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THE NATION THURSDAY, JULY 16, 2015
NEWS Buhari, Obama to discuss terrorism, economy, other issues
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•From left: General Manager, Rekitt Benkister West Africa, Mr. Rahul Murgai; President, Society for the Study of Pain, Nigeria, Dr. Ikeoluwapo Ajayi; Primary Care Specialist, American Hospital, Dubai, Dr. Aamerah Shah and Professor in Anesthesiology, University of Eastern Finland, Prof. Hannu Kokki at the launch of Nurofen in Lagos…yesterday.
NNPC under fire over $1.2b transfer Continued from page 1
(FIRS) and dividends paid to the NNPC by the Nigerian Liquified natural Gas (NLNG) Ltd. In a statement by its National spokesman, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the APC said the Federal Government should probe the whereabouts of the dividends paid to the NNPC by the NLNG, as well as the taxes paid to the FIRS Federation Account prior to the latest payment in June 2015. Mohammed said the call had become more urgent against the backdrop of published reports that the NNPC
withdrew $1.2 billion from banks so it could place the money with the CBN. He described the move by the NNPC as a panic reaction to the expose by APC that over $4 billion dollars was missing in past dividends paid to the NNPC by the NLNG. The statement reads: ‘’Whereas NLNG’s dividends are paid to NNPC’s account with JP Morgan, from where they are supposed to be paid into the Federation Account, in accordance with the law, some unscrupulous officials of the corporation have apparently been moving such funds
to local banks so they can collect huge commissions on them. ‘’Now that the cat has been let out of the bag, they have started moving the funds from the banks to the CBN. We believe what we are seeing now is just a tip of the iceberg, hence the need for the authorities to call the NNPC officials to give account of the paid NLNG dividends to date.’’ “Any delay in calling the officials to account for the dividends may give them enough time to cover their tracks, said the party, in addition to the dangers posed to the banks -
and by extension the economy – by the sudden withdrawal of such a huge fund from the NNPC’s accounts with them. ‘’The top officials of the NNPC and others who met on Monday and decided to withdraw the $1.2 billion from the corporation’s account to the CBN must be asked a number of questions, including their motive for the decision and the whereabouts of the commissions paid on such funds.” The APC’s spokesman said that notwithstanding the attempt to pull the wool over the eyes of Nigerians, the Federal Government must remain unContinued on page 60
IBB to Buhari: change tactics against terrorists
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ISTURBED by the increasing insurgency in some parts of the North, former President Ibrahim Babangida yesterday advised the Presidency and the military to change tactics against Boko Haram. He said the new approach by President Muhammadu Buhari and the military against Boko Haram must be holistic in such a way that the military will pound the enclaves of the sect day and night. He said strategic efforts and
From Yusuf Alli, Abuja
initiatives of the military at curtailing Boko Haram should “remain, most often, top secret”. He also pleaded with the media to stop celebrating killings by the insurgents. Babangida, who made his views known in a Sallah message, said it was time for Nigerians to be strong and unite against the insurgency. He said: “At this stage of our national history, especially
with the insecurity we presently experience, it is appropriate for us to devise new ways and means of confronting this hydra-headed insurgency, without making such initiatives public knowledge. “Strategic efforts and initiatives of the military targeted at curtailing the spread of Boko Haram should remain most often top secret within military hierarchy and the presidency. Collaborative efforts should also follow similar pattern so that little or limited informa-
tion is let loose for the consumption of members of the sect. “Coordinated efforts by the security agencies should be strengthened and refocused to gain new dimensions towards combating the unwholesome activities of this sect, and when such dimensions are sought and cultivated, they should remain the exclusive preserve of top military brass.” “The President, General
HEAD of his four-day official trip to the United States (U.S.)on Sunday, President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday met with a former Commonwealth Secretary-General, Chief Emeka Anyaoku. The duo held talks on the President’s pending visit at the meeting which held at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. President Buhari, who is honouring an invitation from U.S. President Barrack Obama will leave Abuja on Sunday to Washington DC to hold highlevel talks with President Obama and other senior officials of the U.S. Expectedly, measures on how to strengthen and intensify bilateral and international cooperation against terrorism in Nigeria and West Africa are priorities on President’s wish-list, his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity Femi Adesina said in a statement yesterday. According to the statement, President Buhari, who will next Monday meet with President Obama at the White House, will hold further discussions with the Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen Martin Dempsey and the Deputy Secretary of Defence, Robert Work. They will be discussing military and defence cooperation.
From Augustine Ehikioya, Abuja
The President is also scheduled to meet Vice President Joe Biden and confer with the US Attorney-General, Loretta Lynch, Secretary of Treasury, Jack Lew, Secretary of Commerce, Penny Pritzker and Trade Representative, Michael Froman on America’s support for the Federal Government’s anti-corruption crusade as well as new ways of boosting Nigeria-United States trade relations. The President, who will be received by the U.S. Secretary of State at the State Department in Washington DC, will also hold meetings with the Senate and Congressional Committees on Foreign Relations, as well as the Black Caucus of the House of Representatives. Before returning next Thursday, President Buhari will address the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Corporate Council for Africa and host an interactive session with Nigerians in the American Diaspora. Mr. Adesina listed Governors of Imo (Rochas Okorocha); Nasarawa (Tanko Al-Makura); Edo (Adams Oshiohmole); Borno (Kashim Shettima) and Oyo (Abiola Ajimobi). Others are Central Bank of Continued on page 61
Push for ex-Service chiefs probe over Buhari’s papers Continued from page 1
to have taken “undue advantage” to corner appreciable units. According to sources, there was a discreet preliminary investigation of the activities some of the Service Chiefs before they were asked to go on Monday. The preliminary findings may set the stage for a comprehensive investigation, it was learnt.
A highly-placed source said: “I think the government will certainly look into the activities of some Service Chiefs “Among the former Service Chiefs, it was known to all that one of them used to buy wristwatches worth about $300,000 to $500,000 at will for whoever he liked while in office. “This is outside curious spending on unnecessary overhead. The situation was Continued on page 60
CORRECTION In a story titled: “Osinbajo intervenes in Rivers crisis”, published on page 5 of yesterday’s edition, Vice President Prof. Yemi Osinbajo was reported to have attended a meeting with Rivers stakeholders in Abuja on Tuesday night, whereas the Vice President was in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on an official assignment. The error is regretted.
Continued on page 60
Triple twins’ dad returns to family’s new home, months after Continued from page 1
you are still alive? Please come inside and sit down,” she exclaimed. Upon hearing ‘Papa ejima’, Mrs Uche rushed to the door. She didn’t run into his arms to hug or kiss him, but stood and watched him for some minutes after offering him one of the plastic seats in the living room. But he did not sit down, rather, he went straight for his newborn babies. He was seeing the three months olds for the first time. Uche held both on each arm, smiling and then collapsed
into the blue chair, admiring them. Still looking at the babies, he asked: “Where are my other children? How are you people?” Hope told Uche that the other children were at her aunt’s house not too far from the neighbourhood. After about seven minutes when Mrs. Uche seemed to have regained her composure, she entered the kitchen, brought a sachet water in a silver steel plate and offered it to her husband who refused to collect it. After much persuasion from
all the women in the room, Uche finally collected the water and from the way he gulped it, it was obvious he was very thirsty. As Mrs. Uche sat down on one of the children’s plastic chairs, she asked her husband if he was back for good. “God I thank you for answering my prayers. So, you are here. You look emaciated. You have lost so much weight. I hope you have come back for good. Please, do not leave us again,” she told Uche, who did not reply. Having allowed him play with his babies and relaxed for about 20 minutes, this reporter, reminded Uche of their several telephone discussions. He said: “Like I told you on phone, it was not easy for me. I contemplated suicide on several occasions. I cannot believe I am here, holding my kids for the first time since they were born three months ago. “When I left, I initially went to the village where I spent a month. After that, I came back to Lagos but stayed with my friend around Oko-Oba in
Agege. I still live with him. “I know that I was not far from them, but I just did not went to return without a better solution on how to cater for my home. I was ashamed too to come back to that house to see them after I’d abandoned them and run away. “But after our discussions and my wife told me that they had moved, I went to our old house and asked one of the neighbors who had been here for direction so that I could come and see them,” he said, shaking his head.
Finding the Uches The road to the Uches’ new home was anything but smooth. For a journey that began shortly after mid-day, it took this reporter about two hours to get to the community and another one hour 30 mintues more, wandering around the locality until the parties eventually met at a bus stop. After the exchange of pleasantries, an excited Mrs. Uche who said she secured a shop and would soon start trading in foodstuff, took this report-
er to see her new home. Situated in a developing area, the newly built bungalow has three flats. Although not painted yet, the house is in a relatively peaceful community. Mrs. Uche seems to have made some friends already. Inside her apartment, the parlour and toilet are neatly tiled. The bedroom and kitchen are cemented. The apartment is neat, though lacking in basic furniture, which prompted the arrangement of their unpacked luggage-clothes, foodstuff and kitchen utensils- on the floor in the bedroom and kitchen. There was relative quiet, but for the tick of the wall clock and occasional cry of her baby. The new residence is a far improvement on the old one. Noting that she was eternally grateful to the Lagos State Government and all those who have changed her story, Mrs. Uche said she was yet to consider the school which her children would attend. “Would I have ever lived in
this kind of house with my family and I having a toilet and kitchen to ourselves? I moved in here on Sunday and I am so happy and grateful. “Aunty, come and see our bedroom; have you seen the toilet? See our kitchen. See me now! I have a room and parlour self-contained. What more can I want, except for my husband to come and enjoy this good life with me? “People who used to laugh at us for not having food to eat can now see how God works. Even my mother-in-law who has not called me for so long now calls me. I am just so thankful to God because he did not allow me and my children die in shame. “I have promised God that I will do my best to grow my business. I want to grow and be able to help women with similar case as mine. I want to be able to impact their lives in future as my life was touched and changed.”
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