Friday 18th November 2016

Corruption Fighting Back, Buhari Tells Kerry Tobi Soniyi in Abuja President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday lamented that his government’s war against corruption had been gruelling and tough, saying

the perpetrators of the social malaise were viciously fighting back.

The president, according to his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, spoke during a meeting with

the American Secretary of State, John Kerry, on the margins of the Conference on Climate Change (COP22) in Marrakech, Morocco.

Assuring Kerry, however, that Nigeria was determined

to emerge victorious, Buhari explained that corrupt people had accumulated a formidable arsenal of illicit wealth, which they were deploying against the government on diverse fronts.

"But it is a war we are

determined to win, and which we will win. People of goodwill are behind us, countries like America and many others are with us, and we will surely win," the president said.

Buhari also updated

Kerry on the war against insurgency and efforts being made to tackle the attendant humanitarian problems in the North-east of Nigeria.

Continued on page 8

FG Targets $15Bn Investments from Elimination of JV Cash Calls… Page 54 Friday 18 November, 2016 Vol 21. No 7883. Price: N250

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Saraki: I won’t Compromise N’Assembly’s Position on $30bn External Loan Omololu Ogunmade in Abuja and Yekini Jimoh in Lokoja The President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki, yesterday said he remained committed to the position of the National Assembly rejecting the $29.9 billion External Borrowing Plan of President Muhammadu Buhari, explaining that as the head of the legislative arm of government, he could not compromise its stance on any national issue.

Continued on page 8

FORTE OIL PLC RAISES N9BN 5YEAR FIXED RATE BONDS

L-R: General Counsel/Chief Compliance Officer, Forte Oil, Mr. Akinleye Olagbende; Group Chief Executive Officer, Forte Oil, Mr. Akin Akinfemiwa; Group Chief Executive Officer, United Capital Plc, Mrs. Oluwatoyin Sanni; and Group Executive Director, Finance and Risk, Forte Oil, Mr. Julius Omodayo-Owotuga, during the signing ceremony of the N9 billion five-year fixed rate bonds… yesterday

Tinubu, Mimiko Adopt Alternative Plans over Ondo Governorship Contest Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja Leading candidates in the tussle for Ondo State governorship have intensified horse trading and power-sharing to shore up support for their aspirations, 10 days to the electoral contest.

THISDAY gathered that due

to the bad blood and acrimony that trailed the emergence of the governorship candidates of the main parties — the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) — the contest has become characterised by high level intrigues.

Aggrieved incumbent governor of the state, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, is reported to be holding talks with the candidate of the APC, Chief Rotimi Akeredolu.

Mimiko and his preferred choice, Prof. Eyitayo Jegede (SAN), have been having a

running legal battle with businessman Jimoh Ibrahim over the ticket of the PDP. Mimiko has reportedly told the PDP supporters not to join the Alliance for Democracy (AD) if the legal fireworks did not favour Jegede before the November

26 governorship election.

It was learnt that in order to firm up the arrangement, Mimiko held a preliminary meeting with the Chairman of the APC Governors' Forum and Imo State Governor Rochas Okorocha on Tuesday.

The meeting, which had the

APC candidate, Chief Rotimi Akeredolu (SAN), in attendance, took place at the Akure Airport.

A source close to the Ondo State governor told THISDAY that although no firm commitment was reached, Continued on page 8

As Strike Paralyses Public Universities, FG Considers Implementation of Agreements with ASUU… Page 8

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As Strike Paralyses Public Varsities, FG Considers Implementation of Agreements with ASUU Paul Obi in Abuja In a move to pacify the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) following the declaration of a one-week warning strike, the federal government yesterday said it was considering the implementing of the agreements reached with the union in 2009.

The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Education, Dr. Folashade

Esan, told THISDAY in a telephone chat that plans were underway to critically look into ASUU's demands.

The university lecturers had made good their threat to embark on a warning strike on Wednesday if the federal government failed to implement the agreements signed with their union seven years ago.

With public universities paralysed for three days now, Esan informed THISDAY that the meeting with the Senate had made

the government to consider how the implementation of the agreements could begin.

She said: "We had a meeting with the Senate on the matter, and we are now working on it."

Chief among the demands and grievances of ASUU against government include, payment of fraction of staff entitlement and the denial of staff entitlement in respect of earned academic allowance amounting to about N128 billion,

funding of universities for revitalisation and the refusal to register the Nigerian Universities Pension Management Company by the Pension Commission.

ASUU is also opposed to "the introduction of the Treasury Single Account (TSA), affecting university autonomy, decrease in budgetary allocation to education and the refusal by government to renegotiate the 2009 agreement which was due for renegotiation

since 2012".

Meanwhile, ASUU President, Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, told THISDAY in a telephone interview that the one-week warning strike was merely a warm up and would continue until discussion with the government and the Senate was exhausted and the agreements implemented.

Ogunyemi said: "All we agree is how to address the problem. The Senate has set up a committee to interact with all the parties in the

matter, and we are meeting on Monday again."

The ASUU president said in spite of the Senate intervention, the strike would continue. "It is a warning strike; the essence of a warning strike is that while the strike lasts, we address the matter. If they address the matter, we will work with them" Ogunyemi stated.

He explained that since the strike is "a warm up" exercise, it is important that the parties "are now talking".

responding to the current recession and our plan is to ensure all issues concerning the budget are ironed out before the budget comes to the floor so that we will have a less tedious process than that of last year, the media should be ready to witness more of these engagements between the Presidency and the National Assembly," he stated.

development.

“I am aware that the National Assembly is considering ironing out some grey areas in the deal. This is good for the nation,” he said, adding: “The president has done what is right by proposing such a facility to rebound the nation’s economy through infrastructural development.”

He hailed the president’s resilient efforts at driving the economy out of recession, urging Nigerians to join hands with the Buhari administration to liberate Nigeria from the effects of corruption which brought the nation to its knees.

Bello expressed confidence that with the ongoing efforts to fix the country’s infrastructural deficit and improve power, Nigeria could rise from its present position to that of respectability in the African continent.

He said the challenges faced by the nation were temporary and would soon be resolved.

SARAKI: I WON’T COMPROMISE N’ASSEMBLY’S POSITION ON $30BN EXTERNAL LOAN The Senate president was reacting to growing insinuations in media commentaries that his frequent visits to the presidential villa was aimed at striking a deal with the executive arm of government over the loan request.

“The National Assembly which I head as Senate president has taken a position on the issue as required of it by the laws of the land and legislative conventions,” he said in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr. Yusuph Olaniyonu, explaining that he was not in a position to review the decision.

Saying the decision was made in the national interest, he added: “At every point, the present National Assembly will make decisions based on national interest and we have vowed that we will always act in the interest of our people. That is why despite the fact that members belong to different parties, when national issues come to the floor, we forget about party affiliations and act as

Nigerians elected to protect the interest of Nigeria.”

The Senate and the House of Representatives had at separate sittings deliberated on the external borrowing plan, the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) and struck them down on the ground that they were empty having failed to contain relevant explanatory documents that would enable the legislators to consider them for approval.

But the Senate president after the legislative disapproval of the executive's requests had been a regular visitor at the presidential villa seat of the executive sparking off a wave of accusations that he was negotiating a deal with the president to get the deficient request passed by the legislature.

One of his high profile accusers was the Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, who suggested that Saraki’s visits to the president was more than usual.

“Feelers getting to the public suggest that the

ongoing Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) trial of Saraki is being used as blackmail to get him to back the $29.96 billion loan.

Instead of collaborating with the presidency to plunge Nigerians into the bondage of debt, Saraki should pitch his tent with the masses,” Fayose said in a statement by his Special Assistant on New Media, Mr. Lere Olayinka.

But Saraki, in a comprehensive rebuttal of these speculations yesterday, said they were essentially politically motivated comments that had no factual basis, adding that a matter of that magnitude was not a personal affair that could be decided between only him and the president.

"Like I once told the media, these politicallymotivated commentaries are trivialising a serious national issue and presenting it as if it is a personal matter that can be decided at meetings between Saraki and President Muhammadu Buhari,” he said.

Explaining his recent visits to the president, he said: "A

visit to the Presidency by the Senate president is a normal thing because we need to consult, discuss, exchange ideas and make suggestions to each other from time to time. More importantly, at this time, when the nation is facing economic crisis, there is need for frequent engagements by the Presidency and the National Assembly.”

According to him, "It is in fact very unfortunate that these empty speculations by the media are now forming the basis for commentaries by some politicians who are in a position to be better informed. Politicians should stop playing to the gallery or drawing political capital from all issues. When serious national issues are on ground, we should refrain from making statements based on mere sentiments.”

Saraki pleaded with the media to exercise restraint in their reportage and commentaries in order to properly serve the people.

"At a time when we are about to prepare a budget which is aimed at

Governor Bello Drums Support for Loan Meanwhile, the Governor of Kogi State, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, yesterday urged the National Assembly to approve the proposed $29.9 billion loan by the federal government in order to help develop the nation’s infrastructure.

The governor, who spoke while addressing journalists in Lokoja, said the loan would herald a new infrastructural horizon in the country, insisting that for the nation to achieve its goals of industrialisation, infrastructure must be developed for rapid

CORRUPTION FIGHTING BACK, BUHARI it from the prism of the TELLS KERRY

TINUBU, MIMIKO ADOPT ALTERNATIVE PLANS OVER ONDO GOVERNORSHIP CONTEST Mimiko assured the duo of Okorocha and Akeredolu that if after the court processes Jegede did not fly, he would deploy his forces to back the APC candidate.

Said a Mimiko source: "It is true they met but not as people are speculating that Mr. Governor has already committed himself to the Akeredolu project. We are still confident we will win the mandate back. But if at the end of the day because of lack of time it happens that Jegede cannot fly, we have been told what to do.

"The governor and even those of us supporting Jegede believe that it is an insult for Tinubu to come from Lagos and install Iroko's successor.

It is an aberration we will fight, so rather than allow that, Iroko will be the one to swing support for Akeredolu to win because Ondo State belongs to us."

On the other hand, the APC National Leader, Senator Bola Tinubu, is said to be rooting for Chief Olusola

Oke, the candidate of the AD, following the edging out of his preferred candidate in the party primary, Chief Segun Abraham.

Oke had, like Abraham, lost out in the same exercise but opted for the Action Alliance (AA) before he moved to the AD allegedly on the directive of Tinubu.

There were strong indications that Tinubu has sealed a power sharing deal with Oke. Among the terms of the deal is that for bankrolling Oke, the Osun State Governor, Mr. Rauf Aregbesola, would nominate the secretary to the state government.

Among other things, the power sharing deal involves the distribution of cabinet slots and other strategic positions if Oke wins. But there is a caveat: the APC leaders must mobilise enough resources and voters to first ensure the victory of the AD candidate.

Although details of the power sharing deal were still kept secret, a source close to the deal disclosed that Oke

had agreed to concede some positions to the APC national leader and Aregbesola.

They include: Secretary to the State Government (SSG), chairmanship of the Ondo State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (OSOPADEC), Commissioners for Finance, Works, Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Health and headship of the Ondo State Board of Internal Revenue. Others include six caretaker committee chairmanship positions, that is, two per senatorial district as well as four special advisers.

The source said: "You know that the circumstances that led us to the AD are very peculiar. At first, we wanted Action Alliance but when the national leader suggested that we need to test the ground with AD in lieu of the zone's interest ahead of 2016, we had no choice than accept the AD proposal.

"But what I just told you is not abnormal in politics especially when you view

need to cut down the APC candidate. I can assure you that the arrangement will work perfectly well and we will have no problem about that."

Meanwhile, the leadership of the AD has approved a waiver to enable Oke fly the party's flag in the election.

In a statement by its National Chairman, Chief Joseph Avazi, yesterday, the party said that it had rectified the waiver for Oke at its National Executive Committee meeting in Abuja.

He said: "After a careful and exiting deliberation during the NEC meeting which took place on the 17th day of November, 2016 at Afri Hotel Abuja, in bid to move the party forward, the NEC hereby adopts the following resolution as issued in this communiqué."

He said that the AD NEC meeting was monitored by INEC officials, Mr. Ifaladu Saadu and Mrs. Bola Adewon.

He informed the US Secretary of State that a presidential committee headed by Lt. Gen Theophilus Danjuma had been constituted to handle the humanitarian challenges in the region.

On the unrest in the Niger Delta, which had resulted in the sabotage of critical oil and power installations, Buhari said the engagement process was proceeding apace, adding that it was rather difficult bringing the main protagonists of the insurgency under one umbrella.

The president said Nigeria was happy with American support on different fronts, assuring Kerry that the economic challenges facing the country were being frontally tackled and would be overcome soon.

Kerry expressed delight at the many successes of the Buhari administration, pledging continued U.S. support in the bid to overcome security, humanitarian, political, and economic challenges.

As the Barack Obama administration exits next January, Kerry said he would love to continue engaging with Nigeria, even in a private capacity. He described Nigeria’s president as a strong international partner in the battle against violent extremism.

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GTI Ranks Nigeria 3rd Most Terrorised Country Globally

Two-Minute Briefing NEWS FG Targets $15bn Investments

from Elimination of JV Cash Calls When a new funding regime that would eliminate joint venture cash calls comes on stream next year, Nigeria would attract $15 billion investments from its oil major partners…

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EDITORIAL The Road To Apapa Ports

Members of the Senate Committee on Customs, Excise andTariff, led by Senator Hope Uzodinma recently visited the ports in Lagos for an interaction with stakeholders in cargo delivery process.

Page 15

POLITICS Ikpeazu: An Intellectual in

Power With a doctorate in Biochemical Pharmacology, the Abia State governor, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu is fast justifying his sound academic credentials, writes Olawale Olaleye Page 17

WEEKENDFILE Ogiamien Makes Comeback

with 'Excellence Vision' Roland Ogiamien, the great Benin traditional arts proponent, recently returned to the Lagos art scene after a very long absence.

This over 70-year-old highly regarded sculptor whose works have been exhibited in galleries in Nigeria and the world…

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BUSINESS Airlines Raise the Alarm over

Lt.Gen. Tukur Buratai, Chief of Army Staff of Nigeria

Joseph Ushigiale Global Terrorism Index (GTI) in its latest report has ranked Nigeria as the third most terrorised country in the world.

According to the report on terrorism, Nigeria remained behind Iraq and Afghanistan.

The latest report is the fourth edition of the Global Terrorism Index which provides a comprehensive summary of the key global trends and patterns in terrorism over the last 16 years, covering the period from the beginning of 2000 to the end of 2015.

GTI said its report is produced by the Institute for Economics and Peace and it is based on data from the Global Terrorism Database which is collected and collated by the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START), a Department of Homeland Security Centre of Excellence led by the University of Maryland.

The Global Terrorism Database is considered to be the most comprehensive dataset on terrorist activity globally and has now codified over 150,000 terrorist incidents.

The report however said military success against ISIL and Boko Haram resulted in fewer deaths in Iraq and Nigeria, though the

two groups spread terror to neighbouring states and regions.

Iraq and Nigeria saw the biggest decreases, with a combined decline of 5,558 deaths owing to the Nigerian military’s push against the terror organisation Boko Haram and the reduced influence of “IS” in Iraq.

The report also said IS is now officially the deadliest terrorist group in the world, overtaking Boko Haram, after claiming responsibility for 6,141 deaths through attacks in more than 250 different cities in 2015.

According to the report, Nigeria also had a reduction in the number of people killed by Fulani herdsmen by 50 per cent amounting to over 630 fewer deaths in 2015.

The report said: “Despite the decrease in deaths from terrorism, Nigeria still experienced a high rate of violent deaths.

“In addition to terrorism victims, there were at least 4,422 battlerelated deaths from the conflict between Boko Haram and the Nigerian Government in 2015, down from 8,233 in 2014.”

“Whilst the majority of fatalities were caused by armed assaults with firearms and knives, there has been an increase in the use of bombings and explosions, a tactic Boko Haram has been increasingly using after receiving explosives

training from al-Shabaab.

“In 2013, Boko Haram conducted 35 bombings which killed 107 people. In 2015 there were 156 bombings that killed 1,638. Nearly two thirds of the bombings in 2015 were suicide bombings, which on average killed 10 people per attack,” the report said.

The report put the total number of people killed in Nigeria by Boko Haram at 17,097 since 2000.

Twenty-three countries registered their highest number of deaths from terrorism on record, compared to previous high of 17 in 2014 while France, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Tunisia experienced sizable increases in terrorism influencing an overall deterioration of 6 per cent in the GTI score.

The report stated that terrorism is also more likely to occur in OECD member countries with poorer performance on socio-economic factors such as opportunities for youth, belief in the electoral system, levels of criminality and access to weapons.

It said 21 of the 34 OECD member countries experienced at least one terrorist attack with the majority of deaths occurring in Turkey and France.

The report also stated that terrorism cost an estimated $89.6 billion in 2015, down 15 per cent on the previous year.

Persistent Aviation Fuel Scarcity Domestic airline operators have called on the federal government and concerned authorities to take urgent measures to ensure availability of aviation fuel, otherwise known as Jet A1.

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CITYSTRINGS Nnewi, Home of Ingenuity

That Nnewi in Anambra State is the home of ingenuity is not in doubt.

The town is dominated by men and women of the can-do spirit and innovation. Hence their success in the world of business and entrepreneurship…

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INTERNATIONAL Canadian Govt Explains Rationale for Reviewing 2017 Immigration Target The Government of Canada is increasing its base number of Immigrants that will be allowed into Canada next year to 300,000.

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SPORTS Russia 2018: Rohr Meets Aina's

Father over Nigeria Switch The desire of Gernot Rohr to integrate young footballers of Nigerian heritage into the Super Eagles fold ahead of the 2018World Cup has got a big boost after the coach said he held…

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COMMENT

Editor, Editorial Page PETER ISHAKA Email peter.ishaka@thisdaylive.com

THE WAR ON LAND GRABBERS

The Ogun State Government tightens the screw on land grabbers with a new legislation, writes Daniel Olakunle

O

n Monday, November 14, 2016, a law against land-grabbing became operative throughout the length and breadth of Ogun State. The sentences imposed against violators of the law range from 25 years of imprisonment to death sentence.

Sometime in 2014, I got a distress call from a colleague about the activities of land grabbers called omo ‘nile or ajagungbale in local parlance.

These gangsters wield dangerous weapons and demand obedience or capitulation from their victims.

They operate like a mafia, “by fire, by force”. They are found in virtually every developing communities or new towns, where construction work is a defining feature.

Their leaders live big.

Sometimes they operate as rival groups where there is a conflict of interest but their ultimate goal is the same - fleece their victims! Sometimes there is mutual collaboration. What you observe from one community to the other is only a variation in their degree of bestiality.

Some of them come with documents, pasting them all over your new building or ongoing construction work with the same authority you could only have expected from government officials. The usual claim is that the land belongs to their family and that you had paid the wrong person or party. And for any resolution, you will have to repurchase the land! Any attempt to argue with them may leave you battered, maimed or butchered, in the worst scenario.

And once there is construction work going on, they or another insatiate gang still reserves the right to be “settled” so they could allow workmen to continue else they seize all the tools in sight after some thorough beating. You have to abide by their terms willy nilly.

The government of Ogun State has done all within its powers to tame these monsters. And some of them, we must acknowledge, have been tamed. But the position of the state governor is not to condone illegality in

IT IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE PEOPLE TO REPORT ANY BREACH OF THE NEW LAW TO THE POLICE, WHO MUST ACT WITH DELIBERATE SPEED TO PROSECUTE OFFENDERS. SECURITY OF LIFE AND PROPERTY IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF ALL

any form. It does not matter their largely restricted locations, reduction in the degree of their violent conducts or numbers. Any form or degree of illegality must be extirpated from the polity. This position of the governor is quite commendable and in line with the constitution. One is not really surprised because since assumption of office in 2011, Amosun has made security of life and welfare of all residents top priorities.

According to Governor Ibikunle Amosun, “We want to let people know that Ogun State will not be comfort zone for any criminal or so-called omo oniles (land grabbers). They have engaged in maiming, killing and lawlessness. But now, the law will go after them.

We are now having an enabling law to prosecute and anybody that runs foul of this law will have himself or herself to blame. ”To the kidnappers, they know that this is their end.

Anybody that involves himself in kidnapping, armed robbery and all these social vices will not be allowed in Ogun State. I want to believe that with the operation of this law, criminals will run away from the state.”

The state Commissioner of Police, Ahmed Iliyasu, equally has a word for the violent syndicates: “This is a clarion call to all criminals, armed robbers, kidnappers, cultists and so on that there is no place for them in Ogun State. They should relocate because there is no room for them. We are ready to enforce the law.”

We commend the Ogun State House of Assembly and the state governor, Senator Amosun, for the new law and congratulate the people of the state for the further reprieve the new legislation will provide. It is, however, their responsibility to report any breach of the new law to the police, who must act with deliberate speed to prosecute offenders. Security of life and property is the responsibility of all.

Olakunle wrote from Akute, Ogun State

THE POWER OF WORDS Chidi Omeje pays tribute to Yushau Shuaib, an all–round media practitioner

O

ne of the critical challenges that confronted the Nigerian government during the ascendancy of the Boko Haram insurgency was how to contain the dangerous propaganda machinery of the terrorists and their collaborators who, not surprisingly, infiltrated a section of the media. Apart from their ceaseless heart-chilling violence campaign across the northern part of the country, the terrorists were also having a field day in the realms of media publicity. The truism that publicity is the oxygen of terrorism was playing out! The publicity Boko Haram was enjoying in a section of the media that were influential in the north emboldened them and galvanised their recruitment drive. They were exuding confidence and a sense of invincibility while the image and respect of our country was dragged in the mud and our national security threatened.

It was at this trying period in our national life that a certain Yushau Shuaib was introduced to the then National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki.

As the National Security Adviser, it falls within his purview to halt the escalation of the Boko Haram madness which is creeping into the media arena. He desperately needed the best hands he can get to reverse the dangerous trend, but he also needed a quintessential, result-oriented fellow who can quietly do the job without attracting unnecessary attention to himself. And he got one. A consummate public relations practitioner, an avid writer and media manager with tremendous contacts and network of

friends in both the media and public relations fields, Yushau was the man and his brief was very clear: counter the growing terrorists’ propaganda and also help promote campaigns on security consciousness among Nigerians.

So, as consultant to the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) on Crisis Communication, he became an intermediary between the media and the critical stakeholders in crisis management i.e military, security and response agencies in Nigeria. Yushau knew that the job was not going to be easy but he also knew that the job must be done.

National interest was at stake! He threw his all into it and brought to bear the true worth of his professionalism and doggedness in the course of the assignment.

He proceeded first by creating a formidable online news platform – PRNigeria - that functioned like a newswire service where most media organisations get firsthand information on any security and emergency reports having established a relationship with the military, security and response agencies such that there were seamless sharing of information and breaking news. He, along with the likes of Gen. Chris Olukolade, the iconic Director of Defence Information at the time, facilitated the establishment of the Forum of Spokespersons of Security and Response Agencies (FOSSRA) to enable a cohesive and coordinated crisis information management and dissemination.

Yushau’s relentless efforts and professional interventions expectedly succeeded in developing and sustaining mutual understanding and synergy within the

military, security and response agencies on one hand and a coherent interface between them and the media. For the three years that he took the brief from ONSA, the narratives drastically changed. Boko Haram conspirators and collaborators who hid under the toga of religion and sectarian interests and sentiments to stoke the embers of hatred against the government and the military were at least getting a match. The public were getting the true picture of the dynamics in the war on terror. There was a better management of information as the security and response agencies began to harmonise information unlike when it was a cacophony of conflicting voices and reports by different security and response agencies in times of emergency or crisis.

Prior to Yushau’s engagement, there was weak (or even non-existent) coordination and harmonisation of information released to media by the agencies. It was more like unhealthy competition and bitter rivalry as agencies that were working or ought to be working towards a particular goal strived to outwit each other in the rush for media attention or popularity. Yushau effectively used the instrumentality of his highly successful online platform, PRNigeria and the FOSSRA structure to turn around the fortunes in the narratives of the fight against terror.

In spite of his non-partisanship, phenomenal commitment to his assignment, a dogged loyalty and patriotism to his fatherland, Yushau remained unsung in Nigeria. Not many people knew about the efforts of this one man except may

be some of us who worked closely with him. As the Editor of Nigerian Defence Magazine in those heady days, I recall how the Directorate of Defence Information not only leveraged effectively on the instrumentality of his PRNigeria to communicate the prosecution of the counter insurgency operation but also relied on his counsel to engage some rabidly compromised and biased section of the media who were determined to undermine the efforts of government.

Most Nigerians may not know the roles he played in managing crisis in those momentous days but the international community was certainly watching and taking note. So, in recognition of the invaluable role he played in helping the country to managing crisis communication at the peak of Boko Haram insurgency, the International Public Relations Association (IPRA) early this month of November 2016, in faraway Doha, Qatar, presented Golden World Award (GWA) on Crisis Management to Yushau Shuaib.

According to the citation read, Yushau used his PRNigeria to effectively manage the adverse consequence of the growing Boko Haram propaganda machinery. In our climes where everything, including the protection of national interest and security is politicised, how can Yushau’s efforts be acknowledged? It took the discerning eyes of the global public relations organisation to point out one of us who has served us well in his own little but very consequential way.

Omeje is head, Planning, Research and Statistics Centre for Crisis Communication, Abuja

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T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2016

EDITORIAL THE ROAD TO APAPA PORTS

M

The authorities may do well to fix the road to the heart of commerce in Nigeria

embers of the Senate Committee on Customs, Excise and Tariff, led by its chairman, Senator Hope Uzodinma, recently visited the ports in Lagos for an interaction with stakeholders in cargo delivery process. One of the issues that came up was the access roads to the ports which continuously pose grave danger to lives and property. From the first gate of Tin Can port to the second gate to Creek Road and Wharf Road, to the Flour Mill roundabout and adjoining access roads, it is a story of abject neglect.

On a normal working day, it takes an average of five hours meandering through the maze of tankers and trailers that have turned most of the roads in Apapa into no more than parking lots. Besides, the horror offered by the craters and potholes is worse during raining season when navigating the traffic prone zones by motorists becomes very difficult.

What this implies is that the Apapa-Oshodi Express road through the Tin Can ports is most often literally shut down.

YEARS OF TOEING THE The same is PATH OF IMPROPRIETY AND true for the Seven POOR INFRASTRUCTURE Up/Apapa Bridge, DEVELOPMENT AND which is another MAINTENANCE IN THE parking lot for ENERGY AND OTHER incoming trailers SECTORS ARE HAVING THEIR and tankers. HoodCRUSHING TOLL ON OTHER lums have also taken advantage FORMS OF BUSINESS of this state of confusion to unleash mayhem on road users who severally have had to abandon their cars to run for safety. Many have lost their lives and property worth millions to these men of the underworld. Yet, as the days unfold, the Apapa Business District gets worse for what it offers both residents and businesses. It is even more saddening to note that some of these problems are within human control.

Following the visit of the Senate committee, some of their recommendations include the need for all

Letters to the Editor

O

the stakeholders to meet so as to brainstorm on the issue, and take actionable decisions that will compel the federal government to at least, in the short term, begin some palliative work on the roads in order to ease the stress on port users and save their lives and property. It is also recommended that truckers and haulage companies must come together to acquire a very large expanse of land to develop very quickly a trucks’ park/holding bay, in a bid to take static load off the ports’ access roads.

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T H I S DAY

EDITOR IJEOMA NWOGWUGWU DEPUTY EDITORS BOlAJI ADEBIYI, JOsEph UshIGIAlE MANAGING DIRECTOR ENIOlA BEllO DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTOR KAYODE KOMOlAFE CHAIRMAN EDITORIAL BOARD OlUsEGUN ADENIYI EDITOR NATION’S CAPITAL IYOBOsA UWUGIAREN

T H I S DAY N E W S PA P E R S L I M I T E D

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF/CHAIRMAN NDUKA OBAIGBENA GROUP EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS ENIOlA BEllO, KAYODE KOMOlAFE, IsRAEl IWEGBU, EMMANUEl EFENI, IJEOMA NWOGWUGWU GROUP FINANCE DIRECTOR OlUFEMI ABOROWA DIVISIONAL DIRECTORS pETER IWEGBU, FIDElIs ElEMA, MBAYIlAN ANDOAKA, ANThONY OGEDENGBE DEPUTY DIVISIONAL DIRECTOR OJOGUN VICTOR DANBOYI SNR. ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR ERIC OJEh ASSOCIATE DIRECTORS hENRY NWAChOKOR, sAhEED ADEYEMO CONTROLLERS ABIMBOlA TAIWO, UChENNA DIBIAGWU, NDUKA MOsERI GENERAL MANAGER pATRICK EIMIUhI GROUP HEAD FEMI TOlUFAshE ART DIRECTOR OChI OGBUAKU II DIRECTOR, PRINTING PRODUCTION ChUKs ONWUDINJO

e hope that the authorities will act on the recommendations so as to curb the excesses of the tanker and trailer drivers who have for several years constituted themselves into a nuisance at the ports. On several occasions, these tanker drivers have gone on strike and with that create scarcity of petroleum products, thus bringing enormous suffering on the populace. Of course at the other end are the owners of the tank farms and depots who do not allow these trucks into their parking lots. All these help to create an atmosphere of chaos which makes life very difficult for Apapa residents and visitors.

In more civilised climes, what is happening in Apapa is anathema in road usage while this armada of trailers and petroleum tankers will be considered primitive. Years of toeing the path of impropriety and poor infrastructure development and maintenance in the energy and other sectors are having their crushing toll on other forms of business. It is sad, if not tragic that Apapa, which ordinarily should be the heartbeat for corporate Nigeria, is a neglected business district whose infrastructure especially roads are not only decayed but ignored by the relevant authorities.

Until the federal government finds it appropriate to build refineries close to the points of consumption, revive our rail systems and create a more orderly and cost effective means of lifting bulk cargo and petroleum products, Apapa will continue to be a nightmare for the residents and businesses operating within the town.

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TO OUR READERS Letters in response to specific publications in THISDAY should be brief (150-200 words) and straight to the point. Interested readers may send such letters along with their contact details to opinion@thisdaylive.com. We also welcome comments and opinions on topical local, national and international issues provided they are well-written and should also not be longer than (9501000 words). They should be sent to opinion@thisdaylive.com along with the email address and phone numbers of the writer.

IS BUHARI READY FOR THE ANTI-CORRUPTION WAR?

f all the promises made by candidate Muhammadu Buhari on the road to the 2015 presidential election, none resonated with people more than his commitment to fight corruption in the country. And this was quite rightly so for some reasons. First, corruption as Professor Itse Sagay puts it, “has assumed epidemic proportion” in the country. Before now, there were some sectors of our national life where issues and reports of corruption were only whispered in hush-hush tones. Unfortunately today, corruption is at best ubiquitous in our national life. Policemen and women no longer hide their bribe money in the bushes, but even boldly offer change to motorists; motor licensing offices have become huge markets for touts and the official receipts never tally with the amount charged by VIO staff; bankers not only steal from their customers but now allegedly sell accounts information to kidnappers and fraudsters; university teachers now unashamedly ask their students for money to write long essays for them to graduate; and even Supreme Court judges now “visit” politicians on flimsy invitations, as we were recently told. How sad!

The second reason why President Buhari’s promise to fight corruption easily resonated with people was because he had done it in the past as military head of state. The old general more than any other Nigerian leader has managed to maintain his reputation as not only incorruptible but also ever ready to lead the line in the fight of what has clearly become Nigeria’s greatest enemy. In fact during the campaigns, he clearly stated that “corruption will kill Nigeria if we

do not kill corruption”. How apt that statement has become given the unbelievable magnitude of recovery of looted funds already made by the EFCC from politicians.

It must be admitted now that there is a growing doubt in the ability of President Buhari to take on corruption headlong as a civilian president. This thinking is not unconnected to the fact that the president is aging. Naturally, human beings tend to become less strict and more open to letting certain things pass as old age draws nigh.

What is more, politicking involves all manner of alliances, especially with strange bedfellows. As a matter of fact, the worst fears about the Buhari presidency is the belief in some quarters that the old, stern and uncompromising no-nonsense Buhari may have been highly edited by the vagaries of partisan politics, especially the quest for power.

Purveyors of this view argue that a lot of water may have passed under the Buhari Bridge in the struggle for power. And they are quick to point that the president’s associates today are perhaps people he would not touch with long pole years ago!

As if to respond to these concerns, President Buhari went straight ahead to rejuvenate the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), which according to Hillary Clinton some time ago, “had fallen off” after Ribadu. The appointment of Ibrahim Magu as the Chairman of EFCC was simply a signal from President Buhari that the business of fighting corruption has resumed in earnest. Those who know Magu’s antecedents will readily admit that he fits the president’s seriousness and uncompromising attitude to corruption.

Magu is known like the president, to be ascetic and incorruptible; he

is uncompromising and passionate about fighting financial crimes. He knows no big man or small man, and once he is convinced, he is not ready to pull back irrespective of the position of who is involved. It was this uncompromising attitude and blatant disregard for political correctness that put his life and career at risk before, at the commission!

But is the government playing politics with Mr. Magu’s confirmation at the Senate? It will be recalled that several months after the presidency forwarded Magu’s name to the Senate for confirmation, the upper chamber of the National Assembly is yet to consider that presidential request. Interestingly, the Senate is dominated by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) whose cardinal policy for which they were elected into office is fighting corruption. And the president, their leader, has identified one man who in all honesty can help him achieve his target goal in the anti-corruption fight, yet the APC dominated Senate does not see any urgency in the matter of confirming the EFCC Chairman so as to allow him concentrate on the difficult battle ahead in the interest of the Nigerian people.

Yet, the matter of Magu’s confirmation is beyond APC alone. It ought to be and indeed is a general Nigerian concern irrespective of party affiliation. Since it is a consensus that corruption is the greatest enemy against the Nigerian state, it is in the public interest that the confirmation of the EFCC Chairman should not be allowed to linger in the Senate. By delaying Magu’s confirmation, the Senate is working against the interest of Nigerian people who elected them.

Igwebuike Nwokoroigwe, Owerri

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FRIDAY NOVEMBER 18, 2016 T H I S D AY

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T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2016

POLITICS

Group Politics Editor Olawale Olaleye Email wale.olaleye@thisdaylive.com 08116759819 SMS ONLY

PERSONALITY FOCUS

Ikpeazu: An Intellectual in Power With a doctorate in Biochemical Pharmacology, the Abia State governor, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu is fast justifying his sound academic credentials, writes Olawale Olaleye

I

t couldn’t have been none other than providence that the incumbent Governor of Abia State, Dr. Okezie Victor Ikpeazu is in office, in spite of the difficulties that had strewn his path to the Government House.

His trajectory has not quite differed from the challenges often attributed to great minds and men of power. However, that his academic background, coupled with commensurate exposure has helped to shape his focus and approach to governance is certainly not in doubt.

Like a former governor of Lagos State, Bola Tinubu, the biggest achievement that history might later credit against the name of Ikpeazu’s predecessor, Senator Theodore Orji, is his ability to look beyond myopic interest (political, social, clannish and even financial) to making the governor succeed him even when what they shared in the period preceding Ikpeazu’s emergence was not more than official relationship.

Coming on board as the ninth governor of Abia State and one with huge advantage as an insider, Ikpeazu had a clue about the workload that awaited him as Orji’s successor. But the good news is that he was neither worried nor intimidated. He had his administrative prowess honed long before his emergence as governor and whatever the challenges, experience is right on hand to lead the way and ensure that ideas are conceived and prosecuted to the letters and in good time.

A PhD holder in Biochemical Pharmacology, a better part of Ikpeazu’s life is evidently dictated by science, where precision, process and clinical finishes are never contemplated for enviable results. The complex nature of science, he often jokes, has helped to comprehend some of the difficulties that define governance and administration as well as pointing the direction to solution without much ado.

He does not believe in highfalutin projects but those ones that make easy, the day-to-day living of the people and which of course, they can relate to, covering the lifespan of many administrations put together. His vision, for instance, of a new Aba as the industrial hub of not just the country but the economy of the sub-region is curious yet so simplistic.

Aba as he sees it is ambitious – a one-stop economic district that services all. Two quick questions: is it possible and sustainable? Yes, to both. Although in realising his vision, like a majority of his colleagues, he might be nursing the problem of personnel – the dearth of people, who understand his policy drive and are ready to key into his idea of change for growth and development. But that excuse is not sufficient to stifle Ikpeazu, who is determined to write his name in gold, not for the spur of the moment but generations to come.

Just one example suffices. Discussing his vision on Abia with some friends some time ago, Ikpeazu showed not only to have a good idea of what should be and how, he also convinced these friends that his knowledge of his people is not in contention. These two elements combined, he was certain, will help achieve results faster in the development of the new Abia and most important, Aba. Any other approach, he reckoned, could be insipid.

He reasoned that the world over, the resort to specialisation and the division of labour in the artisanal category of the informal sector help to grow the economy better and faster.

His belief in constructive engagement of the various elements, either for or against his stand on anything is strength for the governor in a politically explosive atmosphere. His disposition for consultation is exemplary, without minding the differing political leanings. He is no fool though; his political maturity, coupled with education and exposure, however does the magic almost all the time

Ikpeazu...Abia’s defining change

In fashion design for instance, the profession has grown beyond an individual measuring clients, designing, cutting the clothes, sewing and even delivering to the clients.

But today, these are different sections now manned by different people for quick and massive delivery with amazing turnover.

But whilst the idea is good in every sense of it, the governor reckoned it is not one to be arbitrarily shoved down the throat of people in his state, especially people who have ‘generational sentiments’ attachment to the work and deem it a family business.

This is at the point, Ikpeazu reckoned, better marketing, education and sensitization are imperative for the change in such a mindset,

attitude and ultimately, the buy-in.

Ikpeazu, who is the Marketer-in-Chief for Made-in-Aba products, recently took some of the works of his people to a former president, Olusegun Obasanjo, ultimately for some kind of endorsement. The fact that a governor would go to that extent for his people is a manifestation of his belief in homegrown success through hard work and the “we can do it” spirit.

Interestingly, he has done all of these without as much as making any political fuss or media gain from it. His penchant for media play is almost zero. But, he does not contemplate result, especially once his mind is made up about a thing. Except for

the forward-looking only, it is unlikely that a majority of the people understand the import of the governor’s direct involvement in the marketing of Aba made things and of course, the chief client of the products as he now wears only Made-in-Aba. A few days ago, the governor held his party’s primaries ahead of the proposed local government elections in the state. How he has managed an otherwise potentially volatile exercise with little or no dissenting position speaks to his credentials as an academic, who had first done his background work, prevailed on possible opposition and took everyone along on why the outcome has to be in a particular way and yet, democratic.

His belief in constructive engagement of the various elements, either for or against his stand on anything is strength for the governor in a politically explosive atmosphere. His disposition for consultation is exemplary, without minding the differing political leanings. He is no fool though; his political maturity, coupled with education and exposure, however does the magic almost all the time.

With less than two years in the saddle and in spite of the legal and political distractions that have paved his way, this self-effacing governor of God’s own state (as Abia is called) has proven time and time again that the choice of leadership in any given social unit is key and that certain standards are not negotiable. He has shown that nothing truly compares to education, exposure, capacity and maturity in leadership.

And given the contemporaneous development of Abia and at the same pace, it is trite, therefore, to assume that the choice of Ikpeazu by the people was a careful one, which reflects a collective resolve to move forward. Even much more instructive is that he is daily justifying his choice with a determination and the will power to cast his name in stone.

Although some of the distractions since heaped on his path have not completely gone away, his handling of them so far has blown the minds of his opponents and shown clearly that his indomitable spirit is not repressible in any way but certain to see his challenges through, especially where his rights are concerned. One thing is certain though, Ikpeazu will go down in history as yet a lesson in leadership.

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T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2016

POLITICS

PERSPECTIVE

Accused Judges and the Trail of Their Cases With the recent allegations of corruption against some judges and justices in the country, it is only fair that some of the cases handled by these judicial officers are reviewed, reckons Ekpedeme Obong

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he recent raid on the homes of some judges across the country brings to mind some of the cases that were delivered in the recent past and one wonders if everything possible was done to ensure justice or if the DSS is justified in its actions.

It is obvious from all the allegations that are being leveled against some judges that something is wrong with the judiciary and it is only proper to address the situation. However, what happens to victims? People who may have suffered due to cases of miscarriage of justice? I am of the view that while the system is being looked at holistically, some cases should be reviewed as a way of righting past wrongs.

One case that readily comes to mind is that of Chief Inibehe Okori, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the Akwa Ibom North-West Senatorial Zone in the 2015 elections. Okori contested against the former governor of Akwa Ibom State, Obong Godswill Akpabio and in that election, the former governor was declared winner. Okori was not comfortable with that result due to what he noted as irregularities in the election and he approached the court, which is considered the last hope of the common man, to seek redress.

A suit was filed by Chief Okori with the National and State Elections Tribunal for Akwa Ibom State, which sat in Abuja. The tribunal was headed by Justice G.I. Anunihu with Justices O.A. Adebusoye and A.M. Lamido as members. At that tribunal, the petitioner’s suit was dismissed on the grounds that the issues raised in his petition were not substantiated by ‘credible evidence’.

The petitioner’s case from the tribunal and up to the Court of Appeal was that: 1. The 1st Respondent, Chief Godswill Akpabio was not nominated by his party, the Peoples Democratic Party to contest elections in Akwa Ibom NorthWest Senatorial district. (That is in the Ikot Ekpene senatorial district). Rather, as shown by two officially prescribed documents of nomination, which were admitted as evidence in court, he was nominated to contest elections in the Akwa Ibom North-East Senatorial district (That is Uyo Senatorial district).

2. There was clear issue of over-voting as the result sheets for the elections showed that a total 444,505 votes were allegedly cast while only 205,519 persons were accredited to vote.

In 1 above, the evidence of wrong nomination was contained in Chief Akpabio’s affidavit of personal particulars (Form CF 002C), submitted to his party and the PDP National Assembly Primary Election/Nomination of National Assembly Aspirants Form PD 004/NA/2014.

These were admitted during the trial as Exhibits P13 and P14 respectively.

These are documents that are clearly and specifically designed by INEC to enable political parties identify the candidates they have nominated to represent them in specific elections in specific districts. These documents are backed by the Nigerian Constitution and the Electoral Act. Whenever a document is required by law to be reduced into writing, no other evidence, oral or otherwise of that transaction is admissible.

Both exhibits state Akpabio’s senatorial district as Akwa Ibom North East rendering him an illegitimate contestant in the Akwa Ibom North West Senatorial elections. The statutory consequence of having an ‘illegitimate’ winner is that

Onnoghen...taming the monster in judiciary

the 1st runner up in the said election is declared winner.

Interestingly, the tribunal ruled that the contents of these documents were not conclusive proof of their content and as such, the documents couldn’t be relied on nor their contents harnessed.

Rather, the tribunal ruled that it could rely on the testimony of the National Secretary of the PDP, who claimed that it was an ‘error’. It then decided to decipher and interpret the contents of these INEC documents (including Akpabio’s form CF 0002C) to mean that the respondent was qualified to contest in the said elections.

How is it possible that a candidate would not get the senatorial zone which he hopes to represent right? And even if it is termed as an error, what procedure should be adopted to correct such a mistake? Was this procedure followed?

Without an instruction from the political party to INEC, does INEC (or anybody else for that matter) reserve the right to independently correct perceived errors in a political party’s submission of names forms?

Finally, is a document not conclusive proof of its contents and can oral evidence be used to contradict the clear contents of documentary evidence? For those familiar with the Evidence Act, Section 132(a) of the Act holds that …

It is settled that oral evidence cannot be allowed to add, to subtract from or alter or contradict a written document.

In 2 above, the petitioner, with the support of INEC documents, showed that although only 205,519 persons were accredited to vote in the senatorial district, a whopping 444,505 votes were

alleged to have been cast. Meanwhile, there is absolutely NO RECORD of failure of Card reader Machines in the district as in ‘incident forms’ which could possibly have provided the basis for manual voting, which could have subsequently accounted for the overvoting. The statutory consequence of over-voting is nullification of results.

Some lawyers may hold a thin-line opinion on proof of non-compliance but there is no thin line here. How can 205,519 persons legitimately cast 444,505 votes? However, the tribunal, after admitting the INEC document as evidence, this time without urging by any of the parties to the petition, still chose to discard this particular exhibit.

A most baffling decision!

The matter was subsequently filed at the Appeal Court, where Justices M.A. Oredola (presiding justice), Y.B. Nimpar and B.A. Georgewill, upheld the ruling from the tribunal. It is worthy of note that in buttressing the above argument, the appellant showed many cases, where the Supreme Court repeatedly decided in favour of the above principles. It is therefore curious that the panels at the tribunal and the Court of Appeal could rule the way they did.

The question is what really happened?

Could the rumours of millions of dollars exchanging hands be true? Could this be one of the reasons that the DSS decided to raid the homes of some these judges?

Though this episode may be considered to be in the past, it is important that the matter be reviewed in view of the fact that by setting aside pertinent provisions of the Evident Act as well as critical sections of the Electoral Act,

Though this episode may be considered to be in the past, it is important that the matter be reviewed in view of the fact that by setting aside pertinent provisions of the Evident Act as well as critical sections of the Electoral Act, these judges have not only carried out a travesty of justice but they have also set a very sad precedent for future political cases as this in the Nigerian legal system

these judges have not only carried out a travesty of justice but they have also set a very sad precedent for future political cases as this in the Nigerian legal system.

The judiciary which used to be adjudged the last hope of the common man must do something to regain the confidence of the people and one way of doing that is for the relevant authorities to take steps to address errors of the past. A good way to start is by taking a second look at the Inibehe Okori’s case - Obong, a public analyst, wrote from Uyo, Akwa Ibom State

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T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2016

BUSINESSWORLD R A t E s NIBOR OVERNIGHT 1-MONTH

A s

NIBOR

9.6667% 17.874%

A t

3-MONTH 6-MONTH

N O V E M B E R

19.539% 20.8243%

NITTY 1-MONTH 2-MONTH 3-MONTH

18.0333% 18.6745% 16.2693%

Group Business Editor Chika Amanze-Nwachuku

Email chika.amanzenwachukwu@thisdaylive.com 08057161321, 08033294157

1 1 , 3-MONTH 6-MONTH 12-MONTH

2 0 1 6

18.7836% 119.3948% 22.4006%

EXCHANGE RATE N304.50//1Us DOLLAR* *As At LAst FRIDAY

Quick Takes Nahco Debunks MD’s Sack

The Board of Directors of the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company Plc., (nahco aviance) has dissociated itself from what it termed unfounded, malicious and false information to the effect that the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Company, Mr. Norbert Bielderman, has been sacked or forced to resign.

The Board said in a statement made available to THISDAY that “for the avoidance of doubt, Mr. Norbert Bielderman remains the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Company. He has not and did not at any point resign his appointment; neither did the Board of Directors request same from him at any time. We are in full support of the MD/CEO and the great work he is doing.”

The Board said it has wholly endorsed Bielderman’s various initiatives aimedatfurtherconsolidatingtheleadershippositionoftheCompany in the ground handling sub – sector of the Nigerian aviation industry.

The company also said the Managing Director was not being investigated by the authority, law enforcement agency or anti-graft commission for any breach of the law.

“We regard all attempts to lump or attach the person of the MD/CEO together with matters in which he was completely innocent and not a person of interest; as not only malicious, but also a manifestation of extreme wickedness”, the statement added.

BRAINSTORMING ON AIR SAFETY

L-R: Ag. Managing Director, Nigeria Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), Emma Anasi; Minister of State, Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika and Regional Officer, Communication, Navigational and Surveillance (CNS), Western and Central Africa (WACAF), Mr. Francois Salmbanga, at the ongoing 24th meeting of Western and Central Africa Satellite Network Management Committee, at NICON Luxury Hotel, Abuja … recently

Airlines Raise the Alarm over Persistent Aviation Fuel Scarcity Chinedu Eze Domestic airline operators have called on the federal government and concerned authorities to take urgent measures to ensure availability of aviation fuel, otherwise known as Jet A1.

They warned that if no urgent action was taken to supply the product, they may be forced to suspend their services.

Some of the operators who spoke to THISDAY said that out of the six marketers that supply the product only one still has the product and the price has risen to N248 per litre in Lagos and N351 per litre in Abuja.

The Director of Engineering of Medview Airline, Lukeman Animashaun said aviation fuel now constitutes about 60 percent

AVIATION to 70 percent of the total cost of flight operation for Nigerian airlines and stressed that no airline is making any profit, but every airline that has airworthy aircraft must do everything possible to put it in the air.

“We are getting the product at N248 per litre in Lagos. The price is increasing everyday, but the price of ticket sales has not changed. Every day, the price of aviation is going up, but passengers will not understand this. If we increase the price of tickets to reflect the increase in fuel costs the passengers will not be able to fly. There is no airline that is making any profit. Now, cost of fuel constitutes 60 to 70 percent of operational cost. It is more challenging when we

consider the cost of fuel for our London flight, now that we are using Boeing B747. That aircraft takes about 160, 000 litres of aviation fuel and we cannot imagine refueling our aircraft in any of our neighbouring countries; it is the foreign airlines that do. Our London flights are already booked and we can never disappoint our customers,” Animashaun said.

Also the Managing Director of Arik Air, Chris Ndulue, told THISDAY in a telephone interview that the aviation fuel scarcity started last week and it is biting harder.

He said that the scarcity has added to the challenges of doing business in Nigeria noting that even the oil marketers are having difficulties in sourcing the product.

Ndulue recalled that during a recent conference in Lagos on oil and gas, there were indications that the importation of Jet A1 might be hampered but the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) promised to import the product. He said the current scarcity was an indication that the Corporation reneged in its promise.

The Arik Air boss said the airline’s major supplier of aviation fuel is Total, but the company did not have the product and as at Wednesday only So Aviation had fuel.

He said it was surprising that Total, a major supplier did not have fuel and that showed the gravity of the scarcity and observed that Continued on page 20

‘NPA Positioned to Aid Nigeria’s Economic Recovery’ Eromosele Abiodun The Chairman, Board of Directors of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Emmanuel Adesoye has stated that the current economic challenges facing Nigeria can fully be addressed if the economic and human potential within the labour force particularly in the maritime sub-sector are swiftly harnessed.

He stated that doing so in a holistic manner, along government’s diversification efforts towards the utilisation of other revenue generation

MARITIME initiatives, will help to stimulate the economy to growth.

The NPA board chairman made this know when him and his fellow board members visited locations in Eastern Ports in the country.

Adesoye reaffirmed that NPA has been strategically positioned to most meaningfully contribute towards the nation’s recovery from economic down turn by prioritising the potentials of the exportation of agricultural and mineral resources through the

nation’s Seaports.

This, he stressed, would enhance improve revenue generation reassuring stakeholders and investors that management is working towards the provision of craft and equipment’s across the nation under budgetary limit, The chairman stressed that this will address the challenges confronting efficient service delivery, as well as safety of lives and cargo at the nation’s seaports. ‘’It would also bring about improved revenue generation, “he added.

In his contribution, the General Manager, Eastern Port, Abdulahi Goje appreciated the tour of facilities by the NPA board members and called for assistance in addressing grey areas in respect of security challenges so that the locations would operate and perform optimally.

According to him, these are critical ingredient for efficient service delivery and improve revenue generation consequently.

The board members were accompanied on the tour of Continued on page 20

Delta Celebrates Intern Programme

Delta Air Lines is celebrating five successful years of its intern programme in Africa. The scheme offers a 12-month contract to post-graduatestudentsinLagos,Nigeria;Accra,Ghana;Dakar,Senegal; and Nairobi, Kenya, to gain hands-on knowledge and experience of working for a multi-national company.

The airline said the programme underscores Delta’s commitment to Africa, by helping young people from underprivileged backgrounds acquire the skills they need to get ahead in business.The interns work alongside the Delta sales team in each country, before attending a Delta conference in the Unites States. Of the 19 people who have completed the scheme, two are still employed at Delta and the rest have gone on to find managerial positions in a range of industries, become teachers or are furthering their studies.

“It’s often difficult for graduates to get a break in the corporate world so offering opportunities like our intern programme can give them a real step up the ladder as well as learn about the complex nature of working for a global company,” said Bobby Bryan, Delta’s Sales Manager for East and West Africa. “Some of our past interns have gone on to gain executive jobs in the public and private sectors. I’m very proud of their achievements and am pleased Delta has been able to play a part in their success.”

Of the interns in Dakar, Donat Tending has gone on to work at the Spanish Embassy, while Arthur Mills, who interned in Delta’s Accra office from 2011-2012, now works as a Foreign Service Officer at the Ghanaian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Meanwhile, Mumbe Muthama from Nairobi was hired permanently by Delta.

Customs to Auction Airplanes

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has announced that it seeks buyers from members of the public to bid for two of its aircraft and one helicopter.

According to Ships and Ports, a published tender notice from the NCS Tenders Board, described the two aircraft – Dornier 288-101 models with registration 5N-AUN and 5N-AUX as unserviceable.

Both the aircraft and the helicopter, an AS 355-F2 with registration 5N-ABP are at NCS Hanger in Kaduna airport in Kaduna state, it said.

Interested members of the public are being allowed to inspect the items till November 21 while the bid submission closes by December 7, 2016.The NCS has some aircraft including the Cessna CJ4 which it uses in its anti-smuggling operations across Nigerian borders which is 4,047-kilometre long.The announcement is coming a month after the Presidency slammed for having many aircraft in its fleet advertised the sales of two aircraft in the Presidential Air Fleet (PAF). Few days later, it donated two Augusta AW101 helicopters to the Nigeria Air Force (NAF).

When contacted Wednesday, the service’ spokesman, Wale Adeniyi in a text message saidª he was not privy to the information.

“If the infrastructure expands, more people will be engaged to operate the new terminals.

The airports being concession under a PPP arrangement will require regular roles to be played by the both the government and the private sector for success”

Minister of State, Aviation,

Senator Hadi Sirika

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T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2016

BUSINESSWORLD AIRLINES RAISE THE ALARM OVER PERSISTENT AVIATION FUEL SCARCITY the major marketer has been leveraging on forex from its upstream partner, Texaco, so the problem is enormous if the company cannot source and supply Jet A1.

“A lot of businesses are going through a lot of problems.

These are the problem of running business in Nigeria.

Recently the increase in aviation fuel prices has been astronomical, driven by the high exchange rate. Such increase in fuel costs could trigger 100 percent increase in airfares, but the travelling public is going through a lot.

Some don’t get their salaries, other don’t get their allowances due to the current economic recession.

‘NPA POSITIONED TO AID NIGERIA’S ECONOMIC RECOVERY’ the facilities by the General Manager, Monitoring and Compliance Eastern Ports, Edward Kabir, Port Manager Rivers Port, Umar Abubakar Gabar and other stakeholders.

In a related development, the Managing Director of NPA, Hadiza Bala Usman has assured the management of Nigerian Liquified Natural Gas (NLNG) of a strong synergy in order to jointly move the economy of Nigeria forward.

Speaking while playing host to the management of NLNG, she pledged a seamless communication and constructive engagement with the management of NLNG with a view to promoting a harmonious inter agency collaboration.

The NPA boss added that the organization will work assiduously to remain competitive in the sub sector of the sub region through effective tariff regime. She also stated that the management would pay premium to the maintenance of infrastructure with a view to ensuring that efficient and effective operations thrive across board.

Usman stressed that the NPA would ensure robust synergy with the management of NLNG in order to enhance revenue generation accrued from its Bonny operations.

Group Business Editor

Chika Amanze-Nwachuku AgriBusiness/Industry Editor

Crusoe Osagie

Comms/e-Business Editor

Emma Okonji

Capital Market Editor

Goddy Egene

Senior Correspondent

Raheem Akingbolu (Advertising) Correspondents

Chinedu Eze (Aviation) Linda Eroke (Labour) Eromosele Abiodun (Cap Mkt) Ejiofor Alike (Energy) James Emejo (Nation’s Capital) Obinna Chima (Money Mkt) Reporters

Nume Ekeghe (Money Market) Nosa Alekhuogie (Maritime)

NEWS

German-Nigerian Consortium to Invest $600m in Power Sector Senator Iroegbu in Abuja The German firm, LTI RE Energy and consortium of renewable firms NIGUS, plan to invest as much as $600 million to generate power from solar and renewable energy in the Northeast.

The Executive Secretary, Nigeria Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC), Ms. Yewande Sadiku, who affirmed this during the official launch of the project in Abuja, lauded the partnership, which she said would lead to the generation of 500 mega watts of electricity in the country within the next five years.

Sadiku noted that the federal government is committed to investing in the Northeast and making Nigeria the hub of renewable energy in West Africa. \The NIPC boss, who was represented by a director in the Commission, Mr. Abubakar Yerima, described the power sector as a critical to the economy because its multiplier effect on all other sectors of the economy.

“This project is in line with President Muhammadu Buhari’s efforts to improve the country’s power sector.

Investors can come in to invest in your country if the key sectors like power is not in order,” she said.

The Chief Sales officer, LTI RE Energy, Mr. Chris Voet, also

said that the firm is confident about investing in the North East.

“We are partnering with NIGUS and they know the country, they know what to do and we are supporting them. They are developing the project and we are supporting them with our expertise in the country.

“Our idea is to flag up our investment in Nigeria, because

Nigeria can supply energy to other countries. In Nigeria there is basic and best opportunity to invest. Nigeria also has the requirements we can use to excel in other countries,” Voet said.

“We are starting now with the plants on ground so we are breaking with 100 megawatts in the first quarter of 2017,” he added.

Also, the executive director,

NIGUS, Major Gen, Dili Aliyu (rtd) said that the investment was in line with the federal government’s efforts to rebuild the Northeast region.

“What we are doing is to strengthen the nation’s power sector. We want to give people residing in the Northeast hope.

Adamawa get less than 5 mega watts. We want to look at a country beyond oil sector, giving people a better tomorrow.

“Our greatest motivation is to empower people and give them hope; we will be employing 16,000 to 17,000 youth to carry out this project.

“We fought the war in the Northeast to make the lives of people residing there meaningful, so when our team sat to bring this investment to this country, I insisted that we will kick start the project in the North East,” Aliyu said.

FACILITY TOUR

L-R: Cargo Manager, Airfrance/KLM, Nigeria, Gabriel Lalande; Vice President, Airfrance/KLM Cargo (France, Africa, Indian Ocean & Caribbean), Jean-Jacques Castillo; Managing Director/CEO, Skypower Aviation Handling Company Limited (SAHCOL), Rizwan Kadri; Director Guinean Gulf, Airfrance/KLM Cargo Philippe-Emmanuel Gindrat; General Manager, Sales & Marketing, SAHCOL, Adigun Olaniyi, and General Manager, Cargo Services, SAHCOL, Boma Ukwunna, during a facility tour of the SAHCOL Ultra Modern Cargo Warehouse… recently

PTAD to Pay Police Pensioners N1.2bn by December James Emejo in Abuja The Executive Secretary, Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD), Mrs. Sharon Ikeazor has said a total sum of N1.2billion would be released between now and December 15 to offset arrears of pensioners of the Nigeria Police Force.

About 4,061 police pensioners, who retired under the PTAD scheme, are yet to receive their pension, raising lots of complaints and petitions by supposed beneficiaries.

But PTAD had blamed the delay largely on the unavailability of funds particularly at period when the federal

government is grappling with the current fiscal crisis.

However, the planned payment of police retirees would give great reprieve to some of them who had waited earnestly for the good news.

Nevertheless, Ikeazor further told members of the House of Representatives Committee on Pensions, led by its Chairman, Hon. Adamu Shekarau, who was on an oversight function to the agency that the payment of the 33 per cent arrears to the police would cover a nine-month period and put the retired officers at par with some other pension departments.

The PTAD boss, who

assumed office recently had vowed to make pensioners welfare a top priority by ensuring time payment of their entitlements.

She said:”Adequate arrangement is being made for additional payment of the 33 per cent arrears to bring the police at par with some of the other pensions departments.

“We are doing this in collaboration with all concerned parties and hope to conclude before December 15. The liabilities for police pensioners is about N1.2bn for nine months and we are working to pay them before December 15.”

She also told the lawmakers

that the agency is currently working with the Bureau of Public Service Reforms to subject it’s workers to a comprehensive staff audit to among other things, determine the quality of manpower to be recruited and effect necessary replacements before the actual recruitment could commence.

She added that a one-on-one assessment of staff had revealed some irregularities in their employment thus the need to correct the anomalies.

She noted that PTAD would further seek to address the plight of pensioners who were unjustly removed from the payroll as it commences

verification exercise in the North-East, South-South and South-West geo political zones.

Meanwhile, members of the House praised Ikeazor’s empathy to pensioners as well as disposition to team work in the agency.

Shekarau said the National Assembly would continue to provide legislative support on pension related matters and charged PTAD to ensure that an accurate database was realised to put an end to incidences of fraud and related complaints.

He said though pension administration was still facing a lot of challenges, the approach adopted by the leadership of

MADE to Launch N80m Grant for Niger Delta SMEs Eromosele Abiodun The Market Development in the Niger Delta (MADE), a UK Department for International Development Funded programme, has concluded arrangements to launch N80 million technology adoption grant, a private sector intervention aimed at stimulating performance in select agriculture value chains in the Niger Delta.

The Technology Adoption Grant (TAG), fund managed

by MADE, will be awarded to eligible individuals and enterprises with focus on palm oil processing, fish smoking

and improving harvesting technologies through a competitive grant process.

In a statement released in Abuja, the Communications and Advocacy Manager for MADE, Mr. Fidelis Ekom said the competition, which was launched during the week is open solely to individual businesses and enterprises domiciled and operating in the Niger Delta.

He explained that successful bids can receive up to a maximum of N1,100,000 depending on the funding window.

The statement explained that those captured under the first funding window are small scale

business people with focus on fish smoking.

It said TAG fund will give access to new fish smoking kilns with its attendant benefits which include safety from fire hazards, improved efficiency (the time it takes to smoke fish), improved smoking capacity and reduction in the cost of doing business.

It added that 80 units of 50-75kg kilns, 20 units of 100kg kilns and 4units of 200-250kg kilns were available for Rivers, Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom, Delta, Edo and Cross River States under the first funding arrangement.

For palm oil processing

technologies, MADE said it was working on getting fabricators to collaborate with commercial millers to organize demonstrations on the benefits of the use of improved processing technologies and practices targeted at other millers and mill users and farmers, provide good quality machines and also after sale support services.

This, according to MADE, would lead to increased awareness on the benefits of new processing technologies and in turn increased demand for the technologies by millers and mill users, thus leading to increased yields for market

actors.

It said 80 units of 3 MT/10Hr shift Small Scale Processing Equipment (SSPE) are available for Imo, Akwa Ibom, Delta, Edo and Abia States.

Under the third funding window, which is aimed at providing access to improved harvesting technologies, MADE said it will be intervening with equipment such adjustable harvester and Malaysian Knife which are capable of increasing the quantity of FFB harvestable from a plantation, as against the current practice of manual climbing which is hazardous and inefficient.

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AVIATION

AIR WATCH

Minister Backs New Satellite Communication for Safe Flight Operations Chinedu Eze The Minister of State, Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika has commended the African and Indian Ocean Satellite Communication Network (AFISNET) for significantly contributing to the enhancement of safety and efficiency of air navigation within and across the African and Indian Ocean (AFI) region.

Sirika, who made the remark while declaring open the 24th meeting of the Western and Central Africa Satellite Network Management Committee (SNMC) hosted by the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) in Abuja on Wednesday, revealed that the SNMC has commenced discussion on the feasibility of surveillance data sharing within the sub-region, especially with the “multiplicity of surveillance systems available within the AFI Region.

He said the SNMC has the immense potential for providing redundancy across neighbouring Flight Information Regions (FIRs). According to the Aviation Minister, the objective

of Global Air Navigation Plan is to achieve a harmonised interoperable and seamless global air traffic management system that would facilitate cost effective, efficient and economic international civil aviation, hence the need to sustain, expand and improve technology and capacity of the AFISNET to accommodate navigational and surveillance data sharing.

Sirika also declared that the ongoing Aeronautical Information Service (AIS) Automation project embarked upon by NAMA has delivered a Centralized Aeronautical Database that is being populated with data that would enhance seamless integration with other states or regional databases, even as he charged the meeting to “provide an appropriate forum for member states, delegates and stakeholders to benchmark, synergise, collaborate and cooperate in order to facilitate the seamless integration of our various systems for greater capacity across the entire region in the spirit of International Civil Aviation Organisation’s (ICAO), No Country Left Behind and

Single African Sky vision.”

Also speaking at the event, the ICAO Regional Officer (CNS) at the Regional Office of ICAO for Western and Central Africa (WACAF) in Dakar, Mr. Francois Salmbanga stated that in view of the fact that AFISNET offers real opportunities for the implementation of the main components of Communication, Navigation, Surveillance and Air Traffic Management (CNS/ ATM) systems to be required for the future aviation system, ICAO attaches particular importance to the AFISNET network, and pays much attention to activities related to its management as well as supports the various initiatives of states and organisations to find common solutions in a sub-regional or regional frame. Earlier, the acting Managing Director of NAMA, Emma Anasi noted that several safety critical initiatives embarked upon by the agency in recent time were targeted at making the Nigerian airspace compliant with regional and international standards for the overall safety of air navigation in the country as well as within

Stakeholders Endorse Airport Facilities Concession Industry operatives and other stakeholders in the aviation industry have endorsed the planned concession of airport facilities even as they warned that government must be carried conducted in a sincere and transparent manner.

Speaking at a one day stakeholders forum held at the Sheraton Hotel and Suites, notable aviation industry players, among them Captain Dele Ore, Managing Director of Medview Airline, Alhaji Muneer Bankole and the Managing Director of IRS Airlines, Alhaji Ishiaku Rabiu Ishiaku gave their support for the concession plan.

According to veteran pilot, Ore, the Minister has started implementing what operatives in the industry have been demanding for year.

“We can see that you (minister) are looking at the recommendations that we have made in the past and

are implementing it but it is not being done totally and we urge you to go back and look at our recommendations and totally implement it” he said.

Also, Bankole told the gathering that all the airlines wanted was good service and if it takes concession of facilities to bring that about then so be it.

“On my capacity and on behalf of the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), all we want is service. I speak on behalf of my colleagues. Most of us have travelled out of the country and know what obtains at other airports of the world in terms of service delivery.

We do not get that kind of service here because of the way things are. We need to let you all know that out there, service is provided and if it would take concessioning of airports for us to get the kind of service that would make us at par with others then by all

means concession because the status quo is nothing to write home about,” he said.

While advising all stakeholders to back the planned concession, the Managing Director of IRS Airlines, Alhaji Ishiaku Rabiu Ishiaku said that this was an opportunity for Nigeria as a country to get it right finally.

According to him, aviation has advanced beyond the country and concession may be the only way to address the infrastructure deficit so Nigeria should take advantage of it.

A Private, Public Partnership (PPP) expert, Dr. Chukwuma Katchy, however, attributed failure of previous concession projects to lack of proper knowledge on how such agreements work.

In his presentation titled, Public, Private Partnership: Issues and challenges, Katchy said previous concession plans

Emirates Offers Nigerians Discount on Air Fares Emirates, voted the World’s Best Airline in the 2016 Skytrax World Airline Awards, is offering Nigerian customers return airfares of up to 50 percent off to Dubai, one of the world’s most iconic cities.

This special offer, which is available for both Economy Class and Business Class travel, must be purchased from now to November 30, 2016 for travels until May 31, 2017.

Known as a city of contrasts, from futuristic architecture to vibrant traditional culture and diversity, Dubai is a place that caters to all types of travellers. The city offers everything a visitor could want, from shopping at some of the largest malls in the region to dining options,

which will spoil anyone for choice, a trip to Dubai is a must for families, friends and individuals.

The city also offers visitors several new and exciting experiences, such as the recently opened IMG Worlds of Adventure, the world’s largest indoor themed entertainment destination, and the soon-to-be-opened Dubai Parks and Resorts, which will offer a range of attractions and experiences.

Other attractions in the city include the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world, traditional souks and the clear water beaches of the Arabian Gulf.

On all Emirates’ flights, customers can look forward to hours of entertainment on the airline’s ice system, which

offers over 2500 channels of on demand audio and visual entertainment, from the latest movies, music, audio books and games, as well as family friendly products and services for children, including complimentary toys, kids’ meals and movies, priority boarding for families and the use of free strollers at Dubai International Airport.

In addition to the on-board comforts and products, customers will also experience the world famous hospitality from Emirates’ multinational cabin crew while enjoying chef prepared regional and international cuisine, using the freshest ingredients, accompanied by a wide range of complimentary wines and beverages.

Arming Aviation Security With Guns Lagos Airport domestic terminal, MMA2

FAAN AVSEC personnel on duty at Lagos airport

T

he Minister of State, Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika last week, during a stakeholders’ meeting in Lagos disclosed that the federal government had concluded plans to arm the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) Aviation Security (AVSEC) with guns.

Although this is aimed at strengthening security at the airports and it is other security operatives not trained in civil aviation, would be withdrawn by airport authorities. The news received mixed reactions from industry operatives, as to whether it is in tune with international regulatory standards that guide airport security.

AVSEC personnel are the primary security operatives at the airports recognised and endorsed by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).

They are trained and certified by the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) in accordance with ICAO principles on airport security.

The Minister explained that AVSEC personnel would be armed with guns in the face of current terror security threats, the invasion of airports by terrorists and the incursion of restricted areas of the airports by unruly passengers.

Sirika recalled what happened last year when Turkish Airlines flight from Istanbul to Abuja brought in the passengers without their luggage. The passengers protested and invaded the tarmac in an attempt to stop the aircraft that brought them to their destination from taking off. That was a serious security breach, which led to the suspension of two top security officials at the airport.

Sirika said the AVSEC personnel would be retrained, well kitted, profiled and given not only guns but also sniffer dogs so that they would improve the security apparatus of the airports.

According to ICAO, only AVSEC personnel are recognised in civil aviation regulation, although such regulations are usually localised by individual countries to suit their circumstances and in Nigeria there are other security operatives who render auxiliary services ‎at the airports but were not trained in civil aviation security.

The Minister said he had met with the Ministry of Interior on how to train and equip AVSEC officials and how to choose the type of guns they would be armed with, adding that the training was billed to kick off as quickly as possible.

“Government has decided to reposition ‎AVSEC to make them more effective in the face of terror threats and control of sometimes unruly passengers. So we want to fashion the AVSEC in the mold

of Transport Security Administration (TSA) of the US so that they will carry guns, have sniffer dogs and will be well kitted. We are going to train them more on how to carry guns.

“So we have contacted the Ministry of Interior that will choose the type of gun they will carry and the type of training they will receive,” the Minister said.

THISDAY spoke with aviation security expert and the former Commandant of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, Group Captain John Ojikutu (retd) who expressed caution over that decision.

He said that AVSEC has about six defense layers and these include intelligence (government security/intelligence agencies); passenger pre-screening (airlines); airport access control (airport security authority); passengers/carry-on baggage checkpoint screening (airport security authority); hold or checked-in baggage screening (airport authority and airlines); airport security fences (airport authority) and on-board security (airlines/ government security agencies).

He said except in real emergency situations, arms could only be carried by those manning patrol along the security fences and the invisible sky marshal for on board security.

“In other exceptional cases at the access control points and gates to security control areas. No arms must be carried at all other areas except in serious emergency when the security of the airport has broken down.

“In other words, arms are not carried by the main layers of intelligence, passenger pre screening, access control, passenger carry-on baggage checkpoint screening areas and hold/checked baggage screening areas,” Ojikutu said.

THISDAY investigation at the Lagos and the Abuja airports revealed that these days the other paramilitary operatives, especially the police and the Nigeria Air Force personnel seem to be more visible, especially at the entrance of the terminals and there are sometimes conflicting signals and directives to passengers at the entrance gates; that if the AVSEC official gives directive he would be contradicted by a counter directive to the passengers by the other security operatives.

According to industry experts, ideally before the Air Force and police personnel are deployed to the airports they ought to be trained on how to handle passengers and that they are only providing auxiliary services in order to fortify security at the airports.

It is expected that if AVSEC must carry guns they must not be very visible. One industry observer said that such guns must be very effective, like Uzi and could only be deployed at critical situations, “when there is no other alternative.”

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Reappraising the Planned Airport Concessions

If handled in a transparent manner, the airport concessions could actually be the elixir for air transport facilities in Nigeria, writes Chinedu Eze Stiff opposition that greeted the planned concession of airport facilities had prompted the Minister of State, Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika to convene several meetings, including the recent stakeholders meetings to convince those who were not inclined to concession to see the reason why the private sector should be allowed to invest in airport development.

But there is justification for the doubt about the efficacy of concession. Their fears stemmed from the fact that concession agreements carried out in Nigeria, including the concession of the domestic terminal of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMA2) are still mired in controversies. So the pessimism of labour was not misplaced because from hindsight, workers seemed to be the victims of infrastructure concession and the liquidation of government owned institutions. From the sale of former NITEL to the liquidation of Nigeria Airways Limited (NAL), the workers are always shortchanged.

Till today many of the NAL workers are yet to collect their entitlements.

Industry interest groups might have tacitly given support to the concession plan because of the assurance by the Minister of State, Aviation, Senator Sirika that the concession would be carried out sincerely and through due process. They recongise the fact that over the years infrastructure development in the industry has been static, if not retrogressive and that since the past four decades it is only the Lagos domestic terminal, MMA2 that could be described as entirely new structure built in the airports under the management of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN). And that was done under concession. However, the remodeling programme of the past administration aimed at revamping the decayed facilities, like most government infrastructure projects, was aborted midway.

In addition, it has become highly unlikely that government could deploy funds for airport facility rehabilitation or the building of new facilities. What it could do would be to take loans, like it did with the Chinese loans, which are being used to build the four terminals at the nation’s major airports.

Government is obliged to pay back loans, so concession, Senator Sirika said, is better than taking loans and building airport infrastructure.

Under concession, when well conceived, what government would have at the end of the concession period would be far better and bigger than what it gave out in concession.

According to industry consultant and CEO of Belujane Konsult, Chris Aligbe, government should envision the airport facility it wants to have and should agree with the concessionaire the modalities for expansion.

“It should be expected that if the concessionaire is taking the facility for about 25 years, it should b programmed that expansion should take place every five years. For example, if presently the airport is facilitating five million passengers a year, it is expected that in the next five years it should service about eight million or more passengers and the facility should be developed to meet that target. So by the time the facility reverts back to government, it would be an entirely different airport facility, more modern and expanded to serve higher number of passenger traffic, possibly from the five million passengers to 30 million passengers per annum,” Aligbe said.

Stakeholders’ Support Unlike in the past meetings, many industry stakeholders that spoke on Saturday night gave their support to the concession plan but were more interested in the modalities, what will happen to FAAN workers and whether they would not be given appropriate training so that many of them would be retained. The Minister said that FAAN would continue to serve as airports manager with its retinue of workers and expressed hope that even if at the beginning some workers were relieved of

generated more than $1 billion in foreign direct investment and led to the creation of 23,000 new jobs over its lifespan. These are type of economic and job creation benefits we will attract by using PPP for our airports,” he explained.

Sirika

their duties, the concessionaire would employ three times more than the number that would be sacked because the airport facilities would continue to expand and more Nigerians would continue to travel so there will be inevitable job creation.

“We have poor airport infrastructure at the airports and the population is growing. Government does not have money to fund airport facilities development so the only available option is to concession. I assure you that the concession process will be transparent, it will be sincere and it will follow due process,” Sirika said.

Veteran pilot and former head of flight operations of the Nigeria Airways Limited (NAL), Captain Dele Ore commended the Minister for his determination to solve the protracted problem of infrastructural decay of airport facilities. Ore who was the immediate past President of Aviation Round Table (ART) recalled the committee, which he headed that was assigned to carry out the concession programme but the plan was later discontinued.

Also another member of the think-tank group, ART and former Commandant of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, Group Captain John Ojikutu (retd) also supported the concession programme but expressed concern about what would be the future of the workers.

The President of National Association of Nigeria Travel Agents (NANTA), Bankole Bernard also gave support for the planned concession and noted that it would put an end to the obsolete facilities that inhibit passenger facilitation. The National Association of Aircraft Pilots and Engineers (NAAPE), Chief Isaac Belami while acknowledging the need for concession the airport facilities, stressed on the need to have major maintenance facility in Nigeria to safe forex, provide jobs for Nigerian engineers.

The Concession Plan The Minister, Senator Sirika had earlier stated that the method of concession is Public Private Partnership (PPP). Reacting to many questions about what part of the airport would be given out in concession, he said, “The scope of the PPP will be determined by the Transaction Adviser (TA) after careful study and preparation of an Outline Business Case (OBC). The OBC will have to be certified by the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) and approved by the Federal Executive Council (FEC).

“The Staff of FAAN will be responsible for supervising all PPPs and in addition be responsible for running other airports in the country. As the infrastructure expands, more people will be engaged to operate the new terminals. The airports being concession under a PPP arrangement will require regular roles to be played by the both the government and the private sector for success. FAAN will be the government counter party on the PPP contracts for the airport and play government’s role,” Sirika said.

The minister acknowledged that they would be initial lob losses for largely non-technical personnel but observed this would only be in the short term because in the long term, the concession programme would create more jobs.

“What we plan to have is more jobs. Our aim is to increase the size and capacity of the airports through PPP by attracting investments, to create the much-needed hub in West and Central Africa.

In 2007, Jordan awarded a 25-year concession for the Queen Alia International Airport in Amman following a competitive bidding process. The project included rehabilitating existing facilities, constructing a new terminal with a capacity of 12 million passengers per year, and operating the airport. The project

Failure of the Past But in retrospect, concession of government owned assets has not worked and that explains why many Nigerians doubt the success of such arrangement but the Minister explained why PPP/ concession of airport facilities has not worked in the past and noted that the process has never been done in a structured and transparent manner.

He said the contracts of the past concession were not properly prepared, no risk analysis and no financial models. Consequently, it is not surprising that they end up in litigation.

“However, the ports in Nigeria were concessioned in 2006 through a structured approach. The ports are doing much better post concession,” Sirika said.

But how can the concessionaires be under the supervision of FAAN and how can the agreement be harmonised between the concessionaires and the government agency so that there won’t be litigation in future?

Sirika explained, “As part of the Transaction Advisory services, the TA will have a legal firm as part of the consortium. The TA will review all agreements and litigations and provide a way forward in collaboration with FAAN legal department.

The 68 pending court cases will be looked into and various options of mitigation will be provided. In addition, we plan to use modern techniques like establishing aviation Dispute Resolution Board (DRB) of respected experts.

The Board will be part of the PPP development and procurement process and will resolve all disputes in the aviation sector.

On the non-payment of Nigeria Airways workers when the airline was liquidated, and action that is fuelling the resistance to concession by the workers, the Minister said, “Nigeria Airways is a sad story indeed. However, we are looking for ways to pay off the outstanding liabilities. We will consider using budgetary provision and we are talking to government on other options. This government will ensure all outstanding liabilities are paid off and we allow Nigeria Airway lie in peace.”

Other Matters The Minister spoke on forex and how he helped the airlines secure forex window with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and he is also helping to ensure that the 60 days delay before accessing forex is scrapped for the airlines.

He disclosed that there were plans to make Aviation Security (AVSEC) to bear arms in order to improve security at the airports.

The Minister said government would carry out the resurfacing of the runways and taxiways at the Abuja, Enugu and Lagos airports. It would carry out the completion of on going projects at the airports nationwide, explore alternative funding sources and may look at the accessing money from Pension Fund and drive towards making FAAN a lean organisation by eliminating the present arrangement that is top heavy. Sirika said that this administration would also upgrade the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), Zaria into the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Regional Centre of Excellence.

Airport facility concession is a word many workers in the aviation industry do not wish to hear. To them, contained in that word is job threats, the tendency for individuals to take over government assets and possible outrageous airport charges for service, which invariably would hike airfares. But now, it seemed inevitable that it is the only way possible to get out of the quagmire of obsolete airport infrastructure.

Now the stakeholders are demanding for sincere and transparent concession.

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Bankole: Nigerian Insurers Lack Capacity to Bear Airline Risk Managing Director of Medview Airline, Alhaji Muneer Bankole spoke on air safety in Nigeria and the challenges airlines face including high insurance premiums. Chinedu Eze brings the excerpts: I wish to also say that the Minister of State, Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika has been moving around with us. We went together to the Nigeria Customs Service and we succeeded in getting his support on the waiver on tariffs on the importation of aircraft and spares. We need to commend the federal government on this. So we want government to continue to support the industry. We have spoken about the charges on airlines by government agencies and we are of the view that these charges should be put together as one charge and let the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) share it, because the rest are just service providers. In terms of these charges we are in very difficult situation. We pay the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), we pay the Lagos Inland Revenue, we pay everything. There is no money really. The cost of the ticket we sell cannot defray all these payments.

Obtaining IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) I had a visit to Abu Dhabi to meet with Etihad. The management of Etihad, my management and myself had one-to-one discussion and the airline said it wanted to do interline with Medview because they needed to have a Nigerian airline partner and Medview happened to be the favourite airline but the first question on the table was, are you IOSA compliant.

I said with confidence that we were in the process and today we have the IOSA. Like (Samson) Fatokun (IATA Regional Director) said, it was not a child’s play. It took us almost about two years to run the project. It was not only two years. We had external auditors that checked our books, our manuals, safety operation, engineering and other things. They run through quality, safety standard and everything. The team that came said in very rare cases they could do 40 to 50 findings; even sometimes more than 100. Those airlines don’t usually come back because for you to have 20 findings in this project, you would rather go back to school again to read.

I wan tot use this medium to thank my entire workforce that worked tirelessly for the actualisation of this project. I cannot tell you in secret, I was part of the team. I was here with the books. I read all the books.

What goes for Medview in secret is teamwork and I always emphasise that the right thing should be done and sometimes I go crazy to ensure that this is done. And I am proud to say openly here that among the airlines that operate in this country, we are in compliant with safety and standard regulation.

Challenges in the Industry That is why it is necessary to tell people that in the industry today we have seen a lot of challenges, so this government that we have today must change its attitude to support the aviation industry, because it is only window through which the country can link with the external world. And it is the only window through which you can carry the name of the country through the airlines.

This is because most of the corporate entities cannot fly your name outside Nigeria, as airlines would do.

In Saudi Arabia we did well in a very efficient Hajj operation. It was almost about 60 days in and out we never had delays and we had in our hands the responsibility to airlift 70, 000 Nigerians that went for the exercise and we ensured that they returned safely along with their luggage and cargo. And I returned home safely with my team.

That is what Medview is all about.

We never changed that standard. We wanted to give the best and we want to promise IATA that what we received today we are going to maintain it; we are going to improve on it and I want to assure that we shall meet all the conditions to sustain this safety status. Thank you for the efforts that IATA put into this exercise and I wish to say it openly that this is a wonderful exercise, which has been introduced to the airline industry to measure the standard and safety, which gives customers the confidence to fly. This is the secret. Any corporate entity that wants to do business with you, even airlines will ask you, are you IOSA satisfied. They will understand that you have gone through the rigours of achieving high safety standards to join those that have met such standard in the world. With this certification we are competing with Lufthansa and other mega airlines. That is what IOSA is all about. Today you will be a member of IOSA and you can vote and be voted for.

Bankole

Government’s support for airlines Let me bring you to the current situation in the country. The Senate Committee on Aviation has invited some of the Nigerian airlines. Looking at the operating environment, the members want to know where and where the shoe pinches. The airlines attended the Senate seating and today again we received a letter from the Senate through the House of Representatives that there would be public hearing. The entire situation in entire country is not pleasant.

Airline is the backbone of aviation anywhere in the world. Air transport in Nigeria is dollar denominated and the non-availability of foreign exchange is not helping the situation. You are all aware of what is going on. We have cried out to the government to create an

Airline is the backbone of aviation anywhere in the world. Air transport in Nigeria is dollar denominated and the non-availability of foreign exchange is not helping the situation

environment and window in Central Bank of Nigeria for airlines to have access to forex so that the airlines would have dollars to do their business. Everything we do in this industry has nothing to do with Naira. We carry out maintenance at the Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) organisation overseas. In most cases we do D-check for a minimum of $2 million. In D-check we change a lot of components on the aircraft and bring the aircraft back home for the next 18 months.

You are also aware that some of the aircraft are on dry lease (leased aircraft operated by the airlines crew and maintained by the airline). The airlines need to pay lease rentals. It has to be fulfilled because it is a contract obligation. Such payments are done in dollars. We pay insurance in dollars; it is not paid in local currency because the Nigerian insurance companies do not have the capacity to carry the risk alone. That is why most of us go back to the foreign insurance brokers and underwriters.

High charges by government agencies We have spoken to government on Jet A1 (aviation fuel). At the beginning of this administration we thought they were going to dedicate one of the refineries to produce Jet A1so that the product would no more be imported and that would reduce the pressure on dollars. Currently fuel supply is at the mercy of marketers. They are now selling N204 per litre. This product in January last year was N101 per litre; some was N98 per litre, but to day it is N204 per litre. Up to Maiduguri and Yola the price of Jet A1 can go as far as N240 per litre. The fuel marketers say they are looking for the same dollar to get the product for us. I wish those of us remaining in the industry that we continue to pray to God Almighty.

Fleet size We have carried you along from the beginning when we started with few aircraft.

Today I am proud to tell you that we are operating six airplanes and I am modest to tell you that currently Medview runs domestic operations on daily basis. We have Boeing 747 for our Lagos-London service and we have Boeing 777 on lease, which we used to support our hajj operation. As I am talking now the Boeing B737-800 is on the way and I will let you know immediately it is delivered. So as at now we have six fleet, five on ground in Nigeria and the sixth one in Europe. This is the fleet as at today. In terms of fleet expansion I will have to tell you that we have come to stay on our Lagos-London route. We have wonderful operation in 365 days and we never cancelled one flight. We have to commend Nigerians in Diaspora for sincerely believing in this organisation and we are very happy about it and they do the needful to show that this is our own.

Till the end of December, starting from the first week of December and with the Boeing B747 commencing in the next two weeks, we don’t have seats available if you are coming in from London. That is to show the commitment of Nigerians, and going back to London from first week of January to the end it is almost the same. So I encourage Nigerians to start buying their seats. We want to tell Nigerians in Diaspora that we value their support and we are ready to give them special fare so that they will be able to carry their family and bring the money back home to improve our economy. That is what Medview is all about. So we are helping them to come home with a very reasonable price.

On the fleet, we are in Jeddah. You are all aware we opened Jeddah. We run four frequencies to Jeddah and we operate to London and I am proud to tell you that in couple of months to come, once the Boeing B767 goes for maintenance we will take back to Dubai and all of us will be there to share the experience. For now Dubai is in the making and you are all aware that in West Africa we operate to Accra, Ghana. We got approval into four countries in West Africa.

We are extending Accra to Liberia, Freetown and Dakar. Recently during the Hajj we had invitation from the government of Mali and also the Prime Minister of Guinea Bissau.

He was pleased to see Medview supporting operation in their country.

Ethiopia Airlines has been giving support to this organisation in terms of maintenance and we are working with our local engineers. So we have partnership with Ethiopian Airlines and we are moving very well with them.

We are also working very closely with Euro Atlantic to commence Lagos-Lisbon and Sao Tome together.

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FRIDAY NOVEMBER 18, 2016 T H I S D AY

SUPREME COURT SERVES JUSTICE SALAUWA/ MARKARFI/JEGEDE SUIT AGAINST THEM!

T H I S D AY FRIDAY NOVEMBER 18, 2016

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Acting Features Editor: Charles Ajunwa Email: charles.ajunwa@thisdaylive.com

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OGIAMIEN MAKES COMEBACK WITH 'EXCELLENCE VISION' ACTING EDITOR CHARLES AJUNWA / charles.ajunwa@thisdaylive.com

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18.11.2016

Ogiamien Makes Comeback with 'Excellence Vision' Roland Ogiamien, the great Benin traditional arts proponent, recently returned to the Lagos art scene after a very long absence. This over 70-year-old highly regarded sculptor whose works have been exhibited in galleries in Nigeria and the world, made a re-entry with 'Excellence Vision 2016', the title of his just concluded exhibition at the Quintessence Art Gallery, Ikoyi, Lagos. He tells Mary Ekah why he went on a sabbatical and what prompted his comeback finished in Lagos before I left while the third one was completed in Benin this year. And I had abandoned same work in Lagos up to five years before I left for Benin, which makes it like about 28 years that I have worked on that particular work titled, ‘Female Ritual Dancers’.

When was your last exhibition before the just concluded Excellence Vision?

My last exhibition in Nigeria was in 2002, and it was my send off exhibition from Lagos titled, ‘Back to Roots’. The exhibition was organised by the National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC) to send me off when I decided to relocate to Benin and that was about 14 years ago.

So when you moved to Benin, you no longer exhibited your artworks?

There was no exhibition in Benin but in 2007, I was sent to Jamaica by the federal government of Nigeria for cultural assistance.

I was sent there to teach the young Jamaican artists the art of Nigerian woodcarving. It was a sort of cultural assistance to the Jamaican wood carvers. I was there for four months and at the end of the four months; I conducted workshops in eight centres in Jamaica. At the end of the whole exercise there was a 10-day exhibition of selected works of my works and those of my trainees. And as I left Nigeria for Jamaica, I packaged some of my finished works along with me and each centre I conducted the workshop l displayed them so that the trainees will have something to look upon. So at end of it all, that was my next major exhibition till this very one, ‘Excellence Vision 2016’.

So why did it take over 18 years for you to finish one particular work?

The inspiration was no longer there and by the time I came back to it, I had a different inspiration.

You mean after you might have lost focus on a particular work, you still come back to it with new inspiration?

Yes, it happens, sometimes I deliberately do it and not that I lost focus. For example, the work titled, ‘Coronation of Benin Oba and Ekiagbado Treaty’, is a work I stated in 1980. You know the coronation of Oba Erediauwa was in 1979 and I started the work on “Coronation of Benin Oba and Ekiagbado Treaty” in 1980 and I did not finish it till 1985.

I never even knew I was going to witness the coronation of another Oba of Benin, which was done recently and that is the time that this work is coming out for exhibition after so many years.

Ogiamien

What inspires your works?

There are many things that give me inspiration. First, when I put a piece of wood down, the nature of that wood is one of the things that inspires what will come out of the wood.

If I have a piece of wood that is bent, then I will be inspired to design an object that has curve of something. Other times, I am inspired by meditation. Every artist has his own way of meditating. That is why people often say that artists are spiritually inclined.

There is a spirit that controls each artist and I know the spirit that controls me. I know where it belongs.

What was your experience like with your Jamaican trainee?

For the Jamaicans it was a different experience for them because they have been hearing of Nigerian art and then they had the opportunity to see a Nigerian artist and his works. My works were entirely different from what they practice over there. The Jamaicans have not gotten identity for their artworks, the Caribbean do the same type of works as theirs. So seeing a Nigerian artist in their domain opened their eyes to many things about the African arts.

What would you say were major differences between your artworks and those from Jamaica?

It was a different thing entirely. They have no relationship at all. African art works can always be identified but you cannot distinguish their works from the European works. They specialised in carving animals from the sea like turtle, fish, sea snake and every other animal from the sea. And what they carve is like the European carving and so before I left, many of them were able to adjust from their traditional carving to our kind of carving.

You were absent from the art scene for so long before your recent exhibition. Why did it take so long for you to come up with another major exhibition?

I relocated to Benin for two purposes. One was to go on a recess. And so when I got to Benin, I had to relax a bit. The way I worked in Lagos is not the way I work in Benin. In Benin, I only work when I feel like working and I didn’t just take the work as full time job anymore because I wanted to really rest. At my age now, many of my friends are no longer working. I am 70 plus at the moment and apart from that, I had in mind that at a certain time of my life, I will host an exhibition that people will know that I am still alive. Therefore, within the last 13 years, I have been accumulating works. So all I did in Benin was that I will do an artwork and keep it in reserve and gradually I was able do a lot of works. I only sold a very few of my artworks. And in addition to that, since 2012 till date I have been a facilitator at Prof. Bruce Onobrakpeya Foundation’s annual Agbarha-Otor Harmattan Workshop

What spirit is that Sir? That is left for me. And any artist that does not know where the spirit that controls his work belongs to does not know where he is going. At times, my spirit will push me to somewhere and then I will realise that if I go to far, I will get into trouble. My works can be divided into four categories: My works in the early 60s, my works in the 70s/80s, my works in the 80s/90s and then my works from the 20s till date. Even my collector can identify these categories. That means that the more an artist grew older, the more his inspiration advances and the less his outputs. in Delta State. And that has kept me busy all through the years So let’s assume that at a point you retired but as an artist that you were, you could not take your hands off your arts and so you continually do them bit-by-bit. I suppose?

As a matter of fact, I could not take my mind off the art even though I needed so much rest at my age. It’s like I would say, ‘once an artist, always an artist’.

How would you describe your kind of works?

I work on woods only and I find working on woods very amazing. In fact, it gives me joy and makes me strong. Working with woods is not for a lazy man. It is for those who have energy, strength, patience and determination.

I have been carving woods for about 55 years and it has continued to give me joy.

You are above 70 years, so how do you still get strength to do those tedious jobs?

I don’t work every day since I moved to Benin. Any day I want to work, by 6am I have

started work because I have a workshop and studio within my compound in Benin. It is like leaving the sitting room to the balcony, so it is within my reach. And when I wake in the morning and I feel like working, I go to the workshop and work from 6am to 11 am and then retire. By the time it’s evening again, if I still feel like working I will go back to work for few hours. I don’t work every day and that is why it takes me so many days to finish a work. And when you talk about energy, I know my work entails me working with strong woods, that is why I have employed a studio assistant who helps me to motif some of the woods. He will chisel out and chisel in and then leave them for me, so by the time the tedious aspect is gone, I know how to deal with the rest.

How many works have you been able to gather since your relocation to Benin?

I had 23 works for this exhibition and out of these 23, three of them were the works I did in Lagos. Two of them were actually

So what inspired you to hold this particular exhibition at this time?

This exhibition was never in my mind when I decided to pay a visit to my son in Lagos in May this year. My son and I had come to Quintessence Art Gallery, Ikoyi, Lagos to see the Curator, Mr. Moses Ohiomokhare for something entirely different, when he started a discussion that it was high time I brought my works to Lagos. I gave it a thought because I felt that a lot of my collectors were growing older and were also anxious to see what I have been doing in Benin all these years. So I decided to use this exhibition to tell them that I am still alive, still an artist and still producing. I am so glad I did.

Why the title Excellence Vision 2016?

If you look at the works yourself, you know the works are excellent. The works are excellent and they are as a result of the vision I had. And they manifested from the spirit inspired vision and that is why it is Excellence Vision.

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A New Lease of Life Beckons for Ebonyi Indigenes as Cultural Day Holds Today Mary Ekah There is likelihood that soon the indigenes of Ebonyi State residing in Lagos especially and elsewhere in the world, may start moving en mass back home to embark on a new lease of life. This was the indication given by some indigenes of the state during a press briefing to announce the 4th edition of the Ebonyi Cultural Day in Lagos being organised by the Ebonyi State Development Association (ESDA). The event billed to hold today, Friday, November 18 by 9am at the National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos, is expected to be graced by Governor David Umahi of Ebonyi State.

Addressing newsmen in Lagos, Ebonyi State Liaison Officer, Lagos State, Mrs. Ogechi Anaso–Kalu, said this year’s Ebonyi Cultural Day is unique in the sense that it will be the first time Governor Umahi would be attending the event and most especially because he is coming to rub minds with the indigenes of Ebonyi in Lagos and also not just to celebrate with them their cultural day heritage but to also proffer solutions to the many problems they have faced in diaspora.

“There have been issues with Ebonyi residing in Lagos as regard streets hawking and the present government led by Governor David Umahi has developed programmes to ensure that such stigma on his people will soon be a thing of the past,” Anaso–Kalu noted.

She explained further that one of such strategies initiated by the Umahi to curb such degradation on his people, is a programme tagged, ‘Street to Skill’, which aims to encourage Ebonyi sons and daughters in Lagos and elsewhere, to leave street hawking and come home to learn trades. This is particularly for teaming Ebonyi youths in Lagos who take to hawking various wares in the Lagos traffic, especially as the Lagos State government is clamming down on street hawking in Lagos State.

Apart from that, she revealed that the governor is also investing in huge infrastructure development in Ebonyi State, so that indigenes who decided to return home will find the state conducive to invest in one business or the other. The Ebonyi State Liaison Officer noted that there are also agricultural projects being initiated by the Ebonyi State governor.

“We have hectares of lands to cultivate rice, cassava, maize and other agricultural produce in the state and in the next few years, Ebonyi

Ebonyi State Governor, David Umahi

State will be feeding the whole of Nigeria as result of the present government’s huge investment in agricultural development. He has put everything in place to ensure that Ebonyi State goes back to its former glory of being not just being major rice producing state in Nigeria but also other major farm produce in Nigeria.

“All of these boys you see hawking on the streets of Lagos came as result of the fact that agriculture was no longer yielding money and so they rushed to Lagos as to make ends meet through legitimate means instead of going into negative ventures. So we are telling them now that we should go back to our land and start cultivating what we know how to do best because the present government has put everything in place for us,” she noted.

Through all these initiative, Anaso–Kalu reemphasised that the governor has given the indication that Ebonyi is more improved and conducive for every son and daughter of the state to develop his or her economic and social life. And this is one of the messages that the governor is bringing to Ebonyi indigenes residing in Lagos, during the cultural day ceremony - a message that Ebonyi is no longer what it used to be. She therefore encouraged Ebonyians to come out en mass for this landmark event.

President of the Association, Mr. Paul Ikele

revealed that the annual Ebonyi Cultural Day in Lagos had seized to hold for a long time until he assumed duty as the president of the association. “I felt it was pertinent we celebrate this very important day like we have done in the past because this is an avenue for us to meet, bring to bear our culture, bond together and also plan on how to improve on our lives. So it is very important that we come together at this event that will also afford us the opportunity of meeting and rubbing minds with our governor”, Ikele said.

A Management Consultant and Chairman, Education and Training Committee of the Association, Prof. Williams Olughu was of the view that even though the cultural day of Ebonyi State Development Association (ESDA) has held in the past, this particular edition is very cogent in the sense that the Ebonyi sons and daughters have been downgraded and disregarded and it was high time they put things right.

“Every Ebonyi person is regarded as a street trader who constitute nuisance on the streets of Lagos but we have said that is not true because Ebonyi people are hardworking and great people. May be the growing ones do not realise who they are but we feel that when we hold this cultural day, we would be able to re-indoctrinate our youths and also induce pride into them,” Olughu said.

Ebonyi people, he stressed, are highly enterprise people and while others may want to beg on the streets of Lagos or rob innocent people, the Ebonyi people will rather work hard doing any legitimate job to earn their living and that results in street hawking most times, adding, “but this is an avenue for us to project this issue and many others as they affect us.”

Speaking further, Olughu said, “We have a governor who is very dynamic and is presently transforming Ebonyi State into something desirous and we believe that as we use this occasion to rub minds with governor, he will understand better the needs of Ebonyi people and thereby do more to see that we live fulfilled lives.”

More so, the Ebonyi people are going to display their various culture and traditional attires on the day as well as display various dishes of the Ebonyi tribes.

Speaking on how prepared the association is to host the event which is expected to host a huge number of Ebonyi sons and daughter in and outside Lagos, Williams said, “I want to tell you that we are sitting on top of the situation. There is nothing we have planned to do concerning this day that we do not have the finance and I want to tell you that a group of young Ebonyi wealthy people has made huge donations for this event and I am happy to tell you that the state government has also keyed into this project. So we have been empowered to make necessary arrangements for this event to be a successful one. As such, we are going to make available buses in all major cities in Lagos to encourage our brothers and sisters residing anywhere in Lagos to make effort to be present at the function.”

Reiterating that this year’s edition of the Ebonyi cultural day is unique in the that it is the first time the present governor is attending, he added, “We have tried to make him see how timely it is now for our people to begin to understand who really they are.

“The cultural day is unique because it is a day you meet your people. We are going to come out in our best cultural attires. It is going to be very colourful, it is going to be very friendly and it is a festival and a forum where people will come out and begin to see themselves in a different light and not just people who will carry water on the ahead and run after vehicles in the traffic. This is an event that is going to do a lot for our people,” Olughu noted.

Methodist Church Pays Tribute to Inyang The Methodist Church of Nigeria (MCN) has paid a glowing tribute to the late Inspector General of Police (IG), Etim Okon Inyang, describing him as man of unshaken faith and highly dedicated to the work of God. It also noted that the late IG was propelled to the height of his career by divine grace in spite of his humble background.

The tributes were given during a commendation service in honour of late Etim Inyang, at the Methodist Church of Holy Trinity, Tinubu, Lagos.

In the short homily, the Bishop of the Conference Headquarters of the Methodist Church of Nigeria, and a guest minister, Rt. Rev. Sunday Onuoha, enjoined Christians to always dedicate themselves to the service of God in order to be favoured by His grace.

Onuoha who opined that one does not require any qualification, but steadfastness to the ideals God to earn God's grace said that "grace through hard work and most importantly dedication to the service of God that took our late father Etim Inyang got to the top of his career in the police force."

He pointed out that it was basically also due to grace that he had gone to the great beyond, praying that the same grace will continue to identify and sustain those he had left behind even as he urged Nigerians to work for the advancement of the body of Christ in their dealings.

According to Chief Edet Amana in a three-page tribute titled: ‘Study in Dedication

A cross section of the deceased family during the commendation service at the Methodist Church of Nigeria, Lagos

to Duty, Perseverance, Patience and God's Benevolence’, said “Sir Etim Inyang's life of service was not restricted to the police force as his experience in service was also brought to bare in other aspects of life.

At the national scene, Amana recalled that late Etim Inyang's "progress in the police was meteoric", noting that his dedication to duty was phenomenal and his passion and ability to tackle complex criminal cases was likened to the "legendary Sherlock Holmes"

in London. He noted that with such passion and steadfastness to duty, he rose through the ranks from constable to the top of his career as the Inspector General of Police (IG), a position he held serving two military regimes, adding that he also served as Vice Chairman Nigerian Constitution Review Committee.

At the youthful age of 33 years after 14 years in the police force he became Nigeria international best-known police officer and head of International Police Organisation

(INTERPOL), Amana stated. On the religious front, “Sir Etim Inyang was not found wanted as he was one of the pioneer knights of John Wesley Methodist Church of Nigeria and the first National Vice Chairman of the Council of knights. On the home and community fronts, late Etim Inyang, according to the Amana also contributed immensely to the growth of his Enwang and Oron Development Union which he served until he was called unto glory.

Amanda who traced Etim Inyang's humble beginning back to an unknown village called Uko Akpan in Enwang in Mbo Local Area of Akwa Ibom State, noted that through God's medal touch and guidance he became a beacon of light for his people.

The Women Christian Association (WCA) who said that late Etim Inyang would be missed by the association because of his invaluable contributions to the women noted also he was called to glory at a ripe age but added “we would have wished he lived longer.”

The leader of the group, Mrs. Bassey Uyio, in a condolence letter to the family, noted that though they are sad to miss the IG, they had every cause to thank God for his good and exemplary life. On their part, the Men Axillary Society of the Methodist Church Nigeria noted that Sir Etim Inyang, who was one of them, lived very good life and prayed God to bless his soul. The commendation service by the church marked the commencement of the funeral rites.

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18.11.2016

Black Friday: Jumia Kicks off 21-Day of Amazing Discounted Sales Mary Ekah E-commerce giant, Jumia on Monday kicked off its annual Black Friday deals with a press briefing at its corporate headquarters office in Adeniyi Jones Ikeja, Lagos. After a tour of the office and the company’s mega warehouse in Ikeja Lagos, vouchers of certain amount were given out to selected journalists to have firsthand experience of the Black Friday deals.

Black Friday sales gives buyers the opportunity to get those item they have always wanted at discounted prices. With different payment methods available, Black Friday shopping is made easy and convenient by providing the option of paying through your Credit/Visa card as well as cash on delivery. Various items ranging from electronics, mobile phones, house utensils, fashion items, cosmetics and more are given away with discounts that are as high as over 50 per cent.

Speaking during the flagged off of the Jumia Black Friday deals, the Chief Executive officer of the outlet, Juliet Anammah, said “This is the essence of e-commence, this what brings together everything we do – from commerce, getting the best deals, to the production team capturing the right image and putting them on our website for customers to see; to the marketing department doing what they need do

Jumia CEO, Anammah

to ensure that we drive the right traffic and creating excitement for customers; to the warehouse where it is ensured that the right items are picked and delivered to the customers. At the end of the day, we all come together doing Black Friday, because that is when we prove that there is no single online outlet in Nigeria that can do what we do, that can have 9,000 customers placing orders at the same time.

That can only happen with e-commerce and for me that is a very powerful concept

by Jumia.”

Anammah noted further that Jumia has made it possible for customers to enjoy the

best of Black Friday deals online by bringing them various products at discounted prices.

She therefore advised Nigerians to shop online at Jumia and discover exclusive offers, vouchers, special deals and more this Black Friday.

“It promises to be an amazing shopping experience for all. Stay glued to your laptop or mobile phone so you do not miss out of this exciting shopping event.

We promise to bring you an extensive selection of products from top brands at best prices,” she said, adding that, this is Jumia’s way of saying thank you to all its esteemed customers for being around all through the year.

“So, you don’t need to be told that as the Christmas season approaches, you must take part in this amazing and biggest shopping experience. This is a rare opportunity to get that items or household appliances you have always craved,” she noted.

The history of Black Friday is traced back to 1932. It is the day following Thanksgiving Day, a public holiday celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November in the United States. Since 1932, it has been regarded as the beginning of the Christmas shopping season and most major retailers open very early and more recently during overnight hours and offer promotional sales. It has routinely been the busiest shopping period of the year.

Cross River Unveils Beauty Pageant to Tackle Climate Change Mary Ekah As a response to the intimidating effects of climate change on the environment, the Cross River Sate Government has opted to tackle the global menace in a unique way.

To this end, the state has berthed first of its kind pageant, tagged, ‘Miss Africa’, which will search for a true queen on climate change.

Coming with the theme, ‘Green Economy, a Tool for Sustainable Development’, the eventual queen will be the Africa Ambassador on climate change and African face and voice in creating awareness in the global fight against climate change.

Sponsored by the Cross River State government, the 2016 edition of the pageant is blowing full steam as the government of Cross River state is focused on fulfilling its promise of promoting, showcasing and developing Cross River State as well as Nigeria’s environmental and eco-friendly lifestyle with the amalgamation of beauty, fashion, nature and charity.

Speaking at a press conference in Lagos recently which had stakeholders from the Cross River State’s government house, the Senior Special Assistant Governor’s Office on Events and Tourism and also the Head of Production, Miss Africa 2016, Mr. Thomas Ikpeme said Miss Africa 2016 pageant is one of the many dynamic inclusions by Governor Ben Ayade of Cross River State to

Old Boys of Government College Ughelli set 1973, have been urged to help one another in the world of achieving their goals through empowerment as they grow in their various fields of endeavour especially in this time of recession.

An old boy of the college, Colonel David J. Binite (Rtd), said this recently at the worldwide reunion of GCUOBA set 1973 to celebrate its 40th anniversary from college at its secretariat at Yaba in Lagos.

Binitie, who was representing the President, Lagos branch, Barrister Clement Djebah, told the set to empower one another.

"We are brothers of 40 years ago. Let's go beyond just merry and jolly but network and empower one another. Nigeria is having challenges right now, which is not good.

But we came from a good school. Let's

International premium beer brand, Heineken, was the headline sponsor of the four-day Lagos Fashion and Design Week, which took place recently in Lagos. For four straight days, the Heineken Lagos Fashion and Design Week held Nigeria - Ejiro Amos-Tafiri, a fashion and, to a large extent, designer. featured at Heineken Africa - spellbound as Lagos Fashion and Design Week it ‘connected the dots’ held in Lagos recently between the aesthetics of fashion, the commerce of fashion, and all other important aspects of the fashion industry at a level never seen before.

HeinekenLFDW2016 established that the business of fashion is one with far reaching economic and social consequences on the affairs of a nation.

The collections that were on display during the event only further affirmed the creativity, ingenuity and enterprise of the fashion industry in Nigeria. Prominent designers including Mai Atafo, Ejiro Amos Tafiri, Lanre Da Silva, Bridget Awosika, Washington Roberts, Lisa Folawiyo, Orange Culture and many others displayed collections that were truly fascinating and alluring. Ejiro Amos Tafiri and Mai Atafo displayed customised designs supported by Heineken on 27 and 28 October 2016, respectively. Two lucky people, Ivie Omenai and Rilwan Quadree won the customised designs, after they purchased a six-can Heineken pack.

Heineken set the bar high with numerous experiences it created at the event to ensure that guests had the best of time. Some of these experiences were: the exclusive Heineken VIP lounge set up to entertain VIP guests at the HeinekenLFDW 2016. The lounge hosted numerous celebrities and VIPs like Mo Abudu, Rita Dominic, Timi Dakolo, Vimbai Mutinhiri, Noble Igwe, Bolanle Olukanni, Toke Makinwa, Zainab Balogun, amongst several others.

The HeinekenLFDW2016 experience will be incomplete without a mention of the Heineken experience tunnel, which was situated at the entrance of the fashion event.

Celebrity photographer, Kelechi Amadi Obi also created several magical moments through pictures of guests that attended the event.

StarTimes Promises Subscribers Better Deal SSA Events and Tourism, Thomas Ikpeme ; SA Governors office, Ken Aklah, Chairman Carnival commission, Gabe Onah and Coordinator, Charles Ndudim during the press conference in Lagos

the Christmas festival and Carnival Calabar, a 32-day festival that holds every year from December 1-31 with daily events that climax on December 28 with the Carnival Calabar, as he grows the brand which has held consistently for 14 years.

He revealed further that the First Miss African pageant will be held at the prestigious Calabar International Convention Centre, Cross River State on November 26. 30 finalists between the ages of 18-25 representing 40 African countries across five regions, after a successful casting held across various regions of the African continent, will be combining brains and beauty for one to become the true African Queen on

climate change who will promote green economy and initiatives as a veritable tool for sustainable development whilst merging beauty with nature and a tenacious cause centered around the much needed awareness on human direct and indirect impact on our environment.

The Miss Africa 2016 promises to be a night of glamour and style showcasing the true sense of African culture and heritage with the climate change theme perspective. Lined up artistes for the event, which would be hosted by Ik Osakioduwa and Juliet Ibrahim, include Teckno, Kiss Daniel, Victoria Kimani, DIJA, Yemi Sax, Big Daddy, Real P amongst others.

GCUOBA ‘73 Urged to Empower Colleagues Rebecca Ejifoma

How Heineken Changed the Fashion Game in Four Days

help our mates."

Beyond that, there was great nostalgia in the air when these old boys bumped into themselves after 40 years of graduation at the reunion in Lagos. For them, it was a rare moment when men behaved like boys and called themselves nicknames until the end.

The Financial Secretary, GCUOBA, Lagos branch, Architect Paul Karika, explained that it was the first time they met since graduating from college. "And it is time to give back to our school."

He said this following the reminiscences of old boys from how the school tailored their manners to its act of discipline. "The college gave us so much. It brought us up in a very good environment with disciplinary measures. Nothing works like discipline.

That, we learnt from Ughelli. GCU has been of tremendous help to us."

As an old boy of 1973, he enthused that his set has taken good positions in various sectors in Nigeria. “We have an Army General, top managers here working with top notch organisations and corporations both home and abroad.

Hence, we are here to share ideas together, network and use our opportunity to develop ourselves. "We will be celebrating our 40th years of graduating from GCU next year. Beyond that, this reunion is to decide among ourselves what we shall give back to the school and the society that nurtured our ways." Karika said the old boys from all across the seven continents would meet for the first time after their graduation in 1977. "This is our first ever reunion after graduation.

It will be a great platform to bring back old memories and network again. More of us are yet to come."

Raheem Akingbolu Operators of a leading digital TV network operator, StarTimes, have stated that the six years after the entertainment company’s entrance into the Nigerian market in 2010, it has completely changed the digital TV industry and viewing experience for Nigerian subscribers especially the masses.

According to the company, this, StarTimes has achieved, by forcing down the price of pay-TV to the convenient reach of the masses, introducing for the first time in Nigeria the very mass market friendly DTT (Antenna) pay-TV model and the most affordable content bouquet called Nova. The company success has also been linked to its partnership with Africa’s largest television network NTA and other terrestrial analogue TV stations, which has helped in creating alternative options for viewers, boosting the industry, making digital TV very affordable and rallying the masses to key into Federal Government’s digital TV switch over agenda.

StarTimes spokesperson, Israel Bolaji, said the digital TV platform has played a significant role in boosting the industry and has set the pace in many areas, including affordable pricing, collaboration and innovation.

“For over 20 years, digital television in Nigeria was very expensive and pegged beyond the reach of the middle class and masses until the arrival of StarTimes in 2010 which offered more affordable option for exciting television experience. By pioneering the DTT (antenna) model which is a very mass market friendly and quite affordable, we broke decades of pay TV for the rich jinx.

Today, an average Nigerian household can afford both a decoder and monthly subscription.

“Our deliberate collaboration with terrestrial analogue TV stations and the government through the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) was also instructive, as it marked the first and true beginning of strategic engagements involving public and private partnership towards actualisation of digital TV switch over which is currently evolving. Today, everybody else is scrambling to partner same stations which were ignored for many years. We just don’t sell decoders, we provide all-round delightful digital television entertainment and experience for the household with over 100 channels that enrich viewers, including every member of the family.

31/LIVING

18.11.2016

Bnatural SPA Wins Award

Pete Edochie Kisses for the First Time

Pete Edochie and Juliet

Bnatural

Luxury beauty wellness centre, bnatural Medical SPA has won ‘Africa’s Best Quality Cosmetics and Skin Care Treatment Centr’ award at the recently concluded African Quality Achievement Award (AQAA) organised by The African Quality Institute. Event aims to honour and celebrate leadership, innovation and creativity in quality management in Africa.

Also, AQAA is aimed at identifying, recognising and rewarding companies, personalities and products that apply quality culture and quality management best practices to the analysis, planning and implementation and control of policies designed to achieve corporate objectives in both profit and non-profit making

organisations in Africa.

“We are grateful for the award and remain committed to keeping the high standards bnatural The SPA Group is known for”, said Pamela Ndidi Olatunji, owner of bnatural SPA Group. bnatural is Nigeria’s foremost medical SPA and laser centre with U.S. board certified medical staff and medical grade products.

Located in Government Reserved Area in Ikeja, Lagos and Imani Estate, Maitama, Abuja, bnatural offers the most advanced cosmetics laser and skin care treatments, state-of-the-art skincare technology with technical medical expertise in ongoing skincare management. The

medical SPA work with industry leaders around the world in areas of aesthetics dermatology like Germaine De Capuccini, Mesotech, VI Aesthetics to mention a few. In the coming year, bnatural will focus on educating and training new industry professionals who will raise and sustain the standards in the industry.

The medical SPA has played host to celebrities such as Omotola Ekeinde, Don Jazzy, Kate Henshaw, Tiwa Savage, Dolapo Oni Sijuwade and more. Services offered at bnatural medspa include botox and dermal fillers, cosmetic laser treatments, facial treatment, massage therapy, Moroccan Hamman, manicure and pedicure, makeup, beauty salon and more.

Untold Facts: Insightful Knowledge on Sexual Orientation in Nigeria On the fifth episode of Untold Facts which aired on Thursday 27 October 2016, the host of the monthly series, Moses Omoghena engaged guests on the topic ‘violence against gay men and women, since when did violence become a result to anything.’

Untold Facts is a discussion series that focuses on sexual health and rights in Nigeria, it clarifies myths and clears up misconceptions around sexual orientation and gender identity.

The show is sponsored by The Initiative for Equal Rights.

Guests on this episode were Abayomi Aka, a legal practitioner who is also a human rights activist and Emeka Chukwuma, another legal practitioner who specialises in corporate, criminal and civil law.

Speaking on the issue of gay men and women being battered simply because of their identity, Emeka said that “the first thing that comes to mind is human right, was the due process followed and what are the state actors doing about this?”

Contributing to this topic, Yomi stated that “it has nothing to do with being gay or straight, simply put, a human being has been hurt or someone’s rights has been breached.

Also, what necessary precautions have been taken in defence of this person, how has this person been catered for in that regard and has this person been able to exploit all the justice system?”

He gave a survey from December 2015 to March 2016 stating that “105 extreme

cases of human rights violation were perpetuated against people in the LGBT community ranging from black men and extortion, ‘supposedly’ curative rape, unlawful arrest and detention, instances of kidnap and worst cases, death.”

“Any idea or philosophy that places a class of people above another class breeds violence” Emeka added, he also outlined some effective ways of bringing perpetuators to justice by making reference to the five roles a state must fulfill as stated by the United Nations: protect right to life and liberty, right of association, right to assembly, safeguard to these rights, repeal laws that forbid freedom of expression and repeal laws that are against same sex marriage or homosexuality.

AfricaMagic Igbo, New Telenovela, Bollywood Launched on GOtv Leading pay-TV provider, GOtv has introduced three new channels: AfricaMagic Igbo, Eva+, a new telenovela channel, and B4U Movies, a Bollywood channel. Fans of AfricaMagic will get huge doses of entertainment via the addition of the newly -rebranded AfricaMagic Igbo on GOtv Value and GOtv Plus packages on GOtv Channel 11. The channel adds to the growing line-up of AfricaMagic channel portfolio on GOtv, including AfricaMagic Epic on GOtv Channel 9, which is rooted in culture and home to the best epic movies from the continent, AfricaMagic Family on GOtv Channel 2. AfricaMagic Igbo also joins two other indigenous language channels-Africa Magic Hausa on GOtv Channel 4 and AfricaMagic Yoruba on GOtv channel 5.

Subscribers on GOtv Plus package will also have access to a new Bollywood channel, B4U Movies on GOtv Channel 24. The channel brings viewers the best of Bollywood films from the latest blockbusters to classic flicks.

B4U Movies offers a diverse range of films for Bollywood fans as well as an unprecedented access to the magic of Bollywood with starstudded interviews, exclusive footage, behind the scenes and the making of films. B4U has an unmatched library of over 1000 films.

Starting November 1, subscribers on the GOtv Plus package will experience the best of

Latin American telenovelas on Eva+, which, airs on GOtv Channel 13. Eva+ offers high production value Latin American telenovelas fully dubbed in English and Portuguese languages, and will be the first channel in AMC Networks International – UK’s (AMCNI UK) regional portfolio to be available on MultiChoice’s digital terrestrial television (DTT) platform.

Louise Cottrell, Vice President, Affiliate Sales for AMCNI UK, said: “We are delighted to expand our telenovela offerings and partner

with MultiChoice in introducing Eva+ to the African market. Telenovelas are increasingly popular in the region, so it’s exciting that with Eva+ offered on GOtv in addition to DStv, we will now be able to reach brand new viewers with our top quality content.”

“With our focus now on putting our customer first, we are delighted to be adding Eva+ on to our platforms.” John Ugbe, Managing Director, MultiChoice Nigeria, explained that telenovelas have always been a hit with GOtv and DStv subscribers.

Kenny's Divas an Adaslim Film, has done what has not be done in the history of Nollywood, In this new flick Veteran filmmaker, Pete Edochie, the lead actor, who has never played a romantic role in a movie, broke the jinx by kissing Ghanaian actress, Juliet Ibrahim, who is his love interest in the flick. It is also the first time both actors are starring in a movie together. Ibrahim plays Edochie’s mistress while ex- Mr. Nigeria, Bryan Okwara, plays the lover boy. Produced by TV host, Ada Slim, and directed by Adim Williams, it parades an interesting cast that includes Cossy Orjiakor, Nora Roberts and Patrick Doyle. An intriguing tale of entangled pasts, the movie tells the story of a jewelry and precious stones merchant who sets up an all-female Team known as The K-SQUAD, for his local and international dealings.

The business operations of the team are running smoothly and profitably until a crack appears on the walls of Kapitol Mansion, when some persons are caught up in a twisted romantic roller coaster with the Boss’ mistress. The movie is scheduled to premiere in Lagos and Enugu States in December.

Obahor Bags Leadership Awards

Obahor

Anayo Okoli The Chief Executive Officer, Purple Premium Limited, Mr. Richard Obahor, has won the prestigious BEFFTA Leadership Awards in London. The prestigious award is one of the Europe's biggest award ceremony celebrating black and ethnic personalities in entertainment, film, fashion, television, arts, sports and leadership. It celebrates outstanding African, Caribbean and Asian personalities globally.

Obahor, who is a property developer, operating in the United Kingdom and Nigeria, however, described the award as a reward for his unrelenting service in whatever capacity he found himself.

According to Obahor, “I hold very strong views that leadership should be a platform to serve and not a rank. Rather unfortunately, society, most times, misconstrue leadership to be a status symbol, and so-called leaders regularly demand followership rather than earn it.

“It has always been my passion to serve in whatever capacity I can and because of my philosophies; I always ensure everything I do is conditioned around serving others. Even as a businessman, our ethos is service before profit.”

Speaking on how to reduce Nigeria’s huge housing gap in the country, Obahor said the nation’s real estate sector lacked reasonably priced, good and quality properties. He said the few market players who are quality driven tend to dominate the market and they are doing extremely well. “However, these players only target the top end of the market because they feel that's where most of the profit is."

Obahor was awarded the BEFFTA Leadership Awards alongside Nigeria’s acting High Commissioner to the UK, Mr. Simon Ogah and Mrs. Olufolake Davies Abdulrazaq, Minister/ Head of Consular, Education and Welfare at the Nigerian High Commission.

32 /PERSPECTIVE

18.11.2016

The Yorùbá’s Precarious Future in Nigeria Tunji Olaopa To say that the Yorùbá have a precarious future in the national entity called Nigeria is not to say anything that uniquely applies to the Yorùbá alone.

Almost all the major ethnic groups have one reason or the other to exercise legitimate fears about their future existence in Nigeria. What is however unique about the assertion is that each nationality would have to find its own unique means, usually internal to its cultural dynamism, to deal with the problem of nation-building and the national project in Nigeria. What is called the Nigerian national project is the attempt by any plural state to deal with the multitude of centrifugal forces that often threaten to overwhelm the objective of nation building. In Nigeria, these forces come in the form of religious fundamentalism and ethnic divisiveness which consistently defeat the centripetal objective of building a civic nationalism that will, all things being equal, give birth to a truly Nigerian nation. Civic nationalism draws on all the ethnic energies channeled toward governments (federal and state) and their capability to deliver on the imperatives of development. In other words, the nation building effort in Nigeria has only a chance to work if the Nigerian government has all the supports and loyalties it requires.

There is however a dimension of political economy to all ethnic maneuvering and agitations within the Nigerian national space. Relationship in the Nigerian space is defined around the allocation of scarce national resources, especially the oil revenue. Within Nigeria’s lopsided political system, Nigeria’s oil resources provide one singular reason for the jostling for the status of the president amongst the various politically heavy ethnic nations. The implication of this is that the status quo of a unitary “federalism” provides enough justification not to reform the system.

But it is exactly the reform of the Nigeria “federal” system that the Yorùbá have dedicated themselves to for far too long.

One aspect of Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s national legacy is built around an ardent advocacy for restructuring Nigeria’s constitutional status to reflect a truly federal framework. Federalism operates on the understanding of the parity of autonomy between the federal and the state or regional governments. It was as if Awolowo knew the enormous structural and political impediments that are arrayed against the Yorùbá’s creative deployment of their heritage and capacities within a unitary national space.

Outside of a truly federal system, everything else is a dangerous political game founded on ethnic relevance.

Mario Vargas Llosa, the Peruvian writer, understands the essence of this game: “Real politics...has little to do with ideas, values, and imagination...and everything to do with manoeuvres, intrigues, plots, paranoia, betrayals, a great deal of calculation, no little cynicism, and every kind of con game.” Unfortunately, even Awolowo was equally caught within the snare of this real politics which he understood very clearly, and which most of his books and ideas were meant to anticipate and undermine. That underlying dynamics of Nigeria’s politics pitted him against his erstwhile associate, Chief Ladoke Akintola. Both are Yorùbá, and that tragic drama between them constitutes one of the high points of Nigerian political history. It is as if Nigeria itself is so rigged to make a terrible example of the Yorùbá nation. Those considered to be in good standing for the Yorùbá leadership seems already compromised by real politics. We are all witnesses to the politics of annulment that turned MKO Abiola’s political victory into tragedy that is still all too fresh. Chief Ernest Shonekan propped, ever so briefly, a lackluster government, and then Chief Olusegun Obasanjo surfaced. Even Obasanjo’s

Tinubu

energetic presence was compromised by the powerful rumour of a Northern political endorsement which undermines whatsoever lasting restructure Nigeria could have achieved.

The Yorùbá have ventured boldly into the boiling cauldron of the national real politics, and on each occasion, the Yorùbá have been burnt. It seems therefore a very wise move that rather than continuing with a rigged system, a conference of all nationalities becomes the next best thing to rescue a true federal system from being swallowed within the depth of realpolitik.

The agitation for the Sovereign National Conference (SNC) has been as vociferous as the Yorùbá have made it. From the MKO Abiola’s June 12 saga through the Abacha dictatorship, there was a gradual convergence of progressives, from NADECO to the Afenifere. At the centre of that progressive politics is Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, another Yorùbá. But now, within the very sure unfolding of Nigeria’s realpolitik, the present political travails of Tinubu contrasts with his heroic personality some few months ago before the election of President Buhari.

What does the profile of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu imply for a Yorùbá project of self-determination in Nigeria? There is no doubt that Asiwaju Tinubu is phenomenal. You may not like his politics but, give it to him, to design and implement the strategy that unseated a sit-in government as witnessed in 2015 is simply ingenious and unparalleled. The heroism of the pro-democracy days couples with recent political struggles to put in place a progressive party coalition that brought in the Buhari administration, together

gives him a significant and formidable presence in Nigerian politics. In fact, Tinubu’s political charisma envelopes the South-west robustly in a manner that holds promises for the Yorùbá agenda.

However, the very name “Tinubu” throws up different and often contradictory political vibes. There is a disenabling albatross of Machiavellian godfatherism around his political neck that constitutes a severely limiting factor. I am not sure even his supposed influence in the Southwest is overwhelming, just like Awo's never did - a testament to the republican credentials of the Yoruba. Godfatherism is a very touchy issue when inserted rudely within the political economy of the states in Nigeria. For instance, the recent troubles within the APC which seem to pit Tinubu against the Buhari administration put the former in an embattled position. And furthermore, the possibility of another party emerging that would coalesce around his presence definitely does not bode well for Yorùbá unity. While the Ondo State gubernatorial situation is not a good sign for a region whose sociopolitical existence in Nigeria is already precarious.

A credible future for the Yorùbá cannot, as a matter of course, be built around a single individual or even a single issue for that matter. The essence of the Yorùbá political advocacy has been tied around the significance of the sovereign national conference. But that issue faces two serious snags. The first is the growing perception that the SNC is a camouflage for a hidden Yorùbá secession project.

The second is the determination of the federal government to reserve Nigeria as

is. Nigeria’s has become a “no-go area closed to national discourse. This is one of the things that makes the national question intractable in Nigeria. We want to achieve national integration yet we are unwilling to enter into an open discourse about it. We seal up the very issue that could serve as the opportunity for a robust national conversation. At the heart of the national question in Nigeria is whether or not the union is a viable one; whether we all want to stay together, and if so how. That ought to be the whole essence of the SNC. But if, according to the government, Nigeria’s unity is non-negotiable, then the Yorùbá cannot continue barking up the futile tree. Thus, after two doomed national conferences, it seems it is now time for the Yorùbá to change the game plan, except if there is a chance opportunity to deploy force with too many inherent risks it portent.

The Yorùbá status in Nigeria is a political issue but its resolution must necessarily go beyond politics. We are all familiar with the political travails of Awolowo, Akintola, Abola and the unfolding troubles of Tinubu. A more significant effort would draw on a pan-Yorùbá spirit to reach far and wide into every aspect of Yorùbá professional endeavour to develop a credible matrix around which the Yorùbá future can be tabled and discoursed. Of course, the matrix would feature such Yorùbá heavyweights like Tinubu and Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, as well as all other Yorùbá elders and leaders of thought.

And OBJ really might wish to take this as one of his last patriotic duties given the immense social capital that his newfound non-partisan stance has yielded. It will also feature the full spectrum of the Yorùbá elite across Nigeria. And in discoursing the Yorùbá agenda, there is a necessary synonym between the Yorùbá agenda and the socioeconomic fate of the South-west in Nigeria.

The South-west has always been the locus of commendable achievements. The former Western Region was a singular example of a vision of administrative and good governance (that is, if we look beyond the anomalous political violence).

For instance, the Awolowo-Adebo administrative model was responsible for the glorious infrastructural dynamics that was the cynosure of West Africa in the 60s and 70s. The South-west still retains sufficient capitals, in terms of human, material and administrative resources, to become a positive and pioneering example. But for one major obstacle: the inability of the Yorùbá leadership to coalesce around one pan-Yorùbá ideal of good governance. Empowering the Yorùbá people in the South-west ought to be a sufficiently pan-Yorùbá platform around which the Obas, South-west governors, Yorùbá thought leaders, Yorùbá social and economic elites would do well to coalesce.

At the end of the day, when posterity is evaluating today’s events, what would matter for the Yorùbá would not be how each Yorùbá leader has survived and achieved political fame. Rather, what would matter is how each generation of Yorùbá leaders deployed their endowments to the furtherance of an agenda that unashamedly led to the empowering of the Yorùbá agenda in Nigeria. That is the sole justification for the existing legacy of Chief Obafemi Awolowo today.

He was unstinting in his devotion to the Yorùbá cause without in any way undermining the Nigerian national project. Whether he succeeded or not is a point for historians and social scientists to determine. It is, however, his uncontroversial legacy of good governance that the present crop of Yorùbá leadership should replicate. Their entire reputation and claim to any significant sense of genuine leadership hangs on that. .Olaopa is the Executive Vice Chairman Ibadan School of Government and Public Policy (ISGPP) Email tolaopa2003@gmail.com

33/ INTERVIEW

18.11.2016

‘At Etisalat, We Understand What It Means to Grow a Business from Scratch to a Global Conglomerate’ Nigeria during the year unveiled an innovative and bespoke e-commerce and social networking platform, SME Arena in partnership with Singapore’s YuuZoo Corp, a renowned leader in e-commerce operations, to re-tool SME operations in Nigeria through technology and reach and help them fulfil their socio-economic potentials.

In this interview with Chukwuemeka Okezie, Eric Uwaoma, Director, Enterprise Segment, Etisalat Nigeria, speaks on the innovative product and its intended impacts on the sector. Excerpts Etisalat Nigeria has clearly associated itself with SMEs and growing businesses in Nigeria. What led to this path?

As the fastest growing telecommunication operator in Nigeria, Etisalat Nigeria can relate easily with the challenges and aspirations of SMEs and growing businesses in Nigeria. This is because when Etisalat started its operation in Nigeria in 2008, a lot of telecom experts felt it would be a big struggle for us to compete in a Nigerian market considered saturated.

But within eight years of competing in the market, we’ve acquired 22 plus million customers and became the preferred operator for data and high net worth individuals, mainly due to the quality of our network and the premium or superior customer experience our customers are delighted with every day.

So, at Etisalat, we understand what it means to grow a business from scratch to a global conglomerate. Our experience has therefore given us a soft spot for SMEs who are also challenged with growing their business in the Nigerian environment. We are therefore investing substantial capital and resources to support SMEs and growing businesses through various means and formats. At Etisalat, we believe the SMEs will bring about positive growth and development to Nigeria and therefore need to be supported.

Etisalat Nigeria recently launched the “SME Arena” in partnership with YuuZoo, tell us more about this platform?

SME Arena is a one-of-its-kind e-commerce and social networking portal that allows businesses interact, learn and sell effortlessly via its online portal at www.smearena.com.ng. The portal hosts a Community Section where customers and businesses can interact, share information and learn. There is also a Directory Section where businesses can list their business contacts for easy discovery, and a Marketplace Section where buyers and sellers meet to exchange value.

In line with our brand promise, we intend to build the largest growing network for MSME businesses with real business solutions using the SME Arena. The platform will soon have a business support section, where support services like business registration, business branding and legal services can be provided by vetted partners at a very affordable rate. This platform will host the riches of entrepreneurial ecosystem for SMEs. What informed the development of the SME Arena?

Well, we recognised the need for small businesses to have special platforms where they can expose their services at the most minimal cost. A virtual shop is one way to quickly achieve that.

Also, they have the need to connect to various value chains to facilitate and enhance their businesses. The SME Arena offers them all that and more.

In 2013, SMEDAN reported that the number of Micro, Small and Medium businesses in Nigeria are about 37 million. That is a huge potential for Nigeria, out there. But over 90 per cent of these businesses are un-structured and poorly exposed to markets and opportunities.

This is where SME Arena comes in, to offer services that will get them structured formally and put them on a worldwide market, via our web platform.

Why the decision to partner with YuuZoo

Uwaoma

in the development of this portal?

Etisalat is a global brand and prides itself with working with reputable brands across the globe in delivering positively disrupting innovative product and services that have become our hallmark today. In partnering with Yuuzoo, Etisalat chose a partner that is globally renowned for its strength in deploying and managing interactive consumer engagement platforms.

What does Etisalat intend to achieve with this?

All we aim to do is provide a level playing field for businesses to thrive in Nigeria; whether the business is a sole proprietorship, unstructured family business or an enterprise.

Etisalat is all about connecting people to their opportunities and their passions, in a way that gives them fulfilment.

You added a social experience on the SME Arena. What informed this?

Businesses are entities. They have need to interact with different suppliers and customers as it is typical with humans. Also, customer Feedback is now an essential ingredient for growing business. Infact, the ability to interact

and have customer insights is often the differentiator for successful businesses.This is the primary reason for our success in Etisalat.

We are therefore also enabling businesses to interact with their publics. This is the reason we have the marketplace environment and the community portal.

There has been a recent focus towards helping SMEs in the country to grow, how is Etisalat’s approach different?

Unlike a lot of other organisations and platforms, we engage with SMEs almost at every stage of their life cycle.

Through our Easybusiness millionaire hunt we identify, reward and empower young businesses and take them through a month of business mentorship programme. We do this in partnership with EDC, an Enterprise development unit of Lagos Business School.

We get involved also in the next chain of creating platforms for SMEs to showcase their products to a wider market. And shortly, we would be adding a third integration of offering business supports to help take small businesses to their next level.

How do you hope to provide solutions to

the challenges of logistics and payment plaguing other e-commerce sites in Nigeria?

First of all, let me to clarify here that SME Arena is not an e-commerce site. It is a business network site that also happens to have an e-commerce section called The Marketplace.

The ecommerce section is but a small part of the platform. That being said, our logistics was built on the learnings and failings of older entrants. Our logistics is largely automated with different checks and balances, to minimize margins of error.

How can one register on the SME Arena?

Simply go to www.smearena.com.ng to sign-up and create a profile for yourbusiness on our Community or Business Directory page.

Register your store on the platform, and start uploading your products and service today.

Are there any special requirements to register on the portal?

To protect both buyers and sellers on SME Arena, we ensure that some basic checks are done and specific documents tendered. These are everyday statutory documents.

I encourage you to visit www.smearena. com.ng for more information.

34/XTRA

18.11.2016

Bosch Power Box Set to Change the Lives of Artisans in Nigeria Chukwuemeka Okeke The Bosch Power Box (BPB) in Nigeria will increase the success it has already established in Sokoban Wood Village, Kumasi Ghana, launched in 2016. German-based multinational, Bosch Group (www.Bosch.com), is set to bring the BPB concept to African artisans, the informal sector, often the driving force of African economies.

This is a revolutionary initiative designed to create, up-skill and grow small businesses and bring them into the formal, mainstream economy. It is a long-term project designed to foster entrepreneurship and ensure a smooth transition for small businesses from the informal to formal sectors. Each BPB has managers, technical staff and trainers, all of whom have received dedicated training from Bosch.

In essence, Nigerian artisans will now be able to buy, lease or rent the very latest power tools developed by the world's market leader and to be used at Bosch Power Boxes. This will

Ghana Bosch Launch

contribute a significant improvement in the quality of the products manufactured, while increasing efficiencies. This will assist Nigerian artisans in growing their businesses.

Bosch Group has ambitions and plans of establishing 10 Bosch Power Boxes with Nigeria being next in line.

Since its launch in Kumasi, artisans have been visiting the BPB to purchase products and services offered by Bosch, while 50 have registered for training. One can only imagine how positively this will impact Nigerian artisans.

The concept is in line with the company's ethos of not just providing goods and services globally, but actively contributing to the socioeconomic upliftment of developing nations. Bosch is motivated by a need to play a meaningful role in Africa, in particular by creating more sustainable jobs following the company slogan “Invented for life”.

Dr. Markus Thill, the President of Bosch Africa says, “each Bosch Power Box will also provide courses on product application and safety. Economic prosperity is about creating opportunities from the ground up to benefit individuals, communities, countries and the

global community, and this is what we at Bosch aim to do.”

“Having Bosch is a dream come true in Africa and specifically for us here in Sokoban Wood Village. Artisans did not know before what it takes to build something very fast, they relied only on manpower,” says Kingsley Baafi, Manager at Bosch Power Box in Kumasi.

"We will provide product application services on how they can use the tools correctly, maintain and service them and ensure a prolonged lifespan.

Another exciting feature is that, through our partnership with Equity Bank, these entrepreneurs will receive financial training and budget management assistance," said Benjamin Ofori, Regional Sales Director of Bosch Power Box. “At Bosch, we want to use our resources and expertise in developing countries to improve skills, create economic opportunities and growth at a micro level, providing world-class services at affordable prices and improving the lives of all citizens."

Ikpeazu Delivers Made-in-Aba Shoes to Obasanjo Chukwuemeka Okeke Abia State Governor, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu, has delivered pairs of made-in-Aba shoes to former President Olusegun Obasanjo, at his Hilltop Mansion home in Ogun State.

The former President, had at the 2016 Tony Elumelu Entrepreneurship Forum in Lagos, ordered for size 42 of made-in-Aba shoes, through Governor Ikpeazu, who is also the "Chief Marketing Officer" of Made-in-Aba goods.

Speaking while delivering the shoes, Ikpeazu said: "Sir, you made an order for made in Aba shoes through me when we met last in Lagos two weeks ago, I am here today to deliver the shoes to you Sir. These shoes, including the one I am wearing are made by our people in Aba. We want you to wear them and tell others about

them. As promoters of made-in-Aba products, we have taken it upon ourselves to promote made-in-Aba goods by wearing them and by telling others about them.

Responding Obasanjo said: "Governor, I can't thank you enough, and through you, I cannot thank my brothers and my sisters who have decided to adorn me with these wonderful, classy and classic shoes made in our land by our own people "For me, this is very significant in many ways.

In fact, let me deliver to you a message from The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) which they ask me to deliver to you. Afreximbank is spearheading made-in-Africa, and they came during their annual meeting. The message they left for me to you is that they have heard so much about Aba, and they want me to get in

touch with you so they can come back and pay a special visit to Aba, because they want to establish an industrial park in Aba to encourage production and exportation of goods made in Africa.

"And if the shoes you gave me here, which I am wearing one of them, feeling very comfortable on my feet, if they are good for me, I believe they should be good for Africa, and for anybody in Nigeria and indeed for anybody in the world.

"When we use what we make by ourselves for ourselves, others will simply join us in using them because we are proud of them.

"These shoes are so comfortable and they are so good. Anybody watching me, no matter how high or low, who wants to help Nigeria get out of recession quickly should call the makers of these shoes in Aba to make for them."

Ikpeazu (right), presenting pairs of made-in-Aba to Obasanjo

CMO Hosts Harvest of Hope, Faithfulness in St. Kizito Parish Peter Uzoho On Sunday, November 13, 2016, the atmosphere in St. Kizito Parish, Iju, Ifako- Ijaiye Local Government Area of Lagos, was that of gladness, celebration and thankfulness, as the church held its 2016 harvest ceremony themed ‘Harvest of Hope and Faithfulness’.

The harvest organised and hosted by the Catholic Men’s Organisation, an arm of the church, saw members, offer special harvest gifts, comprising food items, wine, assorted electronic sets, bikes, cash donations and other items, accompanied with dances and songs of praises as a symbol of reciprocating God’s love, protection and faithfulness to them.

In his sermon, Reverend Father Paul Ighabor drawing from the book of Psalms chapter

Members of St Kizito Parish taking their harvest offerings to the alter

95,said harvest is a period people come to thank God for his blessings and faithfulness

in their lives. “It’s a period of expressing one’s faith. It’s a period of giving. It’s a time to rejoice and celebrate one another.

All these call for patience, endurance and faithfulness,” he said.

He also urged the members to work hard in order to reap good fruits during harvests.

Also speaking, Chairman, Catholic Men’s Organisation of St. Kizito Parish, Dr. Patrick Momah, thanked God for helping the organisation host the 2016 harvest as assigned to it by the church. He said though it was a challenging experience but through God’s guidance and support they were able to deliver.

Momah said hosting the harvest ceremony was an opportunity for them to serve God, adding that it was a thing of joy. He thanked

all that participated in the ceremony including the guests, and prayed for God’s faithfulness and mercy in their individual lives.

Advising on the need to serve God, he said “God is the author and finisher of our faith. He is the source of whatever success we make in life. So my advice to people is that once you are called to serve please don’t use your business or work as an excuse. You’re not serving human beings rather you’re serving God. So see it as an opportunity to give back to God and you will see the testimony.”

The harvest ceremony ended with a bazaar session, where some of the items collected were sold to enable the church raise money to take care of the poor and the needy in the community.

Loyola House Crowned Champions of St. Francis Catholic Secondary School Peter Uzoho Last weekend, Loyola House proved their worth as a solid title defender as they were crowned champions of the 2016 inter-house sports competition of St. Francis Catholic Secondary School, Idimu, Alimosho, Lagos, in two consecutive years, having won the trophy last year.

In a keenly contested competition, Loyola emerged the winner after winning 20 gold, 8 silver and 8 bronze to beat its rivals.

Speaking after the announcement of the result, the House Master of Loyola, Mr. Fagbuaro Boluwaji, said it was a great thing for them to emerge winner at the competition, attributing their victory to serious preparations made by the entire team ahead of the competition.

“Well, we are very happy. The students and the officials supported us and we thank everyone for contributing to our victory. That’s one thing about hard work. When you work hard there will always be an opportunity and when that

opportunity comes, you won’t hesitate to grab it. So we worked hard and the result is now in our favour.”

The House captain, Miss Chizaram Nwokolo, said: “I feel very happy. I already know we’re going to get first or second position because we’re very determined in winning the trophy.

We have a very serious house master and house mistress who always encourage us to work hard.

I thank them for helping us to win the trophy again this year.”

Meanwhile, the Sports Director of the School, Mrs. Eucharia Ihedioha, said the day was really a great one for the school as parents, staffand guests came together with the spirit of sportsmanship to see children display their talents.

“It’s a competition where even the loser goes home with the spirit of sportsmanship. And I’ve seen the spirit in every house today. They’ve performed a lot. We started the hits last Wednesday and today, is the grand finale of the event.”

She commended Loyola House for emerging

Loyola House celebrating their victory

victorious at the competition, saying that in the spirit of sportsmanship the best would always emerge.

“I give kudos to them. They tried, other houses tried, but it was just one gold that made them become the overall winner.”

35/ENTREPRENEUR

18.11.2016

‘Why We’ve Come Up with Feminine Magazine’ Women in Nigeria from different professions and walks of life gathered recently in Lagos to witness the unveiling of a women's magazine, Essential Woman, which aims to celebrate women in their careers and businesses and support those who aspire to start the process. Editor of the magazine, Ekua Abudu, in this interview with Mary Ekah reveals the idea behind the publication of integrity. We are essentially important to everything that is happening in the community, in Nigeria and in the world at large. Essential woman is to encourage women, to help them grow personally, professionally, truthfully and our intention is to identify real role models, to find out real stories of real women. You don’t have to be a celebrity, there are so many hard working women out there, there are many women pushing frontiers of industries that no one knows about. It’s not for you to be perfect, you started a journey; what inspired you to start the journey, what were the challenges along the way, which were the people who helped you along the way. Your story can help another young lady.

How long did it take to put this together?

We were working on this off and on for about a year and we are happy it has finally come to pass. This is a bi-monthly magazine but we are going to have a strong online presence and a blog that people would be contributing to, even from when we announced this, so much has come in; so many contributions. People have stories; people have identified people that we don’t know about. People have told us about women groups that are doing marvelously not just with big names but small women groups that are actually getting results. This is a magazine that is feminine, we can go to the kitchen; we can go to the living room, the other room; get changed and move to the boardroom.

So what informed the idea to publish a feminine magazine?

Well, we found out that a lot of magazines centered on lifestyle, beauty but we were thinking about women empowerment. The Proverbs 31 woman inspired us. If you read it, she is a home maker, she is a hard working woman, multi-tasking, she makes clothes, she invests in properties, she looks after her family and she does a lot of charity work. The bible says who can find her? How do you aspire to be like her, how do we encourage other

How often would the magazine be on the news?

Every other month but we are going to have a very strong online presence that would be updated.

Abudu

women to be the best they can be? So we came up with Essential Woman Magazine because of the essence of a woman, a woman

What were you doing before now?

I am the proprietor and director in charge of administration at Greenwood House School in Ikoyi. The brand is almost 21 years now but also I served as a lawyer. So I have many parts, if you look at my profile I am currently the chairman of the Interior Designers Association (IDS), I am a trustee of the International

Women Sympathy, which is the oldest women group. I love music, I love arts, and I am multi-task. My personal man trial is ‘I can do all things through Christ that strengthens me’. That’s why I decided to try my hands on this but I won’t do journalism.

Have you ever practiced as a lawyer?

Yes, I started as a lawyer; I practiced for about eight years and then I now sublime and then started the school. Well, it’s really nice, there is continuous training and continuous improvement; you don’t know what opportunity life is going to bring you, just be ready to retrain. Even though I was a lawyer, once I started the school; I went and did a Montessori course, I did a postgraduate in education. So anything you want to be in life, you can be; just open your mind, life is just a straightforward path; just continue to educate What has life taught you?

Well, like I said, I could do all things through Christ that strengthens me. Well challenges come along the way, I think for anybody who has gone through life; there have been challenges. You try, doing your best and you move on to the next thing.

Hopefully you would have learnt from what happened.

Women Get Help from Hegai & Esther Makeup Solutions Mary Ekah In its bid to engrave in the minds of women who have suffered various domestic and sexual abuse that irrespective of what they have gone through, it does not define their future nor nullify the validity of the dreams that they had before falling a victims to domestic violence and most especially assure them that that they are beautiful despite whatever negative things anyone must have told them about their physical appearance, Hegai & Esther Makeup Solutions, a makeup accessories and tools company, recently collaborated with a women’s rights organisatioon, Project Alert on Violence Against Women in Nigeria (Project Alert), on a seminar tagged ‘I am Esther’.

The programme was aimed at getting women who have suffered one form of abuse or the other to speak out and regain their self-esteem through makeup and looking good. Using beauty as a tool, the women, are believed, will rediscover themselves again, believe in themselves and fall in love with themselves and also embrace who they are. The event afforded opportunity where these abused women were made up by professional beauty makeover after which they were taught how to use makeup to enhance their looks. They were also given motivational talks and also free makeup products.

Speaking during the event, the Managing Director of Hegai & Esther Make-up Tools, Mrs. Gbemisola Adebayo, said, “We are basically using this as a toll to preach our message. Beauty is a powerful tool and when a woman knows that she is beautiful, half of her problems are solved. When she knows that, she gets confidence. We are insured by the story of Esther in the Bible.

Esther’s beauty changed her life and made her a queen. So beauty is a door opener.

That is our message. It is a message of hope, victory ad that you could be all that you want to be in life. So we are preaching this message using beauty as a tool. It is a message of ‘get on your feet again and pick the pieces of your life and be a woman and enjoy your womanhood.”

Adebayo, who said it does not end there,

Hegal & Esther MD, Gbemisola Adebayo

Hegal and Esther makeup artiste at work

noted further that, although these women are empowered physically to know that they are beautiful but that does not put food on their table. She said therefore that they need what would put food on their table. She revealed further that Hegai and Esther Makeup Tool, will continue with the training in another level where they would be empowered by training them on how to make people beautiful for money.

Speaking on how the idea came, Adebayo noted, “We are a make-up company and we started out by selling brand of make-ups so as the business evolved, we noticed a deficit in the makeup industry. We also noticed the issue of price and that a certain group of people does not have access to beauty because they cannot afford it. So we decided to fill that niche, which is making make-ups accessible to women that may not be able to afford it at certain prices. And to extend our make-up line, we decided to do it in a unique way. We didn’t want to do it the usual way like hosting a party and inviting the models and all of that but we wanted to give back to people while extending our line of products to the Nigerian women, especially the average Nigerian women who are low income earners. So we deiced to

look for this group of people who are our target market and then beautify them and at the same time let them realize that they are beautiful irrespective of what their stories are. And so we said let us look for women who are victim of abused. As such we had to partner with Project Alert. So Project Alert gave us the women, whom we are teaching how to do their makeups today, using our products and some other products.”

Executive Director, Project Alert, Mrs. Josephine Effah–Chukwuma, explained that her NGO partnered Hegai & Esther Makeup Tools on the project which is basically a campaign on beauty, not just to enlighten the women on physical beauty but on also about bringing out the internal beauty in them.

“We are today with some of our women who have had challenges and have come to Project Alert. These are women, who have gone through different forms of violence like rap, domestic violence and all that and today we are telling them that they don’t need to lose their self esteem but rather, they need to define themselves. It is about these women saying to themselves that “I am beautiful, I am uniquely created by God. I won’t allow the circumstances that I have found myself to define who I am as a person. So today is

about celebrating thee survival, reminding them about the story of Hegai and Esther in the Bible, and how their situations are nothing far from the stories of these women.

So we are celebrating female survival of different forms of violence, telling them, you are who you are, uniquely created by God and you can be whosoever you want to be as long as you set your mind to it,” he said.

On how this training would enhance the inner beauty of the women, she said, “For me, this programme has two aims, one, it is not just about painting their faces, it is about getting them to believe in themselves because most of these women have lost their self-esteem, so number one is to bring out that inner beauty in them and secondly, from there, a skill could emerge.”

Speaking further the project alert boss noted, “One of the reasons why women stay in abusive relationships is because of economic dependency. So you never can say; from here, skills could develop, so that you end up not just making up yourself but you also makeup other people and make a living.”

Describing the training as a kind of therapeutic thing for the women and also a kind of economic empowerment for them, Effah–Chukwuma advised to the women, as always, was, “Don’t keep quiet about it.

You can’t pray violence away. Even the Bible says that faith without action is dead. Yes, you have faith and believe that this must come to an end but you must take action to end it. The simplest analysis I can make with this is that if a child says by the grace of God I am going to pass this exam but tell me if he/she does not study her books, how then can they pass the exams? So I am telling these women today to speak out and take action. These women here today have already taken action and that was why they came to Project Alert and that is why they are here today. They are not sitting down folding their hands and believing it will just go away. No, it won’t just go away, you must take action. And we all as Nigerians should not condone domestic violence, we should speak out in one voice and condemn all sorts of violence against women.”

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37/THISLIFE

18.11.2016

Late Achebe

If Chinua Achebe were Alive Today James Eze Today (November 16, 2016), on the day that would have been Chinua Achebe’s 86th birthday, I can’t help but wonder what would have happened if he hadn’t died three years ago. So much has happened since Nna anyi left us that in my private moments, I have often looked at things that would have made him break his oracular silence and wondered what he would have said to them; things like the very idea of Donald Trump as the president of the United States; a country that hosted him in his winter years. Things like the beheading of an Igbo woman in Kano in the 21st Century. Things like killing people for wanting to be different, like the IPOB youngsters and the Shiites? Would the Chinua Achebe that we all know have blessed all these with his silence?

Achebe’s landmark lecture on racism as seen in his essay, An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad’s Heart of Darkness reminds us of the ancestry we have in him – a proud heritage that does not flinch from standing firm against prejudice, against injustice and against the world if need be. When Achebe gave that lecture at the University of Massachusetts in 1975, America was still struggling with the horrors of segregation. And while the city of Jackson in Mississippi was celebrating the opening of an integrated public swimming pool for the first time, riots were erupting in Louisville, Kentucky over forced bussing. In fact, the humanity of African Americans was still being negotiated while many Caucasians still saw black Africans as living in trees.

That was the social landscape in which

Chinua Achebe declaimed Joseph Conrad; a highly revered writer who earned a name by writing pathetic pieces that justified the Slave Trade, colonialism and other prejudices by making a strong argument to establish the inferiority of the black man.

So, I am moved to ask, what would Chinua Achebe have said to the idea of Donald J. Trump? Would he have swept his incendiary comments aside as a mild irritation from a benevolent “white” country that had shown a capacity to right her wrongs by allowing a black man to lead her for eight unbroken years or would he have given Trump the Conrad treatment? Would Nna anyi have looked back at Nigeria’s steady descent into a poor imitation of democracy and felt restrained to give a voice to his righteous anger against Trump? Or would he have smiled indulgently at the feisty smack-down his prodigy, Chimamanda, has just given to R. Emmett Tyrell, Editor-in-Chief of the American Spectator in a BBC interview that has gone viral on the social media? Would he have felt content that his “daughter” had said his mind? It is really hard to tell because while alive, Achebe picked his fights carefully. But I'm strongly persuaded to believe that it is highly unlikely that Chinua Achebe would have felt done-in by the white man’s choice of who should rule his country.

On the contrary, I am almost certain that he would have spoken out about the human condition in Nigeria. I am sure he would have contemplated the killings, especially the beheading of an Igbo woman by a fiendish mob acting on behalf of its god in Kano and wondered when this particular rain began to

beat us. Achebe would have “spoken truth to power” over the killings of IPOB and Shiite members like he did in that historic open letter to Obasanjo excoriating him for his support to the clique of renegades that openly boasting its connections in high places, seemed determined to turn his beloved Anambra into a bankrupt and lawless fiefdom. He would have been traumatised by the recession that has plunged Nigerians into avoidable hardships and would have asked for an explanation. He would have shuddered at the polarisation of Nigeria by the rhetoric of leaders who have drawn an imaginary line in the sand that says it is 95% versus 5%. He would have frowned at the fierce cyber wars along tribal lines and the disappearing nationalist ties that once held this unwieldy country together.

Chinua Achebe would have wondered if we haven’t put a knife on the things that hold us together by ourselves and should therefore expect what comes after that. And perhaps too, just perhaps; he would have felt validated, justified, contented that he wrote the book prophetically titled, There was a Country! And we would all have been in no doubt about which country he had in mind!

Again, knowing Achebe’s famed aversion to power that carries the faintest hint of dangerously keeling over to dictatorship, would he have drummed support for the APC in the manner that his fellow writers did or would he have just stayed defiant like Ezulu, that magnificent character in Arrow of God, who stuck to his own ways even when the ground gave way under his feet?

Or better still, would Achebe have kept faith

with his own philosophy that “one of the truest tests of integrity is its blunt refusal to be compromised?” And what would he have told the people who choose to play Conrad by writing tomes of essays in defence of the fascism that is afoot in the country; those who pen brilliant articles in defence of the violent arrest of judges, endless incarceration of political prisoners and the borderline misogyny? Would he have shaken his head ruefully and reminded them that there is “a moral obligation, I think, not to ally oneself with power against the powerless?”

Indeed, if Chinualumogu Achebe had been alive today, would he have been pleased at the way this facebook generation of Africans has carried itself as though there was nothing more to worry about only to suddenly wake up to the rude shock of an American presidential election that has successfully exhumed the fears we all thought we had left behind? Or would he have just shaken his head sorrowfully and reminded us all that “every generation must recognise and embrace the task it is peculiarly designed by history and by providence to perform?”

And if he had done so, and I think he has many times already, would we have been bright enough to “recognise” the task that providence and history have designed for us?

Would we have asked enough questions that will lead us into discovering what should be the enduring themes of this century that will help our forebears find a firmer footing in the next?

Happy birthday, Ugonabo! You may be three years gone but you still perch solidly on that Iroko!

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T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2016

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BUSINESSWORLD

NEWS

‘NIMASA’s Floating Dockyard Presents Opportunities for Nigeria’ Eromosele Abiodun The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Marine Transport, Senator Ahmed Sani Yerima has said that the floating dockyard being built by the Nigeria Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) will open new window of opportunities in the maritime industry in West Africa.

Yerima, who stated this when he led some members of the committee to evaluate the extent of work on the floating dockyard being built in Galati, Romania, also observed that the opportunities will not only be limited to job creation or conservation of foreign exchange but will include capacity building and wealth creation in the industry.

Yerima said with an average of

5000 ships calling at the Nigerian ports annually, 400 active coastal vessels and several fishing trawlers, the demand for ship repair and maintenance facilities can only be on the rise.

He decried the absence of modern functional floating dry docking facilities in the country which has forced ships and vessels to go overseas to undertake mandatory routine

African Leaders Tasked on Maritime Security Eromosele Abiodun President of African Maritime Journalists Association (AMJA), Mr. Sesan Onileimo has urged African leaders to close ranks on maritime security to boost the continent’s economy.

Onileimo, who was recently inaugurated as the leader of the continental association, made the call in Lagos.

Delivering a speech shortly after the Executive Committee of the association was inaugurated, he urged African leaders to work together to check the excesses of sea pirates and secure their waterways.

The pioneer president of the association said it was not by chance that 38 out of the 54 African countries were coastal states.

According to him, “This is

a calculated plan by nature to make the region a blue economy that can trigger economic advancement in other sectors. There is vast endowment in aquatic and non-aquatic resources, including oceans, seas, coasts, lakes and underground waters. The rising insecurity in the rich Gulf of Guinea is scaring and can spur investor’s boycott of the region. Intra sub-regional trade is doing well to drive the cost of moving goods from one country to another in the North Africa. It will better if such trend is broadened in other African States.”

He said that the spirit behind the recent African Union’s Extraordinary Summit on Maritime Security, Safety and Development in Africa hosted by the government of Togo was apt.

He said that a secure waterway could give life to many productive sectors such as fisheries, aquaculture, tourism, transport, ship building, energy, bio-prospecting and underwater mining, among others.

“If leaders can harmonise their shipping and traderelated policies to further reduce barriers to trade and free movement of goods and persons, the blue economy will sustain Africa,’’ he said. Also speaking at the event, Minister of Transportation, Mr. Rotimi Ameachi assured that the federal government is committed to building a virile platform through the implementation of policies and programmes that will further enhance the contributions of the maritime sector to the overall economy of the country.

dry docking saying, “the few land based dockyards in Nigeria are not even functioning optimally. Sometimes Nigerian ship owners have to go to neighbouring Cameroon to dry dock vessels paying in scarce foreign exchange.”

The law maker said the NIMASA floating dockyard will be the first one-stop comprehensive floating ship

repair and maintenance facility in West Africa and will have the sub region as its primary market.

He advised NIMASA to target offshore and coastal vessels as well as ships calling Nigerian ports, with a promise that whatever legislative backing the Agency will need will be given by the National Assembly.

Yerima commended the

current leadership of NIMASA for being focused, ingenious and industrious. “NIMASA’s Director General and his team have proven that they are tested managers of men and resources with a vision to put the maritime industry on the path of accelerated growth thus they will enjoy the support of patriotic citizens including this Senate Committee,” he said.

US Elections: Shipping Deals Absent from the Market In a not so surprising development, deals in the shipping market were far and few apart over the course of the past week, as most of the world focused in the US elections and the surprising result they produced.

In its latest weekly report, shipbroker Allied Shipbroking noted that it was “another lackluster week with the previous “so called” momentum having all but evaporated and only one notable order surfacing this past week.

The focus continues to be primarily pushed towards tanker units, with Large Range product tankers being the main item on most potential buyers list.

There are rumours of many shopping around for price quotes, though few are these are looking to be of high likeli-

hood to materialise into actual orders as most buyers have been hoping for considerably more competitive prices then those being quoted. Despite this, it looks as though shipbuilders are unable to push their costs considerably further down from their current levels deterred by their costs and the price hikes being noted in key commodities such as steel and iron ore. What most keep hopeful for is that increases in second hand prices and easier access to financing might eventual push things in their favour. Given the prevailing trends right now it is unlikely that we will see this really take effect any time soon”, said Allied Shipbroking.

Meanwhile, in the S &P markets this week, in the tanker segment, Vessels Value reported

that “no sales have taken place within the VLCC and Suezmax sector, values are weaker due to a softening in market sentiment.

Aframax values have softened in modern tonnage due to the sale of the Phoenix Beacon and Phoenix Concord (105,500 DWT, 2011 & 2012, Hyundai Heavy Ind) sold for USD 58 mil Enbloc, VV value USD 64 mil. LR vessel Ice Base (63,600 DWT, 2008, STX Offshore) sold

by Scorpio Ship Management to Ultranav for USD 18 mil. 3 sales have taken place this week within the MR sector, values have softened in newer tonnage.

The Seto Express (48,400 DWT, 2007, Iwagi Zosen) offloaded

by Shoei Kisen to MOL, sold for USD 13.75 mil, VV value USD 15.31 million”, said the ship valuations specialist.

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CITYSTRINGS

Acting Features Editor Charles Ajunwa Email charles.ajunwa@thisdaylive.com

Chikasson factory in Nnewi during a recent tour by journalists

Nnewi, Home of Ingenuity That Nnewi in Anambra State is the home of ingenuity is not in doubt. The town is dominated by men and women of the can-do spirit and innovation. Hence their success in the world of business and entrepreneurship, reports David-Chyddy Eleke

E

ntering Nnewi, a bubbling industrial town in the southern zone of Anambra State, one would be greeted with what would at first seem a noisy town. Coming from Awka, Onitsha or even Orlu in Imo State, a visitor is faced with the sight of a sea of heads, all scrambling for space, and hurrying to God knows where. That is the restless spirit of the Nnewi man, which has stood him out as an ingenious personality in the field of business.

Besides carving a niche for themselves in the field of business, the Nnewi man has become very known for his innovative spirit, and referred to as the Japan of Africa. Entering the town, a visitor is greeted with the presence of more motorbikes than motorcars, and what is more fascinating is that everyone, children, men, women, rich and poor people alike ride on what is popularly referred to as ladies’ bike.

For the Nnewi people, the ladies’ bike is a must have, and a status symbol that defines who they are. In most towns in Nigeria, motorcycles have been banned as a result of the activities of criminal gangs, which have used them to perpetuate kidnapping and other vices. During

the administration of Governor Peter Obi, he was once said to have contemplated banning the use of Okada in Anambra State, but when

Government should show support to us here in Nnewi. This is the only town that has grown to what it is today with 99 per cent contribution from indigenes, and almost nothing from government.

We face several challenges everyday, but the most pressing ones are power and foreign exchange for the procurement of raw materials

feelers reached business moguls in Nnewi most of whom are importers of motorcycles or even manufacturers, they quickly mobilised and held a meeting with the governor, and before long, the idea was shelved.

Obi’s successor, Governor Willie Obiano upon taking the mantle of leadership announced what seemed a technical ban on Okada operations, and even private motorcyclists on some major roads in major cities of the state, but in Nnewi, the law has remained almost inexistent as motorbikes remain the major means of transportation to all nooks and crannies of Nnewi, which are affordable to everyone.

Anambra is largely known to have men of means, and is said to have the largest concentration of millionaires in the country, and beyond, but Nnewi population accounts for over a quarter of the millionaires in Anambra State, making it the town with the highest concentration of rich people in Nigeria. What is more heart warming is that 99 per cent of these number of men of means are industrialists. Men who make money from thinking out of the box and putting their idea into action. The people are less known in the world of civil service or even as core government contractors.

During a recent visit to Nnewi, THISDAY sought to know the origin of the industrious nature of the Nnewi man. Even though they are big time manufacturers, such as Innocent Chukwuma who has carved a niche for himself as the first vehicle manufacturer in Nigeria to the likes of Ifeanyi Ubah who is today a big player in the oil and gas industry in the country. Other big names in Nnewi still abound, from Chika Okafor of Chicason Group to Ajulu Uzodike of Cutix, Cletus Ibeto of Ibeto Cement, Cosmas Madugba of Coscharis Motors, to mention etc.

There still abound young Nnewi upcoming industrialists whose works are either still being harnessed to world reckoning, or those who have given up their big dreams of their inventions rocking the world and resolved to make a daily living from their services to the public.

One of such is Mr. Kelechi Udechi, a metal fabricator. Udechi in an interview with THISDAY said he trained as a metal fabricator with the aid of the federal government assisted Industrial Training Fund (ITF). According to him, the training was supposed to include a grant to set up the trainees, which would help them to startup the business, but after waiting for the grant to no avail, he decided to attach himself

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CITYSTRINGS

Abubakar (2nd left) being showed some of the products from Chicasson factory in Nnewi

During a recent visit to Nnewi, where he was shown around several companies within the industrial town, former Military President, Gen Absulsalami Abubakar marveled at the ingenuity of Nnewi people. The former Head of State who toured a number of factories in the city, including; Chicason Group, Ibeto Group, Capital Oil and Gas and Tummy Tummy Noddles and a number of others, said he was happy with what they were doing with someone who already had workshop.

“Our business requires money for you to be able to try on what to invent. I don’t want to do the kind of metal works everyone is doing, where they bring you something and you weld it and you are paid, and that is the end. What I want to do, and what my passion in this job is, is to invent things, and you know that involves trial and error, until you are able to make it eventually. Right Now, I have conceived what I call a mobile shop, which will be fabricated with metal like the usual kiosks you see, but the difference in mine is that it will have tyres that will make it easy for anyone who buys it to move their businesses from one spot to another depending on where one feels there will be a business boom. In fact, it is targeted at those small business people who go from place to place to sell, depending on where there are events, and who do not want to display their wares under the sun like anyone else,” Udechi said.

There abound many more people like Udechi; from young girls who make a living from braiding female hair along the road to the motorcycle mechanic, tricycle mechanics and many others.

The story of the Nnewi man, nay Igbos is one of no dull moment, and these have made them self sustaining, and not minding the economic condition of the country, the Nnewi man remains on top of his game.

Addressing Journalists in one of his outing, Dr. Ifeanyi Ubah, Chairman of Capital Oil and Gas and proprietor of FC Ifeanyi Ubah, said the Nnewi man in him makes him restless, and he is always on the lookout for opportunities that can spring money, from his days as a young boy. Having made it big, he said, he is also working to ensure others made it too. “My community, Umuanuka has come to be the best in Nnewi. For over four years now, I have been supplying electricity free of charge to everyone who lives here, and in that way, small businesses

Pa Okeke in his stove repairing shop in Nnewi

Innoson in his vehicle manusacturing plant in Nnewi

have sprung up. This community has turned out to be the most developed in Nnewi, but because of my effort. Go around and see the kind of roads I built around the community, all interlocking. It is the same type I have in my street in Lagos. Within a year, you will be surprised the number of businesses that have been set up around this community because they are sure of roads and electricity.”

During a recent visit to Nnewi, where he was shown around several companies within the industrial town, former Military President, Gen Absulsalami Abubakar marveled at the ingenuity of Nnewi people. The former Head of

State who toured a number of factories in the city, including; Chicason Group, Ibeto Group, Capital Oil and Gas and Tummy Tummy Noddles and a number of others, said he was happy with what they were doing, while calling for support for them from the federal government.

Abubakar said that the industry exhibited by Nnewi businessmen is what is helping to sustain the economy of Nigeria. While in Nnewi for the inauguration of Nnewi Hotels and Events Centre built by Dr. Benjamin Aghazu, Abubakar also said that no nation can live solely on the importation of products consumed by its citizens, hence the relevance of local manufacturers. At

Chicasson Group, Abuabakar was showed round the five factories that make up the group, while some of its products; engine oil, toiletries, and several others were also inspected.

Chief Chika Okafor, told the former president that Nnewi has the capacity to do even more if the condition under which they operate are right. Lack of foreign exchange, lack of electricity power are some of the teething problems limiting the full potential of Nnewi industrialists. “Government should show support to us here in Nnewi. This is the only town that has grown to what it is today with 99 per cent contribution from indigenes, and almost nothing from government. We face several challenges everyday, but the most pressing ones are power and foreign exchange for the procurement of raw materials. We run 175,000 litres of diesel every week here. We are managing to sustain the factory from what we make from other businesses. We have a mining arm, agriculture, real estate and we are also into oil and gas. Business is hard now, we can take the option of retrenching some of our workers, but if we retrench them, where will they go from here? They are now like family members to us, so we shoulder the burden.”

Most people are of the view that support from the federal government to Nnewi industrialists will help the town actualise its full potential.

When THISDAY visited the Commissioner for Science and Technology, Chinedu Emeka, on plans being made to fully enhance the ingenuity in Nnewi, he was not on seat, but a source in the ministry said he has stumbled on a proposal which was to ensure the signing of a Public Private Partnership that will actualise the building of an Independent Power Plant (IPP) to serve the people of the city.

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FRIDAY OCTOBER 18, 2016 • T H I S D AY

WORLD OF ISLAM

Edited by: MJO Mustapha Email deji.mustapha@thisdaylive.com

Balancing Our Inner and Outer Worlds Mansoor Alam/IslamiCity It is now known that the old theory of a static Universe is no longer tenable. Modern science has revealed that there is nothing fixed or static in the Universe, and it has been expanding ever since it came into existence.

Thus, by nature of its creation, our Universe is dynamic and everything in it is perpetually changing.

Our Earth has been changing as well. Scientists say that it has taken millions of years and several eons of adaptation for it to become suitable to support life.

Our mountains, oceans, deserts, and forests have traded places on Earth through the shifting sands of time; so has the life that it supports. Some species have come and gone and others have adapted to change. These natural changes have occurred everywhere on Earth: in its air, on its land, and under its seas. Here also, there is nothing fixed or static.

Our Earth has existed far longer than human beings. So have all other living species. Therefore, they are well adapted to natural change. The same may not be said of us humans, though. Endowed with the power of rational thinking, humans also have the ability and willingness to destroy themselves.

According to Einstein: “By painful experience we have learnt that rational thinking does not suffice to solve the problems of our social life. Penetrating research and keen scientific work have often had tragic implications for mankind, producing, on the one hand, inventions which liberated man from exhausting physical labor, making his life easier and richer; but on the other hand, introducing a grave restlessness into his life, making him a slave to his technological environment, and—most catastrophic of all—creating the means for his own mass destruction.”

[Albert Einstein, Out of My Later Years, p. 152] The main motivation of powerful nations pursuing this course is to dominate weaker ones – by hook or by crook.

Initially, the self-destructive forces produced by following such a course remain relatively imperceptible, thus producing a false sense that their power will last forever. But as time goes on, these nations meet their eventual destruction despite their power. History is full of such stories: ancient Babylon, Egypt, Greece, Iran, Rome and even some parts of the New World are now graveyards of powerful civilizations. This destruction is not a random act but is the result of their wrong actions based on the law of the rise and fall of nations.

Actually, there are two aspects of this law i.e., two sides of the same coin. Both are essential, for the rise, growth, and the moral and intellectual advancement of a nation: i) knowledge of the forces of the outer world, and ii) knowledge of the forces of the inner world within human beings. One without the other is bound to lead to ultimate destruction of any civilization. With proper balance between these two forces, human societal advancement will know no bounds, both intellectually and spiritually.

But first of all, let us be clear that a nation cannot hope to recover from its abyss unless it changes its inner self.

Stopgap measures or doing patch up work only to treat the symptoms would only prolong suffering and would not cure the disease. A nation needs a fundamental change in its outlook, its psychology, and its attitude if it truly wants to change its destiny.

One way to achieve glory is by assigning two separate arenas of human thought: one for scientific thinking – done by people of science, and the other for religious thinking – done by people of religion. One is not allowed to interfere with the other. Religious people take charge of Religion and its hierarchy, and the science people take charge of Science and its hierarchy.

After Galileo was sentenced to death by the Church for his scientific thinking that was in conflict with the Church, it made perfect sense to the West to create these two mutually exclusive compartments of human thought. This separation has apparently enabled the West to gain mastery over the forces of the outer world as never before.

Since at the present time we are in the grips of this Western approach, we tend to believe that this is the way to glory.

But let us see what modern Western thinkers have to say about this approach.

“For science can only ascertain what is, but not what should be, and outside of its domain value judgments of all kinds remain necessary…. Representatives of science have often made an attempt to arrive at fundamental judgments with respect of values and ends on the basis of scientific methods and in this way have set themselves in opposition to religion. These conflicts have all sprung from fatal errors. . . For the scientist, there is only “being,” but not wishing, no valuing, no good, no evil, no goal.” [Albert Einstein, Out of My Later Years, p. 152] “We began our era of scientific efficiency confident that materialistic

triumphs would solve life’s problems. We are finding we were wrong.

Life is not as simple as that.” [J.W.T. Mason, Creative Freedom, pp 183-4.]

“Man has created a new world with its own laws and destiny.

Looking at his creation, he can say, truly, it is good. But looking at himself what can he say? … While we have created wonderful things we have failed to make of ourselves beings for whom this tremendous effort would seem worthwhile.” [Erich Fromm, Psychoanalysis & Religion, pages 1-2] Why does the West fail to deal with the complex problems of humankind? After all, the West came to their current methodology after a long, hard fought battle with the Church resulting in the constitutional separation of the Church and the State. The answer may actually lie in the very principle of the separation of Church and State which essentially created a dualistic self: one private, the other public; one related to the Church, the other related to the State; one subjective, the other objective; one devoted to Sunday, the other devoted to the rest of the days.

Thus, God became associated with the private life of citizens while the State took control of their public life. Forces within the inner world of human beings thus became disassociated with the forces of their outer world. This created tension in people’s inner and outer worlds. All the power the West has mustered through the control and mastery over the outer world seems unable to control the destructive forces of its inner world. One has become bright and shiny while the other has remained dark and gloomy. The fullness of body and emptiness of the soul are the obvious manifestations of practicing this Western approach to life. In the words of Erich Fromm: “Ours is a life not of brotherliness, happiness, contentment but of spiritual chaos and bewilderment dangerously close to state of madness — not the hysterical kind of madness which existed in the Middle Ages but a madness akin to schizophrenia in which the contact with reality is lost and thought is split from affect.”

“Those who try to find a solution by returning to traditional religion are influenced by a view which is often proposed by religionists, that we have to choose between religion and a way of life which is concerned only with the satisfaction of our instinctual needs and material comfort…Priests and ministers appear to be the only professional groups concerned with the soul, the only spokesmen for the ideals of love, truth, and justice.”

[Psychoanalysis & Religion, pages 1-2.]

Contrary to the approach practiced by the West, the past

INTERNATIONAL

glory of Muslims in Science was not the result of separation of science and religion. Those revolutionary Muslim scientists were truly devoted to religion while carrying out their scientific studies. There were no contradictions between their scientific thinking and their religious thinking. In fact, the driving force behind their scientific discoveries was the Quranic command to observe the signs of God spread throughout the Universe (3:189-191, 16:48, 21-30-32, 23:18, 26:7-8, etc.).

The achievements of those Muslim scientists were truly astounding—maybe more than the Western scientific achievements—because they were pioneers in creating and advancing so many branches of new knowledge (without the modern facilities enjoyed by later scientists). It may even be fair to say that there would not have been a Western renaissance in such a short time without Muslim achievements in science.

Western historians of science (e.g., Robert Briffault, George Sarton, John W. Draper) generally recognize the fact that the West actually built its scientific superstructure on the giant shoulders of great Muslim scientists of the past.

So, there we have it: two distinct approaches to science. One may be called the isolationistic approach, the other holistic or integrated approach. These two approaches create their own distinctive social, cultural, and moral environments. This is where the second aspect of the rise and fall of nations comes into play. The inner soul of the Western society is suffering from its isolationist approach even though it has acquired unprecedented power over the forces of nature through science. Poet Iqbal (1877-1938) has beautifully captured this dilemma of the West thus: He, who seeks the path of stars in the outer world; Could not travel the path of his own thoughts!

He, who has captured the rays of the shining Sun; Couldn’t find the morn of his life’s own dark night!

In other words, human reason can subdue the forces of nature but cannot by itself find a satisfactory solution to the complexity of the problems of humankind. The holistic or integrative approach is the only way to balancing both aspects of human existence: material (the outer world) as well as spiritual (the inner world) which is: 1) to acquire knowledge of the forces of the Universe and 2) to use its power for the benefit of all humankind without any discrimination whatsoever. This is how we can create long-term balance between the outer and inner worlds.

email:foreigndesk@thisdaylive.com

Canadian Govt Explains Rationale for Reviewing 2017 Immigration Target Ugo Aliogo and Abdulkareem Azeezat

The Government of Canada is increasing its base number of Immigrants that will be allowed into Canada next year to 300,000. This move is expected to drive economic growth as the country is currently grappling with an aging demographic.

The previous target from 2011 to 2015 was 260,000 was increased to 300,000 this year because of what the Minister of Immigration, McCallum called the “special circumstances” of the Syrian refugee crisis.

However, it is expected that the number will now be the permanent base.

According to a statement

made available to THISDAY, the government’s economic growth council had recommended raising immigration levels to 450,000 over the next five years, but McCallum has rejected that target.

The statement also noted that there has been much debate over the targeted immigration level at a time when the country struggles with high unemployment, noting that there have also been questions about the country’s ability to smoothly integrate newcomers into communities.

McCallum in the statement explained that other measures will be announced at a later date to streamline the process

for economic applicants and to improve the process for permanent residency for international students, “students are among the best candidates to become Canadians, yet they have

CHANGE OF NAME

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RSUST,NIS & the general public should please take note.

been shortchanged by the system in the past.”

The Parliamentary Secretary to the Government House Leader, Kevin Lamoureux, said immigrants not only fill jobs that would

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The general public should please take note.

CONFIRMATION OF NAME This is to certify that MRS FLORENCE OGHALE OBANO and MRS FLORENCE OGHALE IJOMONI OBANO is one and the same person, now wish to be known and addressed as MRS FLORENCE OGHALE IJOMONI OBANO. All former documents remain Valid. The General Public please take note.

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otherwise remain vacant and help to develop provincial economies, adding that they also contribute to the character and social fabric of communities.“

CHANGE OF NAME

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FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2016 • T H I S D AY

NEWS

News Editor Davidson Iriekpen Email davidson.iriekpen@thisdaylive.com, 08111813081

FG Targets $15bn Investments from Elimination of JV Cash Calls Reaches $5.1bn debt settlement with oil majors Seeks reduction of oil production cost to $18/b Tobi Soniyi in Abuja and Chineme Okafor in Abuja When a new funding regime that would eliminate joint venture cash calls comes on stream next year, Nigeria would attract $15 billion investments from its oil major partners, the federal government said yesterday.

According to the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, the new funding arrangement would save the country $1 billion annually, adding that the federal government had also successfully negotiated how its outstanding cash call debts put at $6.8 billon as at December 2015 would be settled.

The country is indebted to Exxon Mobil Corp., Royal Dutch Shell Plc Exxon, Chevron Corp., Total SA and Eni SpA for costs incurred from 2010 to 2015.

Saying by some strategic engagement with the oil majors, the debt stock had eventually been reduced to $5.1 billion, excluding the $2.6 billion outstanding for 2016, Kachikwu added that the new arrangement would free critical resources for the country as the oil companies would now be at liberty to find fresh funding sources for their

operations.

The minister, who briefed State House correspondents after the National Economic Council meeting presided over by Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo yesterday, also said that the federal government was working on reducing the production cost of oil from $27 to $18 per barrel in the next two years, and eventually to $15 per barrel in the next four years.

He explained that the joint venture cash calls was high because the federal government failed to meet its obligations in the last five years, stressing, however, that rather than lament the situation, government decided to resolve the debt challenge.

According to him, the $5.1 billion would be paid within five years, interest free, and the barrels to pay will come from incremental barrels generated by the oil companies not on the current 2.2 million barrels.

He explained that if for any reason government did not meet those thresholds, it would not be able to pay the $5.1 billion and the $2.6 billion outstanding for this year.

He said: “We are trying to cover that through three

thresholds: one is to continue to do accelerated cash call payments between October and December. Hopefully, that will bring the figure down to about $1.5 billion, which will be sinking resources from the FG, either through some of our reserve, or the Nigeria LNG, or a combination of that and alternative funding, to try and train staff. That should be completed hopefully by December.”

He added: “Beginning next year, if this goes into place, the issue of cash call era would have disappeared. The effect would be that investments in excess close to $15 billion are likely to be announced by the oil companies bringing back most of the projects within a couple of weeks once this is signed.

“For the first time, the oil industry will take responsibility for arranging their own funding and being able to produce oil and save the federal government the whole nightmare of cash

calls every year.”

Apart from the efforts at reducing production costs, the minister said he expected the barrel reserve production to increase to about 2.5 million by 2019 and potentially to about 3 million barrels by 2021.

Also speaking later in the day at a stakeholders’ forum in Abuja, Kachikwu reiterated the federal government’s commitment to full deregulation of the downstream sector of the petroleum industry, saying that once the Dangote Group refinery comes on stream in 2019, the fate of the refineries in Kaduna, Port Harcourt and Warri would have to be determined.

He said: “Refineries would have to work; it is really not an option anymore. And not only should it work, it has to work very quickly. The reality is that if we do not privatise and we do not concession - which is not what we are doing - then we have a responsibility to find private capital to get them to

where they should be.”

Kachikwu noted that the process for full deregulation had started, adding that government would continue to fine-tune it until it gets to where it should be.

“At every given time in the history of every country, you will always have partial deregulation.

The reason being that you have to catch up each time and make an amendment, and even if it is just one day, you might have some level of subsidy for that one or two days before it is removed,” he said.

NNPC Develops Model for Quality Diesel The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has said it is working on a scheme to improve the quality of diesel that will be used in the Nigerian market for efficient and optimal performance of diesel-powered engines.

A statement from the Group General Manager, Public Affairs Division of NNPC, Ndu

Ughamadu, yesterday in Abuja quoted the Manager, Collaborative Research of the corporation’s Research and Development Division, David Akpan, as saying in a presentation made to the Group Managing Director of NNPC, Dr. Maikanti Baru, during an official tour of some R&D facilities in Port Harcourt.

The statement said that details of the research showed that the effort would achieve significant reduction in sulphur and carbon content as well as other impurities in diesel.

The R&D Division, it said, was working in collaboration with Petronas, Petrobras, Statoil and Saudi Aramco on this.

It also quoted Akpan to have stated that the project would involve non-conventional upgrading of other refined products including crude oil.

Baru, according to the statement, described R&D as a vital tool for advancement in any organisation desirous of re-inventing itself in the ever-competitive market place.

FG to Stop Bogus Salaries, Allowances in Revenue Generating Agencies Tobi Soniyi in Abuja Also yesterday the Federal Government took the decision to stop the controversial high staff salaries, and other financial abuses being committed by management and employees of some revenue-generating agencies often regarded as ‘juicy’ parastatals.

These agencies are said to rake in about N1.5 trillion in revenues yearly but over the past ten years, have ended up spending about 90 per cent of that on recurrent expenditure for their staff.

Anambra State Governor, Willie Obiano, who also briefed State House Correspondents after the NEC meeting said the Finance Minister, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, briefed the NEC on the financial abuses being committed by the agencies.

He said: “The Finance Ministry reported to the Council certain activities of some revenue generating agencies that amounted to financial abuse of the revenue they generate.

“They include paying salaries above Revenue Mobilisation and Fiscal Allocation Committee (RMFAC) specifications, converting official cars to personal ownership, monetising medical allowances arbitrarily, unapproved oversees travels, lavish training allowances, and excessive personal loan

approval, including unapproved mortgages.

“The ministry of Finance and RMFAC are working together to rein in these abuses as these revenue agencies raise as much as N1.5trillion and spend almost 90 percent on its recurrent expenditure.

“The Minister added that this has been going on for a decade, but such financial abuses whereby the agencies hide the revenues that ought to go to the Federation Account, will now be exposed and terminated.”

The Finance Minister also disclosed that the excess crude oil proceeds as at November 2016 stands at $2.4 billion, while budget support loan facility of $1.1billion was disbursed in October to 35 states, making a total of $6.3 billion now disbursed to the 35 states.

Lagos State is excluded.

On the N2 billion Ecological Fund money said to be paid to the states by the last administration, which some states complained they did not benefit from, the NEC resolved to investigate it and the report made available to the president.

Obiano also said that Adeosun reported to the council that as at November 2016, the balance of Excess Crude Proceeds stood at $2, 455,790,144-

CONCERN FOR THE CLIMATE

United States Secretary of State, John Kerry, meets President Muhammadu Buhari during his vist to Marrakech, Morroco, for COP22 ...yesterday

NBS: N1.23tn Worth of Petroleum Products Imported in 5 Months

Enelamah: Nigeria in dire need of local, foreign investments

James EmejoinAbuja The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has valued the cost of imported petroleum products between May and September 2016 at about N1.23 trillion.

This comprised 7.85 billion litres of petrol valued at about N958.28 billion; 2.11 billion litres of kerosene valued at about N254.54 billion as well as 208.53 million litres of diesel which was worth about N25.46 billion within the months in review.

Separately, the statistical agency also put the total number of federal government employees with a retirement savings account (RSA) at 1.85 million as at the third quarter of the year (Q3 2016).

This represented a marked

improvement from the 1.82 million workers who were registered in the corresponding quarter of 2015.

It said there were 1.49 million state government employees with RSA in Q3 while the private sector accounted for 3.88 million RSA accounts.

Altogether, there are 7.24 million RSA holders within the period in review compared to 6.74 million in Q3 2015.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Okechukwu Enelamah, has said the country is currently “extremely hungry” for both local and foreign investments, adding that the federal government was doing everything possible to attract investors, particularly, foreign direct

investments (FDIs).

He yesterday in Abuja at an interactive session stated that the government is in the process of negotiating a 21st century Nigerian free-trade agreements, with the goal of expanding market opportunities for Nigerian companies as well as looking into the ECOWAS Common External Tariff which had remained quite controversial.

He said already, FDIs worth billions of dollar had been attracted into the country particularly the investments by China and General Electric (GE) in the railway system.

The minister said more investments were required to properly diversify the economy.

He said government is also working to better the ecosystem,

adding that small business registration would soon be simplified and made cheaper to encourage local start-ups.

Under the proposed government initiative, it could cost as low as N2,000 to register an SME, the minister added.

Speaking at the interactive session with journalists in Abuja to give a status report on the implementation of the ministry’s growth master plan and objectives, Enelamah said the Export Expansion Grant (EEG), which was suspended in 2014 following allegations of widespread abuse and the accumulation of significant liability on the Negotiable Duty Credit Certificate (NDCCs), is also expected to resume in 2017.

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2016 • T H I S D AY

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NEWSXYRA

PDP Leadership Crisis: Court Reserves Judgment in Makarfi’s Appeal Tobi Soniyi in Abuja The Court of Appeal in Abuja yesterday reserved judgment in the appeal filed by. the Chairman of the National Caretaker Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Senator Ahmed Markafi and the secretary, Senator Ben Obi challenging a federal high

court judgment that declined to recognize them as national officers.

The two appellants in their appeal argued by Chief Wole Olanipekun SAN asked the appellate court to set aside the judgment of the high court Abuja delivered by Justice Okon Abang which affirmed Senator Ali Modu Sheriff as the

Biafra: Kanu, Others Know Fate on Bail Application on Dec 1 Alex Enumah in Abuja

Detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu and three others currently facing trial on an 11-count charge bordering on treasonable felony, unlawful possession of firearms and terrorism would on December 1, know whether they would be granted bail pending the determination of their trial.

Latest trial judge, Justice Binta Nyako of a Federal High Court in Abuja, fixed December 1 for ruling on the bail applications filed by the defendants.

At the resumed hearing yesterday, counsel to the IPOB leader, Ifeanyi Ejiofor, while arguing the bail application dated November 7, 2016, prayed the court to admit Kanu to bail on liberal terms.

The counsel supported the application with a 26-paragraph affidavit and 35 exhibits which include the charge filed against Kanu at the magistrate court; the ruling of the court granting him bail, the ruling of Justice

Adeniyi Ademola of a Federal High Court in Abuja, ordering unconditional release of the Biafra leader.

Other document attached to Kanu’s bail application is a newspaper publication of a statement by President Muhammadu Buhari that the first defendant (Kanu) will not be granted bail by any court and a certified true copy of Certificate of Incorporation of the Radio Biafra.

Ejiofor further told the court that Kanu has already initiated a contempt proceedings against the Department of State Services (DSS) for refusing to obey an order of the court made last year, granting him bail.

Counsel to the second defendant, I. Adoga, informed the court that his client is still in DSS custody instead of prison custody as ordered by the court.

In the same vein, counsel to the other defendants variously prayed the court to admit their clients to bail on liberal conditions.

authentic national chairman of the party.

In the appeal, the appellants claimed that the trial judge erred in law by concluding that Sheriff was the national chairman of the party without giving them hearing in a case filed by Sheriff before arriving at the conclusion.

They claimed that the action of the judge constituted a denial of fair hearing and subsequently led to a miscarriage of justice in the judgment.

The appellants therefore asked the court panel presided over

by Justice Ibrahim Saulawa, to void the decision of the lower court and set it aside.

However, in their objection to the appeal, the respondents led

by Prince Biyi Poroye urged the court to decline jurisdiction on the ground that an appeal had been entered at the Supreme

Court to challenge the decision of the court of appeal which granted leave to Makarfi and Obi to be eligible to file appeal in the matter.

Counsel to the respondent, Chief Beluolisa Nwofor SAN told the court that since the appeal had been formally entered at the Apex court and the motion for stay of proceedings also filed, it had become automatic for the appeal court to hands off from the matter as a mark of respect to the court hierarchy.

In the alternative, in his brief of argument, the counsel informed the court that the two appellants (Makarfi and Obi) filed two separate briefs of arguments dated 10 November and November 11, 2016 which he claimed constituted abuse of court process and demanded that the case be dismissed.

Nwofor, said that the consequences of the abuse of court process was an out-right dismissal adding that if the two briefs of arguments filed in same matter were dismissed on account of abuse, then there was no appeal before the court to adjustable upon.

He urged the court to hold that there was no brief of argument filed before it by the two appellants and urged the court to dismiss the appeal.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) represented by Nelson Anih did not file any process but however told the court that the electoral body would abide by the final decision wherever it goes.

Also Ali Modu Sheriff PDP faction represented by Mr. Rapheal Oluyede also did not file any process but aligned himself with the submissions

of Nwofor.

After taking arguments from all the parties, Justice Saulawa said that judgment would be reserved and that the date for its delivery will be communicated to the parties involved.

Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High court Abuja had in his judgment of June 26, 2016, held that Ali Modu Sheriff was the authentic National Chairman of the PDP. He based his decision on the order of the Lagos division of the federal high court that restrained PDP from holding the convention where Senator Ahmed Makarfi and Senator Ben Obi emerged as National Chairman and National Secretary of the National Caretaker Committee respectively, having purportedly dissolved the Ali Modu Sheriff leadership.

Rivers: Police Avert PDP, APC Clash, Batter Journalist FRUITFUL PARTNERSHIP Ernest Chinwo in Port Harcourt The police in Rivers State yesterday averted what might have turned out to be a major clash between the members and supporters of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of the December 10 rescheduled rerun election in the state.

Supporters of the APC staged a peaceful protest demanding the swearing-in of two lawmakers elected on the party’s platform into the State House of Assembly.

The two lawmakers are Hon. Victoria Nyeche representing Port Harcourt 1 constituency and Hon. Andrew Miller, representing Opobo/Nkoro Constituency.

The APC protesters, who marched from the party’s secretariat, along Forces Avenue, Old GRA, Port Harcourt to major streets, with placards that read ‘Rivers State House of Assembly must obey court order’, ‘Wike, allow rule of law to prevail’, among others, were however prevented by policemen who took over strategic government buildings

in the state, especially, the Government House, the State House of Assembly complex and the State High Court complex, from going beyond the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) area of Port Harcourt in order to avoid clashes with PDP supporters.

THISDAY gathered that while the APC supporters had converged on the party secretariat in preparation for the protest, a senior police officer had gone there to prevail on the leadership of the party to shelve their plan to march to the State House of Assembly premises but terminate at the CBN area.

However, the message was not passed on to the supporters who got restive when they were ordered to stop at the CBN junction. They subsequently gathered at the entrance of Government House, dancing and chanting anti-Governor Nyesom Wike songs.

However, while the APC supporters were marching through the CBN area, supporters of the PDP were also marching to the state House of Assembly premises where they said they were to pay a solidarity visit to the assembly Speaker, Rt. Hon. Dabatorudima Adams.

L-R: Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode; Faculty Director, Legatum Centre and member of United Kingdom Prime Minister’s Council for Science and Technology, Professor Fiona Murray, and Associate Provost for International Activities, Professor Richard Lester, during a meeting between the MIT Africa Initiative and Lagos State Government in Boston, Massachusetts, United States...yesterday

House Leadership, Buhari to Meet over Insecurity Reps call for declaration of emergency in Southern Kaduna Damilola Oyedele in Abuja The House of Representatives on Thursday mandated Speaker Yakubu Dogara and other principal officers, to meet with President Muhammadu Buhari and security chiefs over the rising wave of insecurity in Nigeria.

The House leadership is expected to propose the convening of a National Conference on Security to proffer solutions to arrest the trend of herdsmen attacks, kidnapping, armed robbery and other vices, to create an atmosphere of security.

The lawmakers called on the Federal and Kaduna State Governments to declare a security emergency in Southern Kaduna Senatorial District over the recent killing of 43 persons

and destruction of houses in Kauru Local government, by unknown gunmen.

They decried the attacks which they described as incessant in the area, and called for the establishment of a military strike force in the area as an interim measure.

The House further called for the implementation of its resolutions of October 19, 2016 which urged security agencies to intensify efforts to apprehend and prosecute perpetrators of the attacks, following similar attacks last month.

The resolutions followed a motion of urgent public importance sponsored by Hon. Simon Arabo (Kaduna APC) who lamented that the senseless attacks on the region are on the increase despite efforts by the

Government to stem the tide.

Hon. Jagaba Adams Jagaba (Kaduna APC) alleged that the military has not done enough to stop the killings in the area. “...you call them and they tell you that they do not have mandate to act. In some cases, they come and arrest the same people who have asked them for protection, after the attackers have gone,” he said.

Hon. Zakari Mohammed (Kwara APC) contributing to the debate, said the attacks have underscored the need to re-examine laws that regulate the rights of citizens to bear arms.

He also called for the consideration of state police, to enhance security.

“We have to look at these issues seriously else people

would resort to self help.

The problem with self help is that it could cause more harm than the initial harm,” Mohammed said.

Majority Leader, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila warned that the attacks have a tendency to have ripple effect and spread to other parts of the country.

It should therefore not be considered a southern Kaduna problem, he urged.

It should be recalled that on the November 13-14, 2016, armed men attacked Kigam, Kitakum, Ungwan Magaji, Ungwan Rimi, Ungwan Makera and Kizipi villages in Kauru Local government area of Kaduna state, killing 43 persons including women and children, injuring several others, and burning down 65 houses.

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FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2016 • T H I S D AY

NEWS

Jonathan in Sokoto, Condoles with Family of Late Sultan Dasuki, as Youths Hail former President Mohammed Aminu in Sokoto Former President, Goodluck Jonathan, yesterday

commiserated with the government and people of Sokoto State over the death of the 18th Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Ibrahim Dasuki, saying

Kogi PDP Passes Vote of No Confidence on Bello’s Administration Yekini Jimoh in Lokoja The Kogi State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday passed vote of no confidence on the administration of Governor Yahaya Bello, saying he has no value for human lives as the citizens are dying daily of common ailment due to lack of salary.

This was contained in a communique issued at a stakeholders’ meeting of the Kogi West senatorial district of the party held at Rekiya Ogheha Place in Lokoja.

The communique which was jointly signed by the former state Chairman of the party, Alhaji Hassan Salawu, and the Kogi West party Chairman, Taiwo Kola Ojo, stated that the party, after taking a critical look at the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led administration in the state, concluded that the administration has come to spread poverty, hardship and sickness as hundreds of people have been sent to their early graves due to poor economic management and insensitivity to the plights of the people.

They noted that the state has been turned into a punching

bag by the APC even as it deployed the endless screening exercise carried out by the state government, saying several people have lost their lives through road accidents, exhaustion and cardiac arrest over the exercise The party said the APC was running a government of deceit and blackmail, adding that the new direction policy agenda of Bello’s administration was aimed at strangulating the masses and making the poor poorer, adding that almost a year of the administration, nothing so far has been done in the state except “rudderless screening.”

The party also condemned in its entirety the frequent traveling of the governor outside the state, saying it is a flagrant abdication of his responsibility to give quality leadership and good governance.

PDP which called on members to come together and wrest power from the ruling party, said with the prevailing economic condition in the country, it was cleared that APC has failed the people.

The party said it has learnt its lessons in the last election and assured its members that by 2019, it will bounce back to win the governorship seat.

BoI, Oduduwa Foundation Sign MoU on N1b MSME Fund Crusoe Osagie

The Bank of Industry (BoI) and Oduduwa Foundation have unveiled a N1 billion financing scheme for youths and small businesses within the state as part of measures to address youth unemployment and poverty in Ile-Ife, Osun State.

Under the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), the bank will provide loans to youths and businesses in Ile-Ife, Osun State, as well as other beneficiaries outside Ile-Ife, subject to the mutual consent of both parties as long as they meet the prescribed criteria.

Furthermore, the N1 billion Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises’ (MSMEs) fund would be made available for on-lending to entrepreneurs within the agric, agro-allied, solid minerals and services sectors at a concessioned rate of 7.5 per cent.

Speaking at the signing of the agreement in Ile-Ife, Osun State at the weekend, the Acting Managing Director of BoI, Waheed Olagunju explained that the initiative was aimed at reducing youth unemployment in Ile-Ife communities and the country.

According to Olagunju, a substantial part of the loan will be disbursed to women, youth and businesses that show high potential for job and wealth

creation along the value-chain of the identified sectors, as well as capacity to repay the loans.

He said: “We have been partnering with multinational and corporate companies, but today we are collaborating with traditional rulers.

These are people who have access to the grassroots.

Partnering with them is a way of democratising entrepreneurship.

We identify areas in which communities have comparative advantages and invest in them.

The beneficiaries will be selected using the global best practices.

“For this edition, about 15 to 20 per cent of them will be those who deal in local production, especially value-addition. We are working with the Entrepreneurship Development Centre of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife. Applications are expected to be submitted and a joint committee of BoI team, the Oduduwa House and OAU team would access it.

They are to be monitored by members of the committee and elders, especially the traditional rulers”.

Olagunju added that the first batch of potential beneficiaries have been trained by the EDC, as the bank is now building capacity of entrepreneurs before disbursing the funds to them, adding that an at least 5,000 youths will benefit from the initiative.

the deceased believed in the unity of the country.

Speaking during a condolence visit to Sultan Sa’ad Abubakar 111 in his palace in Sokoto yesterday, Jonathan stated that the late Dasuki was a man of peace who believed in peaceful resolution of conflict.

“While I was still in office, I visited late Dasuki in London and we spoke for three hours about the unity of this country.

“Sultan Dasuki strongly believed in the unity of this country and peaceful resolution of crisis. His demise is a period for us to think about how we should live together as

Nigerians, as there can never be peace without development.

“He passed on at a time his wise counsel is highly needed and for him to have survived 93 years is a major achievement,”Jonathan said.

He maintained that the deceased lived a life of service to humanity and that his 93 years on earth was a major achievement.

Jonathan therefore, presented a letter of condolence to the Sultan and prayed for the repose of the soul of the deceased.

Responding, the Sultan assured the former president that the the Sultanate Council

would continue with the good legacies left by late Dasuki.

“We are not crying because we know that God gives and take anytime He wishes. We assure you that we will continue to work in the same direction he pushed us into.

“We will continue to reach out to everybody so that this country will be bettet for all,”he said.

He thanked Jonathan for the visit and wished him well in his future endeavour.

Jonathan was accompanied to the visit by the former governors of Kaduna, Sokoto and Jigawa states, Ahmed

Makarfi, Attahiru Bafarawa and Sule Lamido.

Others were former Minister of Special Duties Kabiru Tanimu, former Minister of State for Health, Haliru Alhassan, former Minister of Foreign Affairs Ambassador Aminu Wali, among others.

Meanwhile, hundreds of youths lined up at the Sultan Abubakar road leading to the palace , chanting the name of Jonathan.

In fact, the youths who came in large numbers, were chanting ‘sai Jonathan’ as the convoy of the former president left the palace.

ANOTHER FEATHER TO DANGOTE’S CAP

L-R: Olubadan of Ibadan, Oba Saliu Adetunji; Aliko Dangote; Ooni of Ife, HRM Enitan Ogunwusi; Sultan of Sokoto, Abubakar Saad, and Emir of Kano, Malam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi during the presentation of an award of Doctoral degree to Dangote...yesterday

Mohammed Seeks Governors’ Support for ‘Change Begins With Me’ Hails revival of centuries-old festival, promises to back event Sunday Okobi The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has canvassed the support of State Governors for the success of the Federal Government’s National Re-orientation Campaign, “Change Begins With Me”, which was launched by President Muhammadu Buhari on 8 Sept.

2016.

The Minister also hailed the revival of the centuries-old ‘’Ijakadi Festival’’ by the Offa Kingdom in Kwara State, assuring that the festival will be one of the beneficiaries of the training for festival managers being planned by the Ministry in collaboration with its partners.

Speaking while formally unveiling the campaign to the Governors’ Forum at a meeting in Abuja on Wednesday night, the Minister specifically requested the Governors to donate generous airtime on their states’ radio and television stations for airing the campaign’s jingles. ‘’We are of the strong belief that your cooperation is absolutely important if the campaign is to

succeed, hence we have taken up this opportunity to formally unveil it to you and to seek your collaboration,’’ he said Alhaji Mohammed informed the Governors that the campaign will soon be launched in their respective states as part of efforts to spread its message.

He said ‘’Change Begins With Me’’ is geared towards achieving an attitudinal change among Nigerians, adding that the campaign has no political, religious or ethnic coloration. ‘’The breakdown in our timetested values, the preference for imported goods, the poor attitude to work, the mindless corruption in our society, the lack of respect for national symbols etc, are not limited to any part of the country, any political party or any religion.

They affect us all,’’ the Minister added.

In their comments, the Governors welcomed the campaign and offered various suggestions to enhance its implementation, including the need to revive Civic Studies in schools and also to translate the campaign to all the indigenous

languages in the country.

Meanwhile, the Minister has hailed the revival of the centuries-old ‘’Ijakadi Festival’’ by the Offa Kingdom in Kwara State, assuring that the festival will be one of the beneficiaries of the training for festival managers being planned by the Ministry in collaboration with its partners.

The Minister gave the assurance in Abuja on Wednesday when he received a delegation of the Offa Descendants Union (ODU), which came to formally invite him to the festival, scheduled for Offa 29 Dec. 2016, on behalf of the town’s monarch.

He said the decision to revive the traditional wrestling festival, which dates back to the 14th century, is in line with the ongoing efforts by the present administration to leverage on the creative industries in the diversification of the nation’s economy.

Alhaji Mohammed said the festival has the potential to attract domestic and international tourists to Offa, thus impacting positively on the economy of the town and the state.

‘’We will provide the enabling environment for the festival, as well as similar ones across the country, to achieve their full potentials,’’ the Minister said, adding that he was ‘’humbled and honoured’’ to receive the delegation that was led by ODU President, Alhaji Najeem Usman Yasin.

While accepting the invitation to attend the festival, he commended the ‘’resilience, honour, principle and industry’’ of the Offa people, saying the qualities are responsible for the uniqueness of the town.

Speaking earlier, the ODU President urged the federal government to support the festival to enable it achieve its full potential and boost culture and tourism in the community as well as the entire Kwara State. ‘’We want the Ijakadi Festival to be included in the list of festivals being promoted by the Ministry because of its rich cultural content,’’ said Alhaji Yasin, who noted that his delegation came to invite the Minister as a Special Guest of Honour.

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2016 • T H I S D AY

57

NEWSXTRA

Senate Drops Ex-Kwara Speaker, Benjamin, Abubakar as NCC Commissioners Confirms Agbamuche-Mbu INEC commissioner, Bage, Galinje Justices of S’Court Arraignment of S’Court Chief Registrar stalled

Omololu Ogunmade and Alex Enumah in Abuja The Senate yesterday rejected the nominations of former Speaker of Kwara State, Pastor Ezekiel Yisa Benjamin, and Saidu Abubakar as non-executive Commissioners of the National Communications Commission (NCC).

While many were not surprised at the rejection of Abubakar who had repeatedly called for scrapping of the Senate, they were however, taken aback that Benjamin who hails from Kwara State, Senate President’s home state, was dropped over a strange claim.

In another development, the arraignment of the Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, Ahmed Gambo Saleh and two others before a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) over allegation of fraud and corruption was yesterday stalled due to the absence of the second defendant.

Benjamin’s rejection by the Senate was predicated on the report presented by the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Communications, Senator Gilbert Nnaji, which had recommended his rejection along with that of Abubakar.

The committee, while recommending Benjamin’s rejection, claimed that his background as a trained nurse “will not put him in good stead to be able to effectively cope with the dynamics of the communications sector if his nomination is confirmed.”

In his own case, Abubakar ran into trouble with the Senate during his screening on October 18, when the committee confronted him with photographs of his frequent protests and calls that the Senate should be scrapped at the gate of the National Assembly. During the screening, the committee asked him if he still believed in his calls.

But Abubakar dared the committee as he reiterated his position that the existence of the Senate was not justifiable, pointing out that the upper chamber was only wasting the nation’s enormous resources by

its existence.

In his report, Nnaji said Abubakar’s response to questions asked by the committee portrayed him as “a candidate who is not prepared for the demands of office such as required of a non-executive commissioner on the Governing Board of the Nigeria Communications Commission.”

The report added: “Mr. Saidu Abubakar could not produce any credible educational certificate for the committee to verify at the screening. He obviously lacks the professional and educational disciplines provided in Section 7(1) (a-h) of the Nigerian Communications Act 2003 which stipulates the qualification of the commission’s board.”

Acting on the committee’s recommendations, the Senate dropped Abubakar and Benjamin but confirmed other nominees, viz: Senator Olabiyi Durojaiye as Chairman of the NCC Governing Board.

Also confirmed were Sunday Dare (Executive Commissioner), Ifeanyi Ararume (Non-executive Commissioner), Clement Omeiza Baiye (Non-Executive Commissioner) and Chief Okoi Obono Obla (Non-Executive Commissioner).

Also yesterday, the Senate confirmed THISDAY Law Editor, May Agbamuche-Mbu (Delta) as INEC Commissioner.

Also confirmed as INEC commissioners were Professor Okechukwu Ibeanu (Anambra), Ahmed Mu’azu (Gombe), Mohammed Kudu Haruna (Niger), Dr. Adekunle Ogunmola (Oyo) and Abubakar Nahuche (Zamfara).

The Senate also confirmed the appointments of Justices Dauda Bage and Paul Galinje as Supreme Court justices.

Meanwhile, apart from Saleh, the others judicial officials arraigned were, the Director of Finance of the apex court, Muhammed Abdulrahman Sharif and the Chief Accountant of the court, Rilwanu Lawal.

They are facing a nine-count criminal charge of allegedly diverting N2.2 billion belonging

FG to Probe Disbursement of N2bn Ecological Fund The federal government has said it will look into the administration of former President Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, over alleged unequal disbursement of N2 billion Ecological Fund to states.

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo disclosed this at the Council Chambers of the Presidential Villa in Abuja while presiding over the National Economic Council (NEC) meeting.

According to online news site, the Cable, the move is sequel to the complaints brought to the NEC by governors over the N2 billion ecological fund purported to have been paid to some states by Jonathan’s

administration “under unclear circumstances and criteria.”

Many governors complained to the council that state governments did not have equal access to the Ecological Fund, alleging political preferences.

While some governors complained that their states did not have equal share of the fund, others said theirs did not get anything at all.

The vice president assured the council that the issue would be properly investigated and broadly reviewed, adding that “forthright counsel” would also be made to the President regarding the matter.

to the Supreme Court.

When the matter was called up yesterday, counsel to the 2nd defendant, Dr. Garba Tetengi (SAN), said his client was unable to appear before the court as he is currently on admission in the hospital.

He therefore urged the court to adjourn the matter to a later date.

Responding, prosecution counsel, Charles Adeogun, who said he would not be objecting the request for adjournment sought by the

second defendant, based on the provisions of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act as regards arraignment in a joint trial, stated that the prosecution was not served with any documents to support the absence of the 2nd defendant.

Trial judge, Justice Abba Mohammed, with the consent of counsel for 1st and 3rd defendants, Abdulakeem Mustapha (SAN) and I. K. Usman (SAN), respectively, adjourned the arraignment to December 15, 2016.

The accused persons were alleged to have agreed to divert N2.2 billion belonging to the Supreme Court into a personal bank account domiciled at the United Bank for Africa Plc account No. 2027642863 and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 96 of the Penal Code Act. The filed charge alleged that the defendants committed criminal breach of trust between 2009 and 2016 when they were entrusted with the property of the apex court.

It was alleged that the defendants obtained gratifications to the tune of N80 million contrary to Section 10 of the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences (ICPC) Act. It was also alleged that a N2.4 million gratification was obtained from Welcon Nigeria Ltd, N16 million from Dean Musa Nig. Ltd, N19 million from Ababia Ventures Ltd, all being private contractors who provided services to the apex court.

ECONOMIC COUNCIL MEETING

L--R: Minister of State for Budget and National Planning, Hajia Zainab Ahmed; Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma, and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo praying during the National Economic Council meeting at the Presidential Villa, Abuja...yesterday GODWIN OMOIGUI.

Fayose: ICC, Others Must Investigate Killing of Shi’ite Members in Kaduna Victor Ogunje, in Ado Ekiti Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose, has called on the International Criminal Court (ICC), Amnesty International and other world bodies to investigate the murder of members of Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN) otherwise known as Shi’ite Muslim group in Zaria, Kaduna State, and Kano State as well as the ongoing killings in Southern Kaduna.

The governor described the detention, since December last year, of the leader of the Shi’ite sect, Ibrahim Zakzaky, and some of his members as inhuman, clear violation of his fundamental human rights and an affront on the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria, saying; “all well-meaning Nigerians must prevail on the federal government to release Zakzaky without further delay.”

Reacting to the latest onslaught on Shi’ite Muslims in Kano State, which reportedly led to the death of over 10

people, Fayose, who spoke through his Special Assistant on Public Communications, Lere Olayinka, said: “Murder of over 300 Nigerians, who are members of the IMN in one day and their burial in mass graves as well as continuous murder of the Shi’ite sect should attract the attention of the ICC.” The governor said he was worried that firearms, which should only be used the last resort, are now being used to prevent Nigerians from expressing their religious faith, adding that; “Under international human rights law governing the use of firearms during policing operations, the intentional use of lethal force is only permitted when strictly unavoidable, to protect life.”

He described the detention of Ibrahim Zakzaky, since last year December as unjustifiable, saying; “In a month time, it will be exactly one year since Ibrahim Zakzaky was arrested and detained without trial.

Reddington Hospital Launches Hi-Tech MRI Centre

Ugo Aliogo

Olutunde Lalude, Group Medical Director, Reddington Hospital The Reddington Hospital at the launch.

The Purple Ray Centre Group Lagos has again raised the bar in provision of excellent of the Reddington Hospital health care service and patients’ which was also relaunched at management in sub-Saharan the event, offers a 1.5T digital Africa as it launched a new MRI with advanced images, Hi-tech Magnetic Resonance 64 Slice CT Scan, Cardiac Imaging (MRI) centre with the Catheterization Laboratory, acquisition of 1.5 Tesla Signa Digital Mammography, Digital Explorer MRI scanner from Fluoroscopy, Digital X-Ray, General Electric (GE) Healthcare. 4D Ultrasound Scan among The new MRI Centre other diagnostic services.

The Chief Executive Officer, which is housed at the Purple Ray Diagnostic Centre of Reddington Hospital Group, Reddington Hospital in Victoria Dr. Yemi Onabowale said Island, Lagos, is a cutting-edge the launch of the MRI centre medical equipment technology coming four weeks after another which delivers clearer, accurate specialist centre, the MAXY digital imaging and reduces the Super Specialty Centre was high noise level and lengthy time launched is an indication of the associated with the conventional hospital’s readiness to provide seamless and quality care in the MRI scanning machines.

“It also has technologies to hospital’s value chain. “We are significantly reduce the duration not playing God but we can of a scan, improve patients assure our patients and all those comfort, gives high image who use our facilities of 100% quality in patients with MRI accuracy in diagnosis, excellent compatible metal joint implants management and care to complete improving its utility in certain recovery and wellness” said Dr. orthopaedic patients “ says Dr. Onabowale.

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T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2016

BUSINESS/MONEYGUIDE

RenCap Faults Assumptions of FG’s 2017 Proposed Budget Obinna Chima The federal government’s optimistic oil production and foreign exchange (FX) rate assumptions, undermine the credibility of the 2017 proposed budget, as presented in the FGN 2017-2019 medium-term expenditure framework, analysts at Renaissance Capital Limite (RenCap) have stated.

“The FGN has maintained what we consider to be its overly optimistic oil production assumption of 2.2mn b/d for 2017 (vs actual production of 1.93mn b/d in 1H16). The FX rate assumption of N290/$1 (vs NGN197/$1 in FY16), also appears to be unrealistic given that the official interbank FX rate is at NGN315/$1 today, the parallel rate at about N450/$1, and there is little prospect of the external position improving in the short term,” RenCap stated in a report yesterday.

It, however, welcomed the federal government’s oil price assumption of $42.5/bl (versus

$38/bl in 2016), describing it as the only realistic assumption, given that the year-to-date oil price is $43/bl.

The federal government plans to increase spending by 13 per cent in 2017 budget, to N6.87 trillion, according to the medium-term expenditure framework. Of that, the government plans to spend N1.77 trillion on capital expenditure.

According to RenCap, that implies an 11 per cent increase in planned capital expenditure in 2017, compared with 2016.

“The budget deficit is projected to widen by 22 per cent to N2.7 trillion which the FGN estimates will come to 2.5 per cent of GDP. Given the dismal real GDP growth outlook for Nigeria in 2017, we think the FGN’s financing gap will be closer to 3.5 per cent of GDP,” it added.

Furthermore, the report showed that of the N2.2 trillion deficit in the 2016 federal government’s budget, only 20 per cent has so far been secured

by the government.

The federal government had planned to finance N1 trillion with foreign loans, and the remaining N1.2trn with domestic borrowing.

When the 2016 budget was signed, the interbank FX rate was N200/$1, which implied a foreign financing requirement of $5 billion. This financing was expected to come in the form of loans of $1 billion each from the World Bank and African Development Bank (AfDB), respectively, a $1billion eurobond issuance, and the remainder from bilateral loans from lenders such as China.

However, in November, Nigeria secured a $600 million loan from the AfDB for budget support. That was the first inflow of the foreign financing that the government was targeting.

“And at today’s official interbank FX rate, it only accounts for about 20 per cent of the foreign borrowing requirement, by our estimate,” RenCap stated.

Global Courier Firm Expands to Nigeria Aramex, one of the leading global provider of comprehensive logistics and transportation solutions, has expressed unwavering confidence in the ability of the Nigerian economy to regain its place as Africa’s biggest and fastest growing economy despite the ongoing recession.

The firm, which is present in 60 countries, yesterday officially announced its commencement of operations in Nigeria.

Speaking at a stakeholders’ event organised to re-launch Aramex in Nigeria, the Chief Executive Officer of Aramex, Hussein Hachem, said the decision to invest in the Nigerian economy, despite current challenges, was a demonstration of its support for the government’s efforts to stabilise the economy and make it once more attractive to global investors.

“We’re committed to offering solutions to help shape the logistics and transportation industry using technologies that will connect Nigeria with the rest of the world, ensuring safety of goods and prompt delivery.

“This is all part of our commitment to finding unique and innovative solutions that continually disrupt and transform the logistics and transportation industries, ultimately helping us main-

tain our market leadership,” Hachem said.

According to him, Aramex has a long-term business strategy for Nigeria, just as it seeks to tap into the opportunities in the country’s youth population.

“Look at Nigeria, it is a population of about 190 million people. Sixty per cent of thus population are youths that are highly connected on the Internet and there is massive usage of mobile phones.

And we believe the time is ripe to connect the Nigerian community to the global revolution of e-Commerce.

“What we want to do is to ensure that a greater population of Nigeria are able to access e-Commerce platforms and be able to buy anything they want through the Internet.

We believe Nigeria is the hub for the region and we would like to connect more Nigerians to their neighbors in the region as well as to the global community,” the Aramex boss added.

He said his firm is currently in talks with the Nigerian Postal Service as part of efforts to drive e-Commerce in the country.

Since its foundation in 1982, Hachem said Aramex has grown to become a world leader in comprehensive transportation and delivery solutions for businesses and

consumers. Its global footprint is extensive and expanding rapidly, with business operations in over 552 major cities across the world.

Its core operations employ over 17,000 transportation professionals.

Aramex also has alliances with over 40 leading international express and logistics providers, expanding its global network to more than 12,000 offices and 66,000 employees serving over 240 countries, he added.

On his part, the Managing Director of Aramex Nigeria, Faisal Jarmakani, said: “Nigeria is a technologically advanced market with a growing economy and strong business environment.

We are pleased to be operating within this space, collaborating and supporting the growing e-commerce and FinTech industries, with the support of NIPOST and other players.

We will continue to leverage technology and innovative solutions to accelerate the growth of our business and enhance customer satisfaction.”

Jarmakani also assured Nigerians that Aramex will scale up the latest innovations being piloted in other operating environments in the Nigerian market, as it remains a priority to provide the best service to clients.

Fidelity Bank Rewards Customers with N8m A total of N8million was won by six customers of Fidelity Bank Plc in the second draw of the bank’s “Get Alert in Million” promo held in Lagos recently. The draw which was for customers across the country, saw the emergence of NSE Stephen, the bank’s customer in Lagos and well as Ismaila Sanni Bello of the northern region emerging as the star prize winners with cash reward of N2 million respectively.

Similarly, Mr. Abdulkareem Gaffar (Abuja), Ojo Augustine

(South South) and two other customers won N1 million each. The bank’s Promo Committee Chairman Obaro Odeghe, said the promo, which is the sixth in a series, would help to deepen financial inclusion, saying that savings would help lift a lot of Nigerians out of poverty.

“The success story has been very encouraging and our customers are increasingly becoming aware of this promo,” he said.

Explaining why some regions were rewarded higher than

others, he said: “It shows you the areas where we have witnessed tremendous growth and it is equally good to reward those areas.

We are beginning to see increasing patronage from the north, that was why you saw N2 million being won from that region.”

The bank’s Divisional Head, Retail Banking, Richard Madiebo said the promo is expected to help lucky winners with cash, just as he urged prospective customers to take advantage of the campaign.

Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma

MARKET INDICATORS MONEY AND CREDIT STATISTICS

(MILLION NAIRA)

MARCH 2016 Broad Money (M2)

21,684,965.22

-- Narrow Money (M1)

9,125,933.16

---- Currency Outside Banks

1,379,187.93

---- Demand Deposits

7,746,745.22

-- Quasi Money

12,559,032.07

Net Foreign Assets (NFA)

7,105,663.47

Net Domestic Assets(NDA)

14,579,301.76

-- Net Domestic Credit (NDC)

24,318,143.03

---- Credit to Government (Net)

2,893,190.01

---- Memo: Credit to Govt. (Net) less FMA

5,004,677.26

---- Memo: Fed. and Mirror Accounts (FMA)

-2,111,487.25

---- Credit to Private Sector (CPS)

21,424,953.01

--Other Assets Net

-9,738,841.27

Reserve Money (Base Money)

5,370,199.87

--Currency in Circulation

1,684,725.89

--Banks Reserves

3,685,473.98 • Source - CBN

MANAGED FUNDS Initial Price (N) Stanbic Balanced Fund

Buying Price(N)

Selling Price

1,660.29

1,685.29

Stanbic IBTC NEF

1,000.00

11,002.32

11,326.67.11

Stanbic SIBond

20

120.47

120.47

Stanbic IBTC Ethical

1

1.10

1.13

Stanbic IBTC GIF

142.90

143.38

UBA Balanced Fund

1.2563

1.2493

UBA Bond Fund

1.3443

1.3443

UBA Equity Fund

0.8205

0.8074

UBA Money Market Fund

1.1510

1.1510

ARM Aggressive Growth Fund

N13.0544

N13.4480

ARM Discovery Fund

N288.2515

N296.9425

ARM Ethical Fund

N22.5268

N23.2060

ARM Money Market Fund

13.1030 (Yield % ) • Monetary Policy Rate - 13%

OPEC DAILY BASKET PRICE AS AT, WEDNESDAY, 16 NOV 2016 The price of OPEC basket of fourteen crudes stood at $42.90 a barrel on Wednesday, compared with $41.84 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations.

The new OPEC Reference Basket of Crudes (ORB) is made up of the following: Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Oriente (Ecuador), Rabi Light (Gabon), Minas (Indonesia), Iran Heavy (Islamic Republic of Iran), Basra Light (Iraq), Kuwait Export (Kuwait), Es Sider (Libya), Bonny Light (Nigeria), Qatar Marine (Qatar), Arab Light (Saudi Arabia), Murban (UAE) and Merey (Venezuela).

SOURCE: OPEC headquarters, Vienna

59

T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2016

Nigeria’s top 50 stocks based on market fundamentals

17-Nov-16

16-Nov-16

% Change

Capitalisation

EPS

P/E

P/S

Div. Yld

Price/ Book Value

Table 1 Market Statistics Mkt Indicators

01 Dangote Cement Plc

161.50

161.50

0.00%

2,752,041,945,907.50

9.20

17.55

4.84

4.95%

3.68

02 Nigerian Breweries Plc

141.19

142.03

-0.59%

1,119,509,754,376.72

4.03

34.99

3.71

2.55%

6.83

03 Nestle Nigeria Plc

800.00

800.00

0.00%

634,125,001,600.00

8.81

90.79

3.67

3.63%

20.09

04 Guaranty Trust Bank Plc

21.40

21.50

-0.47%

629,827,235,393.60

4.90

4.37

1.57

8.27%

1.28

Thisday BGL 50 Index Thisday BGL 50 Market Cap (N'Trillion)

05 Zenith Bank Plc

14.12

14.18

-0.42%

443,318,492,258.32

3.91

3.61

0.93

12.75%

0.64

Table 3 Top 5 Gainers

06 Lafarge Africa Plc

44.10

44.10

0.00%

200,871,169,821.00

-9.39

-4.70

0.94

6.80%

0.99

Stock

361.00

361.00

0.00%

199,745,022,993.00 -44.58

-8.10

2.57

4.41%

0.51

08 Ecobank Transnational Incorporated

10.00

9.71

2.99%

183,495,512,150.00

0.68

14.78

0.31

6.20%

0.29

09 Unilever Nigeria Plc

48.00

48.00

0.00%

181,598,220,000.00

0.69

69.35

2.74

0.10%

19.36

10 Presco Plc

43.85

43.85

0.00%

174,105,418,423.25

0.03

2.44

2.96%

4.16

5.50

5.40

1.85%

159,103,843,970.50

2.59

2.13

0.45

10.00%

0.36

15.80

15.98

-1.13%

158,000,000,000.00

2.04

7.76

1.13

0.63%

1.34

07 Seplat Petroleum Dev. Co. Ltd

11 Access Bank Plc 12 Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc 13 United Bank for Africa Plc

4.25

4.23

0.47%

154,187,986,868.50

1.75

2.43

0.46

14.12%

0.36

14 Guinness Nig Plc

89.00

89.00

0.00%

134,024,048,732.00

-3.06

-29.10

1.30

3.60%

3.40

15 FBN Holdings Plc

3.06

3.06

0.00%

109,839,595,943.52

0.21

14.75

0.21

4.90%

0.18

82.67

87.02

-5.00%

107,676,112,785.01

3.31

25.00

0.70

4.17%

2.49

17 Total Nigeria Plc

276.03

290.00

-4.82%

93,718,212,667.11

38.02

7.26

0.35

5.07%

4.11

18 7-Up Bottling Comp. Plc

129.36

129.36

0.00%

82,866,769,357.68

-0.05

0.89

1.70%

3.73

6.31

6.30

0.16%

75,720,000,000.00

1.03

6.15

0.53

7.92%

1.22

195.00

195.00

0.00%

70,316,076,090.00

19.32

10.09

0.77

3.69%

3.80

21 International Breweries Plc

19.80

19.89

-0.45%

65,226,135,744.00

0.02

878.75

2.45

1.26%

5.95

22 Julius Berger Nig. Plc

38.00

38.00

0.00%

50,160,000,000.00

-2.95

-12.90

0.43

3.95%

2.64

23 Flour Mills Nig. Plc

17.94

17.94

0.00%

47,078,815,134.78

-1.19

-15.04

0.11

11.15%

0.47

3.78

3.70

2.16%

45,490,859,419.32

-3.15

-1.20

0.18

19.84%

0.29

25 Okomu Oil Palm Plc

42.47

42.47

0.00%

40,512,557,700.00

4.82

8.80

6.16

0.24%

2.51

26 U A C N Plc

17.76

17.76

0.00%

34,114,551,513.12

3.37

5.27

0.45

5.63%

0.45

27 Transnational Corporation Of Nigeria Plc

0.72

0.73

-1.37%

27,879,118,146.00

-0.47

-1.54

0.53

0.00%

0.38

28 Fidelity Bank Plc

0.79

0.76

3.95%

22,880,442,696.68

0.39

2.04

0.15

20.25%

0.12

32.07

33.74

-4.95%

22,449,000,000.00

2.28

14.04

3.37

3.59%

13.12

30 Custodian And Allied Insurance Plc

3.75

3.75

0.00%

22,056,990,731.25

0.76

4.91

0.60

3.73%

0.77

31 Wema Bank Plc

0.57

0.59

-3.39%

21,987,445,666.17

0.06

9.57

0.43

0.00%

0.46

32 FCMB Group Plc

1.06

1.08

-1.85%

20,990,873,427.86

0.61

1.73

0.13

9.43%

0.12

33 National Salt Co. Nig. Plc

7.88

7.51

4.93%

20,877,574,418.64

0.85

9.28

1.11

6.98%

2.82

34 Sterling Bank Plc

0.71

0.72

-1.39%

20,441,196,869.46

0.29

2.47

0.19

12.68%

0.25

35 Diamond Bank Plc

0.87

0.90

-3.33%

20,149,538,402.16

-0.29

-2.96

0.10

0.00%

0.09

36 Mansard Insurance Plc

1.80

1.80

0.00%

18,900,000,000.00

0.28

6.46

0.94

2.78%

0.90

37 Cadbury Nigeria Plc

10.05

10.57

-4.92%

18,875,930,502.00

0.50

20.13

0.67

12.94%

1.85

38 Glaxo Smithkline Consumer Nig. Plc

13.54

14.25

-4.98%

16,192,167,647.52

-2.98

-4.54

0.58

2.22%

1.84

39 PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc

15.77

15.77

0.00%

15,770,000,000.00

5.69

2.77

1.10

0.63%

0.42

40 Continental Reinsurance Plc

1.04

1.01

2.97%

10,787,654,084.48

0.42

2.48

0.49

11.54%

0.58

41 Honeywell Flour Mill Plc

1.09

1.04

4.81%

8,643,915,447.22

-0.40

-2.70

0.18

14.68%

0.26

42 Skye Bank Plc

0.52

0.53

-1.89%

7,217,756,733.20

-2.93

-0.18

0.04

57.69%

0.07

43 Wapic Insurance Plc

0.50

0.50

0.00%

6,691,369,126.00

0.18

2.78

0.85

6.00%

0.41

44 Unity Bank Plc

0.54

0.54

0.00%

6,312,242,488.68

-0.10

-5.27

0.10

0.00%

0.08

45 Resort Savings & Loans Plc

0.50

0.50

0.00%

5,664,866,202.00

0.03

17.71

3.72

0.00%

1.94

46 Cement Co. Of North.Nig. Plc

4.48

4.48

0.00%

5,629,916,391.68

0.22

20.46

0.51

2.23%

0.52

47 UACN Property Development Co. Limited

2.80

2.80

0.00%

4,812,499,986.00

0.30

9.36

1.14

25.00%

0.14

48 AIICO Insurance Plc

0.60

0.58

3.45%

4,158,122,688.00

0.22

2.69

0.14

8.33%

0.41

49 Nigerian Aviation Handling Company Plc

2.25

2.36

-4.66%

3,654,492,187.50

0.15

14.89

0.45

8.89%

0.61

50 Fidson Healthcare Plc

1.23

1.29

-4.65%

1,845,000,000.00

0.24

5.23

0.28

4.07%

0.29

16 Forte Oil Plc.

19 Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc 20 Mobil Oil Nig Plc

24 Oando Plc

29 Cap Plc

TOTAL

8,281,541,452,691.43

TOTAL MARKET CAP

8,812,503,866,468.62

% OF MARKET CAP Annotation - MA* = Simple Moving Average

93.97%

NSE All Share Index NSE Market Cap (N'Trillion)

Open 16-Nov-16

Close 17-Nov-16

Change %

25,653.14 8.83

25,599.79 8.81

-0.21% -0.21%

106.58 8.30

106.36 8.28

-0.21% -0.21%

Open Close Change 16-Nov-16 17-Nov-16 %

National Salt Co. Nig. Plc Honeywell Flour Mill Plc Fidelity Bank Plc AIICO Insurance Plc Ecobank Transnational Incorporated

7.51 1.04 0.76 0.58 9.71

7.88 1.09 0.79 0.60 10.00

4.93% 4.81% 3.95% 3.45% 2.99%

Table 4 Top 5 Losers Stock

Open Close Change 16-Nov-16 17-Nov-16 %

Forte Oil Plc. Glaxo Smithkline Consumer Nig. Plc Cap Plc Cadbury Nigeria Plc Total Nigeria Plc

87.02 14.25

82.67 -5.00% 13.54 -4.98%

33.74 10.57 290.00

32.07 -4.95% 10.05 -4.92% 276.03 -4.82%

Market extends bearish trend as Index drops by 0.21% Market pulse on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) today – Thursday, November 17th, 2016 extends bearish trend as stock market again closed red due to lingering economic uncertainties. This was further highlighted by negative performances from the NSE Sub sectors: Consumer Goods and Oil & Gas (Save Banking and Insurance). Trading activities decreased in spite of increase in volume to 162 million shares worth of N1.19 billion in 2,086 deals exchanged hands today. This is a decrease from the 146 million shares worth of N1.35 billion in 2,421 deals which exchanged hands on Wednesday. Topping in volume terms were Zenith Bank Plc, Access Bank Plc and United Bank for Africa Plc, while Guaranty Trust Bank Plc and Nigerian Breweries Plc ended trading as the most active stocks in value terms.

The All Share Index (NSEASI) closed negative with 0.21% (-53.35) decrease to close at 25,599.79 from 25,653.14 the previous trading day. Market Capitalization depreciated in tandem to N8.28 trillion from N8.30 trillion of prior trading day. Similarly, the Thisday BGL 50 Index followed suit with a similar decrease of 0.21% to close at 106.36 from 106.58 recorded at the end of the previous trading day, while its market capitalization stood at 8.28 trillion from 8.30 trillion of the previous trading day.

A total number of 14 stocks gained on the bourse today while 24 stocks declined, 61 leaving stocks unchanged. National Salt Co. Nig. Plc merged as the day’s toast of investors as it topped the Thisday BGL 50 Index gainers’ list with a gain of 4.93% to close at N7.88 per share. It was followed by Honeywell Flour Mill Plc with a gain of 4.81% to close at N1.09 per share. Others on the gainers list include: Fidelity Bank Plc, AIICO Insurance Plc and Ecobank Transnational Incorporated; while on the decliners’ list, Forte Oil Plc with a loss of 5.00% to close at N82.67 per share. It was followed by Glaxo SmithKline Consumer Nig. Plc with a loss of 4.98% to close at N13.54 per share.

Others on the decliners list include: Cap Plc, Cadbury Nigeria Plc and Total Nigeria Plc.

REQUIRED DISCLOSURE This report has been prepared by BGL Plc. BGL Plc does and seeks to do business with companies covered in its research reports. As a result, the firm may have a conflict of interest that could affect the objectivity of this report. Investors should use this report as one of many other factors in making their investment decisions.

For more details go to www.thisdaylive.com

60

T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2016

MARKET NEWS

Forte Oil Plc Raises N9bn 5-year Fixed Rate Bond Goddy Egene and Nosa Alekhuogie Forte Oil Plc, an integrated energy service provider, has successfully raised N9billion bond under its N50billion bond issuance programme.

The funds raised will be used to refinance existing short term commercial bank loan obligations and to finance the retail outlet expansion of the

company. The company has an Issuer rating of A- long term and A1- short term rating by the Global Credit Rating Company (GCR).

Speaking on the development, the Group Chief Executive Officer, Forte Oil, Mr. Akin Akinfemiwa said: “With the raising of this initial capital which has been fully underwritten shows the confidence the investing public has in Forte Oil

T H E MAIN BOARD

DEALS

MARKET PRICE

Plc as an investment of choice.

This bond programme being the first in the downstream sector, is testament to Forte’s position within the downstream sector and allows the company to actualise the vision of the Board to continue to provide value to its shareholders regardless of the economic climate.”

In his comments, the Group Executive Director, Finance

N I G E R I A N QUANTITY TRADED

STO C K

VALUE TRADED ( N )

Daily Summary as of 22/02/2016 Printed 22/02/2016 14:36:10.010

Daily Summary (Bonds) No Debt Trading Activity Daily Summary (Equities) Activity Summary on Board EQTY AGRICULTURE Crop Production OKOMU OIL PALM PLC. PRESCO PLC Crop Production Totals Livestock/Animal Specialties LIVESTOCK FEEDS PLC. Livestock/Animal Specialties Totals AGRICULTURE Totals CONGLOMERATES Diversified Industries A.G. LEVENTIS NIGERIA PLC. TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATION OF NIGERIA PLC U A C N PLC. Diversified Industries Totals CONGLOMERATES Totals CONSTRUCTION/REAL ESTATE Infrastructure/Heavy Construction JULIUS BERGER NIG. PLC. Infrastructure/Heavy Construction Totals Real Estate Development UACN PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT CO. LIMITED Real Estate Development Totals CONSTRUCTION/REAL ESTATE Totals CONSUMER GOODS Beverages--Brewers/Distillers CHAMPION BREW. PLC. GUINNESS NIG PLC INTERNATIONAL BREWERIES PLC. NIGERIAN BREW. PLC. Beverages--Brewers/Distillers Totals Beverages--Non-Alcoholic 7-UP BOTTLING COMP. PLC. Beverages--Non-Alcoholic Totals Food Products DANGOTE SUGAR REFINERY PLC FLOUR MILLS NIG. PLC. HONEYWELL FLOUR MILL PLC NASCON ALLIED INDUSTRIES PLC N NIG. FLOUR MILLS PLC. TIGER BRANDED CONSUMER GOODS PLC Food Products Totals Food Products--Diversified CADBURY NIGERIA PLC. NESTLE NIGERIA PLC. Food Products--Diversified Totals Household Durables VITAFOAM NIG PLC. Household Durables Totals Personal/Household Products P Z CUSSONS NIGERIA PLC. UNILEVER NIGERIA PLC. Personal/Household Products Totals CONSUMER GOODS Totals FINANCIAL SERVICES Banking ACCESS BANK PLC. DIAMOND BANK PLC ECOBANK TRANSNATIONAL INCORPORATED FIDELITY BANK PLC GUARANTY TRUST BANK PLC. SKYE BANK PLC STERLING BANK PLC. UNITED BANK FOR AFRICA PLC UNION BANK NIG.PLC. UNITY BANK PLC WEMA BANK PLC. Banking Totals Insurance Carriers, Brokers and Services AIICO INSURANCE PLC. CONTINENTAL REINSURANCE PLC CONSOLIDATED HALLMARK INSURANCE PLC LASACO ASSURANCE PLC. AXAMANSARD INSURANCE PLC N.E.M INSURANCE CO (NIG) PLC. UNITY KAPITAL ASSURANCE PLC WAPIC INSURANCE PLC Insurance Carriers, Brokers and Services Totals Micro-Finance Banks NPF MICROFINANCE BANK PLC Micro-Finance Banks Totals Other Financial Institutions AFRICA PRUDENTIAL REGISTRARS PLC CUSTODIAN AND ALLIED PLC FCMB GROUP PLC. STANBIC IBTC HOLDINGS PLC UNITED CAPITAL PLC Other Financial Institutions Totals FINANCIAL SERVICES Totals HEALTHCARE Pharmaceuticals FIDSON HEALTHCARE PLC

and Risk, Forte Oil said: “This series provides us with the necessary liquidity to actualize our growth strategies and positions the company for the years ahead. The pricing of this debt instrument demonstrates the markets’ belief in us and the pricing would help reduce our borrowing cost and increase profitability in the short and long term.”

According to them the bonds

6 6 12

30.00 34.00

12,629 11,640 24,269

374,530.15 421,345.20 795,875.35

19 19 31

1.25

1,078,511 1,078,511 1,102,780

1,358,964.30 1,358,964.30 2,154,839.65

5 68 13 86 86

0.77 1.13 20.47

33,500 6,740,423 65,995 6,839,918 6,839,918

25,070.00 7,635,453.96 1,344,425.15 9,004,949.11 9,004,949.11

13 13

41.50

31,970 31,970

1,409,214.78 1,409,214.78

5 5 18

5.20

28,901 28,901 60,871

154,716.48 154,716.48 1,563,931.26

6 24 7 98 135

2.85 118.85 20.00 99.00

190,900 53,000 15,200 429,541 688,641

528,079.00 6,201,924.95 293,757.00 42,728,789.84 49,752,550.79

9 9

168.50

166,476 166,476

28,285,937.95 28,285,937.95

54 38 6 12 1 29 140

5.61 19.00 1.37 6.86 6.65 1.27

2,120,306 314,421 40,000 119,863 433 3,285,739,119 3,288,334,142

11,610,520.13 5,953,792.96 55,716.00 842,442.48 2,736.56 4,074,348,894.07 4,092,814,102.20

11 54 65

17.86 700.00

18,825 98,360 117,185

329,518.50 68,567,962.00 68,897,480.50

11 11

4.46

99,050 99,050

420,455.00 420,455.00

13 21 34 394

21.90 28.00

36,887 133,117 170,004 3,289,575,498

820,034.75 3,737,067.92 4,557,102.67 4,244,727,629.11

82 51 21 25 200 41 16 147 11 15 67 676

4.10 1.49 15.60 1.21 16.70 1.07 1.76 2.95 5.30 0.63 0.98

3,962,506 2,163,396 278,470 790,900 4,847,312 1,969,858 1,204,932 8,586,418 39,752 501,617 5,920,564 30,265,725

16,210,255.82 3,314,106.88 4,136,459.40 958,864.34 80,963,793.44 2,115,552.11 2,087,767.85 25,302,954.71 205,645.40 316,018.71 5,813,502.17 141,424,920.83

14 8 2 3 7 10 1 1 46

0.80 0.90 0.50 0.50 2.06 0.76 0.50 0.50

200,107 276,500 5,004,000 1,000,000 351,540 327,285 37,708,135 10 44,867,577

160,838.67 251,350.00 2,502,000.00 500,000.00 720,728.80 245,325.31 18,854,067.50 5.00 23,234,315.28

1 1

1.08

4,760 4,760

4,950.40 4,950.40

31 7 105 7 20 170 893

2.46 4.00 0.85 14.15 1.31

1,149,464 27,041 31,257,120 38,035 708,255 33,179,915 108,317,977

2,830,722.84 104,002.06 26,613,309.20 537,985.34 931,556.31 31,017,575.75 195,681,762.26

27

2.69

614,065

1,572,223.05

will be listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) and FMDQ OTC Securities Exchange until maturity date in 2021. United Capital Plc served as the lead financial advisor/issuing house to this transaction while Boston Advisory Limited, FBN Capital Limited, Planet Capital Limited and Vetiva Capital Management Limited served as joint financial advisors/issuing.

Meanwhile, the equities market maintained its losing streak for the fourth consecutive yesterday as the NSE All-Share Index fell by 0.21 per cent to close at 25,599.79. Similarly, market capitalisation shed N18.4 billion to close at N8.7 trillion. Year-to-date decline of the NSE stood at 10.61 per cent. At the close of trading 25 stocks depreciated in value, while 14 stocks appreciated.

E XC H A N G E

MAIN BOARD GLAXO SMITHKLINE CONSUMER NIG. PLC. MAY & BAKER NIGERIA PLC. NEIMETH INTERNATIONAL PHARMACEUTICALS PLC Pharmaceuticals Totals HEALTHCARE Totals ICT IT Services TRIPPLE GEE AND COMPANY PLC. IT Services Totals ICT Totals INDUSTRIAL GOODS Building Materials ASHAKA CEM PLC BERGER PAINTS PLC CAP PLC CEMENT CO. OF NORTH.NIG. PLC PORTLAND PAINTS & PRODUCTS NIGERIA PLC LAFARGE AFRICA PLC. Building Materials Totals Electronic and Electrical Products CUTIX PLC. Electronic and Electrical Products Totals Packaging/Containers BETA GLASS CO PLC. Packaging/Containers Totals INDUSTRIAL GOODS Totals OIL AND GAS Energy Equipment and Services JAPAUL OIL & MARITIME SERVICES PLC Energy Equipment and Services Totals Integrated Oil and Gas Services OANDO PLC Integrated Oil and Gas Services Totals Petroleum and Petroleum Products Distributors CONOIL PLC ETERNA PLC. FORTE OIL PLC. MOBIL OIL NIG PLC. TOTAL NIGERIA PLC. Petroleum and Petroleum Products Distributors Totals Exploration and Production SEPLAT PETROLEUM DEVELOPMENT COMPANY LTD Exploration and Production Totals OIL AND GAS Totals SERVICES Automobile/Auto Part Retailers R T BRISCOE PLC. Automobile/Auto Part Retailers Totals Courier/Freight/Delivery RED STAR EXPRESS PLC Courier/Freight/Delivery Totals Printing/Publishing LEARN AFRICA PLC Printing/Publishing Totals Transport-Related Services AIRLINE SERVICES AND LOGISTICS PLC NIGERIAN AVIATION HANDLING COMPANY PLC Transport-Related Services Totals Support and Logistics CAVERTON OFFSHORE SUPPORT GRP PLC Support and Logistics Totals SERVICES Totals EQTY Board Totals Daily Summary (Equities) Activity Summary on Board ASeM CONSUMER GOODS Food Products MCNICHOLS PLC Food Products Totals CONSUMER GOODS Totals ASeM Board Totals Daily Summary (Equities) Activity Summary on Board PREMIUM FINANCIAL SERVICES Banking ZENITH INTERNATIONAL BANK PLC Banking Totals Other Financial Institutions FBN HOLDINGS PLC Other Financial Institutions Totals FINANCIAL SERVICES Totals INDUSTRIAL GOODS Building Materials DANGOTE CEMENT PLC Building Materials Totals INDUSTRIAL GOODS Totals PREMIUM Board Totals Equity Activity Totals

DEALS

MARKET PRICE

QUANTITY TRADED

VALUE TRADED ( N)

32 4 6 69 69

25.33 0.94 0.69

551,998 16,020 597,000 1,779,083 1,779,083

13,903,164.18 15,299.40 412,110.00 15,902,796.63 15,902,796.63

1 1 1

1.69

500 500 500

805.00 805.00 805.00

16 9 4 6 10 31 76

24.00 9.30 35.78 8.62 3.36 80.50

110,727 40,229 26,700 142,300 299,900 14,373,223 14,993,079

2,707,053.97 362,501.29 992,680.00 1,227,076.00 966,480.00 1,157,057,077.16 1,163,312,868.42

6 6

1.51

134,500 134,500

204,240.00 204,240.00

5 5 87

50.00

24,529 24,529 15,152,108

1,165,135.50 1,165,135.50 1,164,682,243.92

2 2

0.50

24,262 24,262

12,131.00 12,131.00

90 90

3.47

3,827,573 3,827,573

13,288,632.05 13,288,632.05

21 7 8 21 7 64

18.34 1.84 342.00 150.00 145.00

81,125 100,300 20,300 16,295 13,699 231,719

1,505,034.50 182,832.00 6,595,470.00 2,396,080.60 1,959,692.96 12,639,110.06

33 33 189

318.00

389,934 389,934 4,473,488

124,037,602.56 124,037,602.56 149,977,475.67

1 1

0.50

941 941

470.50 470.50

5 5

3.80

32,870 32,870

127,756.40 127,756.40

13 13

0.89

624,500 624,500

538,430.00 538,430.00

1 22 23

2.29 4.00

4,588 251,094 255,682

10,001.84 1,001,583.80 1,011,585.64

1 1 43 1,811

1.68

10,000 10,000 923,993 3,428,226,216

16,000.00 16,000.00 1,694,242.54 5,785,390,675.15

2 2 2 2

1.21

270,464 270,464 270,464 270,464

327,261.44 327,261.44 327,261.44 327,261.44

306 306

11.45

13,929,679 13,929,679

159,605,439.23 159,605,439.23

278 278 584

3.74

10,438,552 10,438,552 24,368,231

39,515,087.18 39,515,087.18 199,120,526.41

35 35 35 619 2,432

139.83

38,770 38,770 38,770 24,407,001 3,452,903,681

5,304,666.00 5,304,666.00 5,304,666.00 204,425,192.41 5,990,143,129.00

2 2 2 2 2 10 10 10

2,330.00 2.33 6.02 11.09 18.07

3,000 20 20 20 15 3,075 3,075 3,075

6,986,000.00 46.70 120.20 221.80 270.65 6,986,659.35 6,986,659.35 6,986,659.35

Daily Summary (ETP) Exchange Traded Fund Name NEWGOLD EXCHANGE TRADED FUND (ETF) VETIVA BANKING ETF VETIVA CONSUMER GOODS ETF VETIVA GRIFFIN 30 ETF VETIVA INDUSTRIAL ETF Exchange Traded Fund Totals ETF Board Totals ETP Activity Totals

61

T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2016

MARKET NEWS

Strategic Plan Boosts Access Bank’s Profit by 72% in Two Years Goddy Egene Access Bank Plc grew its profit by 72 per cent between 2013 and 2014 following effectively execution of its five-year strategic plan from 2013 to 2017.

Speaking at the Access Bank Investor Day in Lagos yesterday, the Group Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer of the bank, Mr. Herbert Wigwe, said: “We have delivered strong and consistent results, which reflects our resolve to effectively execute our strategy and consistently

deliver on our promise.”

According to him, the bank grew its profit before tax from N43.5 billion in 2013 to N75 billion in 2015, while customer deposits improved by 26 per cent to N1.68 trillion, from N1.33 trillion in 2013. Loans and advances improved by 74 per cent to N1.41 trillion, from N811 billion in 2013, while total assets rose by 41 per cent from N1.84 trillion to N2.59 trillion.

Wigwe disclosed that since 2013, Access Bank has driven its bold strategy through increased

A Mutual fund (Unit Trust) is an investment vehicle managed by a SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) registered Fund Manager.

Investors with similar objectives buy units of the Fund so that the Fund Manager can buy securities that willl generate their desired return.

An ETF (Exchange Traded Fund) is a type of fund which owns the assets (shares of stock, bonds, oil futures, gold bars, foreign currency, etc.) and divides ownership of those assets into shares. Investors can buy these ‘shares’ on the

focus on the transformation of its operating model, noting that “our goal is to rank in the top three position in our chosen markets and across key financial metrics by 2017.”

He said the bank adopted a proactive risk management culture with moderate risk appetite, risk-based performance measurement / reward through risk-adjusted return on capital methods, which led to stable asset quality, sustainable and global best risk practice.

He added that the bank

floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

A REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust) is an investment vehicle that allows both small and large investors to part-own real estate ventures (eg.

Offices, Houses, Hospitals) in proportion to their investments. The assets are divided into shares that are traded on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

GUIDE TO DATA: Date: All fund prices are quoted in Naira as at 16-Nov-2016, unless otherwise stated.

ensured disciplined capital plan in alignment with its five-year rolling strategic plan, and optimised capital structure to provide adequate headroom to support the growth of the business “This led capital buffers above regulatory thresholds and economic capital requirement as defined by Internal Capital Adequacy Process (ICAAP), robust capital structure to optimise our operations and wealth creation,” he said.

He added that Access Bank

has been leveraging technological innovation to provide pioneering service initiatives, driving the adoption and utilisation of digital banking channels.

“This has improved service touch points, increasing retail footprint and market share, improved cost of funds, sustainable growth in e-channel income,” he said.

The Access Bank boss noted that as part of strategy to de-risk its business, the bank avoided seemingly risky exposures to the power and downstream oil and

gas sectors and controlled loan growth within set guidance.

Looking ahead, Wigwe said the key areas of focus in 2017 will be achieve controlled loan growth within approved guidance, effective foreign exchange liquidity management and effective execution of strategic cost reduction programme.

He said the bank is targeting a return on equity of 22 per cent at the end of 2017, up from 14.8 per cent in 2013 and 18.8 per cent as at September 30, 2016.

Offer price: The price at which units of a trust or ETF are bought by investors.

Bid Price: The price at which Investors redeem (sell) units of a trust or ETF. Yield/Total Return: Denotes the total return an investor would have earned on his investment. Money Market Funds report Yield while others report Year- to-date Total Return.

NAV: Is value per share of the real estate assets held by a REIT on a specific date.

DAILY PRICE LIST FOR MUTUAL FUNDS, REITS and ETFS MUTUAL FUNDS / UNIT TRUSTS AFRINVEST ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.afrinvest.com; Tel: +234 1 270 1680 Fund Name Bid Price Afrinvest Equity Fund 120.89 Nigeria International Debt Fund 219.25 ALTERNATIVE CAPITAL PARTNERS LTD Web: www.acapng.com, Tel: +234 1 291 2406, +234 1 291 2868 Fund Name Bid Price ACAP Canary Growth Fund 0.68 AIICO CAPITAL LTD Web: www.aiicocapital.com, Tel: +234-1-2792974 Fund Name Bid Price AIICO Money Market Fund ARM INVESTMENT MANAGERS LTD Web: www.arm.com.ng; Tel: 0700 CALLARM (0700 225 5276) Fund Name ARM Aggressive Growth Fund ARM Discovery Fund ARM Ethical Fund ARM Money Market Fund AXA MANSARD INVESTMENTS LIMITED Web: www.axamansard.com; Tel: +2341-4488482 Fund Name AXA Mansard Equity Income Fund AXA Mansard Money Market Fund CHAPELHILL DENHAM MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.chapelhilldenham.com, Tel: +234 461 0691 Fund Name Nigeria Global Investment Fund Paramount Equity Fund Women's Investment Fund FBN CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.fbnquest.com; Tel: +234-81 0082 0082 Fund Name FBN Fixed Income Fund FBN Heritage Fund FBN Money Market Fund FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Institutional FBN Nigeria Eurobond (USD) Fund - Retail FBN Nigeria Smart Beta Equity Fund FIRST CITY ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.fcamltd.com; Tel: +234 1 462 2596 Fund Name Legacy Equity Fund Legacy Short Maturity (NGN) Fund FSDH ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.fsdhaml.com; Tel: 01-270 4884-5; 01-280 9740-1 Fund Name Coral Growth Fund

100.00

aaml@afrinvest.com Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn 121.72 10.91% 220.37 9.54% info@acapng.com Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn 0.69 10.10% ammf@aiicocapital.com Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

100.00

15.68%

enquiries@arminvestmentcenter.com Bid Price 12.12 282.92 22.29

Offer Price 12.48 291.45 22.96

Yield / T-Rtn -0.55% 1.22% 1.09%

1.00

1.00

15.39%

investmentcare@axamansard.com Bid Price 102.49

Offer Price 103.13

Yield / T-Rtn 2.81%

1.00 1.00 14.53% investmentmanagement@chapelhilldenham.com Bid Price 2.12 9.01

Offer Price 2.18 9.25

Yield / T-Rtn 4.37% -8.52%

82.85

84.89

2.09%

invest@fbnquest.com Bid Price 1,076.73 109.49 100.00 $101.31 $101.10 108.46

Offer Price 1,077.81 110.01 100.00 $102.21 $102.01

Yield / T-Rtn 5.06% 3.83% 13.41% 5.20% 4.99%

109.94

9.20%

fcamhelpdesk@fcmb.com Bid Price 0.91 2.53

Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn 0.93 1.10% 2.53 8.70% coralfunds@fsdhgroup.com

Bid Price 2,172.76

Offer Price 2,197.59

Coral Income Fund 2,069.77 INVESTMENT ONE FUNDS MANAGEMENT LTD Web: www.investment-one.com; Tel: +234 812 992 1045,+234 1 448 8888 Fund Name Bid Price

Yield / T-Rtn -0.12%

2,069.77 9.41% enquiries@investment-one.com Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

Vantage Guaranteed Income Fund

1.00

1.00

15.20%

Vantage Balanced Fund

1.64

1.65

0.37%

LOTUS CAPITAL LTD fincon@lotuscapitallimited.com Web: www.lotuscapitallimited.com; Tel: +234 1-291 4626 / +234 1-291 4624 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Lotus Halal Investment Fund 0.99 1.01 11.53% Lotus Halal Fixed Income Fund 996.30 996.30 -0.37% MERISTEM WEALTH MANAGEMENT LTD info@meristemwealth.com Web: www.meristemwealth.com ; Tel: +234 1-4488260 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Meristem Equity Market Fund 9.24 9.32 -5.56% Meristem Money Market Fund 10.00 10.00 13.95% PAC ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD info@pacassetmanagement.com Web: www.pacassetmanagement.com/mutualfunds; Tel: +234 1 271 8632 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn PACAM Balanced Fund 1.04 1.05 5.21% PACAM Fixed Income Fund 10.35 10.42 3.86% SCM CAPITAL LIMITED info@scmcapitalng.com Web: www.scmcapitalng.com; Tel: +234 1-280 2226,+234 1- 280 2227 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn SCM Capital Frontier Fund 107.74 108.47 5.75% SFS CAPITAL NIGERIA LTD investments@sfsnigeria.com Web: www.sfsnigeria.com, Tel: +234 (01) 2801400 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn SFS Fixed Income Fund 1.23 1.23 8.95% STANBIC IBTC ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD assetmanagement@stanbicibtc.com Web: www.stanbicibtcassetmanagement.com; Tel: +234 1 280 1266; 0700 MUTUALFUNDS Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Stanbic IBTC Balanced Fund 1,801.62 1,811.80 7.27% Stanbic IBTC Bond Fund 152.36 152.36 3.59% Stanbic IBTC Ethical Fund 0.76 0.77 2.00% Stanbic IBTC Guaranteed Investment Fund 182.87 182.87 7.77% Stanbic IBTC Iman Fund 132.74 134.39 -1.91% Stanbic IBTC Money Market Fund 100.00 100.00 16.48% Stanbic IBTC Nigerian Equity Fund 7,418.67 7,516.73 3.21% UNITED CAPITAL ASSET MANAGEMENT LTD unitedcapitalplcgroup.com Web: www.unitedcapitalplcgroup.com; Tel: +234 803 306 2887 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn United Capital Balanced Fund 1.14 1.16 8.40% United Capital Bond Fund 1.25 1.25 15.97% United Capital Equity Fund 0.68 0.69 -1.31% United Capital Money Market Fund 1.00 1.00 13.00% ZENITH ASSETS MANAGEMENT LTD info@zenith-funds.com Web: www.zenith-funds.com; Tel: +234 1-2784219 Fund Name Bid Price Offer Price Yield / T-Rtn Zenith Equity Fund 9.49 9.65 -0.54% Zenith Ethical Fund 11.08 11.17 -3.30% Zenith Income Fund 16.81 16.81 4.77%

REITS

NAV Per Share

Yield / T-Rtn

11.58 122.85

3.99% 6.04%

Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

8.55 73.19

8.65 74.58

-10.70% -12.05%

Fund Name FSDH UPDC Real Estate Investment Fund SFS Skye Shelter Fund

EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS

Fund Name Lotus Halal Equity Exchange Traded Fund Stanbic IBTC ETF 30 Fund

VETIVA FUND MANAGERS LTD Web: www.vetiva.com; Tel: +234 1 453 0697

Fund Name Vetiva Banking Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Consumer Goods Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Griffin 30 Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva Industrial Goods Exchange Traded Fund Vetiva S&P Nigeria Sovereign Bond Exchange Traded Fund

funds@vetiva.com Bid Price

Offer Price

Yield / T-Rtn

2.51 7.17 11.82 15.63 128.68

2.55 7.25 11.92 15.83 130.68

8.58% 12.13% -5.79% -18.54% -

The value of investments and the income from them may fall as well as rise. Past performance is a guide and not an indication of future returns. Fund prices published in this edition are also available on each fund manager’s website and FMAN’s website at www.fman.com.ng. Fund prices are supplied by the operator of the relevant fund and are published for information purposes only.

62

FRIDAY NOVEMBER 18, 2016 T H I S D AY

63

T H I S D AY • FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2016

FRIDAYSPORTS Russia 2018: Rohr Meets Aina’s Father over Nigeria Switch

Group Sports Editor Duro Ikhazuagbe Email duro.ikhazuagbe@thisdaylive.com

Holds talks with Idowu in Russia Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja The desire of Super Eagles coach, Gernot Rohr, to integrate young footballers of Nigerian heritage into the Super Eagles fold ahead of the 2018 World Cup in Russia has got a big boost after the coach said he held positive talks with the father of Ola Aina in London.

Rohr also confirmed holding talks with the prodigiously talented Brian Oladapo Idowu, who plays in Russia for FC Amkar Perm.

Aina is with Chelsea and has already represented England at all junior phases, including U-16 and U-20 and has the potential to step up into the Three Lions.

The right fullback, who made his first team appearance on July 19, 2014, in a pre-season friendly against Wimblebon, was given his professional debut by manager Antonio Conte in a 3–2 victory over Bristol Rovers in the English Football League Cup on August 23, 2016.

He made his Premier League debut in a 3–0 victory over champions Leicester City, when he replaced Victor Moses towards the end of the match.

The London-born player is eligible to play for Nigeria given that he is yet to be capped in competitive game

by England in addition to the fact that his two parents are of Nigerian origin.

Rohr revealed last night that he met with Aina’s father while in London recently for exploratory talks with Nigerian players and their EPL club managers.

The prospect of the Eagles switch was broached during the talks, though THISDAY learnt that Rohr, who was appointed Eagles manager in August, had placed Aina on his radar and even sent an emissary to convince the talented defender into buying his philosophy.

The German finally succeeded when he met the player’s father to discuss the Eagles proposition in London.

He admitted to getting encouraging signals from Aina’s father, who asked him to hold on and give the family more time to consider the offer of international switch on the table.

THISDAY also learnt that Aina was also positive after a separate meeting Rohr and was said to be pondering on all options.

The 24- year-old Idowu, who is also a defender also discussed with the Eagles coach and was similarly upbeat about the prospect of representing the Nigerian national team.

Idowu was born in St

Port Harcourt Club Holds Captain’s Cup Tourney The 2016 edition of Port Harcourt Club 1924 will tee off tomorrow.

The tournament is to be organised in honour of Sir Emmanuel Okene, who has served his term as the captain of the golf section.

Golfers from all the Port Harcourt clubs in addition to players from Ogunnu Warri, Benin, Lagos, Aba and other clubs from the southern part of

country will participate in the 18-hole kitty to be sponsored

by Gas stock Nigeria.

A lot of prizes are to be won at the event in many categories including gentlemen nett, gross, guests and veteran.

Okene expressed gratitude to the members of his committee, sponsors and members of the golf section for the invaluable support rendered him in the past 12 months.

… Ikeja Golf Club Warms up for LGAN Open Fans will expect a fierce contest when golfers file out next Thursday for the 2016 Ladies Golf Association of Nigeria (LGAN) Open billed for the Ikeja Golf Club, Lagos.

The Open which will hold from November 24 and 26 is the first since three years and will witness over 200 golfers from the four (LGAN) zones of the country.

The zones which include North, South East, South West and South South have concluded their zonal Opens; this implies the zonal champions will meet in a titanic finals.

Some LGAN champions expected to feature at the event include Amina Wilfred of IBB Club,

Abuja who won Northan Zone championship recently at the GEJ Golf Club, Air Force Base, Abuja and the Enugu Ladies Open and Rachael Danjuma of Jaji Club, who was champion at the Port Harcourt Open.

Others include Evelyn Oyome, South West number one; Faith Baya, South South champions, Diana Okah among other budding lady star golfers who will be contesting for top spots in the game.

Zulu Omo-Ikerodah (Mrs.), LGAN President however, affirmed that preparations are in top gear to ensure a hitch-free event as past presidents, lady captains are expected in attendance.

Petersburg and has a Russian mother who is medical doctor.

He plays in the same club as another Nigerian international, Fegor Ogude.

Meanwhile, Rohr is billed to offer technical assistance to the Super Falcons in their bid to win their eighth Africa Women Championship in Cameroun.

The Falcons will play in Group B against Mali, Kenya and Ghana in the tournament which begins on Saturday.

It was further learnt that Rohr, who visited the team’s training sessions in Abuja before they left Nigeria, will join the team coached by Florence Omagbemi midway into the AWC campaign from his vacation in France.

Ola Aina on duty for Chelsea FC

F I FA R A N K I N G S

Eagles Yet to Crack Africa’s Top Ten Step up four places in global rating

Nigeria’s recent success in the 2018 World Cup qualifiers has seen the country improve four places on the FIFA monthly rankings.

The Super Eagles have won two games on the bounce defeating Zambia 2-1 away in Ndola and followed it up with a resounding 3-1 win over Algeria in Uyo to head Group B of the Africa zone of the World Cup qualifiers.

Nigeria is now at number 60 on the World rankings moving up four places with 562 points

from the previous 534 points.

Despite the improvement in the world rankings, the Eagles are yet to crack into Africa’s top ten sides as the Cote d’Ivoire lead the continent for the second straight month after toppling Nigeria’s Group B rivals Algeria.

Cameroun, whom the Eagles face next in the Russia 2018 qualifiers is in 10th place, just one spot above the Eagles while Zambia is way down at number 94 in the world

and 24th in Africa.

Argentina still occupies the top

AFRICA’S TOP TEN Cote d’Ivoire Senegal Algeria Tunisia Ghana Egypt Congo DR Congo Mali Cameroun

spot in the world just ahead of Germany and Brazil.

WORLD TOP TEN Argentina Germany Brazil Belgium Colombia Chile France Portugal Uruguay Spain

CAF Beach Soccer: LOC, SWAN Sign MoU on Publicity The Local Organising Committee (LOC) for the Second CAF Beach Soccer Africa Cup of Nations and the Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN) have agreed on a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the competition’s media operations and publicity.

The signature ceremony was held at the secretariat of the LOC, at Eko Football House, Onikan in Lagos, yesterday afternoon, with the LOC Chairman, SeyiAkinwunmi, and the SWAN President, Honour Sirawoo, signing on behalf of both bodies.

While speaking at the occasion, Akinwunmi who also doubles as NFF’s First Vice President said the MoU was conceived towards achieving the stated objective of delivering the competition scheduled to open on December 13 at the Eko Atlantic City in Lagos and making it the best ever held.

He noted that the interface through the agreement was a landmark event in institutional relations for the good of the game. ``The agreement entails the guarantee by the LOC of adequate and functional facilities for media and publicity operations while SWAN is to ensure maximum publicity with accurate and realtime reporting of the event to both local and international audience. ``The agreement states that

SWAN President, Honour Sirawoo (left) and First Vice President of the NFF, Seyi Akinwunmi, at the signing of the MoU on the CAF Beach Soccer Tournament in Lagos… yesterday SWAN shall provide adequate and coordinated media coverage of the 2016 AFCON Beach Soccer Tournament, ensure adequate publicity before during and after the tournament, utilise the media to mobilise the public and handle the conduct of pre- and post-match interviews. ``On its part, the LOC shall ensure the provision of access to the on-site media centre for accredited

journalists, provide a workroom with desktops, laptops, printers, photocopiers, wireless fidelity (wifi), conference room and mixed zone for interviews, equipment support and other facilities to enhance the work of journalists,’’ Akinwunmi said.

The tournament chief also added that the LOC wants the event to be world-class. ``One of the ways to achieve

this is through the media, as well as how the event is packaged and communicated to the public. I and my colleagues in the LOC are happy to interface with SWAN in this regard because it is high time we started interfacing properly. ``We must grow our sports and interface in a different way from the past, to ensure accountability, responsibility and mutual respect,” Akinwunmi explained. ``Members of our committee have expressed total support and commitment to the MoU. What we have signed may just be paper but the spirit of the understanding is what is important. ``Over time, this will strengthen institutional relations. We will provide all that is needed by the media to perform. It is a Nigerian project and we expect the media to deliver to project Nigeria as serious and capable.”

In his remarks, the SWAN President noted that the objectives of the association emphasise commitment to not just publicity but also the promotion of sports.

He pointed out that in Great Britain as well as in other top sporting nations, the body of sports journalists work with the organisers of sporting events, sometimes as consultants, to ensure success, saying this is the new direction of SWAN.

TR

Friday, November 18, 2016

UT H

& RE A S O

N

Price: N250

MISSILE Dambazzau to Dasuki

“As Minister of Interior, I discussed the issue with the Director General of DSS, Lawal Daura, on the need to allow the former NSA to see his father in the hospital Monday night, but when he was given the offer he rejected it. As the first son of the deceased, he was also offered the opportunity to attend his father’s funeral in Sokoto and even stay with his siblings and relatives throughout the mourning period but he refused. In fact, he opted to pray for his father while in detention. So, this is the true situation.” – Minister of Interior, Abdulrahman Dambazau, accusing a former National Security Adviser (NSA) Sambo Dasuki of rejecting an offer by the Department of State Services (DSS) to attend the funeral of his father.

SHAKAMOMODU THIS REPUBLIC

shaka.momodu@thisdaylive.com

0811 266 1654

Ondo Polls: As Deviant INEC Joins the Fray…

O

nce again, Nigeria’s democratic march is being undermined by unscrupulous elements whose actions are threatening to bring down the peace and rip law and order to shreds. You find these elements within the political class, the electoral body and the judiciary all conspiring to undermine the democratic process.

Fellow Nigerians, for those who don’t know and for those who pretend not to know, democracy is under siege. The unfolding twists and turns over who is the authentic Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate for the November 26 election in Ondo State are not by accident, but by deliberate design plotted and executed by a cabal of insatiable power grabbers and phoney trophy hunters in cahoots with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). INEC by its decision to substitute Candidate Eyitato Jegede who emerged through a proper primary process it duly monitored with the controversial candidate, Jimoh Ibrahim, who emerged through a phoney process in Ibadan with no legally accredited delegates, no police report and was not even monitored by its officials, has grotesquely violated the Electoral Act. The electoral umpire has murdered sleep, and it will sleep no more. From an impartial umpire, it has thrown its hat in the ring and made itself a party in the needless conflict. By a stroke of the pen, it has rewritten the rules guiding primaries and the emergence of parties’ standard-bearers. In a nutshell, it is saying it need not necessarily monitor the primaries of any party; that it no longer need police report as well; more surprisingly, that any individual dissatisfied with their party’s choice of a candidate can simply organise their own primaries anywhere in the country, and get a Justice Abang to order INEC to recognise such a candidate by judicial fiat. Co’mon INEC! Stupidity is better hidden than displayed in public. By that decision to remove Jegede’s name from the list of candidates for the election even when there was a valid court order not to do so, INEC has created a cloud of suspicion about its motives which have in turn created a volatile situation in the state.

INEC’s argument that it merely obeyed a court order falls flat in the face of another order by a court of coordinate jurisdiction to retain Jegede as the candidate of the PDP. Again, by caving in to pressure from the forces of darkness to railroad their candidates into offices at all costs, INEC is systematically eroding all the gains of our recent years to deepen democracy.

And whoever is teleguiding INEC has no interest in building and sustaining this democracy. And for those who can see, Nigeria is being guided to a path where it will sleep no more. It is a shame that

Mahmood Yakubu INEC Chairman

the greatest beneficiaries of democracy are doing everything in the book to undermine the processes that strengthened what was so magnanimously handed over to them to nurse and nurture without a contest at the court.

The electoral umpire has obviously played its hand the wrong way, its credibility and neutrality now stand on such slippery ground that it has become a clear danger to the nation’s democratic process. You cannot approbate and reprobate at the same time. In Edo, it approbated and in Ondo, it reprobated (under the guise of obeying a court order) on very similar issues. By its decision to recognise the Abang-imposed candidate, INEC is telling the whole world that it now officially recognises the existence of two PDP factions. In the recent election in Edo State, it is pertinent to recall that INEC recognised the candidate produced by the Makarfi-led PDP. So what has changed between then and now? My gut feeling is that the intra-party power play in the ruling APC has raised the stakes so high that the winning faction is desperate to bitch-slap the losing faction and thump its chest that it can win without the support of Jagaban Borgu of Bourdillion – all the more so because the 2019 general election is drawing near.

As the Court of Appeal noted recently, Abang’s deviant rulings and orders have become the most potent threats to Nigeria’s democracy. For some curious reason, he is the only one deemed fit to handle almost all PDP-related cases emanating from the Modu Sheriff faction.

The ongoing conspiracy between the impostor, the Sheriff-led faction of the PDP, alongside its candidate, Ibrahim, the nemesis of the PDP, Justice Okon Abang whom the Appeal Court accused of raping democracy in his controversial judgment on the Abia governorship controversy; and the cabal within the executive arm to steal – in other words, to weaken the candidate of the PDP will inevitably set a dangerous precedent that threatens to torpedo the entire democratic process, the consequences of which no

one can predict. But even as some of us put our fears in black and white, I am persuaded by the genetics of history and the ruthless resolve of their ambition that the forces at play will not relent in their dark machinations. More so that, they have become emboldened by the cold and deliberate silence of civil society groups who claim to be the custodians of public morality and adherence to the rule of law. It is one of the contradictions that keep some of us awake all night, worried stiff about the way we are. The question are, can their reputations survive their silence? How can things that were wrong under the PDP-led government suddenly become right in the activists’ eyes under the APC? The impunities the human rights activists condemned under the PDP have become worst under the present APC government. Why are there no condemnations pouring in from the purists? Why are there no world press conferences addressed by intellectual giants on the state of the nation? Why is there no outcry from Nigerians who should feel a sense of righteous indignation and revulsion at the appalling developments in Ondo State? Instead, it seems there is a feeling of gleeful satisfaction from the human rights groups. Even more perplexing is that we can feel a sense of romantic lust for more absurdities and bestialities to achieve the ruling party’s medieval desire for conquest rooted in an ideology of feudal hegemony. And to crown it all, senior members of the party are pushing for the suspension of the rule of law which is now being cynically branded even by lawyers as the cause of our problems. It is entertaining for them that others are at the receiving end of this blistering assault, but the danger to the future is real and truly frightening because any other administration after this will be tempted to follow the bad example of today. Unfortunately, as some people cheer the country into an era of a “moderated” rule of law, or dictatorship, Nigerians have tragically become victims of the change they yearned for.

The Court of Appeal panel that cowardly withdrew from delivering justice merely played into the hands of the cabal on the grounds of a petition against it. It is now the easiest way by agents of mischief to blackmail the judiciary into abdicating its duty. Democracy can’t survive if people fail to take a principled stand against the forces of blackmail, manipulation, arbitrariness, despotism and fascist inclinations. Why didn’t the panel deal with the petition by putting the petitioner in the dock to prove his allegations; failure to do so, jail him for casting aspersions on the integrity of members of the panel to serve as a deterrent to others?

There is a precedent set by the late erudite Justice Ligali Ayorinde who convicted our own irrepressible Gani Fawehinmi of

blessed memory of contempt in the early ‘90s. If my memory serves me correctly, Fawehinmi had filed a motion alleging Ayorinde’s likelihood of bias in a case before his court. Instead of scampering in flight because of a potential conflict of interest as alleged by Fawehinmi, Justice Ayorinde decided to boldly deal with the motion first on the grounds that the law empowered him to do so and ruled that he won’t be bias and subsequently convicted Fawehinmi of contempt. The conviction was later overturned by the Court of Appeal.

Instead of the Appeal Court panel to seize the moment for the ages, they allowed the petitioner to succeed in putting them to flight thereby getting his wish without proving his allegations. Why should that be allowed? Emboldened by that success, the same forces behind the earlier petition are already questioning the make-up of the new panel. In other words, the petitioners will always raise questions about any panel set up to expeditiously deal with the monstrous injustice done by Justice Abang and INEC. Their diabolical intentions are not lost on anybody - clearly to frustrate the case before the election on November 26, thereby throwing the mainstream PDP into disarray.

It is noteworthy that this issue was even straighter than the challenge posed by the Edo polls. The million dollar questions are: why didn’t INEC follow its own precedent set in the Edo polls? Now that it has recognised two factions of the same party, what next? From the look of things, it has created a total mess in the party by strengthening the Sheriff faction to become even more intransigent to peace. If Sheriff were not President Muhammadu Buhari’s brother-in-law, would he be spending this energy, making an absolute nuisance of himself? And whose interests do his actions serve if not the interest of the ruling party?

Now, let’s go back to the issue of INEC being a threat to our democracy. For over a year since the courts annulled the elections of all members of the Senate and the House of Representatives from Rivers State, INEC has refused to conduct rerun elections, citing security concerns. This is the same INEC that conducted election in Borno, the hotbed of Boko Haram. It also conducted a rerun to replace a dead senator in the same Borno. I would hazard a guess that INEC refused to conduct elections in Rivers because it feared the APC didn’t stand a good chance of winning in the state. But less than 48 hours after the Senate threatened to go on “strike” in protest against INEC’s failure to conduct the elections, the shamed electoral umpire which is anything but neutral released a timetable for the Rivers rerun elections and all others still pending. What does that tell us? The answer is “blowin’ in the wind”.

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