of fact, do not depend only or entirely on talent.

Facilitation equally plays an important role.

Art has always needed sponsorship and patronage. Indeed without the generous support of corporate organisations and institutions, it is usually difficult for artists or art association to operate optimally.” His appeal was for those wealthy who love the art to invest in the sector since the value of the art appreciates as time goes on.

PHOTO: MUYIWA HASSAN

Francis Uduh, one of the new members, confessed that the rigour of being a GFA member was tough, but that it is good to maintain the standard, so as to give artists an opportunity to showcase their best. It is remarkable to be a member because this is a platform to exhibit the highest level of professionalism in the usual art sector in Nigeria. And since it is meant for well-tested studio artists, we need to work harder to give the society what it needs. We need also to continue to make our own contributions towards the building of a better Nigerian society.”

The event, which took place at the Terra Kulture, Lagos, had the likes of Kolade Oshinowo, Sam Olagbaju, Olu Ajayi, Sam Ovraiti, Ndidi Dike and others in attendance.

Some of the new members included George Edozie, Gerry Nnubia, Tayo Olayode, Toni Okujcani, Tunde Ogunlaiye, Juliet MajaPearse. Others were Ken Adewuyi, Osagie Aimufia, Mufu Apooyin, Ben Ibebe, Emenike Ogwo and many others.

Journalist presents Democratic Interface —FRCN seasoned correspondent, Gbenga Onayiga, captures some remarkable moments in Nigeria’s quest for democracy in his 250page book prelude to his retirement after 35 years of service.

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IGERIAN journalists are fast joining the league of book writers and emulating their counterparts in developed democracies by churning out books based on their experiences while performing their reportorial duties.

The latest insightful, scholarly and intellectually challenging work on contemporary Nigerian political history entitled “Democratic Interface: Memoirs of a Political Reporter” written by a Radio Nigeria veteran political correspondent, Gbenga Onayiga, will enrich the book shelves on Tuesday when it will be presented to the public at the National Press Centre, Radio House, Abuja.

Nigeria as a nation has passed through various political experiences under military and civilian administrations. This has contributed significantly in shaping the future of the country. Onayiga is evidently one of those so strategically positioned by providence to chronicle some of the major events that contributed to the shaping of the destiny of the nation.

A ringside observer in the country’s political evolutionary process, Onayiga had seen the intrigues, blackmail and other vices in their conduct. The book is a product of his personal experience in his chequered journalism career as a political reporter spanning about three decades. The work is the outcome of surveillance kept over the attitude of successive governments and the citizens thereby ensuring the checks and balances required in a democracy.

The work is a clear demonstration of the reference to journalists as people who write history in a hurry, as Onayiga chronicles major political developments, particularly during the vari-

ous transition programmes in Nigeria since independence.

In furtherance of its constitutional injunction, the “Fourth Estate of the Realm”, as the media is usually referred to, has always been monitoring the activities of government and promoting strict adherence to the rule of law as well as the sustenance of democracy in the country. Right from the founding of the first newspaper in Nigeria “Iwe Irohin ni Ede Yoruba” by Reverend Henry Townsend in Abeokuta in 1859, the media in Nigeria has been in the fore-front of defending the rights of the masses. It played the advocacy role and helped to check the excesses of the government.

Indeed, the media led by nationalists like Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, Chief Obafemi Awolowo and Ernest Seisei Ikoli, used the power of the pen to champion the attainment of independence for the country. It is therefore not an over-statement to conclude that the media, more than any other profession, suffered and sacrificed a lot in lending a hand to bringing about whatever success has been recorded in the social, political and economic life of the country.

Nigeria can boast of having the freest and most outspoken press in the whole of Africa, one which has been credited for having helped in Nigeria’s transition to civilian government, but also one which has consistently (and understandably) been the target of harassment by past military dictatorships. Many agents of Nigeria’s press have been imprisoned, exiled, tortured or murdered as a result. Nevertheless, few still persevered, working to make the dreams of the founding fathers of Nigeria not to be in vain.

Our nation today needs people like Onayiga in the media profession. Men who are honest, true to the heart, self-made men, men with conscience, steady as the needle to the pole, men who would stand for their right even

if the heavens and earth reel, men who can look the world in the face and tell the truth, men who have courage without being domineering, men who know their place and fill it, men who know their message and preach it, men who would not lie, shrink or dodge, men who are not lazy to work, nor too proud to be poor. He is a trusted, visionary and committed journalist.

The public service of Onayiga has given him a deep sense of commitment, honesty, enthusiasm, responsibility, the right mental attitude and other positive characteristics that are lacking in many in public positions which

affect the lives of the less privileged in the country today.

This book is primarily a general interest encyclopedia about trust, transparency and accountability of the media to the project called Nigeria.

There has been a growing realisation that the mass media has been under-used in development. The key realization has been that the mass media can be deployed in the fight against poverty, corruption, Niger Delta and Boko Haram insurgency as well as failing infrastructural development. There is also the need for an increased emphasis on good governance and strengthening democracy. The mass media is widely seen as playing a key part in supporting people’s rights under law, and in holding politicians and officials to account.

The book is written in simple language that is accessible to many grades of literacy. It is a must read for policy makers, critics of the media, teachers and students of history, education, sociology, anthropology, and political scientists at all levels. The book will no doubt give a fresh perspective and clear some doubts concerning this institution and at the same time arouse the very deep interest of the media in entrenching, deepening and sustaining democracy and good governance.

The author deploys his powerful skill in political reporting to full effect and comes up with a captivating masterpiece that should enrich Nigeria’s literary establishment. The book does not pretend to be a study of the media thought process and involvement in Nigeria’s democratic experience, but it provides the basis for the study of emerging trends and paradigm shift of the use of the media in Africa’s biggest democracy.

It is obvious that the book is going to set standards for media treatises that is bound to flow as Nigeria’s fledgling democracy finds firm footing in the years to come.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

69

SPECIAL REPORT ON HERBAL GIN

Traces of metals found in herbal gin lovers’ blood T

•Continued from yesterday The Nation on Saturday

HE truth dawned on Sola Awoyale like twilight of eternal damnation but he bared his teeth in a scornful smile. It was his measured, careless response to frightening news. Striking a casual pose, he yelled: “Kosi were! Baba no go die unless to ba darugbo…Laye laye! Laye laye!” (roughly translated thus: No worries! I will never die until I grow old…never!).

The 28-year old hollered defiantly, like a badly scarred soldier feigning defiant pose in the face of death. But Awoyale is no soldier; rather he is a roving electrician and breadwinner of a family of six – comprising his wife, daughter, sister and aged parents. And if he does not curtail his addiction to herbal gin very soon, he will have serious health issues to contend with.

Laboratory test and analysis conducted on his blood plasma samples revealed the presence of the heavy metal, lead (pb), at toxic level. Lead contained in his blood towers at 56ug/dL (56 microgram/deciliter), which is precisely 46 micrograms higher than the acceptable lead limit of 10ug/dL. The study which was conducted in furtherance of The Nation investigation of the dangers of excessive consumption of local herbal alcoholic beverages was conducted at Pathcare Nigeria’s medical laboratory at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), following a three-month observation of the test subjects including Awoyale and four other consumers of herbal gin products. Blood and urine samples of the five subjects were collected and analysed simultaneously at the medical centre’s Nigeria and South African laboratories over one month.

In the course of the research, conscious efforts were made to isolate the research subjects from other potential sources of heavy metals including cigarette, leaded petrol, mining and uptake of plants from contaminated soil.

Worrisome test results While Awoyale’s test results showed that his blood lead level was dangerous at 56ug/dL (56 microgram/deciliter), the other test subjects, who pleaded anonymity, also recorded worrisome results from the test. For instance two of the test subjects had cadmium concentration in their blood at high levels beyond World Health Organisation (W.H.O)’s permissible limit while the heavy metal abounds in the fourth subject’s blood towered at borderline level. The fifth subject however, suffers a deficiency of iron in his blood, according to interpretations given by the medical centre’s resident pathologist Dr. Segun

In this sequel to the investigative series on the dangers of excessive consumption of herbal gin products, The Nation reveals results of laboratory tests showing presence of poisonous metals in the blood of selected herbal gin lovers

By Olatunji OLOLADE, Assistant Editor and Kunle AKINRINADE

Isioye.

Awoyale, like the other test subjects, presented a forlorn sight at press time; he perspired –particularly when agitated – like a sickly child caught in a wooly blanket. His freckled face tapered off into a weary smirk every time he smiled and his blackened lips twisted into a pout at news of his test result; behind that smirk resonates a silent wail for help perhaps?

Death by installment The case of Awoyale is particularly worrisome because lead poisoning can have rapid, acute effects or chronic, long-term effects in an average human, according to medical experts. Acute and sub-acute effects are typically caused by relatively large doses of lead over a short period— often

days to months. These effects can be dramatic and include sudden death, severe abdominal cramps, anemia, ataxia, strange headaches, and behavioral changes, such as irritability and appetite loss.

A high level of lead in the blood is dangerous to health argued Dr.Chukwuemeka Isanbor, a Physical and Organic Chemistry don in the Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science of the University of Lagos, Akoka, Lagos. According to him, a blood lead level of 70-100ug/dL can cause death. “Acute exposures often manifest as central nervous system (CNS) and gastrointestinal symptoms. Central nervous system symptoms include encephalopathy, convulsion, and stupor. Colic, a gastrointestinal symptom, is a consistent symptom of lead poisoning characterised by abdomi-

nal pain, cramps, and nausea.

“Adults have exhibited lead-induced colic at BLL as low as 40 μg/dL. Chronic exposure differs from acute exposure in that chronic symptoms manifest as general malaise, anorexia, constipation, wrist drop, hematuria, and anemia.

Although not specific to lead poisoning, basophilic stippling may be seen in erythrocytes due to changes in ribosomes. Additionally, lead targets the proximal tubules of the kidneys and is capable of inducing nephrotoxicity in the form of proximal tubular nephropathy, glomerular sclerosis, and interstitial fibrosis. A decreased glomerular filtration rate and the direct inhibition of the biosynthesis of erythropoietin (EPO) production by lead may contribute to “lead-induced anemia.” Long term accumulation of lead could lead to illness and lower cognitive functions,” he explained.

In the face of arguments that lead ingested at lower levels poses no serious consequences on human health, recent research findings reveal that chronic effects are most often the result of smaller amounts of lead being taken in over longer times – months to years. These effects can be quite subtle and nonspecific, but include all body systems. A brief list of effects documented in people includes such effects as lowered sex drive, decreased fertility (in males and females), miscarriages and premature births, learning problems, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and increased aggression and kidney problems.

The body handles lead in much the same way as calcium. Calcium is a crucial element for living things, being used in a wide variety of metabolic activities, signaling pathways and structural compounds. Most lead is absorbed through the digestive and respiratory systems.

Under some circumstances, primarily occupational exposures, certain forms of lead can also be absorbed through the skin. The key is that however it enters the body, the most important step is the absorption of lead into the bloodstream. Nearly all lead vapors getting into the lungs cross into the blood quickly and easily.

Lead entering the digestive system is acted upon by stomach acids and made into soluble salts that can be absorbed by the intestine. In adult male people about 10 to 15 per cent of ingested lead is usually absorbed, the rest leaves the body in feces. But in young children, up to 50 per cent of ingested lead is absorbed. Lead can upset this ordered contraction leading to a great deal of stomach and abdominal pain, long referred to as “lead colic” in people. In the blood

•Continued from Page 70

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

70

SPECIAL REPORT ON HERBAL GIN

‘Only NAFDAC can give opinion on products’

The Director of Drug Evaluation and Research of National Food, Drugs, Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Mrs Titilope Omowunmi Owolabi speaks with Olatunji Ololade on the routine steps taken by the agency to register herbal gin products.

I

F herbal alcoholic beverages contain dangerous compounds like arsenic, lead, alkaloid while they have low pH value of 3.88 to 4.99, can they be adjudged to be toxic to the human body?

First of all, let me say that NAFDAC just like any regulatory body all over the world works with specifications…standards. Then herbal products because they are agricultural based and they are grown, they can contain what you and I or a layperson can consider as dangerous but there are always limits. The important thing is that where such components exist, they should not be above the specified safe limit. For instance, we have in beer, nitrosomes; ordinarily, nitrosomes are very poisonous but they must not be above a certain limit because it is not all the time that your processes can remove every poisonous substance totally. The important thing is that they must be at a limit that is safe for consumption.

Investigations revealed that some of the herbal alcoholic beverages on sale contain very low pH value. Laboratory technologists and analysts emphasized that herbal gin like some which contains 3.88 pH value is very low and too acidic for human consumption. From your experience as a pharmacist, if an alcoholic beverage contains a very low pH value, can it be said to be dangerous for consumption?

See, I don’t agree with that. It depends on the preparation. It depends on how you are supposed to take it. It depends on why you are taking it. It’s just like drugs; there are some drugs that you must take only when you have eaten and there are some drugs that you must take when you have not eaten, if you fail to stick to the specified dosage, the drug may not work effectively. You have to look at a particular product in its totality, you do not generalize. So for you to now ask me if a pH of 3.88 is okay, I cannot say if it’s okay or not because I do not know the product. There are some of these products that they say on the pack that you should take two or three spoonfuls and dilute in water; after that what is the pH? So it’s difficult, unless you see the particular product and check if it was registered

by NAFDAC or not.

Some of the products do not have NAFDAC registration number…

So if it does not have NAFDAC registration that means it is a fake product. We only do legal products but now that you have told us, the PR (Public Relations) unit will contact the enforcement directorate to look further into

•Continued on Page 69 stream, lead interferes with the functions of hemoglobin, limiting the amount of oxygen that is carried to organs. Lead also interrupts the formation of new red blood cells in the bone marrow, leading to anemia. Effects in the skeletal and reproductive systems can cause problems such as stunted growth and infertility (in both genders). In situations where the body needs to use bone calcium stores, like growth, fracture healing, dietary imbalances, pregnancy and lactation (in mammals), and or bone loss due to aging or osteoporosis, lead is released from bones and can cause chronic, low level poisoning.

Like lead, cadmium is also very dangerous to health. Once absorbed, cadmium is efficiently retained in the human body, in which it accumulates throughout life. It is primarily toxic to the kidney, especially to the proximal tubular cells, the main site of accumulation. Cadmium can also cause bone demineralization, either through direct bone damage or indirectly as a result of renal dysfunction. Excessive industrial exposure to airborne cadmium may impair lung function and increase the risk of lung cancer, according to Bosun Akintunde, a United Kingdom (UK) based Chemical Pathologist.

Cadmium is hazardous both by inhalation and ingestion and can cause acute and chronic intoxications. When ingested as part of alcoholic beverage, it ultimately accumulates in the body of the drinker; by far, the most salient toxicological property of cadmium is its exceptionally

•Owolabi

it…There are some products that after NAFDAC has registered them, and in registering them, we subject them to very strict registration processes.

NAFDAC registration process…

First of all, the various relevant directorates will look at it…for instance, if it is a drug, they will send us the label and everything, and we will look at it. The Registration and Regulatory Affairs (R&R), department will also look at it. If it is a local product, we will go to the factory and make sure that we use our hands to personally take a sample of the product to be sure that, that is where they are producing it. So we will take the sample, we look at it again and send to the lab. The lab will look at all the components. For herbal products, because of the nature of herbal products, the lab does not dwell much on active ingredients because these are not like orthodox products, what they look at is safety. They have to look at heavy metals, they look at pesticide residue. In fact, in the lab, if it is herbal product, because I work in the drug lab, they actually feed the product to guinea pigs and rats to see

whether they will die. So that is assessing toxicity. Because of the nature of the preparation, we don’t really do efficacy because it is difficult to check for the efficacy of herbal products we check it overtime, that is, evidence-based. World Health Organization (W.H.O) says evidencebased…overtime.

However, if you want to do clinical trial, you are allowed. Then you get a five-year registration thing if not, you will get two-year listing. And that is why for those listed, it is boldly written on their pack or label that “These claims have not been verified.” But we don’t allow claims like HIV/AIDS. We don’t allow such claims. But if you say it cures leg ache, backache, neck ache, body ache, we allow it. So we look at all that. At this stage, the product has sub-approval from the R and R department.

Afterwards, the R and R will call all the other directorates’ executives from the deputy director downwards to come and look at the product that you want to register. If those ones say it is okay, they will now call what we call Food and Drugs Registration Committee meeting which

Deadly metals in herbal gin long half-life in the human body. Once absorbed, it irreversibly accumulates in the human body, in particularly in kidneys and other vital organs such the lungs or the liver. In addition to its extraordinary cumulative properties, cadmium is also a highly toxic metal that can disrupt a number of biological systems, usually at doses that are much lower than most toxic metals, noted Akintunde.

Changing patterns in alcoholic beverage consumption At the backdrop of this phenomena, Emeka Dumbili PhD, of the Department of Sociology and Communications, Brunel University, London, United Kingdom (UK), argued that in more recent years, there have been some striking changes in the patterns of consumption, brought about by the development of the socio-political and economic structures of the country.

“Consumption is no longer solely regulated by custom and tradition of the people and it is no longer reserved for social gathering or entertainment of a guest alone. The patterns of use, the users and reason(s) for consumption are changing rapidly, especially among young drinkers. A sharp contrast from what hitherto existed is the alcohol contest among youths in bars, restaurants, drinking joints, hotels and nightclubs that are strategically located near various schools in Nigeria. This competition is always among boys and the winner is judged based on two standards – the ability to drink large a quantity without showing signs

of intoxication and the ability to drink faster than the opponent.”

Dumbili’s argument is substantiated by prevalent contests and rampant drinking binge indulged in by herbal gin lovers across the nation’s local pubs.

The new trend of alcohol consumption no doubt contributes to Nigeria’s ranking among thirty countries with highest per capita consumption of alcohol according to W.H.O rankings. Such ranking however, fail to account for the unrecorded production and consumption of alcohol, particularly local brews like the ubiquitous herbal gin.

Recent reports do not indicate a decline in consumption but rather revealed that Nigeria consumed about 10.57 litres per head of the population. This corroborates earlier findings that heavy episodic and daily drinking, rather than moderate drinking is common among users of alcohol in Nigeria and that alcohol is the most commonly used drug among Nigerians.

Consequences of splurging on herbal gin The consequences of excessive consumption of herbal gin can hardly be denied. They cut across social, health, economic, psychological and many other consequences. The consequences attributable to excessive consumption account for large costs to families and the society and they are not limited to health-care costs, but also costs related to social harm.

Locally brewed herbal gin like ogogoro, beer

is held once a month and strictly attended by the directors, and chaired by the DG (NAFDAC’s Director General). If the directors and the DG now look at the products under consideration and decide which one is fit for approval and registration.

Sometimes, we will register a product presented through this way and the criminals, it can be the company itself, fakers or adulterators will now go and put in what suits them. So maybe that is why you are seeing all these thing in alcoholic drinks. They are not supposed to be there. And that is why we do routine inspection; unannounced, we go out to visit and inspect factories and production facilities of approved and registered products.

And sometimes, when we get there, we find out that these companies, when they register A, go ahead and start doing A, B, C. Sometimes, they register a certain product with a label but when we get to their factories during routine inspections, it’s another label that we see on their products.

Pharmacists, doctors and laboratory technologists’ perspectives about The Nation findings on these products indicate that they are extremely dangerous for human consumption; some of the identified products bear NAFDAC registration numbers, would you still maintain that they aren’t really hazardous to health?

Now let me correct something; in many cases, people just paste any NAFDAC number on their products. Sometimes, you will find that these numbers are not even genuine because NAFDAC has a special way of numbering approved products. Some of them can even use existing numbers, that is, numbers given to somebody else’s product and that is why NAFDAC is proposing to put on its website, the list of all registered products.

So the list is not on the website yet?

I don’t think so. It’s not. It’s not on the website yet because it’s going to be a very heavy document. It’s going to be a very heavy document but it will be soon. Let me also correct an opinion; you see, whether you are a medical doctor, pharmacist or laboratory technologist, you cannot give an opinion on a product unless you are in a regulatory body. I am a pharmacist and I can give an opinion because I am in a regulatory body. If I am a pharmacist in the hospital, I cannot give an opinion on regulatory work because I do not have the specification, I do not have the allowed limit…so the only people that can give opinion are the lab people (NAFDAC lab people). and other alcoholic beverages have been linked to increase in violence in local communities and this is almost a daily occurrence in most Nigerian homes and higher institutions. Often times, there is a strong relation between economic wealth and alcohol consumption: the higher the gross domestic product, the higher the overall volume of consumption and the lower the proportions of abstainers. Though moderate alcohol consumption may enhance the control of coronary heart disease, misuse has been linked to heart disease, especially as the user grows older.

It also causes liver disease for which there is no effective treatment in Nigeria. There is the option of transplantation, but only a few can afford the cost in Nigeria.

There is also a serious problem of how to determine moderate consumption in a country where there is no definition of a standard drink, no inclusion of alcohol by volume on most labels and where alcoholic beverages are served in different sizes of bottles, cans, glasses and calabashes.

Harmful alcohol use by pregnant women affects the unborn child leading to foetal alcohol syndrome. It leads to malformation of the brain in the unborn resulting in birth defects. The fact that women are beginning to drink even more than men now in Nigeria means that the country may continue to witness birth defects.

Another major consequence of the changing patterns of alcohol consumption is road traffic •Continued from Page76

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‘To fix Nigeria , we must fix the church’

EARS after you relocated to Lagos, one hasn’t heard from you lately. What have you been up to?

Well, we have been consolidating in the city of Lagos, quietly building the church network. We have seen the church multiplied and have been reaching out to hundreds of less privileged. Right now, we are focused on the relocation plan to get a long lease property or outright purchase.

But our ministry is planting churches in several places. We just opened a branch in Victoria Island. We recently started worshipping in Maryland, USA. We are in South Africa and just yesterday we heard the good news that our registration has been approved in Nairobi, Kenya.

In Nigeria, we have planted three more branches in Ibadan, Akure and Abeokuta. We have a network of about 13 churches as we speak now.

What has been your experience since you relocated to Lagos?

Lagos is a very challenging city to relocate to. It is very, very expensive. We have had to make adjustments to cope with the costs of church operations. Also, Lagos is a city of very busy people who many times jump out early and return late. They are not available for volunteering as you will see in other cities.

But the bottom line for me is that if you are divinely assigned to a place, the grace of God will get you your own people for you.

When we check our records, the Lagos church is winning more souls than others because of the population of the city. The challenges of the city have created opportunities for ministry.

Do you agree that church planting is back-breaking?

Yes, I do completely. It can be back-breaking because a lot of money goes into it. You have to rent facilities, equipment and spend on publicity. There is no church that can be opened without costing millions of naira

The senior pastor of Global Harvest Church, Lagos, Rev. Victor Adeyemi, spoke with Sunday Oguntola on ministerial and national issues. Excerpts:

•Adeyemi

today. The reality is people want good PA system, good ambience and serene atmosphere to worship because there are many options today.

So, anybody who is out to plant a church has minimum standards he has to meet to really get going. It can be backbreaking but any vision that is borne of God will receive provision. God is not duty-bound to support any project he has not supported. But it’s been exciting for us because God has been there all along.

Is there a particular reason why you operate more from the sidelines as against the limelight?

I would agree and I will say it is a reflection of my personality to a degree. I am kind of reserved and I also try to have a correct assessment of my

strengths at all times. I shy away from responsibilities in CAN or PFN by nature, even though I have nothing against them.

I support some of the people who hold those responsibilities behind the scene. But I know my capabilities; some people can do a lot of multi-tasking, running their large ministries and also hold positions in CAN or PFN creditably well. I don’t think I am that gifted. I just stay within my perception by the grace of God upon my life.

Some people believe you are just hiding and deliberately making yourself unavailable to the larger body of Christ, just concentrating on your local assembly.

To a large extent, when you move to a large city like Lagos and you have a growing work,

you really need to focus. When everything is well established, maybe you can take on additional responsibilities.

You follow politics a lot. Do you think the ongoing national conference is capable of fixing Nigeria?

On the surface, the conference appears well-intentioned but if you are familiar with Nigeria’s history, you cannot but have a bit of skepticism. I have my skepticism about the conference. We have had several of such conferences without any tangible results. As at now, we don’t have any legislation that the outcomes of the conference would be subjected to a referendum.

I will say my reaction to it is that of cautious optimism.

You don’t want to give up on project Nigeria. You want to hope that there are no hidden agendas. I believe we have enough brains there and those people are representative enough of our diversities as a nation.

I must confess my anger about the representation of the youth. It is less than 20 percent and we say the future belongs to the youth. The same people who sat down at the constitutional conferences of the 50s and 60s are back. Is it that Nigeria has no capacity to develop young, intelligent people or what? So, I believe the capacity is there to come out with something credible but my reaction is that of cautious optimism.

Many people have given up on Nigeria. What would you say to such people?

My message to them is to let them know that we don’t have to give up on our country. Nigeria is still relatively young compared to those developed countries. They have also gone through many patches. They have overcome their challenges and I believe that Nigeria will come out one day. But for my

generation, it is a bit disappointing that we have not gone out until now.

When I was a child, I kept hoping for a better day and the dream is turning to a mirage.

Prof. Wole Soyinka once said his generation was wasted; I am hoping that my generation would not also be wasted. I am in the middle of my life today and it is becoming obvious to me that the older generations have schooled us in the same values that took our nation backwards.

Those are my concerns and I am seriously bothered by these. I know at the long run that this country will turn things around. Maybe it would be in the days of my grandchildren, though I seriously hope it does not get that far.

Why can’t it happen in our lifetime?

I believe it can happen but unfortunately we are not headed in that direction. The challenge is that of leadership.

This nation needs a crop of people who will be selfless and passionate about change. They also have to be competent.

These qualities must come together. Nigeria needs heroes.

We need such crops of people who are led by strong, steady persons capable of communicating their ideas for transformation. Our corrupt leadership is just a reflection of the society.

An average Nigerian will use power to oppress the others if he is in power. He would also siphon our resources. Everybody is stealing something from everybody. If they have opportunities to do it at a larger scale, they would.

Are we lacking in people or system?

I believe we are lacking in systems and institutions, not people. As pervasive as corruption is, we still have the biblical remnant who are clean and upright. Some of them are not

NEWS

involved in the political landscape because, as far as they are concerned, it is too murky and they don’t want to be splashed with mud. Some others are involved but they are on platforms that are not effective.

When the political process becomes cleaner, some of them will emerge and change this nation for good.

Some people believe the church is part of the problems in the nation. Do you agree?

I agree to the extent that if half of the nation claims to be born again and the society is this corrupt, then the church is yet to be effective. We ought to revisit our messages and ensure that the contents change the characters of people and shape the nation for good.

Many Christians want to be righteous but claim the system does not reward righteousness. What message do you have for them?

To whom do they look up to for reward? The system might not reward them but God of heaven will. If a person lives a righteous life, the quality of his life will be honourable. He may not be the rich and this is where we need to correct our theology in the church. I am a proponent of prosperity. I don’t believe in poverty. God is too good to take pleasure in the poverty of His people.

He is not a terrible, wicked God. I believe He wants everyone to prosper to the extent of affording the basic necessities of life. It is not His will that everybody should be a millionaire but that our excesses should go to the poor. But when the theology is that that motivates everybody to look for material things, then we would have crooks all around.

We are challenging ourselves within the sphere of our influence to change things for good.

So, if the church is fixed, Nigeria will be fixed?

Yes, that is very true. Once we fix the church, Nigeria will be fine.

xxx

How youth can succeed, by Adeboye Over 10,000 pastors for Foursquare’s conference

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HE General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church Of God, (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adeboye, has advised youth to be visionary, diligent, hard working and fear God to succeed in life.

He spoke last Sunday at the special thanksgiving and prayer service organised for students by the RCCG, National Headquarters, Throne of Grace, Ebute-Metta Lagos.

The service with the theme I will Excel brought together thousands of youth drawn from across the country.

Adeboye said there are immense opportunities and possibilities for young people who will dare to dream big and work hard towards

By Adeola Ogunlade

actualising their dreams with godly principles.

He noted there are many youth shortchanging themselves by trading away their God- given talents and opportunities because they lack foresight, vision and goals for themselves.

He cited Joseph who started early in life with a dream and goal to excel and became a savior through dint of hardwork and focus.

According to Adeboye: “The life of Joseph is a lesson for every one of us as he took a decision that no matter the condition, he would

work hard and would not sin against God as he walked up to the top of the ladder in life.”

He bemoaned laziness, idleness, lethargy, and short cut syndrome that characterize contemporary youth, stating “we would continue to sit at the back side of life when we undermine the place of hard work, honesty, and the fear of God in all that we do.”

He added: “I have decided that I am ready to offend the whole world as long as I will not offend God. It is never fun to offend God. If you want to follow the crowd, you will end up in perdition with the crown.”

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ROM tomorrow, no fewer than 10,000 ministers and workers will attend the annual International Conference for Ministers and Leaders (ICML) organised by the Foursquare Gospel Church in Nigeria.

The conference holds at the Foursquare camp, Ajebo Ogun State with participants expected from within and outside the country.

A statement by the Chairman of the Planning Committee for the event, Rev. Albert Aina, said RAISE explosion, a one-day special service, organised by the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) Redemption House Parish Lagos Province 2 holds next Sunday by 3pm.

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the theme of the conference is making maximum impact.

Aina hinted that there would be 56 speakers for the conference, which ends on April 19, and learning track sessions with 19 seminar modules covering church growth, ICT, youth, mission and mentorship.

He added that there would be live streaming of proceedings at the conference where General Overseer of the church, Rev Felix Meduoye; Prof. Yemi

Osibajo, Rev. Mike Adegbile and Prof. Vuyani Ntintili from South Africa would be ministering.

Aina said: “This conference would usher the church and the body of Christ into a season of explosion triggered by energised and trained manpower”.

Participants would be given a souvenir containing all the 23 plenary sessions, 19 learning tracks, 26 groups/ unit training and 13 regional Discipling A Whole Nation (DAWN) presentations.

it is billed for RCCG Redemption House Parish 09 Junction Garden chicken & Meals, Mowe in Obafemi/ Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State.

The Pastor- in- Charge, Pastor Idowo Senowo, said those ministering include Ayan Jesu, Bukky Bekes, Tosin Bee and Redemption Voices among others.

Praise explosion in Ogun

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY, APRIL 13, 2014

WORSHIP NEWS

COLUMN

Living Faith

By Dr. David Oyedepo

Is there no balm in Gilead? (2)

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•L-R: Ikenne Circuit Minister, Revd. Ayo Adejumo; Ilisha Circuit Minister, the Revd. Abraham Afolabi;, Oko Circuit Presbyter, the Revd. Babatunde Borode and Irolu Circuit Presbyter, the Revd. Solomon Makinde, at the 2014 synod thanksgiving service of the Methodist Church Remo… recently

Include religious index in next census, CAN tells FG

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HE Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has demanded for inclusion of ethnic and religious details in the next national consensus.

It also insisted that the secularism of the nation must be preserved and never tampered with.

These were some of the demands contained in a communiqué after a key meeting with the National President of the body, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, with the South West region of the organisation in Lagos.

The meeting, which held last Wednesday attracted the National Secretary of the body, Rev. Musa Asake and other leaders of the organisa-

By Sunday Oguntola

tion’s five blocs in the South West.

At the meeting, the church leaders lamented the rising attacks against Christians in the North and destruction of worship centres and Christian business interests.

They also bemoaned lack of unity among Christians and the prevalence of arms and ammunition, especially among Fulani herdsmen.

The South West chairman of the CAN, Archbishop Magnus Atilade, who briefed reporters on the outcomes of the meeting, said it was also agreed Christians must increase political awareness and participate more in govern-

ance.

These, he said, will safeguard the faith from systemic attacks, especially the refusal to grant Certificates of Occupancy to churches in many parts of the nation.

He stated the apex Christian body has also declared every last Friday of the month for national fasting and prayers.

Sources hinted that church leaders frowned at the apathy towards CAN in the body of Christ and challenged themselves to give the organisation increased relevance in local assemblies.

They also resolved to raise more funds for the operations of CAN with a view to strategically evangelizing the nation.

Christian, Moslem groups sign health pact

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HE Christian Health Association of Nigeria (CHAN), Federation of Moslem Women Association of Nigeria (FOMWAN) and National Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) have signed an agreement to collaborate on provision of healthcare services to the indigent.

They also resolved to boost the operations of faithbased health institutions under their care.

This pact was signed at a recent meeting in Abuja.

CHAN, which is an umbrella body of all mission hospital across the country according to its Director, Advocacy and Communication, Pastor David Omorebokhae, has close to 4,500 hospitals and clinics in all the nooks and crannies of the federation.

The Muslim delegation on the occasion was a cleric, Musa Ihejioto, a Monitoring and Evaluation Officer from NSCIA. He was accompanied by Rashida Ibrahim, who stood in for Mrs. Amina Omoti, National President of FOMWAN. The organisations stated that if they work together, they could attract funds from various international donor organisations and get the Federal and State governments to support their drive to render improved healthcare services to poor communities across the country.

CHAN’s scribe, Dr Gogbag, stressed the need for the collabo-

AST week, I brought to you the first segment of this monthly teaching. I said when a man’s health is challenged, everything he has loses value. That is why the world says, “Health is wealth.”

I showed you what the Balm in Gilead is, Who the Great Physician is, His great prescription and what it is worth.

Recognize that revelation in the Word is our ransom from the harassment of sickness and disease. By revelation, you are entitled to instant restoration. The best you can find in any clinic, in this world, is healing; restoration is not part of their agenda. That is why they cut away any part of your body that is not functioning.

They cannot restore it, but Jesus can replace it (John 10:10).

This week, in continuation of the teaching, we shall be looking at the three-dimensional healthcare ministry of the Word of God and what is in God’s Word that Heals?

Three-Dimensional Healthcare Ministry of the Word of God: •God’s Word is Medicinal: Proverbs 4: 22 talks about health to all your flesh; the original context is ‘medicine’ to all your flesh. So, God’s Word is medicinal (Psalm 107:20; Proverbs 4:20-22).

•God’s Word is Surgical (Hebrews 4:12): Whatever is not curable must be repairable; so, God’s Word is surgical. It has the capacity to repair any part of your system.

When God made man, He said, “It is not good for man to be alone, I want to make a help meet for him.” So, man was put to sleep and God operated

N •L-R: Ihejioto, Dr Gobgab, Ibrahim and Omorebokhae

By Sunday Oguntola

ration.

He said: “Sickness does not know colour or creed, tribe or tongue. It does not know age or gender either.

“The only language the sick understands is cure. That is why we have called you to this meeting so that we can work together for the good of our people.

“We are aware that you our Moslem brothers and sisters are also involved in healthcare services delivery.

“That is why we have invited you so that we can form a partnership and create a synergy.”

Ihejioto said: “There is increasing need for us to work

together and establish a synergy to enable us meet the needs of the down trodden.

“What that means is that we are going to work out various areas where we will collaborate.”

Ibrahim observed that working with the Christian agency would help in many ways to better the lot of the people who the two groups were out to serve.

“The idea of collaboration is timely. That will help us to work more in various areas where our assistance is mostly needed.”

The organisations agreed to meet again in the second week of May to harmonise the extent of their involvements.

NEWS Nigeria needs prayers, says cleric

IGERIA needs sustained prayers to survive, the Parish Pastor of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Ikate Lagos State, Pastor Tony Zino, has stated.

He spoke last Sunday during the launch of his musical album titled “Your mercy.”

The album contains nine hit tracks.

Its central theme, he said: “is on God’s mercy for us as individuals and as nations of the world.”

Zino narrated how the vision that gave birth to the title: “While I was trying to really enjoy my sleep, my phone started ringing. In my subconscious I could hear the phone

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on him (Genesis 2:21-23). God is still the Master Surgeon; He is still operating on people.

The Word is still surgical today (John 1:1-3).

•God’s Word is Creative: If it cannot be cured, it can be repaired; if it cannot be repaired, it can be replaced (John 1:1-3) God’s Word is medicinal, God’s Word is surgical and God’s Word is creative. There is no health need that will have any extra demand beyond these three provisions.

What is in God’s Word that Heals?: •Divine Light: The entrance of God’s Word gives light and that light shines in darkness and darkness cannot stop it (Psalm 119:130; John 1: 1-5). Spiritual understanding is what equals light. The deeper your understanding, the greater your light.

•Divine Nature: This nature is absolutely anti-sickness and anti-disease (2 Peter 1:4).

So, we partake of God’s divine nature from the Word and that is our ultimate immunity against every sickness and disease. The more you bask in the healing Word of God, the healthier you live. It is by accessing the great and precious promises in the Bible, that you imbibe divine nature.

Every healing recorded in scripture answered to faith (Matthew 9:27-29), but faith comes by hearing and understanding the Word (Romans 10:17). This is why every healing answers to supernatural insight from the Word. Today must mark your own day of initiation into a world of total health! Therefore, welcome to the final bus stop in your

search for total health! Read this brother’s testimony: 16 Years Of Divine Health!

“In my former place of worship, I was a Believers’ Class teacher, a Sunday School teacher and a House Fellowship teacher. I used to carry a very big Bible, but I still fell ill. The first week my family and I joined this Church at Raji Oba, I fell ill again, but I prayed one prayer. I said, ‘God, if you are in this Church, let this be the end of this sickness.’

One Sunday, I bought the weekly publication of the Church—Signs and Wonders Today. The title of the Bishop’s message was, ‘Press Until It Strikes.’ From that publication, I discovered that sickness could not kill me. That marked the end of sickness in my body. This year makes it 16 years that I have been enjoying divine health. I give all the glory to God!”—- Kola Owolabi Friend, the power to benefit from the above is available, if you are born again.

You get born again by confessing your sins and accepting Jesus as your Saviour and Lord. If you are set for this new birth experience, please say this prayer: “Lord Jesus, I come to You today. I am a sinner. Forgive me of my sins. Cleanse me with Your precious Blood. Today, I accept You as my Lord and Saviour. Thank You Jesus! Now I know I am born again!” I will continue this message next week.

Every exploit in life is a product of knowledge. For further reading, you can get my books: Keys To Divine Health and The Healing Balm and Satan Get Lost!

I invite you to come and fellowship with us at the Faith Tabernacle, Canaan Land, Ota, the covenant home of Winners. We have four services on Sundays, holding at 6:00 a.m., 7:35 a.m., 9:10 a.m. and 10.45 a.m. respectively.

I know this teaching has blessed you. Write and share your testimony with me through: Faith Tabernacle, Canaan Land, Ota, P.M.B. 21688, Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria; or call 7747546-8; or E-mail: feedback@lfcww.org

HE World Christian Association, an interdenominational group, has ended a sevenday prayer session for leader of the Cherubim and Seraphim Church Ayo Ni O Surulere Lagos, Dr Gabriel Fakeye.

ring but I thought it was in my dream.

“But it was real; it was a distress call at the early hours of the morning from a family friend whose relative was dying - “Wake up, wake up, he is dying, please pray.

“I got up, managed to shake the sleep off me and I knelt down to pray for the family friend who was at his transiting point to eternity.

“And the devil came whispering to my ears ‘you do not have the right to this level of battle.’

“I wondered what he meant - not quite long he started reeling accusation upon accusation on me. Showing me pictures of the wrong things I

had done previously.

“At this point in time, my focus shifted. Instead of praying for the dying man, I spent more time asking God for mercy for myself.

“And by that action, I missed the season of rescue to decree and make pronouncements for the dying man.

“It was later revealed that the dying man was still hovering around the vicinity near his body. Unfortunately the man died.

“God began to teach me a lesson of a lifetime that there are levels of battles in this journey of life with cunning tricks of dissuasion employed by the devil to manipulate people.”

Group prays for Fakeye Members of the group appealed to God to protect and elongate the life of the cleric, who they described as a righteous and credible servant of God.

Chairman of the organisation, Primate Ayoola Omonigbehin, said Fakeye is above the antics of enemies and immune to all devilish attacks.

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THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

African soldiers help 1,000 Muslims flee C.Africa to Chad

Italian PM slams austerity in EU election campaign

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FRICAN peacekeepers escorted more than 1,000 minority Muslims fleeing attacks by mainly Christian militias in the Central African Republic to neighbouring Chad, police told AFP yesterday.

"Not a single Muslim remains in Bossangoa," a police source said, referring to a northwestern town, adding that they left for Chad on Thursday.

The refugees had gathered at a Koranic school and the Catholic Church's premises in Bossangoa, fearing for their lives if they stayed on in the town, he said.

Large-scale violence between Christians and Muslims had been raging in Bossangoa and nearby Bouca since last September, part of nationwide unrest sparked by a March 2013 coup.

Thousands have been killed and around a quarter of the country's 4.6 million people displaced, most of them Muslims, who make up around one-fifth of the overall population.

Some 8,000 foreign troops are trying to disarm rival militias after a year of sectarian violence.

The UN Security Council voted on Thursday to send some 12,000 UN peacekeepers to the country, including up to 10,000 military personnel and 1,800 police.

Two dead in Algeria ethnic clashes

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man was killed yesterday in the southern Algerian town of Ghardaia, the second fatality in less than 24 hours of ethnic violence between Berbers and Arabs in the region, local sources said.

A Berber in his forties was stabbed early yesterday morning, Hamou Mesbah, a senior member of the opposition Socialist Forces Front, told AFP. And Abdallah Zekri, spokesman for the Collective of Mozabites (Berbers) in Europe, said the man had been taken "by a gang, tortured, stabbed" and his corpse "thrown in front of a mosque."

Zekri said the dead man's family needed police protection to recover his body.

Ghardaia has been the scene of violence since December when fighting erupted between Berbers and Arabs, known as Chaambas.

The violence has killed 10 people and wounded more than 400.

In Ghardaia, hundreds of houses and shops in the town, which is a UNESCO heritage site, have also been burned down.

The Mozabite and Chaamba communities have lived together for centuries, but tensions have risen sharply since vandals destroyed a historic Berber shrine in December, touching off the violence.

• Pro-Russian activists stand in front of a barricade outside the regional state administration building in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine, yesterday. Gunmen have taken over a police station in eastern Ukraine, where pro-Kremlin militants are already holding state buildings in several cities, Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said yesterday. "Armed men in camouflage fatigues have taken the police station in Slavyansk," Avakov wrote on his Facebook page, adding that "the reaction will be very strong." He did not provide any other details.

AFP PHOTO

Indian election: Bomb

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WO bombs planted by suspected Maoist rebels have killed at least 12 people in the eastern Indian state of Chhattisgarh as voting continues in the general election.

The first blast hit a bus carrying election officials in Bijapur district, police said, killing seven.

The second attack - half an hour later - killed five police in an ambulance in the Bastar district.

India began five weeks of general election polling last Monday.

Officials said the bus in Bijapur district was blown up by a landmine as it travelled between Gudma and the town

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blasts kill 12 of Kutru. Four people were injured.

Several people were also injured in the separate attack on the ambulance, which took place in the village of Kamanar, election officials said.

Chhattisgarh has seen some of the worst violence.

Polling began in part of the state on 10 April and continues with two further rounds in the coming weeks.

Elsewhere, voting resumed in the fourth stage of the gen-

eral election yesterday in four states - Goa, Assam, Tripura and Sikkim.

Sikkim, a tiny Himalayan state, is also holding local elections, including the contest for a seat in the regional assembly which is reserved for a Buddhist monk.

Buddhist monks display ink-stained fingers marked after voting in Sikkim state, India, 12 April Sikkim in the Himalayas is one of four states voting yesterday The first key day of poll-

ing saw millions of Indians vote on Thursday in 14 states.

The governing Congress party, led by Rahul Gandhi, is pitted against the main opposition BJP, led by the Hindu nationalist, Narendra Modi.

However, the anti-corruption Aam Aadmi (Common Man's) Party, with its stronghold in the capital, Delhi, is mounting a strong challenge.

More than 814 million Indians are eligible to vote in the polls, which opened on 7 April.

A party or a coalition needs a minimum of 272 seats in the 543-seat lower house of parliament to form a government.

Pro-Russia militants raise flags in east Ukraine

RO-Russian militants raised their flags over official buildings in two eastern Ukrainian cities yesterday, deepening a stand-off with Moscow which, Kiev warned, was dragging Europe closer to a "gas war" that could disrupt supplies across the continent.

At least 20 men armed with pistols and rifles took over the police station and a security services headquarters in Slaviansk, about 150 km from the border with Russia.

Officials said the men had seized hundreds of pistols from arsenals in the buildings. The militants replaced the Ukrainian flag on one of the buildings with the red, white and blue Russian flag.

Some local residents helped the militants build barricades out of tyres in anticipation that police would try to force them out, a Reuters photographer at

*As risk of 'gas war' looms

the scene said.

But it was not clear how the authorities would tackle the militants after the police chief for the region quit.

Kostyantyn Pozhydayev came out to speak to pro-Russian protesters outside his offices in the regional capital, Donetsk, and told them he was stepping down "in accordance with your demands." Some of his officers left the building.

The protesters were occupying the ground floor of the Donetsk police headquarters and the black and orange flag adopted by pro-Russian separatists flew over the building, in place of the Ukrainian flag, a Reuters reporter said.

The occupations are a potential flashpoint because if protesters are killed or hurt by

Ukrainian forces, that could prompt the Kremlin to intervene to protect the local Russian-speaking population, a repeat of the scenario in Crimea.

Moscow denies any plan to send in forces or split Ukraine, but the Western-leaning authorities in Kiev believe Russia is trying to create a pretext to interfere again. NATO says Russian armed forces are massing on Ukraine's eastern border, while Moscow says they are on normal manoeuvres.

Ukraine's acting foreign minister, Andrii Deshchytsia, said he had spoken in a phone call with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and demanded Moscow stop what he called "provocative actions" by its agents in eastern Ukraine.

Russia and Ukraine have

been in confrontation since protests in Kiev forced the Moscow-backed president from office, and the Kremlin sent troops into Crimea.

While the crisis within Ukraine itself is still unresolved, the gas dispute threatens to spread the impact of the row to millions of people across Europe.

A large proportion of the natural gas which EU states buy from Russia is pumped via Ukrainian territory, so if Russia makes good on a threat to cut off Ukraine for non-payment of its bills, customers further west will have supplies disrupted.

Russia is demanding Kiev pay a much higher price for its gas, and settle unpaid bills.

Russian state-owned gas giant Gazprom and its Ukrainian counterpart, Naftogaz, are in talks, but the chances of an agreement are slim.

TALY's new prime minister yesterday blasted what he called a European Union of austerity and bankers, as he kicked off his party's campaign for next month's European elections.

"We want a Europe of ideas, not only of banks," said Matteo Renzi, Italy's 39year-old leader, addressing a campaign rally in jeans and a white shirt.

"A Europe based on rigour and guided by a narrow vision has no future," he told the crowd.

Renzi was launching his centre-left Democratic Party's campaign for European elections on May 22-25.

And in a swipe at Italy's anti-euro Five Star movement headed by Beppe Grillo, he stressed that the euro was the best future for the country despite the difficulties.

"Those who say we should leave the euro and we would do better want you to believe that it is impossible to reform the institutions. Basically, they're giving up," he said.

"I, on the other hand, I say we have to start believing again in the institutions, in the possibility of changing them," he concluded.

Fading signals add urgency to search for missing Malaysian jet

T

HE search for a missing Malaysia Airlines jetliner resumed yesterday, five weeks after the plane disappeared from radar screens, amid fears that batteries powering signals from the black box recorder on board may have died.

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott warned on Friday that signals picked up during the search in the remote southern Indian Ocean, believed to be "pings" from the black box recorders, were fading.

Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 disappeared soon after taking off on March 8 from Kuala Lumpur bound for Beijing with 227 passengers and 12 crew on board, triggering a multinational search that is now focused on the Indian Ocean.

Search officials say they are confident they know the approximate position of the black box recorder, although they have determined that the latest "ping', picked up by searchers on Thursday, was not from the missing aircraft.

Batteries in the black box recorder are already past their normal 30-day life, making the search to find it on the murky sea bed all the more urgent. Once they are confident they have located it, searchers then plan to deploy a small unmanned "robot" known as an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle.

"Work continues in an effort to narrow the underwater search area for when the Autonomous Underwater Vehicle is deployed," the Australian agency coordinating the search said yesterday.

74

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WORLD/COMMENTARY

HIS past week, America marked the fiftieth anniversary of the Civil Rights Act. Ending legal segregation against those whose skin is black, the Civil Rights Act and the 1965 Voting Rights Act were the crowning achievements of the Civil Rights Movement in America. These laws were greeted with jubilation by the thousands who marched to effectuate their coming into being. Black America anticipated the dawning of a more just nation where skin color would no longer be a political and economic invective.

Had the laws been honored according to the fullness of their letter and spirit, they would have ushered in a quiet, voluntary revolution the likes of which no other nation had ever undertaken except at the point of crisis or of a bayonet. Adherence to these Acts would have severed America's tether to the 19th century in time for America's timely entry into the 21st.

Sadly, full acceptance and adherence were not had.

People tend to exalt those noble moments when people seize the courage to engage the brave fight against unjust laws and oppressive government. These high points in history showcase the best of human nature. We mark these moments on calendars and write about them that our children may learn to be heroes by rising to the occasion should the occasion ever rise against them. However, the reality of change generally proves far less succulent than the ideals that spawned the attempted change. We can think perfect thoughts but are capable of only a flawed reality. This discrepancy is partly due to the inherent imperfection of man. Everything we make is broken from the moment of its assembly.

Humans do nothing perfectly; even our mistakes have a touch of correctness and logic about them.

But part of the distance separating reality from ideal has nothing to do with the flaws in our pursuit of the noble destination. Some of the discrepancy is attributable to the adept pursuit of an ignoble outcome on the part of some people. In the social universe as well as in the world of physical objects, every action has an opposite reaction. Matter is counterbalanced by antimatter. Good cannot be identified but for the existence of its opposite. The pursuit of justice has a sinister alter ego: the pursuit of injustice. As good rises to protest evil laws and indign governance, Evil slithers to undermine what is right and condign. We shy from recognizing this because it is unsettling. It means the past is never really the past, and no victory is ever secure without constant vigil. He who quickly sleeps after attaining the prize will lose more in brief slumber than he gained through years of strife and toil.

There is a common saying, often echoed by the cynical to hoodwink those sufficiently naĂŻve to believe that evil comes by accident or ignorance. We commonly here people sermonize "evil committed against one person is an evil against all of humanity." This sounds good because it assumes everyone defines good and bad similarly. Thus, once the error is identified and its perpetrators are tutored properly, they will become agents awash in goodly purpose.

This is all too comforting to be true; it also runs contrary to the grain of history. Before the lie, there must be a man willing to tell it. Before there was a slave, there was a person who thought owning another human would benefit him. If injustice damaged all, it would not exist.

It would devour itself like a wildfire with nowhere to go. Injustice thrives because its architects profit thereby. They love to make of themselves more than they would allow another person to make of himself. They do not want equals. They want inferiors and subalterns. They disdain discourse and relish giving orders. They detest voting and love decrees.

This is human nature. This is the reason that those who gathered at various events across America commemorated the Civil Rights Act with an air of ambivalence. They did not know where to celebrate it as a partial victory or mourn it as a partial death. For the Act is of that duality best described as one leg in and the other leg out of the coffin.

Clearly, progress has been made because of the Act. To claim otherwise is to be obdurate.

America has a Black President and Attorney General. Members of the Black elite advance in the corridors of business and halls of government. Yet, life for the Black majority has barely budged. If we remove the elite from the measurement, the plight of Black people in the years since the Civil Rights Act was passed as barely nudged forward, save for this rather cynical tradeoff. No longer are Black men in dire fear of the vigilante lynchings. Today, they have more to fear from police aggressiveness and maladministration of the criminal incarceration system. Police homicides of Black men hover at record levels. Meanwhile, young Black men are more likely to be jailed or arrested than attend university.

The common response to these figures is that those in jail deserve to be there or they would not have been apprehended. That response is fueled more by emotion than common sense or a sense of history. People not accosted by the criminal system tend to support the system even

THE NATION ON SUNDAY, APRIL 13, 2014

Many rivers to cross but only one bridge In the citadel of evil, justice is discarded and branded a name unspeakable.

• Martin Luther King Jr.

when that system commits wholesale injustice. As long as the injustice it visits is in a different neighborhood or on a different group that injustice tends to resemble a form of justice to them. The truth of the matter is that most people convince themselves about the presence of justice in anything that advances or preserves their status in the political economy.

Remember the vast majority of the Southern White community adhered to the law and propaganda of slavery. When slavery was abolished by force of arms, servitude's proponents did not just sink into the ground. They sketched new notions of how society should be ordered to fit their objectives and no law could change that.

The more others tried to convince them of abolition's humanity and enlightenment, the more they convinced themselves they had been victimized by a force far more sinister than the slavery they imposed on the bondsmen.

Unable to resurrect slavery in its fullest form, they reengineered society to where the former slave became a serf. On a daily basis, his condition was as close to that of a slave without being one. This was the fate of rural and Southern Blacks from the Civil War until passage of the Civil Rights Act in 1964.

In hindsight, the leadership of Black America made an understandable yet devastating strategic mistake during the Civil Rights Movement. They fought for civil/political but not full rights such as economic justice. Partly, this was due to the overarching American political economic culture.

There is an intellectual separation of economics from politics that people in other parts of the world find startling and artificial. Just as the 1776 American Revolution would be led by an elite seeking only political independence from their colonial father, the Civil Rights Movement would be led by a Black elite seeking political equality with White society.

Already relatively comfortable economically, the Black elite knew a wider political aperture would also open economic doors for them. That the dynamic was different for other Blacks did not overly concern them. Economic progress would sink to the lesser folks on the by and by. Because it fit their narrow interests, they suddenly became adherents to conservative trickle-down economics. Getting soft and flabby around the midriff, they betrayed their cause without venturing to tell the people how they

had agrees with dominant power to shortchange them. Thus, just as the elite of the new American nation continued trading with England, the new Black elite would enhance its "economic trade" with the mainstream economy by becoming more integrated into that economy than before. This was progress but only of a sort. Not all progress is capable of sustaining itself, let alone expanding to lift others. This had the gross effect of hiving the Black leadership from the Black majority in ways unexpected and unprecedented.

There should have been a concerted effort to link economic justice with political reform.

Belatedly, Martin Luther King, Jr. tried to cure this lacuna. He was shot for acting upon this revelation.

The Civil Rights Act ended the era of serfdom but it did not emasculate the power of those who created that malevolent predicament. These people merely retooled the system to steer things to a comparable outcome given new legal realities and given the evolution of the modern economy. Thus, we have the aforementioned rise in Black incarceration and unemployment. This is not historic accident. It is by design. If the Black man can no longer serve in large numbers as slave, serf or peon, better to make a prisoner of him. This will keep him so poor and disunited, hindering him from becoming a political or economic catalyst for reform.

During slavery and serfdom, Black unemployment was not such a problem. During those years, work found the hiding Black man. In the modern era, the Black man cannot find the work because it now is hidden from him.

The lack of economic power and stability deflates the value of political equality. It renders political equality a hollow concept not an active reality. Ironically, the group that most understood the linkage between political and economic power was the group supposedly defeated by the Civil Rights Act - racist conservative Whites. Drawing a lesson from Black exertion in the Civil Rights Era, they where the greatest but most unnoticed victors of that period. It was a period where ever group fought for its rights. Minorities and women fought mostly for political rights.

Conservative Whites did two things. First, they united to form a conservative moment that continues to lend definition to the American political topography to this day. This movement has swung the ideological pendulum so far to the

right that people claim President Obama is a liberal Democrat when the positions he espouses are more like those of moderate Republicans in the 1970's than of liberals of that era.

After signing the Civil Rights Act, President Johnson remarked the Democratic Party would lose the southern White vote for a generation.

His prophesy seemed cataclysmic at the time.

Today, it smacks of understatement. The Republican Party snatched the south from the Democrats and has continued to own that section of the nation. Second, conservative Whites have pushed a rapid corporate capitalist agenda transferring massive wealth from the poor and middle class to the elite. This has impoverished Blacks and Whites who were already on the economic margins. It has also injured the mostly White middle class. However, the conservative elite has been ingenuous in political stagecraft. They have convinced much of the White middle class that the reason for their lost ground economically was because Blacks have gained ground politically. Thus, two constituencies that should unite against the elite have been pitted against each other by that very elite.

The two prongs of the conservative counterattack have merged recently with a vehemence borne of bottled-up racism. Many members of the elite now openly advocate a return to wealth or property ownership requirements for voting. A recent decision by the conservative Supreme Court invalidated a law that provided a ceiling on the amount of money wealthy people can contribute to political campaigns. As the rich get richer, America also moves toward a system where elections can be purchased by the highest bidder. Control of the most powerful nation is being concentrated in fewer hands.

Against this backdrop, a tableau of high political theatre and hypocrisy went on display as American past and present presidents gathered to commemorate the anniversary of the Civil Rights Act. Former President George Bush (Bush I) was there. A congressman at the time of the law's passage, he voted against the Act and has never expressed remorse for that tawdry bit of racism. He son (Bush II) was there. Had he been president at the time, the Act would have died on his desk. He would have vetoed it, seeing in its provisions an arsenal of nonexistent weapons of mass destruction of domestic tranquility.

Both Presidents Clinton and Obama spoke in eloquent terms about the Act. However, their addresses had an elegiac aspect. It was as if they were speaking about a dead man not the living law. In many ways they were addressing a cadaver. With each day and year that pass with the majority of Blacks being broken under the relentless economic winepress, the political finery of Civil Rights Act loses zest. He who has no bread does not vote. And he who is bereft of any aspect of economic mobility cannot persuasively argue that he is being denied his rights any more than a boulder can complain that it is being prohibited from ambling like a river.

Defenders of the establishment, Clinton and Obama could not venture beyond eulogizing the Act. They raised the alarm that the Act was under attack from conservatives. As such, they focused on what might be lost if the Act were eroded as if it were not already eroded in the effect. They veered away from talking about what was missing from making the Act a modern whole. Asking people to rally around and venerate the Act is like asking people to defend a partial victory from a war fought long ago. This is a losing proposition. Such a defensive stance is tantamount to retreat given the dimensions of the conservative onslaught.

The Presidents should have tried to rally the people to fight that part of the war left undone.

The only way to revive and defend the Civil Rights Act at this point is not to treat it as a national landmark but to treat is as half the foundation of a great edifice still awaiting its complement.

To ensure true equality, America needs to focus on economic justice. This is particularly true at a time when wealth disparity in American is more severe than at anytime since the advent of the Great Depression ninety years ago.

This matter may seem to be a parochial American one. It is not. The same patterns are reflected in the West's relationship with African nations and their leadership. Generally the leadership, much like that of the Civil Rights era, is willing to compromise too quickly to accommodate western interests. They trade their nations' long-term interests for a thin slice of transient personal legitimacy in western capitals.

In this exchange, they get photo opportunities with western leaders and the people suffer. It is a bitter transaction better left unconsummated.

Given the poverty that persistently stalks the continent, African leaders would better refocus on economic advancement for their nations instead of trying to win foreign accolades by forfeiting the gold they have in exchange for someone else's worthless glitter.

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I, formerly known and addressed as MISS GRACE NGOZI EKE, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS. GRACE NGOZI MERE. All former documents remain valid. NYSC and general public please take note.

JINADU

I, formerly known and addressed as Miss. JINADU ABISOYE JOKOTADE, now wish to be known and addressed as Mrs. ADEBISI DEBORAH BILIKIS. All former documents remain valid. General public please take note.

ILORAH

I formerly known as MISS ILORAH OBIAGELI STELLA, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS NNAEMEKA OBIAGELI STELLA. All former documents remain valid.

General public please take note.

ONUKEM

I formerly known and addressed as Kingsley Onukem now wish to be known as Kingsley Echendu Onukem. All former documents remain valid.

Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) and general public please take note.

ADVERT: Simply produce your marriage certificate or sworn affidavit for a change of name publication, with just N4,500. The payment can be made through - FIRST BANK of Nigeria Plc. Account number - 2017220392 Account Name VINTAGE PRESS LIMITED Scan the details of your advert and teller to - gbengaodejide@yahoo.com or thenation.advert@gmail.com.

For enquiry please contact: Gbenga on 08052720421, 08161675390, Email- gbengaodejide@yahoo.com or our offices nationwide. Note this!

Change of name is now published every Sundays, all materials should reach us two days before publication.

PUBLIC NOTICE We, the people formerly known and addressed as, “UMUOBIA UMUDIBI EKWE”, in Isu Local Government Area of Imo State of Nigeria, after due process, hereby wish to be known and addressed as, “UMUEZITE UMUDIBI EKWE”, in Isu Local Government Area of Imo State of Nigeria. All former documents remain valid. Our neighbouring communities, Isu Local Government Council, Imo State, the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the general public should please take note.

75

‘Why ex-militant’s allowances are delayed’

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From: Dele Anofi, Abuja

X-MILITANTS sponsored for higher education in the United Kingdom under the Presidential Amnesty Programme, have not been neglected, said yesterday.

The organisation Office said that contrary to media reports, the students have not been neglected.

It admitted delay in paying their allowances but explained that this was caused by the non-passage of the 2014 national budget early.

The head, Media and Communications of the agency, Mr. Daniel Alabrah, said that of the 653 students spread across 60 institutions in the UK, only about 150 of them were yet to get their intraining allowance at the time of media report.

He said: “It is a known fact that the National Budget for 2014 was only passed by the two chambers of the National Assembly about 48 hours ago.

This had resulted in some funding challenges for the programme and its beneficiaries; a situation that was communicated through an advertorial.

“Regardless of this daunting challenge, the PAP Chairman and Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta, Kingsley Kuku, made effort to secure some funds, which enabled it commence payment of the stipends and allowances of the beneficiaries while the National Assembly was still considering the budget.

“The delay in payment of the stipends and allowances of the beneficiaries and delegates did not affect only those in the UK. There are also delegates in 16 other countries whose in-training allowances were also delayed.

“The process appears slow because of the large number and the fact that the banks handling it have to bid for foreign exchange before the remittances can be made to their individual bank accounts. But we have gone very far and that of the UK is almost done.”

The Nation’s man presents book

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FFECTIVE media relations for churches and pastors written by Head, Worship section of The Nation Newspaper, Sunday Oguntola, will be presented to the public next Sunday.

The book, according to the author, is borne out of his 15 years of field experiences covering churches andChristian organisations within and outside the country.

He said: “It is essentially about showing churches how they can practically explore media opportunities for greater impact and relevance”.

Presiding Bishop of The Redeemed Evangelical Mission (TREM), Dr Mike Okonkwo, will lead other church leaders to present the book.

The presentation holds at the Business Club Ikeja, Alausa Lagos by 4pm.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

76

‘My music is so much Deadly metals in herbal gin lovers bigger than me’ •Continued from Page 70

•Pharrell Williams

•Continued from page 55

realise there's something so much bigger than me. My music is so much bigger than me, and what I am." In other words, he's accepted that he doesn't have to tell a big story; that it's enough to sing about the great pop perennials, love and lust.

He says the daftest thing was thinking he could compete with Jay Z. "Jay was never going to race with any of us. That was just my delusion."

Why not? "Because his career runs laps round people. And he runs laps round people, lyrically.

He's a philosopher and a poet."

Having interviewed Jay Z, I can understand why Pharrell might feel inadequate next to him: he may be cuter, sexier, more imaginative, more musically versatile, but Jay Z has a huge personality and charisma, and is a man perfectly at ease with himself.

The night before, when Pharrell introduced G I R L, he said the album was not his story, that it was his paean to women. It was interesting that you started by talking about Blurred Lines, I say, and your "questionable" taste in women. "No, perverse," he corrects me. "Some of the words are perverse." As well as Blurred Lines, he means even more extreme songs such as N*E*R*D's Lapdance, which has lyrics and a video that are little more than a soft-core porn extravaganza. Does Blurred Lines objectify women? "Well, it says, 'That man is not your maker.' There's nothing objectifying about that." It's an argument I've heard him use before: that the song's central message is

one of empowerment. So are the lyrics taking the piss out of the seedy Robin Thicke "character"?

Pharrell looks confused.

"No, it's not taking the piss out of anyone. It's just saying that there's blurred lines where a woman wants to do something, but she knows she shouldn't."

This interpretation takes us back to the original criticism, and the reason the song got banned by a number of British student unions: that men are telling women they know better than they do what they want, and are not taking no for an answer. Does he think it is fair that Blurred Lines was described as "rapey"? He answers the question before it's out. "I respected it. I'm not a woman, so I can never tell them how they feel. That's why this album is a gesture. I'm just trying to make it clear what I feel."

So is G I R L an apology? He shakes his head.

"I would never apologise for saying, 'He's not your maker, not your god.' In fact, a woman made him. A woman made me. Regardless of who you are, you came through those golden doors."

It has been estimated that in the 12 months up to September 2013, Pharrell Williams earned $9m.

Much of this comes from his business interests he runs a YouTube station, makes jewellery and furniture, and has two fashion lines (Billionaire Boys Club and Ice Cream Clothing), as well as the music.

He describes himself as "a Christian on paper, but really a universalist". Has he become more religious over time? "No. God has always been my friend."

He says he hates conflict, but it's not always pos-

sible to avoid it in the litigious world of music. He and Thicke are being sued

by Marvin Gaye's family over Blurred Lines they claim it rips off the Gaye song Got To Give It Up. Meanwhile, will.i.am has sued Pharrell over his "I am OTHER" trademark, claiming it is too close to his "I Am" branding. Has that dispute been resolved, I ask. "I don't know," he says.

For the first time, his face frosts over.

"Can you use the trademark now?"

"I never knew that I couldn't," he says tetchily.

"But weren't you in dispute with will.i.am about it?

"I don't know who he's in dispute with."

I'm surprised you are at war, I say. I always thought you were friends.

"I always thought so, too," he says.

You're similar in so many ways, I say. Obsessed with gadgets and technology and education. You even use similar language.

"Listen: we do not use the same language. We're not anything alike." You're not?

"No. But here's the thing.

That which makes us different is what makes us special.

So God bless him." It doesn't sound like the most heartfelt of blessings.

Pharrell's music has changed over time: the bleepy minimalism of the early hits has been replaced by the more joyous harmonies of his 2013 hits. This is pure pop, music as natural serotonin. Could he have written a song like Happy a decade ago? "No," he says.

Why not? He smiles. "Because the word 'sweat' would have been in there, and 'booty'. All those words would have been in there."

•Courtesy: w.guardian.co.uk

accidents due to drunk-driving. This has continued to claim lives yearly in Nigeria and may continue because drivers are advised to drink responsibly by the brewers rather than abstain. Nigeria presently ranks third out of the 10 countries with the highest number of deaths related to road accidents and the problem may continue due to lack of policy to check alcohol availability, use and misuse. The sale of herbal gin like ogogoro is not regulated and the brewers are increasingly embarking on aggressive marketing of their products, advertising mostly in local softsell magazines. This hinders the anticipated benefits from the campaign for moderate consumption among drivers for instance, while the alcoholic beverages flood the neighbourhood and commercial motor parks.

Stitch in time…

The situation no doubt demands government’s radical intervention to stem the tide of excessive consumption of herbal gin by adults, young adults and even high school teenagers.

Conscious efforts must be made by the mass media, medical doctors and other health care agencies to enlighten the public more on the toxicogenic, carcinogenic and socioeconomic implications of the excessive consumption of herbal gin, according to Idris Age, a doctor and ‘rural healthcare giver.’

Dr. Isanbor, on another note, suggested that: “There should be stricter regulation of these products. They shouldn’t be allowed for sale if their claims can’t be substantiated. The public should be wary of consuming these products excessively as there are no set limits for their consumption.”

Until then, herbal gin lovers like Jude Afunso will continue to bask in the bittersweet intoxication of his favourite beverages.

For Afunso, alcohol is a very necessary article, it invigorates him for the hard physical tasks of his daily job; it also enables him to do things at midnight that no rational person would do at 11 in the morning. For instance, while returning from a drinking binge on a Friday night, about two buildings away from his Agege,

Lagos apartment, Afunso saw an empty cab with the key in the ignition.

Promptly, he jumped behind the wheels of the cab and drove off. The driver of the cab who was peeing in a gutter behind the cab immediately gave chase and with the assistance of a police patrol team, he was able to reclaim his cab from Afunso. The latter had to be accompanied by the police to his house the following morning to confirm his identity with neighbours as well as his claim that he committed the joy ride under the influence of alcohol.

Afunso’s act could have resulted in a ghastly accident claiming multiple lives as he was heavily drunk and according to the cab owner, very much disoriented behind the wheels at the time of his arrest. Two empty bottles of a particular herbal gin and an unopened bottle of another were found in his pockets at the time of his arrest. Afunso reeked of alcoholic beverages and seemed visibly disoriented but he claimed that he was perfectly okay.

The same can hardly be said for Awoyale and a host of die-hard herbal gin lovers.

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

T

HE dynamism in Brand Management permits plenty of experimentation. Conversely, the mentally careless is very likely to fall victim of the dizzy feel possible from the knotty web of data and other forms of information present for careful analysis at the market place. That explains the need for a careful consideration of the WHO that manages any given brand, and the strategic input into the process.

In our increasingly competitive world, new concepts in brand management happen between short periods, being products of survival; brands continually seek ways of earning their desired market positions. Some others manage to keep alive in the face of clearly overwhelming market insights. The challenge is unending.

But that is the beauty of Brand management process. Even with the strength of their globally impactful brand equity and commanding market share, CocaCola and Pepsi are still tirelessly pursuing the single marketing objective of successful market performance. Daily, their research teams, world-wide work through the haze of market insights, trying to shape the destiny of their brands, affect those of competition and optimize their opportunities. We are not here, singling out these two for exemplary practice in this regard, just that their recent efforts towards taking advantage of the next football World Cup tournament planned for Brazil, is instructive, in looking at the extent a market-driven brand could go, in driving its market success.

Otherwise, we acknowledge the superb scientific marketing/brand management processes of big names such as Unilever, Procter & Gamble, GM Motors, BBC, British Railway, American Express…and all such global brands. All of the above-listed and many more not listed here, do a lot to shape consumer behavior and expectations, by reason of their influence on their target consumer emotion.

Interestingly, marketing is about manipulation of EMOTION. One of the FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) about the role of advertising, among non-professionals, is why big, popular and well-known brands still bother to invest heavily in advertising when everybody know them.Such questions serve the purposes of underpinning the power of brand communication and its importance (and therefore its impact) in brand management and marketing. Also, it brings to bear, the process element in brands communication; it is an engagement that runs on a continuum, given to instant impact, and also instantaneous in response to the adjustments of the operative variables. In other words, with brand communication, as an element of brand management, if the process stops, the impact reverberates on the brand and its performance, instantly (same with the reverse case). It is not that kind to draw from past gains, to propel opposite result, when, for instance, the injection of efforts at continuation stops. It is that simple.

So, for market-driven brands to keep at their anticipated success level, therefore, they are compelled to support the process. Even at such tempo of dedicated involvement, the challenge on strategic reviews, variations, and adjustments, keep the pattern of engagement continually involving. So, at any given time, the discerning brand continues to try to connect with the target market/audience, at that level of sustained interest and relationship. It is largely emotive at this point, even when the message is at times set within the corridor of tactical engagement and/or announcement. A common instance here is in the case of RRP adjustment, package

77

WOM - If DANA cared

rework, presence place announcement, etc. The news here is that even in instances such as is listed here, the bottom-line is connecting with the emotion of the target audience, at the critical value touch-point that should compel patronage, believing to have delivered some solution of vital importance to the market.

In the face of present complex media presence in quite unconventional pattern, the perspective for brand-consumer connect is narrowing down every day. Perhaps, though, the place of emotion as the focus for brands management and communication is becoming more assertive, in same way social media came against conventional media. Communication spend has tilted in favor of innovative media for reasons of effect and impact, in the ratio of 60:40. The social media options, for instance, drives further brand-consumer engagement at a more personal level and interactive platform, compared to the conventional media. The Twitter, WhatsApp, You Tube, Instagram, etc, are now the veritable playfields for marketdriven brands.

The simple reason for this growth in social media vehicles is opportunity of interpersonal interaction by Word Of Mouth (WOM) for brands.

WOM is not totally new in street level knowledge, but it is beginning to be of greater impact and relevance, in practical terms. Continuously, the essence of WOM for brand is growing, with the increasing power of social interpersonal interaction among target consumers at the social media platform. The influence of WOM as a sales driver is growing in strength and influence. Therefore, the WISE brands in our local market must

begin to pay due attention to its application. We must also quickly add that WOM engagement requires same depth of strategic planning and involvement as we know it.

That explains the efforts Coca-Cola and Pepsi are putting into activating global WOM for their market interests.

In explaining their TVC concept for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, the global CMO Pepsi, Kristin Patrick, says “celebrity is always going to be an element of this brand.” To the brand, the strategic thrust is to connect with those that drive common interest of global pull, using football in this instance, by identifying with the Stars of Celebrities, and becoming the subject of discuss (WOM) among the large crow of football lovers, globally. This will pull the crowd in the favor of the identifying brand, no doubt.

On the other hand The difference between WOM in today’s application and the old understanding is that it is no longer dependent on personal experience of the given brand as it used to be; WOM is no driven by commonality of interest based on awareness and emotional appeal. That is why sports, music and entertainment is the present driver for WOM, supported by social media. DANA does not seem to understand this (or perhaps do not care).

To the extent it flew some local stars in the music and movie markets pro bono to and fro Abuja, for purposes of building public confidence in its offering after the last crash, gives an impression the managers have some appreciation for image and reputation management. But sadly, they have not tried to drive the brand’s equity beyond that point. The missing link

in this case seems to be that of strategic insight. If as a result of the assurance they invested in, some people like me can risk our lives to fly DANA (each time I queue up at DANA counter anywhere, other passengers on competing airline look at me with pity and anger). How can I suffer that and still go ahead to face fear and panic on-board?

As a layman in aviation, I cannot comment on the arrangement behind this strange-looking aircraft operating under the DANA franchise, but certainly the aircraft and 99% of its crew members are nonNigerians and look like Arab. They hardly can communicate in English, and are in face quick to apologize for their inability in that regard when they are compelled to speak. Therefore, the statutory pre-take off safety procedure is given to shabby handling. The Pilot on this particular flight Lagos-Abuja on Thursday April 3, 2014, Capt. Mohammed was like in a hurry to do everything from taxing for take-off to landing. That was my second experience with that aircraft and crew, but on this day, it was really scary. There was this particular female passenger who threatened to confront the Captain when we finally landed; I was right behind her when she got the Cockpit entrance and demanded to see the Captain. She was restrained by some of the crew members. It was that bad.

The operation challenges may not be too clear to the public, but DANA need to invest in positive WOM, if they must build that brand back to healthy competition.

The price instrument no longer suffices because the other airlines are matching that strategic offer in comparative terms.

DANA must think again.

78

SPORTS THE NATION ON SUNDAY

Obasi: I'm ready to play for Keshi

EXTRA

APRIL 13, 2014

Onuoha on target as QPR beat Forest

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S

CHALKE 04 forward Chinedu Obasi believes his current good form in Germany can be replicated in the Nigeria senior team if he is given a look in by Coach Stephen Keshi.

According to recent reports the Super Eagles coach had informed that the Schalke 04 of Germany forward still stands a chance of gate-crashing into his World Cup squad if he stays injury free.

“I'm always dreaming of returning to the national team because I know I still have something to bring into the team,” said Obasi.

“I have not spoken with anybody about my return because I believe my performance for Schalke 04 and loyalty to the national team will pave way for my comeback. I did not talk like this when I was not fit but I am happy that I am fit and I'm ready to serve my country again.”

Ugo Ukah eyes World Cup chance

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olish based Nigeria international Ugochukwu Ukah has revealed his mission to be part of Nigeria World Cup preparations to Brazil.

Said he: “I grown up dreaming of World Cup, I had watched many stars on the television at the World Cup and it will be great for me to fulfill my childhood dream of playing at the World."

Ukah adds, “2014 World Cup will be a boost to my career. I will not give up, my game here is very much important.”

Amadu: Beating Iran is key

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FF generalsecretary Musa Amadu has identified Nigeria's World Cup opener against Iran as a crucial game that will go a long way to deciding how well the Super Eagles will fare at the tournament.

In a chat with journalists, the NFF general-secretary stated that winning the opening game against Iran, who many see as the weakest team in Group F, will put Nigeria in pole position to advance to the next round.

He further identified Stephen Keshi's tactical capability as an advantage that will count in favour of the African champions in the competition.

"If we go there and beat Iran, we will qualify and go as far as we can go. Let us work together and I believe we have a very competent technical crew. I don't have any doubt about it," Amadu said.

"Keshi has played at the highest level and has seen it all. I am quite confident that we have sufficient materials both from the technical crew and the players to do the nation proud."

Per Mertesacker dramatically equalised for Arsenal late on in the FA Cup semi-final on Saturday

FA Cup: Arsenal overcome Wigan on penalties

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RSENAL came through a penalty shoot-out to prise Wigan's grip off the FA Cup and give Arsene Wenger hope of ending his run of nine years without a major trophy.

Trailing to a Jordi Gomez penalty, they hit back with an 82nd-minute Per Mertesacker equaliser and kept their nerve in a one-sided shoot-out to win it 4-2. Wenger's team will play the winners of today's Hull City v Sheffield United semi-final on May

17.

In the shoot-out, Polish goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski was Arsenal's hero, saving Wigan's first two kicks from Gary Caldwell and Jack Collison. Though Jean Beausejour and James McArthur did convert, Arsenal's spot-kicks against Scott Carson were perfect from Mikel Arteta, Kim Kallstrom, Olivier Giroud and Santi Cazorla.

Mertesacker had earlier stooped at the far post to head in and rescue a poten-

Eaglets arrive Ilorin for KFA's test

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HE Golden Eaglets arrived safely in Ilorin on Saturday ahead of their friendly match against Kwara Football Academy (KFA) Sunday's match against the modelled KFA fixed for 10:00am at the Ilorin Township Stadium is yet another preparatory match for the fledging national Under-17 team being groomed for the 2015 CAN Championship to be hosted

by Niger.

A contingent of 18 players and 8 officials sans assistant coach, Kabiru Baleria due to his engagement at the ongoing CAF's Grade-C License coaching course in Abuja arrived the Kwara state capital aboard Luxury Marcopolo Bus. The entourage is led by Alhaji Yussuf Fresh, board member and chairman of the

NFF's youth committee. Also on the trip to Ilorin en route to Lome through Lagos is Mr. Patrick Pascal (MON), special assistant to the NFF's President on Technical matters.

Meanwhile, the Golden Eaglets' would likely parade the duo of Kehinde Ayinde and Kolawole Gbadamosi against their counterparts from KFA. Both players who were scouted from the KFA, have been impressive in the team's previous matches and are now relishing the prospect of playing in front of their home fans.

Yet Coach Emmanuel Amuneke maintained the friendlies in Ilorin and Lagos, would condition the players physically and mentally for the upcoming WAFU B Under-17 Tournament in neighbouring Togo.

tially horrendous situation for the north London club.

The roar that greeted it was enormous, the wildness of the celebrations beyond what might be expected against a team fifth in the Championship. But Arsenal had been staring into a footballing abyss.

But trailing 1-0 to Wigan in this game, in a competition everyone concluded they were destined to win after so long without silverware, would surely have proved the nadir of Wenger's 17-year reign.

That is why, when Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain drove a shot into the ground and it bounced across a crowded penalty area, allowing Mertesacker to guide it home, the Arsenal end of Wembley erupted.

It wasn't the kind of goal we associated with the foot-

ball Wenger brought to England, but these days Arsenal will take what they can get.

They had started brightly enough. The pace of Oxlade-Chamberlain offered an outlet while Aaron Ramsey, starting his first game since Boxing Day, gave them fresh assurance.

When Yaya Sanogo headed OxladeChamberlain's cross against the legs of Carson on five minutes, then Oxlade-Chamberlain himself sprinted on to a long Arteta pass on 15 minutes to threaten, you felt Arsenal had learned their lesson about slow starts.

On 25 minutes they went closer still, Bacary Sagna blazing over from a tight angle following a Thomas Vermaelen flick-on.

Odibe earns rave review

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NE capped Super Eagles defender Michael Odibe has continued his impressive form after leading the defence line of FC Atyrau against mighty Atkobe FC in the Kazakhstan league derby.

Odibe who joined Atyrau in the last transfer window said he's enjoying a new lease of life in Atyrau .

He said:"I have a mission in coming here, it came as a surprise to many people but I needed to be on the pitch week in week out," said Odibe.

Odibe added; "Playing regu-

larly means a lot to me and I know I am up to something special. I am happy everyday here and I am also happy that I finally find my joy again playing every minutes of every game.”

Odibe was in his best form against fearful Atkobe who has been number one team in the Kazakhstan elite league.

"It was not an easy game, Atkobe are very good team but we played them with the determination to end their domination, so it's my pleasure that fans are happy and applauded my game.”

IGERIAN player Nedum Onuoha finds the net as QPR scored three goals in the last six minutes to deal another blow to Nottingham Forest's play-off hopes.

The home side took the lead when Yossi Benayoun headed in after keeper Karl Darlow had parried Tom Carroll's shot.

Jamaal Lascelles headed Forest's equaliser but Junior Hoilett poked in a shot to restore the home side's lead.

Matt Derbyshire nodded in to again haul Forest level but late Nedum Onuoha, Ravel Morrison and Bobby Zamora strikes sealed QPR's win.

Automatic promotion appears out of reach for QPR, but the victory should see them in the play-offs and provide much-needed momentum after three games without winning.

Forest have now gone 12 league games without a win and the reversal in form they needed to re-ignite their challenge for a top six spot did not materialise.

The visitors found themselves behind after just two minutes when Carroll's shot was saved by City keeper Darlow before Benayoun raced in to nod in the loose ball from close range.

Forest had struggled to mount a threat on QPR's goal but equalised when Lascelles headed in a Lansbury corner against the run of play.

Muhammed gingers Golden Eaglets

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U S A Muhammed, the inspirational captain of the 2013 FIFA Under-17 World Cupwinning team, has sent solidarity message to the new boys.

Musa has repeatedly been extolled for his uncommon leadership quality and only on Wednesday, he breezed into the NFF/FIFA Goal Project arena to watch the lads beat Yuguda Boys 2-1.

Musa in a voice note via BlackBerry to an official of the Golden Eaglets shortly after the team's departure from Abuja to Ilorin wished the team success in their upcoming matches.

RESULTS ENGLAND C/Palace 1 - 0 A/Villa Fulham 1 - 0 Norwich S'pton 0 - 1 Cardiff Stoke City 1 - 0 Newcastle Sunderland 0 - 1 Everton West Brom 3 - 3 Tottenham SPAIN Granada 1 - 0 Barcelona Celta de Vigo 2 - 2 Sociedad Villareal 1 - 0 Levante FRANCE Rennes 0 - 1 Monaco Nice 1 - 2 Lorient GERMANY Bayern 0 - 3 Dortmund Mainz 3 - 0 Bremen

THE NATION ON SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014

SPORT EXTRA

79

SUPER SUNDAY Gourlay insists Chelsea still going for Double

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Henderson: We’re ready for Man City

helsea chief executive Ron Gourlay says they're going for the Double this season.

Gourlay says the clubs aim this season is to win the Champions League and Premier League double.

He told Sky Sports News: "They're all fantastic sides. The important thing to us was to make sure we were in the semifinal.

"We need to make sure we are totally prepared for these games. I'm sure Jose will make sure we are but we have some important games before that.

"If someone had said at the start of the season we'd be in the Champions League semi-finals and the Premier League (title) shake-up I'd have taken it.

This is what we work for all season.

"We have ambition at the club, it's evolving all the time. We'd like to win back the Premier League and add another ChampiMan City striker, Dzeko (r) against ons League win (to the Skirtel of Liverpool last season 2012 success).

"The key is to keep building for the future and we're definitely heading in the right direction.

VERTON continued 14 yards.

"We're in a good positheir hunt for ChampiSunderland went closest tion and everyone's done ons League qualification when Fabio Borini interfantastically well. We can look forward to the next with a dour 1-0 win at cepted a Leighton Baines Sunderland. pass; his effort was cleared off few weeks."

In the first half, Everton the line by John Stones.

J

ORDAN Henderson is confident Liverpool's youth will more than match the experience of Manchester City when the teams clash at Anfield on Sunday The match is being dubbed as 'the title decider' and Henderson feels the Reds are ready to take three points on their own turf.

The midfielder said: "They have some very good players. Yaya Toure is one of them, but they have other great players in other areas so everyone needs to make sure they are ready and I am sure we will be and right up for it.

"We have some good players ourselves and if everyone performs to the best of their ability we will have a good chance.

"We have a lot of young lads in the team with a lot of energy and great work-rate, so I think that has really showed, pressing high up the pitch.

"Steven Gerrard has been fantastic in the deeper role, expressing his passing, and that has been a major point for us.

Everton struggle to victory against Sunderland

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went close when Gerard Deulofeu struck a shot straight at Vito Mannone inside, and Romelu Lukaku had his effort deflected wide off Wes A N C H E S T E R Brown's heel. Steven Naismith City captain Vin- then smashed a shot over from

Kompany injured in training, doubtful for Liverpool game

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cent Kompany is doubtful for the crucial Premier League clash against Liverpool after limping out of training on Saturday.

The defender landed heavily after challenging for a header with Micah Richards, and was helped off the pitch.

Kompany has been a key figure for City this season, marshalling a sometimes shaky defensive unit.

If Kompany misses out, Martin Demichelis would partner either Joleon Lescott or Javi Garcia, with Matija Nastasic also out injured.

Kompany's absence would be a huge blow for manager Manuel Pellegrini, whose team go up against the Premier League's leading strike duo of Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge.

Demichelis has struggled this season, with his lack of pace routinely exposed by opposition forwards.

A Liverpool win would leave City seven points behind the Premier League leaders with two games in hand, and no longer in control of their own destiny in the title race.

In the second half, Baines cleared Phil Bardsley's effort off the line, and Ki Sungyeung headed wide. At the other end, Deulofeu sent a shot just wide. Naismith missed an open goal when

Swansea: Mourinho expecting tough clash

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HELSEA manager Jose Mourinho has warned his side that the match against Swansea on Sunday will be a very difficult contest.

The Blues are right in the hunt for the Premier League title and could have the chance to move back to the top of the table if they can manage to claim all three points.

Rivals Liverpool and Manchester City are both playing each other in the early match on Sunday and Chelsea will be hoping the former fail to get anything out of the game to allow Mourinho's men to go level on points with the Reds.

The west London club face a difficult task against a Swansea side who are still looking to ensure their Premier League survival, with a win for Garry Monk's side almost assuring they don't suffer relegation.

Mourinho has praised the style of football that the Welsh outfit play and admitted that the contest would be very difficult for his side to

Mannone headed the ball straight into the air. Moments later Ross Barkley's back-post volley was tipped away.

Everton won the match when Deulofeu beat Marcos Alonso on the right, and had his cross chested in at the near post by Wes Brown.

Sunderland almost hit back when Ki had a low shot saved

by Howard, but they could not find an equaliser. Nor did anyone expect them to.

Adams had made his presence felt as manager just six days after the dismissal of Chris Hughton , making six changes to the Norwich starting line-up, including Michael Turner, who recovered from a hamstring injury to make his first appearance since 1 January.

Nathan Redmond had a shot saved by David Stockdale

claim the victory.

"They are a good team, they play good football. Especially at Swansea it is never easy and Chelsea knows that better than other teams," he said.

"They still need the three points, they are not in big danger like other teams but EST Brom lost a they still need a couple of three-goal lead points to stay in the Premier against Tottenham League and of course they as Christian Eriksen's injurywill try to get points out of time goal left them three this game." points clear of the drop zone.

Chelsea have been on a Matej Vydra volleyed West poor run away from home Brom ahead on 25 seconds having lost their last three before Chris Brunt doubled games on the road, but they the lead with another volley. come into the match on the Tottenham's Emmanuel back of a sensational win in Adebayor had a penalty the Champions League s a v e d , b e f o r e S t e p h a n e which witnessed them knock Sessegnon slotted in to make it out Paris Saint-Germain 3-0. thanks to a late Demba Ba Jonas Olsson's own goal strike. and Harry Kane's header were The latter has failed to followed by Eriksen's topmake an impact at the club corner leveller. but could be given his first Tottenham's recovery from league start since October on three goals down was only the Sunday and with renewed second time they have done so confidence for the striker, in a Premier League game. punters may decide to use It was the second successive their free bet on the Senegal home match that West Brom international firing the Blues have conceded an injury-time to a first away win in four.

and Rodallega failed to capitalise on a couple of half chances.

But the game didn't really come alive until Stockdale superbly turned away Ricky van Wolfswinkel's attempt to divert a low Martin Olsson cross into the net.

Leroy Fer forced Stockdale into another excellent save as he got his head to Redmond's near post corner, before Bradley Johnson drilled his shot wide.

Norwich maintained the pressure and Robert Snodgrass had his head in his hands after his curling freekick smacked against the crossbar.

The visitors had good cause to regret their profligacy before the break as Rodallega struck for the second successive game .

Adebayor misses penalty, Sessegnon scores in six-goal thriller

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equaliser to deny Pepe Mel his first home win as manager and leaves them still in a fight for top-flight survival.

Fulham's win over Norwich means they slip to just three points clear of the bottom three, while Spurs edged to within four points of fifth-placed Arsenal.

West Brom appointed Mel as manager in January, following the sacking of Steve Clarke the previous month, with the club 14th in the Premier League and four points above the relegation zone.

Despite just two wins under him - both on their travels - Mel's side have shown some fighting spirit in recent weeks, including a crucial win at Norwich last time out, and they again showed their character with a perfect start.

Balotelli crucial to Italy World Cup bid, says Pirlo

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NDREA Pirlo believes Italy's bid to win the World Cup could depend on the form of AC Milan striker Mario Balotelli. Balotelli was an integral part of Italy's unbeaten qualifying campaign, scoring five goals, and the 23-year-old will be looked upon to help Italy through a tricky World Cup group featuring Uruguay, England and Costa Rica.

Experienced Juventus midfielder Pirlo feels the form of Balotelli could be crucial to Italy's success, but warned that the whole squad will have to be at their best.

"We know it's a difficult group, but I really like the atmosphere in Brazil," he said in an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport. "Do we depend on Mario Balotelli?

Partly yes, but we are all important to the cause.

Mario is old enough now, so he doesn't need advice any more. "He just needs to focus on finding his form in the summer, concentrate on the football and leave the rest alone."

Man Utd dismiss Van Gaal links

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EPORTS have claimed United representatives, including one of the Glazer family who own the club, have met with the former Ajax, Barcelona and Bayern Munich coach.

It is understood United are surprised by the reports and are insisting no such meeting took place.

It was suggested Van Gaal could take over from David Moyes, who has endured a difficult first season at Old Trafford, in the summer.

Van Gaal, 62, will become a free agent after Holland's World Cup campaign ends and he has already been heavily linked with Tim Sherwood's job at Tottenham.

Moyes was given a sixyear contract when he took over from Sir Alex Ferguson last year but has faced criticism over the team's disappointing results.

Last season's champions have long been out of contention for the Barclays Premier League title and are currently seventh in the table.

Suarez: UCL important than Golden Boot

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iverpool striker Luis Suarez will take Champions League qualification over the Golden Boot.

Suarez insists team success is more important than personal milestones and that is the reason why he has not asked to take over spot-kick duty from Steven Gerrard.

"If I wanted to do that I could ask Stevie if I could take a penalty, but I don't like that," he said. "For myself it is more important that Liverpool finish in a good position. I try in every game to score because I am a striker.

QUOTABLE “The Federal Government has only succeeded in opening itself to ridicule.

The largest economy with the largest population of unemployed, the largest economy with the largest population of citizens living in darkness and the largest economy with the worst infrastructure…”

SUNDAY, APRIL 13, 2014 TRUTH IN DEFENCE OF FREEDOM VOL. 8, NO. 2817

—The All Progressives Congress (APC) faulting the recent rebasing of the economy by the Federal Government, which classified Nigeria’s economy as the biggest in Africa.

I

N the political cat and mouse defection game being played by Femi FaniKayode, it is not known at the moment who reached out to whom – he to the president or the president to him. But when he offered his trenchant views on the All Progressives Congress’s proposed presidential ticket a little over a week ago, and those views were published to the consternation of many, it was clear something was afoot. We may never know whether the presidency sensed his vulnerability after his views became public, and decided to invite him over, or whether Chief Fani-Kayode flew a kite and followed up through a middleman to let the presidency know he would not be averse to a visit. Whatever the case, and whoever made the first move, we now know that both President Goodluck Jonathan and Chief Fani-Kayode found comfort and inspiration in each other’s company, with the latter perhaps more awestricken than the former was more evidently manipulating.

“This is a Presidential Villa,” enthused Chief Fani-Kayode after he met with the president. “The President is President of Nigeria and every single person in this country that is a Nigerian is entitled to come here from time to time, when the doors are open to come and pay their respect to the wonderful people that are here. As a Nigerian, I have done that today and I am delighted to be here.” His fulsome description of the president apart, not to say his exaggerated belief in the openness of the presidency doors, Chief Fani-Kayode in addition said his hosts were a wonderful people. Had he been a neophyte visiting the perfumed corridors of Aso Villa for the first time, we would have thought he was mesmerised by the marbled and ersatz glitter of the buildings and denizens of the presidency. But he had been there before, and apparently he felt nostalgic about an environment whose splendour made him long for the past.

Given the exuberant manner he expressed his joy at visiting the president and talking with him for about an hour, as the media reported, it was not unusual that there were speculations about his motives.

The online media were less charitable in drawing their conclusions, but the regular media would not be drawn into brazen

Before Fani-Kayode defects

•Jonathan

•Fani-Kayode

speculations, perhaps afraid to be drawn into a press war with a man who does not shirk a fight, and whose prolixity is both damning and acidic. Asked what he intended to do given the fact that a few months ago he rubbed shoulders with top APC leaders and hurled invectives at the PDP and the president in particular, Chief Fani-Kayode stonewalled. “The step that I will take will be made known to Nigerians at the right time,” he said curtly and self-importantly.

Then, as if he in fact had already made up his mind, he added censoriously: “The most important thing, and I think you are fully aware of this, is that I cannot and I will not be associated with a situation whereby any group of people is promoting a religion above another. I think all of us have gone past the stage of religious politics in this country.”

It will be recalled that less than two weeks ago, Chief Fani-Kayode had told the media he strongly and unrepentantly took exceptions to the plan by the APC to field a Muslim-Muslim

presidential ticket for the 2015 election.

Speaking to the media after his visit to Aso Villa last week, he restated that position, unmindful of the dissonance of not waiting to see whether the APC would carry through with the plan he suspected. Should he defect, Chief Fani-Kayode would have the unenviable distinction of being one of the few politicians anywhere who anchored a life-changing decision on a mere suspicion. There is, of course, nothing incontrovertible to indicate he will be defecting to his former party where, some suggested, he feathered his nest and rose to some prominence. All we have are his body language and some of his statements. But there is also nothing to suggest he could not defect at the drop of a hat, for he has not managed in his many years in politics to be taken seriously, either for his ideas or for his principles.

I have not perused the online speculations about his motives and his person which drew his ire. In my opinion, the online media has

NHRC, Apo killings and the Nigerian Army

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FTER what it described as extensive investigations into the killing of eight members of the National Association of Tricycle and Motorcycle Owners and Riders Association (NATOMORAS) by a combined team of soldiers and secret service agents in Abuja, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has concluded that the victims were in fact not members of the Boko Haram sect.

The secret service had claimed the victims were terror suspects and had called on the Army for back-up in flushing them out of the uncompleted building in the Apo/Gudu exclusive part of the Federal Capital City (FCT) where they were taking shelter. The NHRC directed that the government should pay hefty compensations to the victims, living or dead. In addition, it suggested an urgent review and harmonisation of the security agencies’ rules of engagement in order to eliminate the kind of error and gross violation of human rights that occurred in Abuja in September last year.

It is not clear what kind of challenge the military and the State Security Service (SSS) would mount against the NHRC report. But a military spokesman has argued that forensic examination was required to establish the guilt of the Army. Whatever challenges are mounted, however, are unlikely to erase the widely held suspicion that the security agencies did in fact use more force than was necessary in either evicting or arresting the NATOMORAS squatters.

When the incident happened, and given the account of the spokesperson of the SSS, the public had called for investigations on the

premise that many of the accounts of the killings, or what the security agents called exchange of fire, did not quite jell.

The investigations have finally yielded fruit.

The efforts of NHRC must be commended.

The outcome of the panel’s report is likely to reinforce public confidence that Nigeria can be made to work, and that when there is a fault somewhere, the inbuilt corrective mechanisms can step in. For a long time, the security agencies have not been quite as successful in dealing with infractions within their folds as the public would wish. There have been too many attempts to cover up atrocities in order, in the logic of the security agencies, not to denude the image of the security organisations or call to question the competence of the officer corps in the various services. The security agencies should see the NHRC report as a call for urgent reforms not only of the rules of engagement, but also in the general running of the organisations and their responsiveness to

security and public relations issues. If they have good grounds to challenge the NHRC report, the Army can go ahead and do so.

Otherwise, they should let bad enough alone and seek for more professional and less emotive ways of doing their jobs.

Sometimes organisations, whether security or regular, have behaved quite awkwardly in r e f o r m i n g themselves, especially when their leadership is shorn of the right ethical values and are too incompetent to envision great heights to which they must aspire. The country’s political leaders have a huge role to play here. They must create the right environment to engender the right leadership for the various security organisations in the country. Had this been done, for instance, it would have been unlikely for the military in the 1990s to tolerate generals like Sani Abacha, let alone foster the conditions that propelled him into power undeservingly.

become a feral beast slashing and tearing reputations without scruples and sometimes without respect for accuracy or facts, and I distrust them. But no one needs the online media, nor even Chief Fani-Kayode’s famous background, to assess his person and politics. He has done and said enough in the past few years to elicit a fairly competent, evocative and substantial analysis on him.

Except something extraordinary happens to thwart his plans, I think Chief Fani-Kayode has made up his mind to defect. When the president hosted him, it was not a social or casual visit, as he pretended. And his unsolicited offer to every Nigerian to visit Aso Villa is not only misleading, given the way that redoubt has turned into an armoured and impregnable fortress, it is insulting to our intelligence to preach a sense of entitlement to us.

Chief Fani-Kayode is an enigma, a brilliant enigma. He is eloquent, polemical, gregarious and hyperactive. He writes damn well, even if he cannot disguise his irredentism and parochialism. And because he holds very strong and often opportunistic views, he is sometimes viewed as a nuisance to have on one’s side rather than to have with the enemy, for in his discordant and amorphous perspectives lies an obsessive longing to further his private and insular interests. He took on former President Olusegun Obasanjo until he was belatedly invited into the team. In the past few months, he also took on Dr Jonathan, and after last week’s visit, he has given indication he would mellow because disagreements are to him as normal as rapprochement is routine. It is useless engaging Chief FaniKayode in arguments; the gifted rhetorician will likely outtalk and outflank you with flawless dexterity. Indeed, given his adventures and dalliances, not the least the Bianca tiff, there is enough evidence to prove his dexterousness comprehensively transcends politics.

I do not know whether he can be trusted again in the APC even if he does not defect.

However, given his unconscionableness and irreverence, he is quite capable of boldly retaining his membership of a group even while undermining it. It is an indication his desultory ideas of politics and his general malleability do not arise from a deliberate intent to hurt anyone. Long used to having his way in life, and long accustomed to making modest gains from a general lack of adherence to principles, the former Aviation minister will not feel compelled to change both his ways and his style. His cavil about APC’s proposed presidential ticket is popular; he will use its justifiability as a cover for his other hidden agenda.

Many observers were astounded when they saw Chief Fani-Kayode with APC leaders touring the country and extending hands of fellowship to other politicians.

They were equally stunned when they saw the party leaders in company with Senator Ali Modu Sherrif, the former Governor of Borno State blamed fairly or unfairly for the outbreak of the Boko Haram menace.

The APC in fact has an apparent knack for drawing into its fold some politicians whose persons or ideas raise eyebrows. But whether they can keep controversial politicians out of their ranks remains to be seen when the other parties, especially the PDP, specialise in producing and unleashing gadflies and termagants on the opposition.

If Chief Fani-Kayode should defect, it is unlikely to have anything to do with the APC’s presidential ticket. He weighs his options expertly, though often shortsightedly, and those options are never based on ideas, principles or morality. But his controversial visit to Aso Villa has concentrated attention on the APC’s coming presidential primary in a way the party probably never imagined. I do not think the lesson of Chief Fani-Kayode’s denunciation and manoeuvres will be lost on the opposition party, assuming they ever thought of taking such humungous risk in a polity riven by ethnic and religious distrust, a distrust now accentuated by the Jonathan presidency’s Machiavellian use of religion.

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Website: www.thenationonlineng.net ISSN: 115-5302 E-mail: sunday@thenationonlineng.net Editor: FESTUS ERIYE