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The Fight For The Soul of Biafra ● Why Asari-Dokubo Hijacked Cause From Kanu ● It’s A Long-Drawn Struggle - Insiders
- IPOB Lawyer ● We Don’t Trust Nnamdi Kanu, Can’t Work With Him - OPC Faction ● He’s A Traitor, Bribed
SPECIAL REPORT
Imo: Dilemma Of Eastern Heartland
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Biafra Tears Kanu, Dokubo Apart
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BY THEWILL CORRESPONDENTS
resh insights have emerged on the reasons behind the recent move by the Leader of the Niger Delta Volunteer Force (NDVF), Mujahid Asari-Dokubo, to dislodge the Leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, from the forefront of the struggle for the actualisation of Biafra as a country out of Nigeria. THEWILL investigations have revealed that the former Niger Delta militant leader might just be acting out a script to hijack the Biafran cause from Kanu, who apparently is a fugitive after jumping bail in 2019 in his treasonable felony trial instituted against him by the federal government at the federal high court in Abuja. LONG-DRAWN SUPREMACY BATTLE Multiple sources close to the development told THEWILL that Asari’s recent declaration was the culmination of the internal crisis rocking IPOB and the supremacy battle between the two leaders, which actually manifested in the recent sack of the IPOB Executive leadership in the United Kingdom by Kanu. THEWILL reliably gathered that most of Asari’s lieutenants in the new movement were recently reprimanded and disciplined by the leadership of IPOB under Kanu after they were found to have allegedly compromised their positions within the organisation. Instead of putting up a fight within their ranks, they allegedly teamed up with Asari to declare the new de facto Customary Government of Biafra. THE DECLARATION Asari, a fortnight ago, had declared himself the de facto Head of a new separatist movement he called the Customary Government of Biafra, in a statement by the Head of Information and Communication of the new movement, Uche Mefor, an erstwhile ally of Kanu. Asari, according to the statement, said: “Nobody can stop us. Nobody can blockade us as they did in the first war,” adding, “We’re not going to fight any war with anybody; we’re walking to freedom. We will not shoot any gun with them, they will prepare their weapon but they will have nobody to kill with their weapon. “We as people have resolved that as Biafra, it’s time for us to take our destiny in our hands and bring freedom to ourselves and our children and the generation of Biafrans yet unborn. “I want to call on our brother, George Onyibe, to come on board to join as the secretary of the de facto customary government of the State of Biafra. He will take care of the administrative, day-to-day administration of the Biafra State. I also call on our brother, Emeka Esiri, to take care of the legal needs of this nascent government. “My brothers and sisters, the four of us will kick-start the process, others will come on board. We want volunteers who are committed; we want volunteers because there is nothing anymore. We are the people who have volunteered to salvage ourselves and the rest of us.
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Dokubo & Kanu
As a supposed leader, he should stop forcing Ijaw Nation to join Biafran. If he claims to be negotiating for the Ijaw Nation, let him come out with his term. If he claims to be negotiating for the Ijaw Nation, let him present the terms, he should stop forcing the Ijaw into Biafran agitation
group, they will support him. Imagine how their people will rally round Tinubu or President Buhari, once it is a matter of leadership. There is a saying in Igboland that if a hawk is threatening the lives of some chickens, you first drive away the hawk before looking for the chicken. “The allegations that are being made against him (Kanu) may be true, anyway, because he is not organized and lacks everything near legality in terms of
“I also call on Biafrans in the various provinces of the Biafra nations in Aba, Abakiliki, Anang, Awka, Calabar, Degema, Eket, Nsuka, Ogoja, Oji River, Okigwe, Onitsha, Opobo, Orlu, Owerri, Port Harcourt, Umuahia, Uyo and Yenagoa.
organization. But the timing of the crisis is wrong. The Igbo has no centralized leader since Odimegwu Ojukwu died. I will show you how popular among the youth Kanu is. There is a newspaper called Biafra Republic that sells like hot cake here. Yet is has no known address, stories are poorly written with some outright lies, yet anytime it appears, people rush for it,” the IPOB supporter said.
“We are going to proceed to set up provincial structures of government starting with provincial assemblies and provincial governance and administrators. Let nobody be mistaking that a Biafra will be worse than Nigeria. There is nothing that will be worse than what we are facing today in Nigeria.”
ASARI’S DECLARATION IS SUSPICIOUS - IJAW ACTIVIST Alfred Egbegi, an Ijaw activist and publisher of Izon Link, a regional newspaper in the Niger Delta condemned and expressed surprise at Asari’s declaration, especially his purported merger of their Ijaw Nation to the Biafran movement.
IPOB CRISIS A die-hard Biafran sympathizer and supporter, who craved anonymity because of the state crackdown of supporters and members of the IPOB, sees the ongoing development as part of a larger script to hijack IPOB. “You know the primary problem of the Igboman is that every one is always trying to get to the top. As at today, persons from 20-50 years old see Nnamdi Kanu as a leader. So there is this conspiracy to bring him down. If it was another ethnic THEWILLNIGERIA
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“As a supposed leader, he should stop forcing Ijaw Nation to join Biafran. If he claims to be negotiating for the Ijaw Nation, let him come out with his term. If he claims to be negotiating for the Ijaw Nation, let him present the terms, he should stop forcing the Ijaw into Biafran agitation,” Egbegi told THEWILL in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, on Friday, adding, “All is not yet Uhuru in Niger Delta where he comes from, he should stop dissipating his energies on Biafra but concentrate on the Niger Delta struggle for which he had been known for.” *Continues on Page 4
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It’s A Long-Drawn Struggle - Insiders
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*Continued from Page 3
ASARI IS BROKE – FORMER INC, GEJ SPOKESMAN A university lecturer, Dr. Konrad Welson, a former spokesman of the Ijaw National Congress and a former Chief Press Secretary of Goodluck Jonathan when he served as Governor of Bayelsa State, says no one should take Asari serious because he is broke and just seeking relevance.
This is not the first time they are having Customary Government. There is the one formed by Uwazuiruike, MASSOB; there is the one formed by Delay Human Rights Initiative, representing the Indigenous People of Biafra, formed by Barrister Emeka Esiri Esq, who is based in London
The Delta State University lecturer said it is typical of Asari to throw a tantrum thinking that by so doing he would be called by President Mohammadu Buhari and offered money. The teacher claimed the agitator used the same tactics to cow and convince former President Jonathan to do his biddings from where he made billions in naira. “He is broke and looking for relevance and he will fail,” he said, stressing that President Muhamadu Buhari is a retired military General who cannot easily get cajoled, intimidated. “Unfortunately, Asari Dokubo will fail and be disappointed in this current voyage in his life time,” he told THEWILL. NNAMDI KANU REMAINS IPOB LEADER – IPOB LEGAL OFFICER Reacting to Asari’s declaration in an exclusive chat with THEWILL, Barrister Ohaeto Uwaeze, Legal Officer of IPOB, dismissed the Niger Delta activist and his group as jokers and detractors in the struggle, saying they were doing what they had allegedly been bribed to do, according to him, to destroy Nnamdi Kanu. The IPOB chieftain also stated the official stand of IPOB on Asari’s declaration.
adding “And this is a sensitive issue of Biafran struggle.”
Uwazurike
“It’s a misnomer. Asari Dokubo has made himself a nobody. It’s really unfortunate because he is the leader of the Niger Delta Volunteer Force and Nnamdi Kanu is the leader of IPOB. So, we have a working cooperation and Asari Dokubo compromised his own stand with the Nigerian Government. He collected bribe, likewise Uwazuirike and they fell out from the struggle. “What they are trying to do now is to do what the Government has paid them to do - to destroy Nnamdi Kanu. The government of the day has tried to buy him (Kanu) but they couldn’t succeed. They have tried to bribe Nnamdi Kanu but they did not succeed. He has been very diligent in the struggle. The whole Biafrans rely on Nnamdi Kanu because he has never betrayed them for once. Whatever thing he says, he does. They are pleased with him. So, it is really unfortunate that Asari Dokubo, Uche Mefor, Uwazuiruike, Sigmund Uwanya and Emeka Esiri fell out from the struggle, “ Uwaeze told THEWILL.
NO COMMENT – GOVERNOR NYESOM WIKE’S SPOKESMAN Though the Chief Press Secretary to Nyesom Wike, the Rivers State Governor, Kelvin Ebiri, would not comment on the issue when THEWILL spoke to him on his mobile phone, Friday evening, directing our correspondent to the State Commissioner for Information, instead, THEWILL recalled that the River State Governor, Nyesom Wike, had described Asari as too irrelevant to deserve his response following his recent declaration of Biafra.
THE ANTECEDENTS Continuing, the lawyer said: “I look at it from antecedents, so I can soon see their end. “This is not the first time they are having Customary Government. There is the one formed by Uwazuiruike, MASSOB; there is the one formed by Delay Human Rights Initiative, representing the Indigenous People of Biafra, formed by Barrister Emeka Esiri Esq, who is based in London. They brought the Customary Government of Biafra, It didn’t go anywhere. And you have the Biafran Council Government, that also did not go anywhere. So, I look at them as noisemakers in the struggle. They cannot divide IPOB, IPOB has no divisions, it’s a one-family organisation. It’s either you are a member or you are not.” MEFOR’S IMPATIENCE Uwaeze however refuted the claim by some observers of the development that Asari’s declaration might just be one of the fall-outs of Kanu’s recent sack of the Board of IPOB United Kingdom branch, saying it was rather the impatience of Uche Mefor, the Head of Information and Communication of the new Customary Government of Biafra.
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According to Uwaeze, “It is very sensitive and carries a lot of emotions. And we are in Nigeria, you know how callous the Nigerian Government is! Initially, they (Biafrans) were seen carrying flags and non-violent and the soldiers were killing them en-masse. And now, they said they have killed them enough and are now carrying guns. Now, it’s you fire me, I fire you! And the government is saying shoot at sight. It’s very unfortunate. What they are fighting for is what they have a right, given to them by God. The right to self-determination, it’s also in the United Nations Charter and Africa Charter on Human Rights. Even the Constitution of Nigeria provided for the right to existence, right to self-determination because Nigeria adopted the Charter of African Human Rights. They adopted it! So, I have the right to say I don’t want to belong to Nigeria. It is my decision.”
Wike, who spoke on a television programme, monitored by THEWILL, wondered why people were granting undeserved publicity to Asari, insisting that he would not glorify the former warlord with a response. Esiri
“No! The fact is this: Uche Mefor was bribed and was fired because he compromised his position in IPOB and was relieved of his duty. In fact, if I were him, I would have still remained. He’s the one that escalated this as he was not patient, he went ahead to establish a parallel radio station which did not fly. Nobody reckons with him. The person we know is Nnamdi Kanu. These people are distracting elements, just detractors, nobody listens to them. Whatever comes from them is garbage,” Uwaeze said. BIAFRAN STRUGGLE IS VERY SENSITIVE He also described Asari as “an inconsequential person who does not have the acumen, all that is required, to lead,”
He, however, said Asari sometimes worked for the Federal Government but, in other times, would attack the same government. The Governor further wondered how Asari, who is an Ijaw man, could volunteer to lead Biafra known to be of the Igbos, saying he was always in the habit of abusing him but he decided not to make him relevant with his response. According to the governor, “The problem we have in Nigeria is that we try to give publicity to things that do not matter. You know the antecedent of Asari Dokubo. But each time people like Dokubo come out to make statements, we try to publicise it. “Sometimes, he works for the Federal Government. Sometimes, he attacks the Federal Government. I am one person that Asari Dokubo has always abused. But I won’t
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Asari’s A Traitor IPOB Lawyer a liar. What Baba was fastidious about was about the SNC. He wanted restructuring, devolution of power and resource control. He believed that the current 1999 Constitution held no hope for an equitable, just and progressive Nigeria. He never spoke about an Oodua Republic. Baba founded and organised OPC to defend Yoruba interest principally, and to defend the rights of every person in Yoruba land, no matter the ethnic origin, whether Igbo, Hausa, Yoruba, Ijaw. But this issue is different. But now, agitators are talking about founding a separatist nation.”
respond because I know his modus operandi. “He has accused us particularly me and my ethnic group that we are Igbos and that we have no oil well. But if you respond to that, you will give him publicity. If he says he is now the chairman of Biafra, let us see the people he has. In fact, there are issues we should not discuss. It is too irrelevant, I won’t do it. Let’s focus on Nigerian challenges not on frivolities.”
OPC NOT YET APPROACHED BY AGITATORS “IPOB and others are agitating for dismantling the entity called Nigeria and its constituent parts going away to form their separate nations. So far, those championing the Oodua Republic have not invited this OPC family to be part of what they plan about the Oodua Republic, like Professor Banji Akintoye and the others.
IJAWS WON’T BE FORCED INTO UNWILLING MARRIAGE - ACTIVIST An environmentalist with Environmental Right Action/ Friends of the Environment, Comrade Alagoa Moris, posited that though, as a fellow ljaw man, he had told Asari that the path he is pointing for the Ijaw Nation is unacceptable, maintaining that nobody can force Ijaw people into an unwilling marriage like he is trying to do.
“Someone also called me from America that we and Sunday Igboho should work together on Yoruba independence through Oodua Republic. I asked him who their leader was. He replied that they had no leader. That was a major setback and I let the fellow know that the absence of a known leader would be a setback because the cause needed a rallying point. I recognise that their cause is good and just and they mean well for the Yoruba race. But I never heard from them again after that initial approach.
Moris said: “With much respect for my fellow Ijaw, Asari, he is one son of Ijaw nation who prints and wears T - shirts having the image of late Isaac Boro and with that, many of us thought that he represents that struggle and what he was. I don’t think Asari Dokubo can convinced any Ijaw brother and sister, that if Isaac Boro were to be alive, he, Asari Dokubo, will venture to do this even though Isaac Boro must have been old. “This is very obvious. Even Ojukwu who declared Biafra after Isaac Boro had earlier declared Niger Delta Republic; never apologised to the Ijaws after he fled Nigeria on selfexile at the fall of Biafra which Isaac Boro assisted on the side of the Federal troops. Ojukwu, who was pardoned by the Shagari NPN Government didn’t approach the Ijaws on his return from exile and try to mend fences and heal wounds. So, with what our people experienced in the defunct Eastern region, why should Asari ever contemplate such without first of all going in-house to consult Ijaw leaders and people? If he even did, the answer would have been capital No. “Yet, it would have been better that he consulted and our people would have told him why it wouldn’t be possible, especially as Ijaws cannot be a mere appendage to any ethnic group in Nigeria. We were independently existing like any other free people in this geographical area which the British brought together as Nigeria. We were never a conquered people. Let any tribe or ethnic nationality in Nigeria come out and say they ever went into battle with Ijaws and conquered us before and after the amalgamation of 1914. “If Ijaws decide to form any nation, if Nigeria disintegrates like the former USSR, then Ijaws will be an equal partner and not taken as an extension of those who are having expansionist agenda. “If Niger Delta Republic doesn’t materialise, it might be United States of Niger Delta or any other nomenclature that appeals to the groups coming together. “As for Asari, he is free to express his opinions or views as guaranteed by the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria; but the view of the majority of Ijaw nation would be the final. Nobody can force Ijaws into an unwilling marriage. “One question l have, if Gen.Aguiyi Ironsi wasn’t killed in the counter-coup; would there have been anything like Biafra?” WE DON’T TRUST KANU, CAN’T WORK WITH HIM - OPC An interesting dimension to the unfolding drama is the hand of fellowship being extended to other separatist movements in the country, especially to those championing
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Mefor
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Kanu was once arrested but he jumped bail and escaped. I don’t believe that you should be agitating for something for your people and go off to hide somewhere. No. We will remain in the country and match each other toe to toe
the cause for Oodua Republic by Kanu, following the withdrawal of Dokubo and his group from IPOB. However, the Deputy President to the late Dr. Frederick Fasehun, founder of the Oodua People’s Congress (OPC), Otunba Wasiu Afolabi, a.k.a “Askari” told THEWILL that it might be impossible for his organisation to work with Kanu based on his antecedents, though he affirmed that, “So far, neither Nnamdi Kanu nor Sunday Igboho nor Mujahid Asari-Dokubo has reached out to us.” According to Afolabi, “Kanu was once arrested but he jumped bail and escaped. I don’t believe that you should be agitating for something for your people and go off to hide somewhere. No. We will remain in the country and match each other toe to toe, “adding, “Dr. Fasehun never canvassed a separatist Yoruba nation.” The Yoruba leader stated further: “In his lifetime, Dr. Frederick Fasehun never spoke to us about Yoruba independence and anyone who tells you Baba ever said so is
“There is no denying that the current degeneration of the country’s socio-economic and security situations have fuelled the agitations. Now we must take the agenda seriously. But before you can do that, you must weigh both advantages and disadvantages. This is about the destiny of the nation and the people,” he told THEWILL in Lagos on Thursday. SNC, RESTRUCTURING AS THE WAY FORWARD Afolabi stated further: “On that basis, OPC believes that Yoruba will remain in Nigeria on the condition of holding a Sovereign National Conference to produce a truly people’s Constitution in place of the current one handed over to us by the military and which favours only one section of the country without considering the aspirations and welfare of other parts of Nigeria. We need to have a Constitution that will ensure equity and justice for all parts of the country. “Nigeria needs restructuring that will usher in True Federalism. Once that does happens, Yoruba will be content to remain in one Nigeria. Barring that, we should all choose to go our separate ways. Fasehun formed CENN and used it as a rallying point to bring in Niger Delta, Ijaw, Edo, Arewa, MASSOB and others.” STRUGGLE MUST BE UNDER THE AMBIT OF THE LAW - YCE However, the Secretary General, Yoruba Council of Elders. Dr. Kunle Olajide, told THEWILL in an exclusive interview that “There is nothing wrong with anybody pursuing what he thinks will solve the problem in as much as it is not unconstitutional.” According to the Yoruba leader, “You don’t expect us to do the same thing the same way. Everybody has the right to say, this is how I want to go about it. The cautionary note that I am giving and I will continue to give is that whatever we are doing, it must be under the ambit of the law of Nigeria, so that people don’t just use the opportunity to come and mow down our youth.” THEWILL tried multiple times to get Asari to comment on this report before going to press but his mobile numbers were switched off. The Minister for Information, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, could also not be reached to comment on the allegation that the Federal Government had wooed Asari to its side against Kanu. The Minister’s Special Adviser on Media, Segun Adeyemi, did not respond to our messages before press time.
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NEWS COVID-19: Edo Vaccinates Over 11,800 Frontline Workers, 4527 Others BY AYO ESAN
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Sheikh Dahiru Usman of Bauchi and others, during an audience with the New Khalifa Sheikh Muhaammadul Mahy Niass held at the Council Chambers in Abuja on 26/3/ 2021
Money Laundering: EFCC Seeks Collaboration with Nigerians in Diaspora BY AYO ESAN
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he Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Abdurrasheed Bawa has called on Nigerians in Diaspora to support the Commission in the fight against Money laundering and other financial crimes. The EFCC boss made the call while speaking virtually at an Expert Training and Advocacy on Tracking and Recovery of Illicit Funds and Assets organized by the Human & Environmental Development Agenda, HEDA, in collaboration with the EFCC, MacArthur Foundation, Kent Law School, Open Society Initiative for West Africa, OSIWA, the Corner House and other stakeholders. The EFCC boss who was represented by Dr. Enakeno Oju, a staff of the Commission, urged Nigerians in Diaspora to continue to support the fight against economic and financial crimes. “As critical stakeholders, we are urging the Nigerians in Diaspora to continue to support the fight against economic and financial crimes and to be assured of the EFCC’s support and commitment. We must collectively strive to achieve the Nigerian dream.” Highlighting the importance of the collaboration, the EFCC boss told participants that the Commission has provided a Diaspora Information Desk at the Commission “to attend to issues of concerns from the Diaspora and to further ensure that Nigerians in Diaspora are able to safely invest in Nigeria and to improve the image of Nigeria among the comity of nations.” The Executive Chairman also called on the Nigerians in Diaspora to assist the Commission with vital information about Nigerian looters. “I am therefore calling on you to assist the EFCC in getting vital information about Nigerian looters who stash our stolen monies and properties in the United Kingdom and other foreign countries. Nigerians in Diaspora cannot afford to sit on the fence. They are closer to the scene of Crime, therefore, must play an active role in the war against graft and provide vital information to the EFCC that will assist in the recovery of our stolen wealth abroad,” he said. Bawa also bemoaned the challenges Nigeria is facing as a result of illegal movement of funds from Nigeria to other countries and the new techniques deployed by organized criminal groups in siphoning the wealth of this country to other countries, which according to him “constitute a severe and damaging drain on the Nigerian economy”. “Organized criminal groups have developed intricate channels of illicit flows that deprived African economies of crucial resources for development,” he said. Other participants at the event include CDS Ahmed M. Ghali of the EFCC, who spoke on, How to Spot and Detect Money Laundering.
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Let’s Mainstream NOA Agenda At All Levels, Says Ikpeazu BY OKKEY UCHENNA, UMUAHIA
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he Abia State governor, Okezie Ikpeazu has stressed that governments at all levels in the country should begin to mainstream the importance of the agenda of the National Orientation Agency (NOA) in the people’s daily living. Ikpeazu stated this when he hosted the state’s director of the agency, Ngozi Okechukwu and her top management team and senior staff at the Government House, Umuahia, the state capital. He said the greatest impact the agency would have on the people would be to help shape the direction of the nation to form the fulcrum that would drive government’s policies and programmes According to him, on his part, his administration would do its best to support the agency to actualize it’s mandate in the state, adding that he is impressed with the team’s records of achievements. The governor, therefore pledged to rise to the demands of the office of the agency’s grand patron in the state which was bestowed on him by the director during her address earlier. In he address, Okechukwu had said the agency is set to revamp the War Against Indiscipline (WAI) to instill the message of the campaign across every strata of the society to boost security.
Edo 2020: Osinbajo to Declare 20th National Sports Festival Open
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ice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, will declare the 20th National Sports Festival, Edo 2020, open on Tuesday, April 6, 2021.
Chairman, Local Organising Committee (LOC) and Edo State Deputy Governor, disclosed this during a meeting of the LOC, in Benin City. The sports fiesta will be held from April 2 to 14, in various venues in Benin City, Edo State, after several postponements occasioned by disruptions caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. In an earlier statement, Shaibu said the Games Village would be open on April 2, 2021, for athletes/officials, adding, “The torch of unity will arrive in Edo State on April 3, and will go round the 18 local governments in the state. It will arrive at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium main bowl on April 6, where the governor will light it up.” The Presidential Taskforce on COVID-19 and Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) are to arrive in Benin City four days to the commencement of the festival, to monitor compliance with COVID-19 guidelines.
he Edo State Government has intensified the vaccination of residents against coronavirus (COVID-19), as about 16,328 persons have received the Oxford AstraZenaca vaccine across the state’s 18 local government areas. Executive Secretary of the state’s Primary Healthcare Development Agency, Dr. Julie Erhabor, disclosed this during the daily virtual meeting of the State COVID-19 Taskforce, chaired by the state governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki. Erhabor noted that the 16,328 persons include 4,527 strategic leaders, 4,337 health workers and 7,464 other frontline workers across various communities in the state. Urging eligible members of the public to avail themselves the opportunity and get inoculated against the deadly virus, the Executive Secretary disclosed that the state plans to vaccinate about 47, 994 persons in the first phase of the vaccination exercise. Noting that the government remains committed to containing the pandemic and ensuring the safety of citizens, Erhabor said the state currently has 103 teams for the rollout of the vaccine, including 62 fixed centres and 41 temporary fixed posts. Meanwhile, the State COVID-19 Incident Manager, Dr. Andrew Obi, noted that measures deployed by the government to flatten the curve of the second wave of the pandemic has continued to yield gains as Edo sees a steady decline in case positivity and fatality rates. The Incident Manager disclosed that the state recorded one more case and 10 recoveries from COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, with no death in the last 13 days, adding that 211 samples were collected at various sample collection points in the state within the 24-hour period. He stated that the new case was reported from the Irrua Specialist teaching Hospital (ISTH) laboratory, while the 10 recoveries were reported from the home care units of the Stella Obasanjo Hospital and ISTH isolation facilities.
Makinde Commissions Ultra-Modern Okada, Tricycle Loading Points in Ibadan BY AYO ESAN
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overnor of Oyo State, ‘Seyi Makinde, on Friday, commissioned the Ultra-Modern Okada and Tricycle (otherwise known as Keke NAPEP) Loading Points in Ibadan, the state capital. The governor, who addressed Keke and motorcycle riders at Agodi Gate area, venue of the event, said that the loading points would facilitate easy transportation of residents in the state capital. While addressing Okada and Keke riders, who gathered at the Agodi Gate Junction, Ibadan, the governor said that his administration will not ban the activities of Okada riders but that it would re-organise and coordinate them to conform with modern ways of doing transport business. He maintained that when properly organised, it would be easy to differentiate individuals doing other businesses from commercial motorcycles and tricycles riders. He also enjoined Keke and Okada riders to do away with those using Okada and tricycles to commit different crimes. The governor explained that the loading points were designed as a pilot scheme, adding that if the units are used judiciously, the initiative will be replicated throughout the state. He said: “You motorcyclists and tricyclists are part of those who made this government come into place and the government has decided to come up with this pilot project. “We want a situation whereby those who want to use Okada or tricycles won’t have to stay under the sun or be disturbed by the rain as the rainy season is fast approaching. “We also want you to be coordinated and organised. I already told the people in charge to install solar lights here so that you can all do your businesses comfortably at night. “We don’t want to ban Okada and tricycles in the state but there must be regulation. “So, what we want you to do is for you to get yourselves organised. THEWILLNIGERIA
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Imo: Dilemma Of Eastern Heartland BY SAM DIALA he prevailing circumstance in Imo State can be likened to that of a crew rescued from a sinking ship by the Devil. If the word to capture the true mood of the people is lacking, it is not Dilemma.
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Indeed, Imolites, or Ndi-Imo, as they are also called, are caught up in the intricate web of a dilemma – the extent they probably have not encountered in the 45 years of the state’s existence (since 1976). Their dilemma emanates from the bid to wriggle out of the grips of Owelle Rochas Okorocha, the former governor who was set to foist his family dynasty on the people, and the imposition of an unwanted leader, Hope Uzodinma, a governor they did not elect. Both Rochas and Hope are engaged in a fierce battle for the soul of Imo, with the people suffering the consequences. Besides the well-orchestrated succession plot, Okorocha had allegedly looted massive assets of Imo and converted them to his family’s possession through a perfected legal process that only the unusual force of a state law could reverse. Imo was allegedly ravaged, excavated and pilloried by Okorocha and his family. No area was spared – from state funds to landed and movable properties. Okorocha allegedly cornered all for himself and his family in the worst show of impunity ever witnessed in the history of the state. Ndi-Imo needed a strongman to match the hegemonic grip of Okorocha. Who can save Imolites; who will go for them? Okorocha had physically departed from government, but his looming virtual image could be felt all over the place. He had positioned his men to descend on the opposition or any challenging voice, without mercy. Okorocha’s strong men THEWILLNIGERIA
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were allegedly out to steal, to kill and to destroy. The fear of Rochas became the beginning of wisdom as fervent prayers were offered for an unusual divine intervention.
Then emerged Emeka Ihedioha – the popularly elected governor who had made his mark as a federal parliamentarian on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. He rose to the level of Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives before deciding to contest for the governorship of his state. It was a change of canticle for Ndimo, from ‘Nunc Dimittis’ to ‘Te Deum Laudamus’ as is the pattern of the Anglican Church (where Ihedioha himself belongs). Ihedioha took over the seat of power in a most celebrated atmosphere of delight, thanksgiving and fulfilment. He began the arduous task of rescuing Imo from the dynasty-designed grips of Rochas amid fortified resistance posed by Okorocha guards. Under Ihedioha, government workers’ salaries and retired workers’ pensions were prioritized. Education, the hallmark of the state’s existence, which had been abandoned, butchered and destroyed under Okorocha, began to plumage and grow again. It was like the time had come to sing the late Jim Reeves’ countryside beautiful rendition, “Lord we thank Thee ....” Imolites at home and in diaspora began to breathe the fresh air of life, with eye that was able to see a beautiful tomorrow. For them, Ihedioha had come to save Ndi-Imo the steady flow of fear, anxiety and uncertainty from the leadership of a man whose initial behaviour turned out an inevitable preliminary to mindless looting. The smooth journey had attained the point of a cruising level when it was traumatically truncated: Senator Uzodinma was
pronounced the “duly elected” governor of Imo State by the Mohammed Tanko-led Supreme Court of Nigeria. It was the same Supreme Court that had declared that Uzodinma was not a candidate of any political party. Uzodinma’s emergence as governor remains a knot yet to be untied by the nation’s judiciary in its decades of existence. Of course, the world saw it as an attempt to square a cycle bearing in mind the facts of the case. Imolites are perplexed: Uzodinma had lost the legal battle at both the Tribunal and at the Appeal Court. He was declared an interloper. How can a candidate without a party be declared a winner and with votes he did not earn? Besides, he came a distant 4th. Uzodinma emerged from No 4, without technically belonging to any political party to become governor. But the Supreme Court insisted it has the supreme wisdom. In his dissenting judgment when Ihedioha asked the Supreme Court to set aside its January 14, 2020 ruling, Justice Centus Nweze, who was not part of the original seven-member panel that nullified Ihedioha’s election, said remarkably, “The decision of the Supreme Court in the instant matter will continue to haunt our electoral jurisprudence for a long time to come.” In his article entitled “Hope Uzodinma’s 100 days of hopelessness,” published in The Niche of April 29, 2020, Ikechukwu Amaechi predicted that the consequences of the Supreme Court’s shenanigan will be dire for the state. “What the country’s apex court did by imposing Hope Uzodimma on a people who rejected him at the polls is to create a hopeless situation for the state. The consequences are better imagined.” *Continue on Page 8
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SPECIAL REPORT ...Eastern Heartland at A Crossroads *Continued from Page 7
Ihedioha has gone; but the battle to retrieve Imo assets from Okorocha had to be fought, and fiercely too. Imo was about being swallowed by Okorocha and his family. The level of state asset allegedly appropriated by Okorocha can only happen under a tough-minded tyranny, with every stream of dictatorship and brutality running through the blood veins. Of course, no ‘simple’ or ‘soft’ man can dare Okorocha. If he was allowed to go with those public assets, Imo would remain the fiefdom of Okorocha’s family forever. Gov. Uzodinma, the leader imposed on the people; the personality Ndi-Imo rejected, is confronting Okorocha. The people are cheering; they are also weeping. Uzodinma is doing a “good” job; but he is not the people’s choice. He is the rejected stone that would not be accepted as the corner-stone. Here lies the dilemma of Ndi-Imo. “Thank God Okorocha is gone and being dispossessed of the people’s properties he illegally acquired for himself and his family. But the man doing the job is not wanted. He is an interloper”, said a traditional ruler who would not want his name published. “When Imolites went to the polls on March 9, 2019 to elect a governor, they voted massively for the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Hon. Emeka Ihedioha; not Hope Uzodimma, the man now sitting pretty in Douglas House. “The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) dutifully returned Ihedioha winner and on May 29, 2019, he took the oath of office. “But the sovereign will of the people was whimsically upended on January 14, 2020 when the Supreme Court illogically declared Uzodimma, the man who came a distant fourth, winner of the election in which the same Supreme Court had ruled barely two weeks earlier that he was not even a candidate,” Amaechi wrote in the February 24, 2021 edition of The Niche. Recently, the top echelon of the ruling APC stormed Imo State to celebrate with Uzodinma on the first anniversary of his Supreme Court victory and to witness the commissioning of 46 roads he claimed to have constructed within one year in office. He used the opportunity to rename the popular Asumpta Avenue, adjoining the imposing Catholic premises of Assumpta Cathederal, to Muhammadu Buhari Avenue.
Matriculation Board (JAMB) examinations. Imo children also emerge tops in these examinations among candidates from the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FTC). Imo also belongs to the league of states with the highest number of professors. The Uzodinma-Okorocha debacle is telling on the state. There is low spirit everywhere. Businesses are down and many players are out. As a civil service state, Imo economy depends largely on workers’ salaries unlike other states that are business-driven. Rural roads are in very bad shapes as electricity supply has become persistently unavailable. Countryside businesses, such drinking and entertainment spots that thrive during festivities have their doors locked. Food items are expensive; as major markets operate without the buoyancy that characterise their 8th-day holding. Cost of transportation is high because of bad roads and high cost of fuel – over N200 per litre. The National Bureau of Statistics Unemployment and Underemployment Report for Q4 2020 showed that Imo has the highest rate of unemployment with 56.64 per cent among the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). The state also recorded the highest combined unemployment and underemployment rates of 82.5 per cent, among its peers and FCT. According to the report, Imo has a total of 1,102,525 unemployed persons as against its 1,946,682 total labour force as at Q4 2020. Imo also recorded the highest rate of unemployment with 48.7 per cent in Q2 2020, suggesting a worsening trend of 794 basis points in Q4 2020. The Imo PDP Publicity Secretary, Ogu Bundu Nwadike, bemoaned cloud of mis-governance that has descended on Imo State under the “incompetent, corrupt and hypocritical APC/Uzodinma-led government”. Nwadike told THEWILL that the economic consequence of leadership by lying, looting and propaganda which characterizes Hope Uzodinma’s administration, reflected in the recent unemployment rate published by the NBS. “Can you imagine Imo recording the highest unemployment rate in Q2 and Q4 2020 among the 36 states of the federation, worse than Zamfara, Bornu, Yobe, Katisina and the likes?”
1. The N59.6 billion taken from the local government system
“Does this show you that Uzodinma is here for the people?”, a top government official said on point of anonymity. “I know he is retrieving Imo’s properties illegally acquired by Okorocha, is it not the living that will enjoy recovered properties?”
5. The Old IBC premises at Orji.
Also, a delegate of South-East Anglican Bishops visited Gov. Uzodinma in Owerri. “Their visit and posing in a photograph with Governor Uzodinma for whatever reason is a deodorized sacrilege”, said a prominent religious leader who pleaded not to be named in the report. When reminded that he is doing a good job by challenging Okorocha, the clergyman said, “They are the same; Uzodinma will turn out worse than Okorocha. Imo is doomed; we are in a serious dilemma.” Across the state, the people are bleeding inside themselves. They are concerned that Imo, a state of enlightened and well educated people is ruled by characters whose antecedents and educational backgrounds are expressed in unprintable words. Imo ranks among the states with the highest candidates in the West African Examinations Council (WAEC), National Examination Council (NECO), and the Joint Admissions and
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The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in June 2020 disclosed that it returned N2.7 billion recovered from Okorocha,to the state government. Mr Imam Usman, zonal head of the EFCC Port Harcourt office, said the returned fund was part of the N7.9 billion recovered from different bank accounts linked to the ex-governor.Usman said N2.5 billion was returned under the short-lived administration of Emeka Ihedioha, immediate past governor, while Hope Uzodinma, incumbent governor of the state, received N514 million in the previous month (May). THEWILL visited parts of the three senatorial zones of the state recently and spoke with a cross-section of the people. Virtually every Imolite was incensed. “We are saddled with a governor we never elected; yet we need someone in authority to fight Okorocha. Hope Uzodinma is prosecuting the battle against Okorocha; yet we did not vote him into power and do not like him”, said a traditional ruler who pleaded not to be mentioned. There are allegations that Uzodinma is silently looting the state treasury. A source told THEWILL that Ihedioha’s short-lived administration discovered huge funds siphoned by the banks from the state government accounts. According to the source, the banks reached an agreement with the government on how the funds running into billions of Naira would be refunded. “The deal has entered into voice mail under Uzodinma”, said the source close to the state government. Greater fears are being expressed that Uzodinma and Okorocha might eventually reconcile, striking a deal that would earn Uzodinma the support of Okorocåha while the latter is allowed to part with his loot. That appears another dimension to the dilemma of the Eastern Heartland.
List of Properties and Monies Allegedly Looted by Rochas Okorocha During 8-year Tenure as Imo Governor
The personalities that graced the occasion included Senate President, Ahmed Lawan. Lawan presided over the session that approved Buhari’s $22.7 billion dollar loan for projects that excluded the South-East. He moved to beat the gavel amid protest against the illegal removal and replacement of Mrs. Chinaelo Anohu-Amazu, former Pension Commission (PenCom) Director-General. Lawan retorted that he is not in the Senate to interpret the law, and arrogantly told Senator Enyinnnaya Abaribe, who spoke on behalf of the SE caucus, to approach the court of law.
Recently, over 300 Imo teachers stormed Government House demanding the payment of their 12 months’ salary, faulting Uzodinma’s claim of paying the workers regularly.
The Chief Press Secretary to Gov. Hope Uzodinma, Mr Oguwike Nwachukwu, would not respond to the issues raised in a note to him, concerning the mood of the people under a governor that is not the people’s choice. Nwachukwu only responded by asking “Who told you they did not vote for him?”
2. The Eastern Palm University built with Imo money but personalized by Okorocha. 3. The N96 billion being the stolen portion of Imo’s IGR for eight years. 4. N40 billion siphoned through the unexecuted 27 general hospitals projects.
6. The Nekede and Orji Mechanic Villages. 7. A vast expanse of land on the Sam Mbakwe Airport road was acquired by the Government for the purpose of attracting a Naval Base. 8. The Adapalm in Ohaji which Okorocha said was leased out to investors and left in ruins to date. 9. Westbrook Hotels was built by Okorocha’s son-in-law, Uche Nwosu. 10. WODDI Wellness Center owned by Okorocha’s wife, Nkechi, built on the former Imo State Secretariat Annex, a land forcefully acquired from the State by Uche Nwosu as Commissioner for Lands. 11. The Reach FM owned by Uche Nwosu, without any known legitimate means of owning such huge property. 12. The multi-billion Naira Farmers Market built by Geraldine, Okorocha’s sister, on land belonging to the State.
13. Over twenty-five plots of State land acquired by Uche Nwosu upon which El Freeda Foundation was built. This is the Foundation through which billions of Naira have been laundered out of the State. 14. Extervia Mega Supermarket opposite Civic Center Estate owned by Ogechi Ololo, Okorocha’s sister. 15. Municipal Plaza owned by Nkechi Okorocha built on land forcefully acquired from a civil servant by Uche Nwosu. 16. Twitter Bites acquired by Geraldine Okorocha forcefully from Mr. Fans. 17. Spibat Estate most of which land was forcefully taken from Mbieri people by Okorocha. 18. House of Freeda Malls in Owerri, Abuja and Lagos built by Uloma, Uche Nwosu’s wife. 19. A mighty poultry farm beside Shoprite owned by Uche Nwosu on a land forcefully acquired. 20. A probe into the JPROS financial sleaze perpetrated in Okorocha’s first term. 21. Recovery of over N800 million given to Okorocha’s sister, Geraldine per annum, for Christmas trees. 22. Recovery of the N600 million diverted through the supposed renovation of the Imo State Secretariat.
23. Recovery of the N18 billion looted through the alleged construction of primary school blocks across the State. 24. Recovery of all the markets in the State which Okorocha has claimed 30% ownership. 25. Recovery of the ISOPADEC funds and the 13% oil derivation funds which amount to over N20 billion. 26. Recovery of the cardboard industry at Owerri-Ebeiri in Orlu. 27. Recovery of the N2 billion diverted through the construction of the completely worthless Akachi Tower. 28. A probe into and recovery of over N120 billion diverted through failed road projects. There is no single road project done by Okorocha that is not a failure. 29. Recovery of hundreds of plots of land taken from the State by Okorocha and family, spread across the state. 30. Recovery of Imo’s security votes which Okorocha personalized for eight years. 31. Recovery of IRROMA equipment worth billions of Naira looted by Okorocha. 32. Recovery of ITC vehicles and investments looted by Okorocha, and many more loots! 33. Bailout funds diverted by him and his family.
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Secondus
Mohammed
POLITICS
2023 Presidency: Furore Over PDP Committee’s Report On Zoning T BY AYO ESAN & UKANDI ODEY
he report of a committee set up by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to review the 2019 general elections which said the 2023 presidential ticket should be contested by aspirants from all the six geo political zones appears to have attracted more condemnations than, unexpectedly, applause.
The committee headed by the Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed, had as members, the Senate Minority Leader, Enyinnaya Abaribe; former governor of Niger State, Babangida Aliyu; Senator Stella Omu and Emmanuel Agbo, who served as secretary. The Committee in its report submitted to the National Working Committee of the party, said “though many people think special consideration should be given to the North East and South East geo-political zones for the sake of fairness and equity; merit, rather than zonal consideration, should be adopted in the choice of the party’s presidential flagbearer. It said the two zones have had the shortest stints at the Presidency. The committee’s recommendation, if adopted, would dash the hope of some of the members of the opposition party who had canvassed the zoning of the presidency exclusively to the south.
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Though many people think special consideration should be given to the North East and South East geo-political zones for the sake of fairness and equity; merit, rather than zonal consideration, should be adopted in the choice of the party’s presidential flagbearer The view of the committee is not sitting well with South East members of the party who do not understand why the PDP will now deny them the ticket despite all the support from the zone since 1999. The zone’s disappointment was conveyed in a statement issued by the National Publicity Secretary of
Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Alex Ogbonnia, who said the Bala Mohammed Committee’s recommendation was “despicable, un-reflective and unconscionable.” He added: “It is very worrisome that some highly placed Nigerians who have benefited so much from the unity of the country would be inclined to decisions and actions that will further inflame the passions of the patient but aggrieved part of the country. “For the avoidance of doubt, Nigerians agreed on the rotation of the presidency between the North and the South, in which case it is the turn of the South after the tenure of President Muhammadu Buhari. “For clarity purposes, both the South West and the SouthSouth had both taken their turns in the persons of Chief Olusegun Obasanjo and Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan respectively. “It is rather very unpatriotic and a trifle on the sensibilities of the Igbo for the committee to even suggest the rotation of the presidency to the Northeast in the first instance and open to every part of Nigeria as a major slight. “It is disturbing that all the indignities, perceived and real, that the Southeast suffer in the current dispensation are the outcome of the Igbo support to the PDP since 1999. “The leadership of the PDP is advised to retract the comment made by Alhaji Bala Mohammed and countered *Continue on Page 10
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POLITICS ...Committee Report On Zoning will prevail”.
*Continued from Page 9
the content of the obnoxious committee report in the interest of the party.
Also speaking with THEWILL, the Secretary General of the Yoruba Council of Elders, Dr. Kunle Olajide, said, the party didn’t say that there will be no zoning in 2023.
“Let it be known that Ndigbo does not wax so eloquent on political parties. The Igbo is bound to advertise the party that caters to the interest of our people.
“The committee was set up and the committee said that as far as they are concerned, they are not going to recognize zoning. But that report would still be submitted to the party, that is not the position of the party yet. “Let’s wait for them, but for me that is not going to work. In fact it is going to work against them if they make a mistake of adopting the report.
“The Ohanaeze Ndigbo led by Ambassador Professor George Obiozor is committed to a Nigerian president of Igbo extraction and there is no going back on it.” In a similar protest, the Coalition of South East Youth Leaders (COSEYL), described the committee’s recommendation as anti-people.
Nigeria is terribly polarised now, there is mutual suspicion, so any party that does not zone the presidency to the South in 2023 will fail, and I can say that clearly.
According to the President General of the coalition, Goodluck Ibem, it was all about returning Prince Uche Secondus as PDP National Chairman and Alhaji Atiku Abubakar as presidential candidate. He said the PDP has no respect and value for party loyalty and support.
Few PDP leaders and stakeholders in Plateau State who spoke with our correspondents on the issue seem to appreciate the idea of merit and credentials as superior to the expediency of zoning and its huge potential to narrow choices and at the same time elevate mediocrity and throw up the wrong person. At the same time, the party men are not oblivious of the circumstances and expediency that the country is in ruins presently and that there is the urgent need to rescue it from further drift.
He recalled how the Southeast has been a major supporter of the PDP since its formation in 1998 till date and how a prominent son of the zone, the late Dr. Alex Ekwueme, used the G34 which he led at the time, to lay the foundation of the party. Orbih
He said the Igbo having suffered, sacrificed and invested so much towards the progress and success of the party deserve to be given the party’s presidential ticket in 2023.
One time speaker of the Plateau State House of Assembly and former member of the House of Reps for Pankshin/ Kanke/Kanam Federal constituency, Hon Emmanuel Goar, said, “in really competitive democracy and by the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, zoning is unconstitutional”.
On its part, the Pan Niger Delta Forum, (PANDEF) condemned in strong terms the recommendation by the PDP committee. The forum in a reaction by its National Publicity Secretary, Hon. Ken Robinson, described the recommendation as irrational and inconsistent with extant provisions of the PDP Constitution on zoning between the North and South.
However, he said although absence of zoning bolsters the credibility of democracy in Nigeria, zoning is topmost in the minds of the people. According to him, this, coupled with other sensibilities and recent experiences in the country, makes the rule an exception for now. He maintained that emotions of the people is more important now, saying “I am not comfortable” with the open option as recommended by the committee.
Robinson stressed that the position of PANDEF “is that a northern president is to complete eight years by 2023, so the presidency must, therefore, rotate to the South in 2023.”
Right Hon. Istifanus Nmwansat, also a former speaker of the Plateau State House of Assembly, said the more urgent task now is to salvage Nigerians who have been living like a conquered people under the APC government. Thus, he said, “it is liberation before right”. Leaving the options open, he said, is good, but “the party must be circumspect and narrow down to any strategy that will guarantee victory in 2023”.
He said the PDP will be better if it discards off the committee’s report “and work towards ensuring that its 2023 presidential candidate is from the South, whether the person emerges from the South-south, South-east or South-west is a different matter entirely.” The forum warned that it will be suicidal for any of the registered political parties to field any northern candidate for the 2023 presidential race. “The PDP and indeed any other political party, need not be told that it would be a suicidal adventure for it to toy with the idea of presenting a northern presidential flagbearer in 2023″, it said. Speaking with THEWILL, the National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, said the party is yet to adopt any position on the zoning ahead of the 2023 Presidential elections. He further explains that it has not taken any decision on any of the recommendations proposed by the Senator Bala Mohammed-led PDP Committee on the review of the 2019 Elections. He said: “The PDP immensely appreciates the overwhelming interest by majority of Nigerians in the PDP as their national rallying point to elect a Pan-Nigeria, unifying and people-oriented leadership that would rescue our nation from misrule, come 2023. ”Our party notes that such unprecedented public interest and confidence in the PDP is responsible for the widespread discussions and enquiries on the recommendations of the Committee on the Review of the 2019 Elections. “The PDP notes that the recommendations will be subjected
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According to him, it is absurd for anyone to imagine that the North would retain the presidency as nature abhors injustice, adding that the sun does not rise in the east and set in the east.
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It is just a mere suggestion and there are several other people making different suggestions
to its democratic process by relevant organs of the party and consultation across all national interests. “While our party appreciates the enthusiasm by Nigerians on our nomination processes, the PDP assures that its decision on zoning will be the product of wide consultation, discussions and consensus building, taking into consideration the aggregate aspiration and hope of the generality of the Nigerian people. “Our party has however noted the disposition and line of discussion from various political interests across the six geo-political zones of our country in this regard, and at the appropriate time, the collective understanding of Nigerians
Similarly, a legal practitioner and PDP bigwig in Plateau State, Danlami Agyisa is of the opinion that there is urgency to save Nigeria from collapse. “Now is not time for right, but strategy that will produce victory. That is what Nigerians are waiting for in 2023”. Also speaking, former Transport Minister, Chief Ebenezer Babatope said the committee’s report is not the final decision of the party on zoning. Babatope who is also a member of PDP Board of Trustees said “It is just a recommendation that was submitted and it is not yet our party’s position. The interest generated is good. It shows that Nigerians are looking up to us and we will not disappoint them.The party is going to take a decision that will be acceptable to the people. Just wait for us”. The newly elected National Vice Chairman South – South of the PDP, Chief Dan Orbih told THEWILL: “A committee’s report is just a Committee’s report, nothing more. “It is just a mere suggestion and there are several other people making different suggestions. At the appropriate time, the party will sit down and look at the various propositions by different segments of the party and we will take a position that will be official. For now, there is no official decision on the presidency as regarding zoning or no zoning”. The days ahead will show which of the positions will prevail. THEWILLNIGERIA
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POLITICS THEWILL authoritatively reports that Mr. James Iniama, who is the Chief Executive Officer, James Iniama Consult is pulling so much weight in Akwa Ibom as it has to do with taking over from Udom Emmanuel in 2023. He is putting up a massive structure in Ewet Housing Estate even as so many interest groups gather at the mansion which is still under construction daily to declare solidarity. Even elders and some stakeholers from other federal constituencies and Senatorial District have declared support for his ambition even when he is yet to declair his intention publicly as the political timetable would not permit such for now.
Okon
Albert
Still on the agitation to produce the next governor from Itu Federal Constituency, a socio-political group under the aegis Eastern Ibibio People Association, had appealed for the support of the Ntisong Ibibio, the leader of Ibibio nation in Akwa Ibom State, Obong Essien Ekidem, for Itu /Ibiono Ibom federal constituency to produce the next governor of Akwa Ibom state come 2023. Members of the association paid advocacy visit to the Ntisong Ibibio 111 and his council in his palace. The leader of the group, Mr. Eteyen Archibong, lamented that the people of Eastern Ibibio comprising of four local government areas in Ikot Ekpene and Uyo senatorial districts, Ibiono Ibom, Ikono, Ini and Itu have over the years been marginalised by successive administrations in the state in terms of sensitive political appointments and siting of development projects. He reasoned that the time was ripe for Itu /Ibiono Ibom federal constituency to be supported to produce the next governor of the state in 2023, as power returns to Uyo senatorial district. He explained that two federal constituencies in Uyo senatorial district, Uyo and Etinan federal constituencies have had the privilege of producing democratically elected governors in different democratic dispensations and for fairness, equity and justice, it is expedient for Itu/ Ibiono Ibom federal constituency in Uyo senatorial district to take a shot at the top job of the governor. “Fairness, equity and justice demand that the two other federal constituencies of Uyo and Etinan having had the privilege to occupy the governorship seats at different times, that Itu/ Ibiono Ibom federal constituency be supported to produce the next governor of Akwa Ibom state in 2023”, “That is why we decided to come to you and members of your council today to solicit your support as fathers and elders of Ibibio land”.
Luke
Inoyo
He lamented that the area has not produced a deputy governor or a minister since the dawn of the present political dispensation.
Akwa Ibom 2023: Race To Succeed Emmanuel Begins BY UDEME UTIP, UYO
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t is common knowledge that the moment an election is concluded and a leader emergies , shopping for a successor begins even as interests starts mounting from everywhere.
retired oil company workers even civil servants. These are the early birds, more are expected as the political calendar for 2023 unfolds.
Every leader wants a successor who would be his loyalist to carry on his legacies. Most times, the incumbent needs a cover up for perceived shaddy deals that if uncovered can land him in jail or brings him shame as a former governor .
Though no one has come out openly to declare for the top office, their body languages and activities are showing their intentions: pluralification of political groups, foundations, gathering disciples and regular meeting with youth groups, nocturnal meetings with stakeholers among others are prevalent in the state.
2023 might be in two years but the struggle for the coveted seat had since started. While many suggest that the contest be left open to persons from all the Federal Constituencies in the senatorial district which include: Uyo federal constituency, Etinan Federal Constituency and Itu Federal Constituency, others are of the opinion that power should shift to Uyo with particular preference to Itu Federal Constituency which is made up of Itu and Ibiono Ibom local government areas.
Those alleged to be eyeing their boss’ seat come 2023 include: the Commissioner for Economic Development and Ibom Deep Sea Port, Mr. Akan Okon and the Ccommissioner for Information and Strategy, Comrade Ini Ememobong. Senator Bassey Albert and Rt. Hon. Anofiok Luke are serving National Assembly members. Others are: Surveyor James Iniama, a business mogul, Mr. Udom Inoyo, a retired management staff of ExxonMobil.
Reason for the later agitation is that Itu Federal Constituency has been marginalized over time. No meaningful development is traceable to the area, as such they need a representative at the top office of the state to salvage their situation. While massaging the heart of the governor, Mr. Udom Emmanuel to consider the internal zoning in Uyo Senatorial District, the two LGAs are saturated with aspirants already consulting underground to appeal to the minds of the people especially confirmed delegates, political stakeholers, traditional and religious leaders. Among those allegedly clamouring for the tenancy of the Akwa Ibom Hill Top mansion are serving commissioners in Mr. Emmanuel’s cabinet, serving National Assembly members, top business men, THEWILLNIGERIA
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Though the sitting governor who still has over two years to sit on the throne has always said that he has no successor in view as it was too early to talk about 2023, it was first rumoured that he had penciled down Mr. Udom Inoyo to succeed him. As it is almost normal in political succession, the pendulum is swinging in favour of Mr. James Iniama from Itu Local Government Area. Mr. James Iniama had contested the 2007 governorship election in the state on the platform of ANPP and lost to the former governor Godswill Akpabio but challenged the victory and finally rested the case when he lost at the Appeal Court in Calabar. He left the scene for almost 10 years, according to him; for safety, but came back two years ago to reclaim his membership of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP).
“Your majesty, it might interest you to know that the people of Eastern Ibibio have never produced a deputy governor, a federal minister, not to talk of producing a governor. We are not coming for war; all we want is to seek for your intervention and support to use your position to talk to the people of Uyo and Etinan federal constituencies to support their brothers from Itu/Ibiono Ibom federal constituency in the 2023 governorship position. This will bring fairness and unity to all zones in Ibibio nation”, he said. He added that in the spirit of political inclusiveness which is a cardinal point in the development agenda, it was natural for other zones to support the governorship aspiration of the Eastern Ibibio people. He alleged that, Ikono/Ini federal constituency was one of the areas in the state with the highest number of bad roads in the state. “Today, Ukana in Essien Udim Local Government Area is a developed town courtesy of the former Governor Godswill Akpabio. Awa of yesterday is a developed town with modern infrastructures courtesy of the present governor, His Excellency Governor Udom Emmanuel. We need such infrastructural development in Eastern Ibibio nation. This will be made possible through your support for our struggle to the governorship position in 2023″. Obong Ekidem commended the maturity of the association in the presentation of their case and charged them to maintain and sustain the tempo. The patriarch stressed that the stool was not partisan, and would continue to remain politically neutral, but that members of the council were not barred from expressing their views on the political and economic development of the Ibibios in particular and Akwa Ibom state in general. The Ntisong opined that the 2023 governorship election was capable of addressing perceived cases of marginalization and political exclusion if the political class would subject themselves to the wise counsel of the elders. He mentioned that the next governor of the state should be that person that would adopt a holistic approach to the development challenges facing the people of Akwa Ibom State, adding that such a person must be accessible, reliable, and acceptable by the generality of the people. He urged the political class to always consult with the traditional institution on issues of power sharing and resources allocation in order to accentuate political inclusion. He advised them against any form of violent agitation, even as he reminded them that power comes from God. Two years is still a long time and anything can still happen as 24 hours according to political observers and analysts is regarded as a long time in politics.
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Olajide
POLITICS/INTERVIEW
Buhari Needs To Speak Up Now On Nigeria’s Future - Olajide Dr Kunle Olajide is the Secretary General of the Yoruba Council of Elders. He is also a member of the 2014 National Conference organised by the Goodluck Jonathan-led Federal Government. In this interview with AYO ESAN, he speaks on sundry issues as they affect the nation and the South West. Excerpts:
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ow will you describe the present security situation in the country? Nobody in Nigeria has been used to this kind of insecurity. However, in the absence of peace, there can’t be any development and if you have insecurity, definitely there is no peace. So we are not happy, nobody is happy about it and we have made several calls to the relevant authorities like the Federal Government and the state governors as well as the community leaders to take charge of their territories and to protect lives and properties. So we are not happy with the
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situation. Few days ago, the leader of the Yoruba, Professor Banji Akintoye, and Sunday Igboho preached a separatist agenda by declaring that they want an Independent Yoruba nation. The Arewa Youths have also reacted saying the Yoruba should leave the North. The situation looks scary, are you bothered? We have fundamental human rights in the country. There is freedom of speech, so long as you don’t violate the laws of this country, you can say whatever you like. In democracy you have fundamental human rights. But these discordant tunes will not make for peace. So the relevant authorities must listen to the people and take action to restore confidence and ensure peaceful co-existence. This is why I have been calling on President Muhammadu Buhari to address Nigerians, to speak to us, for us to know where he is on this matter of insecurity; that is number one. He should also speak to us on the future of this country. We have condemned outright, the 1999 constitution. It is a false document, a military document. We were not part of its creation. So from the first sentence, it is false. Therefore, as far as we are concerned, we need a brand new peoples’ constitution that will allows us to sit down and discuss the future of this country. Nobody can run Nigeria as a unitary state and succeed. Nigeria is not a unitary state; it is made up of many nations. And it was on the basis of this, that the British gave us independence and we became a Republic. It
was the military that by centralizing the administration of this country made it a unitary system. That is why we have been retrogressing instead of progressing. That is also the cause of this insecurity, unemployment, hunger and poverty and so we have become the poverty capital of the world. So the 1999 Constitution is not working, it cannot work and the earlier the authorities do something about it, the better for the country and themselves. But we have had constitutional conferences in the past and nothing come out of them. Are you saying we should have another one? Those constitutional conferences gave us very good reports. I can tell you, I was part of the 2014 National Conference. To the best of my knowledge, personal opinion if you think, it is about the best gathering of Nigerians from all walks of life, from all sectors. The blinds, the lames, the elderly, the First Republic Ministers, the NBAs, NMAs, the NUJs, the Obas, Obis and Emirs, all of them were there. And we came out with a very good report. But for political reasons, the President made the report to gather dusts. What we are witnessing in the last five years is terrible. Nigeria has never been this polarised. Now, in a democratic dispensation, we need a Constituent Assembly of elected representatives of Nigeria people to sit down and review all the reports of the past conferences. We should give them a few months to come up with a new constitution. Then the president will send a bill to the National Assembly for a THEWILLNIGERIA
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POLITICS/INTERVIEW Some people are saying the 2023 election may not hold if the country has no solution to the present insecurity, what is your take on this? Nobody can be sure. I am saying that, nobody can be sure. We can only pray.
referendum on this terrible constitution that we are running. And whatever reports the Constituent Assembly comes up with should be subjected to a referendum by the Nigerian people not the National Assembly. For me, that is the solution to what we are having. The Senate said what they would do is just to amend the 1999 constitution and that they will not work towards a new constitution. What is you view on this? The senate does not own us. We elected them and gave them partial sovereignty. The sovereignty still resides with the people of this country. So the senate cannot dictate to us. The people of Nigeria have a right to whatever they want. In any people’s constitution, there is a room for referendum. In other words, whenever the National Assembly of any country is not doing well, they take the matter back to the people to decide through referendum. The senate is not our master. The members of the Senate are public servants, so the senate president is there at the mercy of the people and the senate is not his personal property. People have been talking of restructuring for years now, how can we achieve restructuring? I have said so in a few words. One, let Mr. President show that he is interested in the unity of this country and that is why some of us are not sure where he stands, perhaps he is interested in the disintegration of the country, may be. He should come out and address us; that is number one. Two, he must send two bills to the National Assembly to put referendum into this 1999 constitution, then the other, the enactment of the Constituent Assembly Committee that will organise Constituent Assembly elections, where people will be elected to sit down for a few months, gives us a new constitution that will be subjected to a referendum not the National Assembly. That is the only way out. Are you satisfied with the response of the South West Governors to the killing, maiming and raping of women in the region by Fulani herdsmen? Our governors are hamstrung because of the constitution we are operating. So much as they would want to do their best for us, the constitution tied their hands. Yes, they have given us security outfit, Amotekun, but they have limited funds. They want state police, the constitution does not allow them to have it. So we must appreciate their situation. But as far as I am concerned, I give them pass mark for what they have been able to do under the circumstances. Until we get a new constitution that will free us from this bondage, we are in bondage to Abuja. The people reside in the local government areas and the states but power resides in Abuja not with the people. We must reverse that, we are running a system that promotes injustice and is giving way to retrogression and not progress and development. There is a limit to which we can blame the governors. There seems to be a lack of unity in the approach of your people towards ending the current security situation. The Aare Ona Kakanfo, Iba Gani Adams just went round to meet the South West Governors dialoguing with them on the way out. A few days ago, Chief Sunday Adeyemo , popularly known as Igboho and Professor Akintoye met in Ibadan and said they want Yoruba sovereignty . Are you not worried by these conflicting signals? No, there is nothing wrong with anybody pursuing what he thinks will solve the problem in as much as it is not unconstitutional. But everyone here is singing the same song, we want some level of independence for the ethnic units making up Nigeria. That is what Gani Adams is saying, that is what Igboho is saying, their methods may be different but then it is the duty of the elders and governors to pilot these different opinions in such a way that we get results from it. You don’t expect us to do the same ting the same way and so on, no. Everybody has a right to say, this is how I want to go about it. The cautionary note that I am giving and will continue to give is that whatever we are doing, it must be under the ambit of the law of Nigeria so that people don’t just use that opportunity to come and mull down our youth, no. They have every right to be very angry, just as we are angry too, but we must approach it with some caution and wisdom. Many people believe that Yoruba has much stake in this government… (Cuts in) But for Yoruba, Buhari would not have been president, he tried about three times and he failed before we rallied round him to win. What would you say the South West has gained from Buhari’s government in the last six years? Well, I don’t know what you mean but there has been
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So how do we go from here as a nation? I have said so earlier, the President should send two bills to the National Assembly. I have said that it is the only thing that can save this country. The president is reluctant, yes I agree with you, but his people are suffering the more. The North is the most challenged now as far as security is concerned. You will see, God forbid, the implosion that will happen in the north may be in his backyard in Katsina. Let’s keep our fingers crossed. If he refuses to listen, circumstances could force him to listen. The National Assembly want to carry out electoral reforms, what areas will you suggest they look into? There are many areas that may take hours if I want to be stating it one by one. But I think let me say it briefly, electronic voting, period. That will capture everything. If electronic voting is introduced, that will stop people from manipulating election results; that will capture essentially the changes we want in the electoral system. Many want reform to play own the monetization of the electoral system, even to buy a party’s form of intention is huge money. What is your take on this? It is the system that came out of this 1999 constitution that is all.
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If the government doesn’t set up the process of Nigeria that Nigerians desire, God forbid, there may be implosion in the country that will consume everybody and it will consume the leadership first before anyone else
some progress on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway for example, that is visible. They also have some other social programmes they are doing but that that is not the issue. I live in South West here, until you have a new constitution, bring Angels down to run Nigeria under this constitution, surely the government will fail. So whatever we gained is just a pittance, They collected VAT in Lagos and go to Abuja to share it and give much to places that makes little contribution to VAT , So we are not interested, in gaining anything as far as I am concerned. We are interested in having relative autonomy like we have in the First Republic under the 1963 constitution. We don’t want somebody to come and give us droplets from the master’s table here. Before the 2019 General Election, I remembered you are a leader of a group that was shopping for the best for the Yoruba among the various candidates then. Only few days ago, the PDP committee on review of 2019 elections recommended that the zoning arrangement should be shunned in selecting the party’s candidate in the 2023 election. Are you comfortable with this? The party didn’t say that, the committee was set up and the committee said that as far as they are concerned they are not going to recognize zoning. But that report would still be submitted to the party, that is not the position of the party yet. Let’s wait for them, but for me that is not going to work. In fact it is going to work against them if they make a mistake of adopting the report. Nigeria is terribly polarised now, there is mutual suspicion So, any party that does not zone the presidency to the South in 2023 will fail, and I can say that clearly. Zoning has to be adopted for now.
How will you advise Kwara State Governor, only a few days ago , the Christians and the Muslims were openly throwing stones at each other on the issue of wearing of hijab in schools. Yoruba people were not known for fighting on the basis religion before now, what should be done? I think the Kwara State governor must know the right thing to do. Nigeria is a secular country. Everybody must be allowed to practice his or her religion. So he must immediately summon the warring factions and warn the religious leaders, urge them to sheathe their swords. It also depends on the law in their state assembly. I don’t know their laws there. But if there is any law that speaks on the wearing of hijab they must comply with their laws. Either it is a Yoruba state or not, they have their own laws and they have their own state assembly. So they must conform to their laws and they must ensure that the laws they make promote peace, simple. As one of the leaders in the South West, the people of the region are currently living in fear of attack and there is palpable fear in the land, what is your advice to the people of South West and other inhabitants living there My advice remains the same, all of us are united that what we want is a constitution that will give us our relative autonomy. So let’s keep our fingers crossed and call on our people in the national assembly, in the state assemblies to a discourse and let’s wait and see what happens. There is nothing else; we can’t take up arms. We cannot take up arms against the state but I am sure the situation will come that will give us Nigeria we all want. How soon will that be? Nobody can say, nobody knows. It may be tomorrow morning, yes it may be as early as that. What advice do you have for the politicians especially at this critical period in Nigerian history? It is sad that there is no difference between the two major political parties. That is why you can wake up today in APC and tomorrow you are in PDP. There are no ideological differences but all of them should know what is good for this country. All of them should appreciate that the unitary system here in the heterogeneous country like Nigeria will not work and can never work, they must therefore join hands together to give us a peoples’ constitution that will allow political parties based on ideologies to evolve. That is all, I don’t have anything else to tell them. Restructuring is the solution to all the problems bedeviling Nigeria and that is what the new constitution will do. It is only a new constitution that will do that, not this piece meal amendment, no, that won’t work. My advice to the president and the government is that what I have said earlier must happen quickly otherwise if the government doesn’t set up the process of Nigeria that Nigerians desire, may God forbid there may be implosion in the country that will consume everybody and it will consume the leadership first before anyone else.
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EDITORIAL
Worrisome Insecurity In Nigeria
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he recent attempt on the life of Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State by yet to be identified gunmen has once again confirmed the worsening insecurity in the country. Before him, Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno state was repeatedly attacked between June and September of 2020 by Boko Haram terrorists. These attacks of governors and their convoys, secured by well-kitted security outfits dramatizes on the one hand the dark, existential reality facing less endowed, ordinary Nigerians and on the other, the virtual collapse of the security architecture of the country. Whether by the well know number one enemy of the state, Boko Haram or by the often faceless gunmen, the attacks and killings of Nigerians have become so frequent, bloody, senseless and deadly that it can be safely assumed that government has been overwhelmed by the fire power of death merchants and unless it acts fast to assert its power, Nigerians may sooner than later find themselves in a completely lawless state. And in that lawless state, even animal life in the wild, governed by the instinct of survival of the fittest and might is right, would be a child’s play. We have seen such brutish existence play out in Afghanistan, Rwanda, Somalia and Libya, where only last week after more than 10 years, reason prevailed and the combatants shelved their bloodied guns. Sadly, there is no visible, concrete government policy direction to show that things would improve in the near feature as every outbreak is often treated with levity. For instance, there has been no known arrest of high profile terrorists or their sponsors to underline
government’s commitment to the war against terror.
Take one significant case. In November 10, 2020, six Nigerians were jailed in the United Arab Emirate for funding Boko Haram. The court judgement said that between 2015 and 2016, the accused transferred $782,000 from Dubai to Nigeria to support Boko Haram. Yet while the UAE prosecuted the case, their Nigerian accomplices have not been identified let alone prosecuted. In another development, bandits who kidnaped 27 students and their teachers at Kankara Government Schools in Niger state confided in their negotiator , Sheik Abubakar Gumi, that somebody in government contracted them to carry out the abduction. Similarly, after his government secured the release of 317 kidnapped school girls from Jangebe Government Secondary School, Governor Matawale of Zamfara state disclosed that he knew those who sponsored the abduction. Up till now, none of these shady characters allegedly behind these treasonable offences in Niger and Zamfara states, have been named and shamed, thereby making mockery of the insecurity situation. In another light, intelligence gathering, which is people centered and therefore the backbone of antiterrorism battle, is plagued by mistrust. People would not cooperate and provide information when they know if they do, they may not see the next day alive. Which is partly why Boko Haram still thrives. Recall that the terrorists were able to identify and kill almost 100 migrant rice farmers Zamabari in Jeri Local Government in Borno State in December 2020, because, according to the brigands, they got
to know that the victims were informing on them to soldiers. Indeed, Chief of Defense Staff, General Lucky Irabor’s disclosure last week that over 500 Boko Haram terrorists have been jailed over terrorism was greeted with public disbelief, judging by the reactions on social media. Most Nigerians had been sold the narrative by government and the former Security Chiefs that amnesty for so called repentant Boko Haram terrorist, would help to crush the war on terror. By now it should be clear to those behind that policy, that it was, to say the least, defeatist as the terrorists became more ferocious by the day, more so when they had since internationalized their treasonable goals by linking up with ISWAP. Lastly, the in fighting among security chiefs over who should do what or report to whom as shown by the cold war between the former Service Chiefs and the National Security Adviser, has not, obviously helped matters. That was the kernel of the recent controversial interview retired General Babagana Munguno granted the Hausa Service of the BBC, recently. Without sounding pedantic, we wish to remind the government that in an unsecured place, neither life nor business thrives no matter promises made to the contrary. Security, Employment and Anticorruption were the three pillars this government promised to deliver as democracy dividend to the people. It must be told it is yet to deliver them. Two years is a long time in the life of an administration. We therefore call on government to walk its talk and secure Nigeria for Nigerians to live and thrive in peace.
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Nigeria Bureau: 36AA Remi Fani-Kayode Street, GRA, Ikeja. Lagos, Nigeria. info@thewillnigeria.com / @THEWILLNG +234 810 345 2286, +234 913 333 3888. EDITOR: Olaolu Olusina @OLUSINA (Letters/Opinions: opinion.letters@thewillnigeria.com) PAGE 14
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OPINION Buhari’s $1.5bn Planned PH Refinery Rehab: What A Country?
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Now see where the fraud in the entire initiative is embedded: If the first phase of the rehabilitation project will achieve so much, what then is the need for the second and third phases? If any refining plant runs at 90 percent designed capacity, that’s already optimal and star performance. So what more do we need to do in the second and third phases if not to deceive Nigerians and siphon money plunging the nation deeper into indebtedness?
Is this pessimism? No! Rather, Nigerians have come to know that this Buhari-led government usually says one thing but means a completely different thing. When will this country mean more to us than individual selfish greed?
More so, we all know that the stay of this government ends in May or rather March 2023 almost the same time that the proposed first phase of the $1.5 billion rehabilitation is expected to be completed. Does anyone see what I am seeing? It means that between now and November 2022, these people would have pulled out $1.5 billion in the name of rehabilitating the coupled Port Harcourt Refinery. And this is the time that the present administration will be packing their kaya to go because that will already be the presidential campaign period for the 2023 general elections! You see!
BY IFEANYI IZEZE he $1.5 billion approved on Wednesday March 17, 2021 by the Federal Government for the rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt Refinery, as announced in Abuja, would have been celebrated as a welcome development but for the obvious caveat from our experiential knowledge of the crookedness of those in and around our government including top managers of the NNPC and some of its strategic business units.
Does anyone need any reminding that this path announced by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources is not only deceptive and evil but criminally blurred? Hear the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva: “The Ministry of Petroleum Resources presented a memo on the rehabilitation of Port Harcourt refinery for the sum of $1.5 billion and it was approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC). “So, we are happy to announce that the rehabilitation of the refinery will commence in three phases of 18, 24, and 44 months intervals. The first phase is to be completed in 18 months (one and half years from now) which will take the refinery to a production of 90 percent of its nameplate capacity. “The second phase is to be completed in 24 months (two from now) and the final stage will be completed in 44 months (almost 4years from now).” How can this be good news to Nigerians? Come; let’s reason together on this matter: The first phase which is expected to be completed in 18 months from now will take the refinery to a production of 90 percent installed capacity. Is this possible in the first instance? There is no amount of rehab that can be done on a Plant that’s over 40 years old to bring it back to function at 90 percent designed capacity. You don’t need to be a p rofessor to know this, elementary process engineering will tell you that. How come Nigerians, even the best learned amongst us, are been taken for granted like this?
BY CHRISTOPHER ADELABU
When Buhari’s government came on stage, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, who first served as the NNPC GMD and later as Minister of State for Petroleum, suspended Tecnimont’s original bid to fix the Port Harcourt Refinery on the ground that Nigerian engineers in the NNPC system can do whatever Technimont was proposing if the materials are made available to them. When Maikanti Baru took over as NNPC GMD, in what obviously looked like playing a script set to undo every positive initiative that his predecessor undertook including asking the Italian Technimont to come back to the Port Harcourt refinery rehab project. On this second missionary journey, the Italians submitted a fresh service bill to NNPC for $50 million for the same integrity test and scoping of the Port Harcourt Plant. The cost of repairs of the refinery was now pegged at $1.78billion with caveat for review as situations may warrant. Why should a government already grossly in debt borrow over $1.5 billion to repair a facility already listed for sale and at a cost many times over what was quoted a few years ago for the same project? So where is the larger public interest in the deal?
We have not forgotten that Tecnimont, an Italian process engineering and consulting firm did the first diagnostic review of the Port Harcourt Refinery for the NNPC in 2012 on the invitation of the then Group Managing Director of NNPC, Austen Oniwon.
How else can anybody describe this move if not to say that the proposed investment is another in the series of black holes and sweetheart deals that the Buhari administration has come to be known for?
The Italian firm asked for about $3million for its integrity check on the Port Harcourt Plant and estimated the cost of repairs at about $290million. This cost was later escalated to $400million as the Nigerian factor and fraudulent interests of top NNPC managers and political players came into the bid for the project.
As correctly remarked by an analyst and oil industry watcher, “For decades, the refineries have been Nigeria’s biggest lottery, the draw with which the NNPC keeps its cronies, politicians and the government in power.” This has to stop if we are going to make any inroad in the nation’s downstream business.
When Diezani Allison-Madueke became the Petroleum Minister under the Jonathan administration, everything changed
The tragedy of the current Nigerian downstream situation is that every single person that could have been defending our collective national interest in this matter is deeply involved in the ongoing racket either directly or by proxy. The presidency calls the shots, top managers of the NNPC and its strategic business units especially the PPMC et’al are all neck-deep in the racket. But God is watching and will definitely judge all of you. God bless Nigeria! •Ifeanyi Izeze writes from Abuja and can be reached on: iizeze@ yahoo.com / SMS: +2348033043009.
In 2013, $1.6billion was budgeted for Turn Around Maintenance (TAM) for the nation’s existing three refineries- Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna, and Mrs. Diezani Allison-Madueke, told the entire world that over 75 percent of the spare parts for the maintenance of the Port Harcourt Plant had been procured and received by the NNPC. She also said that the TAM would cost $147million while modernisation
Security: ONSA, Military Stand Firm
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requently described as overstretched and underfunded, Nigeria’s military forces are fighting jihadists in the NorthEast and armed gangs in the North-West as well as dealing with communal conflicts in central regions, separatist tensions in the South-East and piracy in the nearby Gulf of Guinea. According to Ikemesit Effiong, head of research at SBM Intelligence, a geopolitical consultancy firm, “Nigeria is in a precarious situation. Every part of the country is dealing with a near-existential security challenge.” Effiong who spoke to AFP recently, further noted that Nigeria has on-going military operations in 35 out of the country’s 36 states. Against this backdrop, it is often difficult to say that Nigeria is not in a full-blown war. But yes, she is not. Notwithstanding how depressing the current situation is, Nigeria is not in a full-blown war situation in the conventional sense of the term because it is not engaging a standing opposing army. True and more specifically, the nation is confronted by a mix of new-to-country insurgency driven by the Boko Haram - gradually morphing into an enlarged asymmetric conflict with the African wing of ISIS (called ISWAP), which has access to sophisticated weapons and foreign funding. Throw in flagrant banditry, kidnap for ransom, sundry sabotage, cattle rustling and rogue herdsmen activity, then a fair picture of the nature of the extant challenges can be appreciated. Against this background, the office that manages the national security through various critical interfaces with the relevant security agencies, the Office of the National Security Adviser, at this or indeed any other period, is understandably put on the spot. Traditionally, the federal government led by the Commander-inChief of the Armed Forces and executive president - Muhammadu Buhari - working with the branches of military with coordination from ONSA reviews national security situations from time to time. The ultimate aim is to reposition the Armed Forces in the context of the fight against terrorism and imperative defence of the nation’s territorial integrity. Taking in the big picture, a strategic national crisis containment
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We should actually ask: Is it not the same Port Harcourt Refinery that was listed as top in the manifest of the national assets to be sold that the government wants to sink $1.5 billion to repair? How can a government that is not only completely broke but grossly indebted be proposing such an ambitious programme? Interestingly, the government plans to spend money that it does not have to repair a refinery that it does not need? What a country!
of the refinery could cost $406million and that the original builder of the refinery had already been paid $32million for the job.
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response plan falls squarely within the purview of the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA). In Nigeria, it is the ONSA, currently led by Major-General Babagana Monguno (retd) which deals with the key issues, determines and coordinates the intervention templates in synergy with other relevant security organs.
during special air strikes.
Despite clear misinformation by some detractors, the Boko Haram insurgency is much weaker today than in 2015. This much was attested to by the man in the eye of the storm - Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno on December 6, 2020. He articulately cut to the heart of the matter.
In the Southern theatre, a total of 9,684,797 litres of stolen diesel and 33,516,000 litres of kerosene were recovered. Furthermore, a total of 46,581.8 barrels of stolen crude oil and 22,881,257 litres of stolen petrol were recovered by the troops of the Armed Forces of Nigeria.
According to Zulum, “From state-wide statistics on affairs in the 27 local government areas since 2011, the fact is that in spite of recent happenings, the security situation in Borno State and indeed that of the entire North East sub-region is still far better under President Muhammadu Buhari, and this is based on records.
From specific field data, military anti-insurgency and general security operations conducted in the North-East and North-West within the referenced period showed that 200 kidnapped victims were rescued by troops of Operation LAFIYA DOLE. A total of 1,385 rounds of ammunition, 45 grenades as well as 95 assorted rifles were recovered from BHT/ISWAP fighters.
“For instance, unlike the years before Buhari when a number of local governments were no-go-areas, we now have indigenes safely back to Gwoza, Askira-Uba, Dikwa, Ngala, Monguno, Kukawa, Damboa, Konduga, Mafa and led by our traditional leaders, which no one could have visited not to talk of living there.” There is more: “Our Emirs were all in exile. Today, Bama is coming back to life and so is Askira-Uba, Damboa, Gwoza and others. Life is even returning to Baga. This was impossible before Buhari. “In fact, it was not possible to move few kilometres out of Maiduguri. Insurgents were so bold to attack and take over military facilities, like the Army Barracks at Monguno, Bama, Giwa Barrack and Multinational Joint Task Force Headquarters at Baga, to mention just a few. “There were daily bomb blast in many parts of Maiduguri, the most populated part of the state, but all these have stopped under President Buhari. These are the records and no one can dispute them.’’ More specifically, from March 18 to December. 30, 2020, the nation’s military forces, neutralised 2,403 criminal elements across the country. These include terrorists, bandits, kidnappers, cattle rustlers, and scores of other terrorists and armed bandits killed
Equally, 1,910 criminal elements were arrested and large cache of arms, ammunition and equipment were recovered during the period. Troops also rescued a total of 864 kidnapped victims across the country.
Additionally, several gun trucks were captured, while some others were destroyed during air strikes. 1,805 insurgents/terrorists including commanders were killed by troops aside scores killed through air raids/attacks. Within the period, 79 arrests were made including high value targets. More, 6,951 rounds of ammunition and 120 assorted rifles were recovered from bandits by the gallant troops in the zone. 455 kidnapped victims were rescued and 473 armed bandits killed. 461 arrests were made in the zone including high profile bandits, gun runners and bandits’ collaborators. In Southern maritime flank, troops also arrested 53 pirates, impounded 25 trucks and recovered 23 rifles, 65,330 rounds of ammunition and destroyed 23 pirate camps. Troops of Operation AWATSE in the South-West Zone, between 18 March and 30 December 2020, impounded 10,458,600 litres of petrol; 15,345 barrels of stolen crude oil and 345,000 litres of stolen diesel and recovered 3,594 rounds of ammunition and 14 assorted rifles. Also, within the period, 23 illegal refining sites were immobilised, while 15 boats and 23 trucks engaged in illegal activities were impounded. In the same vein, within the period 35 kidnap victims were rescued, while 48 arrests were made.
•Continues online at www.thewillnigeria.com
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Enhancing Air Connectivity As Post-Covid-19 Recovery Plan
Imo-Abasi Jacob Replaces Idongesit Nkanga As Chairman Ibom Air
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Fiscal Practice: TSA On Vacation As Anomaly Takes Centre Stage PAGE 34
Air Passengers Groan Under Depleting Airlines’ Fleet Size BY ANTHONY OKECHUKWU
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he decreasing number of domestic airlines and their limited fleet size is giving air travellers a cause for concern, with the cost of air tickets, number of flight delays, and cancellations on the rise. Despite the limited number of airlines in the country, the figure has been decreasing over the years. Major commercial airlines operating in the country as at today are about six carriers: They are Air Peace, Arik Air, Aero Contractors, Dana Air, Max Air and Overland, and most of them are functioning with small aircraft fleet size. The situation is further exacerbated by the recent suspension of Azman Air by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, (NCAA). The aviation agency had suspended the airline’s operations with immediate effect, over a series of incidents involving its Boeing 737 aircraft. Recall that the FirstNation Airways suffered similar fate when it was also suspended by NCAA in May, 2018. The issue of First Nation Airways suspension had to do with “unauthorised and illegal operations”, according to the regulator. THEWILL gathered that the suspension of these players and the depleting fleet size of the operating airlines are telling on domestic air travellers who are now paying higher for their flight tickets with the attendant delays and cancellations. Narrating his experience, an air traveller, Kayode Afilaka said that his planned trip from Abuja to Lagos on the 27th March, 2021 could not hold simply because he could not procure a ticket. According to Afilaka, he went to almost all the airlines and was told that all the seats had been fully booked and that he could not get any space. Explaining further, he said “I went to all the airlines and they told me point blank that it was impossible for me to fly since there are limited aircraft for operations. Even when I offered to pay any amount, there was no luck”. The story of Mrs Clementina Adigu, another air traveller, is not difficult from that of Afilaka’s. According to Mrs Adigu, she had gone online one week ahead of her trip to buy a one-way ticket from Abuja to Lagos, all to no avail. She said “You can see what we are passing through even with the money; you cannot see the ticket to buy. The ticket that we used to buy N30,000 has gone to N50,000 and above.” Mr James Ogabu was lucky to have secured a one-way Lagos-Abuja ticket at the cost of about N70 for an economy class. According to Ogabu, the issue of very few airlines is affecting a lot of travellers in terms of high cost, flight delays and cancellations. He however, advised the regulatory authorities to continue with their oversight functions as there is no room for mistakes or trial-and-error in aviation. When THEWILL reached out to one of the major airlines, a ticketing officer who spoke under the condition of
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Air Passengers at the Lagos Airport
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THEWILL gathered that the suspension of these players and the depleting fleet size of the operating airlines are telling on domestic air travellers who are now paying higher for their flight tickets with the attendant delays and cancellations
that most airlines in the country have fewer aircraft than expected. Comrade Saidu wondered how pilots could practise without adequate airlines and aircraft to work with. Saidu therefore, advised that, even with fewer airlines, there is need to give job opportunities to local pilots instead of giving the limited opportunities to foreigners. He lamented situations where foreign pilots are given jobs with the very few aircraft we have in the country. “Whether there are enough planes or not, it is important that we give priority to local pilots because a foreigner could not enter the country and begin to fly as a pilot without endorsement from the Nigeria Immigration Services (NIS).
anonymity said that, it is difficult to get tickets between Lagos and Abuja routes at weekends.
“Interestingly, at the global level, the situation is at variance with what is on ground in Nigeria. In some countries, the issue of unemployed pilots is not a major concern but there are fears that there would be scarcity of manpower in that area, in years to come when there will be enough airlines and aircraft to work with”, Saidu said
According to the source, the difficulty of getting tickets is due to the fact that they are fewer aircraft these days and that has contributed to very light operations by the few airlines we have in the country.
Meanwhile, beyond the suspension of certain airlines, aviation experts have attributed the declining fleet size of domestic airlines to the fact that most of their aircraft are still in maintenance at different locations across the world.
“If you want to travel, especially between Lagos and Abuja at the weekend, just start planning as early as one month ahead, because the route is always busy at weekends”.
For instance, Air Peace which had over 20 aircraft in its fleet is left with as low as 5 aircraft currently, while the remaining ones are undergoing maintenance. Arik Air, on its own once maintained as much as 21 aircraft fleet size at some point but is now operating with fewer aircraft. As at the time First Nation Airways was suspended, the airline had about one in maintenance while the other was fully operational.
Reacting to the situation, the secretary general of the Association of Nigerian Aviation Professionals (ANAP), Comrade Abdul Rasaq Saidu, said that it is unfortunate
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AVIATION “What is required is political determination to turn the Covid-19 crisis into an opportunity to enhance the contribution of civil aviation to West Africa’s economic growth, social progress and integration, and overall sustainable development. Your collaboration and leadership will be critical to implement necessary strategies and synergies for a sustainable and resilient air transport system worthy of the great potential of this region.” Aliu thanked the Nigerian Government for hosting the event and reiterated that iPADIS is looking forward to continue collaborating with Nigeria, other members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), as well as other partner organisations, to ensure effective implementation of the decisions of the high-level ministerial meeting.
Aliu
Sirika
In a communique issued at the end of the meeting, the Ministers recognised the importance of air transport as a tool for regional economic growth, social integration and overall sustainable development, in line with the African Union vision for African integration, including travel, tourism and trade.
Enhancing Air Connectivity As Post-Covid-19 Recovery Plan
ANTHONY OKECHUKWU writes on strategic plans by West African aviation ministers for quick post-Covid-19 air transport recovery
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ecently, West African ministers and iPADIS assembled in Montréal, Canada to deliberate on post-Covid-19 recovery plan for air transport in the region, including strategies for the long-term sustainable development of the industry. The two-day virtual event on enhancing air connectivity and growth in West Africa was organised by the Federal Ministry of Aviation of Nigeria, in cooperation with the International Partners for Aviation Development, Innovation and Sustainability (iPADIS). iPADIS is an independent, international non-governmental organisation (NGO) of public and private partnerships. It operates on a not-for-profit basis to lead eåffective lobby for positive change in the global aviation industry. It also actively promotes the development of international civil aviation in an innovative, sustainable and socially responsible manner. Other participants include: Central African and Caribbean States, international and regional financial and regulatory organisations, as well as industry stakeholders from air transport, tourism, trade, public health and related sectors. Giving reasons for putting the forum together, Senator Hadi Sirika, Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation, stated that “Nigeria’s determination to host the High-Level Ministerial Meeting is borne out of the desire to find a lasting solution to the challenges of the aviation sector in our sub–region, especially at a time when the industry is unprecedentedly being impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic, resulting in depressed travel demands and disruptions of businesses globally.” Minister Sirika called on States to address the issue of financing and modernization of aviation infrastructure and to attract support from private investors by “building a transparent, stable and predictable investment climate, as THEWILLNIGERIA
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What is required is political determination to turn the Covid-19 crisis into an opportunity to enhance the contribution of civil aviation to West Africa’s economic growth, social progress and integration, and overall sustainable development
well as including aviation in national development plans.” Dr. Olumuyiwa Benard Aliu, founding president of iPADIS, likewise stressed the need for strengthened levels of collaboration and decisiveness among West African governments and industry stakeholders in addressing the COVID-19 challenge and ensuring a rapid recovery of the air transport and tourism sectors, vital to stimulating economic development in the region. “I am confident that the 15 West African States have the potential and the resourcefulness to transform their region into a leading aviation market and to take full advantage of air transport as a major contributor to trade, tourism and GDP”, said Dr. Aliu.
They also affirmed their determination to take full advantage of the safe and rapid interconnectivity that air transport offers for intra-regional and international travels for their citizens and businesses. Part of what they acknowledged is the longstanding precovid-19 challenges and the slow pace of air transport development and connectivity in the region that should have been effectively addressed, which the covid-19 crisis have further exacerbated. On that note, the Ministers concluded that they are determined to take urgent steps to address those factors that militate against national and regional solutions to sustainable development and growth of air transport in the region including political, institutional, financial, technological, technical expertise, capacity building, manpower development, infrastructure development, proliferation of taxes, regulatory constraints amongst others. According to the participants, Covid-19 underscored the impact of public and user’s confidence on operational and financial viability of air transport, just as they equally recognise that continuous improvement in safety, security, efficiency, reliability, comfort, affordability, and competitiveness of air travel is critical to sustainable development and growth of air transport. In terms of planning, they advocated the importance of establishing short, medium, long term and risk-based national and regional strategic civil aviation plans with clear objectives, measurable targets, milestones, and accountabilities as well as the need to integrate such civil aviation plans into national and regional economic development plans. According to the Ministers, they are committed to develop, review and implement national, regional and international civil aviation policies, regulatory frameworks, and strategic plans that promote the growth of air transport in a sustainable, innovative and socially responsible manner. The gathering was also of the opinion that there is need for a more active involvement of non-governmental organisations, civil society organisations and stakeholders to ensure that international civil aviation policies, plans and programmes consider the interests of users of air transport services and overall benefits to the society. The high powered meeting, therefore, urged all operators including airlines, airports, air navigation service providers to review and adapt their plans, business models and operations to address current challenges and future risks, and to implement innovative technologies and solutions to ensure long-term sustainability and resilience of air transport systems in the region. While promising to support the expeditious recovery of the air transport, travel, tourism trade and related sectors, the Ministers recognised the need for regional collaboration for immediate development and implementation of harmonised air travel related public health policies and protocols in the wake of ovid-19.
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FISCAL POLICY
Fiscal Practice: TSA On Vacation As Anomaly Takes Centre Stage SAM DIALA writes that the Treasury Single Account (TSA) seems to have suffered serial breaches – suggesting that the much celebrated fiscal policy has lost steam in government circles
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ecent developments in the fiscal policy space reinforce worries that Nigeria’s Treasury Single Account (TSA) policy may have suffered serial breaches among government ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs). And this is sad news for Africa’s largest economy writhing in the throes of acute revenue crisis.
5 Years Revenue Inflow Analysis: 2015-2019
NIGERIA’S DEBT PROFILE (FGN/STATES) 2014-2020
“Allowing agencies to spend their revenue and only remit a certain portion would be an aberration. This is one of the reasons why Nigeria is poor. The country has moved towards a Treasury Single Account. The question to ask is; are the federal agencies the Senate is referring to (have abused the system) part of the TSA or not? They are.”
THE POLICY The policy was considered vital in reducing the proliferation of bank accounts operated by the MDAs, promote financial accountability and fight corruption.
AUGEAN STABLES Disclosures at the Senate’s Joint Committee on Finance and Planning showed outright abuse of the TSA process by many revenue-generating agencies who behave like they are immune from the rule. Among them is the Department of Petroleum Resources, a parastatal under the NNPC. The DPR was among the agencies accused of failing to remit the expected level of revenue to the Federation Account while swimming in its revenue pool as it likes. The Senate queried the agency’s remittance of a meagre N44.5 billion into the Consolidated Revenue Fund out of the N2.4 trillion it generated in 2019.
Prior to the TSA regime in September 2015, government MDAs reportedly swam in the flood of bank accounts numbering over 20,000 in different commercial banks. Implementation of the policy led to the closure of the bazaar of bank accounts many of which could not be easily identified by the government. A key aspect of the policy requires the MDAs to remit their gross inflows and maintain zero balance daily. Subsequently, they are to apply and receive funds for their salaries and other operational expenses. Revenue-generating agencies are to remit their inflows after deducting their salaries and other overheads.
This suggests an abuse of the process, an indication that the TSA is being observed in the breach. The aggressive move that greeted the implementation of the policy in 2015 seems to have been doused by the usual bureaucratic lethargy that characterizes government business. Reports show that the government officials running the system have resorted to business as usual or partial compliance with the TSA – at best. The worst culprits are the revenue-generating agencies which are accused of spending as they like and only remit as it pleases them. A major concern is that the abuse of the TSA process will add to the woes of an economy tormented by acute dwindling revenue. Nigerian government has suffered unhindered slide in revenue drop since 2014, following the crisis of oil prices in the international market. The ripple effect is far-reaching. It leads to budget underperformance and high cost of debt servicing as Nigeria’s debt profile mounts – standing at N33 trillion as at December 31, 2020. Stakeholders express concern that poor implementation of the TSA policy could hasten Nigeria’s slide towards financial implosion – as inflation, unemployment and GDP rates for the ugly direction. WRONG SIGNALS A furnace that smokes anger against the TSA abuse is the National Assembly. The lawmakers have repeatedly expressed concern over the opaque approach in the management of public funds among the MDAs, especially the revenue-generating agencies. Over the years, the lawmakers have beamed their searchlight on the nation’s national oil company – the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). The state company has grown into an albatross with humongous tentacles that are rooted in waste, mismanagement and abuse of due process; often with impunity. For this octopus and other agencies of financial panorama, their performance often fell short of expectation in terms of their contributions to the Federation Account. This fuels doubts about the efficacy of TSA. Other agencies include the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Security and Exchange Commission (SEC), National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) and Oil &Gas Free Trade Zone Commission (OGFTZC).
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The Director-General, Bureau of Public Enterprises, Alex Okoh, had told the Senate Committee on Privatisation in October 2019 that 600 Federal Government-owned enterprises gulped not less than $3 billion yearly with little or no returns from them into the federation account. It was learnt that the government was considering stopping revenue-generating agencies from getting budgetary allocations from 2021. While some experts support the move because of the lingering abuse of the TSA process, others express the fear that it could create a window of extortion and exploitation of the public through illegal levies and taxes. The Chief Executive Officer, Economic Associates, Dr Ayo Teriba, according to news report, condemned the excesses of the revenuegenerating agencies exemplified in the abuse of the TSA process. According to Teriba, all revenues should be remitted into the government’s purse before sharing in order to curtail excesses and leakages:
TSA is a financial policy meant to consolidate inflows from all government agencies into a single account at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). This is to ensure efficient management and control of government’s cash resources. Nigerian government under President Muhammadu Buhari put the TSA policy into effect in 2015 – three years after it was introduced by the previous administration. State governments were urged to adopt the TSA initiative.
Recent developments, however, indicate that this aspect of the policy is observed in the breach as reports of huge resource mismanagement by the MDAs continue. They default in remitting their inflows while revenue-generating agencies under-remit. And this worsens government’s revenue inflow while adding to the debt burden see charts).
“I was shocked when I saw the huge sums of money that many of these agencies are making, how much they are spending on frivolous expenditure and what they remit to the national purse. It is highly ridiculous,” said Senator Abdulfatai Buhari, a member of the committee.
For instance, the DPR management deducted N88 billion from the N2.4 trillion generated in 2019 as 4 per cent approved collection fee. According to reports, the DPR could not convincingly account for the remaining unremitted collections which it simply classified as “overhead and operational costs” without specific figures tied to them.
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Government officials running the system have resorted to business as usual or partial compliance with the TSA – at best. The worst culprits are the revenue-generating agencies. They spend as they like and remit as it pleases them This was the focus of discussions at a session of the Senate’s Joint Committee on Finance and National Planning with heads of the revenue-generating agencies. The session was held in Abuja to consider the agencies’ performance based on the 2021-2023 Medium Term Expenditure and Fiscal Strategy Paper. The panel expressed disappointment with the agencies’ poor revenue profile, huge wage bill and poor remittances to the Consolidated Revenue Fund account. To compound the already ugly situation, the same agencies receive budgetary allocations. “Many of them (the agencies) are generating as much as N20 billion every year, remitting what they like, and they are still collecting money from the federation account to pay salaries and to defray their overhead cost. Apart from removing them from the budget, we will also make sure that they remit the appropriate revenue to the federation account.
The National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) confirmed N7 billion under-remittances by it during a Senate Joint Committee sitting, which the agency claimed was spent on inspection of factories during the year: “Over N7 billion spent on inspection! In the past few weeks, we have been talking about Chinese loans when the money is there in the system. We have the money in Nigeria but we are not doing the needful. “We are not remitting what we are supposed to remit. The private sector will not remit the taxes and you, government agencies, being paid salaries, will not remit. Where will the government get money to fund the capital projects when we have deficit budget every year,” asked Senator James Faleke while scolding NAFDAC. A report by the Auditor-General for the Federation (AuGF), Anthony Ayine, late 2019, revealed that 265 government agencies violated fiscal and audit rules in 2017. Among the infractions were cases of non-submission of reports, failure to answer audit queries and abuse of the TSA policy. The 2017 audit report showed that the majority of the revenue-generating agencies and other MDAs did not remit withholding taxes, value-added taxes, stamp duty, capital gains tax and pay as you earn, among others. The agencies involved include the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) with unremitted N7.59 billion, National Examination Council (NECO) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) with N6.67 billion and N2.29 billion respectively, among others. Ayine said the default caused significant reduction in revenue accruable to the Federal Government. Besides, the auditors found that the agencies dissipated funds on overhead expenditure and extra-budgetary expenditure on contracts, thereby reducing their operating surpluses. The BPE was also involved in unauthorised investment of idle funds without remittance of interest/returns to the Consolidated Revenue Funds to the tune of N24.77 million. The unremitted funds accrued from N13 billion deposits for privatisation and operational bank account with some commercial banks, Ayine lamented, adding that audit reconciliation of operating surplus revealed that N2.82 billion was placed in various banks as of December 31, 2016, without authority and a provision of ₦183.13 million made for doubtful balances – all in violation of the TSA. THEWILLNIGERIA
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BUSINESS NEWS NG Eagle: Arik Air Reassures Workers After THEWILL’s Special Report BY ANTHONY OKECHUKWU
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argest domestic carrier, Arik Air, has restated its commitment to its workers, stating that under the new development, all their interests will be well catered for.
One of the Aviation unions, particularly the National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE), had earlier raised the alarm about the imminent job loss in Arik Air, following the alleged establishment of NG Eagle by the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) in a Special Investigation report published by THEWILL last week. But Arik Air, in a rejoinder to THEWILL’s report, signed by the PR & Communications Manager, Adebanji Ola , stated that the interest of the workers will be taken care of. Arik Air maintained that it is not unusual to have employee agitations in a change process, noting that it is natural for all to ask ‘what is in it for me?’.
L-R: Country HR Director, Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC), Olumide Sholanke; Director, Public Affairs & Communications, NBC, Ekuma Eze; Managing Director, NBC, Matthieu Seguin; President, Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUCN) and Food, Beverages & Tobacco Senior Staff Association (FOBTOB), Comrade Quadri Olaleye, and Deputy National President, FOBTOB, Comrade Jimoh Oyibo, during a courtesy visit by the TUCN team to the NBC Head Office, in Lagos on 23/3/2021. PHOTO: PEACE UDUGBA
nvestors in Nigeria’s equity market smiled home last Friday as trading closed positive with a gain of N258.1 billion or 1.27 per cent increase.
The Daily Market Statistics published by the Nigerian Stock Exchange showed that market capitalization closed N20.518 trillion on Friday, March 28, compared to N20.259 trillion at the end of last Monday’s trading, pushing the market to a 258.1 billion gain. The NSE-All Share Index accordingly moved 494 basis points from 38722.87 recorded on Monday to 39,216.20. Although market capitalization dropped by N40 on Friday, from N20.558 trillion on Thursday (to N20.518 trillion Friday), the result for the week ended positive. A total of 250,923,440 shares in 3,746 deals were traded on
Friday. This amounts to a market value of N2.790 trillion representing 9 per cent improvement in volume when compared with the previous day’s trading day (Thursday, March 25). It however translates to 26 per cent decline in turnover, and 7 per cent decline in deals. In the aggregate, 105 listed equities participated in trading that produced 20 gainers and 14 losers, with Guinness Nigeria leading the gainers’ table while Wapic Insurance leading the losers’ pack. The Union Bank of Nigeria recorded the highest volume of 79.2 million traded shares, followed by Zenith Bank with 21.01 million, Guaranty Trust 19.79 million and Guinness Nigeria 12.58 million Further insight into the report showed an overall year-todate benchmark Index loss of 2.62 per cent.
World Bank/IMF Virtual Spring Meeting Holds April 5-11 T he World Bank has announced that the the 2021 Spring Meetings will take place virtually from Monday, April 5, through Sunday, April 11. To accommodate for the time differences between countries, the organizers says some events will also take place outside the principal week of the Spring Meetings. A notice made available to THEWILL stated that “At the heart of the Spring Meetings are meetings of the joint World Bank Group/IMF Development Committee and the IMF International Monetary and Financial Committee, which discuss progress on the work of the institutions.” THEWILLNIGERIA
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The airline stated further: “ Overall, the coming on stream of NG Eagle will expand the aviation industry and create more jobs. Where some types of jobs are no longer needed or a few persons are no longer required, adequate compensation will be paid to those affected. The fact is that Arik staff had had their best days in the past four years. Salaries have been increased and are paid as at when due. Pensions are remitted. Leave allowances introduced and being paid. The airline now has a well negotiated terminal entitlement scheme. And it works.” Arik Air operates mainly from two hubs at Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos and Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja. The airline which is under receivership by AMCON also serves a network of regional and mid-haul destinations within Africa. Founded 2002, it Commenced operations in 2006.
Imo-Abasi Jacob Replaces Idongesit Nkanga As Chairman Ibom Air
BY UDEME UTIP, UYO
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he Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Mr. Udom Emmanuel, has approved the appointment of Mr. Imo-Abasi Jacob as Chairman of Ibom Air with effect from Monday 22 March, 2021. Jacob is taking over from Air Commodore Idongesit Nkanga rtd. the immediate pass Chairman of the airline who died on December 24, 2020. Until his recent appointment, Jacob who has many years of experience in the financial services sector, was an Executive Director in Akwa Ibom Investment Corporation ( AKICORP) as well as a member of the Board of Ibom Air. In a statement signed by the Secretary to the State Government, the state Governor Mr. Udom Emmanuel wishes Imo-Abasi Jacob the best in his new role and hopes that he will bring more creativity and innovation to bear on the operations of the airline.
It added that other featured events include regional briefings, press conferences, and fora focused on international development, issues of debt, economic recovery, vaccines, and climate. “The public program of events is streamed on World Bank Live and may be viewed without registering. “Spring Meetings participants typically include approximately 2,800 delegates from our member countries, 350 observer organization representatives, 800 members of the press, and 550 accredited civil society members.”
Jacob
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Equity Market Records N258.1bn Gain In One Week
The airline further stated that “the management of Arik Air and AMCON understand this,” adding, “Active discussions and communications with the various unions on sundry issues are currently ongoing. Their interests will be well catered for.”
He however prayed that Ibom Air continues to be a shinning star and a reference point for excellence in the Nigerian aviation industry.
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BUSINESS/DEVELOPMENT
Honour For FirstCheck Africa Boss, Eloho Omame,in France BY KOFI LOU BANKULI
Junior Africa prize, developed a waste treatment robot capable of picking up debris on its way to transporting it to a defined area (garbage cans, recycling center...) in record time.
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o-founder of FirstCheck Africa, Eloho Omame, has won an international award in France. Omame, who is also a Board member at Endeavor Nigeria, an advisory Board member at Utopia Lagos and Chair of the Finance & Capital sub-committee of the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund’s MSME Recovery Fund, won the award for her efforts at promoting the “underleveraged potential” of those she described as Africa’s next generation of female founders.
The trio were part of the six winners of the African Margaret 2021 Africa Awards. For Omame, the award is coming only three months after she and Odunayo Eweniyi launched FirstCheck Africa having realised that “fixing capital access for female tech entrepreneurs in Africa needs an intentional, female-led approach.”
At an all-digital ceremony held in Paris, March 8, with the French President, Emmanuel Macron, in attendance, Omame was named as not just one of the three English-speaking winners of the African Margaret 2021 Africa Prize, she was also unveiled as one of the three wonderful and innovative African women changing the narrative by taking giant steps in Africa’s technology ecosystem, a sector in which women are still under-represented.
According to the plan, the fund will provide between $15,000 to $25,000 in six women this year in exchange for modest equity even as FirstCheck Africa plans to see each woman or femaleled team through the ideation stage to a significant pre-seed round within 12 months.
Omame, according to JFD, the award organisers, won the Margaret Intrapreneur Africa prize for piloting a fund with a community of women business angels and investors, focused on women, to make it easier for African women entrepreneurs in the digital world to raise capital. JFD is an initiative of Delphine Remy Boutang created in 2013 to promote women in digital and technology. The two other English-speaking laureates unveiled at the ceremony were Nneile Nkholise from South Africa and 18-year-old Xaviera Kowo from Cameroon. Nkholise, who won the Margaret Entrepreneur Africa prize, is the Co-Founder & CEO 3DIMO, which automates the analysis of livestock data to monitor animal health. The in-
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he National Association of Women in Colleges of Education (WICE), Adeniran Ogunsanya College of Education (AOCOED) Chapter, on Monday March 15, 2021, converged at the Senator Oluremi Tinubu hall in the college campus, Ijanikin, Lagos.
“We know we can generate solid longterm returns by investing in women, so we’ll write female founders’ first checks and be their earliest believers. We’re not afraid to invest ridiculously early in great women,” Omame and Eweniyi were quoted to have said in a statement. app generates a universally traceable digital identification of each cow linked to a farmer and will provide the farmer with a tool to record animal vaccinations, movements and inventory control. Xaviera Kowo, the young Programmer, who won the Margaret
In 2017, in collaboration with the Lagos State Government, Omame, who described herself as a dedicated and purposeful mentor for high-potential women in tech, taking on their first leadership roles in business and entrepreneurship, conceptualised, built and launched Lagos Innovates, a portfolio of startup support programmes — a first-of-its-kind by a sub-national government in Africa.
WICE Marks International Women’s Day
At the occasion to mark the International Women’s Day (IWD), the provost of the college, Professor Bilikis Bidemi Lafiaji-Okuneye, urged women to speak out and speak up against domestic violence and gender based discrimination, adding that women must support each other in work places and not to work against each other. At the interactive session, Dr (Mrs) Omolola Aina Ladele, (immediate past provost of the college), highlighted the prospects and challenges of women leadership In her presentation titled “Women in Leadership: Prospects and Challenges”, she highlighted some myths of women in positions of authority. Dr. Ladele described what leadership entails and concluded that women are born leaders because of their ability to procreate and rear children. She also highlighted the prospects of women to reach leadership positions as enshrined in the SDG 5, while calling for the creation of Ministry of Women Affairs in the Judiciary and Civil Service, as well as other reforms by the Lagos State Government to recognize women. On the challenges of women in leadership, Dr Ladele highlighted “Socio-cultural beliefs and practices, domestic responsibilities, discriminatory laws and policies, under-representation at political leadership, limited or no regard for the girl-child and her education, male- dominated environment/Intimidation, lack of support from family.”
Dr Beatrice Ogannah-Ikujenyo (Chairperson, WICE), Dr Omolola Ladele (Speaker at the symposium), Prof B.B. Lafiaji-Okuneye (Provost of the College. Presenting an historical survey of women struggle for their rights, chairperson of the occasion, Dr Beatrice Ogannah-Ikujenyo, traced such agitations to issues of civility, harmful traditional practices and discrimination.
As a way forward, she advised, that “women leaders should first understand themselves, their strength and weaknesses, be confident, invest in oneself in this digital age, effectively use your position when provided the opportunity.”
She observed that though the road had been rough, the emergence of Dr Ngozi Okonjo–Iweala as the Director General of WTO and Dr Omolola Ladele as the first female provost of the college (after 60 years of existence) and the current provost- another female, are proof to the adage ‘what a man can do; women can do better’.
She called for policy modification to support women at various levels.
In line with the theme of the 2021 IWD celebration, tagged ‘Choose to Challenge, a Challenged World is an Alert World’, Dr
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Ogannah-Ikujenyo, probed the gender disparity in the workplace and gender inequality in education. Raising the question of gender inequality in the institution, Dr Oganah-Ikujenyo pointed out that “only 29% of the academic staff in this college are women while a whopping 71% are men. For the non-teaching senior staff, 48% are women and the majority 52% are men.” At the high point of the interaction was the agreement that women must be effective to succeed in leadership. To do this, women were challenged to give support, rally round women leaders and ensure that the working environment is free from envy and rancour. THEWILLNIGERIA
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INSIDE:
•Where Are These Ex-Beauty Queens?
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•Controversy Over Three-Bedroom Flat Gifted Veteran Actress, Lanre Hassan, By LASG
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EMEKA ROLLAS The Face Of AGN
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People Believe Actors Live Flamboyant Lives - Emeka Rollas Before he was elected to lead the Actors Guild of Nigeria as their president, Emeka Rollas had paid his dues in the movie making business as an actor and a movie-producer. His wealth of experience in the industry spans over 20 years which is why he has successfully manned the affairs of the Guild for almost four years. Since his assumption of office, he has contributed his quota to the advancement of the association by establishing a Trust Fund to cater for the welfare of actors; putting a health scheme in place for members of the association and several other things that were never in place, to keep the association vibrant and to create a sense of belonging for the actors. In this interview with SHADE METIBOGUN, he highlights some of the challenges he has had to face as the Guild’s president and other sundry issues. Excerpts:
How has Covid 19 affected the smooth running of the association? We do not gather anymore as we used to. It is when we gather that we network among ourselves. We were already charting a new course last year with our award ceremony honouring members and so on. We were supposed to have gone far with activities lined up. But for the pandemic, a lot of things didn’t go the way we planned. I will say it has not been easy for us but with God, all things are possible What are some of the challenges you have to deal with as the AGN president? One of the major challenges is information dissemination. Once the right information does not get to where it should, it becomes a challenge. If the information does not reach members, they will find it difficult to key into some of the things we have for them. We are trying our best to ensure that we have people who give out this information at the right time and location. Not that those actors don’t like doing the necessary things but they are not aware of it.
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our first term of four years ends this year. How will you assess your work so far as the president of the Actors Guild of Nigeria? I will be very frank to let you know that some of the things we have put in place in this dispensation are things that were not there initially. For me, I wouldn’t count them as such a big success because they are primary things which were supposed to have been readily available before now. I do not consider someone who gives us water or electricity as having done anything because we should have a right to water, electricity, shelter etc. Whatever the members of the guild are having access to now are their rights. Until I begin to actualize my next level game, where some of the things we are going to enjoy are things we don’t have rights to, that is when I can now say that I have achieved something as the president of the guild.
Another challenge is that people overrate actors beyond their rating and sometimes, they don’t promote what we do. In this make-believe business, people are seen in films as if they are rich but in real life, they are not. Sometimes people are hesitant about doing things for actors, imagining that an actor is a billionaire because of the cars he or she drives and what they wear. Those are the challenges we have. There have been countless cases of actors having nothing to fall back on and relying on the public for assistance especially when they fall ill. What is the association doing concerning this? We are doing a lot concerning the welfare of actors and you must know that we can only cater for actors who are our members. Unfortunately, some actors who are not members fall sick and they go on social media and begin to beg for money. It diminishes the image of the guild. So, we decided to reach out to them also so that we can help them. But we are warning people to become members of the guild so as to reap the benefits the guild has to offer. This year alone, we have been able to disburse over N2 million naira to sick actors in Kaduna, Imo, Lagos and Abuja, just
to cushion the effect of their ailments but when you are not a member of our guild, we will find it difficult to lend a helping hand. Other areas of welfare we have attended to are some of the things we have instituted. We have a health management scheme where actors are allowed to pay a token for one year and they will have access to about six hundred hospitals in the country. It is now left for actors to key into the scheme so they can continue to get the benefits. We have set up the HMO trust fund which delectable actress, Joke Silva is the chairperson. The essence of the trust fund is that during their time of sickness, the guild will not be going round to ask for money from people but will go back to the trust fund and see how we can help our members. It might interest you to know that in in recent times, we have set up an internal fund-raising scheme for actors in need and the money is already in the trust fund. I can tell you authoritatively that we have almost six million naira in the trust fund. Obviously, some practitioners are careless with the way they live, lavishing money on a flamboyant lifestyle without preparing for rainy days. I don’t want to believe that. People just think or imagine THEWILLNIGERIA
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that actors live flamboyant lives. The issue here is that an actor as a celebrity has different life lines from the fans or people who love him. For instance, as the president of AGN, if I travel to Abuja and the people I am going to meet there say they have accommodation for me at Hilton hotel, I will not say because I don’t want to live a flamboyant life, they should take me to another hotel. That is why people think some actors live flamboyant lives. What is happening in Nigeria is that we do not have a responsible support system for people. A wealthy man who instead of helping an average celebrity would prefer to use his money to stage a party worth millions of naira. We want to change that narrative. Besides setting up an internal fund-raising plan to help ourselves, we are calling on well-meaning Nigerians to help actors if they really love us. Actors are always moving from one place to another, they get carried away and forget to set up plans for themselves. They are not well informed enough to know that while they are working, they need to prepare for the future, put something away for the rainy day, just like how management consultants do to help people make money. What is the guild doing in terms of upholding professionalism with regards to auditions, insisting on non-members not getting featured in movies and also ensuring actors work with agents as it is done in other countries? The use of agents hasn’t quite started in Nigeria yet, we are just about introducing that and a few other things, gradually. Secondly, about auditions and ensuring that only members are featured in movies - while it is good to enact such laws, we must also realize that there is hunger in the land and people are eager to be featured on the screen. We are working at overhauling the system but we are taking things and dealing with them one after the other. It is alleged that some newcomers are told to bring their exotic cars which are used for props without getting paid for it as long as they feature them in movies. What is your association doing about it? Nobody has reported to us officially that they were asked to bring their exotic cars to location. if you take your car for such, the producer should be able to pay you for using your car for prop, except there is a gentleman’s agreement between the two parties. Once we get such a call, we will treat it immediately. There is a new trend in Nollywood especially with Asaba made movies where new comers desperate to join the industry, pay movie producers to get featured in movies and play lead roles. Some don’t mind not being paid, as long as they get featured. The way you are hearing it is the way I have also heard it. We have set up a special number and a special email address where people can report such cases to us. As I am talking to you, I am glad to inform you that no one has reported on such issues. If you know these issues and you are not comfortable with them, why not report it instead of going behind to gossip about it. They should help us do this work well. Immediately they are asked to pay, they should alert us. But you granted an interview recently where you admitted that some actors pay producers to give them roles instead of it being the other way round but now you are saying the issue is new to you. People actually pay producers to give them roles. Does that imply that I am a witness to the incident? We at the AGN keep hearing about it. We have been saying that people should come up with evidence so we can prosecute culprits but instead, people cover up for them because they are getting the roles. It shows that it is paying them. After a few years when it no longer pays them, they will begin to complain. That I make it look like it is factual does not mean I have witnessed any. As the president, my ears are open to everybody. It does not mean I am confirming it. We hear this every day and we are on the prowl to see how we can catch those doing it. What are your thoughts about Nollywood being an allcomer’s affair? The acting industry is the same thing all over the world. It is powered by talents. Mel Gibson for example who shot Passion of Christ, did not consider if the person who played the role of Jesus Christ is a Christian or not. The person who played the role of Jesus Christ was not a Christian as at the time of casting. Also, the acting profession is not determined by the education that you have. If the executive producer feels your act can give
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People actually pay producers to give them roles. Does that imply that I am a witness to the incident? We at the AGN keep hearing about it. We have been saying that people should come up with evidence so we can prosecute culprits but instead, people cover up for them because they are getting the roles
has channels whereby you can address issues. But these people didn’t want to use that channel. As the president of over one million actors in Nigeria, most of the things I do are on approval level. Sometimes, I do not get to the root of certain recommendations before approving them. Sometimes, we use logic to address approvals in the line of duty. For instance, sometime back, the President of the country was accused of approving some dead people for some positions. It is the fault of those who suggested those names. They were supposed to cross check and ensure the people they recommended were alive; it is not the fault of the President. It is the same thing with my position. My duty is just to approve the process using either simple syllogism or complete logic to adduce the fact that this is the right decision taken. Are you planning to contest for a second term? When we get to that bridge, we will cross it. Everything will be determined by the level of work we are able to do before my first tenure ends. It is actually ending this year. Like I said, it depends on the level of work done. When next will you be featuring in a movie? I have featured in like three movies this year alone. It is just that I don’t have time anymore to feature in as much movies as I would want to. The vision I have for the Guild will not permit me to be chasing shadows.
him money, he will cast you. There are no moral development issues around it. If any actor’s appearance will fetch money for the producer, that is okay but if such a person contravenes the laws of the Guild, the person will be punished. Be that as it may, if we come very hard on people because they don’t have XYZ, then you will be killing their God given talents. What we do is that as you become a member, you go through training that will help you out. We also organize master classes for our celebrities to help sharpen their skills, maybe in the area of global administrative skills. Just like the music industry, you cannot tell people that because they didn’t go to school, you will not be a musician. Your talent is your talent. If you have sung in a choir before, you may not know the four walls of a school but your talent will make you sing in the best part in the world. On the issue of morality, movies should teach morals so why feature people like say, Bobrisky in films, what is featuring him teaching the audience watching the movie? The people who play different roles in movies are not originally who they play in movies. They can play armed robbers in films but it does not make them armed robbers in real life, no. What is the reason behind making Adamawa senator, Elisha Abbo a patron of AGN despite the fact that he openly assaulted a pregnant woman? I think this issue has long been trashed and treated. Coming back to the press again one year later would not help anybody, not even my organization or your own organisation. We have dealt with this matter, it’s off the radar. I do not have any answer to it. How were you able to address the issue with your colleagues who called you out for it? My colleagues who went on Instagram did so to attack the guild not me. We need to separate Emeka Rollas from the position of the President which anyone can occupy tomorrow. When they went on that wild rampage, it was as a result of how ignorant they were on the position of things. They are not supposed to have gone on the social media to wash our dirty linen outside. When I convened a meeting of certain veterans to discuss the aftermath of the situation, it was clear at the meeting that they were misinformed. The guild is an organization that has a process for all issues. Even if the process is faulted by some members, the guild
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STORIES BY IVORY UKONU
Where Are These
At different points in time, they held many spell-bound with their beauty, grace and poise, and were always the stars of any gathering. As a result of their status and social standing, they were tabloid fodder, as many wanted to know what they were always up to. Even though they have all gone into oblivion, it hasn’t stopped people from wondering what they have been up to.
Oshinowo
ADENIKE OSHINOWO: The former 1991 Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria, who reigned on the social circuit for about 25 years, suddenly dropped off the scene without warning. Nike was one beauty queen who dabbled into several things but never really sustained any. From running a beauty and spa outfit called Skin Deep, to creating her own range of beauty products for the Nigerian market, to releasing her own workout DVD when she clocked 40 named ‘Nike Oshinowo: Fit, Forty and Fabulous’. She also tried to be a beauty pageant organiser for Daily Times, launched her own talk show which ran for only two seasons in 2014, ‘Late Night with Nike Oshinowo,’ and several other ventures. At some point in her entrepreneurial journey the Ibadan indigene married fellow socialite, Dr Tunde Soleye. They were the quintessential couple until they both parted ways in 2012 after five years of marriage over what they termed irreconcilable differences. Many allege the marriage ended because Dr Soleye ran into financial problems and was at some point a guest of anti-graft agency, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC. Two years after the marriage ended, Nike welcomed a set of mixed-race twin boy and girl via surrogacy. With the arrival of her twins, coupled with age, Nike was forced to slow down on her social activities. The 55-year-old currently resides in the United Kingdom, away from the prying eyes of the public.
Omasan Buwa
Umeh
Adenike Oshinowo
Sabina Umeh
SABINA UMEH: She was crowned Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria in 1990. Following the end of her reign, she embraced music, dance/choreography and modelling and went on to set up Juicy Groove, a music production company. The 53-year-old resides in America and is married to Kese Jabari, a one-time rave of the moment fashion designer in Nigeria before he took his craft to the US. They have four children.
Ogunbiyi
OMASAN BUWA: Before Adenike Oshinowo, there was Omasan Buwa who won the Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria pageant in 1987. Like Nike, Omasan has done it all. She is a trained lawyer, an actress, a singer, a broadcaster, a Disc Jockey, a restauranteur, a cosmetologist, an educationist. A mother three grown-ups, Omasan was also a two-time Executive Assistant to Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta state from 2009 to 2015 and later a member of the board of Culture and Tourism for Delta state. After her political stint, the 56-year-old tried being an On Air Personality both on radio and TV and later took up a teaching job in China in 2018. She is currently a human rights activist based in America.
TOYIN RAJI-AYODELE: She won the Most Beautiful girl in Nigeria crown in 1995. Following her win, she left for South Africa to participate in the Miss World pageant but was asked to withdraw from the pageant because the then head of state, Gen Sani Abacha had a week before the pageant, executed activist and play wright, Ken Saro Wiwa and nine other activists. Her withdrawal was a protest against Nigeria for Abacha’s despicable act, by civil liberty and pressure groups around the world who put pressure on the Miss World Organisation to drop her. She returned to Nigeria, participated in a few Nollywood productions and suddenly dropped off the radar. She is now married with a child and currently lives in Texas.
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Edem-Emechete
Toyin Raji-Ayodele
WUNMI OGUNBIYI: A 1989 former Miss Nigeria, Wunmi Ogunbiyi shortly after her reign went into the banking sector and after putting in 15 years, she resigned as a General Manager to float her own outfit, aCubed Limited, a modern-day business growth consultancy firm where she wields her experience as a multi-facetted administrator and business consultant in various sectors of the economy including Financial Services, Technology development, eCommerce, Power (energy), and Transportation, to grow businesses and to provide bespoke Project management for her clients. Wunmi is currently married to Dr Yemi Ogunbiyi, the Chairman of Tanus Communication as his second wife. She also runs Bakery Direct, a one stop shop for pastries, confectioneries and bread.
Sylvia Edem-Emechete
Raji-Ayodele
Buwa
Wunmi Ogunbiyi
SYLVIA EDEM-EMECHETE: She had competed in the 2001 edition of the Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria Pageant but when she didn’t win, she applied for the Miss Nigeria pageant and won in 2002. She however didn’t stay too long on the social circuit as she soon got swept off her feet by her now businessman husband, Chris Emechete whom she married a year after meeting and subsequently relocated to the United Kingdom. A fitness enthusiast, the 42-year-old mother of two children is currently the host of Luminous TV where she connects with those who wish to escape the everyday material pursuit in order to stimulate their Spirit towards a spiritual goal and purpose. THEWILLNIGERIA
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ANITA UWAGBALE: Her reign as the Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria in 2004 was very uneventful as she was still a student when she won the crown. She soon married Tom Iseghohi, a former group managing director of Transcorp Plc. recruited from America by the former Director General of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, Ndi Okereke-Onyuike. In quick successions, the 36-year-old bore Tom three children. Then in 2018 after 15 years of being together, she ended it. Anita choosing to end the marriage may not be unconnected to the fraud and money laundering charges brought against Tom in connection with the botched acquisition of the Nigeria Telecommunications (NITEL) by Transcorp. Even though the Court of Appeal discharged and acquitted him of the charges, their relationship obviously took a big hit from it. While Tom has since gone back to America, Anita now spends time nurturing her wellness and fitness outfit, FitandFabNg as well her retail baby store.
Bissong
Ex-Beauty Queens?
Anita Uwagbale
Omotu Bissong
Lawan
OMOTU BISSONG: Omotu who currently resides in America, started out as a model, entered for the Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria pageant in 2003, won the crown, travelled out, completed her education, returned and set up a modelling agency. She abandoned it for Nollywood and television presenting but that too was short lived and she soon returned to the states.
Anita Uwagbale
ENE MAYA LAWANI: She disappeared from the social scene faster than it takes one to blink, after dominating the scene for years. Ene was the longest reigning Miss Nigeria and was so for six years because of the comatose state of the Daily Times owned pageant. She reigned from the time she won the crown in 2004 till 2010 before relinquishing her crown. During and after her reign, Ene took both the fashion and social scene by storm and in the process, caught the interest of John Obayuwana, the lifestyle king who runs Polo Limited. Their very public relationship spanned about 10 years with the Polo boss showering her with love and some of the best things that money can buy. They however soon dropped each other like a bad habit to the shock of many who thought John was in loave with her enough to walk her down the aisle. While John hasn’t been publicly associated with anyone, Ene who has since disappeared from the prying eyes of the public is alleged to be in a relationship with Godwin Obla (SAN), a former prosecutor with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. It is also alleged that Obla whom she lives with in his Abuja home, banned her from the social life she is accustomed to, including restricting her on social media except it has to do with her millinery business, Ene Maya Turbans.
Kerry
Ene Maya Lawani
Chineye Ochuba-Akinlade
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Vien Tetsola VIEN TETSOLA: She was widely referred to as the millennium queen as she got crowned Miss Nigeria in the year 2000 at the turn of the millennium. Besides being in a well-publicized relationship with music super star, Innocent Idibia, more popularly known as 2Baba at some point, Vien was also alleged to be in a romantic relationship with clergyman, Chris Okotie of Household of God Church. Vien soon dropped out of the scene leaving many to wonder what had become of her. She eventually surfaced mid last year after undergoing some spiritual transformation. Today she runs Holy City Empire of GOD Beulah Land Ministry where she is the head of government of the ministry (General Overseer). She has also changed her name and now prefers to be called Israel Shepherd.
DR MATILDA KERRY: She was crowned Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria in 2000. Following the end of her reign, she returned to school to bag a degree in Medicine and Surgery at the College of Medicine, University of Lagos. She also completed a Public Health and Health Promotion Course at the same institution in 2006. In 2012, she received training in minor surgery and cryosurgery by the Royal College of GP’s London. Today, Matilda who is married is a resident community health doctor at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, LUTH with special interest in Women’s Health. She also oversees the extensive cervical health campaign of the George Kerry Life Foundation which she founded.
Okwuosa
Tetsola
CHINEYE OCHUBA-AKINLADE: But for her husband, Abdulkabir Adekunle Akinlade, failing to win the 2019 gubernatorial election in Ogun State, under the platform of Allied Peoples Movement, APM, Chineye would have been the first lady of Ogun State. Chineye who won the Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria pageant in 2002 is satisfied with being a supportive wife and a mother to her two children.
Dr Matilda Kerry
Nwando Okwuosa
NWANDO OKWUOSA: Nwando Okwuosa came into limelight in 2003 when she won the Miss Nigeria crown and became the first Miss Nigeria to represent Nigeria at the Miss International Beauty Pageant. A combination of beauty and brain, after her reign, Nwando returned to school and bagged a degree in Law from Middlesex University and a Master of Science in Human Resources Management/Personnel Administration, from the University of Sheffield. She returned home and got into the banking sector and worked at various times with Heritage Bank and Fidelity Bank. She currently works with the Central Bank of Nigeria.
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BY JOY ONUORAH, SHADE METIBOGUN AND IVORY UKONU
EX BBNaija Housemate, Trikytee, Launches e-book On Reality Show
Helen Prest-Ajayi Gets Her Groove Back, Bags Bank Appointment
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Veteran Musician, Mike Okri, Stages Comeback With Self-titled EP
Mike Okri
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t is beginning to look like it is the season of comebacks for veteran music acts. Barely a few weeks after veteran musician, Daniel Wilson staged a comeback with the release of a new album featuring a remix of his old hit singles, veteran highlife musician, Mike Okri, is also staging a comeback after being away from the music business, with a comeback self-titled extended play (EP) which was launched on March 27. The launch of the EP titled ‘Rhythmysticals’ following his return from a decade sojourn in the United States, held at The Kulture Yard with Sheyi Shey as the special guest at the boom play backed launch. Produced by his Mike Okri Entertainment Company, the EP contains entertaining, original, intriguing and message-filled songs. He also collaborated with three female singers to remix three of his hit songs: ‘Omoge’, ‘Rhumba dance’ and ‘Time na Money’. On why he left the stage when the ovation was loudest to the United States, he shared in an interview that he was spiritually inspired to leave the country at the time he did, adding that his coming back is not only to reclaim his place in the music industry but also to explore the business aspect of showbiz. For many who do not know, Mike Okri belonged to the pop generation of Dizzy K Falola, Felyx and Mozyx, Alex O, Alex Zitto and Chris Mba, all of who stormed the Nigerian music scene in 1988 with his chart-buster debut LP titled ‘Concert Fever’, that ushered in spice and change into the Nigerian Music Industry. A onetime Vice President of the Musician’s union (PMAN), Director in the membership board of the Musical Copyright Society of Nigeria (MCSN) with King Sunny Ade as its presiding Chairman and a staunch intellectual property crusader, Okri has won for himself numerous awards in different categories and at different times both locally and internationally.
former Big Brother Naija housemate, Timmy Sinclair, more popularly known as Trikytee has launched his first e-book ever titled “The Triky Guide To Hacking Big Brother… (How to stand out in any audition)”. The 35-year-old latest author who was a participant in the Lockdown Edition of the reality TV show in 2020, shared that his book is for anyone who wants to audition for the reality show and stand out. According to him, the book contains all the hacks he used for the various stages of his auditions that made him stand out. The timely launch of the book cannot be overemphasized considering that the 2021 edition of the reality show has been announced with a winner takes all prize. Known for a tradition of topping prizes with each new season, organisers of the popular reality television show announced that the winner of the sixth season of the show which will be returning later this year will go home with a grand prize of 90million naira, a huge increase from the grand prize of $100,000 in 2006, won by Katung Aduwak; N25 million naira in 2017 won by Micheal Efe Ejeba; N45 million naira in 2018 won by Miracle Igbokwe; 60 million naira in 2019 won by Mercy Eke and N85 million naira in 2020 won by Olamilekan Agbeleshe more popularly known as Laycon. However, the announcement of the 2021 grand prize have stirred up reactions from the general public following the perceived implication of the prize that is consistently being topped, on the youths, many who are hellbent on abandoning education, regular jobs, value for hard work, for a chance to get into the reality show. While the reality TV show has helped in bettering the lot of participants, it has further intensified the hunger for wealth and fame among the Nigerian youths.
Trikytee
Prest-Ajayi
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ollowing the upheaval the death of her partner, Dr Tosin Ajayi, of First Foundation Centre caused, the eight-month long fight with her partner’s wife, Yemisi and his five older children over the cause of his death, where and how he wanted to be buried, claim of her marital status with the late doctor, the drama that characterized his burial ceremony etc. it looks like Helen can now heave a sigh of relief with her latest appointment. The 61-year-old former beauty queen has been appointed a non-Executive Director of Bank Nevis International Trust Services Ltd. BONITS. BONITS with offices in the Eastern Caribbean off the coast of Mexico and Venezuela, Dubai, West Africa and East Africa and affiliation to Bank of Nevis International Inc, specialises in Global Migration Investment. The company’s mission is to enable individuals to invest impactfully and provide asset protection while enhancing their global mobility through a second passport issued by the St Kitts & Nevis Citizenship and to be the preferred provider of trust and company formation services. An advocate for financial inclusion, Helen, who is a lawyer is a mother to three young ladies, two from a previous marriage and one with her late partner.
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n Wednesday March 24, the Lagos State governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, gifted veteran actress, Lanre Hassan, a three-bedroom flat during the commissioning of 360 units of a housing estate called LagosHoms located in Igbogbo, Ikorodu axis of the state. Several reasons have been attributed to why the talented Nollywood actress was gifted the apartment. Besides the fact that the actress who stays within that axis of Lagos state was said to be in dire need of a decent accommodation, gifting her the apartment was also said to be an avenue to celebrate her immense contribution which spans over four decades in the entertainment industry. According to the governor, entertainers should be celebrated while alive not when they pass on. But despite Sanwo-Olu’s kind gesture, his action has been greeted with criticism and he has received knocks from some well-meaning citizens of the state. They questioned the choice of Lanre Hassan amidst other Nollywood veterans who also have accommodation problems and why they were also not considered. For instance, veteran actor, Ajirebi Kayode Olasehinde once abandoned his rented Agbado Oke-Odo residence, months back after flood sacked him from there. It took the intervention of his younger colleagues led by
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Funke Akindele Bello who donated money for him to rent another apartment, before he got another roof over his head. Also, another veteran actor, Olusegun Akinremi, more popularly known as Chief Kanran lost his house, cars and other valuables to a fire incident years ago. Things nosedived for him so badly he resorted to sleeping in church for over a year before he cried out for help last year. Despite the tears he shed in a video that went viral where he was begging for help, no aid got to him from the government. Most recently, the dreadful state of some Nollywood veterans have been made public on social media. The likes of Babatunde Omidina, Victor Olaotan, both of who have not been enjoying the best of health because of inadequate funds to get proper health care, have not gotten any form of assistance from the state, except help from private individuals and a few colleagues. In the case of Victor Olaotan who is still battling for life after a traumatic brain injury he sustained in a ghastly accident in 2016, businessman Femi Otedola donated the sum of N30 million naira to him. Even though it was quite a huge sum, it has since been exhausted with the Turkish hospital where Olaotan is receiving treatment, threatening to kick him out.
Sanwo-Olu & Hassan
Controversy Over Three-Bedroom Flat Gifted Veteran Actress, Lanre Hassan, By LASG
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SHOTS OF THE WEEK PHOTOS: PEACE UDUGBA (08033050729)
L-R: Lagos State Deputy Governor, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, Chairman, Igbogbo-Bayeku LCDA, Hon. L-R: Deputy Governor, Bayelsa State, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo; Governor of Bayelsa State, Douye Olusesan Daini and Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu during the commissioning of new Igbogbo-Bayeku Diri, and Chairperson of Covid-19 Task Force of VSF, Mrs. Toyosi Akerele - Ogunsinji, during a courtesy visit to the government House in Yenagoa on 23/3/2021 LCDA Secretariat in Ikorodu, Lagos, 25/3/2021
Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde (second right); Secretary to the State Government, Mrs Olubamiwo Adeosun (second left); Air Officer Commanding Logistics of Nigerian Air Force Ikeja, Air Vice Marshal Olaonipekun Makinde (right) and Air Commodore Simon Peter during a courtesy visit to Governor’s Office, Secretariat, Ibadan on 25/3/2021
L-R: Chairman, Association of Community Pharmacists, Lagos State, Mr Lawrence Ekhator; Laboratory Director, EL-LAB Diagnostics and National President, Guild of Private Medical Laboratory Directors, Prince Elochukwu Adibo; Director of Disease Control, Lagos State, representing the Commissioner for Health, Lagos State, Dr Agbolagorite Olurotimi; Senior Private Sector Advisor,USAID ShopsPlus, Mrs Ayodele Iroko, and Chairman, Association of General and Private Medical Practitioners of Nigeria, Lagos State, Dr Akinlemi Bola, during the unveiling of 16 modular GeneExpert Tuberculosis testing machine donated by USAID in Lagos on 23/3/2024
L-R: The Dean, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Abuja, Prof. Park Idisi; Corporate Director, Dairy Development and Milkstreams, Royal FrieslandCampina, Mr. Jeroen Elfers; Vice Chancellor, University of Abuja, Prof. Abdul-Rasheed Na’Allah; Managing Director, FrieslandCampina WAMCO and Chairman CNDDD, Mr. Ben Langat, and Executive Director Corporate Affairs, FrieslandCampina WAMCO, Mrs. Ore Famurewa during the signing of a partnership agreement, under the aegis of the Centre for Nigerian Dutch Dairy Development in Abuja on 22/3/2021
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L-R: Oni Afolabi, Assistant Secretary; Fred Okoligwe, Treasurer; Akinkunmi Farinto, Financial Secretary; Bunmi Ogunyale, Secretary; Oluchi Tobechukwu, Vice Chairman, and Debo Osundun, Chairman during the swearing-in of the new Exco of Sports Writers Association of Nigeria, Lagos Chapter at SWAN Secretariat National Stadium Surulere Lagos on 26/3/2021
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ARTS Akwaeke Emezi In Contention For Leading International Prize Celebrating Young Writers BY KOFI LOU BANKULI
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igeria’s Akwaeke Emezi has been shortlisted for one of the world’s largest and most prestigious literary awards for young writers: Swansea University Dylan Thomas Prize. The shortlist, announced on Thursday, features a raft of bold new voices that challenge expectations in a compelling exploration of survival, identity, belonging and what it means to be ‘other’ in our world today. Born in Umuahia and raised in Aba, Akwaeke Emezi is a nonbinary writer and video artist who has been recognised for their most recent New York Times bestseller, The Death of Vivek Oji. Teeming with unforgettable characters and steeped in Igbo cosmology, it shares with us a Nigerian childhood that challenges expectations. Other authors shortlisted are Dima Alzayat (Alligator and Other Stories), Rye Curtis (Kindgomtide), Raven Leilani (Luster) and Kate Elizabeth Russell (My Dark Vanessa) and Catherine Lacey (Pew).
•Alligator and Other Stories by Dima Alzayat (Picador) – short story collection (Syria/USA) •Kingdomtide by Rye Curtis (HarperCollins, 4th Estate) – novel (USA) •The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi (Faber) – novel (Nigeria/USA) •Pew by Catherine Lacey (Granta) – novel (USA) •Luster by Raven Leilani (Picador/Farrar, Straus and Giroux) – novel (USA) •My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell (HarperCollins, 4th Estate) – novel (USA) Amongst the contenders for this prestigious £20,000 prize are two of the most talked about breakout novels of recent times: New York City native Raven Leilani has been recognised for the brutal and brilliant Luster, her razor-sharp debut about what it means to be a black millennial woman in America; and Kate Elizabeth Russell has been chosen by the judges for her darkly shocking exploration of an abusive relationship and sexual consent in My Dark Vanessa, an era-defining novel described as ‘a package of dynamite’ by Stephen King. The two further debut voices in contention are Texan Rye Curtis and Kingdomtide, his story of suspense and resilience that combines an enthralling narrative of two unforgettable characters with vivid nature writing, and Syria born and Manchester based Dima Alzayat, whose first short story collection – Alligator and Other Stories – captures how it feels to be ‘other’ whilst at home: as a Syrian, as an Arab, as an immigrant, as a woman. The final novelists completing the line-up are one of Granta Magazine’s Best Young American Novelists Catherine Lacey for her third novel Pew, a foreboding, captivating and fearlessly astute fable revolving around a silent stranger found sleeping in the church of a small American town; and Igbo and Tamil, non-binary author Akwaeke Emezi and their boundary breaking New York Times bestseller The Death of Vivek Oji, a visceral yet tender exploration into gender, family and selfhood. The six strong shortlist was selected by a judging panel chaired by award-winning writer, publisher and co-director of the Jaipur Literature Festival, Namita Gokhale alongside founder and director of the Bradford Literature Festival, Syima Aslam, poet Stephen Sexton, writer Joshua Ferris and novelist and academic Francesca Rhydderch. This year’s winner will be revealed at a virtual ceremony on 13 May, the eve of International Dylan Thomas Day. Namita Gokhale, Chair of Judges, said: “We are thrilled to present this year’s extraordinary shortlist – it is truly a world-class writing showcase of the highest order from six exceptional young writers. I want to press each and every one of these bold, inventive and distinctive books into the hands of readers, and celebrate how they challenge preconceptions, ask new questions about how we define identity and our relationships, and how we live together in this world.
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PHOTO: Akwaeke Emezi (c) Kathleen Bomani
Akwaeke Emezi
Comprising of five novels and one short story collection, including four debuts and four women, the shortlist is:
Congratulations to these tremendously talented writers – they are master storytellers in every sense of the word.” Francesca Rhydderch on Alligator and Other Stories by Dima Alzayat: “Dima Alzayat’s visceral, innovative Alligator & Other Stories marks the arrival of a major new talent. While the range of styles and stories is impressively broad, there is a unity of voice and tone here which must have been so very difficult to achieve, and a clear sense that all these disparate elements are part of an overriding, powerful examination of identity.” Joshua Ferris on Kingdomtide by Rye Curtis: “Kingdomtide is a propulsively readable and frequently very funny book about the resources, personal and natural, necessary to survive a patently absurd world. The winning voice of Texasnative Cloris Waldrip artfully takes us through her eightyeight-day ordeal in the wilds of Montana as the inimitable drunk and park ranger Debra Lewis searches for her. This fine novel combines the perfect modern yarn with something transcendent, lyrical and wise.” Namita Gokhale on The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi: “The Death of Vivek Oji’ by Akwaeke Emezi is a powerful novel that carries the authenticity of cultural and emotional context. The story unfolds brilliantly, with the prescient foreboding about Vivek Oji’s death already announced in the brief line that constitutes the opening chapter. Yet the suspense is paced and carefully maintained until the truth is finally communicated in the final chapter. A triumph of narrative craft.” Francesca Rhydderch on Pew by Catherine Lacey: “In this brilliant novel Catherine Lacey shows herself to be completely unafraid as a writer, willing to tackle the uglier aspects of a fictional small town in America, where a stranger’s refusal to speak breeds paranoia and unease. Beautifully written, sharply observed, and sophisticated in its simplicity, Pew is a book I’m already thinking of as a modern classic.” Syima Aslam on Luster by Raven Leilani: “Sharp and incisive, Luster speaks a fearless truth that takes no hostages. Leilani is unflinchingly observant about the realities of being a young, black woman in America today and revelatory when it comes to exploring unconventional family life and 21st century adultery, in this darkly comic and strangely touching debut.” Stephen Sexton on My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth
Russell: “My Dark Vanessa is an articulate, uncompromising and compelling novel about abuse, its long trail of damage and its devastating iterations. In Vanessa, Russell introduces us to a character of immense complexity, whose rejection of victimhood—in favour of something more like love—is tragic and unforgettable. Timely, harrowing, of supreme emotional intelligence, My Dark Vanessa is the story of one girl; of many girls, and of the darknesses of western literature.” THEWILLNIGERIA
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MARCH 28 - APRIL 3, 2021 www.thewillnigeria.com
FEATURES In his presentation, Head, WASH Wateraid Nigeria, Mr Adebayo Alao also emphasised on the importance of water to the society, adding that any society is expected to have good sources of water. According to Alao, WASH is very important in achieving the SDGs especially goal 6 which has meeting the universal access of water and Sanitation by 2030 as its major thrust. In her remark, Permanent Secretary, Office of Sustainable Development Goals, Lagos State, Mrs Bose George advised on the effective use of water. Mrs George who emphasised on the importance of water said that lack of water could force people to engage in open defecation and other unhygienic habits. In her remark, National President of Association of Table Water Producers of Nigeria (ATWAP), Mrs Clementina Chinwe Ativie said that the value of water cannot be qauntifed,stressing that water value is much more than it’s price. Mrs Ativie stated that, any society with adequate safe potable or wholesome water is a healthy society, just as she opined that government alone cannot adequately supply the required quantity of drinkable water needed for the Nigerian populace. Disclosing that table water production has grown to become a big industry, she said that regulation of the industry is a huge task mainly, due to the number of producers involved, nature of the business and other factors. L-R: Mrs Funke Femi Adepoju, Executive Secretary, Lagos State Water Regulatory Commission (LASWARCO) ; Mrs Belinda Odeleye Rep of the Commissioner, Ministry of The Environment and Water Resources, Lagos State; Prof of Geology, Unilag, Mrs Odukoya; Mrs Clementina Chinwe Ativie, National President of Association of Table Water Producers of Nigeria (ATWAP) and Mr Oluwaseun Obadofin, President of Association of Table Water Producers of Nigeria (ATWAP), Lagos State Chapter, during the 2021 World Water Day celebrated in Lagos recently.
Water, Water Everywhere But None To Drink
In commemoration of World Water Day, ANTHONY OKECHUKWU writes on the importance of water and the challenges of achieving unhindered access to potable water.
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he ‘World Water Day’ was recently celebrated globally on the March 22, 2021 with the theme: “Valuing Water”. The gathering was also held in different states in Nigeria, which attracted different agencies of government, the academia, water producers, students and other stakeholders in the water business industry.
Lagos State for example with a population of over 22 million, with growth of 3.2 per cent is surrounded by water, just 10 per cent of the population of Lagos have a piped water supply that has been treated. The remaining 90 per cent rely on wells or sink boreholes to reach underground water supplies or rely on street vendors.
One key issue that were seriously deliberated upon is the issue of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene known as WASH. This according to some of the participants is because WASH determine the quality of life which drive economic and social development.
Added to the difficulty in accessing water, the provision of adequate sanitation to meet the needs of the city and all its citizens is also a major challenge for the authorities. Despite efforts from successive state governments, approximately three quarters of households in Lagos State are without access to improved sanitation facilities. With the creation of Lagos State Water Regulatory Commission (LASWARCO), things seem to be changing for the better. At least, the Commission presently regulates the production, distribution, supply and use of water, quality of service and charges payable to ensure the viability of the sector and regulate allowable returns.
Although, Nigeria is a party to the United Nations declaration of right to water, which entitles every one living in the country to sufficient, affordable safe and acceptable water for personal and domestic uses. However, reports have shown that no meaningful progress has been made over the years to achieve the spirit and purpose of the UN declaration. As it stands, an estimated 110 million Nigerians, which is about 50 per cent of the population still lack basic sanitation, while about 70 million do not have access to basic water sources. In addition, Nigeria occupies the status as the country with the highest level of open defecation in the world,a position it recently took from India. Quoting MCSS 2017 survey, a Unicef WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) specialist, Mainga Moono Banga had noted that over 48 million people still practice open defecation in Nigeria, with 33 million of this figure found in the rural areas. The menace, however, does not end only in the rural areas. THEWILLNIGERIA
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Speaking at this year’s World Water Day, Executive Secretary, (LASWARCO), Mrs Funke Femi Adepoju emphasised on the importance of water to society. Mrs Adepoju advised that people must be cautious about the water they take and also must imbibe the culture of water conservation for a better environment. The Executive Secretary who confirmed that there are high percentage of people without access to portable water said her Commission is making frantic efforts to meet up with their mandate in line with the directive of Lagos State, Governor Babajide Sanwo.
Ativie also blamed the increment in the price of Table Water to high cost of production. According to the ATWAP President, the increase in the price of Table Water was caused by many factors,adding that “I can tell you that, if we put the price, considering what it takes us to produce water, 99 per cent of Nigerians wouldn’t be able to to afford it. The same water that we are increasing the price is still N10:00K. Table Water is N70:00K but the materials we use cost about N480, 000 to produce a tonne before. As I am talking to you now, we buy it N1, 500,000. So tell me why we cannot increase the price. And if you watch, for over 12 years, the price water has remained stable. Every other thing has increased”. “We have been bridging the gap and making sure we produce. In fact, we have been subsidising the cost. If we sell it according to our producing costs, I don’t think anybody can afford water in this country. This is because it is a humanitarian product”, Ativie said. She however, averred that water producers are not making profit at all, let alone much profit,disclosing that the business is additive. Explaining the importance of water to the society, Ativie said “already our products are everywhere. There is no place you go in Nigeria and you don’t see sachet or bottled water. Which means someone has taken them to that point. They are products that are not scarce anywhere. That is where we are playing a major role, ensuring that the people get quality water”. On what she expects from the government, Ativie said “What we are asking the government is to put a regulatory framework that will take in the cooperation of the association, so that we will be able to tell the regulators what and what that is being done at the back. We can’t do much because we are neither the government nor the regulator. NAFDAC is supervising but how many people are they supervising. The number of staff NAFDAC has is not up to 10 per cent of water producers in Nigeria. They are however, trying their best actually but the truth is what happens when they are not there. There are only there in the day or night. So whatever they are doing without carrying us along is as good as doing nothing. This is because, when they leave, the activities they are trying to control continue. If they put us as surveillance and as checks of those people, we will be able to keep them under check and whenever they have any issue with them, we make sure that that thing is complied with”. “And I can tell you that we have over 30,000 water producers in Nigeria which ATWAP has about 24,000 members. Even NAFDAC cannot tell you how many people they have registered because people come in and go out. Sometimes, when they get to a factory, they will discover it has been converted to a residential building. It is we that know who is closing, who is coming up, who has gone to NAFDAC and who has not gone to NAFDAC. And it is only we that can say hey, you can’t be in this industry if you can’t do the right thing. But if we don’t have the cooperation of the regulators, what do we do”.
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MARCH 28 - APRIL 3, 2021 www.thewillnigeria.com
SportsLive BY JUDE OBAFEMI
A
ccording to information shared online by the COVID-19 Presidential Task Force (PTF) on Wednesday, a total of 215,277 Nigerians have received their first doses of the University of Oxford coronavirus vaccine AstraZeneca. In early March, the country received 3.94 million doses of the vaccine through the COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access (COVAX) facility for immediate administration across the country. COVAX is the global initiative that is aimed at equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines and is led by UNICEF, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, the World Health Organisation, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, and others working with governments and manufacturers to ensure COVID-19 vaccines are available worldwide to both higher-income and lower-income countries.
COVID-19 Vaccine: Impact For Sportsmen And Women vaccine revealed that around 50% of recipients had localised pain and tenderness at the vaccination site, of mild to moderate severity, it mostly lasted between four to five days post firstdose administration. There were some fatigue and headache also reported in about 70% of recipients post first-dose with muscle ache and fever present in 60%.
As Nigeria commenced nationwide vaccination exercises across the states of the federation and Abuja, starting with healthcare workers, frontline medicinal personal and other providers of essential services, she joined the rest of the world as the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic fortunately turned to vaccination strategies.
This global percentages tallied with the report of the Executive Director. In his PTF speech, Shuaib said: “No Nigerian so far has developed any known severe side effect, while we have observed that there might be some mild symptoms like pain and swelling at the site of the vaccination, body pains and mild fever.”
The successful development of a number of vaccines, and their proven efficacy and short-term safety in large scale multinational trials against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV2), has been a welcome relief in the global drive to control the pandemic and stem the tide of related deaths.
This has implications for sportsmen and women especially the time factor involved with these noticeable side effects, which might not be as important for those not involved in strenuous physical activities. If, as the observations give evidence, these side effects can sometimes take a week to peter out, there are potential impacts vaccination can have on an active athlete’s ability to train and to be in optimal shape to compete. As it becomes more general knowledge, it could deter highly active athletes from accepting the jab.
Like in Nigeria, many countries are now operationalising their vaccination programmes as they prioritise health-care workers and the most vulnerable individuals within the population such as the elderly and those with chronic health conditions.
According to a study published by The Lancet Journal of Respiratory Medicine in February, findings within the past year revealed details of some transmission of COVID-19 that occurred in sport, and goes to show why the issue of COVID-19 vaccination in elite and competitive, recreational athletes is fast becoming a pressing issue for individual athletes, sporting teams, and organisations and those who engage in personal physical exercises. Recently, the Honourable Minister of Sports and Youth Development, Sunday Dare, while confirming that the 20th National Sports Festival (NSF) to be hosted by Edo State will go ahead as planned next month, after a series of pandemic-enforced postponements, said the entirety of the event organisation will be under strict COVID-19 protocols. To adhere to that provision, he said the Sports Ministry had liaised with health stakeholders to ensure the inoculation of those taking active part in the sporting activities. The related concerns that sport clinicians now face, amidst several important considerations, is the impact of exercise on the efficacy of these vaccines, their potential side effects, advice regarding the timing of these vaccinations especially as these games will commence early next month, and finally whether the vaccine actually prevents coronavirus transmission. In the sporting world, vaccination has a role and is fairly common. Annually, a sizeable percentage of athletes get the jab against influenza although the debates about the risks and benefits of vaccination is yet to acquire consensual status in this specialist community. Yet, year in year out, heightened rates of vaccine efficacy across various studies has made it widely accepted as individuals who engaged in moderate intensity exercise before vaccination showed an increased antibody titre. However, as with some experimentations, the evidence is not entirely conclusive. This is because there exist some other cognate studies that apply similar conditions, yet show no appreciable impact of exercise on vaccine response in the individuals of similar composition as those that observed an increase in the titre for antibodies. The overarching position of sports statisticians dealing with response to vaccination is that the increase in neutralising antibodies is mostly stronger in athletes than non-athletes, a position that suggests that regular high frequency and intensity of training might enhance vaccine response.
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It is unclear if this has been worked out by medical stakeholders involved in the NSF but, discussions about training before and after a vaccine adminstration are therefore encouraged for individuals engaging in sports and physical exertions so that they can plan out their schedules with the side effects in mind post-vaccination, just as it is worth considering reducing training intensity while applying simple analgesics to deal with immediate recurring pains felt either around the area of injection or elsewhere.
Dare
The very nature of sports and sporting activities meant considerable precautions were necessary during the peak of the pandemic last year. COVID-19 severely affected all activities of a sporting nature because it was respiratory and most sports involved some form of contact or the other. As a consequence, 2020 saw the postponement and cancellation of a vast number of domestic and international events at ridiculous costs to the organisers.
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It is to the disadvantage of athletes in Nigeria that they were not afforded the allowance to decide on a favoured choice of vaccine as only one of the several licenced COVID-19 vaccines was obtained by the government, the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine
What this all implies in the context of the ongoing COVID-19 vaccination, especially for athletes who may be representing their states at the NSF and others, athletes or non-athletes, who are involved in some form of physical training, relates to the impact of vaccine-related side effects and the engagement in more activity before and after getting the vaccine. Although the Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Faisal Shuaib, while speaking at the weekly briefing of the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 said no one in Nigeria had had any serious adverse reaction following the administration of the OxfordAstraZeneca vaccine in the country, details on the vaccination tolerability in the global population is still emerging and will most likely differ based on type and formulation of vaccine. Presently, as it is in Nigeria, preliminary data provides reassurance regarding an overall low serious adverse event rate around the world of sports. Even if safety analysis from the AstraZeneca
It is to the disadvantage of athletes in Nigeria that they were not afforded the allowance to decide on a favoured choice of vaccine as only one of the several licenced COVID-19 vaccines was obtained by the government, the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine. It remains vague when the second AstraZeneca dose will be administered to the 215,277 Nigerians that have received their first jabs. This is because the recommended dosage is two doses given intramuscularly (0.5ml each) with an interval of eight to 12 weeks. Additionally, the World Health Organisation says the vaccine is said to have an efficacy of 63.09% against symptomatic COVID-19 infection, with greater vaccine efficacy if longer dose intervals within the eight to 12-week range are associated. That is another consideration for these athletes that will be inoculated just before the games begin in Edo State. They will be pushing their bodies to the limit between the doses in the dark about the effects that that could have on their health in the long run especially as not much information exists for comparison and analysis about going from light training to engaging in full blown competitive sporting activities in post-vaccination before the second dose is due. It becomes the duty of all sports stakeholders involved in the gradual return of active sports and competitions with the easing of restrictions and the lessening of the rate of infections to familiarise themselves with available information on the efficacy of the injection to their sports people and their side effect profiles so that they can be best prepared to handle the effects over the two doses and allow these athletes the opportunity to engage in their training schedules in their best conditions. As a general rule for individuals who engage in some light to medium physical exertions and exercises for professional and or personal goals and who are considering going to take the vaccine, the recommendation of sports clinicians is for them to get plenty of rest leading up to the date of getting their jabs. This is based on studies that have shown that those more rested generate more antibodies with traditional vaccines. The joyful news remains that there are no reported cases of adverse reactions on record in Nigeria to the AstraZeneca vaccine. As Faisal noted to the COVID-19 PTF, his agency, the NPHCDA, will continue to collaborate with the National Agency for Food and Drug Adminstration and Control (NAFDAC) “Pharmacovigilance Team” to monitor the administration of the vaccine and document any adverse reactions that may occur in future. THEWILLNIGERIA
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